A Query Critque and the Deja Vu Blogfest

I suggest that you stop over at Matt's place at The Quintessentially Questionable Query Experiment.
He's critiquing my query today.

Click here to check out the other participants.

 Today I'm participating in the Deja Vu Blogfest. It's where participants are supposed to look back over our previous posts and repost one of our favorites. It could be one that was particularly brilliant or that got missed because of others things going on. 

Or, in this case, it could be one that might make you smile. It's been a hard week for me, and I needed a laugh on this Friday.

So here is my Nonsense Post from August 8, 2011

I got tagged by the lovely Nancy S. Thompson for this meme. I debated whether or not to take it up, and decided there was some potential for humor here. You can decide if I succeeded or not.

1. What do you call your drawers?
Drawers
Do you have any commonly used nicknames for them?

I think that is the nickname.

source

2. Have you ever had that supposedly common dream of being in a crowded place in only your bloomers?

No, but as a child I would sometimes dream
I had absolutely nothing on. 
However, in the typical way of childhood, that didn't trouble me. 
Now? At my age it's best to cover up as much as possible.

source

3. What is the worst thing you can think of to make long johns out of?

Wool. Absolutely wool. It would itch like crazy.

source

4. If you were a pair of small clothes, what color would you be, and WHY?

Green. Definitely green. It's my favorite color. 
But I must admit these pirate long johns are quite stylish.

source

5. Have you ever thrown your bloomers at a rock star or other celebrity? If so, which one(s)? If not, which one(s) WOULD you throw your bloomers at, given the opportunity?

Please! Such a waste of fabric! It costs so much to sew anymore. 
To say nothing about being vulgar and unrefined.

source

6. You’re out of clean drawers. What do you do?

Um, wash them. Duh!

source

7. Are you old enough to remember Underoos? If so, did you have any? Which ones?

Ah, yes, Underoos. My older children wore them.

source

8. If you could have any message printed on your long johns, what would it be?

These days, the options are endless. Eve Gaal over at The Desert Rocks and I emailed about this since she got tagged, too, and I like what her brother suggested:

Save Your Soul

Source

9. How many bloggers does it take to put small clothes on a goat?

Zero, since we're in the cybersphere rather than real life.

source

I close with the lyrics that I used for Week 6 of Poetry Summer here
from a song we sang at Girl Scout Camp in the Philippines.

Long Johns

author unknown

sung to the tune of Bye Bye Blackbird (corrected from original post)

I have lost my underwear.

I don't care; I'll go bare.

Bye bye, long johns.

They were very close to me

Tickle me. He he he.

Bye bye, long johns

If you see them you'll know where to find me

With my bare bum stickin' out behind me.

I have lost my underwear.

I don't care; I'll go bare.

Long johns, bye bye.

  Like cyberchocolate that has no fat and no calories, it also has no taste. Just like this meme.

Now I'm supposed to share the wealth, so to speak, and have others give their thoughts about  their unmentionables. 

Hmmm ... who don't I like? 

Just kidding! I won't be the least bit offended if any of you don't take this up.

Donea Lee over at The Queen of Procrastination

Margo Lerwill over at Urban Psychopomp

Jess over at Falling Leaflets

Melanie over at Feather Pens, Tartan Dreams

Robin Weeks

So, did I make you smile? Or just roll your eyes and shake your head? 

Hey, I titled it Nonsense Post. You were warned.

Query Critique

You  might want to stop over at Matt's place at The Quintessentially Questionable Query Experiment. He's posting my query today and will critique it tomorrow.

I can't begin to tell you how nervous this makes me.

When my daughter was in 6th grade she'd just moved to a new school and decided to run for class president. She told me if she didn't run, there's be no chance she could win. And she wanted the chance.

There's nothing like having an 11-year-old teach you a life lesson.

She won, by the way. I expect this to be a winning experience from what I learn. There really is benefit in finding out what you're not doing right or could do better.

Book Review - Mistborn: The Alloy of Law

Brandon Sanderson's done it again. And that's why he's become one of my favorite authors. You can find an article on the Tor blog here where Brandon wonders if his 14-year-old self would approve of what he did in this fantasy book.

Well, I loved what he did.

Here's a synopsis:

Three hundred years after the events of the Mistborn trilogy, Scadrial is on the verge of modernity, with railroads to supplement the canals, electric lighting in the streets and the homes of the wealthy, and the first steel-framed skyscrapers racing for the clouds.

Kelsier, Vin, Elend, Sazed, Spook, and the rest are now part of history—or religion. Yet even as science and technology are reaching new heights, the old magics of Allomancy and Feruchemy continue to play a role in this reborn world. Out in the frontier lands known as the Roughs, they are crucial tools for the brave men and women attempting to establish order and justice.

One such is Waxillium Ladrian, a rare Twinborn who can Push on metals with his Allomancy and use Feruchemy to become lighter or heavier at will. After twenty years in the Roughs, Wax has been forced by family tragedy to return to the metropolis of Elendel. Now he must reluctantly put away his guns and assume the duties and dignity incumbent upon the head of a noble house. Or so he thinks, until he learns the hard way that the mansions and elegant tree-lined streets of the city can be even more dangerous than the dusty plains of the Roughs.

I'm good with some fight scenes in books. If they drag on too long I find myself getting bored and will skim ahead to see what the outcome is. What's surprising is how much I enjoyed the Mistborn trilogy's fight scenes using the unique magics of the world, both for the Allomancers (people who can "burn" metals and get power from it) and the Feruchemists (people who can store things like health, weight, strength, etc. into "metalminds" on their bodies).

