As I sit and wait for a few more responses to the queries I sent out last week (and keep my mantra going in my head - "I will NOT get discouraged, I will NOT get discouraged"), I've been thinking a lot about my work-in-progress. Which, quite honestly, has not progressed very much lately, unfortunately. I need a good day to sit and write for a few hours. I was hoping to get to do that over my little mini-spring break, but sadly that just didn't happen.
But I have some pretty cool ideas for this one! I've already written a little teaser for it, which might actually turn into a query at some point. Of course, having only around 5000 words or so written, I'm clearly nowhere near the point of querying, but writing the teaser actually sort of helped me figure out where I want to go with it. Here's what I've written so far:
History cannot repeat itself.
Riley wouldn't let it. He won't let the girl he loves die by his own hand all over again.
The problem is, he doesn't know how to stop it. He's only remembering bits and pieces each night as he dreams. And the first time it happened was over fifty years ago.
Ella is no dummy; she knows something's been bothering Riley since the start of the school year. But she has no idea how big a risk she's taking as she tries to get closer to him. She can't help it. She's inexplicably drawn to him, and no matter how hard Riley tries to keep his distance, for her safety, he's drawn to her too.
Despite his best efforts, history might just repeat itself.
So there you have it. Obviously, I still have a lot of details to work out, a lot of how's and why's and when's, but every day I find myself thinking more and more about this one.
What do you think? Confused? Intrigued? Perhaps a bit of both??
Today's thing that makes me happy:
Cozumel's cheese dip (NOM! And yes, I'm aware that many of my happy things are food-related...)
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Monday, April 25, 2011
home is where my heart is
I tweeted earlier today that I would be completely content being a hermit. While that may not be entirely true- I do require some social activities from time to time-I'm seriously extremely happy to sit at home. I never really run out of things to do. And if I were home more often, just thing of all the new hobbies I could try out! I've always wanted to bake more, cook nice dinners for Dan all the time (provided I learn to cook a little better), learn to knit (think of all the outfits I could make for the cats!!), read my neverending stack of books, and of course, have endless time to write. Point being: if I win the lottery, you can bet I'd never be one of those people who keep working because they'd get so bored otherwise. Not this chick.
Today is the last day of my little mini-spring break that I was so looking forward to. Tomorrow it'll be back to reality. I just hope this week is a little less stressful and crazy than the past few weeks have been.
Today's thing that makes me happy:
The chicken parmesan I'll be making for us for dinner tonight. NOM.
Today is the last day of my little mini-spring break that I was so looking forward to. Tomorrow it'll be back to reality. I just hope this week is a little less stressful and crazy than the past few weeks have been.
Today's thing that makes me happy:
The chicken parmesan I'll be making for us for dinner tonight. NOM.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
and now...
...I wait.
And try not to compulsively check my Gmail account every five minutes. Right.
I sent out five submissions this morning. My hands were literally shaking as I typed out the first email, checking and doublechecking to make sure I was sending everything the agent asked for. I was paying so much attention to the information I was sending that I actually forgot to end it with my name and contact info.
Whoops. Guess I can probably cross that agent off my list. And that sucks, cuz she was one of my favorites. I did immediately resend it with all the info, but pretty sure the damage had been done. Frowny face.
But, there are plenty of other agents left on my list, and tons more out there that I still haven't even researched and added to it. I really do want to wait to see what kind of responses I get before I send any more, but I have a feeling I might send like three more after this weekend just to get a few more out there.
A shout out to my new followers- thanks for clicking that "follow" button! If you're reading this and still haven't clicked it, please do so! It only takes a second and I promise you won't get any crazy spam or anything.
Today's Thing That Makes Me Happy:
It's Thursday, I'm not at work, I'm surrounded by cats on the couch right now, and later it's TVD time at Karyn's. Life doesn't get much better!
And try not to compulsively check my Gmail account every five minutes. Right.
I sent out five submissions this morning. My hands were literally shaking as I typed out the first email, checking and doublechecking to make sure I was sending everything the agent asked for. I was paying so much attention to the information I was sending that I actually forgot to end it with my name and contact info.
Whoops. Guess I can probably cross that agent off my list. And that sucks, cuz she was one of my favorites. I did immediately resend it with all the info, but pretty sure the damage had been done. Frowny face.
But, there are plenty of other agents left on my list, and tons more out there that I still haven't even researched and added to it. I really do want to wait to see what kind of responses I get before I send any more, but I have a feeling I might send like three more after this weekend just to get a few more out there.
A shout out to my new followers- thanks for clicking that "follow" button! If you're reading this and still haven't clicked it, please do so! It only takes a second and I promise you won't get any crazy spam or anything.
Today's Thing That Makes Me Happy:
It's Thursday, I'm not at work, I'm surrounded by cats on the couch right now, and later it's TVD time at Karyn's. Life doesn't get much better!
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
butterflies
Tomorrow, kids. Tomorrow is the day. The first day of the rest of my life.
