Heroes and Heartbreakers

Typing With Wet Claws: Maxi Mouse Edition

annabowling 4 Comments

Hello, all. Skye here, for another Feline Friday. As Anty made me promise, I have to talk about her writing first, before  I can talk about anything else. She has a brand new post at Heroes and Heartbreakers, about the big reveal on last night’s  The Big Bang Theory. Can you feel the Shamy love? Anty can, and she wrote all about it. Her post is here, and it looks like this:

 

SHAMY

Now that I have that out of the way, we can move on to something that will be interesting to humans and kitties. We have a new mouse. Not the furry kind, unfortunately, but one that Anty uses on her glowy box.

Yesterday, Anty went to three stores before she could find a mouse she could use to replace her dead mini mouse. (I did not kill this mini mouse, though I have done what kitties do with mice when we lived in our old home. We do not have furry mice in our current apartment.)  This is not a mini mouse. I would say it is a maxi mouse, but Anty  saw one at one of the stores that is even bigger than that, which I do not care to contemplate. Here is a picture of the new mouse.

20151120_091508-1

It is big, and not as portable as the mini mouse, but Anty says she can manage with that, even if it does not fit in the pocket of her computer pouch. To be fair, her computer does not actually fit in her computer pouch, because the laptop she has now is smaller than her old laptop and there is a lot of extra space. Maybe she can use some of that space for the maxi mouse. Mini mice, it would seem, are in scarce supply.  She may order one online, because the portability factor is important.

The first store Anty looked did not have any mice with tails (Anty calls them cords.) A helpful human who worked there said he did not recommend the tailless mice because they need batteries. Anty does not want to deal with dead batteries when she needs to use her mouse, but what bothers her even more is that the thing she would have to plug in for the tailless mouse to know what was going on is really teeny and she would probably lose it. Nobody wants to see that happen. So, tailed mice it must be. There were some smaller mice, with and without tails, but the prices were bigger than Anty would like. Those must be very talented mice, but they are not for Anty right now, so it was on to another store.

That store was pretty much the same thing, so Anty and Mama went to other stores. There were helpful humans there as well, but no mini mice that Anty liked. In the end, the maxi mouse came home. It is big and black, not tiny and pink, so not exactly what Anty wanted, but it is better than trying to use the touchpad. There are a lot fewer bad words floating around in the air now. That is good for everybody. Dealing with many domestic tornadoes this week means that Anty is behind on her writing goals, so  having a machine that works right is a big help in getting back on track. She expects things will be, if not easier this coming week, then at least better managed.

That is about it for this week, so, until then, I remain very truly yours,

i1035 FW1.1

Until next week…

Skye O’Malley Hart-Bowling
(the kitty, not the book)

 

 

 

 

Typing With Wet Claws: Vet Vet Edition

annabowling 2 Comments

Hello, all. Skye here, for another Feline Friday. This week is mostly about me, because this week, I had the adventure. Normally, I am a very healthy girl. I only eat my food that my humans give me, in my dish, in my room, so I do not know how my tummy got upset, but, this week, it did.

I puked. A lot. Also had something come out of me that was liquid, but should have been solid. Anty watched me closely and was very concerned. When Mama and Uncle came home, I did not feel very well at all, and had not wanted any of my food (if it came out of you the way it came out of me, you would not want to put any more in, either.) This is very concerning for kitties. My humans got the carrier out (I know what that means, so I made my displeasure known. I usually go along with what the humans want, but this was a carrier.) Mama got me in fairly quickly, and then we went outside (it was cold) and then in the car. Anty had her fingers through the grate on the door so I could smell her and she could feel the warmth from my body. Mama drove through the dark while Uncle used his phone to check in with my Anty Kiara, who had recommended the emergency vet.

Vets are humans who help kitties (and dogs; there were a lot of dogs in the waiting room. That was scary, because some of them were big.) and they helped me right away. The vet tech gave me a bath, even though I did not say that she could (Mama said she could, though, so that is why.) because I had a poopy butt. They poked me with needles and took some blood, which I also did  not like, but  that is  how humans help kitties who are sick. Some of the needles gave me liquids, because I was dehydrated, and some of the needles gave me medicine. The vet gave my humans other medicine to give me, and then my humans took me home. I ran out of the carrier right away and hid under Anty and Uncle’s bed. The humans offered me food, but I was not yet interested in it.

i1035 FW1.1

Anty says I am very pretty after my bath.

