Nit Picky is Good

Hey Y'all

2009-03-08T18:05:00.000-07:00

I just can't seem to maintain two blogs. So, if you want to keep following me, check out www.mindyfausey.blogspot.com. I love writing blogs, but I am just not dedicated enough to update it often enough to keep everyone interested. :)

Weird or Not Weird?

2009-02-13T08:22:00.001-08:00

I sometimes buy a container of vanilla frosting and eat it off a spoon as a snack. I eat a layer off the top, then let it sit with the lid off, exposed to air, then eat the next layer when it gets a little stiff.

Weird or not weird?

Creative Cat

2009-02-10T16:06:00.001-08:00

My kids are hooked on the game Cranium. I have to admit, it's pretty fun, but every single time, they choose the "Creative Cat" category, where you have to draw or sculpt with clay, etc. We have nearly gone through the entire deck of those cards, while the other categories have barely been touched. It'll be interesting to see what they do when they discover there are no more new cards.

I read a new submission today, and I have to say it was pretty dang good.

Other than that, it's been snowing here off and on all day. And wouldn't you know, my daughter just pulled out Cranium. *sigh*

Up and Around

2009-02-05T16:16:00.000-08:00

After a few scary days, I am up and around. Which is very good.

My husband has the month off after returning from Afghanistan. Things are weird for me a little. I liked things my way, and he likes things his way, and coming back together again hasn't been all fun. I'm a different person than when he left. He's a different person now, too. So, although things are definitely not bad, I think there will definitely be a time of readjustment where we get used to each other again. I think once he starts work again, things will even out.

Lots of medical specialist appts, an MRI and blood tests coming up. Not fun, but I'm actually looking forward to it, and for the chance to feel normal. I NEED to get back to cycling. It's almost spring! The weather is going to be too nice not to have energy.

Anyway, I'm keeping pretty busy with both writing my new story, going over a few of my older ones, and editing.

Playing Dr. House

2009-01-27T15:39:00.000-08:00

Ok, not sure how many know my history for the past couple years, but it has been a little rough healthwise. In the last year, especially in the last few months, it seems like my body has been going haywire. In the last month or so, I have suddenly developed high blood pressure, a rapid heartbeat, orthostatic hypotension, cold hands and feet, headaches, flushing, and a few other odd symptoms. The doctor in FL prescribed a diuretic for the blood pressure. When I got back to ABQ, my bp was still high, a week and a half ago, the doctor on base prescribed lisinopril, and ordered blood tests.

I got my blood tested Friday. Yesterday, I got an urgent call from the doctor. She said to go to the ER or call 911 right away, because my potassium levels were critically low, and basically I could drop dead at any second. She didn't need to tell me twice, but I had to wait for my teenager to get home to watch my son, who had a stomach virus and spent the night and most of the day puking.

So, I get to the ER, and they put me right in the front of the line. I had zero waiting time. I had an EKG, a blood test (potassium was even lower than it had been) and this doctor took the time to get a detailed history. He said, "I will bet the root cause of your problem is adrenal." Wow. He gave me a paper to take to my doctor today. And prescribed some MONSTER potassium supplements to take just about all day long. I nearly choke every time I swallow one. How do you swallow something almost as big as your thumb?

Last night, I got online with my friend, a longtime cardiac nurse. He likes to pretend he is Dr. House, so I gave him the whiteboard symtoms. He said, "Adrenal--probably a pheochromocytoma." I laughed and said, "That's always House's first diagnosis and its always wrong." He said, "Look it up." So, I did. I have almost EVERY single one of those symptoms, including the little neurofibromas by my eyes.

I called my doctor today, and she agreed that I should be tested. I go for another blood test tomorrow, and a follow up next week, then she is getting me a referral to an endocrinologist, who will hopefully agree and have me tested. A pheo is rare, and can be deadly if undiagnosed and untreated. It most often isn't cancer, and can be cured by surgery.

So, I admit I am PROBABLY wrong about my self diagnosis of hypopituitarism. I'm not upset, though, because I feel like I have finally found the right set of doctors to get me to where I need to be to find the cause of all this.

Hopeful

2009-01-25T08:32:00.000-08:00

I submitted a query to Elaine Spencer at The Knight Agency a loooonnnnggg time ago, and I finally got a reply yesterday saying she wants to see the first fifty pages of one of my stories. And she actually apologized for my long wait. She was very nice. I was thrilled, but I am not getting my hopes too high. I know it is very, very hard to get a big name agent. And even if I do somehow miraculously pull it off, don't worry. I'm still gonna edit for Champagne. :) It's just something I love to do.

