Have you ever wanted to completely unplug???

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I must admit, that's what I've done for the last few months - turned off my Blogger, my Hootsuite, my Facebook, Pinterest, and all the other miscellaneous pieces of social networking that I dabble in from time to time. In a way, I've gone back to the beginning. I've baked lots (macarons are my specialty, yum yum), played computer games, changed from a coffee drinker to a tea drinker (go figure), worked on some craft projects, and gone out with friends I haven't seen in ages.

I've even taken a break from my writing *gasps*

Was it worth it, you ask. Oh yes, I say. Because writing has crept back into my life, slowly, bit by bit, until I've found the love again. I've found myself once again excited by the thought of reading a blog post on writing tips, studying more of the craft of writing, and diving into my manuscript so I can rip it to shreds and start from the beginning in an effort to make it sing.

My only regret - how much I've missed all of you!!!

So, how are you? What have you been doing these last few months? Any news? And, have you ever wanted to completely unplug???

New Adult: A Real Category or an Absurd Balkanization of Bookstores? (Guest post by C. Lee McKenzie)

Goodness me, how time flies! I hope you've all had a lovely few weeks and got lots of rest in--I know heaps of you have taken breaks over the summer (US and Europe) and winter (Oz and NZ) holidays. I myself have just come back from a glorious camping holiday--winter camping (I know, right!) though we went up north to the beach, and had lovely sunny shirts-and-shorts weather, lots of ice-cream and fish and chips, and heaps of dolphin-sightings (beautiful creatures!). So I'm all rested and refreshed and ready to introduce to you the gorgeous C. Lee McKenzie, who'll be talking to us today about New Adult.

So take it away Lee, and while you've got control of my blog, I'm off to look up "balkanization" and find out what it means - I'll report back later :D

New Adult: A Real Category or an Absurd Balkanization of Bookstores?           

It has been almost three years since the term New Adult (NA) emerged on the book scene. St. Martin's Press in conjunction with Georgia McBride's YaLitChat did something amazing. They asked for writers to sub their novels to a contest. Three winners would receive a copy of Tempted by P. C. Cast and Kristina Cast, but they'd also have a shot at publication. Who could resist that? Apparently not many because they received 382 submissions.

The rules were simple and one of them set out the NA category clearly. “[Submit] fiction applicable to older teens and twentysomethings, but 20's are preferred."

Since then several articles and blog posts have been published about NA. And there's some debate about whether this is a real category or a new way to package “chick lit.”

Uncreated Conscience says, no. “[Saying NA is all about “chick lit is] like saying YA is only about high school. It is not. YA is about a certain time of life, when you are no longer a child but not quite an adult and one can write about this period of time through less literal genres like historical fiction or science-fiction and fantasy. Similarly, New Adult is about young adulthood, when you are an adult but have not established your life as one.”

Writers seem to applaud the possibility that they'll be able to write books with slightly older protagonists (18-24) who are dealing with major life issues for the first time.

As author, Lynn Rush, says, "Kids and teens focus on the present, while adults draw on their past experience to inform their present and future decisions. New Adults are somewhere in between…. That distinction might seem subtle, but it comes through loud and clear in the voice of New Adult Fiction.”

In From the Write Angle, J. Lea Lopez argues that with NA “Variety is really the whole point here. There's variety in both YA and adult literature, and as a supporter for a New Adult category, what I'm rallying for is even more of it.”

NA Alley, Bridging the Gap Between Young Adult and Adult Fiction is a most site where seven writers have come together to write and promote this “category” of fiction.

I can see why writers would embrace NA as a category. Look at the diversity of themes that are available. What previous generations have embraced as traditional steps following high school, no longer applies. As Robin Marantz Henig writes,”The 20s are a black box, and there is a lot of churning in there.” The writer in me translates that as a lot of opportunity for stories that readers are waiting for.

What happens when a twentysomething:

• moves home?

• is rootless, going from one place to another, not establishing any community?

• goes from job to job? Will this be a great experience or result in a failed career or worse?

• lives with a partner, but doesn’t marry?

• marries much later than that traditional early-mid twenties?

