Critique Sisters Corner

CHANNELER'S CHOICE, by Heather McCorkle

2012-02-27T04:47:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone, and welcome to an interview with our very own Heather McCorkle about her new release, Channeler's Choice, the second book in her Channeler Series. I am deeply honored to be the first stop on Heather's blog tour for this novel.

Hi, Heather!

Heather: Hello! *waves*

Linda: In the first book in the series, The Secret of Spruce Knoll, we found out that your protagonist, a girl named Eren, is a channeler. In fact she found out she was a channeler after her parents died and she had to move to a remote town and live with an aunt. Plus, she met this gorgeous guy, Aiden, there, who is also a channeler (and a heartthrob). And there's a powerful connection between channelers and the Earth and keeping the planet alive. Those are just some of the high points of the first book. With that background, so many questions come to mind about what might happen in your second book!

From this beautiful cover on Channeler's Choice, I'm guessing that Eren and Aiden are still together (whew!). I'm hoping they're not only getting to know each other better, but still working together to develop their powers. What is it that they're up against in this book?

Heather: The stakes are raised for them in this novel, in more ways than one. Now not only do they have to figure out how to be a couple and if they're meant to be, but they have to figure out how to be leaders of their kind. And a threat looms, possibly a new one, possibly an old one as well.

Linda: Coming of age in more ways than one. This definitely sounds like a powerful story. I'm guessing, too, from the title, that there's a dilemma Eren is going to face, besides anything personal with Aiden. If that's not the 'threat' you mentioned, can you tell us anything about that?

Heather: Well, since it's on the back cover I suppose I can. ;) *SPOILER ALERT* Eren discovers that she doesn't have to be a channeler after all. She has a choice to make.

Linda: Oooh, I love that! Tough choices in life about which road to take, especially if a choice is really challenging and difficult but you know it's important--those are gripping dilemmas that we can all relate to. Back to the personal between Eren and Aiden (you see where my mind keeps going)—is there something major in this story that could tear them apart? Can you tell us a little about that?

Heather: There is at least one new threat. Another girl has her eyes on Aiden and she's determined to get him at all costs.

Linda: Uh, oh. But I'll bet she doesn't really know what she's up against. Can't wait to see how Eren and Aiden handle that! (men can be so challenging!)

This is such a great idea for a series, Heather. Young lovers with huge responsibilities way beyond their years, the fate of the Earth in their hands; the protagonist a young woman who has to not only lead the way for the other channelers, but find herself, while all this is going on. Do you remember the moment when the idea formed in your mind? What was that like?

Heather: It was instantaneous. I was watching a show on the receding polar ice caps and Eren hit me, fully formed, purpose, needs, desires. It was pretty amazing. I wish it always happened like that!

Linda: Wow, that is wonderful. I love it when that kind of inspiration strikes, and you just know. Thank you so much for sharing all this tantalizing info. I can't wait to get my hands on Channeler's Choice!

Heather: Thank you so much for hosting me and for being the first stop along my tour. It only seems right since you've been such a huge part of this journey. ;)

One more thing—in celebration I'd love to give away an eBook copy of Karlene Petitt's Flight for Control to one lucky commenter and follower of the Critique Sisters Corner. This giveaway will run between now and Sunday, the winner to be announced here next Monday. Also, I'd like to invite everyone to stop by my Heather's Odyssey blog for a chance to win even more books! http://heathermccorkle.blogspot.com

Linda: So glad you made a stop with us! And that is fantastic about your generous giveaway. Thank you.

When you head over to Heather's Odyssey, everyone, you can order a copy of Channeler's Choice there, too, besides checking out the other giveaways. Enjoy!

~ Linda

Writers Advice

2012-02-24T00:05:00.000-08:00

"Either write something worth reading

or do something worth writing"

Benjamin Franklin

Today I'm doing part two... something worth writing about.

Scheduling called and I'm on a Seattle, Tokyo, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Seattle, trip. The adventure never fails, despite the obstacles dropped in my lap. I had 600 books to take to the Western Washington Aviation Trade Show... but to my surprise I got called out on this trip, and will miss the show and the opportunity.

Does this mean another opportunity is on the horizon? I'll know soon, as I will be flying toward many horizons in the next few days. And who knows... I'm sure I will be finding something to write about.

Enjoy the Journey!

XOX Kalrene

Method To The Madness

2012-02-22T08:25:00.000-08:00

Writing and editing are two different things. It’s important that you allow yourself to write a rough draft by writing all the way through to the end without editing heavily. A little bit of tweaking here and there is alright, but if you stop the momentum, well, you’ve stopped the momentum. It may never pick up again, or could be disjointed or discordant.

Whether you’re a pantser (write by the seat of your pants) or a plotter, there must be a method to your madness, a routine that you follow to help you reach the end.

While editing it’s even more important that you have a structured system of your own design to follow. Yep pantsers, that means you too. Having a system for editing makes it faster, easier, and much more thorough. Chances are, even if you’re a pantser, you probably have an editing routine that you follow. I have a five step editing process that helps me polish to a shine that keeps my editor happy with me.

Your editing method should be tailored to what works for you. Maybe five steps is too many, maybe it’s not enough. It all depends on how you want to do it. Some authors I know print out their manuscript and lay it out on their floor with sticky notes on each page (so cool, I’d love to try this method!), others use editing software that allows them to list things out and rearrange, and even other print out and do a red pen edit. The important thing is to try different methods, ask other writers, and find what works for you.

So what is your editing method?

~Heather

Keeping it Fresh—Writer's Craft: Color

2012-02-20T06:33:00.001-08:00

Sometimes we forget how important it is to refresh our writing process. We develop our approach and our routines, we find what feels like it's working for us, and we pour our energies into that. Each day that we perform these efforts successfully, we reinforce the power of the approach and routine. This is good stuff—important for us as developing writers, and even as established writers. But, of course there's a hitch, a trap, a paradox here, as with everything else about process: the more skilled and comfortable we become in our familiar creative process, the less fresh and imaginative we are.

The key word in the above sentence is familiar. We need to nip this sinking-into-familiar-pleasures business in the bud before familiar transforms into rut. Every once in a while we need to shake things up. I'm not talking about throwing out the baby with the bathwater (cliché, anyone?), but simply taking a deep breath, walking away from our project, and spending an hour releasing what we know and opening ourselves to discovery.

I know. . . work, work, work. But there's an easy way to do this, which dovetails beautifully with the whole paradoxical nature of this conundrum: go back to basics for a little refresher in some specific area. Just for today, let's choose color.

A favorite guide of mine for doing this is a wonderful teacher and author named Priscilla Long. Here, from her book, The Writer's Portable Mentor, is an idea about how to reinvigorate your writing by incorporating a fresh approach to color in your verbiage.

Long says, "We've heard the phrase,"gray prose." Gray prose is general prose, colorless prose. Put color in your prose."

How to do this? Long's suggestions*:

Look around you. What colors do you see? If you were to paint the scene in front of you, what pigments would you squeeze from the tube?
Describe what you see. Use concrete nouns where you can. Rubies, urine, e.g.—carry color onto the page without further elaboration, and are powerful; stronger than adjectives.
Remember the color verbs: to blacken; to yellow; to purple.
Identify colors from a classic, sophisticated, color lexicon. Long suggests we go to an art supply store and get sample sheets from purveyors of pigments, like Winsor & Newton. The sheets have daubs of color painted on them, which are called by stable names that have evolved over centuries, like burnt umber, and yellow ochre. This is preferable, she suggests, to colors of house paints and printing inks, which are named by advertising writers and impossible to identify without looking at them (e.g. Autumn Purple). Burnt sienna is burnt sienna, no matter who manufactures it.
Any common object, substance, or living thing that has a stable color can be used as a color word: an item may be 'wheat' or 'blackberry' or 'ebony' colored, e.g.
Colors derived from objects or living things become instantly metaphorical, in that they compare one thing to another. Instantly, then, the writer needs to . . . make the metaphor intensify the character or setting or situation rather than detract from it. (You wouldn't describe a flower in the tropics as 'snow white,' for example. There's no snow in the tropics. You might instead say it is 'ghostly white,' as if deprived of color by dark, dense growth that surrounds it.)

Exercise: Do what Long has identified as "the Here and Now" exercise: Go to a café, a park, a library, down to the river (you get the idea). Write for fifteen minutes at a steady pace without stopping. Describe what's in front of you, paying close attention to color. Write slowly and mention the color of everything you see. Use as many different words for colors as you can think of (words for brown, e.g.: dun, auburn, burnt sienna, umber, chocolate, turd-colored, straw-colored, molasses. Her eyes were the color of molasses.)

Think of comparisons to objects in the world as you write. What objects are the same color as this person's hair, e.g., or his eyes? List these, or phrases describing them, such as, his eyes were blue like the sky, no, brighter, like robin's eggs, etc. Later, choose the one that's most accurate not only for the color, but for the character and situation. A character with steel blue eyes differs considerably from one with pale blue eyes.

Remember, nouns and verbs are strong, adjectives and adverbs are weak. Do not proliferate adjectives in your color practice. Use color verbs: Dusk reddens the sky. Use nouns that emit their colors: walnut, eggplant, cherrywood. Add a color adjective, but force it to earn its keep by deleting two adjectives and one adverb.

When you come back to your project, I promise you'll see it differently after this exercise. Fresher and brighter or darker. Definitely deeper. Enjoy!

~ Linda
*combination of quote and paraphrase

WNBA: Seattle Event

2012-02-17T00:05:00.000-08:00

Women's National Book Association

Seattle Chapter

Please Join us for a program featuring Professors Joanna Gregson and Jen Lois as they discuss their social-scientific study focused on the craft, career and culture of romance writers.

When: Saturday, February 25, 10:30 a.m.

Where: Elliott Bay Book Company

1521 Tenth Avenue, Seattle WA

(Between Pike and Pine on Capitol Hill)

Tenth is between Broadway and 11th in this part of Capitol Hill. Parking is on the street, metered and paid parking is available in the garage in the building. (Beware... if you park past your pre-paid time, you will get a ticket!)

Bring a friend!

Program:

Since April of 2010, Professors Joanna Gregson and Jen Lois have been conducting sociological research on the authors of romance novels. By interviewing romance writers and attending local and national Romance Writers of America (RWA) events, Professors Gregson and Lois are examining the craft, career and culture of romance writers. In so doing, they hope to understand how writers construct romance, gender, and sexuality through their writing, how they experience their careers in what has been called “the most popular, least respected literary genre,” and how romance authors’ shared subculture is shaped by their gender. With the vast majority of existing research on romance fiction coming from the field of literary criticism—focusing on the content of the text and analyzing the books for latent messages about femininity, masculinity, and sexuality—this project breaks new ground as the first social-scientific study focused on romance writers themselves

Speaker bios:

Joanna Gregson is a sociology professor at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA. She teaches and conducts research in the areas of gender, family, and deviance. Dr. Gregson has published on such varied topics as teenage motherhood, incarcerated women, and women’s divorce experiences. Her book, The Culture of Teenage Mothers (SUNY Press, 2009), explores how young mothers experience and respond to the stigma associated with teenage parenthood.

Jen Lois is a sociology professor at Western Washington University in Bellingham, WA. She teaches and researches in the areas of gender, family, emotions, and heroism. Her first book, Heroic Efforts, examined heroism, emotions, and gender in a mountain-environment search-and-rescue group (NYU Press, 2003). In 2006 the book was honored with the Outstanding Recent Contribution Award from the American Sociological Association’s Sociology of Emotions Section. Her second book, Home Is Where the School Is (NYU Press, 2012), is based on ten years of research with homeschooling mothers, and focuses on how homeschooling can be a way to meet the high standards of good mothering in our culture.

Sincerely, Judy, Cathy, Barbara, Leslie, Linda, and Karlene

Your WNBA Seattle Chapter Board Members

How Your Writing Can Benefit From Travel

2012-02-15T08:13:00.000-08:00

Traveling somewhere new can widen your perspective and spark new ideas, not just in your life but in your writing. Every place I visit is an opportunity for me to study different cultures, traditions, landscapes, and even weather. Each year (finances allowing) I find a writer's retreat or workshop that I feel compelled to attend. I do my best to take in everything I can while I'm on one of these trips. It isn't just about the classroom for me. I like to go out and see the area, listen to the people, feel the climate. I absorb it all and store it away in my mind for later use in writing.

There are a few breathtaking tropical places I've been over the years and they certainly hold a special place in my heart. However, a place doesn't have to be dynamic to be memorable and useful for your writing. A few years ago the Critique Sisters and I attended a writer's workshop in Tulsa Oklahoma. I can hear you all groaning and I know you're wondering, why the heck Tulsa?! Well because that's where the fantastic William Bernhardt holds his yearly classes. Believe me, I wasn't thrilled about the venue either. But I decided to learn what I could, not just from the workshop, but from Tulsa as well.

Oklahoma is somewhere I would never visit without good reason. I'm really glad I had one. There is a lot of great history in Oklahoma. Many of the streets of Tulsa are lined with beautiful brick mansions that harken back to an era when oil was plentiful there. The Kennedy Mansion B&B (no, not those Kennedy's) we stayed in was one such house. Everyone we met was exceedingly kind and while it was windy, the weather was actually pretty mild for us. This year we're planning on our own personal retreat on Maui and I couldn't be more excited. We've opened our arms to new sisters who will be joining us this year too, which is even more exciting!

No matter where you travel to, even if it's to a local B&B, take it all in because all of it can enrich your writing. Where have you been that's helped your writing in some way?

~Heather

Penguin at Odds with Libraries; ABA at Odds with Amazon

2012-02-13T06:20:00.001-08:00

Penguin has taken a new stand on its e-book and audiobook distribution, essentially cutting off any distribution to libraries in the future. It is also negotiating an agreement, though, that will allow libraries that have already bought Penguin e-books to continue lending them.

At the heart of this is that one purchase of an e-book can last forever, whereas paper books wear out and have to be replaced. Penguin previously tried to impose a limit on libraries that they could lend out a copy of an e-book only seventeen times (approximately the number of times a paper book is lent before it is worn out and needs to be replaced). After that the library would have to repurchase it. That didn't work out too well, apparently.

To be honest, I have mixed feelings about this issue. Penguin seems to be ignoring the inexorable tides of change and failing to see that they must also change to survive. But perhaps they are also firmly on the side of authors as well as themselves, and feel an imperative to support authors' incomes in the traditional marketplace. (The specter of what happened to so many musicians when the traditional music distribution network changed because of the internet is never far away. Incomes plummeted, careers were upended, many new voices were simply never heard because there was no support to develop them. The parallel to our industry is strong.)

At best, it seems that this aggressive action by Penguin might create additional recognition of how significant an impact the digital revolution is having on the publishing industry. Maybe this will get someone to think up a new business model that will allow all the players—authors, publishers, and distribution points including brick-and-mortar stores, e-readers, and libraries—to thrive.

Meanwhile, there are important issues cropping up that muddy the waters for the largest non-traditional publisher—Amazon—too. The American Booksellers Association has thrown down a gauntlet. Here's the news clip from Publishers Weekly:

IndieCommerce Pulls Amazon Titles
The ABA's for-profit subsidiary, Indie-Commerce, is removing all Amazon titles from its database. IndieCommerce director Matt Supko said its policy is "only publishers' titles that are made available to retailers for sale in all available formats will be included in the IndieCommerce inventory database."

More articles are also appearing that touch on the question of whether Amazon is guilty of predatory pricing in the book industry—through pricing Kindle and Kindle Fire at a loss, for example, while maintaining Kindle as the single-source for reading e-books from Amazon. If their pricing policies create a monopolistic type of environment, that's against the law.

What is your take on these developments? Are we just caught up in a muddling-through stage of change in the industry? Is the abyss opening before us? What's a writer to think?

~ Linda

Standing Naked: My Book is Available!

2012-02-10T00:01:00.000-08:00

It’s one thing to talk about writing a book—another to put in the due diligence of researching and learning the craft, then actually writing it. But to have it available for purchase, now that is an interesting sensation.

This week my Aviation Thriller went live, and the feeling was like no other. Not until people could actually purchase it, did I feel this sense of fear rolled up in a pile of nerves.

Nerves? Fear? I felt like I was standing naked on the street for everyone to judge me! And they will. Which brought me to the essence of this post.

We are not what we do.

Our value is not based upon our work.

Our self-worth has zero connection to the opinion of others.

I can see a serious trap in falling down the path of attaching our self-worth to whether or not people like our work, or if we sell thousands of novels.

Repeat after me: “I am not my work. I put my life into it. I did my best. I think it’s good. But not everyone will like everything. I know I have much learning to do—of course I will continue to get better. But today, I know that I am worth more than judgment on my novel, by someone who may have not done what I have done. I am proud to finish this book and say, I am an author.”

Now, I have to shout about my work. I have one review so far. And if I do say so myself, Linda couldn’t have said this better—

“I've read it: here's my Amazon review (everyone can go to Amazon and add their reviews, too) Flight for Control is a heart-pounding, bone-shaking aviation thriller that manages to incorporate fun and humor in the broader story, too. The friendships among the women in the book are great, and key to the plot, along with shocking behavior and unsettling revelations by other characters. I think this book will appeal to both men and women. Petitt is a long-time pilot who knows what she's talking about in the world of commercial aviation. You will stay up late reading this book (but you might not want to do that while you're a passenger on an airplane)” Linda Gray

Thank you Linda!

Autographed books are available on my blog, as is the warning—this book is for mature audiences only. Click Flight For Control to check it out.

Enjoy the Journey!
XOX Karlene

The Zombie Apocalypse Has Hit

2012-02-08T07:24:00.000-08:00

You think it hasn't hit, that you're safe. But you're so very, very wrong. The Mayan's were right. Don't believe me? Look around you? Don't worry, I'll wait for your eyes to adjust to the 3-D world beyond your computer screen. See what I mean? No? Look again. See that woman across the table from you. Well, you can see the top of her head at least, because she's texting away. Then there's the boy at the next table over, his face alight with the glow of an ereader. In fact, everyone in the coffee shop is clutching some kind of device that they are staring vacantly into.

Oh yes, the apocalypse has indeed hit and we are merciless for we didn't even see it coming. And here I was all prepared with my shotgun and combat boots. But they are useless against the masses of techies that are ensnared within their electronic devices. For they are in a different world, a place shotgun shells don't reach. Everyone is updating profiles, reading eBooks, watching videos, texting, or surfing the internet. We are all connected, and yet we have never been more divided. Ripe for the picking.

