Distraction

As if I didn't already have enough to distract me from my writing (5 dwarf hamsters, 21 adult bettas, betta fry, swordtail fry, adult swordtails, tetras, rosy barbs, silver dollars, children, etc.), I had to go and get one more thing. I just couldn't resist. This is the newest addition to our family:




She is an AKC registered Chihuahua and her name is Lil Miss Winky The House Elf. We call her Winky. She is completely adorable and isn't expected to get over about 5 lbs. She was the runt of the litter.

So, what's one more distraction right? And what was I thinking getting her just before NaNo? *sigh* I just couldn't resist her cuteness! I must never look at puppies again! LOL!

Working . . .

Well, my revision continues. I am trying to get things all squared away so that I can feel free and ready for NaNoWriMo. In order to do this, I must get the revisions. So why am I wasting time posting here? Well, because I'm having a break, that's why. You know, we all need a break now and then. :D Besides, I have to get my breaks out of the way cause when NaNo gets going, I won't be having any time for such nonsense! ;)

In other news, we plan to go see Open Season in the theater tonight. My hubby thinks this will be a fun time with the kids and I hope he's right, but it usually ends up with one or both of us having to take kids to the restroom in the middle of the movie. *sigh* Kids and their little bladders. ;) So I won't be getting much work done this evening either.

I guess my break better be over now. Until next time! :D

Long time, no post!

Okay, so I'm really bad in keeping up with this blog. I guess there hasn't been much to report. I could tell you all about how my family caught strep throat, but it's not that interesting. :D

National Novel Writing Month is coming up (November in case you didn't know). It was a total blast last year and I plan to participate again this year. If you don't know what it is, check it out at .

I'm still writing, still revising, and still living. :D That's about it.

Okay, update time!

It's only been about a month since I last updated this blog. What's up with that? Well, I've not had much to say. Still writing, still caring for my family, still caring for my pets (and getting more fish), and I'm still revising my novel. I love the feedback I've been getting from my crit group. :D No matter how many times I look at my work, I can't see the mistakes that they point out to me (and I've tried to make sure the work was error free before sending it)!

I've put off sending queries for a while, but will be getting back into that soon. This business of writing is a long process with many ups and downs. Just when you think things are the best they can be, you discover they can be better. :D I'm back to loving my novel and being excited about its possibilities.

Hamster life

Sometimes I think it would be nice to be a hamster. My Dwarf Hamster (I took Harvey back and traded him for a nicer model which I named Luna) sleeps off and on through the day and plays mostly at night. She doesn't have to worry about children, or bills, or anything except where her food and water is and whether to run in the wheel or climb up the toobs (yes, that's how it's spelled). Well, she has to worry about me sticking my hands in the cage to hold her, but that seems to be it. Of course, life is always greener and all that . . . were I actually a hamster, I may realize that it isn't the wonderful life I imagine it to be.

Alas, I am (and will continue to be) a human. So I have bills that I need to pay, children that need cared for, a house that needs cleaned, and sleep that has been lost (never to be found). Though I sometimes wish this wasn't my life, it is, and I will make the best of it. Besides, if I were a hamster, I wouldn't have the pleasure of typing. :-)

In truth, my life is good. I have a house to live in (even if it isn't always clean), I have a husband and children who love me (even if they also annoy me now and then), I have food to eat (even if I have to prepare it), and I have fingers to type with (even if they fumble once in a hwile). So my life is more desirable than that of a hamster (though a hamster gets more sleep). :-)

As for writing, I've not done much. I've enjoyed critiquing the work of others and have plans to do some revisions based upon critiques others have done on my work. But the plans have yet to be carried out. I've sent a couple of queries to agents, but haven't heard back. I'm not sure if this signifies a lack of interest, or a contemplation of an offer. I suppose if I don't hear back, it's a "no."

I am researching a couple more agents and will query them soon.

You write, right?

Yes, it's true, I've done some writing! I know, I know, amazing isn't it? I guess you all need a moment to compose yourselves after that little shock. Go ahead, take a moment. Better now?

