Category Archives: mermaids

What Is It Worth To You?

mermaids, Motivation, , , ,

Being at the RWA national conference must have triggered some deep-level thought processes I was unaware of.

What do you want? What are you prepared to do?

Here’s the story – I was a member of NYSC for several years.  I loved that gym and all it had to offer.  I’d  joined with a friend who later discovered that she would get a cheaper membership with her school district’s corporate membership, and she loved getting that bargain.  I tried every trick in the book but I couldn’t match her. She worked closer to home. I didn’t. She made more money. I certainly didn’t! Even with a husband who’d been tossed out of work, there was no mercy. Pay the price, or take a hike.

But, because her school district had negotiated a corporate membership, she had advantages I didn’t. And I was supposed to be happy. I wasn’t. I kept thinking about leaving, but couldn’t find a gym that would make me happier and I didn’t want to leave her behind.

Finally, when family finances forces her to reconsider the cost she was paying even then, we both moved to a gym that was closer to home and a lot cheaper to join. And it wasn’t the same. At all.

Being part of a gym that didn’t offer the machines I worked best on, had locker rooms on the first floor, didn’t have towel service, didn’t have a pool, or the showers I loved, or the soaps I enjoyed, or a sauna — those were losses I had to live with. I thought I could probably be happy. I was keeping a friend happy and saving money.  I should be happy. Right?

Wrong.  As time went on, I didn’t use the machines that were available. I was intimidated by the few aerobics classes that were offered. There were two classes I liked and no machines. Finally, in a Zumba class of all things (and I don’t really like Zumba), I stepped on my own foot and fell, and cracked my wrist.

I had to re-evaluate. Was saving money and keeping a friendship worth cracking a wrist?

And, after visiting my old gym this morning, I began to think – taking the easy way out on a gym membership, favoring the cheaper, closer gym that offers fewer classes and services is like taking the easy way out on writing. My former gym offers a new membership, just for teachers, and at a reduced rate (my former director fought for this with me and all the other teachers in mind).  It will cost $5 more a month and be a longer drive.  It will also give me back a facility I loved and benefits I’ve missed.

Yes, I will be re-joining the original gym.  And, in thinking this over, I come back to a central question: what is it worth to you?  What is writing worth to you, and what are you giving up to pursue this? When you are tempted to throw in the towel because of too many rejections, too many nay-sayers, too many days without making a word count or a meaningful connection to your work, what do you say?

Are you willing to pay the price?

 

Conflict and the Ten Year Old

mermaids,

Conflict…an essential element of any story in the 21st Century. 

I know this because I’ve just come back from the Romance Writers of America’s National Conference in New York City where I attended several workshops attempting to really show us the core of what conflict means.   And not just that, but how it affects almost every aspect of your writing.  If you know what you’re doing with internal conflict, then you’ll have characters the readers care about.  If you can boil the main conflict of your story down to 25 words or less, you may just have a high concept which will help you have a dazzling pitch.  A tight, fast-paced novel with no sagging middle means you know what you’re doing with external conflict and your readers will appreciate that.   Every stage from the pitch, query, synopsis, the meat of the book…if you’ve got the conflict down, then you’re on the right path. 

Pages and pages of copious notes and a few days later to soak it all up, and I’m pretty sure I have a firm understanding. 

So yesterday as I was sitting with my ten-year old son on the couch, winding down from a week in the crazy beautiful city of New York, a commercial came on for Cartoon Network’s The Amazing World of Gumball.  And my son very casually said to me, “Mom, did you see how that balloon just fell in love with the cactus.  If it does that, it’s going to die.”

I put my notes away and watched Cartoon Network with my son the rest of the day. 

Have a great day everyone!

Happy Fourth of July!!!

Kerri Carpenter, mermaids, Motivation, , , , , ,

July 4th is my favorite holiday. I could watch fireworks on a nightly basis. Perhaps my love of glitter and sparkles has something to do with it.

Happy July 4th!

Plus, the Fourth of July is fun. There is no present-buying-stress like Christmas. Sure, you may get some picnic or barbecue food together, but that doesn’t seem to be as stressful as a huge Thanksgiving dinner.

Instead, July 4th is easy. It’s summer, the weather is (hopefully) beautiful and you can just relax and celebrate with friends and family. Again, hopefully with fireworks.

But the real reason why this is my favorite holiday is the meaning. Let’s take a moment to remember the significance of this day; what it represents and why we celebrate it. The Fourth of July is about freedom.

