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Finding Gryffin Part 2

27/10/2013

 
The Journey Continues 


Slowly but surely, is my motto, at the moment


My editor is working with me on getting this manuscript ready to send off to the publishers. It has been a hard slog but man, have I learnt a few things.


When you live and breathe a character for what amounts to several years, (like 5 years or more), you forget some of the finer aspects of writing. That is the beauty of an editor. They find all these holes that can reduce a fine story to the dustbin. 


So now it is heads down and into revision. Then a final check and it is off to the publisher for an assessment. Nothing in this business is guaranteed. So the next hurdle still awaits me. 





Finding Griffin Part 1

7/10/2013

 
The Journey Begins

I actually wrote Finding Gryffin and its many prequels and sequels beginning circa 1988. They were over a number of years. When I ran out of steam, I packed the manuscripts away and there they stayed.

Fast forward to this year, 2013. I applied for a pitch session with editors at the Romance Writers Australia Conference. I managed to win a spot with Alisa Krasnostein, director and publisher of Twelfth Planet Press.

When I received the good news, I followed all the hints and did some research. I found Twelfth Planet Press published horror stories (which I’m not into), and Science Fiction. So out from under the bed I dragged the box (Well it was in the stack beside the bed with another 4 boxes on top.) that I had packed them in.

When I looked at the body of work, I saw that there were actually 4 series contained within that body. They actually flowed from one to another. All four series feature my main heroine. Three of the series features her as the chief protagonist, and the first series focuses on her parents and her childhood.

So off I go to the Conference in Fremantle, WA, full of excitement and quietly shivering in my boots. You have a maximum of 7 minutes to find your editor, seat yourself, introduce yourself and run your spiel. When I pitched to Alisa Krasnostein, she liked the idea of the fourth series. Finding Gryffin (working Title) is the first of that series. She asked me to submit a manuscript – by November 1.

That’s when the shakes started, and Doubting Thomas made his appearance. All those others pitching before and after me would be chosen first. Alisa was just being kind. She said that to all of the quivering hopefuls. You know how it goes.

Off to lunch I went.

Another conference attendee shared my table for lunch. When I told her I had pitched was asked to submit she revealed the secret. 70 per cent do not carry forth with the pitch, i.e. they do not submit the manuscript.

Well that was good news. The pool had shrunk considerably. Of the possible 100 candidates pitching, (And it wasn’t that many. Time just did not allow it.) I was now up against 30 – if I dared to be one of them instead of one of the 70. Take into account that 1/3 would be horror and not science fiction, and other 1/3 would be rejected for one reason or another... Hey presto! My odds had narrowed to 1 in 10 – Hey that is even better.

So I came back from the conference all fired up and eager. I found the manuscript and quailed. 2 months to type and edit the manuscript into some shape.

With gritted teeth, I started typing. Four weeks to type, and four weeks to edit was the plan. I typed it in three weeks. Just as well it turned out to be a novella rather than one of my novels. Not that I realised it while I was typing.

Now begins the editing. 1 pass done. Now it is off to find an editor. And while she is doing that I may just start typing the next one – just in case.

End of Year

27/10/2012

 
Christmas is just around the corner. The goodies are out and the children are getting antsy. Now that begs the question.  For parents with children who have birthdays between now and the end of January, does this make it easier or harder to shop for them.

There is s much going on at this time of year. School concerts and outings; family get togethers; Christmas breakups and end of year parties; Halloween.

Halloween has never been a big event in the Australian way of life. It was an American thing. Aussies knew about it but it was just another day. My, times are a-changing! 

However, it does fall at a reasonably good time - event wise.  Most exams are over and done with or are just around the corner that a break from exam stresses is definitely needed. It can kick off the 'party season' most effectively.

Have you ever considered the history of Halloween? It is really interesting.

For all the non-writers the word Halloween is a contraction of All Hallows Evening or the night before All Hallows Day, which is November 1 (For Catholics November 1 is All Saints Day & November 2 is All Souls Day, if my Memory serves me correct) Hallows it self is an interesting word and in this case means Souls and Saints. Early Christians believed it to be the the night souls of ancestors and recently dead came to earth to warn the living against the wandering off the straight and narrow path of righteousness. 

