Category Archives: me-me-me

Progress Report: Good News/Bad News.

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Good news: I’m a prophet. I said in my last post I might not make it through the pitch round of ABNA this year and I didn’t. I know the future! The disappointing future!
Bad news: see above re: ABNA. I’m not gutted. As I said in my previous post, the contest is unpredictable, particularly in the first round where everything hinges on 300 words or less. I’m happy with the pitch I wrote. It’s not much altered from the one I wrote last year which resulted in the same book reaching the semifinals. It didn’t help my odds that this year there was only 400 available slots in YA as opposed to the 1000 of last year. I think I likely got a perfectly decent score on my pitch, but it wasn’t enough to squeeze into the top 400. I’m okay with that. And echoing again my last post, there is much to be gained from ABNA that doesn’t include winning or advancing in the contest. This year I got another awesome critique partner (outside of my regular critique group), who already has a great YA book out. I’m looking forward to reading and possibly helping with the sequel, as well as getting her take on Random Acts.
Good News: several of my friends from the board and members of my critique group did make it past round one. I plan on cheering them along to the final round.
Bad news: I heard back from the three agents who had requested the full manuscript of Random Acts. They all passed. Two said they were open to reading it again should I revise and would look at my future projects. One of those two rejections made me cry. Not because it was mean, it was anything but. The agent said they loved the manuscript and thought long and hard about offering to represent. But they didn’t think it was ready.
I wept bitter tears. I wasn’t expecting to take it so hard, I’m usually pretty good at brushing off disappointment and soldiering on.
Sometimes it is hard to see past the “no” and absorb the helpful and positive things the agent/editor/ critic said along with the rejection. All I could see when I read the letter was that I’d come very close to succeeding but it WASN’T GOOD ENOUGH.
After indulging in a tiny pity party, I could then take in that this agent had said they loved my work. That they wanted to see more of it. And had given me good advice on how to improve it. Yes, they’d said it wasn’t good enough, I just hadn’t been able to see the “yet”.
Good news: an editor from a small press saw a twitter pitch* for Random Acts and asked to see the first few pages. Not long after sending the requested pages the editor responded and asked for the entire manuscript. I don’t know if anything will come of it, but just having it looked at by a publisher is a big accomplishment.
Good news: I finished my fifth manuscript, The Living UnDead. It is the final book in a trilogy. And the farewell to characters I created in my very first novel. It’s also my longest book, coming in at 126,000 words (in the first draft. The count is bound to change once I start editing.)
I started it in the summer of 2010, making it the book it took me the longest to complete. I also started and finished both Outlook Grimm and Random Acts of Nudity between starting and finishing this one.
Bad news: I’m not writing. For the first time in two and a half years, I don’t have a work in progress. I know what my next project will be, but since my critique group is planning on doing our own not-National Novel Writing Month in April, I’m waiting until April 1st to start drafting. I plan on using the time until then editing Living Undead to send to my beta readers and on planning the new book.
Good news: I made a chocolate mousse cake!
I got the recipe from the One Pot Chef YouTube channel. It’s probably the got best ease of prep to decadence ratio of anything I’ve ever made.
Bad news: My elliptical broke about a month and a half ago and I haven’t been doing my daily hour of exercise as a result. I was already gaining back some of the pre daily exercise weight, because of all the baked goods before it broke. So I’ve ordered a new elliptical and am trying to cut back on the treats. We’ll see if that helps.
*AS a part of a Twitter pitch event. Authors were invited to pitch their book in a tweet and agents and editors could view them and request. It is never a good idea to randomly pitch to an agent on Twitter or facebook, or any other social media platform, unless they say they re open to that.

A Short Novel About the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award

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The Amazon Breakthrough Novel contest is less than two weeks away. Entries begin being accepted on January 14th. For those who don’t know, ABNA (for short) is a contest run by Amazon (yep, that Amazon) for unpublished novels. The entrants get the opportunity to have their books reviewed and the winner gets published. I highly recommend any and all new and not so new unpublished authors give it a shot. The upsides of the entering are multiple. There is no cost or fee to enter, even if your book is cut in the first round of judging, all you are out is the time you spent preparing the entry. There can only be one winner (actually not true this year, but I’ll get to that later) and with a pool of ten thousand entries, it probably won’t be you. But that doesn’t mean there’s no benefit for entering and not winning. Every good thing that has happened to me as a writer can be traced back to ABNA. Participating in it taught me how to write an engaging query, provided me with valuable feedback on my work, and put me into contact with other authors I now consider friends. Some contestants have gotten agents because of the exposure they got in the contest. Some of the self published authors saw their sales spike. I know I’ve bought books based on reading the excerpt during the contest.

