For starters, the answer to the code is…I love books, cats, and coffee! See, nothing you probably didn’t already know, but it’s a start. ; )
The news is that another of my books called Hallowed Eve will be released in e-book format in September! Yay! Considereing the theme, it’s sort of a seasonal book, so e-format is a good call. I’m really glad that by November I’ll have three books circulating, and all a bit different.
Hope you all check them out and give some feedback!
Suza
After months of waiting and planning, communicating with friends and colleagues, and plain old holding my breath…the time has arrived. I’ve got a book published and up for sale on the Word Wide Web! Whew.
Now what do I do? I have all these plans, some being implemented and others waiting their turn, but I still feel like I should be doing more. Every time I sit down at the computer I think, “What’s the best use of my time at this moment?” I tell you, I’m exhausting myself. I’m in a severe hurry-up-and-wait mode.
The book is selling, so that makes me happy..but still a little scared. Oh well.
In the realm of cat stories, the other night, cats kept magically appearing inside the house. They are only allowed in my office due, to my sweetheart’s allergies, yet every time we turned around, there was another one strutting through the place like they owned it. So this immediately tells me one thing.
There’s a hole somewhere.
After O’Malley sauntered in and jumped up to the couch for a settle-down in my lap, I went on a mission and found it. Open window in the bedroom. Not sure who was doing what when they left it open, but mystery solved. At least the cats had a good time for a while, and I’m sure they were also having a good laugh at the baffled humans.
Happy 4th of July to you all,
Suza
Did you know the Islamic country of Jordan has a queen? And she’s gorgeous. And she bares her legs in public, the most surprising thing for me, considering the country is still largely Muslim. I guess that’s makes me a little prejudice, or in this case, I’d actually prefer to claim ignorance.
Either way…it’s an interesting tidbit I discovered while doing some research. I mean, I can’t have my character wear a short dress in Amman, Jordan if that’s something that would never be allowed. Always check the details, right?
So I discovered Queen (used to be princess before her husband ascended to the throne) Rania of Jordan. Here’s a link to, I kid you not, how it’s listed is… Her Majesty’s official site http://www.queenrania.jo/
P.S. Fannie Mae turns out to be more allergic to Savannah than I am. Poor kitty had to get some steroids.
With love and murder in mind,
Suza
First, before explaining…I have to tell you, since the weather has gotten cooler,the cats all race to see who can get in my lap first. It is the warmest spot in the house. Some take a shortcut under the desk, some sprint around and get to the open side of the chair first, while Fannie Mae and Loki are the only two agile enough to just leap up on the desk then down to the lap…a risky maneuver that saves crucial seconds if done correctly.
I’m calling the mad scramble the de-cat-thalon.
So on to the blog topic.
How do you come up with a good title? For a book or anything? And don’t you just hate it when something is so perfect you feel inclined to actually come up with a new idea…so you can use the perfect title you somehow thought up?
Tonight was a wonderful night, all comfort factors in place. We ordered Julie & Julia on pay-per-view, and my boyfriend, David, was cooking beef tips and macaroni and cheese. When he announced it was ready, I paused the movie, came around the counter to wash my hands, and promptly stepped on something soft and mushy.
“Ew..ew..ew!” I cried, because I am excruciatingly OCD when it comes to raw meat and am also all too familiar with David’s cooking style. I lifted my foot to inspect, waiting to see a red piece of beef, when he said, “Oh. It’s just an errant macaroni.”
I burst out laughing as I pulled the wet noodle off my foot. “That,” I said, ” would be a great title.”
And so it is. Of a blog entry. Because there is no romance angle in the world I could think of that would justify that name for a book.
Well, I had to share, because I’m giggling even now as I think about it and the crazy man that inspires romance in me every day.
I guess I’ll have to go wash, though, because Daisy, a cat who loves pasta, is performing a sniff-purr combo on my foot.
Desperately searching for the errant macaroni.
It’s been less than a week since I was singing the praises of Joomla. now it seemsnlj ….okay…my arm is being head-butted. Not conducive to typing. Lily is a sweet, fluffy, light-as-a-feather tortoiseshell. All torties are known to be a little nuts, just each in their own way.
