Randi Lee's Blog, page 2
November 5, 2015
Movin’ On Up
That’s it. I’ve had it! No more Blogger. I can’t respond to my own comments and half the time the blogs I follow don’t show new posts in my blog feed. To those of you whom I’ve seemingly abandoned, I haven’t. I just don’t know when someone’s posted an update anymore because Blogger, as it seems, hates me.
I’m creating a “favorites” folder for all of the blogs I follow, so that I can check in on people on a regular basis and make sure I’m up-to-date on Blog-o-Sphere on goings.
In the meantime, I’m moving my blog to Sqaurespace. I will publish my updates on both sites for the first few posts before moving to Squarespace entirely.
My new blog address is: www.randileewrites.com/blog. You can also access it from any page on www.randileewrites.comby visiting the menu bar. I hope you all will join me at my new location!
As always, thanks for reading, thanks for commenting and thanks for giving me someone to write to. Stay Classy, Blog-o-Sphere!
Best,
R
I’m creating a “favorites” folder for all of the blogs I follow, so that I can check in on people on a regular basis and make sure I’m up-to-date on Blog-o-Sphere on goings.
In the meantime, I’m moving my blog to Sqaurespace. I will publish my updates on both sites for the first few posts before moving to Squarespace entirely.
My new blog address is: www.randileewrites.com/blog. You can also access it from any page on www.randileewrites.comby visiting the menu bar. I hope you all will join me at my new location!
As always, thanks for reading, thanks for commenting and thanks for giving me someone to write to. Stay Classy, Blog-o-Sphere!
Best,
R
November 4, 2015
Guest Post from Tara Tyler!
A little tidbit from the messy countertop of the #LazyHousewife ...
I miss being a kid. Wouldn't it be great to have a big girl slumber party with all our friends? We could do makeovers, take selfies, play video games like dance party or sing karaoke, and talk about boys (ha ha) - and we could do things we coudn't do as kids, like have a little wine or watch a rated R movie! No pillow fights though - those aren't real.
What would you do at an adult slumber party? What kid thing would you like to do again?
Thanks so much for hosting me, Randi! I really appreciate you offering!
SIMULATION
by Tara Tyler
Release Date: Sept 14, 2015
In 2082, androids are an essential part of daily life. Some are helpful, some would make better toasters, and some are so human-like they're creepy. Back in Atlanta, Detective Cooper takes a case to uncover an illegal clone android simulation operation. He hopes it will take his mind off his recent break up, but he winds up crossing paths with his ex, FBI Agent Geri Harper.
As Cooper closes in, Geri is kidnapped. But when she resurfaces in Washington and goes on a killing spree, he knows it isn't her. Now under suspicion himself, Cooper must find the real Geri to prove her innocence, not to mention hunt down the powerful villain behind it all. Never a dull moment.
SIMULATION delivers more technology, more intense action, more humor, and more, distinct new characters. Come along for the ride.
Available Now!Amazon ~~ KindleGoodreads
Tara Tyler writes sci fi and fantasy action-adventures from her little corner of the world in Ohio as she tries to keep up with her three boys and coach husband. Always making time to write, she sometimes puts off chores and lets laundry pile up... hence, she's also the Lazy Housewife, offering advice and tips to other gals out there trying to do it all without going crazy. She and her housewife friends blog at The Really Real Housewives of America. Keep up with her in her quarterly Newsletter.
tara tyler talks and tweets and facebooks
I miss being a kid. Wouldn't it be great to have a big girl slumber party with all our friends? We could do makeovers, take selfies, play video games like dance party or sing karaoke, and talk about boys (ha ha) - and we could do things we coudn't do as kids, like have a little wine or watch a rated R movie! No pillow fights though - those aren't real.
What would you do at an adult slumber party? What kid thing would you like to do again?
Thanks so much for hosting me, Randi! I really appreciate you offering!
SIMULATIONby Tara Tyler
Release Date: Sept 14, 2015
In 2082, androids are an essential part of daily life. Some are helpful, some would make better toasters, and some are so human-like they're creepy. Back in Atlanta, Detective Cooper takes a case to uncover an illegal clone android simulation operation. He hopes it will take his mind off his recent break up, but he winds up crossing paths with his ex, FBI Agent Geri Harper.
As Cooper closes in, Geri is kidnapped. But when she resurfaces in Washington and goes on a killing spree, he knows it isn't her. Now under suspicion himself, Cooper must find the real Geri to prove her innocence, not to mention hunt down the powerful villain behind it all. Never a dull moment.
SIMULATION delivers more technology, more intense action, more humor, and more, distinct new characters. Come along for the ride.
Available Now!Amazon ~~ KindleGoodreads
Tara Tyler writes sci fi and fantasy action-adventures from her little corner of the world in Ohio as she tries to keep up with her three boys and coach husband. Always making time to write, she sometimes puts off chores and lets laundry pile up... hence, she's also the Lazy Housewife, offering advice and tips to other gals out there trying to do it all without going crazy. She and her housewife friends blog at The Really Real Housewives of America. Keep up with her in her quarterly Newsletter.
tara tyler talks and tweets and facebooks
October 30, 2015
Author Interview: Josh Cook
Hey friends!
Today I interview Josh Cook, a fellow Massachusetts writer and the author of a very cool book, indeed: An Exaggerated Murder. I had the pleasure of meeting Josh through a mutual friend and have been promising to get his interview up for oh, say, a month now...so I sincerely apologize for the delay, Josh! You've been quite patient, and very classy!
The InterviewTell us something about yourself—anything you want! Just give us a few details about you, the author, that allow us to relate to you better:
I live in Somerville, MA, and I work nearby as a bookseller and marketing director for Porter Square Books, in Cambridge. I’ve been there for almost eleven years. I grew up in Lewiston, ME and have wanted to be a writer since I was about sixteen. I was writing before then, but, for some reason, the idea coalesced into a real identity then. Some other character traits of note; I consider myself politically active, though I haven’t done much more than write about politics on my blog and contribute to campaigns I believe in; my partner and I get a farm share every year so the term “salad days” doesn’t have a particularly positive connation for me; and I’m a bit of a jock having played sports all through college.
Tell us a little about the book(s). What genre is it/are they? What’s it about?
I like to think of An Exaggerated Murder as a skewed detective novel. It starts out with the blood on the carpet and the hardboiled Sherlockian detective with the femme fatale love interest and the gritty, experienced veteran partner, but as the story progresses, as we learn more about the characters and the case, it drifts away from the traditional detective story.
The basic plot is that a reclusive billionaire name Joyce, vanishes, and whoever is behind the disappearance obfuscates and complicates all the evidence, while arranging things so that our hero, Trike Augustine, is the only person with a real opportunity to solve the case. He has two partners; Lola, a radical artist knitter who fills the femme fatale role, and Max, the former FBI agent who’s been around the block a few times. It ends up being something even a detective as inhumanly brilliant as Trike, has never seen. At times we look into Trike’s brain, we follow Lola on her research, we even see a case cracked by Trike’s bete noir on the police force. And I hope it’s funny because I did write some jokes.
Why this story? What was the inspiration behind it? What compelled you to want to share this story with others?
I started this so long ago that I really don’t remember its exact genesis, but I think it grew out of the primordial soup of the literature that was important to me at the time, Ulysses, Edgar Allen Poe, classic pulp fiction, and I as read more, as I followed the story, as I grew as a reader and a writer, I picked up more resources like The Maltese Falcon and The Daughter of Time. Of course, all of that also mixed with my other ideas, ambitions, hopes, dreams, and general goals as a writer, my desire to say something interesting about life, and, somehow, the story I ended up with, was this weird, quirky post-modern detective novel.
What challenges did you/do you face while writing it? How did you overcome those challenges?
I’m a firm believer that there’s no reason to temper your ambition at the start of a project. Whatever you think the greatest example of whatever it is you’re writing, should be your target. But at some point in the writing process, you have to confront, or discover, what you’ve actually written and figure out how to make it the best whatever it is it can be. I had a lot of themes and ideas in mind that I wanted to explore in this story, and I used a number of different structures over the writing process to try and get at those themes and ideas. I even had a draft that was structured like a Choose Your Own Adventure novel.
So, probably the biggest challenge I had was getting themes and ideas at the right volume for the story I had, to find that muscles that actually fit over the skeleton I’d created, and a lot of those problems were solved through the editing process with Melville House. Having someone who understood the story and was an advocate for it and a supporter of it, but who also could bring fresh eyes, really helped me adjust those different levels and find the right structure and, hopefully, make this book the best whatever it is it could be.
Who was your favorite character to write, and why?
