K.C. Shaw's Blog, page 24
January 20, 2011
Write hard! Writers I admire
The amazing Cate Gardner has nominated me for the Write Hard award! She's so awesome, and to prove it I point to the recently published collection of her short fiction, Strange Men in Pinstripe Suits.Rules for the award:
1. Post the picture above to your blog. You can link here if you want. It doesn't have to become part of the permanent clutter of your sidebar. Goodness no.
2. List at least three writers who you feel live up to the "write hard" spirit. Think: writers who work at their craft, writers who never give up despite the odds, writers who constantly turn out quality work. Writers you admire. Optional: explain why you think they are awesome.
3. Include these rules or a link to them.
4. Notify said writers of their victory. Ask them to pass on the torch.
5. Continue being awesome.
Here are my picks of 'write hard' writers--and I could have picked just about anyone off my blogroll, because you are all awesome writers. I'd nominate Aaron Polson, but he started the meme. :)
Jeremy Kelly. Jeremy's list of published short fiction is amazing and inspiring, and he works hard to craft the best possible stories. Editors agree that obviously he's doing a good job at it!
Carrie Harris. Because she writes books while wearing werewolf heels and taking care of her kids. I can't wait to read her first novel, Bad Taste in Boys, which comes out this summer!
Danielle Ferries. Hopefully she hasn't been washed away in the Australian floods. Danielle writes marvelous short fiction and edits the hell out of her novels at the same time. I'm not sure how she manages it.
January 17, 2011
Money is no object, apparently
Holy crap, it's Monday again and I haven't posted all week. I can't even use the excuse that I'm busy, because I'm not.
I did talk my mom into coming to Atlanta with me this Labor Day weekend. We're both going to DragonCon! My mom and I get along really well, obviously; plus she's a big SF fan. I think she'll have a lot of fun, plus we're going to split the hotel room, which will save me a bunch of money. Except that if I were going by myself, I'd be staying at the same cheap hotel in Marietta that I stayed last time. Now that Mom's going with me, we decided to book into a downtown Atlanta hotel--the Westin Peachtree, which has just been added as one of the convention hotels!
I've never stayed in a really fancy hotel before. I need a nicer suitcase.
I did talk my mom into coming to Atlanta with me this Labor Day weekend. We're both going to DragonCon! My mom and I get along really well, obviously; plus she's a big SF fan. I think she'll have a lot of fun, plus we're going to split the hotel room, which will save me a bunch of money. Except that if I were going by myself, I'd be staying at the same cheap hotel in Marietta that I stayed last time. Now that Mom's going with me, we decided to book into a downtown Atlanta hotel--the Westin Peachtree, which has just been added as one of the convention hotels!
I've never stayed in a really fancy hotel before. I need a nicer suitcase.
January 10, 2011
New Year, New Template
Well, Cate Gardner changed her blog and it looks so nice that my own blog seemed really boring in comparison. So...new template! Besides, it makes me think of spring and I'm sick of snow and cold.
I subbed the romance book (titled Shadows over Oakhill)--not to Harlequin, since it just didn't fit with any of their lines, but to Samhain. Hopefully they'll like it. Whether they do or not, I think I can say that the ignoble experiment was a failure. I like the book (well, it's really a novella), but I didn't meet my goal of selling it to Harlequin. But I expect I'll sell it somewhere, and it'll be interesting to see how it does compared to my fantasy books.
I'm home from work today due to the snow--oh, look, it's snowing again--and I've actually done quite a bit of writing. I'm finally using my time wisely! In between tweeting and updating my blog design, of course.
I subbed the romance book (titled Shadows over Oakhill)--not to Harlequin, since it just didn't fit with any of their lines, but to Samhain. Hopefully they'll like it. Whether they do or not, I think I can say that the ignoble experiment was a failure. I like the book (well, it's really a novella), but I didn't meet my goal of selling it to Harlequin. But I expect I'll sell it somewhere, and it'll be interesting to see how it does compared to my fantasy books.
I'm home from work today due to the snow--oh, look, it's snowing again--and I've actually done quite a bit of writing. I'm finally using my time wisely! In between tweeting and updating my blog design, of course.
