Girls and God

The David Cook Story

2008-12-08T13:56:00.004-05:00

So everyone is asking - how did this happen? So here is the simple story. We happened to be at Disney World on Friday when they were filming some segments of the Christmas Day Parade. David Cook performed "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" and we watched him sing it three times but really only saw the back of his head because of the way the crowds were arranged. (BTW - I have whole different viewpoint of that parade now that I've seen how staged it is.) Anyhow, after David Cook left, we waited around for the parade part but they filmed the opposite side of the street we were on and the kids just got bored waiting around.

So we went in search of popcorn for my eight year old and then went to go join my hubby and our little one in line to meet Tinkerbell, but on the way there we saw that they were filming an interview in the grass near the castle. We stopped to watch and a small crowd gathered as well. The girls waved and waved and he looked over and waved back, while laughing good-naturedly about how long they had been waving at him. They took a break from filming and when he did, David walked over to some of the crowd, but not where we were. I knew if I left my spot, we'd never make it over to him anyway so we just stayed and watched. Someone on the crew, his manager? someone from Disney?, I'm not sure, looked over at us and I shrugged saying that we'd never make it over there. He said, "Hold on a minute. I'll get him for you." So he goes over and asks David to come say hi to go my girls. And then he just walks over and chats with both of them and offers to get a picture. I only had my iPhone with me but it came out pretty good:-) I got the whole thing on film as well - maybe I'll upload it as soon as I figure out how.

But it was SO fun for them. They've never met a celebrity and since they watched every episode of American Idol and voted for both David's throughout the competition - they were over the moon excited. They still get swoony when they talk about it. Of course, I totally forgot to ask if I could get a picture with him, too!

So a big shout out to David Cook for being so kind and gracious and for absolutely making their day.

Twittering Away

2008-12-07T20:25:00.002-05:00

We just returned from Disney World and Im still trying to get unpacked. Some time away, even if it was walking who knows how many miles around Disney World was needed. There's a Broadway song called, "Stop the World I want to get off." I don't want the world to stop, but a pause button might be nice once in a while. The trip felt a bit like a pause, a break from the reality of the routine of life. It was nice.

All that to say that I'll try to post here more often, and you can always find out what I'm up to at Twitter - SarahSumpolec is my handle there. I find Twitter fun because it's so short - and I can do it from my phone! That tells you how often I'm out and about:-)

So assuming anyone is still reading this thing from time to time, I'm back:-)

A wow story:-)

2008-07-16T10:09:00.002-05:00

I had this forwarded to me, and really - it's amazing.

A Lion's Tale.

A Christian Movie Studio?

2008-06-11T10:51:00.002-05:00

Watch this video - and to find out more info, go to In Jesus' Name Productions:

I'll post some more about it over the next week so stay tuned for more!

Fear Factor

2008-04-24T09:23:00.004-05:00

This is The Drop Tower at Kings Dominion. The picture really doesn't do it justice. According to their website it's

The largest drop ride in North America, a 305-foot tower of thrills that promises daring riders a 272-foot descent at 72 miles-per-hour! This adrenaline-pumping adventure simulates the sensation of skydiving.

If that's true, I won't be going skydiving. Ever. I thought for sure I'd like it since the Hollywood Tower of Terror - also a drop-motion ride, was one of my favorites. But that one dropped and then went back up, dropped again, then went back up. It was fun. I went on The Drop Tower, or as I like to call it The Tower of Death, with my daring seven year old daughter, who BTW, was well within the height requirements for the ride.

My first clue should have been the women who panicked and asked to get out just as my daughter and I were heading towards our seats. The Ride Guy had to unlock her to let her out and they put me in next to the guy she had just abandoned on the ride.

I snapped the thing closed and my maternal instincts kicked in as I checked and re-checked my daughter's straps to be sure she was in securely. All the while, the guy next to me keeps up this constant chatter about how this is "the scariest ride I've ever been on" and "it makes me want to die". No wonder the chick with him jumped out! And just about the point my panic reached the "I have to get out of here" stage, the ride started and I was stuck.

I grabbed my daughter's hand thinking that if I was panicking how was she doing? Meanwhile, the guy next to me will not shut up. He's giving me a blow-by-blow about how many seconds it takes to get to the top and how long we'll linger there looking out over Kings Dominion before we drop to our deaths.

Then we dropped. And I mean totally and completely dropped. And it went on forever. I had never been more scared on a ride in my life. And not the fun kind of scared. The terrified kind of scared. But I had my seven year old to think about so all feelings of panic and fear were stuffed inside so that I didn't react. (besides the scream on the way down!) Not because I didn't want to admit it, but because I didn't want to scare her. But once we reached the ground safely (Thank you God!), my daughter hops out of the seat smiling, with only a little bit of nervous laughter. "Did you like it?" I asked her.

