Sunset of Summer

Tell Me Your Story Tuesday

                            I officially returned to work yesterday. In reality, I have been back since last Monday.  But, yesterday marked the true end of my summer.

                           Thursday, I will be revisiting the summer goals I set for myself here. Today, I want to reflect on the highlights.

Dawn's Best Moments of Summer: 

• Two successful birthday parties

• One great night remembering what it was like to be fourteen years old.

•     Lots of time hanging out with these two. Just like this.

• And even a few moments with this guy. 

That was my summer. No relaxing vacation. No exciting adventure. Just my life and you know what? That was okay.

So, tell me your story. What was your summer like? Did you have a grand adventure? Did you just enjoy the sunshine? Is your summer coming to a close like mine? Or do you have a few precious weeks left?

Friday Plot Swap~World of Weirdness

Friday Plot Swap

Dawn's Plot Swap

Have a plot? Leave one

Need a plot ? Take one

This week, we are entering the World of Weirdness. Some of these stories have interesting characters to inspire you. Some of them have plots that will make you shake your head and said, "Huh?".  Some of them have both. 

Like this one:

 

An Upper East Side couple grieving over the loss of a stuffed toy monkey they’ve raised like a son the past decade went bananas with joy Saturday night after being reunited with their beloved Beanie Baby. 
(Really, you need to read the whole story to grasp the, um, originality of these people)
  
Three people in Beatrice, Neb., were charged after a woman allegedly asked her friends to stab her so she could avoid a probation hearing, 
(I have some great friends. Amazingly enough, I don't see any of them doing this for me.)

Doctors were baffled when a British man told them, "I can hear my eyeballs moving." But they finally diagnosed that Stephen Mabbutt had a rare ear condition in which sounds inside the body are heard very loudly, 
(I have no comment on this one.)

So, swap with me! What kind of weirdness is going on in your world *real or imaginary*?

 

 

What's on your list?

Thinking about Thursday

 

Last week on Facebook , I asked this question:

"If you were going to do something, just to prove to yourself you could, what would you do? Feel free to add why."

I got two responses: Run a Marathon and hike through the wilderness of Alaska. ( Thank you, Teri~ critique partner extraordinaire and Scott, my best friend's brother-in-law) 

That tells me either a.) the rest of you have no hopes and dreams or b.) you were ignoring me. I am going to go with A. You would never ignore me, right? 

In a few weeks, I will be reviewing this book: 

By Kathi Lipp

*My first book review! I am so excited!*

The first part of the book talks about Dreams. What do you wish you could accomplish. Kathi suggest writing down 50. I am having trouble coming up with more than 5.

Now, these are dreams, not goals. They don't have to be something attainable or even doable.  

Here is what I have come up with:

1. See a stranger reading my published book. ( That would  mean. Not only is it published, but someone actually paid for it!)

2. Go to Hawaii

3. Learn how to shoot a gun. (Yes, honey, I know this one makes you proud.)

4. Drive a car more than 100 mph (in a safe controlled environment~ not on I-35.)

5. Have a great relationship with my daughters even through their teens. (Yes, I know. DREAMS, remember? I said, DREAMS.)

So, what's on your list?

Not necessarily a "Bucket List". But more a "I-am-proving-I-can-do-this" list.

Some Like It Hot

Tell Me Your Story Tuesday.

First of all, let me say I LOVE TEXAS.

I have to, right? Only someone crazy in love would tolerate this kind of behavior. 

Want to hear something sad? The above graphic represents  a "cool down" from last week. That's right, folks. 106 degrees is considered a "cool down". Just shoot me. 

In case you haven't noticed, I am slightly delirious from the heat and struggling with coherency today. Partially because this wonderful song has been stuck in my head all day!

Ooh, 

Eddie Murphy before 

he was the voice of Donkey.

What else could you ask for?

Okay, enough about the heat.

The truth is I love Texas because I hate snow.

Of course, my beloved betrayed me this year. The whole state basically shut down for a week because of a snowstorm. Those of you who live in places where it snows all the time and think we might have overreacted. Remember: Snow in Texas is always proceeded by a layer of ice. We don't have chains for our tires. We don't own parkas  and we only dress in layers if it is fashionable.

I will suffer through the heat and the occasional blizzard. (Trust me, in our world, it was a blizzard!) for wearing short sleeves into October and the beautiful spring days of March and April. 

So, tell me your story. What is it like where you live? What do you love about it? What do you hate about it?

Friday Plot Swap~ Alternate Endings

Friday Plot Swap

Dawn's Plot Swap

Have a plot? Leave one

Need a plot ? Take one

Let's talk alternate endings

I love watching the special features of DVDs that have alternate endings and I have read a few books that I wish I could rewrite the ending because "That was not how things were supposed to turn out!" 

I'm using movies as examples today, but feel free to swap books endings too.

SPOILER WARNING:

In the examples, the original endings will be revealed so if you don't want to know. Don't click!

First of all,

THE BREAKUP 

Mostly I found this movie too true to be funny, but I did enjoy it until this scene. Yes, this is a scene most of us have experienced at one time or another, but I don't go to the movies for reality! 

How would you rewrite this? They don't have to end up together, but this was just awkward! 

Castaway 

First, I will freely admit: I did not enjoy this movie.  It is one of my husband's favorites and we have frequently debated its merit. Anyway, after sitting through the FOREVER longness of  him being on the island, off the island, whatever, the ending left me beyond frustrated. He didn't have to end up with Helen Hunt, but HELLO, I NEED SOME CLOSURE!

 

   

Stuck at a Crossroads






Cast Away

— MOVIECLIPS.com

Sorry, it is huge. I can't make it smaller.

