Author at a Career Fair

I've been asked to be the designated author at a Career Fair in February. Students wanted an author as one of the choices.

So, of course, I'm doing research beforehand. This Career Fair will only be two hours, so already I see I don't have to do the elaborate presentation that an all-day event would supposedly need. I checked with the person who contacted me if I could bring some of my books and awards as examples and got the okay on that.

So what else will I have? Not a banner - I still haven't invested in one because I'm still waiting on the re-releases of books with new covers. Books to display (both my own and how to write), check. Awards, check. Promo bookmarks for my books and short stories in case anyone wants one, check. Business cards in case they might have questions later and wish to contact me, check.

What else would I need? It sounds like students will be able to wander from table to table and ask questions, so I don't need to have a lengthy presentation. How to prepare for what questions might be asked during those two hours?

Before I retired from my day job as a university librarian, one of the classes I used to talk to about doing research was a Counselor Education class on, luckily, Career Education. I set up a website that the class could use to find out information about occupations. So I know some of the information that that class used to have to find. This Career Fair will be held at the Senior High School, so I'll probably get a mixture of very general questions and perhaps more specialized ones.

Basic questions students need to find out about an occupation: what do you do, what are the requirements, what's a normal salary, what's the job outlook. Answers can be found in the Occupational Outlook Handbook, though the entry for Writers and Authors has some interesting responses. So far I only know I'll have a table, so I'll have a printout of that entry I can refer to in case I get those basic questions.

As a small press author, I found the salary in the entry rather optimistic. But I'll also have a printout of Jim Hines' 2017 Writing Income blog post, so a more traditionally published author will be represented. And, since not everyone is J.K. Rowling or James Patterson, the importance of a day job needs to be mentioned. Though when I decided to be a writer at age 14, I was convinced I would only need a day job until I became an established writer. So I expect to be ignored about that. But it will be mentioned.

I'm published with a few small presses, so I can definitely talk about my experiences with those. I know a very little bit about self-publishing, as I have a couple of short stories published that way on Amazon Kindle.

For other questions, I have a handout of websites about writing science fiction and fantasy, lists of useful books, markets, and such that interested students can take. Some of the websites are listed on my Interests webpage under "Writing Aids".

Have you presented at a Career Fair? What types of questions did you get? What would you have liked to have known?

DO YOU HAVE MUSIC IN YOUR WRITING?

Whether you love music or not, it may influence your writing.

When I write a story, I don’t always mention a particular song. Often though, I’ve heard or played a song on the piano that floats around in my head, and it seems to speak to me as I’m writing. SEALED WITH A KISS, from long, long ago, is one such song. Yes, I know, it’s outdated, but humor me. I enjoy the “old” songs because I understand them better than the “modern” music.

This song was a hit for several different singers, though not so much for the authors, at first. Later, it became quite popular. And as I wrote my YA contemporary novel, LIFE ON HOLD, in 2012, this song spoke to me. I thought of it often while telling Myra’s story.

Photo from Wikipedia

 

 

Amazon

"Sealed with a Kiss" is a song written by Peter Udell and Gary Geld. It was first recorded by The Four Voices in 1960 and released as a single, but their recording was not a hit.


"Sealed with a Kiss" Single by The Four Voices B-side "You're All There Is" Released May 1960 Genre Pop Length 2:03 Writer(s) Peter Udell, Gary Geld

In 1962, Brian Hyland, who often performed Udell and Geld's material, covered the song. Hyland's single began its run on June 6, 1962 and became a hit, reaching No. 3 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the UK Singles Chart.[2] When re-released in 1975, Hyland's recording charted in the UK at No. 7.

One of my very first books, SECRETS I HAVE KEPT, the print edition published in 2006, the ebook much earlier, has music in it. Jennifer plays classical music on the piano. Casey writes country ballads for his guitar. This was so much fun to write. And opposites do attract. Sometimes.

 

Amazon

Then there’s Elvis Presley. Young people today may not know him, but he insisted I include him in the story I’m now shopping around. How on earth could I mention a singer from so long ago and relate him to today’s readers? Good question. We’ll see if I accomplished the task, meaning if a publisher offers me a contract. Some of Presley’s first songs were MY HAPPINESS, THAT'S WHEN YOUR HEARTACHES BEGIN, I'LL NEVER STAND IN YOUR WAY.

Photo from Wikipedia

This has something to do with my latest story.

How about you? Does music influence your writing? Do you use popular songs or write your own or just mention titles?

Happy Reading

THE WRITING WORLD

This month I've been busy with the A to Z Challenge and haven't a clue what to write about today. Posting every day but Sunday isn't easy. So I'm sharing interesting email with you today. Enjoy.