This is the best part next. I am starting to feel better, and food is looking interesting again. The vet said I could  have people baby food if I would eat it (I will not. I feel sorry for people babies that have to eat that stuff. No, thank you.) My Anty Kara, who has kitties of her own, and helps kitties who do not yet have humans, said that I could have tuna juice. A human Anty went to school with when she was an almost grownup said the same thing, so Anty went to the food store and got me people baby food, people tuna and a different kind of cat food with gravy in it. My regular food does not have gravy in it, because my vet where we used to live said that can make kitties like me fat. (I do not know if she understands I am a Maine Coon and I am supposed to be bigger than non-Coons.)

Anty put all the food she had bought on the floor in front of me, to see if I was interested in anything. I looked straight at the can of tuna. It was sealed and she had to get the can opener, but I let her know that was what I wanted. She tried the baby food first, because its cap screwed off. Meh. Tuna, Anty. It was hard to get the can open, because our can opener is older than me, but she did it, and put the juice in my dish. I loved it. I ate a little bit of tuna and asked for more. Then I ate some of my treat that was still in my dish. Then I had more food. Then I puked it all up, and Anty cleaned it. Anty knows a lot of bad words, but she was not angry at me; nobody likes cleaning throwup.

I still throw up a little when I eat, but most of it stays down, and Anty says I am acting more like myself. I am up to writing this blog entry, so that is something. Anty gets to cuddle me when she holds me so Mama can squirt medicine in my mouth. Then they tell me I am a good girl, but I already knew that, because they tell me all the time. I am feeling a lot better and can once again function as Anty’s mews. That is a good thing, because she has writing to do.

Last night, she recapped the season premiere of Sleepy Hollow, for Heroes and Heartbreakers. It is here and looks like this:

Ichabbies3

That is about it for this week, as it is time for my nap, and Anty needs the computer. She also is looking forward to picking up her new phone this weekend, so that she can take pictures of me on Instagram again. She was very concerned about me this week, but now that I am getting better, it is time to pay attention to writing again.

Until next week, I remain very truly yours,

Skye O’Malley Hart-Bowling
(the kitty, not the book)

Until next week...

Until next week…

As the Unicorn Rambles

annabowling 4 Comments

All right, my liebchens, it’s Wednesday, I’ve already done #1lineWed on Twitter, I have a chat with my fabulous critique partner, Vicki, at two, writing must be done, articles pitched, so you’re getting this ramble because that’s how I roll.

Thanks to friend and reader Mary W, I got the idea to talk about some of the books I’ve read, recently or otherwise, that do suit my tastes. Much more fun to enthuse over something I love than whine about trying to find more of it. Here’s the thing about that; some of the time, it finds us, so all that looking can, in those cases, be the same as smashing our heads against a brick wall in hopes of getting through it, when, if we’d kept on walking a few more paces, we could have found the door, garden gate, etc.

This was going to be a video post, but the cold sore that showed up overnight is not terribly photogenic, so you’re getting this instead. All righty, disclaimer aside, let’s jump into this.

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Yeah, yeah, big surprise, but hey, reissue cover, for variety’s sake

Skye O’Malley, by Bertrice Small
(the book, not the kitty)

This is my all time favorite historical romance novel, big, bodacious, sprawling over years and continents, with one kickass heroine who doesn’t let boys boss her around. Doesn’t let Queen Elizabeth I boss her around either, for that matter.  An instance of amnesia actually working in fiction, lots of grit and adventure, from sixteenth century Ireland, England, Algiers and the high seas, to the political machinations of a woman making her way in a man’s world on her own terms, this gets my story blood pumping.

As for romance, Skye has more than one love in this book, and I am okay with that. Niall, her first love, and the hero of the book, is my favorite, and that final scene where the two of them and their friends literally do ride off into the sunset, well, that’s my all time favorite romance novel ending, ever. Yes, I can recite it from memory.  Much bigger in scope than is currently in vogue, and I miss that scope, this takes Skye from her birth to her HEA (for this book; eleven others follow, chronicling Skye’s family’s adventures) and set the bar or the larger than life heroines I prefer.

