I know the bicycling series I was writing for Green Monday was preempted by the Green It carnival last week, but with me heading to GCLS con tomorrow, I felt the need to talk about the place I will be staying while I’m in Phoenix. Be patient, there is a link between all of this and the purpose of green Monday, I swear.
This is some of the things Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort had to say about itself that really caught my interest.
Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort is located on the Gila River Indian Community, and is designed to be an authentic representation of the Gila River Indian Community heritage and culture. The architecture, design, art and legends of the Pima (Akimel O’odham) and Maricopa (Pee Posh) tribes are celebrated in every detail imaginable, indoors and out.
I this the perfect place for my first GCLS con or what? Yes, I know it’s not Cherokee run (Tsalagi), but I love the idea of supporting a tribe efforts to care for their people financially whenever I can, my tribe or not. Admittedly, without the scholarship I could never have afforded the $150 plus rate a night the con is getting if I remember the number range correctly (normally the room prices look between $180 and $210) for the five days I’m staying.
Now, I am not certain the hotel itself is tribe run and owned, it’s certainly a franchise of Sheraton, but that is something I plan to look into while I’m there. There several touristy things in the area also looked to be tribe run, the Rawhide (steakhouse and western town), Koli Equestrian Center (I sooooo wish I could afford the $65 to take a ride while I am there. I haven’t been on a horse in forever, and I miss riding), and a golf school (no interest in that). The Gila River Indian Community has other touristy places listed under Wild Horse Pass itself like a casino, the Aji spa, a golf club, and a business park which make me hopeful that the whole area in under the reins of the tribes themselves.
While I am there I hope to learn as much about the Akimel O’odham (Pima) and Pee Posh (Maricopa) tribes as I can. There’s a heritage center about two miles from the hotel I’m going to try to make a day of on Wednesday if I can, called the HuHugam Heritage Center. I did manage to find some info online at the community site that I can share with you now.
Aikimel O’otham: If the level of a people’s arts and cultural activity is an accurate refl ection of their overall state of vitality, it is encouraging to note a renaissance of both traditional and innovative arts, crafts, and cultural pursuits among our Gila River community. Historically, the Akimel O’odham and Tohono O’odham were some of the world’s premier basketmakers, and the Tohono O’odham remain very active in this fi eld. Among the Akimel O’odham, basket weaving is an art undergoing revival. In addition, culturual gatherings and special arts events are growing larger, and more tribal members are making a living, or supplementing their income, through the sale of arts and crafts. And, in January 2004, the community dedicated one of the nation’s fi nest facilities for the preservation and display of Native artifacts, the HuHugam Heritage center.
In 2003, community youth at Ira Hayes Memorial Applied Learning High School on the reservation tackled a new arts medium: video. With the aid of the Herberger College of Fine Arts at Arizona State University in Tempe, the teens created a wonderful documentary, The River People, which was chosen for screening at the Cinematexas International Film Festival in the fall of 2003, showing that our people’s artistic talents can be extended in new and exciting ways.
Pee Posh: The Maricopa people were small bands living along the lower Gila and Colorado rivers. Each of these bands migrated eastward at different times. The Xalychidom (Maricopa of Lehi), left around 1825-1830. The last of these bands is said to have left the Colorado River in the late 1830’s. Eventually these bands came together and became collectively known as the Maricopa. As they migrated eastward, they came upon the Pima tribe and established a relationship. Both tribes provided protection against the Yuman and Apache tribes.
Some Maricopa’s (mostly Xalychidom Piipaash) began migrating to the area now known as Lehi on the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, because water from the Gila River was becoming scarce. When the Salt River Indian Community was established in 1879, the reservation included both tribes within these boundaries. The Maricopa Tribe is known for their red clay pottery work. Various jars and bowls were created for essential needs, made of natural materials. The clay was collected at various locations within the area. Natural dyes were used to depict geometrical designs. Maricopa pottery artwork can be viewed at the Community’s Hoohoogam Ki Museum
Looks like it’s a good thing I will be there a day early. I admit my interests may be quite different than many of the women going to the con, but if I have to trek to the heritage center solo, I’m okay with that. I can’t afford much, but hopefully the center will have books I can buy and cart home so I can share with my children what I learn there about Akimel O’odham (Pima) and Pee Posh (Maricopa) tribes. One thing I am going to be sure to do (since I suck at remembering names and learning languages) I’m going to work very hard to remember how to pronounce the tribe names. Pee Posh is easy enough to remember, but Akimel O’odham might be a bit more of a challenge. :)
Okay, on to the Green Monday part of the topic. Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort is a part of the GeoGreen Resort Initiative. According to the hotel site this is an organization dedicated to environmental responsibility and cultural sustainability. I couldn’t other resorts connected to this program, but they really should be. It looks like a great program. Here’s the GeoGreen program detailed by Department.
The more I read about this place, the more excited I am about going there. This resort is like nothing I have ever stayed at before, but I wish there were more place like it. Imagine is local tribe here like the Onieda and the Potawatomi, or even the Ho Chunk who have their ornate casinos created hotels like this one. It is possible a place like Phoenix is a far better location for places like the Wild Horse Pass Resort, but I would love to see more place take the clue from the Gila River Indian Community. Something tells me convention aside, this is going to be a place that will be hard to leave after the five days are up.
Monday, July 28, 2008
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Marketing on a Budget
With my first anthology out (Chilling Tales) and a novel due this fall (Ancestral Magic) I’ve been giving a great deal of thought to the idea of marketing. Being with a small publisher, a lot of the promotion lands on my shoulders, and not having a ton of extra cash to spare, I have to be frugal with the marketing tools I use. Some of these I have been working on for quite some time, whole others are new tools since the anthologies release or resources geared to the novel as its date of availability get closer. Whereas any artist can use these tool to promote themselves, as a writer I will mostly be focusing on that aspect.