Well, hopefully, anyway.
Tomorrow is submission day! I'm off work, so I plan on sending out 3-5 queries. I have my favorite agents picked out for the most part, so I'll start with them. These are agents I feel a connection with through their blogs or the other authors they represent, so it would be a dream come true to have them represent me. And I'm starting small- like I said, only sending out 5 at the most. A lot of agents recommend this- that way, you can tell if your query is "working". If I keep getting rejection after rejection, my query needs to be revised. If I get some requests for partials or fulls, but then still end up getting rejected, it could be the story itself that isn't working.
I'm very nervous to finally start this process, to put myself out there for reals. It's a scary feeling! But also an exciting one. You never know what could happen, right? All it takes is for one agent to connect with my story, or to at least think it has potential.
After I send out the queries I'm going to do my best to stay busy tomorrow, so as to not check my email every 5 minutes hoping for a response. I know it's going to take a while- anywhere from 2 to weeks to 2 months. So there's no point in frantically signing into Gmail every hour. Even though I'm pretty sure I will anyway. But since I'm off, I plan on doing a bit of spring cleaning to take my mind off everything. Is it sad that I'm actually looking forward to cleaning out my closets? I love purging stuff. Makes room for new stuff. ;o) And then, of course, it's VV night at Karyn's. So I should be able to stay sufficiently occupied for most of the day.
I also wanted to take a second to say thanks for reading my blog! The more followers I have, the better I'll look to an agent. Like, ooh, people already like to read her stuff! It means a lot to me that you guys take a few minutes to read my ramblings!
Today's thing that makes me happy: DAYS OFF WORK. Here's to my mini spring break!
Well, hopefully, anyway.
Tomorrow is submission day! I'm off work, so I plan on sending out 3-5 queries. I have my favorite agents picked out for the most part, so I'll start with them. These are agents I feel a connection with through their blogs or the other authors they represent, so it would be a dream come true to have them represent me. And I'm starting small- like I said, only sending out 5 at the most. A lot of agents recommend this- that way, you can tell if your query is "working". If I keep getting rejection after rejection, my query needs to be revised. If I get some requests for partials or fulls, but then still end up getting rejected, it could be the story itself that isn't working.
I'm very nervous to finally start this process, to put myself out there for reals. It's a scary feeling! But also an exciting one. You never know what could happen, right? All it takes is for one agent to connect with my story, or to at least think it has potential.
After I send out the queries I'm going to do my best to stay busy tomorrow, so as to not check my email every 5 minutes hoping for a response. I know it's going to take a while- anywhere from 2 to weeks to 2 months. So there's no point in frantically signing into Gmail every hour. Even though I'm pretty sure I will anyway. But since I'm off, I plan on doing a bit of spring cleaning to take my mind off everything. Is it sad that I'm actually looking forward to cleaning out my closets? I love purging stuff. Makes room for new stuff. ;o) And then, of course, it's VV night at Karyn's. So I should be able to stay sufficiently occupied for most of the day.
I also wanted to take a second to say thanks for reading my blog! The more followers I have, the better I'll look to an agent. Like, ooh, people already like to read her stuff! It means a lot to me that you guys take a few minutes to read my ramblings!
Today's thing that makes me happy: DAYS OFF WORK. Here's to my mini spring break!
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Getting there
Well kids, I think I'm finally at the point where I'm be ready to start the submission process! It's been a long time coming, that's for damn sure. Remember when I thought I would be ready to start at the end of February?? And see now how it's already mid-April??
The synopsis killed my deadline. How I thought I'd be able to write that in a day or two, I'm really not sure. Once I started it, I had to take several breaks and step away from it so I wouldn't go mental. YOU try condensing 80,000 words down to around 1000- less if possible. Oh, and keep it in the same voice and tone as the novel itself. Right. Thanks to the help of my "editors" and two revising pow-wow sessions, plus another, oh 5 hours revising it myself, I've gotten it down to a reasonable word count (right around 1100) and cut out pretty much all the backstory I could. I'm left with a skeleton of the story, but I guess that's the point. As with the query and story itself...we shall see.
I've been getting asked lately if I plan on self-publishing. The answer to that is, well, I don't know. I definitely want to try to go the traditional route first, which means landing an agent who will work with me and the publishers. I really like that idea, seeing as how I am not schooled in the world of publishing. At all. Different agents have different opinions on self-publishing, too. Some view it as the kiss of death- like, don't even mention it if and when you write another book and try to land an agent for that one. Other agents believe the industry itself is evolving, and there's no shame in wanting to get your book out there by any means possible. I think I view it more as a last resort-type of option. I mean, if there aren't ANY agents out there who think my book is good enough to sell, does it matter that I think it will? Am I kidding myself? Shouldn't I just scrap it and start over with a different story?? I don't know. Clearly, I go back and forth on this a lot.
It all goes back to this: I won't know unless I try.
