Changes

 So we hit this around 6pm last night. Of course, I was driving home. Not only did I try hard not to keep craning to look behind me (not because of the sun, but the zombie hordes were out in full force), I tried not to blind myself, LOL.

The only version we actually ended up seeing was #1 & #2 on the chart. We didn’t get to see a full eclipse. I think we just don’t get to see stuff like this in the swamp. It disrupts the evil aura’s or something. Hmm, next time I’ll have to talk to the witch coven up the mountain, see what they’ll charge me to let it through.

If you got to see more, tell me about it.

As for other changes, well, the kids are out of school this Thursday. Yup! It’s summer vacation already. Mud pies, zombie parts, decaying and moss-covered squishy things leaking from pockets and pillow cases.

I knew it was coming, considering we’ve been 105-108ish degrees for over a week. The swamp waters are a few feet lower than normal. I don’t know if hell fire is leaking through or what.

But really, I’m so not ready for 2 full months with the kids home all day. Not that I don’t love them, I do. And I enjoy having the time with them.

I’d kick them outside during the day like people who live in normal places do, but if they didn’t terrorize the zombies beyond repair, make boots out of C. Rock Adial, they might actually melt, it’s that hot.

So it will cut into my writing. I can admit that.

I also have my first University classes starting early June, extracurricular activities for the kids, and deadlines for books I need to get done.

Changes.

Yup, things will be changing for the next few months.

Now I just have to figure out how to get everything done

Merging of Greatness…

In an effort to cut down on how much of a time suck cyberverse is, I wrangled my Knight in Slightly Muddy Armor and had his alternate persona, King of Tech, merge my www.jamigray.com address to this–my most awesomest blog site ever!  Now if you type in jamigray.com you’ll come here, and you can still peruse my holy list of links on my Links page, buy my world changing books on my Books page, stalk me through the electronic world on my Blog Tour page, all in one spot!  I kneel to the genius of my hubby in the weird ways of tech, because it’s all Greek to me (and I mean that seriously!).

On top of this nifty change, I also set up an Author Fan Page on Facebook.  You can see it here http://www.facebook.com/JamiGrayUFWriter .  Feel free to go over and share your love of moi and click the LIKE button.  It took time before I bowed to the requests for one of these as I was uncertain exactly how to use it.  Now that I know it’s where you post all your blog visits, book releases and general writing news, viola it is created!

So even though I finally got a tighter handle on book 3, I have yet to sit down and start again, but now that all the pressing cyber demands have been met, I’m ready to go! WOO HOO!

Now, I need your support because this upcoming week (May 14th-18th) will become a testing ground on just how thick I’ve managed to get my writing skin to as I embark on a five stop review tour of Shadow’s Edge.  Oh yes, I hear you.  Why would I subject myself to such a rack of torture? Because, I really would like people out there to give me their honest feeback–good or bad–because how else will I be able to stretch myself as a writer? And because I don’t want to inhibit any postings, I’ll be there to thank the reviewer, but I’ll lurk in the shadows to see what is said.  Fingers crossed that the reviewers find Shadow’s Edge exciting and thrilling!

If you’d like to swing over and see what’s up next week, feel free.  Here’s the schedule:

• 5/14/12      Come on over and see the review of Shadow’s Edge at Live To Read
• 5/15/12      Stop over at A Case of Reading Insomnia for another review of Shadow’s Edge
• 5/16/12      Shadow’s Edge is up for review at V’s Book Life
• 5/17/12      Another review of Shadow’s Edge over at Unabridged Andra’s
• 5/18/12     Last Review stop of the tour, so stop by Books Are Magic

And lastly, I had to share a moment I had this weekend.  Life was getting stressful, you know how it is when everything around you seems to sit their big, heavy weight upon your shoulders and you just want to slither away into a small, hidden place?  Okay, so I had a few bad moments because, hey, we’re all human, right?  Just when the light of creativity was beginning to sputter, one of my favorite Twitter Peeps (@KindlesConsort) was chatting with another bud of mine and she gave strength to my flame through her excitement and anticipation of my writing and how much she enjoyed chatting with authors.  I couldn’t resist, I had to tell her how much her words meant and that it was because of readers like her that authors, especially me, continue to put pen to paper.  Then later that night through Facebook I received another message from another fan, Kim Hawk, who shared how much she enjoyed Shadow’s Edge and why.  Again, I was humbled by such words.  I may put my stories out there, but the reason I have the courage to continue onward is because of you, the readers, who so eagerly embrace these fantastical worlds and then share your excitement with the writers.

Long story short, authors write for you readers so take the time and drop a line to your favorite authors, big or small.  Who knows? Maybe you’ll be the one that strengths their flickering creative light on a dark day, giving them the strength to pick up the pen once more and forge forward!

–Wicked

Pesky Internal Voices

Here’s the deal with diving into your next work in progress after spending an incredible amount of time editing your last piece–your inner critic refuses to shut the hell up!

We’ll refer to mine as VON (voice of my nightmares).

Von showed no fear when I threaten to take her out and dump her in the hole I dug out back in the swamp just last week for such an occassion.  Oh no, she kept right on.  “Don’t tell me, show me!” 

Show her?  Ohhh, I could show her all sorts of cutting repartees that will leave lasting impressions.  Instead, I gritted my teeth and tried to drown her under the pounding melodies of Seether and Nickleback.  When that didn’t work, I brought out the big guns–Korn and the greatest of them all…Trent Reznor.  But still, Von’s venemous whispers wafting through my mind.

I was in the midst of getting Xander back to her partner and a dead body in book 3, when Von broke through.

