Bobby's Diner Recipe Contest! More...

Okay, folks! Georgette, the owner and chef at Bobby's Diner (located in Sunnydale, AZ) has her own email address.

It's:   georgettecarlisle@bobbysdiner.com.

And she appreciates the wonderful recipes she's already receiving but we would love to see more. So, dust off that old cookbook and pull out something delicious for us to include in my next novel...

Easy as Pie at Bobby's Diner (out May 2010).

Take care and remember it's a good day when you're eating pie! -Susan :)

The Line is Blurred Between Fact & Fiction at "Bobby's Diner"

My life has turned into one big virtual reality...

A couple of days ago my editor, Alexandra Pezone, emailed me saying something to the tune of,

"So, as I was reading through your ms (short for manuscript) I noticed you mentioned that Georgette had her own Facebook page and thought, wouldn't it be cool if you actually set one up for her."

You gotta love an editor who thinks like that. As fast as my chubby little fingers could write I wrote back with a big fat YES! Thanked her with a dozen exes and oooos and sent a message congratulating my publisher on his choice of editorial staffers. Bravo!

Today, I set up the page. It was odd acting like Georgette outside of a story or outside the purpose of writing a book but I had fun. The world has spun into the future and it feels like you have to put on a rocket booster just to keep up these days. My mind just flashed back into the past about the future (what?) to one of my favorite cartoons, The Jetsons. Their treadmill and Astro their dog on it. That's how I feel, like an old dog on a treadmill... but, hey! At least I'm on it!

So, Georgette, in her infinite wisdom, has decided to host a recipe contest. Five winners (1st, 2nd, 3rd, first runner-up and second runner-up) of said contest will have their recipes published in her next novel entitled "Easy as Pie at Bobby's Diner."

Each winning recipe will be include the following:

• The name of the chef entering,
• A bio of the chef, and
• A photo of the finished product

The 1st place winner will receive $50 directly from Georgette and Bobby's Diner... okay from my company but hey I'm a fiction writer, please allow me a little some slack. But, really, $50 US dollars.

All winners will receive a certificate stating their placement in the contest AND a copy of the "Easy as Pie at Bobby's Diner" upon its publication this coming May 2010.

Restrictions: There are none! :) Georgette's contest, Georgette's rules!

DEADLINE: December 31, 2009
SO HURRY and enter today, early entries are smiled upon!!!

A December Wish

What a year. It never fails to amaze me that after turning thirty-five, the years have flown by, clicking off to forty, then forty-nine and all of the sudden I'm fifty-one-years-old and wondering where the years have gone and so quickly.

We've had friends and family leave us and new births. Reminding us that the world keeps turning. The cycles remain constant even while we do not. We're but visitors on this amazing speck of dirt.

It's a blink. This statement used to be my signature statement. I had it on my emails and on my old website. As years zipped by and left me wondering "what the, hay..." the saying seemed imbedded in my mind as well. A constant reminder of our mortality. Maybe I was just being morbid.

Who knows.

Now, however, my motto rings a little brighter and actually looking toward the future reminding me a bit of this person I used to be when I was just a kid, that little girl thrilled about a new day, jumping out of bed and running to the window to see what the day held for me.

These days the "jumping out of bed" part is a little slower but my mood has shifted to a lighter, happier outlook. And, to this I say, "yippee."

So, what does the end of the year hold for us? Ringing in the new (to coin a phrase). Living to the fullest. Making sure each moment counts. New things. Old things. Habits to break. Habits to keep. The wonder of life.

It's a blink. Yes, it is but I'm keeping my eyes fully open. Trying not to miss "it" as time goes by.

Think of the song, "It's a Wonderful World" sung by Louis Armstrong, or if you're too young to remember him, sung by Tony Bennett and kd lang (a fab rendition!).

Goodbye, 2009. You've been great and we'll miss you. Hello new year. What shall we do today?

Sincerely, Susan! And, have a lovely rest of December!

Mystery Novel, "A Falling of Law" by JJ Adams

Have you ever seen a thunder storm approach? How the skies turn dark and ominous and the scent of rain hangs thick in the air. And have you ever seen, on those stormy days, how there might be one little hole in the entire cloud system, blinking like a blue eye almost letting you know that the sun is shining bright out there somewhere for you?

Lately, at times, behind the screen (no, not your screen, my screen) there has been this sense of up and down, light and dark, happiness and sadness yanking me around like a puppet. It's been disconcerting and hard to balance, at times. You know how it can be...

Anyway, yesterday, I spent most of the day happy and it was a nice change of pace. After receiving an email last week with an attached contract for one of my novels, the up and down roller coaster effect seemed in full force but yesterday, after receiving yet another email with another attachment - this time the contract signed both ways - the roller coast leveled out and happiness abounded.

Black Rose Writing out of Castroville, Texas has picked up my mystery novel entitled "A Falling of Law" written under the pen name, JJ Adams. I'm thrilled. AFoL has been a pet project of mine for years and now it will get the attention I feel it deserves. They intend to have it in print within six to nine months, probably nine. Oh, and, yes, I'll make sure to let everyone know the exact street date! :)

Well, anywho. Thanks for allowing me this little tidbit of joy sent your way. Have a lovely holiday season. I'll be thinking of your health and happiness on this side of the screen!
Sincerely, Susan

Following the Tiger!

So! This just bites doesn't it? That the number one golfer in the world has gotten into such a mess. Yes, I suppose we can all agree that it's the fame and fortune and perhaps he feels a bit entitled but really folks, this just bites.

