The beginning of forever…

Happening now…

… playing chess with hubby for the first time in years!

ISBN

WOW! Has it really been 2 years since my first novel was published?

Today my publisher contacted me because they needed to renew the ISBN for each edition of the book. Although it isn’t a number one best seller I still get people asking where they can buy it. I often just give them one from my stash because then I can sign it, which I know is not good for sales but I still maintain it isn’t about the money it’s about the achievement. I renewed the ISBN’s for both paperback & ebook (not the hardcover) if anyone is still interested in helping out a trashy romance writer. In the meantime I’m working on a novel I wrote about 18 months ago, one that my beta readers say is my best one yet. I would like to follow the traditional route of publishing with this one, but we’ll see. This is not something you can hurry, & I’m willing to be patient & not give up.

Watch this space…

Editing…

Just realized I haven’t posted tonight. I was editing my 3rd novel so that definitely counts as writing – well it will have to for today!

 

We don’t always need a sequel…

I wrote a sequel to Bruises because it was simply a two-part story, & if I ever have it published readers will discover that it is actually a better book – according to those who have read it of course. Really both books needed to be put out there together but unfortunately that wasn’t possible at the time. I personally think that a lot of the trilogies out there today are dragged out, but people read them. I too am guilty of wasting away hours only to get to the end & think it could have all been packed into one decent sized book. Then, we have all read books that we didn’t want to end & one of my favourites is ‘Me before You’. I re-watched the movie again last week (twice actually because I love it), partly because it had just been released, & partly because I was reading the sequel ‘After you’.

I finished it yesterday & honestly it was a sequel that didn’t need to be written, in my opinion. Moyles should have just left us with the book hangover that we suffered when Me before You ended. Of course we all wanted know that Louisa spread her wings & used the potential that everyone saw, but we didn’t really need to read about it. I kept waiting for it to get going, but the plot was weak till the end. Yes there were a couple of storylines that had the potential to be interesting, but I won’t spoil the surprise in case you want to read it & make your own mind up. However, they became a bit far-fetched & frankly not very believable in the end, & don’t even get me started on the accident at the beginning – that was just stupid.

So why did I read it? I expected more of the same I guess, just different circumstances of course. It lacked the humour & chemistry that you experience between Louisa & Will. It felt like she was milking the previous success by knowing we would read it away, & therefore it didn’t have to be as good. I don’t think she really thought about the plot carefully, resulting in a jumbled up novel of mundane life events & completely ridiculous incidents. Sorry JoJo, you didn’t do it for this time some books just need to stand alone.

… possibly pink!

It’s hard work getting organized to go on vacation but I think we are finally there. This time tomorrow we will be relaxing in a lakeside cabin drinking something white, or maybe red, or possibly pink. The sun will be setting on the other side of the lake turning the mid summer sky vibrant shades of orange & red – possibly pink. Sadly it is not our cabin, but when I’m there I pretend it is. I love it so much that not only do we return every year at some point (usually in summer) I also based my 4^th novel around it. I hope hubby’s work colleague never finds out what I get up to in his cozy holiday home as my other self!

The week ahead will hopefully be spent down by the lake. The boys love it too; kayaking, canoeing, & swimming are just a few fun activities they enjoy. Their imagination never ceases to amaze me, & what they can turn a jetty into. This is how kids should spend summer, in the great outdoors covered in Mother Nature & glowing through the dirt of the day – possibly even a bit pink from the strength of the sun. They eat & sleep well, enjoying slightly later nights playing family games & creating memories – even the dog crashes out easily. The cats come too, appreciating not being left out & abandoned in the vet with a fraction of the space. They love watching the wildlife & then curling up on a comfy knee at the end of the day.

There is no phone signal, no Internet & no TV. It is what very few kids appreciate these days, encouraging good quality family time & teaches our boys how to enjoy the company of those around them without always relying on technology for entertainment. And yes, they complain about only being allowed a very short time to play Minecraft, but once we engage them in something we can all play a part in they soon forget, especially with a bowl of chips & a glass of Lemonade close by – possibly even pink!

I’m signing off now, for about ten days – I’m officially on vacation…

 

We loved it!!

It was a risk we were willing to take because we both loved the book. I knew from the trailers that, for me, the main characters had been cast well. All I could hope was they didn’t mess with the story…

I can remember reading the back of the book when I bought it, intrigued at how a quadriplegic could be the main character of a romance. Of course, it’s that that makes it very poignant, especially in this day & age when the right to die with dignity is frequently debated. I think I should say that although it sounds like we may have sat in the cinema keeping Kleenex in business, we also laughed out loud – & many times. The story is set in England; therefore the very British way of dealing with emotion is to crack jokes, & this is very apparent from beginning to end.

