Insight

First, let me explain how I write. I, unfortunately, do not write with a plan or outline in place. This is against every writing rule I was taught in school and every one I’ve read since putting my fingers to the keyboard to begin Immortal in 2010. This means I throw out a lot of what I write. Immortal alone I started over five times and probably threw out 80,000 words.

The reason I’m telling all of you this is three fold.

1)      For those who are writing or aspiring to write: Don’t give up. I have the worst writing habits in the world, yet I persisted, and because of it, Immortal and Forever were created.

2)      This means I am not a fast writer. If you add in the fact that I also have a full time job, two kids, and a husband, as well as writing but I hate excuses. I know, as a fan waiting over a year for Mass Effect 3 and three years three months for Inheritance by Christopher Paolini (see I’m a bigger dork than you thought) to come out I really do understand the frustration of waiting for the next book or game or even movies to be released.

3)      This also means that my most frequently asked question: When will Eternity, the third book in the Immortal Trilogy, be released? This question is actually hardest for me to answer. I would chalk it up there with Stephenie Meyers being asked about Midnight Sun. I know you all want a date now and the sooner the better. The thing is I needed a break from Immortal not a long break but a little one. Hence, the reason I am working on Here After my new series. I promise afterward I will be back to work on Eternity.

I hope this gives you some insight into what I’m doing and I hope you’re all willing to hang in there with me. The wait will be worth it.

Stuck in the Middle

You’ve finally committed.  You started writing your novel. Everything is going great. The plot is coming together the characters are awesome and connect with each other and you. Then the unthinkable happens.  Nothing at all.  That’s right you’ve spent weeks months or even years and now you’re stuck right in the middle of the story. You know where it should go, but you can’t see how to get it there.

This is not really the same as writers block though you could say they are cousins. You keep writing, but it just feels like you are spinning your wheels. How do you combat being stuck in the middle?

1) Keep writing. The end may be closer than you think.
2) Skip ahead. Movies aren’t shot in order so who says you have to write that way.
3) Realize you aren’t alone. The middle is usually the make or break part of a novel. Not because it is the most important part, but because it is where most writers give up. The beginning of a novel is easy you go in all revved up and start strong. The ending is easy as well as you can see the finish line. The middle is that bleak spot where you can get lost and lose sight of the prize at the end.
4) Don’t give up. Recommit yourself to finishing. You’re in the middle of the forest now and the only way out is to continue forward.

It's Not About The Money

I’ve been debating about what my first blog entry of the New Year should be. I wanted it to be something inspiring but real. I just couldn’t come up with anything until a conversation with my husband.

We were talking about finances. Not an uncommon topic after spending a little too much on the kids at Christmas.

He said (jokingly), “You need to hurry up and make me rich.”

My reply, “It’s not about the money. Money is just a perk.” As I heard the words reverberate in my head it struck a chord. That’s when I realized how true those words are for me.

I know some people go into different field with dreams of making it big whether it be a lawyer, doctor, or writer. For them it is what motivates them to excel at their chosen profession. This is not me.

I am motivated by the occasional quiet thank you or you did a great job. As an author this comes in the form of fan mail and positive reviews. It also comes from those quiet moments when I feel that I accomplished something wonderful no matter how small.

Killing Off a Main Character

I’ve made the choice. I’ve written the scene. It fits. It feels right. I feel awful.

We all feel something for our main characters as we write them love, hate, annoyance. They grow in our heads from a mere idea until they take shape and have desires and wills of their own. Sometimes I feel like an overbearing mother telling them they are going to do what I say. They simply look at me, cross their arms, stamp their feet, and tell me no.

The problem comes when they start telling you that it is time to let them go. Sometimes you can talk them off the ledge and figure a way around it, but not this time at least not for me. I feel horrible about doing it and even worse given the circumstances surrounding the death.

Life Gets in the Way

I love writing. Guess that is pretty obvious considering I have completed one novel, and I am hard at work on the second. Getting to write is much easier said than done. Writing creates a unique set of problems.

One, it is a singular and isolating event. It takes you out of your environment and off to some distant place or another life in your head.  In this way it is very similar to reading, though when reading you don’t have to worry about how that last word was spelled or if you used the right word (peaked and piqued both sound the same which one is the correct word again).

