Juggle and Balance

Sounds like what someone working in a circus would hear. Well, would you believe me if I told you the life of a writer often resembles a circus?

T.J. talked of bonbons, Diana about her corrupt file (poor thing, heart and support go out to her). I'm gonna talk about the need to balance.

Yes, it's easy to strive for this equilibrium when your life and everything in it is ho-hum. You take the kids to school, make their food and snacks, help with the homework, play those mind-numbing games you wonder why kids like. You welcome the man home. You shower TLC on him (and hopefully he returns some back!). You sit and chat over a cup of coffee while the kids are killing themselves in their room (but that's not your problem currently since you're in couple's time). You sit down and grab a book to read before going to bed, or you turn on the TV and plonk down in front of whatever soapie is airing, wondering how this woman was chasing this guy nine months ago when you last caught this show and how she still hasn't got him even now. Oh no wait, she got him and then she left him for someone else, and now she realises she shouldn't have left him int he first place, and yada yada to make mush out of the remaining brain you still had.

So all this is fine on most days. Somewhere in there, you open that Word doc and stare at the words, asking this woman featured there, uh where did we meet...? And you go, oh yeah, you're the gal who's hooked onto that hunk of a fella, but he isn't looking at you, right? You want me to hitch you together. And that's where you also go, pray tell me how on earth I'll do that!!!

And then there are the days when nothing else exists, nothing but this story inside you that you desperately need to write. Forget chores and welcome a whole family of dust bunnies in your house. There's so much laundry to do you can simply tip the baskets over and have great free-form furniture. And last you checked, no one died from a diet of instant noodles and carbonated drinks.

Yes, this is what you want to do when the writing bug bites you, and I know what I'm talking about, because I'm in this very predicament! There's this story screaming to get out, and I mean screaming, as in yelling, screeching, hollering, using one of those sound-magnifying things the police use to call to a hostage taker.

How do you fit life in there?

I find it's not easy to do, but do it I need, since like T.J. said, life is not a dress rehearsal. What happens to your kid now is not gonna happen again the same way after you finish penning this story down. The hug and cuddle he wants to give you sounds like a break you don't need from your keyboard, but this may just be what will take this child through another hour with you zoning out in writer land. You think you got your man? Yeah, you do - that's your ring on his finger, innit? Well, get this - a ring is not fixed onto his finger, just like you're not the only woman in the world (well, maybe you're the only woman who will take him with all his pig headedness and lousy bathroom habits and strange food eating ways, but you wanna risk that?) What happens if after you've penned this story, who may not be a masterpiece even, you look around and find that there's a stranger in the house with you? The worst thing is, it's not him the stranger, it's you, because you retired into your world and lost touch with the reality he's been living in.

Want to try to rekindle everything then? Fine, go ahead. If there is anything to rekindle. Cold ashes do not blaze back to life.

So whenever the writing bug bites, you'll feel kinda weird. You want to write, write, write. But remember that you also have to juggle and balance, because unfortunately for us writers, there is also the real world out there and it won't stop existing because we will it to.

Have you ever been bitten by this bug? If yes, what did you do to retain the equilibrium in your life?

Aasiyah Qamar - Cultural Romantic Fiction, With a Twist
Coming out October 2 - Light My World - Eirelander Publishing
Nolwynn Ardennes - The Promise of Fulfilment
Coming out in January 8, 2010 - Storms in a Shot Glass - Eirelander Publishing

Aasiyah Qamar/Nolwynn Ardennes - Romance the world over
http://www.aasiyah-nolwynn.webs.com/

Not a moment's rest

Not behind the scenes. I think I stop when I actually sleep. Yes, I'm a direct contradiction to dear T.J.'s post.

Why? Well for the last seven...eight? days, I've been recreating a corrupted Novel length file . I've discovered my word is corrupted. It finally had a meltdown and there's not much I can do about it at the moment. Fixing the book in question is my priority. But really, this is only one facet of what happens behind the scenes.

A mangled file? It's like losing the middle five pages to the scene of a play...that debuts tonight!

