Once you've had it, you want more.

And it's not botox or tattoos. In April, I discovered my inner queen...at 42.  I know... I'm a slow learner, some girls find theirs at birth. But having found it in the hills of the Napa valley, (see me-time) and realizing the joy, fun and freedom, not to mention the complete divaliscousness of being a queen. I want more me-time. I am prepared to stamp my feet now because, it's been a while.

I have to be careful because there's an old voice coming to me from my far off homeland, reminding me that I was not born to be queen. Some bitch is trying to de-crown me before I have another moment of fun. And if I let this wicked voice in, I am in danger of remaining in pheasant-mind forever.  It, she, tells me to do the laundry and vacuum the house. She taps her painted nail on the Formica counter,  and I want to tell this old ghost to go take a hike, I'm busy dreaming of lush spas, funny friends and the finest champagne. I'm dreaming... of MY cleaning team, they are driving right up to the front door, (actually now that I look at it, it would be a cleaning team and their handy husbands because the front door needs to be replaced,) coming in and inch by inch deep cleaning this house, while I am deep cleaned, inch by inch, in the most miraculous spa that was ever created. They send me out looking ten year younger and 20 pounds lighter.

I dream - she demands of me. She needs to go! There is only enough room for one queen around here.

Obviously I'm still working on this queen thing. I suppose one must find the right tiara. I believe that will help. I think if I put on a crown of jewels (costume gems will have to suffice) things will become more clear, priorities will become apparent. I will be able to see the luxury around me without the alarm bells and smoke screens and constant feeling of guilt. I'm not used to thinking about me, and not my off-spring. Yes, a tiara must be the answer to my diva troubles. It will fill me, remind me, I am a queen. I AM! (keep repeating.. breathe)
It has worked for women, queens, since the beginning of time. Once they get the head piece they can feel the power, they can rule vast countries and bring armies to their knees. I should find a large crown because I have difficult children, that seem to have a hearing impediment, they are soooo slow to respond to my demands. Maybe a cloak is required, a new dress of satin and heels, I'm not getting carried away here. I'm not. I'm just saying that if you want to be the queen you have to be empowered and it takes a good set of shoes. Who ever heard of a good queen with a pair of smelly old boots? Nobody. Even the wicked witch had killer shoes. In fact it was ALL about the shoes. So was Cinderella come to think of it.  Here's my plan. Begin with a rope and a good horse.

Find your dream castle.

Locate the tiara amongst the jewels.


I have to run, some one is calling me....I'll be back.

Writing post

Writing truths.


So, I'm 42. I still feel 21 and could go on, and on and on... happily feeling 21, if it wasn't for one major reminder of what I am not.  What I am not, is a techno savvy 42 year old.  I'm outdated. Like a mullet.  Twitter reminds me of twits. I automatically think twit when i see the word. All those twits must have nothing better to do.  Stuck in the notion that I could get away with word docs and emailing occasionally for the rest of my life. Content, to be right on the basic fringe. I fear I am the twit, now, getting behind on the modern world.

 I write. I love writing and have spent wonderful learning years putting together a Middle grade novel. Which is fine. I learned some lessons along the way. I conquered focus, then found discipline, worked at it and now, there is perseverance to attain. I set a challenge to myself to write the book, and did that.  (With help from some patient teachers.) It was my middle child, aged eight, that set me straight. "It's not finished until it's on the bookshelf." She sets a hard bargain.
I'm not one to back down, but I have found, in writing this novel, that there is an eye-opening learning curve that runs beside your own character arch. And that a whole different story begins after you write the words - The End.

It's a see-saw. Delving into the new/old world of publishing. The big traditional houses such as Random House and Penguin are publishing less, they are feeling the pressure from the new world order. Amazon is king in this new world. They are 'destroyers' of all things traditional. They will be the end of the book, they bully little houses, but wait... there is a promising horizon ahead for writers, because now you can publish in this new digital techno world.

Huh-oh. I'm still a mullet.


There are more books on how to publish, write, submit and even handle rejections, on the market that they need their own section in the library. They will all hold some relevant information about the A-Z of getting to print. Ultimately it is a question of what works best for you, and whatever you choose, as I have found, there are truths to be reckoned with.

In January I attended the SCBWI (the society of children's book writers and illustrators) conference in New York city.  I sat through the round table critic's met the newest and youngest and tireless editors of the top publishing houses in the world. Listened to the open forums and endured the breakout sessions on the ins and outs of traditional publishing.  The biggest piece of information, the nugget, that stayed with me was, "We are fighting for our lives."  Traditional publishers are swimming upstream, why?  Because e-publishing has increased so rapidly in the last two years alone, there is no saving it. People are switiching to e-books rapidly. As a child who suffered with mild dyslexia and some form of executive functioning, I adore the kindle, putting your finger on the word and having the meaning pop right up to educate you instantly has been a great tool in learning how to write, and savoir the true definition of the work.

But deep down, what writer doesn't want the hand to hold? That was what I wanted anyway, the marketer, the kind editor, the person who rings and tells you how much they love your book and are willing to bet the bank on it. But the truth was blatant, "if you don't have the next Harry Potter, don't bother, well don't bother them anyway. I'm getting the feeling my Pippi Longstockings meets Charlotte's Web, Irish fantasy might really not be "what they are looking for right now." They are inundated with submissions of perils and are looking for the Hope Diamond.

