We're Moving

I'm just letting everyone know that at the end of the month I will no longer be posting to this blog. I'm moving everything over to Wordpress. You can find the new blog here -- http://anaquana.wordpress.com/

Manic Monday

Today was definitely manic. After taking two weeks away from everything, today was back to work for both hubby and me. It's nice getting back up on the writing horse now that my creative well has been refilled. However, that giddy feeling was replaced with abject terror when I went looking for what I'd written in the weeks before our trip to Vegas and found the file EMPTY! *cue racing heart and hyperventilating* Thankfully, WriteorDie saves a copy of each session in its own separate folder. *angels start singing* It doesn't have any of my later additions that I made in the word doc, but that's okay because I have the main body of work.

Reading through it, this small snippet made me smile:

"Don't get cocky there, boy. You're still the junior partner here."

"Yeah, yeah. Go ahead and admit it. I'm doing good."

"You are, Vic. Give it ten or fifteen years and you might be as good as Luka when he first started."

"Wounded. I've been grievously wounded to the core!"

"Drama queen."

"Hey now, I may be gay, but I'm definitely not a queen. You see this grease under my nails? It's auto grease, not stage grease."

Vegas, Baby!

I spent a full week basking in the 100+ degree heat of Las Vegas. Some dear friends decided they wanted to renew their wedding vows in Vegas in front of Elvis so we planned a group trip out. More than a dozen of us from all across the country (and even one from Australia) descended on The Tropicana for a week of fun and relaxation. It was wonderful. We left the laptop at home and were pretty much incommunicado for an entire week... except for the one morning when when of hubby's employees called the cell phone at 8am Vegas time with a question for hubby instead of asking the big boss. That phone call did not go over well.

The tri-couple wedding vow renewal was so much fun. I highly recommend The Graceland Wedding Chapel for anyone who wants to get married by Elvis. Their Elvis was fun and funny (even if he did mistake us all for a group of swingers) and the video and photographs of the ceremony were gorgeous.

My husband and me at the wedding chapel (no we weren't one of the couples to renew our vows).

The pool area at The Tropicana. This is where we spent most mornings lounging about.

Other than the wedding, we didn't have a whole lot planned. It was just about hanging out with friends we don't see very often and being able to relax. There was quite a bit of walking The Strip with people and spotting the wonderful street performers. Especially Miss Cotton Candy:

Most people flew home on Sunday, but hubby and I stayed until Tuesday morning. We didn't get home until after midnight Wednesday morning. 

Manic Monday

On Friday, my agent and I had the following Twitter conversation:

Ana Ramsey

#FF love to my dear agent @BookCannibal. You should follow her because she's my agent and she rocks. :-)

 

Cameron McClure

@anaquana Thanks! When a woman with pink hair in her photo tells me that I rock, that's the kind of compliment I take seriously!

 

Ana Ramsey

@BookCannibal *grins* Well, I hope the fact that the pink is only photoshopped on doesn't make you think less of the compliment. ;-)

@BookCannibal I *am*, however, seriously contemplating dying it purple for Vegas next week. :-D

Cameron McClure

@anaquana Oh no! I do think that somewhat diminishes your rock star cred, and, by association, the credibility of your compliments

 

Ana Ramsey

@BookCannibal Oh dear... Guess I'll have to take some of @ChuckWendig's advice abt how to become a writing rock star. http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2011/07/27/turning-writers-into-motherfucking-rock-stars/

 

So, yes, dear readers, I have gone and turned myself purple. It took 3 bottles of Splat Lusty Lavender hair dye to get it done, but I now look like a damned Faery. 

 

 

 

Agents as Publishers

There's been a new controversy brewing lately in the publishing world -- literary agencies taking on the role of e-publisher.

For those of you who don't know, an agent is a writer's best friend. They're your advocate when dealing with publishers. They negotiate with publishers in order to get the best deal and the most money for the writer. They are also the mediator when things aren't going so well between writer and publisher.

