Merry Christmas!!

A Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all!

"And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed. {taxed: or, enrolled} (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. {taxed: or, inrolled} And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. {taxed: or, inrolled} And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. {watch: or, the night watches} And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."
(Luke 2:1-14 KJV)

Okay, this is just wrong...

I mean, if you don't like fast food, don't go there...

http://my.earthlink.net/article/str?guid=20061221/458a14d0_3ca6_1552620061221-367676292

Mt. Hood Rescue

I have been riveted to Fox News watching updates about this. At this point, they have found the body of one of the climbers and they are continuing to search for the other 2, though hope is fading.

No one could mistake me for a mountain climber. I am, though, fascinated with those who do it and the risks they willingly take. I've read "Into Thin Air," and realize it is a sport that fascinates those who indulge in it.

My prayers go out to the familes of the hikers. For the family who lost a family member, and the others still waiting for hopefully good news.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch...

I have to find a way (besides Tina nagging me) to remember to update this thing on a more regular basis!

So what have I been doing?

Writing and (this week at least) getting over a virus. Preparing to send queries out for a novel - a first for me.

And if you go to misssnark.blogspot.com, you'll see my first ever query get critiqued (and chewed up, but it's my first!) Mine is #24.

Finished Nano...

With 3 and 1/2 hours to spare on November 30th, I got my 50,000 words verified.
Whew!

A dangerous balloon

About 11:30 pm Thanksgiving night I was sitting on the couch typing my Nano novel and John was working on something on HIS laptop.

Then the power went off.

My poor mother-in-law was stuck in a very dark dining room. John and I still had the lights of our laptops to see by (let's hear it for batteries). James grabbed a flashlight and rescued his grandma.

Turns out a wayward balloon hit a power line and you know the rest of the story.

Power came back around 3 AM.

So is this the start of the holiday season?

Happy Thanksgiving!!

May your turkey be moist,
Your mashed potatoes at the perfect consistency,
Your cranberry sauce come out of the can,
Your pies be flakey,
And your dishes washed by someone else!

Writers beware

Check this link out - if you are serious about being a published writer and/or are participating in National Novel Writing Month this is important!

http://accrispin.blogspot.com/2006/11/ac-crispin-66-nanowrimo-write-in.html#links

Ok, I can't make stuff like this up...

I hope this link works. If it doesn't, let me know and I'll find a way to print this...

http://my.earthlink.net/article/str?guid=20061116/455bf050_3421_1334520061116873820706

Adjusting to all kinds of things...

I upgraded to the new Blogger beta and am having to adjust to the new stuff. Fun, fun, fun.

On Saturday we moved my in-laws into our home (if you think that's a bad idea please keep it to yourself - the deed is done). That also takes adjustment as we get used to two more people living with us and adjusting to blending our families. An adjustment, but a necessary one.

Meanwhile, I'm trying to catch up with my writing, having lost several days due to being in Vegas and moving in the folks. Got a little over 2300 words in today - not bad.

And next week college kid will be home! :-)

Lost in Las Vegas

All I wanted was a sandwich.

So far today I spent a lot of time resting - allergies were flaring and my body was tired.

I decided around 1 o'clock to go get a quick bite to eat. I knew there was a Subway somewhere in the casino.

I found the Subway and got my six-inch meatball sub. I remembered near the lobby was a dessert shop that had something they called Chocolate Decadence. Sounds good, right?

I couldn't find the way back to the lobby.

I wandered around the casino. I wandered OUTSIDE the casino. I wandered back into the casino.

The direction signs were less than helpful.

I finally stumbled across a familiar path and got to the lobby and my dessert.

Maybe I need breadcrumbs to leave when I go get food!

I'm in Vegas....

I am spending a few days in Las Vegas to attend a writers and firearms seminar (yes, you read that correctly).

I got here a day early and I am glad I did, for jet lag is in full force here. There is a three hour time difference between Vegas and Florida - which means by the time I staggered into my hotel room last night I was exhausted.

Plus, all the restaurants, etc., are in the casino area, where there is a lot of smoking going on. My allergies are not fond of cigarrete smoke.

