Léna is also a Regional Manager for Writopia Lab whose mission is to foster joy, literacy, and critical thinking in kids and teens from all backgrounds through creative writing.

"Well, the question is, what do you want to believe? Do you want to live in a world where things are possible, or in one where they aren't?" Cin, Edges.

Sunday, January 30, 2011

Writers Make Their Beds

This morning as I was kneeling on my bathroom floor, scrubbing the corners of the toilet, (I know - stop the glamor talk, will ya?) the expression, You've made your bed, now lie in it, came to me. The Cultural on-line dictionary says that it is commonly used as a response to people who have been complaining about problems they have brought on themselves. I scrubbed harder.  Am I complaining? Okay yes, maybe I am.
 
I don't mind most housework - but bathroom duty I find deplorable. So that's when I fantasize about having a maid. Will I know that I've made it when . . . I can afford to have someone else clean my bathroom? I shook my head. No, that makes success be all about material things - numbers, advances, bookings . . . And we all know what a trap it is for our barometer of success to be material things. 

Oftentimes I need to write myself into right thinking . . . so here we go.

We all make our "beds" as we make our choices in life, right? We make thousands of choices a day (at least us writers do - all of those WORDS!) Some we take responsibility for, some we don't. I can get all lofty and talk about how writing has chosen me, and it has, but it's up to me whether I heed that call or not.

I have a  beautiful bed, and I LOVE lying in it, cuddling my loved ones in it. I love it even when I have insomnia! I may worry about money and security, but who doesn't? I LOVE being a writer. And if I have to clean my own bathroom, so be it.


Everybody else has to! Especially those in the book business, who are definitely not in it for the steady paycheck!

I'd love to hear what chore sends you all into paroxysms of complaint!

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Snow and Writing Daze

I am amazed that I got anything done this month with the heaps of snow that have fallen on us here in the Northeast, resulting in 5 snow days and 2 half snow days.

No wonder I'm dazed and confused. Time has been sloshing around in my boots!

Reality, time, belief, disbelief, all suspended, all a big question mark.

But I haven't been fazed in my writing. I got my mojo back for my WIP and have been back in Moab in my heart and mind writing another draft or two of The Land of the Lost and Found.

And guess what? After some copyediting yesterday, I was just crazed enough to send it as a PDF to my agent. (Don't worry Edward dear, it's ready for you!) And after worshopping with a lively group of teens, I lazed around all evening, reading more Grimm's Fairy Tales to the kiddos and then catching up on Shameless late at night with my husband.

Big ol' sigh of relief. Yesterday's success was due to the five hours I spent internet-free. So today I have grazed on the internet, with this blog, Facebook and twitter guilt-free, I am reading an ARC of Judy's new book coming out in March, Strings Attached that she gave me yesterday, (I am in-love with it so far, and will report back!) and my lovely mother is coming for dinner!

Tomorrow I will start work on a complete revision of another WIP, while I wait for my agent to read the fruits of my labor. (Which will no doubt need MORE editing)
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Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Thank A Mentor

Thank you to Girls Write Now for making today, January 25th, officially a Thank A Mentor Day. Not only did they start a twitter stream of #thankamentor, making me think about my heroes, but my own Girls Write Now mentee, Meg, sent me this note:



THANK YOUUU ♥ !!! Gah I don't say that nearly enough . . . But thank you for being my mentor, being an inspiration, being an example of fortitude and patience in your writing, for putting up with all of my angst, for writing and publishing an AMAZING novel, for encouraging me in my writing and life in general, and just for being all around a wonderful mentor and friend !!!!
I love you and miss youu ♥ Can't wait to see you (hopefully over spring break :D ? )

Love,

Meg

You are probably not tearing up right now as I am, but it's no coincidence that my blogs of late have all been about making connections - as writers, as human beings. Even though Meg is now a freshman at University of Rochester, we are still connected, and hopefully always will be.

Girls Write Now is doing a spectacular job of not only providing a space/tools for the mentor/mentee relationship, but of highlighting the more global social need. We all need guides, but we need them especially as teens, other adults who encourage us, who offer us other points of view. I am thrilled to continue to be involved with them, even though I am not a mentor this year. I will be editing this years' Anthology! (So stay tuned . . .)

Who were mine as a teen? (Besides the obvious, my grandmother, Madeleine L'Engle.) I am thinking about two teachers in particular in the high school I went to for junior and senior year. And I can't find them on Facebook, so I am thanking them on my blog!