The internet itself is a great tool to give your work widespread attention. There are no gas or plane fares to dig into your pocket book, you simply have the world at your fingertips. What you do with this connection is up to you. Here are some suggestions.
Blogging
What a blog is for
This is something I suggest to do as early as possible. Establishing yourself as an online presence before you have work you are promoting is a great way to gather a fan base, as well as giving a place for people who what to know where you stand a way to get to know you better. You can do anything with blogging. Make a stand about social injustices, display personal art and writing, gather with other writers to offer advice on writing or to promote/support each others work. The possibilities are endless.
Be careful what you say
This is not to say you should do anything on a personal or professional blog. This is not a place to publicly bash publishers who reject your work, editors that get on your nerves, other artists you may be having a row with, or even complaining about your boss unless you are okay with these folks finding your blog and seeing what you say about them. It’s an easy way to shoot your career in the foot if you aren’t careful. That is not to say you can’t have an opinion, or vent your frustration, just remember folks are not only reading what you write there, but the wrong person would be just as likely to repost what you say someplace else to start trouble.
The subject of trolls
For those of you who have never experienced internet trolls, here’s a brief definition of what these creatures are. The term trolls has a connection to the technique of” trolling” a style of fishing that involves a bait to be dragged though an area looking far a fish to bite. Internet trolls do basically the same thing. They come to a blog or online community for the purpose to make off topic comments and cause trouble. They are generally a person who feels their life is out of control, so they victimize someone else to make them feel important.
Trolls are something any blogger who takes a stand on anything that could be seen as controversial, or who isn’t meek when it comes to commenting on other blogs, will have to do with at some point. Set your blog settings accordingly to protect yourself best you can, avoid posting personal pics or information you don’t want these trolls to have access to, and work to build a supportive online community who can all just to each other’s defense when these trolls come calling.
You can’t protect yourself completely, but don’t let them stop you from talking about the issues that impassion you, nor give them the power to derail an important topic with their idiocy. It will be up to you on whether to fight or just ignore the trolls, often the latter is the best you can do.
How to handle a troll
Zero Tolerance
Assuming I haven’t completely scared you off of blogging talking about trolls, one of the best ways to bring traffic to your blog is to link up with other blogs as well. Post link to places you admire or find interesting, trade links with other writers or artists you admire or like. Helping promote each other is a great way to increase traffic for all of you. Marketing yourself as an artist isn’t about competing, it’s about giving the consumer all the information they need, and at the same time giving you a place to be creative and speak out. Whether you blog every day or only once a week, it’s a good habit to get into. Also don’t forget to spend time visiting other’s blogs. You may be surprised what you learn and what may inspire you.
Websites
Basics
Other great tool for personal promotion, and something that can be easily links your blog is the website. I prefer having a domain through a paid hosting source, but there is many free webhosting places out there you can use as well. Unless you have a friend who has the ability to build your site for you, you will have to do the web design yourself or pay to have it done. Be sure to keep it as simple as you can easily maintain, so you can make regular changes as you need to.
What to have on your site
There are several things that I think are crucial on any website as an author or artist. You want someplace where the casual viewer can learn about you, a bio page of some sort. This can be as simple or as complex as you’d like. You want to display your work in some way so those visiting can get a taste of what you do, your style and skill. Also, here is a good place to add links to other artist, resource sites, ect…for the cross promoting I mentioned before. You have review of your work, post them on your site. Events you’ll be attending? News on upcoming releases or awards? Yep post those here too. This is your site, your chance to show new viewers who you are and what your about. Inlike the blog this is a much for the casual reader, as for the person who wants to learn much more about you.
Other Tools
Mailgroups
Places like google, yahoo, etc have email communities and forums where you can connect with like minded people and talk about anything that interests you. This is also a great place to promote your work assuming personal promotion is allowed on the group, and you follow the group rules for doing so. My advice, join these groups long before it is time to promote your work. Be as active as you can so people know who you are, and don’t only see you as someone just here to promote themselves but a true member of their online community.
YouTube – Book trailers
Places like YouTube or any other video hosting are fabulous places if you have the tech knowledge and equipment to do your own videos. Book trailers are a great way for you to attract the more visually geared folks to want to check out your work. A well done trailer can be a huge boost, and there are many places that give tutorials on how to do this. You can make your trailer or virtual gallery as simple or as complicated as you like.
Now many of you know about doing readings and panels at conventions, but with the growing cost of travel I’ve thought about how else to present my work in a less visual arena, for those like me who are more audiotorally geared. Podcasts are a great way to accomplish this. Whether you do them like a regular radio show, for example a writer workshop, or group promotion of several writers, or for accessible reading or you reading your work online, podcasts are a great tool. Here are some great links to teach you how to take advantage of this useful technology.
Well, I hope this information was useful to you. It’s never to early (or too late) to focus on self promotion. You don’t need tons of money, but you will need to plot your time so as not to get overwhelmed between you promotion time, your creative time, and everything else your life demands of you. Good luck!
Also, as part of this special event there are some other authors doing workshop on their blogs worth checking out.
