First Anniversary Jamboree!

Welcome to the Mavens' First Anniversary Jamboree!
Thanks so much for hanging out with us the past year. We've enjoyed sharing successes, frustrations, and milestones. Here's to another year! We've asked our favorite authors to answer some burning questions and every day this week we're giving you the inside scoop. Be sure to read the bonus question and answer Monday through Thursday for the chance to win fabulous prizes. And please, share your own answers...if you dare!

What summer movie are you most excited to see?


Alesia Holliday

The Mummy! Adore Brendan Fraser! Jet Li rocks!


Angie Fox
Be sure and stop by August 6 when Angie guest-blogs with us upon the release of her first book, The Accidental Demon Slayer on July 29! And if you'll be in San Francisco at RWA, stop by the literacy signing Wednesday night and say hello!Indiana Jones, hands down. I have loved those movies ever since I was a kid. You just can't beat Harrison Ford with a bull whip. Zow.


Anna Campbell

Well, in Oz, we're in the depths of winter, but the film I'd love to see is Prince Caspian. I thought The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe was fantastic, really magical. And hey, PC himself looks rather cute - LOL.


Tanya Michaels, author of A DAD FOR HER TWINS, a "State of Parenthood" book from Harlequin American Romance, in stores Sept 08! (Tanya's also a speaker at RWA this year!)

Indiana Jones 4, which we saw opening weekend. My son is six and a half and it's fun to see him as jazzed about Doctor Jones as I used to be! We wore our matching hats to the movie. My husband pretended not to know us. I'm also looking forward to Hancock.


Elissa Wilds, debut author of Between Light and Dark, in stores October 08!

Sex and the City….loved that show!


Teri Brown, author of READ MY LIPS, her debut novel released June 3!

I'm not actually excited about any of the movies I've seen the trailers for so far. I'm not really into action flicks and not into kids movies, so there doesn't seem to be anything up my alley this summer. Maybe the Thanksgiving movies will be better!

Amie Stuart

OMG just one? Ummmm Wanted or er The X-FILES …ohhhh and Hancock or maybe Babylon AD…*Grin*


Jennifer Haymore, debut author of A Hint of Wicked

Wall-E, because my kids really want to see it!


Julie Leto

MAMMA MIA. I saw the show on Broadway and I love Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan and especially Colin Firth! I can't wait!


Karen Lingefelt

Mamma Mia (It stars Colin Firth AND Pierce Brosnan!)


Roxanne St. Claire

WALL-E has really captured my attention. I love the idea that the writers seemed to have broken all the "rules" for animated movies - no celeb voiceovers, no cute furry sidekicks, almost no dialogue, an apocolyptic futuristic setting, and yet, there is romance and redemption. Can't wait!


Debra Dixon

Check out Debra's YA story in the WITCH HIGH anthology coming in October. Debra's Belle Books has great summer titles available and is excited about the launch of Belle Bridge Books.

Can't wait for THE DARK KNIGHT. Of course we also said that about IRON MAN and GET SMART. And yeah, I'm looking forward to the newest in the MUMMY franchise. I'm an action flick girl. What can I say?


Tessa Dare

Wanted - just for James McAvoy.


Terri Garey

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. The previews look incredible, and Brendan Fraser still looks hot. :-)


Debby Mayne

"Get Smart" because it'll take me back to my childhood. I used to love that show!


Virginia Henley

Sex and the City

Today's Prize Question is:Who would you most like to have dinner with?In your comment, correctly match each author with their desired guest and you'll be entered in a drawing for a cool prize! (In the event no one gets all matches correct, the person with the most will win. In the event of a tie, we'll draw.)

	Authors			Dinner Guests
___ 1.	Karen Lingefelt		A:	Edith Wharton
___ 2.	Debby Mayne		B:	Laura Ingalls Wilder
___ 3.	Julie Leto		C:	King Charles II of England
___ 4.	Virginia Henley		D:	J. K. Rowling
___ 5.	Delilah Marvelle		E:	Elvis

Get Ready for Fun - Maven Style!

Join us next week (July 14-18) as we celebrate (no, not Bastille Day) our first anniversary! Can you believe we've been at this for a year? Neither can we. And we're so, so thankful for your company. Let's hear it for our MaveFaves!

Next week's shenanigans are a Q&A with some of our favorite authors. Each day bears a new question with all sorts of fascinating answers. Plus, there's a prize question - correctly guess which author said what and you're entered in a drawing for a fabulous prize! And what is that prize, you ask? Well, there will be two prizes each day: one for a writer and one for a reader. Please indicate which one you are or "either." Reader prizes are books (natch!) and writer prizes are a Maven critique of your query letter (ooh, aah).

So get ready to party, jamboree style of course. Interestingly, we Mavens didn't answer our own questions. How about today you pose any question you want and we'll do our best to answer! Fire away!

Trysting

This is for research purposes only, you realize.

What is the most interesting or out-there place your characters have trysted?

Mine must be the forest. I have a scene where the h/h get it on outside her bedroom window. Sure, they could've gone up to her room, but who can wait, when passion strikes? In my current writing exercise, the h/h are going to get it on inside a club bathroom. Yeah, it's dirty, but who doesn't like a little dirty now and then?

