Day 3 - A Change of Plans Block Party

What a crowd we've got today. Check out these awesome peeps!

Suzie Forbes - Guest Post/Author Interview - My Not So Secret Writing Life

Suey - Review + Guest Post/Author Interview- It's All About Books

Laura Josephsen - Guest Post - Laura's website

Lindzee Armstrong - Review - Lindzee's website

Lisa Faber - Review - Bookworm Lisa

Nancy S. Thompson - Book Spotlight - Nancy's website

Michelle Cole - Review - The Blushing Reader

Tasha Seegmiller - Review - Tasha's website

Carrie Butler - Author Interview - So, You're a Writer 

Jaleta Clegg - Author Interview - Jaleta's website

Rebekah Grow - Review + Guest Post/Author Interview - R.K. Grow - reading. writing. blogging.

Fiauna Lund - Review + Guest Post/Author Interview - See My Wings

Julie Daines - Review - An Author's Compendium

Crystal Casey - Review - Peace Love Books 
Andrea Frisby - Review + Guest Post/Author Interview - Literary Time Out 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

A Writing Workshop ... And the Winner Is:

Don't forget to register!

You can sign up at the iWriteNetwork blog here.

Some details on a few of the presenters here.

More information about the rest to follow.

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

Random.org chose the Winner

of Rising Book 2: Rebellion

Far Away Eyes.

Giveaway! "Rising Book 2--Rebellion" by Laura Josephsen

I'm hosting a giveaway. 

You can either get a ecopy of Rising 1 or,

if you've read that, Rising 2. 

All you have to do is comment here

and indicate your desire for your name

to be put in the hat.
Winner announced on Friday.

Lachlan's had a rough summer. First, the girl he shares a painful history with didn't remember him. Then Brenna, the woman he loves, showed up after seven years away and wants nothing to do with him. To top it all off, he almost died with the rest of his people when soldiers invaded his country.

Now the enemy could be using Lachlan's people as assassins. When Brenna leaves to find the truth, Lachlan invites himself along.

As Lachlan struggles to rebuild the trust he lost with Brenna, they unravel the dark secret their enemy has worked long and hard to hide--and its consequences for them are greater than they could have known.

I'm nearly done with the book. I love Laura Josephsen's writing. She's got a gift for creating deeply troubled characters that you fall in love with and who twist your heart. This is a book that deals with hard themes like brainwashing, torture, and child abuse. But it also deals with recovery, hope, and redemption.

You can see my review of Rising 1 here.

Excerpt

The wind blew tendrils of hair that had escaped Brenna's braid into her face. She didn't look at him, but something in her voice caught his attention when she murmured, "Same old Lachlan. Always the dreamer."

Lachlan's gaze fell on her hands, clasping the top of the gunwale so tightly they were white. He reached over and laid his hand on one of hers. Her face tilted up toward his, and her kohl-lined eyes were as tired as they'd been the night he'd woken up in the Viarre encampment.

"It's good to have dreams," he said quietly. "They keep us going."

Brenna's hand remained tense under his and she shook her head slightly. "The only dream I have is taking down King Tristran and his government."

Personally, he saw that as more of a goal than a dream, but he didn't say that. "And after that?"

Brenna laughed harshly. "You're assuming we'll survive this. There have already been so many times we should have died." She pulled her hand out from under his. "Dreaming about anything else only leads to disappointment and heartbreak."

"My life's already been full of both. So has yours." Lachlan turned fully toward her. "Some things are worth the risk of more disappointment and heartbreak."

"How can you say that? What in your life could possibly lead you to believe that?"

"Tegan. Reynold. Adria and Bailey and Ivy. Derrek, Lorelei, Riordan, and Mairwyn." Lachlan leaned toward her. "You."

Brenna leaned in even closer to him and whispered, "Then you're going to be very, very disappointed."

"Because you think you'll end up dead? Or because you think you're not worth the risk of heartbreak and disappointment?"

Brenna's face tightened just a bit and he knew he'd hit on something. She drew back from him. "Forget it, Lachlan. You let go of me in the years I was gone; stop trying to hold on again." She strode toward the ladder that led below deck and scrambled down it.

