The House Poet

Hello all!  I can't believe it's been so long since I've updated this blog. I've wanted to, but the last few months have been so busy! Then, my old chrome book broke down and I had to wait until I could buy a new one. Now, I've got a working chrome book and am slowly working on writing again.  I'm still waiting for some feedback about my novel, but once that starts coming in, I plan to revise a lot and hopefully send it out later this year or next.  I have been revising another children's picture book manuscript and plan to send that to publishers very soon, which is exciting.  Life has been so full lately and I'm trying to take it one day a at time. My three kiddos are doing great and the twins are almost done with school, which is exciting. There is a lot going on right now, such as the fact that I'm learning to drive, we want to buy another car, our bathroom is going to be worked on next week, and all sorts of things. But that's life! ...

Hi all!  I haven't had a lot of time to write lately, but I do have some exciting news!  Remember how I was writing a book? Well, I took a break for it for a while because something wasn't quite right about it. After talking to my dad a few weeks ago, he mentioned writing a series and it was as though lightning struck my brain. I realized that my book works better as two books and the first one is all done! :D It's about 60,000 words right now and I am still in the process of editing and adding some scenes to help the continuity. The second book is about a quarter of the way done and I'm putting that one on the back burner for now so I can focus on revising the first one. :)  I am so pumped about this and I feel so much better about my book! It makes more sense now and I think it will flow better. I've found a few agents I'd like to send it to, however it won't be ready for a little while. I'm hoping to start sending it out after January, maybe ear...

Hello all!  Hope you've all been enjoying the very beginning of Autumn. Today was the chilliest day we've had in ages! I think the high was 72 degrees. Crazy, but I was so grateful. ;)  Forgive the lack of posts, but my twins started school a few weeks ago and that has been quite a change for all of us. I've got a disgruntled three year old at home with me in the mornings who misses his twins desperately while they are in school. Mornings are so busy now! Trying to get twins ready for school is a little stressful; they aren't used to having a routine like this and since they are young, they don't really understand the urgency. We are taking it day by day. The twins like school and their teacher, so that's good. :) There have been some other things going on, so I haven't been able to work on my writing for a long time. I did apply for a writing grant that is specifically for writers who are parents of young children; that grant would help me so much and a...

All summer, I've been a bit concerned about August. There are so many events and changes happening this month that I'm a bit overwhelmed!  First of all, my twins start Transitional Kindergarten in a few weeks and that will be a huge change for our family. Our schedule will change as well as our routine. With three young children, that can be a little worrisome. Not in a bad way, but we will all have to adjust and that could take a little while.  My youngest is turning three on Sunday, which is crazy because he is my baby!! I am so proud of him and I love watching him grow, but it's still a little bittersweet. He loves his birthday and has been excited about it all week, which is a lot of fun. Sunday will be a big day in our house, so I need to get ready! ;)  Those are two big milestones happening this month, and there are a lot of smaller things going on as well. We are meeting up with my second cousin and her daughter from Luxembourg in SF the week before the twins...

Hello dears!  I just saw noticed that I haven't posted anything since the first day of March! Woah! So much has happened since then, which is why I haven't been online that much. We had a busy spring and now it's already summer!  I haven't had much time for writing, but I was able to revise a few pieces and I have been submitting them. Now, it's that always fun game of "wait for a response." Not always pleasant, but very important if one wants to be published. I just submitted a very special piece this morning about my adult Irish Dancing journey. Fingers crossed that it gets accepted, but even if it doesn't, I'll revise it again and send it somewhere else. It's a piece I strongly believe in. :)  As for Irish Dancing news, it's been going very well! I have now moved up into Novice adult, which means I can start learning more advanced dances. I am very proud of myself and how much I have progressed as a dancer since January. It's a...

