Another New Year -- Already?!

Over the past year I have checked in here only on occasion, partly because I post weekly at another blog, partly because this year slipped by so quickly, but mostly because I struggled with how I wanted to use this blog or what I wanted to say here. In the coming year I want to show up more regularly -- in my writing in general and here in particular.

For now I am still planning what that content might include, but as a book lover -- an avid reader as well as a writer -- I thought at the very least that I could share the titles of the books I am reading. That's at least one thing I can do to check in here more often.

If you have other thoughts about what you would like to see here, please chime in -- inquiring minds want to know!

Until then, I wish you all a joyous start to the new year and a happy and safe 2011!!

xoxo,
bex

Five Good Things in a Year Full of Bad

After a quiet start to 2010, the past few months have been some of the toughest yet, with one emotional stab after another. There hasn't been a lot of good stuff to happen in this year, which makes the bright spots, when they've blossomed, that much brighter and my gratitude that much deeper for those unexpected but much appreciated bursts of goodness.

So as this year winds down, I have been thinking about the bright spots and thought I'd share the top five things I am grateful for in 2010.

5. FIFA World Cup action. I know it may sound silly, but this exciting tournament is one of my absolute favorite sporting events and it only comes around every four years. I love international play and miss it acutely when it ends.

4. Having an old friend get back in touch after a long absence.

3. Meeting someone new who has become a quick and big part of my life.

2. The RWA National Conference. It was an amazing experience for me from top to bottom - the absolute best yet!

1. One of my nearest and dearest confronting a cancer scare and getting through treatment.

A yucky fact of life is that no matter how bad we might be feeling at any given time, there is always someone out there in the world who has it worse than you. So to all of you who have had a year of bad, I send you my deepest, heartfelt sympathies. I hope you get bursts of goodness to help counterbalance the tough stuff.

xoxo,

bex

Truth is Stranger Than Fiction

As writers, we try to come up with good stories -- stories that will hold the interest of our readers, stories with good plot twists and turns, and stories with good, deeply rooted conflict.

One of my favorite series of books was written by Fern Michaels and the series ended up being three different series that all stemmed from the same family saga. If you haven't read the Texas, Vegas, or Kentucky books, my first instinct is to ask WHY NOT?! And my second is to say DO IT! I love, love, love these books. And when the Kentucky series ended I wanted more, more more. Alas, no more.

Family sagas are fascinating. To a certain extent, that was part of the appeal of soap operas for me. The serial telling of the tales of families and of place. The over-the-top drama and the opulent lifestyles and the mega accomplishments could only be the stuff of soap operas. Some of that stuff couldn't possibly happen in real life. Right?

Someone has come into my life recently, and his family's stories rival the sagas I enjoyed reading (mentioned above) and the soap opera story lines that have captured my fascination in the past. I now know that the over-the-top-ness of some of these fictional story lines don't often come close to the drama and the lifestyles and the accomplishments some people find in real life.

What about you guys? Do you know of real life dramas, sagas, and soap operas that top what's found in books or TV? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,

bex

Got a Life

This past summer was crazy and stressful but there were a couple of good things to come out of that chaos, too - I got a life.

Someday I might write about why I didn't have one for a long time, but for now I just want to focus on the fact that I am making changes in my life that I hope will help me as I move forward toward my goals.

As a bi-product I have a new form of busy, which is good by all accounts but is pushing my time and task management skills to their limits. I have been on the road more than I have in a long time and I am excited to be out and about and seeing new things.

But for you guys who spend a lot of time in your cars, bustling from place to place, how do you get yourselves quickly focused and into deep writing mode when those pockets of writing time arrive? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,

bex

Looking Ahead: National Novel Writing Month

October is just getting underway and I am already thinking about NaNoWriMo. To nano or not to nano? That is the question.

I have started NaNoWriMo a few times, got close once, but have never actually won. I have a new book I would love to work on during the November writing frenzy but, you see, I have this other book. The one that's almost done. The one that I need to get submitted. And I don't think that winning NaNoWriMo on this new book is the best way to spend my November.

Sigh.

I could always do my own version of NaNo at another time but I am not sure if that will work for me. What about you guys? Have you ever run your own Novel Writing Month outside of November because the timing wasn't great? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,

bex

What Summer?

