New Website

This blog will no longer be update. You can now find me at my website where I will be now doing updates.

Thank you for following this blog and I hope to see you at my new home!

Cha-cha-cha-changes....

Ok, so, real talk time. I love and hate this blog. I love it because it's a way to reach out to people but I hate it because I cannot be all awesome every week. So I am making a really big change that will be up by October 1st. I am leaving Blogger and going over to a Wordpress site to have an author website. Now, this doesn't mean that the blog is going away. It just means that the blog is over there but it won't be the first thing that you see. It means you'll see a nice shiny front page and then click to go over to the blog. Or just bookmark the blog and you can go straight to it.

The big reason why I'm doing this is because I just don't have the bandwidth to update every week. I need to own that and I am doing that now. However, I still want a landing page and a blog that only gets updated once a month is not a good look. It just isn't. I need to make a change and that involves going over to a new service. I will leave up a post that says "hey, come meet me over at the website" with a link, so you won't be left hanging in a lurch.

So, that's that and we'll be over at the new page in a week. I'm going to go get stuff done now.

Motivation and What To Do When It Runs Away

Motivation is something that is supposed to come easy to writers. We're supposed to put ourselves in front of our computer, open a word document or whatever your software or choice is, and write whatever we're going to get done for the day. However, you also know, as a writer that it doesn't always happen that way. There are days or weeks or even months where you do not have anything going right with your writing. You're stalled on a scene or a chapter and there seems to be nowhere to go. You feel overwhelmed with life tasks and your writing tasks fall by the wayside. I know. I've been there. Let's go through some ways that I help myself get back on the horse.

1. Stalled on scene/chapter: Jump around! This was very hard for me to learn how to do but I'm glad I did. I am a very linear writer, wanting to write from chapter 1 to chapter 30, and I had to write in order. Writing out of order was foreign to me and felt wrong. However, you will do yourself a huge service if you start practicing writing out of order. It means that you can jump from a chapter that's giving you a hard time, go to a chapter or scene where the words flow, and come back to the chapter that's giving you a problem. Also, writing ahead might make you realize what the problem is so you can fix it and get the problem chapter written.

2. Life is overwhelming and there's no time to write. I heard you on this one. I know that a lot of the advice is to get up early and write but that doesn't work for me. I'm a night owl so I'll stay up and write to get some writing in. Or I'll overload my weekends with writing because there was just no time during the week to do so. Also, having a to-do checklist and having one of your to-dos being write x amount of words. Yes, you might push it off, which is why you should add to your word count if you do as long as it won't stress you out. If it does, then just move it and get it done when you can.

3. Your computer is just not comfortable. Oh boy, been there for that too. Right now, I'm going through that. One of the best ways to work through this is change up how you're writing. I know this might not be workable for everyone, but I have a Surface that is my writing computer that goes everywhere with me. While I do like writing on my normal laptop, I'm just not wanting to on there right now. There's no want to get my writing done on it, so I'm working on the Surface to get writing done. However, if you don't, I've got a full recommendations. Write long hand and then type it up to see where you go with it. If possible, see if you can borrow a computer or go to your local library and use one of their computers. Make sure that you save your work to a thumb drive or the cloud or even your email if you go that route. If you have a smartphone, use that with either typing into a program that will save your notes. Or talk into your smartphone! Changing up how your writing really might help.

4. Last one is what to do when all you want is to spend time on the internet. I get it, the internet is awesome and sometimes want to read Twitter or Facebook or whatever you're doing. However, it's a motivational suck because you'll spend a lot of time on it without getting writing done. There are a ton of blockers up there to block certain sites if you still need the internet to Google - I know I do - or you can just turn it off. It is so hard to turn it off so I do recommend using a blocker for the sites that you go through the most. Plus, you can just set it to a timer and at the end of the time, take a break in order to stretch.

Those are my four big ways that I get demotivated and then back into writing. Do you have any other you would like advice on or would like to give your own tips? Comment below or hit me up on Twitter. Until next time, happy writing!

