Second #100days Check-in

Final sunset of 2014

Happy New Year!

I've got less than a month left in my second #100days as a Lady of Leisure. Happily, I'm now able to check #2 off my list of goals - write something, from start to finish - after having completed a manuscript of more than 76,000 words in December.

I was able to meet the deadline for the competition I was writing for and, while I have no illusions of actually winning that competition, it was a successful exercise in discipline. Writing for a deadline with a provided theme (music and its influence) gave me direction and purpose. And, a finished manuscript.

I've also started querying agents, hoping for some professional feedback. Again, I have no illusions that my manuscript is publishable as-is but, with some professional guidance and additional effort, I hope that it will be ready someday (though probably not in time to apply towards Goal #3).

For those who are curious, my target category is Commercial Fiction with Pop Culture and Feminist elements (because everything must fit into a box). My title is Old Friends and Dangling Conversations (a mashup of two Simon and Garfunkel songs) and my pitch looks something like this:

Pauline Dier is an Elton John. She is also a matchmaker. She matches people based solely on their favorite musician because she believes music is fundamental to one’s personality and that one’s favorite musician can predict certain personality traits. 

Along with her best friend Brett, a Michael Jackson and an emerging artist, Pauline navigates New York City's bar and art scenes. Leading a routine but enjoyable life of career, bars, and friends, she believes herself to be complete until she reconnects with her old friend Gina, a Dolly Parton, who, after eight years in a bad relationship, has taken steps to rediscover her happiness.

Influenced by old friends and the music she has designed her life around, this is the story of Pauline as she begins to explore what it means to truly be alive.

In other news, my Mandarin is coming along. Slowly. Mike's is coming along at essentially the same pace, though I'm putting much more effort into it. Damn him and his natural talent for languages.

I'm learning to play the guitar as one of my 2015 resolutions.

Another resolution has us eating a vegan dinner once a week. For our first attempt, Mike made a lovely pineapple coconut curry over rice. We didn't even miss the meat in that one. I think our next one is going to be an attempt at Phad Thai. Yum!

We also ventured out on our first day trip since moving to Kaohsiung.

2014 was a good year for us. Much better than 2013 but, hopefully, not as good as 2015 will be.

We hope you had a very happy holiday season and a happy new year. We wish you happiness and good health in the new year.

Much love to all.