In A Bookish, Quilty Mood

What I'm planning to write tomorrow, fingers crossed for a wordy NANOWRIMO start! Several years ago I made a decision that for a good while caused me a lot of consternation, a choice that I said I would never make again. Well, I'm strongly considering going back on that pledge. I'm thinking about publishing the first of a series without having subsequent novels written. Quick backstory: in writing The Hawk , I released the first 40K fully aware that I wasn't done, nor would I be able to gauge when I would be done. I did that because I rightly, if not painfully, assumed it would perhaps be the only impetus to keep me writing until the story was DONE. But OMG what pressure, tension, commitment! How many times did I say to myself, "You will NEVER DO THAT AGAIN!" Um, many. Yet here I am, giving serious thought to doing it again. Why, you might ask. Good question! Well see, there's this intriguing novel I've dug up from 2013 and.... Really, that...

Displayed on the old laundry line makes for a visual quilty treat! So I have finished what might be the last Honeycomb Stars Quilt I ever make. Never say never (and more about that very soon!), but boy getting through the end of this was.... Not quite a slog, certainly contemplative, and ultimately not that enjoyable. Not due to any fault of the pattern's creator; Rachel Hauser's delightful and informative write-up was clear, concise and if one is inclined to quilting beyond a beginner's level very do-able. Yet I am not the most precise cutter, nor am I super-fussy about scant quarter-inch and full quarter-inch seams. In matching the dog ears when attaching rows together, often I encountered the smallest but meaningful excess fabric and after the first three or four rows I grew tired of adjusting the ears just so. As I completed the final rows yesterday afternoon, I had to admit that while this pattern produces a beautiful result, I am not the quilter best suited to using i...

On the basting table at last! So while I didn't complete the Honeycomb Star quilt in total, I did get all the rows made, and even have five of them attached, with a sixth pinned in place, waiting on my work table. That alone is a win, but even better was hand-sewing the final stitches in a long-suffering Mandolin Quilt , which is now basted and merely needs some (or several) runs under the quilting foot on my machine! Having recently given to my granddaughter her Grandmother's Flower Garden EPP quilt , I am feeling very.... Pleased is one way to describe it, victorious is another, LOL! Also grateful, humbled too. The Mandolin quilt is for a dear family member who lost her home in the Camp Fire almost four years ago. Somewhat scrappy in nature, it also reflects her love for the Seattle Seahawks, hehehe. And especially it attempts to express my feelings toward her and all that she lost; her home, possessions, keepsakes. Nothing can bring back what she and so many others have endu...

Small blocks turning into short rows! November is quickly approaching, but I'm not rushing to get a novel prepped; we've had some beautifully sunny afternoons and I take my notebook outside, sit in the sun, then write what comes from my head and heart about various characters. I'll probably need to organize a timeline of past events; at times I am a bit OCD about that kind of plotting, but the main cast is about done, just need to ramble about the supporting characters, of which there are several, ahem. However I'm not scrambling (yet), preferring to soak up the warmth that disappeared yesterday and doesn't seem likely today either. Instead I'll work on a Honeycomb Star quilt that is coming together more quickly than I thought it would. But this project has been in the works since August, when I first cut the hexagons, so it too is not in a hurry. I did accomplish more with it yesterday than I had planned, which is sometimes the case when I dither; inevitably mo...

Today's beautiful view.   The last two mornings have been full of bright, clear skies, a wonderful change to our recent grey horizons. Shocking to see how far south the sunrise has moved along the treeline; mid October is here in force, but I appreciate the seasons. And with NANOWRIMO just a couple of weeks away my writing mojo is emerging, or I think it is. Character sketches are coming together in a rambly sort of manner, although a timeline of familial events will probably be necessary. But it feels good to spin those kinds of details, dramatic elements as necessary as the blue sky greeting me today. Years ago autumn used to mean big-time writing prep, as well as anticipating precipitation. Rain might indeed arrive this weekend, but I'm waiting a fortnight before diving into a new story. It's celebratory in nature, both the rain and the words, continued growth for me as a novelist as well as heralding what is so badly needed here in California. I recall plenty of soggy ...

