I've moved!

So I finally did it - I created my own site! Feel free to visit me at www.hetalwrites.com and leave me a note!

Pursuing the dream

I didn't write my first book when I was in first grade about a sparkly unicorn stuck in our world who dreamed of getting back to the other side of the rainbow - although maybe it would have been awesome. My urge to write came much later in life. Baby Girl was rolling around in my belly, waiting for her chance to join the world, and I was bit. Something about creating that life and anticipating its arrival prompted me to do more than read - it awoke a need in me to write.

Maybe it was pregnancy brain, maybe it's my mid-life crisis calling, but for almost seven years I've listened to this dream whisper at the back of my mind.

Those first drafts were horrible for so many reasons. For one, I hadn't found my genre. Though I loved curling up with a romance, reading and writing are not the same game. My first dozen stories were romantic in nature and petered out pretty quickly. Didn't take me long to realize I was not cut out for the romance arena.

For the next few years I quieted my dreamer's voice. Baby Girl and Baby Boy demanded my attention. Moving into a new home, helping my parents find their dream home and settle in a new city, and supporting my sisters took priority.

Until I found the awesome worlds of Urban Fantasy.

Kick-ass heroines, dreamy heroes, cities turned fantastical by an author's pen. Plots that thrill, twists that make your head spin, characters you root for, and those villains you root against. Magic, mystery, and heartache.

I had been missing all of these things. I hadn't realized I was looking for those things until someone showed me the possibilities.

So I will no longer ignore my dream. I will pursue. I have a plan, one that makes me ramp up rather quickly, but hey, I've had seven years. No more laying about. I have two months to turn it all around. It's time to do.

Good luck to all the dreamers.

The suspense is killing me...

Which is ironic because I like to write stories that are a bit suspenseful.

I was given the wonderful opportunity this week to submit my query to Brenda Drake's Pitch Wars Query Workshop and though my query is sent and the deed is done, I cannot stop thinking about all the ways I wrote it wrong.

It was:
  too short
  too vague
  too friendly in closing
  should have been more professional

The list goes on, but these are the only points off the top of my head after a mug of wine. The mentors who participate in Brenda's pitch contest are amazing. I will be submitting to the actual contest in July but wonder if I've already blown the "first impression" with a subpar query.

Ack! The nerves.

Guess we will find it June when my query is cut up and left on the writing floor. In the meantime, I'm going to try very hard to write.

I got momentum, oh yes I do

It's amazing the things I learn about myself as I get older. For example: young me thought surprises added spice to life. Surprise flowers at work? Beautiful! Surprise visit from family? Okay. Overdressed for surprise 23rd birthday party at a friend's house where I walked in with an armful of shoes? (cause I couldn't pick the right ones, that's why and not the point) Umm....ok.

Realization when pregnant with my first, my Monkey: I had to know if she would be a boy or girl. Same with the second. Hubby protested. I won. Then again, I should always win, right?

Lesson learned? I don't like surprises. Go figure. That's probably why I spend so much time planning my story structure. Where will the key story points fall? How many chapters should this piece have and how many pages per chapter?

I acknowledge this is overkill. I am trying to change. :)

The point is, I learned something else about myself: I am a very "visual" person. As in, I can't get this story to on the page without the right visual cues. Music works for many - they hear a song, a lyric, a string of words that inspires them to write a scene. The music will move them forward. This author will create entire playlists for their journey through their story. This doesn't work for me as I tend to block music out. It's there in the background, creating the white noise which allows me to concentrate, but only the best beat is going to compel me to turn up the volume and bop my head.

Yes, bop.

So I couldn't start my current story - a piece that I have been thinking of since before Christmas - because I didn't have the inspiration. Google was kind enough to lend me a hand. Figureatively. Cause, you know, Google don't have no hands.

I digress.

