It's Been Awhile Since I Could Hold My Head Up High...

Forgive me blogger, for I have sinned. It has been seven weeks since my last pitiful post. I could blow off this newest impromptu hiatus by saying it was due to waiting out the end of A-Z, or that I’ve been too busy, but none of that would be true.

I have a confession to make, and this has been a long-time coming.

The truth is, my life in every other aspect is going just fine. My kids are healthy and happy. My husband’s doing great. I’ve been doing yoga, running, and preparing to find a job for September. All’s good.

Except for one thing.

That ‘other’ part of my life. The one I once held so dear, it could have drowned out everything else if I'd let it--That great thrill of creativity, words, and stories come to life and the thriving community that accompanied the process.

It’s time I stop beating around the bush and just state the truth about why I keep dropping off the face of the virtual planet:

I haven’t been around the blogosphere or the writing community much because I don’t like the way it makes me feel. (through no fault of its’ own)

I hadn’t realized it until now, or maybe I had, but just wasn’t ready to deal with it. But the truth is, I don’t think I’ve completely gotten over the deception that came with all those near-misses ages ago. I hate to admit it, but maybe I’m not as strong emotionally or psychologically as I once believed.  Sure, I talked a good game, but when it comes down to it, I’ve started and stopped four different projects in the last two years, some getting 30k along before I simply ‘lost interest’. I haven’t been able to make myself blog regularly or keep up with publishing, author, or industry news.

When it comes to writing, I'm sure it's partly because I’m afraid. Afraid of finishing a project and investing in it emotionally again. Afraid of putting it out there. And afraid of enduring the same feeling of failure and just-not-good-enoughedness that I had last time.

When it comes to the community, I still flip through my writerly facebook regularly, because I miss the connections and friends I made during my blogging hayday. I spend time ‘liking’ all the amazing things my writing friends are putting out there and experiencing, admiring how productive and accomplished they are.

But it’s only a matter of time before I turn to my own, empty status and realize I have absolutely nothing to offer. I’m not productive, inspired, or successful. I’m a hack. Total fraud. Undeserving of interest or praise.

That sinking, no-good feeling begins to spread. 

Which is why I quickly retreat back into myself and the other aspects of my life, and away from the writerly part, in a self-imposed exile that really affects no one but me; punishment for being so utterly unsuccessful, boring, and incapable. My solution? Complete and total avoidance of the problem.

Does it make sense? No.

But it is what it is. *shrugs*

I’m just tired of letting this feeling of failure keep me from a part of my life that I miss terribly. I think it’s time to put ‘er down. And I’m hoping that putting it out there will be the first step towards that. It’s easier to shoot an animal that’s out in the open, and all that jazz.

Anyways, I want to offer a heartfelt apology to all of my blogging friends for my absence. For being little and weak and cowardly and not facing my own crap sooner so that I could be here for all of you- have joy in your successes and offer encouragement through your obstacles. You can be sure this community has left its mark on my heart. If it hadn’t, I wouldn’t be here. So here’s to taking back the reins.

You guys ever let negative emotions keep you from something you love? Any advice as to how to get over this feeling of failure that settles over me whenever I think about writing?

The Hills are Alive...

First of all, thank you so much to DL Hammons and everyone who participated in Wednesdays Blitz Bombardment. Even though I joined the Blitz team months ago, and try to participate now and then, I never realized just how much being Blitzed could completely change the course of someone’s day; how something so simple as leaving a blog comment could have such an impact, until it happened to me. I’m so glad DL came up with this, and thankful for the hundreds of you who take the time to comment and brighten up your fellow bloggers’ day. It’s just amazing. For those of you who want to know more about what it means to be ‘blitzed’ and would like participate, click here.

In other news, I finally broke 20k on my wip! And it only took me two and a half months! *sigh* It hasn’t helped matters that my one-year-old is cutting her back molars and thought she and I should celebrate by pulling a couple all-nighters last week, from which I’d only barely recovered before France ‘sprang forward’ with the rest of the world and I was forced to get up an hour earlier.

Chronic fatigue aside, I absolutely love this time of year. You know that bone-deep sensation before a big storm when the air feels alive and you can smell change on the horizon? That’s kind of like what Spring is for me, but on a larger, yet less dramatic scale. That smell of change in the air, the warmth, and all the deepening and brightening of landscape colors makes me want to twirl around like Julie Andrews and sing the ‘hills are alive, with the sound of music!’. Hopefully nature’s vibrance will give my muse the boost she needs to finish this damn manuscript before summer vacation.