Lachlan hurried after her. "Brenna, wait."

She ignored him and pushed through their cabin door. He stepped through before she could close it in his face and shut it behind him. The tiny cabin was sweltering, and Brenna yanked the blanket out from under her shirt and threw it on a mat in the corner.

"Brenna." He caught her wrist.

She twisted out of his grasp. "I said forget it."

"I can't." Lachlan spread his arms. "You're wrong, Brenna. I had to accept that you left. I had to accept that I couldn't find you and I had to move on with my life, but even then…even then, I couldn't let go of you."

"Well, you should have." Brenna's voice was low, carefully controlled, but she folded her arms across her chest.

"Brenna—"

"No! Just shut up! You still don't get it!"

"Then tell me! What don't I get? What?"

"Everything I touch breaks, Lachlan! It dies and bleeds and falls apart. I'm not like you. You grow things and make them come alive, and all I do is destroy anything that matters. I swore I wouldn't let it happen again, I swore I would stay away, and then I had no choice because of Ziphas's weapon. I was prepared for what I might find when I got to Alatia again. I was prepared for you to have settled down and started a family. I was prepared for you to never want to see or speak to me again. The only thing I wasn't prepared for was this." Brenna waved a hand at him. "You, still waiting for me!"

The story comes to a crashing end in this second and final book.

AMAZON | GOODREADS | B&N

Random Acts of Kindness BLITZ

Kindness ROCKS!
Each day people interact with us, help, and make our day a bit brighter and full. This is especially true in the Writing Community.

Take a second to think about writers you know, like the critique partner who works with you to improve your manuscript. The writing friend who listens, supports and keeps you strong when times are tough. The author who generously offers council, advice and inspiration when asked.

So many people take the time to make us feel special, don't they? They comment on our blogs, retweet our posts, chat with us on forums and wish us Happy Birthday on Facebook.

To commemorate the release of their book The Emotion Thesaurus, Becca and Angela at The Bookshelf Muse are hosting a TITANIC Random Act Of Kindness BLITZ. And because I think KINDNESS is contagious, I'm participating too!

I'm selecting two amazing authors today who went out of their way to help me out with my current book that's in submission.

One is Dianne Salerni, author of We Hear the Dead and Caged Graves. When I was struggling with conflicting advice for my query, Dianne emailed me with some suggestions that really helped me see what I needed to do with it and be confident about it.

The other is Laura Josephson, author of  Confessions from the Realm of the Underworld (Also Known as High School) and Rising, Book 1. Laura was also kind enough as she watched me struggle with my query to offer help. She also voluntarily critiqued my full manuscript.


My gift to each of these awesome ladies if an amazon gift card. If you have a minute, please stop by their blogs and tell them how awesome they are.

If you know someone special you'd like to randomly acknowledge, please don't be shy--come join us and celebrate! Send an email, give a shout out, or show your appreciation in another way.

Kindness makes the world go round. 



I know Becca and Angela over at The Bookshelf Muse don't want any attention on themselves during the Blitz, but I need to thank them, too. Because their Emotional Thesaurus blog--now a book as of today--has been a fabulous resource for me. I can't tell you how many times I've run to them to trigger my old lady gray matter. Kudos to you both!

They have a special RAOK gift waiting for you as well, so hop on over to to pick it up.

Have you ever participated in or been the recipient of a Random Act of Kindness?

Do tell!

Define Paradise

My daughter put on a fun Harry Potter party for her son. I love that my grandkids love Harry Potter. My grandson just barely turned 8, and he's already halfway through Goblet of Fire. Not too shabby. I got to help make the Owl Snacks and Cauldron Cakes. The Butterbeer was to die for.

I brought him a fun book--Bees in My Butt, which he and his older sister both read. Hilarious books. I'm going to have to get the others in the series.

 

I got my granddaughter Mist Warriors, and they both read that one. 

Then I remembered that I brought Confessions from the Realm of the Underworld (Also Known as High School) to her. She blew through that one in a day.  

