Why?

This isn't a writing related post, I just felt the need to vent. I was reading the news today- I know, I probably shouldn't do that- but I was overwhelmed by the stupidity of celebs these days. Why do they do the stupid things they do right in public? Why does Daniel Baldwin feel the need to snort his earnings up his nose? Why does Lindsay Lohan think it's okay to drink like a fish and get behind the wheel of a car? And don't even get me started on Britney Spears. What is it, besides privacy, that these people don't have that makes them feel like they need to break the law all the time? And why do we, Joe Average, keep supporting these people who get away with things that a judge would throw the book at us for? Why do we still read about Britney Spears' latest public display of stupidity? Why pay good money for her CDs when she's just going to blow it on drugs, alcohol and shoes that cost more than most of us make in a year?

We, the people, are the reason these people continue to break the law and get away with it. I mean, seriously, if you and I had done what Lindsay Lohan did we would have spent way more than 84 minutes in jail. Why is it okay for them to drink and drive, steal, and do drugs but not the rest of us? And why do they want to?

I realize that the life of a celebrity isn't an easy one to live but they all chose that profession. They chose to sing, act, dance, put themselves into the public eye and in doing so they chose to be hounded by photogs and never left alone. That was their choice, right? I don't agree with the way the Paparazzi go about getting the pics they need to pay their bills but I really don't agree with people who are in a position to be role models to our nation's children pulling the kind of stunts these people are pulling and getting away with it. What's wrong with this world?

Okay, I'm done ranting. :o)

I have SPACE!!

You heard me right, I said I have space. My very own space to do whatever I want in. Hubby and I decided to clean our room- quite a task because it's a huge room that tends to be a catch-all for stuff that no one knows what to do with. So we cleaned and low and behold we have clean surfaces and empty spots on the walls.

So, back to my space and how it came about; Hubby has this desk in the bedroom that sits at the foot of the bed. It's a good size surface and has drawers and a power supply and big lights over it. Hubby used it to work on his Remote Control cars but he's started using the kitchen table for that because the kitchen table is bigger. So he figured he'd just get rid of the desk but then I started thinking- this is never a good thing. Not only am I a writer but I'm an avid scrapbooker and I haven't been doing much of that since I have nowhere to really set my things up and work on my albums. Sure I could use the kitchen table but then I have to pick everything up and put it all away come dinner time so I just don't get it out.

Thus my brilliant idea. I asked Hubby if he was really set on taking the desk out of our room and he looked at me skeptically. (I'm the one that's been complaining that the desk takes up too much space in our room so his skepticism is understandable) "Noooo." He replies. "Why?"

"Well, I was thinking that it would make a great scrapbook station." (And writing desk when I want to get away from the kids) This last part I didn't vocalize but it was there in my head.

So here I sit at my newly cleaned desk that has nothing more than my laptop on it at the moment but the drawers are chock full of scrapbook supplies that I can now find and use whenever I want!

This is very exciting for me, as I'm sure you can tell, and I wanted to share this wonderful fortune with you all. In a house with four children, uncluttered space is a rare commodity. 

What's in a name?

Today was the final day of the writer's retreat that I attended with Bob Mayer. It was an amazing experience and well worth the money spent. The information I gleaned was invaluable and I believe I've learned more in the last four days than I've learned all year.

We discussed, among other things, pen names. I had sort of unofficially decided to use Marie Peck as my pen name because Danielle Peck is already taken by a delightful country western singer. But Bob suggested that I use my name, Danielle Peck, as my screen name because it could be benificial and looked better on a book cover than Marie...Sooo, what do you all think about using pen names?

An Amazing thing happened yesterday...

A dear friend of mine who happens to live in Australia, emailed me with some information about a writer's workshop that takes place right here on my little island. I looked up the info and contacted the author who is hosting the event- his name is Bob Mayer- and got to talking with him about it. At first the finances just weren't there for me to go but now they are and my wonderful husband is insisting that I go. I'm so excited. Writing is my dream job and to be able to get input and knowledge from a New York Times best selling author is going to be so amazing. I can't wait for next Thursday to arrive. It's four days, here on Whidbey Island at the Saratoga Inn in Langley. What a beautiful place for a workshop!

So, my To Do list, in order for me to be ready to go, includes the following:

• Write a cover letter
• Write a synopsis for City Nanny, Country Singer
• Polish first 20 pages of manuscript
• Send all of above to my wonderful crit partners for a final polishing and do any and all necessary edits.