Visibility Generating Authority Building * Writing and Marketing Information Self-Talking Yourself Into Becoming a Better Writer, a Better Marketer By Karen Cioffi I’ve long believed the benefits of positive thinking and positive projection. Now, in line with these philosophies, there is positive self-talk. In an article at NPR.com, “Why Saying is Believing,” it explains the importance of not only talking to yourself, but how you talk to yourself. Researchers delved into the influence that referring to the ‘self’ has on how the individual thinks, feels, and even behaves. Interestingly, the studies are finding that talking to yourself as ‘I’ or ‘me’ can create stress. Why does this matter? According to “psychologist Ethan Kross of the University of Michigan led the work, studying the pronouns people use when they talk to themselves silently, inside their minds.” Kross went on to explain that the subtle linguistic shift from ‘I’ to your name can have “powerful self-regulatory effects.” (1) As an example, suppose I say every morning: “I’m going to take actions to get 50 new subscribers to my mailing list this month.” According to the studies, this is creating subconscious stress on fulfilling my goal. If instead I said, “Karen, you’re going to take actions to get 50 new subscribers to your mailing list this month,” I’m reducing the stress by kind of making myself someone else who’s being talked to. Kind of like being coached or advised. And, the ‘talking’ tends to be done in a milder, less demanding way when done this way. So, how will this help you with your writing and marketing? Well, why not give it a try. Even if its only benefit is to reduce some stress in your life, it’s powerful. On the other hand, if it reduces stress and helps motivate you to take action to work toward building a successful business, then it’s super-powerful. I'll be giving it a try. To check out the references, please visit the post webpage. ===============================================================

Is Your Business / Marketing Stuck in Neutral? Get Traffic to Your Website with Inbound Marketing This 4-week, interactive, in-depth e-class through WOW Women on Writing covers the four fundamental elements of inbound marketing: Website Optimization, Blogging Smart, Email Marketing, and Social Media Marketing. What does this mean for you? Simple: More traffic, increased authority, better rankings, and more conversions (people who click on your call-to-actions)! It’s must-know stuff (and easier to do than you think) for ALL marketers, including business owners, writers, authors . . . Check it out today! Just CLICK HERE. ===================================================

PERMISSION TO REPRINT You may reprint this article from "The Writing World” in its entirety in your own blog or print/electronic newsletter. But, please include the following paragraph: Article reprinted from The Writing World newsletter. Want more must-know writing and marketing information along with updates on free webinars right in your inbox? Get access to The Writing World (http://thewritingworld.com) today.

Karen Cioffi, Freelance Writer For Individuals (Academic Papers, Essays, Editing, and More) The Article Writing Doctor Your Content Marketing Prescription(Content Writing Services for Small and Home Businesses) karencioffi [at] ymail [dot] com I'm an affiliate for some of the products I recommend. I only tell you about products I've checked out.

HAVE A QUESTION? Send me an email with your question and I'll do my best to give you an answer.

READING, WRITING AND ARITHMETIC!

Welcome!

 

Today I have a bunch of different thoughts. That's the way my brain is working lately.

 

How has your week been so far?

Has your weather improved? We went from spring to winter. A little snow, but mostly ice. I'm not complaining because it's nothing compared to other states. Most area schools closed Monday and started late Tuesday. I hibernated.

I also had some great news yesterday.I saw the galley for WEIRD NOISES IN THE  NIGHT.
This is a picture book mystery for ages 6-9, from Guardian Angel Publishing. I've been waiting a long time for this one. Watch for a cover reveal soon.

I've been busy reading, reading, reading.

Now I have to write, write, write reviews.

I'm way behind and hope to catch up by the first of March. We'll see.

I have several new books to read, looking forward to them.

I'm not sure where the arithmetic comes in.

Counting the books, maybe? Adding up pages read?

 

One more thought's rattling around in my head. Have you signed up for the A to Z April Challenge? I just did. My first time. If you're interested take a look. Here's the link.

 

 

Happy Reading.

 



How (Not) To Write a Novel

Here are five steps on a sure way on how not to get a novel written. (Heck most advice is on how To do it, why not shake it up a bit).

1) Tell everyone you are going to write a novel as soon as you figure out what it's going to be about. Don't spend any time trying to figure out the plot or characters or settings. You know they'll come to you eventually.

2) Buy computer software designed to make writing a novel easier. Install it on the computer and don't use it. As a corollary to this step you can also buy fancy notebooks and pens. They will look very impressive when you take them out at the coffee shop to write your novel...as soon as you figure out what it is going to be about.

3) Put aside time to write and sit down at your computer and play Candy Crush instead. You know if you just get past that next level you'll be able to think clearly about what your novel should be about.

4) Don't read any books in the genre you are thinking about writing, you wouldn't want to accidentally steal anyone's ideas.

5) Redecorate office area. Once your writing setting is perfect you know you'll have the next best seller.

Or, you know, if you actually want to write a book, pretty much don't follow the advice above, but sit down and write. Write for five minutes a day. Ten minutes. Write when you are stuck, even if it seems clunky and silly, it can always be taken out later when you revise. Write until you find the ending of your story. And then revise. And revise again. Good luck.