For those keeping track of that sort of thing, yes, this is a sexy book, but please don’t think that’s the whole point.  The character shine here, as people of their time, and if you don’t want to stand up and give Skye, Niall and company a fistpump at the end, well, I don’t know if we can be friends. (Okay, we probably can, but I would hold it against you. I am bribable with gummi bears, though, so you may still have a shot.)

Sword Dancer, by Jennifer Roberson

Oh good gravy, this book. I resisted reading it for ages (E, how long did I avoid this one?) because I’m not into a lot of fantasy, but, trust me, this really really is a romance.  Famed warrior Tiger can be matched by no man, but (fantasy readers, you know where I’m going here) that’s kind of moot because Del is no man. From the first time the two meet, in a desert cantina, the chemistry crackles between this Southron (sic) alpha male and Northron (sic) woman who is so very much his equal and opposite that following them through seven (so far) very thick books is not nearly enough. I also know the last line of this seies by heart. It was everything I …er, he dreamed when he slept at night, among the salset. :happy sigh:

My copies are in storage, but I have written about the series for Heroes and Heartbreakers, here.  Yes, there’s magic in this book, and it’s told in first person, from Tiger’s POV, but this gal found it very easy to slip inside his head. Tiger thinks he’s tough, and he is; he earns a living with his sword, fending off challengers, but the challenge he didn’t expect was to find a woman who can do what he does…and more. Del needs Tiger’s help to find and free her enslaved brother, This relationship has a lot going against it. They’re literally from two different worlds, and each gets a chance to see exactly what the other has had to overcome in their hometowns, not to mention some huge challenges destiny throws their way. I won’t give away their secrets here, but if you want a ride or die couple in your romantic fiction, Tiger and Del are it.  This really does read like a powerful historical romance set in a place we don’t know yet, so if you’re hesitant about fantasy, this is  good place to start. Ms. Roberson has also written some excellent historical romances, so, y’know, precedent has been set.

Eleanor and Park, by Rainbow Rowell

Not historical romance, this one, but, well, kind of, sort of, in its way. Set in the 1980s, we could call this a period piece, because the fabric of the time is essential to the romance and shapes it in a way that one would collapse without the other.  It’s standalone, too, which is one thing I sorely miss in today’s market (though I find more standalones in YA than historical romance; what’s with that?) and absolutely everything revolves around the love story.

Eleanor and Park, high school students, meet on a school bus. Eleanor is hard to overlook. She’s fat. She has big, curly, red hair. She dresses funny. Park doesn’t want the trouble, but when he sees how badly she’s getting picked on, he reluctantly lets her share his seat. Then he notices she’s reading his comic book over his shoulder. He holds the book open wider so she can see. Swoon, right? He gives her the book, and other books, makes her mix tapes, becomes the one pure and true and good thing in her life. Eleanor needs that, as her home life is a crazy free fall of chaos with her abusive stepfather and her gaggle of siblings who look to her more than their parents for stability. Park’s family has romance cred already, as his dad loved his mother enough to go back to Korea for her, and he knows what love looks, feels, and sounds like.  He knows he’s found it with Eleanor, and he’s willing to fight for her, literally and figuratively.

The course of teen love never does run smooth, even though both know this is the real thing, and both must make a heartrending choice when Eleanor’s home life escalates. I do count this as a happy ending, and I like to think I do know what those mysterious three words in the book’s ending are. I will fight those who disagree, because, yeah, that is the hill I want to die on when discussing this book. I’ve written about Park and my other favorite YA book boyfriends for Heroes and Heartbreakers here.

That’s all the time I have for today, so I shall leave you here and scarper off to Georgian England for a while. What books can get you squealing like an excited fangirl/boy? Can you tell anything these three books or their characters have in common? Know a good cold sore remedy? Drop a line in the comments and let me know.

Typing With Wet Claws: Up All Night Edition

annabowling Leave a comment

Hello, all, Skye here, for my regular Feline Friday. This picture is from yesterday’s sunbeam session, because I am spending today under the bed. Mama’s bed, to be specific, although I usually hide under Anty and Uncle’s bed when I want to be really really safe. I thought I’d change it up today.

