As of 9:30 this morning, summer vacation has begun. I find myself totally unprepared. I just started teaching a new college class at night that will last 4 more weeks and my day job continues, although the work cuts back some for the summer. I find it really hard to focus on writing romance with the kids around. Even if they’re not directly seeking my attention, they’re banging, yelling, and otherwise disruptive. I can manage to write a sex scene in the middle of a crowded kiddie art studio, but the distractions while at home make me a little nutty.
First, I want to give a quick shout out to momfog for giving me a link for free bowling for my kids for the summer. FREE! What an awesome idea. We do a lot of stuff over the summer — weekly trips to a small beach, museums, zoo, etc, but to have a couple of hours to keep them busy? Priceless.
Now, onto my usual linkety-links:
Emma Burcart has 2 relationship posts up this week that caught my attention. The first is whether or not a guy should ever be worth fighting over. I’m a little torn by this. I’ve never watched the show Emma refers to, so I can’t comment on that. As a woman, I’d like to think that I wouldn’t chase after a guy who chose someone else. BUT…there is that part of me that believes in trusting your gut. Although I don’t really buy into the whole soulmate thing, there’s something to be said about knowing that someone is right for you. I just don’t know that I’d pursue it if he didn’t realize what a great catch I am. 🙂
The second post is about finding Mr. Right Now. I’ve said probably a million times that I haven’t dated in about forever, but way back when I was dating, I would go on a date with almost anyone. I never approached a date thinking that he might be the one. I don’t think I was unfair to the guy in treating a date as nothing more than a nice night out. I don’t think any of them really thought we would be forever. As a writer, I love the concept of a rebound guy (it’s how the heroine in my second book views the hero). What if the rebound isn’t just a rebound? Ultimately, I agree with Emma that you have to be comfortable alone first.
Jenny Hansen has a great take on how one thing can be sexy two ways. She posts 2 versions of LMFAO’s song, “Sexy and I Know It.” The first is the original, sung by LMFAO. This song is often played and quoted around my house. I don’t know which is more disturbing – hearing my 12 y.o. or my husband sing along. The second version is a slow version. I like the original, but to me it’s not sexy. It’s fun and campy. The second on the other hand, is sexy. The pace kind of gets to you.
Diane Capri has a post about Tubthumping Women. I had to read the post simply because I love the song. But Diane talks about some things we’ve mentioned here before about strong women characters. I don’t mind a woman who can kick some ass, but I prefer to read about real women who show strength that I can understand and relate to.
Monica Bhide hosts Allison Winn Scotch who talks about fear in writing. I think I’ve hit all these fears over the last couple of years and #5 is staring me in the face as I look toward being published later this year. Good words of advice.
Moriah Densley wrote about how she learned to write like a man. As a romance writer, I think this is something we all struggle with at least a little. We want our men to sound and act like men, not women dressed as men.
And last but not least, Buzzfeed has some of the most powerful photos ever taken.
What are you most looking forward to this summer?