Don't you hate it when you can't get anything going? I do. Frankly, I'd like to set Chapter 33 of one novel on fire, except I haven't written that chapter yet. Because it's like it doesn't want to be written. It's maddening.
That's why I'm all about new ways to conjure up ideas. Things that will help boost your brain, whip up some characters - feed the muse, as it were. My favorite is music, but sometimes even that doesn't work. Maybe I can't find a piece that fits properly. Or maybe my muse just isn't hungry for music. But of course, they don't tell us that. They just go wandering off wherever they like and leave you stumbling over the lines on the page (or the keys on your computer) going, "Duh....now what?" It doesn't matter if you're trying to conjure up a new novel idea or if you're stuck under the dreaded 10 ton writer's block. You need help - you need ideas on how to make ideas.
So when FictionVale asked for guest bloggers, I thought, "That would be fun to do," and set out to offer readers as many idea generators as possible. Things that both work for me and things that I know work for others. Things that - hopefully - will get someone's writer mojo going.
You may also want to pop over there to read some of the other guest blogger advice. They've got editors, authors, teachers, and plenty of other people ready and set to dish out all kinds of knowledge. And hey, while you're there, why not submit something and see what happens? :D
Showing posts with label other blogs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label other blogs. Show all posts
Monday, May 20, 2013
Saturday, October 27, 2012
Some Light Reading
I thought I might share a few interesting pieces I stumbled upon yesterday.
I've been getting impatient when it comes to publishing and have been seriously entertaining the idea of going the e-publishing route - though I do admit a lot of that is also due to sheer curiosity. How well might one of my books perform? How could I boost the sales? How good are my marketing skills? I didn't know how exclusive Amazon was with their publishing and I'm already familiar with how PubIt, CreateSpace, and Smashwords function, so I was curious as to whether or not Amazon's system could be used at the same time as one of the others. So I looked and found a great article with a few handy additional linked articles.
10 Questions to Ask Before Committing to Any E-Publishing Service
Second, due to my potential e-publishing future, I wondered - if I published my SF novel should I use my name or a pen name? And if I did use a pen name, it would be a male one. Would that help my chances of getting more sales or does it matter? I know that I don't pay much attention to authors - if I want to read it, I read it. But since I was curious, I started looking to see if anyone had done any articles with actual information on whether or not gender still mattered to people and found a quite interesting blog entry that also had a lot of interesting articles linked to it that I ended up reading as well.
Fantasy Book Cafe's Women in SF&F Conclusion
You may find these interesting and helpful - you may not. But I thought I'd share either way. Time to go write!
I've been getting impatient when it comes to publishing and have been seriously entertaining the idea of going the e-publishing route - though I do admit a lot of that is also due to sheer curiosity. How well might one of my books perform? How could I boost the sales? How good are my marketing skills? I didn't know how exclusive Amazon was with their publishing and I'm already familiar with how PubIt, CreateSpace, and Smashwords function, so I was curious as to whether or not Amazon's system could be used at the same time as one of the others. So I looked and found a great article with a few handy additional linked articles.
10 Questions to Ask Before Committing to Any E-Publishing Service
Second, due to my potential e-publishing future, I wondered - if I published my SF novel should I use my name or a pen name? And if I did use a pen name, it would be a male one. Would that help my chances of getting more sales or does it matter? I know that I don't pay much attention to authors - if I want to read it, I read it. But since I was curious, I started looking to see if anyone had done any articles with actual information on whether or not gender still mattered to people and found a quite interesting blog entry that also had a lot of interesting articles linked to it that I ended up reading as well.
Fantasy Book Cafe's Women in SF&F Conclusion
You may find these interesting and helpful - you may not. But I thought I'd share either way. Time to go write!
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Attention Spans - Ooh, Sparkly...
I managed to click the "Send" button in my email at the right time to be entered into Miss Snark's Secret Agent contest. Amidst all the YA and MG work, I'm one of the few adult pieces in the mix (is everyone writing for YA/MG these days, or is it just me?).
Naturally, my entry is being commented on. The comments are mixed, most of them leaning towards not too jazzed. But there are two things I've made note of:
1.) The 250 words I submitted are actually different from my original 250 words. I thought I was making an improvement, but looking back, perhaps not. Hard to say because overall, it's the same scene, just different words.
2.) Along that same vein, the thing people take issue with the most is the hook and the slow start.
Now, no doubt, hooking a reader from the first sentence is important. After all, there's nothing more frustrating than having a tug on the line only to discover the fish is long gone (and with your bait too, dangit). Some people talked about how there was no action, no fantasy element, no conflict. I'm fine with the criticism - that's not what this post is about. Rather, it got me thinking about our attention spans these days.
Did you know the average time we get of one camera angle in a movie is about 30 seconds? Sure, we may be in the same scene for 15 minutes, but we'll see that scene a bunch of different ways, cut back and forth, and however else they want to splice it up. In 250 words, people expect action. They expect...I don't know. 30 second cuts of actionadventuresexcarcrashesblahblahblahoohshiny! The book has just begun, but some shit needs to go down.
I'm not saying I don't like when wild and crazy stuff happens on page one. I'm all for jumping in feet first and seeing where the current takes me. Plenty of books do that, and they do it well. But there are many others out there that need just a few extra seconds to set the stage. To prep readers for what is to come. Are we too impatient to allow for these extra seconds? A second paragraph instead of just one? Is it safe to assume you know where the author intends to go right on page one? I also don't intend to imply that you should force yourself to read a book that doesn't work for you. No one should wade through something that they don't like.
I've started up a little agreement with myself. I have so many books to read these days that if I don't like a book by the 100th page, I'll put it down. I hate not finishing things I start, but I just don't have time to slug through a book that isn't engaging me in any way. However, I haven't had to do this just yet.
But for some books, are there times when people have been a little too ADD? How about you, reader folk - what books have you read that take their time starting out before they really get rolling? Or are you all about the NOW factor?
Naturally, my entry is being commented on. The comments are mixed, most of them leaning towards not too jazzed. But there are two things I've made note of:
1.) The 250 words I submitted are actually different from my original 250 words. I thought I was making an improvement, but looking back, perhaps not. Hard to say because overall, it's the same scene, just different words.
2.) Along that same vein, the thing people take issue with the most is the hook and the slow start.
Now, no doubt, hooking a reader from the first sentence is important. After all, there's nothing more frustrating than having a tug on the line only to discover the fish is long gone (and with your bait too, dangit). Some people talked about how there was no action, no fantasy element, no conflict. I'm fine with the criticism - that's not what this post is about. Rather, it got me thinking about our attention spans these days.
Did you know the average time we get of one camera angle in a movie is about 30 seconds? Sure, we may be in the same scene for 15 minutes, but we'll see that scene a bunch of different ways, cut back and forth, and however else they want to splice it up. In 250 words, people expect action. They expect...I don't know. 30 second cuts of actionadventuresexcarcrashesblahblahblahoohshiny! The book has just begun, but some shit needs to go down.
I'm not saying I don't like when wild and crazy stuff happens on page one. I'm all for jumping in feet first and seeing where the current takes me. Plenty of books do that, and they do it well. But there are many others out there that need just a few extra seconds to set the stage. To prep readers for what is to come. Are we too impatient to allow for these extra seconds? A second paragraph instead of just one? Is it safe to assume you know where the author intends to go right on page one? I also don't intend to imply that you should force yourself to read a book that doesn't work for you. No one should wade through something that they don't like.
I've started up a little agreement with myself. I have so many books to read these days that if I don't like a book by the 100th page, I'll put it down. I hate not finishing things I start, but I just don't have time to slug through a book that isn't engaging me in any way. However, I haven't had to do this just yet.
But for some books, are there times when people have been a little too ADD? How about you, reader folk - what books have you read that take their time starting out before they really get rolling? Or are you all about the NOW factor?
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Canon, Classics, and the Love/Hate We Bear Them
There's a fantastic string of comments going on over at Nathan Bransford's blog about classics and canon, and which books should be removed from the invisible list - if any.
Certain books seem to be getting more hate (and I use that term loosely) than others. Moby Dick and The Scarlett Letter seem to be racking up the most points. there's a part of me that actually wants to scroll through that list and tally up the number of people remarking on various books and plays. Some have included the entire work of an author; "anything by James Joyce" or "everything by Hemmingway."
