Revising...

...Yep. At that stage, so I went to one of my Squidoo sites to see what I'd said about the process---curiosity and to see if I still agreed with myself. LOL!

REVISING, EDITING AND ADITING CAN BE A THREE-HEADED DRAGON OF A CHORE. HOPEFULLY, THESE TIPS WILL HELP.

1. I usually need a few days perspective on any WIP that needs revising, so I generally finish the rough draft and let the WIP sit for anywhere from a couple days to a couple weeks before I tackle the revisions. Yep. Still agree. Happily, I took a break from my current MS, came back, opened it and discovered that thus far, I don't have much to do but add a few words here and there. Knock on wood. Don't want to jinx myself.

2. Chances are excellent that I'm not going to be finished revising, editing and aditing on the first round. What is aditing? It's when you're adding paragraphs, scenes, entire new chapters as you're editing. Oh, yeah. I'm on my, um......11ty 17th round.

3. The valuable input of a trusted critique partner shouldn't be ignored. I'd rather hear my CP tell me something stinks than hear it from an editor in a rejection letter. Hayle yeah!

4. We've heard this golden chestnut before, but it certainly bears repeating... You can't fix a blank page. You CAN fix stinkified words on a page, however. Yep, yep, yep. Stinkified words can be fixed. Amazing when your braincell re-engages and you find a way to to state something just that much better and you wonder why you didn't write it that way to begin with!

5. Revise or edit for specific things if the notion of revising/editing overwhelms you. Revise for emotional depth. Revise GMC for characters. Revise your characterization. Revise for plot holes or loose ends. Revise for overused words. Revise for passive voice (turning it to active voice). Revise for spelling. Revise per your CP's comments. Yep. Still do that.

6. Revisions may be daunting, yes. However, instead of looking at them as a chore, look at the process as a way to improve your writing. You know your transitions or ending hooks need help? Revise with the intention of sprucing those up. There are countless resources on the Internet to help with any aspect of writing you'd like to tackle.

7. Revisions are a necessary part of the writing process. There's always a better word, a more active phrase, a bit of emotional detail that can be added for greater impact. Absolutely.

8. Don't revise your WIP to death. Really. You'll polish your unique voice right out of it. (Um, bad grammar, punctuation problems and creative spelling do not constitute voice. Just saying.) Right. At some point, you (I) need to abandon the baby. It'll be fine.

9. If you're going to join a critique group or have a critique partner, you're going to need a thick skin. You don't want a critique partner who only gushes at your brilliance, you need a CP who will be honest with you. Be sure to set up the parameters of your CP relationship, however, to avoid confrontations, hurt feelings, and to be sure that you're getting the most from the experience as you can. If you join a group, same goes. It's possible for CP's and crit groups to give honest crits that may sting or hurt your pride without being cruel. Cruelty and unkindness are unnecessary. The experience should be helpful, productive and worthwhile. If it isn't, it may be time to find a new situation.

10. Revise, edit and adit with a purpose. If what you're doing isn't improving the WIP, then ask yourself why you're doing it, what purpose does it serve. Oh, yes, absolutely.

That was useful, for me anyway. Hope it's useful for you, too.

Guilty Diversions

I blogged this morning on my Chocoholic Blog about mood and using pictures to help get the words flowing. Even when I'm not in the mood to work on what I really need to be working on, it still somehow manages to surprise me that I can write OTHER stuff. LOL. Procrastination, mebbe? The thrill of doing something else when there's work to be done?

Still, I don't think the foray into a bit of guilty writing (prompts, free writing, whatever you'd like to call it) is necessarily a bad thing.

So, I thought I'd post some pix with some writing prompts---use 'em if you want to. I'm just going to write myself a note to remember to come back here and play next time I need a diversion. GGG.

What a view! Setting is important in your novel, readers like to know where they are! Even if you prefer to create fictional towns, you still have to plunk that town somewhere and be able to describe it so as to give the reader a good sense of place. So, how would you describe this picture if you were to use it for a scene in your manuscript? Remember, it's not all about sight, either!




Peek-a-boo! Where would your character come across this sight? What sort of reaction/emotion can you portray here?




What sort of scene would you set in a thunderstorm?

Procrastination Destination...

...In between writing sessions, especially when they've been tough and intense, we often find the need to empty our braincell (we have only the one braincell and we share it).