I love what Sanderson's done in this new society where the main character can do both Allomancy and Feruchemy. Oh, my, the things he can do with it. In Brandon's article above, he spoke about the introduction of guns into this world. Adding this element to the already clever and exciting fight was brilliant. I grew up in a day when westerns were big on TV and in the movies. I remember Clint Eastwood before he became famous in the Spaghetti Westerns like The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly back when he was on Rawhide. The feel that Sanderson brought to the book matched well with my memories but, as always, with his own fascinating twist.

Brandon did a great job blending of our turn-of-the-century-type (the one before) technology with trains, horseless carriages, skyscrapers into the culture and political system we were familiar with in the earlier series. I loved what he's done with the place, so to speak.

And the characters. Brandon writes characters I love. I love their flaws (oh, my gosh, Wayne just makes me smile!), their strengths, their humor, and their interactions with each other. In the character Waxillium, you've got a brilliant mind mixed with amazing physical skills all set inside a man who's dealing with a terrible emotional burden. A man with a powerful sense of justice and a need to do something to make things better. Kind of a "saving people thing" that Harry Potter had--only Wax is no kid.

I'm glad this is the start of a new series. As always, Sanderson throws in some great twists that will keep you on your toes. I highly recommend this book.

Tomorrow is the last chance to enter to win The King's Envoy in The Give Books for Christmas Giveaway Hop. 
Click here to sign up. I'm choosing the winner at noon.

Also tomorrow, you  might want to stop over at Matt's place at The Quintessentially Questionable Query Experiment. He's going to post my query and critique it on Friday.

Fine--You Win, Kings, and Hallelujah

 Don't forget you can sign up painlessly to participate in the Give Books Blog Hop and get a book for Christmas (or other applicable gift-giving celebration this time of year). The Hop runs through December 15th, but I'll be cutting it off at noon that day so I have time to contact the winner. I'm supposed to get the book in the mail on the 16th. Click here for details and check out the others books you could win by visiting the following blogs.


Give Books for Christmas Giveaway Hop

1.	Inksplasher (US)	7.	Maria Hoagland (US)	13.	Jennifer K. Clark (US)
2.	Jennifer Hurst (INT)	8.	The Last Word (US)	14.	Publish Novels or Bust (US)
3.	FALL (INT)	9.	Tristi Pinkston	15.	Heidi Murphy (US)
4.	Geek Girl (INT)	10.	LDS Publisher (INT)	16.	Nichole Giles
5.	Heart on a Chain (INT)	11.	Carolyn Frank (INT)
6.	Immortal Mine (INT)	12.	K.C. Grant Writer's Corner (US)

Since many of us are recovering from NaNo, and now we're in the throes of one of the busiest times of the year, here's a little something to lighten your mood. These kids just make me smile.



Have you got your shopping done?

Should I or Shouldn't I?

Don't forget you can sign up painlessly to participate in the Give Books Blog Hop and get a book for Christmas (or other applicable gift-giving celebration this time of year). The Hop runs through December 15th, and I'll be getting the book out on the 16th. Click here for details and check out the others books you could win by visiting the following blogs.

Give Books for Christmas Giveaway Hop

1.	Inksplasher (US)	7.	Maria Hoagland (US)	13.	K.C. Grant Writer's Corner (US)
2.	Jennifer Hurst (INT)	8.	The Last Word (US)	14.	Jennifer K. Clark (US)
3.	FALL (INT)	9.	Weaving a Tale or Two (US)	15.	Publish Novels or Bust (US)
4.	Geek Girl (INT)	10.	Tristi Pinkston	16.	Heidi Murphy (US)
5.	Heart on a Chain (INT)	11.	LDS Publisher (INT)
6.	Immortal Mine (INT)	12.	Carolyn Frank (INT)

 
*sigh*

Yes, that's a really big sigh.

My goal this month is to finish the edit for WIP #1 and send the first fifty pages off to an editor. AND I need to finish my query. Well, it's finished. The dang thing's just not right yet. ETA for clarification: This query has been critiqued by both my online and in-person critique groups. It's been critiqued by some other writerly friends and in its essential form given a thumbs up from the author I won the query critique from. But everyone--and I mean every who hasn't read the book--thinks a critical thing referenced in the query (and which is the hook) is a major plot-line. But it's really just a catalyst and sets into motion what happens in the rest of the book.

I've thought of submitting to Matt over at The Quintessentially Questionable Query Experiment, and he said he'd be willing to look at it. Alex and Nancy have both said I should.

I just have this little problem about bearing myself in public, so to speak, and subjecting myself to ridicule. I'm good at my day job, and I work very hard to make sure I'm knowledgeable and up to date with my skills. I have to be because if I screw up I can get sued. Don't even mess with someone's bid to public office, believe me.

But I think the thing that really turns me into a quivering mess is the genre bias I talked about in this post. I'm not worried about Matt's comments. He a consummate professional and tactful besides. When I had one of my sons who's got a bright, creative mind (I love to bounce ideas off him) read an earlier version, his tone dripped with sarcastic cheese.

So, my adventure romance book's query could be said to have a melodramatic tone. If you read it the way my son did. Writing is so subjective I'm sure people will pick up on the cheese factor. And I'm so not into this:

Please note that my son made fun of the version approved by the author I won a query critique from.

It could just be him. Or it could be that the tone is there but fits the genre. The bottom line is that I'm at my wit's end over this thing. So I'm going to let you folks help me decide. On the right sidebar is a poll. Please comment here and tell me why you voted the way you did.

In the meantime, I'm going to be doing this: