Update June 26 PS

Okay dokey, I finished  Two Struggles. Still need to spell check it and send it through my proofreader but it's finished.

I revised it, went back added a few Boulder landmarks, added more of the five human senses to certain scenes and clarified some spots that needed it. Should have done that before though. But it's done...unless of course I think of something I want to add. I did that last night and this morning. What I added was more of the human senses so both should add to the readability of the novel.


I'm still not too sure about chapters two and three though. There's an action scene at the end of two I may switch to the middle part of that chapter. I want to see what a couple of Readers think, if I can find two or three. Plus I may have repeated a couple of comments about my MC and her best friend I don't need. Not to mention changing one person's name. I corrected the name of one relatively minor character who still has an important part to play. I gave him three names and now, I think, I have changed them all to one.

Still not one hundred percent sure if I want to E-publish this or send it out queries for the traditional way. I lean toward E-pub. That has grown very fast lately and in some ways it's better. But I would still need around 800 to 1200 dollars to get it ready for that. That includes a pro copy editor to find all the nitpicks and an artist for a cover design. I need to decide exactly who to use for those two things to be able to see exactly how much.

In either case maybe I should try to find an Alpha reader or three. They might be able to find most of the nitpicks, repeats and such. If I get one or three I may not need the pro copy editor. It doesn't have to be one hundred percent clean but at the same time it needs be close to one hundred. From experience no way can I do that myself.

And I really want a new title. Something other than struggles. Something to indicate how big her two struggles are. I say two but she really has more than two but I believe the two for the title are the major ones for the plot. They are two independent and different battles. One with the bad guy and one with herself. She had to win both to save the day.

Oh, it is now 83,922 words long. Not too bad. Originally I thought it was going to be on the very short side but from what I hear--which may or may not be true--that is not a bad length for a beginners UF novel.


Another Oh, speaking of E-pubing. I hear from two sources that pro editors do look over new E-books and sometimes will contact the writer. Not that it happens all the time but enough to say that E-publishing does not take a novel out of the running for a traditional contract. Of course saying that will happen to me is a long shot but the chances might be the same as sending out queries.  


Okay. Instead of going with my plan to start the revision of my space opera today I will be revising a story. It's written and is very short so hopefully it won't take long. I sent a story to Extreme Planets anthology. They rejected it but it sounded like they really wanted another try. I'm not sure if that was personal or just a form. But a second rejection will tell me that. I just happen to have this story I wrote a few months ago that might fit what they want. I had two new ideas for extreme planets--I really liked one of them--but neither plot would gel enough for me to write the story. Besides I was busy with the revising.

I also have to revise my story for Q4 of WotF. Hopefully it won't take long but I can add some struggle and more human senses.


Plus I need to do another crit for Critters.org. I did two this week and today I want to do number three. That won't be the five I wanted for this week but it's a whole lot better than usual.

And plus work on my two work novels. I still need that fight scene in one of them. I was able to take a picture of the structure she has a fight on and now I just need to take the time to figure out how to place a pic here and what size it needs to be.

Update June 26

Okay, vacation is going medium well at the moment. Got chapter eight of Two Struggles revised. Three more to go. I'm adding stuff so the novel will be significantly longer but probably not another 10,000 words though. It could use that many but I will use what I have. :)

BUT while reading "Ravel Calls" the next one in the Walker Papers by C. E. Murphy I decided that something missing. Not enough angst maybe. I may go back over it and add a sentence here and there. I think I need to do that anyway so I can hint at a couple of things that come up at the end.

And the bad guy may not be big enough. I may add a bigger bad guy behind him. That would fit with two scenes I've done. Right now I have it that even though the bad guy doesn't recognize NA-my MC-by sight he knows her car and where she lives and is willing to use half his stored power to take her out. While writing the novel I tried to reconcile those two points but I don't think it's very convincing. Maybe a Power behind him who is responsible for the two attacks instead?


Sent a story to Universe Annex. Revised it three times, it's gotten better but I don't think it's going to be good enough for them even with another two. One writer there got to me. His story was bought with two tries I've had a few stories there with eight to ten tries and nothing. Not even close...well one was close but nothing on the others. So more than likely this is it than off to F&SF. At least it will be in good shape for them. The nitpicks will have been cleaned up by then.