The first time I saw Tiger Woods he was a contestant in an NCAA golf tournament and he won. The next time, the next year, the same scenario... yes, he won. How many years has gone by and he's still winning still on top (oops, forget the pun). He's still someone I've looked up to he's a hero, a sports god, really, married, with children and seemingly on the straight and narrow but... oh no! Look out for the banana peel, Tiger.

He slipped and fell hard.

Now, I've been following the news about the now infamous Tiger with the bashed in window shield and the woozy response when paramedics arrived on the scene. I've read about the nightclub hostess and the cocktail waitress and have to presume that these transgressions were not intended to harm but to augment his multiple business ventures. Seeing the list of "ladies" on his "to do" list, I am only guessing that Tiger was only doing initial research on how to open a restaurant!

Really, think about it. He obviously "eats out" an awful lot and felt the urge to try his hand at the restaurant biz. Bet it won't have the double hump McDonald sign, hmm, maybe a swoosh? I don't know, just thinking.

Of course, this is certainly just speculation on my part but seeing the evidence, I believe I'm justified in my summation of his aforementioned alleged transgressions...

Sorry it's been so long since my last post. Been busy. Book stuff. -Susan :)

A Moment of Closeness

I look from our bedroom window down to see the deer. They're digging about in the garden nibbling at tender perennials. To call out now might frighten them, so it's time to be quiet and head downstairs.

Moving through the house I watch them through the windows. They can hear me talking to the dogs and Vincent, one of fourteen cats. The dogs and the cat want to go outside. The dogs, so they can pee and the cat so he can cat around! The deer back out of the garden where they stand only a nose away from approaching dogs. Robert heads over quickly to see the herd. I tell him to be nice and he looks back at me in an answer.

Once the dogs come out in the morning, the deer understand that, in a few minutes, the woman will come out too but from a different part of the house.

Now, I can feed my deer. I walk into the dining area where the wet cob remains stored and close the kitchen door behind me. A few of the herd prick up their ears... donkey ears, I think, ears that hear well. Making my way outside and bending over the railing to get my wooden food bowl, they watch...

they watch me return inside the house for the cob, three scoops...

they watch me come back out and much to my surprise...

ALL of the herd has inched up so close they cannot move any closer without climbing up and onto our wooden deck!

They watch me as if audience members watching a performer on a stage, from the edge of the decking. This is highly unusual for our deer. They are very close today. For what reason, who's to know, not me that's for sure but they are intent on watching. After filling the bowl and capping the metal can, I turn and greet them. They have not yet moved away from the stage. As I approach the stairs off the deck, they begin to scatter but none go very far. In fact, today they only move enough to open a path to where their food gets set out.

It's like I'm part of their herd. Can it be possible that, in only two days meditation worked some cosmic enchanment instilling their trust in me. I'm part of the herd as I offer them apples. I'm part of the herd as I portion out the mixture. I'm part of the herd as I walk back toward the house leaving them alone to eat.

How can mere words express my joy of their acceptance?

Re-entering the house, watching them - wet muzzles, shuffling hooves, a starting and stopping of communication between them - I watch from behind glass panes as I peck away at this computer.

Onward and upward. May you have many blessings and may you recognize them when they appear!
From the herd...
Susan :)

The Hidden Herd

Earlier than yesterday this morning...

Out under the fir tree where they find food, a doe and her fawn graze bits of corn and sweet cob. Nibbling the ground with great dexterity, each mouth moving gracefully across the earth while keeping an eye out for danger. So intelligent... so inherently intelligent.

The morning sky isn't quite lit, isn't quite dark either. It hangs somewhere between night and day when people awaken then fall back asleep, when early birds catch worms and when the herd begins to stir. Two does and fawns close, a doe and her two fawns, an orphan yearling buck displaying a set of fuzzy bumps where his antlers will sprout but not this year, by spring perhaps. The herd shows up daily.

The two out under the fir worry when the French door opens to the back deck. The doe walks stealthily out of sight into the woods and disappears like magic. The fawn lingers trying not to follow its mother, knowing food will show soon now that the doors open and the woman steps out. The woman who calls out, "Oh deer." And, "Hello, my little herd." The fawn finally listens to its mother's silent urging and both dissolve into a meshing of leaves and limbs. Only their sounds remain. The delicate crack of dry twigs on the forest floor, in hiding.

I dump out deer food - a wet cob, peanut and raisin, and pellet mixture - into four piles. Turning and retreating, looking back hopeful to catch a glimpse, they stay hidden. Locking the door, they stay hidden. Gazing from the kitchen window, they stay hidden.

They return, after my brief but necessary absence, a visit to the toilet. She's very cautious, this doe. Others in the herd hang around a little more understanding that when I appear, it's usually with food. They do scatter but will hang off in a safe distance.

My moment of selfish pleasure ends...

So, now that the deer have been fed, I'm onto my second cup of Earl Grey tea. I've checked my email, checked my junk file for items that might've slipped into it, sent off necessary communication and now I'm heading back upstairs to meditate.

Until tomorrow...

Keep on with the good work, whatever you do!

-Sincerely, Susan :)

In the Moment...

My favorite moments of the day happen in the morning… when my herd beckons me to feed them. Slipping my feet into my moccasin-type-slippers, lifting Robert off the bed and down onto the floor, stretching my arms into a knobby sweater, one that I leave slung over the bench at the foot of the bed, we make our way downstairs.

