Sterling progress, indeedI

I just have to begin by pointing out that at this moment I am watching both Timeline and Phantom of the Opera. It's fantastic - when Gerard Butler is no longer in the scene of one movie, I turn to the other, then back again. The cycle continues and it is indeed glorious.

Today was a wonderful day for writing. As I mentioned in my last post I did some plotting and outlining over the weekend. Today was the official start of the official "Write Along with Katie (MacAlister). When she begins a new book several of her fans post their writing progress along with hers. So I'm joining in and my daily goal is 1,500 words.

My muse, I have named her Persephone, was on a freaking roll today. I have logged over 6,000 words. Three days worth, woohoo! I need to get ahead too since I'm not sure how much I'll get done this weekend. I have a conference that entails drinking most of the night and sleeping most of the day. The conference itself is lame, it's the hospitality suites that are worth the trip. Not to mention it's at the beach. Who knows, maybe some Stoli's vodka and Everclear, mixed with a beachfront rental, will inspire some exciting prose.

Don't worry, if I do write drunk and if it's super silly - I'll be sure to share my drunken musings on Monday. Maybe I should give it a try... I know, I'll write a sex scene when I'm drunk. That should be interesting.

Back to my progress. Oh wait, Gerard just got clocked on the back of the head with a heavy sword. He's gone, back to Phantom...pausing while I change the channel...oh it's the lame guy. Anyway, back to my progress, again. Most of it was new writing, but some of it was rewriting of what I had before. Oh! There's Gerard and his sexy half face! Man, this other guy is a tool.

Jeez, this is distracting. So to sum it up 2,000 words of blogging later (sheesh), today was a good day for writing. Hopefully I can get a lot done tomorrow too. Now I'm going to go back and finish re-reading Katie MacAlister's "A Girl's Guide to Vampires." I've been taking notes on the plot points while reading it. I think it will help me pace my own novels. I'm going to give that a try with a few books.

But wait! You may be asking, "Lisa, what about the writing nook you built over the weekend that you were so excited about? I thought you were going to write there to get away from the tv. You dirty liar."

My response is, jeez, quick to judge, eh? Awww, Gerard just picked up the rose. Poor baby, I'll sooth his pain. Hubba hubba. ;-) Back to your snippy question. The chair gave me a killer backache yesterday, so I need to find a new on. And why are you on my case? I tripled my daily goal! Jeez louise! Just kidding, I need people like you to keep me on my toes.

Writing on track

My weekend was well spent. I got a lot of things done.

*I went through several drawers of random papers and filed them or threw them away so that I can prepare for taxes and organize the office
*I prepared a nifty writing nook in the office. I took a couple of those plastic drawer stands, the ones with three drawers, and laid a piece of wood across the top. A perfect makeshift table. I put my writing books there, writing supplies, charts, etc. Now I can write when I get home from work - away from the damn TV
*I finished Laurell K. Hamilton's Incubus Dreams - done with the Anita Blake series. Oh wait, Micah comes out on Tuesday. Damn! Good news, I finally read Bitten & Smitten by Michelle Rowen. It's been waiting patiently for me to finish the Anita Blake series. I took advantage of the break until Micah and I devoured it. It was a fantastic book! I'm going to read it again in a couple weeks because I plan to make a plot chart of a few of my favorite books so I can get a good idea for pacing and plot movements.
*And most importantly - I got a good understanding and outline of my book going. I had already written about 10k, but I hit a wall with the plot. I knew where I needed it to end up, but I just couldn't get there. But now I think I got it.

Here's the new goal: first draft complete on April 21st. Not before, not after. That is my birthday and if I write 1,500 words per day I'll hit my 90k goal on that day. It's a Friday so I already had planned to go drinking with a couple of friends, now I can add celebrating the completion of the first draft. Sounds good to me, more reason to chug some vodka. Stoli's baby, yeah.

Some of my plot points have changed enough that I have to start over with the writing. But I think I can salvage a large chunk of it with a rewrite, so hopefully I can get ahead of the goal. I've got major turning points and plot things briefly outlined through the middle of the book. I figure that once I get a better idea of the story, characters, etc. plotting the second half will come easier.

