I can’t believe I received a blog award! I am so honored!
When I began this blog two years ago, it was a way to practice writing. I wrote about random stuff, funny events that happened in my life. After a while, I ran out of things to say. When I decided to take my writing career seriously, I delved back into blogging. I realized, not every aspiring author has family, friends, or access to other writers to help keep their dream afloat. Not everyone is able to participate in the big writers conferences, or find a local writers or critique group to guide us in the right direction. Since then, I have made it my goal to blog about my experiences. I hope to help others learn something new, give helpful tips, and offer support to those in need.
For that it seems, I have been given this award.
To Ashley Barron, aka, @dcPriya, the lovely woman who has given me this award, I say, THANK YOU! You say that I “move so fast you have to fasten your seat belt,” lol, I guess it does seem that way, huh? When my characters are in my head, demanding to have their story put on paper, it’s nearly impossible for me to focus on even the minor details of my life. Which of course means the moment my family is out of the house, my laptop is on, and my fingers are burning up the keys! You have no idea how encouraging it is to have someone like you constantly RT my tweets and reply to my FB comments. Thank you so much for your support! I hope to continue to be an encouragement to you and anyone else I am blessed to cross paths with. Everyone, please visit her blog, thepriyas.com, and show her some love and support!
Now, there are two requirements in accepting this award. First, I am to share ten things about myself that you, the reader, do not know. Hmm… So let’s see:
10. As a child, I never took the time to sit down and write a story of any kind, not even a diary. Reading was my favorite thing to do.
9. My two biggest followers are my Pit Bulls, Vader and Ivy. No matter where I go, they are there. In fact, I can’t even leave the room without them jumping up to stand in front of me, waiting to discover where we’re about to go. It’s impossible to do though since they are blocking the way!
8. My first writing attempt was in 2005, a Fanfic of the television show, Lost. It was based on a character created to take part in the popular show. That character has since evolved, experienced two name changes, and become the main character of my first novel, A Heart Not Easily Broken, the book I am currently submitting for query.
7. I have read over 50 books in the Star Wars Expanded Universe. Yep, I’m a Star Wars nerd. Since diving into my writing career, I haven’t had time to follow the new books in the series.
6. Before writing, I spent a lot of time playing Xbox games with my oldest son. I was known as the ‘coolest mom’, by his friends. Together, we spent two days beating The Return of the King video game.
5. Speaking of games, I am a Sims addict! I have more fun constructing and decorating the houses than playing with the characters. My hubby banned me from that game because it took up time…such as making sure my house was clean. LOL!
4. I am an excellent chair dancer! Put on the right song and I rock! Ask me to stand up and dance, and well, let’s just say I can do the Cha Cha Slide pretty darn well!
3. I dance in my car with the music blasting and my kids providing back up.
2. My father, Warren Kelly, was the first African-American Fire Chief in the state of Georgia. He held that position for nearly three years before his death in 1985.
1. In 2006, I experienced a stroke and spent two weeks in ICU, and nearly died. My right side was paralyzed for nearly a week. I regained control of my body before leaving the hospital and have made a 90% recovery. My life and family to be a blessing, and I do my best to get better at my craft and make them proud. Writing has become a way for me to continue to heal in many ways. My ability to use my imagination to tell stories has fueled my desire to become an author. My experience has also helped me add an extra layer of heart and emotion into the stories I tell.
So, that’s all there is to know! Now for the next part: nominating six talented people who have encouraged me and I hope will do so for you as well.
@Carmen DeSousa - carmendesousa.com - Romantic Suspense- She has recently published her first book and has been a constant source of encouragement to me in pursuing my publishing dream.
@Minnie Balaguer - Lahongrais.blogspot.com - Romantic Suspense - A comment she made about negative feedback from friends about her writing is what got my attention. Since then, I have enjoyed every opportunity to talk to her. She is proof that despite what negativity you face, if you continue to travel your path, you will find success. She did!
@Abigail Tuniviel - worldsbeforethedoor.wordpress.com -Aspiring Author, Urban fantasy - A great source of fun on Twitter in the morning. She and I have connected as aspiring authors and coffee lovers. She has an ongoing story posted on her blog. I wish my 'coffee sister' much success!
@Zee Monodee - zeemonodee.blogspot.com - Romantic Suspense - One of my critique partners. Zee has always had an encouraging word. I love the fact that she can't wait to read my second book! Her blog is a constant source of character information at just the right time.
@Chicki Brown - sisterscribbler.blogspot.com - Contemporary Women's Fiction - One of my critique partners. After connecting with her at a local writer's conference nearly two years ago, Chicki has offered me great advice and encouragement to keep me going. Visit her blog for wonderful advice of an self-published author.
@Manuscript Proofing - manuscriptproofing.com - Proof reading services - The name says it all! Always a constant source of encouragement and wonderful services. This is who I use to proof my manuscripts.
Enough said! Congrats to all my nominees! I wish you all continued success!
MJ
Showing posts with label blogtaxi. Show all posts
Showing posts with label blogtaxi. Show all posts
Friday, February 24, 2012
Thursday, January 5, 2012
I'm Getting Published! (or My New Years Resolution!)
No, I’m not getting published…yet, but I’m putting it out in the universe!
Have you ever done that? Wanted something so bad you think about it, dream it, and talk about it all the time? Has it ever worked for you? A few years ago my husband introduced me to that concept. I'll admit, I am stubborn, hard headed, and often resist change and trying something new. Then one day I took his advice and did it. Man, talk about a life changing experience! As a result, I’ve experienced positive results so I can attest to the fact the saying is true: “Be careful what you wish for, you just might get it.”