(If your answer is "not me," don't answer. Then you'll make me feel dirty, and that is so not the intent of this post :-)

Be sure to stop by every day next week when we'll be celebrating our first anniversary! Join us for a week-long Q&A with our favorite authors. And, of course, fabulous prizes!

World Building II: Research

Since I just shipped out Her Wicked Ways to my agent I am now focusing on my new ms, Their Wicked Bargain. (Check out the new teaser blurb on my website!) But, wow, it's been awhile since I started a new book! I, er, forgot how hard that can be. I actually started the book a couple of times recently, but neither effort was "right." I'm armed with GMCs, inciting incidents, turning points, and black moments. I even know (I think) how the HEA will work out. Why then, have I spent a week working on the first scene and I'm still not done?

Research, MaveFaves.

One of the reasons I write (and read) historicals is the research aspect. Last week I talked about world-building and that's the other reason. And, unfortunately, you can't have the latter without the former. The more you know about the period in which you're writing, the better the world you build. For example, the heroine lives with her cousin and his wife. Her cousin is fifteen years older than her and well established in a career. Now, what kind of career would a guy living outside the second-largest city in Wales have? Turns out he's an agent for a copper smelting factory. So far anyway. There's still some research outstanding. I've read about how smelting works and how dirty and awful most factory conditions were during this period. Will I use this information in the book? Not most of it. But, just knowing it will make the heroine's cousin more real. And the more real the characters, the more real the world.

Sometimes I get caught up in what some people might call ridiculous details (okay, that's what I call them) - how far places are apart, actual names of towns and landmarks in the area, what day it is, you get the picture. But to me these things are important and I'm beginning to see how they impact the world I'm building.

How do you feel about research? Best part? Rather stick a machete in your eye? Ever written around having to do research or chosen a path that wouldn't require you to fact-check? True confession time: do you have Wikipedia bookmarked?

Be sure to stop by every day next week when we'll be celebrating our first anniversary! Join us for a week-long Q&A with our favorite authors. And, of course, fabulous prizes!

What your characters feel...

When you read this... I'll be asleep.  Or I might be out crabbing.  Or reading.  Or sitting in the sun watching the tide change.  As I said last week, I'm taking a few days off this week and that means not spending a lot of time online either :)  One of the things I'm reminded of being at the beach is ambiance.  Those things that are hard to remember when you're far away -- the random sounds in the background, the angle of the sun, the feel of the breeze and the way spartina bends in the air.  We're told as writers to incorporate the 5 senses into our writing and even when I try to remember to do this, it's easy to forget those senses that constanly hum in the background.  Those sounds that we take for granted.So it's nice to be here remembering all of that since my current WIP is set near the ocean.  I close my eyes and imagine my characters, wondering what they'd be doing.  It's led to some interesting plot ideas :)What do you do when you find yourself in settings or situations that your characters may face?  Do you ever wonder what your character would do?  Wonder what they'd experience taking a few mental notes?

Happy Fourth!

I'm blogging today from beautiful Lindstrom, Minnesota, where we're visiting my aunt and uncle for a week before driving back to sunny Southern California. Naturally, there has been no writing for the past few days, but plenty of inspiration as we drove through places like Monument Valley (Tony Hillerman country), Durango, Colorado, and along the Mormon trail through South Dakota. On the way back, I'm hoping to hit Deadwood. Who knows, maybe I'll get the inspiration I need to write that hot Western historical (I hear they're making s comeback).

Since I'm on vacation and I imagine a lot of you are, too, this will be a brief post wishing you a safe and happy holiday weekend (assuming you're in the US, of course!) and all the hot dogs and fireworks you can stand!

Take care and we'll see you next week!

A pretty Schick way to promote

A few days ago, I was talking to a friend about possible marketing and promotion options for a new website-slash-product/service he is about to launch. I mentioned jump-starting his own viral marketing campaign by contacting people who have access to his market and asking them to work with him to promote his product. As an example, I mentioned that I had been contacted by YouCast Corporation to promote the new Schick Quattro for Women razor on my blog.

There's a few cool things I learned about marketing and promotion while working with a representative from the YouCast team. First, it is definitely okay to contact people out of the blue and ask them to try your product. The worst they can say is no! Second, once you do, you have absolutely no control over what they decide to say or do about said product promotion. For example, I am convinced YouCast didn't mean for me to make this post about their marketing and promotion service, instead of about the Schick Quattro. Third, it's a good idea to have more than just a sample of your product to share when you're looking to generate interest. Schick Quattro has a contest, but more, they've created a "Dream Date" widget that cracks me up. Check it out, then think about ways you could create a widget or tool that is fun and interactive. Something your friends, fans, and family (and virtual strangers) could post on their MySpace (or other social networking site -- I don't claim to know what the cool kids are doing these days).

YOUR TURN: What do you think? Would you or have you ever asked strangers to post about your product online? Do you think it helps? Have you ever tried a Schick Quattro (so silky smooth!)? What are some of the newer-fangled techniques for promotion you've used, seen, or heard about?

World Building

When I think of world building I usually think of fantasy or paranormal books. Harry Potter. The Golden Compass (which Mr. Burke is currently reading). Etcetera. Only recently did I start thinking world building in terms of the genre in which I write: historical romance. I began to see it in my own work when I didn’t want to leave my characters and their “space,” meaning the little world I created just for them. And, of course, that world is the only place they exist.

