Being A Horse

First off, I hope everyone had a great holiday with family and friends. I had a fabulous time eating, skating, sledding, sliding down water slides, eating some more, and even became a new aunt. She almost had it on my birthday, only 41 minutes late. Anniversary and birthday have been great and looking forward to New Years.

On to the post:

In the past I have been known as a bit of a clothes horse. I love buying new clothes almost as much as I love chocolate, okay maybe even more. As a teenager I refused to go to the Saturday night dance unless I had something new to wear. This trend continued into married life, much to my husband's chagrin.

Now since I'm a whole year older, I've become a bit more mature. In fact, this year for my birthday, my mom bought me a belt and a wallet. Very practical items, things I needed.

Although my hunger for clothes has abated somewhat in the past few months, I've boughten way more books than I ever have before. Now I'm becoming a book horse. I have my own bookshelf where I've divided my books up by genre. The truth is I have a lot of books I haven't even read yet, but I like looking at them on my book shelf.

So for a New Year's resolution I'm determined to buy only the clothes I need, which won't be any and I won't buy anymore books until I read the ones I have.

Oh wait. I do have a gift certificate to the GAP that my husband got me for my birthday. And Kimberley Derting's book "The Body Finder", comes out in March. Also the book "The Secret Year" by Jennifer Hubbard looked good. Then there's the sequels to Wings (Spells), Shiver (Linger), the third book in the Hunger Game series. In June, Northanger Alibi by Jenni James comes out and then there's Paranormalcy by Kiersten White. Plus so many more.

Okay forget the New Year's resolution. It looks like 2010 will be a great year for shopping for clothes and books.

Merry Christmas

This is my last post until next week. I'm off for a week of celebration. Christmas Eve, Christmas, Anniversary, Birthday, New Year's Eve, all within one week.

Remember the real reason for the season and have a wonderful Christmas with family and friends.

Kissing Day

Warning: Extreme awkwardness ahead.

In lieu of kissing blog day here is my attempt at a not so romantic kissing scene.

After their initial meeting, Kate remained undecided about whether she wanted to return Oliver’s affections. He spent a whole month carrying supplies to her house, helping her father mend fences, and giving her thousands of compliments every day. In the end, it took him standing up to a much larger man who wanted to walk her home. Of course he had received a broken nose for his efforts, but Kate finally relented and gave Oliver permission to court her.

For a month they just walked beside one another holding hands. Six months later, she allowed him to give her a peck on the cheek. Then the day came. She took his hand in hers and stared deep into his eyes. “It’s time Oliver.”

“Time for what?”

“You may kiss me now.”

Oliver swallowed hard and stared at her with wide eyes. It was one thing to let a kiss happen, quite another to be told to do it, especially since he had never kissed a girl in his life. She closed her eyes and sat still, waiting for him to bend forward and meet her sweet full lips with his. He took a deep breath, puckered up, and closed his eyes. He leaned in and almost missed her completely. Instead of landing on her lips, he grazed her right cheek. After opening his eyes to get his bearings, he slid his mouth to the left and just barely touched his lips to hers. When he tried to draw away, she pulled him closer, extending the kiss. She probed his mouth with her tongue, causing saliva to drip down onto his chin. He found it difficult to breath, but didn’t dare back away until she did.

After the kiss, she insisted on a proposal with a date to be set after he was made a Defender.

It's still rough, but nevertheless there it is.

Happy Kissing Day.

Playing Tag

Last week I got tagged by Mim and Carolyn to do a meme. I can't believe I'm writing those words. A year ago I didn't even know what that meant.

So here it goes:

1. What's the last thing you wrote? What's the first thing you wrote that you still have?
The last thing I wrote was three pages for my new superhero project. A book I wrote when I was fourteen.

2. Write poetry?
I’m not very poetic

3. Angsty poetry?
See above

4. Favorite genre of writing?
Young Adult Fantasy

5. Most annoying character you've ever created?
I think it will be the dad in my new WIP or Kate in my other project.

6. Best Plot you've ever created?
A damsel in distress twist. A hidden city. A girl with super powers, who'd rather shop than save the world.

7. Coolest Plot twist you've ever created?
See above.

8. How often do you get writer's block?
Too many times to keep track of.

9. Write fan fiction?
No.

10. Do you type or write by hand?
Typing all the way, I type much faster than I write. Although in the planning stages I like to write.

