Molli Moran's Blog, page 15

The Importance of Critique Partners

 

Today I want to talk to y’all about part of the writing process that doesn’t get as much face time as the flashy parts, like cover reveals, and the financial side, and you know, being an author.  Things like revising and beta reading get mentioned, but what I’ve found to be a LIFE SAVER…is having a critique partner.  With Marie’s permission, I vlogged about what a critique partner is, and why you need one.

(Apologies for video quality…I felt like death!)

Do YOU have a critique partner?  Has he/she/they helped your writing?  I know having one has helped me with mine!

Taking a Deep Breath

 

Originally I had a post planned to write tonight, all about how it’s been a really fun but surreal transition, going from simply a “blogger” to an “author.”  I wanted to talk about my changing thoughts and attitudes, and straddling both words.  This is not that post.  That post will be up soon, but this is a moment of honesty I wanted to capture, and share with y’all.

One of my beta readers finished AS YOU TURN AWAY tonight, and was lovely enough to rate it 5 stars.  More than the rating, her kind words touched me.  I talk a lot about how I write books with heart, but I mean it, and for even one reader to have the same reaction to Jonah and Quinn’s story as I did…means the sun, the stars, and the moon to me.

It hit me all over again tonight that I’ll be published soon.  I’ve labeled myself “author-in-the-making” for awhile now; once I put AS YOU TURN AWAY into the world, that will change.  There will be Before I was published, and After.  Before my heart was revealed to the world, and After.  And the thing is…

I’ve been quietly dreaming about this since I was 13.  For Awhile I was afraid to hope for it.  I’ve been told it wouldn’t happen.  Even as recently as 2012 I wanted to be traditionally published.  Now I look at all the ways I changed in 2013 and how I found myself in so many moments and people and experiences…  And self-publishing is right for me.  It’s perfect.  It’s making my dreams happen.  Now.  And that is all I’ve ever wanted.

And it’s surreal, being here.  I couldn’t have gotten here without the support of friends, and family.  I couldn’t have gotten here without Kay.  I couldn’t have written about a healthy love without being in relationships that didn’t last, then finding Kay.  I couldn’t write about friendships like Quinn and Lanie share, without my amazing friends.  I couldn’t write about the Walker family if I didn’t come from my own messy, supportive family.

So really, I think this post is just my way of taking a deep breath, before everything changes.

And saying thank you.

Cover Reveal: AS YOU TURN AWAY!

 

I thought of a hundred ways to share my cover with y’all today – a video, a post all in GIFS, pictures of me grinning and squee’ing.  In the end, I was too excited to do anything other than sit down and draft this post.  Basically if you can, close your eyes and imagine me doing the silliest dance you can imagine, and THAT’S how excited I am.

Wait, I do have one visual…

No but seriously, y’all are here for the AS YOU TURN AWAY cover, and I know that.  I’m just gonna say that I am BLOWN AWAY by the cover Marie so beautifully designed.  She went above and beyond, and I love everything about the cover.  And I hope you do, too.

Okay.  *deep breath*  Here we go!

When Quinnlan Reynolds left home at 18, she escaped her small, Georgia town and her suffocating upbringing. She started a new life as a ballerina, and tasted freedom for the first time. But four years later, her first visit home turns tragic. Reeling, Quinn tries to piece her life back together again. But doing so is easier said than done when sexy Jonah Walker saunters back into her life.

Quinn shattered Jonah’s heart once, so getting involved with her isn’t something he’s sure he’s ready to do again. He became someone he didn’t recognize when he left home. He’s spent the last years burying his pain by keeping everyone in his life at arm’s length. Now he needs to get to know his family again, and finally become who he wants to be.

But neither Quinn or Jonah can stay away from each other, especially when old feelings resurface. Something is pulling them back together, and they can’t deny their chemistry for long. One Georgia summer could change both their lives forever, if they can work through their past to have a future together.

It’s glorious.  It’s Jonah, and Quinn, and HAY BALES, and it’s so warm.  Inviting.  PRETTY.  This book is so close to my heart, and I love everything the cover says about it.  If you’d like to add AS YOU TURN AWAY to your to-be-read, that would make my day.

Over the course of the next week, you’ll see my cover at a few other blogs, BUT they have something I don’t.  I’ve shared secret excerpts from AS YOU TURN AWAY with each of them, and they’ll be sharing them with YOU!

The Reveal Schedule

Jan 4: Books and Writing, Word Spelunking, City of Books, and Ramblings of a Daydreamer

Jan 5: I’m A Book Shark, and Thoughts at One in the Morning
Jan 6: Stephanie Parent, Collections, and BooksLovin’
Jan 7: Adventures in Reading, The YA Bookshelf, Disquietus
Jan 8: Reflections of a Bookworm, and Crystal in Bookland
Jan 9: A Soul Unsung, In Libris Veritas
Jan 10: Ninja Girl Reads, The Whimsical Mama, A Reading Daydreamer

Finally, I’m offering a giveaway to celebrate my cover reveal!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thank you SO much for your support.  I look forward to releasing AS YOU TURN AWAY into the world soon, and will be offering e-ARCs soon!

