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May 30, 2007
Since I laid bare 13 chapter openings, I thought I might as well let ‘er rip with 13 end-of-chapter hooks!
- She’d be more than happy to make all of Daisy’s nightmares come true.
- “Sometimes, my friend, a rock is just a rock.”
- With a beleaguered sigh, Bubbles snuggled into Daisy’s trembling palm and complied.
- The ring was still there.
- Trevor fell to his knees as the carved mouth stretched into a wry, toothy smile.
- They’d been about to make love-and that was much, much scarier.
- He had no idea what kind of punishment went with charges like that, but when a horde of army-green trolls hoisted him over their shoulders, he knew it couldn’t be good.
- In fact, he’d make sure she was stuck with him until she did.
- Holding his burnt finger to his lips, he strode into the living room, set the no-longer-mint-condition mug on a helmet-shaped coaster, and covered his crotch with his laptop.
- Through his clenched teeth, Trevor sucked in a deep breath and remembered every single moment.
- “Aargh,” Daisy choked out, staring in horrified disbelief at the shaking, sweaty palm that no longer contained a certain green where-frog.
- As the silence stretched into self-conscious stiffness, Trevor got the distinct impression that his next few words would make the difference whether she stayed a little longer or disappeared in a puff of smoke.
- He should’ve stabbed the little bastard with his pencil when he had the chance.
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Since we already discussed Tortured Heroes, let’s take a look at the non-tortured kind. (Or, at least, the not-necessarily-tortured kind.)
First I’d like to open the floor to two questions: (Please post your responses in the comments!)
- What makes a hero heroic?
- Think of a book/movie with a protagonist you found particularly heroic. What did s/he do that garnered your respect?
While I was writing those questions, I started to think of another kind of hero–the anti-hero. Probably the anti-hero deserves his own post, but I already brought it up, so we might as well go with it, now. =)
The first anti-hero that comes to mind is Capt. Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Carribbean movies. (Mmmm…. Johnny….)
At first blush, we might say he’s not heroic. But I think maybe he is, and while he may not have the external characteristics that define fairy tale princes (riches, “goodness”, personal hygiene) he must have at least some of the internal characteristics that make a person heroic.
Like what? Ethics spring to mind first. No, he’s obviously not ethical in the follow-the-law, follow-society-norms kind of way, but he has his own internal logic of what’s right (for him) and wrong, and he sticks to that internal code. He’s not wishy washy. You know how he’ll react, what he’ll think, what he’ll do.
So I would say, we like a hero who knows his mind. Who goes after what he wants. Stationary heroes who do nothing for long sequences do not light my fuse, personally. (Sorry, Hamlet.) And Capt Jack Sparrow is a very active (anti)hero, making decisions and taking actions to reach his goals.
Another favorite anti-hero of mine is Shrek. (He’s missing those same 3 qualities as poor Johnny–I see a trend. *g) Using him as an example, I would say that another thing that makes a protagonist heroic is having the mettle to do what he has to do even when he 100% does not want to.
In the first Shrek movie, does Shrek think, “La la la, I’d love to rescue a princess and save some magical forest creatures”? Hell no. He says (paraphrased), “Get the hell out, this is my house and my life and I want it to stay how I want it.” But in order for him to achieve that goal, he has to do things he doesn’t want to. And he does! Because that’s what heroes do.
If the a toddler falls off a pier into the ocean* and the hero (who just happens to be an Olympic gold medalist in swimming) dives in and rescues him, is that heroic? Maybe. It would definitely be the right thing to do. But is that too easy?
What if the toddler falls off a pier into the ocean and the hero, suffering from a panic attack because *he* fell into the ocean as a small child and was almost eaten by a shark and has never been able to even go into the deep ends of swimming pools since, wheezes in a shaky breath, cannonballs into the water fully clothed, dog paddles to the child, and by sheer force of will somehow gets them both ashore.
Isn’t that better? (Not for our poor hero with the phobia, but for the story!)
So with those three examples in mind (Jack Sparrow, Shrek, Heroic Waterphobe) and all the examples you post in the comments, I bet we can come up with a great list of characteristics on what makes a hero heroic!
[* Some of you might remember that I resemble this remark. When I was a toddler, I did in fact fall off a pier into shark infested waters and had to be rescued. I had nightmares every night for years and have never been comfortable in deep water since. But if another child fell in--you better believe I'd dive in after!]
