Because I truly believe each day is a new start, I don't believe in making New Year's resolutions. Every day gives us an opportunity to engage in a new activity or set a new goal. Why set out a list of things that you know you will probably not do once the first few days of the new year has gone by?
I do have goals. They may get reached this week, this month, this year, or five years from now. My biggest goal is to not sit here and play stupid mindless games on my phone or looking at nonsensical TikTok posts of people claiming ownership of other people before I've written the first word on SOMETHING. Whether it be this blog or my other blog, an episode on one of my Kindle Vella stories, or a chapter on my new work in progress...I am not going to let a day go by without writing. And I've discovered that I write better when I spend the last hour before bedtime each night reading a book written by someone else. Last night, I finished up with Soul of the Witch-Book 1 of the Witches of Keating Hollow series by Deanna Chase. Not a bad read at all!
Another goal is to make sure my garden this year is as prosperous as possible. There are some medicinal herbs I want to work with as well as making sure both the pantries are well stocked for next winter. So, I have been perusing articles on organic gardening and plotting out how I want to add more beds to my available gardening space. I think I'm going to try the cardboard method of clearing spaces for additional planting beds. And I've invested in some medicinal herb books to read.
I have a pretty full travel schedule this year for my book signings. The only way to get them to all fit is for me to spend less time at most of them than I'd planned. New Orleans in February, Deadwood in June, Galena, Salem and Gas City in September and Graceland in October. Not to mention, I'd like to do another trip to Ireland in the fall. In fact, I've played around with planning a writer's retreat in Ireland...or even a reader's and writer's retreat...who knows?
I have been writing every day. Shannon: The Magickal Clan of O"Reilly: Book 1 is about ten chapters in, I've gotten 5 episodes of Ghostly Reunion up on Kindle Vella. I've gotten 2 episodes of Walking With Spirit up on Kindle Vella (this is a non-fiction about spiritualism and clairvoyance). And I believe I may start working on another Possum Creek book later this spring. If you like magick, faeries, shape shifters and romance...The Magickal Clan of O'Reilly is your series!!
On another topic, I've decided to stop eating fast food whenever possible. I truly believe the stuff is poison to a healthy lifestyle. A week in without fast food and I already feel much better. Of course, it's a real pain in the arse to get up a half hour early to fix breakfast instead of taking a five minute jaunt off my route to work to grab McDonald's. I don't mind cooking...I really don't...and I'm good at it...it's just coming up with ideas for something different. One night I fixed egg roll in a skillet...coleslaw mix with ground sausage simmered with a little bit of soy sauce and ground peppercorns. Last night it was lime cilantro seasoned salmon with wild rice and broccoli. Today, it's going to be pork shredded with poblano peppers and Spanish rice.
I've been all over the place today...haven't I? This is just how an author's mind works sometimes. Oh look! There's a deer in the back yard so I'm going to talk about foraging for wild herbs...yep...that's how it goes! Have a great day, a great week, and a great year! Talk again soon!
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