Bay Sorrel Ranch (100% Done) But Not Finished.

     So, here I am saying the book is done, but it's not finished. By that, I mean that the book is written. I have all the chapters written, and they are in order. What they don't have is flowability...not yet. I'm about to go back through the book a dozen times to make sure the spelling errors are corrected, the grammar issues that I see are corrected, and then I'll add dozens of more adjectives, even a few more nouns here and there. I'm fluffing it, and I'm stuffing it. It's not done done, it's just written. I'd say it's 95% done.

    The book didn't turn out the way I thought it would, and that's OK. Most if not all of my books end up being different in the end than they were in the beginning. I start with basic broad ideas and when they take off in a million different directions I find myself listening to the voices of the characters. They have a right to shine, and to make decisions so that's what happens. 

    I don't only listen to the main characters either; if one or the other smaller characters has an idea, something to ping, or make the chapter stand out, I go with that. If I can make the chapter interesting and have it support the ones before and after it, that's the goal. Nothing usually stands on its own, but there are two chapters I think in this book that do actually have stand-alone status.  You'll figure it out when you read the book.

    Do I like it? I do. I'm not going to dwell on it too much, but I got out of the horse world for some of the same reasons (more, in fact) that my main character Jule Armstrong has to deal with. She was a racer, a rider, and a good sport for years before buying her own ranch. In just over a year after buying it and sinking so much of herself and her money into it, she's ready to get out from under it. It's not the money; the money is really never the issue. The people are the real problem. Horse people. They suck...for the most part, even the good ones suck to a degree.

    I say it all the time, "The best thing about horse people are their dogs!" and I mean that. Horse people lie, cheat, steal, rob, bury things, burn things, hide things, use people, abuse people, use animals, abuse animals, and they can also be good, loyal friends, but even those people tend to skate the Golden Rule over and over again. It just became too much for me to remain in the mix. I can admit also that the expense was just too much, but that too deals with the barn and the barn owners. They charge too much. That simple.

    You can't make money owning a horse barn unless you overcharge people, and even then you're only making a little something. The best thing to do if you're a barn owner is to board a few and have a regular job somewhere else. That way you don't have 100 people vying for the stalls, the wash stalls, the feed, the arenas, and God help them if the English riders forget to pick up their jumps, or the Western riders forget to take down their poles and/or barrels. It's just too stupid to try and have schedules because most participating barns also give lessons to 4-9-year-olds who can rake $$$ out of their parents and drag them along for years and years. Adults figure out pretty quickly that the 169 lessons required could be cut down to 10.

    The book is done. I'm fluffing it now, and then waiting a full week to fluff it again and go back over it. Since I don't have the Canva and/or Adobe accounts yet, I can't do the book cover anyway until the 22nd. I'll end up publishing the book on 12/22 and or 12/23. It'll happen. I've at least picked out the photos for the front and back cover. That's good. I'll have to manipulate them of course, and a description of the book on the back. I'll add the "About Author" page on the back of the book along with links to where folks can buy the books online.

    So there we go...another book done!  That makes 5 novels written in 2023, and I released Faith's bio again, as well as my poetry book. I gathered the blogs from my computer and formed (formatted) "Jude's Almost Daily Blog Book 2", so if you are counting, that's 8 books published on Ingram Spark from January 2023 to December 2023. Quite a busy busy year to be sure.  I took "Of Kilted Pleasure", "Faith Walks", and "Periwinkle" from the original publishers, and republished them through Ingram Spark.  

    From this point forward all the books will be written, edited, formatted, and uploaded for free; this is good news. I can't produce the Ebooks for free, they will be around $240 per book. I'll end up doing that in  January and February of 2024. By this time next year, I hope to have 4 more books written.  Three will be in the Nick Posh thriller series, and another in the Kilted romance series.  Good stuff.

THANK YOU for all you do, and for all you buy and read. I truly do appreciate it. All of my books are on Amazon. (If you find mistakes let me know, I've edited them, but I think Amazon is still selling some of the older ones. Which isn't fun, but I can't do anything about it.)

Photo Credit: Blood-Horse.com

Bay Sorrel Ranch (87% Finished) Good Times.

         I'm thinking I could finish the book tomorrow.  I say "finish" as if it's done, but it won't be. I finish it, go back over it, and then I go back over it again...and again. I have to be sure the chapter headings are all the same, and I look for any red squiggly lines or double-blue lines that indicate a possible grammar check. The red squiggles tell me I've misspelled a word. I love that. I wish I could catch all the mistakes, but it's virtually impossible for me to do that. 

