Collecting Advice

How many times have I mentioned putting my stories together into a collection? Five? Twenty? More than that? Sheesh. (Apparently the Year of Yes has turned into the Year of Hemming and Hawing.)

I'm not usually this much of a procrastinator. The project just feels so...daunting to me. Between the technology learning curve and the marketing aspect and the potential for more rejection makes me want to duck my head back under the pages of my slow-moving tortoise of a novel-in-progress. (And honestly, Larry and the Mrs. move faster than me and my work.) 

But enough is enough. My flash fiction collection will be out by the end of this year (come on, I need some sort of cushion!), hopefully by the end of the summer. 

Many of you have already done this or something similar, and I would so appreciate any thoughts, advice, or tips on the subject, whether about e-publishing or choosing a cover or arranging the stories or promoting it. Feel free to comment or, if you'd rather, go ahead and email me at: 

MadelineMora-Summonte (at) hotmail (dot) com.  

Thank you all!

Motivational Monday

THE WORST THING ABOUT READING NEW BOOKS

IS THAT THEY KEEP US FROM READING THE OLD ONES.

(Joseph Joubert)

I want to re-read Stephen King's It and The Long Walk. I want to re-read Betty Smith's A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and Larry McMurtry's Lonesome Dove and Maeve Binchy's Evening Class. 

But I also want to read all the new books on my Goodreads To Read Shelf and everything on my TBR list. 

A friend of mine once said that when she realized she'd never be able to read all the books in the world that she wanted to, she started to cry. I know the feeling. 

How do you choose what book to read when? How do you find the time to read and to re-read? What are some old favorites you want to go back to?

Year of Yes - October to January

Back in October, I decided I was going to start saying "yes" more - to new things, to different opportunities, etc. I call it my Year of Yes - check out the original post here - and the goal is to do 40 different things. Different for me, anyway. I know a lot of people might see these things and think "big whoop" but for me, any step outside of my comfort zone - no matter how small! - is progress.

So, here are a few of my Yes moments:

* I decided not to do National Novel Writing Month - the first time I haven't done it in many years - and instead said "yes" to continuing writing and revising a previous manuscript.

* I stopped the Off The Shelf Challenge 2012. This was not easy because once I say I'm going to do something I try very hard to, you know, actually do it. But this challenge started to feel too much like homework.

* I took an art class called "Discover the World of Collage Art." This was something I wanted to do for awhile now and I finally just did it - and I'm so glad I did!

* I tried some new Thai food - fried tofu. I've had tofu before and never cared much for it, but I figured how bad could it be fried and dipped in sweet and sour sauce and topped with chopped peanuts? Yeah, well, I figured WRONG. 

* I usually stay up past midnight on New Year's Eve, even if it's only until 12:05 am, and watch the ball drop in Times Square. This year, I stayed up - my husband and I were finishing up a Harry Potter movie marathon - but I did not watch the ball drop. Did. Not. I have watched that thing drop every year since I was first allowed to stay up. I felt like a rebel. I felt sort of like Hermione Granger when she starts breaking the rules in one of the earlier HP movies.

* I watched ice cream being made right in front of me using the power of liquid nitrogen. It was very cool - ha ha! Get it? - and something I'm definitely going to remember when the temps reach the upper 90s this summer. 

And there you have it. Nothing too exciting or extreme - no jumping out of planes or shaving my head. And, although I'm happy with my progress overall so far, I'm also a little disappointed. I've been very focused on writing these past four-five months and keeping my head down and plowing through some other things. But I think I need to look up once in awhile and get out there a bit more. Hopefully my next update will be more exciting.

How about you all? Have you done anything different so far this year? Are you planning on it? Taking a class you've always wanted to try? Going somewhere different? Saying "no" to something when you usually say "yes"?

Very Inspiring Blogger Award

Just when I needed a bit of an ego boost, the talented Simon Kewin bestowed upon me a Very Inspiring Blogger Award. He's a big fan of the Motivational Monday posts, which thrills me to no end.

So, I'm supposed to share seven facts about myself. Hmm, let's see if I can come up with something A) interesting and B) something I haven't told you all already... Here goes!

1) One of my favorite pairs of shoes ever were a pair of pink and gray Converse high tops. I wore them with my high school uniform. (Classy, I know.)

2) I find myself hooked on the TV shows "Nashville" and "Scandal." (I find this odd because I'm not really into country music or politics.)

3) I still have my teddy bear and Raggedy Ann dolls from when I was a kid.

4) I have a huge collection of seashells and other beach miscellanea.

5) I give myself a pep talk before most social encounters. 

6) When my husband and I were dating, I pretended to not be nervous about going on a really high roller coaster because I wanted him to think I was brave. (That was dumb for a number of reasons, but especially because we'd been friends for three years before that so he pretty much already knew I was a chicken.)

7) It might seem to others that I say "no" easily and quickly, but believe me, a lot of agonizing and consideration and weighing the pros and cons goes on before I do. 

I'm also supposed to pass this on to seven other bloggers who inspire me, but I'm not going to do that because I think a lot of you have already received this award - and rightly so! - and I honestly couldn't pick just seven. You all inspire me in different ways - whether it's through laughs, advice, encouragement, or book reviews, etc. I am grateful to all of you for brightening my blogging days!

Motivational Monday

THE DICTIONARY IS THE ONLY PLACE THAT

SUCCESS COMES BEFORE WORK.

(Vince Lombardi)

Most of the people in this world we consider "successes" didn't get that way by chance. They usually worked their butts off to achieve whatever it is we respect them for. No matter what that is - losing weight, making a ton of money, running a marathon, starting a business, quitting smoking - it took guts and nerves and stamina and many, many long hard hours of labor and doubt and fear before those goals were reached and recognized by the rest of us.  

How many times have you heard someone say, "Oh, she just got lucky" or "He's an overnight success" or "Why can't that [good thing] happen to me? It's not fair!" I admit, I used to say those things, especially when I was younger. But then I started looking behind the successes and really seeing what it took to get there. It was then I realized I'm on that road myself...along with you all and anyone else who's striving for something, who's challenging themselves, who's pushing for better, to do better.  

Sure, it's a long road but at least we're not traveling alone. We've got each other. 

Mrs. Drake's Monsters - Every Day Fiction

Hmm, a Valentine's Day horror story?

Maybe.

Maybe not.

The only way to find out for sure is to head on over to Every Day Fiction and read "Mrs. Drake's Monsters" for yourselves.

I hope you enjoy it!

The Craft of Fiction Part 2

Here's the continuation of Mark Bacon's interview with three flash fiction writers - "Humor, Point of View, Endings: They're All Important in Flash Fiction."

And since I am one of the three writers, I really hope you enjoy the interview, and please feel free to comment or ask questions either here or over at Mark's blog.  

(To read Part 1 - "Three Flash Fiction Writers from Across the US Tell How They Create Tiny Stories" - just click on the link at the top of this post then scroll down. You'll see it in no time.)