Simplicity in Volumes

Best Conference So Far

2011-12-08T08:58:00.000-08:00

Big Sur. . .Henry Miller Library. . .and the Andrea Brown Literary Agency = one helluva writer's workshop.

Now, all we need to do is get every agency out there on board with a similar effort. That way we can really get to know the agents and understand who we want more than any other agent out there.

I loved it!

If you've never been, the time to go would be this coming March. That will be their 15th year of sponsoring the writer's workshop in Big Sur.

There are only about 50 or 60 writer's that attend. They keep the numbers low so that the critique groups are small. There are 5 writers to 1 agent, editor or author. You are placed in two critique groups and each group meets twice. This is designed to help you work on revisions. You get critiqued then you go off and revise at night or during the lunch break on Saturday and then bring the revision back to your group for another critique. You can bring two projects if you want.

My critique group 1 was with Jennifer Laughran (agent). She's funny. I liked my time with her and my group. I learned a lot and we got to be ourselves.

Critique group 2 was with Ellen Hopkins (author of Crank and many other books). This group was very good. Joy Preble (author of Dreaming Anastasia and Haunted) was in my group working on another book. All very lovely people in all of my sessions.

I learned so much and am excited to really focus in on the story everyone thought had an important message. I'm hoping to have revisions done and ready to query by March of next year.

There are also panels with editors, authors and the agents. I learned the most interesting thing from the editor panel. Both Random House and Chronicle books laid out the process from acquisitions to sales and came up with the same time frame. More or less from the point an editor finds your book interesting and wants to buy it takes four years to get it on the shelf.

FOUR YEARS!? Wow. At first I didn't believe it, not because I think they are liars, I just wanted to find out from a published author. So, I asked Joy Preble, "How long before your first book got on the shelf?" She said thought back a bit and then said, "Four years." She explained that during that time she wrote the other books in her series and they came out one year after each other so the process sped up significantly.

DID YOU KNOW THAT? I thought maybe two years but not four. That's okay, I just didn't expect that. The way the editors went on to explain the publishing process they said authors of picture books have a harder time because they have another factor which is the illustrator. When the illustrator is hired that doesn't mean they have time to work on your book right away. It might take a year before they are done with another project and can start yours. Very interesting stuff.

Anyway. I hope everyone had a great and productive year of writing, querying and conferencing.

For those of you who had been following me and knew I dropped off the planet to help care for my mom who was diagnosed with stage IV pancreatic cancer this January, I want to let you know she is still doing well. She's beating the odds. They gave her 3 months and she's going on a year. I'm looking forward to having a big family Christmas in Utah with my mom and my sisters.

Happy Holidays!

What a Deal!

2011-09-14T10:29:00.000-07:00

I've been away for awhile. You probably don't remember who I am anymore.

Whew! Life changed a lot since I first started blogging. I got busy. My mom got sick. Milestone birthdays crept up on me and now I feel a little bit like a full time party planner who only spends and doesn't get paid. But it's going to be an awesome 40th birthday for my husband on October 1st.

I didn't get too busy to write, necessarily. And I wasn't away for bad reasons. Being busy can be a good thing. My mom's cancer treatments have been working, nothing but good news there.

I even got a request for my full manuscript back in April. I was rejected 3 months later but nothing harsh was written and yet it wasn't a form rejection. There is still hope and hey, I was asked for my full. That's great.

After I went to the LA SCBWI conference I had to take time off to put my writing life into perspective. It occurred to me that half of being a writer is having to get out and go to workshops and meetings and conferences and not just sit in a little dark room pounding out better drafts.

That's when I decided I should sign up for the Andrea Brown workshop in Big Sur this December. That will give me a chance to really sit and work on my manuscript with industry professionals.

I panicked shortly I signed up. I wondered if my writing was ready to go to that level of work-shopping. Maybe, I should skip it and save the money and focus on local writing groups and regional SCBWI meetings.

My husband had to rationalize with me. He made a good point. He said that since I met with Kelly Sonnack from Andrea Brown during my consultation at LA SCBWI and she's the one that gave me the flyer for the Big Sur workshop then I should go and stay relevant and in her mind. If I wait a year she might not remember me at all. But if I keep putting myself out there and show that I'm a hard worker than maybe over time I can work my way in.

That's not a bad idea.

But just in case, I decided to freshen up my creative writing skills by signing up for an online workshop.

SAY WHAT!?

Yep, I did. I am enrolled in Gotham Writer's Workshop for Children's Book Writing.

When is the last time you took a creative writing class? I took one back in 1998. That's a little while ago.

When I was in theater arts at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts West we were told that we should be taking classes regularly throughout our career to keep our skills honed and fresh. I figure, writers are part of the arts and entertainment field so the rules, I think, apply across the board.

The reason I have pulled myself out of my cave of business to post about this is because I found a deal for the Gotham Writing Workshop that is 53% less than what I paid to get into the class. I figured I should let the writing world know about it.

Check it out here: Gotham Writing Workshop - Creative Writing Online Class

No. I don't get anything for passing the info on. I just like my class. That's all.

What do I like about it the most?

This might be bad, I don't know, I like that I get to compare my first drafts and writing skills to 12 or 13 other students and we all give each other feedback which is valuable. But then there are the assignments, the prompts, and for those the teacher is the only one who see those and gives valuable feedback.

Some of the classes are run by agents and some are run by published authors.

The workshop also has a newsletter that is filled with helpful info and contests.

Check it out if you can.

Write on Writers!!!! Soon, I will be around the blogs to give everyone comment love. I don't get around to blogs very much but I get a lot of your blog posts in my email and I enjoy reading them. We just need to figure out how we can comment straight from our email and then I will be able to show how on top of reading posts I really am.

Conference Recap

2011-08-11T12:12:00.000-07:00

Happy 40th Anniverary SCBWI. I'm happy I got to be there to celebrate with you.

Whew! I got back from SCBWI Los Angeles on Monday night and I'm still trying to process everything.

I had never been to a conference before. What a blast! Seriously, I can't imagine why I was so nervous to go in the first place. It was like being in college all over again; meeting new friends, going out for the socials, sucking up to the teachers, haha! Okay I didn't have the balls to do that last one, but I thought about it. As a matter of fact, I was the dummy who didn't realize she was talking about cheese with Kelly Sonnack an agent at Andrea Brown.

There's more to that story though. I signed up for a consultation and all morning they had been telling everyone that we may or may not get to meet with an agent or editor, it could be an author giving us our critiques. I didn't mind. I just wanted to chitchat with someone about my first chapter and ask some questions. So, I went into the meeting, on the first day of the conference, with an open mind and lowered expectations. And yes, I really did talk about cheese and then moved onto a conversation about mud baths at the local hot springs near my house. And when we were done chatting she gave me some great feedback and then I left. It wasn't until later that one of my new friends told me who Kelly Sonnack is. Doh!

That's not the only stupid thing I did, or that happened to me. I learned that recently published authors are quite nervous people when it comes to the day of their book signing. I picked up a book and read the inside flap which had terms like, The Beast and The Beauty. But it was crowed and chaotic around me and I couldn't focus properly. So I asked the lady, "Is this a paranormal story?"

DON'T EVER, EVER DO THAT.

Her response was, "No. But I can write 'vampire' next to my signature if that would make you happy."

I back peddled and stammered trying to explain that I was only wondering if she took a contemporary or paranormal approach to her "ugly duckling" story. And then I walked off and never looked back.

HOWEVER, had this woman been more understanding, I might have bought her book out of sheer guilt. All well.

On the bright side, I met the best people there, one being, Susan:

Me and my conferene besty waiting to get our books signed by Libba Bray.

You might have to go to a conference by yourself. And maybe that's because nobody in your circle of influence gets your ambitions in this field. I'm here to tell you that you NEED to go to a conference by yourself, at least once. And likely there may only be a once because as soon as you get there you will find your conference besty and a bunch of other friends who totally get you and want to keep in touch. At the end of it all it's sad to say goodbye, so you don't. You say, "Hey, do you think you might come back to this conferenc next year?" And they say, "Yes! We should meet up and share a room!"

Did I get a contract out of the conference? No. And I don't believe the woman sitting next to me waiting for her consultation did either regardless of what she says. For, why, if she got a contract last year during the consultations would she be back and eager to find another agent? Okay, I know there are several answers to that. I just have that feeling she was giving random people false expectations (watch out for that).

Going to a conference, in my opinion, is more about learning how the agents and editors are. How they work and what they're like. After you see them talk a few times you get a pretty good feeling about whether or not you would ever query them knowing what you do now. And then you find ones you want to work hard to get to know better.

And if you're lucky, you will get to go home with a new besty and a bunch of notes on how to revise and edit yourself better. For me, I came home with all of that and two critiques from an editor and an agent who had conflicting opinions on the internal monologue in my story. One stressed importance for internal monologue and didn't mark mine for that while the other one marked the crap out of it and showed a better place to start. I could see how both opinions work well. Now I need to figure out what changes to make and what to do with that internal monologue. Hmmmmm.

I'm off to figure out my stuff.

P.S. Definitely always be prepared to give your pitch. And watch out for the random people who want to hear it that AREN'T agents or editors and find it necessary to critique you or say things like, "Yeah, yeah, I know you wrote a story and it's about a girl. Start over."

And that will be interjected right after you say, "DODGING JORDAN is a story about a sixteen-year-old girl named Addie--"

Best advice for that is to finish what you were saying and then say, "Now it's your turn." Have fun!

HOPE YOU ARE ALL WELL AND THAT I GET TO RUN INTO YOU AT A CONFERENCE SOME DAY!!!!

Tall Tales

2011-07-25T19:22:00.000-07:00

Me and the giant sunflower in my garden.

No lie, I thought the two-for-one dollar grow-it-yourself seeds at Home Depot wouldn't outgrow my garden. Especially because my 5-year-old son was in charge of starting it and then transferring it into our vegetable garden. Honestly, it was a craft; a project for the kids to do while my husband and I transferred our summer plants into the big garden from the starter kit. Now look at the darn thing. That sunflower is at least 10 feet tall. Ridiculous. Absoultely ridiculous.

Hmmm.

Anyway, summer has gone on a little too long. I'm ready for the kids to go back to school. I'm pretty sure it's more my fault than theirs that I'm this fried. See, every summer I work from a self-made calendar of activities and use it to build routine into chaos. This summer I built chaos into chaos and got lots of chaos. Brilliant, Patty.

So far this summer we have:

Kept our morning study routine of 20 minutes reading, 20 minutes math, 20 minutes bridge to the next grade worksheets.
Kids kept up with their penpals (Excellent handwriting practice. Plus, they should know how to send letters via mail not just email. Worked out great!)
Made slime
Went to a movie
Built and raced robots with two other families
Big 4th of July party at my house
Went to Hawaii for 10 days
Went camping
Went to the beach-twice
Had a pizza party and experimented with dry active yeast
Completed the Barnes & Noble Reading Challenge for the kids
Went to the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles
Had a balloon party with 6 booths
Went to the library (albeit, we only renewed our card for e-reading on our ipad)
Went to the park a couple times (walked once and then got smart and drove the second time)
Made a time capsule for the yard
Made ice cream in Zip Loc bags
There were sleepovers and back yard movies
Went to see "The Beatles" play with the kids and neighbors
Did enough swimming (yep, there can be enough of that)
Oh, celebrated 7-11's birthday, got free Slurpees and cheap food

And that doesn't complete summer nor does it include what I've done for myself:

Husband finally made good on that gift certificate for Glen Ivy Hot Springs he gave me
Read six books: WITHER by Lauren DeStefano, BLOOD MAGIC by Tessa Gratton, REVOLUTION by Jennifer Donnelly, THE FOREST OF HANDS AND TEETH by Carrie Ryan, TEXAS GOTHIC by Rosemary Clement-Moore, WE WERE HERE by Matt de la Pena
Prepared for the upcoming SCBWI conference in Los Angeles
Started a new journal
Started a new idea for the upcoming NaNoWriMo
Worked with a lovely Crit Group on a completed story
Added to a WIP
Went out with the ladies
Handed out grapes, apricots and vegetables to neighbors
Went on a wine tour with neighbors
Planned hubby's 40th bday party
Planned daughter's 9th bday party
Planned son and niece's 6th combine bday party

NONE of that includes the refereeing I had to do for the bickering, yelling, fighting, hitting, and teasing that goes on between 3 children.

NONE of that included 4 days per week of extracuricular activities (Tae Kwon Do, Piano,Voice and upcoming Reading Program)

Mainly because that's the yeah, yeah, yeah stuff. Like, yep, kids need a lot of attention during summer.

However, I wasn't AT ALL prepared for the most ridiculous of all kinds of ridiculous arguments I've ever had with my 9-year-old daughter (This too is no lie. Not at all a tall tale): My daughter's friend is apparently going to be homeschooled this year. (I have no opinion on that) I let my daughter spend the day bowling and hanging out at said girlfriend's house. Daughter came home and BEGGED me to homeschool her.

I'm thinking: What the?
I say: "No. Believe me, you don't want to be homeschooled."
Daughter says: "Yes, I do. [Said friend] is."
I say: "So?"
D says: "Why can't I?"
I say: "Sorry. It isn't going to happen. You can't even sit and do your homework for 20 minutes without complaining. You don't qualify for being homeschooled. Plus, it's not like you would get to hang out with your friend who will be schooled IN HER OWN HOME!!!!!"
D says: "I'm going to HATE fourth grade! My life SUCKS!!!!"

I'm left thinking: Sucks? That's a new one. (At this point I can't focus on her word choice. I'm too busy wondering a lot of other things.) What in the hell kind of things did her friend's mom say to make homeschooling sound THAT appealing? And what kind of kid thinks their life SUCKS because they aren't going to be pulled away from all their friends to be stuck at home with me all day everyday? This is a joke, right? Anyone? Anyone? Damn, I'm by myself and NOBODY is going to believe this conversation.

AHHHHH! I have to get out of summer. Right now!

The Effects of a Good Blonde Joke

2011-07-11T09:24:00.000-07:00

Before I trudge on with ultimate blondness I want to thank the bloggers who came looking for me while I've been away. Mostly summer caught up with me and spending time with my mom while she's been sick. But now I'm back! (and hopefully better than ever, hahaha!)

I'm a blonde, yep, with an 'e'. You see blonde/blond is a French word where the ending letter determines the sex of the person you're describing. So, I'm a blonde with an 'e'. I'm always surprised at how many books use 'blond' to describe girls. I guess the rule doesn't matter in America and I don't have much of an opinion on that.

So, being a blonde, I hate writing MC's as blondes.

Why?

Because blondes are either stupid, slutty, cheerleaders, prissy, the popular ones, or the evil ones. You might be thinking I'm reaching now. There are plenty of good books where the MC is blonde and she isn't any of those things and none of her friends think that. Such as the Evermore Immortals series by Alyson Noel (love those books).

But seriously, I rarely see book covers with blondes who aren't any of the things I've described. When a blonde is featured on a YA cover the title usually includes Pretty or Queen.

I'm thinking this has to do with the effects of a good blonde joke. I've been around for awhile and have heard some really good blonde jokes. My favorite being:

Q. What do you call a dead blonde in a closet?

A. Last year's hide-and-go-seek winner.

See, what I mean? That's a pretty good one. With jokes like that, how can I possibly make my MC a pretty blonde who happens to be smart and witty with a good sense of humor and an uncanny knack to blow off the stupid boys effectively? I could. But would you trust that she would be this way if you saw her pretty little face on the cover of the book?

Let's face it. Marketing a blonde MC that doesn't fit into her cliche would be more difficult than a brunette.

What percentage of YA girl MC's do you think are brunette? And blonde?

Do you jump at buying up books where a blonde-haired girl is pasted on the cover?

I tried to jump out of my blonde cliche by getting tattoos and body piercings when I was young. And even still, I added two more tattoos in my thirties. I wanted people to take me more seriously and not as a dim-witted, bubbly, cheerleader-esque, goody-goody. For the most part it worked; people realize I have more depth than my appearance might otherwise suggest.

The only bummer about that is. . .I never get to hear the good blonde jokes anymore.

Conference Advice

2011-04-21T09:13:00.000-07:00

No, no, no. I'm not going to OFFER any conference advice, I'm LOOKING for some.

I am happy to say that I get to go to the SCBWI Los Angeles Conference in August. Is anyone else going? I would LOVE to meet up.

Are you debating whether or not you should go? YOU SHOULD! If you are AT ALL on the fence about this conference I can tell you that even without conference experience this is going to be AWESOME!

Are you thinking: It's Los Angeles, that's not a safe place, it's dirty and far away?

You're not entirely wrong about all of that. However, Los Angeles is HUGE and wraps itself around cities such as Hollywood, West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, etc. Traffic alone could put you hours away from the bad areas. Haha! Out here we don't judge distance in miles,only in time. It could be a mile away but more importanlty, how long will in take me to get there?

I've been living in California for 14 years and spent nearly 3 years living in Hollywood and West Hollywood and can tell you for certain that the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza is in a beautiful area off of Avenue of the Stars. Nothing at all to be afraid of.

Now, enough of putting you at ease with this particular conference, I need you to put me at ease. I've never been to a conference. Yep, I a newbie--newb, if you will.

Any advice? Funny stories? Do's? Don'ts? I wouldn'ts? You should's? If you can's? If you haven'ts?

I've already booked my hotel room but have to be honest when I say, I wish I had a roommate to share the cost with. If you are seeking a roommate for those days, let me know. If you are going to be there, drop me a line. I WANT TO MEET YOU!

Vegas was. . .AWESOME!

2011-04-13T12:31:00.000-07:00

Spring Break is over, my kids are back at school and I've come back from Vegas with stories and pictures. Now, I've been hesitant to come back right in the middle of the A to Z blogfest but I think it will be okay.

To preface the pictures, my sister and I took my mom to Vegas to cross that off her bucket-list. I must say, for a woman who is suffering terminal pancreatic cancer and had been given 3 to 6 months to live back in January, she sure lived it up in Vegas:

My Mom at the Minus 5 degrees Ice Bar at Monte Carlo in Vegas

I tell ya, when you ask your mom to sit with your drink for a minute so you and your sister can get shots from the bar you DON'T expect to find her dancing in a corner with a penguin. That's the kind of stuff you read about in fiction or see in Vegas. If you can't find any interesting characters in Vegas then you know who you are: The character in Vegas.

Left to right: Me, my mom, and my sister.

I'm happy to say that my sister and I were able to convince a 23-year-old that we were around his age. Shhh! Who cares how many shots he had before that? I loved this bar. It's not one you hang out in for too long but the fact that EVERYTHING is made out of ice made this a memorable place. I would definitely go back.

Unwritten rules need not apply. You know how what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas? I'm assuming that statement doesn't apply to souvenirs.

My new tattoo.

My sister's husband's cousin-in-law after he tattooed me in Vegas! Great guy!

The tat is the Eye of Horus. For those of you who don't know, this Egyptian symbol wards off the evil eye, brings spiritual power, wisdom, prosperity and good luck. This is actually my fifth tattoo. I have an atom that represents me and my children on my left wrist and because the Eye of Horus represents religion versus spirituality to me, I enjoy being able to say the tattoos on my wrists represent how religion and science go hand in hand.

Oh yeah, I went there to work on character building. I'm happy to say I did that as well. We not only had time to do some people watching we managed to get three shows in as well. We saw Terry Fator, the ventriloquist from America's Got Talent, Viva Elvis Cirque du Soleil and David Copperfield. During David Copperfield my mom and sister both participated in the finale which was a vanishing trick. That was pretty cool. Good times had by all.

There she is: My sister had just returned from being vanished on stage.

David Copperfield was an interesting character. I kept thinking about how bored he must be having to perform the same illusions for 30 years. This might not have occurred to me if he hadn't seemed so blah. I'm eager to go back and see Chris Angel's Mindfreak show. It will be interesting to compare the two.

MAGICIANS AND CLOWNS ARE SCARY, SAD CHARACTERS, ESPECIALLY WHEN THEY LIVE AND PERFORM IN VEGAS. That's just for the record.

HOPE YOU ALL HAD A GREAT SPRING BREAK AND ARE OUT THERE WRITING AND QUERYING. (I've been querying like a mad woman. I'll let you know if anything interesting comes up.)

Spring Break

2011-03-16T20:25:00.000-07:00

I've been fighting off the temptation to relax during spring break but it has finally won me over. After a little rest I'll be as good as new and look forward to seeing all the Crusaders around the blogosphere soon.

ANYONE DOING ANYTHING FUN FOR SPRING BREAK?

I'm excited to say I get to spend four days in Las Vegas seeing shows and gambling. Excellent time for watching people and building new characters. If only I could write it all off as a business trip it would be even better. Haha!

WRITE ON WRITER'S! I'LL BE BACK SOON TO CATCH UP.

On a side note: I would like to commend Rachael Harrie at Rach Writes and everyone else at Write Hope for the efforts they are making to collect funds for the relief effort in Japan. What a sad time for the world to watch this meltdown. My heart goes out to all of the people of Japan.

The Truth Be Toldeth

2011-02-27T21:58:00.000-08:00

2004 after a 10-year anniversary refurb

She be pink - I not lieth. My most favorite (non-human) thing in the whole world is my 1976 Volkswagen Bug that I've owned since I was 16 years old (She was pink then, too). Yep, she's my first car and I still own her. I don't get to drive her regularly (not really a car that holds car seats very well), but I do get her out in spring and summer most years. I blogged about her once. More pictures HERE.

I asked my sister which one she thought was the lie and she said, "Well obviously your sense of humor about trivial things." My response to that was, "Really? I think I have a pretty good sense of humor." She said, "You do! Just not at first. It takes a minute for your sense of humor to come out." I guess I was lying about that? I didn't mean to, so this doesn't count as the lie because I still think it's the truth.

I finally told my husband I'm planning to shave my head when and if my mom loses her hair due to her chemo. He said, "Great! I think you should, as long as you let me shave it." YIKES! This is coming from a man who bought an extension to our Dyson vacuum to brush our dog's hair. Deal is OFF if he comes near me with the vacuum cleaner, that's all I'm saying.

Depending on how you look at it, when I said I stopped going outside last year, I wasn't lying. In comparison to how often the neighbors, my kids and my husband saw me outside in The Cul-de-Sac I really don't go out anymore. I think I over did myself when I was making appearances amongst the neighbors. I got burned out. There are only so many new and interesting things the neighbors have to talk about when all the wives stay home for a living. I threw in the towel when gossip reached its peak in my neighborhood. The neighbors weren't the only reason. I stopped going outside when hubby came home from work because I wanted a break and spent that time writing.

Speaking of neighbors. You wouldn't think a person who would take time to measure water coming out of my front spout from my back yard and into the gutter could exist outside of the movie, The Burbs starring Tom Hanks but it's true. My neighbor is obsessed with pointing out what's wrong with everyone else so no one will focus on what's wrong with him and his family. Not that I'm implying there is anything wrong. How would I know? I don't go outside anymore. Haha!

I do live in a cul-de-sac and the neighbors do refer to it as The Cul-de-Sac and we refer to their street as The Straight Street. My sister reminded me of how they used to call it The Cult-de-Sac. What can I say? Cul-de-sac people rule! We have our own private street and we look sideways when cars make a wrong turn into it. I guess it's kind of cult-ish. But we do put on the best and only haunted house in the community.

The true blade of misfortune really is the house down the street from me we call The Hanger House. The wife of the original owner hung herself in the gargage just before Christmas 2 years ago. Luckily, after a year on the market, the house has finally sold. I'm not sure though why a single woman would buy that house. Would you intentionally buy a house you knew someone committed suicide in? And then when I met this woman she mentioned working with someone who talks to the dead. Ahhhhh! I think she's trying to out-do my annual haunted house, what do you think?

It's true that dancing to the beat of my own drummer annoys people but I actually don't care. Eff them if they can't take a joke. The lie is within the blending. Blending is like following and in the excellent words of the rap artist, M.I.A. "You can be a follower but who is your leader?" If I start blending now I would be following someones lead which has been against my policy since birth. I enjoy being an individual and I hope all of you artists out there are enjoying your individuality as well. Don't be afraid to stand out from the crowd.

WRITE ON WRITERS!!!

It Was Definitely a Challenge!

2011-02-20T11:57:00.000-08:00

It's not easy putting together a post that has to be less than 300 words and incorporate one lie, one secret, one interesting quirk, one annoying habit, one of my best character traits, one of my favorite things in the whole world and include the following words: bloviate, fuliguline, rabbit, and blade. It was definitely a challenge. Check out how other Crusaders fared in this First Crusader Challenge by going HERE.

Now for my version of the challenge:

I don’t live in high society but some of my bloviating neighbors think we do. When I shave my head to support my mother’s fight against cancer those same neighbors might think I’m doing it for unwarranted attention. They don’t get me. I would warn them but what’s the point? A little shock value goes a long way in this world. I’m quirky like that.

I’m not sure what my husband will think because I haven’t discussed it with him yet. I imagine he’ll say, “Fuliguline, Patty! You’re freaking bald!” He’ll get over it. He gets me.

I live in a cul-de-sac outsiders call The Cul-De-Sac which is just off of the street all of us inside The Cul-de-Sac call The Straight Street. My house is three doors down from The Hanger House; a blade of misfortune in my opinion. I like it here. We all bred like rabbits and now when my three kids go outside there are thirty other kids for them to play with.

Last year I stopped going outside. It would be rude for me to blame it on my neighbors, so I won’t. I’m just going to say I don’t enjoy hearing my neighbor say he measured a quarter-cup of water pouring into the gutter from our backyard every hour and wants to know what we’re going to do about it.

I’m not sure why but I’ve found that dancing to the beat of my own drummer annoys people. That’s why I started blending recently. I’m not sure why I’ve never done this before. It’s relaxing. However, I think that means I’m going to have to give up driving my favorite pink car around if I want to truly blend in. Having a good sense of humor about the trivial aspects of life is probably my best trait.

I may have revealed something about me that isn’t strictly true. Can you guess what it is?

Put the Damn Thing Away Already!

2011-02-16T11:51:00.000-08:00

I have to say that to myself sometimes. PUT THE DAMN THING AWAY ALREADY!

