Lessons in Beta Reading, Part I.

In the past 30 days I've read and critiqued 3 manuscripts. In return, my buddies have been working on mine as well. One thing I've learned from doing this is that it helps me to become a better writer. Many of the errors and mistakes I've found in my buddies' stories are often found in my own. Now when my buddies and I go through each other's work we go through it all the way, which means we point out spelling, punctuation, and grammar issues as well as add comments and feedback within the text. Over the course of my reading I've spotted enough patterns to merit two blog posts.

Part One: Common Errors in Spelling, Grammar, and Punctuation.

1.) Its vs. It's. Its = belonging to it. It's = It is. Example: It's the biggest one I've ever seen! Its girth is terrifying! (Hey, I'm a romance author. Of course that's the first thing that came to mind.)

2.) Loose vs. Lose. Loose= opposite of tight. Lose = loss of something. Your corset is loose. Your girls may lose their support.

3.) Your vs. You're Your = belonging to you. You're = you are. Ex: Hey, hot guy, you lost your shirt. You're making my tummy flutter.

4.) Each other = 2 words. I had a nasty habit of making it one. Please say I'm not alone!

5.) Questions end with question marks! I blame JR Ward for this one. For some reason her characters turn their questions into demanding statements to emphasize how manly pissed off they are...or something. It worked for a bit but got old fast. "What are you doing." = wrong. "What are you doing?" = no headache.

6.) Plural nouns vs. Names anding with S. For some reason a lot of people want to treat a main character with a name ending with "S" as a plural noun, which is incorrect. Proper use: Silas's breath caught at the girls' incredible music. Wrong: Silas' breath caught...etc.

7.) Commas and the word "then." I don't know anyone, including myself that hasn't had an issue with this. There is no comma before then! Ex. She filled the pitcher then carried it to the table. NOT She filled the pitcher, then carried it to the table. Don't ask me why that's wrong, it just is. (HEY, DEAN, IF YOU ARE READING THIS, PLEASE TELL US WHY, OH FELLOW NERD PAL!)

8.) Proper punctuation with dialogue. This is was a disease I had until a wonderful beta cured me. Wrong: "Blah blah blah." He said. Right: "Blah blah blah," he said.

I know there's tons more, so please feel free to chime in! Next time I'll focus on structural issues.

10 New Things I've Learned as an "Experienced" Author

After having written eight novels, multiple A-grade academic papers, and a couple award winning short stories, I feel I have the right to call myself "experienced."

However, I am still a newbie in the grand scheme and I have learned a ton of things in the last few years. Some are laughably simple, especially the ones involving formatting manuscripts. Please don't laugh at me, more technically inclined people.

After all, the first one and a half books I wrote by hand in large notebooks because I couldn't afford a computer. So of course when I finally got one, I had to learn how to use the thing along with Microsoft Word. And let me tell you, after nearly five years I am still learning Word. So about half the things on this list will deal with that. :)

Without further ado, here's a few things that have improved my job.

1.) Holy Crap there's a difference between "enter" and "tab?"

Apparently hitting tab instead of enter not only adds an extra space, but it also screws up the format. Paranormal Romance author, Terry Spear, directed me to the little paragraph symbol on my MS Word toolbar. Tabs are revealed as arrows and extra spaces....

2.) Whoa, a better way to find extra spaces without relying on eyesight alone?

That nifty paragraph thingie also reveals extra spaces as dots. When you have them before a paragraph break it looks like the paragraph symbol has a nipple and that makes me giggle. Then I sigh in gratitude that I don't have to rely on my eyes alone anymore.

3.) I will always need fresh perspectives on my work. 

No matter how many tips I've received from other writers or how much I think I've improved, there are still times when I think I've written my best work ever and have others reinforce that belief...and I still need to be struck down by those who know better. Because one's work can and should ALWAYS be improved.

4.) More in depth outlines really help me.

I'm like a hybrid between a "plotter" and a "pantser." I always have the characters and at least a scene or two in mind before I start a project. Then I slowly make placeholder notes of scenes between whatever I'm writing.

However, once you're contracted with a publisher you need to have the synopsis and other plot details figured out often BEFORE you write the first sentence. As daunting as it is, I've noticed that doing so makes writing the book go a whole lot easier as it clears a path away from too many rabbit holes.

