Alyson's Meditation on Green & the Writing Life

So, lately I've been at a loss for blogging topics. That's not unusual, of course,but coming up with ideas has fallen to the bottom of my priority list. In my writing life, I'm rewriting, rewriting, rewriting my first manuscript, and manically jotting down notes for my second and third. I'm very caught up in it. I learned a lot at the RWA conference and I want to apply it. In my reading life, HP came out a couple weeks ago, the latest book in the Stephanie Plum series is sitting in my TBR pile, I want to read Nora's latest, AND I arrived home from the RWA conference with a box of books that keep calling out to me. (And, of course, I've given in and read three of them, but I have twenty more to go!) My family life as a mom, wife, sister, daughter and in-law has been busy, busy, busy. As usual, our summer weekend schedule is jam-packed. Last weekend was my eleventh anniversary, three dinner dates and my great nephew's birthday party. I also found out my sister has melanoma (we find out the lymph node biopsy results on Friday). Next weekend, there's no reprieve. Amongst other things, we're supposed to go to Michigan for a surprise party for my uncle. In between, my dogs are on high alert because there's a possum nest in the tree in our backyard and a coyote is roaming the 'hood. My adorable son has turned into a five star general, and I'm to be at his beck and call. Seriously. Just ask him, he'll tell you. Mommy is simply NOT to have a life of her own. I'm to entertain him 24-7, and all kinds of interesting dynamics have developed between him and the nephew I babysit. Both little boys have learned to argue and throw fits worthy of angsty teens. Besides all that, my house is a complete mess. I need to work out. I took on a free lance assignment as a research assistant. It's my husband's busiest time of year work wise so he's walking around looking like a zombie, except for when his band has a gig. And it's summer. Summer, when I want to be outside, not sitting inside blogging.

You get the idea. I'm busy and distracted, just like everyone else. Because of it, I can't seem to think of anything to blog about. For me, blogging is more of a winter activity. But I keep my commitments. So, this morning, I asked my son and husband what I should blog about. Give me a topic, any topic, I said, and I'll relate it to writing and turn it into a blog. My three and half old son, bemused as he painted, said, "What's your favorite color, mom? I'll paint it for you."

Green. My favorite color is green. I also like blue and yellow, especially when they're matched together as in sunny skies or Swedish art, and red, the color of passion and my temperament, but my longtime favorite, favorite is green. It reminds me of spring, and it chills me out, soothes my turbulent soul. So, as crazy as it sounds, I'm blogging about green , and relating it to writing. Heck, why not? I like a challenge.

So, let's think about this-- how does green relate to writing?

First, to be green at something is to be brand-new to it. To lack training or worldly experience. To be fresh. Not aged or processed or seasoned, not cured or tanned. To lack sophistication. It can also mean to be easily duped or deceived.

That one is easy. I started working on my novel in late April of 2006, fifteen or sixteen months ago. At that point, I didn't have a solid idea, but I'd signed up for a class and I was excited. Maybe writing a romance novel is the ticket, I thought. I knew very, very little so I was definitely green. I could tell a story, orally, and I could write a coherent sentence but I knew nothing about craft--plot structure, conflict, character arcs, layering in details and sexual tension, scene and sequel. I went solely on intuition. Luckily, I'd read a lot so I knew more than I thought I knew, but I didn't know how to articulate it or apply it. Talk about lacking sophistication! And I still lack sophistication. I'm a newbie. In many regards, I have to learn to give myself a break. I've learned a lot about the craft, about my process and I'm doing everything I can to make my manuscript the best it can be at this point in my learning curve. I can't compare it to SEP's tenth novel, or Nora's 100th, or Suzanne Brockmann's fourteenth, or whatever. I'm green. They're not.

Kermit the Frog said it's not easy being green, and that's true. It's frustrating when you realize you don't have enough sexual tension, you haven't layered in enough lusciousness, or used setting as metaphor. Or when you realize you have way too much dialogue and you have to cut lines you love. Or when you realize you're telling, or you've given too much back story up front. Or not enough. Or when everyone has a different opinion and you don't know who to trust or believe. Or when you know what you want to translate onto the page but you can't get it right. It sounds too cheesy, or cliched, or simplified, or melodramatic, or boring, or whatever. Fill in the blank. Or when you think you've mastered internal and external conflict but you have an aha moment about character arc, and you realize you have tons more work to do. AND it is easy to be duped, to run around changing things because expert A said this, and expert B said that. You try out everything--EVERYTHING-- just to end up right back where you started, albeit, with a list of things that don't work for you or a list of things to do differently next time or a checklist of things you really need to include in your next manuscript upfront.

Green is the color of jealousy and envy, and money and greed. How I wish I could entertain like SEP, or Loretta Chase, or Julia Quinn. How I wish I could know the success of Janet Evanovich, or JK Rowling, or Nora Roberts. How I wish I could write prolifically and easily and have the time, the luxury of time, that I falsely imagine others have. And the kudos. And the paychecks. How I wish there was some sort of guarantee that I'd make it. Make it BIG.

