Time management for authors...

I don't remember when I've ever been so busy? I remember back when I worked on craft projects while pulling sixty hour weeks at work, raising a child, entertaining the family with weekend dinners. When I get to the weekend as of late and I see many unfinished projects, I just shake my head.

I'm busy writing is what it is. I don't count how many words I write or how many hours a day I devote to writing because when the ideas are fresh in my mind, I find myself writing for hours on end. There are other days where my mind is blank and I think my characters are taking a couple of days off. That's when I catch up on other things such as lawn and house work and other work I do on a part time basis.

It's almost July 1. It's summer and where has the time gone? I feel like I've lost a month.....can I have it back? I need to work on some time management!!!

An Afternoon on the Tribute Golf Course in Texas!

I finally got out to play a round of golf with my husband this Friday afternoon. Now granted, I've been with him plenty of times; when we were first dating and I was determined to play golf, after we got married and then during all of our vacations. I am a very competitive person and not the best loser. Neither is he. We have learned to be happy, is not to play games against each other but to try to be on the same team. It's the only way we can survive as a couple. But back to the story.

Jim is a very good golfer and I mean very good. He's been playing since he was twelve and was on his high school and college golf team. Never a pro but in his prime, he could've made it. The harder a course, the more he likes it. As a novice, I tried to play with him. On the first shot, he would hit the ball about two hundred and fifty yards to my fifty feet. After about nine holes, I had had it. Yes, I kept trying but I became very discouraged and when people played with us? It was downright embarrassing. I finally found out I was happiest drinking beer and driving the cart.

When we would go on vacation, I would ride with him and take pictures of the scenery for my scrapbook. I would keep my ears open to golf terminology and what club he would use so I could hold a golf conversation with the best of them.

When I decided to write my new book about a lady professional golfer, the world of golf took on a new meaning. I did my research on past players as well as the current contenders. After reading some reviews from Flag in the Play where I didn't get technical enough (and I know football!!!) I decided I want this book to be perfect!

We started off by ourselves and soon joined up with a threesome of guys on the fourth hole. They were struggling with the game. They kind of rolled their eyes when they saw me, you know. A woman golfer. When they learned I was just observing for my book, they became a little self conscious of their game and every time they made a bad shot, they would turn to me and say, 'don't put that in your book!'. I told them the story is a comedy and I wouldn't dream of it. However? I did learn a lot of terms from this (not all swear words, mind you) but Jim doesn't make the kind of shots these guys did. Also, I learned about the game called 'Wolf' and how to bet on your game. Of course, they don't do that in the tournaments but I can see where this might come in handy.

Hopefully, I found some new followers who are looking forward to this coming story!

Fathers Day Plans

I just want to take today and look at the photographs of my dad. I love him and miss him so much!


That is before I watch the men's US Open for my upcoming book I'm working on. Since I missed my husband's tee time yesterday, he insists we watch this together to make sure my book is accurate. I try and explain it's about relationships involving a woman golfer, but the selective hearing only hears the word golf.

Behind the Scenes of Writing a Book....

It has been a busy week for me. I really don't know where the time goes!
First off, I've been working on my next book which is another sports romance. This time, it involves a member of the LPGA and her love story.

I've played golf but I can't play with my husband. The two of us are too competitive and are at different levels of playing. I ride in the cart with him every now and then but that's about it. I watch the PGA on television and have been to many tournaments as well.

As I've researched the LPGA for my story, I'm finding there is a lot of differences between the PGA and LPGA. I want my story to be as accurate as it can be, so my husband insisted I go with him on his weekend golf treks, with a notebook in hand, to get the 'feel' for the club to use on various shots.  I agreed.

Last Sunday, I got up at five-forty in the morning to take a shower to accompany him for his 8 AM tee time. I'm thinking what the hell am I doing since Sunday is my day to sleep in. But I tried and then I had an SVT attack and landed up in the ER, so we missed the tee time.

This weekend, my husband insisted on playing golf on both Saturday and Sunday to make up for last weekend. We agreed for me to maybe go on Sunday and let him have his day on Saturday.

You know, we are in a severe drought here in North Texas, down ten inches of rain. Every bit of rain helps. The weatherman said there would be a thirty percent chance of rain in the morning but the biggest would be Sunday evening where the percentage would increase to at least sixty.

So it's Sunday, I get up once again at the crack of dawn and go out to get the paper. It's not raining, but when I came back in, I find my husband furiously attacking his iPhone with our local weather app and sure enough, we are in the thirty percent coverage. I looked out the window and the rain is pouring down. My husband looks at me and comments about how this is a gentle rain and he can still play. I told him I am not sitting in a cart in the pouring rain with a notebook and pen getting drenched. He looked at me as if I had lost my mind and was giving up an opportunity of a lifetime.

I'm home, staying dry and working on my blog while he's somewhere on the course playing in the rain. I think I'll work on another part of the book and leave the golf questions for him when I run into them. Working smart!

SVT

Not a good start to the day. Ended up in the ER with my SVT; my heart rate was at 195. I had taken my pill last night, so I don't understand why at 6 am this happened. I exercise, eat right but this still plagues me. My prescription for the day is to be a total couch potato. Do you know how hard that is when you are naturally a go getter?

At least this gives me the opportunity to graze through my Kindle for a good read!