My First Vlog Post!

So. Kelly Martin, one of my very bestests friends, does these cute videos where she chatters in her cute accent and everyone loves her. She talked me into doing them, too. So here you go :)

 

So apparently this is a weekly thing. Got any questions you want me to answer? Leave me a comment or send me a message!

Raif and Me: Part 5

It's my turn again! I love the twists and turns this experiment takes, each of us adding our own unique style--Kelly's mystery, Leah's wit, and my super-powerful, paranormal girl :) Every time I get a chance to write, I get more and more excited about this story!

In case you'd like to catch up:

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

It was so dark wherever I was being held that I wouldn’t have been able to tell my eyes were open except for the burning—like someone had set my eyes on fire with overachieving gasoline. Or, you know, something less crazy. My groan echoed, telling me I was somewhere cavernous. And I was freezing. And the smell…inhuman. Intoxicating. It almost lured my eyes closed again.

Yeah. Raif had brought me home—his real home, not the nondescript brownstone townhouse I’d been stalking for the last six years while he pretended to be a regular human with a massive case of OCD. I hadn’t been here since…

My mind revolted. No. The last time I’d been here, I’d almost lost my soul. And I would not let it happen again. He’d been ever so polite when he’d brought me here—apparently thinking I was obedient enough that I didn’t need to be tied up. The only thing stopping me from walking right out was the blasted darkness and my aching head.

My head would require Advil. And Pepsi. Lots of it. But the darkness? That I could do something about.

Raif might be one-of-a-kind, but so was I.  Yeah, I might look human. And act human. But I was a different sort of bird altogether.

Just like Raif.

But also the opposite of Raif. I was good. I was a guardian. Guarding the world from vampires and werewolves and demons.

And Raif.

I closed my eyes, digging around in my own soul until I found the tiny spark way back behind my heart. Wake up, little bird. It’s time to go to work.

Raif thought I wouldn’t try to escape. He thought I was that submissive—that after everything he put me through, I’d still stay like an obedient, furry pet. And six years ago, I would have. But not now. Raif didn’t know it, but in those six years of stalking him, I’d grown a backbone. And no one was going to lock me in the dark and expect me to sit there waiting for him to come home like an overeager puppy. I wasn’t a werewolf, after all.

I was a Phoenix.

I felt the heat consuming me—but not painful. Warm and safe. Strong. I felt my body change, as it had so many times before, felt the wings spread, the bones twisting, lightening.

My burning body lit up the cavern. How nice, he’d even left me dinner. And a blanket. He’d also installed a door since the last time I’d been there, but it didn’t matter. I had tears that healed, a bite that poisoned the soul—

--and wings that shed fire hotter than the sun.

The door and its pathetic little lock didn’t stand a chance.

I knew where Raif was going. I knew the Collection knew. So that’s where I was going, too. I hadn’t decided yet whose side I would be on when I got there. My heart whispered Raif. My mind bellowed Collection. And my soul waited quietly, reserving judgment.

I flew on silent, smoldering wings out of the cavern, through the tunnels that would have been impossible to find my way out of in the pitch blackness. Raif knew what I was. But when we’d been together, on the same side—both fighting for good—I hadn’t had the courage to shift. His kind was my ancient enemy, yet we both had believed in the same thing. Clearly, he thought nothing had changed in all these years.

But to survive him and the devastation he’d caused my heart, I’d had to shift. The first time I’d shifted, I’d sworn never to change back. Being human hurt.

So much.

But I was strong now. And even if I still loved him, I wouldn’t let him win. He’d shattered me once. He wouldn’t do it again.

I shifted as soon as I neared the entrance. Deep, dark caves and winding tunnels were Raif’s thing. He thought they were fun.  I didn’t mind them, but I didn’t have time for his games now. I had a world to save.

The funny thing about destiny? Everything you did to escape it seemed to lead you right to it. Destiny always wins.

 Stay tuned for Part 6 coming next week from Kelly Martin!

Raif and Me: Part 2

So. This happened.

My two favorite friends and I started a pass around writing experiment. Leah Sanders started the story, then passed it on to me. Next week, Kelly Martin will take her turn, and then it will go back to Leah until the story is done. Each week, one of us will post the next section. See how fun?!

