The RUST BELT

First off, if you didn't know. I was born & bred in Ohio. Second, I miss it so much right now I could cry. Third, check out this blog post by Colleen Clayton (Youngstown native) and definitely check out her debut YA novel WHAT HAPPENS NEXT. I'm going to! :)

If she can explain my beloved "Rust Belt" so well, I can't wait to find out what she can do with a novel set there!
Three cheers to you Colleen!!

The Apocalypsies: On Place: Writing YA Set in Cleveland and the Rust Belt

I'm not done.

So, as I was procrasti-revising, I came across a tweet from an author (one I really like), expressing she wished the book she was working on was done, good, not sucky already.

And Amen, I feel that!

I am finishing up edits before sending them on to my fantabulous agent once more, to see if she can make mincemeat of that.(Boo-yah! These edits are looking great!) Knowing Becky, she so will and it will make everything better. That's why I'm so, so, so happy she signed me. But oh, oh - to be done. To have the book complete and be able to think about something other than that MC's internal conflict in the final chapter, something other than whether I over-foreshadowed and just spilled the beans way too early in the third chapter, something other than do I really, really, really, really need that repetition of action to establish a character quirk?

I'd love to put it all down. Around me, my husband and friends have been going about their summers. Holding BBQs, picnics, watching Youtube videos outside and whatnot. And I'd love to kick up my feet, grab a tall, cold glass of iced tea and join in the Dr. Who marathon ---

(Oh, who am I kidding? I totally put down the MS for the marathon. 

He's the DOCTOR, you guys - you canNOT miss your chance to share that with a new friend for the first time.)

--- but I have to finish this. Have to be DONE. I crave it - I want it wrapped up, locked and ready to go. But the reality is ... I'm not.

I'm not done. There is still loads more work to do. And then begins the next one and new pleas for *this* MS to be DONE and GOOD and NOT SUCKY.

But here's the thing. It won't be SUCKY. And neither is aforementioned-anonymous-author's WIP. It's just not done yet.

Hey - y'all want some cupcakes?? (And no, I'm not going ADD and wandering away. There's a point in our not so distant future, I promise.)

They're delicious! There's eggs, sugar, flour, more sugar - and easy to remove wraps!

What about these - will you eat these cupcakes? They have all the same things!

What? Why don't you want to eat these? What do you mean they look like a what happens when a kindegardner vomits paste? What does raw egg and salmonella have to do with anything??

Nope - you're not going to eat those. Because they're not done. (and there's many fewer 'cupcake dough I eat-raw' list than cookies. Just saying.)

They've got all the right elements. They're in the right place. Some of the pretty packaging is even ready to go. But they're not done. You have to give your ideas time to ... bake.

They're just like people. The closer to they get to who they're going to be, the more interesting they become. So, for everyone else out there struggling with the whole "this sucks, this sucks, it's never going to work, OMG why can't I ever not dangle my participles!!!" blues, just remember -

You've got the batter. Turn up the heat. Step to the plate.

Random Act Of Kindness BLITZ!

A smile. An encouraging word. A thoughtful gesture. Each day people interact with us, help, and make our day a bit brighter and full. This is especially true in the Writing Community. 


Take a second to think about writers you know, like the critique partner who works with you to improve your manuscript. The writing friend who listens, supports and keeps you strong when times are tough. The author who generously offers council, advice and inspiration when asked.


So many people take the time to make us feel special, don't they? They comment on our blogs, re-tweet our posts, chat with us on forums and wish us Happy Birthday on Facebook.

Kindness ROCKS!
To commemorate the release of their book The Emotion Thesaurus, Becca and Angela at The Bookshelf Muse are hosting a TITANIC Random Act Of Kindness BLITZ. And because I think KINDNESS is contagious, I'm participating too!


 I am picking my friend, Brandi S. Brandi is an aspiring writer and we have spent countless hours together talking about writing, relationships and relationships of writers! This summer she has set a goal to get her first MS agent-query ready and I am going to be right behind her all the way. This summer, I will give her a full ms critique to say thank you for being part of my writing circle.


