October 28th 2015

Hi, it’s Christina –

Kindle
Paperback

Good Afternoon! I had planned on making this blog post yesterday, but Kieren & Logan wouldn’t let me, and since you’ve waited for Faerie Tale Queen for so long, I thought it best to oblige them.

Mary Ann Cavallaro

I have two things to tell you about today. Tonight, on Facebook, we are doing a launch party for AnnieAcorn’s 2015 Spirited Tales. If you haven’t heard, I am one of 8 authors in this new book of spooky short stories, and tonight, Susan Ricci, Juliette Hill & I will be hosting an online party to launch its release. There will be chatting with the authors, games, and give-aways, so if you’re around tonight between 7 – 9 Eastern Daylight Time, then pop on in and have some fun.

K. Edwin Fritz

The other thing I wanted to tell you about was, last Saturday, I attended the Princeton Public Library’sAuthors’ Day. The morning started off with two workshops, and since I firmly believe if I don’t have something nice to say, I should shut up, I will only tell you about the first workshop. It was hosted by author and motivational speaker Ed Tseng, and he was FABULOUS!

Ed Tseng

Although I am generally a positive person – overly so if you ask some folks – there were several points Ed hit on which resonated with me, and I’d like to share with you.

James Hockenberry

How many of you have ever had a bad dream? When you wake up from the dream, is all right with your world again? Do you realize it was only a dream and not an actual threat to your wellbeing? 

Chances are you said “yes” to all of these questions (precognition aside). Well, thoughts should be handled just like dreams. The little voice which says “you’re not good enough” or “you can’t” is just a dream, it’s not real. So squash it and forge on. You ARE good enough, and you CAN!

Frank Haggerty

The next tidbit which stuck with me is “It’s the start that stops most people”. How many times have you said, “Someday, I’ll_____” (you fill in the blank). Why does it have to be “someday”? Why can’t someday be today? If I had a nickel for every person who told me that someday they’d like to write a book, I’d have a whole lot of shiny nickels. Infallibly I tell them, “Then just do it.” and ask, “What’s stopping you?” and infallibly they present me with a list of excuses.

Chris Illuminati

Just this weekend, one “author” was complaining he wanted to write another book, but he just doesn’t have the time. I suggested he wake up fifteen minutes earlier to write, but he had a list of excuses why he couldn’t. I’m sorry, but anyone could find a measly fifteen minutes in a day. My guess is he really didn’t want to write or he would find the time, and although I’m probably wrong, it made me question the quality of what he’s already written. Perhaps I am just bias and tend to be repelled by negative people.

Debbie Lorynski
Sarada Chiruvolli

Pretty much on that same note, Ed had one piece of advice – “Even if you don’t want to do something, commit to it for fifteen minutes, then you can stop.” Provided we are not talking about holding your breath, fifteen minutes isn’t going to kill you, and you’d be amazed at how much you can actually accomplish in fifteen minutes.

Cheryl Filipak

Can I let you in on a little secret? I’m not the most diligent when it comes to housework. My nose gets a bit bent out of shape when everyone else in the house expects me to clean up their messes, so I’ve been known to go on strike – a lot. Just because I don’t physically leave the house, does not mean I’m not working, and therefore should be the maid, chef and chauffeur.

Nicole Avena
(and her adorable daughter Stella)

Well, for the past few days, I have been taking Ed’s advice, and committing fifteen minutes. Every hour or so, when I need to get up and move around or my back will protest, I tackle one task for fifteen minutes. Guess what? The house is almost clean, and I’m not grumbling under my breath while I’m doing it. I also have a real sense of accomplishment. It’s amazing what fifteen minutes can do for your soul.

Stephen Jankiewicz
Mary Fan

Okay, I have rambled on enough for one day. I hope you enjoy the photos from the Princeton Public Library Author’s Day, and I hope you check out some of the authors I have featured in this post.

