Andrea Dickinson

Spackle and Deadlines

2012-02-08T01:00:00.000-08:00

Will and I say every year that it's a good thing we invite some friends over to watch the Super Bowl with us. There's nothing like having visitors to make you look at your house with a critical eye. It helps us see the rough condition of our walls after eleven years of the boys' abuse, and how using a magic eraser is not going to be enough this year. And how old and flat and faded our couch throw pillows are. And the windows...yeah, you should probably be able to see out of them without milk splatters and handprints in your way. Oh, I can't even tell you how badly our kitchen cabinets need to be cleaned...it'd be embarrassing to admit.

So having to fix everything by Sunday, February 5, energized me. I got more done in the seven days leading up to the Super Bowl than I'd done in the previous seven years, which reminded me that I always work better on a tight deadline than when I have an open schedule.

My editor for Baltimore Heat is excited about my ideas for follow-up stories in the series. She's asked me for proposals and expected completion dates so that she can get them on the release schedule. UGH! My immediate reaction was fear. What if I couldn't produce under that kind of pressure?

Then I remembered that I give myself deadlines all the time. I set monthly writing goals and am accountable to my writing group. I perform well under pressure, and I know how to set realistic writing goals. I know how much I can produce on a daily/weekly basis, and I know how to buckle down and make up word count when I've fallen behind.

So maybe I am ready to step up to professional writing with proposals and deadlines. If I'm not, then this writing thing is still a hobby. Because if I want to make a living as a writer, I need to write consistently and prolifically, and be accountable to my editor.

Release Date!

2012-01-31T08:14:00.000-08:00

I just heard from my editor and Baltimore Heat will be released as an ebook on

April 25!!

She is starting her edits this week. I can't wait to see what the fabulous art department comes up with for cover art.

Missing Someone

2012-01-25T11:09:00.000-08:00

Oh, boy. I finished chapter seven last week in The Billionaire's Pilot and realized I'd lost someone in the previous three chapters.

Dan Jacobs is Evan Mitchell's highly indispensable executive assistant. He was on the airplane to San Miguel, and he was on the plane flying away from San Miguel. But for three days, he disappeared from the story. On Friday the plane landed on the Caribbean island and poof! we lost Dan, until Evan and Cassie left the island on Sunday.

It was actually a great discovery (except for the extra work it would now require to insert him back in the story). Having him on the island with the hero and heroine gives me the opportunity to use him for conflict or not. Currently, I've tucked him away in the guest house, but I might pull him out to run some interference with the newly fake-engaged couple. I can't decide if he's the fairy godfather of the story or the villain. Or the villain disguised as the fairy godfather or vice-versa. Ah, the possibilities are endless. Must keep writing to see how this story will unfold.

Firestarter

2012-01-19T07:47:00.000-08:00

I'm over at Authorial Moms today. Blogging about staying warm in these negative degree temps.

Come visit me!

Motivation

2012-01-18T06:41:00.000-08:00

If you read my January 12th post on Authorial Moms, you'll know that my resolutions this year are to Write More and Eat Less. The writing part is going well, especially since I have so much more time now that I'm not teaching this semester. I just have to remember to turn off my internal editor and focus more on volume writing. I have to remember that I will go back and revise and edit and polish until it sparkles. I need to remember to write for maximum output.

At the same time I need to remember to NOT eat for maximum input. :D

It's been two weeks since I started counting calories again on myfitnesspal. The first week was a breeze. I'd done so much overeating in December that it was a relief to get back under control. I lost almost half the weight I had gained during the holiday season. The second week I continued to lose, but it took more of a concentrated effort to stay under my calorie goal, and there were more than a few days that I went over, and a few days that I didn't finish entering what I ate for the day. Then the past two days my monthly hormones kicked in, and I started craving carbs...and I ate them. Whoa! I gained back half of the lost pounds in 2 days! YUCK!

But man, what a good motivation to get back to what worked the first week...writing down EVERYTHING that goes in my mouth, including the blue agave and splash of milk in my tea. Plus, I was able to get back to exercising this morning after recovering from bronchitis. That felt great, and went really fast as I watched the very first episode of The Biggest Loser while walking on the treadmill.

So it looks like fear is a good motivator for me. I don't want to keep cycling up and down with my weight. THIS is the year I get back to my healthy weight.

Snow Day!

2012-01-13T07:28:00.000-08:00

The first one of the year! YAY! But why is it that Mom is the only one capable of sleeping in? Even my nearly-a-teenager was too excited to sleep. He reports that he woke at 3 am, 4 and 5 am to check his tablet for the school closing. Then he was never really able to get back to sleep.

I think the days when the three boys are excited to play out in the fresh snow are over. *sniff* I had to threaten bodily injury to get them outside to shovel the front walk. I figured once they were out they would start digging tunnels and sledding down our puny hill, like in days past. I was sadly mistaken.

Once the front walk was shoveled, I could barely keep them outside long enough to snap some pictures. I was rewarded with the sulkiest of looks from my nearly-a-teenager. When I told him that was the face that was going to be on his grandparents' calendars next year, the frown got deeper. The grandparents are going to love it! :D

Over at Authorial Moms

2012-01-12T08:40:00.000-08:00

Today I'm blogging over at Authorial Moms on Tools to help with Resolutions.

Stop on over and tell us your resolutions!

Breaking past the stuck points

2012-01-10T11:37:00.000-08:00

STUCK!

That sounds so much better to me than writer's block.

I've got plenty of daylight hours to add pages and pages to my works in progress now that I'm not teaching this semester. Sounds great, doesn't it? I know my teacher friends are envious of my available time to devote to writing.

The problem is I've been stuck the past few days. I open my WIP and stare at the same chapter, number 7, if you want to know which one.

I hate the phrase "writer's block". That sounds like something outside of myself that I have no control over, and I feel like I should have control over whether or not the ideas flow from my brain, out my fingertips, and over the keyboard. I much prefer the idea of being "stuck".

So, I've been seeking out methods for getting "unstuck". I've been browsing several books in the series line that I'm writing for, I've been brainstorming in the shower, I've been looking for inspiration in songs, movies, TV shows. I've been staring at my character profile sheets, but nothing has been working until I had a moment of self-awareness.

I'm stuck because I'm thinking of story/craft mechanics instead of letting my characters speak for themselves. I've been caught up in trying to write a "great" story, rather than letting the story come naturally. I've been studying my character arcs, and plot points, and rising conflicts, worrying about making every page a pageturner, counting words and worrying whether my heroine has had enough time in her POV before I switch to my hero's POV.

YUCK! No wonder my creativity has been stifled.

Fortunately, I've broken through to the other side, at least for the moment. I think I'm nearing the completion of chapter 7, at least the rough draft version of 7.

And that's what I have to remember. This is the first draft, the rough draft, the vomit draft. I'm not looking for "great" here. I'm looking to put words on the page, so I have something to go back to later to craft into a "great" story.

