Christmas.

I’ll be honest. I don’t celebrate it.

I don’t celebrate it for a variety of reasons. Some of them are valid excuses. Not a Christian. Don’t have kids. Owning kittens becoming cats preempts trees. Dogs thought tree was to pee on. You name it. It’s pretty much there.

Honestly, there are other deeper, more raw personal reasons I don’t celebrate Christmas. Just like I really don’t do anything for my birthday. I won’t share them. I’m not in a point in my life where I can and to be honest, I don’t know if I ever will be. Hell, eventually it might all be moot and that’s kind of what I keep hoping for. So I throw out the pat excuses as listed above.

But see the thing is, I still wish people a Joyous Christmas or Holidays because there is a joy in the season… in the family… between friends that should be celebrated and exulted.

And to each and every one of you—I say you are definitely a reason I celebrate the year and its joys.

I have friends whom I love so deeply I can’t imagine the world without them. There are readers who both quiet and loud who have sent me emails saying I’ve given them something by stringing together words a certain way. I have had people whom I’ve reached out to say to me; thank you for what you’ve given (an ear, time, space, and so on).

But most of all, I’ve had the pleasure and luxury of spending time with all of you.

For everyone who has picked up one of my books, thank you. For some, reading is a luxury, an expense they can ill-afford yet they scrape together enough to do so. I will never ever ever forget this. Regardless if the cost of a book means nothing to many — for some it’s a serious debate on lunch or a book.

I have been that person. I cannot say I will never be that person again. Life is strange. Life goes sideways at light speed and I am always cautious never to be so above myself I forget the taste of Spam or blue-box macaroni and cheese.

So when I can… I give. Because I have done without and have been given to.

See, my charities are simple. Meals for those who cannot put food on the table, books for those who need escape or entertainment and salvation for animals who need a home in a world that’s been cruel or neglectful. Those are things close to my heart. As are all of you.

This year for the Holidays, I ask for one thing from all of you… clean out your bookcases, your pantries, or even stop and grab some pet supplies at the store. Give to your library, to a nursing home, to a shelter—whether it be human or animal. But most of all, give to yourself.

Take care of who you are. Don’t forget to breathe. Don’t forget that simply the act of being here… you are here with me. And I am ever so grateful for that.

Thank you. From every single bit of my soul to yours. Thank you.

I actually really like this one…and I’m not normally fond of the totally nude shots because they’re kind of out there in composition. This one is nice. Believable. And most of all, well light.

Continue reading “NSFW Sunday Morning!!” →

I am at the end of a new book, Murder and Mayhem. New series. New characters. New anxieties. No, wait… same anxieties.

It’s always difficult when trying to cobble together personalities and a world, even if it is set in a modern Los Angeles. Each book has its own voice and I might start off thinking “Oh, it’s going to be funny” and then it all goes sideways. This time, it was a hell of a lot less funny and more… grit? Raw-boned? It’s hard to really quantify at this point because later today, I’m going to go back into the full document and read what I’ve done.

When I write, I rarely go back and read or edit while I’m writing. Sometimes something sticks with me and it’s like an itch I can’t get rid of. That’s usually a sign that I’ve left something out. That’s a retrofit and those I do midstream. I’ll go back and structure it back up or it’ll bug the shit out of me and I can’t go forward.

Writers talk about doing it by the seat of their pants or plotting everything out. I kind of write by a loose plot but with my gut instincts. I’ve found it best not to fight the voice as it comes out. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it’s an odd construct but it really is what comes out. The whole It Is What It Is fits here.

I also know when I’ve done too much in one day. I get a visitor. Literally, she comes and sits on me. Very demanding cat. This was last night. I guess I was done. Or so she told me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I love black and white shots. I do. *grins* Light, dark and well, inking.

Hello. It is Sunday! Well it is here. Heading back into to writing. But before I go… here’s a morning shot.

I kinda like the pillows.

Continue reading “NSFW Sunday!” →

It’s already December.

And someone suggested I put all of the photos beneath a cut. Opinions?

Continue reading “Morning!” →