As I start my next book, I'm very mindful of world building. The story takes place entirely on the Gower Peninsula of Wales (where the city of Swansea is located), and in 1817 this is a very rural area. Populated with people who speak English in addition to their own language. (Since I don't speak Welsh, that will be tricky on its own - not that I plan to have long passages in Welsh!). I'm very excited to establish a place and set of characters that are unique and that will draw my reader into a world they won't want to leave.

In thinking about creating a world that is inviting, exciting, and satisfying I come up with the following components:

Place 
This might seem like the "duh" part in that isn't a world a place? Well, yes, but it's so much more. Place is the geographic location, the settings (you might also think of settings as a separate component that might encompass smell, taste, sound), the overall feel of the surroundings.

Time
To me, this is more than just historical, contemporary, or futuristic. It's a time of life as well as a time of setting. The story you tell is affectd by your characters' time, if that makes sense.

Characters
This is huge. A world is only as interesting as the people who inhabit it. This includes the nameless redshirt as well as the hero or heroine. One might argue that characters can even be part of the setting. To me, it's all part of building a believable and entertaining world. A world where the reader wants to spend their free time.

I'm sure there are tons more (do share!), but these are just the things that come to mind as I write this post. I'd love to hear your thoughts.


Your turn: What kinds of things do you think of in terms of building your world? Do you consciously think of this, or just  write your story and characters and believe the "world" will come out?

And a Big Thank You
I'm mailing Her Wicked Ways off to my agent this week. I want to thank all of the people who read either parts or the entire book and provided such valuable feedback. I could not have crafted this without your help and support. So thank you, thank you to Angie, Lenora, Tessa, Courtney, Barbara, and especially Janice who really put the screws to me (in the best possible way). And I would be completely lost without my plotting partners/CPs, Mavens Erica and Lacey who constantly challenge and inspire me to write smarter and better. I'm so fortunate to have met such generous and gifted writers and friends. Thank you!

Refilling the well... again :)

And the winner of last week's contest giving away a copy of Diana Peterfreund's Rites of Spring (Break) is.... Jessica Burkhart!  Jess, email me with your address and I'll pop it in the mail to you straight from Amazon!

So this week's post is going to be short.  It's almost vacation time and I can't wait to refill the well!  The past month have been a bit of a blur -- getting ARCs for The Forest of Hands and Teeth, going through first pass pages or uncorrected page proofs or unbound galleys or whatever you or your house happen to call them, getting pictures taken for the cover and website, trying to figure out what the website should look like, writing book two, day job.... and er... supposedly I'm planning a wedding as well. 

I'm not going to lie, June was one of those months that was more "hold on and make it through" rather than "achieve balance."  I had grand plans to get a lot of writing done over the July 4th Holiday -- JP and I are heading to the beach with his family like we do every year.  I LOVE going to the beach for the Fourth.  It's always so laid back and easy.  I do a lot of sleeping (his family is amazed at my ability to sleep so much), reading, crabbing, eating, playing games.  Every year I have grand plans to write and every year I... don't. 

But you know what?  Even though I have internal deadlines set, I think I might just allow myself not to write this weekend.  I think sometimes you gotta let things slide a bit and enjoy the process.  I can't wait to pick out what books I'm taking with me!!

What about y'all?  Any big holiday plans?  What are you going to do just for yourself this weekend to refill the well?

It's an Epidemic!

A few months ago, my local paper ran an article about a group of writers in my area who get together to support one another and commiserate over their rejections. (It wasn't the local RWA chapter, to which I belong.) Several people quoted in the story lamented over how impossible it is for a debut author to get published in New York these days. Agents and editors won't even consider an unpublished writer's work, let alone offer a contract for publication!

But is that really true? That the unpubbed, to quote Rodney Dangerfield, don't get no respect?

I used to think so. I was pretty sure that getting an offer of agent representation or of publication were longshots akin to winning the lottery. Unlike the lottery, that didn't stop me from trying, but I knew the odds were poor.

Yesterday, however, I realized that in the past year, I've seen a lot of my unpublished friends become either agented or sold or both. I mean, a significantly higher percentage than anyone would expect based upon the statistics we all hear all the time (agents reject 99% or more of all submissions that come to them, only one-tenth of one percent of books that come before a NY editor are published, etc.). In fact, these events have been occurring so often lately, it seems like a virtual epidemic.

I still think it's DAMN difficult to get published. I know quite a few authors whose work I think is more than worthy of a six-figure contract who have been rejected repeatedly by agents and editors alike. And yet...it doesn't seem to be to be quite the crapshoot it once did. Authors with lots of skill and talent and more than a little bit of good luck and timing can and do get published. Even if they haven't got a previous publishing credit to their name.

Agents are still looking for new authors whose work they love to represent. Publishers are looking for new blood, new voices. And with diligence and perseverance, new authors do get published.

So, yay for the aspiring and unpubbed. Go forth and submit. And never abandon hope!

YOUR TURN: Do you feel encouraged when an unpublished author sells? Or do you think, "There goes another slot for a debut author; now I'll never get published!"

