Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Friday, December 3, 2010
Saturday, October 9, 2010
My review of Threads West, An American Saga: Novel One
THREADS WEST, AN AMERICAN SAGA: Novel One by Reid L. Rosenthal
 |
| Get it now and don't miss "The Branding Party!" |
What separates a good novel from a great one? I close a good novel and feel satisfied. When I close a great novel, like this one, I feel sad that there are no more pages to read. From the first time each character appears in the book to the last time they fade from the pages, I was immersed in the personal stories of the heroes, the heroines, the bad guys, the powerful, the vulnerable, and the brave. I cared about their lives and loves, strengths and weaknesses, and their strife and successes. As they head for their compelling shared and undiscovered destinies, their paths unfurl like a Western sunrise in this new saga of the American West.
The Threads West series opens with a bang and closes with a promise of more excitement to come. The story of these enduring characters is destined to stamp its imprint on the spirit and heritage of readers' hearts.
The writing is incredible. I'll leave you with this small taste from Reid L. Rosenthal's pen: "Dawn on the day of departure was a brilliant palette of indigo in retreat to the west and blossoming fire orange to the east. The Mississippi had a slight chop from the morning wind, the surface ripples reflecting the burgeoning day in a shimmer of color."
Five stars are not enough. One book is not enough. Let there be more Threads West. Soon!-- Eve Paludan
Eve Paludan was twice a #1 Writer's Digest Book Club national bestselling author of The Romance Writer's Pink Pages, a three-book series from Prima. Paludan is also an editor of scholarly work at a state university, as well as a freelance fiction editor, e-publisher at NoTreeBooks.com, and a book reviewer. She is also the author of the novel, Letters from David and the novel manuscript, The Man Who Fell from the Sky, pending publication.
Get it - first day of first printing is October 12: http://threadswestamericansaga.com/
Author site: ReidLRosenthal.com
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Anticipation - standing on the point of change
A fantastic literary agent has my entire novel manuscript. She's reading it. She has a lot of manuscripts to read. She posted on her blog that manuscripts under review have a 10% chance of being accepted. Around Oct 6, authors who will be offered representation will get a phone call. The others will get an e-mail rejection.
Arghhhhh! The suspense is intense. This is one of the most important moments of my professional life, coming soon!
And, of course, I cannot get this song out of my head:
Arghhhhh! The suspense is intense. This is one of the most important moments of my professional life, coming soon!
And, of course, I cannot get this song out of my head:
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Still in the running
At the advice of an industry professional, I cut 20,000 words from my novel. It's svelte and fast-paced, a much better read at 90,000 words. The executive editor of a large publisher who had the longer version requested the shorter revision. My manuscript is now under serious consideration. I'm, of course, very excited and hope she loves the revision.
In the meantime, I'm working on editing three fiction anthologies. Come see:
http://www.notreebooks.com/submissions
Agent news: After requesting two separate exclusives and a revision (see above), the agent who tied up my manuscript for 8 weeks (including rewrite time) said "no thank you" after her previous praise of "great potential." No reason given. She was very nice, so I won't grouse about it. She also sent it to her readers and they apparently liked it a lot. This kind of stuff happens all the time -- the almosts -- but the end result is that I have a KICK-ASS version of my novel manuscript and the biggest romance publisher in the world is considering it. So it was, after all, a positive experience and I am grateful that the agent asked me to cut 20,000 words. It was nice of her to take the time to like my work that much and ask others what they thought. I will also cut her a lot of slack because my manuscript landed in her office after the death of an associate and that, I am sure, affected her desire to take me on as a client. Sometimes, the timing of such events can affect a business and I wouldn't want her to take me on as a client when so much else is going on and she already has a full list. I can honestly say the manuscript has been honed to a fine perfection and is the best work I've ever done. I'm so proud of this manuscript and will keep riding on my comeback trail.
The waits are interminable, between submission and news related to it, but it's all part of the process, so I try to work on other things and be patient. Life is wonderful.