Until next time – I hope you have a WONDERFUL day & Happy Writing!

March 9th 2015 Challenge

Hi, it’s Christina –

Good Morning! It’s been a few days since I have constructed a blog post, and to be honest, it’s not easy going today either, but I felt obligated. No reason, I’m just tired. It’s been a crazy few days.

On Thursday, during the blizzard, I headed up to Vermont to pick up my daughter because it was the start of her spring break. It probably would have made a world more sense to leave on Friday, after the storm had passed, but I knew doing a one day round trip would have wrecked me.

 

I did have my “Jesus take the wheel” moment while driving up. I was headed north on Route 287, a major three lane highway in New Jersey. I was in the middle lane, tootling along at 35 mph, in the two narrow tire strips of clean pavement, when I neared a truck from Alabama. It was throwing up so much slush and snow, I moved over into the fast lane so I would have an empty lane between us. Then the truck decides to move over into the middle lane. I can’t speed up because it’s not safe – I pushed it at 38 to no avail, but was not willing to go faster. I could not slow down because then I would be getting the full brunt of the slush flying off the truck. Basically, I was stuck, white-knuckled, and none too happy, just behind the cab of the truck.

That is when the rocket scientist of a truck drive decided he wanted to come into the fast lane. A) Trucks are NOT allowed in the fast lane in New Jersey, and B) The lane was OCCUPIED! He began to cross into my lane, and kicked up enough muck to completely cover my windshield, effectually blinding me. Instinctively, I began to swerve to the left, onto the unplowed left buffer, to avoid the truck, and flipped my wipers on high so I could see. The windshield cleared just in time for me to correct my trajectory and avoid hitting the cement median by inches. By the grace of God alone, I was able to maintain control of my vehicle on the icy snowy road.

The truck driver must have realized his error, because by the time I righted myself, he was several car lengths behind me, and moving over to the slow lane. Thankfully, the rest stop was only a few more miles away, and I would be able to pull over and compose myself.

Southerners, I love you, truly I do, but y’all should seriously reconsider crossing the Mason-Dixon line during the winter months. You are ill-equipped to handle the treacherous driving conditions.

It was very strange, the snow did not cross the state line. It was snowing like crazy in NJ, but when I crossed over into NY, nothing. WooHoo! Perhaps I would reach Vermont hail and whole after all.

As I was getting off the exit, I kept hearing this unusual scraping noise, and it was becoming increasingly more difficult to steer the car. I’m thinking – just what I need, car trouble, during a blizzard, and over two and a half hours away from home. Just ducky!

I maneuver my car into a spot, in the blessedly covered parking deck, and get out to have a look. I’m not mechanically inclined, however I was praying for it to be something obvious, and easily repairable. It was blatantly obvious what the problem was, and in hindsight, I wish I had snapped a picture before I corrected the problem. All four of my tires were completely encrusted with snow. It was packed solid into the wheel wells, and was scraping against the tires. I pulled a photo off the internet to show you what I mean, but my car was much worse than the photo.

For the next twenty minutes, I kicked at the bumpers and the running boards trying to displace the snow, and I managed to get about 80% of it off. There were sections under the running boards that were just solid ice, and no matter how much I kicked, it wasn’t budging, so I gave up.

When I pulled out of the Sloatsburg Rest Stop, my nerves had calmed, the car was driving well again, and the snow had stopped. Two hours later, I was cruising up Route 87, at a more road eating pace of 68mph, when a Jeep Cherokee from – you guessed it – Alabama, slams on his breaks right in front of me. I swerve into the left lane (there was very little traffic, and we were all traveling in the slow lane, so I knew there was no one on my left), and then I realize why the Cherokee driver hit his brakes – a NY state trooper, decided to swing a Uie at one of the breaks in the median. Now I’m thinking the trooper isn’t going to stop, and pull right into traffic, so I swerve back into the right lane.

