Five Things I Love About My New Desk

October 22, 2024October 22, 2024annabowling 1 Comment

Happy Monday and happy new week. I am coming to you today from the new desk, Storm by my right elbow today because there is a sunbeam on that end of the desk. Guess I don’t need to refer to my daily task list, even if I was planning on covering my daily/weekly planning for this post. Cats, am I right?

The desk itself. I love that I put it together, with help from Housemate, and that it fits perfectly into the office corner of the primary bedroom. It’s more than twice the width of the TV tray type desk I had been using, and it really does feel like a grownup desk at last. Storm is absolutely delighted, because she gets a bed on the desk, a bed next to the desk and there is prime sunbeam real estate. The desk is also in the corner with the baseboard heating, so it will be nide and comfy on fall and winter days/nights.
A place for everything, and everything in its place. The suggested use for the space at the far right of the desk is for a printer, but I already have it on a low table that is only a chair swivel away, so I didn’t move it an inch. Instead, I plopped down a gorgeous black wicker basket to hold my most used supplies, aka a home for my medium pink Delfonics pouch. I am planning a pouch tour video for later. In the meantime, I’ll pop a picture of the current setup down at the bottom.
Drawers. This could have been included in the above, but the drawers are super cool on their own. They are actually made of fabric except for the fronts. The stuff that was cluttering the table that was next to my mini-desk is now stashed in the three drawers (two small, one deep) in the appropriate organizers, so what I reach for the most is in easy reach. I can reach for it without even looking, and still get the correct item. The bottom drawer had the ability to be set up for hanging files, but I opted not to used that, as I have a hanging file system in storage that I can bring home, so don’t need another. Now that drawer is where I put the printer paper, photo paper, sticker paper, etc. In short, paper.
Storm’s tent. Of course I had to mention the benefits to my purr=sonal assistant. For those needing proof how much Storm loves her tent, I have done my first inspection for stash, and I am not disappointed. I have removed:
- two silicone earbud covers (probably her favorite thing to steal/stash)
- two bobby pins
- one empty perfume sample (confiscated immediately! All other fragrances are now securely stored away from curious paws.)
Nothing. Wait, that’s not like it sounds. For the longest time, I have wanted to have a no desk clutter policy, and so far, I am keeping that for this desk. At the end of the day (still when Storm walks across the keyboard and plops herself between me and the laptop) I shut down, and make sure I have left nothing on the desk apart from the usual suspects: Storm’s tent, the laptop, mousepad and mouse, coaster (skull themed, of course) bottle of hand lotion (currently Crabtree and Evelyn Summerhill) and the tray with my pouch and my English Ruler ruler (I seriously do need the version with Charles III.)

And for cat tax, Storm in her tent. I guess it also doubles as a smuggler’s cave since I have now found a stash in it:

For those who haven’t yet heard, I am also blogging at MelvaAndAnna.com, which will be featuring free short reads by both myself and Melva Michaelian. If you don’t want to miss such things and get a front row seat to future Love By The Book installments, subscribe over there. We would love to have you.

Typing With Wet Paws: New Desk Edition

October 19, 2024annabowling Leave a comment

Tails up, Storm Troopers! I’m Storm, you’re awesome, and this is Typing With Wet Paws. The big news here is that I have two new beds, which is possible because Mama Anna has a new desk.

I think the new desk is part of Mama Anna’s birthday, which is later this week, but it came early, so she and Aunt Linda put it together, together. I did not know what was going on at first, because we haven’t had new furniture in a while, but I got scared when Mama Anna started putting lots of stuff on the bed, that does not normally go on the bed. This is because that is how she used to get ready for moving out of a room when we were on our year-long camping trip to celebrate my adoption. I was concerned because i like it here and did not want to leave, but plot twist, we were not leaving. Mama Anna was rearranging stuff so that there would be room for the new desk, and now she has a real office space that is easier to work from than a tv tray in front of a bookcase.