January 7, 2011
Those darn vampires
Suddenly...I understand the vampire-hate. I'm reading The Sweet Scent of Blood by Suzanne McLeod. I'm 125 pages in and I loathe it. The main character is a wimp, and every single other character is either a super-powerful sexy vampire man or a woman who hates the main character for no reason. I keep reading it and hating it, although now that I've explained how much I despise this kind of main character (why is she even the main character? she's a wimp and frankly kind of stupid) maybe I can convince myself to put it down and read something good.
But in the 125 pages I've read so far, I've come to understand all the vampire hate out there. Lord knows I've whined that a lot of markets post in their guidelines that they're not interested in vampires, and I've never understood why when there's so much a good writer can still do with them. Well, this book is why. Or maybe not this book specifically, but it's just a carbon-copy of all those other sexy-superpowerful-vampire books.
I'm sick of them. And YES, thank goodness, I just felt my brain drop its hold on this book. Now I can put it down and never ever pick up another book where the vampires are obviously loathsome but the reader's supposed to find them attractive.
Back to writing Bloodhound, where Cam is going to kill as many vampires as I can manage without it seeming silly.
But in the 125 pages I've read so far, I've come to understand all the vampire hate out there. Lord knows I've whined that a lot of markets post in their guidelines that they're not interested in vampires, and I've never understood why when there's so much a good writer can still do with them. Well, this book is why. Or maybe not this book specifically, but it's just a carbon-copy of all those other sexy-superpowerful-vampire books.
I'm sick of them. And YES, thank goodness, I just felt my brain drop its hold on this book. Now I can put it down and never ever pick up another book where the vampires are obviously loathsome but the reader's supposed to find them attractive.
Back to writing Bloodhound, where Cam is going to kill as many vampires as I can manage without it seeming silly.
January 6, 2011
One for one!
Wow. I just sold a short story! This is the story I actually wrote (or finished writing, anyway) on December 31. I just got the acceptance to Pill Hill Press's Leather, Denim & Silver anthology.
It feels really good to sell a short. I think I'll write more of them this year. :)
It feels really good to sell a short. I think I'll write more of them this year. :)
January 5, 2011
Revving up
Despite my carefully laid plans, as usual I'm kicking over the traces and messing all my plans up. Right now? I'm suddenly obsessed with writing Bloodhound, the sequel to Bell-Men. Yeah, you know, that book I haven't sold. But I've intended to make it a trilogy all along, and I suddenly know what I want to do with the second book, so boom. I started writing this evening.
It also snowed two inches today. AGAIN. Yeah, I know, I'm supposed to live in the sunny south. I can't believe how much snow we've had this winter already. Fortunately, by the time I left work (and I had to give a placement test this evening, so I didn't get to leave until late), half the snow had already melted and the roads were clear.
I'm happy to be writing, even if it's not the project I should be working on. I'm quite certain Bell-Men will sell--I reread it over my vacation, when I was in the throes of my cold and couldn't really concentrate on anything I hadn't already read, and it's actually very good. When it does sell, it'll be nice to have the sequel ready to go too. Besides, I've missed writing gory scenes of Cam cutting off vampires' heads.
It also snowed two inches today. AGAIN. Yeah, I know, I'm supposed to live in the sunny south. I can't believe how much snow we've had this winter already. Fortunately, by the time I left work (and I had to give a placement test this evening, so I didn't get to leave until late), half the snow had already melted and the roads were clear.
I'm happy to be writing, even if it's not the project I should be working on. I'm quite certain Bell-Men will sell--I reread it over my vacation, when I was in the throes of my cold and couldn't really concentrate on anything I hadn't already read, and it's actually very good. When it does sell, it'll be nice to have the sequel ready to go too. Besides, I've missed writing gory scenes of Cam cutting off vampires' heads.
January 1, 2011
Romance woes
I'm working on my untitled romance. Since I'm hoping to sell it to Harlequin for their Intrigue line, it has to be between 55,000 and 60,000 words, and my first draft fell about 5,000 words short of the minimum. I'm now adding a small subplot and fleshing out some early scenes that were a little too rushed anyway. Hey, these two people are falling in love! I need to give them lots of time to gaze longingly at each other.