“That is not going to work. Who told them about the body? Who found it? How come the Pack knows, but no human is involved? And where’s Warrick?”

Really? I refrained from slamming my head into the wooden surface of the table next to my laptop by the barest fraction.  Wouldn’t do to upset my baristas, besides I might spill my drink.  Gritting my teeth, I went back an re-read what I had written.  Damn it…Von’s right…so I went back and rewrote. 

For awhile Von was placated with frappacinnos and coffee cake, while Xander and I worked through a few challenges.  Yes, some of them involving the alpha of the Northwest Pack, but still, we were getting there.  Then Von butted in…

“Why?”

Stumped by the strange question that contained no extranous commentary, I sat there blinking.  “Huh?”

“Why? Why kill this one?  What does his death do to the pack?”

Umm, okay, because…and I explained to her-again-why we were doing this.  She hummed under breathe and sipped her frappacinno.  “Okay, that should work, but we’ll have to see..”

Here’s the thing with Von. As exhausting as she is to work with when I’m writing, she’s an even bigger pest as I’ve been trying to figure out the cover of Shadow’s Soul.  Last week, I asked for feedback on Shadow’s Edge cover over at Cover Art Review blog and got exactly what I asked for.  Don’t mistake me, I’m actually really happy with what I got back.  There were no rave reviews, but the actual feedback was helpful.  However, it did give Von some serious ammunition as she peeked in on what I was considering for Shadow’s Soul.  I have a feeling that until I hit the big leagues or discover some unknown artistic genius residing deep inside me, I’m going to have to make what I have access to for cover art–work.

As for Von–I’ve tried luring her over to Eerie and Mischevious’s neck of the woods, but short of tranqualizing, blindfolding, and trucking her out that way, she seems determined to stick around and torment me.  Even making her play darts with the Muses doesn’t seem to do anything except make her more crabby!  Maybe if I turn up my music, she’ll get bored and go pester Snarky!  With my luck she’ll have a twin or hell, be part of triplets, and then all three of them can torment the rest of the Evil 7 and drive us all insane!

–Wicked

Acceptable Losses In the Impenetrable Forrest & Editing

Greetings and Salutations,

I hope you’ve recovered by now,  if your just joining us you missed a lovely stroll through the Impenetrable Forrest (what is that noise) that ended in a bloody melee when the Killer Koalas showed up.  Fortunately for us Killer Koalas don’t like to run and Zombies just don’t see a need to run, ever.  So most of our losses were the undead who did a little damage of their own.  It wasn’t pretty.  I’ll bet Raine would have liked it though.  We’ve had a week of the Werewolf Monks unparalleled hospitality and liberal amounts of wine which has a healing quality of its own. 

I’d like to thank Mischievous for the eloquent  job he did with the eulogy for the dead undead.  Wicked has requested we bring back some Blood Red wine for her.  The Monks have recommended the September, 2011 for you Wicked, they said that vintage is still warm.  Mischievous is taking duty-free orders if anyone else has a request.

Last item before we get back to the job at hand.  I was perusing through the dusty books and scrolls in the Vampire section of the monastery.  I’m not talking about those drama queens with their teenage angst  that are the rage today.  This is Vlad Tepes, The Impaler himself, the patriarch of all vampires,  the giver of death, the charming ‘Count Dracula’.  Even more interesting are the journals of The Count’s unwilling acolyte Renfield.  I must say that I’ve been absorbed by the insect-eating mental patient who can see through Dracula’s eyes when he is on the hunt.  It has been most enlightening and more than a little unsettling.  Renfield’s chilling accounts of Dracula’s victims willingly going to him as if sleep walking remind me a little of our zombies. 

Now on the job at hand.   Normally I don’t mind the editing process, but my current struggle is with the whole-sale rewrite I’m involved with.  I’ve mentioned that I had worked my way to chapter ten when I reverted and wrote a new chapter two which caused me revise chapter one.  So here I am three weeks into the eight I had given myself and I’m back to page one.  I know each time through it gets tighter, but time is fleeting.  And my ability to stay focused wanes.  I yearn to move on to something new and yet The Three Misfiteers deserve.  No they demand my attention.  I must say that Wicked’s recent blogs have been helpful as have all the comments from the Evil Six.  And yet I procrastenate.  I’m easily distracted by the shiny ball.  Stepping into week four I have some new insights and a greater resolve.  If your reading along I can only assume your either a writer or a self flagellator.  I can only offer this.  I get more joy out of bad day writing than almost anything else.  Remember that although writing is a lonely job, you are not alone.

Today I’ll leave you with this from Bram Stokers, Dracula.  These are remarks made by Dr. Van Helsing, “I am embarked on a grave duty.”   ” The stake we play for is life and death.”

Funny guy, huh?

Write On,

Eerie

Chains, chains, chains

(And I’m late

Discipline. Ick. The very word makes me shudder.

And yet, I somehow manage to force myself anyway. The key, to me I think, is that it’s easier to be disciplined about something you love doing.

I love writing.

It’s my escape, my stress relief, my “me” time, which as a mom, I don’t get very often. Heck, I can’t even take a bath without my girls coming in to talk to me.

But when mom says “I’m writing”, somehow (Read: lots of training and practice) they know it’s mom’s time.

I leave the house for a lot of my writing. Just me and the coffee. During the summer it’s harder (and hotter). But now that school is back in session and all four are gone all day, I have my mornings and afternoons.

Between writing, editing, and my own homework, I stay pretty busy.

Now, if I could just figure out a way to fit in all that dang housework that I hate…