Green is the color of the grass on the other side of the fence. I wish I wrote as well as my writing group pals. I also wish I was into dark, moody, paranormals, Manga-esque urban edge and romantic suspense so what I write would be "hot." I wish I had a knack for historical detail. I wish I was as cute as those women launching the Shomi line, that I actually looked good in thigh high stockings.

Luckily, I don't really traffic in jealousy and envy much. In my mind, they're masks for fear-- fear we won't be able to get what we want, fear the universe isn't abundant enough, fear we'll fail, fear we're not good enough, fear another's success diminishes ours somehow, fear we actually suck at this writing thing, fear we won't find an agent or editor willing to give our work a go, or if we do, our books won't sell. We'll flop.

Yellowish green is the color associated with feeling ill or nauseous. The color of a sickly or unhealthy pallor. The color of cowardice. It's the color we turn when we become too invested in jealousy, envy and fear. When we focus too much on our shortcomings as writers. Nobody's perfect. Competition and perfectionism lie at the root of most creative blockage. Just let it go.

Green is the color for go. Letting go, going forth. It means free, unencumbered passage in terms of traffic. Every successful writer says the same thing-- write, and don't be too hard on yourself when you're writing the first draft. Just go for it.

Green has a strong emotional correspondence with safety. I associate this with protecting your work. Go forth and write, but protect your work as you do it. Choose your writing and crit partners carefully. And please don't show your work to the yellowish green folks. They're way too caught up in the competition and perfectionsim thang. It won't be helpful. More often than not, they'll puke all over your pages and leave you to clean up the mess. Also, beware of the green horns, like moi. Sometimes, we don't know what in the heck we're talking about.

Green is the color of nature, foliage, fertility, vegetation. It reminds me of spring and summer, the forest preserve by my house, the smell of fresh mowed grass. It represents creativity, birth, hope, growth, renewal, regeneration, and abundance. It also represents cycles. Writing is nothing if not creative-- giving birth to stories, helping them grow, renewing yourself in the process. The process is cyclical. You start out loving your story, it grows and blossoms, but then as you slosh through the middle your creativity withers, your enthusiasm wanes, you almost give up, but then you rejuvenate. Over and over again. If you're me, through several drafts. You finish one story and start all over again, with something new and the same thing happens. Like a garden, your stories/novels/ screenplays/series can be rigorously planned, plucked and nurtured, leaving as little as possible to happenstance, OR they can be wild, left completely to nature and instinct, OR they can be cultivated doing a little of both. (Ah yes, the plotter-pantser continuum).

I could actually go on and on here, now that I've started. Green is the color I associate with being both a vegetarian and an evironmentalist. Olive green represents peace. And I can relate those things to writing, too. But, the dh and the five star general are back from their trip to park. And the house is still a mess. And I still have to finish rewriting my current chapter. And this is way long already:)

I'll leave you with this quote--

"If I keep a green bough in my heart, then the singing bird will come."
--chinese proverb

I'm thinking rich, deep, emerald green like the willingness to write, to be a writer, an artist-- showing up in the garden, fresh every day-- and the little bird is my muse singing a story straight into my imagination.

Till next time--

Cheers and happy writing,
Alyson

9 to 5 aka 4:30 am to 7 am and/or midnight to 2

I’ve been reading some discussion on loops lately about whether writers really work.

Those of you who write are laughing now. Of course we work. Writing is very hard work. It’s often lonely, stressful, irritating work. There is nothing about it that isn’t work. Some parts of it are more work than others.

Any writer who’s seriously writing with their goal being a career as a multi-published novelist knows that writing is hard work.

I’ve decided that you have to treat writing like a full time career if you want to make it. It has to be a full-time career even if you have another full time career. I have another 8-until-it-gets-done job. When I come home, I have another job – novelist. My husband and I joke that I have two jobs. I work a lot. I don’t watch TV. I don’t read as much as I’d like, but I do read. All writers need to read. I don’t clean house. I don’t rent movies. I don’t play games. I write.

If it’s so hard, if it’s so much work why do it?

Why go to medical school to be doctor? Why beg, borrow, and beg some more to get enough money to start your own business? Why work at McDonalds and make do on Ramen Noodles to get that acting gig?

Because it’s important to follow your dream.

Because you are called, and to ignore your calling is as painful as it is wrong.

Because if you don’t, you’ll always wonder if you could have.

Because what is life without risk?

It’s hard to protect the writing time when you aren’t dragging in the dough. It’s hard to make others believe it’s work. However, you have to do it.

My 15-year old step-daughter asked if I was going to publish my book. I told her yes. Yes, I will publish. Maybe not this book. Maybe not that book. But I told her I’m too stubborn to give up. Nothing makes me smile like writing romance. Nothing is as hard or seems as fun.

She smiles when I say I’ll keep at it until I get published. My example of fortitude is good for her. Hopefully, she won’t wait until she’s in her late 30’s to identify what it really is she wants to do.

But if she does, I hope she has the guts to do it.

Ah, I’m back on the clock in a few minutes. Break’s over. My job is calling.

Go write.

Macy

Tour de France 2007

I love the Tour de France.

