I Must Be Crazy: Catching Up with Tristi

A lot has been going on over the last few weeks, and I find myself lagging scandalously behind in keeping on top of it all. First off, to address the title of this blog, "I Must Be Crazy" - that could mean so many things, and it usually does, but in this case, it refers directly to the fact that I just signed up for NaNoWriMo. I couldn't even pull out a decent total during my own writing challenge - how will I do for this one? No idea. But we'll find out, won't we?

Second, thank you for your well-wishes concerning my recent bout of gout. (Notice the nice use of rhyme - we must make it sound as good as we can.) I'm pleased to say that I'm feeling nearly better now. Yesterday morning was a day from a place I'm not allowed to mention on this blog lest I lose my G rating. After dragging myself into the doctor (sometimes on hands and knees) I was given a prescription for a really strong anti-inflammatory which literally started to work within minutes after I took it. I could feel the inflammation go down (that was pretty weird and somewhat worthy of inclusion in a scene in a James Dashner book) and within just an hour, I was up and walking, albeit with a limp. I continue with the natural remedies to strengthen the overall system, and balance it with the medical treatment. Walking is mine yet again!

The "Am I Not a Man: The Dred Scott Story" virtual book tour continues for another two weeks, and the reviews have been outstanding. Be sure to follow along - the links are on my sidebar - and see what reviewers everywhere have to say about this incredible novel.

Last Saturday was a lot of fun. I drove down to Fillmore with good friend Nichole Giles, for the book launch party for another good friend, Heather Justesen, who just released her debut novel, "The Ball's in Her Court." I'm in a critique group with these lovely ladies, in addition to Kimberly Job, Danyelle Ferguson, and Keith Fisher, who is not a lovely lady but a very nice man. We've seen Heather go through the submission process and now we get to cheer her on as she accomplishes one of her life goals.Heather holding her new novel.
A big old crowd of well-wishers.

What could be better than celebrating a friend's book release? Well, not a whole lot, but riding in a convertible Mustang doesn't hurt. Nichole and I brought Danyelle back up to Utah County with us, and we had the top down for a whole several minutes. Here we are, windblown and giggly.
Danyelle and Nichole.Me, very windblown indeed.Karen Hoover, driving past in her van.

It was a wonderful day, a great chance to hang out with friends and celebrate, and enjoy doing what we love - writing books, selling books, talking about books ...

That's been my week in a nutshell. As far as next week goes ...

Don't forget about Mark Shurtleff's launch party, scheduled for this Tuesday night. You can click here for all the details - but I'll throw in my own two cents and say, this is going to be the book launch of the century. Bring friends, family, neighbors ... strangers who don't look too strange to invite ... and come party with us.