Pippa Jay's Blog, page 85
January 8, 2012
Six Sentence Sunday #43
Hello! Welcome to another #sixsunday post, and huge thanks to those who stop by and comment each week. I'm continuing with my sfr story this week - still locked in the dungeon - but skipping ahead slightly to give you a better look at Keir's new companion. I don't think he's very impressed...
She turned toward him, her gaze skipping across his hiding place as she lifted her lamp higher--the strange light a wand of white fire clenched in one hand. She had a slim, elfin face with steel-gray eyes, a small nose wrinkled by a slight frown of irritation, and translucent skin dusted with freckles. Pretty, in a strange way, perhaps, but not beautiful. The color of her hair alone marked her as an oddity. Was that the reason the Corizi had taken her prisoner? She seemed too frail a thing to justify sharing his punishment.
© 2009-2011 Copyright Philippa J. Green All Rights Reserved
Please stop by the other fabulous authors by clicking on the banner. :)
She turned toward him, her gaze skipping across his hiding place as she lifted her lamp higher--the strange light a wand of white fire clenched in one hand. She had a slim, elfin face with steel-gray eyes, a small nose wrinkled by a slight frown of irritation, and translucent skin dusted with freckles. Pretty, in a strange way, perhaps, but not beautiful. The color of her hair alone marked her as an oddity. Was that the reason the Corizi had taken her prisoner? She seemed too frail a thing to justify sharing his punishment.
© 2009-2011 Copyright Philippa J. Green All Rights Reserved
Please stop by the other fabulous authors by clicking on the banner. :)
January 7, 2012
The SFR Pitch Tournament Weekend!
There's a pitch tournament running on the SFR Brigade site this weekend - 18 authors have posted blurbs for 24 titles, and each is up for a vote. Plus one lucky commentator will win an Amazon Gift Card, woo hoo. I have two titles in the tournament (yeah, greedy I know) - Keir (in Heat #1) and Tethered (in Heat #3) - but there's some great titles there worthy of support. You can find the pitches and voting forms
January 6, 2012
New Year, New Challenges.
So, we're only a few days into the New Year, and already I have new things on the go. An idea that grabbed my muse on Christmas Day (a strictly 'no writing' family only day!) has refused to let me rest. Already I'm 11K into something I think could hit the 30K mark, and a somewhat hotter romance than I ever thought I'd dare to write. I even have a blurb for it! I spent about two minutes writing it, and then put it into the SFR Brigade Pitch Contest. A little rash, but at least I'll get an idea of the amount of interest it might draw. And whether I'm any good at writing a blurb off the cuff when I don't even have the story half written. Eeeek!
Also, in a moment of madness, I volunteered to be the Calendar Coordinator for the SFR Brigade. I think I was testing out that saying of 'if you want something done, give it to a busy person', lol. I'll find out how true that is in the near future, no doubt.
Of course, what I should be doing is working on Keir's sequel, but I'm putting that off until the kids are all back at school (which doesn't happen until the 9th) so that I have time alone to really concentrate. Well, that's my excuse and I'm clinging to it. In the meantime, I'm already putting together things for Keir's release even though that doesn't happen until the 7th May. I have some names and places jotted down, an interview and a couple of blog posts arranged. I've designed my bookmarks and business cards. I've some pretties ordered for a potential swag bag, and a few sneaky plans for promotion. A few people have been generous in offering their time or facilities to help with that - to you all, a huge thank you. It's much appreciated.
I should also be finishing the scifi short - one of Quin's early adventures - which I promised myself I would have up on Amazon in the New Year. Well, technically I still have another 11 months to get that done, but I was kind of hoping to get it done sooner. Damn my muse and her wild ideas!
In the meantime, there's plenty happening this month. I'm doing one guest post with the lovely Liana Brooks, and have two fellow sfr authors guesting here (Sandra Sookoo on the 13th with her sfr FRACTURED and Jessica E.Subject with her latest scifi release on the 31st). I'm going to continue with my sixsunday and sffsat postings. And with the SFR Brigade Calendar to coordinate as well, that should be enough to keep me out of mischief. Maybe... :-P
Also, in a moment of madness, I volunteered to be the Calendar Coordinator for the SFR Brigade. I think I was testing out that saying of 'if you want something done, give it to a busy person', lol. I'll find out how true that is in the near future, no doubt.
