Over the past year I’ve been collecting recipes that use little or no sugar and I’ve been learning how to substitute healthy alternatives in recipes that call for sugar. I’m constantly looking for new recipes so if you have one you think I’d like, please send it my way or type it in the comments below so everyone can see it!


Here is a recipe that is based on one I found in a cookbook, but that I’ve tweaked so much it barely resembles the original. As you’ll notice, the only sweetener in the recipe is unsweetened applesauce, vanilla extract and almond extract. If sugar isn’t an issue for you, feel free to add honey, maple syrup, or the real, processed white stuff. You’ll notice this isn’t a low-fat granola with all of the nuts, but keep in mind they are the healthy, unsaturated fats. I’ve found that I can eat a moderate portion of healthy fats and still lose weight, as long as I’m cutting out sugar. I’ve also found that this granola is one of the only things I can ever eat for breakfast if I don’t want to spend my entire afternoon scrounging for snacks and fighting mental slumps during my writing times. The complex carbs and proteins in this recipe keep me going all morning and help keep my blood sugar levels under control throughout the day. I hope you try it.


Kelli’s Healthy Granola

4 ½ cups oats (not the quick-cook kind)
1 cup unsalted cashews
1 cup raw almonds
1 cup unsalted peanuts
½ cup flax seeds
½ cup unsweetened applesauce
¼ cup canola oil
1 Tbl almond extract
1 Tbl vanilla extract
1 Tbl cinnamon

Note: Feel free to substitute any of your choice of nuts, seeds, or dried fruits you like. Try to stick to the unsalted, raw variations if you can. I’ve also tried using coconut extract and dried unsweetened coconut, which is delicious!

Preheat oven to 300°F. In a large bowl, mix together the oats, nuts and seeds. In a small bowl combine the applesauce, oil, extracts and cinnamon with a whisk. Pour over the nut mixture and mix all together until everything is moistened. Line a large cookie sheet (with low sides) with parchment paper or Silpat, or spray with canola cooking spray. Spread the granola mixture evenly over the baking sheet and bake on middle rack of oven 40-45 minutes, stirring every 10-12 minutes. Let cool before serving.

To serve: Eat the granola as you would cereal, in a bowl with milk. It is delicious topped with diced apple, fresh blueberries, strawberries, banana, or any fruit you like! Or, top it with some plain yogurt and fruit. Enjoy!

I saw it last year and was horrified, then it disappeared for months and I was able to move on with my life. But then, this morning, I saw it again and the old feelings returned. I’m shocked, appalled, disappointed, infuriated.

What could possibly have this effect on me? You’re going to think I’m being silly, but stick with me and I’ll explain it to you. It’s those commercials telling us that High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) is fine for us, in moderation.

What?!!!! How could HFCS be fine for our bodies? It’s a man-made sugar. It is highly concentrated fructose made from corn. I think humans benefit greatly by reducing all sugar intake (including foods that act like sugar such as pasta and white rice), but I’ll keep this discussion to HFCS.

First, let’s address the commercial’s comment “…in moderation.” This, to me, implies that we have complete control over our HFCS intake. That we’re only eating it when we choose to pick up a popsicle or ice cream made with it. This isn’t the case at all. If you are eating foods purchased from a grocery store aisle, you are most likely eating HFCS. It is in everything, and I mean everything. That whole-grain bread you bought to start off your new year right? Read the ingredients list. Yep, there’s HFCS. What about that dollop of mayo or mustard you put on your turkey sandwich? Yep, HFCS is there, too. The heart-healthy high fiber breakfast cereal? Yep. HFCS is everywhere, in everything, and I’m disgusted by our food manufacturers for doing that to us. I’m also disgusted with our government for not doing something to control the manufacturers and I’m disgusted with our medical profession who throws drugs at the problems of diabetes, obesity, and heart disease rather than addressing the actual cause of the problem in the first place – the food we’re eating!

So why is HFCS so bad? Let me give you some highlights (research notes can be found in the books “You On A Diet” by Dr. Michael F. Roizen and Dr. Mehmet C. Oz and “Sugar Shock” by Connie Bennett):

• Foods and beverages sweetened with HFCS don’t raise our blood glucose levels like regular sugar does, which means our insulin production (what removes the glucose from the blood, turning it into energy for our bodies) is not stimulated.

• HFCS-containing foods and beverages don’t trigger the body’s satiety signals and thus, we eat/drink more than we normally would have which equals extra calories consumed.

