Don't Try This At Home...

***This post has nothing to do with writing, our writing careers, or really anything important at all. BUT, since we'd had such trouble with blogs, and now that they are finally back up - I figured I'd post this one here too :) ***


The Sunday before Christmas, I attempted a feat only I would dare try.

Skiing down the stairs.

On my shin.

It didn't work. And it hurt.

Thus, the title of this blog...

Anyway, the REAL story is this (albeit much less glamorous) :
Sunday night after church, my friend (loyal and true) Carrie came over. I was still in my dressy outfit from the cantata that night. (Mistake #1)

After we caught up and had a good ol' heart-to-heart, I asked if she wanted to see how we'd rearranged all the rooms in the basement. (Mistake #2 - not that asking her was a mistake, I love Carrie dearly, but it was definitely too late at night and my pants were entirely too dressy...)

At the top of the stairs, I realized a dilemma. I normally wore four-inch heels with these particular pants. Why? Well, One - the incredibly cute and dressy pants demand that kind of footwear, and Two - my legs are just too stinkin' short. Anyway, back to the story - Carrie headed down the stairs first, and me and my big mouth and dressy, dressy pants started our descent. I said, "Watch me trip on my pants and fall down the stairs..." (Mistake #3)

Truer words have never been spoken.

And I fell.
It wasn't glamorous. It wasn't graceful. It wasn't even pretty.
But Carrie's football stance at the bottom of the stairs was all of the above. I wish I had a picture of her face. It was priceless.
And I treasure her even more as a friend. Carrie is no frail chick who danced around saying, "oh my goodess!" - she didn't even try to save her own skin and jump out of the way of "skiing Kim" as I hurtled down the wood stairs - no, this girl stuck out her own neck, ready to take the blow so she could stop my momemtum-building fall.
That's a friend, people. Just sayin'.

And me? Well, my leg is grotesque to put it mildly. The bruising and coloring just get better and better each day. :)

Sweet hubby has patched up the wall-(oh, by the way, did I mention that my knee punched a large hole in the sheet rock?), and I've learned valuable lessons. Things like:
-wear shin guards every time I head down the stairs
-never, NEVER say I'm going to fall-Even if I'm joking
-never wear the cute, dressy pants without the appropriate footwear
-grow longer legs

And for all of you who demanded a picture - well, here it is. This is three days after. I almost took another one today, but I'm afraid of scaring small children... and the elderly... So... just imagine it about ten times worse - That's what it looks like now. Hopefully in about a month, maybe it will be gone.

Computer Crash... Stay Tuned

Well...
After months of craziness, we finally discovered all our glitches. Our main computer system had a time-bomb virus. (if you don't know what that is - don't ask. It's scary. I'm freaked out every time I think about it. Yuck. Ugh.) It fried the mother-board and operating system, and sent trojans to the other computers on the network.

We haven't been able to post on blogs correctly for MONTHS - and not at all for quite some time - as you can see :)

We haven't been able to receive and send email properly for months...

And, we've lost a lot of data.

BUT - we believe - that it is all functioning properly now. (At least the computers that are still alive.)

So... Thanks for your patience and keep watching. We hope to get it all back to schedule this week and next.

New Website, Need Influencers, and Great Interview Next Week!

It's official - the new "website" is up and running. And for the most part, I haven't totally killed it, rearranged it, or messed it up. (I know, I know, just wait, right?) LOL

Anyway, so please tell your friends that they can go to any of the following:
kimwoodhouse.com
kimberleywoodhouse.com
kimberleyandkaylawoodhouse.com
kaylawoodhouse.com
and they will all take you to our new streamlined (hopefully), easy to navigate (prayerfully) site :)
Kayla and I would love to have your thoughts on the new site, tabs, and info that is up. We'd also love your suggestions!

NEXT - we need influencers for our upcoming release NO SAFE HAVEN - if you'd like to be someone to read it, blog about it, and talk it up - please let us know ASAP. Either commment here - or send an email through the contact tab on our website.

AND NOW - that everything is up and running smoothly (finally, whew!) be watching for a great interview we have with Jenny B. Jones next week! She's totally amazing, hysterical, and one of my favorite people of all time.

Stay tuned!
Love you all :)

Word Count

For those of you who are (or who have hung around) a writer at any point in time, you've probably heard the terms "word count."

We are always striving for that elusive number. Be it a daily goal or the completion of a manuscript, we wordsmiths sure do seem to place a lot of importance on numbers.

