Author Archives: S.J. Maylee

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About S.J. Maylee

S.J. Maylee fell in love with storytelling at a young age and with it came a deep-seated desire for everyone to find their happily ever after. She’s finding the happy endings for her characters one steamy story at a time. When she’s not reading or writing, you can find her caring for her garden, laughing with her two young sons, or dancing to her husband’s music. She’s a PMP (Project Management Professional), Nia instructor, and coffee addict. As a writer she has a tendency to break hearts, but she always glues them back together

ROW80 check-in #11

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I’m leaving for vacation today. YEAH!! Right now I am either running around the house, driving to/from the airport, or standing on the beach. It is going to be a crazy, exciting, relaxing day. The 7-days leading up to travel day are always crazy for me, aren’t they for everyone? The big question is did I make time for writing this week, the truth is in, where are my priorities?

Sunday through Wednesday brought me zero words and barely any time with my characters. Sure I was crazy with work, preparing for the trip, and pulling together tax stuff (our goal was to get everything to the accountant before we left today- score, that got done!!), but come on, I can do better than zilch!! Thursday brought me back to comfort. I got coffee time with my characters and writing too.

Distraction was the name of the game this week. Do you have a problem writing when you are distracted? Man oh man, each time I went to work on a scene my mind wandered to packing or cleaning or yuck, taxes. Luckily I got my to-do list done and we are happily on our way to Florida. But what about my characters? Poor Lydia wants some challenges and success too and poor forgotten Sam wants to know when I’m going to finish writing the last couple of scenes for her book!

I finally got to writing on Friday and Saturday and I ended the week with 487 words 😦 I’m totally bummed. My expectations should not have been so high for such a busy week…lesson learned. My priorities are fine, I’m not going to beat myself up over the poor output this week, but I see where some better planning could have helped…lesson learned.

I blogged a little this week too, have you seen my links post from yesterday? Go for the links and stay for the video of Dave Grohl!!

I’m still in the middle of reading James Scott Bells plot and structures and when that is done I will jump right into another craft book, but what about an on-line course? Hmm…I’ve been thinking about this for a while and there are several I’ve been thinking about. Friday I registered for Angela James’ Before You Hit Send workshop and I’m excited!! Not only will I learn a ton over the course of the 3-weeks, but I know this is the next step I need. The decision is making me feel like a writer. Yes, I’ve felt like a writer before, but each step (writing day after day, reading about the craft, joining ROW80, making a word count goal) makes me feel more confident and capable of claiming the moniker.

I am a writer.

I said it and now I need to own it. I am a writer. My skills are a work in progress, but the truth is in. I am a writer.

My vacation priority will be reading and spending time with my characters. Plotting WILL occur on my vacation. I’ll be back next week with tales from the vaca.  Next week I’ll also be back to: butt in seat, fingers on the keyboard and I will write.

Links of the week #9

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I’m going on vacation and I can not wait!! I’ll be missing a couple of Six Sundays, everyone needs a vacation every now and again, but I’m still sad to miss out on the fun. One thing I will NOT be taking a vacation from is all the blog reading. This week was freakin fantastic, lots of good stuff below: recipes, craft help, quick tips, my own links & a vid from the super awesome Dave Grohl

So many good things all in one place: gluten free recipes, a Dirty Fighting contest reminder and tons of great links from NakedEditor Tiffany Lawson Inman all from Jenny Hansen’s blog post #ROW80 Update: Life Without Gluten. Jenny also posted a keep at Writers In The Storm: Using The 12 Stages of Physical Intimacy To Build Tension In Your Fiction

Sharla Rae also over at Writers In The Storm this week posted Place Descriptions – Part 2: Waterways

I spend time on social media, a little bit everyday, but my main focus right now is my craft and actually writing. Couple of great posts this week from Bob Mayer THE Secret Handshake of Successful Digital Publishing and from Gabrielle Bisset What Counts.

The beautiful Kait Nolan (who’s nominated for a  DABWAHA!!), her blog is one of the 1st blogs I started to follow, this week she asked: Are You A Writer? OWN IT!

