Fall is in the air....

Yes folks, the smell of freshly sharpened pencils and brand new textbooks is all about me this week. I will once again be teaching writing classes at Amarillo College. These classes are always a great boost to my own writing as I see all the talent we have here and want to press forward that much harder.

We are also just 27 days away from our cruise. Jamacia here we come! Barring any wayward hurricanes of course. As long as we get on the boat I don't care where we go. I plan to be playing poker most of the time we're out to sea anyway so no big deal. I love the idea of being completely away from everything. There's no excuse to check up on work or the multitude of projects I have to do, I will be out of the country. In fact I think that is what I will put on my out of office, "Dee is currently out of the country and unable to answer your email at this time. Hopefully she will be back. If not, good luck." That's so tacky isn't it? hehehehehehehehe

I also hired another writer to do a golf book for Life Success. It's basically a parody of the business world using golfers that this caddy encounters on a daily basis. Pretty neat. Meanwhile I'm still hard at work on the plastic surgery book. Now on the fourth chapter concerning boob jobs of one type or another. My favorite so far was the man boob chapter. Don't ask me why.

I also got another assignment from Credit Union Business Magazine which is a great thing. They have such a beautiful and well written magazine that I'm really proud to be a part of it. Don't know where it will be slated on the editorial schedule, but I will let you know.

Pricker update - for those of you following along, the prickers are now about knee high. Which is amazing and probably due to the fact that we've had more than 1/3 of our yearly rainfall in less than a month! It's a tropical downpour everytime I turn around and it's starting to negatively effect my roses. They are desert plants, not water lillies!

Kids are back at school and life is settling into a routine again for us. A very quiet routine which is a great thing. Except for classes, and the book projects, and the articles...and ....and.....and...

Eureka!

You know I just figured out that if you don't sleep, you get a whole nother 8 hours in your day. Imagine that! I stayed up til 1:30 this morning inputing changes and printing out a copy of Frenemies for Jenny to take to Colorado with her. I dropped them off in the wee hours. Was very proud of myself too...until I got up and realized I left my last four chapters on the printer. So I'm sure Jenny will be wondering what the heck happened.

Though I should be tired, I'm excited because my author copies of Credit Union Buiness came today and the article looks great. My kids are now gone and the house is quiet. IT'S FABULOUS! I will actually be able to get some work done . And it's a good thing because I'm loaded up with projects over the next couple of months. Hi Ho Hi Ho its off to work I go.

Damned if you do....you know the rest

It's a hard week of work I'm looking at folks. Three chapters on the plastic surgery book, a chapter outline on the real estate book, final edits on the Canadian fiction novel PLUS working with two writers and one copy editor on a total of five(count 'em FIVE other projects). And I can tell you that working with writers is right up there with herding cats. Not that I'm complaining, but I am. It's either boom or bust in the writing life and you never get to choose. So since it's boom right now, there are many sleepless nights in my future. And that's just the way it is. Did I sign up for this or what??????

On top of which, the collegiates are home. I have two college kids(although one of them just graduated so I guess she is a grown up) and they are home until Wed. At which time they will drive cross country and start their lives once again in Memphis, TN and Durham, NC respectively. I hate to see them grow up, but then again, three days of their crap strung all over my house and I'm ready to say Buh-Bye!!!

Needless to say I'm looking forward to my cruise to Jamaica like you can't believe. It's 41 days away and my sister has lost 30 pounds. Don't get me wrong, I'm really happy for her, but still, the desire to send her a humongous box of Twinkies is still there. But instead, I'm sending her the latest novels by Jennifer Archer(www.jenniferarcher.net) and Linda Castillo (www.lindacastillo.com). I hear that since she's been dieting that she's a regular at B & N. Not a bad replacement I must admit, but these authors are a must have. You know, maybe she should write a book on dieting through fiction. It could be a NYT bestseller......lots of drama and suspense.......yet zero calories......the dieting wave of the FUTURE!!!!

Time to Query

Its time once again for another round of magazine queries. You have to consistently send these little babies out if you want consistent cash flow. And who doesn't want that?? Speaking of cash flow, I got my brother's money in the poker game on Saturday, as expected. I really should write some articles on how gender differences effect poker players. It is really interesting.

The collegiates will be home this weekend!! Exciting and sad too cause Jen won't be a collegiate anymore. She'll have a real job. And who knows when she will be able to come home again. Oh well, that's the way things should be I guess. Today I'm working on the plastic surgery thing again and waiting on final edits to come in from the author for the Canadian book. I'm anticipating a very busy weekend again next week.

Weddings, Poker and Books OH MY!!

I hardly feel like I've had any down time since conference but I'm not as tired as I thought I'd be. This weekend is a great time to catch up so I'm working on the plastic surgery book this afternoon. The only problem is that this kind of book makes you really look at yourself in the mirror every morning and think....you know I could do something about all these wrinkles...and the droopy eyes and the turkey waddle...and.... and.....geee........I'm old.......when did that happen??

Tonight Kevin and I are going to a wedding. Jodi Thomas' oldest son is getting married. I can't even remember the last wedding I went to. It seems like all we go to these days is funerals. How depressing. Does that mean we are getting old or what? At least tonight will be a happy occasion.

In other news, the little brother laid down his Harley yesterday and broke his arm and shoulder in four places. Like everyone in the family didn't tell him that would happen. So was he grateful that he didn't die? Or didn't split his head open? Or be paralyzed for life? NO. He was just glad they didn't have to do surgery because that would have ruined his new tattoo. Yeah. I know. So glad he has his priorities straight after 35 years. So now that he is laid up, he called to see if I could come over and play some poker with some of his buddies he works with at the hospital. He said it was a great time to take his money since he's doped up on painkillers. Yes, I was laughing. EVERYDAY is a great day to take his money at the poker table. I guess if I was a good sister I would suggest some great books for him to read to improve his game. Naaahhh. I'd rather just take his money. Obviously he has to learn everything the hard way.

Atlanta RWA Conference Wrap up

Conference turned out to be great! I was able to talk to and meet everyone on my target list. I also ran across a few other people that turned out to be great contacts. The big news is that Jodi Thomas(my long time mentor and critique partner) won her third RITA. They also inducted her into the Hall of Fame. Winning a RITA is very much like winning an Oscar(except it is for writing) and just as hard. To win three times in the same category is truly a career accomplishment and one I hope to achieve one day. I also took lots of pictures at the awards and at the author book signing. As soon as I get them burned to CD I will post a few of them.

Some of the more interesting people I met turned out to be Canadian. Which is really handy since I've been editing a book for a Canadian lady that had some uniquely Canadian expressions and slang that I didn't get. They sat at the bar with us one night and explained most of it. I also found out that one of them had family from Jamaica (where we are cruising to in a short 54 days) and she gave me the low down on what to do and see.

I'm still very tired, but ready to get back to work. I'm copy editing a book on wellness during pregnancy today and then will be working on the plastic surgery book. I also accepted an assignment to ghost write a book for a group of realtors that is designed to help women get into real estate. It looks like fun. The publisher that I ghost write for has asked me to be a project manager for them and I think I'm going to do it. Seems like a natural for me.