Thursday, June 30, 2011
I'm Not Reading Lately
And I’m not sure I know why.
I think it’s about being stuck between edits… I’m waiting for the next round and just holding off on reading. Save for my older MSS, sitting around on my computer. I keep thinking about… “Oh, yeah…that scene…I’d like to read that again…” And I dig it out of the archives, start reading and then find myself on a ‘reading myself’ bender.
And it’s not bad…nothing I’d shoot off to my editor without some major revisions, but it ain’t bad. It’s a bit sweet to find I impress myself here and there, especially with emotionally impactful scenes. Nice!
And I do learn a lot with reading my old stuff. How far I’ve come. How much therapy writing has been to me over the last ten years. My, the things I did to people I found frustrating in these books! And to myself as a character. (I’m one who admits, I am always writing about some aspect of myself.) So, it isn’t wasted time. But wow, I have a lot of old stories sitting around!
Too many late nights captivated by my own prose can't be good for a person...can it? I tell you, it's hard on the eyes. Not doing a hell of a lot for my love life, either. Sigh.
But other than my own stuff? I’m just not reading. I have a list of books need to get at the e-store, even some just sitting there, unread. Part of it is trying to stay away from eating out in an effort to eat healtier. If I don’t eat out, I don’t haul out my reader during lunch. And once I’m home? Well, there’s television to watch…all those wonderful summer series. I mean Burn Notice is back on! And In Plain Sight! And Drop Dead Diva…and TeenNick is playing Buffy, the Vampire Slayer from the beginning! (I found out how to use my DVR and now I’m buried with things to watch. Curse you DVR!)
I know. What is going on with me?
But I’ll be reading more soon! The newest Jim Butcher is due out! At the end of July.
Honestly, I’m not sure why this happens! Perhaps I just don’t want to start something I’ll feel driven to put down once the next round of edits arrives? I have round two for The Chameleon Goggles coming up and the same for a short I wrote for Decadent called Something Different. (I can’t wait to see the cover for this one. It’s a contemporary short, very sweet. I was requested to write this one, so I was super flattered to be part of the One Night Stand series from Decadent!)
Plus, I did decide one of my old MS deserves an edit so I can send it to my agent. (Remember my blathering about The Alien Library? We’ll see if Saritza can sell it!) So, I’m working those from the notes my editor has sent me about the things I do that I didn’t think I did.
(We recently had an e-mail discussion about how many uses of the word was is excessive, for example. I also have an obvious fondness of the words turn, look, see – in all of their many forms. And I like to start sentences with the word and.
Oops.)
I do seem a bit fixated on looking for those things in what I read lately… Hmmmm! It’s my editor’s fault?
I’m not really reading right now. I know I should. I know that it will wake my brain up and keep me fired, with new ideas and words and… But geez, my brain is just so blank lately! Editing brain is a whole ‘nother beast compared to writer brain!
Really!
Anyone else have periods of no reading in their life?
I think it’s about being stuck between edits… I’m waiting for the next round and just holding off on reading. Save for my older MSS, sitting around on my computer. I keep thinking about… “Oh, yeah…that scene…I’d like to read that again…” And I dig it out of the archives, start reading and then find myself on a ‘reading myself’ bender.
And it’s not bad…nothing I’d shoot off to my editor without some major revisions, but it ain’t bad. It’s a bit sweet to find I impress myself here and there, especially with emotionally impactful scenes. Nice!
And I do learn a lot with reading my old stuff. How far I’ve come. How much therapy writing has been to me over the last ten years. My, the things I did to people I found frustrating in these books! And to myself as a character. (I’m one who admits, I am always writing about some aspect of myself.) So, it isn’t wasted time. But wow, I have a lot of old stories sitting around!
Too many late nights captivated by my own prose can't be good for a person...can it? I tell you, it's hard on the eyes. Not doing a hell of a lot for my love life, either. Sigh.But other than my own stuff? I’m just not reading. I have a list of books need to get at the e-store, even some just sitting there, unread. Part of it is trying to stay away from eating out in an effort to eat healtier. If I don’t eat out, I don’t haul out my reader during lunch. And once I’m home? Well, there’s television to watch…all those wonderful summer series. I mean Burn Notice is back on! And In Plain Sight! And Drop Dead Diva…and TeenNick is playing Buffy, the Vampire Slayer from the beginning! (I found out how to use my DVR and now I’m buried with things to watch. Curse you DVR!)