We’re already seeing some of these stories, and in all likelihood, we’ll see many more of “twentysomethings churning” because this group of readers exists and scholars are providing a ton of research about them.

JEFFREY JENSEN ARNETT, a psychology professor at Clark University in Worcester, Mass., calls the 20s a distinct life stage and refers to it as “emerging adulthood.”

But there’s an argument against creating this NA category. In an Upstart Crow Literary post, “New Adult”--Specious category or market opportunity? the author, Michael, calls it a "slippery slope," even, "an absurd Balkanization of bookstores." He says, "[when I was a twentysomething] I didn't need any sort of bookstore category to do my thinking for me . . ." He humorously proposes that this “slippery slope” could well lead to other categories: “‘Elderly and Disgruntled.” “Stories for Shut-Ins.” “Masculine Asses.” “Pre-Feminist Thinkers.’”

Then there’s the “dumbing down” factor that pops up in comments about NA. Do we spoon feed our children so much already that creating this category is just another form of parental helicoptering? Is it a way to confirm that the twentysomethings don’t have the ability to select books from the adult fiction section, the history or science sections?

As for me, I’m excited to see something new. The publishing is a constantly and--now more than ever--quickly changing business, so I ask, “Why not?” Besides, some authors already refer to their books as New Adult. They’ve found a niche for those not quite YA, not quite Adult novels.

How about you: As writers/readers, what do you think about New Adult finding a shelf (real or virtual)?

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Thanks so much Lee, for your intriguing post on New Adult. I really enjoyed reading it, and now that I know the meaning of "Balkanization", life is all good :)

Have you read Lee's book yet? It's called ALLIGATORS OVERHEAD, and here's the blurb:

Alligators, witches and a spooky mansion aren't your average neighbors unless you live at the edge of the Ornofree swamp in the backwater town of Hadleyville. The town's bad boy, Pete Riley, may only be twelve, but he's up to his eyeballs in big trouble, and this time he isn't the cause. This time the trouble arrives when a legendary hundred-year-old mansion materializes next door and the Ornofree alligators declare war to save their swamp from bulldozers. Things only get worse when Pete's guardian aunt and several of her close friends vanish while trying to restore order using outdated witchcraft. Now Pete must find the witches and stop the war. He might stand a chance if his one friend, Weasel, sticks with him, but even then, they may not have what it takes.

Here are Lee's author/contact details:

WEBSITE: http://cleemckenziebooks.com

BLOG: http://writegame.blogspot.com

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/cleemckenziebooks

TWITTER : @cleemckenzie

AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0042M1KYW

GOODREADS: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2809083.C_Lee_McKenzie



And if you'd like to check out Lee's book, here is some link love:

AMAZON KINDLE

AMAZON PAPERBACK

B&N

SMASHWORDS

Catch you all soon, and big hugs,

Writing with Technology (Scrivener, Evernote, iPads, oh my!)

(Scrivener - source)

I've turned into a bit of a techno-geek lately, I must admit. It all started when my iPad arrived a couple of months ago; since then I've been researching the best ways to do my writing, and programs that will make things easier. And not just writing my novels, but also blog posts, information-gathering, administrative tasks, and general organization. Different considerations apply, of course, most notably whether I'm working at my desk at home or on my iPad offline (unfortunately I don't have full-time internet support when I'm away from my home wi-fi setup). I thought I'd share a few of my discoveries with you, and see whether you know of different ways of doing things that I can yoink borrow and use myself.

I'm writing my current manuscript with Scrivener on my laptop, and have been for a while now. At this stage, I don't think I could live without it! It's got so many useful functionalities, and I particularly like the corkboard, the ability to take snapshots to save previous versions, the full-screen composition mode, and the collections (ah, the collections!). I don't know about you, but I love how I can gather scenes that deal with one particular thing—my love story, for example—and list them all in a "love scene" collection so I can find them easily, while at the same time not changing the order of my actual drafting and scenes.

Only problem is, Scrivener isn't out for iPad yet, and is unlikely to be out for a few more years yet, according to the Literature and Latte guys (who developed Scrivener). Until that day, I'm having to use other programs in order to write on my iPad.

