This week I’ll be posting again from the first draft of my contemporary wip Crushed Velvet. Enjoy!

I’m going to kill, Adrianna!

Lydia, groaned and leaned against the fridge. She pressed her temples and whispered. “Is there anything, she hasn’t mentioned about our high school years?”

“Mentioned what?”

Lydia, traipsed into the kitchen, stopping next to her boyfriend.

This week we continue on with one of my wips Crushed Velvet. Enjoy!

“So tell me, are you the fourth and final member of that crazy-ass high school group, Adrianna talks about?”

Lydia winced. “You mean Deviant’s Row?”

Adrianna’s boyfriend grinned.

If there was ever a time she was mortified, it was now. She hadn’t mentioned the group’s name in twenty long years, and there she stood, revealing the name to someone she’d only just met.

In 2009, I endeavored to write my first full-length novel. The premise was good—or at least I thought it was. To this day, I haven’t found another book like it. And for a while there, I thought this was it for me. Wrong. I won’t go into the specifics of how many ‘newbie’ mistakes I made because we all make them and this is not what this post is about, but sometimes you need to bring your idea to a rolling boil before you write any further.

Here, we are now, three years later, and Mistress of Forsaken Souls: Pandemonium has been driving me crazy. Who’d have thought that a lengthily break was exactly what the story needed.

Has this happened to you? How long did it take you from start to finish?

This week I’m posting a snippet from another wip, Crushed Velvet. This wip is still in its infancy.

Lydia withdrew from the living room where everyone congregated, slipping into the quiet and vacant kitchen. She needed silence, something stronger than wine, and a way to collect to her thoughts. Not that she didn’t love all the excitement in the other room, but the sudden realization, she’d lost herself along the way, swallowed her whole.
“If you’re looking for the Vodka, I do believe Adrianna has it in the fridge.”
Lydia, startled, turned around to find her friends boyfriend leaning against the wall, grinning.
“Um thanks!”

Well that’s it for me peeps, catch ya next week!

-L

This week I’m posting a little further into my historical romance wip Midnight Blaze. Enjoy!

“Emerson, get up and be quick about getting decent, we leave at once.” James
shouted while pulling back the drapes. Sunshine poured into the expansive
chamber, stirring the Viscount and his guest beneath the tangle of sheets.

“Really, James! Was the intrusion necessary?” The Viscount groaned, slung
his legs out of bed and rang for his valet.

The new story that’s been added to my agenda this year is One Sinful Dalliance.  I now have a wip for every possible mood I could be in: one mushy historical , one smutty historical, a sci/fi, a smutty contemporary and two paranormals. HELP ME! An over-active muse is a dangerous thing to have.

Titles for whatever reason, seem to come to me at free will. I could be watching a movie and inspiration will strike over a phrase. Sometimes its colors, or music. Then, there’s the times I’ve written a story based on the madness of one scene and have no fricken idea what to call the story. I guess I really shouldn’t complain, should I?

So where do you get your titles from? Is there a method to your madness, or do they fall into your lap?

Cheers,

-L

Hope you’ll stop by and say hi!

-L

This week I’m posting again from my historical romance wip Midnight Blaze.

He slammed the kitchen door as it had been the last room to check.
Frustration now at its peak twisted in his stomach. Catching sight of the
housekeeper, James stopped her in the corridor.

“Mrs. Kerrich, have you seen where Miss Harris is?”

James watched the stout housekeeper blush and glare at him with surprise.

“Why of course, sir, she left.

Well that’s it for me today. I hope each of you have a wonderful, safe and happy new year!

Cheers,

L

LP: As a multi-published author, have you found any difference with the amount of work involved when self-editing a story when you’re a plotter vs. being a panster?

JS: I’m not sure, as I’ve only ever written my stories one way. I plan them out in my head, jot some notes then begin writing. There may or may not be research involved as well, depending on the story. I do find that the more books you have out, the more time you spend promoting your work, which can take away valuable writing time.

LP: Do you write a first draft? If so, do you set yourself a deadline?

JS: I always write a first draft. Often I set a deadline, but I don’t always meet them due to other obligations that arise. If I’ve been away from a particular story, I will go back over the first draft and maybe do minor edits. Occasionally I will see a major plot hole at this point and rewrite anywhere from a paragraph to the entire thing before continuing on.

LP: How long do you set aside the story before editing?

JS: It really depends on the story. The shorter stories, I’ll put aside over night, go over them once then send out to my critique partners. While I’m waiting for their feedback, I’ll work on something else. I guess the amount of time really depends on my CPs. LOL The longer stories, I’ll set aside for a week or longer so I can look at it with fresh eyes. Often I’ll convert the Word file to an EPUB to read it on my Kobo. This also helps to see the story as a reader rather than the author.

LP: Self-editing is a feat that takes more than a few years to nail down. That is, unless you’re a natural. What would you say is the biggest mistake that is overlooked during the editing process?

JS: Not reading the entire story through. When we edit, we often correct the mistakes pointed out by CPs, editors, or those we’ve found by reading bits at a time. All of these edits are good, but without the final read through, there could be several inconsistencies from the changes made.

LP: Do you edit in stages, or do you tackle everything at once?

JS: I do several stages. After I finish the first draft, I’ll look my manuscript over to edit the mistakes I commonly make, take out repeated and overused words, look for plot holes, etc. Then I’ll read it through to look for any inconsistencies before sending it to my CPs. Then, when it comes back from them, I’ll fix anything they pointed out. Then I’ll read it through again. I may set it aside before reading it again, send it out for a beta read, or send it for submission as this point, depending on the length of the story.