Today's Procrastination Destination is a tropical beach... (View at your own risk and discretion...If you have any. Discretion, that is.)









Oh, very nice.



We're thirsty...




Mmmmm....





Decisions, decisions, decisions...



Deep sigh of contentment...




Awwww, no longer parched...Blended, but not parched...




We're never leaving, especially...





View of choice...




Although, this'll do too...

Just Write...

...Ever get so worked up about "The Rules" that you can't write? Oh my goodness, what if you abuse a comma?! Split an infinitive?! Horrors! What's worse, what if you let your fear of grammar clog your ability to write? I have a solution.
There is something you can do about your grammar issues.

Two of my favorite online grammatical resources: Grammar Slammer and Holy Mother Grammatica.
If you still feel like you struggle with this technical aspect of writing, find yourself a critique partner who's good at grammar. (Gee, I wouldn't know ANYBODY who has a former English teacher for a crit partner who'd be willing to help her crit partner with the grammar aspects that cause ANYBODY to fret obsessively. Just sayin' is all.)

Whether you consider yourself good with grammar, somewhere in the middle, or an abysmal mess, the trick is not to let it scare you or kill your voice. Grammar is the technical part of writing, not the creative part. But it is just as important as the creative part, because if we don't observe the conventions, our work will be unreadable to others. Just as plot, setting, characterization and imagery are tools in your Writer's Tool Box, grammar is simply another tool. Don't sweat it...just write.



"Anybody's former English teacher crit partner." ----------------->

Been so busy these last few weeks getting my ms in shape for submission, I decided to stop and have a little fun. It's harmless, it's actually fun thinking up silly titles and goofy tag lines... And yes, I believe stretching your imagination to come up with funnies for the book cover counts towards your word goal for the day. Hehe!

Have some fun, make a cover of your own HERE.

Almost May...

It's report card time. I'm reviewing my goals to date, and rather dismayed to see I'm falling short. There's a surprise. Things like getting sick (self, kids, spousal unit), laundry, outside jobs... don't necessarily get taken into consideration when it's time to hammer out some goals. Then there's the issue of "It's just not working" and "Why the heckadoodle did I try to write THIS?" that often muddy the water.

So, with May tomorrow, and 2009 almost halfway over (chew/stew on THAT for a while, huh? Mind boggling!) time to perhaps toss out all the goals to date (especially the ones that Just Aren't Gonna Happen) and start fresh. Perhaps more general goals would be good.

Some of my New, General Goals:

1. Keep on keeping the desk/workspace cleaned up.

2. Write every day, even if it's two words or two sentences.

3. Make realistic goals. (This means take into account that people get sick, things come up, Life Happens, when imposing deadlines on self.)

There. I think three is perfect.

Now, for a spot of fun...

I'm sure everyone will be delighted and thrilled to know that I would make a good 1930's husband.

You Would Make a Great 1930's Husband

You would be an ideal 1930s husband. You're attentive, understanding, clean, and friendly. You'd make an great husband for a woman of any era.

Would You Have Been a Good Husband in the 1930s?

Would you?

Writing Prompt

The writing prompt challenge? Set a scene on the night as depicted by the picture. Free write for 10 minutes. The possibilities are endless. Just write. Share, too, if you'd like. :D Have fun.

Kicking and Screaming

...Alrighty then, it's a well known fact that I am Not a Plotter. Nope. Not me. Stymies me, mystifies me, but that doesn't mean I don't see the value in planning. But you wanna see me cross my eyes and get them stuck? Suggest I do an outline. I blame this on the librarian of the school where I attended 5th grade. Her idea of "what to do with the students during library time" was to direct us to get some weird little book and outline it for the duration of the class. Um, yeah. Gotta love those Roman numerals, et al. Joy, yippee, yay and rah! URG.

My planning involves doing a character list, because I know I do things like change the heroine's eye color from blue to hazel and green throughout the WIP. If I have it in a character list, then all I have to do, every single blessed time I wish to inform the reader of the heroine's eye color, is go look it up. Nifty, huh? I also like to keep track of family members, birthdays, secondaries, etc...To me, this constitutes Planning. (Yes, with a capital "P".).

