September

September 2, 2021annabowling Leave a comment

The fans are off today, though the windows are still open. I have leggings and a sweatshirt on as well as one of RLRH’s oversize t-shirts. I am making hot tea. Bed is made and laundry put away. I have the first point on my list of edits for A Heart Most Errant running on my brain’s back burner as I do these things, and things I have stressed over since literally February, are falling naturally into place. This feels right.

On Tuesday, I had a wonderful four and a half hour “lunch” with an IRL friend who is now also a writer friend. We both spoke of wanting an in-person writing buddy to talk at(this is extremely important for extroverts, as talking and thinking often happen at the same time) and, well, we were in person, and we are both writers. We don’t exactly write the same sorts of stories, but close enough, and we obviously mesh well, so we are giving biweekly Zooms a try. That starts next week

On Wednesday, I had a three hour video chat with another bestie, Our conversations go allll over the place, and this was no exception. After that I crashed. Hard. Then Real Life Romance Hero came home and ordered delivery (meatball subs from a local establishment, which were amazing) and I spent some time playing Sims 4, then actual sleep. Nine hours. No fan, no earbuds. Also amazing.

Which brings us to today. Not going to lie, I am thrilled that I can wear a sweatshirt (and I will need more as the season progresses.) Abovementioned bestie sent me a treasure trove of perfume samples, which I am wearing every day. We are coming up on the one year anniversary of moving into this apartment. That also means it will have been about two years since I had been presenting myself the way I would prefer to do. As in makeup, clothing, jewelry, hair, etc. That this happens at the same time spooky stuff is showing up in stores is not a bad thing by any means. Not that I plan to suddenly turn this into a style blog, but style is something I love. Being able to express it again is an absolute delight, especially when some areas mean basically starting from scratch.

The blog I had planned for yesterday would have been about my fascination with survival dramas (Lost, Dark, The Rain, The Walking Dead universe, etc) and I still plan on doing that in the future, but the special thing about today is how regular it feels. I like that about today. I am already thinking of another cup of tea. Maybe. It’s not quite fall enough to start baking cookies but I think it is indeed getting there. I can get used to that. After dinner tonight, I have a date with a good book. Swell, more than one. Reading one on the front burner, letting the writing questions about others sort themselves out on the back burners.

No real point to this post, which is okay. Sometimes a stream of consciousness is what feels most authentic, so that’s what goes on the page.

How about you?

Asking the Right What Ifs

August 30, 2021annabowling 3 Comments

On Wednesday, it will be September. In our family, that means the unofficial start of autumn, and maybe more importantly, the return of my superpowers. It’s also the time for the seasonal turnover of planners, which took up a lovely portion of my Sunday afternoon. I love that ritual, of curating my planning supplies, moving from summer vibes (as much as I do, which isn’t much, as it’s not my favorite season) and into my natural environment. Bring on cool days, warm afghans, hot tea, big books, and all that good stuff.

In a writing perspective, that includes writing those books as well. Another part of the afternoon was me going over my edits letter from Safeword Author Services, which I cannot recommend highly enough for any author looking to hire an editor. Awesome encouragement, excellent insight, and I actually agree with the changes my editor proposed…so why haven’t I made them since February? That’s kind of a while.

First, let me introduce you to my non-besties, Anxiety and Depression, and the common author challenge of mind numbing terror when it comes to working on some of the tough stuff. But is it really? Sometimes, it’s as easy as asking the right questions. When I set up my writing notebook for historicals, I made sections for A Heart Most Errant, and Her Last First Kiss, with another for general tips and ideas for future project. For AHME, the first thing in there is the editorial letter. I read it through, then highlighted the areas I needed to address, color coded for hero (blue) heroine (pink) and general writing (green.) If I had a villain POV, which this book does not, then that would get a yellow highlight, because yellow is my least favorite color.

When I have Character A flip flopping from X to Not X a couple times throughout the story, making that decision for them wasn’t going to do. Instead, I turned to a fresh page and asked myself, “How does Character A feel about X, really?” Pros. Cons. Why they can hold both beliefs at once. Both hero and heroine in this book are trauma survivors (which is probably true for most of my characters in any story) so that is going to play into how they react to things, even good things. There’s also whether Character B would really focus on Y at a given moment. If they don’t focus on Y, then what would catch their attention instead? What would be more important? How does Not-Y fill a more urgent need than Y?

