Category Archives: Writing

I used to use my lunch breaks for writing, even on days I planned on working out. The early afternoon is best for creative productivity and I didn’t want to lose it. I’m trying to manage my health better, and part of that requires me to actually work out. No more “healthy metabolism” for me. No more managing weight loss strictly through nutrition (though really, that last time I did that was high school?).

I just didn’t want to lose my writing time.

In order to give my workouts a serious consideration, I signed up for a 5k with a friend. Then I TOLD everyone I signed up. Now I have to run it. And now I have to train for it or I’m to look pretty flaky.

This past week, I worked out 6 of 7 days, lost 2 pounds and can fit back into the last pair of jeans I’d had to hide in my closet because I didn’t want to be caught dead in them.

Three days included running + weights. Other days included some variation of yoga, jumping rope, running stairs with laundry baskets (go ahead TRY to tell me that isn’t a workout).

I’m sleeping better, which means I’m not fighting my alarm in the morning. My mind is clearer and I’m writing better. I completed two short story projects this week. And that was with LESS writing time.

Losing writing time isn’t the issue. Using the time better is a direct result of taking better care of myself.

So how do you fit in your fitness time? Or don’t you? I’d like to hear.

~ Happy Writing

Dawn

FMWriters is traveling the web via the Merry Go Round Blog Tour. Site members have grouped together to write monthly on themed topics and turn the blog tour concept on its head: we’re not the ones touring: you are, as you read one writer’s perspective after another. This is my contribution to the Merry Go Round Tour. Enjoy your ride. ~ Dawn

So what’s the deal with cross-genre fiction? Isn’t enough that we have a dozen genres to write, read or watch on TV? Never. The moment we lose our desire to indulge in other people’s creations, or create our own, we lose what makes us human. So let’s indulge, shall we?

Have you ever read Robert Aspirin’s MythAdventures books? These books were one of the first fantasy books I ever read, and they were pretty damn funny then. Did I know they were cross-genre fictin? Nope, and didn’t care either.

My husband introduced me to Firefly, a science fiction western that only made it through the first season. Despite that, there seems to be a fairly large following for the show. And why not? The characters were fascinating, and the storyline engaging. My theory is that the timing was off on this one. At least the movie wrapped up the loose ends.

Wen Spencer’s Tinker and Wolf Who Rules has also been claimed as cross-genre (fantasy and romance), which is unquestionable. I can’t even describe the books without ruining it for you, save that anything can happen when a writer puts the worldbuilding and character creation together just right.

I’ve even written a few cross-genre pieces.  For I Have Sinned is a futuristic mystery that takes place on a space ship after Earth dies, and TLO  is a blend of fantasy and romance. Both are under revision and due to the tangled nature of genre will probably be rewritten into novellas.

What cross-genre comes down to is the combination of at two genres while following the expectations of those genres. Think about the fiction you’ve read or watched lately. Anything cross into other genres? Anything you wished crossed into other genres? If the answer to that last one is yes, then go write it your way. After all, that’s what fiction is all about.

Happy Writing

~ Dawn

Today’s post was inspired by Forward Motion’s Merry-Go-Round August topic ‘Genre-Bending’. If you want to get to know nearly twenty other writers and read about their ideas on Cross-Genre Fiction, then check out the Merry-Go-Round Blog Tour.   The next Merry Go Round writer is Bonnie. She’ll be posting her take on this same topic on the 5^th for your reading pleasure.

I received my notification by email last that night that I’d received an Honorable Mention in the Writers of the Future Contest for my short story Father’s Honor. I’m pleased. It’s very nice to learn that something I created (and slaved over) didn’t just fall flat.

I’ve noticed, however, that judge KD Wentworth likes my traditional fantasy much better than my contemporary fantasy. That doesn’t affect my choices for this quarter’s upcoming deadline – I’m choosing between two science fiction stories. Actually, they’ll both be going in–one for the 9/30 deadline, and the other the day after for the 1st quarter’s 12/31 deadline. It’ll be nice to get it in early, and leave my December free to focus on other projects. Like the Parsec contest . . .

A lot of writers I know from various online communities have also earned Honorable Mentions. (Congrats to you guys!!) It leaves me wondering who made the next level. Good luck to those of you still awaiting notification.

Keep writing!

~Dawn

Analysis

August went pretty well. I sacrificed the novel for short story work, but that’s fine since I’m taking a week in September and devoting it entirely to the novel.  We’re doing a challenge on FMwriters called Labor of Love. It’s designed to push your wordcount for one week and write toward a goal of 10, 20, or 30k words. I’m aiming for 20, which would require me to write 2500 words daily. My outline is strong and I’m hitting the high tension zone, so I’m anticipating the words will come. I want to finish this novel!

 Aside from failing the novel this past month, I’m happy with my numbers, especially considering we took a few days for a family vacation and dealt with various minor-but-time-consuming medical issues. I made some aggressive goals for September, but I think I can do it. If nothing else, I have to try. 

 The crits, by the way, have to get done. I’ve received some very helpful critiques for my work on OWW, and these kind people are awaiting the return favor. So I’m going to try and hit those early on.

