Finally Done!

I am sitting here with a glass of wine in one hand and a crazy, expense brick of cheese in the other.  It is a celebration of sorts for me.  Tonight is the first night in nearly 13 months that I don't have a WIP to work on.  No revisions, no figuring out unexpected character landmines, no untangling plots.  It is a surprisingly peaceful feeling.

Last Wednesday, I turned over my Dystopian manuscript to my agent; and just this morning, I sent in the revised copy of my YA contemporary.   Now I have a few days of peace before the whole revision process starts again. I toyed with starting a new WIP, but decided against it. I'm going to let my creative mind sit for a while, maybe read a couple of books and catch up on my TV watching time. 

Before I do that, though, I need to thank a few people.   It's been a crazy couple of writing weeks here, and I would never have gotten through it with my sanity intact had it not been for my amazing Crit. Partners.  Not only were they gracious enough to read multiple revisions of the same scenes, but they were always there with a note of encouragement and a gentle nudge.  So here's to Lindsay Currie,  Mary Waibel, and Becky Wallace.  You have made me a better, stronger, and more focused writer!

My Kill List of Words

I have finished the content editing phase of my revision and have moved on to the tedious task of checking for grammar.  After checking for commas, punctuation, and the elusive dangling participle, I check for over-used and unnecessary words.  I call it my kill list. I post it every few months in hopes that my awesome writing friends will add to this list, let me know what other words I can safely strip from my now-completely, nicely edited, and ready to be turned back in WIP.

Here it is . . . my kill list:

that
just
like
so
very
really
good
amazing (simply because it is overused and there are so many other more exciting adjectives I could use)
well
if
when
as (although I tend to be a bit more liberal with this than some authors :))
then/than
but

Why I Keep my Dirty Little Secret

Why I don't tell most people I know that I write . . . as it was poetically put to me over a cup of coffee this morning in Boston:

"Ahh . . . really.  You know I am a fantastic typist.  I used to be a secretary you know.  Perhaps I should write a book.  I mean how hard could it actually be."

My response, puncutatied with a forced but polite smile

"Best of luck with that!"

Outsmarted by a Twelve Year Old!

I finally did it -- today I created a facebook page.  I know, I am only what .  . five, maybe ten years behind the eight ball!  In fact, I had to harness the technical brain power of my twelve-year-old son to show me how to import my address book into the contact/friend request folder. At least I can say I've raised a technically savvy kid. 

I understand the value of platform building and stand behind social networking as a way to do that.  I blog pretty regularly and have been known to Tweet on occasion.  But facebook . . . I have avoided that like the plague.  I'm not quite sure were that aversion stems from.  Perhaps it is rooted in the fact that there are a few high school and college friends I wish NOT to reconnect with. LOL  I have been pretty good about keeping my blog ramblings and followers confined to us writers, but facebook seems to be more public, like I am opening myself up to everybody and anybody that I may have known  . . . past, present, or future.

I am curious to hear whether my writer friends think a strong social network is key to platform building and what ones you use regularly.

Connecting the Dots

 

I am in the midst of hacking-up my YA Contemporary.   I received a list of suggested revisions from my agent back in December, all of which I nodded at, thinking it’d be no problem.  I couldn’t have been more wrong.  What I thought would be a tiny little tweak in timing and setting has sent ripples the size of tidal waves though my manuscript.

I got to page 109 (it’s 261 pages long) with no problem, then hit a wall. . . a gigantic, steel-reinforce wall that you couldn’t even scale in a video game.   Last night, I got tired of staring at that same page, so I flipped to the end, figuring if I couldn’t move forwards, then I’d work my way backwards.

What do you know, by the time I went to bed I’d re-written the three ending chapters, encompassed a new thread, and closed one of the circles I had added in the beginning.    Today I think I’ll peek at page 110.  If I still can’t move past it, then I’ll move to the end again and start connecting the dots.

So what do you guys do when a revision has you stalled out?   