Lydia Sharp provided a Quick Tip at The Sharp Angel, this might become a weekly or even daily habit to keep my mind open and flowing with ideas

Love finding new blogs to follow, Jane Friedman provided this advice: How to Identify Top Websites & Blogs in Your Category

I’m still reading James Scott Bell’s Plot & Structure, but I’m already looking for my next read. Thanks Roni Loren for providing Twelve Writer Woes and the Books to Cure Them

Jason Boog over at GalleyCat provided a cool tool in How to Check Your Grammar Online

Janice Hardy at The Other Side of the Story provided a plotting idea: Being Evil: Plotting From the Antagonist’s Perspective

I’ve forgotten to list here items I’ve posted, silly S. J. Last week I posted here Is it time for swim class?. Each week I also blog over at Simply Sidney & this week I posted Scale Day v36.0 and Homemade Taco Seasoning

As writers (yes, I’m including myself in that group *BigGrin*) we know NOT to bore our reader and to keep our story moving FORWARD. Apparently the same is true for song writers. Here’s a lesson from Dave Grohl on how to write a hit song, and that’s Kyle Gass from the band Tenacious D!!

Thanks for stopping by today, see you guys next Saturday for a whole new round of finds

Six Sentence Sunday #10

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Double digits, yeah!! I’m having a lot of fun being a part of six Sunday and I’m learning a lot too, which is most excellent. No hesitation, I’m jumping in again.

Last week we left Lydia in The Room trying to pull her thoughts together and prepare for the project she and Jake have to tackle. Jake has just entered and Lydia is still at the window looking out over the ravine.

A strong wind tore through the ravine and forced the trapped air to rush from her lungs. The wind was out of her control and it created an excitement in the outside scene. Lydia was rocked by the unexpected change the sight ignited in her fantasy. The intensity was changing and she was having a hard time calming her breathing.

 A warm hand pressed into her back shaking her from her heated dream.

 “Lydia, are you ok?” Jake questioned.

So there you have it, they’ve both made it to the room. Not sure if either of them are ready to get any work done. Thank you so much for stopping by today!! I’d like to know what you really think of my 6. I need the advice, I’m a newbie and have much to learn. Don’t forget to check out the other Six Sunday authors. Lots of good stuff at Six Sunday. Try to find a new favorite today. happy hunting!

ROW80 check-in #10

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My birthday week is coming to an end, boo-hoo 🙂 it has seriously been a great week. A party, date night, mom’s spaghetti, songs and a Facebook bonanza of happy wishes all make for a great birthday week…but did I get anything done this week, did I write?

Yes, I wrote and wrote and hit my word goal for the 3rd week in a row, yahoooo!! My word goal really seems to be working for me and it makes me so very happy. With each week I’m also getting a firmer grasp on my time management for blog/craft book reading. It’s a practice not a perfect. My weakness right now is editing. I have a ton to do on my very first WIP and the last three weeks I’ve done zero editing, zilch, zip, nada…boo-hoo for real.

My goals for the week ahead include, spending at least an hour a day with my characters, hitting my word goal (2,000 words), continue with efficient time management for blog/craft book reading, and edit! I will edit. 🙂

short post this week, hmm, more time for birthday cookies!! 😀

Links of the week #8

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It’s the end of my birthday week. I experienced a lot of joys this week and felt a lot of love, which is simply a lot o fun. This week also brought on a ton of great links to remember…

James Scott Bell provided My Aha! Moment over at The Kill Zone

Oh Chuck, 25 Ways To Unfuck Your Story yeah I don’t need to say anything else to sell this one

Roz over at Nail Your Novel provided some great reminders and food for thought with your plot: Drama comes from making us care

Are you genuinely nice on twitter? I’d like to think I am. Two posts came up this week from two great gals and between the two they make some great points that are easy to agree with, if you are genuinely nice. First up is Roni Loren’s Enough With the Quid Pro Quo Blogging Etiquette – Free Yourself. Second up is Kristen Lamb’s T.E.A.M–Together Everyone Achieves More, #MyWANA sounds like a nice place to hang out.

I knew I loved Finding Nemo and now I really know why, let Kristen Lamb explain: What “Finding Nemo” Can Teach Us About Story Action

Janice Hardy, The Other Side of the Story, provided on Thursday tips for small problems to think about for your plot: That’s So Annoying: Adding Small Problems to Your Plot. Janice posted What’s at Stake? How Do You Make Readers Care About Your Story? yesterday, on my birthday. Thank you Janice for two great posts this week.

Writers in the Storm blog, love you guys, always bringing great posts. This week Ruthie Knox brings us How to Begin a Romance Novel: Seven Tips

I saved some funny for last. More cowbell always gives me a chuckle and this week’s post is in a word: awesome. Make sure you watch the video at the end!! Thank you Jenny Hansen for bringing the funny and a heartfelt story: You CAN Teach an Old Dog New Tricks (if they take notes…) and all the blogging you do!!

It’s been a great birthday week. I’ve been working on my WIP for just over a year now, let the writing and learning continue!!

Happy March on!!

Is it time for swim class?