YOUR TURN: Can you think of a book/movie with a protagonist you found particularly heroic? What did s/he do that garnered your respect? What traits, characteristics, or actions come to mind when you think about what makes someone (in fiction or in real life) heroic?
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May 29, 2007
And today’s Good Karma Tuesday winner is:
TESSA DARE
As soon as I get back from foggy Costa Rica, I will mail you something lovely (just email me your address)
Now for some more Q&A time. (I got all long-winded with this one, so I’ll answer the other questions in another post.)
Meryl F asks:
When you plot, do you use a standard structure, e.g. 3 act, or do you just tell the story and worry about structure later?
Hmmmm. I use… mishmash structure. =) I went through a phase where I read a lot of craft books (I think it was good for me, so I’m glad I did) and now a lot of it has morphed together in my head. Part hero’s journey, part 4 act structure, part plantsing* (half plotting, half pantsing). I always start by knowing the hero and heroine’s story GMC, meaning the goal they are working toward, why they want it, and what’s standing in their way. [* I did not make up "plantsing" but I lurve the idea. No need for us all to be divided--I think most of us are a little from column A, a little from column B with the plotting/pantsing anyway! *g]
In TATTF, for example, the heroine (Daisy) is an apprentice tooth fairy. The one thing she wants more than anything else in the world is a real pair of wings (which she can earn if she succeeds at her apprenticing.) She wants this because although her father is a guardian angel and her mother is a fairy godmother, she was born without wings (or any apparent magical talent) in a world that values magical ability above all else, and she believes the wings will finally earn her respect and a place in her world. Her primary conflict is the hero, who is working against her for reasons of his own, as well as another antagonist, who sabotages her efforts to acheive her goals.
The hero (Trevor) is a professor of paleo-anthropology at a university with looming budget cuts. He loves his job and taking the seniors on expeditions to other countries to dig, but if he doesn’t make tenure, his career at that school is toast. He’s hoping to up his odds by publishing about a skeletal find he’s discovered on a dig, but from (seemingly) out of nowhere, a woman shows up claiming she’s the tooth fairy and tries to swipe part of the skeleton.
Their interaction is the Inciting Incident. I try to always start with the moment of change, the moment that the hero/heroine is emboiled in adventure and must begin making choices. In my experience, it’s often best if this inciting incident deals with the story goal (wings/tenure) as opposed to some random plot device merely used as an attention grabber. That way, after reading the first scene, if somebody asks, “Hey–what’s that book about?” already the reader knows the answer. Also, it helps me to make sure *I* know the answer! Before I started “seriously” writing, I started and abandoned many a story simply because I didn’t know where it was going. Now I like it best when everybody knows–me *and* the reader. =)
Okay, so after the inciting incident, then what. Well, if you’re following the Hero’s Journey, there’s a whole mess of stuff that comes next. And there are whole books regarding that process. So I won’t mini-recap here. (Also because I don’t consciously follow it.)
The other thing I know before I sit down to write a story is what the Black Moment will be. (Or at least, I *think* I know, since I’ve occasionally changed my mind before I got there.) But at least I have a picture in my head of how the climax is going to go down, so I know what my characters are working toward. For Witness, I was right. In TATTF, what I thought would be the climax ended up being the 3rd turning point. Same with Touched. For DATD… hard to say, as I haven’t gotten to that point yet. But even if what I think will be the climax ends up being the third turning point, nothing bad has happened, since the characters have to work to get to the third turning point before they can get to the climax anyway.
Which brings me to turning points. Since I’m a plantser, I don’t necessarily plot out every scene/chapter in advance. (In fact, I don’t even bother seperating scenes into chapters until after the first draft is complete.) I do need to know the turning points, though, or at least the next turning point I’m writing to.
The key with turning points–the thing that makes them turning points–is that the hero/heroine can’t go back to how things were before. They’ve acted on a decision that caused change, and now they have to make new choices.
The structure idea I’m about to explain came from a Jenny Crusie blog post and made a lot of sense to me. What I call Inciting Incident (hero’s journey terminology) she calls kickoff. Following that, she has Act I, then Turning Point I, then Act II, then Turning Point II, then Act III, then Turning Point III, then Act IV, then Climax, then Resolution. I morphed it a little (I morph everything!) so that my hero and heroine each had their own status/theme per act, but in general I like the concept a lot.
So, for TATTF, it starts like this: (I’ll explain my captions in parentheses)
KICKOFF:
Daisy shows up in Trevor’s tent, interfering with his dig and claiming to be a tooth fairy.