I used to hate the advice about shelving your WIP and getting back to it weeks or months later because I thought, I'M READY NOW! I wrote it. I edited it. I packaged it up with a really great query and even have a pretty darn good synopsis to go with it. Why shelve it when I'm pumped enough to query NOW?

I hate to admit when I'm wrong and all the advice is right. So I'm not going to say that. I'm just going to let you know it's there in the back of my mind and I'm fully prepared to allude to it. (Hey, stubborn people can get far in life just like everyone else.)

NaNo had this really great way of forcing me to shelve that WIP I really thought was ready to go as well as a tiny bit of feedback I received on a partial I sent out last June.

Now, my advice to everyone else is since you've written your book and edited it, maybe put a query together and a rockin' synopsis, SHELVE IT!

You have at least twenty other story ideas to write, get to it. That's what I did. I wrote two other books while I was letting my first book marinate.

Now I'm back to the first book and ready to query the second book which marinated while I wrote the third book. See how the cycle goes?

Maybe, if I'm lucky, within the year I could have three books ready to query. Who knows?

IS THERE ANY REASON YOU DON'T THINK YOU NEED TO SHELVE THAT MANUSCRIPT FOR A COUPLE OF MONTHS BEFORE YOU QUERY? HAVE YOU SHELVED ANYTHING AND THEN GOTTEN BACK TO IT?

(P.S. Hello and welcome new followers and Crusaders! I'm about to go around and return the follow and start getting to know all of you a bit better. I'm not a daily blogger. At most I get out and around the blogs twice per week. I usually only blog once per week as well. If you have an Email Subscription box on your blog then know that I'll be following via email. I tend to focus my short window of spare time on my WIP's. If you don't have an Email Subscription box and want to know how to put one up, email me and I'll let you know.)

Rach Writes and Has An Awesome Crusade

2011-02-10T07:51:00.000-08:00

I'm a Crusader.

I might not be an excellent Crusader (there were things I missed and times I spent away) but I'm a Crusader all the same.

Are you a Crusader?

What's that you say? Oh, okay, let me back up a bit and include some linkage.

A Crusader is a writerly blogger who has stumbled upon Rachael Harrie at Rach Writes and has noticed that she leads the most awesome Writer's Platform Building Crusade in the world. I'm not exaggerating.

Crusaders sign up and meet other Crusaders who vow to support each other in the blogging and writing community by way of comments.

Personally, I've met some of the nicest people in the blogging community this way.

I thought maybe I was going to skip the second round of crusading because I recently found out my mom is suffering from Stage IV Pancreatic Cancer and life has become somewhat overwhelming. However, the first round of Crusaders have been so supportive during this fragile time of my life that how could I pass up the opportunity to be part of this amazing community again?

I didn't REALLY feel like a blogger until the first round of Crusading. I would be completely lost and feeling left out if I didn't join again.

I'm a Crusader. That's who I WANT to be. Where do you fit in? Where do you belong? YOU BELONG WITH THE CRUSADERS! NOW GET YOUR BUTT OVER THERE AND SIGN UP.

Happy Writing, Writers! Can't wait to make your aquaintance soon.

You Have to Be A Really Good Sifter

2011-02-07T10:32:00.000-08:00

It's true. Sure, you have to know how to write first, but we're beyond that, right? Among other things we know all too well, we have to have patience, an open mind, an eye for detail, a voice, etc. Been there, done that, checked it off my list, now what?

We have to be really good sifters. That's what comes after everything we already thought of.

Sifting is a skill required for getting through revisions, edits, critiques, etc.

Actually sifting runs deep. For ladies we are just beginning to learn how to sift when all that baby advice comes into play (do this, don't EVER do that and you'll be just fine). For men, sifting is what you start doing when you get engaged and all your married buddies have all kinds of advice on marriage. You realize at some point (usually years later) that most of the advice didn't really apply to your situation.

If you don't have kids and you aren't married then you might not understand these versions of sifting, don't worry, you're a writer. Your book is like a child and a marriage all wrapped into one. You've likely already been told what to do and what not to do and you've decided there's no way you can get it done without breaking some of those rules or going against parts of that advice, that's when you start sifting.

Let's say you put your query or the first 250 words of your story on a blog fest or forum. You know you're going to get comments and you're pretty sure some of them aren't going to be very nice. That's when you decide that you have to have a thick skin for this business so you'll take whatever you get, or you're waiting for some kind of external approval on your skill and if that means revisions then so be it. Before you go to such extremes think about what kind of commenters you're going to get.

Commenters are such interesting people. Some are doing it because the forum mandates a certain amount of participation via comments. Some commenters just love to go around and create controversy and spark confusion. Some are just being nice and are there solely to show their support so they won't have much in the way of constructive feedback. Some commenters are reading your posting first and some are reading your post after they've already used up all their judicious perspective on 40 other posts before yours. Some are awake and some are half asleep. Some are taking a break from a frustrating part of their own stories and are taking out their frustration on your piece. Some commenters just received seven of their own negative comments and need to prove a point. How can you know for sure what kind of commenter you're getting? BY KEEPING ALL THIS IN MIND AND SIFTING.

While sifting consider these points:

Automatically dismiss any criticism that comes from commenters who replace words like 'the' for 'da' and have nothing but harsh things to say about what you've posted. That's a Keyword Dismissal. It might not be DA that ticks you off it might be some other careless word. Odds are pretty good that commenters that don't use proper English aren't going to have the type of knowledge or opinion that will have much of a bearing on the success of your writing.
Tactless. If your query or portion of your story has been commented on and the commenter has just ripped you apart and shown, in bullet points (who knew a commenter could use bullet points), how you should have done it and they can't find even one good thing in your writing then DISMISS this comment. There's no need for anyone to be harshly critical about something they've only read a snippet of. And if they can't find anything good in your writing but think they could do it better then you know right away they are teachers and not doers. What if they've never even written a book before? What if they're just bloggers and not writers at all? What is their credential? Why should this comment matter to you?
They start with, "I don't read this genre, but. . ." Be wary. They might be nice and they might have some creative advice but if they don't read Sci-Fiction or Paranormal and that's what you write then how do they know for sure your snippet isn't realistic for your character or that parts of your story don't make sense? If a commenter only reads adult fiction then how would they know if your character sounds more MG than YA? SIFT WRITERS SIFT.
Conflicting advice should be taken with a grain of salt as well. The commenter may be too tired from reading several other posts and then reaches yours and gives you two pieces of advice that don't make sense. Realize you're not getting fresh eyes or an open mind and should move on to the next comment.
Short Story Comments. To me, any comment that begs for more information inside of 250 words is a short story commenter. If they wanted to see more of this, or wished the character would hurry and do whatever inside of 250 words, they are, more or less, asking you to sum up thousands of words into a short story. Twilight is the best example for this. During the first 250 words of Twilight we realize the MC is a dark/negative character who is moving away from her "hair-brained mother" to a small town she's always hated just to live with her dad. That's it. A negative girl moving. Inside of 250 words she doesn't tell us why she's moving, what she's leaving behind other than her mother (no boyfriends, friends, etc.), whether or not she has siblings, etc. And who cares? Not me. I'm a patient reader. I know the MC has a purpose, that the story is about to get exciting, that other characters are going to come into play, I trust the writer. I don't need a lot of info in the first 250 words.

YOU DO NOT HAVE TO CONSIDER EVERY COMMENT YOU GET. BUT IF YOU DO, THEN YOU SHOULD CONSIDER THE SOURCE.

WHAT TYPE OF COMMENTS DO YOU AUTOMATICALLY SKIP OVER? HOW DO YOU KNOW WHICH ONES ARE THE BEST ONES TO CONSIDER?

Accurate. Not Helpful.

2011-01-30T21:52:00.000-08:00

Let me preface this by saying I don't do book reviews. With that said, I just have to give my opinion on this book I bought recently. Haha!

Some of you already know that my mom was diagnosed with Stage IV Pancreatic Cancer three weeks ago. Once the initial shock of this news wore off I was out buying the Jack Lalanne juicer and books to go along with it. Once I found myself looking up juicing books I found myself clicking on all the recommended cancer books. I strongly urge anyone who has just discovered that they or a loved one has cancer to use caution when purchasing any of the detox books. I'm just throwing that out there.

In my sudden search for a way to extend my mother's life despite her terminal illness, I came across this book:

WHAT THE HELL WAS I THINKING SENDING THIS BOOK TO MY MOM?

That's what I was asking myself when I started reading it while I was there helping her through her first week of chemo. Luckily, the book arrived while I was there and I intercepted it before she got a hold of it.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm sure this is a very good book for anyone WHO DOESN'T HAVE CANCER! Or, for anyone who has NEVER:

Used a microwave or been anywhere near a microwave when it's been on.
Eaten meat.
Eaten any type of refined sugars.
Breathed pure oxygen on a regular basis.
Had a negative thought.
I'll just stop here because by the time I got to the regular enemas I was done.

IF you already HAVE cancer you might FEEL like YOU are the reason you HAVE cancer, should you buy this book.

Is it true, one person gets cancer because they use a microwave and eat refined sugars while a seemingly less healthy person should get to live cancer free for eighty years or more? Seemingly healthy athletes aren't impervious to cancer either, so how did they get it? Why some and not others? NOBODY KNOWS. IT'S NOT BECAUSE YOU HAVEN'T DETOXED, THAT'S FOR SURE! (however, perhaps avoiding some of the bigger carcinogens could be of help like not smoking for instance.)

Could a detox here and there help us all out, maybe. Perhaps this book is accurate, but it's not helpful. And it's not a good idea to tell cancer patients and their families that if you had just skipped that last bowl of ice cream for a trip to an oxygen bar then maybe, just maybe you wouldn't have cancer.

Another bad idea is to suggest a chemo patient start worrying about their diet. Again, maybe accurate, not at all helpful. Chemo patients have a lot more to worry about than detox. What the hell was I thinking? I think I was focusing on the mind and spirit part of the title over the detox part.

So, all in all, a good rule of thumb here is to incorporate not eliminate during chemo. Juicing - YES! Full detox - NO! Hard to justify a detox with toxic chemicals running through your system. Kind of a funny thought actually.

EVER COME ACROSS SOME REALLY ACCURATE ADVICE THAT ENDED UP NOT BEING HELPFUL AT ALL?

(P.S. I must thank my friend, Fred, for the, "Accurate, not helpful" line.)

All Time Greatest Hits

2011-01-23T22:10:00.000-08:00

It's time for the Top Ten Music Blogfest. What!? You haven't heard? That's okay. But now that your here you should check out mine and then check out everyone else's over at Alex J. Cavanaugh's blog.

My list far exceeds my age, especially since I was only born in 1978, but I'm the youngest and I have four older sisters with three being ten or more years older than me.

Besides exceeding my age, it doesn't quite match what I listen to on a daily basis either, but then this is an all-time greatest list. By the list you wouldn't know I currently listen to artists like Lady GaGa, Katy Perry, Pink!, Bruno Mars, Flo Rida, and on and on. However, those artists keep me young, they don't remind me of my first boyfriend, my wedding day, rollerskating rinks in the '80's, or the part of my early twenties when I experimented with drugs (shhhh!). That's why they don't make my list. Check this out though, you might recognize and relate to some of these:

Somebody - Depeche Mode
(This hits my list in 1992)My list starts here for a reason. Although the majority of my listening pleasure came from my parent's record/8-track player or any of my sister's stereos, I didn't really start loving music until I met my first boyfriend. Yep, this is the song I lost my. . .you get it. Good starting place, I think.
Purple Rain - Prince
(For me, 1993)First real introduction to writing poetry. I went from writing in a journal to writing my feelings in code, otherwise known as poetry. With first loves come Purple Rain, at least in my experience.
Bridge Over Troubled Waters - Simon & Garfunkel(1994)My mom still has this record. In 1994 Dad came home from being away for business and announced he wanted a divorce. This song played a lot. I think I'm the one who played it over and over. In 2003, my husband took me to see them in concert. Definitely one of the best concerts I've ever seen. Probably the only audience member crying during this song. Oops!
Ironic - Alanis Morissette (1995)Thank you Alanis for inspiring me to open my mind and gain a spine. I was seventeen this year. It was a refreshing year. I had spent a good three years with the first love and now I was branching out as a whole new kind of person. I was always kind of an introvert who incidentally had a family who moved a lot (2 elementaries, 2 junior highs, 3 high schools). I was tired of being the new kid in school and vowed not to be that introverted, shy girl this year. It worked out for the best.
I Am the Walrus - The Beatles(1995)My introverted self found me a great new bunch of friends, well, kinda. Hmmm. They weren't the best type of friends, but we managed to have a pretty good time with each other for the short summer we spent together. I learned about The Beatles in a whole new kind of way. I Am the Walrus was actually a song playing on the radio on the way back from a busted party where the cops came and broke us up due to a neighbor's complaint that marijuana smoke was seeping into the hallway from the condo we rented in Park City, Utah. This isn't where my drug experiences begin. It is however, the year I vow to NEVER try and see Pearl Jam in concert again (no show, effing freak. I hate that guy! Love his music--hate him. Bitter party of one here.) Beatles won't show up again on this list only because the list is too short. I take great comfort in The Beatles and especially John Lennon, however.
Casey Jones - Grateful Dead (1995)My sister, Anna, had been playing The Grateful Dead in her car for years trying to get me to catch on. She toured around and saw them in concert and brought stickers back for my sticker collection way before I started listening. Finally, the year I get into Casey Jones, Truckin', Sugar Magnolia, among others happens to be the year he dies and I have tickets to see them play. That sucked. I stuck to his music for years after. I even found a guy who followed The Dead around and tapped into their system to make recordings. I listened to those tapes for awhile in 1997. Good times had by all. (Still not my drug era.) I listened while I wrote poetry and screenplays.
Me and Bobby McGee - Janis Joplin (1998)My mom used to call me a throwback even as a small child. She pegged me for child of the sixties or even as far back as a beatnik. When I latched onto Janis Joplin and didn't let go my mom just kept saying, "I've always said you're a throwback." Maybe I was reincarnated, who knows. It's great to listen to this song but even better to watch her sing it. I have a huge framed drawing of Janis singing on my bedroom wall. I don't know why but she inspires me more than any other female singer. (Still not my drug era.)
Into Dust - Mazzy Star(1999)I was fresh out of an abusive relationship and living a crazy lifestyle in West Hollywood, California. I was ready for a do-over. Unfortunately, I had never heard of Mazzy Star until I was high on acid. My writing took an interestingly dark and introspective turn but for the better. I was climbing out of a hole and onto a fresh new page. I was stepping away from years of raw poetry to short stories. I don't have an addictive personality and I was broke so I got bored with the drug scene pretty quick and focused entirely on sharpening my story telling skills. Mazzy Star gives me the incredible urge to play guitar. This is the year I get a guitar and meet my husband. The beginning and ending of a weirdly short drug stint into the rest of my blissful life.
Somewhere Over the Rainbow - Brother IZ(2001)My then soon-to-be husband and I heard this song and just knew it was our song. My husband's mother and her family are from Hawaii and we were planning to get married in Hawaii so it just seemed perfect. Every time we hear this song we pause and reflect on how we once pictured our lives would be together and are happy to discover we are right on track. This was the song we danced to at our wedding. By this time in my life I really believed there were lights at the end of tunnels, pots of gold at the end of rainbows, better times ahead. . .I wasn't wrong. I'm not disappointed so far.
Mad World - Tears for Fears (2002)Lots of things happened this year. I got married, plus I had my first child. My first child had kidney problems and faced surgery at 5 months old. My world had gone mad. I was falling apart and for some odd reason really latched onto this song. Sure, Donnie Darko was something else, but this song just understood exactly what was going on in my life at the time.

Now you've been through the deepest parts of my journey in music, hope you enjoyed. I can't wait to go around and read everyone else's. I would have put together some links but I'm typing this out in a hotel room in Utah and it's Sunday night. My husband and kids are begging me to close up shop and go to bed. We have a flight out of here Monday afternoon after I spent a good week caring for my mom during her first week of chemo. It's back to life in warm Southern California. Happy writing writers!

Significant Other Blogfest

2011-01-21T07:12:00.000-08:00

I have to really, REALLY, thank my husband for putting this together even though he's been home alone with our three kids for a week while I've been in Utah caring my mother. Thanks Babe, Love ya!

The following post is written by my husband for the Significant Other Blogfest. Check out mine and then go check out everyone else's.

When my wife asked me to put together a “blog posting” I thought she was losing her mind. Didn’t she know that I was a financial advisor, whose written skills were next to non-existent? Didn’t she remember that I scored a 330 on the verbal portion of the SAT, twice! (For the younger people out there, it used to be scored on a 1600 point scale) . Anyways, here we go!

You writers are amazing to me. You able to come up with elaborate stories starting with a blank sheet of paper, a pen and your thoughts. I remember watching my wife write her first book wondering where did she come up with this stuff? I on the other hand, enjoy doing complex mathematic calculations in my head while I work out. To each their own.

Outside of work and workout I do enjoy cooking! The question was asked, “What food or drink is guaranteed to return your loved one to a good mood, even after a bad day writing?” For those of you that don’t cook often, the answer is simple. Just include the 3 main food groups, Butter, Salt, Sugar. To be specific, the dish I would cook is a Risotto with asparagus tips, topped with butter shavings and fresh parmesan. The side dishes would include a mozzarella caprese. Some homemade garlic bread with fresh chopped garlic and real butter spread prior to baking is a must. For you wine drinkers a nice bottle of Cain 5 (great blend). Lastly, some Gelato for dessert. Heck if this didn’t put her in a good mood, I would be in such a great mood I could just entertain! OK…I’m getting hungry. No seriously.

My wife is introspective and is at home with herself writing with only her thoughts and her computer. It’s really remarkable to hear the key strokes mimicking the sound of a machine gun. When she asked me, What one thing would you change about your significant others writing habits? I had to reflect on the question. She is dedicated, self-motivated, disciplined and she is able to create stories/situations/dialog that grab and hold my attention. So, where do we go from here? I can honestly say that I would not change her writing habits, I would change her self-marketing habits. The query process is a tough one. I watched my wife get her hopes up with a partial request and then have them crushed with the form letter rejection. There is no easy way to get rejected 99% of the time. The one word of advice is to put it into perspective and realize that the rejections are part of the process. She had 2 partial request out of 12 queries sent. In my head that is a pretty good percentage, to be exact 16.66667%. And…the most importantly is that constantly put yourself out there. If there are no outstanding query’s there is no potential for a partial or full manuscript request.

The last question, “How hard is it to sit by and watch someone you care for struggle to attain a dream...knowing there's very little you can do to help?” To be very pragmatic about it, it’s not difficult to watch as long as they continue down the path. During my Ironman triathlon, our neighbor put a sign together for me. “Success is not final, failure is not fatal; it is the courage to continue that counts!”. The only time I will be concerned is if my wonderful wife loses the passion to write. The happiness, success and failure are all worth it as long as you continue to do what you love. Good luck everyone and keep writing.

Finding Good in Bad

2011-01-14T10:08:00.000-08:00

Oddly, this post comes right after my Life IS Good, Isn't It, post. (God's a crafty guy, filled with all kinds of irony)

At the end of last week I found out my mom is suffering from Stage 4 Pancreatic Cancer. Needless to say, this is CRAP NEWS. There is NOTHING at all good about this news no matter how we look at it.

My family is no stranger to cancer. I've seen my dad go into remission with his throat cancer, and I've watched other members of my family die from this heinous disease.

If I may, I would like to add to my New Year's Resolutions by finding the good in the bad. I don't just mean with my mom's prognosis, I mean in every aspect of my life. I have no choice. I'm about to get a lot of training on the subject.

Let's take an example from my mom's awful news:

THE BAD (an incomplete list)

Pancreatic cancer is incurable. She will die from this disease at some point.
Stage 4 untreated = 3-6 months of life.
She's only 66.
She's my mom, I don't want my mom to die.
Chemotherapy
and on, and on, and on. . .

THE GOOD (A list to add to)

Stage 4 with treatment = 3 months up to 2 years
She's a healthy 66-year-old presenting with only mid-section pain; hope increases for treatment
The rotten, no good, horrible, Chemotherapy is a light dose (nausea and hairloss are unlikely)
Mom is up and at it, willing to fight.
I get to live with her for one week per month in Utah during treatments
My mom isn't being taken from me suddenly
We get to slow down and take time for a bittersweet ending.
Who knows? Two years might be a very real possibility.

I encourge all of you to find the good in the bad during your writing and query process; your journey.

LET'S SAY YOU GET A REJECTION ON YOUR QUERY TODAY, OR YOU DIDN'T WIN A CONTEST, WAS OVERLOOKED MORE THAN ONCE SOMEWHERE ALONG THE WAY. . .FIND THE GOOD IN THAT! Or, just appease me, I like that too.

WRITE ON WRITERS! FIGHT THE GOOD FIGHT!

EFF GLOBAL WARMING!
FIGHT DISEASE!

Life IS Good, Isn't It?

2011-01-06T10:01:00.000-08:00

I’m surprised I even get awards because I’m so terrible about passing them along. I do appreciate them, and they really do make my day, but I’m falling short on passing them on. But today is different; I’m passing this one on RIGHT NOW. . .or, right after I answer 10 questions about myself.

The requirements for the Life is Good Award:
1. First, thank and link back to the person that gave the award. (Thank you Quinn!)
2. Answer the 10 survey questions.
3. Pass the award along to other bloggers whom you think are fantastic.
4. Contact the bloggers you have chosen to let them know about the award.

10 Questions:

1. If you blog anonymously, are you happy doing this? If you are not anonymous, do you wish that you had started out anonymously, so that you could be anonymous now?

I don’t wish I was anonymous because I’m not controversial. I was over at Nathan Bransford’s blog the other day and noticed that the anonymous comments were really distasteful and meant to get a rise out of other bloggers. That’s not really me. However, I would like to think that if I were controversial I would have the balls to use my real name, figuratively speaking of course.

2. Describe an incident that shows your inner stubborn side.

I’m a Taurus so stubborn just comes with the territory. Let’s see. It’s hard to pick and choose on this one. Let me call my sister. . .Here’s what she had to say, “Can I just pick a moment where you weren’t stubborn. That would be a lot easier.” Thanks, sis.

However, she did remind me of my childhood. I don’t remember this because I was too young (or I lost some pertinent brain cells) but this is the way my family likes to describe it: I, apparently, was so stubborn that around 18 months old until I was about 3 years old, if I didn’t get what I wanted from my older sisters, I would hold my breath and pass out. My mom says she knew it was coming because I would start off with a cry that sounded like a siren and then nothing, no sound. Afterwards she would find me passed out on the ground somewhere. I won’t even go into detail about how my legs were too short to walk down the stairs so I rolled down them. I’m like the Bucket-Head kid from the movie, Parenthood.

3. What do you see when you really look at yourself in the mirror?

A 17-year-old girl who can’t believe she’s actually 32 and has 3 kids. Sure, there are those days I'm too tired to do anything because I have 3 kids, but in the mirror I’m only tired because I was out late with my friends the night before. I still feel very young and because I’m short (4’11-1/2”) I'm often mistaken for a teenager. Salesmen who come to my house have asked for the owner or my parents. When I had my first child people thought I was her babysitter and not just because she’s darker than me because she’s ¼ Filipino. And just a couple of months ago during the kindergarten field trip to Norco High School to learn about farms, I was mistaken as one of the high school students.

4. What is your favorite summer cold drink?

Coca-Cola is my year-round beverage, however, I love the Tastefully Simple brand of Sangria Slush Mix. (I don't sell this. I'm only linking to it because it's just that good.)

5. When you take time for yourself, what do you do?

Time for myself? That’s a new concept. I should try that and find out.

No, I’m kidding. I rarely get time for myself so when I do I end up writing.

6. Is there something that you still want to accomplish in your life? What is it?

I’m going to put publishing on that list because it is the last thing I haven’t done that I have always wanted to do. If you asked me this 6 years ago, I would have said learn to ride a motorcycle. But then I did learn. I even own a dirt bike that my husband and I take trail riding. If you asked me 2 years ago, I would have said write a book. I would start my ideas and then never have time to finish or focus because I had babies in diapers running around me. I’ve done a lot in my life and wouldn’t give up a thing.

7. When you attended school, were you the class clown, the class overachiever, the shy person, or always ditching?

I’m definitely an overachiever. In 10th grade I lettered in academics. When my parents divorced and we moved from California back to Utah where I had grown up, I dropped down to a 2.7 GPA. However, I was determined and managed to letter in Theater Arts and graduate with Honors. Still, to this day, I keep strict schedules for myself. I’m excellent at coming up with ideas, breaking them down into steps, and then accomplishing the task, like building a haunted house in my cul-de-sac every October. I’m terrible about delegating though.

8. If you close your eyes and want to visualize a very poignant moment in your life, what would you see?

I have several poignant moments in my life. It’s hard to choose. I’ll just give it a try right now and tell you what I come up with. . .Okay, I saw the day I auditioned for The American Academy of Dramatic Arts West. I was standing in a hotel conference room with the woman sent to audition me and a few others from Utah. I was halfway through the piece I rehearsed for a month from Children of a Lesser God. I played the part of Sarah Norman, a deaf former student of her love interest, James Leeds. I had to use sign language and speak with a voice that sounded like a deaf person speaking. The most poignant part of that audition was starting it. I’ll never forget the look on the auditioner’s face when I started signing and speaking like a deaf woman. It was a proud moment. I managed to get accepted for class of 1997. They auditioned over 2,000 people that year and accepted only 500.

It’s those kinds of moments that remind me that if I want something bad enough and I’m willing to work for it I can most certainly achieve it.

9. Is it easy for you to share your true self in your blog or are you more comfortable writing posts about other people or events?

I don’t mind sharing my true self. I’m a goof. Either I’m just highly alert about my surroundings or my life is truly stranger than fiction. However, I find it a struggle to write about things that aren’t about writing. I’m not sure what everyone wants to read.

10. If you had the choice to sit down and read a book or talk on the phone, which would you do and why?

I don’t really enjoy talking on the phone so I’m going to pick reading a book. I love to read. I hate the phone. The only person I talk to on the phone regularly is my sister and that’s because we both have 3 kids around the same age and so if our kids are crazy in the background or if we have to yell at our kids while on the phone it’s no big deal. I wouldn’t put anyone else through that. However, send me a text message, I’ll get back to you for sure.