• Fructose fails to trigger the usual hormone responses that turn down appetite and increase metabolic rate (= we eat more and gain weight).

• When fructose is ingested it goes directly to the liver where it is more prone than glucose to being metabolized and converted into fat and, therefore, raises triglyceride levels for many hours after consumption.

• Studies have found that long-term fructose consumption can raise LDL (the bad cholesterol) levels, which could lead to cardiovascular disease.

• HFCS may trick the body’s metabolism due to its ability to raise uric acid. High levels of uric acid causes lower levels of nitric oxide, which leads to poor glucose metabolism, which, in turn, increases one’s risk of metabolic syndrome.

• In one study, mice were given fructose-sweetened water and soft drinks. They found that the mice ate less food, and thus consumed less overall calories, and yet they gained significantly more body fat (90 percent!) than mice consuming plain water.

• How is fructose (corn-derived sweetener) different from regular sucrose (sugar-derived)? First of all, HFCS is 40% sweeter than sugar. HFCS is not from fruit but is a starch; it does not exist in nature (it is chemically refined to an artificial hydrocarbon) and therefore is not recognized by the body like sucrose is (thus, it is not converted to blood glucose).

Why is HFCS in everything? Money. Pure and simple. Sugar costs 30 cents a pound (and remember, it’s not as sweet so more is needed) while HFCS costs about 10 cents a pound.

Why am I so worked up over all of this? It’s simple. Two members of my family have been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes in the last year and I just found out I am Insulin Resistant. I have no doubt the HFCS prevalent in the American diet is to blame.

If you’re interested in learning even more about how the Corn industry (among others) is ruining our health, I encourage you to watch the documentary “FOOD, INC.” It will open your eyes, as it has mine.

We aren’t helpless, though. Every time we put food into our mouths and every time we purchase food at a market, we are voting on the kind of food we want our manufacturers to provide for us. There are plenty of alternatives, if you look for them, to foods with HFCS. Choose foods made without high fructose corn syrup and make your vote heard.

And, just in case you haven’t figured it out by now, high-fructose corn syrup is NOT okay, in moderation or otherwise.

Like many of you, I’m caught up in Christmas preparations and loving every minute of it. One thing I tell myself I’m not going to succumb to every year, yet every year I do, is baking and candy making. If goodies are lying around, I’ll eat the bulk of them so it’s best to keep them out of the house. One cookie I can never say no to, however, is my Christmas favorite, Almond Butter Sticks. I’ll share the recipe with you so you, too, can delight in these sinful, buttery, sugary, almond cookies. I got the recipe from my mom and don’t know where she got the recipe from, or I’d give that person their proper credit. If you decide to make these, make sure your kitchen isn’t too warm and, once the cookies are baked, be prepared for the platter to empty quickly. Note: they are also delicious straight out of the freezer. If anyone wants to experiment and try other flavors of extract other than almond, let me know what you thought of the results. I’ve wondered how coconut extract would be in these but it’s hard to veer from a tried and true favorite. Enjoy!

Almond Butter Sticks

1 cup Butter or Margarine
8 ounces Cream Cheese
2 ¼ cups Flour
2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1/8 teaspoon Salt
-----
1 cup Sugar (plus more if needed)
4 teaspoons almond extract
-----
Mix the first five ingredients together and roll out on a flat surface into a large rectangle. Mix sugar and almond extract together, pat onto half of the rectangle. Fold the dough over to cover the sugar and roll out again. Repeat until all of the sugar is used up (five or six times). Once all the sugar is incorporated into the dough, roll again into a rectangle, cut into strips and bake at 400° for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. We like to sprinkle on red or green sugar sprinkles before baking to make the cookies look more festive.

Remember William Hung, the guy who became popular in 2004 for his audition on American Idol with the song “She Bangs”? Remember how he belted out the song, full of enthusiasm and pride when, clearly, his talent just wasn’t there? Remember how you felt when you watched his performance and thought something along the lines of, “Bless his heart, he’s trying”?

There are days when I feel like I’m the publishing industry equivalent of William Hung. I’m doing my best, but are people laughing at me? I’m writing my books, giving each one my full effort and, like the saying goes, my blood, sweat and tears. Some writers refer to their books as their babies, and I can understand that. I give each book months of my life. Writing takes me away from my husband and kids. It forces me to choose between getting the words down on the page each day, or spending time with friends, volunteering with the PTA, grocery shopping. But I do it because I need to write my stories. I yearn to positively impact a reader’s life like countless books have done for my life. I give each book I write my all and I send it out into the world to agents, editors and (gulp!) contests.