P.S. A hearty congratulations to Avon FanLit winner and all-around sweetheart, Sara Lindsey, whose three-book deal with NAL/Signet was announced this week, thereby inspiring this post.

Mile High

I'm at the airport, thinking the best thing I ever did was commit to a smart phone. I swear, I don't know how I lived without it! Okay, I do know. I was constantly strung out and waiting for my next fix of the internet. Now I get whatever I want, when I want it...It's a heady feeling.

I love flying. I hate airplanes. I build airplanes. I love building things, and I love my job. This is something of an awkward situation, but one made so much more awkward recently, when the following conversation took place in my living room:

Spiderman: /picks up Aviation For Women magazine off my coffee table
S: /flips through it
Lacey:/comes back from kitchen with wine. Sees what is transpiring and decides to nip that conversation in the bud
L: Oh, that. Right. I hate flying. Love the articles, but...shudder
S: Oh, I was just checking out the article on such and such thing that sounds really cool
L: /has no idea what Spiderman is talking about, as likes to pretend said magazine does not exist
L: So.../changes the subject...What are you up to this weekend?
S: Not much. Just flying some friends over the San Juans [in a Cessna]
L: /realizes now will never, ever be invited on an outing she didn't even know was *possible*
L: Crap.

And so goes my attempt to overpower my nemesis. He's a wily one, to be sure, and completely unpredictable. Who could've guessed he was secretly a small aircraft pilot? C'mon. Guys should come with decoder rings.

The best part is, I would totally go flying. I fly all the time. I am a 'fraidy cat, but if I stayed away from everything I'm afraid of, I'd never go anywhere! I'm a Travelocity VIP member, for goodness sakes. So why can't I keep my mouth shut? Or better yet, be able to predict the future?

Which ties in nicely to the point of this blog, actually. See, I'm a pretty determined person, and one day, I will be published in romantic fiction. But that time is not now, because right now, I'm focusing on losing 50 pounds. I think I got tired of working on problems I have no control over and needed a break.

In publishing, there's no guarantees. I can work my butt off for one year and get a six fig contract, or work for a dozen years and be grateful for $500. I can't control what happens to me, to a certain extent.

But if I work out consistently, I can predict the outcome. I will lose weight. I will look hot. And I will feel great about my hard work and accomplishment.

Spiderman? There's no telling what will happen there. It's just interesting enough to hold my attention without distracting me from my two primary goals: losing the author spread and kicking butt at work. So, with that in mind, I'll take my business class seat and raise you an aisle hike. And Spiderman? Well, we'll just have to find something a little less vertical to do :-)

YOUR TURN: What are you afraid of? When did you say something you really regretted? Do you ever choose projects based on potential for success? Have any advice for me and my friend Spiderman?

Shameless Self-Promotion

Today I'm indulging in shameless self-promotion. A few weeks ago I was interviewed by our local newspaper. They received a press release regarding my Golden Heart final from RWA who graciously sends them to three media outlets (designated by me). I had no idea if the press releases would bear fruit and was thrilled to get a call from Kristen Forbes who wanted to interview me for the article.

I'd never done an interview before! But I'm a talker (no, really?), so it was pretty easy (okay, except when I spotted a couple of teachers from my daughter's school at a nearby table and had a moment's panic for some inexplicable reason). The only problem was not asking her a bunch of questions in return (which I ended up doing anyway - she was incredibly nice and fun to talk to). I'm just amazed at how much information she packed into the article. And I'd even forgotten a few things I'd said. She took awesome notes.

Ever done an interview? Been on the news? What about from the other side - ever interviewed anyone? What's the one thing you'd like to share about yourself - dish it here!

Oh, and here's the article of course!

Mid-Series Pros and Cons

Welcome guest Maven, Diana Peterfreund!

Today, my third book is on shelves. It’s called Rites of Spring (Break) and you can buy it here. Okay. Plugged. It’s the third book in the Secret Society Girl series.

There are pros and cons to writing an ongoing series.

PRO: My readers already know who Amy is. I don’t have to spend much time describing her or explaining her world or back story.

CON: My readers already know who Amy is. I don’t get to spend much word count describing her or explaining her world or back story.


PRO: I finally get to write those scenes I’ve been dreaming about for three years.

CON: I finally have to write those scenes I’ve been dreading tackling for three years.

PRO: I get to create a long, involved story arc that spans four books and several hundred thousand words.

CON: And that story has to be complex enough to not only fill up all those hundreds of thousands of words, but have four smaller stories that can stand on their own as well as fit together into a cohesive whole.

PRO: I get fan mail about what people love best about my series and hope to see in the latest book.

CON: Sometimes the fans are hoping for stuff that ain’t gonna happen. Sorry.

PRO: People who liked the last two books will probably like this one. Yay, built-in readership!

CON: People who haven’t read the last two books might be afraid of picking up this one (Don’t be. The reviewer from Night Owl Romance said she never read any of the previous books, then gave it a five heart “top pick.”)