I had really high hopes for the summer and here it is - gone. Slipped completely through the fingertips. I know the summer actually happened because it was one of the hottest and most stressful summers I've ever had, which is largely the reasoning behind why you haven't seen a lot of me here on the What's Wilder blog. I have been consumed with so many outside things and the blog just kinda' fell off once the World Cup ended. Thanks to such soccer fun, the summer at least got off to a good start, even though it was pretty rocky and unusual from there on in.

The biggest highlight of my summer was the RWA national conference. It was the best conference I have ever experienced, thanks to the new and old friends I got the chance to see and the happy accidents that led to some cherished experiences. Thank you, ladies, for making the trip to Orlando the highlight!

I hope you all fared a little better. Let's hope for much cheer and good will as we race toward the holidays. Hard to believe that 2011 is just around the corner!

xoxo,

bex

Health and Wellness and Other Goals

As part of the Change Your Stars Challenge that we've embarked on over at my other blog, the Moody Muses, I have not only wanted to make new progress on my writing goals but also on my health and wellness goals, too.

The hard thing though, is that sometimes life gets in the way of any plans we might try and make. This summer was supposed to be a big one for me in terms of productivity and weight loss and general feeling better about where I'm at in this stage of life and none of that ever happened because life happened instead.

Instead of digging in and finishing that book like I'd told many friends that I would, I was sometimes too emotionally overwhelmed to do anything. Just completely paralyzed to concentrate on a little thing like progress.

And when the going gets tough, the tough get . . . to doing a whole variety of things. They may get going. They may get tougher. They may hit the gym. They may go shopping. They may eat. And eat I did. I am pretty much farther away from those health and wellness goals than I had ever anticipated, but I think in times of crisis we just have to trust that we are getting through things the best way we can. We are not slacking off on important deadlines or the hard core responsibilities, but we are taking the time and care that we need to be whole. And quite frankly, for me and in this emotional state, it did not result in my opting for the gym membership. At least not at this time. I've just been too damn fragile.

The behavior is cyclical I think. I am so tired. And the more tired I am the less I want to move about. And the less I want to move about the more bad food I eat. And the more bad food I eat makes me that much more tired . . . You see the vicious circle taking shape.

At some point I will break the cycle. But for now I can only manage the many things I already have on my plate and I swear that I'm just getting by in the best way I can. Losing myself in the book in the few instances I can, trying to push forward and get this work done despite the stress and chaos around me.

How do you guys cope when the two words to describe what's going on in your lives are: TOO MUCH? Is it more than just peanut M&Ms? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo

bex

Down to the Final Matches!

Is it really the last week of the World Cup? I = so sad! I have been loving the matches - some full of heartbreak and some great surprises among the teams. Did any of you participate in an office pool? We did a low-key competition where we filled out the online brackets provided by ESPN. The early rounds nearly made my picks obsolete as the teams of my heart such as England and Italy made hastier exits than I would have liked. Oddly enough though, the two teams I picked for the finals are still standing - Spain and the Netherlands. The Red Fury and The Oranje. It should be a great match-up and, since neither team has ever won the coveted cup, I wish they could both somehow take it home. I picked Spain as the ultimate winner, but the Dutch are playing so well right now, it's hard to see how my Spanish boys will get past them. Then again, I thought the German game would have been a more difficult test than it was, so we shall see on Sunday.

Here are my Euro 2008 Champs -- Fernando and Sergio!!

Viva Espana!

Any thoughts? Inquiring minds want to know!


xoxo,
bex

Soccer + Books = 2 of My Favorite Things in 1!

"Soccernomics: Why England Loses, Why Germany and Brazil Win, and Why the U.S., Japan, Australia, Turkey--and Even Iraq--Are Destined to Become the Kings of the World's Most Popular Sport"

I picked up this book during one of my last trips to Borders and I wish I had the chance to read it before I completed my World Cup brackets!! I still have my favorite players I'd root for regardless, but this book takes an interesting view on the world of soccer. I highly recommend it for any fan!

How are your teams faring in the tournament? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,

bex

3 More Days!

Just three more days until one of the biggest sporting events on the planet kicks off. I can't wait! A few weeks ago I posted my excitement and at that time I thought I might weigh in with some more thoughts about the World Cup. Since then, news hit about lots of injuries to some of the brightest stars in the tournament so who knows what awaits the millions of fans whose eyes will be trained on South Africa over the next four weeks!

As for me, I'll have my eyes trained on the following . . .

