Only a few days left until CampNaNoWriMo July Edition starts and I'm almost bouncing out of my chair every day. So many thoughts running through my mind. I can't wait to start writing. With things mostly settled here at home with the kiddo I'm all ready. I just have to get everything set up and I'm on my way....
Started setting up Scrivener....

Next up will be putting in character bios from my notebook. This will be unusual cause I almost put it all in Scrivener as I think of it.


So, here is what I have so far.........
Nya is 18 and just of age for mating. She has been kept in isolation once the Triad learned she was to mate an Alpha.
Elyan an Alpha of many centuries of age has to learn to deal with a little scared mate and try to keep control over his territory from 2 fronts.
What will happen is not yet known but it should be exciting to get to the end.

Now, as for the home front. Kiddo-2 has returned home and we found out that her brother and my father had her scared to come home because they said I was going to kill her for not being home. We have worked things out and for the most part things are back to normal.

Okay so this post is really short.

When Characters Change Your Plot

When a writer sits down to begin a story, they have some idea of what should happen. Some even outline the whole story. I can't outline, here's why...

My characters never do what I think they should. In my current WIP my female protagonist has changed into wimp, my hero (the one she was meant to hook up with) changed and of course an issue of location.

Female- She was to be a strong, independent character. Now she is scared of everyone and can't seem to trust anyone.

Hero- He was to be the Alpha of the pack... yep she changed that. The story is turning out that she will end up with one that was suppose to be a secondary character.

Location- It went from the west coast US to central now it looks like it'll end up in south-central US

Many times a character has changed what I thought should happen. At least the antagonist seems to stay the same though internal demons do change.

I really didn't want another story line to end up the male rescues the female type thing. Well, this one might do that and in return she rescues him even without his knowing it.

Okay, I think this is short but I want to get back to my characters because they are calling.

Dalara Excerpt

Dalara Excerpt 

Here is a another look at my WIP (work in progress) Dalara! Hope you enjoy it.

Chapter 4

Sage walked into the room, pulling Dalara from her thoughts.
“Do you feel better now that you showered?” she asked him.
“Yes, thank you for letting me use shower.”
“I need to apologize to you. Last night you made you uncomfortable when I asked you to take my clothes off. I am sorry. I shouldn’t have put you into that situation. Especially after you were caring for me when you didn’t need to.”
“You didn’t.”
“I might have seemed out of it at the time but I wasn’t. I know that you felt it was wrong.” She said.
“Please Dalara, don’t worry about it.” Sage said wishing this topic was over. “Why don’t we get down to business?” Hoping that would change the subject.
“Alright.”
“I will have to make a business call here soon, but we should be able to get everything worked out and signed today.” Sage told her leaving it open to when he could call Zane.
“I have never done this before, how does it work? What do I need to do?”” Dalara asked.
Sage sat down with her at the dining room table and pulled out a stack of papers. “First, I looked everything over and making phone calls, it’s going to run about one hundred twenty thousand give or take a thousand. Zared still needs to measure the upper porch.”
“Ok, that’s fine.” She told him.
“No haggling or trying to get a cheaper price?” Sage was shocked. Everyone he had dealt with in the past had tried to get it done cheaper.
“Nope, when can you start? I know the weather is a factor.”
“We can start on the inside as soon as tomorrow. The outside will depend on the weather.”
“Oh! I thought it would be at least a month to get it going.” Dalara stated excitedly.
“It’s because you had a lot of the things done. I also had a thought about the upstairs. Do you ever plan on having this place open as a bed and breakfast?”
“I really haven’t thought about it, why?”
“If you do, you might like a kitchenette and a small laundry area at the end of the halls rather than more storage.”
“Wow, I would have never thought of that. What made you?” Dalara was even more interested in what else Sage may think about doing.
“Well, I have friends that live in large houses and always have guests. They ended up adding them to their houses a few years back.”
“I’m glad you’re doing this. You’re great with the suggestions. Do you have any more?”
“Yes, I thought that the bedrooms down here should share a joining bathroom rather than have to walk across the hall. It would be more private with just the two rooms sharing. Then we could make the one across the hall a half bath.”
Sage’s phone rang at the same time Dalara’s did. “I need to take this outside. I’ll be back when I’m finished.”
“Ok, it’s Naleena.”
Sage stepped outside the door and answered it as he made sure Dalara was on the phone with her friend.
“Hello Alpha Zane.” He said.
“Sage, I thought you would have called by now.”
“About what Alpha?”
“The female, Takoda and Zared have both called concerned. What is going on Young One?” Zane asked.
“I don’t know and for the record I was going to call when the female was on the phone with her friend. That way she would be distracted.”
“Fine, explain why I am receiving calls from your pack.” Zane ordered.

