tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60524432591341689792012-02-10T10:24:46.631-06:00"So long as you write what you wish to write, that is all that matters; and whether it matters for ages or only for hours, nobody can say." ~ Virginia Woolf ~ <i>A Room of One's Own</i>tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.comBlogger1851100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-81244590304858907232012-02-04T18:58:00.003-06:002012-02-04T19:13:26.004-06:00

This past Wednesday marked my first day as a full-time writer. In actuality, I've been a full-time writer for a while now. I just also had a part-time job. I'd gotten to the point where I was choosing to go without one or more of the following any given day: free time, sleep, exercise, showering, household chores, bill-paying. Hence the decision to quit something. The first glorious change:

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-15452991154388702812012-01-27T00:02:00.001-06:002012-01-27T08:01:34.370-06:00

I've been quiet lately, but not to worry, the WIP is inching forward. I would promise that I'll be back to blogging and tweeting and facebook posting soon, but if anyone wants me to get any novel writing done, I won't be coming up for air very often for a while longer. (And by "a while" I mean until I have a workable first draft and can begin gathering critique partner feedback and working on

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-20443708616006712652012-01-02T23:18:00.000-06:002012-01-02T23:18:27.613-06:00

I've gotten a decent start on my fourth book. It's a stand-alone in a college setting, and I've been wanting to write it for a long time. (Yes, I'm also planning to write a BTL #4. I have a storyline loosely mapped and the characters chosen. I'm making notes and doing research, and will begin writing it as soon as the current WIP is complete.) I finished college once my kids began school. As a

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-71352725847758414002011-12-26T00:11:00.002-06:002011-12-26T07:04:12.315-06:00

There were a lot of fantastic novels published during the past year. The following made me especially ecstatic to be a reader. What set them apart: I've read each of them at least twice... and I don't really have time to read books twice. Half are traditionally published and half are indie, and all are available for the Kindle and Nook. All are romantic or have strong romantic elements, which

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-3295691188450518542011-12-24T11:44:00.000-06:002011-12-24T11:44:25.142-06:00

I read my reviews. I don't interfere or comment on them, but I do read them. For me, this is like boarding a roller coaster of emotions. I feel heartbroken and misunderstood one moment, giddy and appreciated the next. If someone doesn't like what I write, or it doesn't ring true for her, that's okay. Honest. It's an opinion, and it stems from what that reader brings to that book - which is, of

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-90515926232126330332011-12-16T16:24:00.000-06:002011-12-16T16:24:44.773-06:00

Good For You is live on both Amazon and Barnes & Noble for $2.99 USD! (Remember, both sites allow you to sample 10% of any book for FREE before buying): Good For You (Between the Lines #3) on Amazon Kindle Good For You (Between the Lines #3) on B&N Nook

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-5887654141122675582011-11-30T18:58:00.001-06:002011-11-30T18:59:19.333-06:00

If you're interested in how I view Graham, Reid, Emma and Brooke (and how readers picture Graham and Reid - we've been taking requests!), check out my Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/TammaraWebberAuthor. The only character I saw clearly while writing Between the Lines was Graham, who I pictured as a young Tom Welling (aka Clark Kent from Smallville)... Readers, of course, all had their

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-31697692943258634442011-11-28T20:53:00.003-06:002011-11-28T21:12:59.122-06:00

Sooooo... my husband asked me what I wanted for Christmas this year, and I told him I want my books offered in paperback. You should see the look I got! I think he was expecting something easy like, "A Kindle Fire?" Click-click-click and he's done shopping. Not so fast, baby - you should know by now I'm not that easy. (Hmmm... a Kindle Fire... have I been good enough this year to ask for two

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-16263204474676024912011-11-26T16:51:00.000-06:002011-11-26T16:51:56.044-06:00

I got edits back yesterday, and am planning to get those kicked out quickly, plus the final few revisions. We're still on track to upload on December 16th. (As usual, it's anyone's guess after that when it will pop up for sale on B&N and Amazon. Authors are told it will be 24-72 hours from upload to going "live," but it was very quick last time - less than 12 hours for both.) I began writing

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-74555042579355338422011-11-20T09:08:00.000-06:002011-11-20T09:08:05.438-06:00

Good For You has been sent to my kick-butt, perfectionist copy editor. When she gets it back to me, I'll make corrections/revisions as necessary, and then pass it on to my wonderful and equally perfectionist programmer. We're on track to upload to Amazon and B&N on December 16th. I'm still struggling between two possible next projects, making notes and jotting scenes. Though both want to be

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-18819602136153344632011-11-11T00:57:00.001-06:002011-11-11T01:01:21.293-06:00

One of the joys of being an indie author is having the complete freedom to choose which of all of those magical projects wandering about in your head to work on next. One of the issues with being an indie author is having no authoritative guidance when choosing which of those millions of projects wandering about in your head to work on next. ***Merriam Webster defines independent* as: not

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-56957978990770377142011-11-09T02:44:00.004-06:002011-11-20T19:03:20.723-06:00

I've decided to stop rating books on Goodreads. (I still intend to review, when the spirit moves me, but I'm borrowing The Story Siren's example and removing the star ratings from all of my Goodreads reviews.) I began writing book reviews several years ago on Visual Bookshelf (now defunct - I moved to Goodreads a couple of years ago). Initially, I joined VB just to keep up with the books I read.