    So, I'm 87% done if I'm going by my 86,000 standard. The book will be another 5x8, I don't think I'll do the 6x9 anymore. I don't like it. I know others do, but I really don't. I have some books that are 6x9, but I look at them and think I should go back and reformat them. I'm not going to do that probably, but I do think about doing it. I'm such a mess. Maybe if I had NOTHING to do I could do that, but I usually have something else to do.

    Tonight, after finishing three more chapters, I sat down and wrote out about 80 to 100 actions such as "she turned to her left" or "shifting his weight".  I want to add these short descriptive phrases throughout the entire text to make it more interesting. I tend to leave out so much of the action when I'm writing. I don't want my readers getting bored, so I have a standard list of 200 or so phrases that I use and then I try to come up with more toward the end. There really are just so many times you can say something without needing to add a descriptive phrase to seal it.

    Saying something like "reaching for the homemade soap her granddaughter made" will prompt me to add at least another sentence or two to the book in order to incorporate the descriptive active phrase. It's a game I play with myself. By the end of the book I've added another 3000 words usually, and I like myself so much more for having forced myself to think.  Sure, we all want to end the book, but we need to end it properly and with purpose.

    After I write it, after I stuff and fluff it, I go back through it for details. I remove things, I add things, I change things. For instance, today I changed two people's names. They were boring. I mean, you're allowed to have boring names in a book, but I want some of them to be good and solid names that people can remember in the future. The singer I have in this one is John Wilson, that's boring, but it's basic, and he's a good character. He won't be making another appearance in another book, and he's not the main character, so he's just John. I could change his name to Spencer Wilson, I may do that. I could also make him taller, more robust, and have him bearded with nearly a crew cut in the back and a mop of long flop on the top; something that the Americans would call quite different; but it really isn't. I haven't described him yet. I need to do that.

    The murder is discussed in this section, but I may just let the whole murder thing be unsolved and unattended, as the book isn't about the murder as much as it is about the ranch and that a murder took place there. Who did it isn't as important as the fact that there was in fact a murder on the ranch right after Jule Armstrong took it over. It was the beginning of her questioning as to why she had decided to become a ranch owner in the first place if she had done so with the idea of it being relaxing and a means for her future retirement. She's discovering that being the ranch owner may be more than she bargained for, but she can't exactly get out from under if since her daughter can't afford to buy it, and the Mustangs are really thriving there. It may be something she's stuck with.

    What do you want to bet it all works out in the end? I can almost smell it...oh wait, that's my apple dump cake in the oven. I have to go get that and pretend I'm working on the book  - see ya.

Photo Credit: Pinterest.com

Reflection (2023)

     Another odd and unusual year has come to a close (almost) and though we still have a few weeks left in 2023, I thought I would go ahead and talk about what has happened in my life over the past 12 months. I've had worse 12-month experiences, to be sure, but also, to be fair, I've had better as well.

    This time last year I was working for a small investment firm in the "Back Office" as I was to be trained to be in the Finance department just after the holidays, where I would have been a trader's assistant.  That was really right up my alley, as I had been training for a few years for just such a position. I had completed my SIE courses, taken the test, and I had passed. I was hired with the understanding that I would be in the back office doing the dirty work for about 3-4 months then I would be handed over to a new supervisor; to pick up the slack and learn what it meant to buy and trade bonds. I could use the training in my personal endeavors with learning how to trade currency on the Foreign Exchange. Pretty cool stuff.

    On 12/28/22 I was called into the HR department and told I was being terminated. I was not being handed over to a new finance manager, but kicked out of the company entirely; this after having been given a Christmas bonus, a great 90-day evaluation, as well as several congrats and comments from the V.P., and one of the two presidents who felt that I would be a great asset. It didn't make sense.  It didn't make sense that they were going to give me a severance either. I hadn't been there very long at all. They gave it to me so I couldn't or wouldn't seek legal action. I was being terminated by my own supervisor, who had just made the Board of Directors over the guy in Finance, and she wanted to thump him -- she did it by terminating his next big thing. What a bitch. Karma is a real thing, she'll get hers.

    Just after the first of the year, with my severance and the right to file for unemployment if I wanted to, I decided to write a book, a novel. I decided to just relax, let it all go, and just pour myself into a creative venue rather than waste my time worrying about Kathrine whatshername. I literally can't remember her last name. That's how much she actually means to me. I could go find it if I wanted to, but good riddance.

    I wrote the book and sent it off to be published. I fought like hell with the publisher, and I spent way way too much money on the project. That was about the time an insurance guy called me and said he heard I was out of work. He needed an assistant, and we agreed not only that I would work from home, but that I would also be paid X amount; no quotas, because the carrier had taken a HUGE hit the previous fall, and clients were dropping off, not buying insurance. My role was to retain folks, and hopefully make a sale now and again.  I agreed. I should not have. 

