Carey Burns

We finally made it up to Loyola University Museum of Art for the Gorey exhibit! We ended up taking a very scenic route to Michigan Avenue via Evanston, thanks to a slight miscommunication, but we made it downtown in one in piece. Our car even won in a battle against a concrete wall... The expensive parking garage is over there. For a small exhibit, it was impressive and I was delighted to learn that Gorey hand-sewed stuffed creatures--I so want a Figbash of my own! The few etched plates they had on display were impressive and so finely-detailed. It was humbling to learn about his creative process. Yes, they did come in the wrong door. Let's stare at them and make them feel uncomfortable. After the exhibit we headed up to Evanston to Blind Faith Cafe where they have the best Kung Pao I've had in decades. How they make a meatless item to be so similar to chicken is probably some sort of delicious witchcraft. And now I'm hungry for Kung Pao again. The Peach B...

I've been a big fan of Edward Gorey's for a long, long time and enjoy sending Gorey Christmas cards to friends and family and wonder if the recipients enjoy the Great Veiled Bear as much as I do... How I went so long without knowing about the exhibit at the Loyola University Museum of Art , I don't know. Perhaps the rock I live under blocks out cool news like this? I do know that I owe a big debt of gratitude to my brother for tipping me off and look forward to checking it out!

"Hey...I got a cool idea for a story, but no time to write it. I'll just jot it down on this liquor store receipt and tape it over here..." I've done this too many times to count and those receipts pile up as do the scraps of paper. I always think I'll just sit down some Saturday with a mug of cocoa, listen to some chill music and organize them in a file on my computer. I've been saying that since 1998. Seriously. Last night I took a 4 inch stack of story ideas and longhand stories and started typing them up. After the tenth file was saved, I wanted to cry. There's so much I could have been working on all these years but instead, they've just been languishing in a pile. And there's still more to type up. I offer you my advice: Take the few minutes when an idea hits you (or as soon as possible) and create a file on your computer or flashdrive of choice (mine is currently an adorable Hello Kitty model that looks like me) and type it up! Save i...

Ah, I'm forty years young today. I was woken by claps of thunder and flashes of lightning and I smiled because that is my kind of day! I've done nothing constructive all day, except post photos on Facebook and run a mile on the trampoline. I had lofty goals to paint the wood trim around the doors and window in our front entry but it is just too cold for that (or for me, anyway). Oh, and I did post a giveaway on my Facebook page. Feel free to play along if you'd like a free copy of Hair Baby and Other Weird Tales . Thanks for following my ramblings.

Hello, blogland, I've missed you. I'm writing to you from Day One of my week-long staycation/birthday retreat. So much has changed since my last post...I've been working in a marketing office and writing press releases all day, everyday...the hubby took a new job and we're still getting used to his nightshift schedule... Being surrounded by awesome marketing ideas and solutions has given me a lot to think about: I'm awesome at promoting the ever loving heck out of something...as long as it isn't my writing or crafting. I've always known this and have blogged about it in the past, but now I'm analyzing the why of it. Here's my thoughts on why I find it difficult: Putting yourself out on display is scary, scary stuff. Self-doubt is my perfume of choice and I've been wearing it a very long time. I could spend many hours and several dollars promoting my work...and nobody will still buy my books and/or jewelry. It just feels like hawking my war...

So, I've started a new job and the first couple of weeks of January were so insanely busy, I didn't have time to even announce the availability of my book. Here she is, in all her glory. Right now, she's available at Amazon , but I'm nearly done with the Kindle files, so stay tuned!   This new year has inspired me to step out of more comfort zones and I'm waist-deep in writing a screenplay...for a romantic comedy. Yeah, I have no idea what possessed me to start this project, but it is fun. And life should be fun! Here's to trying new things and having fun!

Pardon the gore-covered fingers as I type this overdue blog entry...I've been busy! I entered the Pits of Doom months ago and have finally battled my way out, gutting several stories along the way. One didn't make it at all...it bled out all over my feet and now my shoes have a stiffness to them they didn't have before. So, I revised and revised and revised again that tormenting beast known as my short story collection. I even ripped its skin loose and created a new one in is likeness, but better. GIMP is now my new BFF. We might get matching tattoos. Seriously though, it has been quite the journey to get the book this far and at one point, I almost considered just seeing if a publisher would want to publish it for me so it could be out of my hands. But then I realized this whole process was a giant learning tool to make sure future works of mine are really in the best shape possible before subbing them out. I always think they are but there's usually a handful of ...