My life as America’s Next Top Author

By Jessa Slade

Current working on: Writing FORGED OF SHADOWS; brainstorming novella; lining up promotions for SEDUCED BY SHADOWS

Mood: Potentially dangerous, like a cat with blown pupils



Culled from reality television files

(Fade in)
A writer hunched at an ugly desk, pounding on a non-ergonomic keyboard. Crap lighting.

{{Note to producer: Chiropractic tie-in? Lasik? Check with PA about ad potential}}

Voice over: {{Confirm James Earl Jones}}
Last week on America’s Next Top Author, Jessa scooped out her roommate’s eyes with a limited edition commemorative long-handled tea ball just – as she put it – to “get some @*&^ quiet writing time around this #%&* hole.”

Jump cut: Confessional booth:
Jessa (at keyboard): He knows not to sneak up on me when I’m that close to the end of a scene. But I did kinda feel bad. I won’t be able to use that squealing sound until chapter seven. I shoulda waited on the tea ball.

Boom shot: Outside writer’s garret
Strike writer’s garret. Windows are too damned filthy to shoot past.
Relocate to cabana.

Pool boy: Jessa is so talented, not to mention lovely. She can extend a metaphor even longer than it takes me to wax my chest. I tried to put the moves on her, but she said her heart belongs to her hero. I’m devastated, truly. I may not recover until next week when we have the writing challenge where the authors have to write a consummated love scene without using gaze, glance, breath, turned, shrugged, or growled. Still, my money’s on Jessa to do away with the eyeballs.

Close up: Pool boy’s abs

Jessa (at keyboard, glaring at monitor): It’s all in my head. Why can’t I get it on paper like it is in my head?

Split screen: Writer (still at keyboard); Celebrity psychologist in comfy chair
VO: (Psychologist)
As you can see from the electrodes implanted in Jessa’s brain, there’s a firestorm of activity through the first three chapters that almost flat lines through the sagging middle. What we consider normal cognitive function doesn’t return until almost a month after typing The End. We’re arranging for hourly doses of Ketamine for when the first reviews start coming in. Unfortunately, we’ve had difficulties medicating her before. While she was waiting for The Call, we had to rely solely on buckets of raw cookie dough. Who could’ve anticipated the effect a bucket of raw cookie dough has on a writer’s butt?

Vignette: Feather quill and parchment paper
CG morph to: Dead moth on unvacuumed carpet

Jessa (still at keyboard) {{Note to in-house script team: Can we really not get another shot of these writers that doesn’t involve the freakin’ keyboard? Booooring.}}: Yeah, it’s not quite as easy as I thought it’d be. Somebody told me there’d be a pool boy. But I’ve got this new idea for the next book...

Sunset through filthy windows. Writer at keyboard, staring into the middle distance, faint smile on her lips.
(Fade out)

VO: Next week, our writers take a break to work on revisions...

Jessa (not at keyboard): You want shorter, punchier dialogue?

End shot: Fist in camera lens.

Go to commercial.

A FANTASY DAY IN THE LIFE OF A WRITER...

by Genene Valleau
Currently working on: Patching up the holes in the side of my house caused by remodeling and preparing for a modified NaNoWriMo
Mood: Fantastic, just like the weather we've been having!


I awake refreshed, with my well-behaved crew of doggies around me. The early morning sunshine promises another 75-degree day, so I take a walk along the white sandy beaches in front of my beautiful beach house, with my fur babies chasing waves and seagulls.

After the doggie crew and I return home and eat a scrumptious and healthy breakfast, I settle on the beach in a lounge chair with my laptop. The muse is smokin' this morning and I pound out a hundred pages before noon. Taking a break to let the keyboard cool down, my doggies and I once again take to the beach, this time for a swim in the shimmering blue water.

Lunch is a picnic under the shade of a palm tree. The muse is itching to finish that story; however, I have a massage scheduled, so I use the voice recognition software on my computer. It works perfectly, and I reach the happily-ever-after ending just in time to dress for the luau celebrating the release of my latest book at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list.

I pat my doggies good-bye and promise them leftovers from the feast...

Well, I am a writer of fiction, so why not put that gift to work in my own life? LOL!

My "reality" does include a crew of doggies, but I've not come anywhere close to finishing a book in a day, nor to hitting the NYT bestseller list (yet!). I don't plan to officially sign up for National Writing Month--I just want to write as many words as possible in November to make up for the writing time I've not had while working on other projects. That gives me less than a week to come up with a solution to the holes in the side of my house. However, I'm confident all will work out!