Taking a Breather

When the end of a WIP draws into sight, I have a habit of kicking into overdrive, spending every spare minute, thinking, writing, and tweaking my manuscript.  I will stay up until two in the morning playing with the wording, checking for spelling, and trying for the umpteenth time to get that phrase "just right."  

I hit the end two days ago, sent the manuscript off to my agent, and had every intention of circling back to a WIP she'd sent me revisions on.   I've thought about the changes it needs, talked it out with my critique partners, even went back to my agent to makes sure I wasn’t deleting a thread she thought should stay.  Then nothing!  Haven’t written, tweaked, or opened the WIP in two days.   In fact, this post is the first “writing orientated” thing I’ve done since hitting my email’s send button on Wednesday morning.

I say I've hit a wall, that there is only so much creativity I can drum up before my muse says ENOUGH!  My husband disagrees, says that I am just taking a breather . . . a few days of non-writing activities is all I need to get my head back in the game.

I think he is right.  Last night I had my laptop set up on top of the dryer, IMing while folding towels.  In that brief, five-sentence interaction I figured it out, a small, not-so-insignificant scene that was holding my revisions up.  I’d been staring at that WIP since December, had written an entire NEW ms rather then deal with the revision, and in a brief minute-long internet chat, I’d figured it out . . . over fabric softener and warm towels none the less!

Benard Pivot Blogfest

Nicole Ducleroir @ One Significant Moment at a Time came up with this fun and easy blogfest.  You simply have provide your own answers to Bernard Pivot’s famous questionnaire!  Thanks Nicole.  I've had an amazing time seeing what makes our writing friends tick!

What is your favorite word?

Well barring words that are not suitable for little ears, I would say my favorite word has got to be haphazard.

What is your least favorite word?

Hmm . . . this is easy for me.  I despise, utterly detest the word gingerly!

What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally?

Two things. Chocolate Covered Expresso Beans kick my mind into action, enabling me to harness the rapid fire of thoughts that flow through my brain on any given day.  To still and focus me, I use rocks.  I have two sitting on my desk at any given time that if roll through my fingers.

What turns you off?

Sugar substitutes.  I got to have the real ting.

What is your favorite curse word?

"Little prick."  It is used in all of my manuscripts and has become a running joke between me and my beta readers.  They email me back the instant the find it.

What sound or noise do you love?

Woodpeckers -- Their rhythmical drumming  is predictable and soothing,

What sound or noise do you hate?

Gunfire in video games.  Unfortunately I have a 12 year old son, so I either need to invest in ear plugs or accidentally break the X-box.

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?

I always wanted to try my hand at creating the Christmas display in the front window of Macy's.  Unfortunately, I have horrible taste!

What profession would you not like to do?

Bus driver.  I can't stand my own kids making a lot of noise in the car.   I doubt I'd be able to handle forty of them screaming.

If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?

Where the hell have you been?  Then I would sit down and hash out my life with him over a huge cup of coffee.

Finished!

Yesterday was a huge day for me.  It wasn't filled with romantic gestures such as flowers and expensive bottles of champagne.  I wasn't treated to a fancy dinner or swept off my feet by my adoring husband.  Nope.  I actually cooked a meatloaf, fed the kids, and settled in for a movie around 10pm.  I vacuumed, washed the kitchen floor, even managed to grab a cup of coffee with a friend in between preschool pick-up and swim lessons. So what made this seemingly ordinary day fantastic -- I finished a WIP.

At 10:32 am I wrote the last word, of the last chapter, of my WIP Fatum.  Surprisingly, it wasn't filled with regret or the feeling of it all being over.  I am oddly calm about this WIP, have moved on the the Synopsis, and plan to send it over to my agent on Wednesday. It has been critiqued, and edited, and all the from/form then/than typos corrected.

Now I'm off to think up a new idea!

My Rant -- Apologizing in Advance!

 

So I should probably preface this by saying this post relates to absolutely nobody I am currently beta reading for, nor anyone who is following my blog.  You seven amazingly talented women who are awaiting pages from me have the most unique, original, and refreshing voices I have ever had the pleasure of reading.

