The Inside Story -- Audiobooks

Do you like audiobooks? It seems they are the most popular thing in publishing at this time.

Some authors and publishers are bypassing ebooks and paperbacks in order to go straight to the Audiobook.

Audible and Itunes are the two best selling applications for Audios. 

Audiobooks are convenient. The reader can listen while as he drives, does chores or gardens. It is a great tool for the multitasker.

So who reads your book? My first audiobook is for sale. Audible lets you pick the producer. For my novel Tattered Wings, I chose William Reese. 

Bill has been in radio for years and knows how to make a character come to life.

His voice is rich and inviting. I closed my eyes and listened to him read. 

To hold the attention of the author is no easy task. We have already read our work many times.There is when we write it, rewrites, (at least two, but more likely three), then it reaches the editor to go through first, second, third edits as well as line edits, and last but not least, it must be proofread.

Such is the way it was with Tattered Wings. I put my headphones on and prayed I could keep my mind on this story I knew so well.

By the end of the first chapter, I was drawn into my own novel.

Thanks to William Reese, it was easy. Bill has done five books for Audible this year, and I look for him to do many more including any adventure I have that calls for a male reader.

Did I mention I feel like I've made a new friend?

Anyone can download a book from Audible free. I did, and I can see how it could be addicting.

. To learn more about the talented Mr. Reese, drop by his website http://reesevoices.com 

Watch for the rest of my list to reach Audible in the near future.

The Inside Story Part One

I began writing a new book. I'm about 17,000 words into it. It's about an eighteen-year-old who has been living alone in the National Forest.

The working title is Murder in Madison Woods. I might change it.

I don't know anyone else's writing process, but mine starts with a small idea. Sometimes I can write the idea down in one sentence or a couple of words.Then it festers and grows. People walk through my mind. Some I keep and some I tuck away for another novel.

I go to my writing space and write until what has brewed and materializes is gone, then I do other tasks writers must do.

Believe me, If writers only had to write, I would be prolific. The problem is, they want you to have a Twitter account, an Instagram page, and a blog. Did I forget the newsletter and the Author pages on Amazon, Audible, and maybe iTunes; I'm not there yet?

I forgot my Website.

During the afternoon and evening, more of the story presents itself to me and I write it down the next day.

Meanwhile, other stories fill my head and I have a dozen or so notebooks I make notes in to keep it all straight.
We will talk more about this in the days and weeks to come. If you are a writer, tell me your writing process. If you are a reader, what draws you to the book? Is it the cover or the blurb on the back? Something else maybe?

Let me know. It is very easy to leave a comment here. If you are shy and don't want anyone else to read what you have to say, send it to my email

susankeeenebooks@gmail.com

Have a wonderful day.

Some facts about Kate Nash

A Visit With Tierney James and The Dark Side of Morning.

Today I am honored to have Tierney James as my guest. Tierney writes those books you stay up late to read. Take a few minutes and learn about the lady behind Lipstick and Danger.

I love museums, especially those dedicated natural history. One of my favorite subjects concerns Native Americans. That’s probably because my parents and grandparents took me to the Smokey Mountains when I was thirteen. Having grown up in Illinois I’d never seen the mountains and certainly never any Native Americans. Once on the Qualla Reservation of the Cherokee People, among the beautiful mountains and streams, I felt I had been transported to Nirvana. It was then that my grandfather led me to speak to an elderly Cherokee man that spoke little English. I was introduced to him and I swear his warm smile touched me all the way to my bones. He spoke in their native tongue as he laid a hand on my shoulder. Something magical happened inside me. My whole being changed in a flash. 

Years later I student taught on that same reservation in a fourth grade classroom. I lived in a Cherokee Children’s Home and had nine little sisters, that to this day, I love very much. Some I’ve managed to stay in touch with over the years. My life turned yet another corner. I didn’t have a car so I rode the bus with the students each day. There are a lot of funny stories about a mid-western white girl plunged into an amazing culture that enriched my life.

Which brings me to writing. Dark Side of Morning involves a Pawnee culture from 200 years ago. The twist is that it comes knocking on 2017 with some disastrous results. Can you imagine stepping through a portal into another universe? What would be different? Here is a snippet of what to expect.

