Cat Schield

Her Secret Millionaire

2011-05-08T11:01:00.018-05:00

To celebrate my June 2011 debut novel with Harlequin Desire, MEDDLING WITH A MILLIONAIRE, I wrote a novella about how Emma’s brother and Nathan’s best friend found his happily ever after. I hope you enjoy Cody and Jaime’s story.

Her Secret Millionaire

When the handsome, down-to-his-last dollar cowboy who sweeps you off your feet turns out to be a millionaire, most girls would be thrilled. Not Jaime Burnett. Negative experiences with the rich guys her mother frequently pushes at her have left her feeling less than perfect.

For Cody Montgomery it was supposed to be a quick casual fling. A couple weeks of fun and he’d move on. But he underestimated how much he liked being with a woman who didn’t look at him with dollar signs in her eyes. And when his deception blows up in his face, the only way he knows to get back in Jaime’s good graces is to shower her with the one thing she isn’t interested in: his money.

Read Her Secret Millionaire

And be sure to pick up MEDDLING WITH A MILLIONAIRE June 7th.

2011-04-18T00:01:00.002-05:00

MEDDLING WITH A MILLIONAIRE

COMING TO HARLEQUIN DESIRE JUNE 2011

No Man’s Bargaining Chip
Emma Montgomery wouldn’t be manipulated into marriage as part of Daddy’s business deal—even if he cut off access to her trust fund until she complied. The talented jewelry designer would just make her own way. Or go down trying. Too bad her intended groom--maverick businessman and former crush Nathan Case--made her stubborn stance so difficult. The heat of his touch had her nearly betraying herself at every turn. Resisting Nathan and regaining her money were the name of the game—but meddling with this millionaire might land her right back in his arms!

Pre-Easter Blog Hop

2011-04-15T00:01:00.001-05:00

What - Easter Hoppin Blog Hop Giveaways
When - 12:01 AM April 15th until 11:59 PM April 17th
Where - All around the blogging world!
How it works - Recommend a debut author in the comments and you'll be registered to win a $10 Amazon gift card.

New home

2010-08-16T15:53:00.002-05:00

Hello everyone. I'd like to invite you to visit me at my brand new website and blog. The design was done by Will Design For Chocolate and I have to say, they did an absolutely amazing job.

blog

I won the Golden Heart

2010-08-02T11:44:00.009-05:00

Golden Heart winners me (series contemporary), Liz Selvig (single title) and Elisa Beatty (regency) at lunch on Saturday.

Thanks Anne, Kelly, Marcy, and Annette. You guys are awesome.

Fake Fiancee, Real Love won the Golden Heart in the Series Contemporary category.

I can scarcely believe it's true. If not for the necklace and the photos of me standing at the podium, I would think it was all one big dream.

Fellow Golden Heart winner Angi Morgan (series contemporary, suspense/adventure), Harlequin Intrigue author and fellow Marsal Lyon Literary Agency client.

It was an incredible conference. One thing about having an agent and finaling in the Golden Heart, I was mostly fearless about introducing myself people I recognized but never had the guts to approach before. Maybe a little too fearless, but any crazy behavior, I'm writing off to the adrenaline surge of being a Golden Heart finalist.

Some examples:

I stopped Robyn Carr and gushed. She is not only an incredible writer, but a lovely person. If you want to learn how to write conflict, read her books. Especially her 2010 A Summer In Sonoma (which I finished on the plane).

I had a book signed by 2010 Rita winner Kristin Higgins and thanked her for her kind words on a contest she'd judged almost 2 years ago. She remembered the story. Totally made my day.

I teased Barbara Poelle about her back and forth with Janet Reid and chatted with her client, the incredible Sophie Littlefield, who is as sweet as she is talented.

At the Harlequin Pajama Party, I met the Mills and Boone editor who read my entry for the last Presents contest. She not only remembered my name, but also my voice. She was gracious and lovely and her accent made me smile.

Here's a picture of the woman who kept me sane and on track. My CP and roommate, Lexi Connor. I never would have gotten through the weekend without her. The win wouldn't have been as wonderful without her to share it with.

Almost Nationals time

2010-07-27T14:47:00.003-05:00

I'm leaving tomorrow for Orlando. Needless to say, I CAN'T WAIT!!!

I have made my lists. Checked them three times (once more tonight as I pack the extra this and that's.)

I have printed my boarding pass and discovered that I can do an ePass on my iPad which will help coming home.

I have my car arrangements made. (I'm riding in style to and from the airport because my time is so short and it was cheaper to have a town car and driver pick me up at the airport than to take a cab.)

I have practiced in my brand new shoes.

I have shopped 'til I dropped.

I'm about as organized as a girl could be.

So why do I feel as if I'm missing something?

Anyone else get this feeling?

Guest Blogging

2010-07-22T06:21:00.003-05:00

I'm guest blogging at double Rita Nominee Elisabeth Naughton's website today.

Come tell me how you quiet that pesky internal editor

Blogging with my fellow MFW Golden Heart Finalists

2010-07-20T12:35:00.003-05:00

I'm blogging today at the 2009 Golden Heart Finalists Ruby Slipper Sisterhood blog with my fellow Golden Heart finalists from Midwest Fiction Writers.

Stop by and say hi.

broke down

2010-07-15T19:53:00.002-05:00

Opened up the iPad tonight and loaded it with games. Daughter is kicking my butt at Scrabble.

Later: Okay, I'm infatuated. Still figuring out how some stuff works (read the instructions, right?), but it's really cool.

Less than 3k left to go

2010-07-13T20:15:00.003-05:00

And I'm struggling to finish. This week at work is HORRIBLE because we're in training which means I'm working extra hours to get my regular stuff done.

The wrap up for the single title is challenging and I'm too tired to think straight. But I'm determined to get it done this week.

Bought my iPad to celebrate hitting 90k, but haven't opened it yet. Are you impressed with my willpower?

Previewed my soon to be new website today. I'm really excited about it. More to come on it. I'm scheduled to appear on the Ruby Slipper Sisterhood with my Minnesota chaptermates on July 20th and Elisabeth Naughton's blog on July 22nd and my new look will be ready just in time for that and for Nationals.

I'll let you know as soon as I open the iPad if I LOVE it or not. Hahaha, as if I'd hate it.

Have you splurged on anything lately?

Finale

2010-07-06T19:20:00.002-05:00

Closing in on the end of the book. I'm deep into the finale and there's a lot of plot left to resolve.

In anticipation of revising, I've bought a great book called The Weekend Novelist Re-Writes the Novel by Robert J. Ray. He recommends 17 weekends, 7-8 hours each day to rewrite your book. Considering it's summer and I've given myself 2 months to do the rewrite, that's not going to work for me.

Hoping to have the book finished by the end of next weekend.

Then, I get to buy my iPad (YEAH!!!). I'm going to load it with books and read for two weeks while I prep for National and the rewrite.

What's next on your TBR pile?

Priming the pump, filling the well

2010-06-29T10:24:00.004-05:00

Last weekend I needed a break from my writing. I took off both Saturday and Sunday to read, watch TV, go see a movie, hang out with friends and didn't let myself feel guilty about not writing.

Sure, I got behind in my word count, but the guilt-free break was sure worth the price.

Closing in on 3/4 of the way through and my H/H are heading for an All-Is-Lost moment of epic proportions. I just have to keep reminding myself to make it even worse.

If you want to see a demonstration of ratcheting up the conflict. Go see Toy Story 3. I have no idea why they rated this movie "G". It's intense.

What TV shows/movies have you seen that does a great job of using escalating conflict? Here's a few of mine:

Leverage
Saving Grace
Burn Notice
Miami Medical
House
Drop Dead Diva

Writing those tough scenes

2010-06-23T21:49:00.004-05:00

I pushed through a really tough scene tonight. It's only the bare bones of a scene, but both the hero and heroine dropped their guards and talked about that which gives them the most emotional pain.

I've given my hero a vulnerability/flaw that might make some people uncomfortable. I love it about him, but it's going to be interesting to see how it goes over.

Man, writing single title is so much fun. What was I thinking to run scared all these years?

I want an iPad

2010-06-19T08:27:00.005-05:00

Have you ever noticed how technology makes people instant friends? I chatted with a couple about their iPad last night before my daughter's dance recital. It was good to hear someone who'd had the thing a while to find out the ins and outs of it.

They totally talked me into the 3G one. It's more money, but with a $15 3G plan per month, it's worth the expense.

If you're wondering when I'm going to buy one, I decided it would be my present for 1) finaling in the GH (as if that's not gift itself) and 2) for finishing the first draft of my ST (a major milestone).

Yeah, yeah, it's all justification for something I'm dying to have, but whatever.

What about you? Craving a fabulous piece of technology or are you spending your dollars more wisely?

Halfway

2010-06-15T21:17:00.002-05:00

And I'm 2500 words ahead of schedule. That's like a day and a half cushion. Which I'm sure I'll need over the next month.

Good thing I rock at pantsing

2010-06-14T16:05:00.001-05:00

The character I intended to be good just might be bad. Discovered something unexpected about her this weekend. I haven't decided yet which way it will go, but the possibilities are exciting.

I suck at plotting

2010-06-11T20:03:00.000-05:00

This is why I don't/shouldn't write mysteries.

'Nuf said.

New look

2010-06-10T21:57:00.002-05:00

Digging the new templates on Blogger.

Nearing the 50% mark on the WIP. Still feels like I know where I'm going.

Got around to plotting the next quarter of the book. Stuff that I'd intended to put in the 2nd quarter got moved into the 3rd. What is with this wordage I'm pounding out? Not like me at all to write long. Usually I'm struggling to get that first draft to 48k.

How productive are you?

2010-06-08T10:08:00.005-05:00

As a prepublished author, have you considered what will be expected of you production-wise once you get published?

