E.J. Wesley's Blog, page 16

Release Day! Weighted by Ciara Knight

Hello gang! Today is a BIG day for fellow author-blogger Ciara Knight. Her latest work, WEIGHTED, hits shelves, and she is celebrating in grand fashion. More on that in a sec...

NA Lit Chat Update
Week 5 of NA Lit Chat is here! This week, Thursday 9 PM EST on the Twitters, we'll be taking an in-depth look at themes in New Adult lit. Last week, we had a great discussion on settings. Be sure to take a look at the transcript on the NA Lit Chat blog for some awesome story ideas (the brainstorming was in full-effect!) and a full calendar of upcoming chats. To join in, just use #NALitChat in your tweets.

Good News of the Week
Lots of great news this week! 
First, a blogfest, courtesy of your friendly neighborhood Ninja Blogger, Alex Cavanaugh:
 
Genre Favorites Blogfest
September 17, 2012
One blogfest, four favorites!List your favorite genre of:
MovieMusicBooksAnd a guilty pleasure genre from any of the three categories!
Be sure to sign up over at Alex's blog HERE!
Missed Periods and Other Grammar Scares
Great title, right? :) Author and grammarian, Jenny Baranick, has launched her grammar utility guide Missed Periods & Other Grammar Scares: How to Avoid Unplanned & Unwanted Grammar Errors. Not saying you need it (I do), but Jenny is hilarious and I'm sure her book  is equally entertaining... and useful... to some. :) You can check out Jenny's blog HERE, and pick up her book HERE.
Weighted Release Day!

Author Ciara Knight's latest is available now! Here are the deets:
Weighted (Prequel Novelette)

The Great War of 2185 is over, but my nightmare has just begun. I am being held captive in the Queen’s ship awaiting interrogation. My only possible ally is the princess, but I’m unsure if she is really my friend or a trap set by the Queen to fool me into sharing the secret of my gift. A gift I keep hidden even from myself. It swirls inside my body begging for release, but it is the one thing the Queen can never discover. Will I have the strength to keep the secret? I’ll know the answer soon. If the stories are true about the interrogators, I’ll either be dead or a traitor to my people by morning.
Upcoming books in The Neumarian Chronicles:
Escapement (Book I) - Early 2013Pendulum (Book II) - Mid 2013Balance (Book III) - Early 2014
Other books by Cara Knight:
Battle for Souls SeriesRise From DarknessFall From GraceAscension of Evil - Coming in October
About Ciara

Ciara writes to ‘Defy the Dark’ with her fantasy and paranormal books. Her debut novel, The Curse of Gremdon, was released to acclaimed reviews, securing a Night Owl Top Pick and five stars from the Paranormal Romance Guild. Also, book I, Rise From Darkness, from her debut young adult Battle For Souls series, secured glowing reviews and won July Book of the Month from Long and Short Reviews.
Her first love, besides her family, reading, and writing, is travel. She's backpacked through Europe, visited orphanages in China, and landed in a helicopter on a glacier in Alaska.

Ciara is extremely sociable so please feel free to connect with her at her blog, website, Twitter, Goodreads, or Facebook,
For details on how to win a free copy of Weighted, check out Ciara's blog HERE!
~EJW~

3 Things I Wish I'd Known About Writing

Howdy all! Hope you're all plugging along at a steady pace. That's one thing I've come to appreciate in life. Steady. So many things can only be achieved by steady. Fast and now are vastly overrated in my opinion, but it still doesn't keep me from wishing I'd known a bit more about this writing stuff from the start.

That's the point of this post, actually, but more on that in a sec.

HOUSECLEANING
I've noticed I've opened the last few posts with some cool authorly goings-on, so I've decided to begin every post with some good news. Basically, I'd like to share info on any and all of my writer buddies publishing exploits, etc.

So here's the call: If you're launching a book, running a blogfest, etc. and want me to share it, shoot me an email with a link and a bit of info and I'll work it into a future "Good News" section. You can send the eMail to: jezzell19 (AT) gmail (DOT) com

THIS WEEK'S GOOD NEWS
Author C. Lee McKenzie is launching her latest book this week, Alligators Overhead. Here's a link to a great interview with C. Lee (Indies should check it for sure) over at JULIE MUSIL's blog. Plus, I loved the trailer. Check it below. Way to go Lee!





Also on the good news front, spectacular author-blogger Siv Maria is celebrating the upcoming release of her short story "Secrets of the Ash Tree" with the very fun Unforgettable Blogfest. You can learn more about her story, and signup for the blogfest, HERE. 

Here are the rules as per Siv:

"...post about some strange and unusual place, person or thing you have visited. Something that has left a lasting impression, one that you can not forget."