    By April, just a few months into the year, the man's bigoted attitude and his racism got to me. I couldn't morally or ethically continue to work for him. I let him know how I felt, and yes, he terminated me. I needed him to terminate me rather than quit so I could collect unemployment. I didn't want to be on unemployment, but I also needed to find another line of work. Selling insurance in Oklahoma at that time, and now, is just too hard to do on commission. If I was on unemployment for five months, I could learn a new trade in the business. That was my entire plan. I had another plan too; to write a few more books.

    In April I wrote "Murder Book", and it was my first book to fully self-publish by using Ingram-Spark. I found out I could write the manuscript, edit it, format it, and upload it 100% free!! What? That was just too cool. Having the cover created through Canva and Adobe was also free. I had to keep up their monthly subscriptions after the initial 30-day trial, but the book cover, the process, the publishing, and the editing were 100% FREE. That thrilled me. I decided from that point every single book I wrote would be free.  

    In May I released "Jude's Almost Daily Blog Book 2", a book I had 98% written, that was just needing to be put together. It needed to be edited, formatted, and needed to be published. It took about one week. Again free, and again, too excited about that fact.  I also picked up a few tips on how to do what's called estimating insurance claims. I found out that being an estimator, or claims adjuster (I was already licensed) could earn me a lot more money, but it did take time to learn and there were some expenses to pay along the way.

    The entire summer from late May through August was spent trying to hone my skills as a claims adjuster through study, research, modules, and working with a dozen insurance carriers and affiliates that literally take you by the hand to train you if you're willing. I bought licenses in other states, 10 in fact, and I worked my way through hundreds of hours of study to get as much into my head as I could. When I couldn't pack in more, I wrote books. I used writing a means to escape and create. It worked out for me.

    In June I wrote nothing, but in July I wrote two books back to back. One was a romance book, but not like "Of Kilted Pleasure". This one took place in modern times and though it was even titled "Edinburgh" and took place in the great city, it was a book about life changes and challenges for a woman in her 40s, which isn't the same as most romance novels. It was a good book. It is a good book. The 2nd novel I wrote in July and spilling into August was "Pinball".  It was put on hold for some reason, probably because I kept looking for work, and I published it in October. Pinball is the sequel to Murder Book.  I love love love that book.

    In August, I rekindled a tossed friendship with a person who I felt had some grace left within her. You're told not to surround yourself with overtly negative people, and that's why we ceased to be friends in the past. She couldn't and wouldn't stop her woe-is-me (constant) attitude. She was just a mess and still is. We were friends again, but only briefly. I tried so hard to make the best of it. I called her every day, encouraged her and tried to help her mentally and emotionally. She helped me once financially and I'll go into that in a minute, but in the end, she proved to be the same back-stabbing bitch she was the year before. I couldn't continue my quest to be her friend. She went so far over the line to hurt me. It stung too hard. 

    In October I was finally hired to start a job with the state, but it wasn't going to start until December 4! What? Several weeks from the time I needed to go back to work as my last unemployment check had been spent on rent just that week. I was happy of course, as I live with my daughter, and she was able to pick up the slack, but the fact is, I've never been so close to the wire and without funds in my life; not even when the kids were little and I found it so very difficult to make ends meet. I had parents or someone to lean on, but today it was a kid!!  (She's OK, she's even happy to do so because she knows I carried the three of them for years.)

    In November, at the beginning of it, my car tag was stolen. The sticker on the right side that has the year on it. I didn't know this, but I picked Laura up from work and was pulled over by a very sweet police officer who said he didn't have a choice, he had to give me a ticket. No warnings are given these days.  I didn't have the money to pay for the tag and my friend was asked if she could help. She agreed, and even though the amount was more in person than what I was told on the phone it would be, she paid it. I was most grateful; thanking her, and promising to pay her after I started my new job.  I will mention that the job I received was one she had agreed to take then she withdrew her application for it. She encouraged me to go for it, I did, I was accepted, and now she was upset about it. I not only "took her job" I "took her money".  Can you see where this is going?

    My "friend" had begged me to apply, saying she felt I would be good at it. I got the job, and she got upset, but she never told me. She paid for my tag, having at least two opportunities to say no, but when she did pay for it, she again talked herself into believing that I somehow manipulated her. Her rant online was unbelievable and I was again hurt by her darts; why couldn't she have told me how she felt? I would have made some other arrangement even if it meant parking the car and not driving it!  That same day I was called by the state HR department saying they were rescinding my offer for the position. Apparently, someone had called them to say I had lied on my application. I can't tell you how hurt I was over that.

