Fighting the Good Fight

     What a strange summer this has turned out to be! With a husband suffering from shingles for the past six months, my day-to-day routines have been altered in ways too numerous to list. I find myself stopping whatever I'm doing in order to do something else right now . . . not because he demands it but because I try and simplify his life as much as possible. He lives in so much pain at present that it's only fair that I keep things going as smoothly as possible. Complicating matters is the fact that both of my in-laws are (literally) suffering from the ravages of old age and their son is constantly worried about them and their care. This is not helping him recover his own health any faster.
     If I could be quite objective I would admit all of this is more or less a universal problem, but things have a way of becoming so personal one feels as if it is unique to the immediate situation.
     At least I  feel justified in only now and then posting on this blog. One would think it could be (and it actually is) a place to relieve some of the stress. However, considering my lack of organization, it is a wonder I even think of the blooming site.
     Funny, though. When I really get started, it is fun. Sort of like having a conversation with an old friend!
     So, now . . . I have the preliminaries out of the way . . . let's have a go at other subjects.
     I have tried to do a few other things this summer. A few days now and then doing professional stuff keeps my head screwed on straight and that helps a lot. True, I've not done too many creative things or put too much thought into what I have undertaken up to recently but it's coming . . . it's coming.
    At the Missouri Writers Guild conference in the spring, From Trash to Treasure took honorable mention in the best book category and I began negotiating with the publisher of High Hill Press concerning a position with the house.
    Later in the summer I attended the Heartland Writer's Conference in Sikeston, MO, where my Trash to Treasure  memoir won first place in their book contest. I caught up with some good friends and solidified the plans concerning a new juvenile division for High Hill Press to be called Sky High Tales with me as acquisitions editor.
     During this time I was also attempting to polish up my latest book, a juvenile mystery to be entitled Junkyard Bones and I contributed a short story to the latest of OWInc.'s anthologies, Mysteries of the Ozarks, Vol III and a second story to what will eventually be Mysteries of the Ozarks, Vol IV.
     During the past month or two I've been working at editing several manuscripts for the publisher so we should have several good possibilities coming up during the next year and I'll be on the outlook for more as time goes by.
     Just last weekend I attended a brand-new conference in Hollister, MO. It was held at Ye Old Country Inn, recently restored by Janet Dailey, and she was nice enough to make herself available to the participants. In addition Dusty Richards, the well-known (and much decorated) western writer, Fred Pfister, the editor of the Ozarks Mountaineer magazine and Radine Trees Nehring, a writer of cozy mysteries, were featured speakers. It was well attended by both new and experienced writers and had lots of good information for all. To top it off, the regular quarterly Ozark Writer's League meeting was held at the tail end of the conference and I got to go for a change. Lucky, too, as a good friend, Pat Smith, was one of the two main speakers. She talked about social networking. The other, Deborah LeBlanc, was an extremely dynamic speaker who talked about working outside the box.
     It was a good meeting and I got a lot out of it  . . . not to mention the possibility of finding a couple of possible new authors for Sky High Tales . . . if it works out.
     So in spite of illness and business I still find time to do the two things I most enjoy . . . reading and writing.
     And the third thing for that matter . . . networking with friends and fellow writers.
     So even though I'm dealing with a lot of 'stuff' here at home with sickly husband, grown children and grandchildren, I'm finding time to still stay with my writing business.
     Just have a bit of trouble making time for blogging!

Busy is Good (Right?)

     Wow! Great weekend . . . with only one little drawback. A sick stomach that will NOT quit. It seems to be leftover from the flu stuff we all had last week. But I refuse to let it put me under again. I do not have the TIME!
     Report on Saturday's meeting: good, good, good. Only thing that went wrong was no book sales but that was because there were about thirty other authors with tables all set up and selling. I was late getting there and spent all my time catching up with people I hadn't seen for months and didn't devote myself to my business. Gets me in trouble every time. Anyway . . .
     Sometimes I'm a little cynical when it comes to workshops, etc. I've done this so many years it can get old. But not so Saturday. Things were fresh and new. Malena Lott, from over around Norman, OK, had an absolutely mesmerizing program and I came away with lots of new thoughts and perspectives. Great presentation and a wonderful person. Didn't get a whole lot of time to get acquainted but perhaps later. I'll look forward to running into her again. She has lots and lots to offer. If you write, better check her out.
     Then I stayed for the panel discussion on self-publishing. While this is not an avenue I've pursued in the past I know plenty of authors who have. There have been good results and bad and it seems to be like a lot of things. It has to be thought out thoroughly and carefully done. The panelists know their business and had much to suggest. It seems to be a very valid approach.
     The last presentation was by Mary Nida Smith and I was really looking forward to it because it was about blogging exclusively. But I simply couldn't stay that long as we had the music program at McDowell Saturday night and I had to drive fast to get home for that. I know Mary and it was too bad I had to miss her but she has a great web presence. We'll connect more there and I can milk her for all its worth. Ho.
    Then the music was great, I did a (!) fantastic (!) job of belting out a couple of songs, did my 'dooty' as hostess, visited like mad, sold a copy or two of Trash to Treasure, took out my I-Pad and worked for awhile on a short story and, finally, couldn't put off running down any longer. So I bid 'farewell' early to all my friends and came home where I crashed about midnight.
     Sunday morning we got up early and headed out for Miami where we spent unnecessary amounts of pennies in some slot machines. Later we ate a little lunch, came home, took a nap and called it a day.
     What a weekend.
     And all I really have to show for it is the upset stomach.
     Well, yeah. Two paragraphs of a short story.