It's gone. It's done. I'm moving on.

Time. We all wished we had more stashed away somewhere so on those occasions when we really do need to be cloned three times over we could open the proverbial bottle and dump time over our heads. But, the concept of time and how to capture it remains a mystery to even the greatest minds.

So what is our alternative? How about organization?

We all know how to organize? Well, maybe 75% of us do. Mankind has been organizing things since day one. They kept their food in one area of the cave and their fossil fuels in another and slept in another. They organized hunting parties to gather or capture their food. We know herbalist have been around since, well, day one. I’m sure they kept their ginkgo separated from their dandelion. (To learn more about herbs and their uses visit http://www.age-oldherbs.com/ailmentherb.php ) But how do we organize to save or make the best use of our time?

First, thing that comes to my mind is to get rid of clutter. Over the last year or so, I’ve been tossing, recycling, and giving things away that I don't use any longer, and I still have a truck load that needs to go. I watched a newscast a few months ago on the new minimalist movement. One man had less than one-hundred items, excluding food, underwear and socks in that count, but every other article of clothing, cooking and eating utensils and everything else he owned was included. The show really made me think about what I actually need in my life and how much having a ton of stuff can blog me down. Out the door became my new motto. Well, except for my books. I mean let's be honest. Books are treasure.

Second, when getting organized, I think of lists. The days I make a list are the days I get so much more done. I know some of you have heard the old story about the woman who goes out to get her newspaper and sees her flowers need water so she goes to get the watering can and notices her car windows are open. She drops the can and goes inside to get her keys and picks up her husband’s socks from the floor and carries them to the hamper only to realize it’s full and she needs to start the laundry. Etc, etc, etc. Until the end of the story she is exhausted and never gets anything done. (I’m raising my hand here.) That is so me on some days-days that I don’t make a list, prioritize the items and stay focus on accomplishing the tasks. The world is filled with many disractions bidding for our attention. Without super human powers, we can’t do it all.

One more. (This blog is getting too long. I hate long blogs. I don’t have time to read everything. I’m sure you don’t either) Choose what is important to you and do it first. If gardening is your love, make it your priority and the first thing you do in the morning, or on your off time. If exercise is your game, do it. If it’s writing, sit down and knock out a page or two. Do what you truly love first and your step will be lighter doing the rest of the items on your I’ve-got-to-get-done list.

Thank you for visiting. Take your time looking around and please visit again. AJ

Rachael Brimble Visits.

Thursday June 7, 2012

As a writer lucky enough to be able to work full-time around her two kids, husband and dog, I often feel guilty about being at home all day. What are people thinking about me? Do they think I sit around the house doing nothing? Why isn’t my house spotlessly clean (because believe me, it isn’t!!)?



It is only recently that these negative thoughts were banished (hopefully!) forever. The moment the email dropped into my inbox from my agent telling me Harlequin Superromance wanted to publish my first romantic suspense since 2008, I felt a weight lift. The tears came as the news hit me for six in SO many ways. Most of all, it hit me that I have the potential to really succeed at what I love doing most in the world…writing!

The sad truth is writing NEVER gets easier! Self-confidence in your work is, for most of us, an endless goal. With each book, I hope this will be the one to write itself. I’ll sit back and the characters will be so clear in my head I can hear them, the plot will be formulated and entirely error free, I will merely be my novel’s secretary taking dictation.

This might happen for a sentence, a paragraph—hey, even an entire scene! But the whole book? Nah, never gonna happen…

Before all you aspiring writers out there, pick up your laptops and throw them through the window, there’s a reason I am sharing this doom and gloom. Perseverance, belief, tenacity and skin thicker than an elephant’s rump is what is needed for you to have any chance of making it in the business. End of.

If someone would have told me that at the very beginning, I probably could have saved myself a lot of blood, sweat and tears. I am passing on this experience because I want to save you from having to do the same.

Let me introduce you to the freedom of the ‘crappy first draft’. Repeat after me, “I give myself permission to write the crappiest manuscript ever from start to finish.” Of course, draft two is where the real hard work begins – nothing free in this game ;)

But this method really works! Well, at least for me it does. Without the pressure of getting the characters, the setting, the plot and everything else perfect first time round, it releases my creativity AND output. People often ask me on Twitter how I manage such a high daily word count (I average 2,000 words per day) when I have school age kids. It is possible when you are not agonizing over every word and sentence.

Draft two is also a largely easier process than you might imagine – think about it, a full page can be edited, a blank page can’t.

So? What do you think? Could you give the ‘crappy draft’ method a try? What’s your process?

I’d love to hear from you!



Rachel’s latest release is Paying The Piper, available now from Lyrical Press. Here’s the blurb and buy link:

Nightclub manager, Grace Butler is on a mission to buy the pub where her mother’s ashes are scattered – except the vendor wants to sell to anyone but her. And the vendor happens to be her father…with a secret Grace will do anything to uncover.

Social worker and all-round good guy, Jimmy Betts needs cash to buy a house for three special kids before their care home closes. In a desperate bid for cash, he agrees to a one-time ‘job’ for bad-man Karl Butler. But in a sudden turn of events, Jimmy finds himself employed by Karl’s beautiful, funny and incredibly sexy daughter, Grace.

