Lawsuits, Writer's Block, and Life

Do you realize that this is the first time in 5 years I don't have a book releasing in the fall? Lordy, I don't know what to do with all the spare time!

Oh, wait. Yes, I do know what to do. I have to deal with Life.

In order of annoyance:

Lawsuit: the buyer of our previous home has decided to hire a lawyer and threaten to sue us for non-disclosure of wrong things in the house that 'are causing her extreme anguish.' I won't go into details but suffice it to say: the things she's claiming are things we knew nothing about, she had a home inspection, and we hired a lawyer who essentially said, 'gee, she's got buyer's remorse and now she wants you to pay for it.' It's a long story best told over a few drinks in a bar. Bottom line: we're waiting to see if (1) we'll be sued; (2) she'll come back with a monetary figure that will buy her off; or (3) we're on the hook.

Did you know that a buyer has 2 years from the closing date to contest the sale of a home? I didn't know that. I thought everything was done the day you closed. Nope.

So that's the biggest PITA right now. Stay tuned. I'm sure we're not done with the BFH (Buyer From Hell).

Second annoyance: writer's block. I'm trying to finish my damn WIP and it just won't finish. I'm not happy overall with how it's going. I blogged over at Savvy Authors about why I think it isn't working and what I'm going to do about it. But in 5 years of writing, I've never faced this. It's disconcerting, to say the least.

And, lastly: Moving. Yes, we've moved, but now I'm in the process of adapting. Finding a doctor. Finding a dentist. Finding a massage therapist. Finding the place to buy {insert item here}. I have a lot of friends here who have made recommendations, but inevitably, it's up to me to find the right person/place/thing. I'm trying to find a carpenter to do work: no go. I think I'll need to wait until the dead of winter before anyone will want to do interior work. Find an electrician: wait until winter until all home building is at a standstill. Find a landscaper ...

You get the idea. Nothing we need to have done is major or critical, but it's annoying. I used to have my Go-To Guys for everything. Now I'm making lists.

Oh well. This all will pass. I'll console myself with Halloween candy (wait: I'm supposed to give it away? Who made up THAT stupid rule?), keep writing, and eventually get it all taken care of.

And my next book? The one I can't wait to write? It involves this woman who has buyer's remorse and who decides to sue somebody. The house gets its revenge.

{cue maniacal laughter }  Bwaa-ha-ha-ha.

Writerly friends and fallow times

For the first time in years, I'm not enthused about writing. I've had occasional moments like this before, but this has been dragging on for a month or more.

It's not a big concern to me. I still have stories to write and I'm sure I'll write them. But it's odd. A big part of my life is missing. I think it's because we moved and I got out of the habit of writing. So many other things took the place of writing: packing, unpacking, financial details, movers, new town, new friends, new house, new office... I also had 8 books release this year: 4 new ones and 4 re-releases, and they all released before July. So I was so damn busy with that, as well...

Writing is a business, an avocation, and a chore sometimes. There isn't a lot of reward (financial or otherwise), but it can be fun, too. I had lunch with two local writers lately, and that interaction reminded me about the fun of writing, the enjoyment to talk with others who know about plot points, arcs, and character development. I do a Skype session once a week with a writing friend, but that one-on-one interaction with other writers was a lot of fun.

I'm on vacation now (and away from the computer, so forgive me if I don't answer a comment), and I hope when I get back that I can re-capture that writing "glow" so that I enjoy sitting down to the computer again. I envision myself looking at the snow falling as words fly off my fingertips...

I can hope, right? You bet!

What moving has taught me

We just completed a move to a new state: new to my husband, but home to me since I grew up not far from our new house.

What did I learn during the move?

1. You can throw a LOT more than you think. I thought I had weeded out greatly before the move. Nope. We still took 3 carloads to the Goodwill AFTER we moved.

2. Something will be lost. I can't find my egg timer or my favorite measuring cup. They should have been in the Box of Miscellaneous Kitchen Stuff. I suspect they'll turn up in the Christmas decorations or something. They aren't truly Lost. They just haven't been found yet.

3. Hire it done. We had great movers (thanks, Allied Van Lines) who went the extra mile to make sure our move was done right. They did it all in disgustingly hot weather and they did it with a smile. Great company!

4. Once you move in: hire it done. How many "it'll just take 10 minutes" projects has my husband undertaken, only to find, 5 hours later, that he didn't have the right part or the right tool. We've decided: anything that has to get done NOW will be done by a pro, even though DH might be able to do it. That way, his precious free time isn't sucked up by cursing because the lighting kit didn't come with all parts needed.

5. Take time to have some fun. We took a break the week after our move and went to a play at the local theater. It was so nice to get away from boxes and disarray. It gave us some energy to tackle the rest of the unpacking.

6. Don't forget why you moved. We've had dinner with family and friends since we moved. That's why we did it -- to be closer to them and to have a more relaxed style of life. No commuting (I'm telecommuting now), a different, slower-paced place.

7. Hope for the best, but ... The buyer of our old house is now angry that she had a superficial home inspection and problems have cropped up --- problems we knew nothing about when we sold the house. We've had to hire a lawyer to make sure her buyer's remorse doesn't affect us badly. Sigh. We were so happy to have found a buyer who seemed to appreciate an older home (70 year old house). Turns out she had different expectations. So I guess the moral is: expect a bit of rain on your parade. Just hope it won't drown out the fun!

Now it's time for me to get a new schedule for my writing and get going on finishing that latest book. I'm looking forward to using my new office, my new home, and getting acquainted with my new town.

Onward!