30
Jan
Do you like Vampires? Demons? Werewolves?
I do. Well, I like the stories, not the monsters. I don't think I'd want to ever encounter a real vampire, or get bitten by a werewolf.
Kinda not my thing, the whole blood and pain deal.
Writing about it? Sure.
There is plenty of blood and gore in my books, my heroes get stabbed, shot, tortured… even killed. (Yes, I have been known to kill off the hero about 1/4 into the story…)
But it isn't always a bad guy doing the stabbing and shooting, it's not always a monster doing it, either. Sometimes it's an average Joe, who feels threatened enough to defend himself by any means possible.
When we speak of monsters, we inevitably picture Nosferatu, Frankenstein, or something like Predator. We never think of the man next door, who may be perfectly nice when we meet him in the street — but who secretly buries people alive in his back yard.
Sometimes human monsters are worse than supernatural ones.
Take Elizabeth Bathory for example.
Born in 1560 in Hungary, she managed to kill over six hundred girls in about thirty years. No one stopped her, until she made the mistake of killing noblewomen, rather than peasants.
People knew about this, but because the girls were peasants, no one did anything.
It wouldn't surprise me if those (of her own standing) who met her saw a very different woman to the murderous monster the peasant girls got to meet.
The human race definitely has its own monsters, and sometimes they are scarier than anything we can make up.
So next time you find yourself stuck for something to write, and reach for the werewolf or the vampire — consider turning that innocent looking elderly man next door into a monster.
Then ask yourself… What if?
A book?
No. Yes. Maybe.
An mp3 player?
No. Yes. Maybe.
A picture viewer?
No. Yes. Maybe.
A video player?
No. Yes. Maybe.
Well. All of the above, in a way.
Unless you've been living under a rock, you'll have heard about Apple releasing information about the iPad today.
So what do we know about it so far?
We are told it has a 9.7-inch screen, weighs 1.5 pounds, has Wi-Fi with a 3G option, comes in 16gb/32gb/64gb versions.
There is all manner of hype about it, and it does look pretty cool, but I don't believe their claim of 10hrs battery life when you watch videos. Yeah, I heard that one before.
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We are told it will run "most" iPhone apps. (Oh? Which ones won't run?) There is also the thing about Flash, which Apple has problems with. (It won't run, basically. Kinda nasty, considering a lot of websites rely on flash navigation…)
Books will be available on iTunes, in Epub format. That's good news.
The bad news is the price.
The rock bottom intro level iPad will set you back a whopping $499 for the 16gb version.
Don't know about you, but frankly… that's too much.
Considering it stores images, text, music and whatnot – 16gb is a drop in the ocean. So you'll likely go for the 32gb version at $599, or the 64gb version at $699. Add to that the (optional) 3G capability and you add $130 to each.
Whoa.
Wait a minute.
If I want something that stores a half way decent amount of files, which I can browse the web on (except flash sites) and maybe use as a phone… it'll set me back $829 plus tax? Are you freaking kidding me?
I can get a decent little laptop for HALF that.
In fact, I bought my Dell Mini10V for less than half that, and I don't need "an App for that", it'll run Office just dandy, thank you very much. (Spec is 1gb RAM, 160gb HDD, WiFi, Webcam etc etc, running full XP, which means I can actually work on it. 10.4" screen and weighing about 2lbs.)
Looking at this, why on earth would I buy an iPad for double the price, with less capability than my mini laptop?
Style? Yeah, I give them that. It's a nice looking thing. It's a lot thinner than my laptop, too. A little lighter, as well.
Don't get me wrong, I like the look of it. I'd love to have one.
I'd love to have a Kindle and a Nook, too, but again — not for that price.
Add to all this that in the UK, Apple is notorious for simply just changing the currency sign instead of the price — I think not.
(We pay more per song in the UK, than the rest of Europe, or the US, if we go to iTunes. Prices in the UK are £0.99 while in Europe they are €0.99 – which works out at £0.85 – and in the US they are $0.99, which works out at £0.61 / €0.70)
They do the same with iPhones and iPods – so why should the iPad be any different?