Trust your instincts...

2009-01-23T14:42:00.000-08:00

It's amazing how easily I can be suckered. Before we moved back to ABQ, my neighbor that lived below me asked if he could rent the condo until we sold it, assuring me he was just going to "put a desk in there" so he would have a private place to work away from his kids. My kids were like best friends with his kids, and he was always so nice. He took the kids for sleepovers several times. Well, we cut a deal, and agreed he could put hus desk in there and rent the place for the cost of the condo fees, which are $400 a month. Well, I just found out from my realtor that the guy has DRILLED HOLES into my walls, shoved about a million plants into the master bath, and done all kinds of other things to funkify my beautiful condo. The realtor is taking pictures as I speak. I am so thankful I made a lease agreement. I had this feeling in my gut that said I had better cover my butt, so I added a little sentence that says, "Tenant shall make NO alterations to the property without WRITTEN consent of the owner." I am so glad I trusted my instincts, but I was very close at just doing an even simpler rental agreement. After all, he was such a "nice guy" and treated my kids so well. And his condo always seemed to be clean. I thought, "He's such a good person, he won't hurt my condo." But that nagging feeling kept at me until I wrote a more thorough rental agreement. I am sooooo glad I listened!!!

Lie to Me

2009-01-22T07:56:00.000-08:00

I saw that show "Lie to Me." Pretty much pure fiction, but I would love to find out how to tell if someone is lying to you. I am actually pretty good at it, I always seem to "know" when someone is lying. I have very strong instincts that are like, never wrong. It would be nice, though, to study the nonverbal and verbal cues to the point where I can back up my instincts, and also have the outright courage to say something like, "You just lied to me, you sucker."

I am a terrible liar. For one, my conscious eats at me until I finally blurt out the truth. And really, I am just not good at it. Take for example when I was 12. My best friend lived on my street, and going inside her house was like taking a step back into the 50's. Dark and bland, with a sewing room, even. Her mom was sort of a health nut, and every time I went over, she was trying to shove vitamins down my throat.

Well, one day, my friend came over and said, "You want to eat dinner at my house? We're having spaghetti." Well, I knew that would be trouble, since I don't like sauce on my spaghetti (just tons of butter, salt and pepper), and EVERYONE knows the only one who knows how to make spaghetti right is your own mom. So, I stood there, thinking fast. I said, "I...can't. I...um...um...well, we're going somewhere in just a few minutes...so...I'm not allowed." Plus, I didn't like to swallow pills, and I knew there would be vitamins on my plate.

So, she left, a little sad. And I probably ended up eating poptarts for dinner.

Ten minutes later, I was speeding up and down on the street on my bike in full view. And yep, she saw me, and knew I lied. Back then, I didn't really care. We still joke about that to this day. I really feel bad about that. But come on, who wants someone else's mom's spaghetti?

Self Diagnosis

2009-01-20T17:37:00.000-08:00

I believe I have discovered what is wrong with me. Have you ever seen that show "Mystery Diagnosis?" Well, sometimes, when nothing else is on, I'll watch it. I watched it yesterday, right after I had an "attack" of my weird blood pressure type problem.

Let's go back to when I had my first child. I had an Air Force doctor, who was pretty much inept. This is gonna get kinda gross, so forgive me. My daughter came out, her shoulder catching and giving me the worst kind of tear you can get in childbirth-a 4th degree tear. I lost a LOT of blood. The doctor was on the fence for two days about whether to give me a blood transfusion. Since I was young and healthy, she decided against it, and I was weak and tired for at least 3 months afterward. It took weeks for my blood levels to return to normal. So, the obvious verdict is extreme blood loss during childbirth.

It was soon after that my thyroid went berserk. It was hyper for a while, then hypo, then flashed back and forth between the two for months before it settled on hypo. I take synthroid, but still have to get blood tests about every six weeks, because my thyroid can't decide on just how hypo I'm supposed to be. Over the years, I have been steadily getting worse. Two years ago it started getting really bad. I never felt good, and when I thought I felt good, it wouldn't last for long. About a month ago, things started getting even worse. Lots of dizziness when standing, lots of weakness, high blood pressure spikes, etc...The doctor in FL put me on hydrochlorothiazide, and the doctor here in Albuquerque added Lisinopril, and blood work, which will be done tomorrow. Last night I had the worst attack yet, so bad I had to rest three times during dinner preparation. My BP was 139/100, which is very high for me. Everytime I stood up, though, my BP plummeted and I would feel faint. I chugged some PowerAde and called the on call doctor, who said it could be medicine related and told me to get my bloodwork done ASAP and get into the doctor for followup ASAP.

