Tag: reading

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books!

I read a lot of books. Like, a lot. My bookshelves are always overflowing. I read a lot of different kinds of books: sci-fi, fantasy, biographies, classic literature, books about religion and history, books about current or recent events, true crime…with lots of stops along the way.

I have recently been dipping my toe into books about business and industry, largely due to my day job sponsoring a book a month, which we get together (virtually) to discuss. This is a genre I’ve always struggled with, largely due to my rebellious nature. I tend to buck the status quo and dislike the homogenization that industry seems to require.

In a normal time, I have two or three books that I’m in the midst of, usually one non-fiction, one fantasy or sci fi and possibly a book of poetry or an anthology of short stories. In the last year or so, however, I’ve had trouble focusing on much. I’m reading in an all or nothing sort of way. I’m either reading or I’m not and I can not seem to deal with more than one book at a time.

Considering the size of my TBR pile, this is problematic! I got a new bookshelf yesterday, so I can finally get those boxes out of the garage later today. The house is coming together. I have a table and chairs coming today, and a few other things as well.

I hope your Wednesday is filled with wonder, Readers, wonder and joy.

Photo by Ed Robertson on Unsplash

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stuck in a hole

All week this week I’ve been telling myself to write up a post.  Each day I stare at the screen with no idea what to say.  And suddenly it’s Friday again and I didn’t post at all through the week.

Today, I’m having trouble staying focused on any one thing.  I get up from the computer to do something only then I can’t remember what it was I was going to do. I wander from the office to the kitchen, out to my little container garden and back again aimlessly.

I guess I feel stuck.

I’m sure a number of you are too.  I’m thinking today I’ll attempt to finish reading this book I’ve been in the middle of for months.  I need something different I think…something not watching another documentary or rewatching Supernatural or any of the other things I’ve filled my days with for the last month or so.

Maybe it will help unstick my brain and let me get back to work.

Be gentle with yourselves, Readers.  Stay safe.

 

Cover Photo by rosario nuñez on Unsplash

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the earth awakens

Hey there, Readers!  I hope this Easter Sunday finds you well and in good spirits.  I haven’t celebrated Easter in over 20 years, but I have many friends and family who still do.  I have a complicated relationship with Easter, to be honest.

Living alone, as I do, and not having kids around has done a lot to reinforce the “out of sight, out of mind” aspect of what Easter was for me as a kid, then a deeply religious Christian, then an aunt with small nieces.  Once the kids were old enough to not really care about the Easter bunny and all the attendant hoopla, the holiday just sort of faded from prominence for me.

However, this time of year is so full of rebirth and the absolutely amazing way that nature wakes, making food grow out of dirt, decorating our environment with flowers and greenery, and that is certainly something I can celebrate.

This evening, I plan on celebrating in my own way, with a tasty adult beverage, and reading the second chapter of Through Shade and Shadow over on my Facebook author’s page.  If you missed the first chapter, it’s loaded up on my You Tube Channel, and I’ve put it here for your happy viewing.

I will link them all in a playlist to make it easier for y’all to watch in a continuous stream.  If the weather stays nice this evening, I may even move this chapter outdoors.

I’m knee deep in consolidating feedback from my beta readers on The Blood Witch, and once I have it all noted down in my printed out copy, I plan to do a slow read through it to mark up with my own notes/additions, etc, before I bring it back to the computer.

I really love these characters, and I can’t wait until I can share them with all of you, though that might be a while, as I plan to do the “query” fun to maybe find an actual agent to represent me, because as much as I appreciate my current publisher, I am ready to move beyond what they can provide.

In the meantime, I’m sure we can find other stuff to keep you entertained.

Did you know I have an Instagram?   To help relieve my own boredom, I’ve started an impromptu photo project with a Porg named Joe and his good friend, the Child from the Mandalorian.  The hashtag #theadventuresofbabyyodaandporgjoe will take you to their shenanigans, though I missed tagging the first few.  (Yes, I really am that dork).

Okay, on that note, I should get my day going.  My edits are staring at me and my coffee’s gone cold.  I should probably think about eating something too.

