Welcome to the end of another work week–the last work week of the year for those who are taking next week of to celebrate (or recuperate from) the holidays.

For those of you celebrating Christmas, I hope your presents are bought and wrapped; your refrigerators full; and none of your guests are stuck somewhere dealing with the recent spate of intense winter weather and flight cancellations.

The holidays managed to sneak up on me a bit and I had to make a dash to the grocery store earlier today for a few odds and ends.  Apparently I wasn’t the only one.  The store was full, though the shelves were fairly empty.  Fortunately, they had almost everything I needed.  Who knew green onions were such a hot item this time of year?

Currently, I have a few batches of cookies cooling in the kitchen, with a few more batches to make.  Can the holidays really be considered a success if there aren’t at least half-a-dozen different kinds of cookies?  I think not.

In between work, baking cookies, and keeping the puppy and her playmate from causing any permanent damage around the house, I’ll be enjoying some eggnog and giving today’s writing prompt and random words a try.

Care to join me?

For those of you working away on a story (whether a first draft or a polished version on its way to publication), if you’re not feeling random, we’d love to hear a bit – whether it’s a scene, a paragraph, or even a phrase that you are especially pleased with and would like to share.

If you don’t have a story in progress, or just want to work on something new, I hope either today’s random words or writing prompt will catch your creative fancy.

Ready?

Prompt:  “. . . let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.” 

Feel free to interpret the prompt any way you choose (or ignore it completely) and include any (or all) of the following random words:   

          stir                  milky             attempt            kitten

          guess              full                  cough              ingredient

          buffet             siege               convince          toothbrush

          brewery        challenge         crisp                shine

I look forward to seeing your stories in the comments.  If you’re not feeling in the writing mood today, or don’t have time, feel free to post suggestions you might have for future writing prompts.  Ideas are always welcome.

Happy writing to all!

Happy Friday!  I hope your week was a good one, with a minimum of trauma and a maximum of positive moments.  Here at the Writing Castle, the skies are blue, the sun is shining, and the yard has finally managed to drain away last week’s rain so that the puppy can play fetch without turning into a muddy-mess.  Always a feature!

For those looking for something to celebrate, today is “National Chocolate Covered Anything” day.  It’s also “National Ugly Christmas Sweater Day”, but I don’t recommend combining the two.   Chocolate makes almost everything better, but probably not an ugly sweater 🙂

No ugly sweaters here, though there is definitely chocolate.  I have a busy work day ahead (as always), but before the day is out I’ll be enjoying some chocolate and giving today’s writing prompt and random words a try.

Care to join me? Continue reading →

Welcome to the end of another work week.  The days are just flying by, aren’t they?  Or maybe it just seems that way to me because I have so many things left on my ToDo list and so little time left to check them all off this year.

Fortunately, I’ve managed to take care of a few important things like putting up the Christmas tree and at least some of the holiday decorations.  There’s something about being able to look over at a big sparkly tree during endless work meetings that just makes everything a little brighter.

The puppy is thrilled by the tree too, though that is less of a feature.  She finds the lights and garland fascinating and keeping her happy wagging tail away from the tree is likely to be an unachievable challenge.

For now though, all is well and the house has taken on a distinctly red/green hue.  

This past week was full of off-again-on-again rainy days and the weekend is supposed to be more of the same.  A perfect time to curl up with a cozy blanket and a warm, festive beverage and give this week’s writing prompt and random words a try.

Care to join me? Continue reading →

Happy Friday everyone.   I hope those who celebrated Thanksgiving last week had a wonderful time with good friends and good food, and no side-dish of trauma. 

With November having come to a close, it’s time for all of those who were participating in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) to take a breath and look at all you managed to accomplish in thirty days.  I hope your writing was successful, however you choose to define success, and that you’ll be inspired to keep writing.

Now that we’ve reached December it seems like the days are just flying by.  I’m slowly putting out some of my holiday decorations–at least the ones that are puppy-resident–though it still feels like it must be far too early (despite what the calendar might say).  

The weather is beautiful here right now, though still a bit soggy from yesterday’s rain storm.  Things should be dried out just in time for the next storm tomorrow.  Not that I’m complaining.  We definitely need the rain; it’s the muddy little doggy-footprints I could do without.  

Today is a busy work day, but whatever else I manage to get done (or not) I’ll be giving this week’s writing prompt and random words a try.

Care to join me? Continue reading →

Happy Friday and congratulations for making it through another week!  My week has passed in a blur of meetings, webinars, and endless phone calls.  I didn’t even realize it was Friday until I’d made it halfway through the day.  I definitely need a weekend!

For those of you who are participating in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), I hope your writing has been successful so far and you get your 1,6667 words for the day (more or less) on the page before the day is out.