Naturally, there being an awesome dog-in-a-hoody button and all, I couldn't resist participating. So here's my entry:

The most unforgettable place I've been is easily Venice, Italy. I've traveled to a few places in my life, and never really experienced anything remotely like it. It's one of the most visited spots in the world, yet somehow it can feel like the entire place belongs only to you. Probably has something to do with the many streets/corridors that could barely fit 3 people walking side-by-side, or the seemingly endless number of patio cafes to sip wine or espresso at while people watching, or the constant sound of seabirds and lapping water. There's also something completely charming about seeing dogs and cats--not strays, mind--roam around carefree without the fear of being run down by a car. (There aren't any vehicles on the island... other than boats.) And none of that mentions the uniquely-Venice occurrence of being utterly lost--to call the streets and alleys a maze would be understating it--and still only be a 5 minute walk from wherever you're going.

From our trip. :)New Adult Twitter Chat Update
As many of you know, the NA Lit Chat #NALitChat is something of a pet project of mine and the ladies over at the NA Alley Blog. (You can get the details over at the NA Lit Chat blog HERE.) Basically, a bunch of authors and readers get together to discuss New Adult (think older than YA, younger than "Adult") lit every Thursday night (9 PM EST US) on the Twitters.

We began 4 weeks ago, and our attendance is growing every week by leaps and bounds. The information being shared is truly first rate. Plus, it's a ton of fun. You should definitely stop in and say hello some night. This week we'll be taking an in-depth look at settings in NA lit, specifically examining reader preferences and author techniques.

BLOODY GOOD FUN COVER REVEAL PARTY UPDATE
Last week I asked for help sharing the cover for my upcoming book release. YOU GUYS TOTALLY BLEW ME AWAY!!! Seriously, just overjoyed by the number of folks who responded. 
I'll be closing the signup at the end of this week, and subsequently sending an email to everyone with the full details (stuff to share, date to share, etc.). You can still sign up if you'd like to help, and can learn more about the details HERE.
3 THINGS I WISH I'D KNOWN ABOUT WRITING
Here are some things I wish I'd have known when I started all of this a few years ago. I'm by no means at my final destination as a writer (at least I sure hope not!), but these are some things that would have certainly helped me get to wherever it is that I'm at a little faster. 
1) Go Biggest, or Go Home
What I wish someone had told me was this: You know that idea for a story you've got? It has to be big, huge even. You know that big-huge story you've written, and that main character with the BIG personality? They're going to have to be bigger. And that climax needs to be the biggest you've ever imagined, and that villain needs to be someone you're slightly ashamed to have dreamed up, and that plot is going to have give you night sweats trying to figure out how to make it work...
Don't misunderstand me, I'm not suggesting that every story needs to be some bombastic thing no one has ever dreamed of. Far from it. I'm just saying that what I started out thinking was 'big enough' wasn't even close. I'd think, "Oh, that's a clever/racy/dramatic thing for my character to think or say", and it wasn't. It wasn't until I (finally!) started to turn myself loose, to write unfiltered, that I (finally!) began to see some spark in my prose. Up until that point, the stories were fine. The writing was fine. But nothing was good. 
My thought process now? It's way easier to dial it back than it is to crank it up. So blast it in your drafts, and let your critters and editors help you figure out if it's too loud. Fiction is writing for dramatic purposes, so bring the drama until you think it's too much. That's when you're getting close to nailing it. 
The beauty of it? It's all based upon the individual. Just shoot for the best and biggest from you. It'll show in your writing, and readers will eat it up.
2) You Will Never Be THEM
Go ahead, think about your idols. Tom Clancy. Stephen King. J.K. Janet Evanovich... Now think about the average, everyday writer you'd gladly swap places with. Your blog buddy who just nabbed an agent. The friend you just beta read for who is so good it shames the entire industry because they haven't been found and published yet. Now, think about every story you wish you'd written, every story that's inspired you to write.
Now fold them neatly in half and grab your lighter... you can't be any of them, so they might as well burn.
This isn't meant to be depressing or discouraging. In fact, it's so enlightening I believe it could have literally moved me years ahead of my current writing level had I embraced it from the start. See, I tried way too dang hard to be everything but what I am when it came to writing.
And this doesn't just apply to style and craft. It applies to aspirations, dreams, goals, etc. I wanted what others had at the cost of neglecting to develop what I had. I ignored my own voice. I struggled to perfect what I was reading and who I was watching/emulating, when I really should have pulled out a mirror and worked at perfecting who and what I was.
3) You Need 3 Eyes
I'm convinced saying, "I think I want to ben author" is simultaneously the easiest and most difficult thing you can possibly ever utter. 
It's Easy Because ... It rolls off the tongue, and I doubt you'd need a second breath to get it out. To be an author of fiction, by my definition, means to offer up writing for public consumption and entertainment. Not review, or critique, mind you, but for people to ingest and digest. You don't have to charge for it, and you don't have to apologize. Basically, you write something and say, "Here. Like it or lump it. Hopefully like it." So the concept, in theory, is easy to understand and embrace.
It's Hard Because ... Only a writer thinks of it that way. To the public, your friends, agents, editors, your momma and nanna--whoever--it's SO much more than that. It's business. It's marketing. It's schmoozing. It's money. It's failure. It's unparalleled personal success. It's editing until there's no creativity left in your brain, just run-ons and adverbs. It's producing something instead of doing something. It's holding yourself to standards you can't possibly meet (see #2). That, in a shell, is how/why you go from writer to author.
As you can tell, becoming an author is a fairly simple problem with a complex solution. So here's the trick I'd have given my arm to have known right out of the gate: Develop an extra eye. That added orb should be focused on all the things that make up the second "It's Hard..." paragraph above. The business, marketing, expectations, the honing of the craft, the caring... all of it.
Your other two eyes should be focused on the first paragraph. Write to be heard. Write to entertain. Write to express. Just write! It's the simplest part of the equation, but the hardest to master once all of that other stuff is introduced. Not that the other stuff isn't necessary or important. If you want to be an author--a good one--you'll need to do that, too. I just think the writing for the sake of writing needs most of our attention from the start. Then maybe we won't lose sight of it.
What about you? Anything you wish you'd have known from the start?
~EJW~

