Sarah Cass's Blog: Sarah's StoryLines, page 53

Finding Your People

When I first started this writing journey I had no people.

No, that’s wrong. I had two people.

My two people were (and still are) amazing.  They remain today as my Alpha readers, keeping me going when I wane in energy. Pestering me for more words, more characters, more stories.  Those people, they are my first people. My first line of defense in story writing.  The ones that say “Um, wait…wha?” if i screw up a story line or a character in some way.  They keep me on my toes and eager to write.

But a writer needs more than Alphas.  Needs more than two people (ok, 3 if you count my hubs, but he doesn’t read romance) cheering you on.

So I found a group.  A small group, but they were great peeps.  In my first novel-writing foray before ebooks took over and before I ever managed to reach anything resembling a sell-able novel, they were good to have around.  They were there to critique, but I rarely took advantage as I was new, not thick-skinned, and just didn’t understand the importance.  One person among them (the one that brought me there) saw my novel and gave me critiques.  They were harsh.  Looking back, they were fair, but to my naivete they were very harsh.

After a couple of nibbles on the novel, 3 rewrites and no takers I started something new. I walked away from 5 years of effort to try something new.  At the same time that writers group sort of drifted away into the wind.  No one went to the forum, all was quiet and eventually faded into the depths of the internet.  I’m still friends with two or three of them on Facebook, but for the most part we’ve parted ways.

Fast forward to about 6 months ago.  Changing Tracks had made the agent rounds, I was still waiting on word from a couple of agents and not sure where to go next. I had started working on The Tribe, but not much else.  I’d joined a couple of those writing challenge things, but one had faded into the background (but is now active again, I may participate) and the other…well, they screwed me and my friend over and so we walked away.

My only connection to any sense of the writing world was the #amwriting thread on twitter.  One random day I happened to catch a tweet about a blog post called “Beta Readers, Critters, and Editors Part 2A“.  I didn’t know the author but all I could think was “Wow, I could use some of THOSE” and thus I clicked the link.

The author had me rolling in laughter talking about DFL (Dumb F***ing Luck) and how that’s sort of what it takes to get a good critter.  I responded immediately because I’d just recently posted on twitter about needing some good critters.

Turns out seeing that tweet and clicking on that link gave me the best dose of DFL I’ve ever had.  The original author (Jennifer James) formed a group of critters – 8 people, half published, half not.  We formed a support group of sorts.  We push each other forward, we let each other know about submission calls, or our experiences with certain publishers, bounce ideas off each other and, of course, critique the hell out of each others pieces.

In the 6 months since I met them I’ve been published in horror, received a contract for Changing Tracks (technically 2 contracts, I turned down 1), I’m currently waiting on a response for another horror submission I put in (I know, horror and romance, aren’t I a BLAST?) – and I’ve got one heck of an amazing critique going for my other Historical Western Romance (Masked Hearts) that I’m hoping to sub by the end of the year (Yeah, I totall Sabrina).

I used to think I could make it on my own.  That stumbling through this world of publishing could be done just because I’m awesome.  Turns out, I had to find the right group.  With the help of some DFL, and some wonderful people, my entire writing career has changed drastically in 6 months time.

I never could have done it without them.

And I wouldn’t ever try again.

Have you found your people?

 

Regaining Focus

You work diligently on a piece. At times you’re almost frantic.

You edit. Refine. Perfect.

You send it off into the world.

Breathe a sigh of relief.

And freeze.

What next?

You have to wait.

Sometimes it’s days, others it’s months or even years (I waited almost 2 years for a reply on a full before throwing in the towel – not without hesitation and sadness).

What next?

Sure they tell you to dive into the next thing.

It should be that easy.

Unless you know – the wait is only a couple of weeks.  Maybe a month.

When you’re waiting for each email alert.

It’s easy to get distracted.

Facebook.  Twitter.  Blog posts. Real life.

Sleep.  Oh, sleep is beautiful.

No beating yourself over the head to write, or edit, to make each sentence shine.

You miss it – but oh the break is nice.  It’s only a few weeks anyway.  Who cares if you take a break?

