Sunday, May 10, 2020

What We're Writing (or not) Week - Jenn McKinlay

First, Happy Mother's Day to all who mother two legged, four legged, finned or feathered! 

And, because this is also a day that can be difficult for many, here are hugs to those who wanted to be moms but life had other plans, those with complicated relationships with the ones who mom them, to those who've lost their moms, and to those whose active mom time was shorter than expected. Please know that you are beautiful, special, uniquely you, and you are loved.



Second, we have some winners!!!  From our coppersmithing author friend, Sara Dahmen, the winners are...


Celia Fowler for the book!
Susan Emerson for the copper straws!

You can email Sara at: housecopper at gmail dot com with your addresses and she'll send your prizes! Congratulations!

Jenn McKinlay: And now, what am I writing? Welp, I can start by saying it hasn't felt like writing. It's been more like driving alone in a white out blizzard in a Geo Metro from New London, CT to Worcester, MA -- a white knuckling, while really needing to pee, drafting in behind a trailer truck for the entire stretch of I-395 experience, ending when I landed at my brother's house, where I did a face plant in the snow but shot my hand up out of the snowbank to retrieve the tumbler of whiskey he held out to me. Good times!

Basically, I'm writing Wait For It, my second stand alone women's fiction rom-com, by the seat of my pants, which is exactly what driving through that blizzard felt like. I couldn't see where I was going and every mile felt like five hundred miles. I had no idea where I was or when I would get to my destination, if I arrived at all. Full disclosure, this is the first book I have written by the seat of my pants (NO OUTLINE!) since I started writing mysteries. I have no idea why. The world was on fire all around me and I just couldn't get it together to write an outline but the book was due either way, so I strapped in and away I went. Only time will tell if this was the stupidest/smartest thing I've done in writing to date. 

All I do know is that the book is due on May 15th, and IT WILL BE DONE. Because it's in no shape to be shared right now, I'm going to share a snippet of Paris Is Always A Good Idea, which I did have an outline for, thank God!

