Juggling Life

Finished the Fablehaven series last night at 2:00 am.  I should have put the book up but I just couldn’t.  It means I’ll be tired today.  I have to figure out what book I’ll be reading next.  I know it may seem strange but I usually have a book on my kindle, one on my fire, and sometimes a physical book all going at once. 

I’ve got one audio book going in the car.  I find myself looking forward to it everytime I head to my car.  I have some extra driving to do today which means extra time in the car.  This also means I’ll likely be hearing more of the story as well since I won’t have any passengers with me. 

I’m going to shift though from reading non-stop to working on writing again.  My todo list has gotten much longer while I’ve been off in other books.  I have managed to check off some things from this list.  I corrected an error in my front and back material in all my books; made the final decision on the cover for the next poetry book; submitted some articles and a variety of other things. 

I can tell I’ve not worked on writing items for a while, I’m starting to get antsy about them.  I feel like I’m behind schedule but I keep reminding myself it is my own schedule.  However, this is a pay weekend so we have errands to run and Sunday we have friends coming over.  I’m looking forward to having them come – it reminds me to keep that balance in my life.

In between all of these, I have to put a bunch of manuscripts away (they are edited versions of a story) and clear off some space on my desk so I can work at it.  Ken got the furniture organized in my craft room which means I need to go in and organize the room.  Right now I have containers of crafts sitting around which annoys me.

I need to find a balance of getting all this done.  Some of it I can do in my recliner with my feet up so I will save those tasks for when my legs hurt and I can’t do the other stuff.  The craft stuff I will try to start first thing in the morning so my legs are in good shape but this means I need a non-pay weekend to do them.  Hopefully next weekend I’ll be able to work on both the craft room and the office. 

My biggest problem when I’m working on the office is I get into decision overload.  I’m cleaning and organizing which means making tons of decisions of where and how things are going to be organized.  I get to the point where I can’t figure out the best place for one more thing. This means I don’t quite finish the room.  Life happens and things get put here and there and suddenly my office is a mess again. 

My second biggest problem with the office is I’d rather be writing and working on submissions than doing the cleaning and organizing.  I can spend hours at my computer working on a story, submitting work, researching and so on.  I get lost in what I am doing and forget that I was going to organize the room instead.  I just need to stay on track. 

Escape with a Good Book

I’m still on a reading spurt.  I am reading the Fablehaven series.  It is a good series for young adults full of adventure, magic, fairies, and fun.  The roles are a bit traditional for my tastes but I freely admit this is my own hang up. 

Writing tasks are screaming at me while I spend my evenings immersed in this lovely world created by Brandon Mull.  It is a fun distraction but soon I’ll be turning my focus back to writing and reading a bit less.

Over the weekend I finished Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows (again).  Rowling created quite the world.  I’ve read these book many times and returning to them is like visiting an old friend.

I’ve also started Magic in the Wind by Christine Feehan.  It is a romance novel with a supernatural bent.  Seven sisters with power to help them as they discover love and more.  Magic in the Wind is the first in series of seven.  I’m listening to this one in the van as I drive to and from work. 

When I was in school it was all I could do to keep up with the technical reading I had to do.  Reading fun books that inspire, amuse, entertain – that was impossible for me to do except during my down times like holiday breaks.  Even then I was usually too busy to pick up a book for enjoyment. 

Last night after Ken went to bed I opened up the fourth book in the Fablehaven series and fell into it.  I lost more than two hours while I followed Kendra and Seth adventuring in the Dragon Sanctuary.  It was exciting and pleasant.  I looked up at 9:30 and said – where did the time go? 

At 10:00 I finished the book and my immediate question was – Do I start the fifth book or put it away?  The danger of course being that I will read too late and get up grumpy the next day.  I checked my emails which took all of ten minutes (most of that time spent waiting for the netbook to boot up).  Of course I started the next book and of course I stayed up too late.  Though I did force myself to stop reading at 12:30. 

This is what a good story should do.  It should suck you in and keep you wanting more – keep you turning pages.  If it doesn’t do that, what is the point? 

It may be summer and you may have a lot of other activities you are doing but I say grab a good book and curl up somewhere to be transported somewhere different.