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-28803978895025640272011-10-28T16:32:00.002-05:002011-10-30T16:42:57.059-05:00

WARNING: *****WHERE YOU ARE***** SPOILERY STUFF BELOW Now that Where You Are is out, and the description of Good For You is done, I've been asked several times whether or not I plan on taking a reader-favorite couple forward. The short answer is: no. But I'm not much of a short-answer girl, so the longer answer is below, with references! (Well, a reference.) I love to read, and I've always been

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-88575066595993451782011-10-25T00:11:00.000-05:002011-10-25T00:11:11.466-05:00

I took my notebook full of notes (and scraps of paper onto which I've jotted notes, which are shoved in between the legitimate pages) to work today. I've released the second book into the wild, and the third only needs one last revision, then copy-editing, then programming... But in the meantime, it's finally time to write again. First up: brainstorming. How much time I spend in this phase

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-7248886102703112052011-10-23T15:24:00.006-05:002011-10-23T17:45:53.802-05:00

I'm aware that file-sharing of copyrighted materials is unavoidable, and unscrupulous people will find a way to steal copyrighted content no matter what efforts are taken to prevent it. People are so up-in-arms about being told how to use content they purchase the use of that they see nothing wrong with stripping the DRM from the file (assuming the author/publisher puts that encryption in place,

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-13253553070983416922011-10-22T04:05:00.002-05:002011-10-22T08:56:23.247-05:00

We uploaded on Friday Morning and it was up by Friday night! Where You Are is now available for the Amazon Kindle and the Barnes & Noble Nook. Don't forget to read the three-chapter sneak-peek of Good For You at the end!

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-10247023149481402052011-10-21T08:41:00.002-05:002011-10-21T19:52:18.313-05:00

Where You Are has been uploaded to Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Both say it will take "24-72 hours" for it to be live and for sale. Reminder for anyone who's a quick reader, pleeeease no spoilers for those who haven't read it!

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-4356383207570391392011-10-19T18:35:00.001-05:002011-10-19T19:11:35.499-05:00

We are in programming mode! In fact, I've got the first draft on my Kindle and I'm checking the content and formatting now. (Well, not right now. Right now, I'm blogging about checking the formatting -- but I'll get right back to it when I'm done, I promise!) My IT Department* is set to begin work on the Nook version tomorrow morning, assuming no major issues arise with the Kindle version. We

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-13414378509978144442011-09-26T19:36:00.000-05:002011-09-26T19:36:09.218-05:00

I do my thing and you do your thing. I am not in this world to live up to your expectations, And you are not in this world to live up to mine. You are you, and I am I, and if by chance we find each other, it's beautiful. If not, it can't be helped. ~ Fritz Perls (Gestalt Therapy Verbatim, 1969)

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-42461537481404184602011-09-22T22:25:00.001-05:002012-01-14T16:24:16.859-06:00

...and sometimes, it's the Destination. I think I'm kind of maybe almost done with Where You Are, though I'll be removing commas and putting them back in all the way to publication date, because that's what writers do. Not all of us, certainly. But I'd bet that for many, many writers, as long as it's in our hands, we're going to tweak it. Even if it doesn't need tweaking, and/or the tweaking is

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-15834519495289402002011-09-13T20:53:00.001-05:002011-09-13T21:13:37.742-05:00

I was disturbed by a thread on Twitter today. The discussion involved Traditional publishing versus Indie publishing. I've seen this type of "Us vs Them" conversation before, but it's always been Indie authors speaking out against Big Publishing. I've never read anything where Indie writers bashed Traditional writers. (I've read attempts to lure them to the dark side, yes, but no bashing.) Which

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-24328940889487413052011-09-10T12:10:00.004-05:002012-01-14T16:29:43.522-06:00

As I'm approaching the release of my second novel, I'm attempting to keep my eyes on the writing/ editing/ revising parts of this process, rather than the reviews of Between the Lines. Reviews are important, but when your WIP is a sequel, they're also scary as hell -- because readers have vastly different opinions when it comes to what should happen next. Authors want readers to connect with the

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-8638627519042660062011-09-08T15:20:00.003-05:002011-09-08T16:56:17.727-05:00

There were many reasons leading up to my decision to become an indie author -- to self-publish -- and though one reason was a bit of exasperation with the route through traditional publishing, none of my reasons were an abhorrence of traditional publishing. My credit card bill is peppered with Amazon purchases every month (Kindles, hardbacks, paperbacks -- both indie and traditional), and two of

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-69074813195723480542011-08-30T03:28:00.002-05:002011-08-30T03:28:00.666-05:00

I just realized my last-straw-moment of submitting to agents. And since it's 3am, I thought it might be a humorous time to write about it. My last writers' conferences was this past February. At a conference like this, you generally have several hundred writers and a handful of agents. The agents range in experience from those who've just begun their careers to those with twenty or thirty years

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-12537597119152721282011-08-17T08:24:00.001-05:002011-08-29T02:51:25.512-05:00

I appreciate every book blogger/reviewer who's taken the time to read and review my novel. The bloggers who helped me jump-start sales waaaaaay back in May are particularly dear to my heart. They were going on nothing but instinct as readers, and were willing to take the chance to read an indie-published book and give it an honest review. (And yes, the words "honest review" are words that make

