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This week’s winner is Sarah! Thanks to everyone who commented. I particularly enjoyed this week’s comments — we’ll have to brag about ourselves more often. I might be off next weekend, because I’m taking the Kidlet on a trip. But stay tuned for more Friday fun!
p.s. I bought myself this shirt for my treat. 
———
Being a writer is strange, y’all. I am wrapping up what I think will be the last big redrafting of the naked beekeeper book, aka Truly, to turn into my editor on Monday. This book has now been through four full drafts: three on my own before I turned it in and one with feedback from my editor. I suspect it’s going to move into line edits now, then copyediting, and then it will be off on its own, with no more input from me.
Reading it today, I am certain it’s the best thing I’ve ever written. I am so excited about it. I can’t wait for you to read it . . . in eleven months.
Meanwhile, lots of people have been emailing me and tweeting at me and Facebook commenting me and writing Goodreads reviews and web reviews about Along Came Trouble, which I drafted nearly two years ago, and which I got to the fifth-draft point — about where I am now with Truly — fifteen months ago.
I
used to be a very obsessive knitter, and I made a lot of things from my own designs. Knitting a sweater from scratch to your own design is a pretty slow process. If you knit as much as I did, which was probably about three hours a day, it still takes three or four weeks. And that’s if everything goes right, which it never does. And then the sweater is done, and it’s awesome, but it’s also imperfect, and you never really get over the imperfections. You always wish you’d done it better. But at least you have the sweater, you know?
I was talking to my husband yesterday about what a strange experience it is to be reviewed at all, and he was comparing it to receiving teaching evaluations, which he gets every semester. And in many ways it is like receiving teaching evaluations — except on a class you taught three semesters ago. What are you supposed to do with that feedback? You have moved on, of course. You are trying new things. You hope people will like them, and you’re looking forward to finding out. In three more semesters.
None of this is bad, of course. It’s just one of those weird time-lags involved in being an author. (See also: getting paid.) But it reminds me, today, that I have to stop and celebrate this moment now, rather than wait for the book to come out in March of next year and then really celebrate. Because I worked very, very hard on it. My critique partners worked hard on it. I’m proud of it. SO proud.
But in thirteen months, it will be what I was doing last year. I will have moved on to new things. I will read reviews with slight detachment, wondering why people think this or that thing about that book when I am writing this book now, and it is, of course, the best thing I’ve ever written.*
*and also the worst, depending on when you ask meIn the online knitting community, when you finish a big project, you do a finished object post. You take nice, yarn-pornish pictures and post them, and you talk about your process, and you celebrate.
I can’t take any pictures of my manuscript for you, but maybe this can be the next best thing. I think I will buy myself a little treat. And then soon, probably tomorrow morning at around three-thirty a.m., I’ll get to work on the next book.
But it isn’t tomorrow yet, so let’s be proud of ourselves today. What have you made or done or accomplished that you are so, so proud of because you worked so, so hard? Brag a little. Actually, brag a lot. You deserve it.
I’ll pick one random commenter tomorrow morning to win a $10 gift certificate to Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or iTunes, winner’s choice.
I am an obsessed reader, I have been buying books and ebooks at a rate that I almost have anxiety trying to figure out how/when I will read them all and feel awful that I haven’t read something yet when I see people commenting about it. Thanks for sharing for with us!
My mom once told me that my hobbies shouldn’t stress me out. I try to remember and refuse to get stressed about reading!
Love your yarn porn. The thing I’m most proud of is my little blog. I love that I have a theme each month. I love that it is mainly about the books I’m reading. The main thing I’m proud about it is that I started a year ago and have kept it up. I have some amazing books and have gotten to share them with others. The next thing is my scones, because they have gotten better as I create different types. I think my favorite so far is my Hawaiian inspire one with white chocolate, macadamia nuts, and coconut.
Love it! And your scones sound awesome. Scones are so great. Mmmm, scones.
I made my two daughters knit cowls. I love to knit, but am no expert. Both of the projects turned out gorgeous, that’s me bragging. They both told me they have received many compliments and people were impressed that their mother had made them. Yay for me, lol
Brag away!
Love the sweaters!!! Actually I found out good news yesterday, I only have one more class to take to obtain my associate’s degree and in the fall, I will be on the road to my bachelor’s degree. This is a HUGE accomplishment for me because I am a single mom with a special needs child, and a returning college student. It’s hard to balance school work and my son, but I’ve managed to do it while maintaining my 4.0 GPA. It may sound like a miracle and, to me, it is. I pray…A LOT!
I am very proud of myself and I hope that I can instill these same values and hard work in my son. Thanks for the post and for the chance to win!!!
