Back to Writing (and Recording?)

I've been writing my butt off over the weekend in an effort to finish Demons Run at Halloween. It's the last bonus story to complete from my Soccer Moms Kickstarter campaign. It's also the only bonus story that will be available to the general public. Yep, y'all will have the opportunity to buy and read at, well, Halloween. LOL The preorder for the e-book will be available as soon as it's finished, edited, and formatted.

I also promised to do audiobooks of the three bonus stories. Unfortunately, the gentleman I wanted to read Analyze Me had to drop out due to personal issues. So, I'll use the opportunity to test a text-to-speech tool I recently purchased.

That doesn't mean I'm not mindful of the ongoing SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes. In fact, I thought long and hard about using an AI tool for one of the audiobooks. It comes down to the fact that I cannot currently afford quality voice talent. I'm doing the voice work for Demons Run at Halloween, and I bartered with a friend to do the voice work for Apocalypse? Not Now!

What I am paying for is an artist I like and respect for a HUGE job. She agreed to tackle a special project for the tenth anniversary of the Justice series. I can't say much more than that at this point. I'm hoping everything will come together as planned.

Besides, I think the Universe seriously owes me one after the cards she dealt me in 2022.

Music I've Been Listening to Lately

The man just screams sensuality!

A Jolly Doctor Who Time

After seeing The Proclaimers video a couple of weeks ago, a blog reader sent me the link for this video from the cast and crew of Doctor Who. I thought y'all might enjoy this, too!

Home Again!

There's a ton of markers in Boise and the rest of Idaho showing where the Lewis and Clark Expedition passed through lo, those many years ago. I won't bore you, but if you're a history buff, I highly suggest the trip.

The expedition had its difficulties passing through the high desert of the Rockies. On the other hand, their ankles didn't swell to the size of an elephant's by flying from the mountainous desert to the humidity of Ohio in July.

After yesterday's return flights and the two-hour drive home from the airport, I spent the rest of the day on my recliner, princess puppy in my lap, going through mail (both email and snail mail) from the last two weeks.

And I got up this morning, and I'm still going through stuff.

Some of it's fun, like the artwork for the 10th Anniversary Editions of the Justice series coming out in a couple of years. (I'll have maps!) Some of it, not so much. Like bills. *sigh*

However, I feel pretty good about how much I got accomplished writing-wise on this trip. Heck, I even went to a Starbucks and wrote for the first time since March 16, 2020, the day Governor Dewine issued the COVID-19 shutdown order for Ohio.

I'm in my recliner for a second day, the princess pup in my lap, and DH swearing up a storm in his office. Yep, things are back to normal at Casa Harden.

One Last Jaunt

After the 10-hour drive back to Boise on Saturday, both my hostess and I were too damn tired to do much on Sunday. We wrote at an odd little place called Bikes and Beans. Yes, it's a combination bike repair and coffee shop.

The raspberry mocha I had was incredible. If you're in Boise, I highly recommend this place for your caffeine jolt.

We went out to a cute little Mexican place for dinner. The food was excellent. We followed up with a quiet evening at my hostess's home.

We're spending my last full day here taking in some sights in Idaho. Tomorrow morning. I need to be up at 3 a.m. in order to get through security and catch my flight home. Unfortunately, I'll lose a couple of hours thanks to time changes, but I'm missing DH and Princess Bella, so it'll be good to get home.

Music I've Been Listening to Lately

A lovely ballad with a slightly creepy video that makes you sympathize with Tom's character.

Creepy Fog

I understand fog in the evening or first thing in the morning. But the Oregon Coast can have a perfectly warm, brightly sunny day, and fog rolls in off the ocean at the same time. Those of you who live here are not surprised, but again, this is a new experience for me.

Today has been a semi-productive writing day simply because I'm not distracted by the waves on the beach. By the time I go to bed, Analyze Me should be finished.

It's not to say the other parts of the day aren't productive. I love listening to other writers, how they're handling their own careers, and what services they like and don't like. I'll have time to analyze everything on the road and plane trips home. Plenty of time to figure out what will be useful to my career.

There's always lots of good suggestions, but doing EVERYTHING is a literal impossibility. I'm only one person. 

So, for now, I'm writing in the fog and having a grand ole time.

The Northwest Coast

It is interesting to me how different a body of water can sound in various areas of the world. I usually leave the window open when I stay at a beach. Each ocean and sea speaks a different language and has a different tone.

The Caribbean is laid back and easy going, and it whispers sleepily. The North Atlantic swears under its breath because the Gulf Stream left him for the cute guy in the U.K., and he takes his anger out on everyone.