Since January 1st, I've written 125,000 words.

I'm targeting Silhouette Desire. 50,000 words or thereabouts per book. If I wrote 3 per year, I'd be looking at about 150,000 words written (forget about editing, that's a whole different animal.)

Generally when I'm cranking out a story, I write 7 days a week. I average between 1000 and 1500 words per day. Now, I don't do this every month. I pretty much took March and April off. But I intend to continue with this level of output until National.

A lot of single title (and category) authors write one, maybe two books a year. Nora Roberts is at the other end of the spectrum, writing a gazillion books a year (does the woman sleep?) and I'd like to be somewhere in between.

Currently I work 40 hours per week. The drive to and from eats away another 2 hours. Add in my daughter's after school activities and a tiny bit of social life and my writing time starts to dry up.

If I wrote full time and wrote 1000 words per day, I could write 365,000 words in a year. That would translate to a couple single titles and 3 category books per year. That's my production goal. And 1000 words/day leaves me lots of time for editing, promotion, etc.

How about you? What do you see your production rates being? And can you achieve them?

Back on track

2010-06-03T21:16:00.006-05:00

Oh yeah!

After three days of no writing over Memorial weekend (forgot the power cord for my laptop), I'm back in action and making up for lost time.

Hit the 1/3 point tonight.

Oh yeah!

Watched So You Think You Can Dance tonight.

I love the emotion brought to the show by the dancers and the judges.

Some performances bring them to tears and I can't help but join them in appreciating the truly talented.

They've worked so hard to get to the level they're at. So much rides on every performance.

They take my breath away.

I want to be like that. Dedicated to creating something amazing. Working my butt off for little money and just for the love of my art. And then blowing everyone away with my genius and making my way to stardom. Ha!

How strong is your passion? Does it consume you? How deeply do you feel the highs and lows?

I got a request on my Golden Heart entry

2010-06-02T19:17:00.004-05:00

I'm super excited that my Golden Heart entry garnered a request.

Don't know which editor requested it.

It's all a mystery, but at least it's a request.

Wheeee!!!!

Contest hiatus over

2010-06-01T15:28:00.002-05:00

Hello, my name is Cat and I'm contestaholic. It's been 182 days since I entered my last contest. And you know what? I miss it.

So, today, last minute as always, I tossed 2 entries into 2 different contests. Four Seasons for my new Desire wannabe. Emerald City Opener because it only requires 7 pages and that's about all the polishing I can handle on my single title at the moment.

Now, I have something out there with a definite end date. Or two. July 1st (or there abouts) and September 1st (which seems like a long time to judge 7 pages).

Whoopie!

One quarter down, three to go

2010-05-25T20:37:00.005-05:00

To my surprise, I've hit the first turning point in the single title. Normally this would be the half way point in a short contemporary. By this time my characters would be at their big love scene, the midpoint of the book.

From here on, I would be struggling through the sagging middle, on my way to the end. Instead, I'm barely out of the book's set up.

To keep from getting really overwhelmed with the length, I'm treating the writing like 2 short contemporaries. In my mind, I'm half way through the first month's worth of writing. I wrote two short contemporaries back to back in January and February. That's the way I'm visualizing this.

Anything to trick myself into not freaking out, right?

This week marked 20 weeks my sub has been at SIlhouette. In the scheme of things, it's not very long. My longest wait was 9 months. That wait didn't feel nearly as long as this one.

What's your longest wait to hear back on a submission?

Are you backed up?

2010-05-22T15:13:00.004-05:00

Yesterday my external hard drive stopped working.

It contained all my photos. All my music (some of which I borrowed from friends to download). All my back up files.

It's going to cost me big time to recover.

How are you fixed if your computer crashes? Do you have all your precious data on a couple different drives in case one stops working? If not, have you considered all you could lose?

Chugging along

2010-05-18T19:38:00.003-05:00

Whoohoo, wrote 2000 words today. That's pretty good for me on a weekday. The book is flowing better than I expected in these early stages.

Loving the whole lets take our time setting up the story thing. In short contemporary, you have to hit the ground running. Here, I can play around with characterization more. Get a little caught up in the setting. Set up a couple subplots.

I've barely introduced the plot. I've got tons of characters that need to be introduced. And I'm not bored with the story yet. (I was a little worried that such a long book might put me to sleep before the first kiss.)

I'll keep you posted.

What's a good day for you writing wise? I know a few of you have participated in NaNo. Anyone able to keep up that pace for longer than a month?

1st sail of the 2010 season

2010-05-16T20:59:00.003-05:00

it doesn't get much better than this

That's Sonya in peach, manning the winch. Me, tailing the main halyard. Kori at the wheel. Our photographer is Erik. I'm digging his brand new camera.

The single title is officially underway.

2010-05-11T15:01:00.004-05:00

I swear this isn't me.
I have written 2300 words of my first ever single title. The plotting is not all done, but I've got a pretty good sense of where I'm going in the first half and a decent sense of the plot in the second.

What can I tell you? I'm a pantser and impatient to begin my character's journey.

It feels good to be writing again (not editing or revising or procrastinating).

I scored an editor appointment for National to pitch this project so I'm under the gun to get the story written.

I'm targeting first draft by the middle of July. Am I crazy? Nah, I wrote 2 50k word books in January and February. Word count is the same. And for me, very doable.

Where are you at in your projects?

My plotting board

2010-05-04T20:18:00.003-05:00

Here's my first shot at plotting. So far, so good.

I have a general idea what's going to happen in the first quarter. Not bad for a couple day's worth of work. Hopefully it will write faster this way.

Flooding in Nashville

2010-05-04T09:19:00.004-05:00

What a diaster they've got in Nashville. People got caught in the flooding and died. Businesses are closed. The hotel hosting National is under 10 feet of water. They've cancelled our reservations.

My prayers are with all those who've lost loved ones and had their lives disrupted.

Why having an agent rocks

2010-04-29T19:41:00.002-05:00

Got an email today from my agent. Since I've been dreading a rejection, I almost died when I saw my manuscript title in her subject line.

The good news is I didn't get a rejection.

Huge relief.

And now I can relax for another month.

An author in need of a carrot

2010-04-27T13:37:00.006-05:00

I'm absolutely dying to contact my agent about a sub that's been out for 4 months today. I know she'll contact me if she's heard anything and she's really good about following up, but I'm not used to sitting on my hands while someone else does the work. Yet, isn't this exactly what we hire an agent for?

I also need to finish my current revisions and I'm having a hard time concentrating. So, I've told myself that I can't follow up on the current submission until I get my revisions done and the manuscript polished.

Suddenly, I'm feeling a little more motivated.

What incentives do you give yourself to get something done?

Chicago North Spring Fling

2010-04-25T22:23:00.003-05:00

Here is the fabulous group of 2010 Golden Heart finalists that came from long distances to attend the conference. Left to right: Erica O'Rourke, YA, Rochelle Staub, Series Contemporary Suspense/Adventure, Me, Series Contemporary, Heather Snow, Regency Historical.

Me and Cherry Adair, NYT Bestselling author of Romantic Suspense. What a thrill to meet her and be the beneficiary of her wisdom. During her workshop I found myself nodding in agreement to her straightforward advice about publishing as a career. After her scheduled workshop, she was kind enough to give impromptu lectures on making a career plan and
plotting. For someone at her level to take time to nurture (and knock sense into) a bunch of unpublished authors was inspiring.

I'd like to encourage anyone who hasn't attended the Spring Fling to put it on her calendar. They North Chicago ladies do a fabulous job. The next conference will be in 2012. Be there or be square.

It's conference time

2010-04-21T15:05:00.004-05:00

That glorious time of year when I get to talk, listen, and learn about writing writing writing. No one in my life gets the obsession so I try to keep it on the down low. That's why I love conferences. We all talk the same language.

This weekend I'm going to North Chicago's Spring Fling. The line up of speakers is wonderful. So many people I've never heard speak which means boundless opportunities to learn new techniques and shake up familiar thought patterns.

I gave up my pitch appointment so I have nothing stressing me out. I'm a Golden Heart finalist so I have something I can say about myself. I'm looking forward to meeting some GHers from across the country. I've held off buying books from the attending authors so I can get them signed and help literacy.

And when I get home, I'll be all fired up and ready to write my little fingers to the bone.

What do you usually expect to get out of a conference?

How not to handling waiting

2010-04-14T13:36:00.007-05:00

Have I mentioned, lately, how much I love to write.

I think I've forgotten that in the last month and a half as I waited for news on submissions and Golden Heart results.

Trying to get published, now that's a whole different story. I suck at waiting. My internal cry baby likes to take over during these times and whine until I drown out the voice with television and movies and audio books. Anything to drown out the negative self talk.

Unfortunately, that means my characters' voices get swept away in the flow of babble as well.

Meditation hasn't helped. The chatter isn't impressed by soothing bird sounds and ocean noises. Trying to be positive hasn't helped because I've been letting the stuff beyond my control pile on and raise my anxiety.

Finally, I'm kicking myself in the ass and getting back to the revisions I should have been working on these last 6 weeks. And you know what, I love this book.

It's fun to write. The characters have great snarky arguments and hot sex. She's coming out of her shell and doing things that frustrate him. He's struggling to maintain his composure and failing miserably. All good stuff.

Hopefully this means my cycle of feeling sorry for myself has come to an end and I can get back to the bliss of writing/revising.

I'll let you know how it works out.

Scene/Sequel

2010-04-13T12:25:00.004-05:00

I'm working with my scenes on current WIP and noticing that I'm doing the scene/sequel thing backwards.

In Dwight Swain's book, he says you need to do first a scene (Goal, Conflict, Disaster). Followed by a Sequel (Reaction, Dilema, Decision).