 Some addictions are good to pass down to future generations.

We made it safely back to the mainland.

To snow.

Sad. Really sad. Though it's supposed to be nearly 70 degrees one day this weekend. Which is actually a bit better than what we experienced on Kaua'i. They had rain of nearly biblical proportions. It's a good thing we went for a family event and not sightseeing. Besides the airport and the church (and my daughter's house) I only made it to Walmart.

But it was awesome seeing my daughter and her family again. I miss them so much.

Got back yesterday and had my last wisdom tooth removed. I'd been putting this off for 30 years because the other bottom wisdom tooth was a bear afterward. Well, this one was a bear getting out. The dentist had to take it in pieces.

And the tooth area isn't the only place that can take a hit during an extraction. Like my lip here. I haven't had the guts to look at the tooth extraction site.

One positive note though. The oral surgeon (as he's cutting the tooth from my jaw bones) assured me I didn't have osteoporosis.

Anybody doing anything fun this weekend?

Review - "Rising, Book 1 Resistance" by Laura Josephsen

Check It Out

Book Description:
All Alphonse wants is a quiet summer at home before his final months at university. What he gets is a half-dead stranger on his doorstep and the task of delivering a package to the leader of his home country. Not long after he boards a train toward the capital, he's attacked by knights, elite soldiers of the neighboring king.

Alphonse is temporarily rescued by Mairwyn, a mechanic with a haunted past and a deep hatred of knights. Together, they attempt to carry out Alphonse's urgent errand, only to learn that if they fail, countless people will die.

And even if they succeed, they may not be able to prevent the war that lurks on the horizon.

I guess I'm a sucker for geeky guys. Not that I'm suggesting my hubby is a geek--I can almost guarantee he'd be offended. But I do embrace my inner geek (Harry Potter helped me with that), so perhaps it's a bit of kindred spirit sort of thing.

In some ways Alphonse--who is so happy to be buried in a book--reminds me of Elend in Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn series. Elend was a bit more proactive than Laura Josephsen's character, but Alphonse finally quits kicking against the pricks, so to speak, and finally accepts that he's one of few people in a position to stop something terrible from happening.

Genocide.

I found the character of Mairwyn to be endearing and intriguing. She's so stubborn and impatient, yet you can tell there's something else going on with her. As her personal history slowly unfolds, you realize why she's the way she is, and your heart breaks for her.

There's plenty of intrigue, suspense, and action in this story. I can vouch for how vile the villains are. While this is the first in a two-part series, the second book will be from the point of view of different characters as they continue to fight the psycho bad guys.

And the Winner Is . . .

The winner of the ebook is Bonnie!

Anybody going to Life, the Universe and Everything (LTUE) this week? It's a killer deal at $30 for three days. 

Here's my post from last year's event.

What Are You Doing When You Think You're Writing . . . and a Book Giveaway

Article

Valerie Ipson shared this fun post by Dan Berstein on The Barnes & Noble Review  about what you're really doing when you think you're sitting down to write.

It's worth the read and should give you a guilty smile.

Book Giveaway

I won a couple of kewl prizes over at Laura Josephsen's blog for the Favorite Character Blogfest (it was random rather than competitive). The first was a ten-page critique by Melanie Billings at Whiskey Creek Press, so I'm excited.

I also won an ebook copy of Laura's book Confessions from the Realm of the Underworld (Also Known as High School). You can read what I thought of this book here. Hint: I LOVED it!

Since I already own the paper copy, I'm going to give away my ebook prize to one of you. All you have to do is be a follower of my blog and note in your comment below that you're interested in being part of the drawing. I'll announce the winner on Monday.

However, you might also want to note that Laura's getting ready to launch her next book, Rising (Part 1 Resistance). I'm reading this book right now and loving it.

Don't forget to post a comment with your email address if you'd like to have your name put in for the drawing.

Favorite Character Blogfest

I signed up for the Favorite Character Blogfest hosted by the absolutely awesome Laura Josephsen.

