Hally Willmott's Blog, page 4

Cover reveal:) 'Awakenings'

For those of you who have been watching...........here is the cover for my debut novel 'Awakenings'

Just Breathe::) Firsts.....

I have heard this saying a number of times in my life:)  Some I remember others I was told about:)
1. Being born

                         


                                            

                            2.  First day of school
                                       





3. Being the 'new' kid at school....

                 Again.....
                 Again......
                 Again.......
                      &
                  Again.....




                                                             4. Reading my first novels:)                        



5.  First boyfriend ......                                                         6.  First heart break......                                                                                                                                                           
                                                                                              About 1000 more
First time driving (Well, I think my Mom held her breath longer than me), First time Graduating, Second time Graduating and Third time too:), Becoming a Police Officer, First time loosing someone I cared about, First time saying I love you and meaning it, First time hearing it :).....
Meeting my husband - I actually remember the exact moment I knew we were supposed to be together -                                                                  Getting engaged:) saying YES....  Getting married:)..........Finding out I   was pregnant x 2 :)  Giving birth x 2...
Every single one of my children's firsts -  
                                                  
Writing MY first novel, reading MY first novel, having MY first novel picked up by a publisher, having MY first cover reveal........



 Bet you thought I was gonna reveal it here....... Nope...... you have to sign up here    http://www.facebook.com/events/151870...    or here           http://www.goodreads.com/event/show/8...                                               To be announced on the 20th March :)  (I won't hold my breath until then...)





Stay tuned for more first and more ....just breathe:)

Cover Reveal!!!!!!! Holy...Flip:)

My publisher emailed me to let me know that the cover reveal for my first novel "Awakenings" will be soon!  



When I opened the email (at 6 a.m. this morning)  I may have scared a few people in the neighbourhood...

I ran around screaming it from my roof top - believe it or not- this monkey looks like I did this morning except he/she is way cuter:)





Now I need to find some bloggers who wouldn't mind helping me with the reveal and of course later on with the review of my book...yes I said review!!


Along with the cover reveal - it looks like the release might be happening in May 2013 !!!

Holy FLIP!!!

Vacation:)

My family and I decided we needed a vacation....




SO, Instead of hitting the road - hello snow covered roads and neurotic mothers do not mix . .. We decided to do the next best thing.... fly ... yeah right.......



Did I mention I am completely freaked out to fly! I embarrassed the he!! out of myself on a flight to Jamaica last year when my husband and I sat with the flight attendants as we took off - With polite chat they found out what I did for a living - policing -  and I totally did not represent - I bawled the entire take off and about half an hour into the flight - Oh ya - and on the landing....


But I am proud to say that for this flight I was completely controlled... I was going to ensure there were no other Canadian citizens put on the no fly list ... or that made the international news -
I sucked it up....We had a few drinks after take off and next thing you knew we were in paradise!  The Barbados:) Actual picture from our resorts beach:)
Rules before leaving!  
                                            1) No Computer
                                        2) No Internet                                                   3) Enjoy the break....

I had a really hard time with one and two but hey....number three I had down pat!
I am so pumped to work on my book with Dixi, Toni and Limitless that for the first time EVER I have to say my husband was right....
Not that I am going to share my admission with him:)  But, I am rejuvenated and so full of ideas that I feel like I'm going to bust!!!


Ready and waiting to share all the developments from here on in 
Awakenings

Piggybacking:) It only takes one yes!

At Limitless Publishing another author Shane Scollins has written a couple of blogs which have been posted on the Limitless website.  After reading the last two I feel the need topiggyback:)


The first one was How to sell your first novel:) Pretty much every line he wrote was something I could relate to.   As I look back on my road to Limitless Publishing  I now see that the first 100 - yes at least 100 - queries I made were no where near ready to be put out there.




My ideas and writing weren't the issue - What was, I suck with grammar and punctuation and I have a tendency to repeat myself quite a bit (I think it's the mother in me...) - and I like to use the same word a number of times:  That, Finished, So, Very, Really, Just ...and a whole lot more!  I didn't catch onto any of it - the ones who did were the small group of trusted ghost readers I'd chosen - not just for their reading and grammar knowledge but because of their honesty.  (Believe it or not, some people have a really hard time telling others - in a politically right way - that their writing sucks)




A friend of mine was my sounding stone (Hally lingo for a friend who would clam me down and let me bounce ideas and frustrations off of)  when it came to all of my rejections - she'd always say - "Okay Hally, what is the universe telling you?  What have you learned from this?"  (Honestly, she'd first tell me to take ten deep breaths, slow down and tell her everything again so she could understand me...) Which leads into Shane's second posting - How to Avoid Rejection Blues.
I had a tendency to take every single rejection personally and she would reel me in and point out where I went wrong and a light would go off within me - I'd get it and what I learned from it and move on -


The one thing I'd have to say is the most important thing to remember - you have to move on you can't give up.  If you do, then you won't achieve a thing.