Of course, what I should be doing is working on Keir's sequel, but I'm putting that off until the kids are all back at school (which doesn't happen until the 9th) so that I have time alone to really concentrate. Well, that's my excuse and I'm clinging to it. In the meantime, I'm already putting together things for Keir's release even though that doesn't happen until the 7th May. I have some names and places jotted down, an interview and a couple of blog posts arranged. I've designed my bookmarks and business cards. I've some pretties ordered for a potential swag bag, and a few sneaky plans for promotion. A few people have been generous in offering their time or facilities to help with that - to you all, a huge thank you. It's much appreciated.
I should also be finishing the scifi short - one of Quin's early adventures - which I promised myself I would have up on Amazon in the New Year. Well, technically I still have another 11 months to get that done, but I was kind of hoping to get it done sooner. Damn my muse and her wild ideas!
In the meantime, there's plenty happening this month. I'm doing one guest post with the lovely Liana Brooks, and have two fellow sfr authors guesting here (Sandra Sookoo on the 13th with her sfr FRACTURED and Jessica E.Subject with her latest scifi release on the 31st). I'm going to continue with my sixsunday and sffsat postings. And with the SFR Brigade Calendar to coordinate as well, that should be enough to keep me out of mischief. Maybe... :-P
January 5, 2012
New Year Blog Hop Winners
Below are the two winners commentators announced by Carrie Ann Ryan -
#192 from Malia Mallory's site - Lilaz won the Kindle Fire! I've already contacted her and her new Kindle should be on its way soon.
#2436 from VK Syke's site - June won the $80 Amazon GC. I've already sent it to her!
The winner on my blog of the $10 Amazon Gift Card is TrishWilson79 - congrats!
#192 from Malia Mallory's site - Lilaz won the Kindle Fire! I've already contacted her and her new Kindle should be on its way soon.
#2436 from VK Syke's site - June won the $80 Amazon GC. I've already sent it to her!
The winner on my blog of the $10 Amazon Gift Card is TrishWilson79 - congrats!
January 4, 2012
The New Year Blog Hop - A Memory
A New Year's memory ...
I stared. The two pink dots stared back. They didn't move. They didn't change.
I looked at the instructions again. Yes, I'd followed them to the letter. Yes, I'd left the required amount of time pass - I'd even used a damn stopwatch for goodness sake! But I still didn't believe it.
Five years of trying. Five years of tests, some of the most painful, invasive and humiliating procedures I'd ever gone through in my LIFE! And only two more months of fertility treatment left before we were on our own and forced to pay for it.
But no more. Those two little dots were what we had been waiting for. I was finally pregnant. :) Happy New Year, baby!
And a Happy New Year to you too! As part of the New Year Blog Hop, I'm offering up a $10 Amazon gift card to a random commentator on my blog, winner to be announced tomorrow. Also, don't forget there's the grand prize up for grabs of a Kindle Fire too, with a second prize of an $80 Amazon GC. All you have to do to enter is comment on this blog and any of the others taking part in the hop. The more blogs you comment on, the greater your chances of winning. Woo hoo! Good luck!
To visit the other blogs participating in the hop, just check out the list below. :) And a huge thank you to Carrie Ann Ryan for organizing this event.
I stared. The two pink dots stared back. They didn't move. They didn't change.
I looked at the instructions again. Yes, I'd followed them to the letter. Yes, I'd left the required amount of time pass - I'd even used a damn stopwatch for goodness sake! But I still didn't believe it.
Five years of trying. Five years of tests, some of the most painful, invasive and humiliating procedures I'd ever gone through in my LIFE! And only two more months of fertility treatment left before we were on our own and forced to pay for it.
But no more. Those two little dots were what we had been waiting for. I was finally pregnant. :) Happy New Year, baby!