Bye 2014...Hello 2015!!!

It's that time again...end of the year, where we all reflect on what happened over the last 365 days and look toward what we hope to achieve in the next 365.

2014 was pretty good to me. We were all in good health, no one had surgery or broke anything. We lost a few friends and family along the way, but overall the year was happy. I felt terrible when my book didn't come out when it was supposed to because the publisher closed. It was sad and upset my apple cart a bit, but...

There definitely have been worse years.

In 2014, I ...

-- Got a new job
-- Went to a convention I've never been to, in a state I've never been to
-- Hit most of my regular events and got to spend time with friends and con-family/writing-family!
-- Got a NEW book contract
-- Had a short story accepted into an Alice in Wonderland-themed anthology. Look for the official announcement and cover reveal later THIS WEEK!

So really not terrible.

2015 is already looking up, though. So far the plans look like this...

-- A CURSE OF ASH AND IRON will release in late Spring from Curiosity Quills. Cover coming soon!
-- BEWARE THE LITTLE WHITE RABBIT, the Alice anthology from Leap Books, will release in April
-- Hopefully can pull off hitting all my regular Spring events (Balticon, Maryland Faerie Festival, NJSCBWI conference)
-- Launch party!!!! (need to get working on that soon!)
-- DISNEY!

We will be hitting the Magic Kingdom in July. My son's reward for four years of Honor Roll, and he's worked for it. Now that the holidays are over I need to get back to planning.

And hopefully I'll finish the other two books I'm working on in the meantime.

I have high hopes for this year, but it will be BUSY. I also joined a new gym, which will open in mid-January, and I must try and make time to actually GET there. I've been slacking off since the new job.

I hope you all had a great holiday season, and my wish is that all of you have a GREAT 2015!!

FACE YOUR FEARS

I'm cross posting this from my personal blog. Enjoy.

My post today is Face Your Fears.

 

 

The idea came to me last month when I had a table at the local library's annual Craft Show.

My table where I hoped to sell some books was on the second floor. The library is a beautiful building that once was home to one of the early settlers of the town. When he passed on, he left the home to the city with the stipulation that they make it a library. They did and it is quite fascinating.

 

Anyhow, back to my story. To reach the second floor I either had to climb the curved narrow stairs or ride the elevator. I hate small places like elevators, closets, and submarines, (that's another story) so I opted to use the stairs. That was okay, but then I decided I was silly to be afraid of an elevator, especially with all the books I had to take upstairs. So I swallowed a huge breath of air and stepped into the elevator with my books. I got to the top without fainting.

 

This reminded me of writing. Do you have fears when writing a story, whether a new one or one you've been working on for years?

 

Do you have fears when you send your baby off, to an agent or publisher? The baby you've pampered and loved for months, even years? Will they love it? Will they hate it? 

 

Do you have fears when they send you a contract to publish your book? What if no one reads it? What if they hate it? What if they give you horrible reviews?

 

Do you have fears when your precious story is published? Will it be ranked number ten jillion on Amazon?

 

Stop. Think. You wrote a story. How many people are always "going to" write a story, but never do. You sent your story off. Some people write, but stash their work in a box and never send it anywhere. You got a contract. Yay. You wouldn't have if you'd kept your story to yourself. And don't worry about your rankings. You've accomplished your goal. Many people never do.

So smile, say "I did it," and enjoy knowing that you faced your fears and overcame them. 

 

###

Happy Reading and Writing.

NaNoWriMo Time Again

It's that time of year again - when the world is suddenly full of novelists trying to get in fifty thousand words before the end of November.

I've participated in NaNoWriMo several times, and all but one made the goal (the year I didn't, I got the flu and lost my momentum). This year I won't be participating because I'm in the middle of too many other projects to have it make any sense for me, but here are a few tips for those of you who are giving it a go.

1) Have a plan. You don't necessarily have to have your entire story plotted out and outlined, but you should know where you want to end up. Much easier to get someplace if you know where that place is.

2) Don't worry about editing - that's one of the major rules of NaNoWriMo - no editing - just write forward. Keep going. Don't worry about what you've already written, you can fix that later. Keep the story moving forward.

3) Connect with other writers - whether you attend a local write-in - or just cheer on your buddies when they post their daily word counts. The added incentive of other people doing the same thing, and being able to see how you are progressing are great ways to keep you motivated

4) Don't fear writer's block. When you get stuck, just write through it. You don't know what to write? Describe what the characters are having for breakfast or the room they are sitting in. Don't worry if it is nonsense, it can come out later when you edit, but if you keep writing you'll find the story again. It's there, waiting for you.

5) Have fun with it!

Happy Writing!

