I Heart Yellow Houses

This is a little frame house I found in Plano, Tx. Next time I'm over there I'm going back to get a better picture of the detail on the mosaic.

When I write I like to have visual references. The characters in the stories I write need to live somewhere.

Houses inspire me to write worthy characters.

NaNoWriMo ... Novel excerpt from 2004

Our mother, an avid reader, and even more so while pregnant, named me while she read Shakespeare’s, A Midsummer’s Night Dream. I am Helena, or Lena, for short. We always shorten up our names before we started school, I went through a period of time, most of 4^th and all 5^th grade, answering only to Helena, usually waiting till whoever was calling me to say it twice. She was reading The Ambassadors, by Henry James, so that is how Chadwick got his name. And by the time mother was carrying Bart, her literary choices were quite different, with Chad and I, 2 and 4 years old respectively. He got his literally name from Dr Suess’s Bartholomew and the Oobleck. And Bart was supposed to be the end of this line of Carmichaels.

We weren’t sure what name mother would choose for the last wee one she carried. We all called this one the gift baby because we overheard mother muttering “the gift baby” several times a day. By this time her reading material was almost nonexistent, but she sure managed to eat a lot of rocky road ice cream, a half gallon would arrive by way of the mail boat every day for months. Plus, mother always had an orange, frothy concoction in a clear, cut crystal goblet, that she called “my mimosa”, but I knew there wasn’t any champagne in it. Mom was strictly a teatotaler, hot, cold, and many flavors, until at 40 she found herself gifted with another pregnancy. Then she carried the goblet and pitcher or thermos filled with the mimosa mixture with her everywhere. Chad and I were betting on Rocky, whether the gift baby was a boy or girl.. Bart was positive it would be Mimi, if a girl was born. I don’t think there was a literary reason for the name Meg, but at least she didn’t have to shorten her name.

I have not done a word count on my 2007 NaNoWriMo this week. I'll wait until tomorrow night.

The excerpt I shared is from a trilogy that began with my first NaNoWriMo attempt in 2004. I still work on the first and second one. The first is pretty much complete. Second one, started in 2005, I'm still editing. Third one was for NaNoWriMo 2006 and only has about 4000 words, but I do have a great outline and know the characters fairly well.

This year's "novel" has been fun, whether I make 50K words or not! Totally different, a romantic fantasy would best describe the genre. A Pirate is involved! Gotta Love Pirates!

When I sell the farm I will write, paint, create...

Last Day of Autumn

At my house anyway. After tomorrow it will be looking a lot like Christmas!


This table will be moved to hold a four foot prelit Christmas tree.



The mantel will be filled with Snowmen. This will be my first Thanksgiving with Christmas decorations!

Why? Cause NaNoWriMo !!!

I have friends coming to help me take down fall and put up Christmas. Call them my "pit crew". This way there is to be no stress as I head down the stretch next weekend to finish.

I'll decide tomorrow whether we eat turkey and all the fixings using fall decor place settings or Snowmen plates.



Or Chinette paper plates!


( and More)

I usually don't win a thing, but I won this wonderful drawing by Nat Dickinson.


It is postcard size. He is giving one away each day this month as he does NaBloPoMo. Check it out, comment, and win yourself some Art.

Thanks, Nat. I love it!

(Yes, I know this part of my post looks exactly like what I posted yesterday. I did a copy and paste! Go visit Nat and win yourself some Art... except NOT the cake card. I want that one!)

NaNoWriMo word count: over 11,000

I know I'm way behind...that's why I will be spending my Thanksgiving break writing!

(edit: I changed the comment setting to NO pop up window, to difficult to go to blogs of commenters using that little window...thanks for visiting!)

Autumn Leaves

ACEO: 2.5 x 3.5 inches
color pencil
water color paper


NaNoWriMo update... not doing a word count until Sunday night. I would most likely freak out if I knew how behind I was... 10 hour work days kick my ... well you get the idea

Monday Night Dinner and Art

Candy Corn and Pasta


Small Format: 4 x 6 inches
color pencils
sketch book

I fixed an entire bag of whole wheat pasta and oven baked 8 Schwan's chicken patties on Sunday... for lunches and Monday night supper.

With all this National Month stuff, Novel and Blogging I didn't want to waste any time with cooking when I get home from my 10 HOUR DAY. Ugh.

So when the pasta runs out I'll make chicken patty sandwiches. When that runs out then it will PB & J.




Will you look at that! The knife and fork are from the same set!
Oh and that is a salad plate by the way.


NaNoWriMo Word Count: 3247 as of 10 pm Sunday

Studio Friday: Materials

"Materials: Show us what you use"
-coconutannies
I haven't sent in a submission for Studio Friday in a very long time. August 2005 I believe it was the first and only time. I had intentions of participating but I usually spent more time looking at all the other ones, reading their blogs, and then wouldn't have time to put mine together. Well that I didn't have a camera for over a year.

Materials: Color pencils, brushes, acrylics, markers, wooden birdhouses, bags, and there are pads of bristol board under that pile, too. All ready and waiting to be used.


NaNoWriMo News... I am not posting a word count just yet. I don't want to know how few I have completed till later tonight. I am afraid this is taking a bit longer than I expected.

These characters are talking too darn much.

My first attempt back in 2004 was more of a narrative. I have never been a big fan of dialog. I'm always messing up the punctuation. But I can only come up with only so many adjectives for the sky or the sea.

Especially when I look out my window to see horses in a pasture.

So dialog it is.

Just a writing fool

like I didn't have enough to do... I signed up for this, too!!

Word count: 2237 and still going... for another hour or two.
Tip: Stop reading blogs and keep writing!!

I'm all comfy in my living room....



a little fall decor ... okay enough goofing off... back to it!!

Third Attempt or I have lost my mind again!

It's time for National Novel Writing Month.
My first attempt was in 2004. I spent way too much time trying to edit. I think I ended up with around 28K words, but a great idea for a trilogy.

Tip: Don't edit. Just write.

In 2005 I found it difficult to set at my computer due to pain leftover from knee surgery. After sitting at work for a 10 hour day it was just to hard to sit at the desk at night. Completed about18K.

Now in 2006 I had a laptop... yippee!! Piece of cake right? Nope, just too much drama in my life to have a go... I might have done 5K. So I don't even count last year.

So hear I go again. New plot, different story all together.

Total words tonight: 1225


and it has nothing to do with "men in trees"



or "trees in men". A co-worker's costume for Halloween. He had the tree duct taped to his chest. The tree had a stuffed toy snake in the branches with apples tied in to complete the effect. All he was missing was Eve.