What's your fantasy day--writing, reading or otherwise?

P.S. Come visit a world closer to my reality at www.genenevalleau.com. Contests every month, as well as my latest writing news!

Oblivious

Currently Working On:  Immortal Outlaw

Mood: Read the title

Clearly, my reminder system needs some work.  I was supposed to have this posted this morning, which means I should have written it yesterday, or even the day before.  But the day before was spent shepherding plumbers (see here) and yesterday was spent trying to catch up from said shepherding.  And this morning I got up bright and early and drove the girl-child off to the equestrian center for riding lessons that failed to materialize (20 mins each direction, wasted. Aargh!), then off to Costco to get the week's groceries and gas (yowza -- $2.439/gallon!) so that I could settle in and write today without further distractions from people demanding piddly-ass stuff like food and drink and drivable cars. So, I get settled, and then a few paragraphs in, something in my brain clicks.  Rose City. Blog. [Expletive deleted].

So you want to know about my day when I'm on deadline? The title is pretty much it: Oblivious, as in forgetting to pick the kids up from school kind of oblivious. As in the major plumbing leak we fixed Thursday had probably been there for weeks oblivious.  As in I write 14-18 hours a day, sometimes more, and can barely remember what century I'm in, much less what day I'm supposed to post to the chapter blog, despite the email reminders I have sent to me by GoogleCalendars three days in a row kind of oblivious.  As in no way are you getting fancy pictures and cute titles and a long juicy post.  Sorry.  If Delilah hadn't already used it, I would have just posted the little writer-guy beating his arms and head off. That's me, too, this month (hi, Delilah).

Better next month, I promise.  Complete sentences, proofreading, and everything. Maybe even funny.  Not this month, though. I'm oblivious.

Mixing Day Job and Writing Life

Currently: I'm deciding which book I want to start next. A coming of age novel about a young woman with paranormal gifts, or a coming of age novel about a middle aged woman looking backward on her marriage and forward to what may be. See, no matter how many years one has graced this earth, we can always be coming of age.

Mood: Cautious optimism.


I am a writer who works a "day job" of 40-60 hours per week depending on what is going on. I leave for my day job around 6:30 or 7:00am. My work tends to be a lot of meetings, and in between meetings a lot of work at a computer. I return home somewhere around 6:30-7:00pm most evenings.

I'm fortunate that I have a wonderful husband who loves to cook and has dinner ready within about half an hour of my arrival. We chat during dinner. Often we watch Jeopardy together. He always wins. I'm lucky to even get half of the answers. I do the dishes and we chat a little more, often planning our next weekend get away. (We try to schedule a full weekend together at least once a quarter). Then I give him a kiss and head up stairs to my computer.

I'm usually at my computer from about 9pm to midnight, either writing or working on writing-related things like Rose City Romance Writers action items. If I'm past about the first three chapters of a novel, I'm spending at least two hours every night working on it. If I'm at the beginning, as I am now, I'm spending more time procrastinating and thinking about starting. I'm usually in this procrastination space about three weeks before really starting. I'm ending my third week now, so I know the pressure is building to make a decision and get started.

I also put in anywhere between five and ten hours each day of the weekend on my writing unless I'm traveling for business or having to do writing things for work. During the Fall I write a lot of grants, so that does tend to take away from my weekend novel writing time.

I go to bed somewhere between midnight and 2:00am each night, depending on when I can shut off the characters in my head. If I'm having trouble forcing myself away from the keyboard, I sometimes get a little hint.

Then I get up the next day and do it all over again. With this pattern, I produce about two novels a year (200,000+ words a year). So, for those who don't have the luxury of someone else being the breadwinner, you too can still write. You just need to set aside a regular time to write and stick to it. Oh, and don't allow yourself to become addicted to any regular TV shows unless you can save them and watch them in set aside time all at once.

Sometimes I long for having my day job be writing. At other times I wonder If I would I have enough stimulation from the outside world if I was a full time writer. I think the best solution would be a part-time day job (15 to 20 hours per week). In any case, it's all good.

Hmmm...I think I'm leaning toward the paranormal coming of age. But then...

A day in my life? Enough said...

By Delilah Marvelle

Mood: Ridiculously stressed

Project: Finish Book 3, Moment of Pleasure (250 pages to go...)

and write first three chapters and a proposal for a new 5 book series.