Except you miss it.

The break is stupid.

But how can you write when you’re distracted by email alerts? Facebook games (just ONE more quest…then I’ll write. Oh, wait – that quest is easy, one more. I swear it.).

It’s time to regain focus.  Time goes too slow when you’re waiting on word.

It’s best to get lost in a new world.

Meet new friends (i.e. Characters).

How do you do it?  What tricks do you use to regain focus?

Me? Well, I’m dropping my Facebook games. I don’t need them clogging up my feed anyway.  I’ll just keep one game that doesn’t clog my feed and takes forever to regain lives.  That means I need to focus and get back on my schedule. I have plenty more stories in my head that need to come out.

But just one more quest before I quit…

Just one….

Dream the Impossible Dream

We all have dreams.

Some dreams are big – bigger than what our logical minds tell us we can accomplish.

Some dreams are more practical – but still mean something to us.

Growing up I had many dreams.  I wanted to be a dance teacher. I wanted to perform on stage in musicals. I wanted to be a vet. I wanted to be a mom.

I was blessed to accomplish some dreams early.  At 10 my dance studio let me become an ‘assistant’. Me and my co-advanced-class dancers would help the teachers with the young ones. By 11 we were teaching the classes ourselves for the most part. By 13 we were allowed to choreograph.

When I was in my 20′s I was able to take some courses and training and became a vet assistant. For about six months I worked in a vets office and still think of that time with fond memories.

I became a mom at 21, and again at 29 & 30.

Right after I got married I performed in a series of musicals over the course of the year. On stage. Singing and dancing under the lights.

Then I got wrapped up in real life.  I had a husband, kids, bills, work and a home.  Dreams went by the wayside as our girls were born and their development took up every spare second of breath and thought in my head.  In the moments of quiet when everyone went to bed and I could unleash the stresses, I chose to do them with words.

Writing.

It had never been a dream, but as worlds formed under my fingertips, stories unfolded on the page, and characters breathed life into my soul a new dream formed.

Wrapped up in the realities of life I’d forgotten about me.  About how important even the smallest dreams could be.

They give you life, hope, something to look forward to and achieve.

Dreams are life.

Since then I have created a 45X45 list and begun to tackle things on it.  Some are small, others seem impossible.

Still, every time I cross something off of that list I feel a sense of elation, I smile for days.  I have accomplished something.

It’s not just good for me. It’s not selfish.

My children need to see it.  See me achieving goals and dreams.  The little ones, and the big ones.

Within 6 months I’ll have proof of one of my biggest dreams on my Nook (and Kindle).  Within a year I’ll have physical proof sitting on my bookshelf. Published.

It wasn’t a dream I had growing up.  It’s new. Formed just 7 years ago.  When I thought it was unattainable, outlandish and crazy.

I’ll never stop having dreams.  Achieving this one I’ve formed new ones.

New ones will follow behind.

Never let go of dreams.  Always have two – one practical & achievable, and another completely outlandish.

Never give up hope.

Let your children see the hope, and the accomplishment. It’s a prize that lasts for a very long time – and it helps them set their sights on the biggest dreams.

The Mad Rush

It starts with a spark.

One small idea.

It can happen anywhere.

In the car.

While surfing the web.

In the shower.

No matter how it happens, it happens.

Sometimes after that the facts dribble in slowly.

Others it’s a mad rush.

Everything falls into place. Ideas gel. Facts line up.

And then…

The glorious moment you have a story.

Characters introduce themselves. Plots weave their tangled web.

That’s where I am.  On the cusp of turning in Changing Tracks to my editor and starting revisions on book 2 (Derailed) a new story has come into mind.  It breaks down genre barriers, mixing at least 4 together into one novel.

My fingers itch to pull the trigger and start.  The world is almost built.  My hero and heroine are being friendly and chatty and letting me know their personalities.

It’s a good feeling, that Mad Rush.

The Uncomfortable Stretch

In the middle of edits, both for Changing Tracks,  which I need to turn in for final edits; and for Masked Hearts, which I need to prepare for submission.  I’m also critiquing words for Mary and Fi in my spare time, and even occasionally Jenn (who is crazy-busy with all of her new releases).