Lily’s way is that she has issues with expression of affection. With the other cats, she’ll come at them from the side, pin them down, and give them a bath against their will. She’s very motherly. With the humans, she sometimes gets a little excited and just can’t control herself…hence, the head-butting. Like just a second ago… WHAM—-WHAM—(pause)—WHAM-lick-lick-lick—WHAM.
She’s nuts.
As far as the website and Joomla, that idea has been scratched for a much better idea. It’s another program, suggested by the webmaster, that still allows the owner, like me, to edit portions of the site without having to write code. It’s just a little less boxy. I wish I could explain it better, but I can at least point you in the right direction. It’s with Adobe….I’m pretty sure. (Remember, I’m just lucky that I’m able to make this blog function.)
The site should be up in the next couple of days and will have improvements added a little at a time. Hope it gets a good reception.
Suza
I’m breathing a sigh of relief to know that I’m just a slut and am in very good company! (Fannie Mae is frowning at me over the use of the word slut. She’s such an old fashioned tabby.)
Let me give you a little dreaded backstory…
Tonight at my writer’s critique group, the issue of POV (Point of View) came up. It is often considered a no-no to change POV within a scene. Some editors don’t even like too many POVs in the whole book! So, we discussed the issue, because I was pretty sure I’d heard that romance often allowed head-hopping, particularly from hero to heroine and back again. No one could say for sure.
Of course, I rushed right home after the meeting and looked up every article on POV hopping in romance that I could find. In general, it’s a hot topic, and you can imagine why. Yes, there were those who said, “Okay, do it. Just do it seamlessly, so as not to confuse the reader.” Others said, they preferred one POV per scene and used the little ** or ~~ or whatever to delineate between them.
I also read a few that put my mind at ease AND enlightened me. I happen to be a huge Nora Roberts/Dan Brown lover, and guess who is the queen of head hopping? Yep, old Nora. That explains why I feel so comfortable doing it. Whew…I’m not just losing my mind? (We romance people are NUTS I tell you!) ; )
Okay, so why am I a slut? Here is a link to my favorite article of the night. It sums it up and makes me feel like I’m home again!
http://www.susangable.com/confessions_of_a_pov_slut.htm
With love and murder (from the bad guys POV)
Suza
Okay…the org stands for organization, which is what I’m doing tonight.
Fannie is peering at the keyboard, really, really wanting the lap, but I can’t type as fast with a cat in the way, and I’m in a time crunch!
So, it’s been really bugging me lately that I have been at a complete and utter standstill. Ever since I sent in my post-RWA submissions, I just don’t know what to work on. Tonight I took the bull by the horns, or crazy cat by the tail, whichever you prefer. I bought some great organizational stuff, pretty, decorated,color-coordinated (of course) binders etc. I have a portable file that allows me to separate my ideas or research for any ongoing project.
Computer files are great, but honestly, sometimes I just need to pull out a piece of paper to remind myself what I was thinking. I have so many halfway started projects! Some I even forgot about!
Well, no more. They are now in proper order, and I am working on a master list for what needs to be completed first, what large project I’m going to be working on, and what shorter projects I can send in where.
Whew. Feels good. I even bought a great little journal( because I so needed ANOTHER one) to organize my continued literary housekeeping that I intend to expand. (It’s white with a raised black velvet silhouette of a tree and a little bird. Very chic. It was a must, what can I say?)
Well, I’ll use it as I lie on the beach in Ft. Lauderdale. Another SCUBA trip, but this time I insisted on a nice hotel. Every writer knows how crucial environment can be. (snooty little justifying sniff heard here)
So until next time…
With white (well, yellow) sand and blue water in mind,
Suza
First off, I am the worst blogger in the world lately! Evidently, I’m the worst cat momma in the world lately,too, because the kitties are all complaining about lack of attention. Loki loves the hand that controls the mouse or is typing, which is a problemmmmmmm. See?
On to speculative fiction. My new writing group is a spec-fic (speculative fiction)group, so that’s the reason for the topic. I am a member of romance groups as well, but the spec-fic one is more local and has some really cool and interesting discussions. Last night I asked, “What is spec-fic, exactly?”