Speaking of sending stories out. I need to send out about ten, maybe later tonight or I will take time off tomorrow to do it. Come to think of maybe eleven.

I am doing some catch up with Critters.org. An online critiquing group. You can send them a story to have critiqued-critted but you have to do a few too. I don't send them any more stories because it never did any good and I had to wait for months. Now they have shortened that time but still it doesn't help my writing. It does for some. Anyway, I still like critting stories there but I keep forgetting and I need to build my percentage back up before ether drop me.

Going to start revising a story for Q4 at WotF. I decided to resend my first HM. Evidently they don't mind that and the new reader hasn't seen it anyway. So I will revise it and send it to two groups at hatrack. One is for redone HMs. There are four other people with the same idea.

That's it for now but I may post a PS after I send in those stores and after I work on the two novels I do at work. One is at the beginning of a fight fifty feet above ground level. It's a real structure and I will take a pic of it and try to post it on the blog. Never done that but supposedly you can.

Writing June 21

Okay another lesson or a comment on writing itself.

I think I have discovered one reason why writers always give a Main Character a friend. There could be half a dozen reasons-including using up space in an interesting way and making the MC more human. But my reason here is to Show something instead of Telling. For those who don't know Telling is more narrative or to say he felt this way or that way but Show describes how he reacts that shows he feels that way. The reader can figure out the emotions by his actions or describing his facial expression. SHow and Tell works in most areas of writing not just emotions but that is what this is about.

So instead of a MC saying I don't have a boy friend--in this case it was a female MC and she didn't---her friend could come to her and say "Hey, that officer is cute and he likes you, you should go out with him, in fact I keep saying you need to go out with a few guys...you don't have to become serious with them just have some fun." The MC can then react probably by saying "yeah he's cute and doesn't mind my freakishness but I'm too busy and I can have fun on my own."

If It's said right the reader can see that this is an ongoing argument and that my MC has a fear about dating guys. Later the friend might say "He's not like those jerky jocks in high school that only wanted inside your pants, this guy's cool."

So that means I need to go back and redo some segments of what I have written so far. Or I could have the friend arrive back into town so she hasn't been there until chapter six. But I would still need to mention her. And in my case it goes along better with the Novel that I am sort of basing my character on. There are a huge amount of differences between the two but that Novel is part of the inspiration for my MC. And it includes a good friend for the MC in that tale.

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And I have been even more impressed with the idea that we as writers need to put in more of the five human senses, plus some of the background setting--that which is around: desert, buildings, space station, a room etc, around the MC. Don't need to describe everything just enough so readers will know if it's inside or outside and what type of inside or outside. The reader will fill in the blanks with his-her own imagination.

David Farland the new reader at WotF has put out a Ten Reasons for rejections list along with a post that explains why some stories won't go above HM An side here but I will be putting in links to those two posts...And a Sam over at Universe Annex also left a post behind that explained what Show is and both David and Sam include The Senses and setting in their sharing. Which would at least partially explain why Dean Wesley Smith says to just include all five human senses every two pages and don't worry about Show.

One, more then likely can put in too many senses and setting but at the same time many new writers do not put in enough of either.

This is getting a bit long so more later on both sometime.

Write now

Got to write got to write.  It's been days since I actually wrote. Been revising--which had  a tiny bit of real writing--and it's been too hot to take my laptop to work.


So what I am doing here??? I really don't know, except I want to say I Want To Write.

But then again I have three ideas for new stories and what could be a novel I could work on. I've already started that last.

Extreme Planets anthology rejected my last story but they said they really wanted another from me before June 30th. Unless it was their usual rejection and it was a bit over done for that, they meant it. Problem is even though I have two basic ideas I don't really have an opening or more then the basic idea for either. I might try later.

So now I'm off to do something for a few minutes.

WotF update and dream

I think I mentioned how the death of KD Wentworth messed up things at the contest. The loss of a good friend who, as first reader-editor, was also an inessential part of the contest blew their schedule. Quarter one wasn't finished when she died so the new person and they announced a new reader, had to take up on the last few paper manuscripts. Most or all of the electronic ones had been read her. They are still be decided on. Quarter Two is up in the air. I din't know if the announcement stated the new guy was already reading Q2's stories or not. In either case I'm about to send in Q3's story and know which one I want to send it for Q4.

So I'm one of those still waiting to find out about Q2. Thus the dream in the title.


All this waiting for results must be getting to me because it's time for strange dreams. So there's no misunderstanding I know how the contest works, even though it the dream it seems to operate differently but as I said this was a strange dream.

The night after I received my HM certificate--I say that because it might have inspired the dream--I dreamt I received another brown envelope, this one probably smaller than a paperback book. Inside a note about my Q2 story.  I forget the exact words but the first sentence said something along the lines of "your ending has been used too many times." Second sentence was long and said along the lines of "this will be the last time I include your story in the anthology before I get to the end." Another line followed but I can't recall any of it. It was signed with one name, a first name. A girl's name, Kathy maybe. The letters were very close to each other and I wasn't sure.

My first thought was that  they meant none of my future stories would get in but then I read how it was stated and realized what was being said.

I said to myself.  "Hey, that's not the name of the new guy, is this a prank?"  People online though evidently didn't have any problems with the name. After I showed it to people online I looked it over again and thought "Hey, does the phrasing mean my story was going to get to be in the anthology until they got to the end?"

End of dream.


The reader sends out the best, those after HMs and what are called Silver Honorable Mentions. Then a bunch of long time pro writers decided on semi-finlistes and final the three places. First-Second-Third.
Didn't think of it during the dream but does any of the final judges have the first name of Kathy or something very close to that?  :)

Update June 6

First: Remember Today!!!  D-Day and all the brave men who took part and planned it. Great going you all.



Now for the update:

I was able to buy those two books, found two more I wanted too. But maybe I can get the others with a coupon. As many as they give out I didn't have any for this past weekend. I finally bought one book on my Nook. I remembered yea. That makes two I need to remember to read when it's their turn.


Q3 of WotF. Three or four people suggested one major change. With that many I decided to think about it. Probably would have to work on it during Vacation and send hit in last moment, if I did it. It would mean doing away with the opening which is the reason for the story. In other words I built the whole story because of that opening.


I may have chapter six of Two Struggles revised by vacation. So that would leave me with five to do during vacation.



And with that challenge at hatrack I have complained about. I was right. out of 14 there war five places, I missed them all. From what people said more than likely I missed sixth, for the matter seventh also.

Best I did was middle again.  Things could change by next year when they do it again but as of right now I won't enter it next time. That story should have been better all around than my previous tries in all the challenges but nope.

So, as of right now no more challenges for me. They do different ones it's only this one that is once a year, but it doesn't matter, no more. Well, except the one I want to do. But it's not worth it, since I don't get better. Some of it can be fun but not enough to always be in last place or close to it.

Of course once I calm down I might feel like it again, depending on the challenge but I've done that before. I don't improve.

New Books

So if I have time tomorrow I need to go pick up two new books.

http://www.lisashearin.com  Evidently the last in one of my favorite series. I keep forgetting to ask her but I hope she is doing more writing even if not about a pirate cousin with a temper and back for finding things and with a hard case rock tied around her neck. Well, figuratively  speaking anyway. "All Spell Breaks Loose". Be the first one on my block to have one. And you better be too...a great series. You will enjoy it so buy one...they make good gifts.  :)


And I just learned tonight that the next one in this series is out.

http://www.ministryofpeculiaroccurrences.com

A neat steampunk series.

Phoenix Rising was the first

The Janus Affair is second. If you go to the website check out the videos. One on the right and one a bit further down. 

I may not have the time since we are looking for our cat. Took a nose dive out of its carrying box and ran away when it saw where it was headed. We have looked and even though cats have a way of finding their way home even when lost more than ten miles away so far nothing. Maybe we live too close to the vet. One or two miles. Sunday we will put up posters with the cat's pictures on it.