Naturally, there are plenty of people who love what other people hate. Some have mentioned Orwell, and while I've only ever read 1984, I enjoyed it, so there's a chance I'd enjoy a few of his other works. As I continued to read, I started to think about which books were squeaking out of the discussion to remain safe. Like The Great Gatsby. Yet sure enough, eventually someone mentioned how it needed to go.
Then I saw a comment by David Elzey, "[...]perhaps one of the problems with the canon is that we get these books before we're ready for them?" I think he's got an excellent point.
Many of the posters, myself included, wrote about the books we disliked in past tense. Past tense as in "read it in high school." There may be some college references, and perhaps even a few people who finished a classic last month, but I think most of us never would have touched a lot of these books had it not been for high school. The issue is that when you're in high school, you're just not all that interested in what a bunch of dead people wrote. Unless you loved books (like myself) or were one of those good students who were willing to make an effort, you were too busy doing other, more interesting high school things. Jane Eyre isn't interesting until the crazy wife appears in the story. Great Expectations will make you want to hang yourself until Ms. Havisham sets herself on fire. Things like that. I'd like to take a poll and see how many of those posters were in high school when they read the books they claim to have hated.
My book? Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison. I didn't understand what Ellison was aiming for, and I mildly resented being forced to read it because I was pretty sure my teacher was trying to make some sort of racial statement that I also didn't understand. If anything, I figured if she wanted to do that, why couldn't she pick a book that at least made more sense? But again, as I think back now, I wonder - did I not understand Invisible Man because I was in high school? Would it make more sense now? I don't think I'll ever answer these questions because, to be blunt, I'm not going to attempt reading that book again.
But back to Mr. Elzey's statement. How many of us read more classics now than in school? Or at the very least, are more interested, whether or not we actually act out on our thoughts? I know I am. I read a slew of classics in high school, but not because I wanted to. I read more in college, but even though they were assigned, I was an English major and was already more interested. I read SF classics in graduate school, but I got to choose the books (and that's where Frankenstein and 1984 came into the picture), and I enjoyed them a lot more becuase I was the one making the choices. These were the books I at least wanted to read, even if perhaps I might not enjoy them as I read.
With school over completely, I have an extremely varied reading list, and it includes classics. In fact, when B&N had their Buy 2, Get 1 sale on their classics, I went buck wild. I never used to own any classics or books that fall into the wild canon spectrum. Now I have 18. That includes giant collections of H.G. Wells, William Shakespeare, and Edgar Allen Poe. I still have a few titles in my long list of books to read, and still others that I'm curious about.
People don't like to be forced to do anything, plain and simple. While I'm not for throwing out the classics list, the books considered canon, or no longer making high school students read, I think a lot of these books just aren't meant for that age group, which may play a large part in why people end up hating them. After all, I don't think Melville wrote Moby Dick for a 16-year-old high school student. Most high schoolers are nowhere near the target audience for these books, and other things are not universal like so many others believe (Shakespeare is one of them).
But it is nice to see certain other books are getting onto the required reading list. They're not always going to become favorites with everyone, but hey, that's the world of books for ya!
Certain books seem to be getting more hate (and I use that term loosely) than others. Moby Dick and The Scarlett Letter seem to be racking up the most points. there's a part of me that actually wants to scroll through that list and tally up the number of people remarking on various books and plays. Some have included the entire work of an author; "anything by James Joyce" or "everything by Hemmingway."
Naturally, there are plenty of people who love what other people hate. Some have mentioned Orwell, and while I've only ever read 1984, I enjoyed it, so there's a chance I'd enjoy a few of his other works. As I continued to read, I started to think about which books were squeaking out of the discussion to remain safe. Like The Great Gatsby. Yet sure enough, eventually someone mentioned how it needed to go.
Then I saw a comment by David Elzey, "[...]perhaps one of the problems with the canon is that we get these books before we're ready for them?" I think he's got an excellent point.
Many of the posters, myself included, wrote about the books we disliked in past tense. Past tense as in "read it in high school." There may be some college references, and perhaps even a few people who finished a classic last month, but I think most of us never would have touched a lot of these books had it not been for high school. The issue is that when you're in high school, you're just not all that interested in what a bunch of dead people wrote. Unless you loved books (like myself) or were one of those good students who were willing to make an effort, you were too busy doing other, more interesting high school things. Jane Eyre isn't interesting until the crazy wife appears in the story. Great Expectations will make you want to hang yourself until Ms. Havisham sets herself on fire. Things like that. I'd like to take a poll and see how many of those posters were in high school when they read the books they claim to have hated.
My book? Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison. I didn't understand what Ellison was aiming for, and I mildly resented being forced to read it because I was pretty sure my teacher was trying to make some sort of racial statement that I also didn't understand. If anything, I figured if she wanted to do that, why couldn't she pick a book that at least made more sense? But again, as I think back now, I wonder - did I not understand Invisible Man because I was in high school? Would it make more sense now? I don't think I'll ever answer these questions because, to be blunt, I'm not going to attempt reading that book again.
But back to Mr. Elzey's statement. How many of us read more classics now than in school? Or at the very least, are more interested, whether or not we actually act out on our thoughts? I know I am. I read a slew of classics in high school, but not because I wanted to. I read more in college, but even though they were assigned, I was an English major and was already more interested. I read SF classics in graduate school, but I got to choose the books (and that's where Frankenstein and 1984 came into the picture), and I enjoyed them a lot more becuase I was the one making the choices. These were the books I at least wanted to read, even if perhaps I might not enjoy them as I read.
With school over completely, I have an extremely varied reading list, and it includes classics. In fact, when B&N had their Buy 2, Get 1 sale on their classics, I went buck wild. I never used to own any classics or books that fall into the wild canon spectrum. Now I have 18. That includes giant collections of H.G. Wells, William Shakespeare, and Edgar Allen Poe. I still have a few titles in my long list of books to read, and still others that I'm curious about.
People don't like to be forced to do anything, plain and simple. While I'm not for throwing out the classics list, the books considered canon, or no longer making high school students read, I think a lot of these books just aren't meant for that age group, which may play a large part in why people end up hating them. After all, I don't think Melville wrote Moby Dick for a 16-year-old high school student. Most high schoolers are nowhere near the target audience for these books, and other things are not universal like so many others believe (Shakespeare is one of them).
But it is nice to see certain other books are getting onto the required reading list. They're not always going to become favorites with everyone, but hey, that's the world of books for ya!
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Want to Win Some Stuff?
Then head on over to My Writers Craze and throw your hat into the ring. There are some awesome prizes waiting there! Deadline is July 25th.
Friday, January 07, 2011
The Numbers
I had a thought on what to blog about a while back, but never got around to it. I will, sooner or later. It'll just be something fun and goofy. But for now, I'm going to blog on something else that just popped in there (...anyone else hear the stomping of a large marshmallow man?).
The numbers. Oh, the numbers.
By numbers, I'm referring to the sheer numbers of queries that agents read. The number of queries, the number of requests, and the number of clients signed.
It's enough to make you faint and for your butler (if you have one) to go running and fetch the smelling salts.
I was visiting Jennifer Jackson's blog where she frequently delivers her numbers to those of us who might be reading. Those numbers are kind of terrifying. In many cases, I don't like to look at them. Now, don't go running off to tell Ms. Jackson that I hate her blog or something equally ridiculous. That's not what I'm saying. In fact, quite the opposite. I like that she posts those numbers. It's very interesting to see just how many queries an agent can get in a week or a month or, in this post's case, a year.
For example, this year alone Ms. Jackson responded to 7,835 queries. Yeah. Almost eight thousand queries throughout the course of a year. That's a freaking lot. And how many authors did she sign? One.
Easily enough to give all us hopeful writers a heart attack. Your query might have been one of those. Mine wasn't simply because I've yet to flesh out a query letter that really kicks butt. But back to the point. We all know that there are a trunkload of other writers out there busting ass to try and get published. We just never really know how many. Agents like Ms. Jackson put it out there for us to see. It's a good thing. And it sucks. It really is cool to see the number of queries she's looking at, which is a testament to how hard she works (in my humble opinion), and I'm sure there are other agents out there as well with similar numbers. Some of them probably even have larger numbers.
