Horses for Courses...

Whatever that means!

Anyway just thought I'd post about an online writing course I'm starting tomorrow. It was recommended to me by the lovely Nicola Marsh who couldn't say enough good stuff about the course and presenter Laurie Schnebly.

The course itself is run by WriterUniv and is called 'Plotting via Motivation.'

I recall writers and editors saying that you can let your characters do almost ANYTHING as long as you motivate them well, so I'm really looking forward to learning more about this crucial part of writing. Hoping it'll enhance my current wip and get me started on ideas for the next one.

The best part? I'm doing the course with my delightful friend and CP Becca J Heath!

So... what about you? Have you taken any useful writing courses lately? Planning to?

Kreativ Blog Award and stuff...

The extremely talented and generous Jackie Ashenden and the newly published, hugely lovely Mel Tescho nominated me (eons ago - I know I'm REALLY slack) for a Kreativ Blog Award - what fun!! Apparently I'm supposed to post 7 'supposedly' (who judges this stuff) interesting facts about little old (I turned 30 yesterday so I can say that - lol) moi!

Here goes:

1) I have three boys but if I'd had girls instead they'd have been called Harriet, Matilda and Imogen.

2) I started writing after I broke up with my first true love.

3) I liked that guy for four years before we went out and another sad four afterwards.

4) I didn't meet my dad or my five half brothers and sisters until I was seventeen.

5) My lovely husband can't say no if I really want something - hence kid number three and our Old English Sheepdog, Rodger.

6) I'm actually more of a cat person.

7) I absolutely hate the taste of coffee but I LOVE the aroma.

And one more for good measure!

8) I'm petrified of anything eight-legged. Petrified I tell ya!

Now for the 'other' stuff.

While away enjoying myself at the beach with my 'mostly' delightful family, I checked my email via my phone and heard from the absolutely fabulous editor I've been working with at Mills and Boon. She said she LOVED my revisions and would like to see the rest of the book, so I'm gonna be a busy little chickadee for the next few months. Am aiming to get the first 30k to her by the end of Feb!!!

Oh and now for tagging all the lovely people I'd like to know more about. I'm giving the Kreativ Blog award to Becca J Heath, Janette Radevski, Cathryn Brunet, Caitlin Nicholas, Sami Lee, Anne MacFarlane and Nicki Flockton (these people may or may not have been awarded the award and posted about it already, but I've been away and may have missed it)!!!

Summer Holiday!

That's right... I'm off away for a week or so with my heroes-in-training and my absolutely fabulous mum. The poor hero has to stay at home and work as the supermarket he's manager of burnt down early last year and they're almost (well supposed to be) at opening stage again - so he has lots of work to do.

We're off to the beach, to play mini-golf, to eat ice-cream and pancakes, to go for long strolls and generally just hang out. I'll probably think writing but I won't be doing any :)

Have a great couple of weeks folks... hope I come back to loads of good news ALL around!!!

:)

Rach!

LoveCats and progress!

First things first... I sent my revisions on my partial off to M&B. Am sooooooooo nervous and really have absolutely no idea whether I nailed them or flunked out, but time will tell.

I'm back to sitting on the NTAI couch and I'm trying to work out whether the second time you sub the same (well technically) partial, you get to buy more shoes or if it's a once per manuscript type of thing.

Thoughts?

While I determine what to do next, I've been blog surfing. What better way to spend time I don't really have?

Anyway some friends of mine (along with some friends of theirs) have started a fabulous new blog for readers and writers who LOVE category romance. Head on over to LoveCatsDownunder - there's loads of prizes to be won during their first week on 'air.'

If the prizes aren't enough to get you running there, this pic should do it. It's just one of the fabulous pics they've got of cats and animals!

Heaven Can Wait...

That's right... the last thirty hours I've felt like death. I've had the GASTRO bug (funny cos I gave one of the minor characters gastro in the first incarnation of Mav Millionaire, Musical Mistress). But it appears earth still wants me and I'm slowly coming out of the abyss.

Yes... I'm a TERRIBLE patient. My mum and hubby bare witness to that :)

Good thing is I've been basically bedridden since Monday night, and once I got over the real nasty part but was still too weak to climb out of bed, I opened a book that arrived from Book Depository yesterday morning.

I read about this book on a blog recently - please jump up and down and shout if it were yours as I can't remember which one - and headed straight to Book Depository to order it. It's called 'Heaven Can Wait.... but will he?' by debut UK novelist Cally Taylor.

I headed on over to her website to see if she's a member of a romance writers' association cos although not strictly a romance, this book was soooooo lovely and so much about true love lasting beyond the grave, that Cally just has to be a romantic!!

It's the most delightful tail about an eclectic mix of people and what happens when they come back to earth after their death. I was reading it the whole time thinking 'Why can't I come up with a cool premise like this one?'

Anyway if you like light-hearted, easy but seriously enjoyable quirky reads... 'Heaven Can Wait' is for you!

Meanwhile back at the ranch (yes, I'm quite likely still delirious), I finally finished the rough draft of my revised partial on Sunday. Illness has made me keep my promise to let it rest for a few days and I'm hoping to get back into editing and polishing it tomorrow or Friday... then it's off to Richmond and time to NTAI.

Hope you are all well and writing up a storm!