Packing and packing and packing....

    I've been crazy busy lately, and I'm only going to get busier as the days go by. If you didn't know, Husband of Mine is graduating next week and we'll be officially moving back to California for good! I'm excited to go back home, but it also means that we're moving again and I hate moving.

    Yeah, that's me right now. Drowning in boxes. Luckily, we knew we were moving and I started packing two weeks ago. But there are only so many things you can pack up a month in advance. Clothing and dishes are not things you can live without, and we have more than enough of those. So that's what I'm packing up now, while trying to maintain my normal life by blogging and writing (which obviously isn't going so well right now). 
    I hate moving. It's the worst. But I've also started refining my résumé and applying to jobs in California because we get to start paying off student loans as soon as Husband of Mine graduates. Yay.
    Anyway, the point of this blog post is to say that I'm probably going to be disappearing soon. There's so much work to do and I won't have time to blog for the next couple of weeks. Hopefully I'll be able to pop in every once in a while, so you know that I'm still alive and that I'm still writing.
    ~Allie

A Day in the Life of...H. L. Burke!

    It's Monday, again! Know what that means? It's time for another guest post! This week's guest is *drumroll* H. L. Burke!

Hello, I am H. L. Burke and I'm a military spouse, mother of two superhero princesses, guardian of a ginger cat and a German Shepherd … oh and I write. A lot. 

I wrote all time from middle school onward but sort of quit when my first daughter was born.

It took four years for me to find my creative voice again after motherhood, not because I felt stagnant but because being a mom was so fulfilling that it kind of consumed my thoughts … and also because I was still finding my feet as a mother, a wife, a constant mover, and even an adult.

Mental Illness Part 2

    Last week was a rough week for me emotionally and physically. My depression was kicking in hard, along with my migraines. Both have caused me a lot of grief. One thing that still bothers me is how few people believe that mental disorders are health problems. 
    We can all agree that heart disease, diabetes, and cancer are health problems, right? All are physical illnesses that hurt someone's health. To save them, we go to doctors and try to find treatment to fix the problem.
    But why is it that people can't agree whether things like depression, anxiety, PTSD, OCD, or other mental illnesses are actual illnesses that need treatment?
    I speak as someone who has one parent who doesn't believe in mental illness, and one parent who knew something was wrong but didn't know how to help. Recently, a sister revealed to me that she also struggles with depression. Such a little revelation means so much to me because someone else understands my struggle. I don't have a lot of friends that I can talk to about my depression and anxiety, but I'm making an effort to stop treating my own struggles like they have to be secret.
    Everyone struggles with something. I found a quote that kind of sums up what I mean by that.

A Day in the Life of...Heather Hayden!

    It's Monday again! Yay! That means we get another guest! Today's guest is *drumroll* Heather Hayden!

Hi everyone! I’m Heather, an author of science fiction and fantasy who spends most of her time in her imagination rather than the real world.…that sounded a lot blander on paper than in my head. Here, have a picture instead:

When I signed up for Allie’s blog series, I forgot how much I hate having my picture taken… (Apologies for the bad quality, but my iPod has a crappy camera, my sister currently has my actual camera, and my computer screen reflected in my glasses when I tried to use the computer’s camera. Sigh. At least my smile looks semi-normal for once.)

Music

    One of the things I try to enforce as a writer (that I learned from LTUE and that I hope my "A Day in the Life of..." guest series has taught) is that there is no one way to be a writer. Everyone has different writing schedules and different distractions, just like how everyone has different ways to inspire themselves.
    For me, I have to listen to music. Now, I know a lot of authors cannot listen to music while writing. Some have tv or movies on in the background, and some need absolute silence. But I need music to write. I can't write in silence, and tv is usually too distracting.

A Day in the Life of...Steven Partridge!

    It's Monday! Whoo! You know what that means? Another guest! Hooray! Today's guest is *drumroll* Steven Partridge!

Greetings, everyone! I'm Steven Partridge (yes, as in the bird). 

Thanks so much for having me, Allie. For those of you who don't know me, I'm a writer/blogger with a propensity for blending genres in my writing.

A Few Things...

    I've been having a really rough week full of migraines. I was totally feeling great. Yesterday. Then, once again, I didn't sleep and now I find myself laying on the couch in my pajamas because I can barely stand up. Luckily, I have an adorable puppy to take care of me when I can't take care of myself.