Quest for Riverhand is polished and ready to match the Query of Awesomeness :D
It's about 20k short of what I wanted, but I like the story. There is another scene I'm contemplating adding. It would help the sub-plot and I could run a thread in that would help with the sequel, but I don't want to mess with it.
Yeah, I like the story the way it is and I know that agents/editors will peruse and say X and X and X and etcetera anyway. Might as well make the sweeping changes then and add to word count as they suggest.
Winds of Fire is very close as well. I have to revamp the beginning and wowsers the end :D Probably take a week of intense writing, but the story is very good and I'm sure I'll be able to sell it.
My paranormal is at 11k and needs at least 35k more words. A friend, Jami G. gave me a good idea how to get around the whole problem with being a pantster who already outlined the story :D Thanks, Jami!
My other paranormal is at 19k. It got the bulk of the details from the short the two paranormals are ripped from.
If you remember, (I think I posted it earlier) I sent in a short story into an editor at a publishing house that got rejected with words like make novels out of the premise, series, etc. etc. make sure it fits our house. Best rejection ever, LOL
Plus, I have Blood Traitors, the sequel to Rebellion on Piza seven to worry about now. I have to fix a couple of sequencing erros that I put into the second MS and add like 60k to it :) I have like 15-17k on it.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Friday, April 16, 2010
Here's Your Sign moment...
Okay, I got my internet card replaced, but it is S L O W and my baby wants my attention (who knew?) So, my husband being home today, I have again gone to Safeway to write, network, etc. AS their WiFi is incredible (coffe isn't bad either, if you like that sort of stuff. :D *Waves, Thanks Safeway!
Today, they have been incredibly busy, so no one to help watch my lap top or other stuff. So, I'm trucking everything into the ladies room in a cart (I know, I know,annoying as hell, but better than getting my stuff ripped off. I'll quit as soon as the theives do!)
I waited until last minute to go this time as I was in the middle of a chapter of edits. (Only like 150 more pages of editing and four new chapters to write. No prob, right?)I go in and the handicap stall is taken so I go to last stall (so cart is only a little bit in the way) and pull my pants down.
I hadn't even had my pants down before someone is in stall next to me. I hear a loud water hitting water sound and blink as I sit. Wait. That sounds like my husband... Am I in the right restroom? I think, naw, can't be a guy, probably someone who had held it as long as me... I have to look. I bend down and check out which way the shoes are pointing and, yep, you guessed it, they were pointing AT THE WALL! I didn't have to look far because these size 13's were spilling into my space. LOL
So, he's finished and so is the one in the other stall, a worker from Safeway. She comes out and he says, GET THIS, he says:
"Are you in the wrong place or am I?" (Now, I don't know how many men's rooms you've seen, but when you're the mother of four boys, you see more than your fair share. I promise you that Safeway's WOMEN'S bathrooms are nowhere near that bad. AND at this particular store you HAVE TO PASS THE MEN'S to reach the women's RR)
She says, "Noooo, you are?" "I am," he replies. "I wondered about all the nice trim?"
I KID YOU NOT!!!
So the worker looks at me increduously as he stands there, nonchalant and washes his hands. I am trying really hard not to laugh. I have to tell you, this guy handles embarrassment well.
He leaves the room and we bust up laughing. We go to wash our hands, and guess what?
He used the last of the paper towels.
Can you believe it?
LMAO
Today, they have been incredibly busy, so no one to help watch my lap top or other stuff. So, I'm trucking everything into the ladies room in a cart (I know, I know,annoying as hell, but better than getting my stuff ripped off. I'll quit as soon as the theives do!)
I waited until last minute to go this time as I was in the middle of a chapter of edits. (Only like 150 more pages of editing and four new chapters to write. No prob, right?)I go in and the handicap stall is taken so I go to last stall (so cart is only a little bit in the way) and pull my pants down.
