Writers' Wednesday: How To Use Commas Without Going Crazy

Type “comma rules” into any search engine, and you’ll turn up a multitude of sites. Here are a couple I’ve found that are helpful without going overboard:

The Purdue University OWL (Online Writing Lab)
JPROF Journalism Site

For a quick guide, though, here are a few tips I've found most useful. Commas can be confusing, but if you print this out, tape it somewhere near your computer, and refer to it when you’re in a jam, it should help in many cases.

1. Use commas to set off introductory phrases. Many times, the placement of this comma will occur where you would draw a natural breath if reading the sentence aloud.

As soon as Jenny woke up that morning, she had a sense of foreboding.

After the horse dragged Cowboy Bob five hundred feet, the animal finally slowed to a stop.

Note: Sometimes the intro phrases are short. Use your discretion in those cases. Read the sentence aloud and see if a comma would clarify the sentence’s meaning.

Last night Jimmy snuck into my bedroom after my parents went to bed. (Comma would theoretically go after “night,” but is it needed? Probably not.)

After all wouldn’t everyone rather win a million dollars than drag themselves to a job they hated? (Comma would, and probably should, go after “all” to clarify a natural pause of emphasis in the sentence.)

2. Use commas to separate items in a series. A series equals three or more items, by the way.

Madeline packed a single change of clothes, a few toiletries, food for her pet rat, and enough money to get her across the border.

Note: Placement of the comma before the “and” of the final item has been debated. Some grammar guides will tell you it’s appropriate. Others will tell you it isn’t. My editor recently took out all commas before the “and” in sentences like this. My gut feeling is that it’s a personal preference that won’t make or break your manuscript either way.

3. Use commas to set off interrupting phrases (also called appositives or non-essential/non-restrictive clauses, if you want to get fancy). The test is to see whether the interrupting information is essential to understanding the sentence. Can you drop it out and retain the central thought of the sentence? If the answer is yes, put a comma before and after the interrupting phrase. If the answer is no--if taking out the interrupting phrase will change the sentence significantly or render the sentence grammatically unsound--then you cannot use commas around it.

Sarah Smith, my best friend since first grade, turned out to be the biggest liar I ever met. (The fact that Sarah is the speaker’s best friend might be interesting info, but dropping out the phrase between the commas does not significantly change the fact that she turned out to be a liar.)

The girl who had been my best friend since first grade turned out to be a liar. (Aha! Here, the phrase “who had been my best friend since first grade” is essential to the sentence, because if we take it out, the sentence changes completely, to “The girl turned out to be a liar.” Which girl?? Here, commas may not be used, because every single word is essential to the meaning of the sentence).

4. Use commas before a coordinating conjunction (and, but, or, for, nor, so, yet) when joining two complete thoughts in one sentence:

I wanted to see an actual cowboy who lived in the west, yet I feared flying more than anything else in the world. (The groups of words on both sides of the comma could also function as stand-alone sentences. Therefore, put a comma before the conjunction).

Bryan checked his appearance in the mirror one last time, but he was certain that no one would recognize him in the beard and fake glasses. (Same case as above).

5. Use commas to set off place-names when talking about cities/states/countries. Note that you must place a comma after both the city AND the state/country in the sentence.

Johnny grew up in Dublin, Ireland, but he moved to the United States and settled in Chicago, Illinois, after his mother passed away.

Common Misuses of the Comma - Be Careful!

1. DO NOT use a comma before a coordinating conjunction if it does not separate two complete thoughts.

Dr. Johnson tightened his collar against the wind, and was convinced that the cold would kill him this time. (The second half of this sentence cannot stand by itself, so you cannot put a comma before the coordinating conjunction “and.”)

2. DO NOT use a comma to separate a subject from its verb.
The baseball player, hit a home run in the bottom of the ninth. (Can’t do it! No reason for it! Don’t even try!!)

3. DO NOT use a comma to join together two complete thoughts in a sentence without the proper conjunction between them.

The country road wound along the edge of the woods, no one dared to walk it alone after dark.

(The groups of words before and after the comma could each stand alone and make sense. Therefore, you CANNOT join them with only a comma. You must add a conjunction, or change the comma to a semi-colon--more on this in another WW blog--or simply place a period and make them two sentences.)

The country road wound along the edge of the woods, BUT no one dared to walk it alone after dark.

The country road wound along the edge of the woods. No one dared to walk it alone after dark.

Note: If you are author Joyce Carol Oates, consider all of the above null and void, and use the comma with abandon. If you are not JCO, your agent/editor/publisher will be much happier if you submit a manuscript that does its best to adhere to the above guidelines.

Hope this was helpful to you. Good luck!

Fun Things That Have Nothing To Do With Writing

Since I have a busy day ahead of me, and since I’m hard at work on tomorrow’s Writers’ Wednesday post (make sure to stop back in 24 hours and see what I’m blogging about), I’ll leave you with a couple of fun things instead of any reports on my writing life (or lack thereof, these days)...

You Are A Good Friend

You're always willing to listen Or lend a shoulder to cry on You're there through thick and thin Many people consider you their "best friend"!

What Kind of Friend Are You?

Aw, well, that's refreshing to know. Sometimes I get so wrapped up in my life I wonder...

A, B, C, D, E, F . . .


Play along now!

A - Age: Somewhere over 30 :)

B - Band listening to right now: Rascal Flatts

C - Career future: Best-selling author??!!

D - Dad's name: David

E - Easiest person to talk to: My sister

F - Favorite song: Couldn't begin to guess. I love music too much!

G - Gummy Bears or Gummy Worms: Bears. Anything that resembles fish bait weirds me out.

H - Hometown: Tiny dot on the map in the Lower Hudson Valley.

I - Instruments: I play a mean piano. Really.

J - Job: Teacher!!

K - Kids: Um...I like them when they go home to someone else...

L - Longest car ride ever: Drove cross-country one summer, so probably the stretch between Wyoming and Washington.

M - Mom's name: Marilyn

N - Number of people you slept with: Last night? Hubby and 2 cats.

P - Phobia[s]: Small spaces

Q - Quote: Anything by Shakespeare or Dr. Seuss.

R - Reason to smile: That I woke up healthy this AM with an awesome job to go to!

S - Song you sang last: "Breathing" by Lifehouse. I love that band!

T - Time you wake up: With or without an alarm? Today: 5:30. Typical.

U - Unknown fact about me: Keep reading my blog, and maybe you'll find out!

V - Vegetable you hate: Asparagus, interestingly.

W - Worst habit: Stressing over things I can't control.

X - X-rays you've had: I broke my wrist the summer I was 8.

Y - Yummy food: Chocolate. Any kind. In any recipe.

Z - Zodiac sign: The fiery Sagittarius!

Make sure to check back tomorrow for Writers' Wednesday!!

Reading Recs and Baby Pics

"When I look back, I am so impressed again with the life-giving power of literature. If I were a young person today, trying to gain a sense ofmyself in the world, I would do that again by reading, just as I did when I was young."
~ Maya Angelou

Hope you had a nice weekend! I have 2 reading recommendations for you this morning:

1. Tickle Fights and Barbecues, a short story by Marianne Arkins. It’s a quick, heart-warming read. Plus it’s only $1.50 - probably less than you spent on your coffee and bagel today! And for those of you who aren’t yet converts to the whole e-publishing industry, this story is a nice introduction. You can download and read it immediately (either on-screen or printed out), and it’s only 11 pages long. Give it a try--and leave her a review when you’ve finished it!

2. The T-Zero E-zine published by Writers’ Village University.. I’m featured under the “Recognitions” column in the March issue. Very nice write up (thanks, Vivian!), even though it mentions my publication with Virtual Tales which of course is no longer happening (my choice, in case you hadn’t heard, not theirs).

And for a totally different kind of entertainment, here’s a picture of me at 9 months old, loving every minute of my bath in the kitchen sink (yes, really!). We’re having a contest at school right now to see how many people you can correctly guess from their baby pics…it’s amazing how some people look exactly the same, and some have changed completely.

What do you think? Would you be able to tell this is me??

