Or better know as Book-In-A-Month.

Have you tried this? There are online ways to participate–one that starts in a few short days.  Essentially, you write as much, as fast as you can in one month, pretty simple formula, really. Or actual books to follow (several varieties).

I have participated in the online version 4 years in a row. Once, I wrote a book full-out beginning to end. Once, I picked something up a couple of chapters into it and got huge chunk done. The other two times… it just wasn’t flowing for me. The books, I purchased a couple recently and have been thumbing through them–you know how it is excuses and life getting in the way.

The other day, I saw a workshop (I am in RWA, as I may have mentioned before, and various chapters hold online and in-person workshops to raise money). This workshop was to help refine you BIAM before submitting because (it said) of the influx of slush the editors get in November. Okay sometimes I can pick up on tiny minuscule clues and whatnot, but it never occured to me that folks did the BIAM in October and sent their stuff out IMMEDIATELY in November.

Sure, I have submitted my BIAM books, but um, many MANY months later. After really pouring through it and tweaking, editing and revising. There was no way, even in December of edits was the book ready to go out. I can’t imagine writng non-stop for a month to meet the 50K goal of the online BIAM and it having clear concise flow or focus.

Things like this confound me. And don’t (always) consider myself a simpleton, but just because it’s done doesn’t mean it’s ready.

I am curious as what y’alls thoughts to BIAM… and the subsequent slush pill rising.

tell me, tell me, tell me  

We’ve all talked over the woes of a writer’s life–the things that pause us, things that stop us cold in our tracks. But let’s get past that for a moment and think about what you need once you’re on the up-swing. I’m not talking about your muse and her wiles or inspiration from an art form to jumpstart the creative side of you. What do you use to revive the very soul, the person that is the writer?

Chocolates have long been touted as the cure-all. I am in no dispute there. But what other devices lift your waning spirit? Here are a few of mine . . .

~ A Starbucks Saturday (always hits the spot)

~ Lunch at Chili’s or Cheddars (everything is better with food!)

~ Whining phones calls to girlfriends (hopefully these are few and far between–the whining, not the girlfriends)

~ SHOPPING (especially if it is for something you don’t NEED!)

~ Something with alcohol (’Nuff said!)

~ Good toe-stomping music (’specially if the singer is wearing tight tight jeans–WAHOO!)
  My crooner of preference:

(Personally, I tend to take to my sewing machine, too!)
 

These are the ways I recharge, revive and relax.

How do you renew?

I have met Miss Kim in person a few times, we belong to one or two online chapters so it’s more of internet connection than anything. But I have to say in person or online she is a hoot and always makes me smile/laugh!

I did get to talk about her new release a few months ago during “Plug your friend’s book“  and she has a smoking hot cover (you don’t see enough chest hair on covers! mmmmmmmmm).

 Here’s a little Bio on her:

Kimberly Killion  writes Sexy Medieval Romances for Kensington Publishing/Zebra. She found her love for all things tragic, passionate, and historic after taking a mythology course in college.  The book wasn’t Romeo and Juliet, as you might suspect, but Dante’s Inferno, Oedipus, The Iliad, and a few other Greek tragedies. An artist by profession, Kimberly traded her paintbrush for a pen and began to explore the realm of romance. Sharing her passion for words by teaching college, Kimberly lives in

Illinois with her husband, two children, a dog, three cats, and two dozen chickens.

I can’t wait for y’all to meet her again on Wednesday ~ Denise ~

I have written many a WIP. Most in various stages of not finished. (If I mentioned there is almost 30 of them would you throw something at me? I have writer’s ADD, what can I say. Anyhoo . . . .)  Or I have great ideas for books and I will write down a line or two just to help me remember whenever I can sit my arse down and work on it. Inevitably though, I will read something, or worse, watch Lifetime and wham bam, I’ll be damned, it’s my idea.

I know there is really no such thing as an original idea anymore. Sure you can come up with a creative way to tell it, to interpret it, but truth be told it’s ALL been done before. My grievance however is the copycat effect.

I have written two-thirds of a WIP that I had read to a crit group, got so-so feedback and put it aside because I really need to re-work a certain aspect–as far as book reading goes, not so much plotline. Four years later, I am watching a (2008–so brand spanking new) Lifetime movie and low and behold the plotline is so similar I am watching the credits to see if I know the name of the “writer”. (and let me just say, this was a VERY specific storyline that the simliarities will have me doing internet searchces for a while to ensure that it was in fact a mere coincedence.)

Hollywood does this all the time–Armageddon  and Deep Impact  both came out at the same time–though I suspect the coincedence of Hollywood is a little more of one studio hearing of the others plans and trying to one-up the other–anyone remember the 3 or 4 Fisher/Buttafuoco  movies that came out the same week.

