A day in the life of an aspiring author

Wake up – Almost always a good way to start the day, I find it invaluable in most situations.

Calm down the dogs - The minutes I took to dress without them have them excited to see me again.  Reminds me why I love dogs.

Feed the afore mentioned dogs.

Power on laptop.

Feed my goldfish in outside Aquaponics.

Return to computer and bravely click open email.  Remind self that no news equals no rejections.

Open work in progress.  Stare at what I wrote yesterday, grimace, and then rework it.

Receive excel worksheet from a very nice fellow writer who uses it to organize.  Enlist youngest son to help me work with it awhile.

Take a break and read online article about writers needing to build a social platform. 

Log onto twitter because article reminded me I need to build on my social platform.  My mind blanks when I try to think of what to say.  I’ve read tons of conflicting advice. 

I surf web for what to tweet.  Found Things for authors to tweet and 100 things to tweet. 

Hear my family trying not to disturb my ‘writing time’ and smile as I finally tweet then retweet cooler things others sent out. Remind myself I need to learn how to tweet a picture.

Log onto my Facebook author page, stare at it a moment then remember I know how to post photos on it and upload one.

Pat myself on back for building on my social platform.

Worried now I spent too much time on my platform and not enough actually writing, click off my browser and return to my story outline which needs work.

Time passes.  Brain starts to melt.  I save what I've created, get up, and interact with my family – what can I say they’re cute.

In the evening, the quiet night hours, that’s my favorite time to write which is when I wrote this post for my blog.

Now it’s time to return to my story...

Some interesting facts about Oregon settlers

Like Ben and Evie Rolfe in The Outlaw of Cedar Ridge (click the link to read and excerpt) people traveled to Oregon hoping in search of better conditions and/or opportunities, to escape from problems or wanted adventure. 

Pioneers often slept under their wagons because the wagons were full of their possessions.  

They cooked by campfire using iron pots and skillets, often they cooked only in the evening and ate cold leftovers for breakfast and lunch.  

They ate food that didn't spoil.  Beans and rice, dried meat, salted bacon, dried fruit, hardtack.  They took flour and sugar and sometimes baked bread or biscuits.  They drank coffee, tea and many families took along a milk cow for fresh milk and butter.  They hunted for fresh meat and traded with natives for fish and vegetables.

Traveling in wagons back then was bumpy.  The wagons had no springs.  The dirt roads were full of potholes and bumps, were muddy when it rained and dusty when it didn't.

My source and where to go if you'd like to learn more   

Oregon Trail Facts.

The Outlaw of Cedar Ridge ran through Salmon Idaho

According to the United States Department of Agriculture

"The Frank Church-River of No Return is a wilderness of steep, rugged mountains, deep canyons, and wild, whitewater rivers. The Salmon River Mountains, located south of the Main Salmon and west of the Middle Fork, are the most massive range, and dominate the Wilderness. North of the Main Salmon River are the Clearwater Mountains, east of the Middle Fork are the Bighorn Crags. The Salmon River Canyon is one of the deepest gorges in North America, deeper even than the famous Grand Canyon of the Colorado in Arizona.  

The lead forest for managing the coordination of the Wilderness is the Salmon-Challis National Forest, located in Salmon, Idaho. "

If you'd like to learn more about this beautiful area click the USDA link 

http://www.fs.usda.gov/attmain/scnf/specialplaces

I see the world as endless possibilities.

Throughout my life, frustrated and amused teachers, friends, and family members have and I’m certain, will comment on my tendency to daydream.  I often drifted off in class, still do on car trips, in the midst of various activities and, at times, even during conversations. 

Daydreams are a playground for my vivid imagination. Sitting in a classroom, listening to a boring teacher lecture in a monotone would send my mind off in search of entertainment.  What if we were really on a spaceship, maybe recovering from a world war or were refuges from another world and his monotone was a spell to protect us from... wait or maybe he’s using it to enchant us...  In an hour-long class, I could come up with some far out scenarios. 

While playing with what if answers helped me escape boredom countless times, I'm just as likely to drift off in the company of amazing and/or entertaining people.  They do or say something interesting, one spark and my mind builds a fire.  Everyone and everything in some fashion has or will be fodder for the flames. 

Inspiration for my stories is born from my boundless imagination because I see the world as endless possibilities. 

Log cabin facts

A flat stone was often placed in each corner to give them a foundation.

A man could build a small one all by himself in weeks, sooner if he had help.

Doors were usually built to face south to allow sunshine in during the day.

Scenes of Oregon