Now on with it.  I love beta reading.  It is a creative outlet that calms the characters constantly screaming for attention in my mind.  I love getting back a revised copy to find  they have employed a suggested revision – whether it be taking a long complicated sentence and breaking it into two, utilizing commas and correct punctuation, or adding another thread.  What I love even more is when my beta readers call me out on the same mistakes I point out in their WIP's LOL!  It is a wonderful give and take relationship with a lot of laughs and crazy emails sent back and forth.

           

What I hate, what absolutely has me seething, is when I see my own content come back at me – entire scenes, dialogue, and descriptive paragraphs taken from one of my manuscripts and interwoven into theirs. First I rant, slam the laptop down, and let out a string of profanities that would make even George Carlin cringe.  Then I remember my mom saying that copying is the greatest from of flattery.  That calming thought works for about a second before I storm off in a tear again, pouring through boxes that have been sealed up in my attic for over a decade, looking for old law school books and legal briefs I at one time thought were useless academic exercises.  

I’m good now, mostly thanks to Lindsay who talked me off that pissed off ledge I was teetering on all afternoon. I took all that anger and tossed it into one of my characters, let him take the punishment for a something that was totally not his fault. It worked, I turned out a rather agessive but not half-bad chapter yesterday.

So what about you guys – ever run into this problem, or does my karma just suck?

The Rise and Fall of the Dystopian Market

There has been a lot of postulating amongst writers lately about the rise and eventual fall of the dystopian market.  I've seen writers talking about shelving half –finished projects for fear that the dystopian market has hit a plateau, while some are just delving in, refusing to be a slave to writing trends.  Others are calling for more sci-fi, less soldier-based works that walk the narrow line of possibility.

This topic is of particular interest to me as several of my writer friends are currently neck deep in dystopian projects.   No doubt the publishing market is insanely competitive, and your manuscript has to be original in order to stand out from the rest of the slush pile, but that's nothing new.    YA Contemporary, Dystopian, Paranormal, Sci-fi . . . no matter what your poison, your WIP needs to be utterly amazing to get the official nod.

So I guess what I am asking is do you think the dystopian market has reached it’s peak? Is the genre so inundated with one particular set of themes that editors are screaming for something original? Maybe the day of the post-war, children-revolting-against-government-control market is saturated, opening the gate for those who write more speculative based dystopian fiction.

Thoughts?

Writing Pet Peeves

As writers, we all have pet peeves -- those little words, phrases, or character actions that make us cringe each time we read them. I avoid using them in my own writing and have to restrain myself from pointing them out in my critiques.   I am curious to here what your writing pet peeves are because what makes one reader flinch, may not bother another at all.  Here are a few of mine:

~Female MCs who bite their nails (yeah . . . just yeah.)

~Raised eyebrows and/or narrowing of the eyes (The last two combined made for some pretty tough reading of a certain vampire book for me!) 

~The word gingerly . . . especially when reflecting a male's actions (Maybe I'm just hanging out with the wrong group of men, but I have never seen a guy to anything gingerly.)

~Extremely loooooooooong text sequences (I simply don't have the time or the patience to figure out what all those acronyms mean.)

~Drain pipes or trellises strategically placed next to 2nd story windows (first it's predictable; and, second, any parent who puts a structure like that near their teenage daughter's windows, deserves to have them sneak out!)

So that is my list of writing pet peeves. I would love to hear yours!

Play Nice!

 

One of my goals this writing year was to become more active in the online writing community, to connect with and mutually support other writers.   I've had a blast visiting other writer’s sites, seeing what they are working on and what their writing goals are.  I particularly love when they post excerpts from their WIP’s, better yet when they post multiple revisions of the same scenes showing their growth as a writer. But, I always cringe when I hit the comment section.  Without a doubt, I come across at least one blog post a day where someone has left a comment about the author's WIP that is less than encouraging.