You are amazing! Go, Elizabeth! That is SUCH a big achievement.
Ruthie, you look really cute in that third picture with the short hair.
I’m so proud of my daughter today. She had a great week which I totally attribute to my parenting. She qualified for a scholarship and wrote an amazing essay that left my eyes bugging out of my head. It was chock full of insights that an 11-year-old should not have yet, and some metaphors and similes referring to what it means to struggle and succeed. Wow! She’s been playing violin for years and just made Assistant Concert Master in her school’s orchestra. And she got a part in the school play. I am in awe this child! And I’m taking ALL the credit!
Happy weekend everybody!
Thanks! We’ll all just pretend I can still fit in that sweater.
Your daughter sounds like she’s thriving! Way to go, you.
I read everything I can get my hands on. The ones I love I keep and I give the others away. I am really thankful for my Kindle, it keeps my obsession from getting out of hand. My latest purchase for the kindle was Along Came Trouble. It was great, I enjoyed it so much. I just wish I didn’t have to wait so long for the next one.
Thank you! A few more months until Katie and Sean — we’ll all just have to chew our fingernails until then.
I am on the verge of completing my masters. I have one more course to complete and I am currently working on that. It has not been an easy road as I have to be balancing work, caring for my sick mom and my studies. For me this is a huge accomplishment as I never thought I would have made it this far. I give God thanks for the strength to hold on as there were times when I felt like totally giving up.
Way to go, Nadene! That’s an amazing accomplishment.
Aww..you should be very proud! Your talent is amazing and I’m always amazed by such a talent! Thank you for writing such great stories!!
Thank you, Wendy!
I am totally unartistic. But I was given the task of making cupcakes for the kids at church at Christmas. I found the cutest little Christmas tree cupcakes on pinterest. I made chocolate cupcakes and topped them with a strawberry. I covered it with green frosting and put miniature M&M candies for the lights. They were supposed to look like little Christmas trees. The 3rd. Batch turned out pretty good. But 6 hrs later I had green food coloring from head to toe and gave the neighbors all the rejects. But ya’ll the last batch were adorable. And the kids LOVED em.
We have to wait 11 months for the naked beekeeper!!! Bummer. But if you think it is your best one yet, YAY!!
Trish, that is both very awesome and very funny. I can make the most DELICIOUS baked goods, but I cannot make them be pretty. Ever.
Love the sweaters! Did you get to play dress-up this morning? lol I took up knitting yesterday. I’ve already unraveled my work once. Of course my work involved one chain of chains (? – not up on the lingo quite yet) that was so tight that I couldn’t get the Knook through them to pick up … something (stitches, maybe?). “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again”, right?
So I’ve done a LOT of things very, very well as long as I’ve been on this patch of dirt, but there is nothing that has been more difficult and also rewarding than the work I’ve done to start liking myself. I had to give up my unrealistic expectations of perfection, let go enough to allow someone else to help me (and to trust that they would!), and start tearing down a wall that took 30+ years to build. It involves seeing myself for who I actually am and no longer hiding from my feelings – a BIG job for someone like me – and I have made a lot of progress. I’ve also been very open with it, because if someone is going to educate the masses about mental health, it might as well be me!
So, Ruthie. How is it at all possible that anything could be better than what you’ve already written?!?!?!? Along Came Trouble literally takes my breath with its majesty at some points. It feels almost like you wrote it just for me, to hit exactly the spots in my soul that define falling in love. Your talent is…just…wow. I feel like I slobber on you a LOT, which is really not my intent. You have just very quickly worked your way up my bestseller list… on the same list as Shalvis, Cindy Gerard, Robyn Carr, and everyone else on the Totally Super Awesome Books shelf on my nook.
Have a great weekend!
Way to go, Erin! All that self work is *not* easy, especially if you have taught yourself (or been taught) to value perfection rigidly. (Ask me how I know, heh.) And knitting is very humbling — you can have perfection, or you can have things that get finished. Probably not both. Good practice for you!
And thanks so much for your compliments! I’m so glad you enjoyed ACT, and I’m honored to be on the shelf.
We all realize that writing a really good book does take time and thoughtfulness, as well as talent. Your books are some of my very favorites and just loaded “Trouble” on my Kindle so it will be my weekend read. We don’t mind the wait because the payoff is so good! Your books are the kind that stay with me long after the ending and I cannot say that about many, and I read a lot. So, thank you for taking the time you need to give us the very best.
Thank you, Marilyn! What a lovely compliment. I hope you enjoy the book!