So, let me tell you a little bit about the character I'm highlighting. His name is Jori Virtanen (that's pronounced Yo-ree). He's a 24-year-old model who hates his job and dreams of being an artist. He's been through some tough times in his adolescence--things that continue to haunt him into adulthood. His friendships with the main character and her love interest change his life.

He wasn't in the first draft of the book. I created him to help with a plotline I thought wasn't quite working. After input from my critique group, I realized he didn't fulfill his intended purpose. I considered writing him out again.

Essentially, killing him.

Refusing to allow him to exist.

I couldn't do it.

The little stinker had weaseled his way into my heart. In fact, he's going to be the main character in the sequel I'm planning for my NaNo project this year. My tale used to have an epilogue, but once I realized Jori needed to have his story told, too, I've since removed the epilogue. It gave away too much about what happens to him.

Here's my main character's first introduction to Jori. It begins on a ship, docked in Seattle, preparing to embark on a 28-day cruise to New Zealand.

... I sighed, standing in the warmth of the sunlight and imagining a run on the treadmill with nothing but the Pacific Ocean before me.

“Nice, yes?” asked a deep voice behind me.

I spun around and couldn’t help a soft gasp. Before me stood the most beautiful human being I’d ever seen. He was a little taller than me, probably close to my age, and must have been a direct descendent of some Scandinavian god with his pale blond hair and light gray eyes.

He raised his hands. “I didn’t mean to startle you.” His voice had just a hint of an accent I couldn’t place.

 I searched his shirt for a ship logo. “Do you work here?”

“Me?” His eyebrows rose. “No, I’m a passenger. My name is Jori. Jori Virtanen.”

“Nice to meet you, Jori.” I shook the hand he extended. “I’m Lyn North. Where are you from?”

“Seattle.”

I blinked. “Seattle? Your accent . . .”

“Ah, yes.” Jori’s smile made him even more beautiful, and I had to squeeze my jaw shut to keep it from falling open. “My family emigrated from Finland about nine years ago.” He glanced at the wall of windows and said, almost to himself, “It will be interesting to do some sketching in here.”

I followed his gaze to the view of the dock outside. “Are you an artist?”

He hesitated. “I hope to be someday.”

I eyed him, curious. In my experience, beautiful people tended to be self-absorbed. Yet he seemed . . . humble. “Are you going to sketch the scenery in New Zealand? Wouldn’t it be faster to fly?”

Jori chuckled. “I do plan to do some drawing there.” A group of people who’d gathered at the salon registration desk outside the gym drew his attention. “I like to sketch people.” He turned back to me. “What better place than a cruise ship for people?”

Remembering what I’d come to the gym for, I asked, “Have you seen any of the staff around?”

“I noticed someone here just before you came.” Jori’s eyes did a quick scan from my head to my feet, and I felt a surge of irritation. After the pain of the last year I wasn’t ready to enter the meat market in spite of what Elle thought. He asked, “Are you interested in some of the classes?”

“I want to see if it’s okay to use that open area by the door.” I nodded to indicate the location, taking a step toward the exit.

One of his eyebrows rose. “Are you a dancer?”

“No, I want it for karate practice.”

“Karate?”

At that moment a man entered the gym, and I pointed, “Is that the staff guy?”

Jori nodded.

“Well, it was nice meeting you.” I raised my hand in farewell. “I need to go talk with him and then meet my friend.”

Jori glanced at my left hand. “Your boyfriend?”

“No.” I edged away. “A girl friend, like a sister.”

“Are you going to the departure party?” he asked before I could get away.

“Uh, yes. For a little while.”

His pale eyes glittered. “Then I will look for you.” He did a little bow and left.

With a frown, I watched him leave. That incredible specimen of male perfection couldn’t have just been coming on to me. I rubbed my temple. No way was I telling Elle about the encounter.

Have you ever had a character take over a story?

Please check out the posts of these other blogs:

1.	Angie Lofthouse	5.	Gyran Gymble	9.	K. Writerly
2.	Tracey Joseph	6.	tara tyler	10.	Morgan Feldman
3.	Christine Rains	7.	Charity Bradford
4.	Donna K. Weaver	8.	Julie Daines

Oh, My Freakin' Heck!

