Throwback Thursday: The F Factor

Go team D4K!

Firstly, did you enter my little contest? See my contest post below. Contest closes on Monday the 10th, so hurry!

Also, did you see THIS fabulous press release at Jolly Fish Press? Yippee! I want to hug it. I want to print it off and laminate it and post it on lampposts and bus stations and send one to all of my friends. Seeing as I live in the boonies and there are no lampposts or bus stations to be found, I'm doing the next best thing...I'm blogging about it. :)

Me hanging out in a Griffin
Search and Rescue Helicopter

In honour of this momentous occasion, I thought I'll be linking you back to some of my This Mom is Overdunne (see tab above) blog posts over the next few weeks. My Overdunne blog started as a writing/military family blog, and I documented a lot of my thoughts and feelings about life as a 'dependent' during that time. One of my favourite posts was in the middle of a deployment--while my husband was in the Middle East on a six month tour. It's the tiniest bit controversial...but it really expresses how I felt during that time. I'm not generally a swear-er (is that even a word?) but there are some days where you just need to say something vile to get it out of your system. It also gives you a bit of background on why I wrote DEPENDENT. You can find the post HERE.

How is your F factor today?

Brenda

JDRF Walk for a Cure (And a little contest...)

I support many causes and many charities for many reasons, and I don't generally hit up social media sites for them...so bear with me just this once.

As you can see by the video above...there is one cause that hits very close to home. A cause that has been my constant companion for many years. From the time I get up until I go to sleep, even in the dark hours of the night (yes, even when I'm writing), I don't--I can't--forget.

On Dec 5, 2007 my youngest daughter Kate was rushed to hospital. Within an hour she was sitting in a hospital bed, diagnosed with Type 1 (Juvenile) Diabetes and receiving her first insulin shot. She was five years old. We were lucky--we caught the disease early and Kate recovered quickly on a daily regime of at least four needles a day. She now tests her blood via finger-prick blood test from 8-12 times a day. That's 15,000 finger-pricks in her little fingertips over five years. Tens of thousands of dollars spent on supplies. Thousands of needles. Hundreds of doctors visits.

Diabetes is not fun, but with constant vigilance it can be managed...and Kate lives a relatively normal life. If she wants to do it, we find a way. She looks so normal, sometimes it's easy to forget the dangers and the risks. Her insulin pump and test kit are ALWAYS with her. Insulin is not a cure, and without it she would get very sick. Without insulin she could go into a coma, maybe even die. Amazing how much you come to love and hate that little vial of clear fluid!

So that's my spiel. If you can, please give to whatever diabetes research foundation you wish. On June 9th, 2013 I will be walking with Kate and our team, Donate 4 Kate in the Telus Walk to Cure Diabetes in Ottawa, Ontario. JDRF is a world-wide organization that supports research towards a cure, and your donation could help us to throw that clear vial in the trash for good!

If you would like to donate to my Telus Walk to Cure Diabetes team, go HERE.

And now the CONTEST...

I will send a SIGNED paperback copy of my little self-published novel TREASURE IN THE FLAME to one lucky person!

To enter simply:
1) share this post on your twitter page, (follow me on twitter if you don't already...) and comment on this blog post below with the link so I can see it, AND
2) 'Like' my page on facebook- link HERE.

For an EXTRA entry, donate via the link above (any amount helps...even $5!) and let me know you've done so in the comments as well. I'll randomly select one lucky winner and contact you via  DM on your twitter. Contest closes on June 10th.

Easy? I think so!

THANK YOU! From me, from Kate, and from the millions of kids and adults who depend on that little clear vial every day.

Mom in the Middle Movies...After Earth

Caution: spoiler alert!

After Earth poster

So last night hubs and I took the kids to a movie. Nothing odd about this, because we see a lot of movies, especially now that the kids are old enough to see movies rated older than 'G'. Last night's adventure was After Earth--a PG sci fi adventure story starring Will Smith and his son Jaden as (surprise!) a father and son team who end up on a scary future Earth with all kinds of man-eating monsters waiting to gobble them up. It was opening night, and the theatre was not full, partially because the Disney extravaganza Epic was opening just down the hall, and partially because of bad reviews.

Anyway, about ten minutes into the movie, I was just happily munching away on my popcorn when my daughter (who is a Lord of the Rings FANATIC and a music maniac) starts up a running commentary on the similarities between this movie and LOTR. Kitai, the son, sets off on a quest and looks like Frodo climbing up a rocky slope. The nasty baboon creatures are like black riders and their chase ends in a river which he crosses to escape. A huge eagle swoops down and takes him off to her nest. Kitai dreams of a beautiful girl (his sister) telling him to wake up. A volcano that looks suspiciously like Mount Doom pops up in the distance... even the background music has a decidedly LOTR flare...with a few bars, according to my hyper-aware daughter, bordering on identical.