I love waking up at 5:30 in the morning for three weeks in July to watch handsome young men bicycle around France. Or, as Alyson puts it “hot guys on bikes”. See for yourself at http://www.letour.fr/2007/TDF/LIVE/us/1600/images.html

I love the hard work, determination, heart and courage that it takes for those young men to race in the Tour de France.

I love watching those guys who are there to help the team champions. They get water from the team car. They ride in front to set the pace going up the mountains. They lead out the sprinters at the stage finishes. Their job is to help someone else win.

And yeah, I especially love watching the winners as they battle it out to win in those fast sprint finishes at the end of 125 miles on the road. Or the guy who makes the fastest time in the time trials. Or the guy who pushes past everyone one else as they all race up the mountain side. I love watching the winner pump his fists in the air as he crosses the finish line.

I love the daily drama.

Will there be a crash today? They ride inches away from the guy in front, in order to draft off him and use less energy. So if one guy goes down, a whole lot of guys go down, and the injuries can be horrendous.

Who will win today’s stage? Will a small group break away from the “peloton” to try to gain precious minutes? Will they work together to go even faster, or will each guy ride for himself so they’re slow enough that the peloton catches them - sometimes within sight of the finish line.

I love the way these guys fight to stay in the race, against all odds. Like Alexandre Vinokourov. He was a favorite to win at the start, but he crashed in an early stage and ended up with over 30 stitches in his knees and elbow. You could see the blood on his bandages as he rode. He couldn’t keep up with the other contenders, but he was trying. Last Saturday’s time trial, he rode like the wind, and finished over a minute ahead of everyone else. Got up to ninth place overall. Maybe he had a chance! The next day in the mountains, he fell apart and lost 30 minutes. I felt bad for him. But the next day, he came back on another mountain stage. He rode away from everyone else and finished first. He still wasn’t going to win the race, but he was giving it all he had. Heart and courage.

But then we found out that after the time trial he tested positive for blood doping - getting a transfusion of someone else’s blood. No wonder he did so great. Probably did the same thing for that mountain stage he won.

I felt cheated. As one of the commentators on Versus TV said, I felt “silly”. For believing in heart and courage when it was just a big cheat.

When I started writing this blog entry a couple of days ago, I was going to talk about my next hero - Michael Rasmussen, who was the overall leader. I was going to talk about how no one expected him to keep the yellow jersey when he got it over a week ago, but he did. How no one expected him to do well in the time trial, but he did. How he won a mountain stage too. It took heart and courage to keep the yellow jersey.

But yesterday afternoon, Rasmussen’s team kicked him out of the race. No positive doping test, but some very credible problems that indicate maybe he was on drugs, or blood doping or something too.

I still love the Tour de France. I’m glad they kicked those guys out. I hope the guys who are left are clean. I still think it takes heart and courage and years of training and dedication to finish the Tour de France. I’m going to keep waking up at 5:30 in the morning for 3 weeks in July. And not just because they’re hot guys on bikes. But because they all have heart and courage. Well at least most of them do.

What does this have to do with writing? 189 riders started the Tour. That’s 189 stories. 189 guys with a goal to finish the race. To help their team captain win a sprint, or a mountain stage. Maybe a goal to win a stage himself, or a jersey. Or get on the podium in third or second place. Or to get the yellow jersey.

Some stories are tragic, when someone crashes and has to leave the tour due to injuries.
Some stories are stupid, like Vinokourov thinking he could get away with cheating. Not possible with the testing they do these days.

Some stories are sad, like Vinokourov‘s teammates who were all forced to leave the race because of what one man did.

There are still 141 riders left. That’s 141 great stories.

Roxy

An Unputdownable Novel

Last night, at exactly 12:04 AM, I finished the last installment in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter saga. (NO SPOILERS, I PROMISE.) I read 759 pages in less than four days, if you consider I purchased the book at 12:45 AM Friday night. This may be my record for fastest read.

Taking in my speedy finish and the many others I’ve seen reading her book at the park, on the subway, on the bus, etc., I think our dear J.K. has figured out how to write the elusive unputdownable novel.

In a workshop in Dallas, Susan Elizabeth Phillips said the key is to “Keep the reader in the story,” which fits nicely here too. I was in the story with Harry, Hermione, Ron, and their families, friends and rivals, and had a difficult time tearing myself away.

So this morning I thought about what kept me hooked, and here’s what I came up with:

1. Vulnerable, flawed, complex characters I can relate to and root for…and sometimes against.

2. A legitimate problem for those characters to solve with substantial obstacles (both internal and external). Better still, a problem I’m trying to solve right along with them.

3. A worthy, and by that I mean formidable, opponent. Someone equal to our hero/heroine who can truly challenge him/her on all sorts of levels.

4. The shit hits everything. She doesn’t let the characters have it easy. Nothing seems to go as planned. And those lovable, flawed characters make mistakes. Sometimes big ones, and as a reader when I see it coming, it makes me cringe and cry out, “No, don’t do it!” And then I jump to the next page to find out what happens.

5. Action. I admit that early on in this final installment I was itching for the characters to DO something, but when they finally got going so was I, flipping pages at mach speed.

6. Twists. I love it when I don’t see something coming, but afterward recognize how all the pieces fit. It’s just brilliant. And it makes me feel brilliant too.

