I am taking a stab at NaNoWriMo after all. I am pretty late to the party, but I am not too concerned with that. I just want to get the flow of writing started and for some unknown, yet loved reason, I am inspired. Hope this gets your interest piqued and keeps you wanting more. 




ENJOY



The scents hit her before her eyes even opened. Since the aromas were unfamiliar to her, and she obviously wasn’t in her own bed like she was when she fell asleep, she decided to investigate while under the ruse of sleep still. She sniffed slowly and silently, trying to judge what exactly what it was. She picked up hints of bread baking, which made her stomach growl like a traitor. She kept her breathing slow and deep to fool anyone who might be watching her, but her pulse had sped up considerably. The only other scent she could recognize was the scent of apples cooking. From what she could tell, there was cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and sugar involved. Perhaps a pie or tart was being cooked along with the bread.


After a moment of savoring the aromatic air, she switched her concentration to the sounds. There wasn’t a lot to go by. A faint bubbling sound came from what she guessed was a nearby stove. No sounds of movement came, so she slowly opened her eyes. What she saw took her breath away...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-EdCNjumvI

The link above is for the video by Limp Bizkit for the song Gotta Have Faith

There's a lot more to it than just a song by Limp Bizkit. And before anyone says anything, yes I know it was a cover of George Michael's song. I just like Limp Bizkit's version better....


But anyway....back to the subject.

Faith.

It has become a big part of my life lately. I regularly speak with Jesus and God, listen to uplifting Christian music and try to be a much better person than I used to. I have found that praying to God for strength, humility and guidance has helped me greatly. I am not saying that it is the path for everyone, but for myself, it is.

To quote one of my favorite and most inspiring songs I have recently found:

"Well everybody's got a story to tell. And everybody's got a wound to be healed. I wanna believe there's beauty here. Because oh, I get so tired of holding on. I can't let go, I can't move on. I wanna believe there's meaning here. How many times have you heard me cry out God please take this. How many times have you given me strength to just keep breathing. Oh I need you. God, I need you now!"  ~Plumb "Need You Now (How Many Times)"

This song really speaks to me so often, and it comes to mind when I see others struggling as well. I listen to it when I need to pray for myself or another. Just last night in fact, there was a reason to listen to it. I really hope the song being played in the other room helped the person who was struggling.

Basically, what I am saying is that I, a person who just months ago claimed paganism as my spiritual calling, is now very much a believer in God and Christ. My heart swells when I talk about how much better I feel and how much He fills me with love and joy so much more than I fill myself with sorrow and fear. I have finally found my true path. And I couldn't be more elated!

My advice to anyone reading this that feels lost is simply this: Search your heart and soul, test all the waters and never do anything that feels wrong to you no matter what those around you say. You may have been raised Catholic and feel confused. That is ok. Even if your family thinks otherwise. You need to find your own true path with whatever deity calls to you. For me, I came back to Christianity (not the church, but the faith) after MANY years away. For some, Atheism is their path...and THAT IS OK! No matter what feels right in your heart, it is YOUR spiritual health, no one else's. Just don't argue when someone prays for you in their own faith. A prayer is a prayer no matter how you look at it. Hoping for another's well-being is never bad. So please, be kind to others if that is their only difference you disagree with. They mean well, even if they aren't praying the way you think they should.

That song also gives me renewed faith in my writing. That first line of the song "Everybody's got a story to tell." For me, that is speaking directly to me. Now if only God would grant me the discipline to stick with it! ;)

In the last few weeks, my mind has been chaos. There are personal obstacles I have had to face head on and I am still slowly jumping those tremendous hurdles. With writing, I have been for more and more ideas to get me motivated again, but they all seem to fall flat. 

At times, I want to simply give up. My pessimistic side says "You've been. You achieved your dream; your goal. Why not just relax and let it go?" 

The writer in me, the side of me that literally squealed upon receipt of the acceptance email, says simply: "No way in hell are you quitting! You remember that feeling of being accepted and published? You can do it again!"

I have decided to listen to the latter of the two. The optimist, the dreamer, the WRITER! So...I may try a gazillion different techniques to get myself motivated, and it may get annoying or messy at times. I'm not backing down though.

Oh yeah! I can't forget to mention the epiphany I had while at work last night. For any of you who are familiar with a well-loved character of mine that's been on hiatus for...well, over a year now...

Tabbi's coming back!!!!


However, that is the only hint you are getting. Don't know Tabbi? *smirks* You will.

I need to start doing regular posts on here. Even if it is once a week. So I was thinking to start, I would just do a weekly post. The reasoning for only weekly is because we will be moving soon and I don't think a daily post will be an option in the foreseeable future. 

To start, I am going to do a weekly W.I.P. post. This will get me (hopefully) pushed to write more often so that I have something to actually post ABOUT. Lately, I have been neglecting my writing; my art. The passion is there, but I have been lax...

No, lax isn't the proper word. I have been simply and purely lazy with it. Laziness denotes a lack of caring, and I certainly DO care. Getting published for the first time this month got my blood boiling for writing again, but every time I thought about writing I simply sat still instead of getting up and moving to the computer to write. I carry my notebooks with me everywhere, yet I rarely open them to pen words. There are worlds inside my head, and characters screaming at me to let them out. 