5.) Habit words will never cease to haunt me.

Like a persistent and constantly mutating virus, habit words infect EVERY manuscript. Most recent ones have been "Was," "That," "And," "But," and "Now." Critique partners and beta readers are priceless for spotting these buggers. The "Find" feature in Word really helps too.

6.) You can set your preferred font.

I don't know how many times I reopened word to have it automatically reset itself to Calibri 11 and exploded into screaming expletives. I mean, who the hell uses that stupid font? I think I manually reset it and shrieked, "Times New Roman 12, bitch!" for over two years before someone, not even a writer, pointed out, "Hey, you can go to 'set default font' y'know."

It was too much of a happy day for me to kick myself for being a moron. Speaking of which...

7.) Inserting page breaks REALLY helps!

Seriously, I spent 8 manuscripts and countless revisions scrolling up and down entire documents and manually tweaking stuff so each chapter is neatly centered on the top of a new page. Then someone's all "Insert Page Break is a lot easier, y'know." This is another D'oh! moment.

8.) How to center stuff like chapters and scene breaks.

I am so grateful for the times I brought by laptop to the bar. Especially the time my drinking buddy leaned over and said, "Control E."

9.) Other authors are incredibly supportive!

Seriously with everything from promo help, advice, and a shoulder to cry on, other authors have been there for me in ways that have me overcome with gratitude. I hope to repay the favor whenever I can.

10.) How to be assertive about my "I need to work" time.

Being a writer is a work at home job for the most part. Some are lucky to have an office to lock themselves in. I am not. My writing area is the couch with my laptop sitting on a TV dinner table. Couple that with 3 kids, a husband, 3 cats, a dog, and surprise guests and it's damn near impossible to get anything done.

Over the years I've had to learn how to make it clear to others that writing is my job and when I'm on my laptop, I am AT WORK!!! Sometimes it gets through their heads. And sometimes I need to have the feline overlords guard me.

10 Ways NOT To Get An Agent: Guest post by Eric Ruben

My awesome literary agent, Eric Ruben was kind enough to visit my blog and share the ways authors ruin their chances for landing an agent.

Agent cat says: "Follow Submission Guidelines!"

"Ten Ways NOT to Get an Agent" by Eric Ruben

1. Send a query that violates the agent’s submission guidelines. 

This tells an agent that you are either lazy or arrogant.

2. Send a query or manuscript with spelling or grammatical errors. 

This tells the agent not that you're uneducated, but that you have no eye for detail.

3. Send a lot of emails. 

This shows you to be high maintenance and without a clue as to an agent’s daily workload.

4. Call. 

This shows you don’t understand how agents work and that you need a lot of attention.

5.  Talk poorly of an agent on social media or be complicit by forwarding or retweeting negative comments. 

This tells us you are not business savvy and untrustworthy.

6.  Misbehave at a conference. 

Get drunk, loud, obnoxious and/or fight. There IS such a thing as bad publicity.

7.  When meeting us, make us uncomfortable with over-familiarity or inappropriateness.  

This let’s us know we have zero chemistry.

8. Bad mouth other authors. 

This shows us you do NOT play well with others.

9.  Complain about the business. 

This lets us know you will be a problem client and hard to handle.

10.   Finally, don’t work your craft. Don’t understand the art form or seek to improve. Send us mediocre work at a time when even great work is hard to sell.

  I really don’t want anyone to do these things. It’s my hope that this list helps people see some ways to actually GET an agent.

REAL Character Mashups: Do any other writers do this?

I have two friends who are both computer guys as well as musicians. Both are also excellent with intellectual debates. Other than that, they're complete opposites. One's country, one's rock and roll. Needless to say, I'd been dying to watch them have a conversation/ debate.

The opportunity arrived on our annual 4th of July barbecue. As there were many fun guests, great food and festivities going on, it took awhile for me to get them together and talking. Maybe they waited until I was done with my hostess duties to indulge me, or maybe they just decided to placate me since I wasn't exactly subtle as to my intentions. Either way it was well worth the wait and I got a front row seat.

As I'd suspected, they got into an epic debate about computer stuff. 90% of it was gibberish to me, so I had to observe their tones, facial expressions and body language to figure out who scored a hit. It was as fascinating as I'd hoped.