In the meantime, I'm working on editing three fiction anthologies. Come see:
http://www.notreebooks.com/submissions
Agent news: After requesting two separate exclusives and a revision (see above), the agent who tied up my manuscript for 8 weeks (including rewrite time) said "no thank you" after her previous praise of "great potential." No reason given. She was very nice, so I won't grouse about it. She also sent it to her readers and they apparently liked it a lot. This kind of stuff happens all the time -- the almosts -- but the end result is that I have a KICK-ASS version of my novel manuscript and the biggest romance publisher in the world is considering it. So it was, after all, a positive experience and I am grateful that the agent asked me to cut 20,000 words. It was nice of her to take the time to like my work that much and ask others what they thought. I will also cut her a lot of slack because my manuscript landed in her office after the death of an associate and that, I am sure, affected her desire to take me on as a client. Sometimes, the timing of such events can affect a business and I wouldn't want her to take me on as a client when so much else is going on and she already has a full list. I can honestly say the manuscript has been honed to a fine perfection and is the best work I've ever done. I'm so proud of this manuscript and will keep riding on my comeback trail.
The waits are interminable, between submission and news related to it, but it's all part of the process, so I try to work on other things and be patient. Life is wonderful.
Monday, August 2, 2010
My toughest editing assignment yet
Today I started to edit a journal article that will be submitted to five medical journals. (I'll explain simultaneous submissions to the author.) The journals all have different submission guidelines and different reference styles, different rules about abbreviated journal titles in the references, modified Vancouver rules, etc. I've never used the American Medical Association style. I had to Google examples and depend on the guidelines for almost everything. I read some articles from those journals and was just amazed at the ratio of passive voice to active voice, definitely not what I usually see. I may need to create five versions of the journal article manuscript, one file for each targeted journal. Oh, my. I think targeting more than one journal is overkill, though.
I'm surrounded by brilliant people, people who change the world with their words. Works for me.
My brain got a tremendous workout today. I'm going to curl up with The Castaways by Elin Hilderbrand and try to slow down a little before I go to sleep. Why yes, I am a book nerd.
I'm surrounded by brilliant people, people who change the world with their words. Works for me.
My brain got a tremendous workout today. I'm going to curl up with The Castaways by Elin Hilderbrand and try to slow down a little before I go to sleep. Why yes, I am a book nerd.
Beta readers
Allan Krummenacker talks about Beta-Readers in his blog:
http://allankrummenacker.blogspot.com/
I found this incredibly interesting. I've never used Beta readers. What's your take on this concept?
http://allankrummenacker.blogspot.com/
I found this incredibly interesting. I've never used Beta readers. What's your take on this concept?
A New Blog about Writing by Jodie Renner
I'd like to recommend Jodie Renner's new and excellent blog for writers.
http://jodierennerediting.blogspot.com/
Jodie edited the first draft of my novel manuscript that is now on a three-week exclusive consideration by a top literary agent. She assisted with developmental issues and gave me advice on plot, pacing, characterization and much more than just copy editing.
I highly recommend her services.
http://jodierennerediting.blogspot.com/
Jodie edited the first draft of my novel manuscript that is now on a three-week exclusive consideration by a top literary agent. She assisted with developmental issues and gave me advice on plot, pacing, characterization and much more than just copy editing.
I highly recommend her services.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Bird by Bird
I'm working it, "bird by bird," as author Anne Lamott once coined that phrase.
At my day job, I am almost through editing and formatting a scholarly book manuscript about Africa. (The client is a faculty author, one of my fave people, but I don't know any of the contributors.) The acquisitions editor at the publisher has been a huge help with tips and advice to get the manuscript completely camera ready. I await ONE graphic to place--our in-house artist is creating the figure--and then I need to print out chapters 7-11 and the About the Contributors section. (The publisher likes sample chapters as hard copy first.) I like it when I can see the pages after they're printed. The IRL version always seems to reveal anomalies that I might not catch on the screen. I'm tinkering here and there with the ms., trying to get it perfect.
It's monsoon season in Flagstaff so every laser printer in the office is misfeeding the curling, damp sheets of paper. We don't have air conditioning in our office, so it is rather like a sauna. Our admin associate ordered another box of paper and I'm going to try that workaround tomorrow. If that doesn't work, I'll ask our art department downstairs to print them out on their state-of-the-art printer.
