In the past six months I started listening to country music again. And while I enjoy a good male singer/group as much as the next chick, all the songs start to sound similar. There is lots of “hey baby, let me take you down by the creek.” Um, ew. There are skeeters down there. Below is a Sam Hunt song that exemplifies my point. (And I also put it on here because it is a very hot song 😉 )
So, somehow all this inspired me to write my own country song, trying not to sound too much like “Girl in a Country Song” by Maddie and Tae or “Guys Do It All The Time” by Shania.
I apologize in advance. Just be thankful you are not here for me to sing it to you…
Country Girl (At Heart)
You drive up to my front porch
A cloud of dust billows up from the drive
All over my T-shirt
I climb up into your pickup truck
You want to take me down
To the old mill pond
For some kissing and cuddling after dark
But let me tell you boy, why that’s just whack
I love NASCAR on a Sunday
I grew up on Jones & Straight
I like to listen to a freight train thunder down the rails on a dark night
But fish are icky
The woods have bugs
Tailgates are lumpy
And I can’t be trusted with a gun
But I am a Country Girl at heart
I wasn’t born in the South
But my neck is red
I grew up in a trailer
But I ain’t trash
I’m not model pretty
So I might as well be pretty weird
Maybe you will find it endearing
But remember I’d rather play Skee ball
Than go skeet shootin’ cuz
I love NASCAR on a Sunday
I grew up on Jones & Straight
I like to listen to a freight train thunder down the rails at night
But fish are icky
The woods have bugs
Tailgates are lumpy
And I can’t be trusted with a gun
But I am a Country Girl at heart
I don’t need fancy parties
I’m allergic to designer clothes
I love a big tractor
As it works long hours on a brown fall day
I love wide open fields
And the sight of a barn with no decay
The simple beauty of a dusty sunset
Shared with a guy in a t-shirt & jeans
And a backwards hat for easier kissing
I love NASCAR on a Sunday
I grew up on Jones & Straight
I like to listen to a freight train thunder down the rails at night
But fish are icky
The woods have bugs
Tailgates are lumpy
And I can’t be trusted with a gun
But I am a Country Girl at heart
But I am a Country Girl at heart
My country heart
Follow the romantic entanglements of The Riley Sisters in my books: The Wind Could Blow a Bug – AVAILABLE NOW! When You Least Expect It – NEW RELEASE! Be Careful What You Wish For – COMING JANUARY 2016!
During the summer, my son became obsessed with Back to the Future Part III, because he loved the train at the end. In fact, usually he would only watch the end of the movie just to see the steam engine.
But in the months since, we showed him the other Back to the Future movies as well. He learned who Michael J. Fox was. My husband and I are not the only children of the 1980s that expose our children to the things we loved. My 4 3/4year-old son M’s BFF is heavily into Ghostbusters.
I must admit, I was a little sad that my son was in love with a 30 year-old movie. He would never be able to see the toys in the stores, or it talked about or advertised on television. Memes would be rarely seen on Facebook.
My son expressed interest in being either Marty McFly or Gizmo from Gremlins for Halloween. I gently ushered his taste toward McFly.
We took a trip up north to Mackinac Island. The first moment we walked onto the street, he saw some horses hitched up to a carriage. M pointed out that it looked like in Back to the Future III when Doc and Marty hooked up the DeLorean to horses to try to get it up to 88mph.
“Oh, I guarantee you that you will not see a DeLorean anywhere on this island. I bet you a million dollars right now that we won’t find one.”
I owe my son a million dollars. Not only did one of the stores on Main Street have ReAction figures by Funko, but also a Funko Pop DeLorean collectable.
Soon after we learned of the impending “Back to the Future Day”, October 21, 2015. It is the day that Marty McFly arrived in the future in Back to the Future Part II. It is the date furthest in the future within the movie franchise. (Now everything in the movies takes place in the past 😦 ) Having already assembled M’s costume for Halloween, I sent him to preschool that day in the most comfy aspects of it. And Back to the Future was ALL OVER television and social media that day. (Are you getting the “never say never” vibe yet?)
Ahead of Halloween, we also wanted to go to a trick or treating event that our local zoo holds, called Pumpkin Path. While his Marty outfit is so McFly, I just couldn’t help but think it would benefit from a DeLorean.
