Hey all;

A sad, sad day for Glee fans and fans in general. Cory Monteith was found death in his Vancouver hotel room this morning. Horrible. 31 is way too young to die. He was an amazing talent. We send out prayers to his family.

J.J.

Hey all;

I’m not sure if it is limited to only writers (my gut says no), but paranoia about our work seems fairly widespread among the author’s groups I belong to. Comments such as: oh no, I’m not ranking high enough on Amazon, people hate my work! Or: sales have dropped off this week, people must hate my work! Or: I got a negative review, my work is crap! And on and on.

It’s amusing but telling, really. We live and die (hopefully figuratively!) with our books and our current works-in-progress. When doubt creeps in, so does the angst. Not a comfortable situation, but when I see that others who write are in the same boat that I’m occasionally in, it at least gives me a bit of comfort. And we take comfort where we can find it, don’t you think?

J.J.

hey all;

Well, it’s my day off once again. But when your day ‘off’ is full of housework, laundry, online stuff, etc. is it really a day off? I think not!

However, I’m hard at it working on my second book in the Titan’s Legacy series. Quite a different pace in this one. Frantic would probably describe it best. The fun thing about writing at that pace is it actually increases your writing speed (well, mine anyway). I need to know what happens next to my characters! It’s very exciting and I recommend changing the pace of your novel to any writers who are currently feeling a bit blah about their work in progress. Back into the fray I go!

J.J.

Hey all;

Well, we’re really into summer now. Here in Canada, it’s kind of a now you see it, now you don’t season. We wait through our 18 month winter for these few days of summer and man, do they pass quickly!

Life is all or nothing, in my opinion. You live it or you miss it. So for all of my fellow canucks who bitch and moan about how it’s too hot, or too humid, or too sunny or too wet or whatever, I have one word for you…February.

Just some perspective.

J.J.

Hey all;

What is it about rainy days? You want to stay in bed, or stay home from work, or, in my case, stay home and write? Unfortunately, I have to pay the rent, so until I’m a full time (as in making a living at) writer, I have to do the daily slog. Not that I don’t enjoy being a barber, but 20 years is enough and I love to write. Ah well, poor little me, I’m sure (sarcasm intended).

J.J.

Hey all;

I hate working on a Sunday. Now granted, I’ve been doing it a long time, but for me, Sundays will always feel like they should be a day of rest. But nope, off to cut some hair, mull about the latest work-in-progress (coming along nicely) and envy those who get this day off. And I’m heading for the door…

J.J.

Hey all;

Well, it’s summer time here in Ottawa and the one guarantee is that when it’s hot, it’s stinking hot. And anytime it hits 25C or more, the humidity  will be brutal. That’s just a given. But we spend all 22 months of winter (at least it seems to last that long) bitching and moaning about the cold, and the crappy salted roads and the snow/freezing rain/sleet/rain of frogs/whatever so when summer comes you’d think we would be pleased, right?

Not a chance. I’ve come to the conclusion that we Canadians simply love to bitch and moan, me included. About the weather, mainly, but we’re fair; we’re equal opportunity whingers. We complain about politics, our kids, the food, our health care, our parents, this hangnail, and on and on. And after a while, it all sounds the same…like home actually.

So today, as I cut customer’s hair and listen to them moan about the heat and humidity, I’ll commiserate; and try not to smile.

J.J.

Hey all;

Well, I’m in shock. Alfie, the face of the Senators franchise, is now a Red Wing. I wish him only the best but it’s a shame that in his, probably, last year of playing, that he would go to another team to try to win a Cup. Ah well, such is life. Sad though.

J.J.

Hey all;

As an Ottawa Senators fan (that’s hockey for those who aren’t sure), I’m having anxiety attacks because our captain, Daniel Alfredson, has not been re-signed and today is free agency day. Daniel is the face of our club and, at forty, is wrapping up his career. I think all fans here would love to see “Alfie” play out his final year or two here and we’ll be very upset if the club can’t get him signed. fingers crossed.

On the writing side, I’ve sold a few more copies of my book and will be spending my day promoting it. So off I go! Wish me luck.

J.J.

Hey all;

Well, after 2 whole days of having my novel out there on Amazon, I’ve already had some sales. And I’m just wondering who these (awesome) people are? I mean, I haven’t told any friends or family about the book, so it’s no one I know, and I haven’t done any promotion yet. But that ‘s the fun and wacky world of today’s Net, I suppose.

I hope it continues and, as tomorrow is my one day off, I’ll be spending it trying to get the word out (and doing laundry). I hope it helps. I’ll keep you all up to date.

J.J.