A Call to Arms

Howdy gang! This week, I ask for help--while spreading some love, of course. :)

First, as usual, the weekly New Adult Lit Twitter Chat Update:

The second weekly chat was even bigger and better than the first. We had more participants, more questions, more answers--just more awesome! Anyway, you can check out what all the fuss is about at the NA Lit Chat blog, and see a calendar of our upcoming chats.

This week, we're going NA In-Depth by taking a hard look at characters in NA, and will be specifically considering reader preferences and author technique. Hope you'll join us, regardless of your involvement/interest in NA. There's a ton of talk on craft, marketing, etc. that I think would be useful to any writer. Plus, it's just a dang good time.

I'll be joined this week by L.G. Kelso of the NA Alley Blog. She's a hoot (see also, hilarious), so you won't want to miss out.

Second, HOW'S ABOUT A LITTLE KEYSTONE TO FINISH OFF A HOT SUMMER?

Ain't it shiny?!No, this isn't a plug for skunky beer, it's a shout out to one of my favorite author-blogger friends, Misty Provincher! She is celebrating the release of Keystone, book 2 of the Cornerstone series. It's a fun YA paranormal fantasy romp.

You can get your copy on Amazon or Smashwords today. Misty will be joining us here on the Open Vein in late September for an interview, so if you aren't familiar with her or her work, be sure to keep an eye out. Until then, be sure to check out Misty's blog for a full rundown of the launch festivities.

A CALL TO ARMS
Here's the deal, I've been yapping about this awesome-sexy-sweet-toocool4school-cover of mine, right? Right! Well, I'm about ready to set the sucker loose into the wild. Unfortunately, I'm a complete n00b when it comes to this book marketing stuff, so I need your help.

Basically, I want my beautiful cover to be seen by as many folks as possible when I finally take the wrapping off of it. What I'm asking of you all, specifically, is to help me share it with the world. Now, I'm not asking to take over your blogs or anything. Essentially, I'd just like to know who'd be willing to share a link, etc. when the cover goes live. You'll decide how much or how little you want to do.

Here's how it'll go down:

1) If you're willing to take part in what I'm calling, E.J. Wesley's Bloody Good Fun Cover Reveal Party, sign up using the Linky list below. (It says "YOU ARE NEXT... CLICK HERE TO ENTER at the very bottom of this post.) You'll enter your name (or blog name) and email (the email is strictly between us, btw), which I'll use for step 2.

2) When I close the sign up Friday, August 17, I'll compile a list of all the awesome people and send them a nice fat email. In that email, you'll find all the details needed to take part in the reveal. I'll give links, jpegs, blurbs--basically everything and anything you'd need to make this as painless as possible.

3) You do something with it at the appointed hour. (TBA, which is why...) You'll have the choice to do as much or as little as you want. I'll include info for a short blog announcement. I'll give you links to my blog if you just want to say, "Hey, this EJ guy is sharing his cover today!" on Twitter or something. Easy.

I recognize many of you have pretty rigid, and very full, blog schedules, so I'm not expecting anything more than a quick anything. Do to certain factors, I regretfully can't say 100% when this shindig is going live (probably the last week of August), but will be able to by the 17th. If you need to back out at that point, just say so. No hurt feelings on my end.

THAT'S IT! And, just to show my appreciation, I'm going to be giving away two $10 Amazon gift certificates to two random participants. Furthermore, I'll include info in the email about a special prize I'm going to give out on my blog the day of the reveal. It's pretty sweet, and your name will automatically be included in that drawing as well.

Ooh, and I almost forgot, if you can mention that I'm doing this somewhere amongst your tweet-blog-booking, I'd be a million percent grateful. I'll be sharing this as well throughout the week, so a simple re-Tweet, etc. would do wonders.

All of this is going to add up to an even bigger party, and bigger prizes, for the actual launch of my book. Which I'll of course be providing more details on in the near future. Hit me with questions, etc. in the comments if you have 'em, and as always, have a rocking week!

~EJW~

Becoming a Juggernaut of Faith

Howdy word Olympians! I'm competing in the coffee drinking and "most deletions of the word 'it'" duathlon this week. I'm thinking I'm a shoe-in for Gold... What are you competing in? :)

*QUICK NA LIT CHAT UPDATE*
The debut of the New Adult Lit chat last week can only be summed up as a massive freaking success. We had lots of smart authors and passionate readers chiming in the entire hour (and then some). You can read a transcript of the chat HERE, which will give you an idea of the types of things we chatted about.

