Getting to work. Anyone have a bandaid?

So . . . my editor has finished her first edits on my manuscript. I have to say, I love her bluntness, her direct manner. She doesn't pull any punches. It's refreshing. Of course, it stops me for a second while I check myself for wounds and bleeding, but then I get to work knowing deep down she's right.

She told me I tend to be too wordy. Too wordy? She must not understand how long it took me to developed that talent! It takes dedication and effort to fit that many words into one sentence. So then I wondered if she would notice if I took those long sentences and just chopped them up into two or three smaller ones. That way I could keep all my beautiful words. I figured she was too smart to be buffaloed on that one so I have started going through my book to see where I am too long winded. Yeah, okay. So there are a few. Dang! She's right again.

I can't wait to get my manuscript back to see which lines she marked that I've fixed already. She also told me to go slow. What do I detect with that statement? Hmm. I do have a reputation for hurrying, for driving too fast, for taking food out of the oven too soon, for being impatient. Maybe some of that has filtered down into my writing.

Commonly, my critique group tells me they want more. That I'm hurrying through the good stuff to get to the good stuff. Yeah, that's me. It reminds me of the song. "I'm in a hurry to get things done. I rush and rush until life's no fun. All I really want to do is live and die, but I'm in a hurry and don't know why." I think I'll change my tune to, "Easy like Sunday Mornin'."

Anyway, I do want to give a shout out to Kristine. She puts up with my many questions and weird personality. Not many people are up to that task. Only a special few survive and Kristine, if you read this, it will only get worse. Maybe. lol

To judge or not to judge

I was talking to a friend of mine this morning about Stephanie Meyer's books since the movie, New Moon, is coming out this weekend. She told me how disappointed she was in Stephani, who's LDS, that she would write books that were, in her opinion, "inappropriate" for teens.

Now, I'm not going to get into whether I agree with that or not. The thing it made me think about is that I'm a Mormon who writes for the world at large and not just for my church, and what will people think of my stories?

How much romance is too much for tweens and teens? How graphic is too graphic? Everyone's opinion is different. I have a lady in my church who wouldn't even let her kids read Harry Potter because it "glorified" magic. Uggg. My books are filled with magic. How will I be talked about? Do I really care what people think of me? Of course. We all do to some degree. Does it stop me from writing my stories? No, but it also makes me wonder how I'll be judged.

Everyone has a different degree to how far they'll go when they write. Some people push the envelope. Is that wrong? In most ways, I don't think so, but my husband thinks I'm a left wing liberal anyway. *snort*

This is what I think. Read the books your kids want to read first. See the movies they want to see first. You are the parent and if you think the book or movie is inappropriate, don't let them read or see it until they're adults. Don't complain that your kids are reading "bad" books. Because as parents, YOU are in charge and are the only one to blame if you allow your kids to read things you don't approve of. Now I'll get off my soap box.

Happy reading!

The Celestine Sword

In my last post I said I was going to work on other stuff while I waited to hear back from my editor. I lied, kind of.

I'm not actually working on The Eye of Tanub, but I am working on the sequel, The Celestine Sword! I can't resist it! Is it terrible to say I'm totally in love with these characters? I tried, for a week to work on an older story I'd started a while ago, but I just couldn't get in to it. So, back to Zach, Lauren, Dardanos and Flitwicket!

I've already written almost seventy pages. What a ride! I have to say, I love my job! Never have I worked for something so satisfying, so rewarding. I've always had a gut feeling I'd be published, but honestly, I didn't expect the stars to align this soon. Maybe it's good karma, maybe luck, maybe the gods are smiling down on me. What ever the reason, I'm eternally grateful! And thank you so much to Wido Publishing for taking a chance on me, a nobody, at this point. You won't regret your decision. We're going to make each other rich! hee hee

So off I go, to write another exciting scene. Oooh, the suspense is killing me!

One down, millions to go!

At this very moment, I am sitting here at my computer, listening to the hypnotic hum of my printer as it prints my latest revisions! Yeah! I will mail it off to my editor today! How good that feels.