So it is with great trepidation that I send out my latest -- my little conjoined twin -- into the world. Will they like her? As much as the others? More? Less? I always hope more, since I try to grow as a writer with each book I write, and I hope that with every new adventure, readers become more engaged with Amy and her friends. And I think they will like it, even those who have begged me not to do what I gleefully do in this book. (Those of you who have read it, please keep the spoilers out of your comments below…) It’s out of my hands now. It’s up to Amy and her big mouth, her foibles, her smarts, and her bravery. It’s up to her relationship with the reader.

Reader expectations mid-series is an interesting conundrum. When I go to my signings in the next few weeks, I’ll be speaking to people who have, if I’m lucky, read only through Under the Rose. And I’ll be talking to them about Rites of Spring (Break). But in my head, I’m living in the fourth book. The things that are current to me are two books in the future to everyone else. I first realized what a challenge this would be when my first novel, Secret Society Girl, came out while I was in the middle of writing the third. So much had changed between the characters that it felt a bit like talking to someone you haven’t seen since high school, who is still surprised that you ended up an English teacher after swearing you’d go pre-med in college.

Except catching them up would be a spoiler. And I’ve never been known for my poker faces.

Rites of Spring (Break) is especially challenging in this arena; as part three of four, my characters and storyline are past the point of no return. Everything has been flipped, thwarted, brought to the breaking point. At work every day, I’m neck deep in tying all those strands together. But for the next year, no one will know about that part except me, my editor, and my husband, who has to hear me whingeing at the dinner table.

There’s another con, I suppose. The pro for that one is easy. I’ve got a secret. And I could tell you… but then I’d have to kill you. :-)

YOUR TURN: How do you feel about spoilers? Do you frequent the spoiler sites for movie and television productions? Do you relish knowing what’s going to happen? Or do you, like me, like to be surprised? How do you feel about ongoing series – pro or con?

(Diana asks that you please keep spoilers for Rites of Spring (Break) out of the comment thread. She will be posting a “spoiler thread” for discussion on her own blog later this week.)

Leave a comment and one lucky MaveFave will win a copy of Rites of Spring (Break)!

This Too Shall Pass

Life seems to move in mysterious circles sometimes. Earlier this week, I was checking the stats on my websites, seeing how many people had come by recently and how many of those had actually found me on purpose. (I figure the ones who find me after inputting searches like "her creamy bosom" or my agent's name or my editor's name probably aren't really looking for ME.)

As I was scrolling through the list of visitor paths, I happened on one coming from a parenting newsgroup I used to subscribe to and post on regularly before I got too busy writing to keep up with that stuff any more. I clicked the link and, lo and behold, someone had posted asking if anyone knew what had become of me. Several people had answered, including a friend who lives in Virginia with whom I still correspond on irregular occasions. And someone posted a link to my website as a follow-up.

I thought it was pretty cool that my old friends (whom I've only ever known online) were asking after me, so I posted a response to say hi and let them know what I'm up to and where they can find me. I did explain before I unsubscribed from the newsgroup WHY I was unsubbing, so it wasn't like I just vanished or anything, but it was still flattering to be remembered and asked after more than two years after I left.

But I didn't see the symmetry in this until this afternoon. You see, I've been lamenting quite a bit lately to my writer friends about how I'm up to my eyeballs in everything. Kids are out of school, so home life is crazy. I've got teaching engagements with my day job almost every day this week and next. And I have to get ready to go to a wedding next Friday night and leave on a two-week family vacation the day after. I've had two books come out in the last two months, and I've got promotion to do.

Oh, and did I mention there's this little matter of three novellas I have to deliver to my editor by September 1? Two of which are no more than a third written, if that.

It helps to whine because I'm finding plenty of company for my misery. Others are in the same boat. Their work and personal lives are crazy. Their writing is suffering. They're hanging on by a fingernail and wondering when or if things will ever return to normal again. And it's awfully nice to know I'm not alone.

That thought made me remember why I haunted those parenting newsgroups for years and years. Because I didn't feel alone in what I was experiencing as a parent. Other people had been through--or were in the throes of--the very same struggles I was facing, whether it was a newborn who wouldn't sleep more than 45 minutes at a stretch (all 24 hours of every stinking day, and yeah, I had one of those!) or teething or potty training or five-year-old trash-mouth. I had company.

But I also remembered the most oft-repeated advice on those boards. Advice I myself gave to other parents as I gained knowledge and experience: "This too shall pass." And while I have to admit, that seemed like cold comfort when I was hanging onto my sanity by a thread because I hadn't slept properly in months (actually, I think there may have been a period where I hadn't slept properly in YEARS!), when the phase would pass and the NEXT problem would crop up, I'd always think, "Damn, they were right. It DIDN'T last forever!"

So today, I'm giving myself that advice. This too shall pass. I'll cope with what life throws my way, and before I quite know what happens, it'll be throwing something else at me. Maybe something better, maybe something worse, but definitely something different. And somehow, I'm finding that's pretty good comfort!

YOUR TURN: Life throwing you curveballs? Want to vent? Need commiseration? Bring it on!

Predictably Lost

In the last week or so, I've been watching Season 4 of LOST (at Maven Darcy's urging; she couldn't believe I'd let an entire season go by when it's on the internet), reading Julia Quinn's The Lost Duke of Wyndham, and gossiping incessantly with my girlfriends over men friends who have lost their minds. I've come to a conclusion.

Unpredictability is where it's at.

