Ssssssurprise!

I like surprises, but I don’t. I like to be surprised, but if I know one is coming, the anticipation eats at me. For instance, my husband told me a few days ago that we have plans for tonight.

“Oh? What are we going to do?” I raised my right eyebrow.

“It’s a surprise,” he said, a grin on his face. “That’s all I’m telling you.”

Ugh! Until now, I blocked this day out of my mind so I didn’t drive myself insane trying to figure out what the surprise could be. However, now that the day has come, I can’t stop wondering. And that’s a problem. Once I start to wonder, I obsess, and go through every possible scenario until I figure out what he has planned. I’ve ruined many good surprises this way. Darn me!

Maybe if I blog about this subject, I can relax a bit??? We’ll see.

What about you? How do you feel about surprises?

What Are the Odds?

There’s always a possibility of running into wildlife when you’re on a hiking trail, but what 26 year old Ashley Swendsen experienced Thursday morning was more than she’d ever imagined.

Five months pregnant, Swendsen walked on a hiking trail near Colorado Springs when she noticed a black bear following ten feet behind her. She thought the bear was more curious than malice, but didn’t take any chances. She ran, scrambling up an embankment, and was hit by a slow-moving car. Luckily, she and her unborn child were unharmed. Still… What are the odds? You can make this stuff up!

Do you have any strange “what are the odds” type story you’d like to share? I’d love to hear it.

Adam... Adam... Adam... Ahhh...

American Idol is on tonight. I’m seriously following several of the contestants, but Adam Lambert had me at “hello”. What’s funny about this is that never in my life have I been even remotely attracted to a goth before. But Adam’s an exception. Man, he’s hot. Shhh… Don’t tell my husband I told you so.

Have you seen Adam perform? He has “chops” as the judges would say. It really doesn’t matter what he sings, he does it amazingly well. However, when he belts those high notes… I get goose bumps.

We downloaded his songs from iTunes, but were disappointed because a couple of them were studio versions and not the actual performance. What’s the deal with that? Those songs didn’t have near the power of the live shows and that’s what hooked us. Oh, well. At least we have a few of the shows recorded on our DVR.

Do you follow the show? Who’s your favorite and why?

Domain Name Registration: How Hard Can That Be?

Apparently, the “in” thing is to have a website, not just a blog, but an actual website. Do I have one? No, not yet. It’s not that I don’t want to have a website. I do. I might even be able to come up with something to put on this website. However, I’m a little tech-challenged and have run into a few bumps that have scared me into procrastination.

Since I’m not yet published, I don’t feel I have to rush out and put up a website. After all, I do have a blog. However, I thought it might be a good idea to reserve the name I’d like by registering it as a domain name and worry about finding a web host later. Yeah, like that’s so easy. It’s not just a matter of paying the registration fee and waiting a year to renew it. There’s so much more involved. Certain places register the name under their own and then “lend” it to you. The problem with that is if you decide you don’t want to go with that company as a host for your website, they may not allow you to transfer that name. Nice, eh?

I’ve also read that you should get a post office box and a fake phone number because some web hosts give out that info and you become bombarded with spam and telemarketing calls.

So, I’m reaching out to you. What can you tell me about registering a domain name and web hosting? Did you design your own site? What program did you use? If you hired someone, who is it and are you happy with them? Is there anything you can think of that I should know before I register my domain name?

My Turn

Yesterday, many of you mentioned your brand. Now, it’s my turn to share. When I first started writing novels, I worked on a YA romance series. I’d heard you need to write at least two books in a series before submitting to anyone so you can prove you’re not a “one-book-wonder”. I finished 1 ½ books of the series before I switched to something else. Those books were written during the years I taught grades 7 and 8. When I quit teaching and became a stay-at-home mom, I no longer felt I was in the YA groove. That’s when I decided to write what I read: romantic suspense.

I wrote two RS novels (first drafts) and plotted out several others. Unfortunately, I had compiled a combination of paranormal, light, and dark romantic suspense. I didn’t see a problem with this because they’re all romantic suspense, right? Not exactly. Apparently, editors and agents prefer you to select ONE of these and stick to it, at least for a little while.

