So long, KIC

Phew! Yesterday I made a bit of a big decision. I let it roll around like rocks in my head yesterday, and found, as my research went on, that I became more and more excited.

First off, I would llike to apoligize to my subscribers. The current KIC situation should have been resolved by now, but recent communication has expressed it will be at least November 1st, AT LEAST before it gets up and running again.

My contract with KIC is up on October 11th. As KIC is currently unoperational, I could pull Mending Resolute right now, but I can use the time to get organized. As most people know, I deeply believe in Linde's story. Most times, I don't even feel like I'm creating it, more like she's whispering it in my ear and I'm typing as fast as I can to keep up. So, I think I'm going to continue in the serialized format until the story is complete, and I will do it on my own, running it off my website.

The Google Advertising has been going very well - I have had 140 clicks in a week, and most are reading the free issue. Of course, at this point, I can't tell if anyone has sent up a future subscription, but, like many other KIC authors, I will be demanding a list of my subscribers. If you subscribe to Mending Resolute, or have recently (since mid-August) requested a subscription, please email me at mendingresolute@yahoo.ca. If possible, please include the number of the last issue you received. If you've been meaning to subscribe and haven't, again, please email me rather than going through the KIC site.

I'm going to change things a bit. A lot of my readers have told me it's hard to keep up with the intensity when issues are only received twice per week. So, with the new plan, subscribers will receive an issue every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Subscribers will not pay by the month, but by a cluster of issues. For example, issue 1-20 will be $5 CAD (you lucky Americans! hehe). But here's the truly exciting part.

As many of you know, my friend John is a graphics genious and is helping me with my site. He's currently building - yes, building building one-nineteen (wow, that's a lot of buildings... hehe). Mending Resolute is going to be fully interactive. Subscribers will receive basically four elements with their subscription:

1) The story

2) A weekly subscription to The Resolute Reader (the local Resolute newspaper) which will include Resolute news, a Lifestyle section, classifieds and comics

3) Keys. Every once in a while, a key will go out to subscribers, unlocking another part of the mystery. The "key" will allow the reader into another part of the site.

4) Trivia answers. When up and running fully, not everyone will be able to access every part of the site. Obviously, as the story goes on, there are plot developments that would be spoiled for the reader if exposed on the site. With your subscription, you will also receive the answers to trivia questions, which will again unlock another section of the site that wasn't accessible previously.

If you've checked out the website, you know Mending Resolute has a whole new look, and this will also reflect in the format of the issues.

Sounds like fun, eh? I will be running a pre-launch, early bird-type promo, so if you already know you want to subscribe, please email me. Again, my devoted readers, please email me as well. Want a free issue? I'll email it to you until I get the "Read a Free Issue" section going on the site, which is my second priority here.

So, there it is. Am I insane?

Pimp Name

Ha! This was so hilarious I had to put it up. Click below to generate yours and post it in the comments!

Your Pimp Name Is...

Daisy Glider

What's" Your Pimp Name?

The Life of Pie

After a catastrophe of Resolute proportions yesterday, I finally got my website up and running. I've found I tend to think I can do anything, and without bothering to read instructions, I plunge right in (I swear, I'm not a boy). This was the case yesterday with my site.

I have been working on the new mendingresolute.com look for quite a while now, and yesterday I awoke, excited to put even just a teeny part of it up for the world to see. Only, within three clicks, there was nothing left! I quite literally found myself, between yesterday and today, Mending my Resolute homepage. Thankfully, Rick raced to my rescue, and between his help, and the emailed assistance of writer extraordinaire, Michelle Miles, I was able to get things up and running. You really should stop by and check it out. My friend John, who is a genious with computers, is helping me with the animation for the site, and vows to make all my crazy ideas come to life. And he will. Like I said, he's a genious! I can't wait until it's finished - it's going to be so cool!

Speaking of cool, I just subscribed to The Daughters of Freya. Sharon Wildwind told me about it at Word on the Street last weekend, and after receiving three emails, I found myself intrigued. My subscription should start today, and I guess the mystery unravels through emails from the characters to other characters, emailed 4-5 times per day over three weeks. Should be fun!

Today the sky is blue, like a painting by that guy on chanel thirteen at 1:45 pm. You know the one I'm talking about - he always adds "Happy Little Trees" on the landscape. Doesn't ring a bell? Man! You didn't fake enough sickies to get out of going to school! Brandy should relate...