TGIF

Substitute "damn" every time you're inclined to write "very;" your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be.
~Mark Twain

Boy, am I glad to see Friday! It’s been an incredibly busy week, mostly because I took Monday off for traveling and thus came back to a desk piled high with work…

I’m headed to my local RWA chapter meeting this weekend, which will make for good discussion as always, and possibly a home and garden show as well (hubby wants to go…somehow with a foot of snow still on the ground it’s hard to think about that!).

Oh, and did I mention that I joined Absolute Write last week? They have great forums with some terrific members who actively post on a regular basis. It’s easy to spend an awful lot of time there ~ but do check it out if you have the chance.

I also registered my blog with Google Analytics, which tracks my site traffic. It’s interesting to see how often and from where people are stopping by, how long they’re spending, which pages they’re visiting, etc. And again, it’s too easy to spend more time than I should studying my stats instead of writing.

Writing. Oh yeah. I should do some of that this weekend, too. One Night in Memphis is about 1/3 done and needs some attention. And I’ll probably be working on promotional stuff as well.

Okay, I’m off...be back on Monday!

Happy Weekend!!

The Day After the Debut

"Writing became such a process of discovery that I couldn't wait to get to work in the morning: I wanted to know what I was going to say. "
~Sharon O'Brien

By all accounts, yesterday’s Writers’ Wednesday debut was a hit, so I will definitely be continuing it in the future. Thanks to all for the content ideas, too! And remember: if you’d like to write a post as a guest blogger, I’d love to have you! Just leave me a comment here, or email me through my website (there’s a link over there, on the sidebar). Don’t be shy: you have more expertise than you might think!

Good news from The Wild Rose Press: they’ve read my partial of Lost in Paradise and requested the full manuscript. So that’s exciting. Still, no matter how many times I’ve sent out fulls, it remains more than a little nerve-wracking to send your baby out into the big bad publishing world for a stranger to review.

Cross your fingers for me, and I’ll keep you posted!

Welcome to Writers' Wednesdays!!

Welcome to the debut of Writers’ Wednesdays!

Each Wednesday, on my blog, I’ll be posting a brief article (and I mean brief: 300-600 words) on a “How To” aspect of the writing (and publishing) process. I’ve discovered, through much trial and error over the last few years, that I’ve gained a lot of experience that other writers might find valuable before they struggle through it themselves.

If you have a topic you’d like to see addressed in one of the “How To” blogs, let me know! Or even better, if you’d like to write one of the Writers’ Wednesday posts, contact me to be a guest blogger. Spread the word to your friends and fellow writers, too.

Without further ado, here’s Writers' Wednesdays #1: How To Write a Novel

Visit any library or search engine, and you’ll turn up hundreds (maybe even thousands) of resources that will give your advice on how to write a novel. Some of my favorites include Stephen King’s On Writing and Bob Mayer’s The Novel Writer’s Toolkit.

Definitely do your research; there's no substitute for solid advice from published pros. But to give you an idea of what's involved, before you read an entire book (or bookshelf) of guides, here in mini version are my top 5 tips for beginning a novel and working your way through from start to finish. Stay tuned for additional Writers’ Wednesdays blogs on all the details…

1. Devise your storyline. In one sentence, state what your story will be about. (This is also called a logline – a general statement that summarizes your entire story.)
Examples:
An alliance of cowardly deer hunters searches for treasure in a dungeon.
Or
The bohemian nephew of a timid politician’s ex-wife has only 1 hour to live.
Note: This sentence should excite you; it should be the one thing that will remind you why you loved the idea, when get frustrated halfway through the novel.

2. Brainstorm the details. Who are your main characters? What is their conflict? What are they searching for in the story, and how will they be different at the end than they were in the beginning? What are their names? Where is the story set? A fictional or factual location? What is the black moment in the story, and how does the story end? Some people like to outline all of this. Some write from scene to scene. You need to figure out what works for you, in putting all these pieces together. But you do need these pieces.

3. Set a schedule and workable goals. This is the most critical piece. Set a deadline for yourself. Really. Too many people start out strong and then lose steam as the weeks and months go by. Pull out a calendar and decide, realistically, how many words you can write in a day. Not sure? Start with 500 and go from there. How many days can you write in a week? Total up your days in a month, allowing a little bit of time for the unforeseen, and set a goal for yourself every month (I will have 5000 words written, or I will have finished three chapters).

4. Write everyday. Taking into account the demands of your daily life, commit yourself to writing X amount of days each week. Then do it. Don’t make excuses. Don’t find something else to do. Don’t say you’re too tired. Sit down at the keyboard (or the pad or paper, or the microphone), and compose. It’s too easy to lose focus when you take time off.

5. Reward yourself. Writing is hard work! Give yourself some incentive when you reach a milestone: that first 2000 words, or the halfway point, or the end (definitely the end!). Chocolate is good. Or a shopping spree. Or a Starbucks nonfat latte. Or a bubble bath. Or...you get the idea.

There’s more, of course, but this will get you started. You can write a complete novel, if you really want to. You can!

Scenes from the Beach

"One cannot collect all the beautiful shells on the beach; one can collect only a few, and they are more beautiful if they are few."
~Anne Morrow Lindbergh

A view of the Florida Gulf Coast shoreline:

and my mom and I on the beach:

(It was pretty cool and windy, but still warmer than NY, that's for sure!!)

My Sunday-Monday Blog

"My parents didn't want to move to Florida, but they turned sixty, and that's the law."

~Jerry Seinfeld

OK, those of you who visit on a regular basis know that I usually take the weekends off from posting.

But today I had to write, because tomorrow I probably won't, because...

Guess why?

Guess where I'm sitting right now?

In sunny Florida, about 60 miles south of Tampa and 5 miles from the Gulf Coast.

Seriously.

I took the weekend to visit my parents, who are newly retired and wintering down here, and I'm flying back tomorrow morning. (I really, really, do not enjoy flying, but I haven't figured out any other way to cover 1000 miles in less than 3 hours.)

It's been a wonderful respite from the cold and gray that is New York winters, and I know how lucky I am to be able to hop on a plane and leave that behind for 3 days.

So here's an interesting question for you: if you could go anywhere in the world, for just 3 days, where would you go, and why??

Writers' Groups

Why I love writers’ groups:

1. They understand the meaning of query, synopsis, partial, black moment, hero’s journey, POV, H/H, WIP, and RWA.

2. They are brutally honest about why the scene in the middle of your story absolutely, 100%, does not have to be there. And they will pick you up when you’re finished mourning after deleting it.

3. They will bend over backwards to help you research a city/celebrity/disease/time period for your latest WIP.

4. They will meet you at Border’s on a Thursday evening and willingly give you feedback on your latest chapter even though it’s 6:00 and they could be at home sitting down to dinner or having a big ol’ glass of wine with their feet up.

5. They will celebrate with you at every milestone on your writing journey.

What do you appreciate most about your writing group/critique partners?

For Your Reading Pleasure...

"March, master of winds, bright minstrel and marshal of storms that enkindle the season they smite."
~Algernon C. Swinburne

Congratulations to the winner of my February Giveaway: Cynthia Borris!

Hope you’re all enjoying this first day of March (is it here already??)

For a little something different, I thought I’d post an excerpt from my WIP Lost in Paradise, which is in its umpteenth revision since being pulled from Virtual Tales. It’s also being read as a partial right now by The Wild Rose Press, so fingers crossed.

