Aprilynne Pike's Blog, page 8
December 20, 2010
The Last Three Weeks
Wow! I have had such a crazy last three weeks!
What I have done:
*Had a baby (:D)
*Put in about 50 hours finishing up the first round of revisions on Life After Theft and turned it in! (Not quite by my self-imposed deadline, but before my editor-imposed deadline, phew!)
*kissed the baby about a trillion times
*Made about 15 pounds of hand-dipped chocolates (Penuche in milk, truffles in milk, Strawberry-lime in white, orange creme in white) plus Velveeta fudge.
*Just sat and looked at my baby for about an hour a day. . . maybe more.
*Finished 100% of my Christmas shopping!
*Took about a hundred pictures of the baby.
*Selected and contacted ten winners from the Illusions cover contest and sent out prize packs. That included winners from Finland, Sweden, Australia, and Canada! (I get excited about foreign readers.:D)
*Tweeted about 50 of the said one hundred pictures.
*Finished practicing and then directed the choir Christmas performance at church yesterday.
*Spent hours trying to make the baby smile (which she does!)
*Did I mention kissing the baby?
What I did NOT do in the last three weeks:
*Blog
Ahem.
Okay, couple of items of business.
UK cover for book three!!!!
Wait, what? That doesn't look quite right, you say? I have known this for a while and keep forgetting to tell you guys! In the UK book three will be called Wild, which I absolutely love! . . . for reasons I can't tell you yet . . .:D But I'm really excited about the new title and this beautiful cover!
*Bonus content: One of the things we are doing as a lead up to Illusions is that I am writing some bonus content that will be posted in various places over the next few months. They will be short pieces that take place either between Spells and Illusions, or during Illusions but from a different person's point of view. I'll be writing them over the next month and they will be posted the first couple of months of 2011. I will let everyone know where they can find them as soon as they are up.
*I will also be posting some bits from Illusions as well as some fun cover copy as we lead up to the Illusions release. . . . Starting today! Special holiday gift, the following is the short scene Harper is putting on the back of the book jacket. However, two disclaimers:
1.) David fans, this scene is taken completely out of context.
2.) Tamani fans, this scene is taken completely out of context.
You have both been warned.:D
And with the standard ***SPOILER ALERT***, here you go:
"When you kissed me, I got all these . . . ideas. For potions I've never heard of." Laurel thought of the way the word poison had invaded her mind. "I think maybe they're forbidden."
"Why?" Tamani asked.
"It told me how to make potions from you." Laurel lost herself in thoughts of potions, powders, and poisons she somehow knew she was never supposed to learn.
***END OF SPOILERS***
Happy Holidays!
Ciao!
What I have done:
*Had a baby (:D)
*Put in about 50 hours finishing up the first round of revisions on Life After Theft and turned it in! (Not quite by my self-imposed deadline, but before my editor-imposed deadline, phew!)
*kissed the baby about a trillion times
*Made about 15 pounds of hand-dipped chocolates (Penuche in milk, truffles in milk, Strawberry-lime in white, orange creme in white) plus Velveeta fudge.
*Just sat and looked at my baby for about an hour a day. . . maybe more.
*Finished 100% of my Christmas shopping!
*Took about a hundred pictures of the baby.
*Selected and contacted ten winners from the Illusions cover contest and sent out prize packs. That included winners from Finland, Sweden, Australia, and Canada! (I get excited about foreign readers.:D)
*Tweeted about 50 of the said one hundred pictures.
*Finished practicing and then directed the choir Christmas performance at church yesterday.
*Spent hours trying to make the baby smile (which she does!)
*Did I mention kissing the baby?
What I did NOT do in the last three weeks:
*Blog
Ahem.
Okay, couple of items of business.
UK cover for book three!!!!
Wait, what? That doesn't look quite right, you say? I have known this for a while and keep forgetting to tell you guys! In the UK book three will be called Wild, which I absolutely love! . . . for reasons I can't tell you yet . . .:D But I'm really excited about the new title and this beautiful cover!
*Bonus content: One of the things we are doing as a lead up to Illusions is that I am writing some bonus content that will be posted in various places over the next few months. They will be short pieces that take place either between Spells and Illusions, or during Illusions but from a different person's point of view. I'll be writing them over the next month and they will be posted the first couple of months of 2011. I will let everyone know where they can find them as soon as they are up.
*I will also be posting some bits from Illusions as well as some fun cover copy as we lead up to the Illusions release. . . . Starting today! Special holiday gift, the following is the short scene Harper is putting on the back of the book jacket. However, two disclaimers:
1.) David fans, this scene is taken completely out of context.
2.) Tamani fans, this scene is taken completely out of context.
You have both been warned.:D
And with the standard ***SPOILER ALERT***, here you go:
"When you kissed me, I got all these . . . ideas. For potions I've never heard of." Laurel thought of the way the word poison had invaded her mind. "I think maybe they're forbidden."
"Why?" Tamani asked.
"It told me how to make potions from you." Laurel lost herself in thoughts of potions, powders, and poisons she somehow knew she was never supposed to learn.
***END OF SPOILERS***
Happy Holidays!
Ciao!
November 27, 2010
My Excuse:)
Okay, I admit, things have been a little . . . sporadic around here the last few months. But I have a good reason! (I mean besides the normal writerly excuse of I'm writing/editing my next book.";))
I've kept this very much to myself this time around, but now that she's here, I'm telling everyone!