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Do you know how to swim? If not, then it is ALWAYS time for swim class.

I’m a mother first and I am filled with horror stories. Isn’t that what gets our blood boiling and our bodies into action, horror stories. According to the CDC:

Every day, about ten people die from unintentional drowning. Of these, two are children aged 14 or younger. Drowning is the sixth leading cause of unintentional injury death for people of all ages, and the second leading cause of death for children ages 1 to 14 years.

OMG! Yes, it’s always time for swim class!!

My mother put me in swimming lessons before I turned one. On graduation day she stood with me on the diving board and threw me into the water, where my dad caught me under the water. I have no memory of the scary event, but I obviously survived to learn how to swim. Now a days supervision around pools is pretty prevalent and having our youngins wear life jackets in the pools is common as well. The horror comes when accidents happen. How much time does it take for you to look away and not see your little one fall in?

Horror story w/a happy ending (I promise, remember I love happy endings): at the end of last summer a 5-year was walking around his cousins pool. He was surrounded by dozens of relatives and his parents who were keeping a close eye on him. But he’s 5 now, parents of 5-years know that our kids are not headed for trouble every second of every day and our eyes can comfortably turn back to the conversation around us. The kids were not yet in their swim trunks and were just hanging out around the pool. Swimming would be happening soon and then closer supervision would most certainly occur. The 5-year old boy leaned over the edge to look at something he saw floating on the surface. He reached for the bug and fell quietly into the pool. He had a few swim lessons each summer, but was not yet proficient and was unable to kick back up to the surface. His mother looked around and after not finding him she got up and her nightmare began. She saw him floating at the bottom of the pool. She screamed and jumped right in and pulled her boy to the surface. His father was at the side of the pool and pulled him out. The boy’s skin was turning an ugly shade of blue. His father put him right over his shoulder. The boys belly felt the impact and water burst from him. He started breathing again. I told you it was a happy ending. Luckily for this family he was found before brain damage could occur. Now the little boy will be in swim class year round until he is a proficient swimmer.

The little boy has been in swim classes with my little boy all fall and winter. The two have improved a lot this winter, but still have a way to go and many more swim classes are ahead of them.

According to the same CDC report, participation in formal swimming lessons can reduce the risk of drowning by 88% among children aged 1 to 4 years. Seconds count. CPR performed by bystanders has been shown to improve outcomes in drowning victims. The more quickly intervention occurs, the better chance of improved outcomes.

Have you received CPR training recently? Most places say you should renew your CPR skills every two-year.

Are you a proficient swimmer? If not, remember it may not always be warm out, but it’s always time for swim class.

Six Sentence Sunday #9

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Last week Jake entered THE room and we learned of some of his troubles. Now it’s Lydia’s turn…

She heard the door open, but was hesitant to turn around and see the man standing behind her.

Lydia didn’t often have trouble turning off her internal fantasies.

Jake’s darkening eyes were all her mind could see.

Standing at the window, staring at the trees as they swayed in the wind was not helping.

Usually the site of the ravine behind their building calmed her nerves.

Lydia imagined her body rocking against Jake in a steady rhythm that matched the sway of the trees.

I’m pretty sure Lydia is in trouble too, but you’ll have to come back next week to find out more! Thank you so much for stopping by today!! I’d like to know what you really think of my 6. I need the comments and I love to respond to my comments too. Don’t forget to check out the other Six Sunday authors. Lots of good stuff at Six Sunday. Try to find a new favorite today. happy hunting!

ROW80 check-in #9

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Small shifts have been appearing in my daily grind for the last couple of weeks, but not until this week did I feel some relief. I’ve been driving myself crazy trying to soak in all the information I can find. Writing is a marathon, not a sprint. Hmm…I’ve been trying to sprint the length of a marathon. If I don’t change something quick the cramps are going to force me out of the race…

Do you have rituals that keep you productive? I did, back in my days of working in an office I had ways of getting an amazing amount of work done everyday. My first rule was always removing distractions. Well, I’m a mother of two youngins, distraction is now my life. There is still certain times, not always the same time, that I have fewer distractions. In the dainty pearls of non-distraction I’m finding a groove. My shiny new trick is to be flexible.

