The fact that I’m going in for blood work this morning got me thinkin’ about needles. Now, I’m not a fan of needles (as I’m sure is common). Given the fact that I’ve been stuck like a pin cushion for the past thirteen years, you’d think I’d get used to this. Nope. Still don’t like them. I have to say that some phlebotomists (spelling?) are better than others, but I think its mostly the thought of getting stuck is what freaks me out.

But about five years ago (when I was doing weekly Herceptin infusions), Dr. D suggested having a port installed. What the hell is that, you say? Weeeelllll — a port is a small disk-like object that’s installed under the skin in your chest (above the breast). A tubing is then woven into a main artery, making it much easier to administer treatment. Okay, that sounded good. It was a regular outpatient surgery in which they put you into la-la land for the installation. No pain, no discomfort. Just a little freaky. If you press on it you can feel this hard disk in your chest and (with your fingers) can follow the tubing up to your collarbone.

Gotta tell ya … I don’t regret having a port put in. I should have had this done long ago. Depending on where you have it done, a port can be virtually invisible. I’ve seen ports that stuck out like a huge goose egg right below the collarbone. I gotta admit … not a good look. And if you’re a woman, this is right where the bra strap runs. Mine, however, was installed deep enough where the only indication that I have a port is a small scar right above my right breast.

This makes it sooooo much easier to have any bloodwork done. I would describe it like sticking a corkscrew in a wine bottle. There’s no guessing where a vein might be, no chance of the vein rolling or collapsing. Since I had most of my I.V.s done through my hand, they’re grateful.

So, if your oncologist suggests a port … go for it. I would also check around about installation. Like I said, I’ve seen a lot of ports that very predominantly stick out, and then there’s mine … flush with the skin and barely noticeable.

Let me know if you have any questions. I’ll try to answer them if I can.

And remember to repeat after me …“YOU ARE A CANCER WINNER”

I had my moment in the sun on Saturday. Through a series of emails gone awry, I ended up being featured on a radio show in Boston.

Sheila Clover of Circle of Seven Productions accidently sent me an email (as opposed to another Liz that we both know) asking if I wanted to participate in a radio interview. Naturally, I said yes before I realized she had probably contacted the wrong Liz. When I emailed her back, we had a good laugh. Sheila then asked if I was still interested.

Wow … okay. So, on Saturday, I was interviewed by David Ewen of Blog Talk Radio. It was a thrilling experience and I’m assured I didn’t sound like a dork … which, of course, is a relief.

If you’re interested in checking it out, you can go to this link.

I had a lot of fun doing it and considering I was flying by the seat of my pants, I think I did an okay job. I have no idea how many people this interview reached, but promotion-wise, this was a wonderful opportunity.

Sorry ‘bout not having a posting for last Wednesday. I was in Pittsburgh attending a writers conference. I probably could have found internet access, but what the hell …

Anyway — here’s a question for you. Do you feel like your life is on hold just because you have cancer? Does it feel like everything is moving in slow motion as you grapple to accept and deal with this potentially life threatening disease?

Yep. I know how you feel. Been there, done that, got the t-shirt. Not a pleasant feeling. You find yourself putting things off because “you don’t feel like doing it”. You make excuses and avoid making long term plans. This isn’t because you feel you have a bad prognosis. Its because you’re afraid of facing the future. You know in your heart that you’re going to kick cancer’s ass, but there’s that little niggling worm of doubt in your mind.

You cannot allow yourself to do that. You have a life and if its anything like mine, its pretty darned busy. Sure you might feel a bit crappy, but so what? You wouldn’t avoid going on vacation because you’re not feeling all that hot. Hell, I’ve gone to writers conferences while in the midst of chemo treatments. I just made sure I didn’t over do it. I got plenty of rest, ate right and generally scaled back my pace.

You cannot put your life on hold because of this disease. There are still plenty of things you want to do, people to see, places to go. For me, cancer is a bump in the road.

And remember to repeat after me …“YOU ARE A CANCER WINNER”

Just got in last night after a week in Pittsburgh attending the Romantic Times conference. Needless to say, I’m gonna be lucky to be coherent today at the day job. Right now I’m trying to find a way to insert the caffeine intravenous.

I have to admit that this year I attended very few workshops and spent much of my time networking. Most of the attendees were thoroughly unimpressed with the hotel. It was a bit of a pit but I think we still managed to have a good time despite that.

The things I did accomplish this past week was some pretty good publicity. Check out Barbara Vey’s Publishers Weekly blog. She did what she calls “drive by interviews” and then posted them to her blog site. I haven’t had time to check them out yet, but I plan to make that a point some time today. She did a drive by interview of me and a couple of other authors.

I also did an author interview with Sheila Clover of Circle of Seven Productions. That interview will be posted to their website and widely circulated over the internet. I’m a firm believer that you need to get your name in front of a person at least six times in order for it to stick in the minds of a reader, bookseller or librarian. I think I’m pretty much managing to do that.

This conference was a particularly important one for me since it was the first conference I attended following the release of “Forget About Tomorrow”. All in all I think it was a pretty successful one.

Its that time of year again. Conference! Woo-Hoo! I’ll be leaving in the morning for Pittsburgh which is the first writers conference on my lineup. Romantic Times puts on a terrific conference every year and I try to make it a point of attending them. This gives me a chance to learn more about the market and the trends, make contacts and generally just recharge the writing batteries.

I’ll be attending at least two other conferences this year. The main RWA National Conference being held in San Francisco this year and the WisRWA conference being held in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

Sure some of these are pretty expensive but I consider them an important investment in my writing career. Conferences are a wonderful way to network with other writers, publishers and agents. I always come back ready and eager to work.

If you’ve never been to a conference before, I highly recommend them. Nervous? No problem. Check out one of the smaller chapter conferences. The same contacts, the same classes and the same opportunities, just on a smaller scale. Get your feet wet but keep in mind that no matter if you attend a large conference or a small. You are going to meet the same wonderful people and learn some valuable information.

Since I’m going to be gone this week, I may not be posting my Cancer Winner blog this Wednesday. I’ll try to get on line and post it, but cannot make any guarantees.