Meet Gwendolyn, born this morning, at home.
She arrived thirteen days past her due date (silly kid--didn't she get that calendar I swallowed??) but she's here at last, to everyone's relief--especially mine!
And no, this does not mean more babies will suddenly start popping up in my books.:D
Ciao!
I've kept this very much to myself this time around, but now that she's here, I'm telling everyone!
Meet Gwendolyn, born this morning, at home.
She arrived thirteen days past her due date (silly kid--didn't she get that calendar I swallowed??) but she's here at last, to everyone's relief--especially mine!
And no, this does not mean more babies will suddenly start popping up in my books.:D
Ciao!
November 19, 2010
Starting a Business
(I've been thinking about this subject for ages, so this is going to be really long--you've been warned.)
Yesterday my husband and I met with an accountant to begin the process of incorporating. (Yes, yes, I know there are a lot of people saying, "I told you so," right now. I have bucked against this for years!) So in another month or so, I am going to be a company.
Officially.
Technically I have been a sole proprietor of my own company since I got my first contract with Harper three years ago. (My how time flies!) Even though I'm taking some official licensing steps now, when you become an author, you become a business. When I think about it that way, I smile and think how apt that is. But I wonder how many aspiring authors think about it in those terms. Do you consider writing as working on starting up a new business?
I don't know a lot about business, but I do know some basic rules of thumb and they are that starting a new business generally requires a hefty investment, and you can expect to run in the red for about five years. You have to be willing to make that kind of commitment if you really want your small business to work. I have seen a few small businesses start up and fail lately, and one in particular (I'm not going to mention which one, so don't ask) started up on a shoestring with only a vague business plan, had no back-up funds to get through the first non-profitable period, and closed just as the holiday shopping season was beginning. It didn't even get a fair shot!
And whose fault was that? The person who opened the store. They did not find a way to invest heavily enough to give the store a real shot. (Really, a store needs the holiday shopping season to survive!!! Ask any boutique store owner!) In the end, this store owner was so disappointed because this was her dream! She was really emotionally attached to the idea of running this store!
But she didn't actually commit to it.
I guarantee this store owner would vehemently disagree with me. But the fact of the matter is, she would be wrong. She did NOT commit. She only thinks she did.
Committing to it would have meant putting her own money where her mouth was (in the form of getting a small business loan, committing to a full one year lease and paying upfront, maybe taking a business class or two at her local community college to prepare herself, etc.) and basically putting her financial life on the line. That is what it takes and any successful small business owner will tell you the same thing.
So why do we as aspiring authors (and I say we because I did it too!) think that starting our writing business should be so much easier than that?
Here is what I *koffkoff* did *koffkoff* and see all the time. An author writes a book. Spends a month polishing it. Spends a week writing a query. Sends it off. Lather, rinse, repeat for 100 agents. New book. Write, revise for a month, query, send off. Two, three, four years down the road, they have five or six books, and still no agent or publisher. They clearly love writing, they clearly have committed years of their lives to this endeavor, why are things not working?
Because they're not committed.
No seriously.
The author I've outlined up there is almost certainly not committed to being an author. They are committed to writing books, but in the end are waiting for the numbers game to see them through.
And maybe it will. Some people write and write and then find that sparkly idea that catches the right agent/editor's eye, and published they become! But not usually.
I have heard many a published author say that writers write, authors revise. So here is my challenge to you. Commit. Really commit. Starting with your time.
"But I write ten hours a week!" you may protest. "I write after kids are asleep/early in the morning before work/on my only free night all week!" (The length some aspiring authors go to to get those few precious hours a week is truly inspiring! Please do not think I am knocking this!) But I'm not talking about writing time.
Take your very favorite novel that you have written. The one that made rejections hurt the worst because it's the best thing you've ever written. Yes, that one. Now, commit to editing it for no less than six months. Don't write anything new during this time. Edit that book for six months.
The fast writers out there are looking at me like I'm crazy. Isn't writing fast a good thing? Well, let's see, I write my first drafts in about six to eight weeks. Yes, yes, I do think it's a good thing. That's not the point. I honestly believe that 90% of all authors cannot get published until they have had the experience of editing a book for at least six months. Why? Because you learn how to kill yourself over a book. You learn how to look for criticism because you've run out of things to change. You need someone to help you find the flaws because you can't see them anymore. You learn to stop being in love with your own words. You learn to delete. You really learn what it's like to sweat blood and tears over a book. You cannot learn this by editing for one month. A lot of you think you can.
A lot of you are wrong.
I was one them.
A couple of rules. Your six months starts AFTER you would normally consider your book ready to query. You MUST do more than tweak sentences. Gut. Your. Book. You must get feedback from at least one reader who was very critical. You will not see all the flaws in your own book--you will need help. And you must stop querying this book while you are doing it. You will unconsciously hold yourself back from really tearing your book apart if you are still trying to be ready to send it out. That doesn't mean you can't query other books. If you feel you must. But pull this one, and rip it to pieces. For six. Months.
Then, take your new, shiny manuscript (that you will now feel more unsure about than any other book you've ever queried) and send it out to your top 10-30 agents.
Then put it away. For good. And write a new book.
Wait!!! But you just had me do SIX MONTHS of work on this novel!!! You want me to shelve it now???