 August Results

• Novel:  1k written (some by hand)
• Short Story Drafts: 3 (1 was handwritten while on vacation)
• Short Story Revisions: 2 complete, 2 more in progress
• Crits: 4
• Reading: 1 (+ various short stories)
• Rejections:  4
• Submissions: 5 (resubs, including one that had been lost)

 September Goals

• Novel: 30k to completion; signed up for www.fmwriters.com Labor of Love challenge to max my wordage daily from 9/2 to 9/9. Should get 20k.
• Short Story Drafts: 2
• Short Story Revisions: 6 (2 in progress + 4 others)
• Crits: 8
• Reading: 2
• Submissions: 1 for the 9/30 WOTF deadline

Hello friends, it’s been a while. I hope your writing and other passions are going well. I’m busy as always, with increasing demands from the day job (which is a good thing at this point). My daughter started kindergarden this week, my son is progressing successfully with his speech therapy, and the hubby has dreamt up some fitness goals that I fully support and am helping to make realistic for him. It’s good. I’ve even been writing. Slowly, with all this going on, but writing a little at a time eventually adds up.  Would you like to hear about my current projects?

Shadow of Blood – the novel – is continuing very slowly, but it’s still alive. I ended up writing a scene by hand which is good and bad at the same time. (Good because I showed that wave of inspiration who was boss, bad because now I have to decipher my handwriting).

Surrender – SF short story in revision. I need to add two more scenes, then apply edits. Just a few more days (I hope).

Come Back to Me – SF short story in trans-revision. I wrote the first draft by hand, and am currently transcribing it to the computer and revising as I go. I think it came out in great shape, but I have some items to fix and I’m not sure how. The story was inspired by David Cook’s Come Back To Me and the words are important to the story. I have to find a way to rephrase them and still fit the story. (But David sang them so perfectly…*sigh*)

Conduit – this one still wants to be written, I just haven’t given it the time of day (or night). I think I’m missing a critical element to the story, so I need to re-outline what exists and look for the missing puzzle piece.

Etherea In Her Veins – this is my WOTF semi finalist that I broke by revising too many times. I’ve had repeated feedback that this is a longer story that can fit into the confines of short-storyhood, and I’m trying to reoutline it into a novelette/novella.

Kishno’s Journey (working title) – my first published story “Treischan Strength” shows the will of an old treefolk to keep death at bay while he provides strength to his brothers and sisters. In the story, he sent his son Kishno on a mission to deliver their healthy people to a new  home. Instead, Kishno leads the people back to the tainted land, with help in tow. I never detailed what happened to him and the wandering treefolk, but I think it deserves some attention.

Writing Related Links:

• Do You Want to Be a Writer, or Do You Want to Write?
• Writing: Find The Time or Don’t
• World Science Fiction Convention: Chicon 2012 

Happy Writing,

~ Dawn

I’m one of those writers who finds herself assaulted by ideas. Sometimes they’re good, like an interesting title or a phrase that just sparkles. Dreams offer visual ideas, as does television and playing with my children. I frequently use writing prompts because they are like a puzzle and it’s a joy to makes sense of elements that aren’t apparently connected. The key to ideas is absorbing what I can without putting any pressure on it, and being open enough to absorb those ideas. Let me tell you about my current projects and how they came into existence.

My novel-in-progress, Shadow of Blood, stemmed from a play on words. I’m a Stargate fan, and frequently in the show characters would refer to the Stargate as the “stone ring”. A play on words gave me “Circle of Stones”, which ignited an image of a young boy in a fantasy world standing on the outside of a circle of stones on the ground, and when he stepped into it, he travelled someplace. It was magic, I knew instantly, not technology, and the travel was forged with all four elements and blood. The story has morphed of course, the boy is now a two hundred year old slave in a desert city. The magic remains, and the circle of stones has evolved into a handful of marble sized stones that one tosses like dice to create the travel ring.

The short story I just finished, Ghost Story, started as a story telling session with my five year old daughter. Once a week, we have story time where instead of reading, we make up our own stories. This one I told her was about a girl who went to a haunted house and found a magic mirror who brought her things, but that weren’t quite right. The cake was stale. The ball wouldn’t bounce.  The flowers had green petals and blue leaves. (I suppose I could just write that story too?) I wanted to make the mirror scary, a device of horror. I ended up with a completely different story – a post apocalyptic ghost whisperer who with the help of a ghost has to confront a demon.  

Phrases catch my attention as well. I saw something at the museum one time, which sparked the title for my next novel, Blood of the Dragon Tree. Someone’s account name on my favorite writing community sparked the title for Rise of the Tiger Princess. That one took about six months to figure out. I wrote “Tiger Princess” on a post it note and left it on my monitor at the day job. Eventually, something triggered the story and I wrote it.

I have a pretty open imagination. I’ve never lacked for an idea to write, which is wonderful. If I don’t have time to start a new project based on an idea (I like to finish things, no matter how long they take), I’ll write it down, including a sketch if I have a visual on it, and put it in my “writing ideas” folder.

Happy Writing,

Dawn

  Today’s post was inspired by Forward Motion’s Merry-Go-Round August topic ‘Where I Got My Latest Idea’. If you want to get to know nearly twenty other writers and find out where their ideas come from, check out the Merry-Go-Round Blog Tour.   The next Merry Go Round writer is Bonnie. She’ll be posting her take on this same topic on the 5^th for your reading pleasure.

 July Results

July was a better month than I’ve had a in while. We were busy, but most of it was happy-busy as opposed to stressful-busy. I’ve got the novel moving again, not just a random scene either. I wish I could have done more with the short stories, but that’s not regret or me bashing myself: I made choices. I really do wish I had more time than I do, but I’m working the home-work-life-writing balance. One of those choices I made was not to partake in all the Clarion challenges. I had projects in progress that were moving along and I didn’t want to break my momentum.