Cover Reveal Sign-Ups!

 

There’s this gorgeous cover in my inbox that I’ve been staring at for ages.  If possible, I’d like to get some friends together to help me reveal the cover Marie designed for AS YOU TURN AWAY.  I think…when the cover is out there on the Internet…all this will start to feel real.

Official Cover Reveal Sign-Ups!

The cover reveal will take place the week of January 4, 2014.  A long time ago that felt FOREVER away, when Marie and I started hashing out cover details.  Then I saw the cover in its first tentative form, and watched the process.  All of a sudden it was Thanksgiving, then Christmas.  Now it’s almost 2014, and I feel like I can’t sit still thinking about that.

So if YOU would like to help me reveal the AS YOU TURN AWAY cover?  You’re in the right place!  If you’re on my street team, I’d love it if you signed up, but any friends, bloggers, or other authors are TOTALLY welcome to get in on this cover reveal.  I’ll take sign-ups for the next week or so, and then I’ll get my information together and send y’all the shiny cover.

 

Thanks in advance for all your support!

Becoming a Better Writer

 

I finished the “big” changes in my first round of edits on AS YOU TURN AWAY last night, and as I did, I was thinking about my writing, and the changes I’ve seen in it over the years.  I was thinking about how my understanding of not just writing, but telling stories has altered.  And how I’ve gone from purely wanting to dream up characters…to wanting to dream up characters and stories that IMPACT others.  And I thought about how, ten years ago, what I thought was “good” writing on my part would probably seem sub-par now – it’s so interesting to me, being able to look back and realize I’ve stood back and watched myself evolve as a writer.

Edits were another animal entirely though.  I knew my first draft was ugly in some ways.  I knew there were moments and scenes when I let the words flow and turned off my inner editor.  I knew I’d find bloated sentences and consistency errors.  I knew I’d have to rip out scenes I loved, and add new words.  And yet…did I HAVE to do all of this?  No.  I could have done a quick grammar and spell check and published AS YOU TURN AWAY as it was, but that wouldn’t have been my BEST.

And my readers deserve my best.

They deserve a story they will remember, with characters they can watch grow.  Scenes that will make them FEEL something.  A romance they can believe in.  Friendships they can cherish reading about.  That’s what my street team members, friends, family, and MOST importantly, strangers deserve, when they go into my book.  Not something I threw together.  But my VERY best.

So I turned my pride off, and my inner editor on, and I ripped seams and scenes out of chapters.  I shortened moments I adored, and got rid of some things that, on a second or fourth read through, felt awkward.  I changed details, names, and places.  I strengthened relationships, and moved around timelines.  I polished words until they shone.  I stared at some passages so long I hated them, but I kept working, kept tempering the words and the characters until the bones of the story felt stronger.

Then I worked some more.

Are my edits done?  Not yet.  I have one major component to work on adding.  I need to run a grammar and spell check.  I need to do another read-through for consistency, and look for over-used words or turns of phrase.  And then I’ll probably do some fiddling while beta readers are reading AYTA.  And then final edits and more tweaks once I received their critiques.

The truth is, I owe it to my readers AND to myself to be honest enough about my writing that I can admit when it needs fixing.  Because when I’m honest with myself?  That’s when I really started becoming a better writer.  And I hope I am ALWAYS learning and growing, so that I can always improve on my “best.”

 

Did this post resonate with you?  What is your editing process like?  (I bounced around from chapter to chapter, and I don’t really know why.)  Have you watched your writing grow over the years?

I hope you’ll consider subscribing to my feed, or adding my book to YOUR to-be-read!  Happy holidays, everyone! 

Street Team Sign-Ups!

 

 

Now that I’ve officially announced my title and synopsis for AS YOU TURN AWAY (my 2014 debut novel), it’s time to talk about something I hope some of my amazing friends will be interested in: the support I’ll need.  I’m self-publishing AS YOU TURN AWAY, and with the world of self-publishing changing daily, it’s a little more difficult to get to the top of the mountain to shout to the world “THIS IS MY BOOK.”  And to be honest, being that loud isn’t really my style, so I’m hoping to recruit some helpers to signal boost for me.

The AS YOU TURN AWAY Street Team

What IS a street team?  A street team is a group of individuals dedicated to talking up a product or organization – in this case, my writing.  To be on my street team and gain my love FOREVER, you’ll need to believe in my project and in me, and be willing to help me promote AS YOU TURN AWAY.

What’s Expected?

You won’t be asked to do anything you aren’t capable of doing (I won’t make you put up flyers or anything crazy.)  My street team members will be invited to things like cover reveals, get heads up on giveaways and release dates, and so forth.  You’ll have some freedom to make up your own promotional things – invite me to your blog, give away a copy of my book, or simply RT my AS YOU TURN AWAY tweets.  It’s no pressure, but if you sign up to be on the street team, I hope you’ll do as much promoting as YOU feel comfortable doing.