Well, after that much work, chances are much higher that you won't have to shelve it. That one of those agents is going to pick it up. But if not, yes. Shelve it. Because now you know how to really make a novel good, and you can do it again, but better. Not only that, you've seen your work go from what you thought was your best, to what you really can do. And you won't allow yourself to do anything less from here on out. It may not take you as long to edit a book ever again. But by spending that time setting your bar really high, you've gone somewhere there is no returning from. THAT is the important part of this challenge. Not getting published with that particular book, but resetting your bar.
Commit six months. Seriously. In the scheme of things, it's not that long.
I did it. On a book you're never going to see. It was the book that got me an agent, but it wasn't the book that got me a publisher. But I would not trade those six months of tears and frustration and impatience and desperation for anything. They made me an author, even though that wasn't the book that made me an author.
Revising is hard. And it takes time to learn. And most authors give up on their books way before they should, because they aren't willing to really dig in and rip it to pieces. Six months. Try it. I guarantee you won't regret it. You know how many authors express how sick and tired they are of their books by the time they come out? It's not because they spent a month editing it.
Ciao!
Yesterday my husband and I met with an accountant to begin the process of incorporating. (Yes, yes, I know there are a lot of people saying, "I told you so," right now. I have bucked against this for years!) So in another month or so, I am going to be a company.
Officially.
Technically I have been a sole proprietor of my own company since I got my first contract with Harper three years ago. (My how time flies!) Even though I'm taking some official licensing steps now, when you become an author, you become a business. When I think about it that way, I smile and think how apt that is. But I wonder how many aspiring authors think about it in those terms. Do you consider writing as working on starting up a new business?
I don't know a lot about business, but I do know some basic rules of thumb and they are that starting a new business generally requires a hefty investment, and you can expect to run in the red for about five years. You have to be willing to make that kind of commitment if you really want your small business to work. I have seen a few small businesses start up and fail lately, and one in particular (I'm not going to mention which one, so don't ask) started up on a shoestring with only a vague business plan, had no back-up funds to get through the first non-profitable period, and closed just as the holiday shopping season was beginning. It didn't even get a fair shot!
And whose fault was that? The person who opened the store. They did not find a way to invest heavily enough to give the store a real shot. (Really, a store needs the holiday shopping season to survive!!! Ask any boutique store owner!) In the end, this store owner was so disappointed because this was her dream! She was really emotionally attached to the idea of running this store!
But she didn't actually commit to it.
I guarantee this store owner would vehemently disagree with me. But the fact of the matter is, she would be wrong. She did NOT commit. She only thinks she did.
Committing to it would have meant putting her own money where her mouth was (in the form of getting a small business loan, committing to a full one year lease and paying upfront, maybe taking a business class or two at her local community college to prepare herself, etc.) and basically putting her financial life on the line. That is what it takes and any successful small business owner will tell you the same thing.
So why do we as aspiring authors (and I say we because I did it too!) think that starting our writing business should be so much easier than that?
Here is what I *koffkoff* did *koffkoff* and see all the time. An author writes a book. Spends a month polishing it. Spends a week writing a query. Sends it off. Lather, rinse, repeat for 100 agents. New book. Write, revise for a month, query, send off. Two, three, four years down the road, they have five or six books, and still no agent or publisher. They clearly love writing, they clearly have committed years of their lives to this endeavor, why are things not working?
Because they're not committed.
No seriously.
The author I've outlined up there is almost certainly not committed to being an author. They are committed to writing books, but in the end are waiting for the numbers game to see them through.
And maybe it will. Some people write and write and then find that sparkly idea that catches the right agent/editor's eye, and published they become! But not usually.
I have heard many a published author say that writers write, authors revise. So here is my challenge to you. Commit. Really commit. Starting with your time.
"But I write ten hours a week!" you may protest. "I write after kids are asleep/early in the morning before work/on my only free night all week!" (The length some aspiring authors go to to get those few precious hours a week is truly inspiring! Please do not think I am knocking this!) But I'm not talking about writing time.
Take your very favorite novel that you have written. The one that made rejections hurt the worst because it's the best thing you've ever written. Yes, that one. Now, commit to editing it for no less than six months. Don't write anything new during this time. Edit that book for six months.
The fast writers out there are looking at me like I'm crazy. Isn't writing fast a good thing? Well, let's see, I write my first drafts in about six to eight weeks. Yes, yes, I do think it's a good thing. That's not the point. I honestly believe that 90% of all authors cannot get published until they have had the experience of editing a book for at least six months. Why? Because you learn how to kill yourself over a book. You learn how to look for criticism because you've run out of things to change. You need someone to help you find the flaws because you can't see them anymore. You learn to stop being in love with your own words. You learn to delete. You really learn what it's like to sweat blood and tears over a book. You cannot learn this by editing for one month. A lot of you think you can.
A lot of you are wrong.
I was one them.
A couple of rules. Your six months starts AFTER you would normally consider your book ready to query. You MUST do more than tweak sentences. Gut. Your. Book. You must get feedback from at least one reader who was very critical. You will not see all the flaws in your own book--you will need help. And you must stop querying this book while you are doing it. You will unconsciously hold yourself back from really tearing your book apart if you are still trying to be ready to send it out. That doesn't mean you can't query other books. If you feel you must. But pull this one, and rip it to pieces. For six. Months.
