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Peg Herring

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The Helpful and the Not-So-Much

I got an email this morning from a woman who would like to review my book, which is nice ,at least one hopes it will turn out that way. I posted an "Available for Review" entry on a site that lets authors do that, and she responded. The Helpful People part is that she gave me three more book review sites I was unaware of, allowing me to expand my reach on the Net. On the other side of it, contact with another Internet outreach led to a rather embarrassing situation where my note to the site own… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on September 4, 2009 at 7:18am — No Comments

Winning

I'm not one of those people who wins stuff. I always buy the obligatory tickets for 50-50 drawings, raffles (which in my area are usually for guns, 4-wheelers, or snowmobiles), and three-night stays at a local gambling/drinking/dancing hotspot, which for a couple as boring as we are isn't an enticement. I never win, so it doesn't matter what the prize is. What I notice about winning is that winning itself is exciting, no matter what the prize. I spoke to an acquaintance yesterday who was very e… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on September 3, 2009 at 6:23am — No Comments

Older Females, Wise Women, and Little Old Ladies

I'm scheduled to be profiled this week in Sylvia Dickey Smith's column in the EXAMINER. She's invited women of a certain age to comment on how maturity makes them better writers. Of course I jumped in on that one, but I have to admit that simply aging doesn't make anyone better at anything. I know people who, as they age, hang on harder and harder to things that interfere with improvement. First is youth. The more a person tries to hold onto it, the harder he or she has to work at it. This wast… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on September 1, 2009 at 6:55am — No Comments

To Go or Not To Go

Conferences. I love them. Always have a good time. Always meet great people. So what's the problem? For one thing, I live in the sticks. Attending any con is a major operation, requiring planes, trains, and/or automobiles in great abundance. It costs me five hours' travel just to get out of Michigan by car, and flying requires a puddle-jumper ride first and last, which adds a lot to the expense (and the nail-biting, these days). Secondly, I have two books pending but nothing to sell. Giving aw… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on August 31, 2009 at 6:10am — No Comments

Zero to Sixty in One ARC

My ARC's for HER HIGHNESS' FIRST MURDER arrived yesterday afternoon, and suddenly life is teeming with things to do. First, here's what it could mean to you. It's a Tudor mystery focusing on Princess Elizabeth during Henry's last year of life. If you'd like a copy of the ARC, make a comment on this blog ("Hi Peg I want the book" is good enough, or you can actually read something and respond.) One week from today (Friday, September 4) I'll put the names of everyone who has commented in a (Univer… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on August 28, 2009 at 6:42am — No Comments

And There's the Contract

I posted last week about an editor who asked me to change two sentences, with the enticing, "Before I can offer you a contract..." Well, I fixed 'em and she sent me the contract. Sometimes it happens just like that. I should be cheering, but I think I'm still in shock: no year of waiting for an answer? No "We'll see what the sales department thinks of your chances?" That's cool. Continue

Added by Peg Herring on July 20, 2009 at 5:29am — No Comments

On Interviews

I've received notification that I'm the interview subject on Novel Journey tomorrow, July 7th. It's a cool site, so I'm excited to be there, and you can see what I said at www.noveljourney.blogspot.com. I've done radio, Internet, video, and print interviews and have been lucky so far to have professional hosts who lead me along and don't throw in anything nasty. Still, book/author interviews are a bit static, and there are so many out there that I wonder if anyone really reads any of them all t… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on July 6, 2009 at 6:56am — No Comments

The Tone of Different Conventions

I've been attending cons for some time now, and I've learned that each has a feel to it, rather like the books we all go to talk about. Some are dignified and others comical. Some cater to readers and others to writers. In some the small-time writer feels ignored as the "big guns" waft through the crowds and toss out comments about bidding wars for their next book. In others there's a real feeling that we're all in this together. What's fun to contemplate for me is the dominant conversation at… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on June 19, 2009 at 6:25am — No Comments

On Writing and Research (R)