I hadn't even had my pants down before someone is in stall next to me. I hear a loud water hitting water sound and blink as I sit. Wait. That sounds like my husband... Am I in the right restroom? I think, naw, can't be a guy, probably someone who had held it as long as me... I have to look. I bend down and check out which way the shoes are pointing and, yep, you guessed it, they were pointing AT THE WALL! I didn't have to look far because these size 13's were spilling into my space. LOL
So, he's finished and so is the one in the other stall, a worker from Safeway. She comes out and he says, GET THIS, he says:
"Are you in the wrong place or am I?" (Now, I don't know how many men's rooms you've seen, but when you're the mother of four boys, you see more than your fair share. I promise you that Safeway's WOMEN'S bathrooms are nowhere near that bad. AND at this particular store you HAVE TO PASS THE MEN'S to reach the women's RR)
She says, "Noooo, you are?" "I am," he replies. "I wondered about all the nice trim?"
I KID YOU NOT!!!
So the worker looks at me increduously as he stands there, nonchalant and washes his hands. I am trying really hard not to laugh. I have to tell you, this guy handles embarrassment well.
He leaves the room and we bust up laughing. We go to wash our hands, and guess what?
He used the last of the paper towels.
Can you believe it?
LMAO
Thursday, April 15, 2010
query of Awesomeness
Okay, I am not admitting to how many drafts this took, but after CJ's many patient (although she probably now has nightmares of my query!) comments and corrections, I got here:
Spectacular Agent/Writer’s Hopes Agency
555 Wishful Thinking
Port Fiction, PI 90009
4/10/2010
Dear Spectacular Agent of Writer’s Hopes,
Cerisa, trained as both mage and warrior, lives in exile with her family and best friend – a dragon named Lucifer. Her peaceful life is ripped apart when her father Jaren is murdered by Lord Kyle, the man who has claimed the throne of Riverhand in the name of the missing queen through bloodshed and terror. Cerisa’s plans for revenge, however, are stalled when her mother reveals two secrets that change the foundation of her life. One, her mother is the missing queen, and two, Lord Kyle is her father.
Stunned and shaken, Cerisa vows revenge, even though her strong emotion wreak havoc on her already chaotic magic. She still sets out with Lucifer to kill Lord Kyle, despite – or because of – the revelations of her mother.
After an attack that leaves her magically vulnerable, she meets Aron, her Dragonheart – a mate whose bonds strengthens the magical powers of their partners. When a simple broken wrist turns out to be infused with a dark curse, they realize that a powerful mage is helping Lord Kyle, defending him with a berserker to ensure the death of any who dare defy him. A berserker that has its sights set on Cerisa.
Lucifer and Aron help her see that in order to save herself and the rest of Riverhand, she has to turn her back on her own need for revenge as well as convince her mother to do her duty and claim the throne. Preferably before being killed by a berserker. The journey to Dublinum is full of deadly creatures and bandits. Can Cerisa get her mother there in time to save Riverhand from endless civil war?
The Quest for Riverhand is a fantasy, complete at 100,000 words. Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Leona Bushman
PS Formatting issues are a problem of internet, not actually how it is on document LOL
Spectacular Agent/Writer’s Hopes Agency
555 Wishful Thinking
Port Fiction, PI 90009
4/10/2010
Dear Spectacular Agent of Writer’s Hopes,
Cerisa, trained as both mage and warrior, lives in exile with her family and best friend – a dragon named Lucifer. Her peaceful life is ripped apart when her father Jaren is murdered by Lord Kyle, the man who has claimed the throne of Riverhand in the name of the missing queen through bloodshed and terror. Cerisa’s plans for revenge, however, are stalled when her mother reveals two secrets that change the foundation of her life. One, her mother is the missing queen, and two, Lord Kyle is her father.
Stunned and shaken, Cerisa vows revenge, even though her strong emotion wreak havoc on her already chaotic magic. She still sets out with Lucifer to kill Lord Kyle, despite – or because of – the revelations of her mother.
