LIfe of a Wanna-Be Writer

Who says Children's Authors are Boring?

2012-01-29T10:26:00.001-05:00

There's a reason I don't watch the morning news. It's stupid. You get five minutes of actual news and 55 minutes of stuff nobody really needs to know. Gossip, sleaze, how to make you butt tight, save five dollars on canned goods, or get deals on houses in locations where no one really wants to live in the first place. The morning news is filled with insignificant feel good fluff.

So why is it that I was still surprised when this article appeared on my Facebook feed?

PW Tip Sheet: Shame on Today

The article starts with the question,"What could have possibly happened to the current crop of morning-show producers that they would disregard entirely the winners of the highest children’s book awards in the land?"

According to the article, the Today Show had an 11 year tradition of bringing the Caldecott and Newberry Award winners on the show the morning after the awards were announced for an interview. But for the last two years this has not happened, citing scheduling conflicts. I don't believe that for a second. I believe someone said these interviews weren't marketable. The authors were boring, the audience wasn't interested and we have more important things to do with our four hour block of time.

Which led me to two great finds in the not so mainstream media this week. First, a rough gem in an unusual place, Comedy Central. The Colbert Report did a two part interview with Maurice Sendack, author of Where the Wild Things Are and it was eye opening to say the least! Proof that it's actually very intelligent and witty adults who write children's books. You can catch part one of the interview here: Maurice Sendak Interview Part 1 and part two here: Maurice Sendack Interview Part 2.

Then of course I found a delightfully funny interview on NPR's Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. If you've never listened to this show before you are in for a real treat. I laugh all the way through it. This week they actually did an interview with the Newberry Award Winner Jack Gantos where listeners learn just how boring and dull the life of a children's author can be. This has got to be one of my favorite author interviews and I encourage you to check it out even if you stop before listening to the actual quiz show. You can check it out here: Jack Gantos Interview on NPRs Wait Wait Don't Tell Me

After listening to both of these interviews I was forced to re-embrace what I had long ago declared a brutal truth: Morning News Shows Suck.

My Favorite Things: 2011

2012-01-01T20:36:00.000-05:00

"The only difference between an extraordinary life and an ordinary one is the extraordinary pleasures you find in ordinary things." (Veronique Vienne)

The year is winding down and I thought it would be fun to acknowledge some of my favorite things in 2011. Below is a listing of old and new finds that I've come to love over the course of the year.

1. The Night Circus

My favorite novel of the year is a whimsical tale of love and magic. The book is beautifully written and the audio version is narrated by Jim Dale. If you only read one book in the new year, I encourage you to make it this one.

2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Time to say goodbye to Harry Potter and his two best friends. The billion dollar movie behemoth came to an end and it was a bittersweet motion picture masterpiece. Catching the last film is a must.

3. The Lying Game

I'm a sucker for teenage melodrama and ABC family knows it. They had a couple of misses this year, with the Nine Lives of Choloe King, and a slightly lethargic and predictable Pretty Little Liars, but they made up for it with the debut of The Lying Game. My favorite thing about this show...Blair Redford. He's only three year's younger than me. I think we can make this work. The rest of the cast is entertaining and the twins played by Alexandra Chando are much better than the other pairs of double trouble popping up on tv lately.

4. Game of Thrones

I'm not a sucker for high fantasy, or any type of fantasy for that matter, but HBO has this way of sucking me into shows that otherwise would have never made it on my DVR dance card. This show had me hooked from the first episode. Drama. Suspense. Murder. Sex. All the makings of a great tale. I loved it so much, I bought the first book and actually started reading it.

5. Vampire Diaries

TVD is hot, hot, hot. After a very lackluster second season the writers finally got it right with the third. The character's are more complex, the stakes are bigger, the body count higher and the sexual tension between Damon and Elena is enough to drive a girl crazy. Plus, "Ripper" Stefan is so much more interesting than the blood free version.

6. Snowville Creamery

So it's not a flashy TV series with a huge marketing campaign, but that doesn't mean it doesn't deserve one. This is my favorite milk, made local and fresh and used exclusively in Jeni's Ice Creams (which you may know is on my longstanding list of faces). And I just recently discovered they have chocolate milk! Yum.

7. Trader Joes Everyday Seasoning

I use this seasoning, like, everyday. It's a great blend, it's cheap and it tastes great on chicken.

8. iPad

I could never create a list of my favorite things without including my iPad. Soon it will have more accessories than I do. When I can't carry around my MacBook the iPad and a wireless keyboard does the trick. I use it to write, play games, listen to music and watch movies. The only thing that would make it better is if I had actually paid for the 3G. Apps of the Year: HBO Go and Netflix on Demand.

9. Nordic Track Treadmill

I bought a treadmill and turned it into a make-shift treadmill desk. Now I have no excuse for not getting my 10000 steps in. I'm surprised at how much I love this thing. The speakers, the fan, the bouncy floorboard and belt that gives me an extra spring in my step. The perfect thing to get me off to a good start in the new year. Plus it is super easy to write and walk at the same time.

10. Piada Italian Street Food

I've talked about this place on Facebook a lot but in case you haven't heard, this is one of my new faces for fast casual dining. It's Chipotle Italian style with endless combinations and flavors galore. And it's expanding all over the city. I expect one to open down the street from my in the next few months. Good for my happiness, not so good for my waistline.

11. GoodReads.

I love this site. I check in multiple times a week, and use it to keep track of books I want to read and share info about books I've read. One of my small pleasures: reading reviews from friends about books we have both read. Did they love it or hate it as much as I did? Friend me, I don't mind. And yes, I own 85% of the books on my TBR list.

12. Addicted to Love, Florence and the Machine

Best cover ever!! I love this sultry song and could listen to it over and over again. Yes, I know Adele had an amazing hit this year with her 21 CD, but I love Adele, and knew it would be great, but this CD with Florence and the Machine caught me by surprise.

Top "Fails" of 2011

Hulu Plus

Talk about wasted money. No more shows or movies, at least none that you really want to see.

Netflix Cluster you know what. More headaches that I can count. You have to screw up pretty bad to loose 800,000 customers in less than 6 months.

The Dark Side

2011-12-22T20:35:00.000-05:00

It seems that every YA book I pick up nowadays has one thing in common (two if you count the over predominance of love triangles) and that is they take place in dark dystopian universes with a clear delineation between good and evil, black and white. I don't have to ask what brought about this obsession. I'm as big a fan of The Hunger Games Trilogy as the next person and when I finished that book I was clamoring for more. The books since have been hit or miss, some with fully fleshed out worlds, conflict and characters others merely an illusion of what could have been. As someone who is working on a story that might be considered to fall into this category I found myself longing to step back and think about this trend and what is perpetuating our new YA mantra: the darker the better.

I stumbled upon a piece in the New York Times called "The Dark Side of Young Adult Fiction" in which readers, writers and professors had an opportunity to share their own thoughts about the trend. The contributors, some of which have written dark dystopian YA novels themselves, provide insight and bring new perspectives to the topic that I found intriguing. And though the article is more than a year old, it is incredibly relevant to the types of work that is still being published. In fact the last three out of four books I read were YA Dystopian novels. The interesting thing, was that the non-dystopian novel was the best out of all three. Perhaps the sub genre is headed the way of the witches, weres, and vampires. Too much of a good thing and all that jazz.

Check out the article and let me know what you think. Do you like the new YA take on Dystopian Fiction? What are your must reads in the genre?

Reading Journal: Wither by Lauren DeStefano

2011-11-12T08:54:00.001-05:00

So I just finished reading Wither, the first book in the Chemical Garden Trilogy ad I have no idea what to make of it. The book was advertised as the next great read for hunger games fans, but the only thing it has in common with Suzanne Collins HG trilogy is the post-apocalyptic setting. For every sappy vampire book Twilight brought to the forefront as a result of its success there is an dystopian tragedy waiting in the midst as a result of the success of the Hunger Games. I admit, I fell victim to this craze, which is probably why I have about ten of them on my to-be-read list. The first of which was Wither.

Plot Overview:

Wither takes place in a future world where genetic manipulation of the population has resulted in a deadly virus that kills off all of its victims in their early twenties. Women die at twenty-one, men at twenty-four. There is no escape, there is no cure, despite the fact that members of the first generation (the only generation to live out full lives) are desperately searching for a way to reverse the curse.

Rhine, the main character, is kidnapped and taken from her kid brother and sold to stranger to be one of his three brides. The story follows her struggles for escape and peace in a world full of death and disease.

My Reaction:

Overall I enjoyed the book. It was a quick read, though it started out a bit slow, I found myself drawn into this mysterious and dark world and wanted to know more about what has and will happen to the characters. At first I found the main character, Rhine, pretty annoying. She is initially obsessed with escaping, unwilling to learn anything about her captures/husband or her other sister wives. She's set on finding her brother but (spoiler alert!) he never even gets an appearance in this book! It was hard for me to believe she is so desperate to return to such a grisly and dangerous life. It sometimes felt as though she were resisting just to resist.

Later as she began to learn more about her new family the book becomes more interesting and you see new relationships born and difficult sacrifices made. Still the whole book seems to be setting you up for heartache. After all, how likely is it that someone in this world is going to find a cure in the last three years of her life, if they've been searching for twenty years to no avail? Definitely a happily for now, kind of read.

Market Spotlight: Entangled Publishing Flirt Line

2011-11-02T09:20:00.001-04:00

So every time I run across an appealing market I feel the need to share with my other writerly friends and I couldn't resist getting a little hot and bothered about this one. Thus far I am very impressed with Entangled Publishing and have been looking for something in my own drawer of goodies that is a good fit for what they are publishing. This flirt line might just be the thing. I'll sleep on it.

They are looking for short novellas (10k-15K, which in my opinion makes them short stories, but novellas always sounds cooler) in all types of romance sub-genres to sell for 99 cents.

I have heard nothing but great things about EP thus far and my own interactions with them have been very positive. If your interested you should definitely check out the Flirt Official Guidelines on their submission page.

NANo Revisited (Part 2)

2011-11-01T08:43:00.001-04:00

Happy First of November, a.k.a. official kickoff to NaNoWriMo 2012. To all those taking part in the challenge, good luck and godspeed. For those of you like me who plan on sitting on the sidelines and basking in the creative energy that exudes off of our writing comrades with hopes of meeting our own, much smaller goals this month...well good luck to you too.

Here's a little recap of some of my pointers on NaNo from years past. Enjoy.

NaNoWriMo 101 (Part 2)

Must Have Resources

Now that you’ve got the basics, here are a few must have resources to help you stick to the rules!

1. Visit the Official NaNoWriMo site www.nanowrimo.org

If you haven't already done so, visit the official website to learn the rules and sign up as a participant. Join the forums, build out your buddy list, and most importantly ask questions. You don't want to lose time searching the boards once November comes. You want to know how to update your word count and track words before hand. Remember, time is precious!

2. Do the plotting and character development exercises

There are tons of books out there that are designed to help writers plot and develop their novel. Some of them even tote the tag line, write your novel in thirty days. Here are a few that I recommend. Check them out at Amazon.com.

3. Get the write (he, he) software

Most people use word by default, but it isn't always the best writing software, especially if you are trying to keep track of your daily word count. Personally I love to use Scrivener. In fact, part of the reason I went mac is because I needed a better writing program that worked with my personal writing and organizational style. The great thing about a program like Scrivener is that it allows you to create smaller separate documents within a larger project that are inter-related. So you can easily edit or move scenes, keep track of scene word count and my favorite, enter a full screen writing mode that blocks out everything else from your screen except for a basic document file. There's no ads, no links, no Internet browser lurking about to tempt you away from your writing. Consider it a typewriter for the modern age. Scrivener also allows you store your research notes and prep work in one central place. Do you have pictures of your characters or settings? You no longer have to open up another program to view them. Did you create a separate PDF outline, link to a specific movie, or reference a certain web page. You can copy and paste it into the program without opening 100 word documents.

So, that's all fine and dandy, you say. But you don't own a Mac. Right. Well. That Sucks. I've been there. In a pinch, Word will suffice. Just familiarize yourself with the daily pacing vs the word count goal. i.e. on day 6 you should be at X words, so if you are writing everything in a single document, than you can easily see total word count with the click of a button. You could also do separate docs for each scene, but you won't have a running total and you will have to compile it all together at the end anyway. I do recommend using document maps and creating headers for each chapter to easily navigate through your 200 pages! it will help make highlighting chapters or scenes easier if you are trying to get a word count.

So that’s it! Happy writing and good luck.

Halloween Writing Prompts

2011-10-31T09:00:00.001-04:00

Tis the season to be bloody!! Muah, ha, ha! If you can't tell by my love of all things paranormal, Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. Probably because I have an opportunity to dress up in costume, cackle like a witch and scare little children.

Okay, I don't go around scaring little children, (probably because I don't have any to scare) but I enjoy halloween all the same. What better way to get into the halloween spirit than to write your own creepy crawly tales?

I was surfing twitter and I came across some different halloween writing prompts to help get you started and thought I would share them with you.

Halloween Revenge

October 25, 2011 | Brian A. Klems | Comments: 10

For the last 10 years, kids have been toilet papering your house on Halloween night. Unfortunately for them, this is the year you finally decided to get even. Write about your night of retaliation. Read more

Pumpkin Carving Gone Wrong

October 18, 2011 | Brian A. Klems | Comments: 33

You’re attending an annual pumpkin-carving party with your friends when one of them stands up and makes a shocking announcement. Start your story with the announcement and end with “And that’s how I got my head stuck in the pumpkin.” Read more

Note Behind the Picture

October 11, 2011 | Brian A. Klems | Comments: 41

A picture on your mantle unexpectedly falls and crashes to the floor. As you go to pick it up, you notice a note hidden behind the picture. The message is from the future—and written by you. It instructs you to do something important. What does it say?
Read more

For More Prompts check out the following pages:

http://networkedblogs.com/p7qT9

http://www.writersdigest.com/prompts

Two New Halloween Finds

2011-10-29T14:00:00.002-04:00

Two of my author friends have some new releases out and just in time for Halloween! Check out some great quick reads to download on your iPad, kindle and nook!

Teaching Man and Other Tales by Nell Du Vall

The Devil comes calling on Halloween…

A young woman learns that black cats see all…

Not all brooms are created equal…

Some relationships really do last a lifetime…

Nell DuVall brings us four deliciously creepy tales of good and evil, perfect for All Hallow’s Eve.

All Hope Lost By Faith Van Horne

Dana Cay is a skilled private investigator with more than a passing knowledge of insanity. After her brother’s bizarre suicide, she drove herself mad with grief, convinced a shadowy cult had something to do with his death. Now, she’s out of the institution and back in business in a new city, taking only low-stress cases. But when Warren Parker begs her to look into his sister’s suspicious suicide, the madness starts again. Is the cult real after all? And if so, can Dana stop them before they kill again?

I've already purchased both and will be reading them on my travels next week!

NaNo Revisited

2011-10-28T23:29:00.003-04:00

It's that time of year again! November is just around the corner, which means writers all across the globe are frantically chirping about NaNoWriMo. I have yet to commit to actually jumping in the game this year, but I thought it would be fun to repos some of my popular NaNo blogs from past years to help everyone get in the mood. And for any newbies out there, hear this: IT CAN BE DONE!

NANOWRIMO 101 (Part 1)
Basic Rules
Let’s start with some basic ground rules. Because you can either set yourself up for success or failure. And we don’t want you go cripple yourself before the challenge even starts. You wouldn’t enter a marathon without training right? Well, consider this your boot camp. Listen and learn.

Rule #1. Don't Wing It

I know many of you true artistic visionaries will cringe at the thought but now is not the time to fly by the seat of your pants. Can you complete fifty thousand words with out plotting or outlining ahead of time? Sure. I've even done it in the past. If your ultimate goal, is just to cross the finish line, than fine. Go for it. But if you are planning on actually doing something with this novel, and don't want to spend the next six months editing it to get it into some kind of readable shape, trust me, you're going to want a road map. I've participated in this challenge twice. The first time I went wherever the muse took me. That book was a complete mess. Though I did indeed finish it, I spent two years going back to revise and edit it, trying to make a better (and thus saleable) novel. It didn't happen. But you know what they say about your first book. The goal is to complete a novel, not to sell it. You get better as you go and you may not want to be judged by your very first attempt.

