Palin, Big News, Nobel and Cute Dog

I gotta new look. I gotta new look. I gotta new look hey hey hey hey.

I gave my blog a quick make-over in honor of Halloween. Tre fun...I must say.

I might as well give you a heads up on tomorrow's blog. It will be political....*sigh* Just a question, though. I am a little confused on a rumor going around about Palin and need you guys to chime in for clarification.

I am also going to talk about our dear friends on the Nobel committee.

And finally, I HAVE SOME BIG NEWS FOR THE BLOG!!! New Wed.'s are coming your way soon...and all you writers will be very excited. (I think.) (I am....but I am the blogger...so I don't know if I count.)

I feel lazy...telling you what I am GOING to blog about and not actually just writing it out now. I think these posts may take a bit of time, though....and my eyelids feel like they have been attached to small exorcise weights (you know...the small rubber kind you carry when you power walk). Anyways, off to catch some of those most-likely elusive zzzzzzzz's.

p.s. No, that is not my dog...I just thought he represented my current "fatigued" state. :)

Because it's hilarious when your not on the recieving end....

Crazy Man!!! - video powered by Metacafe

Damn Good Tunes

If you haven't noticed, at the top of every post I do there is "Playing in iTunes". I usually have it on random, so what comes up is....well....eclectic. (I usually skip Elvis and Neil Diamond for your pleasure....I happen to be a fan.) Since it is the last day of the month, I thought I would recap the listening library! Some of the stuff in here really is worth listening to. Great, great, great indie rock.




To Begin!!

Incubus "Make Yourself"
Muse "Knights of Cydonia"
Built to Spill "Fly Around My Pretty Little Miss"
U2 "All I Want is You"
Loudermilk "Mai"
The Pixies "Where is My Mind?"
Kerli "The Creationist"
Lenka "The Show" (only the cutest song ever!!!)
Nada Surf "Your Legs Grow"
The Everly Brothers "Dream" (This song makes me all warm and fuzzy inside.)
Timbaland feat. The Hives "Throw It on Me"
Old 97's "Question" (THIS IS THE SWEETEST MOST ROMANTIC SONG EVER!!!!)
Say Hi to Your Mom "Laundry" (This one is just fun!!)
Jim Sturgess "I've Just Seen a Face" (From the Across the Universe Soundtrack)
Fiona Apple "Criminal"
Ben Kweller "Problems"
Evan Rachel Wood "Blackbird" (From the Across the Universe Soundtrack)

And today's "Playing on iTunes" is........Hootie and the Blowfish "Only Wanna Be With You"
Now THAT's a classic.

Wow....these really are some great songs. I get so excited when they pop up on random!!!

Be sure to tell me what your favs are!! I love donating money to iTunes!!!! ;)

Attention Spans & Motivations

Playing on iTunes: "Blackbird" by Evan Rachel Wood





It's "Hop-Along-Monday" people...and you know what that means!! Cheesy-ness abound. Every Monday I will give you a new crap saying that my good friend Conor uses (on almost a daily basis...*sigh*). Today's cheesy saying...drum roll please...."Get over yourself." Now, that doesn't sound THAT crap, but it really depends on the context in which it is said.

Example:

Me: "Oh magoodness that work-out wore me out!"
Conor: "Get over yourself."

or......

Me: "I can't stand it when Suede talks in the third person!!"
Conor: "Get over yourself."

Do you see how this might be even remotely irritating and cheesy after a while? He has been saying this one for a few months now with no end in sight. I may have to hit him.

ON TO THE POST!!

Attention spans.........*goes to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich*.............
Oh crap! I forgot I was blogging. What was I talking about? Oh yeah, attention spans.

I am surprised that in the past two months I have been pretty diligent with my writing schedule. I write for about four hours a day, working to get at least one, if not two chapters written and have refrained from doing too much editing. (Although I am starting to get ancy.) I think I have kept my excitment for this project up, primarily b/c the story kicks ass but also b/c I have really been working to emmerse myself in the story. I have a playlist that I listen to when I am not writing. I watch a lot of movies related to the genre I am writing in. And I read a whole lot of books on writing to keep my motivation up.

QUESTION:
Out of curiosity, how do you guys keep your motivation up for a certain project? If you work on numerous pieces at once, how do you keep your excitment for all of them?

