Can We Just Be Friends?

Oh, those dreaded words--especially when directed at you by someone you're interested in. In other scenarios, this is the best thing that could happen.

A blogger friend who has a critique group is in the midst of a war of words with a former prospective member that was asked to leave the group. I won't get in the middle of the conflict, but will offer general words of 'Do This, Don't Do That' guidelines for critique or any other groups.

1. Not everyone's going to like you--and you're not going to like everyone. As long as you're polite, brush off any comments or critiques that don't sit well. You're not all going to be best buds (or even buds), so don't make a big deal of it. This is not elementary school where you cry, wondering why someone doesn't like you. New member or group lifer, personalities will clash.

2. For the newcomer: you're coming into an established group. The other members know each other and it may be a little hard trying to fit in, but you've been invited into the circle so your foot is in the door. Coming off like a know-it-all is not going to endear you. Remember, you're the person changing the status quo. Be polite, listen, and learn the group dynamics before you stir things up.

3. For the group, the new person is like a kitten, trying to mark a bit of territory for him/herself. Everyone needs stake a bit of 'space' in the group. You invited this new person in, so give him/her a chance to step into the waters. They may be in defense mode because you're all strangers, and he/she is unfamiliar with hierarchy, procedures, etc. in the group. Chill, lean back, and let them get their feet wet as you all familiarize yourself with the new dynamics.

4. Politeness matters--for everyone. What will you accomplish by insulting the group? You will get asked to leave. What benefits are there to disparaging a newbie? There's going to be a blog post ranting about your cold welcome. Professionalism counts! If you must vent, do so at home, with a non-writing pal, family members, or your partner--in private.

5. If the worst happens and the invite needs to be rescinded, when the newbie (or even an established member because circumstances change) walks out the door, end of discussion. For those getting 'uninvited,' swallow your anger and hurt. After all, if the group isn't a comfortable fit, do you really want to stay and be miserable? Of course not, so just move on. There is a group that works for you out there, keep looking. Neither side should run to Facebook, Twitter, blogs, or websites heaving their guts about what went down. It doesn't look good or bode well for the person spewing the vitriol.

What makes me sound like a know-it-all (and I don't, I'm just a 'know-some-of-it')? I've had a critique group for a number of years and people have come and gone. Some I was sad to see leave, but they had their reasons. Others, I couldn't wait to shut the door behind them (and lock it so they couldn't get back in). That's the human condition--agendas, personalities, expectations, needs, perspectives, and experiences lead to conflict (as if the world situation/history weren't proof of that!).

Group not working out? Say thank you for the invite, but you need to go elsewhere for what you need/want. Individual not working out? Apologize for the situation that leads you to ask them to find another group that is better suited for them. Then, everybody HUSH! See, easy!

The publishing world is tough enough without us turning on each other like cannibalistic piranhas.

Be good to each other!

Char

Big Things Happening Here!

I've done this before, but I'm doing it again- with a different set of writing buddies: The Next Big Thing.

I have to thank my friend and fellow writer (who's also an illustrator magnifique!) Leeza Hernandez. Leeza is also our regional advisor for the New Jersey Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. Here's her link, so check out her work and show her some author/illustrator love:

http://leezaworks.blogspot.com/2013/03/ive-been-tagged.html 

 My 'Next Big Thing:'

1) What is the working title of your next book? Hopefully Sirenz 3, Myth Appropriated will be out in ebook in the fall, and Blonde Ops (Thomas Dunne) will be out in winter, 2014. As for solo stuff, I'm working on a sci fi titled Lethal Dose.

 2) Where did the idea come from for the book? Sirenz is a collaboration of Natalie Zaman's and my ideas, the basic premise of Blonde Ops was our editors' (yes, 2 editors! Peter Joseph's and Kat Brzozowski's idea. Lethal Dose was my 2012 NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) project.

 3) What genre does your book fall under? Everyone knows Sirenz is Greek mythology in a contemporary setting. Blonde Ops is a spy thriller adventure set in Rome. Lethal Dose is an NA (New Adult) sci fi.

 4) What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition? For Sirenz, Nat & I agreed that Ian Somerhalder IS Hades. (sigh). I would have liked Candice Accola (Caroline) for Sharisse but by the time Hollywood calls, she'll be too old (no offense, Candice!). As for Meg, Nat like Selena Gomez. For Blonde Ops, we haven't decided yet (maybe we should do that asap!). For Lethal Dose, I would so love Nicholas Hoult (Warm Bodies, Jack the Giant Slayer) to play Dalen Steele.