Then, last night's "Mystery Diagnosis" showed a young girl with a lot of the similar symptoms I am experiencing. The diagnosis: hypopituitarism. Two years previously, she had hit her head in a car accident, which damaged her pituitary. Last year, I hit my head while wrestling a friend and suffered a concussion. It was enough to make me check it out online, and what I found was just sort of eerie, because your pituitary gland can be damaged by concussions, and by extreme blood loss during childbirth. The onset of symtoms can be very gradual.

So, that has GOT to be what I have, lol. I sure hope one of the blood tests I get tomorrow checks for that. If not, I'm demanding it. It's easily cured by two pills a day. The DAY after the girl on the show started taking the pills, she felt 100% better.

Tagged

2009-01-18T14:42:00.000-08:00

Big Mike tagged me, so I will play along. I like this sort of thing, where I get to tell about myself. In his blog, Mike mentions that women often have this huge network of friends. Well, that's not me. I have Asperger's (high functioning), which means I have developed very few friendships during my life. I have about four friends who I feel comfortable hanging out with one on one. However, I do have a lot of online type friends, which is good, and which really suits me, because online, I can talk without having to look anyone in the eyes. Anyway, I need to list six things that make me happy, and I am going to be a little more selfish than Mike was, lol. His were very good, so you should check them out...very moving.

1. Taking a hot bath at the end of a long, busy day makes me happy.
2. Reading a really good book makes me happy (and I will read it in the bath).
3. Going to Las Vegas makes me happy, especially if I win lots of money.
4. Surfing on the perfect day with perfect waves makes me happy. Nothing beats the sun tingling on your skin while the wave lifts you and propels you like a rocket toward shore.
5. Finishing a workout makes me happy, because then I don't have to worry about it til the next day. I especially love cycling in Albuquerque, with the desert all around me, roadrunners zipping across the street, bison (yes, bison) in the fields, snakes dead on the side of the road (yes, I will get off my bike to identify them), and the mountain in the distance.
6. Editing makes me happy, especially if the author likes me and can learn from my advice.

And, unofficially, killing spiders makes me happy (that was just for Mike). Lol.

There. Now I have to tag six people which will be incredibly hard, since I don't think I know six people that actually read this blog.

1. Kristen
2. Syrell
3. Nancy
4. Kimber
5. Allison
6. Jillian

Rules: Link to the person who tagged you (http://www.nitpickyisgood.blogspot.com) Write down six things that make you happy. Post these rules. Tag six others. Notify me that you’ve tagged six others–or not.

And, if you take a peek at Mike and Candace's blog, you will find a lot of interesting topics that deal with gender differences. I have been a tomboy all my life, but I am also all girl. But, I have to share the following pictures, which shows you just how tomboy I was. I have about a thousand pictures just like these. My mom didn't make me start wearing a swimsuit top until I was about 10.

A Little Scare & UPDATE

2009-01-17T11:42:00.001-08:00

UPDATE: I just got a very brief update. My husband, along with the rest of the troops, evacuated to bunkers, and sat there for a couple hours. Other than being a little shaken, the soldiers seemed okay, just very very cold. He did ask for prayers of continued safety. The Taliban have definitely infilterated the city.

I woke up this morning to a very brief email from my husband, who is stationed at Camp Eggers in Afghanistan. The Taliban used a suicide car bomber just outside the Camp, and the explosion was apparently very large, but did not breach the camp's security. However, 1 US troop was killed and 6 were injured. All my husband is allowed to say is that he is OK. I emailed him asking for a little more details, but he hasn't emailed back. The Taliban are now in Kabul, the most fortified city in Afghanistan. My husband has just two weeks left of his deployment. I'm sure he is a little shaken and wondering now if he truly is going to make it home alive. A convoy was also attacked, possibly the same type of convoy he will need to take to get out of the camp on his way home. So any prayers for him will be appreciated. In his year there, this is the first action my finance officer has experienced.