Boy am I babbling tonight. I guess I just spent too much time thinking this weekend ;-)

Snarkling unscathed

A question I sent to Miss Snark made it on her blog today, and I made it through unscathed. No scoffing, laughing or general poking fun. Her response was pretty helpful. If you're interested, here 'tis.

I'm also super pumped to have been added to Michelle Rowen's sidebar! I recommend that EVERYONE read her blog, including her past postings. See my reasoning here.

I also got the program NewNovelist. It's pretty helpful for general information and notes about characters, locations, story events, etc. I like it because I can keep all the information in one place without 100 pages in Microsoft Word or a bazillion different files. I can easily click to the hero if I feel like adding witty things he would say, past experiences, etc. Me likey the program. Teehee, just had a memory of SNL's "you like-eh-da-sauce?" skit. I like the one with Kirstie Alley (sp?) where she's on her honeymoon or something and the guys are practically molesting her. Good times.

Update: Business cards are expensive and self-printing is a crock. Things are super cheap until I mention that I want to print in black ink on the back then things go haywire and the price goes up exponentially. How can printing full color on the front be cheap but black ink on the back makes it crazy? I mean I can understand it, I've worked with print jobs but it does nothing to lessen my frustration.

Funny joke

In honor of my husband's and my anniversary today, I post this joke for a giggle. I don't recall the last time I read something and nodded in agreement so often.

"I can't find it"
MEANS: It didn't fall into my outstretched hands, so I am completely clueless.

"Will you marry me?"
MEANS: Both of my roommates have moved out, I can't find the washer, and there's no peanut butter left.

"It's a guy thing."
MEANS: There's no rational thought pattern connected with it, and you have no chance at all of making it logical.

"Can I help with dinner?"
MEANS: Why isn't it already on the table?

"It would take too long to explain"
MEANS: I have no idea how it works.

"Take a break, honey, you're working too hard."
MEANS: I can't hear the game over the vacuum cleaner.

"That's interesting dear."
MEANS: Are you still talking?

"Honey, we don't need material things to prove our love."
MEANS: I forgot our anniversary again.

"You know how bad my memory is."
MEANS: I remember the words to the theme song of F-Troop, the address of the first girl I kissed, and the vehicle identification number of every car I've ever owned, but I forgot your birthday.

"I was just thinking about you, and got you these roses."
MEANS: The girl selling them on the corner was a real babe, and was wearing a thong bikini.

"Oh, don't fuss, I just cut myself, it's no big deal."
MEANS: I have actually severed a limb, but will bleed to death before I admit I'm hurt.

"She's one of those rabid feminists."
MEANS: She refused to make my coffee.

"I heard you."
MEANS: I haven't the foggiest clue what you just said, and hope I can fake it well enough, so that you don't spend the next three days yelling at me.

"You know I could never love anyone else."
MEANS: I am used to the way YOU yell at me, and realize it could be worse.

"You really look terrific in that outfit."
MEANS: Please don't try on one more outfit, I'm starving.

"I missed you."
MEANS: I can't find my sock drawer, the kids are hungry, and we're out of toilet paper.

"I don't need to read the instructions."
MEANS: I am perfectly capable of screwing it up without printed help.

Summary done, almost

I worked on fixing the summary during my lunch break and I decided that the 25 word summary can f*** off. I have written a couple of possible summaries that are between 60 and 70 words and I feel good about them. Now I just have to decide which one I like or blend the two.
Option 1:

Bianca Embry's boring but content life was turn upside down when her best friend asked for help. She was forced to use the psychic abilities she's grown to despise, while the investigation led her to the alluring and dangerous vampire Dorian Buchan.

Bianca must balance her growing attraction to Dorian, her unpredictable psychic abilities and the dark secrets she learns of her family and their vampire hunting legacy.

Option 2:

Bianca Embry thought she was content with her life, but when her best friend asked for help and introduced her to the alluring yet dangerous vampire Dorian Buchan, she realized her life wasn't what it seemed.