They’re waiting under a huge fir tree. Waiting for a their next meal, they meander over the expanse of the field in back pausing every so often, stopping , grazing and gazing at the windows of our home. They see me in these windows. They see me open them and cry out, “I’m coming, deer!” Not understanding my words, of course, but they’ve been conditioned to know that when I yell to them, usually I end up outside with a wooden bowl of food for them. A wooden bowl filled with wet cob meal, deer pellets, rolled corn and a peanut-and-raisin mixture meant to attract woodpeckers.

They live in the moment. I live in the moment. Focused on little else other than getting food to “my” deer, my herd of eight, I live in the moment with them. We sense desperation together. Their stomachs empty, they walk up but in a throe of desperation and survival, they back off. My herd approaches in a push-me-pull-you sort of way. They don’t trust me but they don’t completely mistrust me either. They must feel my compulsion to touch them, to sit with them while they eat… in the moment with them when nothing else matters but feeding deer. But, suspicion consumes them. They won’t let me stay. They trot away if I linger too long so I leave quickly, so their fawns can get their fill.

I’m a meddler in the moment. This routine with the deer settles me into a point where everything around us feels alive. Feeding my deer herd anchors me to a spot in time filled with vibrant stirrings of anticipation, exhilaration, fear, happiness and sadness. The emotions in my brief morning routine – maybe five minutes at the most – are packed.

Lately, I’m trying to get these feelings to stay with me longer, during the rest of my day. We all know the clichés, the catchphrases – words of inspiration meant to encourage us to settle into our life experiences.

“Stop and smell the roses.”
“It’s called the present because it’s a gift.”

Of course, we get it, but how do we employ the rose gifts offered to us?

For me, taking advantage of our life gift is all about time-management. I’m terrible about managing my time. My office looks like the burnt-out Dresden on most days.

I think, in part, it’s because I find myself spending far too much time in communication with people outside of my office. When I should be focusing on my work at hand, my writing. After all, writing is all I really want to do.

Sometimes, we writers can find ourselves torn between the business of writing and the practice of writing. It’s a balancing act for most of us.

So, this is what I’ve decided to do. I’ll be employing the following list. This list – a simple ‘to do’ list – a will delineate my aim for the rest of the week. Following the list below will fill up a good eight- to ten-hour day for me.

Daily ‘To Do’ List
Feed my deer,
Check my email and other communication sites for only 30 minutes at the very most,
Meditate for 15 minutes
For a half hour, I will write one page of new creative writing, whether the writing is poetry or essay but it will be completely creative and will employ all aspects of good technique,
Go outside for 5 minutes to smell the air – the air on the island smells like pine trees and salt spray!
Edit for one hour work from yesterday’s writing,
Go outside for 5 minutes to water potted plants on the back deck,
Write for three hours on writing with the closest deadline,
Go front for 5 minutes to water potted plants there,
Write for three hours on writing with the 2nd closest deadline,
Stop for 5 minutes to think about my accomplishments from the day’s work,
Check my email at the end of the day for no more than 15 minutes

By performing these tasks above, I’m hoping I will stop focusing so much on the future, on the past and focus what is most important, the now. In doing that, I can live in the moment.

Just checking in. Hope your day is filled with sun and joy, you’re getting proper nourishment and you’re in love!

Sincerely, Susan :D

CAMOUFLAGE - Chosen as a Finalist!

I couldn't be happier than I am this morning...

...when I read the note from the editors at Textnovel.com that they selected CAMOUFLAGE as a Finalist in their 2009 Textnovel.com Writing Contest!

Bouncing and giddy and fluttering about, I'm doing the chicken dance and the animals around here are scared of mommy this morning. Bob, of course, gave me a big smooch. That was nearly as exciting as the notification from Textnovel! Ha!

The link for the finalist list is http://mycounsel.typepad.com/textnovelblog/2009/09/textnovel-editorial-board-announces-finalists-in-2009-writing-contest.html.

The other stories in this competition are simply wonderful so if you're at all inclined, please check them out. I'm up against some stiff competition and marvelous writers.

So, thanks to all of you who have been following me during this event. I couldn't be more pleased and encouraged by all of your wonderful words. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!

All my best! -Susan :)

Trying, Again... sequel to Bobby's Diner Gets a Contract!

At 1:30 this afternoon, I was called and told my sequel to "Bobby's Diner" just got another contract!

Details to follow. I'll be sending out more on this after the contract is in the mail and going BACK to the publisher!

Thanks to everyone for your ongoing support and encouragement.
-Susan :)

In Just a Month...

In just a month, I'll be traveling to Lincoln City, Oregon to attend a master writing workshop with Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Kathryn Rusch. They teach several writing workshops throughout the year but this one equals a doctoral capstone course for writers. After telling Elizabeth Lyon I was attending, she'd said, "Ah, yes, you mean you're going to prison." I've heard it's the closest experience a writer will have at a workshop that's most like bootcamp!

The class begins October 3rd and continues until October 18th. During these two weeks I will be unable to do much social networking but I'll bring you all a summary of what happened.

This is an INTENSE writing class where we will be writing pretty much around the clock. So much for facials, eh?

Anyway, this is the first of a few bloggings to let you know I'll be gone and pretty much unavailable.

Thank you all for understanding!

Okay, now for the week following bootcamp...

Literary Agent, Cricket Freeman of the August Agency will be in Friday Harbor, Washington for a library presentation. You can get more information about the workshops she will be offering through the San Juan Island Library. Ms. Freeman is a remarkable instructor and advocate of writers. Her credentials run down my leg and back up to my head. Plus, she's super nice and accessible. You can't be a great teacher without being accessible, right? Well, Ms. Freeman is one of the kindest and thoughtful people I've met in this business. So, I hope you will think about attending one or more of the three workshops she'll be offering. Hey, they're free to the public so why not come.