How do you get "unstuck"?

Win a Kindle Fire!

2012-01-04T15:46:00.000-08:00

If you like your romances really steamy, 6 erotic romance authors are holding a contest to give away a free Kindle Fire and 12 of their books!

Check it out at Suzanne Graham's blog here.

Good luck!

New Year, New Submissions

2012-01-02T12:21:00.000-08:00

Yay! It's 2012. I'm entering my 5th year of writing - whew, where did the time go? I'm getting the year off right with a new batch of submissions, and the first one just went out. Yay, me!

Focus, focus, focus - will be my mantra the next few weeks as I adjust to my new schedule. Kids in school and me at home with my writing, now that I'm on a break from teaching.

I'm checking out the trial version of Scrivener, nothing like a new toy...err tool, to get me excited about writing again.

Moving on

2011-12-08T10:05:00.000-08:00

Good grief, goodbyes are hard.

This is the last day of classes for my English 101 students. We've been through a wild ride of highs and lows this semester. (Probably more lows for them and highs for me, though it's debatable.) I've challenged them to work hard and write lots, and I have been so rewarded by their progress.

As I face them for the last time, I see so much potential in each of them. I have so thoroughly enjoyed watching them learn and grow. I wish I could hover in the backgrounds of their lives, observing the choices they'll make and the futures they'll build.

Now, it is time to look forward and renew my excitement for my writing life. I am formulating ideas for my next set of stories. I have a big picture plan, but none of the details. I finally have some free mental time to devote to delving into it.

I'm getting back to the basics and setting a daily minimum word count goal. I can't wait for the creativity flow to resume.

New Teacher Syndrome

2011-10-11T16:05:00.000-07:00

Ah, yes...the first semester of teaching. The prep time is always twice (or more) as long as you expect it to take. Somehow I thought I'd be able to fit writing in around the teaching, the prepping and the grading, but unfortunately, I was a bit too optimistic. Sadly, my writing has taken a backseat to teaching this semester.

On to the good news/bad news for next semester... Because I am so low on the adjunct totem pole, the classes I'd like to teach next semester have already been grabbed by those higher on up. And that means starting in December, I will have plenty of time to get back to my writing. Yay!

I will miss the teaching, but this hiatus will only be temporary as I might have a chance to teach over the summer, and there's always next fall. Perhaps this is the perfect solution to finding the balance between teaching and writing - focus on one at a time for a select number of months per year.

I'm not completely removed from writing this fall. I'm still looking for a publishing home for Baltimore Heat, and working on submissions.

Bad, bad blogger

2011-08-22T10:32:00.000-07:00

I'm a bad, bad blogger. Haven't been seen around here since May, but I have been posting every month at Grand Rapids Region Writer Group on my designated day, the 4th of the month. So maybe I'm only a bad blogger, rather than a bad, bad blogger. Such distinctions matter.

Side note: I just overheard my 7 year old tell my 12 year old that he poops like a girl. What level of insult is this?

Anyway, back to the writing life. My contemporary romances have been on hiatus the last few months as my alter ego has been busy writing and releasing erotic romances. I am still waiting to hear about my submission of Baltimore Heat to two publishers, and while I wait I am attempting to revise the story to fit the Harlequin SuperRomance imprint line. To do so, I need to cut 10K words, which might actually help the story as I've received feedback that the pacing slows down in some areas.

I will definitely be returning to The Billionaire's Pilot in the next few weeks as I must finish it before November 30 for the ROAR contest sponsored by GRRWG.

And I have a new job starting next month. I will be teaching English 101 at a local community college. Now I can help the next generation learn the proper location of commas and how to write in complete sentences. Should be interesting. I'm sure they will be teaching me a lot about the world from their perspective as well. Perhaps material for a new book will come out of it.

The River

2011-05-04T07:15:00.001-07:00

Today I'm blogging over at the Grand Rapids Region Writers Group about how our life experiences flow past us like a river. Come on over and take a dip!

Change of Scenery

2011-04-29T06:52:00.001-07:00

Come on over to Authorial Moms to find out how a change of environment can boost your productivity.

Three for Thursday

2011-04-28T06:22:00.000-07:00

Here's a taste (three sentences) from my current WIP.

Her pulse pounded in her temples as she stared down at the velvet tray in her lap filled with exquisite diamond engagement rings. Never had she been this close to jewels this valuable. Barely moving, she took shallow breaths, afraid she would disrupt the tray and send the rings scattering across the tile floor.

One shining day among the cloudy ones

2011-04-22T06:50:00.000-07:00

This has been a tough week for me. I'm really sensitive to how the weather affects my moods, more specifically how the lack of sunshine affects my mental health. It's nearly the end of April and this West Michigan weather is not cooperating. We've had cloud cover all week with snow accumulation on Monday, rain and cold temps Tuesday and Wednesday. But fortunately, on Thursday we had sunny skies and a decent temp that reached above 50 degrees.

When I checked out the forecast and found the one shining day among the rough ones, I contacted a friend and scheduled a walking date. And I'm so glad I did. Not only did I come home from our 70 minute walk tired and a bit sore, I was mentally and emotionally in a much better place. The sun, the exercise, the fresh air, and the laughter were the medicine I needed to cure me of my foul weather malady.

Now if only I could bottle that elixir...because it's cold, cloudy and rainy again today.

Hop into Spring Break

2011-04-05T07:53:00.001-07:00

Come check out how I kicked off Spring Break with my boys over at Authorial Moms.

The Last of March

2011-03-31T12:27:00.000-07:00

Tis the last day of March. Does that mean spring is really just around the corner? The sunny days would seem to imply that, but oh boy, the temps are still so chilly here in West Michigan. There is still a patch of snow in the corner of our front yard that refuses to melt away, but the briars in the woods in the backyard are starting to look green. And the birds! I've seen so many different varieties of birds already back from their winter vacations. Now if the grass would brighten with green and the forsythia would bud, then I'd feel confident that spring really had sprung.

Monday Morning!

2011-03-21T06:14:00.001-07:00

Yay! Monday! A new day at the beginning of a new week. Time to shed off the trials and tribulations of the previous week and start fresh.

I feel like I've been stalled in chapter 3 of my latest WIP. When I looked at my total word count from last week, it was obvious that I was indeed stalled. I only wrote about 1500 words when I usually write 5K, and I only wrote 4 out of 5 days.

So now it's Monday and a chance to start out the week right with lots of writing. I'm re-energized about my story too. I met with my critique partners on Friday and they got their first look at my new WIP. Lots of great suggestions for chapter one. (Those first chapters are so hard to get exactly right.) And they had lots of enthusiasm about my story. (It's so much more enjoyable to write for an audience.) I also had some breakthrough ideas on the exercise bike this morning, so I am rearing to get started.

Happy Monday!

Thoughts on Copyright Law and Libraries

2011-03-09T01:00:00.000-08:00

I know that sounds like a hideously boring topic by the title. But I really must commend you to check out Courtney Milan's thoughts On Eating Your Seed Corn. She gives a very good personal argument why libraries should be supported by everyone in the book business.