Do you know someone special that you'd like to randomly acknowledge? Don't be shy--come join us and celebrate! Send them an email, give them a shout out, or show your appreciation in another way. Kindness makes the world go round. :)


Becca and Angela have a special RAOK gift waiting for you as well, so hop on over to The Bookshelf Muse to pick it up.


Have you ever participated in or been the recipient of a Random Act Of Kindness?  Let me know in the comments!

THE CALL

So I've been promising this post for a bit, but I've also been feverishly working on revisions. Since most of these at this point involve reducing word count, I've been a little bummed. It's hard to delete and delete - seems to sap some of your creative energy. So to cheer me up - no more procrastinating on the blog post! I will write words - add words - create words!

And mostly, tell you about this fabulously stupendous thing that's happened to me. I'll tell you the same way I told my parents ... I got an agent, y'all.

Here's how it happened:

OCT. 24: I see a post advertising that FinePrint Literary (one of my DREAM agencies) has a new agent. Ms. Becky Vinter. When I read she is in the market for YA with STRONG FEMALE PROTAGONISTS - I am stoked! That's me! I wrote one of those!!

(No, I didn't write that strong, female protag. I just like her as an example.)

I then proceed to internet stalk her - looking for posts, twitterfeeds, facebooks, interviews, other authors repped, query preferences - all that. I am a quality stalker folks. Part of my day job requires me to be able to track down people and info constantly. I take creeping beyond the amateur levels. :)

Stalking completed, I give my MS a read-through, nit-pick my query and prep my submission.

OCT. 25: I query Becky Vinter and enter her info into my "Submissions Guide" where I track what I have sent to who and when, as well as appropriate follow up, contact info, timeframes, etc. At the time, I had an offer on the table from a small boutique press. But I wanted an agent. Really, really, really wanted an agent. So I had asked them to wait while I finished up a few queries. (They totally worked with me and were uber-professional, so if you're worried about that, don't be. If they give you a hard time about wanting an agent, you may want to take a second look at the press.) I was really excited about Becky and thought we could be a good fit.

OCT. 31: I get a reply form Becky! She doesn't want to rep me!

OH NO!

Wait. What? Yep. She liked my premise and my voice, but a few things just didn't work for her. Then she did the best thing an agent had EVER done for me to that point. She told me what they were, even gave me a detailed list of elements that just weren't working. What an amazing agent. She prioritized my MS because I had a (small) offer on the table, then gave me her honest opinion in a neat, bulleted list I could actually use to fix things. She had taken time out of her busy schedule to give me a little personal attention and some feedback. I emailed her to say thank you immediately and asked a few follow up questions. She emailed me back, answered my questions and wished me luck. I really liked her. I emailed the small press and told them I could not accept their offer at this time because I had received revisions I knew the story needed and still wished to secure an agent. I apologized and they were great about it - they told me to resubmit when I was ready and they'd take another look. I turned back to the notes.
What was glorious and horrifying about this was the list reflected all of my deepest, darkest fears about the MS. Every niggling doubt I had, every little voice telling me I'm a hack, had focused on the things she mentioned. I was right to worry about those things, and she was right they needed fixing.

Then, she said she'd take a second look if I could fix those things.

Could I?

You're d@mn right I could.

So I wrote each item she had sent me on a separate piece of paper. Then I brainstormed. I ruminated. I mused. Until I had a list of ideas to fix everything she had mentioned. I researched more articles on revisions. (The most helpful for getting me mentally ready, btw is here.)
Then I sent it to my crit partner and encouraged her to tear it to shreds. Then I built it back up, polished and worked harder.

The changes were good. Really, really good. I forced myself to let it sit for a week. Then I reread it again. And again. I read it out loud. I found a text-to-speech program and let it read the MS to me so I could just listen. (Highly suggested technique - really slowed me down and forced me to examine the words.

DEC 16: I sent the revised full MS to Becky, thanking her again for the time she had spent on me. She emailed back saying she was swamped and it would take her a few weeks, but she was looking forward to reading it. (Boo-yah.)

Then I waited. Forever. And ever and ever. Okay, not really. Two and a half months in the middle of the holidays is not that long at all. But it feels  like forever when you're hoping someone will like you (be it romantically or professionally). Am I right?