This all leads to a ton of editing.

I’m cross-eyed and confused half the time.

I needed an escape and it came in the form of a submission call at a small pub (Das Krakenhaus) for an anthology they’re doing.  The small pub is run by an old high school friend of mine, and they are awesome, so I thought I’d take a look.  After seeing what they were looking for, I thought the apocalyptic would be perfect as a prequel to another series I’d been thinking about.

Over the next couple of days the idea solidified and I started writing it last night.

I’m uncomfortable and feeling stretched beyond my limits.

1 – it’s SHORT. I’ve written a flash piece (500 words) that got pubbed in Siren’s Call.  But I’ve never written anything with significance that would be bigger than that, but shorter than 12k.  I’m so verbose this is a challenge.

2 – it’s not romance.  While not my soul focus (that flash piece was horror, after all) – romance is mostly what I’ve done, what I do. The closest I’ve come to stepping out of that comfort zone was to write a paranormal rom over a historical western rom.  This?  It’s a contemporary, destruction of the world type of piece. No romance.

3 – it’s in 1st person POV. Not sure why, just know that it is.  To the point that we never know the name of the person who we’re living the story through.

4 – it’s a male POV. While I’ve done male POV before, it always freaks me out.

All of this is good.  It’s stretching my limits, stretching my capabilities.  That is always good.

It’s giving me a break from the mind-numbing endless edits.  That is a huge relief and breath of fresh air.

But it’s slow going.  I only have under 12k to learn this guys voice to figure him out and let all of the action happen that should happen. I have very clear and gorgeous pictures in my head about what will happen and those must get on the page in a male’s POV.

So I’m learning as I go, but it’s an uncomfortable stretch. One that will improve as I work – I hope.

 

Buried Under

While I’m blissed out at having an empty house during the days now (post on that soon)…it’s also leaving me to face everything I need to do all at once. That often leads to me getting overwhelmed when face with sheer numbers of responsibilities.

Key among all my ‘to-do’s these days, layered in with cleaning and sewing and shopping and blogging and fixing my social media outlets and more cleaning, is editing.

Editing Changing Tracks to make it shiney before it goes to my editor who will help make it bright as the sun.

Editing and Critiquing my crit-groups work.

Writing my short(er) novel.

Reading/using/doing-more-editing-based-on notes from those critting my stuff.

Did I mention I’m overwhelmed?

And a little buried under?

Thankfully I’ve found EditMinion that helps me do side by side with my chapters.  It’s in beta version, but if he adds some more areas to the editor it’ll be just about perfect.  The other online-editor I’d been using you had to click for each area and it didn’t let you do side by side, just pulled out the relevant sentences.  With the minion I can get on my hubby’s computer and split screen minion vs. manuscript and just hit everything that needs hit.

Talk about a time saver.  I have a wonderful critter helping me out with line edits – but this gives me one more layer to tackle before I send my baby off.

Now if I could just find those extra 10 hours in the day to get everything else I need to do.

Do you know where those hours can be found?

 

Long Time Coming – Jennifer James {Giveaway}

Today I’m beyond thrilled to have my friend (and critique partner) Jennifer James at the blog to throw a party in honor of her new book Long Time Coming. Please give her a warm welcome…and make sure you enter the giveaway – some hot prizes to win here. Side note – the excerpt is racy, so make sure you don’t have curious eyes nearby

 

Welcome to the LONG TIME COMING Release Day Party!

LONG TIME COMING is my new book from Etopia Press. It’s written from the male point of view, and is full of fun, exhibitionist, naughty sex between two people who’ve had the hots for each other for years. And they’re finally in a *cough* position to act on their desires.

Rob Williams grew up fantasizing about his older sister’s best friend Joey Sanchez. His desire for her has never diminished. In fact, it’s grown to downright painful proportions. Now a young workaholic attorney married to his job, he finds being home and confronted with the one woman he’s always wanted and never gotten to have damned annoying. It’s making him quite grumpy.

