Combating blank screen anxiety

**Attempt #4 at getting this posted; bloody Internet issues**

Having participated in NaNoWriMo for 11 years running, I've gotten fairly good at jumping head first into first drafts without knowing much of anything.  However, the blank screen still taunts me with its blinking curser, telling me I don't know what I'm doing, and that this draft is going to suck.

But you know what?  That's okay.  First drafts are allowed to suck, because the biggest point to that very first sentence is to write it.  It doesn't matter what you write, just write.  Whether you start off with a page worth of ranting about how this is going to be the worst thing ever written, or start with a perfectly coined sentence; the important part is that you're writing.  You're putting pen to paper, or keystroke to screen, and you are telling that niggling voice of doubt that it can stuff it.

First drafts are just what they sound like, beginnings.  Once you've given your story something to work with you can go back and fix everything you omitted, or forgot.  But get that first, sucky draft done.  Bite your thumb at the voice of doubt, and pound out the vision in your head.

And once you've finished that draft, treat yourself to a drink; because even a really shoddy rough draft is quite a step down the path of writing a fully functional story.

<3 Lacie J

Current projects:

Two Darkest Mercy stories, and something winter holiday themed :3

Those silent months, in summary

Since it's been quite a few months between posts, I figured I'd take this post and babble about some of the things I've been up to, and give you a few mini reviews of my recently read books. 

~*~

Back in January, and again in March, I had the pleasure of attending showings for the Donmar Warehouse's 'Coriolanus' thanks to National Theater Live's worldwide broadcast.  Not only did this allow me to see a fantastic adaptation of a Shakespeare play performed in London, and meet fellow Shakespeare fans, it also gave me the opportunity to fangirl over the acting abilities of Mark Gatiss, Hadley Fraser, and Tom Hiddleston. :3 

Then, at the end of March, I got to enjoy the exhausting, box filled, process of moving into a new apartment.  So many boxes of books to haul up a flight of stairs. XP I can honestly say that moving I'd the only time I hate having as prolific a reading habit as I do.

Also during the past few months I've been able to attend book signings for Brandon Sanderson, Laini Taylor, Charlaine Harris, Laurell K Hamilton, Alice Clayton, Ruthie Knox, Monica Murphy, Tiffany Reisz, and Andrew Shaffer.

Now that we're all caught up on the mundane happenings of my life, onto some mini book reviews!

~*~

I picked this one up at the dollar store while visiting my mum, because I'd already finished the book I took down with me, and was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it.  The first 75, or so, pages dragged a bit, and almost had me putting the book aside; but once I made it through the world building/stage setting the pace picked up, and the story became more engrossing and enjoyable.

Norse mythology, and two of my favorite authors, together in one book?  Sign me up!

I adored this book and its romp through a present day world populated with reincarnated gods.  Fast paced with the well balanced characters and plot I've come to expect from both Marr and Armstrong, this was a fantastic introduction to a new MG series.

I was completely predisposed to loving this book, being that I'm a former writer, though still a reader, of slash fanfiction, and a self admitted fangirl.  That being said, this novel was a fantastic blend of laugh out loud humor and the gut wrenching struggle to find yourself amidst the often times frightening world of adulthood.

~*~

Come Wednesday I'll be talking current projects, and how I approach the nerve wracking blank page of first drafts.

<3 Lacie J

Sorry

I've got no excuse for my lengthy absence:  that being said, I'm sorry about going silent on this particular branch of my social media. <3

I'm working on an actual, official post for Monday; so, I'll see you then!

Lacie J

*photographic proof I'm still alive*

Happy October!

It's now officially October, which means two things:

One; Halloween is EVERYWHERE!  We're talking bats and pumpkins, spiders and witches, and I'm loving every single minute of it.  I love Halloween, in case you've somehow missed the memo/tweets/tumblr reblogs/etc.  And in honor of this wonderful season, I'll be spamming you *coughs* posting all sorts of things related to my favorite time of year.

Two; NaNoWriMo is officially almost here!  Thirty-one days before all of the world's Wrimos buckle down, and write those masterful 30-day-novels.  2013 marks my tenth years of NaNo, and hopefully my seventh win.  Also, this year I'm stepping up as co-ML (Municipal Liaison for the non-NaNo savvy) in my region.  So expect lots of NaNo babble here, and don't forget to grab your popcorn to watch the rapid loss of my coherency as November progresses. ;P

Along the NaNo lines, October also marks the beginning of Crunch-tober; a wonderful month wherein many Wrimos begin 'practicing' their daily word count skills by answering daily writing prompts.  As co-ML, and an all around crazy person, I will be participating in Crunch-tober this year, and will be posting some of my daily responses every Thursday for everyone's amusement.