Here, the hero and heroine reunite after a fight…

“Ash?”
She’d almost made it to the stairs by the time his door swung open. Eddie stood on the other side, bare-chested and dozy-eyed. He wore a pair of cut-off sweats and nothing else.
She forgot how to breathe.
“What time is it?”
“I’m sorry.” The words came out in a rush. “I shouldn’t have--were you sleeping?”
He shook his head and ran one hand over his hair, standing it up on end. “Watching TV.” He paused for a moment, then pushed the door open all the way. “Want to come in?”
“Okay.”
The living room smelled of him, that complicated scent she associated with baseball games and late nights on the porch and winks in the bar as he sat and watched her count tips. Ash stopped near the recliner and looked around. The kitten, now a few pounds rounder in the belly, slept on a towel Eddie had tucked into a cardboard box.
“You ever give it a name?”
He closed the door and stepped beside her, breathing the words into her ear. “Call ‘im Tiny. Seems to like it.”
She smiled. “Fits him.”
He sat on the edge of the couch. “So--”
“I’m sorry,” she said again. Second time in less than five minutes, she thought. Why don’t I just apologize my way into tomorrow? But there didn’t seem to be any other words to fit the enormity of what she needed to say.
“Sit.” Eddie cocked his head at her. “Stop being so god-damned nervous and tell me what’s going on.”
“It’s complicated.” She worked her way toward him. “I’m not--”
“So, start with something small.” He leaned back as she edged onto the couch. “Start with--I don’t know. Why you decided to leave Boston.”
Ash laughed. “I wouldn’t call that something small.” That’s the biggest part of what I need to say, she thought. And the hardest.
He didn’t say anything after that, didn’t press, didn’t keep questioning. He just studied her with that intent gaze of his, until she felt sure that he had stripped off every last stitch of clothes she wore, skin too, and saw through to the heart that beat erratically under her skin.
One hand worked its way across the cushion, until it rested on his bare leg. “What happened the other night--”
“Was nice. Was good. Should happen a lot more.”
She let out a long breath. “Yeah.”
Eddie’s hand reached for hers, five fingers twining their way around her own. Ash let her gaze move across his chest, over the pale fuzz that spread there. Up to the tattoo on his triceps. Over to his square chin, that bobbed when he spoke too fast or got too excited. Down, just for an instant, to the waistband of the cut-offs that dipped below his navel. Then up, where blue eyes met hers and a mouth looked as though it was waiting for her to make up its mind.
“There’s so much I need to tell you.”
“Okay.” Eddie pulled her toward him, working his hand from hers, slipping it around her waist and drawing her across the pillows so that her curves melted into his.
“Eddie--” But there was nothing she wanted to say. Nothing she wanted to explain. A dizzying rush of desire came over her, so strong and so sudden that she felt as though all the air had been sucked out of the room.

Sex and the Story

"There are three possible parts to a date, of which at least two must be offered: entertainment, food, and affection. It is customary to begin a series of dates with a great deal of entertainment, a moderate amount of food, and the merest suggestion of affection. As the amount of affection increases, the entertainment can be reduced proportionately. When the affection is the entertainment, we no longer call it dating. Under no circumstances can the food be omitted. "
~Miss Manners' Guide to Excruciatingly Correct Behaviour

There was a great discussion on Romancing the Blog yesterday about all the sex in today’s romance novels, and the fact that readers can’t seem to find a romance that isn’t either filled with sex or--opposite end of the spectrum--a “sweet” story with a sugary hero and heroine who wait until marriage to do anything more than hold hands.

But most of the posts seemed to agree that publishers (and agents) are wary to sign anyone who doesn’t fit into one or the other. There is, it seems, an absence of the good old-fashioned contemporary love story, which focuses on the emotional relationship and not the bedroom. And surprisingly, that’s what a lot of readers are looking for.

This was refreshing to me, especially, because in my mind, that’s exactly what I write: contemporary love stories. Novels about men and women who meet and fall for each other and then have to deal with the messes that life throws in their way. I don’t write sex. It just doesn’t interest me within the pages of my novels. But I’m wondering how to market myself, both in the publishing world and to my friends and family. (I have quickly discovered that “romance novelist” translates to “porn writer” in most of their minds).

So what do you think? Take a look at the posts from yesterday, then come on back here and let me know.

And on this subject, I discovered a new author at Samhain who, unlike most of their authors, doesn’t write steamy/sensual/erotica.

Her name is Kate Johnson, and she writes romantic comedy. I knew I had to take a closer look when I read the disclaimer on her newest novel: Warning, this title contains guns, swearing, dark thoughts about cheerful people, incomprehensible Britishisms, and painful sarcasm.

I downloaded her short story “The Twelve Lies of Christmas” and will give you the low-down when I’m through…

P.S. - Last day to sign my guestbook and qualify for the February giveaway! What are you waiting for???

What's On The Tape??

That, of course, is the all-important question after last night's Prison Break episode. It was another good one, lots of conflict and tension and near-misses...but they also killed off another main character (or at least it appears they did. I'm still hoping he'll be alive next week).

Which leads me to wonder if the rumors are true: is this show near its end?

I suppose the Scofield brothers can't be on the run forever. And there are only so many times they can avoid either death or capture, what with clever FBI Agent Malone on their tails. Still, if this show does wrap, I'll miss it.

I continue to think the writing is tight and the characters well-developed. And I'm glad that, in these last few episodes, Michael and Sara have finally gotten together. ;)

Still, I always thought they should have spent more time breaking out of prison. That first season was filled with such great episodes and interesting character interactions. So in honor of the early days, here's a Fan Vid from Season 1. Enjoy.

Where Do You Find Your Ideas?

"If not for heart and imagination, the world of fiction would be a pretty seedy place. It might not even exist at all."

~Stephen King ("On Writing")

Where do you get your story ideas?

When I first started writing, I felt as though I had about 3 (yes, 3) good plots inside my head, and after I used them up, I would never be able to think of another interesting, original story.

Really.

I struggled with it. I’d jot down ideas only to realize the next day they were tired and old. Then thing started to change. I‘m not sure why, but occasionally (usually at those weird times, like in the shower or at 3 am or when I’m supposed to be grading papers) a crazy little sliver of an idea would spring up, and I’d grab the closest thing that resembled a piece of paper and write it down.

After a while I retyped them all into one computer file, which is where I still store new ideas. Last time I opened that file, I had about 10 or so. Not a lot, but enough. And finally, the finding of the ideas has become easier.

I get ideas from articles I read in the newspaper or tabloid headlines in the supermarket. I get ideas from songs and TV shows. I get ideas from watching people in Borders and Target. And I get ideas from talking to people. It’s great.

Last Friday, hubby and I went out with another couple we work with--great new bar for happy hour, great new restaurant for dinner. And we all told stories. The terrific thing is that our friends are about 20 years older than we are, and former hippies, so they have the best stories in the world. I’m serious. My mind was cataloging great characters and great situations all night long.

For example: they moved to a Idaho town (population 500: 498 cowboys and hunters, and our friends) right after they got married, since he was going to school out there. One day the woman, who’s a liberal NYC girl, activist, pacifist, and vegetarian, goes downstairs in her apartment complex to do the laundry, and there’s an entire gutted deer hanging there, in the laundry room.

How great a moment is that?! Can’t you just picture working that scene into a story?? Talk about multiple conflicts, and a terrific opportunity for character development, and a perfect way to suggest the setting of the town.

So I’m a little less worried these days that the Idea Well will run dry, that it’s a finite collection of plots and characters out there for me to work with. Now, I can’t wait to go to the mall, or the grocery store, or the gas station. Who knows where I’ll find my next hero or heroine?

What about you? Where do you find inspiration for your writing??

You Just Never Know...

"People die in front of us everyday. But I believe Meredith will survive this. I believe, I believe, I... I believe in the good. I believe that it's been a hell of a year and I believe that, in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary, that we will be okay. I believe a lot of things. I believe that... I believe that Denny is always with me... and I believe that if I eat a tub of butter and no one sees, that the calories don't count. And I believe that surgeons who prefer staples over stitches are just lazy. And I believe that you are a man that made a terrible mistake marrying Callie and I believe that because I'm your best friend I can tell you this and we can be okay. I believe that even though you made this mistake you will be okay. I believe we survive, George. I believe that believing we survive... is what makes us survive."
~from "Grey's Anatomy"


Update: I sent a query for the newly re-titled Lost in Paradise to The Wild Rose Press yesterday morning, and by the afternoon I had received a request for the partial. So that’s encouraging.

What was even nicer is that the editor remembered me (I had submitted One Night in Boston to her as well, back when I was querying a few places simultaneously). She congratulated me on the upcoming publication with Samhain and welcomed a look at my new work.

I sent off the partial…now we’ll wait and see!

Any Grey's Anatomy fans out there? What did you think of last night's episode? A tear-jerker, for sure, but I sort of felt manipulated....like, here's another week where Meredith whines about her "awful" life. This time we had to spend an entire hour watching her discover that, really, dating McDreamy and having good friends and a challenging career isn't the most terrible thing in the world. Does anyone else want to tell her to get over herself?

Best part of the whole show. by far: seeing Denny again, especially the moment when he and Izzie touch at the end. Magic.

Happy weekend!

Don't Let the Door Hit You on the Way Out...

"It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new. But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful. There is more security in the adventurous and exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is power."