For Part ONE, check out Leah's blog post HERE

(Yes. Her blog is way cooler than mine. Mine won't let me change the font. Or the colors. Or...anything. My blog is possessed. And it haunts me.)

"He's moving," I hissed into the darkness. But no, I was not, as I know you assume, talking to myself. I was, in fact, talking to the bosses. The little transmitter attached to my collar made sure they were always listening. Always listening.

And lucky me, the little bug in my ear made sure I could hear them, too. "What? What do you mean, he's moving? He never moves on Friday!"

I rolled my eyes. "No kidding," I muttered. Their sharp intake of breath, simultaneous, as always, told me they had heard that, too. I winced, because I would pay for that little bit of sarcasm. Later.

But not now.

Now, I slid from shadow to shadow, watching Raif do the same. Trick or Treaters were everywhere, little ghosts and super heroes and witches and princesses. And monsters, of course, because what would Halloween be, without monsters?

Little did they know, there was a monster hunter in their midst.

And a real live monster, dressed in black and not carrying his book, set on seeking his own revenge.

"Justice," I heard him saying, over and over, timed with each step. "Justice. Justice. Justice."

Sometime next week, Kelly Martin will post the next installment. Check out her blog at http://www.kellymartinbooks.blogspot.com/

My Plea to Brand New Authors

So, I've been slacking lately. Sorry about that. No wait, actually, I've been writing like a fiend, so I haven't been slacking-slacking. But I've been neglecting my blog and I haven't posted for a week. *hangs head in shame*

But this post has been on my mind a lot, and it's super important to me. It's aimed specifically at brand new authors, but it's really for every published author. This is my debut year. In this year, I've published five books. Feudlings came out in March, and from the second it went live on Amazon, I was checking its rankings.

Constantly.

Like, for the first few months, I was on Amazon at least four times a day. Maybe more. And as the rankings rose and fell, so did my moods. It was a roller coaster. And as each book came out, I did the same thing until Amazon was completely controlling my life--my time, my moods, my ability to write...

And then Warrior Beautiful released. It's doing fantastic now, but the first week or so, it wasn't. And the bottom dropped out of my world. I loved this book so much and I couldn't figure out how no one else shared this love. It's my best writing ever! I decided it wasn't worth it. I wasn't writing any more. I deleted all my works-in-progress. *Click* and they were gone. I cried. I moped. I didn't do anything because I was lost without my writing (I'm a tad dramatic).

Totally me

THEN.

Then we went to Goblin Valley State Park. I didn't have the internet. I didn't even have a computer because we didn't have electricity and my phone had no service. We were completely cut off. And I had an epiphany.
I'm not writing for the rank on Amazon. I'm not writing for anyone but me. I'm thrilled when someone loves my stories, but that isn't why I write. I write because I don't want to be a murderer (if this confuses you, go here). I can't control the rank on Amazon. I can't control whether people buy my book, and in the old days before Amazon, no one had even heard of a rank, and THEY still wrote!

So I banned myself from Amazon. I don't go on Amazon (well, I do, but not to check my rank. Girl gotta shop, yo!), I don't want to know my sales numbers, I don't look at reviews unless someone points a fabulous one out to me and then I'm all squeeing and bouncing.

The change has been phenomenal. I can write again. Before, I felt stifled. Everything I wrote, I wondered if someone else would like it. Now, I write for me. I write what makes me happy and the creativity is really opening up again. I control my moods, not Amazon. And I remember why I write in the first place.

So my plea is this--PLEASE don't let Amazon ruin your life. Don't obsess over rankings that don't make sense and don't matter anyway. In the end, if your book does well or doesn't, is it going to matter in your writing? Write because you love to write. Write because you have stories to tell. Write because you don't want to be a murderer. But don't write because you have to tell another story just to keep your rank up. Or down. Or whatever it is when it's good. It doesn't matter. It really doesn't. The book is going to do what it will do whether you're checking it every hour or not. So why do it?

Acknowledgements

SOOO Today is February 19. Feudlings comes out March 19. ONE MORE MONTH! I thought I would do something special today to celebrate (I like to celebrate. It makes me happy. Who knew?). 

