What is the Theme?

Anyone who has ever ventured into a Literature class has heard that question several times. Stories are supposed to have themes, though they are often subject to all sorts of interpretations.

When I first started writing, I despised the idea of a "theme". Even more so when I was given a writing assignment with a pre-determined theme. I wanted to write what I wanted and however I wanted. That attitude seems incredibly childish to me now. Out of my list of current short stories, they are all for different anthologies running off a single theme. Instead of seeing this as a barrier as I once did, I now see it as an exciting challenge or test. 

These tests are especially good for my characters. I can see how Esther or Bryan react to specific situations. For example, I am currently writing a short story regarding the theme of failure. So what exactly would happen to cause Esther to fail? And what are the repercussions? Looking over the publisher's specification, I also see they do not want any European Faeries. So Esther fails against a spirit of Asian origins. It isn't too restrictive, but I have certain points that must be established. 

Having this vague outline in the beginning can be a lot more helpful in the long run. While I still enjoy sitting down and just writing whatever comes to my mind, those stories tend to take longer to

finish. They usually need a lot of trimming as well in order to cut out my own ramblings. 

Of course, these anthologies can be a lot harder to actually get published in. Understandably, the publisher wants to make sure all the pieces are cohesive and fit with their own idea of what the theme means. My example of failure might not be what they are looking for. Or maybe it is. Either way, I've written something I'm proud of.    

The Silent Rejection

Everyone knows the scene where the teacher/coach/director walks down the hall. A single sheet of paper is clutched in their hand, which holds the list of acceptances. Crowds watch in silence as it is posted to the wall, and then they flood to it. Beady eyes search out their own name. 

I really hate those lists. It was awful in school, and it's still awful now. A publisher updates their site with the list of accepted stories. I spend twenty minutes double checking that my name isn't there. You just have to accept it and move on to the next project. 

I wish I could add something a bit more eloquent, but I'm just a little put out. Understandable though. However, I'm not going to wallow any longer. I have to keep going forward. The Muse is thankfully providing plenty of new ideas. 

The Past 6 Months

I guess it's a bit stereotypical for people to reflect on the past year when December rolls around. Still, I think it can be beneficial. For my writing, things really went into overdrive in July. While I'm always writing, the discovery of new opportunities in actually getting published gave me the kick to take my craft more seriously. A slew of rejections in the beginning of the year might have discouraged me, but I wasn't going to just give up.

It started with googling the simple phrase: mystery novel submission. I was hoping for a second chance in sending out Our Fathers, and I found it. The novel is complete at a lovely 89,177 words. An estimated 15,000 of those were freshly written between July and September. The novel also went through three drafts during that time. I am immensely proud of this book, and I am incredibly hopeful about the future with Scarlet and Colby. The publisher said they will get back to me early next year, so we just have to be patient.

After finishing off Our Fathers, my time was filled with a slew of short stories. Only one did not take place in my Steampunk Fantasy series. In total, I've written 58,369 words of short stories so far. I might be able to finish another one by the end of December, but we will have to wait and see on that. One will be published, and I'm anticipating more results soon.

When I look at those numbers, I am both so happy with myself for doing it, and encouraged to do even more. I am also incredibly nervous about the future. The first few months of 2015 should be filled with either acceptances or rejections. But instead of fretting and refreshing my email every five minutes, I am going to keep on writing. I need to finish off Resurrected Thief, decide which sequel to start, and pump out more short stories. I also decided I'm going to seek out an agent if Our Fathers is rejected. There is only so much one gal can do!

Staying With A Schedule

For some reason, that's a lot harder than it sounds. It's my own fault, because I change my schedule at least once a month. For example, the second draft of Resurrected Thief was to be finished by December 1st. I haven't even touched it yet. I just keep finding new things to work on!

At least once a day, I check a series of sites for new updates on the current markets. I usually like to have a general idea of my next project, which helps when the writer's block settles in. However, this usually means finding new submissions or anthologies due fairly soon. Right now, I can pump out a short story in about two weeks, so it isn't the end of the world to add in new projects. It just tends to bump back everything without a set deadlines.

