Reuniting with My Husband

It's official. We're getting back together for the fall season of television. After a couple of months of HBO and reruns for me and golf and fishing for him, we will be reuniting for television. Well, we weren't really separated. It's just that the summer takes us in different directions. But this is a sport pasttime we can share. I'm happy to say that we'll be watching Survivor tonight. I may need to cheat and bring my laptop along. Are there any shows that you are excited about seeing when September rolls around?

(Writing update: still making edits to the manuscript and sent out three queries this month. Received two rejections so far... more queries planned.)

Trailer Time

Last month, I was able to take an online course on making book trailers. The course was great for the beginner. I'm not a newbie when it comes to Movie Maker, and I'm excited about working on a book trailer for The Waiting Booth. One class participant asked if an author should develop a trailer for an unpublished manuscript. The response was that it might be better to focus on other activities to get that book deal before spending time on a trailer. Oh well. I did get a swift rejection this week from the query I sent out. I guess I don't need to start a trailer yet. In the meantime, here is a trailer for one of my favorite reads from this summer. Beautiful Creatures is from the YA genre. I think they did a great job!

Manuscript Milestone

Today I completed the last chapter of The Waiting Booth. It was the moment that I've been waiting for in this process. I didn't actually type the words, THE END, but I did a little dance (Napoleon Dynamite style), took a deep breath, and let myself feel good for a minute. Now what? Well...it was only the first draft. I have gone through this process knowing that I will hate editing, rewrites, and more editing. Thus, I now begin the second draft of the book which will focus on edits. There are some holes in my story. Sometimes the details were in my head and didn't make it to the page. I've also taken two online classes during this process on POV and Show vs Tell. I'm thinking about adding in an entire POV. I'll take what I've learned and try to apply better writing techniques throughout the book. Wish me luck. THE END.

Inspired

People who have inspired me this month:
1. Son: My son finally left home to return to college. I made it into that bedroom for a monumental cleaning. Ahhh...
2. Teacher: I'm taking an online writing class called Show and Tell Workshop by Shannon Donnelly. At first I thought she was rather brutal. Now I think she's just GOOD. (sd-writer.com)
3. Fellow Writers: Members of the Arkansas Diamonds are getting their first works published. KUDOS.
4. Leonardo DiCaprio: Saw Inception and could see it again.
5. Niece: My niece took the ACT and SLAM DUNKED it.

In honor of all those who have done such great work this month, I vow to complete this first draft. I am on the final two chapters of The Waiting Booth. Bless my sister who reads every word with support and enthusiasm.

Fun Analyzer

I write like
Dan Brown

I Write Like by Mémoires, Mac journal software. Analyze your writing!

I inserted my last blog post into the analyzer, and this is what I got! I enjoy Dan Brown's books, so this was a nice result. If I had been awarded another author comparison that I'm not so crazy about, I might not be smiling right now. Great way to start a Saturday.

The Writer's Lightbulb

The other day, my husband and I were talking when he called someone a 'hawkeye'.  I replied, "What is that?" since what I heard is 'hogeye'.  He responded that he was being facetious since the guy cannot see anything far away.  I still didn't understand why a nearsighted person would be a  'hogeye'.  I was still confused.  I repeated, "Still don't get it."  He patiently elaborates, " It's like calling a big guy 'Tiny' ."  I thought that was hilarious, but still no prize for getting me understand 'hogeye'.  Much later, after I  wrote it down, he got a chuckle.

In my current manuscript, I needed a secondary character to appear and I didn't have a name or persona.  I gleefully used the idea from this conversation to name him 'Tiny'.  No, I won't be using the names 'Hawkeye' or even 'Hogeye", but I love the thought of meeting a hulking character called Tiny.  This is really how I get a lot of ideas for major and minor plotlines and characters.  Something happens in daily life, and I think, "I could use that."

Actually, I wonder if most authors just pick up a daily newspaper to come up with some intriguing and unique plotlines.  Haven't you ever read a news article and thought, "You just can't make that stuff up!"  I believe that's why people are so drawn to reality televisiont.  You know what they say... Real life is stranger than fiction .

A Hot Book Trailer

Confession Time: I didn't know about book trailers. I saw my first one this morning. It's hilarious!