Query-Go-Round

Those that have spent any time reading my blog know that I’ve queried a time or two.  Nothing very serious, though.  Why?  Well, because as much fun as FAERIE BAD LUCK was, it’s a series.  There’s no way I could cut the major plot arc down to anything fewer than six books, and for a debut author, I’ll be lucky if I get a contract for three.

Then there’s the fact that, as much as I enjoy Nym and her world, I’m not really in love with it.  If I had to, I could probably produce a book a year, but it’s not what I really want to work on.

What I really want to work on is Jacky and Kassidy.  Two very different heroines in two very different worlds.  But, Jacky is like Nym.  Her story can’t be told in three books or less.

Kassidy, though…Oh, Kassidy.

Kassidy is the current love of my life.  The first book can stand on its own.  It doesn’t have the most satisfactory ending, but it ends well.  That’s a good thing for a debut author to have.  But more then that, I can fit a smaller series arc quite nicely into three books.  In fact, those three books are plotted, and I’m well into the first draft of book two.  

My goal is to get books two and three drafted this year, before I start querying book one.

Why?  

Partly for the satisfaction of being able to say “SPELL AND BULLET is complete at X-number of words, and the first of a planned trilogy.  Which is also complete.”  Because anyone can write one book, but finishing a trilogy?  That right there, that’s impressive, and shows a dedication to my craft.  A dedication that says “I’m in this for the long haul, and willing to work my ass off.”

But it’s mostly because I can.  And because I want to.  Kassidy and her motley crew keep me entertained, and that’s half the point of writing fiction.

That Thing About Gender

Once upon a time, I had one of my writer friends point out that I needed more women in my urban fantasy.  I agreed with her and tried to gender bend some character, and it just didn’t work well.  It changed the group dynamics, and in some cases the characters were simple too male to even attempt gender bending.

That draft was eventually tossed out the window and blown apart with a grenade launcher, but I the other night a noticed the same trend going on the current draft of #TBTRTD.

So what is it about surrounding my female heroine with men?

It’s certainly not for the harem factor.  The guys aren’t there to provide a stable of handsome men for my character to pick from.  Most of them wouldn’t sleep with her even if she were interested in getting jiggy with them.  

Then I got to thinking.  I’ve been in the process of re-reading some of my favorite urban fantasy series, as well as starting new ones, and the trend is the same in a lot of cases.  Savvy, sexy, kick-ass heroine surrounded by men.  That’s not to say there’s a complete lack of female supporting cast, cause that’s simply not true.  But they do seem to be a little testosterone laden.

Last night, at “why am I still awake and working” o’clock, it finally clicked.

 It’s the playing field.

Now, I’m all for girl power, and gender equality in the work place, but the fact remains that there are some areas where men still rule.  In a world full of monsters, it’s the men who step up the came to hunt down the baddies, play the hero and save the day.  When you throw a kick-ass woman into the mix, she’s going to be surrounded by a majority of men.  That’s just how it works.

But, you know, it can be used to emphasize that woman are capable not just of taking care of themselves but of being the ones to save the day.  And they’ll do it in style.  

To Phoenix and Back: A Road Trip

Kim Harrison recently released her eleventh Hollows novel, Ever After.  I’ve been eagerly awaiting this book.  I re-read the last six books, stayed up until 1am Monday/Tuesday night/morning so I could download the book the instant it was released and start reading it.  Then I got so sucked into it that I ended up staying up until 6pm Tuesday night to finish it.  I was up for 32 hours, just so I could read the new book.

I’m a fan.  To say the least.  

I’m never surprised when an author’s book tour fails to take them through Salt Lake.  I mean, it’s Salt Lake.  The big out of state authors rarely come here, probably due to the belief that there’s no good coffee.  (This is a lie, out of state authors, we have some really great coffee here!)  For Kim Harrison, her tour was taking her to Phoenix and Denver.  Sad, but like I said, not at all surprising.

I was pleased as punch when she Ustreamed the Q&A from Seattle.  There were great questions, and I got to hear her talk about her books and characters.  I was happy with this.  

Friday night, my sister came over, and we spent some time doing things.  Then, knowing she’s almost as big a fan of the Hollows as myself, I had her sit down and watch the Ustream with me.  I don’t remember how exactly it happened.  It might have been an “I wish we could go to one of the signings,” but somehow we decided it’d be a grand idea to do a road trip to go to one of the signings.  

My vote had been for Denver, because it was closer.  The problem being my sister has classes she didn’t want to miss.  

There was a signing in Phoenix on Sunday.

We could do it.  We could drive down on Saturday, staying for the Q&A, get some books signed, then drive back.  I’m a night person, so staying up late to get the sister home in time for her classes wouldn’t have been a big deal.  

There was some vacillating, but in the end, the trip was a go!  (The actual text my sister sent me to tell me she was game was “Let’s do this chumps! Leeeerooooy Jeeeeeeeeeenkins!” If you’re not a gamer, I can forgive you for not getting the reference.)

We set out Saturday into the rain and fog.  It was damn nice getting away from Salt Lake and all the nasty haze.  Southern Utah, what we could see of it, was beautiful even if it was foggy in patches and cloudy everywhere else.  In Kanab, we took an accidental detour.  Instead of going east toward Page, we kept going south, on US 89A, through the Kaibab national forest.  (We’d gotten distracted by the need for food.  On the way back, when we got distracted again by food, we decided that we made really bad drivers when we were hungry, since we became very single minded.)  It was beautiful with the trees and the fog.  Lord of the Rings jokes were made.  

The most nerve wracking, and at the same time totally amazing, point was when we came out of the forest.  The shoulder dropped away on both sides so the road looked like it was spanning a small land bridge, with fog banks on either side.  It made for a very tunnel-like experience, and left us both wondering what sort of view was hidden behind the fog, and just how far the drop off the edge would be if the car went off the road.

