M.B. Mulhall's Blog, page 20

Right to Write Everyday?

You’ve probably heard that if you’re going to be a writer, you should write everyday. Hell, I’ve probably told you that in the past but let’s face it, writing is normally a second “job” for most of us and when life gets busy and complex, it’s not always possible to write on a daily basis. I’ve tried to do it and much of the time I succeed, but on those rough days…I’ve been known to stretch it and count emails, Facebook statuses and texts. Hey, it’s writing! It’s just not writing for one of my novels.

Do I think it’s helpful if you can write everyday? Most definitely. I think if you only write when the feeling moves you, you’ll end up finding that you don’t write very much at all. Sometimes we need to push ourselves otherwise we’ll just be stuck and fall into writer’s block or get discouraged and never finish the work.

Here’s the thing, I think it’s important to carve out time to write. If you’re serious about it then yes, you need to put in the effort, try to write as much as you can *BUT* don’t beat yourself up if you can’t get to it every single day. Things come up, you’re down, you’re mentally and physically drained, whatever. It’s going to happen. It’s not the end of the world. Pick it up tomorrow.

I also think it’s important to remember that as writers, we do other things besides write out stories.  Don’t forget to count time spent plotting, researching, outlining, writing character profiles, editing, revisions, re-writing, reading, etc. It all counts. Without those things, you don’t have a great completed product. They’re all a part of the process and count towards that write everyday quota. To me, anyhow.

Do you write everyday? Do you think it’s essential to your craft?

 

Interview with Sheryl Steines, Author of She Wulf

Please enjoy this interview with Sheryl Steines, author of the action-packed urban fantasy, She Wulf. (Isn’t that cover gorgeous?!) Then read on to learn how you can win huge prizes as part of this Novel Publicity blog tour, including a Kindle Fire, $550 in Amazon gift cards, 5 autographed copies of She Wulf, and 5 copies of its companion, The Day of First Sun.

1. When you start a book do you know how it will end or do you create the ending as you go along?

I have a rough idea of what the book will be about and I have some scene ideas and a rough ending. When I wrote The Day of First Sun, I knew that a high profile, non-magical person was going to be murdered by magic. I wrote out a paragraph of things that I wanted to see in the story and began writing. I didn’t look at the paragraph again until after the book was published and realized that I didn’t keep to my original thoughts at all. I tend to work without an outline because I feel tied to the story as if I’m trying to make everything fit. I prefer to let it flow and change. I like the freedom and the discovery. Sometimes I’m wildly surprised.

2. Do your book characters ever visit you in your dreams?

Yes and no. Not as much when I’m sleeping, but I daydream about them all the time. It’s how I work out characters and storylines. It’s almost as if a movie is playing in my head and I can change and add to storylines.

3. What are your favorite authors as either an adult or a child?

When I was a kid, I loved Nancy Drew. I read every one of them, but I didn’t just want to read them, I wished I had wrote them and started to write my own detective stories when I was seven. As I grew older, I read Judy Blume and Stephen King. Both made me feel something and from that I wanted to keep writing. I still read Stephen King and was very inspired by his autobiography On Writing. It was J.K. Rowling though, that reminded me of what I loved to read and that’s what inspired me to write my own fantasy novel.

4. How do you go about finishing a chapter when you can’t get it right?

I skip it…Just kidding. No, actually I’m not. Sometimes, I make a note in all caps reminding me I haven’t finished the chapter and other notes that I might be thinking about for the chapter and start the next one. Sometimes you just need to move on. The answer will eventually hit you upside the head when you least expect it.

5. Describe your reaction when you saw and held your first book?

I think I was numb when The Day of First Sun was published. Almost as if I had only done it to satisfy a selfish desire. It didn’t seem real. It was when I held She Wulf in my hands for the first time that I was overcome with emotion. This book consumed me for so long and I was so amazed by the final product and it seemed more than just a fantasy.

6. What is your biggest achievement to date?

Writing my first book. I always wanted to and never gave myself the opportunity. One day I decided it was time. It changed my life, gave me confidence. I lost the extra baby weight, changed my wardrobe, straightened my hair and gave my girls a role model, an example of taking control of one’s life and being the best person you can be.

7. What’s your favorite color?

Pink. I’ve always been a girly girl. As much as I’d like to be a sporty girl, I’m just not. It’s all about the pink, purses and shoes.