I couldn't say which I enjoy more: writing or doing research so I can write. Whether it's silly trivia or serious research for an upcoming book, I jump in with both feet and usually spend hours at it without realizing it. A library pulls me in and keeps me all day, and suddenly I wake up and wonder whether I should have lunch, only to find that it's more like dinner time. I take ten times more notes than I can even use when I'm using a historical setting. There's just so much of interest, and w… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on June 18, 2009 at 5:49am — No Comments

Productivity

Why is it that some days I get so much done and other days I might as well weed petunias as try to write? It has to be mind-set, but I wish I had better control of turning it on and off. Yesterday I did the final edit on a whole novel (the one I had to shorten), did a bunch of correspondence that needed catching up, and got a good start on a short story I'm twisting to fit a particular editor's needs. That involved printing pages, a lot of computer time, and many small decisions that go along w… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on June 17, 2009 at 5:40am — No Comments

Dealing With People You Can't Stand

I met a person last weekend who immediately made me angry, which doesn't happen all that often. We all have types we avoid, and for me it's the person who, obviously feeling that he/she knows best about everything and everyone, launches upon first meeting into an analysis of what you are doing that is WRONG, WRONG, WRONG. My anger faded quickly once I reminded myself that this person is actually a rather sad sort, trying to make the world fit an outdated idea with pure bombast and nastiness. I… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on June 16, 2009 at 8:10am — No Comments

The Professional Blogger

I met someone this weekend that I didn't even know existed: a professional blogger. I may say more about her in future entries, but she was very interesting to talk to. She studies what subjects people will find you to read about, which is of course the way to build readership and therefore interest in whatever you're presenting, in my case, books. She suggested cats. I know, I know. It sounds, if I may, fluffy. Still, people love pets, so if you talk about yours, they tend to read what you wri… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on June 15, 2009 at 4:56am — No Comments

On Liking and Not Liking Books

I'm mostly amused but sometimes bemused by people who can't get over the fact that I didn't like a book they liked. They suggest a book or an author, and before I can stop myself, I say something like, "I tried it (or read it) and didn't care for it." Suddenly it's as if I proclaimed that I really enjoyed the last time I sawed off someone's legs. By the look on the person's face, I know I've been relegated in her mind to idiot. She might say something to indicate that I obviously didn't try hard… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on June 12, 2009 at 5:55am — No Comments

On the Road to History

I'm attending the Historical Novel Society Conference this weekend, which should be great fun. When history nerds get together past and present meld, since many of us feel as close to figures of other times as we are to many folks still walking around. I'm moderating a panel of talented and varied authors: Kate Forsyth from Australia, Mary Sharratt from England, Chris Blevins from Illinois, Nancy Hull from my home state of Michigan, and Margaret George, who calls Wisconsin home but seems to be… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on June 11, 2009 at 6:13am — No Comments

The Jaded Reader

I learned early on in life that I seldom agree with movie critics' assessments. What they tout as brilliant and ground-breaking, I often find creepy or boring. With a little thought, one can figure out the problem: movie critics see movies for a living and therefore enjoy experimentation and boundary-pushing. I, on the other hand, go to a movie for an evening's entertainment and just want to have a good time. We're looking for vastly different things. Writers are the movie critics of readers. W… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on June 10, 2009 at 6:22am — No Comments

The Part I Love

It's the moment in a thriller-type book where I as a reader think, "They're never going to get out of this!" One panelist I heard recently called it the "Oh, s*&t! moment." Sometimes the author can't deliver, and things get solved in an unrealistic way, but when it's well done, it's very pleasing. Maybe the key is something you learned early in the story but didn't pay much attention to. Maybe the characters seize on an opportunity or make one from sheer determination. But the enjoyment of… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on June 9, 2009 at 5:53am — No Comments

An Author's Sidebar

We're all interested in something, and often it shows in our writing. Sometimes it fascinates the reader to learn what we know about history, technology, philosophy or whatever. Other times we wonder where the editor was when this author got sidetracked. The story-within-a-story is a device that authors seem to like but this reader finds irritating. I'm reading a really good thriller in which the action frequently stops so that a character can tell a serial-type story. There is no way this stor… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on June 8, 2009 at 6:37am — No Comments

