Writing

All’s Quiet on the Writer Front

| Casey Wyatt

Happy Friday everyone. Please remember to visit the 7 Scribes today – I am the Author Goddess.

Here’s how I’ve been keeping busy while I wait for feedback on The Undead Space Intiative.

  • A few days ago I received some awesome news – I finished first place in another contest. While it’s excellent news to receive, winning contests hasn’t really brought any offers from the editor judges. But that’s okay. As I reported last week, I have actually submitted to more publishers and plan to continue to do so.
  • I have spent most of this week working on the synopsis for The Undead Space Initiative. And I use the term “working” loosely! For some reason, writing an entire novel is easier than a two page synopsis. I’m down to the basic information and now all I need to do is polish it up.
  • Completing the synopsis (and, drat, I need to do a query letter -groan!) frees my mind to work on Devil’s Advocate. I have the main characters but not a fully formed plot. The plot is stewing in the back of my mind this week.
  • And I am taking two classes with a third one starting next week.

None of the aforementioned activities includes my full time job, family (also a full time job) or time spent doing other things like reading, Scribes stuff, Twitter. etc.

And speaking of  the Scribes – we have been very busy booking guest bloggers including: Frankie Roberston, Sandra Orchard, Julia Rachel Barrett, Kinley Baker, Jennifer Fusco, and Kristan Higgins.

I hope to see you all next week. Until then – happy writing!

Do or Do Not. There is No Try.

| Casey Wyatt

Happy Friday. Please remember to visit me at the 7 Scribes for today’s topic – Story Overload.

My plan all along had been to wait until September 1 to submit. Except, this past weekend, we were hit with Hurricane Irene. The fear that we might not have power for a week was a great motivator.

Saturday night before I went to bed, I hit the send button and off they all went.

I’m happy to report that full manuscripts for Ascension and Mystic Ink have been requested by several editors. If any offers appear, I’ll be happy to share the good news.

So – the moral of the story – nothing ventured, nothing gained. Even if no sales result, at least I did it. And I will continue to send my books until someone buys one (either traditional or indie pubbed).

And Now I Wait.

| Casey Wyatt

Happy Friday everyone. Please visit the 7 Scribes and read my Friday post – To Sequel or not to Sequel.

As reported last week, the book is gone. Off in the hands of my critique partners and beta readers.

Gone. . .

So now what?

Do I sit around twiddling my thumbs? No way. In the down time between feedback and the next round of revisions, I’m plotting my next book- Devil’s Advocate.  Another attempt at writing an actual Urban Fantasy. Lately, with the last two books,  both plots twisted into paranormal romance. We’ll see how the next book plots out.

How about having some fun? I recently crocheted a candy dot scarf for a friend. And I read Julia Rachel Barrett’s Incorporeal (excellent ghost story!).

But, I’m not even close to being done with The Undead Space Initiative. I still have to revise the first draft synopsis into something market ready.  So in the meantime, a tease.

The opening paragraphs of The Undead Space Initiative.

***********

Life sucks then you die. It’s a universal truth. But here’s what’s scarier. Even in death, life can still suck.

Case in point … wait for it…

 “Cherry! Get your skinny ass up on stage!” Jonathan barked through my dressing room door.  How do I describe him? Pain in my rump. Benefactor. Reason for my current situation. None of them seem adequate enough. His main occupation? Yelling at me to perform and to make him money. And he’s always interrupting. Never lets a girl even have a moment to think.

“I’m on my way. Geez Louise.” I flung open the door, narrowly missing Jonathan’s long Roman nose. The tops of his fangs peeked out from his full lips as he smiled at me. This was a game we liked to play. I would try to smack him with the door whenever possible.

Okay, it was a game I liked to play. I’ve never managed to nail him in the face. My vampire Sire is too damn fast.

Jonathan tsked and crooked his finger. A slow smile curled his lips. “Cherry, I don’t know why I put up with you.”

“Of course you do. I’m you’re number one performer.” I flashed fang. My pearly whites are nowhere near as long as his, but they can still do the job. Due to feed soon, I tried not to stare at Jonathan’s jugular. I hated needing my Sire’s blood to stay strong and avoid overpowering hunger. The kind, if left untended long enough, made vamps go feral. I buried my nose in a bouquet of fragrant red roses, a gift from one of my many fans.

Jonathan smirked. Damn. I hated when he caught me eyeing him like a roast. Another game we liked to play – I pretended I didn’t need him. And he pretended not to notice. We both knew otherwise.

I needed him.

Crap on toast.

I Set The Book Free!

| Casey Wyatt

Happy Friday! Please don’t forget to check out my Friday post at the Scribes’ Blog – Can this Wreck be Saved?

Last week I reported my goal to complete my edits of The Undead Space Initiative by Sunday night. I’m happy to say goal accomplished! And, even better, the book is now in the hands of  my two, trusted Beta Readers.