Don't get me wrong, I'm as ensnared as you are and I quite like it in this new world of ours. But I do wonder, what will happen to the old one while we're away?

In all seriousness though, I'm curious, have you succumbed to the e-revolution? Do you own an ereader? What is your preference, hardback, paperback, or ebook?

~Heather

How Do You Envision Journey's End? Week 21 With Tarot's Fool

2012-02-06T07:12:00.000-08:00

It is almost time for the Fool's journey to end, for he is about to achieve his quest. And what a journey it's been! You may be surprised to know that after all the transformations he's been through, he once again looks exactly like this----------------->

How can that be? He's been turned upside down and inside out; into an old old man and, at times, no more than a smear of protoplasm on the basement floor of self-discovery. And yet here he is. About to take that momentous last step.

Before he could do this, the Fool had to call up his past—everything he learned about himself during his journey that no longer serves him—and finally put it all to rest (Week 20: Judgement). That, as he found out, does not mean exorcising his past from his life, or even tucking it safely away under lock and key where it can't affect him—that's not possible. It means accepting all that he's been and done, without judgment, at which point it vanishes as an active force. He did that, and now he is who he is, no more and no less, and he is fully in the present. Ahhhh.

With an open heart, the Fool turns to the path to take the last step. He finds himself once again standing at the edge of that same cliff where we met him. But this time, instead of stepping carefully away from the precipice, he steps right off the cliff . . . and soars. Higher and higher, until the whole of the world is his to see.

He dances above the world and experiences it in all its fullness. He sees that the end to his long journey has come, and that, waiting for him in the world below is well-earned praise, celebration and success.

From this vantage point, he looks back to where he began—at his idealism and assumptions, his willingness to expose and pursue his desire, and he knows none of this would have happened without that.

He realizes there is no separation between his body and mind and his quest. In the end, it is all one.

What else will happen? He sees that in addition to all the celebrating, there will be new opportunity. Maybe he'll become a teacher, or a sought-after lecturer. Long, fantastic trips are in his future, too. He feels whole, and happy.

Tarot's Fool is no fool, though. Soon he'll think about possibilities, good and bad, and be open to the experiences they may bring. He'll think about how important it is to stay open, to be a good citizen, and to be a good fighter. Aware of his mind and his environment, he will not fail to respect any important opportunity and the realities around it.

But for now, the Fool wants to enjoy this moment, and to recoup his energies. He bows as he steps out of the dance, and retreats to his garden (the one he planted with all the parts of himself that survived Death. They thrust their new green shoots into the world, he nurtured them, and the garden is lovely and luxurious now). He just needs to soak up the pleasure he has earned, which he does as he accepts his rewards with great joy.

When he's rested, he has a decision to make. He hates to leave his garden, but he must move; a new quest beckons. Now he will begin from a new position of strength.

He feels a new spark of energy for a new idea. He is fearless, ready to move along the path that unfolds in front of him, and to do whatever he can to achieve his new quest. This time, he's wiser, smarter in the ways of the world, and far more aware of his own true strengths. He asks the question: "Should I do this? Is this the quest for me?" In the distance he sees something. Could it be? Yes, it's. . .The Wheel of Fortune. Sometimes, you just get lucky. Yes, indeed, this is a lucky new day for the Fool.

So while my story of The Fool's Journey has come to an end, the Fool will go on, as will we. It's an amazing journey. When we are aware and present, open to what is on offer to learn—the effects on us are tremendous. We are so lucky to be writers. Every focus in life has its journey, but the creative journey is like a star exploding. The star is no longer ours at journey's end, it belongs to all it touches. And the explosion creates new galaxies with the fiery pieces that fly off from it. Beautiful, mysterious galaxies. Who can resist exploring those?

I believe that if the Fool were to wish us farewell, he'd say, "Be wise, be well, and good journey." It doesn't get better than that.

~ Linda
Links to Fool's Journey posts: 0—The Fool; 1—The Magician; 2—The High Priestess; 3—The Empress; 4&5—The Emperor, and The Hierophant; 6—The Lovers; 7—The Chariot; 8—Strength; 9—The Hermit; 10—Wheel of Fortune; 11—Justice; 12—The Hanged Man; 13—Death; 14—Temperance; 15—The Devil; 16—The Tower; 17—The Star; 18—The Moon; 19—The Sun; 20—Judgement

My interpretation of The Fool's Journey as it applies to the writing life is my own, but the journey is long-established from a variety of sources. Those I've relied on most heavily are: TAROT BASICS by Burger & Fiebig, AECLECTIC TAROT by Thirteen, and EVERYDAY TAROT by Fairfield

Critiques, Another Angle

2012-02-03T00:05:00.000-08:00

This week has been all about the power of being a good critiquer. Excellent advice on how to do this was written by Heather McCorkle: The Power of a Critique.

Today we’re going to shift and look at this critiquing business from the other side of the pen.

First off, I have to come clean with something—I “never” feel bad no matter what is said about my book, or how it’s presented. I also don’t need the added fluff of the good stuff, unless it’s specific and told for a reason if the knowledge could help other areas. I’m confident that this is a tough job editing and I would rather know what doesn’t work than what does. Because all that was not spoken—I’m under the assumption it’s brilliant or they would have said something.

How did I acquire this attitude? Perhaps years of learning to fly airplanes. I’ve had the best of the criticism, and I know it was all so I wouldn’t kill my passengers. I’ve always been grateful for what I can learn from someone else. I also have a belief system that people believe as I do. Don’t we all think that? Why would I assume someone is being hurtful with my critique to hurt me and not help, when I would never do that? I wouldn’t.

My belief system:

1. I do not have control over how people behave, what they say, or how they say it. I only have control over my interpretation and belief of “why” they said the things did.

· I belief if someone has dedicated their time to critique my work, I know they care about me enough to do that.

· If they say something they dislike about my book, I believe it’s to make my work better. I may not agree with all their suggestions, and I may want to discuss it further, but they are taking their time to help me. I appreciate that.

· I believe that anything anyone says “bad” about my work is with a positive intent, and done with that person’s experience and perceptions to move me forward.

· I believe it’s hard and painful to be honest with another about their baby, thus I appreciate their honesty—no matter how painful—I believe it hurts them more than me.

2. It takes a huge effort and time commitment for someone to read my book.

· I am extremely grateful. How and what they tell me is “all” good.

· I believe I owe them the respect to listen to, and consider all, they said, for all the work they’ve committed on “my” behalf.

· I believe it’s important to not critique how they critiqued me, but thank them for their effort and the valuable feedback.

3. When people care, they put out an extra effort and go out of their way for me. I know that they care if they took the time.

· If they care, how they say what they say isn’t the issue. The fact they were honest with me is.

4. Personally, I have no problem with negative critiques because I grow from them.

· I believe in listening and learning.

· I value education and growth, and know that I can grow from everyone’s suggestion, even if I don’t take it. It creates another perspective.

· I believe that their impression could be that of my future readers. I may not change to their suggestion, but I do heed their suggestions at what didn’t work for them.

We cannot control how people treat us, but we can control how we interpret their behavior. It’s our choice to believe if they gave us a negative critique to hurt, or their best effort and honest opinion.

In my life, I choose gratitude, and acceptance of “everything” someone has to say. If I didn’t, I know that my book wouldn’t be where it’s at today. I wouldn’t be the pilot that I am today.

After reading my novel, National Best Selling author Robert Dugoni said, “This may not be what you want to hear, but…” And I responded, “This is ‘exactly’ what I wanted to hear. It may not have been what I’d hoped for, but it’s ‘exactly’ what I needed.” Had he not been willing to speak about what he didn’t like, my eyes wouldn’t have been opened. He opened them. I’m grateful. He was right!

Perhaps when we get a critique from someone, and our feelings are hurt, we need to buck up, stand in front of a mirror and repeat the following statements:

· I believe this was for my good.

· I believe there is something I can learn from their thoughts.

· I believe they did their best, and I appreciate it!

· I believe they went beyond the call of duty and gave me more than I wanted.

· I believe they took their time for me, and that was a gift.

· I believe that I need change my focus if I’m going to be an author. This is a tough business, and I am going to make it.

And then send that person, who took their valuable time and energy, a huge thank you, a bottle of wine and chocolate. Despite your feeling on how they said what they said, they did give you a valuable gift. They gave themselves.

Enjoy the Journey!

XOX Karlene

Creating An Outline

2012-02-01T22:42:00.000-08:00

Like much of writing, creating an outline is completely up to how you want to do it. There are as many methods of outlining as there are styles of writing. The good news is, there is no right or wrong way. The important thing to remember is that an outline is meant to be a loose guide, not a strict roadway that you are forbidden to divert from. In fact, I highly encourage you to divert and allow the story to organically move in the direction it needs to move, to a point. Whatever you write~be it in the outline or outside of it~has to be important to the plot, character, or development of the story. Everything in your novel should have a reason.

Here is how I do it. I start my outline before I start my novel because it helps inspire me. A lot of people think using an outline limits your story but it doesn't do that to mine. It actually helps my story expand and grow into something even better than I had planned. I start with the main point I want to cover in the first chapter, then I list bullet points of things I want to touch on in that chapter.

I cover all the points that will come into play later or that bare weight on the story. This leaves me a lot of room to expand or shrink things as needed. I write the entire outline in this manner. I write in pencil, allowing myself room for error, and I use the margins to jot down even more things I want to cover. For those of you who outline, how do you like to do it? And how do you think it benefits you?

~Heather

Endings and Beginnings

2012-01-30T07:08:00.000-08:00

I was all set to write the last of the Fool's Journey Tarot posts today, when life, and death, got in the way. Got a call yesterday from a very close friend, who's husband has been ill for almost a year. He had died. Needless to say, the past twenty-four hours have been a bit of a blur, and that's just for me and other friends and family of my friend and her husband. For her, they've been beyond what the rest of us can comprehend on an emotional level.

So I hope and know that you'll understand why business as planned is not happening on my blog post today, and I thank you.

Before I sign off today, though, I do want to share that as I get older I learn each day that everything is experience, and that we can be fulfilled by being open to all of it, the bad with the good, if we respect it and ourselves. I saw true grace in my friend yesterday, who laughed and cried and told stories and listened to stories as we sat with her for hours. We ate and drank a little, but mostly we talked, and I saw a woman who accepted devastating reality with dignity and humility and found a way to still feel love, and even humor, in her life. Stay open to life, and life will stay open for you. A message for us all.

Next week, I'll be back here with Tarot's Fool. Come back then, and we'll find our where his journey has taken him. Thanks.

~ Linda

Manipulation of Time

2012-01-27T08:18:00.000-08:00

“Time is what we want most, but what we use worst.”

- William Penn

I don’t have time. I wish I had the time. I’ll do it tomorrow. If only I had time. Someday I’ll go back to school. Someday I’ll take flying lessons. Someday I’ll go visit my friend. Someday I’ll write a book.

I learned a long time ago, a flight to someday lands at an airport called nowhere. This is a place where tomorrow never comes. You wake up, and tomorrow is always a day away. Talk about baggage fees. Carry your baggage on this flight, and you’ll be paying for the rest of your life.

Baggage—your stories of why you don’t have time. The fact is, you don’t have time because you haven’t put whatever it is that you think you want, on the top of your priority list.

Have you ever wondered why some people create phenomenal success, while others blame the lack of time on their inability to achieve their dreams? I’ve heard every excuse in the book, but the reality is, time is the only thing that we all have in common. Everyone has exactly 7 days in a week, 24 hours in a day, sixty minutes in an hour, and sixty seconds in a minute.

It’s not the lack of, but how you use it that counts.

The only way to achieve the success you desire is to put whatever you want on the top your priority list and make it a must.

Tony Robbins told me years ago, that the only way to success is to “turn my shoulds into musts.” When something is a must, you do it. Why does it take someone hitting rock bottom before they quit drinking? Hitting that bottom, life has becomes so painful that they must change, or they die. When we live comfortable lives, it’s hard to stir them up creating a mess of exhaustion. While the end result sounds really good, the effort is too painful. So we lie to ourselves and make stories as to why we “don’t have time.”

You fulfilling your dreams is about shaking up your life, and saying, “I must do this!” I will get more pleasure if I complete it, than if I don’t.

When I started writing many people said, “One day I’ll write a book, but right now I just don’t have the time.” Of course they have time. But until writing that book becomes a top priority they won’t create the time, they’ll just blame the lack of. Ask yourself why you haven’t accomplished my goals? What is really stopping you? It’s not the lack of time it’s your misappropriation of thw funds called time.

Time is a commodity—one of the most valuable commodities there is. How much would you spend for more of it? More importantly, with the time you have, how would you choose to spend it if you knew there was nothing that you couldn’t accomplish?

Imagine being given $24 a day—$1 for every hour. The catch is, if you don’t use it you lose it. What would you do with your $24? How far can you stretch your dollar?

I really want to write a book so I am spending $5 a day on working on my writing five hours per day until it’s done. I love to read and exercise—I read while exercising, so I can do two things for a $1. You mean it’s going to cost me $10 to sleep for 10 hours? Hmmm… I’m thinking I would rather spend two hours writing my blog, an hour playing scrabble with my husband, and sleeping 7 hours. Honestly, I’d give up another hour of sleep for more reading time in the bathtub. The point being, you have 24 hours a day, how will you spend them if you turned your wishes into musts?

Where do you waste time?

I challenge you to take notes on how much time you spend telling people all you have to do. Pay attention to how many times you’re standing in line, waiting at the school to pick up your kids, or sitting in an office somewhere, and that book you’ve always wanted to read (someday) is at home. How often do you sit on the couch for five minutes, that turn into an hour that you could have been sleeping if you’d just gone to bed? My favorite form of time wasting is procrastination by spending an hour (or more) making a to-do list for the next day. Better yet, ever call a friend and tell them how busy you are and proceed to give them the itinerary? We’ve all been there. There is time to be had. It’s up to you to find it.

The question of why some people create phenomenal success, while others blame the lack of time for their lack of success, is because they decide to take action on their dreams. They’ve decided that the value of what they will gain far exceeds the value of what they’re giving up to do it.

Unlocking the mystery of the lack of time syndrome falls into making your dreams a must, then managing those hours you have. Be honest with yourself and decide how you want to spend each moment of your life. Where do you waste time? Why haven’t you made “you” a priority on that daily list of to-dos?

You own 24 hours a day, what will you do with them? A secret to success is finding, making, and creating time. You have the power, and the time to achieve your dreams.

The Power Of A Critique

2012-01-25T08:13:00.000-08:00

For some of you this post may look familiar. But for those who didn't follow the Critique Sisters in our prior incarnation, I felt this post was important enough to post here.

Depending upon how it's worded, a critique can lift an author up and show them a better way or it can destroy their confidence and make them question their ability. If you've ever been part of a critique group you've probably experienced one or the other, maybe even both. To improve you must be able to take criticism but there is good criticism and there is bad. You need to be able to identify which kind of criticism you're receiving so you know how to process it.

Destructive criticism is that which points out the problem in a manner that demeans or dismisses the work or author. You can still learn from this type of criticism but it's difficult. Destructive criticism makes a writer feel defensive. If you're faced with this type say very little and take notes so you can look back over them later when you aren't under fire. Clarifying questions are fine but don't defend your work, you don't need to. You have nothing to prove to this person and you might feel different after you cool down and read what they said.

Good criticism isn't a contradiction of terms no matter how much it sounds like it, it is constructive criticism. Think of it this way. If you see a problem and just point it out that isn't very constructive. But if you see a problem, point it out, and offer a solution that is constructive. However, this can still come across as harsh. It's all in the delivery. The best way to start with any criticism is to point out what you liked, or what does work. Once you've done this the writer is more open to receiving criticism because they aren't on the defensive. Then you can point out what didn't work or make sense and suggest a solution that might help.

Destroy, or empower, which will you do?

~Heather

Are You Growing as a Writer? Week 20 with Tarot's Fool

2012-01-23T05:52:00.000-08:00

If you're not finding at least one of the following: new ideas, improved approaches to your craft, different ways of looking at character development or scene development or story itself, you're not experiencing growth as a writer. If you're not experiencing growth, you're in danger of getting trapped in stasis, which can be a comfortable and even a profitable place to be for a while, but inevitably leads to death of the imagination and of the career if you don't break out of it. Sounds extreme, doesn't it? And not very user friendly, either. But that's the reality of life in any creative, dynamic field, and that's what the Fool has been showing us all these weeks and months. This is the way to the golden fleece.

Remember when the Fool looked like this? Ah, youth! It's beautiful in its naiveté. And it's also exactly where we want to be when we start our quest, because we need the energy and belief and excitement that comes with beginnings. Since the beginning of his quest, the Fool has matured tremendously, and at times has dealt with blows and challenges so severe that he's looked more like a wizened old man when he's emerged than like the champion of truth, honor, love, and joy that he is. But he's persevered, and as we saw last week, it's finally beginning to pay off big time for him (The Sun: Week 19). Not only has he developed wisdom and strength of character, but he's been given his own authentic voice back, which he'd lost for a while along the way. It's the voice that propelled him on his journey in the first place, but he, himself, is so changed now that his current challenge is to figure out how best to use this precious gift to fulfill his new and fuller promise.

It's not easy, even now. All the old tapes are playing in loops in his head, because there's assurance in familiarity. Every time he puts out a foot to finalize his journey, his feet want to take him onto familiar ground, to the places he's been before. Fire-breathing dragon? Unsheathe your sword! (the crowd cheers) Maiden in distress? Rush to defend her! (the audience hangs on every move). But if he's learned anything in the first nineteen weeks of this journey, it's that life is almost never black and white. Sure, some dragons are evil and must be slain, but there are others that look just as scary but bring wisdom and glory with their fire. (Week 15: The Devil) That maiden in distress? When he got to her he saw that she was doing just fine. In fact she was taming a ferocious lion to her will (Week 8: Strength). Now the Fool has reached a point, he instinctively understands, where he needs to incorporate this evolved knowledge into his steps. His hero status is not in question any more, and he has a chance to experience the power beneath the surface.

He suddenly feels himself being swept aloft, like a feather picked up by an updraft and sent spiraling, to land who-knows-where? And then he sees her, a fiery angel, beautiful and terrible.

