Protecting Your Livelihood - Part 1

Currently reading - Greywalker by Kat Richardson

A ton of stuff's happened over the weekend, and we'll talk more about that over the next few days.  First, I must give a whole-hearted salute to the authors at the Killer Fiction blog.

In the quicksand that the publishing biz has become, the ladies at Killer Fiction have been through some serious downs last year.  Most of these gals started with the same publisher, and then that publisher took off and stranded them.  Add in major upheavals on the personal life front, and no one would have faulted these ladies if they let the dark grains close over their heads.

Now, the KF gals could have wailed and cried and let themselves be swallowed in the cesspit of despair, but they used the planks and vines of friends, agents and their own indomitable wills to haul their collective asses out of that sinkhole.  Some have signed with new publishers, some with new agents, and some are self-publishing.

The lesson here--other writers are not your enemies.  You have to have the guts and desire to pursue this career, and be smart enough to work together for everyone to succeed.

Starting today through January 21, 2001, the KF gals have a Kick Off the New Year contest.  In addition to daily drawings, they are giving away a grand prize--a KINDLE E-READER.

And to top it off, today Jana DeLeon is giving away e-copies of the first book in her Ghost-in-Law series, TROUBLE IN MUDBUG!  Trust me, you'll get hooked.

So go check out Killer Fiction and support these lovely ladies by buying their books!

You Knew I Had to Post This...

. . .after yesterday's post.

OMG!

Here's a clip video matching the ladies of Avatar: The Last Airbender with the Moulin Rouge version of Lady Marmalade. AmicableAlien did a hell of a job with this!

The Latest in E-Publishing

Currently reading - Greywalker by Kat Richardson

Have you been keeping up with the e-book craziness?

Former agent, now tech guru, Nathan Bransford talks about our tablet overlords at the Las Vegas International Consumer Electronics Show.  Thriller author and ER doc CJ Lyons discusses her e-book pricing experiment over at Pimp My Novel.  Then there's mystery/suspense author J.A. Konrath's ongoing battle with the print overlords, the latest with uber-agent Richard Curtis.

The problem for newbies like me trying to shove their foot in the fiction door?  The publishing business is in a wild state of flux.  And if you're one of those writers who's on the hunt for the perfect idea/query/whatever break into the business?  Well, you definitely won't find it now.  (Though if you do, I'll give you chocolate if you'll tell me.)

In my quest for releasing my stories into the wild, I'm on the fence.  I'm a pros/cons list maker for major decisions.  The two columns are even as far as print vs. electronic.  And I've got people who care about me trying to sway the decision both ways.

Ultimately, I can only do the same thing as the rest of you.  Analyze the situation, then take that proverbial leap of faith.

You Have to Research Even When You Write What You Know

Currently reading - Insatiable by Meg Cabot

A few years ago, I pitched a particular manuscript at a couple of conferences.  I was roundly shot down by two agents for the same reason--location.  Apparently, some NYC agents do not appreciate stories set in Los Angeles.  One agent soundly berated me for never having been to L.A. so how could I write about it, and that I needed to stick with what I knew.

I managed to swallow my smart-ass comeback, smile pleasantly and thank the agent for her time.  So what if I couldn't write about about L.A?  That meant I couldn't write about New York since I 've never been there either.  That left places I've lived (Ohio Amish country, Canton, D.C., Philadelphia and Houston) and places I've visited (Boston, Baltimore, Richmond, Williamsburg, Charlotte, Miami, Key Largo, New Orleans, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Las Vegas, Reno, Denver, Seattle, San Francisco, San Antonio, Dallas, . . .).  You get my drift.

The trouble is that even when you're very familiar with a place, things change.  The picture above is City Center Mall in downtown Columbus, Ohio, as it was being torn down last year.  I spent a lot of time shopping there with friends.  I ate dinner there each night of the three days of torture that was the 1999 Ohio Bar Exam.  I found the perfect leather jacket for DH in a little shop that was next door to Lazarus department store.  A lot of memories of a place that no longer exists.

So even if you think you know a place well, always ALWAYS do your research.  The heroine of my latest wip definitely can't eat lunch at Max & Erma's if the block that housed that particular restaurant is now a park.