Getting It On

First up, here's the cover for my Nov. release from Loose Id. It's part of a program saluting the military, and I felt honored to be invited to participate in it. Because its just shy of 20,000 words, it's considered a fling. That doesn't bother me except because of the short length, it gets a stock cover instead of what I'd envisioned. My hero is coming back from the dead, and I wanted to highlight the wo-wo factor. Ah well, that's behind me and I'm working on the last book in my current Aphrodisia contract. Because my brain is reaching 'full', I can only hold onto one idea or thought at a time and poor Midnight Soldier has been pushed into a dark corner.
It's a cloudy, cool morning and my poor garden is officially dead Darn that early cold snap! I'm not at all ready to end the pleasure of tomato picking. Yesterday, my husband and I went to a local grower's market an picked up some peaches. I peeled one this morning and what a disappointment. None of that wonderful fresh fruit smell. It was pithy with brusing here, there, and everything. I'm glad I nixed my husband's desire to buy a case.
Maybe its the clouds that have me in a pensive mood, but I rather suspect its more a case of the phone call I had a few minutes ago. Without revealing any details, lets say I have a friend whose life has blown up in his face. Blown up to the point that he's going to trial, we just don't know when. Financially, he and his wife are ruined. Emotionally, they're a collective mess. Because I know first-hand many of the details of this mess and am involved to some extent, he's been calling about once a week. We go over the same territory each time with me mostly listening and asking a few questions because I know he needs a safe way to vent. Whenever we talk, I'm struck by how quickly one's life can be turned on end. It can happen to any of us. It happened to him.
Then, because I have this deadline and a story demanding to be told, I have to place Harry in another dark corner of my mind and pound the keyboard. I've been writing for so long that I can barely remember other ways I earned my keep, but I can't help wondering if it'd be easier if, say, I worked on an assembly line. Emotional matters wouldn't get between me and what my hands need to accomplish. I could continue to produce no matter what was going on inside my head.
However, that's not how I pay my bills. Instead, to do the best I'm capable of by this and other stories, I need to bring my entire brain and heart to the computer. Sometimes that isn't easy.
Enough Vonna! You're warm and dry with breakfast in your belly and you're doing the thing you most love to do in life--well, at least among the top three.
Vonna
www.VonnaHarper.com

Be So Good They Can't Ignore You -Day One

By Suzanne Macpherson

Mood: POSITIVE Project: Highly Directed.Music: Cast Your Fate to the Wind by Vince Guaraldi

Alexis’s wonderful post reminded me of something my *brilliant* son wrote to me recently when I expressed my frustration at riding out the trends. I thought it was funny the way he *capped* words with asterisks at interesting times. The entire piece struck me so deeply I have sent it around to many friends. Now I’ll share it with you.

By the way he just finished his first novel and is in the process of revising.

THAT’s MY BOY!!!

So this is what occurred during a day in my life last week as I strove to focus on the most positive aspects of the joy of a writing career; because it is a joy. It is pajamas and tea and cats on the desk, researching wonderful subjects, and reading book books books! It is my Gratitude for all of these things that rises above the frustration, and above all it is ART. After I read Evan's note to me I began my new Day in the Life of: Believing in myself as an artist. Day One.

I will add a note that GREAT work exists in any genre, including our own, and is not exclusive to what we term more “literary” works. But we all know what it looks like, smells like and tastes like when we sink our teeth into the best books in any genre, don't we?

I hope you are empowered by his words. Suzanne

*********************************

Well on *this* point I maintain my stance that great work speaks for itself, and all of this is just further evidence that if you can't sell a concept on spec then maybe you really *shouldn't* anyway--- you should finish it, and make it shine enough that it *must* be published by *someone*, market or no market.

I have a note card with a quote from the brilliant comedian Steve Martin, a response that he made in an interview about how to make it in show business, and I keep it in mind whenever I feel like people are not "getting" what I'm trying to do (or if *I'm* not getting it). This is the quote:

"Be so good they can't ignore you."

That's it, and I think it holds water. Personally I think it is far better (not only for ourselves but, sort of paradoxically, for our careers) to strive for greatness than it is to strive for marketability. We are writers, and if we want to be great it's crucial to *read* only the greatest writing, and to *admire* the greatest writers for what they did, which was to constantly become the best version of themselves they could, and to write those stories that only they could write, and to refine their own style that ultimately became so good it could not be ignored. That's the pep-talk I give myself, anyway, when struggling with distracting thoughts about marketing.