So now I'm wondering how we generate unpredictableness ourselves. In the romance genre, in particular, there are certain expectations our readers have that we are [required] to meet. There has to be an HEA. There has to be a love story. There has to be something about the heroine our readers can identify with, and true beta heroes are a tough sell. But within those basic (and arguable) confines, we have choices. Maven Darcy's outstanding post yesterday got me thinking [as I was watching an incredible and shocking episode of LOST], while we're busily and creatively ruining our characters' lives, should we also be looking for the most surprising way to do it?

At the same time, the reader also needs to feel like they can predict the book, to a certain extent. I think this is a cross between keeping the story realistic and logical and helping the reader feel smart. So no space alien babies, and the villian needs to make sense, at least in hindsight. But still. When we're plotstorming, it probably wouldn't go amiss if we asked our critique partners to fill in the blank. As in, "Can you guess what happens next?" If they say, "Yeah, he falls into the same cellar where she's being held captive and they make hot, sweaty under-the-ground love," then maybe that's not the answer. Maybe we should ask, "What's the last and/or craziest thing you would expect to happen next?"

But maybe, by virtue of them thinking it, that is the expected thing.

Agh.

YOUR TURN: Surprise or reader intuition? (That's code for predictable.) If you think you keep the reader jumping, how do you do it? Would you rather have a man you can predict or one who's constantly keeping you guessing? Oh, how'd that get in there...

Authenticity in Action

Ever forget to practice what you preach? Raises hand. I swear it was an accident. Recently a lovely writer friend of mine graciously read Her Wicked Ways. She had great things to say (yay!) about the last two-thirds. What about the first third? She found the pacing off. Too much introspection and non-relevant action. Oh no, but I try to balance action/introspection/dialogue! Remember AID? Uh, yeah, I guess I forgot. Or wasn't paying attention, more likely.

Regarding the introspection, I think I was in a rut of inner dialogue to replace action. In a character's POV scene, it's cool to ground their external dialogue with inner dialogue. Fun technique, but easy to overdo. Same with tagging external dialogue with action. We all know the pitfalls of arching brows, shrugging shoulders, and flexing fingers.

But I had plenty of non-arching/shrugging/flexing action! Except the action still wasn't tied to the goals of the scene. Whaaaa, you say? I'll give an example. I had a scene in which the hero and his mentor/best friend type discussed his romantic progress with the heroine using the miserable summer and the failing crops as the backdrop. The cold weather and disastrous planting play hugely into the hero's GMC. So, here they are checking out the fledgling plants that are woefully behind schedule and musing about the potential for a freeze that night. Out comes the heroine and conversation turns to her and blah, blah, wake up!

After my friend gave me her comments, I reread the first several chapters and immediately saw her point. When I got to this point in the story, I sat back for a moment and pondered how best to make the action in this scene more relevant. I mean, standing around talking about the weather is nowhere near as exciting as doing something about the weather. So if a freeze could be imminent, why not dump snow on them? Now. As in, we need to get these plants covered before the snow accumulates and kills the tiny sprouts! (Yes, Maven Carrie's technique of "how can I ruin my characters today" mentality was incredibly helpful and I want to give credit where it's due.) Now my scene had real action that mattered to the story. And the conversation that was there still happens, but it's more authentic. Yes, that's it, authentic.

So thank you dear friend/CP (you know who you are) for reminding me that action should be authentic for the scene and contribute conflict as well as interest. And thank you Maven Carrie for helping me torture my characters.

What do you do if a scene just doesn't have "it?" Do your scenes have authentic action that moves the story forward, that contributes to the purpose of the scene? How do you keep track of all the myriad things we aim to achieve in our writing?

Congrats to our friends over at Riding With the Top Down on your second anniversary! Speaking of anniversaries, the Mavens have been blogging for a year this week. Crazy, huh? Stay tuned for exciting anniversary happenings...

Agent myths -- you must change everything

Recently, I've been blogging about myths that many of us hear about agents. I started this theme based on a few tidbits I overheard at a conference and just wanted to be able to throw my spin on things.

So, at that conference I heard an author talking about how you should be careful about the details you tell an agent about your story. The idea is that if you know an agent doesn't like things like... say... a story set on a star-ship, you shouldn't pitch that your story is set on a star ship and should instead highlight other aspects of your story.

And while I totally agree with the fact that you should highlight your strengths in light of what an agent is looking for, the advice I heard went farther than that. The advice was -- if an agent doesn't like a star-ship setting, you should be willing to rewrite your entire manuscript based on that even before the agent makes an offer or shows interest.

Here's the thing... agents definitely ask for revisions, even before signing clients. And I think trying to figure out whether to tackle those revisions and re-submit is a difficult choice. The advice I've seen most often is that if you agree with the revision requests you should go ahead and do them. If you don't agree, you should think twice. And I tend to agree with this.

But I don't agree with re-setting and changing everything about your story on the off chance that doing so will please an agent who hasn't even given an opinion on your story. To me, this ties in with my post from last week -- feeling like agents are these terrifying beats. They're not -- they're there to work with the author to present the best story possible.