I know. What is going on with me?
But I’ll be reading more soon! The newest Jim Butcher is due out! At the end of July.
Honestly, I’m not sure why this happens! Perhaps I just don’t want to start something I’ll feel driven to put down once the next round of edits arrives? I have round two for The Chameleon Goggles coming up and the same for a short I wrote for Decadent called Something Different. (I can’t wait to see the cover for this one. It’s a contemporary short, very sweet. I was requested to write this one, so I was super flattered to be part of the One Night Stand series from Decadent!)
Plus, I did decide one of my old MS deserves an edit so I can send it to my agent. (Remember my blathering about The Alien Library? We’ll see if Saritza can sell it!) So, I’m working those from the notes my editor has sent me about the things I do that I didn’t think I did.
(We recently had an e-mail discussion about how many uses of the word was is excessive, for example. I also have an obvious fondness of the words turn, look, see – in all of their many forms. And I like to start sentences with the word and.
Oops.)
I do seem a bit fixated on looking for those things in what I read lately… Hmmmm! It’s my editor’s fault?
I’m not really reading right now. I know I should. I know that it will wake my brain up and keep me fired, with new ideas and words and… But geez, my brain is just so blank lately! Editing brain is a whole ‘nother beast compared to writer brain!
Really!
Anyone else have periods of no reading in their life?
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Revising for Continuity
I just lost half today's readers with that boring title didn't I? Revising for continuity. Ugh. That sounds like . . . well, anything that starts with revising is bound to end unpleasantly. And I don't know about you guys, but I find continuity hard to come by. It's hard, over the course of a 400 page novel, to keep all the details straight -- even harder over a series. Yet mistakes in continuity, especially obvious mistakes, drive readers nutso.
I was at school this past week, gorging myself on writing classes and critique sessions, and got some awesome advice on how to avoid those sneaky continuity errors. Side note: this is most useful at the end of the book, when doing fairly major revisions.
1. Pick an object or secondary character. This can be a bit player that appears only a few times, an important secondary character, or some object that reappears a few times throughout the novel.
Find every instance it appears, copy the text, and past it into a clean document.
Go through the whole novel like this, moving every appearance into that separate document sequentially.
2. Read through the new document from start to finish. Look for two things:
For everything to stay the same -- some details should never change, such as a name (Ellen or Helen, anyone?). Does your second floor apartment suddenly become a two-story condo? Does the ring your heroine inherited and carry everywhere with her change from diamond to pearl? I read one (published) novel where the hero only had one brother, who was a new dad staying home with the baby at the beginning of the novel, and a single, player, bachelor at the end.
For things to change - While details should provide continuity, look to see if this character or object has a mini-story arc itself. Give him/her/it a purpose and obstacle. It might echo the primary story arc, contradict it, add to it, or something else entirely.
For example, in my WIP, my heroine has a pendant that means a lot to her. In the opening scenes, she's trying to conceal her identity, but starts playing with it (a nervous habit) and gives herself away. The pendant itself appears in five scenes throughout, and has its only little arc: 1. Pendant reveals Naomi's identity; 2. pendant is hidden away in Naomi's pocket; 3. pendant is covered in blood when Naomi is injured; 4. pendant is washed clean; 5. pendant is returned to Naomi. It's not a big arc. It's an echo of the same arc Naomi travels, but there's a purpose there. There's change and movement. There's drama.
Once you've made sure the details which should not change have remained steady, and the growth and progress has been shown, put each peice back in the novel in its proper spot.
What do you think? Are there characters or objects in your novel that you think could benefit from this type of revision trick? Are there continuity errors in books that drive you crazy? What other tips do you have for maintaining continuity? Any thoughts on letting objects have their own mini-arcs?
