May 28th Challenge

Hi it’s Christina –

Yeah, I wish my butt looked like that

Good Morning! By the time I finished my blog yesterday, I was so tired, I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I did not get much sleep the night before because I couldn’t get comfortable. Somehow I managed to pull a muscle in my butt. Go ahead, get all the chuckles out, I know it’s ridiculous, I’d laugh too if it didn’t hurt so much. I had an hour and a half cushion, so I took advantage and went back to bed.

I got to work with five minutes to spare. We got everything accomplished that RV needed, which is a good thing. It is tough on Tuesdays, because I have to rush out of there so I can get whatever I need done at my house done and then get to my writing group.

In all honesty, I was debating about forgoing last night’s writers’ group, but then a new member, Mary Ellen, texted me and asked if she could hitch a ride. I was still exhausted, and still debating whether I would go or not, when my phone rang. It was Keith, my friend who runs the writing group. He had a

minor emergency, and asked if I was going. I said, “I guess I am now.”

All I wanted to do was go home and take another nap, but now I had to not only wake up enough to drive to and from Princeton, I needed to come up with several writing prompts, find what I did with my sign in sheet, get everything printed out, and then be coherent enough to make half way descent responses to the prompts. I cannot complain though, because this is only the second time, in almost a year, Keith has asked me to fill in for him.

I’ll be honest, I cheated a little. I recycled some of my prompts, as well as a few of my responses, from last year’s blog. I figured the blog was in its infantile stage at that point, so no one in the group would have remembered them, and they didn’t. Thank GOD! The only one I was truly concerned about was Joanne, because she is one of my most faithful blog followers.

We had a pretty good turnout for last night’s group. There were ten of us total, including a brand new person, Lisa. I think Keith is going to be a little bummed he wasn’t there when he sees her name on the roster, because she was one of his former students. She’s a lovely and talented woman, and I hope she continues to come to the group.

I have an early work day today as well as tomorrow, and then right after work today, I absolutely have to go to the grocery store. There is nothing to eat in my house – yup, and adult is saying this not a teenager. I just went shopping, $200 worth of shopping, and still there is nothing to eat in the house. How does this happen? Yes, we have one more resident with Lys being home, but the child eats like a bird, so she can’t be the cause. I don’t get it.

Okay, I still want to straighten up the kitchen before I have to hop in the shower, so I need to get going. I hope you have a great day, and happy writing!

Your Last Challenge was:

Reluctantly, you agree to a blind date. You meet the person at the restaurant. When you are seated, the waiter makes eye contact with you while he hands you the menu. Pasted inside your menu is a note…

SHOW NO REACTION TO THIS NOTE. Smile and appear to be perusing the menu. You do not know me and have no reason to trust me, but you seriously need to heed my advice. Do not give this man any personal information. Tell him as little about you as possible. Misleading yet believable information would be beneficial. Either make an excuse to end your dinner early, or just make sure he cannot contact you ever again. Do not let him handle anything you eat or drink. If you leave the table, do not eat or drink anything when you return. He is not who he appears to be, and he is extremely dangerous.

Charlene swallowed hard, then pasted a smile on her face and peaked over her menu, “It all looks so good. Can you recommend anything?”

“Both the steak and the seafood are exceptional, and their wine list is beyond reproach.  I am particularly fond of their Chianti.”

 

Charlene let out a nervous chuckle, “As long as you’re not paring it with fava beans, I guess I’m safe.”

“I beg your pardon?”

Your Next Challenge is (one from last night, but there was a choice of three different prompts, and I didn’t choose this one):

Friends teach you what you want to know. Enemies teach you what you need to know.

You have ten minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count, and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

November 2nd Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina – 

Okay folks, I know the look of the blog today is really different, but there is a good reason. I am participating in a blog hop for Heidi Angell and she is giving away prizes. You only have a few days to enter the first one, so you better click now. The other two giveaways will be going on for three weeks, so you have a little more time on them.

 

 

Here's what the items look like: 

Angel's Dance - only 6 days left on this one folks. Enter now.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Bookmarks:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Poster:
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a really cool idea, and I’ve seen other authors do similar events. Both Heather Graham and Stephanie Laurens have done contests with other authors, and the readers needed to go to each of the author’s sites and do something (make a comment, hit the “like” button, count the pumpkins, whatever) to be entered into the contest. It was a fun way to introduce you to authors you may not know and see what was new with your favorite authors. I just wish I had the technological expertise to do something similar for my next book release.

Since I am a technological ditz, I’m going to keep it real simple. For my Facebook and Twitter followers, you need to log onto my blog - http://christinapaulbooks.blogspot.com/ - put “ENTERED” into the comments section, and then you can click on the contest giveaway buttons (yes you can enter all three) on the right hand side. For my blog followers, you still need to put “ENTERED” into the comments section, and then you can click on the contest giveaway buttons on the right hand side.

So, all this hubbub and rearranging is because Heidi Angell is releasing Angel’s Dance, her sequel to Elements of a Broken Mind, which I reviewed (and thoroughly enjoyed) a few months back.

Grant and Clear are back, and they’re better than ever. After several months with no contact, Grant shows up in Clear’s doorstep, in tears, looking like hell and begging for her help. His daughter had been kidnapped and the trail has gone cold. He has nowhere else to turn if he wants to get his get his daughter back. He just prays he’s not too late already.

Seeing Grant again is difficult for Clear, and what he is asking her to do could literally destroy her, but how could she refuse him when a child’s life was at stake?

