This is just NUTS!

Okay, I'm dedicated to my craft and all, but this guy? This is just nuts. And has anyone ever heard of him? This video was shot in 1993 while he wrote his first novel, "Bombidiers." Ooookkkaaay. So, has anyone ever read it? I had to do a little research and found it was a black comedy about bond traders in San Francisco. Maybe he locked himself in a closet to protect himself from earthquakes.

Writing Group

I’ve decided to form a writing group close to home to gain opinions and advice about my work. I find it motivating to have input from others and to see and hear how others work. Now that I’ve decided to do that, I’ve looked into different ways of going about the endeavor.

A local writers association will post the new group on their website and I think I will find members pretty quickly. The trick will be to find people that have the same level of interest that I have. I figured, anyone who was willing to meet weekly must be pretty serious about their craft, so to start out with at least, I’ll ask for weekly meetings. I’ll also limit the writing to fiction, preferably novels of any genre, but short fiction will be acceptable. I figure that will mean only folks who have been writing for a while or at least trying to write for a while will respond. Also, it will mean I’ll have a goal each week or every other week.

I’m told that folks drop out pretty quickly. I figure, if we start out with ten or twelve, we’ll whittle it down to 8 or 6 which would mean we could really spend time and attention to those that are really working on their craft.

We could agree on a set of rules for critiquing, agree on times to meet and what to do if you don’t have work that needs input. We could also have sessions that talk about publishing, how to get an agent. Maybe have talks with agents or writers online or via speaker phone.

Then the question is where to meet. The clubhouse of my apartment building will allow us to meet there. It has a kitchen and large living room area and has recently been renovated. I would have to put down a $250.00 cleaning deposit that would only be used if we didn’t keep the place clean, so I don’t think that would be a problem.

I’m excited about this and look forward to the new endeavor for the new year!

I post this photo of an over dressed holiday room because I don't have a single Christmas decoration up in my apartment. Too much going on! The good news is, my offer on a townhouse was accepted. Sometime early in the new year, I'll be moving into my new home. The other good news is ... wait for it ... the book is DONE! I am sending it to the publisher today!! I can't wait to see what happens in 2009!

What I'm Thankful for - a New Home

Today I establish a new home, a temporary apartment I will keep until I can close on the townhouse I found after searching and searching and searching. The temporary apartment is a cute little place filled with rental furniture. The one luxury I insisted on was a fireplace. If I'm going to be here for the next six months or so, I wanted a little bit of warmth to keep me happy.

The main thing is, my moving turmoil will slow down some and I can get back to the 2nd rewrite of the manuscript I have been hired to write. Almost a year ago, I was hired to ghostwrite the true life story of a black female soldier taken prisoner during the start of the Iraq war. For the last several months I've been listening to her story and trying to tell it the best way I could. I LOVE this book! I think it’s powerful and raw and I'm so proud of her and the story she has to tell. It’s still hard to believe that I’ve been given the opportunity to help tell her story.

I’ve been working all along, through the turmoil of this move but getting settled will help. Once I’m settled in the apartment, I will be able to concentrate on the rewrite so we can get this book to the publisher before the end of the year. If we can do that and we can get all their edits done right away, we can maybe publish by the fall of 2009. I so want that to happen. I think a lot of people will be surprised by her story and all that she survived and is still surviving.

This year, I’m thankful for this writing project, for my new apartment, for being back in the USA, for my new friend Sojue, the cutest little Siamese cat you could imagine, for being closer to my family, for the health of my family and for a new President.

I Moved

I moved. Which never sounds easy, but my move was from Seoul, Korea to Annapolis, Maryland. Stress does not even begin to describe my world over the last few weeks.

Now, I’m working on establishing my new life in a new place. I go house hunting tomorrow.

The sooner I find a place and settle down, the sooner I can get started working on the edits for the book. My editor has suggested some very reasonable and doable changes and I can hardly wait to dig in and start working on them.

Actually, the fact that she read the manuscript, had suggestions for changes, is scheduling time to “work” on the pages, was a validation I never expected EVER in my lifetime to have. This is that huge NY city muckity, muck editor I talked about before. I feel like, even if she wants changes, I’ve finally been officially dubbed, a writer. I’ll be working with an editor! I’ll be working hand in hand with her to improve the manuscript. The good thing is, at this point, I have little, to no ego to be hurt by her suggestions or desires. I think this is going to be great.

But first, I have to find a place to live. At least my timing is right. It is a buyers market…

The coolest video

I love this video. I've been so wrapped up in the debates and the election coverage and the financial bailout and just the news in general. I’m not sure why. Maybe because it sort of feels like I’m watching a train wreck.

If the bail out bill didn’t pass … train wreck. The whole Palin/Biden debate … possible train wreck. If we elect the wrong guy … the one just like the one we have now … train wreck! I watch and read everything I can get my hands on because it’s exciting and interesting and dangerous and more than likely, will look away right before the crash if it were to happen. There’s no question though, that these are important times for the future of our country.
That’s why I think this video is so cool. Its all about the vote.

Do I know stress?

I’ve never been so nervous and stressed out in my life! In March, I was given an opportunity of a lifetime -- to write someone’s memoir FOR MONEY. Yes, cold, hard cash. The story had already been sold to a publisher, so all I had to do was write the damn thing. I jumped at the chance, especially since I was very interested in the story, the woman who went through the experience and heck, who doesn’t want to get published? Not only was it a great story to tell, it was a great publisher! I mean, who doesn’t want to have a hard cover book published by a huge New York City publisher with YOUR NAME on it??

Plus, a nice fat paycheck. The largest amount of money I’ve EVER been paid for ANYTHING, EVER. I’m talking $$$ Ben-JA-mins.
So for six months, I toiled away on this project. Mostly, it was pretty easy. It was a subject I knew a lot about, I enjoyed telling the story, it seemed to flow from my fingers.