The only way to find that out, for me, is to do what I did when I wrote the beginning of My Outcast Heart, my first published historical romance (out of print right now; stay tuned for reissue talk) — follow my character as they run off on their own and write down what they do. It’s not entirely pantsing, as I can tell them “okay, here’s what has to happen next,” but usually, they figure out how they are going to that on their own, in their own particular way. It’s also not always in order. When I wrote Orphans in the Storm, my fourth historical (also out of print right now) I wrote both ends against the middle. I knew how it started, I knew how it ended, but connecting those two?

Season 5 Whatever GIF by Paramount+ — grab this gif; not mine

That was a matter of connecting “what happened after that?” with “what happened before that?” Repeat until the two ends meet. (I do not recommend the other notable thing about this manuscript, which was losing the whole file, after I had already sold it, but if you do, be sure to have an awesome critique group with hardcopies.) In this case, it’s translating to “okay, if X didn’t work, what could be Y?” Not what is, necessarily, but what could be? In the words of an online writer friend, “it’s just riffing.” Have fun. Chuck some ink on that paper and see what transpires. For my money (and that which I hope comes from it) it’s well worth the trip.

How are you getting ready for September?

Survival Dramas, Historical Romance, and Stationery Love

August 25, 2021annabowling Leave a comment

After a long time of not watching TV (streaming, on devices; we haven’t taken our TV out of storage and don’t miss it) I finally came back to it, when Netflix added Season Ten of The Walking Dead. I binged that very quickly, immersed in the lives of characters such as domestic abuse survivor turned badass at large Carol, can-he-be-redeemed ex (and future?) villain Negan, and waaaay beyond fixing Alpha. Carol/Ezekiel, or Carol/Daryl? (I prefer one, but the other is good, too.) Michonne scarpered off in search of vanished husband, Rick, leaving their children, Judith and RJ in good hands, and into the future of the franchise.

When I got to the end of the season (and will be watching the season premiere as soon as I do the AMC+ thing this weekend) I still needed more. Which led me to the spinoff series, Fear the Walking Dead. When I first tried to connect to that series, I couldn’t quite grasp it. There is also the time I fretted over being too far away to read the English subtitles during a scene in a Mexican church, before remembering that I speak Spanish and could just listen instead of straining my eyeballs.

This time, though, was different. Well, there was the matter of a reboot a few seasons in, trading in the original protagonists for some new arrivals and even some crossovers from the original series This time, I got it. I cried when one of my favorite couples came to the “death do us part” part, annnd un-death, requring the surviving spouse to put down their zombified beloved. That hurt, in the very best way. There’s also a horrible villain, succeeded by their mini-me, who was, somehow, even worse. At the season’s end, there are literally nuclear warheads coming down. How could the apocalypse get even worse? Well, yeah, nuclear warheads would do.

How does that connect with historical romance? This connection was easy. All that stuff I mentioned above? Put it in historical context. Yesssss. It’s also an essential part of my work on the first round of edits for A Heart Most Errant (finally!) Since the whole concept of this story world is “postapocalyptic medieval,” then it only makes sense to immerse myself in that world.

When I got to the end of the most recent season of FTWD, I searched for other survival dramas. Other shows mean other perspectives,. I binged The Society in pretty much one day, and while I am still salty that season two was cancelled, that doesn’t stop me from figuring out my own end to the story. Not proper fanfic, but maybe fan synopsis. I saw the first two episodes of The Beyond, which has two seasons and a similar premise, but had to take a break because episode three opened with zoo animals, and it’s their wellbeing that pokes my anxiety. Gord, the farmboy, would-be soldier and moral center may get filed away to marinate for character inspiration someday. I’ll talk about other survival shows and inspiration gleaned from them later.

This brings us to the stationery part. Picking the right stationery for a project isn’t wasting time or procrastinating. It’s part of the process, at least for me. Part of that is getting into the groove of the feeling of the piece. Looking through my stash, it’s a symphony of colors and formats and giving the front of my brain something to do while the back burners work their magic and unravel tangled beneath the surface threads.

For getting the historical romance work things out book ready, it means fountain pens. They feel right. There’s a process of filling fountain pens, getting the ink going, and somewhere in it all, the focus shifts. Don’t ask me to explain it more than that. Not that I can’t do anything without it, but it does make it a heck of a lot easier, and more fun. Also, a local writer friend has a ritual of filling three fountain pens before she coposes longhand. When all three are empty, it’s time to transcribe. I might like to give that a whirl.

What out of the box techniques would you like to try?

recommendations of survival drramas also very much welcome

Can Less Pressure Equal More Art?

August 23, 2021annabowling 1 Comment

Today is off and on rainy, but still muggy. Must be the end of August. Next week, I will be setting up my planners for September, putting summery decor away and sliding into fall, my most productive season. That’s a good thing, because I have plans.

Melva and I will be going through Drama King again, to address oncerns that were raised in our good rejection from our current publisher, and make sure the very best versions of Jack and Kelly are the ones that readers meet. Tha’s going to take more time than we had expected, but such is life.

If I had my druthers today, I would spend it reclining in front of a fn, bingeing my current Netflix seriess, while I write longhand, throwing messy ideas down on paper and making them pretty later when I can stand to be at the keyboard, preferably at a time when the air is not so humid we have air fish. Apparentlyk I do have a druther or two laying about, because that is exactly what I am going to do. I do also have the task of reading through the first two chapters of Drama King, as we are not letting any grass grow under our feet on this one, Even that works well with paper and pen, and thank God for laptop and their mobility. True, I could read files on my tablet, but eh, laptop is better for the eyeballs.

I can actually do quite a lot of work with paper and pen in front of the TV, even if TV right now means a smaller screen. We have left our TV in storage, and honestly don’t miss it. Streaming can take the place of traditional TV, and it gives me a lot more options, as in shows from all around the world. The current show I am bingeing, is originally in Arabic, dubbed in UK English, and the voice actors are a pretty good match tot he actual actors, so I don’t feel like I am missing anything. Not the survival in the wild type of thing I have been devouring lately, but mean girls in a private school in possibly the UAE? Honestly, does it get any wilder than teenage girls left to their own devices?

I’m still caling this current fixation on survival dramas as research for the second medieval book. Granted, I need ot get the first book’s edits done before I embark on book number two. I know the hero for that one already, but still have s=zero clue as to the hoerine and that’s not usually something that comes this hard for me. Still exploring, and I will find her in time Unless I am wrong about the hero. That would count as overthinking, though, and I am very much not here for that.

Welp, that’s about it for right now, as I have actual fiction writing and editing things to handle, but it feels good to check in on the right day. I like the idea of more art coming from less pressure. How about you?

Mid-August Recalibration

August 16, 2021annabowling 1 Comment

Welp, we are now officially past the halfway mark for August. Shelves are stocked with back to school supplies, which is pure heaven for us stationery aficionados. The fact that loving stationery and being a writer are not mutually exclusive makes this an especially delightful time of year. Well, ecept for the heat. It’s been brutal here in NY for the last while, and temperatures that are in the range of “do not kill the heat-sensitive” are extremely welcome.

August has not been the best month for productivity. Insomnia has been raging, with seven sleepless nights out of the first fourteen. My local RWA chapter voted this week to dissolve. That hit me hard. Harder, even than I would expect. It’s not entirely gone-gone, as there will be some sort of non-affiliated group, though not under the auspices of Romance Writers of America. I’m not sure what the future of the national organization will be, and that’s another big sad. I’m not even over the loss of Romantic Times magazine (the OG RT, not the RT Book Reviews it was at the end.) The thought that the organization that was The Thing back when I was but a wee princess could be floundering into nothingness sticks. A lot.

Melva and I also recieved news about our current submission that was less than we had expected. That doesn’t at all mean that nothing will happen with Drama King. On the contrary, we are meeting tonight to discuss our options. Whatever we choose, I am sure it will make Jack and Kelly’s book an even beteter one. I won’t say more until we have had a chance to talk between ourselves, but we are writers, and writers write.

The same applies to historical romance. The best way to feel connected to it is to, well, connect with it. Read lots, and of the sort I want to produce, and then proceed to write horrible first drafts. Then turn those into slightly better second drafts.

There is still the part of me who set up a TV tray in my dad’s living room, propped an electronic typewirter (yes, that long ago) popping the soundtrack from Camelot on his hi-fi, and confidently pounding my way through a set number of pages, because that’s what one of my favorite writers of historical romance did. Easy peasy.

Only not. Part of me wants to stamp my foot and grumble about being here again, not exactly at the start of the road, but boy does it feel like it at times. There is only one way around that, and that’s to wite. Keep writing. Then write some more. Then more than that. Write pages that are steaming piles of poo, because piles of poo can be shaped, but blank pages can’t. For the extroverted writers like moiself, (yes, I know that’s not a word) staring, hands on hips, at the place where my RWA chapter used to be (well, on Zoom now) and tapping foot, this means going back out there into the wilds of other writerdom. Critique group/partner applications are now open. Must love historical romance, grit over fluff, and have a taste for the epic. I’m serious. Talking and thinking happen at the same time with this gal, and talking with other writers of historical romance is now a priority. We will see how that goes.