This is the new everyday setup. I applaud Mama Anna for knowing I will need my own space on her desk (the tent) as well as the bigger bed next to the desk, which is on top of a small coffee table so it’s off the floor. We are right over the baseboard heater, which will be nice and warm for fall and winter, and when Koolio comes back in the summer, we will be near him, too. The pink thing under the lamp is her Delfonics utility pouch. Mama Anna will give a tour of that later. I am smart enough to stay out of it.

I have indeed been alllll over this desk and inspected every inch of it. Usually, it is big enough for me and Mama Anna to have our own spaces, but when there are birds or squirrels outside, I need to be by that window. Maybe I should ask her for another bed at that end of the desk. She can’t have any plans for that area, can she?

What are you guys all doing this weekend?

Typing With Wet Paws: Adopt-iversary Edition

October 5, 2024October 5, 2024annabowling Leave a comment

Tails up, Storm Troopers! I’m Storm, you’re awesome, and this is Typing With Wet Paws. This is also pretty much the time of year when we celebrate the day I came to live with these guys. My first human, Mama D, took really super good care of me from when I was a baby, which was super awesome. Now I live with Mama Anna, Papa, and Aunt Linda. Usually, I hang out with Mama Anna, keeping a close eye on her (actually both of them) like this:

I had convinced Mama Anna to work from the soft office in above picture (I smack her left elbow with my paw and then lead her to what I want. In this case, for her to be on the bed.) because she was under the weather this week. That requires close feline supervision. Like super close.

Anyway, back to the adopt-iversary stuff. We took an awesome year long camping trip to celebrate my adoption. We went all over Albany, and even back to the part of Connecticut where Aunt Linda comes from, a few times, and then we finally moved in here. For those wondering, yes I did get on the kitchen counter pretty much right away, but all of the hoomans made a big loud noise to let me know that was Not Allowed, so I have not done it again since. Which is okay. I have windows where I can sit, the big people bed is comfy, and so is Aunt Linda’s, though that one is smaller because there is only one of her. I have multiple chairs to sit in, lots of toys, and both crunchy and gushy food *every day.* It’s pretty great.

One of the things Mama D liked best about Mama Anna was that Mama Anna would let me help with her blog (Hi, Mama D. I am doing great.) and I am excited to get back to that. It’s super fun. Mama Anna has finally agreed with me that the current tv tray style desk she is using is not big enough, because I have recently come to the conclusion that me being on the desk is an important part of the writing and blogging process. Aunt Linda is helping her pick out a good desk. It needs to have room for a box or bed for me. Otherwise, I do things like this:

Overall, things are going pretty good. Mama Anna’s superpowers are getting their sea legs, and now that Aunt Linda is home during the days, I get that much more chance of daytime belly rubs. There are some rough spots, though, like this:

Here is what happened: It was back when Papa was just starting to get better. He asked for a roast chicken in the grocery order because he needed protein to get better. He put it On The Bed, Where I Already Was. He put the dish between me and the chicken. If I look like I am about to throw beans, it is because I was. Can you believe he did not give me any chicken? He did not. I did, however, get salmon gushy food, so it is arguably equal which is why he was not mauled by a tiger in his sleep. He said something about bones and seasonings, but blah blah blah. A chicken in every cat, that’s my philosophy. (Yes, I did jiggle the plate to remind him I wanted some.)

Anyway, that is about it for this week. We are all doing my favorite thing to celebrate my adoption anniversary: hanging out and chilling. What are you guys doing?

Headbonks,

Typing With Wet Paws: Annnnd We’re Back Edition

September 16, 2024annabowling Leave a comment

Tails up, Storm Troopers! I’m Storm, you’re awesome, and this is Typing With Wet Paws.

Do not adjust your screens. Mama Anna is back to blogging and so am I. It has been a long, hot summer, with Papa not feeling that great (he is much better now.) As if that weren’t enough, Aunt Linda is now home during the day, so things are a little different. Well, except for when she helps Papa get to work. Also home from work. Or runs errands. Shockingly, she does not take me, even when she takes Mama Anna. I get to stay home with Koolio our air conditioner. I get to smell everything they bring back from their hunts, and then make it smell like us, which is part of my job as cat.