And yet it's also freak-out-worthy. Because out of those thousands and thousands of letters, only one author made it through, signed, and with a deal (and by the sound of it, a three-book one). Eek! But should that dampen our spirits? No. That's why I still visit her blog and am willing to look at said numbers. Because the numbers don't matter, in a weird sort of way. Because next time that single author might be you. Or heck, me (if I'm lucky - wouldn't that rock?).
The numbers are why I don't get on airplanes. As everyone says, "What?" let me explain. People claim flying is the safest way to travel. That you're more likely to be in a car crash than in an airplane crash. While this may be true, I counter with a few things, based on the numbers. Yes, I am more likely to crash my car (and I've done it, by the way) but I'm also more likely to survive that crash (which I did...as evidenced by this post). If the airplane I'm in is the one out of the thousands of planes that ends up going down, chances are I'm not going to make it. So I refuse to ride airplanes.
Ok, so that's a really roundabout and really morbid way of making my point, which I'm sure you understood well before all of that. But the fact remains - don't despair because that single digit might be you someday. And that's why you need to keep chugging. And that's why you need to ignore the downside of the numbers. Sure, you'll have your random dip into blubbering and depression (which, if you rewind a few posts, you'll see mine), but it'll pass and also indicates why you should avoid reading agent blogs late at night because that's when you'll have way too much time to think (oh...wait....).
So chug away, my writing friends and future published authors. Chug away! And maybe make one your favorite number. Mine is and always was.
"Never tell me the odds!"
The numbers. Oh, the numbers.
By numbers, I'm referring to the sheer numbers of queries that agents read. The number of queries, the number of requests, and the number of clients signed.
It's enough to make you faint and for your butler (if you have one) to go running and fetch the smelling salts.
I was visiting Jennifer Jackson's blog where she frequently delivers her numbers to those of us who might be reading. Those numbers are kind of terrifying. In many cases, I don't like to look at them. Now, don't go running off to tell Ms. Jackson that I hate her blog or something equally ridiculous. That's not what I'm saying. In fact, quite the opposite. I like that she posts those numbers. It's very interesting to see just how many queries an agent can get in a week or a month or, in this post's case, a year.
For example, this year alone Ms. Jackson responded to 7,835 queries. Yeah. Almost eight thousand queries throughout the course of a year. That's a freaking lot. And how many authors did she sign? One.
Easily enough to give all us hopeful writers a heart attack. Your query might have been one of those. Mine wasn't simply because I've yet to flesh out a query letter that really kicks butt. But back to the point. We all know that there are a trunkload of other writers out there busting ass to try and get published. We just never really know how many. Agents like Ms. Jackson put it out there for us to see. It's a good thing. And it sucks. It really is cool to see the number of queries she's looking at, which is a testament to how hard she works (in my humble opinion), and I'm sure there are other agents out there as well with similar numbers. Some of them probably even have larger numbers.
And yet it's also freak-out-worthy. Because out of those thousands and thousands of letters, only one author made it through, signed, and with a deal (and by the sound of it, a three-book one). Eek! But should that dampen our spirits? No. That's why I still visit her blog and am willing to look at said numbers. Because the numbers don't matter, in a weird sort of way. Because next time that single author might be you. Or heck, me (if I'm lucky - wouldn't that rock?).
The numbers are why I don't get on airplanes. As everyone says, "What?" let me explain. People claim flying is the safest way to travel. That you're more likely to be in a car crash than in an airplane crash. While this may be true, I counter with a few things, based on the numbers. Yes, I am more likely to crash my car (and I've done it, by the way) but I'm also more likely to survive that crash (which I did...as evidenced by this post). If the airplane I'm in is the one out of the thousands of planes that ends up going down, chances are I'm not going to make it. So I refuse to ride airplanes.
Ok, so that's a really roundabout and really morbid way of making my point, which I'm sure you understood well before all of that. But the fact remains - don't despair because that single digit might be you someday. And that's why you need to keep chugging. And that's why you need to ignore the downside of the numbers. Sure, you'll have your random dip into blubbering and depression (which, if you rewind a few posts, you'll see mine), but it'll pass and also indicates why you should avoid reading agent blogs late at night because that's when you'll have way too much time to think (oh...wait....).
So chug away, my writing friends and future published authors. Chug away! And maybe make one your favorite number. Mine is and always was.
"Never tell me the odds!"
Tuesday, November 02, 2010
When It Hits You
At around 12:20am, I was moseying around online (since late at night is the only time I have to myself these days - or at least it seems like it) and checking various blogs. I saw a new post over at BookEnds, LLC and decided to read it.
It's a great post. It's all about agents (or at least in this case, Jessica Faust) being all yippy-skippy about when calling an author for representation and/or about a book deal with a publisher. The pause when the author might scream with amazement or joy. Or do the "telephone happy dance" (my favorite part of that post). Even better, she showed the agent's excitement on the other end. Actually waiting for the author to phone back with (hopefully) a yes. Then she wants to scream and do the telephone happy dance. It was a really nice look into an agent's side of things and made a lot of people smile and laugh, myself included.
I even left a comment about how one day I hoped to have an agent as excited about me as she gets about her clients.
And then I thought about it a little.
And then I got a little bummed out.
And then I just burst into tears.
I sat here in front of my computer, head in my hands, and cried. Because I don't have an agent that's excited about me or my work. Because I'm tired. Just tired. Normally I'm the one who tosses aside rejection letters and tries again. Because I know rejection is just a part of the writing life. And I'm always saying, "I don't care if I'm 90 years old - I'm getting published!"
But I got that dark, bottomless pit feeling inside me at that very moment. No one wants me. No one loves my writing. And the worst of it is, I haven't even been waiting as long as some people. I know I haven't. But I've been working my fingers to the bone, money is frighteningly tight around here, and I've barely had any time to write for myself for the past several months.
And I'm tired.
Still, it's good to get that out once and a while. I cried and sniffled for a good twenty minutes or so. I'm sure once I hit the hay and get a good rest (if possible - I never did like my mattress), I'll wake up refreshed and ready to go again and be able to look at the future with hope and eagerness.
I think I'd better do that.
Tired.
It's a great post. It's all about agents (or at least in this case, Jessica Faust) being all yippy-skippy about when calling an author for representation and/or about a book deal with a publisher. The pause when the author might scream with amazement or joy. Or do the "telephone happy dance" (my favorite part of that post). Even better, she showed the agent's excitement on the other end. Actually waiting for the author to phone back with (hopefully) a yes. Then she wants to scream and do the telephone happy dance. It was a really nice look into an agent's side of things and made a lot of people smile and laugh, myself included.
I even left a comment about how one day I hoped to have an agent as excited about me as she gets about her clients.
And then I thought about it a little.
And then I got a little bummed out.
And then I just burst into tears.
I sat here in front of my computer, head in my hands, and cried. Because I don't have an agent that's excited about me or my work. Because I'm tired. Just tired. Normally I'm the one who tosses aside rejection letters and tries again. Because I know rejection is just a part of the writing life. And I'm always saying, "I don't care if I'm 90 years old - I'm getting published!"
But I got that dark, bottomless pit feeling inside me at that very moment. No one wants me. No one loves my writing. And the worst of it is, I haven't even been waiting as long as some people. I know I haven't. But I've been working my fingers to the bone, money is frighteningly tight around here, and I've barely had any time to write for myself for the past several months.
And I'm tired.
Still, it's good to get that out once and a while. I cried and sniffled for a good twenty minutes or so. I'm sure once I hit the hay and get a good rest (if possible - I never did like my mattress), I'll wake up refreshed and ready to go again and be able to look at the future with hope and eagerness.
I think I'd better do that.
Tired.
Monday, November 01, 2010
Shutting Down the Internal Editor
I'm actually writing this in October, but since the Writing Meme is going on, I figured it would be best just to program it to show up in November to avoid double-posts.
Anywho, at the time I was cruising through the Absolute Write blog update forum and found this blog entry. It's pretty hard not to relate to that letter. Internal editor getting in the way all the time, pointing out stuff that's wrong, deadlines, all sorts of annoying crap. I know, the whole internal editor thing and the way we writers react to it makes it sound like we have multiple personalities, but I'd like to point something out to you.
First of all, if you didn't think we had multiple personalities before hearing the way we talk about internal editors makes me wonder about you. We have dozens of characters bouncing around our heads all the time, and it takes an internal editor bit to make you voice such concerns? Geezo.
