Gail Wagner's Blog, page 11
May 3, 2012
Now Available for Purchase!
I now have copies of my book available for purchase! I currently only have paperbacks. Hardbacks will be in stock in a few weeks! Click here to purchase a copy!
This new site is where I will be putting "deleted scenes," music that inspired me and other tidbits!
This new site is where I will be putting "deleted scenes," music that inspired me and other tidbits!
Now Available for Purchase!
I now have copies of my book available for purchase! I currently only have paperbacks. Hardbacks will be in stock in a few weeks! Click here to purchase a copy!
This new site is where I will be putting "deleted scenes," music that inspired me and other tidbits!
This new site is where I will be putting "deleted scenes," music that inspired me and other tidbits!
May 2, 2012
Reading Rants
Okay I have a rant I must get off my shoulders. The Accelerated Reader (AR) program. If you aren’t familiar with this you can learn more here. I have three children varying in ages from 6 to 9. My two oldest read way above their grade levels (proud mamma moment!). Now with the AR system they read a book and take a test on the computer at school on it. Each book is rated with a reading level and a certain number of points. So far so good. My issue is: how the heck do they decide what reading level a book is?!
My 9yo son has recently started reading the Cirque de Freak series by Darren Shan. He LOVES them and I can’t believe how fast he’s reading them. It has been a struggle just to get him to read the required 20 minutes a day and now he’d rather read than play video games! Yay!
The problem with this situation? He is over a 6th grade reading level and these books (which are well over 200 pages each and were found in the YA section of the library) range from a 4.8 to a 6.2. What makes one book so much higher than the others? There are lots of books that I bet you’re reading or have read that you would be shocked at what the “reading level” is.· Twilightby Stephenie Meyer 4.9· Hunger Gamesby Suzanne Collins 5.3· Matched by Ally Condie 4.8· The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan 4.5· Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling 6.9· The Wizard of Oz by Frank L Baum 7.0· Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick 4.5· The City of Bones by Cassandra Clare 5.0· Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr 4.7
I could go on but the point is that this list seems silly. I certainly would let my 4thor 5th grader read Hush, Hush or The City of Bones but I would let my 2nd grader read Harry Potter and The Wizard of Oz. I’ve heard the ratings are partly determined by average number of syllables in words and average number of sentences per 100 words. Apparently they don’t take content into account at all.
Perhaps this is just another reason we as parents should be careful what our children read but I think there should be a better rating system, because in a system where Wizard of Oz is a 7th grade book and Twilight is a 4th grade one, there’s a problem!
Okay enough of that! On a much lighter note I got my first shipment of books yesterday so I have paperbacks available for purchase. If you order through me I will sign it. If you are holding out for a hardback then it will be a couple more weeks. I will be setting up a place to purchase books using paypal today or tomorrow!
April 17, 2012
Too Much Multitasking
You know, I’ve always wondered if I suffer from undiagnosed ADD. I have a hard time concentrating if I’m not doing at least 2-3 things at a time, I have a million unfinished projects (which my very patient husband will attest to!) and I have a tendency to get no housework done despite working on it all day since I can’t stay with one thing till it’s done. I’ve been assured that this isn’t ADD but MOTHERHOOD.
Well, whatever it is, I can now list another symptom: writing 10 books at once! Okay maybe not quite that many but I’m really bad about coming up with new ideas that I just HAVE to work on right now. At one point I was actively working on three different books. I finally had to make myself pick one and finish it (which I have, thank heavens!). I’ve got three more (different ones!) that are screaming for my attention, not to mention I’ve made the decision to go back to school, have several home projects I’m trying to do and have recently committed to being an officer in the local PTO.
You would think that with all this my brain would accept that it has enough to do, but no, now I’ve got another idea kicking around in there! This really should be comforting because I was terrified after I wrote my first book I would be out of ideas, however I don’t have the ability to write six novels at one time (as awesome as that would be!). I guess I will just prioritize which ideas I should work on and file away the ones I can’t right now, making sure to write them down because I’ve forgotten way too many by not!