This is a hard one, because the three main characters are so different, with such different voices and I love them all. They allowed me to explore different ideas and prose styles. Lola gave me the chance to think and write about art. She’s also a very visual thinker and sees the world very different from how I see it so writing her forced me to stretch my imagination in an interesting way. Max let me pay homage to those classic pulp stories. Through him I could imagine myself writing for Black Mask. But, if I had to choose, I guess it would be Trike. His almost inhuman brilliance and his definitive inability to give a fuck meant he could say and think just about anything. That kind of openness presents its own composition challenges, but on the whole, it was a ton of fun to just let myself go and see what I could come up with for him.
Do you engage in any other hobbies, specialties or activities that have enhanced your writing?
I’m not sure reading really counts as a hobby for me. At this point, it’s more of a lifestyle, but it is definitely the other activity that has most enhanced my writing. You can’t know what’s possible if you don’t explore and reading is how you explore the possibility in writing. I also like to take long walks, especially if I’m having trouble figuring out something in whatever I’m working on. I’m also lucky that a lot of my friends, and my partner especially, are pretty literary, so I get to have intelligent and in-depth conversations about books, literature, politics and whatever else is going on in the world. I also wish I could travel more, even though I don’t usually get a lot of writing done when I travel.
You can only write what’s in your brain and if you’re brain isn’t interesting you’re writing won’t be. I don’t believe you have to live a wild and adventurous life to write wild and adventurous work, but I do believe you have to do something to develop the primordial soup of your imagination. For me, that something is reading, walking, talking, and traveling.
What is the single most important piece of advice you’ve ever received as an author?
I know this idea is starting to come under fire, but I’m a firm believer in the mantra “write every day.” When you write every day it becomes a routine, it becomes a ritual, the act of writing becomes a part of you, you build up a kind of muscle memory that helps kick start you on days when you feel ragged from life and keeps you going that extra mile after you feel like you’ve run out of steam on a productive day. I don’t think that “real writers write every day,” because there are as many ways to be a writer as there are writers, but it was a central idea in my development.
What message do you have for aspiring authors?
Do it for you. You have to do it for you. There are so many barriers, so many obstacles, so much rejection (so much rejection), that the act of writing has to be inherently rewarding for you. Otherwise, all the other effort that goes into being an author; researching lit mags, sending out submissions, writing cover letters, querying agents, waiting for responses that can take months and months to arrive won’t be worth it, whether you publish or not. I guess another way to say this is, be a writer first and an author second.
Josh’s eye-catching question: Your main character stands before three doors: a round door, a square door and an octagonal door. Each door is the same height, made from the same material and is the same distance away from him. Which door does he/she choose? Why that shape?
Max would walk through the square door, because it’s the closest of the choices to a regular door and doors are for walking through. He’ll deal with what’s on the other side when he gets there. This would be more fraught for Lola because she is very aware of how society imposes its conventions on individuals and of how easily you can get into spirals of logic through trying to guess what someone else wants you to not do. In the end, since the octagonal door looks more interesting, she would take it, because as a visual artist and very much a visual thinker, interesting looking things are important to her.
It gets weird with Trike, but, well, he’s a weird guy. He might just randomly choose a door, because, as he might say, “It’s just a fucking door.” But it’s equally as likely that he will try to deduce from the shape of the door what lies behind it. What would benefit from being behind an octagonal door? Or, worse yet, what would someone want Trike to think would benefit from being behind an octagonal door? From the information Trike would be provided it should be impossible for him to make a deduction, but attempting the impossible can be fun, even if, after several hours of intense intellectual examination, he picks at random because, “It’s just a fucking door.”
Book "Blurbs:"
“A comedic mystery, filled with the sorts of digressions and lunacy that will entertain readers wondering what an episode of Benedict Cumberbatch's 'Sherlock' series might be like if it were written by Quentin Tarantino."
—The Plain Dealer (Cleveland)
“One of the most high-minded detective stories in years... Meticulously planned and content-rich, this sophisticated, variegated study...ranks with the best upmarket mysteries by Iain Pears and Umberto Eco."
— Bookslut
“A beautifully written postmodern novel of deduction that merrily, wittily blows up its genre’s conventions while at the same time re-energizing possibilities for the 21st-century detective story."
—Kirkus Reviews, starred review
Purchase Links:Signed from Porter Square Books: http://www.portersquarebooks.com/signed-exaggerated-murderIndieBound: http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781612194271Melville House: http://www.mhpbooks.com/books/an-exaggerated-murder/ Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/An-Exaggerated-...
Learn more about Josh Cook and An Exaggerated Murder here:
http://inorderofimportance.blogspot.com/
Find Josh on Twitter here:
@InOrderofImport
Thanks, Josh, for providing us with this interview. And, as always, thanks to my readers and commenters for giving me someone to write to. Stay Classy, Blog-o-Sphere!
Best,
R
Today I interview Josh Cook, a fellow Massachusetts writer and the author of a very cool book, indeed: An Exaggerated Murder. I had the pleasure of meeting Josh through a mutual friend and have been promising to get his interview up for oh, say, a month now...so I sincerely apologize for the delay, Josh! You've been quite patient, and very classy!
The InterviewTell us something about yourself—anything you want! Just give us a few details about you, the author, that allow us to relate to you better:
I live in Somerville, MA, and I work nearby as a bookseller and marketing director for Porter Square Books, in Cambridge. I’ve been there for almost eleven years. I grew up in Lewiston, ME and have wanted to be a writer since I was about sixteen. I was writing before then, but, for some reason, the idea coalesced into a real identity then. Some other character traits of note; I consider myself politically active, though I haven’t done much more than write about politics on my blog and contribute to campaigns I believe in; my partner and I get a farm share every year so the term “salad days” doesn’t have a particularly positive connation for me; and I’m a bit of a jock having played sports all through college.
Tell us a little about the book(s). What genre is it/are they? What’s it about?
I like to think of An Exaggerated Murder as a skewed detective novel. It starts out with the blood on the carpet and the hardboiled Sherlockian detective with the femme fatale love interest and the gritty, experienced veteran partner, but as the story progresses, as we learn more about the characters and the case, it drifts away from the traditional detective story.
The basic plot is that a reclusive billionaire name Joyce, vanishes, and whoever is behind the disappearance obfuscates and complicates all the evidence, while arranging things so that our hero, Trike Augustine, is the only person with a real opportunity to solve the case. He has two partners; Lola, a radical artist knitter who fills the femme fatale role, and Max, the former FBI agent who’s been around the block a few times. It ends up being something even a detective as inhumanly brilliant as Trike, has never seen. At times we look into Trike’s brain, we follow Lola on her research, we even see a case cracked by Trike’s bete noir on the police force. And I hope it’s funny because I did write some jokes.
Why this story? What was the inspiration behind it? What compelled you to want to share this story with others?
I started this so long ago that I really don’t remember its exact genesis, but I think it grew out of the primordial soup of the literature that was important to me at the time, Ulysses, Edgar Allen Poe, classic pulp fiction, and I as read more, as I followed the story, as I grew as a reader and a writer, I picked up more resources like The Maltese Falcon and The Daughter of Time. Of course, all of that also mixed with my other ideas, ambitions, hopes, dreams, and general goals as a writer, my desire to say something interesting about life, and, somehow, the story I ended up with, was this weird, quirky post-modern detective novel.
What challenges did you/do you face while writing it? How did you overcome those challenges?
I’m a firm believer that there’s no reason to temper your ambition at the start of a project. Whatever you think the greatest example of whatever it is you’re writing, should be your target. But at some point in the writing process, you have to confront, or discover, what you’ve actually written and figure out how to make it the best whatever it is it can be. I had a lot of themes and ideas in mind that I wanted to explore in this story, and I used a number of different structures over the writing process to try and get at those themes and ideas. I even had a draft that was structured like a Choose Your Own Adventure novel.
So, probably the biggest challenge I had was getting themes and ideas at the right volume for the story I had, to find that muscles that actually fit over the skeleton I’d created, and a lot of those problems were solved through the editing process with Melville House. Having someone who understood the story and was an advocate for it and a supporter of it, but who also could bring fresh eyes, really helped me adjust those different levels and find the right structure and, hopefully, make this book the best whatever it is it could be.
Who was your favorite character to write, and why?
This is a hard one, because the three main characters are so different, with such different voices and I love them all. They allowed me to explore different ideas and prose styles. Lola gave me the chance to think and write about art. She’s also a very visual thinker and sees the world very different from how I see it so writing her forced me to stretch my imagination in an interesting way. Max let me pay homage to those classic pulp stories. Through him I could imagine myself writing for Black Mask. But, if I had to choose, I guess it would be Trike. His almost inhuman brilliance and his definitive inability to give a fuck meant he could say and think just about anything. That kind of openness presents its own composition challenges, but on the whole, it was a ton of fun to just let myself go and see what I could come up with for him.