It was spectacular.  

Outside Kaibab forest, still on 89A, there was this sign for “Cave Dwellers.”  There were some very impressive rock formations that we got to see because we’d dropped below the cloud/fog line.  Canyons. Lots and lots of seemingly flat landscape that wasn’t flat at all once you were on top of the rills and gullies scattered across it.  

We were really amused when we finally joined up with US 89 again.  It’d been pretty obvious we’d gone off the beaten track, though neither of us cared.  It’d been worth the detour to get a look-see at some of the sights.  Sightseeing wasn’t the point of the trip, but it was good to see something, and it made the missed turn worth it.

The rest of the trip was pretty uneventful.  Lots of driving up into fog and then down into rain.  We arrived in Phoenix around 10pm, making our drive 11 hours, with short pit stops for food, gas, and potty breaks.  

We were absolutely floored by the temperatures.  In Flagstaff, we stripped out of our coats and scarfs and marveled at the 40+ degree temps.  In Phoenix the next day, it was 60.  There were flowers! And sunshine!  And a delightful lack of inversion haze!  And there were cacti!  Those big ones with the arms that you always see in cartoons, but I’d never seen in person before. 

I squealed the first time I saw one.  No lie.  (Cause I’m a dork like that.)

Sunday morning, we set out to find the Barnes and Noble where the signing was going to take place.  The sister bought Ever After, and I was disappointed that they didn’t have any of the Hollows Insider in stock.  So I ordered it online.  Anyway, the nice lady that was so impressed with our driving down from Northern Utah just for the signing told us to come back early so we could nab good seats.  We’d planned on finding a local coffee shop to hang out at, but we figured it might be better to just hang out at the Starbucks so we’d get good seats.

And boy did we.  Right on the front row. (I'm in the purple and black, the sister is in the hat, and we're both doing the Hollows signature bunny eared kiss-kiss.)  Next to a guy with family in the Ogden area.  The same Ogden area I happen to live in.  Cue It’s a Small World.

The awesome thing about the signing, and made the trip worth it just for that, was she answered my question.  Well, not really a question.  I asked her if she could give us the elevator pitch for book twelve.  And she did! The extended version, even.  

Is it 2014 yet?  I want the next book now. 

Since we’d gotten to B&N pretty early in the day, we didn’t have to wait forever in line to get our books signed.  They’d been handing out wrist bands with letters on it.  A’s first, then B’s.  We were B’s.  We got our books signed, and she was impressed by our dedication to drive 11 hours in one day to come out and see her.  Then we got our picture taken with her.  I thought it very sweet of her to stand up to take a group picture.  

Then we started the long trek home.  

I think we would have made it if we hadn’t hit snow right outside Kanab.  It was bad.  Blinding white in the headlights, the road vanishing.  After creeping along at ten miles an hour we decided to turn back and get a motel for the night.  Our mom did some online mapping (from home, she didn't go on the trip with us) and told us we could go through Hurricane to reach I-15, which would take us all the way home.  We set out again, and hit snow again.  At least this time there were tire tracks in the snow I could follow, which I did.  What should have been a half-hour trip turned into over an hour, but we made it down into Hurricane without much issue. 

On the interstate, we hit snow again right outside Cedar City.  It was 1am, and while I could have kept going, there was no chance of the snow letting up the further north we went, and Cedar City was our best choice for hotels.  So we stayed there the night.  The sister was going to miss her classes, despite our efforts to get her home.  

Monday we set out bright and early.  The roads were slushy most of the way, but we made good time regardless.  

Then we were home.  How’s that for a climatic ending?

It was a great trip, and getting out of state was good for both our souls, I think.  It’d been a long time since I’d traveled last, and I’d missed it.  The spontaneity of it was a surprise, and a lot of fun, too.  

Next time we go to one of Kim Harrison’s book signings (we’re planning on going for the last book in the Hollows series) we’re going to do a bit of advanced planning.  Just so we have more time to enjoy the sights and do things other than sit in the car all damn day.  It’ll be good.

Plotting Backward

Anyone that’s been following my blog or knows me know that I’m a panster. As in flying by the seat of my pants.  I don’t do a whole lot of plotting, and I don’t outline at all except for revisions.  I always know how a story starts, and have a sort of idea of how I want it to end.  Everything that happens in the middle I just sort of pull from my ass.

I’m going to be trying something different for the Kassidy books.  I’d like it to be an open-ended trilogy.  It’ll work with the series arc I have planned, and I’d like for there to be more books in the series than three.  There will be more in the series than three.  

Here’s the thing.  If I land a contract Kassidy (after finding an agent, of course) it’ll most likely be for two to three books.  If for whatever reason Kassidy doesn’t sell, I won’t get a new contract for more books.  That actually happens a lot in the publishing world, and I don’t want to frustrate future readers by leaving them hanging on the edge of a cliff at the end of the third book when there’s no guarantee there’ll be more.

So I want to get the series arc set up, but concluded satisfactorily in the first three books, so that if worst comes to worst, my fans won’t be disappointed.  

That’s fine.  I already know what’s going to happen in book three, and how it’ll end, and it’ll be a very satisfying ending indeed, but there’ll be enough set up that I could—and hopefully will—continue with more.  How many more, I’ve no freaking clue.  I’ve never planned a project on this scale before.  Not seriously.  I write lots of first books, but they never go anywhere.  

Kassidy, though.  Kassidy’s story and her world will carry me far, I think.

Okay, so my panster instinct is to just go with it, right?  I know where I’m going to be ending that third book, and that’s all that matters for me to write the journey to get there.  But I’ve been doing that with my YA trilogy, and while it’s been working, I feel like book two is just one of those blah bridge books.  Hence the reason I’ve never been able to work myself up to finish the stupid thing.