My drama teacher, Peter Carvell was from England, and VERY flamboyant, with blonde curly locks and blood red lips. Drama Club was the first place as a teen where I felt a sense of community. Every play we did, we created a new family.

(It was such a relief when my first two years were spent at a boarding school where I was miserable. I didn't get to be a part of the Drama Club there.)

We produced and performed: Oh, What a Lovely War, Twelfth Night, Guys and Dolls, The Importance of Being Earnest. He was easy to talk to, respectful. When emotions ran high in school, he was the original "It gets better" man. "It isn't going to be high school for the rest of your life." He wanted me  to apply to acting school in England and pursue a career as an actor. (I only applied to Barnard, but later, I channeled his faith in me when I applied for the summer program at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and got in!)

I also have to give a shout out to James McHugh, another flamboyant man and my English teacher who fostered my love for reading and writing. The kids used to make fun of how much we adored each other, but come on, I was choosing to write my papers on Tennessee Williams and Tom Stoppard and he gave me straight A's.

Is this post making you think about your mentors, past and present? Who are they?
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Sunday, January 23, 2011

Connecting through Words

One of the best parts of having a writing career  is the new connections I'm making with people - meeting other writers, in person and on-line, published and pre-published. We are building community, a most important boon and a necessity if we are to survive in such an isolating field.

January 22nd marked a full year in blogging. One year, 185 posts. I hope I've delivered what I advertised: Léna's Lit Life - my journey through writing and publishing. Maybe you've even been on that emotional roller coaster with me. Maybe once in a while I share some wisdom, but the best thing I have is the ability to share myself. (There are sooooo many awesome writing blogs out there!)

And I want to meet you, I really do! Hopefully, you feel the same way. I need to expand my scope on the web to some live events.

Yesterday I traveled to New Jersey to meet with a few folks at WORDS, a wonderful independent bookstore in Maplewood. It was a small, intimate gathering, but well worth the effort. (2.5 hours on a train - both ways!) The folks who came were warm and supportive, eager to hear me read and talk about the craft and process of writing. I finally got to meet "in person" another writer who I have been internet friends with for the past six months. I met new faces, friends, who I will now connect with via the web, and who will recommend Edges to others.

A woman I met there inspired me to try and make as many face to face connections as I can. So.  I've put out to the universe (and Facebook - my insecurities be darned)) asking if peeps would be willing to host me if I can find independent bookstores and/or libraries that are interested in what I have to offer (workshops, readings).

And I have a fantasy of planning a trek/ workshop/ retreat in Moab in the future.

What do you think?
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Thursday, January 20, 2011

Writerly Circles

My grandmother, Madeleine L'Engle, had an ever-expanding circle of writer friends, a path that I too am following. It has been a tremendous gift being in touch with a few from her circle, and I had the tremendous honor to be asked by Judith Lindbergh, author of The Thrall's Tale to guest blog on The Writer's Circle, which is one of my favorite blogs. Ever. So please hop on over and read my guest post - go on! Then come back - I'll still be here!

Judith and I have yet to meet in person, but she has been a tremendous support. She contacted me back in the summer about my work at Writopia, as she does workshops with kids and teens too! She encouraged me to reach out to WORDS bookstore in Maplewood, New Jersey, which is her home-town. So I am thrilled to say that I will be there, hawking Edges at 2PM this Saturday, and she will be in the audience!

We will come full circle. Judith, for me and my Gran, I'm gonna hug you so hard!

Postscript: OMG. I wrote the adjective TREMENDOUS three times! Instead of erasing and fixing, I thought I would point out my lack of self-editing to highlight it's importance!

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Blogger Support!

This is icon for social networking website. Th...Image via Wikipedia
I want to dedicate this post to all of you blog readers, you who take the time to read, and even comment. I thought that I was doing enough social networking, but I have to say, I need to read more blogs myself! We must support each other. More voices of writers, published and pre-published, need to be heard! If you are a blogger too and need a bump in your own numbers, please don't hesitate to ask and I will follow you! (I'm learning netiquette 101!)