A Good Point

2009-01-16T07:18:00.000-08:00

Syrell made a good point yesterday with her commenting that she, as an author, would rather have her bad ms. rejected rather than it get bad reviews. I wish every author had that view of their work. And sometimes, in the case of the author I rejected, the writing wasn't that bad. There were some good, fresh descriptions, but there was nothing in it to keep a reader reading. Good writing is not all it takes. It's got to be a story that will interest a wide range of readers.

I have heard so many times an author call their manuscript "their baby" and I admit, I've done that myself, and when it was rejected, I was totally bummed. I let that get in the way of a manuscript I was working on at the time, which was eerily familiar to the Twilight series that's so popular right now. I was so bummed about the other manuscript, I wiped a perfectly good manuscript off my hard drive.

I repeat, I am such a dork. Don't do what I did. Don't let rejection stand in your way. Keep writing well, try your hardest to show and not tell, try your hardest not to use passive voice, and make your story interesting. And the best and only way to grab the editors attention is to make it interesting from the very FIRST sentence. I know some editors who won't read past the first sentence if it doesn't grab them.

Another problem I tend to have is rushing when I get about half way through. The first half of my story is really good, but then I start to rush, and the ending is sloppy. That's what I'm working on trying to fix. One thing I recommend every author do is always try to improve. Usually your first draft and even your second draft can be improved. So, go over it and go over it, adding description where you can, deleting extra words where you can, strengthening the plot where you can, then send it in.

Anyway, that's my thought for the day. My other thought is that I have to go to Wal Mart, because that is the ONLY store that sells frosted chocolate vanilla creme PopTarts, which is the only kind of PopTarts me and my son like. Boo. I hate that place.

Reject

2009-01-14T12:20:00.000-08:00

I rejected my first story yesterday. I felt sorta bad about it. But, it just wasn't a good story. You have GOT GOT GOT to start the story in the middle of the action and not slow down. This story was the first three chapters, and it was like reading the life story of my boring neighbor across the street (believe me, if I wrote MY life story, which I might just do someday, you will NOT be bored, lol). So, I recommended that it be rejected and the publisher agreed.

Did you know I am a dork? For some reason, I am listening to See You Again by Miley Cyrus over and over while I edit today. So, Kimber, if I put dorky comments in your manuscript, you know why. Lol. Me and my daughter share ITunes, as we like a lot of the same music, and this was one of her songs, but for some reason, it's making be able to type fast. I know, I'm a total dork.

Saturday I start my Albuquerque cycling routine. I'm excited to get back on my bike!

A Ghost Story

2009-01-12T12:28:00.000-08:00

I'm at the stage with my kids where they are scared of ghosts. Well, they weren't scared of ghosts until Brandon, the kid down the street, told my kids about the "true" ghost stories he was reading about in a book. Now, every single night, we go through the ghost thing, and how most ghost stories and ghost pictures, and ghost videos, are hoaxes. Then, of course, I had to explain what a hoax is.

I do believe in ghosts. Well, maybe not ghosts, I'm not sure what they are exactly, but there is something we don't quite understand out there. I don't think I believe in dead people ghosts, because I believe in the Bible and when a person dies, they go one of two places, end of story (please no debates here, I'm just saying what I personally believe). But I have experienced some pretty bizarre things, that most people would say is "ghostly activity." Maybe sometime I will post those experiences, cause they are pretty freaky.

But, the point is, my kids are scared at night now where they have never been scared before. I'm pretty sure this will all end when my husband gets back from Afghanistan at the end of the month (Daddy protects them from everything), but for now, it is driving me nuts!

Stuff

2009-01-11T09:57:00.000-08:00

I am one of those people who hates extra stuff. I despise knick knacks. I don't like clutter. I like organization and am not sentimental about too many things. So, yesterday, I had a garage sale, selling all the stuff we've accumulated here in Albuquerque. We've been here off and on for the last six years. I had no idea we had so much stuff. Mostly kids clothes and toys, which the neighborhood moms and kids gobbled up. I also had our old furniture for sale, and sold an entertainment center. So, I made about $500 yesterday, which is good. The rest is going to a local charity and the furniture I didn't sell will go on craiglist.

I really also need a new desktop. I'm shopping around now, but since I've had very good experiences with Dell, I'm thinking of an XPS. My friends all want me to switch to Mac, but I just can't bring myself to do it. Not yet.

