Sunday, October 30, 2011
Spooky Legends Blogfest
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Putting My Ducks in a Row
Last week I blogged at Magic and Mayhem about how a book release is like the ninth month of pregnancy. Between now and the first of the year, I'm going to be hustling about like a nesting mother-to-be. I'm busy in a way that I never thought I would be, and I'm loving every minute of it. But it also means that blogging here, even one day a week, might be too much for a month or so. I have 20 or so blog posts/interviews to finish for my blog tour, the outline for book 3 is due in November, I'll be working on edits for book 2, and I have a novella due by the end of December. Plus, I have to keep plugging along on a zero draft for book 3. Oh, and did I mention Shaedes of Gray will be releasing in less than 45 days?!?!
I'm really proud of how I've stuck to my schedule this summer/fall. I've blogged twice a week (once here and once at Magic and Mayhem). I've maintained my FB page and Twitter, though I have to say, I'm not the most brilliant or witty of tweeters. I'm starting to realize, though, that I need to back off a bit and get some work done. I won't be gone, though. I'll still be blogging here and there, and my blog tour kicks off in mid-November. And I'm going to have guest bloggers! Yep, you heard me. ;) My friend Cassy is going to be popping in now and again with book reviews and whatnot. I'll be posting a little hello snippet from her next week.
Have you kept to a blogging schedule lately? What works for you? What doesn't?
I'm really proud of how I've stuck to my schedule this summer/fall. I've blogged twice a week (once here and once at Magic and Mayhem). I've maintained my FB page and Twitter, though I have to say, I'm not the most brilliant or witty of tweeters. I'm starting to realize, though, that I need to back off a bit and get some work done. I won't be gone, though. I'll still be blogging here and there, and my blog tour kicks off in mid-November. And I'm going to have guest bloggers! Yep, you heard me. ;) My friend Cassy is going to be popping in now and again with book reviews and whatnot. I'll be posting a little hello snippet from her next week.
Have you kept to a blogging schedule lately? What works for you? What doesn't?
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Happy Book Birthday to Sandy Williams!
THE SHADOW READER hit shelves today! I can't say enough about how wonderful this book is. Full of action, suspense, danger, and a fair share of romance, this is a must read for any urban fantasy lover! Go forth and get your copy! You won't be dissapointed.
There can only be one allegiance. It’s her time to choose.
Some humans can see the fae. McKenzie Lewis can track them, reading the shadows they leave behind. But some shadows lead to danger. Others lead to lies.
A Houston college student trying to finish her degree, McKenzie has been working for the fae king for years, tracking vicious rebels who would claim the Realm. Her job isn’t her only secret. For just as long, she’s been in love with Kyol, the king’s sword-master—and relationships between humans and fae are forbidden.
But any hope for a normal life is shattered when she’s captured by Aren, the fierce and uncompromising rebel leader. He teaches her the forbidden fae language and tells her dark truths about the Court, all to persuade her to turn against the king. Time is running out, and as the fight starts to claim human lives, McKenzie has no choice but to decide once and for all whom to trust and where she ultimately stands in the face of a cataclysmic civil war.
Some humans can see the fae. McKenzie Lewis can track them, reading the shadows they leave behind. But some shadows lead to danger. Others lead to lies.
A Houston college student trying to finish her degree, McKenzie has been working for the fae king for years, tracking vicious rebels who would claim the Realm. Her job isn’t her only secret. For just as long, she’s been in love with Kyol, the king’s sword-master—and relationships between humans and fae are forbidden.
But any hope for a normal life is shattered when she’s captured by Aren, the fierce and uncompromising rebel leader. He teaches her the forbidden fae language and tells her dark truths about the Court, all to persuade her to turn against the king. Time is running out, and as the fight starts to claim human lives, McKenzie has no choice but to decide once and for all whom to trust and where she ultimately stands in the face of a cataclysmic civil war.
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
ARC Giveaway and Blog Tour Info
I'm giving away an ARC of SHAEDES OF GRAY over at Magic and Mayhem this week! Stop by and leave a comment until October 25th to be entered to win.
