Saturday, December 31, 2011

I am Resolved

I don't usually make New Year's Resolutions. I try to have revolving goals throughout the year. But I thought that I would sit down this year and contemplate what I would like to accomplish in the year ahead - especially with my writing. So, if you don't mind I would like to share with you my resolutions, both for writing and my personal life.

Writing

I want to have the first draft of Three of Ivory finished by the middle of 2012. And I would like to have it *almost* ready to begin querying by the end of the year.

I plan to submit Shadowed Stones to at least two publishers next year. More if I can squeeze them in.

I want to attend at least one writing conference and love it!

And I want to keep up with my blogging.

Personal

Lose weight. Okay, I know most people out there are in this same boat. If you are not - good for you! But over the past few years I have really struggle with me weight and it is affecting my health. So by the end of next year I WILL have reached my target weight.

I used to write a journal entry every day. This is something that I have gotten out of the habit of doing - and I want to get that back. So I am going to start with writing in my journal once a week and see how that goes.

I am terrible at keeping up with my house work. I want to be better at it so I don't feel so guilty when I sit down to write.

Religious

I am very devoted to my religion, but as in all things in life - I could be doing better. I want to be more faithful, give more service, and do more.

Do you have any new years resolutions?

Thursday, December 29, 2011

The Mighty Pen #27

The Mighty Pen flash fiction contest is a just for fun writing contest (inspired by my wonderful husband). I post the beginning of a story – and you post an end! I will choose a winner and several honorable mentions. The contest is open until Sunday night and the winner is announce on Monday where I feature them on my blog. Check out past winners on the tab above.



Note: This is a family friendly blog – so please keep it PG rated. Thanks!


The Beginning


"You laugh at me, but I am telling you - this year I will keep my resolution to..."

Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Three Words #27

One of my favorite writing games is something I call three words. I post three words and encourage you to write a flash fiction piece containing those three words. If you would like to challenge me – post three words for me and next week I will post a piece of flash fiction using your words. Enjoy!

Three Words

  • Paper
  • Ice
  • Sun

Flash Fiction

Using the three words: Hot Cocoa, Fire, and Storm (from last week)

I blew gently on the dark swirling liquid as I gazed out into the snow storm. We were in for a bad one. Taking a sip of my hot chocolate I moved to stand closer to the fireplace. I watched the flames dance over the logs for a moment listening to the howl of the wind.

Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Prompt Tuesday #27

Every Tuesday I post a writing prompt and my response. It gives me a chance to exercise my writing muscles outside of my WIP, and hopefully inspire you to write. So enjoy my flash fiction piece and post your own in the comments!

Prompt

Source: The Writer's Idea Workshop: Page 220

Make a list of expressions we use to communicate that we're in trouble such as "up a tree," "between a rock and a hard place," "in hot water," "at the end of my rope." Place a character literally in such a place.

P.S. I am cheating and skipping the list :)

Response

My fingers slipped and I felt the frayed end of the rope scrape against my palm. I tried to shift my hands to get a better grip on the rope but I just slipped down further. My left hand slipped free of the rope. As a hung their at the end of my rope the only thought that circled through my mind was: did I leave the oven on?

Monday, December 26, 2011

The Mighty Pen Winner...A Late Announcement

With yesterday being Christmas.... I kind of spaced posting the winner of the Mighty Pen award. So, here it is.

Krista M

Krista has a great blog over at The Jelly Beans of Writing which I highly recommend you follow (if you don't already).

Also, be sure to check out the original post for her entry it is very touching!


Congrats Krista!

Critique Partners: A Writers Tool for Success or a Certain Doom

I have five excellent critique partners - and just because I love them that much her is a shout out to each of them:

J.A. Bennett
Roseanne
Terron James
Alexander Bennon
and Christina Cook - whose blog is under construction right now but you can go ahead a follow her :)

I just recently started this whole critique partners thing and I have already learned so much. But I have also been lucky to find great critique partners that help be grow as a writer. I have heard that not all critique partners are made equals.

Tool for Success

I do believe that a good critique partner (or a few of them) can be a great tool for success in your writing. First because their feedback helps you identify and correct the weakness in your story and writing. There is a lot that I don't know about grammar and it is really helpful when my critique partners correct me on that. Also, as the composer of a work you have a lot of content knowledge - so when you are readying you may not realize that some sections don't make sense. Critique partners can help identify area's of confusion and plot holes as well.