Do you guys find you’re more or less productive during different seasons? 

Blogger's Block

I love sitting down to write a blogpost whenever the inspiration strikes. When the inspiration doesn’t strike, however, it can get downright painful. Like this morning.

I knew Monday was coming for awhile. Because…well, yesterday was Sunday and the day before that was, well, you get the idea. *ahem*

So, anyways, I knew I had nothing new to blog about. But I still thought I’d give it a shot. To try and keep up with newly-set goals and all.

9:15 a.m. Paris time: *Katie sits down in front of the computer* I really need to write something for today. Now’s a good a time as any. Baby’s fed and playing peacefully. I’ve got coffee. Wait, no I don’t. Finished that cup. Should I have a second? Wait, that was my second. Would a third give me heart palpitations? Maybe I should Google it…

9:32 a.m.: *sits back down in front of computer. With coffee. And an egg, cheese and ham English muffin* Okay. It’s time to blog. Right! Good!

Huh.

Blog.

That’s a funny word. Blog.

Blooooog.

Blog.

You know what? I don’t like the way my mouth feels when I say it.

Blog. *shudders* Ew.

Blog. *shudders* Ew!

*sigh*

There aren’t a lot of words that start with ‘Bl’, are there? Let me think…Bleep. Bloated. Blasphemous. Blooper. Okay, I guess there are a lot, kind of.

Blight.

Wait, is blight a word? Or am I confusing it with ‘smite’? Maybe I should Google it…

9:45 a.m.: *sits back down in front of computer with newfound knowledge of what the word ‘blight’ means* Oh, look at that! The baby needs to be put down for a nap. I’ll just think of a blog topic while I’m in the shower. My imagination always perks up in the shower…

10:15 a.m.: *sits back down in front of computer* I’m ready! Wait. No. I still don’t have a topic. Geez! What the hell happened to all that shower-induced imagination? I guess I must have blown it all on my audition for the imaginary judges of The Voice.

Again.

*cringes*

Okay. I’m a writer. And as a writer, all I really need to do to write for this writer’s blog is to share what’s on my mind. As a writer. About writing.

...what is on. my. mind!

What is on my mind...

What the hell IS on my mind?!

Oh my god, this is hopeless!

Tell me, how do you guys find something relevant to blog about on a regular basis? After four years of covering everything from writing and querying to itchy noses and smelling melon butt, I think I’m just about plum out of ideas.

2013 in Review

While looking back on 2013, one word jumps immediately to mind : tired. I can’t say my resolutions went unmet since, to my knowledge, I didn’t even bother making any this year.

Ever since signing on with the S.A.H.M. Corps (stay at home mom corporation) in April of 2012 and the addition of our fourth project (i.e. baby Phoebe) in February 2013, ‘the job’ has been keeping me more than occupied. It isn’t the hardest job in the world as good ol’ Oprah used to say. But it’s about as hard as most other full-time jobs, I imagine.

The co-owner of this enterprise has a paid occupation on the side (thank goodness), so most of the heavy lifting falls to yours truly. The salary isn’t great, but the benefits are worth the long hours and sleepless nights. My employees are often lazy, cranky, and always looking for a hand-out. But they’re also fun to be around and do their best to make this operation productive.

Our youngest recruit, 10-month-old Phoebe, is especially impressive in her determination to maintain a sedentary lifestyle. No crawling, shuffling or walking as of yet. In fact, she mostly just sits there and grunts like a small, pink, jabba the hutt while her sisters bring her toys and drinks and cater to her every whim. 

I think she might be the smartest one of us all.

So, after almost a full year of crawling through the post-partum fog and keeping my long-running family operation afloat, I finally feel ready to take a tentative step toward my goal of writing the-game-changer book and getting published.

Catching up is going to take awhile. I don’t think I’ve read a single book on the 2013 YA bestseller list. I've missed a lot of writer's world news in the who-got-agented/book deals/pubished/self published this year. And it would seem the tides of self-publishing have turned once again and debut S.P. authors aren’t seeing the success they once did due to market saturation. Pair this with the increasingly slow pace of the publishing industry, and agent/editor return and I have to wonder- 

Ya. What the hell are we supposed to do now?:)

Awkward Reunion

Me : Oh, hey !

Blog: *blinks groggily* Who the hell are you?

