Okay, Julie, here's my response to your challenge. Is this what you had in mind or did I miss the point entirely?

Chapter One

“Logan…. Logan….. Hello LOGAN!” Mike practically shouted as he waved his hand in front of his client’s face.
“Wha… oh, sorry… Guess I spaced out some.” Logan Ashford said, sitting up straight in his chair and trying to focus on the proceedings going on around the large polished oak table. “What’d I miss?” Logan hates the mundane, would much rather be out doing something active, being a part of life instead of contracting it.
Mike chuckled and said, “Sorry we’re so dull that you can’t stay awake, we’re almost finished up here. You need to sign these papers, same stuff as always; you’re agreeing to produce 2 new albums in the next forty-two months for the specified amount… yada, yada, yada… legal mumbo jumbo.”

Logan perused the legal document in front of him and signed on the dotted line. He replaced the cap on the pen and stood up, taking his copy of the contract and leaving the room as quickly as possible; leaving his manager and the lawyers behind before they could bring up some other bit of business that he just had to take care of. He just wanted to write music and sing… that’s what he got into this business to do, not paperwork and sitting around in meetings that were dull enough to turn his brain to mush.
The elevator doors slid open with a soft hiss and Logan stepped inside, glad the cubicle was empty… even more glad that the doors slid closed just as Mike and the lawyers for New Wave Studios came walking toward the elevators. He saw their steps quicken but the doors connected and the elevator started moving 15 floors down to the parking garage. Logan sighed with relief as his car was brought up. He eased behind the wheel and tipped the Valet before maneuvering the car into traffic and pointing it toward home.
Home and peace and quiet. Logan let out a cynical laugh. Peace and quiet were something he hadn’t had in ages it seemed. Everywhere he went he was pursued by tabloid photographers and fans. The fans he didn’t mind so much… well, except for the overzealous ones that tried to pull him apart. It was like they wanted an arm or chunk of his hair to take home as a souvenir. Singing, the one thing he loved in the entire world, was becoming a chore and he hated that. The love of his life- music- is becoming a job and he's struggling with that. He wants it to be fun again.
Logan’s car sped toward the hills where his house was nestled back away from the street and nosey people were kept out by high fences and higher trees… It was his million dollar prison, as he jokingly called it… but it wasn’t a joke; not really. He was a prisoner in his own home because people couldn’t keep their noses in their own business and insisted on minding his. Fame and fortune isn't all it's cracked up to be. His life isn't his own anymore and no matter how glamorous his prison, it's still a prison.

NaNoWriMo

I'm officially entered in the National Novel Writers Month contest. I, and many other writers, have to write a 50,000 word novel between November first and November thirtieth. I'm excited to start because I have a great idea for a story. It's a story idea that came to me when I was listening to Toby Keith's song "You Shouldn't Kiss Me Like This." I hope it comes out as good as it is in my head.

no word yet from Harlequin on my first MS. I keep checking the mail everyday anxiously hoping for a letter at least acknowledging that they received my Q&S.

Anyway, I'll post something here as soon as I hear anything.

Today is my daughter's eleventh birthday party. It has a 50's theme so she and her friends are wearing poodle skirts and listening to Elvis Presley music. Loads of fun.

IT'S FINISHED!!!!

I finished my book yesterday and mailed off the submission request letter to the publisher. It's been an amazing journey and I hope it gets even more amazing. I discovered a few things about myself during the process of writing this book. Such things as, I am capable of finishing something :D I am very good at blocking out external irritations while I write :) I feel more at peace with my life when I'm able to write as much as I want to.

It's a beautiful thing, self discovery. And now I'm writing up the outline for my second book :o)

There's no such thing as too much of a good thing.

Cruizing Rite Along

I reached chapter 12 in my book today and have just over 50,000 words written. The storyline is really coming along and I'm hoping that it'll be a published work by this time next year. I have several ideas already for other books so as soon as this one is done and the MS is sent off to the publishing house of my choice, I'll start on another work and be just as excited to see that once come alive on my computer screen and in my heart.

Some people say that writing is a work of art but to me, it's a work of heart. By the time I've finished this book, the characters will be a part of who I am, that- in my opinion- goes beyond art.

