Tomorrow, July 8, is a Big Day for those still in the 2014 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest. ABNA administrators will pare the list of 25 semifinalists down to only five finalists, one in each of five categories in the contest (General fiction, Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror, Romance, Mystery & Thriller, and Young Adult Fiction).
While the public won't know the results until tomorrow, the 25 semifinalists actually already know their fate -- and have since last Wednesday. On July 2, ABNA started contacting the finalists, who had some procedural matters to address -- contracts to sign and whatnot -- before the public announcement. Therefore, if you were a semifinalist and didn't get a call last Wednesday, you knew you didn't advance to the finals.
The Grand Prize winner, who gets a $50,000 publishing contract from Amazon, will be selected from the list of five finalists, with each of whom getting a $15,000 contract.
While I only made it to the quarterfinal round, I think this would be the last truly emotional announcement to anticipate because, win or lose, you get a publishing contract with Amazon if you are a finalist.
I haven't read many of the semifinalists' excerpts, except for the five in the M/T category (which was the category I entered). I have a favorite and have expressed that to the author and can only hope that they make it through. Theirs is a great work and deserving of being selected as a finalist.
So best of luck to the 25 semifinalists and the five finalists to be announced tomorrow.
I, as always, am laboring away on my WIP, which is currently titled The Deadly Game, and I will probably enter it in the 2015 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award competition next winter. And I will query my 2011 ABNA quarterfinal novel, An Untidy Affair, to agents and publishers throughout the rest of this year.
Thanks for reading.
EDITOR'S NOTE: The finalists were announced and The Dead Key by D.M. Pulley was selected as the finalist in the Mystery & Thriller category. And while it wasn't my choice in the category -- I was pulling for Hart Johnson's A Shot in the Light -- Pulley has a fine, well-written novel. We will see if a mystery is the grand prize winner. It has never happened in the seven years of the contest. mbd
Monday, July 7, 2014
Friday, July 4, 2014
MWA University
I probably shouldn't post a blog today because it's a holiday and no one is probably reading me today. But, on the other hand, I don't have many steady readers to begin with so it probably doesn't matter that much.
As you know, I went to MWA University in Philadelphia last weekend and had a wonderful time. I learned so much and met so many wonderful people. It was well worth the time and effort.
Of the six sessions -- and all of them were great -- there were two that were particularly useful.
First thing in the morning was Jess Lourey, whose topic was What to do after the idea. Lourey, a writing and sociology professor in Minnesota and the author of the Murder-by-Month mystery series, takes the pyramid approach to writing a novel. Through six steps, she starts with a one-sentence summary of the novel, then works her way into an expanded paragraph summary, creating a character bible, sketching a setting, doing a second one paragraph summary, outling the novel and, finally, actually writing the book.
Sounds like a lot, and it is. But the great thing about all the sessions was the teachers reminded us that they were giving us 'tools, not rules.' Use what you can and throw out the rest.
I don't care for outlining, although during NaNoWriMo I do outline. But what I took most from her were steps one and three -- the one-sentence summary and the character bible. It reinforced that I must be able to describe my work in one sentence and must be able to do it from the beginning. And I will know and understand my characters best by listing all their traits so I won't be forced into having to remember them all.
The other session I found particularly helpful was on character and was taught by the very funny Reed Farrel Coleman, who I enjoyed so much I friended him later on Facebook.
Coleman, who apparently doesn't outline, he says character is arguably the most memorable element of a mystery novel. Crimes come and go but it's the characterizations readers remember most. As I think of novels I enjoy, particularly if they are part of a series, the characters are what I remember most, not the plot. I have read loads of Sherlock Holmes, lots of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series, Sue Grafton, the late William F. Buckley's Blackford Oakes series, and others, And in most cases, characterization is what sticks out most.
Coleman said think of a character's most closely held and embarrassing secret. Even if it is never revealed, it helps the writer to understand the character and to write them with more depth, even if they are only minor characters. Of all the 20 Stephanie Plum novels, I only remember the plot in the third of the series. It is Stephanie, Lula, Joe, Ranger and all the others that I actually remember.
