It's been a busy couple of weeks

It's been a busy couple of weeks, and not necessarily in a good way.

We had a lot of work to do helping my daughter complete an online phy ed class in order for her to graduate from high school with the rest of her class on the Saturday before Memorial Day. After four years of high school, it was only done with 20 minutes to go.

Bit of a calm for a week -- during which time I sent out some query letters -- then preparation was in full swing for my daughter's graduation open house. (That's all the rage now, apparently.) Lots of yard work everyday -- the good thing is there are a lot fewer weeds in the back yard -- that we finished just prior to her party.

In the week leading up to the party, we learned that my dad's oldest sister, which was 87, had suffered a couple of strokes and wasn't expected to live. She died the day before my daughter's open house. My aunt was very close to my dad and was the first of his six siblings to die. It hit him very hard.

I was also working on some of the final details of the weeklong High School Multimedia Workshop that the Indianapolis Association of Black Journalists sponsors at Butler University.

The next week, which was last week, I worried about my dad and prepared for a two-day trip to my daughter's college for freshman orientation. That was last Wednesday and Thursday. I was back on Friday but, exhausted from the trip, I didn't work. (I also learned that day that the mother of one of my closest friends had just died -- yet another blow to my heart.)

I originally thought my aunt's funeral would be in Texas, where she had been living for the last six years. But her children, my cousins, decided it would be here in Indiana where she had spent the majority of her life. So there was lots of family obligations over last weekend. The funeral service, which was beautiful and classy -- like my aunt -- and blessedly short, was two days ago on Monday.

I spent much of yesterday trying to catch up on all the things that had slipped through the cracks over the last couple of weeks. I still haven't looked through all my e-mails. And I haven't finished a short story for the anthology my chapter of Sisters in Crime is publishing. The story deadline isn't for another month but I promised a first draft to my critique group by next Wednesday. So, I have a lot of work to do.

That pretty much covers things. The upshot is that I have had a lot on my plate. And hopefully in the next few days I can get back to some serious writing.

Thanks for reading. And don't give up.

Iconic science fiction writer Ray Bradbury dies at 91

Iconic science fiction writer Ray Bradbury dies at 91

Ray Bradbury, perhaps the world's greatest science fiction writer, died today. He was 91.

Probably his best known works are Fahrenheit 451, Something Wicked this Way Comes and The Martian Chronicles, of which I particularly liked Fahrenheit. But he was more than just those early works. His short stories are classics of the genre.

He was a great writer and like with all great writers, he will be missed.

Keep him and his family in your thoughts and prayers.

Thanks for reading.

A New Novel, Part II

Gotten off to a slow start with my new novel. Distractions caused by work, children, our garden and a volunteer group I am working are taking a toll. My pace is only half of what it should be. But I have time to kick it  into grear. It is an interesting murder story that is a sequel to An Untidy Affair.

Yes, yes, yes, I know. I generally don't write sequels (although I plan them for the future) because if I haven't sold the first book yet, why waste time on a sequel that also might not sell? Sound thinking. But I want to crank this one out in less than a month and then sit it on a shelf until later. I won't be wasting that much time and if Affair is ever sold, I will have another novel waiting in the wings.

But that can only happen if I get myself in gear. I should have more than 6,000 words done by now and only have about 3,000. However, the storytelling is going well. It's just finding the time, the will and the energy to work on it.

I guess I am getting old.

This effort is part of NaNoWriMo in June. It had a summer camp theme. I registered, of course, and can even text a small group of writers for encouragement and support. Haven't done much of that -- it's also distracting -- but I can probably use the encouragement.

Well, I have a headache and other work to get done, so I'm going. But you keep the faith and keep writing.

Thanks for reading.

P.S., I saw a political bumper sticker yesterday that I thought hit the nail on the head. It said Republicans in 2012 are willing for throw millions of people out of work just to get one man (Obama) out of a job.

Interesting assessment.