I'm close enough to being finished that I really need to come up with a title. I've been browsing through the official Harlequin website to see what the titles typically are, and I'm concerned that my book doesn't fit what seems to be a theme of 'sexy cowboy lawman protects woman in danger.' My characters are a woman who's been hired to take care of a farm and the farm owner who thinks he's turning into a vampire (but who's actually being poisoned). Something tells me I might be just a leetle out of focus.
I should have paid more attention to their guidelines when I was plotting this thing: it says right there, "Kidnappings, stalkings, women in jeopardy...are examples of story lines we love most." Well, my heroine does end up in peril toward the end, and the hero does save her, but she's not in peril from the git-go and I suspect that's going to mean this book does not sell to Harlequin. And I think we can safely say that with all the trouble I've had with this rotten book, I'm not a romance writer.
But what can I do? I've already written the wretched thing. Anyway, I'm thinking about titling it Shadows over Oakhill Farm. What do you think?
I'm close enough to being finished that I really need to come up with a title. I've been browsing through the official Harlequin website to see what the titles typically are, and I'm concerned that my book doesn't fit what seems to be a theme of 'sexy cowboy lawman protects woman in danger.' My characters are a woman who's been hired to take care of a farm and the farm owner who thinks he's turning into a vampire (but who's actually being poisoned). Something tells me I might be just a leetle out of focus.
I should have paid more attention to their guidelines when I was plotting this thing: it says right there, "Kidnappings, stalkings, women in jeopardy...are examples of story lines we love most." Well, my heroine does end up in peril toward the end, and the hero does save her, but she's not in peril from the git-go and I suspect that's going to mean this book does not sell to Harlequin. And I think we can safely say that with all the trouble I've had with this rotten book, I'm not a romance writer.
But what can I do? I've already written the wretched thing. Anyway, I'm thinking about titling it Shadows over Oakhill Farm. What do you think?
December 31, 2010
Rain for the new year
Here we are careening into 2011. This year flew by with frightening speed.
Last year I made a huge list of resolutions that I didn't keep and don't even want to look at. I did learn a lot in 2010, though. I learned that if you stop writing short stories, you stop selling them (funny how that works out). I learned that I have a huge capacity to read other people's books, especially if it means I don't have to work on mine. And I've learned that I like writing novellas and can even sell them occasionally.
So this year I wrote one novel and two novellas--technically two novels and a novella, but the romance book is so short I'm counting it as a novella (and I still have 5k to add to it, today I hope). I wrote zero short stories. Coincidentally, I sold one novel and two novellas this year, and zero short stories.
Next year, hm. Frankly, I'm tired of being in a holding pattern at this stage of my career. I'm going to see if I can kick things into gear by going completely commercial. I've already started that with my ignoble experiment of the romance book--still untitled; if I can sell it to Harlequin, that's a good, solid sale to mention to agents when I query. Maybe it's not what I ordinarily write, but it'll prove that my writing is at a professional level. I also hope to finish the MG book I started this year, Christopher Kaplan, since MG sells pretty well and I might be able to find a good home for it (or interest an agent). And I also want to finish the mystery novel I started at the end of November. I'm reading a lot of mysteries lately and the genre is pretty hot. I was going to give my mystery book fantasy elements, but I dropped that in favor of pure, unadulterated commercialism.
Yes, I'm a sell-out. Or trying to be, anyway.
My two-week vacation is almost over, but it's been really good for me. I feel less stressed than I have in a long, long time. In 2011 I'm going to have to make some hard decisions about my day job. For various reasons I won't bore you with, I'm very frustrated with it and I'm wondering if it's time to move on. Of course it's a terrible time to try to change jobs, but I've got a weirdly specific skillset now and if the right opening pops up, I'll probably apply. Or maybe not--there's a possibility that things may change at work for the better since we have a new branch campus opening this fall (hopefully) and I'm the logical person to move up into the new position that will have to be created for it.