Do you engage in any other hobbies, specialties or activities that have enhanced your writing?
I’m not sure reading really counts as a hobby for me. At this point, it’s more of a lifestyle, but it is definitely the other activity that has most enhanced my writing. You can’t know what’s possible if you don’t explore and reading is how you explore the possibility in writing. I also like to take long walks, especially if I’m having trouble figuring out something in whatever I’m working on. I’m also lucky that a lot of my friends, and my partner especially, are pretty literary, so I get to have intelligent and in-depth conversations about books, literature, politics and whatever else is going on in the world. I also wish I could travel more, even though I don’t usually get a lot of writing done when I travel.
You can only write what’s in your brain and if you’re brain isn’t interesting you’re writing won’t be. I don’t believe you have to live a wild and adventurous life to write wild and adventurous work, but I do believe you have to do something to develop the primordial soup of your imagination. For me, that something is reading, walking, talking, and traveling.
What is the single most important piece of advice you’ve ever received as an author?
I know this idea is starting to come under fire, but I’m a firm believer in the mantra “write every day.” When you write every day it becomes a routine, it becomes a ritual, the act of writing becomes a part of you, you build up a kind of muscle memory that helps kick start you on days when you feel ragged from life and keeps you going that extra mile after you feel like you’ve run out of steam on a productive day. I don’t think that “real writers write every day,” because there are as many ways to be a writer as there are writers, but it was a central idea in my development.
What message do you have for aspiring authors?
Do it for you. You have to do it for you. There are so many barriers, so many obstacles, so much rejection (so much rejection), that the act of writing has to be inherently rewarding for you. Otherwise, all the other effort that goes into being an author; researching lit mags, sending out submissions, writing cover letters, querying agents, waiting for responses that can take months and months to arrive won’t be worth it, whether you publish or not. I guess another way to say this is, be a writer first and an author second.
Josh’s eye-catching question: Your main character stands before three doors: a round door, a square door and an octagonal door. Each door is the same height, made from the same material and is the same distance away from him. Which door does he/she choose? Why that shape?
Max would walk through the square door, because it’s the closest of the choices to a regular door and doors are for walking through. He’ll deal with what’s on the other side when he gets there. This would be more fraught for Lola because she is very aware of how society imposes its conventions on individuals and of how easily you can get into spirals of logic through trying to guess what someone else wants you to not do. In the end, since the octagonal door looks more interesting, she would take it, because as a visual artist and very much a visual thinker, interesting looking things are important to her.
It gets weird with Trike, but, well, he’s a weird guy. He might just randomly choose a door, because, as he might say, “It’s just a fucking door.” But it’s equally as likely that he will try to deduce from the shape of the door what lies behind it. What would benefit from being behind an octagonal door? Or, worse yet, what would someone want Trike to think would benefit from being behind an octagonal door? From the information Trike would be provided it should be impossible for him to make a deduction, but attempting the impossible can be fun, even if, after several hours of intense intellectual examination, he picks at random because, “It’s just a fucking door.”
Book "Blurbs:"
“A comedic mystery, filled with the sorts of digressions and lunacy that will entertain readers wondering what an episode of Benedict Cumberbatch's 'Sherlock' series might be like if it were written by Quentin Tarantino."
—The Plain Dealer (Cleveland)
“One of the most high-minded detective stories in years... Meticulously planned and content-rich, this sophisticated, variegated study...ranks with the best upmarket mysteries by Iain Pears and Umberto Eco."
— Bookslut
“A beautifully written postmodern novel of deduction that merrily, wittily blows up its genre’s conventions while at the same time re-energizing possibilities for the 21st-century detective story."
—Kirkus Reviews, starred review
Purchase Links:Signed from Porter Square Books: http://www.portersquarebooks.com/signed-exaggerated-murderIndieBound: http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781612194271Melville House: http://www.mhpbooks.com/books/an-exaggerated-murder/ Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/An-Exaggerated-...
Learn more about Josh Cook and An Exaggerated Murder here:
http://inorderofimportance.blogspot.com/
Find Josh on Twitter here:
@InOrderofImport
Thanks, Josh, for providing us with this interview. And, as always, thanks to my readers and commenters for giving me someone to write to. Stay Classy, Blog-o-Sphere!
Best,
R
October 24, 2015
Guest Post: Author Harper L. Jameson Keeps it Real
This week, fellow author Harper L. Jameson has graciously provided a guest post about the stigma of independent publishing. Harper discusses traditional vs. independent publishing and why one is not necessarily better than the other. Take it away, Harper!
I found myself in a situation recently that forced me to question the validity of independently published authors versus those who are traditionally published. My questioning lasted approximately 2 minutes.
I sat in a college hallway, curled over my laptop and agonizing over my current WIP when a woman sitting nearby asked what I was doing. Unashamed of my goals toward writing a novel, I answered that I was, indeed, a writer.
“Oh! Who are you published with?”“I’m not published yet, but I intend to go the independent route.”“Oh.”
Oh. That was all. Until she went on to explain that she was represented by an agent who was shopping her work to a number of publishers. You see, she is as yet unpublished just like me but, she holds up her agent like a crucifix against a room full of vampires. As the days that we have to sit in each other’s company go on, I think more and more about the way she snorts under her knows when another questions me about the world of the independent author. I think about the way she rabidly checks her email waiting to hear from her agent about her impending literary stardom. And what I came up with was simple. She’s not better than me. We’re both on the bottom rung of the ladder, working our way up to published and yet somehow, she feels that professional representation validates her. All it means is that there is another hand in her royalty jar when her book finally hits Amazon.
Having an agent doesn’t make her any more of a writer than owning a paint brush makes me Rembrandt. The independent route isn’t for everyone. You have to be able to do a lot of the leg work yourself. You have to learn formatting and marketing methods. You might have to make your own covers and promotional materials. It’s tedious but, at the end of the day, we have total autonomy over our work and the pride that comes from knowing we did it.. and we did it alone.
In the same respect, not everyone can go the traditional route. Great books are too often over looked and the time spent trying to gain exposure is time not spent writing in an industry that thrives on quantity over quality. Query letters are soul-sucking at best and useless at worst. The wait to hear back on your submission can drain the life right out of you.
Still, I clack away at the keys and she snorts in distaste, softly shaking her head and making it a point to laugh at some clever email she finally received from her agent. To her, I say, you are not better than me. You are not better than any of us. We work just as hard. We pour just as much of our hearts and souls into the words we put on the page and your writing is not legitimized by a name on a business card. You’re legitimate when your book is out there for the masses and no matter the path we took to get there, one day we will all be able to say proudly that we are both writers.
When your agent disappears, and your work is buried in her growing slush pile, never to be seen again, I won’t judge and I’ll wish you all the best in replacing her. I’ll still be right here. Curled over my laptop and formatting my ebook. But when you finally hit the threshold of your frustration with the traditional publishing world, come scoot your chair over by me and I’ll tell you all of the ins and outs of independent publishing. After all, we’re both writers.
Harper L. Jameson was born in southeastern Ohio and raised on stories and legends of her family seat at the base of the Appalachians. Her imagination ran wild, bringing the legends of times long past into our present. She currently lives in North Carolina with her husband and children but, she still calls those old mountains home. Look for her debut paranormal romance novel The Wind on Amazon.com in early 2016. Stay up to date on this and other upcoming releases at www.harperjameson.com.
www.harperjameson.comwww.facebook.com/HLJamesonwww.harperjameson.blogspot.com www.twitter.com/harperjameson
My apologies to Harper, who actually got this post to me a week ago. These days are just getting away from me like wildfire, I tell you! Thank you so much for sharing your insight, Harper! And thanks to all of you for reading, commenting and giving me someone to write to. Stay Classy, Blog-o-Sphere!
Best,
R
I found myself in a situation recently that forced me to question the validity of independently published authors versus those who are traditionally published. My questioning lasted approximately 2 minutes.
I sat in a college hallway, curled over my laptop and agonizing over my current WIP when a woman sitting nearby asked what I was doing. Unashamed of my goals toward writing a novel, I answered that I was, indeed, a writer.
“Oh! Who are you published with?”“I’m not published yet, but I intend to go the independent route.”“Oh.”