Switching Hats

Like most of us on this list, I imagine, I have been writing since I was really little. Poems, stories, and later, novels. I have always been at work on something. This started in third grade and continued not only through high school and college, but also into my working life. I graduated with a degree I would never use and spent my life before the kids came along working at entry level jobs: clerk typist, receptionist, educational aide. I am not knocking these jobs or the people who do them. A lot of these positions require both juggling and mind-reading skills -especially depending on the manager- and I respect everyone who does this type of work.

My goal, though, was to find positions that paid well enough, but that would not accidentally spring-board me into a career. Entry level was my best bet. And I know I chose every job I ever had, even when I went back to the work force when my kids were old enough, for the conservation of mental energy. If I had had a career that demanded 100 percent of my attention 100 percent of the time, I would have nothing left for writing.

And writing has always been the thing for me, something always present, always at the back of my mind. I know you all understand what it's like to have characters living in your brain, to watch snippets of scenes in your mind, or catch a particularly brilliant line of dialogue running through your head. I needed my brain free enough to receive all of those wonderful creative impulses, so I took work that would not interfere with the signal.

Now, however, the old brain (and I do mean one that is aging) is not quite as agile and versatile as it once was. I decided to try something new, went back to school, and now have a part-time position in the health-care field. Although my responsibilities do not entail a person's life or death, they do involve accuracy, precision, and hands-on patient care. In other words, my mind needs to be totally focused on my work. All of the time.

Because of that, I need to shut down the creative signal when I am on the job. This is the first time in my life I have ever done this, and it is playing havoc with my writing when I am at home in front of my keyboard. It's driving me crazy. Switching the writing flow on and off is not easy for me, and when I do a day at work, it is hard to settle back into my story when I have the next day off. And vice versa. I sometimes go into the office with my head crammed full of story details and it is the devil's own work to clear that out so I can pay attention to my professional tasks.

So I am asking, no, begging for help. How do all of you handle this constant switching? If you are not home earning a living through your writing, if you are still holding down a day job, how do you do it? I'd sure love some advice or some tips. In lieu of a split personality, I could use some serious coping skills!

Promoting Short Stories

When I first started writing short stories (yes, back in the days of manual typewriters and carbon paper), once you sold the short story, the magazine or anthology you sold it to took care of all the promotion. Yes, you announced the sale to your friends and maybe there was a writeup about it in the local newspaper and maybe industry newsletters, but that was about all you could contribute. The magazine or anthology promoted the various authors whose stories appeared in the work, depending on the author’s status.

Nowadays, with social media, you aren't as dependent on the publisher or the publisher's or editor’s idea of author status and who gets promoted. You can do your own promotion. You can announce the sale on Facebook and Twitter and Google+, and put a link to where the story appears on your website once the issue or the work is released. Some small press publishers furnish promotion material for their anthologies, like bookmarks, that authors can take with them to conventions for freebie tables or to hand out at signings.

Promotion by bookmark is good if you are traditionally published (where you only have a small window of time in which to promote) and even more so if your publisher is a small press, because with a small press you can continue to promote the anthology for years. Or until the publisher stops furnishing promo material for the anthology.

This is what I've done in the past to promote my short stories published in anthologies. I've also listed the story or anthology in the bios I've been asked to provide for conventions as an author participating on panels. But now I'm moving into new territory. One of my publishers, Amber Quill Press, is now publishing short stories on its website and then releasing the stories on Amazon Kindle. I've got one short story, “The Oracle of Cilens”, available through this program and another (“Search and Rescue”) will be released in August. So I started wondering how one goes about promoting individual short stories.

Searching on the web turned up only the suggestion to blog about your short story, both on your own blog and well as guest posts on other blogs. And of course mentioning the short story on your website. One author I know has had postcards on freebie tables at conventions advertising his free short story, and I liked that idea, but I wasn't sure if that was done for short stories for sale. So I asked some of the writing organizations I belong to, such as Broad Universe on Facebook, figuring I wasn't the first to wonder about this. Kelly Harmon kindly responded with an image of the rack card she uses to promote her six short stories at conventions.

So, with only two short stories so far, I'm going with a bookmark to bring to LonCon 3 (Worldcon in London) followed by Shamrokon in Dublin next month. The front of the bookmark has the two covers and the back has the blurbs for the stories.

Three questions: How do you learn about short stories? What promotions have you seen? What do you use to promote your short stories?

Beta Readers

Beta Readers. Some authors count them as valuable as editors. Some never use them, relying instead on the editors provided by publishers. In my opinion, having someone else take a look at your manuscript and just point out where the story ‘got confusing’ or where perhaps a bit more description is needed, is enough to get a stubborn story moving again.

If you ask authors at a panel how they make sure a world or a character is believable, the answer is usually “beta readers”. You’ll see ‘thank you’s to beta readers in acknowledgements or afterwords in books.

How do you find a beta reader?

This was one of the questions asked of me at an author question and answer panel at a recent convention. I had to stop and think about this from a new author point of view since some things have changed since I first started trying to find someone willing to read my stories and give me helpful criticism. And some things haven’t changed.

