Why blog

Captain's Log, Stardate 02.09.2006

Gina: HOORAY FOR MY FRIEND GINA WHO NOW HAS AN AGENT!!! Congrats, girl!

Christina: I'm pretty stoked b/c my friend Christina commented on my Xanga yesterday. Christina was one of my high school kids at church when...well, when she was in high school. :) Right now, she's on short-term missions in Japan! I'm so proud of her. She's grown into a beautiful woman of God. And now I've completely embarrassed her by mentioning her on my Blogger blog and my Xanga.

Why blog: I've been thinking about blogging lately. I love it. Probably because I like to talk. The problem is, why would a perfect stranger want to listen to me talk? I wouldn't.

I'm not looking for pats on the back. I'm seriously wondering what's the purpose of my blog. If it's just me talking about myself, there's only a limited circle of friends who care.

I love books, which is why I like giving them away. Is that my only blog purpose? Book giver-awayer? Can I talk about anything that people would want to read?

Take Terry Whalin. His blog The Writing Life is interesting because he's an editor at Howard Publishing and writers want to read about his thoughts and insights into the publishing industry. They want to hear what he likes and doesn't like about the proposals he receives. He has information and experience that encourages people to read what he says.

What do I have? Why would people want to read what I have to say?

I think it comes down to branding. Yeah, yeah, I said the b-word. What theme do I wrap myself in when it comes to my writing?

I care about a few issues--I'm against embryonic stem cells and abortion, but they aren't in all my books. I worked for 10 years in biology, but I don't always write about that field. What's my overarching theme?

I think it's Asiana. I love writing Asian characters. I love describing a Chinese wedding banquet or a Red Egg and Ginger party. Actually, I think I like those things because they involve yummy fried food, but that's another subject.

Maybe this is a different avenue to slant my blog toward. What do people think?

Bible in 90 Days: Day 32. I read yesterday but I didn't blog yesterday. Today I'm in Job. I'm more aware of God's sovereignty--He can do whatever He wants. He doesn't have to act in ways I expect. He doesn't have to bless us--He chooses to. It's not some cosmic rule that faithful, obedient people are blessed and evil people are cursed. It makes me feel a little unstable, but it also makes me trust Him. Job didn't give up in the midst of his trials. God wanted Job to trust in Him.

Writing: Yesterday I got a lot done with Dineen. She met me after PT and we sat in front of this great coffee shop with our laptops. But I need to get more done. Hopefully tonight.

Diet: Yesterday I was at about 1700 calories, plus I went to PT. Boy did they work me hard. They've added more exercises but they haven't taken any away. I was there for over 2 hours.

Today, I'm doing kind of bad in that I didn't eat breakfast, and had only a few bites for lunch. Dinner is eggplant and chicken parmesan.

Prelude for a Lord now on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited

The new, extended version of Prelude for a Lord is now available on Amazon! I am re-releasing Prelude for a Lord , which was originally published by Zondervan but I got the rights back. Zondervan had a strict word count limit, so I cut about 20,000 words from the manuscript, but now that I have the rights back, I’m releasing the extended version before I cut the words out. The book is now about 120,000 words (the Zondervan version was 100,000 words). Don’t worry, I’m still working on the Lady Wynwood’s Spies series. I’m just re-releasing this book since Zondervan is no longer selling it and some people wanted to read it. I’ll work on the Gentlemen Quartet series after I finish the Lady Wynwood’s Spies series (Lady Wynwood is projected to be 12 books). There will also be some neat cross-over between the two series! I’ll eventually do annotated chapters with Easter Eggs and behind-the-scenes content for Prelude for a Lord , but for now, they’ll only be available to my Launch Tea...

No Cold Bums toilet seat cover

Captain's Log, Stardate 08.22.2008 I actually wrote out my pattern! I was getting a lot of hits on my infamous toilet seat cover , and I wanted to make a new one with “improvements,” so I paid attention and wrote things down as I made the new one. This was originally based off the Potty Mouth toilet cover , but I altered it to fit over the seat instead of the lid. Yarn: any worsted weight yarn, about 120 yards (this is a really tight number, I used exactly 118 yards. My suggestion is to make sure you have about 130 yards.) I suggest using acrylic yarn because you’re going to be washing this often. Needle: I used US 8, but you can use whatever needle size is recommended by the yarn you’re using. Gauge: Not that important. Mine was 4 sts/1 inch in garter stitch. 6 buttons (I used some leftover shell buttons I had in my stash) tapestry needle Crochet hook (optional) Cover: Using a provisional cast on, cast on 12 stitches. Work in garter st until liner measures...

Tabi socks, part deux

Captain's Log, Stardate 07.25.2008 (If you're on Ravelry, friend me! I'm camytang.) I made tabi socks again! (At the bottom of the pattern is the calculation for the toe split if you're not using the same weight yarn that I did for this pattern (fingering). I also give an example from when I used worsted weight yarn with this pattern.) I used Opal yarn, Petticoat colorway. It’s a finer yarn than my last pair of tabi socks, so I altered the pattern a bit. Okay, so here’s my first foray into giving a knitting pattern. Camy’s top-down Tabi Socks I’m assuming you already know the basics of knitting socks. If you’re a beginner, here are some great tutorials: Socks 101 How to Knit Socks The Sock Knitter’s Companion A video of turning the heel Sock Knitting Tips Yarn: I have used both fingering weight and worsted weight yarn with this pattern. You just change the number of cast on stitches according to your gauge and the circumference of your ankle. Th...

