Kimberly A. Cook

Military Romance Author

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Dance Like It’s Not Raining!

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by Kimberly A. Cook              (Twitter@ WarriorTales)

Had a very busy day last Saturday, so when I got home I plopped in the LaZBoy and didn’t want to move. Checked out the tv schedule and watched the end of “Dirty Dancing,” and then all of “Grease.” Nothing like great dance music to make you forget dark rainy weather and the coming cold.

Music is always a feel good uplift for me and the soundtrack to “Grease” is one of my favorites. What is even more amazing in this video clip than Olivia Newton John’s sewn on black pants is the fact she not only dances in mule high heels and goes on the weird roller carnival thing wearing them, but she doesn’t kill herself on the Shake Shack with John Travolta’s help. BUT she also dances down the stairs without looking where to put her feet! The woman was then and still is a marvel! Enjoy!

Happy Quirky Friday!

http://youtu.be/tPRHEqfm1JY

Coffee, Cookies And Hot Books At The Drugstore?

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by Kimberly A. Cook                  (Twitter@ WarriorTales)

Surfing online last week I came across a story about a Seattle Drugstore chain installing an Espresso Book Machine in one of their stores, in conjunction with Kodak Alaris, to make publishing our own books as easy as a trip for chips. Boggles the mind. Imagine what self-published Benjamin Franklin would think if he could see our new printing presses now.

What's on the menu? Cocoa, cookie and freshly baked book?
What’s on the menu? Cocoa, cookie and freshly baked book?

It can never be a bad thing to have cookies, coffee, tea or hot cocoa together with ordering freshly printed books; almost at our tables! I love the smell of toner ink in the morning.

Digital media has changed the publishing game so much in a short amount of time. This is a moment when production process improvements directly impact the ability of everyone to publish books. Whether creating games, videos, pod casts, ebooks, comic books, picture books, interactive web sites or old-fashioned paper, communication and content are King and Queen.

Like we know from Spiderman, “With great power, comes great responsibility,” is even more true in today’s publishing world. I gave up a long time ago trying to be first at anything in this business, I just want to write what I love. It doesn’t happen overnight and that is okay with me.

Whether learning to drive, cook or breakdown an M-16 rifle, certain tasks take time, patience, skill and persistence. Writing is one of those creative arts which benefits from effort and hard work.

To paraphrase Yoda, when the printing process is ready, the author will appear. While we work on our craft and spend time developing our characters and stories, it’s a good idea to keep an eye on the developments in the digital book business. Who knows, our next publisher might be the drive-thru window at Starbucks. (It could happen!)

Read the article here:  http://www.digitalbookworld.com/2013/seattle-based-drugstore-pilots-espresso-book-machine-on-demand-printing-center/

Back To Neka And Her Girls!

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by Kimberly A. Cook                  (Twitter@ WarriorTales)

It’s no secret I adore cats and especially big cats. So it must be time to get back to the nursery and check in on Neka and her three daughters at the Oregon Zoo.

All are doing well and they surprised unsuspecting visitors with a Halloween treat last week when they made their first frolic outside in their public area. A nice sunny day, the little ones can only be out when the temperature is above 55, so check out how much they’ve grown!

Happy Quirky Friday!

Tighten Your Seatbelt, Here Come The Holidays!

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by Kimberly A. Cook                         (Twitter@ WarriorTales)

Chatting with a friend recently whose decided to concentrate on her quilting during the holidays. Such a great idea. Focus is a challenge for us creatives on any given day, but the holidays add a special spice of chaos to the normal distractions. Squirrel! Santa! Cookies! Icky weather! Gifts! You get my drift – pun intended.

Field trips can happen in your backyard. Dashing to work I saw this and snapped two photos. First October frost.
Field trips can happen in your backyard. Dashing to work I saw this and snapped two photos. First October frost.