Details:

• Novel: up and running. Probably about 7k put in.
• Short Story Drafts: 1
• Short Story Revisions: 2
• Short Story Submissions: 1 new, + 7 resubmissions
• Rejections: 7
• Crits: 1
• Read: 5
• Clarion Write A Thon: flopped

August Goals

• Novel: continue with minimum goal of 400 words, 5x weekly
• Short Story Writing: 1 new draft
• Short Story Revising: 2 revisions (possibly 1 to submission ready)
• Crits: 21+ (OWW Marathon)
• Blogging: 4 (would like to start a cooking post once a month)
• Reading: 4 (2 audio, 2 paperbacks)

 The novel is progressing nicely. I’m trying to write on it every day (with weekends being the exception for writing in general). I might be able to finish it this month, which I’d be seriously pleased about. As for the short story writing, I’ve got Conduit (working title) half written, and I’d like to bring it to completion if I can. For the revisions, I’ve got one in the works (leaving it untitled publicly, since ideally the submission would be for Writers of the Future, as the deadline is 9/30 for this next quarter), as well as The Lonely Orchard, which is the story I had a revelation on the other morning. I had received a critique on it last year from a writer/editor and simply didn’t know what to do with. I needed time to sort it out. Sorting done. 😀 Onto the revisions.

I haven’t done an update post in a while, have I?

My current novel in progress, Shadow of Blood, is going well. I’m writing daily on it now. Some days I just manage about 250 – 300 words, other days I break 1k. I wish I could say it was me, but really, I’m in the forward momentum phase of the book and all kinds of proverbial sh** is hitting the fan. It’s wonderfully fun to write. I even came to a part that really screws my MC over and I’m drooling over it, waiting for him to tell me how he’s going to get out of it. I haven’t written that part yet, so the writing hasn’t stopped.

I’ve got five short stories on the brain. The first is a ghost story I’m writing, just started it last week on inspiration, based on a story I made up with my daughter. I need to work out the part before the ending, to give the ending some oomph. I’m also still working on Conduit, a story I started in May. I’m trying to figure out the details of the story, which is why I haven’t pressed it harder. Some stories need more time to figure out.

My other three stories are revisions. One is a flash fiction I think is just about ready to go into submissions. I’m letting it sit for a few days before I reread and submit it. The other story is one I’d written back in December but just couldn’t get myself to revise for an anthology deadline. The ending rocks, the middle rocks. I just need to work out an appropirate beginning that ties in the ending without making the beginning seem like backstory… and the final revision is a quick check of a flash I’ve been submitting. Something about it bothering me, and I think I finally realized the ending has fallen flat.

Yes, I’m busy. And I’ve mostly given up my workouts for writing time. That I need to figure out too, but when the writing is coming easily, I don’t want to turn it off.

And a funny note. I’m a creature of habit, which I’m sure shocks you speechless. Well, there’s one particular table I prefer at my library. No, I don’t get bent out of shape if it isn’t available, I just like this spot. The air flow is nice, foot traffic isn’t distracting, and neither is the computer traffic. There’s a view of the grassy couryard which also lets in the sunshine. I dropped my pen today and as I was bending down to pick it up, I noticed the contents of the reference shelf behind me…..

FMWriters is traveling the web via the Merry Go Round Blog Tour. Site members have grouped together to write monthly on themed topics and turn the blog tour concept on its head: we’re not the ones touring: you are, as you read one writer’s perspective after another. This is my contribution to the Merry Go Round Tour. Enjoy your ride. ~ Dawn

 “Books On My Nightstand”

At first thought, this topic seems to call for a “what are you reading now?” segment, but in all honestly, what’s on my nightstand calls more to my frame of mind than my reading queue. It’s what I keep close to me, within arm’s reach. There are other places I keep books within arm’s reach: in the car, at my desk. But the nightstand is more representative of what I want to read and what I want to focus on in my writing. It’s more personal than the audio book in the car, than the anthologies on my desk down in the office. The nightstand exists in a room I don’t entertain in, a place that is visible only to me and those closest to me, and here are the books that are most precious to me. The ones that don’t leave the house. The ones that are within reach as I retire for the evening.

Surely you’re expecting novels. I won’t disappoint. I have two I’m currently reading, yes two, because reading multiple novels is a good way to sharpen the memory (and goodness knows I need that kind of help!) I used to leave one in the living room and one in the bedroom, but the two-year-old changed that habit for me. The novels are different authors, different genres. The characters are as different as night and day. George R.R. Martin’s A Clash of Kings which is slower, more intense reading, and Patricia Briggs’ Iron Kissed, which is quicker and easier to pick up in a flash.  I try to alternate which book I pick up, but really it goes by what mood strikes me (or the due date at the library).

When I learned how to write short stories, I learned how different each and every story is, and that to improve mine, I needed to read others. Now I just love them. I try to analyze what I’ve read, to see if there’s an element lacking from my own stories, so I tend to read them slowly, just one story a night and try to let it seep into my brain. I’m reading editors I want acceptances from and anthologies I’d love to be published in. The stack at the moment: JJ Adam’s Way of the Wizard, Warrior Wisewoman 3, Triangulation End of the Rainbow, and Destination Future.

My approach has some merit. I read a story in Destination Future written by K.D. Wentworth while I was working on a short story that just refused to come together. Serious refusal – it had been five years since I had come up with the idea. After reading KD’s story, I decided mine needed to be edgier, and I finally got it written. And when I say it worked? The proof was when I submitted it to the contest KD judges and was awarded an semi finalist standing.

