It’s been exactly a month since my last post, which is not the longest break between posting, but not exactly the regular blogging I keep meaning to do. Oh well. But I do have a few things to share, so let’s get started.
First, the Kindle ebook of Side Roads is currently on $0.99. If you’d like to own it for a couple bucks less than its normal price, you can check it out here.
Secondly, I’ve been chilling…perhaps a little too much. I was deathly ill the weekend prior to Halloween, with lingering effects. Then, just as I was starting to feel better, all the kids came down with the flu and passed it on to my spouse and then to me. So, that was another two weeks lost to the void. And then, when I finally started to feel better from that, it was time for family and friend obligations, and baking, and kids’ activities.
Speaking of baking… This time of year, I get out my recipes and cookbooks, dust them off, and start baking with a frenzy. So far, I’ve made a batch of lemon crinkle cookies, pumpkin bread, molasses drop cookies (which turned into molasses-honey-agave drop cookies when I ran out of the signature ingredient halfway through baking), chocolate chip cookies (although I don’t really like the recipe I used and am going to try another), pumpkin pie, crust, French bread rolls (note to self, don’t use that recipe for rolls–crust is too thick and hearty, and a batch of delicious bagels made the correct way (boiling in water and then baked in the oven. I plan to keep going with the cookies, as I have many more to whip up, as well as a cranberry apple pie recipe I found. Tis the season when people seem to be more willing to eat the things I make, and I really enjoy baking for people, so I’m getting my baked goods mojo going.
In addition to baking and socializing and putting books on sale, I’ve also been doing a bunch of reading. I’m within six books of my Goodreads reading challenge total, and have been enjoying a good deal of Josh Malerman (Goblin, Daphne, Black Mad Wheel and Unbury Carol), as well as Grady Hendrix (Final Girl Support Group), and others. I’ve been thinking more and more about the horror novel I’d like to write, and so I’ve been challenging myself to read longer horror works this year, especially from writers I admire in the genre. As much as I love short horror fiction, approaching a novel requires a similar-yet-different set of skills, and writing a full-length horror project bumps up that intensity times a thousand. From reading Malerman and Maberry and Iglesias and Piper and Graham Jones and Hendrix, I’m learning a lot on how to pose a question at the very beginning, and then keep the reader turning, turning, turning to find the answer at the end of the book, whether they like that answer or not.
And finally, it’s almost December, the time of month when I try to wrap up some projects and set up the next year’s worth of goals. Right now, I want to finish all of the editing for all the Crone Girls projects in the works. Next year, I want to focus on bumping up my writing progress and get a bunch of those projects complete and on their way to whichever publication path is right for them.
But for now, I’m going to get some admin to-dos completed, eat a donut, and pick a short story to start editing.
Peace!
