A Reader First

Every once in a while, I'll hear a writer say she's unable to read while working on her own projects. That always makes me gasp a little (at least to myself) for how else are we to refill the well of words from which we're drawing? Reality TV? I don't think so!

There are times, it's true, when I take a few days, perhaps even a couple of weeks (if I can hold out that long) for a little break from reading. Maybe I'm sick or tired or want to check out a few movies on DVD in the evenings, but it's never long before the well of words draws me back for a good, long drink.

Lately, I've been sipping at a lot of different flavors, reading everything from non-fiction (My Stroke of Insight by Jill Bolte Taylor, Ph.D) to mythology-based Young Adult (Sweet Venom by the talented Tera Lynn Childs) to the thoroughly delightful Lord & Lady Spy, a historical romance by Shana Galen. I've always read all sorts of fiction and non-fiction, so I thought I'd take a moment to ask for recommendations.

What have you been reading lately that you've really loved?

The Help....

Hey Everyone: I'd like to extend an invitation to drop in on my blog this morning. I've written a new post on my indie experience so far and included some links that were and continue to be sources of inspiration to me. I want to share as much of what I've learned and continue to learn as I go along, and I'd love to hear from you, to have the benefit of your input as authors, readers, agents, publishers, book sellers, and book publicists and anyone else who has an interest or a need for guidance. The book world is changing; it's an exciting time and like every new endeavor, it will only be as great as we make it. I'd love to hear from you!

In life, literature and publishing, it's all about the spiral staircase

When Gary and I were in Paris a couple weeks ago, we decided to rent a little apartment instead of staying in a hotel. We got a great place in Montmartre, just a hop skip from the des Abbesses subway station. A great little place, bigger than a hotel room, but cheaper. Slight drawback: it was a fourth floor walk-up. Traversing up and down each day, I kept thinking about what Karen Armstrong said about the spiral staircase: you keep coming around to the same place, but you're a level higher.

This is such an apt description of the novel writing process, an eloquent description, in fact, of any endeavor that requires that sort of constant effort and upward striving.

Karen Armstrong on the subject of fiction:

“...the experience of reading a novel has certain qualities that remind us of the traditional apprehension of mythology. It can be seen as a form of meditation. Readers have to live with a novel for days or even weeks. It projects them into another world, parallel to but apart from their ordinary lives. They know perfectly well that this fictional realm is not 'real' and yet while they are reading it becomes compelling. A powerful novel becomes part of the backdrop of our lives, long after we have laid the book asie. It is an exercise of make-believe that, like yoga or a religious festival, breaks down barriers of space and time and extends our sympathies, so that we are able to empathise with others lives and sorrows. It teaches compassion, the ability to 'feel with' others. And, like mythology, an important novel is transformative. If we allow it to do so, it can change us forever.”

Getting Computer Scenes Right: Where Hollywood's Steered You Wrong

One of the first things I did when moving from writing historical romance to romantic suspense was to tackle a plot that was dependent upon a high-tech twist. Naturally, I was tempted to rely on some of the uber-cool stuff I'd picked up from TV and the movies. Fortunately, I had learned from writing historicals that primary research (i.e.-getting information straight from the horse's mouth) is the only way to go if you are really concerned with accuracy. After conferring with an Intel engineer and having a forensic computer investigator review the relevant scenes pre-publication, Fatal Error was ready to roll.

From that experience, however, I quickly learned that Hollywood "uber-cool" is very often "uber-fudged." Need some specific examples? Check out this brief vid from Kim Komando ("The Digital Goddess.") And check out her radio show for some excellent real-world tips.

NYT on Kindle Singles (and my own reKindled love affair with books)

It's interesting that people who never thought they'd like Kindle come from both sides of the technochasm. There are those (like me) who had to be dragged away from the physical artifact - hardcover, endpapers, deckled edges - that are undoubtedly part of the book experience. Then there are those who have come of age in a computerized world, who think "chatting" happens when you hit ENTER and are entertained instead of mind-numbed by Angry Birds. They get their news, their friends and their written words on screens that get progressively smaller. In the middle of those two mindsets is Kindle. It's arguably the lowest tech ereader, which is why (IMHO) it continues to be the most successful.

As I've said in this space, I found myself reading less and less as my eyesight aged, stressed by long hours in front of the computer. Audio books and large print offered far less selections at a far higher price. When I got a Kindle, I was immediately taken back to the reading habits of my youth, consuming fiction like a woodchipper devours underbrush. The thing I most wanted was to read more. The thing I least wanted was more hours in front of a computer, and surprisingly, that's what a lot of web-saturated youthies want too.