How was I going to decide between all three when I loved them equally?

I turned on my computer and looked over my plot outlines only to discover the majority of the stories were light romantic suspense. Who knew? I was SURE most of my ideas were dark. Well, that solved that. I’m now reworking one of my light RS manuscripts because that’s my brand.

How did you discover your brand?

Branding

Yesterday, I talked about readers’ expectations. What can cause a reader to expect a certain tone or outcome from YOUR writing and something utterly different from someone else’s? It’s a little thing called branding. But what is branding and how does it work? Here are two examples:

1) Let’s say Judy strolls down the romance aisle in her favorite Barnes and Noble. She happens to come across your book. She’s never heard of you before, but feels the back cover blurb was interesting enough to take a risk and buy the novel. What’s Judy’s expectation? That your book will follow the same “formula” as other romance novels she’s read and loved. She wants the hero and heroine to meet fairly early in the story, but that something will keep them apart. By the end, they will conquer that conflict and live happily ever after.

Judy’s expectation: ROMANCE. Why? Because your book was placed on the shelf with other romance novels and most likely had the word romance written on its spine.


2) Michelle has bought every book you’ve written thus far and has been excitedly awaiting your next masterpiece to hit the bookstores. When that finally happens, she rushes to the “New Arrivals” shelves and grabs the book without reading the back cover. She loves your work and KNOWS this novel will be as great or better than the last.

Michelle’s expectation: CONSITENCY. What do you think would happen to Michelle’s expectations if she was accustomed to your romantic stories only to discover your new novel was about flying monkeys and how they escaped from a lab on Mars?

Branding has a lot to do with your readers’ expectations. They associate your name to a certain type of writing including the style, tone, and genre you write. This is why agents and editors will tell you it’s dangerous to write a little bit of this and a little bit of that. They recommend you stick to one genre for example and build a following. Does this mean you will forever be writing romances when there’s a mystery novel brewing in the depths of your core? No, but it does mean you have to be smart about how and when you present this new genre to your readers. Some authors, like Nora Roberts, have chosen to use a pseudonym so their readers know what to expect when they pick up the book. Nora Roberts = Romance. J.D. Robb = “In Death” series. Other authors have kept their name and tried to please both their readers and themselves by releasing one novel in their original genre and another in the new genre the same year. This is a little riskier and can alienate some of their followers, but certain authors are successful with this system.

Have you thought about branding? If you’re not published, now’s the time to decide what your brand will be. So, what IS your brand?

Expectations

When writing, have you ever considered your readers’ expectations? If you haven’t, you might want to think twice. Lately, I watched a movie that really disappointed me: “Trial by Fire” aka “Smoke Jumpers” with Brooke Burns playing the main character. When I started watching this movie, I was hooked because of the sexual tension between firefighters Kristen and Ray. The fire burning between them was as hot as any inferno they’d fought in the line of duty. However, when the external conflict was resolved, I expected there to be an extra clip showing these two characters could now be together… or they couldn’t because of their working relationship. Yet, NOTHING was mentioned at all. The last we were shown of their potential love interest was when they went on a “date”. Then, a fire interrupted them, they both took the call, the fire was stopped, and that was that. Talk about misleading and bad writing. I’m not sure if the DVD version “Smoke Jumpers” ended this way. I saw “Trial by Fire” on TV and that’s how it played out. My expectation was for them to get together. Okay, so I’m a sap. That’s why I write romantic suspense novels instead of thrillers.

My point is the writer didn’t take my expectations into consideration. Why put any sexual tension into the script if the writer wasn’t planning on following through with the romance? There’s the possibility the script was cut short because of a time constraint, but then the scenes with sexual build-up should’ve been cut or changed.

Think about this example when you’re writing. Who is your audience? What will your readers expect from YOUR writing?

My First Award

Lady Glamis from The Innocent Flower awarded me The Lemonade Stand Award for gratitude and/or attitude. Yay! My first blog award. I'm so proud. Thanks, Lady Glamis. In return, I shall award 10 of my followers with this wonderful prize. You're supposed to follow these rules if I nominate you.

