Do you like it long or short?

Well, do you like it long or short? You may be scratching your head and saying, well that’s it, she’s finally lost what’s left of her brain. What I mean is reading. Do you like a long novel or a short easy read?

I was reading a post yesterday about a study done on how many actually finish a long novel. It intrigued me. I started thinking about all the books that I’ve started and they were good up to a point, then about 100 or so pages in I lost track of where the book was going. But then later I pick it up and finish it on a rainy day.

I’ve written long and short books, but I get the better response from the short ones. Amazingly enough a lot of people prefer a short, easy read that get’s to the heart of the story quickly and keeps them enthralled for a couple of hours. Several publishing sites actually have a special segment of publishing call short reads or lunch time reads.

When I was younger the craze was the long novel and now it seems the shorter the better. I was going through some new books on Smashwords.com the other day and over half of them were less than 10000 words. Amazing.

I guess that’s why my shorter novels sell better. Funny isn’t it. We’ve gotten to such a busy way of life that we’ve even shortened our reading time. Oh, we still make time for reading, but we want to do it in record time so we can go out and get busy again. Oh well, I’ll just write what I feel like I need to get my stories across and hope it passes the test.

So, let me ask again, Do you like it long or short? See I told you it wasn’t a crazy question…

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Monday night writing…

Monday is always crazy in my office. Today was no exception. I worked a little later than usual and then did my 4-1/2 mile walk. Now I’m sitting down finally and getting ready to work on the last part of my latest manuscript.

It’s funny how you need more than 24 hours in a day. Especially if you’re a writer. Sometimes I’m just getting into my good writing mode when everyone else is heading to bed. When I was younger I could easily pull an all nighter, but the older I get that doesn’t seem as apealing.

Since I have a couple of deadlines regarding my writing, I guess I’ll be put in some midnight oil. It’s going to be a great writing evening. My hubby and son went fishing and left me alone for a couple of hours. I can usually write through anything going on around me. It’s as though I get into a world of my own.

Hope all is well with everyone.

Here’s to good writing and May God Bless You…

The Challenge of Creativity

Why do people constantly put writers down? Have you ever noticed the reaction that non-readers have when you say you’re a writer? Most of the time avid readers are excited and want to know more. But people that don’t read a lot just look at you like you’ve grown a set up horns.

For me it’s hard work to be a writer, an accountant, a children’s minister, a wife and a mom. Not to mention doing housework, finances for our Church and just living. But if it’s your dream and passion you do it through all the madness.

A writer’s life is a challenging one, especially if it’s not your full time job. Finding time to put your thoughts on paper is sometimes the real challenge. As for me it’s usually at night when my family is watching television or after they go to bed. A lot of my writing is done on Saturday after the housework is done and Sunday afternoon. But notes can be found everywhere because as a writer thoughts come into my head and I write them down for future use. Maybe it’s a picture I see, or a phrase I think would work in a scene or even a new book idea.

The fun part of being a writer is when you start building a fan base. The first time a fan emailed me I giggled a lot. It’s so nice to know someone likes your writing. I’m basically a humble person. I had a friend ask me the other day why I didn’t tell her I’m publishing books. I told her I just didn’t want to sound like I was bragging. She laughed and said well its bragging time. I just ducked my head and ran J

So, if you’re a writer, enjoy it. Make time for it and maybe even a special place to write. Mine is on the couch in the recliner with my ear buds in listening to the music I write by. That’s another post altogether.

As always, good writing and May God Bless You…

Friday! Waiting on Weekend of writing…

If you haven’t glanced at your calendar, yep it’s Friday. The last day of the work week for most of us. Of course if you’re a writer, it never ends. Which is good because if it’s your passion, then you look forward to the stolen moments when you sit down with your laptop or pen and paper and you just spill your heart out.

As I’m working on the finishing touches of one of my manuscripts I do hope to have the time tomorrow to get it ready for my editor. Of course that means a couple of hours of constant attention paid to it. As the weather is supposed to be pleasant I might just grab a lawn chair and sit under a tree and let the birds inspire me 🙂

I’ve come to the conclusion that you have to schedule your time or it won’t work. When you have a busy life already and you try to fit in writing time, it has to be planned. Of course you know as well as I do, sometimes the inspiration to write over loads your brain and you have to rearrange that schedule. Yep, like in the middle of the night when you have it in your schedule to sleep. That character just keeps nudging you in the shoulder shouting “GET UP!”.

Hoping all have a great weekend and good luck with your writing time. Don’t forget to make time for your family and Church on Sunday. Inspirational time is very important…

As always, good writing and My God Bless You…

Time… A writer’s Nemesis…

Time. We all wish for more time in the day. I don’t know how many times I’ve been working on something and wished for 25 hours in a day instead of 24. Someone told me the other day that I had too many irons in the fire, but I don’t agree.

I love to be busy. It’s a good thing since I’m a wife, mother, Accountant, Children’s Minister, Author and self publisher. Wow, what a list 🙂 Sometimes it’s overwhelming, but then again it’s rewarding.

Everything I do is because of a passion. I’m not the type of person to jump into something that I don’t like to do. Some aspects of my passions are not my favorite things to do, but that’s the nature of the beast.

As a writer you need a little time everyday to put pen to paper or fingers to keys. I love writing and don’t always have those precious minutes to write. I usually write at night when my son is watching television or playing his musical instruments. My husband is usually reading or watching television as I tap away. Some people say, how can you write when the television is blaring in the background, well it’s easy. I go into a world of my own when I write. It’s really scary sometimes how immersed I get.

So, make a plan. Sit down and work out a schedule of your passions. Make sure you give ample time to each one. That’s my goal this week to set up a schedule for writing. I’m going to set aside a little time each day to get that done. It may sound crazy, but in my busy life I need this to stay sane…

First and foremost I have to make sure to put in time for my family and especially for my faith. I have a prayer time everyday which helps me to get through my day. If you don’t you need to try it. It sets the tone for the day.

As always, good writing and May God Bless you…

P.S. Continue to pray for Oklahoma.

Books…Books…Where from here?

I’m in a whirling dervish and can’t seem to stop it. Well it started like this. I had 12 different manuscripts started. A little over ambitious I know, but sometimes an idea comes to me in the middle of the night and I just have to write it down. Well it goes down hill from there, but I usually have a couple of chapters written before I know it. Then another manuscript catches my brain and I go back to it.

I had an idea for a Christmas novel. It kept poking me in the brain begging for release. I had to let it out. What else could I do? Well I put the others aside and started that one. I promised the others I’d return real soon. Well, then I decided that the 2nd book in the “Flames of Love” series would be a New Year’s book also. Thank goodness that one was already in the works.

As I worked on “The Winner Is Love” which is the Christmas novel, it occurred to me that these characters could not just go away at Christmas. Yep, here we go again, there will be a part two. My brain has it in for me. It is determined to make me insane. I’ve got only a couple of modifications on this one and it will go out this week. Maybe I need one of those gadgets that you speak into and it types what you say. But the catch would be to talk to one computer and type on the other. Boy that would turn out terrible wouldn’t it. My brain can only really do one thing at a time. Never could chew gum and walk, sad but true.

As always, good writing, stay sane, and May God Bless you…

It’s Friday! Thank Heavens!

If you haven’t looked at your calendar, it’s Friday! I always feel a since of relief when Friday rolls around. Although Friday in an accounting office can be pretty hectic with payroll. After payroll is done though it gets pretty laid back.

On Friday it is a day to summarize the week and get ready for the weekend. I start figuring out what I will take care of on Saturday. Top of the list is house cleaning (and mine is desperately in need) and then there is my writing. Saturday is the day I do most of my writing. I wait until I have everything done, then I sit down and relax with my laptop and my current manuscript. I get giddy on Friday waiting on that special time when I can make my books come alive in my mind.

Think about the feeling you get when you look at the clock and it’s 4:30 on Friday. Your heart flips a little as you realize the weekend is only thirty long minutes away. You start watching the seconds count down. (My grandmother always said that makes time go slower to watch the clock or more precisely she said “A watch pot never boils.” Smiling at memory) Well I started when I got up this morning watching and waiting.

So have a wonderful Friday and remember the weekend starts in a couple of hours. As always good writing and may God bless you!