I’ve been thinking about my love for this relaxing holiday and how it makes me feel. Interesting that that same easiness and carefree feeling used to be applied to my writing. Before I learned about publishing contracts, query letters, protecting your rights and pitching to agents, writing was fun, relaxing and, in a way, celebratory.

I’ve just finished my first RWA Nationals in New York City. I definitely left the conference feeling inspired, rejuvenated and ready to write. But my goal for this coming year is now to remember that I write because I love it. While I understand the importance of these things, writing isn’t just about agents, editors, contracts, websites, twitter feeds and meetings.

For me, I need to return to the real meaning of writing. My freedom to create, inspire and have fun.

So, let me wish everyone a Happy Fourth of July and a Happy Year of Writing!

The End

mermaids, Motivation

So I watched season premiere of True Blood the other night. Tradition holds that I enjoy an adult beverage or two while I’m watching my favorite vampire/warewolf/fairy/telepath/God-I-Love-Lafayette TV show. That first beer went quick (it was a hell of a week), so I hit pause to make a quick kitchen run. That’s when I saw the show was already half over.

“No!” I squealed. (Yes, I really did squeal, this is not a proud moment for me.)

Waiting a week for the next episode would be bad enough, but I’ll be twiddling my thumbs for two weeks because as you read this I’m on vacation. And while my parents have lots of fun stuff at their house, HBO is not one of them. I’d like to say that’s the only reason for my outburst, but the truth is that any time I’m sucked into another character’s world I hate having to step out of it.

You know the feeling. You’re speeding through a book and then – wham! – you realize your on the last chapter. How in the world did that happen? Come on, I can’t be the only one who experiences that.

Unfortunately, I’m the same way when it’s my own characters.

Shhhh. Don’t tell anyone but I’ve been staring at the last chapter of A Dry Creek Bed (the sequel to Up a Dry Creek) for a week and a half. I know what needs to happen. I know exactly what to write. I just can’t seem to do it because that means I have to say goodbye to my hero and heroine who I’ve come to love. They’re funny and sexy and passionate. The mystery is about to get wrapped up with a final twist that (hopefully) will leave readers with their jaws on the ground. My villain is dead and as warped as she was I miss her already. So of course, I can’t get moving on that final chapter. If I’m missing the crazy sauce of my villain, think of how bad the mourning will be when I say goodbye to my hero and heroine.

This is the real reason why I wanted to make Up a Dry Creek the first in a series of four, because I have a hard time letting go of the characters I love. Turning it into a series means I get to revisit them in each novel. Of course, eventually I’ll complete the Dry Creek Series. That is a day I’m not looking forward to, but to paraphrase Miss Scarlet – I’ll think about that tomorrow.

FIX THIS!

Alethea Kontis, mermaids

There are a lot of books out there.

In the days of Dickens and Hawthorne, writers were worth far more than a dime a dozen (a whole dollar, at least). It was a romantic profession, revered by many and envied by more, so much so that many an impoverished author had a benefactor or two to support them as they honed their craft.

Even taking into account the ones that have gone out of print, time alone has grown the number of books in existence exponentially. Digital publishing has doubled that exponent. Many well-to-do writers aren’t as well off as you’d think. We have to get things like day jobs to support ourselves. As for benefactors…well, there’s always Kickstarter.

What kills me is when an author–I won’t name names, but I will qualify that these authors I’m referring to make enough money to be only authors and nothing else–releases a new, eagerly-awaited shiny hardcover full of cliches and coincidences that seem so totally preposterous that you wish you didn’t have an e-reader so that you might have the satisfaction of throwing said book against the wall. I can’t believe the publishing industry is rewarding all this pathetic laziness.

But let me qualify:

Lazy writers are writers who can’t find the time to get their Butts into Chairs and Write. (Not counting this blog, I would currently be classified as a lazy writer. Trust me, it’s driving me as insane as it’s driving my editors.)

Lazy writing is when an author pulls a lot of crap out of their butt and puts it down on paper to keep the story moving along, or to affect a response from a character, or both. One wonders if they meant to go back and change it later, or why the editor didn’t catch it and fix it, or both.

Here are two of my favorite, real life examples of lazy writing:

Exhibit A: Paranormal Romance. Our heroine is a shapeshifter who own a bookstore. She meets a mysterious guy who asks her out on a date on Mother’s Day. He has her meet him at an airstrip where he whisks her away to a private Caribbean Island. While walking on the beach, she says to him, “I wish I’d known; I would have packed a bathing suit.” He says, “Don’t worry. My maid has picked one out for you. It’s in your room.” The woman goes back to her room to find the bathing suit: a perfect size 6. She tries it on and it fits beautifully…and I threw the book across the room.

