I pinched this from Phillipa Ashley's blog:
NOW magazine are running a competition with Little Black Dress Books to win a copy of Decent Exposure and I’m In No Mood For Love. Visit the site here:
http://www.nowmagazine.co.uk/competitions/?id=925
Naturally, I entered! I've been visiting the WH Smiths down the road from work and my local Asda repeatedly for several weeks trying to get my hands on a copy of Decent Exposure. If I don't win a copy in this competition, I'll order it from amazon to take to Cuba with me.
Off to watch this season's last F1 race.
Sunday, October 22, 2006
Friday, October 20, 2006
Busy, busy, busy
My only excuse for not blogging much this month is that I've been busy and as this is only going to get worse until November 22nd, I might not be here much. Please keep popping by just in case I realise a) I have something interesting to say and b) I have time to say it. In the meantime, get visiting my friend's blogs. Start with Amanda Ashby's brilliant post on TEAM MORELLI - http://amandaashby.blogspot.com/. I'm with Amanda on this one. Totally love the series. Think Ranger is hot but Morelli is something else!
In other news, no news from any of the publishers who have my mss, I'm watching (and loving) the new series of Robin Hood, and my copy of Janet Evanovich's How I Write has finally arrived.
In other news, no news from any of the publishers who have my mss, I'm watching (and loving) the new series of Robin Hood, and my copy of Janet Evanovich's How I Write has finally arrived.
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
christmas!
Yes, folks, it's that time of year. The time of year when Christmas cards, wrapping paper and tinsel suddenly line the supermarket shelves!
Normally, I would ignore this because I'm very much a last minute person. I do my Christmas shopping in December. I also think about sending Christmas cards the week before Christmas. Last Christmas, I gave in and sent a Christmas email to my family and friends, promising them I'd be in touch more often this year. Have I? Nope. I had good intentions.
Anyway, on Sunday night as I was drifting off to sleep, it hit me. I'm tied up with work, exam preparation and actual exams for most of November. Then we're going on holiday. We arrive back on December 15th. One week before Christmas. Now that week is going to be very busy at work because of year end blah, blah, blah.
So for once I need to be organised. With that in mind, as I drifted to sleep I planned who I would send Christmas cards to and also thought about everyone I need to buy presents for and what I'll get them.
I transferred all this lovely information into my notepad on Monday. Then I Tuesday I set about trying to buy some of the listed presents. Well, money actually. New Zealand dollars to be precise, to tuck into parcels with chocolate! Only it appears that the Post Offices near my work don't stock NZ dollars. They can order them but I get no say in what size notes will turn up, which means I can't be sure that I'll get what I require for the four presents I'm planning.
It's enough to make a person give up and spend the money on herself. I hasten to add that I didn't and I haven't. I'll just trek to another part of the great city of London to get the cash.
My point here is that I've scared myself. It's October and I'm thinking about Christmas.
I'm also studying hard and not writing.
Normally, I would ignore this because I'm very much a last minute person. I do my Christmas shopping in December. I also think about sending Christmas cards the week before Christmas. Last Christmas, I gave in and sent a Christmas email to my family and friends, promising them I'd be in touch more often this year. Have I? Nope. I had good intentions.
Anyway, on Sunday night as I was drifting off to sleep, it hit me. I'm tied up with work, exam preparation and actual exams for most of November. Then we're going on holiday. We arrive back on December 15th. One week before Christmas. Now that week is going to be very busy at work because of year end blah, blah, blah.
So for once I need to be organised. With that in mind, as I drifted to sleep I planned who I would send Christmas cards to and also thought about everyone I need to buy presents for and what I'll get them.
I transferred all this lovely information into my notepad on Monday. Then I Tuesday I set about trying to buy some of the listed presents. Well, money actually. New Zealand dollars to be precise, to tuck into parcels with chocolate! Only it appears that the Post Offices near my work don't stock NZ dollars. They can order them but I get no say in what size notes will turn up, which means I can't be sure that I'll get what I require for the four presents I'm planning.
It's enough to make a person give up and spend the money on herself. I hasten to add that I didn't and I haven't. I'll just trek to another part of the great city of London to get the cash.
My point here is that I've scared myself. It's October and I'm thinking about Christmas.
I'm also studying hard and not writing.
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
post book blues
If there is such a thing as post book blues, then I'm suffering from it.
Last week, a friend emailed me to say how nice it was reading my blog because I sounded so upbeat. I was upbeat because I had a plan - sending Heaven to M&B, Rules to LBD and Sea to DCT. I achieved that plan and now I feel a little lost. The addrenalin rush is over and I'm just trying to get enough sleep every night to see me through very busy days at work.
Thankfully I have managed to find the willpower to do some study! Not as much as I should be doing but enough to stop me worrying constantly about this.
I think post book blues thing is why I'm so keen to start work on my next ms even though I know I've still got to finish polishing Rules and Heaven in case I get a full request. Being the leave everything until the last minute person that I am, I'm much more likely to leave them as they are and only do the polishing when (thinking positive here!) the full requests arrive. Hey, I work best with a deadline!
Just realised it's only EIGHT WEEKS until our holiday to Cuba! This revelation just hit me because I just remembered that October 5th is the deadline to pay the outstanding balance. I've just written myself a note reminding me to pay this tomorrow.
Last week, a friend emailed me to say how nice it was reading my blog because I sounded so upbeat. I was upbeat because I had a plan - sending Heaven to M&B, Rules to LBD and Sea to DCT. I achieved that plan and now I feel a little lost. The addrenalin rush is over and I'm just trying to get enough sleep every night to see me through very busy days at work.