Certain Doom

That being said - a bad critique partner could spell certain doom. Imagine being a new writer who has crafted a story that needs a lot of polishing but has merit. Now imagine giving that story to a mean spirited, spiteful, arrogant, self centered critique partner. (Hint: this example ends with you, the new writer, losing hope and giving up when you really could have written a wonderful story.)

That is not to say that as a writer you can be sensitive about your work. No, the opposite is true. You need a think skin to survive in the world of publishing. When I talk about bad critique partners I mean ones who are overly critical and are not looking at your work with an eye to helping you improve the story and your writing skill.

What Makes a Good Critique Partner

So what makes a good critique partner? That depends on what you want to get out of the process. Avoid people that enjoy making you feel bad, those are not good people in general and would certainly not make a good critique partner. Also, keep in mind that the word 'partner' infers a partnership. Which means you are not just critiquing their work and getting nothing in return.

Ultimately it is up to you to decide what qualities you think would be good in a critique partner.

Do you have critique partners? Have you ever had to drop out of a partnership because the other person was too harsh?

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Little Peg: A Christmas Story

When I was in elementary school... or maybe it was Junior High...I wrote a Christmas story. It is one of only two Chirstmas stories that I have ever written and I would like to share it with you.

Little Peg
By Krista Wayment

Samual was seven years old that season, and it was his fifth year with us. He lost both of his parents when he was very young and then we were his only family. Well, we were not really his family. My father had known his, and out of sympathy for the lad we had taken him in. No one else seemed to want him. You see, Samual was a cripple, he had been borne that way. His right leg was bent and twisted. He would try to help out around the house, doing the little jobs that he could. But most of all he loved helping with the sheep. He could not make the long uphill trek to the day pasture with my father and my two brothers. Instead, he helped care for the flock at night and during the colder months.

He would spend hours with them and when he finally came in for supper mother would always ask what he had been doing. Samual would say proudly and promptly, “I’ve been talking to the sheep.” Then he would relate to us the stories the sheep had told him that day. My mother and I were the only ones that believed him. My brothers would laugh and my father would say, “Fantasies are good for lads like Little Peg,” for that is what we called him. When he had finised his wonderful tale we would sit down to dinner. After father said the blessing, Little Peg would walk to the fire and place his small wooden crutch in its special place next to the heart, the dinner could begin.

Little Peg loved that crutch for one reason, his father had made it for him the year before he had died. It was the last and only thing that Samual had left of his fathers. The wooden forms of five sheep were beautifully carved into its long oak leg. The arm rest was padded with sheep’s wool. Samual said that when he held the little crutch in his hand and looked into the sky he thought he could hear his father’s voice singing to him softly. That crutch never left his side. All except for once, and I will never forget that day.

As was their custom, my father and brothers took the sheep up to the Easter most pastures where they would be joined by several of their friends. The combined flock would graze for two days and two nights. On the dawning of the third day the shepherds would part and go their separate ways. The last night of this long grazing was unusually clear and I was surprised to see that my father and brothers had returned early. They were quite out of breath. I think they ran all the way back. Breathlessly they told us that on this very night an angel had come to them and told them of a new born babe. This babe was to be a king and the Savior of all men. The angle had also told them to seek out this child. My father had decided to return to our cottage and put the sheep down. The he would select the best lamb and take it as tribute to the new king. We talked excitedly as we hurried with preparations for the journey.

A small meek voice stopped our busy hands. “Pleas Nana, can I go?” It was Little Peg tugging at the hem of my shirt. I looked into his eyes and saw the deep yearning that they held. “I want to see the new born king.” Tears filled my eyes as I looked down at the poor little soul, crippled and worn. For sure he would not make the long journey. But I could not leave him there.

“Yes,” I said softly, “I will carry you.”

And I did. All the way to Bethlehem which was where we were to find this special child. As we traveled, Little Peg would sing or hum and sometimes the rest of us would join in. Every so often he would ask my father about the angel. He never grew tired of hearing the wonderful tale. Once he said, “I must tell the sheep of this, they will think it is grand.” At last we reached Bethlehem and found the new born babe.

He was laying in a manger wrapped in swaddling clothes. A light seemed to illuminate from his new face. Soft hands reached up as if to greet us. And before the young mother who they called Mary could speak, Little Peg whispered, “Nana, it’s baby Jesus, it’s baby Jesus.” It was the first time any of us had heard the babies name. I smiled and set him down. Slowly he made his way towards the small manger which held the precious child.

