“If I Could Turn Back Time…” MFRWAuthors #35

Couldn’t resist quoting Cher, lol!

The events are endless.  If I had the chance to time-travel, and simply observe, where would I go?

-Elizabeth 1’s court, to see if the real story;

-The life of Jesus, since not a great deal is known about him from age 12 (or so) until 33;

-2008 election, just to see which candidate I actually voted for (I was voting absentee and literally closed my eyes, picked a circle, then closed it up without looking!);

If I could change the outcome, where would I go?

-1987, and redo my final two college years, or at least cut out several bad choices in relationships;

-2002, and remind my hubby to lower the boom on his excavator and prevent him from hitting the power line which destroyed his heart valve;

-A few unnecessary trips to the ER with my youngest, due to being uncertain about ankle sprains.  I say it’s good to err on the side of caution; hubby thinks otherwise.

Though I realize if I change things in 1987 (or even 1986), the events of 2002 wouldn’t be my responsibility anymore!  But I’d also like the chance to see what my life would have turned out to be, had I made different choices.  My kids would look different; I don’t know if I’d be published yet; I don’t even know what career/job I would have.

Changing the past affects the future…..or does it?  There’s always that Outer Limits episode where a time-traveler kills infant Hitler…..only to have an infant taken away from a homeless woman and raised as Adolph.

To see what others have to say on this subject, go here.

If You could go back (or forward!) in time, where would you go?

I’m enjoying another free weekend!  Last week, I completely scrubbed down my Master Bath, and this weekend, plan to do some fall cleaning in my bedroom.  Copies of Heart’s Last Chance have been ordered, and I’m hoping they get here this week, instead of Sept 3rd as my email says.  I also have to mail out one copy of Catered Romance and two copies of Teacher’s Pet.  Also, just learned that proof copies have arrived for my new writer’s group’s anthology, Bad Decisions!  Now we just need to finalize the cover.  When we do, I’ll certainly share it.

Have a great weekend!

The Other ‘F’ Word #MFRWAuthors #34

There’s a little-known aspect to FEAR which sneaks up when we’re aspiring to attain something, the Fear of Success.  Sounds crazy, right?  I want to be successful, so why would I fear it?

But….as we’re looking forward to being successful, FEAR sneaks in…..but not in the way you’d normally think.

How so?

Think back:  Have you procrastinated on deadlines?  Procrastinated in general?  Over-thought your project?  Over-extended yourself?  Over-committed yourself?

If so, you’ve just experienced Self-Sabotage…..that sneaky, sneaky part of your brain which creates doubt that you’ll ever be successful, and you wonder why you ever tried this in the first place.

When you realize this Fear has taken a hold of you, the best thing to do is re-evalute your priorities and do everything you can to stay on task, complete all steps toward your goals, and hopefully you’ll defeat this Self-Sabotage tendency:)

Anything you’d care to add?

I actually have the next two weekends free!  Mall of America was amazing, even though I took 5 detours while driving out, and only 2 while coming back.  Turned out I wasn’t actually lost; just veered off slightly from the directions.  Sold 5 books, and enjoyed 2 1/2 days with my sister, niece, and nephew:)

Next event will be Cil-Con in Mattoon, Ill Sept 6-7.  I’m happy to be able to stay home for once this summer, ha ha!

Catching Up #MFRWAuthors #32 and 33

So I think I proved LIFE has to exist outside of writing; I discovered a week ago I could spend an extra day at the Indiana State Fair, and the coordinator gave me a sweet deal too good to pass up!  As a result, I not only forgot about the blog challenge entirely, but was so sleep-deprived this weekend, I fell asleep at my booth at the Collector’s Carnival Craft Show on Saturday!  Managed to sell 18 books in two days at the State Fair, then only 4 at the CCC.  If you bury yourself at the computer, then you’re going to realize one day you missed out on LIFE.

Now, onto this week’s topic, giving and taking advice!

I’ve been on both sides of the advice scale.  As a social work major in college, I ended up being the ‘ear’ of my wing, and helped several friends with their issues.  Did I make a difference?  I’ll probably never know.  Thankfully, I’ve never had someone say “I wish I’d never listened to you!” 

However, I HAVE said that to others!

Hindsight is always 20/20, and I’ve made a lot of decisions after consulting others.  Some advice has been good (mostly professional, thank god, when it comes to my writing career!), and some has been bad (always relationship-wise….isn’t that funny how that happens?)

