Just received the final dust jacket design for Demon Princess. It’s out in trade paperback too, but this is what will be on the hardcover version. I just love those horned tiaras!!
Click on image to see it larger and read the snippet on the back cover! Ah, Nikki. She is fun to write.
Being that it is the first of the month (***HAPPY CANADA DAY***) I am starting my second draft of Eden #2 with a read-through of the manuscript. It’s officially due August 1st. I’ll make scene-by-scene notes on what needs to be tweaked. I’m really hoping it’s fairly solid. I have no idea what I shall find as I plunge back into these dark, quirky waters….
So I finished the first draft of Living in Eden #2 last week and neglected to mention it here! I’m so cheating on this blog with Twitter, just like I’ve been cheating on Hugh Jackman with Sam Worthington! (sorry blog. And Hugh. I still love you. Sort of. Although not as much as I used to.) I’m always looking for a chance to trot out the dancing celebratory bananas!
Yes, just shy of 85K, it is done and currently in hibernation on my hard drive until the beginning of July when I’ll start the second draft. I’m in love with the main characters, but have a feeling the plot will need some significant work, but as La Nora says, she can work with a bad page, but she can’t work with a blank page. So all is well.
Now I’m working on my editorial revisions for Demon Princess #2 that I want to finish up this week.
I’m heading into my last few scenes of Eden #2 and trying to ignore the doubt weasels that are gnawing at my ankles for this book. They’ve been on vacation for quite some time but seem to have returned with more friends.
It’s like I logically know that a first draft can be rough, and I have budgeted plenty of time to make things bigger and better, but I’m still getting nervous that it won’t be good enough. I don’t just want it to be good, I want it to ROCK and lead to more books about these crazy characters who’ve now set up house in the condo of my head (along with my demon princess, her friends, and other sundry creatures currently simmering in my cranium).
It is this self-doubt that pushes me forward. I swear, as soon as I think whatever I’ve written is gold, it’s a sure sign that it’s lousy. So the fact that my doubt weasels are juggling with my self-confidence is, hopefully, proof that this book is going to be a good’un that I’ll be proud of.
I’ll just go on the record right now, though, that Darrak is my favorite hero to write so far. He fits well into the “charmer” hero archetype. A bit different from my usual “lost souls” who need the heroine’s light to complete them. Darrak has his share of angst to deal with, of course, but he’s definitely the funniest hero I’ve written and stunned that he’s fallen for my heroine as much as she is. At least, I think he’s funny. Eden, my heroine, is more of the straight-laced type. She has a mix of “librarian” and “crusader” heroine archetypes. While watching some of Two Weeks Notice the other day I thought — there’s two characters who remind me of Eden and Darrak! Kinda sorta.
Anyhow, talking about a WIP is only interesting for the person writing it, I think.
Here’s my progress… I won’t be blogging again until this puppy is done. Then I immediately move into the revisions on Demon Princess: Reign Check that are due the end of the month. I love the hero, Michael, in those books as well (as well as the love triangle dude I’ve introduced in book 2 – heh heh). But Michael’s not exactly a joke-cracking kind of guy like Darrak is. S’okay. He’s hot enough that I’ll forgive him.
#1 — I moved to Los Angeles and had a basement apartment that had windows at the top of my walls. While in bed (it was a one room apartment) I noticed that somebody was peering in at me because my curtains were sheer. I felt exposed and a bit threatened.
#2 — To win a contest (or, possibly, save the world) I had to walk out on a narrow platform, high in the sky when it was really windy, and tie a scarf around a target while wearing a funny outfit and at risk of death. There were a lot of people cheering me on and counting on me to do it and not mess up, but they couldn’t help me. I had to do it myself.
Of course, I figure both dreams are metaphors for my writing career right now.
EDEN #2 is going fairly well. I’m getting pages done — at 175 at the moment out of an approx. 350 page manuscript. How I feel about those pages I’m not so sure. I’m hoping I feel angsty about this book because my characters are angsty and stressed out. Just like acting, I feel that when writing I get into my characters enough to feel what they’re feeling. It’s a theory. In any case, I’ve budgeted the entire month of July to do the final draft. It’s all good.
I am happy to report (and, in fact, already reported this on Twitter) that Turkish rights have been sold for DEMON PRINCESS: REIGN OR SHINE. Which totally rocks.
And I’m getting some fantastic early reader reports about the book in my inbox since there seems to be about a billion Demon Princess ARCs out and about right now because of BEA and other conventions.
And…. HOT SPELL, my Harlequin Blaze, is now up for Amazon pre-order. It’s a November release and I should be seeing the cover in the next month or so. Can’t wait!
Also, I’m still in love with Sam Worthington. I may have to see Terminator: Salvation again.
I already shared this on Twitter and Facebook but wanted to put it on my blog as well. After seeing the video on PubRants by Sherry Thomas, I knew I had to lemming up and do one myself forTall, Dark & Fangsome. Who says you need to spend hundreds of dollars on an effective book trailer?