My father gave the perfect lamb to the baby’s father and after several hours beaconed to us. It was time to leave. Samual turned from the manger and took four slow and labored steps then stopped. He turned around and without hesitation laid the small crutch which he had held so dear to his heart for so many years next to the baby Jesus. “For you,” he whispered. He turned back around to face us. He took one step and fell. I wanted to run to his side but somehow I could not. No one moved and then slowly but surely Samual stood up his twisted leg dragged as he walked with his head held up in determination.

And from that day on he never had need for the special little crutch with the five wooden sheep carved on its leg, and the soft sheep’s wool.

The End

Merry Christmas, or happiness on whatever holiday you celebrate this season. May you enjoy the company of family and friends and have a full and happy life.

Friday, December 23, 2011

Making My Way Back to Being on Track

So the past month has been pretty much a bust as far as my goals go. But I am slowly making my way back to being on track.

Last night, after meeting with my amazing critique group - I was finally able to break through my writing block and get some work done on my WIP - TOI.I finished chapter two and got a start on chapter three. With this book I have been trying a different outlining approach. With Shadowed Stones I had a detailed scene by scene outline which I stuck pretty close to. This time I am using a more general outline and allowing myself a little more freedom.

One thing that is going well for me is I am almost caught up with critiquing. And I am all caught up on reviewing the critique notes I have received for Shadowed Stones.

However, my reading has been severely lacking the past month. I am hoping to get some time to relax and read since I have two four day weekends in a row.

Do you find that your writing goals suffer during the holidays?

Thursday, December 22, 2011

The Mighty Pen #26

The Mighty Pen flash fiction contest is a just for fun writing contest (inspired by my wonderful husband). I post the beginning of a story – and you post an end! I will choose a winner and several honorable mentions. The contest is open until Sunday night and the winner is announce on Monday where I feature them on my blog. Check out past winners on the tab above.



Note: This is a family friendly blog – so please keep it PG rated. Thanks!


The Beginning


'Twas the night before Christmas and...

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Three Words #26

One of my favorite writing games is something I call three words. I post three words and encourage you to write a flash fiction piece containing those three words. If you would like to challenge me – post three words for me and next week I will post a piece of flash fiction using your words. Enjoy!

Three Words

  • Hot Cocoa
  • Fire
  • Storm

Flash Fiction

Using the three words: Mistletoe, Kiss, and Grandma (from last week)

I poked my head around the corner. The hallway was dark and empty. Slowly I tip-toed to the edge of the stairs. A soft glow was coming from the floor below. I peeked through the bars of the railing and gasped.

There below me was my very own Grandma, standing under the mistletoe with Santa. The Santa! And they were kissing.

"Grandpa is never going to believe this."

---

"He is up their watching us, isn't he?" Stan said with a smile.

Mary nodded. "You think we should tell him?"

"Next year," Stan replied.

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Prompt Tuesday #26

Every Tuesday I post a writing prompt and my response. It gives me a chance to exercise my writing muscles outside of my WIP, and hopefully inspire you to write. So enjoy my flash fiction piece and post your own in the comments!

Prompt

Source: The Writer's Idea Workshop: Page 181

Write a scene in which no one talks. You must convey all the meaning through silent action.

Response

Bryn tapped a section of the map with his finger. Aimee turned her head away, refusing to look.

Pursing his lips, Bryn reached up and pulled on Aimee's arm. She looked down at him, her mouth and eye brows pinched.

He pointed to the fork in the river shown on the map then held out his hands to her. Aimee shook her head and folder her arms. Bryn rolled his eyes and blew his bangs out of his eyes.

Aimee stamped her foot and pointed West in the direction of the forest. It was Bryn's turn to shake his head. He grabbed his empty sword belt and pointed to the empty quiver hanging on her back. With renewed vigor Aimee pointed to the forest.

Bryn's shoulders fell. Reluctantly he folded the map and collected the rest of their gear. When he was ready he stood next to Aimee and held out his hands toward the forest. Aimee tossed her head and began a slow march to the think dense wood.

Monday, December 19, 2011

Learning the Craft of Writing

I first fell in love with writing when I was in elementary school. From then through high school I worked on finding my voice and learning the craft. Back then I read several books on writing, several of them stuck out in my mind and really helped me.

Now that I have come back to writing I am re-reading many of those books. I have also added many more to my 'To Be Read' list. I think that taking creative writing classes, reading books on writing, and of course - writing - are excellent ways to learn the craft.

So, I thought that I would share with you my old favorites and some new that hope will become favorites.

Books I have Read

How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy by Orson Scott Card
This is an excellent resource for anyone who writes Science Fiction and/or Fantasy. And although geared to speculative genres - I think there are nuggets of good advice for all writers. If you write Science Fiction, Fantasy, or anything like unto - I suggest this book.