7. Mounting tension throughout the story, with occasional moments of humor and victory, to give us a taste of relief as we press on to a triumphant finish. Yeah, this one incorporates a few points, but enjoying a few moments of pleasure as the tension builds and spirals to what we anticipate will pay off in a huge climax is what we’re all going for, right? Then we can sit back and enjoy the satisfaction and afterglow of a great story. Seriously, I keep thinking, “I want that again,” and that’s a great place to leave a reader.

This isn’t a complete list and there are likely other elements that will come to me later, but it occurs to me that if I worked all of these into my novel, I just might have something good. Or maybe great. I’m hoping for great.

Katrina

Sky High

Getting back to normal life after the National RWA conference and a mini-vacation tacked onto the end of it has been hard. I’m tired. I feel an overwhelming urge to write and brainstorm and get caught up on massive amounts of laundry. (Ok. Not that last one, but it’s an evil necessity of life – especially if I want underwear tomorrow.)

Ah. (Big sigh.)

However, what I really want to do is escape. (“Didn’t you just do that?” you say.) Well, sort of, not exactly. Ah, hell. I’m not explaining it here. The point is that I want to escape. How best to do that? A great romance – either in book form or in a movie.

I did a bit of escaping by watching the move Sky High with my nieces before I came home from Dallas. I LOVE that movie. If you haven’t seen it, watch it. I’ve seen it 6 or 7 times.

Why is it such a good movie? Let me tell you! (I just knew you were going to ask!) It’s such a good movie because it delivers all those elements that a person loves in a good HEA story.

First – not to spoil it for anyone, but I did say it had an HEA – the hero gets the girl. I love the ending where the hero says, “That’s how my girlfriend became my arch enemy, my arch enemy became my best friend, and my best friend became my girlfriend.” Perfect.

Second, you get a great sense of the hero’s normal world without dragging it out. It’s a good reminder that if you’re trying to write the hero’s journey and really trying to give a sense of the ordinary world in your story, it doesn’t have to be long, drawn out and include all the gory details. In just a few minutes, we understand that the hero has superhero parents, but doesn’t have any super powers himself (a fact he’s hiding from his parents), he’s starting superhero high school (without any powers --- big problem), and his best friend (girl) is in love with him, but he has no idea.

I’m hooked. I feel sorry for the guy. I like the guy. Immediately, I get a sense of the mess in which he’s mired.

Third, I love paranormal. Superpowers are paranormal, so the world-building is fabulous. I love the way the writers snuck in little things that built the world, but also let us see the rules that would be needed later in the resolution.

Fourth, the hero’s conflict is evident. He has a great GMC. It’s simple. It changes throughout the story. He has to get through superhero school without any powers and his parents discover this secret. Oh, did I mention his parents are the most famous superheros ever? When he finally does resolve the super power problem, then he gets all sorts of other problems with which he has to deal.

Fifth, the black moment is very black. How will he save the world? How will he get the girl? He can't do either. He knows he loves her, but he's lost her. And, he can't stop the destruction that's occurring -- destruction that is all his fault to begin with.

Sixth, he gets the girl. He gets the girl! And, he saves the world! I love those satisfying endings.

Now to be fair, it is a kid movie, so there are some corny, contrived parts, but I'm willing to overlook them in favor of all the wonderful elements listed above.

At the RWA conference, I sat in a session that included an editor Chris Keesler, agent Kristen Nelson, and author Liz Maverick, who writes out of the box stories. She said something that resonated with me. She said she liked movies and stories like Blade, Underworld, X-Men. (Me too!) But she also said that she was dissatisfied with the endings. (Me too!) She decided to write books that incorporated all those paranormal elements that she loves, but also gave us the HEA. (Me too!)

All, this to say, I love a good paranormal story, but I want it to have an HEA. Sometimes, we just need visual reminders of how that can all work out.

So what will I do now? I’m going to Barnes and Noble online and ordering the movie Sky High so that I can watch it whenever I need to break down what I want to do with my stories into the basics.

Then I'm going to write, write, write.

RWA Conference Notes

I'm back from the conference.

I slept horribly in our hotel room, especially the last night, so I'm a bit tired. (I was terrified of knocking Macy onto the floor so I slept as still as possible. Not as easy as one might think!) Despite being dog tired, I thought I'd write a quick paragraph or two about the conference since I was the first of our little group to arrive home. I'm sure there will be more to come from the others.

Jackie was the official photographer, so she's the one who will have to post pics, including one of her with Nora. She can also tell you all about being Jacquie D'Alessandro's biggest fan:)

It was the first time Jackie, Macy, Katrina and I met in person, and I have to say there were no big surprises. After all my worries about it being awkward, it really wasn't. At all. In fact, Macy, Jackie and I stayed up till 2 am just chatting about anything and everything our second night there. The other women were just as I envisioned them-- although Macy was way more extroverted than she lets on!! The adjectives that come to mind are-- bubbly, vivacious, adorable, determined, funny, independent, flexible, organized, lovely, resourceful, real and easy to hang with. Oh, and they're all pretty darned hot!