So there you have it. I wanted to write sooner but it's been a busy week.
Have a Happy Fourth of July everyone. And thanks for reading.
As you know, I went to MWA University in Philadelphia last weekend and had a wonderful time. I learned so much and met so many wonderful people. It was well worth the time and effort.
Of the six sessions -- and all of them were great -- there were two that were particularly useful.
First thing in the morning was Jess Lourey, whose topic was What to do after the idea. Lourey, a writing and sociology professor in Minnesota and the author of the Murder-by-Month mystery series, takes the pyramid approach to writing a novel. Through six steps, she starts with a one-sentence summary of the novel, then works her way into an expanded paragraph summary, creating a character bible, sketching a setting, doing a second one paragraph summary, outling the novel and, finally, actually writing the book.
Sounds like a lot, and it is. But the great thing about all the sessions was the teachers reminded us that they were giving us 'tools, not rules.' Use what you can and throw out the rest.
I don't care for outlining, although during NaNoWriMo I do outline. But what I took most from her were steps one and three -- the one-sentence summary and the character bible. It reinforced that I must be able to describe my work in one sentence and must be able to do it from the beginning. And I will know and understand my characters best by listing all their traits so I won't be forced into having to remember them all.
The other session I found particularly helpful was on character and was taught by the very funny Reed Farrel Coleman, who I enjoyed so much I friended him later on Facebook.
Coleman, who apparently doesn't outline, he says character is arguably the most memorable element of a mystery novel. Crimes come and go but it's the characterizations readers remember most. As I think of novels I enjoy, particularly if they are part of a series, the characters are what I remember most, not the plot. I have read loads of Sherlock Holmes, lots of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series, Sue Grafton, the late William F. Buckley's Blackford Oakes series, and others, And in most cases, characterization is what sticks out most.
Coleman said think of a character's most closely held and embarrassing secret. Even if it is never revealed, it helps the writer to understand the character and to write them with more depth, even if they are only minor characters. Of all the 20 Stephanie Plum novels, I only remember the plot in the third of the series. It is Stephanie, Lula, Joe, Ranger and all the others that I actually remember.
So there you have it. I wanted to write sooner but it's been a busy week.
Have a Happy Fourth of July everyone. And thanks for reading.
Friday, June 27, 2014
Mystery Writers of America University -- Philadelphia
I'm attending Mystery Writers of America University in Philadelphia tomorrow. It's a one-day event with an incredible lineup of teachers, including Hallie Ephron, Reed Farrel Coleman and the wonderful Hank Phillipi Ryan.
When I first heard about this one-day conference two months ago, I knew I had to come. The price is quite reasonable and it's in Philadelphia. I love Philadelphia, having once lived in the City of Brotherly Love for two decades.
And I'll have the grilled chicken with roasted peppers for lunch, thank you very much.
What I want to know -- and what I doubt any of the teachers will be able to tell me -- is how can I move forward in my writing career. Yes, it takes hard work and persistence. It takes learning the craft and networking. I know all that. And I have done that -- some parts more than others but I have done it all. I still do. Otherwise, I wouldn't spend the time, effort and money to attend MWA University.
But something is missing and I don't know what it is or how to get it.
So I will go and listen, and learn, and ask questions, and talk, and network -- and have grilled chicken for lunch. I will do it all. I love being around writers, both the wildly successful and the aspiring unknown. It reminds me I am on a path. I tire of the path sometimes, even become discouraged. But I am always committed to it.
I am a writer, and that is that.
So lookout for me tomorrow Jess Lourey and Daniel Stashower. I'll be in the house and hanging on every word. So make it good.
Thanks for reading.
When I first heard about this one-day conference two months ago, I knew I had to come. The price is quite reasonable and it's in Philadelphia. I love Philadelphia, having once lived in the City of Brotherly Love for two decades.
And I'll have the grilled chicken with roasted peppers for lunch, thank you very much.