So, what writing did I do? I composed a short story that will probably go nowhere, but it was fun and fulfilling to get back into the groove. Now, I know I should focus on my novel, but I'm taking some time to look at the novels of others and giving my opinion . . . otherwise known as a critique. I am also sending some of my work for critique by others. I love this process as it gives me the opportunity to learn what other people think of my work, and hopefully help those I critique.

Besides, after spending so much time with my novel, I have to admit, I'm at the hating-it-and-wanting-to-chuck-it-out-a-window stage. Having critiques helps me get the spark of love for my work back. Then I can revise and improve and hopefully all will be well with the world . . . well maybe the world is a bit too much, but at least everything may be well with my book and thus my little corner of the world. :-)

Yes, Virginia, there is a blogger!

Well, it may be hard to believe, but there IS still a blogger here. I know I've been lax in posting to my blog. Shame on me! I think I'll have to punish myself . . . let's see, perhaps I should ground myself to my room! Yeah, I like that idea, no phone calls, no children, no housework. *sigh* If only . . . :)

I'd like to say I've been busy writing, and I suppose if I were a liar, I COULD say that. Alas, I believe in honesty so I'll tell the truth . . . I've been lazy! I've done a bit of reading, spent time gazing at my fish, ran to kids' end-of-school programs and activities, and tried to make friends with my new Dwarf Hamster (named Harvey The Wonder Hamster . . . please tell me someone else out there knows where this name originated! Otherwise, I'll feel dreadfully old and nerdish). He's a cute little thing!




But he likes to bite me every time I put my hand in the cage. He's even taken to biting me when he's out of the cage. I get the feeling he doesn't like me. I'd feel bad, but my oldest daughter had him before me and we had to trade (I got her hamster, and she got mine) because he kept biting her (as she is only 6, I felt the need to protect her from this mean little thing) so I know it's not just me. I may have to take him back to the pet shop on Monday if he doesn't behave himself (we got them on Wednesday) and see if I can trade him for a less ferocious model. :-(

Anyway, that's what's been going on . . . I really should keep up with my blogging better! Sorry all!

Unite!

I am joining the ranks of my fellow writers who are publishing links to Barbara Bauer and her attempts to silence AW and others from posting the Twenty worst agencies list that has Barbara Bauer as fourth in the list. I am also posting the list (though if you click on the second use of HER name, you'll be taken to SFWA's copy of the list) here on my blog.


THE LIST:

* The Abacus Group Literary Agency
* Allred and Allred Literary Agents (refers clients to “book doctor” Victor West of Pacific Literary Services)
* Capital Literary Agency (formerly American Literary Agents of Washington, Inc.)
* Barbara Bauer Literary Agency
* Benedict & Associates (also d/b/a B.A. Literary Agency)
* Sherwood Broome, Inc.
* Desert Rose Literary Agency
* Arthur Fleming Associates
* Finesse Literary Agency (Karen Carr)
* Brock Gannon Literary Agency
* Harris Literary Agency
* The Literary Agency Group, which includes the following:
Children’s Literary Agency
Christian Literary Agency
New York Literary Agency
Poets Literary Agency
The Screenplay Agency
Stylus Literary Agency (formerly ST Literary Agency)
Writers Literary & Publishing Services Company (the editing arm of the above-mentioned agencies)
* Martin-McLean Literary Associates
* Mocknick Productions Literary Agency, Inc.
* B.K. Nelson, Inc.
* The Robins Agency (Cris Robins)
* Michele Rooney Literary Agency (also d/b/a Creative Literary Agency and Simply Nonfiction)
* Southeast Literary Agency
* Mark Sullivan Associates
* West Coast Literary Associates (also d/b/a California Literary Services)

If you feel so inclined, please see Jim's blog for information on how you can unite against scam agents/agencies.

Technorati link: BarbaraBauer

Where am I?

