The World of Myth is interested in one of my stories with only the addition of one change. That's cool. I can have fun with that.
The inspection of my new house is today so I'll rush off at noon to be there. Hope that goes well for the sellers sake because they found a new house and their inspection is next week. Getting moved will be so nice.
I'm working on plotting for a Nocturne Bites, seeing if I can come up with a darker plot for Aiden and Tali. Also need to come up with a higher concept, darker, for Fairy Dust. Then the edits for BLOODY MURDER will come.
Colorado is looming. Can't wait. Friends, cool air, movies, writing, shopping, wine, dancing, reading, and Mountain Men. Did I mention wine? Nothing like getting together with other women writers at a cabin in the mountains.
Where is your favorite vacation place?
Monday, June 30, 2008
Friday, June 27, 2008
Out Into the World
My baby has left home and is out in the cold, cruel world. Yes, BLOODY MURDER is off to the editor. I got it in before the deadline, thank goodness, and now we'll see what the editor thinks. It's always a little scary to see what other people think. Will the story make sense to anyone but me? It made sense to my CP, Yay and that made me feel great.
Now, what happens when the editor gets hold of it? Stay-tuned. I had fun writing it and I'm now plotting two more things.
Now, what happens when the editor gets hold of it? Stay-tuned. I had fun writing it and I'm now plotting two more things.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
The Real Meaning of Life.
Do you remember in high school, (do you remember high school at all?) when you read Dickens, Shakespeare and whoever. Then you discussed them. What did they really mean when they had the old lady wait in a decaying house, in her wedding dress, for her lost lover? What it a symbol for the decay of society or moral values of the day?
Or was the author just trying to fulfill his word count, tell a good story, please everyone and get paid so he could support his family. Was Jane Austen really attempting to do a humorous story about her society and the plight of women, or was her main goal to tell a good, hopeful love story with a happy ending.
We have book clubs, many more since Oprah made them popular. But are we encouraging people to read for pleasure or because they feel they "should have read" this book or that because someone else thinks it's significant? Is that wise? I'm all for reading, but I also feel as if it should be enjoyable and not a work assignment. Do it for fun, for escape and because you can't live without books in your life that let you do the impossible.
If you read, you too can be the ER doctor and solve the medical mystery, fly with a super creature, fight off an evil wizard, have a romantic fling with no consequences, buy a house in Tuscany and find love.
That's what it's all about, at least in my fiction world it is.
Or was the author just trying to fulfill his word count, tell a good story, please everyone and get paid so he could support his family. Was Jane Austen really attempting to do a humorous story about her society and the plight of women, or was her main goal to tell a good, hopeful love story with a happy ending.
We have book clubs, many more since Oprah made them popular. But are we encouraging people to read for pleasure or because they feel they "should have read" this book or that because someone else thinks it's significant? Is that wise? I'm all for reading, but I also feel as if it should be enjoyable and not a work assignment. Do it for fun, for escape and because you can't live without books in your life that let you do the impossible.
If you read, you too can be the ER doctor and solve the medical mystery, fly with a super creature, fight off an evil wizard, have a romantic fling with no consequences, buy a house in Tuscany and find love.
That's what it's all about, at least in my fiction world it is.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Disappearing Act
This week has disappeared. I finished two batches of edits from my CP and have one last batch to go. I'm happy with the final product and hope my editor is. I had so much fun with it I want other people to like it. My CP is wonderful.
As soon as the edits are done and Bloody Murder is sent off, I have to:
Flesh out something I want to try for Nocturne Bites
Decide what direction to go with "Fairy Dust"
Pack like Mad
For Vacation in Colorado in a couple of weeks
Moving into the new house.
My life continues to be a juggling act, I might get bored if it wasn't. Can't wait to start the next project, whatever it ends up being. Then, there will be more Bloody Murder edits of course.
As soon as the edits are done and Bloody Murder is sent off, I have to:
Flesh out something I want to try for Nocturne Bites
Decide what direction to go with "Fairy Dust"
Pack like Mad
For Vacation in Colorado in a couple of weeks
Moving into the new house.