That goes for both positive and negative thoughts. If you dwell on every negative thing that could happen in a situation, guess what, it will because that’s what you concentrate on. Why? Because you don’t take the steps to find a way to make what you want happen. Flip the switch from negative to positive and the results will surprise you. Changing your focus from what won’t happen, and putting your time and energy in what ‘will happen’ makes a huge difference. Determination to see your goal reached will help you succeed.
So, along with losing weight - isn’t that on EVERYBODY’S New Years Resolution list? – I’m thinking publication. Do I have my sights stuck on traditional publication? Mmm… not so much. The publishing industry is fickle; too much old school thinking. Today is a new day, literally. 2012 holds so many publishing options it’s not necessary to get stuck in the old ways. There’s E-publishing, Self-Publishing by way of ‘vanity’ publishing, or publishing by way of Amazon.
Decisions, decisions, decisions. I know I’m going to see my book on Amazon…now it’s a matter of how it’ll get there.
And here’s where patience and research comes in.
Since I’m putting all of my positive energy out there, let me share the list of things I want to happen this year, as far as my writing career is concerned:
- Be published by a publishing company.
- Sell a lot of books of course!
- Be interviewed by local radio and television stations.
- Participate in the Writer’s Conference in my city.
- Continue to make wonderful connections with other authors and readers.
Interesting goals, but all are attainable…if I set my mind to it and follow the steps I’ve learned along the way. Can’t wait to see what my end of the year blog will say. I will definitely follow up to see what I have been able to achieve.
But for now, I continue to push forward. The question I’ve asked myself since completing A Heart Not Easily Broken is this: My MS is done…now what?
One of the most valuable lesions I’ve learned from my critique partners is to not wait to start writing the next book, especially when writing a series. Why? First of all, no matter what publishing route you take, readers will want to know when the next book will be available. Publishers and agents will be interested in the fact your writing a series, because lets face it, series can lead to more sales verses stand alone titles. Before investing in you, and your product, they will want to sample the next book to be sure of the continuity of your storytelling as well as characters. It’s always best to have a second book available upon request. The last thing you want to do is be pushed for time to get something down on paper and have it lack the fire and spirit of the novel that caught their attention. Think about it: when you query, you never do it with the first draft of your story. You’ve gone over it with a fine tooth comb to tighten up the prose as much as possible. That takes weeks, months even. Publishers won’t give you that kind of time to see results. If you lose their interest, they will move on. Why give them that chance?
I haven’t waited around. After taking two days of down time to clear my head and spend time with the family, I dived back in and started writing the second book in The Butterfly Memoirs: Jaded. This wasn’t the writing by the seat of my pants kind of writing. Completing my first novel taught me a lot about my writing technique, planning, outlining, and scheduling. As a result, it took me twenty days to write the first draft. That was ten days less than the thirty days it took to write the first book.
What did I do differently?
First of all, I took time during the second and third edits of the first book to work on the deep character profiles and story outline. I didn’t rush through the process, only took time to muse over the story as a way to take a break from the first book. Doing so allowed me to go back to edits with a clear head. Having the second books out line completed paid off. There was no down time needed to muse over my characters or decide what type of story I wanted to tell. The day before I started writing chapter one, I found all the pictures I needed for scene references, character references, and put my charts together. From there, I wrote, wrote, and wrote some more.
Another thing I did differently was write my first draft on my laptop instead of by hand. LOL, I heard the gasps out there. When writing my first novel, I used the old school method of writing by hand. As a result I have three-hundred and fifty handwritten pages of my first draft. I wrote like a crazy person, any and everywhere I had a chance. In my car at the red light, while waiting for the kids to come out of after school rehearsals, and yes, even in the bathroom. The second draft was done while transposing the work to my laptop. A third draft was done on the laptop.
This time around, I opted not to write the first draft by hand. Since this first draft was written on my laptop it cut down the places I could write. Writing at the red light was not an option, and doing it with the laptop in my lap in the car while waiting for the kids was not comfortable. So, I had to start a schedule.
Schedule, I loath, but I’ll be darned if my hubby wasn’t right. It really does work!
My mornings start with routine house leaning three days a week. That is followed with checking in on my social networking sites – shout outs, promotions, and making new friends. After that, I allow myself two hours to put in some serious work before the kids get home. After that comes evening family responsibilities, homework and dinner. After eight P.M., if I have a thought or a scene that wasn’t finished in the time allowed, I put in another hour or two. Ten P.M. is my cut off time. It’s time to give my brain a break, watch T.V., or go to bed.
Two days out of the week are dedicated writing days. Light attention is paid to house cleaning, and one hour of social networking. After that, it’s on. I enter my writing cave and stay there for hours, taking a break every two hours to stretch, eat, check in online, or lay down to rest my eyes and brain. By three P.M., I’m done for the day. After six hours of straight writing/editing I am usually pretty productive. Depending on the depth of emotion of the chapter, or the material to be covered at that point in the story, I may write one to three chapters in a day, an average of thirty pages, or about seven-thousand words. That’s on a really good day.
Is my schedule perfect? Nope, and it’s not set in stone. But I can truly say for the last few weeks it has worked wonders. I’m not mentally worn out, my house is cleaner, and my family happier. Not to mention there are less burnt dinners. LOL! If I stay on this path, I’m sure I will find reasons to continue putting my positive thoughts into the universe and see the results I’m looking for.
So, what are your writing goals for 2012? What dreams do you wish to see fulfilled? What path are you taking to make it happen? I told you mine, now share!
Happy writing!
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