And we don't just chat NA. We had tons of discussion on the finer points of YA, and what distinguishes NA from it. As such, this week's chat will be a nice carryover: WHY IS NA NOT YA OR ADULT? The chat will be at the same time/place: This Thursday, August 2, 9 PM EST on the Twitters. I'll be joined this week by author Victoria Smith of the NA Alley Blog. (Be sure to check 'em out if you haven't already. Fun group of ladies!)

A MASSIVE THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO HELPED PROMOTE THE CHAT!! Seriously, this thing was so hot we were actually trending on Twitter Thursday night. That only happened because so many of you Tweeted and blogged about it before hand. It helped so much, and any help you give in getting the word out for future chats is also mucho appreciated. Really hope you can join in, too.

A JUGGERNAUT OF FAITH
My last few posts have centered around the writing journey, and what it means (to me) being on the threshold of something (publication) I've struggled with for a very long time. I talked about the nervousness in wading through the final wave of editorial revisions. Then, I discussed the transformation in mindset, writing, etc. that had to happen for me to get where I wanted to go (here).

Yesterday, I was treated to a near-final version of my very first book cover. Had my name on it and everything! :) Not bragging, but it's beyond flippin' sweet. I'll definitely be sharing tons more on that in future posts, as well as tell you all about the cover artist I'm working with. She is ridiculously talented, and just as sweet as honey.

But for today, I'm going to continue with the theme of why and how we put ourselves through all of this. Mostly because seeing that cover has me convinced, more than ever, that I'm doing the right thing. Writing is what I love to do, it's what I need to do. I haven't wasted my time, not a second of it, and you haven't either.

But to see the payoff, you're going to need an unstoppable faith.

I'M GOING TO NERD OUT NOW, STAY WITH ME ...

There's this character in the X Men comic book series named the Juggernaut. He's a real baddy. Basically, he finds this ruby-gem-thing (with a rich, nugget filled evil mystical-being center no less) that possesses him, giving him superpowers. As his name suggests, he becomes unstoppable.

Physically speaking, he's completely indestructible. The Juggernaut can run through walls, walk through fire, repel explosions, and fall off of a building and never get a scratch. On top of all that, the gem made him a giant, hulking man with super-strength--he throws cars around like they're toilette paper rolls or something. AND he's got a nasty streak two-miles wide.

Now, as you can imagine, this is one tough opponent. You can't beat him up. You can't slow him down. Essentially, you just have to get out of his way. But, in true comic book fashion, he does have a single, glaring vulnerability. His mind.




"FAITH CONSISTS IN BELIEVING WHEN IT IS BEYOND THE POWER OF REASON TO BELIEVE." ~ VOLTAIRE

When you aspire to write professionally, there are many things that will build your resolve, and twice as many to strip it away. Seemingly, for every line of encouragement left on your blog, you'll get an entire letter full of rejection. For every paragraph of right, there'll be pages of wrong. After years of practicing the craft, when you think you've figured out what and how you should be writing, you'll read something that confirms you still have no clue.

To anyone on the outside looking in, I'm sure that all seems daunting and depressing. But to a writer, it's just what happens between breakfast and lunch everyday. A writer has to embrace failure. We have to breath it into our lungs, cough it out, and breath it back in. Why? It teaches us to have faith in the process, in our abilities.

I equate it to the tear gas training they do in the military. In basic training they shuffle everyone into a room filled with tear gas. When you enter, you're wearing your gas gear (mask-ventilator, etc.), then, on command you remove your gas gear. You stay in the room for a short period, exposed to the gas, and then you're allowed to leave.

Sounds horrible, right? It is! Your eyes burn. Your throat burns. Snot and tears leave your body in rivers. So why do it then? It's the military, so they're probably just trying to toughen people up. Nope. Then they want expose you to the gas so it doesn't freak you out if you ever encounter it in combat. That's not really the point, either. They want you to trust your gear.

There's no way to fake exposure to tear gas. If you've ever been in it, or around it, you'll know it. By keeping their gear on, and then removing it, the soldiers are very aware of how that gear protects and insulates their bodies. So, if the time should come in battle when they're asked to don their gas gear and charge into a cloud of toxicity, they'll do it without fear. They'll have faith in the process, in their equipment, and just do what needs to be done.

"FAITH IN ONESELF IS THE BEST AND SAFEST COURSE." ~ MICHELANGELO 

The Juggernaut is very aware of his only weakness. He wears this special helmet to protect his noggin. Not that he's worried about a concussion or anything, as his head is just as indestructible as the rest of his body. No, he realizes that the X Men have a couple of telepaths on hand, and his mind is vulnerable. His helmet keeps them out of his head.

Ultimately, he's always defeated in the same way: Someone strips him of his helmet, others slow him down (never completely stopping him, mind you), and a telepath turns out the lights.

I'm suggesting, to get where we want to be as writers, our desire to succeed has to be unstoppable, like the Juggernaut. I even think we share his one weakness. Our minds are vulnerable, so we must put on our helmet, our faith, to protect it.