And a lot of writers will admit that they hate numbers. Many of them hate math in general. So what is it with this obsession we have with numbers?

After much pondering (not really), I've decided to share my thoughts (or lack thereof) on this subject.

1. We need numbers. Life, and thus our stories, would be boring without numbers. (Who would be interested if the reader doesn't know how old our characters are, what year they live in, or how many half-decaf-caramel-lattes they drink each day?)
2. Numbers help you exaggerate in order to make your point more meaningful. (She rewrote the scene for the 5-trillionth time.)
3. Numbers help us with deadlines and parameters. (You'll never have a publisher ask you to deliver a manuscript of unlimited word count whenever you feel like it.)

So now that I have shared my abundance of wisdom on this matter of numbers, I must get back to my own word count after teaching my kids that "yes, you still have to do math even if you want to be a writer."

Kayla Woodhouse Needs YOU!

Can you imagine Uncle Sam with his finger pointed at you? Well, just imagine it's me, Kayla, pointing at you... Yes, we need YOU!!

Would you like to be part of our research for RACE AGAINST TIME?


Well, here are some questions that we need your input on:

-How would you react if you had just witnessed a murder?
-Now put on your imagination caps and imagine you are 13-years-old and witness a murder?
-What are your favorite dog names?
-What do you know about sled-dog racing in Alaska? Have you heard of Sprint racing or only long-distance like the Iditarod?
-Do you know how many letters the North Pole, AK post office receives for Santa each year? (You really need to know this one!)

Signing off for now - be watching for more research questions on this blog as we write!

God Bless-
Kayla

ANNOUNCEMENT!!

Kayla has been chosen as a staff writer for iBegat.com a new site for teens!!

This is launch week at iBegat - so please check out the links below and tell all your friends!

iBegat Home Page
Devo by Kayla
Staff Writer Kayla Woodhouse
Movie Review by Kayla

Mismatched Socks...

Kim here: My amazing friend and full-time assistant, Lori, wrote a blog post for you all since we're in the trenches editing.

Lori here: As you probably know, I will do pretty much anything to help the Woodhouses out, which happens to include... laundry. So, yesterday, betwix all the craziness I let Kim know that something was totally wrong with this house. She just laughed, and asked, "what?" I replied, "I only found four socks that don't match." Kayla piped up and said, "No..." she pointed to her feet, "Six!" (Kayla likes to wear socks that don't match - LOL)

We all needed something to laugh about. You see, line edits are in progress. Kim, Kayla, and editor, Karen are all clicking away on the keyboards. Having only read 2/3 of the original manuscript, I can tell you the plot thickens and I just learned that I had the "bad guy" all wrong! And now that the edits and line edits are almost done, I can't wait to find out how and why I was wrong. :)

You see, I may work for authors but they never let on... even to me!
What I do know is how busy they are! Always something to do betwix the house, writing, swimming, school, PR, marketing, meals, and so much more. Like your lives, there is always something that needs to be done.

So stop matching those socks - even slip on a mismatched pair (it'll make Kayla smile) and get ready for the book's release in March.

Until next time, and wearing my mismatched socks, simply because laundry always needs to be done... Lori

Research, Research, Research...

Kim here:
My great friend and author, Camy Tang, made a comment on twitter yesterday about research, "Can I just say, I LOVE MY JOB! Where else can I have a legitimate reason to look up how to do a proper triangle choke hold?"

It's true. As authors, we have so much fun doing research. Like when we went to the Grand Canyon and I asked a ranger, "So... how many people die here every year?" The ranger didn't even blink at the question, but several people around us looked at me as if to say, "why is this sweet looking mom with her two kids in tow asking a question like that?" I, of course, told them I was an author and doing research. I do write suspense, you know. :) And found out there's an entire book written on the subject. Death in the Grand Canyon. Huh, imagine that. And yes, I bought it.

Anyway, we love research. Even when I've sat on the phone for hours asking questions, taken thousands of pictures, my eyes have blurred from staring at website after website, and then have gone bloodshot from reading book after book...

Research is awesome. It takes a lot of time, but wow, does it make your stories sing! I even have to admit that sometimes I get distracted doing research. I'll be writing a scene and just have to check on one little minute detail and off I go - getting lost in the world of information.

I agree with Camy. I love my job. Now I think I'll go look up that triangle choke hold thingy she talked about - you never know - I might need to use it in a book someday...