Many consider it a pagan festival. Like many Christian festivals, it has its roots in pagan festivals. Give the very early Christian Fathers credit for using their intelligence and using the System to their benefit. 

However, the point of this little ramble is, what do I do when Halloween falls in the same week as a granddaughter's birthday which is 8 weeks before Christmas? Do parents ever get a break from putting their hand in their pocket?

A busy little bee, that's me!

24/6/2012

 
Oh, life is so wonderful - particularly when you are busy.

I am involved in a small but great organisation.  I've been secretary of this little organisation for about 5 years now. No, I will not be secretary next year. (Well that is one New Year's Resolution made.)

This little organisation is a multi arts organisation. It supports visual artists, literary artists, and performing artists. Like all organisations it needs to raise revenues for its survival and to fulfil the reasons why it was formed. One of those ways is by organising events.

For the past few years we have held an annual arts festival. This arts festival, like most others, started a little shakily but managed to toddle along through until now we are now walking tall and stumbling every now and then. It has been going for about 5 years now and is gaining a good reputation for high quality and standard of works entered. Somehow, I have the feeling that I've been dragged onto the organising committee of this festival to get something done with 2 months to go. But that's life.

3 years ago, we were approached to incorporate a section for the music and singers and so the Youth Music awards came into being. This is a separate event with a separate organising body but one that is encouraging to support and we are starting to see a growth in this area. It is for school students only. Now to try and do something for the adults.

Also, 3 years ago we decided to spread our wings and support our literary members with an Anthology of short stories. Last year and this year we have expanded the anthology to include poets. No, I am not involved with this endeavour either.

This year an opportunity arose and I seized on it. I am organising our first writers festival. I know people are wondering why this festival is important to me. First, for writers of stories over 3000 words, anthologies are limited in scope, and there isn't much support for the novelists. Writers Festivals are a way to support all writers, the poets, the novel writers, the short story writers and the article writer.  In order to make this work, I am working on 2 festivals at once: this year's and next year's. So double the work load straight off.

So Let's take a look at what I am doing:
  • Keeping house (Washing, vacuuming etc)
  • paid employment (7.20am - 3.50am Monday to Friday)
  • writing, editing, researching, typing,
  • maintaining website and Facebook page (kinda)
  • secretary to organisation
  • Writers festival organiser
  • and let's not forget doting grandmother, dutiful daughter, and obliging mother.


Round and round, I go.

13/5/2012

 
Ever had times like that? Where you get off one merry-go-round and straight onto the carousel? It has been a bit like that for me lately and looking ahead to the the rest of the year it isn't going to get much better. The merry-go-round may just slow down a tad but it won't stop.

And I planned! Honest. I sat down with my diary and penciled in and blocked out times for this, and days for that. However, some of that went by the board and I'm not sure how.

Perhaps if I started on next year's diary now I may be less stressed. So...How far should one plan in advance? We live in the instant age, when all is said and done. No one seems to plan but do everything on the spur of the moment. And yet the writing business demands we plan.

We plan marketing campaigns, professional development courses, writing schedules, plots and schemes. We plan writing time, family time, and me time.

Sadly, I have come to realise that planning, or lack thereof, is only a fraction of the problem. The biggest problem is actioning your plans and then sticking to your guns. To do that you need to develop elective hearing, sight and a very thick skin. Something I'm still learning to do.

Until next time.

Time out that is not time out

22/4/2012

 
I have just spent the best part of a fortnight, 3 reams of paper and 2 cartridges of ink on trying to free up space on my computer. Over the years I had collected many articles on writing skills that I did refer to but never really read. SO I printed them out and I am READING them. Yes Reading them - with highlighter and pencil in hand to make notes in the margins.

Interestingly enough, I just browsed an article that pointed out that if you want to read something and retain that information don't use an e-reader. Apparently we don't retain what we read on than e-reader. (I could have told 'em that years ago when I was studying at uni!).

Wonder if the trad publishers read the article? Wouldn't it be nice to think that they did and the traditional book really survived. Do you think they could USE the information as a marketing tool?

Oh by the way I managed to free up 3 gb on my hard drive and I am about a sixth of the way through. Then I will start on the videos.

AM I A BUSINESS?

25/3/2012

 
When I started writing all those years ago, it was something I did for my own enjoyment. It was considered a cute hobby by my family even though I wrote instead of doing the housework. I did not allow anyone to read my stories. In 30 years my mother only ever read one of my stories.