On Monday night, I vowed to go to the gym. I do this once a month, like clockwork - the "Oh, I feel so gross blah blah blah" thing, which leaves me tearing toward the gym, swearing off carbohydrates and pumpkin seeds forever. (Four to six days later, I deflate and feel so thin I think I could be used as one of those mining kids, shoved into the tiny crevises too big for the burly miners to fit through... if they actually use small children for that stuff... maybe I've been watching too many of those "A Piece of our History" commercials.)

Anyhow, I was on the bike, having decided to combine some enjoyable reading with my light, enjoyable workout. ("I swear, I'm going to do this three times per week, combined with my yoga, this time for sure! I'm resolving to - ooh, is that a Cheeto on the floor? Who the hell eats Cheetos at the gym!") As those who read my earlier blogs know, I'm currently reading The Life of Pi. Having just come off The Rule of Four (I'm not even going to link it - you really don't want to waste your time even checking out the cover. Don't be fooled!) I was expecting enraging boredom. I was shocked to find how compelling this prize winning book is!

Only, I came to a part in the book where he is out of food. In the middle of the Pacific. With a man-eating Tiger. Pi is fantasizing about mountains of curry and waterfalls of chutney (that's not a direct quote, so I apoligize to Yann, but you get the drift. HA! Drift! Get it? Little boy in lifeboat... drift... ROFL! I'm just too funny to go to work today! Okay, please stop throwing things at me....) ANYHOW. He's fantasizing about these creeks of dhal soup and ice cream hurricanes and such, and I'm rounding my 35th minute on this bike. Having not eaten since five. (It was almost ten pm...) Suddenly, a mighty roar, and not from the tiger between the pages of the book!

I got off the bike, changed and went to the car. Man, was I hungry! I had a small stash of trail mix in the glove compartment, so I pulled it out and began munching as I started driving home. Suddenly, all the trail mix was GONE! I put the bag to my lips and tipped the bottom, hoping to find - oh I don't know, perhaps another bag of them hiding inside?! Who knows. Regardless my intensions, I only received crumbs (one of which fell into my eye, and I almost drove off the road).

I thought of Pi, stranded in the middle of the ocean. And then I thought of Pie, sitting in my fridge at home. I drooled on my shirt.

But home was so far away! I had to have more of that cursed trail mix! Shoppers was open until midnight, thank Peper, and I raced toward it. No really. I never speed and I was speeding - all for the sake of trail mix.

Ten minutes later I emerged, having dropped my lime diet Pepsi on the floor of the store in my haste. Once inside the car, I tore the trail mix open - Sierra mix. Then, with my other hand, I tore the second bag open. Fruit mix. With a third hand I was not aware I had until that moment, I tore open a bag of Werthers Chocolates. I was desperate! Ravenous! I felt, after this moment, I would never taste sweet food again! (Except when I came to the dried apricots, which I threw out the window. Merry Christmas, squirrels, if you can turn off your gag reflex for long enough to swallow them, that is!)

I got home and continued my binge. I had not binged like this since I realized Crescent Heights High School did not have a cheerleading team, and I was starving myself for nothing! Himself watched me with fear in his eyes, as though wondering if an gooey alien was about to burst through my stomach.

When I had my fill of trail mixes and hazelnut chocolates, I rose from the floor (yes, really, I was on the floor) and dashed for the fridge. Pie was still my intended target.

I opened the fridge door and gasped. The pie was gone! Himself had eaten it! Both the apple AND what was left of the pumpkin! And just like that, staring into the (sadly empty) fridge, the spell I was under faded, and I realized how insane I was acting. And just at that very second, my stomach roared, only, this time, it was not from hunger.

I slept only a few hours that night thanks to my rumbling, discontent stomach- my punishment for such ridiculous food consumption. I've decided not to read The Life of Pi at the gym anymore - unless, of course, I've had a good meal before hand.

Take a hike!

Went down to Word on the Street today. There weren't as many exhibitors as last year it seemed, but it was still great, and I had fun meeting all sorts of other writers, my favourites being the ladies with the Crime Writers of Canada. What a riot! They have this cookbook called Dishes to Die For... Again (volume II) which I'm thinking will be great for stocking stuffers this year. Sorry to all those who will find it under the tree this year - I'm officially ruining the surprise! hehe. I especially enjoyed meeting Sharon Wildwind, the author of Some Welcome Home. I'm thinking about joining the Crime Writers of Canada, and they said Mending Resolute would fit in well - or, I guess I would, for writing it.

The highlight was, of course, seeing the prototype for Tall Tales and Short Stories Volume III. I'm on the back! Hurrah! For those who don't know the story, here goes:

Last year, my short story, Life As She Knew It, won honourable mention in the second annual Tall Tales and Short Stories contest, published in Tall Tales and Short Stories Volume II. Life as She Knew It is about a girl named Havva, who finds out from a gorgeous stranger she is nothing more than a character in a book - a character doomed to death. Thanks, of course, to everyone who attended the book signing at McNalley Robinson, not only supporting me, but also Tall Tales Press.