Characters and Viewpoint by Orson Scott Card
Yes, I like Orson Scott Card. Plus he gives some excellent writing advice!
This book is for all fiction writers and it deals specifically with characters and viewpoint. This is a must read, in my opinion, for writers of all genres. Orson Scott Card helps you build compelling characters and 'preform' them powerfully on the page.

Writing the Short Story by Jack Bickham
Although the approach that Bickham sets out in this book is geared toward short story - it can be applied to novels. And there is a lot of good advice about writing in general. It is a very 'hands-on' program. And although I do not follow Bickham's exact approach - I have adapted many of his suggestions into my own writing routine. Another good book about writing.

The Writer's Idea Book and The Writer's Idea Workshop by Jack Heffron
The Idea Book is a plethora of writing prompts and exercises to get your creative writing juices flowing. And the workshop helps you craft your ideas into a story. Very excellent reads - and they are next up on my list to re-read as far as books on the craft go. Disclaimer: there is a section in this book that covers... intimate scenes. I skip over that section since I never write those kinds of scenes.

Books I Plan to Read

Scene and Structure by Jack Bickham
This book goes into more detail about Bickham's 'Scene-and-Sequel' plotting method meant to help with scene by scene outlining. I am looking forward to reading this book and it is next on my list to read.

Description by Monica Wood
This book covers everything about description from detail, plot, and style to word selection and point of view. Since all of these are areas I think that I could improve in - I am totally excited to read this book.

Plot by Ansen Dibell
Now I am not saying that plot is something I particularly struggle with. I mean - I can come up with ideas for plots, and sub-plots. And I am a planner which means I map, or outline my story before I begin writing. But plot is such an important part of writing that I think ti would be good to be always trying to improve.

Other Books

There are a lot of books out their about the craft. I found all of these either in my local library or on Amazon.com. So, if you are interested in reading up on the craft - there are plenty out there for you to choose from.

Do you know any other good books on the craft? What would you suggest? Have you read any of the books I have mentioned here?

Sunday, December 18, 2011

Mighty Pen Winner Announced

Summer Ross

Summer has a way cool blog over at My Inner Fairy, she recently returned to the blogging scene after a brief break because she was busy with school. So you should hop over and check out her blog.

But before you jump over there - you should read her entry on the original post - it totally made me laugh.

Saturday, December 17, 2011

I Have a Plan

I am a planner. My plans of back plans, and there are back up plans for my back up plans. It is just part of who I am.

So, of course I have a drafting and revision plan for my latest WIP - Three of Ivory (TOI). Since this is only my second novel, I am still finding a process that works for me. I felt like my drafting and revision plan for Shadowed Stones (SS) was a little to... undefined. With TOI I am trying something different.

Here is my plan:

1. First Draft
   a. Write 2 pages every week day
   b. Every three chapters do a high level edit and fill in any details I skipped over.
   c. When finished: Once over of entire manuscript.
2. Second Draft
   a. Turn it over to my critique partners - or alpha readers.
   b. Incorporate any necessary changes.
   c. When all critiques are in: Once over of entire manuscript.
3. Third Draft
   a. Turn it over to my beta readers.
   b. Incorporate any necessary changes.
   c. When all critiques are in: Once over of entire manuscript.

Done.

So, this is my plan to have TOI done in three drafts. I may add another draft either between the second and third, or after the third we will see how it goes. I am also considering having my critique group look at my first draft before I have finished writing the whole thing. It depends on how I am feeling about the first draft - and how long it takes them to finish SS.

Do you have a drafting and revision process? Or do you think I am just going over the top with the whole planning thing?

Friday, December 16, 2011

Why I am looking forward to Christmas...

It is not just because of presents and spending time with family. The music, the lights. I love all that. No - this is something different.

The past two weeks I have been so busy I haven't written anything in my WIP. And I am falling woefully behind in my critiques for my critique partners.

So I am looking forward to getting some time off work - time I hope to spend writing and critiquing.

For this week I did not accomplish any of my goals.

On a side note - I keep having this dream that I get a 60 page rejection letter from Shadow Mountain Publishing. It is making the task of checking the mail...frightening.

What are you looking forward to this holiday season?

Thursday, December 15, 2011

The Mighty Pen #25

The Mighty Pen flash fiction contest is a just for fun writing contest (inspired by my wonderful husband). I post the beginning of a story – and you post an end! I will choose a winner and several honorable mentions. The contest is open until Sunday night and the winner is announce on Monday where I feature them on my blog. Check out past winners on the tab above.



