Power Revision Breakfast ; )

Dove back into my revisions last Sunday with my power breakfast. It's been years since I've had our local, infamous Heidelberg cinnamon roll and it was better than I remembered. I also thought I'd advertise the awesome coffee I buy at Trader Joe's. "This ultra dark roast coffee has a full body that is complimented by medium acidity and dark chocolaty sweet overtones." This pitch left me wanting more, how about you? I admit I'm a coffee snob. I'm still powering through revisions-amazing how one cinnamon roll can keep you going for days! ; )

Reading distracts from Revising, or Does It?

Skipped September, so make-up blog time for October. These are my feet and yes I often read, daydream and receive inspiration here on this hammock in my backyard. My latest two MG book reads starred a squirrel in one, and two raccoons in the other(star status is reserved for talking/thinking animals and bugs only). Flora & Ulysses...The Illuminated Adventures, by Kate DiCamillo combines a graphic novel and novel in one-brilliant! I adored all her quirky characters, especially the labeled cynic, Flora and the "unassuming" squirrel, Ulysses. I wonder how many fourth graders had to Google the word "cynic." Congrats to Kate DiCamillo for receiving 2014 Newberry Award for this fun and touching novel.
The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp by Kathi Appelt had quite a few animal characters, but the true stars were the scouts-two raccoon brothers, Bingo and J'miah. And who couldn't love Chap Brayburn? A twelve year-old boy devoted to his mother's sugar pie business and the the swampland who struggles becoming a man after losing his grandfather. It's bitter-sweet like coffee and fried sugar pies. I was pleasantly surprised by the "save the environment" theme which is one of my themes in my book that came to me eight years ago. Until about two years ago, it was a rare find to come across an MG with this theme. I'm happy to see this niche in the market growing and having Kathi Appelt, a Newberry Honor award author to be a part of it, is awesome! Though I'm not a fan of a narrator being a character, this one did set a nice tone and rhythm. I definitely would have edited some of the details on the Desoto and instead, a point of view might of been fun. I did enjoy reading the several points of view that was in this book. Both of these MGs are a must read.
As for my question, yes, the reading did take time away from writing, but what I learned fueled my revisions. Stay tune for my latest YA reads.

WriteOnCon 2014-Addictive

The past two days was the WriteOnCon annual FREE online conference and it rocked. I was addicted-up late reading,watching and posting since my work interfered with me seeing and reading some of the events live. Elana Johnson and all the organizers truly blow me way. I wish I had more time to prepare, and gotten my butt on twitter. I hope to brave that next week and be ready next year.

YA writers pitched on twitter, 140 characters, and I watched the reactions of the Spencer Hill Press Gals- Patricia Riley-managing editor, Danielle Ellison-senior editor, and Asja Parrish-senior editor on the Writeoncon site. You got to see what they're a sucker for, learn what they're looking and not looking for, and most important, experience they're enthusiasm. It was insightful and fun to watch. And there were a lot of requests for full manuscripts! The Forum is a great opportunity to connect with other writers, post your work & receive critiques, and possibly get noticed by a "ninja" agent or editor. Though late on the draw, I posted my MG, The Firefly Field, which was a technical feat after several attempts, ye! The forum will remain up for few days which I'll be revisiting after I jump in the ocean : )

Sub-Mission Accomplished

It was late night, Thursday, deadline pulsating like a neon sign in a window of diner. It read open. Time was still on my side. I hit send at exactly 8:50pm; Sub-Mission accomplished with the ultimate weapon, a typewriter gun. This process will never mess with me again. You too, can arm yourself. Available at LGOCA. Artist: Eric Nadeau.

Blowing off the Dust

Following advice from so many in the writing world and needing a break, I put my middle grade novel away to collect dust while I worked on my YA before the conference. Months later, I've blown the dust off. And with new eyes, I read it out loud, did some edits, and printed it. Mistakes and questions really pop out when holding the pages in your hand, don't they? After more research I discovered a huge mistake in my story that left me dumbfounded! How could I miss this? Ugh! Thank the gods for showers-my place for creative solutions. What came to me yesterday morning while water rained down on my head will strengthen my story. I'm diving back into that vast sea of revision with a deadline floating above. I may need a life preserver ; )

Independence Day or Interdependence Day?

Today we celebrate our independence, but I prefer interdependence. Don't get me wrong, I do appreciate what our founding fathers established-an independent country with freedoms that other countries don't have. Becoming independent, like when we leave our parents nest and strike out on our own, is empowering. I'll never forget moving into my little apartment in Hollywood Hills at age twenty-two. It was exciting; a time when anything was possible. But in creative and business endeavors, independence can be a lonely road. Interdependence you're never alone. Here, your unique talents are recognized and used for the betterment of the whole-cooperation.

When people ask me why don't you self-publish? My answer: I prefer to go beyond "self." A mutual symbiotic relationship is much more powerful. The almighty triad WAE-writer, agent & editor where we use our individual talents to obtain a common goal.
Happy Interdependence Day!

Wind Died

The writing wind died for a month! Ugh! Family and work stresses left me dead in the water. Is that really an excuse not to write? I recently learned that Stephen King wrote every day for nine years before he was published and Ernest Hemingway wrote every morning for four hours before he hit the bar. I'm sure there were stressful times for them, especially Ernest escaping to drink. I've heard several authors speak about being a full time moms, and having full time jobs along with volunteer work and they still write everyday. What? Really?
The wind has picked up.This morning I woke up with an idea for a middle grade novel with a female protagonist and I got down the title and the first paragraph. I love how ideas come into my consciousness. That creative spark has got me diving back into my other novels. So, maybe it's not writing every day as much as what you accomplish when you do sit down to write, right?