As a young writer starting off at age 14, my first beta reader was my mother. Not precisely the best choice, as she didn't read science fiction, but I didn't feel confident enough to ask my father, who was the other science fiction reader in my family. But after getting feedback of “it was so sad when she left home” when the story was supposed to be on how happy the character was to leave Earth, I moved on to other beta readers. My English teachers approved of the symbolism in my first book (which surprised me since I hadn't put any in), and that was the last time I asked them. I did find a few friends in high school that read fantasy and science fiction and who could be counted on to give good feedback. Nowadays I have friends I've met at conventions, fellow writers, and people who have read and enjoyed my work (and like getting an early look) who I can ask to beta read.

The person asking the question didn't have any local friends who read the genre he was writing. I've got one friend in my town that I can ask to beta read, but the other friends I can ask, depending on their schedules, are all at a distance. Which is not much of a problem in the days of email. The questioner, however, didn't have any writing friends or friends who read in his genre either local or online that he could ask.

So the next question to him was, was he a member of a writing group or organization? I'm a member of both Broad Universe and EPIC, and I've seen the occasional call out in the email and Facebook groups for those writing organizations for a beta reader on a particular genre or topic. There's usually someone willing to give feedback in return for critical comments on their own stories. He decided to check with some of the fan group tables at the convention.

I've even seen the call out on an author's Facebook page for an occasional beta reader or proof reader.

Of course, what do you do once you've found a potential beta reader? If all you get back is “It was good”, then you need to ask detailed questions (and maybe find another beta reader). Jodie Renner had some excellent suggestions recently in “15 Questions for Your Beta Readers”. (She also has some suggestions for finding YA beta readers.) I tend to ask more vague questions like "Did what the character do make sense?"

Take some time to absorb the comments you get back. Sometimes you can see right away how to revise the story and sometimes you’re not actually ready to accept what you hear.

It also helps to have more than one beta reader. If both readers comment on the same thing, then it definitely needs fixing. You might also have a beta reader who just focuses on the technical details or language rather than the overall story.

How have you found your beta readers? Are you a beta reader for another author?

Writing a Series

When I was in high school I started writing a story about a girl named Casey. The story didn't have a particular beginning or end, it just sort of meandered from episode to episode through Casey's four years of high school. I still have those notebooks and the comments my friends made in the margins (my first critique group). And while a lot happened and technically I had it broken down into four books, it wasn't really a true series.

Fast forward many years and the story of Casey has morphed into Reality Ali. It's no longer simply a series of events but a story with a plot and a beginning and a middle and an end.

I'm done. I'm happy.

But then I realize that maybe, I can write more stories about Ali - after all, I had all those notebooks of Casey stories, certainly I can write more about Ali. So I present my idea to the publisher and she agrees. Three more books are contracted for.

This is different than simply writing what happens next in Ali's story, like I used to do for Casey. Each book needs a plot. A beginning, a middle and an end (this is more complicated than it might seem at first glance). And the books have to fit into the whole.

Lights, Camera, Ali came out last year and the third book, Honestly, Ali will be out later this year.

So now I'm on the fourth book, tentatively titled Always, Ali.

There are challenges to writing a series that I didn't anticipate when I started. Things that I want to do now, but can't, because they weren't done that way in the first book. Everything has to fit into the world I've already created. It's a fascinating restriction, because I love the world I've created, it's just hard to remember that even though I created it, I can't simply alter the rules, at least without some explanation.

The great part about writing a series, though, is being able to spend more time with characters I love. The characters of Ali and her brother Mark are two of my favorites and it always feels so comfortable and easy to write scenes for them because I know the characters so well.

Working on this as a series, has been a wonderful experience. I learn more with each book. And am so glad I get to spend more time with these characters.

What challenges and adventures have you faced while writing?

YA Steampunk

Last weekend I was on a panel at MidSouthCon 32 about YA Steampunk. The panel description was “How to use/write steampunk in YA”, with an additional comment that “Steampunk is huge, especially in YA.” Panelists were Missa Dixon, Jennifer Mulvihill, Sharon Rawlins, Kimberly Richardson, and Kathryn Sullivan (me). Three authors of steampunk stories, a YA librarian and an editor (also author) of steampunk anthologies brought several different outlooks to the panel.

Like YA, Steampunk can cover so many other genre: alternate history, science fiction, mystery, romance, pirates, adventure, thriller, or Westerns. Even fantasy can be steampunk. I’ve read both those with a magic versus machines theme and those with just magic elements or beings. Dragons as well as elves and dwarves appear often in both versions. (Just to mention that I have a short story, “The Taste of Treasure” in Clockwork Spells and Magical Bells which has a competition between an elf and the Dwarfking’s children) Steampunk is usually associated with the Victorian age, but the stories don’t always have to be set in that time period.