Other than that, round one of edits for Connect have been completed and returned to LT3, and I'm ridiculously happy both with the edits I received via their editor, and with the tweaking I did.  I still think there's some growth necessary before it's ready to be released, but we're well on our way now.

And, we're back

Wow, it's been a bit, hasn't it?  My apologies for 'slacking' in my blogging, I've had a hectic couple of months in regards to the non-writing portion of my life.  But I'm back now, I promise, so let's get on with it.  :P

My 'Love Has No Boundaries' short is in the final stages of formatting prior to being posted up on Goodreads' M/M Romance group, and I'm actually quite pleased with the way it turned out, even if it is a tad short.  The two main characters were such a delight to work with, even when they pissed me off by refusing to do what I wanted them to do.  I can definitely see myself revisiting them later to prod more of their lives out of them.  And yes, I will be posting a link to the story's thread once it's released; I might even post the story here after a while, for those who aren't members of the group.

I've also been working on several new ideas for a variety of stories:  a pair of vampires who enjoying surfing, my poor cursed flower Calliopsis, a young man named after one of Shakespeare's great tragedies, and a bitter retail employee stuck helping entitled university students.

Oh!  I almost forgot, Put You in a Song, my second short story with Less Than Three Press, is due to be released in their serial line up next month.  Put You in a Song takes place around a year after the events in Rock 'n Roll Seraphim, and while AJ and Z are in it, it features the band's drummer Rich and his try at finding love.  I had a lot of fun putting words to Rich's story, and can't wait to delve back into the characters who make up this world.

*hums and skips back to rewriting The Prince's Flower*

The Next Big Thing Blog Hop

The Next Big Thing

So a couple of weeks ago I was tagged by the wonderful and amazing Eddie Louise in The Next Big Thing Blog Hop, and yes, it did take me that long to get this written, I'm a busy girl, so sue me. :P  Anyway, The Next Big Thing is a rather long running, world wide blog hop that takes people to a variety of author's, self-pub, unpublished, and published, blogs, and asks each author to answer a series of 10 easy questions. 

And these are my responses to said questions:

What is the working title of your next book?

Message in a Bottle was the initial working title, but recently I’ve taken to calling it Connect; of course, I’m also writing a short fairytale called The Prince's Flower at the same time. You know, to make sure I don't get bored. XD

Where did the idea come from for the book?

I’m what's commonly known as a pantser in the writing world. What this means is, I don't often have anything beyond a name, or the very foggiest of ideas when I start writing: that being said, Connect came into being when I tried to think of a different twist to the whole message in a bottle trope.

The Prince's Flower? That one was inspired by too much alcohol and a Grimm fairytale.

What genre does your book fall under?

The biggest genre any of my current writing falls under would be m/m fiction.  For the unitiated who have stumbled across my blog via this hop, or a lurker who hasn't figured it out yet; m/m essentially means what it looks like, it's a story that is about two men, and generally speaking, has a romantic twist to it.

 I write stories in a lot subgenres, fantasy, paranormal, contemporary, but they inevitably focus on the LGBT side of things; because, come on, everyone deserves their happy ending, don't they?

What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition?

I think I might be a freak of nature among authors because I very rarely find myself hunting down pictures of real people to play my characters.  That being said, I've got no clue who I would chose to play the part of anyone in a movie rendition.  Sorry *shrugs* just not my thing.

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Connect:  17 year old Elijah struggles to come to terms with being gay, and being true to his faith, while living in a small Midwestern town.

The Prince's Flower:  Cursed by a witch for his callous behavior, Calliopsis laments ever finding someone worth the struggle of breaking his curse.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

Both will hopefully be represented, if not by my current publisher LT3, by another of the LGBT friendly publishers out there.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript?

30 days; NaNoWriMo 2012 to be precise, for Connect; 2 days for The Prince's Flower, give or take.  

Now editing that first, initial draft?  So much longer. XD

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

With Connect, I'm not sure, I've yet to come across another that is attempting to go about it the way I am.  I don't mean that I'm all uber unique and special, but I really haven't seen anything quite like it in the m/m spectrum yet.  In more mainstream teen, and adult fiction, yes, but m/m?  Haven't found it.

As for The Prince's Flower, LT3 has a line called Fairy Tales Slashed which takes well known, and not so well known, fairy tales and kind of twists them around.