Now I’m done.

I just sent the manuscript to the editor. Now I wait to see what she says. This high-powered, I heart NY, high-falutin editor for a big muckity-muck publisher is reading my book. She could hate it. She could LAUGH at me. She could be using the pages to line her cat’s litter box!

Or she could make all my dreams come true. You think I’m sleeping!?

In light of my present state of mind, I give you this...

SNL Gets it Right

I didn't want this blog to get political but in these days, it's hard not to say SOMETHING about the election. At least we can still laugh about somethings..

Book Segregation – An Authors Civil Rights Movement

My lead character is a black woman but will that mean that my book will end up hidden past the front aisles of a bookstore? Why are all books featuring someone other than a white protagonist stuck on the “Ethnic” shelves? Who decides what goes there?
I for one don’t want my books in the ethnic section. Maya Angelou and Walter Mosley get to be on the common shelves, but most others aren’t. I don’t get it. I don’t like the ethnic shelves. I say we protest. Ask your bookstore why that segregation is necessary. Who are they trying to kid?

A Good Book

When I have enjoyed a book, I often go look up the website associated with it. I recently read “The Gargoyle” by Andrew Davidson, a saga about a man who had been beautiful and ugly, then learns to love when he is ugly and beautiful. It’s a great story about books and love and fire and pain. There's a lot in there about fire.

As much as I enjoyed the book, I LOVED the website. Burned by Love dot com is filled with stories of fast love and forever love and hatred and how love goes wrong. This video is just one of many on the site. I also wanted to post the story of the man who married his high school sweet heart only to find out that she was a kleptomaniac and drug addict. I fell in love with him watching him tell his story. You have to check out this site...and read the book. The Gargoyle, by Andrew Davidson. He's done a hell of a job with the marketing of his book with this website.

Agent Query dot Com

I find myself repeating this website address to people all the time. For almost every question writing related I utter the address. How do you find an agent? Agentquery.com How do you write a query letter? Agentquery.com. How do you format a novel for submission? Agentquery.com.

If you are breaking into the writing world either as a fiction or non-fiction writer, the website can answer all of your quesitons. I used it when I was sending out queries to agents and I still check in with the chats and to see what's what in the writing world.

Writing can be dangerous...and you gotta love the British!

Writers Conference

A couple of years ago, I attend the Maryland Writers Association Conference and had a fantastic time. It was only a one day thing, but from beginning to end, it was simply a blast. I spent the entire day listening to people talk about how they write, why they write. I listened to panelists talk about what it takes to publish, what agents are looking for. I ate lunch with people just like me, who had written something but didn’t know if it was any good, didn’t know if they should even try to get it published. I learned I wasn’t alone in this strange world of writing.

Since living overseas, it’s been impossible for me to attend anything like that again. And since I now have an agent, I wasn’t sure what good would come of going to one. I’ll be moving back to the states in early October so I decided I needed to jump back into some writing networking. I’ve just signed up for a conference, this one three days long and sort of intimidating. There are tons of agents and publishers registered to attend. One of them is an editor I am working with on a non-fiction book. I want her to buy my fiction and I figured this would be a good way to finally meet her in person and try to get her to take another look at the stuff I REALLY like to write.

The conference is also holding a little contest and I’m submitting my book, “the Lethal Frame” in the novel category. I don’t think I’ll win anything, but my thinking is it wouldn’t hurt to enter since the judges will talk about what they’ve read. The contest calls for the submission of 4,000 words and since they don’t have a separate mystery category more then likely something very literary will win. Still, I figure it’s always good to have industry professional s reading your work. They will talk amongst themselves and who knows, maybe someone who knows someone, knows someone else who is looking for exactly the kind of thing I’ve written.

I added a link to the conference site here. The 18th Annual South Carolina Writers Workshop Conference is happening Oct. 24 through the 26th in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. If nothing else, the beachside time will be great. I’ll just be getting back to the US then after a year and a half in Asia. I think it will be a great way to get back into the writing world. I can hardly wait!
Hopefully I’ll see you there…

To Agent or Not to Agent?

Should you fork over a percentage of your hard earned money to someone else? Should you share the profits of your word work to someone who didn’t contribute to the writing?

And you’ll only share those profits with the person AFTER you’ve gone through all of the work to find them in the first place. Preparing query letters, researching agencies, putting together and mailing copies of your work to agencies takes time. Would you be better served putting that effort into sending your work directly to publishers instead of some middleman?

I’ve heard people complain about their agents and I suppose there are plenty of bad ones out there. All I can say is that in the two years I’ve worked with my agent, she has earned every penny.

The biggest advantage she offers is the ability to pick up the phone and have conversations with the editors I would never have access to. A manuscript I sent to publishers on my own would sit in a slush pile, maybe never making it past the mailroom. When my agent delivers the pages, I know someone who is a decision maker is reading them.

St. Martin’s Press rejected my book but it wasn’t rejected by some assistant to an assistant who stuck a form letter into an envelope having never read my words. It was a rejection written by someone who read it, made a decision about it and took the time to write a legitimate reason for the rejection and even included a line that sounded very much like praise. Somehow, getting rejections like that, from the real folks who can make decisions, let me know my work was taken seriously. The pages weren’t thrown out with the trash.

I'm baaaaaack!

I should be ASHAMED of myself. I had no idea it was almost two years since I last posted to this blog. And I call myself a writer?

The truth is I have been writing -- chained to my computer actually. And for the first time, I actually got paid for it. It’s kind of a long story, and I’ll tell it here in pieces but first, I’m checking in just to say officially ….. I’m baaaaack!