My name is Ophelia and I am a notebook hoarder.  I admit it. I love beautiful notebooks with colorful covers and creamy smooth pages. I usually don't even write in them; I just love having them for their beauty and their infinite possibilities. On top of one of my (many) bookshelves, I stacked up my notebooks to take a picture. The crazy thing is, I actually have more then just those, but for some reason they didn't make it into this picture. I've received some as gifts and others I bought myself, entranced by their loveliness. Notebooks can be glorious, and for a writer they represent so much. The empty pages are aching for ideas, scraps of poetry, names for characters, bits of dialogue that won't leave your mind.  Some of my favorite notebooks are ones I've bought from Japanese bookstores or stationery stores. The pages are so silky and the covers are always fun to look at. I also love notebooks featuring art from artists I admire, such as Tove Ja...

Dear readers, how is this week treating you? The fact that we've been having sunshine and warm days over here has been quite nice after all the rain and cold temps we've had! Now that my kiddos aren't sick, their energy levels seem higher than usual. I think spring fever is starting to blaze! ;)  I am working on a couple new projects. I still want to finish my fantasy novel WIP as soon as possible, but I haven't been able to get in the zone for it lately. It might be because I need to find the time to settle back into my world and characters. Hopefully that can happen soon. When my kids were napping, I used to work on my WIP during that time, but now that they don't nap anymore, it's so much harder to work on things.  But, I've been having fun with a new fantasy piece that I'd like to turn into either a super long story or novella. I love the characters so far and really like how I wrote the beginning. I'm definitely excited to see where this ...

I love Sunday nights in January because that usually means DOWNTON ABBEY!  I'm getting ready to watch the second episode of the new season tonight and I'm already in bed.  How, you ask?  Well, I woke up this morning with a sore throat, a stuffy nose, and a fuzzy head. My wonderful hubby has been helping me with the kids and took care of them all after dinner. He's putting them to bed as I write and it's lovely just to lay down in bed and rest. I've even been able to send emails, reply to comments, and work on a new short story all from my warm bed! Thank you, dear husband!!  But, seriously, why did I have to get sick a week before my next Feis?? Ugh! I wanted to practice and prepare all week, but I think it's more important to rest and try to get better. I'm still planning to go to dance class on Tuesday, so if I'm still feeling sick by then I'll be taking some Tylenol and dancing away!  I worked hard on my Hard Jig and my Blackbird set last ...

Today was the day I had set aside to do all the important things, such as paying bills, phone calls, cleaning, giving the kiddos a bath (they were incensed that I washed their hair!), and trimming their nails. Luckily, I was able to get all that plus a few more things done, however I really want to try and practice some Irish Dancing today too. So we shall see!  2015 was a great year for accomplishments, both as a family and personally. My husband and I are excited about 2016 and are going to keep moving forward and working hard. Just as 2015 was ending, I had two poems published, one of which won a holiday poetry contest! :)  My poem, "Christmas With Little Ones," won Mothers Always Write's Holiday poetry contest and I am so excited about it! That was the first time I'd ever won a writing contest and it means so much to me. That poem came straight from my life and my heart. Check it out here:  Christmas With Little Ones-Winner My poem, "autumn," was p...

Yes, that is what I'm doing. My three sweet cherubs are playing nicely together (miracles do happen!) and I am able to sneak some laptop time. Yesterday I even worked on my fantasy WIP for a little while and that felt really good!  I have been incredibly busy and I really want to write my Feis post! The Feis was amazing and I can't wait for the next one in January! We adults are supposed to get a school dress made for it, but we still need to be measured. So I'm crossing my fingers that it will be ready in time! I'm also learning the Blackbird set dance for my Novice set dance and I love it! I'm trying to get the set part down, with all those fun rocks and such. ;) Oh boy!  New goal: San Francisco Oireachtas 2016! I am THRILLED about this because we live right next to SF and my TC said I will probably be able to do the adult traditional set at the Oireachtas! She's going to help me prepare; I love how supportive my school is. Such a blessing! We are also try...

