I finished a book recently and it left me shaking my head. There was so, so very much included in the book. Let me start by saying, it was part of a series—and several books into it—so there were all sorts of references to previous characters and happenings. I hadn’t read any of the other books so some of that was a little daunting. Though I suppose, if you’d read the rest, seeing a little aside and/or update would be fun.

When I finished the book, I looked up the next (and last) book in the series to read the blurb. Yes, the self-admitted non-blurb reader specifically looked up the blurb. I wanted to see if I needed to try and find it. After reading the blurb, there was no way I was picking up that book. Just the blurb alone was dramatic, melodramatic and so convoluted I didn’t want to spend the 2-3 days it might take to get through it all just to see if it had a remotely close HEA that would satisfy after that journey (I almost always have to have an HEA in all my book, it’s just how I roll…anyhoo…)

Between reading the second to last book and the blurb, I got to wondering:can you put too much into your stories? And I’m not talking about adding details and descriptions, I’m talking about actual story and plot points. Maybe because it was a series, the author was setting up the next book too much as well as wrapping up some previous story lines tighter. I don’t know if it was intentional and just her style or trying to do too much—haven’t read her before. The main story could have been told completely and utterly (in my opinion) without any of the secondary plotlines. It would have been shorter, but less confusing and a smoother read.

Don’t get me wrong, I like complex stories and I like peripheral plotlines to books, I just don’t like feeling like a need a character guide and score sheet to keep up with whose doing what, where and when, y’know…

But that is one thing that’s great about books… there’s something for everyone. What do you prefer? More or less? Or is it (with many aspects of writing) all in the execution?

Staying with the Star Wars theme… so this morning, my 14yo is grabbing his stuff for school in the other room and I hear him say, “Oh, I forgot to get the light saber out of my backpack.” Naturally, I’m like, “Wha…” And he peeks around the corner with a huge grin on his face. “Yeah, I was wearing it all last week.”

Wearing it? To school???

Bigger grin. “Yeah, until I got caught with it.”

Apparently, he thought it would be cool to start a new trend and wear a light saber on his belt. He even got several of his friends to join in on this new trend. (Yeah, I’m still shaking my head too!). He went most of the week doing this. Then one afternoon he was talking to one of the principals and, while pulling on his backpack, got it hung on the light saber which then fell to the floor. She thought it was funny, but told him he’d have to leave it at home.

I can’t decide if I am sad/embarrassed or proud/giddy that my (teenaged) child would 1) take a toy to school on a regular basis and 2) get other kids to do so as well. And let me just say, this is my *rocker* kid. He has the long (but not teased) 80s hair. A full beard (at 14) and wears a lot of rocker tees (all alternative music—the screaming kind). He’s not what you'd picture for a kid carrying a light saber—not that there’s *necessarily* a type, but…

I don’t think I have ever started a trend. Or even tried to start a trend. I love that he got the (albeit strange) idea and went for it. Are you a trendsetter? Would you get an idea like that—silly or no—and implement it? Would you follow one that your friend started? (Can’t say I’ve ever done that either)

I have loved Star Wars since I was five years old and the very first movie came out. My mom worked at the local movie theater in San Angelo, TX and I got to sit through movies for free (could eat all the popcorn I wanted—but always got lemon drops instead). Cut to adulthood: my hubby is an even bigger Star Wars fan than I am (a match made in heaven!) so naturally when it came time, our kids were eagerly introduced to the franchise.

Out of our four boys, every last stinking one of them has a similarly special place in their hearts for Yoda, Luke and the whole interstellar clan. (Thank goodness because it would have been awkward if we’d had to have disowned one!) We’ve taken the boys to see all the newest movies … okay #4 was not born when Phantom Menace came out—and was only 7mo when Attack of the Clones came out, he went, threw up on me the last five minutes of the movie, but he went.

As a family we have watched those movies over and over again, first on VHS then on DVD. Every holiday we tune in to Spike TV because they often run a Star Wars marathon. We have all the “action figures”, all opened and well played with and any and all sundry of items related to the franchise. But as is with life, the boys have gotten older. Their interests have diverged and often they don’t really relate to what one of the other is doing. It’s sad, but a growing period for them all.

Cut to Saturday. It was May 4th. May the fourth be with you. Since 2007, that has been a day dubbed Star Wars Day. Pretty darn awesome for a geek household like ours. So Saturday, the 14yo asks where their light sabers are. At one point I think he had 8 or 9—when they were little—and they all ended up under my bed to keep them from walloping one another. The 14yo finds one for each brother and they (all 4) spend an hour in the living room reenacting battles from the movies.

Hours later, the four of them where all just sitting around still. Talking. To each other. This rarely happens in a house full of teenagers. They grunt, nod and go their separate ways. But for May the 4th, they sat together and talked and had a great time. (it brought tears to my eyes).

Is there something that brings your family (and/or friends) together? anything that you will drop everything to catch up with? And if you like Star Wars, who’s you fave character? Mine is Obi-Wan (Ewan McGregor version); I just love everything about him through the prequels!

Sorry I have been MIA the past couple of weeks. First my computer crashed and I had to get a new one—totally sucks. You get used to something (for several) years and then you have to replace it and re-learn everything over again (it’s like having a managed mess on your desk, then cleaning it and trying to re-locate everything). Not to mention, I get very attached to my “things”. I like my consistency and when it gets interrupted—like a computer that won’t even stay on long enough for the geek to try to analyze it—it’s jarring. Then you get totally out of whack and it’s hard to get back in the rhythm of things—like blog posts, correspondence, writing and well, it’s easy to get out of whack and behind. Anyhoo…I have a new computer now, I have most of the programs and things back in place and hopefully my head back in the game.

So, back to me … Are you one of those people who over-share? I am. Holy crap am I. You know when folks say, “Hi, how are you?” 99% of the time they’re not actually asking you how you are, they are tossing out a perfunctory social nicety that says, I am acknowledging you and nothing more. I know this, but often times, I will launch in as to how my day “actually” is and why. Not that they care or want to know. Some of this is because (and Amie can so totally attest to this) I don’t like the idle quiet. Sure, I can sit and be quiet, but I don’t care for it. If I ever break the law—and I mean, truly break they law—all they police would have to do is sit silent across a desk from me and wait. And I will fill in all the quiet.

Worse, I’m not shy. Well, actually I am shy, but if it gets awkward, I feel it necessary to talk to cover it up. If I am comfortable around someone, I feel totally at ease to talk and fill the silence. It’s kind of a damned either way because I will talk about any and everything. No topic is off limits and I’ve never met an opinion I haven’t freely given. Which often lends to an awkward overshare moment. I get carded buying alcohol, I talk about how old my kids are (why it’s silly to card me—hell, I have an 18yo kid), my gray hair and being the tallest female in my family. Seems like a stretch but when you’re in over-share mode, I can go off on tangents like no one’s business! And I could recite oh-so-many other incidents but I would be revealing too much and have traipsed into the land of over-share.

I’ve given it some thought and I can’t decide if I am an over-sharer because I write or I write because I am an over-sharer. Not that it really matters *why*. It’s just a fact of who I am. It’s as much a part of me as my freckles or dyed blonde hair. And apparently it’s genetic as my youngest has my run-on-at-the-mouth disease as well—and sadly, he’s way worse than I am!

When asked how your day is/was, do you tell them or do you reply with a mutually perfunctory, “Fine, thank you?” So are you an over-sharer? And, how was you day….