My biggest job, though, is to provide support for Mama Anna. We have moved into a new kind of routine, now that Mama Anna is getting ready to release a new novella, and I need to stick close. I am also here to supervise what she calls “unfluffing (actually, she says a word I can’t say, but Big Sister Skye used to say ‘fluff’ instead of the word I can’t say, so I will use ‘fluff’ as well.) the depression dungeon.” I am not entirely sure what that means but it does seem to involve boxes and trash bags and moving furniture around. I find this all very interesting.

One of those things she is thinking is trading in her current folding desk for a real desk, which would be normal sized (this one is too small) so that there would be room on it for not only her laptop and its stand, a place for seasonally appropriate beverages, storage, and most importantly of all, a dedicated space for me. A big part of my support services includes napping as close as felinely possible to Mama Anna while she works. Right now, I can do that in the dresser drawer that she opens while she works, but room on the desk itself, with a bed or box, would be great. In case you are wondering, one of the ways I sleep is like this:

Or sometimes, I look at her like this.

As you can imagine, I am very much looking forward to the upgrade, and I can definitely smell Mama Anna’s superpowers coming back. I think they are coming back for Papa, too. He is the only one who plays with string toys right. He is also my catnip dealer and the provider of gushy food. That is why I look at him like this a lot:

That is about it for this post. Papa and Aunt Linda will be bringing laundry home soon (the clean kind) and I will need to focus entirely on making sure it is ours and that it smells right. What’s going on in your neck of the woods?

Headbonks,
Storm

Title Goes Here

August 22, 2024annabowling 2 Comments

Hi. If you’re new here (which would surprise me, because it’s been a while, but stranger things have happened.) I’m Anna. I write stuff. For a while, I haven’t been, and I’m going to talk about that. For my gentle readers, trigger warning:

*anxiety
*depression
*PTSD
*homelessness (past)
*trauma work

After this post, I intend to get back to talking about reading, writing and pens and paper. I am feeling better now, and the first topic that came to mind for my first post back was why I’ve been away. Talk starts after stock kitty picture. (Storm is great; Google Photos is giving me guff.)

So. Yes, I did indeed fall off the face of the earth. At least that’s how it feels. Life is funny that way. Survive homelessness (it was thirteen months, several years ago, now, and we are very much secure in our current situation) and expect to pick up where normal life left off, or alternatively, do the hard trauma work then, but not in this case. When I asked Wonderful Therapist (WT) why it took me three years to fall into isolation mode, she said most likely because that’s when my brain figured out the security was probably going to stick and thus it was safe. Well okay then.

The presenting complaint when I first started seeing WT was that I love reading and I…couldn’t. Kind of important for a writer, especially one who plans on making that their career. I did manage to co-write two contemporary romances with my awesome contemporary co=writer, Melva Michaelian, and we have more in the works, but writing on my own, even getting back to the solo historical romance in progress, that I passionately loved and love, was a big NO. Want to, need to, but brain says NO.

Blogging, much as I loved and love it, was a HECK NO. Not because I didn’t want to, as I very much did and do, but because when I went to start an entry, there wasn’t anything there. Talking about writing felt like the same thing over and over again if I didn’t have a new release to promote. Not going to lie, getting very good rejections for the second two books in the Love by the Book series started with Chasing Prince Charming, was discouraging. Melva and I still love those stories and they will still be available to readers. That’s another topic. I felt like I was treading water in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, and my arms were tired.

At no point did doing bad things to myself come to mind, so that’s good, but there was still…a lot. Even so, the radio silence descended. I love taking pictures. I did not take many pictures (except of Storm, who will also be back to blogging soon.) I love chatting on social media. I did not engage much on social media. I love writing snail mail letters. I did not write snail mail letters. I did and do journal, though, and going forward, I will probably be adding more content on journaling, because that was the first thing to come back on my road back to me.