So what to do? For me, the best advice I think I have received is to have my work edited by a professional children's editor, and that is what I did. On a recommendation by our local book buyer,  and after two pages of questions about me and the novel,  I hired a top NY agent. I am investing in the time I have spent over the last few years on my fourth baby.  I'll let you know how the wind sways with that.

But what is unavoidable is that either way, traditionally or self-published,  my book will be digitally accessible, and I need to update the mullet. It's called building a platform, getting your work out there into the world of multi-media, blogging, web-site, showing your words and work. The good old resume is over, it's platform all the way.

A Look at a book. The Light between Oceans.

The Light Between Oceans.

By M. Stedman.

A well-written and tightly crafted novel. Hard to believe it is Stedman’s debut. The story begins with Tom Sherbourne excepting a position to tend a lighthouse, on the island of Janus Rock off the western coast of Australia. He is seeking solitude and isolation while dealing with his post-war survivor guilt. On a trip to the town of Point Partageuse he meets Isabel, they marry and begin their life together, she keeping house and he keeping loving and professional care of the lighthouse (itself becoming a character)

 The tone sets the mood, they want children but are devastated with two miscarriages and one still-born, we know there is not going to be a jolly outcome, but from the beautiful prose and vivid description of life on a wild and isolated island, we are pulled deeper and mindfully into the fold. It is with deep trepidation we see what happens when two people make a choice, and its outcome will change the lives of many and last for decades.

I enjoyed the book. The book reviews have been positive. Some readers on Goodreads noted the change in tense being clunky and the author’s modern voice being at odds with the 1920’s time period.

I wanted to share some information relating to the author.

Extract from an interview with the author. The plotting in this novel is tight and neatly crafted (almost like a ship, I kept thinking as I was reading). Do you think that your work as a lawyer has impacted your writing style in terms of attention to details, an ability to cross all the "t" and dot all the "i"s?

I love the idea of the plot being as sound as a ship! I think the greatest impact of my legal background is that it allows me to write freely and spontaneously, without meticulously plotting in advance. Lawyers are probably hard-wired for structure, so it’s a reflex rather than something to spend a lot of conscious thought on. And yes, the legal training helps on the detail, too, making sure that things are consistent.

Q: When it comes to the setting, the book seems to be written with much love. Is that coastal setting close to your heart?

Definitely! I’m always happiest beside an ocean. I grew up with the West Australian landscape, and I so enjoyed putting it on the page – describing the place I’ve loved all my life.

Q: Who are your own favorite writers? Do you think any of them have had an impact on this novel?

A few favorites who spring to mind (in no particular order) are Graham Greene, George Eliot, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Cormac McCarthy, Jane Gardam, Andre Gide, Ian McEwan, Edith Wharton, Katherine Mansfield... I suppose what they have in common is an unflinching eye, a profound understanding of the human heart, and a mastery of language. Those are the qualities I find most rewarding in books, so they’re the ones I’d like to bring, in however pale a reflection, to what I write.

Marjorie Kehe is the Monitor's books editor.

Overall, it is a great read, the reasoning at times made me a little annoyed with Isabel, to turn the story emotionally, the author has Isabel angry with Tom, knowing he may hang if she does not tell the truth. I found it hard to believe she could convince herself that it was his fault. She might have made the right decision in the end, but the only way I could justify her reasoning was, she must be mad. I probably would have been off my rocker, after such an ordeal.

Lara Robinson

Here is some popular prose from the kindle conversations.

The curls of the dark hair swirling like a net cast on the wind.

You only have to forgive once. To resent, you have to do it all day, every day. You have to keep remembering all the bad things.

You can kill a bloke with rules, Tom knew that. And yet sometimes they were what stood between a man and savagery, between man and monsters.

The rain is falling more heavily, and in the distance, thunder grumbles at being left behind by the lightning.

Words on words. Crossing to Safety

4 of 5 stars.

Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner.
Lara Robinson.
11/29/12

I finished this book last night for our book club choice of the Month. I was not disappointed. He, Wallace, wouldn't let me. He sets the scene and tone. A young, in love, struggling couple, striving to excel in intellect with little finances meets a young and in love couple struggling to excel in intellect but are wealthy.

I might have actually wondered what was going to happen, what drama, suspense or mystery would propel us forward, but we are in the hands of a professional and just as we wonder, he tells us, no, that's not here, that's not what this is about, and we push forward on his simple path of friendship, that becomes deeper as we become more invested in their lives.

This is how he tells us what to expect.

"How do you make a book that anyone will read out of lives as quiet as these? Where are the things that novelists seize upon and readers expect? Where is the high life, the conspicuous waste, the violence, the kinky sex, the death wish? . . . Where are speed, noise, ugliness, everything that makes us who we are and makes us recognize ourselves in fiction?''


It was a beautiful book, I liked that he spent some time telling us about Sally in the end, when we are all fully with Charity, he tells us what we have been wondering all the time. What was his own marital relationship like? He seemed so focused on Sid and Charity. He asked all the right questions, about love and loss and the end of life. All those questions were answered either by the last actions of Charity, when she finally wept, or by his reveling his view of how Sally made him a better person by her disability. Nicely done, well crafted, and tenderly told.

I had never read any work by Wallace Stegner and his accolades read nearly as long as his book. Certainly, he was prolific.