Well, I’ve delved into the Deep…got into the zone…THE MIDNIGHT ZONE this weekend. for those who don’t know, that’s the title of my latest WIP. The seedgerm of this idea hit me last year while I was preparing for the 2005 ACFW conference. But I never really got terribly serious about it–until this last month. It’s a rockin’ story, set in the Deep Ocean–a layer called the Bathypelagic or Midnight Zone. I didn’t get any writing done at all on Saturday, but on Sunday, I burrowed in and wrote from about 3pm until just before midnight (no pun intended)–and got a LOT done. I wrote over 12,000 words, bringing my word count to just below 75k, which was my goal …

Who besides me cringes when they hear, “It’s all in God’s timing.” Well, I used to cringe BIG time–cuz God’s timing felt light years away. And don’ t get me wrong–I still flinch when I hear that sometimes, but now…now…WOW! I am so excited to see what is going to come of all the little nuggets God has been planting in my life. He’s stripped me bare of superficial and external affirmations, both things I had made the mistake of allowing to carry me through, from one to the next. God has made it plain that ONLY HIM is where I need to get what I need for each day. And you know, I can honestly say I’ve grown LEAPS …

Promise of a Lifetime, by Kutless I have fallen to my knees As I sing a lullaby of pain I’m feeling broken in my melody As I sing to help the tears go away Then I remember the pledge you made to me I know You’re always there To hear my every prayer inside I’m clinging to the Promise of a lifetime I hear the words you say to never walk away from me and leave behind the promise of a lifetime Will you help me fall apart Pick me up, take me in your arms Find my way back from the storm and you show me how to grow Through the change I still remember the pledge you made …

I’ve just had the blessing of a lifetime. My first interview!! Gina Conroy interviewed me for her blog, http://portraitofawriter.blogspot.com Zip on over there and take a gander at what I rambled about. LOL Thank you, Gina, for honoring me on your blog. YOU are an incredible woman of God. I am so glad to have met you!

Okay, remember the *old* version of Willie Wonka? Where they’re in that gondola-looking boat run by the Oompa-Loompas?? All the psychedelic pinwheels and radical colors bursting in chaos? And there’s Willie singing that psycho song with his eyes bulging…well, that’s about how my life has felt lately. Then, I came here to check my blog (I got lost, it’d been so long since I’d visited! LOL). EEK! It’d been nearly three weeks. BAD RONIE! BAD RONIE! Okay, enough of that. I’m trying to be encouraging here. Bitterness. A simple word with two syllables and a whole lotta bad stuff wadded up inside. Things haven’t exactly been peachy for me lately, and I was getting a bit too real about it. …

I’m elated to announce my kewl friend (aka: LOUD ASIAN CHICK with a kick of Wasabi) got a three-book contract with Zondervan for her Asian Chick-lit. And I have to tell you — those stories are kick-butt hilarious!! Camy has a strong voice. Y’all are going to totally love this series. And since Camy is now rich and living high off the hog with her advance, I’m just letting y’all know you have to hit her up now for help on getting to the conference…oh, she has to buy her hubby his two-thousand dollar espresso machine first (oh–um, we hope to test that out this summer, BTW, Camy). After he has his new toy, I’m sure with her ultra-generous heart, …

CHRISTINA ANNE KEANE GRAYJuly 1, 1944 – March 12, 1996 It’s been ten years since I got the fateful call from my brother informing me that our mother, who was lying in a hospital in Dublin, Ireland, had passed on. She’d returned to ireland to spend the holidays with her family, but the day after Christmas was admitted to the terminal ward of St. Vincent’s Hospital. I spent three weeks with her when she first fell ill from non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. The staff *promised* to call if she got worse. They never called. I wasn’t there when my mom took her last breath. Part of me is glad, because my mother died what I considera violent death–vomitting blood since the cancer …

Okay, gotta admit. I’m not one that normally looks for signs, but this morning, when I read the title of my devotional, I nearly did a back flip–I said NEARLY (envision a balled fist jerked down in a firm *YES!*)–when the title of the devotional read: NOW IS THE ACCEPTABLE TIME. Yeah, I know. Fleece, like the stuff lining your pillows and jackets. But hey, two nights before I’d try to write on the sequel to my space opera, but I felt like God put a hand on my shoulder and said, WAIT. HUH??? Wait? SIGH. Fine. So, I waited. The next day I fasted. Then, this morning, I wake up with THAT as my devotional. Needless to say, I …

This morning I went to take one of my college tests. For me, the drive affords me a thirty-minute reprieve from the chaos of homeschoolnig four children. LOL So, Ishut off the radio and in between my yelling at Texas drivers who are either driving 20 mph or 80mph in the rain, I prayed. Naturally, during the course of this quasi-quiet time, I prayed about my writing. My proctor’s assistant had mentioned something again about God’s timing…why do they always say that?? Yes. I Know my getting published is in **HIS** timing…but I was wrestling with it. And then I got to wondering why we wrestle. So, I prayed and asked God to…and I cringed right about here…help me embrace …

I had a breakthrough this week. Well, at least I thought I did. LOL Monday we drove up to Plano (about 45 minutes north east of where we live now) to look at a rental home. It’s a pretty home–not GREAT, but would definitely meet our needs…and that’s the thing. We NEED to move. HAVE to move–our lease is up soon and the owner of this home wants to sell. SIGH. Well, I was none too happy about it because there are so many factors to consider…like our homeschool enrichment classes and me commuting twice a week, the boys’ speech therapy, Brian if he gets into the FBI (which means another move within the next year). Anyway, on the way …