BUT, I am looking forward to meeting up with some fellow writers and attending the seminar. Plus today I'm going to take some time to work on a new novel.

The insanity that is Nano...

...otherwise known as National Novel Writing Month, officially began yesterday. 50,000 words in 30 days. Sanity not only not required, but could hinder you. :-)

Anyone who is curious about it can click here. Warning: thing loads slowly.

Message you do NOT want to get from your printer...

"Parts inside your printer are near the end of their service life"
Sigh...
Time to go shopping!

Back from Vulkon...

Well, honestly, I got back Saturday night, totally exhausted. But it was a blast.

First off, hanging out with fellow Trek fans is always a blast. Though Nat has promised to smack me good for not letting her know I got back in one piece...did I mention what a fine human being Nat is? (grovel grovel)

I had my picture taken with Tim Russ and Armin Shimerman, who is slightly taller than me. I was kicking myself because I forgot my camera - Maria took pics for me and she and Nat have both promised to send me copies. Lucky me!

At the moment I am printing the first draft of a novel I've written so I can go over it. Want to be amazed? Print out the 100,000 word novel you spent the last 5 months writing. That's a LOT of paper

Vulkon

Well, a friend of mine commented that I don't update this blog enough (hi Nat!) so here is a quick post.

I'm attending Vulkon today, a Star Trek/sci fi convention in Orlando. Part of the reason I'm here is to hang out with some friends I haven't seen in a while (hi Nat again! Hi Maria!) and that's always a treat.

Plus, cons can be fun. Wandering around the dealer room, actually meeting actors from your favorite shows...pretty cool.

I shook hands with Tim Russ last night (Tuvok, "Voyager") who is also an excellent musician. He had a concert last night which included dessert (yum!).

I also saw Armin Shimerman (Quark, "DS9", Snyder, "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"). He is shorter than I thought - I might be able to look him in the eye at my 5' 2". I'll check.

Anyway, they are gonna throw me out of the breakfast area in my hotel so I'll update later (SOON, Nat, I promise!)

I have a Myspace page!

Don't ask me why - I'm not sure myself. :-)

But you can click on the link if you like...www.myspace.com/lauraslook

Christmas came early....

Don let me get a 30 GB Ipod as an early Christmas present! I'm enjoying my new toy and trying to figure out everything I can do with it - pictures, music, etc...

Am I a geek?

Electronic destruction

Today our local recycling center was taking what they called "e-waste" - or end of life electronics. We had several, after building several computers this summer and breaking some parts in the process.

One of the computers still had the hard drive in it. I didn't want to turn it in with an intact hard drive so my original plan was to remove it before we turned in the tower.

James asked if he could have some fun. In a moment of insanity I said yes.

After a few fun-filled minutes with a baseball bat and James' rather large shoes, the tower was dented and the hard drive was in such shape that the data on it is lost forever.

Then we had to pick up all the little pieces that resulted from the carnage but it was quite entertaining. Killing a hard drive isn't as easy as it looks, but we managed it.

A new era occured this weekend...

James, my 17 year old, discovered that he can pick me up this weekend.

I am shorter than he is, and he has been working out. He can lift me right off my feet.

Can't carry me very far yet, but that's coming...

Eek.

Which party?

When I first became eligible to vote, I registered as an independent. I figured I didn't know enough abut either party to decide which one to join.

Later, I became a Republican, because at the time, I thought we were going somewhat in the same direction.

These days I am not so sure.

I believe in a limited federal government and fiscal responsibility. I believe that judges should interpret the law and not pull new ones out of thin air. On most social issues, I would be considered conservative.

Yet the Republicans lately seem no more fiscally responsible than the Democrats. Nor do they object to bloated and ineffective government programs. They pay lip service to these things, but when you get right down to it, they don't practice what they preach.

Because I am pro-life I can't bring myself to go to the Democratic Party (yeah, tell me about their big tent. Pro-lifers are lepers in the tent). I am looking seriously at returning to my independent beginnings. Only reason I haven't done it yet is the whole issue of primaries, and I find that being a member of a party just so I can vote in that party's primary isn't a strong enough reason anymore.

Who left? Me or my party?

Thoughts?

The problem of being out of town a few days...