This is Judgement. "You are right," she says to the Fool, reading his thoughts. "You have only one last step on your journey. But you cannot take that step until you lay your past to rest."

What?? The Fool doesn't say it out loud, because the angel is pretty intimidating, but what the heck, this can't be right! "But," he says to her, "I've left it behind me—all of it."

"There's no way to do that," she says. "Remember, each step you've taken wore down your shoe, just a bit, which shaped the next step you took, and so on. Your past is always under your feet. You can never put it behind you."

"Then how can I put my past to rest?" the Fool asks, humbled.

"Call it up. Come to terms with it. Are you willing to do that?" She holds out a small trumpet for him to take.

The Fool looks with despair at the trumpet. He's already been through so much. But he gets hold of himself and thinks. He didn't brave that river of no return two weeks ago for nothing (Week 18: The Moon). That was a pivotal experience, one that taught him that when he's faced with a personal crisis of this magnitude he must let go and trust himself to the universe. This is a final decision, either to go forward, or stay where he is. He lets go of all expectations, reaches out, and takes the trumpet.

He blows the trumpet and the air and trees and sky around him, the very Earth, seem to crack open. Memories rise from beneath his feet. Images of his whole journey up to now pass before him—his innocent youth, challenges, loves, failures, losses, success, disillusionment and wisdom. For the first time, he doesn't try to forget them or put them in a tidy place behind him, he simply accepts them. They hold no fear for him any more, and he realizes they are gone to everyone but him. He alone carries them into the present. The moment he realizes this, they vanish. They remain in his mind, but he is free of them. He is fully in the present.

When you live in a world of ideas, as we writers do, what does this mean? It might be as simple as letting go of an idea that wasn't working for us. It might be as monumental as embracing change at such a basic level that our writing can't help but reflect a profound disruption to our previous style. In either case, or anywhere in between, our reward is that we can now harvest the newfound fruits of our mind. Are these newfound fruits—these realities of the present— actually "correct?" Will they lead us to our golden fleece? The only way to find out is to use them and allow them to help us. When they become second nature to us and we no longer identify with an ideal or a model, but with them, our insight will unfold. The result? Open sesame. The curtain is rising on your next Act.

The Fool will find out what that means for him next week. He'll have a hint or two for us, too.

~ Linda
Links to Fool's Journey posts: 0—The Fool; 1—The Magician; 2—The High Priestess; 3—The Empress; 4&5—The Emperor, and The Hierophant; 6—The Lovers; 7—The Chariot; 8—Strength; 9—The Hermit; 10—Wheel of Fortune; 11—Justice; 12—The Hanged Man; 13—Death; 14—Temperance; 15—The Devil; 16—The Tower; 17—The Star; 18—The Moon; 19—The Sun

My interpretation of The Fool's Journey as it applies to the writing life is my own, but the journey is long-established from a variety of sources. Those I've relied on most heavily are: TAROT BASICS by Burger & Fiebig, AECLECTIC TAROT by Thirteen, and EVERYDAY TAROT by Fairfield

Shameless Marketing

2012-01-20T00:05:00.000-08:00

My book will be available next week, but I started my marketing campaign by... telling everyone I meet that I wrote a book, and a little about it. But I didn't realize the power of how much marketing can happen during your everyday life. I made really cool business cards with my book on one side. My info on the other.

This week I rented a car for my daughter at Enterprise, and gave a card to the young lady checking us in, after I'd told her about the story.

I walked to Subway by the airport with my husband, and in line I realized that everyone was an airline employee on lunch break. I gave each of them a card and told them about my book while waiting in line.

While making a deposit at Fidelity, I told the young man about my book and gave him a card.

But today... I was shameless!

I marketed my book while paying bills.

I called Fidelity to ask questions about selling stock. I pitched my book to the agent. He's really excited to read it.

I called to pay my husband's hospital bill and spoke to a person back in the midwest. One thing lead to another, and she asked me what I did to enable me to stay home and work. I pitched my book. She's buying it!

I called the my credit card company to ask how much, and when, my next payment was due. Guess what? I told the agent about my book. Yep... more excitement.

Marketing opportunities are everywhere.

What is the most creative way you've marketed your book?

By the way... Did I tell you my book will be available next week?

Enjoy the Journey!
XOX Karlene

Writer's Overload

2012-01-18T08:10:00.000-08:00

It happens to us all, no matter how hard we try to fight it; writer's overload. In fact, trying to fight it often brings it on faster. With the new year comes new hopes, expectations, and the dreaded resolutions. While I haven't made any resolutions this year I have been working my tail off with deadlines.

I used to dream of the day when my book released, how I'd be able to relax, write at my leisure, and have all the time in the world. My perspective of what it would be like couldn't have been more skewed. Once The Secret Of Spruce Knoll hit shelves I had to start marketing my tail off (you would think at this point I no longer have one, yet there it is, persistent as writer's block). Publishers expect authors to take a very active role in their own marketing today so be sure that's something you're prepared for. I thought I was, but it took me by surprise just how much there is to it.

It didn't stop with marketing either. Once you've got one book out they want more. Which is great, but that means you have to write it, edit it, and get it in on time. Enter Channeler's Choice releasing the end of February. Then there's this new trend publishers (and readers) are embracing; putting out a novella between novels. Love it, great idea, but at this point you start to feel like Atlas with the world on your shoulders. Enter Born Of Fire, my channeler novella.

The moral of the story is write, write, write. Don't wait between books while you're submitting to agents or are on submission to publishers. Get that next novel done, then the next, and keep going because when you do get that break, chances are they'll ask, "what else have you got? And how quick can you get it to us?"

~Heather

Here Comes the Sun: Week 19 with Tarot's Fool

2012-01-16T07:18:00.000-08:00

The Fool has turned a corner in his journey. A good one! It's about time, I'd say, wouldn't you? True, it has been an amazing journey so far, a fantastic journey. In spite of tremendous challenges (or because of them), he's grown in profound and unexpected ways.

He's had glimpses of the world's overwhelming power in its secrets and forces and possibilities (exciting and scary); accepted that he's not only made a few mistakes in his quest, but been guilty of and blindsided by self deception (humbling); understood instinctively that although he has faced defeat after defeat, partly because he needed to learn these lessons before he could succeed, what he's doing is important, it's great, and he must never give up (exhausting!); learned how to grow from each experience, good or bad (wow); embraced true humility (no easy feat, double wow), and learned to trust himself to the universe (very difficult, in fact not possible until he learned true humility). He's definitely due for a good turn.

Last time we were with the Fool, he'd taken a leap of faith as the full moon shone down on him and he found himself in a world of genius and madness (Week 18: The Moon). His choice was to either go mad, or trust the powerful river he stood in to help him find himself. He chose the river. He managed to climb into a boat with no oars or rudder before the river's strong current swept him away. At least the boat would take him somewhere, and he wouldn't drown. Exhausted, the Fool passes out in the boat as it carries him toward his destiny.

He wakes up at dawn to find himself still in the boat, but the river has come to an end. He's floating in a tranquil pond, surrounded by a walled garden filled with roses and lilies and gorgeous giant sunflowers. As he gets out of the boat and takes a few steps into the garden on shaky legs, he hears a child laughing somewhere nearby. The sun is rising, huge and golden, and the source of the laughter, a small boy, rides into the garden on a white horse.

The little boy leaps off the horse and runs over to the Fool. "Come see!" he says, taking the Fool's hand. He proceeds to show the Fool all the amazing wonders of the garden: the dewdrops on the rich green blades of grass, the seeds at the center of the sunflowers, the light as it sparkles on the pond. And then he starts asking questions of the Fool, like why is the grass green, why is the air sparkling, why is it so fun to smile?

As if his lips have a will of their own, the Fool discovers himself smiling, and the smile keeps growing, brighter than it has been for a long time. He has been tested and tried, confused and scared, dismayed and amazed since he started this journey, and now he is amazed all over again in a new way. This is the first time, he realizes, that he has been simply happy. He looks at the child who has given him this gift, who has invited him to share in his generosity and open spirit, and he knows that he now sees himself and the world in a fresh, golden light. "Who are you?" he asks the child.

The child smiles at the question and, as the Fool watches, he begins to shine, then grows brighter and brighter until he turns into pure sunlight. "I'm you," the Fool hears him say in a voice that comes from everywhere in the garden. "The new you." The Fool has just met his own inner light.

Now the Fool will move forward renewed, ready to face the final hurdle in his quest. He is filled with strength that comes from all he's been through and from the gifts of the child. There is nothing he can't do.

Renewal. It doesn't come easy. There's a special kind of exhaustion that comes from putting everything we've got into our quest and then having to let it go, trust ourselves to the universe. The alternative is to hold on tightly to our process from fear of losing control, but most of us know from experience that never works out very well. So the best we can do, once we've given the quest all we've got, is climb into our rudderless boat and let the river sweep us to our destiny. Scary. Tarot tells us, though, that if we do that, we will find our inner child once again, the spirit of our voice, and that can lead straight to renewal. Scary morphs into joy. It's not quite the golden fleece, not yet, but it does hold that promise. This particular journey is coming close to completion.

~ Linda
Links to Fool's Journey posts: 0—The Fool; 1—The Magician; 2—The High Priestess; 3—The Empress; 4&5—The Emperor, and The Hierophant; 6—The Lovers; 7—The Chariot; 8—Strength; 9—The Hermit; 10—Wheel of Fortune; 11—Justice; 12—The Hanged Man; 13—Death; 14—Temperance; 15—The Devil; 16—The Tower; 17—The Star; 18—The Moon

My interpretation of The Fool's Journey as it applies to the writing life is my own, but the journey is long-established from a variety of sources. Those I've relied on most heavily are: TAROT BASICS by Burger & Fiebig, AECLECTIC TAROT by Thirteen, and EVERYDAY TAROT by Fairfield

The Power of a Cover

2012-01-13T08:16:00.000-08:00

The cover is the gift wrapped package...

Will the front cover draw them to the book? Do the colors instill feelings of the genre? Does your name pop out? Does your title pop out? When this cover is on line (shrunk down), can someone still read it and see the images? When they turn it over, is the back part of the front...do they belong together? Will the words on the back make them want to read it? When they open the book, does the mini-synopsis entice them? What about the information about the author. Does your bio make someone want to know you? Read your book? Buy more? There is so much going into the cover. Of course it's the content that will keep them reading and make them come back. But the cover is what will entice them to pick up the book.

TEXT on the BACK

Flight For Control is a fascinating debut and a truly terrifying insider's take on the airline industry by an author who knows what she's talking about. You will not want to get on an airplane after reading Petitt's book.

Mike Lawson—Author of The Political Thriller of the Year

House Divided, House Secrets and House Justice

“A strong debut with a complex plot that keeps the reader guessing until the very end.”

Robert Dugoni—Lawyer and New York Times Bestselling Author of fiction

The Jury Master, Cyanide Canary, and Damage Control

“Flight for Control is a powerhouse debut novel. Karlene Petitt combines her insider knowledge of the airline industry with her impressive writing skills to create a spellbinding thriller. Why did Flight 39 crash? Could there be more to these air disasters than meets the eye? And what can Kathryn do about it? I was hooked on the first page and never stopped reading till it was over.”

William Bernhardt—Over 10 million novels sold. Bestselling Author of

Capital Betrayal, Nemesis, and Hate Crime

This is my cover... Thoughts?

Enjoy the Journey!

XOX Karlene

A Different Kind of Literary Gathering

2012-01-09T06:34:00.000-08:00

This past week, Seattle hosted the annual MLA (Modern Languages Association) Convention, which is a gathering of thousands of university-level academics who study or teach language or literature. The city was crawling with them, all humbly spouting literary theories and criticisms of literary precepts, practices and presumptions. Very entertaining! It was definitely fun to hang out in restaurants and eavesdrop on people gossiping animatedly about things like what the hell the editors could have been thinking in the last issue of the Shakespeare Quarterly.

But aside from the voyeuristic opportunities the convention offered to regular folk like me, there were some sessions open to the public, where the discussions were less analytical, and more about public appeal and commerce. I was lucky enough to attend two of them. One was on Pinter in Seattle, organized by the Harold Pinter Society and focused on a local resurgence of interest in producing Pinter's plays here. It offered wonderful insights about the man from people who knew and worked with him and loved him.

I came away from that session thinking I want to delve into Pinter's plays again, even though I remember his work (from reading and attending one play long ago) as disturbingly experimental. I've grown as a reader since then and am more open to less formulaic stories than I used to be, but the main thing that drew me to be interested again was a statement made by one of the speakers (Harry Burton, a British actor and Pinter insider). He made it clear that Pinter's humor was based in vaudeville, and that his inspiration, in all he did, was love. Love of humankind and of higher human values. How can you not want to explore the work of a Nobel Prize winning playwright with those interests?

The other session I attended had a different kind of message. It was more about what it's like to be a highly creative writer. It was called A Creative Conversation with Richard Van Camp: Writing, Language and Indigenous Expression. Okay, the title is pure academese. But believe me, Richard Van Camp is not. A rising star in native writings, and self-proclaimed channeler, Van Camp writes about the Tlicho people of the Northwest Territory, his people. He is from a very small town there and has experienced many of the extreme difficulties we know about in Native American cultures from writers like Sherman Alexie. But Van Camp, while devoted to addressing all the most difficult issues of his culture, seems to do everything from a totally positive point of view. That was palpable in the room, as his enthusiasm and energy demanded we all sit up and not only listen but participate in the joy and beauty that literature can bring. Mind you, his favorite topics are often the forbidden or dark ones like sexuality and substance abuse and violence, but his voice is amazingly upbeat. This was interesting, a window into a voice that compels with insight and vitality about darkness. In terms of form, Van Camp writes everything from children's books to graphic novels to short stories.

The session opened with a 17-minute film that has been made of one of his stories, in which many voices (six or seven actors) express an identical experience, riveting and confusing, of observing and interacting with someone known as "The Quiet One" at a community gathering. One will start a sentence, another will repeat or pick up from there, and so on; all are puzzled by what they've observed, and deeply affected by it. Bizarre and surrealistic things happen in this story. It is mystical and haunting and profound, but has no satisfying explanation or denouement. It only raises questions and awareness of consciousness.

Cut from the end of the film to us, sitting in the session room with Van Camp, who is forty and looks like he might be twenty-two. He talks with speed and confidence, telling us that this was a true story, that everything in it actually happened. A bit later he repeats that it was a true story, one that he dreamed. He has not one single doubt that the mystical experiences in his life are real, and he is so enthusiastic and smart and grounded that you don't really doubt him. At the very least you respect that these experiences, along with more everyday types of events, make his writing real.

Van Camp told a couple of other stories, then talked about his writing process: he knows what he's working on, gets up around five or five-thirty in the morning, writes (channels) for about an hour and a half, then has the rest of his day to be out in the world and devote himself to helping improve things. I'm thinking that it is the living he does later in the day that provides the seeds of the stories he tells through his channeling process. He also talked about rewriting being the real writing, and said that he spends a huge amount of time reworking his stories, "like pulling a comb through tangled hair." So it's not all channeling.

Mainly, I came away from this session pondering what Van Camp's message meant for me, because I knew it meant something personal, even though his process is not mine. A day later it occurred to me that in listening to Richard Van Camp I had experienced the medium being the message. He was the medium, and the message was clear: enthusiasm. Celebrate the beauty and power of storytelling and don't even think about second guessing yourself. You've got the power. Enjoy it. Use it for good.

The message might have been different for others in that room, but for writers, I think that, or some version of that, was it. What a great mantra for our 2012 writing!

~ Linda

Writer's Courage

2012-01-06T05:46:00.000-08:00

Last week I enjoyed reading Julie Musil's:

Writing Lessons's Learned from The Help.

I won't go into a review of her review, but I recommend everyone should read it. Critical understanding creates better writing. Julie has it figured out.

Rarely do I see the movie before reading the book. But my daughter has my book, and I had the opportunity to see the movie first, so I did. As we all know, the book is always better... so I'm looking forward to reading this novel as I loved the movie.

What I loved most about the movie was the message to writers:

Do not run in fear of what you write.

For me this was a huge message. If Kathryn Stockett, and the women she interviewed, were willing to break the law and face potential death... then who am I to fear of losing my job? Integrity and being willing to stand up to what is wrong is worth the risk. If writers don't do this, who will? How will people know when change is needed?

What are you afraid of?

As writers we have an obligation to face the fear and write the truth.

Why do we write? Sometimes it's to entertain, but often it's to inform.

Writing takes courage, among other things. Quite honestly, I feel that writing has taken over my life. More than a passion... an obsession. I love it. Perhaps it's time to give my life to it, too.

Go forward without fear. If something needs to be changed, write about it. Kathryn Stockett did. She made a difference with her writing. Will you?

Enjoy the Journey!

XOX Karlene

What Not To Do At A Conference

2012-01-04T09:45:00.000-08:00

It's nearly conference season again and I thought I'd share some of what I've learned about them with you. First let me put your mind at ease. Agents and editors expect you to be nervous and they don't mind. Take a deep breath and remember they are people too. They want to like your book. Now to the good stuff.

1) Come prepared. If you know you'll clam up and forget what to say bring notes or a copy of your query letter. Don't read straight from it if you can avoid it. Agents want to interact with you. Bring a copy of your first ten pages just in case, but do NOT push it on them unless they ask for it. Typically agents don't like business cards. They say they get lost or end up as scratch paper. It may not be the rule, but it is the consensus of the majority of agents I've talked to.

2) Don't bring gifts, gimmicks, or props. You don't want to know what I've heard agents say about this. Let's just say most of them see it as a cover for the fact that your writing may be lacking and you may be trying to make up for it. They want your work to stand out on it's own.

3) Don't lie, ever, about anything. It isn't worth it, it won't get you a deal or an agent, and they will find out.

4) Be polite and respectful. People in this industry talk, a lot, and you don't want to burn any bridges because they all connect. Agents aren't at a conference because they need to be, they're there because you need them to be. They have authors they already represent, manuscripts to critique or read, and editors to call or meet. It is a kindness that they take the time out of their busy schedules to attend.

Now relax and have fun. We write because we love it, remember that above all else. I'd love to hear any other great tips or tidbits of information anyone has on conferences!

~Heather

Publishing Growing Pains Continue

2012-01-02T08:58:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!!!

I hope you all had a wonderful end-of-2011 celebration and are raring to go in 2012. I do feel it's good to have the past year behind us. It was tough and complicated in many ways, from wars to tsunamis to the elephant in the room—the economy, not to mention the effects of all that on mere mortals trying to get books published.