Editing requests continue to stack up and I'm already booking jobs for October. It's going to be a very busy fall. I have some new faculty clients which always brings me new topics to absorb. One of my new clients is a researcher on lowering body temperature for heart attack victims. I'm sure that will be a challenge. Another author wants to submit to the IEEE journal; I think the guidelines are longer than the journal article.
***
In my other life, the literary agent who requested and received the resubmission of my novel wants a three-week exclusive to read it and decide if she wants to represent me. Her editorial group liked it at 109,000+ words; the words "great potential" were used. Wow! I hope she and her group LOVE it at a slimmed down 89,000-ish words. When she first asked me to drastically reduce the word count to 90,000, I didn't think I could do it. It did take a couple of weeks to nail it but I did it! As you can imagine, I'm very excited to have such serious consideration of representation. A bestselling author read the "phat" version of my novel manuscript and gave me a book blurb, which I also submitted to the agent. Whee!
In other news, the hubby gets laid off from his temp job on Sept. 12th. He'll be programming again, returning to HIS real life, but he's switching from Windows application development to Android phone application development. We've brainstormed a couple of ideas, but he has plenty of his own and doesn't need me.
Our four-year-old granddaughter jumped off the diving board at the end of weeks of swim lessons; she swam to the ladder. I just had to throw that into the mix. :-)
At my day job, I am almost through editing and formatting a scholarly book manuscript about Africa. (The client is a faculty author, one of my fave people, but I don't know any of the contributors.) The acquisitions editor at the publisher has been a huge help with tips and advice to get the manuscript completely camera ready. I await ONE graphic to place--our in-house artist is creating the figure--and then I need to print out chapters 7-11 and the About the Contributors section. (The publisher likes sample chapters as hard copy first.) I like it when I can see the pages after they're printed. The IRL version always seems to reveal anomalies that I might not catch on the screen. I'm tinkering here and there with the ms., trying to get it perfect.
It's monsoon season in Flagstaff so every laser printer in the office is misfeeding the curling, damp sheets of paper. We don't have air conditioning in our office, so it is rather like a sauna. Our admin associate ordered another box of paper and I'm going to try that workaround tomorrow. If that doesn't work, I'll ask our art department downstairs to print them out on their state-of-the-art printer.
Editing requests continue to stack up and I'm already booking jobs for October. It's going to be a very busy fall. I have some new faculty clients which always brings me new topics to absorb. One of my new clients is a researcher on lowering body temperature for heart attack victims. I'm sure that will be a challenge. Another author wants to submit to the IEEE journal; I think the guidelines are longer than the journal article.
***
In my other life, the literary agent who requested and received the resubmission of my novel wants a three-week exclusive to read it and decide if she wants to represent me. Her editorial group liked it at 109,000+ words; the words "great potential" were used. Wow! I hope she and her group LOVE it at a slimmed down 89,000-ish words. When she first asked me to drastically reduce the word count to 90,000, I didn't think I could do it. It did take a couple of weeks to nail it but I did it! As you can imagine, I'm very excited to have such serious consideration of representation. A bestselling author read the "phat" version of my novel manuscript and gave me a book blurb, which I also submitted to the agent. Whee!
In other news, the hubby gets laid off from his temp job on Sept. 12th. He'll be programming again, returning to HIS real life, but he's switching from Windows application development to Android phone application development. We've brainstormed a couple of ideas, but he has plenty of his own and doesn't need me.
Our four-year-old granddaughter jumped off the diving board at the end of weeks of swim lessons; she swam to the ladder. I just had to throw that into the mix. :-)
Monday, July 26, 2010
So, the news
At work: Multiple and simultaneous editing projects are in progress. By fall, there will be four book manuscripts edited, two of them formatted as camera-ready, and six journal articles. I also have two grant proposals to edit in the next six weeks. It's a little too much for one person, but I enjoy seeing the finished publications.