Good grief! Unless you are traveling through Hazard County and Roscoe P. Coltrane is on duty, no state trooper is going to pull you over for going THREE miles over the speed limit. (My cruise control was set at exactly 68 and we had been traveling at that exact speed for over half an hour when the clown slammed on his brakes.)

I had my hand on my chest, trying to keep my heart from beating thorough my chest when the state trooper drove past me. He looked over, rolled his eyes and sped off shaking his head. I’d like to think he was referencing the guy hitting his brakes and not me, considering he didn’t pull me over.

By the time I got to Vermont – which was beautiful sunny blue skies and 17°, I had had enough. I picked up soup and sandwiches from Panara, Lys and I had an early dinner, and I was sound asleep by 9:30.

The next morning, I felt SO bad. I was exhausted, plus I have a little bit of a cold, and my daughter told me I kept her up because I was snoring. How embarrassing. I asked her why she didn’t throw something at me to make me wake up and stop. She said because she knew how tired I was. I felt terrible. She couldn’t sleep because of me, and she had two classes to go to before we could leave. It’s four days later and I still feel guilty about it.

Saturday, Lys spent twelve hours making her cousin’s birthday cake. Here’s a photo of her latest masterpiece. The child has a definite flair for cake decorating. Yesterday my maid of honor and her sister came over for brunch. We had a blast! Then yesterday afternoon we had my nephew Max’s and Lys’ combined birthday party over at my sister-in-law’s. Today, I’m whooped. Thank goodness I have nowhere I have to be, and nothing I have to do today, because honestly, I don’t have the energy.

Okay, I have rambled on long enough for one day. I hope you have a marvelous day, and happy writing!

Your Next Challenge is:

Use the following “Friends were things of the past, of his other life.” Bonus points if you either start or finish your challenge with the sentence.

Quote taken from Man Hunt by K. Edwin Fritz – available on Amazon.

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.

February 17th, 2015

Hi, it’s Christina –

Good Morning. It’s another snow day in central New Jersey. The main roads all look clear, but I wonder what all the back roads look like. A while back RV and I discussed that if the kids have off because of snow, then we have off, but I’m not sure if she’s changed her mind or not. I’m waiting for a phone call to see if I have to go to work today or not.

Honestly, I’d rather have the day off, but not for selfish reasons. I really don’t want her out in this weather. The last thing she needs is to slip on an unshoveled path. She’s supposed to have therapy today, but with the wind blowing the snow, I don’t think they will be able to keep the walkway clear enough to be safe. It’s her call, but…

So, since this really is supposed to be a blog about writing and not just me, I am going to try to dedicate at least a portion of it (other than the writing challenge) to writing or books or marketing your books, whatever. It’s only right.

Today’s writing related topic is writing itself, and if you are a writer, your need to get in the habit of writing every day, not matter what. The only way to get good at something is to practice, but let’s face it, life tends to get in the way. There is a tool out there which you may find helpful. A friend of mine, and fellow author, K.Edwin Fritz, put together this spreadsheet to help you form good writing habits.

The spreadsheet tracks for you how many words you’ve written every day, and it also tracks how much time you have spent reading (the best writers read veraciously), and how much time you spend on other writing related endeavors (ie: social media marketing, editing, appearances, etc.) You earn points for each thing (not that the points get you anything other than a feeling of accomplishment), and you can see how you stack up against other writers – a friendly competition to push yourself to reach the next rung on the ladder.

The sheet is on its second reincarnation – he made it a lot easier – so there are only two dozen or so writers signed up at the moment, but if the last sheet was any indication, that number will climb exponentially over the next few months. The time couldn’t be better than to jump on board. It’s FREE, and it offers you – the lonely writer – a sense of community. Please consider signing up today.

Well, I should get ready, just in case I do have to go to work today. I hope you have a terrific day, and happy writing!

Your Next Challenge is:

What is up with the wildlife today???

