All posts by Robin Covington

Love It or List It?

Motivation, Writing, ,

I am an unapologetic HGTV-slut.  I. Love. That. Channel.

It doesn’t matter what is on – I’ll watch anything – but my favorites are House Hunters and Property Virgins.  But, a new program has caught my eye and I’ll definitely be tuning in when it premieres later this month – Love It or Leave It.

The premise is that when homeowners live in a house long enough and they lose the lovin’ feeling the question pops up as to whether they renovate or move.  In this show, two real estate professionals take opposite viewpoints and try to convince the homeowner to either stay in their home or list it for sale.  I think it looks fabulous!

It also reminds me of a recent writing dilemma I had about an old, unfinished manuscript. Now, I’m a little type A (don’t snicker, those of you who know me well) and I just can’t leave things unfinished – it drives me crazy.  But, this ms started out so strong and then, like a literary barracuda, I was distracted by a bright shiny object and put it aside.

Now, here’s my confession: It was easy to put it to the side because I’d hit a snag in the ms, wasn’t feeling the love for it anymore and . . . well, the other story was SO shiny!

So, I recently pulled it out and took a look at it to see what I wanted to do with my poor little orphaned baby. It still has the problems I hated before and shockingly the little writing elf did not finish it for me as it languished on my hard drive.  Sigh.

So, what do I do?  I’m working on my NaNo project right now and that takes immediate priority. But November will end and I’ll finish my WIP and the orphan will still be sitting there.

I need to decide if it’s worth picking up or if I should just shelve it for a different time – which might be never. Do I love it?  Do I list it?

I honestly don’t have a clue.

Do you have any advice? Have you faced the same question about one of your babies? When is it time to let a book go?

Robin

Getting To Know You

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Okay – I’m at the crossroads in the cycle of my writing life. I’m done with one manuscript (although I may switch some chapters around do some rewrites – but I digress) and chomping at the bit to start the next one. And, this is my honeymoon period, my magical time when I am getting to know my characters and seeing where they want to go with this story. Why do they need this story told?

I have a process for this and a place where I deposit all of this crazy information that I glean and will probably never use.  I dump all this stuff – photos (Like the inspiration for my latest hero), maps, research – into Scrivener for Windows in the WIP Notebook I bought from Jeannie Reusch and loaded into the Scrivener tool.  This allows me to keep track of the details of names, places etc of the main characters and the secondary characters as well. It’s a little anal but it keeps from calling the mailman Bob in Chapter 1 and Skippy in Chapter 6.

But, this really doesn’t help me get under the skin of my character. Yep, their eye color is important but it doesn’t get to the essence of my character.  So, I’ve developed a few questions that help me get down to the grit of who the hero and heroine are:

1. What do you want out of life?

2. What is keeping you from achieving that goal?

3. What is the one thing you wouldn’t want the hero/heroine to know about you?

4. What is your biggest regret?

5. What are you most proud of in your life?

6. What are you most ashamed of in your life?

7. When you walk in a room, what are the three things people will notice about you?

8. What would you be willing to lie about?

9. How would you like to die?

10. What are the most important traits in a true friend?

That’s my list.  Pretty grim but I think that the darkest parts of ourselves are what really counts – the rest is a facade for the comfort of other people.

So, what are your questions? What is your process?

Robin

 

 

John Cusack, a pen and a phonebooth

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You’ll have to bear with me today. I’m a little silly and punch-drunk due to the grueling time at the PITADJ (pain-in-the-a**-day-job).  it is the busiest time of the year for me and I’m down two out of the four folks on team due to maternity leave – so yeah, I’m a little stressed and a lot tired.

Which leads to the fact that I had no idea what to write about today. Not. A. Clue.  So, I do the one thing I always do when I’m stuck (ignore the Main Man shouting “spend money” in the background) – I watch movies.  And I usually go back to favorites, the tried and true – no, new shockingly disappointing flicks for me – I want one that I know will deliver every time.

So, I had a little movie marathon and lost even more sleep but felt a little more human.  And, I felt a little inspired creatively – which was very good for the writing.

The first flick was ‘Romancing the Stone” ( and , no, we are not going to talk about the possible remake with Katherine Heigl who hasn’t made anything decent since she finished “Roswell”). The movie about a romance novelist Joan Wilder and the guy, Jack, who helps her rescue her kidnapped sister and is constantly upstaged by the amazing Danny DeVito. Awesome movie.

