An Author's Life, Part Two

Last week I did #AuthorLife where every day in February, an author posts about a given topic. This week I'm wrapping it up with Days 15-29:

Day 15 - Prized Bookish Possession:

My Lord of the Rings Collector's Edition. Best. Book. Ever.

Day 16 - Research:

Blonde OPS, for those of you who haven't gotten around to reading it (please do, ASAP, it makes this even funnier), is a novel about a 16-year-old named Bec who gets expelled for hacking her grades. Busy mom sends her to stay with a family friend, a magazine editor, who is on location in Rome. The First Lady is coming for a photo shoot, and 'accidents' start happening, so Bec uses her hacker skills to solve the mystery. The research for this book included First Lady, Secret Service, guns, hacking locks, hacking cars, etc. (You see where I'm going with this?). So the FBI sent me a little note...

A screen shot of the "hi there!" from the FBI- after they shut down my browser... numerous times

Day 17 - Dream Event/Retreat:

What could be greater than chatting up my books with Jimmy Fallon?

Day 18 - Teaser Tuesday:

I've already given you the first paragraph of my current work in progress, so what about a snippet from Sirenz 3- A New Trend? (I hope to set this up as an ebook- it's on the List of Things To Do)

            This is how I DIE?? Hit by a dirty black Scion Cube, in the red-light district?
            WHAT will my mother think?
           How much is this going to hurt?

            As time slowed, the driver’s eye glanced up, probably from his cellphone. Just before he killed me, he’d know it. There wasn’t time for shock or regret or surprise to set in.

            I closed my eyes.
            If only I still had Hades’ picture, I could call out for help. But no, I had to spite him. I resigned myself to my pathetic fate.
            Annnnnd.... nothing. Was death instantaneous, and I was already a corpse? Well, that answered one question- we kept our consciousness. Fabuloso; I can spend eternity regretting my hubris. The Fates are probably smiling at that. Just think how cheerful my death will make Persephone. The bitch.

Day 19 - Background Noise:




That's right- NOTHING. I need silence when I write because otherwise I will sing along, or think about what the song means, or recall memories. Silence is golden...

Day 20 - Reader Love:

This was made by Melissa, when Sirenz debuted. So clever!

Day 21 - My Team:

Well, this changes as people move in and out of my life. Currently, it's my agent Sue, my friend Patti Petrone-Miller, my family, my critique group, the fabulous Kidlit Authors Club, and some SCBWI colleagues I always reconnect with. (I'd like to add Steven Spielberg, so call me Steven, 'k?)

Day 22 - Greatest Strength:

I'm rarely at a loss for words, which is good because I don't get writer's block, but has its drawbacks because sometimes I should just keep quiet...

Day 23 - Biggest Distraction:

Social media. It's a necessary evil for authors because we basically have to do all our own marketing (unless you're a celeb which, sadly, I'm not.) It's too easy to get pulled in too many directions with all the content out there.

Day 24 - Non-bookish Hobby:

Gardening.

My meditation garden; it helps me solve plot twists & gives me space from people.

Day 25 - Motivation:

Soooo many things give me motivation; simply going through life creates so many story ideas. I won't live long enough to write all the books I want. Too bad.

Day 26 - Prized Non-bookish Possession:

Without going into all the family drama, I love these pearls. Not very trendy now, but they were a gift from my mother-in-law, a wonderful woman whom I cherished. Now that she's gone, just wearing them makes me feel like she's nearby, listening to me.

Day 27 - Bookstore/Library Love:

This is a hard one; I have found that unless you're an instant bestseller or someone famous, bookstores and libraries don't really support author visits. I've had a few, but even my hometown library wouldn't host me, so... yeah. Book festivals (and some libraries host festivals) which aren't exclusionary are where it's at for most authors.

Day 28 - Acknowledgments:

This, too, changes with time. People come and go, not always under ideal circumstances. I have a different acknowledgment in each book for those people who at the time deserved a shout-out. The one constant has been my family, a perpetual source of not only material for my books, but 'motivation' for me to make us 'rich'. They have their Lamborghinis all picked out.

Day 29 - Weirdest Thing to Happen to Me:

I added this because this year is a Leap Year and I didn't want Day 29 to be left out. When my oldest sons were about 4 and 5, I took them to the Game Farm in Riverhead, NY. My mom had one stroller and I had the other. We toured the place, and stopped by the monkey cage where a worker was feeding the monkey orange soda. After chatting with him, not only did I learn that they fed junk food to the monkey (who was in too small a cage, it made me sad), but that the owner gave the animal cigarettes, and regularly beat and tormented the poor thing. Disgusted, I walked away. Not more than a few minutes later, we heard screaming; the worker had forgotten to close the cage and the two monkeys escaped, going on a rampage. People panicked and ran. My mother and I ran as fast as we could, heading for the nearest exit, rather than the cafeteria the park urged us to go to over the loudspeaker. A man with a rifle ran by, followed by others with those rope nooses they use to restrain animals. A woman started screaming because the monkey was attacking her son, then her. Then the shots rang out. My mother and I made it to the exit, shaking uncontrollably. I couldn't speed away fast enough. To my knowledge, the owner was never fined, although the game farm is gone.

So, that's an author's life for you. Sorry it's not more exciting, but there's always hope!

Char