Writing Wrongs

Gearing up for the Deep Valley Book Festival

I’m no longer living in a construction zone! On a related topic, words you never want to hear in the same sentence: water and structural damage.

It’s been a long haul, but the water damage has been repaired! And I have new patio doors, which I’ve been gazing at and through. I even put up an extra hummingbird feeder, although that doesn’t seem to have stopped the territorial battles.

Hummingbirds = fierce

So, a month or two back, I was apparently feeling extra sassy, and I put myself on the exhibitor waitlist for the Deep Valley Book Festival. I didn’t think I’d get a table, and if I did, well, that was a problem for future Charity.

Yes, you’ve guessed it. I now have a four-foot table at the festival. Not only that, but they also invited me to be on the author panel (!).

I’ve been busy creating things for my table: business cards, a pricing sheet, an ebook postcard giveaway, and bookmarks for Booking Through Thursday.

Collage of author assets, including bookmarks and business cards

I’ve also been mentally gearing up for the author panel. The topic is:

Ever wonder where authors get their ideas, how they create memorable characters, or what really happens behind the scenes of writing and publishing a book? This lively, audience-driven panel puts you in charge of the conversation. Bring your questions and ask our participating authors anything about their books, their writing journeys, and the creative process!

I’m hoping for more than a deer-in-the-headlights response and “I have no idea. It just happens.” That wouldn’t be very lively.

If any of you would like to lob some practice questions my way, I’d appreciate it. I’ll also answer them here on the blog.

Happy Sunday. I’m off to refill my hummingbird feeders and referee some pitched battles.

Booking Through Thursday: pawsitively purrfect books

Welcome to Booking Through Thursday, a weekly bookish meme about books and reading for everyone who loves both. Booking Through Thursday was first hosted by Deb. With permission, I’ve restarted it in 2026.

This week’s prompt:

Sorry for the pun, but we can’t neglect our feline friends. What are your favorite books with cats? These can be talking cats, of course, but all cats are welcome.

Need some inspiration? Check out the Goodreads lists: Talking Cats Books or Books with a Cat on the Cover.

Not to neglect our feline friends, favorite books with cats (talking or otherwise).

How to play:

On your blog: Copy the question/image for your blog, answer it there, and post a quick comment here with a link or trackback to your post so we can read it.
On social media: Copy the image, answer the prompt, and post a quick comment here with a link.
Right here: Answer in the comments and start the discussion here. No need to have a blog to play.

Note: If it’s your first time here, your comment may end up in moderation. (My spam filter is aggressive.) I’ll be in after my writing sprints to set it free.

P.S. The prompt is always open, and you don’t have to play on Thursday. Comment whenever you like!

Summer slips away

Seriously? How is summer suddenly slipping away? Between COVID and the construction zone, I seem to have lost some time.

At least my hydrangeas are on point.

Lime and pink hydrangeas — My hydrangeas, showing off

And now that I have my energy back, I’m once again taking longer walks in the wetlands.

Gravel path beneath trees in the wetlands. — You can already see that hint of autumn in the leaves

Plus! Editing! Here’s my current editing stack:

Printed pages and notebook for editing — Hand edits and notes for *The Marigold Miracle*

Parts I and II of The Marigold Miracle have been redrafted. That stack of pages above is Part III. Yes, Part III happens to be 183 pages, which for some writers is a novel. Y’all, I’m not sure why I decided to write such big books, but here we are.

Slow and steady and all that. I will turtle my way through this edit.

Now if only summer would slow down just a bit.

Booking Through Thursday: the dog days of summer

This week’s prompt:

Books with dogs. What say you? Automatic no? Do you consult websites like Does The Dog Die?

Need a refresher on all the dog books out there? Check out the Goodreads list: Great “Dog” Books.

It’s the dog days of summer! Favorite (or perhaps traumatic) books with dogs.

How to play:

On your blog: Copy the question/image for your blog, answer it there, and post a quick comment here with a link or trackback to your post so we can read it.
On social media: Copy the image, answer the prompt, and post a quick comment here with a link.
Right here: Answer in the comments and start the discussion here. No need to have a blog to play.

Note: If it’s your first time here, your comment may end up in moderation. (My spam filter is aggressive.) I’ll be in after my writing sprints to set it free.

P.S. The prompt is always open, and you don’t have to play on Thursday. Comment whenever you like!

