I'm about 60,000 words into the new story I'm writing, and the current chapter I'm working on has been giving me fits for the past couple of days. It just won't cooperate no matter how many different angles I try to come at it from.
Last night I gave up staring at the blinking cursor on my screen and went for a nice, long run through the neighborhood to clear my head, and that seemed to help immensely. That got me wondering what other writers do when they run into a bout of writer's block. For me, I'm not sure if it was the physical exercise, the change of scenery, or just getting away from my computer for a while that did it for me. Sometimes going to bed and starting fresh the next day works, too.
Are there any tricks that any of you have learned that work when you hit a snarl in your writing that just won't untangle? For me it tends to happen most once I hit the real meat of the story, and then I start second-guessing myself about whether it's all coming together the way I want it to. I think I need to learn to just turn my brain off when I write and let the words flow, but that's really hard to do some days. Maybe listening to music would help? I don't know.
Another chapter finished in The House of Silence Volume 3. At this point in the writing process, it's getting a bit difficult to keep moving forward. Every time I finish a new chapter, I have the near-irresistible urge to go back and edit, making sure that it all makes sense and that it flows well with the previous chapters. If I do that, though, I know I'll get so bogged down in minutia that I'll never get the novel finished.
So I keep reminding myself that this is only a first draft and that the important thing is to get it all written down. Once I reach the end, then I can go back and revise to my heart's content. I feel like there's a little cheerleading squad in the back of my head chanting "Go, go, go!". LOL.
I'm currently working on writing The House of Silence, Volume 3, the most recent addition to my The House of Silence series. I hit a writing high recently and managed to write about 20,000 new words just this past week. Whoo! It's all coming together really well, from the plot to the characters to all of the different subplots I'm weaving into it. Lots of red herrings and intrigue and just fun fun fun. ^_^ I'm really enjoying taking Charon and the boys out to play again, and seeing where their lives are leading them after the end of Volume 2.
My new novel Nicholi's Vengeance is an All Romance Ebooks best seller! I'm so excited and happy over the response that this book has been getting. It was incredibly difficult and stressful for me to write at times, but I'm very happy with how it turned out.
Click here to read a very nice review of the story.
Thank you to all of you for your support and encouragement as I was writing this novel!
I got the most incredible package in the mail last night....
A shipment of my very first published, paperbound books! I can't even describe how exciting it was to open the box and hold them in my hands for the first time. Then to flip through the pages realizing that I wrote these words and it's all so very pretty. I had a couple of friends here who got all caught up in the moment with me. There were hugs all around, much squeeing, and all kinds of celebrating. ^_^
The books are absolutely gorgeous inside and out, so beyond my wildest expectations. FFP has done an amazing job with them. Just the thought of seeing them sitting on my bookshelf alongside my favorite authors at home is giving me a happy tingle. ^_^ I really can't wait to see what my other novels look like when they get printed as well.
I'm currently working on The House of Silence Volume 3, a sequel to Pathfinder, and I'm 10,000 words deep into a bonus story for Nicholi's Vengeance. I also have outlines for several new novels in the works. After a long, dry spell, I love it when I wake up in the morning and the biggest problem I have writing-wise is trying to decide which story I want to work on. ^_^
The House of Silence (both volumes 1 and 2) has a five-star rating on Amazon, ARE, and FFP so far, with a 5/4.69 rating on Goodreads, and has some very nice reviews on all three sites. I'm so happy over the response these books have been getting. I had such a fun time creating this world and these characters, it's so rewarding to know that other people are enjoying reading their story as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Just a quick update on my recent books. Both volumes of The House of Silence are currently for sale. So far the feedback and reviews I've been getting on them have been very positive.
For those of you who have been waiting so patiently for a print version of the novels, I heard that FFP is close to having a template for print books prepared soon. I'm hoping to be able to announce that the print versions are available for both volumes in the very near future.
The tentative release date for Pathfinder is June 29th. Just a week away! I just sent off the author's notes and dedication this morning, which was the last bit of input the publisher needs from me before preparing the ebook. I'm expecting to see a copy of the proof any day now.