Below are the images whispering to me. They've provided much needed cohesion for my scattered thoughts. And you might even notice that the second one is my current background. Seems that with every new piece I'm going to have to adjust my backgrounds and avatars otherwise I'll waste time staring at a blinking cursor on a blank white page.

What do you do to get past roadblocks?

To write, or not to write: that is my dilemma

Whether the writing is to post on this blog or up the word count on my latest MS, I'm unable to commit the time to the task. I've lost the motivation and can't seem to find it. I'm in a writing slump folks, and I don't know how to claw my way out of this hole.

:(

Suggestions?

I am still addicted to writing boards, writing blogs, reading about writing contests, and every time I read a success story I think "See! Why aren't I doing that? Where am I aiming?" I have lost my focus and am worried my blurry sight won't clear. Every night I turn on my computer, I start Word at the point I last stopped, but I cannot write any new words on the page. It's sad, really, because this new story deserve to be told.

I think I'm just afraid to tell it. I'm definitely afraid I won't do it justice.

And I don't know how to turn off all of these doubts.

Sooo...yea. Hi!

It's been too long. I know. Not that anyone's missed me I'm sure, but I've missed this outlet. The truth is that it's been a very hard winter for my family and me. If the hurdle to overcome wasn't yet another virus attacking my kids or me or my in-laws, it was work, or personal troubles. I think most of that's behind me now. Almost. Kinda. Came home today to learn my Monkey has a temperature and upset stomach. Poor thing is trying to keep the crackers down right now - and is failing.

:(

As far as the writing goes: I took part in an self-editing workshop for some of Jan and learned that I don't know how to write a beginning. (insert another sad face here) I HATE the first quarter of my UF. It's choppy, the writing mediocre, the plot all but buried in exposition. Re-writing is the only way to salvage the piece and I don't have the will right now. I've started redoing page one at least three dozen times and am completely fed up. This probably means I'm starting in the wrong place. But then I don't know where the right place is! And...and...

I've shelved it for now. I'll come back to it later because I love the rest of the piece but that first quarter is not working.

However, thanks to a little story nugget my cousin provided me, I'm slowly working on a new piece. One that starts in the right place so I don't torture myself with this issue again. Thank goodness. Also, I've decided not to be so rigid with the story structure. Though keeping track of words per day and pages per chapter worked before, I want to take my time with this piece and really let it gel. I didn't give the other piece that chance.

Here's hoping it pays off.

The end of NaNo but not The End

Yes yes, NaNoWriMo ended 6 days ago. However, I retreated from almost everything writing related after day 30. I've spent the time recovering from the over-caffienation, over-stimulation, and general awesomeness that was the support of the NaNo community. I hope I have the energy to do this next year. Hmm, should probably stock up on candy bars, coffee gift cards, and wrist braces, cause oh did my wrists suffer.

All worth it though. During the month of Nov I managed to write 67,232 words which put my WIP at 81,352 words. 90% complete yo!* I can finally sees "the end" on the horizon. It looks...blurry. : )

I'm still not positive how Carmen is getting from the climax to the finish. I know where I want her to end up, even have a picture of the scene in my head, but these last few chapters have been torturous. Partly because I am literally torturing Carmen, the other part because I'm not sure I'm being realistic about the level of mean. In fact, might have to get meaner. Still not sure how that will work.

See - fuzzy.

While I've been mulling on that, some story points became clear and my desktop is full of stickies with those ideas before they can flit away. Thank goodness these are the electronic kind. I am easily finding my little reminders and best of all, Monkey can't take them away to make them "pretty" with her crayons and Munchkin can't run away with them period. Kid is a genius at hiding stuff at 14 mos. Only good things can come from this, right?

Yea, didn't think so.

*Yes, I said "yo". I blame my baby sister, nine years younger than me, who tries to influence my 4 yo to talk this way but manages to stick the worms in my head instead. Thank goodness her lesson in teaching Monkey thug-talk failed. Instead of "gangsta", 4yo kept saying "gang-STAR!" So much cuter. Though I could have done without her throwing a peace sign as she said it.