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-38636466791069415142011-08-06T21:10:00.008-05:002011-09-08T15:16:54.655-05:00

Tuesday, I sat at my local Starbucks with my oldest son, who heads back to LA on Monday to film his first feature length film. It's extremely indie -- his pay will be his flight out there and back and food/housing while filming (the latter is likely to be someone's sofa), but he's excited enough over the opportunity that you'd think they were providing a bungalow at Chateau Marmont and a stipend

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-54202309268557727332011-08-01T14:45:00.001-05:002011-08-01T14:59:40.354-05:00

Amazon lists my publication date as April 29, which is weird because we uploaded the thing around noon on April 30. And then it didn't have a photo or a description for a day or so. (Oddly enough, getting sales without a book cover or description of the book is kind of difficult.) The first time someone bought my book was May 1. So today is the three-month anniversary of my first official book

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-5715922066242642532011-07-29T11:25:00.010-05:002011-10-09T09:15:29.188-05:00

Here's the sequel description for Where You Are, due out in October 2011: (Yes, there are multiple spoilers if you haven't read Between the Lines) Graham Douglas doesn’t do romantic relationships, but he was knocked for a loop when he met Emma Pierce on the set of his last film. As they grew closer, he did everything in his power to keep from falling for the girl being pursued by superstar Reid

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-24809249309369328882011-07-18T16:28:00.001-05:002011-08-29T02:58:17.328-05:00

I've settled on a title and cover for the sequel, so here they are! Edit: See above post (July 29th) for description and hopeful publication date

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-88960382620866704092011-07-09T14:05:00.000-05:002011-07-09T14:05:50.437-05:00

The sequel is going soooooo well. Everything I've ever written before (you know, all that stuff I said you guys do not wanna see?) has been stand-alone, so I haven't had the pleasure of writing with characters I already know well. I've mentioned somewhere before that one of my sons told me that I shouldn't be allowed to blog, facebook or tweet because I like talking about what I'm writing so

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-66900539590941989762011-07-04T20:11:00.001-05:002011-07-10T09:21:42.686-05:00

I've discovered that writing a book is a little bit like childbirth: you forget exactly how, erm, uncomfortable the whole thing was until you're in the midst of doing it again. And then it's like, "Oh right. That hurt like shit. I remember now." By that point you've got no choice but to press on. Writing a sequel is easier in obvious ways: you know the characters and you know the backstory, so

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-18392342865891105742011-06-23T07:25:00.000-05:002011-06-23T07:25:04.623-05:00

The Plan: I'm goin' a lil bit off-the-grid to get some writing done. I have an intimidating writing project in mind. Want a hint? GRAHAM. Graham is one of those guys who'll tell you how he feels about stuff, in detail, if asked. If not asked, he's just downright mysterious. I wondered what it might be like in his head, since he didn't really get his say in Between the Lines. So that's what I'm

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-18721580973006463832011-06-17T18:52:00.003-05:002011-06-21T17:45:53.120-05:00

Here's my new book trailer, designed and created by MG Buehrlen, who is (obviously) a GENIUS:

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-10231524721911666382011-06-13T22:16:00.001-05:002011-08-01T15:05:52.553-05:00

I'm in the middle of making revisions to my WIP (work-in-progress), and helping a critique partner with edits on hers. Add a job and a family and suddenly my free time is very short. But I've always loved to read and seldom have I been without at least a small stack of unread material to choose from. Lately, though -- for the first time ever -- my reading material is piling up. I know the

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-21957074621127590282011-06-11T07:38:00.004-05:002011-10-09T09:10:37.237-05:00

Warning: a little spoilery When I started writing Between the Lines, I wrote the entire thing from Emma's POV only. This caused two things to occur that I didn't like but wasn't sure how to fix: One, Reid's motivations were unclear throughout the book. I knew what they were, but I couldn't convey this -- through Emma's eyes -- to the reader, because she just didn't see it. Two, the reality of

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-28283902314570895472011-06-05T12:42:00.001-05:002011-08-09T18:58:17.213-05:00

I have a split personality when it comes to writing. If I allow myself to go with the flow, this works out quite well because one side is creative, and the other is revisionary. Problems come from trying to force myself to do one when I'm in the mood to do the other. If I feel like creating and I force myself to work on edits, I can usually work around it, but I sometimes end up adding as much

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-39134514757512547052011-06-03T21:47:00.004-05:002011-06-07T18:05:06.177-05:00

First order of business, Shana over at A Book Vacation interviewed me about how I came up with Between the Lines, and why I decided to include a despicable guy's POV. Also I probably reveal too much about what's next. I was recently told that I need to hire someone to speak for me because I'm too excited and I'll just tell the whole next book and ruin everything. Sadly, that was said to me after

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-78221161554570851182011-05-30T17:27:00.002-05:002011-09-10T13:52:17.329-05:00

I've had a busy three days. I created a Facebook page to make it easier for readers to find out what's coming up next. I also had another fun interview, this time with Ashley, who maintains a book blog called Book Labyrinth. She asked me the hardest question I've been asked by anyone since I began writing Between the Lines: "If you had to describe Between the Lines’ premise in a tweet (140

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-66730256862953491902011-05-24T19:00:00.002-05:002011-05-24T21:53:42.775-05:00

