The Scot's getting me in trouble again!

As is normal with all of my characters, Stewart - a.k.a. The Scot - talks to me.  He loves to go along on my perusal of the various thrift shop sites where sewing machines may be listed.  The thrill of the hunt for a vintage machine.  He's been pushing me to get a Singer "Rocketeer" for the past few months, and while I've found some, none of them are quite in the price range or condition I would like them to be.  They're really kind of cool and techie looking though, and have a wide range of stitches available.

Here's one to give you an idea - very 50's Jetson-y styling.

He got more excited about a find for a vintage Singer that is aluminum, was built in Scotland, and is available within my state.  Best part is the case would also fit my grandmother's machine.  Hard part is deciding how much I'm willing to spend on a new "toy" when I still have 10 at home that need attention.

Besides, I have tons of writing to do, NaNoWriMo is coming up and I have technical presentations and several exams to pass for work.  Why do my characters not understand that I have to make a living and can't devote all of my time to their stories?  Am I the only one with this particular problem?

I've been baaaadddd....

I haven't blogged here in way too long. That's because I've been busy with my 2 other blogs (which I will eventually link here - but later). One's my techie blog, that acts as my purse for all my tech notes that I need for my day job. The other one is my new blog for my new etsy site, and which holds the clue as to why I've been bad here.

To be fair, I did get a huge chunk written on Collie's first book (25,000+ words - she was very chatty), I got editing done on Jess' first book, rewrote the synopsis for A Reluctant Psychic, and added some to Merie's story, so I've been busy.

Also, I have a new obsession which has resulted in a new character popping up, and a possible new series, revolving around an older, talented, gentleman who restores vintage sewing machines. He's in the back of my head telling me "Oh, lookie there, what a nice little machine that could be with just a bit of TLC and elbow grease". Great. Thanks. Just what I need, another vintage sewing machine. Aren't 6 enough? My Kenmore doesn't count yet, it's still in it's teen years.

Here's what I know about "The Scot". He's from the UK, I'm thinking Scotland, but I'm not sure as his accent isn't hugely thick. He's a widow, and I keep picturing him in the NorthEast, but I also see him in the UK, so he may be hopping back and forth. His wife got him into saving old machines, and he continues it as a labor of love for his late wife. She's a cute little thing, about 5'1', masses of red curls, with a touch of grey, fiesty, with a perpetual twinkle in deep blue eyes. He's about 5'10" now, a bit shorter due to age, salt and pepper wavy hair, with dark eyes, and BIG hands from years of mechanical work. Always with a twinkle in his eye and a quick smile, I'm not sure of his name yet either. He makes me smile like Merie makes me smile. He was a whisper in the back of my head when I got this little beauty home and out of it's trapped location inside a bent wood case with a bent lock.

The Scot popped in full force when I decided on a name for this old, neglected beauty that was my grandmother's and is now mine. I've named her Black Betty, and have dubbed her restoration project "The Black Betty Project" at which he let out a musical belly laugh. He's really quite charming.

So please forgive my lapses in posting here, I promise to try to get better at it. I have so much to do, machines to restore, pages to write, an agent to find, and a short story to get ePublished. Oh, and I've learned how to can, make jam and pickles, and next weekend I'm learning how to make and can salsa. It's a very good thing I'm a Gemini...otherwise I'd be a bit freaked out about all the people in my head. :)

Time flies too fast!

I'm so behind on so many things this summer. First there was the month-long delay in getting my veggies in the ground - more of which is being done this 3-day weekend - and then there's been the 12 to 16 hour work days that have been going on, so I haven't updated my blogs. I'm overwhelmed at best.

I still have to get the list of writer's links added to this blog site, get the tech stuff added to my tech blog (sometimes I wonder why I bother then some techie friend says "hey, your post helped me" and I'm guilted into maintaining it), and change the format here to include additional pages.

Plus I need to find an editor for the short story from Collie's life submitted into a Paranormal Romanace genre contest just to see how it does. Plus Jess has been bugging me to work on the real-life book of my grandparent's lives, plus get her 2nd book wrapped up and 3rd book started. Oh yeah, and where-oh-where can I find an editor?

Remember those old sexist commercials by Calgon? I feel like I'm stuck in a "Calgon, take me away!" loop lately. Maybe a Jack & Pepsi will do the trick instead.

Summer = Busy, busy, busy, busy

I either need a clone or a drudge to give me an extra hand. I would not have been able to finish my raised bed planters in time without the help of my dear husband, but I could still use more help for juggling all my plates.

Summer is always highly anticipated for me. I'm a "Sun Child", and the snow was way too long this year. I've finally been able to get my some of my seedlings into one of the raised beds, but I still have tons of sewing and needlework projects that need attention.

My writing ends up being shelved during the first busy months and by August the girls are hollering so loudly that I have no chance but to sit down and crank out pages and pages on each of their stories. This year, they seem to have been affected by the longer cold season and want attention NOW! For this I need an extra one of me, or a jack to download my stories as I barely have time to blog posts done for the all the sites I maintain or am an co-editor for.