This, obviously creates a conflict of interest when that agent puts on a publisher's hat. Where does the line get drawn between an agent's duty to get the best deal for his/her client and the publisher's duty to make money? How hard is that agent going to work for his/her client at getting those good deals when they can simply steer them towards e-publishing through their company?

My personal feelings about this match those of many other agents and writers. I have no problem with agents opening up their own publishing arm AS LONG AS their clients don't overlap.

Actually, I lie, I do have a problem with it. And that problem lies in the area of time management. As it stands now with agents simply being agents, they're pressed for time to get everything done. Where is the extra time going to come from? Who is going to get skimped for attention? The agent's clients? The publisher's clients? Those poor, desperate souls hopelessly querying trying to snag an agent?

Romance author Courtney Milan has a fabulous post on her blog about this whole fiasco. Go check it out and give her some love because she is one intelligent, classy lady.

Manic Monday

Sorry for such a late posting today. Hubby has today and tomorrow off, so my schedule is all messed up. We spent a good portion of the day ripping up linoleum that had been laid over beautiful hardwood floors. Right now I'm an aching, tired mess so I'm just going to squee a bit because Ghost Story, Book 13 of the Dresden Files, will be out tomorrow.

Also, Old Spice Duel! Even though I'm in complete lust with Isaiah Mustafa, I hate the Old Spice commercials. That said, Kick Fabio's Ass Isaiah!!!

Throwing in the Towel (Then Picking It Back Up)

My guest post over at Black Ink, White Paper is up. Head on over, take a peek, and maybe hang around for a bit. It's a great site filled with awesome people.

Manic Monday

Due to a miscommunication, my guest post over at http://blackinkwhitepaper.wordpress.com/ was pushed to this Friday.

This round of rewrites have been sent off to the most excellent of agents.

And since this heat has melted my brain, I'm going to leave you all with some Harry Potter themed alcoholic drinks.

Manic Monday

This weekend I realized that the book I had planned as Book #2 in my series is actually Book #3. Lucky for me, I also figured out the plot of the new Book #2. Now to just let the plot bubble away in the cauldron of my brain for a bit.

My friend K.B. Wagers asked me to write a guest blog for Black Ink, White Paper. After looking over the interview questions she sent, I opted to go for a regular blog post instead of just answering questions. So look for that on the Black Ink, White Paper blog this coming Friday, July 15th!

I was lamenting on Facebook today how woefully neglected this blog is and K.B. subtly made the suggestion that I pick one day a week and make a habit of posting on that day. So, I'm going to take her up on that challenge and do my very best to post something every Monday. And if I don't have a new post on Mondays, I give you all permission to threaten me with spiders. :-D

Happy July 4th Weekend

I finished the rewrites for Where Demons Fear to Tread. Now I'm just waiting to hear back from a couple readers to make sure I didn't miss anything and didn't leave any embarrassing threads dangling then it's off to my wonderful agent.

In the mean time, I read over a story for a friend. OMG! It was so good. I can't wait for some agent and then publisher to snatch this up because it made me laugh, cry, love her and hate her all at the same time. I was supposed to be beta'ing it for her, but I got so caught up in it the first time around that I couldn't do anything but read it through to the end. The second read through was just as engrossing as the first time, but so much more difficult because I knew what was going to happen. Damn you, Katy!! *sniffles*


Today I started to poke at a story I began in high school. This story started out as a horrible Mary Sue wish-fulfillment. The first several rewrites over the years didn't do much to alleviate that problem, but now I'm proud to say I have three dimensional characters with flaws and personalities all their own.

Have a little snippet:

Trent didn’t answer, he only stared at her. His blue eyes were cold as ice, but she refused to be cowed into submission. She crossed her arms over her chest and stared back in defiance. He turned away first, but it was by no means a victory for Kit. Somehow she had the feeling it had been a calculated move on his part.

            Damn him!

            “Fine, then where are my chambers?”

            He smirked and she knew she was not going to like his answer.

            “Right here, my love.” He gestured with his hand, the movement taking in the entire room. His room as she very well knew. “Even if there is to be no sexual contact between the two of us, you will still sleep in my bed.”

