Winters' Day In

Sit down and have a cuppa...

Writer. Knitting pattern designer. Foodie. Tea addict. Book geek. Mom of boys. Aspiring mermaid. My Secret Wish: Be your most fabulous you.

Get more encouraging and knitterly posts by following me on Instagram @TalenaWinters.

Nothing like following up a beach scene with a not-so-subtle reminder that winter is coming. Heehee. Or, if you're in Australia or New Zealand, this might look like a spot of sunshine. Or Sunshine. (My dog's name. Get it? Oh, I kill me.) Anyway, for ye knitters in the crowd, whether your weather is currently sunny or chilly, it's always a good time to get a minimal, functional toque on the go. The Killick Cap pattern can be made plain or with stripes, and it's an easy, sure-fire winner with men and women. Check it out at www.talenawinters.com/killick-cap. . Happy knitting! . #killickcap #watchmanscap #toque #winteriscoming #christmasiscoming #knitstagram #amknitting #knittersofig #knittersofinstagram #knitweardesign #mysecretwishbytalena #mswbtprojects

"Watcha wanna do?" . "I dunno. What do YOU wanna do?" . "Don't start that again!" . Have a fun weekend, friend! . #totallynotvultures #thejunglebook #gulls #sylvanlakealberta #saturdayfun #birds #sunset #photography #storylover #disneymovies #amreading #amwriting #writerslife

Here's the family haul of books from WWC last weekend. Looks like we'll be busy for a while! My favourite part? I know most of these authors personally. (The book on top is @lauravanarendonkbaugh's "Bait", which I posted about earlier this week. Too thin for a spine title.) And @elizabeth_whitton , how long until this copy of Houses of the Old Blood is worth stupid amounts of money because it had a misprint on the cover?? :-) . In other news, this has been an exciting week for my novel, because it got a whole new name!! I've been working with my graphic designer to create some awesome art, but my family alerted me that the title "The Mermaid's Tear" would automatically turn off all the boys--half of my target market. So, between my family and the participation of over a hundred people on my Facebook polls (if that was you, THANK YOU!), the book has now been renamed "The Undine's Jewel." I just have to wrap my head around it and remember it, now. And hope my graphic designer still wants to work with me after changing directions on her a couple of times. Haha. . It's Fri-Yay! What are you reading/doing this weekend? . #writers #writerslife #writersofig #themermaidstearnovel #theundinesjewel #bookstagram #amwriting #amreading #fantasybooks #historicalfantasy #shifter #youngadultbooks #mermaids #sphinxes #dragons #angels #grigori @erinlindseyauthor @sgwong8

My dad has pretty much let his acreage be reclaimed by nature. But long before that process got started, I gave the process a boost (when I lived at home) by planting wildflowers, among other things, in the front flower bed. This summer, among the yarrow and timothy grass and the roll of snow fencing, a lily still bloomed, planted way back then. . I was kind of amazed at its tenacity. I mean, this garden hasn't been tended in over 20 years, and here it grows. Still thriving. Still beautiful. Still a blessing. . Like some people I know. . No matter what patch of weeds you find yourself in, remember that you still have a place. It might be harder to bloom there, but it's still possible. . Grow on. :-) . #gardening #wildflower #lily #tigerlily #lessonsfromnature #inspiration #motivation #seekbeauty #spreadsunshine #thrive #healingispossible

This past weekend at #wwcyyc18, I thought a couple of times how much my "conference persona" resembles Hermione Granger. Really, that's just me. Eager student, annoyingly curious, always sits in the front row, always has a question to ask. (Embarrassing, in retrospect, but I learned SO much!) . This book represents something else to me. Once upon a time, I was willing to let others make my choices about what I should or should not read based on what they thought was "appropriate." Then, I decided to make those decisions myself. The start of that trend was when I picked up this Harry Potter book . . . and loved it! . Do I believe in taking the advisement of others? Absolutely. My time is valuable, so I don't want to squander it on things that won't give me value, therefore I find reviews invaluable. (Ha! Wordplay.) But that doesn't mean I take someone else's opinion point blank. And I don't let someone else tell me that I "shouldn't" read a book anymore. The boundaries I set are my own, based on my own morals and values and taste in books. . What does Harry Potter mean to you? And which character would YOU be at a conference? (Heehee. If you're Hagrid, tell me how.) . #harrypotter #harrypotterfans #thephilosophersstone #writerscommunity #writerslife #writersofig #bookstagram #amwriting #amreading #bookish #reading #readingcommunity