I bought Pages, for approx. $10, and that is a pretty good word processing tool—some say it's the best word-processing tool that there is among the current apps. My difficulty with Pages, however, is that every time I amend my manuscript on my iPad, I have to email myself a copy of the document and copy it back into Scrivener. Forget to do that, and I'm working with incorrect versions, and it becomes a headache waiting to happen.

Evernote

So I've been trying to find something that will allow me to sync between my home computer and my iPad. Scrivener for Mac gives you the ability to sync to Simplenote, using Dropbox I believe, but I use Windows so I don't even have the "Sync" button on my version of Scrivener :( And I haven't found any other way of automatically syncing between Scrivener and another program.

Instead, what I've been doing is manually copying and pasting my Scrivener scenes into Evernote once each is completed (each in one document/note). I could use Simplenote to do this as well, and many prefer Simplenote for its "pure text-based" fuctionality. But I like how I can use Evernote for so many things—keeping photographs, to do notes, reminders, links and articles I've copied in from the web, etc etc. Plus, Evernote keeps my formatting from Scrivener, including highlighting—which I use extensively—whereas I lose much of that when using Simplenote.

And there are all sorts of companion apps to Evernote that are making my life so much easier, including Skitch, Clip to Evernote, and Clearly. I can even save Tweets and tweet links into Evernote, simply by copying a tweet into @myen, or DM'ing Evernote.

Ah, techno-geek heaven *sighs*!!! And that's not even mentioning Write or Die and Freedom, and my NaNoWriMo Report Card which I have open all the time to record my word count progress (even though it's not November)!

How about you: What programs/apps do you use to write when you're away from your computer (and at your computer too)? Is there anything I haven't mentioned above that you think a techno-geek like me would like? :)

How do you deal with a case of the Bleh???

Only a short post today in anticipation of the kick-off of my Fourth Writers' Platform-Building Campaign next Monday, yay! Make sure you all come back then and sign up, so you don't miss out on joining. Instructions will be in my post next Monday.

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I've been struck down with a bad case of the Bleh over the last few weeks. You all know the symptoms I'm sure: general lethargy, inability to write much, the beloved manuscript you've worked on for months (years?) looks like it has a bad case of Spotty Needsmorerevision-itis and you simply don't know where to start, shiny new ideas start creeping around the house and whispering to you that you should drop everything and work on them, emails get backed up because you haven't responded, you're behind on visiting all the places your friends hang out on the interweb, etc etc etc.

Hmm.

Do you all have these days as well? What do you do when (if?) you get like this? Is there a magic potion I can take to cure myself, or do I just have to keep pushing through? Can't wait to hear your thoughts.

Conquering writer's block (one paragraph at a time and with an Arthur Boyd painting as inspiration)

I hit a wall in my revisions the week before last. Hard. Critiques I'd received suggested I needed to rewrite a large part of my manuscript AND completely re-characterize one my MCs. A slight blow, when I was hoping to start querying this month (well, a huge blow actually!).

Anyway, once I got over that and accepted this was what I needed to do, I sat down and opened a new document. But. Try as I might, I couldn't make the words come. I sat and stared at my computer screen, tried plotting the new Part, downloaded Scrivener (and procrastinated while I learnt how to use it), drank too much tea, started wasting my time on YouTube, ate too much chocolate, anything except writing really.

I suspect many of you have been in that situation yourself. Not a nice place to be, especially when you've a deadline breathing down your neck, even if it's only a self-imposed one like mine.

(Painting by Arthur Boyd hanging at Parliament House, Canberra )

I did (mildly) stress for a while, but a couple of days later I got over my writers' block, all because of three things that happened in the same day:

1. I took a break from my writing (a proper full-day break, not just an hour away from the screen);
2. I took my relatives sightseeing in my city and saw a painting I fell in love with (Actually, I decided it would provide the color scheme for my dream house, and I spent a lot of time planning how I could buy a large print of the painting, and use this, this, and this color in the living room, this in the kitchen, etc etc); 
3. I started thinking about my beginning scene of the Part in a new way. 