            “The hell I will!”

            He raised his eyebrows, clearly bemused.

            Like an indulgent parent would look at an unruly child, she thought crossly.

            “You will either sleep in my bed or on the floor.”

            What a choice, but she knew which one she would ultimately choose.

            “All right then,” she huffed, crossing the stone floor to the bed.

            He smiled at his victory until she snatched a pillow off the bed and walked over to the fireplace. She stretched out on the brown fur rug hoping it was free of bugs. Deliberately rolling over and closing her eyes, she told him silently in no uncertain terms how much regard she had for him and his orders. Inside she knew his clenched jaw and expression of unadulterated fury would give her nightmares.

            The roller-coaster ride of emotions took their toll and she drifted off to sleep despite the hard stone beneath her and the lack of a blanket.

            When she awoke she was warm and comfortable, a tanned male arm encircling her waist. The bastard had waited until she had fallen asleep then picked her up and put her in his bed.

            The hard length of his body curled against her back, a sheltering presence. Of course, those things that shelter can also trap and that was exactly what this was.

            Her eyes scanned the room looking for anything she could use as a weapon. He was battle trained, so any attack she made had to be fast and deadly while he was still asleep. She wouldn’t get a second chance.

            Slowly she rolled onto her back and his arm tightened around her, restricting her movements.

It's a Delicate Balance

Right after I quit a job that had me working 70-80 hours a week at all hours of the day and night I vowed to myself that I would never again let a job get in the way of my life. Unfortunately, I am having the exact opposite problem right now. I'm letting life get in the way of a potential job.

I was doing so well before the move. I'd get several hours of writing done almost every day and not spend so much time distracted by other things. But this move, everything that needs to be done with the house, and the bout of depression I went through this past winter seem to have sapped what little willpower I have. I spend too much time flitting between websites, wandering around the house cleaning or just staring in dismay at the mess, and occasionally poking at these rewrites.

In the last few weeks I've managed to add another 5k words and tweak the first dozen chapters (two and a half of them today), but I feel like I should be going faster. I look at the speed of some professional authors in the urban fantasy genre and I know in my heart that I'll never be successful if I can't pick up my writing/editing pace. I'm just not sure how to do that and it is so discouraging. 

Spring Is Here!

I've been tracking an interesting peculiarity about myself for the last several years -- my creativity is tied to the cycle of the seasons. All Winter my brain feels like it's full of cotton. The words are there, but they're muffled, distant, not within my grasp. And my yearning to write is diminished as well. I'm easily distracted, irritated with the entire process, and too easily discouraged.

Now that the warmth is returning, the flowers are starting to grow, and the snow is gone I'm getting back into the swing of things. I *want* to write. I have ideas bubbling up through the mud and demanding my attention. I can concentrate again.

I wonder if my Muse is affected by SAD... It's definitely something I should look into for next Winter.

Strange Coincidences and Writing

When I started writing Where Demons Fear to Tread, I set a specific date for things to happen. I chose 2012 as the year for the Fall (but NOT 12/21/12) and the start of Demons is May 2028. I didn't do much research into future astrological events with the initial writing, but now that I'm doing these intense rewrites for my agent, I've decided to mold this to actual dates and events for that month. As I was doing research, I came across this site. "Accordingly, to its cycle, this will provoke a revolutionary wave in US and around the world in 2028. This often happens when Uranus transits Gemini. Hopefully, this will be a revolution for the best, for the environment and for human nature."

Yeah, um... that's kind of cool.

Happy New Year!

I've been silent on here for far too long, I just haven't had the motivation or brain-power to think of anything to say. My agent asked me to take a few months away from my book before starting rewrites so I could look at it with a fresh eye, which I've done. In the meantime, I've been busy working on the new house and just letting my brain relax and refresh itself.
With the new year has come new motivation and it's now time for me to buckle down and get these rewrites done. I know what needs to be done for most of the rewriting, I've got that all figured out. There are some things (major things) that I'm still struggling to sort through in my head. I'll figure them out and pull through this. I have to. *wibbles a bit*