Excerpt: Chelsea Martin vs. Jason Knightley

“You’ve got some hidden talents, Martin,” he said. 
I knew he was trying to get a rise out of me and I should resist. Instead, I smacked his feet off the corner of my desk. 
“You’re mistaking my work space for the frat house you wallow in, Knightley,” I said. “Feet stay on the floor.” 
“You’re no fun,” he complained. 
It was exactly the sort of thing he could have said to me on any other day and I wouldn’t have thought anything of it. Not today. Today I felt as if he was speaking my truth, and it hurt. 
“Was there something you needed?” I snapped. “Because I really am busy.” 
He studied my face. Clearly, he’d been expecting a bit more of our usual back-and-forth. 
“Busy doing what exactly?” he asked. 
“Packing,” I said. I gestured to the box and my stuff going inside the box. I really thought I should get points for not adding duh to my answer
He heaved an exasperated sigh. “No kidding, but why are you packing?” 
“Because I’m leaving,” I said. “Not that it’s any of your business.” 
“Wait . . . what?” He rose to his feet, and I found myself staring up at him. “You’re serious? You’re leaving? For real?” 
“Yes,” I said. “In two weeks I’m gone.” 
Jason stared at me, slack jawed. He looked stunned, as if I’d just told him I was pregnant and the baby was his. 
“But . . . that’s . . . How . . . Why . . .” 
I took no small satisfaction in making the usually smooth-talking Jason stutter. I watched as he shook his head as if trying to realign his brain. When he finished, he crossed his arms over his chest and glared at me. 
“Martin, you can’t leave. You can’t leave me.” 
I stared at him. He seemed genuinely upset. Had I misjudged our heated rivalry as corporate fundraisers for the American Cancer Coalition all these years? I’d thought he couldn’t stand me. Had I been wrong? Maybe beneath his flagrant disregard for my organizational skills and his sarcastic asides at meetings when I was speaking, he actually liked me. Was our relationship the professional equivalent of the boy on the playground who showed a girl he liked her by pulling her pigtails or punching her in the arm? 
“I mean, who is going to make me look good at the weekly staff meetings if you’re not there to bore us all to death with your Power- Points, charts, graphs, and other assorted mind-numbing minutiae?” he asked. He uncrossed his arms and spread his hands wide. “I count on you, Martin, to make me shine.” 
So that was a negative on him actually liking me. I should have known. Jason Knightley was an arrogant asshat. If I could pick one thing I was not going to miss about working here, it would be him. 
“I’ll be sure to tell my replacement to load up on the statistical data,” I said. “I wouldn’t want your lazy little star to go dim.”  
“Lazy?” His eyebrows rose. “Are you calling me lazy?” 
He put his hands on his hips and looked incredulous. Clearly, I’d struck a nerve. Goody. 
“Truth hurts?” I asked.
“Truth?” he asked. “What truth? I work just as hard as you do.”
I snorted and held up a hand as if he were telling a joke that was too funny. “Please.”
“I do,” he insisted. “Just because I don’t bog it all down with number projections in Excel spreadsheets—”
“Bog it all down?” I gaped at him. “Those projections are what convince the corporations to pony up the major gifts, Knightley. They want to see how their money will be used, how it will impact their business and spread their mission.” 
“It’s all smoke and mirrors,” he said. He shook his head. “You make it more task driven than it needs to be. You like busywork because it makes you feel like you’re accomplishing something. News flash—you’re not. It’s the big picture that matters.” 
That did it! I really was going to brain him with one of my awards. 
“Busywork?” I hissed through clenched teeth. My right eyelid started to twitch. I could feel it throb in time to my heartbeat. I wanted to hold it still with my index finger, but I didn’t want to betray that he was getting to me. 
“Yup,” he said. He pantomimed typing on a keyboard with his hands. “Busy, busy, busy. No one wants to read those long-winded reports of yours. They want big ideas; they want something to get excited about; they want to have a campaign that goes viral and makes their company a global presence.” 
If he kept talking, I suspected my resting bitch face was going to become permanent, like a stone mask that nothing could crack. This. This was precisely why I couldn’t stand Jason Knightley. 
“Please don’t take this the wrong way,” I said. “But you’re an idiot. No corporation is going to sign off on a major gift for a ‘big idea.’” 
“No?” Jason asked. He gave me a superior look. “Then why did the sneaker company Soles jump in and match the millions in donations for my hot wing challenge for the Children’s Leukemia Society?” 
I closed my eyes. I drew in a long breath, held it, and then carefully let it out. So typical of him to bring up his one significant claim to fundraising fame. I stared at him across my barren desk. 
He grinned at me without humor. “It drives you crazy, doesn’t it?” 
I rolled my eyes. “It was lightning in a bottle.” 
“Bullshit. It was a well-thought-out campaign that people loved to participate in,” he said. 
“Well thought out?” I leaned back on my heels and crossed my arms over my chest, trying to look down on him, which was not easy, because he was several inches taller than I was. “Who are you kidding? You cooked it up while killing time at some bar for happy hour where the wings and beer were half price.” 
He didn’t even look embarrassed. He shrugged and winked at me and said, “Inspiration strikes where it strikes, plus it made millions. How much have you ever managed to wrestle as a major gift? One million? Five million?” 
“I’m sorry, are we comparing dick size here?” I asked. “Because I can assure you while my anatomy is different, if it’s a pissing contest you want, I’ll win.” 
“Admit it, Martin.” He leaned down so our faces were just inches apart. “You don’t have my reach.” 
“Ugh.” I curled my lip. That was it. I was leaving my job. Why was I even speaking to this Neanderthal? I turned on my heel and crossed to the open door of my office. I raised my hands and gestured for him to leave. “I think we’re done here.” 
“Is that how you deal with losing a debate?” he asked. He turned to face me. “You just throw the person out?” 
“First, this wasn’t a debate. It was a waste of fifteen minutes of my life that I’ll never get back,” I said. 
I reached forward and grabbed his arm, pulling him toward the door. Normally, I would never touch another employee, as I was hyper- aware of the rules put forth by our human resources person, Michelle Fernando, who was downright scary, about encroaching on my colleagues’ personal space, but at the moment, I had no Fs left to give. If Jason Knightley didn’t leave my office right now, I was going to put my foot in his backside and kick him out the door. 
 “Second, I’m not throwing you out but merely assisting your overly swollen head through the doorway so that it doesn’t get stuck,” I said. 
“Aw, sweet.” Jason chuckled as I propelled him forward. In an innuendo-laden voice, he wagged his eyebrows and asked, “So, you like my big frontal lobe?” 
“Get. Out.” I gave him a firm but what I hoped would be construed as friendly—it wasn’t—shove through the opening. I stepped back and grabbed the door, slamming it in his face. Then I huffed out an exasperated breath, trying to find my Zen. 
“I take it that’s a no on the sexy frontal lobe?” he called through the door. 
In spite of myself, my lips twitched. 