Well, it's been a while since I posted to this blog. I've been taking care of my family, reading books, revising, critiquing, caring for my guppies (you can read about them by visiting Guppy Diaries), and writing a bit now and then. :-) The kids will be out of school for the summer soon, and I may not have as much time for writing as we have family reunions and such during the summer.

I've joined a new critique group and am very happy with the feedback I've recieved (and hopefully the feedback I've given is helpful). I've done more revisions on my first chapter as a result. Is there ever an end? :-)

Go Fish!

Well, I went fishing, sort of . . . I went to the pet shop and purchased some Fancy Guppies. Why? Well, it is a long story so if you do not have time to read it (or you don't care), just keep swimming.

My daughters have aquatic turtles that used to live in a ten-gallon fish tank. They started out as wee little things but have grown (duh!) until the 10g tank was no longer large enough to accommodate them. We purchased a twenty-gallon turtle tank (yes, a tank made especially for aquatic turtles) and the turtles are much happier with their new digs. After the move, I was left with the 10g tank. Well, obviously I had to put it to use! My son's science teacher was kind enough to offer Feeder Guppies (the kind that people buy to feed to other fish, etc.) to anyone who wanted them. My son brought home four of them for himself. Since he already had a small fish bowl to keep them in and didn't requre my 10g tank, I asked him to bring some Feeder Guppies home for me. He was happy to oblige and returned with nine fish for my 10g tank.

So how did the Feeder Guppies turn into Fancy Guppies? Was it magic? NO! As I said, I went to the pet store . . . But that's later in the story. :-) So I have nine Feeder Guppies. I begin to research Guppies online (I wanted more information) and discovered the wonders of Fancy Guppies. Now, if you don't know, Feeder Guppies aren't the most attractive things, but Fancy Guppies . . . Now those are beautiful fish! The websites I visited filled my mind with information and left vivid images of the gorgeous guppies in my brain. So I went to my pet store (to purchase more food for the turtles . . . And no, we don't feed them guppies) and there in the tanks were Fancy Guppies! Oh, the beauty, the wonder! I had to have some for my self!

I purchased two males and one female (after the sales clerk assured me the Fancy Guppies wouldn't devour my Feeder Guppies) and happily brought them home. The next morning, the female Fancy Guppy was sleeping with the fishes, and not in a good way (she was dead). I mourned as I flushed her (what did you want me to do, bury her in the back yard?) and after I dropped my kids off at school, I went back to the pet store to purchase another fish. This time, the sales clerk was kind enough to let me purchase one female and get two free (I think she felt sorry for my loss). So that brought the count to 9 Feeders and 5 Fancies. But was that enough? No!

The next morning, I woke to find baby guppies! Eight of them! Apparently, one of the new females was pregnant! I transferred the babies to a new container (the adults will sometimes eat the babies) and went shopping for a breeding net (so I could put the babies back in the tank and they would be protected from the adults) and some baby guppy food (yes they sell such a thing). Well, they had gotten a new shipment of fish! Could I resist? Nay, I could not. I purchased two more females and one male. I also purchased two smaller tanks (normally used to keep Beta in), one for my son to put his guppies in, and one for my oldest daughter because she wanted some guppies too! I brought everything home, set up the new tanks, took my Feeder Guppies from my 10g tank, gave six of them to my daughter, three to my son. Then, my youngest daughter decided she wanted some guppies (like I couldn't see that coming). So I took the small tank from my son, went out to the shed to retrieve his old Beta tank (I think it holds 1.5-2g), cleaned the tank, transferred his original four fish into the Beta tank, gave my youngest daughter three guppies in the smaller tank, put my son's baby guppies in the small fish bowl, and now everyone is happy.


So we have a lot of guppies (one of my son's Feeders had two babies)! I must say, I don't regret it (at the moment). The fish are beautiful and I love to be able to look at them as I pause in my writing. It is so relaxing! So, if anyone needs guppies . . . :-)

So, what have I done writing wise? Revised my query and used it as bait to catch an agent. So far, I haven't even had a nibble, but I'm hoping to catch one soon.

