I'm only happy when it rains.

At the end of May, we put in a sprinkler system. For nearly a week, Boyfriend and my son gouged the land with a trencher, hacked at dry clay with a pickax, and shoveled out rocks the size of infants from my property. I hand-cranked a pipe cutter through a half mile of PVC, while my daughter slopped blue glue over each end so that we could jigsaw the elbows and drains on the line. I learned the jargon quickly, volleying terms like funny pipe and Teflon tape as though they'd always been a part of my vernacular. I learned that Christy's Red Hot Blue Glue sears like a mother if you accidentally get some in your popped blister. I learned that I should not try to excavate a rock from clay with my hands--that doing so will rip my nail from my finger. By the end of the week, I poked a hole in my glove, the kids twice tracked mud through the living room, and Boyfriend was unable to close his fists. He walked around with his hands in a C like a Lego person. But, despite all that, we did it. In true Bradbury fashion, we sat in the parlor and activated the sprinkling system with a tap-tap on my phone.

Goodbye spotty, bleak lawn. Hello greener pastures. 

After our laborious week, Boyfriend, the kids, and I went to a family reunion and helped sod my parents' lawn (or rather I did. Boyfriend looked woefully at his Lego hands and I exiled him from the backyard and sentenced him to a nap.) Forty-eight hours later, we boarded a plane for Atlanta. (Guess who doesn't need sprinklers?! Georgians!)

The last few weeks have been bananas and some of our projects were re-prioritized. But fear not. Crack the WIP is alive and well. Recorded and edited. Available now. In fact, we had two episodes all ready to go, but somehow, in our rush to make our flight, we lost one. Hopefully, The Lost Episode will be found at home on the hard drive, but in the interim, we have an equally AMAZING one for you. An author interview with Krista M. Isaacson, a three-time winner of the first chapter contest (nonfiction category) at Storymakers Con. This year (2018), her submission earned her the runner-up spot for the Grand Prize.  In the epi, we discuss Krista's history with writing, the harrowing events that led to her current WIP, her go-to lessons, writer tics, and favorite books. Listen here.

Also, we'd love your support on Patreon.com/crackthewip.  Patrons can receive a range of gifts--bonus content, a copy of my upcoming book, prints by Nate, and/or manuscript consultations. You can listen to us on Patreon and  Stitcher. Or you can add this link to your favorite podcast player:
https://www.patreon.com/rss/crackthewip?auth=oSeytgliVazvnAnExc2Je0QF9CkRrGPI

Write on!

Rena