Almost on the Road . . . Again!

We're just home from a trial run, a relatively short trip up to the Wallowas in eastern Oregon. Here's the view from a picnic bench along the way, near Hat Point, an overlook near Hell's Canyon. Despite all the challenges and calamities, these trips remind me what a beautiful world's around us. OK I won't tell you about the 20 mile one-way gravel road, with sheer drop offs, but gorgeous views. 

Update on the writing: Yes, I always bring the laptop on any trip. A little HP netbook that had nearly no memory. When I opened my file and began to type, the cursor didn't move! So no writing other than scribbling in my journal. Oofta! Now home again, hubby surprised me with a new computer. Argh! This Lenovo has so much stuff going on (and memory), I probably need to take a class. 

No writing at all for about a week on the road. So, after unpacking and cleaning the fridge, I thought maybe a little nap would help because I want to get back to my writing. 

Five minutes later, I wake up with a scene floating in my head. Sort of. A woman’s driving a car, and a guy is seated next to her. I don’t know who they are. I don’t know their names. They begin talking.

“So, are you going to take that job?”
“No, I’m not going to take that job. It’s a paid hit. I’m not doing that.”
“How much were they going to pay?”
“Doesn’t matter. I’m not taking the job.”
“You want to tell me about that black SUV that’s been following us?”
“What black SUV? Oh, shit.”

I'm left wondering what happens next! And who these people are! That's how another story starts. 

Meanwhile, we're getting ready for that longer trip. Writing projects with me? 

• Island Wife, that fourth (last?) story in the 'stones' series, now a tetralogy or quadrilogy (from the Greek). Hoping for feedback from my beta readers so I can begin the next round of revision.
•  And the next art crime novel, The Last Sarcophagus, set in Egypt (draft stage), so that means a few research books come along too.
• 
  Maybe the family history. Just finished the working draft about my grandfather, Frank Henry, one of the first forest rangers back in the 1920s, and will begin next with my grandmother, Sigrid Torgny, a woman I always thought was born in Sweden (since that was so important to her). Turns out, she was born in Chicago. Anyone else like ancestry.com? 
  
• Oh, yes, that dream? I might just find a few more scenes along the way.

Meanwhile, may the end of the summer be good to you. May this crazy world calm down a bit. May Delta stay far away from you and those you love. And if you write (or read), I hope you enjoy every moment!