simply me

The 7 Deadly Sins of Self-Editing

2013-03-13T08:32:00.001-07:00

The 7 Deadly Sins of Self-Editing

Part of being a successful author is looking for ways to constantly achieve a higher understanding of the writing process in order to achieve mastery. Here is an article that I thought will be very useful to all authors regardless of skill level in the art of literary expression.

Results for the Clarion West Write-A-thon

2012-08-02T09:57:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone, this is the final update, although late, for the results of the Clarion West Write-A-Thon. Overall in a month I wrote over 10k words. I started out at a little over 11k and ended at 22k. I have to say that it was not done without any difficulties. During the month of writing my computer crashed and I lost all of my data. It was sad to say that I did stop writing for nearly two weeks trying to recover what was lost. After everything was restored I continued to write until the very end. I want to first and foremost thank Clarion West for allowing me to participate in their Write A thon. By signing up for the write a thon, Clarion West was able to secure donations. For my fans who supported me, thank you. Even though the Write-A-Thon is over, my writing is not. I still have 1/3 of the way to finish my novel that is scheduled to be released on 01/06/2013. As an added bonus to those that were tracking my progress, here is the official book trailer for "The Three." For updates on The Three visit the publisher's website here.

This one really made me laugh :) Angie Was Here: Nascar and Babies, Part 2: Maybe Some Babies Aren'...

2012-07-03T07:46:00.001-07:00

Angie Was Here: Nascar and Babies, Part 2: Maybe Some Babies Aren'...: First off, you've got to read this post NASCAR and Babies for the following to make any sense. Otherwise you're wondering, why the hell is ...

Clarion West Write-A-Thon Update Week 3/4

2012-07-03T06:32:00.001-07:00

Well it's been a bit over a month and I have kept true to my word. I can see the 20k mark coming around the corner. I've been very busy with my family and the holidays but I have managed to write daily so that I can accomplish 2k weekly. I started out with a bit over 12k and with 20k just around the corner it seems that I will make it. If you want to sponsor me for this great cause you can do so via this link. All proceeds of this Write-A-Thon will benefit @ClarionWest.

Clarion West Write-A-Thon update weeks 1/2

2012-06-19T05:55:00.001-07:00

It's been a little over a week since I entered the write-a-thon. My goal was to write at least 200 words daily. I have missed some days due to award ceremonies and holidays. However I have made some progress. I started the contest at a lil over 11k (off the top of my head) and now I'm at 14k.

Unanswered

2011-11-28T17:24:00.001-08:00

I'm wondering...reflecting, these past few weeks were filled with turmoil. The book of Matthew warns us to be rid of the things that cause you to sin. Even if it's something that's inconceivable...like an arm or a leg. I used to read that and interpret the text literally. Recently I've come to realize that it's the total opposite. It's not the arm or the leg, it's those who are closest to you. Those are the only influential beings capable of making you become blinded with madness so much so that you harbor feelings and emotions so deep that they can toss you into an abyss of sin.

Violence

2011-11-03T06:47:00.001-07:00

Things that annoyed me yesterday don't really bother me today. Violence, however, is something that I've given much thought to. It surrounds me.
I see it. Hear it. Witness it with every fiber of my being. It annoys me. I'm bothered by it's way of leaving me in anguish....

Violence!

Some people behave violently as a result of a traumatic experience. An experience that teaches violence as a defense mechanism. People will no longer hurt you, it said ; With me, you are protected. I will protect you; No one will dare to hurt you!

Violence!!

That's not entirely true, is it? At night you sit alone, thinking, and wondering.

Violence!

Your children like spawns are nurtured by Violence! An ache you can't control:

Violence!

Under your skin it crawls, it slowly over powers you. It has taken full control.

Violence!

2011-09-19T06:28:00.000-07:00

Are you a poet?
She said to me
I nod my head, No but I would like to be.
What inspires you to write she presses on.
My observations of others and things that go on.
I watch as people interact with each other wherever I may be.
Their expressions are Windows to their emotions, emotions that are so different from me.

Distanced

2011-07-15T05:33:00.001-07:00

So lately I feel a bit distance especially the social networks. Especially from this blog. Just to keep you guys updated I am currently amidst a summer semester at Mercy College. The classes are intense and time consuming. While I still pick up my netbook, and I'm searching online for information on Plato and Socrates, I'm withdrawn from the social network world. I remember the time when in order to find out the latest on a family member or friend all I had to do was check Facebook. I learned that Distance Learning really requires some distance on your part from everyone around you; not just the school. (Sighs)

Connected

2011-06-17T20:21:00.000-07:00

Today I danced with joy in the middle of my hotel room when my hubby agreed to let me purchase a ticket for an earlier flight home. I know what you're thinking and let me stop you right there, I don't need anyone's permission to do anything and can very well do as I please; so can he just not without reprecussions or consequences if the right decision is not made. To avoid all arguments we choose to discuss it. (This was purely by choice, neither one of us coerced the other in to believing the aformentioned statement as true.) We are a family that is on a fixed budget. I absolutely hated being in San Diego ALONE. Nothing to do, well no I take that back had lots of homework to do but I felt as if a part of me was missing. I could not function without it. Indeed there was a huge part missing and that was my husband and our two beautiful children.

