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Posts tagged with: writing life
Mystery Author Turns to Fatalism… and the World Is a Happier PlacePosted by Kate Carlisle Apr 25 2012, 12:05 am in Kate Carlisle, writer's life, writing life
The woman at the register rang up the ink, and her eyes widened. “You could buy a new printer for that!” she said. “Not when I’ve got this kind of money invested in this one,” I assured her, even though my printer has never worked the way it should.
The scales fell from my eyes during my many calls to tech support, trying to get the wireless function to work. Each call took several hours, and I promise I’m not exaggerating that to make you pity me. I was on the cell phone so long that I started to worry I was giving myself brain cancer. Part of the reason the calls took so long was because the tech support people would talk me through the same steps every time – even when I told them that I had already gone through those steps with the last person I talked to. I had to start from the beginning every single time, going through the steps that already hadn’t worked. I saw occasional glimmers of hope. On one bright Tuesday morning, a paper I scanned did miraculously appear on my computer screen. The paper said, “I HATE MY PRINTER!!!” and I never got it to work again.
Starting that day, when I needed to print or scan something, I lugged my laptop into the office, plugged it in, did the deed, and got on with my life. I have embraced fatalism, and it works for me. So much so, that I’m willing to spend $79 on ink. Plus tax. I’ve decided to try the same tactic with other minor annoyances in my life. The raised toilet seat, the friend who keeps calling my home phone even though I’ve told her a hundred times I prefer to use my cell, the person with twelve items in the ten-items-or-less lane. My world will be a happier place if I stop trying to change what cannot be changed. How do you feel about your printer? Does anyone have a wireless printer that works as a wireless printer and, if so, what kind is it? Have you embraced fatalism about anything in your life? If so, how’s it working for you? Odds and SodsPosted by Anna Campbell May 10 2011, 4:02 am in Anna Campbell, historical romance, National Trust, research, Seaton Delaval Hall, writing life
As most of you know (because so many of you very generously popped over to support me on my blog tour and various other promo efforts – thank you!), I’ve recently had a book out. MIDNIGHT’S WILD PASSION hit the stands on 26th April and I’ve been talking to readers all over via interviews, blogs and in person. One question that often comes up is where do I get my ideas. And I always answer (because it’s true) that I get ideas everywhere. To give you an example, a couple of days ago I was reading the English National Trust magazine – I have a friend who very kindly sends them to me and they’re a goldmine of quirky social history – and I came across the sort of thing that might well spark a story idea.
Hmm, I can see a blog coming up on him too! See what I mean about ideas being everywhere? Anyway, back to my piece on Seaton Delaval Hall!
Here’s a link to the National Trust site for the house: http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-seaton-delaval-hall When I was reading this NT magazine, I came across a fascinating bit of history that really set my synapses firing. In the grounds there’s an impressive mausoleum (pictured below) containing the remains of John Seaton who died at the age of twenty. Here’s the quote: “John, the heir of the Seatons, perished in 1775, having been kicked in a vital organ by a laundry maid to whom he was paying addresses. Thus died the last of the Delavals by the foot of a buxom slut. Over the broken remains of so much hope…his father raised a temple.”
Not the way you want your aristocratic line to come to an end (I’d say ‘sticky end’ but that might be gilding the lily!). Now these few lines are interesting for a whole stack of reasons. Did she kick him where we think she did? I suspect she might have!
Then there’s the very revealing language. Surely calling a lower-class girl defending herself against a predatory sprig of the aristocracy a ‘slut’ is a bit of a misnomer! Again, a sad indication of the position of women although I love the descriptive detail of ‘buxom’ – it gives you a vivid picture of her! More power to her left foot! Was this action the tragic end of a long and loving relationship? Cue chance to put in a very nice picture of Robin Ellis and Angharad Rees in the POLDARK series.
