Got there in the end!

Whoo hoo! After being persistent and chasing up an article I sent off to a new Californian magazine eighteen months ago, I have finally received a copy and a nice, fat cheque!

The article looks fabulous. They changed the title though [which is nothing unusual] from 'Nine Energy Drainers' to 'Detox Your Life', which I think sounds great.

The magazine, Ocean Magazine, is quite modern looking and features well-toned, tanned young people looking a picture of good health!

I've written to thank them at the magazine and asked if they are looking for any more articles. You never know, 'Strike while the iron is hot!' As they say!

A Taste of Honey, my romantic comedy will be released by Samhain Publishing in April. I have already discussed the cover and hope that it will be cartoon like. I have seen covers by the artist I like there, Scott Carpenter. Here are a couple of his [above].

I hope he will be assigned as my cover artist!

Getting fit to lose the fat!

Well, I've started on #3 of my 'No New Year's Resolutions For Me!' post and that is to look after my health. So even though I am not actually on a diet as such, I am trying to eat more healthily and exercise a lot more.

Yesterday, I took the dogs for a one hour walk up the mountain in the middle of some torrential rain and wind! I was soaked through to the skin, this wasn't helped by Millie and Danny [the Border Collies - mother and son] going missing. My one dread is that they could run off and find some sheep to chase in a field some place and get shot. The trouble where I live is that the livestock tend to get moved around from field to field and so when you think there aren't any sheep or cows around and you leave the dogs off the lead, you might well find out that there are. I try to be so careful by putting them back on their leads in plenty of time, but yesterday I got caught out. Luckily, they came back from where ever they had got to and so we were all able to walk home together.

I don't want to bore you too much with my healthy eating plans, but suffice to say I did very well yesterday and so far today. I am conjuring up new recipes in my mind. Recipes of my favourite dishes that are less in fat and more fulfilling.

Today I made some 'pizza toasts' for lunch.

Ingredients:
Two wholemeal slices of bread
Extra virgin olive oil
Tomato Puree
Small tin of tuna
Four black olives

Method:
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees, [ gas mark 6]
Lay slices of bread on a baking tray and drizzle olive oil over tops
Spread liberally with tomato puree
Spoon pieces of tuna on top
Slice olives in half and place 4 on each slice
Bake for 15-20 minutes

When cooked, slice each pizza into four
Devour with relish!

Sales, Sales, Sales!

No, not booksales, but The Sales! I went shopping in Newport at the weekend with my mother and daughter, Leyna, and was delighted to find a jade-green silk dress that I fancied last year at Monsoon. Originally, it was £85.00, then before Christmas a sinch at £42.50, but I managed to bag it for a mere, £22.50! I think it will be a good investment as it's the style of dress that I can wear at Christmas or even in the summer to a wedding or a party.

At the moment, it's still raining buckets in Merthyr and it's getting me down. It's not so much the rain itself but the way that the days are just so dark and depressing. Oh, to suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder, it's not very nice. I'll be glad when it's spring and I can stop taking the St. John's Wort.

I don't know about you, but I also find the end of Christmas when the decorations are brought down a real anti-climax, perhaps we all need a little something around this time to put a bit of light back in our lives.

No New Year's Resolutions for me!

Well, there'll be no New Year's Resolutions for me! Why? I hear you asking. Because I always break the damn things!

When I'd look back at my old childhood diaries, I'd always see the same old resolutions in the front:

1. I will not swear

2. I will not be cheeky to my mother

3. I will not eat sweets

I once managed not to utter a swear word for a whole week back then, but invariably, resolution #2 and #3 were broken by January the second.

So this year, I am setting myself some goals again:

1. To polish off my work in progress and submit to a BIGGER publisher.

2. To finish writing that book I'm 2/3 of the way through before I put it aside to start on my NanoWrimo book [which incidentally, is the book mentioned in my first goal.

3. To be as healthy as possible. No, I am not going to say that I should lose 2 stone [even if I should!] I know I won't. But I can eat more healthily, walk more, go for more health check ups etc.

4. To keep drinking alcohol. No, I am not giving it up. I always say I will, but I don't. So instead, I will resolve to drink less and ensure I have at least 2 alcohol free days per week.

5. Not to make any New Year's Resolutions