The three or four best things for me, besides hanging out with the AoTP chickas, were SEP's presentations and book signings, Michael Hauge's dynamic workshops, seeing so many stars, the Lisa luncheon speakers-- Lisa Kleypas and Lisa Jackson-- meeting so many writers, getting free books (although I didn't get as many as the others due to space constraints), realizing how much I like the other members of RWA-- I really liked everybody I met-- the tiramisu cheesecake and the idea sparks.

Hmmmm. That was more than three or four but bare with me. I think I slept two hours last night, and I didn't sleep on the way home because I sat with another writer who was so fun. It turns out she's in my local chapter. Woo hoo! I actually met several writers from the Chicago area, which I'm very happy about.

The big thing I brought home is a HUGE motivation to get back to basics. To write, write, write. I'll be getting up at 4:30 tomorrow, for example. I also have a brilliant idea for a day job. Brilliant, brilliant. More on that as I determine how feasible it is (but if you want a hint, remember that my number one favorite job, amongst all the many, many jobs I've had, was running a bookstore).

Ramble, ramble. Hope that was somewhat coherent for you. If you want better posts on the conference check out Live from Dallas. It's off to bed for me:)

Cheers and happy writing,

Alyson

Seventy Days of Sweat and Six Months on the Oregon Trail

I finally signed up for Seventy Days of Sweat, the Writing Challenge posted at Alison Kent's blog (Thanks to our own Alyson Love for telling us about it!)

So I have to write 4 to 6 pages a day - no sweat, after Script Frenzy. I loved being pushed at Script Frenzy, it reminded me how much I really want to write every day. And how important it is to get rid of the internal editor.

What I didn't like about Script Frenzy was my writing. It was total crap. Okay, only 99% crap. I don't like that. I know that timed writing, speed writing, writing without the internal editor is important - it's the best way to get those "gems" that just don't show up when you're thinking too much about writing as you write. To be honest, you really don't know as you write what's good and what's crap. So you just have to write and figure it out later.

The problem with Script Frenzy was that there were no gems. There were a few things I liked, but mostly I hate what I wrote. Okay, I haven't reread it but I know it was bad. I didn't know where the story was going. I just pushed myself through. I've done this before and it's ended up as crap. It happened again.

So after Script Frenzy, I decided to look at writing with a fresh start. Why am I writing? What do I want to write?

I want to have fun writing. I don't think that the kinds of stories I want to write will ever be best sellers so I don't think I will ever make a good living writing. Besides, I want to write my stories without worrying about what's marketable. Yes, I want my books to sell, I want people to read them, but I think it's a small audience for my books and that's OK. Of course, if Oprah was to pick one for her book club, I'd have no objections!

I want to write long complicated historical novels. Romances? Well, really more like mainstream stories with romances. I love the idea of building a world as we think it was in the "olden days", and seeing how people dealt with that world. Especially seeing how strong, smart, independent women handled the restrictions (and romances) in their lives.

I also want to write plays. I love the idea of collaborating with people in the theatre. And I totally love the idea of sitting in the theatre watching my story come to life.

So I thought to myself that I would try to write a play that takes place on the Oregon Trail, but not the play I wrote during Script Frenzy. Came up with characters and a plot I liked. Took a look at it, and oh my, it was one of the sub plots from my novel about the Oregon Trail. I think I need to go back to that book.

I need to cut back the scale too. I can't include everything from the 1850's in the book - it's my first one, I'm still learning. Later I can write something very detailed and intricate. So I'm just going to write about the Oregon Trail. I won't include the escaping slave, I'll save that for another book. After all, the underground railroad is a fascinating topic, it will make a great book. I won't include duels although they fascinate me, because I just don't understand them. But that would make a great romance. Or maybe a play. The romantic hero will not be an immigrant from famine Ireland. That will be saved for another story too.

So for "70 Days of Sweat", I'm going back to my story about Carolyn on the Oregon Trail. But I'm not going to wing it like I did for Script Frenzy. I know a lot of the plot and the characters. I'm going to write those five pages a day. I know I learn about my story as I write it. But if I write without some guidelines it goes nowhere. So I'm going to call this a "guided discovery draft". That means I'll read all my writing books about plot and character and do the exercises to figure out plot and character to guide where the story goes. And I'll also write those five pages a day, and accept the fact that writing the book will change my ideas about the plot and character.

I think if I do this, I'll have some gems in that draft. And I'll have a good working draft that I can rewrite (who knows how many rewrites I'll have to do) but it will be a good starting point.

Roxy Fontaine

Nationals to do list

Something has reignighted my muse.

I love it.

I think it might have to do with going to Nationals this week. This week!!! I've waited to so long for this. Marcus and I talked about just this possibility at this time last summer. I've been dreaming for a year, and now I leave in 73 hours. Yes, I have it on a countdown.

How will I ever be able to concentrate this week? I have 2 interviews, 2 meetings, and a new program for work that really need some attention. But no -- all I can do is peruse blogs about Nationals and dream what it will be like.

I have a list of things to do, however, to make sure I'm ready.

I need to pick up last minute items. I've carefully pieced together my outfits from existing clothing and new stuff. I think I still need a few things. I have to take care of that today.

I need to try on my outfits -- just to make sure.

