New Years Resolutions 2013...

So, it's coming up on that time of year...January first. The time of year when I make resolutions that I sometimes keep and sometimes forget all about. I've pretty much decided to give up on the goal of cooking dinner three nights a week. That was my goal for the last two or three years. I inevitably fail miserably at it because I HATE cooking. My husband really likes it. So, it makes more sense for him to cook. But, even with that, we're always going to be that family who considers a turkey and cheese sandwich to be a perfectly acceptable dinner choice. haha.

Other than the cooking thing, I tend to make goals that revolve around my writing. (huge surprise, right?). For the last three years, I keep making a really stupid goal, and I KNOW it's stupid while I'm making it, but I keep doing it anyway. I keep saying my goal is to have an agent. And, while I still WANT an agent, I'm not making that my goal this year because it's something I have no control over.

 I can't force an agent to like my work. Although I would if I could, I'll admit it. I wish I could run into Damon Salvatore  and borrow his nifty mind-control. Truthfully, if the agent was a girl, Damon wouldn't even have to use mind control if he'd just agree to dance around shirtless... BUT I'm definitely getting sidetracked here. What was I saying? Oh, right. Goals...

I did manage to keep my goal of writing a book this year, but I really wish I was one of those writers who could finish a book in six months instead of a year. Hmmmm... THAT sounds like an acceptable goal. Ha! I knew writing a blog post on goals would help me think of a good one! So, that's it. This will be the year I write a book in six months. I'm writing my newest book with a partner--my sixteen year old son, Chance, so I think, between the two of us, we can get it done.  And I think it's an awesome goal. Besides, in six months a baby can go from this to this:

THIS

TO THIS!

So, I can certainly write a book in that amount of time, right?

My other goal in 2012 was to read 100 books. I got close this year.  80 books in 2012. In 2013 I'm determined to reach 100. This time I'm going to keep track of it on Goodreads and get one of those nifty little reading bars everyone has.

I'm also going to have an actual schedule with my blog--something I haven't done yet. In the months of having this blog, I've realized that I almost always end up blogging Monday, Tuesday and Thursday--so that is the schedule I'm sticking to--with exceptions for blogfests or contests. :) 

So, that's it for me. What about you guys? What are your goals for the New Year? Did you reach your goals for 2012?

No Kiss Blogfest

What's better in a book than the kissing scene? I mean, really--think about it? What other part do you wait breathlessly for the entire time? And how entertainingly frustrating is the NO kiss scene--you know the one.

 Where the author dangles a kiss in front of you and you lean forward on your seat, anticipating the moment these two stupid people will FINALLY kiss and realize they're meant for each other. And then...BAM! Something happens to stop them.

I think the NO kiss scene is almost as good as the kiss scene. It gives us hope. :) And, for all of you that agree with me, there are still a few more days to join the NO KISS BLOGFEST!! 

Just head over to see FRANKIE DIANE MALLIS , sign up on the linky list, throw up an announcement on your blog and maybe a tweet or two to spread the word, cause everyone wants to read as many NO kiss scenes as possible!!!

I couldn't resist this one--although I STILL can't decide if I'm  Team Will or Team Jem. Can't she just have them both? 

Christmas Day...

Hi guys!

Just wanted to say I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. Ours was lots of fun. Everyone was very happy with all their stuff. It was a smaller Christmas than normal, but it didn't even matter. Me and my daughter Kassidy built an awesome gingerbread house, which we do every year.

 And Jace (my grandson) loved every single toy he got and ate way too much candy. At one point, he was eating candy in my bedroom and I asked if he wanted to go out to the living room. His response was, "No. I can't go out there yet because my mommy said I'm not allowed to eat this." haha...Jace is very articulate and sneaky for a two year old.

My two oldest daughter, Caity and Meggie, were awesome and got me and their dad a giftcard to Olive Garden and the movies, along with some clothes and stuff. Such good kids.

My awesome kids and grandson

 My son--Chance-- got the video games he wanted, plus quite a few shirts that all had zombies on them in one form or another, which pleased him immensely. It was definitely a zombie sort of year. haha. And Kassidy, my  mermaid-obsessed girl, loved the mermaid mobile I made for her.