An annual department retreat at work was interesting. Four hours of team-building games were a blast. A very funny young man and I tied each other up at the wrists and crossed the ropes as ordered -- we were also tied TO each other. We then attempted to get loose without cutting the ropes. This required a bit of physics which we eventually figured out after getting ourselves all tangled up together. I felt myself getting a little flushed because he was young and cute and I'm a grandmother and married. It might be the first time I've giggled in a decade. Sheesh. The things I do for the U.
It was the first game event of the day and quite an ice-breaker, as you can imagine. I'm sure I knew everyone's name by the end of the four hours of games, which also included word-games, a get-to-know-you session that was like speed dating, and lots of walking around saying "mingle, mingle" and cracking up. We played a game like musical chairs that was done with hula hoops -- a hoop was removed each time the music stopped. Too much excitement. I won't bore you with the three-hour work-related session after lunch, which was definitely not as fun.
In my other life, a publisher has the full manuscript and I haven't heard a peep. An agent asked me to cut 20,000 words from my novel manuscript. I did it over a period of two weeks. I sent it on July 20th and am singing that Carly Simon song in my head, "Anticipation." If she doesn't reply by this Friday, I doubt I will hear anything until after the Romance Writers of America national conference. Last week she was at the PNWA Conference (per her blog) so I know she's busy. I'm not sure if she's going to the RWA Conference, but if she does, that adds another week to my wait time. This is all theoretical of course, in my head. If I was an agent, and I got a requested resubmission, I would put it on top of my To-Do list. She's pretty much had a 5-week exclusive so I'm getting a little antsy. Really want her for my agent, so I hope that pans out. What did happen in the last five weeks is that I have a much better novel now. Because of the new 90,000 word length, it now fits almost any publisher's length guidelines instead of only the big single title imprints. Big single title is still my preference (mo' money), but if this streamlined version of my novel manuscript results in a category romance sale, I'll still be thrilled. The pacing is much improved.
Over the weekend, I read L.A. Requiem by Robert Crais and loved it, despite a problem with the book design where flashbacks were in italics for pages and pages. Not the author's fault. I found just one misspelled word that was missed by the editor. You can read my mini-review on Amazon at:
http://www.amazon.com/L-Requiem-Elvis-Cole-Novels/product-reviews/0345434471/ref=cm_cr_pr_recent?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=0&sortBy=bySubmissionDateDescending
For the weekend, the hubster and I went to our enchanted cottage 125 miles away from our work city. We nested in with our Netbooks, an old VCR, and some fun MST3K movies (The Beginning of the End starring Peter Graves, notoriously bad and campy to boot), popcorn, and a little footsie in the inflatable queen-sized bed. We're planning to move our king-sized bed down there in about three weeks. We did yard work and I was chomped on by a praying mantis. I have the jaw marks on my ankle to prove it. So happy to see it wasn't a scorpion nailing me. Our 5-year-old refrigerator in our house there bit the dust so we were forced to eat out!
We signed a short-term lease on a rental house in our work city and move to it on August 21st.
The hubby gets laid off on August 30th from his temp job in our work city. I think he's looking forward to going back to self-employment and is going to be programming apps for the Android phone whilst I keep on trucking at my editing job and work on my major comeback into the print world under my own name.
Over at NoTreeBooks.com, my e-press, I'm open for submissions for three e-anthologies to be published as soon as I fill all of the slots. I've already written several contracts. There is pay. See more at:
http://www.notreebooks.com/submissions
An annual department retreat at work was interesting. Four hours of team-building games were a blast. A very funny young man and I tied each other up at the wrists and crossed the ropes as ordered -- we were also tied TO each other. We then attempted to get loose without cutting the ropes. This required a bit of physics which we eventually figured out after getting ourselves all tangled up together. I felt myself getting a little flushed because he was young and cute and I'm a grandmother and married. It might be the first time I've giggled in a decade. Sheesh. The things I do for the U.
It was the first game event of the day and quite an ice-breaker, as you can imagine. I'm sure I knew everyone's name by the end of the four hours of games, which also included word-games, a get-to-know-you session that was like speed dating, and lots of walking around saying "mingle, mingle" and cracking up. We played a game like musical chairs that was done with hula hoops -- a hoop was removed each time the music stopped. Too much excitement. I won't bore you with the three-hour work-related session after lunch, which was definitely not as fun.
