Strangers Among Us

As fiction writers, it's our job to make life a little more interesting than it is. Not that life isn't plenty interesting sometimes, but it the span a story would be covered in, there is also a lot of mundane. But there are some twists that make everything a little more interesting. So I thought I'd approach one set of circumstances.

What if we weren't all... you know... ordinary people?

There is a long history of literature related to people with powers or abilities, or even just secrets. Who doesn't dream, as a kid, that they are actually... royalty, or descended from somebody great? There are a lot of options... Magic, psychics, aliens, monsters...

And it's interesting to watch literature change. Is our point of view that of the 'normal' experiencing the strange? Or are we ourselves strange.


What got me thinking about this was Roswell. I watched all three seasons on Netflix recently—really liked it. In fact I just started watching it again. And in some ways the set-up is a lot like the Buffy set-up. There are these high school kids... part of them normal... but there is a giant secret... some portion of them are NOT like the others.

In both cases, there is the normal teen angst and new love relationships. And there is a focus on HIDING this big secret... Nobody can know.

Harry Potter, my favorite series, likewise has a whole society hidden within a society that has laws about secrecy.


But what is it that is so appealing about these stories?

Do we want to BE different? Do we just want to brush up against different? Or is it just that the contrast makes for such a nice story?

What's your favorite story like this? Do you ever write them?

First Round Fiesta

(DOH!  And posted 3 hours early... sorry...)

You may or may not know, but yesterday was the posting of the first round winners in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel award. It's so fun. Every year I read those lists, I know more and more people on them. This year was an impressive list, so I thought I'd share the people I know who made it. [disclaimer: there were 2000 winners this round, so undoubtedly missed a friend or two (or five) PLEASE don't take it personally if you passed and I didn't catch it.]

But first... a GIFT my friend Joris made for me. Legacy, the first of these listed, is my ABNA entry. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this poster for the trilogy. A part of me really wants to self-publish these so I can use these covers (though books 2 and 3 need SERIOUS rewrites—in fact the 3rd probably needs to start from scratch)

Individual covers and poster designed by Joris Ammerlaan

Okay, so now to the winners! (full lists are here)

In the General Fiction Category

Charity Bradford, Sendek: The Magic Wakes


Christine Beth Reish, Façade


Dana Brantley-Sieders, Waking the Dead in Music City

Jessica Bell, Bitter Like Orange Peel

Stephen Swartz, The Dream Land

Sue Maynard, Carving the Light


In the Young Adult Category (I know many more of these... I will ponder WHY later)

Brigid Gorry-Hines, Unraveling

Catherine Stine, Fireseed One (look familiar?--she was here Wednesday!)

Emily McKeon, Mothers of Monsters

Hart Johnson, Legacy ← do you see me? Right on top of Fielder *shifty*

J Allen Fielder, Four Dogs

HK Savage, Whispers

Johanna Garth, Orchard Girl

Lisa Koosis, Resurrecting Sunshine

Michael Di Gesu, The Blinded Gardener

PK Hrezo, The 49th Parallel

Roland Yeomans, The Bear With Two Shadows

Tamara Hart-Heiner, Shadows Fall

Theresa Milstein, Naked Eye (which gets bonus points for having naked in the title)

Tracy Walshaw, Paper Tigers



What is the rest of this process, you ask?

In March, 2000 will become 500 based on our excerpts. These winners will be called Quarter Finalists. In April 500 will become 100. This is based on a Publisher's Weekly editor read of the WHOLE book. Winners will be called Semi-Finalists. In May, 100 will become 6 and ALL of these finalists will get a trip to the finals. So we've only chipped the tip of the ice berg, so to speak... and a lot of GREAT books were knocked off because either the pitch wasn't quite there or there was a mismatch with the reviewer by genre or voice. Still... the step had to be passed to go on. So it is worth a party for all!

So YAY!

The Dark Ages

Okay... so maybe not as brilliant as previously promised... and not appropriately 'dayed' anymore... this was the one lost for Tuesday that you are now getting on Thursday. But YAY! Computer is back up and running! Special thanks to my buddy Kevin who is smarter than me on all things computer (and on a number of other topics, besides)

But since I now CAN... didn't lose (at least much) of it... here goes TMI Tuesday's post.

BECAUSE NOBODY EXPECTS THE SPANISH INQUISITION!

*cough *

So what the hell is going on with the Republican Party these days?

Sorry to get political, but it IS (read: WAS) TMI Tuesday, after all. And there is a serious meltdown in sanity going on. I mean honestly, I never much understand the Republican party. But this stuff is BIZARRO world stuff. All this repossession on women's rights stuff...


Now I don't want to get into the abortion issue. I get both sides of that argument, and so while I have a political side (which ironically is NOT the side I would choose personally, though the operative word is probably CHOOSE) that isn't where I want to go.

Where I DO want to go is the very strange things that have happened of late.



What the heck is all this about birth control?

The religious organizations arguing about paying for something they don't agree with, I get. But then Obama said, “Okay, I see your point. Instead we will turn it to the Insurance companies to pay for.” And you see... paying for birth control is CHEAPER than paying for pregnancy, labor and delivery and all the pediatric care of a child, so insurance companies LIKE this... and several religious institutions cheered to have this burden taken off of them... to be able to 'provide' what they know employees want without being culpable of providing it themselves... It allows them to compete for the full spectrum of employees without crossing fuzzy lines.

But there is the ultra-conservative strand of congress and the religious leaders who are significantly MORE conservative than the population they mean to lead making this about something else.

Religious freedom is the right to practice ones own religion, but it is NOT the right to impose that religion on anybody else. Now if you work for a church directly, you may expect some imposition. But say you live in... South Bend, Indiana and just want to work for your largest employer in the county... (I believe Notre Dame was actually one of the institutions that cheered the compromise, by the way).

