Caution - (Writing) Speed Bumps Ahead
Wow! A new website and a new blog. Sometimes life as a writer rushes by so fast it all seems a blur. And sometimes you hit a speed bump, and everything lurches to a halt. Both happened to me this past week. I was on a Caribbean cruise (yes, I know. Life is tough) and it seemed I had too much to do to even slow down and enjoy it. I have a new book out this week -- CARVED IN STONE -- and I had promotional material to approve. I owed feedback on my website to my wonderful designer so we could go live with it. My publisher had scheduled an Internet chat right at my dinner seating time. Reviews were coming out. And of course, I had to check my sales ranking on Amazon.com at least twice per day, neurotic writer that I am.
Then I heard from a writer friend who is trying to put together a paranormal romance anthology like the one I participated in that came out this past December, BITE. Only instead of being all vampires, this one was to be around the theme "opposites attract" and had some really cool authors with some really cool stories, including my friend Catherine Spangler's contribution STREET CORNERS AND CONFESSIONS. No, I'm not going to spill what it's about yet. I'll just say that I really hope this anthology gets published. That story definitely deserves to see the light of day.
Anyway, to have a shot at this book (if it happens) myself, I needed to do a one page overview of my own story. That day. Immed-i-at-a-mente. So much for the cruise.
No biggie, though. I mean, what's one page? Never mind that you have to come up with an idea, the characters, the plot...
Still, I had hopes of salvaging most of my cruise time. I had an angel story in mind I thought would work and was pecking away at the keyboard when a speed bump came out of nowhere. Crash! Where do angels go when they're not doing their angel thing here on Earth? Heaven would be the obvious guess. But my overly active writer's mind started churning. How do I describe heaven? What is it like?
Okay, clouds, harps, white robes. I know all those images. But what is it *really* like? Most of us talk about meeting up again with loved ones and family who have passed before us. But do we really "see" them? Do we sit around and pass the time of day in conversation? Rehash the good 'ole days?
Do we really experience consciousness in heaven? Is there a sense of the passage of time? Or is it just a feeling. A sense of contentment and peace without movement or color that could last a moment or an eternity?
How the hell should I know? I haven't died yet, thank goodness.
It was enough to make me wonder why I ever wanted to write an angel story in the first place. It's amazing what paths a writer's mind can wander down with the least encouragement. Or even with the strongest discouragement. We can start at Point A, with Point B clearly in mind...and somehow end up at Point 898J!
So if you'd like to help me, tell me what you think. What is heaven, or whatever your religion's view of the afterlife is, if your religion contends that such an afterlife exists.
And if that's too deep for you...just let me know what you think of my book! I'd love to hear from you either way.
Until the next speed bump,
Vickie Taylor
Then I heard from a writer friend who is trying to put together a paranormal romance anthology like the one I participated in that came out this past December, BITE. Only instead of being all vampires, this one was to be around the theme "opposites attract" and had some really cool authors with some really cool stories, including my friend Catherine Spangler's contribution STREET CORNERS AND CONFESSIONS. No, I'm not going to spill what it's about yet. I'll just say that I really hope this anthology gets published. That story definitely deserves to see the light of day.
Anyway, to have a shot at this book (if it happens) myself, I needed to do a one page overview of my own story. That day. Immed-i-at-a-mente. So much for the cruise.
No biggie, though. I mean, what's one page? Never mind that you have to come up with an idea, the characters, the plot...
Still, I had hopes of salvaging most of my cruise time. I had an angel story in mind I thought would work and was pecking away at the keyboard when a speed bump came out of nowhere. Crash! Where do angels go when they're not doing their angel thing here on Earth? Heaven would be the obvious guess. But my overly active writer's mind started churning. How do I describe heaven? What is it like?
Okay, clouds, harps, white robes. I know all those images. But what is it *really* like? Most of us talk about meeting up again with loved ones and family who have passed before us. But do we really "see" them? Do we sit around and pass the time of day in conversation? Rehash the good 'ole days?
Do we really experience consciousness in heaven? Is there a sense of the passage of time? Or is it just a feeling. A sense of contentment and peace without movement or color that could last a moment or an eternity?
How the hell should I know? I haven't died yet, thank goodness.
It was enough to make me wonder why I ever wanted to write an angel story in the first place. It's amazing what paths a writer's mind can wander down with the least encouragement. Or even with the strongest discouragement. We can start at Point A, with Point B clearly in mind...and somehow end up at Point 898J!
So if you'd like to help me, tell me what you think. What is heaven, or whatever your religion's view of the afterlife is, if your religion contends that such an afterlife exists.
And if that's too deep for you...just let me know what you think of my book! I'd love to hear from you either way.
Until the next speed bump,
Vickie Taylor
posted by Vickie Taylor at 12:57 PM
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