But I'm always open to trying out New Things (or "New *To Me* Things"). Hence when I read about log lines on Edittorrent, I thought, "Yanno, this might be a good thing for us self-confessed Pansters." So I gave it a shot with my current WIP. Nifty neat-O! Next up, I'm going to try it out on with the WIP I intend to commence upon when I finish the current WIP. Oh, heckadoodle, who am I fooling? I've already started the next one somewhat. What I intend to do with the log lines is use them to help me Plot. Yes, I will be kicking and screaming the WHOLE way as I attempt to this manner of Planning, but I'm going to give it the old college try. What can it possibly hurt? I might even find it a very valuable tool.

I will now sit back, wait for Sherry to notice this particular blog post, and watch for her to faint. This should be purty durned good.

Nifty Linkie

So, why reinvent the wheel when one you've found while searching for how-to articles works just fine?

Check out Elisabeth Fairchild's Writing Tips on the topic of is your manuscript ready for submission. It's simple and straightforward, a good tool to keep in mind while revising.

What Should We Write...

So Sherry and I, in a fit of silliness, took a blogthings quiz to see what we should write.

Are you ready for the shocking, unexpected results?

Despite our differences in the way we tackle writing, we are both pleased to discover, thank you to blogthings, that we should be romance novelists.

You Should Be a Romance Novelist

You see the world as it should be, and this goes double for all matters of the heart. You can find the romance in any situation, and you would make a talented romance story writer... And while you may be a traditional romantic, you're just as likely to be drawn to quirky or dark love stories. As long as it deals with infatuation, heartbreak, and soulmates - you could write it.

What Type of Writer Should You Be?

Now that we've had this validated for ourselves, we should feel a tremendous relief, secure in the knowledge that we are indeed writing in the right genre for our personalities.

Perhaps next we'll take the same personality quiz, to find out if we are indeed two different people...or perhaps it will only prove our growing suspicions that we are the SAME person. Huh. If we are the same person, I wonder if half our hair is long and brown and the other half is short and red...and just perzactly how it's been halved...vertically, horizontally? Ack.

Happy Writing!

A Reminder...

Pull on those Big Girl Panties and just write.

Now That's a Good Book!

Isn't that a grand picture? Now, that's a good book. The kind of book every hopeful writer would like to pen.

This is my dream. That someday, women (and men) everywhere, will be propped up in their beds, like the graphic lady above, enthralled by a book I've written.

Mmmm...Now turn out the light and turn off the alarm. I want five more minutes with this dream. Thanks.

The "I DonWanna Blues", Part 2...

Some times pictures are good for getting the creative juices flowing when you're at a loss to write. What sorts of thoughts, feelings, ideas do these images invoke for you? I've written mine by each picture, where does your imagination take you?

Ooo, wouldn't a community barn dance be fun here? He's had his eye on her for a good long time, ever since her family arrived in town during their junior year in high school, ten years ago. After high school, she'd gone to some fancy eastern college, he'd gone to the state university on a football scholarship, now he's home between football seasons (he's gone pro), and she's back to open a badly needed medical clinic. She's not been able to get him out of her mind since high school, either, but she's too shy to approach a handsome, popular man like him. So they circle each other warily during the festive dance, until a common friend decides to take matters into his/her own hands and put on his/her matchmaker hat...


If she had to listen to one more word about how she was wasting her life by remaining unashamedly single, while all her mother's friends' daughters were marrying and reproducing like rabbits, she'd kill something. She had standards. She wasn't going to fall for the first guy who came around the bend who told her how pretty she was. No sirree, she wasn't that naive any longer. A good jog would take her mind of her mother, clear the cobwebs, maybe even work out other kinks she didn't wish to contemplate any more than she had to in her current frame of mind. Didn't help that her body agreed with her mother about needing a man. A deserted road, resplendently decorated by Mother Nature herself suit her just fine, all right. So who was that jogging down the road towards her, infringing upon her space, time and peace of mind? And why did he look familiar?

This place didn't look like it could possibly have been the site of the bloodiest one day battles of the Civil War. Some one hundred and fifty years later, there were some telltale signs, but the peacefulness belied the tragic history. He didn't stop to think about the horror the men who survived and died here witnessed, all that was on his mind was the girl he'd left at home, waiting for him to come home to her. She sure could bake an apple pie fit to make a man think he'd died and gone to heaven. What he'd give for the stingiest of slices of her pie right now. Just remembering the last time he'd had a piece made his mouth water. Oh, boy. Where had the mist come from? Who was this apple pie baker extraordinaire? What caused the gut wrenching regret that tugged on his heart and soul... And awe-some! He hadn't known there was a re-enactment scheduled for today! Something hot caught him in the middle, bringing tears to his eyes as he dropped to his knees. He clapped his hands over his stomach, shocked to encounter a warm, sticky liquid there. The cinnamon-y aroma of freshly baked apple pie overwhelmed him, and when he opened his eyes...