Now in the US, some 99% of women use some for of contraception at some point. Heck, 98% of Catholic women will or have at some point. The fact of the matter is, it takes resources of time and money to raise children well. Should sex be a privilege of the wealthy (who can afford to raise as many children they might create)? Should sex DOOM a woman to a shorter life? (because after child #1, every child lowers life expectancy). Jon Stewart had a very good point when he stated that Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum both used the rhythm method and had five and eight kids respectively. (which... and I really hope I don't offend too many, though i know I will and a few are people I really love, but in the spirit of TMI, I FIND IRRESPONSIBLE--from a space on the planet perspective, I mean). But Santorum has said 'birth control is not right'.

Is anybody else seeing Margaret Atwood as a prophet? This sounds very Handmaid's Tale to me. That is a book where chemical disaster creates infertility and collides with ultra conservative social values for a scary scary scenario. Do you SEE how this is possible?  Tell me I'm nuts. I dare you.

I have seen a number of posts on facebook of women outrages here, but this is hardly the only incident.

Several states have passed 'personhood' laws, siting personhood begins at conception. And as anti-abortion legislation, I see the brilliance of this tactic, but some of these have opened doors for women who suffer miscarriage to be prosecuted for negligent homicide.

Did you know HALF of conceived babies miscarry?
Did you know a significant portion of babies that miscarry do so because of defects to the baby—the baby would not have been viable and our bodies KNOW and so self-terminate.

Do we really want to blame women for that?

Have you ever known anyone who has miscarried? It is a DEVASTATING ordeal. The women I know who have experienced this are so sad for a very long time—many still quietly acknowledging what would have been birthdays years later. Do we REALLY want to add a layer of legal threat to this already abhorrent experience? Is our society's misguided need for sanctimonious moralizing so great we would do this?

I will tell you an unintended effect of this. Women who suspect they are pregnant will delay care. After all, if nobody knows they are pregnant, nobody can fault them if it doesn't work out. It will INCREASE the proportion of pregnancies that don't make it because SOME early caught things are preventable.

So there I go, ranting...

Guest Catherine Stine

Today I’m welcoming Catherine Stine. As part of her Fireseed One book tour, she is answering some questions about her new YA thriller and her writing and drawing process. But first, a quick novel summary:

What if only your very worst enemy could help you save the world?

Fireseed One, a YA thriller, is set in a near-future earth with soaring heat, toxic waters, tricked-out amphibious vehicles, ice-themed dance clubs and fish that grow up on vines. Eighteen year-old Varik Teitur, inherits a vast sea farm after the mysterious drowning of his marine biologist father. When Marisa Baron, a beautiful and shrewd terrorist, who knows way too much about Varik's father's work, tries to steal seed disks from the world's food bank, Varik is forced to put his dreams of becoming a doctor on hold and venture with her, into a hot zone teeming with treacherous nomads and a Fireseed cult who worships his dead father, in order to search for a magical hybrid plant that may not even exist. Illustrated by the author. Fans of Divergent and Feed will likely enjoy this tale, as well as those readers who like a generous dash of romance with their page-turners.

Catherine: Thanks for hosting me, Hart!


How did you come up with the idea of floating farms, a USA transformed to having Vegas on the coast, and hybrid plants with magical breeding ability?

I’m also an illustrator, and I first imagined this world through a series of drawings I did of floating ocean farms, an army of dolphins and a psychic scientist! I was fascinated with what it might be like to live on an island that you could power up and move. BTW, that idea came to me way before JJ Abrams thought up floating islands for LOST. Just goes to show that if you have a cool idea for a novel, you’d best get started on it before your coffee gets cold, because ideas do seem to float in the wind. If you don’t whip up that novel fast, someone else will.

I eventually worked up about twenty drawings and then wrote a very early draft of Fireseed One. Over the years, it’s morphed to what it is now, just like those strange hybrid plants in Fireseed One. This novel celebrates art as well as writing, with an amazing wraparound cover by Jay Montgomery, a world map by Taili Wu, and nine of my own illustrations.


Speaking of hybrids, what’s the deal with Fireseed?

It was a concept plant, designed by Varik’s dad to withstand killing heat and no real water. It had magical hybrid powers, so that it would easily breed with almost any plant. It supposedly grew to five feet tall, and was blood red, and had branches with fingerlike appendages. The problem is, now that Varik’s dad has mysteriously drowned, no one can say if it ever existed off the drawing board. What in the world is Fireseed a mixture of? Ah, you have to read the book to find out!

Will Marisa and Varik ever play nice?
Not telling, but I’ll give you two sneak peeks from these Fireseed One snippets:


The first:
She laughs. Kicks the mask I dropped.

“Who are you?” I shout. “What were you doing in that vault?” I’m thinking she looks oddly familiar, like someone whose image is printed on a cereal box or advert. But I can’t place her. Certainly she’s no starving refugee or common thief. Her demeanor’s way too haughty. She looks well taken care of, as if she’s never missed a night of sleep, as if she’s recently rubbed lotion on her face and given her hair a comb.


The second:
“Look, jerk, I’m not your prize whale,” she hisses. “You want to see that video of your dad? The only way this is going to work is if you take the stupid fish line off me.”

“I can’t do that.”

“Why not?” She glares at me. “That bartender could have you arrested.”

“I could have you arrested!”

It’s a standoff while we glare at each other, me wondering why I don’t just jab her with my fish knife for all the damage she’s inflicted, her probably wondering how she can off me and get the rest of those disks. But there’s Fireseed; and the mystery video. I need Marisa to find out what those are.

Her face breaks out into a sudden, shocking grin as she holds out a handful of peanuts. “I got us a snack while I was waiting.”