The second novel I wrote is actually much stronger and I do believe that was because I had already done a significant amount of research and plotting. It still needed some edits, and though I hit my 50K goal I did not finish the novel in one month. For the most part, I knew the plot, the scenes that I wanted, who the major players were. There was plenty of room to adjust as the characters interacted on the scene, but I could reel them back in when I sensed we were going off course in a not so good way. This is actually the novel I've been pitching to agents and editors. And yes, I still continue to tweak it.

I am also doing a significant amount of prep work because my goal is actually not to write 50k words. My goal is closer to 85,000 or about 2800 per day. That's where most of my manuscripts wind up and I'd like to have a full first draft done at the end of the month. I truly believe, that if you know what you're doing, it isn't impossible to do. But you can't get there with out a clear vision and actionable strategies that will get you across the finish line.

Your goals might not be as lofty as mine, or they might be double what I've outlined. Either way, the prep work is important. Aside from helping you put together a logical story structure with relevant scenes and meaningful and dynamic characters is that the prep work allows you to make the most of what little time you have to write each day. Let's face it. Ultimately what happens when you don't collect your thoughts before hand is that you sit down with the intention of writing 1666 words or more in a single session and end up staring at a blank screen for the first twenty minutes. Time is a valuable commodity, especially when we have so much going on in our busy lives. Don't waste it brainstorming when you have a deadline looming. One of the great things about this challenge is that it forces you to stop making excuses and get something on the page. It teaches you the discipline of writing daily, and if you don't well the punishment can be severe. My first round I missed three days in a row. Next thing I knew my daily goal was no longer 1666 but 6664! It was a long and painful day, especially because I had no idea where the story was going or what was happening next. It was easy to push forward with 2000 words, but eventually you have to stop and figure out what comes next. And without realizing it you are back into the daydreaming, brainstorming stage instead of the producing stage.

Rule #2. Set a Schedule

Be proactive and plan out a schedule for writing ahead of time. Know how long it takes you on average to write 1666 words. Can you do it in two hours, or do you need more time? My goal is to write two hours in the morning before I go to work and do another two in the evening after I get home from the gym. And if I know that it's taking longer, I can cut the gym or write during my lunch break. Whatever it takes to get the words on the page.

Rule #3. Eliminate Non-Essentials

Along with setting up a specific writing time, look at your schedule and figure out what the non-essentials are. What are the things that you can cut out if you have a crazy day and need more writing time? Can you skip the gym, bypass the PTA meeting? TiVo Glee? Basically this is all about prioritization. If completing this challenge is important enough than spending time writing will come first. Note, I am not advocating you quit your job or starve your kids. But you don't have to cook a five course meal or make homemade pasta for dinner. Order a pizza, get carry out.If you don't like the idea of fast food all the time, plan out your meals for the week and prep them the Sunday before. Casseroles and soups can be frozen and reheated in the oven or crock-pot with minimal effort involved. If you love fresh salads, chop up your veggies and store them in storage containers so that you can quickly toss your favorites together and have meal in five minutes or less with little dishes to clean. Remember, now is not the time to go caffeine free. Don't take up an additional college course, try to plan a wedding or take on a part time job. A couple of late nights won't kill you but it will make you cranky. We want this to be a happy positive experience, not a death march to the end of your writing career.

If you live alone, you can stock up on healthy frozen dinners, snacks and quick serve meals. If you have a spouse or partner, USE THEM! Explain what you're doing, why it is important. Ask them to take over meals, childcare, bath time, etc. (that's bath time for the kids not you! No distractions!) and you can buy yourself a few extra minutes with the computer. If they see how hard you're working (meaning you can't be staring at a blank computer screen) and know that it's only for one month, they will hopefully be happy to support you.

Rule #4. Reward Yourself

Sure, winning the challenge and crossing the 50K mark is huge and a great motivator in and of itself. But if you aren't use to writing everyday the task can seem daunting, even for talented writers. Celebrate the little milestones, did you write today (even if it was just a sentence, good job. Are you on track or ahead of the pacing for the month? Good job. Did you meet your daily word count? Good job. Reward yourself with a chapter from a good book, an hour of your favorite TV show, or some special time with your significant other. :)

For more tips continue reading NaNoWriMo 101 (Part 2).

Reading Journal: Characters & Viewpoint Part 2

2011-10-25T21:33:00.000-04:00

The other day I posted my reading journal for Orson Scott Card's Characters & Viewpoint book and spent a lot of time focused on the character piece of the puzzle. Today I want to reflect on the third half of the book which is devoted to POV and Tense, (among other things).

Card identifies this last section of the book as "Performing Characters" and he starts off with very basic and often technical descriptions of what POV and tense are. Given the number of people who get confused on this subject, perhaps that is a good thing. Though I did not find those 8 pages very informative and let's face it, talking POV is not the most exciting thing one could be doing with their time.

Despite the fact that I think the subject a little dull, I was excited to dive into the book given the challenge I have undertaken with my newest WIP Salem's Triad. In this novel I have three POV characters. I am writing in third person limited for a large majority of the book. However there are also excerpts throughout the book that offer a third person omniscient POV. I call these interludes (taken from the music industry) because they offer quick snippets from minor/secondary characters that help to broaden the reader's perspective about what is taking place.

Originally these scenes were written in third person limited but I am starting to realize, after spending some time with Mr Card and all his wisdom, that it might make the transition easier if I adjust the POV from third limited to third omniscient. This will allow me to signal to the reader that they are getting a glimpse of a scene taking place that does not involve one of our main characters (in case the chapter header INTERLUDE doesn't do the trick).

Another thing that I picked up from reading this book was the idea of effectively setting up the audience for a POV change. Card mentions that you can reduce confusion for your reader by introducing the second POV character in a scene with the current POV character. This is common in romance novels, where you alternate between the hero and the heroine's POV and are often introduced to the hero through an encounter that the heroine has.

In reading this I discovered my earlier draft does not connect the three characters until well into the first act, and certainly not in the first 30 pages. Given this is now a YA and I have some new creative liberties to play with I decided to rewrite the prologue to include a critical scene (one that some may argue is the inciting incident for our protagonist) where all three girls are together but not friends. The fun thing about this is that the reader is not dependent upon one narrator's attitude or opinion of another character. Writing in limited third person allows me to express how my girl Gracie feels about herself and what her soon to be friends think of her. I'll give you a hint, they always have differing opinions!

One thing that caught me completely off guard was Card's thoughts on third person limited as a choice for narrating your story. I could chalk it up to the time period in which this novel was written (copyright 1988) but I don't actually think the industry has changed that much in the last twenty some years. I'll share a quote and let you make your own judgement.

"If you are uncertain of your ability as a writer, while you're quite confident of the strength of your story, the limited third-person narration invites a clean, unobtrusive writing style--a plain tail plainly told. You can still write beautifully using the limited third person, but your writing is more likely to be ignored--thus covering a multitude of sins." (Card)

I had to read this quote a few times and let it really sink in before I could even acknowledge my thoughts on it. I was surprised for a number of reasons. First, since I began actively pursuing writing around 2004 I have always been told by editors that you have to write in third person, that first person is for novice amateur writers and you will stick out like a sore thumb. That of course implies that writing first person is the easier choice. It certainly comes more naturally for a lot of new writers. I know that I use it a lot when I am having trouble getting into the character's head. But that seems to contradict with Card's statement that third person limited is the easiest of the POVs to use. He also implies that it covers up most faults because your reader won't notice the writing as they are too absorbed by the character.

I am slighlty less concerned with what this says about me as a writer, and more concerned about what it says for me as a reader. If a majority of readers prefer third person limited does that imply that we are not mature enough as a readership to appreciate the other POVs? Is the ultimate goal to tell a great story or to tell a story that people will read and are they mutually exclusive? And what does this mean for genre fiction vs literary, for I most often see first and third limited as the preferred POV of choice?

In reading this quote I felt that Card was implying that writers who choose this POV are either too lazy to take on the challenge of writing in another POV or not talented enough to do so. But should/would you purposefully write in another POV even if it means the work is less received by your target audience?

I'm not sure I know the answer to this and perhaps I am reading more into the line than was intended, but it does make me wonder. As I continue to write more and more stories and novels I find myself grappling with the question of POV in a more deliberate manner and ultimately choosing the POV that is the best fit for the story and what I hope to accomplish. Maybe I'll score a few bonus points for using multiple POVs despite the fact that I am writing in third person limited.

Works Cited: Card, Orson Scott. Characters & Viewpoint. Cincinnati, OH: Writer's Digest, 1988. Print.

Reading Journal: Characters & Viewpoint by Orson Scott Card

2011-10-20T13:11:00.002-04:00

One of the things we are strongly encouraged to do at Seton Hill is keep a reading journal to reflect on the fiction and non-fiction books that we read throughout each term. While I could certainly do this in a word document and send it directly to my mentor for review, I thought it would be more fun to do my journal entries on posts to my blog. I promise to try and be consistent and regular, without the additional prodding on your part!

Book: Characters & Viewpoint

Author: Orson Scott Card

Genre: Non-Fiction, Writing/Craft

Why did I choose this book??

It has been recently brought to my attention that though I may love some of my characters to death not everyone who picks up a copy of my manuscript or current WIP feels the same way. I'm not sure why this should come as a surprise to me. Everyone's tastes are different, so of course they are going to have different reactions to my characters, but my goal is not to alienate or piss of my reader because they do not like or understand my characters. That said, I've been on a mission to learn as much as possible about character development and creating sympathetic characters so that I can figure out what I have done wrong, or at least polish up the prose so that readers can come to know and love the characters they way that I do.

Initial Reactions to the Book??

Despite the title and premise of the book I found it to be unhelpful for me as a writer given where I am in the writing process. The book is divided into three parts: inventing characters, constructing characters, and performing characters and a large majority of the time is spent on how to develop strong characters at the start of your writing. Several questions and thoughts are presented, about where characters come from, how to get great ideas for stories, how to discover traits and idiosyncrasies. The information overall is useful, but given what I was looking for, which was guidance on ways to better show your character on the page, this did not meet my needs. That said there were several interesting notes that did stand out to me and made me question my own process for developing characters and thinking more deliberately about the time on the page those characters get. I'm going to highlight some of those thoughts below, and focus on initial character development today and POV in the next post.

Core Thoughts on Character.

Card starts the book at the very beginning asking the reader to reflect on what a character is and does a good illustrating that "character is what he does". We make assumptions about all characters based on what they do and what we see them do. It is a very surface level observation and most often wrong as a result, but it is the starting point for a reader. What is interesting about this point is that if you don't go deeper and offer other ways of showing the reader who the character is, they will have no resort but to rely upon these baseline judgments.

Why are these judgments often wrong? Because they do not offer motive or take into consideration their past experiences or their reputation. Audiences have a different reaction to a character who kills for pleasure vs. greed vs. revenge vs. self-defense. If they only see the act of murder by itself they will have a different opinion of that character than if they have the additional context around the situation, the circumstances and the motives/intentions. Their past experiences also play a huge role in how we view someone, do we see them as a victim, or the underdog, or are they a manipulator? What is it that made them turn to a life of crime or greed?

For my Love Sex Magick novel, this was a big issue that I had with my main character Chai. She can come off as superficial and insensitive to those around her. She is afraid of the magickal authority in the book but the reader doesn't know exactly what it is that is motivating that fear. The current justification on its own is too weak to feel realistic and credible, where as once I explained her family history, her connection to a known felon, and her sting with an underworld magickal gang, suddenly her actions and paranoia begin to feel more real. I used the same technique of revealing more of her backstory up front so that the reader understands the connection between her and the secondary character Yasmine and why she treats her differently from everyone else in the book.

For my current WIP Salem's Triad, I have three main characters and am switching POV between each of them. Which mean each character has to clearly establish themselves on the page and they have to be different from each other. The pacing of the book is much faster, and I have realized that I am going to have to work hard to ensure that in the first act the reader is invested in each character and has enough context to understand and by sympathetic towards them.

Changing Behaviors with Changing Networks

Another thing Card mentions is that people change when they are in the company of different individuals. We may present ourselves one way at work, another way with our friends and yet another way with our families. A great way to show a different side of a character is to put them in a scene where they have to interact with a different type of person. For my Mystery Classics class I just finished reading "Cop Hater" by Ed McBain

Questions I needed to Ask Myself:

After reading this book there were a couple of questions that I want to continue to reflect on as I make edits to my WIP.

Do I have the right scenes to allow my character to show who they are?
Did I give readers enough backstory to understand where my character has been and why she may behave a certain way?
Are there different types of people in their network that allow you to see all sides of this character? In some cases, since this is a trilogy, those relationships are developed and played out over a longer character/plot arc.
Consider the characters we hate. What do they do that makes us dislike them? Typically they deliberately cause someone else to suffer (physically or emotionally) that is usually not deserving of that suffering, they lie or betray people close to them. Are my bad characters bad enough? Are my good characters doing things that on the surface look bad?

I'm going to use this as I think about my edits to my current WIP and I will include another brief post on the last third of the book that is devoted to POVs.

Back from Context 24

2011-08-28T08:44:00.000-04:00

One of my favorite activities throughout the year is hitting up the local conventions, be it scifi like Context or Marcon, or Romance ones like the COFW conf and writing retreat, they are great ways to connect with other authors and readers alike. Yesterday I was at Context, a small science fiction convention in Columbus and had a blast. Unlike the larger conferences, Context comes off as small, and intimate. You get a lot of one on one time with authors, agents or editors, including the Guest of Honor. That doesn't happen in larger conventions. Since I've been attending for years I've started to recognize a lot of name and made some great friends, many of whom I only get to see at conferences like this. Even if I don't sit on panels, I always leave feeling a little more recharged and excited about my writing.

Back to Reality: Insights from a WPF Newbie

2011-06-30T08:10:00.000-04:00

It's Thursday morning and I am still having trouble believing that I have been back from Seton Hill for 4 days. How is that possible? Or perhaps the more interesting question is why do I miss it so much? It's been hard to get back into my regular routine. I work from home and suddenly the house feels to quiet, to confining. I want to be creative and yet my projects feel stilted, the tasks not as interesting as they used to be. And yet there is so much to do. This never ending list of projects, tasks, chores, and now school work. It doesn't seem like there are enough hours in the day. Still I know that right now, this is my reality. I should embrace it, or at least try to. When I figure out the secret, I will let you know!

For the time being here is what I have already learned.

Do all the SHU Critiques prior to the residency. It sucks to have to find time during them to review people's work.
Take the day before off for travel. By that I mean, the day orientation starts, at 7 PM, take it off because travel always takes more time than you think.
Take the day after off for recovery. Although to be honest, I wasn't so much exhausted as I was desperate to test out all the new things that I learned. I wanted to dive right into my writing, instead I got to dive right into conference calls and problems that occurred at work during my vacation. I think part of my frustration stems from not being able to drown in my fictional world for a while.
Explain to people what a residency is. They don't know. Most of my co-workers think I was at a conference, lounging around poolside, and that I was back home by Friday. Even the ones I took the time to explain it to never seem to remember. Oh well.

So those are my immediate reflections thus far. Most important for me, I think is taking time off to ease back into to work, to settle into my new routine, and to find that balance. Right now I have no balance and little motivation as a result to do anything, including write or edit. But I have a long weekend coming up and I am hoping that will do the trick.

SHU Day One (or is i zero?)

2011-06-21T22:21:00.000-04:00

I made it! I am finally here in Greensburg at Seton Hill University for my very first official residency. Aside from getting completely turned around and finding myself lost before I even set foot on campus, I am having a blast. The rain that seems to have plagued Ohio seems to have skipped past western PA. The sun was shinning, it was hot and humid and just walking from my car to the admin building made me break out into a sweat. Why is it that the college campus is known for having crappy parking. I love that you can walk everywhere, but at this same time, I just wonder, why don't people just make more parking lots? Maybe it isn't aesthetically pleasing. I mean lets face it. It's a lot cuter to have 4 parking spaces in front of the admin building than say 40.

