Secret Girlfriend – Query Letter Not Used July 29, 2009

Everyone said DON’T DO IT, when I tried to write a 1st Persons Query Letter in my character’s voice. And so, I’m not. I know when to listen to the overwhelming advice (especially when it comes from several agents and a publishing jedi (yeah, I read those “about” sections) who went way out of the way to be kind)

But, it seemed like a waste to toss it out. Keep in mind, this is the first rough draft, but Amy wouldn’t shut up and she wants you all to read her story. It would have needed a lot of work still, but here, well…. rough draft that won’t be used it is!

 

I’ve been invisible for a couple of years now. Oh, I walk the halls and people typically don’t bump into me. But socially, I’m more translucent than paparazzi bait. My dad isn’t home much. Since mom’s death he lets work drown out the heart-noise. Which is fine. I have running, art and Rachel. What else could I need.

 

Well, him. Chris Kent, the crush of a lifetime. He’s finally noticed me working at the Rec Center, and – filed under Dreams Really Do Come True –made me his girlfriend…his secret girlfriend.

 

With my help, and The Plan, he can earn the spot on the soccer team, the captain’s ‘C’ on his jersey and the homecoming crown on his head. If that doesn’t get him into Monroe State, I don’t know what will. Then he can dump that cheer-dealer he’s using and focus on the one thing I never thought he’d ever notice – Me.

 

The Plan was coming along just fine. Team captain was in the bag, he and the faux-girlfriend were contenders for homecoming king. That is, until Luke Parker stepped on the soccer field and saw me. Really saw me.

 

Yeah, he might be good looking. He might also be kind and polite. But he is not the guy I’ve been waiting my whole life for. When Luke decides he wants that spot on the team and wouldn’t sneeze at the captain’s jersey either, their rivalry spins out of control. And neither seems to mind using me to get what they think they want.

 

Now I’m trapped between the guy I’ve always wanted and the guy who seems to want me.

 

But who can trust guys when there’s so much at stake. Senior year was not supposed to be this complicated.

The Hard Write July 28, 2009

I am writing something hard.

 

I don’t just mean, this book isn’t cooperating. I mean, this book is personally hard to write.

 

It touches on things I’ve struggled with and overcome. I really feel this story (not mine, but my character Rachel’s) needs to be told.

 

But here’s the deal about things you’ve overcome…they get fuzzy. You push them so far to the back of your mind that you remember the actions and events — if you think about them and drag them out into the light — but it’s the emotions and the gut-tug reactions that are fuzzy.

 

Those are what I want. I want to write a book so real, girl’s read it and understand that other people have been there. People have been past there and back.

 

But how do you get the stuff you pushed out of your brain back in it just long enough to use it and toss it out?

 

I don’t know. I’m working on that. But it’s been an interesting ride.

 I’m sure I’m not the only one.

Big Books? July 22, 2009

I write Big Books and I write Little Books. In between: Not so much.

 

The issue isn’t with the in between since my genre is YA. The shorter books (50-60K) are actually sitting where they should be for the shelf. But, something interesting happened today that got me thinking. Janet Reid tweeted that she’s been getting a lot of 175Kish books lately (ok, my Big Book doesn’t quite scratch there, so phew!) and she was wondering why.

 

This to me is a simple answer. I read fast. When I’m unemployed I can sometimes whip thru 2 or 3 mass market sized books (@90K) in a day. Yeah, I should be writing, but sometimes you need a break. And those books are great. Sometimes the author slows me down and gives me stuff to really sink into, but typically, at that size, it feels like a small book to me.

 

I want those big books. I want to LIVE in a book for a few days. I want to not be able to finish it because my eyes are burning  to close and when I do fall asleep I want to dream about it. I want the juicy pulpy world that’s so rich you need more than the “normal” size to get it. I want a cast of more than 4. I want to have to pay attention.  Great example is Poison Study by Maria V Snyder - rich world, amazing story, “normal” word count.