Plus, we found out that Chance got the lead roll in our community theater's production of Our Town. He just got done doing "A Christmas Carol", which is all teenagers. Our Town is the adult production. The theater director saw Chance in A Christmas Carol and thought he was so good she called and asked him to take the roll of George Gilbert, which was really cool.

As for me, I got an extremely amazing Dark Tower T-shirt, along with a shirt that reads,  "Stephen King rules" and a "Overlook Hotel" t-shirt. haha. I think my kids know I like Stephen King.

I gave my husband this very-fitting T-shirt:

haha...this is SO him!!

And, all in all, it was an awesome day that ended with eating too much dinner and sleeping twelve hours straight. haha Today everyone is caught up in playing video games, so I'm going to catch up on some writing. How about you guys? What did you do for Christmas? Did Santa bring you what you wanted?

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

So...what books are you guys hoping to find under the tree this year? I would like Days of Blood and Starlight, Reached, and The Fault in Our Stars (I'm the only person in the YA universe who hasn't read this book yet).

BEST TREE EVER

On the non-fiction side I'd love to get 102 Ways to Earn Money Writing 1,500 Words or Less and Manuscript Makeover.

What about you? Any other gifts besides books you have your fingers crossed for?

This has got to be a short post, cause I still have lots to do today!! Cookies to bake and a Gingerbread House to decorate with my daughter and presents to wrap. I think the thing I'm looking forward to the most tomorrow is seeing my grandson's face when he spots all the presents under the tree. And, just because I love to show him off, here are some pics of my favorite little guy...

JACE GETTING READY TO SEE SANTA

JACE ACTUALLY SEEING SANTA haha

THURSDAYS CHILDREN...

So, today is THURSDAY'S CHILDREN,  hosted by RHIANN WYNN-NOLET and KRISINA PEREZ. Thursday's Children is a bloghop that is all about posting on what inspires us. Make sure to check it out and we'd love it if you guys would join in!!

So, this week, I'd like to talk about two things. One, is that I have to introduce you guys to someone. I saw him yesterday at the bookstore, fell instantly in love and had to have him. I named him, "Agent Inkblot."
I figure, if he's my agent, I no longer have to worry about all that pesky querying, right???

Plus, I'm positive this is what the physical manifestation of my muse would look like. J Note all arms for typing!!

MY MUSE: AGENT INKBLOT aka: INKY

I have decided Inky is my good luck charm and will usher in a new era for me. THIS is my year. I'm going to throw myself into my new WIP, send out a million queries, and things are going to happen. Provided, of course, we don't all get vaporized by aliens, or smashed into by a giant asteroid or something tomorrow....

And, now to my second point of this post. Speaking of muse's--have you ever noticed your muse can talk to you anywhere? Even when you least expect it?

Like, earlier today I was putting up my blogpost for DAVID KING'S Build Me-A Blog Hop. As I was picturing these random items I wanted in a blog banner (a steampunk watch running backwards to represent time-travel, a guitar cause one of my characters plays, a slingshot cause one of my MC's is an awesome shot etc...) Anyway, as I was including these things, the image of a Tarot card just popped into my head.

And I realized, out of nowhere, that my new MC, Liv, is slightly clairvoyant and can read tarot cards. Mind you, before this particular moment I had NO clue that Liv was a seer who read tarot cards. It makes perfect sense, cause she was raised in a traveling circus. Anyway, it was one of those flashes of pure inspiration where you realize that somehow, this new idea is going to be a pivotal part of the story.

This is what Inspiration feels like to me

Do you guys know what I mean? Those split-second ideas that you know are going to change everything? It was one of those moments. VERY cool. I love it when that happens. It's absolutely magical and one of my favorite parts of being a writer.

So, that's my question for you guys... When is the last time you had a flash of inspiration like that? What was it about? A story idea, or a characteristic of a MC or something else? What were you doing when you were hit with the idea? And do any of you have a good luck charm like my inky?

Build A Blog Hop

First things first--my blog is still broken. Once in awhile (when my blog is in a happy mood) I can reply to someone's comment on here but, mostly, I can't. I apologize and I promise to come visit your blogs since I can't talk to you on mine!!

Hi Guys!

UGH!! I'm so late!! Soooorrryy!!! Today is the BUILD ME A BLOGHOP hosted by DAVID POWERS KING.  The rules, as explained by David, are: 

Welcome to Build Me A Blog - Hop!

