Now that the kids are all back in school, and the lazy days of summer have come to a screeching halt, it's time for me to get moving again. Yes, it's so hot here in Phoenix, that we move as little as possible June through August. Sometimes into September. But my on-the-wrong-side-of-forty writer's body can't wait. So move I must.
As much as I believe in walking, the air here is awful. This summer's haboobs (it's a monstrous dust storm, but much more fun to say haboob) didn't help. And with high gas prices, driving to the mall just to walk is not doing my wallet any favors. Neither does the gym. My solution: I head to the Costco, stock up on AA batteries, and plug in the Wii.
You'd be surprised at what a good workout you can get from a video game. I prefer the original Wii Sports, which you can buy separately now for $20. First, I use my right hand to play Wii fitness, then a best three out of five tennis match, power hitting baseball, and finish up with a round of golf or ten frames of bowling. Next, I switch to my left and start all over again. The whole thing takes a good hour, and for the first week, my arms kill me. But I'm moving and feeling better. And discipline in one area (working out) spills over into another (writing). Now I'm ready to sit and write.
TIP: do not measure this workout on the scale. Muscle weighs more than fat. Use a measuring tape or how your clothes fit. I can tell it's working for me because now my shorts no longer cut off the circulation to my brain. Another writing plus!
Come move with me. If you don't feel better, I'll treat you to a zumba class.
¡Buen provecho!
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
¡TMI ay ay!
I've come to conclusion that my novel is a bad first date. You know, that date that gives way too much information up front and sends you running from the restaurant? The one you follow up with an uncomfortable text a few days later, if at all? I've been on that date. Heck, I've been that date. These days that text has been replaced by the rejection letters I've received for my book. Thankfully, that can be fixed.
Greater minds than mine have said that the first fifty pages of a first novel are more for the author than the reader and usually can be cut.
:::hanging head, raising hand:::
My bad habit tells me I have to give my reader all the information upfront so they can understand what's going on, why it's so important, and what to expect next. But half the fun of reading is DISCOVERY. I'll say it again: DISCOVERY.
Harry Potter wouldn't have been as satisfying if we knew that Snape (SPOILER ALERT) had loved Lilly so much that he was really protecting Harry all along. Nor Star Wars if we had known from episode one (the REAL one - for you youngsters, that would be episode four) that Darth Vader was Luke's father. Ok, that one's a movie, but it still works.
So I'm taking a good hard look at my first fifty pages. Maybe the history of the breaking of the world doesn't need to be there. Or how Wind, Water, Heat and Cold came to be. Or my main character's lineage. Yet. Giving all your information up front, while important for the writer to know, makes for a boring read. I not only want to hold the attention of my reader, but my agent, editor, and pubilsher as well. Even more so given that this is my first book.
But I got better at dating. So if I can get married, I can get published.
For more information on better beginnings, check out:
HOOKED by Les Edgerton, and
THE FIRST FIVE PAGES by Noah Lukeman
¡Buen Provecho!
Greater minds than mine have said that the first fifty pages of a first novel are more for the author than the reader and usually can be cut.
:::hanging head, raising hand:::
My bad habit tells me I have to give my reader all the information upfront so they can understand what's going on, why it's so important, and what to expect next. But half the fun of reading is DISCOVERY. I'll say it again: DISCOVERY.
Harry Potter wouldn't have been as satisfying if we knew that Snape (SPOILER ALERT) had loved Lilly so much that he was really protecting Harry all along. Nor Star Wars if we had known from episode one (the REAL one - for you youngsters, that would be episode four) that Darth Vader was Luke's father. Ok, that one's a movie, but it still works.
So I'm taking a good hard look at my first fifty pages. Maybe the history of the breaking of the world doesn't need to be there. Or how Wind, Water, Heat and Cold came to be. Or my main character's lineage. Yet. Giving all your information up front, while important for the writer to know, makes for a boring read. I not only want to hold the attention of my reader, but my agent, editor, and pubilsher as well. Even more so given that this is my first book.
But I got better at dating. So if I can get married, I can get published.
For more information on better beginnings, check out:
HOOKED by Les Edgerton, and
THE FIRST FIVE PAGES by Noah Lukeman
¡Buen Provecho!
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Book Review: OyMG by Amy Fellner Dominy. Mazel Tov to a wonderful read!
First of all, welcome back after what I hope was a wonderful summer for all! Be glad you weren't here: we are still hitting temperatures of 115 this week. Where ever you are, enjoy the weather - its got to be better than the Arizona desert.
Back to business.