So here’s how it works. The contest opens on a certain date, this year January 14th. It stays open for two weeks or until ten thousand people have entered, whatever comes first. Each phase of the contest mimics steps an author takes in trying to get traditionally published. The entry consists of a 300 (or less) word pitch, an excerpt of the first 3000 to 5000 words of the novel, and the entire manuscript. The first round is the pitch round. It’s about the same as a query letter you’d send to an agent, with the exception of that you cannot put your name in the pitch. The ten thousand pitches are read, judged, and scored. The top 2000 scoring pitches advance to the next round. In that round the excerpt is reviewed and again scored. On top of that Amazon makes the excerpt available to the public who also can comment on the excerpt. Their comments don’t effect the judge’s decision but it is a great opportunity to get feedback from strangers. The top 500 scoring excerpts move on to the quarterfinals in which a Publisher’s Weekly employee reviews and scores the entire manuscript. Every one of the 500 hundred gets a review, but it’s not guaranteed to be a good review. From there the top 100 manuscripts become semifinalists. The judging panel, usually consisting of Amazon executives, editors, and one or two successful authors, choose the six finalists. At this point the excerpt is back in play as members of the public are invited to read the excerpts and vote on the one they want to win. In previous years there were two winners, one from young adult and one from general fiction. They were awarded $15,000 and their book was published. This year is a little different. This year the single winner is awarded $50,000 and their book is published, while the five other finalists get $15,000 and their book is published. All six finalists get published! That’s pretty exciting.

Here’s my history with the contest. I first entered in 2010. I discovered its existence just a few weeks after completing my first novel, My Undead Ex. I was looking for something to do with it now that it was done. I stumbled onto the contest perhaps a day or two before the entry period closed, so I threw together a pitch, proofread the entire manuscript in a twenty-four hour period, and entered. Needless to say, I was cut at the first round. I was about as clueless as it was possible to be. I wince now when I think about the mess of a manuscript I entered. And my pitch was as dry as dirt. But I had lost nothing for trying, and wrote it off as a learning experience.

One year and another finished manuscript later, the contest was back and so was I. Again I entered My Undead Ex. But a lot had changed in that year, to start with I wasn’t quite so raw and had more than a few days to clean up manuscript. Secondly, I’d discovered the ABNA forums. I hadn’t participated in message boards much prior to that. My few forays usually ended with me being grossed by the backbiting and skeeviness that sprung up like fungus in even the most innocuous seeming group. But this was different, this was a bunch of authors with a common goal. Some of the discussions were silly, some enlightening, many were newbies like me, asking questions of the veterans. The most significant one for me was the pitch thread. Participants posted their pitches for others to comment on, and comment they did. They said what wasn’t working and offered advice on how to improve it. I learned quite a bit about what makes a pitch work from reading other people’s pitches. I posted my own and got invaluable help, and tried my best to pass on what I’d learned. So entry time came again, and again I entered. And I made it through the pitch round. My excerpt was posted and I got a few reader reviews. They were neither glowing or discouraging. The official reviews were similar, highlighting a few good aspects and pointing out things that I could work on. And I was cut from the competition. I wasn’t disappointed, I was happy to have made it a little further than before and gotten some feedback from people I didn’t know, as well as having made some writer friends.

(All these years later, My Undead Ex, a book I love and have written two sequels for, still doesn’t feel ready for publication. I’ve learned so much about writing in the intervening years, it needs another thorough revision before I consider it.)

So another year passed. This time I entered my most recently finished manuscript, Random Acts of Nudity. I felt it was my best work. I went to the pitch thread again, and got help. And was sure to offer some in return. I went in feeling good about my chances. I didn’t think I’d win, my goal was to get to the quarterfinals and get a Publisher’s Weekly review. I waited nervously for the list of entries that made it past the first round. And my name was on it! Which put me back into waiting mode. In the meantime the excerpt was posted, and it started getting reviews. Lots of reviews! Lots of really positive reviews! People were reading my work and they liked it! And then the official excerpt reviews came in and they were also mostly positive. I’d made it to the quarterfinals! So again more waiting. The new list came out and I expected for that to be the end of the road, but there was my name again, I was a semifinalist! And the Publisher’s Weekly review was posted and was mind-blowing in its positivity. A professional said good things about my book! I was over the moon. So the only thing to do was wait to hear about the finalists. I tried not to get my hopes, but I admit I occasionally fantasized about being flown to Seattle for the awards luncheon. Then the finalist list came out and my name was not on it. Was I disappointed? Yes, a little, but not devastated. And the books that were on the list entirely deserved to be there. The whole experience was so great and validating. I don’t regret it for a minute.

