Hello again!

Hey, everyone!

So sorry it took me so long to post again! Life has been busy :D

My first round of chemo went smoothly. I got real sick to my stomach after each day, but now I'm better and can run and play. Yesterday I rode horses, but it was very disappointing because I couldn't ride my Charlie and instead had to ride a piebald Gypsy Vanner gelding named Mystic Prince.

He's rather slow.

Sooooo, there's some things I need to tell y'all. First of all, I am not going to quit posting just bc of a busy life like I did a few months ago. I always look forward to posting; it brings me joy. However, (yeah, me too. I hate "howevers" *rolls eyes*) the posting will be cut back. I'm sad, but I can't post every weekend and every Wednesday like I wanted to *sad face* It's just too much. So instead of having a schedule, I'll be posting whenever I want to, have time to, or feel like posting. I think that will be easier, and then when life becomes less busy and I am feeling 100% better, I'll go back to a scheduled posting. The schedule might change from Wednesdays and weekends to something else.....I dunno.

Anyway, enough about that boring stuff. I'll be doing a few updates around the blog. Like: I need to update my "About Me" page (sadly, August the orange kitten is deceased; he's been gone for about a month or two and I've never gotten around to say so on that page) and I want to update the picture cuz it isn't really "accurate" anymore.

Hmmmmm, what else? Oh! I have a story contest planned! There are 3 rules so everyone can enjoy this contest without any fiction-friction <<Ummmmmmm, yeah:

1. Please have a story appropriate for all ages

2. Please write a story that glorifies the Lord

3. Please have your story be an original you've written. Unless you want to, you actually don't have to enter a special story you've written for this contest. It just has to be yours, a story you haven't entered in any other contests; a story that you love, but doesn't have any "connections" to the outside world........???? (Yeah, I confused myself)

If you follow these rules, you'll be able to have the best time of participating in the contest. If you don't, I will sadly not be able to share your story.

So, another few things about this contest:

• The story needs to have an animal in it
• It needs to be 2,000 words or under and not below 900
• The story needs to be between 1850 and 2019
• I need at least 2 entries for this contest to be launched
• And of course, please don't feel pressured to do this! If you feel pressured after or before entering, of course you don't need to enter. If you enter and can't complete your story or suddenly realize you have no time to write, contact me on the sidebar in the "Contact Me" form (brilliant, eh?) and tell me. I understand the situation completely!

To enter:

Step 1. Tell me if you are entering in the comments below

Step 2. Write your story or, if you already have written your story.......

Step 3. And send it to 13lovespalominos@gmail.com (my new email address)

The deadline is July 18, one month from now. I will announce the winner on July 23. That will give you plenty of time to brainstorm, write, and revise and edit before entering. If you are late to submit your story then you can enter before the 21st.

If you can, please enter before or on July 18.

If I get all the entries before June 18, then I will announce sooner.

On July 23, I will post all the stories I have received (unless the author does not want me to) and announce the winner. The prize is one or both of these books by Lori Wick:

And/or this floofy pen:

The back of The Hawk and the Jewel:

For years Lord Gallagher's family has thought that Sunny perished with Lady Gallagher in storm-tossed seas off the Arabian coast. Unknown to them, the beautiful violet-eyed toddler had been found and taken to the palace of Darhabar, where she was rased as the ruler's own child. Now the emir, Ahmad Khan, has contacted the family and asked them to send a ship for her. Why after all this time? And what of the mysterious gift sent with her?

Brandon Hawkesbury, friend to the Gallaghers and appealing young captain of the vessel, gazes at Sunny as she comes aboard. It will not be easy for the restless girl to accept a new life...a new family...a new faith.

Brandon puts aside these thoughts as he turns his ship toward sea. For now, Sunny is going home. What lies ahead is in God's hands.

What promise does the future hold?

The back of Wings of the Morning:

Victoria Simmons, "Smokey" to all who knew her, had been scaling the rigging of her father's ship from the time she could walk. A woman now, she stands silently on the deck as her father's body is lowered into the Atlantic, asking God for the strength she will need to command the Aramis alone.

Not wanting to remain at sea forever, Smokey dreams of the time when she can trade her life aboard ship for a home and family. When she meets another sea captain, Dallas Knight, owner of the Zephyr, Smokey believes her dream will finally come true. But circumstances beyond their control and schemes of a cunning pirate threaten to destroy this young couple's hope for the future.

I have not read Wings of the Morning, but I have read The Hawk and the Jewel and it was so appealing I read it in one day. It switches POVs a lot, but other than that, the writing is acceptable and the story is well-formed.

If the winner does not want a prize, please tell me. I am totally understanding :D

Remember, the point of this contest is to have fun!!!

Enjoy your summer!!

~Izzy