I do not want that to happen to Kassidy.

My outliner friend is going to laugh herself sick if she reads this, and take great enjoyment in pointing at me and saying “I told you so!”

Dear readers, I, the panster extraordinaire, am going to try outlining the next two books.

Meep!

Chances are good that something surprising and unexpected will happen and I’ll end up throwing the whole outline out the window, but I’m going to try.  I have my end, so I’m going to work backward from that, focusing mostly on the beginning, middle, and end of the two books needed to complete the trilogy.  That’ll give me plenty of wiggle room, but also give me a firm guide to keep me on course so I don’t get distracted by shiny subplots.

We’ll see how well this works.

Always a Sad Day

I’m obsessed with white boards.  Those that follow my twitter stream and/or facebook feed have seen me rant and rave about white boards.  I recently bought a new one, so have more space for plotting, and when that wasn’t enough, I resorted to using my office window, making good use of the wet erase markers I bought.  The Kassidy book—and that feeding into the series, and it’s definitely going to be a series—took up a ton of space.

Yesterday I finished the first draft.  Today is the sad day when I need to start clearing whiteboards for the next project.  

A sad day indeed.

That’s not to say I’m going to lose the information and ideas I figured out while writing on the white boards and the window.  I’m going to carefully transpose them into a notebook, where they will be kept nice and safe until I pull out the Kassidy book for revisions in another couple months…or a year.  It depends.  

But it’s sad to see those thought processes condensed down onto paper and neatly organized.  My thought process is not organized, and the whiteboards reflect that.  

A picture would preserve that, and I will be taking pictures of the whiteboards, just in case something should happen to the note book.  

The fact remains.  Today, those thoughts and ideas are going to be wiped away, clearing space for the next project, the next idea.  It’s sad to see it go, especially when I had so much fun with Kassidy and her world, but it’s exciting to see what’ll come from the next project.  What sort of ideas will sprout from a thought written on a white board, and spread across the entire office as I track things as they come together and coalesce into something more, something better than the original thought that started the whole writing process.

A Difference in Character

Recently I’ve started working on a new urban fantasy, which shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone.  I’m enjoying the story, the convoluted plot that I haven’t quite worked out yet, but most of all the characters.  As I write along, I keep thinking about what Jacky—my most worked with character—would do in a given situation, then sit back and watch as Kassidy—my newest UF heroine—goes and does something completely different.  

It shouldn’t surprise me the way it does.  Kassidy and Jacky come from two very different worlds, and have two extremely different backgrounds.  Jacky grew up in a small family, being taught and coached and supported as she learned about herself.  She’s always had someone she could turn to for help when things went wrong, even if it was just venting to her mom.  Kassidy grew up alone, in the wild 1860’s, in the west.  She spent most of her time alone, learning to depend on herself, with a few people making strong impressions that shaped her into the woman is she today.

The scene that really caught my attention was after a fight, where Kassidy had been hurt, but not horribly injured, and she and a new companion—she’s not sure what to make of him yet—are sitting against a wall in a triage area chatting.  Jacky would have accepted the companionship and comfort that the companion offered.  Would have found strength in the knowledge that she didn’t have to fight the upcoming battles alone.  

Kassidy, on the other hand, pulls away.  Isolates herself.  She’s used to working alone.  While she’s glad to have someone watching her back while she heals, she’s convinced he’s going to get in her way.  (Again. Because he’s already interfered with her job once.)  

I’ve written plenty of other characters before, in different genres and settings and circumstances, but none of their differences struck me quite at hard as that between Jacky and Kassidy.  Maybe it has something to do with Jacky once being my favorite character to write with ever, but that I’ve fallen out of love with her and her world.  Kassidy is bright and new and it could be her differences that make her so appealing to me at the moment.

Kind of an interesting thought.  I’m anxious to see if this new relationship with Kassidy will bud into something that will span years, or if the attraction will wear off once she’s no longer shiny and new.

I guess only time will tell, right?

The Unexpected Question

I actually meant to publish this Tuesday, but my older brother got hitched.  I'm still kind of boggled, if truth be told.  It was a very secretive, shotgun wedding, but I think they'll be happy together, and that's what matters.

So!

New Year Day was my family party.  Word had gotten out that I’d self-published a novella under a pseudonym.  I’d expected to get asked a lot of questions about it, which I did, but there was one that took me kind of by surprise.

“Why didn't you publish it under your real name?”

Err…I’ll admit to being a little gobsmacked.  I mean, I’d published a regency romance, and most romance writers publish under a pen name.  It seemed so natural, so reasonable, that it took me a second to gather my scattered thoughts.  Cause I really did have a reason for publishing under a pseudonym.

I still want to publish my urban fantasies.  More, I want to publish them through a more traditional means (agent -> editor -> pub house -> bookstore) and I’d like to do that under my real name.  Although maybe not.  I still can’t imagine seeing Jennifer Milligan emblazoned on a cover with a kick ass heroine with titles like Lightning Strike or Blood and Dust.  Still, I’d like that option available.

And it’s not that I’m ashamed of self-pubbing.  I’m not.  I’m actually quite pleased with myself.  I’ve made no secret about being Diana Connell.  The other big consideration is separation of genre.  

There are a lot of authors out there who writer in multiple genres.  Some of them do it all under one name.  Mostly those that have well established, well known names.  Some write in genres that are similar enough to be shelved next to each other.  Others write in genres so different that in order to avoid the possibility to disappointing reader expectations, they writer under a pen name.

Hell, I know a couple authors that write in the same genre under two or three different pen names.

There’s a lot of reasons for publishing under a pseudonym, and my family accepted my reasons.  This whole publishing is a bit of a mystery to them, but that’s all right.  They support me, encourage me, and are glad to listen to me attempt to explain the complexities of seeking publication without really understanding any of it.