Oh. That was all. Until she went on to explain that she was represented by an agent who was shopping her work to a number of publishers. You see, she is as yet unpublished just like me but, she holds up her agent like a crucifix against a room full of vampires. As the days that we have to sit in each other’s company go on, I think more and more about the way she snorts under her knows when another questions me about the world of the independent author. I think about the way she rabidly checks her email waiting to hear from her agent about her impending literary stardom. And what I came up with was simple. She’s not better than me. We’re both on the bottom rung of the ladder, working our way up to published and yet somehow, she feels that professional representation validates her. All it means is that there is another hand in her royalty jar when her book finally hits Amazon.
Having an agent doesn’t make her any more of a writer than owning a paint brush makes me Rembrandt. The independent route isn’t for everyone. You have to be able to do a lot of the leg work yourself. You have to learn formatting and marketing methods. You might have to make your own covers and promotional materials. It’s tedious but, at the end of the day, we have total autonomy over our work and the pride that comes from knowing we did it.. and we did it alone.
In the same respect, not everyone can go the traditional route. Great books are too often over looked and the time spent trying to gain exposure is time not spent writing in an industry that thrives on quantity over quality. Query letters are soul-sucking at best and useless at worst. The wait to hear back on your submission can drain the life right out of you.
Still, I clack away at the keys and she snorts in distaste, softly shaking her head and making it a point to laugh at some clever email she finally received from her agent. To her, I say, you are not better than me. You are not better than any of us. We work just as hard. We pour just as much of our hearts and souls into the words we put on the page and your writing is not legitimized by a name on a business card. You’re legitimate when your book is out there for the masses and no matter the path we took to get there, one day we will all be able to say proudly that we are both writers.
When your agent disappears, and your work is buried in her growing slush pile, never to be seen again, I won’t judge and I’ll wish you all the best in replacing her. I’ll still be right here. Curled over my laptop and formatting my ebook. But when you finally hit the threshold of your frustration with the traditional publishing world, come scoot your chair over by me and I’ll tell you all of the ins and outs of independent publishing. After all, we’re both writers.
Harper L. Jameson was born in southeastern Ohio and raised on stories and legends of her family seat at the base of the Appalachians. Her imagination ran wild, bringing the legends of times long past into our present. She currently lives in North Carolina with her husband and children but, she still calls those old mountains home. Look for her debut paranormal romance novel The Wind on Amazon.com in early 2016. Stay up to date on this and other upcoming releases at www.harperjameson.com.
www.harperjameson.comwww.facebook.com/HLJamesonwww.harperjameson.blogspot.com www.twitter.com/harperjameson
My apologies to Harper, who actually got this post to me a week ago. These days are just getting away from me like wildfire, I tell you! Thank you so much for sharing your insight, Harper! And thanks to all of you for reading, commenting and giving me someone to write to. Stay Classy, Blog-o-Sphere!
Best,
R
October 7, 2015
IWSG: October, 2015
It’s IWSG day—the day when we writers come together to share our insecurities, worries, hesitations, fears and hopes! Founded by the always considerate Alex J. Cavanaugh, The Insecure Writer’s Support Group serves to provide writers with an opportunity to let it all out, or just provide a little inspiration.
I had high hopes for today: I was going to have a guest poster come on and talk about his depression-themed book; I was going to travel around the internet and visit my fellow IWSGers; I was going to clean the house, maybe take a shower; I was going to catch up on the author interviews and guest posts I owe people; I was going to pet my dogs.
But Abby’s still sick and I need to take her to the doctor; my guest poster vanished on me and I’m left tossing something together at the last minute; this is the first time I’ve gotten to my computer today and it’s already 1:00; the house is a mess; I’m a mess; there are mountains of laundry to be done; I have 347 unread emails; I’m completely behind on everything I owe everyone; I have I-don’t-know-how-many text messages and voicemails to respond to.
On top of that, I feel like almost everyone in the real world, writing world, blogging world and every other world has forgotten about me; I’m feeling quite overwhelmed and very underappreciated and, in turn, my dogs probably think I’ve forgotten about them. I haven’t eaten yet today—I’m staring down my cheeseburger, but I’m also trying to type this out and post it as quickly as possible so that I can get back to Abby before she starts crying again—or throws up on the dog again.
I wish I had something good to post today. I wish I had something inspiring. I try to be inspiring. I try not to be a Debbie Downer. But I’m feeling lonely, I’m feeling defeated, I’m feeling overwhelmed and I’m feeling abashed.
No matter. Tomorrow’s another day. I think I’ll try a bite of that cheeseburger now.
I had high hopes for today: I was going to have a guest poster come on and talk about his depression-themed book; I was going to travel around the internet and visit my fellow IWSGers; I was going to clean the house, maybe take a shower; I was going to catch up on the author interviews and guest posts I owe people; I was going to pet my dogs.
But Abby’s still sick and I need to take her to the doctor; my guest poster vanished on me and I’m left tossing something together at the last minute; this is the first time I’ve gotten to my computer today and it’s already 1:00; the house is a mess; I’m a mess; there are mountains of laundry to be done; I have 347 unread emails; I’m completely behind on everything I owe everyone; I have I-don’t-know-how-many text messages and voicemails to respond to.
On top of that, I feel like almost everyone in the real world, writing world, blogging world and every other world has forgotten about me; I’m feeling quite overwhelmed and very underappreciated and, in turn, my dogs probably think I’ve forgotten about them. I haven’t eaten yet today—I’m staring down my cheeseburger, but I’m also trying to type this out and post it as quickly as possible so that I can get back to Abby before she starts crying again—or throws up on the dog again.
I wish I had something good to post today. I wish I had something inspiring. I try to be inspiring. I try not to be a Debbie Downer. But I’m feeling lonely, I’m feeling defeated, I’m feeling overwhelmed and I’m feeling abashed.
No matter. Tomorrow’s another day. I think I’ll try a bite of that cheeseburger now.
October 2, 2015
Take No Offense. I Mean You No Harm.
I have two guest posts and an interview on stand-by, and many guests posts and interviews I, myself, need to write. However, I need to say something first. I need to speak out. To remain silent would be hypocritical of me. This post hereby defects from my usual rants about writing and puppies and the like—please, stay with me. I have a point, and that point is not to insult you. Take no offense by this post. I mean you no harm.
This is not a political post. I will bash no one’s party. This is not a religious rant. I will deny no one’s spiritual beliefs. I am not here to tell you that you are wrong because you vote red or blue. I am not here to tell you to take down your flag or tell you to put away your holiday decorations. Do not take immediate offense. I pose no threat to your values. Do not turn off or click away from this page because you think I’m about to shut down your proclivities or insult your intelligence. I’m not. Please, do not tune me out, but hear me out. All I’m asking for is an open ear, and your voice.
There is an epidemic in this country. There is. It’s evidenced by the innocent lives we lost yesterday in Oregon’s college shooting—one in a string of many senseless shootings that never should have occurred. People will say it’s because of the gun problem. People will say it’s because of mental health issues within our population. People will say other things. People will say, and say, and they will not agree on the “why.” Honestly, I can’t tell you what the “why” is. I’m no CIA analyst, nor do I have a doctorate in Psychology. What I can tell you is that something needs to change, and that change will not occur until we turn to each other, open up a dialogue, and talk about it—
—Without the insults. Without the close-mindedness and the ardor, and without trying to shove our own proclivities down each other’s throats. What we need is to be adults, to mediate the issue through active communication and thoughtful listening. We need to come to understand that our viewpoint, while valid in its own way, might not be the best viewpoint for the community. That’s what we need to be worried about here, friends. Not ourselves. Not our rights. The community.
Yes, way back in 1776 a piece of paper was signed by a few men, and that piece of paper upholds the way we govern our land. To repudiate that paper would be to throw us into anarchy, wouldn’t it? We can’t go against what our forefathers said! How would we govern? How would we uphold peace and justice?
Well, way, way back, say, 2,000 years ago, the law said that adulterers were to be stoned to death. My neighbor cheated on his wife a few years back. Never did I see the collective of Knollwood Acres gather together to throw stones at him until he took his last breath. I still see him pass by my house every day on his way to work. He receives a few dirty looks now and then, but he lives on.
Because we, as a community, came together and realized that stoning people to death was wrong. We also realized that slavery was wrong. We realized burning witches was wrong and we realized a whole lot of other things along the way, too. Why can’t we realize, then, that giving every one a gun might just be, kinda, sorta, just maybe, the wrong thing to do?
