Horror Movie Monster….

Hydrothermal worm, courtesy of FEI and Philippe Crassous

…or not. This is actually an electron microscope picture of a hydrothermal worm. This morning, while I was procrastinating doing some research, I stumbled on this, and almost fell out of my chair. Wow! Has George Lucas seen this, because it looks like something out of Star Wars! Just sayin’ Pretty cool pic, though. Would be far more useful if I wrote SF.

And if you’re really looking for ways to procrastinate or, alternately, actually doing research, check out ARKive. The site is filled with tons of gorgeous pictures in the organization’s effort to photograph every species on Earth. Awesome mission.

Self-Publishing

There is a lot of talk right now about self-publishing vs “traditional” publishing. With the success of Amanda Hocking and John Locke, it’s easy to see why. Even one of my personal favorite authors, Holly Lisle, has decided to go the self-publishing route.

I hadn’t really considered this option until recently, but now, indie publishing is starting to sound like an intriguing idea. I’m doing some research on the process and what’s involved, just to get an idea. I have one of my novels with several beta readers who don’t normally read YA paranormal, just to get a better opinion of the manuscript. And I’m weighing my options.

What do you think about self-publishing/indie publishing?

A Dance with Dragons

What I’ve finished reading lately:
A Dance with Dragons, by George R.R. Martin
Quinn, by Iris Johansen
White Woman on a Green Bicycle, by Monique Roffey

What I’m reading now:
The Silent Girl, by Tess Gerritsen
The Cure is a Forest, by Desi Di Nardo
Understanding World Religions, by Irving Hexham
Damned, by Nancy Holder and Debbie Viguie
Crime and Punishment, by Fyodor Dostoevsky
Dust and Decay, by Jonathan Maberry
Fury, by Elizabeth Miles

Quinn is, supposedly, the next-to-last installment in the Eve Duncan series. It was an excellent, fast-paced read. I’ve been reading this series for a while now, and while I’ll be sad to see it end, I can’t wait to find out how it’s resolved and what happens to the characters. Eve, Joe, Gallo, Catherine, even Bonnie, are all great characters that I’ve made an emotional connection to.

White Woman on a Green Bicycle….Truthfully, I’m not sure what to say about this book. It’s the story of George and Sabine, their marriage, and the history of Trinidad. It’s very vivid and evocative, and I enjoyed the descriptions of Trinidad. It also explores the lives of the characters when they first came to Trinidad as a newly-married couple, and also, years later, when they are in their 70s.

A Dance with Dragons, is, of course, the latest in George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series. It’s been almost six years since the last book came out, but fortunately, I only “discovered” the series two years ago. What can I say about this book? It’s typical for the series. Engrossing. Detailed. Action-filled. And, of course, Martin is not afraid to kill off major characters that are dear to the reader. As a writer, I am in awe of his ability to make his readers care about his characters. As a reader…man, I HATE when a character I love dies!

ABC’s….sorta

I wish I had something terribly profound to say about writing (or really, about anything) today, but I don’t. I’m tired. I have a lot going on. I’m a little bit stressed. I have a lot on my mind. It’s hot. My new tattoos are itching and it’s driving me crazy. (Profound thoughts: I have none. Excuses: I have many.)

Writing means different things to different people. (And by “writing” I mean actually writing. By hand.) For some, it’s a necessary evil. For others, it’s just necessary. For me….well…it depends on what I’m writing. Grocery list, To-Do’s, definitely handwritten. Novel-planning, plotting, and brainstorming, are all done by hand, as is journaling. I think the physical act of writing ideas down links things together in my brain and allows me to make connections I wouldn’t have otherwise.

First drafts are computer-drafted, as are most forms of my communication (email, Facebook, texting). I am making an effort to handwrite letters, though. It’s just more personal. It does seem a little bit odd that the main creative portion of my writing (the “planning” stage, if you will), is something that I have to do by hand, but the actual writing is always on the computer. Hmmm…..

But I think handwriting is a skill everyone needs. Check out this link: Is Cursive Obsolete? What do you think? Is it obsolete?

Books!