Marty McFly & his girlfriend Jennifer. Anyone even know what her last name is in the movie???
Sometimes, I get these ideas in my had that bang around and won’t go away until I create them. Sometimes it is a mix tape, sometimes a book or a blog post. This time it was an idea to build a DeLeroan treat bucket. It is based off the first DeLorean that Einstein tests, and Marty goes back to 1955 in. Don’t tell me it is missing Mr. Fusion, cuz it ain’t that version!
I will show you the process below. I had no plan from the Internet and no sketches, just the vision in my head. I picked a box that I believed when altered, would be roughly the right shape and size. Incidentally, it started off as a 11″ x 9 1/2″ x 5″ Hot Wheel shipping box. I had to cut down the width, and reattach one of the sides.
Other materials needed:
silver duct tape
black duct tape
black Sharpie marker
silver Sharpie marker
brass fasteners (the longer the prongs, the better)
scrap cardboard
something round for the trunk area (I used a 2 3/4″ Rubbermaid food storage lid)
I duct taped most of the interior first to make it water-resistant, as it tends to rain or snow in our neighborhood on Halloween.
Cut off one side of box, refolded to desired shape.
Interior taping, removed side about to be reattached.
Attach wheels with brass fasteners before entirely taping it together. It is easier that way. Handle lays nearby.
Fully-taped front
Fully-taped back. Note the circle, which is actually a Rubbermaid lid.
Handle attached with brass fasteners.
Finished side. The tire rims really give it a finished, slick look.
Finished front. Don’t forget the DMC logo!
Finished rear. I found some details were easier to draw than make.
NOTE: My treat bucket is designed for maximum cuteness and a little bit of ruggedness. It will not hold a typical 90 minutes of T-or-T loot. We are planning on taking an additional bag to move the overflow into.
I wanted to post this ahead of Halloween so that people could reference this post for costume and/or DeLorean ideas.
Marty without his coats on.
Follow the romantic entanglements of The Riley Sisters in my books: The Wind Could Blow a Bug – AVAILABLE NOW! When You Least Expect It – NEW RELEASE! Be Careful What You Wish For – COMING JANUARY 2016!
I needed a binder to hold some paperwork the other day for my book business that my husband doesn’t officially recognize as a business. I rummaged through my recently-organized stockpile of previously-used office supplies.
You will never guess what I found.
My college binder with bitchin’ graffiti
I found this binder from college. Appears as though I used it for Independent Study for English. But also lots and lots of doodling.
The doodling doesn’t surprise me. No, I remember that is how I primarily occupied my time during boring lectures and long periods of time stuck in the college library waiting for a ride as a commuter with no car.
What surprised me is the subjects of my doodles! These are all things I am still interested in today, almost 20 years later, most of which I have written about on this very blog. I guess my tastes are pretty locked in.
My personal cartoon character Mr. Ugly-Man is prominently featured–he even gets his own amusement park, complete with imitation Disney characters! (If you have ever picked up a print copy of one of my books, you will notice that he is on the back cover.)
There is also an Oscar Mayer Wienermobile on there, next to a booth selling 10 cent wieners. Because we all know that wiener sounds more perverse than “hot dog.” This also reflects my obsession to one day drive the Wienermobile. Hasn’t happened yet, but I don’t think I’m done trying. And I might not be above a little grand theft wiener. (Hehehehe. That is so dirty to say!)
I have a thing for old Coca-Cola merchandise and advertisements, even back when I drank Pepsi and Mountain Dew all the time. That is why the sunshine is wearing sunglasses and holding a Coke. It is very similar to a postcard that I own that I bought in a tourist shop in Knoxville and the store bagged my purchase in a World’s Fair bag, even though I was there more than a decade after the Knoxville World’s Fair when they built the Sunsphere, but it always makes me think of the episode of the Simpsons where Bart goes to the “Wigsphere.”
Wigsphere. I mean Sunsphere, far right. I mean left.
And then we come to a picture of Jeff Gordon. There is a possibility this could be from 1997, the year he won his second Winston Cup Championship. It is so hard to believe he is retiring this year. It seems like just a few months ago that I saw him in person in his hometown of Pittsboro, Indiana.
Oh wait, it was!
At least I am staying true to who I am. I guess if that is the best I can do in life, I will take it!