I like it, but unless Apple changes it's tune on the pricing — and on their iTunes user agreement model — I'm not so sure the iPad will be taking off in a big way over here.
I'll keep watching.
We've been talking about writing habits, over at Passionate Critters. (My critique group)
Mostly about revision, but also writing in general. Harper did a very nice blog post about it.
There are different habits, different ways of doing things. None of us are the same, we all have our little quirks. Little things we like to do. What works for one person, might not work for another.
Personally, I'm a night owl. I do my best writing at night, way past midnight usually, slurping a tepid (or cold) cup of coffee that has sat on my desk so long, I forgot it's there. (I used to work in IT. Cold coffee is… not unusual.)
When I concentrate, when I'm in the story, I don't see or hear anything else. You could probably rob me blind while I am that deep into it, I wouldn't notice. Well, not until you tried to take my computer. I'd probably murder the burglar for interrupting the flow.
To concentrate, I often fiddle with little strips of fabric, roll it between my fingers while my mind goes into overdrive. For some odd reason the feel of the fabric helps me to focus.
I go outside, stare into the darkness while I have a cigarette (yes, filthy blah blah…) and my characters usually have a conversation in my head while I do it. If there is a particular pose I want to convey, I try it out, see how it would look or feel. My neighbors probably wonder about me. Oh well.
I write everywhere. There isn't a second of the day when I don't write — even if it's just in my head. I get incredibly annoyed when I have something I need to put on paper or screen, and I can't. Boy, do I ever!
But if you watch me — I won't write a word. Not even one. I will wait until everyone is out of the room, because I can't stand having someone watch me. It drives me nuts when someone does that.
Yep, weird.
That's me, you may well have your own habits.
So how do I revise?
Pretty much the same way. I don't have set formula. I don't do it chapter by chapter. I read my stuff many, many, times though.
Over and over. Sometimes just for pleasure. That's when I find things, when I read it as a reader, not as a writer.
I step away for at least a week before I revise. I won't open the file, won't read any of it.
Then I read it again and hopefully notice those odd bits that don't work, or the ones in the wrong place, or where the pace slows down, or… you get the idea.
I cut words. Sometimes just one, sometimes entire chapters. If I get bored reading it, then so does anyone else. Out it comes.
What I don't do is throw that stuff out. It goes into another file.
I look for duplications. I sometimes say the same thing twice, using different words. In fact, I do this a lot.
I look for repetition, words I use a lot, phrases too. Unless it's a trademark of the character, it comes out.
You could say I have a habit of culling my habits. 
25
Jan
That query thing is hard.
Worse, it's putting your heart and soul out there.
I've heard so many different takes on this. Pretty much everyone told me "Be professional".
Well, duh. I am.
But the thing is, I kept sending queries that were dry and bland and just plain boring.
Yeah, they were professional, but they had no soul.
None.
My last query went out about two weeks ago. I haven't heard anything yet, but I have a better feeling about this one, than any previous ones.
When I posted it on our board, the entire crew had a good ole giggle reading it.
Hopefully the agent I sent it to will get a chuckle out of it too, and remember to read what I've submitted to her.
I figured this professional lark is all very well, but if I can't bring my personality into it, my voice, then I've already failed before the query even lands in anyone's in box.
I let you in on a little secret — writing that particular query letter was SO much easier than any I wrote before. Why?
Because I wrote it the same way I write my books. Off the cuff, making the reader grin or laugh outright. (With the odd Kleenex moment thrown in.)
Okay, no need for Kleenex when someone reads my query, that would be taking things too far.
But there are a few things anyone can do:
- Make sure your full (real) name is on the email you use, not a screen name or something.
- Make sure the email address is your own. With shared mail accounts, there is a default email. Before you hit "Send", make sure you're sending from the right account.
- The subject line should be short, and not too generic.
Query – Welcome to Hell – Juppenlatz
rather than:
Query – Paranormal Romance
I imagine they get lots of those. Make yours stand out. - Be professional, but be yourself.