It was feedback from one particular contest that recently made me feel like I’m fooling myself thinking I have talent when really I should toss my laptop out the window. The judges comments were so scathing I felt like closing all my window blinds, turning off the porch light and hiding out from the world because, really, all my friends and family must be lying to me out of love as William Hung’s family must have lied to him. These well-meaning individuals tell us we are talented and have a real chance at fulfilling our dreams in our chosen careers, when really, we don’t.

Or do we?

I don’t know what William’s dream is, but maybe it was to be on the Today Show. He did that. Maybe it was to perform onstage in front of thousands of viewers with backup dancers performing behind him. He did that, too. Maybe he just wants to sing. He’s still doing that.

As for me, my dream is to become a published author. I want to see my name on a book on the bookstore shelves and know that someone somewhere is reading it and connecting to the story and characters I created. I dream of receiving letters telling me how my book helped, in some small way, the reader to get through her day. I don’t need to be a New York Times Bestseller (though that would be nice) and I don’t need to be the next Nora Roberts (though that would be doubly nice). I just want to write great books that get published and distributed to readers who emotionally connect with my stories and tell their friends about them.

So, I’ve decided to ignore that one judge’s comments and focus on all the positive feedback I’ve received from others. If you see me on the book shelf someday, please pick me up and, if you must, think, “Bless her heart, she never gave up.” Then, go buy it.

Whew! The Emerald City Writers’ Conference is over for one more year. After spending the past year working as the registration chair for the conference I can tell you one thing for sure: I will never again take a conference for granted. This conference was for 250 attendees and I was working my behind off for months gathering registration information, tracking meal choices, allergies, editor and agent requests, costs, payments, emails, badge names, raffle ticket orders, etc. And then I was responsible for printing badges, meal cards, allergy cards, labels, and assembling everything into registration packets. I can only imagine the amount of work involved for larger conferences. Huge kudos to Lesa Dragon and the rest of the 2009 ECWC conference committee!

Because I was so wiped out from the conference I was eagerly looking forward to the following weekend when I planned a weekend getaway with my husband to celebrate our wedding anniversary in downtown Seattle. It started great, with doughnuts at Lola (Heavenly! Served with mascarpone cheese and fresh marionberry jam) and dinner at Assaggio (I had eggplant parmesan that was perfection on a plate and has since created a craving I need to satisfy soon!). And then the sickness hit. Rather than dining out, shopping, and hitting a comedy club or the theater, we called room service and laid in bed most of the weekend – and not in a good way.

So now that those two weekends are over (thankfully) I can turn my attention back to writing and submitting. And pumpkin patches and trick-or-treating and roasting turkey and eventually Jingle Bells and Dear Santa letters. The year is going to be over soon and I have big goals to accomplish first. I need to get my latest book, The Truth About Dares, sent out to the professionals who’ve requested it, and queries sent to others. I need to start plotting my next book and start writing. Lots to do.

What about you? What are you working on right now? How do you juggle all the demands and surprises of life?

Something interesting has happened to me lately. I’ve finally discovered the holy grail of time management. Wanna know the secret? Compartmentalization. Yep. No joke.

Compartmentalization means putting the various demands on your time and attention into different compartments of your day and letting nothing, not even thoughts, interfere. For me this means I decide what compartment of the day is for writing and I don’t worry about any other thing I “should” be doing. For two hours every morning, I write. Period. I don’t schedule appointments or playdates, I don’t clean the kitchen and I don’t let mommy-guilt kick in and convince me I should be playing with my boys. It’s my writing time.

When writing time is over, then I can set aside my manuscript, synopsis, query, or whatever I’m working on and go about my day. When I’m with my kids I am now with them, not thinking about how I should be writing. Likewise, when I’m writing, I’m not thinking about how I should be with my kids. Each has it’s time in my day and I can feel happy about the time I devote to both.