That always means the novels. The few publishers that do accept unsolicited manuscripts either do so all year or during a set few months. It allows me to be more flexible, which is great for everything BUT writing the novel. Yet having a half finished draft causes panic when some of the bigger names will randomly announce they are holding openings for a few short weeks.

Last time this happened, I rarely left my laptop. I think I drove my poor mother insane when Harper Voyager made their announcement...

One of these days, I am going to refuse to stray from the schedule. I want to finish this book already and get it out there! Maybe around March...

Who knows where this is going...

After meeting my word goal for the day, I decided to work some more on my expanded world building. Obviously, I have the structure and all the important details already established. Still, it's always good to keep adding in all the details.

I started out on more of the history of two characters that will be introduced in the second book. They are very close to Esther, but I can't say more without spoiling myself. One of them makes an off handed comment about how the Fae once had an organization similar to the Monster Hunters. That one comment has been ringing in my head all day long. This ringing has somehow turning into a new trilogy. 

This whole concept of shared worlds and overlapping stories has always fascinated me. It is a huge part of why I love comics. Obviously there are more people in the universe than your main characters, and I want to explore that. A great modern example I can think of is Gail Carriger. She has two book series set in her steampunk world, and a third one next year. That's pretty much always been my dream. Tapping into short stories helps too. 

I am also a sucker for origin stories. I think it's important to see how people become who they are. I would happily read an entire series of origin tales about every single people in Middle-Earth. Hopefully my readers will want this too. 

So, for those who are counting...There is a 5 book series about the Hawke family, 3 book series about a secret Fae group, and dozens of short stories. Plus, whatever pops into my head while writing all those. 

That still doesn't fit in everything I want to do with the Black and Redd series. I have ideas for so many crimes for them to investigate. I haven't quite decided the length of all of them yet. Though, I have thought about doing one book with alternating chapters of Scarlet and Colby on two different investigations. I've also dabbled with the idea of writing some of their fathers' adventures, or a young adult series about Scarlet and Colby as teens getting into trouble. 

It never ends!

Everyone Wants Something

It's a bit of a cliched saying, but we all know it's true. And this simple fact is something I really want enjoy exploring with my characters. What do they want? What are they and what aren't they willing to do to get it? And of course, what actually happens next?

A friend of mine told me to think that every character is after a glass of water. I think she might have quoted that from someone, but I honestly can't recall. She said to think of the story as a quest for that glass of water. However, I've been struggling to see what is my character's glass of water.

In my current short story, Bryan Hawke has no idea what he wants. I have a general idea, but it's not enough. As a result, he is coming across like a whining child who isn't getting what he wants and yet
doesn't even know what he wants. It's incredibly frustrating for me. We both know that he honestly has no idea if he wants to remain in the "family business". Yet that isn't enough for a good short story. I know he wants to save his friend. I've just been lost on the specifics.

Forgive me for any vagueness. I both don't know all the details, and don't want to spoil the entire story.

I've been pondering on the "quest for water" for a few days now. It's actually been encouraged by playing plenty of video games full of quests for odds and ends. The past three quests I've played in a fantastic game about assassinating people, where your end goal is very clear. You want to either kill someone or save someone. As I painfully learned, it's not the easiest way to charge right to the end goal. Plus, it's not always the best story.

As I spent a good amount of time collecting herbs for a poison, it finally dawned on me. What better way to put an end to his whining than to have the lad charge head first into battle without a clear head? After struggling with what happens next, we're both forced to settle our priorities. I only hope it comes across in the story as well as it seems in my head.

Back to writing!

Pondering on the Future

I have once again returned to the lull between projects.  I'm working on outlining my next two short stories, but I keep pausing to think about what to do next.

Should I hunt down more short stories to write? Or return to the novels?

I originally planned on finishing Resurrected Thief by the end of this year. Might not quite get to do that, which is okay because my number one choice for a publisher is possibly holding open submissions in the spring. But my number two is holding them until the end of this year and I don't know when they open again. Plus who knows what other opportunities will randomly show up and I want to be prepared. 

