Blown...

>> Monday, October 29, 2007

...er, I mean productive! My morning has been productive!


(This positive thinking thing is tough to get the hang of.)

I've spent a good part of the morning chatting with Bonnie Hearn Hill, a multi-pubbed author and writing teacher. She's going to be blogging on RWKF in November and is also presenting a workshop on first chapters to my RWA group in May. She's quite insightful about the writing process, the publishing industry and people in general, and I enjoyed the conversation.

Then I emailed back and forth with our potential guest bloggers for RWKF. November marks the start of some fresh voices with guests every Tuesday and Author exceprts (think, free online reads) every Thursday.

Fun stuff. Bit time consuming, but isn't everything now-a-days?

On the writing front, I've crawled over a bit of a bump in my WIP and actually got underway again. 180 pages now. First draft.

If anyone out there is interested in guest blogging on RWKF or posting an excerpt of their published upcoming release, please email me at ultraswan AT hotmail DOT com. We'll see about putting you in our que.

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Selling Agents/Buying Editors

>> Sunday, October 28, 2007

Thought I'd share some information on who's selling and who's buying this week in Women's Literature/Romance.


But...in an effort to offer unique information I'm going one step further and checking track records...

AUTHOR: DiAnn Mills
TITLE: BEHIND THE SUNGLASSES
ABOUT: women CIA operatives in various parts of the world
AGENT: Janet Kobobel Grant at Books & Such Literary Agency
EDITOR: Karen Watson at Tyndale

Additional info: Kobobel Grant's October sales: 2 Women's/Romance titles and 1 non-fiction humor. She recently replied to my query stating she wasn't taking on any clients at this time.

AUTHOR: Michelle Willingham
TITLE: SLAVE TO HER DESIRES
ABOUT: an Irish medieval romance between a man who has sold himself into slavery and the woman who is to marry his master
AGENT: Carolyn Grayson at Ashley Grayson Literary Agency
EDITOR: Joanne Carr at Harlequin Mills & Boon

Additional info: This is the only Women's/Romance Carolyn Grayson has reportedly sold this month, although it's her fourth sold this year. The agency website states none of the agents are currently accepting unsolicited queries.

AUTHOR: Leigh Greenwood
TITLE: NIGHTRIDERS
ABOUT: western historical romance
AGENT: Natasha Kern
EDITOR: Alicia Condon at Leisure Books

Additional info: Natasha Kern is on the top tier of my agents to query list, and for good reason. This is the 8th Women's/Romance book she's sold this month. Yes, you read that right -- 8th in 1 month! As far as I know, she is accepting queries. She hasn't yet responded to mine.

AUTHOR: Janet Woods
TITLE: EDGE OF REGRET
ABOUT: a Scottish lass scorns a suitable marriage and finds love on the streets of Edinburgh
AGENT: Bob Tanner at International Scripts
EDITOR: Amanda Stewart at Severn House

Additional info: International Scripts is a UK-based literary firm. This is the second Women's/Romance he's sold in three years--his first by the same author in 2004.

AUTHOR: Melanie Jeschke
TITLE: JULLIAN DARE
ABOUT: abandoned as a baby and raised in numerous foster homes, 18 year old Jullian is delighted with her new position as a nanny at a large estate, but she is less certain about her feelings toward the child's father
AGENT: Joyce Hart at Hartline Literary Agency
EDITOR: Lonnie Hull DuPont at Revell,

Additional info: Joyce has sold 2 Women's/Romance this month; 4 this year. Hartline is taking queries...I haven't sent one in yet because they've got a marketing plan requirement that might take me as long to work up as an entire novel.

AUTHOR: Leslie Kelly
TITLE: THE BLACK CATS
ABOUT: a series about a new FBI Cyber Action Team tracking serial killers through the Internet, including a vicious murderer attempting to weed out the gene pool by luring victims with the latest email hoaxes
AGENT: Pamela Harty at The Knight Agency
EDITOR: Laura Cifelli at NAL

Additional info: Holy cow -- now that's a fresh idea! The Knight Agency is accepting queries. I recently had a request from a different agent at their house. I'm not sure how you query a specific agent or if you even can. Maybe they rotate query day like Realtors rotate floor days. :-)

AUTHOR: Maya Banks
TITLE:BE WITH ME and SWEET PERSUASION
ABOUT: Nothing listed
AGENT:Roberta Brown of the Brown Literary Agency
EDITOR:Cindy Hwang at Berkley Heat

Additional info: Ah, Roberta Brown...3 Women's/Romance sales this month, but 25 so far this year! Her website states she is not accepting queries. Darn!