Friday is my oldest child's 15th birthday. I have two teenagers in the house! Yikes. Birthday season is almost over. Only one birthday after this one on Friday. In two weeks my second daughter will be 11 and the baby just turned 9, wow, it's busy around here. I love school- when the kids are in it :D

Don't inhale cleanser!!

Okay, I'm sure that inhaling cleanser is probably not something that many people would want to do, and I didn't want to do it either, but I was scrubbing down our three bathrooms yesterday and I always use comet cleanser in the tubs and toilets. All that dust in the air got into my lungs and today I'm barking like a seal and sound like I've been a smoker since birth. Yeah, it's beautiful--not!

But on the upside, the kids are in school and it's quiet here so I can work on my writing and the only chores I have today are going to the bank and laundry so it should be a pretty easy day. That makes me happy.

We got the last ding on our credit paid off yesterday so that will be coming off and then we can buy a house!! I'm so excited. Our landlords are coming over tonight to talk about us buying the house we're in, and really, I hope it works out that way so we don't have to move again. This house is perfect for us and we've already lived here for almost two years so it would be nice to not have to move.

And now that I've checked in here, I must be off. The bank is calling.

A discovery!

Ever since I had an ancient computer that all I could use for writing was note pad, when I got my newer computer, I had Microsoft Works and thought it was the greatest thing since sliced bread and have been a faithful user of Works...until today when I discovered Microsoft Word. I like it so much better and have now transferred all of my important writing from Works to Word.

I know, I'm so easily amused, but that's just the way I am. Simple minded, I suppose. :o)

As for my current Work In Progress- AKA WIP- I'm up to 38,000 words and have found a great critique partner to help me through the process. I'm thrilled to have someone who can look in from the outside and point out things that could be better. So, Johanna, if you're reading this, Thanks a ton :o)

My kids just got home from school so I'm gonna scoot. Homework and all that.

I've done it!

I reached the 30,000 word mark in my book today. I'm quite excited because I've never gotten this far in anything I've written so it's like reaching a new level in my writing. Anyway, I wanted to share that and now that I have, I'm back to work.

Another day, another...day

Yep, it's simply another day. What have I done today? Got the kids off to school, washed, dried, folded and put away four loads of laundry, cleaned the breakfast dishes and got down to work on my book.... or so I hoped. But no, the cats decided that today would be their day to fight constantly and, me, I can't concentrate on my writing when the cats are hissing and howling behind me. So I had to put one cat downstairs and close the door and now the other cat is gloating... yes, gloating. She's walking around like she's queen of the world while the other cat sits at the top of the stairs behind the door and issues forth a pitiful sounding meow every few minutes. I do wish they'd learn to get along.

Anyway, here I am, writing here when I should be working on my book. I've just started chapter 8, so I'm getting there, it's progressing, and really much more quickly than I would've thought.

Okay, now I'm just procrastinating. I must leave this place of blogging and get down to work... I must! And so I say, farewell, aufweidersein, adieu!

I'm one step closer.... right?

So I have a BLOG, that makes me a real writer....right? ;) Just kidding, I know I have to actually write to be a writer so here I am.... writing.

I completely tore apart chapter one of my Work In Progress today, started totally over and I have to say, I'm liking it better now. It has more emotion and feeling this time around so that's a good thing. I'm waiting on word from my critique partner to see what she says about it, then I'll continue with chapter 2.

I guess I never really realized just how hard it would be at times to "Tell a story" but once you get started there are so many things to consider; it's so much more than simply telling a story. It's also about making the readers love your characters and feel the emotions that you're trying to portray. I, personally, have enjoyed many a good book, felt what the characters were feeling, without really paying all that much attention to how the author accomplished that. Now that I'm trying to write a book myself, I find that when I'm reading someone else's work, I'm reading it from a writer's perspective, figuring out how this author is projecting the emotions of these characters outside of the book and into my heart. This is a good thing, right?

Sometimes, yes, however, I also find that I lose a little of the feelings when I'm being so analytical about what I'm reading so I have to find the balance. "Sigh* It's so much more complicated than I would ever have imagined.