My Flash Back

Happy Tuesday All,

Something interesting happened to me during Agent Scott Eagan's talk on Saturday (which I talked about in this post).

What happened was Scott brought up having been a Composition teacher at one point. Now there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. That isn't what invoked the flash back.

What invoked the flash back was when he was talking about having "3-5" of something (I think it was publishers). His advice was very good. (Sure, I cringed, but that was when he was talking about goofy mistakes people sometimes make).

I winced during him talking about those 3-5 things...but not because of having to come up with those things (although at first I was worried about what to do about it, but I'm not anymore, I've managed to figure a few things out since the talk), but because of what was running through my head:

I was remembering Junior year of high school...the dreaded term paper (worth 2 grades because it was one paper for 2 classes) and all the things that went into it. But even that wasn't what was playing through my head.

No, it was the style of writing we had to use (Jane Schaeffer, whom I hear is a really nice lady).  But I was remembering this:

"Statement.
Commentary
Commentary
conclusion

In the statement have 3-5 details."

I was remembering how hard it was for me to write essays in high school...how restricted I felt (couldn't use linking verbs; and you had to write everything a certain way in a certain style and by golly you better not stray--I hear they're not as strict. Go figure they'd wait for the writer to graduate before loosening up the rules, right? LOL).

Anyway, so I was remembering that. So I winced. I couldn't help it. I remember reviewing those essays, how many drafts we had to write for the term paper. How much research we were supposed to have. How many index cards of research (I think it was 50).

Trust me, being a writer is a job, publishing is a business and everything, but compared to that, writing fiction is like a party for me. Sometimes even the research is fun. I can deal with the nerves, and writer's block can be a pain, but please, don't make me go back and relive those essays.

Sure, it tightened up my writing and I learned a lot, but I love writing fiction. I love that my imagination can run wild. Editing takes time and yes, you run through a ton of drafts, but it's way more my niche than when I wrote high school essays. (Besides, in fiction, you can have things that don't even exist!)

For the record, I did love English class. I'm still friends with a couple of my high school English teachers, and they're wonderful people. They taught me a lot and they're some of my best cheerleaders--I am grateful to each of them for being the great teachers they were and are. I'm even grateful to the dreaded term paper because it helped me learn. But, I have no desire to go back and do it all again.

I'll stick to the writing and publishing business no matter the similarities or the differences in my experiences with essay writing, because, this is where I belong. I don't know where this road is going to take me, but I'm enjoying the ride.

Have A Tremendous Tuesday!

Agent Scott Eagan De-Mystifies Pitching

This post is for Monday, July 5, 2010. I'm just posting it early.

Hi Everybody & An Early Happy Monday To You,

One of the things I love best about being an RWA & NWHRWA member is that I get some really awesome information on writing and submitting. I also get some great tips and suggestions from fellow writers.

The NWHRWA chapter had Agent Scott Eagan (check his blog out here) come speak to us Saturday (July 3rd) on pitching your story and selling yourself as an author.

One of the interesting things he said was that writing synopsises and such were not hard, it's just that we make them hard. He said that all we had to do was say what the story was about..."How you get from Point A to Point B." He says that getting it down to 1 page is great because then it's straight to the point and concise (although, side note here...some agents request a 3-10 page synopsis, so make very sure you read submission guidelines and pay attention to what each agent and editor wants. You have to tailor your query letter/pitch/synopsis/proposal according to what each individual requests and Scott emphasized that point more than once).

Scott said when submitting to him, you don't have to tell him every single scene and everything that happens. If it's a really cool thing, sure, tell him (that could be a selling point when he pitches your story to editors).

We had a chance to pitch to Scott after his talk. I didn't pitch for 2 important reasons:

1.  My story isn't completely ready (still editing and polishing)

2.  I came to realize that my story wasn't really what he's looking to represent (I have a form of shape shifters in my story, and that's not what he's looking for in terms of Paranormal).

Scott also said not to force yourself to submit and pitch if you weren't ready. He said you have to be ready and be prepared. That gave several of the NWHRWA members a sigh of relief. They'd been feeling like they had to as soon as possible. But Scott said no, he said do it when you're ready and prepared.