Because, you know, that’s what families are for.

That Old New Year Post

2012, the only (writing related) resolution I had was to get shit done.  I’d been spending a lot of time working and reworking one particular book (#TBTRTD) and there were a lot of other ideas clamoring for attention, wanting their time in the limelight.  

I think I managed swimmingly.

I think there’s a post here somewhere that ear marks some of the accomplishments I’ve achieved this year.  Or at least talks about the books I worked on.  

Here’s the grand sum of things, though.

I Wrote:

Dragon Flute (Sort of, I revamped the first half, started rewriting the second half, and decided I hated it and never wanted to talk to it again.  It’s still sulking somewhere on the mini-drive.)

Faerie Bad Luck (querying)

Faerie Curious (sequel, trunked forever, it’s awful.)

Elements of Fire (getting ready to query)

Lighting Strike (also known as #TBTRTD. It’s halfway through it’s second draft.)

Elements of Air (50/70k, stupid NanoWrimo) 

The Kissing Bough (a novella by pseudonym Diana Connell)

Blood and Dust (Started. As of New Years Eve, it’s at 25/80k)

Yeah, and that novella?  That sucker got published, yo.  

Did my career get farther?  Well, sort of.  Self-published novella or not, I’m still agent-less.  But, that’s not something that I have much control over.  I can only keep doing what I’ve been doing.  Writing.  Revising.  Revising again. Querying.  Eventually one of these lovelies will end up with an agent that’s willing to go out on a limb for me and help me find publication through a traditional publisher.  Not necessarily traditional publication, things are changing too much too quickly to expect that, but still.  I have starry-eyed dreams of advances and paying off student loans, and seeing one of my books at the local Barnes and Noble.

Will this year be the year?  Maybe.  I have plans (like querying the snot out of EF, FBL, along with LS and BnD once they get polished up), I’m going to keep busy and get more things done (like the two regency romance novels I’d like to get written, revised, and self-pubbed).  Every book I write is another toe in the door.  Or another straw on the camel’s back.  Another chance to hit it out of the park.  Or something.  It’s late (when I wrote this, which is not the same time as when I published this) and my brain is on the fritz.  

Anywhar!  I hope everyone has a wonderful 2013.  May it be filled with good books, better booze, and the best people to share it with.   

The Decision to Self-Publish

Most of you have probably seen me throwing up links and talking about my alter-ego.  It's less an alter-ego and more a pseudonym.  Along with my love of all things Urban Fantasy, I have quite the adoration for Regency Romances.  I'll admit it, I'm not much of a historian.  I love them simply for the sap.

For those of you that don't know, I've recently self-published a short novella under the pen-name Diana Connell.  Along with the novella, I have plans for a quartet that I'm going to be spending the next couple years working on.

Does that mean I've stopped writing other things?  Nope!  Not hardly.  This year alone I've written four novels, nearly finished a fifth (stupid Nano-novel, I'm still procrastinating diving in and finishing it) revised two, written a novella, revised the novella, published the novella.  It'll take a little juggling, which I've gotten good at this year, but I should be able to produce two RR novels a year, and still get other things written.  I'm still planning on subbing my young adult to agents.  I'm still going to resume subbing FAERIE BAD LUCK to agents.

I still want to go the "traditional" route to publication.  But, let's face it.  The publishing landscape has drastically changed in the past few years, and if I really want this to be my career, I can't really sit around and wait to be picked up by an agent, then wait some more before a publisher decides I'm worth a shot.  The best way to get my stuff out there, right into the readers hands, is by self-publishing.

Now, I'll admit it, because I'm an honest sort of person, a couple of years ago, I wouldn't have considered self-pubbing.  There was still a big stigma surrounding it, and it was the mark of an amateur, a clueless plebeian of the writing community.  To admit to being self-published was to guarantee you didn't get picked up by an agent.  A lot of that had to do with the quality of tripe that was being self-published, because anyone that produces a book can do it.  That's still true, but the publishing community has come to realize that not all self-pubbed books are crap, and not all self-pubbed authors are clueless.  Actually, there's quite a few of them that are REALLY GOOD.  Like, six figure deal with one of the big six publishers kind of good.

There's actually been several cases where successful self-pubbed authors have gotten their stories picked up by a traditional publisher.

The publishing industry is changing.  The whole damn world is changing.

Am I self-publishing with an eye to make millions quick?  Hell no.

Do I expect to become a best seller and have my romances picked up by one of the big six, or even a smaller traditional publisher?  Nope.

Then why am I self-pubbing?

Why, for you, dear reader.

I have stories to tell, and the big thing about being a writer (at least for me) is sharing those stories.  I was happy for a long time just writing for myself, sharing things with my younger sister, but now I want more.  I want a wider audience.  I want more people to experience the worlds I visit in my head, meet my characters.  Have a laugh, shed a tear, get angry.  Books should make you feel, and I'm not going to inflict emotion on anyone by keeping my books to myself.

Well, maybe money factors into it a little bit.  There's something about earning royalties that makes you feel like a real writer.  An author.  Frankly, I'm happy with the little I've made.  Which, to date, has been about enough to cover the cost of purchasing the stock images I used on the cover.

If you've been dying to read the books I rant and rave and complain about in the archives of this blog, then I'm sorry to disappoint.  You'll have to wait a while.  But please, feel free to go and take a peak at that pen-name of mine (she's on facebook and twitter, too) and maybe take a gander at the sample available for the novella.

Blog Fail, Renovations, and NanoWrimo

I completely failed to blog last month.  Mostly because I wasn't writing anything, at all, and it sucked, but also because I couldn't remember the last time I wrote a blog post, and I'm far too lazy to actually go to my blog and check when my last post was written.  Unless I'm procrastinating.  Which I tend to do when I'm writing.  Like I am right now.

