Misty Evans Interview + Giveaway!

Welcome to my guest blogger today, author Misty Evans, here talking about writing and the writing life. Her book, Soul Suvivor, released June 21st.

One lucky commentor will win a copy of Soul Survivor and five others will win one handmade custom bookmark for Soul Survivor.

Misty, tell us about Soul Survivor.


Joan, thank you so much for having me on your blog today! Soul Suvivor is a dark paranormal romantic suspense published by Carina Press. Here’s the blurb:

Haunted by tragedy, FBI profiler Rife St. Cloud is driven to find the person who brutally attacked six women. Unfortunately the only survivor, Keva Moon Water, has no memory of what happened, and the evidence makes her the prime suspect.

Keva cannot die. She has waited a thousand years to be reunited with the man she loves, whose soul sleeps within Rife. Though he refuses to believe her claims of immortality, there’s no denying the passion that burns between them. Keva desperately hopes their sexual connection will be enough to awaken Rife’s memories of the love affair that started a war and bound their souls together for all eternity.

But when Keva’s own memories come trickling back, she realizes that a future with Rife depends upon confronting the mistakes of the distant past…

Soul Survivor is the first of your Lost Worlds Series. Can you tell us what inspired the series and what is in store in the sequels to Soul Survivor?

My twin sons have long been fascinated with lost civilizations, both real and mythical. Their interest sparked a similar interest in me, especially about North American civilizations such as the Anazazi and Hopewell groups. For my fictional series, I created a lost tribe of Native Americans of which my hero and heroine were members of a thousand years ago and was destroyed because of their love for each other. In the second book, Soul Protector, my archeologist hero discovers the bones of the lost tribe and releases a bunch of angry ghosts.

The story’s heroine is a shaman and ghost whisperer, so she’s against him digging them up in the first place and then must get the ghosts to cross over before they destroy her, him and many other innocent people in their quest for revenge. Even though there’s a new hero and heroine for this book, Keva and Rife from Soul Survivor will make an appearance. The third book in the series, Soul Walker, is still rattling around in my head.

Can you tell us a little about your Witches Anonymous series and what inspired it?

Witches Anonymous is one of my most loved series by fans. I’m not sure if it’s because it’s light paranormal or because the heroine’s torn between Lucifer (definite bad boy) and Adam (the original Adam who’s on Earth for a redo), but my readers love this series. Which is great for me, because I love writing it. There are three novellas published so far in the series and a fourth coming out late summer. The series was inspired by my Baptist upbringing and my God complex. I’ve always wanted to rewrite a few biblical stories, and in this series, I get to do that.

What is your writing routine?

I write for several hours in the morning M-F, and then promote, edit, do interviews, etc., in the afternoon. Weekends I try to save for family and fun and recharging my muse.

How does your family view your writing career?

Most of my immediate family supported it from the beginning. A few outliers are starting to warm up to it. There are always moments when it feels like my writing and my family life are at odds, but only because of time constraints and the fact I can completely immerse myself in writing and forget to come up for air. That’s when the kids, my husband and my friends do an intervention and return to me to the real world for awhile. I find it difficult to maintain a healthy balance!

How do you keep in touch with your readers?

Readers are absolutely the best part of being an author. I love writing stories, but if I didn’t have fans who enjoy reading them, I’d question my abilities as a storyteller. They send me emails, post nice messages on my Facebook author wall, and chat with me on Twitter. Some are even gracious enough to join my Yahoo Group and sign up for my newsletter. I try to make it as easy as I can for them to contact me and I love hearing from new fans as well as tried and true ones. Knowing I have readers makes me show up to the keyboard every day.

What authors do you like to read?

Currently, I’m on a Meg Cabot kick, so I’m reading both her adult and YA books. I love so many authors, it would take weeks to name them all. Consistently I enjoy Jodi Picoult, Edie Ramer, PJ Alderman, CE Murphy, Rachel Hawkins, Jennifer Estep, Cassandra Claire and Stacia Kane.

What are you reading now?

Fiction: Insatiable by Meg Cabot and Ghost Ship by PJ Alderman; and nonfiction: A Writer’s Journey by Christopher Volger.

What is in your TBR pile?

My TBR is always a mile long, both in physical books and ebooks on my Kindle. Galaxy Girls by Edie Ramer and On Any Given Sunday by Marilyn Brandt are up next.

Do you have a second career? If not, what did you do before you became a full-time writer?

Does motherhood count as my second career?  Before I decided to become a full-time writer, I was in the business world as a marketing manager. My last job was working in the public health field and I did everything from edit newsletters to manage a breast and cervical cancer program. During my writing career, I’ve also taught creative writing and been a substitute teacher.

What, in your opinion, are the most important elements of good writing?