He also said to make sure you do your research--know which line your story would fit into. 

He gave an interesting take on what lines a story would most fit based on the publishers you have on your shelf.  He said whatever publisher you have the most of is probably the line (or "voice") you fit best with.

I haven't looked at all the books on my shelf, yet, but in the bookstore I sat down and thought "Well, probably have most of this one publisher, but in other cases, I'm all over the place!"  But I was able to think of at least 3-4 that I probably had the most of on my bookshelf. So I thought "Well, that would be a good idea for me to research them and see if my stories would fit with them." That way I'd have a "target audience" (as the Lone Star Contest puts it) in mind, which, should an agent ask me, I'd have the answer to. (Important to think of what an agent would ask and be prepared with answers).

Like Scott said, it's about being ready and being prepared.

I highly recommend checking out his blog, even if he's not the agent for you. He gives good advice, he's specific, direct, and helpful--he's also encouraging.

Have A Melodious Monday!

"I'd Like To Thank..."

Happy Friday Everyone,

Before I get to today's post, want to wish fellow USA-ers a Happy 4th of July Independence Day! Have a happy and safe holiday. Now onto the topic at hand...

Normally these things appear in a published book...the finished product of what we writers toil and imagine and work on for hours and days and even years at a time.

But, I was thinking about a fellow NWHRWA member who recently got a short story published in Suspense Magazine and how happy I was for him.

Then I got to thinking about the different "cheerleaders" in my life. The people who have encouraged, prodded, supported, laughed with me, read over my work (and listened to it) and helped me learn and helped me get on this road, that I just have to name them. (And in the comment section, you can name anyone YOU'D like to thank!)

So here's my list of people, whether they'd appear in the Acknowledgements of a published story by me or not, I'm still grateful to them (in no particular order):

My husband

My parents and siblings

My child (who reminds me of my love of imagination)

One of my best friends, Sarah (who has listened to countless tales, readings and everything in between)

Jacqueline, my instructor from my class I took some years back from the Writer's Digest School. She told me I had talent, which made me feel I could've danced on air.

To Mrs. G who told me I could do this

Author Laura Childs simply for being so cool and encouraging (and letting me interview her)

The NWHRWA members for being encouraging, upbeat, fun, informative and helpful. (Each of you is awesome in your own way and I'm grateful for each and every one of you simply for being there!)

Tessy...Yes and Tessy again for her critique on one of my manuscripts and her being so cheerful and helpful.

Author Ciara Gold for supporting this blog (whom I need to ask if you'll do an interview. Why I haven't yet is beyond my comprehension)

Authors Elizabeth Pina and Christie Craig for supporting this blog by letting me interview them.

Author Kim Lenox for her encouragement.

For all of you out there who have read this blog, commented and encouraged me.

Also...

Les, for letting me write those parodies.

Ryan, for sharing his talent with me.

All my relatives...for the support, encouragement and belief in me.

Mr. J. and his wife, for their friendship, encouragement, prayers, and support.

And, of course, God and my faith, without which I'd be a ship without an anchor.

Oh yeah...and to author Stephenie Meyer for writing the Twilight books...those things helped remind me of something very important with my writing, which in turn kicked my rear and helped me realize "Yes, this is where I belong."

So, now you all know (if you didn't already)...a writer may start off "alone" but he or she always has others behind him or her holding them up and showing them the way. No writer is truly an island unless they never, ever try to publish or show their work to anyone ever.

Have a Fabulous Friday!

Dreams, Parnormal & What Is It?

Happy Wednesday Everybody,

I'm really excited. Today The Twilight Saga: Eclipse is out in theaters (I hope to see it this weekend).

I'm also a little bit puzzled. I had another one of those weird dreams I'm always talking about...one that if I could just get a handle on what the dream was about, rather than these vague flashes, I might be able to take some of it and turn into a story. (It definitely had paranormal aspects in it!)