Dark Side of Morning by Tierney James http://amzn.to/2ieQx6x

Dr. Cleopatra Sommers never came to terms with her father’s disappearance at the Museum of Natural History in Chicago. He had been a Native American scholar that explored avenues of unexplained spiritual paths in their cultures.  The museum had been her home and playground growing up where her father spent long hours working. She was always drawn to one display case holding a mannequin of a Pawnee Indian. There was no way she could know he watched her all those years until the night he crossed over to find her.

Detective Jacque Marquette suspected the beautiful doctor of stealing priceless artifacts from a Native American exhibit. He realized after meeting his identical twin from another time and place, Dr. Sommers might not be as crazy as he initially thought. The layers of concern for his city begin to stack up as he is caught between culture and the Pentagon. Only with the help of a Pawnee warrior from two hundred years ago, can save his city from a deadly disease brought in from a parallel universe.

Wind Dancer had loved the little girl who grew up before him for years. When he decided to cross over to prevent his enemy from finding Dr. Sommers, the bombardment of changes forced him to rely on the ways of the past to survive. Navigating the future proves to be complicated as he teams up with a grumpy detective to hunt down a common enemy. No one expected the price to be sacrificing Dr. Sommers to the Morning Star in order to avert disaster.

You can find out more!

http://www.tierneyjames.com

http://www.facebook.com/TierneyJamesAction

Twitter: @TierneyJames1

The Idea for the Twisted Mind of Cletus Compton

This summer, for the first time in years, I had a schedule. This put me on a long, dark (more like pitch black), lonely road to my home  several nights a week.
Being a writer, I should be able to describe to you what made the hair on the back of my neck stand up as I drove.
The road goes between one small town in the Ozarks to an even smaller farm community with only one viable business, a convenience store.
About a mile down this road you lose the light from the first town and the light from the quick stop ahead of you is not yet bright enough to be visible. All you have to guide you is your headlights.
There is no shoulder on the road. On one side, the back of fence of several farms flashes in the headlights. The other side is a hill goes up and disappears into the shadows, just past that is the railroad track.
In the last ten years, I have driven this road a thousand times, but this summer it triggered a recurring nightmare.
In my nightmare, I as drive down this road I spot something. I slow down to  take a closer look. I spy a large wooden crate made of sassafras sticks tied together with yellow baling twin.
I turn the car toward the box so the light shines on it and slowly get out. The box is about 20 yards away. Should I go see if anything is in the box or should I stay close in case it is dangerous?
Something moves and I jump, trip over a rock and land on both hands and knees. From that position, I can see there is a small human chained to the crate.
At that point, I wake up.
I had this dream every night. It got so I hated to close my eyes.
One night when I woke up from my scary dream, I jumped up and went to my office where I wrote it down. That was at 2 am. At 6 am I was still writing and I was on chapter 6. That is how the Twisted Mind of Cletus Compton became a novel.
The funny thing is, after that night I never had the nightmare again.
Hum... leave me a comment and tell me what you think. Where did the dream come from? Why did it go away so abruptly?

Let"s Create

Since I was a small child, I was told we are put on this world to create, or to love one another , or to take care of things and people who cannot take care of themselves.

It depends on what you believe as to which of these things is the most important. In a perfect world, it would all be relevant.

Today I want to talk about creating. Everyday someone says to me, "I could never write a book," how do you do it? Then they look at me in disbelief when I tell them, "I'm not quite sure."

It's true. Most of my ideas come from a snippet of a recurring dream, a piece of a conversation, or a thought I can't get out of my head. Usually, for sanity's sake, I write it down.

The funny thing is, once I write it down, it goes away. I don't have the dream anymore. I can think about other things and I can't always remember the way the conversation, I obsessed about only moments before, actually went.

Now here is the odd part, (if that isn't odd enough). I have absolutely no idea who will be in the book, what the plot is or how it will end. I sit down at my computer with a cup of coffee (decaf, I am hyper enough) and begin to type. To get started, I read the last paragraph I wrote the day before. Then my mind is off  and running. People pop into my imagination and I see them with great detail, even down to the mole on their cheek.

If I stick to it, no one gets sick, the dogs don't have to go outside, the room isn't too hot or cold or a dozen other things to interrupt my train of thought, I spew out a story. Sometimes stories take weeks, others take months and one even took a year.

Enter, my friends and family and even my families friends. I need readers. At this point, I am convinced the reader thinks I am illiterate. My work needs comma's, periods, quotation marks, different paragraph breaks and on and on. I only want to know about the content. Is this a story line you could get into.