Life got a little nuts there for a while.  We've been working on some big house renovations.  My room is now a different color, with a different ceiling fan, hard wood floors instead of carpet, with a new door still on order.  Our kitchen, once cursed with hideous blue industrial carpet, is now a lovely wood laminate, the wall paper gone and the walls painted green.  The shit brown living room carpet, with holes chewed in it by the dogs, and the furrier strips poking through in the heavily trafficked hallway is gone.  Now it's green.  The popcorn ceiling in the hallway is gone.  The wallpaper down.

To be fair, my mom has been the driving force behind the renovations, and the one responsible for doing most of the work.  Except my bedroom.  I did that.  The first time.  She painted it the second time (I hated the first color) because I came down sick and she wanted it done as much as I did.

With all the upset in the house, it kind of affected by ability to sit down and write.  Though that was more because of what I was writing.  Trying to finish the end of The Book That Refused to Die proved to be one of the hardest things I've done.  Because I didn't want to mess it up.  I was petrified by the idea of getting it wrong and having to rewrite the book.  Again.

I am so sick of rewriting Jacky's story.  I sincerely hope this is my last time doing that.

Now, though, I'm happily Nanoing away.  I'm writing the second book in my YA trilogy, so that I didn't actually lie in my query letter that says book two is in progress.  It's now in progress.  Ha.  See.  Not a liar.  No ma'am.  I even told the truth when I said I had book three plotted.

Sorta.  For the most part.

All right.  At least I know how the book ends.  That's got to count for something.

I'd like to get this book finished this month.  NanoWrimo (National Novel Writing Month, for those that don't know) is a great push.  And a really nice way to meet other writers and chat about craft.  Which doesn't happen much during the rest of the year, for whatever reason.

There.  I've blogged.  It's time to get back to the novel writing.  I can still get some more words written tonight.  Or I could call it done and what TV shows via Netflix and knit.

To Each His Own

One of the things a writer needs to learn is that every book, every project, is going to have different needs.  It’s not going to come out the same way, or in the same time frame, or with the same struggles or ease.  Books, rather like people, are all unique, and all require slightly different handling to get them to be the best they possibly can be.

I’m battling against that knowledge with my current project (The Book That Refused to Die) and have been trying to explain that to the creator of a comic I’ve been scripting.  I don’t think he gets it.

Why?  Because I told him I don’t typically work with outlines, and he took that to mean I cannot work from outlines.  Not what I said, dude, but no matter how many times I say “I can outline.”  “Let me outline.”  “No, that’d take for fucking ever and cut too much into my noveling, LET ME DO THE GODDAMNED OUTLINE!” he just doesn’t seem to hear me.

But enough of that.  We’ll get it worked out.  Probably after I write the damn outline and then stuff it down his throat.

Anyway!  Back to the The Book That Refused to Die.

Normally I’m a very linear, sit down, chew it out, stuff it in a draw type of writer.  Oh sure, sometimes I’ll have to do some plot sketching with index cards, or do a web to keep track of all the various evil villains plotting in the background, but usually once I start a novel, I don’t write anything else (except comic pages and blog posts, obviously) until it’s finished.

Not so with The Book That Refused to Die.  

I don’t know if it’s the plot, the mystery elements, the focus on amateur sleuthing as opposed to other sources of conflict and drama, but I’ve had to sit back and let this draft more often, and for longer stretches of time, than any other book I’ve written to day.  And to be perfectly honest, it’s starting to drive me batty.  The best solution, so far, has been to step back and *gasp!* write on something else for a while.  

Yes, that bugs the snot out of me, because I hate leaving things unfinished, and often times if I stop working on one thing to start working on The Book That Refused to Die again, it’ll stay unfinished and I really don’t want to take more time away from my novel than I absolutely have to.  But, that seems to be what this book needs for it to come together.  

Annoying.  Frustrating.  Depressing.  The whole damn process has had me wondering, more than once, if I’m writer enough to finish it and do it justice.  

The plus side of all this is working on something else keeps me from feeling like a total failure.  Which I’m not.  I’m a decent writer, damnit, and even if it takes me another four months, I will get this book drafted, and it will be GOOD.  Maybe not great, but I’d be happy settling for better than a steaming pile of shit.  

So it’s coming.  Slowly.  With breaks of working on other things while it dives behind the curtains and gets its clothes on straight again before the next round of book vs. writer wrestling.  This book needs that.  I’m willing to give it to it, and trust that I’m doing it right.

Not that there’s such a thing as a right or wrong way to right a book.  You just write the thing however it demands to be written.

Early Birthday Plans

What's this?  Two posts in one month?  Weird.  I must be on something.

I am.  Sort of.

I'm flying high on excitement, baby!

Disclaimer: If you're not interested in video games, stop reading now.  There is nothing writing related contained in this post. 

If you flip back through some of my older posts, you'll see me mention World of Warcraft.  For the few that might not know, WoW is an MMO ( Massive Multi-player Online game,) set in a fantasy world where you, the player, can big from two factions, a plethora of races and classes, and then set about monster killing, questing, gathering, creating, and interacting with other players.  It is pretty damn addictive.

Well, WoW is coming out with its fourth expansion, Mists of Pandaria.  THIS is why I'm ridiculously excited. Pretty, pretty Mists of Pandaria.

And why yes, I am dork enough that I'm going to be buying the deluxe digital edition as a birthday present for myself.  I mean, a flying Mouse*?  Really?  And a puppy?  How could I possibly resist?

But that's only part of it.

I have two computers.  All right, three techinically, but one is a PC, which I don't like, it doesn't have a wifi card, and has no speakers.  It's currently in the bedroom hooked up to the TV, but there's not a whole lot I can do on it.  Though it's great for playing majong when I'm having issues getting to sleep, so at least it's good for something.