We just have to be cautious about where we place that faith.

We can't put our faith in industry changes and fads. Those things come and go. We can't put our faith strictly in the advice of publishing professionals. They aren't always right, and their perspectives and goals will never be 100% your own. Similarly, we shouldn't put too much of our faith in other writers. We all have our own unique journey, and what works for one, doesn't necessarily work for all.

What we need to put our faith in, is ourselves. To get remotely close to "doing this", I've learned that it takes an incredible belief that I'm doing the right thing. That I'm eventually going to figure it out. That I can push myself beyond anything I've seen, or done, before. And that I can do it time and time again.

There have been so many times in the past 4 years I've thought I'll never see my name on the cover of a book. I'll never write anything anyone else will want to read, much less pay for. I'll never get the opportunity to see a story in print, because I'll never get an agent. 

A belief that I COULD do this--if I worked hard enough, if I wanted it bad enough, if I sacrificed enough--is sometimes all I had. I think I'm realizing that faith is mostly all I ever needed.

~EJW~

Authors, Transform and Rollout

CredHowdy gang! I'd like to start this post by saying how much I really appreciated all of the words of encouragement left on my last post. Had some old, and very dear, blogging friends pop in to say, "atta boy"regarding my quasi-publishing announcement. 


I promised more specific details in the future, and there will be, but for now I'd like to talk about how I got to this point. I'd also like to discuss the transformation that, I believe, all authors go through. (The point of this post.) BUT FIRST ...


NA LIT CHAT IS THIS WEEK



The inaugural New Adult Twitter chat is this week! If you follow me on Twitter, you're probably sick of hearing about it. I've also mentioned it on this blog a couple of times. But just incase you aren't up to date, I'll give it a final shout-out here.


Basically, I'm teaming up with the wonderful ladies over at the NA Alley Blog (click to check them out, they rock) to facilitate a weekly Twitter discussion of New Adult literature. This week's topic is: The 5 W's of NA - What it is, who writes it, where it gets published, when it takes place in life, and why it's important.


So if you've ever wanted to know what NA is all about, this is the week to learn. It's also going to be a great place to meet folks who are writing and reading NA right now. 


I'll be hosting this THURSDAY, 9 PM EST, and the cosmically cool Bailey from NA Alley will be moderating. To join in the discussion, just search for #NALitChat on Twitter and use #NALitChat in your messages at the appointed time. 


If you want more info on what a Twitter chat is, and how to do it, be sure to check out the most recent post on the NA Lit Chat blog. There's also a calendar with upcoming chat dates and other FYI tidbits. Really hope you'll join us, and appreciate any tweeting or other types of promotion you might be able to do to help us get the word out. 


THE EVOLVING AUTHOR

Last week I announced that I'd been working with an editor on a story I plan to see published in the near-ish future. Basically, I was all panicky about digging into the revisions, but excited about moving forward with the project. 


You'll be happy to know, I quit being a coward and dove into the edits with my nose pinched shortly after I posted. (Your encouragement seriously helped me with that, btw.) I've made a ton of progress and can most definitely see it coming together now. Won't be long.


After reading some of the comments, it occurred to me that I probably ought to talk about where I'm at in my writing career or, more importantly, how I got here. Some of you have been with me since the Spring of 2010 when my first post went up, and I've changed my goals and priorities a bit since then.


I say "more importantly", because I think the changes I've gone through are the most relevant aspects to anyone else out there writing. 


IN WHICH I HAVE NO CLUE WHAT I'M DOING

Okay, I wasn't completely clueless. But close. I barely knew what a query letter was. I'd just begun to understand what a market was and how that impacted publishing. Agents were unicorns to be stalked and studied from afar. And all of my writing was in third person limited POV because that's what Harry Potter was written in. (You think I'm joking. I'm not.)  


I wanted to write fiction for teens (still do, btw) because that's what I enjoyed reading, and I'd worked with teenagers most of my adult life. I knew teenagers and could relate to them.


And I'm not talking about those awesome teens that have their poop together. I worked with the teens that struggled with life. The lost ones. The abusers and the abused. The fragile and the neglected. So I wanted to write things for them. Stories saved me as an early teenager, and I wanted to write things to save them. 


Not that what I was writing was anything momentous or life-altering. I wasn't writing about racism or cancer, after all. My stories had robots, crude humor, and whatever else geeky, normal kids preoccupy themselves with. I aimed to tell stories that provided an escape. Because that's what all of my favorite stories gave me growing up. 


I was a kid from small town Oklahoma who liked classical music, comic books, and drawing who wanted to pretend he was from anywhere BUT small town Oklahoma. Books let me do that. 


A WRITER WHO DOESN'T KNOW HOW TO WRITE

Isn't that how we all start? If passion and desire are all it took to write a great story, I'd be dictating this to my butler while sipping cold drinks on a yacht somewhere in the South Pacific. Instead, I'm in my pajama pants, gulping down a Diet Dr. Pepper, and trying to keep my playful dog from yanking out the computer's power cord. Again. And I'm blogging from South-Central Texas, where we'd love to see a little rain this time of year, much less have an ocean view. 


