Spring Cleaning, Sales, and Free Stuff

What I'm reading: Exposed, by Julie Elizabeth Leto

Hubby has been on half-time for a week now, and I don't know if that was the trigger, but all of a sudden he's moving forward with the plans to get the house on the market. Curb appeal. Repair. De-clutter. And after 20 years in this house, there's a lot of clutter, especially in his office.

What stays? What moves? Garage sale, recycling, trash, or donate? Anyone need a fish shaped squirt gun?


Or a trophy from a 1986 cricket racing championship?


What about a door—son's summer project when he was in high school?


And if you pay by the pound to move it, is it worth schlepping stuff you haven't touched in 10 years 'just in case it might come in handy?' I don't think so. But I love fresh starts. I think hubby prefers everything stay the same.

How do you deal with moving your life across the country?

Other news, none of which should add to any clutter at your house:

Keep Reading...
Wild Rose Press has put all its "Rosettes" (short-short) stories on sale for Spring. Two of mine, Second Chance Rose and Out of Sight are now available for 99 cents. That's less than a cup of coffee. I hope you'll take advantage of the pricing.

And Cerridwen Press has started a "Free Reads" program for short stories. What could be better than free? I've got a free read released this week, "Coping Mechanisms." It's another peek into the lives of Randy and Sarah.

Randy may have his cop partner, but Sarah is his new life partner, and she's aware that any new relationship has its little hiccups. Randy builds walls around his emotions. It's what makes him a good cop. But what works with a fellow cop isn't going to cut it with Sarah. Determined to dismantle his fortress, brick by brick if she has to, she confronts him after a difficult case has him retreating.

Here's a tidbit to get you started:

Sarah smiled at the sound of the front door opening. She placed the last slice of cheese on a water cracker, wiped her hands on a dish towel, and gave a quick finger-comb to her new hairdo before rushing out of the kitchen to greet her husband. Would he notice the gold highlights scattered though the otherwise dull brown? After all, he was a detective.

His night shifts had ended, and they could finally share a dinner followed by… Her grin widened as she thought of the night ahead. It had been awhile since both were awake enough to enjoy each other’s company. Kind of tough on newlyweds, but the special meal she’d planned should start making up for lost time.

Her smile faded as she saw Randy’s expression. “My God, what’s wrong?”

He pushed past her to the liquor cabinet and poured himself a Jameson. He downed half in one gulp and stared at some distant point. His lips were clenched, his brow furrowed like a freshly plowed field. Being a cop was a high-stress job, but it wasn’t like Randy to turn to whiskey. Her disapproval must have shown on her face. He glowered, and she felt the heat of rising tears behind her eyes.

“Not yet,” he growled. He pivoted and stalked to the spare room. Sarah heard the door close behind him.

I hope you'll take a few minutes to download and read it. You do have to go through the normal bookstore at the website, but since there's no payment involved, it's not that complicated. (My personal disclaimer—all these free stories share a single cover, so this is definitely a 'don't judge a book by its cover' situation.)

Tomorrow, join Mary Louise Wells here at Terry's Place. She's going to talk about having what it takes to make it in the world of writing—after you've written the book.