So what are my goals? I have picked 3 big goals to strive toward, and they are interconnected.

I’ll bet you were thinking you’d see a list of writing related goals, right? I look at my list, and that IS exactly what I see.

2014 was a roller-coaster year for me and because things were so up and down and sometimes upside-down, I fretted over things. I’m not much of a worrier … never have been … but 2014 threw me off balance and I fretted about things I couldn’t control as well as things I could. This is my number one goal to achieve because I don’t like chafing against life. When I’m busy fussing about things, I don’t have my full concentration focused on what I need to — which is the writing. Especially when what I’m fretting about IS the writing. While undergoing chemo this past year, I didn’t create any story from scratch. I worked on edits and rewrites, but didn’t create anything new. I didn’t have it in me. So when it came time to pick up a new work, I had twisted myself into knots because I didn’t know whether I had anything inside to give to the writing process. I had been away from creation for too long. Had I lost my ability? Thankfully I have found that is not the case, but for a while, I managed to spiral to a point where I was locked up.

So how will I fret less? By focusing on improving my health (see goal 3). Regular exercise helps to burn up some of the nervous energy I was using to fret and fuss, and it also helps to stimulate the writing brain and unlocks the answers I need to keep the work flowing. Improving my eating habits will make me feel better overall, and when I’m feeling well, I whine less. And, even though I hate to admit this one, working on better sleep habits will help to reduce stress levels, and will allow me to cope better with both the things I cannot control as well as the ones I can.

Another linchpin to fretting less is engaging more (see goal 2). Throughout the bulk of 2014 I was, necessarily through my circumstances, a hermit. My life scope narrowed to life inside the four walls of my home. My commute was across the landing from the bedroom to my office. Some of my social muscles atrophied during this period of my life because I simply didn’t have the energy. Which was fine for then, but not moving forward. The narrowness of life meant my attention was not occupied with outside issues, but only with my own. Not a mentally healthy way to be. I’d rather focus on what I can do for others than on my own situation … so I need to get back to that. Truthfully, I need to expand my circle. I know quite a few people, and it is easy to get complacent, but it is time to open up and engage with others beyond my own little sphere — stimulate my mind — and through expanding my horizons, I will have less time and energy to focus on self and fretting about what I should/should not have done.

One additional thing that will help me stop fretting — writing itself. When I sit down, open the WIP (Work In Progress), and my fingers fly trying to keep up with how I’m receiving a scene, I’m at my best and happiest. The best way I can describe it is to say it is like breathing … when everything is right, there is no effort, you don’t think about the mechanics of taking a breath, you simply do and refresh your body with oxygen. But when you can’t breathe well because you have pneumonia, getting enough oxygen is a problem, you have to focus on getting enough air, and the process is labored. Then when it clears, you have a new appreciation for the ability to breathe without effort. When everything is going right with the writing, I relax, take a deep breath, and create.

I have already put things in motion to help me achieve my 2015 goals. For example, with my day job working with a lot of computer work, doing some programming type of functions, and writing well into the night, I found I was sitting far too much. My back was paying the price. And when my back is not happy, my ability to exercise is less, which makes everything get caught in a vicious cycle. So, I have already implemented an adjustable desk at the work place so I can stand, which I do most of the day, and sit when I need to. 2015 will see a change to my home office writing setup to include the same type of thing. My plan is to take things one little hurdle at a time and by building on each successive achievement, by the end of 2015 I will have met my larger goals.

So it is time to say good-bye to 2014. In many ways, though there have been significant challenges, 2014 was a good year. I ushered in the year by signing with the fabulous Italia Gandolfo of Gandolfo Helin Literary Management, to manage my career. I finished 6 months worth of chemo and remain in full remission. Italia gave me the opportunity to pair up with Luke Matthews to coauthor a children’s chapter book, Timmy and the Golden Lion Tamarin which sold to True North Publishing for release in 2015. So despite the challenges I faced, 2014 has set the bar high for good things to come. Now, as with every year, I face the new year with anticipation. The seeds sown in 2014 are going to bloom in 2015 and I am ready to do the reaping.

2014 was a wild ride. And I see 2015 lurking around the corner ready to leap into action and push me to my limits. 2015 is the steep mountain I climbed throughout 2014 and the only way forward is to fly. All I have to say is “Bring it, 2015. I got this.”

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Timmy and the Golden Lion Tamarin will be released Spring of 2015 with True North Publishing.

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Jake, in addition to writing Sci-Fi, horror, and dabbling in fantasy, is a gamer and a character artist, so hop on over to his blog and check out his work. To check out his writing, go over to Wattpad and read the stories he posts there. Here are the challenge rules:

1. Provide the link back to the post by the person who nominated you.
2. Write a little about your work-in-progress.
3. Give the first sentences of the first three chapters of your current WIP.
4. Nominate four other writers for the challenge.