The dates are:

October 20th from noon until about 4:30 p.m., and

October 21st from 2 p.m. until about 4:00 p.m.

Here's the best part. We're doing a raffle and the lucky winner will have the opportunity to buy Cricket Freeman dinner on October 21st. This means some lucky writer will have her ear all evening. Now, what would you pay to have a literary agent all to yourself? If you're a writer without an agent, you can bet it's a bunch! Anyway, whatever happens, it will be a kick in the pants.

Check back for more details which I'll post in the next few days.

Until then, keep on writing!

Sincerely, Susan

(Susan Wingate is the author of "Camouflage" editor's choice award winner and semi-finalist in the 2009 Textnovel.com Writing Contest and "Bobby's Diner" finalist in the 2009 Next Generation Indie Book Awards)

Please help me in the final days of the Textnovel.com contest and vote for CAMOUFLAGE! Thank you!

Textnovel

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A review by Susan Wingate on THE BAIT SHACK by Harry Hughes (August 9, 2009)

Okay, so most of you know that I love writing book reviews. I especially love writing book reviews when the book is good. My job is so cool. I get to read for work and pleasure!

Well without further adieu, here we go!

A review by Susan Wingate on THE BAIT SHACK by Harry Hughes (August 9, 2009)

In a methodical build…
Wait, let me back up. Before the story begins, Harry Hughes has chosen to insert a prologue. An iffy prospect if done poorly. But, Hughes starts THE BAIT SHACK out with a bang – in the throes of a gruesome murder. Hughes carries the murder through the entire length of the prologue. He writes his prologue by visiting and revisiting the act all the while being completely immersed in the mind of the victim. And, when you think she has suffered quite enough, you’re dead wrong (forgive the pun). The disemboweling murderer keeps at her. He keeps torturing this poor woman until the very end. It’s the most agonizing murder scene I’ve ever read and Hughes quite purposefully has written it this way. He makes the reader lie down next to the victim as the murderer pierces her skin – plunging the knife in deeper – slices up her skin, smokes a cigarette while she lays in a pool of her own blood, close to death and then finally finishes her off. You think that’s a long sentence? Just wait until you read the prologue. You’re there with the characters every step of the way. It’s a brutal depiction of a heinous crime and a depiction that Hughes has captured eloquently, if that can be said about a murder. He’s prolonged the writing of this scene with intention. In order for the reader to understand the murderer’s nature, the slow exhaustive death of the victim, and I think also in part, to understand Harry Hughes – this meticulous author leaves nothing to chance.
Okay, now… in a methodical build of staging and conflict, characters and convergence, Hughes writes the perfect mystery. A dark and eerie thriller at times but always at a page-turning pace, THE BAIT SHACK left me feeling like I had just had some of the best most rigorous sex of my life but with the skankiest guy. After I finished THE BAIT SHACK I felt like I wanted to take a shower. The story is funny. It’s creepy. It’s like covering your eyes from seeing something you don’t want to see but then opening your fingers because, well, you just have to watch.
Hughes writes in a crisp and tantalizing manner. The dark sardonic story found in THE BAIT SHACK is so out there at times, that I found myself turning my head and saying, “Good lord.” And, that’s a good thing. I want to feel something when I read a book.
Many times I wanted to ask Hughes why he went from A to B in the plot but then as I read along, and, as with any fine writer, he answered my questions brilliantly and usually with such complete and utter creativity that he left me breathless. As a writer myself, I felt envious of Hughes’ ability to be so organically complex and then be able to comb through all of his built-in complexities with satisfying resolutions.
Hughes takes the genre of mystery to a new height. His writing style is unlike any one else’s I’ve read. He sets a new standard for authors to shoot for.
Harry Hughes has found in THE BAIT SHACK a narrative thrust that makes the story an absolute pleasure to read. Well done, Mr. Hughes.
Now, what’s next?
-Susan Wingate, author of “Bobby’s Diner” and “Of the Law”

CAMOUFLAGE, novel-in-progress, nabs a Semi-Finalist Spot in the Textnovel.com Writing Contest!

It's true! And, I'm so excited and pleased that CAMOUFLAGE, my 4th (and by far my shortest) novel, is already bulldozing its way to a chance at winning this year's Textnovel.com writing competition...

But I need your votes to win!

HERE'S A LITTLE ABOUT "CAMOUFLAGE"

"Written with a flair that verges on experimental, CAMOUFLAGE, tells a story of a young French woman and up-and-coming novelist who winds up in an illicit affair with her writing mentor - a married man and a world-renowned author."

This story has been such a kick to write and here's why:

TEXTNOVEL.COM is leading the way to a whole new level of writing competition. In cooperation with Dorchester Publishing (OMG), they have two legs of this competition. One in which a story can win the Textnovel competition and one that can win the Dorchester competition... and, here's the best part... that same story could possibly win BOTH!

HERE'S A LITTLE ABOUT THE TWO WRITING COMPETITIONS!

THE TEXTNOVEL CONTEST

$1,000 Cash Prize

Textnovel.com Writing Contest! No entry fee. And you might get published!
Here's the deal:

• Winner is picked by Textnovel.com Editorial Advisory Board.• $1,000 Prize plus possible publishing or literary agency contract. -->• Must have 20 chapters (and 200 pages) up by August 30th, 2009 -- no minimum word count!• Must be 13 years old to enter.• Previous prize winners not eligible.See Contest Rules for more details!
Bonus: Last year's winner picked up a 3-book publishing deal with St. Martin's Press!

