Writing . . . Margie Lawson . . . agent appointments

Wow! It's been a busy time. For the past few weeks, I've been rushing to get projects completed for a local writing event. North Texas Romance Writers hosted their first Two-Step Conference. Margie Lawson was the guest speaker, along with Cori Devoe from 3 Seas Literary Agency and Melissa Jeglinski from The Knight Agency, who took a full-day worth of agent appointments.

Simply said, "Two-Stepping was great!"

Many of the conference attendees were experienced. Me . . . I was a virgin in the ways of Margie Lawson. Believe me, it's a total immersion in writing. The woman is high-energy and she drags her student into the thick of learning with a smile.

I understand her website is a wealth of information, and Margie mentioned she produces a monthly e-zine in which she analyzes a passage with her techniques -- a mini-lesson. On her blog, she also interviews an author of a 'writing' book each month. I can't wait to become the newest Lawson groupie.

Both my agent appointments went well -- partials to each. Disappointing news about the Romantic Suspense market, however. If you're a writer or reader of the genre, beware! New releases will be hard to find. It appears the market has been saturated and new acquisitions are few and far in between. It doesn't mean I won't sell my recently completed Trickle of Lies, it just means the sale will be sweeter when it happens.

I'll be working like a storm trooper the next two weeks in order to complete my synopsis (need a shorter version) and to revamp my work -- thanks to boot camp, Margie Lawson.

One of Margie's specific technique is called: backloading.

How it works? Look for the word that has the most impact in a sentence, especially those sentences at the end of the paragraph, page, scene, and chapter. Consider rewriting the sentence to add 'power words' AT THE END.

Here's an example:
(Before)
She swallowed once, then again. He watched the smooth movement of her throat. Pale skin covered the graceful curve of her neck. A man could get lost kissing skin like that, if he'd been inclined to speculate on such things. But he'd given up those insane notions about the same time he'd kicked his lying, conniving wife out. For good.

Using the 'backload' and 'rhetorical' and 'power word' techniques:
(After)
The woman swallowed once, then again, the dim lamp light flickering on the curve of her throat: smooth and pale and provocative. A man could get lost kissing skin that tempting. Good thing he'd given up those insane notions when he'd kicked out his wife -- the lying, conniving, two-timer.

As simple and as complicated as that.

Since my blogging is generally stream of consciousness -- I typed in What Fun! then rethought. These exercises are NOT fun. They require serious concentration, and for a newbie, like me, they take time. Why bother? Because deep edits are crucial to better writing. Better writing means more sales! That is FUN!

We're a bit hazy on the back porch today. Leaves are falling -- not that it's really cold -- but it looks like Autumn. The chill seems trapped behind the clouds, ready to sweep in and change our weather for good. Perhaps this week, I'll finally get sweaters out of storage.
Do drop by again.
Until then
~Sandra

I'm finished . . . I'm finished . . . doing that happy dance!

This weekend, I typed The End on my 92,000 romantic suspense. This baby has been awhile in birthing -- frankly, if I'd carried kids as long as it took me to finish this book, there would have only been one bouncing baby in my house.

That said, this manuscript has seen me through a tough loss: my father's year-long illness and passing, which seriously made me question whether I could ever finish this book. Then came my evolving literary skills: the dawn of my true Texas voice and the huge learning curve for any serious suspense plotter -- as in I bit off more intrigue than I knew how to write at the time. Months of research and cultivating the muse finally revealed the end.

Hopefully, those challenges will make these completed words on page all the sweeter. The accomplishment certainly made me do the happy dance around my desk early Saturday morning. Yes, it really was an early start -- 5:45am and I typed the last words at 10:07am (I had a NTRWA (writer's meeting) and I wasn't going one more month without being able to list the completion of my manuscript.) All of us need deadlines!

So, now the next tasks is to meld together the working synopsis with what's actual on page, get the book into the editor--agent rotation, and start on the next manuscript.

So help a gal out, please.

Here's is the first run at the teaser for Trickle of Lies. Tell me what works, what doesn't.