And last, but not least.  One of my absolute favorite movies:

THE BREAKFAST CLUB

 I LOVE this movie. Love, Love, LOVE this movie. But the ending, while understandable, always leaves me wanting more. Does Claire use Bender to get back at her parents? Does Allison secret hook up with Andrew? Does Brian become ruler of the nerd world? I NEED to know!

I couldn't find video with just the goodbye scenes. So, here is The Breakfast Club in Four Minutes.

So, Swap with me! What endings would you rewrite? 

 

Knowing when to let go

Thinking about Thursday

Everyone shelves their first novel, right? That is what I hear from most of writer friends. "Oh, my first novel? It's under my bed (in a file cabinet, locked in my mother's attic, a pile of ashes that were washed down the kitchen sink). Never to see the light of day."
That is what I am thinking about today. The manuscript I have been working on (and working on and working on) is far from my first novel. I have been writing most of my life, so I have completed several others. You want to talk about "never meant to see the light of day"? These would make your heart ache and not in a good way. But, they were all steps in the process.

I suppose this one is, too. I have never put so much work into a manuscript before. I have never had such great beta readers and critique partners before. (Shout out to the terrific Teri Anne Stanley and my NTRWA chaptermate, Genevieve Wilson.) Of course, I have never been this educated about the publishing process before.

Despite all of the crits, all the revisions, all the heart, soul and tears. I think it is time to put this one the shelf. Sadly, not the one in the bookstore I have dreamed of seeing it grace.

I had high hopes of querying it this summer, but it's not ready. I know that and right now, I am too close to it to get it any closer to being ready. We need a break. Some time apart. Maybe I will come back with fresh eyes and all the parts I can't seem to work out will magically fall into place.

So, what do you think? Where is your first novel? How do you know when it is time to just let it go?

Golden Heart winner Anne Barton

Tell My Your Story Tuesday

Welcome

Anne Barton

Anne is a historical romance writer represented by Helen Breitwieser at Cornerstone Literary Agency. Anne has had an excited summer. She won the RWA Golden Heart Award for her regency historical,  The Proper Miss's Guide to Bad Behavior. A short time later, she announced her first sale.

Let's get to know Anne!

   

  What made you decide to write?  What did you do before becoming a writer?

I think I’m driven to write because I’m a really bad singer.  Deplorable.  I used to envy people with beautiful voices (oh, who am I kidding, I still do!) because of the way they make people feel when they sing.  A moving song makes people laugh, cry, or gives them goosebumps.  An emotional scene in a story can do the same thing—that’s what I’m always trying for.

In school, if I had a choice between a five minute speech and a ten page research paper, I’d take the paper every time.  (By the way, it’s not easy to induce goosebumps with a physics paper.)  My friends thought I was crazy, but there’s something so satisfying about writing.  It gives you time to think and craft the perfect response.  If you’ve ever come up with a clever retort about five minutes too late, you know what I mean.

Tell us about winning the Golden Heart.

It was a moment I’d dreamed about, though I should point out that in my dreams my acceptance speech was wittier and I was more poised.  Also I was taller and looked a lot like Jennifer Aniston.  But it felt wonderful.  I mean, we’ve already established that I can’t sing, so American Idol wasn’t a viable dream for me.  I’ve never been much of an athlete (my brothers are rolling on the floor at this gross understatement), so it wasn’t like I had a shot at the Olympics.  Not even curling, for crying out loud.  The Golden Heart was my dream, and thanks to many hours at the computer—and a healthy dose of luck!—it came true.

 You also just announced your first sale. How exciting! Give us some details on that.

The deal started coming together while I was attending the Romance Writers of America’s national conference in New York City.  The whole week seemed magical . . . if we don’t count the rat that almost scampered over my toes and the guy on the train who tried to steal my luggage.  Honestly, Nationals is the most fun a writer can have: workshops, parties, sightseeing, and hanging out with fellow writers.  I met my editor at a retreat, and a few days after I returned home I received the official offer. Celebration ensued!  Here’s the blurb that ran in Publishers Marketplace:

2011 Golden Heart winner in the Regency Historical category Anne Barton's THE PROPER MISS'S GUIDE TO BAD BEHAVIOR, pitched as Project Runway meets Downton Abbey, to Selina McLemore of Forever, in a two-book deal, by Helen Breitwieser at Cornerstone Literary (World).

   Do you have any special time management tricks for working in writing time and living a normal life?

I make daily goals for myself.  When I’m drafting, I write 1,000 words each day.  My family knows I’m not allowed to play until my words are done.  If my day job is going to be especially hectic one week, I plan ahead and write more the weekend before.  Every Monday, I write my word count on my desk calendar.  It’s motivating to see the words add up in a few months.

Oh, and my best friend is my DVR.  I record my favorite TV shows (and there are so, so many!) to use as rewards after I meet my daily word count.

   What is the best advice you have received about this journey?

I can’t remember where I read this advice, but I’d just finished my first manuscript, and it was exactly what I needed.  I’m paraphrasing, but it goes something like: When you start a story, don’t hold anything back—don’t save the good bits for later.  Put all your best stuff into the opening chapter . . . and then make sure the rest of the story delivers on that promise.

 How can we find out more about you? Blogs? Facebook? Twitter?

I have a website: www.annebarton.com

and a blog. 

I’ve also finally gotten a grasp on Twitter (@_AnneBarton), which no doubt means it’s on the verge of becoming obsolete.  In the meantime I’d love to see you there!

Thank you so much for stopping by, Anne.

So, what do you want to know about Anne?