You are thrown into the seedy underbelly of the dance world, the polar opposite to the grace and beauty seen by the public. And somewhere within that dance world lies a psychopath…

This psychological thriller sucks you in, thrashes you about, and won’t let you go. At the end, you are completely spent, yet somehow left craving for more. Heidi Angell has outdone herself on this one.

Elements of a Broken Mind is available on Amazon if you are interested in reading the first book in the series before Angel's Dance is released later this month.  

I hope you have a great day and happy writing!

 

Your Last Challenge:

 

You work at a restaurant – you witness a blind date that goes horrible wrong

 

“Morey, Morey, you are not going to believe what just happened at table twelve.” Tabatha exclaimed as she rushed into the kitchen through the swinging doors.

“How many time has I got to tell you, you dimwit use the door on the RIGHT, ALWAYS the door on the right!”

Tabatha cracked her gum in response, “Whatever. It ain’t like anyone else would be comin’ out the left doors anyways. You sure as heck ain’t gunna. So anyways, guess what happened.”

“I don’t give a dang what happened. Ain’t yous got tables to wait on? An iffin you don’t, you could always clean up… Yeah, like that’ll ever happen.”

“Quit bein’ a jerk and listen. You know that new English teacher who’s been comin’ in here.”

“The tall doofy guy?”

“Yeah, he’s the one. Anyways, Trixie started feelin’ sorry him. Sittin’ there all by himself, day after day, eatin’ alone. So, she fixed him up with her cousin Cassey.”

“Aw cripes, not Sassy Cassey!”

“The very one.”

“The poor shlub!”

“You said it. So anyways, Mr. Teacher man comes in dressed all professor like. He’s even got a bunch of flowers. Not ones he picked out of a garden neither, they had paper around them and everything. Then in walks Cassey.”

Your Next Challenge is:

 

There is a knock at your door and you answer it to find a lawyer. He tells you your great uncle has passed away and has left everything to you. One of the things he has left you was and island. Yes, you now own your very own island…

 

You have 10 minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.

November 1st Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina – 

The day has arrived, November 1^st. I am about to embark on another frenzied month of NaNoWriMo – stressing, not sleeping, cramped muscles, and general obliviousness to what is going on in the world around me. During the weekdays, I will wake up, write my blog, take a small break while my daughter is getting out of the house, finish my blog until my husband wakes up, take another small break, and then writing non-stop until my daughter comes home from school. The weekends will be a little different. On Saturdays, I will only be able to write until they wake up, and then on Sundays all I’ll probably be able to do is my blog before church.
 

Translation, I’ll have approximately 125 hours to write the 50K words, which calculates to 400 words an hour. My blog takes me roughly an hour to write and generally they run between six hundred and eight hundred words. When I break it down that far and do the comparison, it doesn’t seem quite as daunting. Perhaps if I keep that in mind, and reward myself every 400 words, I’ll be able to plow through yet again, and not get completely freaked out on the days I can’t write. (Thanksgiving Day, the prep day before, and picking up my daughter from school are the three days I know of already, and I didn’t figure them into the 125 hours.)
 

I will keep you updated as to my progress, and any words of encouragement during this insane time, would be greatly appreciated. I asked last time, but no one took me up on my request, but I am going to ask again. If any of you have suggestions for writing prompts, please feel free to send them to me, so I can have a few extras to pull from this month.
 

Now, in an effort to share some anxiety, here’s a reality check for all of you. There are 27 days left until Thanksgiving and Chanukah, 55 days left until Christmas, and only 61 days left in 2013. Yeah, I know I can still be a brat at times. Sorry.

 

I hope you have a great day and happy writing!

Your Last Challenge:
 

I’m going to give you a whole lot of leeway on this one. Tell us about your favorite Halloween memory. It could be a special Halloween, an extra special costume or party, tradition, whatever you want to write about.

There are several Halloweens I remember fondly, like the year all five of us went as a family of Dalmatians. Yup, even my husband. But there is one Halloween in particular which stands out in my mind.

It was the Halloween on 1976, I was in fifth grade. Several weeks before Halloween, I had suffered a terrible accident. My foot went through the spokes in an exercise bike and was nearly severed at the ankle. After many hours of surgery, everything was reattached and my leg was casted.

A few days before Halloween, I was finally given the okay to walk without my crutches. I was thrilled. Although I was slowly thumping about in a cast, I would be able to walk to go trick or treating.

My costume that year was Raggedy Anne. My mother had made it, and it was adorable. I’m not just saying that now as an adult, I actually loved it as a ten year old. She had made the elastic on my pantaloons extra stretchy on my right leg to accommodate my cast, and for the first time in nearly two months, my accident was not as noticeable, or so I thought. I was still walking gingerly and with a distinct limp.

I hobbled up to the first house and when the people answered they had asked me what happened. So I told them. They we so horrified by my story, they gave me an extra piece of candy. The same thing happened at almost every stop. After an hour or so, my leg was tired from walking and my candy bag had gotten too heavy for me to carry, so we called it quits.

 

I remember lying in bed that night and thinking all these people, even though they didn’t know me, wanted to do something nice to make me feel better. They didn’t frown or scold even when I admitted the accident was all my fault, that I had been stupid and caused the whole mess. I think that night was when I started to realize accidents happen, and even if you were the cause of the accident, it did not make you a bad person.

I had been carrying around a lot of guilt over getting hurt. I had caused my family a lot of anxiety and worry all because I was being too competitive and made a bad decision. The kindness from strangers that night helped me start to release some of that guilt.

Your Next Challenge is (one from my writers’ group):

You work at a restaurant – you witness a blind date that goes horrible wrong

You have 10 minutes (be honest). There is no right or wrong, just write. Spelling and punctuation don’t count and NO ONE is allowed to criticize what someone else has written. Go.