OMG, people. I've had the worst time getting my novel uploaded and live on Barnes & Noble's Pubit! for their Nook e-reader. (I think I'm required to put the "!" after "Pubit" -- trust me, I'm not excited enough about the process to do so otherwise.) Their site says they'll email you if there's a problem. They didn't. I emailed them twice on Saturday, and got a reply late Monday afternoon. Do they

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-41748478539011775302011-05-22T14:31:00.002-05:002011-08-29T02:52:44.141-05:00

It's been three weeks since I launched my first novel out into the world. I'm trying to figure out what I've learned in the process that will make next time go more smoothly... and also whether or not I have any words of wisdom that could make the first time less stressful for someone else. At the risk of showing how I really feel about my jumbled knowledge thus far: MEH. First, there are the

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-19035976508105852972011-05-17T19:23:00.003-05:002011-09-10T13:53:09.120-05:00

Last week, I walked down to the Dean's office to drop off an emergency course sub form, and the admin asked me to sit for a moment. Then she told me that she and the Assistant Dean had looked up my book on the Amazon site. I didn't even know they knew about my book. "Uh..." I said. "He looked at my book?" My romantic YA book, the complete opposite of the published scholarly stuff he's no doubt

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-75341975609734461102011-05-10T14:10:00.002-05:002012-01-14T16:45:10.843-06:00

As a voracious reader, I'm opinionated where books are concerned. I like a good start-with-a-bang as much as the next girl, but honestly, I prefer to be drawn in rather than hit over the head right away. Seduced, if you will, by the story. There's nothing better than when I'm reading something I think is pretty good and then at some point I have switched over to OMG this is amazing without even

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-7883378869233985672011-05-07T09:50:00.005-05:002011-09-10T14:40:17.743-05:00

I attended a writers' conference last year and pitched the original version of Between the Lines (which, at that time, had a dumb title I pretend not to remember now) to an agent. She asked for pages. A few weeks later, she emailed a polite rejection with some nice comments like, "I have a current client working on something extremely similar and I don't want to compete with myself," and

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-24891330248612372752011-05-04T08:50:00.009-05:002011-08-18T21:10:30.018-05:00

I've been buying and perusing a lot of e-published books recently (both traditionally published and indie published) and scouring the reader/buyer comments. There are two things too many indie authors are messing up that will keep their own books from doing as well as they'd do otherwise, and also reflects on indie publishing as a whole: (1) Not EDITING the Manuscript. This means (a) Spelling/

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-80019747167852503702011-05-01T21:46:00.001-05:002011-08-29T02:52:44.142-05:00

My novel Between the Lines is finally up on amazon.com! It's YA contemporary, romantic, a little edgy, and only 99 cents. If you don't have a Kindle, the nice folks at Amazon will be happy to provide a free app for your PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone, Blackberry... The "Send Sample Now" button will give you 10% of the book to try. If you like it, you can easily buy it when you get to the end. If you

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-5568820322910506752011-04-30T10:46:00.004-05:002011-05-02T05:56:32.805-05:00

Have you seen 13 Going on 30? It's about a girl named Jenna who wants nothing more than to just get to adulthood already. She's had enough of this being 13 business -- it's all taking too long. She makes a wish on her birthday and due to some magic dust... or something heavy falling on her head... she wakes up as her 30-year-old self. (And lucky her -- she's a magazine editor and Jennifer

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-42666461414136007552011-04-26T17:36:00.004-05:002011-05-07T10:46:30.484-05:00

I'm at the 30% point in a book I've been waiting months for -- Jenny Han's We'll Always Have Summer. It's the third in a trilogy about a girl named Belly and two brothers, Jeremiah and Conrad, she's known all her life because their moms were BFFs. Talk about your painful love triangle -- ugh! Try one that's lasted practically the entire lives of all players. Oh, the confusion and angst! I love

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-49469758667390812432011-04-25T12:59:00.002-05:002011-05-07T10:48:31.972-05:00

I'm going to walk out onto a limb here and issue a caveat that will seem strange, given the fact that I'm less than a week from e-publishing a novel: Before you buy an e-book, preview it. To be fair, this caveat includes all e-book purchases -- traditionally published and self-published -- because admit it, more than once you've purchased a book without taking the time to preview a little of it.

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-38938223886131719512011-04-21T20:20:00.002-05:002011-04-22T14:50:45.066-05:00

I'm a little over a week from Epub-Day, and I'm going over the manuscript in actual Kindle form to make sure it's as perfect as it can be before I put it out there. The mistakes I'm hunting for are mostly formatting errors that don't show up in Word, but sure as hell show up in something my IT Department* calls a Mobi file. I've tossed in a few minor editorial changes because, again, things read

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-85151263580880590332011-04-17T09:13:00.000-05:002011-04-17T09:13:58.079-05:00

We all have our moments of self-doubt, and I've never met or heard of a writer who doesn't get that creeping not-good-enough feeling occasionally (if not constantly) along with the rest of humanity. Reading an amazing novel can affect me in the same manner that viewing a Picasso might affect an aspiring artist, the way watching Kenneth Branagh play Hamlet might affect my actor son. When I read

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-19305814314133229262011-04-12T19:00:00.004-05:002011-04-17T09:15:40.779-05:00