However, in my book, each change of POV starts with Reaction and ends with Disaster.

For example: Hero is in the shower, thinking about how he woke up spooning the heroine. He not sure what happened to him since he's not used to letting his guard down enough to spend the night with a woman much less snuggle with her(reaction). Next, he struggles with how his unprofessionalism in sleeping with his assistant is going to cause problems when he sets about convincing her to not quit his employ and wonders if it makes sense to keep her on now that he's become rather personally involved with her (dilema). Finally, he decides that they are both professional enough to put one night of hot sex behind them (decision). Sequel.

Next, he gets out of the shower and embarks on his plan to restablish their professional footing (goal). Unfortunately, the heroine looks rather fetching in his shirt and nothing else (conflict). Lastly, his breakfast meeting shows up early and catches hero with skimpily clad heroine (disaster). Scene

It seems to be working for me. Has anyone had experience working with scene/sequel? I'd love some feedback.

Not accomplishing much

2010-04-02T12:08:00.001-05:00

Ugh.

Not writing. Not revising. Distracted by waiting.

And work stuff.

And Golden Heart stuff.

And a bunch of other miscellaneous activities.

I got my haircut.

Shopped for a dress for National (without success).

Had dinner with friends.

Saw a movie.

Painted my toenails for the first time in 6 months (it’s finally warm enough to wear sandals).

Too much surfing the internet. Too much thinking about stuff I gots no control over.

I need to snap out of it.

How are you doing?

Back in business

2010-04-01T18:49:00.003-05:00

Squeeeee! Got my domain name back! Been working with the service provider regarding billing issues and it's back, safe and sound and I'm not sure I've ever appreciated it the way I do now!

Cat's Website

Now, I just need to update the info and get my Golden Heart stuff on there.

2010-03-30T09:50:00.003-05:00

To pen name or not to pen name, that is my dilemma.

I wouldn’t even be thinking about it except that I’m battling with my web hosting provider because my domain name is current not mine because of a billing snafu.

I will, of course, pay to get it back if I have to, but in the meantime, I’m wondering if I could get used to writing under a different name.

What’s your opinion? Do you want to write under your own moniker or a nom de plume?

What prompts your decision one way or another?

If you are planning to write under a pen name, how did you choose it?

Bucket List

2010-03-26T13:01:00.005-05:00

Anyone out there got one?

I just finished Debbie Macomber's Twenty Wishes. It's not the sort of book I would normally pick up and read, but I have to say I really enjoyed it.

And it got me thinking about wishing for things and having them come true, even if it wasn't in the way you expected.

For example:

Back in 1998 I ended a long term on again off again relationship that was going nowhere. The hardest part of that ending was realizing that the years were passing and I might never get married and have a family. About then, the universe sent into my life a few single women who'd adopted from China. In 2000, I adopted my daughter, Emily. I got my family, just not in the way I'd expected.

When I look back on all the things I've dearly wanted, finaling in the Golden Heart has been a (n obsessive) dream of mine since March of 1993 when I first began to seriously pursue my dream of being published. I walked into my first Midwest Fiction Writers meeting and Susan Kay Law had just found out she'd finaled in the Historical category and sold. Up until that point, I'd dabbled in sending out manuscripts to Harlequin, but really didn't have the skill (just the drive) to be published. Right then, I knew I wanted to final in the Golden Heart and then sell.

Fast forward to March of 2010. I get the call. It might have taken close to two decades for me to see my wish come true, but it has.

Next wish, a sale.

Have you ever had a wish that came true only not the way you expected?

OMG I'M A GOLDEN HEART FINALIST

2010-03-25T16:26:00.003-05:00

I absolutely cannot believe this has happened. I'm beyond thrilled. I've chased the GH since the first time I entered in 1993. Now, I didn't enter every year between now and then, but I've had A LOT of manuscripts that haven't made the cut.

To everyone out there still working at it. Keep going. If you can't beat them, wear them down with your determination until they cry uncle!

Dreams

2010-03-24T08:51:00.004-05:00

Back in the 70s, I used to watch disaster movies. They were very popular. One that always stuck with me was The Poseidon Adventure.

For those of you who are too young, or who missed the remake with Kurt Russell, a rogue wave hits a cruise ship, tipping it over and a group of people decide to climb up to the bottom of the ship to cut their way out.

Naturally, you deal with the arguments for leaving the dining room in the first place and losing people as you go. The tension is nonstop.

So, of course, last night I'm dreaming that I'm on the ship. I was part of a group that couldn't convince the bulk of the passengers that we were in danger. Finally, we decided to strike out on our own.

This is where the dream became about what important thing of value you take with you on such a journey. Now, I was on vacation, so I didn't have a lot of valuables along. I figured I'd take my jewelry, my drivers license and credit cards.

When I woke (and is it any wonder I'm more exhausted in the mornings than when I went to bed the night before?), I got to thinking, what would I grab from the house if it was on fire. I settled on my daughter, my flash drive where my books are backed up and if I had time and didn't have to climb out a window, my photos.

Ever think about what you would grab if you had to flee?

What if you had more than a minute? What then would you add to your pile?

I'd add my laptop and my external hard drive, and as much art work as I could.

By the way, if anyone can interpret my weird dream, let me know.

static

2010-03-19T09:51:00.003-05:00

I feel like I'm living in a snapshot. A moment frozen in time.

Nothing much is happening. I'm stuck in a rut. Same routine every day. What changes there are seem tiny considering how long I've been waiting and watching and expecting.

Waiting sucks as I'm sure anyone trying to get published or already published will agree. Nothing moves fast.

I usually keep myself entertained by entering chapter contests and awaiting results, but none have had a good final editor line for me.

The Golden Heart announces in a week. Like the foolish optimist I am, I tossed in two books. One has been in before, but has had massive changes. It has already been rejected by Harlequin so I figure it has the best chance of finaling because it's not going to sell. The other one is on its virgin voyage.

As I've often said, finaling is a complete crapshoot. It's like throwing money away on the lottery. You have no idea what judges you're going to get or if they'll have a clue about writing or the category you're in. I've entered 3 times. The worst of the three manuscripts did the best and hit the top 25%. Go figure.

Whether I final or not will determine if I go to Nationals in Nashville. Funds are tight this year so I need a strong justification to spend money. Not finalling will bum me out (naturally), but it will be less stressful all around.

Currently, I'm between books. I should be editing either of the two I finished in January and February, but I'm waiting for feedback and can't get focused.

So, I'm reading and plotting something new. A single title. Something juicy and full of interesting characters, plot, shady backgrounds, and suspense that I can sink my teeth into. Time to stretch my creative muscles in a way that I can't in category.

I'm reading thrillers. Robert Crais. Randy Wayne White. I've decided to set the story on Sanibel or a fictional island like it. If you like a fast pace novel with great writing pick up either of these guys.

Desire pitch today. I'm not participating, but the chat ahead of time should be interesting. I hope one of the five pitching knocks one out of the park. It would be nice to see something happen, even if it's not happening to me.

How about you? Life moving fast or slow at the moment?

Judging contest entries

2010-03-12T10:36:00.005-06:00

I more or less finished the first draft of my recent WIP. Okay, truth be told, I gave up and figured I'd fix the end in the second draft.

After pulling together a partial for my agent, I've spent the week judging contest entries.

Each year as I learn new stuff about my own writing, I pass that knowledge onto the (poor) contest entrants. This go around, they got lectures on having goals for their characters right from the start of the story.

Every single entry the characters were thrust into a situation and they reacted to it. Sure, it gives you tension. But after the character's done reacting to the experience, what then? Then you have to throw more stuff at them to react to. And what happens in between? They drink coffee. They cook dinner. They go to work. And the reader gets bored.

This goes back to the Dwight Swain method of scene development. Start the character with a goal. Throw a log in his path. Then make something horrible happen that puts him even further from his goal. Rinse and repeat.

I know I struggle with this in my stories. I love to throw something at my characters in the first chapter and have them react. Then I hit that second or third chapter and go, whoops, where do I go from here?

In my current WIP, the book starts in the hero's POV. His assistant has just resigned at the beginning of a leadership summit that he's in charge of. Great tension. Loads of conflict, but once he realizes he can't convince her to stay working for him, where do I take the plot?

Sure, it's a romance and I could spend the next 40k words having them spar and go back and forth about her working for him vs her quitting, but isn't that going to get old?

To combat that, I gave him a goal that has nothing to do with the heroine. A goal that may not happen thanks to the romance. Because he's a CEO, I gave him a business deal that he's trying to finalize. The romance complicates the business deal because the hero can't control how the heroine behaves. And since needing to be in control is his character flaw, it all gets wrapped up in a neat little complicated bundle.

Do you give your characters a big goal at the beginning of the story and start each scene with a small goal? If not, how do you shape your scenes and keep your conflict ever increasing?

On a side note. When I sell a book. I hope it gets translated into Chinese and ends up here:

Spring fever anyone?

2010-03-04T09:29:00.009-06:00

Despite days of sunshine and temps above freezing, I've been whiny and crabby. February and March are the hardest months of winter for me. By now, I've made it through 4 months of cold and snow and I've reached the point where I can't take it any more.

Here's a look at my parents enjoying a vacation in Florida while I'm stuck here in the frozen (melting) tundra. Don't they look happy?

My best friend has been calling me all week to talk about new flooring for her house. She's been making the rounds of the home improvement stores and debating laminate, carpet and hard wood.

I asked her if she really needs new flooring or if she's just desperate for something to think about besides winter. It's a little of both.

I know the feeling. For the last 9 years, I've been looking at buying a convertible. Now, you're thinking to yourself, this woman lives in Minnesota. Why the heck would she want a car she can't enjoy 9 months of the year. It's because those three months of nice weather need to be appreciated to the fullest extent.