Unfortunately, summer also ramps up my busy season for work as schools start their summer rush to get new tech systems in place. I guess I don't really need to sleep.

Need to Write, Chaos Reigns again

I have a day job, one that I actually enjoy greatly, but it does get in the way of writing sometimes. Today is one of those days. I can't seem to focus and am taking a time out to jot a few things down here just to relieve some of the chaos.

Part of the wandering brain and Jess' fussing at me may be due, in part, to the fact that my beloved pickup truck is currently at the mechanic. It's possible that the transmission or transfer case may need replacement and if the bill is too steep I won't be able to get it fixed. Which has my hubby nudging me, gently, to the possibility it may be time to replace it. I really don't want to do that, I'd rather restore it. Fact is though I need a vehicle, my job is not conducive to alternative modes of transportation.

So Jess is fussing that I should keep it. I've had it a long time, it's got tons of miles on it and still runs really well, and fact is I really do love my truck. Jess has an old truck too, one that was her grandfather's and I understand the weird love for their trucks that truck owners have. Even more so than anyone with a muscle car. Perhaps because our trucks bail us (and often our friends) out when things are tight and a true workhorse is needed. Jess will never let her grandfather's truck go again and it's a big part of what's keeping her sober. Paul saved it once already for her; he may not be so willing if she falls horrible again.

Merie's quieter today while Collie's gotten more vocal about stupid humans and why can't I just grow wings like her and fly around. Yeah, right like that'll work! Elephants can't fly for a reason, and my ever-expanding butt is in the same boat as elephants. Collie's being very unreasonable for some reason that even Bambi can't fathom. She is coming-of-age in faerie terms, so maybe it's a version of faerie PMS kicking in that I haven't yet to "see". Or maybe she's just being pissy because the weather is so weird lately.

Who knows? My characters are what they are, volatile personalities in their own ways. I just wish we had that brain-to-PC-interface done already so I could quickly download all of their chattering into their various story lines.

I still wonder some days if I'm slipping into dementia early.

Writing & Bin Laden

So, according to my government Bin Laden is dead. Not sure I completely believe it as I don't trust any politician - even the ones I like - farther than I can throw them. I'll believe it more once Al Qaida (do I have that spelled correctly?) verifies it. Little did I have any idea what the affect would have on my characters.

Jess started hooting and hollering the second I heard about it, with Paul at her side trying to calm her down. She's like me in some ways, and is thrilled we finally got the head honcho. Paul, her BFF and balance, managed to get her to listen to some sound advice from Martin Luther King, Jr. and her mood changed to a more respectful and somber one. After all, many lives were lost for this cause and the world will suffer because of this. Jess may suffer too, I'm not sure on that angle yet.

Collie's been neutral, preferring rather to step back and watch how the human world reacts to this latest upheaval in global politics. She's been tsk'ing in my head some, shaking her head at our own destruction and fighting her usual battle of reconciling the Fey and Human components of her own life.

And that brings me to Merie. She's been unusually loud and chatty all day. Throwing her hands in the air, shaking her head, and chewing out Satan while shaking her finger in his face. He swears he had no hand in any of the 9/11 tragedies and that Osama was not one of his minions. Merie is concerned about the potential for erupting violence that may escalate to humans destroying themselves - once again.

As none of this really has to do with any of my character's current stories, I'm uncertain as to why they're so chatty about this. I guess I'll find out soon enough. I would appreciate it though if Merie would pipe down a bit so I can get some sleep tonight. I've got an early morning for my SDJ!

Character Chaos

I need to double the hours of free time in my day. Now that summer's here, gardening is on the mind, I have a new video game addiction, lots of To Do's around the house, ad not enough time to write. Normally, getting a 1/2 hour to write would be enough to quiet my characters down, not so much any more.

Secondary characters in my main series are now demanding their OWN series. The Coven Women are becoming a lot more vocal and demanding, while Paul and Paxton have wedding changes to make, and Collie's world calls while Merie jumps in at inappropriate times to leave me laughing. Perhaps it's a good thing I don't have as much to do at work as I should at this time.

I am considering setting up a regular website to post a few chapters and offer the books for sale "as is" in electronic formats until I can find an agetn/publisher/editor. The money would come direct to me (a plus), but without knowing how to really advertise or publicize it properly then I may only sell one copy and that's it.

The short stories are done and one was submitted, only to find it's not the right "genre" for these folks. Too "mass market paperback" and not "literary" enough. Not a surprise, I do tend to write along lines for the masses and not for the eltist college types. (Yes, I can say that, I do have a degree and am working on a Master's - none in literature though).

For now, my sister is my editor, my friend's who read it love it, and I'm trying to wrap up Collie's first book. Perhaps I'll get that finished in the next NaNoWriMo competition. You never know, I might actually get it done and get some attention on it.

Waiting to hear back from editors and agents is long and boring. Sister's in Crime has conferences coming up in my area again; I'm saving my pennies in hopes of attending and getting some objective criticism on whether or not it's worth chasing a publishing deal on the Jess series. I can always hope and I might have a chance to meet a few authors that I enjoy. One never knows!