Fevers, Coughs and Sore Throats - Oh My!

2011-03-08T08:04:00.000-08:00

Got another one home sick this week. My baby (okay, he's seven) is home for the second day with a fever. He's responding well to the ibuprofen every six hours so I'm not too worried. Which means I can totally blame him for my new addiction.

Yesterday morning when I flipped through the TV channels to find him something to watch, I found the Bravo channel by mistake, and a show called Millionaire Matchmaker.

Ding! Ding! Ding! Research!

I don't think I've mentioned that I'm currently working on a billionaire love story. So watching the rich and famous struggle with finding their perfect mate is TOTALLY legit research.

Two episodes and two hours later, I was convinced too, especially when I got a new idea for my next billionaire love story from the second episode.

As soon as I could this morning, I checked the TV listings, but the show's not on again today. Which is actually a good thing because I have writing to do and billionaires waiting for their happily-ever-afters.

A Plot by any other name

2011-03-03T05:51:00.001-08:00

For some reason when I thought about the need to plot my current project I froze up. I tried several times to write what I expected to happen in the first chapter and the next and the next, but I never got beyond chapter three. But as I was writing through the first couple of pages of chapter two, I realized I needed to have some idea of what was going to happen next and on which days of the week.

I whipped out a lined notebook page and a pen to start writing a timeline for the story. I wrote down the first day my story begins (Thursday) and what happened in the AM and the PM. Then I wrote the next day, and the next. Before I knew it, I had pages and pages filled with scene notes and bits of dialogue. Character background details and a list of required research grew from the scenes as I wrote freely on the lined pages, my handwriting resembling chicken scratch when the ideas flowed the fastest. I gathered so many pages that I had to label them using T1, T2, T3 for the timeline pages. 1, 2, 3 for the scenes going directly in the book and A, B, C for the pages describing the escalating stakes/conflict.

Already today, the ideas are awake and flowing on the pages. As I pedaled my stationary bike this morning, I finished 5 handwritten pages of scene notes and dialogue and questions to be answered in the context of the story.

Of course, once the muse is awaken, she loves to talk to me in the shower. I had to throw a towel around myself quickly and scribble down the dialogue that swirled in my brain before throwing on my clothes and getting the boys to the bus stop on time.

Whew! Who knew that a simple 'timeline' was going to generate so much writing frenzy?

Chicken Legs in the Morning

2011-03-02T06:33:00.000-08:00

Is 8:30 am too early to eat chicken?

You see, here's my problem. I get up at 6:30 am and get on my stationary bike by 6:45. Then I pedal for 50 minutes while drinking my breakfast shake full of protein and healthy fats and carbs. Actually I finish drinking my shake within the first ten minutes, then I work on my 16 ounces of water.

When I finish exercising, I dash upstairs to shower, get the youngest two boys off to the bus stop and return home by 8:30. And that's when my stomach rumbles as if it's forgotten that it's already been served a 240 calorie breakfast shake just 2 hours prior. Obviously, it thinks it is time for breakfast round two.

I've tried various ideas for a 'morning snack' and end up feeling dissatisfied and HUNGRY until I finally feel it's an appropriate time to eat lunch.

So today, I decided 'lunch' should be at 8:30 am and heated up two leftover chicken legs. De-lish! And my tummy is much more satisfied.

So, do you think 8:30 am is too early to eat chicken?

A new day. A new enterprise.

2011-02-23T06:56:00.001-08:00

My dear writer friend, Sarah Anderson, has invited me to contribute regularly to her blog, Authorial Moms. Come check it out as I introduce myself.

Habits

2011-02-17T06:00:00.000-08:00

Habit formation is the process by which a behavior becomes habitual. (from Wikipedia)

So how long does it take to form a habit?

The number I'd always heard was 30 days. But this interesting article cites a study that it takes closer to 66 days to develop a habit. That's an average. Depending on what you are trying to change in your behavior, establishing a new habit took some participants up to 254 days. Drinking a daily glass of water was much easier to establish as a habit than doing 50 sit-ups before breakfast. I totally agree with that last statement. I've only done my crunches once in the past two weeks. Not much of a habit formed yet. But I've definitely got in the habit of getting on the stationary bike five days a week for an hour.

The new habit that I am working on forming is writing every day. That's every day, even if it's only 100 words. This past fall I got out of the habit of consistently writing and it's been an uphill battle to get back to it. I have a great external motivation this month to help me reestablish my daily writing habit. Grand Rapids Region Writers Group is holding their annual winter writing challenge this month. From February 12 to March 12, I will write 32K words. That's 8K a week for 4 weeks. If that doesn't get me back in the habit of daily writing, then nothing will.

At the end of the day yesterday, I had 2250. Not nearly close enough to the 8K that I need by Saturday to stay on track this week, but the good news is that I've been writing every day.

Stay tuned for updates on my progress.

Came and Went

2011-02-14T05:45:00.000-08:00

Okay, the blizzard is old news now. It came, it conquered, and it went. Then the frigid temperatures set in. Last week was painfully in the single digits. Can you say cracked skin? Not a trace of humidity in the air.

And today? Today, we are looking at the Great Melting. Temps in the forties and my drainpipes are gurgling with streams of water. I guess we should prepare for the flood next.

So what does this have to do with my path to publication? Let's just say I'd rather be writing in Florida.

The Blizzard is Coming! The Blizzard is Coming!

2011-02-01T08:53:00.001-08:00

Nothing like a good winter storm to shake up the doldrums of January and February. I hope the groundhog doesn't get lost in the blinding snow tomorrow.

Human behavior is such fun to observe prior to a storm. Crowds descend on grocery stores like locusts to stock up on milk, bread and soup. C'mon people the event is only going to last a day or two at the most. Why have you all decided to grocery shop on the same day this week? Do you really not have enough milk to last 48 hours in your home? What are you going to do with all that extra milk when you lose electrical power? I suppose in a winter storm, you can just stick the gallon of milk outside the door to keep it cold.

I like snow days because they force us to break our schedules. They make us slow down for a moment and look at our lives and the busyness we aspire to. They give us the opportunity to take a deep breath and relax.

So, I hope those of you with a snow day tomorrow get to sleep late, breathe deeply and play a game of Scrabble with a loved one.

Reading the News

2011-01-13T11:31:00.000-08:00

I don't watch the news. I wasn't always like this, but after having children, my hubby and I decided we wanted to limit our boys' exposure to the media. When they were toddlers, we'd try to watch the evening news but the messages filtering into our boys' ears were unacceptable, so we turned it off. My oldest is nearly 12 years old, so it's been a while. And my youngest is 7 years old, so it will be a while longer still before we turn it back on.

Perhaps my skin has thinned because I'm no longer exposed to daily messages of bad news, but as I read a story on weather.com today, I was moved to sobbing tears. Perhaps it is the thought that the boys in the story could have been my boys.