_____________________

I’ve comprised a list of awesome bloggers that I think more than deserve this award. Some are new to follow me but all have supported me and my craziness in one way or another. Thank you for that. Life IS good, isn’t it? Don't fret if you don't have time to pass this on, I understand.

(Okay, Blogger isn't showing my links the right way so I'm going to just put your names next to your link. Blogger will not get me down today.)

http://writing-art-and-design.blogspot.com/ (Michael & In Time. . .)
http://middledistancerunners.blogspot.com/ (Regina @ Middle Distance Runners)
Erica & Christy @ erica & christy (erica & christy @ erica & christy)
Kelly Polark @ Kelly Polark (Kelly @ Kelly Polark)
http://margokelly.blogspot.com/ (Margo @ Margo Kelly)
L'Aussie @ L'Aussie Writing (L'Aussie @ L'Aussie Writing)
http://danklinefelter.blogspot.com/ (Dan @ Sanguine Musings)
http://unifiedvibration.blogspot.com/ (Nicole @ Heaven on Earth)
Alex @ Alex J. Cavanaugh (Alex @ Alex J. Cavanaugh)
http://thehappywhisk.blogspot.com/ (Ivy @ The Happy Whisk)

I'm Completely Resolved - Happy New Year!

2011-01-01T09:03:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, I couldn't figure out exactly what I wanted my resolutions to be. Check out my conundrum HERE.

I really enjoyed the comments I got yesterday, thank you! I especially liked the one from Jenny Beattie who said she wants to be a better Crusader. I'm with her. I'm terrible. There are so many of us and so little time to read each and everyone's. That's why I wish you all had an Email Subscription box. I know most of you put an RSS Feed but that goes to an area that I don't check often and doesn't appear on my phone. The Email Subscription goes right into my inbox and onto my phone, so I can read your posts anywhere.

However, I too, will try to be a better crusader.

I was seriously stumped. I didn't know exactly what to choose for myself this year. Mainly because I know what my goals are regarding writing, and I understand my commitment to my family's needs and couldn't find a way out of my tight schedule for at least another year and a half.

I would have loved to choose working on bringing the NaNo Youth Program to my kids' elementary, but I don't have the time because I have my youngest child in preschool through this year and next year. Our preschool is 20 miles away so it eats up a lot of my time.

I thought about making it about my writing group, Write-A-Tat-Tat, and helping them polish their NaNo books, but I can't force them. A resolution is really about what I'm capable of doing. Sure, it can be about helping others. I could have made it about helping my writing group, but I already do that, we work as a team. I needed a resolution that I could focus on in my spare time--a fail-safe.

Now why a fail-safe? Because the far-fetched resolution relies on things outside of my control. Which takes more time and patience. I may never achieve my far-fetched resolution of landing an agent this year. I'll consider it a successful resolution if I give it my all in the query process, but I still want the agent. The fail-safe resolution keeps me challenged in a way that I can do it by myself.

A fail-safe resolution can be as easy or as challenging as I want it to be. I can set a limit on a fail-safe resolution. For example: When I set my fail-safe for 2010 it was to cook a new meal from a recipe book at least once per month. I failed this one. But I was okay with it. If I wasn't absorbed in my far-fetched resolution then I would have easily completed the recipe task. If it wasn't challenging enough I could have up the ante to 2 new recipes per month. See what I mean?

At 10:00pm last night I was over at my sister's house playing Trivial Pursuit the Bet You Know It edition, when I realized I was going to need some help choosing the fail-safe resolution.

I decided the resolution should involve learning a new skill and practicing it. Then I asked my husband, my brother-in-law, and my sister to each come up with a new skill for me to learn. I added one to the list as well.

Here's what we came up with for me:

LEARN TO SEW (This one came from my sister. Yep, I know a little bit about sewing. I could probably stitch something together but I hate the sewing machine. I have never been able to get that thing to work for me the right way.)
LEARN TO PLAY GUITAR (This one is from my husband. Okay, back when I was in college I got a guitar for Xmas because I wanted to learn how to play Mazzie Star songs. I quickly found I needed help with the chords and dropped the hobby altogether.)
LEARN TO PAINT FROM BOB ROSS, THE HAPPY PAINTER FROM THE JOY OF PAINTING (This comes from my brother-in-law. Love this guy, Bob Ross. He paints, "Happy little trees." I could learn from buying his kit HERE or from watching his YouTube videos like the one HERE.)
LEARN TO CAN 6 FOODS IN 12 MONTHS: JAM, JELLY, PICKLES, KIM CHEE, CARROTS & JALAPENOS (I threw this one into the mix. I want to make orange marmalade.)

All of the above were put onto strips of paper, folded up, and thrown into a dish for me to choose from. It took us until 11:45pm last night to make this list. Here I am all hopeful and excited, getting read to draw my fate, so to speak, ha, ha.

DRUM ROLL, PLEASE!!!!

DUH-DUH-DA-DUH!

I WILL BE LEARNING TO PLAY THE GUITAR WHILE I QUERY LIKE A MAD WOMAN FOR ALL OF 2011 and try to be a better Crusader.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

A WISH OF HAPPY, HEALTHY, WEALTHY ALL THROUGHOUT 2011 FOR ALL OF YOU.

Tell me what you have planned for the year, especially if it involves adding an Email Subscription to your sidebar so I can get over there and sign up for it.

I Have Until Midnight

2010-12-31T09:40:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year again to say goodbye to the old and bring in the new. That sounds like no big deal, right? We do it all the time. It's just another day.

NOT FOR ME.

I PANIC. I wonder: Did I do everything I set out to do last year and keep to the goals I set for myself year after year?

I'M TALKIN' RESOLUTIONS, PEOPLE!!! I make resolutions. I think I posted about this briefly when I first started blogging, but let's face it, I had no followers, so a bit of repeat here won't make a difference (It's HERE if you want to go back and read it).

Resolutions are meant to be life altering. You're supposed to pick these really far-fetched resolutions that will make you a better, smarter, more fit, generous, likely-to-do-it, kind of person. That's why it's so hard to make and stick to these resolutions.

When making resolutions, people don't think: I'm going to lose weight this year--and then put it all back on next year. Or, I'm going to be more generous and donate to my favorite charity--but this year and this year only, forget about those needy people next year.

SEE? Resolutions are meant to be made and kept FOREVER! F-O-R-E-V-E-R!!!

Breathe in breathe out. Everything will be okay. There are better ways to go about this.

Here's how I do it: I pick two resolutions per year. One is far-fetched, and the other is simple--designed to be a fail-safe.

For this year, I picked: Finally write my first book (lots of previously failed attempts). And my fail-safe was: Make one new meal per month that I've never made before to add variety to my family dinners. Guess which one I failed at? But I kept at least one and got halfway through the other. I have a completed book (actually 3 completed books) and made 6 new recipes this year.

Now I'm going through to check on old resolutions. Am I sticking to them? Let's see. One year I resolved to be more generous. Yep, I did the best I could with charity work this year. I focused on my kids' school, Haiti, NaNo, Miss Snark's and Locks for Love. My husband focused on the Challenged Athletes Foundation. At the end of this year, we feel like we've done the best we could to help others in need.

There was that year I planned to get in shape. I was iffy on this one at best. I did manage to participate in Camp Pendleton's Mud Run in June even though I was too busy writing my book to train. I vowed never to do it without any training again, even if that meant a little jog around the block every now and then. That one hurt but I made it back in 1 hour and 35 mins (you can read more about it HERE in an old post, there's even a video). I felt so bad about how hard it was to run this one that I started working out in the living room but then dropped that routine as soon as the kids started school. I'll have to work harder on it this year to stay healthy.

I was able to update a few pictures on my family tree wall, we did buy a new tree for the yard, kept up the vegetable garden, blogged at least once per week from the time I started, but I KNOW I've dropped the ball entirely somewhere. Last year we dropped the ball on making at least one improvement on the house, but we added bookshelves this year so I'm hopeful it hasn't been entirely dropped.

I think I know what I missed: I STILL HAVEN'T SETTLED ON A NEW SET OF RESOLUTIONS FOR 2011! That was a past resolution I made when I was in college. I promised myself I would make at least one new resolution each year for the rest of my life, no matter how big or small. Nothing like waiting until the last minute, huh? At least, I have until midnight.

It's almost easier to make the far-fetched one (even though I'm going to be stuck with it for more than one year) than to pick the fail-safe.

My far-fetched resolution is to query all year and land an agent. That's somewhat out of my control. I can't just say my resolution is to get an agent. I should actually modify that to say, in hopes of landing an agent. Otherwise, that would be like saying I have the power to choose an agent. I can't force an agent to like my work and want to work with me. But, I can say that I will continue to query throughout the year. I tend to query cautiously. I only sent 12 queries out this year. It wasn't terrible. I did get 2 partial requests. But I should have queried more. So, this year, I'm going for it. I'm querying like a querying fool, if you will.

Now, what the heck is my fail-safe resolution going to be? I HAVE NO IDEA. It almost seems easier to call my far-fetched query resolution the fail-safe. I have a lot to think about today.

I'll get back to everyone and let you all know what I picked for my final resolutions. I wish you all a Happy and Safe New Year! If I could make two wishes for each of you it's that I could read more about your journey or your life in querying and that you would all add an Email Subscription to your blog from FeedBurner since I tend to keep up more with those blogs and get behind on many of my other favorite blogs. But that's selfish, I shouldn't say all that. But I did, and now you know. I hope that you query and put up an Email Subscription box. If you can do either of those, please let me know so I can sign up or follow along on your journey.

Synthetic Ice Skating

2010-12-20T10:25:00.000-08:00

Yep! I live in sunny Southern California where Christmas means mostly sunny days with a bit of rain from time to time.

Don't get me wrong, just because we live in a holiday hot spot doesn't mean we don't long for a white Christmas. We've got it covered though. No snow? No problem! We get in our truck and 4x4 it up to Big Bear where we play in the snow for a couple of hours and then shovel loads of it into the back of our truck and drive it all the way back down to our house and unload it on our front lawn.

Most people don't want to drive up the mountain to touch the snow. Probably because they don't have chains or a 4-wheel drive vehicle. That's okay. Plenty of trucked in snow for everyone. In several locations throughout Southern California, shopping centers and cities will pay to have snow unloaded in parking lots or grassy parks. It's free to stand in line to touch that snow. No sledding though, or snow ball fights. Just the wonder of touching the snow. This is almost as funny to think about as a decent fall in the snow.

What!? No black ice? No scraping windows? No shoveling? Easy peezy, right? Yep! More or less. There are always those rare occasions when it snows or gets icy out.

When I grew up in Utah, going to the grocery store meant risking slipping and sliding around with my grocery cart in the parking lot, frozen locks in my VW Bug, and falling at least a half a dozen times through the 6 MONTHS (give or take) of snow and ice. Good times had by all.

There is this one memory I have from a date I went on in high school while living in Utah: My date had just closed the door for me after I got in my side of the car, what a gentleman, I thought. After what felt like a minute or so of waiting for him to get into the driver's side, I looked back and didn't see him. I looked all around through the windows and still didn't see him. I wondered where he got off to just when he finally opened his door and said, "I slipped on the ice and fell behind the car." He was fine. It was pretty funny though. I still laugh when I think about all of the follies snow and ice brought into my life. My kids won't have those stories.

They will however, sit around and think about the times they went "ice skating" on faux ice. When it's too hot to keep outdoor ice rinks frozen, you wait for the shopping centers to call in the experts over at EZGlide Synthetic Ice, or if you live in a regular neighborhood you wait for them to call an equivalent.

I think because it's fake ice it should be cheaper to skate on. Sadly, because it's manufactured, it's expensive, at least to me, to skate on. I'm sure $13.00 per person regardless of age, isn't more than skating on regular ice, but it's fake, people!

Here's what happened when my kids skated on synthetic ice for the first time:

Do you have any good slip-sliding stories to share? Hopefully all of you are having a safe and fun holiday season! I won't be back until after Xmas.

'Tis the Season to be Elfish

2010-12-16T13:44:00.000-08:00

Click here for my Query Blogfest Entry.

Being Half-Elfish (no seriously, my ears are huge, my body is short, what else could I be?) I really do enjoy giving more than receiving.

It took me two weeks but I managed to bake:

18 mini loaves of Banana Bread
18 mini loaves o Zucchini Bread
139 pieces of Fudge

150 Lemon Cooler cookies

200 Fattigman's Bakels cookies (Norwegian)

124 Mint Chocolate cookies
200 pieces of Divinity

For a total of 849 pieces of baked goods divided up amongst 30 boxes of baked goods handed out to neighbors or mailed to family across the states.

Do you bake for the holidays? I learned this custom of passing out baked goods from my mom. I think it's nearly a lost art though. Mainly because baking is expensive. I realize I do way more than most but still, a bag of walnuts is nearly $10. Nothing about holiday baking is cheap.

Let's face it, nothing about this holiday is cheap. Sure, I save a lot by doing Black Friday but I put all that savings and more into my baking, wrapping paper, tape, labels, postage for 150 xmas cards, postage for packages, and Christmas activities for my family.

So, for me, it's hard to dig that much deeper for donating to charitable causes. But I love to give. So, over the years I've found some charitable causes that don't cost me a dime, or hardly anything. Some years have been better than others so I've found ways to donate that don't cost a lot.

Locks of Love: I grow my hair out for two years and then hack it off and give it to Locks of Love, a non-profit organization that "provides hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children under age 21 suffering from long-term medical hair loss from any diagnosis."
As a matter of fact, I just did it today.

Can't donate your hair? Here's the rest of my list:

Lit World Book Drive I found this charity through Heather Kelly's blog Edited to Within an Inch of My Life. This charity takes new OR gently used books for their drive.
GoodSearch the search engine that donates. Just choose your charity (mine is NaNoWriMo) and search for anything on the Internet. Your chosen charity will earn money per click through.
Cell Phones For Soldiers I love this charity. It was started by kids. The goal is for you to send in your old cell phone which will be recycled and then soldiers will get prepaid phone cards to call home with. Are you getting a new cell phone for Xmas? Here's your opportunity to donate.
It's always a good idea to clear out some space for new toys. When we do that, our gently used toys go to Kids Rewind or Goodwill. Kids Rewind will give you cash "on the spot" for your gently used stuff. You can also purchase other gently used items while you're in there. Can't beat that.
It won't cost you a thing to cut your Box Tops for Education and take them into a public school of your choice. I've been on the PTA Board as the Auditor at my children's elementary and I can tell you for certain that collectively those Box Tops raise a decent amount of money that goes back into the school.
SunnyD, our most favorite orange beverage, has a Book Spree. Basically, schools that participate by turning over 20 labels/class will receive 20 books in return. The school that submits the most labels can earn $2,000 worth of books or $1,000 worth of books for their school. Get going. If you already drink SunnyD, then start saving up those labels for next year's Book Spree.

Charities Worth Your Hard Earned Money: (Something to think about in the New Year. Maybe add it to your Resolutions.)

Miss Snark's First Victim Now, I didn't get a chance to participate this year, but I know many of you did. That hasn't stopped me from giving her a small sum to keep the event going. I hope to participate the next time. Any amount will do, really.
NaNoWriMo Your money doesn't just ensure all of us crazy writer's have an opportunity to participate again next year, it also provides for the youth writing program.
Any Soldier I love this program. There are a lot of soldiers out in the field that aren't receiving care packages, or letters. This cause collects donations and then puts care packages together and sends them to soldiers who don't usually get anything.
Adopt-A-Family for Christmas sponsored by the Salvation Army. My high school participated in this cause. It's epecially rewarding if you can get a group of families in on this. The year I did it, our donor family had lost their job, the mom was sick, and all they wanted was something for Christmas for their kids. My class got a tree and decorated it. We all bought gifts,wrapped them and then essenially brought Christmas to this family with a Ham for their dinner. We made sure the kids were at school so they didn't have to know their parent's couldn't afford Christmas that year. This was one of the greatest and most memorable charities I've ever participated in.

DO YOU HAVE ANY CHARITIES, NOT ON THIS LIST, THAT YOU PREFER TO DONATE TIME, MONEY, OR EFFORT TO?

DONATING BUILDS GOOD KARMA. AS A WRITER, I'M RELYING ON GOOD KARMA.

I HOPE EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU ARE HAVING A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY SEASON.

My Query Blogfest Entry

2010-12-12T08:53:00.000-08:00

“Taryn, who should I go to the dance with, Justin or Brady?” “Taryn, which car should I ask my mom for a Prius or a Jetta?” “Taryn. . .”

Ever since Taryn Powell turned sixteen he can’t seem to get away from these types of questions. Just how the dungeon master of the Dungeons & Dragons after school club became so popular is dumbfounding.

Taryn might be dumbfounded but he isn’t dumb. His popularity soared when he found out he was adopted after his real dad died and left him a book he doesn’t plan on reading, a trust fund with an undetermined amount of money in it, and a Mazerati.

He might understand his popularity but he hasn’t quite figured out that he’s only half-mortal and heir to the throne of destiny. Now, if he had opened up that book he set aside he would know a lot of things about himself and probably wouldn’t have offered random advice to the kids at his school. But he’s popular now and determined to finally get somewhere with a girl, and not just any girl--any big-boobed girl.

Before he can claim the title, God of Destiny, he must first get his mind out of the gutter and prove that he’s not the one ruining the lives of every kid in his high school.

My YA fantasy novel, THE GAME MAKER’S APPRENTICE, is complete at 54,000 words.

Sincerely,
Patricia A. Timms
patriciamcgehee@gmail.com

This concludes my entry into Jodi Henry's Query Blogfest. Please feel free to leave constructive feedback even if you're not participating in the blogfest.

Have You Heard?

2010-12-06T11:01:00.000-08:00

Jodi Henry Query Blogfest Dec. 12th

Jodi Henry is hosting a query blogfest from December 12th thru the 18th. If you haven't signed up you should. And I'm not just saying that because I don't want to be alone in this, because I'm not, there are at least twenty others ahead of me on this venture. And I'm also not just telling you because I get extra points for doing so--I genuinely think everyone should finish up their edits, realize that perfection is subjective, and help me clog up the system with a bunch of queries this coming year.

I say, if you're thinking of querying in the new year, then you better be working on that query right now. And what better way to grow a thick skin (necessary for querying) then to put your query up in all of it's glory for everyone to comment on? Right? Right.

I'm not sure which query to put up though. I have a query I managed to get two partial requests on but I've since decided to change the whole book from 3rd person to 1st. And then I have my NaNo book which I finished on the 19th of November and have already done a once-through on the edits, but I would really like to beef it up to 65k from 54k. Do you think 54k is on the low side for YA? My first book was 74k. Hmmm. Time for twenty (really just five) questions:

WHAT SHOULD I DO? WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO? ARE YOU NEW TO QUERYING? HOW ARE YOUR NERVES? ARE YOU NERVOUS TO QUERY AND/OR PUT YOUR QUERY UP FOR THE GENERAL BLOGGING PUBLIC TO COMMENT ON?

In One Store & Out the Other: My Black Friday

2010-11-30T22:36:00.000-08:00

1932 Great Depression

It's 2010 and I'm about to compare the competitive shopping we all so lovingly refer to as Black Friday to the bread lines of the Great Depression. I feel I've earned the right, somewhat, because I've just been through Hell and back over the Thanksgiving weekend.

2010 Black Friday Lines

I was in line because of the economic fallout but not because I was starving to death. That's probably the only distinction between bread lines and Black Friday. However, I can imagine that the bread lines included much of the types of stampeding that my group encountered. We not only had a group behind us targeting us for some type of whack-o hatred because they weren't sure if they would get their reduced price TV, we were also offered $100 to allow someone to stand in line with us since we were the first 40 in Target's line. My sister was run over by a cart and called a bitch and I couldn't get past a crazy girl to get out of the store without the evil eye and having to suffer getting my face fake sneezed on. Next year I'm avoiding Target's bread line at all costs. One of my group was offered $100 for his TV because he got the last one. We were shewing people away like flies. Hell, I didn't even know what a Sing-a-ma-jig was until I got the "Golden Ticket" to buy one. Do I need an exclusive holiday Sing-a-ma-jig that costs $14.95? No. But I was one of 50 people who got a ticket so I of course I bought it, that's part of the excitement of Black Friday--I might get something someone else won't. I've decided Black Friday should just be called the Bread Line Experiment.

My Black Friday Group at Target

I still maintain that I would rather go stand in store lines for hours than query during the holidays but that's only because at the end of the day I have the opportunity to get one over on the stores. I get to beat them at their game. I stood in line for hours and finally paid what I consider reasonable prices for toys and whatnots for my three kids and extended family.

In some ways the experience is a lot like querying. I got all the same stomach churning excitement out of the final few minutes before the doors opened at ToysRUs as I do when I get ready to hit send on a query. In those moments before I get in the store I wonder if I'm actually going to get the hot toy before someone else, or if I'm just going to come out of the whole night feeling dejected and insecure based on the comments of some stupid asshole grouped up in the line behind me. I have to put those negative thoughts behind me and remember who I'm there for, my kids. Okay, my bank account. I can get the toys in advance at a premium (or regular price but I consider it a premium) and still make my kids happy, but I feel so much better when I know I can buy $1,149 worth of toys for $552 (I saved 50% at ToysRUs, sure my cart was filled with items for my whole group but still, I saved over $500 on toys).

Now I just have to figure out how to feel as upbeat when I query. I need a way to remind myself of how I can get rid of those insecure thoughts, that feeling of panic that I might have screwed up and put the wrong agent's name in the body of the letter, or that someone else could write my story better. I guess I'll just have to remember what I go through on Black Friday and think querying is a cake walk in comparison (even if the result feels more personal than professional).

Me in front of ToysRUs Black Friday

IF I CAN DO THIS, THEN YOU CAN SEND THAT QUERY. . .

Number of stores hit inside of 16 hours: 6
Michaels: Opened 4:30pm -

Wait time: Virtualy none.

ToysRUs: Opened 10:00pm -

Wait time: Outside--5 hours (4th group in line or #13-17)
Inside checkout line--Approximately 30 minutes.

Target: Opened 4:00am -

Wait time: 4 hours (had a place holder in line up to 2 hours earlier, #40-45).
Inside checkout time: 2 hours in line.

Best Buy: Opened at 4am -

No wait, in and out because we didn't get out of Target until after 6am.

GameStop: Opened at 5am -

No wait. In and out because of Target.

ToysRUs: Second round started at 5am. In and out.
ToysRUs: Third round. Went back at 9pm on Friday.

Woke up at 6am on Thursday, went to bed at 8:45am on Friday.

This post is a follow-up to Not Me, I Won't Query.

IT'S ALMOST THE NEW YEAR. ARE YOU READY TO START QUERYING AGAIN?

Are You "Well-Read?"( I'm not sure if I am). . .

2010-11-23T23:18:00.000-08:00

The challenge is: Have you read more than 6 of these books? The BBC believes most people will have read only 6 of the 100 books listed here.

This post stems from Rach Writes and many others but I came upon the challenge at Rach Writes.
Instructions:

• Copy this list.

• Bold those books you’ve read in their entirety.

• Italicize the ones you started but didn’t finish or read only an excerpt.

• Tag other book nerds.

If you dare like Rachael Harrie, then underline those books you plan to read in 2011.

Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen
The Lord of the Rings – JRR Tolkien
Jane Eyre – Charlotte Bronte
Harry Potter series – JK Rowling (Didn’t finish all 7 but finished up to book 4)
To Kill a Mockingbird – Harper Lee
The King James Bible Wuthering Heights – Emily Bronte
Nineteen Eighty Four (1984) – George Orwell [I've been meaning to read this one for ages]
His Dark Materials – Philip Pullman
Great Expectations – Charles Dickens
Little Women – Louisa M Alcott
Tess of the D’Urbervilles – Thomas Hardy
Catch 22 – Joseph Heller
Complete Works of Shakespeare [Was a theatre arts major]
Rebecca – Daphne Du Maurier
The Hobbit – JRR Tolkien
Birdsong – Sebastian Faulk
Catcher in the Rye – JD Salinger
The Time Traveler’s Wife – Audrey Niffenegger
Middlemarch – George Eliot
Gone With The Wind – Margaret Mitchell
The Great Gatsby – F. Scott Fitzgerald
War and Peace – Leo Tolstoy
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams
Brideshead Revisited – Evelyn Waugh
Crime and Punishment – Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Grapes of Wrath – John Steinbeck
Alice in Wonderland – Lewis Carroll
The Wind in the Willows – Kenneth Grahame
Anna Karenina – Leo Tolstoy
David Copperfield – Charles Dickens
Chronicles of Narnia – CS Lewis
Emma - Jane Austen
Persuasion – Jane Austen
The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe – CS Lewis
The Kite Runner – Khaled Hosseini
Captain Corelli’s Mandolin – Louis De Bernieres
Memoirs of a Geisha – Arthur Golden
Winnie the Pooh – A.A. Milne
Animal Farm – George Orwell
The DaVinci Code – Dan Brown
One Hundred Years of Solitude – Gabriel Garcia Marquez
A Prayer for Owen Meaney – John Irving
The Woman in White – Wilkie Collins
Anne of Green Gables – LM Montgomery
Far From The Madding Crowd – Thomas Hardy
The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood
Lord of the Flies – William Golding
Atonement – Ian McEwan
Life of Pi – Yann Martel
Dune – Frank Herbert
Cold Comfort Farm – Stella Gibbons
Sense and Sensibility – Jane Austen
A Suitable Boy – Vikram Seth
The Shadow of the Wind – Carlos Ruiz Zafon
A Tale Of Two Cities – Charles Dickens
Brave New World – Aldous Huxley
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time – Mark Haddon
Love In The Time Of Cholera – Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Of Mice and Men – John Steinbeck
Lolita – Vladimir Nabokov
The Secret History – Donna Tartt
The Lovely Bones – Alice Sebold
Count of Monte Cristo – Alexandre Dumas
On The Road – Jack Kerouac
Jude the Obscure – Thomas Hardy
Bridget Jones’s Diary – Helen Fielding
Midnight’s Children – Salman Rushdie
Moby Dick – Herman Melville
Oliver Twist – Charles Dickens
Dracula – Bram Stoker
The Secret Garden – Frances Hodgson Burnett
Notes From A Small Island – Bill Bryson [I did read his A Short History of Nearly Everything]
Ulysses – James Joyce
The Inferno – Dante
Swallows and Amazons – Arthur Ransome
Germinal – Emile Zola
Vanity Fair – William Makepeace Thackeray
Possession – AS Byatt
Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens
Cloud Atlas – David Mitchell
The Color Purple – Alice Walker
The Remains of the Day – Kazuo Ishiguro
Madame Bovary – Gustave Flaubert
A Fine Balance – Rohinton Mistry
Charlotte’s Web – E.B. White
The Five People You Meet In Heaven – Mitch Albom
Adventures of Sherlock Holmes – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
The Faraway Tree Collection – Enid Blyton
Heart of Darkness – Joseph Conrad
The Little Prince – Antoine De Saint-Exupery
The Wasp Factory – Iain Banks
Watership Down – Richard Adams
A Confederacy of Dunces – John Kennedy Toole
A Town Like Alice – Nevil Shute
The Three Musketeers – Alexandre Dumas
Hamlet – William Shakespeare
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – Roald Dahl [But I’ve read James and the Giant Peach]
Les Miserables – Victor Hugo [In this list, if it’s a classic play then I’ve likely read parts based on my theatre background]

Rachael Harrie at Rach Writes believes there to be one missing on the list and added The Iliad by Homer.