~Alan Cohen

So I made the decision to terminate my publishing contract with Virtual Tales.

There were a few reasons, really, one of which was that, despite the fact that they don’t have many stories up for sale on their site (they’re relatively new), it was taking them *forever* to draft me a cover or send me my first round of edits. And believe me, I know how slow the publishing process can take, but I’ve been lucky enough to have some experience now with Samhain, and it’s just a completely different story.

I also want to market my story in more ways than just an e-serial, and I wouldn’t have been able to do that with the electronic rights tied up at VT. Honestly, when I first queried them, I didn’t think the story would develop as much as it did. I thought I’d end up with 30K words, tops. Now I’m at 55K and I love it, I want more, I want to see it in print.

The nice thing is that the publisher let me out of my contract without any problem and waived the 90-days notice as well, so I have all my rights back ASAP.

The funny thing is that it took him less than 8 hours to remove everything from the website: my bio, my promo page, my name under the authors’ listings. And we're talking an overnight wonder: I emailed him at 10:00 pm (my time; I think he's on the West Coast), and when I checked at 7:30 the next morning, it all was gone. Maybe if they’d moved that fast with everything else, I’d still be working with them!

Oh, well. I know it’s the right decision. But now I’m back to the beginning with marketing Paradise, USA--which I thinking of renaming Lost in Paradise, by the way. What do you think?

A Very Blah Day

I have nothing the least bit interesting to say today, other than to tell you that I’m struggling with a decision to terminate one of my e-pub contracts. It’s a long story, and I’ll fill you in sometime when I have the energy.

I watched all 2 hours of American Idol last night because I was too tired to do anything else (and I hate wasting time like that, but sometimes it happens)…and was anyone else bored? Tip to the guys, no matter how good-looking you are: don’t pick a love song and then come out so frozen by nerves that no one can hear you sing the lyrics.

(It’s fun being an armchair critic, isn’t it??)

Here's a meme for you...play along!

Hypotheticals: If you could bathe in a vat of any drink or food item, what would you choose? Chocolate, no question.

Anything Goes: What world-changing event would you like to take credit for? Women's suffrage. I think Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton are the bomb.

No-Brainers: What song do you keep hearing over and over again? For some reason, "Not Ready to Make Nice" by the Dixie Chicks.

Personals: What are you most proud of? Oh gosh, two things: my teaching career and the fact that I have amazing relationships with so many of my former students; and my writing career and the fact that it's progressing toward publication.

The End...Or Is It??

“Better to write for yourself and have no public, than to write for the public and have no self.”
- Cyril Connolly

Story endings: I find them incredibly difficult.

Some of my writing friends love them; they claim that the ending is sometimes the only thing that’s absolutely clear in the whole novel-writing process.

Not me.

I mean, sure, I have a general idea of where I want my characters to end up, but I stumble over the wording when I get there.

This weekend, for example, I was revising an ending for a novel that’s been about 4 years in the making. I finally got all the plot points worked out, but then I couldn’t decide if I wanted a flip, upbeat ending, or a more serious, God-I-can’t-believe-how-much-I-love-you ending. Either one would work with the tone of the novel, I think.

What do you think makes a good ending, especially in a love story? Do you like to see everything revealed and tied up neatly? Or is it okay if something’s left to the imagination?

Are there any stories you can think of where the ending stayed with you because it was so memorable, or so well done? Or, are there any stories where you felt supremely let down by the ending? (Yes, Marianne, I know: every Nicholas Sparks book. :) )

Oh, and in honor of last night’s new Prison Break episode, a yummy picture of the brothers to enjoy all day long:

My Schizophrenic Weekend

"Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read."
- Groucho Marx

Hubby and I love to travel, but we spent this Presidents’ Weekend at home this year, working around the house (him), writing (me), and doing our taxes (both).

And for some reason I decided I would tackle every writing project that’s on my four burners right now. Though I felt at times as though I had major mulitple personality disorder, I did get some good writing accomplished. Just to bring you up to date, here’s what on my plate right now:

Paradise, USA - This is the serial novella that’s been contracted by Virtual Tales. I’ve been emailing back and forth with my editor about the cover, which I think should be in the last stages of completion. I also worked on revising the last half of the story, since she only has the first half because that’s how this publisher works. I still love this story; I love the characters and I love what happens to them. I did run into a little snag near the HEA, only because I'm not happy with how the last few pages unfold, but I'll get it.

One Night in Boston - This is the full-length "24 hour romance" novel that’s been contracted by Samhain Publishing. I haven’t gotten the edits back from this editor, so the only thing I had to do was finalize the promotional blurb for her. That will probably be up on their website in a few weeks. Oh, you can also take a peek at my author's page, here.

One Night in Memphis - This is another full-length, “24 hour” romance that I’m really pushing to finish by June 1 to submit to Samhain. I would love another contract with them and am crossing my fingers that the 24-hour concept will catch on among readers. I’m about 1/3 of the way through this one, though I have an earlier draft (from a couple years ago) that I’m working with, so it’s not all brand new. Just most of it!

Summer’s Song - Finally, this is a single title romance that I wrote about 4 years ago. I shopped it briefly and had some interest from a couple of publishing houses, but no offers. I still really like this story and think I’ve figured out a way to make it stronger, so I spent some time this weekend working on the outline and the characters. I plan on shopping this one to traditional print houses and would love to have something complete by the fall.

So…that’s what I did this weekend! I feel good about my progress but, again, more than a little split between projects. I'm not really good at it, nor do I like it. I'd rather focus on one thing at a time. But that's not always possible.

What about you? If you're a writer, are you able to shift between projects? Or do you need to finish one before moving on to another? And if you're a reader, can you read multiple books at onc? Do you have a novel in the bedroom, one in the living room, and another in your bathroom? Do you have any problem picking up and moving from storyline to storyline?

One Last Love Story

"The best love is the kind that awakens the soul, that makes us reach for more, that plants the fire in our hearts and brings peace to our minds."

~from "The Notebook"

So with all this talk on my blog this week about romantic movies and love and Valentine’s Day, I can’t believe I forgot to mention The Notebook. This is probably the only story where I actually preferred the movie to Nicholas Sparks’ book.

Talk about true love! If you haven’t seen this one, I definitely recommend it. (It turned me into a huge Ryan Gosling fan, too).

And so here’s a little something for your viewing pleasure. Happy weekend!

Why I Run

"It doesn't matter how slow you go, as long as you do not stop."
~Lao-Tzu

Many of you probably know that I’m a runner. The definition of that varies day to day, from “person who jogs a few miles after school to clear her head” to “person who ate too many cookies over the weekend and needs to burn off some calories” to “person who is more than slightly insane to take on the elements on days when no one else is outside.”

This past weekend I fell into the third category. I ran a 5K (that’s 3.1 miles) with about 220 other insane people in temperatures that hovered around 20 but felt more like 5 with the wind chill. And as I headed up the last hill, lungs frozen and breath catching in my throat and legs feeling about one hundred pounds each, that familiar thought popped into my head: Why I am doing this?

Fortunately, that thought shows up quite a bit but never stays around long, because I know the answer.

I run because I always feel better when I finish. Maybe not always physically (though I’d say 80% of the time I do), but mentally and emotionally? Always. I know there’s a physiological explanation for it: the endorphins shoot off inside my brain like little drugs and give me some kind of high. But it still amazes me that the simple act of moving can change my mood 180 degrees.

It amazes me that when I cross the finish line of whatever race I’m running, whether I’m first in my age group or somewhere in the middle of the pack or near the end, I feel such a sense of accomplishment. It amazes me that I feel most beautiful when I am sweaty and flushed, with my hair stuck to my face and a t-shirt stuck to my back.

I wish more people could experience it. I hope, if you’re not a runner, you have something that revs you up, that chases away your blues, that inspires your creative juices, the way running does for me.

It’s so simple: put on a pair of running shoes and step outside. Yet it’s so complex: it changes your body, your mind, your spirit. Because if you can run ______ (fill in the blank here: to the mailbox, down the street, a mile, a 10K, a marathon), imagine what else you might do.

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

"You have to walk carefully in the beginning of love; the running across fields into your lover's arms can only come later when you're sure they won't laugh if you trip."