I hope you have the best day. Stay safe, stay home and wash your hands!  Love you all!

Cover Photo by Sebastian Staines on Unsplash

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poetry for quarantined souls

Earlier this week, I pulled a few of my poems out to share with the world via a Facebook live video.  I was crazy nervous, but in times like this it falls to the artistic people to keep the hopes of the people up, so I bit the bullet and did it.

I thought that maybe, if you don’t follow me over there, you might like to see it to, so here it is.  I hope to do another one later in the week.  I might even consider a reading from one of my novels, or possibly a work in progress.

(Cover Photo by Ksenia Makagonova on Unsplash)

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Today is the submissions deadline for the short story anthology that I am editing for the Sirens Conference, a benefit anthology that will help defray the costs of running a conference like this one.

This year we opened up submissions to include poetry and flash fiction, as well as the short stories we’ve always accepted.  The writers of this community are amazing and I genuinely LOVE getting to read the collection, let alone having a hand in helping bring it to fruition.

Of course, that means that today’s writing time is devoted to editing instead, but I have a couple hours blocked out of tomorrow to write, though whether I end up tweaking my short story for the anthology or working on one of the novels in progress is anyone’s guess.

For today, I plan to edit for a few hours, then I head out to the salon to re-greenify my hair, which is looking a little bit sad right now, before coming home to tackle laundry and housework.

The glamorous life of a writer, I tell ya!  Living the dream over here.

Hope your Saturday is glorious, Readers! I’m off to pour another cup of coffee before I open the first story.

Want more from me? Visit me!

Weight Loss: https://aweightyjourneysite.wordpress.com/
Current Events: https://myweightinwords.wordpress.com/
Poetry: https://weightywordspoetry.wordpress.com/
Patreon:  https://www.patreon.com/nataliejcase

You can also find me on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram (be warned I post a lot pictures of my cats).

 

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breaking through

Happy Saturday, Readers!  I hope that you’re safe and warm and out of all of this crazy weather!  Here in Northern California it’s been very wet and colder than we’re used to, making for good times to stay inside with a good book and a cup of tea.

I’m now a week + out from my surgery and healing is progressing well.  I’m up to walking a full mile, which means it’s time to go back to work.  I’m also writing again for the first time in quite a while, working on a short story for an anthology that benefits a writer’s conference I will be attending in October.  I will also be editing that anthology in the near future.

If you want to follow my weight loss journey, I invite you to follow along in my blog devoted to that: aweightyjourneysite.wordpress.com.  It is likely I will stop talking about it so much here.

It feels good to have broken through the writer’s block that’s been plaguing me, and I think turning my attention to something new was a big reason I finally got through it.  I’ve only got a vague notion of where this story is going, but it’s built on a character that has been kicking around the back of my brain for a while.  It’s also a foray into true science fiction, which is always a fun playground.

Wishing you a cup of your favorite hot beverage, the comfort of a favorite blanket and some really good reading material!

 

Photo by rawpixel on Unsplash

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#amwriting

I’m sitting in my home office on a Saturday morning, enjoying the last bit of the Death Wish Coffee before I get my next shipment later in the month, and writing.  It is maybe my favorite day of the week, especially when the words are working well.

Today is one of those days, when the words are working and the story has changed enough that my re-write of existing words to change from 3rd person to 1st person has become writing fresh words that take the story in a slightly different direction.

My main character, my point of view character is an eleven year old girl when we first meet her.  She got her name when one of my best friends responded to my naming dilemma by telling me to name her Fred.  She was being facetious, but I took the suggestion to heart.  Her full name is Alliafred, but those close to her call her Fred.

The world she lives in is different from anything I’ve published before, and I’ve been really enjoying create a map of that world, though I lack in the drawing skills and naming skills.  I’ve been working on the world’s backstory for years.

In other news, I’m told to expect Where Shadows Fall to be ready to publish before the end of November, and as soon as I can, I will share the cover with all you.  I’m very excited to share this story with you to close out the Shades and Shadows series.

Now, however, it’s back to the coffee and the words.