If I were to add the 100th I think I might add Just So Stories by Rudyard Kipling

I’m afraid in this list of 100, I am not as well read as I should be: 20 Read Entirely and 10 partial reads.

Then again, this is a subjective list. There are great books not on the list like, For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemmingway or Tales of Mystery and Imagination by Edgar Allan Poe. There are books like Bridget Jones which pales in comparison to The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde on a list suggesting whether or not we’re well read. I like it though. It’s great to see what kinds of classics aspiring writers have read. I think I just might make another posting about what exactly is on my bookshelf after Thanksgiving. By the way, HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

WHAT ABOUT YOU? HAVE YOU READ ANY OF THESE ON THIS LIST? COPY, PASTE, BOLD, ITALICIZE, FILL IN THE BLANK, AND MAKE SOME OF YOUR OWN SUGGESTIONS.

Not Me, I Won't Query

2010-11-12T10:15:00.000-08:00

Made you look--*smiling, winking*

I query, I just don't query in November and December.

Personally, my November is stacked with NaNo, Thanksgiving, & Black Friday.

We all know, or understand, how draining NaNo can be especially when kids and holidays are involved. That should be reason alone not to query in November. Luckily, Thanksgiving isn't too bad beause the only family that lives close enough to visit during this time is my sister and her three kids. They live across the street, so this dinner might be bigger in food quantity but it is usually like any other day we hang out. The only difference is that after we've eaten dinner and dessert has been served, my sister and I jump ship, leaving our husbands to clean up. You might be thinking we head off to another room for girl chat or to knit a scarf, no, no, no. We head out with several other bargain-hunting-moms for the start of Black Friday.

If you don't have kids, or your kids are grown, then you either don't know about Black Friday or you avoid it at all costs. That also means your probably wondering why we start on Thursday for sales that are supposed to start on Friday. The sales actually start on Thursday night. If you don't have a good system, or a team, you might be better off avoiding the rush. Here's my system:

KNOW YOUR ADS IN ADVANCE

That way you know exactly what you'll be getting and where it's located in the store. Go one or two days before to check the layout. Some items are moved around in the days preceding.
These links have the ads in advance:

BE ONE OF THE TOP 5 GROUPS IN LINE

There are a lot of stores but none as important as Toys'R'Us for my group. We can be further back in other store lines like Target, Old Navy,GameStop, Best Buy, etc. (We avoid WalMart)
We're talking groups here and not the 5th person in line. You might miss out on a popular item if you aren't one of the first in line.

DIVIDE AND CONQUER

You can't be everywhere, that's why you need a team. Also, you can only really push one cart around the store and it gets stacked up fast.
Each member of your team will be responsible for an area of the store. For example, let's use Toys'R'Us where you have electronics, boys toys, girls toys, toddler, bikes, and baby stuff. You need at least 4-5 people in your team to properly conquer this store.
Figure out who is going where and then piece out your list to the appropriate team member. You might be able to meet up at the check out to hand off, except for electronics. Send the most funded team member into electronics. If you don't get to meet up then plan on getting your stuff at the end of it all and paying back immediately with a check. Don't forget, you have their items on your list too, so you will only be paying back what isn't covered in what you bought for them.
Don't forget your cell phones for communication but don't rely on them either because cell coverage in stores is sometimes poor.

BREAK UP AFTER THE FIRST ROUND

For us Toys'R'Us has two rounds of sales, each with different items. Last year, the second round was 4 hours later. (Be aware of which items on your list are for the second round and don't try to buy them during the first round. The cashier won't remind you and you'll end up paying full price for it.)
The team member with the most items to purchase in the second round will stay. You can put all the second round items in a cart and wait in the store. That's what I did. I missed the second rush this way. While I was twiddling my thumbs inside Toys'R'Us for 4 hours my team members were conquering Target which opened later. When I was done checking out I headed over to GameStop for all Nintendo DS stuff because they had better sales.
Note: Place holders in other store lines is acceptable in my area but might not be in your area. You may want to check and see how that works.

All-in-all Thanksgiving is a 24 hour day thanks to Black Thursday/Friday. My team and I won't return home until about 7am on Friday after starting at 7pm on Thursday.

Once home, the women sleep (or should) while the men and kids hang Xmas lights and put up outdoor decorations.

From there December is already booked. The baking I do alone is enough to do me in. I bake 7-10 items every year and hand out or mail over 20 tins of baked goods.

Can you imagine if I was querying during these two months? Holidays are busy and sometimes depressing (lots of money being spent, for one). Querying yields far more rejections than requests. Why on Earth would I want to get a rejection during these months? I might be crazy enough to do Black Friday but query during the holidays, no way.

The good news though, is that I'm one less writer bogging down the query system. Yay for you!!!

DO YOU QUERY DURING THE HOLIDAYS?

Would I Do it Again? Absolutely!

2010-11-08T09:59:00.000-08:00

Regina, Jen, Darci, Me

Thank you to everyone who stopped by and viewed me and my writing group's NaNo lunacy on Saturday. I hope you got to see some of the good stuff while you were here.

For those of you who couldn't stop by or found us only during concentrated writing times here's what you missed:

The Zucchini Genie and Jen were definitely the stars of the show. The Zucchini Genie was the name given by Darci to one of the giant zucchini my husband and I accidentally let grow to a massive size in our backyard garden. See, my husband and I just switched out our summer garden for a winter garden but left one healthy giant zucchini plant. But because the winter veggies are still young and not producing, we sometimes forget to go outside to check on the zucchinis. Thus, we have been growing prize winning zucchini. What better way to enjoy a giant zucchini than to incorporate in into a 16-hour NaNo writing day? Zucchinis are extremely versitile veggies, not to be underestimated in any way. It came in handy for exercising with, passing it around for a game of hot potato, stroking it for inspiration, dancing with it, singing into it, trying to fit it into the Writer's Block Box (a box with prompts to get the thoughts flowing again), and for doing other kinds of R-rated things with. Ha! Shhhh! In the end, Jen got to take the Zucchini Genie home as a prize for writing the most words throughout the day although I would have just given it to her for her excellent impersonation of the Risky Business slide across the floor, that was hilarious!

Elton John

I went into that day hoping to come out of it with an extra 10,000 words of which I only completed 5,990. Boo! That's okay. I have a list of excuses for that: My husband got free tickets from an old work partner to see Elton John the day before my 16-hour day. Let me tell you something, if you haven't ever seen Elton in concert, run out and get some tickets in a hurry. The show was amazing. My only advice is to see him alone or with an equally popular singer, like Billy Joel. We saw him with Leon Russell who wasn't that great of a live performer. But when Leon wasn't on stage Elton was incredible. He was standing on speaker at the front of the stage, he did a hand stand on the keyboard before plopping onto his bench. Awesome! However, we didn't get home until after midnight and I had to wake up early since my girls were expected to arrive at 6:30am for breakfast so I started my day tired.

That's not my only excuse. My writing group girls and the two regional NaNo girls were so much fun to hang around that I lost my focus just on the dancing, ass-smacking, pillow fights, back rubs, laughing, story telling, LiveStream chatting, etc.

I have a special thanks to Quinn of seeing, dreaming. . .writing, Michael (my drill sergeant) over at In Time. . ., Christy of erica and christy, my long distance writing group member, Nicole, and Katie my new writing group friend, for chatting with us on LiveStream. To Quinn especially for being there when we woke up and came back at the end to see us through to the finish. Also, to Michael for getting my butt in gear from before the camera turned on to the end. This part of the event was so much fun. Without all of you on chat, we would have been falling asleep or taking naps on the couch in the living room. You kept us pumped up and excited to be writing (goofing off) for 16-hours.

Another special thanks goes out to everyone who came by and left a comment on my blog in show of support. All the comments went to my inbox and immediately inspired us to keep on writing.

Most importantly, thanks to my husband, James, for feeding us and taking care of us all day long and to my Write-A-Tat-Tat girls for agreeing to such lunacy: Regina (my sister and blogger at Middle Distance Runners), Jen, Darci, Nicole and our two new NaNo friends, Katie and Susan.

I was tired all of Sunday, and I have a feeling I will be a little tired for the rest of the week but the writing continues. As a matter of fact, I'm on my way back to writing my NaNo story just as soon as I publish this post. Write on Writers!!!

How is NaNo going for you? Are you asleep at the wheel or cruising at altitude?

16-Hour NaNo Write-In

2010-11-06T00:32:00.000-07:00

Watch live streaming video from simplicityinvolumes at livestream.com

Saturday, November 6th 7am - 11pm PST

If you've come along to view us (and can actually see us) please leave a quick comment to brighten our day and waken our minds.

If you cannot see us right now (says Offline) then leave us a quick note in the comments so we can remedy the problem.

The day is supposed to start with 4 of us and then grow to 6 or 7 of us and then finish with 2 or 3 of us.

We appreciate all love and support!!!!

Not Commercial Free but We're Up!

2010-11-05T10:04:00.000-07:00

Check it out, I've got a potentially very cool tool that will help you view us while we write for 16-hours starting tomorrow, Saturday, November 6th, Pacific Standard Time. Our hours are 7am - 11pm.

Watch live streaming video from simplicityinvolumes at livestream.com

I've done a test run on this bad boy and have learned a couple of things: First, it occassionally times out and will show us offline. If that happens, just check back later and I'm sure we'll be back up and running. We cannot let technology impede us! We must work together if we want to conquer technological snafoos. Secondly, there are commercials. How annoying right? Right. The thing with that is simply we would prefer to use LiveStream for free with commercials than pay $350 for one month's use of it commercial free.So, be aware that every now and then a commercial will appear out of nowhere.

Lastly, and most important, we're writing. If you check in on us and think, man this is boring to watch, then you know, we're writing. However, we are a bunch of giggly girls so expect us to laugh and carry on about absolutely nothing also.

Before the start of NaNo I figured I could probably write 20,000 words in a 16-hour day based on what I know I can average per hour minus the breaks for food and whatnot. Now that I've started NaNo, I will be lucky to get 10,000 out by the end of the day tomorrow. Why? Just in the first 4 days I felt like I was crashing. I was exhausted. My brain knew what it needed to write but I couldn't picture the scenes in my head to write from. And I was only producing 4,000 words per day. However, I do have fragmented days with kids so my outside influences were definitely increasing my exhaustion. Tomorrow there will be no kids to distract me so my goal is to write 10,000 words in 16-hours, if not more. Every couple of hours I will post my word count with NaNo and you will be able to see on my sidebar what I've been able to accomplish.

If you could write for 16-hours, how many words do you truly believe you could pound out? Would you be able to write as many if you were in a group or would that number go down?

And We're Off. . .

2010-11-01T06:58:00.000-07:00

I have officially begun my NaNo story. I waited patiently for midnight to arrive last night and was able to get 232 words done before my eyes started drooping and my hands stopped typing. I was tired. Perhaps this was because of our fun filled Halloween with the kids and trick-or-treating, or, because I was so excited the whole weekend and finally just crashed. I thought the late night Coca-Cola would help, or the five pieces of candy that my kids agreed to trade with me before finally saying, "Mom, I don't want to trade with you anymore because you don't have any good candy in your bucket." It was true. I only had hard candies left and no chocolate. But still, no amount of caffeine or sugar was going to keep my eyes open.

At least I started though. I've got all day to fit my writing in and then all night before I submit my first word count which I'm hoping will be around 3,000 words (Michael is holding me to it over at In Time. . .).

Are you doing NaNo? How's it going so far? Is the start up hard or easy for you?

Well, I've mentioned over the last few weeks that I will be having a 16-hour writing event for NaNo. You're probably thinking 16-hours? Why? Well, some of you might remember back in July that my husband, James, participated in his first Ironman Triathlon and me and my sister supported him through that. When I say support I mean we followed him around far longer than the 13 hours and 19 minutes it took him to complete the race. He was so thankful that he said he would host a 16-hour writing event for me and my writing group, Write-A-Tat-Tat.

So, be prepared! My 16-hours begins at 7am this Saturday, November 6th and we will be using LiveStream to let the blogging world in on what we're doing. You will be able to (assuming we have limited technical difficulty) come here and watch us sitting around typing our hearts our, or pounding our heads on the table, whichever happens first.

Consider yourselves invited to write along with us for 16-hours, or just to leave a comment to help keep our minds working and our eyes open!

Also, with NaNo in the air, please forgive me for falling behind on my comments, or postings as I will only be able to make my rounds and put up new postings one time per week. Please understand and know that I will be back at it and in full swing around December (after a long winter's NaNo nap?). If you're a Crusader, or a new Crusader, please don't think I'm ignoring you. There are so many of you now that I really need to update my side bar to include your links. I will do that! Soon! I promise!!!!

Fill me in on what's going on for you with NaNo! Or, in your world of writing and querying!

Am I Awake or Am I Dreaming?

2010-10-28T06:27:00.000-07:00

“Am I awake or am I dreaming?” The first time I had to ask myself this question was in 1983. I was almost six years old. There was nothing out of the ordinary except that I was awakened from my sleep to the sound of someone yelling for help. I laid there in my bed wondering, am I awake or am I dreaming? The call for help didn’t go away, it got closer. I got out of bed and pulled the curtains to the side and that’s when I saw her; a girl in a long white dress with long black hair running down the sidewalk while looking behind her calling for help. She was being chased, but by what, I’ll never know. Before she faded away, she looked up at my window, into what felt like my eyes, and asked me for help. I’ve never seen her again. Later research led me to believe I saw a White Lady ghost which has been known to be a Harbinger, bearer of an omen.

Six months later I had to ask myself, “Am I alive or am I dead?” We rented an old house when my family moved to Ely, Nevada, an old mining town, for a short time for my dad’s job. One morning, not long after we arrived, my dad woke up for work to the furnace blowing black soot through every vent in the house. Since we moved there in the dead of winter, the furnace had been going on and off all night. Panicked, my dad ran around the house waking all of us up to get us out of there. We were all covered in black soot. We weren’t sure how long we had been lying there breathing it in but the curtains and walls were blackened when we woke up. We spent a week throwing up after that, lucky to be alive.

It didn’t take long for me to ask myself if I was awake or if I was dreaming again. This time I wasn’t the only one seeing ghosts, both my sister and I constantly heard, felt, or saw something unexplainable going on there in that rental in Nevada. One night I woke up and thought I heard my sister playing music on her clock radio. I didn’t want my parents to get up and yell at us so I went next door to her room and said, “Turn it off! You’re going to wake mom and dad up!” She wasn’t awake though and never heard me. I stood there listening to the radio changing stations by its self. I ran back to my room and hid, asking myself, “I am awake or am I dreaming,” over and over.

We moved back to our home in Utah after only six months in Nevada. Whatever was going on didn’t stay there, but then, it didn’t start there either. It was 1987 and I was ten when I found myself asking, “Am I alive or am I dead,” once again. We lived in a split entry level home where the front door opened to a set of stairs that went both upstairs and downstairs. Upstairs from the front door was the doorway leading to the kitchen where the kitchen sink was located. That’s where I was standing doing the dishes with my Walkman turned up practically all the way to Motley Crue. On this particular day I was annoyed that my mom kept bothering me while she was going around the house cleaning, forcing me to turn my music down, and ask, “What?” repeatedly. I decided to just crank the volume and ignore her the next time she said anything since I only had a few pieces of silverware left to wash. Just like I thought, my mom started calling my name, “Patty. . .Patty. . .PATTY!!!!” I dropped the silverware, left the water running, turned around, and yelled, “WHAT!?” at the top of my lungs at the same exact moment lightning struck our front door. I went blind momentarily and our television was blown out. The damage to our house wasn’t nearly as bad as the house behind us whose carpet caught fire when that bolt of lightning went through the swamp cooler onto their roof. Little did I know, my mom had been on her way upstairs with a basket of laundry when she heard me yell, “WHAT!?” She asked me why I did that and I said, “Because you were yelling at me.” She said, “No I wasn’t.” I’m lucky to be alive. If I had spent another second washing that silverware under the running water, I would’ve been electrocuted. My mom and sister both talk about that moment to this day, wondering who alerted me.

My ghost stories continue throughout my life but I didn’t start seeing full bodied apparitions until 2001. In 2002, my daughter was born with kidney problems that required two surgeries. It was 2004 and my daughter was scheduled for her second surgery, a stressful time in our house. I dreamt one night that my neighbor from across the street came over and said, “Someone died in the bedroom upstairs.” It woke me from my sleep. When my eyes opened there was a little girl standing at the foot of my bed. She seemed real. She had short brown hair and brown eyes, wearing a dress that might have been a school uniform but not from this era. When she didn’t go away I shut my eyes and rolled over seeking comfort from my sleeping husband. One week later, my neighbor came over to check on my daughter’s health and while she was there she said, “Did you know someone died in the room upstairs?” I tried not to panic. I asked for the details. She said the previous owner’s mother died up there. I ran into the previous owner at the store one day and asked her about it. She became defensive, saying her mom died in the ambulance on the way to the hospital and not in the house.

So, I ask you, have I been awake or have I been dreaming? Am I alive or am I dead?

Have a ghost story of your own? Join our Boo-Fest using our linky tool below this post above our comments:

Haunted House 2010

2010-10-26T21:09:00.000-07:00

Continued from First You Need a Plan.

I'm happy to say that the haunted house was a giant success this year and not because of the turnout, although 150 people isn't a bad turnout, but because of how many families contributed in one way or another.

We started construction at 10am and didn't stop working until after 8pm on Friday. Then we got up and started working at 9am on Saturday and didn't stop until shortly after 3pm, which was just long enough for me to get all dressed up and put my makeup on. We came out at 6pm and already had families outside wanting to get in.

The doors officially opened to families of the construction crew at 6:30pm and then to the public at 7pm. We shut it down after 9:30pm.

On the inside we had 9 people scaring, two of which were rotating and two teenagers running the entrance and the exit.

I would have to say of all the 4 years we've been putting this event on in our cul-de-sac, this year had the least amount of drama and/or conflict.

Actually the only real issue I had was getting the video embeded at the bottom of this post.

I tried to upload through YouTube but they stripped the music so I've since gone through Facebook (otherwise this post would've been up on Monday. All well, minor issue). I'll let the slideshow speak for itself.

P.S. Speaking of haunted things: IT'S ALMOST TIME FOR THE BOO-FEST ON OCTOBER 28TH. SIGN UP IF YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY. We want to know your real life ghost story, or a ghost story of someone you know. Click HERE and use our linky tool at the bottom of the post before the comments.

Okay, so I got rid of the Facebook one and added the YouTube one, but there is no sound as of yet. *Darn YouTube, shaking head*

I Didn't Win...But I Brought Home the Silver!!!

2010-10-21T22:54:00.000-07:00

All the way to the finish line, I thought for sure I had this in the bag. When Michael crossed the finish line at 6:43pm with 21,068 words after only 8 days, I was shocked and not because it had only been 8 days but because I was certain I was going to cross first. After all, I got up before 6am this morning and pounded out 400 words before I got the kids up for school. After I tested out all the haunted house equipment, installed batteries and made dummies, I jumped right back on and pounded out more than 1,000 words. Then after Karate for the boys, I was at it again until my husband finally tore me away for dinner at 6pm. He can take me away from my laptop but he can't force me to leave my notepad and pencil behind. I shoveled down food at my sister's house and then grabbed my notepad and started writing feverishly. I left my sister's house and got back home right in time to see Michael cross the finish line. At 6:43pm I was only 1,507 words away from the finish. I finally crossed the finish line with 21,283 words at 9:46pm.

What a fun event. I'm so thankful to erica and christy for hosting such a fun event and for Michael for being such a fierce competitor. He made it all that more fun.

The last 8 days of pounding out words have not been easy mentally nor physically. Aside from the fact that my candy bucket is nearly empty now (aside from the lollipops) I also have a cramp in my right hand, and a twitch in my left bicep. The cramping and twitching really set in yesterday after breakfast. I'm suffering from so much fatigue in the arms that I've got a mark from where my arms have been resting on the edge of my keyboard instead of in the proper position. Other things I noticed included getting overly anxious to the point of frustration because I didn't want to drop any of the story forming in my head. James would try to talk to me and I would snap because I was mid-thought. By last night, I was so sure I had this thing beat and could finish today that my heart was racing and I started to feel like I was on a 5-hour energy drink like the ones you get at the gas station. At one point, last night, I couldn't stop rubbing my hands over my face and hair. James literally stopped me and asked me if I thought I was going to be all right.

I'm looking forward to a 10-day break from writing before NaNo begins.

In the end, I won a fancy silver medal for my blog and a T-shirt.

This just went to show me that there are people out there much faster at creating story than me and I'm about to encounter some of them during NaNo.

Stay tuned for my next post about my upcoming 16-hour NaNo writing event on November 6th, hosted by my husband for me and my NaNo writing group.
Until then, I will be trying to go to sleep so I can get up bright and early tomorrow to start building the haunted house for Saturday night's event. Pictures and posting to follow.

Hell Week and A Thank You or Two

2010-10-19T10:26:00.000-07:00

I don't have just one Hell Week in my life I have a few. They come around the kids' birthdays (planning parties for the masses can be Hell), Holidays (The big Easter Egg Hunt in the cul-de-sac, Haunted House, Santa in the cul-de-sac for Christmas Eve...that reminds me I have to go order him. I'll be right back. Okay, I'm back. Santa is in the process of being ordered. Check out Santaforhire.com if you want to order one for your Xmas party) and triathlons.

However, just because it is my Hell week, not everything about these types of weeks are hellish. For instance, I received my 2nd and 3rd blog awards from three really great bloggers: Quinn at Seeing. . .dreaming. . .writing was the first to send me such a sweet award and then today I was surprised to find myself award by the leaders of the Writing Half Marathon I have been participating in; erica and christy.

Look at it! Just look at it! It looks good enough to eat!

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

I am supposed to send this sweet award onto a few other sweet blogging friends and I promise I will as soon as Hell Week is over. I want to avoid giving awards on this sweet and sour posting.

I spent Sunday night sending out updated emails to remind my 11 families of donators what they offered to donate and gave them the days of the week to bring their items. Last night, I spent some time going over the plans with my husband so we could map out where animated decor and dummies are going to be located and then we tried to pin point exactly where all the scarers are going to be arranged. Friday we handed out 100 invitations at the school and it didn't seem hardly enough now that the word has spread about our annual event. Unfortunately, not everyone gets an invitation every year because we couldn't possibly accomodate the whole school of 750 kids. However, some won't show and others will bring their friends along. It will be interesting to see the turnout this year.

Still lots to do before construction begins on Friday. My mom is flying out from Utah tomorrow to help with the kids during this event, and we need to start stuffing dummies, putting batteries in animated decor, and wait until Thursday night to figure out what loose ends need to be picked up that might have been overlooked on the donation list. Once this ball is in motion there is no stopping it.

To top it off, I've been participating in erica and christy's Writing Half Marathon and I had no idea how fierce the competition was going to be. It's an excellent indication of what NaNoWriMo is going to be like for me. I started out thinking 1,200 to 1,500 words per day was going to be enough to keep me near the top in points but I was wrong. Sunday night I turned in nearly 5,000 words for all of the weekend and it still wasn't enough to make me the points leader. I turned in over 1,700 words around 7pm last night and thought I should get some sleep early but I couldn't get my rapidly forming story out of my head so I got up and pounded out another 2,285 words which I submitted this morning. I think I might be the points leader for the moment, but it's day to day in these types of competitions. I am driven now, thanks to the competition, but also because I started worrying that I wasn't averaging NaNo's speed which is 1,666 words per day.

All in all, if you don't hear from me in comments or new posts for the remainder of this week then just know that I'm either under a pile of haunted house decorations or tucked away pounding out as many words as I can for this competition.

Tell me, do you have a Hell Week or two in your life and when do they appear? Any advice on getting through these types of weeks with less stress?

What to Do With the Conflict I Planned On, Part 4

2010-10-14T15:28:00.000-07:00

Continued from How to Plan for Conflict, Part 3

Hypothetical reflection:

I planned on more things going wrong, but I never expected this. I stood there at the entrance of the haunted house in my demonic roller derby biotch outfit complete with bleeding wounds to the arms, face, and neck, looking out at a what was far more than two hundred people waiting to get into our 400-square foot house. When we were building the house, 400-square feet seemed pretty big for a little cul-de-sac event, now I wasn't so sure.

"How many people would you say that is?" I asked my husband, James.

"Well, considering the line goes to the end of the road, around the corner, and halfway down the other street, I'm going to guess upwards around five hundred people. Could be more by now," he said adjusting his DJ Lance wig and glasses.

"James! We're going to be in there all night!" I said, slipping in my Sketcher roller skates and eating shit on the pavement.

"Christ! Are you okay?" I wasn't mortally wounded but now I couldn't tell the difference between the real blood and the fake blood. I thought back to the previous year with only maybe one hundred and fifty guests. Me, James, my sister and her husband were inside the hot little house for two hours without a break. Although we had people bringing lemonade in for us as they went through, we were desperate for some fresh air. Five hundred or more? I wasn't sure it could be done before midnight. That meant five hours in there.

