I Just Can't

The world is a scary place. Sometimes so scary that I just want to hunch into a ball, cover my ears with my hands and go, "lalalalala." No seriously. There are times I stay away from social media now because it's the same as watching the news- something I don't do. I know it's important to stay informed, but when all the bad things happen, and then all of the fighting/disagreements/negativity that happens on social media, it gets to be a bit too much at times.

This isn't a post about world change. It isn't a post about the importance of conversations and talking and learning. That is important, but it's a post for another day. This is just me saying that sometimes I can't handle the negativity. It brings me down. It makes me scared/depressed/angry/listless. So I try my darnedest not to get involved. This doesn't mean I don't have my opinions. It doesn't mean I'm not listening and learning, because I am. I'm just not jumping in. 

It also means I try my darnedest not to add to it. Everything I say on social media, I try to make it positive, or at least funny. It doesn't always work. Of course it doesn't. But when I hear the negativity, when I get caught up in it, when I stomp around my house or write then delete tweets, then when I take a breath, step back, step away, and come back with a silly post about The Bachelorette or my kids or the book I read lately, that's why. Because sometimes I just can't.  

Friday Loves: LOVE & GELATO

I know I usually talk about books on Mondays, but Friday is all about what I'm loving right now, and right now, what I'm loving is LOVE & GELATO. 

“I made the wrong choice.”

Lina is spending the summer in Tuscany, but she isn’t in the mood for Italy’s famous sunshine and fairy-tale landscape. She’s only there because it was her mother’s dying wish that she get to know her father. But what kind of father isn’t around for sixteen years? All Lina wants to do is get back home.

But then she is given a journal that her mom had kept when she lived in Italy. Suddenly Lina’s uncovering a magical world of secret romances, art, and hidden bakeries. A world that inspires Lina, along with the ever-so-charming Ren, to follow in her mother’s footsteps and unearth a secret that has been kept for far too long. It’s a secret that will change everything she knew about her mother, her father—and even herself.

People come to Italy for love and gelato, someone tells her, but sometimes they discover much more.

THIS BOOK.

There's something about summer that makes me want to read about people falling in love in Europe. Okay, I'd read about that anytime, but in the summer I really get a hankering for it. I don't know where I heard about LOVE & GELATO, but I requested it from my library, then saved it so I could read it on the beach.

Well, it rained all week, but WHO CARES? The book was so good it didn't matter where I was reading it. I loved the Florence setting (obviously), I had the feels for the MC and the loss of her mother, I loved how there was journal entries and a bit of a mystery to be solved. The best part though was the dialogue/relationship between the MC and her new friend Ren. It was soooo right in all the ways. 

This book kinda reminded me of ANNA & THE FRENCH KISS, so if you liked that, read this one right now! I'm definitely going out and buying my very own copy because it's become a fave.

Monday Reads: THE MUSE, a SERPENT, and ACHILLES

Blog? What blog? I have a blog?

I don't know why I've been having such a hard time blogging lately, or even REMEMBERING to blog. I mean, it's almost 5pm on Monday so I'm a little behind today. Not to mention the last time I blogged was a couple of weeks ago. 

Ergh. Blogging slump.

Anyway, I read three books these past few weeks.

First, THE MUSE by Jessica Evans. This is a modern-day PRIDE & PREJUDICE retelling where Elizabeth is a ballet dancer in the corps and Darcy is a famous choreographer. Love the concept and loved the book! It was putting two of my favorite things together and it did not go wrong.

Then I read THE SERPENT'S SHADOW by Rick Riordan. This is the last book in the Kane Chronicles. It's been a long time since I read books one and two, but I didn't find it too difficult to jump back into the trilogy. Obviously I'd forgotten some things, but it was easy to keep up and I enjoyed the book. Rick Riordan has a great voice, lots of funny moments, and his books are always action packed with a touch of teenage romance. Great end to the trilogy.

Most recently, I read THE SONG OF ACHILLES by Madeline Miller. It was an excellent retelling of THE ILIAD, told from the POV of Patroclus, and I was captured from start to finish. The only thing that stopped me from giving it five stars was the fact that it switched tenses sometimes. I didn't understand why, and while I think it was intentional (and not bad writing), it threw me out of the story every time it happened. Anyone else read this book and know why the author would switch tenses? I really feel like I missed something there.

Anyway, these were all great reads. Yay for good books!

Author Interview with D.B. Kennison

Recently I read a fantastic mystery novel titled STILL LIFE by D.B. Kennison. Kennison is a fellow Samhain author and I really enjoyed this book. It had my stomach in knots the entire time, plus there was some super swoony scenes. D. B. Kennison interviewed me for her site, and was gracious enough to turn her own questions back on herself and answer them for me. Check it out!

D.B. Kennison

What do you think people would be the most surprised to learn about you?

Most surprised?   Probably that I'm a cosmetologist/aesthetician by trade. That's right, I do hair, nails, and facials for a living. I've worked a variety of jobs over the years and this one is special. I have the ability to make someone's day, to make them feel better, and provide a little bit of balance to their hectic lives. The fact that I get awesome writing material is just a bonus!

Jewelry by D.B. Kennison

Art by D.B. Kennison

What do you enjoy most in your free time? 

I'm one of those people, lucky or not can be infinitely debated, who can't shut off my creative side. It's like a disorder. If I'm not writing, then I'm painting, sculpting, jewelry-making, wood working, landscaping, decorating...ugh!  You get the picture. When our daughter was little, I even painted her room to look like the outdoors, incorporating doors into a castle and giving her a cat. She loved it. 

Other than a computer, what modern convenience could you never live without?

I guess it would be my Kindle. I was dragged to the e-reader world kicking and screaming, while clutching my favorite paper books in a death grip. I like the printed page, the smell and feel of them. I like dog-earring them, making notes in the margins and highlighting favorite passages. (sniff) Then I realized you can pretty much do the same thing electronically with Kindle features. They don't smell and they feel differently, but it's easier to read in bed (no annoying bedside lamp to keep hubby awake). 

Every author has a process—what works for them when they write. What does your writing process look like from first scribbles to finished manuscript? 

Well, it's changed a lot since I started writing. It began as longhand scribbles in notebooks. Then sheets of sticky notes outlining chapters, which led to actual writing in Word. It was a pain in the butt to learn any kind of efficiency in plotting. Now I use a computer program that has all of these features and more, that enable me to move around a manuscript easily. God Bless Scrivener. 

What is your all time favorite book and why?

It's hard to pick just one. But the one I come back to time and again, never tiring of it, is Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. It's kind of an odd choice. I tend to gravitate to mysteries with a dark bent, which is anything but this Highland historical. I guess that's a testament to great writing. 

Project research, love it or hate it?

Love it! I swear, I could set everything in life aside and just learn new stuff. As a writer research is a necessity, for me it can be an obsession with one Google search snowballing into a dozen! 

Is there a specific author who inspires you?  

One of my all time favorites is Tami Hoag. She started out as a romance novelist and now writes more mainstream mystery/suspense/thrillers. She is booked as the guest speaker for this years Writer's Police Academy. I'm attending and will probably embarrass myself when I ask her to sign a book for me. 

How did you come up with the title for your debut book?

It was an exercise in frustration. I bet I had a dozen different names as I was writing the book. When it was done I Googled art terms and knew the moment I saw it, STILL LIFE, was it.  

How long did it take you to write STILL LIFE?

A long time! It was a learning process because I didn't know the first darned thing about writing a book when I started. Let alone one that anyone would want to read, God forbid pay for. I began in late 2008, writing on and off with big gaps (sometimes as long as a year) where I'd take online writing courses, then begin again.

Tell us a little about the book. 

It's a mystery set in small town Wisconsin. Randi Lassiter is a reluctant P.I. who gets pulled into a murder investigation and steps on the toes of the detective in charge. Despite butting heads, they are attracted to each other, which adds a flirty element to the story. The mystery centers around an artist community and some quirky suspects. Readers tell me they love the inclusion of familiar places across our state. It was fun to write this genre-blend of romance, mystery, suspense, and comedy. 

What has been the most exciting aspect to releasing your first novel?

It has forced me to get over my introverted ways. I am not a mingler, a socializer, a gadabout. I'm more of geeky hermit, content to not be the center of attention. All of that kind of flies out the window when you put a book out there. Now I'm trying to be present everywhere. I'm not just selling my book, I'm selling myself.  (Oh, that didn't quite come out right * wink)  

What has been the most detrimental?

Finding time to write. Now that I'm addicted to this new found creative outlet I can't shut off the voices in my head. I've got at least a dozen story ideas and no time to write them. I'm terribly undisciplined when it comes to the practice of writing. Fixing that is my next goal.

What other projects are you working on?

Well, book 2 in the Randi Lassiter series is done and through the first round of edits. However, one of my editor's comments started a discussion that perhaps it could be a better story/series if tweaked. Tweak my ass! It has become a full on re-write. But, I agree with him. It will be worth it, the result being a stronger, more character driven story in the end. The bonus is that it's making me a better writer. I'm also working on a stand alone thriller that explores the darker elements of mind control applications. Creepy good fun. LOL.

Thanks D.B. Kennison for stopping by today! I can't wait to read more about Randi, and that thriller sounds super creepy! 

Check out STILL LIFE and D.B. Kennison at her website, on Facebook, and on Twitter. You can read her interview with me at https://whispersintheair.com/2016/07/01/meet-the-author-austen-fan-and-avenger-geek-melanie-stanford/. 

Monday Reads: KILL, DREAM, and HEAL

It's a truth universally acknowledged that ALL THE READING leads to a reading slump. 

Okay, maybe reading slump is too harsh a way to put it, although I did have a DNF this past week which I won't mention because it doesn't really matter. I just couldn't get into the book. The books I did read were:

KILL THE BOY BAND by Goldy Moldavsky, which was probably the strangest book I've ever read. I'm a self-professed boy band lover, so I figured I'd love this book. I liked it a lot. It was fun to read about crazy fangirls (like CRAY-ZAY), but they took the cray to a whole new level. It was just... super weird. But I liked it. I've just never read anything like that before.

DREAM A LITTLE DREAM- Kerstin Gier. I love the Ruby Red Trilogy by Gier so I was super-psyched to read something else by Gier. This book was good, just not amazing. The best part is Gier's MC's always make me laugh, which I loved.

THE HEALING PLACE- Sharon Downing Jarvis. My mom lent me this book, and I didn't really want to read it. It's an older book, and also a "Mormon" book. I'm Mormon, but I rarely read Mormon fiction. I was surprised to really like this book though. I had a few issues with the writing itself, but I enjoyed the story.

So that was my reading week. All four star books, but I'm really hoping to find a swoony, amazing summer read or two. 

Cover Reveal for GRANTED!

One of my amazing CP's has a book coming out soon called GRANTED, forthcoming from Future House Publishing! Her cover was revealed last week, but I wanted to feature it today because this is an awesome book I had the pleasure of reading a few years ago. 

Are you ready for the cover? Here it is...

I love this cover, and I love the new title, too! Want to know what it's about? Here's the blurb:

The existence of genies may be the best kept secret in the history of the world.

After being trapped in the Sahara Desert her whole life, sixteen-year-old genie Brielle finally gets her first assignment in Tri-Cities, Washington. She eagerly heads out into the human world to grant her first wish so she can gain her magic. Unfortunately, her assigned human, Addie, gave up believing in wishes years ago and would much rather everyone just leave her alone.

Complicating everything is Rock, Brielle’s childhood friend turned enemy. Brielle doesn’t need him ruining her first trip out into the human world. Too bad she can’t keep her mind–or her eyes–off him and his annoyingly cute dimples.

To make matters worse, genies in the Tri-Cities area are suspiciously dying. One broken lamp could be an accident, but after three, Brielle suspects someone has uncovered the genies’ secret and is slowly killing them off one by one.

With the Genie Council ignoring the threat, Brielle desperately needs to gain her magic so she can stop the murderer before she–or Rock–is the next genie to die.

And a bit about Michelle, who's fab by the way:

Michelle Merrill lives in the high-desert of Idaho with her husband and five kids. Besides her love for writing she enjoys reading books, eating candy, listening to music, and snuggling down for a good movie. She names her computers after favorite fictional characters and fictional characters after favorite names.

Find Michelle at her website. Or on Twitter and Facebook. You can find GRANTED on Goodreads. Check it out! 

Friday Loves: Dance Recitals!

My three daughters had their dance recitals on the weekend- one for each of them, which made it a weekend of dance! I don't mind at all, I LOVE DANCE.

My oldest, who is 12, was in Dance Theatre this year. She's done ballet, jazz, and hip hop in the past, but is gradually leaning away from dance (boohoo). They did a song from FINDING NEVERLAND called "We Are All Made of Stars."

My middle daughter, age 9, was in two dances this year- one ballet, one jazz. For ballet she danced to an instrumental version of "Firework" and for jazz, "Everything is Awesome." Even though it was her fourth year of dance, it was her first time having two numbers to perform and she was nervous. But she did awesome!

It was my seven-year-old's second year of ballet and she danced to a song from The Good Dinosaur. It always amazes me that the little ones know their steps, and she was no exception. She saw me as she was doing her final pose and waved as she danced off stage.

This might be my last year as a dance mom. Next year my oldest wants to do singing, the middle wants to do figure skating, and the youngest gymnastics. It makes me sad that I won't be able to attend recitals and see their sparkly costumes and do the hair and makeup, but I've always left their choice of after-school activity up to them, so there it is. I'll miss it, but it's been a fun eight years!

Monday Reads: INTO and AFTER and THESE x2

Another four books this past couple of weeks.

1. INTO THE DIM by Janet B. Taylor. This is pitched as a YA OUTLANDER. I have my issues with Outlander, but those aside, this didn't really feel like Outlander to me. I love time travel stories like crazy, and this book had some great moments. It didn't quite make amazing though. Not really sure why, I just felt it could have been better.

2. THESE VICIOUS MASKS by Tarun Shanker and Kelly Zekas. I loved this book! It was a ton-o-fun historical. The MC was witty/snarky, and there was a love triangle which totally worked. I loved that it's got an element of fantasy as well. Just really lost myself in this book.

3. THESE SHALLOW GRAVES by Jennifer Donnelly. While I LOVED Donnelly's book REVOLUTION, it took me a bit to get into THESE SHALLOW GRAVES. Maybe I was suffering from book burnout, but around 70 pages, I was hooked. I figured out the main twist long before the end (and I never figure out twists, trust me), but that didn't stop me from being into the characters, the time period, and the gradual unraveling of the mystery. Most especially I loved the love story. I really wondered how the author was going to wrap that up in the end, and while she did, I would've liked a bit more. A solid four star read for me.

4. AFTER YOU by Jojo Moyes. There's something about Moyes' writing that really makes you care about her characters. It didn't really matter to me what they were doing, I just wanted to be reading about them. I know some were disappointed by this follow-up for ME BEFORE YOU, but I wasn't. I felt it stayed true to Louisa's character and her journey. The ending was a little dissatisfying, but definitely not more so than ME BEFORE YOU. I'll definitely read more books by Jojo Moyes.

What did you read this week?

Wednesday Writes: How Melanie Got Her Groove Back

I think I got that curse... that thing that happens to newly published authors when they find they can't write another word. 

From what I've heard, it's usually a Book 2 kind of syndrome. They're worried the second book won't live up to their first, especially if it's a sequel. 

This isn't my problem. I'm actually on Book 7 now, so I've long passed Book 2. Plus, this isn't a sequel. It could maybe be called a third book in a retelling trilogy, but the three books can all be read standalone, and I finished the second one last year.

Another reason I've heard for authors struggling under this curse is the time-sap of marketing oneself after your book has come out. 

Yeah, this is sort of me. I find I'm trying to be regular with my own blog schedule, plus I blog at three other sites. Plus I'm trying to stay active on social media. Plus I'm trying to get out there, doing book readings and speaking engagements... though those have been pretty minimal so can't really be used as an excuse. 

To be honest, it's all an excuse. I mean, yes, it's true, what I said above. Marketing takes time. But it's still no excuse not to be writing. I have no clue why it's taken me this long to start another book. Lack of motivation? Fear? Exhaustion? No idea. Maybe all three. In any case, it feels good to finally get some words down on paper. But I still have some steps to climb before I get back into my writing groove. I'm not there yet. I wrote a bit on Monday- don't even know how much since I had to do it in an email- then I did nothing yesterday due to the demands of my day. Today is a new day, and hopefully one in which I will get some words down. 

No. Not hopefully. Definitely. I will do it. Day by day, bit by bit, is the only way to get my groove back. To get to that place where I'm excited to write again. I desperately want to be in that place again.

Have you ever hit a writing funk? What do you do to get out of it?

Friday Loves: CALL THE MIDWIFE

I feel like I've been there, done that, and fangirled all over the place with CALL THE MIDWIFE. But, I mean, I just can't help myself. I just finished season five and it was glorious. The whole show is incredible. The characters, the storylines, the setting and time period. *dies* 

This season's overarching story line dealt with babies born with deformities due to a drug no one knew was bad stuff (can't remember what it's called, Google it). I brought it up to my mom (who had her first babies in the early sixties) and she knew exactly what I was talking about. She's finally trying out the show, I just wish I could watch it with her to learn whether she experienced some of the same things the characters do. One of the best things about this show is seeing how childbirth/pregnancy and just things to do with being a woman have evolved through the years. 

Of course, I loved the romance storyline between Tom and Barbara (poor Trixie). I love the Turner family. I was sad about the death in the last episode. Who am I kidding? I'm sad in every episode. I bawl EVERY SINGLE TIME. The only thing I missed was Chummy. She's such a great character.

If you haven't tried this show, give it a shot. It's excellent TV. 

Monday Reads: 4 Amazing Books!

These past couple weeks of reading have been GOOD. First, I read LADY MIDNIGHT by Cassandra Clare. 

To be honest, I wasn't enthused to read this book. It's almost 700 pages, and I didn't know if I wanted to enter the world of Shadowhunters AGAIN. It took me a bit to get into it, but once I was, I was hooked. Cassandra Clare does such a good job of angsty relationships, and well-rounded cast of characters. I'm glad I read this book and I'll definitely read the next. (Though she could still cut down on the length, IMO.)

Next I read THE RAVEN KING by Maggie Stiefvater, the final book in the Raven Cycle. So I have this thing where I flip through the book I'm reading and read random sentences. I usually end up spoilering myself on SOMETHING, even if it's something small. But with this book, and the prediction that Gansey is supposed to die, I had to keep telling myself NOT TO FLIP THROUGH. Luckily, I made it to the end without spoilering myself. It was a satisfying end to the series, and I love her writing like crazy. My fave book in the series still remains the first one though.

Then I read another series' final book, THE WINNER'S KISS by Marie Rutkoski. Ohmygosh this book. It was perfect. The whole series is perfect. It had me from page one all the way until the end. I can't even describe why I love these books so much, except there is not one thing wrong with them. Everything is perfection. A definite must-read trilogy.

Finally, I read SALT TO THE SEA by Ruta Sepetys. I was really worried about the book that came after TWK- I mean, how could anything live up? But this book. Oh, it lived up, alright. Ruta Sepetys is one of my fave historical authors and she did it once again with this book. She wrote of an event where approx nine thousand people die- an event I had never heard of! Not only do I like learning about history, her characters completely pull me in, in a way that makes it real- like I'm living it with them. This is the kind of book that stays with you, that you just can't shake, nor should you. It was definitely one of my fave reads so far this year. And I really hope they make it into a movie. (BTW, can't wait for the movie adaptation of her other WWII book- BETWEEN SHADES OF GRAY.)

After these amazing books, I almost feel sorry for the books I'm reading next. 

A Taste of Local Authors

I'm taking part in this fabulous event this evening and I'm so excited! I read once at my local writers group, and once on the radio, but this is the first time I've ever done an event like this. I'll be joined by eight other local authors, plus a musician. If you live in the Calgary area, come on out for some readings, music, and refreshments. OR, come on out to see me try not to stutter and/or barf from nerves. ;) 

It's going to be a great night!

Monday Reads: SEE HOW THEY RUN and THE GIRL FROM EVERYWHERE

My reading has slowed down a bit, as it does from time to time, so this past couple of weeks I only read two books. 

First, SEE HOW THEY RUN by Ally Carter. This is a sequel to Carter's ALL FALL DOWN, and part of her Embassy Row series. Ally Carter is one of my fave YA authors. Her Gallagher Girls series is so fun, and I also enjoyed the Heist Society trilogy. Ally Carter writes suspense/thrillers. GG is about girl spies, HS is about thieves. The ER books have the same feel in that way, but I feel they're a lot more serious than her other books. For that reason, they're probably my least favourite out of everything she's written, but the books are still good. Always fast paced, with well-drawn characters and settings, and exciting plots. I wasn't disappointed by this sequel at all.

Then I read THE GIRL FROM EVERYWHERE by Heidi Heilig. The premise to this book is so cool: about a girl living on a ship that can travel anywhere, anytime, even mythical places, as long as they have a map. I did wonder, about a quarter of the way through, where the book was going, and actually wished they might have travelled a bit more rather than staying most of the book in Hawaii. But otherwise, there wasn't anything wrong with this book. It was a solid read, I loved the Hawaii setting and time period, and I'll definitely pick up a sequel.

Wednesday Writes: Guest Post With Author/Editor Noah Chinn

One of my biggest fears before I got published was what it would be like to work with an editor. Would we get along? Would he want to take away my voice? Would we agree on changes? Turned out, working with Noah Chinn, my editor at Samhain on SWAY was a not only a joy, but a learning experience. I'm truly sad that we won't be working on future books together, unless I decide to hire him on the side- he does freelance editing. He's also an author and recently had his own book release, a mystery called THE PLUTUS PARADOX. Here he is to talk about why he decided to set his series in the 1980s.

The Living Past: Writing Mysteries in the '80s

Being an editor means the time you spend as a writer tends to suffer, but it's all the sweeter when you finally have a new release out.  In my case, it's the second James & Lettice Cote mystery, The Plutus Paradox.

Set in Vancouver in 1985, it revolves around the sudden kidnapping of Lettice’s father, Harold–a man she thought had been dead for fifteen years. If that wasn’t strange enough, the couple is left to care for the missing man’s six-year-old daughter, Lettice’s sister, also named Lettice.

I have a fondness for 80’s era mystery shows, but why is it a good setting for a mystery novel series? It’s not like the books are chalk full of self-aware jokes from the era. There wasn’t a single Miami Vice joke in Getting Rid of Gary, despite the first couple chapters taking place in Florida (to be fair, though, that show didn’t start until 1987).

That’s because the books aren’t about making fun of the era. Before starting I thought about one of the most influential mystery writers – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

You may know that Sherlock Holmes was so popular that some people believed him to be real, or at least as real as a fiction person could be. Maybe they just thought him real in a Santa Claus kind of way, but we all know 221B Baker Street still gets letters for the great detective to this day.

But what was odd about this reaction was that Doyle’s mysteries were never written in the present day, it was always in past, years or even decades earlier. It struck me as odd that people would think about Holmes in a present tense even though the events being recounted were firmly in the past. As time leapt forward for Doyle, it crawled along for Holmes as he became more and more popular.

And I think the reason for that is because of the age Doyle lived in. Gaslight London was giving way to Electric London. Victorian England was rapidly changing, perhaps more rapidly than some would like.  The horse-drawn carriage was slowly to be supplanted by the automobile.

In this time of flux, there must have been something nostalgic and reliable about Holmes, a touchstone to a past that was increasingly romanticized even within the reader’s own lifetimes.

I think we live a similar age now. Only now the obsolescence of tech is sometimes measured in months rather than years, much less decades. I’m sure it’s hard for some people to imagine using a phone that isn't also a portable computer with touch screen.

And then there are things that have changed our lives so much just imagining a time before can be difficult. Think about how ubiquitous YouTube or Facebook is and remember that they only came about 11 and 12 years ago, respectively. Trying to imagine that you could be in the 21st century and NOT see these things around is mind-boggling.

And yet many of us grew up in a time before all this was (waves at the Internet) all this. And we got along just fine.

I think, much like Gaslight London of the 1880s and 1890s was for Doyle’s readers, the 1980s and 1990s are a similarly nostalgic touchstone, and will be for the foreseeable future. It’s a different time. It’s history. But one we can still touch before it slips away forever.

If you're interested in checking out THE PLUTUS PARADOX, you can find it on Amazon or better yet, start with the first book in the series GETTING RID OF GARY.

Friday Loves: Team Cap!

I'm so excited to see Captain America: Civil War this weekend! All I gotta say is, TEAM CAP! When it comes to a choice between Captain America and Iron Man, I'm Team Cap all the way! Not only that, but a girl's gotta have her fave, and again... Team Cap. I know people like their heroes flawed, and Captain America isn't perfect, but I just can't resist a really good guy. A guy who is a true hero. Sounds cheeseballs, but it's true. Team Cap all the way.

Who are you rooting for?

Monday Reads: STARFLIGHT, STILL LIFE, and LIFE AND DEATH

STARFLIGHT by Melissa Landers was a great YA sci-fi. I'm not a huge sci-fi fan but I've been loving some of the YA stuff I've read lately. This book was fun, fast-paced, and exciting. I loved the slow burn relationship between the two MCs especially. They didn't hate each other just for the sake of some sexual tension, there was a real reason behind it, and then how they gradually become friends, then something more developed naturally and was really believable. I also really liked the secondary characters in this book. It was a great read and I'll definitely pick up the next book.

STILL LIFE by D.B. Kennison is an adult suspense/romance. I don't usually pick up this kind of book- the kind with the dead bodies piling up- I shiver just thinking about it. But I really enjoyed it. The female MC was my favorite kind- strong and feisty but with a vulnerable side- and the male MC wasn't this domineering jerk who we're supposed to love, he also had a vulnerable side which didn't take away from his strong male personality. There was a great mix between the romance and the suspense, but the suspense is really what made the book for me. I was on the edge of my seat, sick to my stomach as the tension built, and then the twist at the end... wow. Really well done.

LIFE AND DEATH by Stephenie Meyer is the gender-swap TWILIGHT. I kinda knew what to expect coming in, and the book met those expectations. I did have a bit of a hard time with the gender swap, I think because the book is so similar to the original. Every time I would pick it up to continue reading, I would have to remind myself that Bella is now a boy, and Edward is a girl. I never could quite lose myself in the story because of that. I did enjoy the book though, because it was interesting to see the story play out with all the gender-swapping. I also really loved the end, which I had no idea was going to happen. So yay for that.

What did you read this week? 

Wednesday Writes: Query Tips

A few months ago I signed on to be a team member for a new writing contest called #FicFest. I've been on the entering side of contests before- sometimes chosen, sometimes not- but this is my first time on this side of the line. I really wanted to give back, after all the contests I've taken part in. So far I've gotten to know some great new writers, and it's been fun interacting with them and reading their submissions.

I'm a team member for the adult team and we received 120 submissions! That's a lot of slush reading I've done in the past two days. I've managed to narrow it down to fourteen, but I can't imagine cutting that all the way down to one.

I've noticed some common querying mistakes. I'm no expert on queries- far from it in fact. I suck at them so bad and always need my CPs to take a look at them for me. (Ugh, queries.) But there are a few "rookie mistakes" I've seen among a lot of these queries.

The biggest one is SHOW, DON'T TELL. As writers, we've all heard this rule, and it's easier said than done. But quite a few of the queries TOLD me the themes of the book. They told me it was an adventure, a wild ride, a story of loss, or heartbreak, or humor, etc etc etc, without actually telling me what the book is about! A query should be, WHO IS YOUR MAIN CHARACTER, WHAT DOES HE/SHE WANT, and WHAT /WHO IS STOPPING THEM FROM GETTING IT? Most importantly, the STAKES: what happens when he/she doesn't get what she wants? Don't be vague, and don't use cliches. 

Another mistake I saw, on the other side of this spectrum, was a sentence by sentence run-down of what I assumed was an early scene of the book. Ex: "Melanie gets a phone call warning her to stay home. Then the postman comes to the door and gives her the mail. She opens a letter with another warning inside. Melanie is scared and knows she has to stay home." While details are important in a query, this is too much, and also reads very dry.

Another thing I saw was a paragraph about the writer where he/she is saying stuff like, "I've worked on this book for a year and it's finally done," or, "I've always wondered why mermaids are beautiful so I started writing and it's evolved into a story of loss and secrets and friendship..." These are made up examples of course, but NOT NECESSARY. Get straight to your story. Don't talk about yourself at all unless you have writing credits to your name or can give a LEGIT reason why you wrote the story (not, I'm fascinated by mermaids so I decided to write about mermaids- more along the lines of I have a major in underwater basket weaving like so I'm qualified to talk about it). 

A few small things I noticed: LOTS of rhetorical questions. I think I did this in one of my very first queries, until I learned that agents DO NOT like them. So don't do it. Trust me, just don't. They'll roll their eyes and then delete your query. Also, high word counts, passive voice, repetitive phrases, sentences in the query that made no sense to everything else in the query... some of these are easy fixes, which is why it's IMPERATIVE to have another writer critique your query for you. 

As I said before, I am no expert on queries. I find them supremely difficult. That's why we writers need to do our research. Read Query Shark, or the "Successful Queries" series on the Writer's Digest Blog. Workshop your query, get someone to critique it, revise it, then workshop it some more. Put yourself out there and be prepared to learn. It will only help you in the end.

Friday Loves: UTAH

No really. Utah. 