Good writers are great failures. I thought I understood that going in. I expected to struggle. In fact, I looked forward to it. This would be the most challenging thing I'd ever attempted. I'd declared myself to be "a writer" to my friends and family, and now my blog said so too. The clock had officially started. No more writing only on the weekends or vacation. I'd write every day. I'd set goals and have standards to live by. It wasn't IF I'd reach them, but when.


To be fair, I never dreamed I'd end up questioning my own intelligence. I never would've considered that I'd be stripped of every ounce of confidence and self-appreciation I had--sometimes daily. And I certainly wouldn't have believed that I'd get so lost and buried by it all that my dreams would no longer matter. Not sucking is all that mattered.


My wife has often told me, perplexed, over the last few years, "You're so confident in everything you do. Except writing." I think if she truly knew the number of hours I'd dumped into this only to reach a point where I can look in a mirror (most days) and honestly say, "I don't completely suck," she'd probably get it. 


TRANSFORMATION

At some point in the last year and a half, something clicked. That's the simplistic way of saying it. The more complex version would included something about me seeing a bigger publishing picture. It might cover how I decided that I didn't have to be just one thing. Perhaps, the lengthier version would even mention how I discovered the key to getting my "voice" into my writing was to switch to first person POV. 


There were a billion little steps in the transition from what I thought writing--and subsequently becoming an author--was, and what it REALLY is. And I'm not even quite there yet.


Undoubtedly, the massive changes sweeping over the publishing industry have shifted my goals and expectations. Everyone is adapting on the fly these days it seems. 


When I began, I thought I wanted to know that my book was on a shelf at the local Barnes & Noble. It took me a while to figure out that what I really wanted was to know that my book was in the hands of a reader. And I cared very little about how they got it.


Initially, I was consumed with learning about the business. That seemed like the biggest obstacle in my mind. How to talk to an agent, what's attractive to publishers, could I say "shit" on my blog and still write YA ... On and on it went, and I got further and further away from what mattered. The writing.


In the beginning, I wanted to write what I thought I was SUPPOSED to write, and write it how it was SUPPOSED to be written. Now I write the only way I know how to write, and have resolved to let readers determine if I've done it correctly. 


This isn't some big FU to the establishment or conventions, btw. I have a book on craft on my bedside table in perpetuity. I draft and revise until the blood seeps from my fingers and eyes, then revise some more. I still keep up with agents, and listen when they say something is important. Entertaining readers and getting better with each story is still # 1 in my book. Lastly, I'd traditionally publish in a minute if the situation was right, AND I fiercely support independent authors. (Yes, you can say both.)


I've transformed my reality is all. And ultimately, I believe that's what being an author is truly about. Whether we're adapting our ideas to write the best story possible, or adjusting our professional aspirations and tactics to reach readers, the ability to change, to push for more, is what's going to determine our success.


What about you? Has your writing style changed? Has your career trajectory altered any from what you once thought it would be? Are you happy about it?


I think this song pretty well sums up my personal experience:






~EJW~

Edi-t-Phobia

Hey gang! Just got back from a much needed beach vacation. Basically, I have sand in my unmentionables, eyestrain from reading in the sun and frostbite from holding a cold beverage in my hand all week. And it was awesome. Here's proof:


Think I'd like to own one of those houses ...  It was too windy for her favorite Frisbee so we did the ball instead.

Anyway, I'm rested and eager to jump back into my writing/blogging/tweeting--well, whatever the heck this is. :)


Thanks to the efforts of many of you, the New Adult Lit Chat (our first chat is next Thursday, July 26, 9 PM Eastern!) is getting some fabulous buzz going. You can check out the NALitChat blog HERE for upcoming chat dates, as well as other useful New Adult-y things I'll be posting from time-to-time. If you want to know what it's all about, you can check out my last post HERE.


Sincerely, to all of you who have tweeted, blogged, etc. about it so far: THANK YOU. If I can ever repay you in kind, just ask. Hope to "see" many of you at the chat. It'll be a good time.


Now for some exciting and scary personal writing news: I just got a story back from an "official" editor for the first time! 


I'm very excited about this story. It's a fun little paranormal romp with a Texas twist. (Should I say "twister" to make it more regionally appropriate?) It's a novelette, under 17,000 words and more than 10,000, and the first in a series I've been working diligently on for quite some time. It will be published in the near future, and I'll have much more to say on that in the weeks to come. For now ...


A few of you worked (it is WORK when you read for me, btw) on it as readers over the last couple of months, and your efforts helped whip it into the shape it's in. But, as we all know, our beta, omega, etc. readers can't catch everything. You need the cold, calculating and what I imagine to be lidless lizard-like eyes of a professional editor for the fine tuning. (Kidding. About the cold part at least.)


So the e-mail with her revisions arrived this AM. Super excited to dig in and start making the final changes. Unfortunately, I discovered I have a phobia of opening documents from editors. 


Is it going to overwhelm me? Did I do anything right? Did she re-write the entire thing after the first two pages? 


