Good morning, Lisa. I'm so glad you agreed to join us today. I LOVE your covers.
Would you believe the temps in Georgia are downright chilly? Seems like a good idea to start the day with day for the fireplace , hot tea, and warm slippers.
Glamorous Writer’s Life by Lisa Mondello
Hello, everyone and a big thank you to the Pink Fuzzy Slippers Writers for hosting me here today. My name is Lisa Mondello and I am really excited about meeting all of you.
To get the conversation going, I want to encourage you to comment and one lucky person will receive ALL THREE books in my Fate with a Helping Hand Series which includes:
All I Want for Christmas is You http://amzn.com/B005KDG236
The Marriage Contract http://amzn.com/B005LSCKD6
and The Knight and Maggie's Baby http://amzn.com/B005K0ECFY
Today I’m going to talk about the glamorous life of a writer. You know how it is. We all have housekeepers who make our houses spotless while we sit in our huge beautifully decorated offices (boa wrapped around our neck) drinking Manhattans and eating chocolate as the words just flow from our fingers right on the computer screen.
Get real. THAT only happens in the movies. If you’re lucky enough to have a housekeeper, my hat is off to you. I wish. If the kids drop dishes in the sink, (or the counter…or the kitchen table…they’re staying there until my scene is written, which may or may not happen before Project Runway is on, depending on how busy the day is. (Thank God for the DVR!)
I don’t own a boa and would hate one wrapped around my neck as I type. In truth my writing day looks more like this…
6:00AM Get up with the kids, put on coffee, make sure every has what they need before they head out the door.
6:30AM Kids are on the school bus. I’m searching the house for “hairball presents” the cat left me during the night. Then check the front porch for any “other” cat presents. (Oh, joy, the dead rodent is the reason why my daughter screamed on her way to the bus.)
7:00AM I’m cleaning breakfast dishes (which means the kitchen will be clean until 2:30 when the kids get home), picking up the pile of clothes my daughters decided not to wear after 10 wardrobe changes and straightening the bathroom sink of makeup, hair products and electrical hair appliances. (Yes, that’s plural!)
8:00AM Sitting at my computer and drinking my first cup of coffee which is already getting cold and bitter because I made the pot at 6:00AM.
9:30AM Done with emails, Twitter, Facebook, and putting out any fires that need to be put out. Make a second pot of coffee.
10:00AM Deep into my WIP.
11:00AM Letting the dog outside because he’s whining at the door.
11:15AM Letting the dog back in because he’s whining outside the door.
11:30AM Yelling at the cat because I can hear him scratching the couch.
12:00PM Making my bed because the dog AND the cat want to sleep on it while I write. (Did I mention my “office” is in my bedroom? No glam office for me.)
12:30PM Having a fight with the cat because he insists on jumping on my desk and sleeping in front of the monitor. I lose, so I take a break for lunch.
1:00PM Cat is snoozing under my desk and dog is snoozing by my feet. I am writing.
2:05PM I jump in the shower. (Unless I’m on a deadline. Then all bets are off. Can’t waste precious time before kids get home.)
2:30PM Kids get off the school bus and start asking me to take them (Fill in the Blank).
The rest of the afternoon is usually a mix of driving kids to work or boyfriend’s houses and then picking people up. I make dinner, that is if I wasn’t smart enough to put something in the crock pot that morning. Have dinner with whichever member of the family happens to be home at the time. Clean up and then sit back down at the computer to get whatever writing time I can squeeze in before tackling laundry.
I can almost guarantee your life is more glamorous than mine. No? Make me feel better and tell me what your glamorous day, writing or otherwise, is like!
I love hearing from readers so you can email me at LisaMondello@aol.com, visit me at http://www.lisamondello.blogspot.com and find me on Twitter at @LisaMondello.
Thank you again to the Pink Fuzzy Slipper Writers for having me here today!
Welcome, Lisa! Glad to have you here. Your covers for your books are wonderful, with enticing titles. Luckily, my children are grown, so my schedule isn't as limited as yours. But constant interruptions still persist. If the phone rings while I'm in the "zone", I am so disoriented that I must seem totally stupid as I try to get my bearings. Who? What? Where? LOL
Judy, you sound like me! Thanks for the compliments on my covers. I love these books. They're fun and sweet and there's just something about the hero that is so yummy!
Good morning, Lisa and Judy!
And I thought my day was hectic starting at 6:30 AM to go to my full-time job. You've got me beat! Glad you can squeeze time to write your interesting books!