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

One of my cousins and my two youngest siblings actually. My cousin is gay, and recently took his relationship with his boyfriend to the next level as much as he could in current politics. And my siblings, I wanted to write something that would show that you could be gay and Christian, and still whole heartedly believe in God, even when the world around you believed you were going to Hell.

This is all regarding Connect, The Prince's Flower was honestly spawned via a drunken Twitter conversation with LT3's CEO...nothing special or moving about that, just alcohol induced stupidity and her love for fairytales.

What else about the book might pique the reader's interest?

Connect is definitely more of a coming of age teen-ish story, and I think it might be an easier drift from mainstream than some of my other work.  Kind of a m/m light story. ^^;;

Meanwhile, The Prince's Flower is a mostly lighthearted romp out in fairytale land where everyone is guaranteed to live happily ever after.

*

I'm tagging Talya Andor, Sandra Bard, May Ridge, and Alessandra Ebulu.  Was going to tag Shayla Mist, but someone got to her first, but go check out her response to the 10 questions anyway. :3

Happy blog hopping!

**ps - check out Thomas Cardin's reply to the 10 questions too!

Obligatory birthday post

Yup, it's my birthday today, and what am I doing?  Well, I went to lunch with my Da and Granpa, had a slice of cake, got a whole pie to myself(which I'll be sharing...because I seriously don't need a whole pie to eat XD), got both my state and federal tax return direct deposited into my account(do you think it was on purpose? ;P), and now, now I'm putzing around online while working on an actual blog post for later this week.  Because I know reading my random babbling is not what you all want.  Right?

*nods*

In brief, writerly news, story #1 submission was rejected *sadface*, but I've got two more submissions going out this month, and am still waiting to hear back on story #2.  I'm hopeful that 1 out of 4 will make it further. ^^

Oh!  I'm also now part of an awesome weekly writing/critique group called the Barmy Drapers.  It's a new thing for me, since I've usually been a solitary sort of writer outside of NaNoWriMo, but since it's made up of fellow Wrimos it still carries some of that month's wildness.

*

In regards to reading:

I really enjoyed all three of the KMaM stories I've thus far purchased. :3 How About a Boyfriend was ridiculously cute, and awkward. <3 TT!  The Glass Coffin made me squee, because come on, Rostislav and Jesse!  And Retirement was a lovely forced to work together couple. ^^

I've also reread Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult, and The Warded Man by Peter V Brett.

*

Now, back to writing, and enjoying my pie.

<3

Taxes

Just finished, and submitted, my taxes!  Hurrah for being way ahead of the game this year and not procrastinating until April *coughs* like last year.  So now that that's out of the way, back to writing when I should be sleeping. XD  I've got a meeting with one of my writer's groups later too...huh, maybe I should put the characters to bed and flop into my nest next to my Tonkie kitty...he looks lonely all curled up in my nest all alone...right, bed time for me, so I can be all bright eyed and bushy tailed for some serious writing at Panera later...mmm Panera....

Pre-order, writing, and general nonsense

Rock 'n Roll Seraphim is now available for pre-order up on the LT3 site!  I can't even begin to describe the nervous jitters, and niggling feeling of doubt, that are dancing through me right now.  I'm super excited to be able to officially tell all of my relatives, that yes, I am a published author, and no, they probably won't approve of the content/theme/etc of what I've written, and am going to continue to write; but you know what?  It doesn't matter what they think in the end, because I'm ecstatic, and I'm doing what I've always dreamt of doing, so family, if you're reading this, I love you all, but yes, I do write stories about boys falling in love with other boys.  Sometimes more than one at a time even!

*coughs* Right, back to our regularly scheduled blog...

I've been slowly continuing to work on editing and fixing up my NaNo, but the boys, and the world, are being quite the pain in the arse.  And to be honest, my productivity this week has been really bad.  I don't think I've managed to write more than 5000 words total in between doctor's appointments, retail madness, and this stupid My Little Pony game my roomie got me addicted to.  XD  But I did send out a silly little short that's vaguely Valentine's Day themed, and am still awaiting the verdict on my other submission still out there.

In book reading related news, I've been rereading Mira Grant's Newsflesh trilogy and assorted novellas, because I can always use a good cry over someone else's characters.  Mm, my pre-ordered purchases of The Glass Coffin by Megan Derr, Retirement by Sasha L Miller, and How About a Boyfriend? by TT Kove are downloaded and ready to be devoured; so expect some babbling about those three next time. :3

Other than that, we're prepping at work for some pretty big name authors in the next couple of months:  Brandon Sanderson, Robert Crais, Tahereh Mafi, Veronica Rossi, and Peter V Brett.  The bibliophile in me is thrilled to be able to have a chance to meet some of my authors, but the still exhausted from the holidays retail slave in me is, well, still exhausted. XD

I could swear I had more to babble about, but I'm pulling up a blank, so I guess I'll just get back to editing and writing, instead of procrastinating and blogging. :P

Sick but alive

Well, a week in and not much to say. I've spent all 7 days sick with some horrid plague that's caused me to lose my voice twice now. Lacie's not an amused author/retail slave. Have a drs appointment tomorrow to try to make the plague leave me alone.

