Aura's Antics
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Crazy?So, my first query letter went out today. It wasn't for The Crystal Princess but for a short story called The Watcher. I'm going to start editing TCP here soon. I've got a ton of notes of things that I know need to go into the story and stuff that should definitely come out. But that's not what this post is about is it?
I submitted The Watcher to The Wild Rose Press. My good friend Ellen sold to them just recently. Driven by her success, I sent in my own. I'm pretty sure that it's going to get rejected, but that's ok. It'll be my first rejection. Everyone has to have at least one. Better to get it over and done with now. I don't think the story has enough romance in it. We'll see what they say. (Hence why I'm feeling I was crazy to do this.)
It's all uphill from here, right?
Monday, January 15, 2007
I'M DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!THE END
I now join the very good company of Honey in completing a manuscript! I'm so excited I'm bouncing off the walls! Woo Hoo!!!
Here's what it's about:
The Crystal Princess
Adreana Jerada has spent ten years crafting a new life for herself. She has a beautiful home on the sparsely populated planet of Foros and spends her time mining crystal so that she can buy children out of slavery. Her life is perfect until the day she buys a military captain to help her raise money to send one of the children back to his family.
Caspian Van Ryn has a secret. He knows who the traitor is that has sold out his people to the enemy. In a war ridden time, the very last thing he expects is to be injured and sold into slavery. When he's picked up by a beautiful woman, he never expects to lose his heart.
But when a search team arrives looking for a woman who looks just like Drena, Caspian find out more than he expected. Could she be the one to end the war?
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
Insert Post HereI've been writing like crazy lately and as such forget to come up with new and insightful things to say on the blog. Ok, new anyway. Yet at the same time I don't want this to be a dead zone. So today I'm going to ask what you do with your writing ideas.
Now before you break out the "DUH, we use them!" remarks, what I mean to ask is this: Once you get a neat idea in your noodle... what then? Do you write it down in a trusty idea book? Do you let it simmer in the back of your mind? If so, how long does the idea need to simmer before you're ready to write it? Do you start writing on it immediately and drop whatever projects you currently had going? How many ideas do you come up with a year and when are they ready to write?
I've always thought for me that my ideas take at least a year to simmer. But now I'm starting to question if that's just laziness on my part? I'm almost done with a book and starting to worry about how often I'm going to have new ideas for the next project! (Who me? Worry? Never!) Someone just smack me...
So what about your ideas? How long until they're ready to harvest?
Thursday, January 04, 2007
Think Of All The Good*Quick, name 3 good things that happened to you in 2006!
Here are mine:
1. I went to the RWA National Conference in Atlanta
2. I met a great guy and am still dating him!
3. I found some serious dedication to my WIP and have almost completed the novel
What are yours?
*Idea totally pilfered from Shelli Steven's blog. Thanks Shelli!
Tuesday, January 02, 2007
What I Learned From the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Nora Roberts
I mentioned this over on the Alphabet Girls Blog about a week ago, but I really feel that this is important, particularly in this time of resolutions being made and broken.My boyfriend got a Red Hot Chili Peppers Greatest Hits cd for Christmas and as he was reading through the material inside the cd jacket, he came across something that he read out loud to me. When asked how the Chili Peppers have stayed such a strong, growing band over the years, their answer was that while other bands were out spending their money, the Chili Peppers were back in the studio working hard on their next album. This opened up a revelation to me.
I started thinking about Nora Roberts. I don't know if this is true or not, but I've heard that she writes every day of the year, even on Christmas. Now even if this isn't true, the woman is very dedicated to her craft. While others are out spending their money, she's "back in the studio" or in this case her office, working on her next book. She's dedicated. As are hundreds of other writers and I would bet money that those very writers are the ones with long term, profitable writing careers.(If you're following along with my math, Red Hot Chili Peppers + Nora Roberts = Long Career)
This may seem like a "DUH" answer to some, but I realized that the real key to writing success and longevity as an author is being at that desk, writing every day or close to it. It's dedication and taking the time to work at and perfect your writing craft. It's going to conferences and workshops and taking away those things that actually work for you and then putting them into practical, every day use.
(This means also that Dedication + Work = Long Career)
To sum it all up (mostly so that you can stop rolling your eyes at me), work hard. Take writing seriously if you plan to seriously make a living at it. Make time for it and spend time on it every day if you can. Be prolific. And most of all, enjoy what you're doing. You know that the Chili Peppers and Nora Roberts must love what they do or they wouldn't still be doing it!
Monday, January 01, 2007
Happy New Year!Wishing everyone a safe and happy New Year! May this year see your goals reached, your lives uplifted, and your smiles bright!