AUTHOR: Eileen Rendahl
TITLE: UNTHINKABLE
ABOUT: about a traumatized girl who may or may not have killed her parents
AGENT: Pam Ahearn
EDITOR: Micki Nuding at Pocket

Additional info: This is Pam's first Women's/Romance sale this month. She's sold 6 so far this year.

AUTHOR: Syrie James
TITLE: new novel
ABOUT: Charlotte Bronte, en route to becoming a famous author, reveals the truth behind her turbulent relationship with the man she finally came to love and marry
AGENT: Tamar Ellman Rydzinski Laura Dail Literary Agency
EDITOR: Lucia Macro at Avon

Additional info: This is Tamar's first Women's/Romance sale this month and this year.

Well, folks, that's about it for this week in Women's Literature/Romance sales. Tune in again next week as we peek into the lives of those fortunate author's who've SOLD!

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Contests Anyone?

>> Friday, October 26, 2007

One of my chapter mates nudged me into entering the Linda Howard Award of Excellence. The first push was their online submissions -- no hassling with postage and return postage and mailing. The kicker was that the romantic suspense editor for finals was Senior Editor of Pocket.

Sure couldn't hurt to get my work in front of a Pocket editor.

Now...I just have to figure out what I'm doing for the Golden Heart. Hmmmm....

What contests are you looking forward to?

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Synchronicity

>> Thursday, October 25, 2007

Synchronicity: the coincidental occurrence of events and especially psychic events (as similar thoughts in widely separated persons or a mental image of an unexpected event before it happens) that seem related but are not explained by conventional mechanisms of causality —used especially in the psychology of C. G. Jung

~ Dictionary.com

Okay, it's everywhere. Pretty darn weird actually. When similar things happen close to each other--say you want to buy a new car and you research Volvo's the same day your boss at work comes in and announces she just bought the same make and model Volvo you were going buy--that's coincidence. When it happens two or three times--your boss and your mother-in law bought Volvo's the same week and your neighbors informs you they're thinking about it too--that's...strange.

When it happens repeatedly in a short span of time, that's synchronicity.

My strange aura of synchronicity started with a bought of the blues I couldn't break from for months. Recently, it's gotten even worse. Not depression, per se, more just blah. Didn't want to write, didn't want to plot, didn't want to dream up characters. Nothing felt exciting or even intriguing. And writing wasn't the only thing I felt blase about...seemed everything was a shade of gray instead of their normal vibrant colors.

As I identify this series of events, I'm going to number them, to better illustrate the sheer bulk.

About 2 weeks ago, I decided I had to do something about it -- I couldn't stand living like that day in and day out, and it wasn't going away on its own. I had taken a course with Eric Maisel via a local writers conference and had been inspired by his talk on creativity. He has several books out that I've been wanting to buy, but haven't. I decided it was time to buy them.[[1]]

While I was waiting for my purchases to drift in from Amazon, I pulled out a book I'd bought about 3 or 4 years earlier, called The Self-Talk Solution. It was recommended to me by a friend for an entirely different purpose...I'm not even sure if I was writing at the time.

As I reread the book, [[2]] the information took on new meaning for me -- deep meaning outlined with hope. I could get myself out of this funk, I could be the positive, upbeat person I've always wanted to be, I could control my thoughts and therefore my actions. And there was scientific proof and studies to prove it really works.

By the time I'd read through the first few chapters, Maisel's first book came in the mail. [[3]] Within the first chapter, I read:

If we manage to change our self-talk we have done something profound, something more substantial than just making some innocent linguistic alterations...

A cognitive therapist teaches you to identify maladaptive self-talk, confront and dispute wrong thinking, and substitute new language that supports your intention to move in a certain direction.

Okay, that's weird, I think, but only coincidental. Just gives me a nudge down the path I was already headed, like someone whispering, "That's it, you're going the right way."