I need to pick up one of my favorite shirts and a cocktail dress from the dry cleaners.

I need to pack -- notebooks and pens and shampoo and shoes and my cool new business cards and the list goes on.

I need to read the conference program. Again. Did I highlight what I really want to see? Have my needs changed from yesterday when I last looked at it?

I need to get my laptop set up to access the Internet from anywhere. (Thank goodness one of the tech guys is a friend and a dream to work with.) I want to take my laptop (archaic as it is) so that we can access the internet while we're at the hotel -- maybe throw up a few blogs since we're on the National Blogroll.

I NEED to finish my pitch. But I'm fearing I'm going to that last minute thing I always do and I'm trying to stop myself, but I can't......

I need to really look at my bags.... what do I want to carry around to fill with books and handouts and notes?

I need to buy extra dog food for the DH and make sure my mother-in-law is coming over to help with the dogs and kids for a few days. The DH says he can do a week without me on his own, but we've been through this sort of thing before and I have my doubts. (Don't tell him....)

And now, I need to go write. Yesterday, the muse was wild and free and we had so much fun. I stopped when my head was bouncing on the keyboard, but I've had my coffee now and she's loose again.

Hope to see you in Dallas in a couple of days.

Macy

Leaving on a Jet Plane

Next Wednesday I’ll be leaving on a jet plane to Dallas for the RWA National Conference. This is my first writing conference ever. I'm excited. There are many, many things I'm looking forward to but here are my top ten.

First and foremost, I'll meet my writing friends face to face. Old and new. My old friends include friends from Affairs of the Pen, Barbara Samuel's Girls in the Basement Class, and other online groups, such as the new RWA Elements chapter. I've never met any of them in person, including Macy, Katrina and Jacqueline, and we're sharing a room! I can't wait to give them all hugs, see their facial expressions, laugh, chat over coffee, discuss the past year's successes and make plans for the future. Some I know better than others, but I'm looking forward to making stronger connections. Then, there's my new friends I have yet to meet. I don't know who they are, but I'll find them. We'll talk, find common ground and keep in touch, hook up at other conferences. Writers are so interesting. They're my kind of people and I can't wait to be surrounded.

Second, I expect the conference energy level to be high octane, positive and amazing. Everyone there will have a purpose-- agents, editors, writers, booksellers, librarians, readers-- and those purposes will all be related to books, glorious books, of the romance variety! Sounds like my kind of party.

As an aside here, I'm afraid I may drive my roommates a little bananas because I tend to be excitable and extroverted when I attend certain kinds of events-- the kind of events that interest me. Rock concerts, Mardi Gras, the RWA National Conference, Book Expo, a happening dance party, a sports event (football, hockey, basketball-- doesn't really matter--although I get less hopped up about baseball for some reason.) I hope I don't keep them up all night or completely drain the introverts!

Anyway, back to the energy. I hope to bottle it, take it home and ride the wave all the way to three finished manuscripts before I hit my two year mark as a writer in April 2008- which, incidentally, is the month of Chicago North RWA's Spring Fling Conference.

Third, I 'm going to be hanging out with professionals in the book biz. Who knows who I'll bump into in the rest room , the elevator, at workshops or over dinner? I'm a newbie writer but I'm also a reading fanatic. I can't wait to see, and possibly meet, some of the writers whose books have warmed my heart, spoken to my soul, made me laugh out loud, given me reason to smile for days, enlightened me, provided inspiration, turned me on or moved me in some way. And then there are the agents and editors I hope to work with some day. I've heard they are all remarkably kind and interested in what you write, ahem, as long as you don't make a complete arse out of yourself.

Fourth, we get free books. Hello? Free books. Have I mentioned that I'm a bibliophile. I worked at Borders and used to get giddy when the book shipments arrived. Ahhh. Just the smell. I can't wait to visit the goody room, the book fair and the literacy signing. Can. Not. Wait.

I actually think the "Readers for Life"Literacy Autographing is very cool. It appeals to my philanthropic and education-oriented self and it's something I'd like to be more involved with in the future. The RWA brochure states--

Each year RWA and ProLiteracy Worldwide unite to raise money to fight adult illiteracy through the Literacy Autographing. Since this partnership began, over half a million dollars has been raised toward this cause.

Lordy, I hope there's a way to ship books home:)

Fifth, workshops, workshops, workshops. I look at the conference as a huge learning experience. I want to soak up as much information as possible. Most of the workshops I'm interested in focus on craft. Some of the titles and presenters include--

Writing the Unputdownable Novel with Joan Johnston
Laughing All the Way to the Bank with Karen Hawkins
Hook an Editor on the First Page with Diana Love Snell, Caren Johnson and Annie Oortman
Novel Dissection 101--What Makes a Book Tick with Scott Eagan
From Identity to Essence--Love Stories & Transformation with Michael Hauge
Uniting Plot Structure and Character Arc with Michael Hauge
Power Pacing with Sherrilyn Kenyon, Mary Buckham and Dianna Love Snell
Layering in Lusciousness with Barbara Samuel

Actually, there are so many that sound good, I hope I won't be simply flitting from room to room.