And a Happy New Year to you too! As part of the New Year Blog Hop, I'm offering up a $10 Amazon gift card to a random commentator on my blog, winner to be announced tomorrow. Also, don't forget there's the grand prize up for grabs of a Kindle Fire too, with a second prize of an $80 Amazon GC. All you have to do to enter is comment on this blog and any of the others taking part in the hop. The more blogs you comment on, the greater your chances of winning. Woo hoo! Good luck!
To visit the other blogs participating in the hop, just check out the list below. :) And a huge thank you to Carrie Ann Ryan for organizing this event.
January 1, 2012
Six Sentence Sunday #42
Happy New Year! Welcome to another #sixsunday post. Thanks to all who stop by and comment. This week I'm continuing with my sfr Keir, with our hero beaten and bruised, and locked in a cell. But he's not alone for long ...The iron door of the cell clanged open, shattering the silence. A sickening jolt of fear punched into his chest."Get your hands off me!"
The voice, unmistakably female and strangely accented, carried clearly through the small space. Keir started. It was the first voice he had heard in uncounted nights and he longed to move out of his shadowed niche for a clearer view of the door.
© 2009-2011 Copyright Philippa J. Green All Rights Reserved
Please check out the other fabulous participants by clicking on the banner. :)
2012 - Hopes and Dreams
Happy New Year!
I don't make New Year resolutions. I have never kept the few I made, and I feel it just leads to too many disappointments. So, instead, I have a list of things I'm hoping for this year. :)
1.That Keir will do well when it's released on the 7th May (or at least not get too many poor reviews).
2.That I will finish editing the sequel in good time, and that my editor and publisher will like it.
3.That Gethyon will find a home with a publisher, even if that turns out to be myself via Amazon.
4.That my sfr short will be accepted into the anthology.
5.That I will get my other scifi short completed and up on Amazon.
6.That I will figure out the rest of books four and five which are still a little hazy in my mind.
7.That I won't run out of ideas and that my writing will just keep improving.
8.That my friends and family will be happy and healthy, for this year and many, many more to come.
9.That I will do more reading, and help clear a pending list of reviews.
10.To get into some kind of fitness routine to counteract the amount of time I now spend on my bum in front of this computer!
11.A late addition, but a scifirom with succubi has got my muse all in a tizzy and I've already done 5K words on it, so I hope the fuzzy idea I currently have is going to settle down into a proper story. It's not quite my usual thing, so a bit nerve-racking, as well as exciting.
I think that will do...
Do you make resolutions? Do you keep them? Or would you rather just let the year pan out around you? :)
I don't make New Year resolutions. I have never kept the few I made, and I feel it just leads to too many disappointments. So, instead, I have a list of things I'm hoping for this year. :)
1.That Keir will do well when it's released on the 7th May (or at least not get too many poor reviews).
2.That I will finish editing the sequel in good time, and that my editor and publisher will like it.
3.That Gethyon will find a home with a publisher, even if that turns out to be myself via Amazon.
4.That my sfr short will be accepted into the anthology.
5.That I will get my other scifi short completed and up on Amazon.
6.That I will figure out the rest of books four and five which are still a little hazy in my mind.
7.That I won't run out of ideas and that my writing will just keep improving.
8.That my friends and family will be happy and healthy, for this year and many, many more to come.
9.That I will do more reading, and help clear a pending list of reviews.
10.To get into some kind of fitness routine to counteract the amount of time I now spend on my bum in front of this computer!
11.A late addition, but a scifirom with succubi has got my muse all in a tizzy and I've already done 5K words on it, so I hope the fuzzy idea I currently have is going to settle down into a proper story. It's not quite my usual thing, so a bit nerve-racking, as well as exciting.
I think that will do...
Do you make resolutions? Do you keep them? Or would you rather just let the year pan out around you? :)
December 31, 2011
2011
At the end of 2010, I started to write a post about my non-resolutions for 2011, but never published it. As 2011 draws to a close and I'm clearing out drafts of blog posts that never 'made it', I came across my aims for the year just past. It made for interesting reading, in terms of what I'd achieved, so I thought I'd share. :)
Plans - I already had two book reviews to write, was awaiting feedback from my two critique partners on my unpublished SFR (Keir) before doing a final edit and polish, and needed to write a blurb, synopsis and query letters for submission. I'd signed up for a university course to start in the October and run through to February 2011. I had ideas for a dark fantasy, and wanted to write a scifi novella. I also had two sequels written to Keir badly in need of editing, another sequel half written with vague ideas for a fifth, and a promise to edit a fellow author's second book.