Sure, you might be thinking, but what about those of us who have to work a full-time job? It’s no different really. In fact, you’re already doing it, to some degree. The time you spend at your day-job is the compartment of time that you devote to that job. You aren’t worrying about your kids or your writing at that time because you are present in that moment, doing your job the best you know how. When you go home, you probably devote those three hours or whatever you have to dinner and family. After the kids are in bed, the next compartment of time is devoted to your spouse, your writing, or your mental health (reading a book, watching TV). You have already started compartmentalizing your day. Maybe all you need to do to find time to write is to shuffle responsibilities around or ask for help from family members. If you can’t find a compartment of time for writing during the week, maybe Saturday afternoons are your writing compartments. That counts, too.

My challenge to you is to take a hard look at your day. Figure out if you can change things around, set a schedule, and stick with it. Your kids and family will learn to respect your time (because you teach them to respect it. It may take a little while, but they will learn and you will get your time). When you’re feeling like skipping writing one day, don’t. Just do it. Don’t think about it, just sit down and do it. You’re going to feel so much better when you’re finished.

Naturally, this advice can be applied to anything: a side business, a hobby such as scrapbooking or painting. Sleeping. Reading. Volunteering at your favorite charity. Decide what matters in your life and give that a compartment of your time. Let everything else go.

So now you’re probably wondering what compartmentalizing your day has to do with writing faster. When you have a devoted amount of time every single day, and you know you can’t do anything else but write during this time, you will start producing more pages. You won’t have people, thoughts, or other demands pulling you out of your writing. You are fully present in this time.

You’ll be happier, more efficient, and if you’re like me, you’ll have another finished book to sell. Happy writing!

If you’ve been checking this blog recently you’ve probably noticed I’ve been strangely absent. Thank you for not giving up on me! You see, I’ve been struggling with the whole concept of this blog and what it should be, how I should portray my author brand, how to make my blog interesting and unique… I’ve also been struggling with time. While I love supporting my local RWA chapter, I must admit that volunteering to be the Registration Chair for our upcoming conference has been extensively time consuming. Oh, and did I mention I’ve been writing? Like a mad woman. Work on my book must come first, before conference work, before blogging. As of right now I’m polishing my book, a women’s fiction novel titled THE TRUTH ABOUT DARES, and hope to get it out the door to agents and editors by the end of this month.

On a personal note, I’ve also sent my oldest child off to first grade which was much more emotionally-trying than I expected. It’s the first time he’s in all-day school and I miss him. I worry about him on the bus (will he make friends or sit lonely by himself?), and I worry about him at school (will the big kids pick on him during recess?). I know this is exactly what should be happening in his life and it’s a great experience for both of us, but I’m still having growing pains. This coming week I send my baby off to preschool. I’m hoping I’ll feel a sense of freedom as I dash to the coffee shop to get in a couple hours of uninterrupted writing, but I know I’ll probably be fighting tears that first day. Or two.

So, keep checking back, my friends. I promise to return soon on a regular basis. I’m playing with some ideas on how to make this blog better, or at least different (in a good way). I’d love your feedback as I feel my way through these changes. I’ve been blogging for 2 ½ years, yet I find I’m still learning what works and what doesn’t. And, I’m learning to trust my own voice here just as I had to learn to trust it in my books.

Life is all about learning, after all…

(If you're wondering about this picture, it's of an old weathered boat we found on a sand spit coming into Fisherman Bay on Lopez Island in the San Juan Islands of Washington State.)

The winner of our GIVING UP THE V contest is:

Sonya Cassing

Sonya, if you could email your address to kelli at kelliestes dot com, we'll get the book to you right away. Thanks for playing and congratulations!

I'm so excited for this next release from my friend, Serena Robar. Leave a comment below and you'll be entered to win a free copy!

About GIVING UP THE V:

What’s So Wrong With Waiting?

Spencer Davis just turned sixteen. But unlike most hormonal teenagers who seem obsessed with sex — like her entire crew of friends — Spencer just doesn’t get it. She’d rather wait for the right guy and the right moment. But that moment may be arriving sooner than she’d thought.

Enter Benjamin Hopkins, a new transfer student who seems to have his eyes on our V-card-carrying heroine. He’s gorgeous, funny, suave, athletic, and capable of making Spencer’s knees wobble with a single glance. Spencer has never felt this way about anyone before, but is Ben truly V-worthy?

“This novel stands out for its thorough, no-holds-barred discussion of sex in its many forms—from the ugly to the beautiful.” -Publishers Weekly 6/8/09

About Serena Robar:
I spent my school days addicted to reading romances. Historical. Regencies. Old West, Native American. Pirate. The list goes on. I would tuck a Romance in my open science book and pretend to be following along with class when I was really lost in a fantasy world of happily ever after. Though my knowledge of mitochondria is woefully limited, I can boast a vast array of trivia about the pirate trade of the 16th century, American pioneer life and Regency etiquette of the Ton.

