Christmas - Then and Now

Christmas brings such mixed feelings anymore. I miss the days when I was young and with my family at my parent's house with few concerns beyond what's in that big present. Since my parents died, my two brothers and my sister and I have gone different directions and it's hard to get us all together. This year, my eldest brother's family were all in town, and I had them over for dinner which was wonderful. He has two lovely daughters, both married, one with a darling daughter of her own. The spirit of Christmas shone bright in the eyes of this little 2-1/2 year old. I gave her some froggy pajamas, and as soon as she pulled them out of the box, she stripped off her cute Christmas dress and wore the pajamas the rest of the night. I think we all wished we could do the same. I loved being with my brother and wished with all my heart that my other brother and my sister had been there, too. If only I'd known as a child to cherish those days when being together was the norm. But I guess you have to grow up to appreciate what you once had. Still, there's a lesson here that I realize I need to pay attention to: I need to cherish parts of my adult life now that may be lost to me sometime in the future.

A toast to success and critique groups

I attended my second meeting with my new critique group yesterday. This one was extra special because we celebrated a good friend's first book offer! Pam Mingle's beautifully written YA time travel book titled KISSING SHAKESPEARE will be published by Delacorte in 2012. In it, a young girl suddenly finds herself living in the past with a daunting mission: she must seduce William Shakespeare. Otherwise, all of his plays will go unwritten. The book weaves an intriguing romance with mystery, and is filled with wonderful descriptions of the period. I highly recommend it when it comes out.


After we toasted Pam, we reviewed a beautiful short story by Laura Deal. The overwhelming recommendation was that it was so well written and the story so captivating, we all wished it was a full-length novel. Amid the praise were thought-provoking recommendations for changes that must have left Laura a bit dazed which is often the case when you're the one in the "hot seat." Again, I was struck by the talent of these writers, while at the same time a bit intimidated knowing that I will soon be the one in the "hot seat." I came away wondering how anyone writes a truly great novel without input from fellow writers. So...here's to Pam and to my new critique group.