But the North Pacific is the classic bad boy. He murmurs seductively, and you want to go with him even though you know it will end very badly for you.

The AirBNB we're staying at is a couple hundred feet about sea level, but within walking distance of the beach if your knees can handle the steep hike. Marvelous view in a weird alien way. Odd rock formations jut out of the swells.

My second favorite thing here is the temps. It's one thing to intellectually understand the chill air. It's another to enjoy. Especially since Boise was expecting a high of 106 when we left there yesterday.

Music I've Been Listening to Lately

Again, bouncy pop love songs were a staple of the '90's!

High Mountain Desert

I don't have email on my travel computer. Actually, Baby Blue is more of a glorified tablet than a laptop, but she gets the job done. But I don't have email on her for a reason. In theory, I'm avoiding interruptions while I write. So, if you've sent me an email on one of my business accounts, I'll answer when I get home in ten days.

That's also why I'm not posting any pictures yet. It's a hassle switching the memory card from my phone to Baby Blue. The dang thing is a quarter of the size of my actual thumbnail. I worry about dropping it and either losing it in the carpet or one of my host's cats thinks it's a treat and eats it.

Idaho has a stark beauty outside of Boise, i.e. very few trees. Wild critters come into town for shade. As my host was showing me their garden in the backyard, we noticed a mule deer in the neighbor's backyard. He was a young buck. Fuzz covered his new antlers. And he didn't mind me taking pictures as long as I didn't get too close to the fence.

We get deer in our backyard in Ohio, but this was a new breed I hadn't seen before in the "wild". I was fascinated.

Busy, Busy, Busy

I can now cross off Idaho on my list of states visited. Yep, visiting all fifty states is pretty much the last thing I haven't done on the bucket list I made in my twenties. I'll need to get my passport renewed if DH insists on driving to Alaska. LOL

My friends already have a ton of things planned for the short time I'm here. Dinner with a group of writers tonight. Hopefully, seeing the Aurora Borealis tomorrow night. Checking out the Boise state house.

The big thing is remembering to drink lots of water and getting plenty of rest because of the altitude. I'm used to the Appalachians, which are tiny compared to the Rockies.

The best thing is meeting people in real life that I've known online for years, or in some cases, decades. (Yeah, Jo, I'm talking about you.)

The coolest thing will be dipping my toe in the Pacific Ocean from the western North American Continent next week, especially since this region is a major feature in one of my book series.

Leaving On a Jet Plane

If you read this on Monday or Tuesday, I'm packing right now. Yep, for the first time in nearly three and a half years, I'll be on a commercial airliner Wednesday. And yes, I'm still wearing a N95 mask, regardless of what any idiot says.

I may be cancer-free (Yee-Haw!), but I'm still immuno-compromised thanks to my defective endocrine system. I'll be hanging out with some friends who have their own health issues, so I'm very conscious of not spreading germs to them.

So what's going on? I'm attending a week-long private writers retreat in Oregon. There's also days padding the beginning and ending of the retreat so I can visit friends in Idaho and Oregon. I am so looking forward to this trip!

Music I've Been Listening to Lately

I love the upbeat positivity of this song!

One Last Critter Pic

The night after the visit from the raccoons, this lady showed up on our patio. With all the smoke this spring and summer, we haven't been able to keep up on weeding the flower beds or the patio. Like DH said, we couldn't get mad at her for nibbling on the weeds we hadn't pulled.

Thankfully, we started getting rain the night after Nibbles took care of some weeds.

Critter Twilight

Two adolescent raccoons appeared outside of our kitchen window while I was making dinner during last week's smoke-a-thon. They are the age when their mother would be teaching them to forage, but we didn't see any hint of Mom.

One of the pair dug in our yard for worms, grubs, and seeds. His sibling huddled beneath the neighbor's tree just a few feet from the property line.

You normally don't see raccoons this early in the evening. But like I said on Monday, the smoke created an extended twilight which is bringing out critters far earlier than their normal wont.

More Smoke

Last week, more smoke from the Canadian wildfires drifted into Ohio. It caused an odd twilight for the first couple of hours after dawn and the last couple of hours before sunset. As a result, critters that are normally dusk or nocturnal foragers were coming out far earlier than normal.

Jane Doe was eating clover back by the fire pit several evenings in a row. Even odder, she was by herself when she came to nibble on the blooming white flowers. I don't know if her fawn was hidden back in the brush by the property line. I hope they are somewhere safe.

Music I've Been Listening to Lately

When New Edition grew up....