Category: Around the House

Around the House, Books, Everywhere But Home, Family Time, My Own Personal Weirdness, My Writing, Parenting, The Past Comes Back to Haunt Me, What I Love

September 2025 Stats

In September, I wrote 4097 words. It’s still a busy month, even if all of your kids are out of high school. Yeah.

Of those words,

  • 346 were for this blog (2 short posts),
  • 0 were for my journal,
  • 2024 were for handouts, scripts, and slides for lessons (one for the Open Door Writing Group),
  • 448 were on various social media accounts (which seems low, I know, but I’ve been trying to cut back on that and spend more time reading lately),
  • 1142 were poetry (3 short poems and 2 long),
  • and 137 were in short fiction (1 piece of flash fiction).

There were 19 days that I didn’t write anything. I spent a lot of the month either moving my eldest child to his new apartment or I was editing for Caro’s Quest. One of the books I beta read for came out this month, so I’m feeling that weird sense of accomplishment about that (you know, in that way where you walked alongside a friend going through something that you got to help with, so it’s like it’s partly yours just a little bit?). Meanwhile, I personally didn’t get any poems or short stories submitted anywhere.


As for reading, I read parts of:

  • The Comfort Book by Matthew Haig (audiobook; self-help)
  • The Pale Horse by Agatha Christie (e-book; mystery)
  • Let Loose the Dogs by Maureen Jennings (e-book; historical mystery)
  • …and I finished reading:
    Nothing Romantic by Kennedy Hope (e-book; LGBTQ+ romance)
  • System Collapse by Martha Wells (e-book; science fiction)
  • Except the Dying by Maureen Jennings (e-book; historical mystery)
  • Poor Tom is Dead by Maureen Jennings (e-book; historical mystery)
  • Conversations in the Garden* by Chelsee BreAnn (manuscript; poetry )

So I have finished 48 books so far this year (and read parts of another 16, mostly for research, but also a couple of things I’ve had to mark DNF.).

*The title of this book has changed since it was in beta. It’s permanent title is Honeysuckle Memories.

Around the House, Books, health, My Own Personal Weirdness, My Writing, Organizing, The Past Comes Back to Haunt Me, What I Love, Writing

August 2025 Stats

In August, I wrote only 3811 words. I was sick the first half of the month and then moving kids from house to house and editing the second half (so technically I lost a bunch of words off my novel, but we’re not counting those as a negative number of words those days). Of those words,

  • 206 were for this blog (2 short posts),
  • 0 were for my journal (which I cannot find my paper journal, so that might not be true),
  • 1612 were for handouts, scripts, and slides for lessons (one for the Open Door Writing Group),
  • 1042 were on various social media accounts,
  • 217 were poetry (2 poems),
  • and 734 were in short stories (4 pieces of flash fiction).

There were 17 days that I didn’t write anything. Mostly I spent the month either ill (the flu, bronchitis, and a sinus infection, oh my!), moving one kid over a room in the house he’s in so another of my children could move into his old room (and helping that second child as well – child #2 in this scenario was far easier to move) or trying to edit my novel Caro’s Quest down to a reasonable number of words so I can turn it into the editor (today, I hope!). Also, life was still too chaotic, so I didn’t get any poems or short stories submitted anywhere.

As for reading, once again, I didn’t leave any books unread, but I finished reading a ridiculous number of short e-books, all by Martha Wells (the first published author that ever gave me advice – she worked in IT at Ocean Drilling Program at the same time I was a student worker in the publishing department – she was so nice about it when my boss sat me down at her table at lunch one day):

  • All Systems Red
  • Compulsory
  • Artificial Conditions
  • Rogue Protocol
  • Obsolescence
  • Exit Strategy
  • Home
  • Fugitive Telemetry
  • Rapport
  • Network Effect

That brings me up to 42 books finished this year and 13 partially read (that number went down because I finished two partially read books). 🙂

Around the House, Books, I Am Traveling, My Own Personal Weirdness, My Writing, Organizing, The Past Comes Back to Haunt Me, What I Love

July 2025 Stats

In July, I wrote 6569 words, which doesn’t feel like a lot. I did, however, take two of my kids on their first international traveling adventure, so there was a lot of kerfluffle for that, and I also took a few days off to go to the Poetry of Society of Texas Annual Conference.

