GIVEAWAY TIME!!!

WHO’S UP FOR A GIVEAWAY???

I hope you are, because I know I am.

I’m asking for your help to get me motivated and in return I’ll be giving away 1 free book of your choice, e-reader or paperback format, up to $10 value!

If you read my most recent blog post, you know the project I’m working on.  I’m excited about my new work station, but I need a little motivation to finish clearing out the extra bedroom so I can set up the treadmill in there.

So here’s the deal: You guys go get all the contest entries that you can through the Rafflecopter entry form and I’ll go try to clean out that darn room. The contest will end whenever I finish cleaning the room, could be sometime today or it could take me until Friday.

CLICK HERE TO START EARNING CONTEST ENTRIES!!!

 

Are you not on Facebook or Twitter??? Would you like to earn some bonus entries???

Here’s how:

1.      Go read my latest blog about this project and post a comment. Make sure to include your name so I know who you are.

2.      Send a short note of motivation or thought to my email. It’s lisaroyeaauthor@gmail.com

3.      Bonus entry for anyone who posts a comment on my Facebook post or wall.

Does that sound like fun to everyone? (It should, you’re not the one who has to clean out my extra bedroom.)  Best of luck to everyone!

2-18-13

Walking and Writing?

 So, recently a few events in my life coincided with each other and got me thinking.

--I listened to Taylor Swift’s new album.
--My place of employment started a friendly walking/exercise contest and my fellow call center gals and I decided to form a team and participate.
--I hit a rough patch of writer’s block and can’t seem to get past it.
--A conversation with a coworker made me remember something I used to do when studying and memorizing things for school.
--I listened to Taylor Swift’s new album (oh, wait, I know I already said that, but it’s really good and by now I’ve listened to it about 20 times.)

So now you’re wondering how these relate to each other and what it ultimately means.  Well, in that case, please allow me to explain.

First of all, I’ve been trying to get back into working out but have lacked the motivation and consistency.  When the opportunity came up to participate in a little competition I thought it was the perfect push I needed.  I’d be motivated because I wouldn’t be working out just for myself, it would be for the team, and of course I wouldn’t want to let my team down.  So far it’s been a very positive experience and really has helped me in many ways.  I’m now getting up an hour earlier in the morning to do the elliptical and using a pedometer to challenge myself to increase my steps throughout the day.  While this challenge has changed many aspects of my daily routine, it has not changed my evenings.  When I get home from work I still basically spend the rest of the night sitting on the couch and working on the computer.  Whether I’m writing, working on website stuff, or just surfing around on the web, I’m pretty much sedentary the whole time I’m home. Hhhhhmmmm, not really good.

I don’t remember exactly what sparked the conversation, but one of my fellow walkers/coworkers and I started talking about something and it made me remember something I used to do in grade school when I was trying to memorize definitions or vocabulary.  I used to walk circles around the kitchen table while repeating the words out loud.  Something about the repetition and movement helped me memorize and study.  Hhhhhmmmm, maybe I was on to something back then.

Writer’s block.  Well that doesn’t really need much explanation except that I know exactly what I’m going to write for chapters 7, 8, 9, etc…but can’t seem to finish chapter 6.

So back to my original point.  I may have found a solution.

What do you think? A treadmill work station?  I’m gonna have hubby make me one.  I know my walking won’t be as fast as it could and my typing won’t be as accurate as it should, but I think it just might work.  Maybe by being physically active while I’m trying to write will help get the creative juices flowing and keep me more active at the same time.  I guess we’ll see.  I should have it set up sometime this weekend and I’ll keep you posted on how it’s going.  But I’m curious on your thoughts.  Do you have anything you do to help you focus/de-stress/get creative/get healthy/etc.  I do believe that your physical body and your mental body affect one another equally.  I’d love to hear some of your thoughts.

Oh, and Taylor Swift???

She inspires me as a writer because I know she’s a writer as well.  I know many authors have a “playlist” that accompanies their book, songs that either inspired them or were part of their book.  I have many songs that I would include in the “playlist” for Coast to Coast but right now I only have one that I’d like to share.  It’s called The Last Time and it’s a duet with Gary Lightbody of Snow Patrol.  If you haven’t already heard it you should definitely give it a listen.  I'll try to share a link so you can give it a listen.  And I like that I’ll be able to listen to her, while I’m walking…and writing.  Hhhhmmm, maybe it’s not such a good idea for me to try and do so many things at one time :)

Taylor Swift - The Last Time (ft. Gary Lightbody) (Lyrics) (from Red)

Here it is. My new favorite Taylor Swift song. It's been an inspiration for my writing, but also just a song I love to listen to for the words and the instrumentals. Enjoy!

A New Excerpt from Chapter 1

A New Excerpt From Chapter 1

I asked you to share my stuff and spread it around and you did. I finally reached 100 likes, so as promised, here it is, anothor excerpt from Coast to Coast. 

Any of my lighthearted joy about heading to the beach tomorrow had evaporated the second I discovered how drunk Logan was.  I found him standing at the kitchen sink shoving potato chips in his mouth.  I dug in my purse for some aspirin and poured him a huge glass of water.

    “Take this and drink the whole cup.”  I put the aspirin in one of his hands and took the bag of chips out of his other.  He swallowed the aspirin and chugged half the glass of water. 

     “Now tell me what happened today.  Something had to happen to make you get like this.  This isn’t like you Logan.  Now spill it.”  He moved over to the couch and plopped down.

    “I blew the interview.  It was my last chance and I blew it.  I’m done with school and I have nothing.  Four years at Harvard and nothing.  My Dad’s gonna kill me.  He’ll say I wasted an Ivy League education.  Good for nothing, just like I always was.  I don’t know what made me think I was better than him.  What made me think I could ever escape Lemon Cove.  All I did was move thousands of miles away and spend thousands of dollars on tuition.  For what?  Emerson, what was I thinking?  Nothing.”  He closed his eyes and dropped his head back on the couch.  I hated when he got like this.  He’d get all down on himself and there was no talking him out of it.  When he was sober he was the most confident person I knew.  He could even be a little cocky sometimes.  But a few too many drinks and he just kept digging himself deeper and deeper in a whole. 

 “Come on Logan, let’s go to bed.  You’ll feel better after some sleep.  And don’t forget, every dark situation looks better in California sunshine.”  I winked my eye and smiled, hoping to get a little rise out of him.

      “FUCK that SHIT Emerson!  I can’t go running off on vacation with you when I have nothing.  This is my life that’s on the line.  I need an internship, a job, something.  I have to stay here and make that happen.  I don’t have time to go play with you on the beach.”  My eyes were wide with shock and tearing up.  I couldn’t breathe and my heart was pounding.  Logan had never yelled at me like that.  In fact, I’d never heard him yell like that ever, drunk or sober.  It scared me and made me angry at the same time. 

  “Well fine then Logan.  Fuck you too.  And just in case you need to be reminded it’s not just your life, it’s OUR life.”  I stormed into the bedroom, grabbed a pillow and blanket, and threw it out on the living room floor.  “Get used to it.  Looks like you’ll be alone all summer.  Oh no, I take that back, you’ll have your ego to keep you company.”  I slammed the bedroom door shut, flopped down on the bed, and let the tears flow.  How had all my plans changed so drastically since this morning?