Their lives are so different except for one unifying thread – they are both trying to escape the binds of their tyrannical fathers. But is the key to their liberty each other?

http://www.lyricalpress.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=3_25&products_id=424

Rachel’s Links:

http://www.rachelbrimble.com/
http://rachelbrimble.blogspot.co.uk/
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Rachel-Brimble/181873201887441?ref=ts
Twitter: @rachelbrimble

Like WOW!

Tuesday June 5, 2012

Yesterday, I ran into a husband of a friend who had bought HIS WITNESS TO EVIL. The first words he said to me were, “I read your book last night.”

You can imagine my reaction. I froze, (well, because I write romantic suspense and he is an ALPHA male) and waited for his next remark and sure enough it came.

“Pretty steamy.” He grinned.

I know it was my imagination, but I would swear I saw the wiggle of his right brow.

“Why is it everyone focuses on the love scenes?” I responded, wanting to slap the smirk off his face.

“Well they were, ah, good, but I liked the whole thing,” friend’s DH stammered.

Okay, he got my interest. “What?”

“Yeah, the Russian Mafia stuff. It was good. I laid it down a couple of times. You know, to check my email, but I couldn’t stop wondering what would happen next. I read the whole thing. When’s your next one coming out?”

Now, you understand I’m like doing the jig inside. It takes every ounce of control not to hug this guy. A man liked my book. My romantic suspense. Why should that make me dance with joy? Because it meant I wrote the stuff (action, guts, glory) guys like well. He totally bought into the world I built. He made my day and I told him so. Hell, he made my month.

I hope you'll enjoy the story as much.

******
Excerpt from HIS WITNESS TO EVIL. Available on Amazon





Suddenly, a hand slapped across her mouth and a strong arm circled her waist, lifting her off her feet. Her nostrils flared against the ridge of skin as she fought to suck in air and the scent of the man dragging her away.

A car whizzed by but didn’t stop. The street ahead was deserted except for two elderly women waiting for a bus and a couple standing on the corner. They had their backs to her. They didn’t see her.

She searched wildly for anyone who would come to her rescue. There was no one.

The street disappeared and red brick imprisoned her and her attacker on both sides as the man carried her deeper into the deserted alley. Foul smelling dumpsters, broken crates and cardboard boxes limp from the downpour on Saturday night filled the alley.

While her toes fought to touch the ground, her fingernails dug into tan skin. She struggled helplessly to free herself.

“Owww. Will you stop clawing me?” The deep tone heated her ear.

“John,” she mumbled against his hand. She twisted and strained to look back. Relief washed through her.

“Quiet.” He deposited her into a deep doorway.

Her purse slipped from her shoulder and dropped to the ground as she spun on her heel. Without thought, she flung her arms around his neck. His hard chest crushed her breasts. “I was so scared. I didn’t want to leave you and Zohara. I’m so glad you’re alive.”

“Me too,” he whispered into her ear.

She pulled back. His smile was faint, but it was there. Her hands trailed down his arms and found the bandage. “Your arm.”

“It’s nothing. A cut.”

“I shouldn’t have left you and—”

“You did the right thing, Steph. Where are the kids?”

“They’re safe.”

He looked at her warily, probably wondering where she could hide them and feel safe about doing so.

She squared her shoulders. “No one saw us. I wasn’t going to bring them until I knew it was safe. Whoever is looking for us could spot us faster if we were together, so I left them at the library with Susan. No one will look for them there. And if something happens to me…” Stephanie swallowed hard, fear rippling through her. “Well, Susan knows my mother. She’d call her.”

At the sound of a door opening, John glanced around the doorway’s edge. He pushed her into the corner, shielding her with his body.

With her nose pressed against his chest, she drew in a mixture of his musk scent and blood.

The sound of someone throwing trash into the dumpster mingled with the throb of her heart. Protected by John, she closed her eyes and waited.

“Damn,” he said.

Stephanie’s head snapped up. “What do you mean, damn?”

“Shh.” John’s hands found her hips and pulled her even closer—hip to hip. The butt of his gun poked her ribs. No protective vests shielded her from the feel of him.

His burning gaze told her of his plan only a moment before his lips, full and hot, crushed hers.

His hands trailed down her backside, lifting her against his hard body. She ran her hands up his strong arms. The world reeled away, leaving her and John alone, enjoying the warm comfort of each other as their bodies molded together.

John pulled back. Instantly the air between them cooled and Stephanie shivered, wanting more of him.

“Calm down, Mac. The lady and I are on a coffee break. Right, babe?”

Dazed, her gaze locked with his. She knew what he wanted from her.

“Miss?” The stocky man, wearing a bloody butcher’s apron, glanced at her purse before his hard glare landed on John. The man’s burly arms hosted clamped fists and his stance changed. He was ready to pounce on John at her word.

“Leave us alone. We’ve only got ten minutes.” Stephanie slowly laced her arms around John’s neck and flashed a wicked smile at the man. She went up on her toes and buried her face in John’s neck and nibbled away, enjoying the salty taste of him.