It is time to silence the screams. The characters should be heard. I should be heard. 

Now that today is Sunday, I make this promise to myself and my readers. I will start a weekly post about what I am writing. Perhaps a short excerpt will be included; perhaps not. It is my W.I.P. post, therefore I will decide. Of course. Once during every week, I shall update regarding my work. It may be on a Monday one week or a Friday the next, but there WILL be an update. I am even going to create a tab on this site just for the W.I.P. posts. 

For those of you who don't know, W.I.P. stands for Writing In Progress. 

I hope you enjoy the posts to come. 

While I don't exactly have time to write a full blog, I do want to share with the world that HerStory: Fiction Honoring Women's History Month was released for the public to buy earlier today!!! I have two stories within the book myself titled Please Stay and Your Honor, May I? The latter being very close to my heart and dedicated to my great grandmothers, may they rest in peace. 

On Amazon
Smashwords
Barnes & Nobel

You can buy the book at any of the links listed above. This has to be one of the BEST birthday gifts ever!! This now published writer just turned 31 years young yesterday. Between the day itself and the release of HerStory, this birthday has officially gone down in my book as the most memorable and exciting one yet. 

Please enjoy the book!! There were 26 other writers who did an amazing job putting this book together! Buy it to support them if not me. 

Tara & Angie did an amazing job on everything as well...and once I have a proper time to write a more OFFICIAL blog post, I will name more women involved who are very deserving of the credit. 

Also for full details on the giveaways, check out HerStory Blog.

I just wanted to kind of update about everything from my writing, the show I am currently obsessed with, what I am reading and my new family member.

First, Pinky seems to be adjusting well. He ate well on Saturday. He has mites now though, which can be quite deadly to snakes and annoying as well. I have plans to go pick up more food for him as well as some mite spray to start treating him. I really hope they don't reinfest too much. I want to keep my boy healthy and alive.

As for my writing, nothing new has come forth. I just don't have the urge to write. Though I should be pushing myself and continuously be looking for inspiration, but I just don't have the drive to do it at the moment. Some might say I am not a true writer or that I don't really want to succeed. That is so far from the truth. I just want it to stay something I love to do rather than push myself into success to the point that it becomes a chore and I don't want to anymore.
The anthology is coming together quite well from what I understand. It is due to be published sometime in March for Women's History Month.

I am still reading Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice. It is slow going because of the shows I keep getting myself stuck on. I need to finish the current one and stay off of Netflix for a while. Haha.

Speaking of the shows I am obsessed with, right now I am in the middle of season two of Lost Girl. While the acting & writing is a bit on the "needs work" side, I still love the idea of the show, and I love the characters Kenzie, Dyson, Trick and Hale. The rest of the characters could really use some work. Also, having a succubus falling in love and trying to be monogamous? Come on people! But Kenzie cracks me up, Trick intrigues me with all of his secrets, and Dyson makes me lick my lips...and I find myself wanting to know more about Hale.

My health...part of me doesn't want to post this part because I really don't want to get a bunch of grief for not taking care of myself. I shall make this brief. I haven't been testing or sticking to my diabetic diet. So shoot me. I am paying my prices....trust me. The water intake is increasing once again and salads have replaced the pastas and pizza rolls in my fridge again. Testing my blood sugar will resume after a full day of proper diet. I know...there are a lot of risks to this kind of behavior. I am fully aware. I just find myself sighing and rolling my eyes at the whole thing. I love food...and it seems like such a travesty to not enjoy the foods you put into your mouth...to be on a constant diet. The energy and lack of pain...and the proper digestion would all be worth it, but for some reason, I find myself struggling. I will do well for a while and then revert. I have to want it...really want it........but I don't yet.

So there you have it. The latest on me. Just getting things off my chest and letting anyone who actually reads this crap all about what has been going on with moi.

Peace <3

On January 11th in the morning, I hit the button on my smart phone to sync my email. After just a few short moments, I hear the "Utini" that alerts me of a new email. I check it, and one of my dearest friends had sent me an email that included this link:

http://herstoryanthology.blogspot.com/2013/01/strength-comes-in-many-forms.html

After reading the blog post calling to writers for their short stories, I knew I had to write a piece for the project. How could I not? This topic screamed at me with inspiration. My original idea was to write a piece based in Renaissance Scotland.

After a death in my family, my desire to write something a bit different came about. There are some who know the context of my new story, but not everyone. I am going to wait and let people read it for themselves.

I submitted the 2,052 word story to the editor today around 6pm Central time and awaited the answer nervously. I was talking to a friend about it via text around 9:30pm when my email refreshed and there it was: the acceptance email. I nearly hyperventilated in my excitement and awe. I was ACCEPTED!!! Me! Something I wrote was accepted for the project, and I was amazed. I was crying happy tears when I called the friend who originally sent me the link.

My mother was called, my best friends were called, and even friends I hadn't spoken to in years. This really is some of the best news of my life. Now...to calm down and wait for the edits to come back and contracts to be drawn up for publishing. After this whole thing is finished, I can really call myself a professional, published writer.