miscellaneous

Typing With Wet Claws: Special Christmas Edition

annabowling 2 Comments

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate, and happy Thursday to those who not. Skye here, pinch hitting for Anty on Christmas day. I have never written two blogs in one week before, so I am a little nervous here. Anty said she really needs me to blog for her today, because she is very busy, so I will give it a try. There is a lot of stuff going on today.  I will try to hit the highlights.

Wrapping paper is very noisy, in case you were wondering.

Wrapping paper is very noisy, in case you were wondering.

Anty got up very early this morning to make sure all the Christmas things were in order. We are having company this year, which we usually do not, but Anty gets excited over company, so things are happening. Lots of presents under the tree. This year, Anty decided that black and white wrapping paper is classy and versatile, so it was mostly that and the kraft paper she uses for a lot of different things. Anty, Uncle and Mama exchanged presents after breakfast. I hid under the bed because wrapping paper is very noisy when it is getting unwrapped. Fun to play with in small amounts, though. I will bat some of it around later tonight, probably after company has gone home.

Mr. and Mrs. Gothy Claus

 

Sometimes, new characters pop up in Anty and Uncle’s heads, that live with us instead of inside books. This year, Mr. and Mrs. Gothy Claus happened, because they were both wearing black.  They both wear a lot of black. Some of my fur is black, too. Uncle’s hat says “Bah Humbug.” Anty makes him wear it all during presents. That is okay, because he likes it. I do not wear anything on my head. Ribbon bows were discussed when I first joined the family (I have been here a few years) and I said very big no thank you, because ribbon bows are scary and I do not want them on my head.

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Anty is not wearing all black today; yesterday, she painted her toenails red with green glitter. She said she wanted obnoxious Christmas nails. She didn’t get a chance to do her fingernails, but the toes came out nicely. Did I mention I love the smell of nail polish? I always want to be really really close to her when she does her nails. Then I stare at her, very hard. It’s a cat thing.

The only holiday movie Anty has had a chance to see so far is A Very Brady Christmas, which she says is perfect in its horribleness. I do not understand the criteria Anty has for judging movies. She and Mama plan to watch more Christmas movies during the upcoming week. I will probably hide under the bed if they laugh too loudly, which they probably will. i will come out for treat, though, and possibly playtime.

That is about it for now, at least until the company comes. I will tell you about the rest of the day tomorrow.

Until then, I remain very truly yours,

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

Typing With Wet Claws: Running Late Edition

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Skye here, for another Feline Friday.

We had big snow this week. I am an inside kitty, so I was not out in it, but snow does make Anty happy, so she was. She did not take any pictures so far, but she says winter is young, and there wasn’t a lot of time, She said it was something to do with the domestic tornadoes we had this week. Human lives get complicated, and often involve trips to the laundromat. I am not entirely sure what happens in a laundromat, but Anty says she does a lot of her writing there. Since she always takes her notebooks with her, that makes a lot of sense.

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The Christmas tree went up this week, as did the lights around the doorways to the living room and Uncle’s office. Last night, one of the light strings fell down when I was sitting under it. That was scary. It did not hit me, but still not something I would care to repeat. The humans gave me food to make me feel better.. That worked.  I also got more food when Uncle decided to see if I would play with the light from the big flashlight. I did not. Silly Uncle. Lights are not toys. Crumpled papers are toys. Anty makes me a lot of them, so that works out well.

Anty worked a lot this week. She has a new post up at Heroes and Heartbreakers, about the 200th episode of Bones. It is here and it looks like this:

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Beyond that, she says she has kept her head down and eyes on her own paper, which is probably a human thing. She will explain later. Since she keeps her eyes on her paper, I keep my eyes on her. Most years, she watches a lot of Christmas movies and reads Christmassy books, but so far, nothing this year. This concerns me. Writing and pre-writing time is good, but that takes a lot of energy away from important things like playing with me. Christmassy movies and TV shows usually mean she will make popcorn. I don’t eat it (as it is not kitty food) but the smell is amazing. Same with hot chocolate, of which there has not been any yet that I can tell. This also concerns me. Knowing Anty as I do, I know her Christmas fever is going to kick in sooner or later, and the longer it takes to start, the harder it will hit when it does.

