First -- quick question. Yesterday, hubby informed me that in IE, my blog page only displayed one day's posting, and only the first part. Nothing on the sidebars showed up until he clicked on the 'keep reading' link. It worked fine in Firefox. And, until yesterday, fine in IE. Anyone else have that problem? I'm hoping it was just a temporary Blogger/IE interface glitch, because, as you must know by now, I don't do that "technology" stuff well at all. Fingers crossed it's working better today.
Last year, I made the decision to quit my day job. True, it was part time, and had a lot of positives going for it, not the least of which was it generated income. At the time, I was burned out, looking at an increa
sed level of responsibility that wasn't going to include any increases in pay, I had a book release coming in December, and another manuscript with an agent. I'd saved enough money to keep writing for about 2 or 3 years, whether or not I sold. So, as of July 1st, I began committing more time to writing.The economy plummeted. Publishers started cutting back. Way back. But I knew I'd be writing anyway, so I kept at it, finishing another manuscript. If my agent could get me a multi-book deal, I'd be ready. But she suggested having something else lined up as well.
Keep Reading...
I took a look at one of my novels. It had only been released digitally, and given the market for mainstream e-books is slow, I decided to ask for my rights back. The publisher granted my request, although it'll still be several more months before I'm in command. Meanwhile, I'm revising, updating, and trying to make it better. Just because it met publication standards didn't mean it couldn't be improved. Is a low-selling book in the hand worth more than an unsold manuscript—or two--in the bush? I don't know.
Then, another one of my publishers decided—for legitimate economic reasons—that they were going to change their word length requirements. Understandably, people don't want to pay much for very short works, and I think I had the shortest story in their catalog. It was the first story they bought, and the market was very different then. I took the rights back for that one as well. I have a soft spot in my heart for that story; it was my first sale—not to that publisher, but to a magazine that went belly up before the story hit print.
To throw yet another spanner in the works, last week, hubby's employer informed him that his position is not going to be around much longer. In lieu of an actual 'retirement' package, they're phasing him out over the next 5 months. Two more under his current conditions, then 3 at half pay, no benefits. Well, hardly any. They're letting him keep a desk in the office. Oh, yeah—and his email account. And, they'll be happy to process any grant money he'd bring in. Of course they will.
In keeping with my resolution to be more like Frankie, my heroine in When Danger Calls, I'm going to be searching long and hard for the bright side. To start, our house and cars are paid off. Of course, I really really really want to get out of this town, but at least we don't have to leave until we're ready. And I'm thankful that hubby balances my, "just do it" attitude with "let's slow down and make a plan."
And another bright note: a review for WHEN DANGER CALLS.
WHEN DANGER CALLS is more than romantic suspense; it's also a love story at its best. It’s exactly the kind of book that should put Terry Odell on the map, an author to watch out for in mainstream and paperback fiction. With action that pops and characters that zing, WHEN DANGER CALLS is more than a dot on a map.
I’m truly glad that I got the chance to read this one and honestly look forward to more from Terry Odell.
Amy Cunningham
Romance Reviews Today
And be sure to come back tomorrow. Yes, it's Friday and "Homicide - Hussey" will be back!
