A day of diving deep...

It's like a moonscape, isn't it?  It's so alien down there.  Formations that challenge belief, and yet are familiar to a part of us we'd rather not acknowledge.

The explorer group is small; only five of us this time.  But there's no fear -- only excitement, the thrill of discovering something new.  We communicate with hand signals, unable to speak due to the equipment we must carry in order to breathe in this foreign environment, and our eyes glint and shimmer in delight behind the masks we wear.  

"Ok?"  The hand signal asks.

"Ok," we all lift our hands, thumbs meeting forefingers in the universal sign.  I wonder if the creatures we're about to encounter also understand it.

First Six Sentence Sunday of September

Yep, I've been away for far too long.  Good news is I've had a chance to work on my novel (Restoring Experience), and I have more six-sentence tidbits to share with you.  I hope you enjoy this one, from the end of Chapter 6.

When our whispering voices faded into the dripping remnants of the storm in the potted azalea bushes bordering the terrace, Michael reached again for my hand.  Relaxed, I hesitated an instant too long, and the unfamiliar contours of his fingers closed around mine.  My breath caught, a mixture of guilt and something that felt surprisingly like pleasure.  The chemistry between our skin was electric.  I may forget our conversations, or the exact color of his eyes, the texture of his hair.  But I will never forget that first touch.

Please remember to visit the other Six-Sunday Bloggers -- there are some awesome writers in there!

The Versatile Blogger Award -- Part II

Yes, Part II is here.  So yesterday I made good on the first two of three commitments I accepted by accepting this award from Stuart Nager at Tale Spinning.  Today is the day I pass this on to 15 blogs I've recently discovered -- if they'll accept.  Regardless of whether they accept or not, please do take a stroll around these marvelous places:

The Versatile Blogger Award -- Part I

Stuart Nager, whose outstanding blog is at Tale Spinning, has kindly shared the Versatile Blogger Award with Quiet Laughter.  By accepting, I've committed to:

- Thank the awarder and link back to them (done; see link above),
- Share 7 things about myself, and
- Pass this award to 15 blogs I've recently discovered.

We all suffer from lack of time, yes.  I've procrastinated enough with this, so I'm going to cut it in two: today I'll THANK STUART FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART for sharing this with me, provide the link to his page, and share 7 things about myself.  Tomorrow, I promise, I'll pass this along to another 15 bloggers that may, or may not, accept.

Seven Things About Quiet Laughter

9/11: What was it like, outside of the U.S.?

"Something just happened.  In New York."

My friend, the one I was meeting later for a leisurely brunch on this day off, sounded subdued on the phone.  In shock, almost.

"'Something'?"

"Dunno.  Something crashed into the Towers."

"The Twin Towers?  What, like a truck?"

"No.  In the air."

"In the air?"  That made no sense.  If her voice hadn’t been so solemn, I would have laughed.  But, as absurd as this something-from-the-air sounded, I understood it was no laughing matter. ""What, like a… a plane?"

"Yeah.  A small one, they think."

"Damn.  I hope no one is seriously hurt."

I thought it was an accident.  I found out later we all did.

Rule of Three Blogfest!

AND...  The Rule of Three Blogfest is officially open!  Visit Amloki's Blog to get the official rules; it's a GREAT challenge to set your creative mind to throughout October -- and they've already posted the first prompt so you have 34 (yes, THIRTY - FOUR!!) days to play around with ideas and make something really radiant and shiny for this.  No excuses, people.  This is a fiction writer's dream.  Now let's make it happen.

Stuart Nager even prepared a trailer for this blogfest -- check it out here, it's super cool and bound to get your creative juices flowing.

This is a unique challenge.  Make it yours!