Dum dum dummm.....rejected!

Just a quick update. If you recall, I did my first-ever submission the other week to a nice, pretty magazine.

Got a response today. It was a rejection, but still very nice.

Dear Summer,

Thank you for allowing ... to consider "A Tender Touch," but I'm going to pass on this one.

Overall, I like the idea presented here; I just don't feel it covers enough new ground for ...'s liking. Best of luck with this one, and please do try us again. Would like to see more from you.




Not bad, right? I wasn't expecting them to accept me anyway, but I had to try! 
And now I have my first rejection under my belt! 


Is it strange to be somewhat excited about this, instead of sad or disappointed?? 

Contests

Just a quick pimp:

Julie Dao is having a 200+ Awesome People contest. contest. Check it out!

Also, Sunshine Music is having a great follower celebration! And you can win owls! Sweet!

50/50

Day: 33
Goal: 33,000
Wordcount: 32,533



I haven't had much inclination to write the past week. I finished revisions on Saving Me and got 5 nice chapters out of it. I had to cut the majority of chapter 6 and rewrite it, which is why the total wordcount only went up about 200 words. It became a shorter, but more effective, scene.

I'm hoping to get some inspiration tomorrow, after I have my first online critique group meeting. :-)

J is also for...Jillian Michaels

I finally came crawling back in the door around 3:30pm today, after an excruciating doctor visit. They were running about an hour-fifteen behind, so my 10:15 appointment turned into more of an 11:30 appointment...But anyway. Not great news about the wrist. Dr. P has pinpointed my pain epicenter as my joint, not the tendons, which is both good and bad news. Good news, because it means that I'm not developing tendinitis, as he'd been fearing. Bad news, because it means that the pain is still coming from the TFCC (which is what he repaired in December). He didn't exactly articulate what that meant, but he did say that he's going to call my physical therapist tomorrow and see if they can work out a better treatment plan.

*sigh* I really can't remember what it was like to have usage of my dominant hand.

Anyway, enough whining about that.

Today I got the Jillian Michaels' 30 Day Shred dvd in the mail! I've only been reading good reviews of this workout, and like I said, my friend Amanda is already several days in and feeling good.

I'm hoping that coupled with the healthy-eating turnaround I'm still working out, this will help boost me towards my fitness goals. I foresee some minor trouble, considering I can't do any weights or pushups with my right hand, but I'm sure I can figure something out.

I'm ready to SHRED.


(Seriously, though, "shred" is a cool word.)

Cloud

I've played with it before, but Sierra Godfrey inspired me to copy-paste the entirety of Saving Me (so far, 20k) into Wordle and see the results.

If you're not familiar with the program, it basically picks out the most commonly repeated words in the text presented and makes a pretty cloud of shame for you to see.

If you click on the picture, it'll take you to the large-size so you can actually read it.

50/50

Day: 29
Goal: 29,000
Wordcount: 29,822

    Hanging in there! I added about 3,000 words to my WIP revision tonight; only writing I've done this week, besides some minor revisions to the short story I submitted. This week was unusually busy for me, so I'm hoping I'll have a lot more to show next week. I'll be finished revising what I've already written for Saving Me pretty soon, so the real challenge is still yet to come.

*Gulp*

I'm about to submit a short story for the first time. (Shimmer Magazine)
I've formatted it.
I have the submission page open.

Nervous!

UPDATE:
I did it. 


Now, go read my "real" post for the day, if you'd like. :-)

E is for Excitement and Evolution

Sorry this post is so late coming in today, but you'll understand why in a minute.

Today was the BIG GARDEN DAY!

Yes! The day I've been waiting for finally came!

Today dawned clear and sunny around 78 degrees...I strolled down to the post office to check the mail while waiting for my in-laws to arrive.

That's the post office to the right, with the van out front. 

This is a church that sits on the corner of my neighborhood. Pretty, huh?

These flowers were on the church's steps. Pretty! I want some!

So the in-laws finally arrived around 10:45, and we got to work right away. First, let me show you want we were dealing with:

Before

Before. Hairy Scary!!

And then, the evolution began. By noon, it was about 88 degrees...

E cutting some landscaping timbers. He and his dad built brand new beds. 

Ooh, pretty!

Lovely, huh?

While E and his dad built the beds, my mother-in-law and I went to the store and got the other little plants I wanted, mostly veggies and herbs. E's parents brought me a bunch of stuff already, like day lillies, ginger lily, a gardenia, creeping jenny and ice plant, among others (whose names I can't remember). 

