Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Another Review for "Let There Be Love"

"Just read the short story you gave me this AM...you are an excellent writer! The story moved fast, and you developed the characters well. Rich details. Wow! I didn't know you had it in you! May God richly bless and use you in ways you never imagined!"

Thanks for the wonderful comments!

Don't forget the raffle--comment on yesterday's post for a chance to win one more copy of "Hearts of Tomorrow" before we move in November!

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

We've had 400 visitors now...guess what time it is?

IT'S RAFFLE TIME!

I've got one more free copy of Hearts of Tomorrow, which includes my novelette, Let There Be Love. Comment here on this post for your chance to win!

I'll draw a winner on Thursday or Friday of this week, depending on responses, so hurry up if you want a copy signed by yours truly.

If you win, I'll ask for your info and mail or deliver depending on your location.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

It's Finished!

The novella turned novel is now completely rewritten! Forty-three chapters of magic-filled, suspenseful romance. Nothing feels better than writing "THE END"--except, perhaps, writing "THE END" after the very final edit.

That's the next step, but for now, I'll take a wee break from it and come back with fresh eyes so I can cut and add on where necessary.

By the way, if you've read Let There Be Love, let me know what you think. You can comment here, email, or private message. Even if it didn't work for you, let me know--I want to improve!

Monday, September 20, 2010

First Review of Let There Be Love

From a writer friend/critique partner:

"I just read Let There Be Love! Can I be the president of your fan club?

I enjoyed Sibylis and thought she was a great three dimensional character. She was both strong and dark, but also loved her friends and family. [I've removed some spoiler info here--you'll have to read to find that out!]

I love stories with tyrannical characters, political intrigue, and dark secrets that can get people killed. Plus, this story had romance! It was perfect and original! [More spoiler info involving a character that appears in my work in progress--you'll have to read to discover that tid-bit too]

I could go on and on about how much I liked it, but I need to focus on building you a fan club.

Congratulations again on the publication of your amazing story!"

Thanks for the great review!

Would you care to add one? If you've read, leave a comment here, or feel free to send an e-mail or private Facebook message. I'll post your comments (minus the spoilers and your name).

Thirty-nine and Counting

Working on chapter 39 today. The end is near. The climax has happened; it's all down hill from here. Except there may be a final twist or two. These poor characters have been put through the wringer. I can't wait until I can tell you all about it. Next spring should bring some nice surprises!

Friday, September 17, 2010

Roller Coaster

Do you find yourself on a criticizing roller-coaster? Even in the course of one day, I alternate between "Hey, I can write!" to "I can't write at all." How do you capture and hang onto the confidence? When I feel confident, I can sit and write for hours. It fuels the process, I guess. And then I'm open to learning new things, to editing what's not working, etc. When I get the blahs, I just want to walk away.

Today's starting off blah. I hope the roller coaster starts climbing again. I like the rush of the twists and turns, when the ride whips along, taking me to unexpected places. Being in the blahs is like waiting in line for two hours watching the lucky ones in front have their fun.

Maybe coffee will help.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

The End is In Sight!

I can't believe a novella has become a novel. I'm not even sure the word count yet, but I've just finished with chapter 36. So, now I officially have two novels (one historical and one fantasy) in the works. Crossing my fingers that I get them both finished by the end of the year.

My intention was to finish the historical first, but now that the other one is so close to being finished, I've got to get it done. I see the light at the end of the tunnel! I'm going for the light!


We have a winner!

Congratulations Stacey for winning today's raffle. You'll receive a copy of Hearts of Tomorrow, which includes my novelette, Let There Be Love.

Stay tuned for more raffles, polls, random thoughts, and more on Unwritten!

Saturday, September 11, 2010

It's RAFFLE time!!

In celebration of the almost 300 visitors to Unwritten, I'm hosting another raffle of Hearts of Tomorrow. Yeah, I know it's only at 299 at the time of this post, but if you're the next one reading it, you're number 300, so make a comment here on this post, and on Tuesday of next week, I'll draw a name.

If you're the winner, I'll ask for your info, and send you a signed copy (by me) of the anthology which includes my novelette, Let There Be Love. Post away!

Friday, September 10, 2010

Am I The Only One?

Who has trouble coming up with creative ways to describe ordinary actions? I find my characters do a lot of "looking" and "smiling" and "frowning", and when they're done boring themselves silly with that, they go "walking".

Anyone else struggle with this? I'm pretty proficient with dialogue. I can crank out some decent narrative, but when it comes to things like:

"Put the gun down!" Harry screamed, looking at Mike.

Mike smiled. "Nah. I think I'm gonna watch you die."

It just needs some oomph. Any suggestions on how to spruce up common actions?

Thursday, September 9, 2010

"Theme" Music List Added

Check out the sidebar to see some of the songs that are inspiring my writing at the moment. Nothing like these selections to get me in that heartbreaky, romantic, dramatic mood. I recommend Napster for your downloads. Enjoy!

Deep Cleaning Needed

Yesterday, I finally finished deep-cleaning my kitchen. Windows, doors, and curtains are their correct colors. Gone are the greasy dust bunnies that lurked on top of each cabinet door and piece of trim. The ceiling fan and light fixtures are sparkling.

What's this got to do with writing? Editing, my friend. Deep cleaning a room is like editing a story. Regular room maintenance--sweeping, de-cluttering, etc--is like writing a story. Getting the nuts and bolts down so to speak. But then you have to eventually clean up the stuff nobody sees on the surface. And when it's done, it all really looks cleaner.

Editing a story is much like that. On the surface, you may end up with a first draft that looks pretty good. Then when you go back to read it later, you find those greasy dust bunnies lurking that aren't perhaps all that obvious. You can still cook dinner in a dusty kitchen, after all. But, when you clean up those greasy dust bunnies of over-used words, bad grammar, and plot holes, the story starts to shine. It was ok before, but now it just looks (and reads) cleaner.

Except, editing is the hardest part, like the deep-cleaning of a room. It's the initial writing that's fun, right? You get into that evil wizard hurling fire at everything in sight. But, when you go back to edit, you see that the wizard just has to die, or his dialogue is horrible. It's hard to kill your "darlings". Like my kitchen, I often let my stories sit for a long, long time before I give them a good deep-cleaning. When I do though, I notice the difference, and I can finally sit back and enjoy it. Because, unlike kitchens, once a story is completely polished, it doesn't need cleaning up again. I rather like that.

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Have you read these before?

http://www.writing-world.com/romance/cliches.shtml

She's a naive virgin. He's a lustful womanizer. She's weak. He's strong. He schools her in the ways of physical love. Yeah, we've all read them. Heck, I've probably even written it. This article from Writing-World.com explores the topic of clichéd romance plots. I think I'll print it up and tape it by my monitor. Nothing wrong with a naive virgin every now and then, but I'll try to remember to spice it up and make her a gun-toting, strong, naive virgin at the very least.

What are your experiences with reading so-called clichéd romance? Is it cause for you to close the book?