I was at school this past week, gorging myself on writing classes and critique sessions, and got some awesome advice on how to avoid those sneaky continuity errors. Side note: this is most useful at the end of the book, when doing fairly major revisions.
1. Pick an object or secondary character. This can be a bit player that appears only a few times, an important secondary character, or some object that reappears a few times throughout the novel.
Find every instance it appears, copy the text, and past it into a clean document.
Go through the whole novel like this, moving every appearance into that separate document sequentially.
2. Read through the new document from start to finish. Look for two things:
For everything to stay the same -- some details should never change, such as a name (Ellen or Helen, anyone?). Does your second floor apartment suddenly become a two-story condo? Does the ring your heroine inherited and carry everywhere with her change from diamond to pearl? I read one (published) novel where the hero only had one brother, who was a new dad staying home with the baby at the beginning of the novel, and a single, player, bachelor at the end.
For things to change - While details should provide continuity, look to see if this character or object has a mini-story arc itself. Give him/her/it a purpose and obstacle. It might echo the primary story arc, contradict it, add to it, or something else entirely.
For example, in my WIP, my heroine has a pendant that means a lot to her. In the opening scenes, she's trying to conceal her identity, but starts playing with it (a nervous habit) and gives herself away. The pendant itself appears in five scenes throughout, and has its only little arc: 1. Pendant reveals Naomi's identity; 2. pendant is hidden away in Naomi's pocket; 3. pendant is covered in blood when Naomi is injured; 4. pendant is washed clean; 5. pendant is returned to Naomi. It's not a big arc. It's an echo of the same arc Naomi travels, but there's a purpose there. There's change and movement. There's drama.
Once you've made sure the details which should not change have remained steady, and the growth and progress has been shown, put each peice back in the novel in its proper spot.
What do you think? Are there characters or objects in your novel that you think could benefit from this type of revision trick? Are there continuity errors in books that drive you crazy? What other tips do you have for maintaining continuity? Any thoughts on letting objects have their own mini-arcs?
Sunday, June 26, 2011
What Does “Published” Mean?
Warning: This is a serious, industry-related blog. Grab an extra shot of rum before diving in.
I’ve been a member of Romance Writers of America for four years now, and all four years I’ve been a General member. That means I’m a newbie who hasn’t accomplished much beyond thinking I’d like to be published some day. It’s assumed I’ve put words on the page but even that is not guaranteed nor required.
As a general member attending RWA Nationals, I often felt as if I didn’t belong. I didn’t have multiple manuscripts (MSs) under my bed. I didn’t have revision and rejection horror stories. No contest finals, no pretty pink ribbon across the bottom of my badge, and no bookmarks to pass around.
But a couple weeks ago, that all changed. Well, a little bit of it changed.
I recently achieved PRO level in the RWA organization. What this means it that I was able to prove I wrote a complete, full-length MS and attempted to either sell it to a publisher or gain representation for it from an agent. The proof can be a contract or a rejection.
In my case, it was a rejection.
Membership in this new club comes with two perks. One is being able to attend the PRO retreat at RWA Nationals, but since I’m having to skip this year, that will have to wait for Anaheim in 2012. The other is joining the PRO members Yahoo loop. This is like getting that secret password and gaining entrance to the clubhouse with the sign on the door reading MEMBERS ONLY.
Now I belonged.
But in my short time on the loop I’ve learned an important lesson. Unpublished does not mean what it used to mean. I expected my fellow PRO members to be like me - no published book to speak of. (I’m so naïve.) But more and more I see that’s not the case. The majority of signatures on the emails include links to books available through everything from well-known digital publishers to self-publication.
So much for feeling like I belong.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m proud to be a member of RWA and I understand the mission and purpose of the organization. They advocate for professional writers – those attempting to and deserving of earning a fair income for their work. I appreciate all they do for authors, from the beginner to the multi-published to the Best Seller. My intention here is to share my observation of how certain definitions within the organization are getting harder to nail down.