The Scoop...

Kim and Kayla here...

Here's the new scoop:

As we have worked on our schedules, re-vised, re-grouped, re-focused, re-assessed, re-rested, re-confuzzled, and totally turned everything upside down with all this "re" business, we've come up with a new schedule to try and simplify things.

With the craziness of our lives, we want to share it all with you (isn't that nice of us?) and still be able to maintain our writing, schooling, swimming, speaking, teaching, and everything else in between. :)

So here it is:

Tuesday - will be a post on our blog together at - KimberleyandKaylaWoodhouse.com
(One week Kim will post, the next week Kayla will post and so on...)

Wednesday - will be a post on Kim's blog posted at - KimberleyWoodhouse.com click on the blog tab this blog is also posted at
KimberleyWoodhouse and KimberleyWrites

Thursday - will be a post on Kayla's blog for kids at - Dragon Claws, Dog Paws, Swimming Laws...

As always we love to hear from all of you and look forward to sharing all the great things going on!

WOOHOO! Check out the trailer!

I'm so excited to share with all of you the book trailer that B&H has for NO SAFE HAVEN!

It would thrill us beyond belief :) if you could help us get the word out by passing on the links to everyone. They can either view it here on our website, Kim's Website or on - Kim's YouTube channel under favorites

NO SAFE HAVEN releases in March of 2011 - and will be up for pre-order in a couple of months! We are very excited about this book and hope to get the word out!
Thank you - Kim and Kayla

Alaska Adventure #2...

As we continued our amazing research trip into the interior of Alaska, we had the privilege of seeing one of Alaska's (and the United States') most incredible sights. The Alaska Pipeline.







And another part of our interior Alaska trek was North Pole, Alaska. Here's a great picture of Julee at Santa Claus' House hugging a giant stuffed Polar Bear.




North Pole, Alaska is where our characters' are from in NO SAFE HAVEN. This deliciously yummy croissant french toast is from a little cafe' in North Pole and probably the best french toast I've ever had!




Guess what this is? Any idea how much mail they receive here every year? Take a guess...



Julee, myself, and Karen at the Cafe' North Pole - which will be featured in Book #2. The research was oh, so hard...




This trip was full of great memories, but more than anything - great friends. This is one of my best friends, Leah. I miss her.



Keep watching for more pictures and fun stuff from our trip back to our beloved Alaska...

From Kayla's Perspective #4 - REVISION RAMBLINGS

UGH!! Revisions, schoolwork, swimming, crit group chapters. Where has the day gone?

As we travel down this amazing-ly busy, terrib-ly funny, tiring-ly draining, and genuine-ly crazy path, (since this is a blog I can use all the “LY” adverbs I want, LOL) I realize what “not enough time in the day” really means. (“Sleep? What is this sleep you talk about?”)

Also, now Mom and I have a new challenge, a puzzle: Taking apart and then putting back together our story. (Duhn, duhn, duhn, duh!) Otherwise known as, REVISIONS.

“Let me splain… No, too much, let me sum up…” (Come on, you’ve gotta love The Princess Bride) we’re each making a separate document for our character's scenes so that we can re-tweak them, finding out where to add new scenes, which then means going back and labeling all the old ones. Whew.

Confused? Don’t worry, so am I! But I’m just going along with it, Mom knows what to do, so I’ll just follow her. Again, LOL. (It's a good time to only be 12+1 years old. I don't have to have all the answers.)

Being a writer is hard work, which is why I always keep my stash of M&Ms close by. FYI-M&Ms work magic when writing! And sweet tea, sweet tea’s great too. You’ve gotta be prepared when going onto the battle field, right? (Just go along with it.)

Then again, every once in a while it’s nice to sit back and relax, ya know? Most of the time that means watching a movie (like Bolt, Up, or The Ultimate Gift) or reading a book (like one of The Dragon Keeper Chronicles or The Chronicles of Narnia).

But no matter how relaxing that is, it’s still a job to do revisions! (Revisions themselves aren’t the bad part, the bad part is when you over-do your editing and destroy your scene. How do I know? Just trust me, I know.)