I have become a pretty big fan of the Spanish team, largely because of Fernando Torres and Sergio Ramos. As a result, I also watch Real Madrid and Liverpool as religiously as I can.

I know this next comment will be blasphemous to the England faithful, but I am not a Wayne Rooney fan. But Frank, John, and Steven have my alliances equally torn between Chelsea and Liverpool, and will have me hoping for a good English showing.

As a La Liga convert, I can't possibly root for Real Madrid without becoming a fan of Gonzalo Higuain. I am so interested to see how Argentina fairs in this year's contest. With Messi being one of the, if not the, best players on the planet, I am eager to see how these two team up.

Portugal and Cristiano Ronaldo. Just because. Simao ain't too bad to watch either.

And finally, my beloved Azzurri. A few of my favorite faces will be missing from this year's squad, but there are a few holdovers from the 2006 winning ensemble that I hope will make Italy's showing fun, strong, and exciting.

So, who are you rooting for? Are you loyal to one team, or root for a bunch of favorite players? Who do you think will be the last team standing? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,

bex

Managing Multiple Projects

I don't know about you guys, but I can't seem to work on just one project at a time. There is always the premier project of course - the one that gets the majority of my writing time so I can devote the energy and time required to get from Chapter One to The End. But during this whole time, ideas are constantly percolating for what comes next . . . and most times I cannot keep those ideas on the back burner and wait until I clear the decks to make one of these projects the next premier one.

So . . . what about you guys? How do you manage all the voices going on? How do you keep your time and energies organized when being nagged by multiple projects? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,
bex

Vision Boards and Goal Setting

I attended a motivational seminar a few weeks ago and the presenter discussed a number of different things that we can do to help us reach our goals. One big thing he emphasized is that we should leave notes for ourselves in plain view to serve as constant reminders of those goals we want to meet. These reminders can consist of frequently viewing note cards we create, sticking post-it notes on our mirrors, or mounting a big collage that shows visual representations of our goals. He stressed the importance of creating these vision boards so that we can see what our dreams look like, imprint those images in our subconscious, and work - both consciously and subconsciously - toward our goals. In his words, once we know where we want to go we can work on the 'how' part of getting there. The vision board puts the 'where' where we can see it.

I am in the process of pulling together the images for my own vision board (the one here is a cool example I found on the Internet) and I can't wait to start putting it all together. Do you guys do vision boards? What kinds of things do you include on them? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,
bex

Practicing Persistence

I didn't want to let too much more time pass during posts, so I thought I'd check in with an update. I'm practicing the persistence thing right now -- I'm on the third draft of my YA novel, trying to get it poised and ready for a June class I'm taking on revision. One of my goals for 2010 is to develop habits that will help me write leaner and faster, and this revision class is one of the action steps I am taking en route to that goal. Then, of course, I'll be headed to the RWA national conference at the end of July, where I hope to cross paths with a few agents on my wish list. Hence the need to increase my level of practice with persistence - to keep going and keep working even when the outcome is uncertain. I found this great quotation from Calvin Coolidge, and I am psyched to share it here with you. I hope it helps motivate you as much as it has me!

How do you "press on" when you encounter obstacles? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,
bex

Getting Excited for Summer!

Four years ago I got sucked into the FIFA World Cup hysteria and became an instant fan of the Italian national team, even before they made it to the final game and beat France to win it all.

I was huge fan of soccer in college - spent every Sunday at the soccer stadium and listened to all the team's away games on the college radio station. My interest goes back a long time but I never followed what happened on the international stage until 2006. And now I'm hooked.

I will be rooting for the Italian team again when the competition moves to South Africa this summer but will closely follow and root for two of my other favorite teams as well - England and Spain.

But there are a few other teams who I think are early contenders. Lookout for good showings from the Argentineans, the Dutch, and the Germans!

After the 2006 World Cup, I found a bunch of players I try to watch when their respective teams have their games televised. Liverpool, Chelsea, Real Madrid, AC Milan, Roma, and Juventus. Over the next few weeks I'll throw out some photos of some of my favorite players because I can't help but share my excitement!

So what about you guys - any of you looking forward to the 2010 World Cup competition? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,
bex

Desperately Seeking My Tipping Point

The Tipping Point is an incredible book by Malcolm Gladwell and if you haven't checked it out yet, I hope you will. Essentially, the tipping point is "the level at which the momentum for change becomes unstoppable." I think of it as a slow build until all the energy and progress and hard work shifts the balance in a different, more positive way. In essence, it's when all your hard work and dedication pushes you over the hump.

