Friday Reads: An Organizing Book For the Right Brainers & Visual Learners

So at the beginning of the school year, I get that same new year feeling I get when January rolls around, that feeling of a fresh start. And with that usually comes a focus on my two regular challenges: diet/exercise and organizing.

I'm back on track with the diet thing and have even started a private Facebook group called the Healthy Habit Exchange if you want to come join us and share tips and encouragement.

Request an invite here.

But I've also started working on the organizing thing again. Last year I did a big purge in my house when we remodeled, going with the minimalist mentality. So too much stuff isn't my problem this year. However, organizing my schedule and not forgetting things is an ongoing challenge. I've discovered that a lot of my issues come from the fact that I'm a visual person and pretty right-brained. Organizational apps and calendars on my phone are pretty useless for me. Unless I see it right it front of me all spread out and big picture, it's forgotten the minute I type something in. And yes, I can set up reminders but that doesn't help me see the overall view of what my week or month is looking like relative to everything else.

So I've gone to a paper planner and have made it like an art project, which is feeding my creative brain and tricking me into writing everything down because it's fun. Isn't is pretty? This is the

Happy Planner

from Create 365 if you're interested. It's very, very nice and worth every bit of the twenty-five dollars it costs. There are

other designs

besides this one as well.

But while I was poking around on Pinterest for planner stuff, I came across a few articles about how to organize for the ADHD brain. I clicked on them and was like--wow, this is so me. Now, I'm not ADHD. The list of symptoms doesn't fit me. BUT I definitely suffer from hyperfocus, especially when I'm writing, and that means all these other things get forgotten or dropped. And the strategies that work for people with ADHD totally click with how my brain works when it comes to organizing. It was an a-ha moment, honestly.

So with more research, I found this book:

Organizing Solutions for People with ADHD

. It was recommended on a few sites and most said--ignore the fact that it's aimed at those with ADHD, these tips can help a lot of people who have struggled with traditional left-brained organizing techniques.

Those recommendations were right on. I found this book so helpful. And more than once thinking--yes, this! Like, for instance, putting things in nice covered bins or boxes never works for me. Once it's out of sight or under a stack, it's dead to me. I will never remember what's in there and I won't go digging through it. And if things get stored in the back of my pantry, I may as well throw them away. If I can't see them, they no longer exist.

There's a lot more than just putting things in sight in the book. It's a quick read with lots of pictures and a ton of great tips. Some are on the extreme side (like only having one towel per family member), but there's way more good stuff to takeaway than stuff that didn't resonate with me. And it plays into the minimalist mentality as well. So if you're looking for something that's going to tell you how to organize a tone of STUFF, this isn't the right book unless you're willing to purge.

So anyway, though I usually reserve Friday Reads for fiction, I thought I'd pass this along since I know there are a lot of right-brainers (or those with ADHD) out there who maybe could use these tips too. If you're highly left-brained, this book will probably give you hives though. So be warned, lol. 

Check out the book:

Amazon

|

B&N

So are you left-brained or right-brained? Anyone else in love with their paper planner?

*Note: I have not been asked to endorse any of these products, but the links are affiliate links.

Printable Book List!

 

Ask and you shall receive. A number of readers have asked if I have a printable book list that shows the order of all the books in my series in one place. The books are listed in order on this site under the Books tab, but if you want to have an easy document to scan, this is an easy peasy version that includes EVERYTHING in the series.

Here you go! You can also click here to open in full screen.

 

Teaser Tuesday: A Snippet from OFF THE CLOCK

 

It's Teaser Tuesday! How about a snippet from OFF THE CLOCK (the new series releasing in January). 

This scene is from when the hero and heroine first meet back in college. (The main story takes place years later, but you know me and timelines. I like showing the past without having to do flashbacks, so the first few chapters are college. :) )

EXCERPT:

Marin’s gaze slid over to the stairwell. If she stayed on the other side of the hall in the shadows, she could probably sneak by unnoticed. She moved to the right side wall and crept forward on quiet feet. But as soon as she got within a few steps of the shaft of light coming from the occupied office, a large shadow blotted it into darkness.

She’d been so focused on that beam of light that it took her a moment to register what had happened. She froze and her gaze hopped upward, landing on the guy who filled the doorway. No, not just any guy, a very familiar guy. Tall and lean and effortlessly disheveled. Everything inside her went on alert. Oh, God, not him.

He had his hand braced on the doorjamb, and his expression was as surprised as hers probably was. “What the hell?”

“I—” She could already feel her face heating and her throat closing—some bizarre, instant response she seemed to have to this man. She’d spent way too many hours in the back of her Intro to Human Sexuality class memorizing each little detail of Donovan West. Well, his profile, really. And his walk. And the way his shoulders filled out his T-shirts. As a teaching assistant, he usually only stopped in at the beginning of class to bring Professor Paxton papers or something. But each time he walked in now, it was like some bat signal for her body to go haywire.

