Fun Prizes!!

http://turquoisemorningpressblog.blogspot.com/2010/08/giveaway-prizes.html


Turquoise Morning Press is giving away some great prizes. Click on the link above to see.

Turquoise Morning Press

Yesterday, I signed a contract with Turquoise Morning Press for my newest romance novel, "Cat-Fish." This is the same novel that I was previously 11,000 words into when my computer crashed. It's a fun story, and yes, there's a cat in it. And fish. Hence the name.

My book won't be ready for a few months, but you can check out this wonderful new publisher here:

http://www.turquoisemorningpress.com/

I'm very much looking forward to working with them!

Here's the cover for my upcoming romance novel, "Pillow Talk." I absolutely love it! The cover artist from Class Act Books did a wonderful job. This book is tenitively set for publication this September.

11,000 and Counting...

To recap, my former computer died a slow, violent death. In its demise, it took with it most of my written work to date. It took me quite a while to get over that. I'd see a publisher's guidelines and I'd think "Great! I've got just the short story to submit to them!" Then the ugly truth would knock me in the head. Nope. Not gonna happen. Your stories are no more.

Thankfully, with the help of wonderful, caring publishers, I was able to recoup some of my work. Two novels were e-mailed back to me so I could have them for my records. And a few short stories have also trickled back. To all of you who took the time to do that for me, I'm very grateful.

But the one that really got to me, stuck in my craw, shall we say, was my current work in progress. I was 11,000 words into the novel when my computer came down with an incurable virus. I'd kept written notes for my work, but most of that was just in idea form, jotted down in a hurry. If I was lucky, sometimes I could even read my own chicken-scratch.

But, as of last evening, I am once again over 11,000 words! The story has many of the same elements, but has changed somewhat. Some parts I remembered word for word, while others were just a cloudy concept stuck somewhere in my brain. I'm very happy to say, I like the story that's emerging even better than the previous one. A blessing in disguise? Yes, I believe it is.

If I Were a Salmon Windsock

What do you write about when you don't know what to write about? This is one of the perplexing questions writers face every so often. You're stuck, stalled, dry. Nothing is happening on your laptop because nothing new is flashing across your brain. In my case, some of that may be due to looking out my window and seeing more of what we've been seeing for weeks now. Snow. And on top of that...snow. The world looks bleak and devoid of color.

However, there is one item outside my window that is colorful. I brought home a pink and green salmon-shaped windsock from my trip to Alaska last summer. He gleefully floats in the breeze on mild days, and thwacks my picture window with ice-covered streamers on cold ones. Mr. Salmon sees all. He keeps one large fishy eye on the finches at the feeder to his right, while staring at me through my picture window with his other eye. As I watched him, my strange imagination took over. Besides the birds outside, and the people/cats inside, what does he see? How can a fishy piece of polyester help me get unstuck from my current work-in-progress romance novel?

As I pictured Mr. Salmon floating from a high pole in my fictional love story aboard a yacht, I tried to focus on occurrences from his viewpoint. What does he hear? The breeze? Ocean birds squawking? Does he see the secret glances the hero and heroine slide one another when they think they're hidden? Obviously in my story, the windsock won't have a voice, literal or otherwise, but just imaging him on the yacht, taking in the scenery and listening to the interactions of my characters, my mind felt freed and refreshed.

Next time you're stuck in a writing rut, just be a windsock for a day.

Breaking News!

I had a writing breakthrough last night! Yes, the Colts were playing, and yes, they won. But I had a writing breakthrough last night! To all of the football fans, I'm sure this is hard to understand. Unless you're also a writer. I've been trying to figure out how to resolve a problem between my two main characters. Last night while typing away, it hit me. Not literally, I  mean, that would sting. But you know what I mean...the epiphany hit me, square in the noggin.

I was so excited, I blocked out the football game my husband was watching. And that's really something when you consider, the flat screen TV is mounted right above my computer, two feet above my head. There's nothing quite like reaching the writing pinnacle in a story where you know you're almost there. So close to being done. I'm thinking the football fans/writers will get what I mean.

Now I have to finish up the final small details on this romance novel before I begin the next one that's slapping me in the noggin. Ah...life is good!

What Writers Take for Granted

We've been having trouble with our phone. When I answered a call, I heard either buzzing bees or crashing waves on the ocean. Not really. But you get the idea. I'd have to yell to be heard, which irritated me and whoever the unlucky recipient was.

