The Waiting Game, Part XXIV

We're on our wait yet again. Heard from Publisher #1 about the proposal for PEACEWEAVER. Apparently they like it well enough to see it again next spring, if we haven't sold it by then. Drat! I wanted a deal now...

Did I mention I'm not too good at waiting?

DAMAGES, the full manuscript, is wending its way to my agent for submission. I have good hopes for this story because a publisher contacted ME (not the other way 'round!) and said they liked my voice, and wouldn't we like to send in something for consideration?

You bet your sweet bippy we would. So my matchless agent, Tamela, told me to send her the full printed MS plus proposal. It's in the hands of the (gulp) US Postal Service as we speak, and I hope the publisher likes it well enough to give Tamela a call and me something to rejoice over.

Now, if anyone knows ways, other than chocolate, to ease the waiting time, I'm all ears and available taste buds.

Rodent with 'Tude

more animals

You say you needz interruptz me in Revision Pit? You not knowz I wurking on propozzalzzz? No?

Then I send angry rodentz to bitez you...

SALE!

Except for my DH, you guys are the first to know:

I'm pleased as spiced ale to announce that Sheaf House has offered to publish SEASONS IN THE MIST. SEASONS, as all two of you blog fans will no doubt recollect, is a time-travel romance set (mostly) in 1353 Cornwall.

We're mulling a spring '10 release for it. Due to the awesome nature of Sheaf House's previous covers, I hope & expect a really bodacious cover for this book.

Though I've known about the possibility for some months, my agent advised me to keep mum until released to announce by the publisher. Well, today we all agreed it could come out! As in, SQUEEEE!

Still grinning almost wide enough to split my face.

The Home Stretch

Vacation's come and gone--way too fast for my taste! Sometimes I think the best part of getting away is the anticipation.

Work on DAMAGES is going quite well. After a kick in the slats from my crit partner, I realized what I want to do with this is a semi-rewrite before submission. All I have to do is reorder some events in the book, go through one last time (staying focused all the while), and whip it into shape.

Rewriting, though I've done it in the past, is a real challenge for me. Some authors love doing it. That's not how I'm wired together. I think in me, it's a hangover from childhood. I've seen it in my kids: once they WRITE SOMETHING, put it down on paper, it has a life of its own. "Change this," I advise my daughter, "put in some punctuation, tell us his name..." She looks at me like I've gone bonkers. If it's down on paper, it exists as it is. Change it?

I'm thinking that's my mindset. Once I type it in, easy-edit computer function notwithstanding, I tend to get a prejudice to keep it intact.

This isn't to say I don't edit. But on occasion I've been advised to make a love story into a mystery, or change everybody's motivations, or whatever. I keep wanting to respond, "But that's not what happened!"

Once I write it, it lives, somehow. Very difficult to tweak it then. I just thank God I cued into this misguided mindset at all. It took my kids to teach me.

Toiling Onward

A Faithful Reader (hi to all three of you!) reminded me I hadn't posted in ages. I'll rectify that.

First & foremost, thanks to all of your good thoughts & prayers. I am no longer stuck. Instead, I'm working on agent-suggested revisions for the piece, DAMAGES, we want to send to Steeple Hill. I'm also working on editor-suggested revisions to SEASONS IN THE MIST, the time-travel story. I'd tell you who the house is who's interested, but my agent says then I'd have to shoot you.

Work on PEACEWEAVER is also perking along. My crit partner actually likes it! More reason to celebrate.

Next month I'm off to American Christian Fiction Writers' annual conference, along with several of you. I'm very cranked for this event, and as usual, I have to warn myself not to set my expectations too high. That way lies a major bum-out.

In other news, my web site is being nicely redesigned. I had to get a new domain name 'cause the old host played dirty with my old one. So if you get a chance, take a peek at www.debkinnard.com, currently under construction but shaping up to be very cool indeed.

That's it for now. Gotta go write something. Cat Kelly Kinnard says "mip".

Stuck in the Middle With You

Since last post, I've decided to turn more attention to contemporary novels than historicals. That's not to say I won't finish PEACEWEAVER; since that tale's in my head, I most likely will finish it. Just not right away.

So I went back to a story I started 2-3 years ago, called A ROSE IN LATE OCTOBER. I like this story...

So why is it STUCK? Man alive, if I knew that I'd tell ya. I got it to 35K words and it's just sitting there, glaring at me, daring me to find a path for it to travel.

So far that path hasn't revealed itself to me. I told my crit partner I need to glare back, and drink another pot of coffee, before I get an inkling where it should go.

External disaster? No, just did that. Internal gut-gnawing? Did that, too. Up the conflict? I'm thinking yes, though I can't tell which of the Main Characters needs to have his/her anguish-level intensified at this point in the story.

Gaargh! Did I mention I hate when a story sticks somewhere and won't budge?