I have my heart set on a convertible Mini Cooper. They are fun to drive, get great gas mileage and have terrific reliability. A week ago, I found a used one on line at a great price for the age and mileage. Too bad my finances don't allow me to jump at it. I'm forcing myself to wait another year when I should be able to pay cash for the car.

In the meantime, because I needed something new in my life to cheer me up, I got a new cell phone. It's blue. And I added the internet for $10/month.

Is my life exciting or what?

How long/fast/often do you write?

2010-02-24T16:02:00.005-06:00

For inspiration, I've been listening to conference workshops and reading writing/revising books. I found a couple references to stealing bits of time out of your day to write and writing the first draft in one fast gulp.

Stephanie Bond said her books are written 15 minutes at a time. She has a friend who writes six pages in an hour and then spends the rest of the day doing other writerly tasks. Julia Cameron talks about not waiting for big chunks of time to start writing because you can forever figure out an excuse not to write.

It's very rare that I sit down to the computer for more than an hour. I tend to write in short spurts of twenty to thirty minutes with breaks in between to do what needs doing. The breaks give me time to think where I'm heading next and formulate where the next two to five hundred words will take my characters.

I've taught myself to write fast. At the beginning of the book I'm working on now, I wrote 2000 words in 2 hours. That doesn't usually happen during the middle or end of the book, when I'm struggling through the plot or trying to wrap up the conflict/loose ends.

Since NaNo, I've discovered I can get a book written in 30 or so days if I don't reread what I've done or go back to fix things that change as I discover where the book is heading. I make notes and keep moving forward to the end. It's allowed me to write 3 first drafts in 3 months. Granted, they're full of messy, ugly writing, but I feel a great deal of accomplishment knowing they sit like unformed clay on my hard drive.

I like writing first thing in the morning, but that's not always possible. If I write soon after rising, I accumulate more word count at a faster pace and in a bigger lump of time. Otherwise, I snatch minutes here and there throughout the day. When crunch time comes and it's eight o'clock, however, it's amazing how much I can pound out before bedtime.

What's your process? Hours of writing or minutes? Do you write a fast first draft and then edit or edit as you go? Have you ever tried another way?

Selling on Proposal

2010-02-21T16:42:00.000-06:00

For the last few months I've been thinking in terms of selling a book on proposal: three chapters and a synopsis. The idea worries me because I am a pantser. I start with an idea, some characters, and let the rest just unfold. Cool stuff comes out of nowhere and amazes me. The characters say things that takes the book in a little different direction. Reading the first draft through, you can see how the plot and the characters evolve.

At the beginning of this book, to determine if I could, I banged out a synopsis. A rough one to be sure, but it outlines the book start to finish.

I got to work on the first draft of my current WIP, grappled with keeping the characters on task and stewing about how to end the story. Today I had a brainstorm about a direction for the last third of the book and worried that it differed from how I'd written the synopsis. But today, when I reread where I originally intended the story to go, it ends up being much closer to the actual end than what I figured.

This makes me realize that even though I don't think I can plot and I like my characters and stories to unfold organically, I'm doing better in the planning stages.

That gives me hope. When that day comes for me to sell on proposal, I might just be able to do it.

Heroine's POV much better

2010-02-20T16:19:00.004-06:00

I think when I get the hero and plot stuff figured out, I might have a book.

Still have a lot of work to do with the scenes and the details, but from the heroine's POV, the plot, her motivation and conflict are all really solid.

Next step look at each scene, one at a time. Do I need it. Is it a little mini story. Is there conflict?

I made up these scene sheets that I'm going to fill out for each scene to make sure it has purpose and moves the story forward. I figure I have close to forty scenes in this book. Even if I do one a day this will take me a month and a half.

Better get going.

Warning, two dimensional hero!

2010-02-18T09:46:00.006-06:00

I started my revisions this week.

I read through the entire story from just my hero's POV. I chose to start with him because my heroine drives the story. She is the prime protagonist and goes through more.

My hero drifts through the story, tackling business difficulties having to do with the heroine, but not dealing with a big personal issue that only partially involves her.

Because his big goals are mostly solved prior to the start of the story, he's reactive in the story instead of active. This means he doesn't leap off the page with energy. Toward the end he does act and that's when I started to like him better.

What an eye opener this has been. I've never tackled a story from one POV before. I got completely confused in the middle of the book because the hero didn't explain why he acted a certain way (not in his POV) before it happened or after when he should have been reacting to his actions.

I made lots of notes and I'm going to type them up like a revision letter to myself. Then, I need to solve the problems in my mind before I tackle them on paper.

Revising is really hard work. I wish the darn book would fix itself. Or that the magical elves would do it why I was sleeping.

Next step: Read through in the heroine's POV. Should prove interesting.

Belated Happy Chinese New Year

2010-02-16T19:35:00.004-06:00

It's my year.

The year of the tiger.

Great things are going to happen for me this year; I just know it.

Tiger characteristics: Enthusiastic, courageous, ambitious, leadership, confidence, charismatic.

Do you know your Chinese Zodiac sign?

Happy Valentine's Day

2010-02-14T12:14:00.001-06:00

Nothing says love like matching outfits.

After receiving a lovely handmade card from my daughter, I dropped her off at my parents house and I'm spending the rest of Valentine's Day with people I've made up.

I think that pretty much sums up my love life.

Hope yours is full of real romance.

Starting revisions

2010-02-09T13:09:00.008-06:00

With a first draft written in November (NaNo), another one finished in January, and a third book nearing the half-way point, I decided it might be time to start thinking about revisions.

First let me state that writing like this is a recent process for me. Formerly, I used to start writing something, get a couple chapters done and run out of steam or get distracted by finaling in a contest and having to polish a full of (a.k.a. finish) a different book for an editor.

With a manuscript at Harlequin and a moratorium on entering contests, I don't have this distraction. I'm delighted that I've written more in the last 3 months than in the last year. Shutting off my internal critic and tasking myself to dump a book out of my head in thirty days has given me great satisfaction.

But it's a very small part of the whole process. After the first draft is when the real work begins.

I'm collecting advice from author workshops I've attended. I ordered a book on revising.

I printed out the book. Marked his POV with blue flags. Her POV with pink flags and all scenes with secondary characters with purple flags.

Next, I'm working to nail down the character arcs for in there comes my conflict. I'm helped by Archetypes and Enneagrams.

I'm going to read through the book by the weekend and make notes. I'm afraid there's going to be a whole lot of things I need to fix. But by organizing the process into steps, I hope the first round will go relatively smooth.

Frankly, I'm intimidated by the sheer enormity of what awaits me and my ability to do the book justice.

How do you handle revisions? Anything in particular make the job easier?

Confessions of a Contest Addict

2010-02-04T09:17:00.003-06:00

For the last 3 years I've entered a ton of contests. It's ridiculous, really, how much money I've spent to have people tell me what's wrong with my writing.

I told myself this year that I would save some money and not enter any, or at least very few. So, here I am, it's the beginning of February and I'm getting twitchy.

I keep telling myself that entering a contest that doesn't have good final judges makes no sense. I miss polishing madly before a deadline. I miss having no stake in waiting for the finalists to be announced. And to be completely honest, I miss that thrill of finding out I finaled.

I'm trying to be practical. It's no fun.

Anyone want to guess how much I spent in contest entries last year?

A new month, a new book.

2010-02-02T11:12:00.005-06:00

I've updated my WIP bar on the side. I've gone from done to starting all over again. A new book, not a revision. I'm saving revisions for the end of March, beginning of April when I've had a little distance.

In the last story, the characters had built in conflict because of a past relationship. Reunion stories are fun to write. So much baggage to deal with.

This story requires me to dig a little deeper for his conflict because it isn't based on past events, but current situations. That makes it harder to write compelling conflict. My hero just isn't tortured enough yet. That means I need to establish what he believes in. What his values are. And make certain the heroine is the exact opposite of those things.

My hero is big on image. From childhood, he learned from his mother how important face is. Everything he's done has been guided by not what he wants, but what he believes he should do given the circumstance. Since many things run contrary to his desires, he has struggled long and hard to be disciplined.

Enter my heroine who is going to blow the lid off. She's going to drive him crazy and get him into one scrap after another. It should be fun.

I don't usually write a free spirit as my heroine. Already she's taking over the book. Both the hero and I might be in for a crazy ride.

We all put a bit of ourselves into our characters. I'm definitely more like my hero in this book. I'm modeling the heroine after my daughter.

Do you have particular characteristics that you write into your hero and heroine? Ever feel like stretching into something completely different?

The end is near

2010-01-27T16:10:00.004-06:00

Of the book, that is. Do you have trouble wrapping things up? I'm wandering around with my characters in love and engaged looking for that final little thing that says, the end.

Having trouble finding it.

Anyone else have the same problem? What do you do?

Creating Believable Characters

2010-01-21T18:55:00.004-06:00

Thanks to Laurie Schnebly Campbell and her wonderful Enneagram book I was able to lick my post Black Moment issue from yesterday. I took her on-line class on Fatal Flaws a couple years ago (grrrreat stuff) and had a bunch of notes on the 9 Enneagrams, but haven't used them lately because I'd been having better luck with Archetypes.

Funny thing about this book, the Archetypes weren't working. However, the Enneagrams are spot on.

When I type "The End" I'm going to spend some time thinking about these two ways of creating characters. They overlap in a lot of places, but have a little different way of looking at character traits, flaws, etc.

So, with a little over 10k to go, I'm off and running again.

This weekend, I'm going to attack my synopsis for a final read through and do some editing on the first 3 chapters. I'd like to have a half way pulled together proposal done by the end of the month. Fingers crossed.

Then I'm going to take my daughter out of town to celebrate with a night in a hotel, a little swimming, and some good food.