 And now for some awesome news... a Starred Review from

Publisher's Weekly for Paris is Always a Good Idea! YAY!!! 
Also, I'm getting a tattoo of the word "flawless" on something 
somewhere someday. LOL!
Dropping July 21st!!! 
Okay, then, Reds and Readers, who is a plotter and who is a seat of the pantser? It doesn't have to be just in writing. How do you live your life - planned or spontaneous? Has it ever switched on you? (Oh, horror!)






76 comments:

  1. Congratulations on the starred review . . . I’m really looking forward to reading this story . . . and I loved this excerpt with the clever repartee between Chelsea and Jason.

    Although I sometimes do things spontaneously, I think I tend to be [and always have been] more of a planner . . . .

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    1. Thank you, Joan. I am definitely a planner! So, this has been weird...but that explains 2020 to date, so...

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  3. Yay on the starred review, Jenn! I think many of us have had to deal with a "difficult" work colleague like Jason, so good for Chelsea for leaving it all behind.

    When I was working, I was always well-organized since I worked on multiple (research) projects that lasted anywhere from 6 months to 5 years in length. But my last work position in Ottawa was as a divisional planner, which is an apt job title. I had to do both short-term and long-term operational planning for the group in Environment Canada that was responsible for real-time river and streamflow monitoring for the country (about 600 employees). I always felt like I was juggling over a dozen operational balls in the air at the same time, and it was never a boring job. But I can see why the burnout rate for a planner is usually 1-3 years. I lasted 2 years before retiring from the government for good.

    As a retiree, I was kinda more relaxed. I did plan out weekly outings with my walking/hiking groups to establish a new schedule. But I could just spontaneously going out to shop, or meet a friend for coffee or lunch pre-pandemic. Now, I find that I am having to PLAN everyday chores such as ordering groceries and other online deliveries in a way I had never done before!

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    1. That sounds like a very big job Grace! I'm not crazy about the food planning either, sigh...it takes the joy out of shopping

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    2. Detailed grocery shopping for 2 weeks' worth of food does take the joy out of impromptu menu choices for sure.

      And yes the divisional planner was a high pressure operational job that I liked but was so different from my previous 2 years spent in research. You had to be a planner to run/manage research teams and work on several research milestones, deadlines for conferences and manuscript/grant submissions but I knew those dates well in advance and could plan for them.

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    3. Ugh, hate typos...20+ years in spent in research!

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    4. OMG - so stressful. I didn't even know that was a job. Amazing. I haven't ordered groceries yet, because I am a control freak but that's another post.

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  4. I love the excerpt, Jenn. Flawless!

    When I write, I'm mostly a pantser. although I do like to have a view a few scenes ahead. The book I'm writing (my 25th) is a particularly strong candidate for writing into the blizzard. So far the ideas keep coming (that's the sound of my wooden desk resounding from my knuckles).

    For life? I'm totally a planner. The one time I was laid off a job (in fall 2008 along with half the known universe), though, I turned my shock into kickstarting my mystery writing career, so I guess I can land on my feet.