Okay, whining aside, today was a good day. I've already meant tons of people, from newbies like me, first years, that the actually refer to as the ones, to the 5s who are in their fifth term and I think ready to graduate at the end of the residency. Thus far the faculty is a hoot. The writers are passionate, welcoming and committed to learning and improving their craft. The dorm room is clean, the AC actually works (though it doesn't feel like it until you've been in the building for 30 minutes), and the beds are not too uncomfortable. The only bad thing thus far, there seem to be no trashcans in the suite area, not even in the bathroom. Yet there is a stack of towels placed by the double sinks, I presume so that we can wash our hands, but alas we must carry the dirty, soiled waste around with us until it can be properly discarded.

Note to self: there is actually life in Greensburg. Having family from small Ohio towns and gone to O.U. in Athens I've seen all different types of college towns. The main street and business district is actually a little bigger than I expected. A few miles down the street are all the comforts of home: Walmart, Panera and Starbucks. I'm going to have to venture back out at some point because I really need to find an alternative pair of shoes, and might want to pick up some milk for the fridge. Can't have my protein shake without milk, though I could but it doesn't taste as good made with water!

I need to go to bed now, maybe read another story and prepare for tomorrow's classes!

Wednesday Special

2011-06-08T22:13:00.000-04:00

It's been a very long week and I'm only halfway through it. So instead of doing my readings for school or polishing up the trainings for work, I'm sitting on the couch with a watermelon margarita and a never-ending supply of teenage goodness. Today's special, Kyle XY and Pretty Little Liars. I know what you are thinking. Random??? Yes. Netflix is my dealer. It supplies the goods. A constant stream of shows that I never had the desire to watch are suddenly populating my queue. And of course a show is ALWAYS better when you watch a couple episodes back to back. You can get hooked pretty quickly.

So that's my excuse for Kyle XY. I always thought of it as a kids show, something I'd never be caught watching. My father tried to get me to watch it once but I ignored him. He watches anything on TV, including Hanna Montana or Wizards of Waverley Place. But in the last year I've started watching more shows on ABC Family, Pretty Little Liars and Make it or Break it to name a few. I find them fun, distracting, full of teenage angst. Just the way I like my YA books! So when my dealer (Netflix) told me I would like Kyle XY I decided to give it a shot. Now I'm already on season 2.

And Pretty Little Liars, well I just love this show to death. They have the best dressed cast ever!! No one comes close on the teen scene, and even if we expand to all primetime the only possible challenger is Ghost Whisperer. But she's just one girl and PLL has four!

Don't believe me? See it for yourself.

Attack of the 80s Werewolf

2011-06-06T21:59:00.000-04:00

MTV is remaking the 80s classic Teen Wolf. You know, the movie with Michael J. Fox, the poofy fro and the fashion nightmare of a letterman's jacket. Not sure why they chose THIS movie. Perhaps they are the only studio in the world that couldn't secure the movie options for one of the millions of already popular Paranormal YA books out there. Everyone else seems to have a half a dozen.

The show premiered this past sunday after the MTV Movie Awards at 11 PM. Needless to say I was not present but my handy dandy DVR was. Or should I say the VCR 2.0 since we're reliving the 80s?

First Impressions

Overall, I found the show interesting. A little heavy on the testosterone, but hey, something's got to make it stand out from the other competing paranormals on the line up. It's not as glampy (glamorous vampires) as vampire diaries, rather the main character and his best friend come off as a younger less cool version of the Supernatural duo Sam and Dean. I suppose many of the younger girls might find them appealing. I am not quite sold.

There is, however good news and bad news. The bad? The first episode was a little slow and nothing much happened aside from a kid wondering around trying to figure out what is happening to him. We already know he's a werewolf the show is called Teen Wolf. Get on with it. The good? It's only the first episode and pilots have a habit of spending way too much time focusing on setting the framework for the story. If you survive a pilot and come back for more, that is typically a good sign.

Cherry on Top?
Derrick Hale. Our mystery werewolf, the super cutie bad boy who in my opinion stole the show. His real name is Tyler Hoechlin and you may remember him as the honorary sibling on 7th heaven. Martin that drove, Mary, Lucy and Ruthie completely boy crazy. Now he's driving an entire town mad and Lycanthropy may be the least of his issues.

All in all, I'm interested to see how this show develops. For those of you who missed it, here's a sneak peak.

Join us at Marcon!

2011-05-27T07:42:00.001-04:00

This weekend I will be returning to the biggest science fiction and fantasy convention in Central Ohio, Marcon and sitting on some very exciting panels. I have spent the week preparing for them and connecting with the other readers, writers and fans joining me up on stage. I cannot wait to see how much controversy we can stir up and hear what the audience has to say about one of my favorite genres of all time....Young Adult fiction!!! Yay. I am doing three different panels, one on Twilight: Breaking Dawn, one on Hunger Games and one general panel on Science Fiction and Fantasy YA. This is also great timing as I just chose my area of focus for my MFA and guess what, it's YA. LOL. Yes, I love this stuff.

Let me go back for a moment and talk a little bit about Marcon, because this convention in particular makes me very happy. It was one of the first, science fiction and fantasy conventions I ever attended. Prior to this, I would never have been caught dead at one of these things. At the time I didn't even consider myself a fan of SF. But like so many people I was quick to lump all types of speculative fiction into one large category. What I learned was that this writing community offers incredible wisdom, knowledge, intelligent and sometimes irrational debate and lots of great, lifelong friendships. I also discovered something that I haven't found at any of the other conventions offering writing workshops, at an SF and fantasy convention you come as you are, and are rarely judged for that. So if you want to walk down the hall like a storm trooper or a half naked blue alien like avatar, you go right ahead and do it!

Anyway, this year's theme for the convention is Alternative Histories with Guest of Honor Harry Turtledove. You can learn more about the con by visiting the site www.marcon.org. If you're in the area consider getting a one day or weekend pass. And chances are, if I'm not in a panel I'm in the bar!

New Contest Alert! COFW Ignite the Flame!

2011-05-26T06:11:00.000-04:00

So sorry to share this so late in the game. Total fail on my part, but for all you aspiring romance authors the Central Ohio Fiction Writers (a local chapter of the Romance Writers of America) is holding their annual contest for unpublished and aspiring writers. It's a great opportunity to get your work in front of an editor or agent (as they read all of the finalist submissions as guest judges) and get some helpful feedback on your work. It's relatively cheap, fun, and what author doesn't like a little affirmation that they don't completely suck?

Guest judges include:

Laura Bradford: Young Adult (Agent at Bradford Literary Agency)
Deb Werksman: Historical Romance (Editor at Sourcebooks)
Charles Griesman: Category-Length Contemporary (Editor at Harlequin)
Marlene Stringer: Suspense Romance (Agent at Stringer Literary Agency LLC)
Susannah Taylor: Single Title (Agent at Richard Henshaw Group)
Leis Pederson: Paranormal Romance (Editor at Berkley Publishing Group)
Lindsey Faber: Erotic Romance (Editor at Samhain Publishing)

For more details check out the following website: http://www.cofw.org/contest.html Oh and did I mention the original deadline was extended to May 31st! So keep your laptop close while you're lounging at those family barbecues and polish up your entry! There's still time to submit and you do not have to be a COFW member to do so!

Grad School Here I Come!!!

2011-05-25T05:30:00.002-04:00

OMG, how did I not post this on my blog?? Sorry my fun loving wanna be writer friends for the unnecessary delay. The great news is true. I was accepted into the MFA Writing Popular Fiction program at Seton Hill University! Yay! I start this June with my first residency and have been working frantically to get everything in order for the trip to PA and going back to school for the first time in seven years (even if it is a low-residency program). Between financial aid, registration, preparing for the writing critique groups and reading our official program wide book choice (Chosen by Jim Butcher), things have been very busy.

Of course now that I'm in the program I'm crazy nervous! How did I get into this program? What if my writing isn't really good enough? I sometimes feel like this is all just some crazy fluke and my dream of grad school and being a published writer is just that, a crazy dream. Then I remind myself that I was born to tell stories (good or not) and that I can't for the life of me imagine doing anything else with my time.

So yay for grad school. I hope you continue to hang in there with me as I continue this journey for the next three years! And if you have a dream (writing related or not) that you go out there and you find a way to pursue it.

Fun New Market Opp for Superheroes!

2011-04-06T16:24:00.001-04:00

OMG. This is now on my to do list. Am I the only one who gets a kick out of the thought of writing a superhero romance short/novella?

"Samhain has also issued a Call for Submissions for a Superhero Romance Anthology. Submit your 25,000 to 30,000 word story featuring a super hero (or super heroine). No fanfic, please. Deadline for submissions is September 1, 2011 for publication in Spring 2012"(courtesy of Cindi Myers Market News Blog).

Who is with me on this? Oh wait, maybe I shouldn't share. I might increase my competition!

Rumor Mill: Carina Press Editor Accepting Pitches

2011-04-05T21:57:00.000-04:00

So for all my wanna-be writers out there, rumor has it that Carina Press editor Gina Bernal will be accepting pitches at the Here Be Magic Blog tomorrow, April 6th, 2011. The post with instructions will go live in the morning and Gina will choose one winner to recieve a full or partial request from them. Check it out.

I've added her Bio from the Carina Press FB page below.

Gina Bernal

When Gina Bernal graduated with a degree in History and Literature from Harvard University, some (i.e. her parents) thought she would go on to further academic heights (i.e. law school). But Gina, a lover of commercial fiction, wanted to make books her career and jumped at the chance to become an editorial assistant in New York City (“They’re going to pay you how little?” her parents cried). Not counting her college stint as a reviewer for Romantic Times, she has over 6 years of traditional publishing experience, first working on romance and mysteries at the Berkley Publishing Group, then selling the heck out of books as editor of the Doubleday and Rhapsody Book Clubs. For Carina Press, she is actively seeking romance of all subgenres and heat levels, women’s fiction, historical fiction and suspense/mystery novels with strong female leads. Gina loves books that make her laugh, books that make her cry and books that do both. She’s a sucker for tortured heroes, unusual settings and classic themes with new twists.

You can follow Gina on Twitter @GinaBernal

Good Times for LSM

2011-04-04T17:51:00.000-04:00

Just a quick update on Love Sex Magick. I't been a good two weeks for writing. I've been submitting the novel to editors, agents and contests and am getting some good buzz. I've got two requests for fulls right now one from an agent and one from a publisher. I'm polishing up my synopsis so that I can continue submitting queries. My goal is to have five queries out to agents or editors for this book at al times. Once I get the other three or four out, I will spend my time editing Salem's Triad and Queen of Hearts! Hmm...I wonder if I can make three sales in one year. Happy writing all!

Guest Blogging @ Write in the Shadows

2011-03-30T21:09:00.000-04:00

Today I did a guest blog post over at Write in the Shadows on how to decide whether or not your paranormal creatures should come out of the closet. I've written novels with secret magical worlds and ones where the supernatural is out in the open and I've learned some interesting things along the way. I hope you'll hop on over and check it out!

Write In The Shadows: Come Out of the Paranormal Closet with Guest Blogger Melissa Ann Long...

No More Edits!

2011-03-17T19:21:00.000-04:00

It's official. Love Sex Magick is complete. I've gone through four revisions and am finally pretty satisfied with the final product. Which means I am no longer allowing myself to make edits. Why? Because I have three other projects waiting for my attention that need revisions of their own! I'm very excited because I feel very confident about submitting this to agents and editors. I also love that I have a first draft of book two already complete. However I am going to take a break from editing the Chai books and focus on Salem's Triad Trilogy. I think I might be able to find a home for it, given the obsession with dystopian fiction right now and the number of credible E-publishers vying for fresh voices. It's a completely different type of novel than the Chai books. But again, that could be a very good thing.

Oh and I got word that my SHU application is complete. All of the material has arrived and I should know by the end of April. Now if I could just do my taxes to make sure I can actually afford this!

My RPG Adventure

2011-03-17T08:14:00.001-04:00

The other day I participated in my first ever RPG. For those of you already lost that is short for Role Playing Game. Having attended many a Sci-Fi Convention I am not completely clueless about the world of RPGs. I knew a couple of the basics. Most well known: Dungeons and Dragons. Necessary tools: Dice? Die? Dices? Whatever the proper plural form, it amounts to several of all sizes and colors. People: Obsessive personalities with overactive imaginations.

Okay, so maybe claiming to know the basics is an overstatement. Though I’ve crept past the game room at Marcon with tepid curiosity I’ve never actually went in. Aside from a brief encounter with a fan based RPG of Laurell K. Hamilton’s Anita Blake novels in 2003 I have no experience with RPGs whatsoever.

So when my high school friend and her new husband invited me to join them for an afternoon of RPGing (hmm is that even a word?) I had to say yes. If the hubby could convince my friend to play and actually enjoy herself, then there might actually be something too this. After all how hard could it be?

Famous last words, she says with an overconfident strut.

So here’s the run down. The game was Gamma World, a post-apocalyptic Science Fiction RPG. I love post-apocalyptic dystopian societies, so this didn’t feel like a huge stretch outside my comfort zone. I arrived a little after 12:30. At 2:00 I was still fine-tuning my character. I had no idea how much work went into building your character and coming from a writer, that seems an odd revelation. In hindsight I wish I could have spent more time figuring my character out. I never even came up with a name!

The other participants arrived, packing loads of sugar and caffeine. Despite the sheer awesomeness of my character I began to get nervous that I might say or do something stupid. I still didn’t know the point of the game. Were we fighting each other or a common enemy? How did we know when it was over? Is it ever over?

The game started out slow. I sat back, trying to get a better feel for what was supposed to happen. I spent more time trying to identify the dice and practicing my simple addition than actually being strategic about my moves. It was much more entertaining when I called out my roll and let the guys figure out what the numbers meant. (Yes, I’m okay with setting the feminist movement back a few years with that statement). But eventually I did start to get the hang of it and actually enjoyed myself.

We completed two encounters and no one managed to get killed. Given two folks died during their last gathering, I considered this a huge success. Though I wish I could have gotten more accomplished. I wanted to get a better sense of the story. What was our purpose and what would we discover when we succeeded? I suppose I’ll have to return for another adventure, if I want to figure that out.

So what’s the verdict? I’m not quite sure. I may need to give it a whirl another time or two before I can actually feel confident in my assessment. I didn’t outright hate it. It was better than having a root canal, or listening to an entire opera in French. That is a good sign. But I also did not leave thinking I’ve found the next best thing since deep-fried Twinkies. To be fair I don’t like Twinkies either. Fried pickles maybe, but sweet stuff shouldn’t be fried.

The one lesson I learned is that inspiration can come from anywhere. The thing I loved most about my RPG experience was the randomness and consistency that the dice provide. You have a set of rules to determine the outcome and the rest is left to chance, not opinion, not majority vote, just sheer luck of the roll. It’s the same reason that I enjoy games like the Sims so much. My job as the player is to react to the set of circumstances presented to me. I get to create a character, build a life, and then work desperately to keep them alive despite the chaos around them. There’s nothing better than looking up on the screen to find your Sim has electrocuted herself tying to repair a TV or your character fell asleep in the pool and drowned. I like reacting to situations or circumstances outside of my control. In fact, if EA would take the Sims World with all its functionality and build a post apocalyptic setting for me to play in, I’d have a blast.

Now, as I finish editing one novel, I realize that perhaps there is a way I can add more randomness to my novels. One friend actually built a novel using tarot card readings. Another person has used a character generator to choose names or auxiliary characters. As much as I love playing God, I worry that sometimes my work can feel too manipulated. I love that breath of randomness that fate provides. I’ll play around with it and let you know what I discover. But if anyone has any advice on keeping random acts of fate in your stories, please share!

Building A Clean Manuscript

2011-02-27T10:11:00.000-05:00

There is a great post about cleaning up your manuscript that I discovered via twitter. Boy I do love those random links I click. Since I am right smack in the middle of edits and starting to get a little anxious about the 40,000 words left on my plate, this was a great reminder at why I need to take the time and the energy to push through this before focusing on putting together my submission package. I do believe this will be the last edit of LSM because I am finally happy with the quality of writing and the story that has thus emerged. The changes also work nicely with the second book, which I just finished writing the first draft of last month. See how the timing works out?

To be honest I think every person should take their finished, fully edited work, hide it under the bed and work on another project. Just let it percolate a bit. Then come back to it a week or two later and look at it with a fresh perspective. If it still feels clean, well then you are good to go. But there is nothing worse than thinking you've caught everything and hitting send only to discover the typo three days later.