I have a wonderful debut novel from a Phoenix author to recommend. Highly. OyMG by Amy Fellner Dominy is about fourteen-year-old Ellie who was born to argue, especially with her beloved Zeydeh (Jewish grandfather). So speech and debate became her likely passion, until she meets a young man at speech camp with her same gifts and talents. Did I mention he was hot? Complicating the issue of first love is that she is at a Christian speech camp. As her Zeydeh says, "We've been arguing with Christians for two thousand years. You have to go to camp to argue more?" Furthermore, she's competing for a scholarship to a prestigious high school she desperately wants to attend and cannot afford. But when the scholarship's benefactor, the hot young man's grandmother, makes it clear that being Jewish is certainly not going to help her, Ellie must decide if she's willing to hide her Jewish identity, and outspoken Zeydeh, in order to get what she wants. Oy vey!
I loved this book! Amy Fellner Dominy captures the realistic casualness of having parents from two different backgrounds, when you don't strongly identify with one side over the other. I didn't have a Zeydeh, but I had a Tata (Mexican grandfather). I wasn't half Jewish like Ellie, but half Mexican. So, like Ellie, people couldn't always tell exactly who/what I was. Dominy expresses precisely what can happen when people assume you're something you're not, and how easy it is to allow them to, especially when you're afraid that you may be something they may not like. Or hate. The pressure, and temptation, to conform is so strong in teens (and, let's admit it, in adults, too) that this story is a tale for everyone. There are no stereotypes here, just complex characters interacting with one another. Ellie is a wonderfully realistic young teen. She knows what she wants and how to get it, but eventually realizes she can't live with that. And she shouldn't have to. I cheered for her at her big moment as will everyone reading it. OyMG is faced-paced, well told, funny, and poignant. And while you're being entertained, you just might learn a thing or two without even knowing it. So don't be a meshuggina, go get yourself a copy today.
Enjoy!
Back to business.
I have a wonderful debut novel from a Phoenix author to recommend. Highly. OyMG by Amy Fellner Dominy is about fourteen-year-old Ellie who was born to argue, especially with her beloved Zeydeh (Jewish grandfather). So speech and debate became her likely passion, until she meets a young man at speech camp with her same gifts and talents. Did I mention he was hot? Complicating the issue of first love is that she is at a Christian speech camp. As her Zeydeh says, "We've been arguing with Christians for two thousand years. You have to go to camp to argue more?" Furthermore, she's competing for a scholarship to a prestigious high school she desperately wants to attend and cannot afford. But when the scholarship's benefactor, the hot young man's grandmother, makes it clear that being Jewish is certainly not going to help her, Ellie must decide if she's willing to hide her Jewish identity, and outspoken Zeydeh, in order to get what she wants. Oy vey!
I loved this book! Amy Fellner Dominy captures the realistic casualness of having parents from two different backgrounds, when you don't strongly identify with one side over the other. I didn't have a Zeydeh, but I had a Tata (Mexican grandfather). I wasn't half Jewish like Ellie, but half Mexican. So, like Ellie, people couldn't always tell exactly who/what I was. Dominy expresses precisely what can happen when people assume you're something you're not, and how easy it is to allow them to, especially when you're afraid that you may be something they may not like. Or hate. The pressure, and temptation, to conform is so strong in teens (and, let's admit it, in adults, too) that this story is a tale for everyone. There are no stereotypes here, just complex characters interacting with one another. Ellie is a wonderfully realistic young teen. She knows what she wants and how to get it, but eventually realizes she can't live with that. And she shouldn't have to. I cheered for her at her big moment as will everyone reading it. OyMG is faced-paced, well told, funny, and poignant. And while you're being entertained, you just might learn a thing or two without even knowing it. So don't be a meshuggina, go get yourself a copy today.
Enjoy!
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Choices: Death and New Life at Comicon
We make choices everyday. And each time, a little piece of us dies. Take heart: that death always results in new life. A small sacrifice so that another part may live and flourish. And no death is ever permanent. I learned that at, of all places, Phoenix Comicon.
Fifteen years ago, when my first child was born, I chose to quit work and devote myself to raising my new family. No matter what choice I made at that time, some part would have died - if I'd chosen not to have kids, it would have been a different part; or chose to work after having kids, RIP to another part. There's no escaping death in choice. So with this huge decision came the unavoidable death. However, this part of me died not with sadness, but relief. For this part was tired, and it embraced, even celebrated, the rest.
For years after, this part of me, the social, working, adult-interacting, feedback-receiving part, laid so low, I forgot it was there. Until I worked Comicon.