Anyway, so, I guess my resolutions for 2011 are:
lose weight and get in shape (that one's always on the list)
join a fencing group
write at least one novel and one novella
write a few short stories, because I really like selling them
stop carrying stress from work into my off-hours, because it's not worth it and makes me sound whiny on my blog
Keep up better with my online friends
Sell out, yo
That's fairly reasonable, I hope. Happy new year!
Last year I made a huge list of resolutions that I didn't keep and don't even want to look at. I did learn a lot in 2010, though. I learned that if you stop writing short stories, you stop selling them (funny how that works out). I learned that I have a huge capacity to read other people's books, especially if it means I don't have to work on mine. And I've learned that I like writing novellas and can even sell them occasionally.
So this year I wrote one novel and two novellas--technically two novels and a novella, but the romance book is so short I'm counting it as a novella (and I still have 5k to add to it, today I hope). I wrote zero short stories. Coincidentally, I sold one novel and two novellas this year, and zero short stories.
Next year, hm. Frankly, I'm tired of being in a holding pattern at this stage of my career. I'm going to see if I can kick things into gear by going completely commercial. I've already started that with my ignoble experiment of the romance book--still untitled; if I can sell it to Harlequin, that's a good, solid sale to mention to agents when I query. Maybe it's not what I ordinarily write, but it'll prove that my writing is at a professional level. I also hope to finish the MG book I started this year, Christopher Kaplan, since MG sells pretty well and I might be able to find a good home for it (or interest an agent). And I also want to finish the mystery novel I started at the end of November. I'm reading a lot of mysteries lately and the genre is pretty hot. I was going to give my mystery book fantasy elements, but I dropped that in favor of pure, unadulterated commercialism.
Yes, I'm a sell-out. Or trying to be, anyway.
My two-week vacation is almost over, but it's been really good for me. I feel less stressed than I have in a long, long time. In 2011 I'm going to have to make some hard decisions about my day job. For various reasons I won't bore you with, I'm very frustrated with it and I'm wondering if it's time to move on. Of course it's a terrible time to try to change jobs, but I've got a weirdly specific skillset now and if the right opening pops up, I'll probably apply. Or maybe not--there's a possibility that things may change at work for the better since we have a new branch campus opening this fall (hopefully) and I'm the logical person to move up into the new position that will have to be created for it.
Anyway, so, I guess my resolutions for 2011 are:
lose weight and get in shape (that one's always on the list)
join a fencing group
write at least one novel and one novella
write a few short stories, because I really like selling them
stop carrying stress from work into my off-hours, because it's not worth it and makes me sound whiny on my blog
Keep up better with my online friends
Sell out, yo
That's fairly reasonable, I hope. Happy new year!
December 29, 2010
The math is always grim
Here are some depressing numbers about agents, taken from my own records. With extra math!
I keep careful track of all the agent queries I send so I won't accidentally send the same project to the same agent twice. I give all agents about four months to respond, at which point I mark them down as nonresponders (and of course change that if any responses trickle in late). Back in July I brought the table up to date and indicated that the overall nonresponse rate was almost precisely 1/3--that is, 22 out of 65 agents had never responded one way or another to my queries.
That was before I started querying for Trickster Society. Keep in mind that I never re-query a nonresponder, and I'm also cautious about the agents I do query. I research them all carefully and make sure they're open for queries, that they're interested in the genre I'm querying, and that they don't have a reputation for not responding.
Even so, according to my records my nonresponder rate is now up to 42%. Jeez louise, that's getting perilously close to half of all agents who aren't even professional or courteous enough to hit reply and type "Not for me, thanks."
And don't even try to whine that you're too busy to respond, agents. If you're that busy, you have no business being open to queries.
I really hate the agent-querying side of writing. The only thing more depressing is the small-publisher-querying side of writing, because once you're to that point it means that A) all the agents have said no (or not responded) and B) all the big commercial publishers who take non-agented work (all four of them) have said no too.
Yup, I've got the after-holidays, mid-winter, too-many-hyphens blues.