Adventures in Breakfast

So what did you eat this morning? I had a bowl of Rice Krispies. Now for those Rice Krispie purists out there (a purist being one who believes Rice Krispies should remain unadorned and unadulterated, thus they either eat their Krispies plain or allow only milk to contact their Krispies), please turn away, for I am about to divulge my warped and unpure way of enjoying my Rice Krispies.

I assemble the necessary tools (a bowl, a spoon, the box of Rice Krispies, the gallon of milk, and my secret ingredient) and set them on the counter. My secret ingredient goes into the bowl first, followed by the Krispies. The milk is then poured over the top and the spoon inserted. I lift a bite to my mouth and enjoy! :-)

If you are guessing my secret ingredient to be a fruit of some kind, you are correct. Is it Strawberry? Banana? Kiwi? Orange? What can it be? Well, don't think me strange (I threw in Kiwi and Orange as options to throw you off), but I prefer to add seedless, green grapes to my Rice Krispies.

This may sound odd, or even gross, but have you ever tried it? NO? Try it and then you can tell me how you like (or don't like) it!

So, what do you eat on your Rice Krispies? If you don't eat Rice Krispies, what do you eat? I think a person's food says a lot about them . . . not that I believe you truly are what you eat (or I'd be a walking bar of chocolate by now). :-) So what does my eating green grapes with my Krispies say about me? It depends on your point of view (the way you look at things, not the POV you write in). :-)

What do you think?

To Snark, or not to Snark . . .

I know some have been offended by Miss Snark's blog recently (the Ms. Roth issue and if you don't know what I'm talking about, check it out. The link can be found to the right in Blogs I Visit section), but I am happy to say that I am a proud Snarkling! Yes, some of the comments in response to Ms. Roth's query were rude, even hurtful. Yes, I still found some of them amusing, I admit it freely. If Ms. Roth was offended or had her feelings hurt, she should have done more research before sending something to Miss Snark in the first place. Hopefully, she has learned from the incident and is now wiser.

The publishing industry isn't made up of nice people who send you hugs, kisses, puppies, flowers, and chocolate with their rejections. If you are looking for these things, get them yourself. Rejections hurt sometimes, no matter how nicely they are worded. Granted, the rejections on Miss Snark's site were from fellow Snarklings and not Miss Snark, but Ms. Roth never should have sent a query to Miss Snark in the first place. A few minutes on her blog make this apparent to anyone willing to actually read a bit.

I, for one, will continue to visit Miss Snark's blog. I find it refreshing that an agent will tell us how lame we as writers can sometimes be. It is a learning process and I must learn; if not from my own miskates (and I make plenty of them . . . yes the spelling of mistake was intentional), then from the mistakes of others.

Okay, I'm finished defending Miss Snark now (not that she needs me to defend her . . . she has Killer Yap for that, after all).

I know there will be those who disagree with me. Feel free to express your opinion, but if you do, please have the courage to not be anonymous! What good is having an opinion if we do not express it?

:-)

Posting the Post

I visited the wonderful land of USPS and sent off some copies of the novel today. It was a slow day in USPS, not many citizens or visitors about . . . which isn't a bad thing on the visitors end of things because I was able to get my MS into the hands of the Postal Workers much quicker than I had anticipated. :-)

Now I will be setting my novel aside and working on other projects for a while (including catching up on housework). I will also delve into some writing projects that need started/finished. When I've let my novel sit for a while, and when I get feedback from TWP (Those Wonderful People) I will greet my novel like an old friend . . . And then try to transform it into the best friend it can be. :-)

I'm Back . . .

And my back is back too! I'm feeling better, though I still get a slight pain now and then. I guess I'll have to start doing housework again, darn it!

In other news, I finished my revisions (for the thousandth time), and tomorrow I will journey to the land of the Postal Workers (known as USPS) where I will deliver some copies of my novel into their capable hands. They will use their Postal Worker magic to send these copies to a few writing friends, some family members, and my proofreader (also known as Those Wonderful People or TWP for short). TWP will then read my novel, offer any suggestions for improvement (and in the case of my proofreader, correct all my errors), and once again the Postal Workers in the land of USPS will use their magic to return the suggestions/comments/corrections to me. I will then have the opportunity to look over the suggestions/comments/corrections of TWP and further refine/revise/tweak my novel (also known as cleaning my diamond).