...is the fact that when you get back there is a ton of stuff to catch up on and often you aren't motivated enough to do it the first couple of days back.

Today I am finally trying to deal with stuff - dishwasher, laundry, and finding the floor in my office (long story on the last one).

I also have a checkbook to balance, and stories to mail out, and stories to FINISH.

Time to get busy!

Nice rejection

Rejection is part of the deal of being a writer. You send stuff out, and a lot of times you'll get your self-addressed stamped envelope back with a "thanks, but no thanks" form letter.

You learn to take your encouragement where you can get it. I got a chance to do that last week, when The New Yorker sent a rejection email for a short story I sent them.

In the email, they said the story had "evident merit."

I checked with fellow writers and they assured me this was indeed a positive rejection.

So the story is out to another magazine, and I have hope someone might buy it at some point.

A lotta words.

I have said that I my goal for August was to write 30,000 words.
My total on my novel came to 26,932. That does not count my column or any work I did on short stories.
I have written at least 1,000 words/day since August 6th.
So I figure if I didn't hit 30,000 I came pretty close.

Also, for the Labor Day weekend, a group of us writers challenged ourselves to a high goal - 30,000 words from Saturday (or Friday night) to Monday bedtime. Some people set different goals, being at different points in their careers.
I shot for 30,000. It was hard work. You might not think that sitting at a keyboard making stuff up is hard, but I was whipped today.
And my novel was 24,003 words longer.
It wasn't my goal, but close enough to make me pleased.

Gotta admit that's a LOT of words...

Much ado about nothing

Ernesto came, and really wasn't any worse than a moderate thunderstorm. Everyone panicked over THIS?

Worse thing today wasn't the storm - it was a headache that was impervious to rest or Motrin. I think I did something to my neck that my head doesn't like.

Still on my 1,000 words/day. Will total August up very soon.

Writng update

Well, I'd said I wanted to write 30,000 words in August.

As of today, I have written 11,118 this month.

Now I feel as if I'm getting in the habit of writing every day - it bothers me if I don't. At this point I have written every day since August 6th. And I have written 1,000 words each of those days.

It adds up...

New Computers, writng, and school starts next week!

John and I have spent the last couple of weeks trying to get 3 computers built. That's one for Don, one for John, and one for James. (Me? I took possession of John's, which is a year old and the one we built last year).

At this point all computers are up and running except for Don's. We had to reorder a motherboard for his (this is the second motherboard we've had hassles with). I put a new hard drive into the one I got from John so I would have more space and of course THAT has meant reinstalling stuff and the associated headaches. Not done with that yet but working on it.

I'm aiming to write AT LEAST 30,000 words in August. so far I have 4800 words in - will have to work a little harder to make the goal, but I'm going to give it a shot. Novel is almost at 30,000 words and I am bound and determined to finish the short stories on my hard drive.

James starts 11th grade next week. Hard to believe it! It seems like summer just started and here we are in August!

The past 20 days...

Just an update on what's been going on here. (Happy now, Tina? )

We got back from Guyana late Sunday afternoon, after being there since the previous Saturday. The trip went well - two doctors saw 557 patients, and 17 people were baptized.

Only thing was that a bug went through about 1/3 of the team. Yep, I was one of the 1/3.

Was sick on Thursday and became dehydrated, causing Don to force fluids into me. Felt a little better Friday, relapsed on Saturday, got on the plane Sunday feeling woozy. Was GLAD to get back to the US - glad I went to Guyana but was ready to be home.

Took yesterday to rest and recuperate. Now I'm trying to catch up on stuff before going out of town (again!) Thursday for a couple of days.

I sat down and figured out we are out of the house at almost 1/2 of the month of July.

No wonder this blog isn't being updated!

Where do you want to be in 10 years?

This is a question writer/editor Dean Wesley Smith asked recently. Where did we, as writers, want to be 10 years from now?

If we didn't want anything to change, then we shouldn't change anything.

If we wanted to be best selling authors, then we should begin to make changes towards that now.

I am still working towards that. But every now and then I need to be reminded of this stuff.

10 years from now I want to be a best selling author.

What am I doing now to make that happen?

