Maybe we shouldn’t have named our cat Leo. He certainly thinks he’s king of all things…like my laundry. He’s right in the middle of it when I throw it on the bed. I literally have to shut him out so I can put on clean sheets and fold my t-shirts. His other talents include fetch, eat, sleep and snuggle. What a guy.

Speaking of cats, we are having our first storms of the year, lots of rain and wind. Since I live in California this is being met with much celebration. Leo, being the curious teenager that he is, snuck outside to investigate. Usually encased in his catio on our front porch, he’s rarely out running free. The rain startled him and he took off. My partner had to chase after him and round him up. It’s a good thing it wasn’t one of the types of storms we get on our visits to Wisconsin each summer. The thunder and lightning would have chased him into the next county.

In writing news, imagination appears to be a strange and fickle friend. It’s almost as much a mystery as why I ever decided to write a novel in the first place. Those of you who have attempted this feat of extreme mental acuity and perseverance will know what I mean. I had no idea what I was getting into. That’s probably a good thing as I may never have started Thanks to the goddess of all things writerly, I’m almost finished! Final edits should be completed by the end of the year with query letters to follow shortly.

Fortunately, I have an author assistant.

P.S. I actually have a writer’s assistant of the human variety. Her name is Sarah and she is amazing.