Celebrate the Small Things and Do You Have Goals?

Celebrate the Small Things is a weekly hop hosted by the ever-encouraging Viklit of Scribblings of an Aspiring Writer!
I'm going to just go for a combo post here, and say that I'm celebrating the progress I've made for the "Do You Have Goals?" Blog Hop. And I'm going on vacation next week!!! And I'm almost ready for A to Z (with a plan for handling it during vacation for a short time each day).


Do You Have Goals? is a Big Dream blog hop hosted by Misha Gericke and Beth Fred. Writers are encouraged to dream up huge goals and then report their progress once a month.

My Big Dream goal is: to self-publish 2-3 books/novellas and some short works.

Progress so far:

1. Light Reflections, a small poetry book, out last month!

2. Champion in Flight, third draft steady but slow progress - the end is so close. I think I will make my March goal of finishing it completely by March 30th (Sunday afternoon)

3. Outlines, notes and various other concepts taking on more direction in my daily journal.

4. Short works published: "Robot Sonnet" in February, and "Green Planet" in March.

5. Subbed several items in January and February, but this month I just subbed just once with three poems from my Robot Sonnet group. For some reason the Robot in Robot Sonnet #1 has taken on a bit of a "character" and I keep writing sonnets for him. So far, I've been calling him Bard Robot in my head. I know, it's probably only funny to me. :) But who knows, maybe someone else out there likes a combo of Shakespeare, irony, and robots.

And as I type this up, I feel immeasurably better about the progress. This month has been challenging in some good ways, but for a bit I was feeling like my progress was null. Thanks to the reminder to write this post, I feel closer to reaching my goals.

Thank you, Misha and Beth for hosting this!

And for all the Big Dreamers out there, Way to Go!
Dream Big!
And then, build that foundation under those dream castles!
You can do it!

"If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them." - Henry David Thoreau

A to Z Reveal and Celebrate the Small Things!

Many thanks to Jemima Pett for hosting the A to Z Theme Reveal!

This is my fourth year participating in  A to Z.
The first year, I focused my A to Z theme on blessings. The second year, I tried to give tools for a writer's toolbox and my posts fell apart in the latter half of the alphabet. Last year, I focused on fencing and swordplay terminology and that was fun. I pulled out my old saber and foil and jumped around the house, much to the surprise of my dogs and cat. :)

This year, I almost didn't A to Z because I felt I needed to focus on finishing the second book in The Champion Trilogy . . . and then, I had an idea to mix both projects: a glossary of the world of Aramatir, the setting of The Champion Trilogy.

When I started writing my posts, it felt too "me" orientated, so with each post, I've also added a world-building question or thought that I hope will be thought-provoking/creativity building for anyone reading my posts.

And my posts will be shorter than this one.

So, primary theme: World of Aramatir (Champion Trilogy) Glossary.
Secondary theme: World Building

What do you think? Is it an ok theme?

And what's your theme for A to Z this year?

This awesome weekly hop helps all of us to Celebrate the Small Things - the laundry that is folded, or the socks that were matched, a line written, a fun moment with friends, etc. And it's all hosted and managed by a brilliant lady named Viklit at Scribblings of an Aspiring Author

This week, I'm celebrating:

 

1. Hosting Marcy Hatch on Wednesday for a 1 Word Interview Challenge!

 

2. Seeing an early showing of Divergent last night with my entire family, some friends, and an audience of 90% teen and pre-teen girls. The movie stayed fairly close to the book except an early plot reveal that was unneeded and a Hollywooded fight scene.

 

3. Finishing and polishing a bit more of Champion in Flight. The end is near. I can see the light at the end of the revision tunnel. :)

 

4. Lots of laughter, especially last night and this morning. In the romantic scene of Divergent, some younger teen girls sighed and oohed, and then half the theater giggled, and then the rest of the theater snickered - not at the movie, but at those girlish giggles.

 

(So, if you prefer your romantic scenes serious, don't go see a movie in a theater packed with young teen girls)



 

Oh - and eNKSPOTy is hosting a rafflecopter giveaway of Champion in the Darkness today!

What are you celebrating this week?

1 Word Interview with Marcy Hatch

Please welcome Marcy Hatch, author of West of Paradise, for the 1 Word Interview Challenge!

1. What's your current favorite word? 
How about a word I currently despise instead: trending - I am so sick of that word!!!

 2. In one word, what inspires you?

Other writers (okay, that's two words)

3. What's one word that describes your writing habits? 

Daily!