It's incredibly tough to get published . . . but then once you are, it's a fight to get your book noticed. Thousands of books are published daily. I'm finding this marketing overwhelming, so that's why I want to concentrate on networking and personal connections. Much more fun. Oh, and of course, the next book. Why are you on the net now? You may well ask. Weren't you resolving to have set times of day? Well, the kids have yet another snow day (or rather, an ice and freezing rain day), and social networking can be a part of my multi--tasking, while working on a novel can't be. It just can't. I go into that world and I am unavailable, so it's not fair to anybody. Right?

So. I have a huge favor to ask of you lovelies. Edges needs positive reviews, and lots of them, to gain some more traction. Nobody has slammed my writing, nothing like that, but SLJ and Booklist weren't so crazy about the mystical aspects of my book, even though both reviewers were ultimately positive.  Which is completely fair - reading is after all, a wonderfully subjective experience. Nobody reads a book in the same way.  But if you read Edges and loved it, please help the book out by rating it on Goodreads and/or Amazon. You don't even have to write anything! Or, review it on your own blog!

Big psychic hugs go to:

Wonderwegian
Kathleen
Megan
Kristi
Alison


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Sunday, January 16, 2011

Thank You, Dr. King

"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that."
— Martin Luther King Jr.
 
I'd better write this tonight while I'm bleary-eyed, before I read all of the well written and thought out blogs tomorrow, celebrating what would have been your 82nd birthday. Before reading more about the Arizona gunman and people pleading for another charismatic leader to stop the madness. Then I would certainly chicken out. But tonight, it's just you and me. I LOVE celebrating you - always have (and not just because we got a day off of school).
You were murdered the year I was born, a fact which has always frightened/fascinated me. Do we really live in a world where good people are punished? How can there be a God? Yet you were a man of deep faith, embodying this idea of radical love and have always been  one of my biggest heroes. Darkness begets darkness . . . we are what we think and believe, aren't we, Dr. King?
You planted a seed of social activism that blossomed and complemented my Christian/bohemian upbringing: your crossover of Christian ideals and Ghandi-like philosophy appealed to my budding soul. You were responsible for my becoming politicized: as a teen I marched and I canvassed for no nukes, civil rights, gay rights, women's rights, the environment. I wanted to live in and believe in a world where radical love was possible. I lost my faith in my early '20's, Dr. King. I had some difficult times and some hard knocks. Then I channeled my energy into becoming a therapist, a mother, a writer, but always with the hope of being of service. 
My husband and I were awed by the National Civil Rights Museum when we drove through Memphis on our cross country road trip 13 years ago. The museum was built around the Lorraine Motel where you were assassinated. We spent an entire day there, hearts in our throat. It's one thing to have knowledge of these events, and quite another to have visual and tactile context.
My faith ebbs and flows, but I love taking time to remember you, Dr. King - a man whose spiritual and civic duty were one and the same. A man who died for what he believed in. 
Nonviolence is the answer to the crucial political and moral questions of our time: the need for man to overcome oppression and violence without resorting to oppression and violence. Man must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love.
Nobel Prize acceptance speech, Stockholm, Sweden, December 11, 1964.
 

 

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Friday, January 14, 2011

Tattoo You

I got my one and only tattoo for my 35th birthday. And I started writing in earnest. Coincidence?

Cin, the desert mystic in Edges,  has tattoos of animals all over her body, totems that help with her "lucid dreaming". She sees them as her spirit guides in a very real way.

As a child, instead of imaginary friends, I had imaginary animals. (We had real animals, yes - I grew up with two cats and two dogs, but I had a penchant for frogs and tigers too.)


After having my second child, my "me" time was taken up by a vigorous yoga and meditation practice. I was ecstatic about motherhood, yet personally I felt ungrounded. I had been a therapist of some sort for six years before having kids. Would I go back? Who was I? And what was I doing with my life? How was I going to contribute to the world?

If you read this blog or you've read my book, you already know that I have a keen interest in the mystical, in altered perceptions. So it won't come as a shock to you that a tiger started visiting me during sivasana (corpse pose) at the end of sweaty yoga classes. Will it surprise you that he told me his name was Solomon, that he was my protector and that I'd better take myself seriously as a writer or he would kick my ass?