More importantly, could our feisty washerwoman be the heroine of a romance novel? You know, I think she’s got potential! Or could our wincing would-be rake be the hero? He’d need to be a bit more robust but I could definitely imagine a bit of sparky dialogue over the washing line if we wrote him as a sexy beast. Could our laundry maid be a runaway aristocrat? Charis without having enlisted Gideon’s help? Grace trying to make a living after they repossessed the farm? The laundry maid isn’t that far away from previous heroines I’ve written and she shares the strength of character which I like to give my girls. At this stage, I have no intention of writing MY RECKLESS WASHING MACHINE or CLAIMING THE CLOTHES PEGS but you can see how a quirky incident like this sparks ideas that go on to spark other ideas and so on until you’ve got the basis for a book. Surviving the Ups and DownsPosted by Nancy Northcott Mar 2 2011, 5:20 am in Gerri Russell, writing life
Today’s visit, though, will be a little different, as Gerri will explain. Welcome, Gerri! No matter how successful fiction novelists are, they will always have ups and downs in their careers. Sometimes the downs come because of a changing market, a change in technology, or in my case lately, a change within my own publishing house. It’s no secret that Dorchester Publishing has been going through some difficult times, as have their authors. But being the “glass is half full” kind of person that I am, I’m choosing to look upon what’s happened to me and my books over the past year as an opportunity for change. You will not find my book in any brick and mortar book store, and very soon you will not find them in electronic form either, because the rights for all of my books, five published and two yet-to-be-published works, will revert to me by the end of this month. Personally, it will be a moment of great celebration and the beginning of something new and wonderful. I love being in the lair with the Romance Bandits. I’ve visited here before when I’ve had new releases and great things to share. But I wanted to slip into the lair today to share something else that I’ve learned over the past year, and that is how to ride the highs and lows of a writing career without losing balance or momentum. Whether you’re just getting started in your career, you’re an experienced writer in or out of a slump, or a reader who wonders why their favorite authors are not publishing new books at the moment, I hope the following tips will help. 1. Diversify your writing. Every writer, fiction or otherwise, must always look for new writing opportunities. This way, if you do stumble into a slump with one publisher or one specific genre, you’ll have another area to develop. 2. Maintain a blog or a website. Having a place to regularly write not only validates you as a writer, it’s a great place to explore your interests, allow for visiting “experts”, and allows you to grow as a writer in your own skills and in educating/entertaining your audience. 3. Do some sort of work that is not writing-related. Do something for yourself that either feeds your passion or your pocketbook. Finding ways to get away from your writing helps with the insecurities that come with our chosen profession by generating new ideas, writing inspiration, character developments, plot twists, etc. By leaving the writing behind, it truly helps keep the creative juices flowing, and sometimes helps deal with the financial droughts that come with the job as well. 4. Network with other writers and other professionals. Spend time with other writers in groups such as Romance Writers of America, Mystery Writers of America, etc. But also explore opportunities to be with other professionals as well. Find other organizations that cater to entrepreneurs where you can network and share ideas and energy with people who are building and maintaining their own businesses. Learn how they cope with the highs and lows of success. For more about Gerri and her work, visit her website. Do you have any other tips to share? How have you made it through a difficult time in your life or your career? Pet Peeves… and a Moment of ZenPosted by Christina Brooke Sep 11 2010, 4:20 am in calming practices, Christine Wells, Jo Beverley, peeves, writing life Do you find yourself getting irritated for very little cause these days? When I worked in a legal firm, I would often put in twelve hour days and work on the weekends, too. Life was fast-paced and stressful. And I found myself getting irritated at the least little thing in the world outside that went against me. I had so many pet peeves, I could have filled a zoo. I’ve left that life now, but I still feel the stress of deadlines and balancing writing and family life. We’re about to start a house renovation and won’t that do a lot to improve my blood pressure? Here are just some of my pet(ty) peeves: *People who leave the toilet seat up, which is closely tied to people who refuse to replace an empty toilet paper roll *People who assume that because I am at home with children my time is less valuable than theirs *Litter in public places–how hard is it to find a bin/trash can? *People who spend the entire train ride talking loudly on their cell phone *Rudeness from people in the “hospitality” industry. *Sultanas. I wish sultanas had never been invented. Nasty, squishy little surprises that creep in to all sorts of food that would otherwise be delicious… Uh, sorry. See what I mean? The more stressed we get the more petty our peeves become.
How do you let go of stress? I’ve found some things that work–exercise, especially yoga, hypnosis, meditation. I imagine a session with the boxing gloves would help(though the only time I tried it I couldn’t lift my arms without pain for a week!) Sometimes, all it takes is reminding myself that this time next week I’ll have forgotten all about this particular incident. Have a little tolerance, for goodness’ sake! OK, so tell me your day to day pet peeves… and now tell me how you decompress. I’d love to add some strategies to my list! Are You a Man or a Mousse?Posted by Anna Campbell Mar 10 2010, 5:10 am in Anna Campbell, dessert, food, writing life
Warning! Warning! Danger, Will Robinson! This post contains at least 3,000 calories! Ah, I love it when I get my just desserts! I mean the sort of meal where I just have dessert! Sigh. Swoon. Whoops, there goes another 10,000 calores. Or perhaps I should say HERE COME another 10,000 calores! But what a way to go!