So here I am again. I’m planning on entering Random Acts again. Since entering it last year I’ve queried it to agents and gotten some interest. I’ve taken the editing course, and chopped about eight thousand words out. It feels much tighter. It is still under consideration with a few agents, and if they were to offer to represent it, I’ll withdraw from the contest. However there’s no predicting when I’ll hear from them, and no saying whether they’ll make an offer. So the plan is still to enter. That $50,000 is too tempting. I’ve got a pitch I’m happy with, and feel like the last edit cleaned up any lingering errors. I don’t really have a goal this year. Last year was so phenomenal, it would be hard to top, short of actually making it to the finals. And while that would be awesome, it’s anything but shoe in. There’s no guarantee I’ll even make past the pitch round this time. The contest is infinitely variable.

So as a three year veteran of the contest, I thought I’d offer up some tips for a successful ABNA experience. Just keep in mind that my definition of success doesn’t necessarily include winning the contest.

1) Read the official rules. Read them twice. Know them inside out. There are several ways to get disqualified if you’re not paying attention. For starters if you’re name is anywhere on the pitch, excerpt, or manuscript, you’re out. And there is a minimum and maximum word count. If you’re novel is 49,999 words, it’s too short and not eligible for the contest. If it’s 150,001 words it’s too long and also not eligible. Read those rules, there’s lots of them, but it’s what you need to know. If you need help understanding the rules feel free to go the forum and ask, but the person responding will probably just go to the rules page for the answer.

2) Visit the pitch thread. Writing the pitch is often harder the writing the book. Take the help that is out there. The pitch is the first thing that gets judged in the contest (and in the traditional publishing world as well). if your pitch doesn’t entice the judges, your entry is dead on arrival. Even if you don’t post your own pitch to be commented on, read the ones that are already there. Try to figure out what makes you want to read that novel, or what is keeping you from the same. But I do recommend posting your pitch. Usually we as authors are too familiar with the novel. What we think makes perfect sense, could leave the reader scratching their head. Or turn them off entirely. Getting outside feedback is essential. And remember 300 words is the maximum for the pitch not the requirement. If you can effectively sell the story in less than 300, do it. 250 seems to be the sweet spot.

3) Expect negative feedback. You will never please everyone. It’s not possible. Nothing is universally loved. Name a beloved book/movie/work of art, I’ll find you some one who thinks it’s over rated. Even the Mona Lisa has its detractors. Don’t expect nothing but praise. If you put your work out there, whether its the pitch, the excerpt, a two sentence quote, someone will pipe up to criticize it. They may be wrong, they may be right. Last year during the excerpt phase even though I was moved on to the next round, one of the official reviewers gave me some feedback that initially felt a bit harsh. After a day to nurse my wounded pride, I realized it was a valid criticism, and I’ve worked on improving my writing on those lines. If you can’t take hearing criticism that isn’t one hundred percent positive, the contest isn’t for you. In fact publishing in general probably isn’t for you in that case. But the contest can give you a taste of whether you can handle it.

4) Don’t be a sore loser. The contest eventually leads to 6 lucky entrants being published, but that leaves 9,994 who don’t. Odds are that if you enter, you will be cut before the final six. You may be disappointed. You may think the judges were smoking crack for cutting you. You may want to smack some sense into the reviewer who called your entirely original creation derivative. You may need to blow off some steam. By all means do it. Talk to your friends, rant to your cat. Write a letter you won’t send to Amazon. Write a short story where book critics meet creative and horrible demises. Whatever you do, don’t voice your sore feelings in public. And yes the Internet is public. In the years I’ve been following the forums, inevitably after each round of cuts, the boards flood with people declaring the contest is pointless, unfair, rigged, a sham, a joke— now that they’ve been cut. They didn’t seem to feel that way while they were still in the competition. This is a bad idea beyond it making you seem inexperienced, bitter, and immature. I’ll go into why in the next tip.