In my other life, a publisher has the full manuscript and I haven't heard a peep. An agent asked me to cut 20,000 words from my novel manuscript. I did it over a period of two weeks. I sent it on July 20th and am singing that Carly Simon song in my head, "Anticipation." If she doesn't reply by this Friday, I doubt I will hear anything until after the Romance Writers of America national conference. Last week she was at the PNWA Conference (per her blog) so I know she's busy. I'm not sure if she's going to the RWA Conference, but if she does, that adds another week to my wait time. This is all theoretical of course, in my head. If I was an agent, and I got a requested resubmission, I would put it on top of my To-Do list. She's pretty much had a 5-week exclusive so I'm getting a little antsy. Really want her for my agent, so I hope that pans out. What did happen in the last five weeks is that I have a much better novel now. Because of the new 90,000 word length, it now fits almost any publisher's length guidelines instead of only the big single title imprints. Big single title is still my preference (mo' money), but if this streamlined version of my novel manuscript results in a category romance sale, I'll still be thrilled. The pacing is much improved.
Over the weekend, I read L.A. Requiem by Robert Crais and loved it, despite a problem with the book design where flashbacks were in italics for pages and pages. Not the author's fault. I found just one misspelled word that was missed by the editor. You can read my mini-review on Amazon at:
http://www.amazon.com/L-Requiem-Elvis-Cole-Novels/product-reviews/0345434471/ref=cm_cr_pr_recent?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=0&sortBy=bySubmissionDateDescending
For the weekend, the hubster and I went to our enchanted cottage 125 miles away from our work city. We nested in with our Netbooks, an old VCR, and some fun MST3K movies (The Beginning of the End starring Peter Graves, notoriously bad and campy to boot), popcorn, and a little footsie in the inflatable queen-sized bed. We're planning to move our king-sized bed down there in about three weeks. We did yard work and I was chomped on by a praying mantis. I have the jaw marks on my ankle to prove it. So happy to see it wasn't a scorpion nailing me. Our 5-year-old refrigerator in our house there bit the dust so we were forced to eat out!
We signed a short-term lease on a rental house in our work city and move to it on August 21st.
The hubby gets laid off on August 30th from his temp job in our work city. I think he's looking forward to going back to self-employment and is going to be programming apps for the Android phone whilst I keep on trucking at my editing job and work on my major comeback into the print world under my own name.
Over at NoTreeBooks.com, my e-press, I'm open for submissions for three e-anthologies to be published as soon as I fill all of the slots. I've already written several contracts. There is pay. See more at:
http://www.notreebooks.com/submissions
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Read my review of A Baker's Dozen Short Stories by Richard E. Noble
"A Baker's Dozen" Short Stories by Richard Noble is not only a treat, it is a feast for the mind, with some of the stories reminiscent of the O. Henry type of plot twists that have captivated readers for generations. Like the proverbial box of fancy chocolates, each story in this collection gives the reader a satisfying taste of a different flavor, and yet a cohesive theme of American blue-collar nostalgia makes a pretty box to contain these 13 delectable story treats.
A consummate storyteller, Richard Noble brings to life both civilized life -- with themes like marriage and running a business and adventures with drinking buddies and unions and such -- and uncivilized life, such as my favorite story in the collection: In "I'm Going Home," an itinerant fruit picker and pot dealer named Jon enjoys the freedom and economy of living in a national park but ponders the suspicious death of an alcoholic Jesus freak known as Pea-Coat. The trouble starts when Jon starts his own investigation of the assumed suicide. Wow, this story grabbed me and didn't let go, nor did it disappoint. Well done.
See more of my review at: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1452860858/
A consummate storyteller, Richard Noble brings to life both civilized life -- with themes like marriage and running a business and adventures with drinking buddies and unions and such -- and uncivilized life, such as my favorite story in the collection: In "I'm Going Home," an itinerant fruit picker and pot dealer named Jon enjoys the freedom and economy of living in a national park but ponders the suspicious death of an alcoholic Jesus freak known as Pea-Coat. The trouble starts when Jon starts his own investigation of the assumed suicide. Wow, this story grabbed me and didn't let go, nor did it disappoint. Well done.