Right now, the DDJ is breaking my momentum. It has such a stronghold on my time and energy and emotion that I have a hard time throwing those same precious resources at my writing. And I am so frustrated and sad and angry because I can't seem to encourage the momentum to swing away from the DDJ to help me over the hump. I want my efforts to tip less toward the DDJ and more toward my writing . . . eventually reaching that all-important and coveted tipping point where the writing runs the show, leaving the DDJ behind.

And though I am frustrated and sad and angry, when I do come by those reserves of time and energy and emotion, the thought of that tipping point helps me muscle through. It is great motivation. The journey may be taking more time and using more resources than I may have imagined, but if I stay the course I know I can shift the balance.

What do you guys think about tipping points? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,
bex

Addicted to TV

I can't help it or seem to be able to stop myself. I am addicted to TV and am more distracted by reality shows than I would have ever predicted or admitted when they first started to hit the air waves en masse.

As a writer, I feel as though I need to watch at least a slim amount of television - our writing benefits from cultural references that keep our stories current and authentic, so it makes sense to have this awareness. Still, in all the shows I watch with these new reality stars in the mix, I don't recall ever seeing segments where they themselves watch TV. I have been thinking about this and taking away the cautionary message about success and how one spends one's time. It's obvious, of course, but does not make it any easier to modify behavior. My TV addiction is sucking away too many productive hours but the downtime feels superb.

I need to find a better balance between needing time to recharge and being more productive in my after-work hours. I need an intervention!

What about you guys? How much TV would you say you watch daily? Weekly? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,
bex

Weekend Weather

Rain is scheduled for part of the weekend in my part of the world, but I am actually looking forward to it. I love a lovely rain - it's moody, romantic, calming, and cleansing. I look forward to this kind of forecast whenever it comes around because it's great weather to be creative. To lose yourself in a good book - writing or reading - to cook, to craft, to clean, or to just plain lounge around.

It's even better when you don't have to dash out and about in it!

So tell me - how do you guys feel about a rainy day? And what's your favorite thing to do when it rains? Inquiring minds want to know!!

xoxo,

bex

Excess Baggage

I am at times astounded by the amount of personal and emotional baggage some people seem to acquire and carry around with them in life. Don't get me wrong - I think we accumulate things throughout life without even trying. It comes about and clings to us as a bi-product of just plain living.

But there are people, too, who seem to thrive on inviting excess loads into their lives and there are a few levels of understanding I fail to achieve when I contemplate this phenomenon. The first level - why would anyone want to knowingly invite such intense drama into their lives? And the second level - how do these people land on their feet?

This second question puzzles me on so many levels, but the one that vexes me to no end is these people seem to be able to find love and romance quickly and easily. And I am baffled. Why would anyone want to welcome another person into their life who comes with so many problems and issues and excess baggage?

Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,
bex

Happy Endings - Fiction or Real Life?

On my other blog - the Moody Muses - one of my fellow Muses wrote a post this week prompting us to consider why we write. I am pretty sure of the basic reason why I write (I like to tell stories) but my response to her post was a little more detailed than that.

Among other things, one reason I write is because I like to immerse myself in something that guarantees a happy ending. As a writer, and a reader, these kinds of books give me the emotional satisfaction I crave when I launch myself into a story. Real life is hard enough without having heart wrenching angst and drama and pain thrust into my favorite leisure activity. I want a hero and a heroine who complete one another; whose whole is greater than the sum of their parts. And a couple whose lives become so intertwined that I continue to think about and root for them once the curtain comes down.

But real life seeps in where it is least wanted sometimes and I have been thinking about reality in relation to my writing and I find myself struggling with a question -- Is it just me, or do real life happy endings seem fewer and farther between in our culture?

Maybe the root cause is the rabid curiosity of tabloid reporting, but what is up with all the headline grabbing sexcapades? Is media attention or immediate gratification more important than staying true to a loyal life partner? These major cheating scandals that seem to dominate the news these days have me feeling sad and pessimistic and even angry over the modern state of courtship and love and marriage.

What is the deal, people?

