Just keep moving (an elegant lesson in how story works)

From the brilliant creative team at Olympus:

"This is the PEN Story in stop motion. We shot 60,000 pictures, developed 9,600 prints and shot over 1,800 pictures again. No post production! Thanks to all the stop motion artists who inspired us. We hope you enjoy."

I definitely did! Especially the great music and lyrics by Johannes Stankowski. (Download song for free at http://olympus.eu/penstory.)

Taking Time to Celebrate

You can only be in one of two places when you're writing for a living: on deadline or unemployed. Today, however, I'm celebrating the precise moment of transition, specifically, that blessed moment of completion.

I'm not really finished, I know. There'll be a read-through with self-guided tweakage, comments from a couple of critique partners (if they can swing the time) and resultant helpful changes, and I'm sure the editor will come up with great suggestions to make the story sharper. But the fact is, the story, a novella, is finished -- a beginning, middle, and an end on paper -- and there's not a better feeling in the world.

So I'm taking this evening to revel in it, celebrating with a little 1/2-fat ice cream (I want to live large, not get larger), playing with my dogs, and watching a little Animal Planet until it's time to hit the hay. No fireworks or fanfares needed, no wild parties or confetti. It's the internal satisfaction of the moment that makes the work worthwhile.

How do you celebrate the completion of a draft? Or do you simply see it as one part of the equation rather than an end in itself.

Eat, pray, live (God's place in one writer's life)

Malachi and Jerusha flew into New York from Tel Aviv this morning, weary but thrilled after a few days wandering the streets, seeing the sights, and hitting the holy hookah bars of Jerusalem.

"Mom," said Malachi, "it was Jesus and Jew stuff all over the place. You would have been bawling the whole time."

It's true. I'm sentimental when it comes to the traditions of Judaism and the teachings of Jesus, my Rabbi, who tried so hard -- and died so hard -- trying to tell us one thing: Love one another. Unable to find an organized religion that doesn't make exceptions to that golden rule, I've invented my own sincere but certainly flawed brand -- Jewbuddhistianity -- and developed a quirky little set of rituals over the years.

Robert Wright's fascinating new book The Evolution of God begins with this:

The Chukchee, a people indigenous to Siberia, had their own special way of dealing with unruly winds. A Chukchee man would chant, “Western Wind, look here! Look down on my buttocks. We are going to give you some fat. Cease blowing!” The nineteenth-century European visitor who reported this ritual described it as follows: “The man pronouncing the incantation lets his breeches fall down, and bucks leeward, exposing his bare buttocks to the wind. At every word he claps his hands.”

My own rituals aren't as literally embarrassing, but probably appear almost as odd to casual observers. They make sense to me, however, and they do what rituals are supposed to do (contrary to the "do this or get smited" orthodoxy that basically employs ritual as crowd control), and they're an important part of my writing life.

Some rituals calm me, the way a child is calmed by the silky edge on a flannel security blanket. Whenever I FedEx anything -- starting fifteen years ago with queries and now proposals, finished manuscripts, and galleys -- I kiss the package, press it to my forehead, and say, "God's hand." Acknowledging this moment of letting go keeps me from obsessing over what the recipient is going to say or do about the enclosed material. Whatever their response, I know I'll be all right, because I believe in both the benevolent slipstream of the universe and in my own ability to navigate whatever whitewater is ahead. The Tao te Ching says, "Do your work, then step back." This is one way I try to do that.

Other rituals function as a string-around-the-finger reminder of something that too often fades out of sight, out of mind. Whenever my husband or I receive a paycheck, the other person kisses the payee and says, "My breadwinner! Thank you for everything you do for our family." We say these words with joy, gratitude, and genuine eye contact. We both work incredibly hard, and it feels good to remember why we do what we do. My checks tend to be a lot bigger than Gary's but are way fewer and far between. I relish hearing those words from the ol' Bear, and my response is a silent prayer of gratitude for one of the most potent assets any artist can have: a solidly supportive life mate. It takes serious fortitude to stay married to a writer. I'd like to think I could have made it without him, but I can't imagine how, and I know I wouldn't have been a fraction as happy.