THE DORCHESTER CONTEST

CONTEST OVERVIEW :

Win a guaranteed publishing contract with distribution throughout the U.S. and Canada!
Dorchester Publishing, in partnership with Textnovel, is looking to discover the next New Voice in Romance.
Aspiring authors of historical, contemporary, paranormal, urban fantasy, high fantasy or futuristic romance are invited to participate in Dorchester’s first ever e-serial writing contest.
Entrants must be at least 18 years old, and the specific work submitted to the contest must not have not been previously published in a print edition.
The contest will run on Textnovel from June 1, 2009 to November 1, 2009.
Contestants must publish at least 20 chapters/6,000 words (preferably in increments of 500 words each) by November 1, 2009 in order to be eligible for the contest.
Contestants may invite friends to vote and/or subscribe. All Textnovel registrants may also participate in the voting and/or subscription process.
There will be two rounds of judging: Semifinalists (Top 20) and Finalists (Top 10).
The 20 semifinalists will be determined by number of votes and/or subscriptions a serial has by November 1, 2009.
The 10 finalists will be selected from among the 20 semifinalists by Dorchester's editorial team and will be announced on November 15, 2009.
The winner, to be chosen from among the 10 finalists, will be selected based on a combination of factors, including positive votes and subscriptions by readers and reviews by reviewers, as well as the subjective opinions of the Dorchester's editorial team.*
The winning manuscript will receive a $2,000 advance and will be published by Dorchester Publishing in 2010.
*Please see complete Contest Rules and Regulations for details on judging.

PRIZES :

The winning serial manuscript will receive a $2,000 advance and will be published by Dorchester Publishing in November or December 2010.

Back to me: Pretty cool, eh? So, if you're a writer you still have until August 30th to enter. But get busy now.

Wishing you a wonderful rest of the summer and fortune in your lives!

Sincerely, Susan :)

Yesterday's "To Do" List

August 1, 2009 "To Do" List

1. Up at 4 a.m.
2. See if the well is pumping water... no
3. Wipe down face with a cold rag
4. Get tea (use bottled water)
5. Let boys out to p-p, poo-poo
6. Feed deer
7. Prepare Freckles' (my sick pigeon) food for the day
8. Get handouts for workshop
9. Get computer
10. Get driving directions
11. Get purse
12. Put Freckles in car
13. Catch ferry and head off to the PNWA Conference in Seattle to teach "Muscle-up the Midsection of Your Novel"
14. Try to sleep on the ferry
15. Try to work on the computer
16. Try to ignore Freckles in the back seat of the car
17. Quit talking to yourself
18. Deboard the ferry
19. Stop and tube-feed Freckles
20. Gun it to Seattle... in time to give your workshop at 10:30a - current time? 7:45 a.m.
21. GO!
22. Try not to fall asleep driving
23. Try not to crash, speed or fall asleep driving
24. Pull off at the correct exit
25. Find 176th Street
26. Find Seattle Airport Hilton
27. Got it
28. Park, explain bird situation, promise to return to valet services by 12:15, thank the valet who is kindly letting you park under the cabana at the front of the hotel lobby next to the valet stand... "Thank you so much!"
29. Get bearings
30. Get attache and purse
31. Find convention, find nice funny people who help lost people like me, find meeting room "Mercer A"
32. Walk in quietly and sit
33. and wait until 10:30
34. Check time... 9:39 YEA!
35. Tick tock
36. Tick tock
37. Tick tock
38. Get up and move to the front desk and set your wares down
39. Wait for previous instructor to clear out
40. Set-up your computer
41. Set out handouts, 2 copies of "Bobby's Diner," bookmarks and business cards
42. Start welcoming people into the class
43. Check time: 10:30 a.m., Go!
44. Start class
45. ...blur... blur... blur... blur... blur... blur... blur... blur... blur... blur...
46. Check time: 12 noon, Stop!
47. Find hotel lobby entrance
48. Tip nice valet, tip him well
49. Check on Freckles, "Hi punkin'! You okay?"
50. He refuses to answer but seems fine
51. Drive out of hotel
52. Find I5 again going north this time
53. Merge onto freeway without killing anyone
54. Start drive home
55. Try not to fall asleep
56. Try not to crash, speed or fall asleep
57. Pull off at Hwy 20 toward Anacortes and back again to the ferry
58. Try to make the 3:10 p.m.
59. Get into the ferry line that is backed up nearly a half-mile away from the ticketing booth
60. Resolve to the fact you might make the 5:05 p.m. ferry instead
61. Crawl to the ticketing booth
62. 45 minutes later, 3 p.m., get ticket "any chance for the 3:10p?"
63. Roll eyes at the hysterical ferry ticket seller who is clenching a sore stomach from laughing so hard
64. Crawl up to the booth for instructions on what ferry line to wait in
65. Line 6 (no room in line 4)
66. Hear car engines rumbling in line 6
67. think "what the...?"
68. See people in front start their truck
69. They move forward
70. They move forward more
71. They move forward even more
72. We're at the front of the ferry line, line #6
73. We stop
74. I wonder if I should turn off my engine
75. I decide not to
76. We move forward! Holy moly!
77. We're going to make the ferry!
78. Someone's car count was off... yippee!
79. Someone forgot how to count! Yippee!
80. Board the ferry
81. Still ecstatic and now telling everyone how ecstatic I am!
82. Flailing arms outside my window
83. Settle down
84. Check Freckles
85. Freckles is nonplussed
86. Lie seat back
87. Wrap my neck cushion onto my shoulders
88. Wake up
89. Drive off ferry
90. Friday Harbor!
91. Home again! 5:15 p.m.