Which brings me to my question: Do other writers do this? I know we all create interesting fictional characters and thrive on watching how they react, but does anyone else do this with real "characters?" Does anyone else think, "I want to see how this guy reacts to that guy?"

If so, how does it inspire your writing?

Romance Writing Challenges: After they...you know.

Okay.....now what?

This weekend, I had the house to myself and finally finished the first love scene. Those can be difficult to write at times and I'll probably do a post on the subject later, but now I'm on to my next challenge. The afterglow and new tier of emotional conflict. As much as one would like for the hero and heroine to declare their love and get their HEA after they finally get it on, if the writer did that, there'd be no story. Also, I don't think sex has ever made an instant HEA in real life. Lust does not equal love and respect.

With that in mind, I have to work to express the new anxieties the characters face. How close are each to realizing their love for the other? What insecurities do they have about the new level of their relationship? How do they behave around the other? How is their environment and other characters affecting their actions and emotions? All this must be accomplished without too much navel-gazing and lack of action.

Often I handle this challenge by skipping ahead and writing the next BIG EVENT. This helps me analyze how far I have to go to reach it. How much needs to happen to the hero and heroine to face that event? So far it's working pretty well. I went back and wrote the first two "after math" chapters and have 1 1/2 more to go before the event occurs.

Fellow romance writers: How do you handle those chapters? Fellow romance readers: What are your favorite  ...and most loathed aspects of those scenes? 

Summer Goal Summary...(Wow, that's fun to say!)

As we're already halfway through 2012, it's time to check up on my goals and see how I'm doing.


1.) Make all my writing/editing deadlines in time for my editor: I'm kicking ass with this one!

2.) Finish book 2 of my regency paranormal romance series: Rough draft is done, and the deadline to turn it in isn't until September. Doing great there.

3.) Finish at least the rough draft of book 3. I already have the hero fleshed out in my mind and I can't wait to tell his story. I'm going to start this one July 1st

4.) Finish revisions on WRENCHING FATE: DONE! (I hope!)


5.) Find a home for WRENCHING FATE/ the UF series. I have 2 fulls out with 2 lovely agents. Got my fingers crossed and I'll keep you posted!

6.) Keep track of all writing expenses so I survive tax season next year. I have all my receipts in one place at least...

7.) Maintain a strong online presence and continue to build my platform. I love my online community! But I could probably do better.

8.) Form and follow a plan of preparations for the release of my debut novel (Spring of 2013) Besides the edits, I know there's a ton of other stuff involved. And I still haven't figured out where I'm going to hold my release party...which is fine now, but as that date comes closer....EEK!

9.) Not go insane as my release date creeps closer. OMG OMG, I'm already on my way. I need to keep remembering to do that thing....what's it called again? Oh yeah, breathing.

10.) Maintain good relationships with my friends and family. I would not have succeeded if it weren't for their love and support.

11.) Quit Smoking on August 13. I'm getting more scared of this one every day.

12.) Lose twenty pounds. We-ell, I haven't gained any weight....


And a 13th goal has also been added: Finish Rough Draft of HIS ROADIE by July 1st. Really I have no idea what I'm going to do about my rock star novellas, but they're still crying to be written.


So, for the summer I'm going to be writing about rock stars, revising my 2nd regency paranormal, and beginning my 3rd. I get to research 19th century medical practices, autopsies, and other fun stuff!


What are your summer plans? 

Holy Crap, I think I'm a Plotter!

My suspicion started when I realized 2 things: 

1.) I tend to jot down quick notes of upcoming scenes in whatever project I'm working on. 

2.) I'm pretty damn good at the dreaded synopsis.

My theory that I may be a plotter was confirmed when I landed my 3 book deal for my regency paranormal romance series. The editor asked for concepts for the next two books...ones I had not written, much less visualized. It was scary, but I pulled it off. And you know what? Not only was book 2 the smoothest book I've ever written, but my CPs say it's even better than the first. 

Now a friend of mine wants me to critique his entry for the annual Idaho Writer's League contest. "Are you going to enter?" he asked. "Or are you too much of a hot shot now?" 

I laughed and replied, "No, I just can't afford the entry fee."

"Well I'll pay it if you critique my entry," he offered.

So I was all, "Oh crap! What do I enter?" 