And you can all be sure that I'll be posting some of the wonderful information I glean from this experience! If anyone wants more information on Bob Mayer, just click on the title of this blog post and it'll take you to his website.

Another year draws to a close

Today is November 1st. The year is 5/6 over already. People over the world are starting their NaNoWriMo challenge. The United States will celebrate Thanksgiving in three short weeks, Christmas 4 weeks after that and a week later it will be 2008. Then it will be time to put into motion New Year's resolutions, force ourselves to remember that it's 2008 when we write a check or some other document that requires the date.

So what will be your goals for the new year? Do you need to eat less and exercise more? Organize your home? Finish a book you're writing, start a new book, find an agent? Learn a new skill? Take up a new hobby or maybe finish that closet full of crafts you started and set aside?

As I look at that list, I find it kind of funny that most of those apply to me! I need to do most of those things, all but the start a new book and find an agent ones.

So tell me, what are some New Year's Resolutions that you're considering?

It's all about the dialog

Come over to Princesses Of The Pen to see what The Royals have to say about Dialog. http://www.princessesofthepen.blogspot.com/

70 Days of Sweat, update 1

How's it going, you ask? Well, if you're hoping to hear that I've written 1500 words a day since October 15, you're going to be sadly disappointed because I've barely been able to write even a third of that. Last night was my daughter's 12 birthday so that was a complete bust even though I did try. I took a shower once the house was quiet and sat down to write, only to fall asleep sitting up because I was so worn out. The rest of the week was just plain hectic. I have managed to get about 1500 words done during the week...much less than I'd hoped to accomplished.

I have learned something, however, from this experience so far and that is this: Even when I'm not at my computer, I find myself thinking much more about what I should be writing which means that when I sit down to write, I actually have something to write about. That's a good thing. Instead of staring at the blinking cursor just hoping for the muse to strike, I'm keeping that muse active throughout the day by engaging it, coming up with sub plots and scenes that would be perfect for this novella that I'm working on. That's a very good thing. I'm not ignoring my Muse then expecting her to show up when I'm ready to work. I have to nurture her and keep her actively on my side so that when I'm ready to work, she's already warmed up and ready too.

What do you all do to get psyched up to write? To prepare your brain and fingers to get down to the business of being creative?

Follow Me once more...

I'm blogging over at Princesses Of The Pen today so come on over and see what my fellow princesses and I have to say about Settings.

http://www.princessesofthepen.blogspot.com

Seventy Days Of Sweat

Yeah sweating for 70 days doesn't sound at all attractive but it holds great appeal to me because I've found myself in a terrible rut where my writing is concerned. So this challenge- write 750-1500 words a day for 70 days beginning October 15- sounds like just what I need to get my head back on the right track. The challenge actually lasts for 93 days because, unlike NaNoWriMo, you actually get some free days if you have things that come up and you are unable to write at all or as much as you need to. That's a nice perk and considering I have four children with very busy schedules, I'll probably need every one of those extra 23 days.

So, if any of you would like to join me in the 70 days of Sweat, click on the title of this blogpost and it'll take you to the official site where you can sign up.

or you can go here: http://70daysofsweat.com/wordpress/

It's Tuesday again...

So follow me over to Princesses of the Pen to see what we have to say about creating a world. Whether it's a realistic world such as the one we live in today, a world of yesterday, tomorrow or one that's entirely fantasy and will never exist in the real world, our written worlds must be nurtured and cultivated until our readers have no questions about the reality of what they're reading.

So come join us: http://www.princessesofthepen.blogspot.com/

I've been tagged...again

My writing partner in crime, Bronwyn Storm, has tagged me with the following question: "What is the most common grammar error you make?"

I'm hard pressed to pick just one so here goes:

1. Using commas where I should use semi colons and using too many of both.

2. Using the words 'then' and 'that' too often

3. Mixing up 'who's' and 'whose'

4. Run on sentences

5. Incomplete sentences

and I think I'll stop there =)

I'll tag Elle, Kristen & Anna

Thursday Thirteen # 8

Thirteen Things I love about Little Kids 1….Unconditional Love 2....Pure laughter that shows glimpses of their souls 3....Unapologetic honesty 4....Mount Everest sized imaginations 5....Innocense 6....Their whole world is so small and they are perfectly content with that. 7....They don't understand why the dishes need to be washed and why mommys and daddys can't play all day like they do. 8....The idea of school is so exciting and they can't wait to go 9....Helping clean up is fun 10....They don't know that mommy can't sing. 11....Dogs are supposed to be green in a coloring book. 12....Everything is a mysterious and exciting adventure 13....They are so angelic when they sleep.