You scramble to find those pages. I'm scrambling to get this file fixed for an on time release. What's funny though? During this uber stressful week, I've actually read two books and numerous short free reads, reading I haven't been doing at all because I have been working myself to the grind, a pressure of my own making. So one stress is imposed, and I know I'll get it done. I just need time. Somehow that's less stressful than working day in and day out on a number of stories for scattered submissions. I can read guilt-free during one stress. It's a little harder when I'm the one kicking my own arse to stay moving. I think I need my head examined... No, I'm not accepting volunteers, but thanks for thinking about it. *wink*

Somehow though, there's different levels of stress, or maybe different levels of importance. I know this applies to far more careers than just writing, but since we are welll, a writing blog, that's who I'm talking about, and to.

My point with this?

T.J. is dead on right. I know. I know. I'll give you a minute to pull your chair back under you and pop your jaws back into place. This is a minor emergency in the grand scheme of things. It affects my release schedule, thus it's gotta get done, but what happens when I'm not under the gun? Why do I still work like a fiend? I know I'm going to dry up eventually and need to take a few days off, or a week to find my last cowering brain cell hiding behind my office door. You'd think I'd learn. (I see T.J. is shaking her head at me.) But one thing that isn't taken into account, but needs to be just as controlled, is drive. Okay, mine borders on obsession, I'll admit, but this is a perfect case in point--me--to slow down. Because one of these days I'm just going to blow up.

*Kaboom*

Whoops! Too late!

Here, let me get you a tissue. *G*

I think I'm going to find a chocolate cake and make best friends with my couch after I get this file fixed. That sounds just about perfect.

What do you do to extricate yourself from the writing machine? What are your non-author destressing activities?

I sit around and eat bonbons all day!

Knew that would get your attention. J

The fact is writing is a job (Full-time or otherwise). You can't slice it any simpler than that. You pound keys. You promote. You work, work, work. While you're promoting you've got to be thinking about the next story, or if you are really on your game, writing it. Another cold hard rule of life is that life happens.

I can't tell you how many authors I've told, 'take a break'. First off you need to recharge your batteries. Walk in the sunshine and let your body soak it all in. Let it happen because some of the best ideas I've ever had pop into my head have come from just getting away from the stupid box I feel chained to most days. Second, there is such a thing as becoming over-written. Ever felt burned out? That's because you've written until pulling words from your brain is the next best thing to having a root canal sans anesthetic.

The other side of this is life. You should have one. Nobody says you can't run the kids to school or hang around with the mate. It's a fallacy that the next story is the most important thing to a writer. Life is more important than anything. It's not a dress rehearsal. You won't get a second chance to watch your kids grow or have those riveting conversations with the mate while he's totally zoned out and into the internet. That's not a fact of being a writer, that's a fact of being alive.

The same thing goes for editors. We're notorious for becoming over-read. Let's be real, that's what we do all day. We read and read and just before our eyes start to sizzle, we read some more.

 

So the cold truth is if you are feeling stressed about a story the best advice is get away from it. Let it perk and join the world of the living. Eat a few bonbons. You might find it interesting and you might find some inspiration.

 

Until next Tuesday, cheers and happy writing,

 

T.J.

Adventures of an RWA conference virgin - Part II

By J. Hali Steele

Hi all, Royal Blush has allowed me to come back with more on the Adventures of an RWA Conference Virgin.

I did promise to bring you up-to-date on what really happened in DC. To my shame, I have no pictures. I am just not the photography type. My walls at home have not a single photograph to adorn them, none on my shelves either – that space is for books. Oh well…

Again, there were murmurs, and what I call hubbub, between RWA and those seeking change within the group. Let me say I sat 4 rows back, damn near center, and when Ms. Pershing asked for the resolution, IMHO, her voice and her words did not come across as harsh or mean – I believe she was genuinely shocked, as was I, that no one had a copy of it. As a member of the RWChange group, my thanks go wholeheartedly to Francesca Hawley who pulled it up on her phone and read it to the room. She was my hero that day. I’m a member of RWA and plan to remain a member. Change happens from within. I belong to ESPAN and Passionate Ink, two very great chapters. Recently, I joined the Liberty States Fiction Writers and I’m sure I’ll learn much from each of these groups. Those who know me know I’ll ask for what I want if I don’t see it.

Remember the two friends I spoke of meeting? Well one of them pitched and came away with an agent. Yay Rhonda, I’m happy for you girl! She so deserved this. At RT this year she took Bobbi Smith’s Advanced Writing class, entered the Creative Writing Challenge and won. This gave her the opportunity to have an agent look at a synopsis and the first 25 pages of a story. Needless to say, all of this worked to her advantage. Now, for RWA.