I grab some as a watery tension in my chest eddies into my legs, morphing them into heavy, wet plaster. On the way back to Shin, I surreptitiously throw my share of the nuts on the floor. For all I know, she laced them with poison.


How many Fireseed books are planned? Have you already mapped out the next one?
Yes! The next is called Children of Fireseed, where I invent even more scary and spectacular hybrid creatures and scenarios. Hint: what advantages would you have if you could get your nutrition from the sun? The Fireseed cult will reappear, as will Armonk, Nevada and the little cult girl with three missing fingers. (You’ll understand when you read). Oh, and another super-hot romance.


Fireseed One is available as an ebook for $2.99 from Amazon, B&N, iTunes and Sony Reader. The collectible illustrated paperback is $7.99 at Amazon and B&N.

 About the Author


Catherine Stine’s Fireseed One launched in December to 5-star reviews. Her first YA, Refugees, earned a New York Public Library Best Book and a featured review and interview in Booklist. Middle grade novels include The End of the Race in the Wild at Heart series and A Girl’s Best Friend in the Innerstar University series. More and more, she’s enjoying writing page-turning suspense. She is also a professional illustrator and teacher of creative writing.




Where you can find Catherine and Fireseed One on the web:


Fireseed One on Kindle:
Facebook’s Fireseed One book page
Goodreads author page
Catherine’s Idea City Blog
Catherine’s website


Please consider LIKING the Fireseed One Facebook page on your way out, and take a look at the other fun Fireseed One tour stops here, from February 20 through March 19th!


Thank you so much for sharing all this with us today, Catherine! And you have an impressive list of books there! I wish you the best of luck with this one!




For Catherine’s other tour stops:

Virus

So I had the most brilliant post EVER written up last night and I went to download a picture and my computer freaked out. I don't know how serious it is, but I may not have home access for a few days. I WILL be here tomorrow--I have a fantastic guest, Catherine Stine, and her post is already set.  Other than that, though, it is possible this week I won't have home access, so no blogging and limited commenting.

Upside down

HWMNBMOTI and I were both experiencing some back pain this weekend and got to talking about inversion beds and my visceral response was this big fear of a headache. You see... I can't really be upside down anymore.

But this is a huge change from an earlier time in my life. I spent my entire childhood upside down. I was a cartwheel, monkey bars girl. I spent hours every day cartwheeling or walking on my hands. I loved rides, especially ones that flipped me over.

Then... and I identify the timing as my first pregnancy, suddenly several of the things that USED to really thrill me... speed, heights, spinning... no longer worked for me. There was this strange fear and really negative physical response to all these things I used to LOVE.

I think what happens is a function of biology, actually. I think when we become responsible for another human being, our physical response to risk-taking gets more negative.

It got me thinking about perspective in writing. It made me think about the challenges to writing a point of view from a different age and what the markers are that would change how we see things. I think we always need to be cognizant of events that might change responses to keep them realistic.

So that is it today... my very brief thought on how how we feel about things changes as we get older. At seventeen I jumped out of a perfectly good airplane. Would I do that now? NO WAY. Part of it is the reality of aged bones and poorer physical condition, but much more of it is that fading sense of immortality.

Pity Party

I know it's supposed to be Fiesta Friday, but I'm just not in the mood. It's my party and I'll cry if I want to. I suppose to be consistent, I would need to call this a Fiesta Triste---though that is 'sad party' not 'pity party' and I'm not sad so much as whiny.

You see, the last of my submitted manuscripts was rejected yesterday. (that makes 8)


Amy was really nice about it. She asked if I wanted to keep going or revise. I was hesitant on revising since I have two books to revise before I can get to it... which means even if everything goes smoothly, I won't get to START that revision until April. But she pointed out that if we go straight in, if it NEEDS revising, we have knocked that many more off our list.  So we are revising. Which is to say I am revising.

I hate waiting.

I hate revising.

I hate the fact I can't get it closer to right the first seven times. Or thirteen. Whatever the draft.



So what was wrong with it?

All a little vague. 'Didn't fall in love with it.' Will nobody love me?

I think, though, my problem is Helen. Helen is TIMID. And she is timid for good reason. She hasn't spoken to anyone in 60 years, what, with being dead and living in an abandoned building and all. And she was kept in medically unethical circumstances BEFORE she died. Abandoned by her father to 'the experts' such as they were. Sympathetic, yes. Helen is sympathetic in spades. But... I think she may be missing her spark.

In most of my books my MCs are feisty or snarky or sarcastic. There is humor to them which never felt appropriate for Helen. Her circumstances would not go with wit. She is scared.

But I think I normally rely on that humor—my voice has humor and if I can't fall on humor, I think I am a little short in my repertoire. I need to find Helen's spark. Which may or may not have any humor, but it certainly needs more than it has.

So there is a puzzle to solve. What IS Helen's spark. I think it rests in her back story... a little more history, trickled slowly so the reader gets a more horrible image of what her life was like. But also a... PRE story... something she HAD that she LOST (and so committed suicide) and through the story finds again. A sense of self she was robbed of through being institutionalized. In fact... maybe if I work it right, I can reveal the back story backward and the front story forward so Helen's sense of self is equal throughout, and building.

Now THAT sounds like a compelling read, yes? But I have my work cut out for me. So I am having a pity party.

I am ALSO setting page goals so I really can GET to this by April Fools. I have 500 pages to edit in 45 days. Though maybe that isn't right. I have 200 pages to rearrange then another pass reading to perfect THIS month. GADS! And then in March I will revise Chrysanthemum Campaign for betas.

Oh. And I got pass pages for Azalea Assault. *dies *

I have been assured though, that professionals are on that, too—independent editors. So I intend to do it more as a content read—make sure nothing changes meaning or something. This SHOULD afterall, be a typesetting read—we did the final edit in the fall.

