Everywhere I turn these days, whether it's a writer friend's blog, or the professional blog of an agent or editor, or a writing magazine, I read of the doom and gloom surrounding publishing. It's depressing. :( So stop it already! I don't like being depressed!

While I understand the fears of many writers, and have read many interesting articles on the topic of publishing, there really isn't much that the writer can do but wait and see how it all plays out. Digital, print on demand, e-books, print books, Kindles and other reading devices, it doesn't matter, the written word will be around for years to come. I feel there is an overreaction like, "The sky is falling, the sky is falling!" Psssh! Just go write another damn story. And make it the best one ever.

None of us need to become dinosaurs. We have to fight dinosaurism. It's a very contagious disease, and believe me, the older we get the easier it is to catch it. We have to continue to learn, to understand, and stay abreast of the changes. We have to be technologically savvy. We need to accept advice, look for alternatives, weigh the pros and cons, and then move forward. It's all about moving forward, and who better to understand that than a writer of fiction?

And we don't need to explain our decisions, or actions, to anyone. Not friends, not family, not writing chapter mates. Just do what feels right. Do what makes you happy. Do what brings you a sense of fulfillment. And if all of that means swimming around in a little pool instead of the big one, do it, just plan on being the best damn swimmer in your pool. Self publish, e-book publish. It's all good.

New York print publishing houses will always be around, but also remember they've always been selective. The risks are greater for them today than in years past. While they've always been disproportionate in how they've distributed advances against royalties, we have to remember the top earning authors who get those big bucks are the ones that keep the house afloat and allow more risk taking for we lesser mortals. The big houses have there own agenda, we just have to make sure we have ours and don't live in perpetual dreamtime. Along with the dinosaurs.

So, the birthday week is now officially over. Whew! It was busy. Between outings, telephone calls from overseas, email cards to chuckle over, gorgeous long-stemmed red roses from NYC, and numerous birthday cards in the mail, I feel very loved.

I had a lovely lunch at Melvyn's in Palm Springs. Friends took me there to celebrate. It's an old restaurant and part of what was once a private hacienda. It's on the side of the Ingleside Inn which is a romantic little hideaway boutique hotel. It's been in PS for a long time and has attracted all of the late greats like Sinatra and Dean Martin, and even though it's a block from the main drag it feels like you're out in the country. Huge big eucalyptus trees provided shade and palms swayed in the breeze. The patio had a ceiling of grape leaves, fake, but gave a nice cooling effect and the crisp white tablecloths were offset by cobalt blue glassware. The food was delightful and the servings way too big. Had one of the best Cobb salads ever and it was prepared tableside in that old "we're really out dining not just eating way".

A writer friend was in town, so the day after we went to Tommy Bahamas Restaurant. It's upstairs above the store on El Paseo. El Paseo is the Rodeo Drive of the desert with all types of specialty boutiques. Anyway, the restaurant overlooks the valley and is patio style dining to capture the breeze. When our food arrived we both gasped. The servings were huge. I'd decided to go with a beer battered fish sandwich (because I'd had enough of salads for a while) and man, that thing hung out on either side of the bun. : ) It looked like a whole darn fish. It was wonderful and I'd decided to forgo dessert when the waitress came by with a huge tray of scrumptious looking confections. She said dessert is on us because it's your birthday. We both looked at the tray and said Key Lime pie, but we'll share one slice. It was one of the best I've had in a long time.

Then the weekend hit and I thought I'd better stick to crackers and water as a month ago I'd joined Curves and Monday was my first weigh and measure. Not really fair, I didn't think. Anyway, Sunday evening another friend had me over to celebrate by cracking a bottle of Merlot, and of course we had to have cheese...and crackers. Sigh.

Monday I limped into the gym with all kinds of excuses at the ready and found instead I'd lost both pounds and inches and they were thrilled. Who'd have known? Geez, I could have had my own slice of pie.

That has such a good sound, doesn't it? : )

It's not first place, not even third, but very honorable. I'm proud to say my manuscript, Saving Sarah, received an HM from the SOLA chapter of RWA's 2009 Dixie Kane Contest. Yay!

This is a story I loved writing, but haven't done much with as far as submissions go. I never knew how to label the story, paranormal or romantic suspense. I had the distinct impression that paranormal was waning, possibly because there was so much paranormal in young adult fiction and everyone was jumping on the band wagon, so I think I had tried to make it romantic suspense. And it really wasn't. I had submitted it to a couple of editors who accept unagented manuscripts, and to one editor I'd met at a conference. It came close, went all the way to a full manuscript request, but then they passed.