"Yeah! My legs are all shaky," she said.

I felt shaky all over, and a wave of nausea coursed through me just to add to the thrill. I spent the next hour telling my husband how scary it was and declaring that I'd never go on the ride again. My seven year old was surprised I was that scared, since she didn't think it was too bad. I even skipped out on the Rebel Yell because I was still feeling woozy from the whole thing.

I'm not sure that I have some profound spiritual point. Got any ideas? I mean, I'm okay. But I won't ever go on it again. Give me a nice loop-de-loop roller coaster and I'll be happy. But I am curious - what about you? Ever been on a scary ride? Ever done something that was really scary and then it turned out okay?

Tell me about it, maybe it will make me feel better:-)

Cross-posted from Girls, God & the Good Life

Breaking News: Camy Tang likes being a girl!

2008-03-13T08:15:00.004-05:00

Join me in welcoming Camy Tang to my blog today!

It’s hard being a girl

Sometimes, it’s hard being a girl, don’t you think? Mom telling you stuff like, “Ladies don’t sprawl on a chair,” or “Don’t hunch, straighten your shoulders.”

And pantyhose! Don’t get me started on that. I think it was invented by a sausage maker or something.

But most of the time, I like being a girl. I’m very different from my husband, Captain Caffeine, in many different ways. Most of the time, it’s funny (but then again, I’m kind of warped and I think a lot of weird things are funny).

For example, illogic does not faze me.

“You said you were craving salt, so you eat chocolate?”

I shrug. “So?”

Also, our choice of TV programs is very different. He records mixed martial arts on our Tivo, I record chick flicks. He watches stupid man movies, I think they destroy brain cells. He has stopped asking me if I’m watching Pride and Prejudice AGAIN, and I have stopped asking him why he’s watching a rerun of SportsCenter that he saw an hour ago.

But most vividly, my relationship with God is different from the Captain’s relationship with God.

I love my father-daughter relationship with Him, although it has many other facets, too—Sovereign Lord and His people, shepherd and His sheep, Lord Almighty and His soldier.

But I know that Captain Caffeine’s relationship with God is completely different from mine. His view of God as his father, his Lord, his role model for the head of the household and the family’s spiritual leader. Those are aspects of God I can’t quite understand.

And I wouldn’t want to. Our different relationships with God help make us more compatible. They complete our family unit, our spiritual oneness.

Of course, sometimes I wish I understood him better, especially when I ask him to pray about getting a new car and he says God told him NO, we don’t need a cute red Mini Cooper.

But most of the time, the differences between us make me glad I’m a girl, with my unique relationship with God, our unique styles of communication and the unique things He points out to me in His word. I am my father’s girl, and the Captain is his father’s boy, and I’m happy with it.

Although I really do think we need a Mini Cooper.

Some VI Info about Miss Camy

Camy Tang is the loud Asian chick who writes loud Asian chick lit. She used to be a biologist, but now she is a staff worker for her church youth group and leads a worship team for Sunday service. She also runs the Story Sensei fiction critique service. On her blog, she gives away Christian novels every Monday and Thursday, and she ponders frivolous things like dumb dogs (namely, hers), coffee-geek husbands (no resemblance to her own...), the writing journey, Asiana, and anything else that comes to mind. Visit her website at http://www.camytang.com/ for a huge website contest going on right now, giving away five boxes of books and 25 copies of her latest release, ONLY UNI.

From Sarah:

Seriously folks, Camy is one fun chick - and her books are a lot like her actually! I met Camy personally at Mount Hermon a few years ago and she happened to hear the story of "Sarah's worst and most public critique EVER." And not only that - she seems to still like me (and fortunately didn't believe the "worst critique EVER"). What a relief! Camy also happens to be a great person to stand next to during a party because she happens to be very funny. Read her books people! You won't regret it.

And just to give you an urge, I'll give a way a copy of the brand spanking new "Only Uni" to a random commenter. Want to win? So easy! Just leave a comment with your e-mail address for your chance to win. Come on, I've already got the comment # in mind so what are you waiting for:-)

And BTW - I totally agree about those pantyhose - and about enjoying that father-daughter relationship with God.

New Computer - Yeah! Moving Files - Boo!

2008-02-28T23:06:00.002-05:00

I have now spent most of the week trying to get my new computer and my old computer to cooperate with each other. I'm afraid it's not going very well. Well, that's an understatement. I think the relationship is doomed. They are not even on speaking terms and I'm afraid I'm going to have to quarantine them from each other, lest the new computer learn any bad behaviors from the old computer.