LP: If you had to pick one common mistake, the kind that makes your eye twitch, what would it be? In addition, what is the best way to identify and resolve the issue?

JS: Overuse of the word ‘was’, especially in descriptions. This is so easy to correct. Just do a find for the word, and rephrase those sentences. I have several references, besides my thesaurus, which I use to finds ways to rephrase things. See below.

LP: Do you have any recommendations of books to read on the craft, or online resources that are beneficial to new comers in writing?

JS: I have a lot of books, but many I haven’t read. Here’s a list of the books and websites I often use:

• Fire In Fiction by Donald Maass
• Manuscript Makeover by Elizabeth Lyon
• The Bookshelf Muse: http://thebookshelfmuse.blogspot.com/
• Sex In The Romance: http://home.epix.net/~jlferri/sexrom.html
• Writer’s Knowledge Base from Elizabeth Spann Craig: http://hiveword.com/wkb/search

LP: Any final thoughts on editing, or prepping a manuscript before sending it off to a crit group/partner or out on submission?

JS: Before sending anything out for submission, make sure you get feedback from someone else. I’m not talking family and friends, but someone else in the industry. There are so many authors out willing to read your stuff over and help. Don’t be afraid to ask.

Thanks for having me here today, Layna!

It’s always a pleasure to have you back, Jessica!

For more information about Jessica, you find her at the following locations:

Website/Blog: http://www.markofthestars.com

Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/jsubject

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jessica-E-Subject-author/205759796126370

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4959083.Jessica_E_Subject

Google +: https://plus.google.com/100079570422204018357/posts

LP: As a multi-published author, have you found any difference with the amount of work involved when self-editing a story when you’re a plotter vs. being a panster?

SB: I’ve never been one to plot at all, at least until I’m wrapping up the first draft. Then I’ll sit down with the manuscript and write an outline of sorts to make sure I have all my pacing and events correct. This is mostly because, not only am  I a pantser, I also write out of order. So this is my way of ensuring that I’ve fit all the pieces of the puzzle together in the correct order.

LP: Do you write a first draft? If so, do you set yourself a deadline?

SB: Yes, I write a first, second, etc – however many drafts it takes to get it right. Now, I’ve noticed as I’ve gained knowledge from working with various editors, I have far fewer drafts than I first started with. One of my early books took something like 8 or 9 drafts to get it right before I even thought about submitting it. Now, two years later, it usually only takes me two or three drafts. Two definitely because of my process, but my first drafts are always, always horrible. And that’s good. I can improve horrible. I can’t improve nothing.

LP: How long do you set aside the story before editing?

SB: A minimum of a week. A month is even better and what I’ve found is the best for me. The longer I’m away from a project between drafts, the better I can pick up and see things to make corrections before submitting. You can become too familiar with a manuscript and overlook the simplest of things. My goal is to submit the cleanest draft I possibly can to either one of my current editors or a perspective one.

LP: Self-editing is a feat that takes more than a few years to nail down. That is, unless you’re a natural. What would you say is the biggest mistake that is overlooked during the editing process?

SB: Repetitive action is easy to flub. To clarify: “He lifted his arm up.” or  “She sat down in the chair.” Both are repetitive. If he’s lifting, it’s assumed it’s up. You can’t lift your arm down. And if she’s sitting, it’s assumed down. So the sentences would be “He lifted his arm.” And “She sat in the chair.”

LP: Do you edit in stages, or do you tackle everything at once?

SB: It depends. If I’m going full tilt on a story, like my fingers are bleeding trying to keep up with my brain, I don’t even stop to correct spelling mistakes. I just go and then come back to the second draft and start editing then. If I’m figuring out pieces trying to put a scene together and not writing anything new for the story, I will go back to Chapter 1 and start editing. Seeing some of the early parts of the story sometimes unsticks me on a plot point I’m trying to solve. It also keeps the story as a whole fresh in my head and allows me to keep perspective on it.

LP: If you had to pick one common mistake, the kind that makes your eye twitch, what would it be? In addition, what is the best way to identify and resolve the issue?

SB: Oh I am a “that” girl. No question about it. I never worry about it during my early drafts but then I usually have to do a find in my document. Without fail, however, it is inevitable to find some unnecessary ones that my editor gets to point out to me. It’s something I know I have to be diligent about. LOL

LP: Do you have any recommendations of books to read on the craft, or online resources that are beneficial to new comers in writing?

SB: If you want to learn about plotting, characterization, etc, the best thing you can do for yourself is to read your favorite author’s books. Seriously. They’re putting into practice what you’re trying to do so what better example? They are your professors. Study them. Read them to enjoy them, but notice how the give their character’s nuances. How they give their stories depth and life and color. How they weave multiple plots together. How they don’t just make it a book, really pay attention to how they make it a story.

LP: Any final thoughts on editing, or prepping a manuscript before sending it off to a crit group/partner or out on submission?

SB: Having a critique partner or beta reader (better yet, have both!) is a must. Must. Must. Must. I can’t stress this enough. You are not perfect. You will miss something. It’s inevitable. Even then, you, your crit parter and your beta reader are still going to miss something. It happens and it’s all right. (Remind me to someday tell a story about when I first started submitting and some boneheaded mistakes I made…*g*) That’s where time comes in—it’s your friend. Put the manuscript aside for a predetermined amount of time, stick to it and don’t think about the story while it’s put away. I guarantee you will find something all of you missed that you will swear you never saw before. And remember—it’s all right.

Thanks for sharing Sara!

For more information about Sara and her works you can find her at:

www.sarabrookes.net

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