So, apparently Deek and I do our main comiccon circuit during the summer and fall. LOL!
Remember how I said GalaxyCon was so crowded that it almost wasn't fun? And HereosCon wasn't what we'd hoped either? Well, we'd started to wonder if maybe we shouldn't be doing ComicCons anymore.
Enter GreenvilleCon.
This little beauty was *everything* we love about cons--personable and nerdy with good traffic but not enough that people were stepping on each other.
GreenvilleCon, you restored our faith in ComicCons! We love you!!
All set up!
Pre-ComicCon smooches!
We saw cool stuff like this headband that sits
on your eyebrows but looks like glowing eyes!
We saw AWESOME nerdom shirts!
And of course, the cosplayers...
Deek's favorite!
Such a super cute dad and daughter.
We loved talking to them!
Hunger Games, anyone?
And this lovely lady reads aloud to her husband every night.
She was kind enough to read a few pages from The Prophecy for us!
We did not head into Greenville ComicCon with a great attitude because of the disappointments from earlier in the season, but I'm so very glad we went. We met some amazing people, sold and signed a bunch of books, and had the best time.
Thank you, Greenville ComicCon! We'll see you again!
Hey, y'all! I've been heads down lately working on an editing project on my Erin Rhew Editing and Design side as well as finishing up my latest book to be pitched on #PitMad!
I am pleased to say I have finally finished the Molly and Ryder story, and it finally has a name--THE TRANSHUMAN PROJECT! Woot!! I have always been a huge sci-fi person, so I'm thrilled to have a sci-fi book ready for the world to see. And when I pitched on #PitMad, I got some hits, so I'm thrilled about that! YAY!
Here's the image I imagine for The Transhuman Project!
Both Deek and I have been buried in projects. He's working on The Injector, the sequel to The Extractor. He's almost done with the "creative vomit," and then he'll start the long, arduous process of editing. I finished The Transhuman Project, and I've decided that I'll rewrite Restore To Me from solely the women's perspective. So, that's the next thing I'm tackling.
But though we've been busy writing, we haven't forgone all the fun! Here's some of the shenanigans we've been up to lately.
Recently it was International Women's Day,
so I had to give props to these and all the other AMAZING women in my life!
We had a warm snap, so I could work outside in our three-season room with this little nugget.
Blooming trees and a bird's nest...spring is almost here.
Although, they are forecasting snow this weekend. <insert pout>
Trinity LOVES her Daddy. She's *such* a Daddy's girl!
Who can say no to this face?!?
Thanks to generous gift cards, Deek and I were able to get a much-needed couple's massage.
I got a new sign for my desk. "Sweatpants Zone" represent.
When you wake up and look like a pineapple. #ShortHairProblems
Deek got free tickets to a hockey game from his work.
It included a VIP parking pass and a food voucher.
So, naturally, we got nachos with said food voucher.
I may be lactose intolerant, but I can't resist nachos!
Spring is coming, y'all! I'm so thankful to have schlogged through another winter and made it to the other side! So, I'll leave you with this beautiful thought...
There's the old saying, "The only thing that never changes is that everything changes." Well, that's true. Another one I like is, "Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end."
Last year, a lot of things changed--my dad had bypass surgery, my beloved PaPa died, we bought a house and moved, friends and family from the PNW came to stay with us, and my biological father died. It was a mixed bag of good and bad. More bad than good, so I was happy to see 2017 go. Buh-bye.
Some days life feel like this...
And this year is starting out with changes too. BookFish Books, the small press I've worked for since 2013, is closing its doors. It's a bittersweet thing for me. On the one hand, I'm sad for the authors, sad the business wasn't able to stand the test of time, sad because these beautiful books won't be in the world, at least temporarily (I hope some of the authors will sign with other presses or self-pub). And on the other hand, it gives me more time to focus on my writing, build my editing business, and work with new authors at Tenacious Books Publishing.
But still, it's hard to say goodbye. Some of the BookFish people are like family to me. Thankfully we live in a digital world where everyone is just a text or email away. And yet...it'll never be the same.
In general, I would say I roll with change quite well (except for the season changes because I abhor winter), so I consider myself pretty adaptable. But I still haven't accepted PaPa's loss, and I'm still puzzling out the situation with my biological father's death. Deek always says I'm a deep thinker with a huge brain. While I suppose that's good in a lot of ways, it can make letting go of deeply important things that much harder.
His BabyDoll forever...
At the same time, change reminds us to be thankful for the times we had and the things that are the same. I'll always have my memories of PaPa, and I'll be his BabyDoll for the rest of my days. I'll always be proud of the BookFish team and the amazing books we unleashed upon the world. Some of these things may fade in my mind over time, but the imprint they leave on my heart will last forever.
So as things go away, I'm focusing on what's still here. While Deek and I will grow and changes as people and as a couple, we'll stand the test of time. That knowledge brings me great comfort in these moments when changes overwhelm me. I glance at my husband, and a peace comes over me. He's my rock, my happy place, my calm in the storm. When my heart aches over PaPa, or when ponder life because of what happened to my biological father, or when I choke up working on the final paperwork for BookFish, Deek is there. He's there to hold me when I cry, discuss my many random and varying theories, and tell me everything is going to work out fine. He's full of life, joy, passion, and humor. I adore that about him!
This man, y'all! This man makes my world so bright!!
In times of change or uncertainty, grab on to what is real, loving, and tangible. Remember the good times from the past, but step boldly into your future.
