@sloanebcollins Nature to Soothe My Soul #backtonature #PlottingPrincesses #amwriting #MFRWorg

About twice a year, I start getting itchy, twitchy, and b…er, witchy, and I know it’s time to get away from the city of concrete and back into nature.  I’m a country girl at heart, and I need the trees, mountains, lakes, oceans, and wildlife to keep me going.  There is such beauty on God’s earth, and so much that we still haven’t explored.  I once wrote a book for the Scrapbooking industry, and it’s all about reflecting on God’s wonders.  Alas, the publisher folded before it was published, but I pull it out every so often to reread it and remember how important it is to me to be in nature.

Last week my husband and I packed up the car, left notes for the kitty-sitters, and headed to Colorado for a week.  We drove straight through and reached Colorado Springs about six a.m.  We started our vacation with a lovely breakfast with my author friend Jennie Marts <waving at Jennie> and her husband.  We had a great time, and I’m so glad we had the time with them.

After stuffing ourselves with toffee pancakes (!!), we headed toward Mount Evans.  We followed the winding curves, stopping along the way to snap pictures of bighorn sheep, small lakes, and anything

that caught our eye.  If you’ve never been there, but plan to go, be warned of scary-narrow, winding roads that drop off into nothing except grass and rocks.  I think my heart was in my throat most of the way up…and back down.  We reached the top, but it was socked in with clouds and fog, snowing, very crowded, and I was dizzy from the altitude, so we stayed long enough to snap a picture to prove we had reached the top at 14,130 feet.

@sloanebcollins What Makes a Hero Tick? #PlottingPrincesses #amwriting #AlphaHeroes #Supernatural #JensenAckles #JaredPadalecki #MFRWorg

I love reading books with Alpha heroes.  It’s much easier for me to write about female characters, and how they think, than to write male characters.  I’ve started watching TV shows more carefully in the hopes of figuring out how to best write men that SHOW what’s going on with them, what they are thinking, how they act, rather than TELL. 

I’ve come about 10 years late to the Supernatural phenomenon, and now I’m hooked (and I mean HOOKED).  Having loved Jared Padalecki's character on Gilmore Girls, Sammy immediately became my favorite.  But the more I’ve been watching the reruns, the more I see the internal angst that Dean (Jensen Ackles) has. I’m fascinated by their relationship on screen, and completely charmed that they are best friends in real life.

I started watching the reruns from 2009 a couple months ago, but am now watching the first season, and it's interesting to see how the characters have grown over the years.  So here's my take on it.

@SloaneBCollins Dreams: Is a cigar really just a cigar? #InspiringStories #SafeHaven #MFRWorg

I’m one of those people who dreams vividly and in color – I always have. It boggles my mind when my husband tells me he doesn’t dream, or that he doesn’t remember his dreams.  I usually remember most of my dreams, or at least flashes of them, on a daily basis.  And, depending on what’s going on in my life at that time, I tend to dream of certain things.  We used to have two cats, and when we lost them in the early 2000’s, it was as if we’d lost our children.  Actually, they were our kids.  I found when I was missing them the most, they would visit me in my dreams. 

Every so often, I dream about my dad, and the sister I lost in 1991.  I’ve analyzed those dreams, and they usually occur when I’m missing them the most, or when I have something exciting I wish I could share with them.  When something big is coming, I dream about it, and I think that’s my way of looking at every scenario that could happen. 

When I’m troubled, I dream about my grandmother’s house.

@SloaneBCollins - How Do You Indulge? #notagirliegirl #indulgingmynails #plottingprincesses

Hi, everyone.  This is my first official post as a Plotting Princess, and I’m thrilled to be here.  I’ve been trying to decide what to write about instead of just talking about who I am, what I write (Contemporary Romance), etc. I came up with a subject that might be near and dear to many hearts. 

I’m not much of a girlie-girl, but I like to indulge every so often.  I love shoes, but due to a knee injury, I’ve had to give up all my gorgeous heels and wear flats.  I adore handbags, but I pretty much use a tote bag. For my job, it’s all business clothes.  So how can I indulge in something that feels extravagant and not go broke? 

Nail polish!  A few months ago I joined a “club” in which I get 3 nail polishes every month.  I adore trying the gorgeous new colors, and have stepped WAY outside my box with blues, silvers, purples, greens, metallics, glitters(!), and of course, my favorite: red. 

I decided to get organized, and make a swatch sheet with all the colors, so now it’s easy to decide which to use.  I can go elegant, romantic, funky, sedate, or wild. 

When I was through, the drawer looked like a treasure chest dripping with jewels.  Aren’t they pretty?  And the fact they’re in identical bottles makes my heart go pitty-pat.