Solomon visited me after every yoga class for months. He was the one who put the idea in my head to get a tattoo of HIM. I had always wanted one, but never found a symbol that I wanted on my body forever. This is serious stuff. My husband has two on his back, and my BFF has one on her back and one on her ankle. My dear friend who is both a Wiccan and an Interfaith Minister has many all over her body. (I'll call her DF)

I needed to incorporate the spirit of the tiger into my being. On my birthday, my BFF and my DF took me to the home of a woman tattoo artist in Jersey City, and we created Solomon together. I told the artist about him as she sketched him. (Not TOO intimidating, not TOO fierce). We lit candles and Ohmmmed like good yogis, and my DF drummed, while my BFF squeezed my hand. It was painful yes, but a beautiful experience, almost like giving birth to another part of myself.

I wrote, I doubted, and Solomon pushed against me. I still write, and I still doubt, but I have the sense memory of that push. That's right -  Solomon rarely comes unbidden anymore. And I forget about my tattoo - after all, I can't see it. But since when is seeing believing, hmmm?

Do any of you have tattoos, or stories about tattoos? Does the whole idea turn your stomach? Are you fascinated, but haven't found the right totem?


And I can't end this post without a shout out to Mick Jagger and The Rolling Stones for the title of this post. Their album, Tattoo You, came out when I was in 8th grade, of which I was a proud owner.
Cover of Cover of Tattoo You

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Wednesday, January 12, 2011

It's An Inside Job

enviro experiment (mojos)Image by clickykbd via Flickr
My fiction mojo is back! it was never really gone, just forgotten. Mojo isn't between writers and their readers - that's something else. For me, fiction mojo is between me and my internal muses, finding truth in story. Yes, it's an inside job.

I am working on yet another layer of character and motivation in my WIP, finally getting down to brass tacks after the whirlwind of launching Edges in December, the holidays, social networking and illness.

For my mojo to stay with me, I need to take a step back from social networking and develop more boundaries around my time. Facebook and Twitter are great for making connections, but it can start to feel a little like high school and bring up insecurities - at least for me. Who is responding to me, who "likes" me? Ah, see? This kind of self-centeredness is not good for anybody. Worrying about how Edges is doing, being disappointed that it was not on any librarian's radar at ALA. (American Library Association's mid-winter conference was in San Diego this weekend.) I'm learning that it takes a while, and patience isn't one of my virtues. It's an inside job.

I need to move forward, and yet I still need to market Edges, retain my connections and make new ones. I need to remind myself that I would be a writer even if I was never published - it's in my bones. And I'm so incredibly lucky to be able to do what I love to do. I need to embrace the "doing" of it.

So I'm back to the reality of the work of writing and loving being immersed in this WIP, reminding myself that I am a fiction writer, and that my job is to find truth in story.






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Monday, January 10, 2011

The Name of This Book May Change . . .

The Persistence of Memory is one of the most f...Image via Wikipedia
What's in a name? Everything. Nothing. Marketability. Predictions of marketability, trends.

Oh cheeze. I can't pretend that I know anything about publishing or that any of it makes sense to me. All I can do is share my experience, strength and hope. (*Grin*)

Edges was not my original title, and I can't take any credit for it.  My agent sold my manuscript as The Moonflower, a title I was very attached to, as it worked on a multitude of levels. It was the name of the youth hostel, and the name of a  flower indigenous to the desert: beautiful, toxic, and hallucinogenic, and at the same time embodies the themes of death and rebirth. (Was I taking myself too seriously here?)

While we were working on the first stages of editing, I was asked to reconsider the title, as the publisher was afraid that The Moonflower would not appeal to boys. I thought long and hard, and I lobbied for my title here:

Hi guys! As I work, I have been deeply considering the title. I have been thinking about CLIMBING SLICKROCK, but I still like MOONFLOWER much better, as I consider it an openly inviting metaphor with multiple levels of meaning.

After talking to some men, I think MOONFLOWER combined with a cover illustration suggesting that metaphor could be an evocative way of reaching boys. If you've been to any boys' clothing stores lately you see a lot of shirts using soft and hard symbols together - things like skulls with sunbursts and dragons with flowers. My own boys play Rockband on their wii game, and the graphics have these same contrasts - sinuous forms matched with dangerous animals. My husband's heavy metal CDs too! Some of them have oblique or even artsy titles, like Nevermind, by Nirvana. Certainly The Grateful Dead with their album covers attract both genders!

Since the Moonflower represents resurrection and rebirth, but also death and danger, couldn't a good illustrator do a lot with this imagery?


