Tag Archive for 'NyQuil'

another snippet

Published on June 25, 2010 in Writing Tags: , , , , . ______________________________________

Yay! I made it to Friday!! Congrats to all of you who did as well!!

Okay, anyways,
the other day I was riding in the car
(Kissyface was driving me to Chipotle)
and I look over and this guy is waiting at the same light we are.
He’s a couple years younger than me, but he’s pretty handsome.
And he has this great smile.
And he’s dancing.
Yes. He was dancing in his car. At a stoplight.
So then he looks over at me, keeps dancing, raises his eyebrows and widens his grin, like, “care to join me??”

And I can’t help it, I’m cracking up.

And he just smiles bigger when he sees me laughing.
Still dancing.
So Kris is trying to figure out the reason for my random outburst of giggles (not exactly an unusual event) and he’s like, “What??”
And I’m laughing so hard, but I say, “That guy’s dancing! He’s dancing.”

But by this time, the light has changed and we’re driving again and
I’ve lost sight of my dancing buddy.

But then, right before we turn into Chipotle I see him.
Still dancing.
And he smiles at me again, like, “I’m cool, and I’m perfectly confident enough to dance in my car and not care who sees me.”

And yeah, maybe it was kinda weird. But it was more…I don’t know. Fun. Free. Random.

So I think I want to be like that.

And I’m pretty sure that guy needs to wind up in one of my stories.

Have a beautiful weekend. I dare you to dance in your car at a stoplight.

Love,

M♥lly

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i DON’T like sad stories :(

Published on June 14, 2010 in Writing Tags: , , . ______________________________________

Sorry guys, late post. I feel like yuck so I am at home trying to sleep as much as I can while my body fights it off.

That being said, I would like to share a foundational truth about myself:

I don’t like sad stories. Not one bit.

Especially sad stories that are classified as ROMANCE.

Because the romance genre is supposed to have happy endings of one kind or another.

Since the amazing and wonderful Mary Kole told me not to ever do snarky reviews, I will refrain from divulging the name of the book that has triggered this little rant of mine.

However, I will say that as a writer, I’m always saddened when someone can create a thrilling plot that keeps you glued because YOU CARE ABOUT THE CHARACTERS only to KILL them off one by one without MERCY or LOVE or at least a realistic REACTION out of the character(s) that stay alive.

I will admit that the story had some romantic elements, namely that character A loves character B but is torn because of character C and is despised by, but wants to change that about character D. Great stuff–except that the circumstances keeping them apart didn’t feel convincing. I kept thinking, “Just say this…” or “But what about this?? That could solve everything!!” But the characters didn’t even give logical reasons for dismissing obvious solutions.

Sigh.

I get waaaayyyyyy too into the books I read.

So am I alone in the world here? What about you? Do you enjoy being mislead in a book as long as the story is enthralling? Seriously. Maybe I’m just tooooo sensitive. Let me know your thoughts.

P.S. I will say, that every time a character breaks my heart, I learn NOT to do what they do, so I can’t say this book was a complete waste. Also, every time an author disappoints/saddens/misses an opportunity for whatever, I try to learn from it as well.

Thanks for listening ;)
Hope you had a good weekend.

Peace♥

11 Comments

identify yourself

Published on May 26, 2010 in Writing Tags: , , , , . ______________________________________

So the other day I was talking to someone.

They were in tears.
They are going through a situation and they feel like they can’t talk to anyone about it
because no one will understand
because no one else has
gone through it.
This issue has made them feel completely alone in the universe.

And then I was like, “Yeah, I’ve been through it too. That sucks.”

And they were like, “REALLY???”

And then I had an epiphany. This is exactly the reason books are so powerful. I mean, I think I already knew this, but this was the first time I’d ever felt it. Like deep-down felt it.

Have you ever had a story get you through a rough time when you thought you were flying solo through the cold cosmos?

Where the characters became good friends.

Where you felt more at home between the pages then in your own mind.

Where you knew you weren’t crazy because the main character felt the same feelings you were going through.

And you suddenly felt like it wouldn’t be impossible to smile again.

Yeah. I love that about stories.

The books I hold dear…well, mine are pretty darn cheesy.

I can’t help it. These are the books that got me through the
social terror/
peer pressure/
nightmare that is
adolescence.
And they’re still the good friends I turn to on dark and stormy nights (along with a cup of earl grey and some candles).  Or when I’m not feeling motivated and just turning the pages feels like an effort. Or when I’m sick. Or when I’m lonely.
These are the books that got me through.

And all I can hope is that my books (that will be published someday, right?) will impact someone else positively. I want to help someone else get through the crap that makes you feel like you’re all by yourself out there.

Seriously, I pray that my nonsense fantasy stories can help someone else out.
Just writing them has changed my life.
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So technically I saw the movie first and I still watch it everytime I feel sick. But then I read the book and loved it just as much.

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Anyways, I’d love to hear which stories got you through :)

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Peace♥

14 Comments

Books that must be written

Published on April 30, 2010 in Writing Tags: , , , . ______________________________________

I just finished reading HUNGER GAMES. Great book. Not sure if I’ll review it or not, because it’s been reviewed a lot.

Anyways, I really enjoyed the story, but I don’t know if I could ever write a story like that and enjoy the process. I don’t even know if I would have read the story without all the high recommendations. I’m glad I did, though.