Then, take your new, shiny manuscript (that you will now feel more unsure about than any other book you've ever queried) and send it out to your top 10-30 agents.
Then put it away. For good. And write a new book.
Wait!!! But you just had me do SIX MONTHS of work on this novel!!! You want me to shelve it now???
Well, after that much work, chances are much higher that you won't have to shelve it. That one of those agents is going to pick it up. But if not, yes. Shelve it. Because now you know how to really make a novel good, and you can do it again, but better. Not only that, you've seen your work go from what you thought was your best, to what you really can do. And you won't allow yourself to do anything less from here on out. It may not take you as long to edit a book ever again. But by spending that time setting your bar really high, you've gone somewhere there is no returning from. THAT is the important part of this challenge. Not getting published with that particular book, but resetting your bar.
Commit six months. Seriously. In the scheme of things, it's not that long.
I did it. On a book you're never going to see. It was the book that got me an agent, but it wasn't the book that got me a publisher. But I would not trade those six months of tears and frustration and impatience and desperation for anything. They made me an author, even though that wasn't the book that made me an author.
Revising is hard. And it takes time to learn. And most authors give up on their books way before they should, because they aren't willing to really dig in and rip it to pieces. Six months. Try it. I guarantee you won't regret it. You know how many authors express how sick and tired they are of their books by the time they come out? It's not because they spent a month editing it.
Ciao!
November 15, 2010
I'm Cheating
Instead of doing an blog entry full of insightful tips I am going to . . . link you to an interview I did recently that is full of insightful tips . . . hopefully.:D
This is an interview I did for J.S. Lewis, who is super awesome and possibly the most pessimistic author I've ever met (and I don't mean that in the pejorative sense, really!) He is a local author here in Phoenix with me and writes great Middle Grade fantasy AND is a comic book artist! (Check out his books here and his comics here.)
I am still sorting through entries for the cover contest and I will have those VERY soon, I promise!!!
Ciao!
This is an interview I did for J.S. Lewis, who is super awesome and possibly the most pessimistic author I've ever met (and I don't mean that in the pejorative sense, really!) He is a local author here in Phoenix with me and writes great Middle Grade fantasy AND is a comic book artist! (Check out his books here and his comics here.)
I am still sorting through entries for the cover contest and I will have those VERY soon, I promise!!!
Ciao!
November 5, 2010
Cover . . . .S!!!!:D
I hope that everyone who wanted to hunt for puzzle pieces has had a chance to! But, as promised, because the point was not for this to be difficult for the non-tech-savvy people (like me!!) I am posting the full image here!
So here you go!!!
Yay!!! Man this cover makes me so happy!!!!!
But wait a second, you may be saying. This cover doesn't look quite like it belongs with my other books.
Well, you're right. As the Harper design team was putting this cover together they kept saying that it just worked out so much better to have the title off-set and the image zoomed in more. But . . . well, it doesn't quite match the others that way. Then someone (someone brilliant and amazing) suggested that maybe the whole series could benefit from a bit of a make-over. A more grown-up look, perhaps. And so my special surprise is that the whole series is getting a very slightly tweaked look that I think is totally gorgeous. Not so altered that those who already have the series will feel like their first two look funny, but a little spiffing up!:D
So here is the newly redesigned Wings series!! (Click for bigger;))
(Note that these aren't quite the final designs--the Illusions cover in this group has extra text and repeats the blurb from Spells, the covers for Wings and Spells will also change a bit before printing)
But anyway, the new covers will come out on the Spells paperback on May 3, 2011 (same day Illusions comes out!) and whenever the paperback of Wings goes back to print you will see the new covers on there too.
***SPOILER ALERT***
I also wanted to share the jacket copy (the stuff that goes on the inside flap) but be aware that it is rather spoilery, especially if you haven't read the second book.
You have been warned!!!:D
"I don't do patrols, I don't go hunting, I just stick close to you. You live your life, I'll keep you safe," Tamani said, sweeping a lock of hair from her face. "Or die trying."
Laurel hasn't seen Tamani since she begged him to let her go last year. Though her heart still aches, Laurel is confident that David was the right choice.
But just as life returns to normal, Laurel realizes that a hidden enemy lies in wait. Once again, Laurel must turn to Tamani to protect and guide her, for the danger that now threatens Avalon is one that no faerie thought would ever be possible. And for the first time, Laurel cannot be sure that her side will prevail.
***END OF SPOILERS***
Thank you guys so much for doing this puzzle piece hunt with me! I hope you had as much fun as I did and once Jen and Espe have all the entries we'll be announcing winners!
Oh, and what you won!:D (It's been a busy week.;) But it'll be awesome!)
Ciao!
So here you go!!!
Yay!!! Man this cover makes me so happy!!!!!
But wait a second, you may be saying. This cover doesn't look quite like it belongs with my other books.
Well, you're right. As the Harper design team was putting this cover together they kept saying that it just worked out so much better to have the title off-set and the image zoomed in more. But . . . well, it doesn't quite match the others that way. Then someone (someone brilliant and amazing) suggested that maybe the whole series could benefit from a bit of a make-over. A more grown-up look, perhaps. And so my special surprise is that the whole series is getting a very slightly tweaked look that I think is totally gorgeous. Not so altered that those who already have the series will feel like their first two look funny, but a little spiffing up!:D
So here is the newly redesigned Wings series!! (Click for bigger;))
(Note that these aren't quite the final designs--the Illusions cover in this group has extra text and repeats the blurb from Spells, the covers for Wings and Spells will also change a bit before printing)
But anyway, the new covers will come out on the Spells paperback on May 3, 2011 (same day Illusions comes out!) and whenever the paperback of Wings goes back to print you will see the new covers on there too.