Results - The book reviews weren't completed until February/March time, but they were done and more besides over the year. The edits on Keir took longer than expected, and then the whole submission was delayed because I submitted the first 500 words to a critique contest and had it ripped to shreds. My confidence was destroyed, and so I didn't submit Keir until June. In the meantime I managed to write and self-publish a scifi short story on Smashwords - The Bones of the Sea - tied into the same universe as Keir. I was also asked to guest post about my short by Laurie A. Green on the Spacefreighters Lounge blog.
I passed my university course in March. I wrote and edited my first scifi novella - Gethyon - and had it ready to submit at the same time as Keir. I finished the dark fantasy - No Mercy - and submitted it for a short story competition in June, after which time I had further ideas to expand the 5K short into a novella at a later date. I read, critiqued and proof-read my friend's book which came out in July - Blowing Embers, a paranormal/fantasy romance by Lauri J Owen.
Keir received the offer of a contract from Lyrical Press Inc (squeeee!) in June, with a projected publishing date of May 2012, and I finished my first round of edits in time for the 12th August deadline. Gethyon received a revise and resubmit request (another squeee!), and work on that took me into mid-August, with a promise for feedback from a fellow author in September. In partnership with Lauri, we took it upon ourselves to compile and maintain a list of book reviewers, now over 170 strong.
My second university course was due to start in October, a far more intensive one than the previous which would have taken me into June 2012. However, as the study material arrived I discovered that the diploma I had been aiming for was being replaced by another that not only required twice as many credits, but also in different subjects to those I'd chosen to study. As a consequence I quit the course. In September, I FINALLY began to edit Keir's sequel - Lost Serenity - despite struggling with the MS for some time. I had one of those eureka moments, where I could see how to change a major element of the story and improve the whole. Book Three - Shadowcast - still awaits edits, and Book Four - Seekers of the Nine - is still incomplete. However, I have made inroads into rewriting the very original prequel to the Traveller Series, including a new title, and started one scifi novella and another short chronicling Quin's early travels.
My edits arrived from my editor at the start of November and WOW was there a lot to do! I was given two weeks but eventually had to ask for three to complete it. It also raised huge doubts over doing any further work on the series.Thank goodness I wasn't doing my course though! Gethyon got a rejection but went out on submission again. If all else fails, I'm thinking of self-publishing it. My fantasy short didn't get placed in the competition and has been put aside for future work - again, I may expand it to novella length and either submit or self-publish.I've just finished and submitted an SFR short for a fellow author's anthology. I've also worked on a scifi short to self-pub in the New Year - Samaritan - and even have the cover half done. A fellow scifi author has offered to trade tweaking the cover for a beta read. :D Keir now has cover art and a release date of 7th May 2012.
In summary - I hadn't set myself very much for the year. I'm not sure if that was because of time constraints - I have three young children on top of writing and studies - or because I had such little confidence in what I could physically complete. I don't think I always make the best use of my time, but going by how much I did actually get done this year, I'm pretty impressed with myself. Of course now I'll have an inflated idea of what might be accomplished next year. :(
So how did you do on your goals for the year? Do you believe is setting yourself resolutions, or letting Fate have her way? :)
Plans - I already had two book reviews to write, was awaiting feedback from my two critique partners on my unpublished SFR (Keir) before doing a final edit and polish, and needed to write a blurb, synopsis and query letters for submission. I'd signed up for a university course to start in the October and run through to February 2011. I had ideas for a dark fantasy, and wanted to write a scifi novella. I also had two sequels written to Keir badly in need of editing, another sequel half written with vague ideas for a fifth, and a promise to edit a fellow author's second book.