Reading, Pitch Wars, and Everything In-Between

Since we've last chatted readers, a lot of things have happened. Nothing big and life changing, but little and somewhat life changing. Maybe less life changing and more of life helping? Either way, I've been up to things and thought I would pop in for an update. I am going to attempt, key word is attempt, to update this blog every week. It might just be little status messages like this, if you like those sort of things, or it might be writing advice or it might be about a book I decided to binge in the last week. Or even a TV show or a movie that I thought should be on everyone's radar. Yeah, it might not be all that interesting to read every week but I think a fuller blog is helpful.

First off, I've been reading a lot. I've upped my reading goal from 24 to 30 to now 50. I'm six books ahead of schedule to hit 50 by the end of the year and there's two readathons coming up. There's the Creating & Co RIP (read in peace) and then ebookathon that starts right after that. As for past readathons, I did the NEWTs readathon because I'm a geek and love all things Harry Potter. It's similar to the OWLs one I talked about in April, but you could only do the subjects you passed during the OWLs. So I had five subjects to read, with only finishing one up all three levels (Acceptable, Exceeds Expectations, and Outstanding), but I read 9 books in the month of August. That's a new personal best so I'm happy about it. As for books that you should stop reading this and just go get a copy of are Rules of Magic by Alice Hoffman and Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty. The first one is a prequel to Practical Magic and I loved it. Devoured it in a few days and fell in love with the Aunts all over again. Not sure about Vincent, even all these weeks after I'm done with it, so go read it and tell me what you think. For the second, also a binge read of 3 days, and it was just so nice and refreshing a read. It was a mystery wrapped around this Real Housewives (season 1 NYC) vibe that I was just digging and couldn't put it down. I felt the emotions of so many of the characters on so many levels and that was a very nice connection.

My September reading plans are to just read what I feel like reading. At the moment, it's a lot of adult because I'm feeling burnt out on YA. I'm currently reading Daughters of the Night Sky, which is about the 588th Night Bomber Regiment that's entirely of women called the Night Witches, and I'm kind of liking it. I'm only 18% done and I want to give it a bit more to settle in before I DNF or put it aside for a while. I also want to finish My Lady Jane which is historical fantasy riff on Lady Jane Gray's life. It is so good but I put it aside for NEWTs. Going to pick it back up again to finish so I can read My Plain Jane (Jane Eyre retelling) for an October spooky read.

On the writing front, it's going slowly but steady. I'm querying Mystery of the Dark as often as I can, along with submitting it to Pitch Wars, so we'll see what happens. I'm having a lot of fun connecting with the greater writer community on Twitter and Facebook so that feels like the bigger win to me. On the non-querying front, I'm working on Lady of Arrows, which is a Robin Hood retelling, as well as Of the Sky, which might turn into a romance with fantasy elements instead of the other way around. Oops. It's a standalone, which is amazing because I never really write those, so this is a very nice change of pace from what I'm used to. Seriously - Mystery of the Dark is 6 or 7 books, Lady of Arrows is a duology, Hidden Scions is going to be a trilogy at least, and Watchers, if I ever get to it, is like 12 books. Easily. I think I'm going to try and have more standalones, if I'm able to. It's a lot more with just deciding it and letting the book figure out what it's going to be.

That's pretty much it. I'm always over on Twitter in case you want to interact with me and I hope everyone has a great week. Until next time, take care and happy writing!

Writing Space: the Library

My library is pretty cool. Along with being a place where there's a wide selection of books, it's a great place to plug in and get some writing done. I do love going there to write. It's a nice different place, it gets the juices flowing, but somethings things are loud on the first floor. It's really nobody's fault, because where I like to sit is more of the social area of the library. It's all these little tables sitting around and people like to sit and talk, so that's more on me than the library. If I go into the stacks, I can find quiet tables where I can plug in and write. Those are nice to focus but the place I really love is on the second floor.

On the second floor, they have these study / conference rooms that you can book for two hours. It's structured so you can get work done - a lot people who are in surrounding businesses use them a lot - and it's nice and quiet. Bonus being that I can play music without needing my headphones on.

It is a simple room and, if you ask, they'll give you markers for the white board. That's really helpful when I'm stuck in plot and don't want to write on paper. Or I forgot to bring paper with me. Just write it on the white board, snap a pic, and ta-da, problem solved. If you have the right plugs on your computer, you can hook it up to the TV in the room. I don't, on the Surface, but if I brought the big laptop, I would be able to plug in and play. It's really nice for those who are working on a school project, like I saw when I glanced into a room. That's the other thing - there are windows on the room, which I don't mind, but others might.

