The challenge of writing Inner Conflict or Dang this book is going to be more work that I first thought

Last night I received back the editor's score sheets from the 2008 Southern Heat contest. She had really nice things to say (blush) about my writing and there was really only 1 (big) change I needed to make. Take out the thing that started me writing the entire book in the first place.

Now, some of you might be wincing because you've either been through something like this or because you're waiting for me to rant. I gotta tell you, when I read that, I barely even twitched. What's another rewrite? It gives me a chance to make the book stronger.

So, this morning, I pulled out my cd from Susan Meier's workshop about conflict from the 2008 New Jersey PYHIAB conference and got to work. I want to recommend this workshop, available here. If you are writing category romance, you will find this 2 hour presentation unbelievably helpful.

What book, workshop, presentation, advice have you found helpful lately?

Today's goal: 500 words
Yesterday's accomplishment: got 2 entries ready for the FAB5
What I'm grateful for: Editor feedback (did I mention she had nice things to say?)
Quote: "The universe is change; our life is what our thoughts make it." -Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121 AD - 180 AD), Meditations

Flawed characters

Yesterday, I spent a couple hours watching the Gossip Girl episodes I'd missed the last couple of weeks. I really like the show. In any given week, you're not sure who's going to be the good guy and who's going to be the bad guy. Every single character on that show has impulses/emotional reactions that get them into trouble. I find that fascinating.

My favorite is Chuck Bass as played by Ed Westwick. He's such a bad boy. And so much of his bad behavior stems from deep deep wounds. You want him to get over it and be the great guy he could be. But he keep regressing. He desperately needs rescuing, but he resists everyone who tries. And truthfully, when he does let his guard down, someone always manages to hurt/disappoint/upset him. Can he be saved? Can he save himself?

He's well matched by Blair Warner. A calculating, bitchy, blue blood with high ambitions and some seriously deep insecurity issues. She is both vulnerable and a sherman tank. It's a great combination.

I root my character's inner conflicts deep in their childhood. Sometimes I struggle with these hurts and disappointments following them into adulthood. Does it make sense for the bad things that happened to us in our youth to nip at our heels long into our twenties and thirties? Or is it okay that we might appear as if we've grown up, but when it comes to love, we revert back to the child inside that's been hurt?

Tell me about a character you like on TV or in the movies. What appeals to you about them?

Today's goal: 500 words
Yesterday's achievement: Got my Winter Rose entry done.
What I'm grateful for: characters that inspire us.
Quote: "

4th place in the 2008 Gotcha Contest

Well, it's been quite a week. Today I found out The Millionaire's Unfinished Business took 4th place in the 2008 Gotcha and is heading to Susan Litman for review. I hope she doesn't think I'm stalking her. I get to send a cover letter along with the entry so maybe I'll apologize for bombarding her with contest entries. This will be the third one she's seen in 6 months.

I tossed 2 stories into the Gotcha. I haven't gone beyond the first chapter in either. I wanted to know which story was stronger. Figured I'd start on that one next. I guess MUB had a leg up because it had already been in one contest prior and I worked out a lot of the troubled areas already. It's a story I started about 10 years ago and revised 2 summers ago. It's hot and the characters are really angry with each other. So, that makes it fun to write.

So with this contest finish, I've managed to final six different manuscripts this year. 5 short contemporary and a fantasy. I got requests for fulls on 4 of the 5 and some really nice editor comments on the fantasy. All in all, it's been a successful year contest wise. Now if I could only sell something....

Where does courage come from?

I'm really a big chicken.


I admire all those people who can pick up the phone and call an editor about their manuscript that's been out there for 6 months or more.



Or who send out their manuscripts fully believing that some savvy agent is going to snap it up.

I'm riddled with self doubt.



So, where does this adorable kitten get the courage to take on this rather large (and in my mind intimidating because she'd be dead if he decided to put his paw on her) dog?

I need me some of that.

So, how do you silence your inner doubter and forge ahead?






Today's goal: 500 words
Yesterday's achievement: I found pictures of both my characters for the YA.
What I'm grateful for: It's Friday!
Quote: "The average, healthy, well-adjusted adult gets up at seven-thirty in the morning feeling just plain terrible." -Jean Kerr

Contest placements-FAB and Southern Heat

I got a request!!

For a full!!!

On The Christmas Bargain!!!!!

This is the one that did well in 2007 contests during the preliminary round, but never seemed to interest an editor. It took first in the 2008 Southern Heat Contest and got a request. YEAH!