ACT ONE:
TREVOR: Two dogs, one bone. (Fighting with another prof for tenure)
DAISY: Trouble in Fairyland. (Apprenticeship going badly, may never get wings)
TURNING POINT 1:
No turning back: Daisy has stolen the artifacts and Trevor knows without a doubt that magic & fairies do exist.
ACT TWO:
TREVOR: Welcome to Oz. (Oops, he’s in Nether-Netherland!)
DAISY: Funny thing happened on the way to the office. (Human-induced drama ensues)
(I was going to post them all, but they contain some major plot spoilers. I know, I know, stupid, because it’s not like the book is out or anything, but I’m hoping someday it WILL be out… *crosses fingers*)
I’d like to get a good discussion rolling, so please post what methods you’ve tried (or refuse to try) and what has/hasn’t worked for you in the comments!
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May 27, 2007
Just so you have *something* to read, we’ll go ahead and have the Q&A time today instead of Tuesday. (Which means now I’m out of burning questions to respond to! Don’t leave me hanging–if you wanna know something, just ask!)
Post Super Saturday Writing Conference
Bill Clark asks:
QUESTION: How does one put a url into a comment? All I could do was type out Just Books’ url, but if there’s a way to make it into a link, I’d love to know about it!
ANSWER: I actually already answered this in the post thread, but just in case someone else also wants to know, I make a link by doing this:
<a href = “http://www.ericaridley.com”> Erica’s Site </a>
(Remember to include the “http://” for the link to work correctly!)
Post Good Karma Tuesday (5/22)
Robyn L asks:
QUESTION: I so hope you are doing everything and more whilst in Costa Rica; do enjoy to the fullest!!! Is this a fun trip?
ANSWER: Actually, I’m here on business! I’m being a jack-of-all-trades, doing translating (I lurve languages!) for a family on vacation, helping with their kids (doing Spanish immersion for them–they’re conversational, so it’s fun), being somewhat of a tour guide, helping with their computers as needed (because I have sysadmin stamped on my forehead *g) etc.
In my “free” time (har, har) I am keeping up with my regular client work on my laptop (which is extra fun with a dial up connection) and totally shirking my writing. (And sleep–I seem to be shirking that, too. *g)
Post Super Saturday Writing Conference
Catherine Avril Morris says:
COMMENT: In my experience it has seemed like if you did your homework and you’re pitching something that’s relatively in their ballpark (and where’d all this baseball imagery come from, anyway???), they’ll ask for at least a partial, just out of courtesy. And if they don’t, they’ll ask about your other projects. (Which is yet another good reason to write a few mss. before you start pitching.)
RESPONSE: This actually wasn’t a question, but I wanted to point it out because I second the importance of having a manuscript ready. The first time I pitched, I did not, and it was a mistake. It’s best to pitch something you can actually send if requested. Same with querying. No sense querying an agent if you can’t follow through. Why waste their time?
Post Good Karma Tuesday (5/22)
Tempest Knight asks:
QUESTION: What have I done to kill my writing karma? Hmm… how about stop writing?
ANSWER: No no no, don’t tell me that! Why have you stopped writing? As my CP Kel famously says, we all have at least 15 minutes a day to squeeze in a few paragraphs. We waste more than 15 minutes on a regular basis, right? If at all possible, why not choose how we fritter our time, and fritter it by typing our MSS? Here’s hoping you get re-bitten by the writing bug…
Post Good Karma Tuesday (5/22)
Miri asks:
QUESTION: Do you have any tricks for keeping yourself going on days that you just don’t want to write? Favorite daydreams? Sugary rewards? A mantra?
ANSWER: Wow, what a great question. I love questions that make me think. I’m not the best example at the moment, since I may write, well, never, while I’m in Costa Rica, but in general I’m really good about sticking to it.
Although I do love me some Ghirardelli (and Cadbury eggs of all flavors, when they’re in season) the thing that typically glues me to my seat for an hour or two every morning is the following mantra: “If I want to be a professional writer, I have to act like one.”
Seriously. It’s that simple. That’s all it takes to shame me to my computer. Sometimes I don’t feel like it because I’m sick or tired or bored or persnickety or have a headache, etc, but I tell myself those are whiny excuses. After all, would I refuse to go to work because I was bored? Or had a headache? Or stayed up too late the previous night? No, I would work. And writing is fun, but it’s also work. So I try to treat it that way. As a job.