Welcome to the black moment

2010-01-20T18:18:00.004-06:00

I've hit that all is lost moment in my story.

The heroine has completely screwed up all her relationships thanks to her stubborn need to take care of everything herself.

The hero has yelled at her because of this fact and walked away.

She's staring after him realizing the only man she'll ever love hates her.

And I'm wondering, where the hell do I go from here?

Now, if I was a plotter, I'd have the rest of the book all figured out. In fact, I would have had the entire book laid out scene by scene.

I'm not a plotter. I'm a pantser. Although I will admit I've tried plotting. I suck at it.

Here's how I wrote this book.

Chapter 1. I stared at the blank screen not knowing how to get the hero and heroine together for the first time. See, this is a reunion story. They had a chance meeting five years ago and spent a long weekend whooping it up (if you know what I mean). His father cheated on his mother for 15 or so years and that's my hero's backstory and inner conflict. Naturally, I had to make the heroine married the first time they met. She had left her husband, but it didn't much matter to our hero. He's got issues.

So after no contact for 5 years, how do you get them together? I wasn't going to make it a coincidental meeting. I decided to throw them together because she provides a service he needs. Enter his best friend and an outrageous bet. It popped into my head out of nowhere and actually gave me the idea for the next book about the 3 brothers. There's a wager in the first book so I thought, why not have that tie them all together.

Once I got that much figured out the rest of the book flowed. He doesn't trust her but he never got over her and has unfinished business (i.e. he wants to have lots of sex with her so he can get her out of his system.) She had a miserable marriage and has sworn never to remarry, but she also has unfinished business with him (see above.)

That conflict got me through most of the book, but it wasn't quite enough to carry the entire story so I threw an ex-husband with money problems into the mix to shake things even more. And his parents are celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary and renewing their vows. Wow, that's got him all stirred up.

Now, I've hit the 3/4 mark. The black moment. And I have to get them back together, but first, they must apply the things they've learned about each other and about themselves so they might overcome the barriers that keep them apart. It's just that next meeting between them that is going to be tough. You have to get them back together without resolving all their issues because they've not completely evolved yet.

Got any advice how to proceed?

Up In The Air

2010-01-16T14:38:00.009-06:00

***SPOILER ALERT***

Saw it.

Loved it.

As someone who takes disappointment hard, the movie resonated with me on a lot of levels.

It's hard going through life open to hurt. Taking risks both in your personal and professional life can mean you lose more often than you win.

Trying to find a life partner. Trying to get published. You have to open up and take chances.

Watching Clooney's character take on an protege, find a lover, rediscover his family, I both cheered his growth and held my breath waiting for the axe to fall.

His character fascinated me. He claimed he wanted an empty backpack, nothing pulling at him, yet the care with which he treats the people he's hired to fire shows he has a huge heart. He offers comfort and compassion, but refuses to need it in return.

The theme of the movie was loyalty. It's explored in a number of ways. He was loyal to Hilton, Hertz, and American Airlines. They in turn, had his back. He was firing people who'd been at their jobs for years and years. His protege has trouble with her boyfriend who'd promised a future together. His sister is separating from her husband. His lover is only looking for fun.

In the movie, his goal is to reach ten million miles. It will make him only the seventh person to achieve this. He considers the plane his home. It's the place where he belongs. But as the movie progresses and travel is threatened, it's then that he reaches out to the people in his life. He starts to reassess what's truly important. Only to suffer a grave disappointment.

I found it interesting that he started and ended the movie in the same place psychologically even though he goes through a lot of perspective altering growth.

This was a complex, character driven movie that I want to see again. And I'm going to read the book because I have the feeling that it would be a very rich, thought provoking story.

Have you seen it? If so, what did you take away?

Half way point

2010-01-14T12:26:00.005-06:00

I'm rolling right along with the WIP. And I've learned a little something. If I've got good external conflict to frame the story and clear internal conflict to keep the characters agitated, the book flows right along.

I'm not exactly sure why the writing is going better these days. I don't know if it's because I'm concentrating on hammering out the first draft without going back to fix stuff.

Or if I've stopped entering contests which means I'm not getting a bunch of different opinions on what I'm doing.

Or if it's because I've got a better handle on how conflict is supposed to work.

It could be that I've been meditating to calm and focus my mind.

It could be the wonderful Save The Cat beats I use, complements of Blake Synder, that let me know exactly what needs to be happening in the book when.

Or, it could be all of the above.

Whatever the answer, I've been cranking out the words. Time will tell if they actually form up to tell a story.

Anyone else feeling restless?

2010-01-11T19:01:00.005-06:00

It's January.

It's cold.

I'm in the middle of my WIP, right before the lovescene.

Christmas is past. No winter vacation or any vacation to look forward to.

I've got a book out on submission.

Did I mention it's winter in Minnesota. Everything is white or gray. Yuck.

Any of these things could account for me having trouble staying focused.

But like I did in November, I just keep pounding away, 1471 words at a time.

How's everyone else doing? Going stir crazy? If not, what's your secret?

How are you coping?

Why is writing every book different?

2010-01-09T09:28:00.004-06:00

Four years ago I was preparing an entry for the 2007 Golden Heart. I'd started the thing in October to get it ready for the deadline in the beginning of December. The book ended up being about 46k when I sent it off. It was one of two. It did really well in chapter contests, but got hammered in the GH. That story is at Harlequin at the moment after going through many changes and getting some editorial feedback through contests. I expect it will sit there for at least another 6 months before I will hear anything.

The reason I bring up this book is because of how fast I wrote it. The characters came alive beneath my keystrokes. I could visualize scenes and knew how to show what issues characters were struggling with. Of course, it then spent 2 years being edited because it was my second book and I had no idea what I was doing. But what remains is most of what I wrote in those early days.

Last night I had a scene in my head. The last two books I started I had no idea how to begin. I had the main conflict, but couldn't figure out how to get them there. I couldn't find a cute scene to start them off or a dramatic one. Then along comes last night and half a chapter just magically appeared. No work. No gnashing of teeth. Just fully formed from my little brain. I love it when writing happens like that.

Now, back to our regularly scheduled WIP.

How about you? Do you start fast and furious or do beginnings bog you down?

Why am I bored?

2010-01-06T09:46:00.005-06:00

In my resolution to read more, I'm trying to devote some part of my evenings to my rather large and daunting TBR pile. Last night I picked up a Prsents and began to read. The prose was strong. The hero, alpha and sexy. The heroine heartwarmingly troubled. Their conflict solid.

So, why was I bored?

After thinking about it for a bit, I came to the conclusion that although there was conflict in the story, the characters didn't have the sort of push and pull chemistry that I find interesting. The hero kept being alpha. The heroine protested, but then let him have his way. At no point did I wonder if they were going to get together because the hero got whatever he wanted from the heroine. Where's the tension in that for the reader? What compels me to keep reading?

How about you? Run into any books that left you flat? What does it teach you about your own writing?

New beginnings

2010-01-04T11:40:00.005-06:00

Don't you love a shiny new year? It's as if all the negative stuff that happened the year before is swept out the door and the space that remains is all clean and sparkly.

I'm feeling optimistic for 2010. This year is going to be different than last. I'm determined to be more focused. Fewer contests. Less internet. More writing. More reading.

This last is where I need to focus the most. As many books as I read last year, I want to read 25% more.

How about you? What's one area you're going to concentrate on improving?

A Year In Review 2009

2009-12-30T15:51:00.004-06:00

A bunch of things happened in 2009 that I'm happy about.

The biggest and bestest was that I am now represented by an agent. What a difference that has made for my career and my peace of mind.

Other writing related stuff that happened in 2009.

Number of conferences attended: 2 (1 local, 1 national)

Number of Agents/Editors met with: 3

Number of entries into contests: 27 (yes, I busted the bank)

Number of finals: 9 (7 for YA, 2 for series contemporary)

Number of manuscripts that finaled: 3 (1 YA , 2 short contemp)

Number of requests for full from contests: 4

Number of full/partial manuscript rejections: 2

Number of tiara's won for most manuscripts finaling in 2008: 1

Number of new authors read: 35

Coolest thing I did: Roomed with my long time on-line buddy Lexi Connor in DC for National. We had a blast.

2nd coolest: Attended WisRWA's Write Touch Conference.

3rd coolest: I did NaNoWriMo for the first time and completed an entire book in a month, becomming a NaNo winner.

In looking at my stats for this year versus last, I can see where my contest journey has evolved. Where I used to have a 50% finaling rate, I'm now closer to 33%. I'm not planning on entering any contests in 2010. Time for me to refocus my writing on completing entire books instead of testing out first chapters.

Goals for 2010:

More reading. I'm going to commit to a book a week.

More writing. There's no reason why I can't average 500 words a day or more.
NaNo showed me I can write 1000 words a day (or more) if I have a clear story in my head.
More books finished. In 2009 I only completed 2 new manuscripts. Gotta do better. I intend to have 4 new books written in 2010.

For now I'm putting my YA stories aside and concentrating on Short Contemporary once more. I'm glad I took the break last year. I've returned to my favorite genre with a renewed appreciation for it.

Thanks to all my friends, old and new, for being there on this crazy journey to publication. Here's to all your publication dreams coming true in 2010.

Belated Merry Christmas

2009-12-27T18:55:00.004-06:00

Hope everyone had a safe and happy Christmas. We here in Minnesota got lots of snow, rain and sleet.

Went to see Avatar with my daughter today. Had to sit in the 2nd row because the theater was so packed. It's fabulous. First time in a long time that I didn't want to leave the world the movie was set in. James Cameron did an incredible job of blending storytelling with visual magic. I'm definitely going to have to see it again.

Back to work tomorrow. Four days have never gone by so fast.