Take no offense. I’m not asking you to clean out your gun cabinet. I’m not saying that banning guns is the answer. I’m not saying that we should take guns away from every American and replace them with popsicles. I’m not. What I’m saying is that we need to have a discussion about, dare I say that nasty, nasty word, regulation. Yes, mental health may to be to blame for these killings. Why then, do we provide firearms to the mentally ill? Why no lengthened screenings, no hefty background checks? Why no regulation? Because it’s the American right to own a firearm? I’ve been saying this for years, friends, and I’ll say it yet again: just because it’s your “right” doesn’t make it right.
You’re a good Samaritan. You pose no threat to society. You own a gun because you feel safer, you want to defend your family, and that’s fine. That’s understandable. I get that. I’m no taking that away from you. Take no offense. But, your neighbor, he’s a touch…off, isn’t he? On a few prescriptions for mental illness? History of anger management? An arrest record? Do you really want him lurking just beyond the fence with a tool that could end your loved one’s life in the blink of an eye, simply because a three hundred year old piece of paper says it’s his right to have it? If we’re going to stick to every law we’ve ever written down on parchment, then I suppose we should go track down that Duggar guy and string him up—but first, let’s us all head down to the quarry and find ourselves a healthy supply of decently sized rocks.
It is not about taking away your means to protect your family, your community. Take no offense. It’s about providing further protection for your family, your community. Will background checks and stricter regulation help? I just don’t know. Because we aren’t talking about it. We’re either too busy shutting down and yelling at each other, or remaining silent. And that’s another problem.
We can no longer hide from this issue, friends. We can no longer ignore social media posts and news articles about it. Innocent people are dying. They are dying a dime a dozen. Where’s the outrage? Where’s the public voice? Why aren’t we sitting around and talking about this, adult to seasoned adult, in a calm and rationalized manner? Why are we so offended because our rights are being examined? Why are we so worried about what people think of us? So worried, that we won’t stand up for what we believe in?
It’s time to speak out about this, friends. It’s time to become unpopular. To lose a friend or two on Facebook. To lose a few book sales because of an unpopular opinion. It’s time to stand and say, “Yes, there is an issue. I see that. I’m open to discussion.” No longer can we cling to our ideals because they are safe and familiar. I will openly say that I disapprove of guns. I wish they were banned. However, I’m also open to the idea that banning all guns might not be the answer. That a change is necessary, though that change might be less than what I’d like it to be. The important thing is that I’m open. I’m willing to listen to your opinion, hear your answer. Why aren’t you?
There are those of you who will say, “It doesn’t matter if I speak up. My voice won’t change anything.” To those who remain silent because they believe their voice will change nothing, I offer you the following history lesson: Rosa Parks refused to give up a seat on a bus: look at how powerful that was for Civil Rights. Alice Paul wouldn't eat her milk and eggs: look at how powerful that was for Women's Rights. Patrons in a bar in Greenwich Village refused to yield to the police: look at how powerful that was for Gay Rights. One voice, one action. That’s all change needs.
Friends, take no offense. I mean you no harm. I just want you to open your mind to the possibility of change, even the slightest of change. I just want you to open your hearts to the twenty-six families who lost their precious little babies in Newtown, and to all those who have lost a loved one before or since. I want you to open your voice and do something to actively change this rampaging illness our society is plagued with. To bury your head in the sand and to refuse to re-examine your ideals because you are comfortable is to betray the very freedom your troops fight for, the very freedom your forefathers died for. To refuse to listen to anyone who doesn’t follow suit in your exact way of thinking is archaic. These killings will never stop until we, as a people, talk about it. They will only grow worse until we agree to put aside our proclivities and to listen to each other, to actively pursue a solution that, while it may not be ideal for us as individuals, is ideal for us as a community.
That’s my opinion. That’s my voice. Take no offense. I mean you no harm.
This is not a political post. I will bash no one’s party. This is not a religious rant. I will deny no one’s spiritual beliefs. I am not here to tell you that you are wrong because you vote red or blue. I am not here to tell you to take down your flag or tell you to put away your holiday decorations. Do not take immediate offense. I pose no threat to your values. Do not turn off or click away from this page because you think I’m about to shut down your proclivities or insult your intelligence. I’m not. Please, do not tune me out, but hear me out. All I’m asking for is an open ear, and your voice.
There is an epidemic in this country. There is. It’s evidenced by the innocent lives we lost yesterday in Oregon’s college shooting—one in a string of many senseless shootings that never should have occurred. People will say it’s because of the gun problem. People will say it’s because of mental health issues within our population. People will say other things. People will say, and say, and they will not agree on the “why.” Honestly, I can’t tell you what the “why” is. I’m no CIA analyst, nor do I have a doctorate in Psychology. What I can tell you is that something needs to change, and that change will not occur until we turn to each other, open up a dialogue, and talk about it—
—Without the insults. Without the close-mindedness and the ardor, and without trying to shove our own proclivities down each other’s throats. What we need is to be adults, to mediate the issue through active communication and thoughtful listening. We need to come to understand that our viewpoint, while valid in its own way, might not be the best viewpoint for the community. That’s what we need to be worried about here, friends. Not ourselves. Not our rights. The community.
Yes, way back in 1776 a piece of paper was signed by a few men, and that piece of paper upholds the way we govern our land. To repudiate that paper would be to throw us into anarchy, wouldn’t it? We can’t go against what our forefathers said! How would we govern? How would we uphold peace and justice?
Well, way, way back, say, 2,000 years ago, the law said that adulterers were to be stoned to death. My neighbor cheated on his wife a few years back. Never did I see the collective of Knollwood Acres gather together to throw stones at him until he took his last breath. I still see him pass by my house every day on his way to work. He receives a few dirty looks now and then, but he lives on.
Because we, as a community, came together and realized that stoning people to death was wrong. We also realized that slavery was wrong. We realized burning witches was wrong and we realized a whole lot of other things along the way, too. Why can’t we realize, then, that giving every one a gun might just be, kinda, sorta, just maybe, the wrong thing to do?
Take no offense. I’m not asking you to clean out your gun cabinet. I’m not saying that banning guns is the answer. I’m not saying that we should take guns away from every American and replace them with popsicles. I’m not. What I’m saying is that we need to have a discussion about, dare I say that nasty, nasty word, regulation. Yes, mental health may to be to blame for these killings. Why then, do we provide firearms to the mentally ill? Why no lengthened screenings, no hefty background checks? Why no regulation? Because it’s the American right to own a firearm? I’ve been saying this for years, friends, and I’ll say it yet again: just because it’s your “right” doesn’t make it right.
You’re a good Samaritan. You pose no threat to society. You own a gun because you feel safer, you want to defend your family, and that’s fine. That’s understandable. I get that. I’m no taking that away from you. Take no offense. But, your neighbor, he’s a touch…off, isn’t he? On a few prescriptions for mental illness? History of anger management? An arrest record? Do you really want him lurking just beyond the fence with a tool that could end your loved one’s life in the blink of an eye, simply because a three hundred year old piece of paper says it’s his right to have it? If we’re going to stick to every law we’ve ever written down on parchment, then I suppose we should go track down that Duggar guy and string him up—but first, let’s us all head down to the quarry and find ourselves a healthy supply of decently sized rocks.
It is not about taking away your means to protect your family, your community. Take no offense. It’s about providing further protection for your family, your community. Will background checks and stricter regulation help? I just don’t know. Because we aren’t talking about it. We’re either too busy shutting down and yelling at each other, or remaining silent. And that’s another problem.
We can no longer hide from this issue, friends. We can no longer ignore social media posts and news articles about it. Innocent people are dying. They are dying a dime a dozen. Where’s the outrage? Where’s the public voice? Why aren’t we sitting around and talking about this, adult to seasoned adult, in a calm and rationalized manner? Why are we so offended because our rights are being examined? Why are we so worried about what people think of us? So worried, that we won’t stand up for what we believe in?
It’s time to speak out about this, friends. It’s time to become unpopular. To lose a friend or two on Facebook. To lose a few book sales because of an unpopular opinion. It’s time to stand and say, “Yes, there is an issue. I see that. I’m open to discussion.” No longer can we cling to our ideals because they are safe and familiar. I will openly say that I disapprove of guns. I wish they were banned. However, I’m also open to the idea that banning all guns might not be the answer. That a change is necessary, though that change might be less than what I’d like it to be. The important thing is that I’m open. I’m willing to listen to your opinion, hear your answer. Why aren’t you?
There are those of you who will say, “It doesn’t matter if I speak up. My voice won’t change anything.” To those who remain silent because they believe their voice will change nothing, I offer you the following history lesson: Rosa Parks refused to give up a seat on a bus: look at how powerful that was for Civil Rights. Alice Paul wouldn't eat her milk and eggs: look at how powerful that was for Women's Rights. Patrons in a bar in Greenwich Village refused to yield to the police: look at how powerful that was for Gay Rights. One voice, one action. That’s all change needs.