Also, I've added a Blog Tour information tab with a list of dates and locations for my blog tour. I'll be giving away books and cool swag. I hope to see you at one of my stops! My blog roll has grown considerably over the last year, and it's crammed full of great sites dedicated to reviewing books and spreading the love of reading. There's nothing better than the enthusiasm that comes from a great review or much anticipated news from your favorite author. I get most of my book and publishing news from blogs. I'm a total fan girl and I can't wait to be a guest on some of my favorite blogs!
Also, I've added a Blog Tour information tab with a list of dates and locations for my blog tour. I'll be giving away books and cool swag. I hope to see you at one of my stops! My blog roll has grown considerably over the last year, and it's crammed full of great sites dedicated to reviewing books and spreading the love of reading. There's nothing better than the enthusiasm that comes from a great review or much anticipated news from your favorite author. I get most of my book and publishing news from blogs. I'm a total fan girl and I can't wait to be a guest on some of my favorite blogs!
Monday, October 17, 2011
Pots n' Pens
I'm a guest over at Pots 'n Pens this morning, discussing food and fiction. If you get a chance, stop by!
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Winter Prep
For the first time in 8 weeks I don't have a post prepared. It's busy around here. Soccer just wrapped up for the season. I'm up to my eyeballs in peppers, carrots, peaches, and tomatoes. Today I'll be freezing, canning, and generally getting prepped for winter. And when you live in the mountains, you know that snow can come and stick anytime after October 15th. How about you? Are you prepping for winter? Or do you get a break before the winter storms hit?
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
The Zero Draft
I learned something over the course of writing my Shaedes World novella last month. It's really important to just spit the story out. I have a tendency to over-analyze every word. To go back and change sentences or paragraphs before moving on with the story. But when I wrote the novella, I set a goal for myself: finish the zero draft in 30 days. And I wasn't about to not meet my goal.
I have friends who can crank out a zero draft in no time at all. And I found out that the best way to finish a story quickly is to allow yourself to skip over minor details. Whereas I might usually suffer over a name choice for thirty minutes or longer, this time I just typed [name]. Or if I needed to research another language to make sure my word choice was correct I would type the word in English and type [Armenian] or [Gaelic] next to the word. I didn't sweat the small stuff. If I wrote a couple of pages of dialog that didn't sound quite right, I would add a comment bubble in the margin that read: "This doesn't sound quite right. He's more...(add character traits) go back and fix later."
By allowing myself to skip over the fine details, I sped up my writing and finished on time. I didn't have to sacrifice anything to the time frame I set. I still wrote in a linear fashion, I was able to keep to my rough outline, and I busted out the word count, which in this case, was only 1.5k words a day.
Since finishing the zero draft, I haven't even opened the document to take another look. It's not due to my editor until the end of December, so I have plenty of time to go back, fine tune, and fill in the blanks. I won't have to rush. By spitting out the zero draft, I've given myself more time to focus on the third book in the Shaede Assassin series. A book that I'm planning to finish ahead of schedule so I can work on some non-Shaede related projects.
How do you write that zero draft? Do you turn off your internal editor and run with it? Or do you go back and edit as you write?
I have friends who can crank out a zero draft in no time at all. And I found out that the best way to finish a story quickly is to allow yourself to skip over minor details. Whereas I might usually suffer over a name choice for thirty minutes or longer, this time I just typed [name]. Or if I needed to research another language to make sure my word choice was correct I would type the word in English and type [Armenian] or [Gaelic] next to the word. I didn't sweat the small stuff. If I wrote a couple of pages of dialog that didn't sound quite right, I would add a comment bubble in the margin that read: "This doesn't sound quite right. He's more...(add character traits) go back and fix later."
By allowing myself to skip over the fine details, I sped up my writing and finished on time. I didn't have to sacrifice anything to the time frame I set. I still wrote in a linear fashion, I was able to keep to my rough outline, and I busted out the word count, which in this case, was only 1.5k words a day.
Since finishing the zero draft, I haven't even opened the document to take another look. It's not due to my editor until the end of December, so I have plenty of time to go back, fine tune, and fill in the blanks. I won't have to rush. By spitting out the zero draft, I've given myself more time to focus on the third book in the Shaede Assassin series. A book that I'm planning to finish ahead of schedule so I can work on some non-Shaede related projects.
How do you write that zero draft? Do you turn off your internal editor and run with it? Or do you go back and edit as you write?
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