Sixth, the spotlights! A chance to talk with editors. Ask questions. Find out what they want. This is related to hanging out with people in the biz, but a tad more formal. It's a chance to really connect some dots, get the facts. I'm looking forward to Bantam, Kensington, Avon and St. Martin's Press, but,egads, St. Martin's Press goes on the same time as SEP.

Can't do it.

Seventh, SEP!!! Susan Elizabeth Phillips. Have I mentioned that I love, love, love her books? If you thought I forgot her when I mentioned the workshops, think again. The woman deserves her own category. She's presenting two workshops--

1. The Secrets of the Bestselling Sisterhood. Added bonus? Jayne Anne Krentz is co-presenting. There will be a lot of gushing and hero worship going down Friday afternoon from 2-3 p.m.

2.Writing the Best Seller:Six Magic Words. More gushing and hero worship on Saturday from 8:30 -9:30 a.m.

Eighth, Death by Chocolate, the Daphne du Maurier Awards on Thursday night, and not just because of the chocolate. Macy's up for an award and I think she'll win! Yaaaaay. (Even if she doesn't win for some strange reason, I'm very, very proud of her and happy for her, and we'll have a kick arse time.)

Ninth, the Golden Heart and Rita awards on Saturday night. We get to dress up and daydream about winning our own awards one day. Fun, fun.

Tenth, just chilling out and bonding a bit, hopefully over Mexican food Friday night, but at other times as well, with Macy, Jackie and Katrina once we've settled in and gotten over the initial awkwardness of matching up the online persona with the real person. This is different from my first and foremost-- meeting old and new writer friends-- because it's about cementing the deal we've made-- us four along with Roxy and Samantha-- and living out the friendships and writing support network we've created so that someday we can be that writing group Macy daydreams about-- the one with all the successful writers who are friends-- and we can laugh in a decade, when we're the ones presenting workshops, about our very first conference, together. Remember when . . .

Cheers and happy writing,
Alyson

What I Love About My MIP

I didn’t seem to have any trouble coming up with what I love about my current story, Lady in Waiting. I feel like I’m still in that infatuation stage of the relationship and haven’t seen the realities of it for what they are. It’s not a bad place to be though.

First, I love my characters -- from my hero and heroine to the supporting cast. I love their impulsiveness, their wit, their hope, their spunk, their vulnerabilities and the courage they dig deep to find.

I enjoy spending time with them, putting their thoughts, desires, and stories on the page. They constantly surprise me.

Second, I love the magic. A short while ago I switched the story from historical fantasy to paranormal, giving some of the characters supernatural gifts and adding an element of magic to their world. While I don’t claim to have otherworldly powers (although a few nights ago I had a dream that I did), when sudden insight comes, I do feel like I’ve been influenced by a little magic myself. So, I guess I’m saying I’m enjoying the magic both on and off the page.

Third, I love how new and interesting characters just walk into scenes without any prior warning or introduction. I seriously stop and wonder, Where did you come from? Of course, then I move on to discover just who they are.

Fourth, it gives me a light, almost giddy feeling when I share parts with friends and they quote lines they love back to me or tell me how much they love a character or a scene. In referring to my story, one friend said, “it’s fun, like pink champagne.” It just makes me feel bubbly all over. :)

Fifth, about the writing, there have been times (usually when I’m stuck or facing an important scene), when I’d prefer to nap, wash dishes, do laundry, clean the toilet (you get the idea), rather than sit down to write.

Occasionally I succumb to those urges, but when I don’t, when I force myself to do the work anyway, the pages spill out. It might take a few minutes to unstop the dam, but my perseverance loosens the smallest of stones and then another, until the ideas are flowing freely again. It’s absolutely wonderful.

Sixth, I love living vicariously through my characters. Through them I can say the things I might not have the courage to say and do the things I may not be bold enough to do. They take chances, they face their demons, they risk their hearts, and sometimes they make really bad choices. Through them I gain insight into myself and hopefully grow in the process.

OK, back to Kate and Bregovi and the choices and the magic and the insight. I’m just hoping readers will get half as much out of it as I am.

Katrina

Writing Weather

A day off in the middle of the week is always nice. I got one today – as did many people.

The fourth of July is one of my favorite holidays. It usually means a day of family, grilling, boating, and lounging by the pool.

Today it rained, but we still tried to include most of the above list in our day.
It didn’t rain all day, but the sun never came out – except during my run this morning.

Figures.

I like rainy, cloudy days, but I like them better when my husband’s family isn’t hanging out all day. Rainy, cloudy days are perfect when you need some alone time or maybe some spouse time, but big group time is a no go.

Without the sun, all those water sports appealed less to me. It simply seemed like down time. Still time -- still time that would have been perfect for delving into some new and some old characters for my MIPs.

I feel very inspired by storms and rain and cloudy days. Evening storms are my favorite, but a good rainy Saturday morning is almost just as good.

Having to share my most inspirational weather with a boisterous holiday and a house full of kids – well, let’s just say that it was a bit less inspiring. At best today, I only got to wonder off for a while to think.

I’ve been thinking about black and white and gray lately and how all my heroes and heroines have these very gray shades in their personalities. They tend to be really good people, but….
They have these white souls with dark blemishes – not your typical romance star fare. But they are real, as real as living, breathing people. I like them a lot. They have rough edges and depth of character.

