Summer holi-daze

The last couple of weeks I've been on holidays at our family summer cottage. It is a serene and magical place, where creative batteries can be recharged, and one can feed the soul on the beauty that surrounds you. And I needed this. This summer has been somewhat stressful with family concerns, visiting relatives, unbearable heat and humidity, some health issues that reared their ugly heads again...so, the first thing that seemed to go was my ability to produce words. Oh, I sat and forced some, but the joy I usually feel when "in the zone" was not there, and so my writing dribbled down to almost nothing.  I worked instead on editing and proofreading other people's stuff, for which I'm paid...sure...but which doesn't feed my creative soul quite the same way.

Anyway, a few days at the cottage in the company of a dear friend, also a writer, and I was filled with energy and optimism. I was excited to tackle a project that had brought me to my knees. I had ideas just pouring into my head and made notes galore for future projects. It was thrilling. So, the lesson I have learned here, is to listen to what my creative side is telling me. If it says it's stifled, and weary and needing nourishment, then I'll take some time away from the drudgeries of everyday life, and fill the tank...either at the cottage, or in my own quaint little backyard...perhaps at the library, or the park...but somewhere where there is beauty and peace and time to reflect.

Just to remind you, that while you wait for "the next Paige Bennett story", I have work available now.

At Cambridge Press US, www.cambridgepress.us, my Hottest Heat collections Vol. 1 and 2, are featured on the front page of the site. Vol. 3 is underway, so you still have a chance to read the first two collections before the third one arrives sometime this fall.

And for someone wanting a longer read, Hot for the Handyman can be found at Phaze Books. www.phaze.com  I am currently working on two companion shorts for Handyman, and hope to see them and the novella released in print later in the year, so watch for that.