Sweet Debates

Playing in iTunes: "Problems" by Ben Kweller

Firstly: I have had some requests to read something of what I have been writing, so I thought I might give you a little snippet. Kinda scary for me actually. I already see what I want to re-write in the first paragraph. Oh well, feel free to tell me what you think....or say nothing at all. If it's a negative critique, lemme know!! It's been picked apart already, so not much you can say will piss me off. :) Enjoy! (or don't). OH!! Geocities is weird, so you have to click on the document to enlarge it.

Secondly: I had a brilliant time over at my good friend Allie's house last night. We made a party out of the debate between Obama and McCain, which turned into more of a comedy show than anything else. We began laughing at the different faces Obama made, which in turn made us cackle profusely at McCain's faces. Then, our laughter turned towards the food. Allie had made Backlava (it was to die for) and I kept trying to mess up the name, to which Serena decided it should be called Baracklava!! Well, being the fair non-partisan participant of the evening, I thought McCain should have his own dessert. Serena, being the comic she is, immediately thought up McCaingel Cake. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!! It was so freakin' amusing!!!

On the actual debate (and in seriousness), I thought both senators made some great blows. McCain scored some points in talking about Obama's pork barrel spending and Obama scored points when he tied McCain into the Bush administration (only a million times!!). It was obvious that both performed pretty well, but neither was the clear winner. It will be interesting to see if the final debate gives one party or other the leverage they need to pull firmly ahead. I just can't believe the election is only a little over a month away!!

Fluff n' Stuff

Playing on iTunes: "Criminal" by Fiona Apple

I am COMPLETELY at a loss for what to write about this morning. No, really. For once, I have nothing to say.


*crickets.....chirping*

Maybe if I eat something first!! Hold on....twiddle your thumbs or something....
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Ok...I'm back. Had a samich.

I've got it!!! I shall discuss really bad time killers. :) Great segue, huh?

My goal for "Bulletproof ID" is to write as tight of a script as possible. As little fluff as possible. I hate fluff. Why does it have to be in books? Do authors think we want to read it? Does it serve some purpose?

I have two quotes to nail home my point. Kurt Vonnegut said "Every sentence should either be character development or moving the plot forward. Cut the rest."

Makes sense!! That is actually going to be the core of my editing process...and to be honest, I pray to Stephen King (reference to a previous post by Bookshelf Muse) that I actually have some book left and not just a great story!!

My second quote is by Dan Brown: "Writing an informative yet compact thriller is a lot like making maple sugar candy. You have to tap hundreds of trees…boil vats and vats of raw sap…evaporate the water…and keep boiling until you've distilled a tiny nugget that encapsulates the essence. Of course, this requires liberal use of the DELETE key."

If you have ever read the Da Vinci Code, you will know what he is talking about. The man has NO FLUFF ON ANY PAGE!!! It's amazing!! I think that is why it was such a page turner. His chapters ended and began with hooks, as did the scenes within the each chapter.

So, I am off to write the next page turning kick ass, no fluff novel!!!

***I would just like to let everyone that I know I should feel bad posting that image, since I do have a Bichon of my own....but she is shaved right now, so no fluff.

Since the Question has been asked.....

Playing on the TV: Spongebob Squarepants

On my last post, Georgie B asked me what my book was about. I started to answer his kind question in the comments section, but it quickly turned into another post in and of itself....so here is that post! :) I just copied and pasted from the email....

"Hahaha... sure Georgie! I've been a YA avid, avid, avid reader for a long time, and my family finally talked me into putting one of my ideas into a book. It's proving quite a challenge, but I'm working diligently on it every single day. (I'm really proud of that fact.) Actually, I am enjoying the hell out of it. My goal is to write a Bourne type series for young adults. My main character finds out, in the first chapter, that her parents are hiding secrets (yes, yes...kind of cliche spy type secrets.) But wait!! they are not the secrets you think!! They get taken by the "enemy" and only Izzy (my teenage protagonist) can save them. Along the way, after meeting up with an incredibly attractive guy, she finds out that EVERYTHING she has ever thought about her life and her parent's life was wrong (including the cliche spy thing). She has to infiltrate two very secretive and dangerous organizations (no...not secret societies), save her parents, deal with romance, and deal with the moral dilemmas that her parents have now forced her to face.

Whew!!! That was a mouthful. I tried not to give anything majorly away....but that is the general gist of the storyline. There are steamy (but no adult sexual stuff) scenes, along with some car chase scenes, foot chase scenes, stuff exploding, and some Ah-ha! moments. I am thinking I will be finished by the end of this week, if not the beginning of next. Then, it is time for editing. I can already tell that is going to be even more time consuming. I am kinda anxious to get to it, though to see how polished it will be.

