It’s the personal writing challenge and year in review. Christmas Eve 2006 was the day I was contacted with a publishing contract and was published two weeks later. So 2008 was officially my 2nd year as a professional author. Wow.

So what happened in 2008?

January

I introduced you to my sketching madness

Bound Eternally released from Changeling Press, the final chapter in my Bound Trilogy

I had an anniversary bash with all my Aspen peeps.

My dear friend, and fellow LAW lady, Maggie Nash, was released from her Triskelion contracts after a long legal battle. Much rejoicing commenced!

Babes in Toyland 2 was selected by Love Romances and More Cafe as honorable mention for best anthology 2008.

The League of Amazing Writers threw me a birthday bash on January 24th.

The month was ended with a somber tone. Cynnara Tregarth’s mother passed away. My heart broke for her.

February

February dropped me right in the middle of Sweating with Sven for the second time. I made that goal, but only two of the four novellas were published. LOL!

My free reads section got a new look and a few new pieces went up, including the Romance Divas annual free ebook challenge.

Many reviews came down for Bound in Fury, Bound in Lust, and Babes in Toyland 2

San Antonio, Texas had an earthquake…hmm, wow.

March

Spaceport: Bounty released from Changeling Press!

The League of Amazing Writers reopened the site with a whole new look! Much celebration commenced!

Phenomena Authors debuted.

April

Many guest blogs this month. Ecata, LAW, etc.

Lexxie Couper created the gorgeous Bound in Fury book trailer. Man she’s talented.

Bound in Fury was nominated for a golden rose as best cover art, 2008.

May

My family and I moved to a new house on very short notice. I set up my writing cave.

As a gift to myself (and something that was far more portable than my other laptop), I got the ASUS eee laptop. I love it take it with me just about everywhere I go. It fits in a portable DVD case so I have pockets

More reviews and Bound in Fury won the Golden Rose for best coverart!

Rookery Cove: Ocean’s Call, my very first m/m/f menage, released from Changeling Press.

I had the ant invasion.

June

Plain Brown Wrapper: Shadow Lies released from Aspen Mountain Press! A bargain short story at less than $1.00!

The flooding in Iowa had writing friends trapped. It was not a good time.

July

My husband’s birthday rolled around and I gave him a little love letter on the blog.

A few more reviews and a unanimous poll in favor of my writing a novel. I’m still working on it!

Phenomena Authors had a Left Behind and Loving It workshop on balancing motherhood and writing. Lynn Viehl was the sponsor of the series and we had a blast!

Big, Blooming and Wild! Texan Bound released from Changeling Press.

August

My anniversary and my son’s birthday.

I began and completed a hand to hand combat course, continuing on to complete certification to teach self defense. (Just rereading my entries from that month made me hurt all over again).

I had a few reviews and an interview with the owner of Aspen Mountain Press.

I started my Twitter Account.

We found out our son may be autistic.

September

I re-evaluated my writing goals and began the personal writing challenge, named Whiskey Straight ‘08. I blame Kim Knox. It was all her idea…really!

Hurricane Andrew hit and we had evacuees up in northern Texas. Many of my old school buddies were affected down in Houston. Definitely not a good day.

I re-organized my website

Lexxie Couper made me a new trailer, this time for Spaceport: Bounty. She’s a dream to work with.

October

I ranted on Genre Snobbery.

My main laptop showed the first signs of slow painful death.

I realized in October that I couldn’t figure out how to balance life and writing without sacrificing some part of life. This was where my personal stresses were driving me insane and the pressures of work kept rising.

I started my free read serial: Angel of Law in the Search for the Star Sapphire. Yes it’s very tongue in cheek, but it’s fun to write. Wicked Wednesdays was born.

Masqued Tails released from Changeling Press!

Our son is diagnosed with autism.

November

NaNoWriMo started…and I wrote 75K words. ‘Nuff said about that.

Burn Out was selected for Liquid Silver Books’ Worth Every Risk anthology.

Record making election year from both Republicans and Democrats.

70 Days of sweat started again.

I hosted weekend speedwriting sessions at Realms of Love every weekend during NaNo.

I finally found balance.

Hubby hijacked my blog to let everyone know I’d finished NaNo early. At that point I didn’t update my word count anymore.

Our son spoke his first words in months and has shown so much more progress than we’d ever hoped.

My hubby put up a chat room at Phenomena Authors.

December

Ginger Snaps: Serendipity 5A released from Changeling Press!

Del Fantasma: Winter Break released from Aspen Mountain Press!

Four contests, a coffee time romance chat, three reviews for Serendipity 5A, and a return to Wicked Wednesdays.

The writing frenzy of November caught up to me and I ended up on the ick end of sick.

I received notice of a job transfer. It’ll be temporary (doesn’t feel that way at a little over a year) but my family can’t accompany me since there will be no place for them to stay, and no way our son can get the care he needs. Other personal stuff accumulated. Pressure from work increased for two weeks while our section was being evaluated.