    Not only would the HR people NOT tell me directly what they found or thought they found, however they implied that the anonymous caller who gave them information about me had stated that I had been terminated by a finance company in 2022, something I had not mentioned; therefore that may have been the deception. I asked if I was allowed to defend or explain, and I was told no. There you go; the only people who really knew about the investment company's termination status were my friends. This woman not only purposely called my new employer to have my offer rescinded, but she wanted the job back, and apparently bad enough to ask for it; the only reason I know this is she boasted about it on her social media.  Needless to say, we are no longer friends.

    I wrote a letter to the state explaining that my recruiter and resume drafter had advised me not to put anything on my application that had been less than 180 days. I listened to their advice, but if they felt I had been deceptive I would at least ask for a hearing to clear my name. That was not to happen, I received a call from the state saying the matter was dropped, and I could again apply if I chose to, but the starting date for the next session of training would be mid-April. CRAZY but true. It had to do with budgeting I believe, but at least I knew where their information had come from, and I was able to cut the cancer out of my life permanently.

    In November I decided to write another book. This one is about mean girls at a barn who do awful things to one another, and yes, I will include what my ex and former friend did to me because it makes for good reading. People, for some reason, want all the gory details. If I can make a buck off the way she behaved, I suppose that's a start to fill up the hole that she left when she shafted me for the last time. I'm reminded of the characters of Edgar Allen Poe's "Cask of Amontillado" when the one man who had been jeered and insulted for the last time decided to seal up his former friend in a wall down in a lonely damp and isolated basement. I didn't want to go that far - - but maybe I will in another book; she really hurt me.

    Bay Sorrel Ranch is about 80% done now and will be released just before Christmas. I'm finishing the last few chapters before editing it, formatting it, and sending it up to the publisher. I'll start a new free subscription for Canva and Adobe for 30 days, it's been long enough now I can do that, and I'll close out the year employed, because my new job starts next Monday, December 11. I'm not telling ANYONE where I am going to work, or what I will be doing. I've been shanked, shafted, hurt, and deceived too many times in the past. I've simply been too nice about it, and that has to end. I have to protect myself, and I will.

    In closing, I guess the year 2023 was really cool in that I wrote and published six books; that's something to be proud of. I also had a good friend hurt me, but I had the grace to forgive once and the withal to stand my ground when she proved to be the monster she was before. I pray for her, and I will continue to do so, but I can't allow my soul, my heart, or my compassions to fall like they did. I've been too pie-in-the-sky with my feelings and hopes in the past, not wanting to see reality for what it is. I know the world is ugly at times, but my optimism kicks in and I want more for myself and everyone else. 

    The year was a good year. I didn't earn much, so it wasn't a profitable year, but I did relax, I did learn, I did write, I did love, and I did understand quite a bit more than I knew the year before. I'll be OK, and I'll even survive. God is great, and if nothing else, He is to be praised in the hallways even if the doors all close.

Photo Credit: Freepik.com

Bay Sorrel Ranch (78% done) YEA!!

     So much happened today!! I think I wrote somewhere between 9000-10,000 words and that's a lot really. Most chapters have 2200-2300 words, but two of my three chapters today had nearly 4000 words each. I just kept writing. I loved it. I had a rodeo, an accident, an idiot, and a sweet new romance started. It has games and playing, and a new little dog!! YEA...the dog!!  He's a little Border Collie, and he's already getting himself into too much mischief. 

    The book is 78% done, if I'm going by the standard 86000 words that I shoot for. I sat myself down again and had to go over the last few chapters. I'm on #26 now. I'll have about 30-31 probably, but it could be 32. I can see this one striking out another chapter to get the full story told.  Just when I think I'm done, I go back to put the quotes in italics and then add another paragraph here and there. That's really what I am going to do next week when the entire book has been written in the first draft.

    So, after say another 5 chapters I'll go back over the whole thing for mistakes, misspellings, grammar issues, and more. I'll put in new adjectives, more explanations, and deeper meanings. Sometimes I just throw out a concept, but go back and flesh it out in the end. I call it fluffing and stuffing. I'm digging around the paragraphs looking for words I can add, or little phrases to make it sound pretty or interesting, or maybe both.

    I'm not really making it about any certain year, but a modern year, a recent year. It could be 2023, but I'm not saying it is. It goes into the next year, so it could be 2022, and then goes into 2023. It's just not ever said. It doesn't need to be pinned down to any particular event. I think I mentioned the Pandemic or lockdown, but I don't say how long ago it was; just that it was.  People are traveling, going about, and doing what they want to do. 