©2016 Jessica Markley

It's MAY!

It's May and it's going to be a very long month. I have my son's graduation, many more disability appointments, getting my daughter ready for braces and cooking healthier with less money. Then you need to add writing and cleaning.

Today I have begun making all homemade broths for one-pot meals. I am saving over $40 by making my own. I am enjoying getting back to cooking like my great-great aunt did. With my girl wanting more vegetarian meals veggie broth is my largest batch. And thanks to my ex-mother-in-law, I now have a 12 quart stock pot to make it easier. It's what she got me for an early Mother's Day present.

A few recipes I'm making are the following:
Spinach & Artichoke One Pot (my girl's fav)
Chicken, Orzo, & Spinach 
Vegan Pasta
Chicken Lo Mein

I have found that eating healthier is costing me more money when it comes to fresh vegetables. How are we suppose to eat fresh like The First Lady wants when many can't afford it. A head of cauliflower is $3 and carrots are $2 but if I bought frozen it would be half of that here. The prices of onions have been slowly increasing as well as tomatoes, and all fruit.

My son's graduation open house is the 23rd and his graduation is the 24th. I still can't believe he's graduating already. I still think he's my lil' boy but since he has been living with his father (half the time) for 2 months now, he has grown up so much. I didn't want him to live there but it seems to be a good choice.

I am a proud mother of a 17 year old graduating son!

I have completed another CampNaNo in April. With just over 51k of my 50k goal. Of course my OCD kicked in and I have started it over. I have finished WIP-2 (the 1st in series). It'll be going off to a beta reader in the next few weeks. I'm excited yet nervous.

I am also 9 books ahead on my Goodreads reading challenge.  Having read 34 of the 75 I pledged. I re-read Bayou Heat series and Guardians of Eternity series. Now I'm working on Sookie Stackhouse (aka True Blood) re-read.

***Day 13 of CampNaNoWriMo April 2015***

I am making slow progress with my CampNaNoWriMo 2015 project. Several things have come up and distracted me. The main distraction is having to write on my desktop since my laptop died over the weekend.

I am still a day and a half ahead of schedule. Though I wanted to finish by the 25th. I might not be able to.
I thought you might like an excerpt from my #WIP.
Tasmina
Tasmina had been left with Vance while Azmera tossed together a meal. Vance was silent and that had made Tasmina feel comfortable enough to sleep. Her dreams were filled with Amos. He was beating her and telling her he’d kill her given the chance. When she flung out of bed trying to escape her dream, she saw that Elijah had replaced Vance. Why hadn’t his scent calmed her. Vance was new to her wolf but she knew Elijah would never let Amos get her. To the point she was certain about it.
“You are safe little one.”
She crawled back into bed. “Amos?”
“Executed. You do not  have to worry about him. Is he one you were dreaming about?”
Nodding since her tongue was tied from fear that lingered. Swallowing the lump in her throat, “Yes.”
“I must speak of another matter at hand.” She looked to the floor. He fall back mode. “Amos spoke of others coming for you. Stated they were to start with you. Do not fear Council has it safe for you. More warriors are coming. Council thinks it best you stay here. Your scent is all over Sage’s territory, but very little here. If you stay inside none shall know you are here.”
“School?”
Elijah felt the wave of sadness coming from her. “You can still do your school here. You will no longer be allowed to the school until this is settled.”
“Why me? I can’t hurt anyone.” Tears were flowing down her cheeks. She no longer cared if she seemed weak to anyone.
“He called you a traitor.”
“Why? All I did was run from him.”
“You ran to Council. That can be seen as a betrayal to an Alpha. I know you did what you had to. Council feels the same. Zane would not have given you to Sage if not. Can you tell me what Amos did to you?”
“Must I?”
“No, I would like to know at some point.”
“He whipped me for everything. If I walked to slow or too fast. If I ate the wrong way according to him. I was pushed and beat on by everyone, even the females at times.” She was shaking with the memories but continued, “I was forced to…” and she couldn’t continue any longer.
“Forced? Forced to do what?”

