May 14

It's Thursday and I'm sitting in sunshine that is warm. Two doggies sleeping at my feet. The big one (who is ten) pulled a muscle and has been a three-legged doggie for about three days now. Still he comes up and down two flights of stairs to be with me. That's devotion.

I've got stacks of work which is fun. I've got more sorting, and reading info on the Master's program. I've got more trip plans to finalize. I've got a couple books to read. Ten pages of fresh work to send in for critique. I'm in the middle of revisions on another book project. I've got an option book research to outline, a thriller to sell and that pesky book at Dorechester to nudge. When I get this busy, its usually the time a new story will pop into my head and follow me around and bug me to be written. This time I've got a couple of vague ideas...but nothing demanding my attention.

I hope that doesn't mean I'm losing my edge...

*smiles* Yes, I know I sound fact half mad.... cheers!

May 13

Waiting can be as difficult as rejection. While rejection is cut and dried-"Sorry your work isn't right for us at this time." Waiting seems endless. I've always filled the waiting with work... write a different book. Write a partial for the second in a series in the off chance the first sells. Write more queries. Write.

And yet the waiting niggles the back of my mind...I picture my manuscript holding up someone's desk. Lost in the shuffle... fallen behind a credenza. What is going on with the full at Dorechester? Didn't I read where they bought someone else 30 days after the manuscript was mailed in? How the heck did that happen? It's been a year. But I've heard war stories of getting a call to buy after three years. Why do I seem to always get the longer wait? I need to nudge them.

Fear creeps in...why nudge them? do I really want another rejection? But limbo is also a form of rejection. This week on my todo list is the note to contact them and find out what is going on with that book. Rejection is a form of closure. But my twisted hopeful mind says, if I get that rejection then the book goes into the dead baby morgue-having made the rounds. If I let the waiting continue there is always hope... I like to cling to the hope sometimes too long.

Here's a laugh- I've actually gotten rejection letters so many years later that I don't remember what book they were looking at. Form letters don't list the title. I simple laugh and shrug and add it to the pile.

But not this time. This time I'm going to pester them to send me the rejection now or buy the darn book. Closure is good for the soul.

May 12

There are many different ways to start a story. The first rule of thumb is to always open with a hook. Draw the reader into the story. To think of this in visual terms, when a reader opens a book and reads the first line you want to reach out and grab them by the throat and suck them into the work. Right. How do you do this?

Start in the middle of something. Action or dialog are great starters. But warning, don't use action or dialog that does not have a purpose or it will only confuse the reader. Don't be concerned if twenty pages into your story, you find your opening. This is also normal. Yes, it's hard to cut those twenty pages. Do it anyway. Think of those pages, not as a waste or loss of time and effort, but as your mind's way of working toward the perfect opening. Everything you write has purpose-just not necessarily for the reader.

But, you say, some people can open a book with sweeping descriptions of vistas and sunrises. Yes, some people can. This is rare in today's market and not the norm.

Why are beginnings on my mind? When I first started writing I was content to write one opening and revise the scene to polish. But in the case of my last two manuscripts, I've written two or three different scenes as openings... and it's been fun. What I've got is a good, better, best scenario. The goal? To reach out and grab the reader by the throat and don't let them put it down until they reach the end. Then, like a roller coaster, leave them wanted to read it again...

May 11

I'm a bit behind today in posting. The reason why is that in March I applied for a Master's degree program. I have been accepted and am currently going through a lot of information that must be done by May 22nd.

It is an MA in Writing Popular Fiction-Seton Hill University. I am very excited by this program. My end goal in having a Master's degree is to be able to teach creative writing at the community college level. One of my favorite things is to talk about books, writing, craft and the writing life and one of my life long dreams has been to help college students in their journey of discovery to fulfill their dreams-yeah, I know, sounds like a lofty full-of-myself kind of goal. But when I was struggling through my first degree, I vowed that one day I would work at the college level and do my best to make the college experience easier for at least one student.

Now whether any of that happens is up to the fates, but this is a step in that direction. Also, because I'm already published in the romance genre I have chosen the thriller/suspense genre for my Master's thesis. My hope is to learn more about the genre and keep my writing fresh.

So, there you go- the secrets of my heart... now I have to get back to work. Cheers!

Happy Mother's Day!

I want to wish my mother, my grandmother and all my aunts and sisters and girlfriends a happy mother's day! Even if you don't have kids, I know that you have nurtured me and others. For that, I thank you and send virtual hugs. Cheers!

May 9

Went to see the new Star Trek movie. It was big fun. Lots of inside jokes for old trekies. Lots of big explosions, action and fast moving vehicles. I won't give it away...the crowd was bigger than the crowd for Xmen Origins which I saw last week. So there are more trekies than comic/action hero fans.

My wish for the next Xmen and Star Trek movies are that they have an equally strong female protagonist in each. Wouldn't that be a hoot?

May 8

Thank goodness it's Friday or TGIF! I'm finishing up the initial revisions of part three of a project I'm working on. Last night I found a foothold for a new romantic suspense story. What does that mean? Well, for me, story telling is being able to see in the mist. If you sit still long enough and unfocus your eyes and think about the story you want to bring to life, the fog clears and the scene opens. Once I have an opening, it's easy to go back to the spot and widen and clarify and create an actual story. So, yay for footholds in the mist! Happy Friday, everyone.