Day: September 13, 2015

After the Book

Now that the book is in the hands of my publisher (who says she’ll read my submission next week), I am on a writing hiatus.

I did my grocery shopping, picking up loads of fresh produce. Soup season is around the corner, so I started buying pantry staples.

I had my hair cut off. I wear it long in the summer so I can put it in a ponytail or pile it on top of my head.

Next weekend, the county is holding its semi-annual shred-o-rama, so I went through two printer paper boxes of stuff. Most of it goes to the shredder–income tax returns from 1982 forward. Bank statements from the 1990s.  I also found photos of my daughter’s life in Kindergarten, some TV-career related papers, and a folder of humor. I hope to go through other stashes of stuff to see what I can get rid of.

And I’m reading. Oh, how I have missed reading without guilt. Last spring, someone gave me a pile of Susan Krinard werewolf books. I’m delving into those.

September is my month off from writing. I’m off to a great start.

Literary Citizenship

X-Chromo, a creative writing major in college, called the other night. She may be taking a class on Literary Citizenship next semester. I had no idea what she was talking about until she explained the concept to me. Then I realized, yeah, I am a literary citizen.  In fact, as I type this, I have taken off time from Day Job so I can promote my current release. There are blogs to write, blogs to schedule, Facebook and Tsu blurbs to post, and Tweets to Twitter.

Image credit: andrejad / 123RF Stock Photo

Then I ran across this article. The truth may set you free, but sometimes it’s depressing as all get out, too.

I’m lucky. Both of my publishers market their authors. But the “good old days” really are gone.

On the bright side, we authors can interact with our readers on a regular basis. We can develop true relationships with them. We can created communities of like-minded people. There’s lots to be said for good citizenship.

WIP Wednesday: Em Kaye

3 Comments

I am absolutely delighted to have Em Kaye join me on Comptonplations today. When I first joined my local RWA chapter, Em was one of the very first people to speak to me, and that’s a lovely memory.

Em! So glad you’re here. I just shared one of my life memories, now it’s your turn.

EK: I was always designated to do yard work – shoveling, weeding, etc. – instead of housework. I think it re-enforced that I was less feminine because of my given name (Michaele – pronounced like a boy’s name with an added ‘e’ that I would say was the only thing that made me a girl).

MJ: Wow. What are your top three dream destinations and why?

EK: Scotland (grandmother born there); London (I want to ride the Eye!); Paris (I want to see the Eiffel Tower at night – maybe with a new love)

MJ: What is your secret talent?

EK: I can look at an issue and find an efficient way to deal with it. As an example –  at a job once, we had to stamp our office’s address in the top left-hand corner of envelopes.  Since we had boxes and boxes of them, I turned them and the stamp upside down and stamped them quickly. It wasn’t the norm but it got done faster.

MJ: What is the top book on your TBR pile?

EK: The Great Escape by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

MJ: Other than writing, what would be your dream job?

EK: Kept woman/Princess.

MJ: BWAH! Great answer!  If you had a theme song, what would it be?

EK: “I Will Always Love You,” by Whitney Houston

MJ: Name one thing you won’t leave home without.

EK: Now it’s my cell phone

MJ:  If you could trade places with anyone for just one day, who would you be and why?

EK: Julia Roberts because I love her laugh, and she’s so talented.

MJ: Is there a particular movie that you preferred over the book version of the story?

EK: No, because the movies have to leave so much out that’s in the book. Sometimes you don’t get the true impact of what the character is feeling and why.

MJ: What do you normally eat for breakfast, of do you skip it and get straight to work?

EK: English muffin with jam and probably a diet soda (diet A&W is my choice at this point in time).

MJ:Describe your ideal/dream writing space.

EK: An office attached to my home where everyone would know to leave me alone.

MJ: Briefly describe your writing day/process.

EK: I’m retired and a night owl, so the bulk of my writing is done at night, but if I’m working on a scene, I’ll write anytime.

MJ: What book do you wish you could have written?

EK: Fifty Shades of Grey

MJ: Plotter or pantser?

EK: Pantser.

MJ: What romance convention/cliche most sets your teeth on edge?

EK: When you are talking to someone and answering their question and they say ‘oh…’ in that tone that makes me feel like I’m not on their level. Everyone should feel that other people are interesting and want to learn more about them.

MJ: Do you believe in writer’s block?

EK: Not as such. Sometimes I will ‘get stuck’ and then I have to walk away – sometimes for even a day or two – before the answer to my issue presents itself in my head.

MJ: Name three things on your desk right now.

EK: Papers, papers, papers

MJ: Love and true love – what is the difference and what do your characters believe about LOVE?

EK: You can love someone, but that’s not really true love. With true love you accept and overlook the faults of the other person and love them anyway. With just love, you don’t always have to like the person.

MJ: Would you consider self-publishing?