5) Don’t just root for yourself. The forums are a great place to connect with other writers. They can help you perfect your pitch, keep you company as you wait for the results, and give you tips on whatever the next leg of your journey is. Whether it’s self publishing or looking for an agent, somebody there has already done it. These are connections you want and need. I’ve seen two of the finalists from one year, who were in direct competition with each other, cheering each other on and actively helping each other find paths to publication.
Last year I went to the pitch thread to get help, reconnect with friends I’d made the year before, and make new connections with new contestants. One new contestant seemed like a great new contact/friend. Their book sounded like something I’d read. I helped them with their pitch, they paid it forward with good advice for other authors. When we both made it through the pitch round, we digitally high-fived each other and consoled those who didn’t. We chatted on the forums as we waited for the results. I read their excerpt when it went public. I liked it and left a review with my thoughts on what I liked and what I thought needed work. They did the same for me.
Then the official excerpt reviews came in and the list for the next round was posted. I made it through, they didn’t. I offered them my condolences and encouraged them to keep trying. I didn’t hear back from them. The next time I saw them in the forums, they were railing against their official review. In fairness, the reviewer didn’t word their main criticism in the most diplomatic way, but the meat of it was the same criticism I’d had for the excerpt. It was the same issue nearly everybody who reviewed the excerpt pointed out, just in kinder words than the reviewer had used. But the author posted repeatedly about how blind and unfair the reviewer was, each post growing more vitriolic. It wasn’t fun to read, left a bad taste in my mouth, and lost the author some of my respect. Then they went on to declare that the whole contest was stupid for not recognizing the brilliance of their book. Which, though I don’t think they realized it, was a swipe not just at the contest but all the people who the reviewers had advanced to the next round, including myself who had considered that person a potential friend, who had been rooting for them, who would have been happy to congratulate them had the positions been reversed.
As I said before, everything good to happen to me in my writing career can be traced back to this contest. And most of it is because of contacts I made. People I met on the ABNA forums pointed me toward the contests that led me to the agents that are currently reading my book. I met the editor of the anthology that published one of my short stories through the facebook group associated with it. My critique group consists entirely of people from the boards. I doubt they would have let me into the group, if they thought I’d lash out if they said anything negative about my work.
I know I’d be wary to help this author again. But I probably would, since I did see potential in their excerpt. But whether I would or not is moot because they haven’t come back. They’ve let their hurt pride cut them off from a valuable resource. (By which I don’t mean me, but all the ways they could get help and exposure. As I’ve said a few people have gotten book deals based on the contest, people who got no further than this past contestant. But their work caught the attention of an agent, who very well could have been following their behavior on the forums as well.)

So there you have it. My best advice: be sane, be courteous, take your lumps, and take a chance. It all translates to the publishing world as well. Good luck to everybody entering.

The Year in Books

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For the last couple of years I’ve kept a running list of the books I’ve read over the course of a year. My slightly compulsive brain likes having a record. This year’s list is a little shorter than past ones. I attribute that to working on three separate manuscripts (two completed, plus major rewrites) an editing class, querying agents, and a busier social life, taking up some of my reading time.

2012 by the numbers

Grand total
25 books read since January. (That doesn’t include single issue comics or the many picture books I read to my insatiable niece.) – 11 graphic novels/12 novels/1 short story collection

24 audiobooks listened to. (Coincidence that it’s equal to the number of books.

Breaking it down by category
6 read on my Kindle

4 of the 6 Kindle reads were unpublished manuscripts reviewed for my critique group. (I’m not counting the many times I read and reread my own work as I edited.)

4 books I’d read in the past and wanted to revisit.

5 borrowed from friends

3 from the library

16 young adult – 5 books/10 audiobooks

7 middle grade – 4 books/3 audiobooks

4 nonfiction – 4 audiobooks

Favorite Author numbers
2 Neil Gaiman – 1 book (Fragile Things)/ 1 audiobooks (The Graveyard Book, one of the revisited)

2 Jane Austen (Mansfield Park) (Emma, one of the revisited)

1 Jasper Fforde (the Last Dragonslayer)

2 Brian K. Vaughan (False Faces) (Ex Machina vol.9)

1 Douglas Adams (the Salmon of the Doubt)

Currently, I’m reading Bumped by Megan McCafferty and listening to Cold Days by Jim Butcher. But I’m only counting the books I finished before the end of the year. Alright 2013, show me what you got!

Edited: I finished Bumped this morning so I went back and added to the totals.

I’m a fan girl: Neil Gaiman

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How big of a Neil Gaiman fan am I? Here’s a hint.

I was first exposed to Neil Gaiman as a teenager by my sister, albeit a indirectly. She lent me the Bones of the Moon by Jonathan Carroll. I devoured it in a few days. I raved over it to her (it’s still one of my all time favorites). She mentioned that it reminded her of a particular arc of a comic book series called Sandman. I filed that away for future reference. About a year later, I was perusing my local Borders. I spotted a few Sandman trades. At that time I didn’t have a lot of money or many possessions to my name. Every purchase was carefully considered. I read each volume’s description until I found the one who’s plot sounded the most like Bones of the Moon. It was A Game of You. I took it home, hoping I hadn’t wasted my twelve dollars.