Ruthie, I am soooo jealous of the knitting ability. one of my goals is to learn how to crochet or die trying!! Ummm… one of my accomplishments that I’m most proud of is rehabilitating an angry, angry mini beagle. He had reason to be angry, he’d been very abused and distrusted people. You couldn’t even walk past him without him growling or showing his teeth. And his way of showing his complete and utter disdain of humanity? By refusing to go outside to do his business and doing it around the house as soon as one’s back was turned and shredding anything remotely of value. My BF and I seriously considered rehoming him, but I decided to give it one last shot. It took many, many loooong hours to out stubborning a stubborn beagle, but it worked. Now 3 yrs later, he’s a completely different dog. He loves to cuddle, gives hugs, poops on command. A wonderful dog.
Oh, that must feel wonderful, to have helped a living creature in such a concrete way. You have brought him so much joy and absence of fear. Now I want to pet him.
I am most proud of how my husband and I have raised our family. We have a 24 yr son who is in Grad school to become a Physical Therapist and a 22 yr daughter who will be graduating with a business degree this May. I am so proud of who they are and can honestly say I like them as people as well as love them as mine!
That’s the best, KP! Sometimes I meet amazing college students and I want to meet their parents and shake their hands and tell them, “Your daughter/son is so great. You did SUCH A GOOD JOB.”
I make quilts. I’d love to learn to knit, and then make myself tons of wild socks. But then I wouldn’t be able to get all those quilts out of my head and into reality. I totally get the idea of being somewhat detached from what you made/wrote years ago, because now there’s this new thing. And it’s so shiny and awesome. That’s how I feel about my quilts. Sometimes I look at the older ones and think that they aren’t even all that pretty anymore. But that’s not true–it’s just that I’ve moved on to a new place. All-in-all, kinda’ cool, and great fun.
And those are some beautiful sweaters.
I know just what you mean! And it’s like that with writing, too. Crazy how the creative process works. (And thank you!)
Wow, those are amazing sweaters! I’m really happy with my blog and what I’ve been able to do with it (connect with other readers, connect with what I’m reading on a deeper level, etc.), but today I want to high-five myself for being a good singer. I sing alto in a choir, and I have one of those boy soprano voices, very clear and a little bit haunting. I also have debilitating stage fright, but over the last five years, I’ve been trying to encourage (read: force) myself to let other people hear my voice. Sometimes I succeed, sometimes I fail miserably, but my real success is that I keep trying.
Thanks! It is so hard to be brave and push ourselves in these ways that we don’t want to be pushed. Way to go, you, for doing it!
What kind of treat did you buy yourself?
Your sweaters are lovely, as are you.
I love all these comments! Your readers are so accomplished. I feel like that is a huge compliment to you, too, that such smart, successful women adore your work. Way to be awesome!
Thank you! I feel like it’s a compliment, too. This has been a fun post — I’ll have to ask people to brag more.
And I haven’t picked out a treat yet. But my husband did drive 25 miles with the Kidlet to get the GOOD pizza for dinner, which almost counts, right?
No. I need a new dress, I think. I have my eye on one with a sailor collar. Because I am four years old.
Just finished Along Came Trouble this afternoon, and I LOVED it! This is my 4th book by you, and, honestly, I have loved them all! This is an incredibly rare thing for me. You have become an Auto-Buy, on a short list that includes only 1 other Author-team, Ilona Andrews. Thanks for the great stories and wonderful multidimensional characters. Your stories are a true pleasure to read.
Thank you for all of the time and hard work you put in to each new story!
Anne
Thank you, Anne! I’m honored.
CONGRATS, Ruthie, on where you are now and where you will be in months to come. I can NOT wait for Truly. I will autobuy as soon as it’s available!
What have I done lately that I’m proud of? My SHADE GARDEN. I have been battling this awful weed in my rock garden the last 2 years and just learned that the lining stuff under the rocks in the rock garden is the WORST thing you can do for this particular weed (horsetail) because it loves unoxegynated soil. The best thing you can do is till the soil and install ground cover plants that have dense root networks. They crowd out the invasive horsetail. Last weekend, my husband took me to a nursery and gave me carte blanche on shade-loving ground cover plants to replace the rock garden. It was raining and cold when I put in those plants, but the sense of accomplishment when I was done was just beautiful. Felt like finishing a book, it did:) So, take that, horsetail! *Sticks out tongue*
Thanks, Jessi!
And I know what you mean about the gardening pride. I am *such* a crap gardener — not much time, zero knowledge — but every spring I am out in the yard, scrutinizing the flower bed that I made beneath the cottonwoods, and every plant pushing through the soil fills me with pride.
I have a couple of things that I am really proud of because I worked very hard to complete them. One is the first afghan that I crocheted. Silly me decided to make a queen sized on for my bed as the first thing I crocheted. I worked a long time on it, especially since I made the stitches small and tight. But it was a great way to pass the summer when my nephew broke his leg when he was 3 or 4. He lived on a horse farm and loved tractors and watching the guys mow the fields, so we would spend hours sitting on the porch watching them and I would crochet.