Is publishing really this many steps? What have I got myself into? Remember me? Meh, close enough. THAT is me. But I don't want lower quality—one of my primary reasons for publishing traditionally—I just don't quite HAVE that attention to detail...

Okay, so I've rambled. You may feel sorry for me now.

Or not. Anybody else wanna throw in a whine?  Or some wine. I'm not picky.

I Set a Date!

Book release?   Erm. No.
Marriage?   Well, no, obviously... since I'm already married.

Then WHAT, pray tell, did you need to set a date for? You ask...

The eating plan. That's right. It's Weighty Wednesday and that's what I've got. A date.

You see, at Meijer on Sunday, they had Paczkis. And I came to the (albeit wrong) conclusion that Fat Tuesday fell on Valentine's Day. I had visions of chocolate paczki sugar comas prancing in my head and thought, “Well that's how I want to go!”

But then I learned Meijer had just jumped the gun (and I would have to buy paczkis two weeks in a row) but it was already decided.

I may not 'do Lent'--not being Catholic and all. But what better time is there for a severe diet than when EVERYBODY is in the midst of denial?

So it's decided.

And then... My REAL blog today is over at Burrowers, Books and Balderdash where I am talking about the beauty of the FOOL as a story character...

Slut Love

I figured TMI Tuesday falling on Valentine’s Day was a sign I ought to talk a little bit about my philosophy on love, sex, relationships, and values. So you’ve gotten a reprieve from Jungle Rot… You may want to hold off on rejoicing just yet though.



All That Purity Nonsense

I know there are a lot of people clinging to those Puritan values and all, and if you’re one of them, more power to you… which is to say, more to go around for the rest of us, eh?

I am not quite sure where my feminist leanings got their first big fuel burst, but it was well before I was political, and before my religious leanings got an overhaul from their Presbyterian roots. Basically I figured if BOYS are allowed to admit they like this stuff, what is wrong with GIRLS admitting it?

Now I ‘get’ the ‘save it so I have something to give my spouse’ thing on some level. But there is a conflict here… I don’t think anybody should wait until age 30 to become sexually active, or you end up stunted on that front (IMHO), but I ALSO don’t think people should be making such an important decision as who to spend FOREVER with until about that time. And I think the consequences of becoming sexually active pre-marriage are a lot less severe than marrying in the late teens or early 20s. People that age have no business making that kind of decision.

*cough*

And don’t you know… I had a boy or two in my past where things got… you know… intense… the first time I met them… and later they would act as if somehow I’D done something wrong. HELLO. I was not the only one there. Why do these goons think THEY get a pass, but I don’t? That definitely fueled that inner feminist and my belief that what is good for the gander is great for the goose. (even goosing)

Manipulation versus Honesty

See, the OTHER thing that has always really bothered me is the simultaneous attempt to woo and hold at bay of a potential lover. A person who WANTS intimacy but pretends not to because they are holding out for a long-term offer is just dishonest in my opinion. And I hold the value of HONESTY far above some silly notion of ‘virtue’. In fact the virtues I care about ARE honesty and integrity. NOT chastity.


Now I don’t mean to disrespect anybody who has made different choices or whose values line up differently. I’m just saying it isn’t in me to pretend I agree. I think that is what we all need to do—be honest with ourselves about what is important and why, and try to live that way.



Sluts are NICE

You know... people who really LIKE everyone, even if they are also willing to sleep with everyone, are really more fun to hang out with than uptight people. I mean I GET that some people are nice withOUT the slutty thing going, but I haven't met many self-righteous people who are all that nice. They are too busy judging everyone else for not living by their standard. Live and let live, I say. So long as people aren't intentionally hurting each other.


Yeah, I’d rather live with aspersions of ‘slut’, ‘tramp’, or ‘tart’, than 'proper', 'classy', or ‘tease’. (though my value of not hurting people DOES mean monogamy… so anymore, this is all just in theory).


So there you have it. More than you ever wanted to know about me...

Lessons from the End of the World

So I've been watching a lot of dystopian TV of late... And I think they offer some GREAT lessons for writing fiction. Let me first describe the most recent two, then I will get into what really works for me about them.

Survivors

This is a BBC series that was two seasons (and MAN, I wish it had continued, as the cliff hanger at the end of season 2 was sublime, but alas... it is done).

Premise: A flu epidemic has killed all but about 10% of everybody. That remaining 10% appear to be immune to it—they don't get sick at all... with one exception—the main woman in the series is so sick that she MISSES everyone dying around her. Her husband nurses her and she is WAY out of it... when she wakes up, everyone around her is dead. The first episode is this person by person finding another, then pairs finding each other... Until they are the small cluster of people we will watch through the two seasons as they try to make due.

Jericho

This is a nuclear war set-up—I believe it turns out 23 US cities have been bombed and the show follows the life in a small Kansas town and how they try to renegotiate life in a time that returns to bartering. The town has a small medical clinic, a single store, a bar, a church... and a lot of baggage, as small towns do.



Why are these stories so appealing to me?

Probably the biggest factor is the desperation of the circumstances. Goods are instantly in short supply. Law and order are a thing of the past. In both stories, the criminal element organizes very quickly, looting and hoarding. People trying to do the right thing are just at such a serious disadvantage. The bad guys arm themselves and don't have qualms about killing over 'stuff'.

The situation brings out the best and the worst in people—some people become savage survivalists—every man for himself (or clan for himself, as the case may be). But there are also people who really rise to the occasion. I think the disparate directions personalities can take when subjected to desperate circumstances makes for such great fiction.

CONSPIRACY!!! Oh, I LOVE a good conspiracy, and both of these seem to have one under the core... in fact Survivors has more than one—a bit like when the Ministry and the Death Eaters were not yet the same thing—and organized force of evil and an organized force of “good” that is playing by the 'any means necessary' rule. Makes for a rich canvas of enemies.