Of those words,

  • 251 were for this blog (2 short posts),
  • 478 were for my journal (which I may update later with numbers from my paper journal, which I cannot find today,
  • 1276 were for handouts, scripts, and slides for lessons (one for the Open Door Writing Group),
  • 2630 were on various social media accounts,
  • 1346 were poetry (10 poems),
  • and 588 were in short stories (3 pieces of flash fiction).

There were only 8 days that I didn’t write anything, despite being out of town a lot this month. I just wrote a lot while I was traveling. There’s something about getting out of your regular every day patterns that gets the writing juices flowing. I wrote a lot in my paper journal, but I didn’t count any of those words because I cannot find it at the moment. Who knows where it is!

I didn’t get any poems or short stories submitted anywhere. I just wasn’t that kind of organized.

As for reading, I didn’t read anything that I didn’t finish this month, mostly because I read very little

…and I finished reading:

  • Fire At the Exhibition by T. E. Kinsey (audiobook; mystery)
  • Burnout by Emily Nagoski (audiobook; non-fiction – see, I’m dealing with my burnout by reading up on it)
  • Wherever You Find Yourself by Tasha Gaines(manuscript; Christian fiction romance, I believe)
Around the House, Books, My Own Personal Weirdness, My Writing, Organizing, The Past Comes Back to Haunt Me, Writing

June 2025 Writing Stats

In June, I wrote 6604 words, which wasn’t that great, but I’m pretty sure I was burnt out most of the month after all the graduation nonsense. Of those words,

  • 320 were for this blog (2 short posts),
  • 1258 were for my journal,
  • 2854 were for handouts, scripts, and slides for lessons (one for East Texas Writers Guild and one for the Open Door Writing Group and one for the Tyler Public Library’s Try It Tuesday Class),
  • 1033 were on various social media accounts,
  • 35 were poetry (1 measly poem after last month’s record *sigh*),
  • and 1104 were in short stories (5 pieces of flash fiction).

There were only 8 days that I didn’t write anything, so it seems like my count should be higher for all that. I don’t know – I guess my brain was only thinking in super short form this month.

As for reading, I read parts of:

  • A Fire at the Exhibition by T. E. Kinsey (audiobook; mystery)

…and I finished reading:

  • Jack Glass by Adam Roberts (hardcover; science fiction – do NOT recommend unless you like unexpectedly gory books)
  • The Ghost of Marlowe House by Bobbi Holmes (audiobook; paranormal mystery)

So I have finished 29 books so far this year (and read parts of another 14, mostly for research, but also a couple of things I’ve had to mark DNF.).

Around the House, Books, My Own Personal Weirdness, My Writing, Organizing, The Past Comes Back to Haunt Me, What I Love

May 2025 Writing Stats

In May, I wrote 7505 words, which was all right, given how few writing days existed due to lots and lots of things to attend for my graduating senior. Of those words,

  • 376 were for this blog (2 short posts),
  • 380 were for my journal,
  • 2778 were for handouts, scripts, and slides for lessons (one for East Texas Writers Guild and one for the Open Door Writing Group and one for the Tyler Public Library’s Try It Tuesday Class),
  • 1282 were on various social media accounts,
  • 2174 were poetry (15 poems, a lifetime record most probably),
  • and 515 were in short stories (3 pieces of flash fiction).

There were 11 days that I didn’t write anything, but this month included 3 awards ceremonies, a band banquet, a pinning ceremony, our annual family BBQ, Mother’s Day, teaching a crochet class at the library, a graduation party, and the graduation itself.

I also haven’t heard back from any of the submissions I’ve sent out lately, so I’m assuming they didn’t want those pieces. I haven’t had a chance to prepare any others to send out this month.

