Visions of Success For 2011 (or "Is This a Vision in My Mind?"*)

*With apologies to Stevie Wonder

Tip of the Day: I read 177 books this year. Want to see my favorite three? Click on my LiveJournal link.

Happy 2011, Readers! Hope your New Year has kicked off right. I'm glad to have survived the shortest day of the year and am happy to be back posting on A2A! It also means that the publishing peeps in NYC are coming back to work!

We're talking about our writerly visions for 2011. Some of you may recall my completely failed and derailed goals from last year. Um, yeah, new approach this year:

1. First, to be literal, I am envisioning myself:

a. writing with excitement and enjoyment every time I sit down in front of Word, and
b. being able to write harder books with new skills (for the YA with alternating time period chaps, and the YA with two first-person povs I've got percolating).

2. I'm visualizing my YA PfF going out into editor world, and I'm hoping that editors will love reading this book as much as I enjoyed writing it.

3. I'd like my labor of love YA, SDT, that I worked on at the Falling Leaves Retreat in November, to reach the point where it's ready for the light of editor world.

(Hey, I can't be Miss Subbing for Pubbing without putting it out there for this (3.) and (2.) above!)

4. I have a vision of preparing two YA book proposals for my agent (the ones alluded to in (1.a.) above).

5. For A2A, I see weeks of fun post, collaboration with my writing peeps, and all new interviews and guest posts -- another great year!

6. I'd like to read 200 books in 2011, but with an impending wedding and honeymoon to plan and attend, I won't be too sad if I don't reach it again this year. :)

Anyone else planning a wedding on top of writing and working this year? ;-)

Deena, Miss Subbing for Pubbing

Emily decides to go with the flow

Tip of the Day: hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and Happy New Year!

For the past two years the new year has felt like a new beginning. Big things seemed to be in store; so much so that I could almost feel it in my bones. The anticipation of the year kicked off in January with a bang. At the time, I had thought some of it might be writing related. But in actuality much of it had to do with changes in my personal life, two big moves, a new job, turning the big 3-0, and lots of other fun stuff.

But this year? To be honest, I kind of didn’t realize it was the New Year. Sure I watched the ball drop in Time Square on TV like I do every year, but this year hasn’t really felt different at all yet. It is only January 4. So maybe this year has just been slow to start. We’ll see.

I’ve never been one to make formal New Year’s resolutions, mainly because in my personal life I’m not much of a planner. Instead, I’ve had things I’d like to accomplish throughout the year and a general game plan in the back of my head of how to get there. Writing-wise I might even have a general to-do list, but not really formal resolutions. This year is no exception.

I love Kate’s idea of having a word for the year. Going off of the only word I can think of for the year is to go with the flow. So I guess that’s four words for me this year.

I’d love to finally finish one of the books I’ve been working on and actually submit it. I don’t even want to look at the calendar and try to figure out how long it’s been since I’ve submitting anything to agents (definitely haven’t lived up to my Miss Querylicious name in the past two years). Writing has definitely taken a back seat in my life while I’m pursuing other hobbies and furthering my other career. However, it’s still important to me, and for that reason I would like to move forward a little this year. Continue to grow in my writing and continue to find enjoyment out of it.

I also wish for world peace and a wonderful vacation this year, but somehow I don’t think resolutions are supposed to work like wishes (or are they?).

But I guess that’s the fun part of starting a new year, in that you have the choice to do whatever you want and put the work in to make your dreams become a reality.

I love that with life you often aren’t finished with anything and how often the journey is just as important as the destination. When I started writing five years ago (wow, has it been that long?), I never imagined I would still be writing just for the fun of it, with no book contract or anything. It’s not how I would have planned it, but it’s been a fun journey nonetheless and I wouldn’t change it. Otherwise it wouldn’t be my journey.

Good luck in the new year to all of those with resolutions, goals to accomplish, books to write, and for those of us just going with the flow and trying to find enjoyment out of life.