Note: This is a family friendly blog – so please keep it PG rated. Thanks!


The Beginning


As my foot came down I heard a sickening crack...

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Three Words #25

One of my favorite writing games is something I call three words. I post three words and encourage you to write a flash fiction piece containing those three words. If you would like to challenge me – post three words for me and next week I will post a piece of flash fiction using your words. Enjoy!

Three Words

  • Mistletoe
  • Kiss
  • Grandma

Flash Fiction

Using the three words: Candle, Carolers, and Christmas (from J.A. Bennett)

Off in the distance I could hear the faint sound of carolers. The constant wavering hum of their voices reaching down from the high streets down into slums below. White bits of snow drifted down from the dark sky. All around me black buildings were streaked with white.

A breeze passed down the narrow street and my candle flickered. I moved my hand to protect the small flame. Finally I reached the door to my home. I pushed the door open slowly so that it would not creak and wake the little ones.

When I slipped into the bed my husband stirred.

"You're home late," he said, his voice gruff with sleep.

"The misses wanted everything sparkling for the morning. Miss Margory made us all stay late for extra cleaning," I replied while a snuggled up to his warmth.

"Extra pay?"

"Miss Margory promised. But I doubt we will ever see a penny extra," I said, trying to hide the bitterness in my tone. My husband wrapped his arms around me to comfort me.

"Sleep now. I will take care of the young ones in the morning."

Then just as I was drifting off to sleep, he whispered in my ear, "Marry Christmas."

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Prompt Tuesday #25

Every Tuesday I post a writing prompt and my response. It gives me a chance to exercise my writing muscles outside of my WIP, and hopefully inspire you to write. So enjoy my flash fiction piece and post your own in the comments!

Prompt

Source: The Writer's Idea Workshop: Page 180

Write a scene in which some type of sound interrupts (or triggers) a heated discussion. Consider: a barking dog, a ringing telephone, a blaring television, a creaking staircase, a rumbling car, a dripping faucet.

Response

"This is not my fault!" Anna whispered harshly in the dark.

"Nothing is every your fault, Anna. You always find someone else to blame," Blake breathed back. "Why don't you stand up and take responsibility for once!"

"Responsibility? Responsibility! What about you? You are the one that is supposed to be in charge. You are the responsible for keeping order!" Anna's voice had risen an alarming level. Blake shushed her urgently.

"You're going to get us all killed!" he insisted.

"Me!?" she almost yelled. The whole group begged her for silence. "Me!?" she started again in a softer tone. "Of all the... I have never met anyone so pig headed...arrogant...stubborn...and...and..."

A single high pitched scream tore through the night. Every stopped breathing and listened. The eerie silence of the night was broken by the rough breathing on of many beasts.

"They found us," Blake whispered and pulled his gun to the ready.

Monday, December 12, 2011

Character Voice

My current WIP has three main characters all of which will take turns being the viewpoint character. I wanted the narrative to reflect the personalities of each of the characters. That means varying my writing voice to match the character's. At first I thought - oh that will be simple.

I was wrong.

Luckily I have the the internet :)

Here are some great resources that I found for helping to develop individual character voice:

Character Voice Writing Exercises by Jennifer Jensen
This post gives some great exercises that not only help you develop character voice, but help you get to know your characters and their relationships to others. This has been very helpful.

Getting Into Character: Fiction Writing Exercises by Melissa Donovan
This post gives some tips on how to 'get into character' right before you write. I plan to use these when ever I switch narrators.

Character Development Exercises by Kathy Page
This post has a questionnaire that you can fill out 'in character.' It focuses mostly on the development of your character - which of course affects the voice.

Exercises for Story Writers
This page has some information about narrative and point of view.

How to develop character voice by Whitney Carter
More on developing deep rich characters.

I have not fully explored all the resources listed here - but what I have reviewed of them has helped in my writing.

Do you pay attention to character voice when you write? What are your tricks for 'getting into character'?

Saturday, December 10, 2011

Three Things that Make Me Happy

It is time for me to announce the winner of my little writing contents. - The Mighty Pen.

Dun-da-da!


Krista M


Yeah! Check out her entry it is so touching!

And you definitely need to check out her blog, The Jelly Beans of Writing because it is great.

Honorable Mentions:

But that is not all..... I also received another blog award from the wonder Ashley Nixon. Make sure to stop by and check out her blog.