The minute I donned the business casual, did my hair, put on some makeup, and reported for duty, this part roared back to life. It felt good, too, better than I can remember feeling in a long time.
Not the same 'better' as holding a newborn, or even cuddling with hubby on the couch watching our favorite show, but an older, different 'better'. A 'better' that everyone, especially a mom, should never feel guilty about enjoying. For one weekend, I did something I loved and was relatively good at. I was complemented, thanked, and asked to do more. I wasn't somebody's mother, somebody's wife, somebody's cook, laundress, driver, etc.
I was just.
Somebody.
These are the type of choices we all make, not just in life, but in writing as well. For us, for our characters. Our/their choices define who we/they are. And that's what's going to keep your readers interested. Don't be afraid of the hard choices: they're the most entertaining. Yes, you will lose something, but you may gain something else you didn't even know you wanted. A new life. And like notoriously back from the dead comic book characters, nothing dies forever.
I don't know if that part of me will ever get the chance to be revived again, so I'm just going to choose to be grateful that it happened at all. Thanks, Phoenix Comicon Guest Relations crew!
And now back to your regularly scheduled programming.
PS Comicon was also a great workout - I lost five pounds! Now to keep it off...
PPS No were-jaguars spotted at Comicon. Maybe in the years to come :)
Fifteen years ago, when my first child was born, I chose to quit work and devote myself to raising my new family. No matter what choice I made at that time, some part would have died - if I'd chosen not to have kids, it would have been a different part; or chose to work after having kids, RIP to another part. There's no escaping death in choice. So with this huge decision came the unavoidable death. However, this part of me died not with sadness, but relief. For this part was tired, and it embraced, even celebrated, the rest.
For years after, this part of me, the social, working, adult-interacting, feedback-receiving part, laid so low, I forgot it was there. Until I worked Comicon.
The minute I donned the business casual, did my hair, put on some makeup, and reported for duty, this part roared back to life. It felt good, too, better than I can remember feeling in a long time.
Not the same 'better' as holding a newborn, or even cuddling with hubby on the couch watching our favorite show, but an older, different 'better'. A 'better' that everyone, especially a mom, should never feel guilty about enjoying. For one weekend, I did something I loved and was relatively good at. I was complemented, thanked, and asked to do more. I wasn't somebody's mother, somebody's wife, somebody's cook, laundress, driver, etc.
I was just.
Somebody.
These are the type of choices we all make, not just in life, but in writing as well. For us, for our characters. Our/their choices define who we/they are. And that's what's going to keep your readers interested. Don't be afraid of the hard choices: they're the most entertaining. Yes, you will lose something, but you may gain something else you didn't even know you wanted. A new life. And like notoriously back from the dead comic book characters, nothing dies forever.
I don't know if that part of me will ever get the chance to be revived again, so I'm just going to choose to be grateful that it happened at all. Thanks, Phoenix Comicon Guest Relations crew!
And now back to your regularly scheduled programming.
PS Comicon was also a great workout - I lost five pounds! Now to keep it off...
PPS No were-jaguars spotted at Comicon. Maybe in the years to come :)
Thursday, May 26, 2011
El Comicon del Phoenix
First of all, I'm sorry for not having posted recently. But I'm happy to explain why: it's time for the PHOENIX COMICON! No, I haven't been busy preparing a costume - though if I did it would be something Hobbity - but gearing up for volunteering. I'll be attending all three days, Fri, Sat, Sun, as both spectator and volunteer, and needed something business casual. As a stay-at-home mom, my idea of business casual is slippers and a cup of coffee. Needless to say, this requires something, well, more. A good excuse as any to shop. So outfit in hand, I am ready. This is my second year volunteering and I must say, I look forward to it all year. It's an exciting, fast-paced, stressful experience that I wouldn't miss for anything. Not as big as San Diego (yet), the Phoenix Comicon offers a chance to meet and mingle with icons like Stan Lee and Leonard Nimoy while still allowing you enough personal space to breath :)
This year I'm most excited about the authors. Especially Az home grown YA writers like Janni Lee Simner (BONES OF FAERIE), Aprilynne Pike (WINGS), Lisa McMann (WAKE trilogy), James A Owens (HERE, THERE BE DRAGONS), Tom Leveen (PARTY), and Jon Lewis (INVASION) to name a few.
If you're in the Phoenix area, come downtown and say hi! We'll leave a light on :)
For more info, click on PHOENIX COMICON. May the force be with you. Live long and prosper. Journey well. Namárië (If you know that one, you have my utmost respect!). And, coming soon, ¡Buen Provecho!