~Jonathan Carroll, "Outside the Dog Museum

Hey, everyone, I'm blogging today at Romancing the Blog...drop by and leave a comment!

Well, it finally arrived: the winter storm that's been blasting the rest of the country, and just in time to deliver a lovely Valentine's Day gift: a snow day from school for hubby and me! Now, if you're an educator (or even if you remember those blissful days from childhood when the radio crackled the school closings while you waited at the breakfast table with crossed fingers), you know the treat that early morning phone call brings.

And on a Wednesday!

And on Valentine's Day!

And two days before a holiday weekend!

Speaking of the world of education, one of my writing friends sent me a hilarious email yesterday, that I have to reprint here. Hope you'll get a kick out of it. I did.

And if you found your way here from RTB today, thanks for stopping by! Make sure to check out my website and sign my guestbook for a chance at the February giveaway (it involves Lindt chocolates... need I say more??)

Finally, have a WONDERFUL Valentine's Day, wherever you are and whatever you're doing. Cheers!!

NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND---The Football Version

1. All teams must make the state playoffs and all MUST win the championship. If a team does not win the championship, they will be on probation until they are the champions, and coaches will be held accountable. If after two years they have not won the championship their footballs and equipment will be taken away UNTIL they do win the championship.

2. All kids will be expected to have the same football skills at the same time even if they do not have the same conditions or opportunities to practice on their own. NO exceptions will be made for lack of interest in football, a desire to perform athletically, or genetic abilities or disabilities of themselves or their parents. ALL KIDS WILL PLAY FOOTBALL AT A PROFICIENT LEVEL!
3. Talented players will be asked to workout on their own, without instruction. This is because the coaches will be using all of their instructional time with the athletes who aren't interested in football, have limited athletic ability or whose parents don't like football.

4. Games will be played year round, but statistics will only be kept in the 4th, 8th, and 11th game. It will create a New Age of Sports where every school is expected to have the same level of talent and all teams will reach the same minimum goals. If no child gets ahead, then no child gets left behind.

Covers and Things

"Two souls and one thought, two hearts and one pulse."
~Halen

Yesterday I shared 9 “movies about love” that our local paper featured, but I forgot to mention which I’d seen and enjoyed. So here you go:

“Beaches” Saw it and wept. Wouldn’t watch it again.
“Citizen Kane”
“Driving Miss Daisy”
“Field of Dreams” Have seen it multiple times. Definitely a ++ recommendation for anyone who hasn’t seen it (that means you, Judy!)
“Harold and Maude”
“Lost in Translation” Keep meaning to rent this one…
“Mary Poppins” Of course! I knew all the words to all the songs, as a child.
“Pay It Forward” A good one, not a big box office draw but really touching. Sad ending, though,
“Rain Man” Another “of course!” Loved both Cruise and Hoffman in this one.

###

Yesterday I saw the “first attempt” of my cover for Paradise, USA (my editor’s wording, not mine). So I’m not really sure if that means I get input on it, or not. But let me tell you, it was so weird to see someone else’s conception of what my main characters look like!

Ash is perfect, just the way I imagined her. But Eddie? My dashing, drop dead gorgeous, sexy, to-die-for hero? So different than the guy who’s been inside my head for the last 5 years. Taller, and thinner, and with much longer hair. Long hair! Where did that come from? He’s got a great six-pack, though, and he’s looking at Ash with one hell of a smoldering gaze, so I can’t complain too much.

I did email my editor back with a couple of thoughts, but we’ll see if anything changes. From what I’ve heard, authors don’t get too much say on their novels’ artwork. I don’t really mind; it has the title and my name on the front: a first-time novelist’s dream come true. What more do I need?

Incidentally, do you let the cover art of a book influence your visualization of the characters, once you start reading? If there’s already a picture of the H/H done for you, do you stick to that artist’s conception? Or do you form your own instead?

A Good Weekend

"I get by with a little help from my friends."
~ John Lennon

So this past Saturday, I hopped into my little salt-covered car and drove about an hour to check out the closest RWA chapter. After getting lost twice, I finally arrived…and really enjoyed myself, overall.

I’ve been lucky enough to develop such good working relationships with online writing friends, that the idea of meeting and discussing and critiquing with people *in the flesh* seemed almost odd.

Not to worry. It was nice to be in a room with 8 other people who write romance and are at various stages in the publishing pipeline. Interesting discussion, honest feedback on ms. pages, and an easy camaraderie that comes from having a common element. I’m hoping this will be the beginning of a good year with this group.

###
In our local paper over the weekend was a list of movies to “warm your heart without romance.” ("Each of these stories is about true love, for sure, just not the cliché kind…")

So tell me: which of these have you seen and enjoyed? Which would you recommend to someone else, and which would you watch again?

“Beaches”
“Citizen Kane”
“Driving Miss Daisy”
“Field of Dreams”
“Harold and Maude”
“Lost in Translation”
“Mary Poppins”
“Pay It Forward”
“Rain Man”

TGIF

"True love comes quietly, without banners or flashing lights. If you hear bells, get your ears checked."
~Erich Segal

Wow! Grey’s Anatomy certainly handed us a cliff-hanger last night. A little bit of everything, too: drama, humor, romance, suspense (and what’s up with that near-catatonic blonde girl hanging around Meredith?) Was I the only person who couldn’t look straight at the face of the pregnant woman crushed under the pylon? Yikes.

So, I recently had to write up a promotional blurb for One Night in Boston, and when my editor sent it back with a few wording changes yesterday, I got a peek at my tentative e-pub release date: July of this year. Exciting! And the print version comes out 3 months after the online release. So it looks as though (fingers crossed) you might be able to put it on your Christmas list for 2007!

Any interesting plans for the next couple of days?? I’m just trying to stay warm--it’s been in the single digits all week. At least there’s very little snow on the ground, so when the deer come to feed in our front lawn (there were 4 last night), they actually look as though they’re finding something.

Happy Weekend!

The Writer's Life

“You must stay drunk on writing so reality cannot destroy you.”
~Ray Bradbury

I joined Writers Village University about 5 years ago, when I decided to take the plunge and see if writing was a hobby or something I really wanted to devote more time to (can you guess which I discovered?) And really, it’s been a great experience. I haven’t taken advantage of the classes they offered as much as I could have, but the writing groups I joined turned out to be invaluable in helping me grow as a writer. Sometimes I still marvel at the way you can become such good friends with people you’ve never seen or met in person.

Anyway, the other day one of the women who’s been in and out of one study group emailed me--she’s the columnist for WVU’s partner ezine, T-Zero, and she asked if she could interview me for an upcoming issue:

…All of us unpublished writers want to know how it feels to see our words in print and long to learn what it takes to live the writer’s life. Give us a taste of your achievement…

It was a surreal request, really, because sometimes I really don’t think of myself as someone that other writers would want to read about. The writer’s life, I’m finding, is not that much different after I signed contracts than before. The only difference is that I feel busier than ever! But I’m flattered all the same, and in thinking about her questions, I decided that this is what I would tell anyone who’s unpublished:

Be persistent, and believe in yourself. There are so many times on the lonely writing journey when it would be much easier to give up. Many times when you could spend an afternoon watching movies or working in the garden or curling up with a good book instead of struggling with your own. Many times, especially if you’re in the query pipeline, that you’d rather toss out all those rejection letters along with your stupid manuscript which is never going to be any good at all, and dive into a pint of ice cream for solace. Don’t.

Writing is hard work. It takes more time and self-discipline and dedication than you might ever imagine. But you can’t let the frustrating times get you down so low that you stop altogether. If you want to write, write. If you want to be published, learn everything you can about your target market and the business and the craft itself. Then come up with the best story you can think of, the one that makes you fall in love with the characters every time you think about it, and write it. Enlist the help of others: friends, family, fellow readers and writers, support groups. Revise your work until you can’t stand to look at the words anymore. Find new agents, new editors, new markets. But don’t give up.

Believe me, you never, ever know when you’ll have that one opportunity, when that single editor or agent will tell you they love your ideas and can’t wait to work with you. And when it happens, you’ll be over the moon.

I'm Cheating Today

"Of all God's creatures, there is only one that cannot be made slave of the leash. That one is the cat. If man could be crossed with the cat it would improve the man, but it would deteriorate the cat."
~ Mark Twain

Since I have a huge presentation at work today (tonight, actually), today's blog won't be about much of anything at all. I've been writing, yes, and doing some marketing and publicity, yes, but those updates will have to wait 'til another day.