I went to Brigham Young University  in Provo, Utah for one year (plus an extra summer semester) and it was definitely the funnest (I don't care if funnest isn't a word) year of my life. I had great roommates, excellent classes (except  8 am biology... what was I thinking???), and I loved the whole atmosphere. Most of all though, Provo felt like home.

I've lived a lot of places in my life so I'm of the attitude now that home is wherever you make it. It doesn't really matter to me where I live- I could move anywhere (except somewhere cold- Alberta is cold enough thankyouverymuch). But there's something about Utah... every time I go it just feels like home.

Me in front of the new Provo temple

I took a short trip with my four kids and my parents to Utah last week. Mainly, I went to help my parents, who are getting on in years (don't tell them I said that), drive. I attended a cousin's wedding, and got to see two of my brothers and one sister. It was really great to be there and I wish I could've stayed longer. The entire time I was there I was devising ways to convince my husband we should move there. I didn't bother trying when I got home though, he'd never go for it. Besides, the grass is always greener, right? Just because I loved it when I was 18, doesn't mean it would be the same now. But it's still a place I'd love to live, and definitely a place I like to visit. 

So my Friday Love goes to Utah, that beautifully Mormon state.  

Monday Reads: Two YA and Two PERSUASION retellings

It was another full couple of weeks of reading. First came THIEF OF LIES by Brenda Drake.

I've "known" Brenda online for a few years now- she's an amazing help for writers with her contests and Twitter pitch parties- so I was excited to pick up her book THIEF OF LIES. The premise of library jumping is so cool and of course I love me some romance. So... the book was good, but it had a little too much packed in it for my taste. It was fast-paced, that's for sure, but there was so much going on that I found myself not connecting with the characters like I wanted to. I wish she would have focused more on the library jumping and left out all of the other prophecy, demons, creatures, fairies, dopplegangers, love triangles, etc etc etc. I really really wanted to love this book a lot more than I did. :(

LOVE these covers!

Next, THEIR FRACTURED LIGHT by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner. This is the last book of a trilogy and I have LOVED every single one. I'm not even a sci-fi fan but these books... *gush gush gush* I just love everything about them.

Next came THE PERSUASION OF MISS JANE AUSTEN by Shannon Winslow. This book is by a fellow member of Austen Variations, and I adored it (and I'm not just saying that because we're in the same group). It was like a mash-up of BECOMING JANE and PERSUASION. Instead of Tom Lefroy, Jane's love interest is a naval Captain. The story parallels a lot of Persuasion but with a much different ending- the kind of ending I wish were true for my favorite classical author.

And finally I read FIND WONDER IN ALL THINGS by Karen M. Cox. I'm not enamored of the cover, but the book was really good. Almost five stars for me, the only thing that brought it down was a few little nitpicky things. I loved how she made the story of Persuasion her own- especially how she changed the family dynamic, and the format where we got to see the Anne and Wentworth characters whole relationship from start to finish instead of starting off at 8 years later. I was worried a little that this book would feel really similar to SWAY because James (AKA Wentworth) was a musician, but it wasn't like mine at all... except, yanno for the whole Persuasion thing. ;) Great book!

Friday Loves: AGENT CARTER

I'm so happy AGENT CARTER came back for a second season and I really hope it's back for a third. I LOVE this show. Love the time period, love the twists, love the characters, but mostly I love Peggy Carter. She's such an amazing character. I love how not only is she strong and smart, but she still retains characteristics that make women women. As much as I love a kick-butt girl, it saddens me when they're always snarky/mean, or when they never show emotion or have tender moments or can't like a guy because OH NO NOW SHE'S SACRIFICING HER STRENGTH FOR A GUY. No. She likes a guy. She's still strong. The end. For me, all this doesn't take away from a female character, it only adds. It makes them real and believable and layered. 

I also love how Peggy isn't the only powerhouse female on this show. Dottie is back in the second season, and the antagonist is a super genius woman who tells the dudes where to go and how to get there. (Although, sort of going against what I said above, I don't get why she married the politician... not sure about the motivation behind that.) 

It's not just the women that make this show great though. Jarvis is charmingly dorky as usual (loved the line about not wanting to be a disembodied voice forever *snort*), and I completely heart Agent Sousa. I've got two episodes left but I really hope those two get together already. 

Preeeeetty sure I just spoilered myself since I don't think I've seen this kiss yet!

Anyway, AGENT CARTER is an awesome show. Give it a try if you haven't yet.