The other books on my nightstand are a few how-to books that have been well read. I’ve owned them all since 1996 or so, and read them several times a year in sections. Writer’s Digest Handbook of Short Story Writing (I and II), and Damon Knight’s Creating Short Fiction. My favorite time to pick these up is when I’m revising a story that’s never been revised before. It can refocus my attention on a particular area in which the story is weak.

So yes, my nightstand reflects what my writing goals are, and the level of writing I want to achieve. If you’re a writer, does that stand for you, as well? If you’re a reader, what analysis can go into what you’re reading?

Today’s post was inspired by the topic What Books Are on Your Nightstand? the opening question in the inaugural cycle of the Merry-Go-Round Blog Tour. If you want to get to know nearly twenty other writers and find out what’s on their nightstand, check out the Merry-Go-Round Blog Tour.   The next Merry Go Round writer is Bonnie. She’ll be posting her take on this same topic on the 5^th for your reading pleasure.

 The assignment is done. I definitely had to do some thinking. I’ve learned that what I read doesn’t neccessarily stick with me. I tend to recall more stories I’ve critiqued than published novels I’ve read. (Hmm maybe that means I should slow down when I read?)

Here’s the assignment, and it did help me sort through something I was dealing with on my MC.

1. Who is the character whose actions and decisions most drive your novel?  Kelyn
2. Describe your hero in five words or less.  Faith in self, protective, cunning.
3. What has to happen for your audience to know that the novel is over?  (We will call this the goal.) Kelyn needs to free not only himself, but his people.
4. Describe this goal in ten words or less. Kelyn must remove his people’s fear of their masters.
5. What is the one most profound or pervasive reason that your hero cannot accomplish the goal right away? (We will call this the primary obstacle.) Slavery is enforced through magic, their past is kept from them.
6. Describe the primary obstacle in ten words or less. Magic, which is unlawful, guards them closely.
7. What person most clearly drives, creates, or causes the primary obstacle? (We will call this person the antagonist.)  Torace the Whip, the Master Discipliner
8. Describe your antagonist in five words or less. Hostile, controlling, well-versed in magic
9. Look at the answer to question 2, and find three other sf&f novels whose hero could also be described in these exact or very similar words.* Stardoc (series), Game of Thrones, Moon Called, Golden Compass
10. Look at the answer to question 4, and find three other sf&f novels whose conflict could be described thus. (Kelyn must remove his people’s fear of their masters.) Stargate SG1 novels, Two Towers
11. Look at the answer to question 6, and find three other sf&f novels with the same basic primary obstacle. (Magic, which is unlawful, guards them closely.) Valdemar series, Deverry series, Jane Lindskold’s wolf books, Diplomacy of Wolves (Lisle), Golden Compass, Stargate
12. Look at the answer to question 8, and find three other sf&f novels whose antagonist meets this description. (Hostile, controlling, well-versed in magic) Shanara series, E. Haydon’s Symphony books, Great Book of Amber, Star Wars, Secret Texts (Holly Lisle)

13. Which novels appear more than once in your answers to questions 9-12?  List them here by name. Holly Lisle’s Secret Texts, Stargate SG1
14. List the ways in which your novel stands in stark contrast to each of the novels listed in question 13.

            Stargate: my novel is different in that the man who seeks to free the slaves is a slaved himself where the Stargate characters are from a world which had once been enslaved; their travels bring them to enslaved societies whom they wish to free from the tyranny of the Gou’uld.

            The Secret Texts series begins with a character who is well situated and runs into trouble by being who she is, unable to hide her magic. Kelyn is a slave who fights to break out of his confinement, but the part of him that is magic holds him back rather than forces him out. His enemy is one he knows, rather than Secret Text’s character is trying to discover.

Bottom line: I think I still need to read more, especially current material.

June Results

My life is officially chaotic. It shouldn’t be an excuse for not writing, but here I am. Personal life had some fun but busying things: my daughter turned 5, we threw her a party, family came in from out of town, I took my fitness much more seriously (and lost 2 lbs), I’m under the guidance of a mentor at work, we’ve had my son evaluated by several therapists in an attempt to get his speech on track, met multiple times with our case manager, made a plan for his therapy, and I’m still trying to write those thank you notes from the birthday party.  I didn’t accomplish as much as I’d hoped for my writing. I stopped waking early for my AM writing session. I started using lunches for working out. Afternoon writing sessions were lost to the Mom in me, wanting to pick up the kids at 4:30 instead of 6pm. I chose to focus on my family this month. It makes the writer in me antsy, but she’s greedy and will just have to wait for July.

June Results

• Novel Writing – two scenes (plus I reread the parts already written and updated my outline);
• Clarion Challenge #1 (based on my novel in progress)
• Crits – 3 (picking up the pace at OWW)
• Reading – 3 (audio books; also have 2 paperbacks in progress)
• Blogging – more regularly, with more writerly content
• Rejections – 4; Submissions 5

 July Goals:

• Resume daily writing!
• Novel: writing (10k) SoB – 500w daily
• Short Story Drafts x1 (Conduit)
• Short Story Revision x2 (Etherea/Surrender)
• Clarion challenges x4
• Read x2
• Crits x8
• New Submissions 1 (7/31 Warrior Wisewoman deadline)

Vacation 7/11-7/14 celebrating my 10^th wedding anniversary.

Also: VP declined my application, but a fellow FMer is on the waitlist. I’m crossing my fingers for her, and making my plan for next year’s application.