So there's no acknowledgement section in Feudlings, but I wrote one, because I get confused easily...it's a long story. ANYWAY, there are a ton of people that helped me so much while I was chasing my dreams, and I wanted to share it. So here you go :)

There are so many people who held my hand on this journey, so many loved ones to thank. First and foremost, my husband, for putting up with my strange habits, letting me write instead of work, not letting me quit, and most importantly, always, always believing in me. I would have quit before I started if not for him. I love you, Blair!

My parents, who put up with so much from me through all the years. They deserve a reward for not killing me or selling me to the circus – and they say they are proud of me. Thank you for being so wonderful!

For my sisters and brother and their families, thank you for reminding me that I’m related to you, and therefore am always awesome. Thank you for reading my stories and being proud of me. And sweet Crystal, thank you for reading it over and over again and begging for more. What would I have done without all of you? And by the way, Heinz 57, baby!

And my friends, for encouraging me, for reading and critiquing, for brainstorming with me, for being my battle guru and answering my hundred questions, for sprinting with me and kicking me into gear when I don’t feel like writing. I am so grateful for all of you!

And Stephanie, for taking a chance on me and giving me hope! And the Astraea family, for being so welcoming and helpful and kind.

Finally, my kids. Thank you, sweet babies! They keep me young and alive. They remind me that we have dreams for a reason, and we should never give them up. I cannot look into their great big eyes and say I quit. I could never have told them to chase their dreams if they hadn’t given me the courage to chase mine.

Why I am Insane (or at least, more crazy than usual)

*NOTE: Please disregard the short, choppy sentences. And rambling. And not making sense. My brain isn't working and I don't see it returning to it's semi-efficient self any time soon

My publisher had an call for submissions. It is due in March. But I was busy for the first few months getting Feudlings ready to be published, and then we had NaNo, which I thought, at the time, was hard. And then we had Christmas.

So January hit and I said to hubs, "If I'm gonna write this thing, I've gotta get started. And I'm gonna have to work my tail off."
"K."
He's so enthusiastic.
So we worked out a schedule. He would work until 5 pm and I would have dinner ready (a feat all by itself) and then I would work and he would watch the kids.
Somehow, it didn't work like that. I had dinner ready, cleaned the kitchen, and then it was time to put the kids to bed so I didn't actually get started writing until after 8. Which meant I was staying up til 3 or so in the morning, and getting up at 6.
But, I worked all weekend - Friday from about 9 til Sunday about 3, without really sleeping in between.
It took me almost a month, but I finished the dang thing. And I thought NaNo was bad!
But the deadline is looming, so I also had to edit it and send it to beta readers so I'd have time to fix it after I got their feedback.
Which meant another week of not sleeping and abandoning my family and forgetting to eat. Or shower. Hmmm. I should shower...

So what did I learn from all this? Now my brain is on a forced vacation (thanks for the term, Lauren!) I can't think. Can't write. Can't edit. But maybe it's good. I have some fun story ideas I'm excited to start, but I also haven't had a chance to read a book since June. And my kids miss me. So basically I learned that maybe some people can write and edit a book in a month, but I'm not one of them. And I also learned that when my brain has had enough, it's done. It's like a mule that way, instead of a horse. Which is good, I guess. At least I won't have to shoot it. 

Resolutions!

I know everyone with a blog is blogging about their New Year Resolutions (New Years? Which is right?), so I wasn't going to. BUT I need to remember mine, so this post is probably more for my benefit than anyone else's. Here goes!

• Write. Every. Day. This is why I love NaNo, because I'm forced to write everyday, but I also hate NaNo because my brain can't write a story with a deadline looming like that. But I LOVE writing every day, which is why it's my #1 goal.
• Write 1500 words a day. I need this one because otherwise, I'd write two words and call my #1 Resolution good. I'm sneaky that way.
• Finish my love story - self explanatory. It needs to be finished and edited and ready to submit by March 1. I'm only about 4k into it now.
• Get Feudlings in Flames revised and ready to submit. It's done and through the first round of edits. Now it's to beta readers and critique groups.
• Edit Shattered Assassin. It needs a TON of work. Hopefully it's saveable. 
• Learn Grammar. Since I, ya know, MAJORED in English. I should be able to write correctly.

Also, I have some personal goals, if you're interested :D

• Brush my hair and teeth. Every day. You'd be suprised how often I forget to do this when I never leave the house!
• Keep my kitchen clean. Like normal stay-at-home moms do.
• Not kill the neighbor kids that come over at 7 am and don't leave til 7 pm.  