Strong voice and stronger characters.

How do you develop your plots and characters? Do you use any set formula?

Characters come first, plot second. I don’t have a set formula for writing per se, but since I write series that are in different genres from each other, I do follow a loose formula for each series that works for me. For the Super Agent series, I do a lot more research and plotting. For the Witches Anonymous series, I let my muse direct the story. The Lost Worlds series is a sort of in between…some plotting and some pantsing.

What tools do you feel are must-haves for writers?

Coffee, thesaurus, creative imagination and an undefeatable attitude.

What dreams have been realized as a result of your writing?

I hold writers in the utmost regard, so becoming an author and being allowed to tell my stories is an honor. To have the kind of fabulous readers I do, and to know my stories lighten their day, is the best dream come true I could ask for.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?

I write in bed. I have a bad back, so it’s the only way for me to type.

What do you like to do when you're not writing?

Read, grow herbs, hang out with my family and friends. I also make silver jewelry, homemade cards and I love to bake. I’ve been decorating cakes since high school. All those things are great stress relievers and provide me with creative outlets different from writing.

Where can we find you online?

Website
Facebook
Twitter
Blog
Goodreads
Yahoo! Group

Thanks for being with us, Misty!

Remember to comment to enter the drawing for a copy of Misty's Soul Survior or one of five bookmarks! (International)

*MUST* leave contact email to WIN!

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Official Winners List

Thanks to everyone who participated in my Twitter giveaway to celebrate my first sale!

The official winners:

• Cynthia from Washington: $25 Barnes & Noble GC
• Samantha from Pennsylvania: $25 Amazon GC
• Rhoda from Alabama: $25 Barnes & Noble GC
• Jaimee from Montana: $25 Amazon GC
• Jennifer from Minnesota: $25 Starbucks GC
• Jenn from Virginia: $25 iTunes GC
• Dee from Dublin, Ireland: $25 Starbucks GC

Again, a big thank you to all the writers and readers who have walked this path with me over the last seven years. I hope to meet many more of you in the years to come.

And...I've got lots of great ideas for more giveaways swirling in my head...so stay close. You never know when the mood to gift will strike!!

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Word Count & Keeping Up

As you can see, my word count has been somewhat sketchy lately. Either fatigue from work or craziness from the family has been interfering.

But I've taken some steps to address those issues and hoping this coming week will be better.

And although not perfect, I'm still happy with the totals. Always seeking improvement. But sometimes keeping up with work, travel, family and health feels like running up the down escalator.

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Momentum Lost

Maybe it's becasue I've been working a lot. Maybe because I'm fighting a chest cold. Or maybe there is something going wrong in the story. I don't know. At least not yet. I'm still waiting for my subconscious to speak to me on that point.

But I wouldn't call myself blocked. I don't believe in writer's block. I have had many times when I've hit a wall with my writing, but I've always viewed it as a temporary pause where insight is gained...never as a block.

Do you believe in writer's block?

While I'm waiting for my psyche to speak or the momentum to rev up, I suppose I could work on my website...or future blogs...or...

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Epiphany

I'm minding my own business, soaking my sore muscles in a hot bath and--boom--Luke and Keira pop into my head.

Keira: "I'm tired of getting blown off rooftops."

Luke, snaring me with accusing blue eyes: "And if I have to see her," he tilts his head toward his heroine, "kiss another guy again, you'd better give me a fucking gun so I can blow his head off."

I'm not the one having the problem with these rewrites. My characters are the ones digging in their heels.

Sorry, guys...I can't get those chapters back. Thank your local thugs with nothing better to do, probably living off food stamps provided by my taxes. (Not yours, of course, because you're both fictitious. Neither of you make real money...)

"Fictitious?" Luke swoops a look at Keira. "Did she just call us fictitious?"

Oh. My. God. Now do you see why the rewrites are causing me hell?

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Frustrations Abound

1) My supposed 60 day trial of Office 2007 on my new netbook, locked me out after about 10 days.

2) I don't have the external drive or the software with me, so I'm writing in Wordpad -- a real pain in the ass.

3) I keep trying to use my netbook like a laptop and it keeps freezing up. Not enough compu-neurons to have eight windows open and running at once...ding-dong.

4) I'm so totally fragmented I can't get in touch with my characters.

5) Everytime I start to write, I get interrupted.

6) Trying to write at work is a complete and total waste of time. There may have been a once-upon-a-time when I was able to do that...not anymore. Just too damned busy.

7) My Twitter acct is posting my tweets to both my personal facebook and my writing-related facebook pages. I can't figure out why and it's making me freakin' crazy.

8) This week is dddddrrrrrrrrrrraaaaaaaaaaaaaaaggggggggggiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnnggggggggggg.