Let's see...writing tip...one thing I notice a lot lately is sentences like this: Damn, but he's got my heart to racing. or Good Lord, but his butt in those jeans make me hot.

The word I don't like in there is "but." It just seems like an extra word to me. When I'm editing, I delete most of them, and keep a few, just to keep the author from freaking.

Wanna see my new workspace?

2009-01-07T11:50:00.000-08:00

I seem to be getting some work done. :) Now I just need to hang some pictures.

Counting the minutes til tomorrow...

2009-01-05T18:04:00.000-08:00

The kids will be back in school tomorrow. Although they have been to this school before, I will probably be a nervous wreck until they get off the bus. I think every mom suffers through the same anxiety on their kids first day at a new school. But at the same time, it will be heaven. A full day to do what I want! Which will probably be edit. Lol.

I also have some jewelry I want to sell. My mom gave me some spectacular diamonds and gold before I left FL, and I have an appointment tomorrow to see about selling it. I'm not very sentimental, and my mom never even really liked this jewelry, even though my dad spent thousands of dollars on it. I would like to use some of the proceeds for a long weekend in Las Vegas, and a new desktop computer.

Anyway, back to work for me. I'm editing a book for Champagne right now, and it seems to be very good. :)

The Apathetic Snowman

2009-01-04T19:28:00.000-08:00

Courtesy of my 13 year old daughter and the inch of snow that fell today. :)

Writing tip: "Alright" is NOT a REAL word, for the love of God. Use "all right." Yes, there is some controversy, but to me, the correct spelling is "all right."

Day Four-Home!

2009-01-02T18:21:00.000-08:00

Well, the hotel last night turned out to be not too bad. We all slept well, and slept intil after 8:30. Then, we had breakfast and hit the road, only stopping once for gas, and once to use the restroom. We got home at 2 PM, and unloaded the van and put stuff away. The kids ran around the neighborhood like crazy weasels, and ended up with three of their friends here...two of them being the infamous Brandon and Nathan, the little Asian terrors. Brandon is 8, and Nathan is like 6, but talks ultra Asian, so we can hardly understand a word he says. It's like he's talking Ninja constantly, complete with growls and karate chops. He's a little whirlwind of kung fu terror.

Then, I went grocery shopping, but once again, my appetite has disappeared. I loaded up on stuff the kids like, and I was going to get a filet mignon for me, but I'm just not hungry. I took my blood pressure in the pharmacy part and it was pretty high again. Probably from the stress of Nathan ransacking my son's room.

Then, the kids helped put away groceries, and ran to their other friends, the family from South Africa. They are really nice people, and offered to take my littlest ones on a train ride to Santa Fe tomorrow. So, I will just have my 13 year old for most of the day, which works, cause I need to edit.

Not much other news. I'm just glad to be home.

Day Two-Ruston, LA

2008-12-31T15:49:00.000-08:00

I guess I forgot to blog yesterday, but we started our journey back to Albuquerque yesterday. We've been living in FL for the past year, and now that my husband is coming back from Afghanistan, it's time to go home. Last night we stayed in Daphne, AL. We don't really have a time schedule to get back, so we're just sort of driving as long as I and the kids want to.

We hit the road at 8:45 thhis morning, and decided to stop around 4:00 PM in Ruston, LA, at the Fairfield Inn by Marriott. Since we arrived so early, I decided to treat us to a suite. We have two rooms, one with two queen beds, and one sitting room. Both have TVs. I will attach a couple pics at the end of the post. We didn't see anything too exciting as we made our way through Alabama and Mississippi. We saw the guys with the sweet potato trucks, but I missed both opportunities to take pics of them.

There was also a restaurant I wanted to take a pic of, but missed it, too. I almost went back, but didn't want to turn around. The place was called The Reel Steakhouse, and it had a pic of a hillbilly in a boat, and he was fishing, and at the end of his line, half out of the water, was a black and white cow. What I want to know is...where is the lake where they catch those cows? I wonder if they put up much fight, like swordfish. The cow on the picture didn't look like he was too feisty...he sort of even looked happy to be caught. If only he knew he was being harvested for human consumption. Poor cows. They always seem to get the raw end of the deal.

I'm sitting out by the indoor pool now, half watching my kids swim, half writing this blog. There's a Sonic right down the road...I think I'll get that for dinner and bring it back to the room.

I suppose tomorrow's goal is to make it through the hell otherwise known as Dallas, and stop somewhere after that. I am going to use some of the downtime I have tonight to edit. I have got to finish editing a story with a tight deadline.