Bianca must balance her growing attraction to Dorian, her unpredictable psychic abilities and the dark secrets she learns of her family and their vampire hunting legacy.

Anyone have an opinion on either one? I was going to print business cards myself but I'm having problems with the paper and my printer. So I am either going to FedEx Kinko's or Vista printing online. I'm really not just stalling on writing, I swear! I think having this little blurb will help me keep the gist of my story at the front of my brain. Yeah, yeah, more excuses.

Brief summaries are HARD

So, I'm making business cards as a "writer." I have a totally cute design on the front, pink of course! However, I'm trying to write a brief summary of my book for the back of the business card. I figured that would be business savvy so people had a better chance of remembering me later if we talked about the book, or if we didn't talk about my book it's still getting the word out.
I figured it should be 25 or 30 words. You know, brief. Riiiiight. I've narrowed it down to 90 words. This is very difficult, but I know it needs to be done. It's like crafting an elevator speech, but I'll call this a "passing by in the bathroom" speech - it has to be that quick. I think. Or is 80 or 90 words ok? It fits fine on the card, but I figure agents and editors want to see that you can succinctly summarize your book because the PR/marketing people will have to do it too.

I haven't even finished the damn book and I'm worrying about other things. Why am I neurotic? No, it's not neurotic, it's business savvy. Right? Sure? Right? No? Ok. Oh well. It's easier than writing right now so I'm doing it. So neener-neener-pumpkin-eater.

In other news, I forgot to rinse out my pink coffee travel mug thingie yesterday. I don't drink coffee so why would I have one? Well, I have this fantastic thing called the Magic Bullet. You may have seen the informercial, it's enthralling. Folks, it actually works. Honest to God, I don't get paid to pump there stuff (unless you want to pay me Magic Bullet people), it's awesome. I make fruit smoothies before work each morning and within 30 seconds it blends about 6 ice cubes, a banana, about 8 frozen strawberries and water. There are no ice chunks, it's completely smooth. And the nifty blending cup you use makes just enough smoothie for my BEAUTIFUL coffee/smoothie mug. Back to the story at hand, I get sidetracked when thinking of the Magic Bullet. I forgot to rinse the fruit smooth residue and now it smells like rotten fruit. Pooh.

Here is a picture of my BEAUTIFUL coffe mug (and the pretty pink business cards that I'm proud of). My nifty cell phone takes pictures and I don't use that option enough, so I figure I'll be taking more pictures of random things for my blog. I'm easily amused.

Feeling stuck again

I didn't meet my word count goal for the weekend, which frustrates me. But just by revising the 10k I had, I added another 1,000 words. I then added about another 1,000 fresh text on top of that. So 2k of 5k isn't terrible. I would hav easily hit my goal, but I hit another roadblock.
My heroine is going to help solve a crime during the book. I had a crime in mind that led her to the hero, but it's just not working for me. So now I have to think of a new crime, arrghh. Does anyone know of a cool Web site that gives situations for crimes? I could use some inspiration.

I've also just decided not to go to the Romantic Times convention. I'm bummed, but I think it's for the best. The hubby and I want to buy a house and that $1,000 or so would look better in our savings account than being used on a conference. Hopefully I can make it to the RWA convention in July instead. And I'll definitely have my book done by then. The good news is that since I'm no longer taking a week of vacation for that convention, I can take a week off another time. So I'm taking a week off in March. Hopefully I'll get a ton done on the book.

Goal for today: Think of new crime as basis for my story that will keep the hero and heroine interacting throughout the book and write at least 1,000 words.

New hero inspiration

When I started working on my NaNoWriMo story in November, I had chosen a couple of actors to be the physical inspiration of my characters. I had thought that it was something that shouldn't be done, or wasn't done. But I guess I was wrong because I've seen many published authors mention that their characters are based on real people, phsysically at least.

I had planned that Gerard Butler was going to be the inspiration for my hero, Dorian. Mostly how he looked in Dracula 2000, I like longer hair for vampires. Here's an example:



How could you say no to his eternal kiss? Eh? Am I right? Of course I am.