Second of all, most writers, when asked, will mention something about an internal editor and often include how it's a bitch. It's like there's this other little part of your brain reminding you of all this other junk while you're just trying to write and get the freakin' words on the page. Maybe it's left brain vs. right. I don't know. What I do know is that it is possible to shut it down.
While Ms. Morrigan wrote a letter, I left a comment on her blog stating that writing letters to my internal editor doesn't work. She ignores them. Likewise, talking to her and telling her to shut up doesn't work. I've had to resort to more drastic measures to put her in her place.
When working on most books, she was never a problem. I'd just breeze on through, la-de-da. But that was before I went to Seton Hill and discovered everything WRONG with my writing. Suddenly my internal editor didn't suck at her job (if she even existed in the first place) and had plenty of cool new rules and regulations to implement. So once I began to write my newest manscript, she wouldn't shut up. Let me repeat that: My internal editor would NOT SHUT UP. I rewrote the beginning at least five times. I actually lost count. I struggled with word choice, created scenes that refused to work. Could not decide upon proper names. Nothing was perfect, and that was the problem.
First drafts are crap, to be base about it. They're the ideas slapped down without everything being perfect. That's what revision is for. We all know this. Revision is for fine tuning those good ideas, tweaking scenes or cutting them, and fixing up all the spelling and grammar we goofed on the first time around. My internal editor, however, kept insisting everything be perfect the first time. There is no chance of this happening. Ever.
Finally, after asking some advice from people, I visualized my internal editor, got a little violent, and stuffed her in a cage and put a lock on it. It sounds ridiculous, but visualization helps. It worked. I was still writing junk, mind you, but at least the thoughts were getting onto the paper. I could fix everything later like I was supposed to. It was still a little tough at the beginning because I was still uncertain about the opening, but at least I'd finally jumped into it and got the story rolling.
So do what you have to in order to shut down your internal editor so you can actually get some writing done. Write a letter, do some mental pep-talking, or be like me and just shove her in a damn box and refuse to let her out until you're good and ready for her to come back out and do her job.
Anywho, at the time I was cruising through the Absolute Write blog update forum and found this blog entry. It's pretty hard not to relate to that letter. Internal editor getting in the way all the time, pointing out stuff that's wrong, deadlines, all sorts of annoying crap. I know, the whole internal editor thing and the way we writers react to it makes it sound like we have multiple personalities, but I'd like to point something out to you.
First of all, if you didn't think we had multiple personalities before hearing the way we talk about internal editors makes me wonder about you. We have dozens of characters bouncing around our heads all the time, and it takes an internal editor bit to make you voice such concerns? Geezo.
Second of all, most writers, when asked, will mention something about an internal editor and often include how it's a bitch. It's like there's this other little part of your brain reminding you of all this other junk while you're just trying to write and get the freakin' words on the page. Maybe it's left brain vs. right. I don't know. What I do know is that it is possible to shut it down.
While Ms. Morrigan wrote a letter, I left a comment on her blog stating that writing letters to my internal editor doesn't work. She ignores them. Likewise, talking to her and telling her to shut up doesn't work. I've had to resort to more drastic measures to put her in her place.
When working on most books, she was never a problem. I'd just breeze on through, la-de-da. But that was before I went to Seton Hill and discovered everything WRONG with my writing. Suddenly my internal editor didn't suck at her job (if she even existed in the first place) and had plenty of cool new rules and regulations to implement. So once I began to write my newest manscript, she wouldn't shut up. Let me repeat that: My internal editor would NOT SHUT UP. I rewrote the beginning at least five times. I actually lost count. I struggled with word choice, created scenes that refused to work. Could not decide upon proper names. Nothing was perfect, and that was the problem.
First drafts are crap, to be base about it. They're the ideas slapped down without everything being perfect. That's what revision is for. We all know this. Revision is for fine tuning those good ideas, tweaking scenes or cutting them, and fixing up all the spelling and grammar we goofed on the first time around. My internal editor, however, kept insisting everything be perfect the first time. There is no chance of this happening. Ever.
Finally, after asking some advice from people, I visualized my internal editor, got a little violent, and stuffed her in a cage and put a lock on it. It sounds ridiculous, but visualization helps. It worked. I was still writing junk, mind you, but at least the thoughts were getting onto the paper. I could fix everything later like I was supposed to. It was still a little tough at the beginning because I was still uncertain about the opening, but at least I'd finally jumped into it and got the story rolling.
So do what you have to in order to shut down your internal editor so you can actually get some writing done. Write a letter, do some mental pep-talking, or be like me and just shove her in a damn box and refuse to let her out until you're good and ready for her to come back out and do her job.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
The Deluge
Granted, you have probably already read this over at Nathan Bransford's blog, or either straight from the Huffington Post, and I kind of hate to be a schmuck and just repost other people's stuff - but dangitall if it isn't a really good article that squelched even some of my fussing when it comes to ereaders. He makes several points, all of them good.
Well, if you're going to get on board, choose your poison.
While I still maintain that people are going to think we're the techs that can fix their gadget problems or something else - at least for now (just yesterday I had a guy literally yelling in my ear over the phone about the audacity that he register his credit card to get an ebook), that's a different concept altogether.
Indeed, when we worry about all the "bad books" that can get into the book world, who hasn't read a craptastic book as it is? One of those books where you sit there with a horror-stricken look and say, "How the hell did this ever get published?" But Mr. Bransford is correct. There are so many out there now, how the heck will we ever truly know the difference?
(Still though, if silence is going to be the rejection, please let us know on your website beforehand so we don't bother you with follow-ups. =D)
Well, if you're going to get on board, choose your poison.Friday, May 21, 2010
Pitching (Not the Baseball Kind)
Luckily for writers, three strikes when pitching does not mean that we're out. It just means we need to seriously work on our pitching skills. And we're not throwing baseballs either. We're hurling a bunch of words at an agent or editor and hoping that we don't sound like total morons or end up blathering on and on or, on the other end of the spectrum, freezing up and forgetting what we wanted to say in the first place. So let's face it; we need help. Many of us don't really know what we're doing when we find ourselves face to face with people that can make our book a reality (as in bound pages and people paying to read it). We've heard plenty of "Don't do this" and "Don't do that" but has anyone written about what we should do?
There's a story behind this, I just know it...
Well, yeah. But you know what? Here's another post by Rachelle Gardner (an actual agent) about pitching that might help you the next time you find yourself at a conference with agents and editors all around you: Secrets of a Great Pitch.
While on the subject, I'd like to add a little something else. At the end of her post, Ms. Gardner informs us to remember that agents and editors are just regular people. I think one of the problems is that we already know this. Writers are fully aware that agents cook their own dinners and deal with crazy 5-year-olds and hate that gas prices are always going up. Just like the rest of us.
Now I don't know about anyone else, but for me, that's not why I'm nervous. I know you're a person. The deal is that you are a person who has the power to change my life. That's right. Like He-Man, You Have the POWER! *cue lightning and thunder* That's why agents and editors turn into, or are, such a big deal for us. They're the most important stepping stone (if you don't mind the comparison) toward getting on the bookstore shelves. We want to impress you. That's why we're terrified of screwing up. And the fact that you're a person means that you have your own tastes as well as professional ideas of what will and what won't sell. We worry you won't like what we've written even if we think it's the best dang thing since sliced bread. We worry you'll look at us like we're stupid for writing such a thing, and we've worked so hard to make the best manuscript possible, yet suddenly it's like we're in fifth grade again and have just done something to make the whole class laugh at us.
I might be getting a little over the top, but you get the idea. That's what freaks us out. It doesn't matter that you have to fix your sink like I do - it's the fact that you can either help make my dreams come true or tell me to shove off.
Now for the record, most agents aren't going to tell you to shove off. Horror stories aside, many agents totally understand how freaked we are and are willing to help us along when we spaz out. I once pitched to the editor of Del Rey, Betsy Mitchell, and was a total wreck. But she knew it. In fact, she knew we were all likely to be total wrecks, having never pitched before. But she was patient, understanding, and not at all rude (though I'm sure she had other things on her mind at the time).
In the end, we're going to have to ignore the gatekeeper/power thing and just focus on crafting a pitch that doesn't suck. Remembering that agents and editors are people can help, but you should also remember a few things about yourself as well; you've just written a book. An entire book. We, the authors, are the reasons that agents and editors exist. They know it - why else do you think they're looking for books to represent? They love books as much as we do, and thus have made it their livelihood (though in a different way). It's a symbiotic relationship - without one, the other cannot be. So buck up, stand tall, and pitch your little heart out. Even if the agent or editor isn't interested in your book, they'll at least appreciate your enthusiasm and confidence.