Well, then. This is the pat of the post where I sum things up in some sort of order and/or sense, but I have to be honest; I am thinking about how many episodes of The Walking Dead I can get in before conference time. I am about three episodes from the end of Season Ten. After that, I can go back to where I left off with Fear The Walking Dead, which isn’t the same, but close enough to scratch the itch. Maybe I can call it research for the post-plague medieval world of A Heart Most Errant. Yeah, we’lll go with that.

Funny Things Happen When I Don’t Sleep for Two Days

August 2, 2021annabowling 1 Comment

Hopefully, this blog will be one of them. Insomnia is an interesting thing. Body says “soooo tired,” and then brain says “haha, nope.” When one needs ones brain to create things, that’s when things get weird. Hi, my name is Anna, and I have been awake for over 48 hours.

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio on Pexels.com

That was not intentional. It just happens sometimes. This time, it happened on a day when I had meant to do a bunch of the “heavy lifting” writing. Obviously, that is going to change. I am not going to have the house to myself until at least Thursday. Thankfully, I have anifty ofiice setup (mostly) in an unused corner of the bedroom, kitty-corner to Real Life Romance Hero’s setup, so if we are both having office time, neither one of us can see the other, and if we have our headphones on, we don’t hear each other, either. If I want to print something, I need to turn around to make sure he isn’t taking a nap.

One of my tasks for today is to finish setting up my planners. Catchall planner is all ready to go, but the planner I actuallycarry needs some love. I am excited to be in August.

1 year and 2 weeks post Storm’s wild adventure

Speaking of which, I have had a Talk with Soem abou taking a summer break from her blogging duties two days in a row. She says she was observing the anniversary of last year’s unchaperoned field trip. We have agreed she owes me a blog entry at a date to be determined later, as well as being on time this week.

The thing that I hate the most about adulting with insomnia (and creating with insomnia) is when all the brain things are all jumbled. What helps me most is making lists and taking notes. Okay, that is two things. They are related, though, so I think I’m okay here. This is one place where being a stationery enthusiast comes in handy. I can Do All The Stuff, but maybe at a slower pace today and one bullet point at a time.

When I jumped back into vlogging, one of the things I wanted to do was VEDA, or Video Every Day in August. I Love the idea, and it should be a great way to get consistent with posting, and getting used to vlogging but it also requires a whole lot more planning than I am able to give it right now. Maybe I’ll try for VEDO (is that a thing?) in October.

For now, the focus has to be on writing, and for today, that means roughing out a scene in Queen of Hearts and then taking a fluffing nap (Storm will no doubt join me, making this a cat nap with an actual cat) so I can have somewhat of a clearer mind when I meet with Melva this evening and we fly into the mist of the next chapter.

How’s your Monday?

maybe VSDA?
aka Videos Some Days in August?

Insert Title Here (yeah, she’s loopy today)

July 29, 2021annabowling Leave a comment

Surprise Thursday blog. I know, I’m as perplexed as you are, but I am writing this from my new office chair (pink leather; Housemate and I put it together last night, and are still friends.) with the laptop stand holding the keyboard and screen at an angle and eight that are much easier on my eyeballs, hands, and back. I made my cursor and mouse pointer HUGE and bright pink, which means I can spot them without a search party. I have been cruising through the to do list today, gettnig the office as is set up for optimal use, and it feels…good.

This is perhaps my favorite part of writing. Spoiler alert, I am going to say that about many different aspects of the craft. You have been warned. I have Big Pink, my beloved traveler’s notebook, back in use, her first insert almost filled. It’s got notes on where Melva and I need to be on the same page for me to write my next Queen of Hearts scene, wher to pick up with the A Heart Most Errant edits, and how to haul myself over the stile of the eternal buffering of Her Last Firt Kiss. A lot of those notes lead to “talk it out on paper or to a person” which may actually be my favorite part. I have an assignment of fat least coming up with some bullet points to talk through with Melva about HLFK, as she knows me, she knows the book, and I can send links to any historical stuff she might want to know better.

As of right now I do not have a critique group, and I am feeling the lack. Finding the right critique arrangement (or brainstorming) is a tricky endeavor, much like dating, only this time, a point by poit critique of intimate moves is actually a good thing. Go figure. Fictionally, that is.