While we take several lungfulls of fresh 2012 air, hitch up our britches and step into the Breach once again, we continue to face an ever-changing publishing environment. Self publishing is going gangbusters, but no one knows quite where it is that it's going for most of those intrepid previously unknowns who've taken the plunge; Amazon and Barnes&Noble are (as predicted by many) the only behemoths left standing that are in a position to take full advantage of the emerging self-publishing vector as well as offer traditionally published books, and therefore control what and how people read; the traditional publishing industry is showing signs of fighting back and getting a grip on the realities of its changing world, but is still lagging in many ways that have to do with speed and payout; and small publishers with good track records continue to emerge as the gems that gleam brightest for writers who want a little advance money and a bit of marketing and publicity support.

There are so many question marks still on the page that 2012 promises to be a year of (painful) continued growth and change. I'm guessing that it will be a pivotal year for publishers and authors alike, but hardly the one in which these issues are resolved.

On that ambiguous note, here are a couple of articles on the subject of self vs. traditional publishing that have come out recently:

The US Justice Department is investigating e-book pricing and the agency model.

A leaked document from Hachette Book Publishing that responds to criticism from supporters of self-publishing (don't forget to click on Joe Konrath's response to the Hachette document).

And finally, one more example of the type of commentary that we can expect a lot more of (this one on the other side from Seth Godin and Joe Konrath) from mega-author Richard Russo.

It's going to be a fun year!

~ Linda

You're Invited...

2011-12-30T00:15:00.000-08:00

Today is a special day!

It's Heather's Happy Birthday.

And you're Invited to her Happy Birthday Party.

Click HERE and join the fun celebrating Heather

Wish her a Happy Birthday!

Invite your friends!

BYOB!

Heather, have a beautiful day!

May the New Year Bring you

Health, Happiness and all your Dreams to Life!

XOX Karlene

Year End Goals

2011-12-28T09:41:00.000-08:00

As the end of the year approaches I can't help but look back over 2011 and wonder if I've accomplished all that I set out to do. It was a crazy year filled with crazy goals, but I did accomplish some of them. The Secret Of Spruce Knoll was published and book two is on it's way next year. But as with most writers, my goals changed drastically throughout the year. But after looking back I realized, that's what we have to do to survive in this tumultuous industry. It's changing all around us, by the moment.

Agents now represent self-published authors (and take a cut), the big six publishers are scouting for the next great thing in self-published books, advances have plummeted, vanity presses have come out of the wood work to take advantage of self-publishing authors, and small presses are redefining how the entire industry does business by offering higher royalties than ever.

So what is one to do in this ever-changing and unpredictable industry? Keep your eyes and options open, work hard on improving your skills, seek advice before making any decisions, and hang on for the ride. Did you achieve your goals in 2011? Or did they change drastically as mine did?

~Heather

On Our Way to 2012

2011-12-26T06:57:00.000-08:00

The day after Christmas, a time for relaxing and recouping and regrouping. Well, maybe a few days' leisure before the regrouping part. But it is the time of year when we think of new beginnings. I hope you're all enjoying some family time and time off from work to just BE.

Wishing you all great quiet moments as you gather your 2012 mojo. Enjoy!

~ Linda

Happy Holidays

2011-12-23T00:05:00.000-08:00

From our families to yours....

May this Holiday Season be Bright, with Health and Happiness throughout the New Year.

Be Present

Love the Critique Sisters,

Karlene, Linda and Heather

Fixing Character Errors

2011-12-21T11:37:00.000-08:00

Unless you have only one reoccurring character in your novel there is a very good chance that somewhere you made a mistake where they are concerned. I have a few tricks I use to help me keep track of every character detail so I don't accidentally change an eye color, age, or something else. The first thing I do is start a notebook at the outlining stages of my novel. I jot down every main and supporting characters description, birth dates, any habits, catch phrases, or quirks of their personality. This helps reduce the amount of errors I have to look for when it comes time to edit.

Once the novel is finished I get a different colored highlighter for each of my reoccurring characters. I go through and highlight every time they appear in the novel, whether it is dialogue, action, or just an appearance. Then I cross reference with my description in my notebook and make sure I haven't made any mistakes. I almost always do.

After that I take note of how often a character showed up in the novel and what type of scene it was, tension, action, or development. Sometimes I find that I have to add scenes because I didn't develop an important character enough. Sometimes this reveals that a character is unnecessary and it results in having to cut them from the novel. The end result is not only stronger characters, but a stronger novel as well.

Whatever method you use, just be sure that you are checking your character details to make sure they stayed consistent throughout the novel. I once ended up with a character with two different colored eyes. It was not on purpose. Worse, I almost sent a partial of it out! Don't let this happen to you!

~Heather

Winter Solstice and Tarot's Nine of Wands

2011-12-19T06:24:00.000-08:00

In two days we will experience the longest night of the year, the winter solstice—the moment that comes each year on December 21 and marks the turnaround from darkness to light. From midnight Wednesday on, until summer solstice in June, each day will give us a few more minutes of light than the previous day. From ancient times this has beeen a moment of celebration, promising not only more hours of light in our days, but the return of vitality, as well, in the coming months.

I thought of continuing Tarot's Fool's journey in today's post, but you know, we're at winter solstice time and we're all taking a break for the holidays. (Perhaps it's no accident that our holiday season corresponds so closely with the ancient awareness of nature's shift at this time). Many people are talking about the stresses of this time of year—the accounting we tend to take of ourselves about how well we've done in the past year, and the difficulties of dealing with expectations of joy associated with holiday celebrations. Not to mention the all-out actual joyful chaos that ensues in many households and is a total, not-to-be-missed distraction from everyday work. So, instead of following the Fool to his next big moment of enlightenment on his journey today, I thought I'd dial it back a bit and just share a less powerful Tarot card that has lots of meaning for us now.

This card, the Nine of Wands, comes to mind when I think of what the winter solstice and the holidays bring up: the darkness before the dawn, the reckoning of wounds received and battles lost or won, and the almost secret anticipation of good things to come.

Can you see it all on his face?

Here he is, a wounded warrior holding tight to one wand and standing guard over eight others. In Tarot, the wands represent passion, and I get the feeling that this guy has been through a grist mill and has had to fight for what he wants and believes in for himself (hence the bandaged head and arm). But he's not going to let go of his passion, no siree.

He's worked and worked, climbing from one level to the next as he pursues his dreams and now, at this moment, he's questioning whether he'll ever get to the top.

Here's the secret that makes this moment sweet, though: what he seeks most, whether it's leadership or a successful career or anything else he's worked for, it's right there! He just can't see it! But he will if he does one simple thing. All he has to do in that moment of deep darkness before the dawn is shine a light (his own light) up. He might be tired and wary, but the second the light illuminates the wands and shows him the high road, he'll realize he has reserves of energy and strength. Completion of all he's worked for is right there, he just needs to go for it.

So to all you writer warriors who've toiled and laughed and cried and toiled some more, sleep the sleep of the warrior-in-waitng, deep and restorative. Sing, dance, play to your heart's content at this special time of year, and know that soon you will look up, and everything you've worked for will be there, waiting. You've earned the next step up. You can complete your vision in the new light.

~ Linda

10 Days Before Christmas and...

2011-12-16T00:05:00.000-08:00

Twas 10 days before Christmas

and under the house

Terminex checked the traps for a mouse

Contractor, plumber, electrician too,

All will be coming between 11 and 2.

Daughter is home and baby is heaven

But house guest from Japan will be landing at 11.

The book is not formatted,

The gifts are not wrapped.

The blog is not written

And I need a nap!

Today I'm not writing a witty post

Just wishing you and your family the most

Joyous Holiday filled with love.

Happy Holidays!

XOX Karlene

Blogger Fail And Upcoming News

2011-12-15T11:33:00.000-08:00

I've failed you all my lovelies and I'm so, so sorry. The hectic pace of the holiday season combined with a bit of HUGE news that I will be releasing soon has scattered my brain so much that I forgot to post yesterday. That and I just got back from visiting with the Critique Sisters in Seattle so my internal clock is all screwed up. We had a great time talking about books, publishing, and drinking almost more coffee than I could handle in one weekend. Almost.

And yep, those are my books on the table before us (the out of print paperback version through Abbott Press). Now they're available with a shiny new cover through Compass Press. Speaking of great news, be sure to stop by our author friend Christine Fonseca's place tomorrow (Friday December 16th) for a bit of other great writerly news. :)

~Heather

Crisis? Stay Open and Go With the Flow—Week 18 With Tarot's Fool

2011-12-12T06:48:00.000-08:00

Did you notice the full moon on Saturday night? It was a beauty! And it wasn't just any old full moon. It was a lunar eclipse. They come around every once in a while and are said to pack a punch. Never underestimate the power of a lunar eclipse to shake things up in your life.

So the timing couldn't be better to talk about what's going on with Tarot's Fool right now, because, as if by coincidence, he has just reached the 18th major point of enlightenment on his journey, which just happens to be The Moon.

To back up for just a moment, last time we were with the Fool he was mightily pulling himself together after coming face-to-face with his self deceptions about his life and his life's path. He'd been shattered when he did the bravest of all things and not only recognized the tower of lies, large and small, that he'd built his professional identity on, but instinctively shouted it down to rubble. (Week 16: The Tower) Those deceptions were getting in the way of him grasping the true power of his authenticity, so this was a great thing. But oh, my, it's no easy task to rebuild oneself from rubble!

Fortunately, as he dragged himself forward he came upon a beautiful, mystical girl with water urns, who made him understand that surviving and thriving through drastic change is possible, and his task now is to follow his star. (Week 17: The Star)

So here he is, traveling through the night, holding on to the knowledge that he has a star to follow. He's blindly doing just that when the full moon rises and illuminates a watery path in front of him. Not only that, there are two pillars that he's passing through, and when he sees them a deep chord is struck within him. He's seen them before, long ago, when he came upon the High Priestess early in his journey. She sat in front of the pillars and told him secrets about the deepest mysteries of life. He'd seen hints of a dark land through the sheer veil behind her then. (Week 3: The High Priestess) Now he's passed through the veil and he's there, in the dark land.

Suddenly he feels disoriented and a little nauseated from fear. He's entered the land of dark mysteries where secret knowledge lies. Who lives here? Not just seers like the High Priestess. Poets, artists, musicians, madmen and madwomen live here. (Notice the dogs howling at the moon in the picture, and the crayfish emerging from the water like a creature from a childhood nightmare.) Is he going to howl at the moon like a mad dog, or is he going to somehow, some way, find his footing? He's deep in it now, no turning back. In fact he's hip-deep in a salty, moonlit river, and the water's powerful current is pulling insistently at him.

He looks around for something to grasp onto, and there's nothing. But there is a small boat on the nearby shore. It has no oar and no rudder, and the Fool has to decide whether he'll take a chance on that boat or lose himself in this wild, primal land of illusion and madness. Either way, the moon will be in control, but in the boat, his surrender to the powers of the unconscious and the natural world will at least take him somewhere. He gets in the boat and trusts himself to the river. As he's swept away, he feels the Mistress of this dark land gazing down at him with the High Priestess's approving eyes, for this is the path to inspiration, genius, and Moon magic.

It's no accident that Tarot singles out writers as being among the inhabitants of the dark land of life's mysteries. No further explanation is needed for you all to relate to this one, is there? But that doesn't mean it isn't scary as all get out, or that it's easy to get there, either. Not all of us do get there. Fact is, though, that if we want to find and harness the true power of our authentic selves, we have to shout down our tower of self deception, follow our star, and surrender to the river (remember to choose the boat so you don't drown! :-) ). Any number of great writers have pointed this out. Here are quotes from two of them, one past and one present, who've taken the journey and want us to know the paradoxical but oh, so desirable rewards:

"Life breaks everyone, but some are strong in the broken places."
Ernest Hemingway

"The deeper my crisis, the clearer my choices."
Andrew Boyd
(sardonic philosopher)

You might recognize these sentiments from the character arc you developed for your novel's protagonist. Your protagonist has to get broken to be strong in the broken places, and his or her choices become clear when crisis is deepest, don't they? Back to this page, it looks like the same is true for the Fool (and us, if we're brave enough). He's in the boat now. No going back. The rewards are going to be awesome!

~ Linda

Links to Fool's Journey posts: 0—The Fool; 1—The Magician; 2—The High Priestess; 3—The Empress; 4&5—The Emperor, and The Hierophant; 6—The Lovers; 7—The Chariot; 8—Strength; 9—The Hermit; 10—Wheel of Fortune; 11—Justice; 12—The Hanged Man; 13—Death; 14—Temperance; 15—The Devil; 16—The Tower; 17—The Star

My interpretation of The Fool's Journey as it applies to the writing life is my own, but the journey is long-established from a variety of sources. Those I've relied on most heavily are: TAROT BASICS by Burger & Fiebig, AECLECTIC TAROT by Thirteen, and EVERYDAY TAROT by Fairfield

Holiday Giving

2011-12-09T07:46:00.000-08:00

Today is a special day. Heather is coming to town for the WNBA (Women National Book Association) Seattle chapters Christmas party. I've got 14 neighbors coming for dinner tonight... A tradition I began, the year I moved into this neighborhood. So much to do... so little time. But even during the busiest time of year, it's important to remember... Christmas is all about giving, and helping others.

This month I'm giving books, flight training videos and some really cool key chains. The special thing about the key chains was with each purchase the money was used to buy a book to an underprivileged child, and a $10 gift card.

All drawings will be held on December 22nd, and I would love for you to be part of the holiday cheer. Please click HERE to read about these special giveaways. You can click on the prize you would like to win, and that link will take you to the page to learn more. Then you can leave a comment and get entered in the drawing.

This is my gift to you, our readers. As writers, we all know the value of our friends and their love of books.

XOX Karlene

Tis The Season To Support Books

2011-12-07T12:19:00.000-08:00

If you're looking for the perfect gift for someone then look no farther than your local bookstore or online bookseller. There is a book for everyone, I guarantee it! And, as most of us are writers and/or readers, there is no better way to support the industry we want to work in than by actually buying books. I make it a goal to buy everyone on my holiday list at least one book. Here are a few suggestions:

Mystery, paranormal, great books for women, anything by Denise Grover Swank and Kristie Cook are wonderful. Need something even more adult? Jessica E. Subject is fantastic.

For great middle grade (and dragons, who doesn't love dragons?!) check out Eisley Jacobs.

If you're looking for young adult novels that appeal to both YA and adults, try these authors: Susan Kay Quinn, Elle Strauss, Cyndi Tefft, Melissa Luznicky Garrett, G.P Ching, C.K. Bryant, Angela Carly, Ali Cross, Jessie Harrell, Karen Amanda Hooper, Megg Jensen, S.R. Johannes, Karly Kirkpatrick, Danyelle Leafty, Addison Moore, Lisa Nowak, Magan Vernon, RaShelle Workman, and myself, Heather McCorkle (you can get signed copies right off my blog too). To see their covers click here and scroll down to the bottom of the page.

When it comes to guys, that's a little tougher. But with a bit of research into what interests them, you can always come up with a book that's related. By the way, Lisa Nowak's book is perfect for guys (it's about car racing!). So be sure to support the book industry this season and buy plenty of books for the people on your llist. They'll love you for it!

~Heather

Special Edition of Heather McCorkle's Secret of Spruce Knoll

2011-12-05T06:34:00.000-08:00

I'm excited to be participating in my wonderful critique sister, Heather's, blog tour to announce her special edition of The Secret Of Spruce Knoll. It's being released from Compass Press this month! The special part, a percentage of the proceeds from every special edition sold (in every format) between its release date and 12-12-2012, will go toward Heather’s favorite charity that protects endangered species. Her goal is to make at least $10,000 for the charity.

Of course there are prizes during the tour which goes from December 1st though the 17th. Prizes include a symbolic endangered species adoption of the winner's choice (a $50 donation by Heather to the charity for the endangered species of the winner's choice, and a cute stuffed animal for the winner!), signed copies of her novels and great swag. For full details, and to enter, go here: http://heathermccorkle.blogspot.com

For the tour Heather has asked each blog host to pick their favorite endangered species and she will tell us a fun or interesting fact about that animal. My choice: the adorable, incredible ring-tailed lemur. I've loved these little guys since my son was a toddler, and he had a stuffed toy of one. With that big-eyed look that conveys "What! Oh, no, you don't!", they look just like I feel sometimes!

Heather: Ring-tailed lemurs not only look totally cool, they're quite advanced as a society. They are social animals that live in groups of twenty five or so, have several distinct sounds that could be considered a type of language, and the females are dominant. See, advanced. ;)

Hey, I knew I loved lemurs for excellent reasons, and now it's clear what those are. Thanks so much for sharing your exciting news with us, Heather. What a fantastic way to contribute to a great cause. Best of luck getting to that $10,000 donation goal asap! We're all rooting for you.

You can purchase a copy of The Secret of Spruce Knoll here:
http://www.amazon.com/Secret-Spruce-Knoll-Channeler-ebook/dp/B006BL0WR8http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1036661905

http://heathermccorkle.blogspot.com/

~ Linda

How to Get Sales

2011-12-02T00:05:00.000-08:00

"Readership Leads to Sales"

Renda Dodge

What can you do to find readers for your book? Price it right. Share a chapter. Gift ebooks.

Make sure that there are zero errors, and your plot and characters are compelling, and the structure is sound. The best way to achieve readers is to make it the best it can be, and everyone will want to share it.

Enjoy the Journey!

XOX Karlene

Final I Love Dark YA blogfest

2011-11-30T08:47:00.000-08:00

Thank you so much to all the Dark YA blogfesters that find your way over hear from my author blog. Sorry I had to deter you, but as you may have noticed on my blog, I had big news that took the limelight over there today. But the I Love Dark YA blogfest must go on and my wonderful critique sisters' blog makes for a fitting place for the final post I feel.

On to the blogfest! Today we're posting about the dark YA novel that we're most looking forward to. That's a tough one for me because there are so many fantastic dark YA authors out there. I'm forever keeping an eye out for anything by Ellen Hopkins or Laurie Halsey Anderson but the one that really comes to mind is the one author that hasn't released a YA fiction novel yet. I recently had the pleasure of beta reading for a dear friend, Christine Fonseca (you may know her from her outstanding non-fiction work that was traditionally published). And I've got to tell you peeps, she is an absolutely dynamic writer. Her stuff is wonderful dark, just the way I like it. But just like other dark YA authors, she is having trouble getting agents who are willing to take the risk on it. The market is rough right now, agents aren't willing to take a risk, yada, yada, I know, I know. But this lady's work is so remarkable that the fact that her work wasn't snatched up immediately, shakes my faith in the traditional publishing world.

