Happy Bat Appreciation Day!!!

Until today, I didn't even know bat appreciation day was a thing. Who knew??? I gained a better knowledge and appreciation of bats when working on 7th Grade Revolution … after all there had to be bats in the tunnel.

Bats over the years have gained an undeserved unsavory reputation. The first thing most people think of are blood-sucking vampire bats, but there are over 1,400 species of bats and only 3 of those are vampire bats—who tend to bother livestock more than people. What else are people afraid of with bats?

• All bats have rabies and if they bite you, you'll get rabies, too. WRONG
  Approximately 5-6% of the bats captured for testing have rabies, so while possible, a far cry from ALL.
  
• Bats are bad luck. WRONG
  Bats actually do several things that are helpful. Such as eating disease-spreading insect like mosquitoes, roaches, etc. Forget the citronella candles … put a bat on the patio and it can consume up to one thousand mosquitoes an hour. Plus they do such amazing work like spreading seeds for future bananas, avocados, and about 300 other plants.
  
• Bats will try to nest in your hair. WRONG
  Though as a child I thought this might be a possibility, and it has happened to some people, it is more a matter of accident than design. Bats don't nest. They roost upside down because they have difficulty in taking off from the ground. But by hanging upside down, the can drop and use the momentum from the fall to start their flight. It might give the appearance they are swooping toward you, but the reality is they are simply taking flight.
  

I have another reason for celebrating Bat Appreciation Day. Meet Melvin.

Isn't he adorable??? When I shared that it was Bat Appreciation Day with a friend who loves bats, the name Melvin hit me, so I created an image of an albino bat named Melvin. He will be in the Homeless Myths series, my current work in progress, and I already know where he lives, how he's going to interact with the kids, and he's just too cute not to share. I'm certain Melvin is going to have mega personality to match his endearing appearance, so keep your eyes peeled for more about Melvin as the series continues.

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As November draws to a close, so does the quest to win NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). I put win in italics because the prize is primarily self-satisfaction or bragging rights. Many writers participate the month was designed to get people to put words on the page. Any words toward the goal of writing a novel. The basic premise is to take a blank sheet of paper (or digital variation thereof) and have a shiny bright new idea, and starting November 1st write 50,000 words (averaging 1,667 words a day) by the end of November 30th—a daunting, but theoretically achievable task.

HUGE SHOUT OUT TO ALL PARTICIPANTS THIS YEAR! I SALUTE YOU!!!

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In the past, I have enjoyed cheering on anyone participating in the event. I missed checking up on how people were doing against their goal this year and hearing the excitement as everyone discussed their ideas with such enthusiasm. On November 1st, surrounded by boxes everywhere, I gave a brief thought to those who were dashing off their first words followed by a pensive pang because I'd miss all the excitement. I knew I wouldn't participate this year because the cross-country move I made mid-November put paid to any hopes of completing the task. I'm not an active participant in NaNoWriMo in any year … the self-inflicted pressure of writing a certain number of words or falling short of a goal halts my writing process … but I do enjoy cheering everyone else on.

As a writer, I don't have a daily (or even weekly) word count goal—either when drafting or editing. It may drive my agent crazy, but my process simply doesn't function that way and setting those concrete goals can put the creative brakes on more than it will ever spur me to achieve the goal. So how do I finish anything? It's all about knowing who you are as a writer and being true to your process.

Depending on the book, my process can either be fast or slow or somewhere in between. It depends on the story, the complexity of the plot, and primarily the characters and how well they communicate the story to me. The book I'm editing for what feels like the 3,000th time, South of Happy (Katie McCabe, Book 2), I wrote in 3 weeks, but it took me nine or ten months to complete the first draft edits. While the words simply flowed out of me and I wrote on average 5,000 words a night and between 10k-15k on the weekend days, the resulting manuscript had the makings of a story, but technically it was a big lump of clay that I'd thrown at the wall. A lot of clean up work had to be done to shape it into the story it is today.

By contrast my current WIP (Work in Progress), The Secret of the Red Key (Homeless Myths, Book 1), is taking longer for me to write than any other book I've written. Why? In an odd way, it is taking longer because I have learned more about the craft of writing and am far more deliberate about what I'm doing as I put words on the page. But that also means there will be a lot less mess to clean up when I'm done.

When writing South of Happy, I only knew it was a sequel to the first book, Rain Falling on Embers, and since I had lived with the characters in my head for a while, I merely had to plug in my headphones and turn on my music and the words simply gushed. At that point, I had no idea the story would develop into a five book series.