But, last week I caught a show I've always wanted to see - Mindfreak. It's about a guy named Criss Angel who does magic things, phsyic-esque things, etc. Totally fantastic show and Criss Angel is wonderful. He is now my new Dorian in the vamp series I'm working on. He fits it perfectly, so I'll save lovely Gerard for another day :-) Oh yeah, and Johnny Depp.

Here is a couple of pictures of Criss Angel:

Will. Write. Damnit.

It's Friday, which means that day job is over for the week and moonlighting begins. No, I'm not a stripper, but I hear they make good money. I digress. The weekend means that I have to get my ass in gear on this manuscript. I need to have good working draft before the RT convention in May. Can it be done, you ask. I don't know. It seems that only experienced novelists finish their first 90k book in three months. Am I an experienced novelist, you ask. Well, no, this is my first novel. But can I do it, you ask. I kind of have to if I want an editor or agent appointment. Crack that whip!
Here's the math breakdown for all you geeks out there (like me). Three months to the day until the convention begins, approximately 90 days. Well, your first reaction may be - "Lisa, all you have to do is write 1,000 words a day and you'll be set!" Then I laugh in your face at your imprudence. Poor naive fool. You think my first draft will satisfy me? Ha! I scoff at you.

No, no, no, I'm just joking. You're not stupid, just common sense challenged ;-). So, 90 days, 90k words. Here's the plan - first draft done in two months. That gives me one month to revise and prepare a synopsis for the convention. Can I actually do this, you ask, again. We'll see.

I'm at 10k now, so I guess I just need 80k or so. That's about 1,333 words a day. Holy shit! Am I doing NaNoWriMo again? What the fuck? Excuse the language but that math does not please me.

(Stop bitching Lisa, you want to finish this book so that if an agent or editor happens to request it you can send it to them relatively close to the end of the convention). Yes, that's right. Yes, thank you inner diva.

To kick start this beotch, I hope to reach 15k by the end of the weekend. Wish me luck and send me chocolate vibes, that may help. I need some diet coke... Thank goodness for the Alphasmart 3000 or I would probably spend the writing time playing Age of Mythology.

Michelle Rowen's blog

I recommend that everyone, especially those aspiring to be published, check out Michelle Rowen's blog (http://www.michellerowen.com/blog/) - I don't know how to insert links. Sorry...

I learned of her first release "Bitten & Smitten" on Katie MacAlister's forum. So, sometime last fall I began reading her blog daily. It's fantastic. Funny, informative, and especially inspirational. So I decided to read all her blog entries from the last couple of years. You may think I'm crazy, but I just decided to do it. I didn't do it in one sitting or anything, don't worry. But I read a couple of month's worth a day during my lunch break.

You should take the time to do this, especially earlier ones, because it chronicles her journey from unpublished to published. It's very exciting to read about her getting an agent, then getting "the call," editing the CONTRACTED manuscript, etc. It renewed my confidence and got me moving faster toward finishing my MS. She's living the real thing. Wanted to be a writer, so she wrote. Tried to get published, so she did. Still working the day job, at least for now. Struggles with finding time to write, like many of us.

It's very inspirational. Her entries represent what so many of us think and worry about. My MS isn't good enough. What if this one book is a fluke? What if no one buys it? What if it gets poor reviews? It's very real, not to mention totally funny and links to fantabulous quizzes! I think that's why it took me so long to go through, I did all the quizzes and games, I mean ALL of them.

So - read Michelle's blog. Buy "Bitten and Smitten" and pre-order "Angel with Attitude." Damn it now!

Confession time: I've had "Bitten and Smitten" waiting patiently for me for a couple of weeks. I had meant to read it the day it came out because I had been anticipating it since the fall, but I made a poor decision. I started the Anita Blake series just before BS came out. And I'm sure you can understand how difficult that series is to put down. I'm almost done with Circulean Sins, so BS will get my undivided attention in a couple of days. Michelle, I'm sorry that I have neglected your book, but after reading your blog, I'm sure you can understand about the LKH thing. I just have to get to Incubus Dreams since everyone seems to be up in arms about it.

And Michelle totally posted on my journal recently. I was super tickled! (Thanks Michelle!)