I believe in prayer, a concerted focus of good will, so every night for the last several months, I've been lighting a candle for one of my critique partners with the plea, "God of Abraham, you gave water to Hagar in the wilderness. Please send this worthy woman a literary agent." Sometimes there's not much else you can do in the face of the inequities of this business. My friend is a wonderfully talented author -- as she keeps hearing from the agents who keep requesting manuscripts and loving what they see, but for reasons I truly can't fathom, keep turning out close but no cigar. If there was something more concrete I could do to help her, I would. If nothing else, I hope the ritual makes her feel loved and believed in.

I have several little rituals that physically anchor me to an intangible belief I can't afford to drift away from. It used to be when I'd do a speaking gig or face an important meeting, after I did my makeup, I'd look at myself disdainfully and say, "Why am I here?" When I realized the undermining and stupid effect of that habit -- which had become an involuntary little ritual -- I gave myself a spiritual slap upside the head and purposely replaced it with something positive and powerful. Now before I walk out of the hotel room, I face myself in the mirror and say, "Because I'm JONI FUCKING RODGERS. That's why." And then I add a heartfelt "Fwayaweh!" or "Tawanda!" or something like that. If we don't believe in ourselves with what Colleen calls the "kernel of arrogance", how are we supposed to get up in the morning and take the slings and arrows of the biz? I am who I am. I do what I do. God's hand is on me. Screw the naysayers. Amen.

The writing life -- and any life, I would hope -- is a continuing cycle of genesis and revelations with a rich collection of poetry and stories in between. Faith in some form is an integral part of the journey. Anyone else care to share their writing rituals? I'd love to hear from you so I don't feel like a big Chuckchee with my bare fanny in the breeze.

Meanwhile, may the Lord make his face to shine upon you.

(Click here to read more from "The Primordial Faith" and other excerpts from The Evolution of God on Robert Wright's website.)

Murder by the Book Signing

Now that I have your attention, this Saturday at 4:30 PM at Houston's Murder by the Book, I'll be signing, along with Christie Craig (Gotcha!), TJ Bennett (The Promise), and Kerrelyn Sparks (Secret Life of a Vampire). Please come and play if you're in the area! We'd love to meet you.

Well, Duh. Of course We're Smart

Over at USA Today, they're acknowledging the smartitude of certain women writers. Romance writers (gasp.)

We're like all surprised. (Wink)

Thanks to author Jill Monroe for the link.

Pictured, Ivy league Professor Mary Bly, a.k.a. romance author Eloisa James, who writes brilliant historical romances. And no, she's not the only one.

A Mom, a Soldier in Iraq, and a Busy Writer: Meet Jessica Scott

Many military romance writers have service in their background, but Jessica Scott has the freshest view around. Both a mother and a career soldier in the United States Army, she’s currently deployed, along with her military husband, in Iraq .

But that hasn’t stopped her from writing. Jessica blogs about her experiences, tweets on Twitter, and recently placed her romantic suspense manuscript War’s Darkest Fear, in the capable hand of super agent Kim Whalen of Trident Media.

Fascinated with Jessica’s personal story, I asked her to come visit us at Boxing the Octopus to answer a few questions.

BtO: Welcome to the blog, Jessica, and thank you so much for being with us. Having written stories featuring characters returning from the war zone, I’m especially interested in hearing about your take on life as a woman in the military.

First of all, can you tell us a little about what you’re up to at the moment and where you’re located?

JS: Thanks so much for having me! I'm recently back from R&R and am in Mosul, Iraq. I'm a Signal officer, which means I work on the communications network for my brigade. As far as writing goes, I'm rewriting, from scratch, my very first novel, hoping to get back to the original idea that sparked it: a soldier/mom who's lost her spouse in the Iraq war but continues to serve, despite being a single mom.

BtO: Sounds like a great concept. And thank goodness for the Internet, and for men and women willing to serve our country at home and abroad. If it’s not too personal, how do you and you husband handle the family situation?

JS: I admit to becoming somewhat of an Internet addict during my deployment. Thank God for Skype, I get to call home to the kids (both girls, age 2 and 4) on a fairly regular basis. My husband is deployed over here in Mosul with me and even though we work opposite shifts, just getting to see him for a few minutes every day makes a huge difference in my morale. The girls are really doing great. My mom assures me that there are some rough days and my oldest doesn't quite know what to do with her emotions sometimes, but the relatively constant phone calls and web cam sessions seem to help. This is the first time I've deployed away from the kids but my husband's third deployment. We kept in touch via email and web cams when we could and it really helped when he finally did come home. Overall, the constant deployments have made us both realize the importance of time with each other and our children.

