First Day of Spring

The warm breath of Spring

Drapes the world in misty veils

Caught on yellow daffodils

- C Hardy 2012

Great news!

I am all aflutter today.

The Write Stuff Conference hosted by the Greater Lehigh Valley Writers Group was fantastic. James Scott Bell's sessions were funny, informative and inspiring. I also had excellent conversations with several of the other writers who attended. Their advice was to stop worrying so much about conflicting feedback and just do what feels right.

Mr. Bell said I may have "critique-group-itis." Heh. I bought all his books, thinking as I did so how valuable platform is for sales.

The REALLY AWESOME NEWS, however, is that I met a lovely agent who is interested not just in my fantasy novel, but in the new project I have in mind to tie urban fantasy into my fictional world. I know that asking for a manuscript is no guarantee of representation, but the fact that she is interested is huge for me. I never thought anyone would be the least bit interested in my work, other than my dear friends who already know my characters from Come in Character. I'm just...fluttery and tingly and a bit numb.

So much work to do: revising the old and writing the new. I hope to be able to send her a polished version of The Golden Gryphon in a few months, as well as the first three chapters of the currently untitled WIP.

So, how was your weekend?

Oh, I almost forgot... The Sunday Snapshot!

Post the last paragraph or few lines of dialogue of whatever you're working on.  It doesn't have to be perfect, it doesn't even have to be good... It just has to be yours.

I'm revising Gryphon at the moment, so this is the very last thing I worked on:

“We’d better get out of here,” Faldur shifted his bow and quiver on his back. “That elevya likely sensed us.”

Mentally he added, If you’re reading me, tell Chalmeth I wish him a merry Midwinter's Eve, and I’ve got my eyes on him.

Harth pulled out a flask of velasz, the potent peach brandy for which the Glenhym region was famous, took a swig and handed it to Faldur. Faldur raised it to his lips and swallowed. The heat rolled down his throat into his stomach, then spread through his limbs. He nodded his thanks to Harth and handed it back.

Revising Again

Oh, dear God, here I am again. Revising my fantasy novel. The poor, wretched thing I started five years ago just to get myself writing after a ten-year-hiatus.

I've grown so much since I started it that I cringe now to see my old words on the page. It was so hard just figuring out the story. I have to remember that until now I've been writing for content, not style.

Yes, I wrote it "organically." That is, by the seat of my pants. Do you know how that expression originated, by the way? It's a term from the early days of aviation when pilots lost their instrumentation and had only their instincts to guide them. Up in the clouds, no navigaion... just your butt in the seat and a prayer on your lips.

That pretty much sums up the experience!

Heading to The Write Stuff conference on Friday. Can't wait! I've got a shiny first page and synopsis to contribute to the paneled critique session. I've also submitted my query to Matthew McNish's Quintessentially Questionable Querying Experiment blog. Should be up in a couple of weeks, I guess.

I've also started a new novel. Yay! The first in five years. I've also written my first short story in about eight years, but it needs a lot of work.

How are you all doing?

Sunday Snapshot

It's time for a Sunday Snapshot. Post the last paragraph or several lines of dialogue you wrote. It doesn't have to be perfect, it doesn't even have to be good. It just has to be yours.

Here's mine:

“I am delighted to make your acquaintance.” Roger released her hand to take Audra’s instead. He brought it to his lips in a brief kiss. 

Audra’s eyebrows slid so high that they disappeared under her frowsy bangs. “I’m delighted, too.” 

Roger smiled and let go of her hand.

“Shall we go in?” he said, looking at Ginger. “We can have a drink inside.”

“Yes, please.” Ginger stood up and pushed her hair back against the wind.. “Audra?”

Audra waved them off. “Oh, no. You two get acquainted. I wouldn’t want to intrude on young love.”

Writer's Conferences and Critique Sessions

Soooo... on Friday I'm leaving for my second trip to the Greater Lehigh Valley Writer's Group "The Write Stuff Conference."  I've avoided conferences until last year because I just find the whole concept too intimidating. The subtitle of any session seems to be "What You Are Doing Wrong." The thought of publishing, while not inducing the fetal ball position any more, still leaves me quaking in my shoes.

Last year I was sick with a virus, had to get up at 4 a.m. on a Saturday in order to be there, and ended up in an unexpected appointment with a very gracious editor who guided me through a pitch for which I was completely unprepared. I could think of nothing to say. Not a word. I literally just stared at her and said, "Um, I am really sorry but I don't know what to say."

Now, I'm not such a doofus as I might seem. A week before the conference, I was informed that agent I was supposed to meet with was unable to attend.  No one else represented fantasy there, so I figured I would just go for the experience and not try to pitch my book. I ended up being shoehorned into an appointment by an overly-helpful staff member. Being high on cold medicine, when she asked me at 10:45 if I could make an 11:00 appointment I said, "Sure" thinking I had an hour to prepare.

