I think I’ve mentioned before (and if I haven’t, well, here it is): I do an awful lot of volunteering.
Part of that is being a mom of three school-age kids in a small town. They do a lot of activities. Consequently, I have a lot of time where I’m hanging around waiting for something to finish. And this year, the three school-age kids are all going to three different schools.
My son, T, is in the high school band. So I have volunteered to be in charge of the marching band uniforms this year. He’s also an Eagle Scout candidate, so I’m a merit badge counselor. He does ski race club, so I’m on the board for that. My daughter A is in the middle school band and is a competitive gymnast, so I’m on the board at the gymnastics school. A plays hockey and I volunteer to keep score. My other daughter K loves swimming and has lots of friends who all like to hang out here. She’s in elementary school, so I put together the yearbook. And I’m on the board at our pool. And this week I was co-director of our church’s VBS. I used to teach Sunday School but I’m over-committed already, so I costume the Christmas Play every year too.
Also, I’m sure I missed something. And meanwhile, I like to write, and knit, and read, and watch TV. I sew sometimes but don’t really like it. I scrapbook but that’s been sitting for a couple of years now. And soon I’ll be deep into the long-awaited renovation on my house. I’ve lived in the house for 14 years and am finally ready to modify it.
Not to be whining, though. I’m busy but I still find the time to write. This week I have finished my final revisions to What You Stand For. I’m starting the draft of What You Settle For (though possibly will change the title to What You Long For. Or even something else). And I know I said I wasn’t going to be ready, but I am. So I have signed up for Colorado Gold the first week in September! I’ve booked the conference, and the hotel, and I’m going to attend a pitch session to see if I can get the thing sold.
The plans at the moment are, if I come back from Colorado with no contract or interest, that I will start sending out queries trying to get the thing sold. I’ll be looking at partner publishing as well as traditional routes. Because, honestly? It’s good. It’s a good book. I would have wanted to read it when I was in my late teens. It would’ve been great to read about a character who resented her family and friends sometimes, who had to battle against assumptions about her, who was for the first time examining her life and her attitudes. Instead young adult fiction then was often written from a “problem of the week” viewpoint.
But, I digress. Independent of what happens in the book, I’m confident that it’s well written. Selling and writing don’t come from the same place, so selling is a whole new set of skills for me.
Okay, back to work for me. Have a great weekend, all!
ellen mcbee 
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