The finished product:

Please grow up and be tasty! 

Big difference, huh? 

BEFORE

AFTER

It was hot, but we did it! And it turned out amazing! Quite the evolution, eh? 

My sunscreening almost worked, but I missed two odd-shaped spots behind my arms. Not bad, not bad! 

Tomorrow: F

50/50

Day: 24
Goal: 24,000
Wordcount: 26,756

I only revised half of Saving Me chapter 5 today; the second half is highly emotional, and I'm too tired to properly handle revision/rewriting. Tomorrow is a long day by myself, since E has night class, so I'm hoping to get a couple thousand more words knocked out. I'm also rapidly approaching the end of viable revision material, and from thereout all will be new writing.

Sunday Award Show

I thought this was fitting. Awards shows are always on Sundays, you know?
I'm wearing this:

Or maybe this:

You can decide.

Either way, I finally got my act together and hunted down some awards that have been floating out in the 'sphere with my name on them.

I probably missed some. Please forgive me. My memory is like swiss cheese (oooh, cheese!).

Without further ado, I give you:

I think this is a very cute award, and it was bestowed upon me by an old friend, Christine Danek, and a new friend, Talli Roland. Both great ladies! Check 'em out.

I'm giving this out to some old friends whom I look forward to reading every day:

• Anne, at Piedmont Writer. (Don't worry, you don't have to make another award post for this.) 
• Hannah, or hannaH, at Musings of a Palindrome. She is made of awesome. 
• Sarah, at Falen Formulates Fiction. And to Yvie.  Another reason that I think Minnesota might be cooler than I previously considered. Plus, Yvie is a rescue dog, and you know I have a special place in my heart for rescue dogs. Also, she's a French Bulldog, which are the cutest. 

My other award is known as the Picasso Award, and was given to me by Jon Paul from Where Sky Meets Ground. 

This award calls for 7 Truths:

1. I bite my fingernails.

2. I can't touch my toes.

3. I'm allergic to nickel.

4. When I met my now-husband, I was engaged, and he had a girlfriend. 

5. I like to play video games. 

6. Even though I keep swearing I'm giving it up, I can't stop watching Grey's Anatomy. 

7. I don't believe in the concept of "the one." 

I'm passing this along to some old and new folks who brighten my every day. (#8: I check my email about once every fifteen minutes.) 

• Alex J. Cavanaugh. I wonder what that "J." stands for? 
• J. Kaye. A true study in writing discipline, and a great cheerleader! 
• Natalie Murphy. Because I secretly wish I was Canadian AND still in college! 
• Shelley Sly. I love her stories from talking with strangers. 
• Michael Emeritz. He Rick-Rolled me on April Fools'! Gotta give him props for that. 
• Gina-Leigh Maxwell. Support her as she tries regulating her blogging schedule! 

Whew, almost done! And I almost forgot this one! See? Swiss cheese brain!

Gina-Leigh Maxwell and Amanda J.  gave me this awesome award. 

This award originated here.

And I pass the Prolific Blogger award to:

• Amanda. She's my real-life friend (yes, I have them!) and definitely a prolific blogger! She's training to run the Peachtree Road Race on July 4th. I love her and her cutie baby. 
• Jen Daiker. My soul-sista! You know I could have an awards show without showing her some love. 
• Crystal Cook. She's an awesome blogger, writer, and artist! 
• DL Hammons. He's probably gotten this one before. He's so awesome, he gets all the awards. But this one's pretty manly-looking, so he should like that. ;-) 

Alright! Hope I didn't miss any...

Stay tuned for tomorrow's "D" post!

50/50

Today is Day 23 of the 50k in 50 days challenge.
In the spirit of full disclosure, I should let you know that my recent stats are revision-related, and though I've written a lot, it's not all fresh wordcount. Don't think I'm a 7k-a-day savant or anything. Just a mad reviser, yo.

So, my stats as of midnight, April 3:

Goal: 23,000
Wordcount: 24,886

Yep, you saw it. I finally caught up and surpassed target. I've been revising this MS like a madwoman the last few days. Inspiration struck, what can I say? I've finished revising four chapters, and hope to squeeze in at least one tomorrow.

50/50

Day: 21
Wordcount goal: 21,000
Actual wordcount: 10,376

Muwaha! I am catching you, goal!