Plotting out an EPP corner now, piecing together story ideas later. Over four years ago I began a Mandolin Quilt , a Jodi Godfrey pattern. It wasn't the kind of quilt that needed to be immediately finished, which was GREAT in that instead it became the kind of quilt requiring a slow simmer, tucked away safely until time for it to emerge. Which is NOW, lol, as it is spread out over my work table. I'm down to carefully basting the corner blocks so when I take out papers and cut threads the seam allowances aren't sewn to the adjoining shapes, ahem. (Been there, ripped out those errant stitches....) I do one corner at a time, then sew the block as per my usual evening hand-stitching. Playoff baseball and the last pre-season Warriors basketball game will be the soundtrack for tonight as perhaps by the end of this month another EPP quilt is completed. Not that I'll be bored when it's done; other paper piecing projects are waiting, in addition to a Honeycomb Stars Quilt ,...

Four of many that were mailed off yesterday; they shrunk to a good size and I hope bring copious smiles to their new owners. No rain in sight here, although a somewhat clear-ish morning has dawned. Autumn is fully upon us, afternoon sunshine at a slant, leaves falling from our black walnut tree, a few nuts on the ground too. I've spent the last couple of days mainly at my sewing machine, although yesterday afternoon demanded I take coasters outside for string cutting. I'll finish up five today, but over two dozen were mailed off to my eldest daughter yesterday; her neighbors relish the upcoming holiday and how better to use up scraps and warm many hearts in the process. What I complete today are solely for personal use; one can never have too many coasters, lol. My daughter took one home, an EPP experiment that she adored. Those I keep will go alongside my supply of autumn placemats, then I'll stash them away after Thanksgiving when my motherlode of Christmas linens are hau...

Releasing a new book is more than dotting i's and crossing t's . It's the culmination of craft and tech blended into twenty-first century art; writing novels will hopefully remain a timeless manner of expression now enhanced by an author's ability to self-publish. Gracious Mysteries , set in an unnamed world in what could be deemed several decades ago, continues the tale of one woman's search for her beloved and the experiences of others caught in a devastating plague. Yet a long-fought war has tempered these characters, and now finding themselves in a relatively safe place, Brynn Dahl and her family can finally set roots on a vast ranch, although not everyone initially joins them; Brynn's eldest daughter Ronan takes a different path, attempting to find peace after years of abuse. Love emerges between Polly and Mo, as well as Ava and Seti. And for Timral and Nasri, budding affection is threatened when Nasri intervenes as one man attempts to cause harm. A novel ...

  Tomorrow is already today for some on this planet; on the tenth of October my next book goes live, WOO HOO! Yet for some nations it is the tenth, so here's a brief post about Gracious Mysteries , with a small personal notation of how odd this life can be. In the second novel of my That Which Can Be Remembered series, the whereabouts of one man become clear to his family while to those who have known Strivek well, a new background must be accommodated, which is especially hard for Yasbek Timral, who is greatly disturbed by considering her Yunka welder had married a Vodali. Overcoming biases is one theme of this story; another is accepting the Vodali term of ohmah polise , which translates as being grateful for the unknown. As Vodali elder Da Miri says, sometimes knowledge is a dangerous gift. Love abounds within this novel, as do unremitting personal strength and reliance on faith, of which I am clinging to in my own day-to-day; a much beloved family member is battling lymphoma a...

Granddaughters designing on the quilt wall.   Ah, what a glorious week it was; family departed this morning but not before one more round of adventures that sent the granddaughters home in dry socks from my supply stash. We took a walk to the sediment trap, where my daughter did her part in clearing out the small spot in a stream. Shoes were soaked just reaching the creek, so my son-in-law carried his girls, ages seven and four and a half, to the car. We won't see them again for a few months, but awesome memories will sustain us all until again we can be together. A Halloween quilt and coasters were warmly welcomed, as was a sunny afternoon yesterday after several days of gray skies. Distinctly I noticed how the sun's slant now casts an autumnal mood over the landscape; we are well into a new season and are all grateful for it despite a dearth of precipitation. Hopefully rain will fall soon, though none is in the ten-day forecast. Yet I am pleased for the altered season, even i...

For the eldest grandgirl; attaching one side of the binding, which was then sewn on via my machine. Family is heading our way for the week, so best I write a post now, little time to do so once they arrive. The pattern for the coaster pictured above is courtesy of Jodi Godfrey , from her Cornflower Quilt in the marvelous book The Seedling Quilts . Over the summer when I visited my eldest daughter and family, I took along the little paper pieces, then asked my granddaughters to choose fabrics so I could make them each a block. Those blocks were sewn together once I got home, then floated around the sewing hoo haa that needs to be cleared before family arrives today, ahem. Anyways, I completed these coasters, they are now in the dryer. Very pleased for how they turned out and I hope the grandgirls enjoy using them both here for tea parties and when they again reach home. A finished mug rug for my youngest granddaughter; we're planning on some tea parties this week and they can break...