With The Secret of the Red Key, I have known from almost the outset that it will be a five book series. I don't know the characters quite as well yet, and the plot of this one is far more complex than with the Katie McCabe series. I absolutely love what is going on the page, the characters who keep popping up while I'm in progress, and the direction for the series, but since I'm getting things in a piecemeal fashion instead of linear, it is going to take longer for me to write. But it will be worth the wait.

Congratulations to all who participated in NaNoWriMo 2023 and best wishes as you complete your novel and polish it 'til it shines.

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For getting healthy in broad terms, it involves making the right food choices, exercising my body, and simplifying things in my life to reduce stress. Losing weight is a big factor in the getting healthy quest, but it is a result of what I’m doing to improve my health. While I am focused on making sure the pounds are disappearing, the main goal is improved health. Since overall health is harder for me to see, quantify, and measure, I do tend to focus, at least right now, more on the weight than anything else. And I’d love more than anything for the path to be like a big ol’ highway with a formula like 1+2=3, that I can rely on. Eat X calories less than you burn, then Y pounds come off the scale. But anyone who has ever struggled with weight on either end of the spectrum will tell you that’s NOT how it works.

I had a big reminder on how things DON’T always work the way we expect them to this weekend. I stopped at the store to get a pair of “goal” jeans because the current pair were getting a little loose … and I am a goal oriented person. I knew there was no way I would fit into the jeans because I had only purchased the current jeans a few weeks ago and haven’t lost enough pounds to get into a new size since. Plus, having been up and down the weight road several times, I have weighed far less and not fit in the size I purchased for my goal. Only, in a supreme twist of the usual fate, they did. *pause for a momentary happy dance* This twist in the path happened to be a pleasant one (YAY!!)

So how does weight loss correlate to writing? Well, first both are a journey and sometimes there are starts and stops along the way, with a few reversals. Anyone who has had to delete chapters of work knows the pain of reversal, just as those who regain weight feel after having busted their butt to lose it in the first place. On the weight journey, my path has been much like a yo-yo, and I’m cursing myself for having picked the one with the longest string — always go for the one that lights up or sparkles. The writing journey has been much the same … up and down, and not always going the direction I’d like. Fortunately, for both I am certain I have the right team in place and the weight will go down and the writing career will go up.

Ten years ago, I was at my heaviest, and it was taking a severe toll on my health, so I had a start and lost a significant amount of weight. Five years ago, I had the amazing experience to be given the premise for the current WIP (work in progress). It amazed, excited, and terrified me all at the same time. I knew I wasn’t ready to truly embark on the writing process, so I made the notation of the idea in my file and went back to my current works. Both of those count as starts … the stop coming almost immediately in the case of the WIP, and taking a couple years with the weight. I’ll spare you the back and forths with the weight, but I experienced equal back and forth with the WIP. I wanted to write this book so much it hurt. I’d be working on other things, and ideas for the current WIP would hit me. And each time they did, I’d add them to the growing file, but fear kept me from putting pen to page or in my case fingers on the keyboard. There was always an excuse. And with the weight loss there was always an excuse … in both cases some very valid, but excuses nonetheless.

As I mentioned, I now have the right team in place for both … and not only that, I have the right focus in place for both. And the focus is not the scale for the weight loss, and really, though I am still so utterly delighted, not on the clothing sizes either, but on the process or plan of how to get to my goal weight. I check in on a daily basis on how I am doing against the plan, and that is working. Similarly, the focus on the writing side is on honoring the process. My process is not the same as any other author … nor should it be (and theirs don’t have to be like mine) … but it is the process that works for me. And my process involves letting the character(s) drive. It took a kick in the tail to get me beyond my fear of not being up to the task of this novel. Fortunately, I have the right person in place for that, my literary agent, Italia Gandolfo, and anytime I get stuck, she’s right there to administer the swift kick to get me on my way again (and she definitely has the boots to do it.) I have my plan for the WIP and I check in daily on where I stand with it.