    Like Grace, it's hard having to plan things like going to the market these days.

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    1. Edith, when you said yesterday that your first book came out in 2013, it astonished me anew that you've now written over two dozen books.

      You HAVE to be a planner of some kind to achieve that.

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    2. Thank you, Edith. I'm going to think of you as a cat - always landing on your feet!

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  5. Congratulations on the review Jenn. And good look on both the meeting of the deadline and the quest for the "flawless" tattoo. I'm sure the updates on either will prove both informative and hilarious. I'll have to get a tumbler of whiskey ready to read with either of them.

    I plan for stuff in life because I have to afford everything on my salary. I don't generally have much opportunity to fly by the seat of the pants when it comes to paying for myself.

    When I write my reviews I work from notes that I've made and do some research if necessary but how I make it all come together for a finished piece is more of pantser kind of thing. I know what I have to put into the writing but I don't always have a plan for what goes where.

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    1. That should've said good LUCK on the deadline and tattoo.

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    2. Thank you, Jay. It would be my first tattoo, so placement is key. I like th combo aspect. I'm pulling an Edith on this book, where I seem to know what the next two scenes should be but after that ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ much like your reviews, I expect.

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    3. We keep good company, it seems!

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    4. Jenn, while I like tattoos on others I have no desire for my own. My brother looks like an illustrated man.

      Edith, more like I am keeping good company with you both. :D

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  6. Fantastic excerpt Jenn!!! You’re a wizard! And that pw review is gobsmackingly great!!

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    1. Ooooh, wizard. I'll take that! Thank you. I was pretty chuffed.

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  7. Congratulations, Jenn! My copy of "Paris is Always a Good Idea" is on pre-order. Can't wait for it to get here. In the meantime, I'm really enjoying "Pumpkin Spice Peril" now that my copy has finally arrived. On pub day they sent me a beautifully addressed empty envelope. I cried. Then I complained, and now I have an actual copy.

    I can totally relate to your blizzard analogy, having driven through one like that myself, once. Now I live in the sunbelt and never go out when snow is actively falling.

    But you've got this. You do. You know, down to your bones, the rhythms, the beats, the way your story needs to move. You're doing this without an outline because you know you don't need one, and you've never been one to turn down a new challenge. Think of it as growth. Or freedom. It's always scary to take that next big step, but you're a master at this. Don't ask me; ask Publisher's Weekly . And make sure you find a tattoo artist who can spell because the irony of "flayless" would be just too much of a laugh.

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    1. They sent you a beautifully addressed empty envelope, Gigi? How weird.

      Sadly, I am still waiting to get my copy of Jenn's Pumpkin Spice Peril. That one, plus another book released on April 28 are "delayed" in being shipped for over 2 weeks (sigh).



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    2. Gigi, you are the best. I'm printing out that last paragraph and pasting it to the wall over my desk.
      XO, Jenn, the flayless wonder

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    3. I couldn't believe it, when the envelope came, Grace. I think it was a case of too much automation and overworked picker/packers. I like to think somebody next in line, or just ahead of my order, got a surprise book and has now discovered her new favorite author.

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  8. Congratulations Jenn, and you have to be in the home stretch on the WIP.

    I live with someone who plans to the nth degree. 'Nuff said. I'll tell you a story tho.

    Once upon a time we needed a new coffee pot. This not being a purchase to be taken lightly, like getting a kidney transplant or a new house for instance, research commenced. Consumer Reports, every review on every web site, long lists of pros and cons of every model, price ranges we could live with, features we couldn't live without, new features that looked promising, others that looked superfluous, foot prints, height, capacity, style, you name it and we considered it.

    Then came the day to go to the store and buy the coffee pot. Julie wandered up and down the aisles, notebook in one hand, phone in the other for pictures, warranties reviewed, appearance considered, prices compared. Oh the humanity.

    I saw that one of us need to make a decision.

    So we bought the red one.

    The end.

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    1. Ann, HILARIOUS. My "other" is an engineer. If he cared enough about the coffee, I could picture him doing that!!