Sometimes, when humans have a lot to do, it takes a long time. Sometimes, that means they use up all of the daytime and go into the nighttime. Those of you who know kitties know that we can be nocturmal creatures, but you may not know that sometimes, writers are, too. Sometimes, that is because they have something called deadlines. When Anty has to tell people who kissed on TV, she has to take notes while the show is on and then make sure her notes make sense, and that they are the right legnth. When she first started doing this, she would make her notes in longhand, on a legal pad, and then go into another room and put them on the computer to make them make sense. Now, she makes them right on the computer, which makes it go faster. Still, it takes a while, and, since the shows are on in the evening, that means she is working in the evening.

This week, big kissy things happened on two shows that Anty watches. Her recap of New Girl’s season finale is here, and looks like this:

I liked the part with the kitty...

I liked the part with the kitty…

I think New Girl is a very good show, because it has a kitty in it. The kitty’s name is Ferguson, and Ferguson got a present in the very last scene, which ends the season on a high note.

The Big Bang Theory does not have any kitties in it, but it has fun nerdy things, and a lot of romance, so Anty likes it. Big things happened for two couples on this season finale. Anty’s recap is here and looks like this:

Needs cats...

Needs cats…

When Anty stays up late, she ends up writing a lot, even if it is not for publication. Sometimes, she writes in books to think on paper. This week, she finished writing in two more notebooks. The small one  is by Markings, and  it lived in her computer tote.  The big one is by Picadilly, and was her purse book and then her living room book before it finally landed in the kitchen. She says nobody wants to read what is inside them, as it is mostly rambling and sometimes lists of things to do, but I am allowed to show what they look like. They look like this:

the old gaurd

the old guard

The new books look like this:

new kids on the block

new kids on the block

The small book is by Potter Style, which is new to Anty, and came in a pack of four, all themed around Jane Austen novels. Anty says this is very appropriate for a historical romance writer, although she does not write in the Regency period. Shocking, I know, but it does take all kinds. She started the small book a while ago, but stopped using it in her pen pouch shortly thereafter. It will now be her computer sleeve book. The big book comes from WalMart and has no markings whatsoever, so she thinks it was made especially for them. She is not sure what color sticky notes she wants to put in it permanently, but she carried these over from the old blue book:

temporary stickies

temporary stickies

I do not think I shared pictures of what she did to the old blue notebook, but she put old maps on the endpapers. I think that was a good idea, but she is out of old maps now, and does not know what sorts of endpapers she wants for this new book, if it needs any at all. The maps looked like this:

show me the way...

show me the way…

In addition to writing, Anty likes to read when she is awake late into the night. She finished reading Where She Went, by Gayle Forman,  early this morning. Now she is grumpy that the story is over. Anty loves second chance at love stories for star crossed lovers, when they make it work at last (oops, did I spoil it for anybody? Sorry. Forget I said that. Kitties are not reliable sources of literary criticism. Unless there are cats in the story. Then we are.)

If Anty stays up in her comfy chair, I like to curl into a ball at her feet and keep her company. It is the very least that a mews can do. Well, that and filling in when the human wants to delegate blogging. I am happy to do that, too.

Well, that is about it for this week. It is a good thing my new computer is small enough to fit under the human beds. Hm, maybe I could make my own office down here. What do you think? Feel free to let me know in the comments.

Until next week, I remain very truly yours,

Skye O’Malley Hart-Bowling
(the kitty, not the book)

Typing With Wet Claws: It’s Not Easy Being Mews Edition

annabowling Leave a comment

Hello, all. Skye here, for another Feline Friday. It is finally feeling like spring here. That means that it is not freezing all the time, and I can watch birdies through the living room window while Anty and Mama have their breakfast. Uncle gets up a little later, and I have his breakfast with him in the kitchen. Everybody gives me kitty food when they get their people food, so I am not going to complain.

This week, Anty began Camp NaNo. That is a time when humans who write try to do a lot of writing in a short amount of time. That is like NaNo, except it does not make Anty as stressed, because she can decide how much writing she wants to do. Really, how much writing she wants to tell people she does, because she does a lot of writing. It’s the counting the words she does not like. She likes the actual writing fine. I am glad I do not have to count things. My job as a mews (see what I did there?) is to sit very very close to Anty and send out love beams. That is inspiring, I think, although I do not know how effective it is when it comes to making her put more kitties in her stories.