I’m not getting paid for it, so I guess right now it’s more like an internship. *g Many professions actually have a period of unpaid internship before you can climb to paid career status, so I’m putting in my time. I wouldn’t blow off an internship like that using the excuses I try to give myself for non writing, so I don’t let myself blow off my soon-to-be writing career, either.
The only person who can make my dreams happen is me, and the only person who can stand in my way is me. I’m in control of me. That’s what you’ve gotta remember, regardless of what else is going on in your life. No matter where you are or what you’re doing, ultimately you’re the one in control of you.
And if you want to be a professional, then be a professional. If writing is a hobby, if Author is something we “wanna be” but don’t want to work toward, well, then we’ve got to be honest with ourselves about that. But if Author is part of our career plan, just like “doctor” or “scientist” or “paleontologist”, then we’ve got to study and work and practice and show up on time just like everybody else.
Some days the words come easy and some days they don’t. But I suppose some days-weeks-months the paleontologist sifts through dirt without finding valuable artifacts, but he doesn’t stop sifting. To stop sifting is to guarantee he never finds the treasure. And to sift intermittently–only on days he *feels* like it–is to postpone finding the treasure indefinitely. Every time I write the words “The End”, I get a jolt of adrenaline equal to finding any treasure, lemme tell ya! =) And I’ll only get there again and again if I keep writing. (The cadbury eggs are just gravy. *g)
Post Wednesday Update (5/23)
Lady Leigh asks:
QUESTION: How can you count the number of hits to your blog?
ANSWER: I use a free invisible tracking program called StatCounter. It logs page loads (the total number of times one of your pages was accessed), unique visitors (EX: maybe 10 unique visitors accessed a total of 20 different pages), number of repeat visitors, where they came from, which pages they clicked on, what they were wearing when they were clicking—okay, maybe not the last one. *g But a lot.
Also, I make sure to put a Blocking Cookie on every computer I use (through a Stat Counter control panel link) so that MY visits aren’t counted. Otherwise, it could look like I have thousands of page loads every month, when really it’s just me editing my typos. =) The blocking cookie prevents the stat counter from logging “hits” from that computer.
Post Good Karma Tuesday (5/22)
Tessa Dare says:
COMMENT: I actually read this last night, but I didn’t comment because that Sue Grafton story gave me the kick in the butt I needed to write. I’ve got a cold and was sitting there thinking, it would be so much easier to go to bed. Then I read your blog and realized – frosh med students are low on sleep, too. So I knuckled down and wrote out my 5 pages before I turned in. Thanks!
RESPONSE: Yay! I love to hear that. (Not the part about you having a cold–the part about you writing! *g)
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May 26, 2007
Unfortunately, something has come up that will delay Shannon’s ability to respond to all the great questions. She will get her interview answers to me as soon as she can, and I’ll announce in advance when I have them to post.
I apologize, and thank you for your patience!
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May 25, 2007
Due to technical difficulties, the guest blog will be posting soon…
Please keep your hands and feet inside the vehicle and I’ll update you as soon as we return to our regularly scheduled program. =)
P.S.
Sorry!!!
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May 23, 2007
This past weekend, I went to the Super Saturday Writing Conference put on by the STAR chapter (Space coasT Authors of Romance) in Melbourne, FL. Here are 13 things I did/saw/learned/experienced:
- Melbourne is underrated. For a town few non-Floridians have ever heard of, there was all manner of food, shopping, hotels, etc. We (Kel, Jean, Cheryl, Elissa & I) breakfasted beforehand and ate lunch at the hotel. Kel and I hit Uno’s Pizzeria for dinner after the booksigning before we headed home.
- The STAR chapter opens their meetings with a critique circle. This was a neat idea. There is only one critique slot per meeting, and the member must sign up in advance (and be a member for at least 6 months to be eligible.) Once a member has secured a spot, they send one chapter to the group, who then prints a copy to bring to the meeting. At the meeting, the writer reads the chapter aloud (other members follow along on their printed document, making anonymous critiques as they go) and afterward anyone who so chooses can respond aloud with feedback. Not only is this good for critiquing, at least one member has taken advantage of this opportunity as a plotting session. (From what I understand, the Chicago chapter has an active critique group as well, although I believe that’s seperate from their meetings.)
- The Knight Agency has sold a gazillion books. (Okay, maybe the exact number was something like 700 and change, but it seemed like gazillion.)
