Allynn Riggs's Blog, page 9

Stressful Ruminations or ignoring the un-ignorable

Too many decisions to make while the rest of the world is rushing up pounding down my door demanding that other responsibilities be attended to. I did just vacuum and feed the fish (for the first time in three days), the bird feeder is full and the laundry is started. So, all those chores are out of the way. But those are the little responsibilities. The much bigger ones are the ones that pop into my head while trying to write. I can be going along just fine and wham! Questions as to the advisability of my leaving a paying job 18 months ago was such a brilliant idea. Very seriously considering finding a way to more reliably help build our nest egg – or assist in a child’s finances. These concrete concerns are almost overwhelming my nebulous creativity outside of the stuff that needs to get done on book one.

So much to learn about getting a book printed or converted to electronic form. So many questions that I don’t know I even should be asking. For example: Am I required to obtain a sales tax license because I want to sell printed copies of my book at signings or at family gatherings? Do you know what the sales tax laws are in Colorado? After twelve years in a CPA office I do and it’s not easy by any means. Should I bow to technology and get a basic iPhone so I can use a ‘square’ device for credit card purchases? How do I get a shopping cart set up on my website? To which account should it go? Should I use Paypal? Oh, that reminds me, the website needs to be updated. Gad, what next?

Oh, yes, now I remember. Choose a printer, get proofs done and manuscript converted for e-book. Decide how many printed copies I need to get the ball rolling. Set up signings (no, that can wait another month). Decide which categories to enter in the upcoming awards contest. Let’s see there’s cover design and editing (those are for sure); then there are two categories in the fiction list: fantasy and science fiction. Can I enter The Blood in both? What about romance?

All this and I should be working on book two, The Balance. A bit stuck there too. Though I did hit on the action needed between scenes. That has been fun to write (still writing) and it would go much smoother if I wasn’t constantly being bothered by everything else. Just want to hide and write and hope that my world does not implode while I try to ignore the un-ignorable.

Glossaries and Lists Needed or not?

A recent conversation amongst some science fiction writers involved the pros and cons of having and/or publishing glossaries and character lists.

My sci-fi/fantasy series requires, for my own reference at a minimum, a list of characters (names, ages, personalities, familial relationships for all and occupations, quirks & secrets/fears if a major player), places, items of social significance, religions, swear words, wildlife, foods, all with a pronunciation guide if needed, etc. I have a separate file on my laptop so I can add to it as new characters or terms are needed or appear in the stories. The decision to include such when the first book is released later this spring has not yet been made. I have found that reviewing this list occasionally to be enlightening as it reminds me of characters, usually, who have been cut out of a scene and I may find a use for them in later scenes or books.

I also have a running list of character names as a pool to choose from, especially if I am struggling with a new character or I need to change a name because the name does not fit anymore. That list resides in a small notebook which travels with me (whereas my laptop may not) so I can add to it as sounds present themselves. Realize the sound of a word has a subconscious impact and as characters are developed the name they start out with are not necessarily the best one and you should not feel bad about changing a name. If you liked the first name you came up with perhaps it will fit a different character, so don’t just delete it. It may be the inspiration you need for the next project.

Whether or not you include this extra material may depend on the sheer number of characters or the amount of science/magic in your story. It may also depend on space or page count or even technology available. I liked the idea of having access to a list by highlighting a word on the Kindle, Nook, or other electronic reader. If words can be connected with a dictionary I see no reason why they can’t also be connected to glossary or pronunciation guide related to the story being read. Perhaps that is already available and I don’t know about it yet.

Having such lists is invaluable to writers as worlds are being built whether it involves science fiction, fantasy, or your current neighborhood or nonfiction work. I suggest you get started on your list now.