Anyway, here is a link to the post. http://www.annemini.com/?p=14389 It's a bit lengthy, (I skipped the excerpts because they felt redundant and over exaggerated. The point was clearly made without them), but for a new author just taking on the editing of a massive project like a novel it could be helpful.

For me the best part of it was her definition of a clean manuscript.

"A clean manuscript, for benefit of those of you new to the term, is industry-speak for a manuscript completely devoid of misspelled works, grammatical gaffes, dropped words, incorrect punctuation, logic problems, formatting errors, clichés, or any of the many, many other small errors that make those of us trained to read for a living grit our teeth because we see them so very often. Indeed, Millicents and contest judges are often specifically instructed to consider seriously only clean manuscripts."

I love this description because this is exactly what a writer should be working towards, it is the end goal that you should aspire to achieve BEFORE you start to query an agent. And in my opinion, this is what the last and final round of edits should be focused on. But I won't go into my theory on what the editing process should look like yet. I'll save that for another post. Hopefully when LSM is ready to be sent out, (again).

Pitch, Pitch, Pitch

2011-02-22T21:37:00.000-05:00

You know me! When I find a hot new article I just have to share it with my friends. Today twitter pinged me with some unexpected NaNoWriMo goodness. (If you aren't familiar with NaNoWriMo check out the following Posts: Taking on NaNoWriMo Part 1 and Taking on NaNoWriMo Part 2)

The Book Doctors, just wrapped up the NaNoWriMo Pitchapalooza, and randomly critiqued 25 of the submitted pitches for this year's NaNo projects. They have posted all of the examples on their site, along with a description of what works and what doesn't. The pitch is definitely something that varies from person to person, but I always encourage writers to pay attention to what the industry professionals are saying! You never know when you are going to find that golden nugget of information that might help you get noticed.

There is also a second element to the contest, you can actually vote on your favorite pitch! The downside, the voting system is a bit archaic, requiring voters to send an email to the Book Doctors with their choice, but it's still a neat idea.

Oh, and if you are looking for more pitch related sites, here is one of my favorites: Evil Editor.

Love Sex Magick Update

2011-02-22T09:52:00.001-05:00

Now that I have finished a first draft of the second book in the Chai Macek series I've gone back to my edits on the first, Love Sex Magick. Unlike the first three rounds I am actually finding this bout of edits fairly manageable. Perhaps because at this point I'm focused on line edits. Fixing sentence structure, cutting unnecessary words and correcting the odd typo. I'm very excited about my progress thus far. I'm on track to finish edits by the end of the month (which if you're counting is less than a week away). This weekend I edited 114 pages! I would have managed more, having Monday off for President's day, but I needed to finish my letter of intent for my Seton Hill application.

So that's what I've been doing this month. With the edits wrapped up at the end of the month I will begin querying agents and editors. I think in March I will take a break from this series and do edits/revisions to a quick Novella that is almost complete. I'd like to test the waters with a few e-publishers and I think the break from these characters will be good for me. I should be able to wrap that project up in March and at that point I suppose I will have to pick straws to determine which project I want to work on next. I need to figure out how to write AND edit at projects at the same time. But with my current full-time job, it makes it difficult to even get in the time for one of those activities, let alone both. We'll see. If anyone has suggestions on how they manage multiple writing projects at the same time I'd love to hear it!

Seton Hill University

2011-02-16T21:36:00.001-05:00

So I did it. I've been thinking about it for years, I mean years, and I finally did it. I made the decision to apply for the MFA Writing in Popular Fiction program at Seton Hill University. I am nervous and excited at the same time. As I prepare to submit my application I have moments of sheer panic, when I ask myself what the hell am I doing? Do I seriously think I have the time or the money to do something like this? Am I going to go crazy from sleep deprivation or reality TV withdraw? Hopefully the answer is no. For one thing, I don't sleep as it is. Might as well do something productive with my time. And on the TV, well let's just say that's why I pay the big bucks for a DVR that can record up to 4 shows at a time! I may be able to cut the real housewives, but I am not giving up my teen soaps. After all I want to write YA. Doesn't that count as research? Hmm...I wonder if I can buy stock in the CW and all their teen angst shows? That would be a good investment given they're as addicting as crack.

My application is almost complete. I've got fantastic friends who have agreed to write glowing letters of recommendation. I've got a polished writing sample. I've got the transcripts ordered from my undergrad program. (BTW--I seriously had no idea what my accumulative GPA was. Do people remember things like that?) All that is left is the Personal Statement. Yes. The dreaded personal statement with no parameters or guiding questions whatsoever. I started a draft last week, before all my traveling set in and rambled on for at least two single spaced pages and never even got to my writing goals! Oh goodness. I guess a little exploratory writing couldn't hurt. I'll have plenty of stuff to cut later, though the delete key just doesn't have the same effect as ripping a piece of paper out of a notebook, balling it up in a crinkly wad and chucking it across the room. Not that I've ever done that. But I like the dramatics of it all.

So, yes. To answer your unspoken thought, I should be working on that personal statement. I most certainly shouldn't be updating my blog. But oh well. I had five minutes of not sleeping time to use up.

Fun Valentine Treat

2011-02-10T08:32:00.000-05:00

E!Online is running a competition similar to last year's Entertainment Weekly comp that declared Damon Salvator, aka Ian Somerhalder the ultimate sexy beast alive, or is it dead? Following the same bracket formula E!Online has lined up some of today's hottest TV couples and pitted them against each other. Now you have a chance to make your voice heard by voting your own favorites into the next round. There is definitely some tough competition. Some of my faves:

1. Damon and Elena (Vampire Diaries)
2. Bonnie and Jeremy (Vampire Diaries)
3. Peter and Olivia (Fringe)
4. Hodgins and Angela (Bones)
5. Ezra and Aria (Pretty Little Liars)
6. Kurt and Blaine (Glee)
7. Michael and Nikita (Nikita)

I could go on and on. Just thinking about the day when some of these couples will stop dilly dallying around and throw a stake in the ground gets me all flustered. So go vote. Be Happy. February is apparently the month of love (and bitterly cold snow).

The first round of E!Online Competition: Tv's Top Couples ends Feb 14, so get steppin!

NaNoWriMo Winnings

2011-02-01T08:41:00.001-05:00

Yes, I may have forgotten to report my NaNo Winnings on my very own blog. What can I say. December seems to suck the life out of you with all its parties and gifts and outstanding shopping. But I was still able to make progress before the madness kicked in, clocking in my NaNo journey with 54,000 words on my current WIP (work in progress). And technically I did it in just over three weeks, because there were many days that were lost do to travel, a couple work engagements and well, Thanksgiving. I did learn that while booze may make for fluid writing it does not help you to remember to save your work or help you find said work the next morning. Lesson learned.

In January I was able to finish the first draft of the novel, so I wrote an entire novel in three months, which is a brand new record for me! I've set it aside while I polish up book one and make some small adjustments that allow LSM to better lead into book two. Then I will come back with fresh eyes for major edits. The only thing keeping me going is that I know if I can get the book cleaned up it is a really strong story and I do believe both books can sell. I've put a stake in the ground and declared 2011 my year. So its all or nothing.

Congrats to all winners! Hope you all were successful this year too!

Halfway there....

2010-11-16T07:10:00.000-05:00

Howdy from Texas! It's official. We've crossed the halfway point in both days and words. I just hit 31k last night. So I am ahead of the official pacing. Yay! I still have a long way to go to get to my personal goal. Can we say turkey and dressing and keyboards oh my! Today is day two of conference week. It is 6:00 AM Central time, and I have twenty minutes to get dressed and 15 minutes to write, if I am lucky. Then set up. I'm wondering when throughout the day I can sneak in some extra words. I just can't stand a day with zero. I'd love to write more, but no time to waste. Maybe tomorrow.

Week One Comes to a Close

2010-11-07T10:23:00.001-05:00

Hey Folks,

The end of Week one is drawing to a close and a lot has happened in my NaNo Journey. I'm still ahead of the official NaNo pace, with 14,665 words. I am pushing to get to 20k by the end of the day. It's not the writing itself that takes time but the knowing what to write that is hard. This year I've been scene jumping, which basically means that if I don't know exactly what is supposed to happen in a certain scene and I don't want to waste writing time trying to figure it out I move on. I'm using Scrivener so it is easy hop around and lets face it, by the time I finish this first draft there is a good chance I am going to move these scenes around anyway, so why stress about writing in chronological order?

I think it has actually made me more productive. I mean sure if I skip scene two and then later when I actually get around to writing it discover that my main character only has one leg, well yes I am going to have a lot of editing on my hands. But I know my characters pretty well and I know the story. So major revisions as a result of left field surprises aren't as likely. In my opinion, it's too much time and energy when what I need to be doing is polishing it up and sending it out. But jumping scenes allows me to write what I'm most passionate and excited about. There are certain character who when brought together on stage are just hilarious. Those scenes are fun to write and because they come so naturally. I can move a lot faster in a short amount of time. And once I work out the logistics of a scene and better understand the character's motivations, those scenes will become fun too and I get really excited about cranking them out.

So here is the plan for today. I'm going to take a few hours to plot and outline so that I can keep cranking out pages this week. With all of the craziness at work this is the only time I have to do that stuff. I'll through in a couple of writing blocks in between so I can move further ahead in my word total. It is kind of a catch-22. I can either write fast now, get to my goal and then get stuck tomorrow and fall behind or pause and strategize so that I can keep writing this week without spacing out. I think I will go with the later, in an attempt to save my sanity. But well see how that goes.

Thanks for all your encouragement. Click on the chip-in widget to donate to Wicked Jungle and the OLL foundation. We are still far from our goal and even a dollar helps!

NaNo Day 2

2010-11-02T23:12:00.000-04:00

Today was a rough day. I woke up this morning and was still exhausted. My stomach was upset, I had trouble writing and about a billion emails waiting to be answered. Long days of both writing and work are hard. One can only spend so much time staring at a computer screen. Somehow I managed to squeak out another 2350 words, which puts my two day total somewhere around 5200. I also managed to eat all of my emergency chocolate. In my defense, it wasn't that much chocolate to begin with and if it had been a true emergency, I may have perished. But still. Not a great way to start the second day. Hoping tomorrow gets better. I like that I have some scenes planned out, but wish that I had more time to prep! It makes the writing go so much faster. That's all. No great words of wisdom today. Just proof that you can keep slogging through even when all you want to do is crawl into bed and eat chocolate.

Become a WickedNaNo Warrior!!

2010-11-01T15:07:00.000-04:00

Follow the instructions below to sign up as a WickedNano Warrior (because writing 50k words in one month is mostly about slaying the procrastination dragon). Share your NaNoWriMo user name and add a link to your own website, blog, or facebook page so supporters can follow your progress.

NaNo Is here!

2010-11-01T09:15:00.000-04:00

It's November first and that means NaNoWriMo has officially started. I stayed up until Midnight so that I could celebrate the start of November with the first 500 words of my book. I made good on my promise to do my first hour of writing in the morning, before I switch gears and devote all my time and energy to my real job, and yes, I got my day one goal in. Now I am working towards my "stretch goal" of 2800 words, which means I still have about 1000 words to write tonight. But I think that is doable. If I can get more, I might keep trucking along. I need to make up for the days I know I will be too crazy busy to get my quota.

I love the first scene (which is almost complete). It is sooooo good to be writing again and my characters are very happy to see me. It's like the first day of school after a long summer break and we are all eager to see what is going to happen this year.

Stay tuned!

Happy Halloween! From Melissa and Glee!

2010-10-31T17:49:00.000-04:00

Nano is fast approaching. I can feel my pulse quicken at the thought. Seven hours to go...now six...I wonder if I should stay up late just to start my official writing at midnight. Regardless, it's not November yet. So I'm going to sit back and enjoy a little Rocky Horror Glee Style. Dance with me! Happy Halloween!

Taking On NaNoWriMo (PT 2)

2010-10-19T09:42:00.002-04:00

Must Have Resources

Now that you’ve got the basics, here are a few must have resources to help you stick to the rules!

1. Visit the Official NaNoWriMo site www.nanowrimo.org

2. Do the plotting and character development exercises

3. Get the write (he, he) software

So that’s it! Happy writing and good luck. Feel free to share any tips your your NaNoWriMo username in the comments. You can find me as Meliwriter!

Taking on NaNoWriMo (PT 1)

2010-10-18T09:00:00.006-04:00

NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month, is an annual writing challenge that takes place every November. Each year participants attempt to write a 50,000 word novel (I say novel loosely because most novels today are much longer than this) during an intense thirty day period. For a professionally published author making a living writing full time, this may seem as easy as tying your shoes, but for an novice writer who has never finished a manuscript or an aspiring author trying to pursue their dreams of a writing career while juggling the demands of everyday life, the task can seem as impossible as climbing Mt. Everest. Don’t worry! We’ve got you covered. I’m using today’s post to share my strategy on how to take on this mammoth beast and succeed with flying colors. Read on to learn more.

Basic Rules

Let’s start with some basic ground rules. Because you can either set yourself up for success or failure. And we don’t want you go cripple yourself before the challenge even starts. You wouldn’t enter a marathon without training right? Well, consider this your boot camp. Listen and learn.

Rule #1. Don't Wing It

This year I will be doing even more plotting and character building. Not because I am completely anal, but because I cannot stand editing and want to minimize the amount of time and energy I need to devote to that portion of the writing process. I tend to get stuck there, dreading out of place commas, typos, and entire scenes that need to be rewritten or worse. It sucks and anyway I can make it easier on myself so that the novel goes out the door faster and I'm back in the more creative realm of writing, the better.

I am also doing a significant amount of prep work because my goal is actually not to write 50k words. My goal is closer to 85,000 or about 2800 per day. That's where most of my manuscripts wind up and I'd like to have a full first draft done at the end of the month. I truly believe, that if you know what you're doing, it isn't impossible to do. But you can't get there with out a clear vision and actionable strategies that will get you across the finish line.

Rule #2. Set a Schedule

Rule #3. Eliminate Non-Essentials

Rule #4. Reward Yourself

J.K. Rowling on Oprah

2010-10-03T20:49:00.002-04:00

So if you missed it on Friday the lovely Jo shared amazing insights during her interview with Oprah about life after Harry, dealing with success, and coping with failure. If you can get your hands on the full interview I highly recommend it. It's much better than the little excerpts I found on the site. Regardless, here's a sneak peak.

10 TV Characters Who Need a Spin-off Series

2010-06-14T16:58:00.001-04:00

Check out this article over on tvsquad.com on 10 TV Characters Who Need a Spin-off Series! As a fan of True Blood, Weeds and Entourage (no I am not a pay for TV cable snob I just like showtime and HBO) I agree that these characters would make some fine spin-offs. Lafayette is one of those characters who is so much more developed on the show than I think he ever was in the books and as a result he is pretty freaking awesome. I was devastated at the season one cliffhanger when I thought he might be dead. But I hear Alan Ball loves Lafayette as much as the fans do, so he may be safe for now.

And what about Andy from Weeds! Hello. He is my favorite character on the show by far. I agree that the show is getting a little old. Can I technically say that If I watched all five seasons in the last two weeks? The earlier stuff was much better and really, how much more trouble can Nancy get into? Mexican Drug Lord Politician is pretty freaking big.

Check out the article and let me know your thoughts. Who do you want to see get a spin-off show?

Eclipse Soundtrack Coming Soon!

2010-06-06T18:45:00.002-04:00

A few lucky Twilight fans had the opportunity to listen to the The Twilight Saga: Eclipse Soundtrack and there have been pretty good reviews. There are two versions available. The standard album has 15 tracks but the deluxe version has a whopping 19 songs. I have to admit, I was not a fan of the New Moon Soundtrack. I purchased a few individual tracks, but wasn't impressed enough to buy the entire CD. Ah, the beauty of the digital music revolution. I do own the Twilight soundtrack and I absolutely love it. And I am psyched about what I am hearing for the Soundtrack for the latest movie.

Here is a sneak peak, the Muse, Love is Forever video.

If you liked that you can check out more samples online soon. The albums release date is June 8th. Check it out.

Last Chance Contest at Wicked Jungle

2010-05-31T18:57:00.000-04:00

Just a quick post to let you all know that if we get 50 blog subscribers over at Wicked Jungle by midnight tonight (May 31st) all members will be entered into a cool grand prize drawing with signed goodies from Jim Butcher, Rachel Vincent, CT Adams along with bn.com gift cards. You never know, you could be the lucky winner!