One of these days, I will buy a wifi adapter, tower, lightning rod, thing.  It's just not super high on my priority list at the moment.

So, back to the two computers I actually use.  The desktop is old.  For a computer.  Five years is really old.  But, for all it's ancient decrepitude, it's a really great computer, and let's be honest, I don't have the financial means to replace it.  The poor thing only has 1GB of ram.  That's just pathetic, and I know it.  It knows it too, but by golly, it does its best with what it's got.

Unfortunately what it's got isn't enough to play WoW.

Fortunately I have a laptop that handles the game pretty decently.  Except for Northrend (part of one of the previous expansions) and most a couple bits of the newest areas, including five man (only five mans!  You should see it in a ten man raid.  It's painful) dungeons.  I hear tell that they've upped the graphics quality of Mists again, and while I might be able to play it on the laptop, it would not be fun.

The easy solution?  Upgrade the ram.  On the desktop.  Which has a lovely graphics card.

Now, anyone computer savvy is probably howling about how hard, if not impossible, it is to upgrade a Mac without taking it to the store and paying out the arse to have one an Apple professional do it for you.  It's one of the big reasons gamers prefer PC's, right?  They're easily upgradeable.

Lucky me, I know a Mac guru who can get to the innards of my sleek, lovely machine, and replace the ram for me.

There!  That's the other half of my birthday present to myself.  I'm buying new ram to upgrade my pretty decent even if it is five years-old computer.  And this makes me almost more excited than the upcoming release of Mists of Pandaria.

Not only will I be able to play Mists, but I'll also, finally, be able to play Diablo III.  This makes the nerd-girl in me squeal with delight.

/nerd rant.  Next post will be about writing, or something more to do with writing than my gaming addiction.  I promise.



*If you don't know who Mouse is, high thee to your favorite book seller and start reading Jim Butcher's The Dresden Files.  Best. Book series. EVAR!  

To Clear Up Some Confusion

This summer has been remarkably productive for me.  I have drafted three books, start to finish, and I'm about half way finished (for the second time) on a fourth.  One of these books I've revised, cleaned up, and have started querying.

I'm sure most people that read this blog (hi readers, both old, new, and those poor souls that have gotten horribly lost on the interwebs!) also follow me on twitter, where I ramble and rant about writing on a near daily basis.  This feed is linked to facebook, so my family and non-twittering friends can see what the Hell I spend all my time doing.

There's been some confusion about the books I've been working on.  Probably because I call them all the same thing in the twitter feed, except for the one I'm currently working on, which has earned the idiom The Book That Refused To Die, Or #TBTRTD.

Instead of writing a deep, meaningful blog post for the month of August, I'm here to clear up the confusion about my massive work in progress list.  In order of appearance and/or completion.

(I really suck at writing pitches of any sort, so bare with me.  These are fast and dirty and not well thought out.  Also, these are all working titles and subject to change at a whim.)

FAERIE BAD LUCK: Nym discovers that her bad luck mark has been framed for breaking a goblin mirror, an attempt to keep him from investigating the deaths of faeries in Mundane, the human world.  With the help of her fluff ball muse and the human knight of the Unseelie court, Nym sets out to find the killers and bring them to justice.

Genre: Adult Urband Fantasy
Status: Finished, and querying

A SEQUEL to FAERIE BAD LUCK.  It was written more for me, getting a feel for how things could pan out, and will never see the light of day again.  If ever FBL sees publication, this will be scrapped and I'll pretend it never existed.  It doesn't even deserve a quick summary, it's that bad.  Hell, it doesn't even deserve a title.

Genre: Adult Urband Fantasy

Status: Finished, but trunked

ELEMENTAL FIRE: A new power has come to the small town of Four Springs Montana, and has been starting fires throughout town.  As a shaman, it's Amy's responsibility to help her mother and aunt safe guard the town, and maintain the balance of nature.  After her friend is killed in a house fire, Amy is determined to find the arsonist and see them come to justice.  

Genre: Young Adult Paranormal

Status: Drafted, awaiting revisions

LIGHTNING STRIKE: (Also known as #tbtrtd) Jacky witnessed the gruesome murder of her cousin, and doesn't remember any of it.  The police are convinced she's guilty of the crime, and are determined to make her disappear before her memories can resurface.  On the run from the law, and dodging a couple of agents for a shady government agency she'd never heard of, Jacky must find the real killer and clear her name. Before she ends up vanished or dead.

Genre: Adult Urban Fantasy

Status: Drafting

There you have it! A comprehensive list of the books I've spewed out this year.  I have no idea what I'm going to work on after I finish LIGHTNING STRIKE.  Maybe something new.  Maybe I'll see if I can work on revising ELEMENTAL FIRE without wanting to vomit. (I didn't like it. Still don't. It just didn't come out the way I wanted it to.)  I have some ideas waiting in the wings for me to poke at, but nothing that's screaming for attention.  

Mer.  At least I still have half a book to write before I need to worry about What's Next.

Issues of Pacing

Oh, pacing.  That aspect of a novel that makes it speed by or drag like a dog rubbing it's ass on the carpet.

Pacing is an issue for a surprising number of writers.  I think we all struggle with it at some point or another.  There's so much that effects it.  How quickly action scenes play out.  How much information is jammed into a coffee session, how fast or slow the hero and heroine fall in love and get some happy fun-time in.  How much downtime there is between action scenes, how often clues to solve the mystery are doled out.  On and on and on.

Chapter length can effect pacing too.  I've been playing around with chapter length, and am rather intrigued by the results.  Before, my chapters were always right around 2,000 words, a result of my NanoWrimo training of one chapter, 2,000 words a day.  For the current project (loving dubbed The Book that Refused to Die) I've been making a point of making the chapters longer.  There are some that are twice the size of what I normally write.

