Writer's Mountain

Cause Writer's Block is just too small for what I'm going through right now. And I'm sure every writer has gone through this many many times. It's not the plot or the story that's failing. It's the doubt. The doubt of whether the dream will ever happen. Of snagging an agent and getting published.

In my case, I keep doubting about which story to work on, worrying that I'm picking the wrong one and wasting my time. Should I revise the MG or YA? Should I work on new revisions for the YA or continue the current wip? Which will be THE ONE? Are any of these THE ONE or should I start working on the other ideas I have? As a result, I've hit a major wall. I can't seem to concentrate enough on any of them. I wish I could be one of those people that just pushes through it anyway, but I'm not. Sure, there are the good days when I get a good word count, but it doesn't balance out the many other days when I don't write. And the irony that I'm actually wasting even more time doesn't escape me. Really not a fan of it.

So finally I had enough. I closed all of my word documents I kept open, waiting to be worked on. Instead, I opened a blank page and just wrote whatever came to mind. In this case, it was another idea I had in the back of my mind for a spinoff/sequel. I know I wouldn't be able to finish this and this wouldn't even be my next project when I finish CON. But I wrote the scene in my head anyway. Just for fun.

And it helped. I don't think I'm quite ready to go back to my other projects yet, but it's relaxing just to write for fun. After all, this is what it's supposed to be for, right? To create stories and have fun with it. I think in the midst of all the querying and worrying I've forgotten about that.

What about you guys? What do you do when the stress gets to you and the writing's just not flowing?

What type of book are you?

This doesn't really have to do with anything. :) Just a fun post. Have you always wondered what type of book you are? I was really expecting romance, but since I don't write straight romance, this actually fits!

You Are Humor

You love to laugh at life, and if possible, get others to laugh along with you. You believe there's always a humorous side to everything. And your sense of humor ranges from upbeat to very dark. You are outrageous and very honest. You're often the only one willing to say what everyone else is thinking. You are witty and verbally talented. You like to play with words and say things in interesting ways.

What Kind of Book Are You?

Blogthings: Quizzes and Tests and Memes, Oh My!

If you took this, what did you turn out to be?

Show Me the Voice!

It's time for another contest! This time is at Brenda Drake Writes for a contest judged by Natalie Fischer. You could get the details here. My pitch and first 250 words are below. Can't wait to read every else's!

Pitch: Princess Evie Kingston finally gets her wish—her sweet older cousin takes her place as princess so she could run away and have an adventure. Too bad that same sweet cousin double crosses her with her baker assassin quicker than she can say “Happily ever after”, resulting in a head injury, lost memory, and a handsome prince who hates princesses coming to her rescue.

First 250 words excerpt

Once upon a time there was a beautiful princess who cast all other princesses in the shadow with her beauty, charm, and bravery. She saved countless villages from dangerous perils. Princes lined up around the kingdom for her hand, but she had no intention of marrying. Happily ever after was just going to have to wait until—

“You’re not supposed to lie in your storybook, you know,” Alyanna Townsend commented without looking up from her sewing. Her needle glided smoothly in and out of the embroidery hoop.

Accidentally blotting the cream parchment with ink, Princess Evelyn Kingston scowled over at her older cousin. “Look what you made me do!”

“Doesn’t matter. You’re going to have to rip that page out once the Queen sees it.”

Evie opened her mouth to retort, but snapped it shut and sighed instead. Alyanna was right. Her mother was going to freak once she saw her story book and not because of the black splotches. For a princess to declare that she didn’t want to get married and have a happily ever after was a worst scandal than a fairy sharing her first kiss with a troll.

She gazed out the alcove window at the clear sky. The trees’ leaves rustled in the breeze beyond the kingdom stone walls. Evie longed to feel the wind in her hair. She was never able to go outside much. Not when her days were filled with lessons. Singing, dancing, cooking. The list went on and on. And so did her mother.

Agent Pitch Contest!

I had another post planned (I know! TWO in one week! *preens feathers*), but I just couldn't resist. YAtopia is hosting a great contest on their blog here. It's open to all authors with a MG or YA manuscript and the judge is *drumrolls* Ammi Joan Paquette who isn't even OPEN to queries. How awesome would it be to win?