I need to be both Mom and Writer this month. Some of the issues we’re dealing with should settle down, the exercise is helping me sleep better, and I should be able to start using mornings again for writing. It’s summer, so I’ll probably still pick the kids up early a few days a week, but I’m going to try and squeeze mini sessions in before I get them. Twenty minutes is better than none. On with July.

I’m trying to learn from anywhere I can as I continue my writing journey, which is why I signed up for Clarion’s Write A Thon. I haven’t attended the workshop, though I plan to apply within the next few years. In the meantime, they’re offering free help online via the Write A Thon to raise money supporting the workshop.

The first challenge was the last thing I expected: a look into my novel. The initial questions were easily answered, as I’m halfway through the novel and understand my problem and characters. The last set of questions hit me where it hurts. Reading. The questions center on finding other novels in science fiction and fantasy that hit on the same issues and types of characters.

It would seem my reading is somewhat lacking. So I turn to you, my friends and readers, to see if you can give me any reading suggestions.

My novel, Shadow of Blood, is about a slave trying to free his people from one hundred plus years of slavery. These people are magical, yet do not know it. Their captors have kept this and their past from them. Magic is unlawful, yet there are a few in power who are aware of those cursed with magic and do their best to keep them quiet and well behaved, going so far as to kill the ones who (even unintentionally) become dangerous.

Have you read anything with the concept of magic being unlawful? Or a people who were wrongly enslaved? An antagonist more powerful than even the people he works for, secreting his magic until the time is right…

Any help would be appreciated. In the meantime, I have plans to hit the library tomorrow to search there.

Happy Writings!

I read a post today by another aspiring writer who was having doubts about the reality of being able to make it, discouraged not by his own skill or issues, but the vastness of a bookstore. My heart went out to him for the single reason that I love bookstores and they inspire me to work harder, yet this poor guy felt intimidated by my greatest inspiration. We’re all so different in how we work and plan and dream, except that we all have that voice.

That Voice.

You know the one. It whispers to you in the morning when you’re trying to wake up before the day starts to sneak in some writing time, telling you how tired you are, that you should just sleep in. It hits you in the evening when you want to write after dinner, once the kids are settled, telling you the words will be so awful and you’ll only get a hundred anyway. It nags at you when you’re reading a novel and compares your bumbling prose to that of the bestselling author who penned that novel. I know it too, and these were my demons.

It took me a long time to be able to work on a novel first draft and reading at the same time. It used to be that while I had a first draft in progress, I couldn’t read. It wasn’t the realization of how much reading time I had lost because of it, it was the realization that I can’t afford to do one or the other. I need both.

When I was twenty and started seriously writing, I had no idea how long it would take to develop my skills. It’s been a long time — a wonderful time — but I’m a few years shy of the age I thought I’d have a solid writing career. This could have crushed me. Instead, I realized I still have time, I still love my writing and I’m much better at it than I was at twenty, but there’s something else. Publication is my goal, but it’s not my purpose to writing.

If I never published again, I’d still write.  

Of course I’d love to be published. Short stories, novels, anything. It’s part of being a writer – creating a thing and needing to share it. And while certain doubts drive us toward improving ourselves, it should never stop us from pursuing what’s in our hearts.

I challenge you to take your doubts and stick them under a cold hard rock. Write without that stupid voice sabotaging your dreams. Write with freedom and write with joy.

I know, I’m posting like crazy all of a sudden. I have things to share, and possibly, some people to read them.  Why wait to share good news? The novel is alive. I got a scene in over lunch. I had to delete its previous existance because it was so horribly wrong from where it needed to go. The scene was short. I’ll probably expand it in the rewrite, but not too much – there are tables turning. Chaos ensues as everyone who thinks they’re in charge gets shown they aren’t, and those that weren’t, well, the new changes aren’t as fun and pleasant as they thought they would be.

And best of all, I remembered the fun I have figuring out these puzzles. I also recall the obsession. I could use tonight’s crit session to write another scene. Or, I could stick to the plan and do the crit. Decisions decisions!

This is a feeling that’s followed me my entire life. I remember in high school signing up for too many extra curriculr and cutting back, then doing the same thing, and then taking on college classes.  I do it in my adult life too, and it revolves around being a mom and a person with a full personal agenda. Lots of people do it, right?

I’ve decided it’s okay to WANT to do it all. I just need to rein that in. Choose a primary and a secondary goal, and forge ahead.

This week, in testing out my new strategy: I’m going to make the novel my primary focus, and I’ve selected a short story (flash) to revise for my secondary goal. I’ve used this in planning my fitness for the week as well. The cardio is my primary focus – getting up at 5 to either bike or ride (depending on the weather, but the intention is to alternate the activity from day to day), and the secondary will be a brief dumb bell workout in the evening.

This brings me back to my focus word for the year: INTENSITY. I’ve intensely pushed for my writing, but struggled with too many choices, too many obstacles, too many other priorities.  Well, it’s June. This is my half-year check, and the intensity has not obeyed my utmost intentions. This primary/secondary idea should fix that. A person cannot be intense about something if they’re dividing up their time and energy into too many projects.

This is me, reinventing myself. Nice to meet you.

I refuse to give up on this novel, which is why I’m rereading what I’ve already written, and outlined the next few scenes in greater detail. I’m confused about what I’ve done with/to one of the bad guys, and I’m sorting that out at the moment. I’m not going to spend any more time than rereading requires though; I have a feeling I’ll be paring down the number of characters in the rewrite. 