That burst of delicious sweetness that ends a perfect meal! The good bit with the chocolate or the lemon meringue or the cherries marinated in brandy. For me, never strawberries. It always shocks people but I can’t stand strawberries. Kind of ironic as I grew up in Australia’s strawberry-growing capital. We even had a strawberry festival every year which had contests like who could eat the most strawberries.
Desserts are on my mind right now because I’ve recently had a wonderful weekend with my writing friends Denise Rossetti and fantastic Bandita Christine Wells. I love hosting the girls – I’m always sad when they go home! One of the many things I love about these visits is that I get to play hostess with the mostess and put together some fancy meals. We always have a seafood feast with oysters and prawns and smoked salmon and Moreton Bay bugs (which are considerably yummier than they sound – a bit like a mini lobster). I do roast chicken and my roast potatoes which I have to say are a masterpiece of nature. Seriously worth visiting Australia to try!
I have a couple of failsafe desserts that I tend to make until my guests are screaming with horror at the idea of yet another tiramisu. Actually to be 100% honest, I’ve never actually had that happen but I’m sure it could. Well, maybe not… Anyway, chocolate mousse is one of those desserts. Easy, yummy, rich, and the perfect ending to any meal. And everybody loves it!
Welcome to the Club!Posted by admin Feb 18 2009, 5:39 am in Aunty Cindy explains it all for you, writing life posted by Aunty Cindy aka Loucinda McGary Long ago in those dark and endless days when I was still AYU (As Yet Unpublished) I spent waaay too much time deep in the Pit of Despair plagued by Doubt Demons. I agonized over every submission. Second guessed myself. Fretted and stressed out about a lot of stuff over which I had no control whatsoever! Was my query letter too long? Too short? Catchy enough? Too cutesy to be professional? Would I ever find an editor who would actually READ my proposal, much less love it enough to make that all important OFFER? Should I send an email after three months? Six? Why couldn’t I find an agent willing to take me on as a client? (Okay, still working on that one!) Or even REPLY to my queries? Why did that contest judge give me an 8.5 instead of a 9.0? And what did she mean about my hero’s character arc? How much could he have in the first chapter? Shoulda… Woulda… Coulda… Ah yes, my lovelies, yer olde Aunty was a founding member of the Quivering, Insecure Worry Warts club! QIWW for short. Almost every AYU writer I knew was a card carrying member of the same club. But SOMEDAY! Yes, someday when we were no longer AYU and had reached the exhaulted status of Published Authors, everything would be different! IF ONLY! The sad fact is, that being published has merely replaced all those worries with a whole load of new ones.
Will reviewers? Will I get a decent cover? Will anyone give me a cover quote? Will I sell enough copies to cover my advance? Will my editor love my next book enough to buy it? Will readers? Reviewers? And so it goes… The fretting, the stress, the doubt demons are all still there! I’m still a card carrying member of the QIWW Club and looks like I will be for quite a long time! What about you? Do you worry about things, even if you have no control over them? You can share them with yer olde Aunty. ‘Fess up! Are you a member of the QIWW Club? Lost Keys, CPs & Getting A CluePosted by admin Nov 18 2008, 5:49 am in Aunty Cindy explains it all for you, Critiquing, writing life posted by Aunty Cindy aka Loucinda McGary
NOBODY pounds on my door. First, they must brave Aunty’s stalwart protectors the Pug-wa-wa and the Yorkie Unholy Terrier (aka Scylla and Charybdis). Should they happen to But last Thursday at the ungodly hour of 8:30 a.m. someone dared Scylla and Charybdis (who were barking like the hounds of Hades) to knock… LOUDLY! Figuring it must be something dire, I crawled out of bed, stumbled to the door, and peered through the security peep hole. I recognized the young man standing there in baggy shorts and flip-flops as my new neighbor who had introduced himself to the DH and me just last weekend. Scylla and Charybdis nipped at his bare ankles.