    Jule and Steve are married, and no, I didn't make a big thing out of the wedding. She'll describe it in a letter to her mom, through writing in her diary later, but it's not something the characters participated in other than to know that she did have a nice pretty, and expensive new dress, and Steve, at her request, wore a kilt. His father's side of the family was mostly German, but his mother was a Moore, which is a Scottish name, and he was more than willing to let her have her fantasy. He knew he would be participating in them anyway.

    I may need to bring in MCT coconut oil and its benefits tomorrow when I write. I have another week before I go to work and have to put my writing on hold until after 5 p.m. That will certainly slow me down some, but I think I can still write out a book every other month, so I expect to write six books in 2024, just like I did in 2023. I didn't write all the time this year, but if I'm only doing it at night and on weekends, I'll crank out what I can. This one is a drama, it has nothing to do with the Highland romances or the murder thrillers, but it's been fun to write. I've enjoyed myself. 

Photo Credit: Pinterest.com

Ferguson! (Until we find out if he/she is Fergy or Fergus)

     So, there we were, Laura and I just minding our own business in PetSmart because you know, we do that; we mind our own business. There we were thinking we needed to buy a few crickets for her Leopard geckos, when out of the blue, completely unrehearsed, and without any real plan whatsoever (except we generally ask when we go into the store) Laura asked the store associate if the store had any geckos for adoption. You see, the adopted pets are free; not the cats, and yeah, not the dogs, if they have them there through an organization, but if you find an adoptable lizard, snake, bird, or rodent at the store, you can actually take them home with you for free!

    We do that from time to time because we enjoy rehabbing and rehoming. We never charge anyone for the animal, just for the tank and supplies if we sell that with the animal. This time, however, I'm keeping the little Fancy Leopard gecko that I've chosen to call "Ferguson" until I find out if he is a he or she is a she. Then, it will still be named Ferguson, but I'll call it "Fergy" or "Fergus" probably. For simple and probably biased reasoning, I am referring to the little reptile as a she currently. I have every intention of making my apologies to him/her if I need to later.

    You do feed live crickets and mealworms to geckos, but it's not the same feeding those live creatures as it is (for me) when you have to feed live rodents to snakes. In the past, I've rescued snakes, but I didn't like having to feed live. I had one and only one that ate frozen pinkies, but even those are sad because they're all fuzzish or about to become so, and they're dead in your refrigerator; not a good look when friends and family go snooping...it does raise the eyebrows.

    Ferguson is what is called a Fancy Leopard, and I really haven't seen much of a difference in the various types. My daughter Laura knows a great deal more than myself. I have had them, and I have loved them. I have also had bearded dragons and love the stuffings out of them as well. To be honest, I'm sort of waiting for one of them to become available through adoption. I need to set it up first, so I'm ready when they get one. I wasn't ready this time, but Laura had a spare tank.

    What I think I'll do is get a couple of smaller tanks on Craigslist or Marketplace. I'll clean them really well, make sure they have lids and such, and then I'll start collecting hides, plants, bowls, and a lamp or two. That way when a dragon comes along, or another sweet Leopard gecko, I can do that...you know me, or maybe you don't, but if you did, you'd know I love to rescue. I don't like to spend a lot of money doing it, but I do love to rescue and care for animals that others have either thrown out or given away.

    In the past, I was all about rehabbing and rehoming. I thought I was going to keep my last dragon but she was very shy and didn't want to interact whatsoever after having her for six months. She was abused I suppose. She was gifted to a classroom where she can have plenty of things to at least look at and watch. I'm told she comes out of her hide and watches the kids. She doesn't like them getting too close, but she's intrigued, so that's good. I hate that people abuse anyone or anything, but they do.

    I don't know PetCo's policy, they may or may not have adoptable animals for free, but check out your local PetSmart if you're into reptiles, spiders, and such. This will give you the chance to be kind to a life, and if you decide to keep it, it will give you the joy of being a friend to someone who could use a good face to stare at now and again. We play with our animals. We take them out, hold them, love them, talk to them, and even let them watch TV with us. (We don't do that with the cats or dogs in the same room...just need to clarify that for anyone who may know I have furry things too.)

    So, Ferguson is about 3 inches long because she's lost her tail. She's about 2 months old, so I'll give her September 1 as her birthday, and she's sort of Ball Python looking, to be honest. I think the term is: Tug or Tug Snow if she is apt to remain light with darker spotting. She's pretty. I like her. She's really fast too, by the way. Laura transferred her from the little box thing to the cage and lost her! Zip! Bam! Gone!! That was fun, and yeah, a little scary too.  For now, she seems content, and I'll keep you posted.