I chose the picture with the track lanes because it expresses how I usually see things. I am competitive by nature, something I have fought to mold into competing not against others, but with myself. The race aspect resonates with me. How can I get there in the fastest time? How fast can I lose the weight? How fast can I write a novel? But if I keep my focus on the plan, the speed is irrelevant. If I reach my weight goal in nine months or it takes me a year, what difference does that really make? Especially, if in order to hit my goal in the faster time I had to take drastic measures to get there. Drastic measures in weight loss usually come back to bite you. Hard. What about the WIP? I wanted to be done with the WIP by the end of last year. It simply isn’t writing that way. But I still want to hit the starter block, bear down and sprint off — except Melody Fisher, my main character, refuses to play that game. This WIP will be written in her timing, not mine. And if I were to have finished the book by the end of the year, would it be the book that I am currently writing? No. Taking the time on this one is so worth it, regardless of how uptight I might get and fractious because it isn’t moving as quickly as I’d like.

Just as with the new jeans, I’ve been watching the word count at the bottom of the page creep up, like I sometimes obsessively watch the scale numbers to go down, but last night when I glanced down I realized I was so much further along than I had thought, and while there is still a chunk left to write, I no longer feel stalled (hello smaller jeans feeling) And when I have those realizations, I remind myself the competition with myself is not a race. It is not how fast I get to either finish line, but about the journey itself. What have I learned along the way? And how well am I doing it? For the weight loss, I have learned entirely new dietary habits and haven’t struggled with cravings as I have in the past. With the WIP, I feel as if I have truly written beyond my abilities at times because I am keeping myself out of the middle. This is not the story I want to tell, but the story Melody needs me to tell. By getting out of my own way, I have a manuscript I am more proud of than anything I have yet written. And if I rushed either of those things I wouldn’t have the results that I do.

And the final thought is that while I call my manuscript a work in progress, so am I. May I never stop striving to be better both as a human being and as a writer. Knowing the road ahead will not be straight and will contain lots of twists and turns, I move forward with confidence, knowing I am on the right path with both of my focal points, and who knows??? I just might have several pleasant surprises along the way.

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Thank you for stopping by for this week’s Writing Process Blog Tour!

This is a travelling blog tour that pops up every Monday for writers to share a little about what, how and why they write. If you’re a writer, I hope it cheers you on on your journey — and if you’re not, hopefully it will give you some little insight into the lives of the people who create the stories you love.

Thanks so much to the wonderful Anna Tan for inviting me to participate. Anna and I met in the wilds of Twitter when it was still shiny and new. She’s incredibly supportive of the writing community and with each passing year, I admire this woman more. She dabbles in a broad spectrum of writing, including poems, scripts, novels, and flash fiction. I am always in awe of anyone who tackles flash fiction and short stories — mainly because I’ve never written a short story that didn’t want to stretch into a novel. I encourage you to drop by her blog and check out her writing process.

Now on to the questions.

What am I working on?

Right at the moment I’m working on editing some projects for mates at Gandolfo Helin Literary. It has been a great learning experience and has helped me to get to know some of my agency mates better in a short period of time. I can’t really talk about what the projects are, only that once they’re out, you’re going to love them.

In addition to the edits, I’m prepping to work on my next novel, which will be a stand-alone, upper YA, that goes darker places than my current works. The idea came to me in 2010 as I was driving to work. The sun was shining on the palm trees as I drove down the backside of Disneyland, and I was enjoying the cool of the morning, when BAM! I had this idea in my head so strongly I nearly pulled over to catch my breath. So I’ve been living with this idea for four years, mulling over aspects of it while working on other things, getting flashes of scenes here and there, and I’m beyond excited to know I will finally have a chance to test my mettle as a writer and get this one down on the page. My goal is to start drafting sometime in June.

How does my work differ from others in its genre?

I primarily write for the younger side of YA and the older side of Middle Grade, (the new book I just mentioned being an exception to this), while the bulk of YA is targeted at slightly older readers, so that is one difference. I also have a distinctive writing style, which makes it easy for readers to “see” what’s going on in the story, and helps them connect on an emotional level to the characters.

I’ll hear writers talk about their works in progress and whether they are plotters (making sure they have an outline to work from, character sketches, etc.) or pansters (start writing and see where the story takes them) they will mention something about making their character(s) do something. I can’t make my characters do anything. If we argue about it, I lose. Every. Time. You see, the characters come to me and tell me their story, and while sometimes I have to pull it out of them, I don’t “make” them do anything. My role is that of scribe. I listen to what they say, and my job is to transcribe everything and get it all cleaned up to show their story in the truest form I possibly can.

Why do I write what I do?