The appeal of Steampunk is that the science is understandable. Steam power and electricity are not as complicated as, say, nuclear power, and much easier for do-it-yourselfers to figure out how things work and visualize how to construct things (and I’m not just referring to the costumes, though the panel did get slightly distracted on that point). Materials needed to construct a steam-powered or electric-powered machine are also easier for the average person to obtain or make, rather those in modern day science fiction stories (which requires the character to be a millionaire or backed by the government of a small country at the very least). The heroes of a steampunk story (both male and female) can be not only the good fighters and adventurers, but also (depending on the story) the engineers and the inventors, the MacGyvers and the Teslas, the people who “fix things”.

Sharon Rawlins provided a handout of YA Steampunk titles, which included Gail Carriger’s Finishing School series, Cassandra Clare’s Infernal Devices series, Kenneth Oppel’s Airborn series, Philip Reeves’ Larklight series, and Tiffany Trent’s The Unnaturalists, just to name a few. The panelists mentioned other titles they could recommend. The Friday Society by Adrienne Kress and The Jupiter Pirates series by Jason Fry are ones I can add to the list. Girl Genius is an example of a steampunk webcomic of interest to many ages.

There have been television shows that embodied steampunk before the term ever existed: The Secret Adventures of Jules Verne with Michael Praed, Legend with Richard Dean Anderson and John de Lancie, and even The Wild, Wild West with Robert Conrad and Ross Martin. A example of a show today that has steampunk elements is Warehouse 13.

Writing YA Steampunk means focusing on both YA and Steampunk. Good YA (and Middle Grade) has characters that do things rather than just letting things happen to them. No matter how dark things became in A Series of Unfortunate Events, one panelist pointed out, she could always count on Violet rolling up her sleeves and taking charge to put things right.

All three authors as well as Kimberly Richardson (editor and author) are published with Dark Oak Press, so we all had experience with one publisher that publishes Steampunk. Anthologies allow for more varieties of approaches. Kimberly Richardson mentioned what she looked for in stories submitted to her, both in terms of believable technology and characters.

What YA and Middle Grade Steampunk stories have you enjoyed?

THE WRITING LIFE

Sometimes the writing life is exciting. New books coming out. Tours to take. Book Blasts for fun.

Sometimes writing is a lot of work. Drafting a new story. Revising an old one. Editing for the editor.

Then sometimes writing is waiting. Waiting for final edits. Waiting for a cover. Waiting for reviews, and so on and so on. Today, I'm in all of these stages.

Ah! What a life!

In the meantime, since my mind is on overload already, I'm cross posting a little more about the writing life from my BlogSpot, which I cross posted from the MuseItYoung and MuseItUp blog. Enjoy.

 

First, here's my desk where my creative mind goes to work. Or doesn't.

 

 



 

How I write!

I seldom make an outline. When a little voice whispers in my ear, telling me his/her story, I sit down at the computer and start writing. I let the character(s) show me the way. I ask them questions, and hopefully they give me answers. Sometimes I jot down what I think will happen next or in a later chapter. Sometimes the story happens that way; other times not.

I work better when I have a schedule. Since I usually write more than one story at a time, each day I plan which story to work on that day. On a yellow tablet I list my goals for the day. I do not always reach them. No problem. I circle the ones I did not accomplish to work on the next day.

Writing brings me joy. When the final two words, THE END, are written, I've accomplished my goal. Then the revisions start. In the meantime, I may be editing a forthcoming story for my editor. If that's happening, I set aside time to edit.

Writing is also stressful at times. When I spend all morning on one paragraph, and it still isn't right, frustration sets in. Time to put the story aside for another day. Also, waiting to hear on a submission can have me biting my fingernails. Does the publisher like the story? Does it stink? Should I give up and go back to teaching? All sorts of doubts about my ability as a writer surface.

Do I quit? No way. I suck in a breath and face my characters, hoping they have wonderful ideas for me today.

Happy Writing!



 

 

Life at 900 Miles Per Hour

It's been pretty busy around these parts of late. Not really with the new book, though we've sent out some electronic galleys to writers in order to gather some cover blurbs.Giving them time to read the book while they do all of THEIR own writing stuff. I thank them for whatever effort they can give.

I've been writing, of course, though it seems to be going slowly. And I've been doing a lot of other stuff for book promo, all the pre-pub stuff that needs to be done. Mostly booking appearances. My May looks like a maniac's calendar. So far I am booked at the following places:

May 10-11: Maryland Faerie Festival
May 17-18: Steampunk World's Fair
May 24-26: Balticon

If this isn't enough, there's also a chance of my heading up to BEA the weekend after Balticon, just to hang out with other Strange Chemistry people and maybe meet my editor, Amanda. We'll see if that happens. These events above, I'm mostly doing promo for the book -- handing out postcards and bookmarks, and maybe some other goodies if I can get my crap together. I need something really cool. But since the cover isn't ready yet I can't quite do that. Hopefully soon!!! Once that cover comes out, I'll be doing a cover reveal at YABC and all over the place!