This year, my new story, Love Potion, won fourth place. Love Potion tells the tale of a broken hearted girl, whose life will forever be changed just by swallowing a simple love potion. Check out the bookstore at Tall Tales Press to read a teeny little blurb and check out what other cool stories are set within the pages of the new anthology. It's not available yet, but the anticipation of the lauch is mounting...

I went for a short hike today with my Uncle Rick, Aunt Nancy, my cousin Tara and Himself. Adding that to the arm-yoga workout I did the other day, and then the swing escapade yesterday, I'm in rough shape. Just a not-so-gentle reminder that I'm just not 18 anymore. *sigh*

Back to work tomorrow - harsh reality. I count down the days until my holidays, and am looking forward to the Nanowrimo challenge this year. October 1st the store opens - I'm in desperate need of a new t-shirt.

Crazy Driver and Nausea

You'd never guess by reading the title of this Saturday blog, but today has been one of the most perfect days ever. The sun was shining, the weather sweet. Himself and I went for a nice lunch and I had a MASSIVE salad. We found Homocide season 3 for super-cheap. I was able to fit my hair into a ponytail (sorta). I sat on a swing for 45 minutes. My arms ache from yesterday's yoga.

So where does the crazy driver come in? Right between the Massive salad and Homocide. No, the driver did not commit Homocide - I meant... er... finding it on... DVD...

Anyhow, so Himself and I were walking from the place we were illegally parked to the video store. We came up to the corner started to cross, and then heard a crash. I looked back, and a guy in a Mazda Protege had rear-ended a Harley with 2 passengers, the male driver and a female passenger. The Harley tipped and the man fell off, and sort of rolled to the side. The female though, was not so quick. Believe it or not, the driver of the Mazda gunned it! He pushed the Harley, and the woman caught under said Harley, along the ground a few feet, then jumped the curb and started driving on the sidewalk! Himself and I had to run to get out of the way! So they managed to catch the guy, and I called 911 and we stuck around to give our statements etc.

After dropping Himself off at work, I went for a walk through my new neighborhood with D, my new Ipod. I came across this wooded area, and decided to go into the forest. I went up a hill and then turned, and suddenly the sky went dark and the wind kicked up and a mighty chill went up the back of my neck (which may have just been because I had my hair up in a ponytail, which I haven't been able to do until today...). I kept walking, though frightened. It was the kind of place any writer worth a lick of their reader's time would imagine finding a dead body - perhaps legs sticking out from under a bush...

And then I found it. I turned a corner and there, hanging from a tree, blowing in the eerie fall wind, was yellow tape, with black writing that read, "Police line, do not cross." So, I turned and ran, realizing as I descended the hill that it was quite a bit steeper, and I was quite a bit more out of shape, than I first realized.

An hour later (okay, ten minutes, really) I was back on horizontal ground. I stopped at the park, where D and I swang for about 45 minutes. I watched leaves fall, couples walk by, hand-in-hand, and joggers - well, jog. Strangely, even in today's day in age where Tom Green earns a living off the bizarre things he does, people still gave me weird looks as they walked by - all except the foreign woman who stopped to ask me directions. I guess I seemed the most unthreatening element there - a blond girl with a ponytail swinging on a swingset... yeah, I can see it. She went on to argue with her husband about whether my directions were correct (it was she and I verses him, of course. She and I were right...) and I went on swinging.

At my highest, I felt I could jump from the swing to the lush, thick grass, like kids do before they realize bones can shatter. I was tempted, many times, to do it, but didn't. I was afraid of hurting D. As I swung, vowing on the next forward swing I would jump, I realized I have never jumped from a swing. Even when I was little, I always was afraid I might get hurt. Now that I'm older, I know I would get hurt. But I also know the pain would be worth the few seconds of unassisted flight.

I kept pumping my legs, enjoying the music and the autumn wind, laughing inside at the 'normal' couples walking by - the girls peering down their perfect, blemish-free noses at me, their male counterparts looking on longingly, like they wanted to come play also. I didn't care - I can't understand those people anymore. I am a writer.

And then I realized that being a writer is the excuse for all crazy things. "Look at that grown woman acting like a five-year-old." "That's Leigh. She's a writer." "Oh, in that case, never mind." It's the perfect excuse, as though someone stamped "Insane" on my forehead and now I can run around naked in broad daylight. I mean, if you're clinically crazy, why not do all those things? Those same people will enjoy reading the words squeezed from that experience, and not think twice. After all, I'm a writer. Just by chosing it as my career makes me, compared to the rest of society, a little weird.

