Category: The Writing Life

Lost and Found

I recently returned from a holiday to Newfoundland. My husband and I had a great time. I took along my netbook and had intended to blog during the trip and post pictures, but it didn’t work out that way. Now I’m digging myself out from under the 4.5 hour time change and ensuing jet lag while preparing for the RWA National Conference in New York City that begins in a couple of weeks. I’m flying in a few days early (cross your fingers for me, because Air Canada is on strike, and I have no idea how it will affect travel in ten days), so I’m also in “conference prep” mode.

I will eventually post pictures of our trip and share some storiees, but I need to get my focus back first. While we were gone, I received the cover for WHERE SHE BELONGS, my December release from Five Star Expressions. I love it. It totally captures the mood, and the photo the art department found for the waterfall that’s featured in the story looks very much like the real waterfall on which I based my fictional waterfall (if that makes sense).

I’ll post the cover in a day or two.

I wasn’t the only one to receive a cover. Penny also received the cover for the electronic release of A LITTLE WILD, coming from Samhain Publishing in November. The original release date was for early October, but because I’m gone twice during June I asked for a postponement. This cover is amazing, too! Both covers feature the heroines only—not a hero in sight! I find that rather amusing that art departments of two separate publishers interpreted my Art Fact Sheets to create heroine-only covers, but both these stories are heroine-centric, as in the story is more the heroine’s than the hero’s. In each book, she has the most baggage and issues to work through.

Again, when I have time, I’ll post Penny’s cover, too.

Even though Penny’s release date has been postponed, I just received edits from my editor and want to work through them and have them back to her before I leave for NYC. I also received back the blurbs and tag lines and need to give them another look. So I’ll pop in here when I can, posting covers (for which I expect much oohing and ahhing) and pictures and stories about Newfoundland and Labrador while prepping for Conference and working through my edits.

More soon, promise!

Wednesday Wound Up

Er, make that “round up.”

In the I Can’t Find Enough Hours In The Day department, otherwise known as What Have I Been Up To?, I thought I’d pop in with the following:

Paint colors aren’t nearly as exciting as recent TV advertising would have one believe. At least, if you’re painting the interior of a mud room closet white, they aren’t. White is white, and such a delight. But, in the end, it’s just white.

I’ve decided it’s The Summer of White. I hereby pledge to paint every white room and piece of white wainscoting and white trim in the shared areas of the house (ie. the mud room and one hall, plus the kitchen wainscoting and trim. Okay, and some outside of doors. The parts that face into the hall). It’s way overude. I mean overdue. (Overude sounds over-rude). I figure if I only paint something white every couple of weeks, I won’t aggravate the bicep injury I created in the fall doing too much outdoor painting.

Nearly ALL the white sundeck trim I painted last summer has peeled off! White is a complete PITA sometimes! Or maybe it’s the rain/roast days of summer we “enjoy” that’s the PITA.

Come to think of it, where’s the summer? Okay, summer technically doesn’t start until June 21st, but this is ridiculous. One day it’s hot enough for air conditioning, the next I want My Liege to light a fire.

And none of this has anything to do with writing.

So, in the Writing Department, Penny has received a tentative release date for her erotic romance single title (sometime in the fall. I actually have a more precise idea of when in the fall, but I’m  not ready to announce it yet. Things are “in the works,” as they say). Because Penny loves to sit around on her lazy duff all day, this means I have to fill out her Cover Art Information Forms and write her cover blurb. I’m doing that this week.

As for Cindy, I’ve been working on my romantic comedy short story series and doing a lot of E.S. Just Moved Out post-cleaning.

I overindulged in peanut butter cups while awaiting the Rapture.

And I’ve been serving as a mentor for the ChickLit RWA on-line chapter. Me! A mentor. Imagine that.

I’m working with a writer on the other side of the pond. So far it’s been a pretty cool experience. I just hope I’m not piling too much “help” on her. I just figure, we only have two months to do this (May and June), and I’ll be out of town twice in June (I employ big, burly housesitters), so we don’t have as much time to work together as we should. So I’m giving it. And hopefully it’s helping her.

I would have loved a mentorship program like this when I was first starting out (I wonder if there’s such a thing as “when I was lastly starting out”?). But that was in pre-Internet days. I remember joining the RWA Outreach Chapter, which conducted all its business through the mail. That’s how I connected with my first critique partners. I still critique with one of them from time to time. My critique partners were my “mentors,” and I acted in the same capacity for them. I guess we were peer mentoring, because none of us were published at the time.