I am happy to announce that both volumes of THE HOUSE OF SILENCE should be available for purchase by May 1st! Volume 1 is finished and Volume 2 is in its final stages of production. I'm really excited to share these books with all of you. I grew attached to each of the characters and the world they live in as I was writing their story, and I can't wait to introduce them to you.
THE HOUSE OF SILENCE - VOLUME 1 Novel (101,000 words) Genre(s): Gothic, Suspense, BDSM The House of Silence is an elite male bordello catering to the obscenely rich. No matter how extreme or mundane the fantasy, the House of Silence is rumored to serve. Master Charon employs a group of versatile, beautiful young men–some lewd, some innocent, many with tragic pasts and hidden secrets of their own–who depend on him for safety. This volatile mix erupts when danger threatens. (M/M+)
THE HOUSE OF SILENCE - VOLUME 2 Novel (70,000 words) Genre(s): Gothic, Suspense, BDSM The sanctuary of The House of Silence is shattered when an influential client presents Master Charon with an ultimatum, plunging him and his beautiful young men into a nightmare of reprisals, forcing them to fight for their lives, their sanity, and their right to exist. What secret threatens the governments of two countries? They will have to work together to unlock the secrets buried deep in the House's past and survive the forces aligning against them. (M/M+)
I'm sitting here at home tonight, just goofing off by watching some TV, but my brain won't shut off for some reason. I just finished my latest writing project, which means I'm in a bit of a down-time as far as writing goes before I dive in to the next big project.
I've been thinking about my own writing, in particular the reluctance I feel to share it with other people a lot of the time. And I started thinking about some comments I've read on LiveJournal and other blogs over the years from authors about their own writing experiences.
I submitted my new novel The Charming for publication tonight, so now it's just a matter of waiting for someone to tell me (hopefully) that it's not crap. No matter how many stories I write, sending a new one off to be read by someone else for the very first time never gets any easier....
Please let me know if you run into problems with any of the pages, or find any broken links or images. I'd love to get some feedback on whether you think the site is easy to navigate, or if anything seems difficult to read, or if the colors I chose make your eyes hurt, or anything along those lines. ^_^
I'm happy to report that the second draft of Nicholi's Vengeance is finally finished. This one was a bit of a challenge for me, and I ended up adding about 20,000 words to it when all was said and done. Whew! But I'm really happy with the end result, which is the important thing. I'm going to let it sit for a couple of days before re-reading it to make sure that everything's settled together properly, then I'll ship it back off to Rylan.
When I'm writing, I can agonize over choosing the right word for days. I tend to write a lot of notes as I write, coloring them with different color fonts (usually red) so they stand out and marking them with symbols like @ or ~ that I don't normally use in writing, and can skip to easily with Ctrl-F when I'm ready to start editing.
I was struck by an idea for a wicked little erotic horror story that's been spinning and spinning inside my head all evening. Not enough for a full novel, I think -- just an atmospheric little horror story, a cautionary tale in being careful for what one wishes for and not being thankful for what one has. Whole parts of it are unfurling in my brain like scenes from a movie, and my fingers are just itching to write it all down. I love love LOVE it when my muses take control like this. It makes me all tingly inside. ^_^
I sent the completed files for both books to the publisher last night, with all of the final formatting needed for publication. As soon as I get a formal release date for the novels, I will pass it on.
You can read a summary of the books and a sample from the first chapter on my website here:
Just making a quick post to say how much I love this time of year. Cooler weather, earlier sunsets, and it just seems that people are all around more mellow as it grows closer to the holidays. It's also very conductive to curling up with a cup of hot tea and my laptop in the evenings and working on my current writing projects.
I've created an email notification list where you can have updates on my writing projects emailed directly to you. Feel free to join if you're interested:
I've been offered a publishing contract for another novel! Pathfinder was originally published in 2003 by MAS-zine, which is currently out of print. The story will be available again soon in a newly revised and expanded version through Forbidden Fiction Publications.
The first post in a new blog is always the hardest for me to write. I'm planning to use this journal to post updates on my current works in progress as well as announcements about finished stories and novels. Hopefully there will be lots of them for me to talk about!