They remind me of a storm.

Day and night have always been symbolic of good and evil. The heavenly gates never open at midnight, and creatures of the night never wonder around at noon.

It’s almost always light during the day. It’s always dark at night.

But storms can change that. Steel blue tempestuous clouds can roll in anytime. They can’t change the day to night, but they can hide the sun and cast the afternoon in an all-encompassing shadow. The thunder can crack in a distance and the lightening can dance. The wind can whip up waves on a lake and swirl leaves in an omen-filled pattern.

The rain can beat a once sun-kissed patch with rapid vengeance.

Such storms are like my characters. The darkness of the storm invades the day and darkens the sky, blocking the sun in its power. Many times the darkness in my characters invades the soul and blocks the potential for good in its consumption. But just as with a storm and even a dark night, the light eventually emerges and the sun returns. The mark of the storm may remain, but the sun comes back out.

The storm is real, and powerful, and emotional. It begs you to stop what your doing and watch. I hope my characters will beg readers to stop the mundane in everyday life and delve into my stories because they, too, are so very real.

Ah well, maybe tomorrow it will storm, too.

Happy writing, Macy.

Six Things I Like About My MIP

1. It’s DONE!
Well, the first draft anyhow. It’s a play about a young woman executive who is sent back in time to the Oregon Trail.

2. I’m a Script Frenzy Winner!! Whoopee!! Yea!!
Script Frenzy is a program to write a 20,000 word script (stage or screen play) in the Month of June. It’s put on by the same folks who do Write a Novel In a Month in November.

No one reads your script. There are no judges. You copy and paste your story into their word calculator and if there are 20,000 words, then You Win! You don’t get a prize, but you do get a little “winner” banner by your name on Script Frenzy and you get to use their “winner” icon.

So you could write “HOORAY!” 20,000 times and win. But it wouldn’t feel like winning. You can find Script Frenzy at: http://www.scriptfrenzy.org/

3. The Four Main Characters
I didn’t like Madison, the heroine, at first. Too perfect. Ha! I was gonna show her, stick her on the Oregon Trail and see how perfect she can be! Well, she handled it. Freaked a little, but I liked her.

The hero, Ben, turned out to be a really interesting guy who was just the nameless “romantic interest” when I started.

Then there are the children, Jenny and Jeremy. Two cute spunky kids I stuck in there just because they were cute. Then their parents died. So my heroine and hero had to take care of them. I kept trying to get rid of those orphans, but it never worked. I’d find real nice people to take them in, but something would happen and Madison and Ben would end up with the kids again. I finally figured out there must be a reason for that and just resigned myself to keeping the kids in the story.

4. Lesson Learned - I can write fast (but not well).
In Script Frenzy, you are encouraged to write. Just write. Get rid of that internal editor and write. If you listen to the internal editor you will have a hard time getting those 20,000 words in one month. And you have to finish by midnight (local time) June 30. I finished at 10:52 pm June 30.

I found out I can write 1000 words in 20 minutes. But oh they are bad words. I would never show them to anyone. They weren’t even worth rewriting. Just toss them out. Well, mostly.

5. Lesson Learned - I can’t figure out my story ahead of time.
Can’t do it. As I wrote I kicked myself for not figuring out ahead of time who the people were and what was going to happen. I thought if I had done that, the writing would be so much better.

But I really don’t know what happens in my story until I write it. I think I would have written better if I had prepared more ahead of time. But that only works for me up to a point. Until I’m writing scenes and having people interact, I don’t know what they’ll do.

This is not good news. It is a time consuming, frustrating process. But at least now I know I can write fast and get through it.

6. Lesson Learned - Writing Fast Means Writing Very Badly, But With Some Good Stuff.
I’ve never written so badly for so long. It was painful. There was not one word I wanted to keep. It was totally flat. The characters had no personality. It rambled all over the place. There was no plot. I hated it.

I didn’t even have names for most of the characters, other than the main four. They were “wagon master” “husband” (even) “man” or “woman”.

The last day I still had half the play to go. I had 10,000 words finished, but they were all bad words. None worth keeping, even for a rewrite. Time to quit. I regretted the days I didn’t write for whatever reason (sick, visitors, and of course procrastination).

But I had gotten some characters in that story I liked. And I knew I could do major editing and figure out a decent plot for this story.

And I didn’t know how the story ended. And I wouldn’t know the ending until I wrote it. So I decided to write those 10,000 words to find out the ending. In one day. Forget anything else I had to do that day.

So here’s what I wanted to know about the end - I knew that Madison would find a way to return to 2007. But would she take Ben with her? And the children? Or would she choose to stay in 1850?

I wrote 1000 words at a time that day, then I‘d take a break then get back to the computer. I wrote anything at all, it was just filling up the page, at least that‘s what I told myself. And I did it. I finished. Actually only 14% of the people who started Script Frenzy finished. (ok, I’m bragging!)

And I didn’t know the end until I wrote it. Fortunately, I liked it. In fact, I think I’ll keep those words: “We’re all home.”

Roxy Fontaine