tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10568460229926315302026-06-04T16:52:17.477+01:00Write, blog, office dog, fitness nerd (and mom)Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.comBlogger494125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-37550720937895087202026-02-22T18:26:00.001+00:002026-02-22T18:26:35.382+00:00

Photo credit: Ksenia MakagonovaDear Libraries of Medicine Hat, Ottawa, Westminster, DC, and Montgomery County,You are the libraries of my adult life, the ones I've joined and frequented when my children were babies, then toddlers, now teens.You are always one of the very first errands I run when we move to a new city. Once we have our library cards, we have tickets and keys to new

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-18945983467320749182024-06-06T19:18:00.001+01:002024-06-06T19:22:05.422+01:00

Ok, let's get this out of the way: Yes, it's been a long time since I updated this site.Yes, I have changed jobs/houses/cities/countries again, and yes, my children are now all bigger than me, which isn't fair. It's been a lot (especially the last bit).But, let's talk about something else.Doctor, Doctor!While the kids had checkups and shots several months ago—because otherwise they couldn't

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-78609322147405476382023-04-23T02:08:00.007+01:002023-04-23T02:20:54.507+01:00

"When I was your age, television was called books"If you've ever watched (and loved, because how could you not?*) the 1987 film The Princess Bride, you should probably consider picking up the book.The Princess Bride: S. Morgenstern's Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure by William Goldman is not a novelization (despite the stupid movie-poster cover); written in 1973, 14 years

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-10815610871205283842022-06-14T22:44:00.004+01:002022-06-14T22:56:07.768+01:00

Welp, Ground Control got a second chance at life, launching again on June 1st as a paperback and ebook. I’m excited (of course), but this launch doesn’t have the same feeling of celebration as the first one – 1, because it’s not the book’s birthday, 2, because I had to let go of my original cover, which I truly loved, and 3, because I’m launching without my original team behind me,

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-85734704875731633662021-12-17T18:58:00.002+00:002021-12-17T19:14:31.390+00:00

Do you love chills, thrills, and feeling uneasy? It has been my sincere pleasure to work with the staff at Sley House Publishing on their inaugural anthology of genre fiction, Tales of Sley House 2021. These fifteen stories were chosen from many, many submissions, with priority given to current students of creative writing. It's always fun to work in a group of editors, and I had a

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-4192014138378644992021-07-27T12:30:00.004+01:002021-07-27T12:39:58.031+01:00

Image credit: authorThis will be short. We move in less than a week, packing up five entire lives into bags and boxes, to travel by air and sea, not sure when we will be in our home or with our belongings again. We've also been partying hard. As London opens, all the events that have been cancelled or postponed have hit with a suddenness that has tasked my wardrobe, endurance, and

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-88119933704371522872021-05-10T15:57:00.003+01:002021-05-10T17:47:01.461+01:00

I mean, Cranky's gonna crank, but.Image credit: Screenshot from AmazonI've been reading a wider array of fiction lately, choosing genres that I don't normally gravitate towards. This is possibly because my own book was so unaligned with my preferred genres, its very genre defiance has made me question my own prejudices against specific genres. The Cranky Book Reviewer used genre way too many

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-14310592272011610282021-04-28T22:00:00.003+01:002021-04-29T12:26:37.977+01:00

Local author is exhaustedSo, that's it, then! My book has launched! My book baby has officially gone forth into the world, and let me tell you, it is nothing like having an actual baby, for the following reasons:An actual baby...Not really that much effort to make, tbh. I mean, I was going to eat and sleep and buy new pants over that nine-month period anyway. Yes, I was tired and cranky, but

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-2142300555454509712021-04-09T18:39:00.005+01:002021-04-09T18:47:57.491+01:00

Image credit: Lights Out Ink​So, my career as a writer has officially reached a new milestone. I'm excited (and more than a little terrified) to announce that my debut novel, Ground Control, will be released later this month, from publishing house Lights Out Ink.Ground Control follows Sarah Harper as she tags along behind her husband's career yet again, this time, to the new colony on Mars. More

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-66536551060642358092021-03-31T22:10:00.003+01:002021-03-31T22:10:36.489+01:00

It's a lovely lamp, and came with such a nice note! (Image: author's own)If nobody else finds me funny, well, at least I do.Fun is where you find it. Since I've been doing all of my shopping from home for, oh, a year now, I’ve started choosing “This item is a gift” when I order anything online, no matter what it is, then writing myself (or Chris) a nice little note to go with it.(Please start

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-39435559462271727212021-03-05T14:04:00.000+00:002021-03-05T14:04:04.236+00:00

When you pull them apart, they vibrate back together again. I think it's a metaphor. (Image credit: author's own)Seize the dayLittle things make a difference. You know how you sometimes have something lying around that's missing one of its parts? Like a dress that came with a belt, and now you have one or the other, but not both, and it's still good, and you'd totally wear it if you could find

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-31035417525197038012021-02-20T13:40:00.000+00:002021-02-20T13:40:04.736+00:00

Home Sweet Home (for now). (Image credit: author's own.)What does it mean to you?Home is a concept that most people understand, but it's not the same for any two of us. Whether it's where you hang your hat, where your favourite people are, or the house that you've lived in forever, such a familiar term has a different meaning to everyone.As an expat that will be returning to the motherland this

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-9109020659111070212021-01-20T15:46:00.001+00:002021-01-20T15:49:43.208+00:00

As usual, this blog goes dark when too much is going on. So, here's what's been going on over here at Huff House East: Too much.We've been celebrating quietly Toonamint turned eightTamsin's whole life has been gearing up towards her First Sleepover Party, which, in our house, is allowed when you turn eight. She's been so excited. She watched Ailsa's June birthday get pushed back to