Sandra Barret is doing “Worldbuilding with a Wiki” Tuesday, July 29, 2008. Jove Belle is doing a not to miss workshop on “Brainstorming” Thursday, July 31, 2008, And the magnificent Larkin Rose is doing a piece called “Hitting the Wall” on the subject of Writer's Block Saturday, Aug 2, 2008
The internet itself is a great tool to give your work widespread attention. There are no gas or plane fares to dig into your pocket book, you simply have the world at your fingertips. What you do with this connection is up to you. Here are some suggestions.
Blogging
What a blog is for
This is something I suggest to do as early as possible. Establishing yourself as an online presence before you have work you are promoting is a great way to gather a fan base, as well as giving a place for people who what to know where you stand a way to get to know you better. You can do anything with blogging. Make a stand about social injustices, display personal art and writing, gather with other writers to offer advice on writing or to promote/support each others work. The possibilities are endless.
Be careful what you say
This is not to say you should do anything on a personal or professional blog. This is not a place to publicly bash publishers who reject your work, editors that get on your nerves, other artists you may be having a row with, or even complaining about your boss unless you are okay with these folks finding your blog and seeing what you say about them. It’s an easy way to shoot your career in the foot if you aren’t careful. That is not to say you can’t have an opinion, or vent your frustration, just remember folks are not only reading what you write there, but the wrong person would be just as likely to repost what you say someplace else to start trouble.
The subject of trolls
For those of you who have never experienced internet trolls, here’s a brief definition of what these creatures are. The term trolls has a connection to the technique of” trolling” a style of fishing that involves a bait to be dragged though an area looking far a fish to bite. Internet trolls do basically the same thing. They come to a blog or online community for the purpose to make off topic comments and cause trouble. They are generally a person who feels their life is out of control, so they victimize someone else to make them feel important.
Trolls are something any blogger who takes a stand on anything that could be seen as controversial, or who isn’t meek when it comes to commenting on other blogs, will have to do with at some point. Set your blog settings accordingly to protect yourself best you can, avoid posting personal pics or information you don’t want these trolls to have access to, and work to build a supportive online community who can all just to each other’s defense when these trolls come calling.
You can’t protect yourself completely, but don’t let them stop you from talking about the issues that impassion you, nor give them the power to derail an important topic with their idiocy. It will be up to you on whether to fight or just ignore the trolls, often the latter is the best you can do.
How to handle a troll
Zero Tolerance
Blog linking
Assuming I haven’t completely scared you off of blogging talking about trolls, one of the best ways to bring traffic to your blog is to link up with other blogs as well. Post link to places you admire or find interesting, trade links with other writers or artists you admire or like. Helping promote each other is a great way to increase traffic for all of you. Marketing yourself as an artist isn’t about competing, it’s about giving the consumer all the information they need, and at the same time giving you a place to be creative and speak out. Whether you blog every day or only once a week, it’s a good habit to get into. Also don’t forget to spend time visiting other’s blogs. You may be surprised what you learn and what may inspire you.
Websites
Basics
Other great tool for personal promotion, and something that can be easily links your blog is the website. I prefer having a domain through a paid hosting source, but there is many free webhosting places out there you can use as well. Unless you have a friend who has the ability to build your site for you, you will have to do the web design yourself or pay to have it done. Be sure to keep it as simple as you can easily maintain, so you can make regular changes as you need to.
What to have on your site
There are several things that I think are crucial on any website as an author or artist. You want someplace where the casual viewer can learn about you, a bio page of some sort. This can be as simple or as complex as you’d like. You want to display your work in some way so those visiting can get a taste of what you do, your style and skill. Also, here is a good place to add links to other artist, resource sites, ect…for the cross promoting I mentioned before. You have review of your work, post them on your site. Events you’ll be attending? News on upcoming releases or awards? Yep post those here too. This is your site, your chance to show new viewers who you are and what your about. Inlike the blog this is a much for the casual reader, as for the person who wants to learn much more about you.
Other Tools
Mailgroups
YouTube – Book trailers
Places like YouTube or any other video hosting are fabulous places if you have the tech knowledge and equipment to do your own videos. Book trailers are a great way for you to attract the more visually geared folks to want to check out your work. A well done trailer can be a huge boost, and there are many places that give tutorials on how to do this. You can make your trailer or virtual gallery as simple or as complicated as you like.
Now many of you know about doing readings and panels at conventions, but with the growing cost of travel I’ve thought about how else to present my work in a less visual arena, for those like me who are more audiotorally geared. Podcasts are a great way to accomplish this. Whether you do them like a regular radio show, for example a writer workshop, or group promotion of several writers, or for accessible reading or you reading your work online, podcasts are a great tool. Here are some great links to teach you how to take advantage of this useful technology.
How Stuff Works
Now, in honestly podcast and web vids will never truly replace the feeling of live readings (for some of us the terror and the nausea of public speaking is like nothing else), and if you keep your author events local you can keep costs down as well. Remember, indy bookstores are just one place to do a fun author event. You can do group reading which can be a fantastic draw for attendees, slam session at local coffee houses, any place you can think of that fits the audience of whatever type of work you do. Be creative, and have a good time. If you make it fun, your prospective readers will have a good time too.
Now, in honestly podcast and web vids will never truly replace the feeling of live readings (for some of us the terror and the nausea of public speaking is like nothing else), and if you keep your author events local you can keep costs down as well. Remember, indy bookstores are just one place to do a fun author event. You can do group reading which can be a fantastic draw for attendees, slam session at local coffee houses, any place you can think of that fits the audience of whatever type of work you do. Be creative, and have a good time. If you make it fun, your prospective readers will have a good time too.
Well, I hope this information was useful to you. It’s never to early (or too late) to focus on self promotion. You don’t need tons of money, but you will need to plot your time so as not to get overwhelmed between you promotion time, your creative time, and everything else your life demands of you. Good luck!
