Posts Tagged ‘writing’

I have been on and off the fence regarding looking for a literary agent since I seriously started to pursue writing. I’m going very slowly, having half-way finished a work last year only to realize after contest subs that I needed to start over. Which I have. And for the better. But now I want to move forward. Not too fast, because I want to do it right and do well. 

I want to get a critique partner and polish up the first few chapters so that I can begin shopping my work around. I have little clue to which agents I should pursue. I have some clue to which publishers I will try. I want to ultimately aim for New York, I mean, who doesn’t, but should I aim small at first? There is an e-publisher whose lines have a perfect fit for me. I think I’ll go there. Dare I mention them? Ok. I will: The Wild Rose Press. They have an American Rose line. Excellent! It would be so perfect for the series I have planned and started. 

When I think on it, I get all fluttery in my belly. Excited, nerves, anxiety. but…

I don’t have anything completely ready to sub.

I’m surprised I haven’t been able to get a CP yet. Having one seems crucial to me. It is an integral part in being able to give your best. Having objective eyes looking at these words and characters is necessary so that I can offer my best. I just need to have the gumption to get it out there. I am wondering if waiting for a CP is worthwhile, even as badly as I need one. But I’ve been working on this one book for too long, and I refuse to lollygag. Part of the length of time is because I have been toying with it. But last year, It got real.

I wrote 150 pages. I was proud of and impressed with myself. But, it was dreck. I’ve been guided some since then and hopefully have managed to learn from what information I’ve been given. The work isn’t too terrible, I hope, to warrant a second look. I’ll polish as much as I can, but editing can be done still. Just like it. Like me. Believe in me.

So, who hasn’t made a few in their life, eh? I know I have, and I’ll continue to do so. However, at any venture, I know that I strive to do my best. The same was two or three years ago when I wrote First Love First Aid. It is a cute short story about a nurse who falls in love with her employer. It’s kitchy, cliche. And awful. Well, not very awful, but a bit.

None the less, I still have pride in my work. Am I proud of writing something that years later is making me cringe for just a second? No. I’m proud of the fact that I can recognize the growth that occurred since it was created.

That is why in my recent contest, I included a signed copy of it in the prize package. I hope that the cuteness of the story makes the reader enjoy it; I pray they forgive me of the grammatical and spelling errors still present that neither myself nor the editor saw the first few times before it was set in internet stone.

Most of all, I hope that it isn’t as cringe-worthy as I no longer think it is because I want readers to want more. I promise I’ve improved. And I’ll show you.

How do any of you feel about your former writing?

So. I decided that it is imperative for my current WIP be entered into a contest. (I haven’t paid yet, but I will) With that motivation behind me, pushing me, I realized that the required first chapter or first 25 pages is NOT ready. For a week I’ve been hemming and hawing about it. I procrastinated enough. But I did make a painful decision. I decided that I had to cut out the debris. Let loose the detritus that was my superflous prose. It was all info dump. What is that, you say? Well, it was mostly information that I had thought was pertinent to the story. But it was all back story told as it happened. It didn’t move the story forward. In fact, it backpedalled. So, somehow, I will have to craft the most important threads of that forsaken 30-50 pages (I know! A lot!) into the forward momentum of the rest of the story. If I do it right, I can sprinkle some here and there and reveal bits of character for the H/h as I go. That would go so much farther in connecting with them, instead of me telling you how to get there.

And speaking of telling. I have GOT to stop doing that. Bad writer, Bad, bad. I know to use my senses. And I’m improving, but, still a lot of polishing to do. I decided at my halfway word count goal (151 pages so far out of a hopeful 300, at least) to start editing now. Because if I go on without editing, that might mean massive, and I mean ginormous rewrites. My tired little brain can’t wrap around that. I’d feel much better if I got things honed now and moved forward from there.

I even devised a clever little scheme. In the work in total so far I color coded the segments in pink for her, purple for him and brown for other scenes. After I did that I reordered some of them and didn’t color code what I haven’t transfered yet. What I have is started the book in a different spot, much later than I had earlier. This way, you drop right in the middle of ACTION baby, instead of waiting for it to happen. I know this is a smart move. Besides, all of the flotsam and jetsam is political or inconsequential. Further proof that it will NOT move the story.

I just hope that despite the fact that the H/h do not meet within those first 27 pages isn’t going to hurt my chances. At least they’re both introduced to the reader… We’ll see. I’m awaiting feedback from my good buddies. Come on people, pretty please and thank you, I have a deadline.

Getting this place up to code is easier than I thought it would be. The sounds of carpentry rings in my ears as wordpress sawdust floats about me. This site is very precious to me and seeing it come together is remarkable. I could not have gotten this done without my talented friend and webdesigner, Haven. So thanks, Babe. Make a room up for yourself.

I can’t wait to have many, many visitors!