9) My back hurts. My feet hurt. My arms hurt. My legs hurt. I'm exhausted. I don't want to work anymore.

10) And...drum roll please... I'm PMSing.

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

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Staring from scratch

So,I mentioned on facebook that someone broke into my car while I was on vacation and stole my laptop. And I'm terrible about backing up my work. Like--terrible. Like--I never do it. Like--never.

Well, I paid for it. Lost everything. Everything from 7 years of writing.

On the plus side, I had just sent three manuscripts into the Golden Heart contest and emailed the coordinator to ask if I could get copies of the manuscript files back. (Still waiting on that response). I had also just aquired an agent and the previous day had sent another manuscript to her via email, so she had two of my manuscripts. All in all, I saved the best 5 of my 9.

Anyway...what I did lose that really hurts is the first 6 chapters of my new WIP, the second book in the Rising Phoenix series, Luke and Keira's book.

I know exactly what I wrote. KNow the plot steps I went through. Even jotted them all down in case I forget further down the line. Only, now, as I'm rewriting...it's all so different. Same plot, same characters, same writer, same story vision, but it's just coming out...different.

And I'm finding it amazing how that can happen.

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Great News!

I received a fabulous offer of representation from an awesome agent! I'm really excited. But I still have two full manuscripts out with agents I really want to talk to, so I've got to cross some T's and dot some I's before I accept. But it should be final by the end of the week. Very exciting!!

Last night I dreamt about my plot, only *I* was the one in the middle of the conspiracy, not my characters. I don't remember the details, only the sense of feeling totally out of control, at the mercy of others who only wanted to hurt me. I remember the sense that whoever was behind the conspiracy was all-powerful and anything I tried or thought to try were futile. A very vulnerable, powerless sensation.

Then I woke up and it's all good. Fodder for the work, right?

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Website Updated

Finally. Took me forever. And in the end, I found both a website software and an ftp software that were both FREE! Now everything is on my laptop...not the desktop that crashed a while ago.

That's what I bought on Black Friday...a desktop replacement. Not how I'd planned on spending the Christmas money, but...

http://joanswan.com

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Decisions, decisions...

So many decisions, so little time. Literally.

I was planning on finishing the first draft of the second book in a trilogy/potential series so I could enter both into the GH this November. My brilliant CP (no I'm not being facetious) suggested adding a paranormal element to my series, as that might make it just different enough to catch an agents eye.

I like the idea. And with her help, I developed a nice para element that could encompass the entire series as well as add another suspense element and sub plot.

Fantastic, right?

Yeah, if I had all the time in the world to write and there were no looming contest deadlines.

**Sigh** What's a girl to do?

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It's a mess...officially

This is what my plot looks like right about now. Two cores with shaggy connections, starts with no stops, leads with no direction, knots, displacement, dead ends...

Boy, oh boy, have I made a mess out of this ms. The most obvious reason is because of a complicated plot. Another would be that I'm attempting a storytelling format I haven't tried before, screwing with the linear timeline format I typically use. Oh, and then there's real life constantly breaking my train of thought--DH, kids, bills, rejections, and that four letter word that starts with a W and ends with a K.

So, I suppose it's time to step back and maybe create a **dreaded** outline so I can keep track of what's happening where and what I want to happen as I move forward. I hate to take time out to do that, especially since the writing has already been so sluggish, but if I don't, I may never get past this point.

Frustrating. (See post: Frustration Abounds for more frustrating circumstances)

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I have a good excuse...

Really. I do.

I've been trying to send queries. It's an incredibly time consuming project.

• Locate the agent
• Figure out if they're accepting queries
• Figure out which type they are accepting: email and/or regular mail
• Figure out what they want submitted -- they're all different
• Get their contact information right
• Track the process so I know who, where and when I sent the darn thing

The list goes on.

I've been stuck at the collecting data stage. Today, my one day off this week, I committed to sending out at least five queries. I had planned on printing out the packages according to each agent's requirements and then clean the house while they were printing.

Great in theory, right?

Would have been, except since the last time I looked most of the agents now take equeries. Some require them.

Sure, okay. All the better, right?

Only if you have a decent email editor. Try cutting and pasting three freaking chapters of a manuscript into hotmail and keeping it formatted -- just shoot me know. Seriously.

Over the past few days I've spent hours upon hours inside Microsoft Outlook trying to get it configured to send and receive from my website - joanswan.com. (Prior to that I had spent hours and hours inside hotmail trying to get things formatted.) I had Outlook configured at one point, but sometime between the last time I used it and now (maybe a year) it stopped working. While I was trying to fix it, the whole damn program stopped working. On both my desktop and my laptop.

Is the universe trying to tell me something?