Notice I said readers. Not writers. I always ask readers to review the early draft first.

Why?

Because the reader is who I’m ultimately writing the book for. They read the book as an experience with an eye towards story. Does the book entertain them? Do they keep turning pages? What questions didn’t I answer?

If they tell me a story isn’t working, it’s full stop and either back to the drawing board or the story is shelved. Luckily,  the only stories I’ve hidden away are my first attempts from years ago.

Once I get the green light, I then submit my story to my amazing critique partners. More to come on that, in a few weeks.

If you’re a writer, it’s crucial to share your work with first readers who can be honest and provide informative feedback.

If you’re a reader and the friend of a writer – be honest, brutally honest if need be. Our feelings won’t be hurt – promise!

I Did It My Way

| Casey Wyatt

Happy Friday everyone. Please remember to check out my Friday post over at the 7 Scribes. Today’s topic – Casting Call – If my book was turned into a movie.

Last week I was in a bit of a tizzy about the beginning of my WIP – The Undead Space Initiative. I’m happy to report that I have moved past it. I’m more that halfway through the editing process right now. And I’m so excited to share this book with my trusted first readers for their reaction.

I have set an aggressive goal: complete revisions by the end of this weekend!! Can I do it? Time will tell.

Tune in next week to find out!

The Revision Blues

| Casey Wyatt

Greetings and TGIF. Please remember to visit me at Seven Scribes for my Friday post. This week – book vs. the movie version.

So draft one of The Undead Space Initiative is done. Yay me!  Now on to the hard part. Draft clean up.

Right now, I’m still in the first chapter.

Why? (Especially after almost 12,000 words a week for a month. At that rate, I should be halfway done with revisions.)

Because I let myself get bogged down in doubt (the crappy monster is at it again). I thought I was writing more of an urban fantasy with strong romantic elements.

But then, I decided to play “what if”. What if I moved the meeting of the heroine and hero up to the beginning of Chapter One – so it’s more like a romance?

A little slicing and some dicing later and now I have two versions of chapter one. Eek!

After a few slaps to the head and a week later, I’ve realized what I’m doing. Avoiding revisions. I don’t need to obesses over the first chapter. I can deal with that later. Geesh.

So moral of the story – don’t play “what if” during rough draft clean up. Save that for later, when you’ve given the book to your first readers. Then torment yourself!

The Undead Space Initiative

| Casey Wyatt

Happy Friday! Don’t forget to visit me at the Scribes’ Site today for a discussion about good reads.

As promised last week, I finished the first draft of my book – The Undead Space Initiative. I’m in the process of reading it and will be cleaning it up over the next few weeks.

So what does the planet Mars and a stripper pole have to do with each other?

Read on to find out more:

Cherry Cordial, vampire stripper extraordinaire, spectacularly messes up her life with a single act of kindness. How could she have known when she rescued gorgeous rogue, Ian McDevitt, that she would be implicated in the Vampire Queen’s murder? Soon, she faces the wrath of the entire vampire community. To escape retribution, she joins a settlement program to colonize Mars. Her choices are grim: possibly die on the red planet or stay on Earth and face certain annihilation.

Halfway There!

| Casey Wyatt

Happy Friday! Please remember to visit me at Writing Secrets of 7 Scribes for my post about Change.

This week, I’m pleased to report that I’ve surpassed the halfway point. Total word count to date is 59, 806.

Due to family obligations, I had a few days where I was only able to hit 1,000 plus words. With vacation coming soon, I hope to be back on the 2,000 words a day track and possibly even surpass it.

The story has reached the mid-point climax and is rolling towards the black moment/reversal (hopefully next week).  After that, the final wrap up. Next, I’ll re-read the draft, plug the plot holes, fix the word boo-boos and ferret out any other transgressions.

This kind of aggressive first draft approach is new for me. I usually stop after the first act and re-read what I’ve done and make corrections. Not this time. I’m blasting through to the end and then reviewing the plot as a whole. I’m not sure if I’ll do this for my next book. We’ll see. Depends on how the process goes.

I’ve resorted to this method because, often times, I start second guessing the plot and playing the “what if” game and then I believe the whole story is crap, resulting in the urge to toss it out.

When I finish the first draft, I will share the blurb for the book. I can tell you, it’s something new for me and not like my other books.

See you next week!

2,000 Word Streak Continues…

| Casey Wyatt

This week’s progress –  @48,000 words. I’m still averaging 2,000 words a day, sometimes more. I credit this productivity to knowing the plot and to squelching my nemesis, the Doubt Monster.

Is every word and sentence golden prose?

Oh heck no. I will have to do a clean up draft before passing the book onto my trusted Beta Readers.

Overall, I’m happy with my progress. So to keep up the momentum, I’m heading back to work. See you next week!

Also – please check out my latest Scribe post – Love in an Elevator. I’d love to hear your take on love scenes.