Wicked Jungle Contests!!!

2010-05-21T10:12:00.000-04:00

If you haven't done so already hop on over to Wicked Jungle! We are having a fun time giving away cool signed books and RT Swag. There is a new contest each day and a grand prize drawing at the end of the month. Here's a list of all the goodies up for grabs. Some items have already been claimed! Sorry for not posting over here sooner.

The PRIZE:

Each daily winner will have the option of choosing an autographed copy of the following books:

C.T. Adams & Cathy Clamp--Touch of Darkness
L.A. Banks --The Forbidden (Selected by previous winner)
Mary Janice Davidson--Undead and Unwed (Selected by previous winner)
Mary Janice Davidson--Undead and Uneasy
S.J Day--Eve of Darkness
Devon Monk--Magic to the Bone (Selected by previous winner)
Devon Monk--Magic in the Blood (Selected by previous winner)
Kat Richardson--Greywalker
or an un-autorgraphed copy of one of the following books:

Rachel Caine--Kiss of Death
Jocelynn Drake--Nightwalker (Selected by previous winner)
Angie Fox--The Dangerous Book of Demon Slayers
Richelle Mead--Succubus Blues (Selected by previous winner)
Linda Wisdom--Hex in High Heels
Each book is also paired up with a swag bag, which contains buttons, postcards, bookmarks, and posters (some signed, some not). Each bag varies and winners will not have the option of pre-selecting the swag-bags.

Winners of the daily contest will automatically be entered into the grand prize drawings (winners to be announced May 31st). This includes the RT 2010 Tote Bag, Strange Brew Anthology (signed by Jim Butcher), signed posters, books, swag and your choice of a $25 gift e-gift cart to borders.com, bn.com or amazon.com. (Second place winner will receive similar package with signed poster, tote bag, and $10 gift card).

Giving Back i.am home fund

2010-05-10T16:52:00.000-04:00

For those of you who know me personally, you know that I am a compassionate and giving person. My entire working career has been focused on helping those in need. I believe in helping those less fortunate than myself and know that making a difference in someone else's life is a priceless experience.

So when I saw this, I had to share, because I know so many people that are struggling and I love when a celebrity is willing to share their blessings with others not because it is the cool thing to do but because it is the right thing to do. Please share this with someone in your life and remember to pay it forward. Their is joy in giving!

RT 2010 Update

2010-04-30T11:15:00.000-04:00

The conference is a blast,and yet totally and completely exhausting at the same time! How can that be? I've met a lot of new friends (so nice to put a face to the online folks I've been chatting with) and gotten lots of great info from the panels. Last night I went to the Faery Ball and got my picture taken with Charlaine Harris! Yes, I know you are jealous. This is the second time I have met her. She was at DragonCon last year, and I just love her to pieces. Her accent and sense of humor are the best. I'd love to just sit on the porch with her, drinking sweet tea and talking vampires. LOL.

I had some audio of the first panel she moderated but the battery on my recorder died and I lost the entire file! I am going to try and get some more today.

There are book signings this afternoon and tomorrow. The Saturday one is open to the public so if you are in the area stop by and you can meet up with more than 300 authors for just 5 bucks! I also have an appointment with another editor this afternoon to talk about some of my short fiction. I was going to do a straight pitch, but really I think I will use the time to ask her a bunch of questions. I don't know if I am ready to pitch my novella yet. I have been so obsessed with Love Sex Magick that the novella has become the neglected baby in the family. but I am super interested in learning more about the changing nature of these epublishers. I look forward to picking her brain!

I did survive my first live pitch for Love Sex Magick. I was very nervous about the whole thing, despite the fact that my day job involves training people how to make pitches for fundraising! I used the same basic principles for this, and once I had my pitch outlined, I practiced on my writing group, with my parents and even recorded myself so that I could watch it and give my own feedback. Super helpful if your nervous, because you get all the rambling and stammering out of the way and the pitch has a flow and a pace that makes you look like you know what you are talking about! Which of course you do, because you wrote it, right!

Okay beeps. It's officially time for me to hit the rode. It's after eleven and even though I am annoyed that I could not find my black skirt for the vampire ball, I am going to truck on. I've got things to do and people to meet/greet. Tomorrow I will be posting pictures and maybe some video, maybe. I'm not making any projects. But man, it is crazy how much I miss writing and my time to work on the blogs, when I am at things like this. Sometimes I just need an hour or two to recenter and feel connected to everyday life.

Happy Friday!

Wicked Jungle (AKA me) Going to RT!!!

2010-04-26T19:23:00.004-04:00

If you don't know what RT is or why we are so excited over here at Wicked Jungle, RT is short for the Romantic Times Booklovers Convention and this is our first year, well my first year, attending. We can't wait to spend five whole days mingling with authors, chatting with fellow fans, and generally just geeking out about books.

For those of you attending be sure to look for us. We have some spots in Promotional Row, with a giveaway sign up and free chocolate (first come first serve). I will be attending some of the parties and socials, including the RWA FFP chapter cocktail on Tuesday evening.

For those of you not attending, please don't fret. We will be blogging live from the conference. We will be tweeting live from the conference. We will be interviewing and attending signings, and basically getting tons of information, all of which we hope to post on the site for our readers.

Check out www.WickedJungle.com to find out which of your favorite authors are attending and get updates throughout the week. Follow @wickedjungle on Twitter or use the #WJatRT hash tag to get updates.

Freaking OUT about RT!!

2010-04-23T10:57:00.000-04:00

Dystopia What-ah??

2010-03-31T07:00:00.001-04:00

One of my favorite YA series out now is the Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I know your jaw just dropped because you can't believe that I read something other than paranormal romance and urban fantasy. But I do. In fact, I've been craving it recently. Something different, something original, something that doesn't feel like the author created a replica of the exact same supernatural world that existed in the last five books I picked up off the shelves. It doesn't mean I love my PRUF writers any less. Hell, I am one of them! But it does mean that I was eagerly searching for something different to fall in love with.

Boy did I get my wish. I discovered the Hunger Games after attending a YA panel at DragonCon last year. Their were several librarians who basically went through about a hundred YA books out today and gave quick summaries/reviews on each. We had the opportunity to follow along on our own list and mark off anything we wanted to check out based on their comments. Hunger Games was one of those books.

I wasn't certain if I would like it but like many readers, I feel in love with it as soon as I picked it up. It was a surprising delight (not the story, but my love for the story and the characters) because it was so unexpected. It was the same feeling I had when I picked up my first Twilight book back when no one knew what Twilight was. But, I digress!

So you get the point, I love the books. I can't wait until the third book comes out (which happens to be the week of my birthday). As I was browsing blogs for the blog hop I discovered an interesting little challenge that Parajunkee was running over at her site and I just had to join in on the fun.

Parajunkee's Dystopian Challenge: The Rules

No I know you are thinking, what the heck is Dystopian Fiction! I could answer you, but Parajunkee does it so much better. Click on the link above to learn more about Dystopian Fiction and the Challenge that ParaJunkee's View has thrown down. There is also a great entry on Wikipedia that lists out Dystopian novels by decade. So no matter what you prefer, the classics or the new stuff, there is something on the list for you. I think I can conquer the challenge. I'm excited about trying, even if we are a few months in. I've already got three books that fit the bill right now. Anyone going to join me?

Book Blogger Hop!

2010-03-30T07:00:00.000-04:00

It's that time again!! Okay, well technically it was that time again last Friday, but I have been so busy I haven't had an opportunity to post about all the good finds! So without further introduction..."It's Peanut Butter Jelly Time!! Peanut Butter Jelly Time, Peanut Butter Jelly Time!!" And by that I mean it's Book Blogger Hop Day.

For the full list visit www.crazy-for-books.com

First off, if you aren't familiar with the Book Blogger Hop let me take a few moments to explain. Basically, every Friday Jennifer starts a post in which anyone with a book blog may add their link. After listing your blog (along with some basic descriptors such as new, old, type of content, etc.) you can browse the list and discover great new sites. I discovered the site about a week ago, so this is my first official time participating but I did find some great reading buddies that I am now following. I wanted to take a moment to share some of my favorites.

1. Confessions of a Book Addict http://bookaddictchris.blogspot.com/

A fun YA book review site done by a teacher (Yea, we love teachers!). I was particularly impressed with her review of Hex Hall, as I had just finished reading the book and was looking to get other folks opinions on it.

2. Obsessed http://paranormal-obsession.blogspot.com/

Another YA blogger, this time focused on my favorite, Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy! I have to admit, Bella won my heart over with her post on the Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. It is more science fiction than PR or UF but one of my fav books out in the YA market right now. Bella is doing a huge give-away with some great new and gently used books. I encourage you to check her out!!

And last but certainly not least

3. Parajunkee's View http://www.parajunkee.com

First off this site is gorgeous!! I love it, I love it, I love it. Aside from great reviews and news updates on her site, she does fantastic blog design work and get this: you can commission her to work on your very own project! How cool is that? You know that old saying, "you can't judge a book by it's cover"? Yeah, its true. Or at least partially. Covers sell books and I am of the strong opinion that a professional looking blog will get you followers. You only have four seconds to capture a new visitor and convince them to browse around on your site. Wouldn't you want to make it count?

Alright folks, that is it. I have more things to do. Can't play all day. If you find a fun site on the blog hop let me know! I can't visit the whole list each week! It's ridiculously long now, but that is a good thing.

New Resources for Authors

2010-03-29T18:15:00.000-04:00

I wanted to take a few minutes to talk about a new site that I joined a few months ago called Savvy Authors. This is paid membership group for writers of all genres, new and established. Their focus is on promotion, networking and craft. They offer a lot of great writing resources including a query tracker, an auto critter, craft worksheets and a plethora of free and low-cost workshops. You do not need to be a member to sign up for the workshops but you do get a discount on workshops and the annual fee for membership is relatively low cost.

One of the most exciting new projects they are piloting is a new Blog Tour Wizard, which helps members find blogs for which they can do guest posts! It is still a work in progress, so it is not perfect, but I have high hopes for this and Terry, who is managing the development of the tool is really committed to making it work. Now here is the good news for some of you.

You do not have to be a member to sign up your blog!

Woo Hoo.

So if you are interested visit www.savvyauthors.com. Right now I am taking an amazing workshop by Holly Lisle on Crash Course Revisions. I am really excited about this because I find the revision process to be frantic, stressful, and anxiety producing. Her method of doing revisions is very structured. It is focused on getting through the edits in a timely manner and avoiding things like doubt or perfectionism. I have a habit to fall victim to both! You may still be able to sign up. We are only two days in.

Wicked Jungle, Wicked Awesome

2010-03-29T09:45:00.000-04:00

So by now you probably already know about my pet project, "Wicked Jungle", (especially if you are a regular follower of my blog). I am having a blast with the site and this morning I did my very first interview as founder, creator, editor, grand poobah of all things Wicked Jungle. Can I get a "Woot, Woot"?

You can check out the interview over at Pop Culture Divas (http://www.popculturedivas.com/2010/03/its-wicked-jungle-out-there.html). Let me know what you think. Of course, if you haven't already done so, you can check out Wicked Jungle too...www.wickedjungle.com. This week we have Laura Bickle, author of Embers doing a guest post on magical places.

If you are interested in doing a guest post or would like me to guest blog on your own site email me directly at melissa@wickedjungle.com. Please include guest post in your subject title so I don't lose your email!

Happy Monday! Happy Passover for those who celebrate!

What's On My Bookshelf

2010-03-21T19:52:00.000-04:00

I went to the bookstore this morning and bought two knew books. Both of them YA, both new authors that I am excited to read. One of which will be doing a contest for Wicked Jungle next week!

First Book: Hex Hall by Rachel Hawkins

Back Cover Blurb:
Three years ago, Sophie Mercer discovered that she was a witch. It's gotten her into a few scrapes. Her non-gifted mother has been as supportive as possible, consulting Sophie's estranged father-an elusive European warlock-only when necessary. But when Sophie attracts too much human attention for a prom-night spell gone horribly wrong, it's her dad who decides her punishment: exile to Hex Hall, an isolated reform school for wayward Prodigium, a.k.a. witches, faeries, and shapeshifters.

By the end of her first day among fellow freak-teens, Sophie has quite a scorecard: three powerful enemies who look like supermodels, a futile crush on a gorgeous warlock, a creepy tagalong ghost, and a new roommate who happens to be the most hated person and only vampire on campus. Worse, Sophie soon learns that a mysterious predator has been attacking students, and her only friend is the number-one suspect.

As a series of blood-curdling mysteries starts to converge, Sophie prepares for the biggest threat of all: an ancient secret society determined to destroy all Prodigium, especially her.

Book Two: The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting

Back Cover Blurb:

Violet Ambrose is grappling with two major issues: Jay Heaton and her morbid secret ability. While the sixteen-year-old is confused by her new feelings for her best friend since childhood, she is more disturbed by her "power" to sense dead bodies—or at least those that have been murdered. Since she was a little girl, she has felt the echoes the dead leave behind in the world . . . and the imprints that attach to their killers.
Violet has never considered her strange talent to be a gift; it mostly just led her to find dead birds her cat left for her. But now that a serial killer is terrorizing her small town, and the echoes of the local girls he's claimed haunt her daily, Violet realizes she might be the only person who can stop him.
Despite his fierce protectiveness over her, Jay reluctantly agrees to help Violet find the murderer—and Violet is unnerved by her hope that Jay's intentions are much more than friendly. But even as she's falling intensely in love, Violet is getting closer and closer to discovering a killer . . . and becoming his prey herself.

I can't wait to check em out. So far the reviews for both look good.

Twilight New Moon Giveaway

2010-03-20T10:44:00.000-04:00

Hey Peeps,

We have a contest running on Wicked Jungle and are giving away the NEW MOON DVD and SOUNDTRACK!!! It is really simple. All you have to do is post about the contest on your blog and add the link to the Wickedjungle.com comments so that they can verify your entry. You can get additional entries by adding Wicked Jungle to your blogroll or joining the Wicked Jungle Fan Page on Facebook.

Good Luck! Please feel free to repost!

Weekend Fun: Free Excerpts

2010-03-19T17:25:00.000-04:00

Imagine my delight when I found this fun little link waiting for me on my Facebook page yesterday! Pocket Books is offering a free sampler from some of my favorite authors! Definitely check out Embers by Laura Bickle and Bad to the Bone by Jeri Smith-Ready. Here is the rest of the line up:

MASTER OF NONE By Sonya Bateman

EMBERS By Lauren Bickle

AMAZON QUEEN By Lori Devoti

SHADOW BLADE By Seressia Glass

SPIDER’S BITE By Jennifer Estep

WEB OF LIES By Jennifer Estep

DEMON POSSESSED By Stacia Kane

NECKING By Chris Salvatore

BAD TO THE BONE By Jeri Smith-Ready

Enjoy! Let us know if you have a favorite!

VIVA LAS VEGAS!!!

2010-03-14T15:20:00.000-04:00

That's right! I am in sin city for the first time ever and despite the fact that this was not part of my budgeted expenses this year and I paid a fortune the opportunitiy presented itself and I knew it would be critical for my writing.

Your writing? Yep. My writing. That's what I said. I am doing research for the sequel to Love Sex Magick and it takes place in Las Vegas. We have lots of new characters in this book. One owns a chain of casinos and hotels, the other, a very underground night club. Having never been to Vegas, I felt like it was essential to get the true feel of the city. I am a visual person and I really wanted an authentic and realistic representation. I also feel like the city itself acts as another character in this book given the plot, that did not exist in the first book. So it is really important that I get this right.

Thus I have a suitcase full of goodies. I brought my new flip cam, the tripod. I have my nikon for photos. I have my iphone for voice memos/recordings and I have been taking notes like crazy. Each day I do a quick video of my reactions. What new things did I discover, what was unique about the city that I wouldn't have found out in a book or online. I prefer to take cabs to all the places (though my mom and her roomie would disagree) because the drivers are a wealth of information. I went on a small tour of the strip and was able to learn a ton about the rhythm of the city and have an excuse to take video and photos without explaining that I am researching a book. Though I know some folks were probably like, why is she taking pictures of random things in the hotel? Hasn't she seen a food court. LOL. Oh well.