I'd also like to point out that the editor that requested it placed the manuscript 4th in a contest 2 years ago. Needless to say, the manuscript has been through some changes in the meantime thanks to numerous suggestions. I've learned alot since penning this book in the later part of 2006, and I have revisions to do to the story since I brought a brother back to life and gave him a cheating fiancee, but the basic love story stays the same.

Not as exciting, but still good news. Bound By Duty took 2nd in the 2008 Finally A Bride Contest. It still needs some work (and I've stopped work on it because of that), but I'm happy with what it has accomplished thus far. Update: I found out that one of the editors that judged Bound By Duty liked it well enough to place it first and refered me on to the line it was targeted for. I'm feeling much better now about my 2nd place finish.

Today's goal: 500 words
Yesterday's accomplishment: 850 words
What I'm grateful for: I can finally breathe again.
Quote: "To freely bloom - that is my definition of success." -Gerry Spence, How to Argue and Win Every Time

2009 RWA National Conference

Registration opened today for the 2009 RWA Conference in Washington D.C. and I signed up this morning. Two years ago I dithered about attending Dallas and ended up not getting a room at the conference hotel. That was a pain. So, today, I registered and submitted my hotel request.

This will be my first attendance as a PRO member. And I'm not feeling as much of a newby as I did two year ago. Last time, I attended as many workshops as I possibly could and had an editor pitch. Although I networked very little, I did manage to meet some very nice people.

My goal this year is to meet in person some of my on-line friends (Lexi, that means you) and to have an agent/editor appointment. I'm going to up my networking and probably cut down on my workshops simply because I can always get the CDs of the conference.

Is anyone else attending? If so, what do you hope to get out of National?

Today's goal: 500 words
Yesterday's achievement: 1600 words on the new story!
What I'm grateful for: Those times when I'm not sick.
Quote: "Only I can change my life. No one can do it for me." -Carol Burnett (1936 - )

Aaaachhoooooo!

See, I knew I was pushing my luck to be grateful for being healthy all winter.

I've got a cold.

I blame it all on my co-worker who came in with a doozy of one last week. I've been keeping my daughter away so I'm hoping that she won't get sick too.

Last night she asked me how I was going to wake her up if I couldn't get within arm's reach. This morning, I used my toes to tickle her awake. Hehehehe! Worked great.

Today's goal: Rest and drink lots of fluids
Yesterday's achievement: Took Emily to see Hotel for Dogs
What I'm grateful for: World peace (maybe that too shall come to pass)
Quote: "Refuse to be ill. Never tell people you are ill; never own it to yourself. Illness is one of those things which a man should resist on principle." -Edward Bulwer-Lytton (1803 - 1873)

1st contest of the year

I got my entry in to the 2009 Marlene Contest just under the wire. I love a deadline. Two years ago I entered. It didn't go so well that time, I'm hoping for better results this time. Not because I think this book is better than the one I sent in last time, but because I'm hoping I've improved as a writer.

Since I'm writing in different genres this year, I don't know what to expect from contests. But it sure feels great to experiment with my voice. The entry for the Marlene is a first person, paranormal YA novel. I'm pretty sure this is about as different from my "Desire" voice as I can get.

It's kinda fun to write YA. For one thing, I get to explore my inner teenager. For another, I'm not as constricted by structure. I like the idea that I don't have to be totally focused on the romance. My character gets to be a little more real than the average category heroine. I want my protagonist to have some flaws and I want my antagonist to have some good qualities. Isn't that what we find in real life?

And when I get stuck, I'm going to work on the Regency set historical romance.

And when I get stuck there, I'm going to revise my category stuff.

That should keep me busy until the snow melts.

What's your contest agenda look like? I'm going to hit the circuit hard the first few months of 2009 and toss my hat into some contests that I've never tried before. The Sandy, Duel on the Delta, Connections and maybe even the Daphne.

Today's goal: Get moving on my Winter Rose entries
Yesterday's achievement: Sent in my Marlene entry
What I'm grateful for: Emily and I have been pretty darn healthy this winter
Quote: "I can't understand why a person will take a year to write a novel when he can easily buy one for a few dollars." -Fred Allen, US radio comedian (1894 - 1956)

Cold enuf for ya?

We're heading into a period of rather chilly weather here in Minnesota. This morning when I left the house it was 19 below zero. And that's without the windchill.

So, to try and maintain my sense of humor about the whole thing, I offer the following cold weather behavior:



60 above zero: Floridians turn on the heat. Minnesotans plant gardens.

50 above zero: Californians shiver uncontrollably. People are sunbathing in Duluth .

40 above zero: Import cars won't start. Minnesotans drive with the sunroof open.