Oh, and at Balticon I'll also be launching GASLIGHT AND GRIMM, a Steampunk anthology coming from Darkquest Books, where I have a story, as well as (hopefully), Alma Alexander's new YA book RANDOM, and the new Steampunk YA, ALI BABA AND THE CLOCKWORK DJINN, both coming from Palomino Press.

THEN, I'll be on faculty for the NJSCBWI conference at the end of June. And finally, I'll be at CONvergence July 3-6. Or mostly July 4-5, since the 3rd and 6th will be travel days. Now, at THAT convention I WILL be signing ARCs of the new book, stationed at the Strange Chemistry book in the dealer's room. There may even be some kind of SCB reception/meet-the-readers kind of thing. Not sure yet.

Yes, the schedule is packed. And somewhere in there I will also be working on the launch party for A CURSE OF ASH AND IRON, which looks like it will probably be in a Haddonfield, NJ in September, and then booking up some signings after that, before I go to the Baltimore Book Festival at the end of Sept.

And, if that that wasn't enough, in the middle of all this...I got a new job. I haven't really been talking about it too much because it sort of happened in Slo-Motion. First I sent a resume, then I had an interview, then another...then I got the offer, then I had to wait for their school board to approve me, then I had to submit my resignation at my old job and give my notice. Now it's all paperwork to be finished.

I am really happy about the new job. I will miss the people and the kids where I am now, but in the end it's the right choice for me for about a million reasons. Older kids and older kid books (its a K-8 school). Structure. Dependability. All kinds of other things that would take another ten pages to explain. It's not any closer to my house, the money is slightly less, but in the end it's what I need to do.  And, of course, the timing is terrible. I'll be starting right in the middle of state testing, right at the end of the year...and right before my writing life goes from 0-60mph in about 2 seconds. I start April 30.  I know, I must be an idiot, but this is the way it had to go.

I WILL make it. I won't bail, or fall. And in July, I will sleep. And sleep. And hopefully have enough of the new books done that I can spend the summer revising and turn them in in the Fall. Sigh.

The Glory and Agony of First Drafts

I love first drafts.

I hate first drafts.

It's a bit of a complicated relationship.

I love being able to have the freedom to go wherever I want with a new story and a new idea. The characters aren't locked into set patterns yet. Anything is possible.

But when anything is possible sometimes it's hard to figure out which way to go, which direction to take the story.

And then, at least for me, I always get to a part in the story - maybe about a third of the way in, where I'm convinced it's the most horrible thing ever written and there really is no point in going on anymore.

Usually I manage to muddle through that part and get back to the fun of inventing new twists and turns. And it is fun to create like that. It's one of the things I love about writing.

I also love the refining part, where I take the rough first draft and turn it into something that I might actually want someone else to read.

Right now I'm working on one story in first draft and it's just a little past the part where I'm convinced it's the most awful thing ever. I've muddled through the rough patch.

I also will be doing final edits shortly, for the third Ali book - Honestly, Ali! I'm so excited to have another Ali book coming out. The fourth Ali book is still in first draft form, waiting for me to turn it into something fun and glamorous. So I've got stories in all phases. Life is good.

First drafts can be the most fun though.

But, sometimes I really hate them.

What is your favorite or least favorite part of writing? First draft, revision, plotting? And why?

Reaching Those Goals

New Year's resolutions have been made. Maybe they've been kept, maybe not. Perhaps they've become a new habit for the new year, perhaps they've been forgotten.

It's easy to always make resolutions and set goals for ourselves. It's not always easy to stick to it. This is not ground-breaking stuff - most people would agree (I would say everyone would agree, but I'm sure there's someone out there who finds sticking to their resolutions and achieving their goals easy, though I never met the person).

One of the places where I set goals for myself is in my writing. That's one of the reasons why I like NaNoWriMo so much. The website provides a place to publicly track how much I've written. Because I like to feel like an achiever, I find it inspiring to have to keep track like that. Consequently I am able to meet the word count goal for November.

Then December comes with Christmas preparations.

Then January and family birthdays.

And suddenly I'm trying to remember what it was like to stick to a regular writing schedule.

But the other day a friend pointed me toward a new website. MyWriteClub. It has just what I liked best about NaNoWriMo a place to set goals and keep track of them. You can also see your friends' goals and cheer them on with comments.

It's new and still in Beta so I'm sure more features will be coming soon. But for now, I've found a way to help me keep track of my writing goals in the New Year (though snow days this week seem to be messing with me). If you want to join and be my friend I'm Christine_Marciniak.

Happy Writing.

Resolute...for 2014

Once again it's the time of year to make the Dreaded Resolutions. Lose weight, go somewhere, unplug, you know the drill. Most people use the start of a new year to make a list of things they wish they could do but won't.