1. Post the logo on your blog

2. Nominate 10 blogs with great gratitude/attitude
3. List and link your nominees

4. Alert them of their nomination on their blog

My nominees for The Lemonade Stand Award are (in no particular order):

1. Carrie Harris

2. Gumbo Writer (Angie Ledbetter)

3. On the Path (Jody Hedlund)

4. BookingIt (Jessica Nelson)

5. Tess Hilmo

6. Something She Wrote (Janna Qualman)

7. Terri Tiffany

8. Dreams of Quill and Ink (L.T. Elliot)

9. White Platonic Dreams (T. Anne)

10. Spunk on a Stick (L. Diane Wolfe)

Congratulations to all the winners. Sorry, if you weren't chosen. I was only allowed 10. You know I love you. :)

Do you have any blogs you'd like to recommend?

Kindergarten Entrance Ages??

What’s the deal with Kindergarten entrance ages? Where I come from, kids start in September (or the end of August) as long as they’re five by that time. Here, legally, you can’t place your child in school before then, but the norm seems to be enter Kindergarten at six. Really? But what if my kids are ready when they’re five? I was. And I never had the luxury of pre-school like they do.

What’s the norm where you are?

Platform Building

Have you given any thought to building your platform? As a fiction writer, I didn’t see the need until I read Jeannie Campbell’s blog post today. Apparently, some agents use the platform as a final determining factor if two writers are equal in their writing abilities. Not all agents worry about this, but since some do, maybe it’s a good idea to start building that platform now. Jeannie has asked anyone who’s interested in brainstorming how to create a bigger platform to leave a message on her blog. If you’d like to be a part of this group, follow the link to her blog.

Maybe you already have a platform? If you do, would you please share some of your secrets with us?

Character Data Tracker

Keeping track of your characters is very important when writing a full length novel, but can become complicated unless you have a system in place. Getting to know your characters is one thing, but remembering all the little details is another. Here’s a form I use as a quick reference to specific facts of each character.

Character Data Tracker:

1. Complexion and skin type:

2. Blemishes, tattoos, or scars:

3. Eye shape and color:

4. Glasses or contacts?

5. Nose:

6. Hair color, texture, and style:

7. Facial hair:

8. Head shape:

9. Mouth and teeth:

10. Chin, jaw, and/or cheeks:

11. Body type:

12. Neck:

13. Shoulders:

14. Arms, hands, and fingers:

15. Chest and/or breasts:

16. Belly:

17. Legs, hips, and feet:

18. Voice, distinct tone, or phrases:

19. Personality/ identity:

20. Bad habits:

21. Hobbies:

22. Occupation:

23. Living quarters:

24. Vehicle:

25. Family members:

26. Other:



Do you have any tricks to help you remember details about your characters?

Elephant Ears

Have you ever tried elephant ears? I don’t mean the gray, wrinkly ones belonging to Dumbo, but the tasty treat normally found at fairs and carnivals. If you haven’t, you’re missing out on something Y-U-M-M-Y. An elephant ear is deep fried batter shaped like a small pizza crust with vanilla frosting or cinnamon sugar coating the top of it.

My husband brought one home for lunch today. I’d post a picture of the ear, but we kind of gobbled it up. In fact, we were so excited to taste the delicious dessert, we allowed the twins to have it with their lunch. My husband and I were more disciplined. We waited until we took a few bites of our meal before “testing” the ear. Hey, we had to make sure the cook had done a good job, right?

Do you have a tasty treat you can’t wait to sink your lips into?

Passive Voice

If you're having problems with passive voice in your manuscript, check out this article: Passive Voice. The article talks about five myths of passive voice.

1. Use of the passive voice constitutes as a grammatical error.
2. Any use of "to be" (in any form) constitutes as the passive voice
3. The passive voice always avoids the first person; if something is in first person ("I" or "we"), it's also in the active voice.
4. You should never use the passive voice.
5. I can rely on my grammar checker to catch the passive voice.


After the explanation as to why these are myths, the author goes in great detail explaining the passive voice.

Do you have any writing articles or links you'd like to share?

