Did you know that Thanksgiving is one of the busiest weekends at Disney World? Shocked the heck out of me. I figured it would actually be a slower time a year with families getting together for a big turkey dinner. The more I thought about that though the more it made sense. Maybe you’re really not into cooking for the clan. If you can get that turkey dinner catered as well as  enjoy a few days of fun in the sun, I say go for it. Not to mention that the magic of Disney makes the entire holiday season really special. I mean where else can you walk down main street, enjoy cookies and hot chocolate, get snowed on, and not even need a coat. There are so many wonderful things to do in Disney during the holiday season. The one I previously described is Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas part. It’s so much fun. They make it snow on Main Street Magic Kingdom, keep the most popular rides open for guest to enjoy. They do family photos, and  special holiday parade. It’s a ticketed event so the crowd isn’t outrageous. All in all, it’s a good time.
Also, at EPCOT they have the candlelight processional in the American Pavilion. A change series of celebrity guests read the story of the nativity accompanied by a soundtrack chorus that performs a selection of seasonal music. Very pretty, very moving, again something worth checking out. When we went to see it last, Neil Patrick Harris was doing the reading. He did a wonderful job. Disney releases a schedule of which celebrities are narrating and when. I know some people that arrange their trip dates to coincide with the celebrity of their choosing.

If you’re even remotely a Disney fan, you definitely need to get to the House of Mouse during the holiday season. The lights, the displays, the decorations, they all make the Happiest Place on Earth an even happier place to be.

Happy Thanksgiving All!

I’m an electronic junkie. I love gizmos and gadgets that are shiny and high tech. That being said, I went to Barnes and Noble last night because I wanted to see the Nook in person before I invested. Well long story short, I wound up pre-ordering one and I’m so excited to get it. As I said, Meery Christmas to me and I’m very much looking forward to my present. P.S. My mom got one too.  LOL!

Anyway, so what have I been doing in the last week or so? Well, that’s a very easy answer. I’ve been procrastinating. I fully admit it. I’ve been doing a read through of my story before I send out to another house for consideration and for some reason it’s taking me forever to get through the read. Read through’s always seem to take forever. Creation is so much easier then editing. I know writers who prefer the editing process because at least the story is already on the page, but for me I prefer the freedom of letting my mind go where it will. At any rate, I’ll get it in gear. I’m about a third of a way through so far, but I will get there within a week.

I will beat the procrastination bug.

I received a rejection today on a novella that I’d recently submitted for consideration. Needless to say getting rejected sucks large, but the rejection is just a small, dark spot in the midst of some many bright, positive things.  First and foremost, this story got me back into the game. With school and everything that’s gone on I hadn’t written much in a long time. This story was the first finished and submission ready piece that I’d created in ages. Second, just because it wasn’t right for this particular project doesn’t mean that it’s not right for another house. I’ll tweak it and send it back out again. On some weird level, I’m sort of looking forward to sending it out again. Finally, while this story was turned down, the door was still left open to me to submit other projects. It’s nice to have the blow soften, by being invited to submit other projects directly to a specific editor for consideration. And again, that I’m totally stoked that I actually have another project that I can send it.

So as I said in the title of this post, rejection sucks, but … when one door closes somewhere a window of opportunity opens.

I am a huge Disney fan. I’m a card carrying Disney Vacation Club member, I visit the happiest place on earth as often as I can, and, as far as I can tell, I have more articles of clothing with Disney characters or logos then anything else. Don’t ask me why, I just love all things Disney. It’s probably that going to Disney is like stepping off the planet and into a world of joy and laughter for a little while. I think I have more fun at Disney as an adult then I did as a child.
Seeing as how I’m a huge Disney fan, I thought it’d only make sense to take some time to toss out some random Disney facts for your reading enjoyment. So I’m going to start with the castles. In Disneyland you have Sleeping Beauty’s Castles. The design of said castle was inspired by Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany.  In Walt Disney World Florida, you’ll find Cinderella’s Castle which stands more then double the height of Sleeping Beauty’s Castle.
In Cindy’s castle, you’ll find a couple of fun places to visit. FIrst it the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique, where you and your little girls and get the royal treatment make over. Personally, I think it’s a fun concept and I’m totally going to get the princess updo one day, but I do miss the art and collectibles store that used to be there. Second is Cinderella’s Royal table, formerly King Stefan’s Feast, which is one of my favorite places to eat while at Disney (Tip: Make Priority seatings for dinner. It’s the best meal to eat there, IMO). This restaurant is on one of the upper levels of the castle. You get an excellent view of Fantasyland out of the castle windows on this level. One other locale in the castle that not many get to see is the Cinderella Castle Suite. This suite was once intended to be a private apartment for the Disney family, but Roy Disney passed before it could be used. In later years, the apartment was remodeled into a site fit for, well, royalty. The only way you can stay in this room is to be randomly selected from all of the park guests.

Just a little fun tidbit about my favorite vacation spot.

My first degree is in English, heavily focused on creative writing. I blame that for why I agonize over every word I put on the page. Makes it hard to get into the zone when you analyze and re-analyze every word you put on the page. Apparently, I’m a glutton for punishment, though, because as I’ve already mentioned I returned to school to get another  bachelor’s degree program in vascular ultrasound. I love learning, but I’ve had enough of tests and homework, at least for another ten years. LOL!

Still, I never cease to be amazed at how much school really does take out of you. As soon as I was done with all the work involved with that program it seemed as though the dampers that had had kept me from finding the words to put on the page came off. I really don’t know what changed, but I started writing more pages per day then I thought I’d ever be able to do and I didn’t even need to take long hot showers, to find the words. Don’t ask me why, but when I’m really stuck a hot shower seems to be another way to help clear the creative channels and help me focus in on the scene I want to write.

I’ve managed completed two stories. One novel length, and one short story. The first story I completed was a M/M vampire novel which is still sitting on the shelf in need of editing, but I fully intend to get back to that soon. The next was a M/M short which I have submitted to Samhain for consideration for inclusion in their Angels/Demons anthology. Wish me luck, the acceptance/rejections will be going out relatively soon.

I’ve also managed to plot out my next story. It feels awesome to be writing and be productive instead of only being able to focus on it in dribs and drabs. Hopefully, I’ll have new material out there soon.

A lot has happened in the year and a half since I last posted on this so I hope you’ll forgive my total lack of communications. Let’s see where should I start? Well, shortly after RT in Pittsburgh, I was accepted into a program at Thomas Jefferson University. So, I’ve spent the past year learning to be a vascular ultrasound technologist. I needed a career change and it seems that I’ve made the right choice. Never fear, I haven’t given up on my writing, but a girl’s gotta pay the bills.