Going Crazy or Why Do We Need A February 30th

Today it hit me like a truck. The amount of work I must complete by the end of february is huge and my nerves are crushing under its weight. As it always is on matters of life and everything that matters, I didn't plan for so many things to happen at the same time. One minute I'm milling over my novel and a couple of stories, you know, leisurely (but not lazily); the only deadlines being the ones I wrote on my notebook. The next thing I know, Bam! Work has fallen on my lap out of nowhere.

It all started with a bit of bad news. I got an email from the publisher to which I submitted one of my stories back in November, and once more the answer was no. I felt heartbroken for like five seconds, then I went back to the long list of publishers that might be interested in my story. I was going through it when I remembered: Cemetery Dance is open for submissions. I logged in to check the requirements and they are looking for 5k long stories. 

My story is 7k long. Shoot.

 

Wait, what if I read it again and see... After all, it has been rejected so many times (seven, to be exact), it might be good to give it a new read. So I did. And I couldn't pass the first paragraph without thinking it was full of garbage. 

Oh, what the heck. What can go wrong, right? So I started rewriting. And I've been at it for two straight days. Haven't passed page three and the story is already two hundred words shorter.

Oh. My. God. And to think I paid for a professional edit... Man!

Of course now I'm resolved to make it a 5k story. I might not be able to pull it, but I know at the very least it'll be a much better story and there will be many more markets willing to read a shorter version.

Then, on the same day and just to show me there's still hope for me, I got some good news. The next mail I opened was an invitation to be part of an anthology. 

YAY! 

This is an invite-only anthology and the editor chose thirteen authors to participate in it, yours truly among them. I'm very happy and honored to be considered. I'm also very stressed trying to think of the best, most intelligent, clever, funniest 5k story I can write. And, of course, my mind went kaput. No shiny light bulb above my head. 

Dang! 

After careful consideration, I came up with two ideas that can work if I want to write a new story. Or I have two stories in a very rough first draft that I could make fit. Thing is, the deadline is early March. For the whole, edited and ready to be submitted story. Yep, March... 

Oh, and did I forget to tell you I got a new translation project? Well, yes. This time the good news came by phone (and believe me, they are good news. My wallet can attest to that.) A Geologist for whom I have worked before needs me to translate a final report of some kind of investigation from Spanish to English by the end of February. It's about a hundred pages long. No kidding.

Soooo... I'm in a bit of a pickle. 

I need to haul my ass big time if I want to get everything ready for the different deadlines, so forgive me if I don't write here as often, or if my writing isn't as clever and funny. 

What, you saying I'm not clever or funny? 

FINE. 

Then you won't mind me being cranky.

Hope you are having a much more relaxing start of the week. ;-)

Moving Forward

I'm sure you can remember from all my whining that the last few months my life has been out of whack. Well, now finally I'm building a rhythm and I can't foresee great disturbances that will cause a new pandemonium around here. So what to do now? Develop a plan.

I don't know about you, but I always work best when I feel organized. Feel being the operative word here. What I mean is, I'm not necessarily achieving more or following my scheduled as programed, but the closer I get to it, the greater my sense of completion. So, here it is:

I, hereby pledge to blog two days a week.

• Tuesdays I'll go back to my reviews, haven't done that in a while and I miss them, for one. It can be movies or books, maybe even a theatrical piece if one good enough crosses my path. No genre exclusivity this time around. 
• I'll also be blogging every friday. Fridays are fun for most everyone and we want to start the weekend with a nice, entertaining thought. For this reason I'll do lists on this day. It can be best movies, best books, places to go, vacations to take, and occasionally, I'll just share with you a picture that's made me laugh.

I also will blog a few extra times a month, like the first wednesday of each month for the Insecure Writer's Support Group, or when I have some exciting news to share. And I'll take a break from this schedule during the month of april, when I'll be blogging everyday about horror books and movies going down the alphabet, courtesy of the A to Z challenge.