Revisions/Rewrites

2009-12-22T19:18:00.003-06:00

I'm on page 125 of a 176 page revision and it's going a lot slower than I initially thought it would.

I love to rewrite. It's when I mold and shape all the raw material into something amazing.

Or in this case, remold and reshape.

I'm not exactly sure how many revisions this story has gone through. I do know that I finished the initial draft in July 2007. Then it sat around for a year or so because I was really stuck for how to make it work for Desire.

Along came the Desire pitch in 2008. I scrambled to rewrite the beginning and smooth out the rough edges.

But it languished some more until this fall when my agent offered her suggestions for how it could be improved.

This latest version is such a far cry from the first draft. It demonstrates 2 plus years of learning my craft and trusting in the basic story. I'm not going to hope that this is the last version of the story. I'm only going to work hard to make sure it's a better version.

When it's contained within the front and back of a Desire cover, then I'll say it's the last version. Until then, I'll revise on.

How about you? Do you revise multiple times or move on to something new?

Do you recycle?

2009-12-20T11:08:00.003-06:00

I'm not talking cans and plastic here, I'm talking scenes you cut out of a book because it's not working or isn't needed?

I just removed a love scene from my current WIP. I removed it because I wrote a brand new one for a different spot and no longer needed this one. Problem is, I love the scene. So, I will make it work in a different book. Maybe even the sequel to this one. Does that seem weird?

Do you recycle scenes from one book to another or is each book original unto itself?

Long week. Need cuteness

2009-12-17T16:33:00.004-06:00

For those of you who have also had a long week, here are some cute Panda pictures.

Presents Contest

2009-12-16T07:45:00.002-06:00

Well, it was a no for me. But a nice no. Not a form rejection. In fact, there was quite a bit on the reasons why it was a no and an offer to submit 3 chapters and a synopsis from my next work.

Thanks, I'll pass.

I'm not dying to write for Presents. First of all, I don't understand what the editors like. The last couple competitions they've had, I didn't particularly care for the entries they picked to win. I think that means their taste and mine are out of sync. Which translates to me not writing for them.

No problem.

Got other lines I like loads more. Targeting something I enjoy makes a lot more sense to me.

New month, new book

2009-12-01T16:23:00.004-06:00

How was your Thanksgiving? Mine was quiet. Spent the long weekend recovering from writing 50k in 24 days. I still can't believe I did that.

Today is December 1st. And I've started a new story. Although, technically it's not brand new. I started writing it a decade ago as a romantic suspense. I'm going to turn it into a Desire. It's a twist on a secret baby story. A bunch of stuff is written but it needs a major overhaul to make it work.

I wasn't ready to tackle something brand new like I did last month, so this is going to be a partial rewrite, partial write and I'm hoping to get it done by December 31st.

It's another story where the hero and heroine are both dark. I'm not sure why these dark heroes appeal to me so much. I'm going to lighten the story by inserting a cute baby. Nothing like an infant to make a tough guy lovable.

How are you doing post NaNo? Or if you didn't attempt Nano, how are you feeling motivated as the year comes to a close?

I'm done with my NaNo project

2009-11-24T19:33:00.002-06:00

And completely exhausted.

Too tired to celebrate.

Going to bed now.

Best of luck to everyone still working! I know you can do it.

We've reached the 3/4 mark for NaNoWriMo

2009-11-22T10:15:00.000-06:00

And inquiring minds want to know...

Where do you put your black moment?

I finished a Silhouette Desire this week, written by a multi-published author, and was rather stunned when I reached the last chapter and the characters hadn’t yet had their black moment.

I read on, wondering if there wasn’t going to be one or if the little spat they’d had a couple chapters back was it. Then, low and behold, it appeared. A shocking black moment about 3 pages from the end of the book. I mean it was huge. But by then both characters were so much in love it wasn’t more than a blip and in half a page they were over it and moving on with the rest of their lives, so in love, etc.

Meanwhile, I, the reader, was left staring at “The End” and going, What The F#@$?

The end was rushed. I felt cheated by how fast the hero had a change of heart. The reason for the black moment was never really dealt with by the heroine. All of that’s unacceptable.

I feel cheated. It was as if the author went, whoa, I’m at word 49,100 and I have to finish this book by word 50,000. Or is it lazy writing? Why don’t the editors demand more? If I was an editor and someone turned in a book like that I’d be telling her to back up the truck.

Normally I put the black moment at the end of chapter 9. That leaves 3 chapters for the H/H to struggle through to their HEA. This makes those last 3 chapters torture to write. They love each other. They need to end up together. How do they overcome those obstacles to their love when they’re still committed to those beliefs that keep them apart?

Where do you put your black moment? How black is it?

The end is near

2009-11-21T00:41:00.004-06:00

but in a good way...

If you had told me 20 days ago that I could write 40k in such a short period of time, I wouldn't have believed you.

Of course, I'm now nearing the dreaded end chapters. This is where reality hits and I realize, I have no internal conflict keeping the characters apart.

My character arcs aren't arcing.

And the hero's intense emotional realization that he loves the heroine isn't going to happen because he's already behaving like a man in love, instead of a man avoiding love.

Arg!

I hope it's not as bad as I think.

Maybe if I could get to sleep I could set my unconscious mind to the task of figuring it all out. If only the characters would stop bugging me about having their story finished. They're unhappy that I'm not able to get them to the HEA as fast as they'd like.

How do you feel about endings? Love them? Hate them?

Self publish with Harlequin

2009-11-18T08:34:00.003-06:00

I saw this and had heart failure. The chance to be published beneath the mighty arm of Harlequin but not go through the agony of querying and waiting and subbing and waiting. It is going to be mighty tempting to a lot of people.

Harlequin is starting a self-publishing venture where you pay between $599 and $1599 to publish your book.

Here's the link. Harlequin Horizons.

More disturbing is the fact that all form rejections from Harlequin will direct you to Harlequin Horizons.

Let me know what your thoughts are.

Update: RWA has determined that Harlequin is now a subsidy/vanity press and they are no longer eligible to receive conference resources. Regarding the 2009 national conference RWA has stated: "Eligible publishers are provided free meeting space for book signings, are given the opportunity to hold editor appointments, and are allowed to offer spotlights on their programs." This means Harlequin will not be participating like this.

I don't know all the ramifications of this change in status, but I can't imagine any of it's going to be good.

How I manage Nano

2009-11-16T17:12:00.002-06:00

Here's where my accountant genes come into play. Is this pathetic or what?

On the other hand, it's keeping me on track as you can see. Even though some days I might write less and others more, I'm trying to maintain the close pace to what I need per day.

I like watching my bars keep on perfect pace with my target line. This is the sort of thing I do at work every day and it seems to be working for a billion dollar corporation. Why not me?

How about you? Do you write what you can each day, knowing you need a certain number of words to finish NaNo in 30 days, or do you just keep going like gangbusters until you hit 50k?

I know people who are done. Others who are stalled. Everyone works a little differently. And it's fun to hear what works and what doesn't.

Happy Friday the 13th

2009-11-13T15:09:00.004-06:00

Anyone have a black cat cross their path today?

I can't believe we're closing in on the half way point for NaNo. This has been a fabulous experience for me and not at all what I was expecting.

This past year has been rather frustrating in terms of new material written. I feel as if I've been spending a lot of time editing or starting new stuff only to drop it to work on a different project.

For me to have written 20k in a couple weeks is nothing short of amazing. I'm not exactly sure where the book is coming from, but it's pouring out of somewhere.

In fact, I'm so inspired, I was thinking about going back to Bound By Duty and doing a mini-Nano in December to get that one done. I've got about 25k to go and I think after what I've done with the current wip I should be able to write that much.

By the way, I'm loving Tivo. If not for that, I wouldn't have accomplished anywhere near as much as I have. Yes, I'm a TVaholic. It isn't pretty but it's who I am.

Have a great weekend. Happy writing.

What's working for you?

2009-11-10T15:17:00.006-06:00

How's NaNo going? Are you learning creative new techniques to get your word count done? Or, are you finding your creativity is geared toward getting out of writing?

To keep my word count on track, I've been employing a series of writing sprints. I write for 20 minutes then break for a period of time and go back for another 20 minutes. It seems to be working. Telling myself I don't have to write for more than 20 minutes seems to take the pressure off when I look at my word count for the day and see that I still have 1500 to go, or 700, or even 200.

Sunday, I didn't look at the computer at all. Monday, I made up for the lack by writing over 2800 words and getting myself back on pace.

I've got a spreadsheet and a chart that helps me track my progress as often as I want. Sometimes it's a couple hundred words, sometimes a mere 50. Anything to feel as if I'm making a little progress.

Wouldn't it be great to be able to keep up this pace all the time? If I wrote full time, I'd probably be able to do it. The challenge is a little more daunting when you add in the 40 hours a week I work, the 1-1/2 drive time to and from, my daughter's after school activities. And don't even get me started with the whole cooking dinner and grocery shopping thing.

So, what's working for you?

Still working out my characterization

2009-11-06T17:32:00.003-06:00

Something about my heroine's GMC was bothering me. I started her out too sweet, too sheltered, and too self-aware.

This is the first of a series about 3 princes. It was originally supposed to be the second book, but after working on Bound By Duty, I realized that the plot wasn't working because I was trying to make the hero something he wasn't.

When I decided to create the series, I decided the over-arching story line would revolve around these three brothers needing to produce their heir to the throne.

The first book is about the eldest brother who will one day be king. He needs a wife who can have children. So, naturally, my heroine is having trouble in that respect. She has fertility issues, but she's in denial. Or at least, now she's in denial. At first I was going to start the book knowing she can't have children. Then I decided it would be a great character arc if she had to deal with the loss of her fertility and what impact that will have on her relationship with the man she by then has come to love.