I have writing skin like an armadillo, mostly because I grown comfortable with my style, have developed the ability to filter out unhelpful comments, and have an amazing group of writing friends to bounce those crazy comments off of.   That said, it takes an enormous leap of faith to put yourself out there, open yourself up for comments on something you are writing.  As writers ourselves, I think we should commend their efforts, give them a well-deserved pat on the back, and point out the positives in the scenes they have chosen to share.

Now I know a lot of people may believe otherwise, that if you post a snippet of your WIP then you should expect criticism in return.  But folks, there is a huge difference between constructive criticism and discouraging remarks.  Maybe it is just me, but I always ALWAYS try and find something positive to say.  

So how about you?  Do you think posting a scene from a WIP is an open invitation for commenters to tear down your work or do you take the point out the positives road like me?  And for those of you looking to connect with other writers, head on over to Rachel Harrie’s site.  She is hosting her 2^nd annual Writers' Platform-Building Crusade. It is a great way to connect and support fellow writers!

Favorite Lines

Top Ten Horror/Science Fiction Movie Quotes Blogfest hosted by Ellie Garratt.

I am not a fan of Horror Flicks, but I came across this blogfest and couldn't help but join in!  I never saw the value in half-dressed women, wearing insanely short-shorts and water-drenched, white t-shirts, running around in circles as their boyfriends get hacked to pieces. My husband however is obsessed with them.  In fact, just last month, I asked him to please order me a more female friendly movie from Netflix.  Yeah . . . two days later Massacre on Sorority Row appeared in my mailbox.   That said, there are a few movies, mostly classics, that have permanently impacted my ability to sleep.  Here are ten of my favorite horror flick quotes.  What are yours? 

Children of the Corn: “And He Who Walks Behind The Rows did say, "I will send outlanders amongst you: a man and a woman. These outlanders will be unbelievers and profaners of the holy. But they will sorely test you, for they have great power, even greater than that of the Blue Man!”

The Shining:  “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.”

Halloween:  “There's no boogey man, and if you don't stop all this, I'm gonna have to turn off the TV and send you to bed.

Jaws:  "I can swim... I just can't walk or dress myself."

Nightmare on Elm Street: "I had a hard on this morning when I woke up, Tina, it had your name written all over it."

The Silence of the Lambs:  “A census taker once tried to test me. I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice chianti.” 

Poltergeist:  “The questions you want to know are inside that light.”

Friday the 13^th VI: “I’ve seen enough horror movies to know any weirdo wearing a mask is never friendly.”  

  

Scream: "Movies don't create psychos, they make psychos more creative"  

Dawn of the Dead:  “When there is no more room in Hell, the dead will walk the Earth.”

You've Come a Long Way Blogfest

Today Christine Hardy is hosting a blogfest -- You've Come a Long Way Baby.  It's a day where we get to go back and take a peek at some of our first writing attempts, see for ourselves just how far we have come as writers.  Unfortunately you, my readers, have to suffer through a very poorly written scene.  But fear not, I will reward you with a re-write, one that shows I too have come a long way.

So here it is, a scene for the very first manuscript I ever wrote -- Seven Shades of Crazy.

Scene one -- start of chapter 5 

  

     I don’t know how long we sat out there on the back lawn talking and I didn’t remember falling asleep.  I did remember the warmth of his arms around my shoulder, the way my head fit perfectly into the crook of his neck; the scent of his soft smooth skin as I curved my body closer to his.

     I also did not remember how I had gotten into my bed; my quilt tucked around me so tight it as hard to move.   He must have carried me I concluded.  I woke up oddly content and startled at the same time.  I quickly peeked underneath the covers. 

     Oh thank God; fully clothed in the same attire I had on yesterday.  I didn’t really expect otherwise but the visual confirmation was still a relief.

Same scene -- middle of chapter 11 (that will give you some idea of the major overhaul this ms went through lol!)

