Today My Blog Turns Three

I can't believe I've actually been blogging for three whole years. Happy birthday, The Wittering Woman! But what an earth have I discussed over three years?

This was my first blog post; My First Post. (Original title huh?) After that, I do believe I may have posted a lot of eye candy... I mean inspiration for writing the perfect hero.

Today, Sally Quilford shared a post from Mills And Boon, who are looking for a blogger. I've got a week, but I might give it a go and send something in. Because blogging about books and romance would be the perfect job. (As you may know, I'm looking for another job, too.) I've dug out a book review of one my favourite authors, so I can tweak that. :D

And I've realised I should be discussing romance more on here. This could be the kick I need, people. Slowly, my writing mojo is returning. First a short story competition, now a blogging one. I call myself a romantic, so I should be writing about it more. Then you'll get a feel for what my books will be like - when I finally get them published.

So, Teresa, aka The Wittering Woman, what is your favourite romance scenario in a book? 

I love reading the hero and heroine pretending to be a couple, and by doing so actually fall in love. The Wedding Favour is based on this theme. And recently I re-watched the romantic comedy Just Go With It starring Jennifer Aniston and Adam Sandler. It's actually the scenario reversed. Aniston, who works for Sadler, has to pretend to be the ex-wife, so that Sadler can woo the twenty-year-old-something he's dating. Not only is it hilarious as the lies get deeper and deeper, (because Sadler has to pretend to be Aniston's husband to dupe someone else) but on their journey of pretending, they realise that they are perfect for one another.

I think under Mills and Boon the 'category' is marriage of convenience. What's your favourite romantic storyline?

To end this blog post, as it is my blog's birthday, it would be rude not to share with you... some inspiration.

Can't beat a hot fireman for a hero, right? 

p.s. I'm opening my blog up again to visits. Let me know if you want to share your book, or raise your profile!

I've Thought Of A Blog Post Idea

I've thought of something that will be inspirational for us writers, a motivational image. Something to blog about regularly.

Over on the lovely Facebook, a writer friend of mine posted a shirtless fireman. And obviously I had to share it too. I had another friend regularly posting Fireman Friday, which I used to share, but now I'm wondering whether to make a Shirtless Thursday post. Because I do like shirtless men. Don't you? Obviously for inspirational purposes as a writer!

One problem, all my lovely photos of shirtless men are on my PC, which is still packed away in its box :-( (I must fix that soon). Oh, what a shame, I will have to trudge through the internet to find you shirtless men every Thursday.

Anyway, it's only fair... here's the shirtless fireman (Or a man dressed as a shirtless fireman lol!)

That burning building was HOT!

I'll try to make sure I post next Thursday another shirtless picture. Otherwise remind me!

Also, as a side note, I'm going to turn on the word/number verification thing for posting comments. I'm getting too much SPAM :-( Let me know if this does cause problems though. Teresa x 
And you don't need to be a writer to post a comment. All are welcome.

This And That, Mainly That, Oh And Firemen

Thought I best check in, because as per usual I've been failing with my writing, blogging and what-not.

Last week I worked 22 hours, plus my 3 and a half hours at the school. That doesn't sound a lot, (when you think I used to work full time once) but it's a lot for a full time mum and housewife. Nothing gets done around the home, and then I'm too tired to contemplate the writing. I've really got out of routine at the moment, and when you lose the momentum in writing, it's really hard to get back into it. So, apart from doing the extra hours on the Monday morning (which I needed to grab so I've got them for when I do have to work a minimum of 16 hours) I'm not volunteering for any more overtime at the moment. Admittedly, with those extra hours I will have extra money, which will be handy. I should save, but appear to be spending it more and more. But that's another story and a bit of a gripe too. 

The good news is that we may have sold our house. We're accepting an offer, anyway. I won't get too excited about these things, I've gone through the house buying business before, and lost two houses I had fallen in love with, so just going with the flow. But next week I'm house hunting! Is there light at the end of the tunnel? Could I be in a new home in the Spring? (and my husband and I finally parted?)

Occasionally I do wobble and worry about how I'm going to cope with paying a mortgage, keeping a house up together with two kids, on minuscule wages, relying on benefits and child maintenance payments. I'm excited but very scared, I must say. I know I'll have my dad around, but it won't be quite the same as having a man under the same roof to do the things men do. But then there is this part of me who can't wait to have a place to myself. Plus, I have two boys. They'll grow... and will be able to mow the lawn for pocket money, right?

In other news: Talk about inspiration walking through your door, well work place. Last Tuesday, I'd turned up at work 9.00am for some overtime (part of those 22 hours I talked about above) and my boss, who was doing the bake-off that morning, set off the fire alarm. (For the record, in the seven years of using those ovens, I've never once set off the fire alarm ;-)) The team leader running the shift the night before had managed to take the phone home, so we couldn't call the fire brigade to tell them it was a false alarm. Twenty minutes later... (if it had been a real fire, I dread to think the state of the place) two large fire engines, blue flashing lights, sirens and everything turned up. FIREMEN! WHOOOO HOOOO!

A lot of customers stayed in the shop and ignored the alarm!

They didn't look like this. But they were all very large, buff men. lol!

I've also remembered it's my birthday week, and last year I held a party for a whole week. Not so sure what I'll be doing this year, (and no it's not my 40th yet!) although rumour has it I might have some surprises this week, so watch this space.

