Oops!

Well, looks like I missed posting for the entire month of March. I had every intention of getting back here at least once, but procrastination done beat me down. I will attempt to be better in the future. (Seems like I have been saying this a lot here.)

So, to fill you in, I have been faithful to my 100x100 challenge, and have not missed a day of writing since beginning January 24th. Some days I just barely get my 100 words, and others I write as many as 800. (Sadly not as many of the big number days as I'd like.) I have completed a story, began another, and done a little work toward completely the story arc of my 2010 NaNoWriMo novel. I would really like to write more, but I have a way of letting that nasty self doubt sneak in and that tends to interfere with the more lengthy session. I am happy that I am at least getting some interaction with my writing on a daily basis. As Sark says, "Just do something."

Also on the writing front, I am enrolled to participate in a day long workshop called "Write Like a River" at the end of April. There will be writing exercises, meditation and interaction with two published authors. All of this will be conducted near the river in beautiful Prairie du Sac, Wisconsin. Hopefully this workshop will help me to work through the reasons that I have not completely allowed myself to embrace the author in me.

The writing group is still going well. I enjoy the interaction with other newby writer's and Kathy's enthusiasm and encouragement are inspiring. I have been reading a lot in my genre as well. I finished Joe Hill's Horns and have to say I really enjoyed it. Maybe not as much as Heart-Shaped Box, but it was still a very clever and entertaining story. I hear it has been optioned for a film. Hopefully it doesn't get ruined.

I also just finished the first book in a new Lincoln Child & Douglas Preston series. Gideon's Sword was a fairly disappointing book. I've really enjoyed the authors' Inspector Pendergast novels, but did not find myself engaged with the characters in this new venture. The ending seemed rushed and fairly unsatisfactory. I couldn't help feeling like I was missing something or like the two writers weren't sure how to conclude the story. Will have to see how the second book sounds before I decide whether to keep up with Gideon's escapades.

I am excited to start reading the latest Locke and Key graphic novel. It is in the stack next to my chair right now, along with a novel by horror author Brian Keene called Urban Gothic. This second book is very dark and more brutal that I was expecting, but I like the atmospheric tone, and novel storyline.

As for artwork, I intentionally took December off once I got a few orders completed and delivered. December off led into January off. It felt good, but then I started to feel guilty. Spent some time in the studio in February working on Mary's Valentine. As promised, here is a photo of the finished product.

I am quite happy with the way it turned out and I am thinking about doing some others. (possibly seasonally or holiday themed "cup"cakes) I see some potential here. Will shop around for some more cups and saucers and play around with the idea. I also have some new softballs started, and will be getting back into those this week. In addition an idea for some painted collage pieces came to me, and I am anxious to experiment with them. The arrival of spring has inspired me to get creative again. I fell into hibernation mode after the excitement of the holidays, and the momentary burst of enthusiasm that the new year brought. I will be posting photos of the finished character balls soon, and when I have some decent W.I.Ps to post, I will get those up her as well.

Thank you to all of you who read me. I appreciate knowing you are out there cheering me along. See you in the blogosphere again soon!