I met Janet Evanovich and I asked her when she was going to kill off Joe Morelli from the Plum novels and she laughed. Caridad Pineiro was so natural and friendly. Kimberly Kaye Terry is always the bomb. These last two ladies I’ve met at RT a few times and enjoyed their workshops.

Some classes I attended included The Setting as Character with the ever fabulous Jade Lee, who gave me a whole new perspective on where my characters live and what affect this has on them. Annabelle Corrick Beach’s The Process of Writing…10 Steps to Success, added a few that were missing from my repertoire. I decided not to attend the Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Erotica but Were Afraid to Ask simply because I feel these are done so well at RT conferences with lots of audience and reader participation. I found not very much of that happened in any class I attended. I came from each one feeling I’d learned but there wasn’t the camaraderie I’ve come to expect because of RT. Speaking for myself, there wasn’t the feeling of ‘friendliness and acceptance" I’ve gotten at the RT conventions. There is definitely a division between epublished authors, of which I’m one, and those who are published by NY.

I did attend the Pro Retreat and had some great conversations with some members before it started. We were all very excited about being Pros and most of us had our pins. At the start of the Agent section, I left. I am not looking for one right now and there was an Avon book signing I simply couldn’t miss. Did I feel I got something from this retreat? Can’t say yet. By the way, only talked to three others who were currently epublished and most I spoke to were seeking "only" NY. Leaving the retreat wasn’t hard.

Thursday evening I attended the Passionate Ink party and that was one of the highlights of my trip. I met quite a few fellow Ellora’s Cave and Changeling authors. Here I felt at home. I had the chance to talk more with Francesca Hawley, who is the President of PI and the lady is absolutely awesome. Angela James from Samhain spoke about epublishers and the epublishing industry. Barbara Bradford talked about what is currently happening with NY publishers and what they’re looking for. Nothing new there.

Does this sound like I prefer RT conventions to RWA conferences? I sure talked a lot about RT in this post didn’t I? Well, guess I have to answer yes. I’m no longer a virgin as far as RWA conferences go but I’ve discovered I’m much happier with RT and its acceptance of me as an epubbed author.

One thing did strike a chord with me during RWA -- many speakers used the phrase "you can do it" at some point in their address. It’s those words I chose to come away with.

Again, Royal Blush authors, thank you for the opportunity to tell all about my first time at an RWA Conference.

My Experiences as an E-Published Author

Being an E-Published author has been a learning experience for me. It’s been exciting, but also a challenge to keep up with everything. I had no idea what being e-published or in print would mean to my life. It has changed my existence. I learned there’s much more to being a writer than writing, there is promotion. In my contract there was a clause that required me to do a certain amount of promoting my books on-line.

It’s not easy to get your name as a novelist out there, or to find a following for your stories. It takes time from your writing, and a lot of hard work. To become known and to get people to read your book you have to promote them and yourself. I started by building a website with a front page telling a bit about the genre I wrote. Then I put in a picture and a bio about me, posted covers of my books along with blurbs and excerpts about my stories, a links page to other authors, and a contact page.

Next, I started a blog, where I write and post articles once a week. A bunch of authors asked me to join their blog and post an article there once a month. This is all done to market ourselves. Then I had to join Yahoo loops with readers and other writers to let them know about my website, blogs and to post blurbs and excerpts to interest them in reading my books. I joined in chats and did interviews on sites for readers. All of this is time consuming.

There are not enough hours in the day to accomplish everything that needs to be done. I try to write thirty minutes to two hours a day, which can mean anywhere from one page to four pages a day. If I can get more time meaning more pages written, then I’m thrilled.
Often times my routine is interrupted by normal events and people around me. It’s hard to make people realize that this career is not an eight hour job, but twelve to fourteen.

My first two titles, The Catalyst and Addiction, were released by Forbidden Publications in late 2008. In six months my publisher closed due to health issues, and I made a whopping $33.99 on my digital sales. I decided to self-print The Catalyst as a print on demand book, and I have yet to make the money I invested back. Every penny, I’ve gotten for those books have been sunk into advertising material such as business cards, post cards, book marks, etc.

E-publishing has had a stigma on it for many years, but it’s about to come out of that phase as more readers are buying books and magazines digitally. Many authors have used e-publishing as a stepping stone to a New York Publisher, then decided they want to be in both, or even just stay in digital.