For Adara, I want  Ksenia Solo (Lost Girl, Black Swan).

 5) What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book? Sirenz 3: When the girls need him, this time Hades appears--but there's always a price to pay and Sharisse and Margaret will have to commit the perfect burglary--quickly--or they miss the prom and die. Blonde Ops: Thrown out of yet another school for hacking, Bec Jackson's skills come in handy when in Rome--because someone's after the First Lady. Lethal Dose: Little more than a nomad, Earthling Dalen Steele helps support his family as a poisoner--but someone's targeted him and the prime minister of the Planetary Council.

 6) Who is publishing your book? Sirenz: it'll go to ebook and we'll get back to you when it's finalized. Blonde Ops: Thomas Dunne (St. Martins). Lethal Dose: stayed tuned! 

 7) How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript? Sirenz: still working on it! Blonde Ops: six months. Lethal Dose: one month! (That's the joy and terror of NaNoWriMo!)

 8) What other books would you compare this story to within your genre? Sirenz: the Goddess series by Aimee Carter. Blonde Ops: the Heist Society series by Ally Carter (maybe I should change my name to Carter...) Lethal Dose: hmmm. I don't know at this point, this is my first sci fi. I'll let you know when I broaden my reading pile. 

 9) Who or what inspired you to write this book? Sirenz: it's just so much fun; Hades is deliciously bad, and my character is so snarky; I wish I was that cool. Blonde Ops: our agent was approached by Peter and Kat about this project and she suggested us! For Lethal Dose, I'd been wanting to write a sci fi because one of my fave authors, Sherrilyn Kenyon, has a badass sci fi series called The League and it gave me the courage to try since she started in fantasy/mythology.

 10) What else about the book might pique the reader's interest? Sirenz: more Hades, of course! Blonde Ops:  think teenaged 'Jane' Bond, computer hacker, Rome, sexy Dante, mysterious Taj, and a First Lady in danger. For Lethal Dose, Dalen Steele is a guy no one can touch- he's literally poison to everyone, but Adara's  not lettting him go, he's got to answer for attempted murder...

So now I tag Zoraido Cordova: I met her at the Romantic Times Convention in Chicago, but she lives in New York. Her first book, Vicious Deep, was just coming out.

And Ami Joan Pacquette: author and agent, Ami and I know each other through the SCBWI and she's got lots of stuff coming out.

And Now It Begins...

So I got the revision email from my agent for my Sci Fi manuscript. Let's just say that while the word "badass" was involved in some way, so were words like "long," "POV switches," "needs more world building," etc.

So this is what I'll be doing this month:

Feel free to send care packages!

Char

A Beautiful Redemption

I was sick (again) Monday. (There are a lot of diseased people and I wonder why I always come across them.)  So instead of having fun playing laser tag and racing go-carts, I was home in my jammies, on the couch, loaded with tissues.

And watching zombie movies.

I noticed a recurrent theme: virus outbreak, a few characters band together for survival, some good people die and the end is always indeterminate. While I'm sure this would truly be the case if a zombie event broke out, it got tedious with the same story line.

Maybe that's why I liked the movie Warm Bodies so much; it offered the zombies who still had a smidgen of their humanity left a chance to redeem themselves. I'm a firm believer in redemption. Humanity, while capable of such horrors as enslavement, genocide, and heartlessness, is also capable of selfless love, generosity, and sacrifice. I've seen it: Superstorm Sandy relief, a person donating a kidney to a co-worker, all those people who check off  'Organ Donor' on their license.

But you have to want redemption, like R in Warm Bodies; it doesn't just come free. Some people have to come a long way for it, but they do it. Others, like serial killer Eileen Wuournos, blamed their victims for their murderous acts, never once taking responsibility, the first step toward redemption.

I think I've seen enough zombie movies for the rest of my life, although I will watch Warm Bodies again. I think we all have something for which we need a little redemption.

So I think I will go do some redeeming things today, including working on my manuscript (it has to have some redeeming qualities...). How about you?