Short stories are great for a foundation in publishing. They'll hopefully make me more impressive to an agent or publisher. And create a history for my steampunk series. I just haven't found any new listings that have sparked my interest yet.  

In the end,  it's entirely up to the Muse. I just wish she would stop distracting me with all this worrying.

Celebration Time!

Another short story finished! I've poured myself a nice cold glass of ginger ale in celebration. The feeling of actually finishing a story is so fantastic, even if it's 10,000 or 100,000 words. I can list all the proverbial idioms about climbing the mountain or finishing the race, but we all know it isn't over yet.

Next comes the actual submission. Oh, the terror!

Checking the guidelines twenty times to make sure you didn't miss a single thing. Writing that cover letter with the perfect words. Hitting send!

I have a heart attack every single time. This is why I've started taking time to actually celebrate finishing. The unwinding  gives my brain a chance to reboot, which can help catch last minute typos. And that is a lifesaver.

Also, check out my "Current Writing" page above for a more up to date track of what is going on. Hopefully, there should be some new projects popping up soon!

Keeping on Track

I always tend to write less on the weekends. Combination of either running around with errands or taking time to relax I suppose.  But I am very proud that I haven't gone a day without writing since July. Since then, I've developed what I think is a pretty good method for keeping myself trucking forward. 

I did borrow methods posted in the blogs of a lot of authors I love, but you'll have to forgive me for not having more details than that. While the words lingered in my memory, the sources have faded. If I can find them, I'll post them right away. The main thing is keeping track of your writing progress, followed by a system of rewards.

I have two different programs for logging my daily word count. The first is an app called Nano Progress. You create your project, maximum word count, and how many days until it's due. It then tells you how many words to write a day and percentage you are at. The max number of words will change each time you update your word count to make sure you are on track. My second is an Excel spreadsheet from here. It allows for just 30 days since it was meant for NaNoWriMo. It has great charts for tracking your progress too, which are great for more visually orientated people.  

I create a log under each of these for whatever I'm writing. Since the Excel sheet is limited to thirty days, it can be tricky with shorter deadlines. However, I like using it for deadlines over 30 days because it has that sense of impending doom. I know I have two months, but the Excel doesn't. It tells me that I need to hurry up and get writing. Anytime I don't meet that maximum daily word count, I feel awful. That sinking sense of disappointment kicks me into high gear. 

Now, it's not good to write off just that. The app will tell me my actual deadline and how much I should be writing each day. Most of the time, it's a good deal lower than what the spreadsheet says. For example, my current project needs about 500 words a day to keep on track in Excel. The app says I need 100. I nearly always exceed the maximum from the app, so that is encouraging. 

This might seem excessive, and updating two programs can be distracting...but it works for me in the long run.   

I can see through the fog!

(Get it? Steampunk. London. It's foggy?...I'm funny!)

Earlier, I had taken a break from trying to write in order to work out some of the background details of this alternative reality. I've been mulling over the fashion because I am trying to get a perfect blend of historically accurate dress and the fantastic steampunk aesthetic.  Esther currently has a wardrobe of dresses filled with secret pockets under the lace and bustle. It's led to a few amusing moments where everyone is scandalized by her lifting her skirts to pull out a weapon or gadget.

With her skirts designed, I was stumped on the top. I wanted a more corset like top, but without being too scandalous. Pursuing on Clockwork Couture and Corset Story showed me a whole series of overbust corsets with mini jackets that wouldn't be too scandalous for a hunter. Plus, they have more pockets. Everyone needs more pockets.

This started to tie in with reworking some of the hunter's gears to be more steampunk, but without all the "goggles and gears" cliches. So I ended up with some lovely binoculars on a fancy silver chain. Something still felt off, so I started on a terrible horrible doodle of the design. I am by no means an artist, but sometimes you need to visualize things. Within seconds, the sketch of a dress turned into a scene of Esther watching pixies flying from the trees. With that god awful rendition, I finally figured out what to write. Yay!

I am currently at 6,970 words of a 10,000 word short story. I had hoped to be further along, but too many little hiccups. Oh well. We keep on writing!   