But, it’s always fun when Mom comes into the room (In that moment it’s like angels start singing the Hallelujah chorus) and she starts making me laugh.
(Just a little piece of valuable info here, Mom and I are both very silly and love to laugh at each other’s mistakes, for instance as I was writing “Most of the time that means watching a movie or reading a book” above, I put “watching a book or reading a movie”.) Hey, you’ve gotta at least chuckle!! Come on, chuckle… you can do it… come on…

I guess that’s just how life is though, full of surprises, trials, laughs… and confuzzling sentence skeletons (Ick). But, at least I know that I’ve got God, so what am I worried about? I may do horrible in my worst subject, (English, are you surprised?) but I guess that’s what perseverance is for, right? (Nod your head so I know you’re paying attention.)

Little voice inside head also known as Holy Spirit: BE THANKFUL!
Me: Yes, sir.

Oh! I think I hear lunch calling me, it’s saying “Kayla… eat me…” echo, echo, echo. (Have I succeeded in making you smile yet?)

I guess I’ll go eat lunch and then get to my Revisions, Math, and English (woop-a-dee-doo… hint, hint).

Have a wonderful day and God bless!
-Kayla
Remember: Bad things aren’t the only things that happen in life so thank God for your blessings (yes, English included), even when you’re down in the dumps.

Book Cover for NO SAFE HAVEN!!!!!!!!!!

WOOHOO!! Check out our amazing cover for Book #1 - No Safe Haven - releasing March 15, 2011 from B&H Publishing Group!

We're Ba-aaaaack!!! Alaska update #1

Whew! I don't think I will ever catch up. Ever. Again. LOL
I've taken a little break from "social media" to get a breather and regroup (and recover from the crud I picked up on the way home.) :)

The kids and I are back from our incredible trip to Alaska - it was full of breathtaking scenery, tons of research, great friends, and our amazing editors/friends Karen Ball and Julee Schwarzburg. So, to give you a little teaser, I'm going to share a few pics and a little about our trip...

We arrived in Anchorage and I had several speaking engagements and radio interviews. These first two pictures are from an incredible school - Grace Christian - in Anchorage, where the kids were amazing and SO much fun.





About a week into our trip, we were joined by Karen and Julee. The first day we headed down the Seward Highway (one of the most beautiful drives in the world) and snow followed us the whole way! But it was beautiful!



After breathtaking Alaska weather, we headed toward Trapper Creek up the Parks Highway as we chased "The Mountain" - (I'll explain in a minute) - This picture is outside our cabin in Trapper Creek.



Chasing "The Mountain" - is attempting to get as close as you can to Denali (Mt. McKinley) the highest mountain in North America, and "seeing" it. Denali in native Athabascan means, "The High One" - and true Alaskans only refer to it by its original name. (There's a LONG story behind that one...)

Anyway, we chased the mountain from Anchorage, (hundreds of miles away), because the mountain was "out." But sadly, by the time we got to Trapper Creek, it had draped itself in clouds once again.

Karen and Julee were very fortunate though... Many, MANY people come to Alaska and never get the opportunity to see Denali, but as you can see below - we chased him down and we saw hundreds of views of this massive mountain.


Josh and Kayla had a blast posing for pictures and telling Karen and Julee all about their favorite parts of Alaska.



Did you know that Denali is actually the tallest mountain in the world from base to top? Everest beats it because of elevation...



In the picture above, we're still a good 50 miles away from Denali. In the foreground, you see Karen and Julee hiking up to a lookout point (during the summer, that's actually a parking lot they'd be standing on). Isn't it amazing how massive the mountain is? And it's surrounded by other massive mountains...

Stay tuned, more pictures and Alaska fun facts coming in the next blogs...

Off On Another Adventure...

Alaska here we come!
Be watching for pictures and updates as Kayla, Josh, and myself take a research trek back up to our beloved Alaska with editors Karen Ball and Julee Schwarzburg. I'm SO looking forward to learning and growing as a writer under these two amazing women.

Now that No Safe Haven (first draft) is done, we're havin' a ball working on the details for book #2. Lots more details to come, but we are excited to share our writing journey with you all.

So... Stay tuned! We'll have LOTS to share with you all in the next few weeks...

Well Done… My Slightly Good and Partially Faithful Servant?

***Note from Kim:
Kayla wrote this blog last night and it blew me away. Out of the mouths of babes... has no better meaning than this. I pray that you are blessed, encouraged, and hopefully even have your toes stepped on. I known mine have been. And I'm thankful for it. Remember, this was written by Kayla, not me. She's twelve. I hope I continue to learn from her. Wow.
***

Have you ever wondered why God made you? Have you ever questioned Him about His intentions and motivations??