I am going to pass this on to five bloggers:


But wait! I have one more wonderful thing to announce. I officially have my own webpage (about time!). You can check it out at KristaWayment.com.

What things make you happy?

How I Got Here

I have had several people ask me about the mechanics of me getting to the point of submitting my first manuscript to a publisher. So I thought I would take some time to discuss some of things I have done. I apologize in advance for a long post.

1. Finish a Novel

Surprisingly, I found a lot of places that offered this advice: don't send out queries until your novel is finished. Publishers and Agents don't want something that will be ready in six months to a year. They want something that is complete now.

For me this was actually the hardest step. Because of my lack of a writing schedule - it took me ten years to write Shadowed Stones. Most of the writing actually took place over the course of a year or two. Once it was finished though - I still had trouble letting go. It is hard for me to call something "finished" unless it is "perfect."

2. Choose Your Route

In several posts I chronicled much of my route to publication. As part of that I made the personal decision to go with Traditional Publication rather than Self Publication. This is not to say that I will not self publish in the future - it is just that I want to try for traditional publication first. Here are some of my reasons:

1. Experience - learning what it takes to get your novel out their to publishers.
2. Professional Feedback - my theory is if all the professionals hate my work - I probably would not cut it as a self published author.
3. Fulfilling a Dream - this was big for me. For some reason I did not feel the dream would be complete without at least trying traditional publication.

3. To Agent or not to Agent

Since I decided to go with Traditional Publication - I then had to decide if I would seek an agent first or submit straight to publishers first. I decided to strike out on my own without an agent.

Not all publishers will accept unagented submissions. You can find out if they do through their website, or through a listing such as The Writer's Market. Most big publishers want you to have an agent. But I did find several publishers that accept unagented submissions.

My reasons for choosing to go without an agent right now are much the same as my reasons for choosing Traditional Publication. But more than that - in some of the books I have read about the craft, and in other research I have done, I found that it is not necessarily crucial that you have an agent. However, I do plan to switch to looking for an agent if submitting to publishers does not get me anywhere.

4. Research

There are two kinds of research that I did. First I research publishing in general. Some of the gotchas - best practices - and so on. Basically I wanted to know more about the process of submitting and what I could expect.

But the more important research is market research. I found the publishers that I plan to submit to from the following sources:

1. Amazon.com: I looked at the top sellers, and books that were coming out or had been recently released in my genre. I took note of all the publishers of these books. Then I did a google search for each publisher.
2. Google Search: I tried things like "Fantasy Book Publishers" and so on. This searching was not as helpful as I had hoped - but it did lead me to some resources.
3. The Writer's Market: I paid for an online subscription to The Writer's Market. I first discovered the books in the library when I was in elementary school, when my dream of being published began. The online resource is not the end all and be all of market listings - but it was helpful.
4. Recommendations: When I told people I was researching publishers to submit my novel to - I actually got a lot of recommendations. My little brother is the one who told me about Shadow Mountain Publishing.

While researching publishers I looked for ones that would accept unagented submissions, that published my genre, looked lagit, and published books a long the lines of my book. For Shadow Mountain Publishing I checked several of their books out from the library and read them. For other publishers I found their books on Amazon.com and read the samples there.

5. Prepare the Submission Packet

After compiling my list of publishers - I prioritized them into the order that I would submit them too. Almost all publishers do not like simultaneous submissions (meaning you send the manuscript to more than one agent or publisher at a time.) This is because it takes time and effort for them to review your manuscript - and it would be a waste of their time if you had already signed a contract with someone else. So, I am only submitting to one publisher at a time.

Then I did more research on the first publisher in my list, Shadow Mountain Publishing. I found out what their submission guidelines were - mean what they expected me to send them and what format it should be in. Then I started preparing the things that I would need.

6. Take the Plunge

The last step was to send my submission packet in the mail. That was very hard for me. I had to not think about what I was doing or I would have chickened out. But as part of my new life philosophy - I don't let fear, or my comfort zone, get in the way of new experiences. So I did it.

Now, I am waiting to hear back. I will keep you all posted on the progress.

I would love to share with you any of the other knowledge that I have gleaned from my research and such. So feel free to ask me questions in the comments - or shoot me an email.

Friday, December 9, 2011

It's Been One of Those Days.... All Week

If you are wondering why my post is so late... all I have to say is it has been one of those days. I am hoping tomorrow is not another one of those days.

I only wrote 2 pages of TOI this week. Fail. But I did do some editing for my wonderful crit partners.

And, I have another project in the works. I am working on getting my very own website up and running. So stay tuned and I will let you know when it is up.