Flood - One, Dike - Nothing

Last night, we arrived home from our annual Easter trip. I checked my messages, as I always do before I start to unpack. BAD NEWS. My parents’ cottage had water up to the porch. This came as quite a shock to them since this was their first spring as owners of the property.

Earlier that day, my parents and brother decided to take a drive to the cottage to see how much ice was still on the lake. They’d heard of ice jams causing problems in the town of Selkirk (Manitoba), but didn’t think of how those same ice jams might affect the lake behind their cottage.

When they first got to the cottage, there was some minor flooding in their backyard. Within an hour, things had gotten progressively worse. My parents and brother realized this water wasn’t from winter thaw. There was a breach in the dike and the river was flowing into their yard. They didn’t know what to do, so they left in search of friends to help sandbag.






Unfortunately, they were unable to locate anyone. Not surprising considering this was Easter Sunday. When they returned, three hours later, they were no longer able to pull into their drive-way. The water was rushing through their yard and across the road. My brother went in the frigid river and saw the water was now up to the door. Deciding it was too late to save their cottage, the three of them went home disgusted. How could the same piece of land that had given them so many wonderful times last summer cause them so much grief less than a year later?

As it turns out, my brother returned this morning to inspect the damages. Apparently, over night, neighbors had gotten together and sandbagged the breach in the dyke. The water receded once again, but nobody’s going to feel safe until the ice jams have melted and the river levels have dropped.

About the photos:

The first two photos were taken within the hour of their first visit. Note: The fire pit is usually separated from the water by the dike and a beach. The dock is a floating dock that's supposed to be on dry land until we put it back into the water.


The last three photos were taken three hours later. The drive-way looks like a river, and the fire pit is completely under water.











Unfortunately, I don’t have photos from today, but my brother said the fire pit is about two inches above water now. Apparently, the neighbors who sandbagged last night saved my parents' cottage and their own.

Have you ever experienced flooding?

Gotta Have 'Em

Lately, I’ve been on a book buying spree where I’m purchasing more than I can read. The fact that I don’t have much free time because of the twins is a good excuse...er... reason, but still… I should really slow down. The thing is, when I find a good book, I have a hard time not bringing that treasure home with me. Many paperbacks don’t stay on the shelves longer than three months before they’re sent back to the publisher. What if the book I just discovered suffers that fate before I return with a plump wallet? No. I don’t like to take such chances. If the back of the book interests me, I read the first few pages. If I’m still hooked, off to the cash register I go.

What about you? Is there any particular author’s book you have to have? Or do you follow a certain genre instead? Are you an impulsive book buyer or do you research your next purchase?

Is He Going to Propose?

I came across an article on MSN today titled Five Signs He’s About to Propose by Christie Griffin. Could one of my characters use this advice? I had to read to find out.

1. He’s extra helpful. Couldn’t this also mean he has a guilt complex because he’s done something wrong? Just thinking…
2. He talks himself up. Maybe he’s really vain. Or maybe he’s so insecure he feels like he needs to convince people (including himself) how great he is. There’s also the possibility that he thinks you’re not so into him and he needs to convince you he’s worth the effort.
3. He acts like you just started dating. See reasoning for #2 and apply it here.
4. He quizzes you. Maybe he’s writing your biography. Or maybe he’s planning on setting you up with a friend of his.
5. He’s really concerned about the details. Maybe he’s finally showing his true obsessive side. Maybe he’s on a new drug.

Okay, so the article wasn’t all that helpful because those signs can mean more than “he’s about to propose”. However, if my hero should decide to pop the question to my heroine, I might go back to this list and make sure he follows “the rules”.

What would make you think he was about to propose? How would you like the hero to act if he should happen to consider “The Big Step”?

The Name Game

Former “Bachelorette” Trista Sutter and her husband Ryan had their second child on Friday. It’s a girl! Their first born, a son, was given a fairly common name: Max. Their daughter, however, received a more unique name: Blakesley.