It was only a two years ago that I realised that I was better than a few people I had always thought were good writers. (Isn't it funny how people can put you down by telling you how good they are by reciting all their successes?) Anyway since then I've taken the plunge and had 2 books independently published. (And that was another misconception shot to pieces.)

Just 3 weeks ago I received my very first royalty cheque. It wasn't a huge amount. It was a piddling amount but that is not the point. It is money earnt from writing. (I'm going to frame the cheque just to remind me that at least 1 person in the big wide world thought MY book was good enough to buy. I hope it lived up to their expectations. And the biggest THANK YOU to that person.)

Having had a minute sip of success, I am eager for more. So that now poses the question: am I a professional writer?
YES! I earnt money from writing.

So how do I make a living out of writing? The same way you eat an elephant or start a journey - one bite or step  a time. Little by little.

The first of those steps was doing a short course on building a business. This course gave me a practical set of tools that I put to good use.

The next step will be conquering some fears about social media and learning how to use it. I'm learning such a lot from other writers blogs and websites (another step forward, another bite taken out of the elephant) regarding marketing, but social media scares me silly.

The third step will be to stop thinking of my self as a hobby writer and start thinking of myself as a business.

New Year's Resolution

4/2/2012

 
I found a piece of writing that I did some years ago. It was on New Year's Resolutions. In it I said that New Year's Resolutions should be made in June and not January.

I still believe that is the case in the main. Every January we resolve to do something. Usually it is changing some habit of ours that we really don't like or recognise as a stumbling block. The only problem is we try to do it all at once. Then by February it has gotten lost in the rush of getting children back to school, resuming your hobby interests, and for me, getting back to work.

The process of changes rarely works like that. It is best to change one little thing each month. It is the change and freeze method. It can be just one simple little thing, but you need to change it and then take the time to cement that little change. For a Virgo, I am the most untidiest person you will find. My mother always said I'm allergic to housework, while I always say that I'm working on making it run away so I can make my fortune. So for me it is one little thing each month. This month it is keeping my desk tidy - not clear mind you but tidy enough that I can work.The clear part is next months change target. The saying is it takes 3 times to make a bad habit and 7 times that to change it... 1 week down and another 4 to go. I just may do it this time.

So here's to New Year Resolutions!

End of Year Blues

24/10/2011

 
Yep, The dreaded end of year blues have hit.

Work is slowing down at a rapid rate of knots, Christmas planning is full steam ahead and I have limited time to buy things, get finances in order before I go on holiday, decide what to pack for my holiday (yes I'm finally off on holiday come December), what bills I need to pay before I go and when I get back. You know the merry-go-around. Writing lists and checking everything three times over and still not getting things done. Robbing Peter to pay Paul and the Robbing Paul to pay Peter. Yep it is that time of year - again.

I'm just too busy to be organised and organised enough to have nothing in the diary.  OK So that will change and my December calendar is already filling up. Christmas events are already being listed on websites so I'm not the only one trying to juggle dates. Now to slot in the washing and the house cleaning when every Saturday and Sunday is taken up with Festivities. Night time work here it comes.

Oh, I've already commenced filling in 2012 calendar with my regular events and meetings. Maybe I can just beat the end of year blues next year.

Planning & Discipline

16/10/2011

 
Why is it that by the time the year is a third of the way through things start to go down hill? By the time October comes around all plans and schedules have taken flight and you are left stumbling from pillar to post.

Every year, when an event is over, I make a note in next year's diary but the dates never seem to line up. This year, three times I have pencilled in events and three times they have not fallen on those dates.

I go to seminars and events, come home full of eagerness and plans, and set to work, determined to see things through. Then things fall apart at a rapid rate of knots. A rescheduled meeting, a hurried visit to the doctor, a frantic call for help from daughter and granddaughter and all intentions and plans fall by the wayside.

So I've decided to concentrate on getting one thing right and consistently doing a scheduled task, no excuses.  Discipline of mind will surely come at a slow, but steady pace.
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    I have been writing for most of my life. My son has said he can't remember a time when he didn't see me writing. And  that is so true.
    Now that I've finally taken the plunge, I am finding more avenues for my writing.

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