It’d started with the day he’d had to take over the lecture when Professor Paxton was sick. He’d talked about arousal and the physical mechanics of that process. It was technical. He’d been wearing a T-shirt that read Sometimes I Feel Like a Total Freud. It shouldn’t have been sexy. But Lord, it’d been one of the hottest experiences of her life. He’d talked with his hands a lot and had obviously been a little nervous to be in front of the class. But at the same time, he’d been so confident in the information, had answered questions with all this enthusiasm. Marin hadn’t heard a word in the rest of her classes that day for all the fantasizing she’d been doing.

But now she was staring. And blushing. And generally looking like an idiot. Yay.

She turned fully toward him and cleared her throat, trying to form some kind of non-weird response. But when her gaze quickly traveled over him again, all semblance of language left her. Oh, shit. She tried to drag her focus back to his face and cement it there. His very handsome face—a shadow of stubble, bright blue eyes, hair that fell a little too long around the ears. Lips that she’d thought way too much about. All good. All great.

But despite the nice view, she couldn’t ignore the thing in the bottom edge of her vision, the thing that had caught her attention on that quick once-over. The hard outline in his jeans screamed at her to stare—to analyze, to burn the picture into her brain. The need to look warred with embarrassment. The latter finally won and her cheeks flared even hotter. She adjusted her glasses. “Uh, yeah, hi. Sorry. I thought I was alone in the building. Didn’t mean to interrupt . . . whatever.”

He stared at her for a second, his brows knitting. “Interrupt?” 

Goddammit, her gaze flicked there again. The view was like a siren song she couldn’t ignore. Massive erection, dead ahead! She glanced away. But not quick enough for him not to notice.

“Ah, shit.” He stepped behind the doorway and hid his bottom half. “Sorry. It’s uh . . . not what it looks like.”

She snorted, an involuntary, nervous, half-choking noise that seemed to echo in the cavernous hallway. Really smooth. She tried to force some kind of wit past the awkwardness that was overtaking her. “Ohh-kay. If you say so.”

He laughed, this deep chuckle that seemed to come straight out of his chest and fill the space between them with warmth. Lord, even his laugh was sexy. So not fair.

“Well, okay, it is that. But why it’s there is just an occupational hazard.”

“Occupational hazard? Must be more interesting than the sleep lab.”

Pre-order the book:

Nook

Kindle 

Kobo

iBooks

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**Note: This is not a final copy so could have typos.

Teaser Tuesday: Sam & Gibson from BREAK ME DOWN

 

It's Teaser Tuesday time! How about a new snippet of Sam and Gibson from BREAK ME DOWN, the novella coming out in October?

From BREAK ME DOWN:

Sam set the beer in front of Tessa and then finally turned to Gibson. She kept her smile poised, but it took everything she had to keep her composure when Gib looked up. He’d let his jaw go a little scruffy, and the dark shadow of a beard only made him more edible. But the look in his eyes was what sucked the air right out of her. So this was what a gazelle must feel like when a starved lion caught site of her. Hunger had flared in that deep blue gaze—open, naked, and without apology.

God. A jolt of desire went straight downward, like a rope being tugged. Hello. Lady parts officially engaged.

 She must’ve reacted, showed some chink in her expression. Because as soon as that look was there, he shuttered it, glancing away and offering a flat, “Hey, Sam.”

Everything inside her deflated—the pin of reality popping the balloon of hope. Ugh. Stupid, stupid man. She wanted to grab that thick dark hair and make him hold the gaze, force him to show her the truth. To be real with her. But of course, she couldn’t touch him anymore. And well, that would look a little weird in the bar. Sexually frustrated manager grabs customer by the hair, makes demands. She swallowed past the tightness in her throat, completely forgetting her plan to look seductive and so over him. “Crown and water.” 

She plunked the glass on the table without grace, causing some of it to slosh over the top.

“Thanks,” he said gruffly. 

Silence ensued and Tessa cleared her throat. “Um, do y’all still have those potato things with the bacon? I’m starving.”

Sam snapped out of her daze and turned to Tessa. “Potato skins. You bet. I’ll tell Angie to put in an order. She’ll be handling your table. I just wanted to come over and say hi.”

Gibson took a long gulp from his glass and then brushed a hand over his wavy hair, trying to smooth the unsmoothable. A move she’d learned was his sign of discomfort. God, this was so ridiculous. 

And she was done with it. So things had gotten a little out of hand during that last training session. He’d been helping her out, bottoming for her so she could learn how to use a whip. They’d been through a few weeks of lessons and everything had gone well. All had been done under the assumption that he was a fellow dominant who would be guiding her from the bottom—a friendly exchange. He wasn’t supposed to get hard when she whipped him. And she wasn’t supposed to get so turned on at the sight of him. And they weren’t supposed to kiss. And she definitely wasn’t supposed to let him push her against a wall and put his hand beneath her skirt to get her off.