Last year I hoped to learn to cook. This year, I realize that's a dangerous quest and I've given it up.

Happy New Year (New Years? GAH!) Everyone!

Guest Post by Mikey Brooks!

Hi! I am so incredibly lucky to have Mikey Brooks, author/illustrator extraordinare, visit this week with awesome information on storyboards. I am not a plotter, but I desperately needed something because "pantsing" wasn't working for me. Storyboards are perfect for the way my mind works! Mikey has also just released one picture book and the next one comes out in January 2013 - more information below! And you should totally check out his blog. I've been stalking it forever. It has a ton of helpful advice!

 

Using Storyboards to Write your Book

By: author/illustrator: Mikey Brooks

            As an author/illustrator I use storyboards all the time to create my books. With picture books the story is related in both pictures and words. When the words fail to show what’s going on in the story, the pictures will pick up and lead the story onward. Unfortunately with novels there’s just not any room for a fully illustrated book, so it’s up to the author to make sure the story is being driven solely by the text. This can be a challenge for some writers. Because they are using just text to keep their story moving, sometimes they fizzle out—some even stop, and on comes the dreaded writer’s block. But Storyboarding can help.

            Try an experiment. Take 4 sheets of paper and fold them in quarters. In each quarter you are going to draw (now don’t be too fancy, just stick figures) out a story line. It needs to be one you are familiar with in order to know the main action sequences. Try something simple like, Little Red Riding Hood, or The Three Little Pigs, if you’re ambitious try a fairytale like Cinderella. Each of these stories have basic plot structures that can help you to pin point the action that should take place on the storyboard. In a basic plot the story should have 3 acts, or parts to the story. So on every 9^th square write act 1, act 2, act 3, up at the top. This will help you determine the shifts in the story. There are lots of plots, let’s just keep it simple for now.

            Within act 1 of the Three Little Pigs the three pig brothers leave their parents’ home and set out on their own. They each build a house. This is the only stuff that should happen between pages 1-9. In act 2 the wolf goes about trying to eat the pigs. He destroys the first 2 pigs’ houses and they run to safety at their brother’s home. In act 3 the wolf makes a final attempt on the pigs and the pigs succeed in defeating the wolf. A story as simple as the three little pigs can be shared in a children’s book where there are roughly 26-32 pages. Your story is a little more complicated, but the principle is the same.

            Take another 4 sheets of paper and quarter them. On every 9^th square write act 1, act2, act3, up at the top. Think about your story. What are the main turning points in your plot? In Cinderella act 1 ends after Cinderella has been established as a slave in her own house and the arrival of an invitation for all the ladies of the home to go to a ball. How does your story start? What is the turning point? Act 2 is where a midpoint happens, where your characters start to move from reaction to action. In Cinderella, she makes every attempt to make it to the ball but is thwarted by her stepsisters. And finally at the end of act 2 she arrives at the ball and the prince falls in love with her only to have the magic spell be broken by the chime of midnight. Act 3 is where the resolution of your story comes into play. In Cinderella, she is finally found by the prince and is lead away to the castle to live happily ever after.

            Now you’re asking, what if I haven’t thought that far ahead yet? No problem. There are a lot of writers that don’t do any sort of outlining at all (and storyboarding is just basically visually outlining). Maybe you don’t know what is going to happen in act three of your book. That’s okay for now. You can story board out scenes, Make it visual. If you can draw out your book by moving action sequences from one page to another then you will be able to write out the action as well. Storyboarding can be a great way to help you plot as well as visualize your book. Techniques like this have helped studios like Pixar for years. Have you ever watched the making of films and they show you crude drawings of each scene before it’s actually made into a scene? That’s right—it’s storyboarding. Try it out. I am sure you will find it useful. You can get a FREE layout of a storyboard by going to http://www.insidemikeysworld.com/childrens-book-layout-story-board. 

            Thank you Wendy for allowing me to share some space on your blog. If you have found this helpful and you’d like more tips on writing, illustrating, and more please visit: www.insidemikeysworld.com or catch me on my blog at www.writtenbymikey.blogspot.com. You can also find me on Good Reads at: http://www.goodreads.com/InSideMikeysWorld on Twitter: @writtenbymikey  on Pinterest at: http://pinterest.com/writtenbymikey/ and on Facebook: as Mikey Brooks, or email me at: insidemikeysworld(at)gmail.com.