If you're not aware, Queensland, Australia is 3/4 flooded and has been declared a disaster zone. The flooded area is as large as France AND Germany combined. I spoke to a dear author friend of mine in the area of Brisbane, and she said the people of Queensland could use our prayers.

In the article I read, a mom and two boys were trapped in flood waters in their car. When rescuers came for the boys and the mother, the 13-year-old boy told the rescuers to take his 10-year-old brother first. They managed to get the younger boy out, but then the flood waters washed the car away before the remaining boy and his mother could get out. His unselfish insistence saved his brother's life at the cost of his own.

I couldn't help thinking of my own three boys and imagining one of them making the decision to put his brother's life first. And I cried.

To read the article about Australia's flooding on weather.com, click here.

Snow!

2011-01-06T07:46:00.001-08:00

Big, white, fluffy flakes
Floating down from the grey sky
Wish I could stay home

My haiku for the day.
This is why I write prose, instead of verse.

Feel free to share your haiku for the day!

Today, a writer?

2011-01-04T05:43:00.001-08:00

Today, I'm blogging over at Grand Rapids Region Writers Group about wearing the many hats of me.

Come check out how I balance sick kids and writing...and see what some of the other talented writers have to say on their blog days.

The Wait Times Two

2010-12-07T19:06:00.000-08:00

I think I'm getting better at waiting. Really, I am.

I'm currently waiting to hear from 'the agent' on my revisions to Baltimore Heat that I sent back out to her last Wednesday, AND I'm waiting to hear whether Baltimore Heat placed 1, 2, or 3 in the Golden Rose contest.

Most days I'm completely oblivious that the fate of this manuscript is being decided on by an agent and an editor. Most days it doesn't even cross my mind. Most days I put one foot in front of the other and continue writing words on the page because that's what writers do.

But occasionally it crosses my mind, especially when I hear about a writer friend receiving her call. (Yay, Sarah!) I start to get teary eyed and imagine receiving my own call. Then I take a step back and try to enjoy this moment, right now, at this time.

Because this time in my writing career is special, this is the 'before'. I want to bottle this sense of anticipation and expectation. This roller coaster of highs and lows, this building up, this reaching to the top of the hill. To absorb these feelings completely because once the call comes, I'll be on to the next step with new challenges and new expectations.

This time is unique and special, and I am trying to live in the moment and enjoy it. And that's why I think I'm getting better at waiting.

The Joy of Writing Badly

2010-11-13T16:11:00.000-08:00

Today at the monthly Grand Rapids Region Writers Group, author Tanya Eby led us through an exercise on writing bad odes.

The point? As she says on her blog, "Because we worry so much about writing well, that we forget to write fun. And it’s a fun exercise because the entire goal is to suck, and suck hard. So if you’re a bad writer, you’ll be great at this. You will wear a cape of Badness which in this case is good."

So please check out Tanya's Ode to a Spatula.

And here is my tribute to America's favorite vegetable:

Ode to Ketchup
O’ majestic red sauce
in your curvy plastic casing,
you flavor my life
with your sweet tomato combination.
Where would I be without
your cloak to cover the
burnt taste of overcooked meat.
Thank you, dear ketchup,
for being the condiment
to my life.

Behold the Power of the Shower Muse

2010-09-16T09:18:00.001-07:00

Ahhhh! I feel so relieved. The shower muse has pulled through again and has gotten Mr. Hero from my next book talking to me.

I've been a little concerned since I finished my last manuscript in July that I wasn't rearing to go on my next project. I was feeling lackluster and ambivalent about jumping into a new book. I knew I needed a little breather, but it was going on two months!

Then in the shower yesterday morning, when I really didn't have a lot of time to spare in my morning routine, my muse delivered the opening 250 words of my next book. I had to forgo shaving my legs for the day because I had to hop out as fast as I could and write down the words before they lost their freshness. It felt so good to fill a page and a half of the notebook I leave on the bathroom counter. It's been looking blankly back at me for too long.

This doesn't mean I haven't been writing for the past two months. I've been completing a novella in another genre, and wouldn't you know it, I finished that one a day before my muse delivered the opening lines of my next book. I guess she couldn't multitask these past two months.

I don't blame her for hiding and waiting for things to get quiet around this house. Having three talkative boys home all summer was sending me deeper and deeper into my novel reading as well. It was such a relief to have them all trotted off to school last week and to get the house to myself. Now I can listen to my music all day as loudly as I like, and I don't have to listen to any asinine television programs.

Ah, peace and solitude. Gotta love fall.

As Fast As a Summer Vacation

2010-08-15T12:12:00.000-07:00

Wow! Where has the time gone?

In the past month I've sent out 14 agent queries, received 4 rejections and one request for the complete manuscript of Baltimore Heat!!!! Whoo hooo!

She's asked for an exclusive review and her website indicates her average wait time is 3 months for a full manuscript review.

Now it's thumb twiddling time, you say? Of course not! There are more stories waiting to be told. Time to dive into the next WIP.

Girl Cave Fait Accompli!

2010-07-19T07:00:00.000-07:00

My hubby is brilliant! And such a hard worker! You should have seen him on his knees all day Saturday putting in my new floor. Oh, wait! I've got pictures to share.

First off, this is me poor ol' Girl Cave after being gutted. *sniff*sniff*

Ah, here is my fabulous man making everything wonderful!

Here he is reinstalling the desk he built for me and
never expected to have to take out and put back in.
Look how beautiful the new floor is!!!

See the pretty, blue toile curtain on the left?
Behind that is the Murphy bed in the 'up' position.
When the bed is down, the queen size nearly fills the entire office.
Very Big, Very Heavy!

Ta-dah! Everything is back to normal and in its place.
And clean!!!
(But for how long?)

I want to give a big shout-out to my darling husband,
who worked his tail feathers off this weekend.
And it was his birthday weekend.

Happy Birthday, Honey!
I love you!

Thank you so much for my beautiful new office floor!
Love, Andrea

Amidst the Chaos

2010-07-18T17:55:00.000-07:00

Sometimes it is good for the ego to pat yourself on the back. So here is the pictorial evidence of the chaos that existed in my life as I wrote the final words on my latest completed manuscript. Amidst the Girl Cave renovations, I sat at my crowded dining room table and finished the book.

Can you spot the gray cat sprawled belly up between the chair and the table?
This is not the suspected offender.

Here is the Girl Cave pre-renovation. Some may say the chaos looks the same...

And here is the Girl Cave mid-renovation, prior to pulling up the carpet.

That's a queen sized Murphy bed laying on its side without the mattress.

The flooring has been delivered. This weekend we will pull up the carpet and padding, install the new padding and hopefully install the new flooring with ease. (and not a lot of marital woe.)

Wish us luck!