These comments were peppered with highly critical discussion on the scientific unlikelihood of the movie...How is it that Kitai and his super cool dad, Cypher were the only survivors when a spaceship crash lands on earth? How could Kitai adjust so fast and take off running in the increased gravity? Even my own medical background kicked in, curious how anyone, even super-cool ranger guys, could survive severe femoral artery damage for more than an hour...let alone a few days.

I'm a person who watches movies for entertainment, and I'll admit, sitting there sipping my huge Coke and getting popcorn stuck between my teeth, I just wanted to get lost in the story line. The comments from my lovely daughter are not a new thing, but it hit me how accurate they were. I actually liked the movie...But even I started to see the LOTR similarities. And the final scenes...well, you'll have to tell me what you think, but perhaps the Smiths could have been more original. The buzz on the movie is that it is based on Scientology teachings but I'm with my daughter. It's like a bad LOTR copycat.

I give it one thumb up and one thumb down.

Brenda

A Dream Come True

 

(Drum roll, please...) 

 

***GUESS WHAT?***

 

I am EXTREMELY excited to announce that my Adult Fiction, DEPENDENT, has...

 

FOUND A PUBLISHER!

 

WOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

 

I've just signed a contract with Jolly Fish Press for publication tentatively SUMMER 2014!

 

Me, signing my contract!

 

DEPENDENT is the story of a military spouse--a story of love, loss and inner-strength. It's raw, emotional and very real...very different from anything I've ever written. After 8 years of slowly picking away at it, it took only a few weeks to find a home! My agents at Literary Counsel are THE BEST! I'm so excited to work with Christopher Loke and Jolly Fish Press in bringing this story to the world. It's going to be a busy and exciting year.

 

See? Dreams DO come true!

 

 

 

Brenda

Happy Saturday!

Spring is trying it's darndest to make an appearance in Eastern Ontario, but this morning's snow/ice pellet squall was a little reminder that it's not summer yet! Research for the sequel I'm working on has taken me online to lonely beaches and rocky shores all over the Atlantic Coast and I'm ready for summer.

Well hullo! Whatcha doin in there?

But the good news is that with the melting snow and the warmer (ie ABOVE freezing) temperatures, the snow has almost melted here. Cue outdoor riding, gardening, running (*hack, gasp*) and reading. Yay! Thought you would all like this pic of my DD's horse greeting me in my car. She was riding on the field by our driveway when I came home from the day job this week. I tweeted it, but I thought I'd repost. He's a cutie.


Is it warm where you are? What spring rituals are you working on this weekend?

Brenda

Ice in April? (And the Liebster award...)

YUCK. Spring may have sprung but my back yard is covered in glassy ice like this:


Not cool. So I was fortunate enough to be able to opt out of the nasty commute today, and I'm using the unexpected day off to get caught up on a few things (like sitting by the fireplace, reading my book, drinking coffee...) and maybe do a teensy bit of writing. The interwebs are soooooooo slooooow...(ice on the receiver?) so hopefully we'll be able to upload.

Yesterday I was tagged x 2 by writer friends for the Liebster Award--Thanks Yelena and Vanessa! I'm not a big 'tagger', but there are some great questions and why not? So here goes.

The first thing you have to do is tell 11 (eleven) little known facts about yourself. Hmmmm.... That's hard.

1. I LOVE curry. Thai curry, Indian curries, green curry, yellow curry...you name it. I love it. Just as long as it's not fire-hot spicy. I buy the frozen stuff whenever I can, but nothing beats a great curry restaurant.

2. After the curry, my favorite dessert in the whole world is Sticky Toffee Pudding. Best place in the world to get it? The Woodman Inn in Fernham, UK.

3. When I was six I was convinced I would grow up to be an obstetrician.

4. I own and play a 31 string Celtic harp. Not well, but there ya go.

My lovely harp

5. I also play the piano, again not well. An aside- one of my childhood piano teachers is now the
President of the Canadian Medical Association! (Congrat's Chris!)

6. I was once a member of the New Brunswick Gifted Children's Association.

7. I graduated at the very top of my high school graduating class, winning a whole bunch of awards. A decade or so later I had kids and they took all of my brain cells with them. ;)

8. Do I really have to do 11?

9. I used to have a cat named 'None Of Your Business'. We called her NOYB.

10. If there is music with lyrics playing, I can't concentrate. I can only write with soft instrumental playing in the background...or nothing at all.

