Blood Target, prequel for the Blood Match series, will be available May 2023! My amazing daughter designed the book cover. Details on how to download the free ebook coming soon.

Moms!  Everyone has one, maybe more than one.  Some of us are lucky enough to be one.  We never appreciate them when or as much as we should and try as we might, we always end up like them, some of us more than others.  Strangely enough, there are a few of us who even wish we were more like our mothers.

This brings us to Mother’s Day, which means different things to different people.  The cynical see it as another commercialized holiday in which gifts and cards are expected.  For some, its one of the few days a year you call or see your mom, willingly or not.  For others, it’s a chance to spoil mom or be spoiled yourself.  My favorite Mother’s Day was when my 3rd grade daughter brought me breakfast in bed.  It consisted of dry toast, a cup of juice, and cereal with water (the gallon of milk was too heavy to pour and she didn’t want to make a mess for me).  For those of us whose mom’s are no longer with us, it is a day to remember all the special things she did for us and what we did together.  One thing is for sure, there is no one like Mom.

Being a scientist, I look at what mom literally gave us.  Did we get her hair color, great bone structure, or maybe the love of red wine?  Here is the one thing we ALL get from mom, and only mom.  Yes folks, that is your mitochondria, the powerhouse of the cell.  Isn’t it beautiful?

My mom gifted me with a love of reading, gardening, and the outdoors, as well as a fierce love for my family.  She told me to stop stretching out the sleeves of my shirts, don’t chew gum like a cow, to appreciate all of life’s little wonders, and reminded me that if I tried as hard as I could, that was good enough.

So on this Mother’s day do something special for mom.  Tell her how much you appreciate your mitochondria and all the other little things she’s given you.

I have been a writer/story teller longer than I can remember.  My family recalls my stories from as young as 3 years old about things I should have known nothing about (i.e. Easter Island and buffalo).  I took as many creative writing classes in high school and college as my science degree allowed.  When I wasn’t saving the world through research, I was writing and still am.

At first it was a way to express myself as a kid/teenager then it morphed into a way to entertain my young daughter.  Finally it developed into a passion to share the ideas that formed in my head; to pull out the characters and plots that plagued my waking moments and put them on the page.  I wasn’t kidding when I said I hear voices.  Most of the time, it is characters screaming, “PAY ATTENTION TO ME!  You left me dangling in a horrible situation.  Let’s find out what happens next.”

I have two “completed” novels and a handful of short stories.  We won’t even count the random incomplete stories and randomly jotted down ideas.  Are any of these ready to share with the world?  Absolutely not!  That is why I joined an amazing critique group and attended Life, the Universe, and Everything writing conference this year.  This was my first writer’s con and it was pretty much like trying to drink from a fire hose.

The three main things I learned:

1. Writers are varying degrees of awkward misfits, but that is why we love them.  Writing is art; artists are odd.  Period…

2. There is no right or wrong way to write.  The rules are made to be broken, but if you do break them, do it well.  The only wrong way to write is to NOT do it.

3. As an author, you have to promote yourself just as much as your work.  This is true for mainstream publishing, indies or even self published authors.

These three items are why I started a blog.  It keeps me from becoming the Crazy Cat lady, forces me to write daily and helps me promote my work.  Work in which I promise to share with the world, after a revision or two.

Last summer my daughter went through her belongings in preparation to start college and move into the dorms.  While digging through boxes, closets, and drawers, she came across her rather larger collection of sketch books in which she had doodled throughout the years.  Immediately she put them all in the “garbage” pile.

When I asked her why, the response was, “Everything is so ugly!  I can’t believe I was ever that bad at drawing.”

 (M. Hult 2009)

I picked up a sketch book at random and flipped through it while glancing up at her wall of current art.  Having no skill at drawing, I could never create something as beautiful as what was in this book and in her mind “garbage”.  Were the pictures on the wall better?  Of course!  Years of classes, books/videos and self discipline had lifted her work to a significantly higher level and will continue to do so.

 (M. Hult 2014)

I 100% disagreed with her decision to throw away her memories and hard work.  You see my daughter wants to be become an Art teacher so she can create and share her love of art with others.  What better way to show aspiring artists of 11-17 years old where an incredible artist started with their talent?  We all have start from somewhere, right?

The sketch books are now safely stored in the hall closet, minus one that my daughter took with her to college to look at when she’s feeling her work is less than satisfactory.  (Please note that all the art on this blog is of her creation, unless otherwise specified.)

What holding onto the past means to me is remembering, learning, and growing from our experiences both good and bad.  I apply this to every aspect in my life.  Am I a hoarder?  Probably, but that is for another post.  My advice is hold onto your past, keep it close, look back at your mistakes and successes; let them build you into the better person you will be tomorrow.  For I believe with all my heart that those who let go too quickly, don’t really learn the intended lesson.

 (my attempt at drawing)