***SPOILER ALERT***
I also wanted to share the jacket copy (the stuff that goes on the inside flap) but be aware that it is rather spoilery, especially if you haven't read the second book.
You have been warned!!!:D
"I don't do patrols, I don't go hunting, I just stick close to you. You live your life, I'll keep you safe," Tamani said, sweeping a lock of hair from her face. "Or die trying."
Laurel hasn't seen Tamani since she begged him to let her go last year. Though her heart still aches, Laurel is confident that David was the right choice.
But just as life returns to normal, Laurel realizes that a hidden enemy lies in wait. Once again, Laurel must turn to Tamani to protect and guide her, for the danger that now threatens Avalon is one that no faerie thought would ever be possible. And for the first time, Laurel cannot be sure that her side will prevail.
***END OF SPOILERS***
Thank you guys so much for doing this puzzle piece hunt with me! I hope you had as much fun as I did and once Jen and Espe have all the entries we'll be announcing winners!
Oh, and what you won!:D (It's been a busy week.;) But it'll be awesome!)
Ciao!
Puzzled
I will post more later... but I wanted to give puzzle hunters time to assemble the cover if they feel so inclined!
For those of you having trouble with the resized pieces, check here. If you are feeling really adventurous, my husband says GIMP is a great free alternative to Photoshop, but the learning curve is a little steep so don't worry about it too much! :)
Those just arriving... the rest of the cover is scattered across my fan site Late Bloomer and affiliated sites Mundie Moms, Eve's Fan Garden, and Page Turners!
For those of you having trouble with the resized pieces, check here. If you are feeling really adventurous, my husband says GIMP is a great free alternative to Photoshop, but the learning curve is a little steep so don't worry about it too much! :)
Those just arriving... the rest of the cover is scattered across my fan site Late Bloomer and affiliated sites Mundie Moms, Eve's Fan Garden, and Page Turners!
November 1, 2010
Illusions!!!
Feel the rhythm, feel the rhyme, get on up, it's COVER TIME!!!:D
I am SO SO excited to start the cover reveal for ILLUSIONS!!! It is really warring for my favorite cover. It's so gorgeous and I have been DYING to share! However, just to make things fun, we are doing a little puzzle piece hunt.
All of the rules and clues are at L8BloomerOnline. The hunt starts today and ends on Friday right here!
Oh, and I have an extra special surprise that I will be revealing at the same time!:D
Happy hunting!!
Ciao!
I am SO SO excited to start the cover reveal for ILLUSIONS!!! It is really warring for my favorite cover. It's so gorgeous and I have been DYING to share! However, just to make things fun, we are doing a little puzzle piece hunt.
All of the rules and clues are at L8BloomerOnline. The hunt starts today and ends on Friday right here!
Oh, and I have an extra special surprise that I will be revealing at the same time!:D
Happy hunting!!
Ciao!
October 31, 2010
Learning to Fail, Preparing to Succeed
First off, I have a new second place winner! However, since my other three winners replied promptly, technically they all have moved up and I have a new fifth place winner.:D
And new fifth place is Meghan Kirkland!
Same as last time, please reply to aprilynne pike at gee mail dot com. I need to hear from you by Saturday please!!
Other winners, I will get your prize packs mailed out this week!
Okay, the actual writing related post I promised you.:D I was a guest speaker at an event and my children's school earlier this week along with several other women who had successful careers in areas many people strive for. (A doctor, a lawyer, an artist.) The school has an elite gifted program that is rather renowned throughout the state and I am always hearing about the program's success, so I was a little surprised when the coordinator asked me to speak on the challenges that gifted young women face in going out and pursuing careers (all of the speakers were former gifted students, not necessarily at that school, though two were) and how to overcome them.
It was fascinating hearing from all of them and the work required to reach where they are now. I spoke first and the main theme that I spoke on was learning to fail. (And although my talk was specifically aimed at gifted students, I think it really applies to my readers here too, because both readers and writers tend to be on the gifted end, even if they are not specifically diagnosed as such.) As students, most gifted (or just plain bookish :D) kids find that school comes easy. They get high grades without trying, concepts root in their brains easily, etc. One of the main challenges that gifted students face is that when life and school do become challenging, they don't know how to handle that and have a tendency to shy away from these challenging fields. And in any of the four areas, all of the women could attest that at some point their goals became very, very difficult to attain.
For writers, it's rejection. One person asked me what the hardest part of being an author was, and though the answer to this changes frequently, that night I said, "Rejection." And that's because when you are an author, even when you're not getting agent and publisher rejections anymore (or at least not as many :D), there is always someone waiting to tell you what's wrong with your book. In the beginning it's your editor via ed letters. And even though ed letters are very constructive and meant to help you improve your book, the fact is that they are a big long letter outlining what's wrong with your book. And it's always hard to swallow. Especially that first read-through.
Then reviews roll in, and they can be harsh too. Even critically acclaimed books of awesomeness get burned by reviewers. Then the book is released and the readers are unleashed upon you. And trust me, they are more than happy to point out all the mistakes in your book.
