Lexical Gaps
Jul 12, 2010 
Granted, some lexical gaps are a bit grating (i.e. goodest, badder, funner), but used right, they can liven things up and give a sense of personality. I’ve seen a couple on blogs that are fun: besties, awesomesauce.
So the question is, do you have a favorite lexical gap? And would you ever use it in your book?
P.S. Now when someone tells you “That’s not a word,” you can tell them, “Yes, but it’s a lexical gap, so I can use it.” 😀
Award Central
Between my contest and the move, I’ve been hoarding a few awards. It’s always a warm fuzzy to receive an award like when someone offers you half their cookie at lunch. So, time to share the fuzzies!
Renae at The Siren’s Song; Sharon at Random Thoughts; Kris & Kels at Take My Hand; Amparo at No Rest for the Lazy; Medei Sharif; Writing Nut at Writing in a Nutshell; Julie Musil; and Alexandra at Friends and Crocodiles awarded me the Versatile Blogger Award. Thank you all! I’m so flattered you would think of me.
Then Bethany Elizabeth at Ink-Splattered, and Clara at Pinches of Madness awarded me the Honest Scrap Award. I love this one. Makes me feel strong. 🙂
And finally, Medeia Sharif also awarded me the Sugar Doll Award. I feel so sweet every time I look at the one. Thank you! Now if you’ll excuse me, I think I need to go eat a sugar cookie . . .
Okay, I’m back. So Honest Scrap and Sugar Doll ask for 10 facts about me, and Versatile wants another 7. You’d all be bored to tears, so I’ll just offer up 7 and call it good:
- I don’t eat plain chocolate. Slather it over a cookie, or mix it with something and I’m good, but I can’t handle it plain. Every few years I try to eat it again, but I always have to spit it out. No go.
- My husband and I spent 3 months in Ecuador the first year we were married to work in orphanages. All our wedding cash went to pay for it, but it was SO worth it.
- I was a cheerleader in junior high. Short skirt and all. But no pom-poms. I promise I was no cliche, though. I was nice! Really. 😀
- I’m much better at math than I am at English. I know, weird!
- I’m the 4th of 5 kids . . . Did you know 4th children are always the most well-adjusted? 😉
- I have never been to Canada.
- I hate to brag, but I can both roll my tongue and fold it. Yes, talent indeed.
Okay, so for passing these puppies on. Versatile calls for 15 people each, and the others ask for 5 . . . so doing the math (which I’m good at, remember?) . . . (8 x 15) + (5 x 2) +5, that would be 135 of you. Uh, yeah, that’s a lot. So I will be breaking some rules.
I am choosing only 5 recipients, and I am letting you choose which award you want (did Stina do that first? Fab idea):
Vicki Rocho at Rambles and Randomness. She is so fun, and not afraid to share those less-than-flattering moments. If you need a good laugh, check out her blog.
Roh Morgon at Musings of a Moonlight Writer. She is just getting started with her blog and has a fun character contest going on right now.
R. Garrett Wilson who always has interesting discussions going on. His blog makes me think, and I like that.
Justine Dell who is not only funny, but amazingly brave. She posts her query stats ON HER BLOG! I can only hope to be that brave one day.
Finally, Bekah at Bekah’s Stories who always has interesting topics going on, plus she has a Worst Query contest going on right now. How fun is that?
So phew! My fingers are numb. Hope you all have a great weekend!
Wallowing in My Own Mud
So we’ve moved. Unpacked? No. But moved, yes. Yay!
More space for the kids to run around. No neighbors beneath us. Best friends next door. I’m thrilled.
However, I’m learning stuff about myself. Though the new place was “cleaned,” I have spent a lot of time cleaning. Wiping down blinds, walls, cupboards, cabinet tops, disinfecting the bathrooms . . . well, you get the idea. The thing is, I had to do all of that in my old apartment before leaving, and it wasn’t nearly as gross.
And after much reflection, I’ve figured it out . . . in my old place, the dirt was MINE. In our new place, the dirt is someone else’s. That makes it much more egregious.
The thing is, I think our books are like that, too. I see an overused adjective in my critique partner’s work, I heartlessly mark it (in the nicest sort of way, of course). A nicely worded phrase that’s simply unneccessary? Cross it out. Etc., etc.
When I see it in my own? But I NEED that adjective. Is the overuse really that horrible? And that phrase is BEAUTIFUL. Perfect. Necessary. I can’t cut THAT.
See, but it’s my own dirt. Maybe I should pretend I’m editing someone else’s work for my next revision . . . Do you find it easier to edit others’ work?
The Happy Dance!
Okay, okay, I’m supposed to be packing up the last of our things to be moving to our new place, and my internet will be cut off any second, . . .
BUT I peeked in my e-mail and got a little nudge from Amy over at The Green Bathtub (Thank you!) that I won the pitch contest on Renae’s blog The Siren’s Song. (!!!!!) So excited!
I couldn’t help sharing the good news with all of you (my extended support system, no?). While it’s not as exciting as, say, landing an agent or getting a book deal, it’s always encouraging to get positive feedback. I say celebrate the small steps too, so . . .
. . . I’m home, in a half-empty apartment doing my happy dance. 😀
Winners!
Thanks to everyone who entered our 101-follower contest! And boy, SO close to hitting 150 yesterday. I’m totally in awe!
So on to the important stuff. I had 58 entries (54 people). I wish everyone could win, but alas . . . random.org has chosen 2 of you.