Me: It’s me! You know…the one who started this blog.

Blog: Oh. Yeah. You. *swats away fly*

Me: You don’t look so good.

Blog: Yeah, well, that’s what happens when someone’s been abandoned for four months.

Me: I never noticed how blindingly hypnotizing your background was before. It’s giving me a headache and toothache simultaneously.

Blog: Imagine living here…

Me: Okay, well, I know it’s been awhile…

Blog: Four. Months. FOUR MONTHS! You didn’t even say goodbye!

Me: I know, I’m sorry! But I didn’t know I was leaving. It was one of those sporadic spiritual leave-of-absences that people just up and take sometimes when a higher power calls. You know, like Jesus in the dessert. Or Forrest Gump. Or that crazy guy that just up and decided to walk across Australia one day.

Blog: I see. So tell me, Forrest, what did you accomplish during this impromptu journey? Any writing to speak of? Did you discover the truths to the universe? Get nominated for a nobel prize? Orchestrate the next technological revolution?

Me: Uh...*wrings hands*. Well, I did a little writing, yes. And I managed to keep my kids alive and the house from burning down. So there’s that. And, uh…there was some binge watching Gilmore Girls somewhere in there- all seven seasons!

Blog: *arms folded* Color me impressed.

Me: Look, I’m really sorry. But I’m here now and I’d like to make it up to you. You look a little tired and washed out. Let me give you a make-over. Unbraid that pink and beige armpit hair of yours and give your place some fresh air. Maybe even start cleaning out and organizing your content?  And I’ll try to start posting regularly again. What do you say?

Blog: *sniffs* Well, I guess I really could use a bath. And it has been a little lonely around here. *frowns skeptically* Okay. You gotta deal. But you take off on me again and I just might have get jacked up on viruses and kill your computer. 

Me: Note taken.

Sometimes I feel like I went to sleep one day in September, and when I woke up, we were already January 1^st! It’s 2014? Wait, what?! I wish I hadn't neeeded to take so much time away from you all and this blog in order to ‘find myself’ but, it turned out to be a necessary thing. It’s a new year, so if ever there was a time to stand up, brush myself off and start over, it’s now.

So, tell me- who’s still out there fighting the good fight? I’ve missed you all!

Extended Hiatus

So, the last few weeks ‘baby brain’ has set in. I wanted to keep up with the blog and the writing community. I really did. But the truth is, I can barely manage to string two coherent sentences together that don’t contain the words ‘baby, labor, or birth’. I’ve searched the recesses of my brain, but unfortunately I’ve had nothing witty or relevant to add to the blog about writing, querying, books or publishing. I sent in my big revise & resubmit to the agent in December, and any further motivation to create has seemed to disappear along with my stretched-out belly button.

I knew this would happen. I hoped it wouldn’t- but deep down, I knew it would. I’ve always been useless the last months of my pregnancies. The growing baby sucks the last of my energy while mentally preparing for her arrival takes up any brain power I may have on reserve. Like Gloria said in Modern Family -‘I have two brains in my body, but never felt so dumb’.

And the worst part is, it’s not going to get any better after the birth. Because once the baby comes, so do the hormones. And in my case, breastfeeding and hormones compile to create a ‘drugged and in denial’ effect that allows me to go days without sleep, clothes that don’t smell like spit-up, or adult interaction and actually be happy about it. Now that I’m on my fourth time through this rabbit hole, I fully anticipate and accept the two-month mental, emotional and psychological journey through ‘la la land’ needed for baby and I to adapt.

Which is why I prefer to go an hiatus now, before I forget I have a blog altogether.

But I hate to leave things hanging. So,I was looking through my settings and realized in the last three years, I’ve written 415 posts (Holy Crap!).

Which include 58 posts on writing and crafting.

 26  posts on querying

11 posts on rejection

And 37 posts on living in France

Not to mention, a bunch of other posts surrounding those themes (agents, blogging, bloghops, books, reading, etc…) that haven’t been labeled or aren’t labeled under the above. You can scroll down to the ‘Labels’ section of this blog for a full list. For any newbies, I hope you find what you’re looking for here. For all my regular blogging friends and readers, I’ll miss you over the next few months and I will update my writer facebook regularly! (see sidebar)

See you all in the Spring!

*CQG*

Social Media Just For Writers

I’ve never done a review for a non-fiction book before, but Frances Caballo’s Social Media Just for Writers perked my interest and I figured it might be an interesting source for the writers in our blogging community. 