About my book writing, I currently have two short stories being considered for two different anthologies. They've been rejected before, so I don't want to have high hopes; however, my spirits are kind of high. I also have another short that needs work but could be perfect for the new Dark Moon Anthology only for ladies. And I'm working on my new novel, Deliverance.

The plan there is to work on the ms until about chapter five or six, then let it breath while working on that short for Dark Moon. When that one's ready to go, go back to Deliverance and keep working.

I have plenty of stories that I can edit or expand and I think I'll do one at a time whenever I hit a roadblock with the novel. It has proven to work for me before, taking some weeks off the ms releases my anxiety and allows me to work better and fluently.

By the end of the year I should have a complete first draft of the novel and at least two more short stories... may I say published?? I sure hope so. But it's the level of production that I'm aiming to increase this year, so that's where my mind should concentrate. I have no control over the other stuff and I'll do my best not to fret over it.

So what do you think? It might not be too much for many, but keeping up with my girls and traveling with the family is something I wouldn't want to miss. Not even for the love of writing. In the mean time, have fun. Go read something exciting!

A New Beginning

It's been quite some time since I shared with you where I'm standing at in my career as a writer, but I'm here to change that. For a little over a year, I've been very focused on writing short stories. My idea was to gain knowledge of how the industry works, and of my own creative process before tackling the mammoth task of wringing a novel.

Up to two weeks ago, I felt my efforts had given very few results and, given my very hectic, unpredictable life, I hadn't really accomplished much. I refused to start writing a new novel or revisit my research for my first project because of this, and I felt very disillusioned. But upon further analysis I came to realize that through all this time I've been writing many stories that I've posted in here, more than ten, that is. I just use this blog to let my thoughts flow and didn't consider it like 'writing' though it is!

So, with this in mind, I've decided to polish up each and everyone of the stories I've shared with you and then try to find a proper home for them. In the mean time, I'm already submitting FEAST DAY and I'll take the jump, trying to follow my heart into a new story that could be my first Mystery/Suspense, and maybe, my pass to get into the big leagues. A girl can dream, right?

This is how it happened. My husband was recently transferred to Connecticut from Montreal and we've been driving up and down for almost a month, now. It's a six hours drive that feels like a hundred. My husband is the one that drives, so the girls play in the back, draw, watch movies, and fight. You know, just generally annoy us the whole time. For me, I love to spin stories in my mind while watching through the window, observing the landscape and trying to imagine how people live in those pretty, and not so pretty, houses that line the highway.

During our most recent trip, and hopefully the last one, we took a different route and wound up in a very solitary road. Most houses were quite far one from the other and surrounded by heavily wooded areas. From our spot on the road, I saw a small cemetery plot with just four markers. The tombstones were very old, clear by the greenish tones of the stone and by the fact that none of them stood straight, but inclined in every which way. The plot was fenced with a black iron rod, the kind you see in the museums to stop people from getting too close to the art, and across a few yards from it stood a classic English colonial house.

It just hit me. An idea so strong and clear it can only be called a vision filled my mind. I had to get it on paper, so right there and then, I grabbed my handy dandy iPad and stroked with passion. Blessed be the person who created the Pages app.

This time, the creative juices are flowing in a different way, though. I usually start with a final scene clear in my mind and work my way back to the beginning. With this story, I have a clear understanding of the characters, the main story, and the back story, but that's it. That was ok when I began pounding the keyboard because I was thinking about a short story, but there's so much more I can tell, so many places it could go; I feel compelled to make it a novel.

I think it is time for me to move forward, to a territory where I don't feel as comfortable and it's kinda scary, to be truthful. I'm worried and nervous, not knowing which is the best approach, and riddled of self-doubt.

I know I will succeed and I know this can be a great novel. I just have to find the courage to begin.

Writer's block?

So, after all that talking I finally got to work on my latest story: a short horror story called (so far) "Feast Day" based on an anecdote a couple of friends had on Italy. When I first began working on it a month ago or so it all felt very organic; you know, the process of adapting the story and researching for a supernatural twist that was ingrained in italian folklore, of which I know nothing. It wasn't at all hard and after an evening or two of reading everything that came my way I found the perfect place and set of customs to use as a base for the tale; I even wrote a few paragraphs... great!