This question made me smile because I can recall having a conversation on Twitter where a friend pushed me to say why I write. We had been discussing reasons why certain books grabbed readers attention and I mentioned that I just wrote the stories that came to me. As the author, I’m way too close to the story and have a difficult time seeing the outward reaching value of my work. The work is so intensely personal to me, and when anything is personal, I dive inward. But when pushed on it, I went off on a rant at 140 characters at a time to say exactly why I write what I do. The stories come to me for a reason. Of that I am certain. They are meant to reach kids (and adults) and have them connect with my characters. The circumstances may not be the same, but the readers can connect to the emotions and feelings of my characters and realize they are not alone in this crazy, mixed-up world. I write for the age group I do, because they are trying to figure out who they are, who they want to be, and are faced with having to leave childhood behind and begin stepping into adulthood. It’s a time when most kids have confusion, feel unloved, like they are so incredibly different and not normal, and they so desperately want to fit in, to be one of the group. Even those who are at the center of the “group” have doubts, insecurities, and overwhelming emotions. My books are written to say – “Hey, you’re not alone.” And sometimes, that’s all they need to know. That someone else has experienced the same feelings they have … and made it through. I write because my characters need a voice. I write because I have to.

How does my writing process work?

Different. Every. Time. With each and every book my writing process has been different. Up until writing the fourth book in a series, I could say that if nothing else, I started at the beginning wrote to the end, then stopped. However, writing the fourth book, I started with scenes that are at the end of the book, as well as one scene that has been pushed into book five, and I wrote significant chunks out of order. I used to say I always write with a loose outline — which I normally do, but then hit a Middle Grade where I didn’t use one — couldn’t use one.

The characters come to me, tell me their story. I generally jot down some notes, figure out how the timeline runs, and then start writing. Even when I outline prior to starting, the outline is then tucked away, and I let the story take its course with the characters leading me the entire way. My job is to crawl inside the heads of my characters and share their experience on the page. In essence, my writing process is sitting my butt in a chair and keeping it there until I’m done. Then I put the manuscript away for a few weeks while working on other things (I always have other projects to work on.) Then I take it out, read it through and see what kind of book I have. I tend to be a bare bones drafter, getting down only the essentials, and then afterward go back and add some of the descriptive passages, giving setting, making the story more full-flavored. Then the fun begins.

Once I’m through massaging some of the passages and building up sections that need it, I run my manuscript through an editing software and create a spreadsheet to edit by. I call it the evil spreadsheet because it points out everything — evil. But because it helps me to see things I otherwise would not, I love it as well. I also highlight all known repetitive words because the highlights help me see where I need to restructure sentences. Once I get through the “technical” edits, I read the story aloud for pace and flow. (If you don’t do this, it is probably my number one suggestion to help you catch things that need fixing.) After that round, I start from the back and read it backwards paragraph by paragraph. It helps you focus on the sentence level out of context, so your familiarity with the story hinders you less. And finally, I put it on my Kindle and have the robotic voice read it to me. I’m always amazed at what I catch this way. Then the manuscript is ready to be sent to a trusted critique partner for her to slash it up for me, and then beta readers for feedback. Then after dealing with the feedback, I feel like I have accomplished the goal of writing a book.

Thanks so much for stopping by, it’s been fun. Don’t forget to stop by these two good friends of mine next week, to hear about their writing process.

Eisley Jacobs and I met on Twitter, and then I had the lovely privilege of meeting her in person at Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers (RMFW) Colorado Gold Conference in Denver, and have managed to see her smiling face a few times since then – whenever we can get together. The first thing I think about when thinking about Eisley is her tremendous spirit. She has a passion and enthusiasm for projects which amazes me. She conceives of the idea and then she’s doing it. I remember her tweeting about her heart being drawn to Ethiopia, and a couple months later she was on a plane with a mission group to help the Ethiopian people. She has a tremendous heart, and in her writing you find the same passion, enthusiasm, and heart.

Monica Enderle Pierce and I met on Twitter via the #wipfire hashtag, which has sadly faded away. We used it to post lines from our current projects and critique each others work — the writing community coming together to help one another. It was truly a wonderful thing. I became captivated by Monica’s writing ability through the snippets posted during our wipfire sessions, and we since then have become very good friends. A few years ago, I took a driving vacation and hunted Monica down to spend a wonderful weekend chatting, wandering around taking in nature, and writing, of course. And have been back to see her when I was in town for the Story Chairs opening. Blessed with a sharp wit, and an incredible writing talent, Monica weaves a story to keep readers turning the pages.

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