Focused

I can’t believe so much time has gone by since the last The Write Drive. I’ve been working really hard on my collection of short stories and poems. I start early most mornings, and the day flies.

At least, the book is now in the formatting stage, and the battles with Microsoft Word have begun. If I got paid for the work I’m doing, it would be a nice living. I look forward to the day when I can just write and hire professionals to do the editing and layouts. Oh well, it’s that shoestring budget for now.

In addition to my writing, I’ve searched out photographs to match each story and poem. I found beautiful ones by very talented people on Unsplash.com and Pixabay.com. The photos are royalty and copyright free, but I’m planning to credit all the photographers so you know who created these wonderful pieces of art.

So...how’s autumn treating you? I hope at least some of you are enjoying appropriate temperatures and leaves beginning to show their true colors. Here in the Richmond metro, we’re still hitting above 90 degree temperatures, unusual for the area, and we’ve got a drought. No significant rain for several weeks. The leaves are dropping because of the stress of not enough water. Lawns are turning brown.

If enough rain doesn’t come soon, there won’t be enough leaves on the trees to give us a pretty fall. Last year, we had so many storms the colorful leaves were ripped off the trees. Since autumn is my favorite season of the year, I’m really disappointed. I’m sure I’m not the only one.

The weather of recent years has become extreme. Last winter, we had some snowstorms giving quite a bit of accumulation, temperatures in the teens for many nights, and a February with 80 degree temperatures. That’s not the way it used to be. We’d get occasional odd weather days, but now it’s starting to become the norm. It makes me worried about years to come.

I’m going to try to give you a blog every week, but please forgive me if I don’t hit that goal. I’m focused on finishing Pinch of Whimsy Touch of Darkness which I hope you’ll enjoy when it’s available.

In the meantime, take care and HAPPY WRITING!