What I want to know -- and what I doubt any of the teachers will be able to tell me -- is how can I move forward in my writing career. Yes, it takes hard work and persistence. It takes learning the craft and networking. I know all that. And I have done that -- some parts more than others but I have done it all. I still do. Otherwise, I wouldn't spend the time, effort and money to attend MWA University.
But something is missing and I don't know what it is or how to get it.
So I will go and listen, and learn, and ask questions, and talk, and network -- and have grilled chicken for lunch. I will do it all. I love being around writers, both the wildly successful and the aspiring unknown. It reminds me I am on a path. I tire of the path sometimes, even become discouraged. But I am always committed to it.
I am a writer, and that is that.
So lookout for me tomorrow Jess Lourey and Daniel Stashower. I'll be in the house and hanging on every word. So make it good.
Thanks for reading.
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
Writing to Writer's Digest
In my e-mail in-box last week, I noticed a call from Writer's Digest for stories on the experience authors have had during National Novel Writing Month, which is held each November. As you know, the challenge of NaNoWriMo is to write a novel of at least 50,000 words in the 30 days of November.
I wrote a piece last night of my first NaNoWriMo experience and the non-writing challenge I faced that year -- the year I learned I had cancer.
Take a look below at what I sent Writer's Digest.
Keep writing and thanks for reading.
---
I wrote a piece last night of my first NaNoWriMo experience and the non-writing challenge I faced that year -- the year I learned I had cancer.
Take a look below at what I sent Writer's Digest.
Keep writing and thanks for reading.
---
I have accepted the
National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) challenge five times, starting in
November 2009, and have completed the challenge three of those times.
The novel I wrote in 2009, An Untidy Affair, and the one I
wrote in 2010, The Last Tontine Survivor, both made it to the
quarterfinal round of the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award (ABNA)
competition. I entered Affair in ABNA in 2011, while Tontine
was a quarterfinalist this year. I also wrote a novel during NaNoWriMo last
November and plan to enter that work, The Deadly Game, in ABNA in 2015.
I love NaNoWriMo because
it truly gives you, the author, the right to write, to sweep away all the
external and internal stumbling blocks and to focus on the task at hand --
50,000 words in 30 days, or an average of 1,667 a day.
I am a freelance
journalist by occupation and write all the time. But fiction is different and
was, back in 2009, much harder for me. Unlike a news or feature article,
a novel is like having a long, elaborate daydream which is written down.
It's how I approach it.
That first year, I
wasn't sure I could do it. But I decided to try and settled on a
story idea in the spring of 2009. It was to be an auto racing novel,
with the protagonist facing major challenges both on and off the track. I
love auto racing -- open-wheel cars in particular -- and know a lot about the
sport. But the story would still require a lot of research on the
technical side, which I planned to do in the summer and fall.
In early July 2009, I
learned that I might have cancer, which was confirmed just after Labor Day
that year. And suddenly, I couldn't write fiction. Faced with the challenge of
my life in the real world, I couldn't daydream the dreams necessary to write
fiction. I was stuck in the real world. I was focused on learning
everything I could about my cancer so I could make a reasoned decision of the
course of action for treatment. For seven weeks, I sought advice from six
different doctors, including leaders in the field. But it wasn't until late
October that I made a decision I was comfortable with.
Problem was, it was much
too late for me to do the research I needed for the novel. So I decided on a
murder mystery because it is a genre I enjoy reading and am comfortable with. I
decided on a setting and a theme I was familiar with so that there wouldn't be
much research needed, and I could do it while I was writing in November.
I hate outlining for a
variety of reasons but knew I couldn't write 1,667 a day, everyday, without
knowing where I was going in advance. Therefore, I hand wrote a nine-page
outline in narrative form and also completed a spreadsheet to track my
daily progress.
