Hair Pulling Time!

It’s been forever, since I’ve posted anything and I sincerely apologize for that. Life, in general, gets in the way, sometimes. For instance, in the spring of 2015 I started working on a new book. I was, and still am, so excited about this book and had plans of having that finished by the end of 2015, then go back and finish the third book in the Finkleton series, Saving Finkleton, but life didn’t allow that to happen. Let me explain.

Most of you know, I work a full time job (6 days a week). Anyway, my awesome husband and I signed a contract to buy some property in Florida, in June of 2015. Most of the time closing, etc. only takes 30 days. In our case it actually took three months. That’s 90 days! OMG! During that entire process I was pulling my hair out and going a bit crazy. The big issue was the title search and insurance, etc. Geez! We finally closed, much thanks to our broker, then plans of certain remodeling and decorating took place three to five weeks later. We had to have our ducks in a row. We’re organized like that and most of the time things go as planned, but that wasn’t the case. Oh, my.

When things were done, I was able to get back to work, full force without any distractions. However, I was so far behind on the office paperwork, it took me six weeks to get caught up (hits head on wall). By the time I was caught up, it was mid November. By this time, you’d think I had enough of remodeling and contractors. Nope. Not me!

I wanted to paint our main bathroom, but not just slap it on and say I painted it. If you know what I mean. No, I wanted move the cabinets out and paint behind them, then possibly put new flooring down and paint the vanity or replace it. Recently being inspired by our Florida remodel, I wanted something different in our main home.

As things usually go with me, it didn’t turn out to be an easy “paint” job. My awesome husband says that ALL of my projects turn into a HUGE project, costing him more than just paint (probably headaches, too). So, some bathroom walls came down, bad drywall replaced and repaired, the old seventies avocado green shower was removed (HIS idea, NOT mine! We have an older home, which explains the color of the shower), plumbing replaced and repaired, then an area of the floor had to be replaced, too. Yeah, it ended up being a HUGE project. I guess awesome hubby was right. Thankfully we have a second bathroom! Ha! Two months later, mid January, the bathroom remodel was finally finished.

During that time, I got sick and I don’t mean just a runny nose. No. I got really bad sick and it stayed with me for over two months. Then I had congestion and it got so bad that one of my eardrums busted (blood coming out an all that gross and painful stuff) and I lost some of my hearing, for six weeks. At the end of January my hearing finally came back and I was feeling sooo much better. Yay!

Meanwhile, as a business owner, tax season is our busiest time of the year. People are getting their income tax returns and our sales go up and that’s why we stay so busy. I’m so exhausted by the end of the day, I’m lucky if I don’t fall asleep on the couch, while I’m trying to read a book or watching television (which I actually do sometimes – fall asleep that is).

How much time was taken away from writing? My calculations: from the time we started buying that property in Florida, through that remodel and our bathroom remodel, and my sickness… 7 months. OMG! And we are still in tax season, so I can’t possibly get back to writing until the end of April. OMG! (Hits head on wall).

If you could see my desk, you’d see a ton of stick notes and things written on notepads. It’s a crazy mess! I used to stay up late and write, but this time of the year…I simply can’t. I usually start taking notes and create an outline for a book in the spring through summer. By the fall I’m ready to actually put the book together and begin the writing process and have things ready to go to an editor at the beginning of the year. Then, I do the entire thing all over again the next year.

2015 was a super crazy year for me and put me behind on my writing, but in some ways it was a blessing. I was able to come up with more ideas and more stick notes to add to the ever growing pile on my desk. I can’t wait to get back to writing. I’m super excited!

Thanks to everyone for being so patient. I wish I had the luxury of writing full time, but unfortunately I don’t. That’s not a bad thing! I work with the public and many times, I come up with new ideas simply because I meet new people. No two days are alike and that makes my imagination go wild.

As a writer, when I hear an unusual name (that I like), I tend to write it down. When I hear a word that I hadn’t heard in a while or meet an interesting person with certain qualities, I write them down. If I didn’t work with the public, I wouldn’t have the luxury of adding to my pile of stick notes and ideas.

For instance, a character named Pepper, in My Name is Rapunzel, takes after one of our customers. She’s cute, funny, talks super fast, always on the go and changes her hair color a lot. She’s such an interesting person, that I couldn’t help but use some of her characteristics and personality to create Pepper’s character.

The book I started writing last April, and hope to finish this year, is another young adult book. The main character is Raylee. Isn’t that a beautiful name? I made it up! But it wouldn’t surprise me if someone didn’t already have that name. You know, because it’s super cute! Anyway, the setting of this story is on a beach. Who doesn’t love the beach? I do! Ahhh, this book is going to be so much fun! I can’t wait to finish it! There is also a possibility of a second book, which takes place 8-10 years later. Crazy, huh?

Recently, I’ve been talking to awesome hubby about the third book in the Finkleton series, Saving Finkleton. I know the beginning, some of the middle and I even know the ending. I can’t wait to get back to the world of Finkleton. It’s a wonderful place to be!

To get me through crazy high sales, tax season, I tend to read a lot of books. It helps to keep my stress level down and I enjoy reading. So, it’s a win!

I have an awesome YouTube channel, but I haven’t recorded any videos in quite a while. Why? The pc laptop I normally use to record them took a virus dive. Our son borrowed it and fixed it to play fantasy football, but I haven’t gotten it back, yet. Shame on him! LOL. I should’ve given him a “return by this date” date. Maybe I should start charging him a rental fee? Personally, I think he’s holding it hostage. He said to get my laptop back, I have to pick it up. That might not sound like a bad idea. But he lives in another state! I really must add (and hope he reads this post) that my son is 29 years old AND my laptop is pink. Yeah. Pink! He must like that color. Just sayin’. I’ve bought a ton of books and I’m so far behind on book haul videos, that I’ll never get caught up. I might as well start fresh…whenever I get that laptop back. I officially blame the 29 year old son. Ha!

This was a longer post than I had originally anticipated, but that’s how it goes sometimes. I hope you have a wonderful week!