After an attack that leaves her magically vulnerable, she meets Aron, her Dragonheart – a mate whose bonds strengthens the magical powers of their partners. When a simple broken wrist turns out to be infused with a dark curse, they realize that a powerful mage is helping Lord Kyle, defending him with a berserker to ensure the death of any who dare defy him. A berserker that has its sights set on Cerisa.
Lucifer and Aron help her see that in order to save herself and the rest of Riverhand, she has to turn her back on her own need for revenge as well as convince her mother to do her duty and claim the throne. Preferably before being killed by a berserker. The journey to Dublinum is full of deadly creatures and bandits. Can Cerisa get her mother there in time to save Riverhand from endless civil war?
The Quest for Riverhand is a fantasy, complete at 100,000 words. Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Leona Bushman
PS Formatting issues are a problem of internet, not actually how it is on document LOL
Query Workshop Original
Okay, folks. I took a workshop of awesomeness. I know, I know, I'm being redundant. But the workshop was awesome. http://queryworkshop.blogspot.com this is how you get there, be sure to mention me if you do it.
I'm posting the original here, with a sample comment. Then, I'll post the pretty one, LOL
Dear Spectacular Agent of Writer’s Hopes,
Cerisa sets out on a quest to kill the man who killed her father with her friend and dragon, Lucifer. When her mother reveals that she is the missing Queen, the whole land has been searching for and that the man, Lord Kyle, who has been pillaging and murdering in the name of the queen, is actually her father, she is torn between rage and the need to avenge the man she looked to as her father.
Cerisa is mage and a warrior. In order for all her powers to work at their greatest strength, she must have her heart and mind in alignment. She struggles with this as she wants to murder the man who murdered her father, and damn the consequences.
After an attack that leaves her magically vulnerable, she meets her Dragonheart, Aron. With the help of Lucifer and Aron, she convinces her mother to do her duty and claim the throne as she should have done years ago. They escort her on the perilous journey to the ruling of city of Dublinum.
They encounter both friends and foes as they race against time to beat Lord Kyle and his men to Dublinum and save not only their own lands, but Dragonland as well. They battle Lord Kyle and his men outside the Royal Court before Lord Kyle leaves with his men. The queen regains her throne and Cerisa becomes engaged to Aron, a Duke in Dragonland and saves the kingdoms of Riverhand and Dragonland. *******Suggest deleting this entire paragraph and instead giving us a one sentence statement or question delivering the stakes of the quest. i.e. "Can Carisa and her friends reach Dublinum in time to save the kingdom, or will the entire land be engulfed in war?" Or something along those lines. Feel free to use what works and toss the rest. :)
The Quest for Riverhand is a fantasy novel, complete at 100,000 words.
Sincerely,
Leona
******** Star is one of her many suggestions. Sometimes I felt like the V8 commercials (Duh, I could have had a V8)and other times like an old Calgon Commercial (Calgon, Take me AWAY) but mostly, I wanted chocolate and gin (but that was the fault of my fellow students. They kept talking about it!!)
I told my husband that I think I got the most out of my dollar compared to the rest of the class! LMAO I had to erase more than I wrote, but I didn't want to scare anyone off (or show you how bad it REALLY was if you don't know yourself :D)from taking her workshop.
So now that you've read LE Suck, read or re-read the shiny one :D
I'm posting the original here, with a sample comment. Then, I'll post the pretty one, LOL
Dear Spectacular Agent of Writer’s Hopes,
Cerisa sets out on a quest to kill the man who killed her father with her friend and dragon, Lucifer. When her mother reveals that she is the missing Queen, the whole land has been searching for and that the man, Lord Kyle, who has been pillaging and murdering in the name of the queen, is actually her father, she is torn between rage and the need to avenge the man she looked to as her father.
Cerisa is mage and a warrior. In order for all her powers to work at their greatest strength, she must have her heart and mind in alignment. She struggles with this as she wants to murder the man who murdered her father, and damn the consequences.
After an attack that leaves her magically vulnerable, she meets her Dragonheart, Aron. With the help of Lucifer and Aron, she convinces her mother to do her duty and claim the throne as she should have done years ago. They escort her on the perilous journey to the ruling of city of Dublinum.