I’m glad to be back into this project. I’ve missed novel writing. I’m really trying to develop a system to get multiple projects moving simultaneously. It’s always been a weakness of mine to hyperfocus on one project and stay on it until it’s done. Of course it’s good the project gets done, but if I ever get a chance to do this for a living, I’ll need to be able to balance multiple projects. I might have multiple contracts, or have my “work” writing and my “fun” writing.

Multitasking is good. I’ll get better at it.

In the meantime, I’m reading the novel so I don’t have to remember that the VP deadline passed a few days ago, and keep myself out of my mailbox and into my writing. 😉 I’ll find out eventually if I’ve been selected or not. At this point, my attention to it really doesn’t matter. (Or so I keep telling myself!)

Happy Writing!

I used to share what I read, and what I thought of it, something short of a book review. I’ll probably eventually move on to that form, but in the meantime, here’s what I’ve been up to.

The Taking by Dean Koontz – I let this one sit on my shelf a long time because the first few pages were frightening. Picking it up again, my instincts proved correct. The main character Molly battles impossible scenarios as it seems the world is coming to an end. She’s a wonderfully resourceful character, pure and sweet in contrast to the evil Kooontz has thrown at her. I enjoyed this one, though I should warn you, I couldn’t read it when I was home alone.

The Moonpool by P.T. Duetermann – a suspence novel with the main character being a retired cop (I like those) with a flair for getting into trouble. He found himself quite the scenario in this novel, which I listened to in the car, and displayed a remarkable sense of self preservation in extracting himself and his german shepards from all that trouble. An excellent read, with suspence in all the right places. Duetermann has many other novels, which I for sure will be checking out.

Deeper Than The Dead by Tami Hoag – another author I hadn’t read before and thoroughly enjoyed. There’s a murder loose and who else gets into trouble but the local 5th grade school teacher with a heart of gold. She’s dead center in this, counseling her students and an FBI agent (the other POV character) in a suspence that tangoes with romance. The FBI agent has a remarkable history, one that makes his present case something to fear. Wonderful characters, especially the teacher’s best friend, and the student that were sucked into this atrocity. There are serious flaws in every character in this novel and they tie each character into another in horrifying ways.

The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks – tissues needed for this one. Mr. Sparks has done it again, pitting one sympathetic character after another after another. I liked how he took what felt like a sterotypical teenager and her dad and gave his readers another level of attachment to them. There are gravely sad parts to this story, but the magic of connection between one character and another made the cost of those tissues negligible.

A Walk To Remember by Nicholas Sparks – I hadn’t even heard of this one and was uncomfortable with the voice reading this audio book, but I stuck with it. It didn’t take long to ease into the character and the girl he spent time with, another pair of teenagers, and I found myself relating to kids I didn’t think I could relate to. Sparks hits his readers hard with reality, and throws us into troubles where the only comfort found is through God. He reminded me how precious and unpredictable life is, and as much as we try to control it, we just need to hang on and enjoy the ride, no matter how long or short it is.

The Koontz novel was the only paperback, the rest were audio books. I’m glad for the audio books and the chance to branch into other genres than science fiction and fantasy (at least for a little while!). Hope you’re enjoying a good book, too.

Reading has taken on many forms lately. I used to read novels as my primary soure of fiction, but that’s changed. I came to realize that my life is too busy for me to sit down and read, unless I ignore my writing or the housework or worse, the kids. I drive to work 4- 5 days a week, which eliminated that as a reading option. Until someone suggested I try audio books.

I’d only “read” an audiobook a few years back, when I had some eye surgery and couldn’t see well enough to read. The book was Envy, and I thoroughly enjoyed it, so when this suggestion was thrown at me, I jumped right in.

Thank goodness for my local library which has quite the selection of audio books. Of the 15 novels I’ve read since January, 9 of them were audio books. I’ve discovered a few quirks, too. I can get used to almost any reading voice, but I can’t seem to listen to fantasy and science fiction. I need to read those myself. It seems not knowing how the made up works are spelled really bother me and distract me from the story. My audio books tend toward romance, suspence, and mainstream.  So it’s been a great way to expand my reading horizons as well.

As a writer, I need to read. It not only inspires me, but reminds me of the little details I enjoy reading that maybe I didn’t think to include in one of my own stories.

The CDs have been bulky in the car, and having to wait for a red light to change discs is sometimes frustrating. (When you WANT the red light, that’s the day the work drive ends in record time due to, you guessed it, the lack of red lights). The next step is downloading audio books to my mp3 player. I have a zune, which won’t play in my car without a special connector which doesn’t work right. When it dies, I might opt for an Ipod instead, since my car actually has a direct connecton for an Ipod.

I’m not sure I’m ready for an e-reader. I played with one while I was at B&N a few weeks back, but I like the feel of paper beneath my fingers. I don’t want to have to stop and worry about charging the thing. (My life has turned into a charging parade: laptop, mp3 player, cell phone, house cell phone, camera, etc).  I’ll make the jump at some point, I imagine, but I’m not there yet.

How about you? How do you do most of your reading? Are you loving e-readers, or shying away still? Am I just being stubborn, or do you get it?