My plan is to try to do a post every week about books I’ve read recently, or am currently reading. I read quickly, and I read a lot, and usually I’m reading multiple things at a time, so I shouldn’t run out of bookish things to talk about.

What I’ve read (finished) in the last week:

The Goddess Test, by Aimee Carter
Iceberg, Right Ahead!, by Stephanie Sammartino McPherson
Trial by Fire, by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

What I’m currently reading:

White Woman on a Green Bicycle, by Monique Roffey
The Cure is a Forest, by Desi Di Nardo
Understanding World Religions, by Irving Hexham
Damned, by Nancy Holder and Debbie Viguie
A Dance with Dragons, by George R.R. Martin

The Goddess Test is a YA/fantasy about a girl who makes a deal with a stranger in return for saving a life, and she ends up becoming Persephone to his Hades. An interesting premise, with some funny moments, and excellent characterization. Pretty good read.

Iceberg, Right Ahead! is, of course, about the Titanic. Although short, there are some pretty interesting facts, and some of even cooler pictures of everything from the ship’s construction, to survivors, and the remains of the Titanic itself.

Trial by Fire is the second in the Raised by Wolves series. A YA werewolf book with an interesting twist: the protagonist is the alpha of a werewolf pack, but she’s human. With lots of problems. Honestly, I stayed up far too late finishing this book, since I just *had* to find out what happened!

Of the books I’m currently reading, one is nonfiction, three are fiction (two of which are fantasy), and one is poetry. I don’t normally read much poetry, but so far, The Cure is a Forest is full of compelling, nature-oriented poems that I’m enjoying very much. I, along with a huge number of other fantasy fans, have been looking forward to A Dance with Dragons for years, and I have to say that 100 pages in, it’s been worth the wait. (Still kinda dreading which one of the characters I love Martin will kill off in this book…)

Cutting Myself a Break

Well. For this week, anyway. Having not made much (or really, any) progress on revisions in the last month, I decided to officially give myself the week off (thereby getting rid of the associated guilt over not revising). I’m moving next weekend, and of course, there are approximately 7,001 things that need to be done before then. So, a hiatus. From revisions, anyway.

I still intend to do a bit of brainstorming and outlining on the DOTD story. Just enough to keep my momentum up, anyway. Apart from that, my plan for the week is to take care of real-life stuff, read a bit, and try not to stress about anything (mainly work). There’s plenty of time for that next week…

Character Introduction: Cacia

I’m supposed to be posting here twice a week. That’s my goal (as of mid-May, anyway). However…I frequently occasionally find it difficult to come up with something to write about.  That makes posting quite a bit more difficult, as you can imagine.  Sadly, I don’t have hours to spend in dreamy contemplation of what to blog about.  In fact, I’m lucky to have 15 minutes to both come up with a topic and compose the blog.  I recently saw a suggestion to blog about your characters and story.   While that would seem blindingly obvious…it never occurred to me before, except to mention them in passing.  But now I’m going to remedy this deplorable lack on my part.  So…

I’d like you to meet Acacia Fauve, or Cacia.  Cacia doesn’t think she’s anything special.  Average height, average build, with brown eyes.  Her only remarkable physical feature–in her mind, anyway–is her dark red hair. She doesn’t like attention, so she keeps it braided all the time. She’s mostly shy, unobtrusive, and trusts very few people. Very, very few. Like, two…She works as an assistant to the “customs” agent in Thule. She is terrified of mages (more on that in a sec). Cacia sees ghosts. All day, everyday. Her best friend is a cat named Damali who also sees ghosts–at least Cacia thinks he does. He’s not a talking cat or anything, just a regular old cat, so he can’t exactly tell her.

Cacia lives in a tiny cubbyhole not far from the shop. She has one other friend besides Damali, a servant named Ben who works in the castle. She doesn’t see him much, but he’s still her friend. She’s about twenty now, but when she was ten, she saw her entire family killed. They were jungle farmers, back when it was safe to live in the jungle, but the Wakaun came out of nowhere one day and killed her family. Cacia isn’t sure how she survived–or why–but the arrival of the Wakaun drove her into the city.