At the end Gloria, Joan’s agent is reading her latest-post-sex-with-Jack novel and is sniffling as she says:

Gloria: Joanie you are now a WORLD CLASS hopeless romantic.

Joan: No, hopeful. Hopeful romantic.

Sigh . . . aren’t we all in this business?

Okay, next on the agenda for my personal film festival was an indie adaptation of the classic Pride & Prejudice. Now, no one beats Colin Firth as Mr.Darcy but Orlando Seale fills the role nicely in this movie. It’s bright, cheerful, offbeat and quirky and set in UTAH. It always makes me smile.

One of the best performances is the gal who plays Lydia – who in this version is a husband-hunter following a how-to guide that has all the single girls taking it for the gospel truth.  In one scene, Lydia is disgusted with Elizabeth and Jane’s moping around after Darcy and Bingley and she lets them have it at the grocery store, saying:

“Oh, this is just great girls. Here we’ve just spent 20 minutes picking out the perfect array of romantic items, and what do we come back to find? Two kegs of ice cream, pills for cramping, pills for bloating, and six super size boxes of Tampax? Why don’t we just put up a big neon sign that says, “Men, run for your lives! Menstruating monsters approaching!”

Brings back lots of college memories . . . .

Finally, I ended with my favorite movie of all time: Say Anything.

Now, this movie spawned a 10-year obsession with John Cusack for me. How could you NOT love Lloyd Dobler? The high school everyman who woos, charms and gets the beautiful valedictorian to fall in love with him – classic romance.

Of course, he gets his heart broken and the scene is gut-wrenching because you want Lloyd to get the girl. If he can’t get the girl then any guy who isn’t Brad Pitt is destined to die alone with lots of cats.

So, you have Lloyd in a phone booth. Its’ pouring rain and he’s called his sister to tell her that Diane, the love of his life, has broken up with him and given him a pen so he can write to her. Harsh.

So, he delivers the best line of the movie and rips your heart out:

“I gave her my heart and she gave me a pen.”

Sigh . . . .

I don’t care what you think about the hairdos and parachute pants – the 80’s were a beautiful thing.

So, at the end of all that film goodness, I felt better. Relaxed. And, I had a post to write for you guys.

What are your “go-to” flicks?

Robin Mermaid

My New Snoopy Lunchbox

mermaids, Motivation, , , , , , , , ,

For a week now I have been in limboland – in between writing projects and recharging my battery.  I’ve caught up on some TV (Royal Pains and Rizzoli & Isles), read some great books (“Plus Ones” by Hank Edwards and “Everyone Loves a Hero” by Marie Force), studied some craft (Save the Cat!) and indulged in a little Jake Gyllenhall nudity in “Love and Other Drugs”. (and, in answer to my Main Man – no you cannot wear out a DVD by watching it constantly – I think.)

But now I’m ready to start on the new book targeted for Harlequin Blaze and while I’m not going to go too crazy – I’m going to do things a little differently this time. While I usually create a loose outline (I’m a plotser), I’m going to write my synopsis first.  Now, I hear the groans out there, but I don’t mind writing a synopsis but I usually leave it to the end. I just want to see how it works for me this way.

The second thing is that I am going to try and write this book in the Scrivener for Windows writing tool.  My friend, Gwen Hernandez, challenged me and so I’m going to venture out of Word and take the plunge. And I’ll admit something here but only to you  . . .  so . . .  lean in closer while I whisper . . .

*it’s kind of freaking me out*

But, not in a I-need-to-call-Dr.Phil kind way.

It’s kind of exciting and edgy and  . . .  yes, I need to get out more . . . it’s really getting my creative juices flowing and my fingers itching to hit the keyboards. It’s similar to the thrill I got with my new school supplies. I  just KNEW that the Wonder Woman folders, new pencils and Snoopy lunch box were going to make school so fun and easy.

It’s THAT kind of exciting.

I’ll let you know how it goes.

What writing methods do you have and do you ever shake them up?

Robin Mermaid

 

 

 

 

 

#amwriting Word Metrics

Project: Exposure

Deadline: Oct. 31, 2011

New Words Written: None. Pre-plotting.

Present Total Word Count: zippo.