Why are there no Narwhal icons?
Follow the romantic entanglements of The Riley Sisters in my books: The Wind Could Blow a Bug – AVAILABLE NOW! When You Least Expect It – NEW RELEASE! Be Careful What You Wish For – COMING JANUARY 2016!
Attending the Great Lakes Book Bash a few weeks ago as an author signing at the event, it hit me how lucky I am to finally be doing what I should have been doing all along. Even if I never get past publishing three books (which I sure hope-to-shout I do, as more stories are in my head, pushing every day to get out), being able to produce something I am proud of and being able to semi-easily get it out in front of people is awesome! (Still working on how to get my books in front of the RIGHT people, but, all in good time, I guess…)
I feel like there are people along the way who were instrumental at me getting to this point, and they probably are not even aware of it. I feel like now might be the time to give them shout-outs. It wouldn’t be possible to do them justice in the back of a paperback on the flat page–I require links and multi-media.
I have already blogged about past teachers, such as dear Mrs. Raines who gave me my all-time favorite book way back in 2nd grade and dear Mr. Clark who put up with my crazy, even making me co-editor of the school newspaper when I never would have selected myself for such a job.
I feel like I should also mention my asbestos friend. We were writing buddies in 8th grade, and we still are now. (And I’m not sure my subject matter has changed all that much 😉 ) Extra kudos to her for being my beta reader. And apparently Linus to my Charlie Brown.
My best friend was fundamental to my development as well, although we enjoyed more art and drawing together than words. I don’t draw much anymore. But I love to do off-beat craft projects, such as Werecart creation and mystical giraffe repair. The skills I honed around her have now been funneled into logo, advertisement, and marketing materials.
Mixed media table display for The Riley Sisters series.
In college one day I was talking with the head of the English department. He realized I had taken a butt-ton of classes in his area. He asked me why I didn’t minor in English. I said I wasn’t really interested in any of the higher level classes, which I would need for it to be an official minor on my transcript and all that. He suggested I just take an independent study with him. A class where all I do is write whatever I want to? Awesome! Too bad the story I worked on that semester sucked. But it was nice for someone to have yet again directed me closer to something I was already interested in. It seemed like most of school was crap I would never use again. (Algebra, I am talking about YOU!)
I was never a big reader (don’t be so shocked). I was always in love with television and the stories it told and the visual and aural (get your mind out of the gutter) experiences it could offer. If I grew up in today’s bounty of technology, I would probably be making programs on YouTube now rather than books. After all, Radio and TV production is what my bachelor’s degree is in.
Somehow “bachelor’s degree” made me think of Bachelor Chow from Futurama.
Speaking of which, I guess I should thank Steve in the Communications department of my alma mater for giving me A’s, and the delusion that I could create my own Riley Sisters series book teaser trailer. Blame him. It was great fun to make though! Click on the link below.
I did have plans to become a writer. When I got my first big grown-up job, I even bought myself a Word Processor. (It was 1999. I didn’t know any better.) I sat in front of it, and realized writing was hard. So, I made a conscious decision to give up that dream… until years later when I would learn that I must write because I can’t not write.
I should thank the now-defunct Borders, for providing me with invaluable book industry knowledge that I learned through osmosis from all those in cubicles near me (or those who were in cubes further away and were just loud). I got to experience first hand the evolving business of books, and the dire consequences of falling behind. I began my current venture with more awareness about the industry than many do.
And thank you to my green-haired friend and my crazy friend, my co-workers along the way, who kept reminding me daily how much I loved to write. Whether it was a fresh-off-the-presses poem I wrote, one they composed, or just reciting song lyrics to one another, they were continuous reminders of how much the written word touches our lives every day. (If I could say that about Borders, they might still be in business.) Creativity, in any form, is essential to our lives on this planet.
I didn’t really read, and find out what I liked to read, until I got my own apartment in June of 1999… and had no television for a month. I read a lot of books in that time. And I fell in love with Gaia from the Fearless series by Francine Pascal. For more on them, click here: https://imnotstalkingyou.com/2012/03/14/fearless/ While all the books are not cohesive (and I don’t even think they are all penned by Ms. Pascal), they drew me in and kept me hooked. I have been primarily a YA fan ever since.