Yeah. It was one of those days.

Me and Echelon Press author Jon Gibbs

But Karen Syed, owner of Echelon Press, was truly lovely and helped draw out a few details of my story. She gave me her card and the contact info of one of her acquisitions editors. I have not yet inflicted my book upon that poor editor.

This year I am able to arrive Friday night for the First Page critique session. Seriously, I have rewritten the first page of The Golden Gryphon so many times that only question is which first page to use. I have several well-polished versions. If only the rest of the book was that shiny!

I might even just be bold enough to bring the first page of the book I started last weekend on my writer's retreat.  After five years, something new. Woo-hoo! I don't know if I can stand it.

No fantasy agents at all this year. (shrug) That's okay. I'm feeling less intimidated about the sessions because last year was really great. At least I don't have to worry about pitching. Unless they get all helpful on me again.....

The Writer's Satisfaction Survey Results

The results are in for my most excellent, totally unscientific sample of you, my marvelous readers. Thirty-four of you condescended to answer my impertinent questions. Here is what you (and I) said.

~ ~ ~ * ~ ~ ~

56% of us work full-time for someone else or own our own business.
12% are full-time stay-at-home parents with children under 14
6% write part-time for income
with a smattering of other situations

12% don't fit into any of the dozen categories I provided. Perhaps you are living off lottery winnings?

~ ~ ~ * ~ ~ ~

Chocolate is the number one fuel for our creativity, with coffee following in second place. 29% of you state that your own determination is the only thing that keeps you going. I am definitely *not* in that category.

In the "other" responses you replied:

* chocolate soy milk (which I also love but let's face it, it's the chocolate that makes it yummy)
* your new dog
* water
* whatever is in the fridge
* the urge to create
* writers' groups.

~ ~ ~ * ~ ~ ~

Nearly 1/3 of us spend 11-20 hours a week on writing-related activities, with 12% spending 31-40 hours.( I presume that is the same 12% who won the lottery, or perhaps the vampires? No, actually you are the really dedicated ones.)

We freely admit that we don't spend our whole writing time actually putting words on the page. The percentage distribution was fairly evenly spread between 25%-75% for most of us, with 50% as a happy median.

~ ~ ~ * ~ ~ ~

1/3 of us feel that we are "Halfway there" to meeting our writing potential, with a little more than 1/3 "Growing by leaps and bounds." 12% are "Right where I want to be."

The vast majority of us (62%) plan to publish traditionally, nearly 1/3 plan to publish in a magazine or anthology, 24% are just writing for ourselves and 21% plan to self-publish.

~ ~ ~ * ~ ~ ~

As far as our frustration level goes, 35% of us are "Somewhat or Very Frustrated" with our ability to complete writing-related tasks, while 35% are "Somewhat or Very Pleased," and 29% in the middle. A nice little bell curve there.

We do better at completing non-writing related tasks, with 50% of us feeling "Somewhat or Very Pleased" and only 27% "Somewhat or Very Frustrated." Your houses must be cleaner than mine. I think I took this photo just before having company. I am certain I took everything off the table, dumped it in a laundry basket and hid it in the basement.

~ ~ ~ * ~ ~ ~

More self-discipline was cited by half of us as something that would help us be more productive, indicating that we are a conscientious bunch who don't blame other people for our problems.  Other things we chose include fewer distractions during our writing time, less stress and feeling more confident in general.

I intentionally left "more time to write" out of the answer choices because I knew everyone would pick it. I was not surprised to see it show up in several of the comments. A couple of you would like to quit your day jobs and just write full time. I used to think that too, but now I've changed my mind.

I mean, at least now I have a reason to get up and get dressed in the morning, rather than lounging all day in my pajamas and hiding from the mailman. Plus, people have to be nice to me or I won't help them design and analyze their surveys. Um, yeah. That's part of what I do for a living.

SO... WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN???

The "Hole" is what I hoped it would be... a place for writers at all different stages of their development to hang out. On average, we are.... average. We aren't as frustrated or dissatisfied as I expected. We see ourselves as growing and improving, and strive to be more disciplined. We have goals, but are also willing to follow our own courses.

I am "Very Pleased" to be part of such an awesome bunch!

 Here, have a cup of tea and a sandwich on me.

Sunday Snapshot

It's time again for a Sunday Snapshot of your work in progress.  Post the last paragraph or several lines of dialogue that you wrote. It doesn't have to be perfect. It doesn't even have to be good. It just has to be yours!

The more, the merrier. I love reading snippets of what everyone else is writing.

Here's mine:

She caught one last view of the house as she drove away. A normal, white colonial farmhouse set in a diorama of green created by spreading trees and a ten-foot-high arborvitae hedge. Bright clumps of red and yellow mums sat on the porch, smiling at her through the rain.  She had no idea if she’d ever see it again.