8. Favorite sound?

I love the sound of rain on the roof. Not during the sunlight hours, but early in the morning when it’s still dark out. I snuggle under the covers. It makes me happy.

9. If you weren’t a writer, what would you be?

An interior decorator. I love being creative and crafty and picking paint colors and getting lost in a fabric store. It’s almost as good as getting lost in a bookstore.

10. Worst fear?

I fear the alligators under the bed. Since I was a kid I can’t sleep without something covering my feet incase they come and get me. Don’t laugh, Stephen King admitted the same thing in an interview once.

As part of this special promotional extravaganza sponsored by Novel Publicity, the price of the She Wulf eBook edition is just 99 cents this week–and so is the price of its companion, The Day of First Sun. What’s more, by purchasing either of these fantastic books at an incredibly low price, you can enter to win many awesome prizes. The prizes include a Kindle Fire, $550 in Amazon gift cards, and 5 autographed copies of the book.

All the info you need to win one of these amazing prizes is RIGHT HERE. Remember, winning is as easy as clicking a button or leaving a blog comment–easy to enter; easy to win!

To win the prizes:

Purchase your copy of She Wulf for just 99 cents
Purchase your copy of Day of First Sun for just 99 cents
Enter the Rafflecopter contest on Novel Publicity
Visit today’s featured social media event

About She Wulf: Annie is sent through an ancient time portal with only a prophecy to guide her; she struggles with a new destiny as she tries to figure out a way to destroy an un-killable demon and return home. Get it on Amazon.

About The Day of First Sun: A vampire, a rogue wizard and an army of soulless zombies are par for the course for Annie Pearce and Bobby “Cham” Chamsky of the Wizard’s Guard. But when the non-magical princess, Amelie of Amborix, is murdered by magical means, a deeper plot unfolds. Get it on Amazon.

About the author: Behind the wheel of her ’66 Mustang Convertible, Sheryl is a constant surprise, using her sense of humor and relatable style make her books something everyone can enjoy. Visit Sheryl on her website, Twitter, Facebook, or GoodReads.

Written Confessions – Blog Hop

So my writing buddy Patricia Lynne had an idea that she wanted to let out some confessions about her and her writing, and wouldn’t it be “fun” to get other writers and maybe even readers to participate and spill forth our deepest darkest secrets.

I don’t know about deepest and darkest, some things are kept secret for a reason, but I suppose I have more than enough that I could share some of the ones I have in regards to my writing.

Firstly, this isn’t the most tightly held secret (those close to me figured it out without me telling them) but one of my characters in Tears of a Clown was named after an ex of mine.  I’m sure anyone who’s read the story can figure out which character it is. It allowed me to get out some frustrations and be immature and name call. I’m not the type to be nasty to someone to their face, so this was the next best thing! Haha! Therapeutic as well.

Secondly, I guess I would say I talk a good game here, about being positive and how great it is to be an indie author. I do believe that to a point, but other times my confidence is nil and I’m embarrassed to tell people I’m a self-published author. I guess I’m concerned, with the stigma that still exists, that others will judge my writing as not good enough to be published traditionally. Being that I never tried, I don’t really know if that’s true or not. I like what I write. I enjoy reading my own stories, but I often wonder if others really do. Sure they might say they do, but maybe they’re just being nice. Maybe they don’t want to hurt my feelings. Maybe they just don’t want to be the one tell me how bad it is.

It’s not so surprising, I suppose, considering my lack of confidence in just about everything I do. It’s always been a problem so why wouldn’t it translate into my writing as well?  Sometimes I can get by, otherwise my work would never been seen by other eyes. But it’s not an easy thing for me and I don’t know that it ever will be. I just do the best I can and fake it ’til I make it.

Do you have any confessions you want to get off your chest? Did you name a character after someone you dislike just so you could kill them off? Do you have panic attacks at the thought of sharing your work? Join us and write your own post. Letting it out can be cathartic! If you join in, add your link by clicking on the cute blue frog head below so we can hop to your blog.

 

Figment? It’s not your imagination

Those of you who follow my Facebook page have probably noticed I’ve been posting some shorts and chapter previews over at Figment.com (which used to be Inkpop) lately.  Why?  Because Figment is an online writing community and as I was recently told, you need more than one outlet for critiques. I can’t always get together with my groups in the “real” world, so having a group online means I can “meet” with folks on my own terms in my own time.  Not a bad thing when you can’t sleep at night. Log on, read some stories and comment. Most of those people will do the same for you in return next time they log on.