I mostly get, "Wow,you're weird!"  "Whose brain  comes up with this stuff.?" 

The Springfield area has several writers groups, Sleuth's, Ink Mystery Writers, Ozark Romance Authors,and The Writer's Guild to name a few. Believe me, these people are as weird as I am. Maybe they are a little more mainstream weird ( yes, it is possible).
Wanda Fittro wrote about an abusive relationship and I swear, you would think you were in the room.
Tierney James writes  (among other things) a series about a housewife turned spy. It is so believable, you wonder what the lady next door did last night. Lisa Medley writes of Space Cowboys, Alien love, and Reapers, (the grim kind). Beth Carter writes romance novels that are raising in the ranks.
VJ Shultz will surprise you every time with her short stories, password journals and coloring books. Shirley McCann will scare the beegeebees out of you. Before you know it you are sitting with your back to the wall so no one can walk up behind you. (I wanted to say McCann can, but thought better of it.)

If you paint, draw, care for the sick or elderly, cook, garden, or a thousand other things , you are a creator.

Stop by and tell me about your passion.

http://susankeeneauthor.com                    https://www.facebook.com/susanskeene1/

Learning in the car

Writer's are a strange lot. We are in awe of our friends, we cheer their successes and we try to make them feel better if they get down.

Authors love to share information. A friend of mine, told me time and time again, I should listen to the Creative Penn podcasts by Joanna Penn. I told myself I had heard it all before. My time would be best spent creating the next bestseller, working on my blog, website, Facebook page or the fifty other things my publisher listed that would bring me along in the marketing department.

On a recent trip to Tulsa I  intended to listen to my IPod. Thing is, I couldn't find it so I listened to Abraham/Esther Hicks CD's  a friend from church gave me. I learned a lot so I don't feel like I wasted my time.

I learned long ago the value of listening while driving. When I worked for Sears Roebuck and Co. I traveled. Did you know that if you stay in the range of the same radio station, they play the same song in the top twenty every forty-seven minutes?

Anyone who has traveled for their job knows that windshield time is a real downer. Before I transferred here from St. Louis, I listened to all the tapes in the St. Charles County Library system. When I moved here, I listened to every book in the Springfield Library system.

I went through the contemporary novels first, then self- help,  the classics and finally the philosophers. Time in the car flew and I wasn't nearly as tired as I was when I remained bored listening to music. Music is great, but one year I drove 24000 miles for my job.

FYI, I am the person you want on your trivia team. For some reason, odd facts stay with me and odd facts come up in trivia games.

Yes, I have a point. Some of you already do this, for the rest of you, I am going to make a suggestion. Use your driving time to learn. You need not be a writer to expand your horizons. There are many CD's on gardening, knitting, bookkeeping, beekeeping, photography, star gazing and on and on.

In just a trip to the grocery store, you can get in a chapter or two.

For those of you who write, I suggest Hugh Howie's podcast, The Creative Penn or Steven King's writing. Those will send you off chasing other fine offerings by the guests on these venues.

Lastly, listening to successful people in your field keeps you motivated. They are upbeat, entertaining and informative. I bet gardening or photography CD's would do the same thing.

Okay, back to the Twisted Mind of Cletus Compton, my latest novel. I promised myself I would have edited by the end of this week so someone can read it.

(Once you meet Cletus Compton, you will sleep with the lights on!)

Should you share your ideas and dreams?

      Should you share your dreams and ideas ?

I say NO. Have you ever met a true dreamer? You know, one of those people who always has a great idea for a book or a story. Maybe they have an invention that will make housework easier. I know a guy who had an idea for a steam piston to more a car. The car had a battery. The battery had a water reservoir that dropped water on the piston the piston went down and the next drop of water made the piston rise again.

He had that idea fifty-years ago. It never went anywhere. Now when he comes up with an idea folks say. " Is that anything like the water piston?"
It is not only the ridicule, but the skepticism and resistance that is created when your idea or dream hits the air.

Does that seem silly to you?

Not to me.

I am what is known as a panster writer. In other words, I get an idea. Perhaps it came in a dream or was sparked by something someone said on TV or in a conversation I overheard. It could be as small as a couple of words or a big as proven concept.
When I sit down with that story line, I have NO idea who the characters will be, where the story will go or whether it will be a novel, a novella or a short story. Not all of my ideas become anything. Some of them are nine or ten pages long. They lay in a drawer in my desk until I get back to them.