I’ve hooked up with other critique partners over the years. A couple of CP’ships lasted several years and were profitable for both sides. I still consider some of these writers very good friends. But sometimes “Real Life” interferes, family needs change, careers take off, and one or both partners needs to take a step back. Deadline Pressure is a real killer.

What else?

I haven’t had time to blog-hop the way I used to. It’s far easier to keep up with people on Facebook.

Speaking of Facebook, I’m thinking of canceling my MySpace account. I never go over there anymore, so why bother? Penny is thinking of having me cancel her account as well.

Eldest Son is now fully moved out but Youngest Son’s summer job doesn’t start until June. So May continues to be an “in flux” month, much as April was. So, lest any of you think the reason I haven’t been blogging is because I went back to South America, no such luck, I’m here. Just wound up from trying to find time to wind down.

All aboard the Get ‘Er Done! train. Leaving the station… Now!

One Year Countdown to WHERE SHE BELONGS

My 2007 Golden Heart finalist book, WHERE SHE BELONGS, won’t be out for another year. Except there’s another way to look at that. My Golden Heart finalist book will be out in a year! December 2011. It’s a long “engagement,” but the day WILL arrive.

Waiting for the release date reminds me of when My Liege and I got engaged. It was on the sixth anniversary of our first date (except we didn’t call them “dates” in the Eighties—Americans might have “dated,” but Canadians just “went out.”). (We also had a thing against cheerleaders). M.L. and I had a long engagement, about 15 months.

The night of the “one year countdown” to our wedding, I was attending a staff party with my BFF, Claudia, A.K.A. Sandorf Verster. Her staff party, not mine. We were sitting around a fire (it was summer), and she looked at me and said, “Procter, in one year you’ll be married. Only one more year of freedom.” (Or something like that). And she cackled. Like a witch.

I looked at my engagement ring, which had been a half-size too small when M.L. placed it on my finger in Stanley Park after a romantic dinner in downtown Vancouver, and it seemed to shrink again. I gulped. One year. One last year of unmarried life. Nerves ran rampant throughout my body. Then I thought, “What the hell,” and reminded Claudia that her chances of marrying before 30 were slim to slim (not that she cared).

As a release date approaches, writerly anxiety sets in. What if everyone hates my book? (What if the marriage doesn’t work out?)

What if everyone loves it? (What if we make it to our 25th? Oh, wait, we did, this summer).

What if people merely “like” the book? What if, what if, what if?

If you’re a writer, do you get nervous come release time? Or are you bubbling over with excitement? A neurotic mess? Overflowing with confidence?

If you’re not a writer, I’m not sure how to compare the release of a book to another life event. It’s weird to work on a book for months, sometimes years, strive for publication (which takes a cast-iron stomach, let me tell you), then suddenly an editor loves the story. She doesn’t think you suck! Twelve other editors before her might have thought you sucked, but THIS editor knows better! This editor is brilliant! YOU are brilliant! You are remarkably clever at fooling yourself, at any rate. And, not to worry, tomorrow you’ll think you’re the worst writer who ever existed.

Up and down, up and down. Being an author is an emotional roller-coaster. To survive, you need to embrace rejection. Whether that’s from editors, agents, or readers. Preferably readers you don’t personally “know.”

When I have a book release, I tell everyone I know, “Buy my book. You don’t have to read it. Just buy it and support me. Because Mama craves a new case of Kraft Dinner. If you hate the book, DON’T TELL ME. If you love it, or ‘enjoy’ it, by all means, tell me that! But if you hate it, just never mention having read it, and I won’t ask.”

There’s nothing worse than a well-meaning friend critiquing your book AFTER it’s been published. When it’s too late to do anything about it. Coming from a stranger? No problem. Having a buddy tell you your kid is ugly? Um, NO.

I Am Done!

Done like dinner. Done like dirt. Done like a rusted doorknob that’s fallen off and smacked the floorboards.

I’ve finished the revisions on my single title.

I am so happy, I could spit. There, I did. Now I have to clean up the computer screen.

If I weren’t sicker than the proverbial dog right now, I would do a Snoopy dance. But my headache would just get worse. I’ll leave the dancing to my beagle.

This summer, I suffered a fair bit of writerly anxiety about EVER finishing this book. I love this book. But it’s been my “between projects” book. You know, the book you want to work on, the one you want to give priority, but every time you begin working on it, you get a request for another work you’ve stupidly queried (and you manage to sell it, so then you have publisher-stuff to do—I know, cry me a river, right?). Or you have to do page proofs, or some insane person got ahold of your brain and made you decide to take on three outside painting projects in one summer. Plus, you suffered through some really bad Empty Nest Syndrome and had to deal with the accompanying motherhood tasks that led to the ENS.