Dissassembling the Girl Cave

2010-07-13T07:00:00.000-07:00

Subtitle: The Unplanned Office Renovation

Two weeks ago my in-laws took my youngest two sons by airplane to their house for a week in Massachusetts. The night before the flight, my hubby and I decided the grandparents should take a photocopy of the boys' birth certificates with them for identification purposes. That would have been fine if our scanner hadn't decided to suddenly malfunction at nine o'clock at night.

After spending an hour searching online for a solution and calling the neighbors to see if they had a scanner we could use, my hubby finally had to drive into town to use my brother's scanner. That left me at home on the floor of my office still fiddling with the scanner and unknowingly making a big mess.

One of the tests we did was to feed paper into the printer and turn the machine back on. The paper came out all clumped together with tire tread marks on the top. Unbeknown to me, clumps of black ink had collected on the back of the stack of paper. When I set the paper to the side, I spread the ink around...everywhere. It was on the floor, on the sides of the printer/scanner, over my legs and hands.

I jumped up and washed off my hands and legs and returned with a damp cloth to wipe the carpet. Uh, oh! Big mistake. Water and dried ink together become wet ink blots on carpet. I wanted to cry, scream and tear my hair out, but the children were upstairs sleeping. Instead I doused the carpet with water to dilute the ink and soaked up much of it with paper towels. And I kept finding more microscopic pieces of ink clumps whenever the water hit a new spot on the floor. Finally I had everything nearly clean. I was resigned to living with new black specks on the multicolored-flecked, mostly white carpet. And I went to bed, leaving the office door open so the carpet could air-out and dry.

The next morning I came downstairs and knew a cat had peed somewhere in the house. Cat pee is so much worse than dog pee. More concentrated or something. I sniffed my way through the downstairs until I came to my office. My oldest son informed me that Dad thought the wet ink was letting off the odor. I stuck my nose to the carpet and immediately knew what the cat had done.

The carpet is nine years old and unfortunately this wasn't the first pet accident, but it was the one that pushed the carpet into the unsalvageable category. Especially because we are supposed to have guests using the room at the end of the month.

So now the carpet must go, which means I must empty the Girl Cave and my hubby must remove the built-in shelves, desk and murphy bed so we can get to the flooring underneath.

Amidst a major allergy attack (have I mentioned I'm extremely allergic to dust) I spent all day Saturday purging the office and moving everything into the dining room where I now sit in my makeshift office at the dining room table.

We've decided to use laminate flooring in the office to match the hallway, and we ordered it last night. Hopefully my hubby and I will be able to install it ourselves without too much trouble, but first he still has to remove the heavy, MDF built-ins out of the office.

Can anyone spare a few muscles?

Pretty New Website

2010-07-12T06:15:00.000-07:00

Yea! My pretty, new website is complete and live! I am so grateful to my friend Kris Norris for her web designing expertise. She made everything sound so easy as she made her adjustments on IWeb on her Mac. For me, it would have taken lots of hair pulling, ranting, and a few migraines thrown on top. There is definitely something to be said for paying someone else for their expertise, rather than doing it yourself.

Now I hope the do-it-yourself project my hubby and I have in progress turns out as well. Check out tomorrow's post to find out which room in the house is unexpectedly being renovated and why.

Have a great day. And oh, yeah! Check out the new website! www.andreadickinson.com
Andrea

Writer MIA

2010-07-06T21:12:00.001-07:00

Yep, I've fallen off the blogging wagon again. It's been 2 1/2 months since I've blogged, but I've had a really good reason, I swear!!!

I've been working my tail feathers off to finish my current WIP. After attending the last conference and meeting an agent who was interested in my 'voice', I've been more motivated than ever to finish my single title contemporary romance. Even though she doesn't take category romances, she still requested my full one. She just got back to me and let me know she enjoyed what she read, and she is interested in seeing my next project!!!

Ooooo!!! One step closer...I can feel it.

Pitch Times Two

2010-04-22T11:10:00.000-07:00

If once is good, twice must be better. Right?

Some of the editors at Spring Fling had openings for more pitch appointments. So I checked my shelf of unpublished manuscripts for something that would fit one of them. And lo and behold, I found Grace's Will still waiting patiently for her chance to wow readers.

So, I will be pitching my historical western romance novella to an epub editor in the morning, and I will pitch my contemporary category romance to an agent in the afternoon. Two shots at hitting a home run. I can't wait!

Making all the little pieces add up

2010-04-21T08:20:00.000-07:00

After reviewing the requirements for two similar imprints with the publisher of choice for the manuscript I'll be pitching, I decided the story really needed to be submitted to Imprint B rather than Imprint A. So what did that mean for my manuscript? It meant I needed to add 5K words to a finished 55K story.

Where was I going to add 5K? Extra scenes? More subplot? Longer descriptions?

It wasn't any one thing. It was going through every chapter (24 of them) and adding 208.33 words to each. Some got a little more added and some got a lot less. In some places I was able to add a little more dialogue, others needed a little more internal thought, a few cried out for some more descriptions. And when I got to the end, I still needed another 692 words, so back through I went, challenging myself to add a few words to every page.

What has it done for my story?

I tend to be a short writer, especially with this story. I tried a new method to write this one. I had it completely outlined in detail before I started writing, which I've found isn't a good strategy for me. Because I then find myself rushing to get from point A to point B and on to C without taking time to enjoy the journey. My scenes were short and abrupt. I learned through the Winter NaNo Challenge how the process of writing without a detailed outline really helped me take my time with my characters.

Challenging myself to add nearly 10% more words gave me the opportunity to revisit each scene and fully flesh out the story and the characters' development. Plus revising the story with fresh eyes after it had been on the shelf for several months, showed me scenes where the hero was acting just a little bit out of character. I got him all straightened out.

So my story is now 60K and ready to be pitched on Saturday to my future (hopefully) agent.

Wish me luck!
Andrea

Lovin' the One You're With

2010-04-08T09:41:00.000-07:00

Or rather Lovin' the One You're Pitching!

Yep, it's time to get really excited about last fall's manuscript. Why? Because it's finished and ready to be pitched to get me signed by an agent, who is going to manage my career to bestseller stardom. :D

So, I dusted it off last night and started reading at about 10:30 pm. After an hour, I realized that it was way past my bedtime, and I needed to stop reading. The great part was that I was completely engaged in the story, and I didn't want to stop reading.

Huge sigh of relief.

It's such a wonderful surprise to go back to a story that has been sitting idle for a few months and realize it is still good. Just a little polish with a soft cloth, no elbow grease required, and this baby is ready to be seen by the world. So come on agents, let's get me published!

Perfect Pitch

2010-04-01T12:45:00.000-07:00

Nope, I'm not talking about American Idol here.

I'm talking about my upcoming pitch at Chicago-North RWA's Spring Fling Conference. This conference is held every two years. In 2008, it was the very first conference I'd ever attended and I executed my very first 2 pitches with agents! The first one flopped big time. The second was successful enough that the agent requested I send a partial of my manuscript. HUGE success for a newbie writer who had been writing for a mere 8 months and knew nothing! (Update: I never heard back from that agent. In publishing-speak, that means she didn't like it.)