Jenny Crusie took a look at the first chapter and gave me some excellent advice. I knew the entire manuscript needed another complete editing pass so set about slowly doing that while I wrote another story, a mystery. I began submitting that, but focusing on a handful of agents only, then started a second mystery. (One of these days I'll get smart and really focus on submitting to dozens of agents, but that's hard for me and another whole blog topic.) And for some reason I sort of forgot about SS. I entered the contest, can't quite recall why, and then forgot that I had. So this was a very pleasant surprise.

Now I'm wondering if maybe I should take SS out and give her another twirl. Let her dance in the daylight for a bit. Maybe even send out query letters to agents. It couldn't hurt. I'll wait and see what comments the judges have made, do a quick revise if necessary, and maybe, just maybe get it out there again. I do love the story, and the setting. I've spent some time in Manhattan, and back when I was married we used to go up to the Catskills with the kids and their grandma, so I focused on both of those settings. And I love my main characters. In fact I adore them.

So yeah, I think Sarah will get a second chance.

I'm back to writing again. Yay! Still taking Lani's Revision class. I've really missed writing. The thing was, I didn't find too much that I wanted to change in my computer read of the manuscript. Now we're into the first Act. The opening scene needed some revamping just to give it a bit more zing. I like how it is now but will get some feedback from my new critique partner.

Well actually, she's an old critique partner, just not old in years. : ) Gina and I belonged to The Four Fabulous Fictionists about four years ago. Then one of the gals moved away, and a new one took her spot, then I moved away, and Gina moved even further away, and three of the gals got published and had deadlines and other more important stuff to do. So we disbanded but were still out there for each other and available for a brainstorming session online, or a cold read of an ms. or to read revision requests from editors. Not the same thing as our fun days of face to face critiques but still helpful.

I'd also thought that I'd lost some of my creative spark, was losing my natural voice, so I decided to go solo. Four years later, I'm ready now to try this critiqueing thing again and I think strong enough in craft to know when I want to make a change and when I don't. Back in the day I wasn't secure enough in that knowledge and found everything so frustrating. Too much information can be as bad as none at all. : )

Last night I got back to my latest story, another desert murder mystery, and the fingers were flying. I haven't looked at this ms. for about three months. I'm lovin' it.

I've become like a fat cat this summer, lying around in my special chair, sun streaming in the window, air conditioning blowing gently through my fur...ah...hair and reading romance books. The only thing missing has been the mistress of the house bringing me my vittles in a cut glass dish, but I can dream.

One morning last week I got out of bed and jumped on the bathroom scale. Oh dear. In exactly two months (I know this because I know what I had to weigh to fit into my clothes for RWA National) I had gained five whole pounds and a few ounces. I was disgusted with myself and fumed through my low calorie breakfast. I did an extra mile walk with the dog, arrived home sopping wet, and after a shower fell back on the bed exhausted. But not too exhausted to be unable to read. Oh no. Reading is my new passion.

After an hour to finish one of Nora Roberts earlier books, Opposites Attract, a story about a female and a male tennis pro, which by the way had great action scenes, I called Curves. It's a great little gym with world wide establishments. A neighbor and friend works at my local place. She'd been trying to get me to join for a year. I was worried about my knee, so resisted. (That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.) : ) Anyway, I love it. Making this move, having the courage to admit I was turning into a sloth, was good for me. I've cut back on calories just a little, nothing dramatic. Already I've lost a pound and a half and it isn't even a full week. I feel better too. Yay, me!

Favorite reads this month:
The Prince of Tides, Pat Conroy. I'd never read it back in the mid eighties when it was first published. Guess I was too busy then with husband, kids, work, etc. Besides that, it wouldn't have appealed to me. It would have scared the beejezuz out of me. This story is so powerful, it deals with truly unforgettable characters, set in the US south, traversing three generations, a family with a horrific past and a desire to overcome their tragic legacy. It is honest to a fault. The prose is beyond eloquent. It made me stop sometimes, hug the book to my chest and cry just from its pure depth and beauty. I'll never, ever forget it but doubt I'd have the strength to read it again. I couldn't read anything for days after I finished this story and it still rattles around in my mind. When I regain my courage I might go out and buy South of Broad, which is Conroy's latest novel after a long hiatus.
To summarize: mind blowing.

The Elegance of the Hedgehog, Muriel Barbery. This was written in French then translated into English by Alison Anderson. I loved this story, once I reached the end. It was then one of those stories where you sit back and say, "Aha. Now I get it." All the pieces fall into place and it becomes extraordinary.