They encounter both friends and foes as they race against time to beat Lord Kyle and his men to Dublinum and save not only their own lands, but Dragonland as well. They battle Lord Kyle and his men outside the Royal Court before Lord Kyle leaves with his men. The queen regains her throne and Cerisa becomes engaged to Aron, a Duke in Dragonland and saves the kingdoms of Riverhand and Dragonland. *******Suggest deleting this entire paragraph and instead giving us a one sentence statement or question delivering the stakes of the quest. i.e. "Can Carisa and her friends reach Dublinum in time to save the kingdom, or will the entire land be engulfed in war?" Or something along those lines. Feel free to use what works and toss the rest. :)
The Quest for Riverhand is a fantasy novel, complete at 100,000 words.
Sincerely,
Leona
******** Star is one of her many suggestions. Sometimes I felt like the V8 commercials (Duh, I could have had a V8)and other times like an old Calgon Commercial (Calgon, Take me AWAY) but mostly, I wanted chocolate and gin (but that was the fault of my fellow students. They kept talking about it!!)
I told my husband that I think I got the most out of my dollar compared to the rest of the class! LMAO I had to erase more than I wrote, but I didn't want to scare anyone off (or show you how bad it REALLY was if you don't know yourself :D)from taking her workshop.
So now that you've read LE Suck, read or re-read the shiny one :D
I'm so excited
**SQUEE I passed my queryworkshop!! Anyone looking to strengthen their query, from beginners to more advanced, should take this course. I'm going to ask her permission to post the first and final drafts and sample of her revision notes :) I'm sure I can post first and final as it's my query lol, but would like to give you some meat to entice you to the class. PS her twitter is @cjredwine and let her know @pizaseven or say leona bushman sent you PLEASE LOL
I used my fantasy that I'm currently bringing up to speed. It's the longest book, and I figured the hardest one, to put into a small 1 page (including the thank yous!) query. I was right. It took me four tries.
I used my fantasy that I'm currently bringing up to speed. It's the longest book, and I figured the hardest one, to put into a small 1 page (including the thank yous!) query. I was right. It took me four tries.
famous last words
So, it's 230 am her in the land of Oz and baby is going strong. Why, you may ask? Because I told someone. In logical terms, one might say it was the four hour nap he took fro 6-10 at the babysitters, but, one would be wrong.
All that lovely sleep and writing? still waiting for me. I had a computer Melt Down today. Watch out for something that's supposed to be windows vista security but isn't! I had a hell of a time, and shortly after last post, was unable to post at all!
Alls well here, for now. Will try and get back on the straight and narrow tomorrow, er, today. :P Script Frenzy will get made up tomorrow, at least some of it, even if I have to put off doing taxes! I have seven years, since I'm getting a return. :D Write write write
All that lovely sleep and writing? still waiting for me. I had a computer Melt Down today. Watch out for something that's supposed to be windows vista security but isn't! I had a hell of a time, and shortly after last post, was unable to post at all!
Alls well here, for now. Will try and get back on the straight and narrow tomorrow, er, today. :P Script Frenzy will get made up tomorrow, at least some of it, even if I have to put off doing taxes! I have seven years, since I'm getting a return. :D Write write write
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Contest @ CJ Redwine's blog
http://cjredwine.blogspot.com/2010/04/interview-with-lisa-mantchev.html
This is also the person I took recent query workshop from. I'm in love. The first check I get from any book that I use principals learned from her workshop to query, I am buying everysingle one of her books, and a few she's interviewed!
She is awesome :D
Please visit her blog and follow her as she is hilarious!
her twitter is @CJRedwine
This is also the person I took recent query workshop from. I'm in love. The first check I get from any book that I use principals learned from her workshop to query, I am buying everysingle one of her books, and a few she's interviewed!
She is awesome :D
Please visit her blog and follow her as she is hilarious!
her twitter is @CJRedwine
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