There's a story behind this, I just know it...Friday, February 05, 2010
Clash of the Titans
In case you haven't heard yet (and if you're an author, you should have), there's a nasty little tiff going on between Amazon and Macmillan. Basically it's a price thing. I mean, isn't it always? Always about money.
Choose your destiny.
But I thought perhaps I'd give a shoutout to the BookEnds blog, because Jessica Faust speaks of how the author pretty much always gets left behind in issues like this, how it sucks, and how it's not fair.
Also be sure to pop on over to PubRants to see a letter from John Sargent.
But if you want to hear an uplifting post - at least, about ebooks - then Nathan Bransford's blog is the place to be. (not sure I agree about all of that, but I like that he's gung-ho about things)
Choose your destiny.Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Hook First - Then Line and Sinker
Sometimes you find nuggets of joy on AW, so when I found this blog, I decided to join in on the fun to see how my first paragraph would fare in their contest. I didn't win, but I got a healthy amount of votes that (if I remember right) landed me third place in that particular group. Yay.
One commenter hoped that I might enlighten them as to what is going on to create such a first paragraph/line, and I figured I'd share. After all, why not? I've already delivered Lucan upon a bunch of you guys, so the opening of Illusion's Trick is no big deal, especially since it is in need of some major repairs, and not much of this may survive. I even edited what you'll read below because I couldn't stand putting up the original version. I agree with several commenters that the first line isn't *quite* right, though whether it's because of "while" instead of "when" or something else, I'm still not sure, so I've just left it intact for now until I figure out what I want to do with it.
Anywho, this is where the first line leads, and if I had more "oomf" in me today, I'd supply a fast synopsis/pitch, but I don't remember where I scribbled it down. Oh well.
And by the way, for those of you coming in from the first line contest (if anyone is), the boy eventually reappears much later when the girl here (Gabrielle) is grown. His name is Lucan, and you can read a juicy tidbit involving these two which was my post for the No Kiss Blogfest.
Hades and Persephone ~ View this in full here and check out Sandara's other amazing works. (Lucan isn't this dark, I just tend to associate him and Gabrielle as opposites attracting...deliciously.)
One commenter hoped that I might enlighten them as to what is going on to create such a first paragraph/line, and I figured I'd share. After all, why not? I've already delivered Lucan upon a bunch of you guys, so the opening of Illusion's Trick is no big deal, especially since it is in need of some major repairs, and not much of this may survive. I even edited what you'll read below because I couldn't stand putting up the original version. I agree with several commenters that the first line isn't *quite* right, though whether it's because of "while" instead of "when" or something else, I'm still not sure, so I've just left it intact for now until I figure out what I want to do with it.
Anywho, this is where the first line leads, and if I had more "oomf" in me today, I'd supply a fast synopsis/pitch, but I don't remember where I scribbled it down. Oh well.
When other girls at the ages of five and six dreamed of being rescued from high towers by knights in shining armor, I dreamed of being kidnapped.
Sorry, before I give the wrong impression, let me qualify that. Yes, I did dream about being kidnapped, but not in the typical sense. I didn’t imagine strange people snatching me as I walked home from school or getting dragged off into a dark van or any equally disturbing scenario. I loved my family (and still do). The idea of running away into the real world scared me. No, I just thought it would be fun to be whisked away into a fantasy land. I dreamed that somewhere, somehow, a prince from a distant land completely unconnected to ours saw me and became so enamored he ordered his men to carry me away.
And they did.
And by the way, for those of you coming in from the first line contest (if anyone is), the boy eventually reappears much later when the girl here (Gabrielle) is grown. His name is Lucan, and you can read a juicy tidbit involving these two which was my post for the No Kiss Blogfest.
Hades and Persephone ~ View this in full here and check out Sandara's other amazing works. (Lucan isn't this dark, I just tend to associate him and Gabrielle as opposites attracting...deliciously.)
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
1st Draft: Finished
The completion of a first draft is at once a triumph and a depressing moment.
Sure, you've written those magical words - "The End" - and at the time they seem to tie up everything in the story into a neat little bow.
And yet, now that you've finished, you get to go back and look at all the glaring mistakes. All the things you did wrong. All those tiny plot pieces that need to be fixed. All. Those. Things. They're just sitting there, lurking, waiting, and you have to go back and look at them all and fix them and it seems like you're writing the damn thing all over again.
Ugh.
And then, of course, if you have a critique partner (or two or three), they get to point out all the screw ups you haven't seen. All the things your audience would see and wonder about (which is why you have the critique partners and betas in the first place). So you sit back and read their comments and get all pissed. Not because they're pointing out stuff, but because now you have to go back and fix it and you just want to be done already so you can start querying, and yet at the same time you know you can't because querying what you have now would just be like shooting yourself in the foot because no agent/editor in his/her right mind would take your book.
It's a prime headdesk moment.
I suppose I can't complain. It's just tiring. Yes, I've just finished a first draft (ok, I finished it yesterday), but now I have a list of things to do, a list I've been compiling that just seems to continue growing. And I don't want to go back and fix it. I'm tired. Again, for people who don't think writing is work, you can go $#!% off because it is, and I'm tired and I can't do it anymore. True, I shouldn't complain, being that this draft is a record breaking 3ish months for me (though honestly, I think if you condense the days I actually worked on it, it's more like 2 which is RIDICULOUS for me, but hey, that's what happens when a muse sits on your shoulders and doesn't. Leave. You. Alone.), but still.
Other writers understand, I'm sure. That moment where you've written so much for so long you can't write anymore lest you puke all over your manuscript or set it on fire or just yell, "I HATE YOU" at your computer screen. Yeah. I'm at that point now. Which is kind of depressing since I was having such a grand time with this story. But alas, now I see its flaws and it's bumming me out.
But hey, whatcha gonna do? (and yes, I will accept calling the Ghostbusters as an answer)
Until then, enjoy this interview with Jill Myles on writing sex scenes. I haven't read her book yet, but it's on my list.
Yep. That's me.
Sure, you've written those magical words - "The End" - and at the time they seem to tie up everything in the story into a neat little bow.
And yet, now that you've finished, you get to go back and look at all the glaring mistakes. All the things you did wrong. All those tiny plot pieces that need to be fixed. All. Those. Things. They're just sitting there, lurking, waiting, and you have to go back and look at them all and fix them and it seems like you're writing the damn thing all over again.
Ugh.
And then, of course, if you have a critique partner (or two or three), they get to point out all the screw ups you haven't seen. All the things your audience would see and wonder about (which is why you have the critique partners and betas in the first place). So you sit back and read their comments and get all pissed. Not because they're pointing out stuff, but because now you have to go back and fix it and you just want to be done already so you can start querying, and yet at the same time you know you can't because querying what you have now would just be like shooting yourself in the foot because no agent/editor in his/her right mind would take your book.
It's a prime headdesk moment.
I suppose I can't complain. It's just tiring. Yes, I've just finished a first draft (ok, I finished it yesterday), but now I have a list of things to do, a list I've been compiling that just seems to continue growing. And I don't want to go back and fix it. I'm tired. Again, for people who don't think writing is work, you can go $#!% off because it is, and I'm tired and I can't do it anymore. True, I shouldn't complain, being that this draft is a record breaking 3ish months for me (though honestly, I think if you condense the days I actually worked on it, it's more like 2 which is RIDICULOUS for me, but hey, that's what happens when a muse sits on your shoulders and doesn't. Leave. You. Alone.), but still.
Other writers understand, I'm sure. That moment where you've written so much for so long you can't write anymore lest you puke all over your manuscript or set it on fire or just yell, "I HATE YOU" at your computer screen. Yeah. I'm at that point now. Which is kind of depressing since I was having such a grand time with this story. But alas, now I see its flaws and it's bumming me out.
But hey, whatcha gonna do? (and yes, I will accept calling the Ghostbusters as an answer)
Until then, enjoy this interview with Jill Myles on writing sex scenes. I haven't read her book yet, but it's on my list.
Yep. That's me.
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Dos and Don'ts (Mostly Don'ts)
As a member of the Absolute Write Water Cooler (where I tend to go to procrastinate, so in hindsight, maybe joining wasn't such a great idea), I often mosey on over to more people's blogs. Often more than I would under normal circumstances. Procrastination. What can I say?