I was fine while I was ON the swing - it was when I got off the trouble began. And so, nauseas from motion sickness and my bum hurting from the hard, blue rubber swing, I limped home.

And now, to the Wolf Blass...

Simone Byline interviews Dane Fortune

Below, Simone Byline, reporter for the Resolute Reader, interviews hitman Dane Fortune. This much-anticipated and exclusive interview was originally posted on author Michelle Miles' blog, Ye Olde Inkwell. I am re-posting it here for Mending Resolute readers. Enjoy!


I’m here with Dane Fortune, hit man, time traveler and all around hot and sexy guy. He’s blushing even as I say this, though his rosy cheeks don’t sway his grisly, manly appearance. Dane Fortune and his time traveling partner, Skye Ransom, dropped into Resolute (literally) earlier this week and were a great help to the city in remedying a rogue-super hero problem we had. Thank you, Dane, for agreeing to this interview, and for helping save our humble little city. You smell fantastic.

[Dane chuckles as he deeply drags his cigarette.]

Thank you, Ms. Byline, for giving me a smoke. I’ve been dying for one of these.

Simone: How long has it been since you had a cigarette, Dane?

Dane: Too damn long. We popped up in some rural desert weird-ass place with some creepy monsters and I managed to wrangle one from the local sheriff. Nice guy.

Simone: You were originally sent to kill Skye Ransom. She evaded you and now the two of you are traveling through time. How do you feel about constantly being so far away from home?

Dane: [takes a long drag] Well, it doesn’t really bother me much. I adapt well to change. Skye, however, can become a raving lunatic at times, so I have to keep her in check. I didn’t have much of a life before, so I don’t miss it.

Simone: I get the feeling you’re a bit smitten with your Adventures of Ransom and Fortune counterpart, Skye Ransom, the very woman you were sent to kill. Am I right?

Dane: [chuckles and blows out a plume of smoke] Skye and I have an…interesting relationship. A bit on the love-hate side. She’s a smart-ass and she likes to boss me around.

Simone: You didn’t answer the question.

Dane: [gives a cocky grin, showing deep dimples] No. I didn’t.

Simone: How do you think she feels about you? I mean, after all, you did murder her parents. Do you think she can ever get past that?

Dane: [his expression turns serious] I know how she feels about me, but she’s too damned high and mighty to admit it. I’ve told her more than once that she can trust me. [drops his voice and leans closer] And I’ll let you in on a little secret. I never intended to kill her. [sits back in his chair and inhales] Yeah, I think she can get past it, if she’ll let herself. [glances to Skye who’s sitting several feet away] I saw that!

Simone: Well, if she doesn’t, I’m more than willing to take her place! [Dane laughs as he exhales grey smoke.] Why don’t you tell us a bit about your childhood. If you had to sum it up in a word, what would that word be?

Dane: It was good. My uncle had a ranch in Wyoming and I’d work the summers with him. Good times.

Simone: Your creator, Michelle Miles, sends you to all sorts of crazy locations throughout time. Do you suspect she’ll ever really bring you home, and if so, when?

Dane: She’d damn well better and soon. I do have a life to return to. I suspect it won’t be without great personal loss, though, and that concerns me.

Simone: Does that life include your partner in crime, Ms. Ransom?

Dane: [looking at her thoughtfully] That remains to be seen.

Simone: If you could say one thing to Ms. Miles, what would you say?

Dane: [Takes long drag of his smoke, then chuckles] If she’s half as bossy as Skye, then I feel sorry for her poor husband.

Simone: I did some digging and found out you used to live under a different name and had a different life. Do you ever wish you could return to that life?

Dane: Never. That man died years ago.

Simone: So, if you and I were out and I was buying, what would you be drinking?

Dane: Whiskey, baby. Single malt. On the rocks. [winks]

Simone: I might just take you up on that. Well, that’s all the time we have today with the rugged, mysterious Dane Fortune. You can find out more about Dane in Michelle Miles’ The Adventures of Ransom and Fortune, available at http://www.keepitcoming.net/ransom-fortune.html. I guarantee you’ll become even more intimately acquainted with Dane Fortune. Did I mention he smells terrific?

Simone Byline is a journalist for the Resolute Reader. Her dedication to the journalistic field will be honored in a special edition of The Reader, available by subscription to the paper at www.mendingresolute.com

Dishes on the floor and Ipod musings...

