About Me

My photo
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.

Tuesday, July 26, 2005

If you get stuck with your story plot, don't panic. I say that, but then I always panic. I panic for no reason because the plot always ends up working out. What I do is I give the story a rest for a couple of days. I let the thoughts float around in my head and then, poof, an idea pops into my head. Sometimes it helps to write the thoughts into a notebook. I always have a notebook handy anyway because I usually get my ideas when I am away from my computer like in the shower or in bed.

Happy writing!

Friday, July 22, 2005

I am working on my new book and trying to work out holes in the plot. It is driving me crazy! The best way for me to work this out is to get out my notebook and write specific questions about the characters actions, and then answer that question. It helps me to make sure that the plot moves along and that the characters' actions are believable.

Personally I don't like books that are too predictable, but the plot has to be believable. One of my favorite historical romance series is Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series. The characters are very well-developed and believable Also the plot has many surprises in store for the reader.

Happy writing!

Wednesday, July 20, 2005

Awe-Struck E-Books

I am so excited! Awe-Struck has selected my manuscript to publish as an e-book. Of Water and Dragons will be available as an e-book in early 2007. It feels wonderful to have my ms selected by someone. I can still have paperback copies made available to those that prefer print books to e-books.

I am busy at work on my sequel to Of Water and Dragons. It is tentatively titled RavenWolf. I am very excited about the sequel as well. There will be many surprises in store for my main characters. I am also introducing some new and exciting characters.

Gotta run!

Thursday, July 14, 2005

Romance review site

I have been super busy. Starting today, I am reviewing for Coffee Time Romance. I think it will be a good experience for me as a reader and as a writer. Other than that I have been sending out my books and press kits to other reviewers so I will have some reviews to post on my website.

My book has been selling on Ebay. Yeah! Never underestimate the power of the autograph. I list it as "signed by the author" and people are snapping it up.

Gotta run!

Saturday, July 09, 2005

I am studying Shamanism to help me understand the ancient tribes of the Scottish Highlands. This isn't a stretch for me because I have studied Celtic magic and Wicca, but Shamanism is more of an internal journey rather than using spell casting. An excellent book that explains the entire process of Shamanism is The Spiral of Memory and Belonging, A Celtic Path of Soul and Kinship by Frank MacEowen. This book really shed light my own spirituality and the path my own life has taken in recent years. Shamanism is connecting with your ancestors and nature, even walking between the worlds of the living and that of the spirits. Drums, rattles or music can help you on this journey. Some people have spirit guides, ancestors or animals, which guide them on their spiritual journey. My spirit animal is the wolf.

When I write, I put on my favorite music and I journey to another place. Sometimes the characters take over and lead the story and I have no conscious control over the outcome. I have an indian drum that I will play when I get writer's block. It actually helps!

Wednesday, July 06, 2005

My Faery Realm site

Since the main character in my book is a faery woman, I have created a web page dedicated to faery lore. So far I have a long list of all kinds of faeries and I plan to build on that. For my next book I am researching the Tuatha de Danaans, the "shining ones" of Ireland. I plan to add a page on them since the information on these faeries is extensive. The reason I am bringing this up is that to help promote a book, it is a good idea to add free content to your website that is related to the subject of the book. Writing articles related to the book subject is another way to promote a book.

Happy writing!

Sunday, July 03, 2005

Yahoo Group on Self-Publishing

There are many helpful groups online for people who write and self-publish. I belong to the Yahoo Group on Self-Publishing. I wish I had joined this group before I decided on a publisher, but what's done is done. There is a lot of good advice from this group, but some of the advice is a little harsh and can be discouraging to some. For example, there are some that say POD publishing will be a guarantee that your book will not get into bookstores. Now, I think that while it may take some work to get a POD book into bookstores, it isn't impossible. If the bookstore won't buy copies, then putting them in the store on consignment is an option. Also, gift shops may also be an option. My plan is to start with local stores and branch out from there. I just sold one of my books on Ebay as well. I think that anything is possible and in order to be a successful writer, you need to perservere and not get discouraged easily.

Happy writing!