Some of my friends and colleagues are plotters. They sit down and write down the entire story line. They know the principle characters, the beginning and for the most part, (except for the actual words they will use), they know the middle and the ending.

I know that works because some of these people have ten or more successful books out there.
So do those of us who fly by the seat of our pants.

So what am I getting at?
I'm saying this, telling your dreams, ideas and stories dilutes them. There is always someone out there who doesn't think you can do it, and they don't mind telling you your storyline, invention or dream is unrealistic.

I say "Good." The more fantastic, the more 'out there' the more exciting it is.

There are exceptions to every rule. I have a sister how loves every idea and dream I have ever had.
If I tell her I am stuck, she tells me to let it stew in my brain a few days and it will work out.

Most people aren't like that. Most people don't write, don't take a chance on an invention and still do things the way their parents did and their grandparents before them.

And NO, I am not saying the entire world is not adventurous. I am saying those of us who are, are a minority.

When I go to the Ozarks Romance Authors meeting and listen to the successes and hear the readings of those talented people, I sometimes forget this kind of person is not a majority.

The next Saturday, I join the mystery writers from Sleuth's-Ink. Again, I am flabbergasted at the imaginations and tenacity of those folks.

Here is my point. Yes, I do have one.

Don't spend your time talking about what you want to do. If you have a book or a story in you, write it. If you want to paint a picture, paint it. Don't dilute your dreams by sharing them. Develop them, nurture them. Be the best you can be.

Along the way, drop by Amazon or your local book store and explore these local authors with huge talents. I am sure to leave someone out. I will apologize in advance for any oversight.
Tierney James, Wanda Fittro, Cat London, Shirley McCann, VJ Schlutz, Lisa Medley, Beth Carter, Tina Riffey, Pat Elliott, Sharon Smith, Yvonne Erwin, Cara Bristol, Lisa Wells and Sharon Kizzah- Holmes, and Tattered Wings, by me.

This is only a small sampling of the talent in the area. Branch out, read some new authors.

I invite you to leave your thoughts and comments regarding this post.
Susan

Tierney James talks about her career and writing.

Tierney James is a talented author and speaker. I had the opportunity to interview her. If you have not had the chance to read Unlikely Hero, take the time to do so today.

You write some fast moving spy thrillers, what led you in that direction?

I was the kid who liked dinosaur movies, westerns, Tarzan and Mighty Mouse. Maybe my shyness made me want to act brave and fearless, I never talked to a shrink.  Later it was action movies like Indiana Jones, The Wind and the Lion and so on. I liked dangerous and exciting. Then one day I read The Judas Strain by James Rollins. I fell in love with thrillers. He taught me so much about writing and soon I had read all his books. Writing thrillers makes me tingle with excitement. Conspiracy, cliff hangers, mysterious strangers, all get my heart pumping and my adrenaline flowing. Most people when they first meet me think I'm a sweet, tea drinking Baptist with not one spark of courage. When I write-well, watch out!

Is Tessa based on a real person? Of course we don't expect you to reveal secrets but hints are always nice.

Tessa came to be because of some unusual incidents that happened to me when I lived in Northern California. People were always mistaking me for someone named "Melanie". I would be stopped on the street, pulled aside at the DMV for questioning and once someone called me at home. I started to wonder who this Melanie could be; was she in trouble, honest, dangerous, a criminal or someone in the witness protection program. After all the DMV didn't believe I'd just moved there from Missouri. Someone with my information lived in Santa Barbara. My family didn't believe me at first until months later a strange man approached me, whirled me around and started talking. He also called me "Melanie".  Needless to say, I started getting a little more respect after that encounter.  In my first novel, An Unlikely Hero, the house and town where the action takes place is real. I lived there. 

How did you research your novels?

My research, for the most part, takes place on the internet. It is so much easier than going to library these days. I get a story idea from a picture, a song or place I visit then the research starts. A year ahttp://amzn.to/1gh7WIhgo I read an article about the Wahkan Valley in Northern Afghanistan. I've been collecting information about the area to weave into my third novel, Rooftop Angels.

Do you have a set writing schedule?

No. I do try and write or edit each day. I do writing things like research, read or study writing books. But I believe you must do this each day. It's like practicing the piano. Skip a couple of days, weeks or months and the music suffers. Write. Write. Write.