Great work *creates* the market, and from what I can tell--- which is from observation, anyway, and not experience--- it is *much* better to put yourself in a position where you are one of the creators, rather than a position in which the market creates you.

Focus on your art, because people still *want* art, and they will *always* want art. Even if a market is in shambles there will always, always, always be a market for work in all fields that is GREAT.

I would prioritize giving your work the power to break through reluctance (of publishers) by virtue of its own strength and shut out the distracting and pat siren songs of market viability. The only thing about the "market" I have *ever* heard that was worth hearing (on panels, in interviews, wherever), was that voice wins them over. To hell with making it dark and mysterious enough, or steamy enough. Just make it great enough and make it undeniably yours.

A Day In This Writer's Life

Mood: Pensive and bemused
Working on: A bit of everything

Well, my life has certainly changed over the years since I began writing. I'm on an agent hunt now, trying to put together a historical western proposal and putting out feelers for a critique partner.

The life that used to be pretty much solely dedicated to writing and its attendant business has become fragmented with family obligations (after all, I'm an only child of a capable but elderly mom). I try to keep her separate from my business but sometimes the two overlap. For instance on 10/13, I went to her house to help her prepare her 11th hour federal income tax, which is way more complicated than mine ever has been. Mostly I punched the buttons on the calculator and filled out forms because my handwriting is steadier.

While I'm running errands in the car, I listen carefully to all the song lyrics that pour out of my iPod, hoping for inspiration, for a story idea, for something that will sell in what has become a pretty narrow market.

["Y'got scorching sex, kid? No? How 'bout vampires, y'got them?"
"No," I say. "I've got a man who lost his memory during World War I and comes home to a wife who is a total stranger to him. And, oh, she's married to someone else because he'd been declared legally dead by the Dept. of the Army. So now she has to choose which man she'll be married to."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever. How about scorching, sexy vampires? Got them? No? Hey, how about two women together? That's hot stuff right now, makes the eyebrows burn right off the reader. Not that either, eh? Sorry kid, can't help yuz."]

So when my days aren't taken up with errands and Mom, I try to figure out just where I currently fit in this market. And I'm often left wondering . . .

A Day in the Life, Take Two

Posted by: Heather Hiestand
Working on: Whatever was requested most convincingly at the Emerald City Writers Conference
Mood: Tenuously cheerful (stolen from Karen Duvall, but I like it!)

Today, October 13th, I'm hung over from conference. I got home at a reasonable hour, but my Sunday focuses on getting my husband ready to go back out on the road for another week, so there isn't much time to decompress. Then, this morning, I get right up and dash to work in Portland. Sometimes my commute is 65 minutes now, one way! Disgusting. It ought to be 30. Life is not particularly glamorous at the moment.

My fantasy is that I'd have time to write, but there hasn't been much of that lately. And frankly, I need to unpack, do the household cleaning and laundry, promote the book that came out on Friday while I was at conference and get through five days of email when I get home.

When I first sold, I thought I'd make enough writing that I wouldn't need to work outside the home very much. All I can do is keep writing the best book I can, but I also need an income, and now work more than double the hours I used to when I first sold. A day in the life isn't spent dreaming up stories so much anymore, and my output has dramatically reduced. But at least I can afford to buy books sometimes! That, my friends, has always been my favorite luxury.

As Erasmus said, "“When I get a little money I buy books; and if any is left I buy food and clothes.”

A Day in the Life of Jenna...

JENNA BAYLEY-BURKE

Currently: I'm working on the partial of my lawyers book...revising my road trip book...and wondering why I volunteered to judge so many contests...

Mood: Hopeful...good news is coming my way, I can feel it.
--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~

Unfortunately my husband is not telepathic, so he turns off the alarm and gets up at an ungodly hour. At this point I have two choices – close my eyes and give in to the pull of sleep, or be a good girl and get in the shower. Sleep is what I want to do, but I take the shower because I don't want to embarass my kiddos at drop-off for school.

When I emerge from the relaxing steam of the shower, I try to coax my curly hair into compliance and hope for ten minutes to check my email. No such luck. Hubba Bubba is there with one fussy little girl. I shower before he leaves for work for just this reason, half the time the baby wakes up while I'm otherwise engaged. He escaped to the relative sanity of work, and after I feed the baby I enter the inner realm of small boys, at my own risk.