Anyways, I just thought I would share a nice writing space of mine. Where do you go to write? Drop me a comment and, until next time, keep on writing!

A Writer's Life: Well Meaning Tips from Friends and Family

Hello and welcome to something I'm hoping to make a regular feature here on the blog. I'm going to be taking parts of what happens in my life, as a writer, and talking about them in what's known as "A Writer's Life". It is a title that is a bit cliche, but I'm okay with that. I've talked in an earlier post on this blog on how we love cliches, as long as they're put in a different light or spin, so I'm hoping to do that as well. If you have a topic you'd like me to cover in this segment of the blog, feel free to leave a comment below.

Now, we all have friends and family that wish us to succeed on our writer's journey, no matter where we are in that journey or what our end goal is. With that comes well meaning tips and tricks that they think will help us succeed. These are well meaning and not meant to put anyone in a negative light. It is more like the meme of what they think vs what's really happening when it's not advice that is best for you. As always, when someone gives you advice - even if you don't like it! - the best thing to do is smile and say "thank you, I'll take that under advisement". Even if that advisement is "oh hell no". So, let's dive in.

Tip 1: You should set up a blog!
Yep, I'm going to tackle this one first. Yes, this is a common tip when talking to writers, especially those with the end goal of publishing in the traditional way or self publishing. It is not bad advice. It is, however, advice that should be taken with a grain of salt. I am finding out, as in all things, when you want followers, you need to be consistent. There needs to be a schedule and you need to stick with it or otherwise you're screaming on the internet with nobody to hear you. Now, for people like that, it would be fine. I'm someone who has the blog because I feel I need it and liked the advice, but I wish that advice came with a how and why. You need to have a schedule, you need to have content, and you need to realize that it is going to take time away from your novel. You need to think if that's something you want to sacrifice or if you're going to try and balance it. I will recommend that if you try and balance it that the blog plate gets dropped first. Your novel is what is going to get you be a published author. It should always come first.

Tip 2: Have a nice and clean Twitter / Facebook / Instagram
This advice came from a well meaning friend of mine who is worried that my views on Twitter is what is stopping me from getting published. If that's true... I'm not sure what to do about it. I go with the idea that whatever I put out there, even in email, will be published on the front page of newspaper of choice. Mine varies from Washington Post to Chicago Sun Times depending on my mood of the day. Now, nothing on my social media accounts is graphic or nudes or anything that anyone should be ashamed of. I have political views that I wear on my sleeve and that's okay. I think that, when you're being rejected, even in form letters, that you should go back to your novel or your letter and work on that. I don't think it means scrubbing your social media accounts of what makes you the person that you are.

Tip 3: Don't write x, write y, because x is out of style at the moment.
So... I struggle with this on a daily basis. I don't even really need a friend or family to suggest it (although some have) and I don't know what to do about it. I have this feeling that everything cycles through major moments but there's always an audience who wants more. You want to focus on that audience. You want to make sure that you're engaging the reader with the best story that you can put forward and the vampires / werewolves / what have you are the icing the cake. Your narrative should push through everything, not the fact that you have a monster of the moment or a situation of the moment. If you look at the classics, even those that are genre classics, you'll see the common thread is more towards the narrative than anything else. Jane Eyre is one of the best classical Gothic novels out there because it's more than that. The Gothic is the backdrop and you're more worried about Jane and wondering what the fuck is up with Rochester. So, yeah, don't worry about what you're writing is out of vogue at the moment. Worry more if you're writing a story that will engage readers.

Tip 4: You should get as much feedback as possible before sending it off to agents.
This is mostly true. You should get feedback and edits from an editor that is not yourself. You should try to have beta readers and be in writing communities and everything else. It is true that the more eyes the better on your novel before you send it off. However, make sure you're not using it as a way to drag your feet because you're worried about agents liking your novel. You could get all the feedback in the world, but if you're not sending it out, you're not getting anywhere. So just be careful and make sure that you get feedback, you process and make the changes, and then you send it out. Just send it out. The worst thing that any agent will say to you is no. Or at least, that's my experience so far.