You wrote your book and sold copies to family members, friends, and colleagues. Now you want to reach readers around the state, across the country, or on the other side of the world. But how? With social media, you can build your platform and reach markets you never imagined possible before. In this book you will learn how to: create your Facebook fan page and initiate active engagement with your readers, use a myriad of Twitter applications to help you economize your time while expanding your tribe, optimize your LinkedIn profile with keywords, tackle Google+ with renewed confidence, build Pinterest pinboards and use them to promote your books and blog, and round out your online strategies with offline marketing techniques.

My Review: I especially liked how Caballo gave each social network its own personality, comparing it to well known authors and classic literature and providing details into the history of each.  Her book covers the biggest social networks used by writers including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google +, Picasso, Pinterest, and the world of blogging. As someone who’s familiar with Facebook, Blogger, and Twitter, I was impressed with how much I didn’t know (um, which was a lot). 

Caballo gives an easy-to-understand run down of the purpose each network serves, basic usage and then expands into more detail; providing little known (at least to me) settings and applications that can help you promote you, your brand, and your books, and especially keep track and stay organized in who/how your work is reaching its audience, not to mention the various useful applications that can be employed by each network. 

The only concern I had while reading was that, while Caballo’s detailed instructions and images are definitely helpful when it comes to learning about each network, and how to engage and develop your settings- I’d be afraid with the rapid and incessant way many of these networks (like Facebook and Twitter) are changing and evolving every day, some of the information could become quickly out-dated. 

Also, the wealth of information could be a little overwhelming at times, but then again, I’m not at a point in my career where everything sited in each chapter is useful to me (yet). That said, I really liked how Caballo was careful to explain how each writer really needs to find what programs, networks and apps work best for them- taking into account their time constraints, preferences and personalities. 

When I’m at the point where I have a book to promote (thinking positive here:), I’d say Social Media Just for Writers will be an absolute asset since it provides a clear and in-depth source for anyone who wants to expand their audience using social networking.

What social network do you use most? How long did it take you to master your favorite network? Did you take measures to get the most out of the network professionally?

Oh, How I Miss You!

Maybe it’s because the focus on blogging as a form of self-promotion has waned amidst publishing professionals. Or maybe it’s because newer, faster, easier forms of networking, like facebook and twitter, have gained in popularity.

In any case, the blogging community as a whole has felt the transition. We’re posting less often. Visiting and commenting less. Participating in less contests, bloghops, blogfests, and blog tours.

Do I miss the good ole’ days when I would hit up over fifty blogs a day? Keep my finger on the pulse of all that was happening in the writer/agent/publishing community through blogs and shared articles alone? Look forward to my favorite bloggers’ daily posts?

Of course! 

Those early months of blogging- when we were all building up our following and getting to know new and interesting people was a total blast!

But I don’t think the kind of time and work it takes to keep that up is feasible for most people on a long-term basis. Especially if you’re a writer. So, like many of you, I’ve cut back. But that doesn’t mean I don’t miss it. Or that I don’t miss certain blogs that have had to cut back as well. 

Today, as part of the Oh, How I Miss You Blogfest hosted by Alex, Andrew and Matt, I’m highlighting (some of) the blogs and bloggers I miss the most, whether from their having to cut back or from my own lapse in bloggy participation.

Three bloggers whose postings I miss:

Melissa from Through The Looking Glass

Colene Murphy from The Journey

Melody from I Am An Authoress

And three bloggers who are still fighting the good fight but who I’ve been missing due to my own lack of bloggy participation.*blushes* 
Know that you are loved and missed I will try to pop in more often, my friends!

Anne Gallagher from Piedmont Writer

Vicki Rocho from Rambles and Randomness

Jen Daiker from Unedited

Do you ever feel like you're missing out on some great blogs because of time constraints and cut-backs? Let them know you still think about them! You can check out the rest of today's participants here.

Tied to the Roof

Not much to report today. The hubs and kids are home (no school on Wednesdays in France. -Which is both a blessing and a curse). And running the kids to judo and CCD classes takes up most of the day. 

Therefore, my online-self is basically gagged and tied to the roof of our car as we accomplish most of the day’s errands.  (see above)

BUT, I will make it up to you on Friday, when I participate in the Oh, How I Miss You Blogfest, hosted by Andrew, Alex, and Matt. 

There’s still time to sign up so take a look:

The bloggers we really miss…
and the ones we would really miss! 