New Schedule Challenge

Mondays are not my favorite way to start the week. However, just to kick my own butt in gear I am going to work on posting a little something each Monday no later than 4 pm. This is a small inroads into building a new schedule to hopefully be more consistent with a lot of things. This morning it was just chilly enough to start a new schedule of 30 minutes of power yoga at home then head to the gym for a new aqua fitness class. Last Friday I tried (rather the instructor stole my lap lane for her class when I was 50 yards into a mile swim) my first aqua fitness group class. I figured why not since I couldn’t use the lap lane any more and it was still in the water. Plus, water and my imagination get along great (this is another topic worth blogging about, perhaps next week). Besides, the probable stress fracture in my foot wouldn’t mind a full hour off instead of the 30 minutes it usually takes me to swim a mile. So I doubled my time in the water and got a vigorous workout to boot! I decided to make this aqua fitness class part of my personal challenge. So, this morning I hopped in and got another good workout without stressing my foot too much. I also have added a fifteen minute dry sauna after each swim – that’s supposed to be good for your skin among other things. So after that I returned home to check e-mail, Facebook, and two of the blogs I follow. I wrote comments for a book discussion on Goodreads. Though about purchasing three more books for my Kindle shelf – may wait until after February first on that. Still have four books I haven’t gotten to on the Kindle so don’t want to get too far ahead of myself in the reading department. Then I decided to distract myself with a round of laundry and ironing before tackling this blog. Then I will be headed for editing and adding to book two of my Stone’s Blade series, The Balance. The water is hot and ready for the cinnamon orange tea from Awful Annie’s and then I will be in the proper mood for writing until it’s time to get dinner ready before going to teach dance with husband, Bob.

Now that I look at that schedule which I have accomplished most of already I am thinking that each Monday just might be a lot of fun and be a perfect way to start each week. Do you have set schedules of differing activities to you can get numerous things completed and not feel like you are skipping something important. I am loving the writing time but I also need to be aware of my personal fitness. A fit body contributes to a fit brain. If I am feeling physically well then I will write well.

The Joyful Process of Writing

Paul Harding, Pulitzer-prize winning author of Tinkers, revealed in The Writer, December 2013, p. 31, tip #9, that his writing process is complicated and messy. Yet he revels in writing and rewriting every sentence at least a dozen different ways.He advises students to focus on the writing itself—not publication, not readers. 

This advice to writers to focus on the writing rather than publication or readers resonates with me. Over the decades I have found immense joy in the commitment to writing stories. The rewriting process may be, at times, tedious but there is an underlying joy when it comes out better, and the characters stop whispering in my ear. I have written without real consideration that any of my stories would be published until recently. The stories I am readying for publication are only “ready” because I concentrated on the writing of them first; I committed to getting them on paper or screen in the best condition possible and then I recognized that someone else should look at them and guide me to rewrite yet again, and again. I am proud of the stories I have written and will write because it is the writing of them which brings me joy.

Do you find joy in your writing or is it a chore?

Sharing the Declaration of Indie-Pendence

While researching authors who might be interested in reading my manuscript for The Blood and consenting to do an endorsement for the cover when it gets published early in 2014, I found this on a blog by James Scott Bell. Yes, I realize it was originally posted 18 months ago but it still resonates with truth. We all should be respectful no matter the publishing choices of an author. Write because you must and share/publish as fits YOU.

Declaration of Indie-Pendence

Aug21,2012

The Revolution is here, of course. The tea has been thrown in the harbor, and lanterns placed in the belfry. In many ways the self-publishing boom is like those heady days of liberation in our own country’s history, with possibilities seemingly endless, fresh territories waiting to be explored.

Plus, we have not yet settled on the “one best way of doing things,” i.e., a Constitution. In fact, we’ve barely begun our Federalist Papers.

Yet the irascible, voluble J. A. Konrath has issued a Declaration of Independence from traditional publishing (scroll down toward the end to read it, and have your asbestos glasses on).

Note, the Konrath Declaration has not yet been ratified. There are other drafts in the pipeline, awaiting debate. In fact, I had written one up a few months ago, and now seems the perfect time to have it considered by the people and their representatives. So here goes:

Declaration of Indie-Pendence

When in the course of business events, it becomes necessary for writers to dissolve the exclusive bands which have connected them to an industry, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of creativity and of creativity’s Source entitle them, a decent respect for the opinions of reading kind requires that they should declare the causes which compel them to a new way of doing business.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all writers are created to tell stories, that they are endowed by their imaginations with certain unalienable rights, that among these are writing books, getting them published and making some dough. That to secure these rights, distribution systems are instituted, deriving their just powers from the consent of the marketplace. And that whenever an alternative system arises that provides writers with potential additional income, it is the right of those writers to choose to see what gives.