 

It probably wasn’t the best place to jump into the series as it was the most self contained arc, without many links to the series overall. It didn’t matter, I was hooked. Over the next year I read the rest of the series in order of what was in stock at the book store at any given time. I had already realized that I liked comic books before I left home, but I doubt I would be as into them as I am if I hadn’t spent that time in the graphic novel section searching for Sandman volumes I hadn’t read yet.

 

Once I’d devoured the entire Sandman saga, I snapped up everything else with the name Neil Gaiman on the spine. And they didn’t disappoint. Neverwhere, Mr. Punch, Stardust, they all sparked my imagination and made me see the world in a new way. I love the way he writes, often in a personal but slightly esoteric style. I love the way he mixes myths and everyday life in a way that makes me feel like this is the way the world has always been, I just hadn’t noticed before. And I love listening to him read his stories.

 

And my love of his writing sent me down many unexpected paths. It led me to delving into comic books. It led me to going to signings and conventions at a time in my life when getting out of the house for things other than work was a challenge. It led me to other artists who spoke to me, like Jill Thompson, Dave McKean, and Susanna Clarke.

 

What it didn’t do was spur me to do was write. Oh, it inspired me and made me long to be a writer. But I wanted to write like Neil, which I couldn’t. I would start a story and give up after a few paragraphs. I just couldn’t do what he does. It took a long time for me to realize that I’m not supposed to write like Neil, I’m supposed to write like me.

 

Occasionally I hit on something that feels like it plays in the same sandbox as Neil’s work (such as the story I posted on Halloween) and it pleases me immensely, but I’m no longer trying to imitate my idol. After all, he does an excellent job of being Neil. We don’t need another one. And I get to create something that only I could have created. Maybe I’ll never reach his level of craftsmanship, but I’m going to keep trying. And that is one of many reasons I’m a fangirl.

Progress Report (formally known as this week in writing)

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The biggest thing that happened since the last update is the conclusion of the editing workshop. I learned so much from the class. I plan to do a post at a later date of the most important lessons. It wasn’t without it’s trials. The teacher had a look at the first chapter of Random Acts of Nudity. Her major feedback was that I was over writing. Using ten words where two would do. Overwhelming the narrative with flashbacks and digressions. It wasn’t the first time I’d heard feedback on those lines. But it was the first time I could see the problem for myself.

I must admit, it threw my confidence for a few days. There was so much that needed to be cut! Would I still have a book by the end? How could I be so blind about how bad the writing was? Was it even worth editing? And it got into my head as was writing my current WIP. I kept questioning every line as I was writing. Am I doing it right now? Which words do I need? It almost paralyzed me.

But after a couple of days the feedback sunk in. I could look at the text I was editing and see what was essential and what could go. I’ve edited the first five chapters, and have cut around four thousand words so far. And the book is essentially the same. I might end up with a much shorter book by the time I’ve finished this latest edit. But I’d rather have a very good 50,000 word book than a decent one of 70,000.

And I reminded myself that the book I was beating myself up over, had gotten to the top one percent of ABNA. It had garnered a glowing Publishers’ Weekly review, excess words and all. The book is not worthless, but it has room for improvement.

Another development is that my critique group read RAON in its entirety. They too gave me valuable feedback. Helped me see areas that needed to be fleshed out and/or clarified. I love my critique group, they’re so encouraging and generous with their time. Though they don’t sugarcoat the critique. I’ve decided to put querying on hiatus until I’ve finished this round of editing, and implemented their feedback.

Of course I already had it on submission with a few agents as this was going on. I’ve heard back from three of the four who requested pages. Two have passed, offering similar feedback as my editing teacher. One I’ve yet to hear from. And one requested the complete manuscript! That was very exciting. And she had seen the pre editing class version. We’ll have to wait and see what happens there.

And in spite of the self imposed hiatus, I couldn’t resist entering another pitch contest, and got another request. So I sent out the new streamlined version of the first three chapters this afternoon.

On the non RAON writing front, I did not finish the WIP in time to begin a new project for NaNoWriMo. Between the WIP, the intense editing on RAON, critiquing this month’s manuscript for the group, and holding down my day job, I just didn’t have the time. But I do have a pretty good idea of what my next project will be. I’m thinking of trying my hand at Middle Grade fantasy.

In the meantime, I’ve bounced back from the self doubt, and the end of the WIP is in sight. It’s currently at 113,000 words. I expect to add another 15 to 20 thousand by the time it’s done. It’s the longest book I’ve ever written, (previous champion is 80,000). Granted once I’ve cut the excess, it’ll likely be closer to 90,000. Regardless it will feel good to get to the end.