New and Old: I am talking relationships here. Survivors is people who did not know each other previously, and I love the intentional fresh start, but where their past always comes back to bite them. I like the unlikely alliances formed. (in this case, my favorite is actually between a young Muslim boy—very devout, who is the only one to stand up from prayers as all the others have died in the midst of it, and a young oil prince of sorts—his mother is English and father a Kuwaiter oil guy—the young man in his 20s has clearly always been pampered—the two find each other first and have brought such opposite sides of their culture that they really hate each other initially, but end up very close.)

Jericho is the opposite case—small town folks are way too involved in each other's lives—so much so that some people try to flee—the main character in fact is one who has only come to collect an inheritance (unsuccessfully) and leave again, but the bombs hit as he leaves causing a series of car accidents and a need to find it in himself to do the right thing and save a bus full of kids. There are expectations everywhere for him to screw up and people around every corner he's had run-ins with...



I think the fiction take-home messages are these:

Make the stakes VERY high. Life or death is good.

Limit who can be trusted. A lot.

Make sure the bad guys could COMPLETELY devastate the MCs.

Keep the focus on relationships. Throw some really unexpected alliances in there.

Keep jerking the solution just out of reach.

So there you have it. My excuse for watching TV. Teehee.

Any of you have any shows currently feeding your fiction brain in large doses?

Fiesta Friday: Naked Vampires anallat...

La cucaracha, la cucaracha,
ya no puede caminar,
porque no tiene,
porque le falta,
marijuana que fumar.

Should we examine those fiesta lyrics?

Shouldn't Google Earth let me get this from a slightly different angle?

The Cockroach, the cockroach.
Already he can't walk
because he doesn't have it
because it's missing
Marijuana to smoke.

The cockroach can't walk without it's marijuana!
Just like the Vampire without blood, I'd imagine...

*cough *

Man, I loved Spanish.


So I'm not sure if we have people here who CAN walk because there is marijuana or people who CAN'T because there ISN'T... Or maybe we should just break out the tequila and call it a draw? But we are having a little party with some newses* and celebraciones! (* I made up this word *shifty*)

I'm going to start off with our friend Roland Yeomans... this is a news and invitation sort of thing, but also largely an excuse to start off with the above picture. Roland is giving away his book Blood Will Tell  for FREE! He is seeking reviews on Amazon and if he gets at least 10, he will give away an autographed picture of THAT hottie! (thank you Roland for the excuse to post naked Eric).

So to GET Roland's book, just go and click to buy. It's free. Then, when you get a chance to read it, post a review on Amazon—there are readers who will only purchase books with at least ten reviews. Though just downloading may get him a nice rating this weekend which helps... download even if you can't read right away... but the REVIEWS determine the PICTURE (not that one) giveaway).

Description:

"Life is never fair. And perhaps it is a good thing for us that it is not."
-Oscar Wilde

When we think evolution, we think of the life forms we can see. But what if evolution would occur on the microscopic level?
What if red blood cells achieved intelligence? Would they be happy at the world in which they find themselves? And if they didn't, what might they do?
In this story intelligent blood is starting an offensive against Man.
One lone telepath finds himself a helpless spectator as the race of Man is subjugated into mindless drones.
When the war is over, and he finds himself totally alone ...
How can he go on and why?


Again: Free five days starting yesterday, so get it this weekend!


Then, a couple tidbits alluded to by my buddy Vic at Hairnets and Hopes:

Justine Dell has gotten a book contract from Omnific Publishing in late 2012 for her debut novel Recaptured Dreams! Congratulations, Justine! (and thanks Vic, for the heads up!)



Sarah Fine's SANCTUM, the first book in the GUARDS OF THE SHADOWLANDS series, featuring a seventeen-year-old girl who has one chance to save her best friend's soul from hell where, in the process, she falls for the indentured Guard who is sent to make sure she doesn't succeed, to Courtney Miller at Amazon Publishing, in a pre-empt, in a three-book deal, for publication in Fall 2012, by Kathleen Ortiz at Nancy Coffey Literary & Media Representation.

(wow, eh? Thanks also to Vic for that.--who needs to pay attention when you have minions, eh?)


And Lynn Rush got to share her next book cover this week and it's GORGEOUS!  (like to say I found this on my own, but it is thanks to Ciara Knight.

Gorgeous, eh?

And last but not least, progress for yet another blogger friend: February Grace has had five poems and two short prose pieces accepted for publication. Congratulations, Bru!!! (and congratulations ME for finding a newsworthy piece of info all by myself...)


I'm sure there was lots more great news, but as I've confessed, my attention span is short. I'd also like to leave you with this. My stress of late, caused by health and money trouble, unexpectedly collided and formed a brilliant glitter bomb of goodness... as in one problem solves the other. I know that makes no sense, but only because I can't tell you more out of respect for HWMNBMOTI's privacy. My world improved immensely in the long run yesterday (even if the next few months may remain rough).  Nakedness should soon return.

Some Weighty Limmericks

Wouldn't the chair defense be nice?

*as if *

I fear I have fallen in a rut
Due to the ever growing size of my butt
I know I must run
It even is fun
But I can't control what I put in my gut.


Erm...

I really don't want to be thick
But why can't a diet be quick
It would sure be a winner
If a spell made me thinner
Now if I could just find that dumb stick


Running can sure make me sore
but thank goodness it isn't a bore
I have my good friends
as we tighten our ends
But I wish it would tighten them MORE.


You see my friends... the couch to keg program is BACK ON!

My daughter is taking a Personal Fitness class at school and their primary goal is to build to running a 5K (sound familiar) though they are jumping in much faster (as teens can do), but my daughter said they are allowed, for their final, to run a road race instead of a written final and she invited me to join. That jump started me, so here we go...