On Teaching...and Learning...How to Write

In response to my comment yesterday (on voice in writing) that nobody can teach how it happens, Jon made the point that he does, and I have to yield on that one. Otherwise I'd be forced to admit that I spent 30 years wasting time in my English classes. Writing can be taught: the elements, the recognition of good writing, the practices that lead to improvement, and even the terminology that helps us discuss the process intelligently. However, I contend that writing is a lot like singing. I love… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on June 5, 2009 at 6:42am — No Comments

My Voice, Your Voice, His Voice, Her Voice

We hear a lot about voice in writing, and it's one of those hard-to-define things that make a book readable or not. There are some rules, like not switching voice in the middle of a paragraph and such, but the talent for creating voice goes far beyond that. At its best, a character's voice grabs the reader from the first page of a book, making him want to hear that character's story. And nobody can teach you how that happens. I've been pulled into stories that I never thought I would: Dean Koon… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on June 4, 2009 at 6:22am — No Comments

Enjoying the Failures of Others

Well not really. I mean we're nice people, right? We wouldn't actually enjoy hearing someone else's woes. But it helps. I just read an interview with a multi-published writer (over 100 books) who admitted to a lot of failures over the years: wrong book, wrong time, wrong publisher, etc. She made the point that it isn't always the author who fails, and we have to remember that or we'd all throw the monitor out the window. I lunch every once in a while with another writer, and we always end up t… Continue

Added by Peg Herring on June 3, 2009 at 5:53am — No Comments

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Helpless

Over the Holiday weekend I took a good look at my house and that familiar helples feeling washed over me again. It seemed like an insurmountable task to get the place in order. It still does.

I spend so much time writing and promoting after I do my day job, what little time I have left is precious. Still, sometimes I just have to buckle down and ignore my compulsion to write and make myself clean house instead. I tackled the spare bedroom, which had clothes and all kinds of other articles strewn over the bed, on the floor, and anywhere you can think of, compliments of myself and the DH, who were equally guilty.  I did make some headway, which made me feel good, but if I had more time I know I could do better. Also, there are so many other projects left to do if I were to get the house really into shape. I'm wondering how much I'll get done before Christmas, when I have my family over.

Maybe over the weekend I can get more done, that is, after I do the Illinois sales tax form first, which is due by the end of the month. I've got almost all of my check statements, except one, which I think I can find online, so maybe I can get that done. You may have guessed I'm not the most organized person in the world.

Anyway, let's see how far I can get cleaning up. I've got this kindle on loan from the library, with about 9 days left on it, and lots of good books on it beckoning to me. I've got some great ideas for stories I want to start and others I want to continue. I've got some blog buddies I haven't visited for a while. I wonder what will win out. (g)

What about you? What do you do about housework? Does it get in the way sometimes?

PS The not so surprising results are up on the left for my EZ poll. I'll have to do a harder one some time.

New Killer Career Excerpt at Acme Authors Link

Hi Gang,
Today, I've got a new Killer Career excerpt up at http://acmeauthorslink.blogspot.com/ . This one continues from the first excerpt I posted on Monday at http://makeminemystery.blogspot.com/

If you're curious about my recently released romantic suspense, come on over to one or both blogs to check it out.

Thanks,
Morgan

Time Out for Kindle Reading

Our local library has 8 kindles available for its patrons. The DH and I both got on the waiting list, mainly so I could use one. His number was reached and we picked up the kindle on Sunday afternoon. Now I've got a kindle to read for 2 weeks! So far I'm really loving it, especially the current book I'm reading, My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult.

What about you? Do you own a kindle? Or, have you tried someone else's? Would you like to?

Who's Doing Cyber Monday?

I'm very carefully going to check out the Cyber Monday deals. I have a few items in mind that I plan to buy, but it would be very nice if they'd go on sale and save me some money. I won't be spending much. Can't afford to do so this year.

What about you?

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When RASCAL wakes up, you'll hear from her and/or her Mom - that would be me, Morgan Mandel.

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