It cracks me up every time I watch it. That Sarah and Thierry. So silly. *shakes head*
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Saw Terminator Salvation today and proclaim it infinitely watchable. I’ve been hearing such terrible things that I was afraid to see it (T1 and T2 are two of my favorite movies of all time), but instead I went in with very low expectations that were met and surpassed. Christian Bale was fairly one-note as John Connor, but the character of Marcus Wright played by Sam Worthington (an Aussie actor so already I am programmed to like him) was fairly perfect and layered (plus…hello? Hawtness). The trailer was riddled with spoilers for his character which is unfortunate since the twist doesn’t really happen till well into the movie. However, I think I would have figured it out anyway. I would personally like to rewrite the last five minutes (to say the frakkin least. Grrr), but otherwise I thought it was way better than T3 and a fairly worthy successor of T2.
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Plugging away on Living in Eden #2. Well, I did take a few days off to write the time travel short story, but now that’s done I’m back on the main book. I’m focused on this now until I hit the end of the first draft in a month or so. My heroine has been kidnapped by the bad guys. The hero incapacitated. How ever will she get away? (As soon as I figure that out I will continue writing)
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And just a reminder, there is less than a week left on the Brenda Novak auctions. An ARC of TD&F is up for grabs in support of this worthy cause.
I’m in the midst of writing my short story (as Michelle Maddox) for The Mammoth Book of Time Travel Romance. And lo and behold, I happen to see that it’s already up for pre-order on Amazon. And it’s out this year!! Yep, December 7, 2009 seems to be the official release date on this anthology. October for the UK.
My story is turning into something fairly interesting, I think. We’ll see, right? It’s a romantic thriller, a little bit futuristic, but mostly takes place right here in the present. However, time travel does play a very important role (of course).
And if I need any more inspiration, I can just look at the gorgeous cover the anthology is getting and what wonderful company my story, which right now is called THE ELEVENTH HOUR, will have.
After a disappointing week of season finales, I’m ready for a little inspiration.
I know I’ve always said Hugh Jackman is the actor I pictured as Thierry in my Immortality Bites books. Well, in case he’s not available if a movie is ever made, I think I’ve found someone else who would be fairly right for the part. Monsieur Gilles Marini, who was the runner up in Dancing With The Stars.
*fans self*
Yes, he would do very nicely, I think. I knew he’d become a big star after seeing him in the Sex and the City movie. I repeat. BIG. STAR.
I’m going offline until early next week trying to get a whack of pages done. Have a wonderful Memorial Weekend, my American friends!
Well, okay, I do have a comment. I am saddened. Distraught. Bothered. I thought I didn’t care who won and I’d be happy for Kris. And I am, don’t get me wrong. But I’m not as happy as I thought I would be. Which makes me realize how much I wanted Adam to win. It was a fantastic show all the way through, really high-energy and fab entertainment (Queen? KISS??? Norman Gentle?????), then as soon as Kris won, it’s like the show flattened out. No one, not even Kris, seemed excited about it. It was like “Oh really? I won? Wow. Okay.” I mean, good luck to Kris. He killed Ain’t No Sunshine the other night. Really fabulous performance. But overall? Adam SHOULD have won.
So what does this say and how can I equate it to writing novels? Because I equate everything with writing novels, y’know.
Adam is the cult classic. The dangerous, edgy read. The book that people either love or hate because he’s so different and out there and exciting.
Kris is the mainstream success. The nice, cute read. The book everyone kinda likes just fine. If he got Amazon reviews, he’d get a lot of 3 stars. Adam would get either 5’s or 1’s.
Whatever. They’ll both do CDs and I’ll buy Adam’s. The question is, which will be the long-term success?
I’m over it.
Tonight SYTYCD starts and I could use some dancing. Dancing With The Stars finale was also a disappointment for me since Gilles didn’t win. Meh. Ah Gilles. Merci beaucoup for every paso doble.
So far the only season finale I haven’t been disappointed with was Supernatural. Lost’s was a little meh for me. But I have incredibly high standards for that show and it might never live up to them again.
However, the Toronto Blue Jays seem to be doing well right now so all is right with the world.
I’ve been writing my new book, the second in my LIVING IN EDEN series. It’s not going slowly, but I always find it difficult getting into a new book. But as I recently told a friend, usually when the writing is too much fun and easy it’s an indication that it’s sucking. So hopefully a harder write means less suckage when I roll into the second draft.
It’s a theory.
I’m also working on the AA’s for my Harlequin Blaze HOT SPELL which landed in my inbox again yesterday. I had to look that term up. Surprisingly it doesn’t mean Alcoholic’s Anonymous. It means author Additions and Alterations (I think). Learn something new every day. I think I’ll have my cover for this in about a month. Can’t wait to see it!!!
This is the official poster for New Moon. I’m almost as excited as a sixteen year old girl!
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Tonight’s the big episode for American Idol. Go Adam! (but Kris is pretty cute, too). I’m okay with either winning, but I’d be more likely to buy Adam’s CD.