My life continues to be a juggling act, I might get bored if it wasn't. Can't wait to start the next project, whatever it ends up being. Then, there will be more Bloody Murder edits of course.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Goals and Procrastination
I've finished the first go-round of "Bloody Murder" edits. Now I'll go through my CP edits, finish this week and get it sent to the editor by next week. I have to flesh out my plans for a Nocturne Bites (Maybe Tali and Aiden) and for Fairy Dust (Decide whether to go for YA) which actually fits my writing style better. Hit the ground writing in Colorado.
Just finished reading "Wicked Lovely." If you like Urban Fantasy, read this one. These are not Peter Pan's Tinker Bell. It's really well written, dark and interesting.
Do you procrastinate with household chores before you write? Does fear keep you from writing, fear of failure, fear of success that you need to sustain, fear that the words just won't come? I mastered some of those fears a couple of ways.
First, I work full time so my writing time is limited and complicated because my daughter lives and home and has emergencies that I have to take care of.
As a result, I set myself a daily word count goal-an achievable goal. I also, plow through the first draft without going back to edit until the first draft is finished. So, I can't procrastinate.
Instead, I have to put the butt on the chair (button principle) and write, during lunch and in the evening at least five days a week or more.
The writing goal that works for me is 750-1000 words a day, five days a week. Wimpy I know, but I can reach it so I don't get frustrated. When I can do more, I do.
I also learned to write in emergency rooms, waiting rooms etc, on my Alpha Smart and to have my writing stuff with me at all times, even if it's just a journal in my purse so I can write by hand.
Procrastination-no time if I'm going to finish the projects. This has gotten me through two novels and a novella so far. So, I will keep on keepin' on, until I win the lottery or something. The problem is, if I can stay home and write full time, it will be so much easier to procrastinate.
Just finished reading "Wicked Lovely." If you like Urban Fantasy, read this one. These are not Peter Pan's Tinker Bell. It's really well written, dark and interesting.
Do you procrastinate with household chores before you write? Does fear keep you from writing, fear of failure, fear of success that you need to sustain, fear that the words just won't come? I mastered some of those fears a couple of ways.
First, I work full time so my writing time is limited and complicated because my daughter lives and home and has emergencies that I have to take care of.
As a result, I set myself a daily word count goal-an achievable goal. I also, plow through the first draft without going back to edit until the first draft is finished. So, I can't procrastinate.
Instead, I have to put the butt on the chair (button principle) and write, during lunch and in the evening at least five days a week or more.
The writing goal that works for me is 750-1000 words a day, five days a week. Wimpy I know, but I can reach it so I don't get frustrated. When I can do more, I do.
I also learned to write in emergency rooms, waiting rooms etc, on my Alpha Smart and to have my writing stuff with me at all times, even if it's just a journal in my purse so I can write by hand.
Procrastination-no time if I'm going to finish the projects. This has gotten me through two novels and a novella so far. So, I will keep on keepin' on, until I win the lottery or something. The problem is, if I can stay home and write full time, it will be so much easier to procrastinate.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Website and rewrites
First, do you know how hard it is to cut words you like? Hard. My CP looked at my first chapter for BLOODY MURDER and figured out I should begin with the murder scene. Duh. Why didn't I think of that. Well, I did, I just couldn't bring myself to do it since all my words are jewels, why should I throw any of them out? I did it. It hurt. Ditched most of the first chapter and it will be a better book for it with a good hook. Pull people right into the action. Had to do the same thing with Privy, wrote a first chapter I had to get rid of. Slow learner.
Go to www.carolshenold.com I finally found a layout I like. See what you think. I wanted dark and mysterious and this is the one I found. Of course, knowing me, I'll keep experimenting to keep it interesting. I tried some fantasy stuff but it didn't work, too anime or cartoonish. Still need to find something I like for My space. I hate using it, just doesn't seem friendly.