But I have found a few fun nuggets. The other day I found this by Kate Hart, aspiring YA writer, and it got me thinking about how I react to certain questions people put to me when I tell them I'm a writer. First off, do these. But that's pretty much after you're published, so those don't really apply to me (yet). For now, keep these in mind when it comes to questions not to ask:
But I have found a few fun nuggets. The other day I found this by Kate Hart, aspiring YA writer, and it got me thinking about how I react to certain questions people put to me when I tell them I'm a writer. First off, do these. But that's pretty much after you're published, so those don't really apply to me (yet). For now, keep these in mind when it comes to questions not to ask:
- "So what's the book is about?" Frankly, I hate this question. I'm willing to tell you what genre it is, and that's pretty much it. Summing up my book(s) to people on a constant basis ruffles my feathers. Mostly because I'm uncomfortable divulging summaries about works that are fantasy or SF since basically everyone asking me doesn't really read those genres. Likewise a lot of people that don't tend to think poorly of them, which leads into the next point.
- "Are you seriously writing that?" Exactly what Kate said: Don't be condescending. Nothing sucks more than a person who disses on your book/genre/the fact that you call it work. I've been lucky in that I've only ever experienced one jackass who stated that he thought F/SF was lame and then for some bizarre reason proceeded to grill me about my book. I can't remember the last time I was that uncomfortable. And yes, writing a novel is a pain. You write over 70,000 words and see how easy it is. Just because we choose to do it and yes, it is fun sometimes, it doesn't mean it's all candy and roses. Why else do you think not everyone aspires to be an author?
- "Can I read it?" I've actually let two people that have asked this question read my work. I trusted them for several reasons, 1.) I was in high school and they were good friends 2.) they weren't writers so they sure as hell weren't going to steal it 3.) the writing was far from being good enough anyway, 4.) it was all handwritten. These days, I again agree with Kate. Read my book when it's published, okay? I'd like to get paid for all my hard work too, you know.
- "When will it be published?" I guess since I said you can't read it now, you want to know when you can. Look, if a person says, "I'm writing a book," please pay attention to verb tense. You took basic English in school right? You should know that "writing" means in the process of doing so. That means it's not finished. Only when you're told that the book is going to be published by so-and-so publisher can you ask for the date.
- "When are you going on Oprah?" I thought this one was actually kind of funny. If anyone ever asked me that, I'd probably look at the person like he was a moron. Take a look at Oprah's book list and tell me when she's ever read a F/SF book. Either way, yeah, don't ask this because it's truly a stupid question. Oprah picks the books to read, not the other way around. And they're usually depressing or generally emo in some way.
- "So will you be like [insert ultra-famous author here]?" No. Not unless I'm the next luckiest sonofabitch that walked the Earth. For some reason, people tend to think that just because a handful of authors make 6 figures (or more), the majority of authors do. In fact, the majority of authors DO NOT and have to bust ass to keep producing books for readers just to make a comfortable living. Hell, you're lucky if your book ends up as a modeled title (a certain number of books has to be in the store) at Barnes & Noble.
- "Why don't you write about [subject in no way related/similar to what you're writing]?" Because I don't like it or I can't do it. Personally, I just can't do mystery and am awed by people who can come up with new scenarios as to why there's a dead body in the next room over and over and over again. By the way asker, you may be working in an office - why don't you work on a crab fishing boat instead, hmm?
- "Is that sex scene autobiographical?" I laughed when I saw this one. I've never been asked this and though I might be a little "..Uuuh...." if I were, I could easily answer. NO. (I was watching you.)
- "Do I get a free copy when it's published?" NO. GO BUY THE BOOK. I'm not a fan of this question, yet I hear it all the time, or I hear it in statement format, "I'd better get a copy when it's published!" Yeah, sure. I just took a year or longer to put this together, spent God knows how much on stamps and paper and ink and envelopes just to land an agent, waited another year or more for the agent to sell it, and another year or longer for it to actually come out in it's published form. I don't understand why people, even if only marginally acquainted with me feel they're entitled to free stuff. But I always smile and laugh and say, "Sure." (Though the real answer, again, is NO.)
- "Why isn't it dedicated to me?" I've never had this question either, or any varation thereof, but I'd probably just look at the person as though he had issues. Don't be a greedy prick. Writers take inspiration and strength from all walks of life. And by the way, how do you know you're not in the dedications? And if you're not in the first book, how do you know you're not in the second? Either way, if you're not, then you obviously aren't special enough. Get over yourself.
- "Is it any good?" Again, never had this question. Most of us writers tend to think it's good. We'll know the truth when we find an agent or editor. Until then, yes. And when it gets published, then yes. How the hell do we know what you'll think of it?
- "Am I in it?" Kate said she hates this question. I got this all the time and it always made me laugh. I think I may have ranted about this question sometime in the past, actually. When you hear this question enough, then yes, it can get annoying. What people fail to consider though, is that you might be in the book. And you might be a character that dies. Eh? How about them apples? I use friends and create characters for them and once handed them out as Christmas gifts. Hell, I eventually wrote a book using all of them (needs revising). Generally speaking though, don't ask this because 99% of the time the answer is going to be a resounding NO. Even if the person you're asking dances around the question. They're dancing around it because the answer is either no, or they killed you (or just seriously f*cked you up).
Print this out writers, and pass it around to your friends and family. Maybe they'll never bother you about your writing again. Haha. And for non-writers, well, now you know better. ;D
Thursday, January 14, 2010
WHOO HOO!
War for the Oaks by Emma Bull
I won I won I won!!
Freaking A! Shara got 43 entries and used a randomizer website to pick two winners and joy of joys - one was mine! While I admit I've already read this book, I thought it would be oodles of fun to read again - especially now that it's got an updated cover. You know what this book kind of reminds me of? A little bit of fairy-tale goodness and Labyrinth all rolled up into a sheet of rockin' 80s music. Haha. That and I adored the phouka. He gave me a bit of inspiration for my current WIP,in fact. *yay!*
Man. I seem to be winning mail roulette a lot lately. All I need now is to win "steady job" roulette and I'll be good as gold. Until then, it's back to freelancing!
Monday, January 11, 2010
Shara's 2009 Top Ten GIVEAWAY!
While at Seton Hill University to get my MA in Writing Popular Fiction, I met a girl by the name of Shara. An upbeat, outgoing person and a voracious reader, every year Shara does a giveaway from her Top Ten list.
That's right. You send her an email, and if you win you get a free book.
How awesome is that??
I thought I'd spread the word, as she encourages people to do. So go visit her site, poke around to see which book you wouldn't mind having on your shelf, and put your name in the hat. A few years back I won The Now Habit by Neil Fiore, so if you're wondering if this Shara person really does give away books, she does. Whee! I've already sent my entry in and have my fingers crossed!
Check out the GIVEAWAY: 2009 Top Ten List!
Be sure to act fast, because the giveaway ends January 13th!
Yay free books!
That's right. You send her an email, and if you win you get a free book.
How awesome is that??
I thought I'd spread the word, as she encourages people to do. So go visit her site, poke around to see which book you wouldn't mind having on your shelf, and put your name in the hat. A few years back I won The Now Habit by Neil Fiore, so if you're wondering if this Shara person really does give away books, she does. Whee! I've already sent my entry in and have my fingers crossed!
Check out the GIVEAWAY: 2009 Top Ten List!
Be sure to act fast, because the giveaway ends January 13th!
Yay free books!
Monday, January 04, 2010
Answer the Question!
I discovered this on another writer's blog, and though I have no one to tag (yeah, it's one of those), I figured I'd do it anyway just for something fun. Enjoy, my nonexistent readers.
What's the last thing you wrote? What's the first thing you wrote that you still have?
Does it have to be completed? Because the last thing I wrote was a huge freaking chunk of what's temporarily called Kingdom of Red (kissing scene in the Dec. 21st post). As for the first thing I wrote that I still have, I honestly couldn't tell you because I've kept a LOT of my junk. I think I'll go with Book #4, which is actually a completed manuscript of 347 pages I wrote when I was in high school. I'm currently revising the hell out of it.
Write poetry?
Not as much as I used to.
Angsty poetry?
*snicker* Not as much as I used to.
Favorite genre of writing?
Fantasy. Always.