I am still deciding but I think i am going to create a fictional casino/hotel but it will be a combination of several different pieces. I took photos of places that felt like they would fit the vibe and vision of what I am looking to create and will add them to the Book 2 Wiki. Yes I said Wiki. I am a nerd. I have a central document where I keep all of the basic stats of the series, character profiles, setting descriptions, timelines, and misc. research. It is so helpful, especially during the editing process to ensure consistency throughout three hundred plus pages of text. If you don't have one I suggest you get started. Especially if you are doing a series because you don't have to go back through the manuscript of book one trying to remember how you described a character's apartment when you are writing book four. It's a time killer! Just ask any of my published friends.

Okay I have rambled enough. I am going to be leaving the strip today. Should be interesting. I will post some of my favorite pics as soon as I get home. Well by the weekend for sure.

Theme of the Day....

2010-03-08T22:15:00.000-05:00

Today was all about revisions...apparently the cosmos want me to know that I'm not alone in my struggles to get LSM ready for prime time. Two quick examples that I just had to share....

1. The Simpsons episode this evening starred Mel Gibson who was screening a movie in springfield and obsessed with good reviews. Of course Homer gave a negative review and despite the fact that all of the other review were amazing he became obsessed with creating a movie that stood up to Homer's taste. Of course, that was a horrid idea and you can only imagine what happened!! It was pretty appropriate, given my mood yesterday.

2. Had to share the quote of the day that I randomly stumbled upon on the FF&P Blog. "We all know the secret to good writing is rewriting--or at least we should! I’ve never met an author who turned out a perfect manuscript on the first go." Again the perfect sentiment for where my mindset is this week.

Anyway, hope you all are doing well. Please say hello and if you get a moment hop on over to my side project www.wickedjungle.com. We have two new stories up and would love to know what you think.

Working out the kinks....

2010-03-08T01:40:00.000-05:00

I thought I'd get a lot of edits done this weekend but alas, I got very few. Which is completely frustrating. To be honest I've been in a little bit of a funk the last two days. I'm struggling with the edits to LSM, getting feedback from a lot of different people and of course there isn't much agreement on anything. So now I am stuck with the challenging task of deciding which feedback is worth embracing and which is worth tossing. Because lets be real, you can't please everyone and that is certainly not my objective. On the other hand, it is foolish to believe that your work cannot be improved upon. To be honest, I think it is one of the harder aspects of writing. Everyone has an opinion and some people are going to like your work and some people aren't.

So here I am at 1 in the morning, rambling on my blog because I am feeling not so good about the status of my novel. Wait, I should clarify. I love the book. And having the feedback of my peers has given me some insight which I know will only enhance the story and the likelihood that it will sell. I think I am simply disappointed that not everyone loves all of the characters as much as I do. Which perhaps is my fault. I'm not sure. It seems that I failed to do my job as a writer and provide them with opportunities to fall in love with the characters or sympathize with them or at least stop hating them. Annoyance and hatred I didn't expect. But then I think about some of the books I've purchased and hated. There are character's that I cannot stand, series that I have stopped reading because I didn't agree with a major plot point, (like killing off a beloved character). Certain things are not my style or preference, but plenty of other people love it. So in general does everyone but me hate the characters or is it a matter of preference. Are people just being nice to spare my feelings when secretly they don't like or get the characters either?

This is where I get into trouble and have to distance myself. This is also why I am writing this post. Because I, Melissa Ann Long, am a people pleaser. I like praise, recognition and will often ignore my own thoughts or feelings in order to receive the praise and approval of others. I've been doing it for many years. In fact, some of my earliest memories deal with me sacrificing my happiness and well-being in an effort to seek approval from someone else.

On the flip side, I am also incredibly harsh on myself. I put so much pressure on myself to be perfect that the fear of failure paralyzes my ability to move forward. I just finished watching the Oscars and am reminding myself that I am willingly choosing to be in a business that is full of criticism. That in itself is a huge risk. You have to have enough confidence in yourself to keep moving forward even when some people think you should walk away. You have to have a vision of who you are and what you want to become even if the end seems impossible to obtain. I know that I am not perfect and that is okay. I know that I am not defined by the thoughts and opinions of others, which if you can come to that point in your life, is an absolutely freeing moment.

That said, I am not posting this to whine about crits of my work that I don't understand or disagree with. I am posting this because I know there are other writers struggling with the exact same thoughts and emotions. As writers, we like to pretend that it is all so easy. Writing is hard. Rewriting is hard. Releasing your project for the world to see, judge, love or hate, is even harder. But you aren't alone and just as I am going to keep tweaking LSM and trying to get this book published, so should you follow your dream, no matter how far off it seems.

Peace out for now. I really need to try and sleep, or tomorrow I am going to be one cranky lady.

Writing Update

2010-03-04T13:33:00.000-05:00

It's been a while since I posted, well by a while I mean two days! I know, can you believe it. My new MacBook has got to be my favorite purchase in a long, long time. Probably haven't been this excited about something since I purchased a Wii two years ago. Anyway, I wanted to give some quick updates on my writing and various projects.

1. Love, Sex, Magick. I am actively seeking an agent and getting ready to submit to some publishers that don't require an agent. In fact I sent out the second query this morning. I'm starting to get a little nervous. One woman told me that she sent out 62 queries before signing with her agent. Another only did four or five queries. Talk about a drastic difference. It makes me wonder, was the quality of the work that different or was it just a matter of luck and timing. So much of securing an agent is about finding the right person with the right need that can fully represent you and your work. That is not an easy thing to do. I guess my writing grants for non-profits has helped me mentally prepare for this. I know that you are going to get a certain amount of negative responses. Inevitably people are going to say no and it doesn't always have to do with the quality of the validity of your project/work. Sometimes there are factors at play that you couldn't have known about or cannot control. That said, all you writers who are struggling on this journey with me: chin up! The sun will always come out tomorrow.

2. Wicked Jungle. It is up and running and in full swing. We posted our first round of fiction on Monday. Two really fun short stories that I think you will love. I've been tweaking the layout. All posts on the homepage now have thumbnail images. We are adding profiles on some of our favorite books. Let us know if their is a new novel coming out that you think we should feature. If you are a new author and want to do a guest post we can arrange that as well! Basically, it is a lot of time but I am having so much fun and the Mac has made my life so much easier. I can barely work on the Dell anymore.

3. General Writing. Started outlining next book in the LSM series. It takes place in Las Vegas and coincidentally I will be in Vegas next week. Hopefully I will have my new flip cam with me so I can document some of the "what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas" moments. I'm planning on doing a few touristy things and exploring some of the hotels and casinos. One of my characters owns a Casino and I am curious to see if something their matches the vision in my head. I'll get off the strip a little bit. My company has an office about 6 miles away and hopefully I will work from their one day. I should probably think about general questions I want to ask residents of the city and see if I can pick their brains.

Anyway that is it. My life is all about writing, Wicked Jungle, and more writing.

Fun to be had for Writers

2010-03-02T20:16:00.001-05:00

Just wanted to share a few fun things happening around the blogosphere this week. Writers, this post is for you!!

Jane Friedman of Writer's Digest has a weekly feature on her blog where she recaps the best writer tweets. My favorite one by @MarleneStringer "Received 12 rejections in one day? STOP subbing that Q! You are targeting the wrong agents, or the Q needs revision".

Check out the rest of the article here: Best Tweets for Writers

Also the Guide to Literary Agents blog is hosting its third "Dear Lucky Agent" Contest and this time the focus is on Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy authors. So if you fall into this category, I would hop on over to the site and check out the contest rules. I already sent in my entry. I figured, what could it hurt. Apparently they do these contests a couple times a month and the genre changes with the agent. So bookmark the site and check it out every so often to see what they have lined up.

Alice by Avril Lavigne

2010-02-27T12:47:00.000-05:00

Have you seen this video yet? I love this song so much. I can't wait to see the new Alice in Wonderland movie. Despite the fact that I have to admit I did not like at all the disney version and have never finished the book.

Special Alert!! Publishing Opportunity with Juno Books

2010-02-27T09:43:00.000-05:00

Urban fantasy authors with a finished manuscript looking for a publisher should check out Juno Books. For a limited time it sounds like they are accepting submissions. Must be those overly productive snowy days that got Paula all caught up. Three of my favorite authors are published by Juno and they have had a great experience thus far. So I strongly encourage you all to take advantage of the opportunity and let me know how it goes.

Check out the Juno Authors
Alayna Williams http://www.alaynawilliams.com/
Laura Bickle http://www.salamanderstales.blogspot.com/
Linda Robertson http://www.wolfsbaneandabsinthe.com/

Happy Half- Birthday to Me!!!

2010-02-26T08:53:00.000-05:00

Today, Feb 26, is my half-birthday. I know. My parents say it is silly to celebrate your half-birthday. But I find that sometimes we don't spend enough time celebrating. Why should I have to wait a whole year to celebrate all the good things that are happening. Half-Birthdays are great, they are low pressure, don't require a ton of gifts or extravagant parties. It's just you and the people you care about most, having a good time.

Which is why of course I am posting an entry on my awesome blog. Thanks so much for being a part of my writing journey! When I make it big (notice I said when, not if), I will always remember the blood, sweat, and tears we shared together. There is always time to chat with friends and fans!

So what is my half-birthday present....

I'm getting a MACBOOK!!!! Woo Hoo. Tax Gods finally came through and that money is burning a hole in my pocket. I will take pictures and post as soon as I have it in my hot little hands. And yes, that is a very extravagant gift for a half-bday present...but this is a big half-bday. I'm going to be 30 in six months! Eek. That makes me feel so old and yet so established!

Cheers!

No Go for Amazon Competition

2010-02-25T18:15:00.000-05:00

I finally found out about ten minutes ago that I did not make it to the second round of the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Competition. I don't know whether I should be sad or relieved. I was starting to get nervous about the timing of the whole thing. I really wanted to start sending out queries to Agents. In fact I sent my first official query out yesterday and I was a nervous wreck. I kept thinking, what if she is really interested and I have to explain to her that the book is in this contest and Penguin has first right of refusal for six months. Ugh. I can't imagine how that conversation would go.

On the other hand everyone likes a little self-gratification. Even though I know the competition favors mainstream vs. genre, it would have been nice to feel like someone thought it was good. Even if it was three judges I know absolutely nothing about.

Oh well. Now I am free to pursue the agents, which is what I wanted in the first place. I am hoping to meet with a few in April at the RT convention.

Keeping Your Writing Spirit Alive

2010-02-25T09:01:00.000-05:00

Many of you know that I recently entered Love Sex Magick into the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award competition sponsored by (you guessed it) Amazon and their subsidiary CreateSpace. I was super excited about participating as this was a low investment, low risk opportunity that allowed me to feel like I was doing something with my novel. For those of you who are not writers, this business is all about the waiting. It takes months, sometimes years) to get a manuscript ready for primetime, especially when you are a new writer and still developing your craft. I wanted to feel like I wasn’t just waiting for a response from an editor or agent. I wanted to know that I was taking advantage of all opportunities to get this baby published.

Today is the first deadline for the competition. Over the last two or three days I have been reading through the forums, and let me just tell you, it is completely depressing. Some folks have entered this contest year after year. They spent months before the submission period even opened, working on their submission and fretting over how quickly the 5,000 slots would fill up. I have heard a lot of bad things about the competition: that it is disorganized, that it is a complete crap shoot, that your odds of winning are like winning the lottery!

Everyone is entitled to their opinion and there may be some truth to the disorganization and lack of structure of the competition (at least in year’s past). What worries me is how much weight folks are putting on this single opportunity for publishing. You probably have a stronger chance of getting published by submitting your manuscript to an agent or editor the traditional way than entering a competition with 10,000 other contestants vying for two spots. Knowing this, why would you define the success of your writing career on whether or not you win this competition? My goal was never to win. If I do, well that would just be a high power at work. My goal was to make it to the online voting. I wanted to have my excerpt on the site. I wanted to generate a little bit of traffic to my blog. I wanted people excited and interested about my novel and eagerly awaiting my next move. And maybe there was a little bit of self-indulgence here. I just wanted some validation for the quality of my work. As an aspiring author, we don’t get that opportunity very often.

Unfortunately, not having realistic expectations can really mess with your mind and your confidence as a writer. So can hanging around too many aspiring authors that are caught in that negative cycle of, “this is a complete waste of time,” “no one ever gets published,” “I’m the world’s most amazing writer and the industry is screwing me over.” Seriously, get a grip. I believe one should have confidence in themselves and their work. I also believe that sometimes writers are overconfident and can’t see the flaws in their own work because they are simply way too close to the project. It’s like thinking someone else’s kids are spoiled rotten brats and not realizing your children act the same way. Parents are often blind to the flaws of their children and in some cases for good reason. Writers tend to do this too, simply because they have invested so much (time, money, blood, sweat and tears!) into their manuscript. But to be successful in this business we need to know how to take criticism of our work and use it to make our writing better.

One man made a post and said he had been rejected by nearly 100 editors. My first thought was, did you learn anything from any of those rejections? For me, after the first twenty five I might have signed up for some consultation sessions at a conference with an agent or editor or submitted it to one of my writing groups with the specific intention of trying to figure out what is not working.

Call me crazy, but I believe that if you are a strong writer and put together a strong novel, it will get published. Someone will eventually buy it or agree to represent you. The bottom line is publishing is a business and if they think your book will sell and make money, they are not going to turn you away. The man I referenced above, after reading more of his posts I realized he knew very little about the business of writing. The methods in which he was using to get in front of a publisher and try and convince them to buy his work was probably contributing to his lack of success in that endeavor. Bottom line….if you really want to be a published author: (1) write a good story, and (2) learn the proper etiquette of the business.

Love Sex Magick Update

2010-02-24T17:37:00.000-05:00

Big stuff happening over here in Melissa Land. Today I submitted my first official e-query to an agent at the top of my dream agent list. I have had the query written for about a month but was still making tweaks to the first chapter. Then I submitted the novel into the Amazon Breakthrough Novel contest and the timing just didn't seem right. Now I am attending the RT Booklover's convention and planning on meeting with Agents and Editors there too. Anyway, to make a long story short, I decided it was time to take the plunge. Hitting send was the hardest thing I've done thus far. And to make it worse this particular agent doesn't send rejections...so I have to wait a month or so and if I don't get a bite that means they are not interested.

Wish me luck. Lots of opportunity to make it pro this year. I have book two started and a YA in my back pocket.

Wicked Jungle

2010-02-21T09:00:00.013-05:00

If you haven't checked out Wicked Jungle yet you should. It's a new online community for paranormal romance and urban fantasy readers and writers. Honestly, there's a little something for everyone.

For new and aspiring writers: The site is looking for flash fiction and short stories in the genre to publish. Payment is exposure only, but reprints are welcome. This means that fun little piece you wrote for character development, to test your writing muscles...you can submit that. Or the flash piece you shared on your website or blog last year, you can submit that too. Wicked Jungle wants fans of the genre to be able to find short fiction and discover new authors, especially while that author is in that illusive stage between having a contract and waiting for that book to hit shelves.

For published authors: Wicked Jungle wants to celebrate and promote your success. If you have a published novel on book shelves now they will happily post an excerpt and cover image to feature on the home page of the website. They also have a guest blog which you are welcome to use to post contests and give-aways around the time of your book release.

For fans: As if having access to new flash fiction and short stories in the genre weren't cool enough and the contests, guest blogs, and book excerpts weren't the cherry on your hot fudge sunday, we also have wicked awesome media for you to enjoy. There is an entire page devoted to videos and you can find all of our favorite book trailers in one central place. This is also home to their own video book reviews, author interviews and other Wicked Jungle goodies.

So head on over to WickedJungle.com now and check it out. Better yet recommend it to your friends and followers.

The Olympic Games: Obsession or Passion??

2010-02-20T08:33:00.000-05:00

The Winter Olympics are in full swing as I write this and I can't help reflecting on a comment my mother made some four or five months ago about obsession. I don't recall the entire situation. We were probably in the car, on our way home from the gym, and I was ranting about some new concept or idea I had. I was more than likely overly excited about it, as I tend to get when I think about all the possibilities for the future. Anyway she made a comment about my having an obsessive personality. I.e., when I fall in love with something new (a book, a fitness regimen, a skill or hobby) I like to learn as much as possible as quickly as possible. I recognize that I don't have the time or ability to be an expert at everything but there are a few things in my life that are huge priorities for me and thus I allow myself to be "obsessed".