Along came french mid-terms and Christmas; out the door went every chance to move forward the work. I didn't worry much, trusting that the rough of the work was already done and I had a pretty clear idea of where I wanted the story to go. Winter-break, finally! The best was having the kids in school since that would give me more time to finish my work.  Monday came and I sent my girls to school, hurried up with my chores and sat in front of my laptop only to realize my mind was blank. All those ideas I had were still there, of course, but I couldn't find the right words if my life depended on it. Damn! With GREAT effort I managed to write some 700 wds, shameful...

Tuesday I had to take the kids to gym practice in the evening so I woke up early and sat at my 'desk' without bothering about cleaning the house. After thinking a lot and struggling with the kind of line suited the story best, I managed to reconnect with my characters; yay! Around 1500 wds, good...

Wednesday represented another struggle, it took me like three hours to find the story again. Thursday was even worse... kid's gym, again. So here I am, friday, my last day of vacation and 3400 wds of not so decent prose. I don't think this is technically "writer's block" but sure as hell feels like it. I don't know why I've had such a hard time connecting with the characters and I don't know if it will turn out to be a good story but I feel like I have to stick to my guns and finish it; to see it through and maybe when getting to the second draft I'll have a better sense of what to do with it.

Somewhere I remember I read something to the effect that if you leave a draft untouched for a month, the story is dead and you'll never be able to retake it; maybe they were right. Cross your fingers for me and I'll keep you posted!

Developing a Game Plan

Ok. I'm officially on vacation from French school, which is great; I needed a break. It's been a great experience and, even though I started with doubts, now I feel really happy since I've come to see a clear advance in my french; I even can make myself understood! Anyway, right now great news are cooking; I can't share the details until everything is settled but I'm super happy. Life is giving me a great big smile these days and I'm trying to enjoy it as much as I can because everything that comes up has to come down and I want to remember how good it feels right now to give me strength when things don't turn out the easy way.

I've had very few time to write something new but I expect to recover some time through the next few weeks. I have a story pretty much shaped and today I'll try to advance it as much as I can; the goal is to have it ready by monday and use next week to go forward with the other one. Those magazines for writers I've told you about have some kind of "classifieds" where other magazines that are interested in publishing new authors post their information; that's my next move. Once I have at least two more stories I'll start knocking on different doors to try to get my name across as many people as a Short Fiction writer can. The point is to broad my curriculum. Some Publishers looking for new novels ask about "Credentials"; well, so far only one editor knows my work and even though it'll be published, that won't mean much for somebody else. If different editors in different magazines (and hopefully, different contests) have been interested in my work, then an Agent or Publisher might feel a bit more inclined to read what I have to show; at least that's what my logic tells me... I might have it completely wrong but in the worst of cases, at least I'll feel better knowing that more than one person thinks my stories are worth it.

Well then, I have work to do! I promise I'll come back soon to let you in on my secret and give you details of how everything is going.

See you soon!!

A New Outlook

I finally finished that first draft of the story! I did it last wednesday, I think; I took the rest of the week to free my mind and give it a rest. I read, watched movies, and also started nurturing the early bids of those other ideas I had told you before. All in all it was a good week and I'm super excited because of the Writer's Digest Conference in NY in January; I will be there for sure!

Where am I in my writing? Well, I'm seriously doubting the story is publishable in its present state; it needs editing obviously but most importantly, it is way too long for a short and not enough for a "stand alone". I have to chose which way it will go and that's why, after writing this update, I will do my best to read it as a reader and not as the author. I also asked different people to give me their opinions about it and I'll try to use all these feed back in order to reach a decision.

