Faith of the Heart

(More pictures here)

Right now I am...

:: only halfway our vacation on Bali (I know, three weeks, it's a bit outrageous, but it was a great deal)

:: doing almost nothing besides sleeping, swimming and going for a (little) walk

:: having a bit of a sunburn going on, despite not being one to really bask in the sun. It's just that hot and sunny here

:: thinking that burn may soon become a nice tan

:: marvelling at how wonderful it is that we still have ten full days of Bali ahead of  us (and two days travelling)

:: looking forward to the two excursions we planned to see a little bit of the island

:: smiling at our trying to explore Denpasar on our own. It was a bit of a disaster (and I guess that's where my sunburn comes from - wandering around a big filthy city in the middle of the day), but it was fun to try it.

:: feeling a bit funny to admit that one of our favorite places to spent some hour at night (coming just after the seats on the beach where we sit and watch the stars) is an Irish pub. Yes, really. They have live music each night and some very nice people working there.

:: finding it hard to explain that the best band they have is called The Leprechauns, is playing Irish drinking songs (and other Irish songs and even a bit of U2). Not surprised? The band members are all Balinese. Really. But they do have the most wonderful Irish accent. On Bali everything is possible.

:: glad we finally found a restaurant that serves real Indonesian food. That's not so common in Sanur it seems. Most restaurants have  the same items on the menu: pizza, steaks and pasta. Oh, and we had some japanese too.

:: having very limited computer time (only when my husband needs to do some work, so let's hope it stays limited)

:: adding pictures tp my flickr set of Bali every few days

Right now I am...

:: wondering how it's possible that I've neglected this blog for two weeks now

:: falling off the bandwagon of taking daily pictures too

:: so very, very busy

:: and very, very tired

:: but leaving for a three week vacation on Bali this Friday (oh my, Bali!)

:: happy to report I have finished another of those short novels (#3), submitted a synopsis for a new one and got a go on it, submitted a synopsis on a longer novel with my other publisher and got a go on that one too.

:: still feeling blessed for reconnecting this morning with a friend after more than 20 years (we talked and talked and talked, just like we did when we were teenagers)

:: thinking I'm going to sleep and rest and sleep and rest and maybe see a bit of Bali too these coming weeks

:: telling you I will back here in June

:: wishing you all the very best

WEEKEND LINKS

This is how I write: Justine Musk :: I’ll be rocking out in my car and have that Eureka moment, when different ideas click together and boom.  You know it’s a book.

Life among books :: And then you realize: “they're really everywhere”.

An abandoned library :: So sad

Maisey Yates - All the things I have been pondering :: Writing is a business and you are a business person.

Works of fiction :: Any resemblance to actual relationships is lonely, wishful thinking.

Right now I am...

:: holding book #4 in my hands. I guess one never really gets used to that feeling. It's great!

Right now I am..

:: still looking at those geraniums waiting for me to plant them

:: not happy about all that rain lately

:: but looking forward to the next few weeks. Forecasts are good.

:: struggling with that third story.

:: relieved that I finally realized why I struggle with it so much.

:: admitting that I fell for the money-making part of this writing gig. I just forced out a synopsis and expected to be able to write it as fast as the other stories. But the difference is that those first two were coming from my heart. I made them fitting for the basic storyline I have to follow, but those were stories I wanted to tell anyway. Those women were alive in my mind.
The people I'm trying to write about now just aren't. Yet. Luckily a 400 word synopsis leaves me a lot of space to change things around. I'm going to think about these two women and find out what their inner conflicts are. That's what missing. Outer conflicts, check. Inner conflicts? Nope.
But I'll find out and then I won't struggle writing their story anymore.

Right now I am...

:: looking forward to a lazy weekend

:: in which I may try to catch up with some writing though. It's funny. Working in the weekend feels like a treat. I guess that's because it's really a choice

:: hoping I will remember the depth of the story I started last week. The headaches and the taxes drained every emotion out of it

:: knowing it will come back, it always does.

WEEKEND LINKS

I was posting this on my dutch (writer's) blog and realized my readers here might like these links too. I'm planning on posting a little list like this every Friday, with links on reading, writing and books. Provided I can find some, of course ;-)

The book of the future :: We are tired of reading on screens...

Writer, with Kids: Stephanie Pearl-McPhee :: Writer is not a synonym for stay-at-home parent.

Coffee talk with Danielle Steel :: I’ll confess. I am relentlessly organized, which can be very irritating to others. I plan months ahead.

The 20 Most Beautiful Bookstores in the World :: bookstores so beautiful they’re worth getting out of the house

Birth of a Book :: A short vignette of a book being created using traditional printing methods

Right now I am...

:: wondering where the week went. Is it really eight days since I last posted?

:: remembering it was a severe headache first, and doing (lots of) taxes after that

:: trying to catch up with housework, blogging, taking pictures and writing now

:: cheating a little on the pictures. I skipped a few days, but filled the gaps with pictures from other days. Oh well, making up my own rules here

:: longing to get back to writing

:: anticipating that box with my new book to arrive very soon

:: remembering now that before that headache started I was working on a routine (daily, weekly, monthly). I think I need to finish that now.

:: starting to get overwhelmed already thinking about all the things I need to do the next few weeks

:: thinking blogging may be scarce for a while longer

Right now I am...

:: still making those lists

:: wishing there were more hours in a day and more days in a week

:: trying to slow down and breathe

Right now I am...

:: enjoying all the signs of spring, even though it's cold and dark and rainy outside

:: slowly starting to realize that I'm at it again. I really need to remember that I am not superwoman. I can't do it all.

:: making lists of the things I want to do the coming weeks

:: crossing off the things that I can't possibly do

:: hoping to find some rest doing so