My Summer Job

I am blessed with three little animals—er, children—between the ages of 5 and 12, who have been out of their enclosures—um, school—for a little over a week. This means that, in addition to writing romantic suspense, I’ve resumed my regular summer position as zookeeper. Some of you are in the same boat (Ark? Cage?). In fact, fellow author Julie Anne Lindsey had a similar blog about summer word deprivation last week. (To view it, click here.) And I know others of you have all kinds of other life complications to deal with.

I've found that spending a few hours each day maintaining the zoo and trying to embrace the chaos helps me stay sane, and even find some writing time. 

A zookeeper’s responsibilities include:

• Behavioral Observation.

The kids' chorus of “I’m bored” (typically combined with draping themselves across the furniture and floor as if every bone in their bodies melted) filled the house within twenty-four hours of their release from the confines of a regular schedule.

“But Mom’s not bored,” I say. “Mom has a book due July 31^st.” This, of course, yields no sympathy. Sigh. If only I could put the monkeys to work writing my book…

The sounds of wild animals squabbling over territory also fill the zoo at regular intervals.

Luckily, if I spend a few minutes playing with them, getting them started on an activity, they'll usually play for about twenty minutes in a more or less content manner. Sure, twenty minutes isn't a lot, but it's a writing sprint, or a page or two of edits. And if I do this several times a day, it adds up...

• Exhibit Maintenance.

My husband and I decided against a lot of summer traveling or costly kid camps this year, though there will be a martial arts camp during that last week of July. (Thank goodness. That’s deadline week!) The added benefit to enjoying a staycation this year is we had the money to do some redecorating around the house, and even create a writing "nook" for me. This has given me a place to focus my energy on my writing activities.

When it comes to sibling fights, the threat of having to help Mom clean the house or having to go to their rooms and clean has come in handy a time or two.

• Environmental Enrichment.

Within the enclosures, introducing the occasional new game, puzzle, or movie, or dragging out old games, puzzles and books that have been forgotten, can build excitement. 

Also, taking a walk as a family, and choosing different paths on occasion, lets Zookeeper Mommy get a break from time in front of a computer screen, but also gives us all exercise time. Our town has an immense web of urban trails that we have yet to explore, and we’re planning to pick one a week to investigate. Let the animals (and zookeeper) escape their confines for a little bit. It might even lead to a dose of writing inspiration.

And if that’s not enough, invest in a trampoline. It worked for us, and keeps the kids from too much screen time. The saved money from our staycation (the only reason I set up a deadline in the summer!) gave us the funds to do some fun things at home and around town.

• Feeding, Maintaining, and Cleaning.

I try to make cleaning the house, baking with the kids, or running errands fun "breaks" between writing spells. The 5-year-old loves to go grocery shopping and do other activities that help us both get things done while still feeling like a break.

I try to plan ahead for those times when the animals will be extra-needy (around orthodontist appointments, for example, when one can expect a higher degree of whininess from both child and parent), so my word count or editing page goal won’t be as high. Knowing my limits, and organizing my schedule around them will hopefully save me heartache when that deadline looms.

Finally, thank goodness my animals aren't nocturnal. They still go to bed at a relatively decent hour, so sometimes my writing has to wait until then zoo is quiet.

Overall, I try to remind myself to enjoy the animals. And the summer. Sure, writing is important, but it isn't everything. And it's all that other stuff that eventually fuels my creativity.

How about you? Any tips for this zookeeper? How does your writing routine change with the season—or does it? How do you overcome upheaval in your writing habits?

Writing with Children

Writing is an astronomically difficult task on my best day, in solitude, with coffee. Writing this summer has been a spectacular challenge. Summers are busy. Far busier than the school year. And I am the lucky driver of the Lindsey bus. (My kids are 5, 8 & 11)We are on the go most mornings and we top off the lessons or activities with a picnic before coming home. It's lovely and we're making lots of memories, but the writing isn't happening. The exercise is basically not even on my to-do list. My to do list is made of child transport and laundry. Even my meals are looking more like sandwiches three times a day than the well balanced plates I used to make. 

During the school year, things are different. I have six solid hours Monday through Friday to work with- write, clean, promote etc. For example: Monday is an errand day and everyday start with a run. I follow a routine and it keeps me sane. There's time to write everyday. There's time for everything everyday and I am the master of my domain. *dances*

Except this isn't the school year.

This is summer and I am floundering. I'm getting farther behind on my manuscripts by the second and the next two months don't look any better. Weeds and grass are growing. My garage needs purging. My ceilings need painted. I've got lots and lots of real life stuff to do in between swim and tennis lessons. And camp and kids college. And no less than six birthday parties. Not to mention if the kids are home too long, they start arguing over anything from how many raisins are in a box of Raisin Bran to the colors on a rainbow according to art class. So, you see my troubles?

