October 2017

NaNoWriMo 2017

November is National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). It’s a month-long event where the goal is to write at least 50,000 words of a novel. For some genres, 50k might be an entire novel, but for a lot of adult fiction it will be half or two-thirds of a novel.

I love NaNo because it gives you permission to make time to write for an entire month. Sometimes all you need is a nudge to get that novel you’ve always wanted to write started. Plus, there are generally tons of meet-ups where you can write with like-minded people who will support and encourage you (and you can return the favor).

This year, I’ll be writing as a NaNo rebel. My goal is to write at least 25k words, split between the serial and book two. …

Polaris Rising Snippet

It’s been a while since I’ve posted a Polaris Rising snippet, and Cindy M. asked for a new one, so here you go. I hope you enjoy this little peek at Loch and Ada. Happy reading!


“So eager to be rid of me?” Loch asked. He stood and stalked towards me.

Yes. “No, but the faster I’m off-planet, the easier it’ll be for me to hide,” I said. I ignored his approach and snapped the cot into place.

He stopped close enough that I brushed up against him when I reached up to raise the safety rail. I refused to back away. I met his gaze with a flat stare of my own. …

F1 Weekend

The view from the cheap seats.

We spent two days out in the sun this weekend, watching the Formula 1 practice on Saturday and the race on Sunday. Because we had general admission tickets, we had to get there early on both days to get a good view. It made for long days, but we had fun.

Not my best look.

When Sunday’s race was over, they let fans out onto part of the track. You can walk through the main straight and get a look at the fancy main grandstand seats (complete with shade!) and the pit area. My husband and I stopped for a photo at the start/finish line. He looks great, as usual. I, however, have made a mental note to my future self: remove backpack belt before photos. :)

A Peek at Fall and The Queen’s Gambit

Yesterday, the weather was breezy with a temperature in the low seventies. I wanted to put on a sweater. To be fair, when the temperature has spent the last six months hovering near 100, seventy feels plenty cool. :)

This morning the temperature dropped to fifty and the house was chilly when we woke up. Fall is finally starting to take hold, though the forecast promises that it’ll only last a couple days, so I’m not turning off the air conditioner yet.

The return of Fall means the return of hot tea. There is nothing better than a steaming cup of tea on a crisp Fall day. I may be something of a tea hoarder, though I prefer connoisseur—it sounds better. …

Materials Girl: Part 2

This is the second half of the short story I wrote for the XPRIZE contest. Read the first half.

Samantha took the box from me and led me out of the building. I focused on her colorful dress and intentionally tried to block out everything else. She headed towards a waiting line of the same sleek vehicles I’d seen on the traffic camera.

Up close, the vehicles looked even more alien that they had in the video. The wheels were made out of a complex webbed matrix that had to have been 3D printed. They didn’t have any visible lug nuts, and there were no inflated rubber tires, just a solid strip of darker material around the circumference of each wheel.

As we approached, the vehicle’s single door slid open, like the door on the side of a minivan. Inside, three bucket seats faced forward and three faced backward. There was no steering wheel, nor any visible controls at all.

Samantha climbed in and sat in one of the seats facing backward. I sat across from her, my carry-on beside me. I clutched my purse like it was the life raft that would save me from this sea of strange. …