There’s no need to question God about these things… you just need to ask yourself them. We know that God knows what He’s doing. But what are WE doing each and every day?

What are your intentions?
What are your motivations?
Why are you on this earth?

But the biggest question (that will basically answer the rest) is:
WHO ARE YOU LIVING FOR?
On my personal blog, Dragon Claws, Dog Paws, Swimming Laws… I told of an adventure of my heart that I had, ever since then I’ve been trying harder to live FULLY for God.

I mean, think about it: EVERY thought and EVERY motive and EVERY action is, whether we want to admit it or not, for ourselves. We're selfish.

Really, think about it.

If you were to die right now, or if Jesus were to come this very minute, would He be able to say, “Well done my good and faithful servant” or would He say, “Well done, my slightly good and partially faithful servant?”

Really dig deep inside of yourself and, like I said, question your motivations and intentions.

Did you think about it?

Now, I’m not going to go into detail about how and why you should live for Christ, I’m sure you already know. (If you don’t, then try reading the Bible) :) But I am going to say this:

If you are not FULLY and COMPLETELY DEVOTED to Christ, you cannot truly call yourself a Christian. Most people call themselves Christians because they go to church or simply because someone in their family is one, but seriously. We all know that’s not true. The thing that everyone in this world misses is:
WE ARE NOT ON THIS EARTH FOR OURSELVES.

We are here for a loving God who was kind enough to not only create us but also give His Son as a symbol of faith, assurance, love, righteousness, and devotion.

“Draw near to God and He will draw near to you”
Or in other words
“Devote yourself to God and He will devote Himself to you”

If you give God the chance to rule your life moment by moment and step by step, I can guarantee that your life will become that much better. (Not easier. But better.)

And you will have an even happier life in heaven because you can live up to God’s “Well done”.

It’s okay if you’re scared to give everything to God, we all want to grab onto our earthly desires and wishes and hang on, but I can assure you that life will be SO much easier if you just give God your EVERYTHING. After all: when you invite someone into your house, do you leave them standing in the foyer or do you invite them in to talk to them and feed them and welcome them?

If you give devotion to people, how much more devotion should you give to God?
I challenge you today to devote your life FULLY to God.

Trust me, it’s not going to be easy.

You’ll have to ask Him almost every moment of the day to take your life again and mold your life and heart into what He wants it to be.

But, like I’ve said before… IT IS SO TOTALLY WORTH IT.
At least try it, even for a few minutes. I am positive that those few minutes that you give to Him will be the best few minutes of your entire life.

I hope God uses some of the words in this blog to change you. I just typed what He put into my mind, so…
Have a nice day, and God bless.
-Kayla

From Kayla's Perspective #3

From Kim:
So many people contact us on a regular basis about how Kayla does certain things with her rare nerve disorder. Well, this past month was no exception. Kayla and I are writing our novels together, and she overheated a few weeks ago (which can be life-threatening.) But, I'm thankful to say that she is recovering well. She's still really tired, but her sense of humor is still intact. She's amazing. Here's a little note from her perspective about the ups and downs of writing when you hit a speedbump:

From Kayla:
Once again, I learn how much of an adventure writing can be within the tight confines of life. (Especially when you have a rare nerve disorder and overheat at swim team.) {Smile.}

As you might’ve already guessed, life is a wee bit crazy at our house. You should have seen us when Holly lived here, but that’s another story.

Anyway, the fact is that when you overheat at swim team—when you’re not even working all that hard-- things get a little bit strange. (Especially when you can’t feel pain and can’t tell your mom how it feels.)

Yes. I know this from experience. A few weeks ago this fascinating event happened. LOL Since then, we, my Mom and I, have been attempting to write while I try and get some rest. Again, LOL. But, it’s just a little weird trying to write when you’re tired, or in some cases even asleep. (I don’t suggest attempting the latter. Doesn’t work well.)

One thing’s for sure: when I overheat, I get really tired. Which means sleeping for eleven to fourteen hours at night and then taking a two-three hour nap that evening.
Like I said, I don’t sleep-write. Personally, I don’t really think anyone does. {Smile.} Although if I did, I would probably come up with some very interesting stories, don’t you think?

So I guess I’ll just stick to writing while I’m awake, if that’s okay. Jesus, writing and swimming, what a life. {Smile.}
-Kayla

From Kayla's Perspective #2...