Check this out--my hands are still shaking!

I just barely got the manuscript back from Laura Josephsen, and haven't made the corrections/changes yet.

What I've Been Reading

Don't forget to check out the

Banned Book Giveaway Hop here.

As much as I complain about not having enough time to read, I have been getting through some books.I'm usually listening to an audiobook, so I can have something going while I'm doing mindless things at home like laundry, cleaning, or yard work. My hubby likes me to read to him, so we've frequently got a book going together, though those take us a while since he tends to fall asleep rather easily (he's got Fibromyalgia). Then I'm usually reading a book myself, either before I go to sleep (when I'm not critiquing) or when I'm on my treadmill or exercise bike.

So, here's what I've been reading (or listening to):

Seeking Persephone is a prequel to Courting Miss Lancaster which I reviewed here. These are Regency Romances by Sarah M. Eden, whose writing I love dearly. She's got a wonderful way of creating conflict riddled with humor. And her characters! I was crushing on Adam after reading CML, but we get to learn so much more about him in SP, that I just love him even more. Sarah hinted there might be another book in the series. I can't wait to visit these characters again. 

I had an opportunity to read the ARC for Everneath by Brodi Ashton, which I LOVED! You can read what I said about it here. It comes out in January 2012.











And another ARC I got to read was Shifting by Bethany Wiggins. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It comes out on September 27th. You can read about it here.

I've read the first two books in this trilogy, and the final book comes out in October. I hesitated to start it since I heard about the first book right after the first Hunger Games book came out. I didn't want to start a new trilogy. But then I was so disappointed with Mockingjay, I wasn't sure I wanted to risk be disappointed again. But Dan Wells did such a fabulous job with his I Am Not a Serial Killer series, that I decided to give this series a chance. We'll see in October. 


I enjoyed Watched by Cindy M. Hogan. I'd definitely want to keep track of any children I sent on summer field trips after reading this book!










I loved Laura Josephsen's book Confessions from the Realm of the Underworld (Also Known as High School). You can read my thoughts on it here.                    

Hubby and I have been reading this series together (we're on the third book). It involves the brother of one of the characters we meet in The Saint Squad Series--see below (love these books about Navy Seals).

 Hubby and I have one more book to go in this series after we finish The Deep End.

 This book is the first in the Runelord series by David Farland. I really enjoyed it. David is the "father", so to speak, of the online critique group forum I'm a member of.

I recently listened to The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer (who died before the book came out) and her niece Annie Barrows again. I just love this story and the way it's written using letters or notes. The unique voice of each character is so well done. Some of the characters I wish I could meet in real life and just hug!

This books provides one of those places I wish I could go to and live.

I hate getting old. I was thinking I hadn't read this one. Guess what? I have. Oh, well. I liked it the second time, too. It's the sequel to her book Masques, which I read earlier in the year. What can I say? I love Patricia Briggs's books. 

Entwined by Heather Dixon is a charming retelling of the fairytale of The Twelve Dancing Princesses.

A Night of Blacker Darkness by Dan Wells is a really interesting book, very different from his I Am Not a Serial Killer series. Because of that, it took me a few pages to get into it just because it was so different from what I'd expected. It's a farce and has some very silly moments. Talk about a comedy of errors!

From the product description on Amazon:
Wrongly imprisoned, Frederick Whithers is desperate to commit the crime he's already being punished for: defrauding the bank out of a vast inheritance. He fakes his death to escape, but when he's seen climbing out of a coffin everyone assumes he's a vampire; when he shows none of the traditional vampire weaknesses, they decide he must be the most powerful vampire in the history of the world.

Half horror and half farce, Frederick's tale is an ever-growing avalanche of bankers, constables, graverobbers, poets, ghouls, morticians, vampires, vampire hunters, not to mention some very unfortunate rabbits. With a string of allies even more unlikely than his enemies, can Frederick stay alive long enough to claim his (well, somebody's) money? And if he can't, which of his innumerable enemies will get to him first? 

