The color for 2011 is ....

Well for once I'm right on the mark! Call me trendy for picking this new blog background ahead of time.

Why? Well it seems those in the know have chosen the color "Honeysuckle" as the tone for 2011.

Oh, and to most of us it looks like a pretty, good old-fashioned pink, doesn't it?

Actually I like pink - it looks good on most people, bringing out the roses in your cheeks; it's good with other colors, and is a fun "happy" color.

So, yay for pink!

End of an Era: Last member of Ozzie and Harriet TV Family Dies

David Nelson, the son of the famous TV family, Ozzie and Harriet Nelson, died, reported Yahoo News. The show, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, aired from 1952 to 1966.

The show, and others of the time - Leave it to Beaver, Dennis the Menace, The Donna Reed Show - were symbols of an era, even if they were idealized.

But wow, compare TV fare now and it's unbelievable how much has changed... not exactly for the better?

* The Bachelor - women throwing themselves at one guy.

* Housewives of ---- - catty women backbiting each other.

* Jersey Shore - excesses of everything.

* "Reality" TV in general - the worst of everyone.

That's entertainment?

** Your thoughts?

New Review for Steampunk'd, featuring Edison story by C. A. Verstraete

Found a new review for Steampunk'd, which also mentions my story, "Edison Kinetic Light and Steam Power" by C.A. Verstraete, and some other "standout" stories.

** See review.

2011 Writing Goals: What are yours?

I had hoped to get my current project done last week, but I knew I wouldn't. Luckily, it didn't get me too off track as it usually would. Maybe because I'm soooo close to the end that I have to finish!

It's YA so I'm aiming for around 42,000 words. I'm over 35,000 now. So about three, four chapters maybe? I really had wondered if I'd ever get to this point, but I love the story and want to finish it. It's different as it's about zombies but with a twist, first person, funny, horror, and fun to write!

What helped was really getting serious and writing some every day last week; even 500 words done put me closer, I figured.

Next comes the dreaded synopsis and query letter.

Any published YA/mystery/horror authors interested in being a beta reader? Could use a few extra eyes to catch things I might have missed. I'd like to get the first three chapters and synopsis sent out in the next few weeks.

** What are your goals or what are you working on?

Banned words for 2011

Heard enough of these already?

A small Michigan college issued its annual banned words list which would go "viral" if it was on video - viral incidentally being one of those vastly overused words, according to Yahoo news.


The recent banned list includes:

1 Viral - agreed

2 Epic fail

3 A-ha moment (?)

4 back story - well important to writers if no one else.

5 BFF (Guilty as charged, I used it describing Sam's friend, Lita, in my children's book, Searching for a Starry Night, A Miniature Art Mystery.)

6 Facebook and Google as verbs

7 Mama Grizzly - yes please ban it.

8 Man Up - yeah enough.

** What have you heard enough of or hope you never hear again?

Happy New Year 1-1-11. Wishing you and I:

Wow, talk about lucky! All those one's. Go play the lottery. ha!

Wishing everyone in 2011:

* Much happiness

* Fun with your hobby

* Great friendships and happy relationships

* Writing and other job success

* Good finances

* Great health

* Love, joy, faith and peace!

The Top 10 Most Annoying Things and People from 2010

A new year is always a good time to look back... well sometimes it is. Here are some of the annoying things from 2010 that I at least hope don't get repeated in 2011. What are yours?

In no particular order:

1. Lady Gaga's meat dress.

Yuck. Not trendy or cool. Disgusting. Wasteful. Selfish. Pretentious. People are still starving in the world so is it a good idea to "play" with food? And how about putting on some clothes when walking around in public?

2. Justin Bieber.

Enough "Baby Baby." Funny, I saw quite a few Justin dolls and other stuff left over in the stores after Christmas.

3. Twilight.

Can we get back to "real" vampires already?

4. Sarah Palin.

Talk about cashing in.

5. Hearing another person interviewed on TV say "I'll do anything if it keeps us safe."

They probably will, and does it -- really?

6. "Celebrity" news

Since when are they "news"???

And speaking of celebrities - please enough reasonably cute + young + zero or average "singing voice" equals a big recording deal and overplay on the radio.


7. Idiots on Reality Shows

Everyone wants to be famous. Many (most) shouldn't be.

8. Cheap tricks

Manufacturers love changing packages to give you less and make you pay more. And it's always a big secret.

9. Yucky tasting products

Anyone else notice that regular chocolate like Hershey's now tastes terrible? And some store brand products like cheese crackers that were once good, now taste like garbage? Switching to cheaper ingredients only makes the consumer switch to another product and brand.

10. Talking, Talking...

"I'm a witch." And that qualifies you for public office?

"I made buckets of money last year." Etc. Good for you.

"I ---" (fill in blank).

The key? Too much of the word "I."


** Okay these are just a few that come to mind. What are your annoyances from 2010?

2011 Goals, What are yours?

Author Morgan Mandel at the Acme Authors Link asked today about other writers' GMC's - Goals, Motivations and Conflicts.

Much better than resolutions, which usually are broken and abandoned a day into the New Year.

My Goals:
1 Finish work in progress (hopefully this week.)
2 Yes the usual, lose weight
3 Get more freelance work done

Motivations:
1 Money - fame and fortune? haa! Just getting paid for projects is good.
2 Organization. I'm with Morgan; I spend too much time looking for stuff.
3 Finish projects then I get more organized as things get put away.

Conflicts:
Above leads to conflict.

What are yours? What do you plan on finishing in 2011?

New Winter Author Snapshot column at Mysterical-e

My winter Author Snapshot column in Mysterical-e features winter and Christmas tales by Brian Kavanagh, Vicki Delany and my short Christmas tale, Christmas at the North Pole Compound. Be sure to check it out!

Miniature Christmas Swap

I participated in a fun 7 Days of Christmas swap organized by the Miniature Collectors Club on Yahoo Groups. Fun and glad I joined since family members think I already have too many minis already so they don't give me any. (What? Never too many!)

While the swaps were numbered, I held out as long as I could. I cheated and opened them all at once, Dec. 23. Couldn't wait anymore. ha!

My swap was from Santa Jan M. in Canada. Thanks Jan!

The swap started with a fun surprise: all the gifts put in a crib, which she says she had "lying around." Well since a nursery is a someday project on my to-do list, it'll come in handy as I have three mini babies set aside and had only one crib. No, I didn't plan on making a Russian orphanage! (sorry the pic isn't great; camera batteries keep failing.)

Day 1: a cute bird feeder and yummy-looking candy. (No, not edible but love it!)



Day 2: I love mini plants and have no talent for making them in clay. And needlepoint this small? No way!



Day 3: More great flowers and a china chamber pot.



Day 4: A fantastic beaded purse and hat. I love that beading and it always looked so confusing to me so never tried it.



Day 5: A nice coffeepot and glass bowl of fruit.



Day 6: A fun mini recylcling bin keychain, packaged shirt and cactus plant.



Day 7: Wow, this is really neat. So much work in covering this fantastic mini box and decorating the toiletry set. Love it!