My 13 year old daughter just texted me. She went back up to the room a few minutes ago, and apparently, she thinks the room is haunted. She said as she was reaching to flush the toilet, it flushed by itself. However, according to her, every house we've lived in is haunted, and every hotel room we've stayed in is haunted, too. Lol.

Here are a couple pics of the room we're in tonight:

The Crumbs Prove It...

2008-12-25T17:36:00.001-08:00

Yesterday was super busy. Lots of cooking and preperation. One thing we made was chocolate wafer cookies, a recipe passed down for generations. They are yummy and were my favorite cookies when I was a kid. They still are. Anyway, we laid out four of these cookies for Santa, and when the kids went to bed, I ate them, making sure to leave plenty of crumbs on the plate. I also left a note from Santa that said:

Dear Aidan, Callie and Joe,

Thank you for the delicious cookies. Rudolph liked them so much he ate two! They were YUMMY!

Love,
Santa

This morning, my son took one look at the note and the crumb covered plate and said, "See? That PROVES Santa is real! A deer ate those cookies, because what person could make such a mess when they eat?"

Lol. Hee hee. I suspect he doesn't really believe in Santa, but I tell you, that kid is quick with the wit. And now, since everyone just loves pictures of other people's kids, I will post a few from the last couple days.

I've Heard it All Before (and so has the reader)

2008-12-20T14:40:00.000-08:00

I've been noticing something lately, not necessarily in the manuscripts I'm editing, but even those I'm reading, and I'm noticing it more and more. It's starting to bug me. I love it when a writer keeps POV to one character per scene, or at least doesn't head hop so often they are switching POV's every paragraph. However, when you create a scene in, say, the hero's POV, when you switch to the heroine's POV, you don't have to recount the entire previous scene just to put it in her POV. For example (I'll try and keep it abbreviated):

Nick backed away from Jenny, who sneered at him like a circus clown gone mad. When did she turn into such a complete whack-o? She took a step forward, her hands reaching, her fingers forming claws. Her nails gleamed like red Christmas bulbs in the flourescent light of the hallway.

"I don't have to put up with this," he said, his voice losing a bit of its previous authority.

"You'll do exactly what I want you to do," she said, her last words slipping into a growl. She launched at him and shoved.

Nick tumbled down the stairs, cracking his head on the last concrete step. Jenny's laughter echoed down the staircase as he wavered in and out of consciousness.

* * * * *
Jenny couldn't believe it. She had just pushed Nick down the stairs. His head had made a satisfying crack on the last concrete step when it hit the bottom.

She'd approached him, and she could tell he wavered. He was scared. He was nervous. He backed away from her like a boy backs away from a father brandishing a belt.

When he spoke to her, his voice quavered. He wasn't so mean now. The command was gone from his voice, and when she had replied, her voice seemed to have gained the authority his lost.

She'd jumped toward him, and shoved. Then, she had laughed, laughed like a circus clown gone mad.

See what I mean? She basically just repeated everything Nick went through in his scene. Also, notice how she had to use all the passive voice in her scene? Anyway, I hope I made sense. I've got to go wash a little kids hair now. And please don't think I write like my examples. I try and be over the top to try and make learning fun. :)

Passive Voice

2008-12-18T05:48:00.000-08:00

Writing Tip of the Day: PASSIVE VOICE

Passive voice: Passive voice is a biggie. Passive voice should be replaced with active voice whenever possible. I see passive voice way too much in almost every manuscript I edit, and I have to admit, I have trouble with it in my own stories, too. It is probably the hardest bad writing habit to break, in my opinion, because it's so sneaky.

An example of passive voice is, "Jenny had been gossiping to anyone who would listen to her all day."

The active voice is always preferred, "Jenny gossiped to anyone who would listen to her all day."

Anytime you see any form of "had been" or "to be" followed by a verb (or past participle), you should almost always try and think of a way to make it active.

In other news, I edited almost 14 hours yesterday, trying to keep deadlines for my publisher, who was thrown into a bit of a pickle. I finished editing one story, sent it to the author for corrections, then edited 80 pages of the story with the tight deadline. Only 220 more pages to go. Lol.

Quick Post--May Update Later

2008-12-17T05:34:00.000-08:00

Today I'm going to do as much editing as I can.