Someone murdered her best friend, and attorney Kyra Malone will have justice. Unfortunately, her evidence-gathering journey to drought ravaged West Texas has netted a ‘temporarily borrowed’ sports car she can’t explain, a husband she didn’t plan on, and an unstoppable killer on her tail.

Until the red-haired stranger shows up on his front porch, County Sheriff Boston Donavan – burned by his big-city, conniving ex-wife prized two things: honesty and his small town – now, he’s caught in a Trickle of Lies not of his making and a passel of bad guys set to destroy the peace.

It's beautiful here on my back porch -- cool morning temperatures, a Grackle or two cawing in the still air, and not a mosquito in sight. It really is the small things that make me happy.

Here's wishing you a great Monday.
Do drop by the porch again,
Until then,
~Sandra

All Things English . . .

I'm not ignoring all my blog friends, but writing to the end. Long days, and some fairly long nights have dragged (yep, that's the verb I want) my current work in progress (WIP) across the threshold of writerly 'hold' and into the close-to-finished stage. Presently, Trickle of Lies is sitting at 84K on the word count, showing a 397 on page count -- lots of dialogue in this manuscript. So, I'm close, really close. The way to finish is not go on the Internet, so I've banned myself from the fun stuff I love.

However, that said, the following "English Rules" was sent to me in an email -- yep, even those are far behind -- but as most who visit my site are lovers of the English language, I hope you'll enjoy.

There isn't anyone to give credit to this compilation of English wonder. So, if you know where it started, do make sure to comment and fill in the rest of us.

Happy Wednesday to you all.
Stop by the porch again.
Until then
~Sandra

THIS CRAZY ENGLISH LANGUAGE!


THIS TOOK A LOT OF WORK TO PUT TOGETHER!
Read all the way to the end.............................. !!!

1) The bandage was wound around the wound.
2) The farm was used to produce produce .

3) The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.

4) We must polish the Polish furniture.

5) He could lead if he would get the lead out.

6) The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert.
7) Since there is no time like the present, he thought it was time to present the present .

8) A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum.

9) When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.

10) I did not object to the object.
11) The insurance was invalid for the invalid.
12) There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row .

13) They were too close to the door to close it.

14) The buck does funny things when the does are present.

15) A seamstress and a sewer fell down into a sewer line.

16) To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow.
17) The wind was too strong to wind the sail.

18) Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a tear.
19) I had to subject the subject to a series of tests.

20) How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?

Let's face it - English is a crazy language. There is no egg in eggplant, nor ham in hamburger; neither apple nor pine in pineapple. English muffins weren't invented in England or French fries in France . Sweetmeats are candies while sweetbreads, which aren't sweet, are meat. We take English for granted. But if we explore its paradoxes, we find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square and a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.

And why is it that writers write but fingers don't fing, grocers don't groce and hammers don't ham? If the plural of tooth is teeth, why isn't the plural of booth, beeth? One goose, 2 geese. So one moose, 2 meese? One index, 2 indices? Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend? If you have a bunch of odds and ends and get rid of all but one of them, what do you call it?

If teachers taught, why didn't preachers praught? If a vegetarian eats vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat? Sometimes I think all the English speakers should be committed to an asylum for the verbally insane.. In what language do people recite at a play and play at a recital? Ship by truck and send cargo by ship? Have noses that run and feet that smell?

How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites? You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language in which your house can burn up as it burns down, in which you fill in a form by filling it out and in which, an alarm goes off by going on.

English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects the creativity of the human race, which, of course, is not a race at all. That is why, when the stars are out, they are visible, but when the lights are out, they are invisible.

PS. - Why doesn't 'Buick' rhyme with 'quick' ?

You lovers of the English language might enjoy this .