Yesterday, she put a dog in her new book. Only a china dog in this scene, but I looked at her outline. There will be a real dog later. She said the characters put the dog in there; she didn’t. I am not too sure about that. I know that characters are people who live inside Anty’s head, so maybe she should talk to some of them about having cats. There are horses in this book, but that is mostly because horses dragged the people carriers around in the times Anty’s stories are set. I have never met a horse, so I do not have a firm opinion on this, other than that it would not be too hard for Anty to maybe mention a barn cat or two when one of the horses is in its stable. I think that is fair recompense for all my hard work. If that is okay. Anty is most dominant in our pride, so I cannot tell her what to do, but I can make suggestions. Also look very very cute. I am good at that.

tools of the trade

tools of the trade

Anty has been doing a lot of writing this week, which keeps her busy, and that is a good thing. As you may be able to see in the picture of her keyboard, we have some casualties. There is now no letter at all on the E key, the Q key now looks like a broken O, and the L is pretty much a scratchy line. Anty says she may write letters on those keys with a silver Sharpie, but she knows what keys are where, so I do not think she is going to do that anytime soon. Also, people need to kiss on TV more, so that Anty can write about that and have more posts up on Heroes and Heartbreakers. She is part of this post on bloggers’ best reads of March, which has lots of ideas if you do not know what to read next. A word of warning: Anty’s pick is a very thick book that makes a loud sound when it is dropped. Loud sounds are scary. At least she read it by the bed, so I did not have to go far if I wanted to run under the bed for some reason. She is considerate that way.

goth laundry?

goth laundry?

This week also means it is time for Anty to get ready to go to the NECRWA conference. I have talked about that before, so I will not repeat myself here, except to say that the whole getting ready thing is not exactly cat-friendly. She does open the closet a lot and take clothes out, which I find very interesting. Sometimes, she puts them back in and sometimes she does not. Ever since she took the bright colors she does not like very much out of the closet, she has more fun playing with clothes. Most of her laundry looks like the picture above. Some of it is Uncle’s, but the stripey things and anything with a skull on it should be Anty’s. Sometimes new clothing comes home when Anty goes out hunting, and it does not smell like our things, until she washes it and wears it, and then it does. Until then, I am suspicious of all new items. I am not entirely convinced that the Skirt of Doom is not going to come back, even though I was the one who made it go away in the first place. Never you mind how. I was never sure if it was on Anty, part of Anty, or, worst of all, if it had Anty. Sometimes, a kitty has to do what a kitty has to do.

Anty needs the computer back, and it is lunchtime, so that is about it for this week. Until next week, I remain very truly yours,

Skye O’Malley Hart-Bowling
(the kitty, not the book)

Typing With Wet Claws: Nurse Kitty Edition

annabowling 2 Comments

Hello, all, Skye here, for another Feline Friday. Very exhausting week to be a kitty around here. Anty was sick, the glowy boxes staged a revolt, and all three humans were at home yesterday. Well, Anty and Mama went out hunting, so that was not everybody all day, but it is difficult for one kitty to be in so many places at once.

One of the most important kitty duties is nursing. Anty does not get sick very often, which is a good thing, but when she does, I am there. This week, Anty only thought she was tired after she got back from the critique group, but then she was hot and cold at the same time, and things ached that should not be aching, and Uncle had to be the one to break it to her. She was sick. Anty does not like being sick, because she does not like “doing nothing” as she puts it. That makes her grumpy. Really, the best thing for the other humans to do in times like that is to give her some books and some movies and make sure she has lots of liquids.

Food, beautiful food

Food, beautiful food.