But I know how hard it is for dark YA to break onto the scene and I know Christine won't give up. Which is fabulous for you lovely people because believe me, you will love this lady's novels. Good things are coming her way very soon, I can feel it. ;)

~Heather

Never Say Die (Except in Scene): Go NaNo Writers!

2011-11-28T05:54:00.000-08:00

Are you writing like an insane person finishing up NaNoWriMo? Three days left!! Whoo hoo!!! For those of you who've made it this far, my hat is so far off to you I can't even reach it. Wow, you are seriously awesome. Events conspired to throw me off my NaNo game only a week into the process this year (sigh), and this my first time, too. But I got enough of a taste—and 34 pages, :-) —that I know a little about the pressure, excitement, frustration, exhaustion, and exhilaration that come with it. Hang in there, NaNoWriMo Scribes, only two more days after today!

There is nothing like writing to keep a person thinking, learning, striving, and feeling like life is amazing. So, in spite of this painfully funny cartoon from The New Yorker magazine that reflects the current publishing industry all too well,

never say die. If you love writing (at least when you don't hate it), your destiny has found you.

(Just remember, DO NOT send your unedited NaNoWriMo manuscript to agents. I heard last week that many agents claim they hate the first week of December because so many people do exactly that. Can you believe such a deluge happens? I don't think I can. It must be an urban myth. Sounds like a plot for a page turner, though. Hmmmm . . .)

~ Linda

Marketing You Book

2011-11-25T00:05:00.000-08:00

"The Day You Stop Selling Your Book it Dies!"

Nathan Everett

Selling= talking, sharing, giving, promoting and anything you can do to move it into the hands of readers. Success will be yours if you never give up. Never stop selling.

Happy Black Friday!

XOX Karlene

Getting Inspiration From Others

2011-11-23T10:04:00.000-08:00

Any time a friend of mine lands an agent, sells a book, or celebrates a debut, it inspires me because it reminds me that books are still selling and the industry is surviving. Today, my friend Saba over at Of Thoughts And Words, is hosting a New Author Blog Hop to celebrate all the wonderful new authors out there. Though I didn't sign up the Critique Sisters for the blog hop, I didn't want you, our friends and readers to miss out on it.

This year alone I've met so many fantastic new authors that I couldn't possibly list them all, show their covers, and have it fit on one page. I'll attempt to name a few, but the list is by no means inclusive. The Indie Elite: myself, Kristie Cook, Elle Strauss, Cyndi Tefft, Denise Grover Swank, Eisley Jacobs, Karlene Petitt (coming soon), Melissa Luznicky Garrett, Susan Kaye Quinn. The Indelibles: C.K. Bryant, Angela Carlie, G.P. Ching, Ali Cross, Jessie Harrell, Karen Amanda Hooper, P.J. Hoover, Megg Jensen, S.R. Johannes, Karly Kirkpatrick, Danyelle Leafty, Addison Moore, Lisa Nowak, Susan Kaye Quinn, Elle Strauss, Megg Vernon, Rashelle Workman.

How about you? Are there any authors you would like to give a shout out to? Who inspires you?

~Heather

Trust Your Path

2011-11-21T06:37:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving week. This time of year always feels reflective. The holidays are upon us, the new year not far away. We find ourselves asking timeless questions with a clear and demanding timeframe. What have I accomplished? Where has my path taken me? What are my goals now? Next month? Next year?

This is a wonderful time of year for family, friends, and appreciating the love and joy in our lives. But the season also brings up complex feelings, often around love and loss, joy and pain, ambition and success or failure. Every emotion seems heightened; every life choice, everything that has happened to us, is celebrated or derided or mourned or questioned. At this time of year, we can easily find ourselves at a crossroads on our path.

Thinking about that made me realize how important it is to simply have faith in ourselves and in our paths, because that's where our truths lie. It made me think of the post I did last Monday on Tarot's Fool's journey (Never Underestimate Hope), because the Fool is sure as heck at a major crossroads, and his journey is ours.

Don McLean sings a beautiful song on his American Pie album (1980 CD), called Crossroads, that expresses this place in the journey perfectly. It's a love song in which any deep and true love (like writing) can be our beacon. Give it a listen here, and remember, all roads lead to where you stand.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

~ Linda

I Want to Write a Book!

2011-11-18T00:00:00.000-08:00

I received the email below, asking me about how to become a writer…

“Well, I wanted to ask you regarding a situation: As I read you are an author too...I am 18 years old and aspiring Airline Pilot, well first one ever to even take in skies. I have always worked very hard in life and have got the bug of flying since a very young age. I have got myself involved in as much as I can with aviation (teaching at Air Cadets, volunteering in aviation related events-Member of Air League etc etc) so far and it has proven very positive. I am in London, recently I had won and completed a flying scholarship having gone solo-best moment of my life! I had written a diary, which included all the details from time, date, place, all technical details, fun experience, everything I can recall etc. I was wondering if you know any aviation Publisher who might take a little interest to turn it into a book. I have researched on Amazon and EBay and I don’t think there is any book out there that shares 'Zero to Solo' experience. I mean it is entirely my own experience nothing promotional just my experience. I was wondering if anything like that could be done. Thanks for your time reading this e mail, I just wanted to ask it’s completely fine if it cant be done. Hope your flying is great!” Dipeet

Thank you for a great question. Dipeet, yes… it is possible to write your story, but not in the manner you think. To have a publisher want your book… you normally need to go through an agent. Agents get about 3000 queries a week. They sell to the publishers, who may have books in cue for two years before going to print.

In your case, however, you’re writing a non-fiction book, which is different from fiction. Fiction you would spend years writing, then pitch, then query, then submit to agents, and if you find an agent, then they attempt to sell it. From what I see, the time to bring a fiction book to market is anywhere from 2 to 10 years, unless you are extremely good and lucky.

Non-fiction is different. You’ll create an idea, and write a proposal. You will sell your book before you write it. I have yet to do this… but, I’m getting ready, so I purchased a book by one of my favorite authors and teachers—Elizabeth Lyon. I’ve yet to read, Nonfiction Book Proposals Anybody Can Write, but I purchased it because I love all Elizabeth's other books. She’s brilliant. And then the next book I would recommend is Noah Lukemans’ The First Five Pages. This I did read, and it’s outstanding.

Having something to write about is easy with someone like yourself who is out there living life to the fullest. The next task will be learning how to write the story. That will come through reading and learning. Figure out what’s needed to start this process by learning "how to" write the non-fiction proposal, and then we’ll go from there.

Next week on Flight To Success, I’ll be featuring someone who took what you’re doing the greatest heights. I’ll be sharing his story all week… a must read for everyone.

Can anyone help Dipeet by sharing tips and advice for this aspiring writer? He also happens to be my Friday Flyer today. Drop by Flight To Success and read all about this amazing young man.

Enjoy the Journey!

XOX Karlene

Becoming A Published Author

2011-11-16T10:24:00.000-08:00

Each step down the path to publication has been like learning to walk all over again. I have misstepped, more than once, I've stumbled, and yes I've fallen. But I got back up and despite my wounds and pain, I kept moving forward. There hasn't been a single step of this journey that has been easy for me (and I know it's the same for many of you) but the rewards that come with each fraction of movement forward have been worth every ounce of agony.

I read a guest article on Chuck Sambuchino's blog~from Writer's Digest~by the fabulous author Anne Fortier that inspired me. Anne talked about seeking out agents and connections on your own instead of relying on others to do it for you. The wisdom of this runs deep, trust me. While it may be about who you know, you really need to meet them and connect with them yourself rather than rely on someone else to recommend you. Anne's article is filled full of great advice on not only how to reach that end goal, but how to do it right. You can read it by clicking here.

After much trial and error, I have reached my destination of publication and I have the right people walking beside me. Those people are not only my Scribe Sisters but you, our followers and readers. There are also my Twitter friends, my friends at Author Heather McCorkle blog and Goodreads. You give my legs strength and keep my resolve up. Thank you to each and every one of you. Together I know we can reach our goals. Becoming a published author is all about surounding yourself with people who support you, and about not giving up.

~Heather

Never Underestimate Hope: Week 17 with Tarot's Fool

2011-11-14T06:37:00.000-08:00

If you've been following the Fool's journey, you know that when he found the Tower, last time we were with him, he yelled it down. The Tower was his alter ego, and when it crumbled, that felt like the end of him. It was the end of the him that used to exist, that got in his way of seeing his own truth and making it shine, but also of the foundations he'd spent much of his lifetime perfecting. What's he supposed to do now that he doesn't exist any more, at least not in any form that he recognizes or knows what to do with?

This might be the biggest question any of us ever asks ourselves. If we get to the stage where we have earned the right to be this scared and ask this question, we have accomplished something truly significant. But we sure as heck don't want to stay in this stage!

Luckily for the Fool, as he sits in the dark of night in the bleak landscape where the Tower stood, he notices a beautiful girl nearby. She has two water urns, and she's kneeling by a pool illuminated with reflected starlight. She's emptying the urns—one into the pool and the other into the earth. This is Tarot's Star.

"What are you doing?" he asks her.

"Refilling the pool," she says, her eyes twinkling, "so that those who are thirsty can drink, and also watering the earth so that, come spring, the seeds can grow." Then she says "Come, drink." The Fool joins her and drinks from the pool.

"I can see you are sad," she says, "but remember, you have not lost all. You still have knowledge, possibilities, and hope. They will lead you to a new future."

As the Fool feels the water's enlightenment, the Star begins to fade away, and he hears her say, "follow your star," as she disappears.

So, all is not lost? Distant as it may be, there 's a future ahead of him? It sounds farfetched, but something about the Star makes him sure this is not just wishful thinking. He has a guiding light. As he embraces this knowledge it begins to heal his heart. His thirst is quenched from the water she poured, that is true. If he plants seeds now, will they come up in the spring? Yes, he realizes, they will. He sets out to follow his star.

So what do we do with our newfound selves after we realize that yes, our foundations have crumbled? When we realize that what we thought was so great about our writing didn't quite meet our expectations? It didn't hold up because, as we've painfully realized, it was built on false ideas of who we are in the world and how accomplished we are. Ouch. We feel empty.

First, put the knowledge and experience you have gained back into that empty space, without any expectations. You have created a bedrock of work, a touchstone of hope that will see you through.

Second, you are in the midst of creating a new idea. Whether you're doing NaNoWriMo or waiting for that glimmer that tells you there's new stuff coming through your creative mind, you are in the midst of an effort that will take you somewhere good. No matter how exhausted you are, know that.

You may be working so hard that you feel you've used up all your energy and are not feeling your creative, driving force any more. Well, you've come this far. You have complete control, which also means you bear all the burdens of your choices. It's time to delegate some of those burdens to another person, if appropriate (like an editor), or to another time, so you can revive your energy.

Difficult as it all is, if you have reached this point in your journey, you know that part of you has achieved happiness, because that part feels a permanence of belonging in the writer community. That feeling comes from the knowledge you've gained through your hard work, and the support you've offered others and accepted from others. You've got peeps. And when you go through your dark nights of despair (as we all seem to do), they'll help you claw your way back to the light.

This is what the Star is telling you.

What else do you get when you follow your star? You get a project. You get a job. Whether that's a publisher buying your book, or it's putting in the time to achieve a step on the way to publication, you get the chance to do solid work, to make, create, and touch. Wow.

~ Linda

Links to Fool's Journey posts: 0—The Fool; 1—The Magician; 2—The High Priestess; 3—The Empress; 4&5—The Emperor, and The Hierophant; 6—The Lovers; 7—The Chariot; 8—Strength; 9—The Hermit; 10—Wheel of Fortune; 11—Justice; 12—The Hanged Man; 13—Death; 14—Temperance; 15—The Devil; 16—The Tower

My interpretation of The Fool's Journey as it applies to the writing life is my own, but the journey is long-established from a variety of sources. Those I've relied on most heavily are: TAROT BASICS by Burger & Fiebig, AECLECTIC TAROT by Thirteen, and EVERYDAY TAROT by Fairfield

Mind Games: Finding Errors in your MS

2011-11-11T00:05:00.000-08:00

Cna yuo raed tihs? Olny 55 plepoe out of 100 can.

i cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg.

The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno't mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in a wrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it whotuit a pboerlm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Azanmig huh? yaeh

It amazes me how many times I can read my novel and continue to find errors. We all know you can be too close to your work and just can't see them. But I'm beginning to believe that closeness will eventually enable you to "see" the errors. You should know your story so well, that by the time you're doing your final edit, all you're doing is reading the words. Not the story.

I thought a fresh set of eyes would help find the word errors, but when someone reads your book for the first time, and they get wrapped into the story... a good thing... they may just miss those incorrect words because they can't see them either.

The reality is, our brain sees what it expects.

How do we fix it? Careful, slow, reading, word, by word, out loud. Last week I wrote a post...Weeding your MS, and the week earlier The Process of Editing, and I believe you don't quit until you can do a complete read without an error. You owe it to yourself to have a perfect product. Your mind will play games. The question is, will you let it win?

Could you read the words above? Are you willing to take the perfection challenge?

Happy Veterans Day!

Enjoy the Journey!

XOX Karlene

Understanding Advances And Royalties

2011-11-09T10:32:00.000-08:00

When you're first starting out as a writer advances and royalties can sound like another language. I've done a lot of research and finally have a bit of experience of my own regarding the subject. The answers are complicated, but I will do my best to simplify them for you.

It begins with an advance, and that is just what is sounds like, an advance on money you will hopefully make back for your publisher. This can be anywhere from a few thousand, to the impressive~yet now rare~six digits that you've heard about. If you have an agent they will get 15%~in most cases~of the advance. I know what you're thinking. Why even use an agent when there are many publishers you can submit to without one? Because an agent can make the difference between a $2,000 advance and a $20,000 advance. That 15% doesn't sound so bad now does it?

Earning out your advance and then earning royalties is the real goal. Most publishers are going to pay you 10% of the cover~or selling~price of a hardback and 8% of the price of a paperback. Ouch, I know but such is the traditional world. Ebooks are a different animal with sometimes a higher payout for the author for obvious reasons. First, enough of your novels have to sell to make the publisher the advance they paid you. Only after that will you start getting royalties.

I came across a brilliant blogger, Shawntelle Madison, who created a calculator to figure out royalties. Check it out here. She uses the 10% payout for hardbacks and 8% payout for paper backs. It appears that she has worked the agent percentage in there as well so it shows your net profits after that. With it you can get a good idea of how many books you have to sell to make a certain amount of money. Prepare yourself though, it takes a lot of sales to make much. If that calculator won't inspire you to work on your marketing, I don't know what will! Remember, this is for traditional publishing only, indie is a whole different matter.

~Heather

NaNo, You Know?

2011-11-07T05:45:00.000-08:00

We are all hunkered down, each in his or her way. Pounding out 1,667 words a day if we're doing NaNoWriMo, or, if we're not doing NaNo, polishing our manuscript for querying, or getting up the nerve to start something new, or any other number of writerly things (including my favorite: lying on the floor and staring at the ceiling until the urge to run away fades). We love it. We love it all. Except when we hate it.

NaNoWriMo is the stuff of people's fantasies (our fantasies) of what it's like to be a writer. And because it's here, it's raising the big questions: Can I be a successful writer? Is it worth all the sacrifices? Am I totally, like, narcissistic and delusional to think I can do this? Am I letting the people I love down by focusing on my own needs? You know the rest.

Whether you've got a crazy schedule and kids to take care of, or simply sometimes ponder the sanity of your choice to be a writer, you need to believe in yourself and your choice. I went looking for answers from one of my favorite poets, Mary Oliver, and found the following beautiful poem. I hope it speaks to you, as it does to me, with love and reassurance. (And don't worry, your kids and spouse will still love you when you resurface and share yourself with them, even more, because you'll be more you.)

The Journey

by Mary Oliver

One day you finally knew

what you had to do, and began,

though the voices around you

kept shouting

their bad advice—

though the whole house

began to tremble

and you felt the old tug

at your ankles.

"Mend my life!"

each voice cried.

But you didn't stop.

You knew what you had to do,

though the wind pried

with its stiff fingers

at the very foundations,

though their melancholy

was terrible.

It was already late

enough, and a wild night,

and the road full of fallen

branches and stones.

But little by little,

as you left their voices behind,

the stars began to burn

through the sheets of clouds,

and there was a new voice

which you slowly

recognized as your own,

that kept you company

as you strode deeper and deeper

into the world,

determined to do

the only thing you could do—

determined to save

the only life you could save.

Have a great journey, everyone.

~ Linda

Weeding Your MS

2011-11-04T00:05:00.000-07:00

Question: How many times do you read your MS before it's complete?

Answer: As many as it takes until there are no mistakes.

I've heard the answer to that question many times. But the problem is, I really didn't hear it. Because I had "thought" mine was perfect. My novel has been read numerous times by myself, as well as different people. Once again... I thought I was done. But being the perfectionist that I am, I decided that that I would do "one more" read. Lately, I've read far too many books in print with mistakes. I didn't want mine to be one of them.

What I found were better words, redundant sentences, a couple wrong words... I'm for I, an for and, etc. Incredulous little things that I thought had been previously weeded out.

The fact remains there are some things that the eye passes over. But not all eyes. There will be someone out there who sees the error. Mine won't be one of them.

How many times will I read my book? I will read it through the entirety until there is not one mistake found. Can we over edit our book? Perhaps. But mostly I think we can only make it better.

Don't give up too soon. That "one more read" is the easy part in the realm of all that you've put into your work. If you can slowly read it, and not find one thing... you're done.

How many times have you read your book?

Enjoy the Journey!

XOX Karlene

Three Elements Every Novel Needs

2011-11-02T09:41:00.000-07:00

As many of you are diving into #NaNoWriMo there are a few important elements to your novel that you need to keep in mind. If you're missing one of them, you don't have a story. Figuring them out early on will help you focus and keep your story on track. But don't worry, if you didn't do an outline for NaNo, just keeping these in mind will help. I'll share bits of one of my latest novels for an example.