What’s up with the “different” names celebrities have chosen for their babies? In case you haven’t noticed the trend, here’s a list of first and/or middle names:

Girls: Maru, Camera, Puma, Sailor, Suri, Coco, Fifi Trixibelle, Peaches Honeyblossom, Little Pixie, Emerson, Alcamy, Makena’lei Gordon, Heavenly Hiraani Tiger Lily, Moxie CrimeFighter, Ever Gabo, Saffron Sahara, Tallulah Pine, Tu, Poppy Honey, Daisy Boo, Apple, Zahara, Shiloh, Reignbeau, Harlow Winter Kate, BreAzia Ranee, Sage Moonblood, Tiger Lily, Lola Daisy, Gaia Romilly, Iman, Dusti Raine, Keelee Breeze, Rumer, Moon Unit, and Diva Muffin.

Boys: Liron, Seven Sirius, Denim, Ky, Kal-el, Blue, Free, Hud, Spec Wildhorse, Moses, Maddox, Pax, Freedom, Rocket Valentin, Racer Maximilliano, Rebel, Rogue, Sedg, Audio Science, Seargeoh, Rufus Tiger, Akin, Thyme, Dweezil, and Ahmet Emuukha Rodan.

For all the writers out there, please think twice before naming your hero or heroine by these “interesting” names. Don’t forget the importance of choosing the right name to fit your characters, but to have a name the reader can remember. If I can’t pronounce the name or recognize it, I’ll probably have a hard time telling someone else about the story. The conversation would sound something like this:

Me: “Hey, I finished a book the other day.”
You: “Really? What was it about?”
Me: “Well, the hero… I forget his name… was chasing after the villain with a strange name… and they both tried to win over the heroine, who had a name I’ve never heard of before. Kind of hard to explain.”
You: “What was the title of the book?”
Me: “I’m not really sure how to pronounce it. I’ll have to spell it out.”

Okay, so maybe the conversation wouldn’t be THAT bad, still… Why take such a risk? You want your readers to love everything about your book, including the main characters’ names. This doesn’t mean you must use extremely common names like John, Jane, Mary, and David, but something not quite as “unique” as those names listed above would be appreciated.

Have you come across strange character names in books you’ve read or movies you’ve seen? What about in real life? Have you heard of any that have made you shiver and feel sorry for the poor kid?

When Napping Is Bad for Your Health...

If you're a dog lover, you'll get a kick out of this video. My dog barks in his sleep. This is way beyond that. Check it out.

Common Complaints About Agents

Agent Jessica Faust from Bookends, LLC blogged on Wednesday about the famous #QueryFail that has been on Twitter lately. I haven’t read exactly what was written on Twitter, but others have informed me #QueryFail was formed by a bunch of agents who took the time (because they have so much of it) to make fun of some queries they received and actually posted those queries on Twitter. Of course, writers were fuming. Some agents, like Jessica Faust, recognized the need to allow the same courtesy to authors (although she never participated in the query bashing). Would you believe there were 252 comments on her blog that day? Holy crap!

What were the most common complaints writers had about agents? Agents who:

• Never sent out an auto-reply saying the query, partial, or full was received and then not following up with a rejection letter. Writers would prefer to have one or the other, at the very least, so they don’t have to wonder whether they’ve been rejected or their work hasn’t been received.
• Can’t meet their normal return time and don’t notify the writer that they’re running behind. Writers feel it’s common courtesy to act as professional as the agents expect in return. Writers understand when an agent is overloaded and hasn’t had a chance to get to their partial or full, but since the agent requested the material, the writer would like to know her work is still on the table and not tossed in the trash.
• Reject a requested full manuscript without ANY reason. Writers would like some sort of feedback so they can use the info to possibly improve their work.
• Don’t update their website with current submission guidelines. Writers don’t want to waste their time submitting to an agent who says they represent their genre only to receive a rejection stating the opposite.
• Complain about how overworked they are, but somehow have time to Twitter and blog. Granted some agents blog after hours, but some writers seem to really have a beef with time spent on Twitter. However, others posted they enjoyed learning more about the agent’s personality via blog or Twitter and didn’t find those options too time consuming.
• For whatever reason, decide they no longer want to represent the author, but don’t immediately cut the ties. They simply cease to respond to e-mails from the author for months before finally sending the “This just isn’t working out” letter. Writers would prefer to break the contract as soon as either side doesn’t feel the love anymore. Although, this may sting at first, at least the author can go on to find a more suitable agent.
• Only accept snail mail queries. Writers can accept sending paper partials or fulls, but queries?
• Think they’re superior. Writers want agents to remember: “Without us, there wouldn’t be a need for agents.”
• Send promotional material for authors they currently represent while including a rejection letter to the writer. Need I elaborate on this?