Really, it’s in everyone’s best interest that she start as soon as possible. I am not sure what I can do to get that underway, (if you have suggestions, feel free to leave them in the comments) but the decorations being up is a very good start.

Tomorrow, Anty will be going to her CRRWA meeting, which is always a good thing. She gets to spend time with other romance writers, hang out in a library and best of all, come home to feed me.

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That’s about it for this week.

Until next time, I remain very truly yours,

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

Typing With Wet Claws: Skye’s introduction

annabowling 2 Comments
Skye O'Malley, the kitty, not the book.

Skye O’Malley, the kitty, not the book.

Hello. I am Skye O’Malley, the kitty, not the book. My friend, Bailey, helps out his mom, Sue Ann Porter,  with her blog, so he thinks that I should do the same thing. My mama does not write books or have a blog (she plays with strings that turn into sweaters and things,) but my Anty Anna does, so I will help her.

Most days, my mama and Uncle (Anty calls him Real Life Romance Hero) are out hunting, so Anty hunts from home. Usually, she’s on her glowy box, which looks like this picture below now, because she killed the first keyboard and then had to get a second one. That second one sits on top of the first, and sometimes tries to type things on that first keyboard on its own. I do not think she wants it to do that, but her characters do not always behave themselves either. Writers must be used to disobedience.

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In case you want to know what it looks like where I work (I am a professional mews) this is what Anty sees when she looks away from her glowy box.

Workstation of the mews

Workstation of the mews

Anty says not all of those notebooks are there all of the time, and they really are not. She does use a lot of paper, though. If I am a really good kitty, I get to play with some of it. I like to stay close in case Anty needs some inspiration, or wants to pet a kitty with her foot. In case she wants to feed a kitty, I am one, so it’s only considerate that I stay close by so she doesn’t have to go far. I like to think of myself as a very considerate kitty, so when Anty is home, I make sure to stay as close to her as possible. Unless it rains or I  hear the cat zamboni (the people call it a street sweeper, but I know better) – then I am under Anty and Uncle’s bed.

Typing with wet nails, really...

In case you are wondering if Anty really does type some of these entries with wet nails, she really does. Her trick is to use only the pads of the fingers and not the actual nails. She says she learned that in high school and it still works. I love the smell of nail polish, so if she really is typing with wet nails, I am sure to be extra super close. I am calling my posts Typing With Wet Claws, but if my claws are wet, it is because I licked them. I am a very clean kitty.

Is that good for our first time together? Bailey said that first impressions are important.Hopefully, my posts will help Anty. She says if she sells a lot of books, I can get more toys. My favorite toys are Post-It notes that Anty is done using. I don’t think she is being entirely selfless by promising to buy more Post-Its, but it is worth a try.

Until next time,

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

The Story of H

annabowling 2 Comments

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I think I’m holding up fairly well, all things considered. The saga of my Not a Cance in Ell adventure is now complete. Parts one and two are here and here. Over the weekend, after slicing my finger on the prongs of the now long-absent H key, the whole key stopped working. First, it took four or five pounds to get one H, which could as easily be a whole line of them: hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Which then needed to be backspaced or deleted, which was annoying because I would want them later. As I’ve said before, H is a very important letter.

There’s personal pronouns: she, he, him, her, them, their, all in heavy demand when writing stories about relaitonships (another H) word. Home, heaven, hell, hurt, help, hover, and several hundred more. Though I do my best composition in longhand, smushing the handwritten pages up to the screen doesn’t work. I worked out time share with both hubby and housemate (more H words) on their computers, did some work on the old desktop and started pricing towers. For personal emails to friends, I substituted an * when I needed an H, so thanks to all who put up with me during those days. I don’t know why it took me a couple of days to figure out I could get an external keyboard, but one quick trip to Staples and then I’m back in business.