Whew! It's a long and complicated process! :-)

So today after church, I will be preparing the envelopes required in the land of USPS to ensure the copies of my novel arrive at their destinations safely.

Then I will get to work on some other writing projects I have been procrastinating.

Danger . . . whine ahead!

Today, I am whining. If you don't want to see it, kindly click on a different link and take yourself quietly away.

I injured my back . . . I'm not sure how and I don't want any speculations/suggestions about how it was done. If I get into a comfortable enough position, I'm fine . . . until I move. Then the pain. I know I should go to get cracked (no, I'm not talking drugs here, I'm speaking chiropractic-ly), but who has the time for such luxuries? :-) If it gets bad enough, I shall pay the doc a visit, otherwise I'll endure. I've given birth to four children, so a little back pain is nothing (a lot of back pain? Well, that's a different story)!

And if the back pain weren't bad enough, I've also broken off a portion of one of my molars! I was innocently eating barbecue potato chips and off it came. It didn't hurt much, but it does now. I know I should go to the dentist, but who has time for such torture? :-) If I'm left with the choice between the dentist and the chiropractor, I'll take the latter!

Now, it's not that I don't like dentists, they are wonderful people (most of them) in general. However, going to the dentist is one of my fears, right up there with seeing a large spider in my house! And since the broken tooth is a molar, it won't show in my publicity shots (my smile isn't THAT big) so it's not important . . . right?

Okay, I'm finished whining now. I suppose I should try and get some writing/revising done today since I can't do much else . . . oh, hey, I just realized I have a good excuse NOT to do my housework! Maybe back pain isn't all THAT bad and would be a good thing to have for a while. :-)

Polishing

Well, I believe I've found my diamond! Now I just have to clean it, cut it, and polish it until it sparkles! Yay! Then I can write a query that puts my diamond in the best light so it dazzles the agent/editor and he/she just can't resist asking for more! :-) I only wish I had waited to send queries. Now the agents I queried won't have a chance to be dazzled. Ah well, write and rewrite.

In other news, our puppy is getting closer to having a name. We are trying to decide between Marshmallow and Miss Moon Beam (Moony for short). Perhaps we should combine the two and call her Miss Marshmallow Moon Beam (Moony Mallow for short). :-) In the meantime, I am referring to her as She-who-has-not-been-named (only Harry Potter fans will understand the reference). :-)

Well, I must get to work on my diamond. When it's all cut and polished, I'll let you know if it passes the cutting glass test. Only then will I know if it is truly a diamond.

Happy Writing!

Treasure Hunting!

Well, I've set my query aside and turned back to my MS. I intend to dig into it, hoping to find a treasure, a diamond in the rough. I will take this diamond, cut it, and polish it until it sparkles. This will be a turning point for my MS. It won't just be another fantasy story, it will be THE fantasy story! :-) Today is an optimistic day!

As an author, I believe in this MS . . . and no, I can't say that about all my MSS. Some, I admit, are crap. However, this MS has potential. I thought it may have achieved its potential, but alas, it hasn't. There is something hiding beneath the surface, a theme perhaps, that must be brought into the light. What is it that makes my novel different from the thousands of other fantasy novels out there? Yes, the characters names are different. Yes, the plot twists are unique. It's your basic good vs. evil . . . but aside from a coming of age for the MC, why MUST this story be told? I intend to find the diamond among all the cubic zirconuim. I know it's there!

So, we'll see if I am still passionate about it by the end of the day! Perhaps, after my search, I will find that there is no diamond and my MS is all cubic zirconium . . . but I'm 99.9% sure there is! :-) Wish me luck!

Happy Easter

Happy Easter to everyone who celebrates it!