Don't get me wrong, I've as much confidence in this story as anything I've ever written. I thought it was pretty decent going into the final editing process. But somehow knowing THIS IS IT has me hyperventilating. Scared to death to even start. 


Question for all you old pros out there: Is it going to be this bad every time? Are you on medication? Would you recommend a shot of whiskey or some other adult drink before taking a look? How can I be this excited and this afraid to do something at the same time?


I'm sure at some point this morning I'm going to get started on it. Until then, I'm going to tape my eyes so they'll stop twitching.


~EJW~

A NEW Deal

Hey gang! Sorry for the extended silence, but like many I've been traveling about this summer and doing various other "non-scheduled" this-and-thats. Consequently, getting sit-down time in front of my computer has pretty well gone out the window. I'll also be absent most of next week, but will try to get something up here at some point.


In the meantime, I have a very special announcement and a favor to ask. First, the announcement:


Beginning Thursday, July 26, 9 PM EST, I will be hosting an all new regular Twitter chat focusing on New Adult literature. Here's a quick FAQ to get you up to speed:




What is New Adult literature?


New adult is a blossoming category of literature written about and for the 20-somethings. The stories focus on issues and characters relevant to people emerging from their teens into the world of adult pleasures and problems. (Like college, car payments and the prospects of finding a life partner.) 


NA is viewed as the natural extension, or evolution, of young adult literature and a launching point for readers looking for a more mature brand of story, but perhaps not quite ready for a strict diet of self-help books and classic lit.


In short, if you like your vampires less sparkly, still think of midlife crisis as something for old people and are more worried about making your 8 AM biology lab than the escalating cost of prescription meds, NA stories are for you!


What is a Twitter chat? 


Basically, it's a prearranged discussion that happens live on Twitter at a specific time/date. Think of it like instant messaging, but with Twitter. 


How do I participate in a Twitter chat?


First, get a Twitter account. It's free. Second, you'll want to be signed in when the chat is taking place. Then, you'll keep track of--and get involved with--the discussion by using a special # tag, like #NALitChat in your tweets. 


Example of a conversation Tweet: What's the best NA story you've read so far? #NALitChat


Anyone following the #NALitChat conversation will see your Tweet, as well as your followers.


How do I know what others are saying? Is there an easy way to keep up with the conversation?


Yes! There are lots of 3rd party "apps" you can download to your computer, phone, etc. that specialize in keeping up with Twitter # conversations. Here are links to a few good ones:


TWEETCHAT


HOOTSUITE


TWEETDECK


Why is EJ involved?


I've always felt there should be more people writing for college-aged readers. I didn't have a lot of reading choices in college in terms of stories written FOR me. I could read Harry Potter or Stephen King, Tolstoy or CS Lewis. 


Unfortunately, stories for the in-betweens just weren't marketable. There was a belief that 20-somethings didn't read enough to warrant their own genres/category. Then came Harry Potter, Twilight and a slew of other Young Adult stories that achieved great "crossover" success in adult markets. The concept of targeting those "new adults" gained some traction and has been growing as a result.


Aside from enjoying stories that feature characters in their 20s (like the Sookie Stackhouse series), I've also begun writing them. Plus, I have a real love for Young Adult lit, and as I mentioned above, NA is very much an extension of those wonderful stories. 


Anyway, with the help of some other authors and New Adult enthusiasts, I kind of birthed the idea of having a regular Twitter chat to promote the category and basically provide a forum for discussion. After all, there are chats for YA, literature and all kinds of other genres, so why not NA?


The Favor


So that's the skinny. We're going to be talking nothing but NA, every Thursday night starting at the end of this month. I'm hosting, and I've got some wonderfully talented folks with a passion for NA helping me moderate, answer questions, etc. If you're even remotely curious about NA, or just want to find some new books to read, be sure to join us. 


You can get the full calendar, read chat transcripts and find some great NA resources at the NA Lit Chat blog (click for link) and follow @NALitChat on Twitter.


Speaking of following, blogs, etc. that's where I'd love your help. I know most of you are writers and readers, and you're connected with tons of other writers and readers. 


Would you consider helping me get the word out about the #NALitChat?


You can do it by following, Tweeting, blogging--however--in the weeks leading up to our first chat. I'll be posting more about it here (but not duplicating much, so no worries if you follow me on the NA Lit Chat blog too--this is, and will always be, my personal writing blog) and Tweeting from the @NALitChat account as well as my @EJWesley account. 


I appreciate any and all help in advance, and truly hope you'll stop by the new blog and tune in for the weekly chats. Would love to hear from you, and promise to keep it fun and informative.


~EJW~

That's Life

Life

LIFE
Life is taking out the garbage, dropping the kids at daycare and cleaning up spills.
LIFE is signing the papers on your first home, the moment your child comes into the world and surveying the devastation of a flooded home. 
Life is going to the park, picking out new underwear and eating ice cream.
LIFE is walking in the rain forest you've only seen in pictures, seeing yourself in THE wedding dress for the first time in the mirror and having gelato on a hillside in Tuscany as the sun sets. 
We all know that moments are not created equal. Nor are days, weeks and years. There is normal, and there is extraordinary. There is happy, and there is elation. There is not fun, and there is horrific. That's life.