In Return

You’ll get my sincere, heart-felt gratitude, as well as a few other perks.  Since I’m not backed by a publishing house, my options are limited but I can promise you you’ll get: an ARC of AS YOU TURN AWAY (if you want), swag (for you / for your readers / both), a place in my acknowledgements, and shout-outs on Twitter, my blogs, and Facebook/etc.

How Do I Sign Up?

Title and Synopsis Reveal!

 

I feel like I’ve waited most of my life for this day.  Is that melodramatic to say?  I hope not, because I mean it.  This last year has been incredible – I started this project right about this time last December, and through fits and starts, I slowly fell in love with it.  I love my two main characters, and their friends.  I love their interactions, from the tears, to the kisses and swoons.  I believe so much in this book, and it’s my hope that others will, too.  It’s currently in edits, and will be going out to beta readers next month, which means IT’S HAPPENING, so naturally I’m a little:

But mostly, in general:

But okay, y’all’re here to find out more about this book I’ve been hinting and teasing about for FOREVER, right?  So let’s get on with it!

AS YOU TURN AWAY

Tentative publication date: March 1, 2014

An old love could become new…

When Quinnlan Reynolds left home at 18, she escaped her small, Georgia town and her suffocating upbringing. She started a new life as a ballerina, and tasted freedom for the first time. But four years later, her first visit home turns tragic. Reeling, Quinn tries to piece her life back together again. But doing so is easier said than done when Jonah Walker saunters back into her life.

Quinn shattered Jonah’s heart once, so getting involved with her isn’t something he’s sure he’s ready to do again. When he left home, he became someone he didn’t recognize. He’s spent the last years burying his pain by keeping everyone in his life at arm’s length. Now he needs to get to know himself and his family again, and finally become who he wants to be.

But neither Quinn or Jonah can stay away from each other, especially when old feelings resurface. Something is pulling them back together, and they can’t deny their chemistry. But they have to work through their past if they’ll ever have a future.

 

*deep breath*  So that’s what my book is about.  It’s a New Adult Romance, and there are swoons, banter, family interactions, and so much more.  It’s about finding love and loving yourself.  It’s about coming home.  And it’s my heart.  I’m working hard on getting it up on Goodreads, and becoming a Goodreads author.  I’ll be a LOT more vocal about AS YOU TURN AWAY soon, including teasers and promotion, but for now I’m going to go refill my coffee cup and try not to hyperventilate.

How To Write A Book

* This post should not be confused with professional advice.  It’s all for fun and to kick off my writer blog. 

Step One: Armed with a GREAT idea, swagger over to your computer (or notebook / etc) filled with confidence.  You are going to rock this book, and it will basically be the best thing EVAR.

Step Two: Quickly realize this writing thing is harder than you thought it would be.

Step Three: Take the first of many breaks while you sit around awkwardly waiting for BRILLIANCE to strike.  It will.  Eventually.

Step Four: Go back to the drawing board with your idea…you’re going to have to re-evaluate this whole thing.

Step Five: Push through the first few chapters until FINALLY you start to feel comfortable with the characters and the story they’re telling.  THIS IS A GOOD THING.

Step 6: Get TOTALLY sucked into the book and start feeling FEELS.

Step 7: Cry.  A lot.

Step 8: Seriously, a lot.

Step 9: Realize your characters have taken over your life.

Step Ten: And you really don’t mind.

Step Eleven: Reach the 3/4 mark and start breathing into a paper bag because you’re CLOSE to finishing this thing.

Step Twelve: Stock up on tissues for the emotional ending.

Step Thirteen: Drag your feet about ending the draft because REASONS.

Step Fourteen: Power through and finish the first draft, amidst many more tears.

Step Fifteen: Sit numbly for awhile, then realize YOU DID IT!

Step Sixteen: CELEBRATE!

All Supernatural GIFS found here.  

In all seriousness though, writing a book?  Is hard work.  It’s late nights and days where the words flow, then days where piecing a single chapter together is like pulling teeth.  It’s crying from feels or frustration, laughing when your characters GET IT RIGHT.  It’s turning your inner editor off so you can let the words flow.  It’s messy sentence structure just to get the emotions onto the page.  It’s sending chapters to your CP declaring them not fit to be read, then breathing a sigh of relief when she tells you the bones of your story are good.

It’s being full of a NEED that goes deep, to tell this story, to help others learn about love: self-love, friendship love, romantic love.  It’s hoping that even one person will be changed by reading my book.  It’s doubting yourself, then finding the confidence to push through the days of low word counts.

It’s worth EVERY minute of it when that first draft is done.

I cannot wait to get this book ready to share with y’all, because I believe in it SO SO much.  I’ll be revealing the title and synopsis later this week so check back!