Go to www.carolshenold.com I finally found a layout I like. See what you think. I wanted dark and mysterious and this is the one I found. Of course, knowing me, I'll keep experimenting to keep it interesting. I tried some fantasy stuff but it didn't work, too anime or cartoonish. Still need to find something I like for My space. I hate using it, just doesn't seem friendly.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
4 Enchantments for Privy to Murder
I just got a new review for PRIVY TO MURDER. 4 enchantments from Enchanting Reviews. Now you get to read it too.
Privy to Murder
Rating: 4 Enchantments
Having recently gone through a bitter divorce, Tali Cates has moved back to her hometown of Love, Texas with her young son and angst-ridden teenage daughter. Moving in with her quirky mother, Mumsie, who speaks with the spirits and takes tarot cards seriously, Tali has her hands full with her new party planning business, Party On. After her first gig ends with the hostess’ murder, Tali has to deal with the murdered woman’s ghost, a suspicious town and an ex-boyfriend, J.T., who may or may not be the next love in her life. Not feeling comfortable with the gift her Mumsie takes for granted, Tali stumbles from one crisis to the next as she struggles to build her business and solve not one but two murders. Unwilling to acknowledge her spirit-seeing gift, Tali must learn to come to terms with it if she’s to solve the murders and save her family.
Tali is a likeable, spunky, no-nonsense character and it’s easy to sympathize with her family and business issues. I liked this book and would enjoy reading the next due out in 2008 titled Bloody Murder. I would love to see Tali and J.T. get together as well as more fleshing out of Mumsie—she has some wonderful personality quirks.
This is not a story focusing on romance, rather a cozy mystery with a touch of the paranormal. Those who like the cozy mystery genre will enjoy this one. The plot is well-done, the characters believable and the reader is kept wondering what happens next. The paranormal twist is not over-done and adds an extra element of interest to the story.
Carol Shenold is an author and teacher. Currently she is at work on her sequel to PRIVY TO MURDER; Bloody Murder due out in 2008. PRIVY TO MURDER placed in the “Frontiers in Writing” contest in 2007. Also available from Eternal Press is Carol’s second novel, Fairy Dust. Learn more about Carol Shenold at http://www.carolshenold.com/.
Hope you all go to http://www.eternalpress.ca/ or http://www.fictionwise.com/ and snap it up. Try FAIRY DUST while you're at it.
Privy to Murder
Rating: 4 Enchantments
Having recently gone through a bitter divorce, Tali Cates has moved back to her hometown of Love, Texas with her young son and angst-ridden teenage daughter. Moving in with her quirky mother, Mumsie, who speaks with the spirits and takes tarot cards seriously, Tali has her hands full with her new party planning business, Party On. After her first gig ends with the hostess’ murder, Tali has to deal with the murdered woman’s ghost, a suspicious town and an ex-boyfriend, J.T., who may or may not be the next love in her life. Not feeling comfortable with the gift her Mumsie takes for granted, Tali stumbles from one crisis to the next as she struggles to build her business and solve not one but two murders. Unwilling to acknowledge her spirit-seeing gift, Tali must learn to come to terms with it if she’s to solve the murders and save her family.
Tali is a likeable, spunky, no-nonsense character and it’s easy to sympathize with her family and business issues. I liked this book and would enjoy reading the next due out in 2008 titled Bloody Murder. I would love to see Tali and J.T. get together as well as more fleshing out of Mumsie—she has some wonderful personality quirks.
This is not a story focusing on romance, rather a cozy mystery with a touch of the paranormal. Those who like the cozy mystery genre will enjoy this one. The plot is well-done, the characters believable and the reader is kept wondering what happens next. The paranormal twist is not over-done and adds an extra element of interest to the story.
Carol Shenold is an author and teacher. Currently she is at work on her sequel to PRIVY TO MURDER; Bloody Murder due out in 2008. PRIVY TO MURDER placed in the “Frontiers in Writing” contest in 2007. Also available from Eternal Press is Carol’s second novel, Fairy Dust. Learn more about Carol Shenold at http://www.carolshenold.com/.
Hope you all go to http://www.eternalpress.ca/ or http://www.fictionwise.com/ and snap it up. Try FAIRY DUST while you're at it.
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