I spend more time writing than I do at my pay-the-bills job (which, luckily, I enjoy), and there are times when I get on a writing jag and reading takes a back seat. I tell myself that I don't have time to read because I have a novel to finish. This can become a problem when I'm submerged in the creative process of writing (as opposed to the editing/revision stuff), because to be able to write, I

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-19228015361358351312011-04-06T00:02:00.004-05:002011-04-22T15:40:05.581-05:00

If you're an artist, writer, musician, actor or (as established in my last post) a software developer, if you've ever done or wanted to do something creative with your life and your time, you should read this blog post: "How to Steal Like an Artist" -- Austin Kleon. Austin Kleon is a frickin genius. Included are 10 things he wished he could tell his recently college-graduated self, one of which

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-33176045507461570792011-04-05T09:38:00.000-05:002011-04-05T09:38:00.591-05:00

One of the scariest things anyone can say to me is "marketing" (yes, even the word marketing is scary). But worse than marketing is "self-promotion," which is the most horrifying form of marketing known to man. When someone says, "You'll need to market yourself," to me, I am shortly thereafter cowering in a corner. Because yes, I really am that shy. I know many authors are comfortable with

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-11002731951503241102011-04-01T16:00:00.003-05:002011-08-29T02:53:02.088-05:00

After receiving a very nice agent rejection yesterday on my novel, I've decided to e-publish. This decision wasn't made lightly. Frankly, I just want to tell stories, and all the hoopla an author has to go through to get to do that is simply going to take longer than I want it to take. I don't want to write a novel and then revise and pitch it for years and years. I want to write one, get

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-24614700014450508902011-03-29T13:46:00.001-05:002011-03-29T13:56:40.839-05:00

Thank you, Melina Marchetta, for placing a small, perfect slice of this poem in your novel The Piper's Son. That tidbit made me hunt for it because I had to read the whole thing, and I'm oh-so-glad I did: Today I pass the time reading a favorite haiku, saying the few words over and over. It feels like eating the same small, perfect grape again and again. I walk through the house reciting it

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-90168784287492210582011-02-11T22:25:00.000-06:002011-02-11T22:25:27.921-06:00

Okay, so I finally snagged myself a room in my house in which to write -- a room of my own, with (and this is important) an actual door. I've been actively writing hardcore for a while now in what is supposed to be the "formal living room." That's the room that, when you open the front door and enter the house, is immediately to the left. No door whatsoever. For a typical study, it's cool. Two

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-81818088724730319032011-01-23T14:08:00.002-06:002011-03-29T13:55:08.579-05:00

...but I AM writing, honest. I'm also being a bit cowardly, because I have a completed manuscript and a list of agents, and I'm spending more time working on my current manuscript (read: 99.9% of time in which I am "writing") than I am writing the query for the first one. Okay, I actually have a completed query, but am not trusting it to do the job enough to actually send it to anyone. Okay,

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-71245057995291968282010-12-07T12:26:00.000-06:002010-12-07T12:26:02.274-06:00

December is not my favorite month. I remember a time when it was, and wonder at the disconnect that must have occurred. What changed? In my childhood, the entire month felt magical. Every radio tower topped with a red blinking light became a possible Rudolph. In adulthood, I struggle to deal with the pressures of gifts and families and expectations -- and maybe that's it, right there:

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-92188737805834992832010-11-27T14:39:00.006-06:002011-08-18T21:17:33.578-05:00

I recently finished reading An Abundance of Katherines by John Green, which I loved (I liked Looking for Alaska and Paper Towns, but this is my favorite John Green). There's one part where this conversation takes place: Lindsey: "There's not even really popularity at my school."Colin: "That is a sentence that has only ever been spoken by popular people."If you're like me, your love for novels

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-89018709226628777652010-11-06T11:26:00.000-05:002011-08-18T21:40:40.197-05:00

During the writers' conference I attended last spring, the keynote speaker talked about the first time she wrote all night -- tapping away at the keyboard and hearing an alarm clock go off in another room, and then noticing the muted light of sunrise coming through a curtain. My brain couldn't quite compute this. I mean, I'd definitely had my share of late nights while writing, but I'd always hit

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-19058076463939662062010-09-30T21:18:00.004-05:002011-08-18T21:40:40.198-05:00

So I decided something very late last night. Or maybe early this morning? I need another rewrite on MS1. I know what's bothering me about it -- it lacks an important POV. From the outside, adding a POV might seem like no biggie. I've got the story and the dialogue, so I just change who's narrating, right? Unfortunately, adding a POV can be sticky and complicated. It means the reader will take

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-7151796067175077272010-09-29T21:41:00.006-05:002011-10-27T23:10:10.597-05:00

On a positive note, I am writing! MS2 is literally a few dozen words from 50k, in a nice spot to finish at approximately 75k words -- perfect for YA . Research this week: LOC (loss of consciousness), Glasgow coma scale, drug slang, sermons about doubt and temptation, house construction schedule, roofies. This Week's Fear: I'm writing porn for teenagers. I read Johanna Lindsey books (and the

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-39099819310784136522010-08-12T15:08:00.001-05:002010-08-12T15:10:39.180-05:00

When each of my kids was very young, I chose, for one reason or another, a song that makes me think of that child.  If I'm missing them, or during times where we're fighting, or if they're going through hell and I would do anything to help, but can't -- these three songs are emotional dam-busters. Yesterday, Keith and I were out somewhere, and there was faint music playing in the background.  He

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-31090375129294207622010-08-01T08:12:00.001-05:002010-08-12T15:13:05.643-05:00

Love is not the absence of logic. Love is logic examined, recalculated, heated and curved to fit inside the contours of the heart.