The other thing that I worked very hard for was my college degree. I put myself through school, with the help of student loans and many jobs. I also had some medical problems during that time, including blood clots in my leg. Unfortunately while waiting to secure a full-time teaching position to use my elementary teaching degree, I fell on ice/snow at a job I had and messed up my back, hip, and leg permanently. Due to the injury and my other medical problems, I am now disabled and unable to use my degree
Oh, June, that’s too bad! But I admire you for finishing the degree AND the afghan. Keep persevering!
I love all the jumpers you’ve made! I wish I could knit properly, my Nan taught me when I was younger but I never really managed to do more than scarves (and even those didn’t have straight edges lol). I don’t have a clue where to start when it comes to following patterns. When I’m not reading (or when I’m listening to audiobooks) I love to cross stitch, there is something so relaxing about doing something creative
I’m planning on reading Along Came Trouble over the weekend & can’t wait but I’m already excited about the naked beekeeper book even though I’m going to have to wait a very long time to read it!
I hope everyone has a fab weekend
Thank you! I love that you said “jumper.” I have always enjoyed that particular UK/US English difference.
Hope you enjoy ACT!
I work in injury management. I designed an awareness campaign and wrote an online training programme and that year we won an award for excellence. I can only knit triangles but I’m pretty good at my job!
hankts AT internode DOT on DOT net
That’s great! Keeping people from getting injured is SO important.
Loved Along Came Trouble, crushed on Caleb, got annoyed with Ellen but understood where she was coming from. And the speech patterns of the 2-year-old were captured perfectly.
Also, how much do I adore these sweaters?
Thank you!
~ Sigh~. Your sweaters are so pretty! I have no sewing or knitting ability at all. I can sew a button though!
I guess the thing I’m most proud of right now, is writing reviews that seem to encourage people to read the books I’m reviewing. I’m especially grateful and proud that Sue Grimshaw submits my reviews to EverydayEbook.
I can still remember the first time I saw the picture on your blog of the naked beekeeper! Going to be quite a story I’m sure!
Your reviews are *great*, Pat — you should be proud! And thank you. The sweaters were a labor of great love.
Ruthie,
Are you on Ravelry? I love your sweaters, because I HATE CRAFTS (and really admire anyone who is good at them).
I just finished “Along Came Trouble” last night around 1:30 am, and I want to thank you for a wonderfully guilty pleasure (one that is even better than dark chocolate sea-salt caramels and ardbeg uigeadail whiskey — though I may have had some of that while I was reading).
It’s the most swoon-worthy book I’ve read since “About Last Night” (fanning self vigorously).
What am I proud of? Running a marathon, all 26.2 (don’t forget the point two!) miles. Utterly exhausting and amazingly exhilarating, all at the same time. Kind of like motherhood?
I am, yes, Connie, as Ruthless. I’m not active anymore, but you can browse through all my stuff if you wish.
Dark chocolate sea-salt caramels and ardbeg uigeadail whiskey while reading ACT? *dies* That sounds divine. So glad you enjoyed ACT!
And go you, for running a marathon! I love to run, but I tend to get injured if I try to push much past 10 miles. I think I’m running a leg of a 50-mile race in the fall, though. Exciting!
cleaning my bookshelves
People do that?
Go, you!
I’m so glad the weekend is here. I have Along Came Trouble cued up and ready to go. I guess the thing I’m most proud of is that after entering my adult years completely out of shape, I started going to the gym and have now been working out regularly (at least 3 days, more often 5 – 6 days/wk) for 27 years. That’s a lot of workouts. When I was younger, it didn’t seem to matter to my overall health, but now that I’m older, I seem to feel healthier, and have more energy than most people my age so it definitely has paid off.
I did that, too — didn’t really exercise at all as a younger person, exercised in a very spotty fashion in college, and then in grad school became very committed and have never looked back. It makes such a difference to my life, and I take great pride in it, so I will say “good for you!”
Loved your look in the 3rd picture Ruthie! Well, I must say I do not have any crafty talents that I can speak of. Congrats on your books and also on your sweaters Ruthie! I must say I’m proud of raising my son while my husband was off playing military games, whom is now retired and I’m very proud of…better than that is going above and beyond to take care of my mother while she was battling colon cancer. She was cancer free for 3 months and now it is back so I’m putting her first again in my life….Wish us both luck….
Oh, good luck, Carolyn! It’s hard to be the caretaker, and to do it with love in your heart even as life is challenging you. You should be proud.