Happy Thanksgiving and What I'm grateful for....

I will keep this short and sweet, but I feel that I must wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving and briefly expound on what I am thankful for this year. I typically find such things as slightly overdone, sentimental, and silly, but it's always a good idea to sit back and evaluate what you are blessed with. Of course, I can't be completely serious, so some of my thoughts will be irreverent!

1. Family. Yes, it is a given. I count myself very lucky to have a great family. We're very close and I wouldn't have it any other way.Yes, they get on my last nerve, we're all quirky and dysfunctional in our own ways, but at the end of the day, I love them all. Even when they shake up our usual Thanksgiving plans by deciding to go to Florida (as we did when I was growing up) despite the fact that this is my first Thanksgiving in 8 years where I haven't had to drive an hour plus to reach the celebration.

2. My apartment. I really love my apartment. I would love it even more if we had been able to buy it, but I digress. It's a great place, my ideal really since I can walk and bike downtown and I have a Target five minutes away. Oh it's the little things...

3. Hot tea. How would I survive without it? I probably couldn't actually...

4. Cold weather. I'm one of those freaks who loves coats and hats and mittens. I'd rather bundle up than fry in the southern heat and not be able to take off clothes...

5. Books. I shouldn't have to expound on this one.

6. "Mad Men". I told you I would be irreverent! But knowing that "Mad Men" has just two more seasons before it goes off the air makes me sad thus I plan on enjoying these last seasons all the more. And pray that Matthew Weiner will change his mind and extend the show until 1970.

7. All of my lovely readers. As most of you know, a writer is never so happy as when someone reads their work--and dare I say, like it? Or at least comment on it. So how could I not be grateful for all of you?

So Happy Thanksgiving to you all. Be happy and safe. What are you grateful for this year (or in general)?

Oh Fall...

I love fall.
I think it has to do with the cooler weather. I hate to be hot--which is a pretty inescapable fact when you live in the South. You would think after 29 years of living, my body would have finally acclimated, but no...it hasn't. I would gladly move to more northern climes in order to escape the sauna that is South Carolina in the summer. But my husband is allergic to any place above the Mason-Dixon Line. Sigh.

One thing that I do not like about fall (or spring, for that matter) is the inevitable onset of allergies. I have had a particularly rough time this year due to moving to a slightly different environment--meaning a whole new host of irritants to send me into fits of sneezing, coughing, and wheezing.

Feeling bad certainly impacts my writing. My brain is befuddled and it takes a lot out of me to forumlate something out of the fog. I launched into November, determined to participate in NaNoWriMo, but my word count has been sadly truncated due to the allergies that just won't quit. I'd much rather go home, get in bed and read Edith Wharton's The Bucaneers or watch Ringer (otherwise known as my new guilty pleasure.)

It doesn't help that I am in the part of my new novel where I am still setting up characters and places in preparation for more dramatic scenes. I hate the set-up; I either put it off or race through it so I can get to the juicy bits. And then I have to go back and do some heavy re-writing, which is never fun.

I have no other profound thoughts for you today. My sleep was seriously disturbed when I woke up at 2am this morning in need of some ibprofen. Of course I had none, so I went to the store. And promptly got pulled over by a cop because my tag light was out. Yes really. Oh the joys of living in a small town!

So what about you? What part of your novel is the most trying to write? How do you motivate yourself to get those parts done?

Has it Really Been a Month?

Apparently. Since my last post was on September 29th. Time flies.
I am sorry that I have been neglecting all of you, my dear readers. I've really been struggling with my writing lately and I've even broke my own rule of "just write something." Until last weekend (or was it the weekend before...yes, that's it), I hadn't opened my laptop in two months. Ouch.

But for whatever reason, the muse descended and I totally eschewed all of my research on real life historical characters in favor of Rebellion. I wrote twenty pages in two days. And then promptly put away said laptop again. I hate when that happens.

So I've been mulling over the last few days--how many writers set daily goals for themselves? I've never been one to adhere to a strict schedule because I always found that it limited my creativity. When I'm not in the mood to write, the result is pretty terrible. And so I've always been afraid to make myself write. But given that I'm doing one more edit of The Enemy Within (now entitled Rebel Heart) before sending it out to the last twenty five agents on my list (and then potentially shelving it for a time), I'm looking to hold myself to higher standards. I don't want to take another ten years to write my next novel, nor do I want to turn out a poor quality work. The idea that some authors can churn out a whole novel in under three months (and sometimes as little as one month) completely blows my mind. Perhaps "slow and steady wins the race" should be my new goal? Or maybe I'm not setting the bar high enough?

So I want to know: do you hold yourself to a daily goal and if so, do you find that your writing suffers as a result? Do you decide to just make substantive revisions at a later date to compensate? What's your goal and do you find it easy to achieve?

Defeat and Determination

Have you ever had an idea only to find out that it's been done?

I'm sure you have; how else did that phrase "Why re-invent the wheel?" get coined? I don't know about you, but I've never been much for using someone else's leavings. And so it should come as no surprise that I recently had my lovely Restoration England novel idea pooh-poohed when I discovered that another novel featuring my historical figure is about to come out.

Bummer.

I'll come right out and say it, I was planning on writing a novel about Frances Stuart, the Duchess of Richmond and Lennox. Known as "La Belle Stuart" she was the one woman that evaded King Charles II. Yes, she refused to become the mistress of a king. In fact, she was so beautiful that Samuel Pepys made several notations about her in his diaries. Charles was so mad for her that when she secretly eloped with the Duke of Richmond, they were bascially persona non grata with the king for many years. But sadly, I found out yesterday that another historical fiction writer has written about Frances. The book has been released in the UK and is days away from reaching the shelves in the US. She's a cracking good writer too as I read her novel about John Donne and his wife Anne. So, I suspect that I will be picking up a copy of The Painted Lady and dreaming about what could have been. I know that having a rival book out there doesn't neccessarily spell doom for me, but Frances Stuart isn't Anne Boleyn or Marie Antoinette. Her life is not subject to various interpretations and so I feel that it is best to tackle new ground.