Here's how this monkey's going to swing:

- Join this blog (if you already have, that's one less step!).

- Copy the button. Post it on your blog (link back to this post).

- Sign the Linky at the end of this post (closes Dec 19th). 

- On December 20th, by 8 AM MST, include in your post a 200 word description of your dream blog/site/banner/avatar/etc. What would it look like? I'll read all the entries and select three winners who wowed me so much that I want to see their description come to life!

Winners will be announced December 24th. See prizes on David's site

Clearly, I'm quite late with this. My excuse is a good one though, since I am currently suffering the agonies of the flu. Because of that, I forgot to post this last night and then didn't pull myself out of bed and onto my laptop until two o'clock this afternoon--at which point I remembered that I was supposed to have my entry up. 

I'm sure my lateness disqualifies me, but I wanted to play anyway, just for fun, cause it was an awesome blog-hop idea!! So, here is my description of my dream banner... 

I know an apple tree covered in blossoms would be the dominant thing I’d want. Around it would be tons of exotic plants, grass, flowers etc...All the vegetation, besides the flowers and apple tree, would be shades of blue.

I know the vegetation isn't all crazy and exotic blue, but I like the tree

I’d want my girl MC leaning against the apple tree. She has vivid maroon hair cut in a jagged pixie. Silver stud in her nose. Huge grey eyes. Vine tattoo on her neck. BUT—here’s where it gets tricky--I’d want two other girls somewhere around her. Both of them would be translucent. One would have purple eyes and long dark hair, the other medium length wavy red hair and bluish-green eyes.

Up in my purple sky, I’d want a suspension board (skateboard-looking thing) flying by with a silhouetted guy crouched on it. Also, three overlapping moons.

I’d want four animals amongst the vegetation. A giant dog with blue spots. A small, fox-looking dog. A black rat. A black cat. (The small dog and the rat have to be together.)

And—scattered in the grass-- a steampunk watch with the time running backwards, a slingshot, a guitar, a black cloak, a small vial of glowing-blue liquid, a tarot card, a knife and an apple.  

So, did I make it hard enough? Haha. You did say it could be my dream banner, so I let my imagination go wild. The pictures I could find didn't do the image in my head justice but, what are you gonna do, right? 

Again, really sorry for being late on this!! I'm off to see some other people's dream blogs!!

Teaser Tuesday

It's Teaser Tuesday again, hosted by Miz B at SHOULD BE READING.  Anyone can join in...

To play along just grab whatever you're reading.
Open to a random page.
 Share two teaser sentences.
Make sure not to share any spoilers!!
Give the Title and Author so other TT participants can add the book to their TBR pile!

I have yet to manage to read a single Christmas book. I swear I'm going to get to one eventually! I had planned to read one this week, but I'm participating in the "End of the World" giveaway. Because of that, I was going through some old books, looking for one I loved enough to want to give it to someone else. (The point of the giveaway.)

I came across a very-battered old favorite--Twilight Eyes-- and was instantly sucked into chapter one.  So, guess what I'm reading this week? haha This is one of Dean Koontz's older books that's quite a bit darker than a lot of his stuff. But  the concept/setting are both awesome. I am totally addicted to YA and I kind of chuckled when I realized that the MC, Slim, is only seventeen. Over the last couple years I've realized all of my favorites before the actual genre of YA became recognized were ALL about teens.

Anyway, here is my teaser:

I told myself that my ability to see through the goblin's human disguises was an unquestionable as my other psychic talents. I knew my other powers were real and reliable, for numerous people had benefited from my clairvoyance and had been astonished by it.  And, damn it, I could see goblins too, and the fact that I was the only was who saw them was no reason to distrust my vision. 

So, that's it for this week. Please click HERE to check out my End of the World Giveaway and win a couple cool  books!! You don't have to do anything to enter but leave a comment on the giveaway post. Merry Christmas guys!!

Also, be sure to leave a link here to your own TT post, or tell me what you're reading in the comments!!

End of the World Giveaway Hop

So, today I'm doing something kind of cool that I haven't done before--I'm participating in the End of the World Giveaway Hop, hosted by I Am A Reader Not A Writer.