I'm going to start ending my blogs with something that makes me happy. The more positive vibes I throw out there, the better, right? So today, the thing that makes me happy is:
Meeting my Gramma for lunch every Wednesday. Since I've started my job out here, I meet her and my aunt almost every Wednesday, weather and meetings permitting. I cherish these weekly visits, and I'm so happy to have a Gramma who's still so active and fun at 84 years old. And the sliders at Bams are delicious. ;o)
The synopsis killed my deadline. How I thought I'd be able to write that in a day or two, I'm really not sure. Once I started it, I had to take several breaks and step away from it so I wouldn't go mental. YOU try condensing 80,000 words down to around 1000- less if possible. Oh, and keep it in the same voice and tone as the novel itself. Right. Thanks to the help of my "editors" and two revising pow-wow sessions, plus another, oh 5 hours revising it myself, I've gotten it down to a reasonable word count (right around 1100) and cut out pretty much all the backstory I could. I'm left with a skeleton of the story, but I guess that's the point. As with the query and story itself...we shall see.
I've been getting asked lately if I plan on self-publishing. The answer to that is, well, I don't know. I definitely want to try to go the traditional route first, which means landing an agent who will work with me and the publishers. I really like that idea, seeing as how I am not schooled in the world of publishing. At all. Different agents have different opinions on self-publishing, too. Some view it as the kiss of death- like, don't even mention it if and when you write another book and try to land an agent for that one. Other agents believe the industry itself is evolving, and there's no shame in wanting to get your book out there by any means possible. I think I view it more as a last resort-type of option. I mean, if there aren't ANY agents out there who think my book is good enough to sell, does it matter that I think it will? Am I kidding myself? Shouldn't I just scrap it and start over with a different story?? I don't know. Clearly, I go back and forth on this a lot.
It all goes back to this: I won't know unless I try.
I'm going to start ending my blogs with something that makes me happy. The more positive vibes I throw out there, the better, right? So today, the thing that makes me happy is:
Meeting my Gramma for lunch every Wednesday. Since I've started my job out here, I meet her and my aunt almost every Wednesday, weather and meetings permitting. I cherish these weekly visits, and I'm so happy to have a Gramma who's still so active and fun at 84 years old. And the sliders at Bams are delicious. ;o)
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
10 things that make me happy
When I was in high school, my friends Holly, Katie and I all got each other a book for Christmas (I think it was for Christmas, anyway- my memory is not so great) called 14,000 Things to be Happy About. It basically just listed a whole slew of things to, well, be happy about, like ice cream sundaes or striped socks. Silly little things like that. We would flip it to random pages and read it aloud, and it always made us laugh. I still have that book on my bookshelf today.
I've been feeling pretty good about my life lately, and since I'm sort of at another standstill with IMME(tomorrow I'll be having a pow wow with Debbie and Karyn to try to cut some stuff out of my synopsis, and then I'll be ready to start submitting-EEEEKK!), I thought I'd compile a list of things that put a little smile on my face. So without further ado:
10 THINGS THAT MAKE JOSIE HAPPY:
1. Taking my beautiful wedding ring out of the ring box my dad made me and slipping it on my finger every morning
2. Making Dan laugh- I love the sound of his laugh more than anything, I think
3. A hot cup of green tea at night (yes, I might be 92 years old)
4. Thursday night girly/food/wine/vampire nights
5. Ollie curled up in my lap, purring his rattley purr
6. Having a huge stack of books to-be-read- and on that same note, picking out the next one to start reading
7. Sleeping with the windows open - only another month or so til we can do this, hopefully!!
8. Macaroni & cheese (ok, I might be 6)
9. "Conversing" with Stewie
10. Days off work to look forward to
I could probably go on and on- although a lot of them would have to do with either food or books.
What sorts of things put a smile on your face?
Happy Hump Day!
I've been feeling pretty good about my life lately, and since I'm sort of at another standstill with IMME(tomorrow I'll be having a pow wow with Debbie and Karyn to try to cut some stuff out of my synopsis, and then I'll be ready to start submitting-EEEEKK!), I thought I'd compile a list of things that put a little smile on my face. So without further ado:
10 THINGS THAT MAKE JOSIE HAPPY:
1. Taking my beautiful wedding ring out of the ring box my dad made me and slipping it on my finger every morning
2. Making Dan laugh- I love the sound of his laugh more than anything, I think
3. A hot cup of green tea at night (yes, I might be 92 years old)
4. Thursday night girly/food/wine/vampire nights
5. Ollie curled up in my lap, purring his rattley purr
6. Having a huge stack of books to-be-read- and on that same note, picking out the next one to start reading
7. Sleeping with the windows open - only another month or so til we can do this, hopefully!!
8. Macaroni & cheese (ok, I might be 6)
9. "Conversing" with Stewie
10. Days off work to look forward to
I could probably go on and on- although a lot of them would have to do with either food or books.
What sorts of things put a smile on your face?
Happy Hump Day!
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