Joey Sanchez spent many hours hanging out at the Williams’s place. A successful pharmaceutical rep, she’s independent, vivacious, and has no qualms about going after what she wants. She’s watched Rob grow from a gawky teenager to high school and college soccer star with no shortage of girlfriends. Her ties to Rob’s older sister Marcie always kept her from making a move. But Marcie’s getting married and Joey’s still single. And she’s tired of keeping her desires to herself.

BLURB:

His dreams have become reality,

Going home for his older sister’s wedding has been a real pain in the ass – and cock – for Rob. Unable to get a room at a local hotel, he’s stuck in the spare bedroom on a tiny twin size, fantasizing about Joey, the woman he’s had a crush on for over ten years. She’s still best friends with his sister and staying at his parent’s place too.

but instead of quenching his thirst,

Lucky for him, Joey knows what she wants. In the pool, a storage closet, the movie theater, with some very hot text messages, and finally in a hotel room. With the weekend coming to a close, Rob realizes he’d really like another no strings attached weekend of hot sex with Joey. She’s the woman of his dreams, with both feet firmly in reality.

he only wants more…

The weekend will end with his sister’s wedding, and they’ll both be heading back to busy lives filled with work – and little else. With neither of them interested in a committed relationship beyond the ones they have with their careers, how can he persuade her to see him again? There’s nothing he wants more than another sheet scorching weekend with Joey.

Will she agree, or will he be stuck fantasizing about her for another ten years?

 

EXCERPT:

After one last press against his crotch, she dropped her foot. “Sorry.”

“No you’re not.”

Joey laughed, low and under her breath. “You’re right. Just wondering if you’re still interested now that you’d gotten to have sex with me once.”

“Damn right I’m still interested. If we were alone, I’d pull your shorts and panties off, bury my face in your pussy, and eat you until you came. I’d turn you around and fuck you on this table until you screamed from it. Come all over your breasts. Maybe all over your lips.”

Joey’s pupils expanded while he talked, and her breath puffed in shorter and shorter gasps. The peaks of her nipples tented the tank top. Rob reached over and traced one with his fingertip, moved up to her mouth and slid the finger through the seam of her lips. He exhaled when she sucked on it and bit down. She liked being dominated, and he liked telling her the things he planned to do to her. Win-win.

That’s right. She’d be wrapped around his dick before the day ended.

The warm wetness of her mouth made him harder. Rob swallowed, trying to think of something else, anything else but the moist cavern suckling his finger.

HOW TO WIN!

I’m giving away a copy of LONG TIME COMING and a set of Romance Trading Cards. (First prize gets the book, second prize gets the cards.)

Anyone who enters the Rafflecopter will also be eligible to win the Grand Prize bag of Naughty Smex Beam Supplies. What’s in the bag? Oh, you know, just a whole bunch of stuff you need to get your weekend off to a right and tight start.

Book & Trading cards are international, Grand prize of toy box is for US only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

 

 

ABOUT JENNIFER JAMES:

For a girl whose first book was called “The Scariest Forest Ever,” the jump to romance may seem to be a far one. But a love of happy endings and the stories she kept making up in her head for strangers on the street lead to an unhealthy amount of time spent behind the keyboard typing away and giggling mischievously over sassy heroines,

sexy heroes, and healthy sprinklings of geek humor.

With time split between a day job staring at teeth, two little girls, college courses, workaholic husband, and too many voices in her head, Jennifer still finds time to sneak off and devour all the books she can find – even if it means hiding in the closet to read them.

She insists on her jokes being dirty, drinks spiked, and tattoos placed in intriguing, muscular places you can only find when the clothes come off.

Links:

Website: http://www.authorjenniferjames.com/

FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jennifer-James/212335188856799?ref=hl

GoodReads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/...

Twitter: @JenniferJames34

Blogs I contribute to: Paranormalists http://paranormalists.blogspot.com/

Love Scenes and Wet Dreams: http://lovescenesandwetdreams.wordpress.com/

 

 

 

BIG Announcement – My Book is Getting Published!

My contract has been signed, my cover art questionnaire has been filled out, my blurb has been hacked down to size and all my ducks are in a row.  I’ve been bursting with this news for well over a week now and I’m so glad to be able to finally share it!