So I got a letter from my publisher telling me I’ve been sent on to the marketing department and have been on pins and needles waiting to hear from them. I have the option of getting different marketing products and would love what your opinions are! Which do you think is better: bookmarks, business cards, or “pass along” cards? I also can get posters and t-shirts which I’m getting for sure!
Well, whatever it is, I can now list another symptom: writing 10 books at once! Okay maybe not quite that many but I’m really bad about coming up with new ideas that I just HAVE to work on right now. At one point I was actively working on three different books. I finally had to make myself pick one and finish it (which I have, thank heavens!). I’ve got three more (different ones!) that are screaming for my attention, not to mention I’ve made the decision to go back to school, have several home projects I’m trying to do and have recently committed to being an officer in the local PTO.
You would think that with all this my brain would accept that it has enough to do, but no, now I’ve got another idea kicking around in there! This really should be comforting because I was terrified after I wrote my first book I would be out of ideas, however I don’t have the ability to write six novels at one time (as awesome as that would be!). I guess I will just prioritize which ideas I should work on and file away the ones I can’t right now, making sure to write them down because I’ve forgotten way too many by not!
So I got a letter from my publisher telling me I’ve been sent on to the marketing department and have been on pins and needles waiting to hear from them. I have the option of getting different marketing products and would love what your opinions are! Which do you think is better: bookmarks, business cards, or “pass along” cards? I also can get posters and t-shirts which I’m getting for sure!
April 3, 2012
March Madness
Isn't it funny how things don't always turn out the way you expect? March was spent gearing up for a move to a new house about an hour away (along with an expected visit from out of town family!). We were one week from moving and everything fell through (not due to anything on our part), so now we are unpacking everything that we had boxed up. On top of all this I spent the month editing the final proof of Army of Sorrow. I actually enjoy editing...at least the conceptual part of it. This time around felt like I was trying to slog my way through knee deep, wet sand. It was almost painful to read it and see little things I would have liked to change but wasn't allowed to at this point. I was under strict orders to only edit things like misspellings and grammatical errors. The biggest thing was that apparently when it was reformatted to whatever program they use for layout, it took out every single italicized spot! I had to go through and re-italicize everything! Thankfully I'm all done now. I mailed the final back this morning. We're settling back into the idea of staying where we are for now and slowly bringing things back into the house as we need them. I have lots of project vying for my attention now. Several writing ones as well as sewing and painting...so I guess my biggest problem right now is to figure out what order I'll be doing them all!
February 28, 2012
Another New Computer
Last month I posted about my new laptop...unfortunately it was too big for me. The sheer size of it was so daunting that it actually inspired writer's block! Not to mention it was really too big to used in a lap (not sure why they call it a laptop then...) Luckily my husband was not-so-quietly coveting it so it has found a much loved new home with him.
I finally bucked up and bought a new netbook. It's not quite as small as my original one but it's much smaller than the laptop. I LOVE IT! I have very nearly finished the edits on my new novel and can't wait to start getting feedback from my lovely beta readers.
I have begun putting together promotional materials for Army of Sorrow so if anyone has any ideas they would be greatly appreciated! Also if anyone knows of any place that might be willing to host a book signing or such let me know!
In other news, my family has finally found a house and hopefully will be moving the end of March. We love it here and have decided to make it a permanent move. So we'll be adding another move to our very long list of them in the last couple of years! Hopefully this will be the last one for a long time!
Now I'm off to finish the last few chapters of my new novel (and packing some more boxes...or maybe laundry). :)
I finally bucked up and bought a new netbook. It's not quite as small as my original one but it's much smaller than the laptop. I LOVE IT! I have very nearly finished the edits on my new novel and can't wait to start getting feedback from my lovely beta readers.
I have begun putting together promotional materials for Army of Sorrow so if anyone has any ideas they would be greatly appreciated! Also if anyone knows of any place that might be willing to host a book signing or such let me know!
In other news, my family has finally found a house and hopefully will be moving the end of March. We love it here and have decided to make it a permanent move. So we'll be adding another move to our very long list of them in the last couple of years! Hopefully this will be the last one for a long time!
Now I'm off to finish the last few chapters of my new novel (and packing some more boxes...or maybe laundry). :)
February 27, 2012
Donegal Sidhe has a Face!