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-42706486981006037552010-07-24T14:56:00.002-05:002011-05-02T15:43:18.488-05:00

I've spent the past month doing a lot of reading, a lot of revising, and a little writing on my WIP.  Even though I don't have gobs of pages to show for it, this manuscript is coming along better than anything I've written previously.  Yes, I still sometimes sit and stare at the monitor, watching the cursor blink, but more often, I'll go to write a scene and it just flows. Piecing a novel

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-65562928558593435822010-06-29T12:04:00.005-05:002011-05-01T11:16:53.097-05:00

I've been thinking a lot lately about writing as an artform, and, taking that a step further, wondering what the purpose of that artform is. Am I writing as a mode of self-expression? For saleability and marketability? For a point of connection with my humanity, by connecting with other humans? What? The notion that my chosen artistic expression has come down to what's marketable and what isn't

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-67464024070975102832010-06-26T20:52:00.000-05:002010-06-26T20:52:42.407-05:00

"So, I heard you're writing a book?" "Er.  Yes." "What's it about?" "It's a young adult novel --" "Is it about vampires?" "NO."

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-7530059900217013842010-06-24T22:15:00.002-05:002010-07-13T11:58:00.595-05:00

WIP day, as opposed to revision day... I actually got a couple of pages down!  When writing, I have to take breaks-that-are-not-actually-breaks to do research.  It's like writing your way up to a cliff and then realizing you have to write yourself a little bridge to get over that deep, deep gorge... Today's research included: Placental abruption What doctors who supervise interns are called

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-62175410076377387412010-06-21T13:36:00.005-05:002010-06-22T11:52:24.264-05:00

Some of my favorite books, including YA (maybe more so YA) either toggle between the male and female POV or are written wholly from the male POV. Is this the result of having sons? Or perhaps a deep-seated need to get into the male head and root around for interesting similarities and/or differences? Even still, I believe more in the uniqueness of individuals than I do in disparity based on

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-67567781222977888982010-06-13T18:33:00.001-05:002011-05-01T11:18:52.134-05:00

Need a cure for writer's block? Read, read, read. When I'm writing and I get stuck, and I can't push through it, I take a break and read. New ideas spring from personal interaction with what some other writer puts on paper. The more drawn in I am, the better. Whether Melissa Marr or E.M. Forster -- if I get into the world they've created, it merges with my own thoughts, beliefs and experiences,

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-38915915174134289552010-05-25T12:36:00.002-05:002011-05-02T16:15:05.621-05:00

This morning on the way to work, I heard We Will Rock You, which took me (kicking and screaming, if you know me at all) back to 7th grade. Middle school was an evil, dark time for me. But one of the realizations I came to this morning was that there was one truly positive part of those (blessedly few) years -- music. When everything else in my life was confusing and cruel, I found true love with

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-80796609193986744242010-05-01T15:27:00.001-05:002010-06-22T18:18:53.039-05:00

Some people describe setbacks and rejections as opportunities. These people are annoying as hell, and I refuse to be one of them. Why? Because rejection is ass. A rejection makes us question something we were proud of doing, being, or participating in -- or wanting to, desperately -- minutes before. You apply for a job you're sure you can do well, and hope you'll get the chance to prove it --

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-43308942784908904022010-04-23T17:33:00.001-05:002011-08-18T21:40:25.949-05:00

I gots the new project bug bad.  It bit me early in the week and I've been writing in the evenings until I'm literally falling asleep at the keyboard, writing at work (shhhh), writing through dinner, scribbling notes on scraps of paper in the middle of the night (for me at the moment that appears to be "around 4am") and while I'm putting on makeup or brushing my teeth, it's terrible and awesome!

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-4124977435002258152010-04-19T21:11:00.001-05:002010-06-22T18:26:43.045-05:00

No, I'm not blogging about torture. My title refers to what I'm doing with my manuscript... which is too freakin' long. First-time YA novels should be about 70k-80k words. Mine is a wee bit longer. I've cut a little over 3000 words. Though this is tough to do, it's not impossible. My rule is: make the shallow cuts first. Cut adjectives and strengthen nouns, cut adverbs and strengthen verbs,

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-64107550482899517012010-04-15T21:36:00.000-05:002010-06-19T23:00:29.060-05:00

Knowing that an agent has three chapters of something I've written, and she will either pass or request more, is exhilirating but intimidating. What is it about the thought of something you've written being read by someone who matters that makes you want to rip it into little pieces and eat them?  (Metaphorically, of course, since I can't tear up or ingest the words that appear on my screen.)