There is a two-letter word that perhaps has more meanings than any other two-letter word, and that is 'UP.'
It's easy to understand UP, meaning toward the sky or at the top of the list, but when we awaken in the morning, why do we wake UP ?
At a meeting, why does a topic come UP ?
Why do we speak UP and why are the officers UP for election and why is it UP to the secretary to write UP a report ?
We call UP our friends.
And we use it to brighten UP a room, polish UP the silver; we warm UP the leftovers and clean UP the kitchen.
We lock UP the house and some guys fix UP the old car.
At other times the little word has real special meaning.
People stir UP trouble, line UP for tickets, work UP an appetite, and think UP excuses.
To be dressed is one thing, but to be dressed UP is special.
A drain must be opened UP because it is stopped UP..
We open UP a store in the morning but we close it UP at night.
We seem to be pretty mixed UP about UP !
To be knowledgeable about the proper uses of UP, look the word UP in the dictionary.
In a desk-sized dictionary, it takes UP almost 1/4th of the page and can add UP to about thirty definitions.
If you are UP to it, you might try building UP a list of the many ways UP is used.
It will take UP a lot of your time, but if you don't give UP, you may wind UP with a hundred or more.
When it threatens to rain, we say it is clouding UP .
When the sun comes out we say it is clearing UP...
When it rains, it wets the earth and often messes things UP.
When it doesn't rain for awhile, things dry UP.
One could go on and on, but I'll wrap it UP, for now my time is UP, so........it is time to shut UP!
Now it's UP to you what you do with this email.

First page

NTRWA is hosting a conference in a few months. As one of the early entrants, I've been given the opportunity to submit my first page -- for review -- to the great Maggie Lawson. She'll analyze -- probably to pieces -- the writing, then offer suggestions for making it better.

Okay, I'm a little nervous to have Maggie Lawson read anything I've penned to paper.

I'm posting it.

Tell me what you think. What works . . . what doesn't. This is actually the prologue tugged and tucked into one type-written page, so I may have deleted so much, it doesn't make sense. Let me know, please, before I'm read in front of a room full of conference goers, who collectively say, 'Huh?'

TRICKLE OF LIES

“So this is Hell,” Kyra Malone muttered to the circle of funeral vultures.

Not the literal type with flapping wings and scraggly beak – but dressed in their Polo basic black and pasted with simpering Botox smiles – the Austin elite was close enough to count for the bone-picking birds. Disgusted, Kyra turned from the flock’s annoying presence and toward the weeping pewter sky.

That one heavenward look was as close as she’d ever come to singing angels and golden streets. People who killed their best friends . . . or at least, got them killed wouldn’t be welcomed among harps and fluffy wings.

"Anna would want you to have this.”

The voice jerked Kyra back to the graveside and the older woman in front of her. Shrouded in mourning black and tears, her best friend's mother pressed a token into Kyra’s hand.

"A gift from her father. You should take it, now that she can't wear it . . . anymore."

The antique coin, surrounded by tiny diamonds, blinked up at Kyra. The cold metal seared her hand as forcefully as the suppressed tears scalded her throat. Long seconds ticked by into a harsh minute before she could force the words free.

“It's time for you to leave.” For an instant, she focused on the tiny, auburn-haired child nuzzled against the hem of her skirt. "You and Kendra must go now." The girl snuggled her delicate fingers inside Kyra's grip. It was a trusting touch. She released the child's hand -- she'd betrayed them all.

“I don’t like leaving you.” The older woman looked prepared to battle the point again. “Promise me, Kyra, not to do anything foolish. . .”

There wasn’t a need to say more. What she had planned for the men responsible would be considered rash on the best Sunday and blatant career suicide come any Monday morning. It didn’t matter. The moment Anna had been murdered they’d given her no choice. A debt was due, and she would make certain it was collected.

Bending, Kyra kissed the child then glanced between the faces of the two people she truly loved and did the only thing possible – she lied.

Sunday Muses . . .

On board with TWITTER. I needed to join in order to keep up with the kiddo at Texas A & M. Not specifically her, but the campus as a whole. After the Virginia Tech incident, A & M launched their Code Maroon alert program. Students, staff, employees and parents, who had emails on file, were notified of any emergency situation through text and email messages. This year A & M changed to TWITTER. Students still gets the emergency text, but parents must follow TWITTER.