I'd been stuck on the big-picture issues, you see, and had so many different things running in my head I couldn't find any space just to start writing. Plus I was stressing about how big the task was, how I'd never get it finished, what if it was as "bad" as the first attempt, etc etc.

Finally, after my day of inspiration (that same night, actually!), I managed to shove my negative and stressful thoughts aside and think only about the first sentence and the first paragraph. Where were my main characters? What were they doing? How could I ground my reader in the scene before I even dived into dialogue/action/etc. Those were the questions I asked myself. And I told myself just to sit down and write one paragraph to describe and set up the scene. Just one paragraph.

Before I knew it, my words were flowing again, and I couldn't wait to dive into my re-write. Using Scrivener, which I've fallen in love with as well by the way (I might do a separate post on that one day, to share my thoughts) :D

And I breathed a huge sigh of relief.

How about you: Do you get writer's block very often? How do you get yourself out of it? Do you find looking at a scene a different way helps you to write it? What do you think about basing the color-scheme of your house on a painting? :D

Finding your writing niche

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Finding my writing niche has been an important step in my writing journey, and it’s taken me a number of years and “drawered” manuscripts to do so. Important, because I’ve found I need a niche of my own to focus on and learn all its intricacies, in order for me to become a better writer.

It may change in the future, of course, but for the moment I can’t imagine writing anything other than Young Adult fiction. It feels funny to reason out and explain something I just know instinctively to be the case. But I thought I would give it a go.

I love writing in the teen voice, which is a very different way of viewing the world. I have more success creating 3D characters who are teens rather than adults. In addition, my writing voice (see here for my post on writing voice vs character voice) comes naturally in first person – for me, third person comes out wrong when I write it, too stilted and with no feeling. Nathan Bransford has just written a post on first vs third person if you want to check it out here. And (except when my verbosity gets the better of me) I have a “short and sharp” sentence style, according to my CPs. Both of which lend themselves to YA.

In terms of genre, Horror works best for me. I love to delve into the inner workings of the mind and of human nature, and because of that my stories tend to come out “darker” than usual. I also love writing paranormal elements, the scarier the better. Light and fluffy my fiction ain’t.

Thus, YA Horror.

How about you: Do you think it’s important to have a writing niche? Have you found yours or are you still experimenting? Do you cross over into different genres, and between adult/children’s fiction? Do you think your writing niche will change in the future, and if so, what might make it change?

Are you a tortoise or a hare in your writing (or a strange hybrid of both)?

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I've realized lately that I may be a hybrid of a tortoise and a hare when it comes to my writing. I'm not sure what it should be called though: a hortoise? a tortare? (though they both have a certain ring to them, *grins*).

Anyway, before I get distracted with names, and thoughts of what a tortare would look like...

I wrote my current WIP, FROM THE OTHER SIDE, in less than 3 months, and probably closer to 2. I pantsed the whole thing, I must admit, something I doubt I'll ever do again. But the words flew off my fingers onto the computer, the characters came to life before my eyes, and my plotline sprang into shape with remarkable ease (even if it did require some heavy shears/clippers/cutting implements/dynamite to prune it afterward).

I was a hare, and proud of it, and I didn't stop once until I'd crossed the finish line. I didn't even stop to rest under that nice shady tree along the way.

Then came revisions!

And I became a tortoise.

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I've been plodding along in revision hell joy for 9 months now (and I won't draw any comparison to the pregnancy thing *grins*). Not a particularly long time in the scheme of things, but it feels long to me after such a quick first draft turnaround. Especially when I see others (including certain awesome CPs who shall remain nameless) who seem to whiz through writing AND revisions, with a speed and efficiency that leaves me amazed.