Prudence, indeed, will dictate what the best path is to pursue. But that there are different paths now is a fact, and the writer is free to further his career and earn a living in whatever way seems fittest and most just.

Let certain facts be submitted to a candid world:

- There is now no one way to publish, and there never will be again.

- The traditional publishing industry is still viable, but must become more flexible toward writers.

- Writers and their agents must assume a greater and more informed vigor in negotiations. Editors and industry reps must be equally prepared to negotiate, for it is in their long term interest to nurture new writers. Without new writers, there will be no traditional industry left.

- The new term for traditional publishing should be “creative partnership.” And both those words should be taken seriously.

- Writers who are traditionally published must begin to set aside the gentle fantasy that they are better than self-published writers by definition.

- Self-published writers must set aside their unbridled lust to set fire to the walls of the Forbidden City and bay at the moon.

- Writers of any stripe must continue to hone their craft and write the best books they can. Every time out. No exceptions.

We writers, therefore, appealing to the supreme value of independence and creativity, do solemnly declare that we are free; that we are absolved from all allegiance to one way of doing things, and that as full, free and responsible beings we have the right to enter into any deal we think is best. That may be indie publishing. That may be traditional publishing. It may be a mix of both. But it will be a free choice.

For the support of this declaration, with firm reliance on the power of the written word, we mutually pledge to each other—and the reading public—our books, our stories and our sacred calling.

What are your thoughts?

You can find more writings from James Scott Bell’s blog The Fevered Brain of JSB at www.jamesscottbell.com.

Necessary heart/head aches – editing

Oh, the pain and exhilaration of editing. Cutting The Blood from 107,900+ words to 88,667 was excruciating but I learned about writing in the process. And it is a process you can’t do alone. Three major edits have produced a much tighter story. With assistance from an independent editor and writing coach and a couple of friendly readers willing to put their reactions and questions to paper, The Blood will be going off to an official proofreader within the next week for an estimate on time and cost. I understand how an author can absolutely know that a manuscript is done to perfection and then spend the next 18 months actually getting it closer. No manuscript will be without error but a good author who believes in the story they have written will make every effort to make it the best possible before it gets printed for others to enjoy. Read Mark Stevens’ blog from Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers:

http://www.rmfw.org/scrubbing-the-grand-canyon-dam-with-a-toothbrush/

This is why I like C.S. Lakin.

Ms. Lakin was one of seventeen writers who responded to the comment: Remaining True to Yourself vs Catering to Your Audience: 17 Tips From the Worlds Top Bloggers, . . . Her response is so in-tune with my way of thinking. As writers and readers we should not be pigeon-holed into one genre. Check this link for hers and sixteen others’ thoughts on the topic:

http://www.writewithwarnimont.com/remaining-true-vs-catering-to-your-audience-17-tips-from-the-top-bloggers-authors-and-writers

What are your thoughts? As a reader do you only read within a single genre or do you venture out and expand your vision, imagination and knowledge?

 

Thoughtful discussion of self pub vs Big 6

Just read an interview of Hugh Howey on JA Konrath’s blog. Check it out for interesting thoughts on independent and self publishing. Best quote: “. . . we need entertaining storytelling.” We don’t need a preponderance of sex, violence, or foul language to tell an entertaining story.

A Newbie’s Guide to Publishing                             jakonrath.blogspot.com

 

A Newbie’s Guide to Publishing                             jakonrath.blogspot.com

Facebook page changes

Hello all,

After months of thinking about it I changed the name of my Facebook page from The Stone’s Blade to a more appropriate Timberdark Publications, LLC. This means that you can get to that page by searching for www.Facebook.com/TimberdarkPublications. This change allows me to be comfortable writing about all my writing and not just focused on the one series. I’m looking forward to expanding the writings and discussion as my list grows. So go check out the Facebook page and let me know your thoughts as I progress to publication.