My writing is one of those things. I have to make certain sacrifices for my writing. I don't have a life because most weekends are spent writing or doing something for my writing. I spend a lot of money to attend workshops and conventions where I can meet authors, agents, and editors. My mother doesn't get that. I buy a lot, I mean a lot, of books every year to support my fellow authors, to know the trends in publishing and make certain I am offering something fresh and new to the genre. My mom definitely doesn't understand that. In her mind, that is obsession.

But as I am watching the Olympic games and hearing the personal stories of the athletes who have triumphed to win a medal I realized that for some reason with Athletes it is different. Their whole life is often devoted to a certain sport. They have been playing that sport since they were a child. They are at the gym every day for hours at a time. Some of them were home schooled so that they could prioritize their training and travel schedule. Their parents paid money out the wazoo to get them lessons, coaches, equipment, training facilities etc... If that isn't obsession, I don't know what is.

I suppose the point I am trying to make is that maybe obsession isn't all that bad. What seems obsessive to one person may be passion, commitment, or dedication to another. You certainly can't be successful without any of those three things. I read an article a few years ago on what makes some people successful and others give up on their dreams and it stated that for most people it takes an average of 10 years for them to reach their dream. Business men, athletes, actors, writers...we don't start off at the top of our game. We put in a lot of long hours under the radar before we get our big break. People will call us obsessed, or worse just a dreamer. That is until we make it. Then people write books about how our passion and commitment. Oprah made a comment years ago about how luck is merely preparation meeting opportunity. I truly believe that. If you haven't put in the time and the effort, you can't take advantage of opportunities when they are presented to you. Those billion dollar actors didn't fall into those roles. Most of them spent years training, washing dishes, taking low wage hourly jobs before that lucky break came along and when it did, they were ready. We tend to forget that.

The reality is, most people look at the finished product, a person or business in their prime and think, I want to have the life that they have. The reality is, most of us aren't willing to do what they were willing to do to get there. Show me someone at the peak of their career and I will show you someone who was "obsessed".

Tax Gods are Good

2010-02-15T09:14:00.001-05:00

The taxes are in and I'll give you five guesses on how I am going to spend my money! Yep. Macbook here I come! I've been waiting so very long for this day. For those of you who don't know, I have had nothing but problems with my computers the last three months. That combined with all the video editing and design I have been putting in for Wicked Jungle and I really need something that is going to be better suited to meet my needs. It may be a bunch of branding B.S. but I am converting over to Apple and me and my iPod, iPhone, and Macbook Pro will be one very, very, happy family. (PS, not sure if I will get the macbook pro. It all depends).

Stay tuned! Maybe I will do one last video with the old webcam to show off the new computer. :)

The White Death

2010-02-12T16:43:00.001-05:00

Otherwise known as the winter of 2010, the White Death is clearly upon us. For those of you who don't know this about me, I hate snow. I hate it. I hate walking in it, I hate driving in it. I don't sled, skate, ski or snow board. I hate boots, gloves, hats and mittens. I absolutely cannot stand the way the bottom of your pant legs get wet when walking to or from the car. Or how your socks get wet when you do that delicate dance to try and remove both boots without getting snow on the carpet or falling on your A**. Yes. I hate the fluffy white stuff. I might get a little sentimental on Christmas morning or when I see a beautiful forest covered with glistening icicles or shimmering snowflakes. But that is about as far as my love goes.

Thus I am planning on relocating in the next five years (as soon as I can convince my very needy parents to retire) to somewhere sunny. I don't care if I have to live surrounded by blue-haired old ladies. Everyone has to make sacrifices. I don't particularly like hurricanes either...that makes me nervous, but I love water so I think I am going to have to get over that.

Here are some photos of the white death...which incidentally has been great for my productivity. Lots of writing, lots of work on my special project. It's too bad I work at home and don't get a snow day from my real job. :)

I hope spring comes early. I've got some serious cabin fever working.

My Pet Project

2010-02-12T10:30:00.002-05:00

So I haven't been posting much or tweeting much, which has led many to ask, "Melissa, just what have you been doing all these months while you were away?". The answer is writing, writing, writing. You may have saw in my other post that I finally finished Love Sex Magick. I entered it in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award competition last weekend. I have three very nice queries written (thanks to my crit buddies over at OWN) and a list of my top five dream agents sitting on my desk as we speak. I plan on getting those out the door this month and seeing if I can get any traction on the book.

I have also been working on a novella, or at least I thought it was going to be a novella. It seems to be stuck somewhere between a very long short story and a very short novella. Lucky me. Another something I won't know what to do with.

The last big thing I have been working on, (as you may have guessed from the title of this post) is my very own pet project, Wicked Jungle. This is a new website that I have been slowly putting together entirely devoted to paranormal romance readers and writers. I created it in response to some growing frustrations my friends and I were having about the limited publishing opportunities for new writers in the genre. When I first started writing I wanted to do short stories, in fact, everyone told me I should start there first and for good reason. Short stories allow you to hone you writing skills. You get to explore things like character development, dialogue, description and world building without committing a year or more to a project that, let's face it might not be too good. The only problem, I was spending all this time, writing shorts that no one would ever see. There were no paying markets in the genre. There were barely any non-paying markets.Sure I could post my stories on my own website, but how were new potential readers and fans ever going to find them?

I am a big believer in reader loyalty. I think the genres have some of the best and most supportive fans in the world. I believe that readers have the ability to help launch an author's career. If that person has been exposed to their writing and enjoyed it, they are much more likely to bookmark their web page or jot down the release date of their new book when it comes out. If most readers are anything like me, when they find a new author they like, they run out and get all of their books at once and pour over them like a crack addict in need of a serious fix. Okay, so maybe most readers aren't like me. But some of you are! The ones who are reading my blog are! The ones who search internet sites to get the latest news on their favorite authors are! The ones who go to very scary albeit fun conventions and stand in line for hours to get two books signed by their favorite vamp loving novelist are!

So to wrap this up, I was told the market wouldn't/couldn't handle a paranormal romance and urban fantasy e-zine because our fans wouldn't buys short stories, that they didn't want to read them, but I think that is complete B.S. I think the real problem is that the true fans of Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy simply don't know where to find these great short stories! The genre is hot, people love it. Just look at the explosion of the paranormal in the last five years. Better yet, look at how many blogs and webpages there are devoted to nothing book paranormal or urban fantasy book reviews! It is crazy. The fans are out there. My goal...to provide a place where fans and writers can connect. Thus Wicked Jungle is born.

I encourage you to hop on over to www.wickedjungle.com and check it out. If you are a writer and you have something you'd like to share send me an email or check out our submission guidelines. If you are a reader, let me know what you think? What would you like to see most on our site?

We are slowly building up our library of great material. In the meantime please spread the word with your friends and followers. We have a fan page on Facebook. We have a twitter account. We even have a YouTube account! Yep, we're everywhere you want to be.

It's Official! Love Sex Magick Out!

2010-02-06T08:01:00.001-05:00

I know it has been a while since I posted but I'll have you know I was actually working hard on my latest project. Last night all that hard work paid off and Love Sex Magick has made its first public appearance with a submission to the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award competition. You can read more about the competition at the link above. If your an aspiring writer and have a book lying around submissions close tomorrow at midnight.. If anyone has competed in past years, what did you think of the opportunity? I am hoping to make it to the actual reader voting stage. If I do, you better believe I will be promoting the heck out of it online and asking for your help in driving votes to Amazon.

Thanks to all who provided feedback prior to submission and the girls of OWN who are reviewing as I prepare to land an agent. Me thinks this is going to be an interesting year. Of course, because there is no rest for the weary, I am off to go write the first chapter of book two!

More Dragon*Con Goodies

2009-09-11T07:44:00.000-04:00

So I went to my first ever Dragon*Con last weekend with some gals from my writing group and if you couldn't tell from the previous posts we had a blast. It was completely exhausting, but that was to be expected. I was pretty bad at taking pictures, the first day I forgot to charge my camera. Then it was usually burried in my bag so that I couldn't get it out in time to get a picture! My friends were much better at this, so here are some of my fav pics they took and the links to their sites so that you can see some more!

Check out Linda Robertson and Laura Bickle's blogs for more pics and hillarity:
http://wolfsbaneandabsinthe.blogspot.com/2009/09/things-i-heard-at-dragon-con.html
http://salamanderstales.blogspot.com/2009/09/more-dragoncon.html

Cute Little Blog Award

2009-09-09T21:06:00.000-04:00

Thanks to Amanda for passing on the love! One of my favorite things to do is commiserate with other writers and lucky for me the internet has made so gosh darn easy to do!

Before I dive in to my nominations lets go over the rules of the game!

1. Thank the person who nominated you for this award.
2. Copy the logo and place it on your blog.
3. Link to the person who nominated you for this award.
4. Name 7 things about yourself that people might find interesting. (see below)
5. Nominate 7 Kreativ Bloggers.
6. Post links to the 7 blogs you nominate.
7. Leave a comment on each of the blogs letting them know they have been nominated.

Okay, here are my seven fun facts about myself:

1. I am totally addicted to The SIMS. It is one of my favorite computer games of all times. I have versions 1, 2, and 3. Though my computer needs to be fully upgraded so that I can really enjoy the newest release. Sometimes I use the characters from my favorite books as inspiration in my game.

2. I love the geek revolution that is taking place. Its suddenly cool to be a gamer, to know a little about technology,to be obsessed over a tv show that isn't star trek. I've enjoyed my ride.

3. Writing is all I have ever wanted to do. My dream is to be able to support myself with my writing full-time and to become one of those authors who writes books that readers savor for a special "lazy day". I just want folks to relax, laugh, and enjoy my novels.

4. I suffer from the oldest child complex. Though in my defense I might just be the only sane person in my family.

5. I may write gritty, passionate, cynical stuff but deep down I'm a total romantic. I believe in soul mates and true love. I'm still looking though so if you're out there...hem hem...any day now. lol.

6. If I could choose one fictional world to live in it would be Harry Potter. There is something beyond magical about the world that JK Rowling has created. It is so much more than spells or potions. She made that world come to life right off the page and it's completely addictive.

7. I absolutely hate revisions with a passion. I know that it is necessary, but it is like pulling teeth for me. I love getting crits and feedback, but actually making the edits, cutting scenes, adding scenes, rearranging scenes...it's a pain in the you know what. I think I am going to have to just set aside my vacation to do nothing but revisions and crank them out like boot camp. That way they are done and I can more on.

Last but not least:

Here are my nominations for cool Kreative Bloggers. They include fellow urban fantasy authors and some of my favorite book review sites.

Linda Robertson: http://www.wolfsbaneandabsinthe.blogspot.com/
Laura Bickle: http://www.salamanderstales.blogspot.com/
Donna a.k.a Fantasy Dreamer: http://fantasydreamersramblings.blogspot.com/
Reverie Book Reviews http://reveriemedia.blogspot.com/
The League of Reluctant Adults http://reluctantadults.blogspot.com
Preternatural Reviews http://preternaturalreviews.blogspot.com/
SciFiGuy http://www.scifiguy.ca/

What I do when I'm supposed to be writing...

2009-09-08T18:37:00.002-04:00

Discover random contests for signed copies of Breaking Dawn (4th twilight book) on twilightguy.com. You love me don't you??? I knew you did. All you have to do is click on the link, hop on over to Twilight-Guy's post and leave a comment! Warning, there are already 630+ comments and the drawing is completely random. you don't get any extra shots for commenting on my post either! But you're welcome to do so.

And just for fun, another random new moon spoof/video.

Tom Felton: Saturday 9/05 panel Dragon*Con 2009

2009-09-08T10:06:00.002-04:00

I know I talked about how much fun Tom Felton was, so to prove it I am posting a little clip from the panel I was in on Saturday. Enjoy!

DragonCon Recap: Day 3

2009-09-07T17:26:00.004-04:00

Boy am I exhausted. Let me tell you, I thought Saturday was crazy...Sunday at DragonCon is like the last hurrah. I could not believe how many people were invading the streets of Atlanta. There were some great panels today and a few that I wanted to get on but couldn't.

I had to be up bright and early for a session on Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy, in which the panelists discussed the differences between the two sub-genres. It was relatively interesting but a lot of it was stuff I already knew of or read. No big revelations here. For some of you looking on great definitions or explanations of Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance here are some good articles/essays.

Notes on Urban Fantasy...http://juno-books.com/blog/?p=410
Angry Chicks in Leather...http://fantasyhotlist.blogspot.com/2008/12/ad-lib-column-lilith-saintcrow.html
More Thoughts on Angry Chicks in Leather...http://www.lilithsaintcrow.com/journal/2008/12/more-thoughts-on-angry-chicks-in-leather/

Then I went to one on strong female protagonists. This panel was a lot of fun, though unfortunately about 20 minutes through it moved to the topic of sex. I'm not sure why because in my opinion strong women does not automatically mean that they have to be sexually active/promiscuous. In fact, when talking about the genre of paranormal romance and urban fantasy in general it feels like some people like to use sex as part of their definition. Sorry, but it doesn't work that way. My character has sex. I like to read about character's having sex. There's nothing like that moment in a book full of sexual tension (or in some cases a series) when the two characters finally give in, let go, and have at it. But still, it doesn't define the book or the character. The act or omission of sex certainly doesn't make a strong female protagonist. You can't say that the chicks who are tough don't get into the mushy stuff and have sex because that's just not true. Likewise there may be real strength in a very promiscuous female resisting sex. It all depends on the story and the character. If you stay true to that character you'll be good.

Anyway, if you are really interested in having good sex writing good sex...Stacia Kane did a whole series (Be a Sex Writing Strumpet) on her blog. http://stacia-kane.livejournal.com/tag/be+a+sex-writing+strumpet

I hit up the Bite me Panel with some of the heavy hitters writing vampire fiction right now (AKA Charlaine Harris, Sherilyn Kenyon, Chelsea Quinn Yarbro). How cool was it to listen to the three of them talk. One thing that continually impressed me was how respectful they were of other authors when answering questions, specifically about Stephanie Meyer and Twilight. I believe it was Chelsea who reiterated that for a woman to make it that far and be that successful in writing is huge. I agree. Writing in general is hard. Charlaine made an additional comment, that she had a target audience and she hit a bulls-eye. Good for her. It also helped to increase the sales of other PR/UF authors and get publishers/agents/buyers to look at vampires and urban fantasy that before they wouldn't even have considered it.

I attempted to go to a panel called life in the Dollhouse, but it was full so I'll just tell you what I love about the show. It's great. It's funny. I love the concept, it reminds me of Dark Angel, which is also a show I was a fan of many years ago. I don't get the science behind everything but the great thing about a show like this is you don't have to. The science isn't shoved down your throat. You can still understand the plot. You can still like the characters and question their motivations. Fabulous! Can't wait for season 2 which starts Friday September 25th. If you like Urban Fantasy, check it out. http://www.fox.com/dollhouse/

And least but not least I got to listen to the creative director/editor of Weird Tales. Stephen Segal is a pretty cool guy. Definitely has his you know what together. He took over Weird Tales a few years back. I knew that they were doing some major revamping, but since I stopped writing short stories, I haven't put much effort into following their progress. Apparently last month they won a Hugo for best semiprozine and that is a huge, huge, deal. Big upset considering Locus has dominated for years. They have a new fiction editor who was also nominated for a nebula I think, so it looks like the future is bright for them. Congrats! If you've never checked them out I encourage you to do so www.weirdtales.net. In the mean time here is a quick video to wet your appetite. All in all, it was a good day.

DragonCon Recap: Day 2

2009-09-06T09:00:00.003-04:00

Howdy from Atlanta.

I'm tired, slightly hungover and wishing this stupid hotel had roomservice. Or should I say inn, because it really is an inn not a hotel. I guess because I travel so much for work now I am super spoiled. Oh well. Life goes on. I'll just have to use some of that super huge advance I'm going to get to pay for my lavish room next year.

Highlights for the day...

Got to meet Tom Felton, the guy who plays Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter films. Well, technically I didn't actually get to meet him. I got to be in the same room with him, about thirty yards away and listen to him talk. Fun, fun, fun. He kept saying that Rupert Grint (who plays Ron) was super funny, but Tom was pretty funny himself. He talked about the other actors, what he wants to do after HP. He said that he got a handwritten note from JK congratulating him on his performance of Draco in the last movie (which OMG was absolutely great if you haven't seen it yet, shame on you!) All in all, I have to admit, that I'm kind of crushing on him a little bit. Oh and yes his hair was still blond. Though he did say the moment he got rid of the color people didn't recognize him!

