The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2011 annual report for this blog. It’s pretty interesting considering I only post once in 2011.
I promise to work harder in 2012.
Happy New Year!!
Here’s an excerpt:
A San Francisco cable car holds 60 people. This blog was viewed about 2,100 times in 2011. If it were a cable car, it would take about 35 trips to carry that many people.
eBook sales have increased more than 80-fold since 2002. There is no sign of this trend slowing.
Are you ready?
Beginning February 14, 2011, SavvyAuthors will host DigiCon: a free, online, week-long conference dedicated to helping authors refine their strategy to incorporate and capitalize on the aggressively emerging world of e-publishing. Join SavvyAuthors and more than 80 experts through panels, chats, Q&A’s, workshops, webinars, and pitching opportunities as they discuss craft, marketing, and techniques to sell your book in this growth market.
* Join editors from Samhain, Sourcebooks, and many others to learn how they successfully navigated the digital domain.
* Join agents for a view of current issues and advice in ebook sales and author career management.
* Join successful eBook authors who are in the midst of the revolution and share their expertise.
* Share your best sites and online tools in our “Best of the Web” sessions
Check out the great events, chats, workshop, prizes, and pitch opportunities below.
Events
* Workshops
* Chat sessions & webinars
* Pitch opportunities
* Contests
* Raffles for craft books, critiques from authors and editors, and more.
Topics
* Current market trends in digital publishing
* State of the art technology in digital publishing
* Online marketing opportunities and pitfalls
* Backlist management and self-publishing
* What the eRevolution means for aspiring authors
* Craft sessions about plot, character, world building and more
* Best practices for developing the perfect pitches, queries and synopses
* Self-publication strategies and successes
* Tips from an Author Success Coach
* Best of Web information and tools
* and many more.
***
WHEN: Feb 14, 2011 – Feb 20, 2011
COST: FREE for ALL BASIC AND PREMIUM Members!
REGISTRATION: Click here to register!
INSTRUCTOR: Participating Publishers
* Lyrical Press
* Sourcebooks
* Samhain Publishing
* Dream Spinner Press
* Night Wolf Publications
* Carina Press
* Muse It Up Publishing
* Liquid Silver Press
* Ellora’s Cave
* Draumr Publishing
* Whispers Publishing
* Noble Romance Publishing
* Loose ID
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* Renaissance Ebooks /Sizzler Publications
* Champagne Press
* Changeling Press
* Breathless Press
* Blue Ridge Literary Agency, LLC
* Books for a Buck
* Etopia Press
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Participating Authors
* Deborah Holland
* Jodi Henley
* Margot Kinberg
* LD Madison
* Gretchen Craig
* Terry Odell
* Angie Fox
* Janie Franz
* Robin Matheson
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* Desiree Holt
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* Beth Daniels
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* Nancy J. Cohen
* Dee Lloyd
* Martha Warner
* Su Halfwerk
* Lucinda Schroeder
* Eileen Cook
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* Jamison Wolf
* Renee Wilde
* Christine Amsden
* Flo Fitzpatrick
* D.B. Reynolds
* Alice Osborne
* Em Petrova
* Laurie Sanders
* Alan Nayes
* Susan Hanniford Crowley
* Laura Bickles
* and more…
WHERE:
All events will be held on the Savvy Authors website. All events are free and open to Premium members as well as FREE Basic Members.
*** PERMISSION TO FORWARD GRANTED AND ENCOURAGED ***
…but I’m not finished. I spent the last few days of November feeling like I was on a hamster wheel. I wasn’t sure where or how to weave the ending together. Then NaNo ended and I realized I was free to start editing.
I went to page one and started reading. I thought if I went back to the beginning and remembered what I wanted out of this story, I would know where to finish.
It worked. I don’t have all the answers but I feel better about it and I’m back in tune with my characters. It’s a relief to not have that daily word count looming over my head. I took a couple of days off then started reading, not red pen reading, just reading.
Thanks to all my NaNoWriMo buddies for taking the journey with me. I couldn’t have finished without you. I enjoyed the month but I’m also glad it’s over. Now I can work at a more comfortable pace and make this story something to be proud of.
I know it’s been a while since I posted anything, but that’s because I have been writing a lot.
I thought I’d write slower during NaNo in order to save editing time later, but I find myself having trouble staying away from the laptop when the ideas are flowing. I’ve also learned to walk away when the ideas stop flowing. This last part being the most important. I no longer try to force it, if it’s not coming I walk away and think. I’ve been advised to keep writing–just keep writing. We’ve all heard that, but for me that creates more crap to edit later.
I’m having to revisit the prep/outlining/plotting that I’ve done so far. These characters have minds of their own and tend to go their own way. It’s not too bad but I’ve had to make several changes. I’ve decided to go with it as long as I still hit my major plot points.
Last I checked, my word count was 33,000 something. If I were writing a 50,000 word novel that would be great. I’m actually shooting for 80,000 words so I consider myself behind at the moment. It’s okay though. I know it needs serious edits and I’ve (again) left out some major descriptions, but I feel good about the bare bones of the story. I also feel good that I was able to step away from my other manuscripts and create new characters that I love just as much as those faithful first.