What would I do if I had the chance to go to NY? I’ll be happy staying with my new publisher because I believe they will be one of the forerunners in this business. They will also be willing to help those authors who want to go to NY.

As hard as the work is, I can think of no job I would rather have. There are people asking me when my next book will be out, and they are saying they can’t wait to read it. This makes me want to work faster and get more books out there. I can hardly wait to hear what they say about Addiction when it’s released November 6, 2009 from Eirelander Publishing.

Thank you, and I'll see you next month.

Sandra K. Marshall
http://www.eirlanderpublishing.com
http://www.skaymarshall.com

I’m a what? A *shiver* published author

Congratulations, we'd like to offer you a contract for your story.

Those words are an elation statement in this industry. But once there welcome to the world of what is expected from you? Well, that somewhat depends on the publisher. Some publishers are a little more cushy with their authors, they create relationships with them, others are doing the proverbial pounding on the door to your inbox going – when can we expect your next work? It doesn't mean either is right or wrong, it means they are styled under a different model. No biggie—get used to it and go forward.

There are a few 'p's you should watch in this industry. They are as follows: Professionalism, Precision and Punctuality. Professionalism is self-explanatory, though if your publisher is friendly to you, by all means take the olive branch they put forward. Just remember, you are in a business in which they might explain a detailed dissertation on how the ins and outs work at that publisher. This is not giving you permission to spread that conversation across the Internet. There's a trust factor involved there, and one that you need to be aware of.

Precision is paying attention to detail. Part of what happens in an edit is your editor is teaching you. They will expect you to apply this knowledge to all subsequent works submitted there. With Track Changes now in full use, you need to pay attention to what your editor is commenting and absorb it. So if you have a problem with transitional sentences, that editor will expect you to take away that you need to focus on them in the future. Crutch-queens and kings, if your editor picks up your favorite phrase understand it's something you should watch out for.

Also, when performing your edit, you should work with speed. There is a reason for this. Your editor is waiting on you. That's not to say you shouldn't take your time and perform the edit to the best of your ability—you should. But, do you think it is fair to make your editor to wait weeks for you to get back to them? It also smacks of a lack of professionalism. I once pounded out an edit in three days on a saga length story. It was sent to the author who in turn took her/his sweet time to get it back to me (one round nearly hit five weeks to get back to me). In the mean time, I had a senior editor over me going, 'what's the status of this story?'. Want to talk about trial by frustration.

It also smacks of the writer not being totally invested in their work. When an author treats their work as if it's an old issue or they don't really want to put effort into an edit, the editor will pick it up quicker than a frog can snatch a fly with its sticky tongue. This is a HUGE thing because it puts the author into one of two categories: the hobbyist versus the pro.

The term 'hobby writer' was coined about a millennium ago. These were the authors who just wanted to write. There's nothing wrong with that, but when it came to the nitty gritty work of selling and editing they were the first to make excuses or simply move on to the next project. Remember: writing is a job, whether part time or full time.

A pro understands the three 'p's and is on the ball. They understand that some edits will take longer than others but approach work professionally.

Now it's your turn? Do you get the three 'p's or do you think that's a bunch of hooey?

 

Until next Tuesday, cheers and happy writing,

 

T.J.

www.tethysjkillian.com

With Love, from Ms. Blush

Hello to you all wonderful, beautiful people!

We're still backstage this week, untangling threads behind the scenes. And as anyone can tell you, tangled threads can get messy! There's publishing, Ny publishing, e-publishing, to consider. Then there's stuff like promotion, workshops, conferences. Life definitely gets hectic for authors out there.

On this backdrop the RBA posse bring you some more about life behind the red curtain.

Find T.J. on Tuesday as she tells us more about what happeens when you hear the magic words "We want to offer you a contract". What can you, and what should you, expect?

On Wednesday, Sandy brings us a post about her experiences as an e-published author.

And on Friday, we welcome the second leg of our guest blogger's posts - Adventures of an RWA conference virgin-Part II is what J. Hali Steele has to tells us now that she's back from the RWA National conference!

Z(Aasiyah/Nolwynn) is encountering some Internet issues, and will try her best to post on Thursday.

Don't forget:

This July, we're going backstage into the world of writing and the writer.

This July, we're on the quest:

Searching for what happens behind the scenes...

The best of us for the best of you, that's our promise as we deliver the full flush of romance.

From now till later, enjoy!

With love, from Ms. Blush