God works in mysterious ways. He creates us each unique and different for His own special purposes. When I was younger, I had no clue that I would become the youngest-published-full-length-novelist ever. (Try to say that ten times fast!)

Writing is an adventure, let’s just get that straight right now. But I wouldn’t trade it in for the world. By pursuing what you want to do, you learn, you grow, and you laugh your head off. Plus, if you’re like me, you get grumpy sometimes. (LOL)

Each week I learn new things. For example:
-This week, I learned about the “uh ohs” in author intrusion when writing in first person.
-When you write on the computer, it helps to use the synonym thing-a-ma-bob and the spelling correcting whatcha call it.
-Don’t write when you’re about to fall asleep.
-And always get a good book (as a reward) to push you toward finishing your goal, (such as Isle of Fire by Wayne Thomas Batson), even if your goal is 15,000 words for over the weekend.
-I’m a weird person and listening to music while I write helps me think.
-It especially helps me block out the click-a-tick-a-boom-boom of the keys as I type.
-Of course, I use my headphones so I don’t drive Mom crazy by listening to End of the Beginning (by David Phelps, the best singer EVER) over and over and over and over and over (etc).
-It’s fun to write blogs too. I love coming up with stories for my blog, Dragon Claws, Dog Paws, Swimming Laws. . . I mostly love to get ideas back from other kids.

But I’ve got to admit that I didn’t know what to write about for this blog. But thanks to our friend Mrs. Lori (whose son Austin home schools with us) I decided to kind of wing it and see what happened as I wrote. {pats the computer} (I’m not trying to offend you little blog post, please don’t take that the wrong way.) But thankfully, God gave me the words to type. (Smile.)

As you probably know I’m only twelve, (and am NOT going to turn thirteen, we’re going to skip my next birthday. Thankfully. LOL) and I’m kinda new at this whole writing thing, (That will explain it, if you're bored) but I promise to get better.
Eventually.
Hopefully.
Maybe.
Anyway.

I guess you could say that the theme-thing of this blog is write, write, write, re-write, re-write, re-write, and re-write some more until God says its good.
Well, we’ve got to go do school, (not sarcasm; I LOVE school! It’s fun!) So. . .
Adios and see ya!-Kayla

Let's Get Together... Yeah, Yeah, Yeah...

There are so many things I would've missed out on had Kayla and I not started writing together. (And I'm not just talking about book contracts...)

It's funny how you don't realize these things until you are in the midst of them. Kayla may be only 12, and will be the youngest published full-length novelist, and she has opportunities placed in front of her that a lot of us would have dreamed of having at her age - but she's also been through more--persisting through the tough times--than most of us have had to deal with our entire lives.

Writing together has brought us even closer together. Our creative brains just feed off each other - brainstorming and plotting take on new meaning. And the laughter is doubled - (and we laughed a lot before, so this is significant!)

It's also been fun to understand a little more about her. She's so precious, and we've always been close (I'm really close to both of my kids) - but this novel-writing journey has opened up more ways for me to understand Kayla. And because of her nerve disorder, it's sometimes eye-opening to see her describe how she "feels" things. She's learning, and I'm learning. It's an incredible experience.

Other things I've learned? Well...
-she's faster at writing than I am (and I'm pretty fast)
-she's faster at finishing her edits than I am (sigh)
-she's got a crazy sense of humor, and more depth than most adults I know
-she knows who she is, and rests in God's direction each day (I wish more of us could do that)


Now Josh loves to write as well... but the thought of writing with him scares me to death. Why - you may ask? Because frankly, his creativity is so off the charts, I'd never be able to keep up -- and I think I would constantly ache from all the laughter. (You should hear him and Kayla when they are working on a story together - just wait - that duo could definitely be something to watch.)

So for now, I'm content to learn from and with my kids, and enjoy this precious writing journey.

Ah, the Joys of Writing... and Taxes

It's that time of year. Tax season.

Tomorrow morning, I have an appointment with my amazing accountant for all my business related (writing/author)"stuff." He's been handling all this for several years, and as the business has grown, I've had to learn A LOT. Last year, he told me that it was a good idea to purchase QuickBooks Pro for my "stuff."

This is what has happened since:

I went straight to Costco and purchased said program.

Six months later, I realized I better figure it out to input the mountain of receipts/deposits/inventory... i.e. "stuff."

Looked at it.

Decided it was complicated.