See more of my review at: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1452860858/
Friday, May 7, 2010
Publisher requested the synopsis and full manuscript
A publisher requested a detailed synopsis and the full manuscript of The Man Who Fell from the Sky. Hooray!
I'm very excited, as you can guess!
I hope to have some news within a couple of months...
*crossing fingers*
I'm very excited, as you can guess!
I hope to have some news within a couple of months...
*crossing fingers*
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Agent requested the full manuscript!
Yes, I'm back in the saddle again. An agent read my query and requested the full manuscript of The Man Who Fell from the Sky. I anxiously await some news!
***
BookDivas.com is going to review my e-novel, Letters from David. I'm also going to be interviewed! Yay!
***
BookDivas.com is going to review my e-novel, Letters from David. I'm also going to be interviewed! Yay!
Thursday, April 1, 2010
My novel manuscript, The Man Who Fell from the Sky, is complete
It's been five months of intense writing after work and on weekends. I pitched my novel, sent a query and the entire ms. was requested and is having a read. I hope to get representation soon. So excited!
Sunday, November 1, 2009
First day of Nanowrimo.org's 2009 challenge
The Nanowrimo.org challenge is to write the first draft of a complete 50,000-word novel in November. I signed up again. I couldn't do it last year because I was taking an ASU course that consumed 15-20 hours a week for homework, for one course. Not to mention mentoring my classmates, which was a part of the course -- to exchange papers, etc.
This year, no classes. It's not just that I don't have time for writing fiction when I am taking university courses, but the course at ASU, Technical Editing, was so lame that the textbook was from 1992, the instructor was unavailable for most of the time (caught up in her own drama), and I also figured out that by the time I get my degree, according to the number of classes I am allowed to take for a discount, that it would take me 10 years to get my degree, coincidentally when I reach retirement age. I tried to retool the education goals by going for a professional writing certificate but ASU laid off the teachers I needed and apparently canceled the professional writing certificate program. Subsequent phone calls to ASU went unanswered, as did e-mails. I tried to get an NAU professor to talk to me about it, but never got anywhere there, either. They don't offer ANY of the courses I want at NAU. Oh well. There will apparently not be a degree for me, however, when I get $5,000 (hubby says I CANNOT get a loan -- we have a deal with each other that we will never borrow money for education, cars, or even a mortgage) then I will take a July off and get my professional publishing certificate from the University of Denver Publishing Institute, if they'll have me as a student. *crosses fingers*
I have an editing job during the day; I write novels at night and on the weekends. I'm finding balance in it. I learn so much from editing scholarly work that I am not joking when I say I'm getting a free education at work.
Today's (Sunday, Nov 1) haul of Nanowrimo words -- a six-hour spurt of writing -- netted me 6,032 words. I started the prologue with an up arc that leads to the story's climax, then I am going to start Chapter 1 tomorrow as a flashback. I've been studying mystery structure, although my story elements also contain romance and adult familial relationships. I'm going to have a murder, economic realities, second chances at love, grizzly bears gone really wild (you'll see), horses behaving badly, Montana sapphires, truffle hunting, and an undercurrent of environmental issues as a thread throughout.
My story takes place in western Montana, where I actually fell in love with a place in May 2001 -- the Glacier National Park area. I have many good things to say about Montana in my novel, which I am researching thoroughly.
Tomorrow is going to be crazy at work. Well, first I have a mammogram at 8 a.m.. I'll run to work and start editing a new project from a young and enthusiastic professor whose project is intriguing and unique. Rather than a literature review of the research of others, she went into an inner city situation and did a certain kind of ethnology research that may be unprecedented -- I can't really give details, but I feel privileged to edit her book manuscript. She's young and vivacious and she knows how to express ideas. And, she seems to love a metaphor -- a gal after my own heart! When I say it will be crazy, that's because I have three other editing projects at the same time. Ack! One of them was unexpected.
