Musings of Two Creative Minds

This week I started a new semester of classes over at the California State University at Monterey Bay (CSUMB).  I'll be going here for at least another four semesters after this one.  I try to keep to just 12 units at a time which allows my wife and I to qualify for campus housing.  CSUMB has what they call East Campus Housing which is more like a duplex than an apartment.  Being a family we have the place to ourselves rather than having to share our space with others. The rent is reasonable and our gas, electric and cable are all included.  So you can understand my wanting to stick around here for a few more years while my wife Helen (who just earned her Bachelor's Degree in Mathematics) finds work and we can start building up our savings again.  BTW, if anyone knows any good job openings for a Mathematics wiz in California please let me know.  She's sending out resumes and applications like crazy and is eager to find more opportunities. ...

"Okay, so where do I go next?" That's the question I've been asking myself a lot during the week-long break I had from my studies at CSUMB.  I managed to finally put the 2nd draft of "The Vampyre Blogs - Coming Home" (the new official title of my 1st vampyre novel) and am currently reading it aloud to my wife Helen.  I'm already seeing areas that definitely need more work and rewriting, but her reactions to most of the scenes have been very positive.  Plus she's also providing me with some feedback on one of the characters who she actually created.  There will be a third and possibly a fourth draft before I unleash anything on my beta-readers.  Luckily I've got time since the book isn't going to be released until next fall at the earliest. In the meantime I really want to get back to "The Door" which is the third book of mine that will feature Alex, Veronica, Cassie and Julie.  This book will wrap up most of the unanswered...

 I n case you hadn't heard, I started attending the California State University at Monterey Bay in August and the workload had been fairly manageable, until recently.  Things are heating up and I have less and less time to work on my novels, including "The Vampyre Blogs".  I had planned on getting the latest draft finished, edited, beta-read, etc. so I could have it out in time for Christmas.   Unfortunately, that is not going to happen.  I've said before I will not release a book until it's had all those things done to it.  Currently, I'm still trying to finish the 2nd draft and I'm still not entirely happy with the piece.  Plus I haven't even started on a cover for the book.  I have one that I made with the computer. However, I'm not totally sold on this version really.  I'd prefer to try and do a soft pastel piece and then super-impose this image on top of the scene I create with the pastel. Furthermore, with ...