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-37601568618762422452020-12-15T11:23:00.000+00:002020-12-15T11:23:23.244+00:00

Guest Post on Ruth Hendricks' BlogI was so pleased when Ruth invited me to write a guest post on her photography and lifestyle blog. She shares inspiring new content every day: images, stories, recipes... and now I'm proud to be on there too. She asked for a short piece about my experiences as a writer, my process and how I managed to juggle writing and family (especially as the bulk of my

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-68326191982539828782020-11-25T14:37:00.022+00:002020-11-26T09:17:24.928+00:00

American friends, I have some questions for youThat's it. I've had it. After years and years of having to explain and re-explain a certain holiday to my friends from the US, I think we should take back our Thanksgiving. Autumn leaves. Maple leaves, to be specific. (image credit: Greg Shield on Unsplash)(Ahem.)So... what's "American Thanksgiving" about? I mean, what do you

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-81415947011143385602020-11-05T16:27:00.003+00:002020-11-05T16:27:55.661+00:00

Instead of being here on Blogger, I meanImage credit: thomas shellberg on UnsplashI didn't mean to disappear; I never do. Longtime readers know that, at least once a year, I fade away and the blog languishes, with no updates on my family, no lectures about exercise and fitness or posts of the (few) amazing meals I make. Sometimes it's because I have news that I'm not ready to share yet, like

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-25057620319045143852020-10-30T14:24:00.001+00:002020-11-05T14:43:09.944+00:00

I love the creative team at Episodic Reading. Before I even sent them a palette of colours and images that I had in mind for my book cover, they said, "We were thinking this but it's just a draft and we totally welcome any feedback or changes." Image credit: EpisodicReading.comIt was perfect. And then, they said, "Also, we made this trailer for your book, and it's just our first pass,

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-82344259352161698962020-09-08T16:33:00.001+01:002020-09-08T16:33:24.828+01:00

One of these mice is a total jerk. Photo by Nick Fewings on UnsplashAs the elevator door opened, the man was waiting for us. Lin attacked first, a flurry of well-aimed kicks and punches, but the man was faster. And he had a gun.The shot rang out, and she slumped to the ground.  I paused for only a second, then leapt over her to take my turn. He caught my ankle on the second kick, but I

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-38375460180995211952020-09-04T18:05:00.002+01:002020-09-04T18:09:33.270+01:00

Photo by Josh Applegate on UnsplashGet them moving. Now. Lockdown, isolation, social distancing...whatever you practiced between March and September, I'm willing to bet your kids aren't as fit as they were.From a global perspective, “prolonged home stay may lead to increased sedentary behaviours, such as spending excessive amounts of time sitting, reclining, or lying down.” Of course it did.

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-43592602874284717542020-08-15T16:23:00.006+01:002020-08-15T16:29:50.471+01:00

 Let me start by simply saying, "Squeeeeee," in as high-pitched and long-held of a tone you can imagine. Does your brain hurt yet? Now imagine it going on for quite a while longer.It's my first novel, which started as a NaNoWriMo challenge winner. Remember, winning NaNoWriMo just means that I wrote 50,000 words in 30 days, not that they were good words or in the right order. I then

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-58689332949827150362020-07-20T14:46:00.000+01:002020-07-21T10:23:58.904+01:00

Mourning my second office Wait. If I don't drink coffee, does that mean that I'll never be a real writer? Between pandemic fears and homeschooling horrors, only a very few things have remained constant. I had to give up my running group, and the bootcamps I teach, first due to physical distancing regulations, and then due to my-children-are-always-at-home. I had to give up the luxury

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com1United Kingdom55.378051 -3.435973-9.9034376338313734 -144.06097300000002 90 137.18902700000004tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-73976156109383294482020-07-02T18:31:00.002+01:002020-07-02T18:34:40.236+01:00

Disclaimer: this is potentially a friendship-ending post. Read it if you want. Also, pardon my French.Oh, we've definitely been cooped up together for too long. (Image: author's own)It used to be that people in masks were the bad guys. Now, masks seem to be a simple way to visually demonstrate whether you belong to the sheeple or the freeple, the educated or the ignorant. How you describe it and

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-67845336616884265662020-06-01T12:20:00.002+01:002020-06-01T12:23:11.014+01:00

Photo by Johnny McClung on Unsplash A few months ago, when isolation regulations were still feeling new, a friend sent me a funny dance tutorial by Joe Tracini, and said, “Try this.” To keep active through this, let’s dance together. pic.twitter.com/oLy7RgKogE — Joe Tracini (@joetracini) March 24, 2020 I was having a terrible day. I felt sad, hopeless, depressed. After all,

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-10536998474476408042020-05-15T09:49:00.003+01:002020-06-01T12:21:28.438+01:00

The Domestic Goddess hands the Baking Baton over to the Junior DG  Chris liked the size of my cookies. Unlike what seems like 99% of the world (on social media, at least), I have been baking and cooking less during this lockdown. With everyone being at home all the time, and my homeschooling three kids at the dining room table every day, I have less time than usual to bake and make

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1056846022992631530.post-80889291372543817132020-05-04T11:21:00.000+01:002020-05-06T09:07:07.124+01:00

The Domestic Goddess takes a victory lap after creating the perfect tea latte at home Branding matters: Should I call my shop Starhuffs? Huffbucks?  As a freelancer on lockdown, I not only struggle with having my family underfoot All The Time, but also with missing my real office, Starbucks. I guess I'm saving money by making my own tea, but tea is tea, and I miss lattes.

Dammit Karenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13602182575513461215noreply@blogger.com0