My new computer is a Mac, and I must admit, I have sat at my desk and just looked at the prettiness of it. It's my third Mac product. First came my Baby MacBook - which is still just as cute as ever. Then came the iPhone. Ahhh, what can I say except - I heart my iPhone. It's fabulous map feature has gotten me where I need to go more times than I can count. (I get lost regularly. I can't help it.) Now, I finally have a sleek new (well, honestly it's a refurb - I had to cut costs somewhere) iMac.

But even though I love my new Mac, I still haven't quite gotten the hang of some things. It's a bit more of a learning curve now that this is supposed to be my primary computer. Little things (like how in the heck do I get it to autofill my e-mail address) to major things (like getting Time Machine to work) are still giving me some problems.

I know it will be worth it.

Bad Blogger Redux

2008-02-07T15:42:00.000-05:00

Yes, I've been MIA again. Really, I haven't gone anywhere but somehow my life still seems to slip by too fast. It's these kids I tell ya'! Not really, of course. I love staying busy with them and helping out with their activities watching them experience new things. The truth is, I've been kind of bummed about the whole publishing experience lately and it hasn't made me feel very...inspired.

Sometimes God just says no.

With no explanation.

And frankly, it hasn't been very easy to hear this time around.

Still, even with everything that hasn't been happening in my writing career, I did manage to finish a novel in January. A novel that I really, really love. A novel that, if I'm fair, might not have gotten written if I hadn't gotten so many "No, thank you's" last year. And I suppose that's a positive thing. At least that's the way I'm gonna try to look at.

But right now I'm in that spot of asking, "Okay, Lord, then what next?" and I simply don't have an answer at the moment. So after talking with my hubby, I'm going to take a small break. This month is going to be pretty intense since I am working with the Christian Youth Theater on their production of Wizard of Oz and as Assistant Director - I will be there nearly every waking hour. It will be a fabulous show and maybe by the time it's over, I'll know which direction God wants me to head next.

And maybe I'll even have a bit more time for blogging:-)

Spring in the Winter

2008-01-08T10:05:00.000-05:00

The weather is a bit confusing around here this year. In December, it was raining one morning and then it all very quickly turned to ice. Me - well, I cracked my head on our concrete stairs when I walked outside. I thought it was just rain - I had no idea it was ice! We've even had a couple days of flurries. And today, January 8th mind you, it is seventy degrees outside. I'm going to pack a lunch and take my preschooler to the park just to get her out in this beautiful weather. (I'm trying not to think about how far behind I am on my word count!)

In certain parts of the country, seventy degrees in January is pretty normal. But not around here. I'm in Virginia, where January weather is cold and usually icy, sometimes snowy. It's just bizarre.

But as I've been heading into this new year, I have been asking God for guidance and wisdom. And just like the weather has surprised me - warmth in the winter - God can surprise us as well. It seems to me that when we fight and struggle to get out of a pit, we can end up more stuck, when all God wants to do is reach down and pull us out. I feel like he's reached down, and offered me grace. He's given me peace, where I have felt nothing but anxiety. I shouldn't be surprised by God but I still am. I still get amazed at how much he loves us, and to what lengths he will go to to draw us ever closer to his heart.

So on this amazing day, be amazed by God. He's totally worth it.

A Warm & Fuzzy Christmas

2007-12-18T15:37:00.001-05:00

Now that my shopping is done and my house is decorated, it finally feels like Christmas. Of course, I still have a lot of wrapping to do. I try to save money by buying gifts that are fun and unique but aren't too pricey. But that means twenty bucks worth of gifts could mean six presents to wrap. So I will, at some point this week, need to tackle the actual wrapping.

Wrapping can be fun though. I love to throw on Anne of Green Gables and be transported to Prince Edward Island as I wrap each gift. Kind of cool.

But this year is the first year that I have felt truly excited about Christmas. You see, my dad died a little over three years ago. He was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer on October 27, 2004 and died on Nov 14 - just a few short weeks later. He was 59 years old. I spent that first Christmas still in shock I think. The whole thing had happened so fast, so unexpected. The holidays are hard for everyone that loses a loved one, but let me share a picture of my dad with you and perhaps you'll see why Christmas was particularly hard at first.

Yep, that's my dad. He spent the last ten years of his life dressing up as Santa Claus to raise money for the working poor in his community and then delivering the presents on Christmas Eve. The picture to the left came from one of his deliveries. So for four months of every year, this is what my dad looked like. Those first Christmas's, every Santa was a painful reminder. But this year I find myself wanting to fill the house with Santa Claus's because I want to remember him. I still miss him terribly , and it still hurts, but instead of trying to get through the holidays, I can remember him with joy.