11. This is number 11. I love number 11. And the colour green. Did you notice I spelled colour with a 'U'?

Phew! That part is done!! On to the Questions... I'll answer 5 of each Vanessa's and Yelena's.

From Vanessa...

1. What is your favorite vacation you've ever taken? The last big family trip we took--to Italy, Croatia and Greece. A combination of Villas, Apartments and Cruising. More about it here:

2. What is your biggest pet peeve? Toss up b/w people chewing with their mouth open (ick) and people who throw still-lit cigarette butts out of their windows while driving on major highways. Especially at night. Drives me CRAZY.

3. What is the scariest movie you've ever seen? Amityville Horror? Couldn't watch the whole thing. I don't do scary movies.
4. Name one food you cannot live without. Popcorn.

5. Pirates or Ninjas? Pirates. Especially the Johnny Depp kind. Sorry ninja folks! But I do love my ninjas too!
From Yelena:

1.  When did you start writing? I started writing seriously about six years ago.

2. Who is the one author you'd like to sit down with and talk if you could? JK Rowling. I'd love to know what goes on in her head.

3. Who is your favorite fictional character? Elizabeth Bennett.

4. Beach house, country house or city apartment? Would love to have all three?? But live in a country house now...

5. Tea or coffee? COFFEEEEEEEEEEE. Need to go make some after all of these questions!

So there you go!! And now to tag other poor unfortunate souls...

The Liebster Rules: 1. The Liebster Award is given to bloggers by bloggers.
2. Each blogger should post 11 facts about himself / herself.
3. Each blogger should answer the 11 questions that are asked by the nominating blogger.
4. Choose 11 new bloggers to nominate for the Award and link to them in the post.
5. Create 11 new questions for your nominees.
6. Go back to their pages and tell them they've been nominated.
7. No tag backs.

My Questions??? (shamelessly plagiarized from other Liebsters)

1. Tea or Coffee? This is important!
2. Favourite place you've ever lived?
3. Plotter or Pantser?
4. What's the biggest writing related gaff/writing crime you've committed?
5. When did you join twitter?
6. Favourite flower?
7. Favourite music to listen to while writing?
8. Write and edit at the same time, or edit at the end?
9. Do we have to do 11?
10. What's your favourite question to ask some poor unsuspecting blogger? (heh, heh, heh)
11. What time is it?

There! And I tag...

Vicki L Morrison (whose life is incredibly busy and will likely never have time to reply, but she IS my BFF...
And everyone else who has taken the time to read my drivel and get to the bottom.

Quick Update

Hi fabulous followers et al!

Hope you all had a wonderful Easter/Passover/Spring Break or whatever you celebrate!

Sorry I've been so quiet on the blog as of late, but life has been very busy with a new day job (which I love), crazy edits (which I'm, ah-hem, learning to love), chats with my agents (who are AMAZING), book signings (so much fun!) and the regular day to day insanity that is the life of a working mom, writer, and military spouse. Things should be quieting down for a few weeks, and I'm hoping to focus on getting some new words down on at least one of my projects.



At Chapters Pinecrest, Ottawa. A great day!

I spent Easter at home with family, and managed to fit in a few book signings at Westminster Books in downtown Fredericton and at Chapters Regent Mall. I had a great time, met some wonderful people, chatted with some potential young authors and even sold a few copies of TREASURE! It's truly rewarding to hear the feedback from readers, and I had several people pop by just to tell me how much they loved reading my book.

One of the biggest compliments I've recieved--and now I've heard it twice--is that reading TREASURE was not only enjoyable, but that it encouraged the reader to read OTHER BOOKS. That reading my book gave them so much pleasure, it made them want to read more--to "get back into reading". Now THAT is a compliment! So happy to reunite readers with the wonders of a good book!

My PR guy has been working overtime, and I've also been in several papers in both the Ottawa area and the Fredericton area over the past few weeks. My favourite was an interview for the EMC. You can find a link to the story here.

One quick note: I've had a couple of people comment that when they go to a Chapters store, my book comes up as "0 copies in this store" on the store computers. TREASURE is IN STOCK at the Chapters stores listed on the tab above. Self-published books do not show up on their computer system because they are stocked differently. Go to a store clerk/employee and ask them. They'll help you find where they are! If you have any other problems, please comment below, and I'll happily connect you with a copy.

Have a great week! Brenda