Going Back

I’ve never been much into the past… my past, that is. I honor it, but mostly I leave it behind. Googling old acquaintances, checking lost loves on facebook, or simply looking up a childhood friend isn’t for me.

I’ve tried it. I’ve reconnected with past loves. And um, there was a reason we broke up. Old friends, while sweet encounters initially, usually resulted in the same; we may have been friends once, but the glue just isn’t there anymore. I’ve also reunited with things. I rented The Man From Uncle thinking it would bring me back to that childhood longing to be a spy. It didn’t. Sadly, I thought it was rather dumb. Books are usually different, but I’ve had some unfortunate literary reunions too.

Today I went back to the very first book I wrote, Symphony of Scent. I sold it to New Concepts Publishing. It’s part of a trilogy. I grew up reading fantasy, most of which came in threes, so I did the same. At the time, new and naive, I figured I would also sell the other two to NCP.

I wrote more books and sold those to Wild Child and Freya's Bower. I understood, after working with these fine publishers, that New Concepts wasn’t a place where I wanted any more of my books to live. Long story short, NCP is not a bad publisher; they do send my royalties. What they don’t do is communicate, at least, not with me.

I’d been thinking lately about poor book two and book three of my trilogy, The Fire Within, and Moths and Moonlight. I considered putting them all together and finding a home for them. So read SofS again and realized a couple of things. I don’t think I’m any better of a story teller, but technically I’ve improved. I winced when I read some of those paragraphs…too wordy, too “tell”, too many adjectives, etc.

But then I realized something. Some of what I cringed over wasn’t so much “bad” writing as it was old fashioned. When I started writing I modeled my style after…those fantasy trilogies I’d grown up with. Readers today want lots of action and pared down description. And so I’ve adjusted. Am I a better writer? I think so. But what I’ve improved most on, I believe, is writing to the market.

So what to do with my trilogy? Yesterday I started in on it with a vengeance. After a day of slicing and dicing, I read it over. I didn’t like it. Modern constructions just didn’t seem to work. I decided to leave it as is; three sweet, old fashioned, fantasy romances. That is what they are meant to be.

I doubt if they will ever be together in a published format. But that’s OK. Anna, Torcha, and Saya will be a part of me forever. They launched my love of writing. And I’m grateful to them.

Just like I am to all my former loves. If nothing else, a couple have made pretty good vampires. :-)

Writer’s Inspiration

Writing is, by its very nature, is a solitary pursuit; a writer spends many hours thinking and then putting pen to paper, or these days fingers to keyboard, alone. However, good writing must touch the collective human soul in order to speak to people. And that can only come from experiencing the world.

“Experiencing” can come in many forms.

I have a friend who is a world traveler. She believes true experiencing can only happen while being in different places. I have another friend who just gave up her TV. She believes watching the tube takes you away from true human contact. I have another friend who thinks fiction is worthless as far as touching the human soul goes. I could go on, but you get the idea.

As a writer, I have indeed included bits of actual conversations, visions from visiting new places, and had non fiction inspire me. However….I’ve also been jolted by television programs, fiction, and reading about foreign places. This can be awe inspiring or mundane; I was totally blown away by reading Stephen Hawking’s latest comments on aliens, but I also have gathered inspiration from TV programs such as Say Yes To The Dress. After all, I am no more familiar with different planets than I am with choosing a 5000 dollar wedding dress.

Would going to New York and fingering those gowns give my writing more realism? Is talking to people more authentic than reading fictional conversations? Does reading a book engage your mind more than TV? I don’t believe one activity is better than another, as far as writing goes. Or anything else, for that matter. Every activity you do employs a different part of the brain. All are equally valid for a writer’s inspiration, hobbies, or just whiling away the day. You just have to decide what is valid to you.

Writers are imaginative. We don’t have to visit somewhere to create a story about it, even though traveling types might wince. And we gather inspiration from many sources, even something as berated as the television.

Now if you’ll excuse me, What Not To Wear is on. Those hosts could be a basis of a number of characters, I’m thinking. Especially Stacey. She’s so much like the Red Queen in Alice in Wonderland. Off with her bad outfits!! Shut up. :-)

1000

One thousand is a nice round number. Not as much as it used to be monetarily perhaps, but still, nothing to sneer at.

Today my blog passed 1000 hits. One of my publishers had urged me to write a blog and I did, never thinking anyone would read it. I realize some people are repeats, but I like that. I would hate to think someone stopped by once and never returned.

So yea! Thanks to you all for dropping by, to all who have written, and to all who have purchased my books. I know some writers write simply for the joy of the craft. I am not one of those. I do love to write, but I write for my readers.

The artwork is by one of my favorites, Amy Brown. This is her Believe diva. Thanks for believing in me.

Write What You Know….Maybe

“Write what you know” is one of the more common writer’s maxims. I think there’s some truth to that; penning tales about where you live, what you do, or things you’ve experienced gives a realism that is very evident in your words. And, it’s easier. I don’t have to check much when I write about the Midwest, psychology, or learning how to dance. Been there, done that.

But what about writing outside your experience? Well…science fiction and fantasy writers have done that for decades. The caveat, of course, is that these places aren’t real…at least, as yet they are not proven. And so created aliens can drink chortap and feast on whila bread to their green heart’s content.

Actual places are a different story.

The current book I’m writing takes place in Malaysia (hence the guide book I’m reading). It’s been an interesting journey. A while back I decided to write a novel about two women in one body. I’ve always been interested in the Hindu goddess Kali, who also has a duel aspect. And then I read an article about child slavery in Malaysia which horrified me. (I’m not targeting Malaysia. Slavery happens in many places, I just happened to read this article.)