How important is social media in your marketing and writing process?

It is becoming more of what I do because it is demanded from publishers. I don't like promoting myself because it isn't something that comes easy for me. I'm learning by compiling a notebook of ideas, formats and websites that give me more confidence in this area. I also have taken a few webinars to educate myself. Social media is a real inspiration killer. It just takes a great deal of time in which I'd rather be writing. I'm trying to discover ways to circumvent that so I can get on with the business of writing. I would much rather be a guest speaker than recruit on social media. But I do it anyway. You just have to jump in and make yourself known.

I have found that most writers are avid readers, who are your favorite authors?

James Rollins, Steve Berry, Brad Thor, David Baldacci, Daniel Silva, Clive Cussler, Nora Roberts, Elizabeth Lowell, Sandra Brown and Terry Brooks.

Take a little time here and tell us about yourself. Getting to know the author is fasinating.

Besides being an educator of World Geography, I've been a Solar System Ambassador for NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab, worked and lived on an Indian Reservation and traveled in Africa, Asia and Europe. All these places and activities are fodder for storytelling. My family is the most important thing to me on this earth. Some of the hobbies I enjoy are gardening, writing, traveling, reading and I love music. I'm a life long learner so I'm always on the lookout for new information.

Novels: An Unlikely Hero (#1) Winds of Deception (#2 editing) Rooftop Angels (#3 editing) The Rescued Heart (under     contract with Black Opal Books)  

Children's Books: There's a Superhero in the Library & Zombie Meatloaf.

Thanks for inviting me to your blog. I hope your readers will check out my work. 

 

The Blog Hop

The Blog Hop.
Thanks to, Amanda Buxton, for thinking I am interesting enough to be in her blog hop.

What am I working on right now?

I am making the editorial changes to my mystery/thriller Tattered Wings.
It is the story of a young boy who kills and why he feels it is necessary.
All through the story are bits of the lives affected by this boy's actions.
Do we make killers or are then born?

How does my writing process work?

Not like anyone else's from what I read.  I always get a kick out of how people say they write. They make their character list, they develop them, they get their scenes in their heads and off they go putting it all together.
This is how it works for me.
I can't sleep. An idea floats around in my head, then it starts beating against my forehead saying "Get up you lazy bum and write  this down because you won't remember it in the morning."
I drag myself out and transfer everything nagging in my brain on to a piece of paper.  I feel relieved and go back to bed. When I get up in the morning to go into my office. I am flabbergasted at what is on the paper. Here is a sample of what was in my head the other night when the idea for the Murders of Madison Hill came to me at 3:35 am.

“He's dead.”   

            “How do you know?”

            “Allen, you can't mistake dead!” Nate was poking the blue blob with a stick.

 “Come on Nate, I don’t like this. I keep thinkin’ he’s gonna move. Besides, if he’s dead we need to tell somebody.”

            “Allen, we aren't supposed to cut through the woods. Mom said next time we did, she’d  ground us.”

            “Jeez, Nate.  How can you think of that now?  If you don't go with me, I am going alone.”

            Nate didn’t move from his spot. He kept looking, prodding, and trying to turn the guy over, but he needed something bigger.

            It was an adult, and he looked horrible.  There was blood all over the leaves around him and the blue jogging suit he was wearing.  There was a definite whole in his head. The eye Nate could see  was open and foggy. Just as Nate began to turn toward Allen, he heard a rustling sound in the distance. It was rapidly getting closer. Nate pushed his little brother so hard he tripped. Reaching down he pulled the younger boy up, grabbed his hand,and ran toward the nearest clump of trees.  Pushing Allen down again, he threw himself on top, and clamping  his hand over his little brother's mouth, he whispered,  “Shut up. Don't move. Don't breathe.”

            Allen began to cry.

 

Hum, now I have Allen and Nate, where do I go from there? Honestly, I don't know but it will be interesting to find out. I am merely the writer and the thing inside of me that guides me lets me have all the fun.

 

What is the hardest part of writing?

 

Actually sitting down and writing. I seem to have a problem concentrating on it for very long. I like to read and walk around the farm. I visit the animals and pet the dogs. My woodshop calls my name because I like to build things. The only way it works for me it to go to the office first thing in the morning and write. I do most of my writing in my PJ's. If I get distracted early, it is a lost day.

 

What authors do I admire?