So as I'm on TWITTER, if you want to follow me, just search my name, and then send a TWITTER alert to me. If you're already Tweeting, then watch for LoneStarMeander . . . yep, that's me. I'm not totally sure that short burps (and yes, that's the right word for it) about my day are exactly exciting, but I decided if I was on-board I might as well play the whole game. It is fun to keep up with some of my favorite authors (Rosemary Clements-Moore, Candy Havens, and Geralyn Dawson-- several tweet on and off during the day. It's kind of like living in their backpocket without being creepy about it.

Chapter 19 (TRICKLE OF LIES) is done and in the completed pile. I'm really pleased with the finished result. I had the basis of the chapter when I sat down yesterday, but so much needed to be filled out. The plot is turning very tight at this point so every revelation is massively important. Not to mention the internal turning points. Yes, I know that there are only 3 or so real turning points (excluding black moment) in each novel; however, there are a massive # of small internal turning points -- rising and falling points. To me as the action ratchet up another notch, then the TPs must happen quicker and with as much precision as possible. Surgical precision, if you will.


As this is more of a Sunday morning ramble, I'll digress onto my dreams last night. Lady Muse decided to visit about my completed chapter, which is totally OK, but she didn't show up as I drifted off to sleep. That lovely land where writers can still pry their eyes open and jot down the notes. Oh no, she showed up literally in my dreams, layers deep in REM sleep. Short of nightmares, I've never managed to extricate myself from REM for note-taking. I tried for 4 years in college and believe me, if I was going to master the technique it would have been then. So, I took the dog for a long walk, hoping to recapture any part of the dream. Unfortunately and fortunately, it's raining in Texas -- kinda all over the state, which is awesome considering our drought status. So despite my desire to drift along in oblivion while the doggy did her duty, I was too busy negotiating rivers of run-off and soggy shoes. Maybe I'll try a long hot shower after breakfast and see if any part of the dream comes back. Worst part -- is that the additions were really perfect. Even in sleep I can remember thinking, "That's exactly what I want to happen."

Happy Sunday all. It's cooler on the porch this morning. Perfect but for the Texas mosquitoes, which are hatching in the droves. I actually think they're feeding on my supply of OFF.
Until next time
~Sandra

Moving to the end . . .

Over the top and goofy excited because I've actually finished a workable ending to Trickle of Lies. I've written several endings, but none have rang true . . . or more importantly, tied up every loose thread with a bow. I've invested too much time and effort at this point to not be totally in love with the end.

I've read, and I know you have as well, far too many books where it seemed the author just threw an ending on page. Okay, so it answered all the plot questions, but it was far from satisfying. How many of us started because we read a story, fell in love with the characters, and then desperately wanted a different ending? Tell the truth! Every writer has more than one book they've kept on a shelf because they yearn for a different ending. For me, there are some that I want to rewrite; others that have such a perfect ending, I long for the strength to write something so worthy.

I had an epiphany on the way to work two mornings ago. I'd already decided to just write another ending -- any ending to finish the silly thing. I wasn't pleased with the decision, but I want it done. Maybe that's what Madam Muse was waiting for: the show-up-now-declaration-or-I'll-write-something-crappy decision to kick it into high gear. So, here's to writing into a corner and then finding a way out.

By the way, the boy came up with a book jacket for me. A little tidbit to keep me motivated and moving to the end. Gotta love computers -- and those who are computer literate -- which is not me. As I'm fond of saying, I don't need to be all that smart, just surround myself with smart people.

>


Wish me luck on the way to the end.
See you around the porch soon.
Until then,
~Sandra

Monday Madness . . .

Another Grammar article -- Dealing with the Comma -- picked up by EzineArticles.com. Wahoo, for me. My written word floating around the web is always a good thing. Besides, I'm a little partial to getting the use of the comma corrected. Too many extraneous commas -- missing ones for that matter -- in basic writing today. A good grammar book should be a must for all. Not, just writers! I can think of few careers into today's job market where a certain amount of writing is not required. Yet, folks by the hordes throw words at a page and assume they'll stick in the proper, punctuated order. Not hardly. So, writing grammar tips on the comma was another of my simple attempts to save the English language.