Shortly after midnight
on Nov. 1, I started, and after 90 minutes had 1,100 words. I was
surprised that the first sentence in my outline turned into nearly 900 words of
text in the novel. I wrote later that day after church and completed 3,200 words
that first day. On the second day I completed 2,940 words and 3,500 the third
day. I was writing twice the rate I needed. With the encouragement of NaNo
writers in the Indianapolis area and others I met online, I continued at
that pace and reached 50,000 words on Nov. 15, and completed the first
draft four days later, for a total of 54,000 words. (With revisions and
re-writes, Affair is complete at 74,000
words.)
In 2010, I outlined
again, and challenged myself to write twice as many words a day as needed. Tontine is a suspense/thriller and I
finished the first draft on Nov. 18 (instead of Nov. 15) only because
I attended an out-of-town meeting that November and lost three days of
writing. (The final version is 76,000 words.)
Last year, I reached
50,000 words again on Nov. 18 because what I learned from failures in 2011
and 2012 was that I need a decent outline and need to jump well ahead of
the daily word count. Get a lot done quickly in case of troubles later. It's
hard for me to catch up on the word count, so I never get behind. But that's
just me.
I'm already working
on research for NaNoWriMo this November. Finally, I plan to write that
auto-racing story.
My advice is prepare as
much as possible ahead of time, set difficult but achievable goals, find
writing partners and stay in touch with them, write something everyday and,
most importantly, HAVE FUN writing.
Whatever you write is going to be crappy but you can start fixing it on Dec. 1.
You can't fix it if you don't first write it.
If you write and have
fun, you will find your word count going up quicker than the approach of
the Nov. 30 deadline. So HAVE FUN.
Thursday, June 19, 2014
Oh F**k, I just said a bad word!
Generally, I try not to post something I'd be embarrassed that a member of my conservative, evangelical church might see. I don't want to be thought of as a heathen or a heretic. I'm neither.
But sometimes, I just have to say what I truly think and feel. So brace yourself. Here it is.
WTF does it take to get an agent? (No, I'm not an idiot. I know what WTF means. It's the point of this post.) Yes, I have written about this before and I am again because I have yet to find a satisfactory answer. I have listened to people's advice, I have attended writers conferences, read countless blogs, magazine articles and books, networked and talked to magazine editors, and discussed the matter with friends, both published and unpublished.
And I have prayed -- and not as an afterthought.
I have done virtually everything I can think of. I have followed advice, re-written query letters numerous times, followed the instructions of individual agents to the letter and still -- nothing! I'm polite and businesslike, and would not send out a query on a work that isn't ready. Or certainly as ready as I can make it.
I write well. I'm not a hack. And I have a couple of manuscripts that are ready to go to the next level. But, I swear, for the life of me, I can't get an agent to piss on my butt if it was on fire. What am I doing wrong?
I'm a good person, I really am (although I know that's exactly what a bad person would also say). I'm happy when one of my writer-friends gets a new agent or, even better, a publishing contract. I know the hard work it took to get there. I am willing to do the hard work. I have been doing the hard work.
But it's frustrating because I must be doing something wrong, although I don't know what it is and don't have someone in the industry to tell me what that is.
Perhaps my writing or storytelling is crap. I don't think so but what the fuck does it take for some useful insight. Because right now I truly don't know.
But what I do know is that I'm not giving up, despite the frustration and occasional anger and cursing. I know that at the end of this century a couple of my novels will be on the list of the Best 100 books of the 21st Century. I just would like a sign of that eventuality in my lifetime.
Thanks for reading and don't give up.
But sometimes, I just have to say what I truly think and feel. So brace yourself. Here it is.
WTF does it take to get an agent? (No, I'm not an idiot. I know what WTF means. It's the point of this post.) Yes, I have written about this before and I am again because I have yet to find a satisfactory answer. I have listened to people's advice, I have attended writers conferences, read countless blogs, magazine articles and books, networked and talked to magazine editors, and discussed the matter with friends, both published and unpublished.
And I have prayed -- and not as an afterthought.
I have done virtually everything I can think of. I have followed advice, re-written query letters numerous times, followed the instructions of individual agents to the letter and still -- nothing! I'm polite and businesslike, and would not send out a query on a work that isn't ready. Or certainly as ready as I can make it.