Once we got going, I calmed down and the bleeding in my knee stopped, for sure, I think. The first one hundred people came and went quickly. The food table items went fast but we still had a lot of candy that we were handing out inside and that seemed to keep everyone at bay.

It was the sudden scream echoing through the haunted house that nearly took me to the ground again. Sure there were screams in the haunted house, but this one was different. I rolled through the darkness into the strobe light room to see what was going on. I felt like screaming for a minute when a figure seemed to be walking straight through the wall. "What the hell?" I thought. The strobe was screwing up my sight and making me feel unsteady but I managed to make it over there around the same time James did. James' familiar bellowing laugh led me to believe whatever was going on at the end of the room was something ridiculous in nature. Sure enough, one of the many kids running arond the outside managed to run straight through the wall.

At first, I thought this was going to be a catastrophe of monumental porportions, but one of my neighbor's who dressed up as Carrie (blood and all) came to the rescue. She covered the opening and actually turned it into another scare spot. Believe me, it was scary seeing bloody Carrie coming through the exterior wall under the strobe light.

And if I had more time to chat, I would tell you all about what happened when the cops showed up and asked for a permit.

In real life we do whatever we can to avoid conflict. We don't want to wake up late, have a kid miss the school bus, get in a car accident on the way to work, or forget to pick up one or more of the kids on a minimum day at school. We try to plan for that kind of conflict and then avoid it.

In book writing, we have to plan for conflict and make it happen. Some of us writers (I read a lot of blogs so I know it's not just me) tend to make notes (mental/paper, what's the difference?) of character traits and characteristics. But have you thought about making notes of potential conflict so you can add it into your story later at some point. Some of us have enough conflict going on around us that it's easy to write up a notepad full of ideas, others of us need to go out and find it. Here are a few good places to get real life conflict:

Listen better to what your friends, family, neighbors are telling you about the drama in their lives.
Public places like the park, coffee shop, anywhere people congregate and can't help but be overheard.
Reality television.
Jerry Springer or any of the like.
Read the news more.
Pick up a couple of tabloids every now and then (watch for copyright infringement, just get an idea of types of conflict, don't rip any off. Same goes for all of these).
If you are planning anything think of all the things you hope WON'T happen and then make that a point of conflict in your notepad.

How do you come up with conflict? What kinds of things inspire your conflict? If you could add to my list, what would it be? (Here's hoping that I don't run into any of the types of conflict I mentioned above during the actual haunted house.)

Thank you for following this series of posts. This year's haunted house is October 23rd. I will follow-up with pics and story for all.

Framing it up 2009.

The black light room is always a hit.

Construction crew 2009.

Tear down 2009.

How to Plan for Conflict, Part 3

2010-10-13T14:34:00.000-07:00

Continued from Now That You've Got a Plan, Part 2

Let’s just say, it’s the morning of and I can’t wait to start building the haunted house. The invitations went out the week before and even if no one comes outside of our cul-de-sac and the “straight street”, we’ll still have a turnout of more than thirty kids and over twenty adults. Basing it on last year’s turnout of more than 100 people with more than 50 of those being children, we have planned for approximately 200 guests.

Luckily, the skies are blue and the wind is calm with minimal heat. The frame is up, the butcher paper walls stapled & secured, the roof tarp in place, the painting was fun and the decorations all placed and in working order.

The next day, the final touches are placed and I was even able to feed my family a stress-free dinner before we put the kids’ costumes on. I had no problem with the elaborate makeup my costume required and when we turned on all the electronics, they all worked. The food and drink were set up and everyone waited for the first guest to arrive.

Just like imagined, all guests arrived and waited their turn in line to enter the haunted house, no questions asked. It’s worth the wait though, because we take pictures of each family at the scariest spot and then give them a card on the way out telling them where at Snapfish they can view or purchase their pics. Everyone is happy.

The next day, the haunted house comes down quickly and the frame gets stored for next year.

It’s just that easy. . .or, is it?

I don't know about you but when I first come up with an idea it always plays out like this in my mind. But then reality sets in and when it does, it brings conflict with it.

So, with your NaNo story, you have kind of an idea of where you are starting and where you are finishing, but have you planned on any conflict?

Sure, you can’t possibly plan on all the conflict. With the haunted house I feel prepared for whatever may occur based on previous year’s experiences but there is no possible way I will be able to plan for everything. That’s okay, that’s precisely what makes the process of putting on an event of this magnitude interesting. It will also be precisely what makes the process of writing your NaNo book that much more fun to do.

What can I plan on then?

Day Before:

Potentially having to start putting up the frame without any one but my husband, my sister, and my mom (this will become frustrating to my husband who will wish for some strong arms).
Broken electronic decorations, (I can fill in with homemade dummies with masks).
Having to decorate rooms previously dibbed by volunteers (I’ve got plenty of décor and can make it work).
The flu. (I could get sick right before, or the kids could, and there are enough volunteers to make it work anyway).
The weather. (It could rain, and then we would find ourselves running out to buy more tarps to cover the paper exterior. The wind could blow too hard and start tearing the paper walls. But we could create a wind block of sorts and have extra tape and staples handy.)
Power Struggles. (We can’t always get along. We’re neighbors and just like family, we can’t pick’em. Must deal and forge ahead.)

Day of:

Electronics not working (make do)
Running late to get ready in full costume (it will be dark, it’s okay)
Injuries (We keep first aid handy and pray to god no one really gets terribly hurt running around.)
Fire (we don’t use open flames and keep a fire extinguisher at the entry and exit)
Camera doesn’t work (then no one gets their pics this year, that’s okay)
Scared kids: (That’s what we’re here for but for some reason some of the parents don’t get that. We just laugh it off and ignore it at best.)
Weather, weather, weather.

Day after:

Broken items that were donated (that’s why we specify donate at your own risk)
Hard feelings (Maybe someone said or did something to tick someone off over the last two days. We eventually get over it. We’re neighbors and have to grin and bear it for the kids.)
Damage the trailer with the wood (we use our toy hauler to transport the frames to and from storage. We could damage a cupboard or tear a curtain in the process but we will eventually get over it. Planning on this makes us more cautious.)

Stay tuned tomorrow for how a conflict filled haunted house turns out, (What To Do With The Conflict I Planned On, Part 4)

Now That You've Got a Plan - Part 2

2010-10-12T14:02:00.000-07:00

Continued from First, You Need a Plan.

So, you have a plan and it resembles some kind of maze that will turn out to be a haunted house.

What's next?

Well the plan happened in August, but what happens next starts in September. Inventory & Resources. Or, if we're still comparing building a haunted house to writing a book (we'll make it a NaNo book, 'tis the season), then we'll call it:

Inventory & Resources/Plot Points & Characters

If this is your first year building the haunted house (writing a NaNo book) then you might think you have very little resources and absolutely no inventory. If this is one of many haunted houses/books then you have spent the last year creating a better idea of how to organize your stuff and pull from resources such as neighbors (or for character building you have probably made notes of how random people behave, look, act, speak, what they wear, cool names to use, etc.). For the haunted house, you probably made note of all of the decorations at other people's houses in the neighborhood last year and kept notes (mental/paper, what's the difference?) to ask them if they would be interested in contributing them to your annual haunted house, they will say yes, because they love the annual haunted house and want to participate.

Now, you have some inventory (new decorations that you didn't have to buy or new character traits that you didn't need to invent) and you have resources (new characters or more people who want to help build, decorate, scare, donate, or breakdown).

PLOTTING

It's time to put that inventory and those resources/plot points and characters to work. At the end of September, I send out a mass email to everyone and anyone who mentioned wanting to help with this year's haunted house, it's a virtual meeting of sorts. This email is broken down into categories: Day Before, Day of, Day After. Inside my categories I use a constant theme, Time and/or Resources. We stay away from asking for money because it's scarce and we're in a Recession. It's better if we band together, use what we have, give our time, and pick up a couple of loose ends like cob webs which need to be purchased every year.

Plotting your NaNo book is somewhat silmilar to plotting a haunted house in that we start with an idea that requires several steps to accomplish the actual house. Your book will require plot points though that will dig into the story and turn it in different directions. The plot points in the haunted house are based on what he have planned for each room or section as the kids walk through. We're hoping when they hit the black light room they'll want to move forward to see what's next and that when they get to the strobe light room they'll want to find the nearest exit, but in order to do so they would have to move on to whatever lies ahead. For a successful haunted house we at least name these rooms to get an idea of what's going in them.

CHARACTER SKETCHES

Just like in a book, it takes a lot of people/characters to pull off a haunted house even if there are primary people seemingly running the show like the MC. It's important to know all about the main characters driving the project/book, but it's equally important to know the supporting cast. Here's how I keep it in order for both books and haunted houses: I use a 10 cent notepad and write down names of people/characters and what their function is going to be and when. Some characters want to be in charge of the food table (little kids get hungry and thirsty on this night and most of the mom's like to use this opportunity to make fun Halloween finger foods for the masses. This is a bigger job than most would think.), other characters want to create a haunted room of their own using their own decorations (love these ones), some of the characters will be more than happy to provide the candy being handed out by the scarers inside the house, and some will be there the day after to help take it all down and clean it all up. Regardless, they are all colorful characters essential to each part of the process.

However, not every character/volunteer will show up at the same exact time. For the haunted house we start early on a Friday and don't stop until well after dark the first night. This is the first third of the book/haunted house. A lot can go on during this time. Two-thirds into the building/story we have another set of people showing up to finish whatever couldn't be done the first day. The last part of the second half is where everything starts getting crazy. The elecronics need to be turned on, the scarers need to get ready, the food put out and the show put on. The last day is the end. We wrap it up, but it still takes a lot of characters to break it down and make it magically disappear until next year.

This year it will take 21-adults, 1-Grandma, and 1-teenager to put on a 400-square foot haunted house that will take 2-days to build and 1-day to breakdown for 3-hours of haunting the week before Halloween. (Not too different than the amount of work it takes to write and publish a book for a speed reader to get through in two days or less, but it's worth it, right?)

This is just an indication of why it can be useful to have a plan and keep it somewhat organized.

Stay tuned tomorrow for Part 3 - (How To Plan For Conflict).

First, You Need a Plan

2010-10-11T13:39:00.000-07:00

October is great around my neck of the woods. Every year I can't wait to get the decorations out, make the haunted cookie house, dip apples into blazing hot carmel, cook pine nuts in the oven, and run around at night leaving BOO treats on unsuspecting neighbor's porches after we've rang the doorbell a few times.

But mostly I enjoy building a haunted house in th middle of the cul-de-sac I live in. Have you ever put together a haunted house, haunted garage, or haunted yard?

Here's how we do it: First, we start with a plan. I bet you thought this would be a post about outlines, I fooled ya, now where's my treat? I'll let you off just this once.

Around August, my husband and I sit down and start planning the annual haunted house. Now this is a freestanding unit varying in size but generally around 400 square feet. I start by drawing a square onto a sheet of paper and then with my husbands help, we start drawing the lines that will turn the square into a maze.

From paper to Excel and then into a Word doc. and out comes:

Our annual haunted house will be the theme of this week's posts. Check back tomorrow to see where to go from here (Now That You've Got a Plan).

But, since this is a blog about writing I must know, to outline or to write from the hip? I wrote my first two books without a detailed outline and thought I should have definitely done the outline. But maybe it was just the type of story I was writing that needed the outline. Right now I'm writing off the cuff, so to speak, and having no problems whatsoever. However, I am doing NaNo and decided if any time was a good time to work on outlining it would be for NaNo. Now that my NaNo outline is done I am losing the interest I once had in the story.

So, here's the question, have you ever lost interest in a story after you've outlined it? Will the interest come back once I start writing? (Looks like I managed to squeeze in outlining. Good thing you didn't give me that candy after all.)

Seen Any Ghosts Lately?

2010-10-06T22:30:00.000-07:00

Seen any ghosts lately or know anyone who has?

Quinn at seeing, dreaming . . .writing, and I have been relating over our own personal ghost sightings and wondered how many of you have seen or heard that which lies beyond the grave.

That means it’s time for a Boo-Fest. We want to read about your personal ghost experiences or the experiences of someone you know personally.

To join, sign up with our Linky Tool (below), grab our nifty button over there on my sidebar, SPREAD THE WORD, and start writing.

Make your haunted posting on October 28th so everyone can read about your experiences with the afterlife.

As always, it’s never too late to join a blogfest. Sign up here or at Quinn's blog between now and October 28th to join in the fun!

My Very First Blogging Award!

2010-10-04T13:13:00.000-07:00

Alison Stevens over at Wistful Wanderings just sent me my very first blogging award, One Lovely Blog Award.

Isn't it lovely? It's shiny and new and I am about to add it to my sidebar proudly. My whole day has been made. I am smiling ear to ear. Oh, what, you just cut me off on the freeway? No problem. I just got a blogging award. I can't even hear my kids fighting because I just got a blogging award. Not just any blogging award, but my first blogging award ever!

Now, instead of my husband coming home from a long days work to a tired wife who has been shuffling kids back and forth to school and piano lessons, while making sure the homework is done and the dinner is made, he gets a happy go-lucky recently awarded wife. Thank you, Alison!

Okay, so now it's time to pay it forward. Here are fifteen blogs I believe deserve the One Lovely Blog Award.

Pam Torres at So I'm Fifty!
Margo Kelly at Margo Kelly
Debbie Curran at Words 'n' Whimsy
Heather Kelly at Edited to Within an Inch of My Life
Tina Laurel Lee at Watch Me Practice
Jessica Stanford at Girl, Unpublished
Kelly Polark at Kelly Polark
Jo Schaffer at Shoveling in a Jo Storm
Margie G. at Spin Me Write Round
Melissa at Through the Looking Glass
Lola Sharp at Sharp Pen/Dull Sword
Brian at The Urban Cowboy
Carol & Stacy at Intentional Conscious Parenting
Angela Pena Dahle at A Pen in Neverland
Gabriela Lessa at An Aspiring Writer's World

Each of the blogs I've chosen have helped me in one way or another through inspiration, cheering me on, making me laugh, teaching me something I didn't think of, or just simply having fun reads when I deserpately need one on any given day.

Thank you Alison Stevens for my award and thank you fellow bloggers who inspire me with your posts.

I Sat Down to Write the Other Day...

2010-10-01T10:49:00.000-07:00

Thank you Rachael Harrie for the Crusade.

I sat down to write the other day when my doorbell rang. Something inside me was telling me not to answer it but just last week the neighbor’s kid drank a toxic amount of cough syrup and so what if it was an emergency? I thought to myself.

“Hey Jim, what’s up?” I asked but really didn’t care because if I took in his story with more than a blank stare I was going to lose that little bit of story I created right before I sat down to write.

“The flu must be going around because J.T. and Lila are both throwing up at my house. Hey, do you have a flat head screwdriver I can borrow?” He just stood there un-phased by what he just said.

Ugh! Seriously? Why? Why would anyone in their right mind come over to tell me their kids were barfing? I didn’t want to, but I let him follow me to the garage where he got the screwdriver he was supposedly looking for. I still think he was of the philosophy that when the flu was out he must spread it around so the whole neighborhood could be done and over it at the same time. But what if I could fend it off for a couple of days and then hear about the flu in passing from someone else who heard that Jim’s kids were home sick? At least then I would have time to process the info and prepare myself for disease to hit my household of five. I know, I know, it’s the flu and I have three kids and live in a neighborhood with thirty kids between the ages of two and ten; I’m bound to get the flu regardless. Still, this just threw my whole day off.

Now psychosomatically affected by the flu, I sat back down to my computer with a can of 7up and a bowl of crackers. Now where was I with my story? I thought, reading back through my WIP.

My writing goal for the day was 1700 words, a lofty goal, but November first wasn’t far away and I needed to practice for NaNoWriMo. The writing was going quite well. I was actually more excited about this practice writing project than the idea I had for NaNo but then it was already 11:15am and I only had five minutes left before I had to pick up my kindergartner from school. I hated Wednesdays. My days were already fragmented but throwing a weekly minimum day into the public school system just really made me angry. To top it off, minimum day for half-day kindergarten just didn’t make sense.

Luckily, I was able to get my son to sit right down and do his worksheets without too much of a fuss. And then off he went to play and I sat back down to write. Okay, my story was really getting good at this point; I was in the zone.

“Mom, there are ants on the counter,” Nolan, said when he went to get a cup for water.

“Okay, okay. I’ll get it, just a minute.” And off he went to play again. The ants were there, in the back of my mind, but with creativity flowing out of me at 90 words per minute I didn’t want to stop. Now, if he had said flies or cockroaches were all over the counter, I would’ve jumped, but we just had a heat wave over the weekend so a few ants were bound to come inside. Still, the ants were bothering me. My writing slowly ground to a halt, I looked over my shoulder and wished I hadn’t put it off for even a minute; there weren’t a few ants, it was a remake of Indiana Jones. They were everywhere.

I did what I could with the ants until I realized for the second time this day, that it was minimum day at school and I had my third grader to pick up, so I dashed out the door. My third grader hated to read. Can you imagine that? What kid doesn’t like to read? This was why I hated this time of day. I spent forty-five minutes arguing with my daughter to complete her twenty minutes of reading while I wiped and sprayed the newly formed grouping of ants in the kitchen. It was really an hour of arguing with my daughter but I turned on the wet vacuum and mopped the floor while she continued to argue and complain while I enjoyed the white noise of the vacuum. That last fifteen minutes of white noise must have calmed her down because she sat down to read quietly, giving me a few minutes to pound out some more words on the computer.

“Mom, can Nolan and I go over to Aunt Regina’s house while you pick up Fischer from preschool?” My daughter asked after she completed her reading.

Fischer! Would I have forgotten my three year old if Madeline hadn’t said anything? Nah. It was minimum day. I was still on track for picking him up regardless of how I remembered to do so.

I didn’t manage to get back to my computer again this day until eight o’clock at night, but I was able to write until midnight so in the end I was able to accomplish that 1700 words.

This is a story largely based on true events, though pieced together from different days and years. Every day is crazy with three kids in the mix but I’m driven, so I’m not worried about my productivity yet.

Banned Book Week

2010-09-27T12:28:00.000-07:00

Ahhh, remember The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, BANNED; or, the Harry Potter book series by J.K. Rowling, BANNED.

James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl, now that was a great one, BANNED.

Starting to get worried? Check here to see the list of other great books that have been BANNED.

Who, what, when, where, why and how have these books been BANNED? If that's not what you're thinking then perhaps you should be.

From where are they banned? Libraries and school libraries. By whom are they banned? "Libraries, schools, towns, sometimes governments."

Not a lot of people know this about me but here it goes: From 1997 until roughly 1999 I tried to find the rights to a book called Two Girls and a Mystery by May Hollis Barton. I wanted to write a screenplay from this book and I needed the screen rights. I eventually found the rights in possession of Simon and Schuster for $2500. Fair price but I didn't have the money at the time.

It's not the rights that bothered me and changed my view of the world, it was what I learned along the way.

May Hollis Barton was a pseudonym for a group of ghost writers that belonged to the Edward Stratemeyer Syndicate in Orange, New Jersey. Not familiar with the Edward Stratemeyer Syndicate? Sure you are, they pumped out the beloved Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew series amongst others. Business was booming for Edward Stratemeyer and his little syndicate but soon his series books fell under the BANNED list. And one of the big proponents of this banning came from the chief librarian of the Boy Scouts of America when he put out an article entitled, "Blowing Out the Boy's Brains." Although the Boys Scouts of America didn't begin the ban on Edward Stratemeyer series books, it further fueled the public. These books were pulled from library shelves around 1927 and didn't make a comeback until the 1960's.

I mean 1927 and 1960's. Those are the years I think of when I think about banned and burned books, definitely not 2010. But it's true. The list for BANNED books in the United States grows and changes each year. Baffling to me.

Sure. You might not want your kid to read a certain book, so don't let them. But don't prevent others from reading these books. Your opinion is subjective. Don't make up my mind for me or my children.

Check out the following links for more information about the Edward Stratemeyer Syndicate:

The Mysterious Case of the Edward Stratemeyer Syndicate by Carole Kismaric & Marvin Heiferman

The Secret of the Old Clock

Fore more links to blogs who care about banned books go here:

League of Extraordinary Writers

Read a Banned Book

I have to go pick up my kindergartener from half-day kinder now. Go protest if you get a chance! Happy Monday!

I'm on a Crusade, Please Join Me

2010-09-25T12:54:00.000-07:00

Just since yesterday, thanks to the Writing Experiment, I have gained new followers and have started following a lot of great new blogs. (I'm excited to check my Dashboard every day now)

Over at Rach Writes she has a Writer's Platform Building Crusade going on and I have climbed aboard. Care to join all of us?

We are part of a new generation of writers and we must embrace it. Let me take you back in time for a second to 1998, the year I started dabbling in the publishing world. It wasn't pretty, people! In 1998 I was twenty years old, living as a resident tourist in an apartment in Hollywood, California and dial-up was my best friend and worst enemy. There were no online forms for agents, no Query Tracker. My view into the publishing world was from a large book called The Writer's Market. They didn't have a fun interactive website like they do now, or I didn't know about it. I was buying lots of stamps and waiting for months for rejections to my queries.

That wasn't even the worst of it. Blogging was non-existent, so I was writing in a vacuum with no one to write with that understood the writing world. It was no wonder so many classic writers offed themselves or became depressed alcoholics. It's not safe to be a writer without friends. That's why I put my fiction aside for a bit and have now come back to it twelve years later. (Sure, I kept my lofty writing goals in my head and I never gave up on my journals, but I didn't query again for twelve years.)

Us writers need each other and blogging is the best way for us to have a group and still be alone with our thoughts when we need to be. Thank you bloging world for being here when I'm down and when the words won't spill out across my blank pages.

Thank you Rachael Harrie for the crusade!

How to Write Compelling Characters

2010-09-24T13:10:00.000-07:00

I am participating in Elana Johnson's blog experiment today. She has an interesting topic running on her site which is, How to Write Compelling Characters.

I've spent most of today really thinking about this (I mean really pondering; there are already almost two hundred people ahead of me on this topic) in a way that I'm not even sure if someone else has already mentioned it.

I was able to read a few of the then 184 participant's ways of making their characters compelling and I think they all did a great job and I agree with them.

Here are my two cents:

I enjoy following characters (main or sidekicks) who surprise me. Of course, I like to be able to relate to these characters as a reader but it's enjoyable to come across a character who has an opinion that I don't necessarily agree with. Maybe it's the main character but maybe it's the sidekick who occasionally reacts to a situation in the opposite way I would in the same situation.

There are several ways to achieve this type of surprise element with a character: Get loud in the library, hate something most people like, be funny at an inappropriate time, etc.. Try not to make your character annoying; nothing in excess, but surprise the reader. Inevitably this will make them flawed in a charming or compelling way.

In The Breakout Novel Workbook, by Donald Maass he has the writer think about something the protagonist or antagonist would NEVER do and then have them do that in the story. It's a great book for going back through your story and pulling out the types of compelling qualities you might not have thought of yet.

Okay, I have to go back and read some more ways to write compelling characters. Have fun writing!

When Did I Get So Wordy?

2010-09-21T21:54:00.000-07:00

I love working with a writing group. If you don't already have a writing group then go out and round one up right away. That's what I did. I follow a couple of blogs who speak so lovingly about their writing groups that I was jealous, envious, no jealous, well, that seems harsh so let's go with envious and keep jealous in the back of our minds. I couldn't just stew in my envy/jealousy. I had to put a feeler out. I literally used NaNoWriMo as an excuse to find my group. I figured, who doesn't have Write a Book One Day on their bucket list?

It's nice to have a goal in mind to write a book. We started out by coming up with our ideas, outlining, sketching, and now using prompts to stoke our creativity while we patiently wait for NaNo to begin.

I'm learning a lot about myself through prompts. First, I don't write short stories all that well, but I'm not that bad at writing scenes. The difference? To me, it's the set up, the clear beginning, and ending. Often, my scenes start out with more dialogue and less narrative. I could just be out of practice. I used to write short stories, but even then my teachers would say my ideas were too complex to fit into the word limit and they could see where I needed more room to develop my story. But, I didn't really think I could write a book until this year. I actually just wanted to write good journal entries. That didn't happen. Journal entries are harsh, abrupt feelings for the moment and hardly as formulated as a story should be, at least that's the way my journals read.

Most astonishing to me of late, is that I'm so much more wordy than I used to be. In 1998, I was taking a creative writing class and struggling to write short stories on a regular basis and use up all the word limit space. Now, I'm wordy. It seems I've gotten a taste for writing books and now having to fit story inside 1,000 words or less is a challenge. I have no idea what this says about me as a writer. It feels nice to know that when I sit down with a notepad or in front of my computer, I have stuff to say.

There have been times over the last eight years that I've attempted to write a book and after the first page I've stopped dead in my tracks. I have yet to go back and finish those stories. Over the last two years, when I think back, I filled notepads and journals faster than I had in the past, that might have been a leading indication that I was headed toward a book.

I'm still new to this but my biggest fear is lack of words. Starting a book isn't the only time I've come up short on words, I found myself stuck more than once while I was writing my book. I just didn't know if I could reach my goal of 75,000 words. I was shocked at 15,000 words, and after 25,000 words. Getting to 75,000 words was a great feeling of accomplishment, but not one that came without fear of whether or not I could do it again.

When I'm feeling sick, or exhausted and I can't write and maybe those feelings go on for a week, I actually wonder if I'll be able to sit down and write again. There are even times when I look at the writing prompts and have no clue where the story is going to come from, but amazingly enough, it comes.

I'm anxious to see how my writing comes along in November.

What is your biggest fear in regards to your writing craft?

I Used to Want to Be Buried in My VW Bug...

2010-09-13T12:14:00.000-07:00

I have to admit, my writing group and I are getting anxious for NaNoWriMo that's why we've started using writing prompts. (I'll take whatever I can get. My characters for my NaNo book are trying to break out of my head and onto paper so a writing prompt is a great distraction.)

Our writing prompt was to write for ten minutes using I used to think...

1994 - Sat in front of the Gorilla Gage restaurant for 20 years

I used to think I wanted to be buried in my Volkswagen bug. Seriously, I even wrote it in my will. I’ve been through more with my bug than I have with any single person, at least until I got married and had children.