She looked to he waist and then to his. “They took you? They forced you when you were so young?” His tone was angered. For the first time Tasmina saw his powers and control over them. He didn’t move but just sat there clenching his fists repeatedly. His power was intense, it was driving he to hide but she sat there waiting for him to ask again and give details. The questions never came. Elijah just sat there at the door in silence.

There I hope you like it!

Have a great day ad keep writing and reading.

Life is a Roller Coaster!

I have been a single mom since my oldest was 2 years old, though those two years felt like I was the only parent too. So, lets say I've been a single parent for almost 18 years now. I know that my son will start college in the fall and will move out. That's a given. I know this, I expect this.

Background:

My son's father has had almost nothing to do with him in the last 15 years. Maybe 5 minutes here and 10 minutes there, but that's about it. One year I totaled it together and it was four hours that year he saw my son. His father paid child support on time every week and was never late (bonus, many don't have that). The last 6 months his father has been seeing him every weekend. (I knew there was a plan)

Current:

Two months ago my son comes to me and says he's moving in with his dad when school is out. Okay, thinking that it would change in a month. (Dad isn't one to stick to things, more like cause disappointment). March comes and his dad calls me to discuss my son moving in with him. Wooooo! Hold the train. after talking for an hour, I agreed to allow it after graduation (May 24th). A week later my son says he's packing so he can take all of his stuff to his dad's. That is 10 weeks early. He continues to argue saying dad said I could move now. Well, doing what a good mom does, I called his dad. No, he hadn't told my son he could move NOW! Typical teen playing the parents. That got all settled. He'd be moving out May 23rd.
Two weeks later my son refuses to come home because he's scared of me, I beat him... I have never nor would I ever. I agreed to let him stay 1 more night and I cried the whole night. Next morning I start making phone calls. After finding a way to stay where I'm living with my girl and how I'd pay bills I called my lawyer. Then I called his dad and explained what I was willing to do. Joint custody with joint equal placement and no child support. The money was his issue of course.
It's a 35 minute drive to his dad's from the school. Really! With gas prices has high as they are, I didn't like it. Not to mention I had planned my money out so I could manage after graduation not that minute.

Fallout:

I feel as if I have failed my son. I thought I gave him everything he needed.Now I see I haven't. He has been the one kid I had 95% of the time and I'm lost. Those few months before he turns 18 (end of August) were the months I was going to let go a bit at a time. Now I don't have that.

I've cried. I've wished for my mommy (passed 2003), I wished for my grandpa (passed 1995) and I screamed, yelled and hit the door. Yeah I have to replace it now. The last week I have been up, down, and up again. My emotions were all over the place.

Plus Side:

On to the plus side... I noticed that  my girl and I have been more talkative since the move. We have planned meals that my son would NEVER eat and we had mommy/daughter time more than ever before. She's had always been a daddy's girl until the last year. Now she's a mommy's girl and I'm grateful for this time.

Plus, my son's dad is finding out how a teenager acts that doesn't take his medication and how difficult it is to punish him. Another bonus is that I will not have to pay for college, graduation party or any of that. It's all on his dad.

I have found support through Twitter and my friends on there, many writers. They have helped walk me through this. Guided me to a place that I am able to handle the situation better. Given me the strength to work on my CampNaNoWriMo project and smile. They have been my rock.

Now, working on my WIP-4 for CampNaNo, I find I have chosen am emotional character. One that issues from my younger years will come to light.  I'm continuing it whether or not it makes me cry.

April 2015 CampNaNoWriMo Preparation

Camp is just 20 days away. 

Time to make preparations. Many things to do.

