Scott Tracey's Blog, page 20

Being Cassandra

So, do you ever have those situations where you tell someone "Let me tell you what's going to happen."  And you tell them about the consequences to their action and…they don't listen.  Things occur, everything happens JUST like you said it would, and that's when the shock rolls in.  You were right!  It was like you just predicted the future!  Witch!  (Okay, maybe not that last one).

In normal circumstances, you'd be surprised too.  Except the same thing happened last week.  And the week...

Hoping for that New Car Smell

Whenever you start reading for a new critique partner, you're hoping for the best.  You want New Car Smell, and you fear that it'll be Old Lemon Junker smell.

It's just as stressful for the critiquer as the critiquee.  What if it's not my thing?  What if I don't like their ending?  What if the third act and denoument totally remind me of Rambo: First Blood Part 2?  (Wait, what?)

The thing about any critique is that it's all about push and pull.  You want to push your critique partner to make...

The Bookanistas: PARANORMALCY by Kiersten White

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The Bookanistas are a group of writers – in various stages of the publishing process – who have decided to band together and review the special books of our peers. We – as fellow writers – have decided to only post positive reviews, therefore, only reviewing the book we LOVE. No negative reviews here!

We post reviews every Thursday that cover various topics– upcoming ARCs, books we love, special diamonds in the rough, classics, and even cover reviews...

Townscaping: Naming Your Fake Town

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About nine months ago, I wrote a post about creating your own fake town.  To this day, it's one of the most actively read posts on my blog – people are still finding me via that post.   And it's still the reason why people FIND my blog.  So I figured I would do a series of posts, elaborating on some of those ideas.

First up: how and what to name your fake town.

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Let's face it.  Naming a fake town is one of the c...

Truthful Tuesday: Libba Bray and the gay BFF

I'm going to tell you a truth that's close to my heart today, so pull up a chair, spend a few moments plotting your escape route (hey, the Zombie Apocalypse waits for no man), and listen up.

I was talking with a friend last night, and I casually mentioned something near and dear to my heart.  "Becoming Libba Bray's new gay BFF is on my bucket list."  And apparently, this whole concept was so hilarious that I was encouraged (nay, harassed) into writing a blog post about it.

So that's my truth...

Mourning Mondays

"Ask me why I mourn."

"Why do you mourn, baby?"

"I mourn because you are shrouded in the suit and tie that Madison Avenue will bury you in alive."

–Down With Love (only one of the greatest movies of the last ten years)

Every time I use the word mourn, I think of that quote.  But the way I figure it, there's lots of reasons to be mournful on Mondays.  Your weekend is over, and it's back to the daily grind.  You've got an entire WEEK until the next episode of True Blood.  Publishing is back to b...

The Week in Review

So I'm taking a cue from good buddy/arch-nemesis Lisa Roecker, and coming up with a list for my Friday post this week.  I mean, I already blogged every OTHER day this week, I figured I should probably hit all five days and just call it a win.

1.  Having the week off from filming a vlog is great. When you use it wisely.  It was our free week on the YA Rebels, so we didn't have to vlog.  So instead I wound up blogging five times.  And now it's Friday, and I'm wondering why I feel so exhausted.  ...

The Bookanistas: Other by Karen Kincy

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Today is the first launch day of the new book review bloggers – The Bookanistas: Books are the New Black. We are a group of writers – in various stages of the publishing process – who have decided to band together and review the special books of our peers. We – as fellow writers – have decided to only post positive reviews, therefore, only reviewing the book we LOVE. No negative reviews here!

The Bookanistas give nothing but love!

Starting today, we will post...

WIP Wednesday

I think an electronically savvy Grandmother is perhaps the third scariest thing I've ever written.

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I could avoid my mother's calls all day, but that wasn't an option with my grandmother.  Augusta Carrington-Benoit is more Big Bad Wolf than Red's grandmother.  She used a computer better than most people I knew, not only had a cell phone but texted frequently, and lived more in a day than anyone half her age.  As her eldest grandson – and one of the only ones she claimed to like – she...

Keep Your Lip Stiff

Know what really grinds my gears?  People who let Publishing make them its bitch.

Being a YA writer is a lot like being a celebrity.  I mean, I know we're not ACTUAL celebrities, but the idea of the spotlight is the same.   We shouldn't go around without wearing panties (a mistake I won't make again, I can assure you), we have to watch what we do because the paparazzi is always lurking (I KNEW someone was snapping photos when I took out the trash), and the things we say get taken out of...