It’s still winter … sigh #mnsnow

February 25, 2023 by Julie Holmes, author 7 Comments

The latest snowstorm

In case you didn’t hear, or were on vacation someplace warm and tropical, we were hit with a major snowstorm this week. The weather wonks had been warning us for the past week about this whopper of a storm, and advised people to postpone any travel that wasn’t absolutely necessary. Work from home if you can (heh, I always do 🙂 ). Make sure you have enough supplies for a couple of days. On Tuesday afternoon, it started. Schools let out early. Offices closed early. And both stayed closed through Wednesday and Thursday because of snow and wind. Blizzard warnings for Wed afternoon into Thursday. Anywhere from 6 to 20 inches of snow.

Um, yep. We were snowbound for those days. How much snow did we actually get? Hard to say because it all got blown around. Parts of our driveway were clear, other parts had foot-deep drifts. There was a good foot on the deck in the sheltered area. Totals for the closest town I’ve seen, about 40 miles northwest of us, was 18 inches.

And just for fun (or spite) we got to enjoy -15 F Friday morning. Air temp. Windchills closer to -30.

I am so done with winter.

The next storm is winding up on the west coast. The latest forecast for us is rain and snow next week.

Have I mentioned how DONE I am with winter?

“And how much writing did you get done while you were snowbound, love?”

Damn. I look up to find my Muse leaning against the end of the wall separating the alcove from the outside door of my writing office. Sun-bleached hair, baggy cotton pants in a bright paisley pattern, a lightweight sweatshirt, and … Birkenstocks? No socks. Tan. Wow.

“Nothing like rubbing it in. Must be nice to jump into summer Down Under.”

“Well, there sure wasn’t a hell of a lot going on here.”

“Hey, snowstorm.”

“And how is being snowbound for three days any different than you not going anywhere for three days?”

He does have a point. “We were lucky the power didn’t go out, and we got our propane tank filled just before the storm moved in. I’m thankful we were warm and safe.”

“And I’m glad for that, love. Did you use the time wisely?”

Grumble. “As for your question, no, I didn’t get much writing done. I need to work on a few things before I do any more revision–which you weren’t around to help me with. However, I am two-thirds of the way through the third book I’m reading before Left Coast Crime, which is in two and a half weeks. I have two more to read before then. So I’m reading more, writing less.”

He frowns. “I’ll give you a pass. It’s good that you volunteered to moderate that panel. Now you just need to get Book 2 finished so you can tell readers that it’s done and looking for a publisher.”

“I know, I know. I’m still working on the things my agent pointed out. I need to think about ways to handle those concerns in a way that fits the characters.” I narrow my eyes. “I could use some inspiration here, rather than wondering how much surfing you’re getting in.”

“Not as much as you think, love.” He approaches my desk. “I have no current plans to walkabout. Except while you’re at Left Coast Crime.”

Which works, because I don’t do any writing during that time anyway. Too much networking and panel-watching to do. Too much activity to really get creative. “Okay, that’s good.”

“And how much writing are we planning on getting done after the convention?”

I would love to say a lot, but come to think of it, I have a house to try and organize-slash-clean if hubs still plans on our hosting Easter for his family. Ugh. Although I’m thinking not this year; he and his siblings are planning a trip out to CA to finish business for their deceased brother around that time. And I get to cat-sit for my son at his apartment for a week and a half–yippee! 🙂

I’m hoping to get a bunch of writing done while cat-sitting, between petting sessions 😀

“Well?”

“I’ll be more focused after LCC. I want to get at least halfway through my edits before I get to cat-sit.”

He plants hands on his hips and rolls his eyes. “Uh-huh.”

“Hey, I won’t have home distractions at my son’s apartment.”

“You’re still planning on working.”

“Well, yeah. I’m one hundred percent remote, so I can work from there. I just need to figure out how much of my equipment I’ll need to bring besides my computer.”

“And four cats? What was that about no distractions.”

“No home distractions. Besides, you like cats.”

“Not as much as you do.”

“Why? Because they know when you’re around?”

“They don’t seem to understand that I can’t pet them.”

Hmm. Zoey is never interested when he’s around. I wonder if my son’s cats will shadow him.

He plants his hands on my desk and leans in. “Point is, you need to write.”

“I’m well aware, and I’m when I’m not reading, I am working on what-ifs for the revisions.”

We survived the storm and came out the other side mostly unscathed, all except for the foot+ of snow that still needs to be cleared off the deck. I also scheduled my personal spring writing retreat at the Shire–woo-hoo! I’m renting a different cabin again; trying to figure out which one works best for me, although being so isolated is good for my creativity in general. Hopefully it’ll be drier this year, but the way things are going, they’ll probably still have snow on the ground the second weekend in May.

Happy Writing!

Nyx, Tibbers, and Stella

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