Finally in baked goods news, I went on a bit of a baking spree. I made chocolate chip cookies, chocolate ganache cookies, and dark chocolate peanut butter cups. And now my pants are way too tight. So the baking is also on hiatus. Except for the batch of pumpkin bread I made this afternoon. I basically used the same recipe as the banana bread, but substituted pumpkin pie filling for the bananas. It’s super moist.

That’s all for now. Thanks for reading!

This week in writing

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It’s been more than a week since my last progress report, but these few weeks in writing doesn’t have much of a ring to it. So what’s happened? I’ve heard from two agents. One was one of the four who requested pages. She was very nice. Said the concept is fabulous, but that it wasn’t quite the right fit for her. The other is one I queried during a time when she said every query would get a personal reply, even if it was a no, rather than a form rejection. A form rejection is a prewritten letter just saying no, with no reasons behind the no. Her response was also a pass, because she had recently signed an edgy YA, and that mine sounded too issue driven for her taste. So, no agent yet, but both rejections were encouraging in their way. Neither said the concept wasn’t sellable or that the writing was bad. The first specifically said it was likely an agent out there that will want it. But that she isn’t that agent. The other already had a project that could possibly compete. The  interesting thing to me about her feedback is I don’t think of Random Acts of Nudity as an issue driven book. I see the sex tape as the catalyst of the story, not the focus of it. It’s an important part of the story but its not all sex tape all the time. but I’ve been working on the book for over a year, I’m too close to see it objectively.

Also going on is the editing class. It’s been really interesting so far.  This week the task is to read the entire manuscript and cut any scene that does not advance the plot or the character arcs. I’m pretty pleased so far, I’ve found a couple of brief scenes that can go, but it doesn’t feel like I’ve got many wasted scenes. They almost all tie into either the overarching plot or are important to character growth. With one exception. There’s a scene just past the halfway mark that does neither. It’s just a sweet moment between the main character and her sister. I should cut it, but I can’t. I love it! Which means I really should get rid of it. There’s an adage that goes “kill your darlings.” It means don’t get so attached to any of your writing that you can’t change or cut it. It can apply to the wording of a sentence or entire scenes. I’ve never had a problem changing sentences, but hooboy, this one is tough. I’ve marked the scene to delete, but haven’t actually done it yet. My critique group is reading Random Acts this month. I’ll ask them if they think it should go.
I’ve also made a little more progress on the WIP. It’s very close to being finished. Maybe four more chapters until the end. If I can finish it by the end of the month, I’ll start a new novel for National Novel Writing Month.
And in baked goods news, I made banana bread from scratch just because I had all the ingredients on hand. It’s delicious, I don’t think I’ll ever use a mix again. I also made a deep dish pizza for my sister’s birthday dinner. It was just okay. Since I had left over ingredients I tried a different dough recipe and made a stuffed spinach. Also just okay. The pizza code is tough to crack, but I will prevail!

Picture Time: Dr. Who

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I really like Dr. Who. I’m not  a super fan, I haven’t seen most of the old series, but have seen a few of them. I have watched the new series since it debuted with Christopher Eccleston. I like time travel stories, but Dr. Who just speaks to me in a way that a lot of the others don’t. It’s the wibbly wobbly timey wimeyness of it. David Tennant is my Doctor, not because I’m not attached to the other incarnations, but because if you say the words “the Doctor” to me David is who springs to mind. Tonight is an important night for Whovians, because tonight we bid fairwell to Amy and Rory. Hopefully not tragically. They are my favorite companions, with Rory edging Amy out by a hair for the top spot. Please don’t die Ponds! In their honor I’m posting some of my Dr. Whoniverse fan art.

 

 

 

(if you are interested these are all available as tee shirts at my Red Bubble store)

And now a bonus story. I don’t really write fan fiction, but this little scene popped into my head one day and I had to write it down.

(whooshy noise)

Amy: Doctor?

Doctor: (paying attention to something other than her) hmm?

Amy: Did you move the Tardis?

Doctor: (still interested in something else) No.  Look at thi—

Rory: Then why is it over there now?

Doctor looks up, silently ponders the Tardis which is not where he left it.

Doctor: Well… graaugh! (waves his arms in front of him)

Doctor: Come on, time to go! (takes each by the shoulder and tries to lead them off)

Amy: But—

Doctor: No.

Rory: Door’s opening.

Tall thin man in striped suit, large coat, and trainers steps out.

Man: Hello! (said with plenty of enthusiasm but no familiarity).

Amy: (raised eyebrow, refusing to be led off) Hi. (whispers to the Doctor) Who is that?

Doctor: No one! Come along, Pond.

Ten: No one? Not hardly. Who are you to— Ah.

Eleven: Right, no time to waste. All sorts of places that are not here.