My favorite Sinatra song inspired this post. Life also inspired this post. 
Last week I had leaky ceilings, dental visits and car inspections. This week I had drinks with dear friends I see only every few years. I got to see my friend's son conquer his fear of water slides and subsequently have the time of his young life. And was able to spend too-rare hours just hanging out with my spouse.
As usual, I found a writing lesson in all of this.
When I write my first drafts, I spend a lot of time thinking and writing about Life. Cups of coffee. Phone calls. Waking up. Falling asleep. And so on. It helps me figure out who the characters are. What they do. How they do it.
It's an essential part of my process, just as those cups of coffee, sleep and quick conversations with my brother are essential to my own life. Most of life is made up of Life. But it's only LIFE that counts in writing.
It isn't until I get to the second draft that I really figure out what constitutes as LIFE for my characters. 
A phone call from a friend is Life. A call from a grandparent they thought to be dead is LIFE. Coffee sipped over a friendly a chitchat is Life. Coffee thrown in a lover's face during a quarrel is LIFE. By my third time through I usually have a pretty good handle on it, but I still need to be cautious. 
Our stories should be filled with LIFE. Think of the story as a compendium of LIFE for our characters. Only include the dire, the exceptional, the exhilarating and the devastating. Everything else needs to support or facilitate that or get out of the way. 
As simple of a concept as it is, I've found it to be one of the hardest things to train myself to do. Probably because I can't imagine my own life in a Cliffs Notes version. It's exhausting to even think about! 


But there's good writing exercise in it ...
Try writing down your own life highlights. Maybe just from the past year. Now imagine building a story around just those things. Once you've done that you're onto something.
It hurts to cut the normal from the lives of our characters. Why? Because it would kill us to not have the normal in our own lives. The collection of "normal" is what makes up a childhood. Normal is the memory of your grandparents. Normal is the values your parents instilled in you that you're busy instilling in your own kids.


Take away the normal, and there just isn't much to life.
But no one likes to read about normal. We live normal. It's LIFE we want to read about.
~EJW~

Bleed It Out

What do you give to your stories? What part of YOU leaves to become part of the page? I'm pretty sure anyone who has ever pursued writing seriously understands what I'm asking.

Yeah here we go for the hundredth time Hand grenade pins in every line
There's a process. It can be painful. It must be repeated. While I've been aware of it, I'm not sure if I've really come to peace with it until the last few weeks. 
What we do, no matter the level of expertise or area of writing, is nothing less than soul mining. We dig, we scour and we cajole. Anything to conjure a few words, to articulate the things in our heads.
Dug the trench out laid down there With a shovel up out of reach somewhere Yeah, someone pour it in Make it a dirt dance floor again
Not going to lie, it has frustrated the hell out of me at times. Nothing is good enough for ME. Furthermore, there's almost zero extrinsic value in it. I can count the "Atta boys" I've gotten on both hands. 
And to be honest, even if Stephen King and J.K. Rowling co-authored a letter titled, "Why We Think E.J. is the Greatest Writer of All-Time" I still wouldn't buy it. This is my struggle. What do they know about it? 
I am Sisyphus, and that rock is never going to crown that damned hill so long as I'm pushing it.  
Truth is you can stop and stare Run myself out and no one cares
I realize this entire post is going to come off as the Angst-ridden Writer Guy venting, but I don't care. I don't care because I think I've needed to say it. And I think you might need to hear it. 
Writing is thankless. It's a battle with yourself that you'll never win. The entire point of it is to pour yourself--your words--out until it runs dry. To try and say something in way that only you can say it. Once it's done, you do it again.
And that's okay.
F#@! this hurts, I won't lie Doesn't matter how hard I try Half the words don't mean a thing And I know that I wont be satisfied
I'm not suggesting I don't write for the reader. I think you have to. Put the truth serum (i.e. Merlot) in me, and I'll tell you what I really want to do is entertain. If I can get the reader caught up in what I'm saying long enough to forget about their crying dog or barking child, I call it success. 
But ultimately it's more about stirring something in them, not just telling them a story. I also realize most of what I write isn't going to achieve that lofty aspiration.
I bleed it out digging deeper Just to throw it away
So that's what this is about. Embracing the process. Give it your all every last stinking time as if it is the last stinking time. Don't expect anything out of it but the process. Don't regret the suffering. Don't regret anything. 
Expect people to dance as you burn. Expect them to want more even when you've been bled out. It's called a challenge for a reason. 


I bleed it out digging deeper Just to throw it away
I've listened to the song BLEED IT OUT by LINKIN PARK (all of the big BLUE words in this post are theirs, as is the song below) a few hundred times over the last three years. Not joking. 
It's in my exercise mix and it gets me going. It has also put my b.i.c. (butt in chair) to write on many occasions when I'd just about given up. It's probably the closest thing I have to a "Rocky" theme song. 
If you're not ruffled by a little language, you should give it a listen.



Do you have a song? A quote? Anything that sums up what this writing thing is about?


~EJW~