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I haven't written anything in a while, & likely never will again, but I came across these writing questions a while back.
The thought that if I DO start writing what my characters are showing me, they'll eventually leave me alone. They can be such naggers! They're like little kids inside a candy store, or my dogs begging for those Beggin' Strips treats.
Aside from that, a really good book (which is torture for me) or movie usually does the trick. Also thinking about what I want in MY OWN LIFE at that particular time. I mean, if something in my own life is lacking why not create a world for it on paper?
Certain scenes won’t grant me peace until I write them down in chapter form. So yes, oftentimes I have no choice but to write... even when uninspired. But, feeling that inspiration or not, I’m a slave to that story until it’s finished. When I’m writing, it’s usually because I’ve become OBSESSED with those particular characters.
And I’ve discovered that discipline is definitely the key to seeing my stories through to the end. Writing exhausts me, especially when I’m just 4 chapters or so away from the conclusion. It’s a lot like having to drag myself out of bed each morning. I’m not exactly inspired to, but it has to be done.
Research, in the form of A LOT of reading. Researching different authors and how they write. Just soak it all in and decide what I do/don’t like from these authors.
In the beginning I did simply b/c I had a limited list of favorite authors. But these days, through reading novels from several different authors, I’ve definitely unearthed my own writing style. It did take a while though.
My first finished book definitely has a different voice from the 2nd and 3rd. The others (uncompleted) are a little different from how I write today, but it worked out well that way. I do believe that the writing styles in each of my stories - whether completed or not - are as they should be. Even now, I wouldn't change those stories much.
Nah. I think all writing is beneficial. Not to mention writing on a message board can be therapeutic b/c it’s no big deal if I don’t dot all those I’s and cross all those T’s. It’s like a mini-vacation for me.
As you can probably tell from my my websites, I’m not exactly overly obsessed with grammar while online.
For instance -
Commas are the bane of my existence, I'm a big fan of parenthesis and overusing italics, & then there's my worst habit of all. The infamous ......... showing up in probably 1/3 of my sentences. (Or maybe that's a case of OCD rearing it's ugly head?)
Honestly..... 
I cannot help myself on a blog or message board.
And believe me, I have tried!
"Thoughts become things... choose the good ones!"
Today's "Note From The Universe" that arrived in my email was a little pick-me-up. I admit that I really don't believe in this and signed up just for fun, but right now I need to hear this. I do believe things have to happen in their own time. I just find accepting that really, really difficult. Not to mention there's always that thought that my writing just isn't good enough. Anyway, here's today's "Note From The Universe."
To sign up, click HERE.
Sometimes, Kristin, when things take longer than you thought they would, it's just a gentle reminder from your greater self (me), that you have more time than you thought, and that there's a journey to enjoy. Yeah, like all the time in the world.
The Universe
Besides, Kristin, just because it's taking longer than you thought it would, doesn't mean stuff isn't happening, even as you read these words.
I thought I might as well transfer a few articles I had on my old querying site.
But first, here's my major PICK ME UP from one of my favorite authors, Karen Marie Moning. It was St. Patrick's Day '08 that I received my first rejection letter for CBTM. It was from The Knight Agency. I was really bummed because....
1). Rejection sucks
2). That same day Karen posted HERE in her blog, the memory of the day her story was accepted by a
publisher.
3). A few other unfortunate coincidences were involved, but I'll not get into that.
Anyway, the next day I saw that Karen actually responded to me.
Below is what she wrote:
Beware of Italics, Keep the Faith
I have a folder of rejection letters. I saved every one. And one day, I put my first contract in that
folder too. That you're getting rejected means you're
one step ahead of most people-- you're taking the risk and trying. Best of Luck!
And here is something she told someone else:
Trying to get published is going to hurt, it's going to
make you cry, it's going to make you feel small and
insignificant and hopeless at times. People will ask you
(in condescending tones) "How's that little book of yours
coming along?" (Little, my petunia.) You'll hate the
mailman. You'll alternately feel like the worst writer
in the world and a pretty decent one. And if you
actually make it through all that and finish the story,
land an agent, and get published-- guess what? You'll
STILL feel all those things! LOL
Helpful Links:
Dealing with Rejection
Fiction Factor
Nasty Ride
Putting Rejection into Perspective
Feeling Dejected?
Teresa Medeiros Blog
Don't Give Up!
Christina Dodd on Writing
So far, my endeavors to land a literary agent for CBTM have been ugly. (Unless it's a children's book, agents are a necessity for a writer to get into the door of a publishing house. It's RARE that a publisher will look at your work without an agent, as the 1st question out of their mouths about submissions is whether it came from an agent. And a good one, as there are a lot of bad agents out there. Scammers, too). True, I did receive requests for partials and full's, so at least my query letter didn't suck too bad. But still...
Rejections > Requests 
Time to write another book and submit others.
Here are my statistics for CBTM.
Depressing, no?
(Okay, so I hear from fellow writers that the statistics below aren't all that bad, but... I still have no agent. I failed).
137 TOTAL SENT
88 rejections (maybe 90)
43 no replies
8 partial requests (3 no replies)
3 full requests
At this rate, a monkey might as well have written my book with a banana.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
As I've said before, maybe I can get an agent interested in this book if I just make Iain a flippin' vampire.
Instead of a sword at his belt, he'll have little vials of blood and a pair of Christian Dior designer sunglasses. Not only that, but I'll create a new species of vamp. Iain will be the first in a long-lost line of Scottish Ghost Vampires donning kilts. I'm just not so sure his brogue will sound too sexy with those fangs getting in the way.
Completed novels I've submitted to literary agents:
- Come Back To Me (82K wc)
Completed novels I'm about to submit to smaller publishing houses, and maybe a few more literary agents:
- Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Moo! (Early Reader; 2,029 wc)
(I might have to shorten this word count by A LOT and submit to children's magazines instead).
Novels I've completed, but will be editing one last time before submitting:
- The Trouble With A Scot (125K wc)
- The Trouble With Love (92K wc)
My WIP to get back to:
- Terrified Timmy In The Haunted House (MG; 2,418 wc)
Projects to complete in the future:
- Mail Order Husband (13,263 wc)
- The Wizard's Daughter (9,176 wc)
- The Fairie's Attic (Early Reader; 825 wc)
Future projects unwritten & currently without titles:
- Time Travel (Eben and Katy)
- Timeslips (Cedric and Ellie)
~*~*~*~*~*~
The time travel story has been brewing in my head for over a year now. My original plan was to concentrate on writing it, but instead Iain shoved Eben and Co. aside, telling them he'd be first in line.
Okay, so maybe he didn't exactly shove them. I highly suspect he used his claymore to "persuade" them. I would have thought Kaitlin (Katy) would have tossed him on his face, but I was mistaken. She must have fallen under the spell of his deep Scot's burr.
As did I. 
So anyway... Eben and Katy didn't exactly tell the 16th century warrior to shove off, so I guess I have them to thank for Iain and Lexie's story finally being told.
Not that anyone beyond my mother has read the entire thing. After all, I am agentless.
I cannot help myself on a blog or message board.