Record breaking frigid temperatures all across the country. New Orleans got snow…

More sketchbook love…

On a personal note, December was an emotional rollercoaster I hope to never go through again. Ever.

Babes in Toyland 2 is a Capa Nominee at The Romance Studio.

There are things I’ve missed, I’m sure…but just writing this makes me exhausted. Whiskey Straight will end with me about 40K or so shy of my goal, and that’s okay. I’ll set up new goals for 2009, ones that are achievable.

Next year will be interesting…

I have that posted on the wall in my peripheral vision. You know, the wall you swing around to stare at when NOTHING comes to your fingertips when you beg them to type the next line of text in your story.

Why do I do that…create visual cues for myself? I’m a visually stimulated woman. Reading is important to me and if I surround myself with these things, I’ll be able to stay on track longer. Be more focused. I hope. But let me let you in on a little secret. Some days I can’t do it. I can’t sit here and write. And those days hurt me most of all because I wonder what is wrong with me and a thousand other thoughts.

It’s times like this when I remember something my grandmother once said, God rest her soul. Something that stuck with me over the years. She said, “In order to appreciate the good in life, we have to experience the bad, see just how deep and dark we can take ourselves. Otherwise, what would have to compare the good times to?”

Hmm. Food for thought. A dry spell in writing means one day I’ll have that groove back, and when I do I’ll appreciate it far more because of the word drought. This works in life as well. Sometimes you have to roll with the punches in order to win the fight, and right now, we’re taking a few hits on the Montgomery team. I’ll be working on upping that word count and you work on enjoying the rest of your holiday season.

I posted at Daughters of Circe today about sticking with it/finding your groove…check it out HERE.

Have a great weekend!

Well gang, I’m taking a much needed break for the Holidays. From this moment ’til the middle of January (just past Three Kings Day), my posts are pre-written and timed for release. So if you’re new to the blog and leave a comment, know it’ll take a bit for your message to appear. I’ll check my comments every couple of days and approve them.

Expect in the coming days, more goodness from the Wicked Wednesday free read, a year end round up, a disappointing end to the Personal Writing Challenge but new goals for the future, and a New Year free story link fest you won’t want to miss. More on that later.

I’ll see you soon and thank you for making this year one of the best.

Some of you already know I like to sketch. Especially moments like now when I’m stumped by something my characters have done and need to figure out a way out of the plotting hole they’ve stuck us in.

So, I pulled out ye olde pencil and paper and sketched a holiday eye candy piece for the men who occasionally drop by this blog. Happy Holidays guys. Meet Holly.

I’ve got a lot of news coming, and not a moment too soon for the holiday, I suppose. Our family is going to be moving soon. This summer, actually. It’s an EDJ (evil day job) transfer. I’ll be moving out of country for about a year.

In the meantime, my family won’t be able to come with me but they’re moving to California to be close to family while I’m gone. For those wondering why, my son is Autistic and they don’t have the capabilities of meeting his needs in the area I’ll be working. Since his progress has been so phenomenal in the past six months, we really need to keep the momentum going.

Some of the weird questions and comments I’m getting from my crit partners makes me want to clarify a few things.

1. Yes, I’ll still be writing. Even more so, honestly, since I won’t be with my family and likely unable to sleep. If I don’t write, I’ll go stir crazy, so yes, I’ll still be writing.
2. I don’t view this as a vacation or an adventure (although it will be an interesting adventure, I’m sure). I’ve got a full time job waiting for me there, one that will push me harder in my career than any before. It’s going to be a challenge and one I have to meet.
3. I’ll still have access to the internet (that was a weird one, the internet is available almost anywhere now and I’ve been to some very remote locations in the world). High speed, as a matter of fact. It’s necessary for my job. So I’ll still update, still fight through NaNoWriMo, and still visit the groups. I’ll just be in a different timezone. My website will still be updated (hopefully) regularly and I’ll still have releases with all my publishers. That’s the beauty of having a virtual writing career. My ebooks release and are available instantly around the world. *WEG*
4. Leaving my family is the hardest thing I’ll ever have to do, but I’ve been contracted for a job and I can’t back out. We live in the age of webcam and instant messenger so I’ll be in constant contact with my family after work. We’re already testing the system to get my son used to seeing me on the television. He’ll be almost 3 at the time I leave so this year will, hopefully, be a distant dream to him later in life. (It’s already sending me through a rollercoaster of emotion…there’s so much I’m going to miss!).
5. I’ll have a camera so I’ll take a lot of pictures. There’s a lot of history there, so it’ll be wonderful. And I’ll be able to come home for a bit during the time I’m over there so I’ll get to be with my family then.

I think that about covers it. If you’ve got any other questions, please don’t hesitate to leave them in comments.

If you’re following the Liquid Silver trail, you’ve come to my blog for yuletide eye candy. Some of my favorite Christmas pics have been taken, so I’ll just give you some numminess to keep you warm over the cold cold days.