So here's to a Merry Christmas!

Behind the Nano Ball

2007-11-12T17:31:00.000-05:00

I'm once again participating in National Novel Writing Month. It's that crazy month where thousands of writers decide to write like maniacs allowing their laundry to pile up and live on pre-packaged meals in order to get a novel written in one month.

It's madness I tell you. And I totally love it.

Of course, my well-laid plans went arwy almost immediately as my eldest daughter has been finishing up the last four shows of their production of the musical Annie with the Christian Youth Theater. That means I spent the bulk of my last five days in a high school hallway with about eighty kids. Not exactly conducive to mad writing.

So I got back on the Nano wagon this morning armed with Diet Coke and chocolate. Today's word count completed along with a bit extra to catch up. Hopefully, if I meet my word count AND write extra for a week, perhaps I can still catch up.

The weird thing is (though it shouldn't be weird since it always happens this way), is that this story is already taking me in unexpected directions and there have been a few surprising revelations from characters that I once thought I had control of.

Sigh.

The strange and wonderful life of a writer.

Now, off to make dinner for the kids because even though it's National Novel Writing Month, the kids still need to eat...

The Golden Compass Debate

2007-11-01T13:19:00.000-05:00

So I'm getting all these forwarded e-mails about The Golden Compass. Have you seen them? I get weary when Christians only step up and say something when they're mad about something.

So here's the basics of what I'm getting:

You may already know about the kids' movie coming out in December starring Nicole Kidman. It's called The Golden Compass, and while it will be a watered down version, it is based on a series of children's books about killing God. (It is the anti-Narnia.) From what I understand, the hope is to get a lot of kids to see the movie - which won't seem too bad - and then get the parents to buy the books for their kids for Christmas. I hope it totally bombs because we were all paying attention!

The movie has been described as "atheism for kids" and is based on the first book of a trilogy entitled "His Dark Materials" that was written by Phillip Pullman. Pullman is a militant atheist and secular humanist who despises C. S. Lewis and the "Chronicles of Narnia". His motivation for writing this trilogy was specifically to counteract Lewis' symbolisms of Christ that are portrayed in the Narnia series.

Clearly, Pullman's main objective is to bash Christianity and promote atheism. Pullman left little doubt about his intentions when he said in a 2003 interview that "my books are about killing God." He has even stated that he wants to "kill God in the minds of children". It has been said of Pullman that he is! "the writer the atheists would be praying for, if atheists prayed."

While "The Golden Compass" movie itself may seem mild and innocent, the books are a much different story. In the trilogy, a young streetwise girl becomes enmeshed in an epic struggle to ultimately defeat the oppressive forces of a senile God. Another character, an ex-nun, describes Christianity as "a very powerful and convincing mistake."

In the final book, characters representing Adam and Eve eventually kill God, who at times is called YAHWEH. Each book in the trilogy gets progressively worse regarding Pullman's hatred of Jesus Christ.

"The Golden Compass" is set to premier on December 7, during the Christmas season, and will probably be heavily advertised. Promoters hope that unsuspecting parents will take their children to see the movie, that they will enjoy the movie, and that the children will want the books for Christmas.

Please consider a boycott of the movie and the books. Also, pass this information along to everyone you know. This will help to educate parents, so that they will know the agenda of the movie.

I have two main thoughts about this whole thing:

1 - boycotts can actually work against you sometimes. Look at what the brouhaha over The DaVinci Code did for ticket sales of that movie - basically ensuring Hollywood will make more movies like that.

2 - It's not good enough to boycott movies that upset you. What Christians must do is go and see the good movies. Every time you buy a movie ticket you are casting a vote in Hollywood*. Every single time. It still drives me nuts what happened with Evan Almighty because it was a great movie, that was respectful of our faith, and yet it bombed. I can just see every executive in Hollywood shrugging their shoulders and scratching their heads saying, "Well, we tried. Let's try this instead." And that's exactly how we end up with movies like The Golden Compass. Hollywood could care less whether the movie has Christian or atheistic underpinnings. They really just care that it puts people in the theater seats. So if you aren't going to plunk down your money and cast your vote when the movies are good, then getting in a big stink over what you don't like isn't really going to do much good. It's kind of like complaining about election results when you don't go vote yourself. Or walking into Target and telling them, "I never shop here but I wanted you to know I was offended when you advertised underwear in your flier." Well, if you aren't a consumer then your opinion isn't really going to make much difference to anyone.