Do you have a couple blogger buddies who aren’t posting as often? Those who’ve pulled back and seem absent from the blogging world? Do you have blogger buddies you are grateful they are still around and would miss if they vanished? Now is your chance to show your appreciation and spotlight them!

On November 16, list one to three bloggers you really miss and one to three bloggers you would miss if they stopped blogging. Then go leave a comment on those blogs. 

Our blogger friends are special – time to let them know!

Hope you guys have a great rest of the week! I’ll see you on Friday!

*CQG*

Are Blog Tours Losing Their Promotional Power?

When I first started blogging three years ago, I witnessed firsthand the power of the blogosphere promotion. 

If you’ve been around as long as I have, you may remember the massive community machines that pushed books like Kiersten White’s PARANORMALCY, Elana Johnson’s POSSESSION, Beth Revis’ ACROSS THE UNIVERSE, and Lisa & Laura Roecker’s LIAR SOCIETY out into the world.

There were twitter wars, contests, vlogs, prizes, and blog hops galore and it seemed as though everyone and their mothers were a part of the festivities, all sincerely excited for the fellow blogger who made it into the big leagues. 

In just a few short years, however, self-publishing and small publishers have made book launches and releases so much more frequent! Instead of one book-release a month, or every few months, to support and celebrate: there are now several book launches throughout the blogosphere a week. 

More and more writers are taking the leap into self publishing. Small publishers are putting together their ebook releases a lot faster than traditional.  Established indie writers get a groove going and are able to come out with four, five, even six books a year! 

And, of course, we as a community want to offer support and positivity to those authors however we can. 

The problem is, the magnitude of book promotions happening every month makes it hard for any one book to really achieve the recognition it might have gotten three years ago. You know the old adage: ‘saying everyone’s special is another way of saying no one is’? Contests, free books, interviews, bloghops, etc…they may still spread the word, but I fear they’ve lost the originality and enticement they once held. Promotional posts are getting less and less comments. Contests are earning less entries. The buzz is feeling more and more forced.

We've got to face it- blog-blitz enthusiasm has wained:(

In the last year or so, I’ve come to the conclusion that having everyone post about one book or the author all at the same time gets old for readers fairly fast. I don’t know about you, but when I’ve seen the blurb and the cover once, most often my mind is made up about whether it’s a book I’d like to read based on genre, premise, characters, and yes- if it’s a writer I’ve been following or an author I’m friends with, that definitely counts for something too! That said, I’m afraid the repetitiveness of the run-of-the-mill blog tour often defeats the point, since a reader is more likely to pass over blogs that are re-sharing the information or have the same theme as a million other blogs that week. 

So where does that leave authors hoping to promote their new releases? If blog tours are losing steam, how else can an author create a buzz? I’ve come up with a list of things I’ve seen working these last few months despite the recent decline in enthusiasm for ‘another new release’. 

* Cover reveals taking place on one major site, and only one site, with authors asking for a twitter, or facebook mention and prizes to be one. (like an arc;)

* Vlogs are still cool ways to promote, especially if they’re unique or funny. They aren’t over-done (yet) and it helps build a connection between the potential readers and the writer behind the book.

* Book trailers. I actually like seeing a book trailer for an upcoming release featured on a bunch of blogs at the same time, as long as the actual posts have a different theme (ie- don’t just focus on the trailer or the blurb for the book) I like to be surprised and have the choice about whether I click on the trailer or not, so it’s not the same as a regular blog tour promo. And having the actual posts differentiate makes the reader less likely to skip them over.

* On that note -Related bloghops with a fun theme still work, imo. Is your book about a character making a big-fat mistake and the consequences? Invite everyone to share their biggest 'oopsies' and how they overcame. Got a futuristic theme? Create a blog hop where everyone shares their dream-gadget. Setting a theme that relates to your book gives bloggers a chance to do what they do best, all while second-handedly promoting your new title. 

* Promoting your book only AFTER release. I’ve actually seen this work for a lot of authors recently. Instead of the buzz created before hand, it’s like BOOM! The book is HERE! Positive reviews speak so much louder than the blurb or cover or a bunch of people promoting your book weeks before hand. The option to BUY is already there, so it doesn’t get pushed to the back of the reader’s mind like ‘oh, yeah, I should think about ordering that when it comes out.’

Do you feel like blog tours are slowly losing their promotional power? What other forms of promotion would you recommend to modern-day authors? Author friends out there, what do you think has made the biggest difference in sales for you when it comes to promotion?  