           

     The twisting knot in my stomach was the same one from last night, and I had to swallow hard, past the point of nausea to breathe.  Crawford still hadn’t kissed me, or not the way I expected or wanted anyway.  His lips had found the top my head and the soft, ticklish skin at the base of my neck more than a dozen times in the past three days, but they’d never met my lips.  I tried, turned my head so my cheek rested on the plane of his chest, stared up into his eyes. 

     I’d thought I won when he traced my lips with the pad of his thumb.  I concentrated on the sound of his heart beating against my cheek and waited for the painfully tantalizing moments of anticipation to pass.   I matched my breathing to his and relaxed.  Too much apparently.   I don’t recall him closing the distance, or his lips mingling with mine   I remember his fingers teasing in the hair at the back of my neck calling to me, lulling me into sweet, blissful unconsciousness. 

     “Idiot,” I mumbled, stretching to free myself from the cocoon of the quilt he tucked around me.

      I was up, my feet on the hard wooden floor in search of a cold shower and some insightful way to apologize to Crawford for falling asleep when I saw the note

What Happens When Two Pansters Collaborate on a Book?

As many of you know, I write across three genres – YA contemporary, Sci-fi, and Dystopian.  The YA contemporary and Sci-fi manuscripts are all mine, but when it comes to writing Dystopian, I rely on the equally dark mind of my amazing writing partner, Lindsay.  Problem is, we are both pansters.  Either one of us could tell you where our manuscript starts and where it will end, but as for the stuff in the middle, we have no clue until we actually write it.

So how does that work – two non-plotters collaborating on a book?  Surprisingly, with great ease.  It's when we start drawing out our chapter maps that mayhem ensues!

Sunday night we skyped for about an hour, had the entire next chapter planned out and ready to be written.  It was the first time in some 40,000 words that we actually had a solid plan, and I felt pretty good.   You know what happened – nothing.  We stewed and wrote, and revised, and deleted, and rewrote for the better part of two days trying to figure that darn chapter out.  Why was it so hard?  Because we planned it out.  Both of us felt confined to the parameters we had set for the chapter, boxed in with a set beginning and end with no room for creative freedom. Once we threw the plan out, agreed to write whatever came regardless of where it led us, the words flew out and the entire chapter came into shape.

So no more plotting for us, or at least me.  We are going to stick to the plan that works  . . . which incidentally is no plan at all!

It's Not a Race!

I recite this sentence to myself at least twice a day as I am shuffling between manuscripts, editing one while finishing up two others.  I think as writer's we put these crazy, and often unnecessary, deadlines on ourselves, thinking that we HAVE to get this to the agents now or we will miss the next big trend. Publishers are buying this sub-genre now, so quick  . . . finish that draft and get it out.

We don't.  It's. Not. A. Race.  We need to take time not only to master our craft, but to enjoy it, to savor every word we type out.  So today, as I look at a completed manuscript I have hacked into an unrecognizable pile of crap, that sentence is going to become my mantra.  If it takes me days, weeks, even months to re-piece the manuscript back together, then so be it, because I am going to enjoy every grueling second of it!


Oh and P.S. -- my baby girl turned 14 today!

No Excuse for Going Dark!

First, I need to apologize for my long absence from blog posting. What has it been . . . two, maybe three weeks.  Nothing earth shattering that has prevented me from attending to this little blog, just life.   You know -- kids, carpools, in-laws, and snow, more snow, some more snow, and wait  . . . today . . .  today it is frickin' ice! Shoveling and snow blowing nearly constantly has my upper arms looking might toned.

Now back to the writing.  I wanted to talk about those little quirks that all writers have. The ones that our beta readers always point out; but, no matter how hard we try, it still always seems to happen.  Mine is  form and from.  I accidentally interchange them all the time.  I know the difference in meaning and in fact intend to use the right word 100% of the time.  My fingers just consistently, and I do mean consistently, type it wrong.  It happens so often that at the end of my ms I actually do a search/ edit just for those words.

Curious as to what your little writing quirks are?  We all have them;and, trust me, yours are no worse then mine :)