Flash forward two years. I am preparing to return to Spring Fling with several manuscripts complete under my belt and a few sales of short stories published under a pseudonym. Each manuscript I write becomes my new favorite, which is the rub here.

I would love to have my current WIP close enough to completion to pitch it, but alas, it is 2/3 of the way to being complete. Therefore, I must fall back to my last complete manuscript to pitch. Time to pull it off the virtual shelf, blow off the dust, and add a little polish. Along the way I need to find my original enthusiasm that wears away after receiving critiques from my peeps and hours spent revising.

As if that wasn't enough, I have to compose the perfect, thirty-second pitch.

Do you think Randy or Simon would be willing to give me a hand?

Have a happy Thursday!
Andrea

MIA

2010-03-25T08:09:00.001-07:00

Yep, I'm still here, typing my fingers to the bone. Well, sort of.

I did take several weeks of time off writing, not completely off writing. I was working on several other projects, but now I am back to my current WIP.

It's been great to read through the stuff I wrote during the 40K challenge, and think to myself that some of this stuff is good. I even made myself teary-eyed reading through one of my scenes this week. I just love one of my characters to pieces. She's not even the heroine, but I think she's going to steal this book.

I've got lots of good vibes about this book, and I'm so happy to be so happy working on my writing. (Rep of words intention.)

Have a great Thursday!
Andrea

Challenge Complete!

2010-02-12T05:57:00.001-08:00

Last night, I finished my 40K in less than 5 weeks!!!

Woohoo!!!

Now I'm going to read other people's books all weekend, starting with the latest from Robyn Carr.

Winter NaNo: In the Home Stretch

2010-02-10T06:25:00.000-08:00

3 more days of writing.
4368 words to go.
Totally doable.

It will be interesting to go back and sort through this writing when it is done. How much will be usable? How much will be deletable? How much will be laughable? :D

It's been a great challenge. I'm so glad I chose to participate. It's gotten my butt in the chair and my fingers on the keyboard everyday. I would never be this far along in my WIP without this challenge. And it's not been too much of a stretch. I've learned I can knock off 1200 words in a little over an hour. I should be writing at least that much everyday, anyway.

The key is consistency. Doing it everyday, so I don't fall behind and have to play catch-up. Yeah, consistency. Not one of my strengths, but I've managed to work it this past month.

(And I've chewed more gum in the past 5 weeks, than I have in the last 5 years.)

Winter NaNo Challenge Update

2010-02-02T06:50:00.000-08:00

I can do it, I can do it, I can do it. Yes, I can!

I am keeping up to date with the daily word count to reach the goal of 40K words in 5 weeks. My goal today is to do a little extra and reach 30K before I lay my head on my pillow tonight.

What I've learned about my writing through this challenge is amazing. I write much better detail and characterization and really take my time in each scene by writing without an outline. I'm not rushing to get from point A to point B to point C, because I have no idea where those points are! I don't know what my characters will do next, so I am taking my time with exploring what they are doing right now.

Wow! Living in the moment. Now there's a lesson for living life that I need to learn better.

Caution: Big Challenge Ahead

2009-12-23T15:47:00.000-08:00

My monthly writer's group in Grand Rapids is doing a modified NaNoWriMo from January 9 to February 13. In five weeks I've been challenged to write 40,000 words. Oh, my!

I've been busy working on the prewriting/plotting for the story I'm going to tackle. It's a story idea that came to me in the middle of the night this summer when I was dedicating all my waking hours to Networking in the Office. I got out of bed, typed up the scene that was playing in my head and ended up with nearly 2000 words. Then it went on the shelf until I was done with Networking. Now it is time to brush it off and see if I can make it fly.

I'll be posting as the challenge gets underway to let you know how I am progressing. I expect the first day or so will be big numbers with all the prewriting I have done. Then I'm sure it will slow down as life interruptus.

Bummer, more work ahead

2009-11-03T12:11:00.000-08:00

I've been cogitating on my recently finished manuscript. And I've decided it's not finished material yet. My character arc is a gentle slope and not the steep arc it should be. I kinda realized I had some problems when I was attempting to write the synopsis. I couldn't readily identify four key turning points in the story. Everything just kind of goes along for Sierra until about three quarters of the way through the book, when things get bad.

So it's back to the salt mines to dig a little deeper into Sierra's life.

I'm back

2009-10-26T18:36:00.000-07:00

Sorry I've been gone so long. October was a crazy month. It started with a huge battle with the inner demons of self-doubt as I slogged my way through the mess of submitting my recently finished manuscript to agents. Then I went away to a writers' conference where I had a blast, but came home with a 2-day stomach flu. Two weeks at home, then a weekend at a writers' retreat, from which I came home with another stomach flu! Egads! Enough already!

So, I'm back. I'm working on some new stuff. And trying to stay healthy!

Time for the Synopsis

2009-09-30T12:25:00.000-07:00

I've finished my edits and revisions in my current WIP. It's printed, and my four trusted readers are flipping through my pages as we speak.

Now comes the hard part. Condensing 55,000 words into a 5 page synopsis. UGH! Have I told you how much I detest writing these things?

I've never been good at summarizing. I'm much too long winded for that. I remember writing book reports in grade school where I always ended up retelling the whole story in nearly the same length as the book. Fortunately they were shorter books back then.

One submission I made to an agent required a one page synopsis for my first manuscript. ONE PAGE! for my 88,000 words!

So, what did I do?
I searched the internet and found this great webpage with directions for writing a one page synopsis. The directions are written for screenplays, but works just as well for novels. If you ever find yourself needing to write one of these beasties, check this webpage. I found it extremely helpful.

Writing Tip 101

2009-09-22T13:38:00.000-07:00

At the first writing conference I ever attended, I heard the most important writing tip. READ!

In order to find my place within my genre, I need to know who else is out there and what they are writing. There is a lot to learn by studying the work of other writers – how they handle descriptions, inner thoughts, love scenes, conflict, the final words on the final page, and so much more.

As I write my current WIP, a contemporary romance, I keep several books within that same genre on my desk. When I get stuck, I flip through one of the books and see what the author before me has done. Like how many pages should this kiss last? And what vocabulary is appropriate for this imprint line?

I heard at that first conference that if I didn’t have time to read, then I didn’t have time to be a writer. I make time for both, and I watch a whole lot less TV!

Time Management - The Myth

2009-09-11T16:34:00.000-07:00

We all have the same 24 hours in the day, as I'm sure you've heard before in numerous discussions on how to better manage your time. But finding the time to write or do whatever else is important to you is not really about finding time or making time. Rather, it is about Energy Management.

Our bodies have a natural energy cycle. Some people are 'morning people' and feel energetic as soon as they bounce out of the bed in the morning. Whereas, other people don't begin to feel a surge of energy until lunchtime or later in the day. Of course, we can force ourselves into a false sense of energy by using stimulants like caffeine.