But all that had happened, and when she’d tried to wrest control back and take him to bed as her submissive, everything had exploded in her face. He’d snapped out of whatever spell he’d been in from the whipping and had told her that nothing could happen between them because they were both dominants. That he had a masochistic streak not a submissive one. The training had ended right there. And she might’ve been able to let it go, to buy that he was just a dominant with a taste for pain, but her instincts were telling her it was far more than that. Not that it mattered what she thought. For whatever reason, he wasn’t going to take the submissive role. Period. End of sentence.

She wasn’t worth the risk to him.

Fine.

“Is there anything else I can get y’all for now?” she asked, her voice coming out a little too bright, too twangy. Damn, she was going Dolly Parton on their asses. Usually that only happened when customers pushed her to her politeness breaking point. Of course I’ll get your hamburger recooked a third time, sugar. I should’ve known when you said medium you meant fossilized.

Tessa’s brow went up, seeing right through Sam’s act.

“No, I think we’re good, Sam.” Kate cut an annoyed look his brother’s way.

Sam hustled back to the safety of the bar, cringing at how easily she’d gotten knocked off her plan. Damn that man.

Pre-order the book:

Nook | Kindle | Kindle UK | Kindle Canada | Kobo | iBooks |Google Play

Hope you enjoyed it! Have a great Tuesday! I'll be starting chapter one, page one, word one of a new book today. Always terrifying. :)

Teaser Tuesday: Meet Dr. Donovan West of OFF THE CLOCK

 

I'm back from the RWA confernece in NYC and it's Teaser Tuesday time! How about a sneak peek of Dr. Donovan West from OFF THE CLOCK?

This one is out in January and the start of my new Pleasure Principle series!

From OFF THE CLOCK:

Donovan stared out the window at the grounds and tucked his hands in his pockets, centering himself and bringing the focus back to the task at hand. “I want you to succeed here, Marin. Don’t doubt that. I’m going to train you to the best of my ability, and I have full confidence that you’ll catch on quickly. As for our past, I think we’re both grown-ups and can leave that where it is.” He paused, trying to let go of his dour thoughts and channel some levity. He smiled at his reflection in the window. “Unless you need to profess some undying love that’s been burning for me since you let me divest of your virginity?”

*

Marin’s whirling work-related thoughts skidded to a halt, all of them falling off the edge at Donovan’s comment. Her lips parted.

But Donovan spun around, a devilish smile on his handsome face and his hands still tucked in his pockets. “That’s how it’s supposed to go, right? The guy who takes the V-card always has a special place. Research has proven it.” He put his hand on his chest. “Come on, did you write my name in your notebooks with a heart around it? You can tell me. I’m a doctor.”

A choked laugh escaped her. “Research doesn’t say any such thing. Plus, your name would be too long to fit in a heart. And if you recall, I walked away from you that night, doctor. So you were probably the one pining over your misguided night with a teenager.”

He chuckled, the sound as rich and warm as she remembered. It softened some of those hard edges he’d acquired in the years since she’d known him, gentled the icy blue in his eyes. “Of course I was. There was bad poetry written. Sad songs played. I went through this weird emo/goth phase. It wasn’t pretty.”

“I’m sure,” she said dryly. But let out an internal sigh of relief at his shift in mood. This was the Donovan she remembered. He was still in there somewhere. She could work with that guy. She wasn’t so sure about the other.

He grinned, unrepentant. “See. You’re going to do just fine. There are two important requirements to work in this field: shamelessness and a sense of humor.” He raised a finger. “Oh, and the ability to keep a straight face no matter what.”

He gave her a super-serious therapist face.

She tried to give her own back to him, but she lost the staring contest and laughed.

He pointed at her. “All right. Elephants slain?”

He still hadn’t told her what he’d been doing in the parking lot in that half-dressed state, but it really wasn’t any of her business. “Sure. Bleeding on the floor.”

“Aw, poor elephants.”

He slipped off his suit jacket, hooked it around the back of his chair, and sat behind his desk in one gracefully executed maneuver—all confidence and swagger. The accomplished doctor. The ridiculously beautiful man. Donovan West was pure impact.

She had a feeling he was probably loved or hated around here, not much in between. He was a man who inspired reaction. He’d sure as hell always inspired one in her. Just not one that had any place at work.

Stop it. She sat up straighter, studiously ignoring how well his shoulders filled out that dress shirt, how the blue of his tie matched his eyes, and how his dark hair looked thick enough for her fingers to get lost in. Nope. Totally wasn’t going to pay attention to any of that.

Pre-order the book (and grab the pre-sale 7.99 price!): 

Nook | Kindle  | Kobo | iBooks | Google Play

Have a great week!