- I met Deidre Knight, who is sharp and engaging. She did a workshop, a Q&A panel, took pitches, and signed her book at the booksigning afterward.
- She also answered my burning questions about how auctions work (irrelevant for me at this moment, as I’m not agented, nor are any editors looking at my work, but hey I was curious) and I learned that “auction” is actually a misnomer, as the author is not obligated to go with the highest bidder. The “whole package” is taken into account.
- I met Elaine Spencer, who is friendly, well put together, knowledgeable and confident. Although she is the newest agent at TKA, she impressed all of us with her bearing and forthrightness. (Those aren’t the words I meant to use, but I’ve been critting Regency all day, and “bearing” and “forthrightness” is what came out. If I think of more modern adjectives, I’ll rephrase. You get me, though. Elaine is cool.)
- Elaine did a workshop, a Q&A panel, took pitches, and chatted with me for a minute about our mutual friend Diana. She also did something neat: during her pitch sessions, she jotted down a note when a writer did something memorable (in a positive way *g) and then during her workshop, she went down the list and shared all her great feedback.
- I’ve experienced this myself, but I thought I’d pass this along in case you’ve never heard this: ’tis better to know your story well enough to go into a pitch session ready to chat, rather than to go into a pitch session clutching notecards and reading a pre-written blurb without making eye-contact, etc. There’s no way an agent can remember all the stories they hear pitched–but if you play your cards right (ar, ar, since you shouldn’t *have* any cards) they might remember YOU.
- Deidre has several books out, including: Parallel Seduction, Parallel Heat, and Parallel Attraction. While some have expressed concern that being an author and an agent might cause conflicts of interest, Deidre has learned so much from being on the author side of the fence that she is now an even more formidable agent than ever.
- Roxanne St. Clair was also at the booksigning (and my lunch table–Rocki is so fun!!) and has a gazillion books in print, two novellas of which are up for the RITAs: I’ll Be Home For Christmas: You Can Count On Me and Tis the Silly Season: A Nascar Holiday.
- Crap, three more things? This Thursday Thirteen thing is crazy. Okay. I can do it. Um… There’s no highway rest stops between Tampa and Melbourne. (What? TMI?)
- Books A Million (where the booksigning took place), like Barnes & Noble, charges customers for their rewards program. (Unlike my local Borders, who is constantly sending me coupons via email and prints one out on every receipt.) Naturally, almost every booksigning I’ve ever been to has been at either Barnes & Noble or Books A Million. *sigh*
- On that topic, here’s a thought: Couldn’t writers groups/chapters/conferences stage book signings at independent bookseller locations rather than national chains? Help support the little guys? What do you think? Is that idea good/bad/stupid/genius?
P.S. Can I get a squee for my pal Annie who made an awesome book deal?
P.P.S. Also, Barnes & Noble did away with their free online classes and replaced them with book clubs. I am not averse to book clubs, but I sorely miss the free online classes. Am I alone on this one? Or did any of you ever check out one or more?
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Before I launch into the disappointing statistics that constitute today’s weekly status report, I wanna give a quick shout-out to Lacey who’s doing a workblog (yes, I made that word up) on combatting procrastination.
 DATD Running Totals:
Number of Scenes: 24.5 (I wrote a half-scene this week! Progress!)
Number of Pages: 124
Number of Words: 38,369
Current Status: 38%
Synopsis: Nada
TATTF Current Stats:
Requested Fulls out: 2
Requested Partials out: 2
Unsent Requests: 0
Website/Blog Statistics
* Highest number of unique visitors: 97 (Fri. 5/18)
* Lowest number of unique visitors: 47 (Sat. 5/19)
* Most popular keywords to find site
- erica (that’s me)
- erica ridley (also me)
- erica writes (that’s my blog)
- idea snowflake method (hit this post)
- trevor masterson (character in TATTF)
Goals Achieved Since Last Check-In
* Post to blog somewhat regularly
* Make progress w/ DATD
* Announce Shannon Aviles guest blog
* Attend Super Saturday conference
* Pitch to an agent
Goals NOT Achieved As Planned
* Launch exciting upcoming group blog
* Write 1 scene every weekday
* Write a damn synopsis
Goals for next week:
* Launch exciting upcoming group blog
* Write 1 scene every weekday
* Draft a DATD synopsis (for the love of God!)