I think this book would make a hilarious play.

Okay. I really need to quit complaining that I'm not getting any reading time. 
Obviously I'm doing better than I thought!


So what have you been reading?

Anything I should add to my Goodreads list?
I haven't reached 100 books to read yet.

Grammar Friday - Apostrophes (Part 1) and Other Random Things

Apostrophes, Part 1

Test sentence:

A good restaurant requires cleanliness in every part of it's operation.

So, is that sentence correct?

Well ...

it’s = contraction of it is or it has
its = possessive of it or belonging to it

So, if you can replace it's in your sentence with it is--and it still makes sense--then your word is it's. If you can't, then your word is its.

So, I ask again. Is the sentence in blue correct?

Extra credit question:

What happens when its is possessive?

Sorry, got distracted there.

Well, nothing actually. Its stays the same. Its doesn't have a special possessive form.

I know. I'm sure it feels discriminated against. Or, is that its ....

Word Processing Wars

Peggy Eddleman had a great blog post on Wednesday about which word processing system she uses. What about you?

Award 1 (unwarranted)

People have been really kind to me lately. I even got an award I didn't qualify for. Barbara Kloss gave me this:

I don't qualify for her thoughtful gift because I have too many followers. However, I can pass it through to other, worthy recipients.

Here are the rules:

1. Thank the giver
Danke, Barbara (in keeping with the German theme).

2. Reveal your top 5 picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog--and follow them!
Melanie Jacobsen (she was my bootcamp instructor at Storymaker, and she rocks)
Jeff King over at Author's Union (he's such a kind poster)
Robin Weeks (I know, I pass a lot of stuff on to her, but she's an amazing writer, critique partner, and dang fun person--even for an attorney. Plus she didn't take me up on the bloomers meme)

Nancy S. Thompson (since she tagged me earlier with that unmentionables meme =D )
KT over at Out of My Mind

3. Copy and paste the award on your blog.
Done

4. Have faith that your followers will spread the love to other bloggers.

5. And most of all - have bloggity-blog fun!

Award 2

J.A. Bennett over at A Book, A Girl, A Journey gave me this cute award:

And what's amazing is the picture even looks like me now that I've had my highlights put in again. All right, in this picture the cute subject still has eyebrows (mine fell down to my chin). And I don't have hairy toes. Aren't you glad to know that?

Since this post is too long already and I've answered enough questions about myself with other awards, I will do one thing: Share a quote.

"I dwell in possibility." ~Emily Dickenson

Following are the folks I'm passing this award off to:
Kaylee Baldwin (she makes me smile a lot)
Jolene Perry (don't you love the cover to her book?)
Laura Josephsen (you've already heard me talk about her lots

ETA: That's embarrassing. This was supposed to post tomorrow. Dang Blogger. ROFL I changed the date again and now it says it's already Friday. If you're able to read this, you've time traveled to the future. Doesn't that make you feel special? Now, how will you get home?

And the Winner Is ...

The winner

of the

delightful book

Confessions from the Realm of the Underworld(Also Known as High School) 

by

 Laura Josephsen

is

Canda

Send me an email at donnakweaver(at)gmail(dot)com with your address, and we'll get it in the mail to you. Congrats!

*winner chosen using random.org

A Bit of This and a Bit of That

Confessions Book Giveaway Reminder

If you haven't signed up for the giveaway for Laura Josephsen's new book Confessions from the Realm of the Underworld (Also Known as High School), you only have to comment here (and follow me if you haven't already) and head over to Laura's blog and comment there and follow her to be put in the drawing. I will select the winner at 6 a.m. MDT on Wednesday, August 3rd.

Shifting by Bethany Wiggins ARC Tour

hosted by Elana Johnson

I had the opportunity to be part of the Shifting ARC Tour and even be the FIRST reader in Elana's group! Squeeee! It was a fun read and held me on the edge of my seat. The other members of the tour are in a for a real treat. So, what's it about?