I don't want to enter my urban fantasy or paranormal stuff because it never seems to go well with the judges. They seem to gravitate toward the normal. So I really want to enter one of my rock star novellas, namely HIS ROADIE because it opens with a bang.  But as you can see from my progress bar, I'm not too far along with it. The entry will consist of the 1st 3500 words, which is fine, but I also need to include a synopsis. 

At first I was all, "Damn it!" but then I remembered how well my 2nd regency paranormal went when I wrote the synopsis in advance. I have a feeling that after I write the synopsis for HIS ROADIE, my progress will increase.

So, HOLY CRAP, I think I'm a plotter! 

My Totally Awesome Solo Writer's Retreat!

I finally worked up the nerve to do what I'd been dreaming of since my writing career took off...but my house remained small and full of interruptions.

I got myself a hotel room.

And let me say, it was pure bliss. I wrote for approximately twelve hours straight and rewarded myself with a nice midnight swim in the twenty-four hour pool. I subsided on junk food, cigarettes, four Red Bulls, and a six pack of hard cider. With no interruptions, no TV blaring, and no people around, I was able to really let loose with my imagination. So much so that my characters surprised me.

I wanted to get 8-10 thousand words written, but I only got 6 thousand. However, I also got the remaining scenes left in the novel outlined. All in all, I considered it an extremely productive endeavor and I highly recommend it to any writer.

10 Tips on Becoming a More Productive Writer.

With a night job, a family, and a tiny house full of kids, animals, and my T.V. addicted husband, writing can be hard for me sometimes. My office is a TV dinner table in the living room. So yeah, I repeat: writing can be hard. However, I've been averaging between two and three thousand words a day. How have I been doing this in the midst of such chaos (as seen below)? Here's some tips.

But at least my muses stand guard over my "office."

1.) Progress Bars. I swear by these. Say you're at 15K...but if you add just 500 more measly words, the percentage will go higher. It can be very addicting but motivating. As you can see, I have three up right now. I've left the 100% completed project up because it's another bar to measure the others against as well as a reminder that you have completed something and thus can do it again.

2.) Announcing your goal for the day. For one thing, doing so is declaring a concise commitment. For another you feel more obligated to fulfill it. Also, having your online buddies rooting you on really helps.

3.) Make a deadline. If you don't have a set due date for each draft of your manuscript, you can be very tempted to flounder and perhaps even give up. Some of you may already have a deadline from your publisher. In that case I still recommend making your own. Try to get it done earlier. If you succeed, you will impress your editor. If you fail, at least you're still likely further ahead and more likely to make the one the publisher set.

4.) Have a group of critique partners and/ or beta readers. I cannot stress enough the importance of beta readers! They want to know what happens next in your story and they will not shut up about it until you provide.

5.) Keep tabs on other author's goals and progress. It was watching other authors declare their goals and  then triumphantly announce when they nailed 'em that motivated me in the first place. "This chick got 2K today?" I'd think. "Damn, I gotta catch up to that...and maybe even beat her!" Friendly competition can be healthy. Also, you all end up rooting for each other so it's all good.

6.) Give housework the finger. Again, observe the picture of my office. This was during a 3 day writing binge...in which I nailed 12K. Oftentimes, the story takes priority.

7.) Limit your drinking. No, don't quit drinking (unless it's hurting yourself and others). A lot of writers drink. The reason? Alcohol lowers inhibitions. With lowered inhibitions, I can let loose those poignant emotional scenes...and that's not the booze talking. My beta readers cried, man. They cried. Success!! But don't drink so much the words become blurry or you lose track of your story. Don't drink so much that you're too hung over the next day to write. I've pegged my limit at 4 hard ciders on the weekdays and 6 on the weekends.
 
8.) Don't be afraid to skip a part or two and jump ahead. Sometimes I just don't have the right word or description to something that leads to the part I know. In those instances I type "so and so does this" or simply, "blah blah blah" and then highlight. You can always go back later and fill those parts in as they come. The important thing is to press on.

9.) Turn off the internet. I've noticed that checking my email, twitter, and facebook can be endlessly addicting...and distracting. And don't get me started on Cracked.com. I'm grounded for a week from that site, LOL. So I turn off my internet for an hour, write, turn it back on, check my stuff, post an update, say hi to a few friends, then turn it back off. My productivity has skyrocketed since.

