And the Winner of Blogapalooza is!!!...

Posted on Mike Wood's Blog. Check it out to see if you won!!!

http://mikesshot.blogspot.com
Congratulations!

Blogapaloooza!

It's Blogapalooza! A chance for you to meet some exciting new writers AND score some exciting prizes. All you have to do is read my post, and then visit the 7 bloggers below and read their entries, and try to find the common phrase used in all eight. NOTE: It WILL be a phrase, so single words like "the" or "and" don't count! Once you think you have it, email it to mikewood_3@yahoo.com and you will be put into the running for a great gift "basket" comprised of prizes personally selected by the eight bloggers. A random drawing from all correct entries will be conducted one week from today, with special preference given to those who choose to follow all eight of us!

I'ev tohuhgt lnog and hrad aoubt waht I wnaetd to wirte aoubt for tihs. I'm not srue I'm ralely itno epxonsig my depeset touhghts to the wlord. Smoeadys it all smees a bit slily, tihs slef pormtoion sutff we witrers are tlod to do. My asbecnce form my bolg has bene in prat due to my tohuhtgs on tihs sjbucet, and I've bene wkornig aawy at cahgnnig tnihgs aoubt mslyef taht hvae ndeeed cgahnnig. Tehre's bnee no ryhme or raeosn to some of the eelmnets I've cnhaged in my lfie. Smoe cahengs hvae bnee ndeeed for a vrey lnog tmie. The lsat two yares of my lfie hvae bnee aoubt chngae, diong tihgns dfifrenelty, sehddnig old wyas of bieng. It aapeprs I am eovlvnig and tarsnorfnimg, and somoedyas taht is a cnosfunig and trerfiiyng pcroses. My lfie has bnee vrey qiuet tehse lsat two yares. Fnuny how the qisuetet mmonets can beerd shuc azmniag cnahge.

My scenod bkoo wlil be cmonig. The fsrit bkoo toko froty or so yares to eovlve. If tihs one tkaes two, taht'll be aswmoe. Godo lcuk to you as you wrko trhuogh bolgpalazooa! Heer are yuro lnkis:


http://www.facebook.com/l/729317-ZCURupfFfJRKuVNeWxbg;meganbostic.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/l/729316qaXRCtDFNWqv9KM0jvEYg;lynneawest.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/l/72931ISQX1ALFhFZeTuVNXDhlaA;mikesshot.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/l/72931lz38B8UjEa2Fn-5zENyUoA;chrisbwritin.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/l/729318nlLwRudw_RHn-bC2cpQyw;joannastjames.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/l/72931Gc82dDiDVBOUUdKmzCfOWA;eviebalos.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/l/72931SbYv1LN07KnA7PMszQUkTg;www.badboyscanbefun.com/blog

Tomorrow is Blogapalooza!

Hello everyone/anyone/someone/maybe? In an attempt to get my writing juices moving again I accepted an invite to join Blogapalooza. Here's how it works:

Blogapalooza is a chance for you to meet some exciting new writers AND score some exciting prizes. All you have to do is read my post, and then visit the 7 bloggers below and read their entries, and try to find the common phrase used in all eight. NOTE: It WILL be a phrase, so single words like "the" or "and" don't count! Once you think you have it, email it to mikewood_3@yahoo.com and you will be put into the running for a great gift "basket" comprised of prizes personally selected by the eight bloggers. A random drawing from all correct entries will be conducted one week from today, with special preference given to those who choose to follow all eight of us!"

Here are the links for the other 7 blogs. It should be fun! I'll try and come up with something special for you all!

http://www.facebook.com/l/729317-ZCURupfFfJRKuVNeWxbg;meganbostic.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/l/729316qaXRCtDFNWqv9KM0jvEYg;lynneawest.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/l/72931ISQX1ALFhFZeTuVNXDhlaA;mikesshot.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/l/72931lz38B8UjEa2Fn-5zENyUoA;chrisbwritin.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/l/729318nlLwRudw_RHn-bC2cpQyw;joannastjames.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/l/72931Gc82dDiDVBOUUdKmzCfOWA;eviebalos.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/l/72931SbYv1LN07KnA7PMszQUkTg;www.badboyscanbefun.com/blog

I'm back...