We had a smorg-style dinner party last night to say thanks to the people who helped us move. Despite an anxiety-induced rash and moments of shortness of breath early Saturday, it seemed to go off well - thanks to Himself, of course. I worked all day and when I got home everything was ready to go. No word of any food poisoning yet, but it's still early. Despite the non-environmentally friendly practice of disposable plates and cutlery, I still have a ton of dishes to wash. Without an abundance of counterspace, the floor is looking awfully appealing.

All that food and, this morning, the left-overs, have filled me with a ton of weird, yet interesting ideas for my fall writing. It's widely known that writers stumble most during the summer... after all, when everyone is playing outside in the sunshine, we are stuck inside staring at our monitors trying to determine the least-used, yet still unpretentious word for "slow". (By the way, any suggestions?!?!) Since my drunken finger-babbling a few weeks ago, I haven't had a chance to do much on Mending Resolute, but tonight I will avoid the tempting "e" icon on the desktop and actually sit down and do some work, ultimately preparing for the Alberta winter hibernation.

Also, thanks to someone very nice and considerate, this week I procurred my newest, most interesting little toy to date - an Ipod shuffle. Now I'm uploading music and have realized how lame my library really is. I need new stuff. So, post below the music you think is great - any suggestion (except polka music) will be investigated.

Mending Resolute will be back on September 25th as KIC gets back underway. Hopefully Linde's subscribers are drumming their fingers on their computer tables and desks, wondering what is going to happen next regardless of where in the story they are. Thanks, subscribers! Linde would not be alive if it weren't for you! Have a great week, everyone! Pop by next week for to nominate your pick for... well, you'll find out next week!

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Already read it? Want to chat about it? Comment below!

How could I be so lucky?

They say luck befalls everyone at least once in their lives, and I am happy to say my time has come! Prepare to be jealous, folks! I have had two - yes TWO - long weekends in a row. And so, as I sit here eating a delicious hot dog from Le Chien Chaud (my new addiction located a short block and a half from my new, and Linde's old, apartment) I prepare for another day of doing nothing. Is there anything better than being in bed when everyone else has to get up early for work? Okay, enough bragging. If it makes you all feel better, I have to work next Saturday. Better now? Good.

On Monday or Tuesday -AK!

Sorry, I had a large-pickle-and-canoli crisis. Everything is under control now, and there is only a drop on my computer desk. As I was saying, either Monday or Tuesday, my good friend and writer extraordinaire, Michelle Miles, will post an interview by Simone Byline on her blog.

For those subscribing to Mending Resolute, you will be familiar with Simone Byline's work. If not, here's the quick bio:

Simone Byline is a fiesty reporter, working as the ONLY writer it seems, for the Resolute Reader, the city's local newspaper. Though she is famous for her shameless editorializing, Simone Byline is considered the city's most reliable source on all things in the south end, especially crime and newly, the neighborhood's vigilante movement.

Simone Byline recently managed to secure an interview with the elusive, yet downright sexy, Dane Fortune, the hitman from Miles' "The Adventures of Ransom and Fortune". This is the ONLY interview thus far with Dane (who we all imagine periodically throughout the day without a shirt), and rumours have it Byline promised more than a cup of coffee to get the interview with the man all women would like a tete-a-tete avec, if you know what I mean. Both Fortune and Byline deny the rumours, but the interview is worth a few stolen minutes out of your day. From there, you decide. Check it out at Ye Olde Inkwell.

Oh, and good news... everyone can now come out from hiding. Pedestrians can once again feel safe crossing the street and squirrels - well, they still don't have much of a chance... I got my new glasses, and spend a lot of my time now gazing out the window at stuff far away - just because I can. It's been five years since my eyes went bad, and had it not been for that frightening woman eye doctor in T.O. (who I secretly think was a German spy), I would have had a proper perscription long ago, but I probably wouldn't appreciate the nexen building on the horizon quite as much (and despise my hefty neighbour's open window...).

Your Mood Ring is Blue

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What's yours? Reply by adding a comment below. Have a great week everyone, and come by next weekend.

It's about time!

I'm not just saying that because it also happens to be my catch phrase for Mending Resolute, it really is about time I got my blog up and running.

It's the long weekend, thank God - I needed the extra day off. Today I'm fighting stomach turbulence as the vat of wine I consumed last night churns, refusing to be absorbed by bread, coffee or tuna, which happens to be the only food in my cupboards. Ah, moving. So bloody expensive. Good thing Linde moved out of this sweet apartment - it's double the size of my old one and cheaper.

The wine, however, was brilliant and did exactly what it does best - eliminates all my inhibitions. I went back this morning and read some of what spewed from my tingling fingers last night. If I could remain perpetually drunk, I might just make a career out of this crazy obsession.