She doesn’t talk about her ability. To anyone. Not even Ben. The yearly feast of Zo–where the priests do a bloodletting on everyone so they can see the ghosts of their ancestors in an offering of power to Anik (a god)–is a nightmare for her. She avoids it, because the bloodletting only makes her power worse, and she doesn’t need any more crazy in her life. She has quite enough, thank you. And speaking of crazy…Cacia avoids the mages at all costs. She thinks they’re crazy, and she knows they’re greedy for power, so she stays far, far away, and is very careful to keep a tight grip on both her power and her emotions. There’s safety in control and calmness, and she likes it that way. At least until she meets Breck and Casanova…

Idea Conundrum

So, I’ve been halfway working on the DOTD story idea lately. By “halfway,” I mean mostly guilt over letting my brainstorming/outlining slide in favor of school and reading. (It’s summer. I can only focus on so many things at a time…) Yesterday was actually a fairly good day. I did a bit of brainstorming and “outlined” my next eight scenes. I like this story idea a lot. I think it will be a lot of fun to write, and it has some bits and pieces I’ve been playing with for a while now (years, actually). I’m loving the characters AND the world. So yes, I’m looking forward to writing it. I just don’t have that much actual time to write it right now.

But…there’s this other idea that kept popping into my head yesterday. It’s one I flirted with briefly for NaNo last year and decided against only because I didn’t have time (there’s that word again) to do the actual prep work to do the story justice. But now it’s rearing its head again. This one’s YA paranormal with Sirens and Spartans and the MC’s voice keeps popping into my head, saying “Pick me! Pick me!”

What to do?

Semi-Sweet, by Roisin Meaney

Roisin Meaney has published in Ireland for several years, but her newest novel, Semi-Sweet

Semi-Sweet (from 5 Spot)
, is the first to make it to U.S. markets. Full of small-town Irish charm and delectable cupcakes, Semi-Sweet is a light-hearted read that would be perfect for lounging poolside on July 4th.

Hannah loves her life. She has a wonderful boyfriend, Patrick. She’s about to realize her longtime dream of opening her own cupcake shop. Then Patrick tells her he’s leaving her for someone else, and Hannah’s dreams come crashing down around her. Before life can overwhelm her, her best friend, Adam, steps in, giving her a deadline of his birthday—seven months away—to make a go of the shop.

Soon Hannah’s life is a hectic swirl of long days, early-morning baking, and trying to get over Patrick—and his now-pregnant girlfriend. Despite her fears, the shop is doing well, and she even has some regular customers, including one handsome stranger with a sweet tooth. Hannah just isn’t sure she’s over Patrick, and trusting someone again is a scary prospect, but at least she’s surrounded by friends and family who support her.

Adam falls hard for a shy musician, and his desperation to win her affections knows no bounds. Family friend Alice’s life has taken a downward turn, and her husband, Tom’s; drinking is bad…but worse is in store. There’s a lot going on in this small Irish town, and the people in Hannah’s life will never be the same.

Semi-Sweet is a charming, engrossing tale of small-town life and one woman’s struggles to overcome her hurt and hang on to her dreams. Hannah’s pain and recovery is vivid and realistic, and her relationship with Adam is fun and uplifting—like a true best friendship should be. Fair warning: in addition to claiming the reader’s full attention for hours, this book is also sure to create an overwhelming desire for cupcakes!

(Galley provided by 5 Spot via NetGalley)

Procrastination…I Have It

Badly. In fact, so badly, it’s probably Stage IV. Seriously. It’s a struggle to make myself do homework, much less anything else! I have a daily planner that I fill out religiously (and with much detail) every week. This week, I’m maybe getting 50% of my to-do lists done. Not for lack of time. I’ve only worked one day since Saturday (Sad, I know. I should be ashamed to even write that…). It’s just complete and total lack of motivation.

At least I got my homework done (until Sunday, anyway). With only two more weeks in the summer semester, falling behind isn’t a good idea. But I have a writing project that needs outlined, and I need to finish a revision and start another one. Not to mention getting started on my certification at work…Can I get a couple of days with 48 hours in them, please?

Anyone have any tricks for overcoming procrastination? I’d really appreciate them…when I get around to implementing them, anyway.