In the meantime, for your viewing pleasure:

my cats, sunning themselves on the loveseat yesterday…

and a fun read that Marianne had up on her blog a few days ago (it's worth a rerun)...

FOR PET LOVERS -

To be posted VERY LOW on the refrigerator door - nose height.

Dear Dogs and Cats, The dishes with the paw print are yours and contain your food. The other dishes are mine and contain my food. Please note, placing a paw print in the middle of my plate and food does not stake a claim for it becoming your food and dish, nor do I find that aesthetically pleasing in the slightest.

The stairway was not designed by NASCAR and is not a racetrack. Beating me to the bottom is not the object. Tripping me doesn't help because I fall faster than you can run.

I cannot buy anything bigger than a king sized bed. I am very sorry about this. Do not think I will continue sleeping on the couch to ensure your comfort. Dogs and cats can actually curl up in a ball when they sleep. It is not necessary to sleep perpendicular to each other stretched out to the fullest extent possible. I also know that sticking tails straight out and having tongues hanging out the other end to maximize space is nothing but sarcasm.

For the last time, there is not a secret exit from the bathroom. If by some miracle I beat you there and manage to get the door shut, it is not necessary to claw, whine, meow, try to turn the knob or get your paw under the edge and try to pull the door open. I must exit through the same door I entered. Also, I have been using the bathroom for years -- canine or feline attendance is not required.

The proper order is kiss me, then go smell the other dog or cat's butt. I cannot stress this enough!

To pacify you, my dear pets, I have posted the following message on our front door:

To All Non-Pet Owners Who Visit & Like to Complain About Our Pets:

1. They live here. You don't.

2. If you don't want their hair on your clothes, stay off the furniture. (That's why they call it "fur"nature.)

3. I like my pets a lot better than I like most people.

4. To you, it's an animal. To me, he/she is an adopted son/daughter who is short, hairy, walks on all fours and doesn't speak clearly.

Remember: In many ways, dogs and cats are better than kids because they:

1. Eat less

2. Don't ask for money all the time

3. Are easier to train

4. Normally come when called

5. Never ask to drive the car

6. Don't hang out with drug-using friends

7. Don't smoke or drink

8. Don't have to buy the latest fashions

9. Don't want to wear your clothes

10. Don't need a "gazillion" dollars for college.

And finally,

11. If they get pregnant, you can sell their children.

Sex or the Story??

"If sex doesn't scare the cat, you're not doing it right."
(Anonymous)

Okay, I have to know: how many of you read romance for the sex? And how many for the story?

See, here’s the thing: I don’t write sex. I write a few scenes that might involve a kiss or two, a touch, some want, but I don’t delve into the bedroom scenes like I know a lot of romance authors do.

Why not? Well, I suppose it’s just not my M.O. I’m way more interested in the emotion of two characters getting together than the mechanics. I’ve read too many romance novels where the love, and the entire storyline, took a back seat to the scenes of “lust-driven pleasure” and “his quivering member” and “desire feathering up her spine.” And honestly, it’s a reason I resisted categorizing myself as a “romance author” for a long time.

I also have a hard time finding sex scenes that actually make me appreciate the moment and not cringe at the writing, so I’m less than inspired to try it myself. It seems as though clichés run rampant in romance novels, [see above] and when I’m reading them, I just want them to be over, so we can get back to the plot moving forward and some interesting dialogue.

I like happy endings. I like watching characters struggle through conflict to be together. I like desire that strings you along. I like painful separation and exhilarating reunion. And while, sure, sex can play a satisfying part of the coming together (no pun ended), I’m just not interested in spending time writing about it. But I think that puts me in the minority of romance writers.

So back to my original question: do you read romance for the sex, or for the story? Or both?

Football Heroes and Defensive Driving

When I went to Catholic high school in Philadelphia, we just had one coach for football and basketball. He took all of us who turned out and had us run through a forest. The ones who ran into the trees were on the football team.
~George Raveling

Well, I was happy to see the Colts win the Super Bowl last night and Peyton Manning finally win his first championship. I remember him from his days playing at Tennessee, and I did always like him. Plus he's a cutie, and he and his brother rolled up their sleeves and helped out New Orlean a lot after Hurricane Katrina last year.


Hey, how many romance novels do you think feature pro atheletes as the hero? I remember this discussion on a blog somewhere a while back, and I think the answer was close to zero, for a variety of reasons: they have no time, they're too in love with themselves, they aren't the "typical" romantic hero in our society. What do you think?

###########

OK, so somehow I let my husband convince me to take a defensive driving class, the next two Monday nights. Yeah, yeah, I know it will lower our car insurance. But the last thing I want to do on a Monday night in February is spend 3½ hours watching videos of car crashes and listening to someone talk about the correct way to pass and merge.

Okay, maybe I shouldn’t be so irritated about it. It’s a good thing, right? Everyone should probably be mandated to take the course, on a regular basis. ‘Cause I’m pretty sure those women driving their SUVs down the road while on their cell phones and checking on their kids in the back seat and weaving in and out of lanes at 85 miles an hour could use a reminder about safe driving.

But Monday night?? Now I have to miss Prison Break (and you *know* how much that pains me). I'll be sitting there listening to strategies for safe merging and dreaming of Wentworth Miller heating up the screen with his doctor love. Darn it.

Winter Weather (or not)

"There are only two seasons: winter and baseball."

~Bill Veeck

Hey all, if you didn’t get a chance to see it, my article on character development is up at WOW. I love what they did with the graphics and the pics ,too. Very cute. Got an email from the editor yesterday afternoon telling me one of their regular writers saw it and mine was the first article she read in the Feb. issue. She loved it!

In other news, all the teachers and students around here spent yesterday hoping for snow to fall and cancel school today ( it didn‘t). See, with the crazy warm temperatures we’ve had so far this season, we haven’t had a single school closing.

Now let me digress: I grew up in central NYS, smack in the middle of the lake effect snow belt. Then I spent 6 years in college and graduate school living in 2 cities on the Great Lakes. More lake effect snow. So when you talk about winter to me, it means temps below zero and wind chill WAY below zero. It means shoveling snow from November to March and having at least 2 ice scrapers and 3 extra pair of gloves in the car at all times. It means learning to take your driver’s test when you’re 16 on snow-covered roads, and mastering the art of the controlled skid, because otherwise you’ll have to wait months to get your license. It means the kind of cold where, when you breathe in, the inside of your nose crinkles up.

It does not mean, as people in my newly adopted hometown think, 3 inches of snow that falls in one night. It does not mean temperatures that flirt with zero overnight and then inch their way up to 30 during the day. It does not mean school closings for 2 days straight because the towns can’t manage to plow the roads.

When I was growing up, one of the most familiar sounds in the wee hours of the morning was the plow going down the street, scraping it clear and taking out people’s mailboxes on the way (we had to get a new one every spring). School never closed. Ever. Are you kidding? We would have missed ¾ of the days from December to February.

But here? We get an average of 5 snow days each year. And don’t even get me started on 2-hour delays. 6 a year? 10? No limit, apparently. I’d never even heard of the concept of the 2-hour school delay until I moved here. I guess it allows the plow drivers to sleep in until 5 or so and get the roads clear by 9, so that the buses can lumber on to school and collect their state aid for the day.

One time a couple of years ago (this is the best), every school in the county closed because of the threat of a storm. Guess what? Not a single flake fell.

Sorry for the tirade, but sometimes I just have to laugh. OK, have at it: what does “winter” mean to you??

Happy Weekend!

P.S. - If you haven’t signed my guestbook yet, what are you waiting for???

Today's the Day!

“Do everything with so much love in your heart that you would never want to do it any other way.”
~Yogi Desai

Today’s the day! My article about character building is supposed to be up at WOW. Of course, I jumped out of bed extra early this AM to see, and the February issue hasn’t been posted yet, but maybe by the time you read this, it will be. So check for me, OK?

Meanwhile, Marianne has a fun meme going on at her place, so drop by there, too!

Sign My Guestbook!

“Real love stories never have endings.”
~ Richard Bach

My goodie bag arrived yesterday from WOW, for earning an honorable mention in their Fall Flash Fiction contest. Too cute!