Where Ya Been So Long?

Been working. Well, that's my excuse, anyway, for not blogging.

It's been an eventful two months since my last entry. I've finished edits on SEASONS IN THE MIST, the medieval time-travel, and started a second medieval romance that doesn't involve time-travel. PEACEWEAVER is going very well. It's set in north Wales in 953, and needless to say, research is a big challenge with this one.

In the interim, also, I've contracted with an awesome agent. Tamela Murray agreed to represent me, and I couldn't be more tickled.

Since I signed with Tamela, another exciting thing happened: an acquisitions editor at a house whose name you'd recognize, contacted me via e-mail. Seems she'd seen excerpts of SEASONS IN THE MIST on Tina Helmuth's THE INK'S NOT DRY critique blog. Though the editor says a time-travel isn't a good fit for their house, she liked my writing style and invited me to send them something!

Will I send them something? You bet your bippy I will. At this writing, Tamela and I are planning what to send them, and whether I concentrate on contemporary romances or historical. Since I have more books finished in contemporary than historical, we've decided on the former.

I reserve the right, however, to morph into a historical writer at any future moment.

So things are perking along, and I have lots of hope for good things to come.

Good News for the SF Fans

I always like to cyber-party when a new author breaks in, particularly in the science fiction realm. There is never enough!

That fact makes me happy to announce that my cyber-bud Sharolyn Wells has sold her first novel, PLYMOUTH COLONY II, to release March 14 from E Treasures Publishing (www.etreasurespublishing.com).

Here's the blurb: "Earth is gone—destroyed by a group of lizard-like aliens called the Novari. Before they send their meteor ships to destroy Earth, another group of humanoid aliens arrive—the Kelkani. They will save some of Earth’s young people. Are they doing it for themselves or is the group of Elitists doing it for their own reasons?"

Sounds like a winner to me.

They'll Take Anything

On chat with my wonderful editor (two houses, five books), Michelle. We got to talking about the Small Press Paradigm. We wonder whether the small press sales you rack up are an asset to the agent-hunt? or possibly even a liability?

See, I'm not hearing it specifically from agents, but by and large there's a perception out there that if you're published by a small press, it means automatically that your work is substandard, because small presses are all the same. They will publish anything sent to them. They do no screening nor do they do any editing. They put out rubbish, so that's why it's necessary to screen small press titles out of some review sites, many award competitions, RWA type contests, and the like.

This is rubbish. Small presses have standards. They DO screen the fiction that is sent to them. They reject a high percentage of the submitted material. They DO edit. There is nothing basic that prevents small press books from competing on any playing field you choose--save the perception out there that these are second class work that must be suppressed at all costs.

So, Virginia, do not send a small press your 600,000 word epic fantasy or your angst-ridden memoir. They're looking for better things.

Searching for a Mood

SEASONS IN THE MIST is semi-officially, sort of, done. I finished the final edits this past week, and put it to bed 'til I feel like re-reading it for more edits, or 'til it sells, or 'til an agent wants the full manuscript. Sometimes when you work on a book it starts to pall, after a while. So I've put this book to bed and I've started the next one.

PEACEWEAVER will be a medieval also, set in a time period earlier than that of SEASONS. It's set in north Wales, amid two warring clans who try to unite to repel the Saxon and Norse incursions, and use a young girl as a pawn in their search for an end to the warfare. I really like the idea, I know exactly where it's going and who the characters are.

What I'm after is a "feel" for the time. Little removed from the Dark Ages, I'm sure 958 Wales had its own tone and flavor, different from 14th century England. My first five pages lack the flavor. I'll tweak, edit, and up the emotion and detail until that taste is very apparent, even from page one. But at this point it's frustrating when I know I ALMOST have it...but not.

Wish me luck on the new project!

The Waiting Game, Part Twenty-Two

Having finished SEASONS IN THE MIST, and been told that I need an agent for this one ("this could be your breakout book!"), I sent proposals to two agents this week, via e-mail. Now it's waiting time.

Did I mention I don't do waiting very well? My options are: 1) chew nails; 2) clean house; 3) finish edits on the last few pages of SEASONS; 4) start PEACEWEAVER, the next book. I have the story roughly in my head, along with some very romantic twists and turns, and my main character's name has come to me. I don't know my historical setting, though, as in what year? what part of Britain? Gotta have those things. Anmaire (my main character) will have to compose her soul in patience 'til I know where she belongs.

Forget option 3. Dust is a wood preservative.

Did I mention I hate waiting?

Why Cats Say "Blurt" and Other Mysteries

Cats do say "blurt" not "meow". Robert A. Heinlein says so, and that's good enough for me.

Now--why do I mention this on a writing blog? Because there has been some talk about "old-fashioned" writing on some of the writers' loops. Old-fashioned in this case can mean practically anything--writers who are in their 60s trying to give their 20-something characters authentic voices; Jane Austen's style as opposed to modern; and historical writers attempting to get their characters talking right for their age and still be understandable to a modern audience.