I think changing what comes out of Hollywood is a pretty simple thing to do. Trouble is, Christians won't do it. You see, all you have to do is spend plenty of money to go see the movies Hollywood does right and stay home when they put out the bad stuff. If enough people did that it would make a difference. Not right away, but within a few years.

I won't be holding my breath.

In the meantime, be a wise consumer, get all the information, and if you're going to stay away from the Golden Compass then please take the time to write a kind and gracious letter about why you're not going to see it and send it to:

New Line Cinema Production
888 7th Ave. 19th Floor
New York, NY 10106

You can e-mail them on the site - but trust me, it's too easy to delete. Write a real letter.

That's my opinion anyway...

* But you must go opening weekend. Those are the only box office numbers that really matter.

For Cat Lovers

2007-10-22T15:02:00.000-05:00

My Sister Got Married

2007-10-04T15:28:00.000-05:00

And the statement still surprises me. I mean, this is the girl who swore she would never get married. Ever.

It was a very nice wedding - well, except for the very stressful fact that the person that was hired to "officiate" the wedding never showed up. And that's really bad. It turned out though, that the mother of the little ringbearer was an ordained minister. Everyone was thrilled. Yee-ha. The wedding was saved.

I, uh, was less than thrilled. An ordained minister of what? I asked. No one seemd to care, other than my husband and I. Turns out that she's an ordained minister of a Universalist Unitarian Church which, if you read their stuff, has everything to do with "believe whatever you want to believe and we'll accept you" unless of course you happen to believe in Jesus Christ and call yourself a Christian because being a Christian is, of course, completely intolerant. I suppose it's because of that little detail that Christians believe - you know, the part about there only being one way to be saved, through Jesus Christ. Yeah, people don't tend to like that.

So while everyone is scurrying around getting ready for the wedding we are already late for, well, I was a little hung up on exactly what kind of wedding this was going to be. My sister is not a Christian, so I guess it shouldn't have bothered me so much. It was her wedding, and it was her choice, and since the wedding wasn't going to include God anyway, what difference did it really make?

But it does make a difference. It just didn't feel real to me. To do things completely apart and devoid of God, well, why bother at all? It ended up feeling a little strange to be there in that world. A world where they had fun by getting plastered and chain-smoking out on the patio. It was a frenzied kind of fun, without purpose, the kind that would fizzle out quickly because there is no substance to the temporary joy.

Yeah, I'm overthinking the whole thing and I should probably just let it go. I had fun dancing and taking pictures of my kids dancing with my husband, but underneath it all, it all felt so....sad, really. Sad because I see so clearly how far my sister is from seeing God for who he really is. Her world has been built around something else entirely. And at the end of it all, I know how brittle that foundation really is.

My husband and I (mugging for the camera above) celebrated our twelfth anniversary this year. And we both know that it is God's work in and through us that makes all the difference. I wonder where my sister and her new husband will turn when things are hard. When things don't go as planned. When life is unfair. What will their marriage look like in a year, in five? What will help it to last?

The sad thing is, I know exactly what she needs, and it is the very thing she doesn't want anything to do with. I bet you know someone like that, too. Most of us do. So in the end, all we can do is pray...and love. Then pray some more...

Only Me

2007-09-25T17:17:00.000-05:00

I had a memorable time at the ACFW conference (I'll spend the next few days filling ya'll in!)

But the picture at the right is how I went home on Sunday afternoon. That's Trish Perry tying my shoe! I am apparently incapable of wearing heels - I knew those things would kill me one day. Well, I'm not dead, but my knees are in pretty rough shape.

I went out to dinner the last night of the conference - my last night of freedom, and I suppose, in trying to be ultra cool, the nightclub had an uneven stone floor that looked very "natural". Which I naturally fell down on in a spectacularly embarrassing way. I blame the heels.

Fortunately for me, not one of the fifteen some people I was with actually saw the horrible, awkward moment (unless they're too horrified to admit they saw it.)

But let me just assure you it was bad. Really, really bad. It's just not good when your limbs go in all different directions and you land full-force on your knees, with nothing to break your fall. On a stone floor.

Everyone was having a grand old time, dancing, listening to some great music - blissfully (and thankfully!) unaware of my awkward moment:-)

I pretended to be fine and only admitted the fiasco to a couple of dear people and we went back to the hotel.