At lunch with the family in August I asked us to map out the holidays – folks were a little taken aback, but I said it will be here before we know it and voila! When the Halloween, Christmas and Valentine’s Day decorations are all crashing together in the stores right now, overwhelmed is a normal reaction for us.

I cope by surrendering in early August. Like a runaway stagecoach, holidays happen. I make my plans, try to keep things simple and pick ways to celebrate to make it fun and focus on using my off time from the day job for creative activities. Everything from baking cookies to sorting beads and egad, reading, make the list. Keeps my muse well fed and out of the Grinch cranky zone.

Add in the recent time change this past weekend and all I want to do is curl up with a book, blankie, bottle of chocolate milk and hibernate. So planning fun things to do to feed my muse and taking some time for myself is job one during the holiday season.

“Try to do one thing a day for yourself,” my sister told me recently. Actually she said two, but it’s the holidays. Simplify! These are not big things, but small tokens of time which reinvigorate our creative soul and keep us from losing balance. Lunch out with a friend, taking leaf pictures, buying a new writer magazine, actually sitting down on a weekend afternoon and reading, plus watching football or Hallmark movies all work for me.

Keep your muse in mind this holiday season and take it out for a few field trips. See how doing less means more for your creative health. Slow down and smell the leaves, cider or holiday cookies. Be a kid again. Unleash the crayons!

Are All Pumpkins And Writing The Same?

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by Kimberly A. Cook              (Twitter@ WarriorTales)

Got together with my writer support group this past weekend. We always have interesting conversations. One topic included how writers trained in one type of writing can run into roadblocks and challenges switching to another style of writing.

Pumpkin pallooza! Took a couple of these fun baby pumpkins home with me from The Barn in Northeast Portland - each has their own personality.
Pumpkin pallooza! Took a couple of these fun baby pumpkins home with me from The Barn in Northeast Portland – each has their own personality.

Isn’t all writing the same? Nope. On the newspaper it seemed pretty clear; news, editorial, feature and sports writing were all different animals. News would be like a police report with more details, editorial an opinion supported by evidence, features were true short stories and sports a combination of feature and news with more storytelling.

When a  journalist tries to write memoir, they can fall down Alice’s rabbit hole. Trained to be objective and keep personal thoughts and feelings out of reporting, a memoir requires running naked for all the world to see including thoughts, feelings and (gasp) our personal emotions. It takes time and practice to master the switch.

The same goes for fiction, poetry, short stories, screenwriting, non-fiction and blogs. Each writing type requires different care and feeding. No two writers are alike. Or pumpkins. Imagine if everyone only liked one type of writing? Boring. If there was only one way to carve or decorate a pumpkin or if all pumpkins had to be the same size and shape? Really boring.

Writing genres and pumpkins have a lot in common. No two are really the same and every reader gets to choose their favorite. Pumpkin or book. Or comic. Or YouTube video. Are writers allowed to change pumpkins, er genres? Yes. Will it require homework and study? Yup. Should that stop us? No.

All writing improves the craft, even if we find out we don’t want to write fiction or non-fiction or ad copy. That is part of the process. So when you are picking out your favorite pumpkin and admiring the creations displayed this week remember; in writing and pumpkins – variety is the spice in writing – or something like that. Happy Halloween!

Whatever Floats Your Pumpkin!

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by Kimberly A. Cook               (Twitter@ WarriorTales)

I enjoy all things quirky, so I cannot figure out how I didn’t know about the Giant Pumpkin Regatta going on in Tualatin, Oregon for years. Not only is this a favorite shopping area, but a friend and I meet for lunch at the restaurant which borders the reflecting pond.

What better way to celebrate Halloween than growing big pumpkins, weighing them, having them lifted into the water and then carved out into boats. My favorite is the motorized pumpkin, but he can’t compete for prizes. These rowers are getting a workout and it appears there are several heats, due to the popularity of pumpkin racing. Who knew?

Get your treats and candy bags ready for next Thursday, because here comes Halloween! Happy Quirky Friday!