And guess what happens with the next book? It starts all over! Every book is the same way. The rejection and criticism never stops. Learning how to deal with that is hard and has put a stop to more than one author's career.
Listening to the doctor and Lawyer speak was enough to make me feel like a major slacker.:D The doctor had attended 13 years of school (including her residency) without a single break. And because the lawyer had gotten a Masters degree before starting law school, she had gone to nine years of school with no breaks. Makes my 180 rejections over the course of two years seem really piddly.:D I was interested to hear, however, that the artist had a degree in scenic design (she paints and designs sets.) This was interesting to me because she and I both fell into the artist category and both of us had a Bachelor's degree in our field.
I gotta say, I don't think that's a coincidence.
Between my husband and I, we have several friends who are aspiring authors. For some of them, they have built their entire lives around eventually being big bestselling authors. (Please don't do this. Hope, dream big, but don't actually set your life up so it depends on being a self-sustained author.) But strangely, the people who are most determined to be big authors both refuse to go to school for it. At all.
Now, I'm not advocating that everyone who wants to be an author go out and get a writing degree. For the same reason you don't base your life on getting published. There are too many factors that are out of your control. But if you are serious about getting published, there are aspects about the process and the industry that you need to learn. Perhaps the best way to learn that is not in a class at all, but online with the myriad resources available to anyone who knows how to Google. Perhaps a night class at your local community college can help you get a better grasp on grammar/plotting/pacing/structure/ whatever it is that you need help with. There are so many ways to learn about writing--including just sitting down and doing it! But don't fall into that rut where you believe that you don't need to learn, you just need to write the right book/find the right editor/be introduced to the right person.
We can all learn. I learn something at every single writers conference that I attend. And the biggest and best authors out there will tell you that they are still learning new things. It's not a static skill where you reach a certain level and can dust of your hands and say, "Well, I'm done learning now." Every book is different, the industry changes daily, readers demand different things, etc. Learning is essential if you want to succeed. I firmly believe it is a necessary precursor to being able to succeed.
Writer's conferences won't magically make you publishable and having a degree in Creative Writing doesn't mean you know how to write a novel. Not having a college degree doesn't keep you from self-educating yourself nor does having a degree in a wholly unrelated field keep you from having the skills to be a brilliant plotter. There is no A+B=Published equation that will guarantee you success, but if you can't handle rejection and criticism, you are chasing the wrong dream, and if you refuse to let others teach you, you're probably never going to catch the dream at all. Learn to fail, but prepare yourself for success.
And yes, it is much more difficult than it sounds.
An author friend and mentor of mine asked at a writers conference last summer, "Why do so many people want to get published? To be full time writers? Because it's the best job in the world. But that's why it's so hard." It really struck me. It IS the best job in the world. But, like all truly attractive jobs, there is a lot of competition. Don't hold yourself back. Trust me, there are plenty of others who will try to do that for you.:D
Ciao!
And new fifth place is Meghan Kirkland!
Same as last time, please reply to aprilynne pike at gee mail dot com. I need to hear from you by Saturday please!!
Other winners, I will get your prize packs mailed out this week!
Okay, the actual writing related post I promised you.:D I was a guest speaker at an event and my children's school earlier this week along with several other women who had successful careers in areas many people strive for. (A doctor, a lawyer, an artist.) The school has an elite gifted program that is rather renowned throughout the state and I am always hearing about the program's success, so I was a little surprised when the coordinator asked me to speak on the challenges that gifted young women face in going out and pursuing careers (all of the speakers were former gifted students, not necessarily at that school, though two were) and how to overcome them.
It was fascinating hearing from all of them and the work required to reach where they are now. I spoke first and the main theme that I spoke on was learning to fail. (And although my talk was specifically aimed at gifted students, I think it really applies to my readers here too, because both readers and writers tend to be on the gifted end, even if they are not specifically diagnosed as such.) As students, most gifted (or just plain bookish :D) kids find that school comes easy. They get high grades without trying, concepts root in their brains easily, etc. One of the main challenges that gifted students face is that when life and school do become challenging, they don't know how to handle that and have a tendency to shy away from these challenging fields. And in any of the four areas, all of the women could attest that at some point their goals became very, very difficult to attain.
For writers, it's rejection. One person asked me what the hardest part of being an author was, and though the answer to this changes frequently, that night I said, "Rejection." And that's because when you are an author, even when you're not getting agent and publisher rejections anymore (or at least not as many :D), there is always someone waiting to tell you what's wrong with your book. In the beginning it's your editor via ed letters. And even though ed letters are very constructive and meant to help you improve your book, the fact is that they are a big long letter outlining what's wrong with your book. And it's always hard to swallow. Especially that first read-through.
Then reviews roll in, and they can be harsh too. Even critically acclaimed books of awesomeness get burned by reviewers. Then the book is released and the readers are unleashed upon you. And trust me, they are more than happy to point out all the mistakes in your book.
And guess what happens with the next book? It starts all over! Every book is the same way. The rejection and criticism never stops. Learning how to deal with that is hard and has put a stop to more than one author's career.
Listening to the doctor and Lawyer speak was enough to make me feel like a major slacker.:D The doctor had attended 13 years of school (including her residency) without a single break. And because the lawyer had gotten a Masters degree before starting law school, she had gone to nine years of school with no breaks. Makes my 180 rejections over the course of two years seem really piddly.:D I was interested to hear, however, that the artist had a degree in scenic design (she paints and designs sets.) This was interesting to me because she and I both fell into the artist category and both of us had a Bachelor's degree in our field.