I am still having trouble with the eating end. Life is too stressful for active dieting... in fact it is really too stressful to THINK about eating. I do try to get my nutrients... I have a business meeting in Hawaii in May, so I suppose setting that as a goal date might motivate... won't want to wear many clothes there... for the moment, though, I am going to be happy with the Couch to Keg...

Maybe I will set the 23rd for the diet start date—that is 4 months before my next birthday, which seems ANOTHER good goal...


And As a final note: today would have been my grandma's 89th birthday. Happy birthday, grandma!

Beautiful Bitch

For my first foray into TMI Tuesday, I thought I'd confess something to you, and then give you a little background...

This is my definition of a fabulous figure

Had I been drop-dead gorgeous—slimmer of form, better boobage, maybe a little less 'cute' and more elegant (or better yet, exotic)—I think I might have been a raging bitch.

Where do I come by this thought? Well it is a little philosophy and a little self awareness. Let me e'plain... I will start with the self-awareness bit...


My Own Personal Hedonism

I really LIKE things I like. I like good food, to be wined and dined, to have someone play music for me or write me poems. I like presents. And I particularly like to be the center of attention to as many people as possible. [um... that's not something I am supposed to admit, is it?] But, there. I said it. (I mean what OTHER sort of person would be leading a quest for World Domination? It's not like I've been leading you on as some shrinking violet—though I do LIKE violet... or any shade of purple, but never mind.)

See... aren't I grand? *shifty*

My Imbalanced Sense of Worth

You know how some people can't take a compliment? That's not me. Whenever I've had times people told me wonderful things about myself, I inevitably believe I'm deserving. Oh, sure. I might blush a little. But I don't doubt it. I think this is the only child in me. Only children have more socialization from adults than other children, and adults are often generous in telling children how clever they are. Is it my fault I believed them? And if that will to believe has followed me forward?


Now I was always a sensitive child. I don't think I would have ever been outwardly mean. When I saw people experience that, I felt bad for them. I don't like mean people and I just don't think I'd be MEAN. But as a kid I did, a couple times, stand by while my friends picked on someone else—usually we'd all participated in deciding the person deserved it—it was usually the 'take down a peg' of someone we thought was behaving stuck-up. (None of us picked on anyone 'socially downward'--which sounds bitchy in itself, but every middle school kid understands the hierarchy to some degree. We weren't the MOST popular, but a few among us (who were not me) were actually pretty close up there)

Nobody every talks about the GOOD side of peer pressure.

But the Biggie is my philosophy on NURTURE... Or more specifically, Peer Socialization

Or what I sometimes call the strange case of Sirius Black. See, for most of us, we want to be WITH people, and if we act like asses, people DON'T want to be near US. This trains us to be a little less ass-like. But BEAUTIFUL people draw us ANYWAY. We believe ourselves to be more beautiful just by rubbing up. We tolerate from them things we would not tolerate in others. And so unless they have EXTRAORDINARY parents or the very very rare case of very sweet temperament... and I shouldn't say it is so rare. I've known a few beauties who were wonderfully kind. They tended to be shy or very gregarious.

But the point is, I don't happen to believe I had one of those natures. And while my mom nurtured that 'be kind' thing, I don't think I got the 'care about others' quite as strongly just because we were such a small little cluster at home. So my peers were necessary... they never ostracized me, but the FEAR that if I behaved badly... you see what I mean...

Resorting to Memes

I think you all know my mind has been scattered of late... there are reasonable reasons, but that doesn't make the chaos any less. I've decided in the short term, I think playing with a couple memes might be the way to go.

How is it possible I didn't think of this...

I'm not normally a meme girl. What. What's that? Are there people who don't know what memes ARE? (Is that even possible?) Well, for anyone unsure, a meme is a day of the week theme... We do them at Burrowers, Books and Balderdash, though there I think it's easier as we have eight of us, so we each only hit a given meme about once every other month.

But I've been thinking maybe that memes might help me make some sense of the madness in my life and head. I only plan to do this through February and March, as I know my attention span is limited and so that is probably as much as I can do on one topic without running out of steam, so to speak...

And I only plan to do the memes a couple days a week as I am not very good with rules and know I will have OTHER things I want to write about. So without further ado... here are the themes you can expect for the next little while:

TMI Tuesday

You know me. TMI is really a lifestyle choice. So I will rant, share, spew, spill and whine... but only on Tuesday. Mostly.



Weighty Wednesday (except on the first Wednesday)

The couch to keg program is back on. And I really need to seriously get to the eating thing...

Arriba! Arriba! Andale!

And finally, Friday Fiesta

I am going to TRY (and this isn't my strength, so bear with me) to keep track of my friends' successes and throw a little party for them—a raw raw if you will for the successes I see over the week. (I'd LOVE if you'd all help me out here—email me or leave a post here if you spot a success among our blogging community. My attention span is too short and I will surely miss a lot without the help.

So that's the plan. BUWAHAHAHAHAHAHA

*cough *

Social Networking Viagra

Halo, fine peoples!

It is Insecure Writer's First Wednesday, eh? (are you impressed I remembered?) And I'm definitely going through it... (can't jump over it... can't swim under it... can't go around it... gotta go through it!) *cough*

My current worry is whether I have the freaking stamina for this thing.

Apparently THIS is the Long Haul...

Keep in mind I look at perseverance as my strongest trait, but WHAT A LONG FREAKING HAUL.

I've been blogging for nearly three years now... and I've seen blogger friends burn out... and I always thought, “I love this WAY too much for that to happen.”

And I'm not burnt out, exactly, so much as for the first time in that time, life has really bitten me in the butt (and not in a good way). And to ME, blogging has always been fun, zany insanity... but not INSANE insanity...

But of course life, over a couple years, will hit ALL of us who are... you know... living... like that.

