Sunny but Cold January Morning

It is a very cold but sunny Sunday morning in January. I know it has been and is much colder in other parts of the country but it is cold enough for my liking here on the Walton Lake Road.I like winter, I love my wood heat and my cozy home but it is very work intensive and time consuming to keep that wood burning animal fed and on the weekends my husband is usually here to take that job from me. This weekend he is not so I did not wake to my usual warm house but am now attempting to get it to the desired temperature. But at least as I mentioned the sun is streaming in and as I sit my office this morning I can feel it's heat on my back. So far January has been a productive month. I am about four chapters in to my latest novel and am enjoying being back in 1917 on an island in the St Lawrence River,getting to know my characters and seeing the story unfold.I am waiting for my editor to send back the second round of Ten Thousand Truths and can't wait to begin the next stage,choose a cover and see it head to the printer .Hopefully we will launch it in May or June.I sent my third book to my publisher this week for her to read. I have two school visits booked in February. I got the cheque for my November visits this week and I like the feeling of getting paid as an author for doing what I did as a teacher for 29 years.A 4/5 clss at Macdonald Consolidated started reading The Year Mrs. Montague Cried this week and started a blog to record their responses . They invited me to participate and I am enjoying reading their writing.It is hard for me though not to comment on their conventions. "Just write" Mrs. M. says but Mrs. White says check your spelling and punctuation.I will now leave my sunny office and do a bit of necesary housekeeping,(laundry, bathrooms and such) and I then I will return to my office to write for the afternoon,enjoying the cold January day in a place that is exactly where I want to be.

Looking Ahead to 2012

Again my daughter has alerted me to the fact that I have not written on my blog since November. I've been busy is my main reason and not being of the blogger generation is another. I know that there are woman my age actively blogging but for me it hasn't quite taken off as one of my daily chores. Oh well I will attempt to improve that.I had the pleasure of going to Alberta for 12 days in December and kept my grandaughter Emma while her mom and dad and baby sister went to Maui for a friend's wedding. Coming home on the 14th I then proceeded to get the house ready for another Christmas. I have enjoyed family and friends and a quiet but busy two weeks with Burton home from work. I am so looking forward to Monday and my return to my writing routine. I have finished the second round of editing for my second book and I am excited to see it come together for a spring release. Happy New Year everyone !

Second School Visit

I had a great school visit with Grade 6,7 & 8 students today at Rothesay Park Middle School . What a wonderful group of kids! Everyone was very attentive and responsive showing lots of insight and compassion.They asked excellent questions and I enjoyed the sessions very much. I felt very priviledged to go in to their classrooms as a visiting author and get such a warm welcome. Thanks to the staff and students of RPS.

First Official School Visit

On Thursday I made my first school visit through the WISP in New Brunswick. I visited my old school Macdonald Consolidated where I went in Grade seven, eight and nine. It is the school where I met the boy that would become my husband and wrote Sue Loves Burton on a beam in the grade nine room. Years later I taught in that same room the beam having since been covered with many layers of paint. I taught there for twenty three years after teaching at Rothesay Elementary for six years. On Thursday I returned as a published author and was able to tell the kids that not only can you be anything you dream of being but you can dream more than one thing . As a young girl I had dreamed of being three things; a mother, a teacher and a writer. I stood there proudly claiming to have acheived all three things.I enjoyed the visit very much. One class had read my book as a class novel and they had so much to offer and such good questions to ask. The other classes each had a few kids that had read the book and they all offered so much insight and interest in the book and the overall process. I conducted a writing workshop for 16 kids in the afternoon and was so impressed with their creativity and excitement. I found the experience so rewarding, very emotional and exhausting. It made me miss a bit about being in the classroom but made me even more thankful for the chance I have been given to pursue my next career.

My new Grandbaby

I just realized that I wrote on September 27th while I was waiting for my new grandchild to be born but have not written again to tell the news. Paige Louisa was born on October 4th. She is a beautiful little girl and Emma is thrilledto be a big sister. I had to leave two days after she was born and I look forward to seeing her again in December. I wish my granddaughters (and Meg and Cody)did not live so far away.

Book Signing at Fredericton Chapters

It is a beautiful crisp cold November day and I just returned home after a nice drive to Fredericton with my friend Kathy. Again my daughter has reminded me that I do not post enough. Oh well! I had a signing at the Chapters in Fredericton this afternoon and enjoyed it very much. The first person I saw was Amy, Zac's good friend, her husband and her two adorable children. She and her husband are expecting again and this time , twins! She is a special girl and was very special to our family when Zac died. My little eight year boy ( who will turn 21 tomorrow) adored her and clung to her in those days ,laying his head on her lap to get through the strangeness of a funeral for his big brother.She will always hold a special place in my heart and I am so pleased to see her so happy.I also saw a former principal of mine and was pleased to share my book with her. I had the pleasure of talking to some other very nice, supportive people. The mananger and other staff at Chapters were very welcoming and I appreicaited the opportunity to visit their store.

Cross Canada Trip

My friend Kathy and I headed out on Sept 6th for a cross Canada driving trip. We drove as far as Jasper, Alberta then took the train to Vancouver and then flew to Whitehorse. 21 days of touring. We had lots of laughs, saw lots of beautiful scenery, met lots of interesting people and ate lots of good food. I left a copy of The Year Mrs. Montague Cried in three libraries, gave away a few copies and even sold a couple. I am now at my daughter's waiting for my new grandbaby to arrive. I will be home by Thanksgiving and am anxious to begin the work on the editing and revising of my next book due to come out in the spring. Can't wait for those crisp fall days to be in my writing room between harvesting chores, putting in the winter's wood and cooking fall meals for friends and family. Being away has just made my love of home that much stronger. I can't wait to enjoy my Walton Lake home.My only regret is that by the time I get home the temperature will probably not be warm enough to tempt me in to taking another lake swim in 2011. I will have to wait for the warm weather to arrive next year. I did have a beautiful swim in the Georgian Bay and one in a cove on Manitoulin Island.Now I wait patiently to hold my new grandbaby and to see the look of wonder as Emma meets her new brother or sister. I will keep you posted.