EK: Not at this time.

MJ: Do you listen to music when you write? Explain.

EK: I usually put in a movie I’ve seen (so I already know what happens). I do need background noise.

MJ: Do you collage your story before writing? Explain.

EK: No, not yet. Again it’s the ‘I don’t want to know what’s going to happen before the characters do’ syndrome.

MJ: Synopses: love them or hate them?

EK: Hate is a strong word, but I really, really don’t love or even like them.

MJ: Okay, now it’s time for the lightning round. Addams Family or The Munsters?

EK: Addams Family.

MJ: Wine-red or white?

EK: White.

MJ: Beer-bottle or can?

EK: Neither.

MJ: Stephanie Plum or Eve Dallas?

EK: It’s a toss up.

MJ: Cinco de Mayo or St. Patrick’s Day?

EK: St. Patrick’s Day.

MJ: Favorite TV show?

EK: Scandal.

MJ: Paper or e-books?

EK: I was a diehard ‘have to feel the book in my hand’ person, but have been using my Kindle so much now, it’s probably a tie.

MJ: Favorite band when you were in high school (Marching band doesn’t count)?

EK: The Beatles – I remember the Sunday they were first on the Ed Sullivan Show.  Shocking how long their hair was!

MJ: Coke or Pepsi?

EK: Like Pepsi, but you can’t beat a vanilla Coke (made with syrup). Since I drink diet soda now, I guess either is okay.

MJ: Introvert or extrovert?

EK: Introvert.

MJ: Favorite ethnic food?

EK: Good pizza.

MJ: And now! What we’ve all be waiting for! Can you share the first few sentences of your current work-in-progress?

EK: From Is It Really You?

‘Tell me – what are you wearing?’

Tris swallowed hard and thought, Is this what I really want? She was taking a big step here by putting herself on display, not physically, of course, but orally. The person on the other end of the conversation, Cal McAlaster, a lonely soldier overseas – at least that’s what he’d told her – was asking her to bare herself to him. Could she really do this?

Taking a big breath, she squared her shoulders before typing, ‘I’ve got my baby doll pajamas on. They’re pink with tiny roses on them.’ There, she’d done it. She wiped her sweaty palms on her jeans.

‘Tell me more. Take off your top.’

MJ: Oh my. Now, you have a new book out, At Your Service. 

atyourservice200x300That’s a great cover! Where can we buy the book?

EK: http://www.amazon.com/At-Your-Service-EM-Kaye-ebook/dp/B00MGCAXUC/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1407360897&sr=8-6&keywords=at+your+service

MJ: And how can readers follow your career on social media?

EK: Through my website–www.emkaye.net

or Facebook–www.facebook.em.kaye.author.com

MJ: Thanks again for stopping by, and good luck!

 

My Summer of the Living Beatles, Pt 2: SIR PAUL McCARTNEY

Paul McCartney

Sir Paul McCartney kicked off his US tour in a city a few hours away from where I live. TV Stevie somehow managed to get tickets (the concert was sold out in 28 minutes or so). Yes, I saw the two living Beatles within 10 days of each other. Our seats were shockingly good–not on the floor, because I hate floor seats, being just under five feet tall. Crowds tend to trigger claustrophobia in me.

We arrived in Albany early enough to take our time finding a place to park (free, on the street, about 6 blocks from the venue) and to find a restaurant that would seat us without reservations for a light meal before the show. I love taking my time like that.

I’m sure you’ve all seen the story about the couple from Rochester, NY who held up signs: “He won’t marry me until he meets you,” and “I have the ring, and I’m 64.” (ABC Nightly News showed the story, although they had the concert location wrong.) It was a lot of fun seeing the whole thing–especially when the security guard kept trying to drag the couple off the stage–as it happened.

The whole concert was–incredible. Just seeing a legend perform would have been enough, but Sir Paul played for 3 hours. The ROI was in the black. Sir Paul looked good, sounded great. He connected with the audience in a way I’d never seen before, even in smaller venues. When women in the front rows screamed, he jumped back and said, “Don’t do that to me. Those days are gone!” He paid tribute to John Lennon and George Harrison. There were pyrotechnics during “Live and Let Die,” something I’ve never seen at a concert before.

Other Sir Paul quips:

“People have these signs, but I can’t really read them, because I’m trying to remember the words and the chords for the songs I’m playing.”

“People always applaud when I play a song from my new album, but when I play something really old, they whip out the cell phones and start recording.”

Now, I’m going to admit, I was never a huge, die-hard Beatles fan. A co-worker once quipped: “One was either a Beatles fan or a Rolling Stones fan.” I replied, “Neither. Dylan.”  That’s not to say I didn’t like their music, but I also didn’t consider them the be all, end all. In retrospect, they probably were tied with Dylan as Be-All, End-All. And I’m really, really glad I got to see Sir Paul perform live.