I've been hard at work through the weekend discovering a lost manuscript. CHASING DESTINY as it stands is a contemporary romance. Decent plot, good characters, dynamite backstory and strong motivation, mediocre writing. CHASING DESTINY was only my second completed manuscript, so my writing level has increased significantly since then. It's good to know that the book is salvageable, if . . . and here's the biggie, I need a suspense plot woven into the story. As all my books now fall into the Romantic Suspense category, and this book shares one of the same characters from the Donavan series, it should all be shelved together. See how positive I am? One day, when all my books hit the NYT best-seller list, I want the readers to find them all together. The difficulty I'm encountering with the suspense element is that my heroine has suffered through a painful history. Not ancient history, but recent, so it becomes a matter of how much bad luck can any individual be expected to survive. Then there's the whole coincidence issue -- contrived coincidence is always the kiss of death for realism. I must find the balance between a suspense that naturally evolves around her, without seeming to dump on her head. I've finished my read through CHASING DESTINY and brainstormed several suspense twists. Now, I'll leave it alone for a little fermentation. Maybe, just maybe, like great wine, I'll have something wonderful to pour out of the bottle of my brain.

Also, been working hard and heavy on finishing TRICKLE OF LIES. It's way past time.

My critique partners, Sherry Davis, Mary Karlik, and LA Mitchell, have submitted like crazy over the past few months, totally shaming my lack of effort. They, collectively, have received a number of 'no's, but they're closer to a 'yes' simply by their efforts of continual submission. I have a great beta reader lined up for TRICKLE OF LIES as soon as I can type The End. All said, there's no reason not to plant my fanny in the chair and write.

I'll keep you posted from the back porch.
A spurt of lovely weather has sailed into Texas. Highs today in the upper 80s. That is lovely for us.
Happy Monday to you all, and drop by the porch again.
Until then,
~Sandra

Spring Break

Oh, I so wanted to bask in the sun this week . . . hey, I live in Texas, I should get to bask in March if I want. HOWEVER, mother nature had other plans and it rained, yep, we're talking real cats and dogs type of rain. Everyone from the middle of the nation on east has seen the effects I'm talking about.

Instead of sun basking, I've been cleaning. What drudgery, but after two sick kids there wasn't much choice. Do these kiddos not realize they're wasting my valuable sun basking time? Nope, probably not. But I did draw the limit after 12 loads of laundry. If ain't clean by now, too bad.

My other task this week has been writing -- and frankly, when my head is stuffed in the computer because I'm creating, it doesn't matter if it's raining, the kids are sick, or the timer is ringing on the dryer . . . it's all good. So, I'm pushing through hard and fast on Trickle of Lies, trying to get these characters to talk nicely to one another. It may just work. But it has to be finished. Two of my beta readers are asking almost every week when they'll get to see the finished draft. Time for stalling is over.

What did you do on your spring break?

Feel free to share.
Until then
~Sandra

Trickle of Lies is Trickling along . . .

Two days ago I was ready to kill off Kyra and Boston.

Wait, don’t panic. I’m a writer; I get to kill folks off.

However, eliminating my hero and heroine before page 100 was a bad IDEA for a romance novel. So, I preserved. Not because I wanted to . . . at times, I hate these characters. But I have a lot invested in them at this point. Fully-fleshed backstories, complicated family structures, unique character quirks and my hero and heroine actually do work quite well in this specific plot. Wow, it’s almost like I planned that *GRIN*.

So, if my main characters were well-developed, complete with appropriate Goal, Motivation and Conflict, and the plot was intricate and motivated, then what was I missing?

My writing seemed to be flapping like a hooked bass on the bottom of my daddy’s fishing boat. That caught fish may be going some where, but just not any place productive—like back in the water. That’s when I realized if my writing wasn’t going to gasp its last breath, I needed a new strategy.