Photo Credit: Me.  This is Ferguson. She eats about 3 mealworms every other day.

    

    

Bay Sorrel Ranch (65% done) Getting Good.

     To be honest, it's already good, but I'm really loving the writing at this point. I know it's going to be around 86000 words, or 328-340 pages, like the other books. I may end up with about 90,000 on this one. I did the Math today. I have 12 more known chapters left and with an average of 2500 words in each, that's another 30,000 words. I have about 56,600 now, so yeah, I'm on track; but I could do another chapter easily. I'm in the middle of one of the stories and realize it's taking more than a chapter to finish. I may end up making that chapter longer, or what I could do...and I like this idea, is to tell 1/2 the story, do another two unrelated chapters, and then come back and finish the one I'm on now.

    What's really cool when you're writing is that you don't really always know what you're going to do or say.  You don't know what the characters will do or say. You don't always know if a new character will pop out of a freezer at 7-11 and ask something that causes the entire store to stop and stare at them wondering if they held the keys to the kingdom the entire time. WHO THE HELL is this person? It's sort of like that when you get into the writing.

    Since some of the characters are based on real people, I try to get their inner personalities into the conversations. Since some are not based on anyone, I can be a bit more loose, a bit less restrictive and I can really dig up whatever I want to dig up. I will go over the book with a little sarcasm soon, making jokes or cracking statements from one or the other of the characters so I can put the vibe I want into it. I have been far too nice so far. I know I have been. I'm trying to bring myself back to the original idea of making a few of the girls in the book rather nasty; not good kids. It's just that I am such a hopeful optimist in real life, I have a hard time saddling the kids in my books with such behavior and demeanor.

    Today, one of the boys tries to convince another girl that he impregnated a girl, and he says it to impress her. Now, at sixteen is that really something you want to use to impress someone you're interested in? Not really. The boy has social issues and it becomes obvious to a few people as the story progresses.

    Anyway, I'm now 65% done. I've outlined the next 12 chapters with the details and main points I want to say. When I do finish I won't be finished. I'm never done when the last words are written. I have to go back through it and keep fleshing it out, so that it not only makes more sense, but it also has more color, more spice, more flare, and in this book, more nasty meanness. 

    I say it all the time, the best thing about horse people is their dogs!! This book could use a good dog. I'll add that tomorrow.

Photo Credit: Me.  (This is a grey roan Mustang we almost bought.)

Bay Sorrel Ranch (56% Done) More than Half Way Through.

     It is at this point in every book I write, that I realize I'm on the other side of the woods, and rather than running into it, I'm running out of it. I have only 46% more of the story to tell. I'm more than halfway through it.  I have the meat to go. I'm about to start it. I've introduced the main characters, and I've added a conflict or two. I've brought some light to a few matters, and developed a few characters, and now there needs to be a telling of tales; something to wrap the book around.

    The murder in the book is solid. It happened, but his isn't a murder book. This isn't a mystery, a whodunit or anything like that. I'll flat name the killer later in the book, and all the others can talk about it, give their opinions, and discuss their thoughts openly about it as if they had reason to do so. The book is about a group of individuals who come together and have something in common. 

    Each person at the barn has a reason to be there. Much like if you're driving down any particular road there are others also traveling down it; be it in cars, trucks, buses, bikes, maybe some are walking. Each person has a reason to be there, and each person has a story as to why they are there. Some of those reasons or stories could be interesting, but many are not. It's just the way it is. Nothing is exciting all the time.

    So the author herself and her new engaged boyfriend lover and bestie are in Edinburgh for the launch of her 7th Highland Romance book during this part of the book. They enjoy themselves in Auld Reekie, and even take in a concert of a particular Christian music artist. He tells his testimony, sings and explains life, and the pair are more than happy to download a few of his songs when they return home to Oklahoma.  Jule, the author and owner of the barn will make dinner soon, again, winning the heart of her lover, and she'll contemplate spending a week or two up in the Tulsa area soon to help her other daughter out when she undergoes an emergency surgery. 

    Not everything in the book is about the barn. The barn is the place where they gather, it's a place where they hub. The stories coming out of the barn are reflective of what can happen or take place at a boarding facility, but it's not the end all, and can't be. Life is too complicated for that to happen. I hope you'll enjoy reading the book. I'm having a great time writing it. I'm steering off a bit from what I first thought it would be, but I didn't want to become too bored with the whole mean girl thing; there's more to life than dealing with bullies. At least I think so.

Photo Credit: Unknown (Princes Street, Edinburgh, Scotland)

    

Bay Sorrel Ranch (47% Done) Woot!