I know there are relationships out there that work. Most of my friends are married to truly fantastic guys (which is good, since they are truly fantastic gals) so I know the dream is still alive for at least some people. But when I look around I really wonder - is it the norm any more?

What do you guys think - is it called fiction because we guarantee those happy endings in our writing? Or because those romance novel heroes are just too impossibly good looking?! Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,
bex

Play Days

I have a few days off at the end of this week and I am so excited I can barely concentrate at the DDJ (dreaded day job). All I can think about is having such cherished freedom with regard to my time. I simply cannot wait.

Funny though -- I usually look forward to my time off . . . so I can get back to work.

Huh?

My vacations and play days are concentrated blocks of time when I can really hunker down, tune out the normal day-to-day, and narrowly focus on the writing part of my life. While I try to accomplish what I can after work or on weekends, it's never really quite the same as having some specific days set aside for the writer and want-to-be-published side of me.

And in a way, these are the best possible play days I could ask for. I get to spend time with characters I like and want to know more about. I get to go on cool adventures, fall in love, and guarantee a happy ending. And most interesting of all - at least for me - is I get to experience what it would feel like to write full time, even if only for a few play days or a week's vacation. It's my chance to visualize!

If you can dream it, you can achieve it! So later this week I will be visualizing and acting out my full-time, stay-at-home author gig with the hope of achieving this 'new job' some day soon!

So if given some play days and some time for creative visualization, what would you do? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,
bex

Who's Your Five?

Over the past few weeks I have been thinking about the writers I have come across -- people I have met, authors whose books I have read, and women who have been my teachers, whether in a classroom setting or just through random contact -- who inspire me with their work, their spirit, and their success.

I have wanted to make a dream book for myself that depicts my short and long term goals, and I find myself wanting to draw from the lives and experiences of my role models so I can get a better sense of how to get where I want to go.

It has been a joy doing some research as I tried to identify my ideal role models -- the traits that make them so, and what about them I would most like to emulate. I think I am getting a much better sense of self, of those things I do well and the things I need to work on to be the kind of writer I hope to become.

There are so many wise and wonderful women on my idol list, it would be hard to narrow it down to just five. I'm still working on that list, but if you tell me yours, I'll tell you mine.

Do you have a list of writers you'd like your life and/or career to emulate? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,

bex

Writers' Blogs - To Use or Not To Use

With the number of social media outlets available, many writers have started some chatter about how useful blogs are in their networking and promotion efforts. I can see the appeal of tools such as Facebook and Twitter -- they offer quick and immediate ways to spread information and, in the era of the sound bite and the short attention span, some 140 well-placed characters can do as much for an author as a well-honed media kit.

But I think there is a place for blogs, too -- it just depends on why and how the author chooses to use it. As an avid reader, I love reading author blogs where the authors truly try to build a community. Where the author not only shares the ups and downs of the writing life but some of her personal ups and downs as well. I respect a person's right to privacy so I appreciate it when an author chooses to share a little more than the usual. A writer who writes her blog in deep POV is a writer whose books I am sure to love.

What about you guys? Do you think there's a place for writers' blogs when there are so many other ways to network, promote, and connect? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,
bex

Writing A. D .D.

Does anyone else feel like they suffer from writing A.D.D.? I love to read and I savor so many different kinds of books but this passion often undermines my writing. Every time I finish a good book and I set it down, I tend to want to write one just like it.

I am working on a Young Adult book right now (really psyched about it) but as soon as I finish it I want to start something completely different. A romantic suspense, a women's fiction piece, a category romance. I want to do it all, but my business sense tells me that such a varying degree of interests, at least at the outset, is probably not the best way to build a career. I do have a few more YA ideas in the hopper, all with voices vying to be heard, so it's not as though I want to abandon those stories. I just wish there was more time in the day, more energy in my reserves, and more skills behind my craft so that I could write tighter and faster and evolve into the prolific writer I truly want to be.

I know if I stick to it, things will happen in their own time. For now, I need to keep up the good fight each day and hone that focus.

What about you guys? Any of you out there suffering from writing A.D.D.? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,

bex

Looking, Acting, and Living the Part

I've had a busy month at the DDJ (dreaded day job) and have had my star-changing activities interrupted as a result. I fought the good fight for the first half of February but the last two weeks have not even remotely resembled the productivity I wanted to log.

Lately I have had this adage echoing in my head: Dress for the job you want, not the one you have.