The Christmas Chat last night was...speedy. By the time I typed to comment on something, the subject had changed. It was crazy! But we had a good turnout, so I was entertained, even though I didn't participate much. I think I just have to get used to it. It didn't help that my cell phone was constantly getting texts from my friend and my daughter at the same time.

Anyway, it's almost Christmas!

A Little Bit of Life

2008-12-16T12:15:00.000-08:00

One short break from the writing bit, to give you all a little history about me and the past year.

I'm married to an Air Force Officer, stationed in Afghanistan. He left last January. When he left, my three kids and I moved from Albuquerque to Merritt Island, Florida, to stay with my mom, whose health is failing.

My in-laws visited and fell in love with the area and bought a condo for next to nothing. When I saw the condo, I told my husband about it, and he said we could get one too, since living with my mom just doesn't work. So, I bought the condo. It was/is GORGEOUS (and can be yours for the right price).

Since then, the year in Afghanistan has really affected my husband, and we almost divorced twice while he was gone. Both times, we've reconciled (and doing well, now).

In September, during a regular yearly exam, the doctor found suspicious cells. She recommended an ablation of the uterus and a biopsy. Well, guess what? During the biopsy, the doctor poked a giant hole in my uterus, and I had to go back two weeks later to have a total hysterectomy (kept the ovaries). My husband came home to help take care of me, but the day after he went back to Afghanistan, I got a major kidney infection and lung infection (as a result of the catheter during surgery and the general anesthesia) with a 104 fever and had to go back into the hospital. So, that was not good.

Last month, my husband found out he will be making Lt. Colonel soon, so instead of retiring from the AF and staying in our condo, we decided to sell the condo and go back to our home in Albuquerque, where he will continue his stint in the Air Force, and I will have lots more time on my hands (all the better to edit).

In the last two weeks or so, I've packed up the condo (with the help of a few friends), drove a Budget truck to Albuquerque (by myself), unloaded the truck (with the help of two friends), prepared our house for moving back in, then flew back to FL to stay with my mom through the holidays. If I was the Queen of Adverbs, my mom is the Queen of Stress and the Duchess of Overreaction.

So, it's no wonder that my normally athletic, thin healthy body started having blood pressure spikes two weeks ago. Well, not really spikes, but constant high blood pressure. It all started when I took my mom to the grocery store, and while she was looking at something, I sat down at one of those blood pressure machines. I have always prided myself on my level of fitness and low blood pressure/pulse, so when it registered way high, I thought the machine was wrong.

To make a long story short, I checked it a few more times at different locations, and it was still high. Then two days ago, it registered the highest yet--140/100, and was accompanied by an intense feeling of being cold all the time and some major pressure headaches. So, I made an appt. with the doctor, and since I am thin and generally healthy, she's starting a conservative treatment with some medicine I can't even begin to pronounce. I've also got to take BP two or three times a week and keep a log and check in with doctor in New Mexico when I get there at the beginning of January.

I turned 40 in September, and I can't help thinking about something I "bragged" about to my friends when I was about 12. I said, "When I turn 40, I'm gonna kill myself, because I don't wanna be old."

Geez. You think that's maybe exactly what I'm doing? Who believes in self-fulfilling prophecy? Lol.

Gotta Talk About Adverbs

2008-12-15T17:18:00.000-08:00

When I was in high school, I was in a writing class, and the teacher taught the more adverbs you could throw into a story, the better. Oh, oh, oh. Oh, how wrong she was. But, that little bit of misinformation stuck in my head when I decided I wanted to write professionally. I was the Adverb Queen (I was also the Queen of every other one of the things that now make me grit my teeth, too, lol). It took me a long time to realize I didn't need adverbs, that they are almost always redundant, and a sign of lazy writing. After all, why couldn't I say something and wrap it all up in one adverb? That way, I didn't have to write a whole drawn out scene full of imagery.

For example, back then, I loved to write something like (and I'll use our good friends Nick and Jenny):

Jenny grinned like a rabid hyena and joyfully shoved Nick down the stairs.

When you first look at it, that sentence isn't really too bad. It's got a good image of Jenny with a wicked grin plastered on her face, and she didn't just push Nick down the stairs, she shoved him. What totally (yes, I know that "totally" is an adverb, but hey, I'm a Florida girl) kills this sentence is the word "joyfully." You don't need it. It's redundant, because we know by Jenny's wicked hyena grin that she enjoyed shoving Nick down the stairs.