Here's the interesting thing.  I think adjusting the chapter length has effected how I've paced the story.

There's more character interaction, more moments of domesticity, and little bits of backstory that I don't think I'd have included if I'd been "limited" by 2,000 words a chapter.  Yet there's more action, too.  The chapters aren't stagnant.  There's movement and action and drama and conflict and plot.  Plot!

Now, I was never limited by the 2,000 words.  Never.  Some chapters were shorter, occasionally they were longer.  I just always felt like the shorter chapters moved better, kept the story going at warp speeds.  This is stupid.  I've read plenty of novels where the chapters go for-freaking-ever.  That doesn't mean the book moved slower, that it was less action packed or plot driven, with those little moments of normalcy that gave remarkable insight about the various characters.

It might be an interesting experiment to go back and divide the chapters into 2,000 (or there abouts) clumps, and see how much it changes the pacing.  I won't do it, because I'm a lazy slouch, but I'd be curious about the results.  Would readers notice the difference?  Would it change the pacing for them, or am I rambling and it's all a figment of my imagination?

What do you think?  Does chapter length effect the pacing, or is it all about the content?

Tales of a Forgotten Blog

So, erm, it's obviously been a while since I've done this whole blog thing.  Not because I've stopped writing (Ha! no.) but more because I really didn't have anything to say.  And then there was that whole "everyone's sick of reading blogs" and I was tired of writing blogs, and really, what's the point of rambling away to an empty theater?

I know, it's not really empty.  Or at least it wasn't when I went on hiatus, but this is just a tiny little corner of the interwebs, that's really only important to me, and it wasn't so important to keep up and running when I books to write.

And hoo-boy have I been writing.

This year alone, I have finished the rough draft of three--read it again, 3!--different books.  Admittedly one was a sequel that I wrote just for me and ended up not working as well as I thought it would, but still!  I'm also chewing through words on the first draft of what has been lovingly called The Book That Refused to Die.  Those familiar with the blog--or are bored enough to go through the meager content in the archives--will know that I've been working with my character Jacky Kendricks for a Very Long Time.

I queried her book last year, for a bit.  I had a request for a full, which also received a very nice personalized rejection.  I'd planned on querying more, until I started working on the synopsis and made a rather depressing discovery.

The query letter WAS a synopsis.

I tried rewriting the query.  Many, many times.  Failed.

Finally came to the realization that the dratted thing had no plot.  Oh, it had plenty of story, and character, and action, but no plot.

Whoops!

So it got trunked while I focused on NanoWrimo (2011).

Cue the roll around of 2012 and that strange desire to make resolutions.  I didn't want to say anything too specific, because that never ends well for me, but I dubbed this the year I would get shit.

I've succeeded spectacularly.  Three books drafted.  One revised, beta'd, polished, and has been tossed out into the wild with query letter crafted and the synopsis being procrastinated as long as possible.

All that to say that it's the querying that prompted me to revive the blog.

I'm still not sure I have anything new to say, but I do have a nice little list of blog post ideas tucked away.  Somewhere.  I know it was around here somewhere.  I'll dig it up and for the next little while I'm going to aim to post something new at least once a month.

We'll see how long this lasts.  My expectations aren't exactly high.

This post counts for June and July right?  Since it's at the end of one and so close to the beginning of the other.  It doesn't?  Oh.  Well.

Just let me go find that list.

What Motivates my Writing

First off, it's been a while since I've blogged. I've been collecting ideas to write about, and eventually I'd like to do a monthly blog. I certainly have a lot of things to talk about. It's just one of those habit things I need to get back into.

I'll work on it. I promise.

Today, though, I wanted to answer a question. On twitter, @cazanne34 asked me: how do you keep motivated with your writing?

I had to sit there and think about it for a moment, because I'd never really thought about it before. I mean, I know why I write, but not what keeps me at it. Though thinking back on it, perhaps the two are linked.

The answer I gave, limited to 140 characters, was: I love what writing, is what it boils down to. Whether I eventually get published or not, I'll always write for my own enjoyment.

This is the complete truth, and it really does tie in with why I write. I write because I love stories, and I love reading. I enjoy taking that niggling of an idea and fleshing out into a novel length plot with action and romance. I really love watching characters grow and change in my own head as they mature through the story.

It's no secret that my Ultimate Goal is to see a book published. Working towards that goal keeps me pushing myself to become a better writer, learn what I can about the industry, and reach out to other writers to share their pool of knowledge. But it doesn't keep me writing. I was writing avidly for several years before I really started trying to find out what it'd take to get published.

What it all boils down to is my love of the written word. I love it the way some people love skiing, or sky diving, or sailing. If I make it as a professional, that's all well and good, but I'd do it anyway. Keeping that in mind makes it easier to focus on the writing itself, rather than worrying about what I'll do if this book doesn't land me an agent, or a publishing deal. I already know. I'll write.

As for making my daily word count goals, I bribe myself. "If I get 2,000 words written today, I can have a ." Silly, but on days when I don't want to write, it helps me keep my ass in the chair and put words on the page.

So what keeps you motivated with your writing?

What the New Year will Bring

This happens every year. I blog a lot during the spring and summer months, then taper off come fall, and winter holiday is a dead zone. This year has been especially busy for me. And emotional. But changes are coming in 2011.

Come January, I'm going to be diving into the last (I've said it before so don't believe me) revisions of AD. The query letter is going to get written and critiqued, and come hell or high water, I'm querying this book. Hopefully sometime before the crazy winter season.

Having decided school is really not my slice of pie, I need to find a job. Doing what, I don't know. I have until roughly May-June to figure it out and start making money that I can use to pay bills. Student loans don't pay themselves off, after all.