It's been awhile. I had to do some clean up in my life. I'm not finished re-arranging who I am yet, but I've had a lot of interesting progress, and I think I'm at a point where I can begin to write about my life and experiences.

I'm not finding it easy being both a writer of fiction and a therapist. Who I am in each role, seems most times, discordant to the 9nth degree. Creative fiction provides me with a complete sense of freedom, a way to escape my own skin, my values, my beliefs...I can stretch beyond anything and that is alright, it's all about the story, the creativity, the birth of something new. But I know that people look at me primarily as a therapist, and I'm not at a point where I can let go of interacting with the world (for the most part) out of the role of therapist. To be a writer of fiction is a whole different thing than being soley a therapist. It'll all work fine if you're Jonathan Kellerman and you write within the realms of a responsible psychologist's perspective. It'll be a whole different cookie if you want to explore the darker side of life. I'm working on figuring it all out. In the meantime, stay tuned for Blogapalooza...a contest where you can win prizes.

Alchemy

Alchemy: The seemingly magical power or process of transmuting.

www.thefreedictionary.com

I haven't been writng much this summer. I've been spending time with family, focusing on other areas of my life that need some work, and have been working hard at getting a fix of social interaction that I deprived myself of for months while working on and submitting my manuscript. I've also been reading. A lot.

And so, you ask, if I want social interaction, why am I reading? Well, because reading provides me with social interaction in a different way. When I read, I get to know the characters in a story. I fall in love with them, laugh with them, hate them, cheer for them, and learn things from them. Reading provides me with a whole new world of wonderful experiences and adventures. When I read, I'm in the story, part of it, along for the ride, and if it's a great book, I become immersed in an alternate world and I love it. I get to live all these lives that I could never have had time to live, could never have imagined. I live all these different lives. So fun.

I've just finished reading a book called Alchemy by Mike Wood. I've had some interactions with Mike online through the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award, and then through a writer's critique group I joined. Mike is a very funny guy with a warped and twisted sense of humour similiar to mine, and it was because of his sense of humour, that I was brave enough to join the critique group in the first place. Wanting to support the other writers in the group, I bought copies of books from those who had either published or self-published. Mike's book is called Alchemy. Brave and determined guy that he is, he self-published. As I know it, and I'm sure he'll correct me in the comments section if I'm wrong, Mike didn't want to go through all the crazy stuff you have to endure in traditional publishing, and he had enough faith in himself to push forward in the self-publishing route. I'm glad he did. Alchemy is a great read. And the themes are so close to those in No One In Particular that I was blown away.

Alchemy is a story about Al, a teenage boy who is moving through a period of transition in his life. Exploring themes of love, loss, acceptance, the bigger picture of life, and what it means to be humane, it takes the reader back to their adolescence with all the angst, humiliation, hopes and dreams that give that time of our lives such vividness. I laughed as I read it. I cried. I re-experienced my adolescence and got to experience new adventures. There were sections I read, where I could only think that Mike is a genius in his approach to writing, capturing joy and sadness at the same time. I don't want to give anything about the book away, so you have to read it if you want to see for yourself what I mean. It's the kind of book you walk away from feeling better about life, being more amazed about the big picture, feeling happier. And, as a bonus, you get to learn more about Cape Cod, re-experience the thrill and panic of a first kiss, learn about Manatees. I would like my son to read this book as well, because I believe it provides wonderful lessons about acceptance and love, things that this generation we are raising need to learn.

I guess I could have interviewed Mike for this blog, but my summer laziness is influencing me. And I have a couple of promised interviews that are first in line. I may ask him to join me later at some point for an interview, cause he'd be great. In the meantime, if you want a great escape, like smart humour and want to be taken away, you can order Alchemy through Amazon at http://amzn.com/143925382X or Barnes and Noble at http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Alchemy/Mike-Wood/e/9781439253823/?itm=1&USRI=alchemy+mike+wood or through Create Space at https://www.createspace.com/1000252714

Alchemy. The power to transmute. To turn lead to gold. You did it Mike. Congrats!!!