Somedays I wonder if I'll be able to get a finished product that's worthy of being published. Last night I couldn't sleep and watching TV they aired Stephen King's biography. I have followed him since my early teens and I'd heard his bio before but with my aspirations at the moment, I listened with different ears. It took him ten years to get a novel published, ten years! He was, as he still is, a production machine that then wrote short stories like hot pancakes. A lot of magazines paid for his stories but he was neither famous nor rich; those days were still in the distant future. He was perseverant and never let go of his dream.

I signed in for this marathon a little late on my life but I'm still young and if I'm willing to persevere no matter how long it takes and how many rejection slips I get, I might become good enough to one day see my name in the cover of a paperback. All the stress and the feeling that time was running out has gone for now and I'm just interested in putting in as much time as it takes to write a decent story, weather it be big or small; as long as it is decently crafted, I don't care so much.

Bad Week

I guess we all are doomed to have a bump in the road at some point, the fist one came along last week for me. It was a wasted week for my writing and I'm starting to feel anxious that time is slipping out of my hands and I won't be able to finish. First of all, the so called short story is reaching its thirtieth page; granted, it's only missing the end, but you can see how it's only short by name. Then, a week ago I read about a contest for Fiction Short Stories (up to ten thousand words, thank God) with a Nov. 15th deadline; so, this is getting tight. And finally the last week was the straw that broke the camel's back.

Here in Canada last monday was Thanksgiving day, obviously, everybody stayed at home and I didn't write a word; that's ok, we all need a bit of a time as a family. Then on tuesday my oldest daughter didn't have school, so the younger one wanted to stay and play with her "siste"; anyway, another lost day. On wednesday my loving husband had to fly to NY for business... what happened to me? I had to take both girls to school, clean up the disaster of the two previous days, and pick them up; I know this is what most mom's do everyday but since my routine is different, it just messed me up. Thursday comes along and, wait for it, my husband lost his plane yesterday and I have to pick him up at the airport at NOON. Seriously? By now I'm wondering if there's a godly design to keep me from working.

Friday was my "good" day if you don't take into account that it was raining cats and dogs, the wind was blowing tree branches to the floor, and I got soaking wet when picking my oldest from school; but hey, at least I had some four hours of writing. On saturday I didn't even try, I decided to give myself some shopping therapy; 150 dollars later I was a happy camper.

Finally Sunday arrives and the morning was crazy; the girls were at each other throats and we got late to gym class. Once in the gym I realized it was the last day to pay for their pictures and I hadn't even had breakfast. To hell with it. I called my husband, pulled him out of his class to give him a full ear of my horrific week and how he had to figure out something before a meteorite came crashing down on my head.

After that relaxing exercise I got myself a BIG coffee and a doughnut and sat down to watch my girls' class. My husband got the pictures payed and he kept the girls entertained outside for the rest of the afternoon. I'm sure he did it more for self-protection than kindness but I don't care; I sat down and wrote.

Now, the plot thickens. Everyone has heard of "Writer's block"; I'm not sure exactly what it is but is one of those things that I'll know when I see it. Yesterday I got confronted by one of its many faces, I think; I had been so overwhelmed by the previous events that my creative mind wasn't flowing as usual. Normally I'll write some four pages in six or seven hours of work; I have no idea if it is a good or a bad rhythm but that's what I'm used to. Yesterday I wrote one, ONE; and I'm not even sure it's decent enough.

I have a couple of new ideas that are distracting me from this project; I have committed to finish this thing before starting another but sometimes I just feel I'm going through the motions just to see it finished and be able to move on. It definitively hasn't been a simple task to not let my mind wander to other stories and write the best thing I can 'till the end; don't worry, I'll do. I promised you, but most importantly I promised me.

In the mean time tell me if you have gone through something similar and how did you manage to complete the task that you had assigned to yourself.

I'll keep you posted!

Developing a Story

My first short story is going along pretty well, I haven't finished the first draft but I'm advancing at a pretty steady pace and close to that goal. What I want to share with you today is the creative process I've developed as I find my way in this career; I'd also loved it if you shared yours with me, as it might inspire me to tune mine even further.

