Renee Stevens

I do agree that sometimes a good idea is a good idea, but other times it completely derails the entire rest of the book. Sometimes, like with Forging Trust, to go where the readers wanted it to go, it would have made entire parts of the earlier chapters not make sense.

Thank you, tim! I definitely think I need to not post any longer until a story is complete. The comments and discussion used to help motivate me to keep posting, but as Forging Trust shows, it doesn't always work. I feel bad for those who started reading it and have waited for so long for me to get somewhere with it. It won't go back up until it's 100% complete and ready to post, and then I'll simply schedule all the chapters to post when they need to. That's also why I unpublished it, so that no one else will read it and have to wait until I get more done on it.

Thank you for your response, Gary. I always try to stay true to where my story is supposed to go, but it's not always easy. I think, with very few exceptions, I will no longer post until a story is complete. Especially since I've had such a hard time writing lately. I've always posted as I went (with the exception of in Premium), because it helps me keep motivated to write. But there are those instances when not even that helps.

I haven't heard from Dark for a while. But toward the start of summer, Dark posted on her profile that she was laid off, so I just suspected that she's been looking for a job and will be back if/when she can be.

Hope everyone has had a good week. Before we get started with the wrap up, instead of sharing Myr's site survey (since it's closed) I want to share a different message from Myr. It's currently posted as an announcement, but in case the announcement is taken down, I'm not going to just link to it. Instead I'll post it here for you to see. If you need help, Myr also posted a youtube video! Now, for the rest of the wrap up! Contests Halloween Short Story Contest - Due September 15th, 2017 Anthology Announcements: ***NOTE: All Deadlines are for submission to the Anthology Proof Team*** 2017 Fall Anthology: The Fall Out / Secret Spaces - Due November 15th, 2017 Premium Updates: Negative Splits by Cia *Premium* Classic Updates: Down a Darkened Path by Ronyx Signature Updates: A prompt a week by comicfan GFD 12: Blood Ties by Comicality; Book 12 of Gone From Daylight Left Without Words by Comicality Mine! by Cia Northern Exposure by Mark Arbour; Book 8 of Bridgemont One Hundred and Fifty-Five Sonnets by AC Benus; Book 5 of Verse Promptings from Valhalla by Valkyrie Spirit of Fire by Stellar The Castaway Hotel: Next Generation Book 2 by Bill W; Book 11 of The Castaway Hotel Promising Updates: Buy One, Get Two and Three... by Caz Pedroso Cards on the Table by Headstall Changes by Mikiesboy Choices by LitLover Headstall's Reflections by Headstall timmy's poetry by Mikiesboy

Well, things seem to be on an upswing for me lately, most of the time. I'm hoping that applies to my writing as well. While I've had some health issues, they seem to be getting under control. I've had a lot on my mind lately as well, but those things finally seem to be getting worked out, and in some ways, I'm happier than I have been in a long time. That's not to say I don't still have some issues. While I have been mostly happy, my anxiety occasionally rears it's ugly head, and there are times that I can go from being happy to extremely depressed and questioning everything. These times are extremely hard to deal with, as they make me wonder if it would be better to just fade into the background and whether anyone would even care or notice. The answer to that when I'm in the midst of a depression episode is no, but that's okay. Everyone has their own lives and things to worry about and they don't need to be worried about me. But I hope, in time, that will get better as well and that these moments will lessen. So now let's get to the writing news. I have decided to finish Forging Trust. For those who don't know what I'm talking about, I started posting a story all the way back in 2012. I was posting as I wrote it, which I usually do, but then I hit a snag. Or a "trap" as you will. It's a trap I've seen others fall into before and to be honest, I thought I would be able to avoid it. I didn't. I quit writing on Forging Trust, put it as On Hold, and started something new. That worked, but knowing it was just sitting there drove me completely nuts. When I first started writing Forging Trust, I had a plan. I knew exactly what was going to happen from beginning to end. I had just broken the 35,000 word mark and then it happened. The trap was sprung. I love my readers. I love hearing what they think about a story. But there is a specific trap that can be sprung when you're posting as you're writing. That happened to me. Since the story wasn't complete yet, I let my readers influence where the story was going. By doing that, i lost my momentum. I no longer had a clear path to follow. There were suddenly all these twists and turns that I never expected and had no idea how to deal with. I wasn't happy with these twists and turns. They weren't the story that I wanted to write. So rather than write a story that I knew I wouldn't be happy with in the end, I quit writing on it period. I did manage another chapter almost two years later, but that was it. So, what does this mean for Forging Trust? As of today, it is unpublished, but don't worry. It WILL be back. I am currently working on it, cleaning up and tweaking things here and there. But it will not be reposted until it is complete. This way, I can ensure that the story I post, is the story that I originally planned to write. After so long, I'm working through the current chapters to get a feel for the characters again. I'm tweaking things based on new things that I've learned. Hopefully, when it's finished, it will be a story that was worth waiting for. I hope when Forging Trust makes it's reappearance, that you'll all join in and read. I will still want to hear your thoughts, what you liked and didn't, but since the story will be complete, I won't be influenced to change it to something that wasn't what it was supposed to be. And to authors... don't fall into the trap I did. Write your story the way YOU want to write it. Yes, your readers might be angry at you from time to time. You might get those "how could you" messages. But in the end, you must be happy with the story that you're posting.