I had a terrible night sleep because every time I shifted in bed, I woke up from the shooting pain in my legs. And in the morning, I couldn't bend my left leg at all. My roommate, Ginny Smith promptly got on the phone and called Ronda Wells, who besides being a writer also happens to be a physician. She came up and took a look at my knees and told me I should go to the emergency room to get x-rays, but that I could wait until I got home. I iced them, popped ibuprofen like candy and made it through the morning. The airport was another situation. Suzanne Krein and Trish Perry were both flying home on the same airplane so when we got to the airport they plopped me into a wheelchair so I didn't have to hobble around. But because of that stupid wheelchair, I suppose the security people thought I was a national threat and put me through the ultra-search - unpleasant enough when your legs aren't killing you, but even less pleasant when you can barely stand.

I made it home and my dear hubby took me straight to the ER where they informed me there were no fractures, just bone bruises and to only move them as I can tolerate. They are definitely improving already. Though while I was in the ER they learned I was out of date on my tetnus shot, which they gave me, making my arm hurt worse than even my knees. Seriously. Aren't they supposed to minimize pain?

So that's the update on the "knee thing" for those of you who saw me hobbling around Sunday morning. What a way to end the conference, huh?

Crazy Sweet, Camy Tang

2007-09-25T09:37:00.000-05:00

I met Camy at Mount Hermon right after she had been snapped up for a fabulous three-book deal with Zondervan. And here we are, celebrating the first book in her series. So I thought I'd join in and host an interview with her so you can get to know her too. Enjoy!

Sarah: Okay Camy, you write about being single but you're married, so how'd you meet YOUR hubby?

Camy: At the most unlikely place to meet guys--at church! A mutual friend brought him to our church for Easter service. Unfortunately, I'd been out sailing with friends the day before and I was as radioactive red with sunburn. So when Kinmun hollered at me, "Camy, I want you to meet someone!" I was like, "Oh God, please no, please don't tell me it's a guy. At least make him be ugly and unfriendly."

Well, he wasn't ugly or unfriendly, but I was heartily embarrassed and promised dire retribution to Kinmun for doing this to me. (I got my revenge by putting him in the second book in my series, Only Uni.)

Captain Caffeine did what most engineers in Silicon Valley do when they're interested in a girl--he emailed me. We finally had our first date at his volleyball playoffs, in front of all his eagerly interested friends.

Sarah: You seem to enjoy putting your characters in awkward situations. What would be your most "awkward situation" moment as a writer?

Camy: Oh, most definitely the first time I met my senior editor, Sue Brower.
She had attended an ACFW conference in the place of Karen Ball, and Sue was senior marketing director at the time, but she was taking appointments and listening to pitches.
I arrived and perched uncomfortably on my chair in my slippery Asian-design acetate pants, feeling as huge as a whale and about to fall onto the floor. I started my pitch, which was only five sentences long.

On sentence three, I realized I'd skipped the actual sentence three and gone on to sentence four. A more prepared writer would have said, "Before this happened, blah blah blah happened."
Instead, I shrieked, "OH MY GOSH I SCREWED UP MY PITCH!" Sue, mercifully, just laughed and asked me a question about my storyline. I never did finish my pitch.

Sue tells me she doesn't remember this at all, so I must have wowed her with my stellar personality to make her forget all about it.

Sarah: What do you love most about your main character Lex?

Camy: She says exactly what she's thinking and she doesn't care what people will think of her. She's as brave as I wish I was. She's also as good at playing volleyball as I wish I was ... sigh.

Sarah: I think most writers infuse at least parts of themselves in the characters they write, but in what ways is Lex nothing like you?

Camy: Almost all of Lex is nothing like me. I made Lex the kind of person I wish I was--good volleyball player, smart mouth, uncaring about people's opinions of her, ready and willing to try new things. I am a poor-to-mediocre volleyball player, I always think of smart things to say AFTER it's too late to say them, I care too much about people's opinions of me, and I'm always hesitant to try new things.

Sarah: What part of writing do you stress about the most? Why?

Camy: EDITS! After eight manuscripts, critiques just don't get any easier.
Maybe I'm just too attached to my writing, although I try really hard not to be.
I'm very lucky because I have fabulous critique partners who catch all my continuity problems and aren't afraid to tell me when something stinks. I also have great editors at Zondervan who really work hard to make my manuscript the best it can be.

Sarah: And lastly, what advice would you give to someone who is single right now – other than read and enjoy your book!

Camy: Don't do like I did when I was single, and stress about it. I did way too much thinking and worrying about my singleness. It consumed me and that just wasn't healthy. God wanted me to enjoy that time when I had no commitments except to Him, but I threw that time away with my desire to have a boyfriend over my desire to become closer to God. I should have been working to allow God to make me into someone who deserved Captain Caffeine when he eventually came around.