Not Feeling Fridays...

I’ve decided that today, instead of a FMFB or another new-release spotlight post, I’m just going to wish you all a beautiful fall Friday!

To be honest, I’m thinking about tossing Friday’s scheduled posts up to the blogging Gods and letting them decide if I post or not. For one, I’ve noticed a definite lull in overall Friday blogging activity over the last year or so- Wait. Actually, I’ve noticed a lull in ALL blogging activity over the last year. I’m not sure if this is because the blogging community I’ve always been a part of has entered that veteran stage where people post and participate less, or if we’re all just keeping tabs through other avenues like facebook or twitter. (actually, I think it’s a little of both). But Matt McNash’s Wednesday post about bloggers missing an awesome opportunity due to lack of participation highlighted one of the consequences of the blogosphere’s slow decline.  As I said there, sometimes I feel like the blogosphere has become a dystopian world where small communities cling together for dear life, supporting each other as best they can.

Another reason for ‘up in the air’ Friday posts is that my TGIF’s are pretty jammed-packed, family wise. The hubs has Fridays off so we pick the kids up for lunch and have to bring them back to school after. (There’s an hour-and-a-half nation-wide lunch break over here in France every weekday. Banks, schools, pharmacies and businesses are all closed up tight from around 12-2pm).  Of course I’ll still sponsor the occasional FMFB, and try and slip Friday ‘Living in France’ posts or spotlight posts in there whenever I can, but I can’t say it will be a weekly occurance.

Have any of you noticed the lull in activity over the last year-and-a-half or so? Why do you think this is? Has anyone else cut down on their own blogging schedules or participation due to the apparent lack of activity?

GUTGAA Pitch Polish

So, today I’m posting my query and first 150 words for KISSING FOR COFFEE as part of GUTGAA’s pitch polish. I’ve been fiddling with this a little ever since I did the big revisions for ‘zee agent’ but I feel like it still needs work. Thanks to all of you for any comments, insight or feedback you can offer!

KISSING FOR COFFEE
YA ROMANTIC COMEDY
78,000 words

Query:

When the difference between maintaining her status as resident ‘Popular Party Girl’, or slinking back into the darkness of her perfect sister’s shadow resides in showing up to class with one cup of coffee, seventeen-year-old Sadie Brooks decides it’s worth kissing geeky Jake Sterling for his.

But one secret kiss becomes something much bigger when word travels through Geekland that Sadie locks lips for her morning java. She arrives at school to find her locker surrounded by a dozen candidates from the Land of Misfit Dudes- all of them holding coffee and hoping for the same payment. In order to save face, Sadie kisses Jake in front of half the student body. But she never expected her friends to follow suit.  

Without warning, ‘Kissing for Coffee’ becomes the newest sign of popularity and a clear indication of desirability. The more boys vying to hand you a cup, the more pretty and popular you must be. Sadie has unintentionally lit the match on a full-out trend and it’s spreading through surrounding high school districts like wildfire. The owner of Coffee Lovers is contacting her, thanking her for the publicity. News cameras are showing up at her school.  ‘Kissing for Coffee’ commercials are even running on TV!

But Sadie soon discovers that kissing for coffee doesn’t only have its ‘perks’. 

She becomes the focus of controversy when the student president of the Purity Waits Club begins protesting against the act of ‘prostituting your lips out for a three-dollar beverage’.  And then there’s Jake Sterling, whose deceptively talented mega mouth has Sadie craving his kisses at odd non-coffee hours.  Sadie needs to find a way to put a stop to the trend she set in motion before she ends up losing her popularity, her geek, and her coffee for good.

First 150 words:

   In Tokyo, high school kids don’t have to be there for attendance until 8:30 a.m. And by then, it’s daylight. And they ride in on the tram or the subway. How do I know this? Well, Canterbury’s only Japanese foreign exchange student, Nanako Ivana Saki, just told me. And yes, that is her real name.

            I stifle a yawn and struggle to stay focused on the road but Nanako keeps mumbling nervously, the whites of her almond-shaped eyes visible in the car’s shadowy interior.

“It’s so dark outside,” she says, for the third time.

“Yup,” I nod. “The sun comes up a little later here in winter.”

She sinks back into the front passenger’s seat, her child-like body almost disappearing completely from my peripheral vision. “The roads are so…isolated,” she says, her delicate white fingers digging into my car’s leather interior.