Winners - FORMULA FOR DANGER

The winners of FORMULA FOR DANGER are: Jasmine A. Veronica B. Gail D. Lindy E. Barb F. Tammie J. Meg O. LeAnn R. Bonnie T. Sharon T. Congratulations! (I've emailed you. Please email me at camy {at] camytang[dot}com if you didn’t get the email message.) I know the rest of you are crying in your mocha almond lattes that you didn’t win. Cheer up! Order the book! Formula for Danger by Camy Tang HER LIFE WAS ON THE LINE Someone wants dermatologist Rachel Grant's latest research, and they'll do anything to get it. Including trashing the plants needed for her breakthrough scar-reducing cream--and trying to run Rachel down. Desperate for help, she turns to Edward Villa, the only man she trusts. But the greenhouse owner knows too much about Rachel's research, and now he's a target, too. Break-ins, muggings, murder...the would-be thief is getting desperate--and getting closer. Edward vows to protect Rachel at all costs. Yet with time ticking away, Edwar...

Writing Progress on Camille's Next Book

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Lady Wynwood’s Spies, Volume 7 annotated edition

Earlier I had posted that you can now buy Lady Wynwood’s Spies, Volume 7: Spinster on my website. But I forgot to mention that for a limited time, if you buy the eBook or the paperback , you’ll also get the annotated edition eBook with Easter Eggs, behind-the-scenes tidbits, research notes, and random author commentary FREE. Once the book goes into Kindle Unlimited, I can no longer offer the annotated version on my website, so be sure to get it now before the book goes up on Amazon. 10% off coupon code for ALL BOOKS I finally got all the Lady Wynwood’s Spies regular paperbacks in my store, and if you use the coupon code website10 , you can get 10% off all the eBooks and paperback books in my shop! NOTE: If you’re waiting for the Special Edition paperbacks, those will be available in my Kickstarter later this month. Get 10% off https://camilleelliot.com/shop/

Toilet seat cover

Captain’s Log, Supplemental Update August 2008: I wrote up the pattern for this with "improvements"! Here's the link to my No Cold Bums toilet seat cover ! Okay, remember a few days ago I was complaining about the cold toilet seat in my bathroom? Well, I decided to knit a seat cover. Not a lid cover, but a seat cover. I went online and couldn’t find anything for the seat, just one pattern for the lid by Feminitz.com . However, I took her pattern for the inside edge of the lid cover and modified it to make a seat cover. Here it is! It’s really ugly stitch-wise because originally I made it too small and had to extend it a couple inches on each side. I figured I’d be the one staring at it, so who cared if the extension wasn’t perfectly invisible? I used acrylic yarn since, well, that’s what I had, and also because it’s easy to wash. I’ll probably have to wash this cover every week or so, but it’s easy to take off—I made ties which you can see near the back of the seat. And...

Free short story: How Laura Met Aya

One of the perks of Tier 2 and higher in my Patreon is that they get a bonus short story twice a year. They voted to read about how Laura met the Senhora and so I worked on “Lady Wynwood and the Senhora’s Bargain” at the end of November and I’m just about finishing it up right now. When outlining this story, because it was so intertwined with how Laura meets Aya, I ended up writing a short story about how they met, which became the prologue. (And then the story of how Laura meets the Senhora exploded into a novella instead. I’m not sure exactly how. I just kept writing and writing and writing …) Anyway, as a Christmas gift, I decided to give my patrons the prologue of “Lady Wynwood and the Senhora’s Bargain” because it’s a complete short story about how she met Aya, which I think some of you might like to read. (In order to see the post, you may need to register for a free Patreon account and then Follow my page for free). Enjoy! “Lady Wynwood’s Encounter” (how Laura met Aya)

Chinese Take-Out and Sushi for One

Captain’s Log, Supplemental My agent sent me an article from Publisher’s Weekly that discussed this incident: Chinese Take-Out Spawns Christian Controversy And here’s also a blog post that talks about it in more detail: The Fighting 44s This is Soong-Chan Rah’s blog: The PCS blog In sum: Apparently Zondervan (yes, my publisher), who has partnered with Youth Specialties, had put out a youth leaders skit that had stereotypical Asian dialogue, which offended many Christian Asian Americans. In response to the outcry, Zondervan/Youth Specialities put out a sincere apology and is not only freezing the remaining stock of the book, but also reprinting it and replacing the copies people have already bought. I am very proud of my publisher for how they have handled this situation. The skit writers have also issued a public apology . (I feel sorry for them, because they were only trying to write a funny skit, not stir up this maelstrom of internet controversy. I’ve been in youth work long enou...

I GOT A CONTRACT!

Captain’s Log, Stardate 03.29.2006 I had a wonderfully funny blog post planned for today, but I got sidetracked by some news yesterday! Zondervan has offered me a three-book contract on my Asian chick-lit series ! I’m still stunned by everything that’s happened. The series is actually a 4-book projected Asian chick-lit series about four cousins who fall under the infamous family title "Oldest Single Female Cousin," and their ruthless, wealthy grandma applies pressure on each of them to improve their lack of love interests. I think the first book is tentatively scheduled to be released in August 2007. The blurb on the series is on my website here . Brandilyn Collins posted to the ACFW loop about my writing journey, and Tamara Cooper asked that I share it. And since you all know how much I like to talk , here it is. My writing journey: Like most writers, I have wanted to write since I was very young. (In high school, I wrote a fantasy novel that will never see the light of day ...

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Lady Wynwood #7 early release Kickstarter