The weather is beautiful here, though a bit chilly.  Should be perfect weather for me to do some fall cleanup and other assorted outdoor tasks this weekend.  I already made a start on putting up the outdoor holiday lights last weekend, but I need to get the rest up and then do some plant-trimming and mulching.

The fun never ends!

I may have gotten a late start today, but whatever else I manage to get done (or not) I’ll be giving this week’s writing prompt and random words a try.

Care to join me? Continue reading →

Happy Veterans Day–and thanks to those who have served and those currently serving.  My parents were both in the service during WWII and I found some old snapshots of them today, looking impossibly young in their uniforms.  I remember playing dress-up in one of my dad’s old navy uniforms when I was a kid, though I never remember either parent ever talking about their time in the service.

For those of you who are participating in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), I hope your writing has been successful so far and you get your 1,6667 words for the day (more or less) on the page before the day is out.

I’m not NaNoWriMo-ing this year, instead I’m spending my time doing home repairs and the thousand and one things that always seem to be on the ToDo list of a homeowner.  The puppy is doing her best to help–or more accurately, to get in the way whenever possible–so progress is not as fast as I’d like.  At least I can’t complain that there’s nothing to do.

Whatever else I manage to get done today–with our without the puppy’s assistance–I’ll be giving this week’s writing prompt and random words a try.

Care to join me? Continue reading →

Happy Friday!  For those of you who are participating in National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), I hope your writing is off to a good start and you get your 6,667 words (more or less) on the page before the day is out.

I’m not NaNoWriMo-ing this year, though I have in the past, with 2 1/2 completed manuscripts to show for it.  This year, with a high-energy puppy in the house–who thinks all time should be spent either eating, sleeping, or playing fetch–writing has had to take a temporary back seat.  Best of luck to all of you writing out there!  I’m hoping to do a delayed NaNoWriMo in February, when the demands on my time have slowed a bit (fingers-crossed).

Meanwhile, I’m currently bundled up on the couch while working, since the house thermostat registered 56 degrees this morning.  Fortunately, the puppy is cuddled up next to me asleep and radiating like a little living space heater.  I have a full work-day ahead of me, but this evening I’ll be giving this week’s writing prompt and random words a try.

Care to join me? Continue reading →

Happy last-Friday in October.  If you don’t have your costume ready and pumpkins carved for Monday, you have a whole weekend left to get ready.

If Halloween isn’t your thing, today is “National Chocolate Day“–a day celebrating all things chocolate, which is something I can definitely get behind. Research suggests that chocolate, when eaten in moderation, can lower blood pressure–just in case you need a reason to eat some.

My current favorite chocolates are dark-chocolate-lemon-cremes from Ethel M Chocolates.  Sadly, I don’t currently have any of those, so I may have to settle for a Kit Kat bar instead, filched out of the Halloween candy bowl.

Halloween preparations and chocolate celebrations aside, once my work day is over I’ll be giving this week’s writing prompt and random words a try.

Care to join me? Continue reading →

Happy “National Color Day”–a day that focuses on the impact color has on each of us.  Nature seems to be a big fan of this day, from the beautiful leaves falling from the trees to the colorful pots of chrysanthemums for sale at the local garden stores.

My yard is getting into the swing of things with sunny yellow lemons and a range of colorful late blooming roses, though with the puppy around, things are predominately dirty (sometimes muddy) brown.

It won’t be long before the fall colors transition in to the red and green of December.  I noticed one of my neighbors putting up their holiday lights just last week.  Talk about an early bird!  For now, I’ll just concentrate on enjoying all of the fall colors (and attempting to keep the dirt in the yard instead of the house).

The ToDo list for this weekend is just packed, but somewhere along the line I’ll be giving this week’s writing prompt and random words a try.

Care to join me? Continue reading →

Happy “World Smile Day”–a day devoted to smiles and spreading random acts of kindness.  That sounds like just the ticket to counteract the negativity that seems to be sprouting up like weeds.

“On World Smile Day, people worldwide are encouraged to do an act of kindness and make one person smile. Each year the Harvey Ball World Smile Foundation holds special events on World Smile Day. The day is wildly popular in Worcester, MA, the birthplace of the yellow smiley face.

In 1963, Harvey Ball created the familiar yellow smiley face. A commercial artist from Massachusetts, Harvey Ball, created the smiley face design for a State Mutual Life Insurance company campaign. Ball aimed to spread goodwill and cheer throughout the world with his smiley face.”

Hopefully, everyone will get a chance to celebrate the day one way or another.  I’ll do my part, once I get a chance to leave the house, but first, I’m going to see what kind of smile I can get out of today’s writing prompt and random words.

Care to join me? Continue reading →