Update to yesterday's news about my guestbook:

Anyone who signs it during the month of February (and yes, this means those of you who lurk out there too) will be automatically entered into a drawing for a giveaway of freebies which will include…

Lindt chocolates (come on, it’s the month of Valentine’s Day…what did you think?)
AND
James Patterson’s best-selling novel Honeymoon
AND
A $5.00 gift certificate to Virtual Tales, so when my serial novel Paradise USA is released, you’ll be able to get about half the installments for free!

Now isn’t that worth stopping by and leaving me a comment? Spread the word to your friends and fellow bloggers, too.

And have a great day!

What Are You Up To?

“Remind yourself that the book you’re bogged down in was once bright and sparkling.”
(JoAnn Ross)

Well, Prison Break was only so-so last night. [Still, it gives me an excuse to post pics of Wentworth Miller on my blog :) ] Looks like, from the previews, that next week’s episode will be action-packed, though. Good thing!




I’m adding a guestbook to my website (and the link is here, too, on my sidebar), with a little incentive: anyone who signs it during the month of February will qualify for a freebie giveaway (and given that February is Valentine’s Day month, you can pretty much guarantee that at least part of the giveaway will have something to do with chocolate). So scurry on over there, and I’ll count anyone who signs it today and tomorrow in the February pool too. Giveaway to be posted later this week, so stay tuned!

I’m loving my interaction with Samhain Publishing, by the way. They have a terrific editorial team, along with several author chat groups on Yahoo and wonderful resources posted in the files there as well. I’ll post some periodically to share.

How about you? How’s your writing going? Anything new? Digging out the old to dust off and revise? I was skimming my latest Romance Writers Report, which arrived yesterday, and came across an author interview in which the author warned against not finishing manuscripts just because they get hard somewhere in the middle. Unfinished manuscripts will always be unpublished manuscripts, or something like that.

Well said! Now tell me what writing project you’re working on these days…

So How Old Is Old, Really?

There is a place you can touch a woman that will drive her crazy. Her heart.
~ Melanie Griffith, Milk Money

Is there a moment, somewhere in your past, that you look back on once in a while? Is there a day you yearn for? Is there an hour you’d capture, pin down, try to do again? Do you remember what it was like to look on the person you’d fall in love with someday and be left breathless with that desire of first glance? Do you recall the power in being a child, on the young side of twenty, looking forward and holding tight and leaping without knowing what was waiting for you but wanting, more than anything, to do it all with the person beside you?

Sometimes I think that’s why we read romance--and why we write it. To remember those awesome, and sometimes awful, sweeping emotions that knock us over. That exhaust us. That exhilarate us. It is amazing to me how the details of everyday life, how jobs and families--as wonderful as they are--can carry us so far away from the magic falling in love.

With the high school quarterback. With the gorgeous rock star. With the boy next door. With our first true love. With our second one. With our first sex. With the bad boy. With the good one. With the one who’ll eventually get down on one knee and ask us to stay.

With ourselves.

###
Now that my contracts are in with Samhain, I have all this work to do: put together a promotional blurb, choose an an excerpt, write up tips and requests for my cover art, send a bio to their site for my author’s page. It’s still all a little surreal to me. Who knew that having a manuscript accepted was just the teeniest bit of the iceberg? It’s exciting but overwhelming too.

###
A funny story from work: last week my high school seniors read the short story “Miss Brill” by Katherine Mansfield. It’s about an elderly woman who goes to the park each Sunday to people-watch, knowing she will be missed if she doesn’t show up, only to be made fun of by a young couple in love.

I asked my class how old they thought the main character was (she’s probably 70+ or so). One girl raised her hand and said, “Older?”

I said, “How old is older?”

She thought for a minute, and then, in all seriousness, looked up at me and answered, “Thirty?”

Oh. God.

TGIF

“A kiss is a lovely trick designed by nature to stop speech when words become superfluous“.
~ Ingrid Bergman

Just received the proof of my article that’s appearing in the WOW February issue and am really happy with the way it turned out. It debuts next week…keep an eye out for it!

And, because my brain is sort of shot by now, a Friday Meme to end the week:

My Muse
January 26, 2007

1. What inspires you?
Mmm... a good book, a movie, a run, a song, a shower, a dream. Yeah. I get inspiration from pretty much anywhere.

2. What blocks your creativity?
Too much on my plate at work. Darn that day job, anyway!

3. Do you do anything special to get your creative juices flowing?
Actually, not really. Usually discipline works the best: telling myself to sit down and write for X amount of time.

4. What time of day do you feel most inspired?
Well, if I had time, I'd write in the AM, since I'm a morning person. But (see day job above) since I can't drag myself out of bed before 5:30, that pretty much leaves any other time in the day to steal a few minutes and tell myself to feel inspired.

5. How do you like to express your creative energy?
Um...writing...of course. OK, I play the piano, too.

Happy Weekend!

To Market, To Market

I would rather have had
One breath of her hair,
One kiss from her mouth,
One touch of her hand,
Than eternity without it. One!

~ from the movie “City of Angels”

OK, be honest: how much of your writing time ends up devoted to other things?
And I don’t mean the time during the day when you’re working or cooking dinner or running errands or spending time with family.

I mean the time you set aside to sit down at your computer, determined to write the next 1000 words or whatever goal you’ve set for yourself that day…

And you end up surfing the Internet/blog-hopping/playing games/checking out fave sale sites/planning your next vacation/emailing your friends from college that you haven’t heard from in umpteen months??

I haven’t written anything new in 5 days. Not good. It’s not that I don’t want to; it’s just that I seem to squander all my time in front of the computer doing other things. I’ve decided it is not at all good to be perennially hooked to the Web. In fact, maybe that should be my solution: writing on my laptop instead, which isn’t wireless and doesn’t do much but word process.

In other news, I just ordered the book 1001 Ways to Market Your Books and can’t wait to start going through it and getting some ideas. It’s a little more than slightly intimidating to search “romance writers” online and see the hundreds--wait, make that thousands--of hits that come up. How on earth does anyone become close to a best-seller, with all the prolific authors out there?

Hump Day

“Love doesn't make the world go round. Love is what makes the ride worthwhile."
~ Franklin P. Jones

Does anyone remember when Wednesday used to be called "hump day"? Or maybe it still is, and I just haven't heard the term in a couple of decades. My mom always called it this, when I was a kid. (Am I dating myself??) But it feels like it fits today, like if I can just get up and over it, the weekend and some time to relax might actually be in sight from the other side.

I added a fun little poll on my sidebar, so make sure to check it out and vote for your favorite romantic movie! I know, there’s a finite number of choices listed there, so if your fave isn’t one of them, make sure you leave a comment and let me know what it is! One that I just recently saw and enjoyed (more than I thought I might) was The Lake House, with Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock. The time travel/futuristic element is a little hard to adjust to at first, but it’s a great story about finding your true love--and waiting for him or her--even with tremendous obstacles in the way.

On another note, I really can’t say enough about my positive experience working with the Editors at WOW on my article that’s coming out in their February issue. If you get a chance to interact with them in any way, whether it’s offering an article or entering a contest or just checking out their many writing links, definitely do so. Angela, the editor I worked with, is super kind and professional and 100% committed to putting together a really resourceful ezine.

Time to tackle some more revisions…

An Almost-Published Author

One advantage of marriage it seems to me is that when you fall out of love with him or he falls out of love with you it keeps you together until maybe you fall in again.
~ Judith Viorst


A rockin' good episode of Prison Break last night...that is, as one of my college friends used to say about "ER", the fastest hour on television. Great writing, great characters (especially Robert Knepper playing the uber-evil T-Bag), great twists and turns. Only thing missing was a reunion with Michael and Sarah (c'mon, it's the romantic in me--you know I want the love story too!).

Yesterday Marianne asked me how the life of an almost-published author was going. Here's the answer:

Weird.

First I have to get past that "almost-published" idea. I mean, I suppose in the back of my mind I always thought I'd like to be published someday (who wouldn't?!), but for it to be on the horizon, taking shape? That's a different animal altogether.

And because I am negotiating these weird waters for the first time, obviously every step is new. I'm waiting on the edits for Paradise (they're thinking late Feb. release) and to get my contract back from Samhain so that process can start going forward too.