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    2. And how is the coffee from that pretty red coffeepot?

      LOL

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    3. Judy, if you ask an engineer the time, he will tell you how to build a clock. I get it.

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    4. That is a very amusing story, Ann, but I would venture to say (being the planner I am) that the "quick" decision to buy the red one was made possible by the depth of research Julie put into the whole venture to start with...just sayin' and doing so from experience with my own partner ;)

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    5. Probably. Although I’d decided on the pretty one as soon as I saw it. ; )

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    6. The red one - ROTFL. Yes, I've lived this with my ex.

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    7. Ann, I'm glad, at least, that she picked you.

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    8. Not without a great deal of research this, Gigi

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  9. First of all, I LOVE the excerpt from Paris is Always a Good Idea, which I'll be ordering from Poison Pen very soon. ;-)

    Secondly, I agree with Gigi, you have got this. I have been reading your books for almost a month, catching up, so to speak. I am reading straight through the Cup Cake Bakery series and started book 7 last night. Everyone else can feel jealous right now that I am able to read one story after the other, for 12 books, without having to wait. I know, don't hate me.

    Lastly, I lived in Danielson, CT for 2 years when I first started teaching, almost 50 years ago. Really. That snow storm, I know you meant it as a metaphor, but I drove that route from New London on I-395 to Danielson at least 100 times, no matter the weather. Snow, fog, ice storms, hurricanes yep. Good thing I did not have whiskey waiting when I got out of the MGB since the next morning was always school. Memories!

    Happy Mother's Day to all of you! Stay safe and well.

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    1. Danielson? Do you go to the Brooklyn Fair? I used to go every year when I lived in CT. LOVED it!

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    2. I lived there for 2 years. I used to go to fairs in the fall. I may have gone to the Brooklyn Fair a couple of times when I lived up there. Once I was married, we went to the Durham Fair a few times especially when the kids were young because my friends used to show horses there and maybe they even participated in tractor stuff. Yep, country girl, moves to city, does fine. Still likes the country.

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  10. Happy Mother's Day, everyone. What a weird year for it, when almost everyone is in the same boat, unable to get together with our mothers or our children. I talked to my mother yesterday and am so grateful she will be with my brother and his wife today.

    My brother, who would totally hand me a tumbler of whiskey, too, Jenn. You are a riot.

    "Flawless"! Wowowow. From Publisher's Weekly! Get that tattoo sooner, rather than later. Take it from me, after awhile you run out of flawless body parts big enough for a tattoo. Earlobes for me at this point.

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  11. Happy Mothers Day, Jenn, to you and everyone else!

    I like to think that I plan things out but I have found that no one can ever plan for every eventuality so you might as well sit back and enjoy the ride! While making plans for my new house I tried to think of everything, what worked in other houses I had lived in and more important, what didn't. Even so I wasn't living here very long before I realized some things should have been a bit different. Yes, I could live with them, but you can be sure I won't make those mistakes for the next house!

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    1. I don't know how you managed to build one house never mind another! It seems monumental to me. Good for you!

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  12. Great excerpt! I dislike him already. Happy Mother's Day! When we lived in Georgia and used pine straw as mulch, and when I had a full kid labor force, MD was always pine straw day.

    If I pants, revisions take too much time. I took Kris Neri's plotting class last year and wrote a ten plot point outline for my next book, which worked until mid-way through the first draft. Then I flew off in another direction. Oh well.



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    1. LOL! I used to write great outlines that I never consulted while writing the book. I got so lost in the woods, I had to throw out half of a book. Never did that again.

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  13. Congratulations Jenn! We all can't wait to read Paris and the one you're working on!

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  14. Fantastic ! And did I miss it? Let’s see that WHOLE review! Every flawless word !

    Happy Mother’s Day , all, no matter in what way you’re a mother :-)

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    1. Oh, you'll be seeing it, ad nauseam, I'm sure ;-)

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  15. Congratulations, Jenn, on that great review. Wow! I'm looking forward to reading the full story when it releases.