I hope you enjoyed this segment of A Writer's Life. I do hope to do more in the future. What are some of the odder tips that you've received as a writer? Or what are some of the best tips that you've gotten as a writer? Let a comment down below and, until next time, happy writing.

What I Read in June

I know. We're mostly into July but I thought I would talk about it anyways. Better late than never? Also, I feel like I read a good amount this month, thanks to the Creating and Co relaxathon (a readathon with a theme of relaxing), so let's get into the books!

• Beneath a Scarlet Sky by Mark T Sullivan - Review - This book is still sticking with me in my head because it was so well written. I truly thought it was a narrative non-fiction, because that's the way it felt like as I was reading it, but it turns out it's more based on a true story. That's fine too. It's set to be either a movie or limited series on Amazon with Tom Holland playing Pino. 
• The Mountain Between Us by Charles Martin - Review - Like I say in my review, I saw the movie before reading the book. I really wish I had done the opposite. The movie collared a lot on how I saw the book and I came out liking the movie more. Then again, I'm not sure if I would have entertained watching the movie on the book alone. While it's a good book, it does suffer from letting the main male character lead a bit too much instead of making it a partnership. I can see why he did this, mostly because he wrote in a first person limited, but having both characters be strong worked to make the movie as good as it was. The book is good as well. I just wish I had read it first.
• Winter's Bone by Daniel Woodrell - Review - I... I really think this is the first book in a long time that I've given two stars to. It was too short. He needed more pages to complete the book, which I do say in the review, and I'm hesitant to watch the movie. I wish I had DNF-ed the book, as it was very annoying with the main character and the mystery, and there's no good complete ending. It's just an ending. I feel that, if the book was longer, the ending would feel more complete. Oh well.
• Starry Eyes by Jenn Bennett - Review - This was a wonderful book. Now, I do not read all that much contemporary when it's adult fiction. it's even less when it comes to YA and contemporary. However, this was an awesome contemporary book where it's got hints of Wild but toned down for teenagers and set with a backdrop of enemies to friends to much more. I don't care if it's a spoiler because if I can get you to read the book, that's even better. I touch on this in my review, but the blended family without the over explanation of it won me over in the first few pages of the book. It was just "yeah, this is my family" and it was done. Sometimes it is overly drawn out or brought up again and again, usually in terms that are spelled out in a telling not showing situation, where she just showed it. It's a reason why I want to read her other books when I get around to it.
• Closed Circles by Viveca Stein - Review - this is the second book of the Sandhamn Murders series and I'm sticking with this series until the end. That said, I really hope that, in future books, we get a stronger main female character in Nora. She took really big steps in this book, but she needs to do even more. Thomas, on the other hand, really needs to get his house in order. I hope that she keeps them as really good friends, mostly because it feels like it would be forced if they tried to be together, so I'm working on the third book in July. I hope they stay free to read through Kindle Unlimited until I get through the rest of the series.
• Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher - there's no review for this one because it was a re-read. The second season of the Netflix series came out and I thought I would read the book again. I read it mostly in one day again and it felt good to get through it. I still haven't watched the series, as I'm not sure if I want to at this point, but I should probably give it a try. We'll see. At the moment, I'm really not wanting to.
• This Is Not a Test by Courtney Summers - Review - someone in a review I read about the book said this is Breakfast Club meets Dawn of the Dead. Truer words were never spoken. Now, I picked up this book on a whim. I was like "hmm, interesting title, I'll try it" and I never read the back. This was one of the books that I couldn't put down because of the pacing and the writing. You felt like you were there, outrunning the zombies, and wondering when it would end. The tension was there and, even though it was sometimes teenage drama, it didn't feel fake or that it was there for the sake of filling pages. Everything had a purpose and it was powerful storytelling. There is a novella / short story that goes after it, told in the voice of the main male character, that I do want to read. I just haven't gotten around to it yet.

So, that's what I read in June. I'm close to my yearly goal of 30 books and will up it to 50 when I hit 30. And then to 60 when I hit 50 and so on. What did you read in June and did any book just hit you in the gut? Or perhaps grabbed your brain and dragged you along for the ride? Leave a comment and, until next time, happy reading.