New Release!!!

I'm so excited about my newest release! Unwanted Desire will be out on Tuesday! Doing the happy dance!!!! Be sure to check it out. www.phaze.com

Barb:)

New Release!

I am excited to announce that the 4th book in the Vespian Way will be released on October 2nd, 2012
Take a look at the cover!!! I love it!!!

Writing Down the Bones

So let's get into the post I wrote last time. How do you start a manuscript? There are so many different ways. I have friends who use post-it notes or index cards to plot out their books. They might write one word on the card but it helps them figure out the flow of their stories.

That doesn't work for me. I like to let my characters take me on a journey, and I have found if I try using the style I mention in the last paragraph it kills my creative juices. So no matter how many strange looks I get from other writers I stick to my guns and let my characters tell me how the story is going to go.

Now don't get me wrong, I do plot, but I do it in my head. I normally start with a paragraph or two of how the story is going to go. Then I start writing. I might not know every scene I'm going to put in the book as I go but I have found I never write something into the story that I have to throw out later. My characters never steer me wrong.

Writing in layers

I'm what they call a pantser. I don't plot out my story before I start writing. To me that takes away form the joy of writing. I seem to write from beginning to end. That is the way all my stories come to me. Have I had scenes pop in my head out of sequence? Sure. But they normally stay in the back of my head waiting for their turn. I think that is what makes some of my scenes so visual. The longer they sit the more detailed they come out.

You see I write the bones of the story first. Mostly all dialog with a few descriptions if I have them. That is my rough draft. Then I go back and read the book to make sure it flows, you connected all the dots. Add scenes if I need them. Then I go through again to flush it out the way it should be. Then I go through one or two more times to give it a good polish.

Each of us have a different way of doing things and this one seems to work the best for me.

hectic two months

I've been trying to blog a couple of time each month but have been lagging behind. I do have lots of excuses though. My niece got married, my son graduated from high school was sick for about seven days and went out of town for the forth of July.

I do promise to do better now.

Barb:)

The Things People Do

As a writer I watch people. You never know what you can use in a book. My day job, though, is in retail. I'm a manufacturer's rep with the military exchanges. Basically I'm a glorified stocker. I fill up the products I represent. What I have found interesting - and I'm guilty of it too - is the way people migrate to where I'm working. The isle I go to could have been empty for hours. No one cared what was down it, but let me have a cart stacked with items I need to put on shelves and everyone and their uncle will be walking up and down the isle I'm on. They'll ask if they can get by instead of walking around. They'll ask me if I know where something is or what the price is of something.

I find it funny. We all have the mentality of 'ohhh, wonder what she's putting out - I need to see'. We are a curious bunch, aren't we?

Barb:)

New Cover!!!

I have gotten My new cover for book three of the Vespian Way - Animal Desire - The book is due out at the end of this month through Phaze. I am so excited! Now I have to finish the edits on book four and send it off - almost there - only have about forty pages to go now.

Editing Heck!

I am slowly losing my mind with all the things I have to do all the sudden. Life was nice and quite. Had plenty of time to work on my fourth book. Then the publisher I edit for asked me to work on two short stories. Sure no problem. It should be easy. Then the owner asked me if I could work on a longer manuscript. I should be done with the short stories pretty quickly  - I can do that. Then my next release hit my e-mail. So now I'm suddenly editing three stories at the same time.

I finished the short stories. Which did help - but I'm working on my sixth book in the series too so I have four books open and keep shifting from story to story to work on what I can - deadlines are looming and my brain is melting.

Brain Freeze

You know I get these moments when I don't know what to write. I'm not talking about my books - my characters keep me writing so there is no problem there - it is writing things like this blog. It's like my brain just goes 'urk' - let's talk about warm fuzzy kittens. Really? That is all you can come with?

I blame it on all the writing I've been doing for other blogs - with three books coming out in five months I've been trying to do as much promoting my tiny budget can handle and a lot of the blogs are great for that. I seem to be able to get those done but when it comes to my own little blog I falter. Oh well. I'm sure it will get better.

Lottery Winners

Well I didn't win the record breaking lottery. Not even in the same states as the three winners. It's okay though. Each time I buy my tickets I still get to dream about what I'd do when I do win. I do have dreams like all of us do and as long as I have those dreams I'm good.