Also, as part of this special event there are some other authors doing workshop on their blogs worth checking out.
Sandra Barret is doing “Worldbuilding with a Wiki” Tuesday, July 29, 2008. Jove Belle is doing a not to miss workshop on “Brainstorming” Thursday, July 31, 2008, And the magnificent Larkin Rose is doing a piece called “Hitting the Wall” on the subject of Writer's Block Saturday, Aug 2, 2008
Saturday, July 26, 2008
GCLS Con in 4 more days…
Laundry, packing, and so on, my weekend is full of excited preparation for GCLS Lit Con. Here’s an idea of what I have planned…
I leave out Tuesday afternoon because AirTran likes to change stuff on me (again) to force me to head out almost 24 hours early so I don’t miss social stuff Wednesday night. Luckily Patty and her honey are coming to get me and giving me a place to crash Tuesday so I don’t have to sleep in the airport. I won’t be there Tuesday until after 9:30 in the evening, so no early sightseeing for me that evening.
Wednesday check in isn’t until 5pm (though I can at least check into my room earlier than that) so I should be able to get in some sight seeing then. I’ve never been to Phoenix. Or any place that had what people could consider a “dry heat” so I’m looking forward to the experience. The meet and great should be a great time, so many people I have only known online I can finally meet in person.
Thursday we got the murder mystery going on, and I am soooo getting in on that. It should be fun (note to send, be in the vendors area at 2:50 pm on Thursday). My time co-mentoring is from 9 - 10 am so should give me plenty of time to get lunch and relax a bit before we meet up.
The change in mentoring time also means I’ll miss Page-Turning Plots: Outlining & Organizing Your Novel (Presentation & Workshop) Part I with Jennifer L. Jordan, but maybe I can get someone to take my mini recorder with them or take very good notes so I wont be too far behind when I go to Part II at 10:45 am.
It’ll all still leave me time to also go see It's Not All About You: Creating Story People with Depth (Workshop) Part I with Karin Kallmaker& Lori L. Lake at 1:30 pm since that ends at 2:30. I hope O can make it to Part II of that at 3:15 pm, but with the presentation for the murder mystery event that could be hard to manage. Whew I’m gonna be running that day.
Friday will be an early day for me convention time, even though I am regularly up at 6am when I’m not on a (working) vacation. Stop Wasting Those Gigabytes: Make the Most of Your Author Website (Presentation) with KG MacGregor is at 8:30 am, and that sound like a useful panel to check out. I have to be at Tough Girls, Bitchfights, and Girls Gone Bad (Panel/Reading) right after that, so I’ll miss part I of Katherine V. Forrest’s Writing Fiction for Publication/The Successful Manuscript: The Editor's View presentation. Talk about some rough competition to be up against. I hope some of you that may be going to GCLS will make it to the reading.
I might make it to part II of Katherine V. Forrest’s presentation after that, but the world building one looks so good to since I right exclusively paranormal within my own version on the modern world. There’s a part III and IV to this presentation as well, maybe if I am lucky all four parts will be on the GCLS DvD (which I will be ordering a copy of.
See how many cool panels there are here. More of ya’ll will have to come check the con out next year, huh? My other panel is Caliente! Spicy Hot Erotica & Romance (Panel Reading) Saturday at 1:30 pm. Gonna be some fun stuff in here, I bet ya. Ya’ll should come check it out! The winner of the murder mystery will be announced on Saturday, bit as busy as I’m going to be not sure how much of that I’ll have time to participate in. I’m really looking forward to the dance. I love music and dancing, though not sure how much energy I’ll have left for a long night. Depends how late, early I am up writing that weekend along with everything else.
Needless to say I am really looking forward to this trip, and I will do my best to keep ya’ll in touch with what’s going on at the blog. Copies of the anth Chilling Tales of Terror and the Supernatural will be there I found out, so I hope the reading I do and such help will the sale of that as well as drum up interest when Ancestral Magic comes out this fall. If nothing else, I’m sure it’ll be a great time all around.
I leave out Tuesday afternoon because AirTran likes to change stuff on me (again) to force me to head out almost 24 hours early so I don’t miss social stuff Wednesday night. Luckily Patty and her honey are coming to get me and giving me a place to crash Tuesday so I don’t have to sleep in the airport. I won’t be there Tuesday until after 9:30 in the evening, so no early sightseeing for me that evening.
Wednesday check in isn’t until 5pm (though I can at least check into my room earlier than that) so I should be able to get in some sight seeing then. I’ve never been to Phoenix. Or any place that had what people could consider a “dry heat” so I’m looking forward to the experience. The meet and great should be a great time, so many people I have only known online I can finally meet in person.
Thursday we got the murder mystery going on, and I am soooo getting in on that. It should be fun (note to send, be in the vendors area at 2:50 pm on Thursday). My time co-mentoring is from 9 - 10 am so should give me plenty of time to get lunch and relax a bit before we meet up.
The change in mentoring time also means I’ll miss Page-Turning Plots: Outlining & Organizing Your Novel (Presentation & Workshop) Part I with Jennifer L. Jordan, but maybe I can get someone to take my mini recorder with them or take very good notes so I wont be too far behind when I go to Part II at 10:45 am.
It’ll all still leave me time to also go see It's Not All About You: Creating Story People with Depth (Workshop) Part I with Karin Kallmaker& Lori L. Lake at 1:30 pm since that ends at 2:30. I hope O can make it to Part II of that at 3:15 pm, but with the presentation for the murder mystery event that could be hard to manage. Whew I’m gonna be running that day.
