Sunday, August 21, 2011

Writing advice

I woke up early this morning and laid in bed daydreaming about my WIP for over an hour. I imagined the day when I get THE call from my dream agent to inform me my manuscript went to auction.

I would be at work at my computer, my cell goes off, and I take the call out in the stairwell. She shares the news and I squeal with joyful abandonment. The book sells to the highest bidder (which happened to be Harper Collins, yeah this is totally a dream). I sign a contract within the next few weeks. After a couple of rounds of editing, I submit it to the editor. Then a while later I squeal again completely freaking my neighbors out, when I my pay advance arrives in the mail or direct deposit, I'm not particular.

At this point I pay off our mortgage and take a well deserved vacation. I work for a few more months and quit my job so I could write full-time. Oh, and maybe even think about adding a new member to my family. Then I blog and tell you all about how lucky I feel to have sold book and now I'm working on the sequel. I let you all know when it was due to hit the shelves and give away ARC's. There would be lots of promotion and hype around the best novel the world had ever seen.

Then the book debuts. Stellar reviews fly about from all sides. First week out it hits the NYT best seller list. BAM! I land an interview with the lovely Oprah. Wait, even better, Steve Colbert invites me on as a featured guest on the Colbert Report. He rips my novel to shreds in his classic comedic style and my book sales jump even higher. (Did I mention this was a dream?) Hollywood screen writers and producers are dying get their hands on my book. I go on tour and get to meet my wonderful readers. My mother comes with me to help watch the baby while I signed books (yup, that's how long it takes for a book to publish, I could have a baby by the time it comes out). Though she doesn't necessarily like what I write, she's still proud of her daughter.

I come home and celebrate the success with my husband and try not to accidentally create an additional member. :) All is well, I'm happy. The world is at peace. I have achieved ultimate nirvana.

*insert laugh or snort*

I sighed and rolled over to my side. Then reality slapped me in the face and said in a total god-like voice, "If you want that dream you better write the damn book."

So that is my advice for you dear friends and readers. Dream big, but get to work. You can achieve your dreams, but if you sit on your butt all day (unless you're writing, then it's okay, however I advice to move around a bit every so often so your bum doesn't get sore) nothing will happen.

So I repeat "If you want the dream of publication, then write the damn book." It certainly won't write itself.

Cheers,
Melania

PS: 10 more days till the end of the contest. Please don't miss out on this opportunity to win a personalize vampire novel.

Monday, August 15, 2011

New Ideas...

Hello and Happy Monday!

It's been two weeks since the contest. I've enjoyed reading the comments and seeing what you all love. Most of series mentioned I've read but there were a few I haven't and are now on my TBR list. Just a reminder the contest ends August 31 so there is still time to add your comment (if you haven't already) and enter to win a personalized copy of either Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side or The Cowboy and the Vampire.

A HUGE thank you to those who have tweeted, facebooked, and blogged about the contest. A GINORMOUS thank you those of you who are now followers of this blog.

Writing Update:
The Vampire Novelist- first round of submissions all but one have been rejected. The one I haven't heard back from yet. I'm currently letting is sit because it's summer and I have a million other things going on right now. Last week however, I got some inspiration as to what changes it needs to make it better. Isn't that the ultimate goal? Make it sparkle and shine so bright it will draw attention.

The Fantasy YA Project- In world building & plotting stages. I'm usually a pantser, but there are three worlds involved in the story, which can be very complicated. I've written the first four chapters and working on the fifth. 15k of 60K goal.

New Ideas- Lots of them. And this brings me to the title of this post.

During the summer months, I tend to have an overly creative brain. I have about a bazillion stories floating through my head at any given time. That's why I started writing. To make ROOM. Most of the time when I get into one of my burning ideas, another pops up. It's really maddening. At first I thought maybe I'd been cursed with a serious case of creative ADD. Then I started cyber-stalking authors' blogs and twitter accounts and discovered that it's quite common. Each person deals with it differently.

Some authors block out everything else and just focus on the project on hand. Others, jump from project to project till one gets done. How they can keep anything straight is beyond me. Oh wait, I tend to jump from world to world too. But at least there is a method to my madness.

How I deal:
  • I treat these ideas like seeds and create a file in which I "plant" them in.
  • I "water" the seed by writing the first couple of chapters.
  • I "fertilize" the seed by including a details synopsis.
  • Then I leave the seed alone to germinate.
  • After several weeks, if I keep coming back to it and notice the seed has transformed into a seedling, I know I have something viable to work with.
My creative seasons usually run something like this:

Summer- ideas (seeds)
Fall- beginning of project (seedling)
Winter- project completed (transplanting into ground)
Spring- Editing/Submitting (Plant blooming/bearing fruit)

When I'm working on a project I dedicate myself to it solely, however if something should arise that seems interesting and worth exploring, I will give myself the freedom to pursue it till the seed is planted. Because if I don't, my focus on the main work in progress will not be fully present and there will be negative effects. This method seems to work for me.

How do you deal with creative ADD?