(Waiting. Waiting. Oh please, oh please, please, please. Waiting.)

FEB 1: Becky emails me to say she loved the story and wanted to know if I was available to talk over some suggestions/ideas on the phone.
Oh, I am SO totally available for that.
I was excited - no agent calls you to tell you your books sucks and you should go back to your day job nowish. They're just not that mean. But I was terrified. What if she just wanted to say, "Hey, here's some more useful suggestions, but this just isn't the right fit for me? Well - at least there'd be some more feedback. And I'd already dealt with plenty of rejection.

FEB 2:  I LOVE GROUNDHOG'S DAY!! (Not just because of what I'm about to tell you, I really do. It's a great holiday, no fuss, no muss, no traffic, no shopping ...)

I talked to Becky on the phone. A real live agent, from an awesome agency, talked to me on the phone about my book! She loved my MC, the love story, my voice - she got what I was trying to do with the story. It was incredible. I can't tell you how incredible. I can tell you it was early in the morning, I was on my first cup of coffee and had already thrown up from nerves. Beyond feeling dazed by what was happening and severely under-caffeinated, I am afraid I didn't show the proper amount of enthusiasm on the phone - I mean I was excited and happy and I think I said the right things, but I can't really remember what they were. (So, Becky, if you're reading this, I was completely ecstatic on the inside!) On the other hand, at least I didn't shout into the phone or squeal or anything.

She told me there were still some things that she felt needed adjustment, but she wasn't going to ask me to revise again. She was going to send me her notes and then wanted me to provide feedback. If we were on the same page, she wanted to offer representation.

I was thrilled! I was over the moon! I was ... confused. How did one provide feedback on an agent's notes? How was I going to prove I could do this without *actually* doing it?

I'd figure it out, I told myself. She was giving me a shot and I was going to take it or go down swinging. Determination in place, I set about waiting for the notes. It was excruciating. What would she like? What still needed fixed? I had this incredible NEED to work on my MS immediately, but couldn't until I saw what she had to say. If I had thought I was a compulsive email checker before, this sent me in to overdrive. I would bargain with myself. Just finish the dishes and you can check your email again. Just make it until your ten thirty break and you can check your email. Etc.

FEB. 21: The notes arrive in my inbox! Again, filled with crushingly insightful feedback. Just reading through it, I can see where my MS needs to go, the things I missed, the additions and subtractions - I just *feel* it. I email her back to tell her I got them and they resonate. I promise to send her feedback in a week.
Then I print out the notes and read them. Over and over, until almost every word is memorized. I love the suggestions - but I have NO idea how to start or what to send her when I'm through.
So, I did what would I would do anyway. I put each note on a separate page and brainstorm how to fix it. I went through her email, answered her questions and filled in backstory, motivation, plot arcs for the next few books, world building - whatever I thought was pertinent to the subject. Then I worked through my MS, making notations of how I would work things in for each chapter - even where I would just double check for consistency, etc. What I ended up with was a 21 page outline of my answers to her questions and a chapter by chapter breakdown of what would change.

FEB 29: And I sent it to her. She emailed me to let me know she had received my notes, was excited to read it - as was her intern - and set up a call for Friday (March 2). That night I was beside myself - all fingers and toes crossed, wishing, praying, hoping - and waiting.

MARCH 1: Becky emails me. SHE WANTS TO OFFER ME REPRESENTATION!! WOOHOO!! Let the happy dancing commence!!

MARCH 2: We talked, I asked questions about the agreement and her style, we discussed the timeline for the revisions - and we talked about my story! There is nothing so sublime as talking to a professional about characters and worlds you made up, hearing them be enthusiastic, their own love for the characters ... I'm tearing up right now. It was great.

MARCH 20: I had the signed agreement and Becky told me I wasn't allowed to break up with her now. Yes, ma'am. :)

Now, I'm revising. And hoping some publisher will love me. You know, trying to get published is like trying to date a group of people at the same time - including the awkward meeting, flirting approach where you try to get them interested in you.

Revisions are going well. I'm in love with my story all over again. And I'm keeping all my toes crossed (I need my fingers to type) that I keep being so lucky.

