Apr 7, 2008 | Contests, Reading, Writing |
The hermit crab has a lovely little shell to run into when he wants to hide. Me, well, I'm in my office. You can't see my face, which is helpful right now. Because my winning chapter from THE SPANISH MAGNATE'S REVENGE is on the I Heart Presents blog this morning.
Not that I mind sharing it with you. But it's nerve-wracking to be so publicly out there with my writing, where instant feedback can happen. I felt this way with my published short stories too, btw. It's scary, and I have a feeling I will always feel this way, even should I be lucky enough to have a long and productive writing career (which is my goal).
So I'll be here hiding while you go read my chapter. 🙂 It's already been revised since I sent it to the contest, but alas, you can't see the revisions until the book is finished and in print (thinking positively of course).
I hope you enjoy it! 🙂 If you don't, don't tell me. *grin*
Apr 7, 2008 | Life, Revising, Writing |
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? 🙂
Apr 4, 2008 | Blogging, Writing |
I'm blogging at I Heart Presents today. Come read about my call story and say hello!
Apr 2, 2008 | Rants, Writing |
A very good writer friend of mine made an announcement recently that has me reeling in my socks. She's quitting the biz. She's tired of the rejections and heart break and she needs time away.
I understand this, I really do. At the same time, I want to grab her and shake her and tell her she's not allowed, under ANY circumstances, to quit! I'm furious and upset and sad. She's one of the finest unpublished writers I know. She's not unpublished because she has no talent. She's unpublished because she hasn't hit that right combo of luck, talent, and timing yet. Her books are not easily categorized. They aren't trendy. They are, however, full of emotion and damn fine storytelling.
But one editor too many sent her a rejection this month. It's not just this month, of course, because that would be silly. And she's not being silly, though I still think she's wrong. After years of contest finals and near-misses, she's just tired. Worn out and tired of being hurt. I understand.
Yet I want to give her a flame-retardant suit and tell her to keep going. I've quit before. I convinced myself writing wasn't for me. I missed it from time to time, but I went back to school and ended up with an MA for my trouble. I wrote plenty then. Papers, papers, papers.
I missed romance writing. I read it, sighed a lot, thought how apparently I just wasn't good enough to make it. And then I got an idea. It kept me up at night. I started to write, just for me, and it grew bigger. I kept writing because it was fun when there was no pressure.
That book was pure fun, but I never sent it out. Instead, I started another one. By this time, I knew I was back and the dream was still alive. I finished the next book. Decided it was awful, but I liked the idea. Threw just about everything away and rewrote it. Rewrote it again. That book is HOT PURSUIT, my Golden Heart Finalist.
I am NOT judging my friend. Our roads have been different, and I can't know her heart. But I grieve for the loss because I know she's good. I think (hope) she'll be back. The funny thing about me, when I came back, was I knew I wasn't ever leaving again. I can't. I will not quit because I've been there and it was no fun.
What would it take to make you quit writing? Do you believe in dragging your broken body up the mountain, or would you say, forget this, and withdraw from the race? Everyone's different. There is no right answer. But what would it take? I'd really like to know….
Mar 31, 2008 | General, Life, Writing |
It was a busy weekend here in Northern Alabama! The Heart of Dixie chapter participated in a local event called Female & Fabulous at the civic center. There were health, beauty, and lifestyle booths spread around the center, lots of giveaways, and Clinton Kelly from TLC's What Not to Wear made an appearance.
I've never watched WNTW, but I think I will in the future. I liked what Clinton said. He said one thing that really impressed me: “Don't dress to please a man.” The other thing he talked about was young women and the pressure to dress like Paris, Britney, or Lindsay. Those clothes, the ones that show lots of skin, aren't necessary. You don't have to dress like a ho to be beautiful. After that, I figured I was in love. 🙂 When he continued on to say that catalog models weren't women to emulate because they weren't typical, well, the applause was deafening. The guy was funny, engaging, and entertaining. Other than the women who just wanted to smell or hug him, it was a great question and answer session he gave. (And what's with people anyway that they raise their hand for a question and then just want to smell the guy when he comes over? Sheesh.)
As romance writers, we often write women who are smart and confident. They may not start out that way, but they end up that way by the end of the book. Confident women moving forward with the man they've fallen in love with. They don't compromise who they are to be with the hero. Nor does the hero want them to. I guess that's why I love romance. 🙂
So, let's remember that even though real life isn't fiction, we can still be confident women who have every right to our own sense of self-worth that is NOT dependent upon a man. A man is your partner, not your reason for existing. No romance heroine would ever make that mistake, so why is it that romance novels get the reputation for being fluffy and trashy? Just another thing I don't get. 🙂
What's the worst thing you've ever worn? I can't remember the worse thing I've ever worn, but when I was about nine, I got into my mother's makeup and proceeded to cake it on. Then I went outside to wait for my grandmother to pick me up for my trip to the skating rink. She took one look and went ballistic. Since she never, ever raised her voice or got upset, I guess I must have looked pretty awful. Needless to say, she made me wipe it all off. 🙂
Mar 28, 2008 | Business, Rants, Writing |
This has been one heck of a week, y'all. I'm still getting used to the changes. I have not sold a book, but my professional life changed in the space of one phone call. And then another call came that iced the cake even more. There have been emails, phone calls, old friends coming out of the woodwork. Mostly, it's been great.
It's also been somewhat distracting. I kind of got a glimmer of what it's like for authors who keep checking their Amazon numbers or need to stop writing and take care of business tasks that won't wait. You can get caught up following a task until you realize an hour has passed since you meant to stop and go do something else like, say, eat. 🙂
And then there's been the tiniest bit of, well, negativity floating my way. Most people are happy for me. A couple are not. It happens, and I understand that.
But I also feel somewhat blown away by it, by the idea that anyone would think I won the Harlequin contest or finaled in the Golden Heart due to anything other than hard work and a refusal to give up. I had this conversation once with a writer who got a fabulous book deal and then had people talking about how her “connections” are what did it for her. Her supposed connections weren't connections. She wasn't the First Dog or anything. (Millie the Spaniel wrote a book with Barbara Bush, you may remember…)
I certainly didn't get to this point alone. I've been lucky enough to have a husband who believes in me, a critique partner who tells me the truth, and an entire organization telling me to climb back on the horse when I fell off. Most of my writing friends know the vagaries of this business from personal experience, but there are always those people who think there's a secret handshake, a password into the temple of publishing.
There isn't, folks. You write the best damn book you can, realize when it may not be good enough, and then write another one. And you always, always act like a professional. That's the only secret I know.
Do you know any secrets to this biz? Why do you think a sensible person typically knows he can't play Mozart overnight but expects to be able to write an amazing bestseller on the first try?
P.S. Party over at the Writing Playground today! It's a Friday celebration by my friends at the Playground, so come on over and have a good time!