Ack. Now I think I've started three stories I could actually have fun writing. See how well that works? LOLOLOLOLOL.

This concludes our test of the "do a writing prompt" to counter the IDBs. Had this been an actual writing prompt session, I'd've actually named the characters. We now return you to your regularly scheduled IDBs.

The "I DonWanna" Blues...

Ah, the I DonWanna Blues.

Unfortunately, Sherry and I are WAY too familiar with them. Often happens when the Real World and your Writing World collide. Dealing with the I DonWanna Blues can sap the creativity right out of your brain. The causes that contribute to the IDB's include---but are not limited to stress from your day job; family upheaval; sickness (yours or a family members); life in general intruding on your writing time, because let's face it, if you have kids at home, you have built-in writing time intruders right there!

Sure, Sherry and I joke around about being Museless in the context of "I'm ready, willing and able to write, but the feckless Muse has taken a powder for the Bahamas", but there's another, darker side of being Museless.

To avoid a long list, let's simply attribute the IDB's to Stress In General (day job stress, life stress, extraordinary life events) and Life in General (the "What do you mean you've started to recycle your underwear and you think it's time I did the laundry?" or the "You want to eat again? Didn't we just have dinner LAST night?" type things). We all have responsibilities we have to deal with that we have no option about---day in day out Life in General can take it's toll on the Muse, even though we try very hard not to let it. Sometimes, you can't avoid the flu or cold that knocks you off your feet for a week. Can't avoid computer woes...

But what we can avoid is being dragged down by them.

Easier said than done---BTDT, bought the t-shirt. With the IDB's having dogged my steps off and on since the start of the New Year, I decided to brainstorm ideas to help myself get over the IDB's. Here's the list, and if you have anything to add, don't be shy, leave us a comment! Every little bit helps.

Gaining Perspective on the IDB's

1. Make sure you're eating right. This means ditch the crap food and opt for the healthy choices. The occasional chocolate is fine, it just shouldn't be the main course for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

2. Get some exercise. Even if all you're doing is jogging up and down your stairs, or around your house. Take the dog for a walk. Park further from the grocery store doors.

3. Make time to write. Sit down at the computer every day, or whatever your schedule is, and open a WIP. Read it, take notes, research, whatever. Start outlining a new idea. Find a writing prompt and play with that. Blog. Don't count the words, don't watch the clock, just try to write during your usual writing time.

4. If you're sick, then take care of yourself. Get yourself healthy and don't fret about your deadlines. It would be nice if the flu (or whatever) would pay attention to the calendar, but so far, I haven't found that there's really any convenient time to get sick.

5. Open the curtains/blinds/shutters and let some light in. If it's gloomy outside, turn on a light. Bright seems to help elevate the mood.

6. Light a fragranced candle. Pick a nice scent you love, put the candle in the best place in the house for it to send it's delicious aroma throughout all your rooms, and enjoy.

7. Turn on some music. Pick something with a good beat. Nothing "dirge-ish." Don't cater to the IDB's, you're trying to chase them away, not help them root.

8. Watch your favorite romantic movie. You never know where you'll find inspiration.

9. Re-read your favorite book (that's not of the same genre you're writing! This seems to be important when I do this, because it's hard to compare apples and oranges.)

10. Decide to give into the IDB's, but give yourself a time limit. No more than a few days. Cater to your mental, physical and emotional health---the well-being there of, not the wallowing in the IDB's.

11. Ask yourself, do you wanna run your life (and your writing) or do you want to be driven by the I Donwanna Blues? They happen, inevitably, but envision them as the mole in the Whack-a-Mole game, and beat the tarnation out of them with a club.

12. Stay in touch with your friends, writing buddies and CPs---yanno, the special people in your life.

Quest For Conflict

Sherry and I are on a Quest for Conflict. For our WIPs, that is.