Thankfully I have managed to find the willpower to do some study! Not as much as I should be doing but enough to stop me worrying constantly about this.
I think post book blues thing is why I'm so keen to start work on my next ms even though I know I've still got to finish polishing Rules and Heaven in case I get a full request. Being the leave everything until the last minute person that I am, I'm much more likely to leave them as they are and only do the polishing when (thinking positive here!) the full requests arrive. Hey, I work best with a deadline!
Just realised it's only EIGHT WEEKS until our holiday to Cuba! This revelation just hit me because I just remembered that October 5th is the deadline to pay the outstanding balance. I've just written myself a note reminding me to pay this tomorrow.
Sunday, October 01, 2006
oh no!
I promised myself I would study intensively for the next six weeks because I have exams on November 21st and 22nd. So what happens? A book that has been rattling around in my head for a month or two suddenly falls into place and I get a burning desire to start writing it! Unbelievable! I can't study every night, right? So I could write a few hundred words here and there. There's no pressure to get it done because I've only just sent a partial into M&B so that's got to go through the usual procedure (thinking positive here - full request, fingers crossed!) before I can send something else in. Study or write? Experience tells me I can't do both. Studying totally sucks the creativity out of me. And I do need to study because I want to pass these exams. But still, there's got to be some spare time for writing, right? I will make time. Marc and Amelia are demanding it. Well, Marc is. Amelia would be happy to stand back and wait for me to have more time. But Marc has a point to prove and he wants to do it now!
allotments
I want an allotment!
This isn't new. This is an idea I fell in love with several years ago. Was it 2003 or 2004? I'm thinking it was 2004. Back then, I decided I wanted to write a book called Ladies Who Lunch about a group of women who share an allotment plot.
I've got their names and a fair amount of their stories worked out. The only thing I can't work out is how to start the story. So I've never started it. No, that's a lie, I've started it twice but I don't like either start.
And way back then I also put my name down on the waiting list for a plot at the local allotments, about five minutes walk from where I live. At the time I was told there was a three year waiting list. I think - but I'm not sure - that I might have given the lady my work number. Since I've changed jobs, I'm thinking I need to call and double check this.
What brought all this back into my mind was my husband. He wanted to order a book from Amazon last week. It was only £10 and he wanted to make the order up to whatever it was that is required to get free shipping. I should have said order me the Janet Evanovich book (How I Write) because I desperately want it but it's only available in the US and has a one to three week shipping wait so I said order me The Allotment Book by Andi Clevely.
Both books arrived yesterday. Well, actually the dh's book arrived on Friday but rather than ring the bell, our postie just left a card in our box saying we weren't home. Which we were. Very annoying. But mine turned up at 8am yesterday and straight after that I went to the sorting center and picked up Daren's.
Then I came home and went back to bed and read the entire book. OK, so I was in bed until some time in the afternoon but I figure that's acceptable since I sent out three mss last week which meant very late nights.
Plan of action for today: ring allotment lady to double check she has my home number and ask how much longer she thinks I'll have to wait, go back to Asda to see if Phillipa Ashley's LBD is out yet (it wasn't yesterday when I looked), read last module of very exciting business course and watched episode two of series seven of CSI.
ps: I swear I posted yesterday. It was one of those celebrity look alike things. I've seen them on a few blogs but finally gave in and followed the link from Ally Blake's blog yesterday only to find that blogger doesn't like the html that I copied from the site. I have no idea how to fix it so the post shall no doubt always remain as a draft that only I can see!
This isn't new. This is an idea I fell in love with several years ago. Was it 2003 or 2004? I'm thinking it was 2004. Back then, I decided I wanted to write a book called Ladies Who Lunch about a group of women who share an allotment plot.
I've got their names and a fair amount of their stories worked out. The only thing I can't work out is how to start the story. So I've never started it. No, that's a lie, I've started it twice but I don't like either start.
And way back then I also put my name down on the waiting list for a plot at the local allotments, about five minutes walk from where I live. At the time I was told there was a three year waiting list. I think - but I'm not sure - that I might have given the lady my work number. Since I've changed jobs, I'm thinking I need to call and double check this.
What brought all this back into my mind was my husband. He wanted to order a book from Amazon last week. It was only £10 and he wanted to make the order up to whatever it was that is required to get free shipping. I should have said order me the Janet Evanovich book (How I Write) because I desperately want it but it's only available in the US and has a one to three week shipping wait so I said order me The Allotment Book by Andi Clevely.
Both books arrived yesterday. Well, actually the dh's book arrived on Friday but rather than ring the bell, our postie just left a card in our box saying we weren't home. Which we were. Very annoying. But mine turned up at 8am yesterday and straight after that I went to the sorting center and picked up Daren's.
Then I came home and went back to bed and read the entire book. OK, so I was in bed until some time in the afternoon but I figure that's acceptable since I sent out three mss last week which meant very late nights.
Plan of action for today: ring allotment lady to double check she has my home number and ask how much longer she thinks I'll have to wait, go back to Asda to see if Phillipa Ashley's LBD is out yet (it wasn't yesterday when I looked), read last module of very exciting business course and watched episode two of series seven of CSI.
ps: I swear I posted yesterday. It was one of those celebrity look alike things. I've seen them on a few blogs but finally gave in and followed the link from Ally Blake's blog yesterday only to find that blogger doesn't like the html that I copied from the site. I have no idea how to fix it so the post shall no doubt always remain as a draft that only I can see!
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