Seven years ago I set out to get published – back before ebooks were in and before I knew what an adverb whore was or how to stop myself from being one.

Three years ago I abandoned my first novel and started on this one, on this series.  Changing Tracks and its main characters, Jane & Cole have come to mean so much to me.  All I have wanted for them is to give them the story they deserve and to see it published in print.

I have just signed with Secret Cravings Publishing to make that dream a reality.  Even better they are using the cover art I made for the book three years ago.

In February 2013* Changing Tracks will be published in ebook format.  Six months later, in August of 2013* it will go to print.

Now I’m setting out on the crazy ride of getting the book into print and I’m bringing you all along with me.  For now, I’ll leave you with the (long version) of my back cover blurb.

*~*

There is nothing simple about forgetting your past.

Cole Mitchell runs the busiest saloon and brothel in Dominion Falls.  He makes time with his women, makes a killing gambling, and exerts his power how he pleases.  One thing he never does is let anyone in.

Until the day she falls into his saloon bleeding and near death.  He saves her from the pine box, and finds he can’t walk away. The problem is, if he lets her get close he could relive his past – and he worked too hard to forget it.

She wakes with no memory, only the firm belief that someone wanted her dead. With no name she keeps ‘Jane Doe’ and tries to carve out a life. She finds herself drawn to Cole, and they start a fiery relationship that sets the whole town talking. Their pasts – her lack of, and his buried – keep them from admitting the depth of their feelings, but they find they only trust each other.

Through the chaos of renegade Indian raids, an abandoned husband and her recurring nightmares they fight to find the truth of what happened to her. She soon learns that sometimes the truth is the last thing you want to learn, and she starts to think it may be best to leave the past where it is.

That past isn’t that willing to let go. A stranger proves that he’s willing to kill to keep his secrets safe. If Jane doesn’t remember soon, everyone she loves will be in danger.

*~*

*Publishing dates are estimates and subject to change.  Once I receive more exact dates I’ll share that news.

Cross-Eyed and Confused

Line edits are awesome…

When it’s someone else’s work.

If the paper, book, webpage, word doc, whatever it is that’s in front of me was not written by my own hand I can swoop in and find the errors in an instant.

No problem.

When it’s my piece?

The one that I’ve worked on for X amount of years?

What errors?  I don’t see them?

No, there’s a comma there don’t you see it?  Oh wait, it’s all in my head isn’t it?  Damn.

I miss far too much.

I’ve tried the tricks.

I’ve changed font.

I’ve printed it out on paper.

I’ve put it on my nook.

I still miss those suckers because my brain inputs them where my fingers did not.

But – it’s time for me to line edit.

Thank goodness I’m writing another piece in between.  One chapter at a time with the line edits because I get cross-eyed and confused way too easily.

You want to do my line edits?  I’ll trade you evenly – I’ll show you mine if you show me yours.

 

Inspiration at Half Price

I have a new weakness.  A new collection brewing.  It’s small for now – just 3 items, but I adore them.

Last year I discovered a section at our local book resale shop (you know the one, I named it up there^^) called “Collectibles”.

Since discovering it I’ve been fortunate to find three items that manage to both bring me joy and inspire me all at once.

Three books with publication dates pre-1900 in pretty amazing condition.

Three books that one of my characters could have, and likely would have, in her lifetime.

Jane Doe from Changing Tracks is an avid reader with an eidetic memory.  She loves poetry, but reads just about anything she gets her hands on (she has even been known to read medical texts).

So even when I’m not working on Changing Tracks. I love having these books on hand.  They make me think of her, and then in turn my other characters.  They bring me inspiration, and a chance to focus on my characters and give them a little more depth.

None of them cost me very much (although I would have willingly spent more on each of them) – but they are books that will never leave my home.  While I willingly resell books all the time to keep some space open in our cramped home, I have handfuls of books that never leave the shelves.  These have and will maintain a prominent and permanent place in my home.

To me, they bring Jane to life even more than she already is in my head.

Let her out to breathe.

There’s no better inspiration than that.