A Place To Write

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You may remember that back on June 6  I posted about my task to get back on track with my writing and to start putting together a do-able schedule to ensure that I could have time to write and to balance my other duties as a wife, mother, attorney and friend.  So, I read this book:

It was enlightening and helped me focus on my writing style and a realistic set of goals for myself.  I’m an “after-hours/any time opportunity” writer – meaning that I write when everyone else is down for the night and also when I can snatch time during the day. So, I’ve a whole new set of goals and a schedule posted on the fridge and it appears to be working. I’ve met and exceeded my daily word count of 1000 words for the past two weeks and it feels great!

So, the next thing I need to tackle is where I write. Right now it is anywhere I can grab a quiet place and take the laptop.  Usually that’s the sofa in the sitting area in my master suite or down in the “grown-up” living room. But, my husband pointed out that I need a dedicated space where I can go and know that it’s “writing time” – what a guy, right? (Actually, he said, “I’m tired of watching you wander around the house like a homeless Stephen King.”)

So, we have new project – Operation Bestseller (catchy, huh?).  We’ve identified the location and what we need to do get there.  Here’s the location:

That’s my closet. It is 19 feet long –  yep, you read that right. It is the result of adding a third bay to the garage when we built the house and the last 8 feet is going to my new writing space. It will have a small lounge chair, bookshelves and PRIVACY. Aaahhh . . .

And – here is the change:

A closer view. I opted not to have a desk – it felt too much like being on the day job.

I track contests, deadlines and plots on this board:

My wall of inspiration:

Inspiration up close:

I made this – isn’t it cute?

I already need another bookshelf. These are black cubicles from Target.

Part of my Harlequin Blaze collection:

I can feel the creative juices flowing just thinking about it! It so quiet and secluded and I can go in there and focus – What. A. Concept.

Where do you write? Do you have a special place?

Robin

#&*$%@$ Day Job!

mermaids, Motivation, , , , ,

I know, I know . . .  potty mouth.

But, lately I’ve been very frustrated with the amount of time my day job is taking away from my writing life.  Now, I love my job and it is very fulfilling – I’m an attorney for U.S. Navy and you couldn’t have a better group of clients.  And, this working thing isn’t new. I am not independently wealthy and while my husband is a few years older than I am – he’s no Sugar Daddy. (Although I hear that “the Hef” is now available and apparently has room at the mansion and rockin’ party already planned and paid for)

So, when I began down the path of publication and took this compulsion to write seriously, I always had to work it around the day job.  I write in the evenings after the kids have gone to bed and I can usually get in a good 2-3 hours before my comfortable bed beckons from across the room. And, sometimes I can squeeze in extra time on my regular day off and my lunch hours.  Not bad for a full-time, working mother.

I have excellent time management skills. I juggle my work and the supervision of three others and I fill-in for my boss when he is out.  I’ve done this for years . . .  so, what gives?

Beats me.

Lately work has been crazy and I’ve had a terrible time focusing when I do get a chance to sit down in front of the computer.  Not a good thing when you’re trying to maximize your writing time.

So, I’ve decided to go back to basics and seek some help. Obviously, my life and workload have shifted so I need to re-adjust my time allocation and techniques to maximize my writing time. And, like any good attorney, I went looking for some research tools – some advice from others who have been there and bought the t-shirt.

So, I have started reading this:

We’ll see if it helps.  It’s gotta be better than crawling into a fetal position and crying over blank pages.

What do you do to make time to write?  What do you do when life throws you a curveball?

Robin

Expectations, Infidelity and the Terminator

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I am an avid reader (and hopeful aspiring author) of Harlequin Blaze, the hottest and sexiest line of their category line stable.  In it you will find the trademark hot-lovin’ in a variety of positions, locations and with or without accompanying toys.  This line is lava-hot but also promises a happily- ever-after (HEA) or a happliy-for-now (HFN) ending for one man and one woman – an emotional connection in addiiton to the sexual one.  If you want sex with multiple partners of either gender, you need to look elsewhere (like the Harlequin SPICE line).

So, when I picked up and read, ‘Reckless Pleasures” by Tori Carrington (a long-time favorite of mine) I was thrown by my reaction to the plot.  Here’s the blurb from the back of the book:

”Six months apart is a long time. For security expert, Megan McGowan, it feels like forever since she’s felt the strong arms of Darius Folsom around her. Since Dari’s military deployment six months ago, every minute apart is another minute that Megan finds herself tempted . . .