4. What's one word that you wish you could get rid of in your writing?

Was/is

5. What's one word that describes your writing desk? 

Messy!

6. Share the best writing advice/tool/quote that helps you. (please limit to one sentence) 

Practice - because practice makes pretty good :)

7. What's your current project? (this is the one where you can write a bit more)

My current projects is a YA Paranormal called Peace and Forgiveness in which two high school students discover that one of them is an angel, one of them is a demon, and they are both being punished for something they don't remember - yet. And it isn't what you think.

West of Paradise blurb:

 

Katherine Kennedy has it all; she’s beautiful, she’s wealthy, and she’s engaged to the perfect man: Antonio D'Salvatore. There’s just one problem. She can’t marry him. Worse yet, she has no idea why. All she knows is there is suddenly nothing she wants, not Antonio, or any of the other hundred thousand things money can buy.

 

Jack McCabe comes home from the war with a pretty medal and a lot of ugly pictures in his head. He has little in the way of possessions, less in the way of wealth, nowhere to go and no one to go anywhere with. All he has is a vague sense of discontent, a restlessness that will not abate.

 

Separately, they are drawn to Paradise Tours on the privately owned Cristobel Island. There they meet Louis Cade, a man who offers them the unimaginable, something neither can quite believe until they actually find themselves over 125 years in the past, 1881 to be exact.

 

For Jack McCabe it’s the adventure he always dreamed of – until he meets a beautiful but deadly train robber. Katherine can't believe an ignorant bounty hunter has mistaken her for a criminal – until she sees the picture, which looks exactly like her.

 

Set in the old west, this is a tale of mistaken identity, romance, and murder.

Available for Amazon Kindle!

 

Please visit Marcy Hatch at her site MaineWords or at Unicorn Bell.

     

Help with Blurb Needed!

My cover artist would like my blurb ASAP, and I'm still not sure it's ready. Please let me know your thoughts in the comments below:

Clara won the battle for Septily, but her fight isn’t over.

A year after The Battle of Light and Dark, Clara feels trapped in Skycliff by the Allied Council. As she gathers the last pieces of information she needs to find the Healing Caves without the Allied Council’s permission, Clara is attacked. Covert Drinaii mercenaries, an uncomfortable ally, and the Allied Council aren’t going to stop Clara from her quest to heal her broken blade. As Champion of Aramatir, she must act.

Meanwhile, in the joint kingdoms of Rrysorria and Wylandria, the youngest and still cursed swan prince despairs of ever being whole again. In a moment of desperation, Liam unknowingly enters into a blood pact with a sorceress. If he doesn’t follow the call in his blood, he could die. If he does follow it, he could hurt everyone he loves.

Kalidess may have been defeated once, but the Dark Sisterhood has deeply rooted plans to control the world of Aramatir.

What do you think? Is it ready?

March Goals and Progress

1. Finish Champion in Flight 3rd Draft - 2 + 1 chapter. Where did the week go?

2. Bike 120+ miles. - 11 miles + 24 miles - Friday miles not logged yet. (hoping for 10-15 more)

3. Fast from fiction (except stuff for teaching), and from chocolate. - started Wednesday, so far so good. Lots of Bible reading going on.

4. Write in my journal every day - good.

5. Laugh often - could always do more here. :)

6. Keep working at Write 1 Sub 1 - I think I'm only going to sub one this month but I have a short story mostly written.

7. Prep all my A to Z posts in advance - have topic, outline, and 5 posts finished.

Celebrate the Small Things
A great weekly celebration hosted by Viklit!

1. Progress made on goals - slowly, but surely.

2. My youngest started kayaking with a racing team. She's only been to practice one day, she's not even in a racking kayak yet, and the coach has plans for her to race at nationals either this year or next. Wow. Just wow. (not meant as a brag, but more of an unexpected wow.) She's not dancing anymore, but she's putting all that poise and balance to use in the kayak.
This is a pic of her practicing paddle technique in slow-mo for the coach.

3. Skiing on Saturday evening and an awards banquet for ski and snowboard instructors that evening.

Here's a pic of my oldest daughter on her last day as a ski instructor:

4. It's been a good week. :) My parents returned from a month long road trip - this time in a car and not on a motorcycle, and I had some great conversations with friends and family. Life has been full and fully blessed.

At the same time, I've been praying for some friends who have had some health issues lately, and for my sister-in-law who has had some skin cancer and reconstructive surgery on her face. Plus, every time I pick up the newspaper, I see another reason to pray. There is so much hurt in the world. I hope we can all find a way to make it a better place.