So let’s get down to it… a few days ago this post would have been about another WIP, but as I said, marching orders changed and I had another revision round to do on Timmy and the Golden Lion Tamarin. This is the first book in The Guardian Angel Animal Series aimed at children 5-8 years in age and will be published by True North Publishing in Spring of 2015. The major theme for the first book in the series is bullying and how Timmy, with the help of his Golden Lion Tamarin, deals with it. Book 2 in the series will shortly be in progress.

Now for the lines:

Chapter One — Afraid and Alone

     By the time the alarm clock went off, eight-year-old Timmy Hawkins had dressed and gathered his books together. Not because he looked forward to his new school … but because he hated it. After a near-sleepless night, Monday morning arrived, as it always did.

Chapter Two — The Welcoming Committee

     Zeke always rushed to be the first kid off the bus, meeting friends who waited for him. Together they formed a “welcoming committee” to greet their victims as the rest of the kids got off the bus. Zeke and his friends called themselves “The Mighty Minions,” and they made life miserable for nearly every kid in school.

Chapter Three — The Creature in the Backyard

     Another week blurred by with each school day beginning and ending the same way—being bullied by Zeke. And every day his mom asked Timmy whether he made any friends and he had to face her disappointment when he answered no. Not one single kid in school could be friends with him or even say a kind word.

My nominations are as follows and I’m including their Facebook pages, so give them a Like:

• Jess Capelle — Jess Capelle Facebook
• Lisette Brodey — Lisette Brodey Facebook
• Danielle Bannister — Danielle Bannister Facebook
• Jamie DeBree — Jamie DeBree Facebook

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]]> https://bethecatblog.com/2014/09/wip-writers-blog-challenge/feed/ 2 2936 https://bethecatblog.com/2014/08/meet-my-character-timmy-hawkins/ https://bethecatblog.com/2014/08/meet-my-character-timmy-hawkins/#comments Mon, 18 Aug 2014 13:00:49 +0000 https://bethecatblog.com/?p=2801 I was tagged by Cole Alpaugh in the Meet My Character Blog Tour. I met Cole through our mutual friend and his writing partner, Regan Leigh.

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Cole Alpaugh

I was tagged by Cole Alpaugh in the Meet My Character Blog Tour. I met Cole through our mutual friend and his writing partner, Regan Leigh. Regan was helping Cole get the word out about his first book, The Bear In a Muddy Tutu and asked whether I’d consider reading it to review. How could I resist such a title??? And once I read the book, I instantly became a fan of Cole and his writing. If you haven’t heard of Cole and his work, definitely check him out.



Baby Golden Lion Tamarin

At the beginning of this year, Italia Gandolfo contacted me and asked me to take a look at a project she had. To date, all my writing work had been in the Young Adult and Middle Grade age categories, but this was a chapter book, intended for 5-8 year olds. While not my normal area for writing, I’m always willing to take on new things as a writer and stretch myself, and I liked the concept, so then co-authored the chapter book with Luke Matthews. And I’d like for you to meet the main character from the book. So let’s get down to the questions:

1. What is the name of your character? Is he fictional or a historic person?
Timmy Hawkins is an eight-year-old fictional boy. By the way, the cute little critter pictured is Rin, a Golden Lion Tamarin, Timmy’s best friend in the WHOLE world.
2. When and where is the story set?
• The story is set in current day, small town America. Timmy lives in a house where there is an empty barn and a lake not too far from home where he can go fishing.
3. What should we know about him?
• Timmy is a smart eight-year-old with a sweet nature trying to cope with a recent move to a new town. He’s shy and has been having trouble making new friends at his new school.
4. What is the main conflict? What messes up his life?
• For Timmy, it’s not a what that messes up his life, it’s a who. Zeke McGee. Zeke is the third-grade bully who terrorizes Timmy every day. No one else will befriend Timmy because they are afraid of drawing Zeke’s attention. No one wants to be bullied.
5. What is the personal goal of the character?
• Timmy’s goal is to be able to go to school without fear of being bullied. And if he made a friend or two in the process, that’d be cool, too.
6. Is there a working title for this novel, and can we read more about it? When can we expect the book to be published?
• The title of the book is Timmy and the Golden Lion Tamarin and it will be coming out from True North Publishing in spring of 2015. To keep up with release and other information, you can subscribe to my newsletter or check out my Facebook Page.

Keep up with more characters as the Meet My Character blog tour continues on 8/25/14. I have tagged the following authors.

Elizabeth Isaacs Author of The Kailmeyra Chronicles Series elizabethisaacs.com	J. S. d’Raven Author of The Envoy’s Interlude www.jsdraven.com	Monica Enderle Pierce Author of Girl Under Glass and Famine stalkingfiction.com

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