That's all the advice I have. Clearly I haven't gotten anywhere with it yet, but I'm hopeful.
And if it doesn't work, then I'll just keep on going, because… I believe I can do this. I believe there is a market for my writing out there — and when I find the editor who believes this as much as I do, then things will happen.
So, my best advice is…
Put some SOUL into your query, not just into your book.
19
Jan
Seeing as I decided to blog at least once a week, I find myself stuck for topics occasionally.
I made a list, ticking off what I've blogged about.
Now, sometimes you have 20 topics in your head and you're on fire… other times you find it hard to blog about anything at all.
So… what do you do?
My suggestion is to "Blog Ahead".
What I mean by that, is to write those blogs when you're on fire – and release them when you're not.
On wordpress it's quite easy to do this. Either save it as a draft, or schedule it for a later date.
I tend to do the latter, or I forget to post the darn thing. (This one wasn't written ahead of time though.)
Not only will it keep the flow of your blog steady, it will also aid the writing process. None of us are always on fire when we want to be. It gets hard when that muse decides to take a long vacation.
"Having to" is the worst scenario I can think of. "Having to" implies force. Force never goes well with inspiration. You can't force yourself to have ideas, to feel inspired, to be on fire with your prose.
Not gonna happen.
So if, like me, you set yourself a task to keep your blog up to date — why not type up all those ideas you have, and schedule them?
Or at least put them up as a draft?
You can always slot another post in, or change the release date of one you already have, if something comes up that is time sensitive.
At least this way you have a little bit of leeway.
How do you blog?
Do you blog ahead, or write week by week, day by day?
14
Jan
*clamps a knife between her teeth and adjusts the eye patch*
"Drink up me 'earties, yo ho. Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me."
Or something like that.
So, is this your theme song? Or do you diligently pay for everything?
I'm sure all of us are guilty of downloading something we shouldn't, or using some shareware program beyond it's terms.
How many people downloaded Winzip and kept using it? (I think it expires now, but not sure. My copy doesn't, because it's… well… a legal one.)
Yes, I've done it. I don't anymore, because good software, or good music, or a good book, is worth supporting the author / artist. Let's face it, if we don't pay for the stuff we use, then how are the people creating it supposed to earn anything, so they can keep producing things we like?
The subject reared it's ugly head recently, when one of my fellow critique partners found her book pirated and uploaded on a site.
Now, I don't blame the site. They didn't go out there with the express purpose of pirating her book. In fact, they don't pirate anything — their users do.
I still hold them responsible, but not as responsible as the person who actually uploaded it and shared the link.
So, how does this affect my friend?
She makes a pittance off her books. She's not going to get rich off the royalties, but it pays for the odd cup of coffee.
The book has her soul, blood, sweat and tears invested in it — and some scumbag gave it away free.
First it was software, then it was music, now it's books.
Yes, we've all given used paperbacks to other people. I'm sure you were given one by someone too.
It still means that there is one copy in circulation and someone had to pay for it in the first place. And you can't give someone more than that one copy.
That's not the case with an ebook. That link will deprive her of a bunch of sales, and in this market, even a few lost sales hurt.
Sometimes, for instance a book that's out of print, there is a genuine reason to obtain it second hand. Sometimes a book isn't available in your country.
You can't get it any other way, so you do what you can.
Ebooks don't really go out of print, nor do they have real boundaries. You can get the book inside of five minutes, legally, from pretty much anywhere. It's not even down to price. At $5 it's not exactly expensive or unaffordable for people.
So if you're one of those who download the books — please think about what you're doing. Think about the author you are hurting. They get precious little in royalties, and many of those books took years to write, query and finally sell.
The publishers do what they can to have copies taken down, so do the authors, but they keep reappearing.
The same goes for music.
Yeah, when I was a kid, I used to tape tracks straight off the radio. We didn't think of it as stealing, but really… it was. It's the same thing as downloading an mp3 which you didn't pay for.