Friday will be an early day for me convention time, even though I am regularly up at 6am when I’m not on a (working) vacation. Stop Wasting Those Gigabytes: Make the Most of Your Author Website (Presentation) with KG MacGregor is at 8:30 am, and that sound like a useful panel to check out. I have to be at Tough Girls, Bitchfights, and Girls Gone Bad (Panel/Reading) right after that, so I’ll miss part I of Katherine V. Forrest’s Writing Fiction for Publication/The Successful Manuscript: The Editor's View presentation. Talk about some rough competition to be up against. I hope some of you that may be going to GCLS will make it to the reading.
I might make it to part II of Katherine V. Forrest’s presentation after that, but the world building one looks so good to since I right exclusively paranormal within my own version on the modern world. There’s a part III and IV to this presentation as well, maybe if I am lucky all four parts will be on the GCLS DvD (which I will be ordering a copy of.
See how many cool panels there are here. More of ya’ll will have to come check the con out next year, huh? My other panel is Caliente! Spicy Hot Erotica & Romance (Panel Reading) Saturday at 1:30 pm. Gonna be some fun stuff in here, I bet ya. Ya’ll should come check it out! The winner of the murder mystery will be announced on Saturday, bit as busy as I’m going to be not sure how much of that I’ll have time to participate in. I’m really looking forward to the dance. I love music and dancing, though not sure how much energy I’ll have left for a long night. Depends how late, early I am up writing that weekend along with everything else.
Needless to say I am really looking forward to this trip, and I will do my best to keep ya’ll in touch with what’s going on at the blog. Copies of the anth Chilling Tales of Terror and the Supernatural will be there I found out, so I hope the reading I do and such help will the sale of that as well as drum up interest when Ancestral Magic comes out this fall. If nothing else, I’m sure it’ll be a great time all around.
Friday, July 25, 2008
The Transplanted Writer by Fran Walker
Great new article at Women and Words blog called "The Transplanted Writer" by the wonderful Fran Walker. Here's a sample...
“Write what you know” is a common writer’s mantra. Authors do research in order to create believable characters and settings. The writer of a medical drama can go online to learn the typical layout of a surgical suite or emergency room. An historical writer might check out library books to study the difference between a castle and a palace. But to create a believable story in any setting, the author seems to need a “sense of place” in order to convey a credible world. And sense of place, I’ve learned, has less to do with the obvious differences and more to do with the tiniest details. Often writers depict settings poorly simply because we aren’t aware of the gaps in our knowledge.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Thursday Thirteen #36 “Songs that Inspire”
This is crossposted from the LJ journal ya'll are used to seeing me at. I've decided my blogger is going to be mostly a place for my writing, and things that inspire it (current event, music, art, etc...) so I will likely use both for my TT's depending on the subject.
This week I wanted to talk about songs that charge my writing, and sometimes even inspire it. Too bad that utube has so many of the best videos that have had embedded removed, I assume at the record companies request. Oh well.
1) “Youth of the Nation” by P.O.D.
2) “Bring Me to Life” by Evanescence
(inspired my novel Cryptic Voodoo (which may be getting a name change, the novel not the band), one scene in particular was based on part of this video)
3) “Stranger” by Billy Joel
4) “Dark Lady” Cher (inspired my villain in Ancestral Magic, Morrissa Donaldson, especially the very beginning of this song.)
5) “Angie Baby” Helen Reddy
6) “(I Just) Died in Your Arms” Cutting Crew
7) “True Faith” New Order (makes me think of Eve from Cryptic Voodoo, the feeling of being outcast from her peers, but being free)
The next two are so hot, the never fail to fuel me up for my more erotic scenes. I warn you, you put these on full screen and I’ll not be responsible for the result (wink)
8) Beautiful Liar with Beyonce and Shakira
9) Shakira 'Hips Don't Lie (f. Wyclef Jean)'
10) Who Wants to Live Forever by Queen (performed by Seal) (I was thinking about this song in part while I wrote the first scene in Natural Order, but this song has touched me for so long far before that)
11) Dear Mr President - Pink- Live
12) Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me - Elton John
Though the version with George Michael is my fav, even though I can’t find an embedded version of that one
13) Queen Latifah- U.N.I.T.Y.
(this one is one of my very favs, and great for when I need to charge my Amazon battery and do some literary ass kickin’. Is there any guess now why I have such a crush on this woman?)
Come add your link and them don’t forget to comment.
Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others' comments. It’s easy, and fun! Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
View More Thursday Thirteen Participants
This week I wanted to talk about songs that charge my writing, and sometimes even inspire it. Too bad that utube has so many of the best videos that have had embedded removed, I assume at the record companies request. Oh well.
1) “Youth of the Nation” by P.O.D.
2) “Bring Me to Life” by Evanescence
(inspired my novel Cryptic Voodoo (which may be getting a name change, the novel not the band), one scene in particular was based on part of this video)
3) “Stranger” by Billy Joel
4) “Dark Lady” Cher (inspired my villain in Ancestral Magic, Morrissa Donaldson, especially the very beginning of this song.)
5) “Angie Baby” Helen Reddy
6) “(I Just) Died in Your Arms” Cutting Crew
7) “True Faith” New Order (makes me think of Eve from Cryptic Voodoo, the feeling of being outcast from her peers, but being free)
The next two are so hot, the never fail to fuel me up for my more erotic scenes. I warn you, you put these on full screen and I’ll not be responsible for the result (wink)
8) Beautiful Liar with Beyonce and Shakira
9) Shakira 'Hips Don't Lie (f. Wyclef Jean)'
10) Who Wants to Live Forever by Queen (performed by Seal) (I was thinking about this song in part while I wrote the first scene in Natural Order, but this song has touched me for so long far before that)
11) Dear Mr President - Pink- Live
12) Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me - Elton John
Though the version with George Michael is my fav, even though I can’t find an embedded version of that one
13) Queen Latifah- U.N.I.T.Y.