May Results

Way too much happened in May, but I did manage to write 3 completed stories, with a fourth close to being finished.  I still want to write more than I have time, but I’m again trying to streamline my schedule. I’ve hit something, a need, no a realization? I need to get this novel done and I’m done whining about how it isn’t getting done. It starts now. Tonight actually. I’ve created a schedule to fit the writing in, hopefully in addition to some short story revisions. It’ll take about 10 weeks to finish the first draft, averaging about 4k a week. I’m sure I’ll get more done once I get the ball rolling and might even get done a little earlier, but I’m not married to it.  (See, there I am doing it again, trying to accomplish more…)

May Results

• 3 short stories written
• 4 rejections / 4 resubmissions
• 2 books read (audio) plus some short stories

June Goals

• Novel Writing: Shadow of Blood (about 1k a day x 5 days a week; averages 2 chapters weekly)
• short story writing: conduit (in progress; only need about 2 – 3 more hours on it)
• short story revisions (Etherea In Her Veins, and resubmit it) plus 3 flash fiction and one picture book
• crits x4 (Sundays)

I’ve also signed up for the Clarion Write A Thon (and unfortunately am still unsponsored; might have to sponsor myself at this rate). I’m curious to see what they’re going to post to inspire the participants and am hoping to learn something new in the process. It starts on June 26^th, and originally I was going to write a story a week to keep up with it. I’m not sure anymore that’s what I’m doing. I might be better off doing a revision challenge. I have a few stories that are close to submission ready and this might give me the push. I’m a slow reviser, thorough and analytical, so I usually don’t like to rush my revisions. I’m getting better at it, and my latest stories are better quality, so maybe they won’t require as many revisions before they reach submission quality. There’s only one way to tell, isn’t there. Okay June: let’s go!

Why do we choose the paths we take? I plan so much of my life, I border on OCD, but when it comes to writing, story ideas, it slips away from that. Not entirely, as I plan and outline seriously before a story is drafted, but in the sense that even I know better than to plan what I’m going to write. I would say this is healthy.

But having just finished reading a thriller and picking up another one, I suddenly am questioning why I’m writing in the genres of fantasy and science fiction. I love them, I do, and it’s not that I don’t want to write them, but I should be working on the thriller ideas I’ve jotted down on paper and stashed away.

I’ve immersed myself in fantasy and science fiction short stories. Writing them, revising them, revising them again. It IS good, but that’s ALL I’ve been doing. I feel the sudden need to expand my writing horizons. Working on children’s stories is a good start and I enjoy working on those. Why aren’t I working on the thrillers?

Could I be afraid?

My last several attempts to work on the current novel in progress have failed. I need to just write it and be done with it. Throw it in the closet for a year and ignore its existance. It needs to be c0mpleted first. And working on all these short stories is distracting me. I suddenly feel like short story writing and revising (which has been my practice ground) is more like my playground. My natural tendency in writing has always been novels. Novel length complications and plots, novel length problems that can’t be dealt with sufficienctly in a short story.

I should be writing more novels.

But I love my short stories.

Can’t I do both? Maybe. But the novel in progress needs my full attention because of the issues I’ve had in dealing with it. So, new plan, sort of.

June: finish the damn novel.

June/July/August – use the Clarion Write A Thon to revise the 4 – 6 short stories at the top of my list.

August – December: One short story revision per month + novel work. (August to plan/outline the next novel, September – December to write it).

It’ll screw with my write1sub1 a  bit, quite a  bit actually, but am I really going to make a career selling short stories that really want to be novels?

I’m calling this Plan B for the moment. Maybe tomorrow I’ll feel more focused and go back to plan A.  This planning thing I do, it kills me sometimes. Why can’t I just take it week to week and not fret about what to write next?

Because I’ll never get anywhere.

I’ve written two stories for May SAD. I’ve got two more on the verge of completion. Four would be a nice total for the month. I could be happy with that, especially considering the insane month I just went through.

And now that I’ve tied my muse up in arguing with me, it’s time to work on the family finances for the month. Nothing like money to take the mind off writing. 😛

So how’s your night going?

I haven’t been able to put as much time as I’ve wanted to into my writing this year. That doesn’t mean I haven’t accomplished anything good – I have! I’ve written a decent amount of short stories, been revising and continually submitting, and I have not given up on the novel that refuses to be written. I won’t, either. It might be crap when I’m done, but I’ll finish it. As soon as I write a few more short stories, revise a few others, and submit them.

I fully admit short stories are both my practice ground and my luxury. I’ve gotten so much practice revising, learning my weak spots (and trying to avoid them), and testing out new characters and worlds. The luxury is that short stories do not build a career which will allow me to quit my day job and send my kids to college. But I love it, and that’s why I do it. It’s for me, and I can’t wait for the right opportunity to share my writing with you one day.

I’ve been feeling a little down lately about the writing time issue. I keep waiting for work to slow down, or to sleep better. No luck there yet, but it’s coming. In the meantime, I happened upon this lovely link which quieted those feelings. It’ll come in time, I just have to not give up, right? 🙂

http://writerunboxed.com/2011/05/25/so-you-want-to-be-a-professional-writer/

I’ve been working on “Conduit” for over a week now. It’s a tricky story, and not entirely clear to me, which is probably my issue in writing it. I’m also battling spoiling by my muse in which my last two stories came out as close to a perfect first draft as I can expect right now. So this one is just going to have to be a crappy first draft. Damn perfection!

I refuse to move onto the next story until this one’s done. I don’t want to lose what I’ve discovered. I’ve also learned that my freewriting in trying to learn about Madison (the main character) is helpful during the freewriting, but the handwriting is so bad I can’t salvage what I don’t remember writing down. It’s an interesting exercise. But the story is more involved that what I originally intended.  It’s not just finding an alien’s kidnapped symbiont, it’s helping the alien she believes murdered her father, it’s learning that the truth is often hidden until one has the right perspective, and it’s about a woman accepting that her father wasn’t just disappointed by her – he never loved her.