Bad boy Jason Savage is Dari’s best friend – and partner in the new security firm Dari and Megan have formed. Only as Megan and Jason work closely together on an emotionally charged case, the attraction between them goes from hot to nuclear meltdown.

But even as Megan’s libido screams “Oh, yes!” she wonders if it’s possible to love one man – and give in to her hunger for another . . .”

 

Hmmm . . . . now let me caveat that I am not a book reviewer. I know what I like and what I don’t. I like some plot points (celebrities and sports stars) more than others (cowboys) but I can always enjoy a good book.  And this was  good book.  Tori Carrington is a solid writer who delivers hot sex, well-developed characters, and an intriguing plot.  This book was no exception on those points.

But, I had to struggle to complete it and at the end it left me . . . well, I was many things. I’ve had my fill of stories about infidelity and the consequences (and, it has totally ruined my enjoyment of “Total Recall”) and this book was well-timed to be caught up in my thoughts on that  area of discussion.  And, add to the mix that I work for the military and many of my friends have deployed and faced this very occurrence – so yeah, I have baggage on this one.

I had a hard time liking Megan or Jason and I was disappointed in Dari and his reaction to the news when he returns home, injured due to an IED. As a writer, I was intrgued by the thought of tackling infidelity in a Harlequin Blaze novel but I was also left with a sense of disappointment of reader expectation. After much thought about my reaction, I determined that the source of my disappointment wasn’t the storyline or subject matter – it was the fact that because of the reactions, excuses, explanations, and feelings of all three interested parties, I didn’t get the sense that any of them were “the one” for the other.

The love story, the connection between the hero, heroine or third wheel, didn’t grab me enough to make me emotionally invest in the story.  I wasn’t turning the page with that gut-twisting, angst and my inner voice saying “You were meant for each other.”  And that is the source of my disappointment – I didn’t fall in love with either of the men and I didn’t want to be Megan.  The book was well-written and it did get my attention but not for the reason I read romance.

This book has created a stir for many readers and the Web is full of blog posts and book reviews on the subject matter.  The bottom line is this: whether they love it or hate it, it has garnered a reaction from a great many people.

What books have you read that didn’t live up to your expectations but “stayed” with you anyway? Are there some plotlines, stories, subject matters that you will not read?

Robin

Thank You Al Gore

Motivation,

Okay  . . . I know that Al Gore didn’t invent the internet but I don’t know who did and I’ve got to thank someone!  The worldwide web has been key to my life as a writer and I don’t know what I would do without it.

Now, if you read the first ever post on this blog, then you the know that the Waterworld Mermaids was the result of a raucous game of “Romance Jeopardy” and the meeting of 13 virgins at the Washington Romance Writers retreat.  we came together – all new – but also recognizing names from the WRW Yahoo loop.  The first step in a new friendship – aided by the internet.

Writing is a solitary pursuit. “Butt in chair hands on keyboard” does not lend well to group activity. And if you want to be a writer, then you have to write. But, we all live apart from each other, some at a great distance and keeping connected is a challenge.

We need a sense of community. A cheering squad. A therapy group. A we-will-kick-your-ass-when-you-get-lazy group.  It keeps us grounded, motivated, and inspired.

If you are seeking virtual writing companionship I can make a few recommendations:

  • Your local RWA chapter – most of the local chapters have internet loops where members exchange information, news, celebrations and setbacks.
  • Online RWA chapters – for those who are not located near a local chapter there are a few online chapters. Check out the RWA website and hook up with one. Some are even genre specific – mystery, fantasy – find your niche. Also, check out the PRO and PAN loops.
  • GIAM – a free, online group of accountability, goals, motivation and friendship. They also have free workshops on relevant topics and techniques. I am member and I cannot say enough about this amazing group of writers started by the equally fantastic, Amy Atwell. Find them Facebook and the Website.
  • Savvy Authors – another great site for writers. This site is free – or you can upgrade to a premium membership. It has classes, a learning center, webinars, writing challenges and a Yahoo loop.
  • Twitter – I’ve hooked up with some great writers on Twitter and joined up with Vicky Dreiling to put on the weekly extravaganza, “Man Candy Monday Night”.  It’s frivolous and funny and full of half-naked, hot men.  Join us at the hashtag #ManCandyMonday and the blog for the choicest eye candy – I like to call it literary inspiration!
  • Facebook- don’t forget this social community as a source of information and connections to other authors.

See you in cyberspace!

Robin