It's Wobble Time, I Mean Submission Time

I've only got one chapter to edit! Then it's submission time. And I'm not nervous at all.

Yeah, right.

Gosh, The Wedding Favour started as a chapter in the Mills and Boon New Voice competition, in September 2010, and here we are, approximately 18 months later with the finished product. To be honest, it should have taken me less time, but occasionally I concentrated on other writing assignments, such as my Writers' Bureau (and being a full time mum, the kids would get in the way). And I wrote 33,000 words for Perfect Isn't An Option. That was a month.

My inspiration for Steve.

Anyway, watch this space. And watch my word count to the right. I'm going to start writing more of Perfect Isn't An Option very soon. I want this to be the novel I submit to the RNA New Writers' Scheme. So I want it finished, and edited (though probably won't be as polished) by end of June. End of July - latest! Because I don't want to be one of those people who hand it in last minute. I've estimated that if I do 1000 words a day (which is doable) it should take me just over a month to write. If I start writing from about the 24th March I could be finished by mid May.

I'm going to put what I've written so far onto my Kindle and read through, so I can brainstorm what gaps need filling, what scenes need adding. 

Buff firemen with tattoos!

And then, while I wait to hear the verdict on that with the RNA, plus the rejections flowing in for The Wedding Favour (ever the optimist), I'll be writing my third novel.

It doesn't have a title, and needs serious amounts of brainstorming. But the hero is an ex-fireman, come now a landscape gardener (I'm imagining him nice and big and buff, and with tattoos). The heroine needs some more thought. But they're going to be neighbours who can't stand the sight of each other, because really they fancy the pants off of each other. And when her house catches fire (need to decide to what extent) and she moves in with her buff neighbour while her house is renovated, that's when the fireworks really start.

This story idea has stemmed from one tiny scene I had in my head. A man picking up a hysterical woman, slinging her over his shoulder in a fireman's carry, to get her away from a scene that's distressing her.

Anyone else get these silly little scenes and feels the need to make them grow?

I also want to try and find some homes for some shorter pieces that I've written. I need to get more stuff out there. It's juggling the time to do it all though.

Right, back to the grindstone ... And buy that second diary so I can block out work time for different pieces.

Resolutions, Goals And A Little Inspiration

I'm rubbish at New Year Resolutions. It will only stress me out, and they are usually forgotten by February. I will try to eat more fruit, and I want to beat my five writing hits from last year (actually it could be six as apparently I was in Friday Magazine 30th December but I haven't been sent the links... and I couldn't find 'me' by myself.)

I'm not great at setting goals. I am a very organised person generally. I was a secretary by profession. I actually like admin though depending what it is, it can soon bore me senseless as I pick things up quickly. But since becoming a mother, and finding that the routine can so easily be disrupted, I find goals hard to set. I'm better off writing a to-do list for the day sometimes.  All I know is my goal for this year is to start submitting The Wedding Favour (ASAP) and to get my second novel, Perfect Isn't An Option finished and sent to the RNA NWS (by 31st August). Any short stories and assignments achieved will be a bonus. Plus try to beat my running mileage for last year which was 282 miles. Oh and read another 40 books.

I suppose I will try to make sure this blog remains entertaining... and therefore posting hot pictures of men writing inspiration like this one:

 or this one.... 

I have a book idea for a fireman - so all relative, honest. It might be next book (3) I get to write. Who knows?

On another subject, I might try to calm down my posting on Facebook.

Does anyone else get comments from their non-writery friends that they comment too much on Facebook? I've had a couple of friends tease me about how much I'm updating it. They joke I update my status about my running, but their statuses will discuss the football. That doesn't interest me, but I don't tease them about it.

Maybe it's because I am at home all day usually, and something will enter my head (while doing that mundane thing called housework) and I feel the need to share. If I'm honest, I'll try to think of something funny to see if someone will hit the like button. But who doesn't?

I know some of my writery friends update their wall regularly, and it doesn't bother me because I use Facebook in the same way. I've now found, like Twitter, with Facebook if I miss something, I miss it. I don't get too stressed over not seeing someone's update. (Though I worry slightly if it might be an important one - writery news). I've got over 300 friends now, but a lot of those have become writing friends (so now I have to watch what I put on my wall lol!). Admittedly, I was never really intending on making friends with 'strangers' (because I post stuff about my kids) though they are not really 'strangers' in the writing world. (Please don't be offended if you're one of those 'strangers'). But I don't want to make an author page yet... I may not be superstitious, but I do believe in jinxing things. The irony would be I make an author page now and never become an author ;-) Plus, I might not be Teresa Morgan in pen name yet . (That's another blog post).

With the teasing though, I have found myself a little conscious about what I post. Maybe they notice me more because they might not have as many friends, and then the friends they do have, not all post. Some are just watchers, some have an account and never even go on it - luckily I have those friends too! So little ol' me who switches her PC on first thing in the morning and updates regularly, (and is addicted to social networking) probably looks like I'm there all the time. I am not. I do have housework, and writing to do... plus running around after the kids.

So, before I break the blogging rules and make this post way too long (which I fear it already might be but I wanted to discuss Facebook) do you have resolutions? Do you get teased about how much you update Facebook?