The Results Are In!!

Well, kinda. My lovely editor called with her opinions on my synopsis blitz. There was some good news, kinda.

I sent off four stories:

• Just One Night - Heiress tries to be anonymous for a night, and it doesn't work.
• Redesigning Henry - Personal trainer tries to pay back a friend, by making him into her perfect man.
• Only Fitting - Fashion designer can make anything, except a life for herself.
• Everybody Loves Rachel - Rachel knows exactly what she wants from a man, and she won't compromise.

Just One Night got the nod... except... the syno I wrote and the story in my head are two very different things. We chatted it up and realized...I can not write a syno. The joy. Anyway, she explained what she liked about the syno (great meet, good structure) and what she didn't (the ranch, father, best friend, liver transplant, and beard all have to go). So...now I'm starting over with the title and a first scene that is fun, but doesn't have enough motivation.

What was wrong with the others? I didn't put strong enough motivation or conflict in my synos. Oh, and dentists & chubby guys aren't sexy.

Off to percolate for the weekend, and see if I can come up with a new story, titled Just One Night. What of Her Cinderella Complex? I refuse to syno it. I'm not any good at synos anyway, and I like not knowing what happens next. For me, once I syno the story is static, hence why I am so flustered over having to re-do the Just One Night idea. I'm completely infelxible once I have the story mapped. Until then, bring on the penguins.

Not yet! I'm not ready!

Halloween? Already? Didn't they just start school?

I can not believe stores are selling out of Halloween costumes already. I was at Costco...and all the Pooh Bears are gone! Not that my boys wanted to be Pooh Bear, but I thought with enough bribing I'd be walking Pooh and Eeyore around the neighborhood. Not so!

Now I'm stuck trying to decide which costume options to offer them. I try and keep it animal or career, so they don't get stuck with character costumes. Those get dated so quickly, and I always try to hand BigBoy's costumes down to BabyBoy. Oh, and I have a no gun/sword/num-chucks issue. Really narrows down costume choices.

Which means...BabyBoy will most likely be a firefighter this year... and BigBoy? I just dunno!



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Plot? Or Not?

BB Medos had a great Romancing the Blog post yesterday about plot, and what draws readers to books. I'm a plot-driven writer, the set-up comes to me long before the characters. Lately, I've been thinking this is what is 'wrong' with my writing, but this post made me realize -- there is no right way to write.

Plot is what draws me to books - the location, set-up, characters careers. And so it only makes sense it is what draws me to the stories I write. Simple enough.

It may be easier to write from characters first -- after all, so many of the prolific and successful writers do it. Maybe someday I'll learn to. But right now, odds are a funny title or weird article will catch my attention faster than a character study.

What about you? Are you driven to the characters in stories, or is it the set-up that draws you in? Is it the same when you write?

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COOKING UP A STORM cover!!

So...whatcha think?

I'm in heaven. Truly. The heroine has red hair...the strawberries...the lingerie...

I'm in love with the M&B cover art department.

COOKING UP A STORM

Why I am all about the FREE

Do you know how much it costs to take a family of 4 to the circus? Not the Ringling Brothers glitzy circus, the 3-ring jobbie at the fair grounds. My goodness, if the kids hadn't had a blast, I'd be annoyed.

I had one of those feel good about parenting weekends. The boys were angels, we did tons of fun stuff, and I got no writing done. So...this week I need to write. Why I am so insistent?

Do you know how much it costs to take a family of 4 to the circus?

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HUNTING INSPIRATION

Prose falling flat? Not sure what to type next? It’s time to pack up your pens (laptop, Alphasmart, whatever) and hunt down something to jumpstart your writing.

When the story starts sagging, and it will, that’s normal, put yourself in the setting. No, you don’t actually have to go to prison, Maui, Bergdorfs, etc. Go somewhere similar and try to focus on a small detail (the hum of electric lights, smell of cleaning solution, taste of fried food in the air) to get the words started again.

If that doesn’t work, try writing from one of these places:

Coffeehouses. There is a reason you see so many people with laptops there. They provide just enough background noise to stifle the voice listing what else you could be doing, and have copius amounts of caffeine.

Parks. Ther have benches, tables, fresh air, scenery…and when it is cold out you have to keep your fingers moving to keep them from going numb.

Cemetaries. It’s quiet. No one will bother you. And if you walk around you can collect fantastic names for your characters.

Bookstores. The vibe from all those published books can jumpstart any muse. Many have big compfy chairs, and people reading…so they have to stand still enough for you to study their features and make your characters really come to life.

Libraries. A totally different vibe than books stores, and yet you still get the buzz from all the books. If you are truly stuck on your book, grab a stack of magazines from a shelf and flip through until you find something you can use.

Civilization is Doomed!

Case in Point:

Reason #1: Paris Hilton
Reason #5: Self-tanning products
Reason #9: McMansions
Reason #13: 'Hair down there' removal
Reason #25: Bottled water costs more than Coke
Reason #37: Websites with lists
Reason #133: Kevin Federline

Oh, this cracks me up.

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