My youngest is a morning person, the oldest? Not even close. After I wrestle them into some clothes (quite the feat with a wiggly girl on one arm), I bribe them downstairs with the promise of chocolate. Hey, chocolate zucchini muffins are healthy...kinda.

By ten-til-eight they are in the people mover, and we're making our way to the elementary school. This is the first year both boys have school every day. Sometimes I can drop them off, but today I have to chat up the teachers about Halloween party plans. With the baby I can't do weekly volunteering, so I'm the self-imposed party parent.

After we escape the school, the baby girl and I make a quick trip to the grocery. Hubba Bubba is out of coffee creamer, big boy is low on cheese, and I'm working today which means I'd love a 100-calorie pack of Chessmen cookies. We race home and she goes right down for her morning nap. The heavens are singing as I fire up the computer and...write three blog posts, put out a fire in a yahoo group, and answer email.

I wake up the baby so we can wait for the kindergarten school bus. the small boy is always excited to see us, and comes home with a lunch plan...scrambled eggs and toast. Once lunch is done I try and settle the baby into a nap and the small boy into some semblance of quiet so I can get some work done. Naps are over and the big boy arrives home from school before I get any actual work done (yahoo issues part deux, judging contest entries, and an IM brainstorming session that might have been productive it had been about my book). I vow no distractions tonight while I work. Egad. Survivor is on. I’ll have to be strong.

The afternoon is a walk to the park with the kids and a chance to sit on a bench with the hot historical I picked up at the last RCRW signing. But I don’t read it – other moms are there so I opt for adult conversation. After two warnings and a time out, we head home. I politely suggest the boys play in the backyard while I make dinner. BigBoy not so politely declines, until BabyBoy finds a slug.

I add slug bait to the grocery list and grill salmon to top our Caesar salads for dinner. After dinner we take a walk as a family, and the knot of a problem in my story finally yanks free! Unfortunately it involved losing about 8 pages...

Back at home I attack my computer, one eye at the clock in the corner, mocking me that Survivor starts too soon. I rewritten 2 pages before I give in and flip on the TV, swearing I will work through the show.

Survivor is over and it’s bath time. Hubba earns his place in my heart every night by handing the bath and bulk of the boys nighttime routine. I’ve worked out 4 pages before my exceptional story reading, prayer, and hugging skills are requested. Once the boys are tucked in, I have the girl to myself. We cuddle for about an hour before she drifts off.

Once I lay her dow I work in earnest, trying like heck to finish the chapter so I can ship it off to my CP and concentrate on the revisions the editor requested on another book.

My husband tried to speak to me around eleven, but gave up when I merely nod and stare at the computer. I work on a laptop on our bed, so he’s forced to pull the covers over his head and try to sleep while I wrestle with my chapter break.

I finished. Just before midnight. I email the revised story to my gmail account as backup and power down. Because I work so close to the time I need to sleep, I brush my teeth and meditate before attempting it, But by then, it’s tomorrow. Another day in the life, and you only asked for one.


--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~--~

Jenna's latest procrastination attempt can be found on her blog.

Knife fight in Istanbul...dinner in Paris

Posted by: Minnette Meador
Working on: Keenan's Dilema, Paranormal Erotic Comedy and
The Gladiator Prince, Historical Romance
Mood: Still crazy after all these years...

I woke up this morning to a bang on my door. Room service. Sliding my robe over the silk bed spread, I hopped to my feet and turned the handle. Two men spilled into my room, one on top of the other, fighting over a knife. A warm Istanbul breeze lifted the balcony curtains and ruffled my hair. I clobbered the guy on top with a marble bookend and sent him sprawling. Randy sat up and gave me a wink. "Nice shot, princess." Reminding him of our dinner date in Paris, I shuffled him out of the room, stepped over the body, and dialed the front desk. "Be a darling and send a boy up for my things, will you? Oh, and Mr. Rosen won't be traveling with me. He has...a headache. I'll leave my bags outside the door so we don't disturb him."

I wish I could tell you my days are like this. I really do. But unfortunately, they are only like that in my head. That’s the beauty of being a writer…you can live out whatever fantasy you want every day. From the outside it may not seem too exciting, but from the inside it’s a panoply of harrowing diversions, heart-pounding excitement, and thrilling adventure. Quite honestly, if I really were in the scenario above, I’d probably scream my head off and run naked down the hallway. I’m much braver between my ears.