BtO: Thanks so much, and it's great that you have such strong family support.

Which came first for you, the military or an interest in writing novels? And what special challenges do those two competing career paths create in your life?

JS: I've been a soldier since I was eighteen. I joined the army right out of high school and never looked back but I've always written, too. When I went to Officer Candidate School in 2007, I had an idea for a story and it just kept coming, forming my first (now under the bed) book After the War. I decided after finishing it that hey, why not become a writer (but of course New York would love this book: it was crap and never should have gone out but what else to we unpublished writers have if not faith in our own work). And I've kept writing almost daily ever since. As far as special challenges, I'm sure one most folks can relate to is the need for time. While I'm still unpublished, it's hard to explain to my husband the need to get pages done when there's only the deadline in my head. And I chose a pen name to write under because I'm an army officer and therefore, I need to be more careful with things I say in a public forum. Even though I do write under a pen name, I still remain conscious of what I say in public because of my obligations as an officer.

BtO: On the flip side, what special advantages does your military career offer you as a writer?

JS: I've been told by other authors that my characters and writing is very real. I spend a lot of time around men, so I have a perspective from the guys I hang out with that differs from someone who hasn't walked in my boots. I'm by no means an expert on all things army but the thing I've learned the most is that our men and women in uniform are just people like every one else. I've got an inside glimpse into the army life and a life impacted by Iraq and Afghanistan. I think that gives me the ability to put a little more reality into my characters because most of their traits are inspired by the men and women around me. I also have a different perspective regarding the roles of women in combat arms versus women in combat than some folks who haven't worn the uniform. My military experiences have shaped how I see the world. I didn't realize how differently I saw things from civilians until I joined the Austin RWA and met the most fantastic group of writers out there. They've taken me under their collective wing and helped me out as I've grown as a writer and I wouldn't be nearly as sane if not for their support while I've been over here.

BtO: I agree that RWA chapters can make an incredible difference for aspiring and published authors!

How did you manage to not only write but attract the attention of an agent while bouncing around between the US and the sandbox?

JS: Stubbornness, pure and simple. And the desire NOT to tell my husband that you know, that writer, thing? I'm giving up (especially not after he bought me a Macbook so I could have Scrivener). Seriously, though, I had finally accepted the advice of my critique partner and STOPPED shopping my book with agents. I'd gotten a great rejection letter from an editor and I sat on it for a while. Then I sat down with a member of the Austin RWA who helped me get the book that is now War's Darkest Fear into shape. Contrary to what people might think, there's a whole lot of hurry up and wait in the army, so the time I had, I either read or wrote.

I won't lie and tell you there have been periods of time where I was simply too busy to write but for the most part, I tried to write every day after my first month in theater and kept that trend going until I went on R&R. I just kept at it. You can't succeed if you give up and I knew landing an agent would happen, it just took time: first to get my book into the right shape, then to find the right one.

BtO: With so much hurry up & wait in publishing, maybe the army's a good training ground!

Care to tell us a little about War’s Darkest Fear, the manuscript your agent is currently shopping?

JS: She's not shopping it yet. We're waiting until after the summer break in publishing but I'm excited at the prospect. Fear is a wounded GI story but I tackled it from the fear that I heard a lot around the army. The fear of losing a limb is more than just flesh. It's losing the ability to be in the army. The normalcy that life in the army brings. So my main character has nothing in his life but the army and must confront the reality of life without the army that defines him. And the woman that cares for him has her own challenges to over come in allowing herself to care for a man who's first love is the army.

BtO: Sounds like a wonderful story; I'll be in line to read that one for sure.

Do you have any concerns about the reaction of your fellow soldiers and commanding officers once the book makes it into print? (Thinking positively here!)