We both need a brush up on this concept, and what better way to learn than to utilize the resources on the internet to do this? Oh, and the conflict book I have on a shelf somewhere. (Makes mental note to go find said book.)

Sherry sent me an email this morning with the following tip she'd found: "...got a tip on conflict that I like. Said put your h/H in a room. Forget external conflict, subplots, secondary characters, everything. Face them together and ask, "Why can't you be together? What do you have inside of you, that won't allow you to get with this person?""

I thought this was a terrific place to start the Quest for Conflict and from there, I decided to google "creating conflict in romance novels". WOW! Tremendous resources out there! And because we're on another quest to improve our writing, I decided to put a mini-workshop on conflict together, based on what I learn from each website. And to keep it handy for us both (and anyone else who's interested), I'm going to create a Squidoo page dedicated solely to creating conflict in romance novels.

**Pardon me while I insert this commercial break to plug my Squidoo sites. I love Squidoo---it's a great way to create a webpage on your interests, or what you're knowledgable about, and have it in a handy dandy easily accessible place. To date, I've created 3 Writefield Squidoo pages, which you can see here on the first page: Writing Romance Novels. The other Writefield pages are: The Mechanics of Writing Romance Novels and Revising and Aditing. in the featured lenses module). Creating Conflict in Romance Novels will be http://www.squidoo.com/writefield4, but I'm still putting it together, so the link won't be live until later today (2-19-09). Commercial break now over.**

Here are links to the articles I read on creating conflict in romance novels.

Conflict and Resolution in the Romance Novel by Linda Shertzer A summary: Excellent article examining ways to create conflict. Best suggestion: make the hero and the heroine's goals the SAME. The author goes on to explain that there's the apparent conflict and the underlying conflict that need to be resolved. Ms. Shertzer wrote, "In setting out the apparent conflict of your novel, you must always keep in mind the underlying conflict. Just as the romantic relationship develops, the underlying conflict must be revealed bit by bit. In the apparent conflict lie the seeds for the resolution of the underlying conflict." (2-19-09; Conflict and Resolution in the Romance Novel by Linda Shertzer; http://www.writing-world.com/romance/conflict.shtml) When the hero and the heroine have the same goal (but different approaches to attaining said goal), no one comes out the loser in the resolution, thereby avoiding turning the hero into a wimp (when he loses) or the overbearing macho know-it-all male (when he wins.).

Creating Emotional Conflict and Tension in a Romance Novel @ Dummies.com This article discusses the difference of intellectual conflict and emotional conflict: "...the distinction between emotional and intellectual conflict is easy to make... Simply put, an intellectual conflict is a conflict of ideas, while an emotional conflict is one that grows from feelings." (2-19-09; Creating Emotional Conflict and Tension in a Romance Novel; http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/creating-emotional-conflict-and-tension-in-a-roman.html). The article notes that intellectual conflict starts in the mind, whereas emotional conflict has no basis in logic and "can't be reasoned away." (See above citation)."In any romance novel, the emotional conflict needs to affect the hero and heroine's relationship, to have romantic ramifications, so that they're irresistibly drawn toward each other, while simultaneously feeling that a relationship can't possibly work between them." "You can use elements of intellectual conflict in your book, too, but you have to be careful. Keep these two tips in mind:
Intellectual conflict can never be substituted for emotional conflict.
Relate any elements of intellectual conflict to the characters' emotional conflict as much as possible."(2-19-09; Creating Emotional Conflict and Tension in a Romance Novel; http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/creating-emotional-conflict-and-tension-in-a-roman.html). This article also discusses internal and external conflict and personal vs situational conflict. "Personal conflicts are conflicts that grow from the innate issues and insecurities that everyone has." "A situational conflict arises from place and plot." . "As with intellectual and external conflicts, situational conflict can work with the key emotional tension your hero and heroine have to deal with, but situational conflict can never substitute for emotional conflict. Situational conflict can provide the hothouse atmosphere where tension can grow, but the novel's deeper issues are always the characters' personal and emotional conflicts." (2-19-09; Creating Emotional Conflict and Tension in a Romance Novel; http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/creating-emotional-conflict-and-tension-in-a-roman.html). The final tip of the article is one that should be committed to memory: "The best romances are built around a complex emotional conflict that's played out in an equally interesting and tightly connected context — one that forces the characters to deal with each other and their issues." (2-19-09; Creating Emotional Conflict and Tension in a Romance Novel; http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/creating-emotional-conflict-and-tension-in-a-roman.html).

