Saturday, December 29, 2018

More Writing = More Reading + Kittens


So it's the last cold, cruddy days of 2018, and it was a wild year. We ended up doing a bunch of home repairs/improvements over the summer and fall, then it was Etsy store season for me, and now we're almost ready to wrap this up and dig into a fresh new year. 

But first, there was one more surprise in store for us this year, and a nice one this time. Meet Kevin! 

Charmed, I'm sure

The best thing besides scratching posts is Christmas Trees!

If you can't find this cat, check the tub. He likes to ambush unsuspecting bathroom visitors

Kevin came to join the family at the beginning of December, when he was just 10 weeks old. He was a very scared and shy little fellow when we first met him, but with a lot of patience from my teenage son, he started to open up a little, and has become a regular 'ol rambunctious baby cat. He likes to cuddle, he loves his big cat brothers, and he LOVES food. So he should be nice and big and fluffy in no time! As for me, I have a lot of writing to do in the next few months, which means I also have a lot of reading to do - and little Kevin here is already learning that the laptop or a book, especially with a mug of coffee, means a nice warm lap to rest on for at least an hour or two. 

Being a writer's cat really is the best of all 9 lives. 

Tuesday, March 20, 2018

A Few Thoughts on Getting Published

THE STAR THIEF will be out in paperback in just a few weeks now! 
As my debut year comes to a close, and we reach the birthday, or perhaps bookiversary of Honorine and her constellations launching into the world, I have some thoughts about how I got here, that I thought I should share. 

At one point during this past year, I found myself at a book event, discussing the long, grueling publishing process with a fellow writer. They knew I was traditionally published, and asked how I had found my agent. It was pretty simple, actually. Querying. 

My fellow writer was surprised. 

They told me they had never heard of any writer actually finding representation that way. To them, it sounded impossible. 

But reader, it is not. It is difficult. It can be slow. But it is definitely possible. In fact, I would have to say most of the published writers I've met found their agents with cold queries and patience. 

My query process started years ago. At the time, just learning how to write a query letter, and that I even needed to look for an agent seemed overwhelming. 

I did what I was comfortable with and able to do. I queried, and worked on my writing while I waited for replies. That and time was really all it took. I would have loved to spend time getting my MFA, attending conferences, going to the big book conventions, but I had neither the time nor the funds as a baby writer. I spent my time on craft.

This is all to say that I see writers worry that they need to do things beyond writing to eventually reach publication. While these things might be fun, and might help you improve your craft, they aren't requirements.

If you can't get to conferences, you can still get published.
If you can't spend time in an MFA program, you can still get published.
If you didn't study creative writing in college, you can still get published.
If you don't attend conventions, you can still get published.
If you don't have any idea how online pitch contests work, you can still get published.

What you must do to get your book published is finish it. What you must do to get your book finished is write it. What you must do to improve your writing is read widely and write consistently, however that works for you. There are no other requirements. Read, write, submit. It is possible. 

Saturday, February 17, 2018

New Year New Projects

Here I am at the start of a three day writing weekend, and realizing I haven't updated in way too long.

The Star Thief will be out in paperback in April. Very cool, more to come on that as we get closer.
I did not finish NaNo last year. Boo. November was the middle of heavy work on another project, which took up most of my writing time. I did however get a great start on another project, which I hope to dive back into soon.
I find myself in a weird stage as an author, one I hadn't really anticipated pre-publication. It's a land of submitting work on proposal, so instead of writing and revising whole novels, I'm working on sample chapters and synopses. Lots of synopses.
As a panster, I find this challenging. I like to figure out where my story is going during the very first experimental drafting phase. Now I have to work it all out before I really get started on the body of the novel. Ah well. It's a great problem to have. Challenges create growth, and the most important thing I want to accomplish as a writer is to keep moving, keep growing, keep improving. There's never a finish line, just the next leg of the race.

So right now I'm working on about six WIPs at the same time. Here's hoping some of those bottles floating out to sea find a home out there in the wider world.