I'm considering #598 for a possible Jerry and Chris tale.

I have no words, so all I can do is give you a

Beautiful sentiment, sean! So glad you have your Sir in your life.

I hope everyone is having a great week! It's time for this weeks prompts, supplied by our prompt guru, Comicfan. Just a reminder, and for those who haven't worked with the prompts before: prompt responses under 1,000 words must be posted as part of a collection. Prompt 598 – Creative Tag – The picnic Your significant other always tries to do something nice, but it always goes astray. This time they plan a picnic. What happens? Prompt 599 – Creative Tag – The Mummy You are the last one to believe in hokey things like vampires, werewolves, or monsters. Mummies you know are real because your mother is an archeologist who has just found an ancient tomb in Peru. You were with her when they brought the sarcophagus out. That night you dream of the mummy, and the next morning the mummy is missing. What happens next? Did you write a prompt response last week? Don't forget to share it below.

Thank you for sharing, Michael. It sounds like you've both taken the first step and that is to be willing to do whatever you need to in order to get to where you want to be. Sounds like you found the right psychologist as well. to both of you!

They're a family favorite

I don't usually add stuff too it, but we make this a lot when we're having ham.

Let hashbrowns get to room temperature before starting. 2 lbs frozen hashbrowns (I use the cubed ones) 1 C. Margarine 2 cans Cream of Chicken Soup 1 1/2 C. Sour Cream 1/2 t. Salt 1 med Onion (chopped) 1 C Mozzarella Cheese (grated) 1 C Mild Cheddar Cheese (grated) 1 C Corn Flakes (crushed) in 4 T butter Preheat oven to 350 degrees Melt butter in a pan and saute the onions Mix all other ingredients (except cornflakes) together and add onions and butter and dump into a 9" x 13" pan. Top with crushed corn flakes Bake 45-60 minutes at 350 degrees

Oh nice! You're right about Dave needing to introduce Reece to a few people. See, that's why I asked questions, because I couldn't think of what was missing. So now I know another scene that needs added!!!!

Thank you, Def! First of, the spider scene is my absolute favorite. Unfortunately for me, I didn't have a Dave around when it happened to me. I agree with you on them moving too fast. one of the things that is goingnto be paramount in the rewrite is slowing things down. I want to add more scenes both of the together and apart so that we can see interaction with other characters. That would help to ad in some background information too. Just have to be careful not to do an info dump! I'm glad you enjoyed the story,and I'm hoping that the rewrite will be even better.

I love the scenes where Reece has just had enough. He needed to finally say that enough was enough. I'm glad you mentioned the landlord thing as you're right. His landlord had been good to him and there should be something there where he goes or sees him. I'll make note of that! You make another good point about the cousins and their acceptance, as well as about earlier behavior. Those two are gonna require some thought. I could possibly tone down the fear, but I don't want to diminish it too much, because if his own family. I'll have to do some digging there and see what I come up with. Thanks, Tim!

Thank you, Gary. I do think that specific scene will pretty much stay as is, outside of editing, especially since everyone seems to like that scene so well. The echoes are something that I need to watch throughout the story, and I hadn't even realized that one was there. Thank you!

Thank you, Gary! The interactions between Josh and Reece were some of my favorite things about writing this story. I could just picture them as I was writing the scenes that included both of them. Personally, I did like the beginning, and I can use the rest of the story to pace things out a bit better, if I decide to leave the beginning as is.

Thank you, tim! This is exactly the kind of input I was looking for when I asked the question And yes, it worked really well in your newest story!

Thanks, Val! Appreciate it. Know exactly how you feel about the quotas thing. Honestly, right now, I can't seem to write anything. I just open one story, stare it a while, then open another and do the same thing.

Thanks, Cia! I'm ready for all your guys' thoughts! I'll be on and off throughout the day.

Yes you do!

Hope everyone had a good week! Don't forget to join me tomorrow here on the blog for the discussion day for Reece's Choice!!!! Now, let's take a look at what happened this week. Contests Halloween Short Story Contest - Due September 15th, 2017 Anthology Announcements: ***NOTE: All Deadlines are for submission to the Anthology Proof Team*** 2017 Fall Anthology: The Fall Out / Secret Spaces - Due November 15th, 2017 Premium Updates: Dreams of a Father by dkstories; Book 2 of Dreams of Humanity *Premium* Negative Splits by Cia *Premium* Classic Updates: Down a Darkened Path by Ronyx Signature Updates: 319 Winesap Lane by CarlHoliday Mine! by Cia Poetry by Renee by Renee Stevens Sky Light by Comicality The Castaway Hotel: Next Generation Book 2 by Bill W; Book 11 of The Castaway Hotel Waiting Outside The Lines by Comicality Promising Updates: Buy One, Get Two and Three... by Caz Pedroso Changes by Mikiesboy Choices by LitLover Fractions for fun by Puppilull Headstall's Reflections by Headstall Lyrical Laments by Headstall timmy's poetry by Mikiesboy

Adjust those expectations Don’t set the bar too high. Words of praise can lift you up The lack can drop you low. Don’t take to heart the words not said But know you did your best. Tomorrow is another day Just like all the rest.