My Worst Enemy

I wish I was one of those authors who say they've never had writer's block. I really do, because it is my least favorite thing in the world. Especially when I know what has to happen in the scene, but the words won't flow.

For instance, Mr. Hawke and Esther are trekking through the forest. They are about to uncover the start of the faerie's mischief. But I just can't put the moments before the discovery into words. As a result, I've spent most my time thinking and not writing. My daily count is just over 500 words. That's awful. Yes, better than none, but not as good as my average of over 1,000.

I normally have two remedies for blockage. Either move onto writing the next scene and hope I can connect the dots, or distract myself with a book or video game. Seeing as how next week will be full of video games, I am reluctant to partake of that distraction right now. At the same time, I just can't find the right words.

I think I'll just play something tonight instead. I don't want to spend more time staring at a blank Word document.

The Joy of NaNoWriMo

It's slowly starting to eat away at me that I won't be able to do NaNoWriMo this year. I wanted to, but I have too many other things due in November and December. Originally, I wanted to write a sequel this month. The sudden discoveries of short stories threw all of it for a loop. For one day, I considered doing all of it. That sadly fell apart after two days.

It's not that I can't write 50,000 words in 30 days. Currently, I'm averaging 1500 a day. It's the fact that within that span I'm writing different plot lines. Each story takes a day or two to outline. Then after writing, I have to fully edit. Plus all the other fun interruptions of real life.

It is just killing me that I can't do this. But I keep telling myself that it is worth it to send out short stories. Who knows, maybe the Muse will be extra kind to me this month and I can do it all!

My Current Schedule

I thought I would give a little bit of a more detailed update on exactly what is going on within Elsewhere.

• The Resurrected Thief: First novel of Steampunk monster hunters
• Undergoing rewrites in between other projects  
• Our Fathers: First novel of "Black and Redd Mysteries"
• Under consideration by a publisher
• The Knocking Below: Short story of Esther Doyle's first hunt with the Hawkes
• To be published in upcoming anthology "The Grimoire of Eldritch Inquests" 
• The Red Crown: Fantasy short story of two thieves
• Under consideration by a publisher
• From Across Two Rivers: Novella of Bryan Hawke's hunts while abroad
• Under consideration by a publisher
• Through the Mist: Short story of Esther Doyle on her own
• Under consideration by a publisher
• Untitled Short Story: Two Scottish children witness the awakening of the Fae
• Currently being written, due 2015
• Untitled Short Story: Mr. Hawke and Esther investigate odd happenings in Wales
• Currently being written, due January 31
• Untitled Short Story: Steampunk adventures discover a magical island
• Currently brainstorming, due December 31 

This is a short breakdown of the projects that are most pressing. I always have other ideas simmering in the background, but these are getting all my attention right now. Hopefully I will have plenty of exciting updates within the next few weeks, along with some rantings. 

What To Do Next

Very little excites me more than a blank piece of paper. New words! New possibilities! I could do anything with it!

Yet that first word is tricky. Currently, I am trying to decide which of the upcoming three deadlines I should start on first. As ever, all three are steampunk. The first is Esther's final solo adventure before returning to London. The next would be a story about a side character from The Resurrected Thief who will come back in the second or third book. The final one will be more with Esther working with the Hawke family. 

Right now, I have Esther's history much more defined than anyone else. It allows me to write her stories with more ease, but then the Muse points out this series isn't just about her. My last submission was following Bryan as he travels around Europe as a student. It gave me a great deal of insight into his motivations, but he is still nowhere as developed as Esther. And poor Tom has had barely any attention in all this...

The Muse demands I write more with Esther. I am helpless to her whims. However, exploring Esther's history brings up some spoilers. My soon to be published short story "The Knocking Below" does have the inklings of a spoiler at the end. I intended them all to be read individually, but to show a lot more when they are connected. I know a lot of authors that do this, and I have always wanted to try it. 

Back to the actual writing though...Which means I should actually write. I have plans for Esther to meet another unusual foe in Venice. After that I am admittedly a little lost. My usual remedy is to read something or scribble thoughts until something comes up. 