Here are my books:

Secret Past

Available on Barnes and Nobles:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/secret-past-eileen-troemel/1119169953?ean=9781499159868
Available for sale at:
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/426548
Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Secret-Past-Eileen-Troemel-ebook/dp/B00JL38Z7C/ref=la_B00JL4PEJ8_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1398097355&sr=1-1

Moon Affirmations  Daily Meditations Using the Moon Phase to Focus Your Energy

Available for sale at:
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/432900
Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Moon-Affirmations-Daily-Meditations-Energy-ebook/dp/B00K08TF3K/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1398791925&sr=8-5&keywords=moon+affirmations
Available on Barnes and Nobles:http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/moon-affirmations-eileen-troemel/1119387496?ean=2940045859738

Moments in Nature

Available at Barnes & Nobles:http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/moments-in-nature-eileen-troemel/1119566668?ean=2940045940085
Available at:
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/437602
Available on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Moments-Nature-Eileen-Troemel-ebook/dp/B00KBFOWSK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1400077630&sr=8-1&keywords=moments+in+nature

Perfect Weather

Yesterday and today – no air conditioning on.  This is highly unusual for me as I can’t handle the heat and humidity.  It has been pleasant to have the fresh air and cooler temperatures.  The weather is almost idyllic

I finally finished the Harry Potter Deathly Hallows in the car.  Now I have to figure out what I want to listen to next in the car. I have a 25 minute drive to and from work and I enjoy listening to a book while I drive.  It relaxes me and helps me let go of my day (or preps me for the day) while I drive.

I’m working on the second Fablehaven book and enjoying reading for fun.  It is a joy to just listen to music and read a book.  I lose time. I’ll pick up the book and start reading and suddenly it is hours later and I’ve been in a completely different place.

Smashwords.com has a huge sale going on and my books are all 25% off.  It is a great time to make the purchase!

Reading for Pleasure

With being in school for the last couple of years, I’ve not done a lot of reading for pleasure.  Mostly it was text books.  Prior to going back to school, I was doing a lot of book reviews.  This led me to getting tired of reading as I was usually under a deadline and reading material I didn’t necessarily like.  To some degree I’d forgotten how good it was to sit and read for hours on end.

Two nights ago I started a fiction book – Fablehaven.  I’ve read part of this series before but I couldn’t remember much about it.  I remember enjoying what I read.  I started it and enjoyed the book though the main character Kendra was somewhat whimpy. 

Anyone who knows me, knows I don’t like whimpy female characters unless they show development and growth.  I feel that role is a cliche perpetuated by male writers.  Kendra is a bit of a whimp.  She doesn’t like to break the rules and she is afraid to explore.  Seth her brother is exactly the opposite.  To me this is very cliched.  However, the author did something smart.  Even though Seth is daring and reckless, the author shows that Seth also experiences fear and Kendra does daring things in small portions. 

As the novel progresses, Kendra learns to be a bit more daring and Seth a tiny bit more cautious (though not much).  In the end Kendra has to overcome her fears, find her courage in order to rescue her family. 

Last night I couldn’t put the book down.  At 9:00, I said to myself I was only going to read until 10:00 or 10:30 and then put the book up.  That didn’t happen.  I looked up at one point from the book I was thoroughly enthralled in and realized it was nearly 11:00.  I just finished the book. 

I loved getting lost in the book.  Even though I remember some parts of this book, I didn’t remember all of it.  The adventure the author wove around his character kept me entranced until I finished the story.  This is what a good story is supposed to do – keep you turning the page to read the next line, paragraph, chapter without thought of anything else. 

There is a second book in the series and I was going to start it but it was already after 11:30.  I was good and opted not to start the next book – I’ll do that at some point today.  Here is another good thing the author did – he created such a good story, I want more so I’ll be returning to his world and reading the next installment sooner rather than later.

In addition to all the other stuff I have going on, I am going to try to read a book a week.  Right now I’m reading two books – one in my car as I drive and one on one of my kindles.  I’ll finish the one in the car today and then I’ll have to figure out what I’m going to listen to in the car. 

As a writer reading is two fold.  I’m reading for pleasure but the author in me is also reading for analysis.  What did the author do to draw in the reader?  How did the author develop the characters, the tension, the plot and so on?  This is a hazard of being a writer.  What is wonderful to me is when I read a book and at some point I’m so interested in the story that I stop analyzing the story. 

I’d recommend the Fablehaven series by Brandon Mull especially if you like stories on fairies, magic, and tales of good / evil. 

If you are looking for something else – my books are on sale at Smashwords.com.  There is a code on the page for each book on the right.  Get 25% off any of my books.  All of them can be found on my page, just follow the link below.  If you know which one you want to purchase, I’ve provided a link for each book below as well.

My page:
Moments in Nature:
Moon Affirmations:
Secret Past: