Quick update on Winnie...

Since is had been FOREVER since I have blogged, I wanted to inform you of what Winifred and I have been up to.

I have been insanely ill for the last month.  I am not even kidding it has really been a month.  I went to the doctor after being miserable for a week.  I was diagnosed and treated with a sinus infection.  Unfortunately, they regretted to inform me that I had another condition, which I diagnosed myself, I call it "mucus brain."  You see, when you are constantly congested and have snot flowing out of your nose, it seems to create some sort of brain malfunction.  My brain hasn't been able to compute easy mundane occurrences, let alone create something readable to any kind of audience.  My writing has been on hold, my reading books to help me with my writing is on hold.  I just got a second round of antibiotics prescribed yesterday since it had been a week and a half after concluding first round and I have been worse! Oh yeah, now I have bronchitis! Coughing now has entered my repertoire, and I am an expert on the performing the act. Especially since I have been practicing every hour of the last 7 days. Now that is dedication! 

Luckily I have Winifred to keep me company.  I'm pretty sure she has read me at least 5 books while I have been ailing.  Sleep has not come easy, so I have found I have a lot of time on my hands.  We have aquired some books that don't require any intelligence, so that is a good thing!  I hope to be back to full working order very soon!

contest entry...

Love author Kiersten White and her blog. She is having a contest to win the ARC of her book Endlessly, and to enter you have to write a "supernatural creature let down" and in addition to commenting on the blog post you are supposed to post it elsewhere.  This is me posting it elsewhere:

Met a really good looking guy, turns out he's a shape shifter. I asked him to turn into something for me, he informed me that he could turn into any food item I wanted. I requested him to be a slice of chocolate cheesecake, which he granted. It looked so good and real, I couldn't keep myself from taking a bite. As soon as I did he shifted back into a human and his right arm was missing! Oops!


Yep, I am really creative.  I am writing a book. Expect amazingly written gems like this.

Inspiration...

I sit in a sick foggy head stupor, frequently needing to acquire a tissue for my uber sensitive nose that seems to have a leak in it.  Is there a plumber for noses? Well I guess the Dr. is the closest I'll get to a plumber, and I saw one yesterday.  Hopefully on the mend...


Today I want to talk about inspiration. I know there are many different ways to be inspired as a writer. For myself, I have had a few instances, so far, where I felt a moments of inspiration.   Those instances have had different triggers, but in the end I came away with a new idea. 


Once recent inspiration experience I had, I want to share with you.  If you don't already know, I am writing a YA Fantasy novel.  This has been a real challenge, because I am hoping that I have enough elements to truly make it Fantasy.  I decided that I needed to figure out a new element to add to my fantasy world.  My goal was to come up with an animal, or add a fantasy element to a known animal. My first thoughts were focused on a bird.  I wasn't too excited about that.  Then I started thinking about my protagonist, what is something she would desire to further her traits?  She is someone who loves to have the wind blowing in her hair, she loves speed, and most importantly adventure.  What animal could assist my character to enhance these traits?  Well, there was one obvious choice, a horse.  This thought got me excited, horses I (sort of ) know, horses I can do!  Unfortunately, I still needed to find the factor that would make my horses fit in my fantasy world. 


Last week my husband took me on a little weekend trip to Colorado to see my favorite band in concert.  On our way back to the airport I looked out the window and saw this:

I was instantly taken into my story and I saw this horse in it! This horse inspired many thoughts about the horses that exist in my fantasy story world.  The elements that make my horses special, I won't divulge at this time, you will have to wait and see! Isn't this amazing?

If you want to read an article I found on this horse statue click here.

Here are some pictures I took that also have given me some inspiration:

Disappointment...

(This was just too cute not to add to this post.)  

Now that I am writing a book I am finding I am more critical of the books I read.  I don't like being critical, but I can't help it.  With being critical, disappointment has also become a factor.  I now see the good, the bad, the ugly, and the beautiful in a whole different light.  


Recently I started a series, there were currently 3 books out when I started, and the last one was coming out just a few months after I read those first three.  I cruised through the three, I enjoyed them immensely.  In fact, I was counting down the days until the next book came out.  Thanks to Winnie, I was able to get the book as soon as it came out.  It took me a day to read this book.  Here are some of my thoughts I had during and after I read this book:


-The author did her research and/or knows her stuff.


-Being the final book in the series, it was action packed and there was never a dull moment.


-The protagonist had a successful transitional arc throughout the series, and especially in the final book.


-Mythology was greatly involved, and it was interesting learning about it, but at times I was overwhelmed with the information.  It seems there were times the information was thrown at me like a hurricane suddenly appeared before me, no slight breeze, or light wind storm to warn me.


-There was a love story involved, in fact it pretty much drove the previous books, but it took a back seat in the final book.  That was very disappointing.  


-Speaking of the love story, there was the traditional love triangle in the series.  That being said the reader knew pretty early on in this book who she really loved, but there was never a time for that to truly be established until the end, and not in a way that pleased me.


-I have a crush on one of the characters, have had one since he was introduced in book 2.  In fact I have named my imaginary son after him.  


-Because of my tiny crush, I felt he needed way more presence in that last book.  He was there, but then he wasn't really there.  Now I know he wasn't the protagonist, but hello, if I love him he needs to be more present!


-I am REALLY hoping that I live up to all the expectations I am giving myself for my book.  Will I ever be fully satisfied with my story?  Will I be so critical of my own work that I disappoint myself and never finish?


-This was an excellent series, if you like the genre, and the final book was brilliantly written. Why, oh why, do I still end up disappointed?!?!?!?!


(Incase you are squirming with need to know what book(s) I am taking about I will do a post on a real review of the book soon. )

Desert Dreams 2012...

No, I am not going to blog about the dreams I have while living in the desert.  I'll save that for another day ;).

At this time last week, I had all sorts of nerves flowing though out my body.  I was getting ready to go to my very first writer's conference (first of many I hope), in other words, I was a conference virgin.

My friend, Gina, and I decided to attend the Desert Dreams Writer's Conference in Phoenix together.  She, also being a fellow virgin, is in the same situation as I am.  We are both just starting the writing process on our very first books.  We both know slim to none about the writing industry.  We also know slim to none about writing. Hence the reason we really needed to attend this conference.

18+ hours of instruction
25 pages of handwritten notes
20 pages of handouts
5 recordings of classes I was unable to attend (Which I still need to listen to!)
Many, many conversations with authors and others working on writing books
________________________________________________________ equals: A more knowledgeable Winnie with more confidence and excitement to go through this journey of writing a book!

The conference ended with a BANG!  Martha Alderson gave a workshop on Plot.  She is amazingly talented at teaching and she knows her stuff!  Gina and I had the privilege of visiting with her the night before.  She had an interest in us, and gave us encouraging words for us to keep going on our writing.  During her workshop I had a MAJOR "aha" moment and was so taken aback by it I missed a small portion of Martha's instruction! Sad, but I will never forget that moment.

Here is the one picture I made sure to get.  Gina used her camera and she will be sending me some pictures in the near future. (Right, Gina?)

Book: THE NIGHT CIRCUS

Sometimes you read a book that will rock your world and it seems you can never forget about it.  This book did just that to me.  I have a passion for reading and I have read a large amount of books, but this book filled my soul with joy and delight which radiated throughout my mind and body.  As a writer, I feel a need to aspire to resemble that kind of feeling in my future readers.  


Good ole' Winifred and I had the privilege of reading this together. I shall now attempt to make a description of the book so you will get a better idea of it.

Let's celebrate MAGIC! If you read THE NIGHT CIRCUS by Erin Morgenstern you will find that magic is the dominate trait of the book.  This type of magic is very mystical and illusion driven.  It will take you to a whole other dimension. 


There are many characters present, but as the plot moves on you find they are all secondary to the circus itself.  If you were to ask me, the actual circus is the main attraction of this story.  There is a love story, but it is secondary to the circus.  


This book makes your senses come alive. The writing is so beautifully done, that you are able to see and feel what is being described.  When a character walks through an ice garden you feel like you are right there with them.


Now I really need to go work on making my red scarf.  You let me know if you need a red accessory also!

One Sentence...

I never thought that writing one sentence would be one of the most difficult things I have ever attempted.

I have been doing a bunch of research on how to write a book. I feel like I need to because I feel like I am not learned in that occupation. One suggestion that has popped up in multiple articles, is to write a one sentence "hook" or "15 second elevator pitch". Basically if someone were to ask me what my book is about I need to be able to say it in around 25 words and one sentence. It should say what my whole story is about. It also should provoke the person I am telling it to, to ask more about it. That is IF my sentence has sent shivers up their back and leaves them with no choice BUT to ask for more.

I have spent a week writing this sentence. There have been times that I have literally sat and stared at my computer screen for hours. Trying to will the words to merge together to make sense. There was a day that my brain power was at a new low that I didn't think it could ever get to. It's been painful, and tiring, but I think I have something.

I am in such an early stage in my writing that I am afraid my sentence could change. But I am not going to let that get my confidence down. I am going to make myself feel good about this and I will worry about that later. (I am writing that to convince myself, hopefully) Next step is to present this sentence to anyone who is willing to hear it!