11. Do you save everything you write?
I save everything. If I make one small change, I save the previous version.

12. Do you ever go back to an idea after you've abandoned it?
I have.

13. What's your favorite thing you've ever written?
That’s like picking which child is your favorite.

14. What's everyone else's favorite story that you've written?
Probably the book I’ve finished, since that’s the only thing anyone else has read.

15. Ever written romance or angsty teen drama?
When I was living it.

16. What's your favorite setting for your characters?
Don't really have one.

17. How many writing projects are you working on right now?
I seem to always be revising my first project. I have a damsel in distress with dragons and everything project and now super hero girl.

18. Have you ever won an award for your writing?
Afraid not, but I guess you would have to enter a competition to win something.

19. What are your five favorite words?
I love the name Oliver. If I were to get pregnant again and have a boy, I’d name him Oliver. But that’s never going to happen, so I’ll have to settle for a character (or two). I don’t know if they’re my favorite words or the vain of my existence. Only, Turned, Looked, and Around.

20. What character have you created that is most like yourself?
Evie, I'm a little insecure.

21. Where do you get ideas for your characters?
I have a character or a plot. It never seems to be both. Then when I start writing a little bit the rest seems to come.

22. Do you ever write based on your dreams?
I’ve tried, but I never remember them in the morning and I’m too lazy to get up and write them down in the middle of the night.

23. Do you favor happy endings?
Are there any other kinds.

24. Are you concerned with spelling and grammar as you write?
Sometimes.

25. Does music help you write?
Sometimes.

26. Quote something you've written. Whatever pops into your head.
I didn’t fall into a vat of toxic waste, nor did I get hit with a cosmic ray gun, but for some reason on the morning of my sixteenth birthday I woke up with the ability to fly.

Okay now for the tagging part. I'll close my eyes, spin around and choose. Lois because she's in my critique group and I want to see her answers. And Tabitha because unlike me she's very poetic.

Participation

Whenever I have to teach, whether it be at church or at work, I always use the method of class led discussions. This method prompts a more interesting class and less work on my part. I'd like to think that I use this technique on my blog. You guys are a wealth of knowledge through either personal experience or study. I learn so much from each of your comments and your blogs. So don't think of me as lazy, but as mediator of debate.

On to other news.

My friend and fellow blogger Heidi had her launch day for her book "Some Kind of Normal" on Monday. Go check out her blog for more details.

I've always wanted to write a super hero book. I've been obsessed with them since I was a kid and watched the Wonder Twins activate. The other day I just started writing, had no clue what the story was going to be, but as I wrote it prompted ideas and now I have another project to work on. Funny how that works.

Voice

Every time, well not every time because rarely does anything happen in absolutes, but more often than not when people call my house they ask if my dad is home. I used to say you mean my husband, and the caller would get all embarrassed, so lately I just answer, "Yes. Just a minute."

Sometimes they clue into the fact that I answered the phone and say to my husband, "That was your wife, wasn't it?"

I think my voice is deep, but apparently when I answer the phone I sound like my seven year old daughter.

This got me wondering, as things usually do. What does my voice sound like when it can only be read?

Can you tell what kind of person I am just by reading my blog. Do you think I'm witty, shy, outgoing, whiny, or snarky? (That question was rhetorical)

I have a hard time reading my work out loud because I'm not entirely fond of my voice, but I think it's a must.

First you discover things that you wouldn't normally notice by reading your work in your head. Echoes is a big one for me, or awkward sentences. I can tell when I haven't read something out loud because it doesn't flow the way I want it to.

Second, it's so important to show what kind of person your characters by using just your words that sometimes when you read out loud, you get a better sense of your characters.

How about you are there any other reasons you can think of for reading your words out loud?

What would you refuse to give up...

A recent study asked the question, what would you refuse to give up even if it added five healthy years to your life?

Surprisingly people wouldn't give up TV, alcohol, or red meat.

Since I don't drink, giving up alcohol would be easy, but TV and red meat I'm not so sure, especially after watching last night's Glee.

I started making a list of modern conveniences and wondered if I'd be willing to give them up.

Microwave, dishwasher, cell phone (I think I could do that one), internet, DVD's, ipods, email, washer and dryer, spandex, and of course chocolate.

It's hard to think of giving up something we've become so accustom to using.

How about you is there something you'd refuse to give up, or something in this modern era you could definitely do without?