I think my bug is a great representation of me. When I was sixteen and looking for a car, I was looking for a bug. For some reason in 1994 bugs in Utah weren’t cheap. I looked at quite a few until one day my mom, my sister Anna, and my then boyfriend, Russ all spotted my pink bug sitting off the road with a For Sale sign. After a bit of negotiation I got the bug for $2500. My grandpa spotted me the $500 down payment and the owner let me pay $101.04 per month for 2 years.

Right away this bug was trouble. I have had this car now for sixteen years. Throughout that time I’ve been broken down in driveways, intersections, gas stations, car washes, and parking lots. Seriously, I’ve spent some quality time on the side of the road, inside the cab of AAA tow trucks, and in repair garages. I even got the same tow truck driver twice while I was living in Hollywood.

2004 - Sanding is no easy task.

This is a trouble making bug but sometimes the situations were more funny than frustrating. I couldn’t wait to take my dad for a drive in it for the first time but it was icy out and the dead of winter in Utah and sure enough, I spun her all the way around. When the car stopped spinning, my dad and I just looked at each other, no words for at least a minute or two. I guess that was one way for my car to bring my dad and me closer together.

As a teenager I was known to honk my horn at anyone who ticked me off, well my car got me back for this one day. At first the horn just stopped working. Then I inadvertently honked the horn while I was turning and like magic the horn worked again. I could honk as long as I was turning, so that’s what I did. Then one day, I honked the horn and it didn’t stop honking itself for a few minutes. Needless to say, I was embarrassed. After that, I’ve been careful not to use my horn in any car so much. A lesson in respect I would say.

There’s nothing quite like driving a bug in the snow when the heater only works in the back and you find yourself scraping the inside of the windows and then jumping out at red lights to scrape the outside. Or, overheating in the hot California summer and then having to sit on the side of the road until she cools down. It doesn’t matter, I still love her.

But not everyone likes my bug. She’s been laughed at, had a milkshake thrown on her, had her gas siphoned, car stereo and dash ripped out, been wrecked, have been painted two different colors by a color blind painter, and has had multiple children lean bikes and scooters on her all while keeping her composer.

She’s definitely a member of the family and a large part of my life. I’ll keep her until I die, or until she rusts to the ground and I sweep her into a jar for safekeeping. But I don’t think I want to be buried inside her anymore, and I’m still not sure why I really wanted to before. Maybe because I have a hard time thinking about how someone else might treat her. There are just some parts of myself I’m not ready to let go of and I know I’ll never be able to take her with me when I go.

2004 - A refurb for our 10th anniversary.

Is It Just Me?

2010-09-07T14:15:00.000-07:00

I think my personality prevents me from writing level-headed female MC's whose darkness still comes off as chipper.

People who don't know me very well see a nice blonde-haired, blue-eyed lady who talks so quietly they could never see me getting upset, but those who know me would probably agree that I'm just Emily the Strange on the inside, wearing all black, feeling cynical and less than optimistic when crossed.

I want to be normal, and less enraged at general stupidity, but I have a hard time overlooking the quirks emanating from the random natured people around me. Perhaps this is the uttermost reason I need to write, small things stand out to me in a way that makes me think, "You're kidding, right?"

For example, last week I was volunteering in my son's kindergarten class along with another mom and a grandma who makes rounds at the school (an on-the-fly volunteer). I like to keep to myself and just do my thing, but of course, something or someone always crosses the line from common sense and courtesy into something like anarchy in solidarity (I'm an extremist at times, bear with me).

After the first round of kids left my table I got up and sharpened the pencils in my cup and then waited for the next round of kids. When all the kids had taken their seats, I overheard the grandma at the table next to me say, "Let me get some sharpened pencils for you kids." And then she came over to my table, grabbed a handful of sharpened pencils from my cup replacing them with her unsharpened pencils.

I was stupefied first, and then as the seconds passed, I became angry. In the way of common courtesy I (perhaps wrongfully) assume that we are all on level playing fields as far as age (this might be an indication that I truly believe in a higher power although I'm still questioning religion in my life).

I couldn't start a fight with the woman, so I sunk so low that I became passive aggressive. The only people around me who could possibly relate to my feelings were the five-year-olds, that's when I became one. When one of the kids at the table pointed to the cup of pencils and said, "Why are only some of these sharpened?" I immediately pointed to the grandma and said, "She took them."

Now, eight days later, I'm still shaking my head about this woman and her actions. I can't stop thinking, "What kind of person does that anyway?"

See why I have a problem writing female main characters? This must be why the MC's for the next two books I plan to write are male POV's.

It might just be me, but male POV's don't seem to get the same stigma for being grumpy and depressed as female MC's do.

My mom thinks I should takes notes from Erma Bombeck and write a book about all the idiocy I encounter, but for now I'm sticking to MG and YA, while avoiding the female MC until I get a good grasp on how to lighten her up by detaching her from me.

Clearing Off My Bookshelf

2010-09-02T11:08:00.000-07:00

I love to read and it shows in the way my bookshelf is sagging and my night table is running low on space for my remote controls.

Perhaps, someone else would like to have these books. I'm willing to trade for books I haven't read yet. That way we can just spend shipping costs. Let me know if you're interested in any of these books:

My Bookshelf

~~Catching Fire & Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins~~ ~~(Both HB, no Hunger Games because it was lent to me originally)~~ TRADED!!!! Yay!

The Wake Trilogy by Lisa McMann (Wake (SB), Fade & Gone (HB))

The House of Night Series by P.C. Cast & Kristin Cast (All 7 books; Tempted, Burned, Hunted (HB))

Blue Bloods Series by Melissa de la Cruz (All 5 books; Van Alan Legacy & Keys to the Repository (HB))

Into the Wild Nerd Yonder by Julie Halpern (HB)

The Short Second Life of Brea Tanner by Stephanie Meyer (HB)

Evermore & Blue Moon by Alyson Noel (SB) (as soon as I finish I have Shadowland & Dark Flame in HB)

Send me a message if you're interested.

What If It Was Just That Easy?

2010-08-30T11:47:00.000-07:00

What if I could wake up one day and just sit down and write out the perfect story? If I could do that, then I probably would never have to worry about facing rejection.

What if I never had to face rejection? Then, I probably wouldn't ever improve on my skills.

What if blogging was enough? I like to write. I like to blog. I like to write in my blog. But, blogging isn't enough for me. I want to write a binding-worthy-story.

Maybe then, I could just break the story writing process down into tiny little understandable bits. Then maybe it could be just that easy, to write the story at least.

In my writing group we are all getting ready for NaNoWriMo. I've written a book and the others are just beginning their journey. I'm not sure if I'm capable of helping them but somehow I am finding ways to make the upcoming book writing a lot easier than when I wrote my first two books.

This time, I sat down and wrote one sentence to describe my whole book. This sentence might prove useful when I need a one-line pitch in the future of marketing this story, or if I find myself 20,000 words into the story and can't remember what the original idea of my story was supposed to be about.

Then, I wrote the query. Last time, I didn't really know what a query was so it came last and proved to be difficult. Writing the query first was actually great because now it's done, and it gives me another reference for when I start writing my book.

After the query (a micro version of the essence of the book) I decided to break down about how many chapters my book is going to be (2,000 word chapters divided by 50,000 word NaNo requirement = 25 chapters) and then I set out to write an outline.

Everyone outlines differently. I decided to write one sentence to describe each of my 25 chapters. This was not as bad as I thought it would be (admittedly, some of those one sentences are run-on but hey, I have an idea of what each chapter is supposed to be about). Now, I have an opportunity to see where I need to shrink or build on different sections of my book. Also, I can use this outline later as a synopsis (of course it will have to be tweaked a little depending on how the story actually goes once written).

After I wrote my outline, now I can pick through it and make a research page. This research page will consist of anything I still need to figure out. For example, this book is going to be paranormal and will deal with parallel universes, so I need to figure out how my MC is going to get through these universes and exactly how those universes affect each other.

Once I've gone through my research page and figured out how to build my new world, I then have to do some character building. By this I mean, who is my MC, my protagonist, and all the other main characters that help my MC? What are their motivations? What do they look like? What are their special skills or talents? And so on.

By the time November 1st rolls around, I will have:

One-line pitch.
Query
Synopsis
Outline
Detailed Research pages
Character sheets

That's probably as prepared as any writer can get for writing a 50,000 word novel in just 30 days. Hopefully, it will be just that easy.

How do you prepare for NaNo?

Not a Bad Monday

2010-08-23T20:22:00.000-07:00

Life gets overwhelming and the days all blur together sometimes. Lately, I wake up on a Monday and it might as well be next Sunday; that's how jam packed my days are.

In a nutshell: I have 3 days a week where I drive 80 miles in a day back and forth to my youngest son's preschool. There is 1 day of volunteering in the kindergarten for my middle child, 1 day of piano lessons 25 miles away for the oldest child, 2 days a week of karate for both of the boys, 1 minimum school day every week, 2 days where my youngest is home all day with me and sad because his brother is in kindergarten and he isn't, and with half-day kindergarten I have 3 days a week of 2 drop offs and 3 pick ups.

Time flies.

So, when this Monday rolled around and I opened my email and saw that I won the Polka-Dot jersey for Heather's Edited to Within an Inch of My LIfe, Tour de Writing contest, I was ecstatic! That means soon I will be the proud owner of a designer Mad Bag. Thank you Heather!

Then I got onto my blogger dashboard and saw that Ronni over at Fiction Groupie just signed with an agent! And Donna Hole just got a story accepted for publication. Yay! Congratulations! I love to see other writers getting agents and publishing stories; it's proof that there is hope for all of us.

That makes me feel like giving an update on my progess thus far. I actually haven't been on my journey for very long so I still feel fresh with hope and ambition.

Before I found the Query Shark I submitted 6 queries, all of which were rejected. After Query Shark I sent another 6 queries of which I've been asked for my partial twice, one of which has been rejected. The other partial manuscript is still out to an agent.

I stopped querying because the agent that has my manuscript gave me feedback that prompted a complete revision of my story. At the time of request, I only had time to revise the requested amount of manuscript to send it in quickly. When I hadn't heard back from this agent in 6 weeks, I emailed her to check the status of my partial and to ask if I could resubmit the partial with a new synopsis because the changes affected the ending. Resubmitting was not a problem for this agent, so off it went for the second time. This partial might be out for awhile. But, thanks to this agent (regardless if she rejects me), I've been able to revise my whole story and make it better. For that, waiting has been worth it. But now, the goal is to get back to querying.

In the meantime, I found myself a writing group that I'm very excited about. We lovingly refer to it as Write-A-Tat-Tat. I happen to be friends and neighbors with each of these ladies and we all came together for one goal, to participate in NaNoWriMo this year. Four of the five of us have never written a novel before so I'm really excited to be working with them and them with me.

Despite my chaotic schedule, I still manage to fit in my writing (if I didn't, I would feel lost and afraid). I might be down to only one day a week of blogging right now, but I take moments for writing everywhere, i.e. in the car waiting for my daughter after school, at night while husband bathes the kids, after everyone is asleep, one or two hours while all kids are in school and here and there on the weekends. Do you find yourself having to cram writing into your schedule?

What I Wish I Knew Before I Wrote My Novel

2010-08-16T11:10:00.000-07:00

Whew! Thank the lord for WriteOnCon. I learned a great deal about the bizz and about my own writing.

So, today I want to talk about what I wish I knew before I wrote my novel.

I'm kind of a self-starter type of person. I once built a desk from OfficeMax and did all kinds of things wrong before I finally opened the instructions. So, it doesn't surprise me that I went ahead with writing my first novel before I really considered what goes into creating one.

However, I did take creative writing classes, spent time writing short stories and journeling my whole life, I just never really read books about writing books.

What's done is done. Now for my second novel here's what I plan on doing:

1. I'm going to read about how to plot a novel. I started with an article on eHow, How to Plot a Novel and then I bought No Plot, No Problem! by Chris Baty.

You're probably wondering how I managed to get through one novel without properly plotting. I wonder the same thing...at least now I do. I actually just envisioned my story and wrote. I had an idea of who my characters were and how I wanted the book to go. I learned however, that if the story isn't plotted very well then you'll know about it in the revisions. Yep! I am trudging through revisions on my first novel where I've had to cover up big plot holes, and ambiguity that might not have been a problem if I plotted first. Why oh why did I choose to write a suspense novel first?

2. I'm going to make and keep a style sheet or reference guide. Nathan Bransford and Anna Katherine both talk about the benefits of doing this on their sites.

You should check out both articles because the purpose for each article is different. Nathan suggests keeping details about each of your characters so you don't have to flip back through a couple hundred pages to find out if your MC's girlfriend's name has an E on the end or not, or whether your MC's new love interest has blonde hair and blue eyes or blonde hair and green eyes. Anna Katherine talks about why you should put together a reference guide for a copy editor and then they give an example of what theirs looked like. Examples from their article include, "I want "gray" to always be spelled "grey" and "we wanted "sulfur" to always be spelled "sulphur"". Not to mention they have a good reason to keep timelines handy for your characters, such as the school schedule (don't show your MC showing up in Science class in the morning in one chapter and then at the end of the day in the next).

3. I wish I had written my query letter and synopsis before I wrote my book.

Elana Johnson just wrote a great article about writing a synopsis and what book she read for such great advice, check it out. Why write the query and synopsis before I've even written the first five pages? It might just be me but I found that when I wrote the synopsis I found some of my plot problems and that's when my first inkling to rewrite my book started. I was adding fluff to my synopsis that might not have been in my book. That's no good. Can writing the query and synopsis first really help? I don't know. But when I get done with the second book I'll tell you. It doesn't hurt to try. At least you'll know for sure if you have a solid plot and a great beginning, middle and end. Same goes for the query. Why wait until you've put blood sweat and tears into a book to feel daunted by the query? Just write the query first and then see how far off the target you are when you get done with the book, you can revise it then.

4. Write First, Edit Second

I sort of did this one the first time. I actually thought if I edited along the way I was going to lose my momentum so I pounded out the first 64,000 words in 6 weeks and then added on 10,000 more words during the edit process. This time, I am going to participate in NaNoWriMo. This is a lofty goal, but I'm up for the challenge...I think. Why not write a book in 30 days? The writing shouldn't take a really long time (shouldn't being the operative word here), but it can. Sometimes writing a book can take years, because we are perfectionists, writers and editors all in one. We want perfect first drafts. Maybe because we still have a touch of insecurity and know a beta reader is going to have to read our book at some point and being that as it may, the book better be perfect. Nah! Don't think like that. Get your story out of your head and then go back and edit and revise as needed. I stop 10,000 words short of my goal just for revising and editing purposes. You'll find areas you can tighten, but you'll also find areas where you need to add more, leave a cushion in your desired word count for this. Don't arrive at a lofty word goal and then have to add more making your word count too big for your desired audience, i.e. seriously 100,000 words for an MG book is too much, especially for first time authors (even J.K. Rowling's first couple books are relatively short in comparison to the others in the series.)

5. Ease up on myself. There's no gun to my head.

With the first novel, I felt like I had something to prove to myself, my husband, neighbors, friends, and family. I took myself way too seriously and skipped out on some of the fun. I didn't have a blog, I was afraid to Facebook my progress, had no idea about writing conferences and all the fun writing groups and blogs are out there. I was lonely. Nobody really understood what I was going through. I was definitely missing out on all of the fun that goes on in the blogging world of writers. WriteOnCon was fun! And I'm betting NaNoWriMo is going to be just as fun. Are you enjoying your process? I hope so.

I'm sure there are plenty more things I could have done before I wrote my first novel, but it's never too late to start anew.

Anybody else participating in NaNoWriMo? It would be nice to be familiar with a couple of writers during this upcoming event.

What kinds of things do you wish you knew before you started writing your first novel? Can you think of anything I could add to my list?

Last Day of My Contest

2010-08-09T09:05:00.001-07:00

All good things must come to an end, it's true.

But when one thing ends the WriteOnCon begins!

Tonight will be the last time I check for points for my contest the Writing Triathlon. I had an opportunity to meet some great writers who not only participated in my contest but supported my husband through his Ironman with their comments. Thank you for that!

The WriteOnCon is already turning out to be a great way for me to meet other writers through the introductions and the forums. If you haven't signed up for this event, go do it now! It starts tomorrow.

In the meantime, I've tallied the scores from the contest and the top three winners are so close that today's points could really make a difference in who gets first place.

Tina Lee leads with 32 points
Heather is coming in second with 28 points
Kelly is third with 27 points

Ladies, you can up your point status before the end of the day by heading over to Elana Johnson's blog to let her know which picture to choose for her book cover, then go over to Heather's blog to post your total written and revised words, stop in at Tina's Practice Room, or make a comment here for additional points. Good Luck everyone!

So, the last two weeks have been so crazy with the completion of James' Ironman and then my daughter's 8th birthday party, that I haven't even posted the prizes. Now that I'm getting it together, here are the prizes:

1st Place: A $20 Gift Card to Barnes & Noble

2nd & 3rd Place: The choice of one of three books lovingly blogged about on Elana Johnson's Blog : (hopefully when you click on the books they will take you to the bn website description of each).

I feel like chanting and pounding my fists now...WRITEONCON!!! WRITEONCON!!! WRITEONCON!!!

All Said and Done

2010-08-03T09:33:00.000-07:00

May we all have the courage and support to set and accomplish our goals.

How did you all fair in my Writing Triathlon while I was away? Let me know in the comments.

Thanks for following this journey. Now back to the writing (eeks! I'm so excited for WriteOnCon).

600 Miles and I'm Not Stopping In Hell

2010-07-28T14:24:00.000-07:00

4 am is going to come early. But we'll manage.

We're charged for such a journey. I mean, players, games, camera, video camera, phones, all charged. We anticipate such a long journey will eventually charge us so that once we hop out at our final destination we will be ready and rearing to enjoy James' Ironman.

No specific plan outside of the end goal in mind. Sightseeing should be good, after all we are leaving Corona, heading through Los Angeles, going up the coast via the 5, stopping periodically along the way, charging through the central coast, flying past Silicon Valley, and prepping for a luncheon in San Francisco all before we get to Guernville area. (I have no idea where that is, just that the Russian River flows there.)

I came across a quote from Winston Churchill this morning:

IF YOU'RE GOING THROUGH HELL,

DON'T STOP

I have to admit, this is a really good quote. It can be applied to almost anything in life (I say anything in hopes that the Hell isn't going to exist in the car for 600 miles; kids fighting, static stations, motion sickness, kinked necks, drowsy drivers, snack fiasco, drink spillage, traffic. )

So, the only thing I know for certain is that I will not stop for souvenirs in Hell no matter how much the kids beg and plead, hopefully James won't either.

We're all on a journey, writer's too. If you're stopped, it's not because your journey has ended, it's most likely because your checking out the sites and picking up some souvenirs in Hell. GET BACK ON THE ROAD! DON'T STOP!

First time here? James is my husband and tomorrow we are embarking on a trip of a lifetime with him. He has been training for two years, lost 40-pounds (give or take), participated in a couple of sprint triathlons and one half Ironman. On Saturday, he will be taking part in his first full Ironman distance triathlon.

What does that mean an Ironman triathlon? I mean:

James will wait patiently in his wetsuit for the bang, at that point he will run out into the water with 700 other triathletes (divided maybe by age category). He will, or at least I will, be hoping that he doesn't get inadvertantly kicked in the face, shoved under the water, or drowned which, of all the deaths in a full distance Ironman 3/4 will die during the swim. If he makes it out of the masses unscathed he will swim 2.4 miles looped in a river and burn 1500 calories with no intake in 1 hour and 30 minutes, before getting out and stripping down to his bike shorts and shirt (worn strategically under the wetsuit).

Once in the bike area, he will grab his shoes (no socks), perform a once-over check on his race bike, walk it out, clip-in and head out for a 112-mile bike. Here's what we're hoping, that as he averages speeds of 18 miles per hour, topping out at about 35 miles per hour, he won't crash, be crashed into, over exert himself so much that he falls into a numbed mental state so that he loses awareness, heighting his likelihood of crashing while leaving limited energy to complete the marathon after the bike. During his 6-1/2 hours on the bike, he will burn 5,000 calories while taking in 3,000 calories via 2 liters of 150 cal. gatorage/water mix, 220 cal. Odwalla nut chew bar, 230 cal. almond Snickers, 400 cal. Cliff shot blocks, 2 liters of 2,000 cal. worth of Perpetuem.

After the bike, he will stroll in and drop off the bike, switch out the shoes (for runners with socks), clip a water belt on and head out for the marathon. The run will all depend on how much he exerted himself on the bike. His body will let him know if he over-exerted himself. Over-exertion leads to G.I. tract problems, i.e. loss of bowels, vomitting or dry heaving. This won't be his primary concern however, because during the 4-1/2 to 5-1/2 hours of a 26.2 mile run starting at 2 o'clock in the afternoon, he will face dehydration, leading to fatigue and passing out; if he gets low on calories and salt he will face debilitating cramps and hypothermia (calories=heat, loss of calories lowers body temp.) He hopes to avoid some of these complications by taking in 1,100 calories with 400 cal. worth of Cliff shot blocks, 400 cal. in 2 liters of gatorade and 300 calories in 8 ounces of Perpetuem.
His overall hope is to cross the finish line even if it means swimming with a black eye, carrying his bike should he have an irreversible repair need, and walking the majority of the marathon should he have given everything and have nothing left but the ability crawl over the finish line.

It's amazing what the trained body can put itself through thanks to the mental strength required in order to do a race of this nature knowing the risks in advance.

We write, but we put our bodies through similar challenges that require specific intake for brain use. I came across a forum talking about the energy used by the brain. Rather interesting, though complicated check it out. Hitsquad, one of the responders, shows a chart graphing how much energy the brain uses for different tasks. Unfortunately, writing and imagination aren't on the list, but a study done on students taking tests tended to use more gluclose depending on their level of IQ and how difficult the questions were.

So, think about how many cups of coffee and Coca-Cola we take in while writing our books, and how many calories worth of chocolate and potato chips (among other eats) we take in during this period of intense use of imagination. It's because our brains alone use 20% of our body's energy in a typical at rest-awake state, which equals 2,500 calories per day. So, if you've done anything beyond your typical at rest-awake state imagine what your brain requires in gluclose. If you are short on the calories your body needs to create your imagination, you may suffer from hunger, G.I. tract issues, fatigue, stress, anxiety.

Here's to hoping we all take in the appropriate calories to prevent any stops in Hell.

Until You Quit Trying

2010-07-27T10:32:00.000-07:00

YOU ARE NEVER A LOSER

UNTIL YOU QUIT TRYING

Why is it that the closer we get to our end goal, the harder it is? Maybe that's just me.

I am so close to finishing the revisions I set out to do in June and now I just want to ball it up and throw it all away.

A funny thing happened to me in June. I was ready to throw in the towel on this first story. I didn't like the ending, which led into another book, and then another. I literally wrote two books and got over 20,000 words into the third story before realizing I just didn't like the way book 1 worked out.

By this time, I had sent six queries out before realizing how a query should be written, thanks to the Query Shark. After revising my query, I sent 5 out and immediately got one request for a partial that eventually came back as a rejection. Then I joined one of Query Tracker's contests for feedback on my first chapter. The feedback came as "Telling more than showing." Here's where my story takes a turn.

I was already rearranging book 1 in my mind before the contest. After the contest, I was rewriting my whole story idea. Then a week later the agent that hosted the contest asked for a partial based on a query I sent well before the contest existed. I sent a polite email reminding her that I participated in the contest and what her comments were. At that time, I asked if she was still interested in my partial. If so, I would be willing to revise based on her comments.

The agent was kind enough to respond by suggesting I go ahead and make the revisions and then submit the partial via her email. I spent two and a half days revising thirty pages before submitting early am on a Friday in June.

The revisions prompted a complete overhaul of book 1 where I would need to wrap book 2 up in it for a more satisfying ending. Now, I'm 30,000 words away from the finish and I'm doubting myself and I am probably days away from hearing from the agent on the revised partial.

The problem is that once I started pulling from book 2, I found several ways I could revise my story if I dumped book 1 and focused solely on book 2. I mean, book 2 just jumps right into the heart of the story exactly where I want to be. Book 1, at first, was a lot of background with some action. Since the revisions, I was able to make book 1 way more interesting, but not with the same type of action that book 2 holds out of the gate.

I'm attending WriteOnCon and now I'm not sure about my whole story. Maybe I have to step back a little. My focus is torn between the kids and their summer activities and James' Ironman.

Have you ever gotten so close to something that you just froze? Unable to get where you know you need to end up for the finish?

The funny thing is that I don't really want to quit per say, I just want to start all over.

I desperately need two things:

1. To hear back from the agent so I know which way to go (feedback would be awesome but in the event of a form rejection, I think I will rework book 2. Of course, if any type of yes, or send a full comes about then I will jump for joy.)

2. Attend WriteOnCon. I will benefit greatly from other's like me, and the experts.

By the way, have you joined my Writing Triathlon yet?

If you are already sending love to Elana Johnson via her blog, Query Tracker blog, or WriteOnCon then you have a leg up in this race. Now you just need to let me know you're playing in the comments and then head over to The Practice Room and Tour De Writing and leave comments on their blog about your writing progress. It's never to late to bump someone and get one of three prize places (to be announced soon).

What Lies Before Us

2010-07-26T12:02:00.000-07:00

The third inspiration that James chose to see on his poster boards is:

What lies before us and what lies behind us

are small matters compared to

what lies within us

Emerson

WHAT LIES BEHIND US:

Race prep is going well. At least from my standpoint. From James' standpoint, I'm not really sure if he has managed to get everything he needs quite yet, but he will.

This is the first race where we've had to pack our bags and rent a place to stay. Luckily James reserved a house months ago, so that's one thing off our list.

Movie players for the car ride...check, movies for the players....check. Regina is making the craft bags (crayons, notebooks, etc.).

I spent the weekend working on the shirts. This is the big race. The race he's always wanted to do, short of being the World Championship in Hawaii. Thus, cow bells, poster boards, and iron-on transfer t-shirts were a must. I'm one of those; I tend to over do it a bit when it comes to milestones and celebrations. (We all have something.)