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-64338028062129890552010-04-14T18:03:00.000-05:002010-06-19T23:01:40.883-05:00

"I was working on the proof of one of my poems all the morning, and took out a comma. In the afternoon I put it back again." ~ Oscar Wilde "In a writer there must always be two people -- the writer and the critic." ~ Leo Tolstoy "Suspect all your favorite sentences." ~ Kenneth Atchity   "The first draft of anything is shit." ~ Ernest Hemingway

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-7648700631593340812010-04-09T11:10:00.001-05:002011-10-27T23:15:32.662-05:00

I'm attending my first writers' conference this weekend.  Over the next couple of days, I'll be spending time with other people who think they can write. I count myself among the "think they can" group because I've yet to prove differently, where proving differently is becoming a published author.  (Don't make me go into the number of books I've read/attempted to read that don't agree with this

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-20086780003772281082010-02-13T16:57:00.015-06:002011-05-02T16:22:06.110-05:00

 Not in my lifetime has it snowed this much in a 24-hour period in DFW. It snowed from 2am Thursday morning until just after midnight Thursday night: 12.5 inches! These photos were taken very early Friday morning. No, we don't have snowplows here -- that would be a complete waste of taxpayer money. Usually our winter precipitation is either really cold rain or sleet anyway; snowplows don't help

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-6481358413012043882010-02-03T17:55:00.000-06:002010-06-19T22:55:43.830-05:00

In the last hour of work today, I was revising a scene in the middle of my novel.  (Slow day.  We have those occasionally.)  This scene was, um, a little steamy.  When you write a scene like that, you've got to picture exactly what's going on -- as in the logistics of it -- or you'll have people being contortionists with too many hands. Not that there's anything wrong with that. I think, from

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-87047623021141054212010-01-01T23:33:00.001-06:002010-06-22T18:37:47.253-05:00

I'm not making resolutions, because honestly, I'm gonna do what I'm gonna do, I'm not gonna do what I'm not gonna do.  So I guess I intend to begin 2010 as I mean to go on... or I mean to go on as I already was... or something. I've signed up for a writer's conference in April -- my first.  I plan to work my butt off getting my manuscript polished before that.  I'm following several writers'

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-48751979693555597352009-12-28T14:33:00.001-06:002011-05-17T18:38:55.108-05:00

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before, but I have a great fear of failure. A debilitating, nail-biting, stomach-dropping fear, that comes marching in preposterously early sometimes, and ruins everything. I began writing my first book when I was 8 or 9 -- an illustrated book about a bear. The illustrations were what gave me the most trouble, as I could never draw as well as my younger

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-60713023704576724452009-12-23T21:20:00.000-06:002010-06-19T23:28:53.016-05:00

No day will have been wholly misspent, if one sincere, thoughtful page has been written. ~ Henry David Thoreau I have a page and a half to show for practically an entire day of sitting at the computer. Granted, I spent some time reading, a little time eating, a lot of time on facebook... and there was a cat or two in desperate need of petting.  But I wrote, too.  I'm proud of myself; it was a

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-9028362794499528722009-12-21T17:00:00.000-06:002010-06-19T23:33:14.632-05:00

On writing/revising a novel: some days the damned thing is on fire and my fingers can barely keep up with my brain.  Other days I am doing online billpay a week ahead of time out of sheer boredom.  I'm making myself sit here at the computer... but as you can see, I can find other things to do at the computer.* *like updating my facebook status and blogging The annoying thing is, I'm not bored,

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-58541147611801393422009-12-20T13:45:00.001-06:002010-06-21T14:24:34.562-05:00

During the past week, Zach arrived and will be home for two weeks, Hannah stayed over a couple of nights (and will be back by Wednesday for several more), I've read several YA novels and am still slogging through Margaret Atwood's YEAR OF THE FLOOD. I really want to like this novel, and believe me, I'm trying, but I think dystopian lit is just never going to be my thing. Meanwhile, I've read a

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-59130818144594164472009-12-12T18:46:00.002-06:002011-10-22T14:18:09.390-05:00

In college, lo those many years ago (and by that I mean about six), I took a course on the Bloomsbury Group for one of my advanced English electives.  Though it focused mainly on Virginia Woolf, it also concerned novelist E. M. Forster (whom I love), and John Maynard Keynes, who must have provided for some weird balance in a group otherwise composed of writers, artists and critics. Having been

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-84597513628742239242009-12-11T12:23:00.000-06:002010-06-19T23:41:48.774-05:00

At this point, you're either off and running with the whole Holiday Season Madness or you've come to a stop at least once in the past day or two and said, "Oh CRAP!" to yourself, knowing you've pretty much done nothing.  That last one is me. I've also been neglecting workouts and keeping up with housework, but good God, there's only so much self-flagellation one can take. I'm on the back nine

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-10474554948196245952009-10-21T21:50:00.000-05:002010-06-20T10:53:10.104-05:00

Okay so I've had a margarita or three this evening. I'm ready to peel the contact lenses out of my eyes and collapse in a heap on the bed, where I shall (hopefully) be assualted by my husband. Update on birthmother situation: Leslie and I have been in contact since late May. I was planning to visit her the weekend before last, and at nearly the last minute, she got cold feet. I really don't want

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-57270345990231392092009-04-26T11:53:00.000-05:002010-06-19T23:47:36.727-05:00

I've been working two (part-time) jobs on campus for the past month, because I'm moving back to academic advising and out of the receptionist position I've had for the last year or so. I am a sucker for "Can you stay just a little longer than two weeks PLEASE???" so I agreed to six. I'm so exhausted lately that the weekends aren't long enough to recoup and I feel like I'm stumbling into every

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-16135493016581814452009-04-18T20:28:00.001-05:002011-08-29T02:56:51.518-05:00

In our depressed financial state, Paul has taken to making library trips, resulting in stacks of coverless hardback finance books sitting about like rental furniture made for cats. I've picked up one he finished recently, The Smartest Guys in the Room, which morphed into the documentary of the same name, and is the story of the rise and fall of Enron, complete with a long cast of characters.

