Feb
16

Membership Has Its Privileges

Posted in craft, rwa, swfa, writing | 2 Comments
I joined the SFWA (Science Fiction& Fantasy Writers of America) on Friday, something I’ve wanted to do since I started down this path of becoming a writer. However, like many organizations out there, sometimes you can’t just sign up simply because you want to. In this case, you have to be a published author in order to join. Since I’ve officially sold, I qualify and they were very happy to take me in. (And now I can rub shoulders with George R. R. Martin. Well, not really, but I can pretend, anyway.) It’s an interesting problem, especially for aspiring authors. You want to join professional writing groups to prove that you’re taking this venture seriously…but you can’t, because you haven’t proved yourself yet. (Just like finding a job, eh?) And hey, even getting pubbed isn’t always enough – for example, I can’t join Novelists Inc yet, because I actually have… Read more
Feb
5

Sequels and Success

Posted in craft, writing | 5 Comments
Yesterday I started reading another sequel by an author that I used to love. And by the second chapter I was ready to claw my eyes out. The writing was wretched, but more than that, there just seemed to be this attitude of…smugness, I guess. A self-serving sort of feel to it that just grated on my nerves. Now, this particular author has a lot of books out, and a blog that I read sometimes. And she is on Twitter and Facebook too. And I’d be inclined to think that may be part of the source of my disdain for the book – maybe she’s revealed a little too much of herself, and I’ve come to dislike what I’ve seen. (Although I’m hardly one to talk, given the cupping post from yesterday. Not like I *had* to take a picture of my back, now is it?) On the other hand,… Read more
Feb
2

Sunshine, Lollypops & Rainbows

Posted in writing, wtf | 6 Comments
Well okay, then. Still can’t give details about the “deal.” Which is fine. I’ve had to push off a few requests for blog interviews until that point, but otherwise I don’t think there’s anything new on that particular front that I can talk about. It is interesting, though. I think a lot of aspiring authors have this feeling that once they have a deal in hand, everything will be perfect. “I can quit my job and write full time!” for example. Which, okay – maybe if you get some massive 6 figure deal, you *can*. But even so, it’s a good thing to keep in mind no matter what sort of deal you cut that 1) You won’t be getting all that money up front – it will be spread out to you in chunks as dependent upon the stipulations of your contract. 2) Your agent gets his/her well-deserved cut… Read more
Jan
28

It’s Called Fiction For a Reason

Posted in craft, writing, wtf | 8 Comments
An interesting topic came up the other day when I was talking to my aunt. I had sent her my ms a few weeks ago, just to get a feel for what she thought of it – we read a lot of the same sorts of books, after all.I’d love for her to love it, but if she doesn’t, that’s okay too.  And at the same time, there’s a *lot* of me in this book – the average person might not see it, but knowing me as well as she does, she’s already been able to pick out quite a bit. I feel a little more exposed than I thought I would and that makes me leery about having other family members read it. Which of course, they can do as they like. I’m just not sure I want to *know* what they think. (But then, I’ve always been a… Read more
Jan
23

Slumming for Ideas

Posted in craft, writing | 11 Comments
So, part of what is going on with the book thing is that my agent is trying to sell me as a two-book deal. (And it’s probably going to go that way, if everything lines up the way it should). And this is a Good Thing. After all, I had already started writing the sequel a few months ago, and once it becomes official, I’ll start focusing most of my writing time on finishing it. (And I would have had more of it done already, but being that I wasn’t sure if Book 1 would sell, I wanted to work on a different project as well. You know. Just in case I sucked.) However, things won’t be stopping here, as during the last conversation with my agent she asked what else I was working on. (The theory here is that she’d like me to be writing two series at the… Read more