My reading habits have improved much and I still read when I should be doing laundry, making dinner and/or any household chores (we order a lot of pizza). In fact, when I discover a new author I will read their entire backlist non-stop. Literally. I won’t do anything else but read. Addiction is a dangerous thing.

I live in the Pacific Northwest with my husband and three children. Between reading and juggling family, I am hard at work writing. It’s my secret hope that my books will find there way inside text books, sparking the imagination and talent of the next generation of writers. My apologies to teachers everywhere.

Serena is also giving it away for free (the only time Momma would approve): Sign up for her newsletter here, and you are entered to win one of the books she is giving away every day in the month of June. Enter once and you are in the running to win a book every day the entire month of June.

Leave a comment below and you'll be entered in my contest, which ends Sunday, June 21st. Then, after you leave a comment below, double your chances of winning by heading over to Serena's site to win one there! Good luck!

*Contest only open to US and Canada

This morning I sent my six-year-old son off to school in tears because he was scared to go on his class field trip without me as a chaperon. My heart ached all day thinking about him, worrying about him, hoping he was happy at that moment. This is a scene we've lived through many times in his short life. He's a sensitive little guy with a heart so tender I can't help but want to shield him from the blows of this world. But I know he needs to start standing on his own two feet and finding strength from inside himself rather than from me or the favorite blanket he still clings to at home.

Talking with a friend today about her one-month-old baby, I realized that during all those oh-so-incredibly-long nights when I felt I was the only one awake with one of my own babies, the link between me and my child was tightening and strengthening. What my friend doesn't know is that while parenting will get a lot easier as her daughter grows up and sleeps through the night, in other ways it's going to get so much harder. It's torture to hold a crying infant and not know how to calm her screams and it's still torture when she's older and feeling pain from the world that she'll be able to do nothing about.

My sister's oldest is graduating from high school this weekend. For weeks, months even, she thought she was doing just fine, taking his leaving in stride. But today, when someone asked her how she feels about her baby graduating and moving away, she realized that this very morning she made his last school lunch…and she burst into tears.

Parenting is like that, I guess. Just when you become strong in one area, like comforting an infant or sending a kid off on a new school adventure, a new stage comes along to take your feet out from under you.

Will it ever ease? When my kids are adults living on their own, will this tug in my heart that connects me to them and their pain ever go away?

In one aspect, I hope so. In another, I never want it to go away no matter how painful it is – because having that connection is the greatest thing in the world.

I'm not one to read book excerpts. It doesn't matter if they're at the back of a book I just read, included in a book review, or sent by a friend, I won't read it if I don't have the entire book at my disposal. You see, if I'm hooked by the excerpt and I don't have the rest to read right away, I'm tormented for months until the book is released. Or, just as bad, when the book does come out and I pick it up and recognize the first few pages, I think that I already read it and I put it back, missing a great story. To avoid all that, I don't read excerpts, as a rule.

That is, until I stumbled across an excerpt for one of Emily Bryan's first books and only then did I read it in order to answer a question and be entered in her contest to win something. That's when I became hooked on Emily Bryan books. Every single excerpt I've read of hers, I'm blown away by the originality of the story and the realistic, yet larger-than-life characters. Obviously, I've purchased all of her books since. She's still one of the only authors whose excerpts I read.

If you're like me and don't generally read excerpts (or if you love excerpts!), I challenge you to read this one. As you'll notice, there is a character in this scene who doesn't have a name and is instead called "XXX". How cool would it be if YOU came up with a name for this character? Guess what? You can!

STROKE OF GENIUS CONTEST
Want to see your name on the acknowledgment page of Emily Bryan's next book? Here's your chance! Emily is giving her readers a chance to name an important secondary character in her upcoming STROKE OF GENIUS. The winner will receive signed copies of Emily Bryan's entire backlist (including A CHRISTMAS BALL anthology, due out Sept 29th). PLUS you'll be mentioned on the acknowledgment page of STROKE OF GENIUS. The contest begins June 1st and entries close July 1st. For more information, visit http://www.emilybryan.com.

When you're finished entering the contest, come on back here and share your thoughts on character names. Are there any that stick in your memory (good or bad)? Do you like characters in a book to have average-sounding names or fun, adventurous names? Do you choose names you'd like to have yourself, or go purely on that particular character's unique traits?

As for me, I find myself giving my main characters normal-sounding names (for the most part). With secondary characters I get a little more adventurous. Although, now that I think about it, my current manuscript is just the opposite. My two main characters, sisters, are named Charity and Serenity (but she goes by Rena). That's getting a little more adventurous, don't you think?

In case you're wondering why I've been so quiet lately...did I mention I'm the registration chair for the Emerald City Writers' Conference? Registration officially opened last weekend and I've been struggling to keep my head above water while also throwing two birthday parties for my son and trying to write. Want to make me even more busy? Register today! This is a fabulous conference that I highly recommend (obviously, or I wouldn't be volunteering for it!).

Emerald City Writers’ Conference

To register, visit www.gsrwa.org.

20th Anniversary
Emerald City Writers’ Conference
Sponsored by the Greater Seattle Romance Writers’ of America
October 9-11, 2009
Bellevue Hilton
Bellevue, Washington

• Editor & Agent Appointments
• Educational & Inspirational Sessions
• Book fair
• Chat Sessions with Your Favorite Authors
• Social Events for Networking

Join us as we celebrate the 20th Anniversary of the first Emerald City Writers’ Conference. In addition to group editor and agent appointments, the conference features educational sessions taught by published authors and experts in their field. Classes cover everything from the writing craft to online marketing. Chat sessions with best selling authors are also featured.

The annual book fair offers opportunities to mingle with your favorite authors. Several social events provide opportunities for networking with other writers, published authors, editors and agents making this annual conference a not-to-miss event.

Our Speakers
Keynote Speaker: Claire Delacroix
Featured Speakers: Lisa Jackson & Christine Warren

Special Guests
Cherry Adair, Elizabeth Boyle, Stella Cameron, Megan Chance, Bob Dugoni, Yasmine Galenorn, Susan Mallery, Bob Mayer, Jane Porter and more!

Editor & Agent Appointments
Registrants are offered the opportunity to pitch in group appointments to editors and agents of their choice; appointments are scheduled on a first come, first served basis, so register today! Emerald City Opener finalists will receive private appointments

Editors
• Wanda Ottewell, Editor: Harlequin
• Peter Senftleben, Editor: Kensington
NOTE: Peter will also be speaking at a session entitled “The Editor/Author Relationship: How to work with your editor from the call to published book and beyond”
• Megan McKeever, Editor: Pocket Books

Agents
• Steven Axelrod, Agent: The Axelrod Agency
• Alexandra Machinist, Agent: Linda Chester Literary Agency
NOTE: Alexandra is also speaking at a session entitled “What Every Agent Wishes Every Author Knew.”
• Vivian Chum, Agent: Prospect Agency

Registration is limited. To register, visit www.gsrwa.org.

I had the most amazing opportunity over the weekend to get together with fellow writers and help each other plot our books. Most of us are unpublished, a couple are published, and one is a New York Times Bestseller -- the totally-fabulous Cherry Adair. Cherry is awesome. I can't say enough good things about her. She is beyond generous with her time and advice. She truly and deeply yearns for our success as much as we do. Having her support has made a world of difference to my confidence when it comes to this crazy world of publishing.

So last Friday, after the Mother's Day Tea at my son's kindergarten (which made me feel so special and loved!), I headed to Cherry's guest house where a dozen of us writers were gathering for the weekend. We all came bearing food, chocolate, drinks, sticky notes, pens, laptops, and notes on our story ideas. Even with the pristine lake outside beckoning us (see picture), we were able to focus and get down to work. For a full day and a half, twelve of us plotted our stories together as we ate, drank, ate some more, and laughed a lot.

The best part, beyond the obvious of getting my plot holes filled, was the sense of sisterhood I felt with every person there. It was a group that was created by happenstance but that bonded into a cohesive unit. I can't wait to see every one of those books sell!

I wish this experience for all of you. And, guess what? You can have it! Cherry is offering a similar weekend experience through the Brenda Novak auction this month. Get together a group of your friends and bid on it. You won't regret it. I promise.

I heart Cherry, and I heart my fellow Cherry Plotters!

We writers find our ideas in odd and sometimes surprising ways. Take today for example. A Kirby (carpet cleaning system) saleswoman came to my door and asked, "Are you the lady of the house?"

In that flash of a moment, an entire story scene unfolded in my mind:

"Why yes, I'm the lady of the Keep," I answer, standing tall on the steps of my castle. Though the biting wind blows the constant drizzle into my face, I'm used to it, unlike my visitors who are huddling in their furs. "My husband, the Laird," I tell them, "is away on urgent business for the King and shall return in a fortnight."

I step back, motioning for them to proceed me into the great hall as I secretly signal for one man-at-arms to inspect the perimeter while another keeps an eye on the visitors, ready for a surprise attack.

"Please, come in and sit by the fire," I say to them as though I'm not at all worried about the safety of the people of this castle who are under my care. "I'll call my serving girl to bring you a tankard of ale."

And then, spying the cleaning equipment they have stacked on the wagon in the bailey, I say, "Oh, and as we have rushes on the floor rather than carpets. Perhaps you'd care to clean our tapestries instead?"


Obviously, if I'd said any of that out loud the Kirby saleswoman would have gone running as fast as possible from my house.

So, with a polite "No, thank you," I closed the door and she went on her way. But my mind was whirring. How cool would it be to write a Scottish Medieval in first person? I can't say for sure that I've ever read a medieval in first person. Or historical of any kind in first person. Are there any out there? (Please, tell me in the comments below if you know of any!) If memory serves, wasn't Diana Gabaldon's Outlander in first person? Could that have been one of the many, many reasons I loved that book so much?

As someone who resisted writing in first person for a very long time (and reading them, for that matter) it surprised me how excited I felt at this idea. No, I don't have a plot in mind. No, I don't typically write historicals (with the exception of one Victorian-era book set in the San Juan Islands of what was then the Washington Territory). But, should I choose to dive into the required research and write another historical, first person may be the way to go.

In the meantime, excuse me while I return to my chores. It's a lot of work to keep a castle running. I've got to keep those crafty cleaning peasants from absconding with the valuables. Plus, you never know when a raiding band from the neighboring clan is going to come steal our cattle or run off with our young maidens.

As you know if you've seen me at a conference or on many of the candid photos of me on Facebook, my left eye tends to wander when I get tired. My left eye is completely blind due to an injury when I was 3-years-old and, as my ophthalmologist once put it, my optic nerve "is totally toast". If you were to look inside my eyeball you'd see scar tissue growing out of the back that looks like a big white tree. My blind eye is no big deal because I don't remember having vision in both eyes. But when it gets to wandering I look cross-eyed and it's embarrassing.

I brought this up to my eye doctor last week and asked him if there's anything I can do about it. He was surprised to hear I have this problem. Apparently, most of the time when people have an eye that wanders it is because their two eyes are sending different signals to the brain which the brain has trouble processing. In these cases, retraining the brain is required. My left eye, however, sends no signals whatsoever to my brain.

My left eye is controlled by the signals sent to it by the right eye. When my right eye focuses on something to my left, my left eye follows. So, could it be a muscle problem, I asked?

After sitting there in his office, thinking for a few minutes, my eye doctor finally came to the conclusion that maybe my eyes are doing what happens to old people. Picture that little old lady driving down the street, her hands clamped on the steering wheel at ten and two. She's hunched over and staring straight ahead. She doesn't see the chaos on the sidewalks, the cars jerking to a stop on the side streets narrowly avoiding colliding with her, because she's got tunnel vision. Her peripheral vision has deteriorated over the years until now it's almost entirely gone.

That's me, the little old lady with tunnel vision. My range of vision is so drastically reduced that when I'm looking around at a lot of things – like clothes on the racks at the mall, or faces in the crowd at a conference – my eyes get tired and, eventually, my left eye can't keep up any longer.

The doctor suggested I do eye exercises every day when I'm sitting watching television with my family. If I do exercises at each commercial break for one hour-long program every night, that adds up to about ten minutes a day and I should see improvement in a couple weeks.

I left his office content with the plan. And then I got home and realized the flaw…I don't watch TV for an hour every day. I watch TV for two hours a week, Lost on Wednesdays and Castle on Mondays. Every other time the TV is on at my house, I'm doing something else like washing dishes, organizing toys, helping my son with homework, writing.

Maybe I'll do the exercises at stoplights. Or when I'm lying in bed at night. Or when I'm waiting to pick up my son from school instead of using that time to check email.

Or maybe I should just use it as an excuse to watch an hour of TV every day. Thanks, Doc!