She did not want food for a couple of days (I cannot imagine how horrble that must be. I always want food. Can I have some food now? I am very cute, if that influences your answer any.) but she has her appetite back now, which is a very good thing. I heard her and Uncle talking about dinner tonight (theirs, not mine, but I will assume my dinner was implied. I would like fish jelly, please.) and they seemed happy about that. She is also putting on real people clothes and even makeup, so I know she is better. This does also mean that she will be leaving the house again to go hunt (I assume she is hunting; why else would she leave a comfortable house with a kitty in it?) and do laundry. There was not a lot of laundry last time, because she only had pajamas on for most of the week, but there was still laundry. Ever since she found out how she can send her manuscripts to her Kindle, she has been taking those along and reading her own work as though she were the reader and not the writer. She says that gives a different perspective and likes to take notes on anything that stands out.

I helped her rest by sitting very very very close to her recliner and sending love beams in her direction. She says that helped a lot. I also helped her watch some movies. We liked The Perks of Being a Wallflower, although it did not have any kitties in it. It had friends and a love story, though, and Anty likes movies with those things in them. Also angst. There was a lot of angst. Angst makes Anty happy. This is not as alarming as it sounds. These sorts of things are perfectly normal for writers. She is open to suggestions for other movies with the same feel. She has already seen The Fault in Our Stars, and liked that one, and is looking forward to Paper Towns. She is listening to the book of that on her mp3 player right now. Well, maybe not right now. I do not know when you are reading this, so she may be listening to something else. Probably one of her story soundtracks, because she is back to writing. That is a big relief. She is cranky when she is not writing.

It is a good thing that Anty loves notebooks. Yesterday, Mama suggested that, since the computer power cords come in two peices, maybe switching the peices around would help them hold a charge. Anty tried that, and Mama is right. Anty now calls these “Frankencords,” and they hold a steady charge, where the other ones did not. New cords are on the way, and may be here as soon as tomorrow. That will make everybody happy. I heard Anty and Uncle talking about a tablet. I got worried for a minute, but it is all right. They do not mean they want to give me a tablet, and they do not mean the pill kind, anyway. The best I can tell, it is a very small glowy box. Maybe even kitty sized. It is hard to tell from the picture on the glowy box. Hm. Maybe they do want to give me a tablet, but the glowy box kind, not the kind the vet dispenses. Either that, or Anty wants to carry a really small glowy box instead of packing up the laptop every time she goes to the coffee house to write.

Speaking of writing, Anty has a new post up on Heroes and Heartbreakers, on the season finale of The Mindy Project. It is here and looks like this:

DANDY
Anty and Uncle get grumbly sometimes about season finales in March. When they were younger, TV seasons went from September to June and that was that. It is much more complicated these days. Personally, I like watching birds through the window. There are no commercials there, but sometimes trucks and busses with ads on them drive by. I guess that is kind of the same thing.

Well, it is that time again. Anty needs the glowy box so she can write, and it really is my lunchtime, so that is about it for this week. Until next time, I remain very  truly yours,

Skye O’Malley Hart-Bowling
(the kitty, not the book)

Until next week...

Until next week…

Typing With Wet Claws: Overscheduled Edition

annabowling Leave a comment

Hello, all. Skye here, for another Feline Friday.

First of all, thank you to those who  come back every week to read my blog. That is very encouraging to a kitty, and to Anty as well.

This has been a busy week for Anty, so if she has not gotten back to anybody, it is not personal. She has been on the glowy box a lot. I wanted to put a picture of Anty’s planning board up here, but she said it was not okay, because her notes were readable and she is not done with the book yet. Sorry.  Instead, I can share a picture of her box of Post-It notes that she uses for planning. The best part about her using Post-its on her planning board is that I get to play with her mistakes.

Anty and I both love to play with these...

Anty and I both love to play with these…

Anty really really likes planning and making lists, so she does not mind that much.  She asked me not to talk about the time she tried to get up from the computer and forgot she had her headphones on and it yanked her back down like a dog at the end of its leash. Whoops. Sorry. Can that be our secret?

What is not a secret is that Anty got to write about two of her favorite TV relationships (ohhh, that’s where the ships come in. I get it now. Humans are clever.)

She got to write about Sleepy Hollow here, and it looks like this:

Then she got to write about The Mindy Project here, and it looks like this:

Dandy

I think both shows need more cats. Or any cats. I would also accept birds, mice and fish. Sleepy Hollow has a horse sometimes, but that is not the same. I do not know any horses, so it kind of freaks me out. Anty would say everything freaks me out, and she is right about that. I still think there should be more cats.