A typical writing day for me is 2-3 hours of emails, promo, blogs and chats, 7-9 hours of writing at my computer, doing research, or just simply lying in my chair thinking, then writing cryptic notes on small pieces of paper to translate into a novel later. Not very exciting, but wait…Mr. Rosen is waking up. “Going somewhere, my dear?” I caught a glimpse of the revolver gripped in his pudgy right hand. The bookend was out of reach. All I had was my flimsy robe. Perhaps…

Minnette Meador
My worlds . . . real or imagined

www.minnettemeador.com

minnettemeador.blogspot.com
Starsight, Vol. I
Starsight, Vol. II

The Centurion & The Queen

The Breton & The General

A Cup of Comfort for Single Mothers

A Day in the Life

Posted by: Karen Duvall
Working on: The first book in my steampunk urban fantasy series, MYSTIC TAXI (though the title will probably change by the time I'm finished)
Mood: Tenuously cheerful

This is going to be a short post. My life is pretty boring from a big picture viewpoint, and the writing spotty from a writer's perspective. I have no deadlines to meet. I have no new books to promote. The agent hunt was successful, so now I wait, listening to the clatter of chirping crickets that fills my empty inbox. I crave news.

So while I wait for my agent to inform me that publishers are fighting over my book, ahem, I work on a new one. I'd love to say I spend my day writing, adding thousands of words to my manuscript on a daily basis, but sadly that's not the case. I have another job, one that pays me money.

I'm self-employed, which works out beautifully for a writer who needs to make her own hours. I break up my day with writing and work, writing and work, probably to the chagrin of my clients who think they're my only priority. They ask when their project will be done and I give them a date, though they don't realize I've figured writing time in that bumps their job in the timeline.

I'd have a hard time writing straight through the day anyway. Like I couldn't only work on my graphic design projects from eight to five. I function best as a multi-tasker, moving between the two jobs, both of which are creative so I never have to shift that area of my brain to accommodate new ideas. Actually, one will often assist the other.

So as I design a new ad for an upscale fashion boutique in Seattle today, my brain chews over the next scene in my steampunk urban fantasy novel. Challenging, but fun.

If you're curious about this other career that competes with my writing, you can see samples of my design work here, here, here, and here.

The Three D's

I can think of no reason in the world why I'd want to tell you about today. I am very boringly lying around, suffering from Post-Travel Syndrome. By that I mean the stress from all that fun in Spain and Italy got to me, or maybe it was the horrendous plane ride home, with more bizarre delays and problems than I've ever seen before. At any rate, some bug got past my lowered immune system, and I'm in pobvious need of an antibiotic. That's all that's fit to share.

So let's go to a Make-Believe Day. A sort of composite. I'm not really sure that you won't find my tales of woe over the latest bout with germs, but here goes.

I quit the day job about four years ago, and hoped to write full time. I remember telling myself I would not be one of those people who couldn't seem to write without the external structure of a job. Unfortunately, I have found it hard to buckle down when I don't have Disaster or Deadline looming over me. But I'm getting better at practicing personal Discipline. I think what I really need to do is dump all the responsibilities I've taken on in the belief that I have plenty of time. I don't. There are still only 24 hours in a day.

So I'm now concentrating on those three D's: Disaster, Deadline, Discipline. One of those three has to motivate me, and if I don't have either of the first two, I will if I don't apply the third one.

I still have that lifelong mindset that rising anytime before 7:00 a.m. is somehow obscene. Yet, maybe because I had to do it for so long, I usually do. But instead of dressing in work clothes, I don a muu muu, one of several I have bought in Hawaii. In the winter, sweats will be substituted. Coffee, feed the cats, breakfast and newspaper. The daily Sudoku, which I prefer to do online. Do various household chores that look like they've been suffering from neglect.

Then back upstairs to my laptop. I've been working on my own bed since I was a teenager. That's where I did my homework, and now that's where I work. That new office? Well sometimes. If Jeff is sleeping, or I'm being bothered too much, I go there. But old habits feel comfortable, I guess. Besides, it looks like one of the grandsons is coming back, so I guess the lace curtains and stuff will go back into storage again.

I have to check my email. News. See how my videos are doing. Email again. If I'm really on a roll or have a deadline, though, I'm much more focused. When I have cover art assignments, I do them, but if possible I start writing fairly early even though I'm not much of a morning writer.