After bouncing from foster home to foster home, Magdalene Mae is transferred to what should be her last foster home in the tiny town of Silver City, New Mexico. Now that she's eighteen and has only a year left in high school, she's determined to stay out of trouble and just be normal. Agreeing to go to the prom with Bridger O'Connell is a good first step. Fitting in has never been her strong suit, but it's not for the reasons most people would expect-it all has to do with the deep secret that she is a shape shifter. But even in her new home danger lurks, waiting in the shadows to pounce. They are the Skinwalkers of Navajo legend, who have traded their souls to become the animal whose skin they wear-and Maggie is their next target.

Full of romance, mysticism, and intrigue, this dark take on Navajo legend will haunt readers to the final page.

Goals & Discouragement

I had a goal to get a lot of books read in July, since I've been working so hard to get my ms ready for my critique group. I just didn't expect to have the three I've read in the last eight days. I'm almost sated with reading. That makes me feel good.


Yet, on the other hand, I read these three really good books, and I begin to doubt myself.

I need to be realistic.

There's no way I can do this. It's impossible

Who am I trying to kid?

I experience this now every time I enter a bookstore. I look at all the wonderful offerings, and all the above thoughts go through my head.

And I think I should just quit.

But I have to remember to take a deep breath and ask myself why I'm doing this. Why am I working a full-time job and then coming home to squeeze a few words out on my stories while trying to make sure my hubby and my house aren't totally neglected? Why do I spend money on books about writing, magazines about writing, conferences about writing? Why do I persist in doing something that frequently feels like physical therapy, that hurts because I'm forcing myself to do things, things that aren't easy and make me feel like I suck?

Is it because I think I'm going to be some great, famous author?

No. I'm very realistic about this. Besides, I would never want to be famous. Be recognized when you go places and have presumptuous people feel they have a right to interrupt you? Puhleeeze! I would so hate that.

Is it because I want to be rich?

No. I wouldn't mind a little extra money, so I could afford to visit my kids and grandkids who live far away as often as I'd like, but that's all. I learned a long time ago that wanting "stuff" is frequently more fun than actually having it. If you don't like you, nothing you surround yourself with will fill that void.

Is it because I think I'm good?

No. I think I can be better, but once again I'm not fooling myself.

So why am I doing this?

I have to remind myself I'm doing this because I love to learn, and I want to learn how to write. I don't ever want to be one of those old people who thinks they know everything and can't be taught anything new. I want to always try and look at the world with fresh eyes and imagine something different, something better.

So, in spite of my writerly flaws, in spite of the strong likelihood I'll never be good enough to get an agent or a publisher, I want to learn to be better. The best I can be at this. Whatever that is.

My battle against myself.

And I'll hang on to the words of Thomas Edison:

I never failed once.

I invented the light bulb.

It just happened to be a 2,000-step process.

So, I let you in on my pep talk. How do you encourage yourself, when you question your sanity to do this writing thing? What motivates you to keep going and not throw in the towel?

"Confessions" Book Giveaway

I'm foregoing my usual Grammar Friday post in lieu of a book Giveaway.

Laura Josephsen's new book Confessions from the Realm of the Underworld (Also Known as High School) is out now, and I read last weekend. 

I loved it! 

We're doing a book giveway to celebrate.So what's this contemporary YA book about?

"Write what you know."

Persephone "Sephie" Benson scoffs when her creative writing teacher throws that little gem out there. Maybe this advice would work for a professional skydiver or a baseball star or a ninja princess. It's not so great for a high school student who doesn't even know what to do with the rest of her life. Add in being the oldest of six girls, having Responsibilities with a capital R, and living in a town the size of a tick, and you've got a recipe for boring soup.

At least, that's what Sephie thinks until her senior year. Now, her grandfather is losing his house. One of her sisters plays a starring role in the local high school scandal. Even things with her best friend Joey aren't the same. As Sephie deals with the changes in her life, she finds that nothing is quite what she expects--and that sometimes, the most extraordinary life can be the one that seems the most ordinary. 

