May 15, 2008 | Writing, Revising |
You know that saying that inspiration is 90% perspiration? (Hope I'm not mixing my sayings up!) Well, I sure do know something about that right now. Two books in the works. One is a revision for a full request. After I chopped out 72 pages, I darn near cried. Then I set to work rewriting them. Now, the end is in sight. HOT PURSUIT is almost done with the 3rd rewrite. I will not rewrite this book again without direction. I finally feel at peace with it. If an IP tells me I need to do something to it, I will. But the revisions for me are over. Well, almost over — have to finish first. 🙂
Secondly, I'm working on my Harlequin Presents. I love these characters!! They are so much fun in a delicious, angsty way. 🙂 Who knew that I'd find such a natural fit (or so it seems to me as I write) in Presents stories!? I thank Harlequin Mills & Boon daily for having the Instant Seduction contest. Without that incentive, I'd still be talking about how I was going to write a Presents someday. You just never know where you'll find yourself, where your voice will want to go. Don't ignore that voice when it speaks to you, that tingly feeling you get when you just *know* something is right. It's there for a reason. 🙂
This weekend is the 11th Annual Heart of Dixie Readers' Luncheon in Huntsville, Alabama. I'll be there, hanging with my chapter mates and other visiting authors, having fun and meeting new people. I believe we're partying Friday night for a certain chapter mate who just sold to Mills & Boon. Woo hoo!
Next Wednesday, I'm guest blogging over at The Last Word, a blog by my fellow Golden G8r, C.J. Redwine. And throughout it all, I'm writing. Because writers write. Right? 😉
Any moments of perspiration to share? Triumphs at the keyboard? Favorite inspirational sayings?
Apr 22, 2008 | Writing, Revising, Goals, Conference |
Wow, has it really been a week since I posted? The days flew by. I had several things going on in Chez Harris, plus I have to write about that sexy Spanish magnate. Which I have been doing!
The story is coming along quite nicely thus far. It's fun to write about a strong emotional conflict without a gun or dead body in sight. 🙂 But I still need to finish the revisions on HOT PURSUIT. *sigh* There aren't enough hours in the day sometimes!
Is it really only 3 months until National? My SF diet is not going so well. Must get busy on that. I've been using my treadmill, but it'd help if I could cut out the Chinese takeout. And the pizza and wings. I blame the hubby for those. 🙂
But I have no choice. The dress is bought, the matching purse is found, and I MUST appear with them on RITA/GH night. So, in between writing about sexy Spaniards and sizzling Spec Ops guys, I need to lose fifteen pounds. Piece of cake, right?
How's your week going? Accomplishing any of the goals you set for yourself? Lost any pounds? Done any conference clothes shopping yet? Wrote anything new?
*Not really, but I'm blonde and I'm multi-tasking this week.
Apr 15, 2008 | Goals, Writing, Revising |
I saw a quote recently that really made me stop and think. It was in a magazine, but I can't remember who said it.
Perfectionists always lose.
Yikes! But so true, because a perfectionist is never satisfied. And if you're never satisfied, you never let go of the work. I know this from experience. I am cursed with the perfectionist gene, though it's selective (for instance, I'm not obsessive about having a perfect house — well, I kind of am, but I know I have to give up and invite people over or I never will because things aren't perfect — hence my party this Friday that I'm trying not to obsess over).
And I've also had to learn to stop trying to perfect the writing, to send the darn thing out and see what happens. I do this remarkably well when deadlines are attached. 🙂 But let me have all the time in the world to “fix” my work, and I'll keep fiddling with it. There's always a better way to say something, always a better idea.
But you have to learn to let go.
Are you a perfectionist? Do you have trouble letting the work out of your sight? What tricks do you use to stop yourself from fiddling? If you aren't a perfectionist, how do you know when the work is ready? What is your benchmark for determining it?
Apr 10, 2008 | Writing, Revising, Contests |
Today, you can see what the editors think about my winning chapter and synopsis. Click over to I Heart Presents and have a look! This is truly a master class in romance writing!
Apr 7, 2008 | Writing, Revising, Life |
So many things going on lately! Overnight, it seems, I became a working writer. Now, I sit in front of my computer and read my WIP and think, “Will my editor like this? Am I going off the rails in this scene? Is it too much?” I'm new to working with an editor, but I think she'll rein me in if I go into left field too much. Of course my fear is that she'll read my work and think they've made a mistake in picking me as the winner because it's obvious I can't follow directions. *G*
Seriously, I think these are the things that go through every writer's mind when she sells or, in my case, gets an editor for a year. You suddenly wonder what they see in your work and whether or not you can repeat it. My answer to a friend who felt this way would be, “Of course you can! They aren't dumb, and they know you can do it or they wouldn't have chosen your story!”
So, I'll take my own advice and stop fretting. Too much. 🙂
But really, I'm having fun with these characters and their story. I wrote two entries for the Harlequin contest; the Spanish Magnate was my second entry. I knew when I wrote it — when I was writing it — that it was special. I didn't know it was good enough to win, but I knew I had something. I could feel the depth of emotion in my characters, in their situation, and I wanted to keep writing about them.
I've always heard writers talk about how they knew a certain manuscript was THE one. I felt that way about THE SPANISH MAGNATE'S REVENGE. I didn't know if the editors would agree with me, but I had that feeling deep inside, that giggly happy feeling you get when you know something's right. As a Presents reader, I was positive I'd get a request out of it, that it fit the line even if it needed a lot of help. The outcome was more than I'd hoped.
So I'm working on finishing, and I have editorial notes to keep in mind as I work. But it's still fun, writing this story, and I still love these characters. And I know I can do it, even if I get twisted up with self-doubt from time to time. 🙂
Have you ever known a book you were working on was THE one? If you've gotten a revision letter on a mss, did it scare you or did you jump in with both feet? More importantly, is it Spring where you live and are you enjoying the warm weather and flowering plants? I miss Hawaii in the winter, but when Spring hits, I love the new leaves and flowers, the gentle breezes, the birds and butterflies and warm sun. Spring is about possibilities, isn't it? 🙂
Jan 29, 2008 | Revising, Writing |
There comes a point, with every book, when you have to know when to quit. Not quit the book, but quit fixing the book. Quit trying to make it fit an ever-changing vision. When is that point?
Damn if I know. This is where I am today, sitting here after a painful day of trying to revise (the contest winner, no less) and wondering if I've totally gone off the mark. Do I have enough suspense? Does the dead body show up too late? Is the threat to the characters too simple? Not scary enough? Is this book category or single title? Is it too dark for category and not dark enough for S/T?
Truthfully, I do want to quit the book. I want to shove it in a drawer (or a computer file) and forget about it for the next several months. Can't do it, though. It hasn't seen the light of day, other than a couple of contests. I have a request for it, but I can't seem to let it go, can't seem to feel it's right enough to send out.
I have other stories in progress, so I'm not just working on this one. But I can't see this one anymore. I can't discern the pluses and minuses. It's all bad or it's all good. I can't see shades of gray.
So it's the end of the day and I'm tired. I haven't even thought about dinner (thank heavens for that new grocery store, right?). The hubby is on the couch, the cats are bugging me, and it's raining. Hard. Calgon, take me away….
Do you ever reach the stage where you can't see the book anymore? Where it's just a big pile of rubbish you need to sort out? What do you do?