Meanwhile, I haven't written anything new in 3 days. Amazing how even a little time away can get me out of the rhythm. So today I have to strap myself to the keyboard and WRITE!

Counting the Hours 'Til Prison Break

The hottest love has the coldest end.
~ Socrates

Ooh, I’m so excited: Prison Break is back on with a brand new episode tonight!!!!

Not only do I like watching yummy Wentworth Miller as the intelligent and incredibly sexy escaped felon Michael Scofield, but the show’s overall writing, and the character development of all these bad guys, is not to be missed.




C’mon, check it out if you’re not already a fan. You know you want to…

In other news, it looks as though my article “Character Trouble? Try Man’s Best Friend” will be in the WOW Freelancer’s Corner on February 1st. Mark your calendars, and I’ll keep you posted!

Falling in Love Again

“Savor each breath and each blessing. Remember the time you laughed so hard, jumped so high, held so tight. Remember the hour when you watched the scarlet sky fold to night. Remember the holy moment when you touched the tiny fingers of birth. Miracles are not to be asked for. They are to be witnessed, discovered, and praised, for they are happening, all the time.”
~Mike Levine

Last week I wrote about a novel I was pulling out to revise, another 24-hour novel that I thought had potential for Samhain.

And I was bored by it. The characters had no oomph, no flavor, and the plot fell flat. Ugh.

Guess what? I like it again. I re-outlined a major section and changed up the ending and a driving force of conflict. Then yesterday I spent a few hours writing like mad, and it was one of those times when the characters worked and the dialogue worked and I liked where it was heading.

It’s amazing how sometimes you can tweak things and fall in love with your writing and your story ideas all over again.

From Marianne's blog:
A meme from Booking Through Thursday:
Grab the book closest to you.
Open to page 123, look down to the 5th sentence.
Post the text of the next 3 sentences on your blog.
Include the title and the author's name.

Hmm...OK...

From Paradise, USA:
Ash was asking him something. Eddie fought back the fog of anger and tried to focus. “Sorry. What?”

Not too bad, I guess.

From One Night in Boston:
Maggie stood in the middle of the dance floor and fought for stillness she couldn’t find. This isn’t happening to me. It can’t be.

Decent (notice the repeated use of "fought." Hmm)

And from One Night in Memphis, the WIP I'm currently revising:
Resentment seeped into her brain. She hadn’t wanted this. She had avoided any connection with everyone here tonight.

A good exercise. Try it.

Happy weekend!

The Day The Words Went Away

“…we are part of one another--laughing, loving, losing each other in the endless universe of fire and ice and darkness and finding each other again, a union of souls and stardust. The wonder is not that we die, but that we ever were.”
~Mike Levine

Our community suffered a great loss over the weekend: the editor of our local paper died at the age of 54.

Too young!

He was a great champion of the community. He was the kind of guy you felt as though you knew personally. And he was a brilliant writer. Readers would clamor for his columns to be re-run, especially the one about giving thanks at the holidays & the one about watching children grow up as you say goodbye on the first day of school. It ran every September, the latter one.

He left, a few years ago, to take a bigger position at a NYC paper. Within 5 years, he had returned. He missed the small town feel, he said. And the community embraced him for it.

And the saddest thing for me, really, is that I'll never read another column by this witty wordmaster. Makes you realize how much the written word can get inside and affect people you never even meet in person.

Finding New Words

“Of course I hang on tight, she said. You can’t believe the kind of stuff that happens when you let go.”

Anyone watch American Idol last night? I watched the first 3 seasons devotedly, but the last 2 I sort of lost interest. It’s been interesting to watch talents like Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood make it big, though, and you wonder how many other really talented singers there are who never get discovered.

Or how many really talented writers there are who never get published…

I was working on a new (well, a serious revision of an old) 24-hour novel yesterday and BAM! This idea for a completely new story leaped into my mind like it was about to take up residence for the long haul.

I brainstormed like crazy for about an hour and churned out an outline that I really like. The I reluctantly added it to the file of “Story Ideas” while I returned to the one I was actually working on to begin with.

Do you ever do that? Find yourself torn between ideas?

Side note: I’m reading The Memory Keeper’s Daughter by Kim Edwards right now, quite an interesting story about a doctor who delivers his own twins (this is 1964) and when the daughter turns out to have Down’s Syndrome, sends her away with the nurse and tells his wife she died at birth. The nurse, rather than give the baby to an institution, leaves town and adopts her. And that’s as far as I’ve gotten.

I like the author’s writing, and I think the story and the characters have a lot of potential. The one thing that’s bugging me right now? Every other chapter, she refers to a baby’s (or even a small child’s) hands as “stars” or “starfish.” Well, yeah, it’s a good image, but it’s getting overdone.

Ever notice writers who do that? Use the same mannerisms or comparisons or phrases in the same book or from book to book? I haven’t decided if it’s an author’s mark, making it sort-of OK, or the inability (or lack of desire) to think up a new turn of phrase. Ah, well.

Conflict

"'Anyone can slay a dragon,' he told me, 'but try waking up every morning & loving the world all over again. That's what takes a real hero.'"

~Brian Andreas

Only time for a quick blog today, as I’m off to school after a 3-day weekend. The weather says the storm that hit the Midwest is heading this way, but it’s not here yet…

Conflict.

Why do I have such a hard time creating it in my writing? I noticed, over the weekend, that 3 of the novels I’m currently working on end up with the hero and heroine having their Black Moment in (or just about to enter) a hospital. As soon as I realized that, I changed the plot of one of them entirely. But why is that? Why do I equate conflict with pain and injury and possible death? I suppose that is one way of creating a desperate, tense climax. But it’s not very creative, I’m afraid.

I have another writing friend who falls back on a natural disaster--storm, tornado, flood--to create her Black Moment. The third novel she wrote with this M.O, she finally took a second look and realized she should use something else.

Do you find yourself relying on the same techniques to up the conflict in your writing? And if not, how do you avoid it?

Making a Difference

“This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy…Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.”
~Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.






If you didn’t see Al Gore’s documentary “An Inconvenient Truth” (and I didn’t, but wanted to), you can go to this website and get a free DVD: SHARE THE TRUTH






I do believe we have an obligation to be careful consumers while we’re here on this earth, both of natural resources and material items and intangible ideals, and as much as possible strive to make it a place where our children will be cherished and safe in decades to come…

You've Experienced 88% of Life

You have an amazing amount of life experience. In fact, you've seen and done more than most people. So congratulate yourself on what you've done so far. The future is only going to be more of the same!

How Much Life Experience Do You Have?

Hmm...so I guess in 2007 I should work on experiencding the other 12%, whatever that is...

Got my contracts from Samhain Publishing this weekend, signed and popped them in the mail. Exciting!

Am currently working on a writing-craft article about using animals to show character development, and the editor at WOW-Women on Writing is interested on publishing it in their March issue. She’s been terrific at email correspondence, sending these very long and detailed letters about her thoughts & suggestions. My impression is that WOW is a brand new ezine trying hard to make it, and, from the looks of some of the author-agent-editor interviews they’ve had, and the level of activity with their contests and links and columns, they’re doing pretty well so far.

Today? I'm enjoying a day off from work and revising some old stuff to get it newly ready for submission in the coming months.

Oh! And I ran a 5K yesterday (that’s 3.1 miles…the .1 is very important) in 26:34, which is pretty good for an old lady like me, better than I had hoped for.

What about you? Doing anything interesting today?

Vote!

The sweetest joy, the wildest woe is love.
~ Pearl Bailey

OK, go vote in the Preditors & Editors 2006 Reader’s Poll…

and make sure to cast one for Marianne’s short story (romance), “Now That We’ve Found You” and either Virtual Tales or Samhain Publishing in the E-book Publisher Category (I have to promote both my publishers here, so take your pick. Samhain is currently running 1st in the results, which makes me feel good…)

I finished Paradise! Really and truly, it’s finished. OK, well, it’s not entirely finished. But all 30 chapters are done, and only the last 15 have to be left to simmer for a few days until I go back over them one more time. I’m not entirely happy with the last line(s), so that needs a little work. But it’s about 55K words, which is longer than I anticipated.

So…here’s hoping that it will be available on Virtual Tales sometime soon…

Have a great weekend! Now go and vote!