Happy Walpurgisnacht!

I am afraid I'll have to miss it, tonight, when all the witches and crazies go to the Brocken mountain in the Harz mountains and dance around on top. Evidently it's quite the crazy night there, but since there are hard rights also there, I'll just enjoy my mental image of it and carry on in my way. 

As they say (so you don't have to click, my darlings, I shall save you from that): 

Celebrated mainly in Sweden, Finnland, Estonia, Latvia, and Germany, Walpurgisnacht gets its name from Saint Walburga (or Walpurga), a woman born in what is now England in 710. Die heilige Walpurga traveled to Germany and became a nun at the convent of Heidenheim in Württemberg. Following her death in 778 (or 779), she was made a saint, with May 1 as her saint day.

In Germany the Brocken, the highest peak in the Harz Mountains, is considered the focal point ofWalpurgisnacht. Also known as the Blocksberg, the 1142-meter peak is often shrouded in mist and clouds, lending it a mysterious atmosphere that has contributed to its legendary status as the home of witches (Hexen) and devils (Teufel). That tradition predates the mention of the witches gathering on the Brocken in Goethe's Faust: "To the Brocken the witches ride..." ("Die Hexen zu dem Brocken ziehn...")

Courtesy of German.about.com

There are those days...

...where the only thing that keeps me going is stubbornness.

Today (and last night) appears to be one of those days. 

I never realized it, but a conversation in my writing group the other day really brought a point home for me.

You know, once you get an agent, you're not home free. You're better off, yeah, and the agent will do the selling, but just remember. You're still going to need to:

- Have what the agent needs/wants for submissions - like different synops sizes, character arcs, what have you - ready when they need it.

- write a next book your agent likes. They very well might not like what you write next, and it depends on agent to agent as to their style about that. As in : some agents say, write what you want to write and show me after, others want approval of stories before you go in. Make sure you check which yours is...

- decide what to do. If your agent doesn't like it, what do you do? Trunk it? Go straight to the next one? Try to find a publisher yourself? Make sure you've checked with them about what they want beforehand.

- catch that publisher. Sure, it only takes one, but sometimes it takes a while before you get to that one. Don't whine! You're farther along than many; just go on with what you're writing and try to forget about it.

Don't get me wrong. I am totally happy about where I'm at, lovin' (even when it's stressful) the process, really. I've gotten more zen. I'd just like to help you past that point of "I got the AGENT! Publication is ASSURED!" part that I seemed to go through. :)

Keep it up, and see you tomorrow.

ETA: ZOMG! I totally forgot! Head on over to Alex and Cindy, and wish them luck! Today is release day for the both of them!

In Which I Flail Like A Fangirl

One of my very coolest Agentbros, the fab and über-talented Alex Bledsoe, was at OddCon this weekend.

He's a writer, yo. But even more than that, a great guy. And his book the Sword Edged Blond is FULL OF AWESOME. If you like fantasy, it's perfect.

But anyway.

He knows that Pat Rothfuss will be on my blog at some point, and that I love his little Hobbitt-ness...seriously, him (and Alex) are my two favourite 'boy' fantasy writers out there right now. I love them both loads.

And now I love them both more, because Alex took a picture of Pat for me.

How full of freakin' awesome is this:

Alex even blogged about it.

I am flailin'.

LOLCAT FREIDAYZ - SUXES!!!! I GOTZ IT!!!

Frakkin' A!

I just wrote

THE END

This is a wonderful thing. 

The Manuscript That Doesn't Want To Die....

...is going down today. I am perhaps to the last 1k of words. I'm killing it in the train this morning. I know it.

Suddenly,

I'm feeling a whole lot better about myself. 

Why's that? 

An AW friend posted this link about famous authors who were rejected. It happens to everyone, BB. 

Here's the beginning. Read it and feel those glimmers of hope. 

Let them flyyyyyyy.

My brain is a gas tank.

So I'm all interested in your writing speed.

As in, how much do you do it?

I've noticed through this last book that I work in 'chapter' amounts. Most of my chapters before FS2.5 were short - 1k, 1,5k, thereabouts. With FS2.5 the nature of the beast was a little bigger, so I averaged about 2k a chapter (we shall see if this remains for edits).

It seems as though I have a gas tank for a brain. It thinks about two or three scenes ahead and I write until it empties. Then it needs to think again.

So, in a way, working full time and writing on the side is perfect. I have enough time to get my gas tank emptied, and work, and write again. Lather, rinse, repeat.

So you? What's your standard amount you can get done in a day?

(Head on over to my buddy Ello and wish her a Happy Ello-BDAY! Let's spread the love, shall we?)

Whew.

I'm baaack!

And while I'm not done, I'm practically there. Had to get through the sloggy bits last week (aka, the middle) and now I'm on the home stretch - I'd guess there are about three chapters left. 

So what I'm going to do at this point is write down my plan for the next couple weeks, in order that I can track myself properly and keep track. 