Char

Obstacles--Not Cliffs

I hurt my toe. The one next to the pinky, on my left foot. I wasn't kicking the car tire (this was the only kicking picture I could get without a soccer ball or a karate outfit). I was doing the dishes--around midnight--and stubbed my toe on the stool. The heavy, oak one.

It might be a hairline fracture. I know this because I've broken a number of toes (and other bones, sad stories, don't ask). I KNOW that feeling. I've fractured a toe while wearing ski boots. A little too much pressure and snip! The toes don't even make that snap sound anymore.

So my swimming and walking had to be put on hold. I wear tight sneakers up until bedtime. Previous numerous wasted visits to the doctor's office taught me that they can't cast it, wrap it, or pin it. All they do is maybe x-ray it, but usually it's just a 'tape it to the other toe and stay off as much as possible' routine. I'm pro enough now to do it myself (and better if I may be so bold).

It's an annoying obstacle. End of swimming? No. End of walking? Never. That's the difference between an obstacle and a cliff. There's no coming back for another chance once you're over that cliff, but the thing is to know the difference. (I'm sure if you're up on the mountain, you know the difference between an obstacle and a cliff.) In writing, a rejection is an obstacle. A scathing critique is an obstacle. Giving up is a cliff. Helen Keller was both blind and mute, yet she wrote. Steven Hawking is practically immobile, yet uses his eyes to work a special computer to write and formulate new theories. Beethoven went deaf young, but still went on to compose his, and the world's, best music. There was no 'cliff,' no 'end' for them.

Know the difference.

Char

Becoming Invisible

I worked for a number of years; office jobs, waitress, paralegal. The utility, cable, and sanitation bills are in my name. The mortgage on our house lists me as a co-owner/lender.

But I'm invisible.

My credit card, issued by Allegacy Credit Union through my husband's job, put a stop on my card (I was in a grocery store in North Carolina) because as they 'explained' when I called to find out what the problem was, they suspected fraud. In a grocery store?

They didn't do it to my husband's. We rented a car under this card, so they knew we were traveling over the Christmas break. There was no viable, reasonable, acceptable reason for them putting a hold on MY card. They made me jump through hoops and finally I had to get the hubs to call and clear it up. They listened to him, not me even though I had all the information regarding the expenditures.

So I'm mute.

So I decided to get a credit card under my own name, not connected to the hubs. I went through our bank because they can see that we have joint savings/checking accounts. Again, I had to jump through hoops.

It's amazing how I paid taxes for years, get called for jury duty, vote, and am known in the community.

Why am I powerless?

I don't exist unless my husband is there to vouch for me.

See, my hands are bound.

Women have not come far enough when illegal immigrants can get credit cards easier than I can.

Char

Forgotten Characters

I read a lot and one thing I've noticed; most novels don't have family pets in them. Yes, I'm a cat owner (2 babies who spend more time with me than my children), and pets-cats, dogs, squirrels, etc., figure into almost all my works.

This is Mink, a part Persian, part Maine Coon cat we rescued from a short and brutal life as a barn cat in Upstate, New York. (AKA the "Kitten.')

This is my gal pal, Casey. She, too, is a rescue cat (ALL of my pets have been rescues, ever since I was a little girl), who is what they call a mackerel tabby- she's gray speckled like the fish with orange stripes.

(No beauty queen, but the soul of a poet and a sweetie pie.)

I love the way people interact with pets; my sons coo over them, not afraid of being less manly as they pamper, pet and praise these 'siblings.' Even the hubs, who swore he wanted nothing to do with them (grew up in a house without pets, see?) can't resist playing with the kitten or stroking Casey as she sleeps on the bed and baby talking to her. I think that loving a pet adds a dimension of compassion to a character. People who own hordes of animals and don't take care of them are a different matter. But when you take a pet into your home, feed and love it, talk to it, take it to the vet, and cry when it passes on-I think this makes you a better person. (I didn't say perfect, just better.) We share our soul with another creature that is dependent on us for the rest of their lives (grown children coming back to the nest to mooch not included), and give of ourselves.

Many successful people, i.e. Hemingway, Einstein, presidents, etc. had pets. Maybe if we allowed prisoners to take care of a rescued animal, becoming solely responsible for its care, they would become more compassionate, more giving, and break the cycle of violence. It worked for the Bird Man of Alcatraz.

So don't neglect to put pets into your story; it shows a character with a hidden depth. If they mistreat the animal, well then we know he's the villain.

Char