Construction zone

It’s a construction zone around here, so if I’m a little scarce, that’s why. Booking Through Thursday will go on, as ever. But I may not make my weekly check-in.

Yesterday, I did manage to water the garden and clean up a bit (and find the extra flooring the contractors might need). And I made some vegetarian chili and some chia seed pudding. These feel like major achievements.

I haven’t been able to write that much (the noise, people in my space, the dogs (in a spare bedroom), barking at people in our space). But I’ve been getting other things done, like setting up Square and cover refreshes, so I’ve actually been pretty productive.

At the very least, I’ll be back on Thursday for another round of BTT. See you then!

Booking Through Thursday: buy now with one click

This week’s prompt:

Are there any authors whose books you buy no matter what, on the day they’re released (the books, not the authors)? Do you get on the wait-list so you’re first in line? Let us know!

Do you have any auto-buy authors?

How to play:

On your blog: Copy the question/image for your blog, answer it there, and post a quick comment here with a link or trackback to your post so we can read it.
On social media: Copy the image, answer the prompt, and post a quick comment here with a link.
Right here: Answer in the comments and start the discussion here. No need to have a blog to play.

Note: If it’s your first time here, your comment may end up in moderation. (My spam filter is aggressive.) I’ll be in after my writing sprints to set it free.

P.S. The prompt is always open, and you don’t have to play on Thursday. Comment whenever you like!

Negative! At long last!

Finally, finally I tested negative this morning. For the last couple of days, I was in that in-between spot: not truly sick, but not fully recovered, and feeling cranky because I didn’t have the energy to do ALL the things.

You know that saying everyone has the same twenty-four hours a day? Well, I’m here to tell you, they don’t. In fact, that saying has always left me feeling a little salty. It made me feel even saltier after I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease that left me with no small amount of brain fog.

So, I did what I always do when I’m feeling a little salty:

I wrote a story about it.

“Just a Matter of Time” first appeared in Sucker Literary Magazine (which is still available in Kindle Unlimited) with ten other young adult short stories. Young adult short stories have always been a hard sell, and I was so excited that editor Hannah Goodman picked up my story for the anthology.

“Just a Matter of Time” should be free everywhere, but if it isn’t on your retailer of choice, drop me a note, and I’ll send you a BookFunnel link.

Booking Through Thursday: where in the world

This week’s prompt:

Where is the most memorable place you’ve read a book? Please define memorable any way you like, be it under the covers at camp, perhaps in the Grand Canyon, or up in a favorite tree.

What is the most memorable place you’ve ever read a book?

How to play:

On your blog: Copy the question/image for your blog, answer it there, and post a quick comment here with a link or trackback to your post so we can read it.
On social media: Copy the image, answer the prompt, and post a quick comment here with a link.
Right here: Answer in the comments and start the discussion here. No need to have a blog to play.

Note: If it’s your first time here, your comment may end up in moderation. (My spam filter is aggressive.) I’ll be in after my writing sprints to set it free.

P.S. The prompt is always open, and you don’t have to play on Thursday. Comment whenever you like!

When life gives you lemons, or in my case, COVID

Well, this was fun. What I thought was a mere summer cold turned out to be COVID. Because, of course, it did.

I realized it was more than a cold when I attempted to get out of bed the other day, and that proved somewhat difficult, as did feeding the cat. (What? You think the cat can be denied? No, she cannot.)

So, I’ve been taking it very easy these past few days. I’m better, and definitely upright. I retook the test this morning, and it’s still coming back positive, so no outings for me.

I’m starting to get cabin fever.

But I have plenty to read and binge-watch, so there’s that.

Wishing you all a COVID-free week.

August’s Booking Through Thursday prompts

For those who like to plan ahead, here are the August 2026 Booking Through Thursday prompts:

August 6: What is the most memorable place you’ve ever read a book?
August 13: Do you have any auto-buy authors?
August 20: It’s the dog days of summer! Favorite (or perhaps traumatic) books with dogs.
August 27: Not to neglect our feline friends, favorite books with cats (talking or otherwise).

Want to suggest a prompt? Leave a comment or use the contact form to send it my way.

S	M	T	W	T	F	S
						1
2	3	4	5	6	7	8
9	10	11	12	13	14	15
16	17	18	19	20	21	22
23	24	25	26	27	28	29
30	31