The very next day Theresa posts on Magical Musings -- the topic, Creativity Coaching, the source of her information, Eric Maisel. [[4]]

Um, okay again. Wow. This is kinda weird, but I'm feeling strong, like I'll have a lot of support when/if I search for sources on the subject, right?

And since I'm feeling so "in tune" with the subject, I decide I really AM going to start writing about it on my blog -- I can't be the only person/writer struggling in this way, right? So, to provide accurate information, I searched the Internet for studies and specialists on the topic. I found so many, my brain started to numb. The good thing about that -- they were all saying the same things, over and over. Notice, there's no number here because this in information I deliberately went out and sought. While I bought the books, I didn't know they would echo this theory.

I went out to dinner tonight with my 11 yo daughter. Since we were both tired and had already talked for hours since school let out, we brought books to read. We were enjoying the blissful quiet at Applebee's when she says, "Mommy, I want you to read something, it's really funny."

She turns about 30 pages **back** in her book from where she was reading and shows me the passage. It read:

You can't keep the birds of sadness from flying over your head, but you can keep
them from nesting in your hair.
[[5]]

I got goosebumps.

When we got home, I did a little blog hopping. The first blog I click on with a new post was A Writer's Edge, the post title: Yoga for Writers' Block. [[6]] Here is an excerpt:


Yoga exercises are another technique for relieving the types of blocks that come
when you've sat too long, staring at a blank page or the computer screen. Blood
pools in our feet, breathing may slow or become shallow with anxiety, muscles go
slack (or worse, cramp). The body pumps out stress chemicals which do not
enhance creativity.

Oh, my God. If this isn't the universe smacking me with a brick, I'm an oblivious idiot. I decide I really have to pursue this, study it, write about it. But before I tackle that, I'm going to have to check out today's MM post by Edie. What do you think she mentioned? You got it -- [[7]].

LaDonna visualizes herself getting a Rita! She practices her acceptance speech.
Cancer patients visualize Pac Men eating their bad cells. The Law of Attraction
says what we tell ourself and see for ourself will come true because our
subconscious will devise ways to make it be true. Going back to candybars, if I
see myself thin and healthy, I’ll eat thin and healthy. But if I see myself
pigging out on candybars, that’s what I’ll do.

Our thoughts, especially if we put emotion into them, come out in energy. Powerful energy.


I'm in a friggin' twilight zone here.

All I can say is...I'm listening Universe. I finally heard you!

Stay tuned to my blog for more on this topic including excerpts from articles, studies, books, etc. Who couldn't use a little dash of positive light in their life? No writer I know!

Have you ever experienced this type of synchronicity?

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Hero or Heroine...?

>> Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Which do you identify most with?

Recently, Elisabeth posted on RWKF about Who Falls First, the guy or the girl.

Today, I've been deep inside my characters--not an always-pleasant place to be--and, once again, I've found I know and understand my hero so much better than my heroine.

For me, it's always been that way--with every story.

What about you? Do you always identify with one of your characters (h/h) more? If so, what do you do to get closer to the character that's a touch more fuzzy?

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Random Stuff

>> Monday, October 22, 2007

So, in blog hopping, I found JA Konrath has a great blog up today about book signings. Whether or not you love them, hate them, do them, only dream of doing them or dread doing them...you should pop over and browse. Always appreciate his sense of humor -- but the other thing he did in this blog that I found immensely useful was the examples he provides. Anyone who's done a book signing can TELL you what you should do...JA SHOWS you.

I've started on my website redesign. HO-LY cow...that's a time sucker, but I do like it. Little edgier, little darker, little more compelling...IMHO anyway. Kinda goes with the voice I'm developing, or at least I think I'm developing. Don't run over there and check it out (yeah, right) because at the moment it's still for my eyes (and my hard drive) only.

And speaking of time suckers, E posted at RWKF about the major time-suck: volunteering.

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FINALLY...

>> Sunday, October 21, 2007

I've got my blog semi-set.

Jeez, for a web designer you'd think tweaking these blogs wouldn't be so troublesome. I could have designed an entire website in the time I've spent on this silly blog. Guess I need to keep it updated now, huh?

Actually, I've got some fun stuff in mind for the blog -- industry news, inspiration, tips, wisdom...etc. Still working out the format, but it should be a fun place to visit...even if you wouldn't want to live here. :-)

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