I'll be writing my November novel in the evenings, Monday through Friday. More tomorrow! Montana Man is the working title.
I'm having trouble with Nanowrimo.org's slow site. I hope to log on tomorrow night and have an easier time of searching for buddies and using the forums.
This year, no classes. It's not just that I don't have time for writing fiction when I am taking university courses, but the course at ASU, Technical Editing, was so lame that the textbook was from 1992, the instructor was unavailable for most of the time (caught up in her own drama), and I also figured out that by the time I get my degree, according to the number of classes I am allowed to take for a discount, that it would take me 10 years to get my degree, coincidentally when I reach retirement age. I tried to retool the education goals by going for a professional writing certificate but ASU laid off the teachers I needed and apparently canceled the professional writing certificate program. Subsequent phone calls to ASU went unanswered, as did e-mails. I tried to get an NAU professor to talk to me about it, but never got anywhere there, either. They don't offer ANY of the courses I want at NAU. Oh well. There will apparently not be a degree for me, however, when I get $5,000 (hubby says I CANNOT get a loan -- we have a deal with each other that we will never borrow money for education, cars, or even a mortgage) then I will take a July off and get my professional publishing certificate from the University of Denver Publishing Institute, if they'll have me as a student. *crosses fingers*
I have an editing job during the day; I write novels at night and on the weekends. I'm finding balance in it. I learn so much from editing scholarly work that I am not joking when I say I'm getting a free education at work.
Today's (Sunday, Nov 1) haul of Nanowrimo words -- a six-hour spurt of writing -- netted me 6,032 words. I started the prologue with an up arc that leads to the story's climax, then I am going to start Chapter 1 tomorrow as a flashback. I've been studying mystery structure, although my story elements also contain romance and adult familial relationships. I'm going to have a murder, economic realities, second chances at love, grizzly bears gone really wild (you'll see), horses behaving badly, Montana sapphires, truffle hunting, and an undercurrent of environmental issues as a thread throughout.
My story takes place in western Montana, where I actually fell in love with a place in May 2001 -- the Glacier National Park area. I have many good things to say about Montana in my novel, which I am researching thoroughly.
Tomorrow is going to be crazy at work. Well, first I have a mammogram at 8 a.m.. I'll run to work and start editing a new project from a young and enthusiastic professor whose project is intriguing and unique. Rather than a literature review of the research of others, she went into an inner city situation and did a certain kind of ethnology research that may be unprecedented -- I can't really give details, but I feel privileged to edit her book manuscript. She's young and vivacious and she knows how to express ideas. And, she seems to love a metaphor -- a gal after my own heart! When I say it will be crazy, that's because I have three other editing projects at the same time. Ack! One of them was unexpected.
I'll be writing my November novel in the evenings, Monday through Friday. More tomorrow! Montana Man is the working title.
I'm having trouble with Nanowrimo.org's slow site. I hope to log on tomorrow night and have an easier time of searching for buddies and using the forums.
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Book Review: Moon Dance by J.R. Rain (*****) [A review by Eve Paludan]
Book Review: Moon Dance by J.R. Rain (*****) [A review by Eve Paludan]
Moon Dance by J.R. Rain is a brilliant urban fantasy novel with engaging characters, witty dialogue, a page-turning plot, and clever subplots that unfurl like a well-paced movie in your mind.
The protagonist, Samantha Moon, is a smart and beautiful private investigator who hasn't aged a day in six years. She can kick butt in a street fight or in a boxing ring. An ex-federal agent for HUD, Sam is also a vampire who likes her steak rare, and, is married and the mother of two school-age children who have a relentless penchant for sibling rivalry.
When someone sends Sam a medallion that her attacker wore, six years ago when she became a vampire, she wants to find her attacker. This has to take the back burner for the moment, as she has a P.I. assignment to find out who shot her hunky client in the head multiple times. By the way, he lived.