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 17th

Hi, it’s Christina –

Good Morning! Today's blog post is all about Saturday's Local Authors' Day at the Hillsborough Public Library. (Basically, it's all pictures and short blurbs.)

Robert

This is Robert Helmbrecht. He is a member of the Hillsborough Public Library staff, and was the event coordinator. He also runs a monthly writing group at the library. When he is not at his "day job", Robert is a publisher of horror novels.

Me

Robert busted his butt making the event happen, and considering this was the very first event, of this scale, for the library, he did a wonderful job. I know next year will be even better. Thanks Robert for all your hard work!

There were over thirty local authors in attendance at the event and we were separated into two different areas. There were seven of us in the main library section, and the remaining twenty five (or so) were in the program room.

Chris Redding

I had a great time chatting with the authors who were in my area, but I think we would all have liked to have been in the room with the others. 

Chris Redding was to my right. She has eight or nine books under her belt at this point. Chris and I met, what we figured out to be fifteen years ago, when I first started thinking about becoming a writer. She was nice enough to meet me for coffee and then to take me with her to an RWA meeting. We had lost touch over the years, but have now reconnected and I look forward to furthering our friendship. 

Mary Ellen Springsteen

Mary Ellen Springsteen was on my left with her medical mystery The Universal Donor. Mary Ellen and I met in April at the Princeton Authors' Day, and have since attended several author related events together.

Zana Etter

Next to Mary Ellen was Zana Etter with her new book Dark Orchids. Zana and I both attend the monthly writing group at the Hillsborough Public Library. Zana's husband accompanied her on Saturday, and I would have like to have had more time to chat with him. He seems like an interesting man.

H.E. Goodhue

To Chris' right was H.E. Goodhue who happens to be a teacher in one of our our local schools. He writes YA fiction, and, like Chris, has several books under his belt. Unfortunately, I had absolutely no interaction with him other than making him pose for this picture. Undoubtedly we will run into each other again, and I will not let the opportunity slip by me a second time.

K. Edwin Fritz

Next to H.E. was my buddy Keith, or as his public knows him, K. Edwin Fritz, author and host of Writers2Writers.  I talk about Keith all the time, so I won't talk about him or his five books this time.

Charles H. & Laine Sutton Johnson

Rounding out our little group was Charles H. Johnson and his wife Laine Sutton Johnson. Again, like with H.E., I didn't get as much time to chat with them as I would have liked. Charles is a Vietnam Vet and a poet. I could not find a link to him or his books on Amazon, so I have provided a link directly to his website.

Kathi Kurz

When time permitted, I snuck (I know that is incorrect, but I just can't bring myself to use "sneaked", sorry) into the program room to snap some pictures of the other authors, and when I ran out of time, I left my camera with my friend Kathi Kurz, and she filled in the pictures I missed. Kathi had her youngest son helping her out on Saturday. I'm not even sure if she knows he photo-bombed her. (He's such a cutie!)

Casey Jo and Stacey Wilk

Casey Jo, author of The Bunny Rabbit in the Flower Garden put us to shame. We all had candy out for folks who stopped by, she had carrots. Casey shared a section with Stacey Wilk, author of the Gabriel Hunter Series.

Ruth A. Casie, Lita Harris, Emma Kaye,
Nicole S. Patrick & Julie Rowe

Yes I realize there are only four women in the photo to the left, and I have listed five names, but because of limited time, I was not able to chat with these women for more than a minutes. The five of them wrote and anthology, Timeless Treasures, but only four of them were able to make the event on Saturday. Which member was unable to attend, I'm not sure, so I listed all of their names. Now, I did not purchase any of the books these ladies were offering, I didn't have to. My mom bought them all, so I know it's only a matter of time before they will trickle down to me.

Annabelle Bryant & L.G. O'Connor

I am really bummed I did not get to chat with Annabelle Bryant. We were the two Historical Romance writers of the group. Hopefully we will cross paths again in the not to distant future and we will be able to sit down and commiserate. Annabelle's neighbor was L.G. O'Connor. The two of them looked like they were having fun together. It was truly a case of not enough hours in the day. I'm going to propose a closed meet & greet for the authors to take place an hour or so before the Authors' Day next year. I think we would all enjoy actually meeting and talking to our counterparts.

Edith G. Tolchin

This lovely lady is Edith Tolchin. Edith also attends the monthly writer's group at HPL, and she's a stitch! I truly enjoy her company. Edith has authored several (for lack of better explanation) "how to" books. She is a wealth of information, and is very successful at what she does. However, she is now venturing into fiction writing, and I am absolutely in love with the concept she has for a book, and I am anxiously awaiting to read installments. I am not at liberty to say any more at this time, but mark my words, the second I am, you'll be hearing all about it.

Andy? Scott? I'm not sure.

Other than to say "hi", I didn't get a chance to talk with Andy Rane or was it Scott Mulraney. Andy is the author of the Trilogy of the Six, and currently books 1 & 2 are available. Scott is the author of YA Fiction books -  Danny Dirks series & the Liquid Blue series. Now I'm not 100% sure, but I think Andy & Scott may be the same person. If I'm wrong, I apologize profusely.

JC Vogard & Jeff Markowitz

I have just about given up on actually getting to talk to JC Vogard. We have been at a few events together, and we have never managed to actually chat. We've both tried. It's kinda funny at this point. JC writes mysteries, and she had Tiffany Blues with her on Saturday. Jeff Markowitz, also a mystery writer is next to her, but he was being camera shy and I didn't have time to coax him into a better photo.

Yvonne Ventresca

I have the same situation going on with Yvonne Ventresca as I do with JC. That is why Yvonne has such a big smile on her face in this photo - we were laughing. Basically I begged her to sit down for two seconds so I could snap her picture for my blog. We said we'd talk later, but as usual, it never happened. Yvonne had her YA Fiction book Pandemic with her.

Rachelle Burk

Children's author Rachelle Burk was there as well. I have not yet had the opportunity to speak with Rachelle, but my friend Kathi says she was a "good neighbor" to have at the event.

Jeannette Brown

Meet Ms. Jeannette Brown. She is a fascinating woman who I had the privileged of meeting at a HPL writers group event. She wrote African American Woman Chemists. The stories this woman has to tell are wonderful, amazing, and inspirational. 

One author at the event was a big surprise, David Pincus. Mr. Pincus - I just can't call him Dave - and I met back in the 70's when he was a teacher at my school. Eons later, he was my son's teacher, and Mr. Pincus, his wife and I chaperoned a class trip to Hershey Park. He has written The Courtship of John's Wife, and he has another book coming out soon. Unfortunately, I did not get his picture.

Nicole Zoltack, Yvonne
 & Charlotte Bennardo

The remaining authors I did not get a chance to talk to, but I wanted to give them a shout-out anyway. 

Scott M. Goriscak

There were actually several more authors, but neither Kathi or I were able to get pictures. For those few we missed, I apologize.

Mary SanGiovanni

Well, since this blog has taken me over five hours to create - links to everyone's author's page and their books took forever - I will not be posting a writing challenge today. 

Walter Choroszewski

I now have to shut my computer down, grab a quick lunch, and then start straightening up my house for Thanksgiving. Now you might be saying Thanksgiving is still a ways away, and I thought so too, until Paulie pointed out last night that next weekend is the last weekend between now and the holiday, and next weekend I will be at book signings both days and then a party on Saturday night. YIKES!

Frank Wander

I don't know if you remember me telling you or not, but one of our guests for Thanksgiving dinner is my uncle, and my uncle has horrible allergies. That translates to an above and beyond cleaning whenever he comes to visit. I'm talking we literally wash down all the walls. 

Okay, I had better get going. I hope you have an amazing day, and I hope you take some time to check out the authors I have featured in today's blog. Happy writing!