So what is the standard? Does it bore the crap out of my readers if I post ANYWAY as a big giant whiny pants? Never mind that you all KNOW my policy about PANTS (say it with me: Pants are evil. Down with pants!) I've already taken a break for a while. How long will the good will last before I have to really buck it up and be ME again?

And when I've been flacid and ineffectual of late, where the heck is the VIAGRA to stand erect again? Anybody know of any networking viagra?


So I encourage all of you to get to as many insecure peeps as possible today... And if you FIND that Viagra (other than the LOLZ Cats, which work, but are addictive) spread it around...

Januectomy

It's time for the forceful removal of this pain in our collective arses! GADS! And Good Riddance, I say!

I really love this movie.

I think it's a Michigan thing. It really used to be February I hated so vehemently... February being the month that in OREGON seemed to be holding off spring. In Michigan though, that dubious honor goes to April. January is hated for being COLD, and POOR... (Heather blogged on this yesterday—the annoying habit of employers to pay you for December BEFORE the holidays, so the check meant to sustain you in January needs to last 6 weeks, rather than 4.5)... and at our household it seems to be the ILLNESS month and the FINALS month.

And I am SO GLAD to see it go.

What did I accomplish in January? Mostly I panicked a lot... I sorted and shuffled and supported...

I am nearly done with my ABNA revision (just in time—should be getting a go ahead or NO ahead from my editor on my Begonia Bribe revisions and either way will need to jump to it as soon as I know).

February is ALSO slated for first revision of Chrysanthemum Campaign. So I will be up to my eyebrows in FLOWERS. Which is good. Should hold off my snow irritation... Not that I mind SNOW, so much as I get really tired of how long winter drags on around here... (did I mention hating Michigan winters?)

*Cough*

On the plus side, it's OVER!!!!!

You know, theoretically, January ought to be a right good time. Janus is the Roman God of beginnings... but if you read further, he was two-faced (one looking back and one forward) and intertwined with chaos. So maybe we've gotten just what we bargained for.

Say... it says he was the God of gates and doors, too.

Erm... that ringing any bells for anybody? (Door bells?)

No, me neither...

Source

But at least we are solidly into Aquarius, the sign where people are their own unique selves, unconcerned with the uptight proclamations of the masses of how people ought to be. I really LIKE Aquarius. If I could have picked my own sign, I think this would be it, even if it WOULD put me stuck with a birthday in my least favorite time of the year. It is just my favorite personality profile. And for the record, in spite of Jo giving Luna an August birthday, LUNA should have been an Aquarius. Open, accepting (a bit odd). And absolutely herself. So much so that she wins everybody over.

Do you all have a time of year you really hate? How do you cope?

Megan Bostic's Never Eighteen (Pass it On!)

I have been looking forward to reading this book since I first heard about it, so when Megan asked who wanted to be a part of her promotional tour, I jumped at the chance. The theme is clever and fitting for the book, but I think I will give you more of that after a brief review:

Never Eighteen, currently resting in Ann Arbor, MI.

(from the back): Austin Parker is never going to see his eighteenth birthday. He probably won't even see the end of the year. But in the short time he has left, there's one thing he can do: he can try to help the people he loves live—even though he never will.

It's probably hopeless.
But he has to try.


You see, Austin has Leukemia. He was a strong, popular athlete. But now he is somewhat shrunken, tires easily. And he's on a mission. He wants to right some wrongs—only one of which really seemed his fault, but he's been watching people. There is a soft undertone of jealousy—people who HAVE life ahead of them who are wasting it. But mostly there is just a need to make a difference. To leave the world around him just a little better than it was before.

Megan says the original title was Mending Fences. I like the new title better because it carries the darkness that underlies death. But Mending Fences is very fitting for what Austin is trying to do.

I loved this book. It was a wonderful mix of sadness and hope. The characters were very real—Austin is perhaps more introspective than most boys, but I think knowing you are dying will do that.

Austin's journey to get people to engage in their own lives again hits a ton of teen (and adult) issues, but briefly enough and softly enough that they don't drain us. I think for teens this offers a wonderful chance to talk about some big stuff, and whatever their situation, see... it could be worse... and even if it IS worse, they can handle it with grace.

So I thank Megan for giving me the chance to read!



As for the Pass It On...

The marketing campaign was to SHARE this book, even as Austin is trying to share in the futures of people who will still be around. I knew when I first heard the idea that I wanted to share it with one of my teacher friends, preferably someone who keeps BOOKS in the classroom, so teens can have a chance to read it to.

I scanned the list and the first to come to mind was Chary—she is a fellow Burrower who teaches at a High School in New York City. She said she did indeed keep a library in her classroom for students to read from and it was decided.

Headed to a classroom New York City

I decided to sweeten the pot, I would add another YA book I have loved recently. I am a hoarder, but isn't it really better to share books with people who will get them read by dozens than keep them in a stack on my shelves?

So today this pair, Never Eighteen and Gae Polisner's Pull of Gravity, will be shipped to New York City to share in Chary's High School classroom.

I will have Chary post a picture when the books make it to her, and I thank Megan and Gae for writing such amazing books that I want to share them like this!

Both of these are available to buy:







(I think the paperback for Gae is coming soon—I will give you a heads up)


I ALSO wanted to throw out a HUGE congratualtions to Jessica Bell who had a FABULOUS weekend for the popularity of her books. String Bridge spent a day as MOST POPULAR on Amazon's comtemporary fiction list and Twisted Velvet Chains made the top five for poetry—What a Saturday, eh? Contrats, Jessica!





Just FYI--I am regrouping, recovering, etc. But have two books to get edited in February, so I think I may be a 3 blogs a week girl for at least another month, just so you know what to expect...

Thank you all for your patience!