Did they stick to the story? Very much so, however there were some interesting & more realistic events in the book that they chose not to elaborate on, but I think that was just two nurses opinions because we know how important some minor details can be when diagnosing. They did change one thing, that I thought in the book was not right or fair anyway. The movie didn’t very obviously change it, more insinuated & left you to think for yourself – a perfect way of not quite sticking to the story but not changing it outright either.

There were very few dry eyes left by the time Ed Sheeran sung Photograph, a song that would bring anyone to tears if you put into that context, especially if you’ve read the book. By that point the director had moved you so much that you couldn’t help be touched by the heartbreaking reality of the inevitable. Yes it’s sad. Yes it’s heart-rendering. Yes it will upset you. However, it will also liberate any pity you feel for either characters situations, putting many of your own thoughts, feelings, experiences & life into perspective.

It’s well worth seeing, especially for any fan of JoJo Moyles work, but if you haven’t read the book, promise me you’ll do that first?

‘Me before you’!

Yes we are going to see it tonight. My BFF & I have a deal, I bought the tickets & she’s bringing the Kleenex. I LOVE this book so I’m really hoping it lives up to the expectations I have after watching the trailers. I’m not usually a fan of watching a movie after I enjoyed a book so much, so fingers crossed I don’t come out cross. I just know already that my makeup will be ruined…

Lunch with lumberjacks!

Whenever hubby has a stay-cation we always make sure we go for lunch one day, especially if the boys are in school. This week that day was today. Although the wasn’t cold, it was hazy & cooler than recent days so we decided not to head down to one of our favourite spots on the water front. We hadn’t been to 4^th Avenue in a while, a trendy part of town that’s almost at the water front, so we made for there & strolled into a sports bar that we’ve been to many times. It turned out they had changed their menu & gone more ‘country’ both in style, music & what they screen. I have no problem with this, I love country music & cowboy food, however, when our romantic lunch for two was taken over by lumberjacks, it was‘nt so funny… or was it?

After discussing a few things regarding plans for the rest of the week, summer camps & vacations over a cheeky glass of something pink, our food arrived. While happily munching away we both find ourselves glued to the large flat screens that are visible from every angle. You will never believe what we were watching, the most bizarre competition I have ever witnessed in my entire life. Now, when I mention the word lumberjack us girls have an instant mental image of what he should look like. Well I have news for you ladies, over 6ft of solid muscle with 5‘o’clock shadow in a checked shirt & tight fitting jeans is far from reality. Not only that, he doesn’t bravely climb trees & shout ‘timber’ in his sexy deep voice. Oh no, what I witnessed today has completely shattered all my illusions, & to crush me even more some of the competitors were women – well at least that what they said they were, it was difficult to tell.

The first task in the competition was some sort of under arm axe chopping. They stood on top of a large section of a log that had been stripped of bark & then hacked away at it until it fell in two. There was obviously a recognized technique they used because each log was marked out with a ‘V’. They went from side to side with their axe chopping the living daylights out of this thing – while continuing to stand on top. Now what concerned me the most was not that they were on top of something that at some point was going to collapse. No, it was the fact they were doing this in runners with no protection for their feet whatsoever. How many toes had they lost before finally mastering the art of always hitting the wood? It only took the fastest man 33 seconds to eventually hack his log in two. This individual might have been fast & you would expect him to at least manage to flex a little bit of bicep wouldn’t you? Nope! The only thing that seemed to flex with any impressive regularity was his beer gut, & let’s not even get into how ‘attractive’ the rest of him was.

Moving onto a more traditional way of log chopping, with a saw. Once again both men, & apparently women, competed, but this time against each other. To be fair some of the women did actually have very toned backs that clearly worked out regularly, sadly that image of mine did not ring true for the male section, more beer guts, wobbly bits, & one guy was 60 if he was a day!

All in all it might not have made for the romantic luncheon we set out to enjoy, but it was rather entertaining even if it was a bit sad that we sat & watched such tripe at 1 in the afternoon. We strolled back out into the now sunny weather with time to kill & although walking is not good for me right now I suggested a little wander down the street (hubby is not stupid, 2 of my favourite shops were a block away). I manage to steer him in the direction of Miz Mooz (Probably my favourite shoe shop in the whole world along with John Fluevog). I exit the store twenty minutes later with one more bag than I went in with. I ask him if he would like to go to Lululemon (then it’s his fault we are in there not mine you see – cunning!), again we each exit the store 40 minutes later with one more bag than we went in with.

All in all I would say a very successful date wouldn’t you?