Tomorrow, tomorrow...

Tomorrow, tomorrow…

Tomorrow, Anty goes to CR-RWA to present her workshop, On Beyond Fanfic. She is excited and nervous, especially since our printer says it is jammed, but both Anty and Mama say it is not jammed and there is not any paper in it. Anty and Mama will see if the big paper store can help them get those papers printed. I call dibs on playing with any mistakes from that. Somebody will have to tear the big papers into smaller papers, though, because I am scared of big papers. I like them bite-sized.

Speaking of bite-sized,  (Anty calls that a transition; see, I am learning) Anty only minutes ago sent in her contribution to the 31 Days & 31 Ways to Jumpstart Your Life program. Do you want to know how making something out of nothing can help to make life better? Anty, Eryka and friends can help with that, and it does not cost anything. Even I like that price (money better spent on cat food, right?) You can read more about this program and find out how you can join here. If you do, let Anty (or me) know, because she would love to see some friendly virtual faces.

only for that one counter, really

only for that one counter, really

Now, for those who asked about this sign, Anty asked the barista, a very nice human named Rachel, and Rachel said the sign only means for that one counter. It is meant to be a waiting area for humans who are ordering their food and drinks to go. If other humans park there with laptops, that takes up that space. There are lots of other comfy spaces to settle. She did not say anything about Anty sitting there with a notebook, so Anty guesses that is still okay. The sign does not say “no notebooks.” Anty would not go to a place that said “no notebooks.”  Trust me, I know  her.

That about covers it for this week. Anty still has her post for Buried Under Romance to write and some pictures to take, so I have to give the computer back. Until next week, I remain, very truly yours,

Skye O’Malley Hart-Bowling
(the kitty, not the book)

Until next week...

Until next week…

Typing With Wet Claws: Explaining the Writer Brain Edition

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Hello, all. Skye here, for another Feline Friday.

The humans say the new year is now underway, but it has been for the last week or so, so I think they need to pay better attention to their calendars. Anyway, this week has been cold. Thankfully, I have a built in full length fur coat, and I am an indoor kitty, so I did not have to go outside. My humans did, every day, and they were not always happy about it, but they are happy to come home to a warm apartment, and, of course, to me.

i1035 FW1.1

One good thing about  the weather being this cold and sometimes snowy is that it inspires Anty to hunker down and get some writing done.  This is what her current desktop screen looks like. She picked this picture because it is very similiar to the cover of the calendar on the wall of her office, but will probably change the desktop a few times before she finds something that feels really right. The important thing here was to put the Christmas desktop away until it is Christmas again. She is always a little sad to see her favorite time of the year come to an end, but it is my job to remind her that this means the start of a new year, and Valentine’s Day is coming very soon. Valentine’s day is a very important day for romance writers.

Also important is when Anty has a new post at Heroes and Heartbreakers, and this Monday, she did. She is very glad this was her week to recap Sleepy Hollow, because a lot happened, for three different ships (I am still not sure how ships fit into this kind of show, but they do not tell kitties these things.) Her post is here and looks like this:

i1035 FW1.1

 

 

 

There have been a lot of domestic tornadoes this week, but Anty is not letting that distract her from getting ready for the new book. I can tell she is working hard at this because sometimes, she does not seem to be all there. Writers’ pets, you know what I mean. If you are not a writer’s pet (or a writer’s human) then I will explain.

Sometimes, your writer may get so deep into their book, especially when they are getting ready to make their first draft, that part of their brain will stay there, even when they are doing other things. Even when they are doing important other things, like ordering tea or making human food. Ask them a question that they should be able to answer easily, but all the answer that gets is a confused look, something that sounds like “huh?” and maybe a quick mumble before they start getting antsy (like I do before I have to, um, defend my family against the Green Chair of Evil.) At that point, it is best to accept the inevitable. Your writer has a new book brewing, and they are going to be spending a good deal of their time talking to the people who live in their heads. Anty says it is more a case of making sure the people in her head talk to her. Either way, the people in Anty’s head live several  hundred years in the past, so it makes sense that it takes her some time to get back to the rest of us. As long as she can still open the bag of treats, I am okay with that.