Ten: I’m the Doctor.

Rory: Did he just say?

Ten: (Puts hands in pockets, bounces on heels) Yeah.

Amy: He’s not.

Ten: Am. (more heel bouncing.)

Amy: Doctor, why—

Eleven: Amy, I can’t stop to answer to questions. I will not be answering questions. Just don’t bother with questions—

Ten: I love answering questions. I’m brilliant at it. Won an award.

Eleven: Fine! I’ll answer.

Amy opens her mouth.

Eleven: (points to himself) The Doctor. (points to Ten) Also the Doctor. Same person, just not the same same person. See?

Amy and Rory: No.

Eleven sighs.

Ten: Want me to try?

Eleven: No.

Rory: Are there a whole bunch of weird blokes called the Doctor? Is that it?

Eleven: Noooo!

Ten: Also yes, a bit. But not quite like that.

Amy:(to Rory) I’m starting to see the similarity.

Eleven: Okay, there’s more than one Doctor, but there can only be one Doctor at a time.  However, there can be more than one Doctor in a time. There done, moving on. Has anyone got any gum?

Rory:(to Amy) Did you get any of that?

Amy: Not really. Lost interest halfway through anyway. You hungry?

Rory: Yeah.

They walk off, leaving the Doctors.

Ten: Nice redhead. Love a redhead.

Eleven: Gum? Anyone?

Ten: Or a blonde.

Eleven:(disgruntled noise)

Ten: Or a fish.

This week in writing

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It’s been an eventful week. I participated in a pitch event on twitter. The rules were simple. Pitch your book in 140 characters or less, and mark it with the tag #pitmad. Agents were following the tag, and if they liked what they saw, they’d favorite your tweet. I had three agents request mine. Which means there are now three agents with pages from Random Acts of Nudity in their inbox (plus a fourth who had requested pages off a similar event the week before). So now I wait to see if any of them ask for more. And I try to not to obsess over the undiscovered typos that appeared in the excerpt seconds after each time I hit send. Hopefully a missing quotation mark here and a random paragraph break there won’t ruin the query’s chances, but who knows? Having an agent/s request pages is a small goal to check off on my mental list of “things that mean I’m a real author.”

It would be very easy to get carried away, imagining that because they asked for pages, I’ll be signed and have a book deal by next month, but that ain’t happening. In truth this isn’t that different from the unrequested queries I’ve sent. With those I sent a query letter and five to fifty pages of the manuscript, which the agent or their assistant would read and then choose to pass or ask for more. (So far it’s all been passes). In this case the agent has only seen a one to three sentence description of the book. The pages will be the first sample of my writing they’ll see. If they ask for more, that will be exciting (and another check on the list).
The major difference, and it’s a significant one, is that these agents already like the concept of my book. With the blind queries I never knew for sure if the agent passed simply because they didn’t like the idea of the book. These agents are into the idea of a high school girl with a sex-tape (uh…a book about a high school girl with a sex tape, I’m not implying they like child pornography. Whoops) So now it’s a matter if they like my execution of the concept.
So as I said, it’s all about waiting. Though what I’m waiting for is hard to say. I only know I’ll hear from them if they like what they saw. None of the agents said they’d contact me if they didn’t. For all I know they’ve already read the pages and decided it wasn’t up to snuff. Or it might still be in their to read piles, and they might not make the decision for several months. It’s best to just celebrate that I qot a couple of requested queries, and go back to business as usual.
In other writing news, I made some progress on my work in progress. And I got another couple of chapters edited. Plus starting this week I’ll be taking an online course on professional editing, which will hopefully make the self editing process easier and more productive.
That’s all for now.

Week 14: The Next Big Thing Blog Hop

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Thanks to J Lenni Dorner for asking me to be a part of this.  You can see J’s answers by clicking here.

***Answer these ten questions about your current WIP (Work In Progress) on your blog

***Tag five other writers/bloggers and add their links so we can hop over and meet them.

Ten Interview Questions for The Next Big Thing:

What is the working title of your book?
Random Acts of Nudity

Where did the idea come from for the book?
I kinda stole it.  NOT REALLY!!!  I did not steal it, but my idea was sparked from reading someone else’s concept.  I participate in a board on Amazon where authors post their pitch and get help from other authors in making it as appealing as possible.  About two years ago I read a pitch there about a person who saw themselves in a viral sex tape.  It got me thinking.  The other author’s idea was about an adult male, who didn’t remember making the video, and the book was a psychological thriller.  But the idea of being in a viral sex tape stuck with me.  I started thinking about how most kids these days have recording equipment and how easy it is to distribute video online.  I began weaving the story of a teenage girl who casually makes a sex tape with her boyfriend, not expecting anyone but themselves to see it.  Then after they breakup, it’s seen by their entire school.