Thanks so much for having me here, Sarah! Also, I want to let people know that I've got a huge website contest going on, where I'm giving away baskets of Christian fiction and an iPod Nano! Only my newsletter YahooGroup subscribers are eligible to enter, so join today:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Camys_Loft/join
Thanks!
--
Sushi for One? (September 2007)
http://www.camytang.com/
Romance with a kick of wasabi

And just a note - SO much to catch you up on. I want to update you on the movie and I've got some crazy pics to share from the ACFW conference. Let's put it this way - one of them is me in a wheelchair. Story and details to follow tomorrow so check back:-)

I'm gonna be in a movie!

2007-09-05T11:09:00.000-05:00

Alright - it's an independent movie and it doesn't have any major stars or anything like that, but it's still really, really cool that I get to be a part of it! I even have a real role.
My first day on set is next weekend so I'll take pictures and let you know how it goes.

You can check out some information about the movie at:

Wait Your Turn

My part is Lily Taylor but I'm not listed on the website yet. So stay tuned for more info!

Should Have Known

2007-09-01T11:43:00.000-05:00

I've been buried in books. And as an author, I happen to love books. But true to my impulsive nature I agreed to "help out" with a project - creating a library - for my daughter's preschool.

And that project took on a life of it's own. It took way more money and way more time than I thought it would. And it's left me scambling to catch up everwhere else. The kids all started school and activities have begun and I am still trying to catch my breath.

I should know better.

Really, I'm not sure what it's going to take to help me remember to THINK before saying yes to anything.

Sigh.

The worst part is I finished the project on Friday and then found out that there a "ton more books" to add to the library.

Double sigh.

I'm choosing denial at this point. I've got to many other things to do...

New pics

2007-08-01T14:28:00.000-05:00

I really, really, really don't like getting my picture taken, but pictures are needed occasionally for promotional reasons and I had the chance to do them so I figured I'd do them.

It was traumatic, let me tell you. I had myself so worked up and upset by the time it came to get them done that I was near tears by the time I posed in front of the camera. Adding to it all was the fact I didn't know exactly where to go so I searched around three floors of a hotel before I found where they were set up.

So I got the CD in the mail and I found that as much as I hate getting my picture taken, I also hate looking at pictures taken of me.

So I figured I'd see what y'all thought:-) And then, well, Blogger wouldn't let me. You lucked out today!

Posting

2007-07-24T11:32:00.001-05:00

over at Girls, God & the Good Life today:-)

Technology & Tears

2007-07-22T17:24:00.000-05:00

I am the the tech girl of my house. I mean, that's not saying much since I'm barely competant, but my husband, who willingly tackles many household projects shrugs in confusion when it comes to the technology stuff. Earlier this year we decided to get a digital cable box (because they offered about five extra channels for the kids that they would like.) Well, even though the basic process was understandable to me, hooking it up with our stereo system, VCR and TiVo box is not what I would call a fun experience. Actually, it was traumatic in the extreme. Tears were shed and instructions were crumpled and long hours were spent on tech support - mostly on hold. Within a few weeks, we didn't even want the digital cable box but undoing what I had done was a more daunting task than living with all the new problems.

Even with that trauma fairly fresh in my mind, I tackeld yet another tech project this weekend. It's all the fault of Webkinz. (And I guess I am partially to blame since I told them about Webkinz in the first place) My computer was being commandered by my children far too often and my oldest child hovered nearby anytime I did get to sit in front of it asking me when I'd be done. The easiest solution was putting our old computer back online so they could play in their little virtual world. Of course, that little task would require a router and new virus software. And if I was going to have to get a router, might as well set up the wireless network while I was at it. Sounded pretty basic.

Oh how naive I can be.

I bought the software and router quick and easy and brought the new toys home. I followed the really easy instructions and even though it was behaving as though it was all working, the wizard program never let me officially finish the set-up process. I kept getting errors. And this freaked me out because I couldn't tell for sure if I had done everything I needed to do, and if the network was secure enough. There were tears shed yet again over the frustration of not being able to get answers to my questions. And over the inane process of giving the same thing different names just to confuse me. I mean seriously. How was I supposed to know that a "WPA Shared key" means the same thing as "password"? Yeah. Took me hours to figure that one out.

Today it is done but I'm not eager to have to fix or do anything technology related for quite some time. In fact, I'd rather make an appointment at the dentist.

Home, Home to the Heat

2007-07-16T14:22:00.001-05:00

I never would have believed that the weather in Atlanta was actually better than it is here in Virginia. And while I'm finally able to add an update , I have to do it quickly since I hear thunder coming this way.

I had a good time, for the most part. Here I am with Camy Tang at the ACFW dinner, where we had a very good time, laughing. Actually, I have lots of pictures of Camy and I being silly. Thank goodness for silly friends! In fact, Tricia Goyer must have a ton of pictures since I rarely saw her without her camera!

