• art,  artists,  inspiration

    Beautiful Motivation…

    So anyone who follows me on twitter or is in my presence for more than 5 minutes knows, like the rest of just about everybody, I’m Hamilton obsessed. I’ve been listening to the Hamilton soundtrack pretty much Non-Stop (see what I did there?) since it come out.

    That said, my friends know I’m also planner obsessed and lucky for me my writer bud, Jax Cassidy is also a super talented artist so I commissioned her to make me up these gorgeous pieces which I plan on putting on my bulletin board for inspiration and putting in my planner to keep me motivated.

    Jax 4 (2)

     

    Jax 1 (2)

    You can check out more of Jax’s work here at her Etsy shop  www.InspirationUnbound.etsy.com  or email her at inspirationunbound@gmail.com  for a custom work of your own! Thank you so much, Jax for the inspiration, the motivation and the smiles.

     

    All the best,

    KMJ

  • inspiration,  my view

    Game On!

    I’m loving this TED talk from gamer Jane McGonigal which, as with most things, comes at a perfect time (just when I need to hear it). After you watch if you care to share please tell me what would you do with your extra 7 1/2 minutes?

     

    Best,

    Kwana

  • inspiration,  my view

    TGIF

    This has never has had more meaning than this week.

     

     

    Take each moment and make it precious.

    Live life with intention and on full alert.

    Take the best care of those your love.

    And make sure you love yourself first.

     

    Best,

    Kwana

     

    image from here

  • dreams,  inspiration,  my view,  writing,  writing life

    So What Happened Was… (and here I ramble on)

    This thing…
    This thing, that honestly me, Mrs. Blabbermouth doesn’t even really know how to put into words here on ye old blog. I guess I’m kind of afraid if I do put it into words then, poof, it won’t be real anymore and it will all disappear into the internet cloud somewhere. So is the story of my life. But here goes… no guts no glory.

    Over ten years ago after losing the sitter for my twins and then not being able to get flex time at work to pick the twins up early from school I realized I could not handle the demands of being a designer that did it all for a mid-level (and I’m embellishing here with the mid) house and I became a stay at home/work from home mother. Thinking I’d find all these great freelance jobs instead I found myself doing all sorts of things from, hand sewn wedding gowns, to becoming a closet design “expert” at an organization store, to making a line of cute baby blankets, to selling stylish though not terribly well executed denim handbags at a local flea market. All this to say I’ve tried a lot on my road to tapping at the keyboard and writing my first romance.

    And with that first came the first rejection, the first of more than I dare to count over all these years and six complete manuscripts. But for some reason, though with each rejection the pain never dulled, I kept writing and sending out queries. Still believing in the love and the dream.

    I like to blame friends (you know who you are), my writing groups, the love of my family (unconditional) but I think most of all it was my own stubbornness. You see I could not forget that the day I got that first rejection and (silly) me saying (out loud), “it’s too hard I should just give up.” I can still hear my DH’s calm voice as he said nonchalantly, but with the slightest challenge. “It’s up to you, but maybe you give up too easily.” Grrrr! It’s the challenge that pulls me to that man. He had me and I love him for it.

    Gosh, how many years ago was that? We weren’t even living in our current house and the twins were still so young and really he should have known that I never back away from a challenge. Part of me thinks maybe he did. It’s just not in my make up to give up. So I didn’t. I forged ahead. Stopping and starting. Hopeful and then doubting. Sometimes hating the new story ideas that would pop in my head at the most inconvenient times. Always cursing the day I decided to be a writer and that stupid challenge.

    And then just a few weeks ago I get an email from an editor, the fabulous and may I say super smart, Jennifer Lawler saying, “I hope this manuscript is still available and I’d love to offer you a contract.”
    What the what?! All I could do, Dear Friends was look at my phone in disbelief. After all these years I didn’t know how to react. The DH was home and all I said to him was, “Hmm, that’s interesting.”
    You see after so many years of NO (ok, sometimes no thank you.)  I didn’t even know a yes when it was looking me in the face. No fan fare. No jumping. No shouting. No good  job you. Just a cautious, “interesting.”

    But weeks later, with contemplation, some pats on my back and some ‘good on yous’ and letting this get in my spirt I can now say this is a YES. This is real!

    Yes, I’ve been contracted by Adams Media to be a part of the launch of their new line: Crimson Romance with my contemporary romance that is as of now titled THROUGH THE LENS. It’ will be e-pubbed and POD and hopefully out late Summer.
    Holy Smokes things are moving fast! That is a Yes!
    Finally a YES!

    You all sit with that and ponder on how it’s “interesting” too. While you’re at it head on over to Facebook and like Crimson Romance’s page over there.
    In the meantime I’ll be figuring out my next steps. What the what?!

    Best,
    Kwana

     

    P.S. I’ll be writing my contemporary, a little bit sexy romance under the name K.M. Jackson.

     

    P.P.S. Yikes! Does this mean Nana and my mother will be getting a Kindle?

     

    Image from here. LOL I’ve used it before and it works here again.

  • friends,  inspiration,  my view

    Phenomenal…

    Uplifted! That’s what I felt after watching this video sent to me from my friend, Lieta. Now Lieta is not just any friend forwarding a YouTube video. No, she is the Reverend and Pastor highlighted in this video which focuses on her work and the work of the phenomenal women at St. James AME Zion Church up in Beacon NY. I’m so happy to see St. James here. It’s such a lovely church. To me it’s the little church that will. And I was so thrilled for Lieta and proud of her when she was elevated and given St. James to pastor. Though I will admit to feeling my own selfish sadness at not being able to see her beautiful smile on Sundays or at our YAMS meetings, but I’m so happy to see our loss is Beacon’s gain. Enjoy.

    Best,
    Kwana

  • inspiration

    No longer Invisible

    My DD called me full of emotion over this asking me if I had known about these invisible children. I said yes, I had. I had had known about them and been worried and prayerful and outraged for them for quite a long time. I won’t mention that I’m sure I brought this up to both the twins while they were still at home maybe a few times, I mean really it was neither here nor there. Who listens to their mother? Right?
    Because now there was a video and it was becoming a movement that was hitting the streets and taking the young people, the Facebookers and the Tweeters by storm and the word was getting out. Even I didn’t know about the video. My DD, one of the young ones, was now becoming socially aware, out of her own comfort zone and outraged just like me over what was happening to children half a world away. So she was educating me now. And though I knew about the children, I didn’t know about the movement. But now I do. And you do too. They are no longer invisible.

    Best,
    Kwana