(this one is one of my very favs, and great for when I need to charge my Amazon battery and do some literary ass kickin’. Is there any guess now why I have such a crush on this woman?)
Come add your link and them don’t forget to comment.
The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others' comments. It’s easy, and fun! Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!
View More Thursday Thirteen Participants
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Very useful blog traffic related articles by Bobby Revell
I found some great articles at a blog I just discovered, Revellian Dot Com, about making your articles search engine friendly, using SEO keywords, and how to provide traffic for others. I found these a great resource to teach me ways to increase blog traffic based on tactics I can use when writing my articles, as well as being able to help other good blogs get noticed. How cool is that? Here’s some clips to give you a taste.
You can see the rest here at “Search Engine Friendly Article Titles”
I’d also recommend the article called “SEO Keywords For Beginners” that this site has made available as well.
And another article I found interesting was called “How To Provide Traffic For Others”
Many people believe a catchy blog post title is the way to go, some think a search engine friendly article title is - which is best? I think it’s a combination of both. (note that I repeated the blog title in the previous sentence - you should do the same and use it naturally in a sentence at the start of the post). For sake of this discussion, let’s hypothesize there are two types of bloggers: Those who know how search engines work and those who do not.
You can see the rest here at “Search Engine Friendly Article Titles”
I’d also recommend the article called “SEO Keywords For Beginners” that this site has made available as well.
I chose the phrase, seo keywords, and actually used it as the central motif from which to build this post. Look at the title of my post. It contains the keyword phrase, seo keywords. This is important to do. I could have named it something else and used the phrase, seo keywords, in my title tags. If you use blogger with an xml template (new blogger), you will simply need to make sure you title your post so it contains the keyword phrase.
And another article I found interesting was called “How To Provide Traffic For Others”
I see so many people trying hard to earn traffic for their own blogs, it’s natural. As humans, we like attention. We want to feel important and our work has some sort of validation. Often, with this mindset, we miss out on what is truly important.Well, I hope you enjoyed these articles as much as I did, and take the time to check out all of the other great stuff at Revellian Dot Com. You never know what you might find.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Women and Words: The Dark Side by India Masters
New stuff up at Women and Words blog. India Masters is doing a post about the type of fiction she writes called "The Dark Side", you can guess by this our gal doedn't write fluffy happy fiction, huh? Here's a taste...
Read more HERE
Well, anyone who’s read my work, knows that light is not a word associated with what I write. Hmmm, food for thought. Do I include past experiences in my writing, and I guess the answer to that is, yes. My first book was a paranormal, The Soul Collector, about an immortal Celtic Druid who is married to a vampire from the French Revolution period.
Read more HERE
Monday, July 21, 2008
It is done!!!
Whew, I never thought I’d finally say this, but…
(drum roll please)
…the first draft of Primal Magic is completed (sequel to Ancestral Magic). Now if I can find a couple more beta readers willing to tackle the 68,045 word manuscript, I can have it out to the publisher by end of August and reach my goal. Wow, this feels sooooo good.
I’m going to take a couple weeks off so I can actually relax during my trip to GCLS con (If I can stand to go without writing for that long) and get started on the rework of Bloodstained Innocence (which has been homeless since the demise of Stardust Press). Once that is ready to go (I want to add a few chapters and a bit more action, make the story less romancy), then begins the big job.
Working on the sequel for Natural Order, Natural Rebirth!
I love being a writer!!!
(drum roll please)
…the first draft of Primal Magic is completed (sequel to Ancestral Magic). Now if I can find a couple more beta readers willing to tackle the 68,045 word manuscript, I can have it out to the publisher by end of August and reach my goal. Wow, this feels sooooo good.
I’m going to take a couple weeks off so I can actually relax during my trip to GCLS con (If I can stand to go without writing for that long) and get started on the rework of Bloodstained Innocence (which has been homeless since the demise of Stardust Press). Once that is ready to go (I want to add a few chapters and a bit more action, make the story less romancy), then begins the big job.
Working on the sequel for Natural Order, Natural Rebirth!
I love being a writer!!!
Green Monday "Creative Recycling with the Green It! Carnival"
I was invited to join the new "Green It" carnival, and it's up and live.
The Creative Recycling edition of the Green It! Carnival has been published, which has been compiled by Lisa of Condo Blues. Reducing waste is a big part of living green, but at times it can be a bit of a challenge, if not down right impossible to come up with creative ways to recycle! Never fear! This edition of the Green It! Carnival will provide you with ideas galore and solutions to also sorts of recycling quandaries.
The Creative Recycling edition of the Green It! Carnival has been published, which has been compiled by Lisa of Condo Blues. Reducing waste is a big part of living green, but at times it can be a bit of a challenge, if not down right impossible to come up with creative ways to recycle! Never fear! This edition of the Green It! Carnival will provide you with ideas galore and solutions to also sorts of recycling quandaries.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Sniff, looks like it’s over
Well, this is the end. The last episode of Avatar: The Last Airbender just finished tonight. Where as I am excited to have gotten to see the finale, there’s melancholy that there will be no more episodes in the future. (the link above has spoilers so don’t read if you haven’t seen the show)
For those of you who haven’t had a taste of the show, or like me can’t get enough, here’s some samples…
For those of you who haven’t had a taste of the show, or like me can’t get enough, here’s some samples…
Friday, July 18, 2008
Isn't This Just Stupid
I see, so the cost of living, the fact that to fill my tank cost over $60 a pop, all in my head right? Thanks to Move On for this enlighting look into Bush and McCain, masters of psychology.
Joss Wheden has done it again!
One week only you too can see the only miniseries of its kind. Dr. Horrible, the super villain musical.
For only one week it’s free for your viewing, then it will go away, only to be had to the most worthy of fans (or those that pay the fee for the dvd).
This is great stuff folks, cheesy, funny, sweet, and musical! Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along-Blog
For only one week it’s free for your viewing, then it will go away, only to be had to the most worthy of fans (or those that pay the fee for the dvd).
This is great stuff folks, cheesy, funny, sweet, and musical! Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along-Blog
Thursday, July 17, 2008
A New Strategy for a New World
"Barack will lead a new foreign policy based on restoring America's military strength and global respect, cooperating with allies, and reversing failed Bush policies"
Of all the speeches from out future president, this one touched me the most, and excited me for the possibilities in the next few years.
Of all the speeches from out future president, this one touched me the most, and excited me for the possibilities in the next few years.
Thursday Thirteen #35 "Thinking Ahead"
I know I need to get some more blogging in, at least on a more regular basis. I use all sort of excuses not to, kids being crazy, heat sapping my brain, too many other things to do (cleaning, edits, working on Primal Magic), but in truth I just need to feel I have something interesting to write about that ya’ll want to read.
So here’s the deal. I’m going to throw out some suggestions, and ya’ll can tell me what you’d find most interesting. No limit in choices.
See TT here
So here’s the deal. I’m going to throw out some suggestions, and ya’ll can tell me what you’d find most interesting. No limit in choices.
See TT here
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Talk about stupid laws...Hey, Wisconsin Family Council! Buy a clue!
I just got this sent to me by Fair Wisconsin.
On July 9th, CNN.com aired a story from WKOW about an obscure law facing Wisconsin gay and lesbian couples if they enter into a marriage outside the state that would not be legal in Wisconsin. In the interview, Wisconsin Family Council CEO Julaine Appling said verbatim that “that’s a defrauding of the government” and “someone needs to prosecute them.”
Later, Wisconsin Family Council issued a denial of the comments made by Appling, calling the story “distorted and misleading,” and claiming that what she actually said was that gay couples who get married in California are “taking a risk that some DA somewhere could charge them under this law, unlikely as that may be.” To see the text of the Wisconsin Family Council's denial click here.
Clearly, the only “defrauding” going on is the re-writing of history coming from the Wisconsin Family Council.
See for yourself what Appling actually said:
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2008/07/09/dnt.wi.same.sex.jail.wkow
Fair Wisconsin remains committed to protecting the civil rights of LGBT citizens and fighting for equality for ALL of Wisconsin’s families. For more information or to make a donation, please visit http://www.fairwisconsin.com/
Best regards,
GlennGlenn Carlson,
Executive Director
On July 9th, CNN.com aired a story from WKOW about an obscure law facing Wisconsin gay and lesbian couples if they enter into a marriage outside the state that would not be legal in Wisconsin. In the interview, Wisconsin Family Council CEO Julaine Appling said verbatim that “that’s a defrauding of the government” and “someone needs to prosecute them.”
Later, Wisconsin Family Council issued a denial of the comments made by Appling, calling the story “distorted and misleading,” and claiming that what she actually said was that gay couples who get married in California are “taking a risk that some DA somewhere could charge them under this law, unlikely as that may be.” To see the text of the Wisconsin Family Council's denial click here.
Clearly, the only “defrauding” going on is the re-writing of history coming from the Wisconsin Family Council.
See for yourself what Appling actually said:
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2008/07/09/dnt.wi.same.sex.jail.wkow
Fair Wisconsin remains committed to protecting the civil rights of LGBT citizens and fighting for equality for ALL of Wisconsin’s families. For more information or to make a donation, please visit http://www.fairwisconsin.com/
Best regards,
GlennGlenn Carlson,
Executive Director
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
WTH? Sexual identity disturbance?
Thanks to eternalwytch for the heads up on this one
ROME (Reuters) - An Italian court has ruled the government must pay 100,000 euros ($157,700) in damages to a man who was told to retake a driving test because he was homosexual.
When 26 year-old Danilo Giuffrida told doctors he was gay at his medical examination for military service, they passed the information to the transport ministry, who told him he must repeat his driving test or have his license withdrawn due to his "sexual identity disturbance."
Giuffrida agreed to re-take his test, passed it for a second time, but the ministry renewed his license for just one year rather than the usual 10 years because of his homosexuality.
The judge ruling on the case in Catania, on the southern island of Sicily, said the actions of the defense and transport ministries showed "evident sexual discrimination" against Giuffrida and ran counter to his constitutional rights.
The behavior of the ministries led Giuffrida to have "a grave sense of mistrust towards the state," added the judge, who ordered them to pay him 100,000 euros of damages in his verdict issued on Saturday.
Giuffrida's lawyer said the case marked the first time the state had been punished for sexual discrimination, and he hoped Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi would "summon Giuffrida and apologize to him on behalf of the state and all Italians."
Giuffrida said the sentence was "a step forwards for civil rights because from now on what happened to me can't happen again."
ROME (Reuters) - An Italian court has ruled the government must pay 100,000 euros ($157,700) in damages to a man who was told to retake a driving test because he was homosexual.