    I'm definitely a planner, but with a side of pantser in me. A plan is just a theory, after all, and everyone knows that a theory might need to be adapted to the real-time data as it comes in. Anyway, that's my approach: Sketch out a sense of where the story or your life or the job or the trip -- or whatever -- is going. Then be open to what you stumble over along the way. Sometimes, the unplanned side roads provide the most interesting landscape...

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    1. Very wise, Amanda. Some of the best trips I've ever taken were detours!

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  16. Happy Mother’s Day, Jenn
    I’m so looking forward to Paris being a big hit

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  17. Definitely a planner. I usually even have a backup plan. Spontaneity doesn't bother me, but I like to be ready for anything.

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    1. Same. I usually have a plan A, and a B, and a C if I'm really freaking out.

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  18. Congratulations on that fabulous starred review! ("have I mentioned how very much I love this book?" asks the woman lucky enough to have read an advance copy?)

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    1. Merci beaucoup, Kaye! You're a peach to be so kind.

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  19. I can’t wait to read the new book! In my work life! I’m always been a planner and very detailed-oriented. In the other parts of my life, I have more of a split personality — half planner/half pantser. For the most part, it works for me.

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    1. There is always room for chaos - if you don't make room, it sneaks in through the gaps and makes all kinds of trouble.

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  20. What Gigi said so beautifully, Jenn! Happy Mother's Day!

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    1. She did, didn't she? Happy Mother's Day to you, too.

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  21. I loved the excerpt! Man, the sparks were flying! In my former work life I had to be organized and plan. I have mild ADD; tell me a list of things and I'll hear the first few and then space out and miss the rest. I managed to "train" my boss and fellow employees to put it in writing. That worked great. I've been self-unemployed (retired) now for quite a while and have reverted to my personal chaotic way of life. Although I do make lists as needed.

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    1. Lists. I love lists, Pat. Even if I never finish them, I love them.

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  22. Happy Mother's Day, Jenn!! And that review is FLAWLESS too!!! Where can we read the whole review!! Loved the excerpt, can't wait to read the rest!

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    1. Thanks you, Debs! It's up online - I'll be sharing. No worries.

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  23. I am someone who always went through life as the ultimate pantser - spontaneous, disorganized, impulsive, flexible - right up until Ross passed away. That was when I came to realize my "Plans? What plans?" approach had been made possible by having a life partner who was my exact opposite: methodical, organized, wary of changes, structured.

    I've spent the past two years slowly (so slowly) working toward becoming a planner. I make lists and actually cross off items. I put everything on the calendar. I set goals. It's an uphill battle, like going to bed early and getting up with the sun, because I am by nature a chaotic night-owl.

    Still hasn't affected my writing, though! That continues to work best off-outline.

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    1. My partner is an odd mix of both planning and pantsing, so we don't really balance each other. It's more like we grab different assigned duties and make them our own.

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  24. Jenn, Happy Mother's Day! I remember having a face plant in the snow when I was in New Hampshire in the winter of 2000. And I remember driving through a dense fog at night from law school to home. I could not see where I was going and I drove very, very carefully. I had my driver's license for only two years at that time. Yep, I got my driver's license much later than others because of such a busy life - travelling and living/working in cities where it was easy to walk everywhere and the Metro was always easy.

    No idea if I am a plotter or a pantser. I have lots of great ideas for books then I try to write the stories and no dice! It seems that when I write letters and tell a story, it works. If I write a story in my diary, it works. But when I try to write a story with dialogue. it looks more like a movie script or a dime novel. LOL. I really want to write novels that are the kind that people want to keep and read again.

    Diana

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    1. p.s. thank you so much for the excerpt! I really want to read Paris is always a good idea and I requested a copy from Net Galley. They said "sorry, no". Okay, I can read your other novels while I am waiting for your Paris novel :-)

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    2. Curse you, Netgalley! Thanks for being a reader, Diana. I remember hearing Dennis Lehane speak. He said while getting his MFA, which pushes the short form, he realized he needed the slow unwind to tell his stories and that he belonged in novels. Perhaps, short stories are your jam?