While the site seems dominated with younger writers and the comments they post may not be the most helpful, I feel it gives me a chance to help inspiring authors not give up. To give them real advice and make sure it’s not delivered in a negative way.  I wish such a place had existed when I started writing. Maybe I wouldn’t have put down my pen for years if I had Figment for an outlet and feedback.

Another perk about belong to and playing around with Figment is that they often run contests. I recently entered one where the prize is being published as part of an anthology along with great writers like Sarah Rees Brennan, Rachel Hawkins and Beth Revis. It will be put out by Harper Teen.  That’s a big deal! There’s also a cash prize, which is always nice, but I would take the publication cred over the money.

Their contests are on different themes which often makes me think outside the box and maybe outside my comfort zone. I think it’s important to push yourself. How do you know you’re good at horror writing, or poetry or short stories if you don’t ever try to write them. Am I right?

Belonging to this site also helps me to promote myself. As I stated, much of the community is young writers. Young writers are also young readers which are my intended audience! They may not have a lot of money to spend but if they enjoy the short stuff I post, maybe they’ll be interested to see I’ve written full length novels and want to buy them. It couldn’t hurt to try! It’s all about getting your name out there.

There are several other sites out there similar to Figment, so be sure to look around and find an online writing community that works for you. A good writer needs more than one so don’t be afraid to branch out.

Do you belong to an online writing community? Which and would you recommend it to others?

Done with KDP

The first of this month ended my second stint with

Promo Galore!

Today is a bit of an unusual post for me.  I’m not usually one to use this space to blatantly push my books (yes, I do mention them on occasion and the links are there, but more it’s about the writing and publishing process than me saying “Buy! Buy! Buy!”) but the reason I’m doing this is because my stint with Kindle and haven’t picked it up yet, now’s the time! Just click the image below. (Come September, Near Death will be available again at Barnes & Noble and Kobo!)

Tears of a Clown is also on sale, for $2.99 (that’s 50% off!) until the end of August for both Kindle and Nook (click on the link for the file that fits your e-reader). If you’re looking for a good romantic comedy to read on the beach during the holiday weekend, pick up your copy before the 31st!

Last, but certainly not least,  I am *SUPER* excited to be featured today over at YA Promo Central! It’s a great place for exposure, advertising and building your platform. Please be sure to stop by (click the name!) and check out my interview with them.

Thanks everyone for all your support and enjoy the end of Summer!

The Next Big Thing…

Eep! I’ve been tagged by Patricia Lynne to take part in the Next Big Thing, where authors get to talk about their work in progress. I have to answer then questions and then tag another five authors. So here goes!

Questions:

What is the working title of your book? Staying Alive (Life & Death, book 2)

Where did the idea come from for the book? It’s a sequel to my first book, Near Death.  There wasn’t originally going to be a second book, but a friend expressed how she’d love to see more of a certain character and so I got the idea to age them and bring them all back!

What genre does your book fall under? It’s YA, but I tend to dub it contemporary fiction with a paranormal twist

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?  oooh this is hard.

Maybe some for Jackson? (although he might be a bit too old)

How about for Gabe?

for Chris(toph).

for Marisol.

Eri Tokunaga for Aya.

I think  would make a good Sarah.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?  GAH! Only one sentence? *sigh*

Depression sucks college student Jackson Moore into a pit of despair, but his Guardian Angel must keep him alive until he completes his purpose in life.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?  It will be self published since the first book in the series was as well.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript? Umm..I’m still writing it? Hah! It’s almost done. The majority of it was written in a month.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre? Good question! I’m uhh..not sure?

Who or What inspired you to write this book?  My friend who wanted to read more when she was done with Near Death!

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest? It’s a book about struggling with guilt and insecurity in life, school and relationships. The paranormal twist keeps it interesting and suspenseful as the reader won’t know exactly where it’s heading until it gets there.

Tag, you’re it!:

Your ten questions:

What is the working title of your book?

Where did the idea come from for the book?

What genre does your book fall under?

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

Who or What inspired you to write this book?

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

Tagging these 5 authors!

