Anew in November

We can finally open the windows in our house now and let the crisp, cooler air blow through, moving out and away some of the mental health issues that plagued the last couple of months. A combination of things became a slow slide I struggled to stop. 

 

But, once again, I've regrouped. My birthday was last month, and I'm grateful for another year, another chance to breathe fresh air, to walk with my husband beneath palm trees and blue skies, to pet the tortoises, and to pen the possibilities – the light and the dark - living in my imagination.

 

WRITING

I was thrilled to be one of three winners in a recent flash fiction contest held by lit agent, Janet Reid! I so needed that creative boost. Here's the link to the results post where you can read all three stories.

 

It's been a few years since I participated in NaNo, and I considered it this time around, but I don't have the oomph for it. I'm doing my own looser version in order to get this novel/novella done or as close to done as I can before the month is over. Please wish me luck!

 

 

READING

Both THE TRAP by Catherine Ryan Howard and THE LAST ONE by Will Dean were so suspenseful and twisty, I almost got paper cuts I turned those pages so fast and furious. 

 

I thoroughly enjoyed the debut novel, THE VIOLIN CONSPIRACY by Brendan Slocumb. It's a tense mystery whose characters practically jump off the page. 

 

*****

 

Are you enjoying the weather where you are? Read anything amazing lately? Any writing goals or goals in general for this month? If you're participating in NaNo, I wish you all the luck and all the words! 

When Icy is a Compliment

It's no secret I've been in a bit of a creative slump lately. Blame it on the heat. Blame it on the second season of Netflix's GLOW being over. Blame it on Ben and Jerry. Blame it on the old guy on the next treadmill who runs faster than I ever will (unless I'm chasing Ben and Jerry.)

Whatever the case, I had to do something. So when literary agent Janet Reid ran another flash fiction contest recently, instead of whining to the tortoises - again! - that I have no business being a writer, I pulled on my Minion pajama pants and got going.

I wrote with no expectations. I wanted to experiment, to reach. I wanted to stretch and tone that flabby creative muscle.

My entry made the finals.

The always encouraging and supportive Reiders rooted for my work.

Ms. Reid blew me away with her comments about my story.

And . . . I won!

I'm not sure who's happier - me or the tortoises. (After all, I can - and do - whine a lot.)

*****

For the contest, we had a maximum limit of 100 words and had to include the following - city, lie, sam, hawke, woo hoo. If you'd like to read all the finalists, click here. My story and Ms. Reid's comments (in blue) are below. 

Deer Momma

I shouldn't open the door when your working, but Mister Sam
said it was an emrgenz. The city is full of flew bugs!

We're going someplace safe, sekret. He'll keep a hawk eye on
me until you come. He's a nabor, not a stranger so it's okay. And I scarred of bugs.

Missus Woo came, yelled NO GO! ALL LIES! Missus Woo hooked
her fingers into claws, scratched Mister Sam's face! They fighted until she fell down asleep.

Mister Sam screamed HURRY! so I am.

Don't be scarred, Momma. See you soon!

Your sun Marty

This made me gasp out loud.  The story is icy, but what elevates this is that it's written in a vernacular of sorts, but you still understand every word. That's not as easy as it looks. 

This Certainly Looks Like A Lot Of Words

The title of this post comes from an episode of Seinfeld, and it's one of my favorite J. Peterman moments -

And it pretty much explains my November. I moved though National Novel Writing Month mostly slow and steady, like a tortoise. Occasionally, I wrote fast and furious, like a tortoise attacking a basil plant (I'm looking at you, Larry!) I ended up with a "win" and a pretty solid draft. I have a beginning, a middle, and an end - something I haven't achieved during my last few NaNo attempts. I actually have a story.

Speaking of words and stories, I don't know about you, but I love to get and to give books as gifts. Maria Zannini has A Gift Guide for The Reader over on her blog. (You might recognize one or two of the authors listed!)

So, here we are at the beginning of December. If you started a project - a story, a novel, revisions, classes, an art project, a goal of some sort - way back in the beginning of November, you now have something that did not exist before. You created something new, and that is awesome! You won, too! 🏆

Happy December, everyone!

Back from Camp!

Whew! I've returned from Camp NaNo with a backpack stuffed with over 51,000 words, a compass, a glow stick and the mug you see pictured above. 

Unfortunately, I also have a manuscript with no ending, enough plot threads to weave myself some sort of poncho, and characters who appear in early chapters who are never heard from again. (Maybe the Chupacabra got them?)

So, as I sort through all these things - some dirty and smelly, some shiny and bright - spilling out of my backpack, I think about what to do now, what to do next...

First things first - keep the tortoises away from the s'mores . . .   

Second thing - fill up my mug with some good strong coffee . . .

Third thing - grab up my glow stick and compass and dive back in. The next time you see me, I'll either have a pretty good draft of my manuscript or I'll be sporting a snazzy plot thread poncho.

How's your summer going? How's your writing and reading coming along?

And the Winner is . . .

JILLIAN!!!!

Congratulations! Email me (MadelineMora-Summonte (at) hotmail (dot) com) your mailing address and I'll get your signed trade paperback copy of Lauren Oliver's Before I Fall out to you right away.

And the Winner is...

The winner of the giveaway is . . .        

SALLY!!!!!

Sally, I hope you enjoy this novel as much as I did. And thank you to all of you who commented. I hope THE HOMECOMING OF SAMUEL LAKE by Jenny Wingfield gets added to many, many Books-To-Read lists.

Sally, send me an email (MadelineMora-Summonte (at) hotmail (dot) com with your address and I'll get your book out to you as soon as possible.  :) 

And the Winner is . . .

STACY!!!!!

Congratulations, Stacy!!! I hope you enjoy IT'S A BOOK as much as I do. Just shoot me an email with your address and I'll get your book out to you soon.

Oh, and everyone keep an eye out for another giveaway coming in March...