I have another WIP, again two-thirds complete only to read someone else’s book that is eerily similar and I think, “If I try and sell mine, they’ll say I copied her.” POP the book goes into hybernation or I want to run around shouting, “I swear I didn’t know she had written this book before me.” I suppose there is really no way to prove coincedence unless you go through some great lengths and have computers examined and whatnot to validate inception date–but who (other than myself) is that comletely obsessive about things?

It happens so often that other than some anal-retintive, will do anything to procrastinate writing gal like myself, people probably don’t give it a second thought. But it still freaky to me.

So Ames got me wondering (scary thought I know). Do folks wanna sell no matter what the cost? Not pulling any one publisher e or otherwise out as an example, but there are some good ones out there and there are some disreputible ones. Both keep signing new authors and publishing more and more books.

I do think some authors, when they get that offer or contract, have that little squiggle in their tummy that says, “y’know maybe you oughtta wait a minute and think on this.” But all they can see is the author name, title and ISBN number. Alas, they are blinded and sign away often times they lose in the end, but they were not to be detered. They could only see the book and not the details that followed.

Then there are folks who self publish. I have know a few. There are verious reasons why they go this path, but it seems ever harder to me. A couple of these folks have sold enough books that it made it worth the time and effort, but with the infux of new books out in the market every year, not having that publsiher behind you for an extra little push it’s very difficult.

Patience is NOT my strong suit. I don’t know what I would have done had I not been lucky when I sold my first book(s) to Samhain (Whom I adore). And by lucky I mean that they ARE a publsiher I adore. I’d like to think I wouldn’t take “just” whomever would offer me a contract–at the same time, I suppose the authors are submitting, it’s not like these publsihers are seeking them out right? Any which route you go, it’s difficult.

I guess it comes down to: do your homework. Know who you’re submitting to.

(my brain hurts now . . . enough thinking for this week)

Fits and spurts. . . sounds gross doesn’t it. I guess it is. It’s my creativity level and it comes in fits and spurts. I have yet to have the benefit of a contract so any and all of my writing is sold as a finished project. Which means, if I don’t finish the project I don’t HAVE anything to sell.

Last week (well actually the week before last week) I thought I would be writing up a storm and have half a book finished. You laugh. I can hear you. Don’t worry, it only hurts a little, but I won’t hold it against you. School started last week and I really thought I would hunker down, spend the week in front of my laptop and crank out the book (or 3) I’d pitched at Nationals.

Yeah, well, no. 

I think last week I watched 4 or 5 movies on HBO/Showtime. 2 or 3 on Lifetime (which is actually probably more like 10). And at least 3 trips to the store–four boys EAT A LOT, even when they are in shcool! I did six loads of laundry, 7 loads of dishes and wrote excatly ONE PAGE–over several days. I will say I DID have a migraine so that was part of the problem–but only an excuse, not a real book stopper.

It’s just that for the most part, I am still in that Writing-takes-a-back-seat mode. How does that work for movie watching, well, again, it’s just an excuse not to write. I do have an extremely supportive husband and the family is so braggy it’s embarrassing. But I still don’t feel like a full-time writer. I could be if I could keep my ass in the chair, but, well. . .  fits and spurts.

Sometimes, you (meaning me) get all hung up on the psychology of the story. What makes so-and-so tick. What is the underlying motivation, blah, blah, blah. You can overthink things. And then you get paralized with the mind crap that engulfs you. Then when you least expect it, like say sitting in your child’s class orientation, you get an idea that puts the book back on track and you’re scribbling notes on the edges of the school traffic route hoping the teacher–who knows you well thanks to older brothers being in her class–doesn’t call on you by name. (It smacks far too close to high school daydreaming.)

I need to find a way to make it spurt more that fit (again with the gross). I’ve tried the different, timed writing–which actually did work because I am competitive so had to get more pages than Ames or Lynn, but I can’t look for those 5 or 6 times a day until I get the book done–they are busy gals. I’ve tried the poster board plotting, but then I get claustrophobic feeling pigeon-holed into something and I rebel. You name it, and I have probably tried it–and owe Lynn a few lunches by now–learn to stop betting after oh, say, they first two or three times you miss your deadline!

It may come down to good old, sit your ass down and DO IT. I just have yet to train the dogs or fish to remind me of this throughout the day!

. . . on what I wrote last week, I have still been thinking: Rules. Are they neccessary? Needed? Important?

I think they are to a degree. Sure you can break them. But the thing is, you still have to know the rules in order to break them.

Driving home the other night, some SOB shot out in front of me and I had to lay on the brakes and the horn because the dumb f*&#*er apparently didn’t know what the red octagonal sign in front of him meant. My mind flashed to my 13-y-o and all the talks about “when you take driver’s ed” and how he would understand some of the road nuances once he learned the rules. If he then chooses to ignore them he has to face the consequences that come with it–like say the red and blue flashy lights that raced after the SOB . . .  hehehe.