I’ve stated this before; I face an uphill battle with my family, who question EVERYTHING I’ve done this year, in regards to promoting my work.  I’ll review at the end of the year and see which shows I should have avoided, and which ones I proved the family wrong.  At least this year, it was my own funds at stake, instead of the family’s, so my question is, why do they care?  Next year, if my Teen buckles down and makes the football team, I’ll definitely have to travel less, in order to attend his games.

It’s had to discern the good advice from the bad.  Ultimately, you have to listen to your gut, your own intuition.  Do you think this decision is the right one for you, or are you going along with the crowd?  That’s something else I’m trying to impress upon my Teen, who tends to just go along with his friends.  With a 7 year old granddaughter, she’s getting the same guidance….don’t be afraid to say ‘no’ to your friends!

To read more, go here:)

Dreamscapes Anthology is LIVE!

I’m off to the Mall of America this weekend, for the Royal Touch Reader Event:)  Then I have two weeks off to catch up on writing, family time, etc. I know my boss will be happy to have me work 5 days in a row again, lol!

Dinner With The Stars….Or Not? #MFRWAuthors #31

First of all, I TOTALLY misunderstood last week’s topic!  Reading through everyone else’s post, I realized I was the only one who LISTED the contents of mine, not explained why or not it’s good to have one.  I never watched the movie; only listed things that are on my ‘forever wish’ list.  I already set Daily/Monthly/Yearly goals, so that one day, I might be able to cross one or two travel desires off my list.  Will I be crushed if I never get to see the ruins of ancient Crete?  No….I’m content with History or Travel channel, or even a friend’s photos.  But GOALS…..that’s another must, for if we don’t have goals, we simply drift through life like a jellyfish.

Now, onto this week’s topic, who would I love to have dinner with?

Naturally, Jason Momoa, Chris Helmsworth, or Harrison Ford came immediately to mind.  But I’d also love to sit down with my grandma again, and get the skinny on her childhood.  My parents know the backstory on my paternal grandparents, and maternal great-grandparents, but little is known about my mother’s mother up until she married my grandfather.  Maybe get the entire ancestral line together for one great ‘This Is Your Life’ rehash?

I know I get my musical ability from my mother’s family, and that Grandma was ‘forced’ to play as a child for parties, that’s why she never pushed my mother into any musical lessons.  But I dearly wanted to take lessons, and finally at age 11, my mother found me a piano teacher (this after I repeatedly asked to play the harp, lol!)

I also think my bad taste in men stems from her…..both my maternal great-grandparents and grandparents were divorced/remarried, and my mother broke that cycle by finding her soul mate at age 19.  Truthfully, I think I met mine at age 20, but didn’t recognize him until it was too late, and was then too stubborn to leave my then-current relationship!

So yeah, would just like to unlock a few mysteries in my family!

What about you?

Ready for photos?

Met actor Wyatt Weed, who was in an episode of Star Trek:  TNG, and Predator 2:)  He signed a P2 picture for my hubby, who was thrilled!

Met actor WF Bell, who played Anchor in The Walking Dead:)  He was nice enough to sign a picture for my daughter.

L-R:  Amy Hale, Cathy Jackson, me, Matt Jackson.  Amy, Cathy, and I are all romance authors:)

Friday night, we ate at a local brewery, Jackson Street Brew.  This is when I texted my daughter, “Look who I’m having dinner with…”  She texted back, “OMG!  Get his autograph, PLEASE????”

L-R:  Adrion and WF Bell, and John, a local reporter.  See the beer on the table?  There’s a coffee shop called ‘Villainous Grounds’, where we had a meet-n-greet.  The brewery created the ‘Villainous Stout’ for the weekend, and it’s delicious, if you’re a fan of Guinness beer.

I actually have a rare weekend off!  It’s our local Watermelon Festival weekend, but my colleague and I decided it wasn’t in our budget this year.  So I’ll be setting up Friday night at the 1st Friday Art Walk, then being able to enjoy the festival without having to worry about being away from my booth:)  Have a great weekend!  

Next week, I’m off to the State Fair Tuesday and Wed…..wish me luck!  Last time I was there, I only had 2 books out, and my shift was only 2 hours long.  This year, we have a larger booth, and I’ll be there 3-close Tuesday and 9-2:30 Wed.