Friends, take no offense. I mean you no harm. I just want you to open your mind to the possibility of change, even the slightest of change. I just want you to open your hearts to the twenty-six families who lost their precious little babies in Newtown, and to all those who have lost a loved one before or since. I want you to open your voice and do something to actively change this rampaging illness our society is plagued with. To bury your head in the sand and to refuse to re-examine your ideals because you are comfortable is to betray the very freedom your troops fight for, the very freedom your forefathers died for. To refuse to listen to anyone who doesn’t follow suit in your exact way of thinking is archaic. These killings will never stop until we, as a people, talk about it. They will only grow worse until we agree to put aside our proclivities and to listen to each other, to actively pursue a solution that, while it may not be ideal for us as individuals, is ideal for us as a community.
That’s my opinion. That’s my voice. Take no offense. I mean you no harm.
September 27, 2015
Why I Want You to Read My Book (A Message to Non-Writers)
So, you all know I’ve been on a marketing tirade recently. I’ve been blasting the message about my book, Affected, on social media, in newspapers and on online news sites, on blogs, on the news and radio, at public speaking engagements—pretty much everywhere there is to be heard, I’m putting my voice out there. I want you, my reader friend, to read my book. I want it more than anything. I want my book to be at the top of the charts. I want it read on busses and I want it read in airports. I want people to see it in a bookstore and pick up a copy. I want Randi Lee to become a household name.
“Well, Randi, that’s quite the frank answer,” you may say. “So, what’s the reason behind this passion of yours? Why do you want me to read your book so badly? Well, since you’ve asked…
To begin, as writers, I think what many of us do not understand is that non-writers do not know what goes into composing a book. I say this because I see it: writers growing frustrated because their friends and family aren’t as excited about their latest plot idea as they themselves are; writers hurt because people aren’t mentioning their book on Facebook or Twitter as much as they’d like to see; writers let down by low book sales; writers discouraged because no one seems to like their antagonist as much as they do. What writers fail to recognize is that non-writers don’t act this way to be insensitive. They don’t ignore your latest Facebook post about your book because they want to hurt or alienate you or because they simply don’t care. As much as it feels personal, it really, truly, isn’t. What it is is simple.
Non-writes just don’t know what goes into composing a book.
And that’s the purpose of today’s post: to fill non-writers in; to bridge the gap between non-writer and writer; to alleviate those writers frustrated with people who do not read their book posts on Facebook; to alleviate those non-writers frustrated with people who post about their books on Facebook; to unify us in the togetherness that is storytelling; and, quite selfishly, to hopefully sell one or two more of my books.
It took more than two Sunday afternoons to write.
My latest novel is approximately 80,000 words, and that’s on the lower end of word counts for full-length fiction novels. Think about it: even if you typed 100 words per minute, with no typos, no adding/deleting and no relocating of words—if you typed 100 words per minute with no alterations or distractions, that’s fourteen hours worth of typing. Now add in distractions, and typos, adding/deleting and relocating words, sentences, paragraphs, even pages of writing. Add in the time it takes to think up those words and lines and paragraphs and pages and then add in the fact that this is only the rough draft—that there are probably two or three more drafts to come before the final draft, which is stillonly a draft—and then add in the fact that much more typing and deleting and re-typing is to be done before the story can actually be deemed “complete.” That is many, many hours spent typing—and typing, friends, is only one of many parts of composing a book.
I spent a lot of time researching.
I am not a woodworker. Ethan, my main-character, is. This posed a problem. I had no idea how tools worked: how was I going to write the story of a modern-day carpenter? When I wrote a scene in which a character launched a nail across a room at another character by shooting a nail gun at him, only for Tim to label the scene ridiculous as a nail gun needs direct pressure on its head in order for it to fire, I knew I needed to invest some time in understanding how tools work before I could write even this onescene.
Many of the places in Affected, even local venues, are places I have never been to. I spent a lot of time on Google Maps researching street names. I visited many different websites looking up pictures of hotels, diners and train stations. My browser history includes check-ins at a dozen or so sites about boats and how long several different types of boat would take to make a trans-Atlantic voyage. I spent a month’s worth of ice-cream money on various detailed books about Rome and The Vatican. I do not know how it feels to have the sand gather between my toes while standing at the very tip of the Nova Scotia shoreline, just close enough to be touched by the ocean, but far away enough so that it does not lick my heels. My main character knows this feeling, though, because of the time I spent on travel forums asking about it.
I cannot tell you how many hours I spent researching the various people, places and things that appear in Affected—even on fact-checking things I already knew—but I can tell you that after doing so I’m ready to write extensive thesis papers in several different areas.
I people watched. A lot.
As an adult white woman living in North America, there’s no way for me to know how a militant Irish man is going to react to a particular situation. I can’t definitively tell you what a ten-year-old boy might think if he were to be lost in a crowded place. And how should I know how that old man sitting alone by that duck pond feels about sitting alone by a duck pond? I shouldn’t, because those life experiences aren’t my own. However, it is the job of the writer to become his or her characters and to understand what his or her characters would understand. It is the job of the writer to know his or her characters’ life experiences as well as they know their own. So I people watched: I read conversations on social media sites; I perused forums that I thought my characters would visit and posts threads in; I sat in eateries by myself and listened in on the conversations patrons had with their waiters and waitresses; I read screenplays about characters that were similar to mine to learn dialogue patterns; I kept my ears open in every possible place I could so that I could understand how different people code and decode messages and situations. It’s one more invisible aspect of writing that took a lot of time and effort and always goes unseen.
I felt every emotion in the book while I wrote my book.
People often tease me for wearing my heart on my sleeve as I do. However, I’m the type of personality who feels. Most writers are. It’s not only the time and physical and mental energy that goes into writing a book—it’s the emotional energy, as well. We writers are so emotionally connected to and invested in our characters and stories that they are an emotional extension of us, regardless of genre or content. What we experience emotionally pours out of our pages and that makes those pages infinitely important to us. They become our children, in a way. What parent isn’t emotionally connected to and infinitely proud of their child?
It’s my job.
Someone asked me, “If you want people to read your stories so badly, why don’t you give them away for free?” Most doctors get into the medical field because they want to help people—when was the last time your co-pay was waved for a medical visit? I do, sometimes, give my stories away for free via submitting them to free websites and trade-journals. Other times, I charge for them because writing is my profession and I need that profession to be at least somewhat profitable in order to keep shoes on my feet and a roof over my head. It isn’t out of greed or pride or for that new sports car, no. It’s to afford those same essentials we all should be able to afford for sharing our talents. In fact, if you look me up on any site where my books are available for purchase, you’ll find my works quite reasonably priced. I’m no glutton. I’m no crook. I’m just doing what all of us do for a living: trying to get by—my trade is just one that’s less understood than most, that’s all.
I seek validation.
Come off it, you know you do, too. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be peddling your wares. Publishing is an exceedingly difficult trade in which to succeed. There is a lot of rejection. There are a lot of doors slammed in your face. There is skepticism and bullying in spades. After receiving countless rejections and being told ‘no’ so many times the word became a ubiquitous sound effect, I can tell you that the writing world is not for the sensitive. It’s ironic, really, because writers are the most sensitive people I know.
A purchase of my book is someone saying to me, “You’re good enough.” It’s someone saying, “All those hours you spent typing, re-typing, thinking, plotting, perusing, people-watching, researching and re-writing, they show. Good job, you. You put a lot of work into this. I can tell.” People like being validated. They like knowing they’ve done a good job and that others appreciate and admire their work, especially after being told “no” time and time—and time again. What child doesn’t like a pat on the back after achieving a solid report card and what employee doesn’t like a raise and a good review for their hard-earned efforts. Well, we writers want that, too. A book purchase is our pat on the back. It’s our raise and good review for our hard-earned efforts.
I spent three years on this thing, damn it!
I did. Three years. Affected began in 2012 and was published mid-2015. Plain and simply, wouldn’t you want to share three year’s worth of effort in the world?
I am, in the end, a story-teller.
What good is a story-teller without an audience? Story-telling is inherent to us as a people. We’ve been telling stories for as long as we’ve had an evolved language-structure, for as long as we’ve been able to paint stick-figures on the walls of caves. Stories are complex metaphors of the messages we wish to share. That’s what Affected is, a complex metaphor, as are all my stories, no matter the word-length. I want to share that metaphor, that message, with you. I want that message to travel as far as it will go, for as long as it will go.