It’s a very interesting journey. I did participate in the April Camp NaNo, with weekly check in chats with an awesome former RWA chapter sister and came away with a full historical romance outline. Yay. I also outlined what could be a low fantasy romance or at the very least needing a fictional country. Those are both percolating. I am working on my first indie publishing venture. There is a plan. Next week is final final edits. Then Melva gets a pass through. Then I take care of any errata, and then off to the formatter and cover art form and all of that stuff.

I count this as, if not “back,” then close to it. As I’ve said, it’s a journey. There was the summerlong heat wave, or more accurately back-to-back-to-back heatwaves that mistook New York for a spit-roasted chicken. Not the greatest summer for Real Life Romance Hero, but he is also doing better now, and we have affectionately named our new portable air conditioner, “Koolio.” RLRH nixed the idea of giving Koolio googley eyes, though Housemate was on board with it. Kind of a three yes, one no on that sort of thing.

On top of it all, we are staring September in the face, which is the time of year my superpowers come back. That’s how reverse seasonal depression works. I can’t say whether future posts are going to be this rambly or touch this much on mental health but the main reason for making today posting day was to end the radio silence. The first step is often the biggest one, so here we are. Again. At last.

How are things with you?

As always (again) Anna

July, Week One

July 2, 2024annabowling Leave a comment

Oof. It’s been a while. Everybody was sick in June, with a couple of heat waves thrown in for the challenge of things. The days kind of blended, and mental health, well, ahahahha. Anyway, it’s July now, one day after Canada Day, two days before Independence Day, and the only way out of a blogging slump is to blog, so here I am. Warning, I am going to babble.

At times, the dishes, trash, and laundry took on epic proportions, which we are conquering. Present tense. My beloved rose gold laptop developed a crack in the casing around the touchpad, resulting in her filling line after line with an endless stream of commas any time I tried to use her. While I am sure there is a way to rescue her, my research says that would mean welding or epoxy, which right now is a no. So, I now have a new lipstick red laptop, named Miss Scarlett. She can’t run Sims 4, but can run Sims 3, which I don’t mind because A) color wheel and B) open world.

One would think that a month of sick would be great for reading. It was not. It was great for watching YouTube. We will try again on reading this week. I definitely have enough books, both paper and electronic. Right now, I am sitting in front of a gorgeous turquoise retro-style fan, near an open window, in my comfy office chair. The desk is kind of chaotic, because this TV tray thing has reached the end of its usefulness, so I am small desk shopping.

But the writing, Anna. Are you doing any of that? In a word, yes. Last week, Melva and I roughed out the very loose outline for a romantic suspense we plan to pitch. I did indeed hit my Camp NaNo goal in April and outline a historical romance, which is still simmering. Next up is to whip A Heart Most Errant, my first post-apocalyptic medieval romance, into publishable shape. It’s surreal that I wrote the first form of that story ten years ago, but it’s been a wild ten years. Her Last First Kiss is slightly younger than that, but that’s up next. It feels like I’ve been on a loop of that for, well, forever, which is part of the reason I have been hesitant to blog.

So, what changed? My first indicator is to say I don’t know. The second is therapy. My therapist is awesome, and she’s a big reader. One of the first things we did was swap book recommendations. She is also very helpful when I want to bounce a story’s emotional dynamic off her. She’s also great at reminding me how far I’ve come from where I was when I figured therapy might be worth a try. In short, it’s a lot, and yes, it is worth writing about.

Journaling and planning have been an absolute rock for me in this time. I did not think to prepare pictures for this entry, so will share pictures later, but photography and photo editing are also newish interests. I am very much looking forward to pretty leaf season. We are 33% of the way through summer, so that is encouraging.

Anyway, that’s the interesting stuff for the first week of July. What are you all up to?