But I never imagined I could write one until I read a little book called Twilight that changed my life in a lot of ways. For more about my Love of Twilight, start with this post: https://imnotstalkingyou.com/2012/11/08/love-of-twilight-part-1-the-books/ Some people skewered it for not being a tome of high-brow literature. But that is not what it was ever intended to be. And that is exactly what I found accessible about it. It seemed like something my asbestos friend and I could have written. This opened my options back up to writing again, but I still wasn’t actually doing it more than in my dream journal. For more on the dream journaling, click here: https://imnotstalkingyou.com/2012/11/01/dreams-part-one-dream-journal/
I would never have a blog if it wasn’t for my former co-worker Dane. One day he mentioned that he had one, and I was fascinated. Anybody could get one of those? And FOR FREE? I pondered it for several weeks before I took the leap. What would I write about? Would I run out of things? The answer to the second question is apparently “no”, as it is now 4 1/2 years later. And the blog, well, that kept me writing until a big idea struck me, and then I had a book. And another. And another. And it is all Dane’s fault, because he had a blog and I wanted to copy him.* It is one of my fondest memories of him. That, and the time I was in a meeting sitting next to him and I felt my in utero son kick for the first time. That was just a coincidence, I think.
And thank you to my sister-in-law who, when I told her that I thought I might be writing a book after we had gone to a showing of the movie Safe Haven, didn’t laugh at me. She was one of the first people I told. That was The Wind Could Blow a Bug.
The Wind Could Blow a Bug by Jennifer Friess
Thank you to my dog Dave for letting me pet her furry long orange coat when the anxiety gets to be too much. She just senses when I need her. Except if she is sleeping really soundly–she is coming up on 13 years old, after all. She is never allowed to die. She knows this. I tell her every day.
Rub mah bellah!
Of course I have to thank my son and husband for putting up with my fits when the computer breaks or I cannot find something and my whole world seems to be falling apart. And a million other things that can’t all be listed here. I also thank my son M for not destroying a whole box inventory of my books… yet. (I feel like that day is coming.)
And to anyone else I may have forgotten– My head is stuffed full with fictional towns and characters. Sometimes that makes it hard to process life properly.
❤
*Note: This does not entitle Dane to any royalties from my burgeoning writing career.
Follow the romantic entanglements of The Riley Sisters in my books: The Wind Could Blow a Bug – AVAILABLE NOW! When You Least Expect It – NEW RELEASE! Be Careful What You Wish For – COMING JANUARY 2016!
I have been toiling away at my computer to get the next Riley Sisters book out into the universe as quickly as possible. I promise you, I am making progress, albeit very slowly. You know, real life gets in the way and all that. But I assure you, I am still on track for a January 2016 publication date. (Ask me next week, and I may have a different answer for you…)
If waiting for Miley’s story is killing you, then maybe a sneak peak at the cover will help. Now, you have to understand, Miley is different than her sisters Jane and Kiley. Miley is open to more exciting adventures. She isn’t really bothered by a pesky sense of responsibility. She is looking for life to be fun. Which, somehow in the pursuit of that, it kind of turns out the opposite for her.
Just to remind you, here are the juicy details:
Miley Riley always dreamed of being famous in the spotlights of Hollywood. Achieving those dreams seemed pretty unlikely coming from the Podunk farm town of Oakley, Alabama. With no talents and no college education, she had settled into her career as a party planner and sharing an apartment with her on-again, off-again boyfriend. When the movie based on her twin sister Kiley’s book begins shooting in California, Miley wastes no time in making the trip with her for a once in a lifetime vacation. Her wildest fantasies come true when she meets a dark-haired heartthrob, rising movie star Mark Tennyson. Their relationship heats up quickly, much to the chagrin of Miley’s family and best friend Travis.
When her new L.A. life begins to publicly crumble, Miley discovers who she can really count on. The road back to her real life returns her to Alabama, but will be filled with unconventional risks. Miley will learn to Be Careful What You Wish For…
I present to you, the cover Book 3 in The Riley Sisters series, Be Careful What You Wish For.
Be Careful What You Wish For by Jennifer Friess, due January 2016
While I’m at it, I will mention that The Wind Could Blow a Bug and When You Least Expect It are now available on more sites and at more stores, making it easy to catch up with the other Riley Sisters before Miley’s January 2016 debut!
I'm not stalking you. 