I am sure, as it goes, that there are elements of this that I am missing. My writer friends can undoubtedly tell you more reasons why our stories are so important to us. However, I have chatted your ear off for quite some time and my meatball grinder is getting cold. There are so many reasons why I want you to read more book, these are just some of the more prominent reasons that come to mind. So, friends, now that I’ve been frank, now that I’ve put myself out there and told you all about what I’ve been pouring my heart into for the past three-plus years, now will you read my book?
There’s an interview featuring yours truly up over at BooksChatter. Check it out here! I’ll be guest-blogging while featuring my own guest-bloggers throughout the month of October—keep an eye out! And don’t forget to mark your calendars for October 6th at 7pm, when I’ll be interviewed on Artist First Radio. As always, thanks for reading, thanks for commenting and thanks for giving me someone to write to. Stay Classy, Blog-o-Sphere!
Best,
—R
“Well, Randi, that’s quite the frank answer,” you may say. “So, what’s the reason behind this passion of yours? Why do you want me to read your book so badly? Well, since you’ve asked…
To begin, as writers, I think what many of us do not understand is that non-writers do not know what goes into composing a book. I say this because I see it: writers growing frustrated because their friends and family aren’t as excited about their latest plot idea as they themselves are; writers hurt because people aren’t mentioning their book on Facebook or Twitter as much as they’d like to see; writers let down by low book sales; writers discouraged because no one seems to like their antagonist as much as they do. What writers fail to recognize is that non-writers don’t act this way to be insensitive. They don’t ignore your latest Facebook post about your book because they want to hurt or alienate you or because they simply don’t care. As much as it feels personal, it really, truly, isn’t. What it is is simple.
Non-writes just don’t know what goes into composing a book.
And that’s the purpose of today’s post: to fill non-writers in; to bridge the gap between non-writer and writer; to alleviate those writers frustrated with people who do not read their book posts on Facebook; to alleviate those non-writers frustrated with people who post about their books on Facebook; to unify us in the togetherness that is storytelling; and, quite selfishly, to hopefully sell one or two more of my books.
It took more than two Sunday afternoons to write.
My latest novel is approximately 80,000 words, and that’s on the lower end of word counts for full-length fiction novels. Think about it: even if you typed 100 words per minute, with no typos, no adding/deleting and no relocating of words—if you typed 100 words per minute with no alterations or distractions, that’s fourteen hours worth of typing. Now add in distractions, and typos, adding/deleting and relocating words, sentences, paragraphs, even pages of writing. Add in the time it takes to think up those words and lines and paragraphs and pages and then add in the fact that this is only the rough draft—that there are probably two or three more drafts to come before the final draft, which is stillonly a draft—and then add in the fact that much more typing and deleting and re-typing is to be done before the story can actually be deemed “complete.” That is many, many hours spent typing—and typing, friends, is only one of many parts of composing a book.
I spent a lot of time researching.
I am not a woodworker. Ethan, my main-character, is. This posed a problem. I had no idea how tools worked: how was I going to write the story of a modern-day carpenter? When I wrote a scene in which a character launched a nail across a room at another character by shooting a nail gun at him, only for Tim to label the scene ridiculous as a nail gun needs direct pressure on its head in order for it to fire, I knew I needed to invest some time in understanding how tools work before I could write even this onescene.
Many of the places in Affected, even local venues, are places I have never been to. I spent a lot of time on Google Maps researching street names. I visited many different websites looking up pictures of hotels, diners and train stations. My browser history includes check-ins at a dozen or so sites about boats and how long several different types of boat would take to make a trans-Atlantic voyage. I spent a month’s worth of ice-cream money on various detailed books about Rome and The Vatican. I do not know how it feels to have the sand gather between my toes while standing at the very tip of the Nova Scotia shoreline, just close enough to be touched by the ocean, but far away enough so that it does not lick my heels. My main character knows this feeling, though, because of the time I spent on travel forums asking about it.
I cannot tell you how many hours I spent researching the various people, places and things that appear in Affected—even on fact-checking things I already knew—but I can tell you that after doing so I’m ready to write extensive thesis papers in several different areas.
I people watched. A lot.
As an adult white woman living in North America, there’s no way for me to know how a militant Irish man is going to react to a particular situation. I can’t definitively tell you what a ten-year-old boy might think if he were to be lost in a crowded place. And how should I know how that old man sitting alone by that duck pond feels about sitting alone by a duck pond? I shouldn’t, because those life experiences aren’t my own. However, it is the job of the writer to become his or her characters and to understand what his or her characters would understand. It is the job of the writer to know his or her characters’ life experiences as well as they know their own. So I people watched: I read conversations on social media sites; I perused forums that I thought my characters would visit and posts threads in; I sat in eateries by myself and listened in on the conversations patrons had with their waiters and waitresses; I read screenplays about characters that were similar to mine to learn dialogue patterns; I kept my ears open in every possible place I could so that I could understand how different people code and decode messages and situations. It’s one more invisible aspect of writing that took a lot of time and effort and always goes unseen.
I felt every emotion in the book while I wrote my book.
People often tease me for wearing my heart on my sleeve as I do. However, I’m the type of personality who feels. Most writers are. It’s not only the time and physical and mental energy that goes into writing a book—it’s the emotional energy, as well. We writers are so emotionally connected to and invested in our characters and stories that they are an emotional extension of us, regardless of genre or content. What we experience emotionally pours out of our pages and that makes those pages infinitely important to us. They become our children, in a way. What parent isn’t emotionally connected to and infinitely proud of their child?
It’s my job.
Someone asked me, “If you want people to read your stories so badly, why don’t you give them away for free?” Most doctors get into the medical field because they want to help people—when was the last time your co-pay was waved for a medical visit? I do, sometimes, give my stories away for free via submitting them to free websites and trade-journals. Other times, I charge for them because writing is my profession and I need that profession to be at least somewhat profitable in order to keep shoes on my feet and a roof over my head. It isn’t out of greed or pride or for that new sports car, no. It’s to afford those same essentials we all should be able to afford for sharing our talents. In fact, if you look me up on any site where my books are available for purchase, you’ll find my works quite reasonably priced. I’m no glutton. I’m no crook. I’m just doing what all of us do for a living: trying to get by—my trade is just one that’s less understood than most, that’s all.
I seek validation.
Come off it, you know you do, too. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be peddling your wares. Publishing is an exceedingly difficult trade in which to succeed. There is a lot of rejection. There are a lot of doors slammed in your face. There is skepticism and bullying in spades. After receiving countless rejections and being told ‘no’ so many times the word became a ubiquitous sound effect, I can tell you that the writing world is not for the sensitive. It’s ironic, really, because writers are the most sensitive people I know.
A purchase of my book is someone saying to me, “You’re good enough.” It’s someone saying, “All those hours you spent typing, re-typing, thinking, plotting, perusing, people-watching, researching and re-writing, they show. Good job, you. You put a lot of work into this. I can tell.” People like being validated. They like knowing they’ve done a good job and that others appreciate and admire their work, especially after being told “no” time and time—and time again. What child doesn’t like a pat on the back after achieving a solid report card and what employee doesn’t like a raise and a good review for their hard-earned efforts. Well, we writers want that, too. A book purchase is our pat on the back. It’s our raise and good review for our hard-earned efforts.
I spent three years on this thing, damn it!
I did. Three years. Affected began in 2012 and was published mid-2015. Plain and simply, wouldn’t you want to share three year’s worth of effort in the world?
I am, in the end, a story-teller.
What good is a story-teller without an audience? Story-telling is inherent to us as a people. We’ve been telling stories for as long as we’ve had an evolved language-structure, for as long as we’ve been able to paint stick-figures on the walls of caves. Stories are complex metaphors of the messages we wish to share. That’s what Affected is, a complex metaphor, as are all my stories, no matter the word-length. I want to share that metaphor, that message, with you. I want that message to travel as far as it will go, for as long as it will go.
I am sure, as it goes, that there are elements of this that I am missing. My writer friends can undoubtedly tell you more reasons why our stories are so important to us. However, I have chatted your ear off for quite some time and my meatball grinder is getting cold. There are so many reasons why I want you to read more book, these are just some of the more prominent reasons that come to mind. So, friends, now that I’ve been frank, now that I’ve put myself out there and told you all about what I’ve been pouring my heart into for the past three-plus years, now will you read my book?
There’s an interview featuring yours truly up over at BooksChatter. Check it out here! I’ll be guest-blogging while featuring my own guest-bloggers throughout the month of October—keep an eye out! And don’t forget to mark your calendars for October 6th at 7pm, when I’ll be interviewed on Artist First Radio. As always, thanks for reading, thanks for commenting and thanks for giving me someone to write to. Stay Classy, Blog-o-Sphere!