Here’s an excerpt if you’re interested. It’s unedited so go easy on me. 
Mae glanced at the bottle of tequila.
“Ryan called me. He’s worried about you. When I didn’t find you at your apartment, I knew you had to be here.”
“When did Ryan call you? I didn’t know Connor wasn’t coming until a few minutes before you walked in.”
“He wasn’t worried because of Connor.”
Bailey looked up at Ryan, now signing the latest Matt Nathanson song. “I can’t believe…he has such a big mouth.”
“I can’t believe you didn’t know you were adopted.”
Bailey leaned forward and rested her forehead on her fist. “Please don’t tell me you knew too.”
“Oh hell no, I had no idea.” Mae picked up the beer Colt slid down in front of her. “I can’t believe your mother never told you.”
“Yeah, well, it gets worse.”
“I’m afraid to ask…”
“They adopted me after finding me…” She stopped at Mae’s confused expression. “I was abandoned by my birth parents—left in the snow to die. My dad found me in the bushes outside his yard.” Bailey quickly downed another shot.
She slammed the shot glass down and looked over at Mae’s wide eyes.
“You are having a shitty week. First your mom dies, then you find out she wasn’t even your mother—oh but your actual mother left you in the snow to die.”
“You forgot—my boyfriend stood me up too.”
“Jesus, Bailey, go ahead, have another shot.”
Bailey poured another shot, turned to face the stage where Ryan was singing, then held the shot glass to him in toast. He winked at her as she drank it down.
“I guess there’s no point in trying to talk about this while you’re getting wasted.”
Bailey sucked on a lime wedge and shook her head.
On another note. Has anyone reading this ever been questioned by the FBI? I mean interviewed as a victim? If yes, are you willing to answer a couple of questions?
Check out this interview with Pete Twohig. He sold his 2009 Nano story to HarperCollins. It was his first year participating. I don’t even have my 2009 Nano story edited, much less ready to sell.
I love his prep work. Read question two.
“I sold my NaNoWriMo Novel!” A Q & A with Pete Twohig
I usually write a couple of journal pages for each main character but writing dialogue is a great idea.
What method do you use to create your character’s voice?
I’m posting this in honor of the Giants winning the World Series.
And if that’s not enough, check this out.
Now that it’s over I can get some work done and start writing for NaNoWriMo!!
If you remember my Blog Tag post, then you know I have an unruly dog and no cat– because my unruly dog doesn’t like cats.
Well, I spoke too soon.
Meet the new addition to my family.
Her name is KC, or Kitty Cat, but I fondly call her Fatty Kitty.
KC, is an old family cat. When KC was a kitten my parents gave her to my grandmother as a gift. Within a week, my grandmother decided she preferred living alone and gave her back. When my brother moved away for school he took KC with him.
Last month he called and asked me to take KC. He’s moving into a new apartment and can’t have pets.
Well…what choice did I have? I couldn’t leave the poor thing 
orphaned again.
KC is about 12 years old and so fat she can hardly move around. She does nothing but sleep and eat–and scare the dog.
Since I’ve had no luck at training the dog, maybe I’ll let KC take over.
Here we go again. Has it really been a year since NaNo 2009. It feels like yesterday.
One week to go and I’m preparing my work space.
Most important:
I’ll need my IPOD set to my story Playlist.
My trusty Websters Dictionary and Thesaurus
A few other references books:
No Plot? No Problem
Struck and White ‘The Elements of Style’
Character worksheets so I don’t forget who I’m writing about.
Photo’s and descriptions of my characters.
My story beat sheet. Which isn’t complete, but I have all the important plots points penciled in.
Laptop
Notepad (or several notepads )
Fresh pencils, blue ink pens, and yellow highlighters
Box of tissue, for when I can’t handle the stress and decide to have a mental breakdown.
Warm slippers (It looks like it might be a rainy, cold November)
My favorite pajama pants–and a back up pair.
A list of stretches so I don’t injure my hands. And a stretch break program on my computer so I know when to take a break.
Lots and lots of coffee. Peet’s French Roast is my favorite.
I also need to stock up on groceries so my family doesn’t starve. That would be bad…
Are you getting the ‘eight days until NaNo and I’m freaking out!’ syndrome.
Take a break and check out these funny links.
Need a laugh and need to get something off you chest? Check this one out:
I haven’t forgot you grammar geeks:
The “Blog” of “Unnecessary” Quotation Marks
Take a deep breath…or a bath and relax, we have one week to go.
Samantha Knoll
Almost everyone had begun to think she was nuts. I tried to back her up, but when I walked out of the salon with a style that looked more like a hex nut than the French twist, I decided they were right about Samantha Knoll, hairdresser to the stars.
After years of styling hair for every red carpet event in Hollywood, Samantha had cracked like a pistachio.
My friends tried to warn me, but Samantha had been styling my hair for years and never disappointed me.
I thought that green color she used to dye that actress’ hair was just a misunderstanding, but when the woman was on TV crying into her hazelnut latte, I should have believed her.
(This is from page 103 of ‘Take Ten for Writers’. Not So Nuts.)