In some ways, I have been here before. In some ways, I havve been here forever. Not going to lie, there are many times when I want to kick myself and utter something along the lines of “stop buffering!” Which is not that easy.

Though I have no interest in the Olympics, I am mad about Simone Biles, wondering if Simon Biles would have faced the same load of bullpucky. I love the idea of a female athlete, especially one so young, earning GOAT status (Greatest Of All Time) and I really do hope there are a bunch of little Simones in kindergarten classes five years from now. I am cheering for her choosing the difficult path of putting her mental and physical health first. Big cost? Oh yes. Heroine inspiration? For sure.

I’m sitting here looking at the time, and it’s after five PM already? Weird. Not that I mind, because that means reading time. Family will begin trickling in anytime now. The last two days were family days, which means not writing days, because my office right now is a corner of the bedroom if Real Life Romance Hero is not sleeping, and noves to the kitchen table if he is. People walking behind me while I am trying to write is a big NO. So, the time is for other things. Also for giving the family enough Anna that they won’t mind alittle space when I need to be playing with my imaginary friends and doing the clickekty keys thing.

That’s probably enough for today. Definitely babbling, so time to rein things in and segue into the evening. Still not watching any streaming shows, but very happy to dive into my library hoard.

How is your week going?

Investments and Options in the Writing Life

July 26, 2021annabowling Leave a comment

Last week, Housemate confirmed that my desktop, or at least its monitor, had gone to the great AV room in the sky. Laptop is working perfectly, and we are keeping our eyes peeled for Black Friday deals. Not going to lie; gaming will indeed be a consideration, but the old desktop served me well, and having a new machine to take on the next phase of my writing career is not only welcome, but smart.

Photo by Startup Stock Photos on Pexels.com

Sometime today, I should be able to trade in the state of the art laptop stand I have been using for the past while (empty Amazon box) for an actual laptop stand that will hold the screen at the angle that is best for me. Tomorrow should see the delivery of my own office chair, pink and comfy and full of back support. No more hunching and squinting, which I am fairly certain is going to ramp my productibity by quite a bit. I am also shopping for a document holder, as I compose longhand and then transcribe, and we have already addressed how I feel about hunching and squinting.

I have not tried speech to text software yet, but it is on the list of things to investigate. More tools in the toolbox, more tools I can use. I would probably still start out composing on paper, but reading that into a computer so it could do the typing? I don’t hate that idea, not at all.

There’s also the old school option of getting another human to do the typing for me. I actually like this option a lot. Is that from being an extrovert? Maybe so. I can barter with a friend, or I can hire someone, likely a college student, as we have several universities in the immediate area. Before my hypercritical gremlins start whispering about a typist stealing my work, uh, no. This is why contracts exist, and any typist I don’t already know personally, would be thouroughly vetted first. Again, college town, and references are a thing.

Since we are here at the end of July, August is right around the corner, and before we know it, we will be in pre-fall. Not fall as in the opposite of rise, but fall as in autumn. That’s when my super powers activate, and productivity rises.

For today, this blog is the low-hanging fruit, and then I turn my attentions to Queen of Hearts. After that, it’s make a plan to tackle the remaining A Heart Most Errant edits and make them happen. That’s where I will leave this entry for today, because I can’t wait to get down to business.

What’s on tap for your week?

Typing With Wet Paws: Proper Elevation Edition

July 9, 2021annabowling Leave a comment

Tails up, Storm Troopers! I’m Storm, you’re awesome, and this is Typing With Wet Paws. The big news this week is that Aunt Anna borrowed Aunt Linda’s office chair ,which Aunt Linda uses as a regular chair (no desk) and guess what – no back pain No need for an Amazon box on top of the kitchen table, either, if she wheels the chair out there when Aunt Linda isn’t home. This is a very good portent for the writing that is on her schedule, because there is a lot. All it will take is either getting Aunt Anna’s regular office chair out of the storage unit, or buying a new one. Either way is good, because A) I get to sit in it when she isn’t, B) if Aunt Anna doesn’t need the Amazon box she uses for a laptop riser, then I get it. Also if she goes with a new chair, then it will come in a box, and I can have that one. If she gets the existing one out of storage, then I get to smell Big Sister Skye on it, and learn some secrets from/about her. Anyway, it’s all good, however it turns out.

