I've been working on Friends with Benefits to start off the Sweat70. I'd always intended it to be short, so I finished it up, and I've spent the weekend going over it, editing, polishing, then writing the dreaded synopsis.
No "Hey Ed, I've got this great story, its about this, and that, and they do this while doing that, wanna take a read?" this time around. I'm sending it somewhere new. So that means cover letters, full synopsis etc etc.
Do you know how hard it is to write a synopsis when you totally pantsed the whole manuscript? Crap (amongst other bad words) was heard quite a bit around our house yesterday. I've never quite known if what I'm doing is right when it comes to a synopsis. Am I not being exact enough, do I need to be more blow-by-blow, am I being too blow-by-blow? It's as confusing as hell because everyone has a different opinion on it -- who's advice do you take?
Hopefully I've been doing something right -- after all I've managed to sell 3 books thus far -- surely someone would have said your synopsis suck arse by now ... wouldn't they?
So it's done, the emails sent, and tomorrow I have to start on something new for the Sweat70 while I wait, chewing my non-existent nails till I hear back on the new sub. Wish me luck!
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Synopsis, the pansters worst nightmare
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Anne D
at
5:11 PM
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Labels: 70 days of sweat, manuscript, menage, publishing, submissions
Thursday, February 01, 2007
No Midsummer Heat for me
Oh well, you have to be in to win, right?
I was however encouraged to expand the story and send it back. And they're right. Red Skirt, Cool Fountain really begged to be longer.
So I guess that's what I'll do. You know, I don't seem to be having much luck with shorter length stories. I think I might make a resolution - if its less than 25k, it doesn't go anywhere. (Well, other than the sequel I want to write for PV for next Xmas telling Nick's story, I don't think that's going to be a long one).
My trouble is that I can't plan for shit - well I can, but at the end, it's just not right. Instead, I sit down with a ghost of a story in my head and just start and see where it takes me. I guess that's organic writing, is it? I'm not exactly up with the play with all the writing jargon, I just write and figure it out as I go.
That wasn't what happened with McCabes2 - I planned it all out, and it didn't come off right. And instead of being on McCabes3 by now, I haven't sat back down to pick apart McCabes2 to send it back to B. But I will.
Hell I might do it this weekend while I'm away with the girls. It's supposed to be a scrapbooking weekend, but I usually take a book and the laptop (I'm a tech geek of course it goes with me! I don't do all that journaling by hand - are you kidding me?). But maybe I will conflab with the girls and get some inspiration.
Lucky there is no Internet at the cabin, there could be some wild and wacky blog posts come Sat night if there was - we usually have a daquari or colada or three. LOL, It sounds like I'm a rolling drunk, but seriously I'm not - I just appreciate that sometimes a good glass of wine or something enitely too fruity can be good for you :)
On a different note, I went all PC today and got one of these (it's a (PRODUCT) RED so part of the sales prices goes to fighting Aids in Africa) :
It's just a pity that the reason why I got this new piece of geekery was because of the little shits who stole my purdy green mini out of my bright orange Honda Element (aka The Pumpkin) - hrmm, I might wear black all the time but I like colour in my life, go figure! (the dayglow pink hair clashed a bit though).
They better watch out though, we are heartily sick and tired of the 'gift's' being left on our doorstep and front lawn, and the congregating on our driveway when we are out - we are getting spy cams. You bet your ass we are going to get the little fuckers.
Oops, ranting just a little bit wasn't I? Sorry 'bout that.
One of my sisters is a CP of mine (shes my 'average reader, this shit doesn't work for me' person). I had emailed Accidentally Were? off to her for an opinion. She IM'd me yesterday (or was it the day before, this week is a bit blurry - hence no TT 13 this week) and told me that she liked it - she hadn't finished what I had sent her yet, in fact she was only at chapter 3, but she was laughing so hard she had to stop reading so she didn't go to work looking like a racoon. That bodes well, because AW is supposed to be laugh out loud funny. Tell me what you think:
“Where are we going?” The small voice from the other side of the cab broke Rex from his reverie. “And why are we going there?” He was starting to smell her fear over the pervading scent of the woman’s heat.
“You are kidding me, aren’t you little Bitch. I’m taking you somewhere safe before the pack descends on you and you end up in the middle of a winner takes all orgy.”
It didn’t take any special were senses to feel or see her bristle with indignation.
“What did you just call me?” Her shoulders were back, her spine ramrod straight and there was a furious red flush across her cheeks and Rex was finding it increasingly difficult to concentrate on the dirt road as it wound through the forest. “You need your eye’s checked mister! For one, I am obviously not little, and two, I am not a bitch! You can accuse me of being overly prim and proper, because I am, I can’t help it with my parents. But don’t you ever call me a bitch!”
She was winding up good and proper now, to really yell at him. It was a breath taking sight to behold, and Rex was no slouch at appreciating an attractive woman, even if she was more riled than a rattlesnake.
“I let loose for one night, one bloody night in thirty-one years, and wake up alone; ‘cause my one night stand obviously couldn’t leave fast enough, four hickeys; complete with bite marks.” The tall lace collar of her blouse was ripped down to expose two of the fore-mentioned love bites. “Then, every damned stray in town wants to hump my leg, and now, now I have been kidnapped by a huge, sexy, bear of a man, who calls me a bitch instead of asking my actual name.” When Rex took his eyes off the road, he half expected her to be frothing at the mouth with her hair standing on end, and her nails ready to take a fresh strip from his hide.
Rex smiled at the straight laced she devil beside him. She thinks I’m s-e-x-y. Obviously the smarmy grin wasn’t appreciated, as she gritted her teeth and a rumbling growl echoed across the cab. Alpha male or not, you don’t mess with a bitch in heat. Not if you want to find your balls right where you left them. There was no way Rex was going to try stare her into submission; he turned his eyes back to the road.
Well, off to re-download my emo/goth/popchick/newage whale snorts/old rocker playlist - I'm nothing if not eclectic!
(PS keep an eye out for The Wreckers, they were todays download for me...And I might go get the rest of Daughtry's album - he's pretty damn good)
EDIT: What do you know, there are 13 paragraphs of randomness! I did make a TT13 after all!
Posted by
Anne D
at
2:00 PM
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Labels: authors of erotic romance, erotica, excerpt, ipod, publishing, reading, rejection, submissions, thursday 13, Thursday thirteen, writing