More happened after that but these are the most exciting moments of my day yesterday. :)

Yesterday, in Poetry

A blazing one. Yesterday.
Out my kitchen window
under an ancient fir
I saw...

Crows on hot rocks basking
splayed out beaks wide gasping
charred feather fans
hold up jet-fueled bodies
on this hot summer day

Today's forecast 90F.
No AC
No pool
Makes for not one thing
anytime cool

The Very Next Day...

So, we get back early yesterday morning, around ten, and my feet can barely carry me up the three piddly stairs to our front porch. Bonnie was already working in the garden and we needed to talk about garden maintenance.

Let me back up...

The day before, I'd gotten up at 3:30 a.m. in order to get the dogs ready and my bags packed in time to catch a ferry for an off-island trip to a book-signing with Anthea Lawson at Border's Books in Olympia, a signing arranged by the gracious ladies of the Olympia Chapter of the RWA. Thank you, Chassily Wakefield for all of your hard work!

That was that morning...

But, THIS morning my precious little angel, Robert, our Westie wakes me at 2:30 a.m.! The dark hotel room buzzes in electrical appliances we don't have in our bedroom - a mini-frig, a microwave, a wall air conditioner. They're all humming away as if we spent the night in the middle of an electrical generator or something... sheesh!

Anyway, I figure "what the..." and roll out of bed bleary-eyed and barely coherent, make some extra strout coffee in my teeny-weeny coffee pot and suck it down. I get the boys out to "pee-pee, poo-poo outside" (that's what WE call it!), collect all our belongings, stuff them into my bag, grab another cup of joe from the lobby (yes, they had coffee at the Tumwater Inn - Best Western that early!) and head out.

My first thought is, "what happened to the summer?" It was freezing and I'd packed and was wearing summer clothing. With the heater on and the dogs safely in the back seat, we roll off onto the freeway. By then, it was 3:30 a.m. and pretty dark still with a thick marine layer covering our part of the world.

By 6:15 a.m. I'm hungry and tired and yank the car off the road toward Shari's in Mount Vernon. The yacky waitress delivers scrambled eggs, hashbrowns and bacon and I eat half and pound down another cup of coffee. After leaving Shari's, the boys and I make our way to the San Juan Island Ferry in Anacortes. It's 7:15 by then and we're almost two hours early.

After taking the boys to pee-pee poo-poo one more time, we board the ferry and push out of Anacortes.

This is always the point in any trip back onto the island where I feel like home is only moments away. It must be similar to other people, people living on the "mainland" (or "America" as we islanders sometimes call it), when they fly back into their hometown.

I start chanting to the dogs, "We're almost home, boys!" and "Home is just around the corner!" My words usually alert them and get them sitting up and watching out the window for home. But, not yesterday... our boys were dog-tired (sorry about the pun). They didn't budge. They didn't care "home" was just around the corner.

When we slowed down and pulled into our driveway, they finally stirred. They nearly fell out of the car and lumbered to a nearby bush to do their business and into the house they went. After a moment reacquainting themselves with their backyard they came in again. They dropped to the floor and stayed there for the rest of the day and by nightfall, nothing much had changed except a break in "action" for their dinner. They didn't even beg when we ate last night.

But, the very next day... today, that is, it's all back to normal. Now, I can sit and reminisce about the lovely ladies I met from the Olympia RWA (Chassily, Anthea, Margaret, Nancy, Deb, Theresa, and Lavada), the lovely folks who helped us at the Olympia Border's - thank you, Felicia, and the blow-thru trip with my boys.

Life is good. Life is marvelous. And, I've made a few new friends who fit well with the way I feel about life.

Until next time, keep up the good work!
-Sincerely, Susan :)

Writing Workshops Beginning!

**** PERMISSION TO FORWARD ****

Well, another surge of writing classes is coming but this time the structure has changed a bit.

Where? Until further notice, we will continue the classes at my studio. For those of you with allergies, be aware, we have dogs, cats and birds. Act accordingly! Wear a nose-mitten!

1. The Novel-writing Workshop will follow its usual 4-week structure but be held on Wednesdays. Classes for the August Novel-writing workshop will be as follows:
· August 5th, Class 1 – Writing the beginning – 5:00p to 7:30p
· August 12th, Class 2 – Part 1 of Writing the middle – 5:00p to 7:30p
· August 19th, Class 3 – Part 2 of Writing the middle – 5:00p to 7:30p
· August 26th, Class 4 – Writing the end – 5:00p to 7:30p

The cost is again $65 per person for this 4-week Novel-writing workshop.

2. The Craft Workshops will be held on Tuesdays and offered on a per-class basis at a cost of $20.00 per class and $15 per class if you sign-up in-advance for 3 or more. Craft Workshops will begin THIS JULY and run as follows:
· July 21th, 5:30p to 7:30p – Character Development (beginning/intermediate)
· July 28th, 5:30p to 7:30p – Scene-setting (beginning/intermediate)
· August 4th, 5:30p to 7:30p – Point of View & Voice (beginning/intermediate)
· August 11th, 5:30p to 7:30p – Plotting Fiction (beginning/intermediate)
· August 18th, 5:30p to 7:30p – Exposition: The Fine Lines of Narrative (beginning)
· August 25th, 5:30p to 7:30p – Cutting the Fat: Poetic Writing (beginning/intermediate)
· September 1st, 5:30p to 7:30p – Writing from Your Past (memoir – beginning/intermediate)
· September 8th, 5:30p to 7:30p – Editing: Sentence Structure & Word Choice (technical – beginning/intermediate)
· September 15th, 5:30p to 7:30p – Writing the Synopsis (business/marketing – intermediate)
· September 22nd, 5:30p to 7:30p – Blasting the Market: Submitting to Publishers & Agents (business/marketing – intermediate)

You can sign-up for any of the above classes through my PayPal or with a check.