Of course, I am too. But these aren't resolutions. These are goals. I give you my list of goals for 2014

1. Be healthy.

I don't mean just lose weight. I mean really strive to eat better, to move, to make it to the gym or if not to walk the dog on a regular basis. I've slipped since the summer, and this year my job has me going crazy so it's not been easy. Most of the people in my building say the same, so it's not just me.

2. WRITE

Last year I finished Grad School, and then I sat around in January, basking in the glow of the fact I didn't have any papers to write. No projects to turn in. I think I thought I had all this time. And so I filled it up with stuff. I half-heartedly did NANO but didn't get far. So this year I need to re-focus and get back to business. Especially since this year will be SO VERY BUSY. So 500 words per day it will be. I have two books to finish!

3. De-clutter.

And I don't just mean my house, though that's a never-ending battle. I mean my life. Like I said, I filled it up with stuff when I didn't have Grad School anymore, and now there's Just Too Much. I need to find priorities and pay attention to them. My Etsy store has been doing kind of well, especially the last few months, so I'm keeping that. The money allows me to do extra things for book promotion. But there are other things that will need to go. I will need to start staying NO to some things and YES to other things.

5. Be an author, not just a writer.

Meaning do more on my blog, and this blog, and the other blog I write for. Focus on what will bring readers to my site, my blogs, and ultimately my work. This is a big one, because I've kind of been blowing it off. Needs to become a priority. Soon.

6. Read more books.
My job is with young children, so I don't find myself as ingrained with YA and tween lit as I should be. I need to read more books this year, get back into the groove of 'what's in'. 

Have a happy New Year, and I hope 2014 will be a great one for you!

2014 Will Be Epic

Where did it go? I feel like it was just January a few days ago. The new laptop I'm working on I got in January, and now it's almost a year old. My car accident was in January, so my new car is almost a year old too. Wow. Unbelievable. Thanksgiving is over, and the holiday season is upon us. Three weeks until Christmas *yikes!* and then a month until 2013 is over. 

I'm kind of sad to see 2013 go, because even though it didn't start off great -- Hubby having surgery, car accident, computer dying, the passing of so many people we loved -- it had some nice times too. Great vacation with the family. New car. New computer. Great conferences, time with friends, new friends, new conferences. It was pretty good, overall.

However, I am SUPER EXCITED for 2014 to start because there are so many BIG THINGS coming next year.

First of all, I have a story in a Steampunk anthology that comes out next year. The anthology is called Gaslight and Grimm and will be published by Dark Quest Books. It's all Steampunk fairy tales. I wrote a version of The Three Little Pigs, which contains no pigs whatsoever. There are some other authors whose Names You Might Know who will also have stories included. Not sure of the release date yet, but I will make a big announcement when it comes out.

I SHOULD also finish the final Library of Athena book next year. Should. It's coming along and I really like where it's going. It will be a fitting end to the series, with a couple of twists I didn't even know about until I wrote them down.

The other bit of news is a BIG HUGE SEKRIT. I cannot tell you. Or, I could, but then I'd have to kill you. Or give you kittens, or something. This is the Most Exciting piece of news of all the news that I have to share. Hopefully it will be able to be shared in the next two weeks. I am BURSTING.

I'd love to tell you. But I can't. Just know that 2014 Will. Be. Epic.

The New Edition...of my first book...is HERE!!

As I was typing the title I had an 80's flashback, sorry.

But this week I am celebrating the release of a brand new edition of my first book. The original title was Talisman of Zandria,  but we've added The to the new one. It's got a brand-new cover, which is SUPER cute (I personally love the dragon silhouette), and a new trim size (I think, I don't yet have hard copies in my hands), and a ton of new material.

When I wrote this book the first time, I really had pretty much no idea what I was doing. Looking back it's fairly impressive that it was published at all, even though I had put a ton of work into it, going to online critique sites and sending it out -- IN hardcopy, because back then hardly anyone was taking e-subs. I printed and mailed I don't know how many query letters and samples, only to get the form rejection letters. Good times, good times. But a tiny little publisher in Pittsburgh picked it up, and the rest is...you know.

So when the rights to the Zandria books were returned to me, I had to decide what to do. I was still selling copies at events, everywhere I went. I still had kids tell me how they loved it. Could I let it go? I still love this story, and so decided that I would apply my ten years of writing knowledge to this old manuscript.

I think it's better than before. It's certainly longer, with a whole lot more interesting things to see and smell and read. I added a lot of dialogue, and I am pretty sure it's a MUCH better book. Those who read the first edition will see the change right away, and those who never did, I hope enjoy it.

It's available now on Amazon in Kindle , Nook and Dead Tree formats, and look for it soon at the Publisher's Website.

In other news, for the first time in probably I don't know how many years, I am attempting NaNoWriMo. I will be racing to get the first edition of the LAST Library of Athena book completed, so that next year at this time I'm talking about its release!