My family - they's classy.

Let me live vicariously through you!

Thanks to a bug that made me lose almost an entire week of necessary writing, I cannot take part in #PitchWars. I always seem to miss the awesome opportunities. *sobs quietly* If it's not having a baby, it's sick baby, or worst of all - sick me. Seriously, you don't want to be in my house right now. I think my roof is where all germs percolate and become bigger, badass versions of themselves. Outbreak? Child's play. Contagion? *scoff* I don't need no pig-bat infested banana to bring you down - my virus is home made.

:P

If your manuscript is finished and polished, go check out bios from mentor links on Brenda Drake's blog. All of the mentors seem awesome. They're witty and fun and the competition has been fierce amongst the mentors. I can't count the number of times I saw Ninja stars, poisoned apples, and bows & arrows tossed around cyberspace. All in good fun, though. As far as I know no mentors or unicorns were actually hurt during the verbal throwdowns.

I've been stalking following the mentors since the #PitchWars hastag pinged my radar. I would know ;) If you take part, let me know so I can stalk your every move as well. Don't worry, I won't hurt you, I just gots ta know!

Hopefully I'll be ready when the next pitch event rolls around. Please let there be one soon!

*wish granted*

Oh - here's another pitch opportunity I just picked up on: #PitchMas. Again, I won't be able to take part because submissions can be submitted on 12/6 via Twitter.

*sobs loudly* *disturbs cat who offers a dirty look as he stalks to a quieter corner*

But seriously, let me know if you pitch. I'll hold hands with you, make you coffee (note to self: must recall how to make coffee), and offer chocolate as we wait for your result.

Good luck to all!

The next big thing blog hop

You heard the news about Pitch Wars the other day, but have you considered it for yourself? I know it's a scary prospect to put your baby out there for the world to judge - I know I'm terrified - but this is an opportunity to get advice from someone in the know before you enter the slush pile.

The very generous Kathleen Doyle has passed along a blanket invite for "the next big thing" to anyone interested. This is a chance to shoutout your MS and hopefully catch the eye of the mentors prior to pitch time.



1. What is the title of your book?

Damaged

2. Where did the idea come from for the book?

Well, the idea nudged me back in 2010 based on the whole "Dec 2012" prediction. I wanted to borrow the theme, not actually say "boom! and there were zombies". The question became: what would we do the monsters of our imagination became real? Worse, if they wore the faces of our loved ones? In this alternate now, the change came much earlier than 2012 and the result was an infection of the spirit rather than the body. We are given strength, stamina, and enhanced senses, but the cost is our humanity. Is there a cure? Can the intruding spirit be eradicated once it's embedded in our soul?

Oh, but I should clarify: there are no zombies in my story. My only interest in a zombie is using it for target practice.

3. What genre does your book fall under?

Urban Fantasy - with romantic elements

4. Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

The best part of this exercise? Putting faces with the names :)



Daniella Alonso as Carmen. But with blue eyes. She's burdened by her mom's death and has waited 22 years for her revenge. She lives by certain rules and lumps her life into black and white boxes. She avoids the grey, she's not good with grey.

Blake Lively as Madison, Carmen's closest friend. She's sexy and she knows it. She would love for Carmen to live by her example for a day in the hope of permanent removal of stick from ass - in her expert opinion

 

Shahid Kapoor as Dev - the man who insists Carmen put aside her goals for his. As men sometimes do. At least he's got a good reason for being all "I am man, cook me dinner". His little girl needs saving.

Kidding. He does not ask for dinner. He's sure Carmen would knock him on his ass if he tried

Aimee Kelly as Ella. She might seem like the victim now, but she's got baggage as heavy as Carmen's and will have her own day to act on it

 

5. What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Carmen, born with a spirit dragon that resulted in her mom’s murder, secretly seeks the killers while formulating a cure for her unique case of Animism, but must set it all aside to release Ella from her lab before the director dissects the youngest known person marked by an Animal and bottling her "gifts".

6. Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

I'm open to either option - as long as someone helps me with marketing.

7. How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

I wrote a complete first draft about two years ago. Since then I've digested articles and guidelines and methods on writing. Prior to this NaNo, I ripped apart that first draft and restructured the story. You could say I'm in heavy edits now. That's what I tell myself anyway.

8. What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

Kelley Armstrong's Women of the Otherworld, Devon Monk's Allie Beckstrom, Nalini Singh's Guild Hunters, and Jaye Wells's Sabina Kane series. I aspire to mimic these wonderful author's grit, heart, character, and world building, but I'm sure I fall way short.

9. Who or what inspired you to write this book?

I wrote a great many stories that will never see the light of day because I couldn't connect with my own characters. Carmen's story is the first one I had a visceral reaction to. We both had difficult childhoods that shaped us into the women we are. I can't do any of the cool things she does, but I want to be with her as she overcomes her demons.

10. What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

Strong women who think for themselves, magick, and inner demons that literally mark you. You'd better read this now as a how-to guide for dealing with your demon. There's an end date, after all. Supposedly 12/21/12. Shoot! We've got to move quickly!


I can't think of anyone specific to tag, so I leave this open to anyone who's interested. Unless you're pitching to the adult genre mentors as well. In that case, I will hurt you.

;)

You don't want to miss this!

I don't know about you, but I tend to look ahead; I mean waaay ahead. For example: before NaNo even began, I was thinking about what I wanted to do with this MS after these crazy 30 days of pumping out words were behind me. I researched Pubs, ePubs, and agents, stalked on twitter, blogs, and FB to see who was looking for what. The conclusion after all of this information digestion? Jury's still out :)

However, my Twitter stalking turned up something really exciting today. Have you heard of Pitchwars? I hadn't, but following a link from a tweet over to Brenda Drake's blog, I found some pretty juicy details on a pitch contest. If, unlike me, you have a near to completion MS, rush to the finish line, polish polish polish, and take a chance!

The things you most want to know:


·        November 26: The coaches (listed on the linky below) will post on their blogs what genre/category they want to coach. They'll be very specific genres. Aspiring writers will hop around and decide which coaches best fit their manuscripts.

·        December 5: Aspiring writers will submit 3 "applications" to their top choices for coaches to the contest email (brendadrakecontests@gmail.com) during the allotted times (8AM to 8PM EST). That means, participants will send three separate emails to the contest email addressing each with one of their three top choices for coach.

·        December 5 through December 10: Coaches will read the applications and pick teammates.The coaches don't have to pick from their applications. If a coach passes on an application, it is then up for grabs and another coach, if they haven't connected to their applicants, can snatch it after notifying the applicant and if the applicant chooses the coach.

·        December 12: Teams will be announced. On the announcement post there will be instructions on how the winners must send their work.

·        December 12 through January 16: Each coach will read their teammate's manuscript and give general notes on any issues they find. The coach will help their teammate get his or her pitches ready for the agent round.

There's so much more, but you should head over to Brenda's blog for the rest.

As for me, I'm going to try to whip my MS in shape by then. Wish me luck!

I'm ahead, yet behind

Ever have one of those weeks where you don't know where your time went? This was one of those for me. For starters, I cannot recall Monday or Tuesday. I know I woke up, worked, played with kids, wrote, went to bed...but I don't remember the details of any of it. NaNo is taking its toll on me though you wouldn't know it by my word count:

33,251 words!!!!

I thought that deserved some attention. :-) I was so out of it this week that I only noticed last night how far along I'd come. That's one-third of the way through my novel ya'all!