Sam is a busy mom who hates going outside in the daytime, and a wife who suspects that her beloved husband is straying -- Add to this cast: an apologetic vampire hunter, a sexy, helpful urban werewolf, some cop friends, and an internet friend who falls in love with her words. Sam's adventures include testing her vampire powers and supernatural limitations, and the inner quest to validate that the goodness of humanity is still inside of her. (You just gotta love a vampire heroine who worries that her supernatural status might render her automatically evil.)
This is a book full of humor, rather than horror, and a woman's self-examination of a new unchosen immortal lifestyle.
Moon Dance is the witty and intelligent journey of a vampire who loves her kids and wonders if God still loves her. She barely has a pulse, she's whiter than a goth girl, she doesn't reflect in a mirror, and she has a heart as big as Orange County, the urban setting of the novel.
If you like Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum, bounty hunter, be prepared to love J. R. Rain's Samantha Moon, vampire private investigator. Sparkling dialogue, page-turning action, and superlative characters will leave you wanting to see more from the pen of J.R. Rain. I know I do!
Moon Dance is a must read. I gave it five out of five stars. J.R. Rain has more novels coming. Stay tuned for more from this talented author!
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000188126409#/profile.php?id=100000188126409&v=info&viewas=898640507
http://jrrain.com/
ORDER:
http://stores.lulu.com/jrrain
The book will soon be on Amazon.
Moon Dance by J.R. Rain is a brilliant urban fantasy novel with engaging characters, witty dialogue, a page-turning plot, and clever subplots that unfurl like a well-paced movie in your mind.
The protagonist, Samantha Moon, is a smart and beautiful private investigator who hasn't aged a day in six years. She can kick butt in a street fight or in a boxing ring. An ex-federal agent for HUD, Sam is also a vampire who likes her steak rare, and, is married and the mother of two school-age children who have a relentless penchant for sibling rivalry.
When someone sends Sam a medallion that her attacker wore, six years ago when she became a vampire, she wants to find her attacker. This has to take the back burner for the moment, as she has a P.I. assignment to find out who shot her hunky client in the head multiple times. By the way, he lived.
Sam is a busy mom who hates going outside in the daytime, and a wife who suspects that her beloved husband is straying -- Add to this cast: an apologetic vampire hunter, a sexy, helpful urban werewolf, some cop friends, and an internet friend who falls in love with her words. Sam's adventures include testing her vampire powers and supernatural limitations, and the inner quest to validate that the goodness of humanity is still inside of her. (You just gotta love a vampire heroine who worries that her supernatural status might render her automatically evil.)
This is a book full of humor, rather than horror, and a woman's self-examination of a new unchosen immortal lifestyle.
Moon Dance is the witty and intelligent journey of a vampire who loves her kids and wonders if God still loves her. She barely has a pulse, she's whiter than a goth girl, she doesn't reflect in a mirror, and she has a heart as big as Orange County, the urban setting of the novel.
If you like Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum, bounty hunter, be prepared to love J. R. Rain's Samantha Moon, vampire private investigator. Sparkling dialogue, page-turning action, and superlative characters will leave you wanting to see more from the pen of J.R. Rain. I know I do!
Moon Dance is a must read. I gave it five out of five stars. J.R. Rain has more novels coming. Stay tuned for more from this talented author!
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000188126409#/profile.php?id=100000188126409&v=info&viewas=898640507
http://jrrain.com/
ORDER:
http://stores.lulu.com/jrrain
The book will soon be on Amazon.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Read my five-star review of "Who Got Liz Gardner?":
Read my five-star review of "Who Got Liz Gardner?":
http://www.amazon.com/gp/cdp/member-reviews/A3Q0SBW6652MIG/ref=cm_cr_pr_auth_rev?ie=UTF8&sort_by=MostRecentReview
http://www.amazon.com/gp/cdp/member-reviews/A3Q0SBW6652MIG/ref=cm_cr_pr_auth_rev?ie=UTF8&sort_by=MostRecentReview
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Who's Acquiring and What They Want
http://dearauthor.com/wordpress/2009/07/24/state-of-the-erotic-romance-market-from-laura-bradford-agent-awesome/#more-13422
How sweet it is. Despite the economy, romance novels are still being acquired.
How sweet it is. Despite the economy, romance novels are still being acquired.
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