 Why did I love this book? We follow Sephie as she navigates around many real-life challenges. Some of them are very difficult ones for her and her family to get through. I have sisters, and I completely related to the experience of having so many females living under the same roof. I fell in love with Sephie's family and with her friend/romantic interest Joey, who goes through some major challenges himself (I just love that kid).

I laughed often, not just from the humorous situations the characters found themselves in, but also from the way Laura crafted the story around a list of clichés we writers are supposed to avoid. The chapter titles just made smile:

Chapter One
In Which Sephie Defines Chaos. Chaos: Living in a
House with Five Sisters. See? Chaos Defined.

And probably the thing I loved the most was the "heart" of Sephie's tale. Life is hard. Sephie's is no exception. But even when everything seems so dark in her life, she manages to find comfort from friends and family, to see the beauty of the sunrise, the joy of a new day. Being positive in the face of adversity can be dang hard, but it can be done. This book is upbeat in spite of the challenges the characters face. I came away from reading it on a high. I love when a book can do that for me.

So how can you win a paperback copy?

• Become a follower of my blog if you aren't already.
• Comment here that you'd like to be entered in the drawing
• Visit Laura's blog and become a follower there (I will check both blogs to verify)
• Comment on her post there.

I will announce the winner in my post on Wednesday, August 3, 2011.

Self-Publishing .... Decisions, Decisions

I've talked about self-publishing before (here), so this isn't a new topic for me. But I've been thinking about it a lot more seriously lately, especially after Marsha Ward's blog post here. She raises some issues that, for me, are compelling.

• I'm kind of old to have started on this journey, and I sincerely worry that I could die before I have a chance to publish traditionally.
• I'm not in this for a new career. Because I'm older, I've already got one I like just fine, and I can retire in less than ten years.
• This is supposed to be fun for me. I worry that the whole query/rejection process will suck all the joy out of what I'm learning and doing--recognizing that if I put my stuff out there before it's ready, there will be plenty of people who will be happy to help suck all the joy out of what I'm doing--but that's true even of people who publish traditionally.
• A lot of people believe self-publication is the way to go, including David Farland, who's spoken to this issue in several of his Daily Kicks.

On the other hand, there are some compelling reasons not to self-publish.

• You have to do all your own marketing. I can't tell you how much I hate sales. I realize authors are the true salespeople for their work. Readers don't come to book signings to meet the publisher or the agent or the printer; they come to meet the author. It's just hard for me to consider trying to pimp my own work.
• At LTUE, self-published author Anna del C. cautioned writers considering self-publication to get a lot of books written before beginning. She said she spends so much time now marketing her books that she has little time to write. Considering I have a full-time job and limited time available for writing already, this is a huge concern for me.
• As Marsha mentions in her blog, she thinks she's had success so far without marketing because she has so many finished works and could get them out there quickly, that having several books for readers to select from is a big advantage. I don't have a bunch of books to throw out there. I have one WIP close to being "ready" (I know, define ready), two partial WIPs, and lots of ideas. I've spent a ton of time on this first book because it's my on-the-job training, so to speak.
• Many people who, for good reason, haven't made it out of the slush pile are now publishing and flooding the ebook market with dross. Readers could become jaded about the quality of self-published books, and (assuming my book is not just more dross) mine could get lost in the trash.

My friend Laura Josephsen just bravely self-published her book Confessions from the Realm of the Underworld (Also Known as High School  (I read it this weekend and loved it, but I'll write more about it on Friday).  She's already published traditionally and had a publisher interested in this book, and she opted to self publish. Does it help that she's already published and has a fan base? Is it better for someone like Laura than it is for fledgling beginners?

A comment from the LDSStorymaker conference really struck me. Someone reported that author Larry Brooks said writers are too worried about getting published. What we should be worrying about is getting read. When I heard that, it gave me pause.

So what's a girl to do? 

• What are your thoughts on self publication? 
• Have you ever considered it? If so, what did you decide and why? 
• Do you feel like you'll be taken more seriously as a writer if you have the endorsement of the gatekeepers and stick with traditional publishing? 
• Or do you think self-publication is the wave of the future?