JS: I'm sure there will be people who troubleshoot my writing as inaccurate or wrong or dismiss it as 'trashy romance'. I have changed some aspects to add to the drama, but for the most part, I try to stick with reality as it's been defined for me in the units I've been a part of. One of the reasons I chose a pen name is because I don't want to advertise that hey, this is me and I don't want it to distract from my mission but I also haven't hidden my writing from my unit and I'm not going to lie about it. Mostly, I simply hope they read it before they form an opinion on it. But there will alway be negativity and those who seek to pull people down. I just hope the people who like my book outweigh those who don't. Plus, I'm pretty pro soldier in my books and I hope that giving people insight into the motivations of the soldiers who make up the army will only be a good thing for the army.

BtO: You have a terrific attitude!

Thanks so much for joining us, Jessica. We’ve been delighted to get to know you a little and wish you the very best, both in your writing career and current deployment. Stay safe and keep us posted on your progress! And BtO readers, if you have questions or comments for Jessica, she'll pop back to respond as she's able.


JS: Thanks so much for having me! I'm so grateful for the chance to tell your readers a little about my work, both as a writer and as a soldier. I'm looking forward to reading your latest, Beneath Bone Lake!

The Author as Orchard

Of all the wisdom conferred by Joni Rodgers, one of the most meaningful to me has been the statement, "You are an orchard, not a factory."

Ever year about this time, I need the reminder, especially as I gear up for RWA's national conference. I love this annual meeting, which offers a terrific chance to meet with my agent, visit with writer friends, pick up important news, and absorb some terrific tips, tricks, and the general creative vibe that permeates the air.

But confession time... the conference also tends to make me anxious. As is the case with most authors, I have a competitive Type A personality lurking beneath my cell-thin layer of Zen cool, and, surrounded by all these super-accomplished, incredibly productive and successful women makes me feel like a fraud, a slacker, and a slowpoke.

Intellectually, I know I'm not. I know that out of the attendees, there are a good many who would give a kidney to reach my level of success and productivity. I also know there are people going through such tough times, I should be smacked into the next ZIP code for daring to feel crappy. But that's the way it is, and I'm told that nearly everyone, from the newest of the newbies to New York Times bestsellers, struggles with the same emotions.

So I remind myself, I'm flowering and bearing fruit. I might not be mass-producing mega-hits, but I'm soaking in the rain and sunshine and creating my own unique stories in my season, no one else's. And that's all I have to give the world.

So what about the rest of you? Ever struggle with these feelings? If so, how do you cope?

The Red Tent (thoughts on the canonization of literature)

My kids are off to Israel this week, which got me thinking about Anita Diamant's lovely novelThe Red Tent, which led me to this illuminating introduction, which led me to online litmag ToThinkIsHuman.com, and God only knows where I go from here...

Standing the Test of Time

In honor of the day, I give you an example of writing that absolutely stands the test of time, mainly written by Thomas Jefferson. Today, I read these words -- really read them as if for the first time -- and marveled that more than two centuries later, I could absolutely feel the author's and signers' outrage, indignation, grief, honor, and pride. Every word is steeped in thoughtful the strongest of emotions, tempered with thoughtful, sober restraint. Which makes sense, since each signer risked his life and the lives and fortunes of his family by affixing his name to this document.

I challenge you to read it today as I did, without anyone assigning it for homework, and really look at the Declaration not as some dry old document, but as the incredible piece of writing that it is.

IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776
The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America

When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their Public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected, whereby the Legislative Powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary Powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil Power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefit of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation, and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & Perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these united Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. — And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.

Happy Independence Day, America.

Road rash! Drama! Really tight pants! Viva le Tour!

It's the Super Bowl of bone-crunching, gut-wrenching human endeavor, the one sporting event I can't keep my eyes off every year. High drama at hot speed, tight corners in tight britches, gorgeous spectators in haut couture and crazy Fellini cast costumes. The Tour de France kicks off in Monaco tomorrow. A quick overview of the grueling three-week course:


The Gare Bear was big into bike racing when I met him (back when dinosaurs ruled the earth, but I still remember that bike-racing backside with wistful fondness as we work the daily crossword puzzle...) Decades later, I did a book that required extensive research on le Tour. Gary and I did a long driving trip through France, caught a couple of the mountain legs of the race, and got completely swept up in the history and drama of this amazing event.