According to Wikipedia:
Speculative fiction is a fiction genre speculating about worlds that are unlike the real world in various important ways. In these contexts, it generally overlaps one or more of the following: science fiction, fantasy fiction, horror fiction, supernatural fiction, superhero fiction, utopian and dystopian fiction, apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, and alternate history.
I like this definition a little better…
Speculative Fiction eliminates the need for a separation between science fiction, fantasy, and horror because they are different forms of one thing.
I pasted definitions, because my general understanding is that spec-fic is anything that’s a little bit out there in any way shape or form. It’s a pretty big umbrella!
While I write romantic suspense, and maybe some paranormal romance, I still get a lot out of the spec-fic discussions and critiques. It’s always good to keep an open mind, and you never know where the next big idea might stem from.
Either way, the spec-fic writing group is made up of some really interesting people, so I say bring on the coffee and the weird stuff!
With love and murder in mind,
Suza
Had to shoo all the cats out of my lap today. Too hot! It’s like having a heated muff on your legs. Bring on the Fall weather, please.
To all you other new writers, and maybe some with a little burnishing around the edges, I’ll share my latest lesson learned. Actually, it’s something I’ve encountered fairly often and it can be very frustrating for a writer.
I’ve recently sent some material in to someone in the industry, but beforehand, I wanted to polish it as much as possible. To truly do a thorough job, you must have other people(preferably a mix of writers and readers) look over your work. The reason I say let some non-writers read it is because writers tend to look at it with a very different eye.
Sometimes you just want to have someone read it for readings sake. I sent a few chapters to a book club that did not know who had written the material. It was an excellent litmus test!
The good things that can come out of critiques are:
1) Typos you missed even though you’ve read it 80 times
2) They pointed out an odd phrasing you forgot to go back and take another look at
3) Simple suggestions that could add a punch to your scene
4) Though time consuming, you may also find that you have to go back and change a great deal in your manuscript because you have a reoccurring problem. This is still a good thing!
Now on to the negatives:
1) Be careful not to let anyone change your voice or writing style. It’s your creative right to be…well, creative. If you want your candle to drool, then do it! Some non-writers will be very technical and not realize it’s okay to have some fragments etc. if it helps the read.
2) Not everyone is going to like your stuff no matter how good it is. There are some great books out there that I’ve never read because I’m just not interested in the genre.
3) And this is the biggie. If you have 10 people critique your manuscript, you will probably get 10 different opinions back! You CAN NOT please everyone, so unless you hear a criticism from several people, be wary of rushing in and tearing up your work. Take each critique and really think about the validity of their arguments.
Overall, having people you trust look at you work is generally very helpful. You may not agree with everything they say, but you almost always get something good out of it.
Just take a deep breath, get your coffee brewing, and get to polishing your work! It will be worth it in the long run.
With love and murder,
Suza
I am currently writing in a house with 6 cats in it tonight. Therein lies the “extra.” A little girl calico, one eye missing, was huddled in the rain with my neighbor’s yappy white dogs barking at her. Honestly, how could I not take her in?
So after some food and cream, she’s now sleeping in my cat carrier. (She loves fat free half-n-half. A cat after my own heart) Tomorrow she’ll go to the shelter and hopefully a new home.
Now, as to writing. I recently received a Myspace message from a young man, a new grad, who asked for some advice on getting published. (Can you sense my smile?) Alas, I have only been at this myself for several months. Well, the trying to get published part.
So I suggested to him what I will suggest to any others out there who might be greener than me. And how happy it makes me that I have ripened just a bit!
Start with Writer’s Market. Both the dotcom and the guide to literary agents. Read it and other books like it. Arm yourself with info, because if it is one thing this industry detests, it is an obvious newbie who hasn’t “paid their dues” or “learned the standards.” Prepare to enjoy the hard lessons, for these are in fact “the dues” that we must all evidently pay. Make failures work for you. In other words, learn what not to do, or what to do better.
Don’t be afraid to ask other writers. They seem to be a supportive community as a whole. And do the research. Know who wants what and what you’ve got to give them.
So now, with my slightly wisened self, I am going to decide what to work on tonight. Probably the pitch, since that might be needed at the RWA next week. The pitch? What is that?
Ahh…I feel a blog coming on.
Suza