    

        I’d also like to share that I have two picture books that have just been released: Bean’s Dragons and ABC Adventures: Magical Creatures. There is a GIVEWAY going on right now at Goodreads.com for both of these books. I invite you to enter the giveaway. It ends on January 26^th. Click here for BEAN’S DRAGONS and here for ABC ADVENTURES: MAGICAL CREATURES.

About the Books:

Bean’s Dragons. 

Have you ever had a dragon in your house? How about a dozen? Bean is a little girl with an imagination that is creating quite a mess. Although Bean loves each of her dragons, she forgets how untidy they can be when having so much fun. When Bean's parents discover what's happened in their short absence, Bean finds herself the blame of the dragons' giant mess.

You can find more about Bean’s Dragons at: http://www.insidemikeysworld.com/beans-dragons/

ABS Adventures: Magical Creatures.

This is the first installment in a series of ABC adventures featuring Professor Vontriponmybottom, a heroic explorer determined to share with children the alphabet through exciting and fantastical means. In Magical Creatures you will find all sorts of enchanting beings such as: B is for Bigfoot, M is for Mermaid, and O id for Ogre. The professor shares fun facts about each creature he encounters and never shies away from getting a picture with them.  This book is sure to educate and entertain young readers and their parents.

You can find more about ABC Adventures: Magical Creatures at: http://www.insidemikeysworld.com/abc-adventures-magical-creatures/

To Quit or Not to Quit...

I'm not big on rejection. Apparently, my extremely sheltered life led me to have an extremely not-thick skin. So you can understand why querying the story that holds most of my soul is so hard. Lots of rejections.
I told myself that I would try for a year and a half. I could quit on my birthday, and then no one could tell me I didn't try, right? Right.

My birthday is a month away. Only one more month of trying. And I'm scared that the month will be over and I'll have failed, but I'm also kinda relieved. Or at least, I was.

Cue conversation with my daughter on the way to school today:

She was telling me all the things she wanted to be when she grows up. And then she stops, mid-sentence: "Mom, what did you want to be when you were little?" "A writer." I smile. "Me too. I want to be a writer just like you when I grow up."

OH.

And then, "How do you get to be a writer?" I answer what every parent is supposed to answer when kids ask how to chase their dreams, "You can be anything you want to be. Just work hard and never give up."

OH.

So now I'm at an impasse. How on earth can I quit in a month and still tell my daughter to chase her dreams?    

That Feeling when You've Eaten the Whole Elephant

You know the saying, "What's the best way to eat an elephant? One bite at a time." That is also how you write a novel. One word at a time. 

I have been writing my whole life. And I love it. Absolutely love it, in fact. 

BUT.

Until two years ago I had started probably over a hundred stories, but I had never finished one. Yes, I was slacking. But then I had a lot of free time on my hands when all I could do was sit and think (so actually, NOT free time.) Baby #3 didn't like to sleep for the first nine months of life, so we spent a lot of time in the dark, by ourselves, when I could do nothing but daydream.

I came up with such a fantastic story. I loved it. I loved all the characters. I had the whole thing, from start to finish, in my head. And I thought, "Hey, now that baby is sleeping for an hour a night so I'm not totally zombie-ish, I should write this down." 

Just a side note - starting a story when you have a brand new baby is not really a brilliant idea. 

I started it. Then I quit because I was too tired. And then I picked it up again. And then I quit because I just didn't think I could really finish it. I mean, really? Who did that?

But I had a writer friend who dragged me to her critique group, and in order to have stuff to critique every month I had to keep writing. 

And then I realized: I was almost done. 

So then I really picked it up. I wrote every time anyone would leave me alone for even two seconds. The day I finished it I sat there in shock for like fifteen minutes, and then I wandered around wanting to tell everyone and make everyone read it right away. It was such an incredible feeling. 

The reason I was able to write it and finish it, when I had never finished anything else, was because I believed in the story. I loved the story. The characters would bounce around in my head telling me to write their story if I tried to quit. 

And the way I finished it? One bite at a time.