As for reading, I read parts of:

  • The Carrying by Ada Limon (e-book; poetry)
  • Anti-Slavery Poems by John Greenleaf Whittier (e-book; poetry)
  • Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer (audiobook; non-fiction)
  • The Poet’s Cookbook: Details for over 50 Forms, Types of Meter, Structure, Rhyme, and Over 100 Writing Exercises by Dan Gilbert (e-book; non-fiction)
  • Poetry’s Data: Digital Humanities and the History of Prodosy by Meredith Martin (e-book; non-fiction)

…and I finished reading:

  • An Act of Foul Play by T.E. Kinsey (e-book; mystery)
  • The Ghost of Marlow House by Bobbi Holmes (audiobook; paranormal mystery)

So I have finished 27 books so far this year (and read parts of another 15, mostly for research, but also a couple of things I’ve had to mark DNF.).

Around the House, Books, health, My Own Personal Weirdness, My Writing, Organizing, What I Love

April 2025 Writing Stats

In April, I wrote 5629 words, which was pretty decent, given that I was really very sick the first 2/3 of the month. Of those words,

  • 432 were for this blog (2 short posts),
  • 28 were for my journal,
  • 3528 were for handouts, scripts, and slides for lessons (one for the Open Door Writing Group and one for the Tyler Public Library’s Try It Tuesday Class),
  • 1342 were on various social media accounts,
  • 47 were poetry (1 poem),
  • and 0 were in short stories (0 pieces of flash fiction).

There were 18 days that I didn’t write anything, but this month included so much illness and then also Easter, spring Holy Days, my son’s birthday, and my birthday. I also haven’t heard back from any of the submissions I’ve sent out lately, but I should hear back any time now.

As for reading, I read parts of:

  • Sober on a Drunk Planet: Giving Up Alcohol by Sean Alexander (e-book; non-fiction)
  • The Magic Words: Simple Poetry Prompts that Unlock the Creativity in Everyone by Joseph Fansano (e-book; non-fiction)
  • Like Literally Dude: Arguing for the Good in Bad English by Valerie Fridland (hardcover; non-fiction)
  • How to Read Poetry Like a Professor: A Quippy Guide to Sonorous Verse by Thomas C. Foster (e-book; non-fiction)
  • Word by Word: The Secret Life of Dictionaries by Kory Stamper (hardcover; non-fiction)
  • The Carrying: Poems by Ada Limon (e-book; poetry)
  • Anti-Slavery Poems, Volume 1 by John Greenleaf Whittier (e-book; poetry)
  • Babel: Around the World in Twenty Languages by Gaston Dorren (hardcover; non-fiction)

…and I finished reading:

  • The Mystery at Dunvegan Castle by T.L. Huchu (e-book; fantasy)
  • Legacy of Arniston House by T. L. Huchu (e-book; fantasy)
  • Dearly by Margaret Atwood (hardcover AND e-book; poetry)
  • Wizard of Most Wicked Ways by Charlie Holmberg (audiobook; fantasy)
  • The Right to Write by Julia Cameron (re-read trade paperback; non-fiction)
  • Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg (re-read trade paperback; non-fiction)
  • Knit-Fix: Problem Solving for Knitters by Lisa Karths (hardcover; non-fiction)
  • Japanese Knitting Stitches by Yoko Hatta (oversized paperback; non-fiction)
  • Sweet Romance by Carrie Cox (beta read it twice – romance)

So I have finished 26 books so far this year (and read parts of another 12, mostly for research, but also a couple of things I’ve had to mark DNF.).

Around the House, Books, Lifelong learning, My Own Personal Weirdness, My Writing, Organizing, poetry, Short Stories, Speaking, Writing

Happy 2025!

I know, I know…you almost forgot I worked here. I have the usual excuses, all tied up with string, sitting under a cat somewhere. Last year was a doozy of a year, filled with all manner of distractions, procrastinations, and other sundry explosions of my life.

I’ve spent the last couple of days thinking about what my writing goals are for this year. One is to make my usual chart of what all I wrote last year, but that isn’t done yet because the transcribing isn’t done. So no numbers today. Maybe tomorrow. After I’ve written, of course.

I’m on the schedule with an editor for September, so my big goal is to finish the latest draft of my big epic fantasy novel and polish it up. This is the novel y’all have heard me refer to as Caro’s Quest in the past. I still need a better name for it, but that will come. 🙂

Smaller goals include finding homes for my poetry and short stories, finishing putting together my first poetry anthology, finishing my research on the best time to release it, and then publishing that anthology. I’m aiming for sending off at least one poem and one short story a week. We’ll see if that’s a manageable goal as time goes on and reassess after the first quarter is over.