Throughout the day our energy ebbs and flows. Certain things in our life, besides caffeine, can give us more energy, like laughing with our girlfriends or feeling the sun and wind on our faces. And other things can drain our energy, like naughty children who make us yell and scream at them. (Not that my angels would EVER make me yell at them.) The biggest energy drain for women is doing things for other people. How many people or commitments in your life do you take care of? Husband, children, parents, friends, school, work, laundry, cleaning, cooking, shopping...

So what does this have to do with Time Management?

If we are constantly giving away our energy reserves to others, we won't have energy to do the things for ourselves that matter to us, like writing. We may find ourselves with an hour in the afternoon alone, but with no energy to concentrate on writing. And a nap will sound so much more productive, or TV, or reading a relaxing book, or browsing the internet, or eating...

So, really what we need to focus on is managing our energy. Don't give away more than you can spare. Learn to say no. And find something that recharges your energy reserves when they get low, preferably caffeine free. (Don't get me started on the dangers of caffeine.)

All I want for Christmas...

2009-09-04T07:00:00.000-07:00

is Pioneer Woman's cookbook.

Well, that and the 2 tickets to the Chicago Bears v. Detroit Lions game that I already bought yesterday.

Food and football.

They are just meant for each other.

What are you hoping to receive for Christmas?

Going Deeper

2009-08-28T06:49:00.000-07:00

Yesterday my critique partners and I met, and we discussed deep POV (point of view). Really getting inside of the character's head and reading her thoughts and feelings as they happen to her.

One of my favorite authors is a master at deep POV. Suzanne Brockmann says she came up with that phrase when first asked to explain her writing style. She gets deep into the character's mind. As she says, "We hear things through his ears. We smell what he smells, feel what he feels, think what he thinks. With deep POV, I write using words that that character would use. I tell the story with that character's voice." And she is gifted at giving each of her character's his own voice. She doesn't need to write "he thought" or "he felt" because it is understood that the words she writes are this character's thoughts and feelings.

How can you make this work in your own writing?

Suzanne suggests a great exercise to try. She says, "Write a scene from the first person. Instead of using 'He' or your character's name, use 'I'. Instead of 'his', use 'my'. And so on. Write as if you are your hero. Describe the world with his voice. Tell us what he feels -- or what he'll admit to himself that he's feeling! Then, after you finish writing the scene, go back in and replace all the first person pronouns with third person pronouns or your hero's name. That's deep point of view!"

To read Suzanne's complete interview and more information about how she got started as a writer, please check out A Conversation with Suzanne Brockmann by Claire E. White.

The Big Rejection

2009-08-21T08:18:00.000-07:00

I got my notice this week from the NY Editor. She has passed on my women's fiction manuscript after reviewing the first 50 pages. She wrote, "After several reads and much discussion, the overall consensus was that the writing wasn’t strong enough for our list." That sounds about right to me. I know my writing is much stronger now than what is was in that first manuscript.

So, I've decided to shelve my first manuscript for now. I don't have time to go back and revise the entire novel. I am much more engaged in writing a great contemporary romance that will get me my agent and my first publishing contract.

This rejection didn't hit as hard as some of the first ones. I have grown a thicker skin, I know. But more than that, I have such a strong belief in the story I am currently writing, I know I will get the "yes" letter sooner rather than later.

Plus, my support system of True Colors, my hubby and my mother kept my spirits up for two days via email as they discussed their views of my writing talents. Thanks Friends and Family! I love you all, too!

Working 2nd Shift

2009-08-14T06:52:00.000-07:00

I'm not a morning person. Never have been, never will be. Just ask my mother.

What does this mean for me as a writer? a mother? a wife?

As a writer my most productive hours are in the afternoon and late night. I love sitting at my computer engrossed in my story while all the little kiddies are tucked up in their beds and my hubby, too. The house is silent around me. The dark night outside my window reflects back the image of me working. No distractions. When I reach my finishing point for the night, I play a few games of Spider Solitaire and check out what my friends have been up to on Facebook. Yeah, that adds another hour or so before I mosey up to bed, but it's my way of relaxing before trying to go to sleep.

As a mother and wife working the second shift is not ideal. My hubby has gently mentioned on several occasions that it's nice to see me at breakfast with the family. This is definitely a much bigger issue during the school year, and I do try harder to keep an earlier schedule then. I try, but not very successfully. In the summer it's not so bad. My kids are getting older and they can all manage to get their own breakfast whenever they wake up. They keep themselves amused during the morning hours that I'm sleeping.

Another issue is that my hubby is a light sleeper and when I come to bed so late, I usually end up waking him. Though the night I slammed my toes into the doorjamb he didn't hear a thing. OUCH! Go figure.

Knowing I'm a second shifter helps me in one way. It takes away the guilty feeling that I should be sitting at my computer every morning at 9 am and be finished by 5 pm. Those hours just don't work for me. It would be nice for my family if they did, but that's not my body's natural rhythms. And I believe this is genetically programmed.

I just had a conversation with my mother. My brother is unemployed and living with her. They have both followed their body rhythms and now stay up until 2 am and sleep until 10 am most days.

See it's genetics!

What's your natural body rhythm?

You will like The Birthday Present

2009-08-10T00:01:00.000-07:00

I am so excited! Suzanne Graham, my best friend - we are so close, we could be twin sisters - just published her first story! And it is available for sale today!!!!

Suzanne started writing erotic romance last year and has already surfed her way off the slush pile. Go Suzanne!!!

Suzanne's story The Birthday Present is a hot read, set in Tenerife, Canary Islands, about two couples finding a special way to celebrate a birthday. I got the inside scoop from Suzanne that these four sexy people will return for a very special holiday in The Christmas Present.

So I hope you will buy Suzanne's book today. It's only a few bucks, and it's totally worth it!

It's outta here.

2009-08-07T10:47:00.000-07:00

So, I took the suggestions from the last rejection letter of my historical western romance, and I revised my first 3 chapters. Using Margie Lawson's Deep Edits color-coded system, it was a fast and fun (I liked playing with my new highlighting markers) revision. Then I whipped out a new query letter and submitted to another epublisher. Now I sit and twiddle my fingers as I wait 1- 12 weeks for a response.

NO! Of course, I don't sit and twiddle my fingers as I wait.

There are other stories that need to be written as I wait. My contemporary romance is within six chapters of being finished. I've made incredible progress on it this summer even with the three boys home all day, thanks in large part to my weekly critique partners who have kept me on-task and enthusiastic about my story.

Yesterday, we did a marathon critique day. We'd missed last week due to my vacation, so we prepared 4 chapters each this week. 4 chapters! We read and laughed and critiqued and ate and read and critiqued and laughed and ate some more. After 6 hours(!) we had bitten off a big chunk of each of our stories, and we parted in good spirits. But boy, I was spent after all that concentration and those belly laughs.