Happy summer Lazing! Lisa

Summer is Here and the Heat Makes Me Random.

Here's a whole lot of nothing with a few spicey bits mixed in. Hopefully.

Still waiting to hear about the future for my manuscript from the publishing house it is sitting in. (at?) Have had some lovely daydreams about a successful conclusion to this adventure. I love my imagination when it's focused on the positive. I've had hundreds of different paths in my life that have all been utterly amazing in my fantasy life.

I've had 47,000 ideas for new books to work on. Six of them are started on my desktop. Come August I will push myself to focus on one. I would like to have a new novel completed for ABNA 2011. I work well with deadlines, but I don't look forward to developing belly jelly and a fat arse again this fall.

I have devoted this summer to painting far out and funky designs on my nails. Last time I went in it was flowers and lines with a deep purple background with neon yellow toes. I now have zebra print nails. They are truly tacky in a most fun way, and they actually promote interaction with other people. I've done this to remind myself not to take life so seriously. We all need some stupid harmless fun in our lives. And I like the kind of fun that draws me closer to other people.

Speaking of people and relationships, as I get older, I value relationships with others more, and am finding that my need for social interaction is increasing. Being a person that is shy (I was a "hide behind mother's knees" kid) by nature, it's sometimes tough moving out of that position. I do think that my work as a counsellor (which I don't usually mention here) affects the movement of relationships with others. Some people are intimidated by what I do, and view me in a different light because of it, making it hard to move past the first roadblocks to relationship. Maybe one day, in the future, I can call myself an author, and see if there's a difference in the first steps of relationship forming. I wonder what other author's experiences are when they say that: I'm a writer. Does it provoke curiousity and wanting to know? Does it lead to further conversation rather than a halt to it? Maybe I'll do an experiment this summer just for the fun of it to see if there's a difference for me. Tell people I'm a writer rather than a counsellor. Hmmm.

I bought one of Stephen King's books today. The last book I read of his was whatever he wrote after The Stand. I don't remember what it was, but I haven't even looked at his books since then. The Dome looks interesting, so I picked it up. I've also got another book by James Rollins and am reading Mike Wood's Alchemy.

I have 4 apples on my apple trees! One for each of us in our family, and one for Curtis. I'll have to prank someone with that one.

I'm going to be spending my summer RVing. Here's wishing me sites with plug ins so I don't roast, a tickless dog, and a husband who learns how to cook more!

When all Else Fails, I Read

Did I ever bother to mention here that for the last few months, my manuscript has been sitting at a publishing house, waiting to be read? Um, well, yeah. That's where it is, and that's whats up. I've stopped submitting to agents and I'm playing the waiting game with a publisher.

Why?

Because this publishing house says that they will read the whole manuscript. And that's what I've wanted and felt that I needed all along the way - someone who will read the whole thing, and make a decision from there. I know my first 50 pages are rough. I know I need to do a major re-write of some of the manuscript. And I'm willing to do that. I'm KEEN to do that. I just figure it would be better to have an editor from a publishing house tell me what to do at this point, and I still have an optimist buried inside me that keeps saying..."if they read the whole thing they will get the story, love the story, and they'll help you fix the bits that don't work."

They requested 4 months for a read. It's been 2 and a half months, and every day that I don't find my manuscript returned in my mailbox, I find my happiness quotient increasing exponentially. Am I in for a fall? Could be. Do I care? Nope. I'm just enjoying the daydream factor. Maybe at the end of the four months they'll reject me. And I'll have a bad day, or week, or month. But leading up to that, I've been hoping, wishing, dreaming, getting excited, making up fantastic scenarious of success in my head. So, if I do the math...I have four months of feeling good, vs. whatever time it takes to recuperate if they dish me. I'll take the four months of fantasylandthankyouverymuch.

Now, this wasn't what I was going to write about at all. I was going to write about James Rollin's new book and some things I learned as a result of reading it over the weekend. But, seeing as I have been horrid at posting lately, I am posting whatever shows up out of my fingertips at the moment they type. I'll save the tale of the bees for tomorrow...or as soon as I can get to it. Stay tuned, and enjoy your dreams!