This year I'm most excited about the authors. Especially Az home grown YA writers like Janni Lee Simner (BONES OF FAERIE), Aprilynne Pike (WINGS), Lisa McMann (WAKE trilogy), James A Owens (HERE, THERE BE DRAGONS), Tom Leveen (PARTY), and Jon Lewis (INVASION) to name a few.
If you're in the Phoenix area, come downtown and say hi! We'll leave a light on :)
For more info, click on PHOENIX COMICON. May the force be with you. Live long and prosper. Journey well. Namárië (If you know that one, you have my utmost respect!). And, coming soon, ¡Buen Provecho!
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
¡El Libro Fantástico! DOGGIRL by Robin Brande
Love animals? Love reading? Love Young Adult books? Even if you answered just one yes, you will love DOGGIRL by the wonderful Robin Brande. Part Dog Whisperer (Cesar Millan, not Pet Psychic), part High School Drama Department, and a pinch of Mean Girls, DOGGIRL showcases the magic that happens when a young girl finds her niche in high school, and the rough road she took to get there.
Fourteen-year-old Ryle Case has always had a special relationship with animals, both wild and domestic. She understands their needs and what it takes to bring out the best in them, especially her three dogs. It's her peers she doesn't understand, and has resigned herself to staying as unnoticed as possible. But when she learns the high school's drama director wants to use animals in his newest production, she can't help but come out of the shadows and into the spotlight. Doing what she does best - dog training - not only elevates the play, but her high school experience as well.
Having pet allergies myself, DOGGIRL was a wonderful way for me to experience the love and acceptance that comes with being part of a pack and having that unexplainable connection with a pet. Robin Brande also captures all the coming-of-age ups and downs, from the anxiety and depression from not fitting in and getting bullied, to the triumphant joy of finding that special group, and even that one cute guy, who likes you just the way you are. I adored it and especially appreciated that while true to the high school experience, its also something that all my kids can read. (no explicit profanity or sex, thank you very much!) Highly, highly recommend - a wonderful summer read!
DOGGIRL is available now for e-readers. The print edition will be available the end of May 2011. Check out Robin Brande's website for more details. Then be sure to pick up her other titles: FAT CAT and EVOLUTION, ME & OTHER FREAKS OF NATURE. Enjoy!
Fourteen-year-old Ryle Case has always had a special relationship with animals, both wild and domestic. She understands their needs and what it takes to bring out the best in them, especially her three dogs. It's her peers she doesn't understand, and has resigned herself to staying as unnoticed as possible. But when she learns the high school's drama director wants to use animals in his newest production, she can't help but come out of the shadows and into the spotlight. Doing what she does best - dog training - not only elevates the play, but her high school experience as well.
Having pet allergies myself, DOGGIRL was a wonderful way for me to experience the love and acceptance that comes with being part of a pack and having that unexplainable connection with a pet. Robin Brande also captures all the coming-of-age ups and downs, from the anxiety and depression from not fitting in and getting bullied, to the triumphant joy of finding that special group, and even that one cute guy, who likes you just the way you are. I adored it and especially appreciated that while true to the high school experience, its also something that all my kids can read. (no explicit profanity or sex, thank you very much!) Highly, highly recommend - a wonderful summer read!
DOGGIRL is available now for e-readers. The print edition will be available the end of May 2011. Check out Robin Brande's website for more details. Then be sure to pick up her other titles: FAT CAT and EVOLUTION, ME & OTHER FREAKS OF NATURE. Enjoy!
Monday, May 9, 2011
¡Andale!
Every month, Miss Snark’s First Victim (Writers Digest winner “101 Best Websites for Writers”) runs a Secret Agent contest. Each contest includes a maximum of 50 entries, which will be posted on the opening day of the contest and critiqued by her blog community and a Secret Agent whose identity will not be revealed until the contest closes. Click here for rules and submission guidelines. This month’s contest will open next Monday and is for the first 250 words of your completed Young Adult or Middle Grade manuscript, including science fiction/fantasy. Like mine. But I haven’t decided to enter. My MS is not agent ready, but it’s close.
I hit a major milestone last week. After two years – yes, years – I finally condensed my monstrous 167,000-word (think roughly 800 pages) novel down to a more manageable 85,000. Now to smooth out the rough edges. This will be the last edit, for good or for ill. The good news is that with all the leftovers, the next two books are already half written J
Buena suerte to all who enter. And for the rest of us, ¡Buen Provecho!
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