Time flies...

Some writing done this week, not as much as I would have liked. A trip to visit family (and to beat my older sister's computer into submission), a light attack of a bug that ran through my family, and a trip to help out my in-laws all cut into the writing time.

Except for the bug, I don't feel bad about those reasons. I do wish I hadn't goofed around so much as well - had a bad case of the "I don't want to work" a day or two.

But I can't believe 2/3 of June is already gone! It doesn't feel like it should be so late in the month...

Three

Well, that's the number of unfinished stories STILL on my laptop. I got two finished and some readers gave their opinions on them - they go out in the mail sometime this week.

The other three will take a little longer to finish...they were not as far along as the first 2.

Also working on Chapter 6 of my novel now. Got very bogged down with it, then realized what I needed this chapter to do and have some decent ideas for it.

Also watching a bunch of rain fall as Alberto plays in the gulf...it isn't too bad, we really need the wet stuff given the drought we've been going through here in Central Florida!

:-) It all goes well...

Five

Five is the number of unfinished stories on my hard drive at the moment. One is a potential entry to Strange New Worlds, the other 4 are of various genres. Actually, I may have MORE than 5 unfinished stories, but I think one of THOSE is just going to be torn up and restarted - it's a Strange New Worlds Story that I just think won't work in its present condition.

But the five in question bother me. I'm pretty sure I can finish them, not sure why I haven't. Well, I just started the Strange New Worlds one. But why do I keep starting stories and not finishing them?

Well, I set a goal. By the end of this week I plan to have all these unfinished stories done. Hopefully setting a goal will give me the motivation I haven't had to finish them.

Doing Writing Stuff Without Much Writing...

Yeah, I know it sounds crazy, but it sums today up.

I did not do a lot of writing today. Instead, I finally finished a binder that contained markets I have submitted to. I also researched markets for 4 manuscripts that had come back and needed to be sent to new markets.

All this took a couple of hours. When I was finished I hadn't written much but was much better organized. I also have stuff ready to mail.

I'm wrestling with a couple of short stories that are resisting finishing. I have Chapter 4 of my novel planned out in my head and I have to figure where it goes after that.

Well, back to the keyboard...

Lazy Days of Summer

Things are settling down to the laid back slow days of summer. School is out for the boys, Ladies Class is over until the fall, and my schedule gets a little lighter.

Lighter is fortunate, too, since John is working in Human Resources at the hospital Don is at staff at. This means he needs a car, and so I am doing without wheels for now.

I've been working on Novel #2 and have 3 chapters done. I'm also working on some short stories. In June I will begin to crank out Star Trek stories to submit to the Strange New Worlds contest (curious? Check out http://www.simonsays.com/content/feature.cfm?sid=44&feature_id=5261 for details).

We'll be getting ready for our mission trip to Guyana that will take place in July. I intend to try to write some while there as well. I went there last year - readers of this blog might remember that.

Anyway, summer will hopefully be filled with writing and time with my sons. :-)

Back from Oregon

Got back Wednesday from the 2 writing workshops in Oregon. Still recovering from that ugly condition known as "jet lag."

John got home from college yesterday. It's good to have him back for the summer. Our dog thinks so too.

Soon things will settle into the leisurely pace of summer. I plan to be busy writing and studying writing during that time. And maybe even keeping up this blog, which will no doubt delight some of you. :-)

The blessing of a good writing workshop

One of my problems as a writer is an issue of self-confidence. Yes, I have a well received weekly column in a newspaper. Yes, I have been a contributing writer on a reference work (The International Book of Days). Yes, I am currently working on short stories and finished a novel.

But sometimes, I wonder: do I have what it takes? Can my fiction stuff get PUBLISHED????

That's why writing workshops like the one I am currently attending in Oregon are so important.

First off, Dean Wesley Smith (remember that name!) is not only a great writer and editor, he is a fantastic teacher. He has no problem with just hanging out with us and answering our questions. He emphasizes that while we have to tell our fellow writers what they did wrong with their novels, we also have to tell them what they did right. And when people are telling us what we did right, we'd better be writing it down!