Most annoying character you've ever created?
To me or to the reader? I have a scientist named Renard who annoys the hell out of everyone, but I love him. ...I don't actually think I have any characters that annoy me personally...
Best plot you've ever created?
The whole storyline involving my evil, evil dragon. I mean, he is bad.
Coolest plot twist?
I actually have Hell rise up and basically kill everyone. The Apocalypse, only not what we here on Earth would have expected (as this takes place elsewhere before spilling over here). Maybe not really a plot twist, but it's certainly different from everything else that's happened to those poor characters!
Write fan fiction?
Just twice, when it's in my brain so much I need to get it out. Doctor Who and Pirates of the Caribbean. Otherwise I'll just dream the storyline away and be done with it.
Do you type or write by hand?
Both. I used to write by hand exclusively, but sometimes an idea barges in so violently that I can't write fast enough. Usually I can't think when typing a story (weird blockage of ideas...very strange), but if they're strong enough, then it works. Strange, I know, but that's how it works.
Do you save everything you write?
Yes...just in case. *shrug*
Do you ever go back to an idea after you've abandoned it?
Depends on the idea. Some stuff I write just for shits and giggles, so it's easy to abandon. Other things might come in handy. I have a few short stories that some might consider abandoned given the amount of time I've let them sit, but I think that if I just went back and altered some of them (a lot), they could be good enough to submit to places.
What's your favorite thing you've ever written?
Book #2. I have to revise it like nobody's business, but I still love it and it was a blast to write. Almost 500 pages in a year. Haha. Yeah, needs some work.
What's everyone elses favorite story that you've written?
I don't know. Not many people have read these things because they're all executed poorly in terms of writing style (POV, verb tense, adverbs, etc.). But at least everyone seems to enjoy my dragon. >=D
Ever written romance or angsty teen drama?
No angsty teen drama. I was able to avoid that crap in high school (more than others at least) so why revisit it? But romance, oh you betcha.
What's your favorite setting for your characters?
Any place other than Earth. Even my humans from Earth are never seen on it. HA!
How many writing projects do you have going right now?
I have one I'm submitting to every freakin' agent under the sun. I have two others I'm writing, and I've just started to revise an older one. But if you really wanted to get technical about it, the total would be seven (four need revising, I'm actually in the process of writing two, and I'm submitting the one). And that's if you don't count the others with large chunks done.
Have you ever won an award for your writing?
Does a scholarship count? If so, then yes, $500.
What are your five favorite words?
Gosh....I honestly don't know. Though I do like "glittering." I love the visual it evokes.
What character have you created that is most like you?
Caroline and Gabrielle....probably why those are the two written in first person.
Where you do get your ideas for your characters?
Oh geezo...everywhere. Friends, family, my crazed imagination, movies, music, and sometimes they evolve as they go.
Do you ever write based on your dreams?
Just once. A short story that may not be savagable in the end. Daydreams on the other hand, oh yes.
Do you favor happy endings?
Absolutely! Evil never wins in my books. Even if I have killed off the main characters in two books. But I often have a "bring-back-to-life" plan for certain occasions. Except for one of them...heh.
Does music help you write?
YES. Go take a look at my Epinions page and take note of how I've reviewed over 70 soundtracks and then you'll know just how important music is (and not always soundtracks either!)
Quote something you've written. Whatever pops in your head.
"Werbowski is in a fucking coma, Renard! He's got a good chance at being a goddamn vegetable for the rest of his life!" (Scott was so mad - I love it).
Are you concerned with spelling and grammar as you write?
Yes for both, though I'm not perfect. I often forget commas between compound sentences using "and" and probably some other things grammar Nazis would get me on. Which is why I like grammar Nazis to look at my work from time to time.
Best mug ever. (mine)
What's the last thing you wrote? What's the first thing you wrote that you still have?
Does it have to be completed? Because the last thing I wrote was a huge freaking chunk of what's temporarily called Kingdom of Red (kissing scene in the Dec. 21st post). As for the first thing I wrote that I still have, I honestly couldn't tell you because I've kept a LOT of my junk. I think I'll go with Book #4, which is actually a completed manuscript of 347 pages I wrote when I was in high school. I'm currently revising the hell out of it.
Write poetry?
Not as much as I used to.
Angsty poetry?
*snicker* Not as much as I used to.
Favorite genre of writing?
Fantasy. Always.
Most annoying character you've ever created?
To me or to the reader? I have a scientist named Renard who annoys the hell out of everyone, but I love him. ...I don't actually think I have any characters that annoy me personally...
Best plot you've ever created?
The whole storyline involving my evil, evil dragon. I mean, he is bad.
Coolest plot twist?
I actually have Hell rise up and basically kill everyone. The Apocalypse, only not what we here on Earth would have expected (as this takes place elsewhere before spilling over here). Maybe not really a plot twist, but it's certainly different from everything else that's happened to those poor characters!
Write fan fiction?
Just twice, when it's in my brain so much I need to get it out. Doctor Who and Pirates of the Caribbean. Otherwise I'll just dream the storyline away and be done with it.
Do you type or write by hand?
Both. I used to write by hand exclusively, but sometimes an idea barges in so violently that I can't write fast enough. Usually I can't think when typing a story (weird blockage of ideas...very strange), but if they're strong enough, then it works. Strange, I know, but that's how it works.
Do you save everything you write?
Yes...just in case. *shrug*
Do you ever go back to an idea after you've abandoned it?
Depends on the idea. Some stuff I write just for shits and giggles, so it's easy to abandon. Other things might come in handy. I have a few short stories that some might consider abandoned given the amount of time I've let them sit, but I think that if I just went back and altered some of them (a lot), they could be good enough to submit to places.
What's your favorite thing you've ever written?
Book #2. I have to revise it like nobody's business, but I still love it and it was a blast to write. Almost 500 pages in a year. Haha. Yeah, needs some work.
What's everyone elses favorite story that you've written?
I don't know. Not many people have read these things because they're all executed poorly in terms of writing style (POV, verb tense, adverbs, etc.). But at least everyone seems to enjoy my dragon. >=D
Ever written romance or angsty teen drama?
No angsty teen drama. I was able to avoid that crap in high school (more than others at least) so why revisit it? But romance, oh you betcha.
What's your favorite setting for your characters?
Any place other than Earth. Even my humans from Earth are never seen on it. HA!
How many writing projects do you have going right now?
I have one I'm submitting to every freakin' agent under the sun. I have two others I'm writing, and I've just started to revise an older one. But if you really wanted to get technical about it, the total would be seven (four need revising, I'm actually in the process of writing two, and I'm submitting the one). And that's if you don't count the others with large chunks done.
Have you ever won an award for your writing?
Does a scholarship count? If so, then yes, $500.
What are your five favorite words?
Gosh....I honestly don't know. Though I do like "glittering." I love the visual it evokes.
What character have you created that is most like you?
Caroline and Gabrielle....probably why those are the two written in first person.
Where you do get your ideas for your characters?
Oh geezo...everywhere. Friends, family, my crazed imagination, movies, music, and sometimes they evolve as they go.
Do you ever write based on your dreams?
Just once. A short story that may not be savagable in the end. Daydreams on the other hand, oh yes.
Do you favor happy endings?
Absolutely! Evil never wins in my books. Even if I have killed off the main characters in two books. But I often have a "bring-back-to-life" plan for certain occasions. Except for one of them...heh.
Does music help you write?
YES. Go take a look at my Epinions page and take note of how I've reviewed over 70 soundtracks and then you'll know just how important music is (and not always soundtracks either!)
Quote something you've written. Whatever pops in your head.
"Werbowski is in a fucking coma, Renard! He's got a good chance at being a goddamn vegetable for the rest of his life!" (Scott was so mad - I love it).
Are you concerned with spelling and grammar as you write?
Yes for both, though I'm not perfect. I often forget commas between compound sentences using "and" and probably some other things grammar Nazis would get me on. Which is why I like grammar Nazis to look at my work from time to time.
Best mug ever. (mine)
Saturday, January 02, 2010
The No Kiss Blogfest!
Welcome back (if you visited the first time) - this time to the No Kiss Blogfest! Inspired by the previous Kissing Day Blogfest, we're now totally celebrating in the "almost kiss."
I almost posted this one last time, but wanted to do an actual kiss. Now I'm glad I did that, because now I get to post this one under a more appropriate blogfest - and it's one of my favorite parts of this particular WIP, Illusion's Trick.
