The Words! The Words!

Apart from a quick trip (early morning, pre-coffee) to the garden to pick tomatoes, cucumbers, and zucchini (those unstoppable squashes) and some time spent sorting out Josie's re-arrangements and putting them where I think they belong, I've spent the day swimming in words--trying to finish up the last pages of content for the new website.

 Oh, and catching up on some overdue correspondence--emails, alas. I know how nice it is to get a handwritten letter--but my handwriting has deteriorated into illegibility. And I get impatient--the keyboard is so much quicker. These days the only actual letters I send are condolence notes. Sad, but true. 

Anyway, I'm on the home stretch, condensing and revising material from past classes into a very brief, fairly idiosyncratic, writer's guide.  Stuff past students have found useful--basics like setting, characters, dialogue, and plot.

Now I have to proofread. My head is swimming but tomorrow I have Josie and we'll blow bubbles and play with play dough and I'll be the voice for her many different stuffed animals.

Two quick Josie stories from Monday: We were upstairs in my workroom and I was ironing some napkins (don't judge) while she was drawing at a desk that is now called her office. I finished my ironing and turned around in time to see her reaching for a permanent marker. She'd already liberated a goodly number of my pens and pencils, so I said she couldn't have that one. 

She glared at me. "Meema, turn around and do your ironing."

In other news, she tells me she has a baby boy in her belly and his name is Margo. 

A Domain of One's Own

When I'm not spending the day with Josie or working in the garden, I'm busily generating content for the new/updated website. My web guy has created a prototype look for the home page that suits the starkness of the Crows cover as well as providing a fresh new look. So I'me reworking old stuff, writing new stuff, finding photos in my files that complement the new pages, and generally trying to make the new site a nice place to visit.

I've done the HOME page, which, of course, is all about And the Crows Took Their Eyes. I've done the ABOUT VICKI page and a page titled HISTORY--the history behind the story in Crows and where I departed from known facts for flights of fancy. Also some of the books and resources that helped me.

There'll be a page for GOODWEATHER NOVELS with a reflection on the changes in the county I write about, as well as a brief synopsis of each novel. 

Now I'm doing a page called ON WRITING. (Thanks, Sandy P., for the suggestion!) I'll be using some of the content I share in my classes and workshops--a writer's toolkit, the basics of writing a novel, writing dialect, writing historical pieces.  None of this is the last word on anything, rather these are questions I've been asked and the responses I've cobbled together.

I think there'll be an ARCHIVE which will lead to the LORE and the RECIPES  and the FAQ currently on the old website. That may be overkill but then no one has to pursue any of it.

I remember when I was first introduced to Laurie R. King's novels. I was so impressed with her writing and her mind that I went to her website and spent hours, maybe days, reading every scrap of information there. A wide and spacious domain, indeed.

It'll be a while before my own domain is ready for viewing but rest assured, I'll be inviting you in.

New Website in the Making

It was time and past time for a new/updated website. I finally bit the proverbial bullet and have hired a fella to bring the site up to speed. With a new book coming out in October (finally!) and with little prospect of actual in person events to promote And the Crows Took Their Eyes, a good website seems crucial.

So I've spent most of yesterday (it was rainy) creating new content for the new pages and searching my files for pictures to adorn them. 

HOME was simple -- book cover, brief synopsis, advance praise.

Next up was ABOUT VICKI and even typing those two words kinda gives me the willies. (What are the willies, anyway? Nevermind, I probably don't want to know.) The thing is, I was raised with the idea that one doesn't talk too much about oneself or heaven forbid, seem to brag on oneself. But ABOUT THE AUTHOR is a part of every writer's website so I settled in to try to give a brief overview of my life and alleged writing career.

More pages to come-HISTORY of the Massacre is next on my to do list. And eventually maybe DISCUSSION GUIDE. What else do I need?

Ay, law. 

That reminds me. I also finished up a piece for Mystery Readers Journal. But I'll let Miss Birdie tell you about that tomorrow.