10.) Get a hotel room. I saved up my money and did some careful shopping with Expedia and reserved a room for tomorrow night. I will keep the internet off, have a steady supply of cigarettes, Red Bull, and hard cider. I will have no kids, husband, animals, friends, solicitors, etc. to distract me. My goal is 10K. I will let you know how that goes. 

Why the Sex Doesn't Sizzle (and How You Can Make It Sizzle): Guest Post by Dolly Garland

Have you read a sex scene that falls flat? Forget about tension and desire, what you are feeling is more akin to boredom and distraction.

We’ve all read those scenes.

Many of us have written them too. There could be tons of reasons why this happens. It could be just lack of practice or just psychological discomfort, or something else. We are not going for psychoanalysis here. Our focus is on the end result.

It’s likely that you might get better by practicing, but I prefer a more methodical approach to learning so that results become likely rather than an accident.

Before the extreme right-brained amongst you question the validity of using methodical approach for creative things, let me assure, yes it works. Focusing only on our creativity or only on logic is an excuse people use to say “I was born that way”, but if you intend to go through life and be successful in whatever you want to do, at some point you need both creativity and logic.

We are just going to apply that principle to writing sex scenes.

What you need:

A journal and a pen. You can do this electronically, and I’m not saying it won’t work. If you are used to typing everything, it probably will work. However, I do advocate writing by hand. There is something about the physical act of putting pen on paper and getting the words out – words that are uniquely yours not just because you thought of them, but because your hand shaped them – that helps assimilate the knowledge further. It connects words to your emotions and to your mind and heart.

Answer these questions before we can move on to making your scenes sizzle.

Why is the scene there?

Does it move the story forward?

Is it there because the characters are at the stage in their relationship where sex is the only natural progression?

Is it there because you just want a bunch of sex scenes to sell the story?

This is not a judgement process. You can write them for whatever reason you wish, but it’s important to know why you are writing, because it is your why that shapes the scene.

Face Facts

Read your current scene out loud, and answer these questions:

What did you want it to be? Is it supposed to be dark and intense, fun and giggly, sweet and romantic?

Is it what you wanted it to be?

HOW TO MAKE IT SIZZLE

Get Inspired

Make a list of sex scenes you remember. Don’t cheat. Don’t Google it, or browse through your DVD shelf.

This list has to come from memory. You remember these scenes for a reason. They had impact on you. They had something special that just stayed with you.

For example, I immediately think of:

Matrix, the scene between Neo and Trinity during the celebration in Zion

Buffy and Spike

Shakespeare in Love, the first sex scene which is romantic in every sense of the word, with sonnet recitals included

Titanic – for its innocence

From books, first time between Jaenell and Daemon in Black Jewels Trilogy by Anne Bishop

Scenes between Eve and Rourke in the “In Death” series by J. D. Robb

I must have seen and read hundreds, possibly thousands of sex scenes but in this ten seconds, I thought of only a handful. Because these scenes had something special that connected to me.

Why do these scenes work for you? What elements appeal to you? This is not an exercise in copying other people’s work.

Shred Your Scene

Pick it apart. Every single bit of it. How many POVs? What’s the location? What is the mood you are trying to convey? Is there any dialogue? Choreography? What emotions are already there? Are there any lines that you really like? Are there any gems that you must keep? Are there any clichés that you need to get rid of?

Get Involved

You’ve just ripped apart your scene, and it’s fresh in your mind. Get your journal, and start writing.

Write about your impressions of the scene, your frustration of what’s working or what’s not. Write about good things you found. Write what you can do to fix it. You might find fragments of the actual scene seeping in, that’s okay.

The key is to write fast and absorb yourself in this scene. Let is completely take over you. Get in the zone as if you are actually there. Give your brain a chance to feel challenged. Did deeper, and gather as many ideas as possible.

Fix It

Type up your scene, with double space between each individual line, and then make a comment next to every single one of those lines as to how you can improve it.

Yes, it’s going to take time. Yes, it will be annoying and you just want to get on with it. Trust me, I know. If impatience was a skill, I would win awards. But if you do this for even two or three scenes, you will not only fix those scenes, but you will also learn where you are going wrong, and the next time you are writing sex scenes, the process will be much easier.

ACTION YOU CAN TAKE TODAY:

Pick one of your scenes that is weak, that doesn’t create the emotional response you want it to create, and take it through all the steps listed above. Don’t skimp on the work.