Virginia Heffernan of the NYT says in her excellent article on Kindle Singles:

The Kindle in particular brought me the first moment of peace from Web noise that I’d had in a long time. True, I thought I loved the Web noise when the only alternative was to recede into analog culture — but I have adored the silence I’ve found on the Kindle. I never thought I’d back off the Web, but I have.

Getting Gun Scenes Right: Why Most Everything You Think You Know Is Wrong

While researching an action scene yesterday, I can across Cracked.com's fascinating post 5 Ridiculous Gun Myths Everyone Believes Thanks to the Movies. Whether or not you're writing scenes with weapons, this article is so funny and eye-opening (and illustrated with great videos) you're sure to enjoy it.

The moral of the story: you may not like, care about, or know much about guns (or whatever it is you're writing about), but if you don't do your homework, you're going to end up with a scene that's an eye-roller for a knowledgeable reader. And no one sets out to do that. Right?

The Language of Flowers: It isn't always about romance....

I have always loved words, their definitions, and in particular, the nuances of their definitions. I like fitting them together in interesting ways. I like the challenge of working out a sentence that will evoke in the reader a precise understanding of my meaning. It’s tricky because words can mean different things to different people. And as much as writing can be evocative of the gamut of emotions, taking a reader from cathedrals of awe to valleys of despair, it is limited and finite and sometimes there are no words. You may have experienced it, some situation or sensibility for which you had no words. Maybe that frustration is what prompted the creation of a language of flowers.

Sometimes called floriography, the language of flowers was a Victorian-era means of communication in which various flowers and floral arrangements were used to send coded messages often in the form of a small bouquet of blooms called a tussie-mussie. Being a lover of gardens as well as a lover of language, I found the idea of conveying meaning through flowers intriguing. At some point a while back my sister gifted me with a small book titled The Language of Flowers. Written in 1913, it was the golden anniversary gift of one husband to his wife. It lay about for years afterward and was finally unearthed from a drawer and reproduced in England with the family’s permission and it is an absolute treasure. The pages are sepia tinted just as the original book’s pages must be by now, and the names of the flowers are hand-scripted in ink the color of well-steeped tea in one column with the meanings painstakingly inscribed on the facing page. Many of the pages are awash in the delicate renderings of water-colored blooms and plants. What a lot of work this husband did to convey his love to his wife. And all we know of him are his initials and his affection. “To Mother,” he inscribed. “Wishing you many happy returns of the day - from Father,” and then he has written the date, August 8th, 1913. And beneath that he wrote:

There is a language, “little known”,

Lovers claim it as their own.

Its symbols smile upon the land,

Wrought by nature’s wondrous hand;

And in their silent beauty speak,

Of life and joy, to those who seek

For love divine and sunny hours

In the language of the flowers.

His initials follow, F.W.L.

Who wouldn’t treasure such a gift? But lest you think the language of flowers is all about love and romance, look up the meaning of foxglove, one of my favorite flowers. When I first was working on The Ninth Step and realized Livie was fluent in the language of flowers, that she was receiving mysterious gifts of flowers, I wanted her to have a bouquet of foxgloves. Their tall stems are regal and elegantly lined with flowers shaped like small bells or fairy hats or one leg of the tiniest ruffle-edged pair of pantaloons. Their throats are speckled as daintily as a bird’s egg and their colors are a sweet range of the softest pastel shades. I was certain their meaning would be something wonderful, something suited to my purpose and Livie’s. But no. A gift of foxgloves is meant to convey insincerity. At least according to Mr. F.W.L. So Livie never got a single one. I thought of narcissus, too, but their meaning is egotism. And it’s funny because the close cousin to narcissus, a gift of daffodils, translates to regard. Doing a quick Google search, I could only find the book, authored by Margaret Pickston, on Amazon.com for a rather steep price--around what it costs to purchase a beautifully-done bouquet of roses, say--if it is purchased new. But a used copy can be had for one cent and the book is well-worth many times that. I truly treasure mine for all the many hours of pleasure it has given me, never mind what it provided in the way of research for my story. I have to thank Livie for the idea though. She’s the one who told me she knew the language, who helped me learn it too.

Do You Need Self Control?

I don't. At least not when it comes to e-mail, Facebook (and its nefariously addictive one-minute "blitz" games), and other "social distractions" on the web. Fortunately, there's an awesome app for Mac called Self Control, which allows me to block any domains of my choosing for a set period of time. Whether I'm looking for 15 minutes or several hours of unbroken concentration, I set it and get writing. Once started, you cannot turn the thing off, not by exiting the program or even restarting the computer.

So you might as well just write.