Speaking of paranormal, awhile back agent Scott Eagan was talking about what he will and won't take regarding Paranormal queries. It's made me sit down and wonder exactly everything that constitutes a paranormal. Things I thought of I wondered if they were strictly fantasy or if they could branch into paranormal (we're talking about nymphs, muses, sirens, mermaids, dragons, and things like that).

Now, I know that MaryJanice Davidson and her husband, Anthony Alongi have a paranormal series for YA out dealing with dragons and shape shifters and it's definitely firmly entrenched in the paranormal genre.

But, let's explore:

The Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary defines "paranormal" as "Not scientifically explainable."

Well that leaves things wide open.

Agent Scott Eagan isn't looking for vampires or were-things, or angels or demons or psychics (based on what he says on his blog and site). 

But there's other things, right?

I don't know about you, but I don't think mermaids have been scientifically explained.

But when do you cross from Paranormal into Fantasy? When you reach fairies? Or when you start having a knight fight a dragon?

Author Ciara Gold took Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Romance, and probably a bit of even Paranormal and sewed it altogether when she published Celestial Dragon.

There's time travel.

Author Lynn Kurland has done a lot with time-travel and ghosts in her MacLeod/de Piaget series. (my computer is acting up and doesn't want to select certain words so go here for her site: http://www.9kingdoms.com/ ).

I remember when I was a kid reading the Half Magic series by Edward Eager (http://www.amazon.com/Half-Magic-Edward-Eager/dp/0152020683 ). And the other books in those series.

There was time travel in one of them called The Time Garden ( http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Time-Garden/Edward-Eager/e/9780152020705 ).

I don't know how much scientific explanation dreams have. I know there's a lot of interesting research on it...ranging from Psychological to things like psychics, but you know, nobody truly understands the human brain. Part of it because everyone is different. Nobody is exactly alike, so what's true for one person's psychological make up, might not be true for another. (I got into this a bit in high school when I took Psychology I & II...we studied dreams, abnormal psychology, the history of psychology and even illusions, it was incredibly interesting...fascinating stuff the way people think!)

Being a how and why type of girl the world of psychology held quite an interest. Not enough to become a counselor a doctor (although one of my sisters does have her Ph.D. in psychology), but enough for me to be really interested in what drives people. I often ask people "why?" or "how did that happen?"

It's the type of questions we ask as writers and the type of questions Paranormal writers have to ask when world building.

You have to know why something is paranormal. You have to know how it works.

You have to be prepared to make it believable. (I mean not in the sense that a person would walk down the street and enter the next dimension or see a Witch turn someone into a frog). But in the sense that it has to make sense. Someone who's reading it has to be able to believe that these characters and this story matters and why it matters. (Not just because you had an insanely good idea, but because it's actually something a reader desperately wants to read).

These are the things that ramble around in my brain when I'm working on a manuscript.

So...what's your take?

(P.S. For those of you going to go see The Twilight Saga: Eclipse I hope you enjoy it!)

Have A Winsome Wednesday!

Wish On A Star

Happy Tuesday All,


Admit it. You've wished for something crazy or outrageous before.


Maybe as a writer you've wished you were the Super Writer with the power to burst through writers' block with super-sonic ray-gun typing fingers. Is this your wish?


Mine would be to be perfectly organized. Never a thing out of place and always know where everything is at any given moment. That would be very helpful. (unrealistic, but helpful; I know organized people, but rarely do I meet a person who never has anything that's out of place).


Have A Thrilling Tuesday!

From MISconception To PERCEPTION

This post is for Monday but I'm posting early because it's been running around in my head for awhile.

Hello Everybody,

An interesting subject came up when I was reading a blog (unrelated to writing, but a topic I'm interested in). The question of women being mothers and career women came up and I happened to mention I was a writer. The person I was talking to through the comments said that I was "doing it all"; but other things she said reminded me of the misconceptions people have about writers. The ideas I had when I was a teenager, before I got to really educating myself on the writing and publishing world.

This big misconception is that we writers don't have to spend as much time as other career-paths or even full time students on what we do. That at the very least it's a hobby sort of drive at the very most it's a few hours a day.

