Hello, July!

Whooosh! That's the sound of summer flying by. (And believe me, that's the fastest moving thing around here. If the tortoises and I had a race, I would not put money on me to win.) Still feeling behind and overwhelmed, but I'm working on having a more positive and grateful mindset overall and that's definitely helping. 

 

WRITING

My story, "Twisted," is out now in INFECTION: DRABBLES 1 (LEGENDS OF THE NIGHT). If you like your apocalyptic zombie fiction bite-sized (ha! get it?!), give it a try! 

 

** AVAILABLE ON AMAZON **

*****

 

READING

The First Day of Spring by Nancy Tucker is chilling, compelling and heartbreaking. The author does an amazing job of humanizing a horrifying character. With a few simple lines, she makes you re-examine everything you thought you knew, making you not necessarily forgive the character but feel for them. 

 

*****

 

WATCHING

Movies – We really liked "Awake" on Netflix. 

 

*****

 

WALKING

We participated in a virtual 5K that raised money for sea turtle conservation and research. During this sweat-soaked stroll, we saw so many turtles - crossing roads, sunning on banks, sticking their little heads out of lakes. They were totally cheering us on! 

 

Miles walked as of 6/30/2021 = 166.5/500 (Click here for what this craziness is all about.) 

 

*****

How's your summer going so far? Made progress on any projects? Have you read or watched anything you'd recommend?  

Hunkering Down

The plan for this summer is to pretty much hunker down and Get. Things. Done. Somehow, life – and that includes everything from health to writing to cleaning - has gotten away from me. Keeping things on track is like herding tortoises back inside the house from the patio (believe me, it's harder than you think.) Time to start moving in a positive direction again!

 

WRITING

In publication news, my flash fiction story, "The Perfect Match", is in Shallow Waters Vol. 7: A Flash Fiction Anthology, and I have two drabbles coming out this summer in anthologies from Black Ink Fiction. 

 

I actually "attended" my first StokerCon – the big conference for horror writers - from the comfort of my own home. I watched panel after panel and learned so much. I took pages and pages of handwritten notes, all of which I'm hoping I will be able to decipher. 

*****

 

READING

We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker is a little more of a slower paced book than I usually read but the writing! The characters! The revelations toward the end! The ending! The book just blew me away. 

***** 

 

WATCHING

Movies – "Rent-A-Pal" was creepy, sad, and unsettling.

 

TV – We finally finished watching "Justified" and overall absolutely LOVED it! The last episode was excellent and the very last scene was just perfect. 

***** 

 

TORTOISES

Larry and Mrs. Larry are now 12 years old! They celebrated by having one of their favorite treats – banana!  The rest of us had cake.

***** 

 

WALKING

Seriously, what was I thinking? Why did I let my husband convince me to do this 500 miles walk? Why didn't we just do the 100 miles? We'd be done already! Why did I think I could do this? (Okay, whiny rant over. For now.)

 

Miles walked as of 5/31/2021 = 137.2/500 (Click here for what this craziness is all about.)

 

***** 

 

Any projects – creative or otherwise – you plan to tackle this summer? Have you read or watched anything great lately? How about a pep talk, a butt kick, or a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup . . . or two? I need all the help I can get!