My whole body hurts today. Maybe vacuuming everywhere on top of all the usual chores wasn't such a good idea this morning, but at least the carpet is clean! Last night, I went to my Irish Dancing class, and it was so helpful but intense! It was only me and another student (a very sweet high school girl), so my teacher was able to focus on what we needed to work on before the Feis (Irish Dancing competition). I knew all my steps, but making sure my feet are pointed and reaching up to my lower back during my skip-2-3s or leap-2-3s.... those are among the things I need to work on! I am feeling a little nervous because I'll be competing against 10 or so other beginner adult dancers. I really want to make my school, Dillon Magh Adhair Academy, proud since they have only just started the adult class. I did pretty well in feiseanna when I was a teenager, but it's been about 10 years since I've been in one. I need to remember that even if I don't place amazingly well...

Hello friends! We are over midway through October and I can't wait for the holiday season. My kids are obsessed with Halloween and they love seeing Halloween decorations everywhere. I am excited about Halloween, of course, but I'm even more excited about the day after Halloween. Why, you ask? Because Sunday November 1 is the Adult Competition day of the East Bay Feis! It'll be my first Feis (Irish Dance competition) in about 10 or so years, so I am really looking forward to it! I have been practicing more at home, which is great but requires a strong will because once the kids are in bed, I'm pretty tired. But I just think about how much I love Irish Dancing and how I want to do well at the Feis and then I  find the energy to practice. I need to work on some technique things, though. Less than two weeks to go!!! And the crazy part is that there are a lot of adults competing in the Adult Beginner category, so now I'm feeling the pressure! :)  In more exciting n...

It's early Wednesday afternoon and I've already done four loads of laundry. It's been a busy day! The kids have decided that naps are not cool any more and I have found that finding time to work on writing or blogging or even just practicing my Irish Dancing has been hard to find. So! Last night I had my dance class and it was WONDERFUL! It was four of us adults in the class and we flew through our dances and even started learning the Hard Jig. So exciting! I was smiling almost the whole class. I know I still have some little things I need to work on, like pointing my toes and kicking up my feet in the back during tip downs, etc. It's a lot of fun! Two of my poems were recently published in the October issue of Verse-Virtual, an online poetry journal that really promotes poets supporting one another through positive comments and such. It's a lovely journal, full of meaningful poetry and insightful poets. Here is the link to my poems "Foghorns" and ...

I've changed things up here on my blog and I have to say, I like the new look! ;) As you can see from the post below this one, you can now find me and my blog on Blog Lovin, so check that out! I know I've been writing a lot about the novel I am working on, but I haven't imparted too much information on what it is about. This past week, the Deacon of our church asked to read what I have written so far and that was exciting; no one apart from me has read it and I am dying for some feedback. Since I am nearing the end, I've decided to share a little of my characters and their world with you all! :) All characters, names, idea, and settings are copyrighted to Ophelia Leong. A Peek Into Zalea's World: Part 1 Setting: The first half of the novel primarily takes place in a country called Milania. Milania is a large country, similar in shape to the USA, and is broken through the middle by a wide river known as Whistling Ford River. Whistling Ford River is maintaine...

Hello everyone! Here we are at the end of September and I am enjoying hot chocolate, even though this past weekend was HOT. Hope everyone else is well! I've been thinking about motherhood lately, and the ways to express my experience with motherhood in writing. I wrote two new poems for an anthology about motherhood called All You Can Hold, and I hope the editor likes them! I recently had a poem accepted for publication in an upcoming issue of Mothers Always Write, which is a wonderful online literary journal. They published one of my poems in the beginning when I was just coming back to writing and submitting a couple years ago. The staff have been so supportive too! Writing about motherhood is important but might not be easy or simple. So many emotions come with being a parent, and sometimes it can be difficult to sift through those emotions and express them on paper. I love writing about little moments with my kids; my most recently accepted poem is about peeling an orange f...