Regardless of plague, I've written what I think is a freaking adorable fairy tale. It's goofy and cheesy, and has been freakishly fun to play with.

Course, I'm also working on editing 'Message in a Bottle'; my nano from this past November. And trying to ignore a dozen rampant plot bunnies bounding around in my head.

In reading worlds, I've stared Libba Bray's most recent novel, The Diviners; and am rereading Feed. I know, I know, I read it every year, but I do enjoy revisiting my favorite worlds; plus, I can still have fun and get writing done.

I'm off to dinner now, but I'll be back next week; promise.

<3 Lacie

Post-NaNo babblings

I've officially validated my monstrosity of a NaNo novel, and have cleared the 50K mark this year with 53021. *giddy dance of exhaustion*  I'm now so sick of that world and it's characters that I'm gleefully shoving them in corner until the middle of December. XD  It's not that I'm not happy with what I churned out, because I am, it's that I've spent 30 days in tight quarters with these boys and I need a freaking break from them.  Don't worry, come two weeks from now I'll allow them out of time out and begin rereading and seeing what all needs to be done to make the spaz rough into something I feel comfortable releasing on the world.

In the mean time, I've also managed somehow to write a really short story set in a resort in Hell...go figure where that one came from.  It's off with my pumpkin, and I'm hoping to have it back within a week to fix it up all nice for a free December read to offer everyone.  And no, I haven't forgotten about 'Peppermint', it's just got a ways to go before I'm less likely to cringe when I read it. ^^;  But I'm pushing for a Christmas week release on that too, and of course, it'll be free for you all, being that it's the holidays.

That's about all that's happening in the world outside of the hell that is retail at this time of year, and I promise not to bore you with that.  *scampers off to write more, so she'll have something to talk about in a week*

Best laid plans of mice...

I knew I had 3 separate projects already crammed into this month, and I was all set to deal with them; but then I get this e-mail saying I've had another story accepted, and that my contract is on its way...

*dances*

So, I've scrapped my initial timeline for October, and am hastily creating a new one to reflect the second story going through serious edits in the next 28 days.

I'm dead set of getting as much, if not all, of these 4 projects done before November because I know myself during NaNo, and while I can think fairly coherently for the first week or so, by the time I hit the middle of the month I'm a high caffeinated lunatic who spouts gibberish both out loud and via word.

Big news...coming soon!

So yup, I've got some big news in the works, and will be able to babble about it by the end of this lovely holiday weekend.  *dances around* I want to say something about it right now, but I don't want to jinx anything, so we'll be waiting a little bit longer before screaming across the internet. :3

In other news, as stated in one of my many brief updates story #2 was rejected; however, I've got plans to rewrite it and resubmit it to the publisher, and am hoping to have that done by the end of this year.  I even have a pile of index cards, multi-colored pens, and many highlighters to help with this task.

Halloween sip#1 is almost done, and I might try to write another one before the deadline.

Also, also, I've decided to tackle another deadline at the end of this month for a serial anthology focusing on rockstars.  Story #4 started my rockstar kick, and I'd love do give some attention to the secondary characters I met while writing it, so why not?  Can't hurt, can it?

^^

Story #1 for last month is getting a make over in prep for a Black Friday release via Smashwords.  It's short, so if I charge, it'll only be $.99, but I'm probably going to be doing some sort of Christmas special and offer it for free for a chunk of the month of December.  I've also got plans to get together with a photographer buddy of mine to create the cover, and possibly even take some new author pictures for profiles.

I think that's all the news I've got right now, and don't forget, big news by Monday!  Promise!

*scampers back to her writing*

Short cuz Lacie's tired :P

Accomplished so far; editing run thru of story#4, created grocery list in planner, cuddled tonks, stabbed at blurb, wrote 1.2K for Halloween story#1, and putzed around the interwebz reading inane things...success?

*crawls into bed*

Something to do with my hands

Okay, so it's definitely not Monday.  Nor is it the week I swore I was going to post the more extensive blog; but, I'm going to at least get something longer than 140 characters posted tonight.