I write well. I'm not a hack. And I have a couple of manuscripts that are ready to go to the next level. But, I swear, for the life of me, I can't get an agent to piss on my butt if it was on fire. What am I doing wrong?
I'm a good person, I really am (although I know that's exactly what a bad person would also say). I'm happy when one of my writer-friends gets a new agent or, even better, a publishing contract. I know the hard work it took to get there. I am willing to do the hard work. I have been doing the hard work.
But it's frustrating because I must be doing something wrong, although I don't know what it is and don't have someone in the industry to tell me what that is.
Perhaps my writing or storytelling is crap. I don't think so but what the fuck does it take for some useful insight. Because right now I truly don't know.
But what I do know is that I'm not giving up, despite the frustration and occasional anger and cursing. I know that at the end of this century a couple of my novels will be on the list of the Best 100 books of the 21st Century. I just would like a sign of that eventuality in my lifetime.
Thanks for reading and don't give up.
Tuesday, June 17, 2014
ABNA reviews
So, my dear readers, here are the three reviews I got during this year's Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award competition for my novel, The Last Tontine Survivor. I made it to the quarterfinals but was eliminated before the semifinal round.
They are generally good reviews, although I assume the PW review just wasn't strong enough to get me into the semifinal round.
More later.
Thanks for reading and keep writing. I certainly am.
They are generally good reviews, although I assume the PW review just wasn't strong enough to get me into the semifinal round.
More later.
Thanks for reading and keep writing. I certainly am.
ABNA Expert Reviewer
What is the strongest aspect of this excerpt?
I think both the plot and Rachel, the main character, are the strongest aspects of this excerpt. So far, this is a very interesting plot (I haven't seen or heard anything quite like it before) and it has definitely piqued my interest. And I like Rachel - she is a thoughtful friend and a loving niece and granddaughter. She is obviously smart too. Overall, she is very well rounded and fleshed out. Her grandfather seems to be one of those crafty old coots (and I mean that in a totally fun way!) who says one thing ("yes, dear, I'm going to have just a plain, unbuttered bran muffin for breakfast...") and then secretly swipes a donut or two and goes off to eat them in private. I don't know much about him yet, but I think I would end up loving that old man before this story ended.What aspect needs the most work?
Honestly, I can't really see any area that I think needs work. So far, I like everything about this excerpt. The plot moves along nicely and the characters are well drawn. This excerpt held my interest and actually left me wanting more.What is your overall opinion of this excerpt?
I loved it. I like Rachel a lot and I have the feeling the grandfather would end up being just as likeable and well drawn as she is. The author put a good amount of detail in the story, not too much and not too little and the plot moves along with good momentum. I enjoyed reading this excerpt and was a little disappointed that it had to end.ABNA Expert Reviewer
What is the strongest aspect of this excerpt?
Fast paced with good action. Rachel is different and likeable. Nice writing.What aspect needs the most work?
The use of two similar names, Fleishman/Weisman was confusing. Holocaust stories about purloined good and missing fortune and Nazi conspirators running rampant are not terribly original.What is your overall opinion of this excerpt?
This was an effective excerpt with an unusual heroine. Although the Holocaust/missing fortune/ psycho Nazi spawn lines are tired and tiresome, this one brings a fresh perspective. I would read more.ABNA Publishers Weekly Reviewer
In a work that admirably adds more layers as it goes along, this novel tracks the troubling murder of Holocaust survivor Howard Fleischman in downtown Indianapolis by a couple of thugs related to (supposedly now deceased) Nazi Gestapo chief Henrich Muller. Uncle Howard and his father, Julius, now 95 and a longtime resident of New York City, were the last surviving members of a German-Jewish financial group whose purpose was “to siphon money out of Gestapo accounts and transfer them to Swiss banking accounts.” With Uncle Howard’s mysterious death, and Grandpa Julius disappeared upstate, his competent, comely 32-year-old granddaughter, antiques attorney Rachel, gets to sort out the perplexing ramifications of this war-time group with help from her problematic boyfriend, Paul, and a drop-dead gorgeous police officer, Ellington Hughes. (His description as “tall and broad-shouldered like LL Cool J, bald and square-jawed like Taye Diggs, had a deep baritone voice like the late actor Michael Duncan, and the smile and totally commanding presence of Denzel Washington” reveals occasional cringing characterizations.) Happily, nothing is quite what it seems in this valiant work, from the youth resistance movement named Edelweis that Julius and others had been members of, to Paul’s secret ties to the Israeli Mossad, to Rachel’s half-black, half-Jewish parentage. It's a little uneven, but promising and surprising enough to keep readers going.Monday, June 16, 2014
Well, I've been gone a while
Well, I've been gone a while. And yes, I know it's impossible to build an audience when you come and go so much. But, once again, I'm going to try to post regularly, though not every day.
