Body Farm

My second manuscript turned out to be a middle grade novel called Murder on Sprinkle Lake. When I first started writing this, I thought it was going to be a YA novel and had an older audience in mind. In that story there is a murder; a character is hit on the head with a heavy object. I wanted to know what the result of the hit would be like as far as blood and stuff goes. I also had questions about the condition the body would be in if found several hours later. My questions took me to the University of Tennessee where my cousin works in the Forensic Anthropology Dpt. She gave me a very interesting tour (including a room filled with boxes of skeletons all neatly organized). She told me that she could tell an awful lot just by looking at the bones. She used to assist in autopsies and explained about that. Basically, I found out that the character in my story would have been a bloody mess. When the tour inside the college was over, she took us (my husband and two of my adult children were with me) to the Body Farm. Yup the very Body Farm Patricia Cornwell went to when she was writing her book, Body Farm. If you haven't read it, you should. I happen to like her writing in general--keeps you on the edge of your seat. Anyway, the Body Farm is as creepy as it sounds. Interesting though. My cousin is doing research on what sorts of animals munch on the bodies. She wasn't the only one doing research, the FBI had a garbage can with a body in it. They were studying the decomposition rate with the lid closed being they find a lot of bodies in garbage cans I guess. Most of the bodies were pretty decomposed. I guess a gossip magazine got in there once and took pics of the bodies and put them on the internet. Nearly closed the place down. So--now the bodies are covered until they are pretty far along in decomposition. In the end I didn't use much of what I learned that day. It is tucked away in my head, however, and may come out in another story. Maybe the one I'm writing now, who knows? My current writing is for a YA audience. An agent at a conference in Ohio told me that if my protagonist is less that twelve years of age, it is a middle grade novel. This time my protagonist is sixteen.

Back to School So Soon

Hard to believe that September is here! Where did the summer go? I hope you had a good one and were able to do some fun things with your families.

I wanted to share this great link with you, the leader of the rocketmoms put this awesome article together showing who all the Rocketmoms are and each one gave a short answer of why they love the rocketmoms. It is really cool, so check it out! Meet the Rocketmoms

I've been very busy creating a lot of different products for my store. Shell's Designs! Working on Christmas and holiday designs right now! I just added an RSS feed to my blog so you can view my latest designs as I created them! Have a fabulous week and keep smiling!

I want to one day become a published author. Big dream, right? Well, they say that one of the things writers are supposed to do if they want to be published is blog. "Sigh" Fine.

I've decided I will try to share the more interesting aspects of my life in this blog. And, since I am an avid YA reader, I may be tempted to give my opinion on a book or two. Someone told me I should read at least 100 books in the genre I'm writing in. Made sense to me. So--I've been keeping track of the books I've read since Christmas 2008 and am up to b00k seventy eight. I'm also taking little notes on them. It does help with the writing process I think.

I ask my readers to please forgive me for my dyslexic tendencies. As a writer, I realize how important grammar and punctuation is. My husband proofs the work I send in to publishers. This blog is without that aide.

Nature

Hard to believe we are approaching fall. Yikes, I said it! The temperatures in the mornings are getting much cooler already and it's getting dark much earlier each evening! I love the fall season. The air is so crisp and everything smells so fresh outside! Going for walks and admiring all the beautiful colors of nature is amazing! I have been busy creating designs for my store. Just finished another beautiful Christmas article. If you love decorating you'll have to check this out too, I included lots of great photos and ideas to inspire you! You can find it in the sidebar under my Squidoo Holiday Lenses!

Elephants

This week it's the t-shirts sale at Zazzle. Back to School Sale - Week 3! $3 off all t-shirts! Use Code: BTSTSHIRTS09 You can stock up on some great designs for the fall season. Of course, kids love t-shirts in all seasons!
I've been working on some cartoon designs again this week. Designed some adorable pink elephants that I added to cards, postage and toddler t-shirts. Very cute!
This week the 'rocketmoms' were asked to write a lens on a favourite childhood toy! Well that really got me thinkin'! I ended up doing 3 lenses on childhood toys! What fun! The first one on Paper Dolls, then Lego, and finally Tinkertoys! Do those bring back memories for you? You can find the links in the sidebar under my Squidoo lenses if you'd like to check them out! Have a great week!

Turtle Talk

Well we finally got some rain this morning! It was a pretty good downpour, didn't last that long but sure freshened things up! Zazzle is on it's second week of back to school sales. Buy 1 poster get one free. Use Code: BTSPOSTERS09. There are some pretty cool posters by some talented artists! This week I've been working on cartoon animals. Ya, you guessed it, it's turtles! I know generally we don't think of turtles as the cutest animals on the planet but as cartoons they sure are cute and appealing! Above are some of my latest creations! Enjoy! Have a great day, and remember 'Every day is a gift from God' so be joyful in your circumstances! :-)

Zazzle Back To School Sale

It's getting close to the time were parents and kids are filling the malls and stores for those 'back to school' clothes and accessories. Why not shop from the comfort of home for some great original designs on Zazzle. Here is there sale:
Back to School Sale - Week 1 40% off skateboards, 20% off bags, and 10% off mugs! Use Code: BTS40OFFSALE
I have been busy working on lots of different designs! This past week I've been working on these adorable teddybears. They look so cute on t-shirts for toddlers and baby's! I have also put them on stickers and baby shower postage! Pop by my store for a look around! Hope you enjoy them!