At least I'm currently ahead of my writing goals. Yay!  

I Hate Editing...Or Do I?

My answer changes every day. Today, I hate it. Three days ago, I loved it. Editing always causes me to fight myself. This story is both perfect and horrible. Nothing should change, but something is missing. It drives me up a wall!

I just finished up a short story, and am trying to decide if it needs one more edit or if I should just hit the send button already. It's already been through two rounds of editing. I usually allow each piece two or three edits. After writing, I edit on my laptop. Then I print a copy and edit off screen. I will then edit it again on the computer just to be sure. Depending on time, I'll sometimes cut down one of the online edits. For this story, it's fairly short and due soon so it needed two edits.

Neither removed the feeling that something is off. I am admittedly a perfectionist, so I rarely please myself.

I should just hit send already. It isn't due for another three weeks, but I want to just cut out the nagging editorial voice already.

Yup, I'm going to do it.

Definitely going to.

Submitting is a terrifying process. At least this one is over.

Hunters: The Origin Story

First of all, this series doesn't have a name yet. It's very troublesome. As soon as I come up with one, I'll shout it to everyone.

I've been mulling around with this idea of a fantasy steampunk for about a year and a half. It began with two short stories for different steampunk anthologies. I wanted to write about mermaids and mummies and magic. Yet these stories started to grow much longer than the 10,000 word cap. After about a week of trying to trim them down, I decided to just keep writing. Those short stories turned into The Resurrected Thief and an unnamed second book. You will notice a trend that I can't think of titles on my own.

Right now, I am trying to write both several prequel short stories and revamp the first book. The novels begin with Bryan Hawke set on closing down the family business of hunting fantastical and murderous monsters. Despite the loss of his arm, the patriarch James and his assistant Esther want to keep business as usual. While James isn't very present in the first book, I have plans for him. In the first draft, he died and didn't really serve much purpose other than giving Bryan a reason to close down the office. After noticing quite a few similarities to Our Fathers, I made some tweaks.

As I said, this series is set up differently than my other works. The novels (about five right now) will follow one massive conflict, while the short stories are other various and exciting adventures. It's slightly carrying over my initial hope to have this series be published in a serialization. While I still would like to try that, I'm happy with how it is set up right now. But knowing me, that could change at any minute.

The Muse is wild and fickle with this series. She comes up with big and amazing twists, but none of them connect. I'm trying to piece them all together, all while trying to work within deadlines for magazines and anthologies. I work well with deadlines. The Muse does not, nor with maximum word limits. But we both enjoy coming up with dark monsters from folklore and throwing them at the Hawke family.

I also wanted this series to explore some more serious themes, despite the insane premise. The British Empire was expanse, so this allows me a lot of room for diversity. I also am exploring the oppression that came along with this time. I know people are keen to mock authors for replacing minorities with elves, but that isn't what I'm trying here. Yes, the elves are an opposed minority, but they aren't replacing anyone. One thing I've learned that in the past minorities tend to discriminate against each other despite all the groups sharing the same oppression. It's oddly fascinating to me, and I try to explore that theme a lot.

I am also thrilled to have faeries with fangs instead of wands. This series will be a lot darker than I first thought, and I am so excited for it.

Black and Redd: The Origin Story

It all began with a notebook. A beautiful and hardcover notebook. Black cover with a red spine. "Black n Red" printed on the cover. When I held it, I knew it was meant to be. At that moment, I could tell you nothing more than Black and Red were a dynamic duo solving crimes. So the notebook sat on my desk while I pondered away. Soon after, the Sherlock Holmes movie came out and I was busy rereading all my favorite Victorian mysteries. I only knew I wanted to write something Victorian myself, but I still wasn't sure.

That cold winter, our house lost power for days. No electric! No internet! No TV! Instead, I sat with my notebook and began writing by candlelight. I pictured a young woman, set against the strict Victorian culture while occupied with finding her father's killer. While I wanted Victorian England, I wanted something different than foggy London. I was tempted by Oxford, but it didn't feel right to me. Soon after, I was rereading my favorite Jane Austen, Northanger Abbey. Bath! The scandalous city rumored to cater to every whim of Lord Byron. While the inspiration wasn't Victorian, I finally had a home for Scarlet and Colby.