In the case of RWA, “Published Author” is defined by a minimum amount of earnings ($1000) either in advance payment, royalty payment, or combined advance and royalty payment on a single Eligible Novel or Eligible Novella. The terms “Eligible Novel” and “Eligible Novella” are clearly defined on the organization website but the bottom line (other than a minimum word count) is that the author should not be required to pay any of the costs that go into printing or distributing the work, nor should it be the authors sole responsibility to sell said work. A publisher must actively play a role in making sure the work reaches a larger audience than just the author and her friends and family.
I don’t know about you, but all of this sounds damn reasonable to me, and having an organization the size or RWA standing with me, fighting for my rights as an author, is a blessing I’m honored to have. But I can’t help but wonder if these definitions are beneficial to all members if the loop that is meant for those members who have yet to see their name on a book cover is filled with members who actually HAVE their name on a book cover.
I admit, I have no answers here. I know this has been an issue for many years, though the situation regarding e-published authors has improved significantly in the last two years alone. However, since RWA makes it clear self-published authors are never eligible for the PAN network, a new battle is about to be waged. Gird your loins and buy your popcorn now. This should prove to be an interesting and contentious show.
I have two questions for you.
1.) Do you consider yourself a professional writer. If not, what do you think would (or should) qualify you for the title?
2.) Have your publication goals changed with the new developments and options in the publishing world or are you a “stick to the tried and true” kind of writer?
I’ve been a member of Romance Writers of America for four years now, and all four years I’ve been a General member. That means I’m a newbie who hasn’t accomplished much beyond thinking I’d like to be published some day. It’s assumed I’ve put words on the page but even that is not guaranteed nor required.
As a general member attending RWA Nationals, I often felt as if I didn’t belong. I didn’t have multiple manuscripts (MSs) under my bed. I didn’t have revision and rejection horror stories. No contest finals, no pretty pink ribbon across the bottom of my badge, and no bookmarks to pass around.
But a couple weeks ago, that all changed. Well, a little bit of it changed.
I recently achieved PRO level in the RWA organization. What this means it that I was able to prove I wrote a complete, full-length MS and attempted to either sell it to a publisher or gain representation for it from an agent. The proof can be a contract or a rejection.
In my case, it was a rejection.
Membership in this new club comes with two perks. One is being able to attend the PRO retreat at RWA Nationals, but since I’m having to skip this year, that will have to wait for Anaheim in 2012. The other is joining the PRO members Yahoo loop. This is like getting that secret password and gaining entrance to the clubhouse with the sign on the door reading MEMBERS ONLY.
Now I belonged.
But in my short time on the loop I’ve learned an important lesson. Unpublished does not mean what it used to mean. I expected my fellow PRO members to be like me - no published book to speak of. (I’m so naïve.) But more and more I see that’s not the case. The majority of signatures on the emails include links to books available through everything from well-known digital publishers to self-publication.
So much for feeling like I belong.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m proud to be a member of RWA and I understand the mission and purpose of the organization. They advocate for professional writers – those attempting to and deserving of earning a fair income for their work. I appreciate all they do for authors, from the beginner to the multi-published to the Best Seller. My intention here is to share my observation of how certain definitions within the organization are getting harder to nail down.
In the case of RWA, “Published Author” is defined by a minimum amount of earnings ($1000) either in advance payment, royalty payment, or combined advance and royalty payment on a single Eligible Novel or Eligible Novella. The terms “Eligible Novel” and “Eligible Novella” are clearly defined on the organization website but the bottom line (other than a minimum word count) is that the author should not be required to pay any of the costs that go into printing or distributing the work, nor should it be the authors sole responsibility to sell said work. A publisher must actively play a role in making sure the work reaches a larger audience than just the author and her friends and family.
I don’t know about you, but all of this sounds damn reasonable to me, and having an organization the size or RWA standing with me, fighting for my rights as an author, is a blessing I’m honored to have. But I can’t help but wonder if these definitions are beneficial to all members if the loop that is meant for those members who have yet to see their name on a book cover is filled with members who actually HAVE their name on a book cover.