Problem: Invaders are doubling their efforts to take over my main character's homeland. At the same time she is struggling to understand a power that is nothing like it should be, and is a disappointment to her parents. This shows both the inner problems she is struggling with and the exterior one she is forced to deal with going on around her.

Stakes: Invaders are not only driving her people from their land and taking over, they are wiping out her kind because they believe they are evil. If she can't figure out her errant power and discover a way to control it and use it, she may have to fear for not only her family's land, but her life. Again this shows the inner and outer stakes.

Solution: She must find a way to harness her power so she can use it to help her people fight back the invaders. In the solution the two combine, but this isn't always the case.

Once you know these three elements, you know the core of your plot. These are also the three elements that are found in a good one sentence log line. I've found that in knowing these elements, and writing my one sentence log line ahead of time, it helps me hone in on my story from page one and not lose focus on it. How do you make sure your story has the necessary elements?

These elements are taken from my historical YA fantasy that is due out by Compass Press in early 2013.

~Heather

On the Eve of NaNoWriMo: Words of Wisdom from E.B. White

2011-10-31T06:14:00.000-07:00

I was madly searching through my old paper files a few days ago, looking for the novel concepts that I had thought up, typed out, and filed in years past. I needed to pluck one to use for NaNoWriMo. (That's right, I'm going to be playing catchup with all you serious outliners who know exactly how your 50,000 words are going to spill onto the page. I'll have the concept and the main plot points figured out by tonight, though, so I've decided to just have fun and let it rip.) Anyway, in my search I came upon a sheet of writing guidelines from E.B. White that I'd taped to the wall behind my desktop computer long ago (when I had a desktop computer). I'd titled it Style Reminders.

For anyone who is new to The Elements of Style by Strunk and White, or who hasn't glanced at it since you were required to way back in high school or college English courses, guess what? This old little book, as it was called by Professor Strunk of Cornell University, who wrote its original form around the time of World War I, still has something incredible to offer to those of us loosening up, stretching, and homing in for the challenge of NaNoWriMo. How perfect is that? Some things about writing just don't change.

Here are the style reminders, updated by Professor Strunk's student and eventual publishing partner, E.B.White. They are for writers of fiction, and especially for those who are engaged in the process of learning to be great writers.

Style Reminders

from E.B. White

1. Place yourself in the background. Write in ways that draw the reader's attention to the sense and substance of the writing, rather than to the mood and temper of the author.

2. Write in a way that comes naturally.

3. Work from a suitable design. Before beginning to compose something, gauge the nature and extent of the enterprise and work from a suitable design.

4. Write with nouns and verbs, not with adjectives and adverbs.

5. Revise and rewrite. (okay, we know this one is for AFTER November)

6. Do not overwrite.

7. Do not overstate.

8. Avoid the use of qualifiers (rather, very, little, pretty, seemingly).

9. Do not affect a breezy manner.

10. Use orthodox spelling.

11. Do not explain too much. (e.g. in the use of adverbs, 'he said' is better than 'he said consolingly.' Show how he feels by his appearance, actions or words.)

12. Do not construct awkward adverbs. (e.g. tangledly or tiredly)

13. Make sure the reader knows who is speaking.

14. Avoid fancy words.

15. Do not use dialect unless your ear is good.

16. Be clear. Although there is no substitute for merit in writing, clarity comes closest to being one.

17. Do not inject opinion.

18. Use figures of speech sparingly.

19. Do not take shortcuts at the cost of clarity.

20. Avoid foreign languages.

21. Prefer the standard to the offbeat in language usage. As a beginner, err on the side of conservatism, on the side of established language usage. No idiom is taboo, no accent forbidden; there is simply a better chance of doing well if the writer holds a steady course, enters the stream of English quietly, and does not thrash about.

Sound familiar? I can't promise that I'm going to follow every one of these guidelines to the letter, but I'm going to prop this list in front of me while I write. When in doubt fall back on these. If the words are flowing with clarity of style, the story will come out more clearly and easily, too. Of course, this is NaNo, so in the extreme situation of freezing up, which I've heard happens in NaNo a lot, blow something up! (I just love that piece of advice that came from quidforquill in a previous post comment) Just be sure to do it with clarity!!

Have fun everyone. See you on the trail.

~ Linda

The Process of Editing

2011-10-28T00:05:00.000-07:00

Wednesday Heather wrote a great article Don’t Edit the Heart Out. If you haven’t read it yet, this is a must read. So how do we edit while guarding our heart?

Heather got me thinking about the art of editing. There are a few things I know as truth:

1. We cannot see our own mistakes.

2. We must continue to read our book until we find zero mistakes.

But wait! If we can’t see our own mistakes, and we have to read until we see none… we may be lulled into bringing our book to market, or querying, too soon. What should we do?

The solution is to find readers who will take the time to read with detail. But what if those readers find things other than grammar or spelling errors? What if they find plot points that didn’t work? Vocabulary that felt wrong. Were confused because of something the protagonist said in chapter one, but didn’t fall through in chapter 40. What do we do? Listen? Change? Ignore in fear of losing our voice?

I thought my book was strong. I thought I had it nailed. And then Bill Bernhardt read it and told me he saw a problem with believability. He said, “I don’t know how you’ll fix it, but I know you can.” He also said my protagonist came across as weak and another character was whiny. But I was trying to give them a way to grow! He said I preached in some areas. But those points needed to be told!

I heard the hard facts of my book from this reader, and then I spent a month thinking about it without touching anything. I happened to be babysitting my 8 month old grandson at the time, and we sat on the floor and played. I rocked, fed, we walked… but all the while my mind was focused on “how to” fix my book. Thirty-three days later, I sat down and fixed it.

I had another reader edit it. She was confused on some things I’d written because she didn’t understand how the 757 worked. But that made me think. I need to be able to write so all readers understand. That is my job as a writer. She found some grammar problems. But I also learned with this reader that her editing of language made the conversations too formal and felt false... I didn’t use those comments.

Multiple reads, edits and re-reads by me and my husband.

Then Bill read it again and loved it, and found nothing. But he was reading for the believability, the plot points and the characters. I had fixed them all. But… I needed another read, just to be sure.

Then I had a pilot reader edit it, and he found a dozen typos, or wrong words. Good catches.

Then I had another reader edit, and she found some major issues. Why didn’t my protagonist have an emotional breakdown? Where did Bill get the drugs? I thought that the doctor was part of this. Did you know you said the exact same thing two pages before? I think that protagonist would have done this, or that. Many word choice suggestions, grammar issues, and a couple spelling errors—obviously a much better editor than the guys for the emotions, and technical points.

Wow. I was excited. But during this process I found it fascinating what the variety of readers picked up and why. Mostly, I respected each and every comment. And I listened to each comment along the process.

Did I change something just because someone said to? No.

What I did was to ask myself, “Why did the reader feel that way?”

Communication is a two way street. If the listener (or reader) isn’t getting our message, then we’re not communicating properly. We need to have the skills to write well enough to make the readers want to keep reading. We need to respect what they didn’t like. That doesn’t mean they know how to fix it—a key point. But they are not wrong when they say something didn’t work.

That doesn’t mean your editor knows how to fix the problem, they just know it’s there.

Trust your readers to know there is a problem. But don’t necessarily trust they know “how to” fix it for you. So when they see a problem and make a suggestion, that’s great.The problem identification should be an eye opener—the suggestion should get you thinking about how to solve the problem yourself.

They may have some good ideas, but they may not be the right ideas for you and your story. This is how to use your editor while keeping the voice and story your own.

I commented to my last reader for “beating up” my story. In my world… that is a good thing! What I meant by the “beat up” was a compliment for taking the time to read it so thoroughly. I want honest feedback. When you find someone who takes the time and provides such detailed thoughts— it’s priceless. I also know that taking time to think about why and what they said is the best thing you can do for your book, before you make the changes.

My heartfelt gratitude goes out to those who have read my book and have been truthful in their feelings and perceptions. I want to know what they think. Not hear the good stuff—challenge me to make it better. When my book hits the shelf, I know there will be more people who feel the exact same way the readers did.

I want my story to be my own. But I also want my story to be read. We can have both.

What is your experience with editing? Do you have a process you use? How do you keep your voice and trust your editors at the same time?

Enjoy the Journey!

XOX Karlene

Don't Edit The Heart Out

2011-10-27T08:39:00.000-07:00

With all the conferences, retreats, workshops, and advice out there writers run the risk of editing the heart right out of their novel. You can end up second guessing every chapter, arc, and even the entire plot. Those of you who've attended more than one workshop, conferences, retreat, or have received conflicting advice, know what I mean. It can seem like you're being pulled in every direction at once. The worse part is, that conflicting advice can come even come from agents or published authors.

Rather than allowing yourself~and your novel~to be torn in two, you need to take a step back and evaluate things. Write down all the advice you’ve received. Write down who gave you the advice and why you value it. Then write down your goals for your novel. Not publication and sales, but what you wanted your novel to accomplish internally. That includes the arc you want your characters to make, the major plotlines, and the overall message you're trying to communicate. Now~and here's the really important part~make sure the advice you received doesn't conflict with any of that! Some of it probably will, don't be afraid to throw out that advice. Go ahead, you'll feel liberated.

"What, are you crazy Heather? These are experts, they know what they're talking about!"

Yes, of course they do, but it isn't their book, it's yours. If advice conflicts with the major points of your novel, chances are it will change it so much that it will no longer be your novel. This isn't always the case. There is advice that will change some elements such as smaller plotlines or message and not make your book look like a foreign piece of work that someone else wrote. In that case, the changes may be exactly what you need.

The bottom line is, don't edit the heart out of your novel. You can send it to the gym, feed it healthy food, even give it a facelift or a blood transfusion, but if you cut the heart out, it will die.

~Heather

What's Left When Your Belief Crumbles? Fool's Journey Week 16

2011-10-24T06:08:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it's been almost two months since I've posted about Tarot's Fool and his journey to wholeness, which is such an excellent metaphor for our own journeys to publication. To be fair, though, it's a good thing to have taken the time off, because poor Tarot's Fool has been through a lot, and needed time to build up his strength to survive what's coming now. Warning: this post is about The Tower, which I, personally, find to be the scariest card in the deck. Why? Because no matter how dramatic Death and the Devil were, they were just preambles to the real climax of the Fool's journey: The Tower. (Reminder: Tarot is an ancient art. It was developed way back when a story's climax was only about 3/4 of the way to the end. There are five more Major Arcana cards in the Fool's Journey after The Tower. Thank goodness, because we get the how-to details on how the Fool recovers, finds his footing again, and triumphs. Whew.)

Why should someone like the Fool— a writer, for example—still be facing huge challenges after doing such incredible work as he has already done in this journey to become successful? The answer lies within. An author I heard speak at a conference long ago said, "you will never find anyone who is more humble, or more arrogant, than a writer." And that is exactly where the Fool is right now.

He has learned and grown. He's torn down his resistance to change and sacrifice (The Hanged Man), let go of preconceptions and fears (Death), done the very hard work of figuring out how to merge opposites to create wholeness (Temperance), and, when even that wasn't enough, he shattered the chains of his ambition and desire (The Devil). But he still doesn't realize that he has not let go of some core beliefs from his past, tarnished by outdated arrogance, that are holding him back.

Well, if shattering the chains of ambition and desire doesn't sound like overcoming arrogance, I don't know what does. What could be hiding this unseen arrogance from the Fool? A worm buried deep in the core, out of sight until now, that's what.

As the Fool leaves the Devil behind, he is jubilant that he's gotten past his obsessions and can now focus on his aspirations. He comes upon a magnificent, and familiar, structure on the path: a Tower. He himself helped build this tower back when the most important thing to him was making his mark on the world, and proving himself to be better than other men. He loved living in the top of the Tower back then. But now he's surprised to see it there at all; he thought he left it behind when he started this spiritual journey.

Suddenly, in a lightning flash of realization, he knows he's been seeing himself, like the Tower, as alone and singular and superior. Even with all he's done to release himself to growth, he's secretly held on to that core belief. But it's not true!

So powerful is this realization, that he opens his mouth and lets out a tremendous shout of recognition, and an actual bolt of lightning slashes down from the heavens and strikes the Tower. Its residents have to jump to the waters below for their lives, and the Tower itself is reduced a heap of rubble.

The Fool experiences grief so profound he can hardly breathe and feels sure he will perish. He did not know until this moment that he was so bound to this core belief. But instead of perishing with the Tower, when the dust begins to clear, so does his vision. He sees his personal truth with full clarity now. He has done the hardest thing of all: destroyed the last lies he held about himself.

What's left? The bare truth. And on that the Fool can rebuild. Without it, whatever he built would eventually end up in the rubble pile.

He knows he can't rest on his laurels. He steps forward, turns his back on the crumbledTower and focuses on what he must do now. He is filled with anticipation and the kind of anxiety that drives him to find answers. He accesses his deep mind and remembers the lessons he learned as The Hanged Man and from Death. He knows without a doubt that there is a beautiful horizon up ahead, waiting for him, but that he will meet more resistance on the way to it. It will still be a fight, and he will use the strengths he's claiming to win it.

As a writer, you might think that the fight you're facing is about your writing, but if you've reached the point in your journey of confronting your Tower, then it's not. It's about yourself. The Tower has crashed, and with it, so has your need to identify with an ideal or a model. The way has been cleared for you to open yourself up to life, unhindered, free of preconceived notions, aware. You are ready to step into the heart of the fire of your writing, using your basic instincts that were revealed when you shouted down the Tower. But wait, doesn't this sound a lot like going back to the primordial mud? Back to the time before you knew what you were doing?

Yes and no. Yes to mud; mud is good. You'll make clay from the mud, and you know what you can do with clay! No to leaving your hard-earned knowledge behind; it's what lets you mold the clay anew.

Scary? (I can't answer, I'm too busy hiding in a cave!) How do you get a handle on those instincts so you can ride them to success? Well, sorry to be cryptic, but Tarot insists that the answer is in the question. It may take a few more weeks of work and introspection, but you will find your way to transforming that writing fire into a river's natural flow; you will find the boat that lets you escape the dangers on the river's banks and you will flow with the current to success. Stick with the Fool, he'll show you the way.

~ Linda

Links to Fool's Journey posts: 0—The Fool; 1—The Magician; 2—The High Priestess; 3—The Empress; 4&5—The Emperor, and The Hierophant; 6—The Lovers; 7—The Chariot; 8—Strength; 9—The Hermit; 10—Wheel of Fortune; 11—Justice; 12—The Hanged Man; 13—Death; 14—Temperance; 15—The Devil

My interpretation of The Fool's Journey as it applies to the writing life is my own, but the journey is long-established from a variety of sources. Those I've relied on most heavily are: TAROT BASICS by Burger & Fiebig, AECLECTIC TAROT by Thirteen, and EVERYDAY TAROT by Fairfield

Last Line Critiques for Anna, Elaine, and Allison.

2011-10-21T00:05:00.000-07:00

This week the critique sisters are critiquing Anna, Elaine and Allison’s last lines.

Great job ladies. And once again… there are many opinions.

Anna:

Set up: YA Contemporary. Ruby, 18, is a fangirl in a certain graphic novel fandom. She and a friend post an amateur video on their website that goes viral. Ruby has just watched the video (again) after learning the success of the film.

Last line: A shift has taken place and if I’m ready or not, that fan video represents the nine minutes and thirty-eight seconds that changed my life.

Linda: I'd definitely read on. If you haven't already told us about the content of the video, great—I can't wait to find out what was on it. If you have, still good—I still want to know what happens now. One thing stopped me: the use of 'if' rather than 'whether' in 'if I'm ready or not.' My reaction could just be generational--maybe teens have that usage; I just always think the phrase is 'whether or not.'

Heather: This is a strong last line. I would only make a few tweaks and honestly, their small and subjective so go with what your instinct tells you is right. My tweaked version: A shift has taken place and whether or not I'm ready, that fan video represents the nine minutes and thirty-eight seconds that changed my life.

Karlene: Anna, I love what you’re doing with this. Yes, I want to read more beyond the last sentence. What if the last sentence was just tightened a bit? Make it a bit more edgy. I like to play with sentences. What do you think about this?

A shift has taken place. Ready or not—nine minutes and thirty-eight seconds has just changed my life.

Elaine Lowe:

Ok, this is the last line of the first chapter of a book I've been struggling with one and off for 18 months, while finishing 3 other books.

It's 1888, Emelia has left her family home in Maui to start a bakery on the Big Island in the cowtown of Waimea. The first man she meets has charmed the socks off of her. (but it's complicated...)

last line of Chapter 1:

"Emelia had never thought she would be married. That a man would really choose to spend his life with her. There were so many other beautiful, exciting, exotic women in Hawaii. Felipe was all she could have asked for, and more than she ever expected."

Linda: Given the setup, I'm feeling that Emelia is a very sympathetic character. Excellent. But I think the ending of this chapter would be much stronger if you eliminated the last sentence, or replaced it with something like, 'Felipe could have had any of them' or some other sentence that leaves more of an open question about what might happen in their relationship.

Heather: Hawaii is one of my favorite places in the world so this holds a dear place in my heart. That said, I'm wondering if this novel is told in second person because I don't feel as if Emelia is telling us the story, I feel as if you the author is. Which, if that's what you're going for is great-hard to pull off, but great if you can. I would cut back on the explicative's (beautiful, exciting, exotic) about the women and just choose one or two. It is telling instead of showing but again, not knowing your intended style for the novel, that may be what you're going for.

Karlene: I love the future drama here. But I’m feeling the last line raps up the story. (I know it didn't) She got her man and her wildest dreams have come true. But we all know that fairytales are filled with struggles. What if we lead up to those struggles? Pure doubt might work. I added a last line to your last line. Let me know what you think.

Allison Duke:

I'll give it a shot. YA fantasy: Taniya works in the royal stables where her stepfather Daret is the master. Her mother is ill, so Taniya rides her mother's horse in the annual festival parade. Throughout the parade and festival, she is torn between worrying over her mother, drooling over the handsome prince, Kanar, and dreaming of one day being one of the King's mounted warriors.

Last line of chapter one:

“As Taniya made her way back to the pavilion that had been set up for the horses, Daret’s groom came running toward her. “Taniya!” he cried. “Come quick. A messenger came for you and Daret. Your mother is worse, and she needs you!”