Right, now that I have written you a book just in this email.....

Thanks for the question!! Makes me feel proud to answer...."

So, that is basically what my book is about. It is the only time of the day that I allow myself any bit of seriousness. :) Otherwise, nothing but mayhem, anarchy....AND TAKING OVER THE WORLD!!! MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!

YA Signed Book Auction for a Great Cause

Playing on iTunes: "I've Just Seen a Face" sung by Jim Sturgess (mmm....sexy)

Writer's Unboxed blogged today about a very worthy cause.The Brightspirit Relief Fund. It's probably best if you read about it on the website, but rest assured many of you WILL see yourselfs in this little girl. Be sure to flip through all of the wonderful signed books including Rick Riordan and Erin Hunter!!! There really are some magnificent items and they benefit a wide variety of causes!!

On an extremely exiting note....I'M GOING TO SANTA BARBARA, CA FOR ALMOST TWO WEEKS!!! Oh, home. I am going to cry and kiss the ground when I get there. I'm tellin' you guys, when I get the funds, do NOT be surprised when I pick and move back to the west coast. *sigh*
It is purely for vacation. I am going with a friend of mine and we are going wine tasting, burger eating (The Habit....oh yeah!!), and beach combing. :) I'm so cited!!!!**

Update on the book: I am on Chapter 17 still, since I didn't work last night. It's hard on Wednsdays with ANTM, Project Runway, Top Design, and Ghost Hunters!! Give a girl a breather, for God's sake!! So, I have to catch up today. After I stop procrastinating on my blog, I am going to get to work. It's a perfect rainy day for it. I still think it will be finished by Sat. It is just going to take a crap-ton of work.

**Yes Conor, I am fully aware that you are going to Florida.

Biggest News in Movies EVER!!!

AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!! (I've been doing that a lot lately.) BIGGEST NEWS IN UPCOMING MOVIES E-VER!!!!!!!

Johnny Depp is going to be in Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland as the Mad Hatter. Oh lawd, that's going to be awesome!!!!!! I'm getting heart palpitations just thinking about it!! I just read the news off of Swivet's blog, and thought I would pass it along. I'm going to go take a look at the imdb

(Don't worry...I'm working my way towards a sane post.)

:)
Terra

Vonnegut Tips on Fiction

On iTunes: Nothing b/c I'm watching Ghost Hunters on SciFi

This is a short video of Kurt Vonnegut's tips for writing great fiction. It was informative and even a bit inspirational!!!

The Brilliance of Me

Playing in iTunes: "Laundry" by Say Hi to Your Mom

I almost didn't have anything to write about today *gasp* but last night, I finished an absolutely genius scene!! I accidentally introduced a character that brought everything together, while at the same time causing, even me, to go "Nuh, uh!!!" It was brilliant....

At least, I hope it was brilliant. Oh god. What if I just hinged my entire book on a character that I haven't previously developed!!?? What if I go back and read the book and realize it doesn't make any sense because I forgot one crucial plot line??!! WHAT IF MY READERS READ THIS AND THINK IT ABSOLUTELY BORING AND UNORIGINAL!!?? WHAT IF IT'S BEEN DONE BEFORE??????!!!!!!!!! AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!

"Terra? Put down the computer...."
"Who are you!?"
"Ummm.....your inner writer."
"Oh good! Do you think the scene was brilliant?"
"Most definitely."
"Whew."

*silence*


Right. Sorry about that.

Presenting..When Hell Freezes Over...

http://view.break.com/487339 - Watch more free videos

Books n' Stuff

Playing on iTunes: "Question" by Old 97's (This, btw, only the most romantic two minute song you will ever hear in your life!!)


I just finished a brilliant NF book that every writer should give a once over. "The First Five Pages" by Noah Lukeman tells you, not what you should do to get published, but exactly what you shouldn't do....and in order of importance!! It is, basically a detailed checklist of everything an author should avoid if he or she is seeking publication. I know, I know...you're going to say how there are tons of books out there who already do this. Let me tell you, though...Mr.Lukeman does it with flare!!! It was entertaining from beginning to end. I had to restrain myself from jumping from my lounging position to begin editing right away.

Honestly, I couldn't recommend this book any more!! It is brilliant and entertaining and most definitely got me motivated even more, to get in print. GO GET THIS BOOK, NOW!!!! You really won't regret it. Amazon let's you take a peak inside (follow the link in the first paragraph), and has used copies! Check it out.