Best,
—R
September 23, 2015
My "Build Book Buzz" article, and I'm going to be on the news! Among other things...
Hi Friends!
Sandra Beckwith, the inspiring mind behind Build Book Buzz, was nice enough to post my guest article on her site today. It’s about the power of images in social media marketing campaigns and what they can do for you: “Book sales skyrocket when author adds social media images” Thank you, Sandra, for hosting my article. I love the wealth of information your site brings to writers and am happy to be a part of it!
I’m also over at I Heart Reading today for the start of a week-long virtual book tour. You can learn more about my action-packed, dystopian thriller “Affected” at today’s tour stop, I Heart Reading.
Local friends can tune into Western Mass News tomorrow at 12:45pm for a live interview with me about Affected and book marketing/self-promotion.
I also received UPS confirmation that Publisher’s Weekly & The Boston Globe received the copies of Affected I sent them along with review requests—and Barnes & Noble received the copy I sent them with a request to carry the book in their brick and mortar locations.
Yesterday marked the first email to the first agency (in a long list of agencies) to try and sell the movie rights to Affected. I personally think it’d make a killer action and suspense movie, so here’s hoping!
Friends—what are you doing to get your book out there? I’d love to swap strategies!
PS: Dear friend and fellow blogger Krystal Jane wrote the utmost of inspiring posts and it's, in my humble opinion, the best blog post I've read so far this year. If you're feeling down about your writing and your ideas, you'll want to read this one. Click here to be taken to Krystal's post.
My comments section is still awry and I am, in fact, considering moving my blog to a different host so that I can respond to your wonderful words. Until then, I love reading what you have to say, so, as always, thanks for reading, thanks for commenting and thanks for giving me someone to write to! Stay Classy, Blog-o-Sphere!
Best,
—R
Sandra Beckwith, the inspiring mind behind Build Book Buzz, was nice enough to post my guest article on her site today. It’s about the power of images in social media marketing campaigns and what they can do for you: “Book sales skyrocket when author adds social media images” Thank you, Sandra, for hosting my article. I love the wealth of information your site brings to writers and am happy to be a part of it!
I’m also over at I Heart Reading today for the start of a week-long virtual book tour. You can learn more about my action-packed, dystopian thriller “Affected” at today’s tour stop, I Heart Reading.
Local friends can tune into Western Mass News tomorrow at 12:45pm for a live interview with me about Affected and book marketing/self-promotion.
I also received UPS confirmation that Publisher’s Weekly & The Boston Globe received the copies of Affected I sent them along with review requests—and Barnes & Noble received the copy I sent them with a request to carry the book in their brick and mortar locations.
Yesterday marked the first email to the first agency (in a long list of agencies) to try and sell the movie rights to Affected. I personally think it’d make a killer action and suspense movie, so here’s hoping!
Friends—what are you doing to get your book out there? I’d love to swap strategies!
PS: Dear friend and fellow blogger Krystal Jane wrote the utmost of inspiring posts and it's, in my humble opinion, the best blog post I've read so far this year. If you're feeling down about your writing and your ideas, you'll want to read this one. Click here to be taken to Krystal's post.
My comments section is still awry and I am, in fact, considering moving my blog to a different host so that I can respond to your wonderful words. Until then, I love reading what you have to say, so, as always, thanks for reading, thanks for commenting and thanks for giving me someone to write to! Stay Classy, Blog-o-Sphere!
Best,
—R
September 21, 2015
Author Lexi Ryan Speaks Out: The Silliness of Social Media Hate
A quick comment about my comment section: it isn’t working. People can leave comments. However, I can’t seem to respond to them. Please do not let that discourage you from telling me what you think. I’m not ignoring you! I love and appreciate your comments and read them all. They make my day, in fact. Please, keep ‘em coming!
I’ve noticed a lot of hate in the social media world recently, and I don’t get it. It seems like a lot of wasted effort and energy. I came across a post from fellow author Lexi Ryan on Facebook recently, in which she expressed her feelings about a particular instance of such social media animosity and it immediately caught my attention. I was going to write a post and paraphrase Lexi’s comments on the issue; however, she suggested showing screenshots of her post instead, to maintain credibility and ensure her words accurately carried over to the Blog-o-Sphere.
Lexi’s post is in response to the outrage against an author who created a “Gofundme” campaign to help fund her writing. Upon publication, the campaign went viral, many people stating that said author had no right to ask for money while so many other authors were working hard to fund their dream on their own. Lexi had an interesting opinion on the Internet’s adverse reaction to the campaign, one that I’d like to share in its entirety:
In this situation, Lexi has my vote. Do I agree with an author asking people to fund her writing career? No. I’ve publically stated that I don’t agree with 90% of crowd funding campaigns and only contribute to and promote them if I feel the situation is dire. Am I going to get my panties in a bunch and lash out over this campaign? Absolutely not. I have bigger issues to worry about. I’m going to shake my head, close out of the campaign’s web page, and move on to other things. Time, aggravation, headache all saved. The day’s still well.
If someone doesn’t like the campaign, the easiest thing for them to do it is ignore it, not ignite an online war over some random person asking for money. They aren’t demanding money, that person. It isn’t coming out of anyone’s taxes and it isn’t defunding any state or federal projects. It’s coming from interested individuals who have the right to choose where their spare cash lands. If you disagree with the campaign and don’t want to contribute, the choice is simple: don’t. Instead of pitting people against each other in a massive online free-for-all, just shake your head, close out of the campaign’s web page, and move on to other things. And, if you truly want to, go ahead and express your disagreement with the campaign—but do so in a tasteful way, without the hate, without the hurt and without the call to arms. There’s too much hate in the world, already—real hate—for us to add more to it over trivial situations such as this.
I applaud you, Lexi, for saying the things many of us wouldn’t say for fear of backlash. Thank you for your honesty and your opinion. Keep on sharing. As always, thanks for reading, thanks for commenting and thanks for giving me someone to write to. Stay Classy, Blog-o-Sphere!
Best,
—R
I’ve noticed a lot of hate in the social media world recently, and I don’t get it. It seems like a lot of wasted effort and energy. I came across a post from fellow author Lexi Ryan on Facebook recently, in which she expressed her feelings about a particular instance of such social media animosity and it immediately caught my attention. I was going to write a post and paraphrase Lexi’s comments on the issue; however, she suggested showing screenshots of her post instead, to maintain credibility and ensure her words accurately carried over to the Blog-o-Sphere.
Lexi’s post is in response to the outrage against an author who created a “Gofundme” campaign to help fund her writing. Upon publication, the campaign went viral, many people stating that said author had no right to ask for money while so many other authors were working hard to fund their dream on their own. Lexi had an interesting opinion on the Internet’s adverse reaction to the campaign, one that I’d like to share in its entirety:
In this situation, Lexi has my vote. Do I agree with an author asking people to fund her writing career? No. I’ve publically stated that I don’t agree with 90% of crowd funding campaigns and only contribute to and promote them if I feel the situation is dire. Am I going to get my panties in a bunch and lash out over this campaign? Absolutely not. I have bigger issues to worry about. I’m going to shake my head, close out of the campaign’s web page, and move on to other things. Time, aggravation, headache all saved. The day’s still well.
If someone doesn’t like the campaign, the easiest thing for them to do it is ignore it, not ignite an online war over some random person asking for money. They aren’t demanding money, that person. It isn’t coming out of anyone’s taxes and it isn’t defunding any state or federal projects. It’s coming from interested individuals who have the right to choose where their spare cash lands. If you disagree with the campaign and don’t want to contribute, the choice is simple: don’t. Instead of pitting people against each other in a massive online free-for-all, just shake your head, close out of the campaign’s web page, and move on to other things. And, if you truly want to, go ahead and express your disagreement with the campaign—but do so in a tasteful way, without the hate, without the hurt and without the call to arms. There’s too much hate in the world, already—real hate—for us to add more to it over trivial situations such as this.
I applaud you, Lexi, for saying the things many of us wouldn’t say for fear of backlash. Thank you for your honesty and your opinion. Keep on sharing. As always, thanks for reading, thanks for commenting and thanks for giving me someone to write to. Stay Classy, Blog-o-Sphere!
Best,
—R
September 19, 2015
Because it's International Talk Like a Pirate Day...
Ahoy, me book lovin’ mateys! Why not spice up yer marketing campaign today with some hearty pirate speech on this jolly good International Talk Like a Pirate Day, me hearties?
Yar!
Randi Lee's Blog
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