And so all of those things combined and cooked. I resisted for awhile; I knew this would be a big project because there was so much I didn’t know. Needless to say I don’t have the experience of sharing my body with another soul, but I could create that…I don’t know anyone who would call me on mistakes. :-) However, although I know a bit about the Hindu religion, I’m no expert. I knew absolutely nothing about Malaysia. I’m embarrassed to say I didn’t even know exactly where it was, let alone anything about the food, the culture, the politics except some current sound bites about Tamil Tigers.

And here I am writing a book set mostly in Kuala Lumper and the surrounding jungles. Hard work? Yes. Every time I want to say something like “so and so met in a nearby coffee shop” I have to stop and do research. Do they have coffee shops? If so, what are they like? How do people greet one another? What do locals wear? And all of that for one small paragraph.

I like researching new places because I learn so much. Also, I think when something touches you the way that article did about children sold into slavery, I believe you have to go with it.

Maybe that writer’s rule should be write about what speaks to you, whether that is the tried and true or something more exotic. I love including the Midwest in my stories; it is my home and part of me. But the shivery excitement that comes from immersing myself into a foreign place is also wonderful.

The cool part about writing is you can do both. Writing can be as comfortable as an old shoe, or fling you out into the galaxy. What other profession does that?

Sigh. I love it.

I'm So Silly

And rather embarrassed. A reader wrote and said that while the directions to converting my Ebooks to Kindle were good, it was much easier to go to Fictionwise and purchase them Kindle-ready. SIGH. I forgot my books were there too.

It is much easier...and cheaper.

http://www.fictionwise.com/

To answer another question, my young adult books are my favorite. Also, if you purchase Symphony of Scent, if it feels like at the end there are more stories to be told you are correct...I have two more in that series that I decided not to sell to that publisher. Someday they will all be together again. :-)

Ebooks and The Kindle

When I sold my books I had several people say “let me know when you’ve sold a “real” book because I don’t read things electronically.” While that was a bit hurtful… Ebooks are very much “real” books and some might say the wave of the future… I understood. It is hard to read books on the computer and costly to print.

And then came the Kindle. Trouble is, my publishers didn’t sell via Amazon, so my novels could not be read on the Kindle.

Until now.

Amazon, in its infinite wisdom, now has the technology to enable you to do just that. So…if you’ve wanted to read one of my novels and the only thing holding you back was Kindle inadaptability, you can feel free to read one. Or two. Or all. :-) My publishers are all listed on my website. You buy the book there and then send to your Kindle.

Below are the directions. My husband, the computer geek, tried the Amazon ones and edited them to how they actually worked, including that there is a small fee (a couple of bucks) to send to the Kindle which they don’t tell you about even though the address contains the word "free."

I’m also going to put these directions on my website under the “FAQs”.

Wow. I’m actually becoming Gadget Girl.

How to Convert Ebooks to Kindle:

1.Open a new e-mail message in your e-mail client.

2.Check to make sure the "From" address you are using is on your Kindle approved e-mail address list (see Manage My Kindle on Amazon’s site).

3.Enter the desired Kindle e-mail address in the "To" field. Use the "name"@Kindle.com address for wireless delivery, or "name"@free.kindle.com for free delivery to the e-mail address associated with your Amazon.com account.

4.Attach your document or documents to the e-mail message. If you are sending multiple files, you can compress them into a .ZIP file.

5.Send the e-mail with attachments. A subject line is not needed.
a.Personal documents below 5 MB in officially supported file formats are typically delivered to the "name"@Kindle.com e-mail address within 5 minutes (per document). Personal documents above 5 MB may take longer.
b.Personal documents below 5 MB in officially supported file formats are typically ready for wireless auto-delivery to your Kindle within 5 minutes (per document), not including actual wireless download time, which will vary with file size. Personal documents above 5 MB may take longer.
c.Personal documents in other file formats (such as PDF files) may take longer.
d.Your e-mail provider may have additional limitations on file size.

Note: You must have your Kindle account set up for receiving emailed documents. This includes selecting a method of payment for received files.

Book Review

The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan

I love fiction best, but I enjoy reading non fiction too. I’m not a big fan of biographies, unless it is someone very special to me. Most often my non fiction forays are of a scientific nature. Being a psychologist by schooling, I delve most often into the human based sciences, although I’m a sucker for anything Diane Ackerman has written. Anyway.

When I say I enjoy science books I do have a few qualifies. First and foremost, said book must be written in a way I can understand. I enjoy reading Stephen Hawkins, but sometimes he writes way over this reader’s head. My second stipulation is that the science writer can write; I want beautiful prose and gorgeous descriptive paragraphs just like I do in fiction. Third, the scientist must either be a scientist, or accurately research scientists and their work. Psychology uses the scientific method just like a chemist, and I know it when I see it. Fourth, although anyone who writes a book has an opinion, I neither want to be hit over the head, nor do I want to see just one side. Present all information, thank you very much, and let me decide.

And that’s exactly what Pollan does. He has an opinion. What his book says, if I had to boil it down to one sentence, is to be more mindful of what you eat. He doesn’t tell you what to eat, just that you might want to consider your nourishment a bit more. His research is sound. He presents his information on why you should care about what you put into your mouth in a compelling, simple, and thoughtful way. What he also does is describe the various places he visits with such clarity that I was alternately horrified and filled with wonder. He is that good of a writer.

I have another reason for choosing scientific books now and then; they inspire my fiction. Reading about the world in all of its complexities is, at the very least, thought provoking. A book written about how we eat, why we eat, what we eat, and how all of that is interwoven within the very fabric of our being has caused me to deeply ponder the cyclic nature of death and how we in the western world are so removed from it. Will that feed (pardon the pun) into my current novel about Kali, Hindu goddess of death and renewal?

You can bet on it.