     I didn't write anything yesterday, but I did today. In fact, I don't think I wrote anything for two days. I do that. I didn't decide I would write three chapters today, but what happens is, I'll sit down and start writing, and then my characters start talking and they fill out the chapter! I haven't said what I thought I would say, and suddenly there are 2300 words being passed around like nothing before it. So, the only thing I can do is put in a page break, and start the next chapter.

    That's what I did today. I had to deal with the murder at the ranch, but since the book isn't really about the murder, I didn't want to go all 48-Hours or Dateline on it, just sort of mention this or that about the autopsy, and how the girl was pregnant, and before I know, the characters started in on what they thought happened. I didn't want to stop them, they were really getting into it. So that's how I write, and now you know. I start a conversation and I listen to the various voices in my head -- yes, various, but they're not crazy most of the time. They don't ever tell me to kill anyone, we're only killing fictional people, I promise.

    I'm in the middle of buying a few horses now and having them trained. They're all Mustangs. The ranch is a Mustang ranch that doubles as a boarding facility. The boarders keep the lights on basically, no extra money is made off of them. If you don't know anything about horse boarding facilities that may sound odd, but you really don't make any money off of them. If you have to pay managers and feeders, grounds people, and such, you don't have anything left over. You have feed, you have equipment, you have water, gas, and electric bills, you really really don't make anything off of boarding, but you can keep your lights on.

    My main character (Jule) is an author, and she's in Scotland right now launching her seventh Highland Romance novel. She's really having a great time and I'll pay a bit of attention to that as well, but the ranch is her new thing. She's opened it to boarding, she's working it, she's loving the country living, but then she's very much falling for her old flame who hasn't even ridden a horse in over thirty years; she'll be his trainer too. It's going to be a really good ride - - and read. I hope you like drama, love, fun, and even a bit of nonsense. This book has it all.

Photo Credit: Me.  (a brown baby horse)

Bay Sorrel Ranch (Twelve Chapters In) 36% Done

     If I'm sticking with my goal of 86,000 words, then at 31,000 I am about 35-36% done with the new novel. It's not what I thought it was going to be. It's so funny to see and hear myself say things like that. After all, I am the one writing the book, shouldn't I get a say in what it is or how it turns out? You would think that, but you would be wrong.

    I cannot speak for anyone else other than myself, but I can say that my characters start out as real people, not as fast-swimming sperm vying for life. No, they are already grown in most cases, and they have their own views, opinions, mannerisms, and behaviors. Some of them, as you know, are killers! Some of course, because I'm that way, are law enforcers who go over the top and beyond their own strengths to catch those other types. I have lovers, bankers, horse people, dog owners, and even postal workers. I have doctors, gluten-free vegan types, and you know, I do love my musicians. At least one pops up in every book. 

    Come to think of it, I've just written Chapter 12 of the new Bay Sorrel Ranch book and no one has picked up a guitar yet. How is that even possible? It's a book about horse people and no one has taken a trail ride, or gone into a competition yet. I've really gotta get in touch with myself and make these things happen. I'm rather boring I think.  I have murdered a teenager. I did get that accomplished. No one knows why just yet, I mean, I think I do. I think I know why, but as I progress in this thing even that can change.

    Right now the new owner of the barns and property is just getting her feet planted and she's committing herself to the ranch life, but trying to juggle her writing career as well. The murder is actually almost hampering her new launch for what she thinks she can do with the ranch, but it's not really polite to move forward with the investigation still underway. Hey, but they did bring in the dogs!! That's always a good sign. The dogs know what they're doing...they get their man...woman, whoever. They do the work of 10 men easily. 

    The next adventure, because believe it or not, the murder isn't what the book is about, is the start of rodeo season. It's a year-round thing, but the closer you get to the summer there are outdoor shows, the more money is spent, and the more likelihood that the ranch will be seen for what the owner wants it to be known for; not the breeding grounds for illegal activities, which it has been for decades until various mismanaged ownership and such. It's a new beginning for the owner as well as the land itself. It's going to take more than a few coats of paint to cover all of the sins that took place at the BSO. (That's the former name of the place)

    I'm not going to lie, it's pretty exciting to be able to sit down and key out what I want to say, what I think should happen, and what I remember happening to us at other barns when we had horses. I'm drawing from real-life experiences in most cases, notwithstanding the murder. One barn we boarded at had three ex-convicts working at it; one was out on good behavior after being a part of a murder case in the late '90s. I think he was there, I think he was young, but I don't think he's telling the truth about it. I left the barn pretty quickly when I realized that they were selling drugs after hours. If you can't access your horse around the clock, there's a problem.