 

Mark Twain, Jeanette Walls, J.D. Robb, Joan Hess and anyone else you can spin a tale I can not figure out or that makes me laugh and holds my interest. 

Please stop by www.ambuxton.com and see what Amanda is doing. She is extremely talented.  Also. go by and see how Rob Myers does is at www.ignorramus.com

The Adventures of Diggitty Dog

The Adventures of Diggitty Dog

I am a firm believer that if you get an idea that will not go away, it is destiny.  You are doing yourself a big disservice if you do not act on it.
 For the past several months, I have had an idea about a series of children's books that teach children something in a fun way.  My dog Diggitty is going to be my hero. Diggitty, who is pictured above, lives on a big farm and takes kids on adventures while teaching them how things grow and live on a farm.
This idea has been in my head so long, I was able to write the first book in less than two hours.  Today I finished book two.
It isn't that the books were so easy to write but that they rattled around until they were complete and only needed to be written down.
The turning point from thinking to writing came the other night when I sat and watched Beth Carter, Allison Merritt and Tierney James give their book reviews at the Friends of the Library in Marshfield last Tuesday night.
I was proud of them.  They did a great job.  That night I asked myself what I was waiting for and the answer came back.  Nothing.
So, be sure to check back and follow the Adventures of Diggitty Dog.  She is a hoot and you might just learn something about gardening, animals, and the antics of an eight pound protagonist.

Motivation

There was a time when I didn't get the concept that motivation comes after the fact.
In other words, you must force yourself to do a chore the first time and then the, feeling of success you get gives you the motivation to do it again.

I proved it to myself again this morning.  Being obsessed with getting my book Tattered Wings published, I find myself sitting hour after hour.  I read it.  I reread it.  I make changes.  Then I send out query letters and pages to prospective agents. When I look up at the clock it is noon.  My pj's are still on and I have downed a pot of coffee.

The result of this daily behavior is stress and sore muscles.  This morning I changed my routine.  I got up, did the minimum chores I could ( no easy task on a 100 acre farm) and headed to the gym. Twenty minutes on the treadmill, ten minutes on the StairMaster and a variety of arm weights, helped melt the tension away.

Now, I find myself looking forward to going to the gym tomorrow.  When I sit five hours working on my novel,  I can smile. I did accomplish something for my health today.  Tomorrow I will work on leg machines and increase my times on the tread mill and Stair Master( I didn't want to throw my body into shock on the first day).

Do something today for yourself.  Sure, I am writing my book for me as much as anything (actually it is to get rid of those voices in my head).  But, I am not doing it as the expense of my health.
Next I am going to tackle my ice cream obsession.

Writers.

Talent

Amazing!

Yesterday I spent my day with about 65 talented people.

Collectively they have written thousands of books, stories, blogs, and thoughts read by millions of people.

JANO2013 is a project geared at motivating writers to put 50,000 words on paper before February 1.

When I think about it, it seems overwhelming, yet there are many people across this area who are dedicated to get the job done.

I, personally, started a new Romance novel with the hopes of attaining the goal.

ORA, Ozark Romance Writers, and Sleuth's Ink Mystery Writers co hosted the event.  They brought together aspiring and veteran writers from across the area.  I met several authors  from the greater Kansas City area, Thornhill, Joplin, and Plato, Niangua, Marshfield, Ozark, and Nixa and beyond.

I learned so much.  I listened to other writers read their offerings out loud and open themselves up to the critique of their peers. I took a deep breath and read my offering.  The feedback from everyone was invaluable.  It was my first time to attend a Mega Critique.  I am hooked.

Every genre was represented  from Romance, Paranormal, Alternative Lifestyle, Christian

Inspirational, YA, Middle grade and children as well as non fiction and Historical fiction and erotica.

I wonder if the public realizes how much talent they have under their noses.

Writing is an unusual profession.  I don't get up, get dressed, and head out on the road to my office.

Sometimes I spend the entire day writing to realize my characters have taken over my life .  I look up to realize it is three p.m.  I am still in my PJ's , have had only coffee and no shower.

Events like the one yesterday remind me I am a member of an elite group of people driven by the voices  we have conjured up in our minds.  We hear voices, create alternate egos, plot crimes, kill people, and put unlikely folks together for unforgettable adventures and love stories that make your heart flutter.

Thanks to all of you.

Again I am inspired to be able to count myself - one of  the group.