In case you're wondering: yes, I say ya'all in life, so I have every right to use it here

And to confirm: yes, I am brown - East Indian - but that won't stop me

:-)

Back to the above numbers: part of my motivation is keeping to my timetable. Many years ago an author shared a spreadsheet that helped her keep track of her progress. I don't recall who this was (it's been too long), but she showed basic organization that I tweaked to suit my needs. By tracking my daily words against my goal, I get the satisfaction of seeing my words-to-goal shrink. Want to see what I see? No? Too bad  :-P

My story is organized in four parts (I like it better than the 3 act structure), each with necessary story points. Each chapter is allotted an equal portion of my word goal (90K/32chapters = 2813 wds/ch). Do some chapter have  more words? Yes, others less, but this helps me see my progress and where I need to come back and revise.

I track my words by day in the "word count" column. There are formulas in the other cells that do the nifty job of generating percentages for me. Completely thoughtless math - just the way I like it.

Finally, the box I had failed to notice all along: Complete versus remaining. How cool is that?
I also counted other scenes I was compelled to write, but don't have a place for, here. What? They count!

I'm happy to share my crazy, over organized sheet with anyone who's interested. Let me know.

Happy NaNoing!

Fun Tool?

You know what I found today? A free trial of Scrivener for the month of November through Dec 7th. Best part is that if you "win" NaNo '12 you'll get the full version at half price. You must, however, be a registered NaNoWriMo participant. All the details are here. 

I've read a lot of good things about Scrivener, so I'm pretty excited about this. I might try to organize my NaNo novel into the software so all my notes and outlines are in one place. Doing so will also free up space in my Dropbox. I'm pretty sure I'm close to the limit of the free 2 gigs. 

Twitter is probably the reason for my poor word counts these last few nights. I'm addicted to it. I'm a woman who loves instant gratification, and I totally get that satisfaction by Twitter. When you Tweet me back that is. Tweeters, why do you leave me hanging? I miss you :(

I've done a poor job of informing you of my word count, so here's a quick rundown:

1-Nov	2633
2-Nov	2523
3-Nov	1681
4-Nov	2100
5-Nov	2166

Total: 11,103 words

You're probably thinking I'm crazy for saying "poor word counts" above. That's because I'd set a goal of 2500 wrds/day for NaNo and I'm slowly falling behind. Although I'm on track to meet over 50,000 words, I'm not sure I'll have a complete first draft.

Want to help me out? Tweet me BICHOK (butt in chair hands on keyboard). After making a face at enough of you, I might just do it.

:)

I'll do better

I disappeared again, I know. I have just discovered twitter and it will be my downfall. Who'd have thought I have so much to say? Not me. And, ok, it's a lot of nonsense, but I feel that tweeters will forgive my nonsense. Or ignore it. Either way, I'm probably safe ;)

Things you've missed:

• It's NaNo day 5! Though I won't be able to write until it's full dark and all the scaries come out to play, I've managed 8937 words in four days. I'm about 1100 words behind my goal, but I hope to make up the lost momentum over the next few days. Last night I might have clocked my my best time: 2100 words in less than 1.5 hours. It helped that I was writing a scene I had 1) already mapped out and 2) thought about for some time. It was the scene right after the inciting incident. My Heroine had to eat her words and they did not taste good. But the scene? Oh so yummy.
• Both of my babies are passing various bugs amongst themselves. 
• The 4yo had a stomach bug from two Fridays ago until this past Thursday. Though the bug is gone, the crankiness remains, which in turn makes me cranky. We're both hardheaded (I know you're thinking a stubborn 4yo? no way!) so this is not a good thing. 
• The 1yo has been snotty so it makes sleeping nearly impossible for him; this results in no sleep for me and again, a cranky momma.
• On a more pleasant note: he pooped in his bath Saturday morning and cried bloody murder when I tried to take him out. I doubt I'll ever understand boys. My girl wouldn't have tolerated that for a second. Yes, even as a 1yo. She gets that pickiness for cleanliness from me :) 
• The above means I'll prob be a zombie by the end of NaNo. A harsh but inevitable side effect that many of us NaNoers no doubt suffer. In fact, I might need to eat some brains after. Any voluntary victims out there?
• I've made the disastrous decision to start my workout plan two weeks early. Today, the torture will commence.
• Side effects include: posture like The Hunchback of Notre Dame, more crankiness, and wheezing as I write. Why the wheezing while I write you ask? Don't know , just sounded good.
• I refused to hold Thanksgiving at my house this year. I've unceremoniously foisted the hosting on my sister. I love them dearly, but there's no polite way to kick family out of the house. I'd rather have the option of kicking myself out of hers.