Last words of advice? Never give up. Never surrender. Just work harder. And be patient - it always takes longer than you think.

Woo - and may I add, Hoo!

So, I promised big news. And here it is:

I am now officially represented by the spectacular Becky Vinter, of Fineprint Literary!!!

I promise to do a post on "The Call" soon, but right now I just had to share my joy!

Also, a very special thank you to all my beta readers and crit partners - none of this would have happened without you and the hours you spent on me. Thank you.

Now - I have some serious happy dancing to get to ...

Happy V's!

Hello Lovelies,

First - you are all my valentines for following me. Much, much love!! You are all wonderfully articulate, witty and beautiful people who deserve to have a fantastic day and that is my sincere wish for you!

In honor of the lovey-dovey day, here is an article I stumbled upon about millennial relationships. Something that I think not only helps me in my real world job, but sheds some light on my writing as I try to be authentic as possible in recapturing the feeling of first loves.

Any thoughts?

And - here's a cute kitty to convince you to be my Valentine. I'm gonna need some love soon!

This is how I feel when I look at a certain email in my inbox. And I have a feeling the love affair has just begun. :)

Happy Feb. 14th everyone!!

P.S. I may have REALLY BIG NEWS coming soon. :)

I know what kind of books I read in high school ...

Hmmm ...
First, here's the article.
Second - see the title of my post. Let's all be honest (just for a sec) about what we secretly and/or openly read when we were teenagers. Take a moment. Think back. Remember what it was like, reading those pages with one ear tuned to who might approach and one hand clenched to hide the book quickly.

Now - what do we think about this? Is there a place for explicit YA fiction?
I know it would get read. (As long as a mass mob of angry parents didn't burn the fiction and the author to the ground.)  The line about fanfic esp. rang true for me. But does it have value?

I think so. How do we teach teens to have healthy, imaginative, fun and creative sex lives? Or how to go about that once they have reached whatever appropriate gate we have set (age, marriage, life circumstance, etc.) We all learned about sex somewhere, right?

What do you all think? Should YA fic remain PG? Should we let teens find their own "adult" books? Is there a new (fireproof) market for this out there??

Out of Print Now Available!

Looking for something to read? Check these authors out! Formerly out of print books, now available through Amazon, brought to you by the amazing agent, Meredith Barnes!!  The descriptions are from her blog, the comments in parentheses are my opinions. And for all you writers out there, check out her blog, La Vie en Prose!

Deborah Camp - A mix of contemporary and Old West Historical romances. (I'm a sucker for the Old West.)

Lorena Dureau - Historical Romance: American Colonial South and West. (These are hot - and I'm not just talking about the weather in the South!)

Dan Streib - Thrillers with a "James-Bond-meets-Anderson-Cooper" main character. (I'm not a *huge* fan of thrillers, but I know several guys who love Dan Streib.)

Barbara Keesling - her too-hot-to-blog nonfiction - here, here and here. (And I have already ordered the book on the first link. Husband - you're welcome.)

Happy Reading!!

Can you hit a perfect pitch Contest!

This is my entry for the fabulous Brenda Drake's Can you hit a perfect pitch? Contest!

Title: Hard Nox
Genre: YA Paranormal
Word Count: 85,000

Pitch: Nox Sumner doesn't fear Death, she's pissed as hell at him and has no intention of doing him any favors.  Until she realizes the fate of her small town rests on her ability to kill.

     Red and blue lights flashed in the rearview mirror, setting Nox Sumner's teeth on edge. She turned to her best friend, Billy, in the driver's seat. "What did you do now?"

     "Hell if I know. I wasn't speeding; my lights work. Can't I just go home and drown my math test blues in biscuits and gravy. Is that too much to ask?"

     "You don't have any bodies in the trunk or anything, do you? Because I still have time to hop out the window and make a break for it." She grabbed the window crank with tight fingers.

     "Very funny." Billy sighed, coasting to the curb.

     "Guess who it is." The side-view mirror revealed Sergeant Carris bumbling around inside the cruiser, doing whatever cops do while people wait, hearts pounding to find out what they had done wrong. Flashing lights and sirens made her heart pound for a different reason.