 

Which brings me to the next point. Why do we expect every story to be told in about the same word count? Thank God (as usual) for Stephen King. Big Books, Medium Books, Small Books, Short Stories, Novellas… If the man who points the way doesn’t stick to 90k, I think we can pretty much say that not every story is a 90k word count story.

 

And so I wonder, why does every book try to fit in there. No, no need to comment. I do understand cost efficiency. But let’s look at Twilight (I know, I promised we wouldn’t talk more about Twilight, but we’re talking industry here) — One of the reasons people love that book is because they LIVED in it. I think we can all agree that the extra paper and ink paid off. Let’s see who will be the next agent and publisher to take a chance on a Big Book and win big.

Writing On The Road July 20, 2009

As you know if you’re following my Diva Driving blog, I’m on the road for a couple months. Yup, sold almost everything, shoved the rest in the truck of my car and headed S-W-N-W-W-S-S-N-N-W-S. Right now I’m Tucson. First day here.

 

I had this expectation that being on the road would allow me to write write write. It would be great for the creative juices and I’d be so prolific I’d have the entire Secret Series ready to had over to someone at the end of the year…or at least all of them roughed out.

 

Um…yeah. No.

 

This past week I’ve been staying in a hostel in Flagstaff (it rocks. go there. stay in the hostel. watch artists. go for hikes. don’t write.) It was the first place on the trip I wasn’t staying with friends and I actually met people. A bunch of them. Enough that someone was always doing something and inviting me along. Or doing nothing and inviting me along. Or me inviting someone else along.

 

So, I’ve looked at my schedule and when I had *expected* things to be finished and realized I’m further off that schedule than if I were still at home working in the little shop. Not. Good.

 

I’ve learned that even on the road (maybe especially on the road) I have to plan time to write. But there’s more to it than at home, because not only do I have to plan the time, but I have to find a place where I can write (everyone can and can’t write in different types of places) and where I’ll be allowed to write. The dorm room in the hostel — not a good place. No one hangs out in their rooms, but if they think YOU’RE hanging out there, they want to hang out in there with you.

 

Tomorrow my critique partner flies in and we’re sneaking off to a cabin to write write write for 10 days. I’m ready to fast draft the next Secret book and get the first book out to beta readers for catches. It should be a great time and I’m really hoping it jump starts my focus on carving time out.

 

Who would have thought NOT working made finding writing time harder. No more! From here on in, I’ll be watching for all those times and places I can get it done.

Excerpt Monday – Cami’s First Kiss, P4 July 12, 2009

 Welcome to my Excerpt Monday post. Want to get involved? Click HERE – and my partner in crime, Mel Berthier HERE.

This is the 3rd installment of Cami’s First Kiss. For the first 3 excerpts, click Cami’s Page OR Free Reads above.

 

“Not a chance, Sunshine.” Arg. Mocking Guy and his Mocking Words.

 “Stop calling me that.” Dear God, the man took control of everything starting with my humiliation and continuing with my name. “I am not your sunshine.”

This is the thing I hated most about being Lisbeth’s friend. It wasn’t the horde that surrounded her.

It was that one-in-a-billion man who got my attention and, even if he was arrogant and overbearing, held it when I knew all he’d want was to walk that beautiful Levi’s-covered butt around the bar and see if she’d give him the time of day.

He glanced across the bar, his perusal slow. I could see him take in Lisbeth and knew what he saw. His eyes scanned the crowd around her, the men bantering for her attention, the women shooting her envious looks, the bartender keeping her well-liquefied.

Once, just once, I’d like to have been the object of that type of study. The kind that takes in everything, weighs the odds and then disregarded them to pursue regardless.

“I don’t want to deal with dolts vying for attention when I’m wooing a woman.” The right side of his mouth quirked up in a lopsided smirk. “It isn’t the competition. I just don’t like to share.”