I've been thinking through the reasons why my revisions are taking me so long:

• as mentioned above, I pantsed rather than plotted with FTOS, so I've spent a lot of time fixing things, getting the structure of the manuscript right, tweaking the plotline, getting to know the characters, and making sure I'm happy with the way the story reads
• I have a limited number of hours during the day to write/revise, and those hours are eaten into by things like critiquing for my CPs, my Crusades, blogging, reading, and all the "daily life" stuff
• I'm a perfectionist, and I want my manuscript to be the best it can be before I query (there are different schools of thought on this, and I may well do a separate post on this soon)
• I want to give myself my best shot at getting an agent by learning as much about writing as I can before I query
• my health has been very bad the last few months, and unfortunately this has impacted on my revision time (and my time for anything else, for that matter)
• simply, I don't want to rush

I'm not quite chafing at the bit--not yet--and I'm taking comfort from posts such as this one from Mary Kole, which gives great advice about being patient. And I am enjoying my revisions, believe it or not. With querying in sight for me, it's all good in the end. It does make me wonder about the tortare though, and how it is for all of you.

How about you: Are you a tortoise, a hare, or a tortare (or do you prefer hortoise)? What's your experience with revising your manuscript versus writing it. Do you like writing or revising best? What things impact on the time you spend writing/revising?

My A-Z of Writing Tips: Zippers and Writing

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When you do up a zipper, the teeth must fit together correctly so the slider can travel along them and fasten the chain properly. Simple, when you break down all its elements, but something that must seem like magic to someone who’s never seen a zipper before.

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In the same way, all the different parts of our writing need to come together in order to make a complete and publishable story. Characters, voice, grammar, scenes, vocabulary, plot, themes, and so on, and so on. Once all these elements are in place, the zipper can be “done up,” and out pops a perfect story.

Or does it?

When you break writing down to its different elements, each seems (reasonably) simple. You can work on each of them until you’ve mastered (to your satisfaction) that component. Problem is, you can’t then hold your breath and conjure up a complete and publishable story just because you’ve mastered all the components. Something needs to hold all the components together, something indefinable. Something magic.

So I think, anyway.

Not everyone has that magic, though it is something we can work at, in the hope we may one day find—or create—our own little pot of fairy dust.

How about you: Do you think writing requires a pinch of magic? Or is it just a bunch of technical components that anyone can weld together to make a complete and publishable story?





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Seven writing tips I can't live without

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1. Write first, edit later (the only thing you can't edit is a blank page!)
2. Stop listening to everyone, instead choose one person to help you go a step further
3. BICHOK. Butt In Chair, Hands On Keyboard
4. Rules aren't a formula for getting published, they're guidelines. Use them when it benefits your writing
5. Never believe you'll know everything there is to know about writing. Every day will bring a new learning experience, so be open to these experiences and always seek to improve as a writer
6. Know the rules before you break them
7. "Don't tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass..." ~ Anton Chekhov 

How about you: what are the writing tips you can't live without?

Feeling the scene (writing with my head vs writing with my heart)

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We've all heard the advice given to writers: write every day. For some time now I've taken that advice to heart (well, blogging is writing too *grins*), and have tried to write as often as I can. But after working closely with my critique partners to turn my (very rough) first draft into something a little closer to submission-ready material, I've come to realize something.

I write in two different ways.

Writing with my head: I know what needs to be done, I know that this scene needs to play out this way, contain these characters, show that scenery. And I write in a way that will accomplish this. However, my writing is slow and labored, and is accompanied with much staring out the window, quick (or not so quick) checks of my email, food breaks, and a general willingness to be distracted by anything and everything that comes my way. I still manage to reach my writing targets when I write like this, but it takes so much longer, and there's always the nagging feeling that I'm missing something. A feeling that becomes readily apparent when I read back through my writing and have a "did I really write this?" moment.

Writing with my heart: Other times, something clicks and I get in the zone, so to speak. My fingers fly over the keyboard, my brain races ahead of me, planning and weaving together all the interlocking strands of writerly wisdom I've absorbed since I began writing and learning about writing (two separate things, for me). I feel the scene, for lack of a better way to describe it. I'm there in the room with the characters, seeing what they see, smelling what they smell, hearing what they hear. And somehow (and this is the magical part) it comes across on paper. When I have one of these "writing with my heart" moments, I can churn out whole scenes one after the other, scenes that are filled with depth and emotion and feeling and showing not telling, and everything else they need to contain. Sure, my writing still needs revision, but it usually requires far less than when I simply write with my head.