Well, screw you, universe! I went out and bought a new version of Microsoft Office 2007. Ebay, of course, because I rarely buy anything anywhere else now-a-days. (Was even looking at cars on ebay, but didn't end up buying there - that's a whole other story.)

So...I will now wait for my software to come and effectively put off sending out those queries for another, oh, week or so, since that's about when I'll be home again.

See, I told you I had a good excuse!

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Frustration Abounds

I went through my regular routine of writing this morning with the solid intent of making headway in the troublesome manuscript. Did more browsing than writing. And the browsing I did didn't encourge any significant writing. Frustrating.

I hit the road to take some photos. Figured that would distract me. The light was too strong and the photos were difficult. Frustrating.

When I came home and looked at my photos, maybe three out of a hundred had potential. Frustrating.

I went about scheduling my next procrastination technique--a quilting class I've been wanting to take. Starts tonight. I'm on call at the hospital. So, if I take the class, I risk getting called out in the middle of it. Frustrating.

And, just to top things off, I paid the bills. Always frustrating.

Just that type of day.

On the plus side, I've been productive.

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Procrastination vs. Downtime

I'm reading a great book right now: Writing From the Inside Out by Dennis Palumbo.

He gave a seminar at our local writer's conference last year. He is a writer and a therapist...who counsels writers. Kinda ironic. But good, in this case, because he totally GETS where we writers are coming from.

Anyway, I was just reading his chapter on procrastination, and he makes some important points.

1. Downtime is an absolutely essential part of the writing life
2. Downtime allows the subconscious to work
3. Non-writers, i.e. spouses, friends, family members, don't understand the difference between procrastination and downtime--it all looks the same to them

Writers do, however, know the difference. They may subconsciously lie to themselves because they are in avoidance mode --I would know because I do this quite well. And while they may also tell themselves the issue is with a particular work, more often procrastination results from the inner conflicts that revolve around the writing itself.

Currently, the later is the case with me. During my recent photography course, I got the idea of submitting my photos to stock photography sites. I justified it to myself with the lure of posibility--gaining a monetary return on my investment of product, time and educational pursuits. I can be very convincing, even when my subconsious knows exactly why I'm doing it.

But, this time around, my subconsious didn't roll her eyes, wave her hand and sit back down in the rocking chair to wait it out. No. She stood up, stomped her foot, shook her head and said, "You're not going to get away with that shit again!"

So, while I am interested in pursuing the stock photography, or doing something with my photography, at some point, I realize that the reason I'm focused in on it *now* is because I'm in a low spot where my writing is concerned.

My most recently completed manuscript has been racking up the rejection letters. I'm looking at an exhaustive list of additional agencies/agents to which I *should"* submit my work, which entails mountains of research, a fistful of money in the form of ink and stamps, not to mention a shitload of time. In addition to all those weights, after years of rejections, in the back of my mind some one's whispering...why? You're just going to get rejected.

I am also struggling with my current manuscript. It's not flowing. My characters are pissy. The plot is a mess. My villain is completely schizophrenic -- melting with white hot anger one minute, distracted and wimpy the next.

Given the circumstances, I know that my burning interest in stock photography is...yes, PROCRASTINATION.

Now, I could make myself believe it is a form of productive "goofing off". I could say that taking pictures stokes my creativity, which it does. Or that I get a different view of the world through the camera lens, which I do. And that varied perspective will ultimately aid me in my writing, which it probably will.

But deep down, I know I'm avoiding my writing because of the tough issues I have to face, namely additional rejection of my completed work and fear of failure of my current work.

Doesn't mean I have to stuff my other hobbies into the closet, just means I have to scale back and remember why I'm doing what I'm doing.

Cognisant. That's where I have to stay. Focused on the prize.

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Agents

Whoo-wee are there a lot of new players out there in the field!

Just went back out to Agent Query for the first time since I made the rounds with SAFE, maybe a year ago (man, has it been that long? I'm pathetic), and only half the names were familiar to me. After doing this a number of times over the years, I know the agencies and the names.

And that's another thing that I've noticed -- not only new agents, but new agencies. I see where agents have split off from some agencies and gone into partnership with another to create their own agency. Some are just brand new to the romance game (or just brand new period).

So, now, after going through all 188 names of agents who represent romance, and culling through each to see if they are currently accepting queries, I will now have to research each one individually so I can cater to their individual desires...

Query only
Query and synopsis (1 page or 2 page or...)
First five pages (or 10 pages or 15 pages or...), 1 page synopsis, query...
First chapter (or two), 3 page synopsis, author bio...
First three chapters, 10 page synopsis, query, author biography, marketing plan...

And the variations on a theme go on, and on, and on...

I'd better get to Office Max and pick up a few ink cartridges...cause a lot of these guys still don't accept E-queries.

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