I usually do the reading or editing tasks early. Right now, I'm finishing judging a contest and have to finish the galleys for APHRODITE'S BREW, which are due tomorrow. I'll be setting up a new blog called In Search of Heroes, and need to at least get it registered today so the new addy can go in the back of the book.

It's not likely I'll actually get to the creative side of writing today because of all these things that must be done today, but normally I would begin on new work in the afternoon and evening. My lunch is whenever, and usually consists of cheese with ham or maybe another protein food. I avoid the carbs, which can produce an afternoon crash just when I'm getting started. Sometime in the middle of the afternoon I'll usually get on the swing glider and do about 30 minutes. I'm testing a new style which is said to be a better calorie-burner and aerobic benefit, with periodic bursts of 30 to 60 seconds of the most vigorous exercise I can do. I think it's true. But I'm not consistent enough yet.

I'm likely to work into the evening and night, especially when I'm going strong. Fortunately for me, hubby and son do most of the evening cooking, so I can't really say I don't have time. I just have too many things I shouldn't have to do, and that's my own fault. I'm letting more and more of them go, but it still seems that more new stuff comes along to replace it.

In a way I feel proud of myself that I've said no so many times lately. Even for the political campaigns, about which I feel strongly, I've had to face the fact that I really need to be doing my job, and I'm not about to go door to door persuading my neighbors to vote for my candidate anyway.

So my challenge for the coming year is to keep my focus, and continue to pare down on extraneous stuff.

Trim, trim, trim. Write, write, write. D, D, D. If there's no Disaster or Deadline, then I'd better pull out the Discipline.




'

A WRITER’S LIFE 24/7

Posted by: Susan Lute
Working on: Revisions requested by an editor on a proposal for Silhouette Special Edition. My tennies are dancing :)
Mood: Excited. Thrilled. Challenged.

I’ve been thinking about the subject of this month’s blog for two weeks, and okay no, I haven’t written my post yet, and yes, I have exactly nine hours and forty-nine minutes before this post needs to appear on your screen. And, about sixty minutes after that, I’m supposed to be packed and ready to head out on a research trip to Central Oregon, with my plot partners Wendy Warren and Darla Lukenbaugh. Alright, we’re taking a five year old, and one year old with us, but it’s still research, I swear.

I did make some notes, but somehow it just reads like bla, bla, bla. Each day I start out with good intentions. I’m strong, decisive, even overly pleased with myself for being so self-motivated. Then, what happens is... life.

Writing is all about putting your butt in the chair and keeping it there until the story is told. But being an author is much more than just writing. It’s about mixing the life you live with the story you’re telling, until you’ve put down on paper the best story you can. So here are a few things that can happen during my writing day.

• Me, jumping out of bed at five am...or four, forty-seven am. This happens almost every day;
• If I’m especially disciplined, I do an abs routine. No, not to a tape, just one I’ve worked out over the years;
• A hot cup of soy green tea latte follows me to my desk;
• If I’m not rushing off to my day job at the gynecologist’s office (for those who don’t know, I’m a women’s health nurse), my favorite thing to do at this point is write. Hopefully, it’s about six am. Unfortunately, I might get sidetracked by email, ‘cause I’m looking for good news from my agent. That makes it closer to seven or seven-thirty;
• There are times when taking pictures in my garden is more imperative than typing into the computer. I call that working on my non-fiction book;
• Last minute blog writing;
• Going off on a writing retreat, or to conference, or brainstorming session, or on a research trip;
• Having lunch or dinner, or Starbucks with writing friends;
• Fighting with the one year old granddaughter over my computer chair, so I can type in revisions, check email, etc, etc, etc;
• A trip to a bookstore...to get research books, of course;
• Switch from watching email to watching the phone, in case that call from my agent comes through;
• Off to the post office, to put that long worked on manuscript or project in the mail;
• Nail biting while waiting for THE CALL;
• A manicure and pedicure, because now I’ve spent way more time than I should have biting nails;
• Picking up a friend from work and walking in the Portland Race For The Cure, since all of life shouldn’t be put on hold while writing and waiting, and waiting and writing;
• Writing, revising, polishing until the project I’m working on is the best I can do.
• When my writing day is done, I happily let the rest of life in. The next day, I start all over again.