Breathe

And just when I thought I saw the birds circling that must mean an island was near...

Health issues, not my own, are determined to sideline me. I am trying to plug away, but I am currently spending a few hours a day being more nurturing than comes naturally, because let's face it: I am an only child in addition to being a fire horse and only children who are also fire horses do NOT nurture all that easily, no matter how badly they want to. But our household is in high crisis mode and once again, I've been nominated to be the sane one.

My ABNA project: cover by Joris Ammerlaan

I'm starting to question this decision to stay sane, but the truth of it is, somebody has to be. Story of my life. Seriously.

And THAT looks like a big whiny baby plea for sympathy. It only is a little. Mostly it is explanation for why, intentions aside, I got nowhere yesterday and can't make promises for a couple days. I am taking time off of work to get a plan established, which means when I AM at work I need to work like I am on deadline. (and when I am NOT at work, I am largely NOT online).

And I STILL have manuscripts to edit. So I may or may not blog regularly for the next couple weeks... and I probably will remain slow on getting around. I feel so guilty on the matter, but it is what it is.


On the positive side, I got my 3 chapters to my editor that were DUE. Hopefully she likes them. (I have to do the rest of the book, but am pretty sure I can have a little time there... not a lot, but a little).

Also on the positive side, I have a version of LEGACY entered in ABNA. It isn't the version I want in there, but I didn't want to lose my spot, and until it closes, I can revise, so replacing with 'best available' every few days is my plan. This is one of the MSs I am editing...


Also Also on the positive side... in fact on the SQUEEEEE side... I got book cover samples which include all the back cover copy!!!! Check it out!

And because it's hard to read:

Roanoke, Virginia, is home to some of the country's most exquisite gardens, and it's Camellia Harris's job to promote them. But when an out-of-towner turns up dead, she discovers there is no good way to spin murder.

Camellia Harris has achieved a coup in the PR world. The premiere national magazine for garden lovers has agreed to feature one of Roanoke's most spectacular gardens in its pages—and world-famous photographer Jean-Jacques Georges is going to shoot the spread. But at the welcoming party, Jean-Jacques insults several guests, complains that flowers are boring, and gooses almost every woman in the room. When a body is found the next morning, sprawled across the azaleas, it's almost no surprise that the victim is Jean-Jacques.


With Cam's brother-in-law blamed for the crime—and her reporter boyfriend, Rob, wanting the scoop—Cam decides to use her skills to solve the murder. Luckily a PR pro like Cam knows how to be nosy...



So there it is... the silver lining. No worries... I am hanging in there. I always do. Just feeling a little pouty at the moment that life refuses to fall into line with my nefarious plans...

ABNA Over at BB and B

So this is a decoy post... I am really blogging at Burrowers, Books and Balderdash today about the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award Contest because THAT is what is going on.... It's Topical Tuesday.


But if you'd like it to also be Naked Tuesday, I am not stopping you.

Dragon Speaks

So I am crawling out of the crypt. I feel a little like my fingers are bloodied and I am inching my way slowly. Hubby's health stuff is not moving much, which is stressful—I feel like he's strapped to me and I am having to pull him along for each inch I move. But I have heaved past the revisions my editor needed (One polish round still needs finishing, but the big work is done). It scares me a little that I need to keep plugging through the whole book to accommodate the changes, but I can pace myself more on that. For NOW, I turn to finishing my ABNA tweaks, as ABNA is OPEN. More on that tomorrow.

Today, I wanted to give you a heads up.

He looks menacing, but I love dragons.

It starts the Lunar New Year, otherwise known as the Chinese New Year. And it is the Year of the Dragon. More specifically, it is an Earth Dragon in Water year (most stuff says Water Dragon—I can't figure out what the subtlety is about): The Black Dragon.

Happy Black Dragon New Year!

Whether that is good news or bad news for you depends on your animal and element. This site will help you figure that out.

Here are the fortunes: http://www.geomancy.net/resources/yearly-forecast/fortunes-2012.htm

If you don't know your sign and element, it is probably best to go here first: http://www.geomancy.net/reports/free-report/freerpt-element.htm

I've known for years I was a fire horse. I had had NO CLUE that I had an element besides that—it looks like it might be related to western astrology signs, as mine is 'weak water' (Cancer is also water and I am early in it). The other new information I found that I LOVE is in the Chinese calendar I was born the 5th day of the 5th month. Five has been my favorite number since I was (you guessed it) five.

But other than that vague 'it will be a good year' what does a dragon year have in store generally?


The Feng Shui forcast says this:

“this year is going to be a transformational life-changing year! Generally, there are more goodies in store for you in the year 2012 than 2011. It’s a good year to improve oneself, take calculated investment risks and to build wealth. The year 2012 holds much promise and may be a major transition in your life. Whether it turns out extremely good, or really bad, will depend on how you ride the mighty Water Dragon!

The three powerful stars present in the year’s chart are the Star of Aggressive Sword, the Star of the External Flower of Romance and the Star of Powerful Mentors.”

The rest of that site was trying to sell amulets, so I will leave their grim predictions there...

This depressing site that looks like the equivalent of the Farmer's Almanac (and helpfully explains that earth and water thing—water ON earth) predicts a bunch of earthquakes and water disasters (erm... and epidemics). But thankfully less violent fighting:
http://www.fengshuitoday.org/features/the-year-of-the-dragon (not incompatible with those pesky Mayans)


But I am going forward hopeful, as for a fire horse who is weak water, it is predicted to be a good year. And my personal horoscope gave years when things would be 'lucky' versus unlucky in terms of financial fortune and unless I live past 105, the rest of my life looks lucky (the first half looked pretty darned grim—a truism)--so I've got that going for me...

I wish you all a great year. Please pay some homage to the moon and go out and dance naked tonight, even if there will be no moonlight...