HELLO SUMMER

Today is the first day of summer and it is a perfect hot sun-shiny day. This morning I took a scrubbing brush and hose to the table on the deck to remove all that winter had thrown at it. Then I pulled up a chair and ate breakfast under the sun. A couple of resident fantails swooped around me and I spotted a large dragonfly. A lovely start to the day.

Along with the coming of summer is the end of the school year. This week my oldest finished school - forever. Second son has spent the week performing in the school show, playing a mighty mean bass guitar. Last night we went as a family and it was loads of fun. And my youngest is winding down her last year of homeschooling. She's off to high school next year and we are both looking forward to the change. There will, hopefully, be a much more prolific writing schedule for me next year.

An almost completed first chapter got an airing on Tuesday night at Mad Scribblers (the awesome critique group I attend). It received favourable reports. So with that boost to my confidence I'm dying to get stuck in and write up a storm!

I still have no title for this new novel, so I'll refer to it as Tegan's Story for the moment. I must admit to thoroughly enjoying writing a modern story. There is very little research needed, which is a nice change, although I do need to interview a friend with the same illness as Tegan's brother. I've never interviewed anyone so it will be another learning curve.

And I'll finish up with a big shout of CONGRATULATIONS!!!! to all those who have completed NaNo. Well done to you all.

I'M STILL HERE!

It's been awhile since my last post. I've had a dose of the 'flu and ended up with a sinus infection that just doesn't seem to want to go away. So while I've been reading blogs, I haven't had the energy to write one.

I have, however, been reading plenty of good books. As you will see on the left I have a separate thingy for what I'm reading on my Kobo eReader. Since I bought my eReader I'm finding I'm always reading two books at once. One on the Kobo and a good old fashioned paper one as well!

I have several books I aim to write reviews for, especially ones I can include in the Historical Fiction Challenge. Hopefully I'll post them in the next week.

I managed to get one story finished and polished for a local competition. It had the theme of crime/mystery and I wrote about a stagecoach journey with an interesting twist. The story I've mentioned before about the Maungatua sticking-up fell foul of my recent 'flu. It is almost finished and will get an airing sometime soon.

Tonight hubby and I get the treat of all three children being away from late afternoon until tomorrow morning!! They are involved in a Pentecost celebration at church. We're thinking of having some exotic tasty take aways for tea and watching a DVD.  I'm looking forward to it.

Here's a photo I found on the net, just because I like to look at pretty things. Enjoy!

HOLIDAYS ARE ALMOST HERE

The school term finishes on Friday and we get two lovely weeks of holidays. Because of New Zealand hosting the Rugby World Cup the whole school year has been tampered with, and the first three terms are longer. So our house is a tired house! With hubby being a teacher and me home schooling, we all are involved in school.

I'm looking forward to sleeping in, going for walks and drives, and watching movies. And in the second week, with my youngest away at camp, I'm hoping to get lots of writing done. I have an idea for a short story for our national Katherine Mansfield competition run by the BNZ.  Then the next Dunedin Writer's Workshop competition, due in June, is for Crime or Mystery stories. I have a few ideas with an historical twist.

Then of course there is my novel. I'm toying with a title at the moment. How about, 'A Convenient Arrangement'? Sometimes I like it, and sometimes I don't. Any opinions would be greatly appreciated.

Soon I'm going to be tackling the characters of five young folk - siblings - who form the background to the main story and also I need to write out the back story in great depth. You see there is a mystery and I want to slowly divulge it, but of course I need to know it inside out and upside down first.

The same thing happened when I was immersed in the beginning stages of 'Blackbird'. Once I'd got the first few chapters down and had a basic idea of who and what the story was about, I spent hours writing character studies, plot points, back story, etc. until the place and the people became bricks and mortar  and flesh and blood.

And when that happens with my new novel, the writing will flow, motivation will be at an all time high, and in a couple of months or so I should have the first draft - complete!

A Dunedin beach. I hope I get to see lots of views like this over the holidays.

  

THE SCHOOL YEAR HAS BEGUN

Most people talk about the new year in January. Very sensible idea! But with three school aged children and a hubby who teaches, January is holiday time. The first week of February is when it all starts.

We've just had our first full week and I feel like the year has got underway. My 18 year old son has begun his last year at school. He trotted off with his new pocket watch and feeling deprived that we still haven't found him a waistcoat. In the best steam punk tradition, he wants to be the epitome of the well dressed Victorian gent - with the addition of black jeans and high cut sneakers, of course.

Fourteen year old son has returned for his second year at high school and in the course of the the first week has decided to take up futsal and can't quite get his head around the fact that having guitar, bass guitar, drums and piano lessons are a little out of our budget! However, he will be continuing with guitar.


Twelve year old daughter is home schooled, and this is her last year. Next year she's off to high school. We've had a good week. We've started a new curriculum with a theme on the Middle Ages and she's going to the local intermediate once a week for technology - this term she's doing metal work.

Hubby started off the term with a terrible bout of flu and two days in bed, but is fit as a fiddle now. He teaches at a special needs school and although it's full on, he really loves the work.

And me? I'm thriving on the return to routine. It always helps me to achieve more. This year I plan to finish the first draft of my new novel - a New Zealand historical - and get through a big chunk of my TBR pile.