Emily, Miss "To Be Determined"

Revamps and Reboots: Get Ready for 2011!

Tip of the Day: How did you celebrate the New Year? I watch SyFy's Twilight Zone marathon every year for some of the best writing (and most memorable plot twists) on television.

We're starting out 2011 with a new look and a new format here at Author2Author. We're very excited about our new ideas for Fun Fridays. Every Friday, we'll have a guest blogger, or an interview, or something fresh, fun, and different! And we're starting off this Friday with a BANG with a Sarah Dessen giveaway, so be sure to "tune in" this week for more details.

What else is in store for 2011? Personally, I've been facing some challenges in my family life, my career, and my writing life. I don't make resolutions, but I pick a word for the year. This year, the word I've chosen as my 2011 guide is "self-confidence."

In 2010, I chose "love" and that worked out well. I spent a lot of time with my husband and children and did my best to keep those relationships strong. How will self-confidence shake out? With more self-confidence, will I take more risks, send out more writing to agents and editors, and believe that I can be a writer? Hey, how do you get this magic "self-confidence" anyway?

I like this quote from A Year of Creativity by Brenda Mallon: "Celebrate the fact that the health, looks, and personality that you inherited have sustained you until now and have given you joy."

2011 will be a year like no other. I've never felt so much like I'm starting over. I hope you'll join us as we continue our journeys as writers--a journey that never ends.

-- Kate, Miss Perfecting the Pages

So long, farewell - it's been a great three years!!

Tip of the Day: Although the Author2Author blog will be dark for the next two weeks so the holidays can be fully enjoyed, make sure you come back and visit on January 3rd, where the blog will have some exciting new changes and a fun giveaway to kick the new year off right!


It's been THREE years since Tina, Emily, Kate and Deena invited me to be a part of this blog. Can you believe it? At that time, I was looking forward to my debut novel, I HEART YOU, YOU HAUNT ME releasing in January.

Since then, I've published three more novels, with two more coming out next year. I've quit my day job and, for the time being, am making a go at being a full-time author. I don't know how long it will last, but I'm enjoying it while I can.

It's been wonderful sharing the last three years with my friends here at Author2Author and all of YOU! In some ways, it feels like just yesterday when I was looking forward to my debut novel releasing and in other ways, it feels like a lifetime ago. Some things I've learned these past few years:

• The waiting never stops. There is ALWAYS waiting - waiting for revisions, waiting to see the cover, waiting for the advance check, waiting to hear on a new project, waiting, waiting, waiting. If you can do one thing, figure out how to deal with the endless amount of waiting there is in this business. 

•  There will always be people who have it better than you. Don't waste time and energy comparing yourself to others, wishing someone else's story could be your story. Trust that you are on the right path for YOU, and that things happen for a reason. It's hard to imagine, but we often become grateful for the disappointments we experience today, even if it's because they make us stronger.

• Have people you can talk to privately about your frustrations. This is a hard business. Brutal at times. Have friends you can e-mail or call when you want to scream or cry, because most of the time, it's not a good idea to do it on-line for the world to see. And remember to have a life outside of your writing life too. That way, I think it's easier to swallow the disappointment because you have other happy things going on in your life to focus on. As Sara Zarr so eloquently said one time in an interview with Cynthia Leitich Smith, "A book is a wonderful, miraculous thing. But in some sense, it's also just a book."

• When it comes to social networking, do what you love and what you have time for. I don't think you should do so much that you sacrifice other things, like writing time or family time. After all, there's no real proof that shows social networking makes any significant difference in sales. Do it because you enjoy it and anything beyond that is icing on the cupcake. If it starts to feel like it's too much, it's perfectly okay to step back, evaluate priorities, and make changes as necessary.

And on that note, I want to let you know I have done exactly that, and as a result, this is my last blog post here at Author2Author. With a blog of my own, an agent who asks me to participate from time to time on her blog, and The Contemps blog that I am heavily involved with, I have to figure out how to free up some time because writing books must remain my number one priority. So it is with some sadness that I'm stepping down from the Author2Author blog. 