Some other advice which helped me out -
READ what you've written - at least ten times - and read it out loud.  You will always find something to 'fix'.  Research what a query letter is and if you have someone who knows the business end of writing ask them for help with it. (I re-wrote mine at least 200 times)

My journey in writing is just beginning...it's a dream I know I am blessed to have the chance to chase and I am truly grateful for it.

The last bit which I chose to never forget - something my New York friend and my sounding stone friend told me ....
It doesn't matter how many rejections you get - It only takes one YES:)  Thank you Limitless for believing in me and my writing.

Social Media - Fear or Embrace it?

Social media...Where do I begin? And why do I sometimes fear it?

I was never really into it before I started writing. I always thought it was for the younger generation to connect with one another.

   When I was in High School                        we used these... 



I remember the day I learned to use the erase button on it and I thought WOW this is really neat! (aging myself I know)



Now, that I am writing and using Social media, I feel like I'm in High School all over again - minus the acne and really bad 80's hair...



I tried to find one of me in the 80's but this is pretty representative of my hair then:)






Back to social media.....  I am learning as I go along.  From Face Book to Twitter to Blogging...I know there are many many more, I am learning through trial and error.  I never realized how truly powerful these sites are.

 When I moved positions at work and became the School Resource Officer - for all of the High Schools here, I received a very quick wake up call.  Social media today is like the rumour mill of my day - only way way more powerful.




I happen to be a little click happy when it comes to anything on the computer - As my friends read this they are all shaking their heads in agreement -

I've learned, I have to slow down and read, and re-read everything before I 'click'.  I like to say Social Media is a privilege and not a right.  It can hurtle a person and their dream in the direction they want it to go - successful and reaching as many people as possible - or it can do the opposite if not used properly.  
I hope to use all of the media outlets I can and have them work in my favour!  I have a number of people who are computer savvy and site knowledgeable - So prepare yourself - I WILL be asking for help when it comes to understanding and using all sorts of sites! 
New Mantra:)

3000 words, laundry and Family time:)

SO, is three thousand words a lot?  I didn't know so I did what every other person with a computer does - I Googled it:)

The answer - Most said writing 1000 words a day was great - so kudos to me! And my family for putting up with me  -

I would be the Monkey - kids and Jerry would be the ones fighting me off:)
What's even better - if that's even possible - I got to say:

 "Hey now I have to write!  It's not just a hobby any more."  By the way that felt just as great if  not more than the three thousand words.









Between home, work and writing... it's going to take some getting use to!





BUT!!!! I'm up for the challenge:)

Technical difficulty:)

Hally was born in Sudbury, Ontario Canada. She is a Police Officer with the Greater Sudbury Police Service. Hally enjoys reading both fiction and non-fiction novels. She is a self proclaimed, writer of all things imaginative (both poetry and novels). She also holds a strong belief in – If you put your mind to it, you can accomplish anything!
She met her forever partner Jerry, thirteen years ago. Together they accomplished the greatest feat anyone can – they were blessed with two gifts from God, their sons Jacob and Jordan.
Hally enjoys spending long summer nights by the camp fire with her husband and boys and cold winter nights snuggled up watching movies in their home.
In 2009, Hally had an idea to write a novel. The idea for Awakenings came to her in a dream and never left.
Between working full time, being a wife and mother, Hally finds the time to write when her kids go to bed, when Jerry’s at work or when their new puppy Jersey decides to wake her up every morning around five a.m.
Twitter: @HallynJerry

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/hally.willmott

Website and Blog: http://www.hallywillmott.com/

Goodreads:http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/16592019-hally-willmott

Amazon Author Page: Coming Soon



So... I copy and pasted the writing for those of you who cannot view it on Limitless Publishing website:)

This is REALLY what it says... not making it up:)

Beginnings: Seeing yourself through someone else's eyes

Beginnings: Seeing yourself through someone else's eyes: It's official!  I am now posted on the Limitless publishing website as an Author!!!! http://www.limitlesspublishing.com/p/... ...

Seeing yourself through someone else's eyes

It's official!  I am now posted on the Limitless publishing website as an Author!!!!
http://www.limitlesspublishing.com/p/authors.html

In the Happy Dance most participants feet never touch the ground - that would be me!!




Check out their website and let me know what you think!

Also, there today is another authors cover reveal for his new novel!  Wow their covers are amazing...

You can check it out here: http://www.limitlesspublishing.com/