I can forgive that 1.) she would leave her bookstore on one of the busiest shopping days of the year and 2.) that her very rich boyfriend would take her on a secret date out of the country. It’s called suspension of disbelief for a reason, and I was more than willing to disbelieve. HOWEVER: If you are a woman who has ever tried on a bathing suit, you know that A.) you have to try on 5,000 before you find one you will settle for and B.) No woman on earth has the ability to pick out a bathing suit for another woman and have it be just perfect. None. No where. No way. No how.

The reason I call this lazy is because the heroine is a shapeshifter. It would have made so much more sense for her to shift into the ill-fitting bathing suit to make it fit. A simple solution, had the author cared to think about it for more than five seconds. I ding both the author and editor for this one.

Exhibit B: Mystery/Suspense. Heroine runs into hero on the street while he’s walking his dog. Right at that minute, a cop drives up to tell the hero that his partner is in the hospital. Heroine offers to take his dog home while he goes with the officer. Heroine drops dog off at the hero’s house right when the hero’s ex-wife has decided to drop in for a visit. Wackiness ensues.

Now, while I would believe this story if my friend was telling it to me over coffee, the average person would not believe all this coincidence in fiction. It’s a funny, backwards thing. I’ve actually known writers basing a story on fact to omit things, so as to make the fictional tale seem more realistic. Because no one would believe all those coincidences. Know why? All those coincidences look like lazy writing.

I wrote my first novel when I was twelve. The summer before high school, I went back over the manuscript, made comments, and rewrote the whole thing. In one scene, the heroine is trying to get out of being captured. She asks the guard for some yarn so she can knit to pass the time. The guard agrees, leaves his knife and his rope, and goes to fetch the yarn. In the margin I wrote, “How convenient. FIX THIS.”

Have you ever found yourself muddying the waters to make things move along? Cheating a little bit because you’ve written yourself into a corner? Or are you the type that will stew for a week making sure you get out of that pickle logically and efficiently?

Either way, I urge you all to fight laziness.

If necessary, I will mail you all post-it notes that say, “FIX THIS!”

For Those Going to Nationals . . .

mermaids, Motivation,

If you’ve seen this already, I hope you enjoy it again.

To all my writing sisters out there going to RWA Nationals—

• Be careful on your trip.

• Stay safe

• Have fun

• Learn lots

• Meet new friends (finally meet face to face with those you’ve only talked to via on-line loops, chats, etc.)

• Be inspired

• Be amazed

• Be safe (again)

• Be supportive

• Be loving

• Be kind to others

• Don’t sweat the small stuff

• Don’t forget 7 pairs of clean panties (read about forgetting underwear on trip—not good unless you are used to going without)

• Don’t walk out of the ladies room with t.p. stuck to the bottom of your shoe (or your dress caught in your pantyhose)

• When squeezing lemon into your water, cup both hands around your lemon wedge to keep the juice/ seeds from flying in a potential agent/editor’s eyes. (I saw it in a social film once—don’t ask.)

• Remember to warm the cognac in your hand—should be served at room temperature in a snifter . . . oh, wait a minute, those are notes from my recent research—never mind. (Use the information only if needed.)

• If hot, male romance cover model comes up to you and asks if you are his next cover partner . . . say “Heck yes!” and you need lots of practice with him before the photo shoot (just make sure hubby is not around—best if you are single)

• Be Safe (can’t say it enough)

• If asked how you come up with sex scenes for your novels just smile and give them a look of pure, thought-provoking enjoyment. (They’ll get the picture. No words needed.)

• Remember—before you can take over the world, you must first be able to make a really flaky pie crust. (A guy in my senior high school class wrote that in my yearbook. I didn’t understand at first—I thought he was crazy—but it makes sense. If you can make a really flaky pie crust, you probably can take over the world. Whoever came up with the phrase ‘simple as pie’ was an idiot!) Doesn’t have much to do with conference or writing but…thought I would share.

• Oh and finally . . . stay safe.

Hugs!

Loni Lynne

No Room for Doubt

Dana Rodgers, mermaids, Motivation, Writing,

Do you ever spend hours, days, weeks pouring your heart and soul into your writing only to go back, read it and think, “Oh my God, what was I thinking? This is crap. I have no talent. No one will ever want to read this.”

Well, guess what? You’re not the only one!