Results - The book reviews weren't completed until February/March time, but they were done and more besides over the year. The edits on Keir took longer than expected, and then the whole submission was delayed because I submitted the first 500 words to a critique contest and had it ripped to shreds. My confidence was destroyed, and so I didn't submit Keir until June. In the meantime I managed to write and self-publish a scifi short story on Smashwords - The Bones of the Sea - tied into the same universe as Keir. I was also asked to guest post about my short by Laurie A. Green on the Spacefreighters Lounge blog.
I passed my university course in March. I wrote and edited my first scifi novella - Gethyon - and had it ready to submit at the same time as Keir. I finished the dark fantasy - No Mercy - and submitted it for a short story competition in June, after which time I had further ideas to expand the 5K short into a novella at a later date. I read, critiqued and proof-read my friend's book which came out in July - Blowing Embers, a paranormal/fantasy romance by Lauri J Owen.
Keir received the offer of a contract from Lyrical Press Inc (squeeee!) in June, with a projected publishing date of May 2012, and I finished my first round of edits in time for the 12th August deadline. Gethyon received a revise and resubmit request (another squeee!), and work on that took me into mid-August, with a promise for feedback from a fellow author in September. In partnership with Lauri, we took it upon ourselves to compile and maintain a list of book reviewers, now over 170 strong.
My second university course was due to start in October, a far more intensive one than the previous which would have taken me into June 2012. However, as the study material arrived I discovered that the diploma I had been aiming for was being replaced by another that not only required twice as many credits, but also in different subjects to those I'd chosen to study. As a consequence I quit the course. In September, I FINALLY began to edit Keir's sequel - Lost Serenity - despite struggling with the MS for some time. I had one of those eureka moments, where I could see how to change a major element of the story and improve the whole. Book Three - Shadowcast - still awaits edits, and Book Four - Seekers of the Nine - is still incomplete. However, I have made inroads into rewriting the very original prequel to the Traveller Series, including a new title, and started one scifi novella and another short chronicling Quin's early travels.
My edits arrived from my editor at the start of November and WOW was there a lot to do! I was given two weeks but eventually had to ask for three to complete it. It also raised huge doubts over doing any further work on the series.Thank goodness I wasn't doing my course though! Gethyon got a rejection but went out on submission again. If all else fails, I'm thinking of self-publishing it. My fantasy short didn't get placed in the competition and has been put aside for future work - again, I may expand it to novella length and either submit or self-publish.I've just finished and submitted an SFR short for a fellow author's anthology. I've also worked on a scifi short to self-pub in the New Year - Samaritan - and even have the cover half done. A fellow scifi author has offered to trade tweaking the cover for a beta read. :D Keir now has cover art and a release date of 7th May 2012.
In summary - I hadn't set myself very much for the year. I'm not sure if that was because of time constraints - I have three young children on top of writing and studies - or because I had such little confidence in what I could physically complete. I don't think I always make the best use of my time, but going by how much I did actually get done this year, I'm pretty impressed with myself. Of course now I'll have an inflated idea of what might be accomplished next year. :(
So how did you do on your goals for the year? Do you believe is setting yourself resolutions, or letting Fate have her way? :)
December 26, 2011
Romance Contest
This is a contest being run by my publisher - Lyrical Press Inc. It's for Romance and Erotica, and there's no entrance fee and a substantial $200 advance on offer. Best of luck!