I have now realized I had become the ugly step sister trying to cram my writing into the wrong shoe. Well no more. My Aha! moment came while reading Marc and Angel this week. The very first item on the list is to create a TO-DON’T list of all the things that pull you away from productivity and waste time. I may not have a lot of dainty pearls of non-distraction, but when they appear I need to make the most of them. It takes time to get a grove moving and once I’m IN my productivity soars. I’ve been a bit manic trying to race to get my fingers on everything, constantly distracted by all the things I want to get done, in the mean time I’m not getting anything done. The fifth item on their list talks about breaking down your goals into realistic, high impact tasks. Love it!! Lots to do to get my books done and it can only happen one step at a time. I think I actually heard that this time around. Number nine is to work in 90-minute intervals. My dainty pearls my not be 90-minutes, but still, breaks are good, breaks are fuel. Number ten is to reply to emails, v-mail and texts at a set time. I’ll be adding twitter, craft study and blog reading to that list. I could and have filled my whole day of dainty pearls with these items and then I do not get anything done on my books…all play and no writing makes me an ugly step sister.

Marc and Angels post came out on Monday…click…click…click. Love starting out the week with my shoulders relaxed and a fresh perspective.

Last week I started to feel the nudge to create a weekly word goal, which is something I’ve been hiding from. I’ve wanted a word goal, but feared it would just become one more thing to make me feel like I was failing. In all the things I’ve been reading one thing was abundantly clear: writers write. In the dainty pearls I will write! It’s now official, my word goal is 2,000 a week.

Monday morning during my dainty pearl I added 615 words to my novella, nice! Then the in-laws came into town, no more dainty pearls. The in-laws went home and the next day (Wednesday) I was out of town for a Nia White Belt Intensive refresher. I had a lovely day, but no dainty pearls. Thursday and Friday it was back to my dainty pearl plan and I got down 923 and 693 words respectively for a grand total of 2,231 for the week! I’ve added 4,300 words in the last two weeks. OMG, I’m writing!!

And that’s not all. Yesterday’s words were for the opening scene of my first book that I’ve been thinking about for a month! I feel so much better now that I can see her life (written down) before the wrench I just had to throw at her. My original goal of spending an hour a day with my characters paid off here. I kept thinking and tweaking the images in my head. Finally it was actually a shiny new shoe (no glass slipper) that actually paved the way.

I’m not quite Cinderella in her beautiful dress, but I’ve dusty off my rags.

Writers write.

Links of the week #7

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I’ve had an interesting week. I’m trying to reign in the crazy (but educating) amount of time I spend on reading blogs. I collected blogs to read all week, but did not read them until a specified time. It was hard at first to stay on task and file posts away for later, but man I got things done this week!…anywho…here are the sweet morsels I found and must share this week. They were all worth waiting for 🙂

Marc and Angel Hack Life offered up some fan~freaking~tastic advice with the post 12 Things Highly Productive People Do Differently (I’ll be talking more about this post in my ROW80 update tomorrow!!) and while you are there take a look at 12 Things Successful People Do Differently really good stuff, yum!

The lovely Kristen Lamb provided The Seven Deadly Sins of Prologues. She not only warns of the pitfalls, she also explains when they can be a good idea, plus she provides links to a bunch of other posts on the topic

Have you joined a tribe on triberr yet? I have, but need to spend a lot more time figuring things out and I’m going to do that by reading Jenny Hansen’s triberr posts. She has five posts now on the subject and this week’s postcontains links to the original 4. I’m filing this post away in the must read file, because it sounds like some triberr/twitter fun, from the Triberr blog: How To Turn Your Blog Into a Twitter Powerhouse

The Storyfixer, Larry Brooks, brought us this week: Elevate Your Story Through the Sublime – and Subliminal – Use of Sub-Text

Janice Hardy over at The Other Side of the Story offered up And…End Scene: When to Add a Scene Break, she provides a great list options and a warning to remember

Writers In The Storm had a lovely guest yesterday, Tiffany Lawson Inman and her post Too Quick To Tears: Emotional Timing Is Everything. Great post to read while plotting, editing, writing…

Hope you all are having a wonderful weekend! I’m off to write.

Six Sentence Sunday #8

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In the last three weeks we’ve learned Lydia and Jake are about to spend some lengthy time together locked in a room and working on a project. In the previous 6s we’ve gotten a glimpse at both Lydia’s and Jake’s first thoughts. This week we continue in Jake’s head as he enters THE room.

 

He returned to the conference room early with the excuse of clearing the table.

Maybe his mind would calm down by doing the mindless task.

The door opened to reveal Lydia with her back to him across the room.

His body heated at the sight of her.

She was looking out the window, but all he could look at was the slope of her neck.

 He was in a lot of trouble.

Thank you so much for stopping by today!! I’d really like to know what you think of my 6 & the picture of Jake. He’s cute and sexy, right? I love comments and I love to respond to my comments too. Don’t forget to check out the other Six Sunday authors. Lots of good stuff at Six Sunday. Try to find a new favorite today. happy hunting!