When I began with the novel, as I posted in a previous entry, I didn't know quite well how to tackle the process of creating an interesting plot and appealing characters; I thought I could start writing and everything would fall in place as I told the story. Truth be told, it is nearly impossible to tell a compelling story when all you got is bits of pieces of it; so, after my first total failure I started writing down my ideas; and I mean pen and paper, no computer. My mind works better when I put in paper everything, weather I'm developing my newest novel hero or making a grocery list; there's something about doing it the old way that makes it more graphic and clearer in my mind.

I realized that the characters I had found the most interesting as a reader were those going through an ordeal, those who are overcoming adversity in some way; for example, if there were no animosity between the families, Romeo and Juliet wouldn't be a memorable story; had it not been for the fact that he is a vampire and she is a human, Twilight would be just another teen book. In order to make a story interesting, you have to make it complicated... at least in romance.

First I came with the outline of the novel, the main characters, their state of mind at the beginning of the story, their motivations and the complications they'd have to conquer. I'm telling a family story too, so, I also had to create a family tree, a background to it, and the interactions between them. Since I'm planning a series of books, my characters will have to mature as time goes on and I risked making them illogical as I needed them to do something; my way of avoiding this was to create a "Script", one for each important character, where I describe their personality; that way I have somewhere to look when I need to find someone with the right attitude or motivation to react in a particular way.

Finally, I imagine new plots and characters, but places and the details of them come harder to me; so I went to the internet and looked through tons of pictures of houses and landscapes until I found those where I could picture the events of the novel.

The whole process took like three weeks and was tedious at times but, once I went back to the writing, it proved to be worth it and I'm sure to repeat it in the future; as I did with the short story. I'm also sure that as I know better what I need in order to create a more rounded story, my research will be more limited to what I'll really use and shorter in time.

Next time I hope I'll be telling you all about my research into the most rewarding conclusion for anyone in this career, publishing. I'm already looking for magazines interested in new writers, since I'm about to finish that cherished first work. I'll tell you all about it next time.

The First Novel

Do you remember that first novel I told you all about? Well, I planned carefully the plot, I did my research and, finally, I started writing. At first I got so carried away by the story, which I find so interesting, that all I wrote were the bones of the novel; what I mean is that there was no metaphor, no similes, there were only facts and simple conversations. The entirety of the first chapter were something like ten lousy pages in double space, so there's no need to say it needed work.

A quick travel to Mexico took me away from my baby and gave a week to distance myself from it. By the time I came back and put my family back on tracks -my husband was barely able to survive on eggs, steak, and frozen pizza but my house was in serious need of a clean up and my girls, five and four, were in need of a home cooked meal- I had taken a two weeks "vacation" in total. I went back to my manuscript, re-read it and totally hated it. I restarted from the very beginning but this time I took the time to put in paper the outlines of all that, too important plot so I could take my time describing scenes and characters; I also wrote a list of all the points that I wanted to make through the first chapter in order to cover the story in as much detail as possible. You see, I was so excited with the realization that I was able to write and I had an idea for a novel!, that I had a very poorly thoughtout plan of how to express that great idea.

Another thing quite amusing that is kind of complicating this whole thing is, you always read that you have to write in the genre that you read... well, I've always loved horror stories but I'm trying to write a ROMANCE! Why on earth I got in my mind this story in particular? I have no idea, but I truly understand Stephen King now. He was asked once why he chose to write horror, his answer: What makes you think I chose? So, my plan to overcome this? I've started reading YA romance to get to know the pacing and development that a reader will be expecting.

So, all at the same time I've been looking for my own style, I've been learning about the genre that has chosen me, and I've been writing my dream story. The final result has been painfully bad at times but I keep reminding me that this is only my first draft and I can always go back to perfect it in a second or third draft. This second attempt has taken me a lot more time but, I feel, it has a much better quality; I haven't even finished the first chapter yet but, so far, I've written some thirty pages of not so abhorrent nature.

As you can see, everyday is a battle against the odds, and against my own questions about my talent but I'm hanging in here; somedays better than others but still in the fight.