Wednesday, June 2, 2021

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!

29 comments:

  1. Hi Madeline, I plan to tackle my middle grade novel, actually from the past two days I'm working like a woman obsessed, have revised 75 pages. Hoping you get loads of writing done this summer.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Excellent, Rachna! Keep at it!

      And thanks. I hope so, too. :)

      Delete
  2. Happy birthday to the Larrys!
    I won't tell you how many miles I clock a week...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Telling me how many miles you clock in a week will only result in me eating an entire package of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. :o

      Delete
  3. It sounds like a great plan to get things done. And yes you can walk the 500 miles. Awesome that your husband and you are doing it together.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Natalie! I wouldn't have even made it this far without him. :)

      Delete
  4. Get.Things.Done. Yes, I'm in that mode, and it involves some very noisy contractors in my house, which is not conducive to writing, or Hemi's good humor. But I have started a new project that I'm excited about, so there's that.

    As for the walking? Heck yes, you can do it. What a great way to spend time together with hubs. 💖

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Excellent about the new project, Lee!

      Thanks! We do enjoy walking together. :)

      Delete
  5. Okay, you asked for it. hehehe. 1) Watching "For All Mankind" kinda love it to bits. 2) Want to submit more shorts. You read correctly. I'm going to try again. 3) No 500 mile walks for me. What's the matter with your husband? This woman needs to know. ;-P

    Have a great June!

    Anna from elements of emaginette

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Good luck working on those shorts - you can do it!

      The matter with my husband is that he's always so encouraging and supportive and thinks I can do anything. :)

      Delete
  6. Take it easy, take it slow. That's advice from me and from the tortoises. :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Congratulations on your published stories. I am so happy for you. You are a stunning writer. As for the walking, I am failing on my walking quest, and I am no where close to your miles. Any mile walked is a good one. Keep that in mind and don’t worry about the final tally.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks so much, Liza. I appreciate that. :)

      You're totally right about any mile walked is a good one! I'm still aiming for 500, but even if I don't make it, the result will still be a lot more miles than I would've walked otherwise.

      Delete
  8. Happy Birthday Tortoises! And, Happy IWSG Day!

    ReplyDelete
  9. I kept telling myself life just needed to slow down so I could get caught up, but even after lock downs and nothing to do, I never got caught up. I suppose that means the problem in the equation is me!

    I'm going to do a walk like that. That's a great idea. The town next to mine is twelve miles...LOL

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Somehow, things even seem more out of control around here than they did. And to use another math example - the common denominator is me!

      The 100 miles challenge was a great idea. The 500? That's just crazy talk. :)

      Delete
  10. I'm struggling to settle back into writing from... erm, I'm not sure when, actually. I seem to only be able to think in the shortest of short terms at the moment.

    You're doing great with the walking. Keep it up!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I hear you! Another great reason to love writing short - stories, flash, etc. :)

      Thanks, Annalisa!

      Delete
  11. You can do it!! Woot! That's awesome about the flash fiction anthology, and really cool you got to attend a con. I hope you get everything you're aiming for done this summer. And good job with the walking, even though it sounds like it's rough. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Loni, your whole comment made me smile. :) Thanks for all the cheering and encouragement!

      Delete
  12. You're doing great on the miles—and happy birthday to the tortises!

    And congrats on A Perfect Match! Awesome news!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks re the walking. I know you do a ton more walking than that. Maybe I'll catch up some day. :)

      And thanks about my story!

      Delete
  13. You've got this, Madeline! What's working for me is keeping in mind how badly I want to write full time.

    Schedules and circuits help too.

    Happy birthday to the tortoises, and congrats on your story and drabble successes!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, JH! I keep reminding myself it's all a marathon - walking and writing! - not a sprint. :)

      Delete
  14. Happy birthday to your Larrys. (My Larry is more like an energizer bunny... HA)

    After reading my blog post, you already have an idea of what I'll be doing this summer. And it's all good! (Moving wasn't in my plans, but it sure is a good motivator for getting rid of a 50+ year accumulation of stuff!) At the new location, I'll have an adorable office, so I may actually get back to writing once the dust settles. I'm thrilled that your writing is still going well. You keep going, girl! That goes for the walking, too. Look on the bright side: you've ALREADY conquered the 100-mile challenge, so why not chalk that up as a victory. However many miles you complete, it'll all be like icing on the cake. But I'm with your husband... if you set your mind to finishing the full 500, I believe you'll DO it. Hang in there... and take care.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We moved last year, but we have yet to really declutter. Sigh. Yeh for your new office!

      Thanks so much for your kind words, Susan. I need all the encouragement I can get. The summer heat has sapped me of any and all oomph.

      Delete
  15. That horror conference must've been awesome. Like you, I'd probably come away with pages of notes. Only then I'd probably never do anything with them until after I die. Oh, and if you end up with a surplus of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, I'll take a few.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Those notes are still sitting on my desk, mocking me.

      A surplus of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups?! Surely, you jest! :)

      Delete