I can only help with the cat issue. I have three, one who is a 25-pound Maine Coon who thinks he's petite.....he is deadly afraid of aerosol spray. Try that. Just a little squirt of air freshener and the hissing sound send him scrambling. Buys me a good two hours every time.
Glad to have you here, Lisa. I can totally relate to your hectic lifestyle. Though my two children are both grown, my daughter is deployed with the military so I'm taking care of my two grandsons. I don't have the energy I used to have. By five o'clock I'm exhausted. Which means If I want to write I'd better do it before the boys come home from school at 3:00. Then it's "Grandma, can I have this? Grandma, help me with this? Grandma-grandma-grandma." Good thing I love the little rascals.
Thanks for the advice, Jana! I tried the spray bottle with water and he just licks his face and looks at me like, "Keep it coming." I think I fixed the problem. At least for the cat. He hates rock n' roll. So I'm blasting tunes while I write. He ran into the other room.
Pamela, bless you! I raised my niece and nephew in addition to my two girls. They're all "almost" grown, but that doesn't mean mommy isn't needed desperately! Glad you can still find your writing time in there. In addition to the housecleaner I want a chef. I hate trying to think up dinner ideas when I'm on deadline. Thank goodness the pizza place in town delivers.
Hi Fuzzies!
Ahh, the cat present. My favorite is the lizard tail. Just the tail. Fortunately, the current cat is so pitiful on the hunting front that the local birds will fly down and hop around her, taunting. And then they get bored with her lack of catly response and kinda forget she's there. And then she falls asleep. Welcome, wildlife, to the safe zone!
--Liz
Hi Lisa,
Ha - I'm with you on the glam life.
One son is in college, which means he's in&out, in&out, eating, asking me to do laundrey, eating some more...
#2 son is in highschool, in band, in xcountry, in any & every activity he can possibly be in.
It's a revolving door around here-- And when one of them's gone too long, my neurotic cat, Duchess, meeeoowwws a never ending loop. She tolerates me for food - it's the boys she loves.
Your books look yummy - thanks for the opportunity!
Lisa, I admire how much you accomplish with small children around! And teens? Good grief. :-) Your blog was great. I can really identify with the dog and the cat.
Very nice blog :-)
Hi Lisa, and welcome!
No, I don't think there is anything glam about our job. I mean who works this hard, for so little, if any pay? My cleaning lady makes more money than I do--wa,wa, wa. But on the other hand, this is way more fun, and I wouldn't want to do anything else.
We love writing, it's in our genetic make-up, or we'd have long by now given it up. When the children are grown, life will get a little easier for writing, but the hectic pace makes it more interesting.
My glamorous life consists of juggling my day job, my writing job, and housework. Fortunately, they all happen at home. :)
Sometimes my cat adds to the chaos by bringing a not-yet-dead present indoors. She'll hunt anything - mice, birds, lizards, chipmunks, baby squirrels... Sometimes we manage to deprive her of her prey, sometimes not.
Hey, Lisa. Welcome to the PFS. I love your post. It's honest. Exactly the way my day goes, including the dog. How do we manage to produce pages? One brilliant line at a time. I figure 20,000 of them and I have a book. LOL.
Lisa, welcome to the pink fuzzies! We are pleased to have you visit with us and share the details of your busy day. Love your covers!
Patrice, I have cleaning lady envy.
Liz, a lizard tail? Ugh!!
Pamela, your life does sound a lot like mine!!
Regina, my kids aren't small any more. But I actually think it was easier when they WERE small. I could put them to bed and write at night. Now they're up late and always need my advice about hair styles and clothes.
Barbara, full time job, writing job and housework is enough to fill up anyones day. You're a busy girl!
Autumn, I love that. "One brilliant line at a time." Although I admit I'm not always convinced of the brilliant part while I'm writing a draft.
Scarlett, thanks for the compliment on the covers!
Hi Lisa, your name is familiar. I think I saw you on a different loop. A late welcome to the PFS. My Internet was down all day--grinding teeth here.
Your bookcovers are gorgeous. I am sure your books are as lovely. My kids are married but that doesn't mean I have free time. Hey I love the grandchildren, except when they touch a key on my computer, and reverse the screen. Because I'm retired now, I am busier than when I was working fulltime. I often fight sleep till 2 am to be able to write. Yes, a writer's life is hectic.
Congratulations to Liz Jasper who won yesterday's contest. Email me and tell me which file type you'd like me to send the books in.
Thank you all for having me here!
Lisa
Welcome, Lisa, to the Pink Fuzzies. Your blog sounds just like how some of my days go. Once my 16 year old daughter gets home from school, my writing is done for the day. She always has drama to share.