But before I go, I want to say thank you to Kate, Emily, Deena and Tina for letting me be a part of this blog for the past three years. It's been a WONDERFUL experience, and I'm so glad to have gotten to know you not just as writers, but as people. I consider each of you my friends, and you better stay in touch!!!

As for you, dear blog readers, I'm sure I'll see you around the web. It is a small internet world, after all. Keep reading. Keep writing. Keep believing!!

Signing off and wishing you the happiest of holidays,

Lisa, Miss Crafting a Career

I Wish You a Yummy Coffee Drink

Tip of the Day: My super cool husband made me a book trailer for The Espressologist! Check it out.

I love this time of year! All of the decorating, shopping, cookie making, AND yummy coffee drinks! I’m going to share a fave around my house: Egg Nog Lattes!

Kristina’s YUMMY Egg Nog Latte

1) Combine ½ cup of egg nog with ¼ cup of milk in a steaming pitcher.

2) Pour the steamed egg nog/milk into a mug.

3) Make two shots of espresso.

4) Pour the shots of espresso into the mug of milk.

5) Stir.

6) Garnish drink with a pinch of nutmeg.

It’s soooooo good! Here’s a picture of one I made my hubby.

You’ve gotta try it!

I hope you and your families have a WONDEFUL holiday! And, keep an eye out for THE ESPRESSOLOGIST. It should be in paperback in stores on January 4^th, 2011!

Kristina, Miss See Me on the Shelves

Revision Version 5.9 Complete (or "Every Day I Wrote the Book*)

*with apologies to Elvis Costello

Tip of the Day: Eat lunch BEFORE baking holiday cookies.

Just in time to prepare for holiday goodness, I finished my revisions on PF and sent the ms off to my agent!

Some of you may recall this post where I figured out how to fix a bunch of stuff with a few "easy" steps.

After that revision, I sent the ms to fresh eyes for another read and received excellent feedback and suggestions from that reader as well. I incorporated those needed changes into the ms, and voila! Done with this round.

Will it be enough? Stay tuned to find out -- and cross your fingers for me. :)

Deena, Miss Subbing for Pubbing

Best of Em--MG vs. YA

For the next few weeks, I'll be re-posting some old posts, as I take a break during my move, for the holidays, and to recharge.

Happy Holidays, everyone!

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

MG vs. YA

Tip of the Day: try to enjoy the nice weather, while it lasts!

Most of us at A2A have dabbled in writing both Middle Grade fiction and Young Adult. They seem so similar, but yet so far apart. The reading level for an average 9-year old versus a 13-year old is vastly different, and at the same time much of their interests differ as well.

Trying to write my first MG novel, I've found I'm enjoying discovering the differences between the two writing styles and getting into the head of a younger character.

So far, here's where I've found these two writing styles differ (at least in my own writing):

• MG has to be a bit speedier. With shorter chapters and a quicker plot. Most 9-year olds get distracted very easily and if you don't keep them constantly entertained they might put the book down. At the same time, 9-year olds tend to have slightly more energy and your characters need to reflect that as well.
• You can have more fun with strange characters. I think younger readers are more forgiving of the unusual and quirky characters and tend to enjoy them.
• You're plots can be even more far-fetched. This is the case with YA too (as are all these bullet points), but I think you can go even further and push the limits with MG fiction. The crazier the plot, the more enjoyable and fun the book could be.
• Friendship is really important at this age.
• Parents play a bigger role in MG fiction than YA fiction.
• The romance definitely has to be light if there is one.
  

These are ever changing points and things I'm picking up, but what do you all notice in the differences in MG and YA? With so many cross-over genre books for these age-ranges, there's so many different types of books out there. There's definitely something for everyone to read and write.

--Emily, Miss Querylicious