Dolly Garland is a fantasy writer and a founder of Kaizen Journaling, where she helps a community of Kaizen Warriors create their personalised arsenal for success. Find her on Facebook

Finding Your Bliss.

Back in 2008, I lost my career as an automotive technician. This was a crippling event since automotive technology was my major in college, and I could never work in that field again. I felt like a failure. I felt like all the money I'd spent on tuition, tools, and books, and those stressful two years of 21 credits each semester, non-stop studying, living off Top-Ramen and nearly losing my man had been a waste.

Some miracle stopped me from crumpling into the fetal position and crying like a little kid. Instead, I went straight to The Center For New Directions at my local college. They were the ones who helped me get through college in the first place. They even helped my now husband and I stay together by offering free counseling.

They did not disappoint. They were offering a free workshop for women in transitional periods in their life.

I believe those weekly classes are a big contribution to my current successes in life and one of the techniques they taught was to find your BLISS.

Life can often be miserable, but it can be joyful as well. Often it is little things that make your life better. Those little things are your BLISS. When you're struggling with an important project, or had a bad day, or encountered a pitfall in life, your BLISS can help center you and get you back on track.

In the workshop, we had to do this and those who can should follow along. Make a list of little things, (that luxury cruise doesn't count) that never fail to cheer you up.

Here's mine:

Bundling up in a warm blanket on the couch and reading a good book...while eating Cheetos. Good books are the best thing to take you away from the world. And Cheetos just seem to go with them naturally.

Watching outrageously cheesy B-horror movies...especially with a friend who enjoys them as well. Life is too serious most of the time. A little ridiculousness can be healthy.

One of those shameless daydreams where I'm a total badass and I do something impractically awesome. Come on, we all do it! A lot of mine feature me magically being able to play guitar.

A cat's purr. It's been scientifically proven that a cat's purr triggers a release of endorphins. Couple that with soft fur and you get a happy sigh from me.

An entertaining conversation. Whether it's something crazy like "who would win in a fight between Gandalf, Yoda, and Professor Snape?" or something mundane like "Hey my husband did something dorky today." "Really, mine too!" Conversations like these give your mind a break from its troubles.

A game of darts. What can I say? It's fun to throw things. :)

Megadeth. Music has always been very important to me, and Megadeth is my favorite band. No matter how bad of a day I have, they always cheer me up. I picked this video because they're topless. :)

What is your bliss? What things pull you out of the darkness and havoc?

Surviving the Sophomore Manuscript: Guest Post by Tracey Devlyn

Book Two. Second manuscript. The sophomore book. No matter what one calls it, the follow-up story to one’s debut can be a terrifying and paralyzing adventure for some authors. I definitely fall within this category.

I had years to write and polish my debut novel, A LADY’S REVENGE, without the pressure of a looming deadline or editorial pet peeves swimming around my head. Not so with book 2, CHECKMATE, MY LORD. Don’t get me wrong. I had plenty of time to write the manuscript. In total, about twelve months. Yep, you read that right. Many authors can write two, three, or even four books in the same amount of time.

Without going into the gory details, the ten months following THE CALL were not what I expected. Because of that, I spent a lot of time worrying, thinking, spinning my wheels, and starting the beginning of book 2 four times. My lack of self-confidence resulted in good deal of lost time and thousands of wasted words.

On top of all that, I couldn’t see beyond the midpoint. The last half of the book was nothing but impenetrable darkness. And that’s when the fear set in. True fear. Especially when I didn’t finish the rough draft on the deadline date I had set. A date I would change two more times before finally finishing the draft (absent the final two chapters).

When I eventually reached the end, I was so lost that I couldn’t write the climatic chapters. Plus, I only had a few weeks until my deadline. Not enough time to ship the manuscript off to my awesome critique partners, get their feedback, and revise. Talk about going it alone. Yikes.

My husband, who reads a ton of mysteries and thrillers, had just finished reading the advanced reading copy (ARC) of my debut. Out of desperation, I asked him if he’d be willing to read my current manuscript. Without hesitation, he agreed. He might have been motivated by the help-me-I’m-dying look I was flinging at him.

So I buckled down and line-edited the manuscript while my dear husband read it for the picture stuff. As it turned out, we made an awesome team. He asked great questions and pointed out little nuances in the plot that I had missed.