In my last post, wonderful writer Melissa came up with an idea for a book about an ice cream diet.

Why not?

This made me remember all the stories and ideas that I would dream up in random places (The shower, anyone from my last post????) and I would say to myself, “That book needs to be written. Just not by me.”

Like the one about the kid who is pretty sure his bologna sandwiches give him super powers.

Or the anthropomorphic cats that travel through space and time to save the universe, forced to rely on what they think is a vastly inferior human girl for her opposable thumbs.

Or the young married couple that moves into their new home only to discover that it hides a portal to another realm that may separate them for eternity. *cue dramatic music*

Or the young girl who must choose between the boy she loves (who must fight the urge to kill her) and the other boy she loves (whenever boy number one is absent). Oh, and both love interests have paranormal ablilities…

Just kidding on that last one…

Anyways, stories whisper and bubble and crowd their way into my head all the time. Sometimes I write them down, sometimes I don’t. I read an interview with some author (gosh, I really don’t remember which one–sorry!!) where she said that she waits to see if an idea keeps coming back to her, that’s when she knows it’s worth her time.

It wouldn’t be fair for me to write a story I wasn’t passionate about, even if I thought the premise was wonderful. I guess that’s like the agents who have to pass on great stories because they know the author deserves someone who would be more on fire about it.

So I’m curious if you have any funny or just plain great stories that you think need to be told, just maybe not by you…at least for now. ???

Like the one about the boy who runs away from home with his dog and meets this traveling gypsy circus group and…

Or the monkeys that must destroy the evil space bananas before…

Or the duck-billed platypus that wishes his nose wasn’t so big and moves to LA for cosmetic surgery, only to discover the true meaning of loving yourself…

lol

You get the picture. :)
Peace ♥

oh yeah, and all images are from wikimedia commons.
10 Comments

How to write a super synopsis

Published on April 22, 2010 in Writing Tags: , , , , , , , , . ______________________________________

Do you ever wonder how those authors who’ve written twenty books can sell based solely on synopses? THIS IS HOW THEY DO IT.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the Synopsis Salad Shooter.

Why should stories make sense when they can be fun??  Give it a whirl and I guarantee you will come up with a killer plot idea that will have agents swooning.

(If you need help with any of the parts of speech, I put a brief description at the bottom of this post, along with examples I came up with.)

Please share your dynamite stories with us all!!

noun=person, place or thing.
verb=an action
adverb=describes a verb
adjective=describes a noun

My examples in order: Mary Kole, dog, wasted, flower, purple, snail, squirms, vomit, hamsters, hastily, fuzzy, eyeballs, bombed, eons, tremblingly, Olleymae

Peace♥

12 Comments

Victory!!!

Published on January 30, 2010 in Writing Tags: , . ______________________________________

I did it! – ahead of schedule, even.  I’ve just crossed the 50,000 word boundary, and I feel…interesting…a bit of relief and elation mixed with sadness.  Is that normal?

My book is wrapped up.  I think I’ll miss it, even though the process of writing a novel in a month was grueling, draining, and stressful (yet strangely rewarding).  I’m ready to dig in and revise it until it sparkles…I know it could definitely use the help!

I came down with a bit of a cold on Thursday that is just now letting up.   My sinuses are so stuffy that my ears feel clogged, and while they are suddenly great at picking up bass from the trucks that drive by in the middle of the night, they are not so good at hearing things like the TV and my husband calling me on the phone like 15 times.

Critique group beware, this ending was written not on cloud nine, but on cloud NyQuil.

I must thank my manager for letting me take time off work to get this baby done.  I now have a lifetime achievement proudly added to my belt.

—-

About the agents I chose for the DFW conference in April:

First choice, of course, was Mary Kole, the author of my current favorite blog.  She definitely has a teacher’s heart and I really appreciate her openness about the industry on her website.  I feel like I’ve learned just as much, if not more, from her blog than I have from all the writing books I’ve read combined, so I’d find it a great honor if I could meet her and get a chance to hear her feedback in person.

My second choice was Victoria Horn.   Although there isn’t nearly as much about her available on the web as there is about Ms. Kole.  From her list of “what she’s looking for” on the Liz Dawson & Associates website, I felt like my novel would fit in:

“She looks for sharp humor in unexpected places, a story that places her firmly in another world, and characters she can’t leave behind.” Well, I tried to infuse my novel with all three, but then again, I’m sure every other hopeful author thinks that about their book as well.  Also, it sounds like she’s done some exciting things in her life based on the places she’s traveled, and I think that says something about a person.

Third was Joshua Blimes.  His website, www.awfulagent.com along with his Brillig blog made me laugh…that’s kind of a bad reason, huh?  Well, his bio also shows that he’s been in the industry for a while, and I liked it that he was such an individual.  A lot of times when I look at agent’s blogs, I get a kind of icky, cold feeling instead of an indication that there’s a creative personality behind the posts, but you can’t say this with Mr. Blimes’ um…interesting posts.  Also, from looking at his clients’ work, its obvious he’s no stranger to adventure/ fantasy novels.

Fourth was Paul S. Levine.  I think he has a lot to offer clients by being both a lawyer and agent, and from his bio it sounds like he has a large database of editors.  I have to admit, that from reading his website, I didn’t see many books or clients that seemed anything like me, but I’d still like a chance to hear his input.

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