I'd rather buy the album and so make sure the band I like can make another one.
I have no doubt they'd keep making music even if they didn't see a dime — but the record company won't.
The same goes for the publishers. The author is going to keep writing, but if the publisher can't sell the books because everyone downloads a pirated copy… then eventually they are going to stop publishing that author.
Images are another thing. Just because it's on the web, doesn't mean it's free to take. (And I'm guilty of that too, but I tend to make my own graphics a lot of the time — and I tend to go for royalty free stock images instead, now.)
What if we end up with ads in books to cover costs?
No one wants THAT, now do we?
Not to mention, how do you know the copy you're downloading… isn't a malicious virus?
Do you really want your computer infected with something that will cost you precious digital family photographs, which you forgot to back up?
Support the authors and buy the books. And if you want to give a copy away, then buy a second copy for the person you want to give it to.
It'll keep our heartbroken author in a few cups of coffee — and she'll need those, while she's working on the next book.
Think before you click.
8
Jan
…might contain clockwork laptops and steam driven airships.
Yup.
Steampunk.
As one of my fellow critters asked the other day: "What on earth is it?"
Steampunk is a sci-fi subgenre, based in a world where the future has collapsed and silicone, plastic and any other modern technology has been replaced by — you guessed it — steam powered, clockwork driven gadgets made of brass and copper.
The world is a re-invented Victorian era, complete with long dresses, walking sticks and whatnot.
Never mind that those long skirts are held up by leather and brass buckles big enough to knock out even the most courageous mugger.
We're talking about a very dystopian world, where anything goes, as long as it involves brass bolts, clockworks, steam and copper screws.
And let's not forget the funky goggles!
In case I've whet your appetite… here are some images of Steampunk gadgetry:
Cool, eh?
The idea has been around a long time, if you want to get right down to it, H.G. Wells and Jules Verne were the grandfathers of the genre.
You've guessed it. The Nautilus… is a steampunk submarine.
It's kind of cyberpunk in reverse, where the women are strong and resourceful, the men adventurous and brave.
Personally, I love the whole look of the Steampunk stuff, but I couldn't write it to save my life. I'll leave that to the braver souls out there.
It's an up and coming subgenre for romance as well, you mark my words.
So, what did I get up to last year?
My #1 goal was to query and submit.
I did that, and then some.
Unfortunately it didn't get me anything but rejections.
I've let myself in for a lot of work starting this year, but I'm not quite ready to say what it is yet. (Not until the t's are crossed and the i's are dotted, and I know it's actually going to happen.)
No, it's not a book, no I haven't sold a story, or landed an agent.
But it has to do with writing, I'll say this much.
Did you set yourself goals last year?
Did you stick with them?
I had set myself a goal of procrastinating less.
Yeah. Right. I still get distracted way too easily.
Then there was the "Drink less coffee" one.
Uh-huh. *rolls eyes* As if.
I also failed the "Blog every day" goal, so I've set it again this year — but this time it's "Blog at least once a week"
I might be able to stick with that, daily is a bit of a tall order.
So I'll start an "Evil Author Weekly" which may be twice weekly, or more, but mustn't be less.
I'm doing a google gadget too, but that will take a little while.
I actually have two blogs. This one, which is dedicated to writing, and my other, more personal one.
I've slacked on that one too, but that's where you find any book reviews I've done. (http://www.thinkstokeep.com)
Occasionally I cross pollinate between the two. Sorry. I'll try not to deceive anyone reading both blogs.
Most people won't want to know about the more personal one, which is why I've split it off. This blog, www.evilauthor.com, is and will stay as my writing blog.
What I do plan to post here is this:
- Writing Contests
- Agent News
- Industry News
- Writing Software / Gadget reviews
- Writing tidbits
- Writing advice
- Writing prompts
Stuff like that.
I hope those who pop in to read will enjoy it.
So off I go… researching ereaders.
Have a great new year!
1
Jan
Happy New Year!
And with the new year – heck, a new decade – come resolutions.
What are yours?
Here are some of mine…