Second, trying to find the time to sit down and write is much harder than everyone thinks. Usually you start heading for your computer and then remember just as your fanny hits the chair that the laundry needs to be switched over, or you will have to leave in ten minutes on that errand you forgot about. So you stare at the screen wanting to write, but unable to do so.

Third, people don’t realize what it is you are doing. Kids, spouses, and friends don’t realize when you sit down at the computer you are not getting on to surf the web and play games. You are working. The fact that the device you are working on is used for relaxation for them and not for you is lost on them. They also see no problem with the constant interruptions that are flung at you. After all you’re in the middle of the living room.

There are many suggestions about how to combat these issues, but at least for me they don’t seem to work. I can’t lock my door and ignore the world outside of it. As far as the interruptions, I have a better chance of becoming an astronaut and flying to the moon than being able to write undisturbed for longer than five minutes. Still, I write and though life may get in the way I find it an enjoyable and wonderful way to spend those five minutes I get for myself.

To B!#%p or Not to B!#%p

Most of us hear or use curse words on a fairly regular basis. Sometimes they are used for effect, to make our point clearer, or even to make a joke. Sometime they are used without us even noticing. We hear them on television on a nearly daily basis. They are even in the music we sing along too. So, why not in our books?

I have to say that in everyday conversation and most media the swear words pass me by without me even noticing. Occasionally, they call my attention such as when my supervisor uses them in a staff meeting as he yelling at us.

The one place they are sure to catch my attention is in my reading. When I read/ hear the word coming out of someone’s mouth or even in their head I feel the full impact of it. I am shocked
                                           and often dismayed. Which makes me wonder why?
                                           We use them, we hear them, and we sing them.  Why not write them?

Working on Forever

Working on the followup to Immortal.  Forever has a much darker presence than its predecessor. It can be frustrating though as I progress. It is mostly that I am actually writing to a deadline this time and I have to keep up with school.

I'm finding myself loosing motivation for school.  I keep telling myself, I only have two semesters left.  It just isn't helping. I really just want to write. It stinks that you have to have a back up plan (or at least I do) for everything.

I'll keep working on Forever.  I just don't want to force it or put out anything that isn't as perfect as I can make it.  Have to love being a perfectionist.  Well back to work on Forever and tomorrow back to school work (uggg).

Writing is the easy part...

Ok, as you all know I completed my first novel, Immortal back in May. Yeah :) I never thought that would be the easy part.  It took me nearly a year and a half to complete and I ended up with five major revisions as I went through. The final book showed little if any resemblance to the final product. 

It took the next month and revised and edited to get it ready to send out to agents and took about a week to write a query letter. From what I have read and looked into a week on a query letter isn't nearly enough. Most it would seem to take an average of 3 months to get their letter in order.

Flash forward- After two months of sending out letters and getting the dreaded thanks but no thanks, I stumbled on an article about Amanda Hocking on Writer's Digest. She self-published earlier this year and has done quite well. It was an idea to tempting not to look into.

Flash-forward two weeks. After much research I decided to follow her example and e-publish.
It took me several days of extensive formatting to get it ready for upload and another few days to find and format the cover (by far my favorite part of the process). I have since placed made my novel available on Smashwords and Kindle and this weekend managed to get it up on Lulu.com in paperback.

Considering all the time, effort and energy this process took it is nothing compared with marketing.  Let's face it that is what every author, writer, blogger, and YouTube addict is doing and dreaming about. Getting those clicks and viewers to their site.  How do we do this? There are books, sites, and videos about how to do all this. In the end though it takes time time and more time. Finding the right sites to post on, networking with those you want to reach, and most of all luck.

Immortal

I have recently completed my first novel. I am considering e-publishing or going 'Indie' with my novel Immortal. I have gotten much feedback on the forum and via my page on Writer's Digest (link below). I know, and understand that by going the 'Indie' route, I may not be the next main stream author or millionaire, but I hope to be read.  This is a blog about my journey to get published and be read.

http://community.writersdigest.com/profile/Lauren
Unfotunately, you will need a Writer's Digest account to view this page page. The account is free.