The First Annual Lyrical Press How Lyrical is Your Romance? Contest opens on Monday, January 16th. This contest is open to both published and unpublished authors.Entries must be complete works, ranging in word count between 15,000-100,000 words, any heat level, and fit into one of the following subgenre categories:Contemporary romance Historical romance Paranormal or urban fantasy romance Romantic steampunk Romantic SuspensePrizes:1st Place: $200 advance and digital publishing contract (advance payable as $100 upon finalized contract and $100 upon publication).2nd Place: $100 advance and digital publishing contract (advance payable as $50 upon finalized contract and $50 upon publication).3rd Place: Top-scoring contestant in each genre category will receive an acquiring editor's critique of synopsis and first 50 pages of manuscript.Guidelines:File type: .rtf, .doc, or .docx only 12pt black font (Times New Roman, Cambria, Courier or Georgia preferred) Line spacing: 1.5 Margins: 1" all Page-breaks between chaptersPlease include a title page listing the following information:Legal name Pen name Email address Contact phone Working title (include series name and details if applicable) Word count Genre/categoryEntries will be accepted from January 16, 2012 through February 5, 2012, and must be emailed to contest@lyricalpress.com. Entries sent to an email other than the aforementioned will be ignored. Please include book title and contest in subject line thusly: Booktitle – How Lyrical Is Your Romance?. Attach full manuscript, and 2-5 page synopsis in .rtf, .doc, or .docx format (Booktitle_MS and Booktitle_SYN as file names--your book title replaces "Booktitle"). After February 5, the contest will close, but we'll still be accepting submissions as always at our submissions@lyricalpress.com address.No entry fee required. Judges reserve the right to Decline to Judge any entry if it does not fit our lines, level of writing is not acceptable, or submission guidelines are not followed.Entries will be judged on the following criteria: Hook, Pacing/Plot, Characterization, Dialogue, Mechanics, and Author Voice.Winners will be announced on March 12, 2012 via our blog http://lyricalpress.blogspot.com/ and direct emails to winners.
The First Annual Lyrical Press How Lyrical is Your Romance? Contest opens on Monday, January 16th. This contest is open to both published and unpublished authors.Entries must be complete works, ranging in word count between 15,000-100,000 words, any heat level, and fit into one of the following subgenre categories:Contemporary romance Historical romance Paranormal or urban fantasy romance Romantic steampunk Romantic SuspensePrizes:1st Place: $200 advance and digital publishing contract (advance payable as $100 upon finalized contract and $100 upon publication).2nd Place: $100 advance and digital publishing contract (advance payable as $50 upon finalized contract and $50 upon publication).3rd Place: Top-scoring contestant in each genre category will receive an acquiring editor's critique of synopsis and first 50 pages of manuscript.Guidelines:File type: .rtf, .doc, or .docx only 12pt black font (Times New Roman, Cambria, Courier or Georgia preferred) Line spacing: 1.5 Margins: 1" all Page-breaks between chaptersPlease include a title page listing the following information:Legal name Pen name Email address Contact phone Working title (include series name and details if applicable) Word count Genre/categoryEntries will be accepted from January 16, 2012 through February 5, 2012, and must be emailed to contest@lyricalpress.com. Entries sent to an email other than the aforementioned will be ignored. Please include book title and contest in subject line thusly: Booktitle – How Lyrical Is Your Romance?. Attach full manuscript, and 2-5 page synopsis in .rtf, .doc, or .docx format (Booktitle_MS and Booktitle_SYN as file names--your book title replaces "Booktitle"). After February 5, the contest will close, but we'll still be accepting submissions as always at our submissions@lyricalpress.com address.No entry fee required. Judges reserve the right to Decline to Judge any entry if it does not fit our lines, level of writing is not acceptable, or submission guidelines are not followed.Entries will be judged on the following criteria: Hook, Pacing/Plot, Characterization, Dialogue, Mechanics, and Author Voice.Winners will be announced on March 12, 2012 via our blog http://lyricalpress.blogspot.com/ and direct emails to winners.
December 23, 2011
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2012
I won't be blogging much over the next couple of weeks, with Christmas looming and the kids not going back to school until the 4th January. The blog won't be silent though. I have some automated posts set up for New Year's Eve, and I'm taking part in Carrie Ann Ryan's New Year blog hop on the 4th - stop by for your chance to win a Kindle Fire, Amazon GC, and a myriad of other yummy prizes being offered up by all the participants. :) If I remember to sign up, I'll be back for the first #sixsunday posting of the New Year. I'll also be guest posting over with the lovely Liana Brooks on the 18th about some of the myths of being a published author. In the meantime, I'd like to thank everyone who has stopped by, followed, and/or commented - you've been awesome. To my family, friends, followers, supporters, minions, worshippers...er...sorry, seem to have slipped a little too far there - have a great Christmas, and may it bring you health, wealth and happiness. I leave you with one of my favourite Christmas videos. xxx