Edward McKeown

RG Porter

Samantha Warren

Bobby Mathews

Tiffany Berryman

Books about bullying

Seeing as the school year is starting up again, I thought I’d take the time to look up and discuss some books that deal with bullies. I am saddened every time I hear a story of a teen who has hurt themselves or even worse, taken their own lives, because others have been mean and cruel to them.  I think bullies have always existed in some form (and yes, there are most definitely the adult versions in life as well) but it seems to have just gotten disgustingly out of control with the help of the internet and social media.

I had the occasion person pick on me growing up (there are always those couple of folks who want to pick on the fat chick…) but I was involved in several things in school and had a fairly large and diverse group of friends. When I started really getting into writing

It takes all kinds…

One thing that’s starting to annoy me in a lot of recent YA literature  is the complete “white bread” cast. It seems like minorities just don’t seem to exist in most of today’s youth lit.  There is a major lacking in African American main characters, as well as Latin/Hispanic,  Asian, American Indian, etc. I’m not sure if it’s because people of those minorities aren’t writing YA novels or because people feel like they don’t know how to represent people of other ethnicities well enough.

It’s not just other minorities that are missing, but people of different religions or with mental and/or physical handicaps. Characters with diseases that don’t end in supernatural powers and characters with differing sexual preferences are next to non-existent as well.

As authors, we want our writing to be realistic (even if it’s fantasy) and that means our casts should be varied with all types of characters. Not only will it add to the story, but it lets you work in aspects of different cultures and love and tolerance towards all.  There’s no reason why the hot “white” jock can’t fall for the stunning African American girl on the dance team. No reason why the cute red headed Irish guy can’t fall for the exotic new Asian boy in school.

Don’t be afraid to make your characters realistic with disorders and disabilities, these are things real teens deal with everyday, whether it’s Diabetes, ADHD, Autism, depression, eating disorders, etc.. Just be sure to research the affliction first so you know some of the symptoms/characteristics and treatments. You can’t be realistic going on hunches and what you “think” you know. Look it up.

I think to diversify our characters allows us the chance to introduce different types of people and cultures to parts of our audience that may not see such things outside of their own communities. I think we have to be careful as well not to make those characters a walking stereotype. I think that is something a good beta reader can help alert you to.

Take a chance and round out your cast. It will make for a better story and appeal to a larger audience.

Have you written characters who are different than you?

Celebrating Community

When I decided to self-publish, I never imagined I’d find so many great communities (online and off!) of authors, both self and traditionally published.  They are great sources of support, advice and encouragement.

I was recently contacted by my indie author friend, Pavarti K Tyler,  who celebrates Ramadan and wanted to break her fast ( Eid al-Fitr) with her online community. From now (August 16th) until August 19th, many authors (myself included) will be helping her to celebrate via blog hop where we’ll be sharing recipes, discussing our ideas of community and togetherness and talking about how we share happiness.

Also, there’s prizes! Lots of prizes! Free stuff! Yay! (Sadly, Rafflecopter doesn’t work here for me, so PLEASE be sure to stop by HERE to enter and to see who else is participating in the blog hop! Seriously, so maaaany great giveaways! Check it out!)

My participation today is to share one of my favorite recipes.  I picked this specific one because it’s one I’ve share with many people online and I’ve also made it for friends and family.  It’s easy to make, inexpensive, feeds many, is vegetarian and weight watcher friendly but one you can adapt to add your own preferences whether it’s different veggies or  meat for the carnivores.

Without further ado, I present to you all: TACO SOUP

It makes a HUGE amount so be prepared to eat it for a while or to freeze it!

 

Ingredients:

1 can black beans

1 can white beans

1 can pink beans

1 28oz can of crushed tomatos

1 cup water

1 can tomato soup

1/4 cup chili powder

1/4 cup salsa

1/4 cup taco sauce

generous shakes over black pepper, onion flakes and garlic powder

1 can kernel corn

2 tbsp hot sauce (optional)

 

Directions:

Mix all items in a big pot and simmer for about 20/30 min.  Top with cheddar or mozz. cheese.

A great crusty bread is nice to dip in it too.

 

(I tend to not use back beans but red kidney beans instead but whichever you prefer is fine  Adjust the spice level with your choice of salsa and taco sauce and whether you add hot sauce or not. Also you can swap out the corn for things like spinach or kale.)