I gotta say, I don't think that's a coincidence.
Between my husband and I, we have several friends who are aspiring authors. For some of them, they have built their entire lives around eventually being big bestselling authors. (Please don't do this. Hope, dream big, but don't actually set your life up so it depends on being a self-sustained author.) But strangely, the people who are most determined to be big authors both refuse to go to school for it. At all.
Now, I'm not advocating that everyone who wants to be an author go out and get a writing degree. For the same reason you don't base your life on getting published. There are too many factors that are out of your control. But if you are serious about getting published, there are aspects about the process and the industry that you need to learn. Perhaps the best way to learn that is not in a class at all, but online with the myriad resources available to anyone who knows how to Google. Perhaps a night class at your local community college can help you get a better grasp on grammar/plotting/pacing/structure/ whatever it is that you need help with. There are so many ways to learn about writing--including just sitting down and doing it! But don't fall into that rut where you believe that you don't need to learn, you just need to write the right book/find the right editor/be introduced to the right person.
We can all learn. I learn something at every single writers conference that I attend. And the biggest and best authors out there will tell you that they are still learning new things. It's not a static skill where you reach a certain level and can dust of your hands and say, "Well, I'm done learning now." Every book is different, the industry changes daily, readers demand different things, etc. Learning is essential if you want to succeed. I firmly believe it is a necessary precursor to being able to succeed.
Writer's conferences won't magically make you publishable and having a degree in Creative Writing doesn't mean you know how to write a novel. Not having a college degree doesn't keep you from self-educating yourself nor does having a degree in a wholly unrelated field keep you from having the skills to be a brilliant plotter. There is no A+B=Published equation that will guarantee you success, but if you can't handle rejection and criticism, you are chasing the wrong dream, and if you refuse to let others teach you, you're probably never going to catch the dream at all. Learn to fail, but prepare yourself for success.
And yes, it is much more difficult than it sounds.
An author friend and mentor of mine asked at a writers conference last summer, "Why do so many people want to get published? To be full time writers? Because it's the best job in the world. But that's why it's so hard." It really struck me. It IS the best job in the world. But, like all truly attractive jobs, there is a lot of competition. Don't hold yourself back. Trust me, there are plenty of others who will try to do that for you.:D
Ciao!
October 25, 2010
Winners!
So it took me a while to figure out how to get five people their preferred prize packs without emailing back and forth for like a month. So here is what I like to call my Winners' Pyramid Scheme!
The first winner sends me their top choice. The 2nd place winner sends me their top two choices, the third place winner the top three choices, etc. to fifth place. Then, if, by chance, everyone wants exactly the same prize packs in exactly the same order (which would be weird!) then I can still accommodate everyone. And well, if you listed everyone's choices altogether, one line apart, it would look like a pyramid!:D (Yes, I am easily amused.)
So here we go!!!
1st Place Abbi, who listed herself as Anonymous originally and came back to correct it.
2nd Place Tina (Book Couture)
3rd Place Kalina Kay
4th Place Ashley whose birthday was October 17th.
5th Place Kelsey who would like Laurel to be with Tamani.:D (Hey if you're making requests you may as well make requests, right??)
Please email me at aprilynne pike at g mail dot com with your preferences for prize packs listed in order, as well as your actual name and mailing address. Also, please let me know if you would prefer Wings or Spells to go along with your prize pack and what name you would like it personalized to. Once I have this info, I will mail stuff out as soon as possible!
**If I do not hear from you by Saturday, I will announce a new winner to take your spot!!**
Thank you so much to everyone for entering!!!
And now for some really fun news, I will be revealing the cover and jacket copy for ILLUSIONS next week!! I will be doing a fun puzzle-piece hunt with my awesome fansite, Late Bloomers, as well as some of their affiliates. More details will follow, but the fun starts Monday! I cannot WAIT to show you guys this cover, it is SO gorgeous!! (Also, the jacket copy rocks SO FREAKIN' MUCH!!!!!)
And on top of that, there will be a special surprise to go along with the cover reveal at the end of next week that I have also been bursting to show people! So mega excitement next week, and an actual writing-related post this week!
Ciao!
The first winner sends me their top choice. The 2nd place winner sends me their top two choices, the third place winner the top three choices, etc. to fifth place. Then, if, by chance, everyone wants exactly the same prize packs in exactly the same order (which would be weird!) then I can still accommodate everyone. And well, if you listed everyone's choices altogether, one line apart, it would look like a pyramid!:D (Yes, I am easily amused.)
So here we go!!!
1st Place Abbi, who listed herself as Anonymous originally and came back to correct it.
2nd Place Tina (Book Couture)
3rd Place Kalina Kay
4th Place Ashley whose birthday was October 17th.
5th Place Kelsey who would like Laurel to be with Tamani.:D (Hey if you're making requests you may as well make requests, right??)
Please email me at aprilynne pike at g mail dot com with your preferences for prize packs listed in order, as well as your actual name and mailing address. Also, please let me know if you would prefer Wings or Spells to go along with your prize pack and what name you would like it personalized to. Once I have this info, I will mail stuff out as soon as possible!