And it’s almost down in crappy first draft form. uplifting, right?

Today was a brainstorming day. I’ve had an idea for a while that I wanted to work on, but something seemed missing. I saw my husband’s grandfather the other day, and his interest in military/espionage thrillers every so slightly shifted the focus of my story — in a good direction.

As I played the with the idea driving into work this morning, I’d hoped I could write it before he passed away (stupid cancer), but no.

So, rather sadly, I continued work on the outline. I  believe in the story. I believe he would have enjoyed it. I’m writing it anyway. It’s just going to take a little longer.

I adored this man. He not only read my writing, but would refer back to a particular story he’d read years ago. He had a good heart and lived a wonderful life, until cancer stole it from him. If this story makes publication, the dedication goes to him.

My second story was more difficult. It tried to turn into a blend of “Dexter” and “Inception”, both of which are interesting works of fiction, but not MINE. I broke it back down to basics, refocused on the heart of the story. Then I realized there was no way for a happy ending, not one that would satisfy. This is a dark character, doing something wrong. I suppose I could have made it a redemption story, but I think that’s more of a novel length piece.

“One Touch” is science fiction, and came in at 2500 words.

I thought this was going to be a SF flash, but it got complicated fast. It’s going to take me two days to complete (it’s a workday and the dayjob must get done). The story is outline, I’ve got character sketches, and I have scenes scribbled in my notebook that need to be transferred onto the screen and fit into the story chronology.

The character is slightly off for me. I don’t exactly identify with her, but she’s got serious problems. I think I need to give her some flaw that readers can identify with, since most of us aren’t deranged bounty hunters. 🙂 Maybe I’ll figure it out tonight, and write it up tomorrow morning.

Tentative title is “One Touch”.

I pulled the prompt last night, started the idea and outline this morning. “Fallen Star” is a 1900 word fantasy story about what happens when a star falls from the heavens. It was fun yet sad to write, and I enjoyed the scramble in trying to tie my ideas down before losing them.

 I’m beginning to see that the work focus isn’t a temporary thing. It’s been like this since August and hasn’t let up in the least. It’s good for my career and good for my family in the long run, but I have to become even more disciplined in how I use my time (and what I use it for) if I want my writing to evolve.

 I didn’t get to the novel at all, which is disappointing. I didn’t crit at all either, though I did just yesterday select a few chapters to critique this coming week. And then there’s Alex’s novel, which I’ll be getting to as well.

 It’s also May, which means it’s time for the Story A Day challenge.  I’d love to try the insane level one time and actually write a story every day in May, but considering I have to prep for my daughter’s birthday party next month, hubby’s birthday, mother’s day, my birthday, my sister’s birthday, and I’m sure I’m forgetting something else right now, but you get the drift. May also means I start back on my 4am writing time frequently. I’ve discovered it works best May – October and I let it go during the winter. 

 I also bought a bike, which is going to make exercise that much more enjoyable for the next six months.

April Reults:

•  Short Stories Written: 2 flash
• Short Stories Revised: 1 short story
• Short Stories Submitted: 1 new and 4 resubmissions
• Rejections:  4
• Crits:  0
• Read: 2 audio novels, plus picking my way through some anthologies and a Scalzi novel

 May Goals

I’m going to be selfish this month.

• Short Stories: 15
• Revisions: 3 (three submission deadlines; 2 of 5/07 and 1 on 5/13)
• Novel: one hour daily, Monday through Friday. (AM session)
• Critiques: Novel Crit for Alex, plus chapter crits for OWW

 Maybe it’s insane, but I like insane, and spring–real spring–gives me my jive back. I’m aiming for the 15 short stories (one every two days) and I’ll probably end up with half that if I really want to realistic, but hell, I’ve got to try!

I was writing for years before I knew about Clarion. It’s an incredible opportunity for those who can write well enough, and those who can afford it. I’m already preparing my speech to my boss about why I’ll need (hopefully!) to take a six week vacation from work. Clarion is a boot camp of sorts for genre writers, and while it’s not the only way to succeed, it’s a hell of a way to start.

The list of past instructors is astounding. George R.R. Martin, Elizabeth Hand, Neil Gaiman, Holly Black, Gregory Frost. This year, the students will learn under John Scalzi, Elizabeth Bear, and many others.

I don’t have the time and money just yet to apply. And the skill? You know I’m working on that. I haven’t applied for the workshop yet. Maybe in 2012 or 2013. Soon. In the meantime, I’m writing and learning on my own as best I can.

In the meantime, we can support something special.

My goal for the marathon is to write one story per week, in imitation of the actual workshop. I understand that are going to be challenges associated with the Write-A-Thon. I’ll try to use those toward the short story writing. I’ll post my progress here.

And I’m giving up lunch three days one week to pledge a small amount to another writer. If you’re one of my writing buddies and you’re signing up too, let me know. The first one to post such will be the writer I sponsor.

Here’s the thing… I love reading. I love the fantasy movies that are becoming more common. These writers start as normal people. People like me who obsess over their imaginations. Even if I don’t get to go, then I get to help someone who can potentially be my next favorite author. 🙂

Happy Writing, Happy Reading. And if you’re going to sponsor me, thank you.

Pledges can be made here:  —-> Dawn Hebein <—-

~ Dawn