“So, what exactly do I need to do to get my notebook back.” I eyed his bottom wondering if I could just reaching in his pocket and retrieve it. He really did have a nice butt. Maybe that’s what distracted me from grabbing my notebook and gave him time to swing around, that lopsided smirked aimed at me again.

 “Here’s what I’m thinking.” He leaned in as if to tell me the best kept secret outside Julia Robert’s anti-wrinkle treatment. “I’ll grab my friend. You grab your friend. We’ll get out of here before she starts a riot and he starts a bar fight over someone else’s girlfriend.”

I turned to look at the guy he’d jerked his head toward. If I thought Mocking Guy was hot, his friend was Adonis. Attitude and all.

“And?” It was a good excuse as excuses went to end this public torture. I had to leave the bar to get back the notebook I needed in order to write my story. Even Lisbeth couldn’t argue with that.

The left side of his mouth quirked up to join the right in a full-ray smile.

“And then we go have some fun.” Mocking Guy stood up, patted me on the bottom and said, “Go get your girl. We’ll meet you out front.”

My rear tingled. Seriously, like shimmery little tingles. I couldn’t remember the last time someone had dared to touch any part of me that wasn’t a polite handshake. Not that it matter since he was just warming up his moves for Lisbeth.

Mr. Guy (we should be on first name basis after that bottom-pat, but I like to keep clear boundaries) cut his way through the crowd, beelining for Adonis.

I watched him go. Couldn’t help myself. I also watched the girls he passed watch him go. One reached for him as he squeezed between her and a table, her hand resting on his arm as if to test its withheld power. Mr. Guy bent toward her, his hair flopping forward over his glasses. She, tiny little annoying-perfect thing that she was, went up on tiptoes to whisper in his ear. Mr. Guy threw back his head and laughed.

Must be nice to make him laugh with you, not directly at you.

Mr. Guy shook his head and kept moving, inching closer toward Adonis through the crowd. The faery girl turned and scanned the crowd, her gazing landing on me, hardening before she shrugged in a disgusted kind of way.

Yeah. I knew that look. It said “As if.” And I knew the answer too: Never. Of course, she sighted me, not Lisbeth. If she knew his real target, she’d back down, claws retracted, without another glance. Instead, I got the death-ray vision look.

Didn’t she know sidekicks were benign.

 

Kinsey W. Holley, Paranormal (PG)

Caitlynn Lowe, Epic Fantasy (PG)

Dara Soren, Paranormal (PG)

Mel Berthier, Urban Fantasy (PG 13)

Christina DeLorenzo, YA (PG 13)

Nika Dixon, Romantic Suspense (PG 13)

Bryn Donovan, Paranormal Romance (PG13)

Babette James, Fantasy Romance (PG13)

Kaige, Historic Romance (PG-13)

Julia Knight, Fantasy Romance (PG 13)

Adelle Laudan, Contemporary Romance (PG 13)

Jeannie Lin, Historical Romance (PG13)

RF Long, Paranormal (PG13)

Rebecca Savage, romantic suspense (PG 13)

Crista McHugh, Paranormal Romance (PG 13)

Leigh Royals, Historical Romance (PG 13)

Excerpt Monday This Week July 11, 2009

I’m really excited to get the next Excerpt Monday installment of Cami’s First Kiss up. Thanks to everyone who suggested I put them up weekly But with the travel schedule and the writing other stuff, it’s going to have to stay monthly for now.

 

Check out the first 3 parts HERE

 

See you Monday!

Chat Postponed July 7, 2009

Sorry for the late notice everyone, but I’m afraid that due to unforeseen circumstances, the Live Blog Chat with Tera Lynn Childs has been postponed….this is only good news! It means you still have time to pick up her Rita Nominated book before the winner is announced this month!

Other Bria Stuff July 3, 2009

This is a sticky – That means, it’s always going to be at the top

Just a reminder to not miss my blog CAUTION: Diva Driving about the trip I’m taking this summer driving around the country.