You just have to blog about their contest and fill out the short form below to post in the comments.
Name:
Email:
Story Name:
Genre:
Blog/Twitter/Facebook link:
2 Sentence Pitch:
Opening sentence:

Which is a bit harder than it looks. Darn those two sentence pitches! And since we're on the subject of contests, there's another great contest at Oasis for YA where they're celebrating reaching 300 followers! As a prize they're giving out five query or first chapter critiques.

So hurry and go enter before the deadline comes! And good luck! :)

Relationships

A post! A real genuine not from another blogfest post! I know I'm quite proud of it myself. I figured it was time. Not to mention I'll probably have another blogfest post up in four days :) But okay, back to the point. There's been many exercises about how to shape your character and make them real. Whether it's their favorite color or what they would do if a zombie attacked. (Btw Megan's favorite color is green and she's probably give into the zombies. After all, there's no cure and she knows you can't run forever. She's a bit of a pessimistic and realist that one. Darn her.) But there's another important aspect to make a character believeable.

Their relationships.

Just to make things easier, I'll use various tv shows as my examples. And cause, you know, I want to :)

First off would obviously be Blair and Chuck. Chuck and Blair. This is the type of relationship I LOVE. The love/hate relationship where they feel attracted to each other even though they despise each other. And despite it all they have to be together. And man are they hot together. The chemistry between them is like a explosion.

Next we have my current favorite. Kurt and Blaine. They're both fun, sweet, and honest. No games. No tricks. Just very genuine feelings. And are they boring in the slightest? Uh, not according to all the squealing I did yesterday! They were friends first and slowly realized that they wanted more. At least on Blaine's behalf, but seriously can you blame Kurt for falling for him right away?

Both relationships are completely different, but still equally loveable to fans.Why? Because of the chemistry between them. The dialogue. (Especially the insults and quips between Blair and Chuck). The scenes. And I'm not just talking about romantic relationships. For example, Veronica Mars and her dad. LOVE their chemistry together. (Love her interactions with all characters actually, but no time to fangirl about that tonight)

So remember, don't just worry about the main character. Worry about the other people around them too. What are your favorite type of relationships?

Gone but not forgotten blogfest

All my posts these days seem to be from blogfests, but I can't help it because they're so great! Today's post is the awesome Gone but not Forgotten hosted by the equally awesome Erinn, Pam, Quita, Holly, and Alicia! It's about the dear shows that have left us but will always be with us.

First off is...

Veronica Mars

This was a recent discovery of mine and I LOVE it. The characters are witty and fun while the plots are so clever. There’s nothing not to like about this show besides the fact that it ended. I confess I didn’t watch much of the third season though because of a certain couple breaking up. I figure if I don’t watch that part then they’ll always be together in my head! I know its denial. Leave me alone! 

The Tudors

This show may not have been very historically accurate, but I still love it anyway! The costumes and drama is just great. The ending was very satisfying though and I liked the way it ended even though I miss Jonathan Rhys Meyers bellowing “I’m the King of England!” every Sunday. 

Legend of the Seeker

I confess I’ve always been a fan of epic fantasies (even though I can’t write it). I watched tons of Hercules and Xena growing up so of course I would love Legend of the Seeker. The characters are just so loveable! And the eye candy doesn’t hurt either. I mean look at him! *fans self*

Friends

My ultimate favorite show hands down. This show never fails to crack me up no matter what. I’ve seen all the episodes so many times I can recite all the lines and whip anyone's butt at the trivia game. Yet I still burst out laughing whether I’m watching a rerun on tv and anticipate the next quip or am driving and can watch it in my head (although I really should be watching the road). It ended on a great note yet I still miss it.

One Tree Hill

I know One Tree Hill isn’t off the air yet, but for me it is. Why? Because every since Lucas and Brooke broke up the second time around, I stopped watching it because it was dead to me. Sorry to all the Leyton fans out there, but I’m a through and through Brucas fan J Not the first season, but the second and third season when they became friends and fell in love. In my head they’re still together lol 

Well, those are the top five shows that makes me sigh sadly that it's gone. These are the relatively newer shows. Honorable mentions go to the older ones such as Saved by the Bell (the original gang at Bayside not the New Class), California Dreams, and USA High. Oh, and What I Like About You! All hilarious! :) What are yours? Oh, and here's to leave you with a bit more eye candy...

Oh, Richard Cypher you could be my Seeker any day :)