If you have any questions please simply post a comment here and I'll get back with you immediately! Even if you're not signing up, it would be great to hear from you. :)

Thanks for your time and have a beautiful summer!
-Sincerely, Susan Wingate.

Susan Wingate
Susan's Website

2009 Next Generation Indie Book Awards Finalist!

Susan's Member Associations:
PEN, IWWG, Romance Writers of America, Sisters In Crime,
Pacific Northwest Writers Association, Arizona Authors Association

CAMOUFLAGE, Nabs an "Editor's Pick" Position on Textnovel.com

So, I'm writing, right?

And, one more email pops into my "inbox," something about TextNovel, a site where writers write and post their story chapters and get ranked on quality of writing and publication potential.

Well, of course, I have another novel underway and so I think, "What the hay?" So, I read through the legal mumbo of contest rules and submission guidelines and enter. "Why not, right?"

After the first vote in favor of CAMOUFLAGE, I get a little excited because, well, someone liked my story and POV. That's what they said, anyway.

When two more votes came in, my little aging heart jumped and believe me I wasn't sure if it was menopausal palpatations but it got me going nonetheless!

Then, this morning, when I woke up, I had FIVE more votes and an Editor's Pick notification in my inbox. I'm ecstatic!

The prizes offered are a $2,000 advance and a publication contract with Dorchester Publication but also a $1,000 prize offered by Textnovel for the contest.

So, this one's a biggie and I would be forever grateful if you helped me out by voting for my story at http://www.textnovel.com/stories_list_detail.php?story_id=1154. Once there, just click on the little "thumbs-up" icon.

You will be asked to register. When you do, you can finish the voting process. It would mean so much to me.

But, while you're there, you should read the story! It's quite sultry so bring sunglasses and tissue! Oh my!

By the way, thanks for reading this post entry... our time is precious here on this Earth and I do appreciate yours.

So, until next time,
Sincerely, Susan :)

Workshop Tonight and I'm Scrambling for Time!

I'm teaching a workshop tonight and my house still looks like someone dumped a bag of sand into it! So, I'm keeping this one short.

I'll be offering my uber-cool workshop entitled, "Muscle-up the Gut of Your Story" at the following conferences:

1. PNWA Writers Conference, Seattle Hilton, July 31 - August 2... My Workshop will be on August 1 at 10:30 a.m.

2. Emerald City Writers Conference, http://www.gsrwa.org/conference.php, October 9 - 12, Please check for my workshop on the website!

But wait! There's more...
Only, I'm not sure when. Melanie Rollins, my assistant, knows! I'll check with her and get back... Agghh! Rushing... gotta go!

Until later,
Sincerely, Susan :)

Sicko, the Writer

After my ambling narrative in "Arriving Home," I'll be describing in detail my pain and suffering through a nasty viral infection in "Good Lord, Was I Ill!" So, if you're at all the queasy sort, you may want to skip down to the "Other Than That!" section of this posting...


Arriving Home...

We returned from the east coast, New York City and Boston, Sunday evening around 8:30. The dogs & cats & birds & wildlife all greeted us with open paws, salivating mouths and wagging tails. We were happy to see everyone and it seems they missed us a little too.


Monday I was getting back into the swing of things communing further with our animal family and the home. That's why I decided that cleaning could wait one more day. The animals needed attention. I took our boys, Robert (our Westie) and Rocky (our Cocker) for a nice walk. The island smelled of wild honeysuckle baking under a warm morning sun and the musty smell of sea spray permeated the air on our walk past a big farm that overlooks the Olympic Straits. Gorgeous! I missed home.


I made chili for dinner and took inventory of everything I needed to get to tomorrow. No, it wasn't procrastination, not in the true sense of the word - to put off what you could do today - because I had no intention of doing much but enjoying the fact that I was home again.


But! God didn't agree with my definition of "procrastination" as it turns out.


Good Lord, Was I Ill!

By 10 o'clock Monday night, it felt as if someone had stuffed a scrub brush down my throat. I woke choking and coughing and calmored to the bathroom for a glass of water and aspirin... the pain was excrutiating.


I remember a late dance teacher of mine, Gary Naylor, who once said about his sore throat, "It felt like I went down on a cactus." And, well, never having gone down on a cactus certainly couldn't attest to how that feels but, I get his meaning!


By five the next morning, my head felt like a big snot balloon [it's like watching a bad car accident, isn't it?] and my throat was still on fire. Any iota of energy had been sucked from me by energy-sucking-vampires at least that's what my dreams of delirium told me...


"It was the energy-sucking-vampires! It was the energy-sucking-vampires!" The energy-sucking-vampire-witnesses proclaimed in my dreams.


I called the doctor.


"I'm sick."
"What seems to be the problem?" (why do they sound this way ALL the time!?)
"My throat, stuffy nose, congestion, coughing," hack-wheeze, "I might be dying."
"We can get you in after lunch."
"Okey-dokey."


The doctor, in his infinite wisdom swabbed my throat [gag, gag, hucka hucka, gag] then swabbed my sinus...


Okay. At this point stop and think about this. Wait. THINK ABOUT IT! If you've never had your sinuses swabbed well, you haven't lived. It's quite the thrilling experience.