This workshop (and the one right before it - I have been here since Friday, fueled by coffee, chocolate, Diet Dr. Pepper and bagels with cream cheese) has been an encouragement to me because the people here are WRITERS. Most of them are farther along the writing path than I am. Yet none of them see me as anything less than a writer. Like them. They take me seriously and urge me to get past the whole self-confidence issue and WRITE!

And I get a glimpse of the future and realize I can.

That alone is worth the price of admission.

Do What You Love...

One of the writing websites in my favorites folder is http://www.deanwesleysmith.com/mt/. Dean Wesley Smith is a writer and editor and if you have any questions about writing he is more than willing to teach. In fact, he's teaching two writing workshops next month that I am attending.

The link above opens to his latest article, which is titled, "Do What You Love." It is of course about deciding to be a writer, but the principles could apply to other professions.

It reminds me that if I want to write, I can make it happen or hold myself back. I know this is what I want to do, I just need to say "no" to the excuses and do it. :-)

Anyway, thought I would share...

One thing I want...

Today I drove to St. Pete to drive my mother-in-law home after she had laser surgery on her eye (it was to help prevent glaucoma). While in St. Pete, I decided to treat myself to a trip to Barnes and Noble.

I walked in the door and there it was. A display with a new Diane Mott Davidson novel. For those who don't know, this fabulous author writes a series concerning a caterer named Goldie who solves mysteries. There are delicious recipes through the book (including a fantastic brownie recipe in a book appropriately titled "Dying For Chocolate")

So I saw the book, and I said to myself, "OK, I have a lot of reading to do for the upcoming workshop. I don't have time to read this novel. It will be there later, it's not going to disappear. I haven't balanced my checkbook."

I walked away from the display.

I was back there picking up a copy before too long.

I paid for it with a snack and latte and started reading it, getting caught up in a few pages.

I write this not to demonstrate a lack of self control on my part (though yeah it does) but because I want to write that kind of book one day. The kind of book that makes someone not able to talk themselves out of buying it. The kind of book that makes a person WANT to read it.

Someday, I hope...

Drip...Drip...

Ok, I recently got diagnosed with glaucoma. This means I have the questionable joy of putting in eyedrops every day.

Because I had an allergic reaction to the first eyedrop medication, I am on liquid tears for the next few days. Unlike the medicine, which is once a day, I have to use these 2-3 times a day. Lots of opportunities to practice.

The thing is, I have trouble putting on eye makeup, much less dripping fluid into my eyes. One reader of my column emailed me after I wrote about this with some tips. I'm wondering if any of the rest of you have any ideas on how people who blink a lot get eyedrops in their eyes.

Coming back up for air...

Yes, Virginia, the novel is finished. It came to around 77,000 words.

I finished it while dealing with a horrible stomach flu last week. For the most part I lived on Gatorade and slept a lot when I wasn't writing.

This week I worked on a novel proposal. I had never written one before, so I had to research how to do it.

When I started writing it, I had to keep referring back to my manuscript. Which is how I discovered I had to reprint half of it - understand that the manuscript is 365 pages long. That is a lot of paper. Reprinting half of it meant more trees died.

Add two copies of a thirteen page proposal, a one letter query, the first 50 pages of the novel for an editor to see, and a cover letter, and I probably mailed nearly a ream of paper.

I admit looking at the novel fully printed was a funny feeling. I almost couldn't believe I had typed all that in the space of five months. It was a major stack, believe me.

Now that it's off to Oregon (in preparation for a Novel Workshop I'm attending next month) I can concentrate on some short stories that have been neglected.

And, yes, the blog that has been neglected too.

Am I forgiven, Tina? ;-)

Entering the deadline cave

I have a firm deadline to get this novel finished - next week! This is because I am attending a novel workshop in May to learn more about writing such a thing and part of the qualifications for attending is a finished novel.

I have been working on it and sometimes wish I could just find a box to crawl into with my laptop and room service. It's hard to write at home sometimes because there is so much here that cries out for my attention. Plus John is home from college this week and silly me I want to spend a LITTLE time with him...

Well, I'm going to chain myself somewhere and get this finished. I will warn family and friends I may be very focused this week and just be patient with me I WILL get back to normal (or what passes for normal with me )

Back from Tennessee...