BUT, and I must say this, at first I didn't like it. It took me over 100 pages to get a feel for the two protagonists. One middle aged, the other a pre-teen, both had similar philosophies on life, both seemed cold, aloof, and in some ways patronizing. Both characters wished to hide from the world their true nature and their above average intelligence, because they thought the world would not understand or accept them. Both were extremely well read and knowledgeable. I felt I was taking a class in philosophy from a professor who looked down his nose with disdain at the dumb students. It irritated me. Then I forced myself to stay open, to listen to what the heroine had to say, and ended up being enthralled.

To summarize: exquisite.

Okay, so I haven't been tinkering with the manuscript. Haven't even been writing anything on the one that's two thirds done in rough draft.

This is hard. Every day I get itchy fingers to write, but I'm taking the time off that Lani recommended prior to taking that course in revision. I'm doing a lot of reading, and some movie watching. I did two non-fiction articles just to keep myself occupied and I've been playing a lot on other writer's blogs. But it's not the same.

This is a strange time of year, here in the desert. I suppose it's like winter in some of the northern states. When the weather is bad you stay inside. For us our winter is the prime season, it's so mild and encourages outdoor activity that after moving here from Los Angeles I had to change my writing habits. Instead of writing more seriously from October through April, I now write like a demon in the summer because it's too darn hot to do anything outside after about 10 a.m. Not this year though, it seems I'm in limbo. Playing that waiting game for the course to commence, waiting to hear back from agents and editors after the National conference. Waiting on a couple of contest entries. Waiting. Waiting. Can't wait for these next two weeks to be over so I can start on the manuscript again. Boy, if I ever truly thought I could give up this writing game I now know it's impossible. I once quit. I lasted two weeks if I recall correctly.

Best book read in the past month: Circle of Three, by Patricia Gaffney. This was an achingly beautiful story. I loved it so much and it touched me on so many levels that I had to read it slowly, think about it during the day as I did other things, then curl up in the late afternoon for a couple of hours and read a bit more. I truly savored this book, usually I'm a glutton. : ) It was a story that made me think, gave me glimpses of recognition into my own heart. A woman's story definitely. It spoke of the truths in the relationships of women spanning three generations, a grandmother, mother, and daughter. It also looked at guilt, death, compassion, anger, and love. I'll treasure this one always and know I'll read it again and again.

Best movie seen in the last month: Nanny McPhee. Seriously. : ) It's a kids movie but one I enjoyed so much I saw it a second time. I think it was released in 2006 but I missed it, (probably because I'm not yet a grandmother and don't pay much attention to what is currently around for children). Anyway it starred two of my favorite actors, Emma Thompson and Colin Firth. Plus there was a young boy, Simon, played by Thomas Sangster, a star to watch and that's for sure. I love this kid. He was also in Love Actually, another Brit film that is a personal favorite. Anyway, if you haven't seen it, check it out. Even if you haven't got any kids to watch it with, it is bound to warm your heart.

This is the most perfect time for me to take a class. I'm always envious of anyone returning to school and as this is the season, yeah, I've been turning a pale shade of green. There were no funds allocated for any continuing education for this year and two years ago I quit taking a fall workshop. I was getting itchy when along came Romantic Comedy author, Lani Diane Rich. My savior.

Lani is trying a new type of classroom experience with a live feed and a back up audio. Questions will be asked during the lecture, making it more like the actual classroom, and I think it should work well. She's a good teacher from all accounts and will be able to keep a tight grip on the students and not allow too many digressions. We've been advised to put our manuscripts aside and not work on them until class starts. The old let them simmer for a bit and see what flavors come to the fore. Also, we've been told to stock up on supplies. Oh goody! A trip to Office Depot. All of those sticky notes, and colorful markers, and highlighters, and colored pencils, and...

Lani has set up online Forums and we future students are getting to know each other already. What she plans to do is use us as guinea pigs. : ) For 50% off her six week class, we will help her to iron out any hitches or glitches in the program before she gets it up and running full time in the fall. We start in mid-September and I can't wait.

I've always enjoyed Lani's writing and look forward to every new release. She definitely has the humor gene I never inherited from my parents. I envy her that, too. I like her quickness of thought. She offered two classes, one called discovery, the other, revision. I chose revision but seriously wanted to do both. I've never taken a revision class before and am looking forward to this. I've recently finished a manuscript and although it has an amateur sleuth I'm not sure of its sub genre. I'm pretty sure it's a romance but if it is a romantic adventure, a mystery with romantic elements, or a contemporary mystery with romance, is anybody's guess. I'm hoping that through this class I'll be able to identify the story's strengths and weaknesses, and embellish both to know for sure what it is I've written. That would surely help with querying and marketing, don't you think?

For more on future classes of Lani's, or to check out her books, please visit her new site: www.storywonk.com