Typing With Wet Paws: Where We’ve Been and Where We’re At Edition

June 14, 2024annabowling Leave a comment

Tails up, Storm Troopers. I’m Storm, you’re awesome, and this is Typing With Wet Paws. It has been a while since the last entry here, so let me bring you pretty much up to date. First, I am still cute. Here is proof:

Let’s focus on the last couple of weeks. Here are the big points, bullet style:

There was a heat wave.
Aunt Linda got sick (big cold)
Then Mama Anna got sick
Then Papa got sick.
Then Mama Anna’s laptop died.
Then the plug for her earbuds broke off inside her tablet.
Then the fire alarm battery beeped for a long time. (Fixed now.)

Needless to say, there was not a lot of writing during that time, let alone blogging, but Mama Anna is optimistic, not to mention stubborn. She got a new computer pretty much right after the other one died (and she may look into getting the first one fixed if that is possible) and it comes with a year’s subscription to MS Word, which will make it easier for her to share documents with Aunt Melva. That is going to be a big help as they work super hard at getting books out to all of you. Well, the ones who want to read them. They aren’t going to force the rest.

Mama Anna is also researching both portable air conditioners and full room circulation fans (aka big fans) because she is not doing another heat wave like the last one, and guess what, another one is headed our way. It is summer and we live in New York. I am pretty comfy regardless, because I can find all the cool places. The bathroom floor tile is smooth and cool, and the bath mat is soft. Also, under the bed is pretty dark and chill.

Mama Anna is doing pretty good on the taking in story part of things. That means reading books and watching stuff on streaming services. Right now, she is liking the second season of From, and will be giving special attention to two of her favorite vintage historical romance authors, Valerie Sherwood, and Anita Mills, this summer. She is very much feeling the old school adventure and sweep and all that good stuff. Oh, also Yellowjackets. She is up to date on that TV show. Also the Walking Dead Universe. She is ready for more Dead City and Daryl Dixon.

That is about it for right now. Mama Anna gets to reward herself with a cool drink and a new episode for helping me with this blog, and she’s going to need a belly to rub.

What are you up to this summer?

Typing With Wet Paws: Pre-Summer Edition

May 24, 2024annabowling Leave a comment

Tails up, Storm Troopers. I’m Storm, you’re awesome, and this is Typing With Wet Paws. Okay so it’s been a minute. Mama Anna is not thrilled with that, but who can resist this face?

Yeah, didn’t think so. Anyway, hi. Summer is not Mama Anna’s favorite season, but she’ll handle it. If I didn’t mention it already, she did win Camp NaNo, even going over her planned 20k words.

She liked the experience, especially checking in with a writer friend who was not officially camping, but with the second camp session coming up, she is probably going to be focused on something else this time around. That something else is giving her post-apocalyptic medieval novella, “A Heart Most Errant,” one more look and then tossing it out on the indie market. She learns best by doing and that will teach her what she needs to know so she and Aunt Melva can do the same thing with Drama King.

Since summer is the time of year when my hoomans need more help from me than usual, I should probably update on a new trick I have added to my arsenal. There was this one day when Mama Anna had remembered to feed me, but not herself (I don’t understand that. Seriously.) She was napping, which okay, because it coincided with my nap, but it was also seriously mealtime, so I did what I had to do. I popped her on the mouth with one of my paws. Gently, of course, only the beans, not the needles. Once I got her attention, I led her into the kitchen. That’s where the people food lives. She’s a smart one, so she caught my drift and did the right thing.

So am I, so expect more helpful tips from me as we enter this new season. I also have to make sure Mama Anna gets Her Last First Kiss back up and running. High time and all that stuff.

What’s going on in your world?

Random Valentine Blather

February 14, 2024annabowling Leave a comment

Hello, all. Happy Valentine’s Day, or it’s Wednesday, depending on any number of things. Feeling very rusty about blogging at the moment, but there is no time like the present to jump back into the swing of things, so hi.

Above, we have my current everyday carry of planning whatnot. I like being able to pick up one thing (or two) and go, especially since I am still using a backpack and knee brace. Technically, I could fit the contents of the leather cover inside the Delfonics pouch, but I like it this way, with my cover, and a small box of ephemera inside the pouch. There’s something special about pen and paper that have a quicker route to the place where my brain keeps fiction, specifically the kind I create myself.