Anty's typical view

Anty’s typical view

That is about it for this week. Until next time, I remain very truly yours,

Skye O’Malley Hart-Bowling
(the kitty, not the book)

Throwback Thursday, Historical Romance Division

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Wild Bells to the Wild Sky by Laurie McBain

Wild Bells to the Wild Sky by Laurie McBain

It’s that time again.  Wild Bells to the Wild Sky, by Laurie McBain, is one of those books. The all time favorites, the ones where I have only to hear the names of the hero and heroine -in this case, Lily Christian and Valentine Whitelaw, how perfect are those?- to immediately reimmerse myself in their romance and adventure. 

This book has huge servings of both. Set in the Elizabethan era, largely on a deserted island, Lily and her brother grow up wild and in seclusion. Lily, her mother, and a family friend are the sole survivors of a shipwreck, the sole inhabitants of the island…until mother and friend produce Lily’s brother, that is. Ahem. Then fever takes the parents, and Queen Elizabeth sends courtier Valentine Whitelaw in search of the missing party, and then things really get interesting. 

History, intrigue, romance, fabulous locations, a clever heroine and dashing hero, gorgeous descriptions, and one of my top five historical romance endings of all time make this book one I go back to time and again. 

Since we’re waxing nostalgic on Thursdays, here are a few recent things I’ve been up to: 

Guest Post at Savvy Authors: From a Certain Perspective, It’s All Fan Fiction: From Fan Fiction to Fantastic Fiction begins on September 1st, so I’m delighted to get to blabber about the useful tools we can find in the books, movies, tv and music we already love. Drop by and try a fun exercise to combine old favorites in new ways. 

Outlander “Sassenach” recap at Heroes and Heartbreakers: Cue incomprehensible squeeing, Jamie and Claire are now on the small screen, and I’ll be recapping each new episode as it airs. How cool is that, I get to watch Outlander and say I’m working. 

 1 Line Wednesday on Twitter, always a highlight of my week. 

 

What are you reading? 

The Moment and The Month That Was: May 2014

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Another month, another adventure begun, so let’s review the Month that was May, 2014:

Writing: 

Yesterday, while copying some information about the current ms into a new notebook (notebooky post coming soon) I had a Moment about the dreaded sticky part of the book that seemed like I’d need to train poodles to jump through hoops of fire to make a certain plot point make sense, and then make those same poodles balance teacups on their noses while dressed in period costume to bring a satisfactory resolution. 

Then, Micron (yes, the kind of pen is important, but pen post coming soon as well) poised over magenta line on white page, I had the Moment. What if I did B instead of A? Well, duh. That…might…work. In fact, it would give the poor (figurative) poodles a break, increase the stakes and mean I didn’t have to write the drudgey parts to explain stuff because stuff would already make sense. Well allrighty, then. Several pages of Micron-ed notes later, I left the coffee house with a springier step and I’m excited about going through the existing ms and tidying my loose ends. This will require some story surgery, yes, but it fixes what had put me off this ms when I made my first pass on it, years ago. Commence work on Pinterest board (still puny, but growing) and let’s do this thing. I’m very happy to have found the right groove for Ember and Gareth, two characters who have been more than patient with me…at least so far.

May was a pretty good month over here. I’ve started hosting Saturday discussions at the Buried Under Romance blog, which is huge fun, and May sweeps meant lots of shippy moments on TV, to blabber about at Heroes and Heartbreakers. Links below: 

Heroes and Heartbreakers: 

Buried Under Romance:

Reading:

I’ve been lazy about keeping track of reading, which I need to remedy, but I’m thrilled to have discovered Alison DeLaine‘s  historicals, starting with A Gentleman ‘Til Midnight, and am re-listening to Juliet, Naked, by Nick Hornby. Third time listening to the audiobook, and I’ve read the paper copy at least twice. I don’t think it’s possible to reexperience a favorite book too many times. 

Watching: 

This was the month I finally gave in and started watching Mad Men. I’d resisted, because, basically, my dad had Don Draper’s job in that era, but boy is it brilliant, and boy is it gorgeous, so there will likely be more blabbering about that soon. 

Also endeavoring to rewatch How I Met Your Mother from start to 9×22, because the finale does not count. 

Okay, June, bring it on.