Always, when writing in another era, there will be something lost in translation. My just-finished WIP is a case in point. In the 14th century, the upper classes spoke either middle-English or Norman French. I can't write in either language--it wouldn't communicate. Even if my skills were up to it, it wouldn't work. Writing is, after all, primarily about communicating.

That said, my characters can't sound 21st century. Not having been there in 1353 to hear how folks spoke, the best I can do is an approximation of a 21st century author's guess at medieval usage and speech patterns.

(I refused throughout the book to use 'tis. Just my prejudices coming through. I'd rather throw in an obscure French term, or even Cornish, than use that tired old contraction. To me, it shouts "Hey, this is a piece of historical fiction and I'm too lazy to guess how they REALLY talked, so here's 'tis' to tell you so!")

Now, some folks are not going to like the guesses and choices I've made. That's fine. If they get the gist of the story, I figure I've done 99% of my job. If my cat says "blurt" instead of "meow," I hope you will enjoy my story anyway, and forgive the fact that my choices aren't quite what you would've chosen.

All Done!

Yay! I got the first draft done on SEASONS IN THE MIST, my (probably unsellable) medieval time-travel romance. My goal was to have it done by the end of the year, and I wrote "the end" on January 1. Can't get much closer than that!

I'll take 2-4 weeks to do the second-draft, which for this book means a complete read-through, spotting goofs, gaffes, "huh?" places, and all of my myriad bad writing-habits. Then I assess for story, add more content as necessary, and consider it pretty well done.

Then the scary part...sending it out into that Big, Bad Publishing World. Don't ask me if I look forward to this step in the process.

But I feel as though I've told one of the stories of my heart, and finishing it feels really, really good.

Life's Poetry

I heard today about Dan Fogelberg's passing. Now, before someone screams at me for being from the 70s--guilty as charged.

This guy's tunes inhabited my heart, and still do. He was that rarest of people, an artist who was a musician who was a poet. He celebrated life--can you get much more connected than that?

In a way his tunes informed my writing. I sit here listening to my iPod with every DF tune I can load, loaded on it, and playing. I celebrate his genius, his gentle way of telling the truth, his life. Too young--I daresay there was music in him yet to be strummed on the 4700 instruments he played. I'd be ready to bet there were still stories to tell, life to be explored, poetry to set to the notes of a score.

Farewell for a while, Dan. You'll be missed here.

Seasonal Changes

Been a while since I've blogged. I proposed SEASONS IN THE MIST to a well-known and lots-of-fun agent. He said it was good stuff, well written (!) but not his thing. What we call a "good rejection."

I'm really happy with the progress I'm making on SEASONS. It's been excerpted on Tina Helmuth's THE INK'S NOT DRY blog, with mixed results and some comments that I truly did not understand. Some of them seemed to indicate the commenter hadn't actually read the excerpt...enough.

I'm also glad to say I've got not only my extra-valuable crit partner brainstorming it with me, I have an editor doing so as well. They're both making great suggestions, stuff I want to do and know I can work into the MS seamlessly. I'm still perking right along, and my target date for finishing the draft was December 1, but it's looking more like I'll complete it after the holidays.

I hate it when I make a change to a book and it messes up the story further along. The additions/deletions these precious ladies are suggesting are totally different...they're going to enrich the story, not mess it up.

Books should grow and morph into something greater than the original concept. They should stretch the reader, too. Ideally SEASONS will do both.

Fiction as Fiction

A dear & faithful friend turned me on to this article. Run, do not walk, to see what this Brit author has to say about why we write, how we write, and why mediocre is just not good enough.

Since I can't seem to get the tag to work, google The Book of Morden. He gave a talk in 2005 about this very topic.

He makes the point quite concisely, that if we accept artificial limts on what Christian fiction can address, we might be doomed to fail before typing "Chapter One." Must we also preach the Gospel? Should we? And how does the agenda limit our ability to tell the story?

I can identify with what he says. I have been told "can't" in CBA fiction far more often than I've been told "can."

There is a huge presumption in CBA, which I am attempting to test, that readers go into bookstores and complain about being offended by this book or that book. Who does this? How often? Over what books? If this paradigm exists, those who cite it should be called to account. Where are the stats?

Being told we "can't" write about certain people, in certain ways, strikes me as wrong-headed and short-sighted. Does not Jesus know there is still a vast unredeemed world out there? Is He blind to their ways and habits? Yet our fiction must show our unsaved characters acting exactly like the Christians. What, then, is the point of writing of their redemption?

