Not to fret, Monkey Soul is on the way. I’m hoping to get it done in time for Mother’s Day 2026. It may be late, but by mid-summer if not May. Meanwhile, I’ve just published the latest collection of short stories. This is truly a collection of misfits. As I’ve done before, each story has a note about its inspiration. And while all my stories are all my babies, I confess I have some new favorites in this bunch. This is the most eclectic I’ve gone to date: one story verges on horror, one is almost a folk tale for children, one involves a bicycle messenger who enters a time travel machine–and I even stuck two true stories into the mix!
Confession: I haven’t been regular about my yoga practice. And you know how once you get out of a habit, it takes at least 28 days to reclaim it. Well, Lorraine was leading a chair yoga class the other day and I joined. Being a little more flexible than some of the attendees, I did a full pigeon pose on the mat. This pose was followed by “any pose your body needs right now” and suddenly, I realized I could use the chairback for legs up the wall. Golly, it was delicious!
Legs Up the Wall
This pose is often done as the second to last pose at the end of a yoga session as a cool down, but it could be done anytime for relaxation. And if you can’t get on the floor, you could even do this in bed with your legs against the wall. The goal is to have your back straight and flat with your head supported–you want to be comfortable–and you want your legs as straight as possible and supported. If doing this against a wall, you want to get your hips/buttocks as close to the wall as possible. You may want to begin on your side, get in position, then roll on your back and get your legs up. Once in position, you should feel comfortable. Feel your back connecting to the ground or mat or bed…feel your spine straightening…and a shift of tension from your feet.
Please check out the link below to an article with more detail about getting into the pose and the benefits of it–but here’s a quick list of benefits! There’s also a short meditation with this pose.
I’m excited to be a guest on The Fiction Writer’s Podcast!
Hosted by Lana McAra, this podcast gives you powerful and easily actionable tips, tricks, and ideas for fiction that is #Unputdownable.My episode is called “Two Directions: Humorous and Spooky”. I can’t speak for Lana, but I sure had a blast. Once we got to talking, we were laughing and swapping stories about everything from writing styles to blurs between fiction and real life, to personal ghost stories.
After you listen, be sure to “LIKE”, “COMMENT” on, and “SHARE” this post.Be sure to subscribe to the show and share it with anyone who may benefit!
As mentioned in the podcast, book #4 is in the works. This time, Haint’s boyfriend, Buster is off at a Fortean convention in Idaho. {“Fortean” refers to Charles Fort, who like the better known Ripley, was intrigued by the unknown or unexplained from aliens and cryptids and supernatural events to frogs and fish raining from the sky.} A nearby VIP is killed and Buster is a main suspect. Haint hosts a group of mystery writers at her retreat. Hearing about Buster’s true crime case, they are eager to puzzle out who dunnit.
Interview with Caitlyn Adams in her shop Heart Mind Healing in Gainesville, Florida.
Wait… what’s with the portable outhouse? Find out in the interview!
Need crystals? Incense? Books? Yoga? Meditation? Check out Caitlyn’s shop Heart Mind Healing in Thornebrook Village in Gainesville: https://www.heartmindgnv.com/
But I’ve been thinking about Haint and Catfish Springs and where to go next.
I’ve GOT IT!
But lets’ do a quick review of what we’ve got so far:
Monkey Mind was modelled after a cozy mystery. Haint opened a meditation retreat in September 2014, thinking it would be all peace, love, and yoga, but instead, murder. Woopsie.
Monkey Heart picks up just after Monkey Mind. It’s now Halloween. Guests go missing. Murder again? How about French farce. Possibly funnier and definitely zanier than Monkey Mind.
By this time, we were in the throes of a pandemic. I felt we needed humor more than anything. HBC is just a Christmas candy–funny mayhem with a bit of mystery. Buster is incommunicado. Why? Where is he? And who keeps leaving mysterious presents for Haint?
So what’s next?
A locked-room mystery!
Meet Scruffy Nobthatcher.
He’s made a name for himself in the cryptozoology world, but not a good one. A master con artist who has been just lucky enough not to be exposed yet, he propounds wild claims and fakes evidence to the delight of his cult following. He’s a social media phenomenon. But those who know him, hate his guts.
He’s a headliner at a the Annual Cryptic Convention in Hog Wallow, Idaho.
Many of the other headliners would love to see him get taken out by a cryptid, and it seems their wishes come true. He’s found slashed in his booth.
Haint’s love interest, Buster is the prime suspect.
But how could it have happened? With only one door and people everywhere, how come no one saw his attack?
I’m reading up on the genre, and plotting!
Here’s the VIP room!
While Buster is stuck in jail, his assistant Selene will pass information along to Haint who happens to be hosting a group of mystery writers. These senior armchair detectives eagerly assist in the investigation.
In my second book, Monkey Heart, my brother Iggy has a bit of a breakdown. His old girlfriend, Running Deer sweeps back into town and asks if he’d take her back. This was after she turned down his marriage proposal and took off to find herself out west.
Oh, and she’s pregnant, but he’s not the father.
It’s a hot mess.
I find him sitting on the floor, in the dark, listening to every sad song I’ve ever heard.
Well.
A good friend suggested that I could put together a playlist.
Now, I think she was thinking about meditations–and I will, it’s a great idea! I’ve got lots of meditation music as well as guided meditations.
But Iggy’s Top Sobber Hits came to mind. (‘Cause I’m keen on 70s and 80s mush, too.)
Haint's Retreat 