Your turn: How’s it going? Are you making progress? What’s keeping you on (or off!) track and why?
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May 22, 2007
It’s Good Karma Tuesday (which I invented last week, so it’s not technically a “tradition” on my blog yet *g) which means time to give away fun prizes! I’m in Costa Rica until the first week of July, however, which means I can’t *mail* you free books until I get back. (Books are there, I am here. Sorry.) I can announce winners while I’m gone, so I’ll continue to randomly pick someone each Wednesday from those of you who comment.
This week’s winner is MERYL F. Meryl, in 5.5 weeks, I will send you something fun and exciting! Stay tuned! (And email me your address!)
Now, on to the answer portion of the burning question show…
Post: Wednesday Update
Ericka Scott says:
The past two weeks I’ve done nothing but stress about the release of Crystal Clear this Friday. I know, I should be excited. . . but, but, but. . . (you know, no one will buy it, those that do will hate it, I’ll get horrible reviews. . . )
Answer: Of course people will buy it! I bought it! And who wouldn’t want to be just like me?!  As an aside, my pal Carrie has a post up about whether blogs sell books… My guess is yes, since I’ve found many new authors through the blogosphere!
Post: Thursday 13: TATTF Opening Hooks
Bill Clark asks:
BTW, how does one make italics when writing in the comment box? I don’t see a toolbar anywhere….
Answer: I do this with HTML. To begin italics, type in: <i> and to end italics, type in: </i>. That should do it! =)
Post: Thursday 13: TATTF Opening Hooks
Ericka Scott says:
GREAT hooks. So. . . when does the book come out???? It sounds intriquing and funny and. . . well, my type of book!
Answer: From your mouth (fingers?) to an agent/editor’s ears!! I’ve got several requests out with agents (and several unanswered queries floating around) but so far no word.
Post: Good Karma Tuesday (5/15)
Meryl F asks:
What was the defining moment in your life when you said “this is it, I am going to make a career out of my writing”, and what changes did you make to your life to get you where you are now?
Answer: Wow, what a great question! I’ll try to answer without going all long-winded on you. The backstory to this answer is twofold: 1) I have always wanted to be a writer–I literally cannot recall a time when this was not the case. 2) I floundered through life from about age 15-22, going to college for the 3rd time about five years ago. I finally earned an International Business degree in December of 2005, and this impending milestone more than anything made me take stock of my life. Bizarre, since by then I’d long since moved 1000 miles away from my home town, had owned my own business for years, travelled a few continents, etc. So by all appearances, I was all grown up. BUT, since I’d always wanted to be a *writer* when I grew up–and I clearly wasn’t a writer–I realized I had to do something fast or yet another decade would slip by without me acting on my dreams. So, in ’05, I joined RWA and TARA and decided I’d write a story. This was the first time in my adult life I’d sat down to write a novel. As a kid, I wrote books constantly, but when I was 18, a house fire destroyed literally everything I owned, including all my stories and photographs and handwritten spiral notebooks of stories and poetry, which made me very cynical and closeminded for waaay too long. I discovered scrapbooking (news article on that here) a few years before I picked up the writing gauntlet again.
So anyway. (I *told* you I’d go all long winded!) Thus motivated, I started writing, joined a few professional organizations, and made friends with other writers, some of whom were not only published, but also best sellers. They were ordinary people just like me, but they’d actually stuck to their guns and wrote and queried and submitted until the magic happened. (I am convinced the key is perseverence!) So when I saw with my own eyes that it does happen, that it can happen, that it could happen to me, I couldn’t help but have that defining moment you’re talking about, when I said to myself, “This is it–I *am* going to do this, come hell or high water.”
I’ve written an average of 2 books per year since that moment because above anything else, a writer writes, and I’ve absorbed books and workshops to learn about the craft, and I’ve attended conferences to learn about the industry, and I’ve pitched and queried and sent out submissions and can finally honestly say that if it never does pan out for me, it won’t be for lack of trying. I think it was Sue Grafton who famously said that learning to be a writer shouldn’t be any less demanding than learning to be a doctor–be prepared to put in long hours on little sleep for 6+ years studying and practicing before you expect to “make it”. So, I’m a sophomore in the Sue Grafton school of beginning writing careers, and refuse to give up until I’ve put in a doctorate amount of time (and maybe not even then!)