~

Updates in the world of writing:

I had 4 deadlines for story submissions this month, the first of which has already come back with a rejection. That's okay with me honestly, because it means I've now got a Christmas themed story I can off for free download come Black Friday. ^^  You heard me correct *frowns* or read me correctly...?  Anywho, as a result of Peppermint being rejected from the anthology it was created for, I now have a 5400 word short story that's all pretty.  Just need to create a cover for it and give it one more read through for editing purposes, and it'll be released into the wide world of the interwebz in a few months.

Story #2 is currently out, awaiting a verdict.  *crosses fingers*

Story #3 went to the editors of awesomeness last night.  *frets*

Story #4, well, we've been having some issues.  I had it almost completed, and ready for the editors, when my technology decided it wasn't worthy, and proceeded to delete it from all save points.  I'm still not sure how my laptop, desktop, and flash drive coordinated this mass deletion; however, this means I've been forced to start from scratch on story #4.

So, we started over, and it's taken a complete different direction.  Only the theme has stayed the same, everything else is entirely new.  ^^;

*yawns*

I've got some book recommendations I want to babble about, but I think those are going to have to wait for tomorrow after work.  I'm sleepy, and I have to be up in a little over five hours for work.

*toddles off with a wave*

Real update coming, I swear!!

Okay, so here's the thing:

I'm really bad about maintaining a steady, full blog update schedule - REALLY BAD - but, now that I've returned from the mania of 'must-write-this-all-now' land I've decided that I'm going to try my damnedest to create at least a once a week actual update here.  This plan will be going into affect either tomorrow evening, or Monday.

Sure, you'll still be getting all of my random tweet length gibberish filled updates from my phone at random intervals; plus, you'll also be getting these fantastic, well thought out, philosophical *coughs* Alright, they'll probably still be chock full of gibberish and nonsense, but at least they'll be longer than a tweet?

*nods* So that's the plan, now let's see how long I manage to keep it up...

To Be Continued...

Forward momentum plans

I've spent a chunk of this afternoon setting up, and organizing, a Smashwords account for myself, with the plan that by the end of July I will have one of my rejected stories edited to sparkling prettiness and published via them.  *jitters*  Two of my semi willing slaves *coughs* editors are working with me to make this goal attainable with the least amount of blood and tears - hopefully.

Once it's up and available to the general public I'll have a link to it to post here, for all two of you who regularly pop in to read the babble that I tend to post here.  Maybe I'll see what has to be done to create a giveaway on goodreads, and give away a copy or two to unsuspecting victims readers, I meant readers. ^^;;

Still sending stories out to the slightly more conventional publishing routes as I do all this too, so sooner or later something's going to click, I hope...

Alive, and well, though still living in rejection land

I'm still here, I swear...really...I just got distracted by the shiny things called books and kind of fell off the face of the interwebz. ^^;;

In the world of writing we have no major updates; all previously sent out pieces have come back with lovely little rejection notes. *pouts* At least I'm getting lots of practice writing synopsis' and query letters.  Three new submissions I'm hoping to get drafted in June, so they can be edited and ready to be sent out in September/October.  I've signed up for June's Camp NaNoWriMo in hopes that it'll kick my ass into gear and get me to get at least 50K of one, or a mix of all three, of those new projects written in rabid *coughs* I mean rapid abandon.

In the non-writing world; I'm working AM2 next month in an attempt to slowly ease myself back into the convention circles.  It ought to be interesting to say the least. ^^

I'm also traveling up to San Francisco for the weekend next weekend for my Dad's most recent graduation.  That man never stops going to school. XD

So yeah, that's a brief update on where, and what I've been doing, or not doing since April - I'll have more frequent updates (spam, it's going to be a lot of spam on my current word count and other NaNo related babble) of a sort come June's Camp NaNo start.  Promise.

I don't really have a title for this...

Well, I just sent out my third story for this year. ^^ It's still in the very, very, very rough stages, and definitely needs some more attention, I mean love; but, it's out with the anthology editor as I continue working with it.

So far I've had a rather productive year in the world of writerly pursuits.  Nothing published as of yet, but we're not giving up!  I have myself a awesome group of motivational, yet sometimes violent cheerleaders waiting on my sidelines with noise makers and cattle prods.

Alternately, in the bibliophile side of my world I have successfully, or unsuccessfully, read the first two of the Fifty Shades trilogy that has been causing such a ruckus recently. :P  I'm not sure if I should be proud of myself for this, or ashamed.

Currently though, I am reading two insanely awesome books -

I will have more in-depth reviews once I complete them, but thus far they are insanely awesome in my book. <3