The Print Book Shuffle

The COVID-19 pandemic has shown how interconnected we all are, whether we like it or not. My paperbacks from my July release finally arrived yesterday.

 

I can't blame anyone. COVID-19 has slowed everything down. The shipping companies are overwhelmed by the increase in the number of packages and the new safety measures, plus their own people getting sick. And that's not taking into account the new Postmaster General attempting to sabotage the Postal Service.

 

The printer I use is overwhelmed. Their orders are up, thanks to another major book printer going under this year. Their own personnel are sick, and the remaining folks have to do the PPE dance. On top of everything, they are starting to have trouble with their suppliers.

 

The paper and inks suppliers are having the same shipping problems, their personnel are getting sick, and their remaining employees are doing the PPE dance.

 

And so on. And so on.

 

It's an ugly cycle, but it's not going away any time soon. But later today, I'll do my part to keep the Postal Service in business. Because no matter if it's rain, sleet, snow or gloom of night, readers need their books.

New Release - Murder Most Fowl!

Murder Most Fowl is officially out in the wilds!

I had a lot of fun writing this story, and I really hope you enjoy it. Plus, it's only 99-cents!

So what's it about? A murder inquiry takes an odd twist over the possession of a prize rooster. Yep, a rooster

Amazon, all countries
Barnes & Noble
Google Play
Kobo
Smashwords

Coronavirus Pandemic Day 187 - Exhaustion and Science

I slept until two p.m. today. The stress of getting a new book out and the hellscape our country has become wore me down. Not even DH's birthday helped. We had a low-key celebration at home with a lot of takeout food.

We're at 6.6M+ cases in the United States and 197K+ deaths, and the numbers are still climbing.

After six months, everyone's tired of the disease, the deaths, and the drama. I get it. But if you go back and read the account of the Spanish Influenza pandemic, COVID-19 wasn't going to go away after six. months. I know a lot of people were hoping so, but it ain't gonna happen.

Nor am I an anti-vaxxer, but I want a vaccine with proven effectiveness. I refused to take the shingles vaccine for years until its prevention rate was above 60%.

Despite the propaganda being bandied about, we aren't getting an effective, safe COVID-19 before the end of 2020. I never had hope that we would. One of the research studies had to shut down their human trials because of some serious side effects. It sucks, but you can't rush the research.. It always needs to be refined and tested over and over again.

I believe the research facilities WILL find a vaccine, but it takes time. Time is something some of my fellow citizens will not allow. Or else they believe the disease is a hoax. And that belief will kill hundreds of thousands of more people, and the thought makes my heart ache.

I Love the 90's!

Madonna never disappoints.

The Thursday Blues

Yes, I know it's Friday. I'm venting about all the shit that happened yesterday. I was doing pretty good. I managed to haul my ass out of bed by ten a.m. to write the last five chapters of the Alter Ego novel that must be uploaded today. Not a problem, right?

 

I managed to get one sprint done before the waste started hitting the spinning turbine.

 

- DH needed to vent to me about one of his employees.
 

- My eye doctor's office called and rescheduled my appointment for the 5th time in 2020.

- My pharmacy has a new computer system. Instead of calling me when all my refills are ready. Instead, the automated system was calling me as each prescription was ready. I have 10 effing maintenance drugs I'm on.
 

- Our meal delivery service had a software glitch and sent us meals we did not order instead of the ones we did order.
 

- A publishing service provider sent a series of e-mails in need of validation of their choices, which is totally weird  because they can usually read my mind.
 

- The army decided NOT to stream GK's graduation online.
 

- GK first called because he was stressed about getting his dress blues ready for graduation.
 

- GK then called exhausted and angry because he had been up half the night getting his dress blues shaved and steamed for graduation, and he was then told they would be wearing their standard uniforms.

- Blogger has a new upgrade that I'm struggling to figure out how to do things. It's so confusing I had to resort to the old version in order to write this freakin' post. (And I can see why my friend Angie gave up on using this f***ing thing!)

 

-  And to finish the day, DH was going to stop at Steak N Shake to pick up dinner after he was done at the high school (he runs the clock for all the soccer teams) since I was having a rough day. Steak N Shake closed earl.y

To top everything off, I feel guilty bitching about my minor problems when friends and acquaintances in the Pacific Northwest are evacuating from the massive wildfires or are on standby to evacuate if the wind shifts. They don't need my hopes and prayers. They need a miracle snow storm to douse the flames like some friends in Colorado.

Now? For me?

Now, I'm going to read a friend's vampire novel I promised to read back in April. And then I'm going to have some fun with Harri and Aisha by seeing what kind of hot water I can dump them into this weekend.

I'm so ready for some football...

Deadlines!

I've got an Alter Ego book that has to be finished today. So, I'll leave you with this funny:

Coronavirus Pandemic Day 180 - Happy Labor Day!

We're getting some unexpected thunderstorms, so it's a good day to curl up with the puppy and write.

I hope everyone is enjoying their three-day weekend!

I Love the 90's!

I could feel this song so much!

TGI Labor Day Weekend! Or Maybe Not

I'm officially done with quarantine, but it's not like I can, or want, to go anywhere this weekend.

So, I'll be doing a lot of reading, writing, and television watching over the next three days. I feel like this is the new normal, and honestly, it fits with my introverted personality. However, I'm blessed to have DH and the Princess Pup at home as well as friends I can call, text, e-mail, and/or Zoom with when I feel the need for human contact.

If you're having issues dealing with the stresses of the COVID-19 pandemic and its fallout, and you need someone to talk to, there's NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

There's no shame in needing a little help. We all do these days. So please call or e-mail them.

We really are in this together.

Sprinting through the Pandemic

I admit it. Getting words done while the world is disintegrating around me has been difficult for the last six months.

So I've been trying something new. I've been doing writing sprints with just a few friends online. We're only writing in twenty-minute stretches for a few hours, but I've been getting in a lot more words in those short sprints.

Why?

1) Part of it is breaking the stupid myth in my own head that I need a solid block of two hours to get anything done.

2) I feel more comfortable writing with people I know even if we do live hundreds of miles apart.

3) The sprinting got my competitive streak going. Not with the other writers, but with myself.. If I could do 100 words in that sprint, can I do 150 in the next?

I'm not going this is the end-all, be-all solution for everyone. For me being trapped at home under quarantine for the last two weeks, this has helped immensely.

So don't be afraid to experiment with your daily routines. You never know what you might discover about yourself.