I made my deadline with one day to spare.

Moral of this story?  Bear with me—I have more than one.

1.    Try to block out the white noise.

2.    The more time you have to write, the more time it will take you to write.

3.    Put your nose to the grindstone and push forward.

4.    Don’t allow yourself to dwell in I Can’t Do This Land or I Don’t Have Enough Time Land or It’s Too Much Land for long. It’s not healthy and will negatively affect your productivity.

5.    Have faith in your abilities. They got you to this point and they’ll carry you through to the finish line. Never give up.

6.    Surround yourself with a positive support group.

7.    Ask for help.

And don’t forget to have fun and bask in your incredible accomplishment.

Where are you in your writing process? Have you ever fought with self-doubt? How did you overcome it?

Don’t forget to leave a comment for a chance to win A Lady’s Revenge. (Contest is open only to U.S. and Canada)

* * *

BRIEF SUMMARY OF A LADY’S REVENGE:

A British agent flees her French captor’s torturous dungeon and falls in love with the decoder responsible for her imprisonment.

British agent Cora deBeau has spent the last three years seducing secrets from the most hardened of French spies while searching for her parents’ killer. When her latest assignment goes awry, she suffers at the hands of her French captor until Guy Trevelyan, the Earl of Helsford and master cryptographer, saves her during a daring rescue. Scarred and wary of men, Cora shies away from the one man who could heal her savaged heart.

After rescuing Cora from a French dungeon, Guy discovers it was one of his deciphered messages that led to her captivity. Guy strives to earn her forgiveness while outwitting their enemy. But will he find the scars on her wounded soul run too deep?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Tracey Devlyn writes historical romantic thrillers (translation: a slightly more grievous journey toward the heroine's happy ending).

She’s a member of Romance Writers of America, International Thriller Writers, Australia Romance Readers Association and the Windy City, Beau Monde, Women’s Fiction, and PASIC Romance Writers of America chapters. Tracey’s also co-founder of Romance University, a group blog dedicated to readers and writers of romance, and Lady Jane’s Salon-Naperville, Chicagoland’s exciting new reading salon devoted to romantic fiction.

An Illinois native, Tracey spends her evenings harassing her once-in-a-lifetime husband and her weekends torturing her characters. For more information on Tracey, including her Internet haunts, contest updates, and details on her upcoming novels, please visit her website at:

TraceyDevlyn.com  |  Twitter.com/TraceyDevlyn  |  Facebook.com/AuthorTraceyDevlyn

LadyJanesSalonNaperville.com

Check Out My New Writing Aid! (Metalheads pay extra attention!)

I get a lot of inspiration from music. Whenever I have writer's block, I often plug in my MP3 player and listen to my favorite bands for hours. This has worked great for my urban fantasy and contemporary romances, but with my regencies, not so well. Because, face it. Historical romances just aren't metal. It's not their fault the electric guitar wasn't invented yet.

I found a way around this problem. It was under my damn nose the whole time. When planning my wedding, I had to be clever with the music. I didn't want to traumatize my grandparents. The solution? String Quartet tributes to my favorite bands.

We look smug because not only were we just married, we were walking down the aisle to Iron Maiden, and only a few people realized it. 

Here's a few good ones they sound so pretty!

                                                                     Tool: "Parabol"

                                                      IRON MAIDEN: "Aces High"

              METALLICA: "One" (I'm surprised they didn't break their violin strings near the end of the song)

                         LED ZEPPLIN: "Stairway to Heaven." This one's so beautiful I got teary-eyed.

And OMG OMG OMG!!! There's even MEGADETH!!!!!! (They're my favorite, can't you tell?) :)

There's also string tributes to AC/DC, Pink Floyd, The Beatles, Guns n' Roses, Slayer...I could go on forever. Just google "String Tribute" and you'll find all sorts of awesomeness.

My muse is pleased! 

Becoming a Ninja in Productivity

Yesterday I had a bunch of stuff going on that interfered with my writing. The first one was a four hour long bunch of BS that I wasn't supposed to be involved with, but still had to show up and wait in line to prove this was the case.