Even though my kids are teens and can fend for themselves mostly; I plan snacks for them. I cut up fresh fruit, veggies and make yogurt dip up weekly. Putting them in airtight containers for easy grabbing.
For simple easy meals; I pre-cut & pre-slice up everything for subs, sandwiches & tacos. Lettuce, tomatoes, onions, olives, and anything else they want.
As normal procedure I make up freezer crockpot meals & cook all hamburger I'll need at the first of the month. Usually doing the following:

• Chicken & Beef Fajitas (1 each)
• Sweet-N-Sour Meatballs (2)
• Mongolian Beef (2)
• Taco Meat (3)
• Brown Sugar Chicken Thighs (1)
• Hamburger with garlic & onion for Goulash & Spaghetti (4)
• Chunky Beef Stew (1)
• Pepper Steak (2)
• Pineapple Pork Roast (1)
• Teriyaki Pork Chops (1)
• Buffalo Chicken Meatballs (1)
• Cheesey Broccoli Ham and Potatoes (1) 

You can find many of these recipes on my Pinterest. FOOD! & Freezer meals! Below is a sample of my menus. Most crockpot meals can be frozen so all you have to do is thaw and toss in.

Then for quick grab breakfasts I make up tons of pancakes, sausage links & bacon. Freeze them on cookie sheets then place pancakes and a meat in a freezer bag or foodsave them. Kids just grab slice open and heat for 1 minutes 30 seconds. I also bake muffins on Sundays.

As for writing snacks and other kid snacks I make up spinach/artichoke dip, marshmallow treats, dill oyster crackers, and of course cupcakes, cheesecake, and brownies. My girl will make cookies at least once a month so we have those as well.

Writing Preparation 

I do the following:

• Drag series template from last Scrivener project to a new project. Makes it so easy to be able to easily drag all character & place info and notes over.
• Plan plots and twists (until characters change it all up)
• Add an arc to Aeon Timeline for new novel in series (gives all series timeline in 1 place)
• Figure out a few new characters to toss in. Supportive one.
• Make up Writing Month Chore Chart for the kids. They are an extra help in April, July and November. I won't have to do much.
• Clean up all 3 of my writing spaces (my desk, kitchen table & my favorite chair).
• Read through the last in the series I was working on (so to remember small details)
• Chart possible emotions that will be displayed (I have a hard time with these)

After all that...

I write up a list of things I can manage in the writing sprints 10 minute breaks.

1. Start a load of laundry
2. Switch laundry
3. Fold a load of laundry
4. Soak dishes
5. Wash a load of dishes
6. Vacuum a room
7. Sweep floors
8. Clean toilet
9. Dust half a room
10. Scrub stove & counters

You get the idea. Quick chores that can done in minutes. Plus you get bathroom breaks and refill snacks & drinks time. 

Now is the time to prepare! How do you get ready for a month of writing? Post in comments.

What a February

The last month has been terrible. Not only did the sewer back up I've been sick for 5 weeks. Now that the carpet and kitchen flooring has been replace and the 5th round of antibiotics are working, I'm finally feeling better.

I have tons of stuff to put back in place after all the flooring being put down. URGH! I hate that. At least the flooring guys moved everything and put it back in the places I was going to rearranged the furniture. That saved me time.

Now I have to deal with my son's father wanting to have my boy move in with him so he doesn't have to pay child support any more. That would mean my boy will be driving 60 miles to and from school every day (costs more for gas than child support). I have sole custody so my ex will have to take me to court and spend even more money. Then there will the car insurance I won't pay for any more, his phone his grandmother won't continue to pay and  no Netflix. HA! I get to talk to him tomorrow about it all. They can wait 6 weeks for the move (after graduation).


Yes, part of my refusal has to do with money the other part is after 13 years of not being in my son's life he want him now. Oh! Add in the fact he's my boy and not really ready to be away from mommy. He can use the oven and microwave, cook mac-n-cheese and make eggs but that's it.

I have been told I'll be approved for SSI (disability type) in the next month or so. That'll fix the money issues but not the emptiness of my son moving out.

My son has distanced himself from me the last month or so. We used to talk an hour every night and now it's like pulling teeth to get a word out of him. I think that hurts more than anything else.