You know, when I first sent the manuscript in, I couldn't imagine how it could be any better. What a surprise to learn how much better a book can get with a little TLC. Kristine told me to beef up the figtht scenes and add more to certain characters, which I hope I did well, and to send it back. She hasn't even take a pen to it yet.

I'm so excited to see what she thinks and to find out how many red marks I have! lol Anyway, this whole adventure has been very gratifying. I even asked for a certain artist who works with them because I really like his flavor and felt his style matched my story best. I hope he says yes.

Now I get a little break from The Eye of Tanub, which I need and will work on other things until I hear back. I am loving the life of a writer!

More, more, more!

So, did you know that most teenaged boys will not read a book by a female author? What's up with that? (except for JK Rowling, that is) So my publisher suggested we use the name M. J. Cunningham as my name on the book since the targeted demographic is mainly boys. (maybe that's why JK Rowling did it too.)

Girls will read anything by anyone and don't care whether is seems "male" or "female." That's good. So, if you happen to walk past a book store and see a book with the name M. J. Cunningham on it, pick that dang thing up and give it a read!

My editor also told me with as fast as I seem to be able to write and edit, that maybe we can move up the publish date! How cool would that be? I've been beefing up the fight scenes and adding more meat and I like the story so much better. Most editors tell their authors to cut, cut, cut! With me, they're constantly saying, "More, more, more!" I have to laugh. What a fun journey though. I LOVE it! Thanks to everyone for your support!

A great quote from my new editor.

I have some great news! I have been assigned an editor. She's fantastic. I went to her blog and on her latest post she was answering questions about submissions and things. Well, this is part of what she posted. The YA fantasy she is talking about is MINE!!! I just had to share.

She says:

"Recently we accepted two fairly quickly. One, a wrenching memoir that came unbidden and complete in the mail and had our fairly skeptical acquisitions editor in tears on the first chapter. The other a YA fantasy with a delightful writing style which made it stand out above all other such fantasies we have received and rejected the past two years. That was a thrill, since we REALLY wanted a YA fantasy in our line up. Needless to say, both these mss. were accepted fairly quickly BECAUSE 1) Each had several elements that made us sit up and take notice, either writing style, story, a twist, likable and interesting characters, or all of the above. 2) Each was a genre we did not have in our lineup. 3) Highly marketable. Completely different markets and demographics, yet we could see them as a stand-out offering in their particular genres. 4) The two authors, although inexperienced, seemed likable, smart and easy to work with and 5) We really wanted to publish them for all the above reasons."

Anyway, It felt so good to actually see what they think of my work that I wanted to share it. Honestly, I'm still amazed and surprised that it has finally happened for me. I really can't believe it. Not that I didn't think it ever would, it's just so wild and I've been dreaming about it for so long that I just can't believe I'm going to be published, even still. Now I'm afraid my revisions won't be good enough. It's always something!

Grateful

I just want to say how grateful I am right now for the blessings in my life. The first blessing I want to address is my family. They are so supportive of my writing and help to pick up the slack so I can write. (most of the time.) Even Bry has started coming in everyday and asking if I got any writing done yet. It's very cute.

Second, are my wonderful friends. My close friends who have critiqued, read, edited and torn apart my stories to help make them better. Thanks for being there and telling me the truth.

Third, for my new friends. My writer friends. I don't think you all know how much you mean to me. First of all, for Josi Kilpack who over three years ago made me believe that a regular old mom like me could actually start a new career, halfway through life, and be successful at it. For Elizabeth Mueller for cultivating that thought and teaching me so much more. For my new, dear friends I've met and grown close to because of the writing conferences we sit through together. Thank you so much for including me and making feel like part of the group.

I have been taken under the wing of professional writers who don't have to give me their time, but do anyway. Who treat me as an equal, when I'm really just a peon in the writing scheme of things. I have entered a whole new world I never dreamed I'd be a part of. It's wonderful, it's fulfilling, it's humbling and it's thrilling.

My heart is full and I am very aware that God has blessed me far beyond what a sinner like me deserves. But I'll take it anyway!