So this past week I was sent several options for cover art. Though they were all beautiful, one in particular stood out to me (as well as most of those who helped with the decision). I did ask that they use a different font for the title and after switching that for me, it was absolutely perfect! So with great pleasure, here is my book:
I still don't have an official release date but was told it would most likely be in May, so until I hear differently that is what I'm going with. It will be available as an ebook as well as a hard copy!
I still don't have an official release date but was told it would most likely be in May, so until I hear differently that is what I'm going with. It will be available as an ebook as well as a hard copy!
January 11, 2012
Murphy's Law
As evidence by the title of this post I have sad news to report. My beloved netbook has bit the dust. I dropped it (on my birthday to boot!) and now only half the screen works. As the repair would have been twice as much as a new computer, we opted for a new one. I’ve had that netbook for nearly the entire journey of getting my first book published.
A moment of silence for its passing….
On a happier note, I am now typing on a brand new laptop. I’m a little bummed that it’s as big as it is but could not bring myself to pay twice as much to take off 2 inches of screen. It does have some pros over my old one: a dvd-rom, lots more memory, and a full size keyboard. Though, this last one is also a con. I’m now having to relearn how to type since the keyboard on my netbook was so small. It was the perfect size for me…my teen nephews have informed me that this is because I have the hands of an 8 year old (this isn’t far from the truth as my 9 year old and I can share gloves…if I cared to wear bakugan or transformer ones…)
My book has had its final edit and is moving onto the graphic design department. I can’t describe how excited I am for this phase! I know we aren’t supposed to judge a book by its cover, but we’ve all been guilty of this at some point, even if we simply pick up a book because the cover art was breathtaking. I admit I’ve done it (though I must also qualify that I did not enjoy the story and didn’t finish it, but the point is, I started it because the cover was intriguing).
In other news I have finished a draft of the first book in an entirely new series and am now beginning the arduous task of editing it and finding someone who wants to publish it…there truly no rest for the weary!
A moment of silence for its passing….
On a happier note, I am now typing on a brand new laptop. I’m a little bummed that it’s as big as it is but could not bring myself to pay twice as much to take off 2 inches of screen. It does have some pros over my old one: a dvd-rom, lots more memory, and a full size keyboard. Though, this last one is also a con. I’m now having to relearn how to type since the keyboard on my netbook was so small. It was the perfect size for me…my teen nephews have informed me that this is because I have the hands of an 8 year old (this isn’t far from the truth as my 9 year old and I can share gloves…if I cared to wear bakugan or transformer ones…)
My book has had its final edit and is moving onto the graphic design department. I can’t describe how excited I am for this phase! I know we aren’t supposed to judge a book by its cover, but we’ve all been guilty of this at some point, even if we simply pick up a book because the cover art was breathtaking. I admit I’ve done it (though I must also qualify that I did not enjoy the story and didn’t finish it, but the point is, I started it because the cover was intriguing).
In other news I have finished a draft of the first book in an entirely new series and am now beginning the arduous task of editing it and finding someone who wants to publish it…there truly no rest for the weary!
January 2, 2012
New Beginnings
One of my New Year resolutions this year was to start a blog, so here is my first attempt.
Though I read several wonderful (and insanely creative!) blogs, I tend to be more of a “stalker” than an involved follower. I just never know what to say. I was a late facebooker…and just barely got atwitter account (I still don’t really know what to do with it).A little info about me: I am a stay at home mom of three awesome kids, the monster, age 9, the monkette, age 7, and the monkey, age 6. My honey and I have been married about a decade and in those years have been through a lot. We’ve survived: undergrad and grad school (him, not me), the birth of all three kids during those school years, 7 moves, various ER visits and the loss of close family members.
In February 2009 I began writing my first novel. It took me eighteen months and four moves to finish it. During the spring of 2011 I was thrilled to find a publisher.
I’m now on the last round of edits before it heads to layout and design. My story has gone through a lot of changes and I love it more now than when I started. We finally have a title, Donegal Sidhe: Army of Sorrow. Thanks to an amazing editor who brainstormed with me a lot to figure that out!