April is CampNaNoWriMo and I'm preparing for it. My goal is 9000 words. Researching is the part I hate the most. I have done the timeline on Aeon Timeline and have all characters & places set up in Scrivener. now all I have to do is figure out snacks and easy meals for April.

~~~~Happy Writing~~~~

~~~Happy Parenting~~~ 

Snow Storm for End of January 2015

 Snow and Reading
Iowa is holding our breath as we await the 1st real winter snow storm. I'm in the area that is forecast for 8 inches (20.3cm). It has been spitting rain all day so it'll be icy under the snow. I'm in the area that say we should get 8 inches (20.3cm), just above the 1 in 8.1".

In preparation I have hit the store and stocked up on everything I need for 3 days. I have cleaned house and done laundry. Charged all my electronics (nook, daughter's nook, laptop, phone and rechargeable flashlights). All my candles are ready to go. With ice you never know when the power will go. I also have my paperback books in case my nook dies after reading for hours. I've made up fry sauce and taco stuff is all ready to just toss together.



Reading music for now is 


Hoping power will NOT go out. I'm re-reading Guardians of Eternity series by @AlexandraIvy Hoping to read the rest of the series this weekend. If you like paranormal romance you should check out this series.


I'll take pictures as the snow falls and post when I can.


To buy Guardians of Eternity books check them out here.
Amazon
BnN

One Holiday Down!

With Thanksgiving done and over with I'm doing better than I thought. I wrote all day instead of being with family. Yes, I know holidays are to be spent with family, well you don't know my family, at least most of it. Plus I'm a bit antisocial and would rather be in my own little world with my characters. My kids had a good time with their other side of their families which I'm grateful for.

Those of you know me, I've started yet another #WIP (work in progress) since I finished and won #NAoNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) with just over 50k words. It's in the same series as the last 2 that aren't finished. #WIP1 is only 2 chapters away from being done and #WIP2 has a ways to go. The nasty plot bunnies decided I needed to jump to #WIP3. It's flowing nicely so I'm sticking with it for now. As those bunnies stop with #WIP3 I'll finish up the 1st once and hand it over to an editor. Then work on second. Hoping to finish by March plus have edits done to my YA (young Adult) #WIP that I started 5 years ago.
Remember that the excerpts I post here are ones unedited. There will be many changes in the future I think.

Here is an excerpt from current #WIP3
"She tossed and turned. The smell of woods and power lingered in her nose and mind. It was nothing she had ever really paid attention to. Scenting was the one thing she tried not to do. All she would scent was if it was male, female or human. When she finally fell asleep it wasn't a good sleep. Her dreams were full of fear, terror and pain."

Well, now it's time to tame those plot bunnies and get back to writing. Have a productive week.

Writer's Stuck?!?!?!

Behind is not where I wanted to be. I wanted over 35k words written for NaNoWriMo and I'm stuck at 21k. Though I am ahead of the 1667 words daily, it is frustrating. I know The storyline, my characters changed it a bit but nothing I can't handle.

So, why did I refuse to write for 3 days? I thought it was because my Main character decided to switch the man she would end up with. That had worked itself out the first night I didn't write. I wrote for 13 hours with #WriteClub at @FriNightWrites Thursday and then stopped.
Maybe an overload? I wrote so much in that time I might have fried some neurons.

Maybe my normal November depression is hitting? Yeah, i miss my mom but it's not as bad this year, at least I don't think it is. It's for her that I participate in NaNoWriMo. Her love for reading was more than anyone I know. She would have a book in her hands 24/7 if she could have. There was on in her purse, one in the car, one by her bed and of course one in her hand. SHe could read, watch TV and eat all at once. I've never mastered that nor do I think I will. SO, All in all I don't think it's depression.

With 20 days left I believe I can make it to 50k plus more, hopefully. I'm not very optimistic. Never have been never will be.

On a good note, I met an author that wants to read my dribble when it's done. Not going to hold my breath to hear it's good.. I know it sucks but I write it any way. Why, you ask. Hmm... good question.
I guess to leave the real world behind and hide within mine. I have total control over it (for the most part) and Nothing bad happens to me.

I guess that's all for now. I'm hoping to get back here before the end of the month.