*It should also be noted that everything he suggests writers do, should be applied to the entire manuscript and not just the first five pages. I don't think agents would be too; chapter pleased to find a magnificent partial....followed by a full manuscript in which the author can't seem to use the right "there" after chapter three.

__________________

Also you guys should check out the Debs for two reasons!!

1) They really do have some awesome posts. Check out their recent discussions on "THE CALL"!! Very inspiring, and funny in some cases!!

2) THEY ARE GIVING AWAY FREE STUFF!!! (Follow the link for the post.)

Hop-Along-Mondays

Playing in iTunes: "Throw it On Me" by Timbaland feat. The Hives

"Chill out, hop along!!" - Yes, this was actually said to me in all seriousness. Oh, Conor........ *shakes head*

Cheesy title yeah? It just so happens to be the topic for this post!! A friend of mine, who goes by the name of Conor, is notoriously cheesy with sayings. So, on the way to the gym today I told him I was going to enforce "Hop-Along-Mondays". Every Monday, I will give you a saying "straight from the horses mouth" and you can decide how terribly cheesy it is.

"What does this have to do with writing?" you ask. Well, one of the characters is loosely based on this friend of mine (sort of Izzy's Ron-Stoppable) and a few of these phrases may be making their way into book one!! Should be fun to spot, nonetheless. Feel free to comment with some of your own notoriously geeky phrases!! They may just make it into the books!!

Geekily yours,
Terra

P.S. Yes Conor...I have linked to you, so now you have to update!!!!

What's Your Dream Sequence?

Playing on iTunes: "Dream" by The Everly Brothers (ok...so this song didn't come on randomly, but it fits!!!)

Yesterday I posted my perfect dream sequence of the publishing world. You know, which agent I wanted to call me, what THE CALL would sound like, what the advance would sound like....what the book would feel like....*sigh*

Anways...now I'm curious, what are your perfect dream publishing sequences!! If you've already had your book published, then I'm curious how your dream differed from your reality. Was your reality better than your dream, or was it a bit of a wake up call?

As always,
Terra

Gmail People Are Geniuses!!

Playing on iTunes: "Your Legs Grow" by Nada Surf

I must shout out towards the fabulousness of Gmail. I have had an account with them for almost four years, and have never really noticed any abnormal greatness.....and then they added "Reader".

In a nut shell, this program takes any blog and puts in one place, just a click away from your in-box. It lets you know when someone has uploaded and allows you to read them either by blog or by date. Marvelous!!

I know there are other programs that do roughly the same thing (Technorati and such)...but there is more to this fabulous system!!! They allow you to display your shared bits of news from other blogs with the world. So, if Mrs. Rowling posts a bit of wisdom to her blog that would like to share with your thousands of readers, you simply click the "share" button, and your followers get to see the info as well!!! I am in love with this, as I can see what I need to in one place without hunting.

If you are curious to see how it works, just head over to Gmail to check it out. If you are curious to the "shared" action at work, just take a look at the white box near the top entry.

Until next time!!!

Why I can't sleep at night.....

On iTunes: "The Show" by Lenka

The one thing my friends and family (as well as the teachers in elementary school...and math class) have always said is that I am too much of a dreamer. I am not realistic...yadda, yadda, yadda. I may not be, but I've got dreams, damn it!!

My current dream is that I will work like a dog for the next three months (not a dream...I will be working for the next three months), I will have a perfect manuscript that everyone raves about and the perfect query letter that will catch an agents attention. I get a call from Jodi Reamer within the month saying she has read my first three chapters and is very impressed and wants to see more. Within a month of sending her my full, she wants to sign me!! (After a few revisions of course.)

After months of revisions and pushing, I get "THE CALL" saying a huge publishing house wants to buy my first novel.....and subsidiaries and movie rights are being discussed!!!

This......is why I don't sleep at night. I am fully aware that this is the ultimate dream, and most likely things will be significantly different. I am going for Jodi Reamer first, though. I've loved almost every book she's agented. "The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things" by Carolyn Mackler was HILARIOUS!!!!

Anyways, that is my dream...and I'm stickin' to it. :)

Bastard Friends

Playing in iTunes: "Creationist" by Kerli

This write-in is only halfway working!!! How can I be expected to write five whole chapters when being tempted with french horns and burgers!!??? How, I ask???!!!

(I have made it to Chapter 13, though. Two more to meet my goal of 15 by tomorrow!!)