And what I find the most amazing (and my CP will be nodding because we had this discussion the other day) is that she can tell whether I wrote a scene with my head or with my heart. It's there on paper, somehow, in black and white. And I'm willing to bet I could give her my entire manuscript and she could point out, with pretty amazing accuracy, exactly which writing phase I was in when I wrote a particular scene.

Of course, I can't turn on these "writing with my heart" moments at will (which really sucks!). Instead, I just keep writing in my plodding fashion, all the while hoping that lightning will zap through my pen (um, keyboard), and I'll start churning out writerly magic one more time. Cause that's when my writing really comes alive. And as a writer, that's when I most come alive as well.

How about you: sound familiar? Have you noticed any difference in how you write from one week/day/hour to the next? Any tips on how you feel the scene, and capture it on paper?

When showing interferes with your story (I know, right!)

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For the last few weeks I’ve been struggling with my manuscript revisions. And I don’t just mean “struggling,” I mean capital S-t-r-um-uggling!!! I have the structure of this Part down, and I’ve got everything happening when and where it’s supposed to be happening. But as one of my fantastic critique partners pointed out, I’m still lacking a certain something. And are they going to let that slide. Not on your life! Hugs.

After various conversations, we finally narrowed it down to the dreaded “Show not Tell”. What can I say? Everyone knows the rule. Don’t tell what’s happening in the story, show it instead. Paint a picture in the reader’s mind so they can see, smell, hear, taste, and touch the characters and the story.

But that’s where I’ve been going wrong.

Apparently.

Our recent conversation went something like this (edited a little for dramatic effect of course):

Me: “I don’t understand what I’m doing wrong. Everyone says I should show not tell. And I’m doing that. Look, I’ve got Verity doing this, this, this, and this, and the readers can interpret her emotions from her actions. And I’ve got her thinking this and this, so we know what’s going on in her mind as well.”

Most-patient critique partner: “But you’re still not showing enough. Show us more, delve into her psyche.”

Distraught me: “I’ve done that.” Plaintive wail. “Look, here’s an example paragraph. See. Here, here, here and here. Showing. No backstory, no exposition, no flashbacks, no telling. I’ve followed all the rules. So how am I supposed to show anymore?”

Most-wise critique partner: “Hmm.” Picture an evil glint in her eye and fingers being drummed on the desk while she plots and plans. No, I made that bit up. Honest! “Here, I’ll have a go at rewriting your paragraph for you. I’ll show you.” (She didn’t really say that last bit, but I’m chortling as I add it in – poetic license and all that).

Nervous me: “Go ahead,” I say. And I bite my nails until the reply comes back, beautifully formatted in concise little paragraphs and lots of...wait...is there telling in there? And some backstory? And a hint of a tiny flashback? What’s going on? My world is ending. I can’t cope. The rules. THE RULES. WHAT ABOUT THE RULES???

Laughing critique partner: “Ah, those rules,” she says. “Well, they’re more like guidelines really.” I pictured a snigger at that stage, and maybe a little rubbing of the hands. “And you are following the rules, but it reads more like a shopping list. She went there, and she did this, and she bought a trolley-full of canned tuna. And she clenched her fists and gritted her teeth, and the reader therefore knows she’s really angry at something.”

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Crushed me: I slink down lower in my chair and I ask in a teensy voice. “You mean, it’s ok to tell sometimes? And add in backstory?”

Most understanding critique partner: “Sometimes,” she says. “It needs to be functional. What you’re doing is following all the rules very carefully (ooh look, adverb!), and being too obvious in doing so. So lighten up a little (I added that bit), let the story flow, and don’t be afraid to add in a little bit of telling or backstory here or there if the story needs it."

Lightbulb-moment me: “Aaaaaaaahhhh.”

Ka-ching!!!

And there you have it. Maybe now I can write a little more soul into my manuscript...

How about you. Do you ever have any trouble with “Show not Tell?” Do you follow all the rules a little too carefully (oops, adverb!)? What are your best tips on practical ways to apply the writing “rules” and/or "Show not Tell?"

I write like I speak...