My darling duo essentially wrote themselves. Which seems to be author speak for the characterization happening very smoothly. I love independent Scarlet and rascal Colby. I could go on and on about their little nuances, but this is the origin story of the series. I'll ramble about them later...

After writing several chapters, I had started to picture the future of the series. I came up with a series of unique crimes and criminals, but something was missing. Black And Redd Mysteries was an easy name for the series itself, but what about the books? Our Fathers struck me because Scarlet kept saying it every other page. After scribbling out random names and a series of religious discussions with my parents, an idea struck me. I scribbled out The Lord's Prayer and began circling phrases. Into Temptation. From Evil. Our Daily Bread. Book titles! It seemed like an obvious answer, yet I was extremely proud of myself.

At the same time, I was trying to give this series its own unique twist. I was starting to get into steampunk at the time, so I naturally combined the two. Those ideas did not end well. Robots randomly filled pages with no purpose other than to make it steampunk. It bothered me, so I reverted back to the original and historical draft. I'd make my grand entry into steampunk eventually, but I didn't want it to hinder Scarlet and Colby.

As I said before, the first book is currently with a publisher and I'm slowly working on the rest of the series. I know how I want it all to end, but then again I don't want it to. I know that Scarlet would happily spend the rest of her life solving mysteries. Colby is not decided on the matter, and I agree with him there. We all will just have to wait and see.

So What are You Working on Today?

That is a hard question to answer. Right now, the writing of Elsewhere is a mad mix of anything. Currently, the Victorian Era is dominating the populace of my mind. Expect to see quite a lot of it in the upcoming days, months, years, decades...

I am proud to say that the first book of my "Black and Redd Mysteries" is currently being read by a publisher. Rejection or acceptance, that is an exciting step all on its own. Our Fathers is the first of my historical mystery series, which will take anywhere from 10 to 15 books. The Muse is great with coming up with crimes to solve, but that's all she wants to do right now. Set in the early/mid 1880s, Scarlet Black and Colby Redd are solving the wild crimes of Bath, England. The second book Into Temptation is outlined and I've written the first chapter. I have not have time for much else because the Muse is distracting me with my other main project.

The rest of my time is centered on an alternate reality where all the creatures of fantasy, like elves, dwarves, goblins, mermaids, and trolls, dwell in the Victorian era. The dawn of the industrial age woke them from their hidden realm and they are trying to coexist with steam powered industry. Right now, it's a series of both books and short stories covering the Hawke family and their associates hunting down the more dangerous monsters. One of these short stories is going to be published this year! I'm writing many other short stories with these characters while trying to adjust the first novel with all the changes I've made. I had wanted to work on the second book for this year's NaNoWriMo. The entire series a bigger project than I first imagined, but it's spectacular.

I also have a large number of intersecting high fantasy ideas, which I'm hoping to turn into the full history of this universe. I wrote some sci-fi too, but sadly the Muse isn't paying much attention to anything that isn't a fantasy or mystery. One of these days I'll finish them.

In the next few days, I'll post some more of the background between these two projects. I am honestly hoping this blog will help with my writing itself. It might sound a bit egotistical, but talking about my writing helps me actually write.

The Meaning of Elsewhere

When I first decided I wanted to be an author, my mother warned me about rejections. She told me I'd receive thousands all throughout my life. Her warning did nothing to ease the pain when those emails come in.

They told my that my writing wasn't what they were looking for. It belonged elsewhere. 

Over and over and over. It fed into every fear that I wasn't good enough. A second rate, low priority, nobody. I belonged elsewhere.

But I've decided that I'm reclaiming that word. Elsewhere isn't some forgotten void where I will sit in silence for the rest of my life. It's an otherworldly place, a home for me and all my characters. I do belong Elsewhere, but that isn't a condemnation. It's an adventure.