ANWA Conference

Yesterday was the ANWA Conference, "Start Write Now". It was at the Dobson Ranch Inn in Mesa, AZ. The facilities were roomy and nice; lunch was a delicious buffet of salads and sandwich fixings. We all chuckled at the pitchers of iced tea on each table - after all, how much iced tea will a bunch of Mormons drink? The speakers all did a great job of teaching and inspiring and challenging us. J Scott Card was the Keynote Speaker and one of the presenters. I really enjoyed his comments. The presentations I attended were all very informative and I enjoyed each. I will blog about them later. Afterward various authors and the presenters had their books for sale. I got my Waterworld book signed and bought a bunch of other books.

Heroes and Heroines

Last Friday marked the beginning of a biennial event that I absolutely love and I always feel a tinge of sadness when it ends. Of course, I then look forward to the next Olympic Games two years away. I cheer for the athletes when it all comes together. Their training and hours and hours of work grant near perfection – to the awe of audiences around the world. I sorrow for these amazing people when disappointment overwhelms them because even with all their preparation they have an ‘off’ day. And, naturally, I am mortified when morals and integrity take a back seat to winning (i.e. French judges and Tonya Harding).

As I thought about this it reminded me of the characters in my novel. I want to create heroes and heroines that readers will cheer for in their successes and ache for when things go askew. Then there is the antagonist – if they had morals or integrity it would make things less interesting in my fictional world. So, here’s to Master Kael and Siri as they fight their unknown foe who is determined at every turn enslave the elves and usurp all power in the elfin kingdom of Enyls. 

LA Trip

Why does it take a trip to LA to get a little writing done? Because for three hours I had some peace and quiet in our Millenium Biltmore Hotel room. My sister Mindy and her daughter Jordyn and my two daughters McKenna and Ashlynne went to the Nick Jonas and the Administration concert and I, I had a glorious few hours of time to write. It was beautiful! My goal was 1000 words this last week - and thanks to this road trip with the girls, I did it!

Valerie's contest

Writer, Valerie Ispon, has a great contest going right now. Check it out and become a follower!

valerieipson.blogspot.com

Single mom

This week I sent my husband to the Diamondbacks Fantasy Camp in Tucson. He had a great time playing baseball and hanging out with DBacks players - Steve Finley was his coach. He hit the first ever out-of-the-park home run at Fantasy Camp. Cool! Since he was gone, I got a lot of writing done (and no house cleaning). Maybe one of these days (or years) I'll actually be done.

LDS Storymakers Conference

It's official. I've signed myself up for the LDS Storymakers Conference in April in Provo, UT. I am going with some amazing women from our chapter of ANWA (American Night Writers Assoc) and I'm really looking forward to it.

Journey

The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
     - Old Chinese proverb

I feel this is how my journey in writing is going - slow boat to China! I have made some progress, but as with most of us, life doesn't slow down just because we want to do something.

Two goals for the year: 1) write daily; Sunday writing will be journaling on my family blog; 2) read at least one book a month.

It's going to be a great year!