I May be Back...

...but my mind is still on vacation!  We got back late Sunday trading the veritably sunny skies of FL for the leaden, powdery ones of OH.  Remember when I said I missed the snow?  Well, I didn't miss it quite this much.

I love to look at the white stuff from the comfort of my home, but make me step foot in it, and I balk.  No, really - I do.  For example:  we've been gone for nine days so our house needed to be put back in order.  You know, groceries, books (in my case), the return to a regular exercise routine (my hubby), diapers, baby's food/snacks/milk...well, you get the picture.  Do you think I went out to accomplish all these things?

If your answer was yes, you are sadly mistaken.  Twice in two days, I found ways to convince the husband to get the necessities (and not-so-necessities) for me.  I'm such a sweetie.  :)

In any case, it is good to be home.  Baby and I have already laid down in front of the Christmas tree several times to look up at the lights, I will no longer complain about my bed as this mattress is far superior to the one I occupied last week, and even the cat was happy to see us, though he's taken to "crying" at three in the morning just to make sure someone's around to hear him.

I have yet to write/revise, but give me time.  I'll get to it.  My mind's still recounting palm trees.

~Hetal

Greetings from Florida

For some reason, I thought the weather would be better...but I shouldn't complain.  The variable 65-75 degree temperatures in Orlando are much better than the 30 degrees with flurries currently painting my hometown a pristine white.  That is, until the snow plows get ahold of the powder and turn it a slushy gray.  Still, for those few hours before the city comes out en force to clear paths to workplaces/schools/other, the world is like the inside of a prismatic crystal.

I'm kind of missing the snow right now.

~Hetal

Countdown

To a family vacation!  We leave for Florida on Saturday, but this is not your typical family getaway.  Oh no, we're doing it Desi style (Desi just refers to us as Indians).

My mom was really the mastermind behind the idea, but all planning has fallen upon the shoulders of my sisters and I.  My parents, three sisters, one cousin, hubby, baby, his brother's son (nephew in law?), and I will be down in Orlando for nine days.  Hopefully we'll see Mickey as the nephew's eight and would really enjoy it and my baby sister probably doesn't remember meeting him the first time.

Thankfully, there will be two cars for the sixteen hour drive down, but oy!  Can you imagine the potential dramas/crisis' that will arise?  Relaxing this will not be.

Oh well, why am I complaining?  At least I'll get out of the frigidness that is Ohio for awhile.   ;)

~Hetal

A little rant about sore losers

I only have one rejection under my belt, and the disappointment was crushing, but I believe that I handled it pretty well.  The dejection settled in me for a day, maybe two, numbing my normally hot temper and silencing my ever active tongue.  I couldn't write, didn't want to go back to that particular piece, and reading - my favorite outlet - was off the agenda.

You're thinking, where's this bit about "taking it well"?   LOL  I'm getting there, be patient!

The thing is, I looked at my rejection objectively.  My first (and so far, only) submission was for an anthology through an e-pub I particularly love.  I saw it on their site twenty days before the open call deadline.  I frantically worked for sixteen of those twenty days (my baby became ill and my mom hat was securely on my head).  You wouldn't believe the hours, the rewrite, the editing, and the polishing, all without the eyes of any reader or CP, though any of them would have gladly helped me out.

Mine was probably one of a hundred (maybe more) entries, and I missed the deadline by one minute - read above where baby was sick and I lost days.  There were quite a few grammatical errors both in the MS and the synopsis, and my "world building" was incomplete. 

Maybe my writing was just that bad.

Any of these factors could have contributed to my rejection.

I didn't take it personally.

Neither should you at the iHeart site.  The competition was fierce, as always, the editors looked for those pieces that fit their line, as always; your rejection wasn't personal, and the winners deserve their justified applause for all of their hard work.  Please don't minimize their achievement because you feel cheated.

As many other hopefuls and published authors have stated:   your catty behavior will only jeopardize your possible future relationship with that house.  Be gracious.  Thank the editor's for their time, this wonderful chance to have your work read, and hope that you get some constructive feedback.

Okay, done venting

Stopping By

Ironic to "stop by" one's  own blog, no?  Yet, here I am, just making a pit stop while multi-hued marbles roll around in my head.  I tell you, the clacking of those little glass balls bouncing off one another is almost deafening in the otherwise writing silence.

It's not that I've run out of ideas or direction, it's that I'm not sure which thread to focus on.  I have revisions aplenty to tackle before I can submit either of two already complete manuscripts, but the work is neither simple nor quick. Because I'll be revamping much of the history/storyline, the edits will probably take weeks.

Not so bad in itself, if only I didn't have other characters clamoring for attention.  They used to timidly wave their hands; now they full on slap the insides of my brain demanding that I transcribe them to black and white.  Go figure their determination, it's what I deserve for writing strong heroes and heroines.  No wimps in my pool, not even the background characters.

Ever had this problem?  Any suggestions about getting them in line?

Resetting Goals

I know, I know, I shouldn't be changing so many elements of my piece Divine Injustice so soon after completing what is a pretty good (IMO) novella, but I really want to stretch my writing "legs".  I want to know how far I can really go, if I can surpass the boundary in my mind.  Because I have the bones already completed, it seems easy to add details I'd previously cut out and see where the story will now take me.

Wonder why I bother?  Well, after much practicing, I realized I can restrict myself to writing fewer than 15,000 words (the max word count for submitting to Nocturne Bites), but trying to reach 70,000 with this paranormal (per the Silouhette Nocturne guidlines) seems impossible.  Though I still hope to submit to them - someday - I honestly don't see it happening right now.

What these changes will entail:

• Reaching a word count of 50,000 - minimum
  
• Adding secondary (or tertiary) characters
• Lengthening existing secondary character's parts
• Reworking elements to suit the new path my story will take
• Playing out my Hero and Heroines background
• A lot  more dialogue (not my strong suit)
• Probably adding more sensory details, visuals being a main one as I skimped in this shorter piece

*Sigh*  I doubt I'll meet my original goal of finishing by the end of '09, but if I can complete - and submit - by Jan 31st, '10, I'll consider this a win.  Even if I don't get picked up by either of my first choice places, I hope it will end up somewhere it can be loved.

~Hetal

Procrastination is such a dirty word.

...and so the theme of my life at the moment.  I've been putting off my writing for various reasons - none of them good - and have sworn to myself I'll get back to it tonight.  First and foremost: updating this blog. 

So , here I am!  After a week at my parent's home where I didn't even touch this computer to check emails, I'm catching up with the world and the various boards/blogs/sites I frequently visit.  Unlike myself, everyone's been hard at work.  I feel so ashamed!

Still, the time away was good for me.  My mind was rejuvenated and a previous dead end opened up for my current WIP.  All in all, a good "vacation".  I plan to pound the keyboard tonight and maybe get out five new pages (being very optimistic here).

Hope everyone had a great holiday!