To tell you guys about the giveaway, here is the quote off the website:

Which books would you save if the world was coming to an end?  Here is your chance to giveaway a book or books you are passionate about or a book you would keep if you were forced to flee due to imminent destruction or a book that is about the end of the world.  You may offer 1 or more books or allow the winner to choose a book of their choice that fits this criteria.The last day to enter the giveaway will be 12/21/12. Assuming the worlds is still spinning the winner of your giveaway will have a new book just in time to start of the new year right! Hop Rules: You must giveaway a book you love, a book worth preserving, a book worth passing on etc...Or a book about the end of the world. 

I thought this would be a neat thing to do. I always love sharing my favorite books with other people. The problem is that I have most of my recent faves on my iPhone now, and I don't think I can legally give those away.

 So, I had to find an actual copy of a book I loved. Difficult, cause I've always been a library sort of girl. Books are expensive... Luckily, I was a huge Koontz fan for years and collected most of his books. I only have them in paperback, but the ones I picked for the giveaway are some of my absolute favorites.

In addition to the Koontz books, I have some others that I loved.I didn't want to just put up some Dean Koontz books and say, "Hey, if you win, I'll send you one of these, hope you're a Koontz fan."

I want whoever wins to have a small list to choose from, that way they you're  sure to get a couple books you really like. Also, the whole point of this is to giveaway a book we loved, so all these books are in good but gently used condition. Most of them are paperback, since that's generally what I can afford.

So, this is what I have up for giveaway:

Any one of these Dean Koontz books: Odd Thomas, Fear Nothing, Seize the Night, One Door Away from Heaven 

OTHERS

 The Amber Spyglass (the last book in His Dark Materials Trilogy by Phillip Pullman) Great series that I LOVE. I wish I owned the first two books in it to offer up, but I don't.

Blood Red Road by Moira Young   YA Dystopian fiction that seemed appropriate for an end of the world giveaway.

I Am David by Anne Holm  This is a beautiful book that had a deep impact on my childhood and my understanding of the concentration camps.

In Hardback:

The Future of Us by Jay Asher

The Scorch Trials  James Dashner Maze Runner book 2

The Velveteen Principals--A Guide to Becoming Real 

Just After Sunset  A Collection of Short Stories by Stephen King

So, that's it. Hope there's two books in there  that you would like to have. To enter you don't have to do anything fancy, or collect a bunch of Rafflecopter entries. Just be a follower and leave a comment on this post telling me which two books you'd like. I'll pick a random choice out of the comments on the twenty-first of December. (provided we're all still here) hehe

Sorry to restrict this at all, but times are very tough right now, and I can't afford to ship outside of the US.

Merry Christmas guys. Feel free to Tweet about the giveaway!!

Thursdays Children...Inspiration...

When thinking of what inspires me as a writer, I have to say…you guys.  I’ve had the opportunity to meet some really amazing people in the writing community.  

I haven’t really had a lot of friends over the years. Different things have happened to prevent the normal friendships people tend to develop. I moved a ton during my childhood, so I never really made any lasting friends as a kid. I quit high-school, so that kind of knocked out the whole “college” friends thing. Haha. I  was married at eighteen. Having kids by my early twenties. My husband and I had a few friends from our teen years but since we had a few screws loose during those years, once we tightened our bolts back up ,all those "friendships" fell by the wayside. 

Speaking of loose screws,  I LOVE this pendant. haha

 When my kids started school, I was one of the youngest moms. On top of that, I seemed to wear a blinking neon sign that read, “DO NOT BEFRIEND.” I never fit in with the other mom’s.  It’s like they took one look at me and decided I didn’t belong.

And then I pulled my kids out of school and ended up home-schooling them, which was an awesome life experience, but did nothing for the “making friends” quest. Turns out most people (especially ten/twelve years ago) home-school for religious reasons. The first thing they asked when we walked in the home-school co-op was what church we attended. I said we didn’t, and spent most of my time after that sitting in the corner with a book in my lap. I understand why though. Their friendships were easy. Most of them had known each other for years. It’s hard enough to let in someone new, without trying to befriend someone with radically different beliefs.