I admit, I have no answers here. I know this has been an issue for many years, though the situation regarding e-published authors has improved significantly in the last two years alone. However, since RWA makes it clear self-published authors are never eligible for the PAN network, a new battle is about to be waged. Gird your loins and buy your popcorn now. This should prove to be an interesting and contentious show.
I have two questions for you.
1.) Do you consider yourself a professional writer. If not, what do you think would (or should) qualify you for the title?
2.) Have your publication goals changed with the new developments and options in the publishing world or are you a “stick to the tried and true” kind of writer?
Thursday, June 23, 2011
A Wee Survey For The Crew...
You know all those "favorites" surveys your friends send but you never return? Of if you do, it's when you have the door to your office shut and you know your boss is out? Well, I've decided that, as pirates, it's our duty to get rid of all those boring, standard questions and have our own, piratey survey! I will answer these questions in the comments and expect you to do the same. Feel free to adlib your own answers if mine do nothing for you. The wench with the best answers wins this fabulous, knitted praying mantis! Woo hoo!
1) Blood spilled...Brown or Red?
2) Shit List...or Hit List?
3) Long, slow torture for above, or merciful death by pistoles?
4) Favorite 2 Colors for Jolly Roger? (I do get so tired of b/w)
5) One Night stand with Capt. Jack Sparrow, or Will Turner?
6) One Night Stand With Capt. Barbossa or Blackbeard?
8) Mascot - Undead Monkey, or Knitted Praying Mantis?
9) What Would You Name Your Own Ship?
10 What One Person Would You Have Walk The Plank?
11) What Monster Would You Have Lurking In Water Below Said Plank?
Let the fun begin!
Ms. Bray-Weber's Booty Goes To...
Darynda Jones!!!
Email me at djtlo AT yahoo DOT com and I'll forward your information to Jennifer. You have your choice between digital and print, though the print version won't be available until July. Your choice!
Thank you, everyone, for your kind words about Jack's interviewing talents. He's getting quite a big head about the whole thing.
;)
And thank you, Jennifer, for being such a fun guest. We can't wait for your next visit!
Email me at djtlo AT yahoo DOT com and I'll forward your information to Jennifer. You have your choice between digital and print, though the print version won't be available until July. Your choice!Thank you, everyone, for your kind words about Jack's interviewing talents. He's getting quite a big head about the whole thing.
;)
And thank you, Jennifer, for being such a fun guest. We can't wait for your next visit!
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Of Playground Rejection and Black Moments
Captain Jack hurries onto the deck, blurry eyed and frantically dressing. He yanks his trousers up, skidding to a stop. "I'm here, I'm here. Where are the damn cards?"
Gunner Marnee perches on a barrel of rum, dressed in a dry clean only dress (something she'd never wear at home), typing at her laptop. She peeks at Jack over her librarian glasses. "Morning, Jack. Need some coffee? I think DRD's already fired up the pot. Couple of ibuprofen for the headache?"
"Only had one… er, a few tankards of rum last night. Didn't want to be incapacitated for our guest."
Gunner scans the empty deck. Confetti litters the planks, empty bottles roll about. A layer of dust covers everything but the bar. Chance would never allow dust to settle on the bar, after all.
So, the boat looks pretty much like it does every day.
"No guest today, hon. Just me." She shrugs.
Jack scans the scenery. "Damn. You're right." His gaze falls on the Gunner again, a wicked tilt to his lips. "Well then. It seems we're alone, lass."
"So it does." The Gunner smiles, all innocent sweetness. "But remember? I'm one of the happily married ones."
"Oh yes. Your husband's carries the clubs."
"You mean he plays hockey? Yes. That's him."
"Right you are." Jack slinks toward the stairs. "Well, then. I believe that's Hellie calling me. She doesn't like to share anyway." He sweeps off his tricorn hat and sinks into a courtly bow. "Good day, love."
He doesn't wait for a response. Gunner shakes her head, chuckling, and turns back to her laptop
*
Last week, my husband and I took our sons to the playground in our neighborhood. My oldest is going on five and he's always hoping that there will be neighborhood kids there for him to play with.
