The Month in Review...January

Another month has bitten the dust. Or, in my case, the snowbank. 

Here is a brief rundown of my month. Please share your highlights, as well. I'd love to hear what you've been up to.

• Celebrated my son's 17th birthday and cried. Not because he's growing up but because I'm growing old. Wah...
• Sold an article to LIVE, a Gospel Publishing Sunday School take-home paper.
• Submitted five articles/short stories...one rejected. Jury's still out on the other four.
• Submitted another novella collection proposal to Barbour Publishing for consideration. Our group consists of Loree Lough, Teresa Slack, and Deborah Dee Harper. Keeping our fingers and toes crossed for a contract.
• Decided to do away with my schedule for blogging. Much better for me!
• Won a copy of I won a copy of Jeff Herman's 2011 Guide to Book Publishers, Editors and Literary Agents through a Gotham's Writers contest I entered a while back. Another win this month: The Green Hornet movie tickets.
• Was  "hired" as a volunteer writer for our church's 2011 Christmas production. I am so excited to be a part of this. It's going to be awesome!

That's about it. Looking forward to a fabulous February!

What about you? Did you have some "hot" things going on in spite of the freezing cold temps?

The Month in Review...November

November...what a whirlwind of a month! Seriously, I have no idea where the days went. Here is my month in review:

• Took an overnight trip to Boyne Mountain's Avalanche Bay Water Park with the kids and my sister-in-law's family.  Had a splashing good time! 

• My 16-year-old son came down with mono the next week. Ugh. Usually the healthiest one of the bunch, he was down for the count for an entire week. And now, as I type this (on November 30th), he's on the couch with the stomach flu. Needless to say, November will not be Zach's favorite month of 2010.  

• Went with my mom on our annual 3-day Christmas shopping event. I say "event" because that's really what it is! We power shop til we drop. This is one of the highlights of my year. It's a great kick-off to the holiday season and a wonderful bonding time with Mom. 

• Hosted Thanksgiving for 13. Ate too many mashed potatoes and too much pie but loved having a house full of my favorite people (and yes, most of them were even family!) 

• Writing-wise, this wasn't my most eventful month, but I did manage to review two books for FaithfulReader.com. If you're looking for a good fiction read, check out my review of Reinventing Rachel by Alison Strobel. For those who enjoy non-fiction (and are Sandi Patty fans), read my review of Sandi's book, The Edge of the Divine. Both are highly recommended! 

• I am currently working on a collaborative project with three other authors. Can't say too much about it right now but I'm excited and hope something good comes out of it. If you have a second, say a prayer! And if you don't have a second to say a prayer, then you're just too busy. 

• Posted my first entry on The Barn Door. If you feel so inclined, I'd love for you to check it out: Ch-ch-ch-Changes 

• Oh - and I can't forget to mention that I held my annual Faithful Followers giveaway, which is still going on. If you "follow" my blog and love gift cards, be sure to enter. The winner walks away with a $15 gift card of their choice (well, the choice between 5 different cards). There are only two more days to enter, so get moving!

So that's about it for me. Like I said, nothing too thrilling, but that's ok. What did your November look like?

The Month in Review... October

No big news to report this month. At least, not writing related. OK, not even personally. My month was extremely busy but extremely uneventful. Although, my daughter's volleyball games were pretty exciting (and they ended the season 9-2! Woot!)

In October, my agent submitted my proposal for Mind over Madi to three new publishers, one of which (or would that be whom) promptly rejected it. Keeping all fingers and toes crossed for good news from one of the other two.

Also received a rejection on a batch of greeting cards I submitted to DaySpring. Bummer.

I did receive an email from Mature Living magazine, letting me know that my short story will be contracted within the next couple months. Yay!

My main goal for October was to pound out some major wordage in a novel I'm currently working on. The first two weeks were great - I added a few thousand words. Then, two weeks ago, I threw my back out while doing a "jumping photo" with my family during a professional photo session. Yes, I know it sounds hilarious, but I'm not laughing. In fact, I've been crying quite a bit lately.

Hey, it hurts!

Anyway, sitting for any length of time has been nearly impossible and my word count is paying the price. I have a doctor's appointment on Monday, so at least I'll know if I do, in fact, have a slipped disc, which all the symptoms painfully point to.

Sigh...really, who has time for pain? UGH.