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-75010846475137801102009-04-12T19:09:00.000-05:002010-06-19T23:53:59.445-05:00

We had Easter lunch at the in-laws. Robert was invited, and it was nice to see him. He looked good, has taken up weekend cycling and even has a cycling group that does long-distance trips on the weekends. But he admitted that he has yet to change anything in the apartment -- he hasn't given away, packed up or so much as moved a single thing that belonged to Tim. As much as I believe he needs to

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-60092586957437366732009-02-24T10:14:00.000-06:002010-06-19T23:56:28.555-05:00

I met Tim's birthmother and aunt last February, and have been in touch with them both through email since then. They are lovely people. I could see Tim in his mother's face, though she swore, especially when she looked at photos of Tim from high school, that he was the spitting image of his father. Tim is gone, and yet here were people ready and willing to invite him into their arms and hearts,

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-57776223047027098462009-02-04T17:47:00.000-06:002010-06-19T23:58:06.945-05:00

I found myself in the Old Lady Injured Shoulder Club at physical therapy last week. There were four of us who arrived at the same time, and I was far and away the youngest of the group. Upon arrival, we were each directed to a comfy chair, where heat packs were placed on injured shoulders, and we were handed lumps of some sort of play-doh/clay/putty stuff to knead. My putty began to morph into a

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-48858420656628560072008-12-04T18:04:00.000-06:002010-06-19T23:59:22.954-05:00

I'm a couple of hours out from a darvocet (into a darvocet??), but I'll try to keep this succinct and not rambly. My orthopedic doc said he doesn't see a torn ligament or tendon (yay), but I have a proximal humerus fracture (boo). He also believes I dislocated my shoulder when I fell, and there's a large amount of fluid - "blood" he said -- under the ball part, which I guess is rather like a

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-24054371855882499082008-12-01T13:47:00.001-06:002011-05-02T18:29:30.400-05:00

The Thursday before Thanksgiving I walked outside to trek across campus with a package, missed a step down, hit the concrete at an angle and ran 2-3 steps trying to right myself (fail!) before landing hard on both knees and my outstretched right hand. I rolled over (off of my bloody knees) and ended up sitting down, legs outstretched in the middle of an expanse of concrete. For a moment I was

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-53072641940880216962008-11-13T09:12:00.001-06:002011-05-02T17:11:01.968-05:00

I stayed home from work last Thursday and went to the doctor on Friday with symptoms of: Feeling like I'd been run over by a truck, and overly emotional episodes out of the blue (say, crying if the cat hurt my feelings). At 17, I was diagnosed with mononucleosis, via labwork. Once you've had an outbreak of this virus (caused by EBV), it isn't supposed to come back as an active virus because the

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-1250955978951776522008-11-02T18:17:00.000-06:002010-06-20T00:44:10.823-05:00

It's been another week, and I feel like the days are just coming in and going out. I'm still reading The Girls Who Went Away; I had to put it aside for a couple of days because I just couldn't take it. Many of these women yearned for the child they'd given up, most of them coerced or forced or even tricked into doing it. They endured years of shame, grief that they couldn't share and physical

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-42442533927133623942008-10-27T18:05:00.002-05:002011-05-02T17:14:50.601-05:00

I received a book in the mail today from Mary, my adoption search angel: The Girls Who Went Away by Ann Fessler. It's a history of young women who gave up infants for adoption in the years between WWII and Roe vs. Wade. I've always wondered if my birth mother would have aborted me, had it been a legal, viable choice at the time. This question has haunted me since I understood what abortion was.

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-33861438267810395382008-10-09T15:36:00.001-05:002011-05-02T17:19:57.239-05:00

I texted Zach last night call me if you get the chance. He was cast in an NYU production that opened on Tuesday night and runs through Saturday. They were sold out before the week began. On top of that, he's not been feeling well for several days, which just adds to (or perhaps comes from) the stress of carrying 16 credit hours worth of courses, plus frequent rehearsals for this play, not to

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-67581166203625018422008-10-08T20:57:00.002-05:002011-08-18T21:44:41.801-05:00

She has been found. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Paul was able to take off work to drive me to the courthouse while I sat in the passenger seat, trying not to nibble my fingernails in nervous anticipation. We arrived at the court and went straight to the records office where the petition to open adoption records was filled out, complete with requests for a court order to get my original

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6052443259134168979.post-24440197557079538992008-10-06T17:33:00.000-05:002010-06-20T00:58:37.909-05:00

I got a call from the court records office this afternoon. My file is in. I knew she couldn't really go into what is or isn't in it, but I did ask one question: "Is there stuff in there?" "Yes," she laughed, "There's stuff in there!" WOOOOHOOOO! The economy is going to hell -- without benefit of a handbasket -- but my file is in, and in this moment, nothing else can touch me. I'm one step

tammarahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12187325179332795290noreply@blogger.com1