Waiting

We interrupt this blog with a scene from my favorite
movie. Can you name the movie?

Inigo: Hello there! Slow going?

Dread Pirate Roberts:

Look, I don't mean to be rude, but this
is not as easy as it looks, so I'd appreciate
it if you wouldn't distract me.

Inigo: Sorry.

Dread Pirate Roberts: [tersely] Thank you.

Inigo: I do not suppose you
could a-speed things up?

Dread Pirate Roberts: If you're in such a hurry,
you could lower a rope or a tree branch or find
something useful to do.

Inigo: I could do that. I still got some rope up
here, but I do not think you would accept my help,
since I am only waiting around to kill you.

Dread Pirate Roberts: That does put a damper
on our relationship.

Inigo: But, I promise I will not kill you until
you reach the top.

Dread Pirate Roberts: That's very comforting,
but I'm afraid you'll just have to wait.

Inigo: I hate waiting.
I could give you my word as a Spaniard..

Dread Pirate Roberts: No good.
I've known too many Spaniards.

Inigo: Is there not any way you'll trust me?

Dread Pirate Roberts: Nothing comes to mind.

Inigo: I swear, on the soul of my father,
Domingo Montoya, you will reach the top alive.

Dread Pirate Roberts: Throw me the rope.

Just reading that scene makes me smile. I love that movie.
What does it have to do with writing, you might ask.
Well, not much, except for the line “I hate waiting”.

This business is a true test of patience.
You wait each day for the perfect time to write.
When you’re done the first draft, you patiently
go through each chapter, editing each paragraph,
sentence, and word. When it’s done, you send it
to beta readers and wait for them to send it back.
Then you read through their advice and make further edits.

The waiting goes on and on and on.
Queries, partials, fulls….its never ending.

But I swear on my very own manuscript that if
patiently fix your manuscript and edit your work
there’s a much better chance you'll reach the top
with an agent and a book deal.

Here’s to waiting.

One Book Sold

I usually don't tell anyone I'm writing a book. Only a handful of people know. My family, my best friend, and my soccer team, and of course all of you.

So you can imagine my surprise when a lady at church today asked me when she could buy my book. "I want to buy it for my grand-daughter for Christmas," she said. How cute is that? After a short chuckle, and figuring out that my adorable nieces must have told her about my book, I patted her on the shoulder and said that it would probably be a couple of years before she could buy my book (hopefully). Then she said to me, "It's just so exciting, I've never met an author before", which totally made me smile.

Now at least I know one person will buy my book.

How do you decide?

I just read an excellent post by Natalie on the differences between YA and MG. Even though it was about the differences between the two genres, it got me thinking about why I chose to write YA. I love reading all genres, except horror and maybe mystery, although I've never really given either a chance.

When I look in my bookshelf I have my books divided into genres. Books on how to write, YA (mostly fantasy - but I'm trying to branch out), adult contemporary (Diana Gabaldon, according to my sister in law, saved her marriage), adult humor (love Nick Hornby and Larry Doyle is hysterical), and I also have a section of literary books.

So, since I love reading a lot of different books why do I love to write YA? I think it's because I fell in love with reading those MG and YA novels. Those books were my friends when I didn't have any at school. They helped me through some tough times in my teenage years, and since I'm the youngest child they were a good companion. I feel a connection to their stories and reading them makes me feel young because even though I'm inching closer to 40, I'm still 16 in my heart. Okay maybe not 16 that was a bad year, but definitely 17.

Why did you choose the genre you write in.

Life is getting busy - not that it wasn't already, but now it's really busy

So far December has been better. I got my root canal on Monday and my mouth already feels better, plus the dentist charged me $400 less than normal. I also received the go ahead to start practicing with my soccer team again. Good news all around,

Tonight I went to a parents meeting for my son's high school basketball team and we received his schedule for the next four months. Practice everyday for 2 hours, except on game days, which is once a week. Plus they're in six tournaments. We have one this weekend, and next.

I love basketball. I like playing it and I like watching it on TV (go Raptors), but I especially like watching my boys play. It brings me all kinds of joy. Now between my older sons games, my younger sons games, and my soccer games, it will be a busy winter. The thing is, I don't want to miss it. I want to be there for all of it, but I also know I need to find time to write.

So this post is actually a plea to my husband. Please buy me a laptop for Christmas and since my birthday and our anniversary are right after Christmas, you can consider it a combo gift.