When I was submitting The Forest of Hands and Teeth I was convinced that agents would reject me the moment they saw the word "zombie" in the query. Worse than that, I fully assumed that my query would be sent around from agency to agency to be laughed at. "Zombies!" they would all shout, "This girl wanted me to sell a book about zombies!" This is one of the main reasons I queried my agent, Jim -- I knew that he'd recently sold a book about zombies and therefore wouldn't laugh at me!

In the end, I took a chance with my zombie query and it worked out, even though I expected nothing but laughter. And so I feel very strongly that you shouldn't be willing to compromise your story on the off chance an agent may possibly not be interested. First of all, if you do it right, the agent will often be interested. Second of all, if you find the right agent, they'll love it.

So take that chance. Yes, be aware of the market and what agents and editors are looking for, but don't be willing to sacrifice your book because one agent might, on a whim, not be interested. You want an agent just as excited about your book, your ideas, and your writing style, as you are.

What do you think? Should you be willing to sacrifice parts of your book to gain agent interest?

Warning Signals

Last Friday night, at my daughter's bridging ceremony from Brownie to Junior Girl Scouts, I met another writer. Unbeknownst to me, the father of one of the other girls in our troop is writing a novel. Naturally, I was thrilled to meet another writer in my "real" life, and we swapped stories about agent and publisher hunting, publicity, and the trials and tribulations of the writing itself. I honestly had a hard time dragging myself away from the discussion because it was so refreshing to talk to someone who "gets it."

It was only after I'd left the party that I got to thinking about the implications of some of the stories he'd told me. He mentioned he'd submitted the work to a few agents and at least one publisher, and now had it with a "book doctor" to fix it. He also told me about a someone he knew who'd sold out his entire first print run, but that this person had spent so much on publicity that he'd made next to nothing on the book. At the time, neither of these points struck me as off, but in retrospect, they seem like warning signals. Warnings that a writer is maybe not talking to the "right" people.

Now, I don't know this for a fact because I haven't talked to him since then. But little alarm bells go off in my head now that I think about some of these things.

The Book Doctor/Professional Editor

In principle, there's nothing wrong with having your manuscript professionally edited. In fact, I'd say it's de rigeur. It's just that, ideally, it should happen after you've received a contract for publication, and it should be free.

Now, if you're paying a professional editor because doing so gives you that extra level of confidence in your work, that's fine. But all too often, writers end up hiring so-called "book doctors" because they've queried a shyster-type agents whose primary business isn't selling books to publishers, but sending business to the other guy. These agents say nice things about your book, but tell you it needs "work" to be marketable and that such-and-such an editor can help you for a smeall fee of X per page.

Of course, just because these agents are hucksters doesn't mean they're not right. Your book may actually need a little more work to fly in the market. But you should be able to get that kind of input for free from other writers by joining a critique group or working one-on-one with individual critique partners. Finding critique partners isn't easy--I have worked with a lot of people over the years, and some of those relationships have panned out long-term and some haven't--but it's well worth the effort. Not only do you get constructive and honest feedback on your own work, but you can learn a ton from critiquing their work in return. I know having great critique partners (including Mavens Lacey, Darcy, and Erica) was absolutely instrumental in my ability to sell a manuscript and land an agent. I just wouldn't be the writer I am today without them.

But pay a professional editor? Nope. That's my publisher's job!

Publicity Eats Up All the Profits

I have to admit, when I heard my writer friend say that it cost so much to promote a book, I kind of raised my eyebrow. I mean, how much does it cost to have a blog? (Answer: $0) How much does it cost to start a Yahoo Group for your newsletter. (Again, $0.) Those are small things, of course, and they aren't the be all and end all of an author's book promotional activities, but my sense is that you don't have to spend a LOT of money to effectively promote a book so long as your publisher is large enough and reputable enough to get shelf presence in bookstores. Oh, sure, everything you do above and beyond that helps, and it may affect your sell-through numbers to some extent, but the reality is that word of mouth (reader to reader) is the SINGLE MOST EFFECTIVE MARKETING TOOL in the world, and alas, you can't buy it!

What struck me as "off" about this particular story, though, was that the print run numbers were very, very small, and that made me think the book was probably self-pubbed or vanity-pubbed. That's a whole different ballgame, obviously.

Needless to say, though, I wonder now whether my friend has been talking to the "wrong sort" of publisher, especially since he mentioned that an editor told him he had to have a marketing plan, complete with a book signing tour, in place before the book was even contracted. Maybe I should be doing this and no one's told me (a very real possibility), but I'm still wary of the notion that it should cost the average author more to promote a book than he/she can earn from it.

Bottom Line

I think it behooves authors to be skeptical any time someone suggests that an outlay of a significant amount of cash will make him/her successful. When the desire to get that first publishing contract is so strong, it's easy to get scammed, and there are all too many people out there who will feed on those aspirations in any way they can.

YOUR TURN: Have you had experiences with agents or editors that set off your warning bells? What happened? Heard any horror stories from friends or other authors?

P.S. My contemporary novella, The Gospel of Love: According to Luke, comes out today from Cobblestone Press.

P.P.S. I'm over at the Naughty and Spice Blog today, talking about how I learned to stop living (and writing) in the past. Thanks to the fabulous Amie Stuart for the invite!