The kids drew pictures for the t-shirts. Here's what the adult and baby shirts will look like, the kids who drew get a shirt with just their own drawing on it:

WHAT LIES BEFORE US:

Though I worked on the T-shirts (that meant printing the iron-ons), I still have to iron-on the transfers for 10 shirts.

Pre-cook the carb-loading meal the night before we leave.

Pack, pack, and pack some more.

For the triathlete, the process is train, train and then train some more. Then come race day, get up early with the masses, get set up in the transition area, and get into a mental zone. Also, a quick check of the water bottle, Goo, Perpetuem, Shot Blocks, race bib, bike go-through, put on the wet suit, etc.

For the fans, which in James' case includes me and the three kids, and my sister, her husband, and their three kids, we prepare a different kind of way. We check our cameras, camcorders, water cooler, snacks (for the kids), sunblock, sunglasses, portable potty (for the kids though wish an adult one would be as easy to pull out of a backpack), kids clothes proper, kids shoes and socks proper, money just in case, and this time, the cow bells, the poster boards (divided up for each leg of the race), and extra sustenance for James.

WHAT LIES WITHIN US:

In my previous experience this is how race day goes

(with some preconceived tweaking for the Ironman):

We take pics with James before the race.

Then we say good luck and goodbye and head out to find a good place for video and pictures. This is no easy task. Jason, my sister's husband, breaks off and takes pictures and some video from his location (It's better for one to stand near the exit to get the shot of the bike transition), while me, Regina and the 6 kids stand at a distance. We will get the water shot and then run (I mean book it with 6 kids ages 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 8) to a distance where we can see James coming on the bike (this event is looped for the spectators so we will get a couple of opportunities to see him).

In the past, once we've seen James on the bike we break up again so one of us can catch James at the transition for the run while the other will set up a cheering section at another point of the run.

This time, since the race will take approximately 15 hours, us fans will have to take a break. We will all go back to the rental after we see James on the bike, to eat lunch, rest and get out of the sun for a bit.

Then, Jason has agreed (thank you Jason) to watch all 6 kids at the rental until near the end of the race while Regina and I head back out to meet James at one of the points on his map.

During this meet up time, James will swap out his water bottles, get some sustenance; maybe more Goo, shot blocks, and Perpetuem (600 calorie beverage). We will also have bandanas with ice, frozen washclothes and other ways to help him lower his body temperature. Although the run is looped, Regina and I will start heading toward a more distant point so we can continue to cheer him on. (perhaps bringing the older kids' scooters will be a good idea).

Hopefully when all is said and done, James will have had the strength to cross the finish line and none of the fans will have heat stroke.

In writing:

What lies behind me is the desire to write a book, the pain of completing the first draft, the bewilderment and inexperience of sending query letters and partials.

What lies before me includes revising my first two books down to one and revising book three into book two. WriteOnCon is still uphead. And I'm days away from hearing back from an agent who has my partial.

What lies within me includes the strength and perseverance to follow my dream by not giving up, and continuing to write, revise, and blog. I hope that should my partial come back a rejection, that I will find the appropriate sustenance to keep me going.

Hopefully, I, too, will make it to my finish line.

A Single Line Today

2010-07-25T09:52:00.000-07:00

Discipline is remembering what you want.

(unsure source. found on search.)

The First Line of Inspiration

2010-07-24T13:47:00.000-07:00

I think eight is a lucky number because it represents infinity; no ending lines.

Today marks 8 days to the starting lineup for James' triathlon.

If you just got here, my husband is getting ready to do his first Ironman Triathlon (2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike, and a 26-mile marathon). I started a Writing Triathlon to honor my husband's dream finally coming to fruition. I, too, hope my dream of getting published comes true by means of the same type of dedication and perseverence my husband has used to train for this race.

And now we have come up with 8 sayings that will hopefully inspire James during his potentially 15 hour race (he has 17 hours to finish and hoping for better than 15)

The first inspirational saying is -

A GOAL IS A DREAM WITH A DEADLINE

May you all have a goal in mind and the perseverance to set the deadline.

My Writing Triathlon got off to a great start. It's not too late to join in.

Here are the stats so far:

Tina - Current points leader with 20 points. (Got an excellent boost of 5 points from mentioning my contest on her blog. Thank you for that.)

Heather - Isn't far behind with a solid 17 points.

Kelly - In the running with 14 points.

Dena and Krystalyn both started following me just as the contest was getting under way but may not be sure if they are playing. If you want to play then you could still be in the running for top three prizes. Find out more about the points.

(I sometimes miss The Practice Room because of my West coast schedule. If I can't get in the room I give everyone points for that day anyway. The Practice Room yields 2 points per day because you could get in there a few times a day.)

Adding Inspiration To My Contest

2010-07-22T12:07:00.000-07:00

The Writing Triathlon came about because I wanted to honor my husband, James, who is about to do his first full Ironman. Sometimes, when I feel defeated by my writing, or think about how long my journey might be toward publishing, I think about James' journey to the Ironman.

Two years ago, James was forty-pounds heavier, had back aches, knee pain, and a general feeling of life going by too quickly to obtain his longtime goal to compete in an Ironman Triathlon.

We were out at a store one day when James picked up a flyer for a sprint triathlon. When we got home I told all the neighbors that James was going to do a triathlon and that he was eventually going to do an Ironman. This was not a good thing. He was not happy with me. He felt I jumped the gun on letting people know his goals. Here's why: James and I both believe that once we tell people what we are going to do, we have to actually get it done. (Maybe I was pushing him a little too hard. I wanted him to reach this dream of his.)

Here we are, two years later, and ten days away from his first Ironman Triathlon.

I am very proud.

Getting to this point wasn't easy for him, nor was it easy on our family. The equipment was expensive but that wasn't the strain. The training time wasn't so bad either because he trained mostly in the morning well before anyone was awake. It was the physical and mental exhaustion that affected each of us waiting for his attention. This was to be expected, and the first year we hardly noticed his exhaustion. The trials and tribulations of getting him to this goal are finally coming to fruition, for all of us. We can't wait to see him on the day of the race. We will be there to cheer him on, bring him sustenance, give him bandanas with ice, new water bottles, and general cheering and support.

It matters not how solitary each person's goal is, in the end, it always takes more than one person to achieve a single person's goal. Those are family, fans, friends, neighbors, bloggers. We cannot possibly achieve anything without support.

I used to think starting out was the hardest part of a goal, maybe that's why I waited so long to finally write a book even though I held this goal since I was a child, but now I'm sure that seeing the goal to its finish is the hardest part.

In writing, it's not difficult for me to start a book, or even for me to write thousands and thousands of words, it's the ending that gets me everytime. Maybe this makes me a good candidate for series book writing, I don't know.

In honor of James, I have included his Half Ironman video. This particular Half Ironman was in support of challenged athletes. It was truly amazing to see the challenged athletes, some of them still kids, pushing their physical limitations to get through this grueling competition. It just goes to show that we can all do anything we set our minds to.

Writing Triathlon Contest

2010-07-20T09:31:00.000-07:00

A GREAT BIG thank you to the hosts of The Practice Room, Tour De Writing, and Elana Johnson for allowing me to link up my events to their blogs.

If you have just arrived, you are right on time! I am hosting a Writing Ironman Triathlon. Only you don't have to swim 2.4 miles, or ride your bike for 112 miles, and then finish with a marathon of 26 miles.

UPDATE!!!

Elana is on vacation right now, but that doesn't mean you can't put a comment on her blog everyday. If you've already commented on what she left us with, maybe add something new and interesting.

Check out the full details here.

GOOD NEWS!!!

All of the times I've made it out to my husband's triathlon's with three kids in tow, has finally paid off. My husband has agreed to be the cow bell in this contest.

My husband's name is James. He will be cheering me, you, and everyone on in the comments.

My sister, and number one fan, has agreed to be the poster holding cheermeister. She will be leaving supportive comments in all caps. Look for her comments. Her name is Regina.

POINTS
I am giving 1 point for each comment left on the blogs of each of the events. REMEMBER: the comments have to be solely about the posts on each of the blogs and have nothing to do with my contest.

BONUS POINTS
Get 5 points extra for mentioning my contest on your blog. Let me know you did this in my comments. This is a great way to rack up points if you are feeling behind because you can't make it into The Practice Room or forgot to leave comments in the other events.

You can get 2 extra points if I catch your comment on any of the blogs that are directly associated with Elana Johnson, i.e. QueryTracker, What Writer's Read, WriteOnCon. (am I missing any?)

If you've done all these things and let me know about it in my comments, I will give an extra point for each comment.

GOAL?
To stay motivated on your writing projects through the summertime. I know I need it. Summer gets way busy and leaves hardly any time for writing and revising. Plus, for those of us heading over to the WriteOnCon in August, don't we have a lot to get in order from now until then?

TODAY
I fell short on my writing yesterday because of hectic schedule. Today, I want to get at least 2,200 words revised in my WIP. I would really love to make it over to The Practice Room during the chat sessions and I'm missing Elana, who is on vacation, so I'm going to stop by her blog and let her know I miss her.

PRIZE UPDATE TO COME
(I will be giving away three books. Which ones should I give away? hmmm!)

Write-Revise-Blog, a Triathlon for Writers

2010-07-19T10:40:00.000-07:00

In honor of my husband's upcoming Ironman triathalon on July 31st, I am holding myself (and anyone who would like to join me) to a writing triathlon.

In the process, I am promoting (not that they need it) the three blogs that have sparked this new found inspirational energy I feel (where before I was peetering out with the summer heat and the marked chaos of having my three kids home for summer break).

What is an Ironman in the first place? I am a writer, not an athlete.
Sure, sure. I say this a lot. Besides my workout videos, you will not find me actively participating in any fitness competitions.

An Ironman Triathlon is, according to the Wikipedia, one of a series of triathlons organized by the World Triathlon Corporation.

It consists of a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride, and a 26-mile run (a marathon), completed within 17-hours and by each events cutoff time. Crazy right?

Let's just say I am interested in participating, what do I need to do (I'm not a very good swimmer just so you know)?
Let's start with what you won't be doing. You won't be getting wet, riding a bike, or running a marathon.

Okay, with that said, you will have a swim, bike, run equivalent for writing. In an Ironman Triathlon you would have 17 hours to complete the course with cut off times for each event. This is not the case here. You have until the start of WriteOnCon, August 10 (last points collected on August 9). Each event will earn you points (kept my me).

Okay, I'm stretching (my fingers), when and where do I start?
Start off by following me or by leaving me a comment (today, tomorrow, next week; start whenever) so that I know you are participating and I'll know who to give points to.

Swim = The Practice Room
Bike = Tour De Writing
Run = Elana Johnson's blog

All you have to do is go about your writing business (which hopefully included participating in The Practice Room, Tour De Writing, and giving love to Elana Johnson especially for contributing/co-hosting to WriteOnCon and Query Tracker.).

If you are following me, or have commented letting me know you are playing along, then I will keep points by looking for a comment left by you in each of the events.

That means, head over to each event and leave a comment (pertaining to their posts only). That way I'll know if you are playing along. To play my game, you must play their game or show your love for them.

Gosh, I hope I can keep up with my own regimen.

Get extra points for spreading the word. Post my link in one of your posts and then let me know in the comments.

Prizes? I'm not sure yet. I would love to give away three books. Anyone, or any newly released author have some recommendations? I'll keep you posted on the prizes.

I wish you luck.

I wish me luck.

*Insert National Anthem here*

Let the games begin.

*Insert bang here*

I Want Winter Back

2010-07-12T13:46:00.000-07:00

For a mom of three, summer is hectic. The hours are longer, the schedule is manned soley by me, the noise level, the distractions, the need to be in well-lit, sun-drenched areas is a requirement, precipitation from my body versus the sky is high, while the splashing from the pool prevents me from downloading my creativity in a conducive atmosphere.

But, in just a few short weeks, I have gone to Mexico while the kids went to Pismo Beach, I've read four books, hosted a fourth of July party, started revising my book based on the adjustments I made for a partial that was requested, I taught eight kids how to make three balloon animals, we started an ant farm that I'm sorry to say isn't thriving, we've walked to the park and back, we've gone to the free movie and snuck our own food in, penpals have been made and kept, the blog has been updated although not as frequently, all this and we're still three weeks away from the start of school.

I need a nap.

I need a long winter's nap.

I seem productive in the summer but it's not geared toward my writing which leaves me frustrated at the end of the day when I am too tired from all the kid-friendly activities to open my computer or grab my notepad.

I desperately need to download though. I feel the stories bunching up in my head. I need a free moment (not the blogging-type free moments, more like the kids-are-at-school-and-the-house-is-shhhh moments) to envision the revision my story requires.

Also, I think the melancholy that winter brings provides a certain type of depth required for writing.

Dear Prospective Publisher, I read your latest book while on vacation...

2010-07-04T22:18:00.000-07:00

I'm back from my five-day vacation and I must say, I had a great time!

I have to admit, on the first day, I fell asleep (literally crashed) for three hours. When I mentioned in the previous blog about being exhausted just from my end-of-school-year, mom-type responsibilites, I wasn't kidding.

To sum up the vacation:

We went to Puerto Vallarta, went on a zip-line tour (highly recommended), ATV through the jungle, and rode the mules (of course mine went the wrong way and then turned and clotheslined me on the zip-line, ahh. Why do horses and horse-like animals hate me anyway?).

We took a boat-ride out to an amazing part of Mexico (high winds=high swells and motion sickness, salt sprayed hair and face, tipping chairs, and all kinds of crazy fun).

Hot tub on the deck + husband=Foam excess from added shower gel and shampoo (1 husband can sometimes=10 young children).

But inbetween all of the adventures I was able to read (I was still unsure of my book choices from Target so I made it over to Barnes & Nobles before the trip and picked up two more books).

I'm a fast reader (when I have the time) so I knew I wasn't far off by bringing 4 books on a 5-day vacation (I finished 2-1/2 books by the end). Before I left town I was feeling guilty for settling for more vampire books when I really wanted to read something more normal or at least with less vampires and werewolves. I started with a book I shall not name (it wouldn't be fair). I finished the book and was extremely disappointed. I actually had to read faster because I wanted to get through it just so I could go onto something better. The faster I read, the more I thought about writing to the publisher.

Dear Prospective Publisher ,

I read your latest book [named here]. It wasn't good. I feel you owe me.

[My query inserted here]

Sincerely,

Patricia A. Timms

Maybe it's just me. I sometimes read books that are so boring, or poorly written that I can't believe the author was published at all. How unfair does it seem to read something you can't believe made it on the shelves in the first place when you're battling your own form rejections?

A scary thought from a reader's perspective: What if these terrible books create a whole new batch of authors who want to write just because if the sub-par authors can make it and lure me into buying their books then how hard can it be to get published?

Or, to be positive, maybe a whole new batch of great writers will surface just because they are tired of being duped into buying terrible books.

Then again, maybe I bought one of those self-published books and I just didn't know any better.

Self-published books mixed in with the carefully selected and refined books, this is where my nightmare of a reader starts. This topic actually has nothing to do with my ability to write, query, gain attention or respect as a writer seeking to be an author. I don't even mean to put down self-published authors (especially as a writer), it's just that I WANT TO BE WARNED IF I AM ABOUT TO BUY A SELF-PUBLISHED BOOK!!!

That was awful of me wasn't it? Have I just lost some readers? I apologize. I'm not a mean person. I respect all writers, even sub-par ones. But that respect comes from the writer in me and not necessarily the reader in me. As a reader, I have to spend my hard-earned money on books that I can read in two days (think about how much it might cost me to keep up with my habit); I don't want to spend money on a poorly written book.

As a writer, I appreciate the journey the author went through to get the book on the shelf. I just wonder why the publisher bothered. Why did the back of the book trick me into believing there was something interesting about to go on inside the book?

Now that I've confessed my aversion to poorly written books I think I need to go and knock on some wood, or throw some salt over my shoulder. My journey to publishing probably just got even longer. It's hard not to admit that I get this disappointed when I read a terrible book even though I'm trying to query my own story.

Side note: I wasn't that enthralled with Stephanie Meyer's The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner either, but I am enjoying Alyson Noel's Evermore very much.

Am I the only writer/reader who gets this disappointed with poorly written books on Barnes & Noble book shelves?

Vacation Books

2010-06-26T21:56:00.000-07:00

So, I am going on my first vacation in ten years and without kids. Yay!

Life gets busy with three kids in the mix. It seems like whenever a Parents Only vacation pops into mind so do a lot of other things like: The kids are still young, we should take a family vacation, we should visit all the grandparents from Utah to Hawaii this year, we should save our money, we can't find a grandparent that will take all three kids for three to five days, work; can't forget the times when work was in the way of a vacation.

See how ten years flies on by? Ever since my oldest started the public school system a few years ago, it hasn't been as easy to just take off or plan random vacations. So, my husband took it upon himself to arrange the babysitting and the vacation. I guess I perhaps figured retirement would be the next opportunity to have a vacation without kids and family, good thing my husband thought differently.

I thought I would be jumping for joy at the chance to go on vacation without the kids, but I'm not. Seriously, I should be jumping for joy; I've never been out of the country and my passport is new for this upcoming trip.

I suppose my lack of enthusiasm is because I've been so busy with the onset of summer. I volunteered, for the third year in a row, to do the class DVD and open house slide show for my daughter's class. That was long before I started writing my first book. Even though I felt rushed at the end, I managed to make the videos and burn 23 of them for the class, after having written 2 books, started a third book and delved full force into the query process. Then my middle child formally graduated from preschool (cap and gown) so we threw a homemade carnival for both him and my niece in our yard; 20 kids, 7 booths, 40 bags of popcorn and cotton candy, candy leis, prizes galore...the details went on and on.

The school year is over, the carnival was a success, and I'm one day away from the start of my vacation and I don't have an ounce of energy left for the excitement I should have.

I decided to get out of the crowded house by myself to get a few travel games and a couple of books for the trip. I had limited time for this task and figured I could probably get everything I needed at Target. I got everything I need, but now I regret not going over to Barnes & Noble and spending quality time finding new and intriguing books to read on the plane.

The travel games pepped me up and got me a little excited for my vacation. I got Trivial Pursuit, Scrabble Slam, and UNO (waterproof, the perfect game for sitting by the pool or at the swim up bar with).

After I stopped daydreaming about my waterproof UNO cards, I practically waltzed over to the book section. Target is not the best place to find a great YA book but I can usually find something decent to read. I spent a lot of last year and the beginning of this year reading vampire series books, but then I got burned out on them and have been looking for other great YA books, this is where Target is failing, or maybe where the publishing industry is failing, it's hard to tell (I should have gone to B&N just for a fair comparison).

Since the majority of the YA shelves are stuffed with vampire stories it's hard to get a good selection of books I know I won't put down. I ended up with Evermore by Alyson Noel. Not to mention, I've been saving The Short Second Life of Bree Tannner by Stephanie Meyer just for this trip. Vampires it is for the trip. HELP ME! I CAN'T GET AWAY FROM VAMPIRES (I'm so ashamed).

So, at the end of the day I'm more excited about waterproof UNO cards than I am about the books I'm taking on the plane.

And I think once the grandparents drive off with my kids snug in their car, I am going to be bouncing off the walls for this vacation, let's hope so anyway.

Had I reached out to the blogging world, I wonder what books each of you would have recommended I take on a five-hour flight for a five-day vacation?

The Accidental Allegory

2010-06-21T11:45:00.000-07:00

I took a writing course where I inadvertantly wrote a short story around an allegory. I received praise for the allegory even though the use was unintentional. Has that ever happened to you? Maybe not with an allegory, but perhaps with another writing tool?

Most of all my writing ability comes from just sitting down and writing. The path I chose made it difficult for me to afford college so long-distance writing courses had to suffice, even though the stamps could sometimes be a stretch for my budget. Back then, online classes were not really popular; that was still back when AOL was essential but expensive and dial-up wasn't so bad if you could afford to do that.

Back to the allegory.

I called the short story THE FAMILY TREE. It was a simple story about the rubber tree plant my mom received as a gift when I was born. The plant was important to my dad, as were all the indoor plants. He would become frustrated every time a plant died and wondered why nobody else wanted to water and care for the plants. I didn't have any value for the rubber tree plant, or for any of the indoor plants, so I wasn't going to be responsible for them.

I guess I didn't really have a choice in the matter though. My dad had me watering the rubber tree plant and polishing it's big beautiful leaves by dabbing a paper towel in milk. He said it made the leaves shine. Perhaps.

When I was fifteen my parents divorced. That was unexpected news. It forced my mom and I to move from California back to Utah. My mom and I packed everything. My dad's stuff was labeled and then he picked it up in Utah.

Between the time I was born and my parent's divorce, the rubber tree plant had moved from Utah to Nevada and then back to Utah six months later; from Utah to Helendale, CA; and from Helendale, CA to Hesperia, CA.

In Hesperia, the rubber tree plant started to wane. A chore that once annoyed me became sentimental. When my dad was nowhere around I watered the plant. It didn't help. As the divorce news sank in, the rubber tree plant started to lose it's leaves. I would water, and then pick up fallen leaves.

By the time the last box was taped up and labeled, the rubber tree plant was nothing but a stick. We left California without the rubber tree plant and moved back to Utah where we moved around a few times before settling.

The life of that rubber tree plant is true, but it apparently is also an allegory for the way my family was falling apart at the time.

When I wrote the story I wanted to show the relation between the rubber tree plant and my parent's divorce but I didn't know that what I had done was create an allegory.

Have you ever used an allegory in your stories?

First You Must Envision It

2010-06-14T05:32:00.000-07:00

To decide to write a book takes vision. Do you have the vision?

Great! Your vision is the first step you'll take to writing a book.

Now, do you have the ability to envision it?

This second step is crucial. Your ability to envision will be the determining factor in your ability to actually write a book.

Vision vs. Envision

These two acts seem interchangeable; like the same word but spelled differently. Don't be fooled.

A vision is what Shakespeare was talking about when he wrote, To be or not to be, that is the question.

While envision is the journey to the destination.

If you think back over your life you will begin to see the differences in these two words and the importance of one over the other.

When we were young, we spent a lot of time honing our ability to make visions. We were asked questions like, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" So, we knew immediately that the vision comes first, but that doesn't make it the most important of the two abilities.

But, when we were young, we were rarely asked, "What do you want to be when you grow up and how do you plan on making that happen?" So, we went about our childhood making visions without envisioning them.

Envisioning pops up here and there throughout our grade school education. It's a subtle plug. Most of us probably didn't make the correlation until the day after our high school graduation, or even our college graduation.

When you were young you were tied to your parent's ability to envision your life for you. Most of the time we were comfortable with how our parents envisioned our lives. It's when we had to take over and envision our lives for ourselves that the envision muscle showed its strength or weakness.

Your ability to envision successfully for book writing will be determined by what kind of life you currently lead. Basically, are you married? Do you have children? Don't forget about yourself. You might already be envisioning worlds for several people outside of writing a book.

Envisioning is the hardest part of writing the book.

You have to wake up with your vision and then find the time to sit down and envision every aspect of this fictional world you are creating; from the visual to the emotional aspects of your new world.

Envisioning is like a mind FK. You probably already have a lot of envisioning you're doing in your own life and don't realize just how much energy you're using to keep your life static, don't worry, when you start envisioning for your book you will realize how much envisioning you are doing for everyone, or everything else in your life.

Once you finally sit down to write, you might find that it was easier to expand your vision than to widen your capacity for envisioning.

Maybe, you will have enough energy and time to envision the first thirty thousand words of your book right away. You've set up the scene. You've built an imaginary world for your characters. You've detailed every aspect of your main character's life and emotions. Now, you have to see it through to the finish. You have to ride your character's roller coaster. This will require you to pull up emotions from your past to impose on your writing.

Don't underestimate how hard it is to envision the first thirty thousand words. Thirty thousand words is a lot, even if it's only a third of your story; depending on how long you plan your book on being.

Maybe you've seen it through, a couple of times even. That's great!

Did you remember to save a little bit of that envisioning power for querying? It can be difficult to maintain your ability to envision your characters leaping off of published pages for strangers around the world to read. It's only difficult because you may have depleted all of your mental happy juice (serotonin).

Step back from it all for a bit, detach yourself a little because the query process is a whole new rollercoaster.

You've got a story that you want to get out there in the publishing world. Maybe the reality of the quest ahead of you won't hit until your fifteenth form rejection, or maybe it won't hit until your forty-fifth form rejection.

Either way, you must envision it. Take your vision and envision it.

You've envisioned the life your living, the book you've written, now you will need to envision the process to publication. You can do it...now can I?

A Delicate Blend of Feats

2010-06-08T09:06:00.000-07:00

When my husband wakes me at four thirty in the morning to say he'll meet me just off the 79 Freeway, I muster an, "Okay, sounds good. Love you. Be careful."

I fall back to sleep.

This year is already different than last.

Last year, I was bright eyed and bushy tailed, eagerly awaiting the day ahead of me.

But last year, I was better prepared.

The alarm clock goes off at five o'clock, but I press the snooze and go back to sleep. I figure another five minutes won't make a difference.

I'm wrong. I take fifteen minutes.

The alarm clock sounds for the second time and as I reach for the button that will silence it, I hear something. It startles me. I turn and see someone. I'm still half asleep. My brain can see my sister standing near my bed wearing almost all black, but my brain can't be sure it's really my sister. I scream! It's loud enough that Jenn can hear me downstairs, but not so loud that it will wake the children sleeping in their rooms on the other side of the house.

I calm quickly and realize it's Mud Run Day and it's not going to be a breeze like last year.

We are running late. My husband had to ride his bike even further than the 79 freeway. We pick him up off of the 76 freeway instead.

We have to jog into the event. Last year we were so early we sat around for an hour and a half waiting for the event to start. This time we are only minutes away from go time. It's okay, we all feel great (I'm getting nervous. I know what's in front of me.), we are pumped and ready to run.

Sound off. Like a heard of cows we all start moving. We bob and weave. We are positioning ourselves. The announcer sees me. My hat and twigs are working. They love hats at this event. "I see you!" the annoucer says to me over the microphone while pointing at me. I wink at him and get an extra spring in my step.

My hat makes it through the fire hose intact. I'm pleased.

We are only a mile into the race and I can feel myself getting winded already. I made it to the hill last year without wanting a rest. I start to question my motives. What were they again?

