I've Been to the My Write Side Cafe!

I have a new place to connect with writers!

My writing friend Stephanie Ayers has just launched a forum for writers to interact, get support and find the services they need to take that next step with their words. With her partner in crime, Scorpio Scribe (aka A.L. Mabry) they've produced  My Write Side Cafe,

It's part of her website My Write Side. While snooping browsing about her place I found some interesting construction going on.
There is a button for upcoming writing prompts.
Another one for contests.
Lots of info and services for writers.
Places to find that bit of inspiration and writerly wisdom to keep us plugging away.

I've signed up.
I'd love to see you there!

Canning and Baking and Yarn, Oh My!

Spent the day in the kitchen, which I enjoy much more since I'm not spending a million hours a week in a restaurant kitchen. 

The new neighbor gave us permission to gather grapes and apples. Yesterday I canned 16 jars of concord grape jelly. 

Today I sliced the apples and made crisp. 

While that was baking I gathered up the wild grapes that grow in the tiny woods behind the house. Wild grape jelly is awesome!

*****

Summer is winding down and with the mildly cooler weather (less than 90 degrees and lack of high humidity) I am more inclined to go outside. 

The locusts and tree frogs fill the evening with a symphony of sound. Like they're hurrying to get the tunes out before the season changes. 

The zinnias are still blooming and attracting tons of Monarch butterflies. I need to find a place to plant milkweed. Then they can breed here as well. 

The vegetable garden is pretty done for the year. The overload of rain really took its toll. And the fact that I was still working a million hours during planting season didn't help. I'm looking forward to next spring already. 

Also looking forward (not really) to getting out and finding a new job. A couple craft stores are hiring, which sounds wonderful. As long as I don't take advantage of any employee discounts that might eat a potential paycheck. 

Speaking of yarn...time to pick up the knitting.

Hope there was no expectation of profound thoughts. Cause I'm far too relaxed to be profound. 

Random Writing Resources and Babbling

I finally finished the crocheting that shawl I've been working on for a year. Now it's time to attach the 70 beads.

So I decided to write instead.

As I've stated before, there has been very little fiction writing happening. Which is the reason I'm hanging out here.

I do have a lot of half thought out ideas. And a work in chaos that is nagging me to return.

In the meantime, I have found a few writer's resources to explore.

If you follow me on the Twitters, you are aware that Thursday evening becomes twittersanity night on my stream. I engage in a few writer chats over a two (or so) hour period.

At 8 pm EST I am chatting it up with the StoryDam crew. We have a topic each week related to writing. All writers are welcome! Just use the StoryDam hashtag and jump in.

Then, at 9 pm EST I generally join the 10 Minute Novelist chat. Another fun way to connect with writers. That hashtag is 10MinNovelists. They also have a facebook page. here.

There are a load of twitter chats for writers. Put your favorites in the comments, I'd love to check them out!

As I was muddling around on the social medias, my writing friend Stephanie from My Write Side posted an article spotlighting a few resources. Take a look, you might find something just for you. She also has another project in the works for writers looking to connect. I'm excited to see what she's going to offer.

And I just signed up for a newsletter from WritersLife.org.  They offered this list of writing prompts.

For those newbies with a few thousand words that need a place to go, One Story is looking for submissions. (I need to round up some words and try to organize them.)

If you are inclined to see what I'm up to here, or on the fiction blog, Elsetime & Otherwhen, you can like either or both on facebook (bats eyelashes.) I haven't been working them to the extent I should, so any input would be great.

Well, I've randomly ranted long enough, so I should probably find some beads...or words.

Write on!

Don't All Writers Hoard Yarn?

Here I am again at the Rants.

With nothing to really rant about.

Well...there is the fact that I haven't been writing my fiction regularly.  Sometimes it just doesn't come together.
So Elsetime & Otherwhen has been kinda idle.
And the Wattpad story, Renewal, has been on hold too long.
I have been working up an outline for a Nanowrimo project.
Yes.
I will be submitting myself to the insanity that is nano.
Fingers crossed for a first time actual completion of 50,000 words that may or may not make sense.

So I haven't been totally unproductive.

Doing stuff around the house.

Indulging in my yarn love.

I've been working on a broomstick crochet shawl for over a year that is finally close to completion,


And because I can't stand to do only one project at a time, I started knitting a jacket.
That may or may not be done before next spring.
Here is the little bit I have so far.


Yes, that is multiple patterns and colors. It's a free pattern at Lionbrand.com.

The link takes you to the free pattern page, the jacket is the second one listed.

Hopefully that's how the jacket will look. Except for a couple of colors changes where my local yarn hoarder's store didn't have what was asked for. And I'm all about instant gratification. So I picked what looked good for me.
I'm easy to keep happy if I have yarn and a new project.

Now off to maybe raid the new neighbor's grape vines and apple trees.
(It's okay, I have permission.  Really.)