In up news, I have, most definitely, made my way, way way past the point of writer's block. Chapter ten looks a bit like the toilet paper roll if left to my Bichon, but that is for edits at a later time. :)

WHERE IS MY MIND!!???

Playing on iTunes: "Where Is My Mind" by The Pixies


I am having a write-in!!! This book is going down in a blaze!!! I am halfway through and wondering how long it will take to get through the next eleven chapters. I think I can actually finish this week. It takes me an hour to write a half a chapter. So, between today and tomorrow, I bet I can get to chapter fifteen...and finish by Friday. EDITING HERE I COME!!!

On another note (still related to minds) I hate it when my subconscience talks to me. For instance, I am sitting in the bathtub with the incredibly scalding-hot water, trying to determine the solution to a problem my heroin has gotten herself into when EGADS!! I have solved it!!! Then, a little part of my brain which likes to play games says in echo "EGADS!! I THINK YOU'VE SOLVED IT!!" to which the larger part of my brain goes "YES!! I THINK I HAVE!! I...NO WAIT....I LOST IT!!! BRAIN! YOU BASTARD!!" *sigh* That, unfortunately, is an actual re-enactment of a scene from two days ago. I am still struggling with that chapter...

Like I said, though......THE BOOK IS GOING DOWN IN A BLAZE OF GLORY......THIS WEEK!!!!!

(Apparently, I have had an attack of the capital letters.)

Yours (annoyed) as usual,
Terra

The Art of the Blog

Playing on iTunes: "Mai" by Loudermilk

So, I have been flipping through other writer's and agent's blogs (Courtney Summers, Ally Carter, and Jennifer Lynn Barnes) and I've noticed a trend. There seems to be a certain writing style that is adopted soul-ly for the blog. I've read through my past posts and determined that I DO NOT have this je ne se qua. My blog comes out completely different than my writing....more like my actual thoughts which will, very shortly, start to get kind of scary if I don't start sleeping.

I dunno, maybe I need to look at blogging like writing a novel. Edit, edit, edit? My God!!!! Is there any online real estate without a spell checker?? *sigh* I am thinking perhaps I should go back and scrap the first blog....

(That is a joke, people.)

I guess it makes sense, though. You can still come off crazy, but it's best if you come off as a professional crazy. I am going to have to start a mental check list.

1. Crazy as a duck in a shooting gallery √
2. Professional √
3. Professional Crazy Ducky - On the "To Do" list.

Ah well. I'll figure it out eventually. On to more interesting things!!

I HAVE MADE IT TO SECOND BASE WITH IZZY!!!!! - or in more literal terms...the halfway point of the book. What makes it so interesting is that I haven't had any issues with writers block until now. I swear to God this is so frustrating!! I know exactly what needs to happen next, but am not sure how to get her there. *sigh...again*

I hope to have the tenth chapter done by tonight. The Eleventh Chapter is "Romance, Romance, Romance" - a working title. ;)

On a side note....for all of those readers (those I don't have yet) who are just gripping the edge of their seats to read my work, I am going to be looking for some Beta Readers. The editing should be finished around Christmas/January and I need some unbiased views on the work. Let me know if you might be interested!!

Until tomorrow...when I may be blogging a bit tipsy (wine tasting week).

Terra

The Perfect Music

Playing on iTunes (but only because I am not writing my book!!) "All I Want Is You" by U2

When I first began this silly adventure called "writing a book", I usually wrote in silence. This....was not a wise decision. My first couple of chapters came out well written, but with no emotion. So, I started listing to some of my favorite, more emotional music. You know...Muse, Incubus, the Mars Volta, Coheed and Cambria...that sort of thing. These guys make me want to cry, throw things, and make love at the same time. Herein lies the problem. I pay more attention to the words than I do to my writing.

So, I have begun downloading music from movies that are similar to my book. I am no best friends with the Bourne soundtracks. They're beautiful and really help me feel the strong emotions I need to write with. Methinks those first few chapters are going to need a re-write. (Not that the whole book doesn't need that anyways.

Anyways...it was definitely a wise move on my part. I will listen to Muse in the car while I think, and the brilliant John Powell while I write. :)

Every Word Counts...and I'm pissed off.

Playing on iTunes: "Fly Around My Petty Little Miss" by Built to Spill


When I first got the idea for this book months ago I had a few really really really great scenes in my head that I just wanted to get on paper. I hadn't considered all of the scenes in between the juicy ones. It is a well known fact, that a five chapter book is hard to publish. So...I have spent the last month really fleshing out the action and getting the characters to come alive (amidst blowing things up and some really great romance scenes). I think it is coming along nicely, if I do say so myself....and I do. Although, I did run into a tough spot this week. Izzy was trapped....in a janitor's closet, and I had no idea how to get her out. Fear not....she escaped. But it was close. It took a couple of days writing that scene to really pull her through.