Hmm? No. Maybe something with Edges in it? They said. Ugh. Too cheesy, too obvious I thought. I lobbied for The Persistence of Memory, a nod to the Salvador Dali painting, one of Luke's favorites. (And isn't it strange that I could do that? There's no copyright on titles . . .)  It was a serious contender, but ultimately the publisher thought it was too adult and too literary.

And then they didn't mention it again for at least another six months until I was miraculously able to let it go. Beth Potter emailed me one day and asked what I thought of Edges. A one-word title. Simple. I saw the Edges in a new light. I loved how the word has a double meaning, I loved how simple it is. And I still love it - and I adore the cover art too! (But that my friends, is another post!)

In the meantime, I have met many more authors and have found that it is rare for a working title to become the published title, for all of the reasons stated in my first paragraph. However, I still think that it's very important to have a working title for your manuscript - it makes it real, it gives it weight. Just know that it's all subject to change, and that something even better could be around the corner . . . words to live by, huh?


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Thursday, January 6, 2011

Win a Copy of Edges!

Hello friends,

I am feeling a bit blue because I've had to reschedule my trip to the wonderful independent bookstore, RJ Julia in Madison, CT tonight. I just can't seem to shake this cold . . .

So in lieu of that,  I will use this opportunity to host Léna's Lit Life's first contest. Now, I am completely making this up as I go along - I know that bloggers do giveaways all of the time, but how, how do they choose? I am feeling too wonky to research, which means that I get to make up the rules. (More fun, right?)

Okay . . . rules . . . in the comment section, fill in this prompt:  

The door finally gave way and instead of opening,  fell forward . . .

It can be short, it can be long, first person, third person - this is meant to be fun. (Also include your email address!)

I will pick a winner at random on Saturday evening, and you will receive . . . a personalized autographed copy of Edges, and an extra small surprise - I don't know what that is yet, but I'll think of something . . .

Happy Writing!

PS If the prompt doesn't float your boat, then tell me about a time when you made (figurative) lemonade out of lemons!

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Dear Oprah, Oh Mark Twain

Signature of American television personality, ...Image via Wikipedia
Dear Oprah,

I am unable to sleep off this cold, so I thought I would take this opportunity of repose to write to you, and keep you updated on my small world.

I'd also love to set up a time to chat about this Mark Twain business. When is good for you? I don't want to get you sick, so I was thinking sometime next week?

You'll notice that I added the Twitter gadget to my blog. I do feel a little silly, yes, but it's all in the name of connecting to as many people as I can! I'm still trying to get the hang of it.

I had my first podcast interview with my friend Katie Davis on Monday. It should be available after 6pm tonight. I got a HUGE surprise that I thought you would get a kick out of. What is it? Well, Rocco Staino from the Empire State Book Festival called in to let me know that my Gran, Madeleine L'Engle, will be inducted into the Empire State Hall of Fame on April first! Not only that, but he asked if I would be willing to accept on her behalf, and then participate in the Book Festival the following day to promote Edges! I am so excited!

Maybe we should talk about the Mark Twain affair right now, seeing as I've brought up my Gran, who was very much against censorship of any kind and would bah humbug the notion of changing a book published over 100 years ago in the name of political correctness, because then it would not be the book that Twain wrote. The "n" word is being censored, and replaced with a more palatable word. The UK Guardian posted an excellent editorial here. As Twain himself said: "The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter – it's the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning."

However, I understand how painful "words" can be, don't you? Can't we have a teaching moment here? My kids haven't read it yet, but I plan on reading it to them, (as our middle child is named after Huckleberry Finn) and having a very nuanced discussion.

A country in Northern Europe was translating A Wrinkle in Time, and asked my grandmother if they could delete a section of the book! Remember the scene with Mrs. Whatsit, where the kids are asking who their "fighters", their "lights" in the world could be? And they come up with Buddha, and Einstein and Michelangelo as well as Jesus? This publisher wanted to censor everything but Jesus! You know what my Gran said, don't you? Absolutely not!
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Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Hot Topic Tuesday: Addiction


Is Tim Allen fighting an alien in Galaxy Quest? Or is it a more personal demon? (Note: this scene was filmed in Moab!)

I was a guest blogger today on the Contemps blog, a group of 21 YA authors who write contemporary fiction. Like me. It's a wonderful blog, so it was an honor to be asked to contribute to Hot Topic Tuesday. So . . . what are you waiting for? hop over to the Contemps!