I promised that I would try to keep this blog as a way to catalogue most of my random thoughts and I will try not to make this "the pages of my diary" so enough with the mushy stuff. You're welcome! So I ran out of that horrid hotel room with my sweater flapping like a cape in the wind as I quickly checked out of the hotel a day early and made a run for it!! Free at last, free at last. Just one problem though, I forgot to charge my electronic devices. I figured that I could charge them at the airport's charging stations so I wasn't too bothered by my oversight. I get to the airport and go figure, the terminal (23) did not have any charging stations so I did the only reasonable thing a person can do in such a predicament. I began to carefully take in every corner of terminal 23 in search of an electrical outlet. I was even contemplating staying in the bathroom and using the one that's in there but didn't out fear that I would miss the boarding call. I never knew there were so many outlets at an airport. Not all of them work by the way.

Here's an observation, every single available working outlet was taken by a person either charging their IPOD, cell or laptop. Then it hit me, they were all connected!! Just not in the same way communities were connected in the 50's; you know when everyone cared and looked out for one another. This connected was in connected in the sense that we all wanted the same thing! Some juice! Some power! Because all hell breaks loose when your cell dies and you just can't-- not-- answer the phone leaving people to wander enlessly what has become of YOU! Lets not forget what will happen if we lose connection with the cyber world!! No one interacts with the actual person sitting in front of them. That person is probably timing how long you have been using that outlet, I know because I'm doing it right now! .....so with that being said, this post will end with -----to be continued because I am obviously not connected (frowns).

USA Today Will Be Japan or China tomorrow!!

2011-06-16T09:32:00.000-07:00

An article on the cover of USA Today, written by Richard Wolf, forced me, the reader, to view America in a different light. The headline read "In just seven weeks America could run out of borrowed money." If that doesn't spark your interest or if you feel like this will not affect you in any way, THINK AGAIN!

The article goes on to explain in some detail who America owes money to, among our debtors our highest debts are with China and Japan. Come August 2, if America does not raise the debt limit, America may go into default. Some of the things that America may consider before going into default is to cease the payment of federal salaries, this will and can be done by firing government officials or simply doing away with federally funded positions. After all they are the highest paid. But who are we kidding government officials fired?? Yeah right. What next then because you can't possibly pay an 80 million monthly debt with that notion alone? (I thought I had bills, take a look at that scale, phew..boy am I glad that I don't have to write those checks!) Next on the hitlist will ironically enough be our military personnel who may not get PAID! Talk about getting the short end of the stick! (they are on the front line of everything, smh) Do you still feel that this does not affect you? Okay then, next lets look at some of the federally funded programs, social security, section 8, welfare payments, medicare, and the tax refund most of America confuses for shopping money. Now get this,you worked your whole life and contributed to the Social Security fund so that you can rest assured that your retirement will be supplemented by your oh so faithful contributions. THINK AGAIN!!

My worst fear is this people, today if you default on your mortgage payment the bank comes in and takes possession of the financed property. This leads me to think and question whether or not America is out on loan to us. The major financiers are Japan and China. Here we are looking down on them and thinking we are superior when in reality they sit on a higher throne. The treasury bonds could in essence be cashed in for lack of performance and essentially we wont be able to foot the bill. As a result, America will lose the biggest asset of all. If it happens it will probably be the biggest asset recovery operation in history, the repossession of America for failure to pay!! Then what?? Will the big red white and blue cease to exist?? Maybe. What can we do as Americans? I don't know, many are demanding that Obama raise the deficit cap so that we can make this months payments as it has been done in the past by former presidents without the knowledge of the average American citizen. It amazes me how everyone is quick to blame Obama for today's deficit as if he incurred this debt in the span of his presidency when in fact this debt has been present since before Clinton. The difference now is that the scale is about to tip over and we, the public, are now made aware in an almost subliminal way of the reality of this problem. Once that scale does tip over and the chips fall, and our government can say that we were made aware because it was printed in a front cover article in USA Today!! WAKE UP AMERICA STOP SPENDING MONEY, DON'T RAISE THE DEFICIT, LETS START PAYING SOME BILLS. We need to consider ways to raise some equity in America's value. Lets bring down our debt and increase our revenues. Seems easy right, then why didn't our government think about it sooner.

Check out the Story here: http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2011-06-15-debt-limit-debate_n.htm

And I quote....

2011-06-15T19:27:00.000-07:00

"Some of our struggles involve making decisions, while others are a result of the decisions we have made. Some of our struggles result from choices others make that affect our lives. We cannot always control everything that happens to us in this life, but we can control how we respond. Many struggles come as problems and pressures that sometimes cause pain. Others come as temptations, trials, and tribulations."
— L. Lionel Kendrick

I chose to begin my blog with this quote because it pinpoints the number one reason why people are not successful in life. DECISIONS. I find that we as people have a hard time dealing with decisions that involve matters of the heart and how we truly feel about a certain object, person or situation. It's like we lose our ability to be objective, instead we rationalize. Lets move past this people, can we move on? We cannot spend the rest of our lives blaming others or events for our current predicament, position or situations. We certainly cannot go on expecting a helpful hand every step of the way. Some of us will misinterpret that hand and begin to expect it to carry us all the way versus just nudging us along the way.

In life we need people to guide us or help us in finding our direction sort of in the way that we were taught to ride a bike. The person who is doing the teaching sustains and balances the bike for you until you can balance that bike on your own. The transition between being guided and doing it alone, whatever it is should be as smooth as when we learn to ride that bike on our own. I remember crying out as I learned how to ride dont let go, please dont let go because I was afraid. When that teacher let go, I didnt even notice. I thought I was still being guided, when I realized that I was doing it alone the reality scared me and I felt that I would soon fall, but I didnt. Nothing in life is meant to be that difficult that it will knock you down. Learn to get over the obstacle, jump over it, go around it or if its too large to climb or get around then dig and dig until you come out on the other side. The goal is to move on.