SIDE NOTE: I had blog-posting issues yesterday, so you may or may not have been able to post comments to yesterday’s post–I think the blogger snafu has been fixed now, so if you have any comments on Costa Rica, e-books, coconuts, or snark, please leave ‘em there! *g)
Your Turn: What did you do to improve (or kill) your karma this week? Spill! Now that I bared *my* soul… I’d love it if you all posted a little bit about your path to pursuing writing careers, as well… Also, if you have any burning questions, please ask!
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May 21, 2007
NOTE: Questions are now closed for the upcoming Shannon Aviles guest blog. Check back on Friday for her responses! (I will announce both the question-posing contest winner and the guest-blog-commenting contest winner one week from today.)
Lots to talk about, so lets start off with good news! I won a contest over at the Midnight Moon Cafe Tapas Party and just added I Put a Spell on You to my TBR list. Perfect timing, as I have several intercontinental flights in the next couple weeks and am thrilled to have new reading material!
I’m also excited because I’m just starting to spread my e-book reader wings. I’d read Ellora’s Cave / Cerridwen Press stories, but that was about it until my pal Annie published The Average Girl’s Guide over on Loose ID, which of course I ran out and bought that very day. Blog buddy Ericka Scott just had her new release launch at Cobblestone Press, which I also ran out and bought (does it count as running out to buy if I was at home in my jammies in front of my PC?) and now I get to add Amber Quill to the mix. I may be an e-book junkie in no time!
 As a side note, Poetry Monday is on hiatus until I return from Costa Rica in July. (I arrived at the airport this morning prior to the crack of dawn.) But I will be visiting Rhian’s Poetry Train every week in the meantime. That is, when I’m not drinking straight from a coconut. (Ignore the plane hair. That’s just how it looks when it’s bed at 2am, up at 5am, first flight at 8, second flight at 11, followed by a 3 hour drive from San Jose to Arenal. *g)
By now, I’m sure you know Miss Snark is retiring. Most Snarklings I know (such as myself) checked her site for updates multiple times an hour. Er, I mean “day”. Okay, hour. =)
If you’ve never bothered with Miss Snark, she is leaving the snarkives up indefinitely, and they’re crammed full of great industry information.
Aside from all that, I want to take a sec to give my own personal I [heart] Miss Snark story.
It was a dark and stormy night… Okay, it wasn’t, it was the week before Christmas, and I’d flown up north to see my family. So it was a dark and snowy night. But I digress.
I’d started writing a full calendar year prior (autumn of year 2005) and had accumulated 3 completed novels. The first two had finaled in contests, but the third I hadn’t sent anywhere because I just wasn’t sure I wanted to write Regency-set Historicals anymore. In fact, I wasn’t sure of anything. And I hadn’t written in months.
Along came Miss Snark’s hook crapometer. For those who don’t know, in December she opened the floodgates to snark story hooks. If she lurved it (less than 5% of the gazillion entries) she would ask for the first 5 pages, which she would then also snark on her blog.
Well, I couldn’t let an opportunity like that pass me by, so I dashed out a four paragraph hook while waiting to board the plane in the Tampa airport. Wonder of Wonders, she lurved it! (If you followed the link, you’ll notice that hook was the germ of an idea that eventually became Trevor & the Tooth Fairy)
She emailed me and asked for 5 pages, and I did what any self-respecting snarkling would do–I freaked out completely. Five pages?? I just made that premise up off the top of my head! Ack!
Once I wearied of freaking out, however, I fired up my word processor and cranked out a few pages. Meanwhile, others were sending them in and they were being snarked like wildfire–IIRC, maybe 10% of the requested 5 pages met with “I’d read more”. Nonetheless, I sent in my “excerpt” (“excerpt” is in quotes because of course that’s all that existed at that time!) and wonder of wonders, she liked that, too!
Without her generosity in giving time and feedback, I may never have brainstormed that premise. Without her encouragement to both the hook and the opening scene (current opening scene is here) I’d never have forged on with what seemed like a crazy idea. (A few CPs later confessed that when I’d first mentioned the premise, they actually thought it was unwritable–a tooth fairy romance?!–but after having read the whole manuscript, have since rescinded that opinion and believe it to be the story that might land me a publishing contract.)
In fact, not only is TATTF out on requests to multiple agents, I’m over a third of the way through Dorinda & the Demon and believe I may have finally found a genre (funny paranormals) that plays to my strengths as a writer. So, a big THANK YOU goes to Miss Snark, whose advice and encouragement sent me down this path! She’ll sure be missed.
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