What genre does your book fall under?
Contemporary YA.

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
There aren’t many actors that fit the description of my main character, since she’s plus size.  There isn’t an abundance of teenage plus size actress working today.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
A shy honors student is mortified when her ex releases their sex tape to the whole school.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
I’m submitting it to agents now. Fingers crossed, one will like it.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
I wasn’t keeping track, somewhere between five and eight months.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
I’m embarrassed to say I haven’t read a lot of other contemporary YA.

Who or What inspired you to write this book?
See the first answer.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?
The MC has a snarky, self deprecating voice.  The way she handles being humiliated and ostracized is (I hope) unique and entertaining, while still being believable.  And the supporting characters rock, if I do say so myself.

Thomas A Knight, I.A. Uaro, Dana Brantley-Sieders, Maggie Young, and Janet Oakley– you’re it!

I’m a fangirl: Jim Henson

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I hope this will be a semi regular feature where I discuss some of my biggest influences. First up Jim Henson.

Sesame Street

Like most people born after 1969 my first exposure to the work of Jim Henson was Sesame Street. Back then I didn’t know there was a person behind the puppets. They were entirely real to me. My prime watching years were 1980 to 86. It was a little different than it is today. No Murray or Abby Cadabby, only minimal Elmo. Not nearly as structured about when each segment aired. It was still the early years, I vaguely remember Mr. Hooper and a Snuffy who was imaginary. I clearly remember Gover as a waiter, Ernie stealing Bert’s nose, a song about a llama going to the dentist, Kermit as a reporter. Sesame Street made a huge impression on me and I absorbed as much as I could. It taught me about letters and numbers and words. It also taught me that being smart was important, but wanting to learn was even more important. It taught me people were all equal regardless of color: black, white, blue, green, it was all good. And no matter their quirks—if they can’t count, if all they want to do is count, if they tend to devour your worldy possessions, if they bother you while you’re trying to sleep, or if they’re perpetually crabby—your friends are your friends.
And they were my friends. I trusted them and loved spending time with them. Even after I found out there were people making them say or do the things they did, they were still living breathing beings to me.

The Muppets

My Muppet years started later than the Sesame years but they definitely overlapped. (In this case I’m referring to the ensemble of characters who populated the Muppet shows and movies, though it can be used to refer to all of Henson’s puppets including the Sesame gang). I don’t actually remember a time when I didn’t know of the Muppets. I think I might have been born knowing the lyrics to the Rainbow Connection. While Sesame’s focus was on education, The Muppets were all about entertainment. The Muppets were a little more sophisticated than their Sesame Street counterparts.  They were a tiny bit more complex both in their design and personalities. It’s remarkable that Henson and his fellow performers could imbue bits of felt and fur with such a range of emotions.  These puppets could convey pathos, joy, ennui, insecurity, mania, frustration, contentment etc.  That versatility meant you never knew for sure what you’d get with them. Sometimes it was pure vaudevillian shtick. Often it was zany, chaotic, whimsy. And sometimes it was raw emotion that spoke to the core of the human experience. (Okay, that was a kind of hyperbolic.) Few things have moved me the way Gonzo singing I Want to Go Back There Someday in the Muppet Movie did. Many of the few that have, also involve Muppets. (If you want another example of the muppets moving you to tears, search for Just One Person on YouTube.)

Despite their differences Sesame Street and the Muppets have a lot in common. Such as their affinity for the absurd. But most importantly, like Sesame Street, the Muppets are about acceptance and tolerance.  Everybody is welcome.

Everything else


Once I learned that there was a man behind Kermit and Ernie and the Swedish Chef, I sought out to find more things he’d done. And there was a lot. Fraggle Rock, The Dark Crystal, The Labyrinth, The Storyteller. All these worlds bursting with imagination. It came as a shock, yet felt entirely right when I learned that Henson and his team created the Yoda puppet for George Lucas, and Jim’s longtime collaborator, Frank Oz, brought him to life.

It’s a cliche to say that there will never be another Jim Henson. But it’s the truth. He was unique. My world is richer because of his creations—because of him. I was ten when he died. It was the first time I was so affected by the death of some one I never met. I’m so glad that Sesame Street and the Muppets have carried on after he was gone. Kids need them, I need them. They reflect the world the way I want it be be.  Full of laughter and hope.  And I’m glad that his company continues to produce incredibly creative and original projects like the TV show Farscape and the movie Mirrormask. Jim is gone, but his inspiration continues.

And I will always be a fangirl.