I also went to the twilight session and "met" the actors who play Carlisle and Eric. Sorry Twi-harts, they just weren't as interesting as Draco. They didn't have much to say...the questions fans were asking were pretty lame, although Tom has gone through a lot more movies and probably done events like this a billion times, he was just more interesting. I will say that DragonCon was Tom's first con ever and he was having a blast. He kept saying that he wanted to bring all his friends back because they would never believe the stuff he was seeing unless they saw it with their own eyes. True, true.

Last big panel I was on was a Southern Vampire panel called undead in Dixie. It was a lot of fun. Charlaine Harris was on it, so of course it was packed. I'm not sure why they had it in such a small room. Hello! But the moderator asked cool questions, kept it focused on the topic. Everyone seemed to have a good time.

That was my day. I spent a lot of time waiting around. Got lost a couple times. Did some writing in the hallway. Yep. The glamorous life of a no-name writer.

Dragon Con Day 1: Recap

2009-09-04T23:06:00.005-04:00

I feel like I should start this post with the ridonculous horrors that was our arrival into Atlanta for the DragonCon09 but to be honest, it is still a very painful and bitter memory. Perhaps once I am home and nothing else can go wrong as part of my DragonCon experience I will share. Instead I will start with today, the official day one.

First a pick of Linda Robertson author of Vicious Circle enjoying the cosplay!

Registration. OMG. I knew this con was big, but somehow that did not translate to me the potential nightmare of the logistics for things like registration. All and all, it was very smooth. I was so impressed that even though it was an hour wait, the line was moving steady and no one was complaining. I did hear that people who registered the night before (on Thursday) had a much longer wait for pre-reg but then again, they were also free to attend the earliest panels.

DragonCon TV: Too cool. I love it. If you are at one of the con hotels check it out. If you're not, you can check this out online and get the scoop on DragonCon first:http://dailydragon.dragoncon.org/

The Hotels: If you can manage I say room in one of the hosting hotels. It just makes things easier. I find the layout of the Hyatt, which is where the Dark Fantasy/Horror/Romance track and the writing track are, to be very confusing. Sometimes I forget which hotel I'm even in..and I will admit, that after seeing something is in the Sheraton I have decided not to go to that panel!

The Sessions:
The interview with Charlaine Harris was AWESOME!!! I was totally geeking out. I love it when I find people who are in love with the series as I am. The couple next to me had read the books and watched True Blood and like me, they loved them both as is. Because so many people I know are not up to speed on Season 2 (b/c they don't have HBO) and because some people have only either read the books or watched the show, I never have anyone I can talk openly with in person. So this was fantastic. We got hints to the Season Finale which CH has a cameo in and teasers for season 3 including some fun new casting sessions happening right now! I'll try to do a post just on CH and TB.

Went to two urban fantasy panels, and was loving it! Meant some new authors including an Ohio native Leanna Renee Hieber who's debut novel "The strangely beautiful tale of Miss Percy Parker" which just came out last week. She's going to be in Columbus in a few weeks, so I will write more about her later as well.

I'm also super excited about some YA books that are coming out. You should know by now I am a huge fan of YA stuff and I think that for the SF genre, (SF including Sci-Fi and Fantasy) they are doing some amazing stuff in YA that I am not finding in Adult stuff. As a writer, I find the vulnerability, insecurity, and general naivete of YA characters an interesting change of pace. Some of my faves based on the convo...

*Hunger Games & Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
*Demon's Lexicono by Sarah Resse Brennan
*Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey
*Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
*Ash by Melinda Lo
* The Dead and the Gone, Live as we knew it and The world I live In all by Susan Beth Pfeffer
*Leviathan by Scott Westerfield

There were a couple of my all time faves on the list that I have already read:
*The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
*Wake By Lisa McMann (also wrote Fade and Gone)
*City of Bones, City of Ashes, City of Glass by Cassandra Clare

Okay that's all for now. My pics from the iphone aren't very good but I have my Nikon today so I will get more good stuff to post.

Urband Fantasy is completely UNDEAD!!!

2009-09-02T09:39:00.002-04:00

Thanks to Michelle Rasey for passing along this great article on Urban Fantasy. I've been asking myself this very questions for the last few months every time I see a new urban fantasy book hit the shelves. I am always worried that by the time my book gets sold and published the market will have moved on. And sure I can write other things, but I love Urban Fantasy the most. Then again, I am reminded that I loved Urban fantasy years ago too. It seems like it is one of those things that never really dies. Just becomes a huge fad then fades into the background again. Regardless, it seems like folks are embracing the UF world and maybe the sudden popularity is a good thing for me as a writer. It could mean that if I write a good story that isn't just some rehashing of something someone else already did that I could have an easier time of selling and readers will readily embrace it. Or it could mean that folks are so overwhelmed by the volume of new UF being thrown at them that they discount my stuff without giving it a chance because they assume that I'm jumping on some bandwagon, trying to make a quick buck.

Oh well. Here's the article.

http://www.timholman.net/posts/urban-fantasy-confirmed-undead/

What I'm reading: Speak of the Devil

2009-08-19T08:00:00.000-04:00

I am currently reading “Speak of the Devil” by Jenna Black and loving it. This poor girl gets hit with ever rock that can be thrown her way and I am just baffled by everything that she has to go to. For a fourth book in a series, this is a really impressive read. Who can resist her oober sexy love scenes featuring my favorite couple Adam and Dominic? Certainly not me.

The only thing I have against this book is Morgan’s constant whining about her on again off again boyfriend. Personally I found Brian a little boring, I mean who needs Brian with Demons like Lugh, Adam, and Saul walking around? There is a scene where Lugh tells Morgan that she’s got to put in some work saving their relationship because Brian is always the one putting in all the effort. I disagree. Brian is a baby. He’s always throwing temper tantrums and to be honest, the sex hasn’t even been that great for me since book one. At this point it’s just safe comfort sex. I want gritty, passionate, forbidden sex!! LOL.

Okay maybe I’m a bit overdramatic here but I really don’t think so. There is no challenge in Brian and Morgan’s relationship. As a reader I like to experience the chase. I like to see the tension between the two characters dripping off the page. For Morgan and Lugh, it’s a given, because Morgan has always been so resistant. We are curious to see if and how Lugh will seduce her. But with Brian, it was like, come over, let have sex. Boring.

Don’t get me wrong! I absolutely love, love, love this book. I mean really, with a crazy plot like this, who has time for a sex life? Morgan is having enough trouble staying alive and out of jail. Good luck girlie.

A little fun for the fans...

2009-08-18T15:35:00.005-04:00

Here is a quick poem that I wrote based off of a writing prompt and photo. I love getting inspiration from photography, asking myself what the story is behind the image. I liked this so much I had to share. In case you are wondering the photo is the same one as the cover of the book.

The Chair

There is a chair in my mother’s house that makes me forget to breathe.

It stands in the corner

across from the window

overlooking the front porch

and the

ankle high grass

and the

small dirt path

and the

fishing stoop where grandpa lost track

of time

I lower myself into its waiting arms.

The worn leather chills my skin.

It molds around my body

like the muddy

rust colored

clay that clings to the hillside behind the barn.

If I close my eyes…

the ghost of my father dances through me-

the scent of Old Spice sweetens the air.

I BECOME LOST

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Charlaine Harris Interviews!!!

2009-08-04T16:55:00.003-04:00

If you are crazy about Sookie Stackhouse, in love with True Blood, or just plain OCF about all things urban fantasy I suggest you check out the recently posted video clips of Charlaine Harris speaking at a writer's conference in Florida. I'm hoping to see her at DragonCon next month and I can't wait! If you want to check out the other clips I recommend going over to www.TrueBloodNet.com. They have all the videos and tons of other great True Blood stuff.

Newest Addition!!!

2009-07-31T09:16:00.003-04:00

Warning!!! Cute puppy alert. OK, well she's not really a puppy. She's almost two. Her name is Emmie and she is a Shar Pei lab mix. I adopted her almost two weeks ago from a rescue group and am so happy I found her. We are still going through an adjustment period, as she panics when left alone. For the most part it is okay because I work from home, but I mean she can't go everywhere with me.

She is a great girl, very calm and submissive. For the most part she listens to commands. She loves, loves, loves, the car. I was really surprised by this, but if I even open the garage she will go in and protest, refusing to leave without bribery. Once she stayed out there for about 20 minutes before I realized she wasn't going to come out willingly. That time she actually managed to sneak in the car and even though I left the doors open she was content to sleep on the back seat!

Because I live down the street from my parents and they have a fenced yards we take walks at least three times a week so she can play with Madison and Lucy. She thinks it's doggy daycare. But at this point, it's better than having her mess in the kennel. She gets so covered in her own poo that I have to bathe her everytime, and she does not like getting a bath.

So if we can work the crate issue out, we will be all set.

M

Novel Update: Finished: well, sort of.

2009-07-31T09:01:00.003-04:00

Hi All.

I know I've been MIA for a while. I hope you've enjoyed the video clips I've been posting. I wanted to give folks a quick update on my newest WIP (work in progress). I have officially finished the first draft of Love Sex Magic. I am super excited as it was a ton of fun to write and I did about 40k in the last month to finish it. I'm getting crits on the first three chapters from two different writing groups and getting a lot of positive feedback(which is always a good thing). I think the readers are falling for the characters as quickly as I did. (LOL).

So, "what's next?", you ask. I am cleaning up the first three chapters and putting together a synopsis for a novel package review from the editor of Juno Books. Yea! If you've ever met Paula, she's super nice and has a great eye for talent. :) I mean she bought books from three off my writing group buddies.

That said, since I didn't formally submit my first novel (it has yet to come together in the manner that I'd like and truly meet my vision), I am really excited about getting to shop Love Sex Magic around. I hope to get it all polished up this month (August) and be ready to send out to agents early fall. If I could get some quick traction on this baby this year, I'd be a very happy girl.

I may be looking for 1 or 2 beta readers soon, so if you have any interest please let me know!! I try to return the favor as much as possible, because I believe it is such an important part of the process.

True Blood Season 2!!!

2009-07-27T14:56:00.004-04:00

For those of you who don't have HBO and aren't lucky enough to be attending ComicCon, here is the new trailer HBO released Saturday. I personally can't wait. This season is so much grittier than last season. It goes without saying, but if you haven't been watching season 2 there are plenty of spoilers. You've been warned.

Urban Fantasy Author Rachel Vincent Goodies!!!

2009-07-02T17:24:00.003-04:00

I just found another free read. This one is the prequel to Rachel Vincent's new YA series My Soul to Take. Right now you can download the ebook for free!! How cool is that. Here is the link. Let me know what you think.

Free E-Book My Soul to Lose

Upcoming Reads

2009-07-01T08:30:00.001-04:00

Looking for a beach read for the 4th of July? Have no fear, these urban fantasy authors have got you covered. here's a rundown of a few good books coming out in the next few weeks.

JULY RELEASES

Balog, Cyn -- Fairy Tale

Morgan Sparks has always known that she and her boyfriend, Cam, are made for each other. But when Cam’s cousin Pip comes to stay with the family, Cam seems depressed. Finally Cam confesses to Morgan what’s going on: Cam is a fairy. The night he was born, fairies came down and switched him with a healthy human boy. Nobody expected Cam to live, and nobody expected his biological brother, heir to the fairy throne, to die. But both things happened, and now the fairies want Cam back to take his rightful place as Fairy King.

Even as Cam physically changes, becoming more miserable each day, he and Morgan pledge to fool the fairies and stay together forever. But by the time Cam has to decide once and for all what to do, Morgan’s no longer sure what’s best for everyone, or whether her and Cam’s love can weather an uncertain future.

Click Here to read an excerpt

Brennan, Sarah Rees -- The Demon's Lexicon

Nick and his brother, Alan, have spent their lives on the run from magic. Their father was murdered, and their mother was driven mad by magicians and the demons who give them power. The magicians are hunting the Ryves family for a charm that Nick's mother stole -- a charm that keeps her alive -- and they want it badly enough to kill again.

Danger draws even closer when a brother and sister come to the Ryves family for help. The boy wears a demon's mark, a sign of death that almost nothing can erase...and when Alan also gets marked by a demon, Nick is desperate to save him. The only way to do that is to kill one of the magicians they have been hiding from for so long.

Ensnared in a deadly game of cat and mouse, Nick starts to suspect that his brother is telling him lie after lie about their past. As the magicians' Circle closes in on their family, Nick uncovers the secret that could destroy them all.

Click here to read an excerpt

Day, S.J. -- Eve of Chaos

How do you tell Satan that you ran over his dog?

Evangeline Hollis has no idea, and she doesn’t want to find out. She’d rather forget the Infernal that nearly wiped out her training class and killed some of the best demonhunting Marks in the world. Living with the Mark of Cain—and the two sexy brothers who come with it—is trouble enough.

Satan has put a bounty on Eve’s head, and Hell’s denizens are converging on Southern California. The Infernals are complicating Eve’s hunts and creating chaos in her once orderly life. They’ve also brought her to the attention of an overzealous reverend who’s certain she’s Jezebel reincarnate.

Click here to read an excerpt

Robertson, Linda -- Vicious Circle

Being a witch doesn't pay the bills, but Persephone Alcmedi gets by between reading Tarot cards, writing her syndicated newspaper column, and kenneling werewolves in the basement when the moon is full -- even if witches aren't supposed to mingle with wolves. She really reaches the end of her leash, though, when her grandmother gets kicked out of the nursing home and Seph finds herself in the doghouse about some things she's written. Then her werewolf friend Lorrie is murdered...and the high priestess of an important coven offers Seph big money to destroy the killer, a powerful vampire named Goliath Kline. Seph is a tough girl, but this time she bites off more than she can chew. She needs a little help from her friends -- werewolf friends. One of those friends, Johnny, the motorcycle-riding lead singer for the techno-metal-Goth band Lycanthropia, has a crush on her. And while Seph has always been on edge around this 6'2" leather-clad hunk, she's starting to realize that although their attraction may be dangerous, nothing could be as lethal as the showdown that awaits them.

Click here to read an excerpt

Vincent, Rachel -- Prey

Sometimes playing cat and mouse is no game…

Play? Right. My Pride is under fire from all sides, my father's authority is in question and my lover is in exile. Which means I haven't laid eyes on Marc's gorgeous face in months. And with a new mother and an I-know-everything teenager under my protection, I don't exactly have time to fantasize about ever seeing him again.

Then our long-awaited reunion is ruined by a vicious ambush by strays. Now our group is under attack, Marc is missing and I will need every bit of skill and smarts to keep my family from being torn apart. Forever.

Click here to read an excerpt

The Business of Writing: Money

2009-06-30T06:36:00.002-04:00

We are artists. We are more concerned with our craft than selling out. Money is irrelevant, and all that jazz.

Yeah right. Money is money and writers want (and probably deserve) it just like any other hard working soul. Yet so many folks enter the business and have no idea what they are doing. They have limited understanding of the way the publishing business works, and thus sometimes foolish expectations of their value. Thus whenever I can post something about the money behind the writing, I do. So here is a great resource (SHOW ME THE MONEY) from romance writer Brenda Hiatt, who broke down typical advances and earnings for major publishers in the romance genre.

Sample breakdown of the info on each publisher:
Avon/HarperCollins ...........................................................................................46
Average advance (first book): $17,000 Median: $7,000
Average advance (subsequent books): $26,500 Median: $13,000
Advance range: $5000 - $100,000
Standard royalty percentage: 8%
Average earn-out: $23,000 Median: $26,500 Range: $12,000 - $35,000

I've got your attention now, don't I?

These numbers are pretty on par for most genres, but if you don't believe me you can check out The Business of Money (part 1) to take a glance at some Sci-Fi and Fantasy figures. Like any industry, there are publishers who fall much higher or lower than the average, so remember to take outliers with a grain of salt. Also remember to note the sample size. I haven't been able to find anything conducted en masse, by an established writers association like SFWA or RWA.

Enjoy! And if you find any other good resources on "The Money" feel free to post a link in the comments section.