Deek and I send our thoughts and well-wishes to everyone affected by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma and to all who are dealing with the fires, especially our friends and family out that way. It's been crazy watching the Pacific Northwest burn, Houston drown, and the East Coast brace for Irma. I'm ready for the weather to settle down a bit. Better yet, can we just have summer back??
I can't believe how cold it's gotten in the last few days. I'm freezing, and it's only September!! Ugh, hurry up and be Christmas and then go back to summer. ;)
So, I finished the rough draft of my Molly and Ryder story!!! YAY! I worked and reworked the first chapter and then sent it to my hubby and critique partners to see if they thought I'd created a gripping enough opening. If you don't get the beginning right, the rest doesn't matter because no one will get that far.
Like always, my brilliant hubs and Dream Team offered valuable feedback. I've worked in their suggestions, and now I'm trickling that down to the rest of the story. As I do that, I'm making notes to myself along the way. Some of them are very brilliant like "Do better" and "Be more clever here." LOL!
*Don't worry. If you hire me to edit your work, I'll be much more specific in my instructions. Haha! But I know what I mean when I say that to myself. ;)
Self-editing is very important. I've heard this crazy notion of people finishing their rough drafts and sending those directly to critique partners and editors, or worse...to publishers and agents. Whenever anyone asks me for my biggest piece of advice to writers, I always say edit, edit, edit, and when you think you're done, edit some more. NEVER turn your rough draft over to anyone. You should edit that thing until you've exhausted yourself. And when you've completed that, let your beta readers and critique partners have a look. Then, edit it again. And when you're like, "Yes, it's as good as it can get," edit it one more time. I'm not even kidding.
At BookFish and Tenacious, we can always tell when someone hasn't put in the editing effort. You don't want an agent or publisher to think you don't value your work enough to put in the time to make it great. Don't shoot yourself in the foot right out of the starting gate.
Even though Deek and I are both knee-deep in editing (he's working on a sci-fi called The eXtractor), we've taken some time out for a little fun and exploration to keep our minds fresh. Take your own little mental break and join us...
I love this man so hard, I might cheesy grin my lips right off my face!
Editing in the coffee shop all author like
Taking a walk/hike through some beautiful woods!
Amazing corridor!
I feel like this is some weird rock-paper-scissors thing...
Post-run in the pre-Irma wind and rain.
Gawd, I love him!
Every day, I think I have reached the pinnacle of love for this man because it's at an epic high, but every single day, I love him more. It's like the universe, ever-expanding.
This is representative of my life--full of happiness, laughter, and love.
So, I did a thing. I cut off most of my hair. Why? Because I wanted to. I'd been talking it over with Deek for a little while, and when I went in for my trim, I asked my hairdresser to just hack it off.
I'm pretty excited about it for a variety of reasons, but one of them is COLOR!! I had purple hair back when we lived in the PNW, and I dyed it blonde before coming back to the South. Well, for the past year, I've been trying to get my hair healthy from all those dye jobs. And it's been boring brown. Ho-hum. With short hair, I can dye my hair a variety of colors, and we'll just cut away the damaged parts. Voila! So, I'm headed back in June to get this whole thing turned white-blonde. And then, I'll have purple added to my bangs (and possibly other areas--the temple pieces or top of the spikes) in prep for the Raleigh SuperCon, where I am a feature guest. All my promo pics show purple hair, so I gotta give the people what they expect! ;)
I'll be honest, I was a little wary of chopping off all my hair. Our culture, and a lot of men I know, place value on long hair as a sign of femaleness or femininity. So, in this sense, I'm so thankful I went to live in the Pacific Northwest for a while. I grew up in the Bible Belt South, and I never felt comfortable expressing my artistic funky side. But when I went to the PNW, that sort of thing is embraced and celebrated. I learned just how big and diverse this country really is. And I learned it's okay to be me. It's okay not to fit the status quo.
I'm an artist. I'm expressive. I like to try new things. That's who I am. And that's more than okay.
I'm also incredibly thankful to have a husband who not only accepts this part of my personality but embraces it. When I asked him what he thought about cutting my hair, he said, "Do it. One of the things I love about you is that you're bold and try new things. And changing your hair is one of the ways you do that. So, if you want to cut it, cut it."
When I texted him this picture yesterday, he replied back, "This is about as cute as humanly possible." He loves me just like I am, in all my variety of shapes, colors, and hairstyles. And I appreciate that about him so very much. I'm completely free to be me.
In other news, I recently found out that the cover artist for both BookFish Books and Tenacious Books Publishing is taking a summer vacation sabbatical. Why is that a big deal you ask? Well, she designs the final print covers for the books, and we have TWO releasing while she's away. That means all edits must be completed and all formatting done BEFORE she leaves! We had a schedule in place to complete said edits and formatting in June, but that deadline had to be seriously pushed up. So, I've been working with our authors and editors to get these books ready. Once they come to the formatter, they have to be done-done. No more major changes once a book enters formatting. We can make minor changes (a comma here, a word swap there), but the meat and bones have to be mostly done.
So, big props to the editors and authors for getting everything done and to me for formatting. I'm happy to report that the formatting for ALL summer release books (except The Beacon, which releases after our cover artist's vacation) is DONE! <high fives to my editing team and authors>
And Chrissy Lessey is even offering a sneak peek of her prologue for The Coven, which not only highlights her amazing writing but my formatting as well!
Despite all the work and hectic deadlines, Deek and I managed to have some fun hiking and attending a local festival!
The journey to who-knows-where
Hubba hubba
Gorgeous bridges
A treat for our hard work! ;)
Representing BookFish!
Enjoying a local festival
This little presh guy turned one!
When we adopted him, the shelter thought he was about six months old, and that was six months ago!