Fourth of July was pretty quiet around here. Figuratively, not literally. We can hear all the fireworks here, but can’t see them. I was a little confused, but the humans were all chill about it, so I was, too. I wasn’t aound fireworks last years, and I don’t remember the year before that, because I was too young. I guess it makes me fireworks-neutral, which is a good thing for a pet to be. We’ll find out again nest year.

There was one memorable effect from the holiday, though. It scrambled Aunt Anna and Aunt Melva’s brains, so they spaced on their meeting on Monday, even though Aunt Anna had already written her whole scene -in longhand. SHe’ll have to transcfribe that over the weekend and then send it Aunt Melva’s way, so Aunt Melva can write the next scene. They might move their meeting day, not move it, or keep the original meeting and add a second one. Aunt Anna is also having another video chat with Aunt Mary, because that was super fun and motivating, She may start doing that more with other friends, as well, because extroverts and social distancing are not the best mix.

Good thing there is Aunt Linda. On Monday, Aunt Linda had the day off, and she and Aunt Anna made a huge library haul. She made a big historical romance haul, and will make an Anna Log video all about that. She will talk about here experience with the Historical Romance Readathon over on Buried Under Romance this weekend, so keep eyes peeled for that. Right now, her Goodreads Reading Challenge looks like this.

This puts Aunt Anna firmly at the 2/3rds mark, with 60 books read out of her goal of 90 which means she is at 33% of the way there. The retShe will talk more about that later. The return of the physical library has been a very good thing on Aunt Anna’s reading front. The most imporatan thing is not only that Aunt Anna super loves reading paper bools again, but that it means she can now read in bed with just the bedside lamp and no tablet screen, and she is totally free to cuddle me while she reads. That’s always a big plus.

Okay, that looks about it for my list of the week things, except for some planner stuff, but that is for Anna Log, too. Since Aunt Anna looks to be unpillbugging, that will be soon. k

Headbonks!

Nobody Stop Me, or In The Groove

July 7, 2021annabowling Leave a comment

Have I ever mentioned that I have since single digit ages had a very soft spot for alternate titles. Completely unrelated to the Monkees song, “Alternate Title,” though does have some surprisingly boppy social commentary, and The Monkees are on the top of the list of music to play when I write Heather’s scenes in Queen of Hearts. I have my second scene from that written out in the notebook I have specifically for that, and all it needs is transcription and then it’s off to Melva.

Right now, I am borrowing Housemate’s office chair, with laptop on a folding desk, in front of a fan, and I am almost done with my third bottle of water for the day. The morning passed in a delicious virtual chat with my friend, Mary, whom I can’t believe I have known for almost twenty years. Doesn’t seem that long, and hasn’t she always been there/ Must be right, though, because the adorable little boy she had with her at our first meetup is now a firefighter, and, come October, will become a husband. Time does move.

Yesterday, Housemate and I made a library run, to a different branch than our usual haunt, and hit the motherlode of well stocked romance section. Well, well-ish stocked. I’ll take it. I am writing a script for a library haul video after I post this blog, and will flim either tonight or tomorrow. I’m also figuring out how I want to present my current planner/notebooks situation, as I am making some changes, and they are working much better than I had expected. There’s also the reading order to suss for abovementioned library haul, and how I want to figure in ebooks as well as physical books. I have missed paper books far more than I knew, and I know my eyeballs will be thankful for the respite. from all screens all the time. This will also require major surgery on my TBR notebook, but I knew that was coming. I am not a plain paper sort of girl. Never have been.

One thing I definitely need to make time for is writer (and reader) blabber, because after three hours of happily babbling over multiple topics, including historical romance (okay, a lot of talk about historical romance) I didn’t even want to break for lunch (but I did) and instead wanted to make plans for more socializing. Not going to lie, lockdown has not been easy on us extroverts. I love my family but I need to see faces taht do not use my bathroon on a regular basis. I’m thinking about making a regular time to open the discord server or a MSM room, for a regular supply of book blather, of both writing and reading varieties. I am positively starved for historical romacne writing talk. If I had decided to officialy do Camp NaNo this month (unofficially camping this time. Maybe November.) I had decided that I wanted to find a cabin that was historical romance only. Maybe I’m early for November?

No matter. This feels like that’s what was in msy brainpan for right now, so off I go to roll around nekkid in my library haul. Kidding, kidding. I will be wearing clothing, and there may be nappage. There will definitely be many cat headbonks, and calico cuddles.

What are you reading lately?

Typing With Wet Nails

for the love of romance

writing