A metaphor for my life. haha

Luckily, I’m super close to my husband and kids. Mostly, they’re enough, but I have to admit things got really lonely at times.  Then, about five years ago, I started writing and met some other writers.  I’ve noticed that, as a whole, writers tend to be non-conformists. For the first time in my life, I found a group of people I fit in perfectly with. Hurray!! J

For reasons I’ve gone into in the past, I don’t have an in person critique group anymore. I do, however, have an amazing critique partner, Karen Denise—our entire friendship has developed online. As much as I’d love to meet her in person, it’s cool that we’ve gotten as close as we have just through emailing.  I’ve also had some really awesome beta readers that I met through GUTGAA, different contests and Write On.  

And I have all the awesome people who stop by and read my blog/offer words of encouragement and advice. I feel so much less alone now. I’m so glad I got on the contest circuit and started a blog.  I don’t know a lot of you that well, but I love reading your blogs. I get happy when I see someone I’ve been following achieve success, and sad when they hit a roadblock. You guys inspire me to know that I can do this, because I see all of you doing it. And, what I really want is to know more about you guys. I want to connect with the world out there—this huge world that I’m lucky enough to be able to reach through a screen and touch.

Thought this was way too perfect to not include. haha

So, I hope you don’t mind if I ask you some questions. Don’t worry, I don’t expect you to answer all of them, I just thought it might be easier to ask some questions than to say “Hey, tell me about yourself.” haha. So, just choose whatever you want to answer. Or don’t answer any. It’s up to you. J

What made you decide to write a book? If you had realized, way back when you started, how hard this would be, do you think you’d have done it anyway? Does your biggest dream involve writing or something else?  Do you find writing to be a lonely endeavor? Do you have a critique group you meet with in person and, if so, how did you guys all meet?

Like I said, feel free to answer whatever you want or just tell me something random about yourselves!!And, hey—if anyone out there is within an hour of Savannah GA, let me know. I’m down in SE Coastal GA and I would LOVE to meet some people in person.  

And that’s it for today. Oh, and btw, my post was on inspiration because I like to post on the Thursday’s Children bloghop—which is all about sharing the different things that inspire us. It’s hosted by Rhiann Wynn-Nolet at NEST OF WORDS and KRISTINA PEREZ. Make sure to stop by their sites and we’d love it if more people joined in on the bloghop!!

 Sorry for rambling on!! Thanks for listening and being my inspiration! 

Teaser Tuesday and The Raven Boys

First things first--my blog is still broken. I want everyone to know that while I can see your comments, it's impossible for me to reply to them on my blog. Sometimes (when my blog is in a good mood) it will let me reply to a comment, but mostly it doesn't. Please still comment though, cause I can still read them and I'll definitely come visit your blogs!

Okay. Glad that's out of the way. So, I'm doing something a little different this week. Last week, I posted a teaser from The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater. That book made such an impression on me that I  need to talk about it before posting this week's Teaser. Anyone not interested, feel free to skip further down the post.

I've read so many books that I loved this year. Shatter Me. Perks of Being a Wallflower. Warm Bodies. Daughter of Smoke and Bone. Angelfall. I could easily go on. And yet, no matter how much I loved a book (Which I really did--I thought every book I just named was amazing for one reason or another) none of them   infiltrated that spot between my mind and my heart where the characters  continued to fully exist for longer than it took to read the story. None of them left a hole in my life when they were gone.

In fact, very few books have ever had that effect on me--the one where I'm actually depressed for a day or two because I'm so bummed that the world they're from isn't real. That they aren't real. I don't know what the magical formula is for creating a character who steps off the page and into someone's life, but I know that--for me--Maggie Steifvater hit it in spades with The Raven Boys.

These characters grabbed me and wouldn't let go. I felt Gansey's drive to achieve something that nobody could attribute to his wealth. Adam's pain and his desperation to hold onto his pride. Noah's quiet despair. Ronin's passionate anger. Blue's eagerness to lose herself in something that went beyond.

 I felt them all...and I wanted to be friends with them. In fact, by the time I was half way done, I barely needed a plot to keep going. I just wanted to hang out with the characters. To me, that is the mark of a truly great book.

This wasn't really meant to be a review, but if you guys would like to know more about the actual plot, click HERE. This book just touched something in me so deep that I felt like I had to talk about it. I would recommend The Raven Boys to anyone. It's not a flashy, action-packed thrill ride. But it's something deep and depressing and uplifting and so, so real. I hope you guys love it even half as much as I did.