I'm sure there's more, but I can't think right now. Caffeine is rattling my brain. Good thing I'm not writing. 

Day 1

My NaNo hasn't really started yet. It's been a crazy day. Monkey's bug just will. not. leave. Seriously, a 4yo shouldn't have to suffer so much. Hopefully, this is the worst it'll get this cold season. Yay immunities!

I'm about to dedicate at least 2.5 hours between now and 11:59 to make my word count. Here's hoping WriteorDie will help me.

Edited to add: 2633 words. I made goal!

Lofty goals

I should have written this post yesterday before the crazy struck my home. My 4yo has been suffering a stomach bug since last Friday. Last night her fever hit 104 so I rushed her to the ER. I felt kinda silly about it at first...and then she vomited in the bathroom of the waiting area. My poor girl; she suffers, but she doesn't cry about it. Her stomach is cleaned out and she immediately asks for something to eat. No tears, no fuss. I love her so.

NaNo is nigh. Seriously, only a couple of hours away. In the back of my head I'm hoping for an average of 2500 words/day. If I can keep to this, I'll have a complete first draft by the end of November. Here's hoping I keep to it.

I'm going to check over my outline one last time and then hit the sack.

Good luck to my fellow NaNoers!

2 days to NaNo - are you ready?

Two posts ago (from two years ago), I expounded on what a Pantser I was. Well, the reality is that I like my little boxes and plot points in those little boxes. It took me two years to really see this in myself, but recognizing this makes me realize why I failed so miserably at writing by the seat of my pants.

My character outlines haven't changed much since I created them, so I feel like I know them pretty well. Their backgrounds, motivations, and crutches are familiar to me, so it shouldn't be hard to think like them. The basic rules of my world are set in stone, but little "what-ifs" keep popping up giving me ideas for continuations. Never a bad thing.

Thanks to Larry Brooks' Story Structure series, I know what high points should be happening and at what point in the story. By studying movie writing, I gleaned an understanding of what an audience is looking for at those points.

I'm furiously filling in my empty story holes right now. With only two days before the mad writing begins. I have no time to lose.

What's your favorite source of  information?

Reset

Hello writing world. You might not have missed me, but I missed you. I needed some time to mull on what type of writer I want to be, who I want to write for, and ultimately, what would excite me. For some time I was content letting my dream collect dust. Not anymore. There is one idea demanding my attention, so I will try to do it justice.

I haven't had time to think about this dream of mine for almost two years. During that time I rejoined the workforce, almost immediately got pregnant, worked like a fiend, moved, had my baby, worked a lot more, and have just recently changed jobs. It wasn't long after attaining this lower key, more life-manageable position that I realized that the voices I thought were gone forever had only been temporarily silenced. They're back with a vengeance.

I've decided that the best way to jump back in is to commit to NaNo. I've registered at the popular NaNoWriMo site, as well as on a Savvy Authors where a team will be holding me accountable for making my word counts. Don't know about you, but this is exactly the kind of motivation I need to dive in.

Anybody else NaNoing? 

Plotting

Now, if any of you know me, you know I'm not so big on the plotting thing. I like the story to unfold organically and allow the characters lead me. I like to be in their head and let them do the talking so I can react the way they would. Sometimes it works...