I was pretty bummed about this revelation yesterday but I woke up with renewed determination this morning and I think I have found a new subject. This historical figure will take me to Georgian England, an era that I'm a bit more comfortable venturing into. Hopefully no one else has stumbled upon this character!

So what about you? Have you ever started researching (or writing) a novel only to discover that it's been done?

Going Off the Tracks....

I think I've decided to shelve "The Enemy Within" for a while. I don't know how to define "a while" right now, but I think it's taken me this whole long unproductive month to see that I need something to invigorate my writing once more. I've even despaired of having writer's block. *shudder*

Though I dearly love "Enemy," I'm just tired of it. It's no wonder since I've been working on either finishing it or editing it for two years straight. I've read it so many times that while I enjoy reading some of the more brilliant moments, I am a bit tired of going over it again and again. I think the second half may be going off the rails a bit even though I love what happens. I think I need to take some more time to get feedback, not to mention figure out how to make it more cohesive. But ultimately, I think it may not be the right time for it. I'm sure American historical fiction will come sailing into the market again, and when that happens, I'll be ready for it.

And so what to work on next? I had "Rebellion" mapped out, but when I finally cracked open my laptop the other evening to re-read my progress, I just wasn't happy with the result. There is nothing worse than being uninspired by your own writing. So I've taken a step back; I don't think my characters in "Rebellion" are ready to tell their stories yet.

In light that, I've decided to do something that will be a complete challenge to me. I'm taking a real life historical character and a time period that I only have a passing acquaintance with. It's a time period that is slowly becoming in vogue, and I know if I want to do this, I better get "on the stick" (as we say down here in the south)! I'm going to keep the storyline close to my chest right now, but I will divulge the era: Restoration England. The country, of course, is my all time favorite, and the period has always fascinated me. I've spent some time researching the person I want to write about and now I need to research all the ins and outs of one of the most hedonistic courts in history.

Good times will be had by all, I promise!

So what about you? Have you got any shiny new ideas percolating?

On Being Motivated...Or Not!



Thanks to Anne Taintor

Two posts back I briefly touched on what holds us back from writing. I have to admit that good ol' fashioned laziness often holds me hostage although I refer to it as "just not feeling the writing today." I haven't been "feeling it" for several weeks now, but I haven't been very hard on myself since I have so many crazy things going on in my life. I've spent the last two weeks unpacking boxes and have finally gotten to the point where most everything is accounted for (except my passport...and the TV remote) and placed where it should be. Art work is slowly making its way onto the wall and I've already begun an exhaustive list of improvements I want to make if/when our purchase of the place goes through.

I'm still not quite at home, largely due to the fact that I have no sofa. A living room is not a living room without a sofa! That particular piece of furniture was my favorite place to write so I can only guess that my writing is being held up by its absence. OK, so that might be a far reaching excuse! Fortunately, I have felt the stirrings of Miss Muse the last few days--which is a good thing. I've been rethinking some of the early chapters of Rebellion and have determined that I am doing some of my characters an injustice. I certainly need to rectify that!

Anyhoo, motivation has been in short supply. So I was quite happy when a former colleague of mine sent me the link to a blog by Ollin Morales, an author who is writing his first book. He details 10 Tricks to Motivate Yourself to Write and I was pleased to see that his tenth tip was simply "Write." Write in your journal, post a blog, or my perennial favorite, write in your head. I haven't been actively writing in my head lately as my brain has been cluttered with so much lately. But just reading this post reminded me that sometimes you have to get back to basics and since my writing career began at age 10 with the elaborate stories in my head, I figured that's a good place to get back until I can sit down in front of a laptop again.

So what are your tips and tricks to keep writing?

I'm still here...

I think.
Or perhaps just barely.

So the past few weeks have been a blur for me, and I thank you all for bearing with my sporadic posting schedule. I've been on a writing hiatus while I sort out my living arrangements. I don't think I have cracked open my laptop in at least a month, but you know, I'm OK with that. I've taken the time to do some reading, namely The Wild Rose by Jennifer Donnelly, who is one of my favorite writers. I love her books. I remember reading The Tea Rose back in college. I had the misfortune of picking up this book during exam week and could barely put it down in order to study. In fact, I raced through it in less than two days and then after exams I went back to read it again.

There is nothing I love more than reading a book that makes you want to read it again and again... I think the quality that hooks me into a book is the characters. Characterization is everything to me. I love characters so life like that when you stumble upon a villain, you want to throw the book across the room because he/she is so evil.

I want to create characters like that. I want my readers to cheer, laugh, cry, and growl as they make their way through my writing. It's a tall order, though. It's probably why I put down 75% of the books I read. The characters just don't grab me. Their stories are just...well, blah. They're not different; they have no humor or they don't evoke sympathy. It's really sad that agents/editors/publishers are sacrificing characterization for sensationalism. Set the same old characters in the prevailing popular time period and...voila!...you have a "bestseller".

But I digress. The real subject of this post was about how I am determined to read some of my favorite books (now that they have found their way out of boxes and onto my lone bookshelf) and identify why I love them. And then I will endeavor to evoke those characteristics in my own writing.

So what about you guys? What draws you into a book? Do you try to capture those same things in your own writing?