Monday and Tuesday I'll finish FS up. That will be a super cool thing. I have a doc in my book that is simply labelled TO DO. The rest of the week I'll fix those glaring errors that I put in that TO DO folder, and by next Sunday, I'll be done with the first (well, technically the 2.5 edition, that's what I'll call it!) of FS. 

So FS 2.5. 

That will be so great. 

Next on the list? 

The NF. I've been working with my co-author (she of the massive platform) to get things done but it's been really slow b/c of her life situation, my life situation and the MS That Would Not End (FS2.5). Now that I have some time, I fully plan on working out that proposal and getting it fleshed together, with the intent to have it in a first draft stage by May Day (the 1st of May.) 

Theoretically, I want to make the first change/edit to FS2.5 on the 30 of April...a very important day in the MS. It's a day called Walpurgisnacht, or Witches Night, and, just for this book, I would start the first chapter then. Or *some* edit. Just to have began it. :) 

So...I'm back! I'll have a couple scheduled posts until Wednesday then it's back real time! 

LOLCAT Freidayz

Don't forget I'm over here today.

Holy Crap it's Monday!

And I don't have a blog post! 

I'm in the throes of finishing FS. I'm right at the cusp of it, actually. 

So as much as I love you all, I'm going silent for a bit to finish this puppy. My goal is by the end of tomorrow, if not, this week. 

In my delusions I think you might miss me, so I'll run past your blogs to check up on you. 

WHEN I'm done with this monster. 

Shouldn't be long. 

So it's like, Easter. Or Ostara. Or Ostern. 

Here I am, with my yearly wishes from our house to yours! 

First, the Bluecat must be humiliated. I bring your attention to the slightly out of focus picture, alongside the hubsies fingers as he tried to hold one wriggling hairless cat and a piece of paper straight.  

Next comes Blackcat (aka, Satan'skitteh, no lie). 

I would like to draw your attention to his "EFF OFF AND DIEEEEEE" look. I find it brilliant, really. 

He's so expressive. 

But really, have a happy holiday, whereever you are, whatever you're doing. We're here for you, bb. 

All mah knoledge, I'm givin' too uuu...

(Note. This is reposted from Adventures in Writing, a new blog I'm taking part in on Fridays.)

Heh. 

On Fridays. Thank goodness I don't need to do it everyday. We'd be so bored. 

Lately, I've run into many different friends that are having the same problem, and I wanted to address it here. I know many that are reading this blog are querying. And I am totally on your side. Whatever I can do to help, I'm here. 

But have you thought about what you want in your agent beforehand? All kidding aside, I know that a large number of people *raises hand, I was here too* when preparing to query go toquerytracker, or agentquery, enter in your criteria (YA, MG, Whatevs) and, printing out the list, go from there. This dreck about specially selecting the agents because you love them would give you five agents, and what happens if they didn't feel the same? What would happen when you have more than one offer (and that is a story for another time)?

Not to ramble (HA! Alex, tag!) my statement is this: from my own agent experience, as well as those friends I mentioned above, I can tell you that there is one sentence you need to keep at the front of your brain when you talk with an agent: 

COMMUNICATION IS KEY. 

It is KEY. Think about how you want your agent to respond. Do you want hand holding? Do you want somebody you don't feel afraid to ask any question to? Do you want to be left alone? (Heh, I can tell you on your debut submission, you will likely not want this!) Do you want your emails to be answered within a day, or a week, or a month or h*ll, even just answered? Do you want to be able to call?

What I don't want you to feel is, after the sale and you've got one, you're afraid to contact that person. Or that person can't be arsed to contact you back. It is a *working* relationship...how would you feel if your agent in turn was afraid to talk to you? 

This is bad, bad, bad, IMO. ***

There are going to be tons of stupid, stupid questions (no matter what your agent *loves her* says about stupid questions, some questions are just stupid, and I'm okay with that) that only they are qualified to answer. I mean, you don't want to go to some agent blog and ask them, right? Why not get it from *your* source of all agenty goodness? 

That's what they are there for. That's why you're paying them 15/20% (standard). 

Please think about what you want from your agent before it becomes time to choose. 

***In the event you are too Americanized to be able to contradict/confront/speak with your agent, I recommend you come and live with us here awhile in good old Germany. You will be speaking your mind and sticking up for yourself inside six months...because nothing teaches you that you are your own best council like an Irate German disagreeing with you. 

LOLCAT FREIDAYZ - Leevin on an aiiirplaaaaen!

Have fun back in the Wild West, Kerri! TehBoyz ask for something cool for themselves too!

Favourite things...

...because I can't be arsed to write a big post when 

a) today I have my last doctor appt with the surgeon, and I hopefully will be approved to work next week! 

and 

b) book is going MAD GOOD

I present you with a list of my Favourite things (thanks, Kerri, for the idea! ETA: I'll just give four. Because evidently I have a lot of favourite things)

Movies: 

- Pan's Labyrinth. 

   What is not to like about this movie? No sugar coating. And I am convinced the Pan in this    

   movie is the coolest character I have ever seen online. Ever. 

- Lawrence of Arabia

   The sweeping-ness of it. Just made of pure awesome. Plus I love the background story, and

   when I was a kid I wanted to become a Bedouin. (That, or a pirate.)