Pair that with a guy who needs an heir and is afraid to fall in love and lose control again.

Mix in his illegitimate twin daughters who have just lost their mother.

I think it's going to be a challenge to balance sexy with all that angst.

So, how are your conflicts coming?

NaNo isn't a sprint, it's a marathon

2009-11-05T20:28:00.003-06:00

Plugging along.

Liking the story better and better.

Characters are gaining some dimension.

I just keep telling myself to move forward, one step at a time.

What needs fixing I can do in the next draft.

10% in and I don't hate it.

2009-11-03T21:12:00.004-06:00

But it's not quite love yet, either.

Started a little rough. I knew the basics of what I wanted to do, but couldn't really get into the characters. And I had an idea about their conflict, but wasn't quite settled on exactly how I was going to go about.

It felt flat.

It was boring back story.

And my characters had no chemistry.

It's getting better, and I keep reminding myself that it's a first draft.

How's everyone else doing?

No NaNo

2009-11-01T13:19:00.007-06:00

Ack! It's 1:19 and I've not even started.

How's everyone else doing?

Saw the Michael Jackson movie and it was great! I took my daughter. She seemed to like it too.

2:42 - 600 words

6:20 - 1500 words

8:00 - 2200

I just hit send on my Presents entry

2009-10-30T11:37:00.006-05:00

Whoohoo!

Don't know if it's any good. Don't really care. I figure the numbers are going to be too high to have a shot.

Anyone want to take bets on how many entries they receive this time?

The first contest it was 650 or so. The next one was Modern Heat only and 150. They've limited it to one entry per person so that should lower the numbers somewhat.

I'm going to guess 595.

Anyone else?

Oh, Synopsis, how we loathe thee!

2009-10-29T09:26:00.003-05:00

Well, that's not exactly true.

If I'm in the right groove, I enjoy the challenge of distilling the story down into about 600 words. There's something beautiful about a well crafted synopsis that gets the story across, but also shows off a little of my writing personality.

But at the moment, I'm struggling. Not with the story or the characters, but with the length. It's a true art to pack 50,000 words worth of conflict, characterization, plot and romance into 600 words and make it so you want to read the story.

How much do you tell? What do you leave out?

It's truly a balancing act.

I usually start with too much plot detail and end up cutting that out. Eventually I get to where I'm only focusing on the inner conflict and the romance between the hero and heroine, but some days that takes longer than other.

How about you? What's your secret for working out the synopsis and how many words do you take to tell the story?

In between

2009-10-27T15:42:00.005-05:00

I'm in my least favorite place in the world.

Between books.

Suspended between:

"That was a great story!"

and

"This idea sucks!"

I used to love beginnings. I embraced them with enthusiasm. The number of possible stories waiting to be told are endless. Which one to choose?

Unfortunately, I'm trying to be practical. If I want a career at this, I really need to consider what makes the most sense for me to be working on.

I'm gearing up for NaNoWriMo (50,000 words in one month, have I lost my mind?) by working out the characterizations and rough plot for my next book. On one hand, knowing where the book will end up is going to keep me from grinding to a halt in the middle. On the other hand, I'm taking such a clinical approach to the story that the creative fire that usually catapults me into a book isn't there.

Usually when I settle on a story, I get all tingly thinking of the characters and what hoops I'm going to make them jump through. So far, that hasn't happened with this story. I think it's because I don't have a real strong feel for the characters yet. I probably won't until I sit down to grind through the first few thousand words.

How about you? Are you gearing up to NaNoWriMo by working on plot, characters, etc? Or are you just going to PYBICHOK and start?

Are we there yet?

2009-10-20T16:15:00.002-05:00

As I edit A Case of Meddling for the I don't know what-th time, I can't help but think about all those people who wrote a book, their first or second, and sold it.

On Miss Snark's First Victim's blog, I read a success story about how Ginger Clark signed a new client after requesting her work from one of the Secret Agent contests. The client was 15 years old. Yes, you heard me. 15 years old. How could she have lived enough in 15 years to be able to write a gripping, thoughtful book? And know enough about grammar, characterization, plot, tension, etc. to have not one but multiple agents interested in signing her.

As I head into my third decade as a writer, still unpublished, I marvel at how many words I've put on the page. Settling into another deep edit of this book and seeing all the ways it can be improved, I'm able to appreciate how far I've come and all I've learned in the process.

But I can't help but ask: Am I there yet?

YA final in the Golden Rose

2009-10-13T20:33:00.003-05:00

I wasn't expecting this. In fact, I'd stopped working on the YA because so much of the feedback I'd received was negative. That makes this final especially sweet. And the fact that it was the longest entry to date (50 pages) means that I'm more than a first chapter girl. Yeah!

Do you recycle?

2009-10-01T15:26:00.005-05:00

And by that I don't mean cans and plastic. I mean stories. Do you rework stories or write brand new ones?

Last year I subbed a requested book to Silhouette after making extensive revisions to the plot based on an editor's suggestions. About the same time, I fell beneath Donald Maass' evil influence (kidding, love the guy) and filled the book with tension, conflict and characterization. Way too much for my 50K word category book. The hero ended up being way too unlikeable because I didn't have room to balance his darkness with something light. The heroine wasn't sympathetic because I couldn't go into depth about her backstory and develop her the way she deserved to be developed.

I let the plot overwhelm my story and didn't sink far enough into the characters.

I knew when I sent it that it wouldn't be a good fit for category. I wasn't telling the right story. I was trying to fit these wonderful characters into a very tiny box. I said at the time that I would expand it into a single title. And that's what I'm going to do.

Some of the plot is going to stay, but I'm going to approach it from a different angle and let both the hero and heroine develop more. Their love story won't change at all. They are still the same people. But I'm going to let them interact with other characters more.

So, do you recycle? Or do you move on?

Today's goal: Setting goals for a major rewrite.
Yesterday's achievement: Sent last Golden Rose judged entry back
What I'm grateful for: Characters that capture your imagination.
Quote: "I'm an idealist. I don't know where I'm going, but I'm on my way." -Carl Sandburg (1878 - 1967), Incidentals (1907)

Where does the time go?

2009-09-29T16:11:00.004-05:00

Sheesh. A month has gone by since I last updated. This means I'm failing terribly in my goal of posting twice a week.

You might wonder what I've been doing. Or you might not care at all. I haven't been doing much writing (altho I have done a little.) I can sum up much of the month of September by saying I've been judging contests (Golden Rose and Finally A Bride) and critiquing and editing.

I'm working my way through the cd of 2009 National workshops I didn't attend. Lots of good stuff there. I've take up Yoga. I'm meditating.

Oh, and I won a tiara for finaling with 6 books during 2008. When I get it, I will post a picture of me in it. It's a huge thrill. I've wanted one for 3 years, ever since I joined the Contest Divas loop.

I'm working on a chapter to send to the Harlequin Presents contest.

I attended Midwest Fiction Writer's Fall Harvest Workshop featuring Michael Hague.

And last, but definitely the coolest, most amazing thing is I now have an agent.

Life is good.

Today's goal: Send off the judged FAB entries
Yesterday's accomplishment: Finished last Golden Rose entry
Quote: "Good judgement comes from experience, and experience comes from bad judgement." -Barry Lepatner

A star is born

2009-08-28T14:39:00.004-05:00

Here's Emily wearing the multicolored coat in the finale.

Emily made it on stage last night for the performance of Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the Chanhassen Dinner Theater.

What an amazing experience for her. She got to participate in the production and sang and danced herself up a storm.

And we found out today that she got a part in a musical version of A Christmas Carol being done by one of the local churches. She's going to play the part of citizen #2 (name to be determined) and she gets to sing a solo.

What a great week for her.

Happy 10th Birthday Emily

2009-08-27T10:35:00.003-05:00

My baby is no longer a baby. She's reached double digits and she's the greatest kid ever.

This week she auditioned for a musical based on A Christmas Carol. She prepared a song (These are a few of my favorite things) and had to read from a script. In addition, she had to show them she could learn a dance routine and perform it. I was so proud of her.

Tonight we're celebrating by going to our local dinner theatre to see Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. They pull a couple kids out of the audience to participate in the performance. She's been playing the soundtrack on the piano for the last month. I hope she gets chosen to be on stage.

Adventures of a Teenage Truthseer finals in the Toronto Golden Opportunity contest

2009-08-23T21:28:00.003-05:00

Whoohoo. Another YA final. This book continues to do better than I expected. The scores were really polarized with 40 points between the lowest and the next highest. I'd love to know if this is because so many different types of voices can be found in YA or if it's just this book.

What's great about this final is the chance to make changes before it goes to the final editor. What's cool about that is that I've made some rather drastic changes to the book since I submitted it to this contest.

I'm off to look at score sheets and figure out what else I want to look at.

Simple revisions became a day long project

2009-08-18T19:30:00.004-05:00

I started out thinking I would fuss a little with some of my word choices and let it go at that. None of the feedback led me to feel that major changes were required. Of course, that was before I received my Happily Ever After final judge's comments for Meddling

These came yesterday. Just in time for me to work on the beginning of the book. The editor didn't have much to say about Meddling, but she did note a scene that had originally been written for the beginning of the book. I'd shifted it toward the end to create some additional conflict between my characters and she thought it was too contrived.

So, I replaced it back where it belonged. Whether or not it works there has yet to be seen. I wrote it to reinforce my heroine's conflict with the hero.

Moving the scene also meant that chapter 3 became too long. Therefore, I repositioned an explanation scene into chapter 4. It actually works pretty well there. This scene had started out in chapter two, but too much backstory convinced me to move it to a later chapter.

It's weird to be working on short contemporary after spending so much time in a sixteen-year-old's head. Doing so reminded me how much I enjoy these short romances. So much needs to happen in such a tightly written package.