When I pick apart that saying and truly think about the sum of its parts, I tend to take it past its outside appearance and look at the totality and what it means to me. For me it means not only looking the part but acting the part and living the part. It means finding those people who are doing what I want to be doing and not only studying the paths they took to get there but the actions they take to stay there.

For me, March is going to include doing deeper research on my writing role models.

I have tweaked my long term goals during this two week interruption in my Change Your Stars productivity. And I am super jazzed to dig deeper into what this tweaking means for me and my personal and professional future.

Hope is an amazingly motivating feeling! With hope and perseverance, I believe we are each capable of doing anything we can dream of. Keep up that single-minded determination and we will get there!

If you could do any job other than what you do now, what would it be? Who would you emulate in looking, acting, and living the part? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,

bex

Books I'm Loving: Jane Austen Ruined My Life

A week ago I had the chance to spend the day in New York City at The Morgan Library and Museum to take in their current Jane Austen exhibit entitled, A Woman's Wit: Jane Austen's Life and Legacy. The very cool thing about the exhibit was that the museum featured some of the original letters she had written to her sister, Cassandra. Before her death, it is thought that Jane Austen asked her sister to keep the very personal comments in her letters private, and, much to the dismay of Austen lovers around the world, Cassandra burned many of those prized pieces of correspondence. Of the existing letters, Cassandra played editor, took a pair of scissors to the pages and cut out the passages that revealed too much.

It was fascinating.

On my train ride home, I remembered that I had Beth Pattillo's book, Jane Austen Ruined My Life near the top of my to-be-read pile. I picked it up as soon as I got home and read it as quickly as I could. Having just spent a day with some of Jane's correspondence in person, it felt timely to read a book whose premise supposed some of those lost letters actually survived.

Here's a blurb from BookPage:

English professor and Austen expert Emma Grant is heartbroken after her divorce when an intriguing communication lures her to England and a possible cache of Jane Austen's unpublished letters. Her desire to inspect them is complicated by her renewed acquaintance with fellow professor Adam Clark, and the series of Austen-related assignments that the guardian of the letters gives to Emma. Yet through these tasks Emma learns about herself and her attitudes toward love and marriage. While the growing romance between the heroine and Adam is sweet, sweeter is the new sense of self that Emma gains.

The book is a treasure hunt through Austen's old haunts and is fun and a delight to read. I highly recommend accompanying Emma on her journey!

xoxo,
bex

Coping with Family

Happy February, everyone! It's month two of the Change Your Stars Challenge on the Moody Muses blog. I made it through month one meeting each of my daily goals, so I am celebrating the victory today.

February will be much harder as I add one more goal to the mix while maintaining the ones I set in January. It is also a much busier month for me on the day job front and other family commitments, so I am trying to plan accordingly. Still, if you guys have any tried and true coping mechanisms for dealing with extended family, I would love to hear them! Spill -- inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,

bex

The Meet-Cute

One of my recent obsessions is the meet-cute. In writerly terms, the meet-cute is a device dating back to the screwball comedies of vintage Hollywood and has carried through to our modern day romantic comedies. What is it? Our old friend Wikipedia defines it as:

"The contrived encounter of two potential romantic partners in unusual or comic circumstances. In most screwball comedies and many romantic comedies, the potential couple comprises polar opposites, two people of completely different temperaments, situations, social statuses, or all three, who would not have anything to do with each other under normal circumstances. The meet-cute provides the opportunity."

Finding the right combination for the meet-cute in fiction is not always the easiest circumstance to manufacture.

But what about in real life? Where do people meet each other? I am baffled. I know I live in an area of the country statistically unfriendly to single women. But it seems like new people are meeting each other all the time.

So, tell me . . . What are some of your favorite examples of the meet-cute, whether it be from your favorite movie, scene from a book, or in real life?

Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,

bex

Life's Soundtrack

I sometimes forget the powerful effect music can have. A song can have a lot of personal meaning associated with it, depending on circumstances taking place in your life during the times you hear it.

I like to think of the tunes on my iPod as songs selected for my own life's soundtrack. Love songs, happy songs, sad songs, and get-up-and-go songs. Old soul songs. Songs that fill me with an I am woman, hear me roar kind of confidence. Songs that remind me of different times and places in my life.

And I love how everyone's soundtrack will be different.