This day, there were. In fact, there were eight of them. They were all racing around, all seemed to know each other. My son practically wriggled with glee. Like a puppy, he squirmed and hopped. "Mom, can I go play with the kids?"
"Sure, baby. Go ahead." As he skipped ahead of us, my hubby and I smiled to each other. My son is not shy. He'll talk to anyone, much like his mommy. So he walked right up to those kids, found the boy who appeared to be the closest to his age—maybe a year or two older—and introduced himself.
"Hi. Can I play with you?"
Then he waited. And waited.
The little boy was playing with a girl who seemed to be a year or two older than him and he ignored my son. The boy and girl climbed up the slide, ran across the shaky bridge, and cast curious looks at my son who still stood where they left him, alone.
The other kids on the playground were watching the proceedings though they were pretending not to. The chatter had petered off.
I'm a mommy. My little son, so sweet and so friendly, looked dejected. His little shoulders were set and he glanced at me with a questioning look, as if he didn't know why he felt the way he felt right that moment. I wanted to sweep in and insist that these kids include him. I wanted to scold and stomp my foot.
But I didn't. Because my son is at the age where he doesn't want me to be involved all the time. He's starting to exert his independence. He wants to do things for himself, damn it.
So I stood to the side and I prayed. Please God. Don't let them hurt his feelings. Don't make my son doubt how awesome he is.
My heart ached. I remembered times on the playground from my childhood, of mean things kids would say, and I felt his pain as if it was my own. Maybe it was my own, magnified through my love for my child.
The little boy continued to avoid eye contact but the girl he was playing with turned to my son and said, "What's your name?"
My son's posture changed. Gone with the stiff shoulders. He smiled brightly and told her.
"Do you want to play tag?"
He nodded with an enthusiastic, "Yeah!" And they were off.
Turns out the little boy was just really shy. He warmed up to my son. It's hard not to, honestly. My guy is a darling, really, and I'm not just saying that because I'm his mom. (Okay, maybe….) But it was a happy ending. They played until the sun went down.
I realized later that this rejection and the fear of it is what drives black moments in romance novels. If a happily ever after is the result of two people finding companionship and love together, the converse—the black moment—would be the result of feeling or being rejected. When I read a romance and hit that black moment, if it's a good story, my heart aches and my throat tightens. I'm connecting with the hero or heroine and projecting my own fear of rejection, my own remembered rejections, onto them. But as I'm wrapped up in my empathetic response, I know that it'll work out for these characters I've grown to love. It's a romance after all, not unpredictable real life, where rejection can stand unchallenged. In a romance, I know that their loneliness is short lived and that they'll find their way back together.
I just read Just Like Heaven by Julia Quinn. The black moments in that book come after the hero and the heroine both realize they love each other. But then the heroine finds out the hero was pressed into watching over her by her absent brother. So she thinks the hero only cares for her like a sister, that her brother made him even take that much interest, and now she's the one who loves him and he sees her as an obligation.
She worries that she cares more for him than he cares for her, that her love is going to be unwanted. I knew that he loved her, but she didn't. And I've been in that place, worrying that I cared for someone who didn't care as much for me.
So, my request today is for you to think on your favorite books. At the black moment, how does rejection manifest itself? In your own writing, how is rejection a part of your black moments? How do you produce that feeling of being rejected, of possible loneliness? What writing techniques can really wring out the fear of rejection in the black moment?
Monday, June 20, 2011
Winners Of The Booty!!
No, this is not a prize for the best booty, though we'd all tie for that one, don'tcha know. This is giving away the lovely booty offered up by our guests last week.
The winner of J.K. Coi's IRON SEDUCTION is.......
JANGA!!!
The winner of Randi Alexander's novella HER COWBOY STUD is......
DONNA!!!
Congratulations! You ladies should see info in your inboxes in the near future. (Could I throw in one more "in"? Ha! I did!)
The winner of J.K. Coi's IRON SEDUCTION is.......JANGA!!!
The winner of Randi Alexander's novella HER COWBOY STUD is......
DONNA!!!
Congratulations! You ladies should see info in your inboxes in the near future. (Could I throw in one more "in"? Ha! I did!)
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