Staying on My Feet in Query Trenches

I have loved to write since I could write, and before that I just passed stories on to my stuffed animal friends by word of mouth, like my ancestors (the word of mouth part, not the stuffed animal part).

So because I have been writing so long, I thought I was a good writer. I won awards in high school, I did amazingly well in English classes (you'd never guess, now, judging by my spelling capabilities). I majored in English and even worked at a publishing company for four years.

And then I wrote Feudlings. After being awake for nine months straight with my new baby, and spending a lot of time in my own head, I had the whole story bouncing around my brain. I wrote it because the story was in my head and I loved to write. I did NOT write it with any intention of getting it published. 

And then I let family read it. And I let friends read it. And they loved it. They encouraged me, because they are good friends and family. And I decided, after much terror and tears and whining, that I would try to get it published.

It was exciting, at first, before I knew what I was doing. I went to conferences and there was so much to learn.

But now I've been at it for a while. I don't like rejections, I never have, but especially rejections on my writing, which is the only thing I'm good at! I'm tired of querying and being told no. I'm becoming jaded. I see bitterness in the future.

The worst thing is that, for a while, I didn't want to write. I didn't see the point, if I couldn't get Feudlings published, why keep writing? It took my nine-year-old to remind me that I write because I love it, and not because someone else should love it.

So. I took a deep breath. I started writing again. I started to feel better. I kept querying, but I sought professional opinions on my work (I was going to say professional help, but I know what ya'll would be thinking).

I still don't love querying. Of course I still long to have someone say yes, to say they love my writing as much as, say, my sisters or niece or husband do. But I think the most important thing when querying is to remember that all those "no's" do NOT define your writing or who you are. When you start writing for someone else, you lose miss out on the true gift of writing, which is the ability to bring to life the stories in your head. Whether or not the world ever sees those words, it's a gift you give to yourself.

A Brilliant Story about Unicorns

Today is the second day of my 15 minutes a day challenge. I realized last night that 15 minutes is nothing. I have a group of friends that I sprint with and we write in 30 minute increments. Of course, I usually spend at least half those thirty minutes staring dejectedly at my MS while I try to figure out how to write myself out of the corner that I've, um, written myself into. 

No, 15 minutes is okay. It's the every day bit that is hard for me. My brain gets tired. It needs a break. Clearly, my brain needs serious weight training.

Ahem. 

My 15 minutes today has been spent free-writing. I want to write a story about unicorns. I love unicorns. I have always loved unicorns and I have so many little unicorn figurines that they creep my husband out and he mumbles in his sleep about unicorn eyes always watching. 

My problem is that I like to write urban fantasy. And I can't, for the life of me, come up with a storyline that includes unicorns in an urban fantasy. 

So I have two options. One - keep searching for an idea. This isn't going so well.

Two - write outside my comfort zone. Write an epic fantasy or a high fantasy. This, you think, sounds like good character building for me. But I don't wanna do it, and one thing I've learned about me is that if I don't wanna do it, I probably won't (I was the youngest child. I'm very spoiled. This is just the way things are). 

So.

If anyone has any brilliant story ideas about unicorns, PLEASE share. I'm getting desperate, and no one wants to see the spoiled youngest child desperate now, do we?

August 15 Minute-a-day Writing Challenge

I have this weird thing. If I know I'm going to be bothered at all, I can't write. My mind will only work if I think I'm going to have the next hour or two open, no interruptions, no kids, no dogs, cats, neighbors...needless to say, I don't get to write much because that kind of time block just doesn't happen. So when I stumbled across Laurie Halse Anderson's blog about fifteen minutes a day for a month, I thought, hmm. Interesting. (http://madwomanintheforest.com/wfmad-day-1-welcome-to-the-write-fifteen-minutes-a-day-challenge/)

So I'm gonna try it. Also and conveniently, I am also participating in Camp NaNoWriMo this August. 

So. 

Every day, I will write for fifteen minutes. AND. It might be about nothing.

It might be about something important. 

Today, I am writing a blog post. Also, I'm working on my story, which is much more fun than blog posts. No offense.

If you think this is so much fun and want to join me, mention it in the comments! We can compare notes every day and see how we're doing. You can push me forward when I get lazy. I'll sweetly suggest you get your butt in gear if you fall behind. See how that works?