My headlights create bouncing shadows down yet another winding route.

Across the Border

For those of you like myself, who have been in the query trenches for awhile, you know how hard it can be to break through that very first barrier. You search for an opening wherever you can, perfect your query and make the dive across hostile territory where overflowing inboxes, slush mail, hung-over interns and form rejections stare you down with their semi-automatics, just ready to shoot and explode your dreams into smithereens. (Which they do. On countless occasions)

And yet you continue to stare across that border and keep trying, hoping one day you’ll find a well-dug hole you can wiggle through or a gaping tear in the chain-link fence that separates you from the land where traditionally published dreams come true.

So, of course, when one of your comrades-in-arms makes it through to the other side, it is a HUGE cause for celebration; Not only for the author themselves, but for every one of us still here on the other side. Through their success, we know that  1- it can be done. And 2- one of the good ones has made it through. Thus our traditional dream is reaffirmed. 

Today is one of those awesome occasions where our blogosphere is coming together to celebrate Writer's Ally aka SA Larson blogger Sheri Larson’s successful leap into the realm of the represented! She recently signed with agent Paula Munier of Talcott Notch Literary and is holding an incredible Bigger Than a Shopping-Mall Giveaway! Critiques, free books, swag and fun paraphernalia are all up for grabs in the form of three raffles by rafflecopter:
Giveaway #1 a Rafflecopter giveaway


Giveaway #2 a Rafflecopter giveaway


Grand Prize Giveaway (for this, you must be entered in either #1,#2, or both)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

A huge congratulations to Sheri and I can’t wait to hear more about her project as it continues to duck through revisions, editor’s desks, and acquisitions meetings all the way to the printing press!

For those already-published authors out there, what did YOU do the day you got an agent or first held your book in your hands? How did you celebrate? And for those like myself, how do you think you’ll celebrate making it over your biggest publishing hurdles? Champagne on ice? Dinner out? Online contests or festivities?  All of the above?:)

I’m Baaaack! And GUTGAA Meet n’ Greet

Well, my hiatus is officially over! And what a hiatus it has been. In the last two weeks I:

Got the kids ready to go back to school (and all that that entails).


Deep-cleaned the monstrosity that was my house.

Started a new wip and wrote nearly 8k in a seven-day span.

Critiqued 3/4th  of a fellow author’s project.

Was invited to do a revise & resubmit with ‘the agent’ for a different manuscript I’d submitted a few months ago.

And continued to grow another human being. 

Oh. Yes, I imagine that last one has sunk in right about now. 

Creepy is again expecting a baby-child – One who will hopefully be making their fully-grown and healthy appearance in March 2013:)

I’ve missed you guys so much but, secretly, I’ve been keeping up with a lot of your news and posts through facebook. For those of you who aren’t on my friends list yet, there’s a link on my side bar. 

Now on to this week’s GUTGAA Meet n’Greet:

-Where do you write? Anywhere I can sit comfortably with my laptop; the bed, the couch, the kitchen table, the jon…

-Quick. Go to your writing space, sit down and look to your left. What is the first thing you see?  Toilet paper holder?… Ew. Just kidding. Kind of…Anyway- Usually when I sit down to write and look to my left, there’s one of my kid’s faces waiting right there, impatient for me to answer something for them.

-Favorite time to write? The morning/mid afternoon.

-Drink of choice while writing? Coffee coffee coffee coffee

-When writing , do you listen to music or do you need complete silence? Complete silence. But sometimes I don’t mind having the television on low.

-What was your inspiration for your latest manuscript and where did you find it? After writing my last couple novels based on ‘premise’, I got fed up while in the midst of a current wip- always trying to force a plot to meet that premise the best way I know how.  With the project I’m working on now, I decided to take a different route. I’m writing what I feel like reading. I’m writing because I want to get to know these characters and this setting and really just kind of wade in it. And I’m enjoying every minute. 

-What's your most valuable writing tip? Do what you have to do to keep the romance alive. If you’re serious about writing, someday it could become a job. And when it does, you’re going to have to force yourself to keep at it, even when the love is gone. Finding ways to keep the love for writing alive (like keeping a project on the side, blogging or journaling) is key, I think.

It’s great to be back! Can’t wait to catch up with old friends and meet n’greet the new! So, what does your month of September look like? Anything you’re looking forward to (book releases? bloghops? conventions?  Time for wip?) ??