Happy "Harvest" "Halloween" "Day of the Dead", etc...

So, with people, there's always something. There seems to be a celebration or a holiday or some other kind of get together that is always going to cause a problem for someone else.

In the spirit of keeping things positive, I want to wish everyone a Happy End of October, and I hope everyone has transitioned well into Autumn. The nights are getting chilly, the days are windy and the trees are getting naked. I have always wondered why trees and chickens seem to lose their coverings before Winter instead of staying covered up. Of course chickens get new feathers, but those trees...

Anyway, Happy Harvest Moon. I'll leave you with an amusing article which is both poignant and entertaining (click the highlighted title). You may have already seen this, but it's worth a second glance. Enjoy!

Dear Mountain Room Parents

Friday Fairies

When I asked her, my 4 year old said I should write about fairies today. It just so happens that is a relevant topic for me. Well, fairy tales anyway. I am working on an idea. It involves fairy and folk tales. You can watch the progress of my brainstorming here. (Yes, I am much more a Pinterest junkie than I am a Twitter  junkie, and I am not on Facebook...so anyway...)

Back to fairies. The little people. Enchanted beings, Magical monsters....all of which are timeless with universal themes in tales that are able to thrill through the centuries. Something about fairy tales speaks to deeply embedded desires, subconscious dreams and ideas that anything is possible.

Today our fairy tales rally around super heroes more than they do the winged folk and little people. But the traditional fairy tales still resonate strongly through everything supernatural that is out there. Every TV network has something resoundingly fairy tale and/or supernaturally oriented right now. The tales are so adaptable to interpretation. I think that is what makes them so timeless.

Here's hoping that I can continue to entertain with my own take on some traditional fairy tales. They are the root of all my inspiration. Ever since I can remember I have felt connected to folk tales, and I still believe, to this day, that the woods I grew up in is enchanted.

I hope to bring you some of that enchantment in the not too far future. Thank you in advance for your patience and anticipation. I am off to wave my magic wand and put some words down in my tales.

Focusing Inward, Promoting Outward

Autumn. The time to get cozy with projects. After a crazy year last year, when Summer to Autumn and beyond was very challenging, and a whole lot of painful, I am taking this time to focus inward. It's time to discover what's really important to me, and set out going after the goals I want to achieve.

Projects include a lot of handmade gifts, and trying to work on my new idea for a story...which at the moment I am holding close to my chest. Not sharing right now. My experience with sharing my new ideas too quickly is not good...so everyone will just have to hold their breath for awhile. Eventually I'll be forthcoming.

Things for everyone to take a gander at: One of my good friends is busy getting Worldbuilders' Big Ass Charity set up for the year. OK, that's not really what it's called...but fantasy geeks, kind hearts, and book lovers and any other interested party...Click on my embedded links, (you know the highlighted stuff?) and check out all the goodies that Patrick Rothfuss and his Worldbuilding crew have in store this year. It is definitely worth your visit.

Also, my good online friends, Julie Hutchings, J. Elizabeth Hill, Katie Hayoz, Kristen Strassel and Jen Naumann all have new books out that are so worth your eyeball time. These authors are *awesome* in person and in talent. Don't take my word for it. Check them out.

Go peruse your local bookstores, online sites and Goodreads 

and get ready for winter by squirreling away your books! :D