Insanity Abounds

Been absolutely insane this past week between three jobs and various appointments and trying to get last ditch edits done to story. My husband keeps finding things to tweak the ending. So, finally got ending rewritten for like the millionth time. Now it is ready to send out to Harlequin next week. But first ... I'm off to WRW Retreat this weekend. Yeah! Should be a lot of fun. I'm rooming with the fabulous Karmela Johnson. Yippee! Hopefully, I won't get into too much trouble apparently there is a bar in the hotel and well ... I don't have to drive anywhere. Though Sybir isn't with me, so I won't get into as much trouble as I could. Though I think I was a bad influence on her. She shouldn't trust me to pour her drinks! :P

However, it was a weird week to start out. My mom lives in a rowhome in Baltimore next to one of my oldest friends. My friend has a huge garage that takes up most of her yard because her husband works on cars and motorcycles. Early Monday morning at around 2 am, the garage caught on fire. The flames kicked up about 10 feet above the houses, the vinyl windows melted on my mom's and friend's home, windows were blown out, a neighbor's wooden fence and deck destroyed, and powerlines knocked down. My mom's vinyl shed melted and her lawn is totally charred. The scary thing is that my friend had no idea her garage was on fire because they were asleep in the basement and her two kids were in the upstairs bedroom. Her one child's room faced the fire and one of the windows had been blown out. Thankfully, neighbors had knocked on their door and woke them up and they got the kids out in time. The scary thing is that they believe it was arson. They had a beef with a guy across the street who always complained when they parked in front of his house. Last week her husband's car was keyed while it sat in front of this neighbor's house. Last year, my friend found nails in the gutter near his tires. Recently, the neighbor started soaking the grass near the car and making it muddy so mud would get up on my friend's car. It's a rowhouse neighborhood. It's always difficult to park in front of your house. If you want private parking, then have your backyard converted into a driveway. But don't set someone's garage on fire. Thank God that the homes are brick. Otherwise, my friend and her family and my mother could've been hurt or worse! That's what really frightens me. Over something so stupid. Of course, it's all circumstancial now. But the fire department is investigating so ... fingers crossed ... they'll catch the guy.

Senseless

My heart and prayers are with the families of those who had lost loved ones earlier this week in the senseless shooting at Virginia Tech. As I watch the details being revealed and the details about the victims being told, it becomes more and more real and more painful and heartwrenching to understand. The numbers rattled off on the news of how many killed morph into the young, eager faces of people with so much potential, who had so much to offer this world and would never be given another chance. In the days, weeks, and years ahead we'll try to make sense out of this, because it is our nature. Because we cannot accept that this is random, that these people died in vain. How can any God allow this to occur? How could society let this happen? Some answers will be found in the life of the shooter, but with his own life taken as well, who will we hold accountable? His parents? The officials who ignored the teacher's pleas that he was disturbed? His associates who might've seen the signs of something wrong? The campus police for not shutting down the school after the first two shootings? I don't know. It is probably a combination of events, which alone would be innocuous, but together form a potent mixture. However, I do believe that the best way to honor the lives lost is to make sure that this never happens again.

God bless and keep strong.

All Work and No Play Make Jen a Dull Girl

Yes, I'm going a little stir crazy with work. Hence the lack of blogging. I'm juggling a couple clients now and I'm looking around and seeing that the house is in total disarray. This is what happens when you have a husband who's a total workaholic when your work is picking up as well.

But I wanted to post and announce that my very wonderful (and helpful) critique partner Maya Rodale has just launched her website. Her first book The Heir and the Spare is coming out in the beginning of August. I'm such a sucker for Regency romances and Maya has gotten the time period down pat. I got to read part of it before she finally sold it. Her writing is topnotch. She's only in her twenties and makes me think about how much I wasted my twenties not concentrating on my own writing. She even got a glowing quote from the great Eloise James, a well-known, best selling author of historicals. What an awesome start to what I know will be a long career!