I decided not to sit in the boat, but to dive right into the lake and swim around. I changed my prospective. In writing terms, I went back to the start of the book and READ. Not with an editor perched on my shoulder or my little red pen ready to mark, but to simply enjoy the overall view of the book, or the lake if you will. The major discovery of my swim was duplicate information: the dreaded ‘Already-said-that’ curse.

How had I managed to have so many characters say the same thing?

Simple: I’d baited too many hooks and dropped them in the water. I couldn’t keep up with what secondary character had said what, and more importantly, how each secondary character had progressed the plot.

I needed something to reel in my secondary characters and guarantee that I caught the right character for the right job. And it needed to be something simple. Hence, I birthed the Character Chart. Not very original for a title, but it gets the job done.

What’s involved?

I list my:
1) Character’s Name
2) Crucial character description
3) Chapter number where secondary character is on page
AND MOST IMPORTANT:
4) What knowledge does this secondary character reveal to the main character (yep, my hero or heroine needs to learn something from this secondary character in order for this person to be breathing on page.)

Great writing is about great tightening. My goal is get through Trickle of Lies with as strong of a finished manuscript as possible.

Is there a specific writing technique, in dealing with secondary characters, that’s worked for you?

Back In The Chair . . .

I’ve been away a few days (sad tale, that I’ll save for another entry), but I knew when I flew back into town it was definitely time to get busy. Amazingly, I followed my own advice.

Re-touched one article (Parenting) and one short (less than 500 words—a type of filler for magazines) and submitted both. Although I use a computer log for when I submit what and where, I’ve decided to start a folder and print out my queries, keeping them in date order. At least, that’s the plan for the moment. I may print out the articles, and put the queries behind them for better organization.

What’s your favorite way to keep track of things?

Still no word from the ezine editor on my Apostrophe article—yep, I am one of those grammar nuts who can find 2000 words to say about the Apostrophe and its correct usage. Besides, I learned how to spell it correctly after writing an entire article on it. Another week or so is all I wait, and then I’ll shop it to another writing ezine.

Now, it’s back to my work in progress (WIP) Trickle of Lies. Want to see an excerpt from Trickle of Lies? Click on the highlighted title and you'll go straight to my webpage.

What are you working on?

PROMOS AND STUFF . . .

I started working on my blog only to discover that everything I wanted to write about seemed . . . boring.

Writers and boring should never be used in the same sentence.

But the plain fact is that I’ve spent the past week fluttering around the promo sites, learning the ins and outs of posting excerpts and book blurbs about my new release. In addition, I’ve caroused the reviewers’ sites. It’s all the business stuff that goes with the ‘fun’ writing stuff. Good things to learn, necessary information to know, but after five days my muse revolted. Only so much business before the creative side of my brain screamed for release.

Screaming brains might work in a Stephen King thriller, but it’s not pretty for a romance author.

So, to keep myself energized, I’ve dived into TRICKLE OF LIES.

I’ve decided I really like my heroine, lawyer, Kyra Malone. (Hey, don’t shoot her yet. This Austin-based lawyer is about helping the folks in a small west Texas town named Buckle Creek), which just happens, ironically enough, to be where she meets the hero, Sheriff Boston Donavan.

Well, actually Kyra meets Boston a little before they get to Buckle Creek. She sorta-kinda steals his car.

See, I told you Kyra was a different kind of lawyer.

Now, you might think that stealing a sheriff’s car would land Kyra in jail. Instead, she finds herself married to the tall Stetson-wearing law officer. Sounds like the makings for a true Texas happy ending, right? Except Sheriff Boston Donavan would rather be wrapped in barbed wire and dropped in a nest of rattlers, than be married.

Oh, and as for Kyra . . . marriage to an unwilling partner is only part of her problem. She came to Buckle Creek with the sole intention of righting a wrong, but there’s some powerful Austin folks who want her stopped—even if it means murder.

Oooh, I can’t wait to see what these two characters do next.

Happy writing!