Went and brainstormed a new book instead.

Looked again at pile of receipts.

Felt guilty.

Called a QuickBooks expert trainer to come teach me. (Thankfully this person still likes me after that craziness.)

Was so proud of myself after getting everything into the amazing program.

Then... I went on a six-week book tour.

Returned mid-November to face unpacking, laundry, the holidays, homeschool, and several more speaking/appearances.

Avoided the monstrous pile awaiting entrance into QuickBooks.

Moved my office, re-organized, scrapbooked, wrote, blogged, wrote some more, i.e. - avoided my "stuff."

Today, there was no avoiding it. And after my amazing assistant and I discovered that I had input over 200 duplicate receipts, I spent hours deleting all the doubled-up entries.

I whined and complained. Dented my desk from banging my head on it. And then moved my purple "complaint free world" bracelet several times for my behavior.

Daughter Kayla - and my writing partner on our suspense series set in Alaska - came in smiling with a hug for me and said, "Mom, I wish I was old enough to help you, you're working too hard."

What an encourager. Sigh.

Wait a second... I'm imagining a new and complex math project for the kids for school...

No. That would be cruel and unusual punishment.

***
for more information on the "complaint free" bracelet check out
A Complaint Free World

From Kayla's Perspective #1

Note from Kim:
As we dive into this new year and new stories, Kayla and I are blogging about our writing-together-adventures. I'm already behind (thanks to a lovely sickness I started my year off with) - so bear with me, as I try to catch you up. If you are reading this on my website kimberleywoodhouse.com then Kayla will be blogging on Tues. and I will be blogging on Thursdays about this fun adventure. (Other blogging will continue there as well.)If you are reading this on our website together kimberleyandkaylawoodhouse.com this is what our blog is about. And don't forget that Kayla has her own website and blog for kids over at kaylawoodhouse.com

Now I'm going to hand it over to Kayla - my 12-yr-old, amazing daughter.
Thanks for stopping by!
Kim


From Kayla's Perspective #1--
Howdie and Welcome!

My mom and I love to write, but the problem is that when my brain starts to work, I can’t stop it! First I think about a tree, then a bird, then a song, then a pool, then the tree starts to talk to the singing bird that’s in a pool and . . . wait. Wasn’t I talking about something else? Oh yeah!

Things get a little crazy around our house with school, swim team, and writing, but it’s always fun. I don’t know how my mom does it, but she seems to make me laugh at any time of the day. (Or night!)

We’ve also discovered that I love the word “S. . .L. . .O. . .W. . .L. . .Y”. My coach, (Coach Tristan), even said that we were being too “S . . . L . . . O . . . W” one day when we were swimming. Made me think of all the times I used the word.

And I love to use the same word over and over again. I do that a lot. :) Mom says that she does that too, but I don’t believe her. (She’s the perfect writer!)

I also love writing “duhn duhn duhn duh!” moments, they’re really fun, especially when mom is brainstorming (She can create one of those moments out of thin air. Probably just to say, "duhn duhn duhn duh") Whew! Let me tell you this: It’s an adventure!

Writing is so much fun, I love it. But there are sometimes when I feel like Mike Goobian from Meet the Robinsons when he said:
“Look what I found! It’s a stick! Now what did you find?”
In other words, my stories are ridiculous, everyone else's are wonderful.

My writing is nothing compared to Mom’s, although she would never admit that. :)
I love our crit group partners as well, they’re great. And funny. And I'm learning A LOT.

Ms. Carrie was the finder of my Slowlys. And the Dark Darkness. But that’s a whole other story. Maybe someday we’ll tell you THAT one.

Hmmm. I was just thinking. . . . What if the singing bird talking to the tree who was in the pool had a pet elephant named Buttercup, who had a cousin monkey named Ter, who had a sister donkey named Shish-Kabob?! That would be one big family tree!

Well. Sigh. I guess the singing bird talking to the tree who was in the pool who had a pet elephant named Buttercup, who had a cousin monkey named Ter, who had a sister donkey named Shish-Kabob will have to wait. Right now my mom and I are writing suspense Alaskan style, maybe next time it can be the animal kingdom.
Adios!-Kayla
kimberleyandkaylawoodhouse.com
kaylawoodhouse.com

Gotta Keep Up...

So - most of you know that Kayla and I are hard at work on our novel together.
Brainstorming, researching, writing, laughing... it's been awesome.

