It's Getting Colder...

It's getting colder and the leaves are starting to turn. My doggies are cuddling up to they mommy and daddy more and more. I love it! What better excuse is there to wrap up and read a good book...or three. ;-)

My babies, Casey and Max, agree wholeheartedly.

Maybe we need to sit with daddy...

Or maybe my blankie will be enough...

Ah. Mommy's lap is just right. ;-)







But if you're like me, you need no excuses to read. Though if you have to convince someone else that you aren't wasting time, try the Benefits of Reading for some new reasons to read. I thought you might like them as much as I do.

Once the Book is Written...

Every time one of my friends asks how the book is going and I say I'm closing in on a complete draft, they inevitably say, "Oooh! When will I be able to buy it?" (sigh) And I have to explain to them that it doesn't work that way. But for some reason, their eyes glazed over after I explain the differences in macro and micro edits. How long it can take to find an agent, writing loglines, queries, synopses, etc. All on the top of producing a complete and polished final (if there is such a thing) draft...And so it goes. I'm still at the tiniest of first steps--I'm nearly done with a rough draft.

There are other writers who have explained that so well and one of them is my fellow WFWA member, Kerry Ann Morgan. Check out her latest blog post--I've Entered the Fight...er...Submission Club. She tells the truth with such comedic flair!

Also check out this announcement. The Bookshelf Muse has moved to Writers Helping Writers and celebrating with a great give away.

FRIENDLY FIRE Update:
Part 1--Dreams is now in complete rough draft stage. Currently it's being read by some fabulous writers and non-writers to see if it makes sense to anyone else but me. ;-) John has read 3 chapters and only stumbled on one sentence. Guess what? He was right, it needed moved. (Have I reminded you lately that I love that man?)

And I have a potential logline or one sentence that sets up the story's beginning.
When a retired, childless widow meets a troubled foster child and steps into the breach, she realizes abuse is rampant in her home town—and she’s at ground zero.

Sometimes You Just Have to Laugh

Sometimes you find truth and sometimes you find TRUTH! This is the latter. (My favorite truths are # 1, 5, 12, 23, and especially 31.)

Enjoy. ; )

33 Untold Truths Writers Know All Too Well

I'm taking a workshop at WFWA and loving the give and take. I'm so glad I found that group. If you write Women's Fiction, come an join us at Women's Fiction Writers Association.

Obstacles

You know that feeling you get when you read something that really turns your head, makes you see your life and stories in a new light, and realize you've been looking at everything the wrong way? Well, I'm having that feeling since I read Kathryn Craft's post at Writers in the Storm. Check out Turning Whine into Gold: Surmounting Obstacles. It's opened up a new theme in my WIP FRIENDLY FIRE.

In FF's original form--MOTHER'S DAY--was all about Laura Grace and her childlessness.  Every part of the story at that time was about how and why Laura Grace became a mother. In fact, Samantha was little more than a placeholder child. That was until I couldn't keep from learning more and more about Samantha's story and the idea of abuse being friendly fire, that those closest to us inflict our deepest wounds. Child abuse is a prime example since the great majority of victims are abused by people in their families and neighborhoods--those who should be protecting the child, not preying on them. That new focus forced LG's motherhood into the background.

But after reading Craft's post, I realized that both themes need to run parallel lines in the story. LG has a deep well of motherhood that was not allowed expression in the normal journey most people take. She is childless after 30+ years of happy marriage and a career of teaching has only touched the tip of the iceberg of what she has buried inside. The obstacles to motherhood looked insurmountable. Then Samantha, a child with needs so deep that only a mother with an endless reserve to call on can provide the mothering she needs. And a match made in Heaven was created.

Needless to say, I'm trilled. I've already begun to add this new insight into my WIP, so if you think I'm a bit distracted, I might be. ; )

Get Ready!



October will be here next week and with it will come ocean-deep skies to get lost in, crisp cool mornings, and the skittering of dry leaves across the ground. The birds and animals know what to do--they're preparing for winter. Squirrels hide innumerable nuts, the butterflies are sucking in nectar and laying eggs, and the birds are eating us out of house and home at the feeders. All of them know they have to be ready for the change that is coming.



copyright Zan Marie Steadham 2013

Writing is no different. A lot of us are preparing for the annual marathon of NaNoWriMo. Not me.  I know my limits and how slowly I write, but I do try to ride on the coattails of my buddies who do push to put up as many words as possible every year. I find that if I've prepared, I can add a lot of words to my manuscript. October is the perfect prep month. I'm going to try to get my soggy middle to stop darting all over the place like a bucket of minnows. If I'm really lucky, one of those darting ideas will pan out to be a tasty way to go to tighten the story and fill in the holes my summer reread found.

Wish me luck! And good luck to all of you who are planning to attempt 50,000 words during November.

Debut Books

All writers want to know the feeling of having their debut novel finally out in the world.  Can you imagine the feeling of seeing your long hard work finally available for others to read? Of course there have to be a few nerves, too. Imaging wondering about how your baby will be received. Someday I hope all of this is more than just my imagination. Someday I hope to join the list below. If you're hunting a good read, try some of these. ;-)

Jessica Topper debuts with LOUDER THAN LOVE today. I haven't read Jessica's debut yet, but it's intriguing.

The rest of these are all great books and I do hope you take the time to check them out.

And a great review of THE GLASS WIVES that explores THE GLASS WIVES meets THE GODFATHER. How provocative can you get! I interviewed Amy Sue Nathan about her debut novel on May 21, 2013

If you're interested in Historical fiction, try Lori Benton's BURNING SKY (interviewed on August 20, 2013) or Kerry Lynne's PIRATE CAPTAIN (interview on March 12, 2013). Check out the review of THE PIRATE CAPTAIN by the Historical Novel Society.

Or if you're more into Romance, try Amara Royce's NEVER TOO LATE (interviews on May 14, 2013).

A Women's Fiction debut I'm sure you'll love is Charlotte Rains Dixon's EMMA JEAN'S BAD BEHAVIOR (interview on February 19, 2013).

And coming soon: Lara Lacombe's DEADLY CONTACT debuting on November 1. I can't wait. Check out the review at RT Book Reviews.

FRIENDLY FIRE update: I'm still moving dirt to fill in the holes my reread in July revealed. All in all, I'm very pleased with my progress. (Off to "dirty my hands" a bit more. ;-)

It's here!

Women's fiction writers have a home, a place where we can chat, commiserate, celebrate, learn, and support each other--the Women's Fiction Writers Association. It's an inclusive organization for writers who create stories about a women's emotional journey. Check here for more about the WFWA.

I haven't explored everything yet, but I'm thrilled to see an extensive list of agents who represent women's fiction titles and three workshops for this fall that are free with membership and already enrolling participants. This has been along time coming, but now that the WFWA if a reality, it's far more amazing than I had imagined.

So, if you write women's fiction of any type--chick lit, stories with romantic elements, historicals, mainstream, or literary--you have a home. Come and jump in. The water's fine. ; )

Anniversaries (and an update on FRIENDLY FIRE)

Copyright, Zan Marie Steadham
1977

Anniversaries are lovely things when they mark happy occasions and evoke fun memories. In fact, our thirty-sixth anniversary is this week and we'll be gone for a couple of days.

I'm working hard to make another anniversary a happy one, too. In March 2008 I woke from a nap with the first scene of FRIENDLY FIRE in my head. By the end of the day, I knew the basic story outline. Mind you, the story has undergone some major revisions and thematic changes, but the story is still there. Laura Grace and Samantha have lived in my mind for five and a half years. I'm working hard to have a complete draft by the end of this year, but if I don't manage it, I do hope to be able to say the rough draft is done by the end of March 2014. That would be a fitting way to celebrate the sixth anniversary of my story, don't you think?

So, keep your fingers crossed, throw a few good thoughts and supportive prayers my way. Maybe you'll be able to celebrate that anniversary with me, too. ; )

Update: I've finished the reread corrections--all bazillion of them. ; ) I'm going to pull all the individual scenes that got noted to need additions, the scenes that are only stubs, and the scenes that exist only as jot lists for a concentrated session of "fill-in-the-blank". Keep your good thoughts coming my way and cross your fingers. ; )

This is for when you are just tied up in knots and know you don't know enough to do the job right. Ira Glass has it all explained. ; )