When 26 year-old Danilo Giuffrida told doctors he was gay at his medical examination for military service, they passed the information to the transport ministry, who told him he must repeat his driving test or have his license withdrawn due to his "sexual identity disturbance."
Giuffrida agreed to re-take his test, passed it for a second time, but the ministry renewed his license for just one year rather than the usual 10 years because of his homosexuality.
The judge ruling on the case in Catania, on the southern island of Sicily, said the actions of the defense and transport ministries showed "evident sexual discrimination" against Giuffrida and ran counter to his constitutional rights.
The behavior of the ministries led Giuffrida to have "a grave sense of mistrust towards the state," added the judge, who ordered them to pay him 100,000 euros of damages in his verdict issued on Saturday.
Giuffrida's lawyer said the case marked the first time the state had been punished for sexual discrimination, and he hoped Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi would "summon Giuffrida and apologize to him on behalf of the state and all Italians."
Giuffrida said the sentence was "a step forwards for civil rights because from now on what happened to me can't happen again."
Monday, July 14, 2008
Green Monday: Cycling pt 1, Fitting a Bike
I’ve really been thinking about the idea of getting a bicycle and using it (to start with) for shorter errands and trips. I’ll admit the raising gas prices is one reason, the environmental impact another, but a big reason is also that weighing in now at 157 (a 30 lb loss since Feb) it’s time to step up the fitness part of my day so I can have that nummy Culvers custard guilt free. :)
Okay, I admit, health is a good part of my reason too, even though living in Wisconsin the months it’s warm enough to get on a cycle is limited. So, with all of that in mind, I’ve been doing some research on buying, riding, and maintaining a cycle. There’s so much info, I think I will talk about bikes in several steps over a few posts. This first one will be about bike fitting.
Read the rest at Cycling pt 1, Fitting a Bike
Okay, I admit, health is a good part of my reason too, even though living in Wisconsin the months it’s warm enough to get on a cycle is limited. So, with all of that in mind, I’ve been doing some research on buying, riding, and maintaining a cycle. There’s so much info, I think I will talk about bikes in several steps over a few posts. This first one will be about bike fitting.
Read the rest at Cycling pt 1, Fitting a Bike
Women and Words update: Objectively Speaking by Clifford Henderson
There's some great stuff over at the Women and Words blog this weekend. Clifford Henderson has a great post going on about character building that's not to miss. Go forth and check it out!
Cliffi here to talk about “The Big O.” Now, before you start salivating, or running for some privacy, let me warn you, it’s not what you might think.
read the rest here!
Cliffi here to talk about “The Big O.” Now, before you start salivating, or running for some privacy, let me warn you, it’s not what you might think.
It was one of those days. The writing wasn’t coming easy. Or, editing, I should
say. Eagle-eye Cindy Cresap, my editor, made the case that one of the
relationships in my novel needed a bit of beefing up. The chapter I was working
on today was crucial in that it’s the first time we see the two characters alone
together.
read the rest here!
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Best Image Ever!!!
I am soooooo usng this image as my icon for lgbt justice! Thanks to the The Lesbian Said What?? blog for this treasure.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Moon's addition to "Post-a-rejection-letter Friday!"
A couple gems for Post-a-rejection-letter Friday!
A past regection for the novel that is coming out this fall with PD Publishing. Keep in mind this is the final response I got after seven months of waiting and having few responses to my polite email enquiries. That's okay, the next publisher I sent it to couldn't say enough things about how much they liked it.
Here's one for anouther book that will be coming out through PD next year. The editor here was very nice about it, and I hope it might help others to not assume that because the publishers page says they sell something, that they actually want manscripts like it.
So there's a couple that I saved, though many I didn't. There was even one instance I never got through the door bcause I have one book cotracted with a publisher the editor said it would be a conflict of interest to even look at any of my other manuscripts. Honstly I am pretty happy at PD, so that's okay by me. :)
A past regection for the novel that is coming out this fall with PD Publishing. Keep in mind this is the final response I got after seven months of waiting and having few responses to my polite email enquiries. That's okay, the next publisher I sent it to couldn't say enough things about how much they liked it.
I apologize for the the extreme delay in the review of your manuscript. I truly enjoyed your submission, and I believe it has great potential. However, it did not pass review, each reviewer felt that the ending was not fleshed out enough. They felt as though the ending came right in the middle of the story.
Here's one for anouther book that will be coming out through PD next year. The editor here was very nice about it, and I hope it might help others to not assume that because the publishers page says they sell something, that they actually want manscripts like it.
We have reviewed your submission and while we found the writing good and story line very well done, we feel that this story is not right for us. At this time, we are not accepting lesbian stories. Our readership has indicated that this genre isn't one they are looking for in a (publisher's name removed) book.
So there's a couple that I saved, though many I didn't. There was even one instance I never got through the door bcause I have one book cotracted with a publisher the editor said it would be a conflict of interest to even look at any of my other manuscripts. Honstly I am pretty happy at PD, so that's okay by me. :)
Sunday, July 6, 2008
New Blog on Writing to Check Out!
A group of women writers (me being one of them, heh heh) have formed a writing craft-focused blog. The participants are: Andi Marquette, Clifford Henderson, India Masters, Jove Belle, Larkin Rose, Me, and Sandra Barret. The first post is up, and it's a great one by Andi, the travel goddess herself.
Women and Words
Women and Words
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Been Absent - Back Now
I've been hanging over at my LJ blog, and neglicting this one. Now with the new blog sindication I think keeping both wouldn't be a bad thing. Likely there will be little here that you can't find at my LJ, but I may hold some suprises in me yet. Let's begin. :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)