Linda: The chapter ends on a worry—excellent! It will be much stronger if your last sentence is "Come quick," and you leave out the sentences that currently come after that. You can pick up the thread in the next chapter. (Also, in the sentence before that, if you change 'came running' to 'ran,' it will be more immediate and stronger.)

Heather: Ah I love YA fantasy! This is a great chapter ending, it builds tension and leaves us wanting to know more. There isn't much I'd change about it except to maybe drop the second exclamation point. Exclamation points lose their power the more we use them (a lesson I fought hard against, but eventually caved on). From him running toward her and his words we understand that he's urgent so the second one doesn't have to be there.

Karlene: I think that this sentence leaves me to closure. We already know the mother is sick, and now getting worse. What if we left the reason a mystery?

“Taniya!” he cried. “Come quick. A messenger came for you and Daret. Your mother needs you!”

“Taniya! Come quick,” he cried. “A messenger came for you, it’s your mother!” he said, catching his breath. “She needs you.”

Linda says… “Nice job, everyone. Thank you for sharing. I loved reading all these.”

We all loved reading them. Thank you all for your participation. Allison, Elaine and Anna we would love to her your comments on our comments. Does anyone have anything else to add?

Thank you all for your participation. You all did a wonderful job.

Enjoy the Journey!

XOX Karlene

Supporting Each Other

2011-10-19T08:38:00.000-07:00

This last Monday on the #WritersRoad chat on Twitter we talked about keeping your spirits up while submitting or trying to get published in today’s industry. Anyone who has tried to break into publishing in the last few years knows how incredibly hard that can be. When talking about ways to keep our spirits up one topic kept reoccurring and that was, supporting each other.

Writing used to be a lonely profession but it doesn’t have to be anymore. There are so many wonderful writing communities online now that we never have to face anything alone again unless we choose to. Between Twitter, Facebook, Blogger, and all the others, you are bound to find someone to connect with and to share your journey with. All you have to do is reach out.

Supporting each other is a two-way street though, we can’t ever forget that. Paying it forward is very important in the writing communities, but we must do it with honest, good intentions~not because we expect something in return. Be there for your writing friends, talk with them, comment on their blogs when you can, critique for them when you can (constructively of course), and buy their books when the time comes. Good karma comes around and the friendships you’ll forge by supporting each other are worth every second of time spent on them.

~Heather

Author Panel Gets to the Heart of What Makes a Good Book

2011-10-17T06:30:00.000-07:00

On October 10 I attended a panel discussion by well-known Northwest authors. It was held at an indie bookstore and sponsored by the Women's National Book Association as part of National Reading Group Month. There were seven authors on the panel (Robert Dugoni, Kit Bakke, Erica Bauermeister, Kevin Desinger, Jonathan Evison, Robin Hobb, and Indu Sundaresan). Their writing covers the gamut, including literary, historical, fantasy and science fiction, thriller, suspense and middle grade/YA. The topic: what makes for a good 'bookclub' book? Book clubs are a major venue for booksellers, marketers and authors to focus on, as they have become a strong force in sales. And of course they are of personal interest to many readers.

The panel discussion quickly moved into authors' processes, as it became obvious that what makes for a good bookclub book is the same thing as what makes for a good book: one that changes the question from "what happens next" to " who am I?"

Two points were made that stood out for me, because they spoke loudly to my own recent experiences in both writing my novel and doing final revisions (I have another two days worth of work, then I'm done!)

1. the authors agreed that at some point in the writing, usually about a third to half way through the book, the writing gets a lot easier because they start caring deeply about their character(s) in a way that drives the narrative forward. They care more about their characters than anything else at this point, and just want to do right by them, to give them a life that is worth living, and one that becomes, at the same time, separate from the author. It becomes the characters' story.

2. the ending is not necessarily what you think it's going to be. As an author, you need to be open to letting the ending unfold as it needs to.

Both of these things are necessary to making a good book.

Before you protest that you don't write without first knowing the ending (I'm raising my hand), listen to this discussion among these authors: Someone said, "Have you ever noticed how many books you read that are great until you get to the ending, and you're thinking 'I hate that ending.' Everyone agreed. Then Bob Dugoni (thriller writer) mentioned that on his last novel, he got about 80% of the way through, knew he hadn't thought about the ending satisfactorily yet, and went back and read the whole manuscript over again. He got to the same point and got stuck again, so went back and read it all again. Only then did new thoughts begin to form for him so he could write the ending. Five of the other authors were nodding in agreement, and Jonathan Evison (literary), said something along the lines of "That makes sense to me. You have to be open at the end, because you have to accomplish the paradox: the ending has to be surprising, and at the same time, it has to be inevitable."

This was an important moment to me. It resonated so strongly with what I'd just been through in my revisions that I nearly jumped out of my seat. It sounded like a huge undertaking, to make sure the ending is both surprising and inevitable, but I realized that it might be a small thing that does that. It's all about the character. Whatever the structural ending of the book, how the character changes is the key to whether you get that surprising but inevitable, and therefore totally satisfying, ending. It is not necessarily what you think it's going to be, and not necessarily a big, sweeping change. You've given the character life. Instead of giving her the clever, but likely, next step at the end that might lead to future books for her, let her tell you who she's become. Let her accept all that's happened, and grow from somewhere deep, even if the change is more focused on the personal than on potential action. When it's that authentic, you can be sure that readers will find your ending compelling, and are likely to want more. Why? Because you've changed the question from "what happens next?" to "who am I?"

~ Linda

Last Line Critiques...

2011-10-14T00:05:00.000-07:00

For our readers, by our readers...

We had many incredible last line entries for critique this week—Thank you all for participating—But it’s impossible to critique everyone’s last line in one setting, so I’ve randomly picked three. But Lorelei, Carrie, Kristen, and lbDiamond, I am saving yours and will post them in next month for review. Stay tuned.

Today, we would like all our readers to provide constructive critiques for our participants.

Below are three last lines from Anna, Elaine, and Allison. Thank you ladies for sharing your work. Next Friday, the Heather, Linda and I will provide our critiques.

Anna:

Set up: YA Contemporary. Ruby, 18, is a fangirl in a certain graphic novel fandom. She and a friend post an amateur video on their website that goes viral. Ruby has just watched the video (again) after learning the success of the film.

Last line: A shift has taken place and if I’m ready or not, that fan video represents the nine minutes and thirty-eight seconds that changed my life.

Elaine Lowe:

Allison Duke:

As Taniya made her way back to the pavilion that had been set up for the horses, Daret’s groom came running toward her. “Taniya!” he cried. “Come quick. A messenger came for you and Daret. Your mother is worse, and she needs you!”

Thanks to our readers for your participation.

XOX Karlene

Spreading Yourself Too Thin

2011-10-12T08:26:00.000-07:00

There is so much more to writing than actually writing, that the extra things can become too much of a distraction at times. Between platform building, social media, and marketing your novel, the most important part~the writing~can sometimes be shoved to the side. If any of you have followed the journey of the self-published, self-made millionaire, Amanda Hocking, then you know despite her achievements on her own, she signed with a major publisher. If I ever find myself in her position I'm not sure I'd make the same decision she did, but I understand why she made it.

Even after you've built a great platform, there is a lot of work that remains to be done. Marketing is a never ending monster that must be fed, and that's even with a traditional publisher. Somehow you have to find the balance between all the things associated with being an author, and writing your novels. There are times we all spread ourselves too thin, get caught up in the excitement and going on's of social media, and inadvertently put our writing aside.

It's vital that writing remain the most important ingredient in being an author. That may mean less frequent blog posts, less Twitter or Facebook time, and more dedicated writing time. You don't have to give up any of those things, just use them in moderation and be sure you write more often than you do social media. The balance will tip from time to time and that's okay. Just try to be aware of it and make sure you tip it back to writing. Speaking of tipping, what tips do you have to achieve balance in your own writing lives?

~Heather

Last Lines, and The Versatile Blogger Award

2011-10-10T06:19:00.000-07:00

Today I finally have the chance to properly thank the Lovely Lady Gwen, who awarded us the Versatile Blogger Award a few weeks ago. Thank you so much, Gwen! Click on the green Versatile Blogger Award box on our right sidebar to be whisked to Gwen's blog, where you can read amusing anecdotes about her adventures and mishaps with writing YA and with running, her two passions.

The rules of the Versatile Blogger Award are:

Thank the person who gave it to you and link back to them.
Share seven things about yourself.
Pass the award along to other, recently discovered blogs and let them know about it.

As the responder for CSC on this one, I am about to complete all that, but first, a break to bring you an important announcement and request:

Check out Karlene's blog post from Friday (just scroll down) announcing October's critique session here on CSC. Send us the last sentence of one of your favorite chapters via the comments box on that post, and let us talk about how it affects us and what we think it does for your forward momentum in your manuscript. It's fun and painless to play, HONEST! If you'd like to see how we roll here on CSC with critiques, go back to the First Sentence Critiques from August (August 24 Blog Post), and the First Paragraph Critiques from September (September 19 Blog Post). Thank you!

Now back to the Versatile Blogger Award and moi! I just love talking about myself! So here are seven things about me:
~ I spent years in the advertising world (aka the salt mines) in New York
~ Before that I spent other years in the pharmaceutical industry in New York
~ I have an educational background in consumer economics and health care policy
~ I have lived in Idaho, upstate New York, Washington D.C., Chicago, New York City, London, St. Louis, and Seattle
~ I love cats, and am afraid that someday, in my dotage, I will be the neighborhood cat lady, with stacks of old newspapers in the hallway and lounging cats strewn here and strewn there over my belongings
~ I am, however, currently catless for the first time in 21 years, as my last old kitty has recently gone to kitty heaven, leaving me quite bereaved
~ Which leads me to writing, always my savior in times of sadness. Also my pleasure in times of joy.

And now, here are some wonderful bloggers I've recently discovered:

Kristen Lamb, at Kristen Lamb's Blog

Juliet Greenwood, at Juliet Greenwood Author

Nicole Basaraba, at Uni-Verse-City

Gunnar, at Mysteries and Histories

Dawnall, at Write On

Congratulations to each of you. I am so glad that I've found you and am enjoying reading your blogs and expanding my knowledge through you. Thank you!

~Linda

Last Line of the Chapter Critiques

2011-10-06T21:02:00.000-07:00

Critique Time Again

The Month of October we’re going to be critiquing the last sentence of a chapter.

What makes an excellent last sentence of a chapter? Like a last sentence of a paragraph, it must leave a question that the reader feels compelled to have answered. It must entice the reader to read the next paragraph, turn the page, and begin the next chapter.

What makes a book a page-turner?

Answer: The last line.

While it's important throughout your work to craft each line so that it pulls the reader to the next paragraph, there is nothing more powerful than a last line of a chapter that leaves the reader longing to find out what happens next. More than a want, it’s a need. It becomes a necessity to turn that page to the next chapter and read more.

As Linda mentioned last month, “we are all so close to our own writing it's hard to be objective, no matter how good we are at offering critiques to others. Getting insightful perspectives from experienced outside readers is invaluable, and that's what we hope to provide you here.”

Please tell us a little about the story. The situation. Then share your last line. I’ll go first with a book I’m reading.

WINGS A Novel of World War II FlyGirls by Karl Friedrich.

Eighteen-year-old Sally escapes the abuse of her alcoholic father. She’s flying an open-air fabric-wing bi-plane with the two loves of her life—her soul mate and his plane. They have just crashed.

“She lay on the ground and watched the flames consume the cockpits. And she screamed and screamed, as all that she loved vanished forever from the universe.”

I was hooked. Pull me to chapter two. I want to find out what happens to Sally now that her world has been destroyed. What will she do? Where will she go? How will she survive? Will she ever fly again? I'm hooked and want to learn more.

Now your turn. Please post your sentence below.

If necessary we’ll use Random.org to randomly select three of the entries, and next Friday I’ll post them here, and we'll open the comments up for constructive feedback. The ensuing Friday I'll post the same sentences with feedback from each critique sister.

Thank you for participating. And remember...

Enjoy the journey.

XOX Karlene

Fall Events and Awards

2011-10-05T09:12:00.000-07:00

Leaves have turned an array of reds, browns, and yellows, the air is crisp with the promise of chilly weather, and the mornings are eerily quiet as the kids are all nestled in their classrooms. Don't you just love fall? Everything about it is conducive to a writing atmosphere. It makes me want to sit down with a cup of hot tea at my computer and get in touch with my characters. Which I'll be doing as soon as I'm done chatting with you fine peeps.

To add to the writing spirit of fall, NaNoWriMo is approaching! If you aren't sure what that is you've got to check this link out. It is a massive organization of writers who have come together to dedicate an entire month to writing without guilt. The acronym stands for National Novel Writing Month and they mean it. Many people who participate actually complete 50,000 words, which for many middle grade and young adult authors, can be an entire novel. You're allowed to outline but you can't start before November and you can't go back and edit until the end of the month. It is a fun exercise in writing freedom that I highly recommend if you've never done it.

Me, I don't like to rush so I won't be participating but I'll be cheering on all my friends who are. In other writing news I'd love to thank Tina Moss for passing this award on to the Critique Sisters. We are honored and of course wish to share the cake with others so I'd love to pass it along to three of our new sweet blogger followers:

Angela Orlowski-Peart

Brenda Sills

Tara

~Heather

NaNoWriMo—Help!

2011-10-03T06:25:00.000-07:00

To all of you who have done NaNoWriMo in the past, or have thought about it seriously, I'm sending heartfelt pleadings for insights. I'd love to participate, have wanted to since I first heard about it, but always seem to be in the middle of a project at the beginning of November. This year I might have a shot at putting everything else aside for the month of November and getting into the game. Since there is a whole month, almost, until the opening bell rings, it seems like the perfect time to ask if all you experienced and knowledgeable folks out there would be willing to share what you've learned about what works best for you :-)

I do realize it is different for different types of writers. I've heard, for example, two starkly different approaches to previous NaNoWriMos. One, from a dedicated outliner, was that the best way by far is to do a detailed, scene-by-scene outline of the entire book you want to write before November, so that you know the story inside out. Then, you will never have writer's block in the process, and will be able to easily assess the worthiness of any unexpected ideas that might crop up along the way about character or plot development. This writer's objective is to actually write a whole, finished, quality first draft of a novel during NaNoWriMo.

The other approach came from someone who's never met an outline he likes, and is more into the fun and excitement of the writing process. His idea is to pick a subject and a protagonist that are broadly defined and free flowing, so that you can just write about the protag getting into a particular situation or situations and let the reactions and dramas and characters develop from there. His objective is also to write something that can be turned into a fine first draft, maybe just not by the end of November.

I'm in awe of both of these approaches, but my gut is telling me my style is somewhere in between. Some outlining, some free flow.

What works for you? Do you get stuck in tangents if you don't know where you're going before you begin? Do you get stuck in the doldrums if it's all laid out ahead of time? Any insights from your experiences would be most appreciated! Thanks.

~ Linda

Krissi Dallas: Pep Rally!

2011-09-30T00:27:00.000-07:00

Go Team!

Welcome to the official kick-off of the Phantom Island Pep Rally September 30 – October 15, 2011. I am excited to introduce you to Author Krissi Dallas, and share with you her continued success in publication. Teacher, author, and all around great person— Krissi is touching the lives of many.

Her books, Windchaser and Windfall will release nationally through a commercial publisher in December. But pre-released autographed copies are available on October 1^st through The White Island Shoppe - They will be on special sale at first.

Krissi has touched the lives of her students and what better way than to allow her students to tell us about Krissi and her books.

Please meet Amelia...

"Hey, Karlene! Thanks for letting me come on here to kick off the Phantom Island Pep Rally! For those that don’t know, I am the REAL Amelia, on which Krissi Dallas claims she based her fictional bratty, preteen character in the Phantom Island books. (When I say REAL, I mean the COMPLETE opposite of everything Krissi wrote. Gotta love all those brat jokes she makes...) Anyways, I'm a senior in high school and have known Krissi since my 7th grade year. I first met her as my Sunday School teacher. Sunday school teachers always have this knack for helping you through any situation in life. This has been true of my relationship with Krissi from that time on, and if anyone can tell you about Krissi, it's me! I've been with her to multiple book events and traveled all over the world with her. We've been to Argentina, Florida, Washington D.C., and even China this past summer!

Amelia and Krissi at The Hot Pot restaurant in China this summer

One thing you’ll find out in chapter one of Windchaser is that the main character, Whitnee, has a fish phobia. This is actually a real Krissi-ism and reminds me of the “fish incident” we had this summer in China. We went out with our Chinese friends to their favorite restaurant called "Hot Pot." You basically put all kinds of raw food into a central pot in the table and cook it. Clueless about Krissi’s phobia, one of our Chinese friends offered Krissi a tray full of WHOLE RAW FISH – eyeballs, gills, mouths attached. Krissi turned green when the tray was thrust in front of her and I thought she was going to puke! I had to jump in and tell the girl we were fine without the fish. But that's what's so cool about the books - Krissi puts her own quirkiness into Whitnee's character so you get to experience a new world not only with Whitnee, but with Krissi as well! That spunky personality of hers transfers straight into her books.

Amelia and Krissi at the White House last Spring Break,

Acting as "news correspondents"

The Phantom Island books are magical. The characters and their story grip you and keep you from page one. You won't be able to put them down. I am an avid reader and I have never read books that can be compared to Windchaser and Windfall. They’re unique and you'll be on the edge of your seat until the last page and then want more! As you travel to the Island you'll feel like you belong. Whether it's in the Earth, Wind, Water, or Fire tribe is up to you and your personality. Phantom Island allows you to be yourself and fit in with people from another world. Like the character of Amelia, I'm a Pyradorian (Fire is CLEARLY the best of the four!) and I have so much fun reading about people who think, react, and feel as I do. This book is an experience for anyone who ventures to open to the first page. Don't miss out on ordering your pre-release copies TOMORROW and definitely follow the pep rally as it continues with Courtney and Sarah over at the Fuzzy Coffee Books blog tomorrow!"

Thank you Amelia, for a great review and a special look into this amazing Author—Krissi. Before you go, Amelia, I would like to award you your official Pep Rally button, thanks to Courtney over at Fuzzy Coffee Books. For anyone who wants to take the quiz and learn what tribe you belong to, click HERE

I am definitely looking forward to reading the series, and we appreciate your candid review. Keep reading Amelia!

More about the Wind…

“One fateful summer night, when one rule is broken, five teenagers will discover an unexpected adventure full of magic, romance, and true friendship.”