So, if you are so obliged, I would love to add your crossed fingers to mine as I wait to hear back from the publishers.

Thanks!
Andrea

Rejection Letters

2009-07-11T20:16:00.000-07:00

Progress can be measured by the length of the rejection letter. It doesn't take very much space to write, "Nope, your project isn't for me." But why? Is the writing poor or is the storyline boring? What makes this project not for you?

Last month I could see tangible evidence for the improvement in my writing when I got a six paragraph rejection letter. 6 Paragraphs!!! She totally detailed what she thought I needed to improve in my story to make it better. If it was a worthless piece of nothing, she would never have taken the time to write such a lengthy critique.

She complimented me on my "interesting premise" and my "lovely writer's voice". So I am making progress, moving further away from the form rejection, "No thank you, this project isn't for me."

Yeah, the five paragraphs that didn't include compliments were hard to read, but after a few chocolate bars I stopped moaning and hugging myself.

This month I will tackle her critique suggestions, make the revisions and submit to another publisher. I'm close, I can feel it.

Cheers!
Andrea

Critique Partners

2009-06-29T13:59:00.001-07:00

I've been fortunate to find two wonderful writers who have joined me in a Thursday critique group. I've known Ann for several years from the Bible study I attend on Wednesday mornings. I just met Ingram two weeks ago, and it already feels like I've known her forever.

Have you ever met someone who is only a stranger for the first few minutes, then it seems like you've always known them? The three of us clicked from the first moment we met at our monthly writer's group.

It has been so much fun to share my WIP with them one chapter at a time and listen to their suggestions. And their stories are wonderful. I love watching them develop into writers.

So here's to Ann and Ingram, aspiring authors who are joining me on this path to publication.

Cheers!
Andrea

Follow the Yellow Brick Road

2009-06-15T07:48:00.000-07:00

Check out my weekly post at Writer's Evolution where I describe my path to publication today.

Happy Monday!
Andrea

Writing again

2009-06-02T18:19:00.000-07:00

Oh, I'm so excited to be in the early stages of writing a new book. Actually it's not a "new" book. I did extensive plotting for it last June. Oh my, has it been a year?!? And I last worked on it in October '08. Then I got busy with an idea for my historical western short story, which I submitted to an online publisher last month. I dallied in another genre and sold two short stories under a pen name, and I revised and submitted my women's fiction to an editor in NY, whom I'm still waiting to hear from.

Sooooooo, now I am returning to the series romance I began last summer. It must be my summer book. It will be a great beach read when it's published. I just have to finish writing it, which is going quite well. I've been finishing about a scene a day and printing out my 'dailies' for my hubby to read when he gets home from work. After each reading, he looks up and says, "Okay, I want to read more." And I say, "Okay, I have to write more!"

It's so easy to forget how good it feels to be in the creative phase of writing after doing so much revising this spring. I love getting to know my new set of characters and dreaming about signing a publishing contract for this one.

I don't know why I procrastinated for two weeks, laying on the couch reading Suzanne Brockmann everyday when I could be experiencing the pleasure of writing my own stories.

Yeah, actually I do know why.
No matter how much I enjoy the creative process, it is still work. And reading someone else's published work is still play. And I'd much rather play if given the choice!

My relationship with Dewey

2009-05-31T10:49:00.000-07:00

Dewey and I are having a slow start to our relationship. I had to give up on the 81 Key Ideas. I just couldn't force myself to read anymore philosophy. My brain cells wouldn't put up with it anymore. So I found a different book in the 001s, but I'm not really getting very far in that one either.

I think I'm about to write Dewey a Dear John letter and end this whole experiment. I really don't care to read non-fiction, even if it will broad my horizons. I like to do research for a book I'm writing, but I don't care to read it for general reading pleasure. Give me a romance novel any day over non-fiction. I even tried reading a memoir and couldn't stomach it either.

So for now, I am saying Farewell, Dewey. Please don't call me, I'll call you.

Free Book Giveaway

2009-05-12T13:25:00.000-07:00

Check out Judi Fennell's debut novel “In Over Her Head”, being released on June 1, 2009. Her publisher is giving away a free copy of the book.

“In Over Her Head” is the first in a new fantasy series by Judi Fennell, featuring the mesmeric world under the sea!

To enter go to A Bibliophile's Bookshelf.

Good luck!

Reading with Dewey

2009-05-11T11:26:00.000-07:00

Patched-up blog migration complete! Moving on to other topics.

Every book and article I read about becoming a better writer advises reading lots of books. And not just books within the genre I want to write, but across all genres and categories. Fiction and non-fiction.

I don't have a problem reading all sorts of different fiction books, but I've never sought out the non-fiction bookshelves looking for recreational reading. I've only ventured to that part of the library for research purposes.

I started thinking about the vast collection of books I've never explored and I decided to delve into them systematically, starting with 001. So I checked out the very first book on the shelf in the non-fiction section and took it home. It looked interesting - theories on American thinking, titled The opening of the American mind : canons, culture, and history - and I thought I'd enjoy reading it. I put the book in the To Be Read pile on my desk with the others and four weeks later I realized it was overdue and I had never even picked it up.

I returned the late book , paid my fee and thought that was the end of my grand ambition. But a few weeks later I was back in the library picking up more fiction and the non-fiction section started beckoning to me to partake of all it had to offer.

I went back to 001 and grabbed another title off the shelf, Eureka! 81 Key Ideas Explained. Then I thought if I wanted to really make progress on this goal I was going to need to check out more than one book at a time. In the 002 section my library only had 3 choices on the shelf. I chose the tiny 67-page option, Caring for Your Books, rather than one of the 300 page volumes next to it. In the 003 section I had a few more choices so I picked the title that seemed most accessible, Fuzzy Logic, not mine that's actually the title of the book.

Once at home I picked up the smallest of my three selections and skipped through it in an afternoon. And I even squeezed in a nap. This was already going much better than my first attempt. Then a few days later I picked up the next book thinking I'd be able to breeze through this one as well. It was only 242 pages describing 81 key ideas. Short chapters equal fast reading, I thought.

But then as I read I got slowed down by the philosophical ideas being explained. I found it's really impossible to speed-read philosophy. Philosophy is weight-lifting for the brain - slow and painful, but builds a stronger muscle.

I began to ask myself - what constitutes reading a book? Can I skim or is that cheating? How much do I have to read? Every page or three quarters of the book or two thirds or how about just half? Anything less than all of the book felt like 'cheating'. So I started to plod through it hoping to pick up some speed as my brain got stronger.

But what's my rush? Maybe I speed through life too fast and it's time to learn how to slow down. So I'm going to renew my 001 book and read every page before I move on to the next one.

Anyone want to read along with Dewey and me?

Migrating Nightmares

2009-05-11T10:35:00.001-07:00

Trying to move my blog to a more user friendly blog site. Taking waaaayyy too much of my time. Let's see if I can gerry-rig something.

wish me luck