Almost 1,000 Pageviews

I am humbled. Truly. From my own little corner of the world, my thoughts have been read almost 1,000 times, by people other than myself. Amazing!

In a sense, I am a published author already. We all are.

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Have you ever listened to the silence in your home, heard the buzzing of everything electronic, and seen the small points of light from everything electronic? The humm of the freezer reminds me of a lawnmower and the lightswitch on the wall reminds me of a car's running lights.

What I'm trying to say, is that every sight or sound can invoke an involuntary association, or emotion, if we just let it. Our characters in our stories need that same freedom to let their thoughts and feelings roam. It won't be easy, stepping not only through our characters' lives, but also through their memories. Sometimes these memories are good, and sometimes, these memories are bad. Let the memories be strong enough to help drive the story through its twists and turns.

When we're ready, we can share these stories, just as we share our own thoughts and feelings in our blogs and in our comments.

My Writing Process

Hi, I'm participating in Shallee McArthur's "What's your writing process" blogfest!  See the links at:  http://shalleemcarthur.blogspot.com/2011/01/announcing-whats-your-process-blogfest.html

My writing process has been a long haul, about 2 years now on the first book, and I have another re-write to do.  I've learned soo much!  I want to share what I did.

1) Have a dream, or idea, for a story.  Just a kernel will do.
2) Research how to write a book in your genre.  I use a couple of out-of-print guide-books by Foster-Harris. 
3) Analyze other "great writers" in your genre.  What works/what doesn't.  What do you like so much that you want to be sure to include something similar in your books?
4) Write first draft without self-editing, then Read your Book!  See my post on How to Start a Story.
5) Revise and send to beta readers.
6) Revise based on beta readers' feedback.
7) Send out a few trial queries.  Give it 3 months.  (I started ideas for my 'book two' during this time period).
8) Send to another beta reader.
9) Revise again (<--this is where I am now!)

Hope this is helpful to you.  Please comment and let me know.  (I moderate comments so it may take a day to appear).

Yes, I'm Still Here!!!

The wonders of an extended vacation have helped me A LOT!

I'm finding a balance that was never in my life before.

Stay tuned for more soon!