This morning they came to fix the problem. Something in the lines. He had to unhook our phone line which meant, yes, you know what's coming, no Internet either. I suddenly realized all the things I couldn't do without the Internet. E-mails, checking websites I'd recently posted on, and looking up a fact for the novel I'm working on, all gone by the wayside. So were paying bills, keeping up with a couple of chat rooms I'm a part of, and did I mention e-mail?! I see that I did, but good grief, I never realized how much I used it until it was gone. E-mail and the Internet encompass such a wide range of what we as writers do. Sending a query? Internet. Waiting for a response to your latest novel submission? Internet. Wondering if someone from your writers' group can answer your newbie marketing question? Internet.

It makes me appreciate all the more what writers went through before there was an online presence for anyone who wanted one.

Ah....But as you now can see, I'm back. Even this simple post is made possible by our wonderful, often taken for granted friend, the Internet.

And for the phone guy who made this possible? I don't know your name, but thanks!

What Does Your Character Do While You're At Work?

It's a bad week for writing. Between having a family member in the hospital, working extra days, doing a weekend craft show, and getting ready for another relative's visit, my writing has taken a virtual back seat. My romance about the Tooth Fairy and her dentist waits patiently  for me to return. I can picture her sitting in her living room drumming her petite tooth-stealing fingers on her coffee table. And then I wonder, while I'm away dealing with the recent developments in my life, what is she doing? Surely she'd be bored simply sitting there waiting for me. Hmmm. I think I'd better get back to her story soon. Otherwise, who knows what crazy stuff she'll do without me there to write for her?

OCD - Move Out of the Way!

I need to write. My newest novel is calling me. Several story lines are waiting impatiently in my head for attention. But I can't focus! My OCD is getting in the way. My desk is too cluttered. I've got 73 things on my mind at once. There's laundry to do, sympathy cards to send, groceries to buy. How can I think about writing with all that clamoring for my undivided attention? The answer: I can't. But, once my to-do list is complete, I'm all over it. My novel won't know what hit it.

It's a hard lesson for me to learn. It may not be the same for everyone, especially non-OCD sufferers, but I've discovered I can't sit down to really concentrate on my novel until everything else is done. It's not how I'd like it to be. It just is. So, after the grocery, laundry, correspondence, and desk un-cluttering are complete, then, ahhhh...finally time to write!

Facebook Imitates Life

Just now, a friend on Facebook asked everyone several "remember when?" questions: first crush, first car, first kiss, best friends from high school. I really had to think back for some of those answers! But after I answered her questions, I realized I could use those memories and emotions for characters in my romance novel. I mean, why not? I remember how I felt during each of those big life events. I'll put those great memories to good use! Thanks, Lisa :)

Walk With Me

Are the scenes in your novel a little flat? Remember to use the five senses to make your story sound more authentic. Today I took a walk on our country road. The bright blue of the sky, the red, yellow, orange and green of the leaves all had me looking up for most of my walk. Thankfully, though I'm a klutz, I didn't run into anything. Added to the colorful scenery were the sounds of the birds. Blue Jays, Sparrows, Carolina Wrens and Yellow Finches serenaded me for the thirty minutes I walked beneath them. I felt honored.

When I left my house for my walk, my mind was not focused on writing. I needed to run to the grocery, do five loads of laundry, fix supper for me and my husband. But once I saw those colors, once my ears perked up to the chatter of the birds, I felt a calm come over me. It was as if God was telling me to slow down my thoughts. The more I walked, the more I could concentrate on what I've been writing.

The next time you need inspiration, or calm, or both, take a walk. No matter what the season, there's always something new to see and hear.

A Tale of Two Tales

Since having finished "Flossophy of Grace" which now resides with my publisher, I'm working on two different manuscripts. One, a romance about a tooth fairy, and the other, a romance aboard a yacht. At times, it seems dangerous to be working on more than one story at once. What if I get them mixed up in my mind as I plan what my next writing move should be? What if my yacht accidentally sets sail with my tooth fairy on board? (Hey, that's not bad...might have to use that.) But I find that working on one, while the other waits patiently minimized on my PC, I'm comforted. When I tire of one (and I will) I get to flip to the other. That way, my vivid imagination has a new playground to explore.

New Romance Novel

After I explained what my upcoming book is about to a friend, he asked me if that was even ethical - for a dental hygienist to date one of her patients. I wondered about that, too, but decided that this was fiction, so I really wasn't concerned about it. It's also, romance, which as far as I'm concerned, says it all: If two people are meant to be together, they'll work through the rest!