I wanted to write a book this year. But I hadn't made that decision until January 9. I signed up for the Mud Run on January 1. I'm committed, to both. I've done the Mud Run before. I've never written a full book. I make a conscious choice to focus on the writing. I don't excercise. I don't run.

My husband snaps me out of my daydream and away from my own pain to point out the first runner throwing up in the bushes less than three-feet from me. It's a reminder. I'm still doing well. I've got bounce in my step. I don't feel like hurling.

I retreat to my memories.

When I set out to write a book, I didn't know what kind of feat it was going to be. Day in and day out I wrote. I thought I was going to lose the thoughts so I worked hard at envisioning my characters, my story, my plot. By the end of January, I was feeling the physical effects of writing. I was tired. Emotionally drained. I wasn't present. I was a robot for my family and kids. I had to be this way just to keep the story in my head. I've lost story before. I was working from fear. My anxiety was building. I couldn't let myself down again. I needed to finish this first book, if only to prove I could.

The longer I focus on this initial effect of starting my writing regimen I feel my lungs hurting. I need air.

I focus on my breathing and less on my writing. I have to speed walk. I cannot run another step. The hill is just beginning and my brain remembers just how steep and long this hill is. I don't feel bad. There are others walking, although many more are passing me up. My sister and Jenn are out of my view by now.

I reach the first wall climb. My husband gives me a boost. It's not enough. I am drained. I cannot pull myself over this five-foot wall. My husband sees me struggle and gives me an extra push over the wall. This does the job. I'm left with aching ribs and a stomach ache. I DO NOT want to hurl. I trudge on. Last year that wall climb was a breeze. I put one hand on and jumped off. What a difference.

In May, I was done with book one and the first draft of book two. I had time. I could have easily gotten a run in. I even think about working out with my Wii Fitness. I don't. I make a conscious choice to do the Mud Run without any training. I want to prove something to myself. I'm not sure what.

Four and a half miles in. I'm sucking wind. I'm feeling sick again. I have to use the only part of my body I trained to calm myself; my brain. It's working. My mental strength is outpacing my physical strength. I nearly make it to the top of the mudslide hill despite the Marine trying to shoot me down with a firehose, "You are dirty. Really, really dirty," he says with a smile as he focuses all of the spray onto me. I smile and flirt. I make it past him, but slip at the peak. I'm sliding back down. A thousand people behind me and no help until my husband reaches out and pulls me up the hill.

I get to the last steep downhill, and I can barely make it. It's downhill! How could this be so difficult? My legs are shaking and I want to give in. If my husband wasn't guiding me I would be collapsing at this point. "Get to the bottom. We're almost to the finish. I can see the finish from here." I turn my mental strength back on. I can collapse soon, but not now.

The belly crawl is in front of me. It's the last obstacle before the finish. Last year, I used my arms and knees to propell me forward. I bloodied my knee that day. I know what to do now. I can make the belly crawl more successful than the year before. It will be the only part of the race I did better than last year.

I think through this year's race briefly. I had to walk the majority of the race, I bruised my ribs on the wall climb, felt like hurling three times, piggy-backed the swim, slipped on the mudslide hill, had to hold on for dear life on the last downhill...the belly crawl is going to be my pride and joy.

I slide on my belly down the short hill into the mud pit. I get as low as possible. I can't forget my hat. I've made it this far without the shrubs or the hat budging. My face is half in the muddy water. My knees bend outward like a frog. I don't use them. I use the inside edge of my shoes instead. Two flags away from getting out of this pit and I don't think I can make it. I want to give up. I am literally depleated. I used up the rest of my physical strength two miles earlier and now I can feel my mental strength waning.

What if I just stopped for a second? I can't. There are too many people behind me. We all want to get through to the finish.

I make it out. But the finish line is still up ahead. "Keep going Marine. Don't stop now. Get to the finish! Keep running!" This is the second time a Marine has yelled at me to improve. I find a little energy. I pick up my pace. I run to the finish. I feel like hurling. But I can't. I won't. That would be failing. I have to keep my puke back, and I do. I win at failing this year.

This is a true story of my Mud Run experience without any type of excercise for one year. I'm sore all over. I can barely walk down the stairs. Thank the Lord for railings. It was worth it.

I compare this race to exactly how writing my first book felt sans the muscle weakness in my legs. I wrote the book in such a hurry that it made me physically ill on and off for one month. The second book was easier. And now the third isn't as physically straining. I guess that means I'm on the philosophy of: Try to write a little every day to use that type of mental strength. So, I do. I write a little something every day even if it's not my current WIP. (Now, to find time for physical strength training.)

Check out the video:

How did you feel while you were writing your first book? How did you feel after? How do you blend your mental versus physical feats?

New Year's Resolution Roundup

2010-06-07T09:16:00.000-07:00

I find the New Year's Resolution to be more and more important the older I get.

When I was younger I didn't ever take this practice seriously. When I was young, I worked hard every day to be something so a resolution was pointless.

Getting to my quarter-life crisis was significant. I realized I was 25 years old and still hadn't gotten anywhere. Except, I had gotten everywhere I wanted to be, but at the end of the day it wasn't enough. I was married, had my first child, but I didn't have a career or a dream job. I had gone from living a fast life to a slow life; I was bored in the mind. I had too much energy; I needed to do something more. However, I had no idea what I wanted to do, or who I was or wanted to be. That's when I knew I needed some resolutions; some way of tricking my mind into believing I was still living and achieving even if I was standing still for the moment.

Now that I make resolutions every year, it's interesting how piddly my resolutions from the past seemed. That's why I started making two resolutions. The first resolution was for something small and easily obtainable (a fail-safe). The second resolution was designed to be difficult, hardly reasonable, but a goal all the same.

This year my resolutions were:
1. Make one new recipe every month. Just one. Not a whole month of new meals.
2. Write a book. Not to be confused with start writing a book (I've done that one already and never finished it). I mean start and finish writing a book.

June is the notorious half-way point of the resolution. So, we should always check-up on ourselves even if we know we haven't even started, because it's a good reminder to get motivated and inspired.

Here's my six-month roundup:

1. Make a new recipe every month: I made a new recipe every month for three months. (I mean from scratch, not a new just-add-water meal). And then, I got too busy and I gave up.

2. Write a book: I finally did it! I wrote a book. I kept my momentum and then I wrote two books. Now, I am on my third book. It's not like me to be able to be inspired for such long periods of time.

Here is what's funny about resolutions to me:

The resolution usually perpetuates a life-style (That's probably why most people avoid making resolutions all together).

Last year, I had a resolution to run at the Marine Corps. Camp Pendelton Mud Run 10K (obstacles, Marine's yelling, mud in the face, etc.). So, last year, before the race, I ran and ran and ran. Then I ran some more. I called this "training for the Mud Run." Well, the race was so successful and fun to do, how could I not sign up for it again this year?

Yeah, so I signed up for the Mud Run this year (January 1 is sign up day), but the book writing prevented me from pulling myself away long enough to train (or stretch for that matter). I will elaborate on this year's Mud Run experience in tomorrow's blog (need to have pictures and they are getting developed as I type this blog post).

See what I mean about how a resolution can perpetuate a life-style change? So, if you decided to lose weight last year and you were successful, then you probably feel like you have to lose weight every year. If you decided to write one book this year and you wrote two or three, then you probably feel like you have to write at least one book every year.

If you stacked resolutions like this in the past, then you've probably stopped making resolutions all together by now.

Perhaps, it would be better to remind ourselves that inside each goal there are several other small but gainful goals.

I don't feel like I have to write three books a year, every year of my life. I might just focus on getting an agent next year (even though I am also focusing on it this year too.) Maybe though, I go from the query process to the conference process.

Piece it out. Don't let the resolution get you down. Remember, small steps to the end goal. Make one small goal and one big goal. Maybe the small goal is a piece of the big goal, if so, then make that big goal further down the road.

How are your resolutions working out for you this year? Have you started yet? Have you already finished? Do you regret your resolution choice this year?

You Are What You Read...My Life in Books Blog Hop

2010-06-03T09:22:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Jojomama, I have stumbled upon yet another great blog; Spin Me Right Round.

Write Chick has a blog hop going on and I thought it was such a great idea that I decided to give it a go. Here is my life in books:

In preschool I wanted to be able to read The Eye Book, a Dr. Seuss book, like my older sister. I remember how important that was to me like it was yesterday. I had to copy the image of this book from the web because I don't have this book in my collection since it was my sister's book.
(The rest of the books are straight out of my collection)

Once I figured out how to read, there was no stopping me. I was an avid reader by the end of first grade. In second grade I brought Just So Stories by Rudyard Kipling in for my book report. The teacher didn't know what to think. She wasn't sure if I had actually read the whole thing or not; that is, until I did the book report. I just love the stories about how the animals turned out the way they did; the elephant and his trunk, the giraffe and his neck, etc.

Around fifth grade I fell in love with Mark Twain so my mom bought me Mark Twain Unabridged for my birthday. I love to get books as presents so you can imagine how happy I was with this one. Mark Twain is the king of comedy. His stories were so great.

In junior high and high school I started reading books like Sweet Valley High series books, as well as The Babysitter's Club series books. But there was one book by Lurlene McDaniel that I favored called Too Young To Die. I had an interest in being a nurse or a doctor and so Lurlene McDaniel's books satisfied that medical interest during that time.

Something happened to my reading between junior high and high school; I moved from Utah to the High Deserts of Southern California. This was a dark period of my life, so fittingly I read dark stuff. We were also kinda broke so keeping up my reading habit was a challenge for my parents; that's why I started going through my mom's collection; this is where I found Tales of Mystery & Imagination by Edgar Allan Poe.

I moved to Hollywood, California in 1997 with $1,000 in my pocket and a dream. My dream at the time was acting and I went to The American Academy of Dramatic Arts. I was broke. But, my mom sent me with some books that were my grandmother's books. One of those books was Two Girls and A Mystery by May Hollis Barton. I was so enthralled by this book that I wanted to make a screenplay from it, so I had to do a lot of research to figure out who owned the rights to it. My search turned into a quest. I discovered at this time, that May Hollis Barton was not a real person. She was a cover for a band of ghost writers working for The Edward Stratemeyer Syndicate, which was also responsible for all the Hardy Boys and Nancy Drews. Once I got down to it, I found the screen play rights were up for grabs for only $2,500, of which I didn't have. This was a wonderful journey to take though, that's why this book lands on this list.

Let's Not Get Crazy Here

2010-06-01T11:21:00.001-07:00

Have you ever just gotten up in the morning and smelled your soon-to-be bad day wafting through the air just under your nose as you lie in bed trying to ignore your impending doom? Okay, so a bad day doesn't have to be that awful, but you can't be sure of that when you are lying there trying to figure out just how bad your day is going to be, since you've already sensed it.

Maybe your bad day turns out to be nothing more than waking up late and then having to rush around to set the day straight. Or, perhaps you did everything just right. You woke up on time, got dressed, the kids hardly fussed as you gingerly coaxed them out the door and into the car to go to school, so you can't understand the sickening feeling in the pit of your stomach.

Something is off, and you don't know where.

Still trying to find out where your day is going to fall apart, you drive extra cautiously on the freeway. This is where my day might start falling apart.

If I haven't discovered the root of my bad day before I hit the freeway then it's going to become apparant on the freeway. This is where someone is going to rattle my nerves. For all I know, I'm going to be involved in a terrible car accident and that's why my middle finger flies up to the first idiot that swirves around me or breaks hard in front of me. Any other day I may not have noticed this behavior, but on this kind of day I am on high alert for anyone who might get in my way and jeopardize my weakened bubble.

So, you make it off the freeway in tact and just a little more on edge than when you woke up this morning, and you still have that feeling in your gut. Something is going to go wrong. What is it already? Are you going to trip up the stairs? Are you going to forget that it's a minimum day and leave your child at school?

You run down your checklist: Your children were happy when they left, your sister and your husband were both chipper when you spoke on the phone with them; you've logged onto Facebook and everyone's life seems in order and happy, you run down the blogs you're following and everyone seems to have a chipper and helpful posting up already, and there are no form rejections in your inbox, so everyone in your world is having a great day except for you. You don't want to let it get you down though, because you've got plenty to do and only a few hours left until all the kids are running around the house again.

You open up your work in progress (WIP) and start pounding on the keyboard. You've got a 2,000-word goal for today and can't let anything get in your way. As you type, that sickening feeling and that waft starts to go away. You don't feel so bad anymore. You actually feel pretty good; mostly because you are working on your WIP and the thoughts are flowing, uninterupted, onto fresh pages. Maybe you've even exceeded your word goal for this day.

Tell me, when you sat back to read over what you've just written, did your bad day rub off onto your characters? Did your MC have a rotten day? Did the love get lost, or the best friend die? Maybe you knew what was expected of your story for today and it wasn't going to be a good thing.

Are we intrinsically connected to our characters? Do we suffer because of our characters or do our characters suffer because of us?

Aliens, Time Travel and Trilogies

2010-05-28T11:31:00.000-07:00

So, I let my readers in on my beliefs about aliens and time travel this week and then I thought about how it all ties back into my writing.

I could say that having a wide open mind helps with my fiction (it does), or that writing is writing and anytime I'm writing I'm also learning about my craft (I am), but mostly my last two posts, and especially Let's Rectify Stuff Together, ties back to what I'm doing with my writing in a different way.

I didn't really sit down at the beginning of this year and outline my idea of the perfect story, mainly because I was afraid that I would lose the story that was already building in my head if I dissected it even for a second. The most outlining I did was with how I wanted to seperate my story into three books. (Outlining is very important. I do outline. I just didn't spend a lot of time formalizing it before I started hammering out the first book.)

If I had stepped back and thought about it, I might have written a stand alone novel first. But I wrote a trilogy first and that's okay too. Besides the fact that it might be really challenging to get my trilogy published over a stand alone novel, I have other writing challenges with writing three interlinking books.

After I wrote the first one, I immediately started writing the second one (I say, as long as the story is there, let it flow). That's when I realized just how difficult it was going to be to write these three books without having a final draft of the first one. As the first was being professionally edited, problems came up that were easy to change in the first book, but more difficult to change in the second book, but I managed.

I am done with the second book and working on the third book. Now that I have eyes on the second book, I am concerned about what kind of changes I have to make from the edits that won't screw with the outcome of all the books.

This week on my blog, I used my life as an example of how going back in time to make changes to the details could have devastating effects in the outcome of the end goal. That's the overall challenge I'm having now with my WIP. That might be why I should have gone with a stand alone first. But I wouldn't go back in time to change it.

Let's Rectify Stuff Together

2010-05-26T11:57:00.000-07:00

Since I admitted that I believe time travel exists and is being used by the government, let's go back in time for a minute. It would be difficult for the government to implement technology without ramifications, but I'm sticking with it; I believe it's been done. Let's see if I can be as successful as the government.

I could lie and say there's nothing in my life I would change, because if I did change something then I wouldn't have my loving husband, my three beautiful children, my beautiful home and wonderful neighbors; but I know there must be something I can change that will be impactful without destroying my current life. So, I'm just going to have to be careful and cognizant of what I choose to change.

I'm kind of a bold individual so I'm not going to go at this genie-in-a-bottle style; there are no three chances to get it right, I offer endless possibilities. I say, move things around in your mind like a rubik's cube, just no cheating; you can't take the stickers off and put them back in the right spots. It has to happen naturally.

It's difficult to plan a voyage back in time knowing what it is that I don't want to change. I'm off to a good start though. Knowing what I don't want to change is important, it keeps me alive; if I know what I want to keep in my life then I might not accidentally off myself or anyone I love in my travels (hopefully everyone stays breathing, even if I don't love them).

Now I can start mapping out my journey and pinpointing my destination. Before I get in the machine, I have to keep in mind that my goal here is not to change my husband, my children, or where I live.

By not changing my goal, I almost need to stay completely away from my path of ex-boyfriends. If I hadn't met guy #1, and broken it off at the precise time I originally chose, then I wouldn't have met guy #2, who was so aweful that I had to completely alter the course of my life; a survival instinct. Thank God I changed my path, because that's how I met my husband.

(I'm rubbing my hands together out of excitement and deep thought) This is a lot more difficult than I originally imagined. It's okay, I'm not giving up.

What if I tackled my shyness earlier than when I met my husband? Would that alter my path to my husband? Let's see. I've always been a bit introverted and a little bit shy, but the acting classes helped conquer that fear (helped is the operative word here). I could start out with small stuff; I wished that I had had the courage to ask Ryan Seacrest for his signature when he was a host on Click in 1997 and I was a production assistant.

So, one of my stops will be to 1997 at The Production Group on Vine Street in Hollywood. I will have just finished going out to the store to buy Ryan a set of forest green hand towels for his dressing room. I will casually ask him for one of the headshots he was handing out to contestants with his signature, and he will say yes. I will have more confidence in my life going forward as a result of this change. But does that change my path to my husband? Unfortunately, it does. Confidence leads directly into the ex-boyfriend path; a little confidence would've help me avoid guy #2 but I needed guy #2 to meet my husband. I will just have to live without Ryan's signature.

I know! I will go back to 1986 and I won't push my sister while she is jumping on my dad's jogging trampoline in the basement. That way she won't fall off and bang her head on the concrete of the unfinished floor. She wouldn't have to tell me I was an evil witch who always had it out to kill her (I was only 8. I don't remember having any plans to off her). But then, I might not have been so open to my World Religions class in high school, which would have ultimately prevented me from meeting by best friend, Nicole. Sorry Sis, I can't give up Nicole and enlightenment for a bump on your head.

Is there anything, anything at all that I could change about myself that would have prevented me from sending out queries before I read Query Shark's blog? Perhaps I could go back to January of this year, and start my research before I started writing my books. Nothing about my recent writing would alter my current life. Is that cheating? Even if it is, I couldn't go back and do the research before the writing because then I would have psyched myself out and may not have written the books.

I could go back and stick to focusing on my writing. Let me roll this around in my head for a minute. I couldn't go far enough back to change my college major; doing that would alter my path to my husband. However, I could have finished that creative writing course, and continued writing short stories and children's books. I couldn't have written the books I've recenlty written back then, because I didn't have a good enough perspective on life to write YA fiction very well. But I could have kept writing something other than my journal entries. That's it! I will go back to 1998. That's the year I got my first polite rejection from a publisher. I will not shelve the project this time; I will send it out again and I will start elaborating on another story I shelved around that time. That way I still have my family, my house and my neighbors and nobody has to die in my journey.

I found a way to go back in the past and change something that would positively impact my life today without sacrificing my family and my living situation. It was hard.

So, how is the government doing it? I say, thankfully I'm not part of the government's time travel program because I think their ramifications are vast and the amount of lives that might have been sacrificed to bring us our blogging rights, only forty one years after we landed on the moon and only eighteen years after the Internet was released by CERN, might be astonishing. (This was an excercise to challenge myself to make impactful changes without devastating consequences, not an excercise to change my beliefs about the government time traveling in order to advance technology and society. I encourage differing beliefs though, do you have one?)

How did you fare in your time travels? Did you make it out alive? Were you able to advance yourself without changing the most important aspects of your current life?

Is It Too Late To Be Abducted By Aliens?

2010-05-24T09:16:00.000-07:00

I haven't pulled from my journals in awhile so I thought why not?

October 12, 2009
Would I be completely dillusional if I truly believed in time travel? What if I occasionally felt as though I must be from some other time?

Honestly, sometimes I believe that I am looking for a way back home. I read, I watch, I listen, I am crazy about this idea.

While I'm already out here on the ledge, I am not afraid to admit that I believe Einstein completed his research for time travel, worm holes, supermassive black holes, etc. And that we've been time traveling for quite some time now.

UFO's are likely not coming from a far off place in outer space, driven by googely-eyed, green-skinned aliens waiting to beam us up like Scotty. UFO's are probably just time travelers. There is probably a whole secret society of time travelers controlled and used by the government to rapidly advance technology.

It rarely occurs to most people the sudden advancements we've experienced through time. Seriously, we not only put a man on the moon but we were able to successfully film him and show it live in a day in age when televisions in the average living room was still relatively new. And, I still can't get reception on my cell phone when I drive on the toll road (I'm shaking my head right now).

Remember the influx of UFO sightings, and reports of alien abductions in the '80's? Whatever happened to sightings of little green people with big heads, little bodies, and narrow eyes?

Now when I watch those UFO Sighting shows on the Discovery Channel, they never focus on aliens, just spacecraft. How am I ever going to find my time traveling alien family this way?

All well, I might have lost all hope in ever getting a chance at being abducted by aliens, but I haven't lost hope in finding my way back to whatever time I came from.

Am I alone in this? What do you think? Are there aliens out there or just time travelers from Earth? Have you ever been beamed up?

All the World's a Stage

2010-05-20T08:59:00.000-07:00

...and everyone in it, a critic.

The "Let's Talk" Blogfest was fun. I'm glad I caught it in time to participate. I was able to go over to the blogfest and read a lot of the entries and I must say, there are a lot of great up and coming authors.

The most interesting part of the contest, for me, was reading the criticisms left on each entry. Some of the criticism was quite useful, even in my own entry, and I am thankful for that. Some of those criticisms however, were...how do I say this...darts. That's the only way I can explain them.

It's important to be able to learn from others in your craft. Before I decided to expand my journal entries into books, I was a theater geek. Theater kids spend a lot of time watching each other perform. While we watch others (wishing we were the ones up there performing) we are actually honing many types of skills, including that of the critic.

It's so hard to watch from the sidelines when we know that we are capable, or have the talent, or are sitting on complete manuscripts. In theater, sitting and watching is a test of patience.

In writing, there is a lot of sitting and waiting and now with the world of blogging we get to sit, wait, and watch others succeed. But we are never really sitting on the sidelines because we can sit down and pound out another idea whenever we want. We don't have to wait for an audition to test out our skills, we don't have to audition at all if we don't want to, and we don't have to wait for a chance to be creative. We can close our browsers, not put out a query today, and just write. It's beautiful.

But we are entertainers, which means we desire an audience, so we put ourselves out there on a constant basis. And sometimes, what we get in return, is harsh and jarring criticism.

It's so easy to find the flaws in others so we don't have to focus on our own flaws. But thank God for the critics. They might not always have the best of intentions and they might not be experts in the field of criticism (or in their own craft) but they are there (for free most of the time) to make the rest of us better artists (or people; critics are not just prone to the entertainment industry, they lurk around every corner).

Writing, singing, theater arts, painting...all of these are part of the entertainment industry. Therefore those of us in it are cut from the same cloth, so to speak.

We seek to entertain. In doing so, we have found a way to be comfortable with our underlying nakedness. This underlying nakedness can be cold and lonely, therefore at times I feel the need to wrap myself up in shrouds of insecurity (probably the same cloth the storks sent me down in).

It's okay for entertainers to retreat to our shrouds of insecurity from time to time, so long as we know just when to disrobe.

Those of you who got some harsh criticism during the blogfest, I thank you for bearing it all and I hope that you've disrobed by now.

"LET'S TALK" BLOGFEST

2010-05-18T09:16:00.000-07:00

Yay! Some of my dialogue gets to see the light of day, thank you *Fiction Groupie*!

Sign up and join *Fiction Groupie's* Blogfest; a contest for awesome dialogue scenes.
http://fictiongroupie.blogspot.com/2010/04/lets-talk-blogfest.html

Here is my entry into the contest from, ENTANGLED

At the end of the day, Sam wasn’t surprised when Brock went out of his way to catch up with her on her way to Career Study.

“That was a great writing assignment Mr. Peck gave in English, don’t you think?” Brock asked.

“It’s not my favorite topic,” Sam replied.

“It’s funny though,” Brock said.

“What’s funny about road kill?” Sam asked.

“You could go so many different directions with that topic,” Brock said.

“What would your angle be?” Sam asked.

“I think I’m going to take a psychological approach. I read once that road kill is not so much an accident as it is animal suicide,” said Brock.

“That’s absurd. Where do you get your information from, Hot Rod magazine?” Sam asked.

“Think about it. Why are the animals on the road in the first place?” Brock asked.

“Has it occurred to you that we built our highways along their pathways to water?” Sam stated more than asked.

“That makes sense, although cars have been around for more than one hundred years so you would think the animals would have found a different route by now,” Brock said.

“I can’t believe we’re having this discussion. The animals would go extinct if they avoided crossing the road,” Sam said.

“You sound like an animal rights activist right now. Since you seem to know so much about animals, then answer me this, aren’t animals supposed to have superior senses? Wouldn’t these superior senses allow them to hear the patterns in traffic, see the approaching vehicles quite a distance away, and possibly judge distance and speed before crossing the path of their enemies?” Brock retorted.

“You’ve got me there. Let’s say you’re onto something, what would lead the animals to such drastic measures?” Sam asked.

“Female animals,” Brock said matter-of-factly.

“Oh my god, we’re not continuing this discussion any further. You’re amazing,” Sam responded.

“What’s going on, guys?” Dusty met up with them before they walked into the classroom.

“Brock's trying to convince me animals not only commit suicide but it’s the female animals driving the male animals to do it,” Sam said.

“Oh yeah, I’ve heard something like this before. That’s an interesting way to look at it though,” Dusty said.

“Don’t tell me you’re taking his side,” Sam said to Dusty.

“It’s not really a side. There was a study done on suicide deaths in America a long time ago. The study noted feminization as one of the leading causes of the escalation in male suicides,” Dusty explained.

Sam rolled her eyes and shook her head as she walked into the classroom ahead of Dusty and Brock. She could still hear them going on about feminization and suicides as she took her seat in the class.

“Today, all of you will take a test on the first section you learned yesterday that covers all the HIPAA laws. Those of you who learned about first aid yesterday will move onto CPR today, and those of you in Dr. Wells’s section who learned about the hospital will take a test and then begin studying the rules of the hospital,” Mrs. McAlister announced.

Sam bounced her pencil on her thumb as she read through the first page of the test. The test was relatively easy for her, but she couldn’t think about anything except the research she would rather be doing.

“They’re coming for you, too,” the voice said.

Sam recognized the voice as the voice she had been hearing in her head, but she looked around the room to ensure it wasn’t coming from anyone near her. As she glanced around, she caught Brock looking at her. She quickly looked away. Ignoring the voice, Sam focused on the test in front of her.