Conflict in Fiction By Tina Morgan Two things from this article really stood out for me: "In many cases, the conflict within the story is the driving force towards the story goal. The need to overcome the conflict is often the central focus of the hero. The means to overcome that same conflict can then become a path to victory for the protagonist." (2-19-09; Conflict in Fiction By Tina Morgan; http://www.fictionfactor.com/articles/conflict.html). Yes, we should already know that conflict is what drives the story to its conclusion, but it's always good to be reminded. "Romance novels require the primary conflict to involve two people struggling with a romantic relationship with/without sexual tension. By this, I mean the type of conflict that touches the reader emotionally, rather than intellectually - really "tugs at the heart-strings". (2-19-09; Conflict in Fiction By Tina Morgan; http://www.fictionfactor.com/articles/conflict.html). Another good point to keep firmly in mind.

Making a Minefield by Ellen Hartman This is an article on eharlequin's Learn to Write thread, and deals mostly with how to write a Superromance, but there were a few points about conflict that caught my attention. The first being Ms. Hartman's assertion that, "Romance novels live or die on conflict." (2-19-09; Making a Minefield by Ellen Hartman; http://www.eharlequin.com/articlepage.html?articleId=1342&chapter=0). I think I'm going to put that at the top of my list when I get to construction a "Creating Conflict in Romance" page on Squidoo. It's the best statement about conflict in romance novels I've seen yet, and I've looked at several articles through the course of the day as I've worked on this blog post. The author goes on further in the article to say that the conflict must impact the romance.

So there you have it--- a run down on the articles I found most helpful, and yes, while much of the information does strike me as falling into the "You Should Already KNOW This," category, it's also good to be reminded so that it works its way deep into the ol' braincell. Now that I've stuffed my braincell with all this information, it's time to put it to good use.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day Comments

Sherry said an interesting thing to me the other afternoon as we were IMing. She said that my Muse performs on command.

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! GASP!!WHEEZE!!!CHOKE!!!!

I'm delighted SHE thinks so. I think what we have here in another stellar example of Panster vs. Plotter writing styles. Unlike Sherry, I don't necessarily have to know what's coming around the pike, nor do I have the need to dissect my character's motivations before I can continue with a scene. My take on it is this: as long as I feel I'm "on track" all is good. My WIPs go through many stages, so I believe my rough draft can be ugly, hairy, scary, and it's a-okay. It's the final draft that counts, and I've found I best write in layers: you lay the primer layer, the base coat, the second coat (for full-bodied color), and the shiny layer (the one where you make sure it's all purty, all the plot holes are filled, loose ends are tied, the story concludes satisfactorily...). It all works out in the end for me.

Now then, I do try to be sympathetic to Sherry's method. I even try to understand it (it's kinda like algebra to me, however) and do my best to brainstorm with her in a way that feeds her creative style. I don't know if I'm successful, but I like to think I am. Sherry does try to understand my method, too, even if when I breezily say, "Well, that will come in the next round" and her eyes cross and her eyebrows join together in the middle.


So, back to my Muse performing on command. This is the mental image Sherry's comment left me with:



I've always wanted to name my Muse, and now she has a name, thanks to Sherry. It's *Prima* (as in *Prima Ballerina*, the Dancing Bear).

Knee Pads and Buckets

Since Sherry and I are pretty much interchangeable, here's a picture of us. Sherry has long hair, Laura's hair is red---see how well we mesh? LOLOLOLOLOL

Because we're In This Together, we've both joined the ranks of Contest Contestants. (Is that redundant? I'm worried I'm repeating myself.) Luckily for us, we aren't competing against each other (perish the thought!), we've entered two different contests, but we're both wishing we had knee pads for huddling over the hurk bucket.

Nervous?

Us?

Whyever would we be nervous? With our e-publisher closing doors, we're back to hitting the pavement, as it were. What's so nerve-wracking about that? Rejection? Seeing other entries that we know are Better Than Ours? Have another neurosis. What's a little insecurity, obessesion/compulsion, and angst amongst friends?

So, here are the knee pads and some extra buckets. (I call dibs on the pink one, because it will clash with my hair.) This is going to be a long, delightful, nailbiting year.

2009...