I love to write. I love the creative process and making the story come alive on the page. For me it is not just the destination (the finished story), but also the journey getting there (developing characters, and hammering all of those twists and turns into place). But I often find, especially during my editing process that doubt creeps in. I start wondering what the heck I’m doing. Wondering why I ever thought that I could write a book.

Recently, while going through one of these moments, a friend introduced me to a new type of encouragement in the form of John Steinbeck.

John Steinbeck? Maybe, the Pulitzer Prize winning The Grapes of Wrath will ring a bell… or Of Mice and Men or East of Eden or The Winter of Our Discontent or Cannery Row…

John Steinbeck was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1962, and even he harbored doubts concerning his ability to effectively bring the written word to the page. While working on The Grapes of Wrath, he composed letters and wrote in a journal. Some of this material was later published in Working Days: The Journals of the Grapes of Wrath 1938-1941. Throughout this journal John Steinbeck writes about his struggles, worries and self-doubt.

The following are a few quotes from Working Days: The Journals of the Grapes of Wrath 1938-1941:

June 14, 1938–“Yesterday was a bust. I could have forced the work out but I’d lost the flow of the book and it would have been a weak spot.”

June 18, 1938–“If only I could do this book properly it would be one of the really fine books and a truly American book. But I am assailed with my own ignorance and inability.”

August 1, 1938–“I didn’t work then [July 25] or all week. …Hope to lose some of the frantic quality in my mind now. It’s just like slipping behind at Stanford. Panic sets in. Can’t organize. … I’m jumpy. …Don’t know who will publish my book. Don’t know at all. No reason to let it slide though. Must keep at it. … Wish I could control the jumping jitters though.”

August 30, 1938–“I’m having a hell of a time concentrating with so many things going on. … I hope this book is some good, but I have less and less hope for it.”

September 26,1938–“This book has become a misery to me because of my inadequacy.”

So the next time you doubt yourself, remember, there are other incredibly accomplished authors out there who have also acknowledged uncertainty when it comes to submitting their work. When you start to question yourself just remember:

1. Don’t worry about what anyone else thinks. Your voice is your own and it is unique. Why do we have so many different types of writers? So many different genres? Because there are so many different types of readers!

2. In the words of Nora Roberts, “Write the damn book!” Forget about everything else and just get your ideas down on the page because you can’t edit what doesn’t exist. You can always cast off what doesn’t work later.

3. Trust you instincts. Everyone worries about breaking the rules. Ignore the rules because they are intimidating, and that can lead to insecurity. Instead focus on telling a great story. Once the story is on the page you can obsess over comma usage and dangling participles.

4. Make time for yourself. I know it sounds difficult, and it is, because life gets in the way, but consistently setting time aside for yourself and scheduling around that time will help you to put words on the page.

5. You are not alone. Believe in yourself. Everyone has experienced moments of self-doubt or insecurity, even someone as accomplished as John Steinbeck. If he can do it, so can you… So keep writing!

 

 

Presenting Barry Mouse and Mary Mouse

mermaids, ,

A few weeks ago, I visited my parents and stumbled across a short story I wrote in the seventh grade. Behold, “The Mice,” complete with illustration:

One day, two mice, Barry Mouse and Mary Mouse, looked out their home in the wall and saw a great, big piece of cheese.
“That cheese is as good as mine!” Barry Mouse exclaimed. “I have wonderful reflexes, and I’m a natural athlete!”
“Not so fast,” Mary Mouse interjected. “Maybe I could get the cheese before you.”
“Yeah, right,” Barry Mouse said sarcastically. “You’re just a girl! How could you reach it before I? I, the magnificent; I, the strong; I, the superior athlete. That piece of cheese is going to taste so good! It’ll be simply delicious! And why should I share any with you? I’ll get it myself without any help from anybody…”
Mary Mouse was sitting there, eating the piece of cheese she had stolen while Barry Mouse was going on and on about himself. Popping the last piece of cheese into her mouth, she grinned at him, “You were saying?”
Moral 1 – Don’t count your chickens before they’re hatched.
Moral 2 – Never underestimate the power of a female!

I had all the expected reactions after reading this story. I laughed, I sighed, I remembered fondly my childhood days. Then, I showed the story to my stepmom and my sister. As I waited for them to read it, I had another reaction that completely surprised me. A rush of protectiveness washed over me, and I felt fiercely defensive of the little girl who had written this story. One harsh word from the audience, and I would be ready to fight tooth and nail to defend this girl, to shield her from the kind of remark that tears down the spirit before it has the chance to solidify.