Ciao

Upcoming Events

OCTOBER 11th

RCRW chapter meeting/ workshop

10:00 a.m. at Portland Community College - Sylvania Campus, room HT 123

How to Keep Yourself Healthy: Reducing the chance of repetitive strain injury and what to do if you're injured.

Long time chiropractor, Gail Karvonen, D.C. and chiropractic assistant/massage therapist Cydney Wilkes, LMT, will be presenting this workshop. If time allows, Denice Gordon will also share some of the tips she has learned along the way in her office management career, to stay free from injury. Along with being available to answer questions about the chiropractic profession in general, they will be focusing on: learning the importance of an ergonomic workstation and how to set one up; stretching exercises for the upper back, arms, wrists and hands; how to keep working even if you are injured; how chiropractic treatment and massage therapy can speed the healing process; and examples of new, cutting edge workstation equipment, (including keyboards and new types of mice), and where to find them.

OCTOBER 12-18

Mistresses, Queens and Witches - Writing Historical Romance

free online seminar at Coffee Time Romance with two RCRW authors

A week with three historical romance writers; Lyn Armstrong (The Last Celtic Witch, The Celtic Witch & The Sorcerer, Heart of a Warlock), Delilah Marvelle (Mistress of Pleasure), and Minnette Meador (The Centurion & The Queen, The Edge of Honor), plus other writers who will share their experience. Everything you wanted to know about historicals, but were afraid to ask.

• How to make research fun & fast
• Creating Worlds, Both Historical & Fantasy: Are horses faster than unicorns?
• Tips and Tricks on Writing Historical Romance
• Making history come alive on the page: How to make your reader's heart race!
• Historical Hunks & Kick-Ass Heroines: Characterization in Historicals
• Sex Through the Centuries: Making ancient love sizzle

OCTOBER 12

Latest Trends in Young Adult Fiction workshop
Wordstock Portland, OR
Sunday, 11:30 AM - 12:30 PM
Teri Brown

What is fresh and hot in young adult literature beyond Harry Potter? This workshop will discuss the latest trends and how to break into the YA market. You’ll also touch upon voice, dialogue, and research, as well as investigate which agents are actively looking for young adult authors.

A Day in the Life

Posted by Anh Leod
Currently working on: Procrastinating
Mood: Too, too thrilled, as you will see in the text below

I moan into my ambrosia and pull the shawl around my shoulders. The autumn air is brisk at this time of year in the late a.m. It's been simply weeks since the release of Claudia's Pleasure, my delighful romp among Los Angeles' twenty-somethings working in the B-movie industry, and no reviews. Sigh. No royalty statement yet either, so no way to judge whether my genius has attracted notice among the romantica-reading public or not. My purple-painted eyelids are fluttering open now with the infusion of my favorite beverage, so it's time to peruse my Blackberry and all the lovely emails it holds.

Delight! Terror! I have reviews! I have not been forgotten by the reading public. Will my blood, sweat and tears by laughed at or praised? With trembling fingers, I press the keys to open the emails. In part, I find this:

"Sin-Sational! Ms. Leod penned this exceptionally sexy tale with taste and style. Looking for more fireworks in their relationship; both Claudia and Sam are committed to each other and their needs. Captivating dialogue and spicy sex scenes keep you riveted to the pages, but you never forget the deep love Claudia and Sam share. All in all it is one extraordinary erotic romance."

Dear, dear, Coffeetime Romance. Wateena, a reviewer, is my best friend for the day and we exchange pleasantries with one another over email. Night Owl Romance has reviewed me kindly as well. All is well in Anh Leod's world. At least until I remember I need to start promoting my October 10th release, the sequel to darling Claudia, and possibly write a third book in the series, because Holly needs a man or two of her own.

Another day in the life of a writer...

Blurb for Cherokee's Playmates:

Cherokee and Dylan look for love in the standalone sequel to Claudia’s Pleasure.
New lovers Cherokee and Dylan are hunting for a woman to make their romance complete. As the son of a god, Cherokee has been alive for too many years to think he can meet all his needs with only one of the sexes. If he doesn’t have sex every couple days, his essence is pulled back to Olympus, where he will be his father’s slave until he escapes.

Dylan never stays in relationships long because he finds them confining. He doesn’t believe he can be happy with one person. Will two make him want to settle down?

When the guys meet Brandi D’Angelo, a member of Hollywood royalty, they think she’s The One. Will she agree?


Link to Anh Leod titles
Link to Heather Hiestand's novels