Another example:

"Take that, you underhanded, cheating sneak! I hope you rot in hell for your dastardly ways!" Jenny cried vehemently.

And no, "dastardly" isn't the bad adverb here, even though it is so totally dumb and a character would never talk like that (look for unrealistic dialogue in a future post). The bad adverb is "vehemently," because we know she is vehement, because her dialogue shows us she is. So, that naughty adverb must come out.

One thing I hear so often is the phrase, "Show, don't tell." One way to get rid of all the "telling" is to simply get rid of most of your adverbs, as many as you can.

And that is all I will say about adverbs, except I wish that most all of them would die.

The Asperger's Editor

2008-12-14T07:01:00.000-08:00

Many of you probably don't know I have Asperger's. I look totally normal. I'm not freaky looking and I don't have any weird hand tics. See? Here is me:

I'm just incredibly shy and socially awkward in the extreme. I hate talking on the phone. I hate going to stores. I dread anything where I will have to speak to a stranger, or even someone I know. There are four people in the whole world I can talk to comfortably--my friend since the 5th grade, a friend in Altus, Oklahoma, a neighbor friend, and my husband. Even my mom is not on the list. But, online, you would never know I have this. I can express myself well on a blog, and the Asperger's doesn't affect my editing, although I am a little shy when it comes to posting on the loops. I am trying to overcome that, though. I have a hard time standing or sitting still, and to edit, I need ADHD medication (currently on Strattera after a bad experience with Vyvanse). Anyway, sometimes I may say some inappropriate or seemingly uncaring things, but I do care very deeply about people, and sometimes I can't even watch the news because I have a lot of empathy. The recent finding of the body of Caylee Anthony had me awake all night the day it happened. But, I also think people are in charge of their lives. You reap what you sow. I had a hard time crying after my father's death at 65, because he drank and smoked and that killed him. I tried all my life to get him to quit. So, when he got deathly ill, I wasn't surprised, and I kept thinking he is just suffering the consequences of his actions. I wasn't able to cry for him until Steve Irwin died. I know, it's weird. But when Steve Irwin died, I cried my eyes out, and realized that night, not only was I crying for Steve, but I was also crying for my dad.

Now, for my writing tip of the day (part of my Asperger's/ADHD is that I will jump from one subject to the next in the space of a heartbeat):

He felt/heard/saw/realized/decided/knew/figured, etc: I have seen this in almost every single story I've edited. You don't usually need these phrases at all. When you are in a character's point of view, the reader knows this is what the character saw/felt etc.

For example, "Jenny knew Nick would knock on her door after dinner." You don't need "Jenny knew" because we are in her POV (point of view), and the sentence is much less distracting and deeper in her POV when it reads, "Nick would knock on her door after dinner."

Another example: “Jenny heard Nick fall down the stairs.”

How boring. Look at how much better this is: “Nick thudded and thumped down the stairs, heel over butt, shouting a slurred curse as his head cracked on the bottom concrete step.” We can figure out lots of things from this sentence, first and foremost that Jenny actually heard this happening. We can tell the fall hurt (his curse), and we can tell he was probably drunk (slurred speech). The reader can actually picture the scene in their head with the second example.

Anyway, I hope you all have a great Sunday! Go Bucs!

Nit Picky

2008-12-13T16:11:00.001-08:00

Wow, my first post as a senior editor. As way of introduction, I am the senior editor for Carnal Passions, the erotic imprint of Champagne Books, of which I am an editor. I love my job. I love to read what other's have imagined, and make it better. I guess that's why I named my blog "Nit Picky is Good." It really is. I go through the manuscripts I edit with a fine tooth comb, and am not afraid to use red. Lol. That's a good thing, though, right? The first thing writers should do is to not take their edits personally. The only reason you're being edited in the first place is that your story is GOOD, good enough to be accepted and contracted by a publisher.

As an editor, I feel I do the author a great injustice not to read and scrutinize every sentence, looking for ways to make it better.

So, the purpose of this blog is to share Carnal Passion's successes and to help author's make their writing stronger. I will try and post daily writing tips, as well as highlight the books we publish. It's gonna be fun, so stop by every day!

Now, I would like to mention the first book I edited for Carnal Passions, Summer Magic, by the talented, multi-published author, Christine McKay. Right now, it is currently Number One on Carnal Passion's Bestseller List. Here is the cover--isn't it delicious? Check it out at http://www.carnalpassions.com/.