**If I do not hear from you by Saturday, I will announce a new winner to take your spot!!**
Thank you so much to everyone for entering!!!
And now for some really fun news, I will be revealing the cover and jacket copy for ILLUSIONS next week!! I will be doing a fun puzzle-piece hunt with my awesome fansite, Late Bloomers, as well as some of their affiliates. More details will follow, but the fun starts Monday! I cannot WAIT to show you guys this cover, it is SO gorgeous!! (Also, the jacket copy rocks SO FREAKIN' MUCH!!!!!)
And on top of that, there will be a special surprise to go along with the cover reveal at the end of next week that I have also been bursting to show people! So mega excitement next week, and an actual writing-related post this week!
Ciao!
October 17, 2010
Massive Giveaway!
It's still this week! (Technically.) So I am NOT late posting this giveaway. *whistles innocently*
First off, for people in the Phoenix area, just in case you're not sick of seeing me yet, I will be signing at Changing Hands Bookstore, with the super awesome Lisa McMann and Linda Gerber! I love doing group signing with authors who not only have fab books, but are also super nice people and Lisa and Linda are both! So come on out to see us!
Okay, Giveaway time. I am doing four sets of books and they are all signed.
And heck, since I'm giving away signed books, I may as well throw some of mine in there! I'll have entrance rules below, but basically, I'll pick winners and in order they will get to pick a prize pack. In addition to their prize pack, they can choose either Wings or Spells signed and personalized. Clear as mud?
Okay, here are the books!!
First up, the Flame Finder Pack! (Yes, all of the names will be this corny.)
Dark Flame by Allyson Noel and The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting!
Second, the Demon Cat Pack!
White Cat by Holly Black and The Demon's Lexicon by Sarah Rees Brennan!
Oh, and total bonus (and made me not want to give it away!!!) Holy drew a cat in White Cat!!!!!
The next pack is the I Am A Loser pack because, well . . . I am a loser.
The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong and an ARC of Fragile Eternity by Melissa Marr. Here's the loser part. I got these signed while at the Smart Chicks tour and was trying to be all organized and everything but, well, I failed. So I had Kelley generically sign a book that very clearly has "From the library of Aprilynne Pike" stamped onto it, and forgot to have Melissa leave my name off of any of hers! So here is the exhibit of my loserness.
Oh, yes, I rock SO much. But I wanted to give something away from them! So if you decide to choose the prize pack filled with the evidence of my loser-ness in exchange for the awesomeness of signed books, you're also going to get not just Wings or Spells, but both.
And last but not least, the Waking Trance pack!
This pack will include Wake, by Lisa McMann and Trance, by Linda Gerber, but I don't have a picture of them because I won't get them until tomorrow night. But I will have them!
Okay, so this giveaway is basically to make up for my awful blogging since I started drafting Wings 4, so you've already done the hard part!!! All you have to do now is comment with something startling obvious (like, "Hi, please enter me in your giveaway!") to let me know that you want me to . . . enter you into my giveaway.:D Then Check back on Saturday, October 23rd and if you are a winner, I will need you to email me. (I'll give details then.) See? Super easy!!!
Ciao!
First off, for people in the Phoenix area, just in case you're not sick of seeing me yet, I will be signing at Changing Hands Bookstore, with the super awesome Lisa McMann and Linda Gerber! I love doing group signing with authors who not only have fab books, but are also super nice people and Lisa and Linda are both! So come on out to see us!
Okay, Giveaway time. I am doing four sets of books and they are all signed.
And heck, since I'm giving away signed books, I may as well throw some of mine in there! I'll have entrance rules below, but basically, I'll pick winners and in order they will get to pick a prize pack. In addition to their prize pack, they can choose either Wings or Spells signed and personalized. Clear as mud?
Okay, here are the books!!
First up, the Flame Finder Pack! (Yes, all of the names will be this corny.)
Dark Flame by Allyson Noel and The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting!
Second, the Demon Cat Pack!
White Cat by Holly Black and The Demon's Lexicon by Sarah Rees Brennan!
Oh, and total bonus (and made me not want to give it away!!!) Holy drew a cat in White Cat!!!!!
The next pack is the I Am A Loser pack because, well . . . I am a loser.
The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong and an ARC of Fragile Eternity by Melissa Marr. Here's the loser part. I got these signed while at the Smart Chicks tour and was trying to be all organized and everything but, well, I failed. So I had Kelley generically sign a book that very clearly has "From the library of Aprilynne Pike" stamped onto it, and forgot to have Melissa leave my name off of any of hers! So here is the exhibit of my loserness.
Oh, yes, I rock SO much. But I wanted to give something away from them! So if you decide to choose the prize pack filled with the evidence of my loser-ness in exchange for the awesomeness of signed books, you're also going to get not just Wings or Spells, but both.
And last but not least, the Waking Trance pack!
This pack will include Wake, by Lisa McMann and Trance, by Linda Gerber, but I don't have a picture of them because I won't get them until tomorrow night. But I will have them!
Okay, so this giveaway is basically to make up for my awful blogging since I started drafting Wings 4, so you've already done the hard part!!! All you have to do now is comment with something startling obvious (like, "Hi, please enter me in your giveaway!") to let me know that you want me to . . . enter you into my giveaway.:D Then Check back on Saturday, October 23rd and if you are a winner, I will need you to email me. (I'll give details then.) See? Super easy!!!
Ciao!
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