Doubt Dungeon

Jewel of Ramstone is with Totally Entwined Group . So what should I do while awaiting edits? Why, keep writing of course!

I'm currently working on the  second book in the Medieval Quest Series and decided to fetch a bit of feedback before moving on with the story. I attached a few chapters to an email addressed to my beta readers. Feeling great about accomplishing that task without wandering to facebook,  I grinned and I hit the send button.

 My fist finds my forehead every single time I hit send. 

  I wonder why?

What did I just do?

 I'm satisfied with the storytelling, setting and characters. I truly believe I fleshed out their quirks, weaknesses and strengths. The quest is a good one. Plot twists? Yep, they're there too.

Why then, do I fist my head after I hit the send button? I took a lot of time thinking about this instead of meeting my daily writing goal. Here's what I came up with:

I want every reader

To love and hate

As they travel through

The medieval gate

I want each character

To be real in their eyes

 And rejoice in lives spared

Or weep when one dies

I must transport readers

To  a new life which transcends

And settle them softly

When the story ends.

At the risk of completely overusing the word want...

 I want to accomplish everything in that off-rhythm-rhyme. However, doubt slithers into my mind and sends me to the worry dungeon. That is why my fist finds my forehead. I'm trying to pound the doubt out. Apparently, it's embedded pretty deep.

 But I'm a writer, dammit. And I will learn from feedback, edits and reviews. I will continue to polish my craft. And most important, I will give my reader an experience.. 

I think every writer spends  a little time in the dungeon. 

I need to jump over the hurdles of doubt and worry. Does everyone feel this way? Oh gosh, there I go wondering about stuff again. I better sign off before I write another poem.

Female Image by David Castillo Dominici at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Dungeon Image by pakorn at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Cover Reveal

No words needed. The cover art by Emmy Ellis says it all. 

Flat Tire Inflated!

Here's a little update from the weary author on the road to starting over.

I was happily traveling along the road of a published author...wind traveling through my hair...dreaming up plots for my next book. My characters rode in the backseat, encouraging my ideas. Sometimes a new character would hitch a ride, chattering in the passenger seat, convincing me why they'd enrich the story. 

Then I got a flat tire and hobbled on the rim until the road stopped. Yep. I hit a dead end, dark forests on each side. And my rim was as damaged as my spirit.

But I'm a stubborn soul. I climbed out of the vehicle, motioned for my characters to follow, and traipsed through the scary woods, manuscripts in hand.

 We didn't cross any wolves or gingerbread houses, despite my character, Ruby, insisting she wear a red cloak. We did come across a perfect home though.

.

 I am happy to announce my novel, Jewel of Ramstone, was accepted by Totally Bound Group. (Part of Totally Bound Publishing)

I'm eagerly awaiting edits.  Waiting is hard for me, so in the meantime, I'm continuing the Medieval Quest series. One of my favorite secondary characters from Jewel of Ramstone gets to tell his story in this book.

I've got a slew of work to keep me busy, as I tend to have more than one (or five) works in progress.

 My diverse characters need a place to exist after all:

A contemporary romance about a paralyzed woman rebuilding her life.

A fantasy romance about a human in love with an alien.

Another fantasy about a lost soul with a broken wing and spirit who crashes into a Christmas forest.

I'm revamping the three books in the Magic Stone Series.

I'm also co-authoring yet another project. Woman's fiction surrounding the hi-jinxs between twin sisters while they attempt to save a bed and breakfast from foreclosing.

In my spare time I write story ideas on paper towels while cooking dinner. 

My Way

Many times in life, things happen swiftly, without warning. There isn't a choice in the matter. Things spin out of our control. However, the outcome in these matters depends solely on the receiver.

Yeah, this is what I tell myself when life throws bricks at me. Do I believe my pep talk? Do I think I will survive the setback? Definitively.

I was born stubborn. (Ask anyone in my family.) As a  kid, a tenacious attitude was not a quality. Nor was it accepted. I spent most of my youth grounded. I didn't know how to curb the penchant to do things my way. I did not strive to be obstinate. It was simply the little person I was.

As an adult, I continued to embrace that stubborn spirit, but I learned where to apply it. In writing, I'm never stubborn when it comes to edits. I always learn from them. In relationships, I've tweaked stubborn into compromise. In many areas of life, it is unnecessary, or even detrimental to march the road of stubborn warfare.

However, in the aspect of life punching me in the gut,  I point down that road and shout a battle cry  I refuse to allow any hardship to beat me to the ground. Like anyone, life's punches hurt. They tend to knock wind out of hope. I'm affected like anyone else. I allow tears to travel down the road to self-pity land. (Or a waterfall to hard rocks when it comes to Autism affecting ones I love…but that's another story.)

A dollop of stubbornness and an army of courage sure come in handy in times of adversity. I wallow in the pity land for a bit, and then I move on. I persevere.

Stubborn can be a good thing, and I'm glad I was born with that quality. 

photo by Stuart Miles@freedigitalphotos.com