Or, here it is below . . .
Addiction is not easy to write about or to talk about. It is slippery, amorphous, chameleon-like. And intensely personal. A huge part of addiction can be the denial of it, and yet true recovery comes from self-reflection. So of course I have to explore it by writing a novel, and introducing myself to you on this Hot Topic Tuesday. My first novel, Edges was published four Tuesdays ago by Farrar, Straus, Giroux.
Edges takes a look at both sides of addiction through two narratives – we start out with Luke who has fled New York City and his alcoholic father for a youth hostel in Moab, Utah. Later, we meet Ava at an AA meeting in the city, who at 18, thinks she just might be too young to need to get sober.
My uncle died of cirrhosis of the liver due to alcoholism. I was a wild party girl myself as a teen and through my early 20’s, until I watched drugs and alcohol destroy lives, relationships. A friend’s boyfriend was abusive when he drank. Then two of my friends O.D.’d on heroin. A few friends got sober through AA. I went to grad school for psychology and I thought: I’d better clean up my own act. I went on to become a drama therapist specializing in drug and alcohol treatment, with a focus on teens.  Just this past year, a friend’s young son, 26, ostensibly clean and sober, getting his life together and going back to school, relapsed and died of a heroin overdose. My friend found him slumped over in his bed. UGLY TRUTH.
We live in an addicted society – to consumerism, drama, war, food, money, celebrities, excitement – not to mention a propensity for drugs and alcohol in our search for happiness. These addictions can give us a sense of wholeness for a while, but end up making us feel emptier than ever. What we need is a true sense of connection. Why do you think another word for alcohol is spirit? We are looking for spirit, we are seeking to transcend, transform, our humdrum experience.
Alcohol and drugs can change our body and brain chemistry.  Teens and those in our early 20’s are particularly vulnerable to addiction because we are still growing and developing, Scientists recently discovered that the brain isn’t fully developed until the age of 25!  
It can turn into an addiction because drug and alcohol abuse causes drastic drops of serotonin levels in the brain – and the only way to get them back up is to have more of the substance. (There is also a genetic factor to consider. Those with addiction in the family are even more susceptible.) But at this point, other things might start to go awry. Changes in personality, sleep habits, weight, relationships, grades, concentration. Poor impulse control, actions not matching values, engaging in risky, harmful behavior, the list goes on.
Have you, or somebody you know, been affected by addiction? Can a person be “too young” to get help?
If you have any questions, you can find me on my blog at www.lenaroy.com and we can either have a private or a public discussion.
Edges is available on-line everywhere, at independent bookstores, and at Barnes and Noble in the tri-state area.
For more information about alcoholism, AA is a great place to start: http://www.aa.org/lang/en/subpage.cfm?page=1
For families, check out Alanon/Alateen: http://www.al-anon.alateen.org/


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Monday, January 3, 2011

Third Eve of January

I have a cold. My nose is stuffy and my head aches, so excuse me if my post is less than - ah - um - coherent. But I want to reach out, really, I do. It's the third evening of 2011 after all! And if I have am woozy, so be it. (It's probably from the housecleaning hubby and I did all day yesterday, unpacking more boxes, rearranging rooms, dusting, mopping.)

Tomorrow is the 4 week anniversary of the release of Edges. So I have done two things to honor it. Or rather, I have said "yes" to two opportunities . . .

1) Sarah Darer Littman asked me to write something for the Contemps blog: Hot Topic Tuesday.  I chose "addiction" as a "hot" topic. (Surprise, surprise.) I'm a work-in-progress as we all are, wondering how much to reveal to the "public". (I remind myself of my mission: to be authentic and to be of service. It's an organic process.)

2) My buddy Katie Davis interviewed me for her podcast. I was nervous and very excited. First interview! First podcast! We met at Perk's Coffee House in Katonah and chatted like the tape recorder wasn't there. Gave a shout out to Writopia and my Gran. Oh! A HUGE shout out to my Gran! I got a BIG surprise, but I don't want to scoop Katie - you'll have to find out tomorrow!

And I'm thinking about my trip to Madison Connecticut on Thursday evening to R.J.Julia - a fabulous independent bookstore. Will anybody be there? I'm nervous! (Has anybody read Edges? Will anybody? I know a few of you have . . . and your comments and support mean the world to me!)

I should sign off now, before I embarrass myself further . . . time for more tea and bed!