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early morning San Francisco

I’m the first one in the office, which isn’t unusual.  Outside my window, the sun is starting to show itself between the buildings and the cloud cover.  I’ve worked from home for the last two days, and my house is not in a good position to watch the sun rise, so this is a nice treat.

I thought I’d talk a little bit today about books I’ve been reading.  Recently I finished From Unseen Fire, by writer Cass Morris, who I met at last year’s Sirens Conference. It is her debut book, and if you like well researched alternate history, this could be a good choice for you.  I’ll admit that the frequently flipping points of view made it a little difficult for me to get into at first, but her writing draws you in and you can see the research she put in before writing.  Beautifully drawn characters and a believable alternate Rome made this a solid four star read for me.

There can be no surprise that I had There Before the Chaos in my hot little hands the day it released.  My love for K.B. Wagers’ writing has been a long term affair, and this follow on to her debut trilogy was intense.  I tried to take my time and savor it, the way Hail savors her favored blue chai, but it went by all too fast.  Political and savvy, this first entry into the Farian War trilogy drops us in on Hail Bristol in a rare moment of peace, but peace was clearly not meant to last.  Kickass characters, heart stopping action, heartbreaking emotion…it’s a whirlwind.  You need to get in on that whirlwind and go for a ride. It gets a solid 5 stars.

One of the things that brings a book up to a five star experience for me is world building.  I can tell when an author has put in the hours to create a world I can crawl into.  It’s something I strive for as I write.  Both Wagers and Morris did this very well.

It looks like the day is starting here as people keep coming through that door, so I should refill my coffee cup and buckle down.  Happy Wednesday, Readers.  May it be filled with small pleasantries and deep kindness.

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and back again…

My those two weeks of vacation disappeared in a flash! I had an amazing time visiting Rome and Pompeii and Florence and Venice and Paris!  Lots of great food and lots of wonderful vistas.

I got home last week, but was unfortunately sick with a cold I picked up in Paris.  Woke up with it that last full day.  I’m still recovering, but feel a lot better than I did this time last week.

It was nice to get home to my own bed and cuddle with my kitties though.  Now I’m working on finding my way back to my routine.

In other news, that anthology I was editing a while back is now available in ebook format!  Here’s the blurb:

REBELS AND REVENANTS features the dead and trebels and revenantshe undead, ghosts both figurative and literal, Elder Gods and Egyptian queens, and, funny enough, more than a little rebellion. Most of all, these eleven stories have heart, with a strong sense of family threading through them, either the one you’re born to or the one you make.

REBELS AND REVENANTS will teach you that when you find your place, you better stake a claim and stand by it.

 

The stories are all written by some amazing, kickass female writers in genres from Sci-fi/Fantasy to Horror, and I couldn’t be prouder of them all!  You should grab a copy and let us know what you think.

 

On that note, I need to get myself back to work.  Lots to do and all that.  Happy Tuesday, Readers!

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time to hit the road

By the time you are reading this, I will probably be somewhere on the road between Paris and Milan with my good friend and some good music at the start of our epic Italy road trip.

I figured since my normal Wednesday post would be pre-empted by a travel day, I’d pre-write it!

I’m such a nut for traveling.  I love to visit new places and meet new people, as long as I can control certain aspects of it, which is why we’re driving and not taking the train.  The agoraphobe in me balks at not having SOMETHING under my control.

Our first stop is Milan, but we likely won’t see much, as it’s mostly a stop for sleep before we head south.  Our first real touristy day will be when we get to Pompeii.  I’ve been wanting to visit Pompeii since I was about 9 years old.

Here in the states, or at least in California, it’s just starting to think about leaving summer behind for autumn.  The mornings and evenings are cooler and the wind is brisk.  I love autumn, it’s my favorite time of year.  I’m looking forward to being cold enough for sweatshirts!

But first, epic road trip through Italy, and a chance to see sites I’ve only dreamed of until now.  By the time I get home, it should be properly fall, and time to pull those sweatshirts out of the back of the closet.

I hope you are all having some fun too, Readers!  I’m off to finish my packing and have another cup of Death Wish.  I have a new book to read on the plane.  I hope to tell you about it once I’m done!