Friday, July 01, 2005

An author site to check out

I found Janet's site to be very helpful to me. She has authored 13 books and has been quite successful at self-publishing, especially POD publishing, which is what I have done. For those who don't know, POD, stands for Print On Demand, and is a cheaper way to self-publish, but it is more difficult to get your books into bookstores this way. Janet Elaine Smith has an e-book called Promo Paks Plus that is very helpful to POD authors. She even goes through each section step-by-step to make it easier to understand. I found it to be quite helpful.

Happy writing!

Wednesday, June 29, 2005

I have been getting positive feedback from people who have read my book. Everyone says that they can't put in down, which is really good news for me. Now the pressure is on to write a sequel that is as good or better than the first one. Right now I am stuck halfway through the sequel as to where I am going with the plot. Writing the first book taught me that when I get stuck, it helps to let it sit for a few days so I can sort the ideas out in my head. That means I will be walking around in a daze with all of these thoughts floating around in my head. So if I am seen staring off into space at the grocery store, that's why. I have to be especially careful when I drive because I have been known to forget where I am going. Writing can be dangerous!

Tuesday, June 28, 2005

Another review site

I have been surfing the web looking for more sites to review my book. Some sites will only review certain publishers and I figure they aren't right for me anyway. If you believe in yourself things will happen. I did everything I could to make this a good book-I had it edited and I had an awesome cover designed that makes my book stand out in a crowd of books. These two things are very important to self-publishing. Too many self-published books have not been edited and the writing quality is very poor. Even the most accomplished authors have their manuscripts edited.

Monday, June 27, 2005

I wasn't able to get much writing done today, but last night I was able to work out some bugs in the plot. To get my train of thought going I wrote any ideas that came to mind down in a notebook. This helps me to think about the story without having to force the ideas out, which never works for me. Writing this way also helps to break the dreaded writer's block by letting the ideas flow naturally. There are still a few bugs I need to work out, but I am on the right track now.

Sunday, June 26, 2005

I am working on creating characters for my next book. For me the best way to do this is to write a profile for each character, which includes name, physical characteristics, hobbies, occupation, personality, habits and mannerisms that set them apart from everyone else. The characters I am working on today are otherworldly beings, but I like to give them human qualities. For instance, one of my characters likes to hum to herself a lot. Sometimes assigning an astrological sun sign to a character helps mold his or her personality. I think character development is very important to writing a story because well-defined characters bring the story to life. Gotta go and work on this now.

Saturday, June 25, 2005

An e-book site that publishes women

I have decided to submit my work to an e-book site that only publishes women. Currently my book is only available as a trade paperback and it might help to give people more than one choice. I have spent all morning writing a query letter and a bio. There are so many different formats for query letters, but I think that simple is the best way to go. Don't add insignificant information that has nothing to do with the manuscript and always follow the guidelines for submissions. I figure if this e-publisher rejects me then it wasn't meant to be and I will submit to another one. Dealing with rejection is a huge part of writing and I try not to let it get me down because I believe in myself. Gotta go organize my office. What a mess!

Friday, June 24, 2005

Writing, writing, writing...

I finally got some writing done. Afternoon and early evening seems to be the right time for me to write. I think because my mind is free of all the clutter from the day's chores. Yes, I have household chores that need to be done. In exchange for me staying home and writing, I made a deal with my husband that I would do all the cleaning, laundry, grocery shopping and meals-chores that we shared when I was also working full time. I found another good site yesterday called onlineforbooks.com where you can list your website and book description for free! Well, I'm off to check out some more sites!

Thursday, June 23, 2005

Site that will review my book

It is 12:28 pm and I still haven't worked on my new book, the sequel to Of Water and Dragons, which I was supposed to do today. I keep getting side tracked on the internet-setting up this blog is the reason I haven't written one word today. Does this blog count? I will say "yes" and feel good that I am at least writing something today. The good news is I am finding more sites that will review my book, the most recent at www.midwestbookreview.com. Today I sent off one of my books to New Zealand for review on www.loveromances.com. I feel good that I have accomplished something besides the grocery shopping.