Ladies, meet Lucan.
Mmm, tasty. This photo is property of Mercuralis. For heaven's sakes, if you want to see some super sweet art, check her out!
I almost posted this one last time, but wanted to do an actual kiss. Now I'm glad I did that, because now I get to post this one under a more appropriate blogfest - and it's one of my favorite parts of this particular WIP, Illusion's Trick.
Ladies, meet Lucan.
I exhaled a long breath. Relax. Nothing weird will happen this time. I closed my eyes and stood motionless beneath the hot shower spray.
As soon as I’d finished the thought, a pair of hands slipped around my waist.
I shrieked and stumbled around, pulling away and banging my shin into the faucet as I spun around to slam my back into the tile wall. He was here. In my shower. Standing quietly in the water and…ho…my God…he was naked.
He smiled, that slow, know-everything-about-me smile. “Hello again, Gabrielle.”
“Wha,” was all I could get out, a noise between a question and a shout.
He was…impressive. Lean with a musculature that spoke of strength and latent power like one of the mixed martial arts fighters I always watched on TV. A jagged, violent-looking scar ran around his side, slicing down from his ribs to curve over and end at his abdomen. Another cut down the inside of his right arm, from elbow to wrist, and another, thinner and more faded scar scored over his left bicep. I wondered what he’d done to receive them. A bit of mirth found its way into his smirk. At my expense, no doubt.
I straightened. I was naked, he was naked, but I refused to cower against the wall in my own shower. I couldn’t let myself feel like the only vulnerable one when we both wore the same thing—nothing.
“What are you doing here?” I demanded, trying to look at his face and not the rest of him.
“Don’t tell me you haven’t wanted me here,” he said, cocking his head ever so slightly.
The non-stranger, stranger in the shower scenario. God damn it. I managed to hold back the maniacal grin that threatened to appear. How could I have forgotten that one?
“I can’t just accept a strange man in my shower like this,” I said. Quite a pathetic statement, actually. While in my dreams it was partially true, I always acquiesced in the end. Now that it had become a lot more real, I wasn’t so sure it was a good idea.
“I’m not sure you have much choice at this point,” he said, watching me intently. What a gentleman—he had me naked and yet he kept his gaze on my face. An improvement for him, I decided.
“Or,” he continued, “I could wait until you’re finished and be the one to approach you then.”
“What? I don’t have any other shower fantasies.”
“Don’t lie to me,” he said. “I know for years you stepped out of here only to pretend you’ve stepped out of the rain onto the threshold of a strange house.”
I gaped at him. By God, he was right. I meant to speak, but only made a sort of choking sound. This guy knew everything! Even I’d forgotten that one!
“Damn,” I muttered, stuck between irritated and impressed. I shifted more toward irritated since I was starting to get cold. His highness had scared me into the corner and now took up most of the water. I began inching my way along the edge of the shower back into the spray.
“Well,” I said, trying to figure out how to convince him to move, “you could. It would be more polite.” Because then I’d at least have a towel.
Suddenly his hands slapped the tile on either side of me, trapping me against the wall. He leaned forward.
“I like this one better.”
His face was inches from mine and…was he moving closer? Shit. Not again. I tried to conjure up last night’s conversation, his smug grin, his underhanded comment about taking me without my immediate permission. It wasn’t working.
“I hate you,” I said, a lame attempt to rile him up enough to get him to back off. His lips brushed my temple.
“I would appreciate it if you didn’t lie to me,” he whispered.
In my mind I cursed to no end. I thought I’d managed to get over falling to pieces around him, but here I was, feeling weak and losing all resolve just like before. He did nothing more than trace the contours of my face with his mouth, lying in wait for some small signal from me to do more. I wanted to reach out and dig my nails into his back and drag him closer, wanted to feel him against me, to kiss him just to know what he tasted like. Instead, I kept my hands at my sides and scratched the tile, scraping a thin film of soap scum under my fingernails.
Mmm, tasty. This photo is property of Mercuralis. For heaven's sakes, if you want to see some super sweet art, check her out!
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Join The No Kiss Blogfest!
I should do this stuff more often. Yesterday I got the most comments in the history of this (or any that I've done) blog.
So that's why I'm joining in on the No Kiss Blogfest! Inspired by yesterday's Kissing Day Blogfest, Ms. Mallis over at Frankie Writes decided to go almost all the way with scenes that show not kissing, but the famous (or perhaps infamous?) "almost kiss."
Oooooh, can you feel the tension? I've got a good one planned, oh yes indeed. In fact, I got so excited about it, I actually have it set up already. It's just on automatic schedule thanks to Blogger, so once the date rolls around, at about 10:30ish am, it's going up!
So January 2, 2010, post your almost kiss and join in on the fun!
So close!
So that's why I'm joining in on the No Kiss Blogfest! Inspired by yesterday's Kissing Day Blogfest, Ms. Mallis over at Frankie Writes decided to go almost all the way with scenes that show not kissing, but the famous (or perhaps infamous?) "almost kiss."
Oooooh, can you feel the tension? I've got a good one planned, oh yes indeed. In fact, I got so excited about it, I actually have it set up already. It's just on automatic schedule thanks to Blogger, so once the date rolls around, at about 10:30ish am, it's going up!
So January 2, 2010, post your almost kiss and join in on the fun!
So close!
Monday, December 21, 2009
The Official Kissing Day Blogfest!
I found this while reading through the daily Yahoo Groups email from my fellow WPF alumni, and though Kaye Ducas's blog, found out about the Official Kissing Day Blogfest as started by Sherrinda. So I decided to jump into the fun. Took me some time to finally pick something out, and as much as I wanted to post one particular scene from my WIP, it's just not done yet, so I can't. *sad* Instead, I decided to go with another scene from the same WIP that happens much earlier.
Remember kids, WIP. It ain't perfect.
And for the record, he's not a serial killer. It was just a massive misunderstanding, so don't worry.
Whoo hoo! Go mistletoe and kissing!
Remember kids, WIP. It ain't perfect.
And for the record, he's not a serial killer. It was just a massive misunderstanding, so don't worry.
“I am not going anywhere with you!” I jerked out of his grasp. “You are crazy! This isn’t normal! Any of it!”
“Look, I am the only one that can find that girl and if you want to find her too, then you’ll have to stick with me, do you understand that?”
“Oy! Who are you talking to out there?”
We froze. A few of the giants climbed to their feet while the others leaned over to look outside the cave.
“No one!” Wolf called. “Just, ah, my mate! We were both looking for the morsel, but we’re going now!”
“I think not. She sounds an awful lot like that scrap we caught earlier. Let’s see her.”
I stared at Wolf, petrified.
“No, no!” he yelled back, his hands on my shoulders. “She’s got this silly fear of giants, says they’re too big for her taste.”
“We insist.”
The command was low, dangerous. Wolf gave me a tiny nod and gently pulled me forward so the giants could see me. The one with the club grunted.
“Thought so. Why didn’t you tell us you was a she-wolf?”
I opened my mouth but nothing came out. Wolf pinched me in my side.
“Oh!” I half-shouted. “I, um, was too scared.” I laughed weakly. “Concerned about my…food. At the time. Sorry.”
Their stony faces remained unconvinced.
“Show us your side then,” said one of the standing giants.
I gaped again. My side? What did that mean? My wolf side?
“You can’t,” Wolf said, his voice barely audible. “Run.”
They’ll just follow us. I racked my brain for an idea. I had no idea what they were looking for, but so far it didn’t sound much like humans were fond of wolves. Maybe…
“Well,” I spoke haltingly, “would a human woman do this?”
I looked up at Wolf and braced myself. Oh Caroline, you’ve gone off the deep end.
I grabbed his face and brought his mouth down on mine. He was surprised, but quickly recovered and put his arms around me, kissing me back and milking it for all it was worth.
This is so crazy. I’m kissing a possible serial killer. Ew. God where did I go wrong? This is so beyond screwed up...he tastes like berries and mint...
Finally I pulled away, collecting my bearings again. I’d just kissed a psycho who’d held a knife on me not so many hours earlier in order to stay away from giants. I wanted to move farther away, much farther away, but Wolf held me where I was, his forehead resting against mine looking for all the world like he’d just had the best day of his life.
Whoo hoo! Go mistletoe and kissing!
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