I'm still killing commas and working on my query letter. Not much else to report, though we did get a new puppy today. She's a lab mix and as of now, is nameless. I jokingly called her marshmallow and now the kids use that name, but hopefully she'll have a real name soon.





Have a great weekend!

Commacidal Maniac!

Over the last few days, I dug into my MS (manuscript) . . . Killing commas everywhere! I am now officially a commacidal maniac . . . Or maybe I would be considered a serial comma killer. Anyway, they were all mercy killings and my MS is much better for it! :)

Commas are the bane of my MS's existence. They pop up like weeds and must be pulled out and discarded before they take over the MS! There is still much weed killing to do in my novel, but I am taking a break for a moment. Hopefully, more commas didn't appear after I shut my computer down for the night.

In other news, I need to do some work on my query letter. I'll get it right one of these days! I don't know why it seems so much harder to write the query letter. It boggles the mind and depresses the soul. *sigh* It took three years to get the novel where it is today (and not just because of the overgrown commas). Hopefully, it won't take another three years to master the art of query writing. And before you send helpful links to sites or recommend books about writing query letters, I've probably already been there, read that. It's like taking a test. I know the answers but can't get them from my brain to the keyboard in the proper order, so my efforts are in vain.

Well, I must head into town to purchase milk. My children seem to think they need to pour the stuff over their cereal before they eat it. What's up with that?

You must see this!

Okay, while enjoying a chat board today (yes, I know, I should have been writing), I came across a post that took me to eBay to view the latest and greatest, most technically advanced "must have" item on the market. You can find it here. You really must check it out. Bid on it, have it for your own! What could be better or more important to our everyday existence than this marvelous item?

Seriously though, I didn't get much writing done (although I did delete a few commas from my novel) unless you count all the posting I did on Verla's board and this blog (personally, I plan to count them both). Maybe I can settle down and work on my novel later tonight . . . no wait, I can't, it's American Idol night. Yes, I am a fan though this season isn't as exciting as past ones, IMO. So maybe after AI is over . . . no wait, then it's time for Scrubs . . . okay, after Scrubs, I will work on my novel (even if it's only to delete one more comma). :-)

And so it begins . . .

Ah, change. This is my first (and maybe my last) blog. Here I will share my trials and triumphs (hopefully more triumphs than trials). Each day brings me closer to my goal of publication. Yes, I am an author. My current focus is on my novel, though now and then I may deviate and work on something else. It has taken me three years to get my novel to where it is now. Three years may seem like a long time to some of you, but I think a good novel takes time. Now, don't send me hate mail if you popped your novel out in a matter of months. I'm not saying it's crap (I can't judge it if I haven't read it . . . however, if I did read it and thought it was crap, I'd tell you)! If you can pop out a really good novel in a matter of months, more power to you. I, however, will continue to spend time editing, perfecting, changing, and hopefully improving my work. I was asked "When will you make an end?" to which I wisely quoted from the movie The Agony and the Ecstasy, "When I am finished."

I am getting closer to making my end. It's the revision that takes time. Why? Well, for one thing, punctuation is not my friend (as you can probably tell from my posts). Also, I do have other obligations in life . . . namely, home and family. Being a mother and a writer is difficult, but I wouldn't change either one! I find great joy in my family (the housework, I could do without, but it's all part of the package) and in expressing myself through my writing.

Therefore, I will continue to plug away at refining and improving my novel until, at last, I am satisfied. Then I will send it out into the world, hoping for the best but always remembering the children's market is tough and there are bound to be rejections. However, I am confident that one day it will find the perfect home with the perfect publisher. It may not bring me fame and fortune (I'm not J. K. Rowling after all) but knowing that children are reading and enjoying my book will bring great satisfaction. Don't get me wrong, I expect a nice paycheck but let's be realistic here! :-) It may take a while longer, as I have to break from writing to care for my loved ones, but my novel and my family will be better for it in the end. :-)

And so, this is my blog, an inside look into the joys and pains of motherhood and writing. My vicissitudes.