Rather than my own ugly American paraphrase, here's l'histoire du Tour in quaint French-to-English from the Tour de France web site:

The line between insanity and genius is said to be a fine one, and in early 20th century France, anyone envisaging a near-2,500-km-long cycle race across the country would have been widely viewed as unhinged. But that didn’t stop Géo Lefèvre, a journalist with L’Auto magazine at the time, from proceeding with his inspired plan. His editor, Henri Desgrange, was bold enough to believe in the idea and to throw his backing behind the Tour de France. And so it was that, on 1 July 1903, sixty pioneers set out on their bicycles from Montgeron. After six mammoth stages (Nantes - Paris, 471 km!), only 21 “routiers”, led by Maurice Garin, arrived at the end of this first epic.

Having provoked a mixture of astonishment and admiration, le Tour soon won over the sporting public and the roadside crowds swelled. The French people took to their hearts this unusual event which placed their towns, their countryside and, since 1910, even their mountains, in the spotlight.

Le Tour has always moved with the times. Like France as a whole, it benefited from the introduction of paid holidays from 1936; it has lived through wars, and then savoured the “trente glorieuses” period of economic prosperity while enjoying the heydays of Coppi, Bobet, Anquetil and Poulidor; it has opened itself up to foreign countries with the onset of globalisation, and now finds itself at the forefront of the debate on the malaise afflicting world sport in general. Over a hundred years after its inception, le Tour continues to gain strength from its experience.

Shortcuts

Returning from vacation to a raft of Stuff That Needed Doing Pronto, I finally found what I've been looking for throughout the month of June. My focus. Gone was the luxury of reading, even skimming, every Yahoogroups digest (a brief scan of the subjects assured me I wasn't missing much but the usual RWA summer squabbling), the temptation to mess around on Facebook or tweet (over it) or obsess about the success of failure of the new book, and the time to kill with inane, addictive Internet games (do you hear me, Bejeweled?). Seduced away from my work in progress by the siren call of an unfinished historical, I'd dallied with a retool of a proposal that will never see the light of day. But really, I know now, I was stalling, stuck on the Hard Work stage of a manuscript I'd hoped to finish early and harder, riskier work of a scary-looking new proposal.

The truth of it, a truth I need to stencil in block letters on my office wall, if not my forehead, is this: There Are No Shortcuts. None. There is only hard, sustained work, seasoned with the unpredictable, incomprehensible "luck" of opportunity.

Certainly, this is the advice I want to tell aspiring authors every time I give a talk or workshop, what I ought to tell the newly-contracted or self-published or wannabees who seek me out looking for a hand up, what I need to tell myself the ten times a day I get distracted.

The hard work part isn't a necessary evil; it's a joy, too, and the hum of one's creative machinery is the soundtrack of progress. It's the sweat equity component of success.

So what do you do to keep yourself on track? Do you find, as I do, a brief vacation can reforge your focus? Or have you found another strategy that serves you as well?

Infinite so far and Kevin Guilfoile on the promise at the start of every great read

To be totally honest, I'm not as pie-eyed in love with David Foster Wallace or Infinite Jest as most of my fellow Infinite Summerians, but I'm hanging in there and keeping up with the page count. I said at the start, I thought I'd be a better reader and a better writer by the time I get to the end of this book, and one of the reasons is the great commentary on the Infinite Summer blog. Today, Kevin Guilfoile speaks to the all-important reader/author connection at the heart of a great read:

When I teach writing workshops I tell students that one of the biggest mistakes I think writers make, even some experienced writers, is not doing enough from the start to build the trust of the reader. Many writers seem to expect people will read their novel just because they wrote it, which is insane. Reading a novel of any kind requires a commitment and in a marketplace of infinite choices a novelist needs to convince the reader that he not only has a great story to tell but that he can be relied on to tell it well. And he has to do that immediately. He has to promise.

Watch the Feed Me sidebar for Infinite Summer updates and click here to know more about Kevin Guilfoile.

Here's a Great Contest - Win Rita Nominated Novels

Over at historical romance novelist TJ Bennett's IMHO blog, she's giving away baskets of this year's Rita-nominated romances (including a signed copy of my romantic suspense finalist, Triple Exposure.)

All it takes is a blog comment. Hop on over and check it out!