If this is your first stop in the Stocking Stuffer trail, Jeanne Barrack was before me. Leave a comment at each place on the trail and you’ll be entered to win a stocking full of ebooks!

This is the character Noah from my upcoming Liquid Silver book, the Worth Every Risk anthology. Isn’t he just yummy?

I’d like to introduce you to my current inspiration:

And of course we can’t forget our military people over the holiday season:

And last, but not  least, meet Jayden. I’ll tell you more about him later…

If you’re continuing on this journey, stop by Tina Holland’s blog! Merry Christmas from me to you, and if Christmas isn’t your thing, Happy Holidays.

Tonight at midnight CST I’ll post a delicious eye candy entry for those following the Liquid Silver Stocking Stuffer giveaway! You follow a trail of ten authors (and eye candy) and leave a comment on each blog to be entered in the contest.

The trail begins with Nina Pierce tomorrow, but if you’d like to stop by today, she’s got a thursday 13 full of hot stuff.

See you tomorrow!

Alright, this is a personal post. If you want to read, click more to see it in its entirety. Otherwise, I’ll just post this bit of numminess for you:

(more…)

So what have you been up to this week? I’ve been on a space adventure (Working Title: Solar Skies) with a hot blooded doctor by the name of Auron. Oh yes, he’s also the last pure, genetically unaltered earthling, according to his record. Sometimes, however, what ends up in a record might not always be the complete truth…

There’s 10/11 days left until I find out about the Cowboy anthology. It’s heavy on my mind.

This year most of us are cinching our belts a little tighter and freaking out over the insanity of our economy (I’m American, btw). For this year I’ve asked for books and/or gift certificates for books. I’m easy. My husband and I have limited ourselves to one gift each. The kids were crazy easy this year, especially since I’d started buying gifts back in the summer.

I’m chatting tonight with Lexxie Couper and Kim Knox at the Coffeetime Romance Forum. We’re discussing our writing styles, giving naughty excerpts, and spotlighting free reads. If you’d like to come out, we’ll have virtual hot chocolate (spiked or no, your choice) and a generally fun time. It’ll take place in the CHATTER’S ROOM at 7pm CST/8pm EST.

Have a great night all!

It’s the return of WICKED WEDNESDAYS! When we last left our heroine, Angel, she was drugged by a tall, dark stranger in her garage at LAW headquarters. What wickedness has she fallen into today? Read on to find out! If you missed the first two entries, click on the hyperlinks below to catch up!

Part One

Part Two

Part Three of Angel in the Search for the Star Sapphire

The low whine of an air conditioner trickled in to her senses, pulling her away from a darkness so absolute it bordered on coma. It reminded her of other times, long ago.

“Too much to drink?” The croak of her own voice should have soothed, instead her head began to pound like a sledgehammer against her temples.

She moaned and tried to roll but her arms were held fast.

Angel jerked her eyes open, thankful the headache didn’t increase.

She was tied. To a bed. It had been some time since her night had been that wild. Her head ached something fierce and she’d do just about anything to moisten the dryness of her throat.

How did I get here?

Memories of her last moments in the garage rushed through her mind. Shit. Fear followed immediately by rage roiled through her gut. Some superheroine you turned out to be. Getting caught like a rookie and all for a pretty face. One she wanted to smash into the pavement if she saw him again.

She eyed her surroundings. Hotel. One she doubted had insulated walls. She could scream. Maybe someone would come running. No visible cameras, so that was a plus. The extremely small ones were a possibility, but she doubted her captor went to the trouble. The curtains were drawn so she couldn’t tell where they were but the air tasted salty. LAW headquarters didn’t reside next to a beach, so she was likely not in the local area.

Angel snorted. Smart man to get her away from the ladies. Once they found out she was missing, they’d tear apart the walls of Hell to find her.

She arched her back to eye the binds. Simple enough. Her fears took a back seat at the challenge of a puzzle. This was comfortable, something she could do. If she wiggled too much, the ropes would tighten and that would just be…uncomfortable.

Smart man to keep her arms apart, though. Had she had her wrists tied together she’d already be done and out of here.

Her fingers tugged at the ropes until a piece loosened. She hyperfocused on that one piece of freedom, tugging bit by bit, careful to keep her wrist as still as possible. Her other arm was forgotten while she worked.

In Angel’s mind time ceased to exist. Just the puzzle. She tugged and worked and slowly, bit by bit, the ties fell away until she was free!

She rolled over and untied her other wrist, wincing at the pins and needles sensation racing up and down her fingertips. Too much longer and she’d have been out a hand.

She wrapped the ropes and slipped the loops over her head and arm so they hung diagonally across her chest. A good rope was hard to come by.

She opened the bedroom door and jerked to a stop.

Dark and handsome jackass was sitting, relaxed as you please, in a nice comfy chair.

“Well that took longer than I’d expected.”

She wanted to punch him.

To be continued…