Pic of the day - pumpkin booty

Great example of making use of what you got, gotta love it

Current writing thoughts

I feel the need to share some of the bazillion thoughts running through my head. It just feels therapeutic to say them out loud (or type in a LiveJournal) so I can move on.

1) Writing is hard. Don't get me wrong, I love it, but man can it be hard. You have to make sure it's interesting with believable characters. It has to be original, but something that the reader can relate to. Since my books are a series, I have to make some plot points spread out so people would want to read the other books.

2) I need an agent. I don't know why I care at this point since my manuscript isn't finished. But I know that it is a step to eventually take and when it comes to something I want, I'm not always patient.

3) I wish there were 30 hours in a day. I would devote 3 of those to sleep and 3 to writing. Maybe 2:4 - if I'm feeling motivated. I would get things done a lot faster that way.

4) I'm scared shitless of revisions. I think that's why I'm moving a bit slower at the writing - I know I'm going to end up changing it all anyway. At least I'm not editing as I go, I would never finish a book that way.

5) What if I can't do this? What if I have immersed myself into the writing world and community as much as I possibly could and as fast as I could and it doesn't work? What if I spend hundreds and hundreds of hours writing, editing, shopping for agents and publishers, and it doesn't ever sell and I resort to self-publishing. What if I fail? But then I think, I've wanted to be a novelist since I was very young. I would rather fail than never try and wonder if I could do it.

6) When I finish my manuscript, I think I will print it on multiple colors of paper and use it as wallpaper. That will be my writing room. Yes, that sounds like a glorious idea.

7) Will my husband be angry if I plaster our walls with my manuscript?

8) I wonder if the RT conference is worth the money and vacation time. It seems great on paper and from what I hear, but that's a big financial committment.

9) I hope my vampire world is creative enough to be interesting and liked by people. I hope it's not too much like anyone else's. Reading vampire romance makes it difficult to be original, but it helps with ideas and seeing how much can be done. Catch-22.

10) It's hard to focus on one manuscript when another idea is nagging at me. Maybe I should just outline the books in my head and move on.

End of rant. I don't feel any less clouded. Maybe it takes time. But now I can move on to working on my manuscript so that I actually have the right to be freaking out. Right now I'm simply a poser.

Pic of the day - beer doggy

Good writing retreat

Last weekend I went on a writing retreat with the Romance Writers of America chapter I belong to. I had a lot of fun, even with the storm Friday night. A storm on the Oregon coast in the winter has always been one of my favorite things. Growing up I used to go with my family to stay in a hotel on the ocean for a weekend in the winter, hoping for a storm. There's something relaxing about it.

Well, this one wasn't so relaxing. The house was practically on the sand, only about 10 feet of sea grass separated us from the beach. The wind was up to 80 miles an hour, according to the news reports after the storm. There were reports of swells off the coast and a chance for flooding, which would have been bad news for the basement of the house and our cars. The front of the house came to a point, like a beak, and was almost all windows. The glass was bending back and forth with the strong wind. The logical side of me knew they were built to withstand that, but seeing the reflection of the lamps moving back and forth in the glass was unnerving. The wind howled all night long. I don't think any of us slept more than an hour or two. I kept waking up and feeling the house shaking under the wind. But it was fun. There's something thrilling about being scared of a storm that is out of your control.

The writing side of the trip was great too. It was very beneficial talking to people who have been writing romance for a while, and some published, to hear what they had to say. We did something called story magic where we all brought our story ideas. Then we sat together and brainstormed the inciting incident, long range goal, short range goal, relationship barrier, black moment, reliazation and character flaw for both the hero and heroine. It is much easier to write once you have the main points and themes outline like that. I also got a lot of great ideas with the ladies for my book series. Now I just have to write them.

I know the main events that will happen in all of the books and the sub plots, but I need to develop the hero and heroine more and why they are interested in each other. I also need to think of some ways to make my vampires unique compared to others that are in books.

All in all it was definitely worth the weekend and I enjoyed getting to know these lovely ladies.

Pic of the day - Will Farrell

Will Farrell is a gem


Will Farrell is a gem