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    3. Thanks, Jenn. Even with short stories, I still need to work on dialogue, though. I am thinking of treating myself to a year's subscription to Guppies as a birthday gift?

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  25. Thank you for your generous excerpt, Jenn. I've been a planner most of my life but more and more , as the years pass by, I let myself enjoy wath's coming on my way and deal with it. Of course I couldn't do it if I hadn't carefully planed my retirement.

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  26. Jenn, that is such a beautiful, thoughtful message in your opening of this post. You acknowledge both those who are mothers to all sorts of children and those who wanted to be mothers of human kids who didn't get the chance. I did finally have two kids, a daughter and a son, but I went through years of infertility and doctor visits and surgery, including an ectopic pregnancy. So, your sensitivity is so wonderful today.

    And, back to the celebration, I wish all a lovely Mother's Day today, because we all had/have mothers to celebrate, and that's special. My mother, gone 25 years now, gave me the love of reading, which I passed down to my children, and my daughter has passed down to hers (son hasn't had children yet), which means that my mother continues to positively affect lives. The most important thing that my mother did for my reading, and something people don't always realize is so important, is she acknowledged that spending time reading was a valuable use of one's time. That is crucial in developing a reader, to impart that the time spent reading is a worthy and useful way to use the hours of the day. Later, in teaching, I ran into students whose home life didn't support that way of thinking, and, thus, the student was at a disadvantage in becoming a reader.

    And, Jenn, that excerpt from Paris is Always a Good Idea is such great reading. Chelsea Martin is a character I want to follow wherever she goes. I'd also like to throttle Jason. I'm sure this book is going to be wildly successful. The starred review and the "flawless" description will be the first of many accolades, but what a way to come out of the gate. Congratulations!

    I'm a list maker, so I guess that makes me a planner. When I go on a trip, I have places I want to visit during the time there, and I've done some research on them. I don't think I could ever just go somewhere and let the wind take me where it would, although that doesn't mean I can't get carried away in an unplanned stop. I'm a list maker for my reading, too. I have a running list of new books coming out, according to dates and ones highlighted that I especially want to get to. It gives me a sense of control that I really don't have, but it's nice to think I do.

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    1. Thank you, Kathy! You are so right. Reading is so valuable - for me it was how I managed a chaotic childhood. Without it, I would have been lost. I am a planner, too. One thing I'm working on is being more spontaneous when I travel. I tend to have a constant itinerary and ti drives my people crazy. LOL.

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  27. Hello all! Enjoyed your excerpt, Jenn but now I can't remember if I pre-ordered your Paris book after reading previous excerpts. Blast! That's the problem with this marvelous blog I keep finding new books but I then I can't remember if I ordered them... frustrating, frustrating. Okay so flawless, huh?! You earned it. Can't wait to read this one.

    I do try to plan especially when I travel. So, at first, for a moment, I thought I was a planner but then I looked across my living room and realized I'm not a planner at all. I have 3 unfinished crocheted blankets, two other completed blankets that I have to take apart because I won't give them to anyone in their current condition. So I guess I fly by the seat of my pants, at least been comes to crocheting.

    I hope everyone has a lovely day of cold hot chocolate and burnt cinnamon toast. It's a Mother's Day thing. The rest of us will enjoy that extra glass of wine with our cherished memories.

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    1. Ha! I'm like that with my knitting Deana. Start one before I finish another. I'm trying to be better.

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  28. I'm a planner. I'd rather had an idea what I'm going to do and then change it if I need to than have nothing planned. I remember a co-worker fussing at me for planning my vacations as if she thought I would have a meltdown when the coffee plantation in Hawaii was closed on Sunday so they took us for ice cream! At least I had the joy of reading the guidebooks and planning even if a lot of it never happened. Congratulations on your new book. I just finished the latest hatshop book with the corgis and have the new cupcake one on my TBR pile.

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    1. Thank you, Sally. I feel like you can never over prepare for a vacation!

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