They are good problems to have. It’s true. I know. But, the summer has officially killed my writing life and made me a little bananas. As an author, the bananas show. As I’m writing this post, it is literally closing in on midnight on the night of my post deadline which was set long long ago. My overflowing brain is maxed to capacity. My imagination is running wild. My deadlines are creeping closer. I'm headed for a panic attack. Let me just say, there will be weeks of back-to-school writing in August when I finally get the opportunity to empty my brain. There will also be a mad dash to meet deadlines, but at least it will be fun work. 

So, for now, I'm keeping a balance - sort of. I'm making summer memories with my small children while they still want me around and fending off deadlines with a short stick. Is anyone else juggling life and a houseful of children on summer vacation? If so, I'm right here with you. Hang on to your sanity a couple more months because sadly, these days will be gone too soon. 

xoxox
Julie

Summer Reading

Happy June, everyone! Though Mother Nature hasn’t officially proclaimed it Summer, it feels that way as the kids escape school and routines shift to lazier days. (If keeping up my writing routine while entertaining the kids can be called lazy...but there is at least the illusion of lazy time in the hammock.)

For someone like me, whose main leisurely endeavor is reading, my thoughts drift to books. I have a pile of books on my nightstand (which has toppled over and now includes stacks of books under my bed) and the long list on my Kindle. But I also have the occasional impulse buy and favorite author’s new release to consider. So what's on my summer reading list?

I recently discovered this book in the US Airways magazine while traveling to the RT Booklovers Convention. Though nonfiction isn't my typical "go-to" when I want a light, fun read, the idea of hidden history fascinates me. HERE IS WHERE by Andrew Carroll takes a look at hidden-away or forgotten historical sites around the United States. Carroll gives the example of traveling to the subway platform where John Wilkes Booth's brother saved Abraham Lincoln's son. That certainly caught my interest, especially since I'll be on a cross-country road trip soon. Will have to check some of these places out...

Also, for researching my books, I’m going to be reading research on the Arthurian Sword in the Stone legend as well as anything I can find about human trafficking. (Scary combo, I know, but it’s for two different books I’m working on.)

For true relaxation, though, I always head toward fiction. I’m currently hooked on Jill Shalvis (hot, contemporary reads, perfect for the beach) and am reading the last book (HEAD OVER HEELS) in one of her Lucky Harbor trilogies; I'm also on book three of Darynda Jones's quirky paranormal romantic suspense series (THIRD GRAVE DEAD AHEAD). Her lead character, Charley Davidson, has such a fun cast of supporting characters as they solve mysteries – both earthly and beyond. And I'm looking forward to Addison Fox's WARRIOR ENCHANTED. And I just picked up (impulsively) Christy Reece’s CHANCES ARE when I found it on sale. Can't wait to dive in!

So many of our NYUS gang have books coming out this summer (including the third book in my Mindhunters series: DEADLY BONDS). I hope my fellow NYUS members will speak up in the comments section to share what will be released in the coming weeks.

So, yeah, I doubt my to-be-read pile will get any smaller this summer. Even at my current pace (reading 1-2 books a week), it’ll probably stay status quo as I discover more books that I want to read. But hey, I figure if I reach the bottom of my to-be-read pile, I must be dead, and nobody wants that.

Besides, that’s the fun of summer…it feels like you have endless time to indulge and that it’s OKAY to take time in the hammock to get lost in someone else’s story.

Your turn… Do you find yourself picking up different types of books during the summer? What kind? What’s on the top of your to-be-read pile? What releases are coming out that you're excited about? (Or do you have an upcoming release to share?)

Summer Reading

One of the reasons I've always loved summer is because it gave me a little more time than usual for my favorite pastime, reading. When I got my first job and had to work through the summer, I didn't have that extra time to read, but at least it before kids. I could usually find a way to squeeze in my reading. After the kids came along, just opening a book would be considered a small miracle. A novel I once might have finished in a day, took me a year to read. Still, when I could make an escape from a hectic day, I made it into the pages of a book.

Now that the kids are older, this summer I decided that as soon as I had some free time, I would make it a priority to read a few of the books that had been on my wish list or sitting on my Kindle for ages. I've made a slow but steady dent in my list. Just this past week, I've read three books and I'm confident I'll read at least another three or four before the summer is over. I'll try to sneak in some others during the busy school year, but it won't have the same secret, delicious joy of reading a book by the pool, at the beach, or on a lawn chair on the deck while the sun warms my hair and shoulders.

Here's a few of the books I've read (and others I hope to read) this summer:

The Witness by Nora Roberts
Slow Summer Kisses by Shannon Stacey
Theory of Attraction by Delphine Dryden
Taken by Robert Crais
A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness
Lethal by Sandra Brown
Smash Cut by Sandra Brown
Jungle of Deceit by Maureen A. Miller
Touch by Jus Accardo
Celebrity in Death by J.D. Robb

What are you reading or have read this summer? Hey, it's never too early to plan my list for next summer!