This didn’t happen, of course. My mom and sister laughed, and then we all went about our days.

But my reaction stayed with me. And puzzled me. I am not unfamiliar with this all-encompassing need to protect. I have felt it with my sister, who is 12 years younger than me. And now that I’m a mother, this emotion is a part of my daily existence.

But I have never felt it about myself. Why not? I’m not sure. I know I can’t go back in time and protect the 12 year-old girl, but isn’t there a writer inside me who is just as vulnerable, just as needy, just as deserving of my protection? Yet, instead of nurturing her, I have said terrible things to her over the years. Worse, I have believed the detractors who have doubted her dreams.

Would I have accepted these judgments so easily if they had been aimed at my children? Of course not. I would have been spitting mad. While I am slowly exposing them to the realities of life, there are some lessons I hope my children never learn. You can’t do it. You are not talented enough. You are not good enough.

As writers, I think we all struggle to unlearn these lessons, however they came to be taught. I can’t change the past, but I can alter my attitude going forward. The next time I find myself sliding back into these negative refrains, I will think of “The Mice” and remember that I, too, am deserving of my own protection.

Who knew a childhood story could have so much impact? So dig up your old stories and share them with me! I would love to read the words of so much budding talent. I promise, there will only be shared laughter and smiles and not a judgmental word in sight!

Writing Right Where We Are

mermaids, ,

With laptops at our hands, it’s easy to write almost anywhere. I’m writing this post on my living room couch.  It’s not my favorite spot, but it’s where I am this evening.

Do you have a favorite spot to write?  I’ve had several.  In my first house, I wrote in the back bedroom.  I had a view of the forsythia bush planted against the fence, and loved watching its changes through the year.  My second house had a view of a suburban street, beige walls and very ugly blinds left behind by the prior owner.

I’ve also written in a nice, private study with a view of the front yard and the court where we live now.  I earned my Master’s Degree in that downstairs study.  It was quiet and private, a professional space I shared with my husband without problems. Then my son entered a private high school and that was the end of the study!  Five years later, I’m still wondering what happened.

Since re-entering the ranks of fiction writers, I’ve been camping out in the dining room.   Our property is wooded, so I have a view across our deck of squirrels, birds and the flowers I keep on the deck during the summer.  Also deer who love to eat my daylilies (grrr).  I’m close to the coffeepot, the telephone, and (oddly enough) the TV.  There’s plenty of room to spread out my work.  I hope I don’t have guests for Thanksgiving.  Or Christmas.

I’m at the point, though, where I might like to have my own quiet, private place for writing.   Just like I’ve insisted on a sewing room, where the cats couldn’t bother my projects, I could have a writing room.  A writing room, all my own.  One that is close to coffee, phone and TV.  Like my dining room!

Where do you write?  What type of space feeds your creative soul?  Do you need a window?  A view?  Photographs?  A special chair?  Does writing in one particular spot, or with a special talisman nearby, make us feel more like a writer?

Share your thoughts, please.  Perhaps we can gain inspiration on what makes a perfect writing space, just for ourselves.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Operation Real Life Romantic Men

mermaids

We write and read about them.  They give us goose bumps, make us giggle, confound us and astound us.  Sometimes they take bullets for us and sometimes they just enjoy watching us sleep.  But these are, after all, fictional heroes I talk about.  And at the end of the day, a girl’s gotta know that there are real life great guys out there who are doing their best to live up to these extremely high standards we lady writers have set.  I am extremely pleased to share a few instances of “friends” who have recently had run-ins with some living and breathing romantic men. 

According to one friend, a sweet guy spied her at the local store and worked up the courage to ask what tanning lotion she used so he could get some too since she had such a lovely tan.  And then went on his way.

Another friend reported earlier this month that while standing on the island of a gas station, a man pulled up in his car, rolled down the window and politely said, “I have to admit, I just drove over here so I could see you up close.”  And then he sped away back onto the toll-way. 

And not too long ago, a friend shared that as her handyman was leaving her home after finishing his repair, he kindly said, “I can see why your husband is so in love with you.” And then respectfully left her home.

Some of these guys’ affections may have been misplaced, but I give them credit for trying.   The point is, there are flesh and blood guys out there who are giving it a shot, trying to impress, to be sweet.  

Has your real life honey done something to rival our fictional heroes?  Here is your chance to gush about them on a weekend when we should be celebrating real men. 

And…are you a real life romantic guy who would like to share something nice you’ve done?  It’s your chance to let the female reading public know that you really do exist!  Trust me; we want to hear about it!!