WINDCHASER: BOOK 1

High school senior Whitnee has spent six years rebuilding her identity after her father’s mysterious disappearance left her with more questions than answers. With her two best friends, Morgan and Caleb, she returns as a mentor to the summer camp of her childhood. Nestled in the Texas hill country, Camp Fusion is everything Whitnee remembers—except for the haunting visions that only she can see. One fateful night, Whitnee and her friends embark on a magical voyage where unexpected adventure and heart-stopping romance collide—a journey that might unlock the dark, complicated mysteries of Whitnee’s family history.

But will she find the answers she is looking for?

WINDFALL: BOOK 2 ... Transported along with four friends onto a mysterious and magical Island, Whitnee Terradora wants nothing more than to return home safely—until she starts performing supernatural feats such as cyclones, healing, and communicating with the plant she accidentally set on Fire. Suddenly, finding the Island seems like more than just a coincidence. When an ancient prophecy causes a controversy among the leaders of the White Island, Whitnee questions who is looking out for her interests, and who is interested only in gaining power. Even Gabriel, her one ally on the Island, has secrets that both confuse and allure her. Who can Whitnee really trust to find out the truth about herself and her missing father? Could Whitnee really be the answer to the White Island’s problems and if so, is it worth the danger of never returning home?

Krissi, I wish you continued success. You’re an inspiration to all writers.

The Pep Rally will continue until October 14 and you can enter to win free books and customized tribal goodies by clicking HERE

Tomorrow… Saturday, October 1… is a special day!

The big PRE-RELEASE DAY!

Jump on over and visit Courtney Ussery at Fuzzy Coffee Books for the continuation of the Pep Rally. But just as important, click HERE to purchase your copies of Windchaser and Windfall.

Follow Krissy on her blog by clicking HERE and join the fun. And definitely check out her official Website

Enjoy the Journey ~ and the Pep Rally

XOX Karlene

Getting Your Book In Stores

2011-09-28T07:11:00.000-07:00

Whether you're with a small press, or have independently published, getting your book in smaller bookstores is something you will likely have to take an active role in. If you have a small/indie bookstore in your neighborhood chances are this might be something you want to do. The best way to start is to establish a customer relationship with them beforehand. Visit the store often, talk to the clerks, the manager, learn their names, make it personal.

When you're ready to approach the store about carrying your book here some tips that will help.

#1. Have a short pitch/blurb in regards to what your book is about ready. It should be something you can say in less than thirty seconds, short and to the point. A one-sentence tagline is great for this kind of thing.

#2. Bring bookmarks and/or business cards with you to leave with the store so they can hand them out to their customers.

#3. Bring a copy of your book to give to the store's book buyer or manager (in small, independent bookstores they are often the same person).

#4. Let them know if you're available for author signings, readings, or appearances and what you're willing to do publicity-wise for such events (i.e., advertising in the newspaper, web, etc.).

Hint: It never hurts to buy a book as you're dropping off your bookmarks and the copy of your novel for the manager. Don't forget to follow up with the book buyer/manager a short while after you've given them your book. Drop in and see what they thought!

~Heather

A Great Annual Event: Northwest BookFest, and a Great Organization: The Women's National Book Association

2011-09-26T06:31:00.000-07:00

Every year there's a great book lovers/book industry confab called Northwest BookFest in the Seattle area. This year it's on October 1 and 2. Up to ten thousand people are expected to attend, and Karlene and I will be two of them! Heather would come, too, but she lives too far away :-(

There will be hundreds of best-selling and local authors at BookFest, with over fifty author panels, book signings,writing and publishing workshops, award-winning journalist and artist presentations, and programs for all ages. In addition, several large publishers, literacy groups, writers associations and Seattle newspaper groups will have booths at BookFest. And, of course, there will be food and wine.

If you live anywhere near Seattle, try to make it to BookFest (10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. each day). Click here for the program. Karlene and I will not only be there to check out all the good stuff, but we're going to be among those who represent the Seattle Chapter of a great organization called the Women's National Book Association (WNBA--no relation to basketball--this WNBA was formed in 1917!). WNBA Seattle will have a table at BookFest, so if you can come to the event, stop by and say hello! Even though Heather won't be able to make it, she's a member of WNBA, too, and I'm taking a copy of her book to show off.

So, a little more about the WNBA, in case you'd like to join a chapter near you. Founded in New York City before women had the right to vote, the purpose of the national organization is to promote reading and support the role of women (and men) in the community of the book. Libraries have always been at the core of the WNBA, and over time, the organization's embrace expanded to include everything from literacy initiatives to reading groups and hands-on support for the creation, development and promotion of books . Each chapter develops its own mission statement, as well as honoring the national purpose. In Seattle, ours is: Connecting book lovers with professionals in the book industry, and promoting women's careers in book publishing.

There are opportunities for writers who are WNBA members to be involved with educational efforts regarding these goals, meet authors and others involved in various aspects of the book industry, and also get support for their own efforts to publicize their books (more about that below).

There are now ten WNBA chapters across the U.S., including Boston, Charlotte, Detroit, Los Angeles, Nashville, New Orleans, San Francisco, Seattle, and Washington, D.C., in addition to New York. You can be a member whether you live in one of those cities or not. (The national website, below, explains how.)

The WNBA maintains a presence at the United Nations as an NGO (non-governmental organization); is the sponsor of National Reading Group Month across the country (each chapter holds an event with author panels and other literary discussions to "celebrate the joy of shared reading"); and each chapter participates in Great Group Reads—a program through which major publishers select books they want to promote and send copies to the chapters each summer, then the members who read them report their evaluations, and the national WNBA committee announces its selections for that year.

National WNBA also publishes a magazine called The Bookwoman, where these and other activities are reported, and news from each chapter is presented. If you, as a member, have done something publicly notable with your writing, like winning a contest for aspiring authors, or publishing a book etc., your chapter can submit an article about that to be published in the magazine. Bookwoman goes to libraries and bookstores across the country, as well as to each member. And finally, the national WNBA website is a goldmine of information and opportunity. Chapters can submit up to three book cover photos to be included on a featured books page of the website, where the photos will rotate (one of these could be your published book). And, there are opportunities for members to have their book-related blogs listed on the national website, too.

Here's the link for the national website: www.wnba-books.org Check it out.
And if you're interested in the Seattle Chapter, go to wnbaseattlechapter@gmail.com for information about upcoming events and how to join. Karlene is the Seattle Chapter Membership Chair and will help you out!

How exciting to think about getting to meet some of you in person through a fun, productive book organization. That would be wonderful!

~Linda

Secrets to Success

2011-09-23T07:23:00.000-07:00

"Let me let go of my
failures of the past
- so I may be free to look
forward to the success
that lies ahead."

~ by Eleesha,
Author of - The Soul Whisperer

Don’t allow someone who doesn’t know you or your work, and what you’re capable of, to steal your power with simple piece of paper called a rejection. Besides, they aren’t rejecting you. They’re rejecting an opportunity that they’re not ready to accept. It’s not their time.

Everything happens in the perfect time, and your time is coming.

The fact is—there will be many rejections in your life. It’s your choice how you deal with them. My advice is to drop the weight of your perceived failures then pick up the experiences and lessons learned, and carry those forward instead. Take those lessons and use them— they are your tools for your success.

Success will be yours.

All you have to do is work on your craft, continue to learn, and know that your time is coming. Stay focused, stay positive, and stay determined. I have faith you can do it.

Will success be yours? Can you leave the past behind and work toward your future? Do you believe in yourself? I do!

Enjoy the Journey.

XOX Karlene

Upcoming Blogfest And Tagging

2011-09-21T08:17:00.000-07:00

Next month I'm going to be one of the hosts (over on my author blog) of a fantastic blogfest that I hope you'll all enjoy and take part in. It's called I Love Dark YA blogfest in honor of dark young adult novels and of course in the spirit of October! One of my wonderful co-hosts, Christa Desir of Christa Writes And Rambles, has tagged me to tell you all 10 non-writerly things about myself. I'm going to cheat a bit and just do five since I couldn't come up with 10.

#1. I love snowboarding. I'm no Shawn White but I can hold my own going down the hill and stay upright for the most part. ;)
Yeah, that's Shawn in the picture, not me. He looks SO much cooler on a board than I do and you won't find me within 10 feet of the edge of a half-pipe! I'd love to, I'm just not that coordinated.

#2. Though I've had many accidents, some of them pretty terrible, I love horseback riding and still do it every day that I can. That's me on my big paint, the one who caused a few of the accidents. He's as clumsy as I am, a bad combination I must admit. And why yes, since you mentioned it, my hair is red in that picture. ;) I loved the color but since I'm a natural blond it was WAY too hard to maintain.

#3. My favorite angsty vampire was and always will be Louie. I'm sorry but Edward just can't hold a candle to that. ->
By the way, if you don't know who Louie is, for the love of literature click on this link.

#4. Though I love all kinds of music from Loreena McKennit to Heavy Metal, my favorite group will always be the Dropkick Murphy's out of Boston. It's a bucket list item of mine to someday see them in Boston on St. Patrick's day.

#5. I'm not a fanatic by any means but I care deeply about conservation and protection of endangered species. It breaks my heart to know that we're using up our planets resources and devastating it's forests and jungles to the point of no longer having enough places to live and driving animals into extinction. I give whenever I can and do my best to make a difference.

Now I get to pass it on to three of my blogging friends. I'm going to pick a few of our new Write Campaign buddies. Tag, you're it!

Angela Hansen
Heidi Windmiller
Shelley Koon

~Heather

First Paragraphs: Final Critiques

2011-09-19T05:42:00.000-07:00

Thank you to the talented writers who offered their first paragraphs for critique, and to everyone who took part in helping with the critiques in the comments section. Now it's the critique sisters' turn. Here we go:

first paragraph 1

Author: Lin Wash

Story Description: YA medieval fantasy. I follow the perspectives of three characters, one of whom will later be accused of witchcraft.

First Paragraph:

From the cottage doorway, she looked like a doll left on the bed: small and fragile. Even the hill of the child she carried seemed dwarfed by the faded patchwork quilt.

Karlene: I like this a lot!! Creative. Fresh, and puts me in the room looking at the woman on the bed. I’m first wondering if the colon is needed after "bed?" And second, I stumbled a bit on the “hill” because I immediately had the visual of huge, and yet she’s dwarfed. "Carried" and "seemed dwarfed" also threw me a bit. What if it was mound? I’m seeing someone standing in the doorway looking in. So… I want it more present. What about…

“Even the mound of the child she carries is dwarfed by the faded patchwork quilt.”

Heather: This is beautiful Lin! The imagery is excellent. I wouldn't change a thing about the first sentence. I got a little confused reading the second sentence though. With the first sentence it felt as though we were standing at a door looking in, then the second sentence had us moving it felt like. Again, I love the imagery in the second sentence too though. The child being dwarfed by the patchwork quilt is a lovely picture. With a little tightening/clarifying this will be fantastic!

Linda: The images are vivid and evocative in these sentences, nicely done. I did have to read the second sentence a couple of times—the word, 'hill' stopped me. It might need a couple more words to make it clearer. One other thought: since this is the opening paragraph, it would be good to give readers a bit more grounding. Is it possible to identify who's talking? Even if you were to just identify the speaker as "I" that would help. (e.g. "From where I stood in the cottage doorway, she looked like a doll on the bed . . .)

first paragraph 2

Author: Myne Whitman

Story Description: My book is a romance where a 30years old lady vacationing in Nigeria from the US is seduced by the local hottie.

First Paragraph:

“Dunni, when are we going to come and cook for your wedding?” In the dull light of dawn, Dunni glanced at the inquisitive eyes of the woman slicing onions beside her mother and looked away.

Karlene: First… Fun! Fun! Fun! I want to be that woman! ;) Okay… back to work.

I’m not sure who is talking here. Is the woman slicing onions beside mother speaking, or the mother? I’m guessing the mother. But I think we need a little clarity of who’s doing what. I like the feeling of what’s happening, but feels a bit awkward.

How about… (and I’m just playing a bit here)…

“When are we going to come and cook for your wedding?” Dunni’s mother asked her for the umpteenth time. In the dull light of dawn, Dunni glanced at the inquisitive eyes of the woman slicing onions beside her mother then looked away.

Does “then” work better than “and” looked away?

I hope this helps and I’m looking forward to reading both of these stories!!! Thank you ladies!

XOX Karlene

Heather: What a fun concept! I love stories that take place somewhere that feels exotic to me, and this definitely does! I like the opening sentence because it immediately tells me what's going to be happening soon. There is the anticipation of a wedding and all the fun/chaos that comes with it, that draws me in. The second sentence may have more power if you added something to the end of it like this: "and was forced to look away from the impatience within them". Of course it doesn't have to be that exactly, especially since I'm not sure what the woman is saying comes from impatience. All that I'm looking for in that second sentence is the reason Dunni looks away when she was the one who looked at the woman in the first place. Great job, you have a good beginning here!

Linda: I'm totally drawn in to this story by this opening. We all know what it's like for someone to be questioned or teased about why they're not married yet, and that's a plus for hooking the reader. Also, in this case, I'm aware that 'coming to cook for the wedding' is a cultural custom, and I'm excited that I'll be reading a story that incorporates this type of information about a culture that is different from my own. So you've got both universality and unusual information going for you. Nice. One caution: it can be disconcerting to open a chapter, let alone the first chapter, with dialogue, because the reader has no idea who the person talking is, or how they figure into the story, until you tell them. If your immediate next sentences make these things clear by providing a context, then it's probably not an issue.

Versatile Blogger Award

2011-09-16T06:43:00.000-07:00

A huge shout, and many hugs, to Lissa Clouser! Lissa honored the critique sisters to be the recipients of the versatile blogger award. I happened to get lucky to share the thanks on behalf of my sisters. And an exciting post it is. Secrets that not many know about me will follow.

Thank you Lissa!

Check out Lissa’s blog—A Quid for the Quill

Bloggers who accept this award should:

Thank the person who gave you the award and link back to them in your post.
Share 7 things about yourself.
Pass this Award along to 15 recently discovered blogs and let them know about it!

Seven things. Hmmm…. I’m thinking we should go deep and personal here. Fact is sometimes scarier and or funnier than fiction. Now it’s your choice—to laugh or cry.

1. I worked 16 days in a row and last night slept 14 hours.

2. I had dinner in Bangkok, Narita, Singapore and Shanghai last week.

3. I have six grandkids: 3 ½ , 19 mo, 12 mo, 2 mo, due Dec 10 and March 3^rd.

4. My Dad has never read a book! OMG.... but true.

5. My husband is 21 years older than me, our first daughter 21 years younger, and we’ve been married 30 years.

6. Every Monday I write a motivation on my Flight To Success Blog.

7. I got called into the Chief Pilot’s office, and written up, for violating the chain of command by asking the CEO for a crew room to give a Christmas party for all the crews working on Christmas last year.

And the blogs I’m giving this award to are:

1. http://a-musedwriter.blogspot.com/

2. http://adventuresthatscore.blogspot.com/

3. http://lynneawest.blogspot.com/

4. http://whosayscriticsarebad.blogspot.com/

5. http://debralschubert.blogspot.com/

6. http://lydiakang.blogspot.com/

7. http://www.rachellegardner.com/

8. http://juliemusil.blogspot.com/

9. http://cheeriosandpearlsstories.blogspot.com/

10. http://wrytersblockdh.blogspot.com/

11. http://captainkathymccullough.wordpress.com/

12. http://horsie890.blogspot.com/

13. http://www.carolinavaldezmiller.com/

14. http://christinefonseca.blogspot.com/

15. http://catherinewestblog.blogspot.com/

Enjoy the journey!

XOX Karlene

If I Could Be Anyone Blog Party

2011-09-14T08:18:00.000-07:00

To celebrate the release of my good friend~and fabulous author~Talli Rolland's latest book, Watching Willow Watts, the Critique Sisters are participating in it's launch party. This isn't just any launch party though. In Watching Willow Watts one country girl is about to discover fame can cost a fortune. If you love witty writing that propels you along a fantastic ride then Talli's books are for you. The eBook is out now and the paperback will be releasing this November.

Talli's launch party is as unique and fun as she is. She's calling it the "If I could be anyone, I'd be... party". So now I have to tell you who I'd like to be, anyone living, dead, or even from a story, and why. When you read WWW you'll know why!

That's an easy one for me, I'd be Rogue from the X-Men. Though the movie was decent I'm talking about the one from the comic books. The one who could fly, had super strength, and could sap the life energy out of anything she touched. Now come on, how awesome would that be?! Oh gosh, I just revealed that I was a bit of a comic book junkie didn't I? Oops. But hey, it was worth it to support the lovely Talli and her awesome new book. So before you run off and order your copy of Watching Willow Watts, tell me, who would you be?

~Heather

First Paragraphs for Critique

2011-09-12T06:17:00.000-07:00

Some great women sent us their first paragraphs for our critique feature this month (no men this month or last . . . hmmm, c'mon guys, we don't bite!). I've run the names through Random.org to select two for critique, shown below.

Please join us in providing these authors with your insights and thoughts about their opening paragraphs in the comments section (constructive crits only, please). We all love getting the kind of feedback we can use to hone our work for publication, so honesty is essential, and so is identifying what is working well, in addition to areas for improvement. Thanks in advance to everyone who comments with their thoughts–feel free to critique one or both entries, but if you see that someone hasn't received critiques yet, it would be great if you would provide one there.

first paragraph 1

Author: Lyn Wash

Story Description: YA medieval fantasy. I follow the perspectives of three characters, one of whom will later be accused of witchcraft.

First Paragraph: From the cottage doorway, she looked like a doll left on the bed: small and fragile. Even the hill of the child she carried seemed dwarfed by the faded patchwork quilt.

first paragraph 2

Author: Myne Whitman

Story Description: My book is a romance where a 30years old lady vacationing in Nigeria from the US is seduced by the local hottie.

First Paragraph: “Dunni, when are we going to come and cook for your wedding?” In the dull light of dawn, Dunni glanced at the inquisitive eyes of the woman slicing onions beside her mother and looked away.

Each of the critique sisters will work on her comments for both paragraphs this week, too, and I'll post them here next Monday.

If your paragraph didn't get chosen this time, please try again next time. We do this feature with manuscripts' key paragraphs or sentences each month, and may be doing first pages and queries soon, as well.

~Linda