Once I get a handle on the back thing, I'm hoping to really start pumping out those words again.

What about you? Any accomplishments, achievements, successes (either minor or major), met goals, or even disappointments last month? Do share! I'd love to celebrate (or commiserate) with you!

The Month in Review... September

I can hardly believe it's been a month since I posted the last Month in Review. With the start of school and my kids sporting events, it's been a whir of activity. But despite all of the personal stuff, there have been a few writing related highlights, as well. So, in a nutshell (pardon the cliche'), here is my September in review:

• I reached 200 followers! This was celebrated with a nice book giveaway (congrats to KarenK!). Since then, I have gained 16 more followers, which is a huge blessing (and a nice thing to mention in the marketing section of my book proposals.)

• The ACFW Conference went on without me (sniff). I'll admit, there was a part of me that thought maybe they would delay it until I could actually attend. But, sigh...it didn't happen. Instead, thousands of authors and editors and agents got together at the Hyatt Regency in Indianapolis and laughed, ate, fellowshipped, and "talked shop" while I sat home in my jammies, crying into my ice cream bowl. I hated missing out, but have been loving all of the recaps and photos. And, as they say, there's always next year...

• I did NOT win my category in the Genesis contest. Disappointed? A little. But it's all good. Finaling was seriously a huge honor.

• The 12 BOOKS OF CHRISTMAS GIVEAWAY kicked off! Yes, Christmas is still almost three months away, but who can resist a great giveaway? Especially one featuring Christmas books! The first giveaway ends tonight at midnight. If you missed it, click on over and enter: A WOODLAND CHRISTMAS GIVEAWAY. Then check back every Monday for the next 11 weeks for more chances to win and to meet some amazing authors!

• I was interviewed by Amy Tate, with Write2Ignite.com and got to talk about my writing, my novel, and other fun stuff. If you get a chance, I'd love for you to check it out: WRITE2IGNITE INTERVIEW

• I officially became a book reviewer for FaithfulReader.com. Haven't blogged about this yet, but I just submitted my first review earlier this week. Once it's posted, I'll be sure to leave the link (it's a good one!)

So tell me. What were the highlights of your September?

August Roundup 2010

I'm kicking myself. On Friday, I posted "The Week in Review" but now that August has ended (can you believe it?) I'm thinking it would be kind of fun to post a monthly "Month in Review" at the end of each month, where we can share our monthly accomplishments, miscellaneous cool stuff we did during the previous month, and even our goals for the next month.

So, bear with me as I post a general review of last month. I'd love to hear all the fun things and successes you had, too, so please join me in celebrating August!

• Participated in The 99 - a reality walk-through theater, in which thousands gave their hearts to Christ. It was an amazing experience and if The 99 ever comes to your city, I strongly encourage you to get involved.

• Hosted a Silpada jewelry party and got some really cool stuff!

• Attended the FaithWriters conference and faced (and conquered) my biggest fear of public speaking by teaching two workshops. Due to the power of prayer, it went great!

• Was an extra in Touchback, a film starring Kurt Russell. I, along with nine kids ages 12-16, sat in the football stands from 9pm until 6am, cheering for the "Coldwater Bears." Look for me among hundreds of fans when the movie releases in 2011!

• Celebrated 22 years of marriage! My husband and I got away for a nice (and much needed) weekend.

• Received 1 proposal rejection for Mind over Madi.

• Had to cancel my ACFW conference. Still crying over this.... :-(
  

• Submitted several articles for possible publication.

• August was the first full month of my new blog, Great Christian Book Giveaways. If you're looking for opportunities for free books, check it out!

As for GOALS, my main objective is to really start pumping out the words in my manuscript. As you read in Monday's post, I've been a total slacker this summer and it's time to get back to it. I'm shooting for 10,000 words this month, which is 2,500 per week. Looking for multiple accountability partners, please!

I also intend on soaking up everything I missed at the ACFW conference. Can't wait to read recaps of classes, testimonies of God-anointed appointments, and cheer with my fellow writers when they receive agent and editor requests and contracts!

AND, I am really hoping that September is the month I hit 200 blog followers. Only 2 more to go...

Oh - and I really need to start some sort of exercise routine. All of those summer cook-outs and trips to the ice cream stand really took a toll.

YOUR TURN! What were the highlights of your month?
What are your goals for September?