Villainy and the WIP

Currently reading - Insatiable by Meg Cabot

I was caught up in villain motivations yesterday because I've finally got my head back in the current wip.

In fact, on Sunday, we finally had a c.p. get-together for business gossip and some brainstorming.  After Christie and I picked up the pizzas and I pulled into traffic, she gets all Serious.  It's rare for her to get serious with the capital 'S.' 

"I'm only going to say this once.  You'd better finish this book."  And then she shut up.  Folks, if you've know Christie or ever been around her, you know she can't stop talking.  It's in her DNA.  But no, she sat quiet as a church mouse for a couple of blocks until I said, "I will."

Monday morning, I clicked the file open and got back to work.  Only to realize that other than a brief passage in Chapter 1, I hadn't fleshed out, much less mentioned, my primary villain.  And since my villain's long-term goal is the destruction of the universe, he definitely needed some backstory.

It probably helped that on Sunday, Jody called my 'Vette evil.  Then she added that it suits me.  Fleshing out my villain shouldn't be a problem, right?

Motivation Applies to Villains Too

Currently reading - Insatiable by Meg Cabot

How many times have you heard about Goal, Motivation and Conflict as it applies to your hero/heroine?  A dozen.  A hundred.  A couple of thousand.  (If you haven't read Deb Dixon's Goal, Motivation & Conflict: The Building Blocks of Good Fiction, I strongly suggest you beg, borrow or buy a copy.  Like now.  For reasonable prices, check out http://www.gryphonbooksforwriters.com/)

GMC applies to villains as well.  Doctor Evil didn't just wake up one morning and decide to be evil.  (Okay, in Mike Meyers' world, he probably did, but roll with me on this one.)

In little scene in the first Austin Powers movie where Dr. Evil and his son Scott attend father-son group therapy, Dr. Evil lays out a pretty horrendous childhood where he's abandoned by his parents.  Even Scott wants nothing to do with him.  Constant rejection is the catalyst that send Dr. Evil into his downward spiral of "I'm going to screw you over before you screw me over."  Not even Frau Farbissina's love can save him because he can't recognize it.

And ultimately, he hates Austin Powers because everyone gives Austin the love Dr. Evil believes he's owed.

The antagonist of your story must have his own GMC.  Otherwise he becomes another two-dimensional cookie cutter villain.  Take a look at your ms.  Does the villain's GMC make sense?  If it doesn't, pretend you're his therapist and have a long talk with him.

Preferably not in public where the guys with the nice white coats can find you.

Absolutely No Regrets

Currently reading - Insatiable by Meg Cabot

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. . .


Okay, it was really Ohio shortly after I earned my bachelor's degree.  My immediate superior Peggy was a woman in her mid-forties.  One evening, I and a couple of other twenty-something co-workers were at her apartment.  We were talking business and how much the computer industry had changed.  Peggy mentioned she regreted that she never pursued college.

This was back in the day when a secretary with smarts could break into the computer biz.  Peggy was a lady with a lot of gumption, something I'd admired about her.  Her litany of regrets continued as the evening and the wine progressed.

And I realized that same evening I didn't want to hit Peggy's age, only to regret my life.

Our decisions, for good or ill, are what shapes us.  Regreting a decision means regreting the person we've become.  And as I stride into that same age-zone, I realize regrets for what they really are--self-loathing.  You don't like what the person that choices you've made have turned you in to.

It's a new year, a clean slate.  If you didn't make the world's best choice, make amends as best you can, learn from it and move on.  It's not worth your mental health second-guessing yourself.  And when you're at a crossroads in the next weeks or months, ask yourself which option is the one you can live with.  That cuts down on most of the regrets.

And repeat after Madonna--"Absolutely no regrets."

Human Nature

Most people pay more attention to the imagery in this video than the lyrics. They miss both points Madonna was trying to make at the time. And her points are even more true today than they were nineteen years ago.

One Girl Revolution

This video clip combines Superchick and Toph of Avatar: The Last Airbender.  Did Stargazer777 put together a terrific video or what?

Time to get your New Year's writing groove on!