And, having said all of that, it's Teaser Tuesday, hosted by SHOULD BE READING.  To play along just grab whatever you're reading. Open to a random page. Share two teaser sentences. Make sure not to share any spoilers!! Give the Title and Author so other TT participants can add the book to their TBR pile!

My Teaser for this week is from "What's Left of Me" by Kat Zhang

And then slowly, so slowly it was like something deliberate, there was a shift in Hally's face. That was the only way I could put it. Something minuscule, something no one would have caught if they weren't staring straight at her as Addie and I were staring now, something no one would have noticed--would've even thought to notice--if they weren't--Addie took a step toward the door. A shift. A change. Like how Robbie changed to Will. 

So far this is an awesome book with a really unique, cool concept!

So, if you slogged through this whole long post and are still reading, thanks!! haha... If anyone actually reads The Raven Boys, please come back and tell me what you thought of it!!  And, if you guys have any books that have touched you in a unique way, I'd love to hear about them, even if you just give me a title and demand I read them. :)

CHEERS CAVANAUGH BLOGFEST

The big day is finally here. Today begins the "CHEERS,CAVANAUGH" Blogfest, hosted by MARK KOOPMAN, MORGAN SHAMY,DAVID POWERS KING and STEPHEN TREMP.

To quote Mark Koopman (since I couldn't think of how to say it better) "Alex is an awesome blogger who's helped hundreds of us via book releases, guest posts, guest interviews and always positive comments. While we can't have a live part-ay for the Ninja Captain, we can host a BlogFest." "

It's not to late to get in on the fun, just pop over to Mark's site, sign up on the Linky List, answer these four easy questions, be a follower and have fun!!

SO, without further ado, here's my entry!!

1. In +/- 20 words, what does Alex look like? 

It’s hard to describe him since he’s always zipping around in his black, ninja outfit. Mostly, he looks like smoke.

2.) In +/- 20 words, who could play Alex in a documentary. 

Easy. Bruce Lee.

3.) In +/- 20 words, who does Alex remind you of? 

In the spirit of the season, I'd have to say a  bad ass, ninja-like Santa who gives comments instead of presents.

4.) In 100 +/- words, (excluding the title) write flash-fiction using all these prompts. Cavanaugh. Ninja. IWSG. Cosbolt. Guitar. 

There once was a fearless Ninja known as “The Cavanaugh” who spent all his time flying around the galaxy in his Cosbolt-Spacecraft, ridding the world of nefarious beings known as “Insecurities.” The Ninja fought the Insecurities using his enchanted keyboard. His methods spread and, across the cosmos, others joined him. Soon the Insecurities shriveled and died. The people were full of joy. To celebrate, they declared the Ninja their leader. His kingdom became known as the IWSG. The ninja ruled with a benevolent hand, passing out comments and confidence to his subjects. Guitar ballads were written about this glorious age. 

For Bonus Points: 

In 40+ words leave a comment for Mrs. Cavanaugh, thanking her for sharing. 

To the esteemed wife of our fearless leader--thank you so much for lending us the time and talents of your amazing husband! 

Blindsided Tour

Today I'm sneaking in on the last day of KYRA LENNON'S (WRITE HERE WRITE NOW) Blindsided Blog Tour.

Kyra is promoting her book, Blindsided, which really does sound like a fun story! Just to give you a quick synopsis:

After a successful first soccer season in L.A., Jesse Shaw heads to London with his best buddy, Hunter, but his world is turned upside down when a dangerous prank threatens his career and his blossoming relationship with Hunter's cousin, Isabelle. 

Issabelle Mills lives in Notting Hill with her parents and her twin sister, Georgia. When she finds out her cousin is coming to stay, along with his famous soccer player friend, her first instinct is to hibernate until they've gone. However, once she meets Jesse, everything changes. He's everything she's ever wanted, but with so many obstacles in their path, can she really risk putting her heart on the line/ 

For the purpose of the Bloghop, Kyra asked us to post Christmasy pictures of ourselves, so here you go! I hate pictures of myself, so I am doing this purely in the spirit of Christmas!! :)

How are you guys all doing?  Are you finding it difficult to write throughout the Christmas Season? Any tips on time management that you want to share? Has anyone been inspired to write about the Season? And...along those lines...does anyone have a good book recommendation. Something YA and Christmasy?

And there. This is all the Christmas spirit anyone is getting from me. haha