A Bit of a Break

I have been a bad blogger. Bad. Very bad. Okay, I just looked at the last couple of weeks...not too bad. But not great, either. I apologize to my faithful friends. All three of you. Unfortunately, it will be worse this week and next.

Next week because I have tons going on. It's all good stuff, but will keep me tied up most of the days and evenings. And I'm glad it's next week and not in July, which will be crazy-busy. A different crazy-busy because that's when Promise releases. (WOOT! WOOT! Ahem, sorry. Just couldn't control myself.) That means lots of blogs, here and other places, and you will be so sick of me that you'll wish to return to these days of my bad bloggership.

This week because I really, really need to work on Purpose so it can, indeed, come out in the fall. It still needs about 25,000 words and I have a really great idea to tie into the current story. But it's not just writing new stuff, which is relatively easy because it's so exciting. The first couple drafts are so much fun to me, they don't feel like work. (Of course, they're such garbage, I then have to put lots of work into them...but I digress.) It's also making it work with what's already there. So it needs focus and time.

Which means I will be quiet here until I can get through the difficult parts. Once I get back into revisions, I'll feel like being creative somewhere and what better place than here? I'm sorry to all two of you who will miss me dearly (I see I just lost someone already). But I promise I'll be back. And I'll be much more lively than I have been.

In the meantime, I might have some cool updates regarding Promise and I will keep you updated about them. Otherwise, I hope you're all enjoying summer, family and vacations. Talk to you soon!

Five for Friday

One of the reasons I worked so hard to bring my family to Florida sooner rather than later is because the state offers an excellent scholarship program for all of its high school graduates. We will have three in college at the same time, so, yeah, that means a lot.

One of the requirements is for students to put in community service hours. My oldest, who will be a senior next year, procrastinated on this forever. The Man (his dad) found a great opportunity for him. One of his techs' wives is a marine biologist for some kind of non-profit organization. She needs help. So Son#1 and her husband go out on the boat and cruise the harbor and into the Gulf, replacing batteries in fish detectors. Now how's THAT for community service?!?

Anyway, this guy (in his 50s) texts my son the other day about a party out on one of the barrier islands on Sunday. It can only be reached by boat. And he adds, "It's Father's Day. I'm sure your dad would love spending the day with all the girls in their bikinis."

Say what?!? Obviously, I didn't think that was such a great idea. So today's Five for Friday are some ideas we can do for the fathers in our lives, whether they are our dads, step-dads, grandpas, husbands, fathers of our children, uncles, neighbors, etc. Ideas that moms can embrace a little better than a big party with drunk, half-naked girls.

1. Create a Jib-Jab Father's Day greeting.
2. Make a photo video of old family vacations put to dad's fave music.
3. Hire a lawn service to take care of the yard this week.
4. Write a short story about one of your favorite memories (since we are mostly all writers here...)
5. And, heck, I guess if he wants to sit on the beach or go to a party where there are young girls in bikinis, it is his day. And, after all, there are guys to appreciate, too. :)

Enjoy the weekend! Pamper the dads in your life. Give them lots of love.

Five for Friday

I'm feeling a little brain-dead after all the excitement this week. So I'm keeping it simple (but hopefully not lame haha).

Five things you should know about Promise:

1. It's not, I repeat NOT Young Adult. Older YA readers will enjoy it (and some have already), but if you're looking for a squeaky-clean book for children, this is not it. There seems to be a misconception that it's YA and I don't want parents mad at me for exposing their innocent kids...or readers writing about how shocked they were with it.
2. It's basically a prologue for the rest of the series. Part of the misconception might be because Alexis is 18 when the story starts. By the end, she's 20 and very much an adult through the rest of the series. Promise introduces the characters and some of the mythology, while sharing the love story between Alexis and Tristan. I'll be doing a guest post for Tynga's Paranormal Summer Fest on June 23rd, with a more in-depth explanation.
3. Promise will be available widely starting the end of July, including on Amazon.com (paperback and Kindle), Borders.com, BarnesandNoble.com, iTunes/iBooks, Smashwords, etc., as well as through indie and chain bookstores.
4. But, you can only pre-order Promise through the website: www.IHavePromise.com.
5. All pre-orders will be signed and include a discount coupon for an e-book version, so you can keep your signed copy pretty and nice.

Next week may be a little crazy. I'm making my bi-monthly trip to Orlando for the day job, along with everything else going on in prep for Promise's release, while also working hard on Purpose. Knowing the ending of Promise, I'm pretty sure readers will be anxious to know what happens. (I'll be hiding in a bullet-proof safe room until book two's release.) So, if I'm a lame-o blogger next week, at least you've been warned. :-) Have a great weekend!