That actually brings me to my writing style. I was reading a post from a fellow writer today in which he said "If you can't write everyday, then you don't want to be a writer." Now, that comment made me pissed. I mean, who is to say that we should write exactly like each other. Some writers take years to get one book out!! I write almost everyday because I have the time, and quite frankly, I feel terrible if I don't...but that doesn't mean Mary Jane isn't a writer because she can only fit in one hour a week!! (Sorry...tangent over.)

Since I write everyday, I have found that a lot of what comes out of my pen (fingers? since I type) is garbage. So, I have come to look at what I have written so far as the bare bones of the my book. I am only on chapter two editing wise but by the time the manuscript has been through twenty billion revisions, it will be nice and polished...I hope.

Anyways, join me next time where I will....talk more about whatever is bouncing around like a super bouncy ball in my brain.

"Nice alliteration, Terra!"
"Why thank you!"

Chapter Length

Playing on iTunes right now: "Knights of Cydonia" by Muse

As I write this book, I am trying to figure out what the ideal chapter length is. I understand that not all young adults are bibliofiles, so most get a little ancy in their pantsy wondering when the next chapter will start. Right now, my chapter's are running about 10-12 pages long. I have them broken up into scenes which are about 4 to 5 pages long. That wouldn't seem so bad, except when you make each scene an individual chapter, I am already on Chapter 14. I still have a lot to say!! And that count means that the book will be about 40-50 chapters long. Even I know that is a bit much. I was hoping for around 25. *sigh* I hate math. I will eventually figure it out. I think I am aiming for a page count of about 300. I am on page 67 right now. If I keep on with my chapters the way I am, I am going to have a 21 chapter book.

Wait....that's not bad. Oh good! My math was, apparently, slightly off. I guess I just needed to have it in writing. See the wonders of "the word"? It makes sense of everything, even arithmetic. :)

Right, I am on to Chapter 7: Scene 1 tomorrow night. I think I need to start setting an entire day aside for editing. I only have one chapter fully edited (not counting the final thousand edits before it is sent to the agency), so it seems I have a lot to do. On that note, I better get to work...or sleep, I haven't decided yet. Wish me luck on both!!

First Posts are Weird

Playing on iTunes: "Make Yourself" by Incubus

Yeah...they are. I never know what to say in a first post. I feel like I should introduce myself, but in a first post, who do you introduce yourself to? Yourself?

"Hi me, nice to meetcha. Perhaps this will result in a deep friendship....with me. Hopefully nothing more, though...as that is not what I am looking for right now." :)

Alright, might as well get it over with. The blog is to go along with my new website, as well as to document how my foray into the book writing world is progressing. I have been a fashion photographer going on five years, but I have been madly, madly, madly, truly madly in love with children's and YA books since the age of 5 (Amelia Bedelia, people!!....yeah, she still makes me laugh). Actually, I love books in general. I will read anything with words (which would be hard to do otherwise, unless we are talking about palms....but I can't do that anyways). I guess if you love to read, you just love the written word and sometimes that progresses into writing the actual words! That, ladies and gentleman, is what has happened to me. I began writing a decent horror, was asked to write a short story, and eventually began to write my book on Izzy Dagney.

Shall I introduce you to Izzy? I think I shall. Izzy is a 16 year old social recluse with just one friend, and she is currently being written into a high action, incredibly hormonoly imbalanced action novel. She probably doesn't deserve it, but the audience does. Don't worry, though....she gets the really hot guy in exchange for her pains.

Book one "Bulletproof Izzy" (that's a working title) is currently being written. I am on Chapter Five, and let me just tell you, Izzy is one smart cookie. She thinks of things I never could in her situation. The few people that have had the chance to read the manuscript have given me incredibly enthusiastic responses, which, let me tell you, is great for the confidence.

On this blog, I am going to avoid any spoilers, but will keep you informed on my writing process and any exciting developments in the publishing process. The book is scheduled to be finished in mid October, and will be sent out to publishers around December. I want to make sure they are only getting my most polished work. Feel free to ask any questions about my process, I am more than happy to share, as well as any questions about my characters and story line!! I will tell you as much as I can without spoiling it for the rest.

I look forward to hearing from anyone who happens to stumble across this page!!