Why I do what I do.

Andre Bergonzzi
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I've been writing since I was a small child. As a teenager friends would come to me to make up believable stories they could tell their parents when they wanted to do something completely different (i.e. trouble). I wrote in journals, notebooks, on scraps of paper, and had an avid love affair with all things books. Any money I made babysitting was spent on the newest book of the series I was reading at that time. I also loved (and still do) pens, stationary, blank journals, and bookmarks. The fancier the better!

But, even with all of that love of the written word, I didn't actually start writing until the summer of 2005. My kids were small, one in school and the other two home with me, and I was looking for an online way to make a little money. A lady I knew told me about a website that paid for articles, so I looked into it. I wrote for that company for about a year before I got tired of writing online articles about product reviews and recipes, so I took the leap and moved to the fiction I had always loved.

Fiction is fun. I get to be creative with fiction. There's no right or wrong when it comes to fiction. I enjoy creating my characters and their worlds. I like being able to tell a story about someone who meets, befriends, and even loves monsters. Or, hell, is one herself!

Why do I do what I do?  Simply put... I love it!

Catching Up & Writing

I swear I never thought getting a part time job would take up so much of my time. Yes, yes, I knew I'd be actually leaving my house on a regular basis, driving 20 minutes to the next town, and working for a few hours before making the trek back home, but for some reason 24 hours of job time didn't seem like a lot in the scheme of things.

That is, if I actually got 24 hours. Eek! The first week was 28 hours. The second week was 31 hours. This week is scheduled for 34 hours. However, I am the only person in this position... for now. Next week a full timer comes on and I'm supposed to finally get on a regular 24 hour schedule. Monday through Thursday from 8:30am to 2:30pm, and every other Saturday (9:30am-3pm) will make me a happy woman.

I'll bring home enough $$$ to make the job worth my while and still be able to pick my youngest daughter up from school every day. Not to mention the few hours every afternoon/evening of writing I'll be able to get in before dealing with dinner and preparing for the next day. Oh, and of course every Friday off to run my errands, pay bills, and buy groceries. And every other week I get a 3-day weekend. Woot, Woot!

Now if I can just get there. I'm off today, but the next two days will be long 9 1/2 hour days. I just have to keep reminding myself that this is for the greater good. I'm doing this for a reason. I do enjoy the job and the people I'm with all day. It will give me a greater sense of people by being out in the middle of all of them. (It's too peopley out there!) And, I've already seen some interesting folk who will be making appearances in future stories.

Overall, it's a good thing, but I'm really looking forward to a more rigid everyday schedule so I can get back to my writing. My goal of 3 books and a short story in 2017 NEEDS a more rigid schedule. The 500 words a week I've gotten over the last 3 weeks is soooooo not gonna get me there.

Okay, I'm off to get more writing done today (since it's my only day off 'til the weekend). I hope all of you are having a great week!

Oh, and Happy 41st Birthday to the love of my life, Tim! I love you, baby!

Working Outside & Inside the Home

This past week has been a new experience for me. I've never had an outside the home job AND children. I was able to leave the public working class when I was six months pregnant with our first child. I worked from home for many, many years... 20 years to be exact. I was able to always been 100% accessible to my entire family, including all the pets we have. Now, for the first time in all these years, I'm not available at all hours of the day. And everyone is having to adjust to that new arrangement.

I've had numerous texts throughout the days I'm at working asking how to do something, if I can talk, where something is, can so-&-so go somewhere, etc. Even my dog has decided to get an upset stomach, out of the blue, during my first week at work. WTH?!

I knew it would be an adjustment, but this is crazy. I still haven't been able to figure out my writing schedule because the new job is still working on getting things in order so there will be two of us working part time instead of me doing full & the other just doing Saturdays. Once that's worked out I'll have more time at home & truly be working part time.

Soooo, keep your fingers crossed that both my family & I will survive this transition without me committing some sort of murder. LOL!

Oh, and BTW, the hubby and I celebrated our 23rd anniversary on Sunday, April 9th. We had a nice day together and I got to enjoy some yummiliciousness at The Cheesecake Factory. Mmmm!

Part time job

Well, it happened. I broke down and got a part time job. It's been 20 years since I held a public job, so this will be a new experience for me. I was 6 months pregnant with our first daughter when I left the public workforce, and she's 20 now! Eek! I've never worked a job with kids at home. I'm grateful that they're so old now, with my youngest being 12. It definitely makes the decision easier on me.

With my husband's job change back in November, and the loss of income because of his pay decrease, I figured it was time to pick up something more reliable than just book royalties (which all authors know are not reliable at all). And this job seemed like something right up my alley. I'll be cashier/shopkeeper of an herbal health shop. They offer all sorts of services like massage, plus the normal vitamins, essential oils, and food additives. I interviewed for it on the 23rd and was asked to come in and get the lay of the land for a couple of hours on the 31st. This week is my first full week of work.

As you're reading this, I'm at work (thank goodness for blog scheduling!) and probably enjoying my new job as I'm learning all about what's sold here. I've always enjoyed the herbal and natural remedies stuff, but there's soooooo much to learn I'm feeling a little overwhelmed... but in a good way. I'll get it and it'll be fun to learn new things. In the meantime, I'll be able to do some people watching and (hopefully) come up with new story lines in the process.

Though I'll be working outside the home, I'm still on schedule for the release of Sorrow Meets Death. It's planned for June and I intend to make the deadline. Unlike previously, when I only worked on week days and took the weekends off, now I'll be doing the majority of my writing on the weekends and weekday evenings. It'll be a massive adjustment. Well, all of this will be a massive adjustment. Every one's schedules will have to change and adjust just to accommodate Mom's new job.

Fingers crossed. Wish me luck. Think happy thoughts. And, finally, thanks for all your support! :)