I should mention that these are self-induced revisions. I queried agents on the manuscript in question several months ago and received partial requests that unfortunately did not proceed to full manuscript requests. I sat there and pondered, do I keep going down the list of agents to query or do I figure out what’s wrong with the damn manuscript and get back to work?

I chose the latter route. Got some fine writers to critique the partial/full, realized what was missing and realized that the market had changed since I began writing the book and putting it aside, and working on it, and putting it aside. So what might have worked for the market back then no longer did. Then I did a whole lot of brainstorming with a former critique partner, based on the commonality I discovered in the critiques. Then I got back to work.

All in the life of a writer.

What comes next? I’m setting aside the manuscript for a couple of weeks. I’ve worked on the query letter pitch and am now revamping the synopsis. I need to update both this website and Penny’s (my nickname for my erotic romance pen name). I need to finish the damn outdoor painting (please, sun, that appeared this week, stay!!). And I want to edit an erotic romance single title for Penny and begin marketing it. THEN I’ll polish up the cindypk ST and begin the (usually) loooooooooooong process of querying agents.

Wish me luck.

Excuses and Realities

I fully intended to blog about something other than nothing today, but we had a storm last night and the lights kept dimming so I shut down my computer (I usually write my blogs in advance and schedule them to appear on a designated day). Also, my father had knee replacement surgery yesterday. Lots of hospital visits are on the schedule until he gets out. Can’t have him expiring of boredom.

I had an incredibly busy August. I thought I’d be deep into revisions on my cindypk ST by now, but I consider myself lucky that I’m finding time to brainstorm those revisions. Making excellent headway, too! However, the last two weeks in particular have offered up one big life circumstance after another, some bad, some not as bad. And here I thought that by not attending the RWA National conference this year, I’d have way more writing time. Now I’m beginning to realize that August is pretty much a write-off in that area in the same way December is. If I plan not to have much writing time in both those months, things motor along okay. If I don’t allow myself enough leeway, if I plan to actually write a lot during those times, I get frantic. Because it doesn’t happen. I need to remember to work my deadlines around August and December so I can enjoy one of those things I’ve heard referred to as “A Life.”

The problem with being a writer is it’s a never-ending job. There’s always something to do. If you’re not actually writing, you’re plotting or brainstorming or promoting or working on your website. Like any small business, I suppose. It calls to you when you’re making dinner, when you’re supposed to be doing housework or relaxing in front of the TV. I don’t know the true meaning of weekends. If I’m deep in writing a book, to me the weekends are for catching up on the biz of writing. Not that I’m complaining. I love what I do. But it’s definitely not a nine-to-five lifestyle, and I think sometimes we writers are bad at recognizing that. We can’t work 14 hours a day and expect not to get burnt out. We aren’t super human. We need to learn to schedule breaks…or sorta breaks. If that means August and December are write-offs for getting much accomplished, then so be it.

Well, whaddyaknow? I think I just blogged about something.

Healthy Writer

My fellow 007 GH finalist sister, Trish Milburn, has just opened Healthy Writer, a blog devoted to encouraging sedentary individuals to get in shape (you know, those of us who sit in front of a computer all day). What a great idea, Trish. Check it out!

I admit, I am pretty sedentary in nature. Look under Athlete in the dictionary and you won’t find a picture of moi, that’s for sure. I walk every day, sometimes twice a day, thanks to my dog, however. I don’t know if I’d adhere to my schedule without the dog… When you have a dog and you’ve trained them to expect two walks a day, unless one of your kids (like mine) is responsible for the afternoon walks, you’re going on two walks a day whether you like it or not. Dogs are personal trainers in a hair suit.

Every other day, the day we aren’t going on a short (15-20 minute) morning walk, the McBeag and I go for what I call a “run/walk.” It doesn’t qualify as a “run,” because we don’t run all the way. We run about 10-15 minutes to the dog park, then she gets to sniff or attempt to drown herself in the creek (depending on how hot it is), or play with other dogs, then we walk the rest of the way home (about another half hour). If I have to walk her again in the afternoon (every Monday while both kids are home, then two or three times a week once Eldest Son hies himself back to university), then she only gets the short 15-20 minute walk again.

As for the running, I’d try to extend the duration—but the dog park’s in the middle, what can I do? And I can only stand so much torture. I’m not a running fiend, never have been. It’s easier with the dog. Her attempts to sniff everything along the road keep my mind occupied. Without her, I Hate Running. It’s good for my heart, which is why I do it, but it makes my back ache. Oh, well, that’s what massage therapists are for. I could not run every other day without my twice-monthly massage.

How do you cope with the sedentary nature of a writer’s life?