Well, to be honest that is all I have time for tonight. I will try to have more exciting news next Friday.

How are you doing?

Thursday, December 8, 2011

The Mighty Pen #24

The Mighty Pen flash fiction contest is a just for fun writing contest (inspired by my wonderful husband). I post the beginning of a story – and you post an end! I will choose a winner and several honorable mentions. The contest is open until Sunday night and the winner is announce on Monday where I feature them on my blog. Check out past winners on the tab above.



Note: This is a family friendly blog – so please keep it PG rated. Thanks!


The Beginning


Soft white flakes drift down from the dark sky. In the distance I see a shadow moving toward me...

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Three Words #24

One of my favorite writing games is something I call three words. I post three words and encourage you to write a flash fiction piece containing those three words. If you would like to challenge me – post three words for me and next week I will post a piece of flash fiction using your words. Enjoy!

Three Words

  • Holly
  • Tree
  • Snow

Flash Fiction

Using the three words: Mobilization, Tofu, and Knights (from Joan Reeves)

It was not until the winter of 2314 that the Republic of Earth took action against the Coalition of Mars. Some say the troop mobilization was too little too late. Others say the Republic of Earth allowed the defection of the Mars colonies in order too..

Samantha's eyes drooped close and her head fell off its perch atop her fist.

"Ugh," she grunted in frustration. "Why is history so boring?" She tapped the screen of her tablet and closed her textbook. Skimming through the other reading assignments in her homework queue she picked something that sounded more interesting - The Knights of Old Earth.

The Knights of Old Earth is an organization of men and women dedicated to the study and practice of ancient codes. In Earth's distant history the Knights were a class of people that were honorable and well trained in the art of war...

"Still boring," Samantha said to herself and gave up on homework. "House!" she called and there was an answering series of beeps. "What do we have in the fridge?"

A computerized female voice answered, "Three-fourths of a gallon of milk. One package of tofu. Three oranges. Half a loaf of bread. A jar of..."

"Never mind," Samantha said, cutting off the list. "Just order me a pizza."

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Prompt Tuesday #24

Every Tuesday I post a writing prompt and my response. It gives me a chance to exercise my writing muscles outside of my WIP, and hopefully inspire you to write. So enjoy my flash fiction piece and post your own in the comments!

Prompt

Source: The Writer's Idea Workshop: Page 179

Find a title in a collection of stories, essays, or plays that you've not read. Write a page of narrative that would fit the title.

Response

The Wood Boy (from Legends: Stories by the Masters of Modern Fantasy)

I watched as the white snow flakes drifted down form the white sky. A silvery white blanket lay over the world. The edges of my window were rimmed with white frost.

Off in the distance a single dark shape moved along the road. I knew by the limping gait and bulging pack on his back that it was the wood boy. I watched his slow progress through the snow and felt grateful for the warmth of my home.

Struck by a sudden thought, I leap from my chair and ran to the kitchen. My mother stood over the stove preparing the morning meal.

"What is it dear?" she asked never lifting her head from her work.

"The wood boy is coming." I looked down at my feet as a felt my cheeks warm. "May I take him some warm bread?"

Mother put aside her spoon and turned toward me. "Of course, dear. And here," she said as she reached down into her pocket, "give him these as well." Then she laid three pennies in my outstretched hands.

I raced to cut and wrap the bread and put on my winter things. The morning air was crisp and bit into my cheeks. Once out side and within sight of the wood boy again my pace slowed.

It took some time for us to meet on the road.

"Mornin' Mary," the wood boy said, tipping his hat at me. "Be needin' any wood today?"

For a moment my voice caught in my throat. "No," I answered at length, "but mother sends this." I held out the wrapped bread.

The wood boy put his bundle down and stood to his full height. I looked up into his kind eyes as he took the bread and thanked me.

"And this," I held out the pennies, watching his eyes closely for offence.

He smiled at me and my stomach dropped clear down to my knees.

He dipped his head. "Tell your mother thanks."

I smiled and felt the chill in my cheeks replaced by a warmth that spread through my whole body.

We sat together in silence as he ate his bread, watching the sun clime slowly in the sky.

Monday, December 5, 2011

Dialog Punctuation

I admit that when it comes to grammar and punctuation - my skills are lacking. I have thought about taking a grammar class but need to find the time and place to do so.

So... most of my writing life I have done dialog like this:

"Hello." He said.

"Hello." She replied.

My critique partners pointed out that they thought this might be wrong - but were not sure. I did some research on the internet and in the library but was not able to find something useful. So I asked a friend at work who is a technical writer by profession and he corrected me.