Putting a regular keyboard on top of my laptop keyboard took some getting used to at first, but now, apart from portability, it feels very natural. I like the click of brand new keys, no prongs to pierce my fingertips, no crumbs (as of yet) to get in the way. Nothing sticks, and I can keep on going without having to pause to  insert an asterisk. Small things make a big difference, and losing the use of a single key brings that to light in a very big way.

Having a new keyboard is also exciting because it makes me look forward to starting over with a new computer. A recent discussion with a writer friend about clearing the decks resonated. When I set up a guest account on my housemate’s computer, it was a fresh start, literally no old files under my name to clutter the current work, no pictures, however lovely or inspirational, to distract me from my work. All I could do, with a limited amount of time I could use that machine, was set up the bare minimum and get to telling the story. Which, after all, is the point of this entire endeavor. Tell stories, because that’s what I love to do best.

The last few years have been challenging, and in many ways, I’m not the same person I was when this much-loved laptop was shiny and new. There have been many goodbyes, many hellos, a change in geographical region that was, at once, taking a leap and coming home. So, it makes sense that new stories would come, and the thought of telling those new stories on a new machine, unencumbered with the past, excites me in a way I hadn’t expected. I do have to thank that dearly departed H for helping to bring me to that point. The key itself now sits in a place of honor on the desk I coveted since childhood, a reminder of the past to make a bridge to what is yet to come.

The adventure is only beginning.

How I Got Here

annabowling 2 Comments

I love romance fiction. Crazy, stupid love it with a mad passion. I want to grab it with both hands and twirl it around in a field of daisies until we both fall to the ground, dizzy, giddy and breathless, the sky swirling above us as we lie on our backs, resting until we can do it all over again. 

Romance is a huge, huge umbrella. Historical, contemporary, time travel, paranormal, science fiction and fantasy romance, steampunk, romantic suspense, single title, category, series, stand-alone, inspirational, sweet, sensual, sexy, erotic romance (which is different from erotica,) long dormant subgenera like Traditional Regency and Gothic Romances, new genera like Young Adult and New Adult, and new forms that spring up seemingly at will. Hardcover, paperback, mass market, trade size, electronic, and no signs of stopping there. The only thing all romance fiction has in common is that the love relationship is center stage, and that it will end happily. How it gets there, however? Different every time. 

I get the twirl around in daisies feeling every time I visit the romance section of a brick and mortar bookstore or library, every time I get notice of an ebook release by a favorite or exciting new author, every time I power up my Kindle, and when I open a notebook or file to write a romance of my own. 

The first historical romance novel I ever read was The Kadin, by Bertrice Small, pilfered from my mother’s bedside table when I was eleven, but the warning signs were there long before that. I loved the happily ever afters in classic fairy tales, and devoured Andrew Lang’s fairy tale collections, each with a cover of a different color. Barbie and Ken, and for those of a certain age, Dawn and Gary as well. I was miffed that I was too young to have actually had Barbie’s friends, Midge and Alan, too, but then along came Cara and Brad, and all was well. Disney’s foxy version of Robin Hood and Maid Marian gave me a lifelong love of that couple and the musical, Camelot, saved a special part of my heart for a great love triangle. When I was five or six, my parents got me Jane and Johnny West, what we would  now call twelve inch action figures. Jane and Johnny were cowgirl and cowboy.  I made them act out Romeo and Juliet, but without the suicide. I was wired for romance even then, and it never wore off. 

I combined my love of romance with a love of favorite tv shows while writing for a former newsletter and zine run by E. Catherine Tobler. The story that became my first published novel, My Outcast Heart, set in my childhood hometown (Bedford, New York, which oozes Colonial history) began as a timed exercise in a writing group that included fellow authors M.P. Barker and Melva Michaelian. Since then, I have had stories set in sixteenth century Cornwall, turn of the twentieth century England and Italy, and the end of the English Civil War. I write about romance fiction and television for Heroes and Heartbreakers, and am currently flitting between Georgian and Regency England on two separate projects while finding a home for my postapocalyptic medieval novella. 

If you love romance, too, feel free to come twirl with me.