1st Prize: Melissa at YA Bookshelf has won the $25 Amazon Gift Card
2nd Prize: Lynn at Place to Create has won a mystery prize. She has selected door #3:
Lynn, you have selected the fabulous prize of a book of your choice (up to a $15 limit)! Let me know what book you want and I’ll order (or pre-order) it for you, delivered directly to your door. You really
chose well, this was the good prize. I think I’ll leave you all guessing and save the other prizes for another contest. 😉
Congratulations! Please send me your addresses at rjljohnson (dot) janet (at) gmail (dot) com within 48 hours to claim your prizes. If I don’t hear from you, I’ll choose new winners.
And just to let you know, I am moving this coming week, so I’ll be out of commission for a while. Have a great week, and thanks again for following and entering our contests!
Last Day to Enter Our Contests!
Just a quick reminder: TODAY is the last day to enter mine and Jessie’s contests. Click here for the details.
And wow, since I’m so close to having 150 followers, if I get there before the contest ends, I will let 2 people choose a mystery prize. Doors 1–4. Woo hoo! Aren’t you excited? 😉
Have a good one!
Reclused . . . I mean, Reduced to Fear
It was late. The kids were asleep. My husband had gone to bed. I was hard at work finishing my blogs for the week. Then I saw it. A quarter-sized spider not three feet away.
I screamed. I mean SCREAMED! The spider froze, watching me with its beady little eyes. I didn’t dare look away for fear it would disappear into my house. I called my husband, trying not to wake the kids. He’s a light sleeper, I thought. He’ll come.
Nope.
I called again, cursing the tremor in my voice that made me sound like such a wuss. Again, and again. Still no knight in shining armor to rescue me!
The spider was getting antsy. I started to creep away. I realized I needed to kill the blasted thing or it would escape and haunt my dreams . . . and my waking life.
I grabbed the empty garbage can and stepped closer. The spider knew.
Zoom! It sped away like nothing. Then I really started screaming (I’m ashamed now to admit it, but I didn’t care who I woke . . . the kids, the neighbors, the dead). I had completely lost it! And of course the thing ran for the pile of boxes in the corner (we’re getting ready to move).
I was still screaming for my husband when he came sauntering out of the room. “What is it honey?”
Boy I laid into him. But I was in hysterics by then. Fortunately he could tell. He didn’t make any sudden movements, and he spoke in a nice soothing voice. I shivered in the corner while he painstakingly went through every box till he killed it. Yeah, it was a Brown Recluse. *shivers again*
So now I don’t know which I should feel worse about: that my mental state is so fragile I lost it at the sight of a mere spider . . . or that my husband never came running despite my bloody murder screams.
What do you think? And please tell me I’m not the only one to have such irrational fears!
And again, don’t forget to enter my CONTEST here! Ends tomorrow at midnight EDT.
Tag, You’re It!
Sandy Shin tagged me for the Penmanship Meme. And I’m so glad! There’s so much you can learn about a person by looking at penmanship. The rule is to do the meme on paper and scan it (or take a picture if you don’t have a scanner). Here are the items:
1. Name/Blog Name.
2. Right handed, left handed or both?
3. Favorite letters to write?
4. Least favorite letters to write?
5. Write: The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.
6. Write in caps:
CRAB
HUMOR
KALEIDOSCOPE
PAJAMAS
GAZILLION
7. Favorite song lyrics?
8. Tag 7 people.
9. Any special note or drawing?
And here is my hand-written version of it. Wow, I can’t believe how self-conscious this made me of my writing! But it’s so fun to see people’s handwriting, so here we go:
Okay, if you can’t tell who I tagged: Jessie Oliveros, Raquel Byrnes, Janet Reid (*big grin*), Medeia Sharif, Lynn, Vicki Rocho, and Laurel. Don’t feel like you have to, but I’d love to see your handwriting. 🙂 Then I can size you up, and analyze your psyche . . . bwa-ha-ha-ha!
So what does my handwriting tell you about me?
101-Follower Contest!
The day has finally arrived! I hit 101 followers, and Jessie Oliveros at Louder than Noise has hit 101. Hurray!
Not one to beat around the bush, the rules are simple:
- You must follow both my blog and Jessie’s blog.
- Leave a comment on THIS post.
- Enter by midnight EDT on Tuesday, June 22, 2010.
And that’s it. If you spread the word any old way, just let me know and I’ll give an extra entry (I trust ya’ll, so you only need to put the link if you want).
And drumroll please . . . .
The Prizes.
1st Prize: A $25 gift card to Amazon.
A pre-order of Mockingjay, you ask? Done. Matched? Taken care of. Your prize is up to you with this dazzlingly glorious item. (Yes, I used to write prize descriptions for The Price Is Right . . . or should I say Write?) 😉
2nd Prize: Mystery Prize!
I have pre-designated 4 prizes behind doors number 1, 2, 3, and 4. You, as lucky winner number two, will get to choose which one you want! Are they all AB FAB you ask? Why, of course not! Where’s the fun in that? But at least one is exciting. Another not so much. And the last two are satisfactory to varying degrees.
Good luck, everyone!
P.S. Jessie has her own contest running with separate prizes, so to enter her contest, be sure to click on over and follow her contest rules!
Fab New Look
So I’m sure you’ve noticed the new look. I am no artiste, but my best friend from high school is a talented photographer and designer. You can always tell a great friend because they not only tell you your weaknesses, but they help you improve them! I love what she came up with. The passages on the wall are actual excerpts of my book. How cool is that?
I know I had the whole ‘thanks’ thing going on yesterday, but I want to thank my wonderful friend, too. If you want to check out her blog, you can find her at Shot by Celeste.
In your opinion, what makes a great friend?