Rachele Alpine's Blog, page 19

Sent!

Book 2...Circles

276 pages

67,889 words

Sent to agent...woo hoo!

Telling the Truth

If you follow me on my Facebook page, you might have caught my message last week that I finished my (millionth) draft of my new book.

It's done and ready to be sent off to my agent.

But I haven't hit "send."

The truth is that I'm nervous to show it to him.

I don't know why...he saw the first 75 pages or so when I started the project and I've had five beta readers look it over, but still, I can't seem to hit "send."

So that's my truth. Writing isn't always easy.

Maybe I'll find the nerve to send it out into the world today.

Fingers crossed!

Keep Writing

This is floating around the Internet. I wish I could track it back to someone, but I keep hitting dead ends. I'd like to thank that person for a great chart. It's a philosophy for writers to live by...
KEEP WRITING!

I Love Me Some Beautiful Words

I stumbled across a poem by Denis McMahon the other day. The words in it really moved me.
"my sugargirl angel
dances on the beach in winter

hiking her skirt
at the air she whispers

take me you beautiful paddlepop
before the moon melts"

I love the image and mood it evokes. It's whispering a story to me. Somehow I'm seeing a character that will make an appearance in my writing. I'm almost certain of that.
Don't you love when that happens?
Photo by: Suman Gallery

Happy Keyboard

I found this keyboard idea on this blog.

You put colored masking tape on your keys.
I'm now obsessed with it.

I want to do it soooo bad!
What's not to love about a happy keyboard!?!

Walk a Mile in My Shoes...Errr...Read a Mile in My Shoes!

I totally want to make a pair of these. Preferably in canary yellow with the text of my book!

What novel would you write on your shoes?

Can I Have An Author Moment?

I feel like I've quieted down a bit about writing since my book sold. I haven't really talked much about what's been going on (all good stuff but things that keep me busy...I just finished my first round of edits for CANARY and am now working on a final revision of my next book before I send it off to my agent).
Truthfully, it feels so far away before my book comes out that I still think of it in the abstract.
However, one thing has been sort of blowing my mind.
Goodreads.
My book got listed on Goodreads about a month after it sold.
Since then, people have been quietly adding it to their "to read" shelf.
97 people to be exact.
I know about fifteen of them.
That means roughly 82 complete strangers have found my book and marked it as something they want to read.
One person even put it on a shelf called "Dying-to-Read."
It's crazy, awesome and humbling.
People are discovering my book and they want to read it.
I'm not afraid to admit that I may find myself from time to time sticking my hand in the air and fist pumping my imaginary book.
Because this is a bit crazy to me and one of the first times that I actually feel like a published author.
And I have to admit, I like it!

Rue's Lullaby

A former student at my school posted this INCREDIBLE video of herself singing the music she wrote for Rue's Lullaby in The Hunger Games.
Seriously, it rocks.
Check it out and then pass it on through your Facebook and Twitter pages, because she's amazing.

Twenty-three years ago....

Twenty-three years ago I competed in a competition called The Power of the Pen. It's a day long writing competition for middle school students that happens all over Ohio. You write to prompts, get judged and if you get a high enough score, you move on and on until you reach state! It's kind of like sports but for writers.
I LOVED it with a passion that only a middle school student can have.
Today (TODAY!), I get to judge the best of the best in our regional competition as a special author judge. I will be judging with Cleveland writing buds Leah Clifford, Scott Tracey and Colleen Clayton. I am beside myself with excitement.
My eighth grade self would have flipped out if she knew one day she would be there judging the competition as a published author.
It's amazing to think that I've made a full circle (as have Leah and Scott, who both also competed in TPOTP when they were in grade school). What an encouraging message to all the kids who will be writing there today. I believe so much in The Power of the Pen, and I certain that one day some of them will be published writers and back judging the competition.

Awesome Movie Alert!

Uhm...how did I miss this???

Did you know that Stephen Chobsky's The Perks of Being a Wallflower is being made into a movie?

Seriously. I must have been sleeping under a rock.
And it's not just being made...but it will be out this year!
And it stars Emma Watson!
And Mae Whitman (from my most favorite show in the world Parenthood)!
I don't know the boy playing Charlie, but he's got my vote. He looks great for the part.




Hot diggity dog! I can't wait!
Read about it here.