I let him in. I figured if the poor guy was desperate enough to brave my dogs and to see me in my jammies with no make-up and bed-head, he deserved one phone call! Later that afternoon, I met my wonderfully talented critique partner, Jo-Mama for brainstorming and going over chapters of our works-in-progress. I’ve just started a new Irish tale that doesn’t even have a title yet. Beginnings are always difficult for me. I never quite know where to jump into the story, and I don’t know my characters as well as I will a few chapters in. Plus, I’ve been having separation anxiety ever since The Wild Sight hit bookstores. (Will people LURVE my baby? Will readers “get” me and my story? Will I sell more than a dozen copies?) I truly was wandering around feeling like the new story had locked me out! Keyless and clueless. THANK GOODNESS for talented and insightful CPs! I swear, many times they have more knowledge of my WIP than I do. In the course of our discussion last Thursday afternoon, it quickly became apparent to me that BOOM! The lock opened and I had a lot more insight into my character. (Have I mentioned lately how much I LURVE my CP? That she is worth her weight in GOLD? And no, I will NOT share her!) I went home and made some well-placed revisions on my chapter that I know made it and my heroine so much stronger! Sometimes the smallest thing can make such a big difference. Ask my poor neighbor, who stopped me yesterday to thank me again and tell me, “You really saved my life the other day.” I just said, “You’re welcome.” No need to tell him that he provided the inspiration for my blog post, is there? What about you? Ever been keyless or clueless? When was the last time something small made a BIG difference to you? A Harvest of ExpectationsPosted by admin Oct 21 2008, 4:44 am in Aunty Cindy explains it all for you, harvest, writing life posted by Aunty Cindy aka Loucinda McGary Since it’s the harvest season here in the Western hemisphere, and time for sowing and new beginnings for our buddies down under, I’ve been thinking about the whole cycle of planting and reaping and anticipating rewards. Most of the time, when I do something, I have certain expectations of the When I began my journey to publication, I had some definite expectations, some realistic and others not so much. I also developed new expectations as I went along, and each milestone along the way had me changing, discarding, and even achieving new and different expectations.
And speaking of benefits… I’ve experienced many unexpected and wonderful ones! When I finalled in the 2006 Golden Heart, I had some pretty big expectations, but I never thought I’d meet nineteen of the best friends I’ve ever had! I Over a year ago, when I sold my first book, I knew that ultimately I would see my dream of publication come true. Well, just a few days ago I finally saw my first book on the store shelves, but now I know that this is only part of the harvest that I’ve enjoyed and will continue to enjoy for a long time to come. Thanks to the magic of the internet, I know that my book is in libraries all over the country and in the hands of readers all around the world! And I What about you? Where are you in the process of sowing and harvesting? What kinds of expectations have you had that happened or didn’t? Care to share some unexpected rewards? Fictional FamiliesPosted by admin Aug 18 2008, 4:09 am in Aunty Cindy explains it all for you, character, writing craft, writing life posted by Aunty Cindy Not long ago, I was working on the back stories for the main characters in my latest proposal. I decided my hero’s father had recently passed away and his mother died a long time ago. That’s when I realized how many fictional characters are orphans or have at least one deceased family member, usually a parent. But then I started looking at some other books I’ve read… I hope it’s not too much for a spoiler to reveal that Donna’s Mrs. Brimley is an orphan, as are Christine’s heroine Gemma in Scandal’s Daughter and Anna C.’s Verity in Claiming the Courtesan. Poor Gemma and Mrs. Brimley don’t even have siblings! At least Verity and my heroes and heroines also have a sibling or two, though usually in my stories the sib turns out to be a bossy older sister. (Can’t imagine where I came up with such a character!) Could it be that characters who have a “normal” family (whatever that is!) are just not good fodder for stories? Must a character be orphaned or suffer the loss of a family member to be interesting? Who Was That Masked (Wo)Man?Posted by admin Jun 18 2008, 5:32 am in Aunty Cindy explains it all for you, character, writing life posted by Aunty Cindy
The “real” me was the stranger, aloof, untouchable, and she obviously scared people who got a glimpse of her. My (then) husband, my mother, my best friend… Sometimes she even scared ME! I had to keep her well hidden, but I always knew she was there, lurking behind those other masks — familiar masks that made her acceptable, able to blend in. But I cherished my stranger, because Billy was right, she wasn’t always evil and she wasn’t always wrong. While we often traded secrets, the other life and the stranger
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