Hardest part of the trip was the drive - Central Florida to Tennessee is a long hard drive, even with Don and I taking turns. But the benefits were worth it.

One great part of the trip was seeing my oldest friend Tina. We figured out we have known each other 20 years and we have kept the friendship up in one form or fashion all that time. She is probably my best friend, one I can tell ANYTHING to, and I was happy to see her house for the first time. It was great seeing her husband and son as well.

The real goal of the trip though was to visit John and his college and see for ourselves how things are going. They are going pretty well. We have some minor concerns, but the president of the college told us many parents would give anything to have a son like John. He is doing well in his studies and seems to be growing more comfortable in interacting with others, though he will never be Mr. Life-of-the-party. We left feeling pretty good about stuff there.

I got some writing done as well. Going through Atlanta enabled me to get a lot of stuff for my novel, which is partly set in the area. Tina here was again a big help, and I have promised a glowing acknowledgement in the book if it gets published. :-)

Today was the first day back from the trip - I unpacked, checked online stuff, deleted a TON of email and started organizing a long list of stuff that needs to be done. Will write my column after Bible Study tonight and work a little bit on the novel. The next few days will be busy with writing and family stuff as I try to finish the novel, get some short stories mailed out and other stuff.

Funny quote...

My friend Tina sent this quote to me. Since I am a columnist (not a "communist" like some of my friends like to joke) I see a lot of truth in the funny:


"A reporter gets an assignment and writer the necessary coverage, but a columnist always starts with nothing but a deep hole to fill."
-- James Qwilleran, The Cat Who Dropped A Bombshell

Plugging away

I have written short stories. Some have taken around a day - others longer.

Right now I am working on my first novel. This incarnation of it was begun back in November. I have nearly 56,000 words into it and counting.

A novel is so much more complex than a short story. There is so much more to keep track of, to keep on top of. It is a challenge - my biggest challenge ever as a writer.

I had hoped to have it finished by the end of January. Then by the end of February. At this point I'm hoping to have the first draft completed by mid-March.

Back to the Word Document...

Losing battle...

Anyone else ever feel keeping an area of your house clean and straightened up was an exercise in futility? I'm feeling that way with my office. Every time I come close to getting the clutter and stuff cleaned out, something happens and it resembles a disaster zone.

For example, I recently cleared out a bunch of old newspapers and had gotten some stuff cleared off. Then my youngest needed me to work on his computer. Things were disrupted because we had to make a work surface for his tower. So once again things are scattered about...

I need "Clean Sweep" to come pay a visit...

It's been almost a month...

...since I updated this thing. My apologies. Real Life kicked me in the teeth some in January.

Some of it was holiday blues, some of it was anniversaries of my mother's death and the death of a good friend. Some of it was sleeping and concentration problems. In all, it was a lousy month in a lot of ways.

The one bright spot was my 23rd wedding anniversary. I am blessed with my husband, who loves me in spite of some of the difficulties I've been having.

And yes, Tina, I owe you an email. I've been out of town a couple of days, but I will get around to it. :-)

Writng stuff

Well, I looked through my stuff for 2005. Last year I wrote (or finished) 16 short stories and around 50,000 words of a novel. I sent out 17 short stories (some had been written in previous years and were retweaked and sent out again). I got 12 rejections (some stories got rejected by more than one editor) and none bought.

This week I found out my number of rejections is up to 22, since 10 stories I submitted for the Star Trek Strange New Worlds anthology were rejected.

One of my goals this year is to write and mail out 36 short stories. Another is to get my novel finished. This year I intend to get a lot more writing done and hopefully I will improve in it as I go.

Happy New Year!

Greetings from the New Year! I didn't stay up to see it happen this year - I am dealing with what Don calls "reactive airways." In English this means my airway is irritated from a recent cold and/or allergy flareup, which means I've been coughing a lot and flirting with laryngitis. So I took medicine and went to bed early in hopes of getting this through my system.

Later today or tomorrow I am going to review how my writing went in 2005. I have set writing goals for this new year and may share them here. I am also setting personal goals that I want to meet.

Hope the year starts off right for you today! :-)