One question I'm so curious to ask though -- is there a song on your playlist that you'd be embarrassed to admit to downloading? Come on . . . I know you have at least one! I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours.

Fess up -- inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,

bex

One Page At A Time

On my other blog, The Moody Muses, we kicked off a Change Your Stars Challenge for 2010. As my fellow Muse, Barb, wrote in her kick-off post:

In the wonderful Heath Ledger movie, A Knight’s Tale, the hero pursues a destiny beyond his status and upbringing. In the beginning, his friends think he’s crazy, but as the movie progresses, he proves that a man can indeed carve his own future. Or, as he calls it, “change his stars.”

I loved this idea. For the past few years, I had gotten really lost with my writing - a kind of, is it the forest or the trees kind of confusion that paralyzed me and prevented me from making any progress, whether it be good or bad.

But thinking about my hopes and dreams in the context of the Change Your Stars Challenge helped me stop looking at so big a picture. At least so far. My fellow Muse, Cathryn, offered the idea of planning in terms of 30 day increments, so that is what I have chosen to do to kick off 2010. To set the small goal to write at least one page a day.

My hope is to change my stars, one page at a time.

Today is January 10, and we are 1/3 of the way through the first 30 days of the challenge. So far, so good! I hate to say this because I sure don't want to jinx my productivity, but so far I have made good on my one page a day goal. In fact, I have written nearly forty pages since the turning of the calendar's page on the new year.

I have a great team of supporters cheering me on, one page at a time, and I want to thank you guys for hanging in there and offering your care and encouragement. I truly hope I have even more good news to report when I next share an update on my progress.

xoxo,
bex

Books I'm Loving - Hip Hollywood Homes

I like to share the titles of books I've really enjoyed reading and hope to do a better job of announcing more good reads on the What's Wilder blog. Most of those reads will be fiction - mostly Young Adult, Women's Fiction, and Romance. I like political thrillers and spy stories too, plus I tend to read an eclectic blend of non-fiction.

Today is all about a non-fiction title.

I really get into browsing home decorating books. Heck, it's not just books. It's web sites, magazines, mail order catalogs, and all kinds of shows on HGTV. I am obsessed with home design and interior decor and constantly look for hints and clues in trying to define my own design philosophy. It's not such an easy thing to do!

I picked up a copy of Hip Hollywood Homes on the clearance shelf at my local Borders. The homes featured are impressive examples of the Los Angeles design aesthetic, ranging from modern minimalism to historic Spanish design, from the glamor of Old Hollywood to the funky mix of the artsy outer communities.

But one thing I hadn't anticipated was how curious I would become about the people whose homes the book featured. I am stalker-like in my quest to learn more about the home owners. How did they get to where they have arrived? Where did they come from? How did they hone their talents? I am fascinated by their stories - the jobs they have held, the adventures they have had, the people they have met, the impact they have made on the vast sprawl of the City of Angels.

The book not only offers a glimpse into some of the hippest residences in town, but also into the lives of their inhabitants. It is equal parts stunning in its pictorial and motivating in its revelations!

I hope you'll check it out!

xoxo,
bex

New Year, Fresh Start

I wanted to take a new tact with my planning and goal hopes for the new year, so I invested in a wall-sized twelve-month calendar. It is laminated and I bought some vis-a-vis markers so I could not only make marks on the calendar but also erase them as my time constraints, productivity, or plans change.

My friend Cathryn from the Moody Muses created a blog post where she discussed doing her goal setting in smaller increments - in this case, setting and adjusting goals in 30 day chunks.

My goal for the first 30 days is to write at least one page a day. It may not sound like much, but when trying to create a new habit I think it's important to give yourself a threshold you can meet. Odds are, most days I will be able to do more than just one page. If I exceed my daily goal, then great! But I am just getting over a bout with bronchitis and a sinus infection, so I know there are going to be days where things will not go as planned and even that one page will be a stretch.

Still, as I weave my plan for 2010, at the very least I want to create a page a day.

So far my new wall calendar has a check mark for productivity in each of the January days that have passed. The only other marks on the calendar represent the time I will spend at the RWA National Conference this summer.

As my plans for vacation escapes, family visits, and other events take form throughout the year my calendar will change some more. The good news is that it is big and visible and should help me anticipate adjustments as the year takes shape.

What about you? Any tips to help you stay on track as the new year gets underway? Inquiring minds want to know!

xoxo,
bex