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Setting is everything...

A story I'm working on has been taking the life out of me lately.

The rough draft is due and I've been procrastinating on even looking at it. Two days ago I figured out why.

The setting was off.

I had the story set in France and I just wasn't loving it. It wasn't working for me so I put it aside and stopped working on it. The ideas refused to come.

So now I've decided to move the setting to a totally different place and the ideas are rolling in faster than I can write them down. It's all about the setting so if you're working on something and it's refusing to move, maybe the setting is all wrong and literally needs to be moved.

Maybe your story is set in a tropical hide away and maybe it needs to be set in a desert instead. A city might need to be in the country, a mountain setting might work better in a valley.

Thirteen of my favorite foods 1…. Sushi- I love sushi, all kinds- California rolls, tuna, shrimp, salmon, eel…it’s all so tasty 2....Steak, but only if it’s really tender and still a touch pink in the middle 3....Roast chicken with garlic…lots and lots of garlic 4....Tossed salad with romaine lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, avocado, real bacon bits, cheese and either ranch dressing or Asian sesame. 5....Homemade mac-n-cheese 6....Chicken & Dumplings, that’s comfort food for sure. 7....Teriyaki chicken with my mom’s special recipe teriyaki sauce 8....Bulgogi- for anyone who is unfamiliar with this dish, it’s strips of beef- I use London Broil- marinated in a mixture of soy sauce, brown sugar, fresh ground ginger, fresh crushed garlic and sesame oil. BBQ to desired doneness and serve with rice…So very yummy. 9....Fresh fruit- All kinds, apples, oranges, peaches, plums, melons, grapes… I love fruit. 10....Dark Chocolate as long as there are no walnuts in it. Other nuts are fine, just not walnuts 11....Crab- We live on an island and go crabbing in the summer. It’s delicious and I could sit and crack crab for days and never get tired of eating it. 12....Lasagna without ricotta cheese 13....Authentic German Brats with sauerkraut Get the Thursday Thirteen code here! The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted! View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Follow Me...

I'm blogging over at Princesses Of The Pen tomorrow where we're talking about Key Scenes this week. Come get the perspective of the five princesses and their evil step mother as we make our way through the publishing world.

http://www.princessesofthepen.blogspot.com

Fairy Tales & Reality

I'm supposed to be working on a story, one that's due like right now but here's the reality of it...I'm not. I'm here, updating my blog, reading the news, playing games, helping my children make their first email addresses...anything but writing what I'm supposed to be writing.

The fairytale would have me doing final edits by now; final edits on a perfectly penned work of art. Something that people would be reading generations from now; something wonderful enough to win some kind of award.

So why can't the fairytale and reality be one and the same? Why is it that I'm having such a hard time focusing on this one story? Maybe I'm afraid that my writing won't measure up. Maybe I'm reluctant to hear someone say, "This isn't what I was hoping for."

And now that I've done my whining for the day, I'll get off of here and get back to writing.

Do any of you fellow writers have days like this? How do you get passed it?

Thursday Thirteen #6

Thirteen Interesting Things In The United States My 13 favorite books/Series: 1. The Mark of The Lion Series by Francine Rivers 2. Hollywood Husband, Contract Wife by Jane Porter 3. The Earth Children Series by Jean M Auel 4. Odd Mom Out by Jane Porter 5. The Diamond of The Rockies Series by Kirsten Heitzmann 6. Make Believe Mom by Elaine Grant 7. Roots by Alex Haley 8. Chateau of Flowers: Lily Of The Valley by Margaret Rome 9. Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell 10. Scarlett by Alexandria Ripley 11. The Left Behind Series by Tim LaHaye & Jerry Jenkins 12. The Redemption Series by Karen Kingsbury & Gary Smalley 13. The Firstborn Series by Karen Kingsbury I chose the books I did based on their personal merits and how they affected me when I read them. Each of these books/series is on my to keep forever shelf and I read them over and over when I can’t seem to make myself read something new. They’re like old friends and I know I can lose myself in them as easily the tenth time as I did the first.