    There were so many bad barns in our lives. So many bad barn owners. We have one woman who we cherish, and she alone stands out as being a good barn owner, but even she knew how to push my buttons at times. I love her, and she knows I do, but she did try to tell me how to ride, and that just isn't going to happen.  I didn't mind if she wanted to instruct my daughter, but she got a bop on her head with my lightly closed fist (not hard, I promise) when she persisted with instructing me. 

    I don't know if I'll include her in the book, but I probably will, as I'll have the main character call her to let her know she's now a barn owner and trying to be as fair and open-minded as the one we love has always been.  For now, I'm having fun etching out the do's and don'ts of the next few chapters. I'll get them all outlined tomorrow and/or the next day. I don't have to rush because I don't have a subscription to Canva to do the new cover. When I do, I have an idea of what it will look like. What do you want to bet there's going to be a horse on the front of the book!

    

Photo Credit: Equine Helper

Putting the Writing on Hold for Now.

     I'm going to put my writing on hold for a month or so, this will allow me to get caught up on a few more things that mean a lot to me. I need to exercise more, and get out there and walk. I've been neglecting that. I think I thought I had to get those books out before starting my new job, and I did what I set my mind to do. I achieved my goal. I don't have to get the next one out right now. I can wait. I'm not really feeling that one like I did the Posh thrillers. Even "Edinburgh" was pressing me, but this book, "Bay Sorrel Ranch" is not really all that pressing. It's just sort of there.

    I will start my new job on 12/11 and that does give me enough time to write the book if I choose to, and I will probably be really relaxed about it. I may do a chapter here and there, maybe do a few tweaks on the plots and twists. I need to be sure I have all of it lined out the way I want it.  Because I'm not working yet I don't have all the subscriptions to the places I need to have them with so I can get the book formatted once I write it, and draw up a pretty (and free) book cover. I know it's only a matter of a few dollars, but why spend it if I'm just going to relax anyway. I'll get them back once I get a little more serious about the book being finished. 

    My new job is so funny, it's insurance, but it's more service than sales. It's from home, and there are three really good reasons I'm taking it; it's not the money. I'm actually taking a cut in pay, but it will be worth it in the end.  One reason I'm taking the job is that it is so relaxed. Because they are not expecting us to work hard, or to work overtime, I'll have time to think through my books during my work time as well. I don't have to be "on" the entire time, just available. 

    Another reason I took it is because the hours are literally what I wanted them to be.  You can't find that all the time. I work from 8:00 - 4:30 and Monday through Friday. The thing is, we're not really doing anything the first 30 to 40 minutes each day, just catching up from the day before, going over notes, and having a Teams meeting while we drink our coffee, and eat our breakfasts....all of us in our PJs. I love the stuffing out of that.

    Another...aforementioned reason, I wear my jammies to work. I don't get up, take a shower, get dressed, put on professional clothes, put my makeup on, and drive through poopy dreadful traffic to get to a place where others have experienced the same thing. By the time you arrive, you're upset. It starts the day off on the wrong foot most of the time. I don't have to listen to office drama, office politics, office lies, or office whatever. I am the only person in my office, and I'm in my jammies without makeup and without drama - - unless the dog needs to pee or something.

    During the seven weeks of training, we'll work  8-4:30, and then afterward it will be much closer to 9:00-4:15 p.m. as we're supposed to stop about 15 minutes before the close of the day to again go back over the plans, or what happened during the day so we'll be ready for it the next day. FREAKING LOVE IT.  Yes, it pays about $600 less or so each month, but for peace of mind, peace of peace, and whatever else, it's worth it. 

    During the training time, I'm going to be training in the evenings too. I'm learning Xactimate from the standpoint of taking my certifications.  I know Xactimate in theory, but I'll learn it to the point I can take the tests and be certified in both Level 1 and Level 2 of the program so that I can be that much more of an asset to the team I'm assigned to, or the next team. Once I have the skills I'll work them two or three months before asking for a new assignment. You can do that once you have a certification of Level 1 or 2 in Xactimate. You can ask for more money, you can ask for better hours too.

    The thing about knowing Xactimate is that if your current employer isn't working with you, the next one will.  Every contractor, and every insurance carrier needs and wants people who can do Xactimate from their home, and if you have a Level 2 certification, you can almost write your own ticket. The average salary in the States right now for a Level 2 is around $72,000.  Google that. Go look it up. It's a real thing. It depends on your assignment, and your employer, but an independent makes even more. So, this job is awesome. I can do it, relax, love it, stay, learn Xactimate, and I can move forward. 

    I love a win-win. It feels really good to just relax and know everything will be OK. God is just too too good. LOVE Him.

Photo Credit: Google Play (Xactimate)

Photo Credit: Glassdoor.com