I would promise blogs on a semi-regular basis, but I don't like making promises I can't, or don't intend, to keep. So, I'll just say I'll drop in from time to time. Probably rant and rave about the revising and querying process. Nothing new there. I probably won't be keeping up a to-read list. It's gotten pretty ridiculous and the upkeep of the list is annoying and time consuming. Instead, I'll probably just make a list of books I have read.

That's pretty much it. There's personal goals I'll be making for the new year, of course. Things like "live a healthier lifestyle," "get in better shape," "be more social," etc.

Don't know about you guys, but I'm looking forward to a new year, and all the wonderful craziness that it will undoubtably bring.

To-Read List 2010 November Update

*creeps in* Hi everyone. It's November. Been writing a Nation Novel Writing Month novel. Making a list of interesting blog topics that I'll start on in the new year. Probably.

In the mean time, enjoy the growing list and the fact that I haven't done all that much reading this month. =)

The List (in no particular order)

Mistborn - Brandon Sanderson

The Well of Ascension - Brandon Sanderson

Hero of the Ages - Brandon Sanderson

Well of Eternity - Richard A. Knaak

Shakespeare's Landlord - Charlaine Harris

Shakespeare's Champion - Charlaine Harris

Shakespeare's Trollop - Charlaine Harris

From Dead to Worse - Charlaine Harris

Dead and Gone - Charlaine Harris

Dragonfly in Amber - Diana Gabaldon

Voyager - Diana Gabaldon

Magic in the Blood - Devon Monk

Magic in the Shadows - Devon Monk

Dragon Bones - Patricia Briggs

Dragon Blood - Patricia Briggs

Bone Crossed - Patricia Briggs

Silver Borne - Patricia Briggs

Small Gods - Terry Pratchett

Lords and Ladies - Terry Pratchett

Vampire Academy - Richelle Mead

Frostebite - Richelle Mead

Blood Promise - Richelle Mead

Shadow Kiss - Richelle Mead

City of Bones - Cassandra Clare

City of Ashses - Cassandra Clare

City of Glass - Cassandra Clare

Clockwork Angel - Cassandra Clare

The Historian - Elizabeth Kostova

Enders Game - Orson Scott Card (borrowed from brother, don't actually own)

American Gods - Neil Gaiman

Kushiel's Scion - Jacqueline Carey

Kushiel's Justice - Jacqueline Carey (Don't actually own this one. Don't know how that happened.)

Banewrecker - Jacqueline Carey

Gardens of the Moon - Steven Erikson

Glass Houses - Rachel Caine

The Dead Girls' Dance - Rachel Caine

Midnight Alley - Rachel Caine

Feast of Fools - Rachel Caine

Lord of Misrule - Rachel Caine

Carpe Corpus - Rachel Caine

Firestorm - Rachel Caine

Thin Air - Rachel Caine

A Game of Thrones - George R. R. Martin

The Gunslinger - Stephen King

Prince of Dogs - Kate Elliott

The Burning Stone - Kate Elliott

The Last Wish - Andrzej Sapkowski

Genesis of Shannara - Terry Brooks

Children of Chaos - Dave Duncan

In the Realm of the Wolf - David Gemmell

Hero in the Shadows - David Gemmel

The Becoming - Jeanne C. Stein

The Scent of Shadows - Vicki Pettersson

Dragonfly - Frederic S. Durbin

Personal Demon - Kelley Armstrong

No Humans Involved - Kelley Armstrong

Broken - Kelley Armstrong

The Summoning - Kelley Armstrong

The Awakening - Kelley Armstrong

His Majesty's Dragon - Naomi Novik

Thorne of Jade - Naomi Novik

Black Powder War - Naomi Novik

Empire of Ivory - Naomi Novik

Night World Vol. 3 - L.J. Smith

The Secret Circle - L.J. Smith

The Night of the Solstice - L.J. Smith

Heart of Valor

The Hunter - L.J. Smith

The Chase - L.J. Smith

The Kill - L.J. Smith

Changes - Jim Butcher

Beauty - Robin McKinley

Spindle's End - Robin McKinley

Tithe - Holly Black

Valiant - Holly Black

Ironside - Holly Black

White Cat - Holly Black

Vamped - Lucienne Diver

Speak of the Devil - Jenna Black

The Dust of 100 Dogs - A.S. King

Bullet - Laurell K. Hamilton

Graceling - Kristin Cashore

Black Magic Sanction - Kim Harrison

Something from the Nightside - Simon R. Green

A Devil in the Details - K.A. Stewart

Red Hot Fury - Kasey MacKenzie

The Switch - Lynsay Sands

Silver Phoenix - Cindy Pon

Lament - Maggie Stiefvater

Ballad - Maggie Stiefvater

Shiver - Maggie Stiefvater

Dark Angels - Karleen Koen

Through a Glass Darkly - Karleen Koen

Now Face to Face - Karleen Koen

Leviathan - Scott Westerfield

Soulless - Gail Carriger

Changeless - Gail Carriger

Blameless - Gail Carriger

Personal Demons - Stacia Kane

The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins

Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins

Mockingjay - Suzanne Collins

Boneshaker - Cherie Priest

Golden Compass - Philip Pullman

Subtle Knife - Philip Pullman

Amber Spyglass - Philip Pullman

Midnight Daughter - Karen Chance

Mob Rules - Cameron Haley

Devil in a Red Kilt - Elizabeth Williams

City of Glass - Cassandra Clare

Clockwork Angel - Cassandra Clare

Rose Daughter - Robin McKinley

Side Jobs - Jim Butcher

Howl's Moving Castle - Diana Wynne Jones

Masques - Patricia Briggs

Fade Out - Rachel Caine

Kiss of Death - Rachel Caine

The Blade Itself - Joe Abercrombie

Before They Are Hanged - Joe Abercrombie

The Last Argument of Kings - Joe Abercrombie