If you don’t take driver’s ed, you may follow some rules, but you will also break rules, even if by accident. You will see other drivers doing certain things and you will follow their lead, so to speak, and use your common sense as to how and where the appropriate roadways, directions or even parking spaces are. But you may not neccessarily know why these things are important–like turning your tires the correct direction when parking on a hill–trees are not very forgiving to bumpers once that baby picks up speed!

Same goes for writing. You may happen to do some things correctly–common sense is a wonderful thing, but some of the “rules” per se, are particular nuances of writing such a POV/head-hopping, show don’t tell, even something as simple as “filter” words (knew, thought, saw, figured). But you have to know what is what BEFORE you can actually break it. Shoot even something as simple as formatting can be a nightmare if someone doesn’t know to double-space and to use fonts that are readable–my first typed WIP was single spaced and I found the “funnest” font I could–OMG!

Then I learned the rules.

Side note: POV is truly my biggest pet-peeve, mainly because when I joined a critique group years ago, it was the very first thing I was called out on. I was all over the place w/ my POV. Once I understood how dizzying it could be to jump from one person to the other and back and back, I learned how to write scenes from one person, do a page break and go to the next character.

Writing rules are a good jumping off point I think. Many, many people when they hear you’re a writer say, “I want to write a books some day.” (because we all know it is SOOOOO easy) I often tell them, that’s great, read up in the genre you’re interested in and make sure to get really craft books to learn what’s what.

But at the end of the day, the only true, steadfast rule for writers is: The story must be good. If you have a good story/stroy telling ability the other things are easy to fix.

…scary thought, I know. (must be why I am late this morning posting–my brain can only handle soooooooooo much!)

Anyhoo ~

I think I mentioned a while back that I have been judging many, MANY contests lately (paying my contest dues!) and it has been astounding how many folks have the SAME mistakes/quirks. Can’t tell you how many times  I have noted “show don’t tell” and how many many times “felt” peppered the story. I realized some of the entrants are failry new writers, but I was stiill confused by the amount of similarly needed comments. (and don’t get me started on the “filler” words as my editor calls them–sure I am guilty of these–*cough*300-thoughts-in-one-book*cough*)

Jump to the last few weeks . . . I have been reading many of the romance writers who brought me to the desire to write (I typically read newer writers as I am ever-afraid of picking something up in the middle of a series–I’m neurotic, what can I say?). What do you imagine I have found with these well seasoned writers? Hmm . . . . The same EXACT craft quirks I have been commenting on in contests. Coincedence? I think not.

Maybe I am in the wrong here and grading too harshly on some of these issues. A good story is a good story. But when it pulls you out of the story with a laundry list of “she felt this, this and this” and “he felt this, that and the other” I do think it needs to be addressed–but as I said it almost mirrors some of the well established writers. And is this a good thing? Or bad?

Or am I way over thinking this (which isn’t out of the norm for me)? :rasta:

… or not.

So booktrailers are the thing to some people. And some folks are less than impressed by them. I am just enough of a procrastinater to avoid writing and sit down to find pics and music to create one. And actually it is quite fun (for me). Especially when you have a piece of music that hits a cert pic right at the right moment . . .  I get all goosepimply!

In my honest, yet not sought out opinion, I think: what can it hurt to get another avenue of advertising out to the world? As long as you actually do get some writing done (which I have) and possibly get some reading done (which I will) and don’t have anything you’re taking yourself away from to create one (which if I did, I sure wouldn’t admit it).  And as I didn’t pay someone to do it–found royalty free pics and music, my own cover copy–I am out no money. BONUS!

I don’t know that I could pay someone to do it for me regardless of how much better it would look by a “professional”. I am still a tightwad when it comes to certain things–like not shoes or clothes–or pens

So I have forged again into the fray of techno-gal and created a trailer for TRADING FACES:

Whether it’s good or not, I can’t say for sure (and if you hate, I REALLY don’t want to know), but as for fun, YEP.

Besides, I can’t let my 13-y-o have all the fun on Youtube!

TODAY IS THE DAY!

TRADING FACES releases today from Samhain Publishing. WOOHOO!

There are worse things than winding up dead…

With her ex-husband’s death, Elyse Cabot thinks she’s permanently off the emotional roller coaster…until he turns up posing as his twin brother—the real victim of foul play—at his funeral. Before she can get any answers out of him, he’s gone, leaving her with more questions than closure.

And a fortune in loose diamonds.

Seeing Elyse again brings back a lot of hot, sweaty teenage memories for Jack. Then she opens her mouth and out comes some cockamamie story about her ex, diamonds and double crossing. So much for rekindling an old flame. Still, he just can’t seem to resist the lure of this dame in distress.

He just hopes he can solve the case before he does something stupid—like fall in love.

Sooo…. to celebrate it’s release, I’m going to give away one e-copy of the book. Leave me a comment and at the end of the day I will pull one name out.

EDITED 8/6/2008 : 

Drumroll please . . . . . . . . .

The winner of the free e-copy is: AMY S. 

email and format info in the comments. Congratualtions ~