It should be:

"Hello," he said.

"Hello," she replied.

When a dialog tag follows dialog there should be a comma, and the next word should be lower case - unless it is a proper noun and would be regularly capitalized. Of course, if the dialog ends in a question mark or an exclamation point - then the following word is still lower case, as in:

"Hello?" he said.

Now, if the text following the dialog is not a dialog tag - it would follow the usual conventions.

"Hello." He held out the morning paper.

"Hello." She took the paper and sat on the bench next to him.

I looked through several published books to verify this. Gosh, I had it totally wrong - but I hope I have it right now. If I don't feel free to correct me.

You may think this is a silly thing to post - but I did not know and could not find it on the internet. So here it is.

Having good grammar and punctuation as writers is very important. But it is a bad thing that this does not come naturally to me?

Sunday, December 4, 2011

Another Award

Since their were no entries for The Mighty Pen contest this week - and since I received another award yesterday - I decided to hijack this post and turn it into a blog award passing along.

First one item of business. For those of you who follow me through email or rss feed - I apologize for the mishap yesterday. I schedule many of my blog posts ahead of time - and sometimes I forget to set the option in blogger. Oops.

Now on to the award.

Lynn(e) Schmidt from The Submission Process has given me the One Lovely Blog Award.


So see all the awards I have received - and the wonderful people who have given them to me - scroll down to the bottom of the page.

Checkout Lynn(e)'s post for the rules. Basically - link back to the person who gave it to you - pass it on - and let the people you pass it on to know.

Here are the fabulous bloggers I am passing this award on to:

Writing in the Dark
The Write Time
The Starving Novelist
The Naptime Novelist
Squidink

Yea! I love blog awards :)

Saturday, December 3, 2011

Liebster Love

So... I have received the Liebster blog award again. Yea! Actually I received it last week but have just now been able to blog about it.


WilyBCool from Let go of the Past, live Today and create Tomorrow awarded me the Liebster (German for Friend) award. Since I have received this award multiple times I considered not passing it on.

But...

I love passing on awards. So here are the rules:

  1. Show some love and link back to the one that gave you the award.

  2. Reveal your Top 5 Blogs (with less than 200 followers) and let them know by leaving comments on their blogs.

  3. Post the award on your blog.

  4. Enjoy the love and support of the most supportive people on the web!

And here are the five blogs I am passing the award on to:
  1. Breaking Fantasy
  2. Jennibellie Studio
  3. Overcoming Her Obsession
  4. The Musings of a Hopeful Writer
  5. Keystrokes and Word Counts

Friday, December 2, 2011

Here's The Scoop on My Goals

So I have noticed that even though my goals seem to change on me a lot - just having some defined goal somewhere helps me keep working forward on what I am doing.

My goals are changing again.

One significant goal that I hit recently was sending Shadowed Stones out to the first publisher. I have to wait 4-8 weeks for a response - so one of my new goals is to wait patiently to hear back from Shadow Mountain Publishing. I have added a status bar to the blog to help me count down the days :)

Now that Shadowed Stones is out there my creative self has finally be freed to work on my new WIP. It is amazing how putting my first submission packet for SS in the mail removed the blocks I was having with my WIP. I have one chapter done and started the second chapter and it feels great to be actively writing again. I added a status meter to track my progress. My rough estimate for word count goal is 75,000 words. And another of my new goals is to write 2 pages every week day.

My reading and critiquing goals are still pretty much the same. Last month I only read one book but it was a pretty long one. I should be back on track for December though.

With a lot of time of from my day job coming in this month - I hope to be able to get a good solid start on my WIP. I hope to be finished with the first draft in 6 months. I plan to go through about 3 or 4 drafts, but the later ones should go faster then the first. So I am hoping to be looking to query my WIP some time in the later part of 2013.

So that is how things are going in the goals front for me. What about you?

How are your goals going? If you did NaNo - how did it go?

Thursday, December 1, 2011

The Mighty Pen #23

The Mighty Pen flash fiction contest is a just for fun writing contest (inspired by my wonderful husband). I post the beginning of a story – and you post an end! I will choose a winner and several honorable mentions. The contest is open until Saturday night and the winner is announced on Sunday where I feature them on my blog. Check out past winners on the tab above.



Note: This is a family friendly blog – so please keep it PG rated. Thanks!


The Beginning

The page twisted and turned in the fall wind. It came near me. I reached out my hand and caught it. My eyes drifted to the words scrawled across the page…