- Gone with the Wind

   Also, sweeping. But I like Scarlett quite a bit. She's a fighter, that one. 

- Amelie

   French films in general are pretty fly, but this one just takes the cake. Pure sweetness, every 

   time. 

I tried books, but had massive fail. I can't go down to just four. 

So I'll do authors. I love these for the purity of language in their writing...I really appreciate where they are coming from. And they inspire me. 

- Wilson Rawls

- Ursula le Guin

- Diana Gabaldon

- CS Lewis

Howdy

Up to 37k and getting to the good part - the end. 

I'll write more later. 

Or maybe I won't. 

It depends on how it's coming along.

Ramblin' Tuesday

My brain is not here enough to be able to make a big post. So I'm going to ramble. Some more. 

I've got a lot of words on FS. A lot. It's getting to the big exciting ending, and it's building up like I would not believe. I generally know how it ends, and I see the end scene quite starkly in my head. But the points between there and where I'm at are a bit fuzzy, so each time something new happens I'm like, "D'oh!! Didn't see that one coming!" ::facepalm::

It's really funny to be amused by stitches and the lines they leave in your skin. Except it's not. And i don't like them. 

I'm hoping for some super good news from the doctor today. And other news. And I'm just hoping for it. 

I started reading Ursula le Guin over the weekend. What a total win! Am I the only idiot fantasy reader that has never read her until now? Jeez. 

Is there such a thing as leaf cleaner, and can I have some? 

I seem to be stuck in some alternate universe where there is no new news. I mean on anything. Can I get me some of that please? KTHX

My cat has a fat belly. 

Victory!

I've finally figured it out, how to deal with submissions. Are you ready? This is so it. 

Here is my 6-step process to victory from submissions dread. 

1. Start your next book. 

2. Have a crisis of plot and realize you don't know how to make it continue the way you want it to go. Also, that you don't like your voice and know it's not where you want it to be. 

3. Have surgery that requires you to lay in bed and be in pain. 

4. Have 2 cats that lay on your legs that precludes angst about submissions, because you certainly can't get up and make them *move* just to check your blog stats.

5. Have a realization whilst in a medication-induced state as how to finish said book. 

6. Get lots of outside news from your hubsie that puts everything else into the shade. 

Huh? What? Submissions? Whu--

But seriously. I realized I was so in a bubble these last couple weeks about submissions, and writing, that when the Real Life interrupted I was kind of taken for a loop. And I had to ascertain that submissions is only a part of my life (albeit a big one) that I don't have any control over. 

That's the main thing I have a problem with...the controlling aspect. I am a controller. I control. You know that other jerk, The Decider? He has nothing on me. I am a controooooooller. 

To end my somewhat rambly post, a friend of mine (fellow agency client) asked me something that gave me pause. "But you've got Marlene!" He said, indignant. "What do you have to worry about?" 

And I realized he was right. 

So I think I'll take a break from obsessing over it. I started yesterday, and actually, it's going okay. 

LOLCAT Freidayz - Lurker version

Day 4: Pokey pokey.

Because I'm nosy. 

Annnnnnd I think that a good way to tell things about a person is to ask what and how they read. In the spirit of fairness, I'll list mine first. 

I follow 150 blogs daily. 

- This does not include newspapers, magazines or journals. 

My blogs are split up into

- Agents (Agents and Publishing house blogs, including Galleycat, that sort of thing) 

- Friends (Other writers who I like to follow.)

- Other ("outside" blogs, like horse blogs, religion blogs, etc. My well-rounded overview, hehe)

I follow and read from GoogleReader. This is a handy little thing (if you have a googlemail) that pops up the new posts, you can either click on the All items link, or go down through the list on the left hand corner...I have them all in one place. I like that. 

If I read a post that sounds good, I immediately click through and comment. I know that if I wait I won't do it. 

I have a waiting list to get onto my googlereader. Interesting blogs I find, that I haven't decided make it into the list. I have those saved under my bookmarks, and check them everyday. If they continue the goodness, I'll add them.  

I know I've added Patti and Sue this way, and I've not regretted a moment of it. Again, from them commenting on my blog and my going and commenting on theirs. Starting the conversation. 

I comment on probably 8 blogs a day. My 'regulars' from my writing group, other writers I'm developing a relationship with and/or mentoring, and just fun ones. 

So another quiz! 

Day 3: Whoya commented on? Huh? Huh?

All right, up until yesterday I've commented on *new for me* great blogs like: 

Patti

Holly

Travis

Chumplet

Ello

And it's fun, so I'll keep it up. 

Also, in the spirit of the GREAT POLL EXTRAVAGANZA (tm), another quiz:

Also. There's a new blog in town, looking kind of interesting...and they asked me to be in it. I'll be writing on Fridays, just a little post really, talking about I don't know what, but likely writing related. And trying to make sense. (BTW, this is *exactly* the sort of thing I believe blogs are for. I met these guys through blogs, through networking and commenting.)

If you want to check it, it's here.