Camy Tang & me

Tricia Goyer armed with her camera.

And Brandilyn Collins enjoyed eating some chocolate cake.

I didn't take nearly as many pictures as I should have. Honestly, it was because I felt very out of place all weekend. I felt welcomed and included and encouraged, but couldn't shake the feeling that I didn't quite belong there this week.

I am in "no contract" land. And while I have reconciled myself to that fact, I felt a little like a lurker on the edge.

And like every CBA I've been to, there were days I felt sad and overwhelmed, and days that I felt content. It's always a little like a roller coaster and the longer I go on in this crazy business, the more I realize that I am not alone in feeling that way. Lots of people have confessed to feeling just this sort of thing.

I did manage to meet a lot of amazing people, including Nancy Rue!

Ah, well more later, there is definitely a storm headed this way! Gotta go unplug!

Off to CBA

2007-07-04T16:10:00.000-05:00

errrr...I mean, ICRS. The International Christian Retail Show. The lights, the glamour and the dizzying amounts of books all packed into one convention center. Hundreds of companies trying to woo thousands of retailers to stock their products in their stores.

Notice I didn't say "books"? Yes, more and more it's all about product. While all the publishers are represented, a huge chunk of the CBA floor will go to the dolls, the socks, and the ties with Bible Passages on them. And don't forget about the toys, the paintings and the diapers with a detachable devotional on them for new moms.

Okay, so it's not that bad, but books are fighting for space in the stores. And authors have their work cut out for them.That's why I go to ICRS every year. I don't have a new book release. I'm not even doing a signing. But I'm still going. Because I love it. I love being a part of this industry. An industry where you can stroll down a convention aisle and see both Beth Moore and a first time novelist. A place where you can learn what everyone thinks will be big, and then wait and see what will happen. A chance to stand next to booksellers from all over the nation and meet them face to face.

I go for the lessons to be learned, and for the people. It's the one time a year I can count on reconnecting with old friends and making many new ones. As Susan mentioned in her post, it's not about networking, but creating real relationships with people who get the crazy life of a writer. I am one of the people that also goes for a pre-convention activity. Many groups hold conferences and retreats around the time of CBA simply because it's the best time to get people together. In additon to a conference, I will also have a number of meetings to go to to prepare for some upcoming events next year.

But mostly, I'll just be a guppy walking the oceans of aisles in awe of all the huge signs and long lines of the rich and famous. Rich being a relative term, of course. So I must go pack, but I promise a full (and very special) report when I return.

Cross Posted at CAN Marketing Blog

Bad Blogger!

2007-06-22T22:24:00.000-05:00

It's been so long! I haven't quite figured out how to live my life this summer. What I mean is, these three kids of mine...own me. They have so much going on that there are days I don't even come home.

Commitment # 1
My eldest daughter was in her first play production last week. I was thrilled for her but since it is Christian Youth Theater it also meant that Mommy had to be involved as well. I got put on the "make-up committee". The play was The Jungle Book so just imagine how much make-up that involved. Four hours to apply all the make-up each time and that was with six to eight of us working on it. It was a cool experience but the days were very long with dress rehearsals and six shows. I was so wiped out by the end of it that I ended up sick for three days after that.

The Upside: I am now an expert at turning any child into a wolf, peacock, monkey or bird. Not sure how I can translate that new skill into anything productive...

Commitment # 2
Swim team. It's our first year joining a swim team and oh. my. I had no idea how much work it would be...for me! It was my choice to get them involved because my oldest two are pretty good in the water, but they are still learning correct strokes and all of that. I also wanted them to build some endurance in the water. Swimming is one of those non-negotiable things for me as a mom. I want all of my kids to be very competant swimmers. So swim team seemed like a great idea. Except swim practices (because each kid is in a different age bracket) take up most of my morning. And then even after practice they still want to play at the pool, so I try to find time to let them just enjoy the water - which means a second trip to the pool.

The Upside: My kids are getting to be better swimmers. There is a baby pool for the four year old. And the pool has umbrellas so I can sit in the shade.

So seriously, I'm hardly home anymore - that makes blogging (and practically everything else) ...difficult. Now that the play is over (Hallejulah!), things are starting to settle down a little bit. But now I'm backlogged on laundry and cleaning and all those other little mommy details.

On the docket for tomorrow (despite the aforementioned laundry and cleaning)? Evan Almighty. I'll let you know how it is when I return!

Over at The Good Life

2007-05-29T12:22:00.000-05:00

I posted over at Girls, God and the Good Life today:-)