I had an absolutely wonderful time at the new venue, the food was exceptional (that chocolate cake, am I right?), and fun times were had at the after party. I met so many cool authors! I'm proud of our talented writing group, Tipsy Typers - we took 1st, 2nd, and 3rd places at the event!
On the big screen.
The Short Story Category
First and 3rd place winner!
Tipsy Typers Unite!For June, I'll be intertwining my author alphabet reading challenge with the 2026 Adult Summer Reading Book Bingo hosted by Seattle Arts and Lectures, King County Library, and Seattle Public Library. It runs from May 22 to September 8, 2026. Happy reading ya'll!
2.) World of Wonders by Aimee Nezhukumatathil (SAL Speaker - past or present)
3.) The September House by Carissa Orlando (Horror)
Crutch...filler...weasel...nuisance. These are names editors and authors give to words that are overused in a manuscript. See the long list below of words that often-not-always confuse the message, are redundant within a sentence, and/or are repetitive on the page. Since I've recently typed THE END on my fourth YA romance, I'm ready to do a search-and-destroy mission on these in the name of revisions. Each instance will get reviewed to see what works, what gets reworded, and what simply gets wiped clean.
It's always interesting to see how many times a word/phrase gets used. Which of these will get the "weasel" award this time around?
A
Again, Almost, Always, And then, Anything, At last
B
Big, Both
C, D, E
Else, Enormous, Even, Every, Everything
F
Finally, Find
G
Giant, Grin, Great
H
Hard, Huge
I, J
Just
K
Know
L
Large, Like, Little, Long, Look
M
Massive, Maybe, Merely, Mostly
N
New, Nod
O
Of the, Of them, Once, Others
P
Perhaps
Q, R, S
See, Seem, Seems like, Shrug, Small, Smile, So, Something, Sometimes, Soft, Still, Strange, Strong, Suddenly, Surely
T
That, Then, There, There were, Thick, Thin, Thing, Think, Tiny
U
Understand
V
Vast,Very
W, X, Y, Z
Watch, Weak, Weird, Wide, Wonder
RESOURCES (with AMZ links):
1.) Stacia Leigh at Espial Design: What Good Are Crutch Words?
2.) Refuse to Be Done: How to Write and Rewrite a Novel in Three Drafts by Matt Bell
3.) Editing Made Easy: Simple Rules for Effective Writing by Bruce Kaplan
The pitter-patter of April showers is the perfect sign to start something new: sci-fi rom, comic, memoir. This month's reading challenge is to read authors whose last names start with alphabet letters J-K-L. The goal is to stay dry, get cozy, and peruse the bookshelves...
Here's the line up on my side (with AMZ links included):
1.) The Loneliest Girl in the Universe by Lauren James
2.) The Human Target by Tom King
3.) My View from the Back of the Bus by Merritt D. Long
Here's the line up (with AMZ links included):
1.) The Luxe by Anna Godbersen
2.) The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins
3.) Black Woods, Blue Sky by Eowyn Ivey
Bonus "G" is The Easter Bunny Mix-Up by Sonja N. Griffing
Happy Valentine's Month! Treat yourself this February by reading authors whose names start with the letters D-E-F. Also to mean: Deliberately Engaging Fiction!
Here's the line up (with AMZ links included):
1.) Waiter Rant by Steve Dublanica
2.) Manhunt by Janet Evanovich
3.) The Guest List by Lucy Foley
Bonus "D" read: Killer Bait: A Clarity Bloom Humorous Mystery by Martina Dalton.
Bonus "E" read: Bad Dreams in the Night: Horror Stories by Adam Ellis and The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens
I'm getting a late start for this month's reading challenge. Normally, I would've skipped it, but I became aware of a friend's author alphabet challenge (Kim Clarke Books) and decided to participate alongside her with books from my TBR shelf. Time to whittle at it as part of my downsizing campaign: Read 'em and then send them out the door to a Little Free Library in the wild.
Here are the ABCs from my TBR (with AMZ links included) LOL:
1.) The Noticer by Andy Andrews
2.) Just Stab Me Now by Jill Bearup
3.) Life Lessons: 125 Prayers and Meditations by Julia Cameron
Bonus "B": I also read a childrens picture book called Out of the Blue by Rebecca Bach-Lauritsen.