I’m no longer on the board for the East Texas Writing Guild, nor my UU church board. Those were positive decisions for me, based on me needing more time to write. I’m continuing on as a moderator for the Open Door Writing Group at the Tyler Public Library for the foreseeable future, which means writing and giving a presentation for a monthly lesson about writing.

That’s about it, y’all. It’s my first day back at the writing desk. I’m planning on starting off all my weekdays from here on out at my writing desk, working on stories or poetry for the first half of every day before moving on to social media, lesson writing, and marketing in the afternoons.

Yay 2025! I hope this year will be so much better than the last. 🙂

Around the House, Everywhere But Home, health, My Own Personal Weirdness, Parenting, What I Love

A New Year of Life and New Adventures

This month’s word count was even worse – only 5,562 words overall, nearly all of it journaling projects I was working on as homework from therapy. My Wednesday writing group started an offshoot nighttime group this month and I’m one half of the team leading it. So far we haven’t had quite the turnout we hoped for. So many people said they needed an evening group, but far fewer are showing up. ODWG also started work on an idea for an anthology, which should be fun. I prepared and taught one lesson on “How to Write For an Anthology” and one on “Character Reactions” for both the day and the night group. I wrote a few things about frogs for the anthology.

In real life, I got strep throat on top of all my other illnesses. My city was in the path of totality for the solar eclipse, so I got to enjoy that from my front yard. I lost electricity due to another storm for a couple of days. A tree fell in my kids’ yard, taking out nearly all of the patio furniture. My kids beloved band director unexpectedly resigned midyear and we have no idea what’s going on with that. My youngest kid bought another car, this time from his brother’s ex-girfriend, and sold us his old one.  It was also my birthday month, so I went out with the kids on my birthday, took my husband to the airport for a work trip, then had lunch and a fun afternoon with my BFF in DFW that day, then had a dinner with other friends later in the week.

Around the House, Books, Everywhere But Home, health, Lifelong learning, My Own Personal Weirdness, poetry, Speaking, The Past Comes Back to Haunt Me, What I Love, Writing

A totally wild month

This month, I managed 17,967, but 2/3 of it was lessons for the ODWG. I also tried to train a new membership chair for one of my local writing groups.

I wrote one really long poem about teeth. No, really. It started off about teeth and then it got weird. I also wrote a poem about grief that involved Pokemon. You know you want to read that one. (There were several other poems this month as well, but those were my favorites).

I also was the featured speaker of the month for my local writers guild. I spoke on “How to Get Back on Track After Life’s Disasters.”

In real life, I had to figure out how to do my local church’s annual certification because our board president’s life exploded that week. I attended the first of hopefully many delightful meetings of a local yarn group. I loom-knitted one sock and then tried to figure out how to regular knit it’s partner after my sock loom broke. I started a crocheted snowflake blanket.

I also spoke at two other groups, using the “How to Get Back on Track…” lesson as a starting point. Which was only funny because disasters kept making it so I almost didn’t get to speak at either group (first an epic hail storm and then a mass internet outage).

I also read The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammet.

Around the House, Books, Crafts, Everywhere But Home, Family Time, Lifelong learning, My Writing, Organizing, poetry, The Past Comes Back to Haunt Me, What I Love, Writing

January stats

This month, I eked out 8,749 words, but a lot of it was poetry, so when I think about it that way, that’s a LOT.

I prepared and presented two lessons at ODWG. I also worked some more on the Lake House Mystery and made a whole new system for tracking my poetry and short story submissions.

I also rearranged my entire writing studio again because it turned out that one of my bookshelves could not stand up without the support of the two on either side and books were everywhere.

In real life, one of my kids had an MRI for migraines and also sliced open his foot badly, all in one month. My dad visited for a long while. I started crocheting the Pineapple Peacock shawl, took it apart and restarted it twice more, then finally gave up. Knitted a scarf for my spouse instead.

We had a polar vortex hit and had several “ice days” I started reading “Barbara and Susan Talk About Empty Nests” once a week as a kind of devotional for therapy homework. I also read “Shadow and Bone” and “Lessons in Chemistry”.