Well, I'm here to blast that myth into oblivion.

Okay, maybe not all writers are spending 8-10 hours a day 7 days a week on their craft, but even if they aren't, if they're serious about writing and publishing they're spending almost that amount just THINKING about it.

People don't realize that our ideas aren't always lightning flashes. Sometimes they're a gradual process--a spark of an idea, but then the slow, fleshing out of characters, the organization, the developing plot lines and subplots. It's a real process. (Depending on how you write this could take a few hours to several days).

To illustrate my point let's take an artist (since writing is something of an art form)

An artist has a concept in mind, then sits in front of his or her canvass and begins to outline this concept, slow, deliberate strokes of the pencil, pen or brush, then the gradual adding of details, and in some cases, this process taking weeks or months to fully polish.

This is a writer. The furious scribbling (or typing) and the weeks of editing, agonizing, revising, and learning and acquainting with one's characters, until, months (or even years) later the story is polished and ready for an agent or publisher's eyes.

Just a few hours a day, right? WRONG!

The constant thinking and (even in some cases, dreaming) about the story. Take time.

Of course, if the writer is really serious about his or her craft there's the amount of time reading up on the writing and publishing field. (Books, blogs, articles, classes, conferences, workshops--online and offline, meetings, critique partners, brainstorming).

It really is a full-time process. The thing about it is, is that a writer has to learn to prioritize:  family, unavoidable needs (such as eating and going to the bathroom), other responsibilities and writing. A writer can often delegate a certain amount of time for each thing (much like a college student figuring out his or her schedule, like taking a 3 hour class every Tuesday and Thursday or spreading it out an hour a day over the course of 3 days or something to that effect).

Some writers do put in 8 hours Monday through Friday. Some longer, some less. Depending on who they are, what they write and how serious they are about it.

The point is, the misconception that it's just about sitting down typing (or writing) out a story and then a few hours of editing is unrealistic.

I don't blame people for having this misconception. It's totally understandable. The writing world is something of a mystery for those who aren't deeply engrossed or entrenched in it. It's vast, changing, and full of different rules and expectations than most anything else. It's got some eccentric characters (for example, Lewis Carrol's Alice In Wonderland) and even things people don't even know about (like the several cups of coffee a writer might consume while desperately trying to finish a project).

It's about passion. It's about loving what one does. It's about putting one's heart and soul, mind and self into it.

But it is a real job. It's a full time endeavor, no matter how a writer chooses to split up that full time, it still takes a lot of time and energy. A writer may not be always putting in 8 hours a day of pure writing or editing, but a writer is always doing something to do with the writing world--whether it's helping critique another writer's work, helping out with a conference or a contest, or even just updating one's blog, a writer is always working--writing--imagining, or supposing one way or another. It just might not always be so obvious to the outside world.

Have A Meritorious Monday!

Wild Summer!

Happy Tuesday All,

Well, I know it's been a long time since I posted. There's some good reasons for that:

1. Working on Lone Star Contest

2.  My younger brother's wedding (was June 19th and the week before had family get togethers)

3. Working on Lone Star Contest some more

My younger brother (the "baby" of the family) is now a married man. It's hard to believe, but it's true. I like the woman he married, she's very nice and is very good for him. The wedding was lovely and I cried in my brother's hotel room the night before. The best man was kind enough to give me tissues LOL. My brother gave me a big hug before I left for my own hotel room.

The trip was awesome, I was in Seguine/San Antonio for the week and saw several family members and friends that I hadn't seen in awhile (a bunch of them I hadn't seen in over a year!)

Myself and 2 of my sisters gave the The Princess Bride toast at the Rehearsal Dinner (Family tradition...we quote the "Impressive Bishop's" speech...if you don't know what I'm referring to, watch the movie...and even if you do know what I'm referring to, watch the movie again! LOL it's a good movie).

I'm back home, now, and helping out with the Lone Star Contest and getting settled back into my usual rountine. Some family is still in town so I visit with them a bit, as well.

What's your summer been like so far?

Have A Thrilling Tuesday!