I had an interesting revelation the other day - I write like I speak. When I talk to my friends and family, I speak very descriptively and my sentences are riddled with adjectives, adverbs, and modifiers. I've actually been told in the past that I have a rather (*coughs*) "dramatic turn of phrase." Go figure! Interesting, then, that I've been noticing this in my writing as well. This might account for my love of exclamation marks and emoticons too perhaps!!!

The same holds true for my non-writing writing. You know, the every-day stuff you don't really think about, and you definitely don't spend hours and days and months revising.

One lovely critique partner of mine you know who you are! banned me from ever using the word "frantically" in a manuscript again. Since then, I've been frantically concentrating on removing this word (and most other adverbs) from my manuscript (*chortles*). Imagine my surprise, then, when I read over an email I dashed out to a friend the other day, and noticed not one, but two "frantically's" in the one email.

Yep, I write like I speak! And I write like I write. If that makes any sense...

I'm getting so much better at writing my manuscript the way we're supposed to - that's a blog post for a whole 'nother day - and I'm working toward it looking nice and professional when I've finished.  But it makes me wonder, should I be aiming for this type of perfection in my daily life as well? I'm not sure I should - how boring would things be if I had to speak properly all the time.

What think ye? Are there any other gramatically flowery peeps out there??? Does the way you speak influence your writing?

DISCLAIMER: No adjectives, adverbs, or modifiers have been harmed in the making of this blog post.

SECOND DISCLAIMER: I may have written this post a little bit more descriptively than I usually would. For dramatic effect of course (*grins*).

Interview with Tessa Quin (Wait! Is that--? Something is coming...)

Today I'm interviewing Tessa Quin, my fantastic friend, co-conspirytor (I know, but I like this spelling!!!), critique partner, fellow blogger and Crusader, aspiring author, and owner of a cute little hamster who has an unfortunate book-eating fetish.

I've come up with a few (relatively) easy questions for her to answer, so we can all get to know her a little better.

Question 1: What inspires you to write?

I have always had it in me to write, but I wasn‘t serious about publishing until after I became pregnant. So I guess it's safe to say that my boys inspire me to write and the idea that when they become eight or nine, they might read my MG books, and when they become teens, they might read my YA books. They love books and I read to them every night. I've also had ideas for picture books that are directly inspired by a sentence they frequently use. I'm thinking about making it into a series and self-publish here in Iceland (I was told that most picture books were self-published in Iceland these days). They’ll be “boy-books”, because I pretend to know what boys like to read about.

Rach: That's so sweet you want your boys to read your books! And it's intriguing you've got PBs, MG and YA on the go, wishing you the best of luck with them all.

Question 2: What's your all-time favourite book (and why)???

May I mention a group of books? Harry Potter! You can't just say one Harry Potter book, you have to include them all. What‘s not to love about them? The entire world in the books is fascinating and they're packed with fun, imaginative things. Honestly, although the Twilight series became a craze, I doubt it ever reached the magnitude of the Harry Potter craze. It also inspired me to write, which is something I'll never forget (fan fiction, anyone?).

Rach: Gosh, there are so many HP fans out there!!! 

The offending hamster. It is pretty cute though!

Question 3: Do you listen to music while you write? Is there anything in particular that gets you in the writing mood?

Absolutely not. The only noise around me is the clicking of keys as I hammer away, which is music in itself. A friend tried to get me to listen to music about breaking hearts (no, not Achy Breaky Heart, it was something a little more heartfelt) to inspire my writing of a breakup scene, but I ended up chucking the CD out the window (in my mind – I take good care of my stuff).

Rach: Tee hee, glad you clarified, for a second I was picturing you sitting there and listening to Achy Breaky Heart!!! Oh no. Ok, so how do I get that song out of my head already?

I never thought I'd see the day when Billy Ray Cyrus appeared on my blog!!!

Tessa, one last question: Is there anything you want to add?

Yes, something is coming...

Rach: Hmm, whatever can you mean? (*chortles*)

Thanks for taking the time to chat, Tessa. Make sure you all head over to her blog, The Quest for a Literary Agent, and say hi.

And I'm being interviewed by Marieke (my other co-conspirytor) today - my very first interview, woot!!! So pop on over to Marieke's Musings and check it out... :)