The developer, artist Steve Lambert, said he created the app because he needed to free himself from distractions, and since then, he's distributed it freely. To visit his site and read about it, download the app, and leave a donation if you choose and find it helpful, visit Steve's site.

To see screenshots and read more about Self Control, visit this great blog review from MacGenius.co.

Thanks to BtO reader Ivan Pope, I can now add a link to a similar inexpensive program called Freedom, which is available for both Mac and Windows. You can get a trial version for free, or unlock and purchase for only $9.99. Judging from the number of writer endorsements on the website, it's a lifesaver, and quite the bargain, too!

Check out both programs today. The productivity you save may be your own!

Hedgebrook Writing Residency

Friends, I've just been contacted by Hedgebrook, the wonderful women's writing retreat in Puget Sound where I have been a resident, to encourage more applications to the residency.  The deadline is this week (September 8), so you still have time to get your application in.  Go to


http://www.hedgebrook.org/page.php?pageid=21

to learn more.

Hedgebrook is a truly special, transformative place, open to women writers working at all levels.

Go for it!

--MD

Korean edition of "Promise Me"

I can't help it. I always get a thrill when I see the foreign editions roll out. Here's the Korean edition of Promise Me: How a Sister's Love Launched the Global Movement to End Breast Cancer by Nancy G. Brinker (with a little help from yours truly.)

Selling the Genre Novel

This week I'm being featured over at Pitch University, where I'm sharing tips to sell your genre novel, whether its to an agent, editor or directly to readers! I hope that you'll stop by!

Top Ten Reasons New Orleans is the Hottest Place Ever to Set a Tale of Romantic Suspense

1. Above-ground tombs (thanks to the high water table) in beautiful old cemeteries like nowhere else on earth.

2. Voodoo, with its gris gris bags, its rich cross-cultural melange, and its powerful priestesses.

3. Loup garou, a.k.a. rougaroux, a werewolf-like creature once said to prowl the shadows.

4. Crumbling French Quarter mansions permeated with the soft scents of decay and magnolia.

5. Live oaks dripping with Spanish moss.

6. Chicory coffee and beignets, po boys, and a myriad of other mouthwatering delights.

7. Cajun hunks and Creole culture.

8. The mysterious, semi-seedy, distinctly-Southern vibe.

9. The music, art, and architecture.

10. The sense the history is all around you, a living entity.

And here's one more, a little lagniappe: The opportunity to open your romantic suspense with an image like this one from the opening of my brand new release Phantom of the French Quarter:

In an old French Quarter cemetery that cradled saints and sinners alike, dawn stained the slumbering fog bloodred. Layer after layer, it awakened, rising like the resurrected dead and swirling in soft eddies around the young woman cutting through it.

Look for the book in stores beginning Sept. 6th or download it from your favorite e-book seller today.

Photo courtesy www.neworleansonline.com.

The pleasures and pitfalls of a Kindle Single

Waiting for my flight to take off yesterday, I was scouting for a quick read to download on my Kindle and decided to try one of their new Kindle Singles: How To Not Succeed In Show Business By Really Trying, Claudia Lonow's shocking and hilarious...um...

I don't know what to call it. Bookling? Embryo? I laughed out loud and really loved her writing, but this isn't a book. And it's not a short story. It's a clever, funny word zygote that starts to tell a story, then lurches to an abrupt halt just when the reader has become fully engaged.

Billed as a "teeny tiny show biz memoir", How To Not Succeed... rambles a bit about her childhood, including a few mortifying anecdotes about her wannabe actor parents, then talks a little about her acting career without really saying anything, then takes us on a misadventure at a sex club. Lonow is smart and funny a la Chelsea Handler, but the truncated format and almost insights make the piece, as well written as it is, about as satisfying as a mouthful of uncooked chicken.

I'm open to giving other Kindle Singles a try, but this very clearly illustrates my worst fear about *quick and easy* e-pubbing: the fatally premature birth of what could have been a great book. I truly hope Lonow is able to spin this thing into a book deal and that she can sustain the pace and creativity she started with. If I'd downloaded this as a Kindle sample, I would have clicked through to buy the book. It wasn't the buck-ninety-nine that matters; I was in the mood for and expected something complete and fully crafted. A memoir, no matter how teeny tiny, needs a beginning, middle and end.

Not just a begi--

I feel like the author was done an injustice here. She's very talented, very funny, and willing to go way out there. She somehow manages to make some extremely unfunny aspects of her life absolutely side-splitting. But instead of offering some form of redemption or enlightenment, a sense of completion or that sense of future that makes for a satisfying read, this just sort of drove off a cliff.