When I arrived, I slipped on the ice and nailed my elbow and knee, which doubled my foul mood. Then I got packed in a room resembling a sardine can with 30 people while we waited...and waited...and waited. It was too tight to use my laptop but luckily I was given a pen and scrap paper. With this, I was able to compose Friday's blog post and next week's author interview. Then I outlined the next few scenes in my WIP, write 300 words, and organize my to-do list for the next 2 days.

Thankfully, I provided the right paperwork so I don't have to go back there again.

Then, while waiting at the doctor's office, I was able to email the interview questions to my next guest author and transcribe the 300 words to my manuscript.

The moral of the story: Don't let things stop you from getting things done. Sneak in what you can when you can. You'll be surprised at the results! 

Courting the Muse with Unconventional means.

Trent Reznor: King of Depressing Inspiration

Every writer has types of scenes they dread writing. For some it's love scenes, others have issues with action or exposition. For me, it's the sad scenes that do me in. I will use any excuse necessary to avoid the keyboard when one of those come up. And once I do get to the document, the words crawl...and they often turn out dry and distant.

Well, this time I couldn't do it that way. My crit partners are on my butt to get my weekly quota of pages to them  AND they will have no mercy if those pages aren't up to snuff.

So I really had to dig deep and utilize some unconventional methods to get that scene out. I don't usually listen to music when I write because I prefer total silence. But this time I did. I listened to REALLY sad music. Highlights were: "The Moonlight Sonata" by Beethoven, songs from the soundtrack for INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE, and most of all, "Something I can Never Have" by NINE INCH NAILS.

...and it worked. The scene came alive to the music, so much that I had a giant lump in my throat the whole time writing it.

What about you? What scenes are hardest for you? What unusual (for you) tactics have you used to get them out?

Seeking the The "Holy Grail" of publication. (rerun post)

I'm going to share a few things I've learned about my journey using quotes from the movie, "Monty Python and the Holy Grail." Hey, someone did it with "Princess Bride."

"When I first came here, this was all swamp. Everyone said I was daft to build a castle on a swamp, but I built in all the same, just to show them. It sank into the swamp. So I built a second one. That sank into the swamp. So I built a third. That burned down, fell over, then sank into the swamp. But the fourth one stayed up. And that's what you're going to get, Lad, the strongest castle in all of England." 

Getting published takes determination and you likely won't succeed until your 3rd or fourth book.

  "Welcome, brave sir Knight. Welcome to the Castle Anthrax."  

"The Castle Anthrax?" 

"Yes... it's not a very good name, is it? Oh, but we are nice, and we'll attend to your every need."

A good title can get you far.

"Meanwhile, not more than two swallow's flights away, Arthur and Bedivere had discovered something. Oh, that's an unladen swallow's flight away, obviously. There were more than two laden swallow's flights away, four really, if they had the coconut on a line between them. I mean, if the birds were walking, and dragging the coconut..."

"Get on with it!"

Your plot needs good pacing and better not ramble.

"Oh, wicked, bad, naughty Zoot! She has been setting a light to our beacon, which, I've just remembered, is Grail shaped. It's not the first time we've had this problem." 

Be sure to always check submission guidelines to be sure that your manuscript is what they are looking for.

"First shalt thou take out the Holy Pin. Then shalt thou count to three, no more, no less. Three shall be the number thou shalt count, and the number of the counting shall be three. Four shalt thou not count, neither count thou two, excepting that thou then proceed to three. Five is right out. Once the number three, being the third number, be reached, then lobbest thou thy Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch towards thy foe, who, being naughty in my sight, shall snuff it." 

Follow Directions!!!

"The Lady of the Lake, her arm clad in the purest shimmering samite held aloft Excalibur from the bosom of the water, signifying by divine providence that I, Arthur, was to carry Excalibur. THAT is why I am your king."
 

"Listen, strange women lyin' in ponds distributin' swords is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony. 

"Oh, but you can't expect to wield supreme executive power just because some watery tart threw a sword at you. If I went 'round sayin' I was Emperor, just because some moistened bint lobbed a scimitar at me, they'd put me away."

You may have some credibility issues with your plot.

 "Go and tell your master that we have been charged by God with a sacred quest. If he will give us food and shelter for the night, he can join us in our quest for the Holy Grail."

 "Well, I'll ask him, but I don't think he will be very keen. Uh, he's already got one, you see."

They may have already bought something similar.

Finally, they may not be the right publisher for you. But if they do this, you should probably report them to Preditors and Editors.