It has been a busy, exhausting, and hot week over here. I have had almost no time to work on my writing. I spent most of yesterday cleaning and moving things to make room for a new fridge, only to find out that the fridge Best Buy did deliver was defective. So, back it went with the delivery guys and I had to put everything back in our awful old fridge. It was such a nightmare and I've called Best Buy twice about some sort of discount or anything and they won't do it.  Hopefully I can get some writing done soon. I'm thinking about working on a couple new projects, so we'll see what happens. Just wanted to pop in before the kids pop out of their room (nap time is not for napping anymore...) and share a lovely poem I came across today. We were attempting (notice I say attempting...heh) to read this gorgeous book of poetry illustrated by the amazing Jackie Morris, whose website can be found here:  Jackie Morris UK  . We managed to read a few poems before I noticed my e...

I have decided to take a wee break from my novel. For some reason, I find that I have more ideas and such when I take a few weeks off from writing it. The break helps new ideas come to my mind and I can work on other projects. When I come to a point where I feel that my writing is stilted or forced, then I know it's time to sit back and recharge those creative batteries. Which got me thinking today about self-publishing, of all things. I don't necessarily want to self-publish the novel I am currently working on, but would it be fun and educational to self-publish another novel I have in the works? My father self-published a book this year with Create Space on Amazon, and spoke to me today about how he is feeling somewhat discouraged. Self-publishing sounds like a wonderful idea, and it is, but how does an author make money from it? You must have the time to market your book, which is a lot of work, and the time to edit and revise. Then getting word out about your book an...

Hello all! I can't believe the summer has flown by so quickly! I am definitely looking forward to cooler weather, Fall colors, crisp leaves littering the ground, pumpkin everything, and Christmas decorations!! (Yes, I love Fall!) Also, I am back into my Irish Dance class again after my school had a summer break and I am so happy! I am now preparing for the East Bay Feis on the last weekend of October, so wish me luck! I've got lots of work to do before then! ;) As for my writing, I've hit over 73,000 words in my novel now and I am inching closer to the end. However, my characters have minds of their own and keep bringing things up that I, the author, have to deal with. They are so logical! I'm worried that my novel is going to be crazy long, but that might just mean I'll have to cut some scenes that don't work. We'll see. This whole writing a novel adventure has taught me so much and there is more to learn! I've had a few pieces published and I am ...

I can't believe it's already the end of July! This summer has gone by so quickly! This morning I found myself thinking about Fall and all the changes we are going to see in the weather and trees. Grey skies, chilly mornings, random hot chocolate cravings, acorns crunching all over the place...lots of fun to look forward to! Actually, I just want the heat to go away. On Sunday, we took the kids, along with my dad, to the beach. It was their first real "beach day" and we had fun, but it was exhausting. Taking three young kids to the beach takes a lot of you, just saying. They didn't even want to go near the water, which is understandable since the waves are loud. So they just sat in the sand and played for a couple hours while I went into the water and splashed around. I felt like I was 9 years old again! Anyway, back to the real world now. I have a few sandy tote bags that I need to clean out, not to mention a crazy amount of laundry. So, writing news! My p...

Hello dear readers!  My husband and I came back from a little vacation a few days ago and have been settling back into reality. We had a lovely time, just relaxing and shutting down for a little while in San Francisco. We ate lovely food and saw the Replacements perform at the Masonic, which was AMAZING!  It's amazing how busy life can be, especially when you have three little ones running around like we do. ;) The potty training for the twins is going really well, I am happy to say, and we are all getting used to it.  I have a Twitter account now, so follow me @OpheliaLeong . I am trying to put some more work in promoting myself and my writing, and I'm excited about it! Check it out!  A couple days ago, I found out that a haiku I submitted to Three Line Poetry has been accepted for publication, which made me really happy. I received a couple rejections last weekend, so it was great to hear of an acceptance. More details to come!  Speaking of haik...