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Come visit me...

I'm blogging over at Princesses of The Pen today so come see what the mischevious prinesses have to say about Back Story this week. Part of my message today was also a memorial for September 11 because today's the day. Come check it out. Just click on the title of this post and it'll send you shooting through cyber space to the wacky world of the five princesses and their evil stepmother.

Thursday Thirteen #5

Thirteen Interesting Things In The United States 1…. 1,525,000,000 miles of phone wire is currently strung across this country. 2....166,875,000,000 pieces of mail are delivered each year in the U.S. 3....315 entries in Webster’s Dictionary are misspelled 4....A ten gallon hat barely holds six pints 5....Toothpicks are the object most often choked on by Americans 6....About 70% of Americans who go to college do it just to make more money. [The rest of us are avoiding reality for four more years.] 7....All 50 states are listed across the top of the Lincoln Memorial on the back of the $5 bill. 8....Almost a quarter of the land area of Los Angeles is taken up by automobiles. 9....Barbie's measurements if she were life size: 39-23-33 10....David Prowse was the guy in the Darth Vader suit in Star Wars. He spoke all of Vader's lines, and didn't know that he was going to be dubbed over by James Earl Jones until he saw the screening of the movie. 11....Fortune cookies were actually invented in America, in 1918, by Charles Jung. 12....In 75% of American households, women manage the money and pay the bills. 13....In every episode of "Seinfeld" there is a Superman somewhere.

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Princesses Of The Pen

I'm blogging over at Princesses Of The Pen today. We've been talking about Catalyst vs Black Moment this week so come over and join us.

www.princessesofthepen.blogspot.com

I am married to a real life Prince Charming

So, okay, I know this might come across as bragging but...my husband is the very best and most wonderful sweetie in the world! He sat me down today and asked me if I was really serious about writing for publication...to which I replied, "Absolutely."

I'd mentioned recently that I'd like to have a laptop computer and he asked me today, why. I gave him three reasons:

1. Because the laptop wouldn't be hooked up to the net and for me that's really distracting- it's too easy to mess around online when I should be writing.
2. If I'm not on the computer, the kids can use it more.
3. Mobility. On the ferry, waiting for the kids to finish up at misc activities, etc.

Well, apparently those were good enough reasons for him because he got online tonight and ordered me up a brand spankin' new HP Pavillion laptop computer while I was off at the mall with my daughters!! What a guy!

I knew before today that my husband was wonderful, today simply reenforces how much he loves me and wants me to pursue my dreams. He's such a love.

Thursday Thirteen #4

Thirteen Hunky Men! 1…. 2.... 3.... 4.... 5.... 6.... 7.... 8.... 9.... 10.... 11.... 12.... 13.... Mmmmm! I don't think any other words are really necessary. Do you? Links to other Thursday Thirteens! 1. Elle Fredrix 2.(leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!)

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!


The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

View More Thursday Thirteen Participants

Come Join me...

I'll be over at Princesses Of The Pen blogging today. We're talking all week about Antagonists. Click on the title of this blog entry and it'll take you right there.

Feeling down...and being lifted up

I was reading the second chapter of a friend's WIP and got so caught up in the story that I wanted to cry when there was no more to read. Her writing is so good, even in rough draft stage. I then went back to work on my own WIP and wanted to cry for an entirely different reason. I started comparing my work to hers and I just knew for sure that my work comes nowhere close to measuring up. I felt like a hack; someone pretending to be a writer; someone with no real possibility of being published...ever. This made me sad because writing is one of the only dreams I have left. I know this feeling down on myself has a lot to do with some of the junk that's going on in my life right now- I'm blue, worried, scared for my son. It all adds up to a bit of depression.

So, I expressed my feelings to my critique group and was rewarded with an only partially joking threat to turn Chauncy the Chainsaw on me, as well as encouragement and love that I knew I could find there. They are such wonderful people and when I'm feeling low and bad about my abilities, I know I can always count on them to make me laugh and feel better.

Having good friends in life in general is so important but I've come to realize that if I didn't have fellow writers as friends, these fellow writers specifically, I would probably put down my pen forever and not even try to follow my dream of being a published writer. If you don't have any writer friends to cheer you on, do yourself a favor and find some. You'll be amazed by how wonderful it is to know there are people out there willing to hold a chainsaw to your back as you run toward your dreams!