So, what's been going on? Well, I wrote another David Blaise mystery novel in November during National Novel Writing Month. The novel, The Deadly Game, came in a bit short, at just over 51,000 words, but I met the challenge. Set in February 1984 in Philadelphia, it's a prequel to my first Blaise mystery, An Untidy Affair, which is set in May 1985.
I am in the process of re-writing and adding material to flesh out the story. Blaise has one main case and a smaller case to solve. But just over the last weekend, I started adding another bigger case, although not as large as the main case. This case will provide the primary sub-plot of the book.
I have already started giving it to my writing critique group, and they are ripped it apart. So much so that I hastened to remain them that the novel is still in its early stages. However, I plan to enter it in the 2015 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award competition.
And speaking of ABNA, I was a quarterfinalist this year, only getting eliminated in the semifinal round of 25. For the third straight year, I entered The Last Tontine Survivor, although this was the first year it advanced past the first round. I got two very good Vine reviews and a very positive Publisher's Weekly review, although the PW review clearly didn't rate high enough to advance the novel to the next round. But I must say, the competition in the Mystery/Thriller category was fierce this year.
In a day or so, I will post the reviews for you to read.
I'm still querying Affair, looking for either an agent or a publisher. But if I don't sell it by this fall, I will have to make some truly serious and difficult decisions.
But more on that later.
And one a personal note, one of my daughters moved to Virginia over the winter and, of course, the other attends college. So this fall, after college reopens, I will have a quiet house to myself all day to write.
Hooray for me!!
More later. Hope to see you and others on this page soon.
Thanks for reading and keep writing.
So, what's been going on? Well, I wrote another David Blaise mystery novel in November during National Novel Writing Month. The novel, The Deadly Game, came in a bit short, at just over 51,000 words, but I met the challenge. Set in February 1984 in Philadelphia, it's a prequel to my first Blaise mystery, An Untidy Affair, which is set in May 1985.
I am in the process of re-writing and adding material to flesh out the story. Blaise has one main case and a smaller case to solve. But just over the last weekend, I started adding another bigger case, although not as large as the main case. This case will provide the primary sub-plot of the book.
I have already started giving it to my writing critique group, and they are ripped it apart. So much so that I hastened to remain them that the novel is still in its early stages. However, I plan to enter it in the 2015 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award competition.
And speaking of ABNA, I was a quarterfinalist this year, only getting eliminated in the semifinal round of 25. For the third straight year, I entered The Last Tontine Survivor, although this was the first year it advanced past the first round. I got two very good Vine reviews and a very positive Publisher's Weekly review, although the PW review clearly didn't rate high enough to advance the novel to the next round. But I must say, the competition in the Mystery/Thriller category was fierce this year.
In a day or so, I will post the reviews for you to read.
I'm still querying Affair, looking for either an agent or a publisher. But if I don't sell it by this fall, I will have to make some truly serious and difficult decisions.
But more on that later.
And one a personal note, one of my daughters moved to Virginia over the winter and, of course, the other attends college. So this fall, after college reopens, I will have a quiet house to myself all day to write.
Hooray for me!!
More later. Hope to see you and others on this page soon.
Thanks for reading and keep writing.
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