Here's a photo I took of ds#2 a little over a week ago at Sylvan Lake. It's a bit of a throwback to a silhouette I have of him when he was about 18 months old. Not exactly the same, but I had fun with lighting here, for sure. It's just so hazy everywhere from the smoke, I'm glad the sun was out! . I've been busy as a bee today on my first day home from holidays. It's nice to be home, but a little strange. I have rarely been away for two weeks at a time, especially with the whole family. Having them there made it seem less urgent to get home, and I think that's why it felt odd to return. Watch for more pretty vacay photos coming soon. Also, books. Lots of books. Haha. . #homeiswheretheheartis #myheartwalksaroundoutsidemybody #momlife #lakelife #sylvanlakealberta #writerscommunity #writerslife #writersofig #bookstagram #amwriting #amreading #bookish #reading #nofilter #noedit

And, for a refreshing change from my norm of waiting months, I have already completed one of the new reads I got at #wwcyyc2018. Thank you, @lauravanarendonkbaugh, for such a quick, thrilling read. I loved it! For everyone else, check out "Bait". It's like Jurassic Park, except the dinosaurs are mermaids. . You heard me. 😳 . #newfavouriteauthor #writerscommunity #writerslife #writersofig #bookstagram #amwriting #amreading #bookish #reading #mermaids #ngoyo #adventure #wwcyyc18

I'm on my way home with my family from an amazing two weeks of holidays that culminated in a writer's conference shared with my hubby. I have eight hours in the truck to transition back to real life. It's awesome and exciting and a little bit sad to be going home, but this was my favourite year at When Words Collide yet. So many great friendships renewed or made. So much learned. And I even got some inspiration to fix a story problem in my current project. . Speaking of that project, I'm looking forward to getting my cover back from my graphic designer soon, so there will soon be a cover reveal for The Mermaid's Tear. Yay! . Also, my husband got me this lovely little mermaid for my birthday. I'm not usually one for knick-knacks, but she looks so much like my heroine, Calandra, that I can't help but love her. (He also gave me a lovely bouquet of gardenias which will likely make an appearance here soon.) . I'm all revved up and ready to get back to work. How is your summer going? . #wwcyyc18 #wwcyyc2018 #writers #writerslife #writersofig #themermaidstearnovel #bookstagram #amwriting #amreading #fantasybooks #historicalfantasy #shifter #youngadultbooks #mermaids

I had a wonderful first day at the conference yesterday, making new friends and getting better acquainted with others. Not only that, I presented twice--my first time presenting at a writer's conference. It went pretty well, other than I had more material than time. Oops. Thank goodness I had the notes available for download. #newbiemistakes . I also got to have lunch with author Jessica Brown (pen name Renwick), whose manuscript I just edited and who is one of the sweetest people on earth. Her excellent middle grade fantasy, The Book of Chaos, will be out in a few months. . AND it was my birthday. . Got to finish out the day with my honey. . That's about as good as a day can get. . #wwcyyc18 #wwcyyc2018 @jessicarenwickauthor #writerscommunity #writersconference #birthdaygirl #writerslife

Gearing up the facial muscles for the extreme smiling marathon that's about to commence at When Words Collide. Joining me in the word geekery this year is my partner in, well, most things. If you're at the conference and see him looking freaked out and overwhelmed, be sure to go over and say hello. If a little causes the problem, a lot should be the cure, right? @rokclimer73 . (Jk. He's way more extroverted than I am.) . #wwcyyc18 #whenwordscollide2018 #writersconference #besthusbandever #writerscommunity #writerslife #amwriting

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