The cruel, cruel doctor handed me a tiny capful of water and said, "You'll need this afterward." About now, I'm thinking that dear ol' doc could possibly have lost his brains somewhere in the lab because what I'll really need is a Costco-sized supply full of Kleenex but, hey, he's the doctor!


Then the cruel, smiling and overly happy doctor asks, "Ready." And, let me be the first to tell you, no one is ready for this procedure - the sinus swabbing! What a sadistic little puke he turns out to be. He angles the swab up and into my nose and proceeds to move in, I'm thinking, because he's taken an unusual amount of time. "Geft ift ouft!" I yell.


When I open my eyes, he's still smiling and tells me he's had the same procedure. I wanted to tell him that I've performed wild animal rehabilitation and would love to cauterize his wounds one day, but instead I said, "Don't ever do that again!" Which made him smile even more.


Oh, and the capful of water, yeah, for drainage. Egad.


After that fun, I limped back home, crawled upstairs, climbed into bed and woke up much in the same way Sleeping Beauty does many many days later. As the sky turned above my head, I watched rerun after rerun of the Law & Order marathon... Law & Order, Law & Order: Criminal Intent and Law & Order: SVU. When that TV marathon was over I watched Burn Notice and House. I ordered way too many PPV movies - Bob's going to KILL me when he gets that bill - and when I'd seen all of those, I had to go back to re-watching movies on HBO, TMC and Showtime.


Much of that time was spent sleeping, crying, vomiting, blowing my nose, coughing, gagging, crying some more, taking an undue amount of aspirin, swallowing Pseudophed, Cheratussin and then finally my mother came to the rescue. I wouldn't let her in the house for fear she would contract whatever the Hell this thing was but she had a prescription of antibiotics she couldn't take and I yelled, "Hallelujah, mother..." She dropped them at my doorstep. She dropped juice and rice cakes there too. I didn't eat anything substantial until yesterday when Bob, dear, dear Bob made me a hamburger. It tasted like manna from Heaven. I mean. I ate about three bites and couldn't eat anymore. My stomach is officially the size of a favre bean. I lost 11 pounds - that kind of made me happy but, really, it's a lot for only a week, isn't it? Don't worry too much. I'm sure my menopausal metabolism will gain it all back at warp speed.


So, I'm still a little snotty but this time I believe I'm on the mend.


Okay, next... FINALLY!


Other Than That!

Writing. Other than that, I've been writing like a junkie spikin' speed. No lie, just like that. I mean what else can you do when all you can do is sit like a lump and after you've watched every freakin' movie on television and every episode of anything worth watching. What do you do? Tell me, I'm dying to know. You write, that's what you do!


Do I sound a little cranky? Yeah, well, your momma! Hey, I haven't eaten in a week! You'd be cranky too!


[Isn't she sweet?]


Later and here's to your health holding up! -Sincerely, Susan :)

It Happened...

Finally, after a cold winter and a slow start to spring, it's here! And, it's coming on with abandon...

We've been, I've been feeding the deer - I felt compelled to (I'll discuss it in therapy one day) because the winter had been rather cruel here on our small little island. In fact, our last snow fell April Fool's Day - no lie.

So... throughout the season, I'd been putting out (by our old fir in the back - see photo) a mixture of cracked corn, gerbil food, rabbit food, peanuts, birdseed plus a few apples a day. The deer loved it, not to mention a few other strands of wildlife. Well, after a while the herd grew to about six.

As I was sitting here this morning writing, drinking my tea, it happened! One of the does brought out from cover her addition to the herd - two! If I'm not mistaken this doe has been dropping twins every year since I've lived here. We moved to the island in 1997. Of course, it may be another doe with the same propensity to deliver twins but I'm a fiction writer, for crying out loud, so I'll tend to fantasize and romaticize situations.

Anyway, as you can see, the photo I'm including is of a doe, one of the many who reside on our five acres. As soon as Bob returns from his golf trip tomorrow, I'll get the camera back. When I do, I'll be on the watch for a great photo op of the babies. You can be sure I'll post the photos as soon as I get them. Fawns are simply THE MOST precious creatures. I held one once. I'll save that story for later. For now, however, I'm just letting you know that, yes, we're still living among the evergreens, Nootka rose, sea spray and salt air and... loving it here in Heaven!

-Susan

(author of 2009 Next Generation Indie Book Award Finalist, "Bobby's Diner")

View my articles - Free-Press-Release.com

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A Hobby of Photography

Just a few in the last couple of days...

Apricot Jelly in blue pot. She absolutely adores Vincent (next) who lies with his daughter, Marmalade. Can you see Vincent's right ear? Hence his name.
This next photo is one of Robert and Rocky. Robert is our spoiled little Westie and Rocky is the tolerant black Cocker. You can see Robert is chewing his chewy on top of Rocky's back. After a victory in a battle of the chewies, Robert wields his spoils triumphantly!

Fungus growing under a fir tree. Isn't this amazing? I love its color. Doesn't it look like someone cut a tree in half at the trunk? Crazy.

This last photo is Robert in his rally cap. Note his expression of sheer joy? His father insists on making this poor little guy wear his golf caps. Robert is annoyed here because the cap has slipped down over his eyes. He finally acquiesced when I snapped this shot.

All in a day's work, I suppose... more to come in the next few days. That's either an apprisal or a warning!

Want to Change Your Life? Read "Create Change Now, Reflections for Personal Transformation" by Cari LaGrange Murphy

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Warmest Regards,
Susan Wingate (author of "Bobby's Diner" - finalist in the 2009 Next Generation Indie Book Awards and mystery novel "Of the Law")