Today's goal: Return my Golden Gateway entry

Yesterday's achievement: All the YA is broken into scenes in Scrivener

What I'm grateful for: Being able to revise before an entry goes to the final judge

Quote: "An author is a fool who, not content with boring those he lives with, insists on boring future generations." -Charles de Montesquieu (1689 - 1755)

A Case of Meddling Finaled in the Golden Gateway

2009-08-15T17:08:00.000-05:00

Whoohoo!

This is particularly exciting because it was a 3 chapter and synopsis contest.

Today's goal: Ch 15
Yesterday's achievement: Ch 14
What I'm grateful for: Hot sunny Saturdays spent on the river
Quote: "I once had a rose named after me and I was very flattered. But I was not pleased to read the description in the catalogue: no good in a bed, but fine up against a wall." -Eleanor Roosevelt

Judging contests. Are PROs too critical (i.e. puffed up with self-importance?)

2009-08-14T17:53:00.006-05:00

Before I start my rant, let me say that I am PRO and I am darned hard on the entries I judge. But I don't let personal preferences or snap judgments get in the way of my scoring. And when I see something that belongs on an editor's desk, I'm all glowing praise.

I am always fascinated by my contest results when I look at them. Most of the time, I can count on published authors to score my entry high and unpublished and most PROs to score low and nitpick the chapter to death.

Just by looking at the comments, I can usually tell when a PRO has judged it. The level of "you are doing this wrong" is always high. It's like they're looking for stuff to pick on.

I'm always eager to get feedback, but it has to be intelligent feedback.

Here's a no no:

"Having both characters rich, made it hard for me to sympathize with them."

This story is targeted at Desire. The heroes are billionaires. If you're going to judge series, know your category lines. That's like a someone judging paranormal and saying they don't like all those books about vampires, shapeshifters and faeries.

And here's an example of where you lose credibility with me:

"In the opening scene, I couldn’t figure out who was hosting the party"

CHAPTER ONE

Nathan Case dodged a waiter carrying a tray of champagne. Ahead of him, keeping just out of range, Emma Montgomery slipped through the cream of Dallas society gathered at her father’s home to celebrate New Year’s Eve.

Were you able to catch whose party they were at?

Okay, enough grumbling. I'm off to work on chapter 14 of my YA.

Today's goal: Finish chapter 14

Yesterday's achievement: I actually wrote a little

What I'm grateful for: All of you for listening to me vent. Thank you!!

Quote: "The secret of a good sermon is to have a good beginning and a good ending; and to have the two as close together as possible. - George Burns

We now return to your regularly scheduled blog

2009-08-13T20:35:00.007-05:00

Whoops!

I've completely blown my post twice a week goal. Ah well, like bingeing on desert in the middle of a diet, you just put it behind you and get back on the plan.

How have you all been?

I'd like to tell you I've been ridiculously productive, but that's not really the case. Although I did return from RWA National with a spring in my step and a reason to get my ass in gear and perfect my YA, I have been struggling with lack of writing time, planning, and discipline.

On the other hand, I'm enjoying the story a great deal. When I do work on it, I'm having fun. And I've passed the halfway point on the second draft.

Oh, and I joined Facebook.

That's about it.

Today's goal: work on chapter 14
Yesterday's achievement: added a few hundred words to my fantasy story
What I'm grateful for: I've embraced the Zone diet once more. Time to get rid of those 20 pounds I gained whilst waiting to sell something (can anyone relate?)
Quote: "Idealism is what precedes experience; cynicism is what follows." -David T. Wolf (1943 - )

HEA Final placements and Pre-National excitement

2009-07-14T05:46:00.007-05:00

The Mid-Michigan Happily Ever Contest has finally announced its winners. A Case of Meddling took 2nd and Bending to Blackmail took 3rd. That's pretty much what I expected would happen. The final judge was a Harlequin American judge and these books are as far from HAR as can be since they're targeted for Silhouette Desire. Not to worry, from what I hear the feedback is great and after all that's a big part of why I enter.

I leave for D.C. in 24 hours. I'm not packed, but all my laundry is done and I just need to buy nylons and sort out what clothes I'm taking. Already I'm too excited to sleep. I can wait to see Lexi who is already having a blast.

I sent off the manuscript yesterday to Harlequin in Canada. I'm not sure how other people are doing it these days, but I chased all over town looking for International Reply Coupons. They are nowhere to be found. Even though USPS has them on their website, you can't buy them there. I sent them an e-mail asking them where I can get them. I was not running downtown last night on the off chance the post office might have them. No one answers their phone at a post office. It's all very rude.

Somehow I need to get my mind wrapped around my YA once again. This exercise with a requested manuscript has been exciting, but the reality is that Harlequin is a tough nut to crack.

Today's goal: Pack
Yesterday's achievement: Sent off manuscript
What I'm grateful for: Helpful people at shipping places
Quote: "Man has to suffer. When he has no real afflictions, he invents some." -Jose Marti

Touch of Magic 2nd place

2009-07-10T17:45:00.004-05:00

Well, I haven't gotten around to writing about this contest placement because I was kinda bummed not to have done better. Then tonight, I got a phone call from the coordinator who said that even though I didn't get a request from the final judge, I did get a referral. And since the referral is for a line I hadn't considered for this particular book, I'm a little overwhelmed. But very excited. I've heard an editor will refer a book on if it suits another line. I never thought it would happen to me.

The good news is, I've got a full manuscript ready to go. So, in the mail it goes before National.

And then the wait begins...

Serendipity

2009-07-09T18:50:00.003-05:00

This is weird. I'm writing this book about a teenage truthseering. Her life goal (at the advanced age of 16) is to attend Harvard and become a lawyer.

Guess what Harvard's motto is:

TRUTH

I could have picked any University, but I settled on Harvard. The universe at work.

Themes

2009-06-26T08:49:00.006-05:00

Eureka! I finally nailed down the theme for my YA. You're probably thinking that it's about time, since I'm almost (oh so close) to finishing the first draft. Knowing my theme early on in the writing of my story probably would have given the first draft more focus.

Last year during the Desire pitch, Diana asked me what the theme for my book was. It was a classic deer in the headlights moment. Fingers poised over the keyboard, clock ticking down the precious seconds of my ten minute pitch, I had nothing.

So, what is my theme for the YA?

No one is exactly who they appear to be.

I went through a dozen ideas before this one popped into my head this morning. The last one I felt pretty good about was: Doing the right thing, versus doing the easy thing. That states the book's moral, but as a theme, it didn't completely resonate for me.

The story is about a girl who can tell when people are lying. Early on, I decided that her new ability lets her glimpse what's hidden behind everyone's public face. Her perceptions are turned on their head about her parents and her classmates. She's got a pretty simple view of the world in the beginning of the book. By the end, she sees that there's a lot more layers.

I'm not sure why it took me so long to determine what is now a pretty obvious theme. Maybe because I didn't have Blake Snyder's Save The Cat Goes To The Movies helping me out.

Today's goal: 500 words
Yesterday's achievement: Tossed entries into IGO and Golden Gateway
What I'm grateful for: When friends sell. It gives me hope that my time will come
Quote: I take the view, and always have, that if you cannot say what you are going to say in twenty minutes you ought to go away and write a book about it." -Lord Brabazon (1884 - 1964)

Judges comments

2009-06-24T21:27:00.004-05:00

First, I received my final judges comments from the Fab Five. I'm completely blown away by how much feedback I got. The judge really took her time with my entry and wonder of wonders, I think she got my writing. After some of the final judges comments I've received, that's way out amazing. In fact, I'm going to print them out and laminate them to look at every time I get bummed out.

Second, I contacted the coordinator of the Spring Into Romance contest and my entries got lost by the US Postal Service. I got no comments, no scores, nothing. That's the last contest I'm entering by mail.

Third, I just got done judging 7 entries for 2 different contests. I hope I didn't crush anybody's drive to write. I didn't sugar coat any of my comments, but I wasn't nasty either. Just blunt. One thing you get from me when I judge is a whole lotta feedback. It might not all be gushy complimentary, but it's geared toward improving the entry. And after 30 contest finals with 8 books in 3 genres, I think I can speak to what works.

I avoid saying: I don't like your hero/heroine, although that is often my first impression. Instead, I try and say things like: you have not shown your hero's motivation so he's hard to root for.

I did--heaven help me--take one entry's plot and explain how I would have done it differently given the same premise. If someone had done that to me, I probably would have screamed bloody murder. It's my story and I'll tell it however I want to, however bad that might be. But the story intrigued me enough that I thought if I could show her how the events could be rearranged to make the plot more feasible... we'll see what happens.

When I judge, I do so with an eye towards making the entry ready for an editor/agent to look at it. A manuscript can't just have great imagery and good writing, it has to have conflict, tension, interesting twists to old plots.

You would not believe how much backstory I read. ARG!!! Doesn't everyone by now know not to do info dumps? POV seems to be a good indicator of whether the author is a big time newbie or someone who has been writing for a while.

Every single entry needed major help on the internal conflict. As in, there was none.

Another problem is the synopsis. When you've got a page limit, there's a play by play up front and a quick: everything gets resolved and they live happily ever after (no, I'm not kidding or exaggerating about this).

That's all I got for today.

Today's goal: Finish judging all my entries
Yesterday's achievement: 500 words on YA
What I'm grateful for: Uplifting feedback from final judges
Quote: "It pays to be obvious, especially if you have a reputation for subtlety." -Isaac Asimov (1920 - 1992)

Another 1st place finish

2009-06-20T22:29:00.002-05:00

Adventures Of A Teenage Truthseer won the YA category of the 2009 Duel On the Delta contest. I got a call from the coordinator today. And she said there's a half a page of comments from the final judge. How cool is that?