Well, that about sums up the comments. I haven’t had any experiences with agents yet since I’m still reworking my ms. What about you? Without naming names, do you have any good or bad stories to share?

ER Is O-V-E-R

No more Emergency Room visits after tonight. *sigh* I can’t believe ER’s finally coming to an end, or that I’ve been watching the show for almost 15 years (minus the first year or so when my twins were born).

Aaah… the memories. Dr. Doug Ross (George Clooney) was the hottest doc in town when I first started watching. In fact, I hadn’t known Clooney existed up until that point, but that might’ve been because I lived under a rock. Of course, there have been many hotties since Dr. Ross, but he was my “first”. ;)

Do you remember some of the gruesome episodes? What about the one where Dr. Romano (Paul McCrane) was hit by helicopter blades and both his arms were chopped off? Ewww…but cool. Speaking of amputation, the writers couldn’t resist taking limbs from another ER doc. Ray Barnett (Shane West) was hit by a truck when he walked home from a bar after a fight at Abby and Lucas’ wedding causing him to loose his legs.

Don’t forget all the sexual tension between the regular ER characters: Dr. Doug Ross (Clooney) and nurse Carol Hathaway (Julianna Margulies); Dr. Kerry Weaver (Laura Innes) and psychiatrist Kim Legaspi (Elizabeth Mitchell); Dr. Peter Benton (Eriq La Salle) and physician’s assistant Jeanie Boulet (Gloria Reuben); Dr. Elizabeth Corday (Alex Kinston) and Dr. Mark Greene (Anthony Edwards); and that’s just the first six seasons.

What episodes really moved you and why? Who were your favorite characters?

Will Write for Money

Have you ever thought of supplementing your income while awaiting the sale of your first novel? Would you like to find a way to write and still earn money during that temporary period? Do you feel freelance writing or journalism are your only options? Note: This isn’t an advertisement. Although, it could be, I suppose.

I came a across a book called “Career Opportunities for Writers” by Rosemary Ellen Guiley and found the information quite interesting. If I wasn’t a stay-at-home mom, maybe I’d consider some of the career options mentioned in this book. After all, writing is writing, right? Well, sort of. I prefer fiction, but could see myself working in a writing environment if circumstances were different.

I’ve compiled a list of career opportunities for writers taken from Guiley’s book, but didn’t include the obvious categories like publishing, journalism, or magazines. Take a look.

Television: desk assistant, researcher, reporter, anchor, news writer, assistant news director, news director, news librarian, community-affairs director

Radio: reporter, news director

Arts and Entertainment: ghostwriter, screenwriter, playwright, lyricist/jingle writer, poet, greeting card writer

Business Communications and Public Relations: public-relations assistant, internal publications editor, external publications editor, public information officer, government affairs specialist, speechwriter, communications coordinator, public-relations account executive, technical communicator

Advertising: assistant account executive, account executive, assistant copywriter, copywriter

Federal Government: editorial assistant and clerk, writer and editor, technical writer and editor, press secretary, political speechwriter

Scholastic Academic, and Non-Profit Institutions: journalism teacher, assistant professor, alumni communications specialist, alumni magazine editor, librarian, news director

Freelance Services and Self-Publishing: freelance writer, technical writer, technical editor, copy editor, proofreader, fact checker, indexer, stringer, book reviewer, contributing editor, syndicated columnist, communications consultant, desktop publisher, packager, self-publisher, advertising copywriter

I know, quite the list, but maybe something will interest you enough to do a little research. Of course, the easiest way to find out about these jobs and others like them is to buy Rosemary Ellen Guiley’s book. I did.

Do you have a writing related job? Did any of the job titles in Guiley’s list interest you?