32 above zero: Distilled water freezes. The water in Bemidji gets thicker.

20 above zero: New Mexicans don long johns, parkas and wool hats & mittens. Minnesotans throw on a flannel shirt.

15 above zero: New York landlords finally turn on the heat. People in Minnesota have one last cookout before it gets cold.

Zero: People in Miami all die. Minnesotans close the windows.

10 below zero: Californians fly away to Mexico. Minnesotans dig their winter coats out of storage.

25 below zero: Hollywood disintegrates. Girl Scouts in Minnesota still selling cookies door to door.

40 below zero: Washington, D.C. finally runs out of hot air. People in Minnesota let their dogs sleep indoors.

100 below zero: Santa Claus abandons the North Pole. Minnesotans get upset because the Mini-Van won't start.

460 below zero: ALL atomic motion stops. People in Minnesota can be heard to say, "Cold 'nuff fer ya?"

500 below zero: Hell freezes over. Minnesota public schools open 2 hours late.

Today's goal: Finish my Marlene entry (the stupid thing's going in the contest no matter how bad it is.)
Yesterday's achievement: Made it home in less than 2 hours.
What I'm grateful for: Have I mentioned my new tires in the last couple weeks? Between the 2 inches of that awful white stuff that falls every other day and the back ice, they've been a lifesaver.
Quote: "A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort." -Herm Albright (1876 - 1944)

Plotting versus Pantsing

This is an age old debate.

A long time ago, in a contest far far away, someone told me I was a plotter. That my story wasn't developed by character, but by events. That comment sticks with me to this day.

I've never considered myself a plotter. When I start a book, I know about my characters and I have an idea what happens between them, but as for what happens in the middle and the end, I'm clueless.

I'm trying to become more of a plotter. Having some idea what's going to happen in the book before venturing more than a chapter or two into it. To help me, I've been gathering lists of questions to answer about my character. My latest list involves core beliefs. What is my character's core belief? What is her life goal? Immediate goal? What inciting incident brings about a change my character can't avoid? What does she want that she can't achieve? What past incidents keep the character from achieving her goal? What strength does my character posess that will help her win through in the end?

Then there's questions about her enneagram, her archetype, character traits, Donald Maas workshop questions designed to dig into her psyche.

JR Ward said she writes down the scenes that pop into her head on a series of pages. Then she shuffles those into an outline that she can write from. I'm trying that approach too.

I do find that doing a synopsis upfront helps a lot. So does coming up with a query or a blurb. When I wrote the blurb for my on-line Desire pitch, I found that my conflict changed/tightened when I had to sum it up in 2 sentences.

So, what's your style? Do you have a list of questions that you use to get to know your character or do you discover stuff about them as you go?

Today's goal: 500 words
Yesterday's achievement: character development for my current WIP
What I'm grateful for: I'm back to being excited about current WIP
Quote: "If your ship doesn't come in, swim out to it!" -Jonathan Winters

2009 Goals

The year's brand new, so now what?

I decided to go back and look over my 2008 goals. Here's what I posted on January 2, 2008:

For 2008, I intend to submit 3 of the requested books. To do that I must finish my 4th book and rewrite two others. I’m not even going to think about starting something new until this is done. I need to blog more often, at least twice a week. I’m going to attend 1 conference. I’m going to submit to a few agents. I’m going to take at least 3 on-line writing courses. I'm going to read at least 50 books and some of those by 10 new authors. And of course, I’m going to continue to maintain my focus.

Well, I only submitted 1 of the requested books. Since I can only do one at a time, it's more a matter of timing. However, 1 other is ready to go when I find out about the book currently on submission.

I did manage to blog twice a week.

I attended 2 conferences.

I submitted to 4 agents.

I took 2 on-line writing courses and 1 in person.

I read over 50 books and discovered more than 10 new authors.

As for maintaining my focus, I did pretty well.

So, for this year:

I will continue to blog twice a week.

I will finish 1 book that I can market to agents (non-category)

I will attend 2 conferences (1 being National)

I will read 50 books and find 10 new authors.

This probably doesn't seem like much of a list. I would love to commit to writing daily as well, but I don't want to set myself up to fail. I've learned enough about myself to know that I am a spurts sort of writer. I'm going to embrace it and make that work for me. I know my limitations, time for me to accept what I know works.

Today's goal: clean my bathroom
Yesterday's achievement: returned some clothes to Kohl's.
What I'm grateful for: time off during the holidays to recharge.
Quote: "Vacation used to be a luxury, however, in today's world, it has become a necessity." -Unknown