Valentine’s Day is an interesting one for romance writers. It’s the big romantic love day. People who do not normally engage with the romance genre might be tempted to try one in honor of the holiday (yay, welcome, grab a book and stay a while) and hopefully find something they like. It’s also when other people sometimes detract from the romance genre without engaging with it. Okay I don’t have time for that right now. I love the romance genre and have ever since I stole The Kadin by Bertrice Small from my mother’s nightstand when I was eleven. Right then, I knew I had found what I wanted to read and write for the rest of my life. So far, so good.

Sometimes, there are pauses. This latest one seems big and it seems long and it seems oddly misplaced, as things are pretty stable. That’s…curious. Once again, okay. It is what it is. One foot in front of the other from where I actually am, and at some point, I’ll be back on track. Right now, I am fewer than one hundred pages away from the end of a vintage historical romance I have wanted to read for literally decades. Yes, it is worth the wait. Also, Roger de Mortimer was not a nice man. (Stuff like this is one reason I love medievals.) I am eyeing Camp NaNo in April (it is April, right? Anybody want to make a cabin?)

This is feeling babbly, so I will wrap, after a mention of how Valentine’s Day is always interesting around here, as Real Life Romance Hero is in the restaurant business, which means the big date holiday means he is working. We will celebrate later. I kind of like it that way. Storm, of course, will get her due amount of attention, a wee sniff of the nip, and, fingers (and paws) crossed, her own entry by the end of the week.

How are you doing?

2024 Roadmap, Maybe

January 30, 2024annabowling Leave a comment

2023 was the worst reading year of my adult life. I’m still puzzled about that, as it was worse than the year I was homeless and worse than the years before and after. Ah, trauma, you are a strange one. I have not yet set a Goodreads goal, but I probably will. I don’t know when. Probably when the time feels right. How will I know? I just will, most likely. That’s the working theory.

Today, my contemporary co-writer, Melva Michaelian, sent Drama King off on query to an agent, so time will tell on that one. My job on that book is to get on the indie side of things, as well as pursuing a similar venture for my two out of print historicals. Melva and I want to get the next two Love by the Book books out in 2024, and we are each pursuing solo projects as well. Last year wasn’t as great for publishing as we had hoped, so once again, the bar is low. That’s a good thing.

This all feels like I’ve been over it a thousand times before, which gives me the mental issue of treading water for eternity. That feels pretty accurate for the last year or so. Still figuring things out, and moving forward while I do. Poopy first drafts for the win.

I am a big believer in “story in, story out,” and I need to work on that for this year. My best and easiest writing has been when I am involved in a fandom. I am speaking of commercial fiction here, not fanworks read/created within said fandom. The two feed each other. Part of that comes from community. Talking about things I love fills my well as much as engaging with those things.

Social media, in general, was not a big priority for me in 2023. Not thrilled with that, so it’s a priority to pick up in the year ahead. The platform formerly known as Twitter, meh. Might let that one go. I like Instagram. I have pretty stationery, a cute cat, and live across the street from a park. I can take pictures. There is also blogging. Big thanks to those who have stuck with this blog during the dry season. I’m not sure what I want to talk about right now, so expect a bunch of babble, and we will both trust that it’s going somewhere. If all else fails, cat pics.

Speaking of which, I am coming to capacity on the images in my current WordPress account, so there’s the decision to upgrade or move to the MelvaandAnna site, which has sat fallow for far too long, even though we do have an upgraded account there. Melva and I are planning some fun stuff over there in the months to come, including some giveaways.

It’s funny to look at the year ahead when the year behind was the way that it was. The hypercritical gremlins would say “well, that’s it, you failed. Shut it down and go dust something.” I am not going to listen to them this time. Right now, it’s acting as if, and the very loose, general plan :salute: (if you know, you know) is to become the mask somewhere along the way. I have stories, and they are worth telling.

How’s your year looking?

Typing With Wet Nails

for the love of romance

possibly pointless blabbering