Crazycakes

Over the last month, I've done exactly one productive thing. Unfortunately, that productive thing wasn't writing a book. In fact, in the last six months I've done almost nothing productive when it comes to writing a book. I'm not okay with that, but that concern is for another post.

Long-time readers know I'm a process engineer. I'm devoted to studying and improving productivity and output; it's my passion. I never thought I could go at it, though, with the same sort of single-minded determination I used to use to write novels. Engineering seems so...black and white. I guess I was just waiting for the right opportunity.

A month ago, I became head of a project that meant big time savings for my organization. It had the potential to improve communication between various orgs, and almost assuredly would create higher morale and job satisfaction for my minions and minions everywhere. The only problem was I had 3 weeks to pull the whole thing off, including implementation and beta testing. During those three weeks, I received requests for the same program to be implemented at other sites -- that would be the program we hadn't even written yet.

And I have a life.

Suddenly, I felt very, very kindred with Maven Erica :-) My phone wouldn't stop ringing. My email was full of bug reports and frequently asked questions. I had one week to get 100 people up to speed on a user interface that had never been tested and was barely developed. I had three devoted coders working around the clock to keep up with the changes. I was making phone calls and shooting off emails to organizations I'd never contacted before and presenting the concept to managers I desperately needed to have buy in from.

It was so, so awesome.

The energy was amazing. Apparently, I thrive on God-awful deadlines. Who knew? And seeing all the shocked-yet-hopeful faces when it was announced the project had eliminated the need for the daily afternoon meeting we'd been having for thirty years -- quite literally, priceless.

I wonder if we're authors because we like to see what's in our imagination come alive. I can equate every step in this project with the same sort of ephemeral buzz I get when writing. First, we had a workshop to talk about the future state [of the meeting we ended up eliminating, w00t]. That was like when I get together with the Mavens and brainstorm the concept of a novel. Then I was locked in a room with three bright, enthusiastic coders ready to tackle the logic to create the software -- that was like storyboarding. (We even had food.) Then we banged out a draft just to see if the concept worked; I don't need to draw this part of the picture for you. Then we fine-tuned it, and then, knowing it was buggy as hell, we released it into the world to have beta testers help us locate and smash them. (Contesting and beta reading, anyone?)

It was and still is hard to come in every day to my inbox and realize the interface isn't perfect. It will probably never be perfect, as it's written in Visual Basic and heavily utilizes Microsoft programs...(sorry, Keira, but it's true). But when the feedback is positive -- wow. Is that a great feeling or what? And when we're improving job satisfaction, not just because we're saving faceless money, but because we're literally helping people have a better day...that's nothing short of amazing.

The only problem is that during this time, my "life" became about this project. Either I was working on this project or not sleeping because of this project or worrying about this project or out kicking it with friends, valiantly trying to forget about this project. And now, just 2 days from full implementation, I'm still blogging about this project. It never ends!

But I am trying. My game plan this last week has been to come home ON TIME (+/- an hour of over time), work out, take a nap, and either a) play with my Xbox (damn you, Ryu!) b) watch an episode or two of LOST (can you really watch just one?) c) read a book (Lost Duke of Wyndham is on my TBR) d) go to happy hour (no comment) or e) do nothing. Yes, that's right. Do nothing.

But we had to filter through a, b, c, and d to get to nothing.

YOUR TURN: Do you ever let yourself stop? Do you ever feel like even when you're "relaxing," you're really trying to cram something fun into your day? Do you ever find yourself replacing the joy of writing (Freudian? I just typed "job") with the joy of something else? (there goes that job again)

What I'm Going to Do On My Summer Vacation...

So it's the last week of school here and I am sooooo ready for summer. Of course it's 50 degrees here in Oregon, so summer seems like an absolute pipe dream. I'm ready for summer because it should be warm (note, I like it warm, not hot), because I don't have to rouse my tired daughter for school, because I don't have to worry about doing homework or getting lunch made, because I can write more.

Are you laughing? I hear you laughing. Yes, I hope to get more writing done. I'd actually like to write the first draft of Their Wicked Bargain between now and September (maybe that's the pipe dream). Not sure I can make it, but I'm going to try. And I'm going to try an early morning/late night schedule. We'll see if it pans out and I promise to check in with you. If I don't, ask, okay?

In the meantime, we're headed to the beach for a long weekend on Friday with some friends. Can't wait. And I'm leaving my laptop at home. I could take it because the campground* has wi-fi, but it's sketchy at best. I took my laptop when we stayed there during Spring Break in March because we left the day I got the call that I'd finaled in the Golden Heart, and I could not be away from the computer. Pathetic, I know. But, I ended up frustrated because the connection was more dead than alive. Thank goodness for McDonald's and their free wi-fi.

We're starting our summer break with this camping trip and finishing it over Labor Day with another camping trip to central Washington (annual pilgrimage to the Gorge Amphitheatre to see the Dave Matthews Band).

What are you planning for this summer? Both vacations and other goals - anyone else hoping to write a book?

*Lest you worry about us camping in 50 degree weather, it's worth nothing that this is "camping." While we could tent, we rented cabins complete with beds (they supply the mattress pads, we supply the sleeping bags), microwaves, mini-fridges, TVs (with cable, of course), porch swing, fire pit, barbecue, and HEATER. Oh, and there's an indoor pool.