But it's like pulling teeth, let me tell you. There are times they'll go halfway through the piece then dig in and say "no thanks, I'm done now". Is this because I'm not providing them enough stimuli or does it feel artificial? I know Jane must go with John, but she's a bit stubborn, a lot independent, and wants none of that. She's not going to act against her nature to make me happy, and when I force the issue, well, she gets stilted and doesn't give me much to work with.

John's worse, because, well, he's a man yes, but more important, he's an alpha man who has more important things to do than deal with some woman and her accompanying baggage. He's got his own problems (saving the world type of problems) and can't risk being distracted by Jane. Inevitably, he'll have to swoop in and save her from her own mistakes while the bad guy gets away. Are you kidding? No thanks, he's got better things to do.

(By the way, my character's aren't nearly this extreme in their views though it's kind of close.)

So the romance is about forcing them to make time for each other. It's about creating believable adhesion that will keep them with one another - whether emotionally or physically - without providing too many outs. Of course they'll want to refuse and scream and kick me, but I'm going to ignore them and do what I believe is best for them in the long run no matter how taxing the journey.

And therein lies the problem: the journey, the progress, the story within the story.

This probably seems like a silly statement, but the truth is a lot of effort goes into He meets Her, they spark, they fall apart, they come back strong, something bad happens, is resolved, and they live happily ever after. Yes, that's the gist of every romance (with a few more ups and downs in between) but what about the scenes are going to lead them to this place? What will make them confront their issues, not only with each other, but within themselves, as well?

Thanks to some wonderful girls at Savvy Authors, I stumbled upon Larry Brooks's site StoryFix.com, where I was provided the most helpful outline ever! Since I'm doing this rewrite - and of course second guessing everything along the way - I started filling out his checklist to esure I had all the parts to make the car run.

You know what? I think I have every nut and bolt in place this time, but it's nice to see the truth. Try this outline yourself, then tell me what you think. I'll probably never start something new without it again. No joke. I already saved it the computer.  :)

~Hetal

Etiquette?

Every cushion, mattress, and pillow has been overturned without any sign of the thumb drive with my most crucial MS. Perhaps it decided to sacrifice itself to the writing gods/muses/higher powers. I've started to rewrite the piece, which is coming a lot easier than expected, but now I have another dilemma.

What should I do about the request? If I let it sit for too long there's no doubt in my mind Deb will lose interest in the idea. I would like to send her a note stating my situation, but everything tells me to be professional. Excuses are not professional in my book, so I'm sitting on the fence.

I've read the submission guidelines at the Sourcebooks site, and they state when mailing sending the first four chapters is appropriate, but could I do the same electronically (when I've completed the first four) after a specific request for the full?

I'm about to write this off as a loss, no joke. My first request, and I have little more than nothing. I hope this doesn't brand me a tease in the world of writing. I don't need that kind of rep following me around. :P

~Hetal

Batman! The pigs - they fly!

Yep, that's how I felt right after I read, and reread, and then triple checked the request for my full from the pitch fest over at Casablanca Authors, and you know what made me hit dirt faster than you can say what?

I've lost the piece. Crap, crap, crap!

Let me explain. About three years ago, hubby gave me a brand new laptop for Christmas. It was shiny and pretty and had tons of snazziness that I loved - and then it crashed. When revived, all of my files were gone, sacrificed to the laptop gods. Over a year, it crashed three more times, which means I lost all documents in the notebook all over again. Thankfully, I learned a lesson in there somewhere and started to back up my files on a thumb drive.

What do you do when the thumb drive's gone missing? According to hubby: "should've loaded them to a place like Google docs".

Thanks hon, but that's not really helping at the moment. Right now, my head (my groggy, stuffed up head) spins with the possibility of writing over 90,000 words from memory - oh yea, and as soon as possible.

Now, I'm not pointing fingers, but Monkey, if you did something with mommy's stuff, will you please tell me?

Didn't think so.

~Hetal