But I have discovered that there are sometimes hindrances. Things that show up, happen that weren't on my list for that day. Case in point: getting sick.

Last week, that happened to me. My poor list flew out the window as I realized I was too weak to even stand. Frustration mounted in my mind, "But I can't get sick! I have a word count goal to reach, blogging to do, a family to take care of. There just isn't time to be sick!" To which my body replied with evil laughter, "We'll just see about your list." Yes, it mocked me. I finally accepted that I couldn't convince my body to heal immediately, and stayed in bed. For days.

You know when you finally feel better, because your brain begins its whirring and wheels are turning. Then reality hits and you realize how much you have to do to catch up. Exhaustion soon takes over again, and you pray for the quietness of sleep to suck you into its oblivion so you don't have to face the "list" that has now taken on a life of its own...

Okay, so yes, that has been my week. I'm sitting here, with the list beside me, laughing at my own craziness. I'll never be able to keep up. Oh, I'll try - but I really don't think it's humanly possible. For me, at least. And when I say "keep up" - I mean to my own expectations. My goals are always higher than I can attain, but it makes me work harder, stretch myself.

Kinda like writing with my 12-year-old. She's really great at this (I can't imagine how good she'll be when she's my age!) And fast (she sometimes writes faster than I do!) And I'm being stretched as we work together. She keeps me on my toes. And I love it.

Well, gotta get back to writing... we've got planes, snow, and mountains to tackle...

A New Year, A New Adventure, A New Blog...

Well folks, I can hardly believe that it is Jan. 1, 2010. Anyone else feeling old?
As we start this new year, I'm inviting you to join us on a new journey...

Most of you know that Kayla and I will be writing a three-book series for B&H Publishers. The first one is set to release in 2011. Now - we are going to be sharing with you our 'travels' on this publishing road. All the craziness, all the laughter, all the tears, all the deadlines, goals, research, plotting, brainstorming, and celebrations. (Well, we're not giving away secrets of the books - you'll have to read them - but we are welcoming you in to this little corner of our lives.) Ever wondered what it was like to write a novel? Ever thought about how it would be to write as mother and daughter? What about the fact that we homeschool, the kids have swim-team six days a week... when and where do we fit in writing? All this and more I'm sure will be chatted about here. :) We welcome your questions and comments, encouragement and prayers.

For those of you who have been reading on http://kimberleywoodhouse.com - my blog will still continue with these posts from Kayla and me on Tues. and Thurs. - but this is a new blog http://kimberleyandkayla.blogspot.com that will also be on our new website http://kimberleyandkaylawoodhouse.com so there are lots of ways to find us! We look forward to hearing from you and hope you enjoy the ride.
With abundant joy,
Kim

Howdy! My name is Kayla R. Woodhouse, if you’ve read my mom’s blog, you’ve probably heard ALL about me. LOL

Mom and I are writing a series together set in Alaska. The "peoples" say that I will be the youngest-published-full-length-novelist ever. (Don’t worry, I freaked out too.) By the way, did I mention that I'm 12?

Now, I'm joining her in the wonderful fun of blogging. Just to warn you, I am a HUGE goof ball (it runs in the family, corniness runs deep through our veins!) If you don’t like humor, you don’t have to read my blog. :) In all seriousness, I hope you are touched by what we share here.

As you may know, about three years ago I had to have brain surgery. That was when I really started to read A LOT. Ever since then, I have loved books, and that love of books grew into a love for writing.

My brother and I were always coming up with stories and had already made 78 “episodes” of stuffed animal stories. I was always jotting down ideas and making up characters in my head, but I'd never really thought of becoming an author until my mom was offered a book contract for Welcome Home: Our Families Journey to Extreme Joy. She'd been writing since before I was born, so writing had always been part of out lives. But it was when we took a trip to the Grand Canyon that I came up with what I thought was my first 'slightly' good story. (Mom will tell you that I wrote lots of good stuff before this, but this is where I felt it all started.) I was surprised when my mom was amazed at my writing, and from then on - I wanted to get better and learn more. Mrs. Karen Ball, (a super-cool person who encouraged me to write when I was 10) offered to look at my stuff. Again I was amazed when she said she liked it and eventually, my mom and I were offered a three book deal, (while I was having Swim Team practice at the Olympic Training Center of all places!)

I hope that you will have fun reading my “oh so wonderful” blogging as my mom and I write and share our stories with you.
God Bless!-Kayla