Back on Track

So much has been going on these past couple of weeks! Too much life to live and too few hours in the days/weeks to get it all in. Just tonight, I had my monthly writers meeting with Lois and JOan. Not only do we learn so much from each other, but we enjoy each other's company as we share our thoughts on writing, family and just stuff. Tonight they gave me crits on my 'Rodeo Romances' and I was pleased that they liked it. I ran into a writer friend the other day. Her name is Shirley Wolford and she has had numerous books published. She is now 92 years old and is busy editing a novel that is due to be published next year. She asked me how my writing was going and I told her that I hadn't been sending my novels out to publishers/agents recently. She said, "Why do you write them, if no one is going to read them?" Her words made me do some soul searching. I found that I would write no matter if my words were never read by anyone. I have to write! But, it is a wonderful feeling to have someone read your novel/story and then start talking about your characters. I love my characters, some more than others, but I love for others to meet and enjoy them. When I'm asked how I come up with my stories, I always tell folks that I think writers are schizophrenic. But, they only hear good voices, not voices that tell us to take and Uzi and ..., well you get the idea. But, back to Shirley. I decided that she made a good point, so I promised my self that I'd start submitting again. I dusted up my old novel submission letter, made it more generic, gave info about how much I've written and gotten published. I've set a goal of one novel and one short story submission per day. So far so good. Publishing World, here I come!! Now, I must sign off and try to finish my Mario Puzo book 'Omerta'. My book club meets Saturday and I'm not even half way through the book. I must say, I do like the way Puzo develops his characters, which is my true love in any book. So, good night for now!