The article has helped me firm up my ideas for SEASONS IN THE MIST. I have decided to take my own advice and just tell the story. If it's "not Christian enough," whatever that means, too bad. If it doesn't preach the Gospel, too bad. I have a story to tell that will examine some basics in how worldviews change and hopefully improve over time, and how they stay the same, try as we might to climb some cosmic progressive ladder. Oh, sure, there's not slavery anymore, and we don't tie peasants to the land, but human nature doesn't change much in seven centuries. We're still sinful, still stubborn and hard-nosed and wrong-headed.

Even in the CBA when it attempts to limit a Christian's ability to examine anything and everything in fiction.

That's my take at this time, anyway.

Building Something

Two items on the radar scope this day: I've received a release date of 11/9 for my construction manager book, MY SILENT HEART. This is a lot better news than it sounds, so I'll explain.

The book is in many ways the book of my heart. It sat at a Large NY Christian publisher for about a year, including time to do their requested edits, before being declined. Man, was I bummed! but got over it quickly enough. MSH was actually the book I thought would sell first, not fifth. It was my best output to date (this was written before ANGEL WITH A RAY GUN) so I thought if it surpassed the stuff that had already sold...you get the drift.

Yes, before Janny leaps up and bops me with her ever-lovin' nerf bat, I sold it to a small press. But it will see daylight, and for now that's sufficient for me. Whether it should be sufficient is a debate for another day.

Second thing on the agenda is that I can't go to Dallas this year for the ACFW conference. Sad but already gotten over as well. My husband and I crunched the numbers 'til they screamed for mercy, but with a kid in college, the numbers would not crunch.

Did we despair? No, we did not! Instead, Janny and I are going on a two-woman writer's retreat the same weekend. While everyone at ACFW is schmoozing, pitching, singing, praying, and (hopefully) selling, we will be working on our writing, swimming, eating, singing, praying...

I'm really looking forward to it, particularly since she mentioned chocolate.

Productivity

Maybe I shouldn't try for serious, large-volume writing output in the summer. There's always some fun activity, or must-do, to distract me.

That said, the time travel story is perking right along. I still "know" this story and there's still fun in writing it. I haven't had this kind of hoot writing away since ANGEL WITH A RAY GUN. That was one fun book to write, I'll tell ya.

There is early interest in my WIP from a small press. I have very mixed feelings about this fact. I'd like SEASONS IN THE MIST to be my breakout book from the small press world. It's been 5 years since I sold my first novel to a small press, and believe me, it's been a learning experience primarily and a success only if you use the term very, VERY loosely.

So my solution is to ignore the whole "where will I sell this?" conundrum for now, and simply write away on SEASONS. Like Scarlett, I'll worry about that tomorrow.

In other small press news, my construction manager love story, MY SILENT HEART, has been picked up by ByGrace Publishing for autumn '07 (I think) release. I'm so tickled that this story will see daylight, since it's always been the book I thought would sell first. My mistake!

Ready--Set--Fly!

Here's some industry news for you. Enspiren Press, with whose principals m I've had some contact with for many years, is about to publish its first releases. As follows:

Tangled Hearts by Rosemary Morris
A historical romance set in Queen Anne era.

Duking Days by Anita Davison
A historical mainstream set in the Stuart Reign.

Eliza's Hope by Vicki Gaia
Historical romance set in New York 1912

Jacqui's Dilemma by Joanna Hunt
Contemporary romance novella set in Australia

The Corpse Whisperer by Chris Redding
Mystery/suspense

Welcome to this new and exciting venture in small press fiction!

My own release for ByGrace happened this past week. BRIDES AND BOUQUETS 2007 contains my novella "Something Borrowed."

And amidst all this, my medieval time travel romance is perking right along. Thanks for asking.

The Plan and the Challenge

Good interchange of ideas this week with my dear crit partner. Now this woman is one Horking Fine Writer, but that said--we write differently.

She outlines, plans, plots, and generally knows where she's headed with a story before she types "Chapter 1."

I, on the other hand, get the germ of an idea and charge off into Literary Glory with my pants around my ankles.

Both approaches are good. Both are right. Both lead to their own unique speed bumps and detours.

A case in point: my "Huh?" romance (thus named because it's a Christian medieval time-travel romance) is going along swimmingly, but that's not because I planned it to. It's because it is. Years ago I wrote this story and now I'm writing it a second time (from scratch) with a very different briefcase of skills to write it with (and yes, I know I ended with a preposition). It's probably the easiest thing I've ever written; it's virtually writing itself.

Why? Because it's a Horking Good Story, that's why--oh, never mind. Perhaps it's going well because I'm using the previously written version as an OUTLINE? Because I actually PLANNED something (though I thought it was a manuscript, not an outline, at the time)?

Don't get too worked up about this. I am a Seat of the Pants writer (SOTP in the jargon) and unrepentant. And since I don't have a print copy of that earlier version, the "outline" is all in my head.

But it's nice to know where a story's going, for once.

In other news...look for a book-release entry later this week.