EDIT: I rechecked my figures and the actual nonresponse rate is 36%. Please subtract 6% of the bitchiness from this post.
I keep careful track of all the agent queries I send so I won't accidentally send the same project to the same agent twice. I give all agents about four months to respond, at which point I mark them down as nonresponders (and of course change that if any responses trickle in late). Back in July I brought the table up to date and indicated that the overall nonresponse rate was almost precisely 1/3--that is, 22 out of 65 agents had never responded one way or another to my queries.
That was before I started querying for Trickster Society. Keep in mind that I never re-query a nonresponder, and I'm also cautious about the agents I do query. I research them all carefully and make sure they're open for queries, that they're interested in the genre I'm querying, and that they don't have a reputation for not responding.
Even so, according to my records my nonresponder rate is now up to 42%. Jeez louise, that's getting perilously close to half of all agents who aren't even professional or courteous enough to hit reply and type "Not for me, thanks."
And don't even try to whine that you're too busy to respond, agents. If you're that busy, you have no business being open to queries.
I really hate the agent-querying side of writing. The only thing more depressing is the small-publisher-querying side of writing, because once you're to that point it means that A) all the agents have said no (or not responded) and B) all the big commercial publishers who take non-agented work (all four of them) have said no too.
Yup, I've got the after-holidays, mid-winter, too-many-hyphens blues.
EDIT: I rechecked my figures and the actual nonresponse rate is 36%. Please subtract 6% of the bitchiness from this post.
December 26, 2010
Happy Holidays!
Yes, okay, most of the major midwinter/solstice holidays are over, but I've been sick with the Cold from Hell and my interest in blogging is at an all-time low. I hope your holidays were/are fantastic, and with the new year looming and the holiday baking mostly behind us all, we can look forward to a future wherein we will all be trim, athletic, efficient, and successful!
As I say, I've had a terrible cold. I got a sore throat two Thursdays ago, which ripened into a snotfest of a cold which then migrated as secondary infections in my chest, sinuses, and ears. I'm still dealing with that. My poor mom has caught a milder version of my cold which is really taking hold with her now, and I still sound worse than she does.
But Christmas was lovely here, particularly since we had our first white Christmas in years and years--an inch on the ground Christmas morning, and another couple of inches overnight last night, and they're also calling for a few more inches of snow this afternoon and evening! That sounds like a lot, but keep in mind that it melts very fast here so by morning we'll still just have maybe two on the ground. Even so, this has been the snowiest winter I can remember in decades--and we usually get all our snow in late January/early February.
I haven't done any writing all week, partly because I've been in bed surrounded by crumpled tissues, partly because of the madness preceding Christmas, partly because hey, it's my vacation. I'm looking forward to getting back in the swing of things, though. I still need to add 5,000 words to my untitled romance and 5,000 words to my steampunk Goldielocks novella--but more about both tomorrow, I suppose. Right now I have to get ready to go to a memorial service, assuming we can get out of the driveway to get there.
As I say, I've had a terrible cold. I got a sore throat two Thursdays ago, which ripened into a snotfest of a cold which then migrated as secondary infections in my chest, sinuses, and ears. I'm still dealing with that. My poor mom has caught a milder version of my cold which is really taking hold with her now, and I still sound worse than she does.
But Christmas was lovely here, particularly since we had our first white Christmas in years and years--an inch on the ground Christmas morning, and another couple of inches overnight last night, and they're also calling for a few more inches of snow this afternoon and evening! That sounds like a lot, but keep in mind that it melts very fast here so by morning we'll still just have maybe two on the ground. Even so, this has been the snowiest winter I can remember in decades--and we usually get all our snow in late January/early February.
I haven't done any writing all week, partly because I've been in bed surrounded by crumpled tissues, partly because of the madness preceding Christmas, partly because hey, it's my vacation. I'm looking forward to getting back in the swing of things, though. I still need to add 5,000 words to my untitled romance and 5,000 words to my steampunk Goldielocks novella--but more about both tomorrow, I suppose. Right now I have to get ready to go to a memorial service, assuming we can get out of the driveway to get there.
