I'm Active, not Busy
Hello My Dear Reader,
Hello My Dear Reader,
The life of a not-so-famous author can get a little busy, especially while holding down a day job.
Sick of hearing how busy everyone is? Yeah, me too. I’ll correct that to active.
Actively I’ve:
Finished the final edits of Hidden Book of Scars.
Begun submitting to agents and publishers.
Put myself out there by submitting to Books with Hooks (more on that soon).
Reworked plot, storyline and characters in WIP (work in progress).
Practiced yoga five times a week.
Beach walks.
Gardening.
Five days a week office managing.
Five days a week writing when I get home.
A three-day break for a writing retreat with a fellow writer (more on that soon).
Random encounters with other writers.
Planning for a face-to-face local women’s writers' group.
Planning the next story.
Designs and social media (needs to be more regular).
Helped Martin Knox publish his latest book, Brisbane River Anti-Memoir.
Read books: David Baldacci's Simply Lies, Lee Child’s Die Trying, and Colleen Hoover’s Verity (you can see I’m mainly reading thrillers at the moment because that is what I am writing).
Watched Home & Away (I’ve hardly missed an episode in 30 years).
Kept a lifestyle journal (thanks to my son, Joel).
Caught up with the grandkids.
Went deep-sea fishing and saw whales (thanks Swimart Noosa).
Phew! I think that’s it for the last month.
Big Podcast News
I was lucky to be selected for Books With Hooks segment from the fabulous The Shit No One Tells You About Writing. This podcast has 2 million downloads and counting. It is hosted by Bianca Marais, CeCe Lyra and Carly Watters. During the podcast they read and critique three queries.
Carly read mine and (as you’ll hear) I need to work on my query. I took her advice and have rewritten it for a more powerful pitch. I seriously did not want to have an ick factor.
The thing that made me happiest was that she liked my five opening pages. The fact she said, ‘It’s full of so much humanity,’ fills me with the kind of joy only a writer (or creative) would understand.
The best part of being picked for Books With Hooks is each writer receives their query file back with notes from the podcasters, who are authors, teachers and literary agents. That is priceless! Their input is invaluable!
Listen for yourself and let me know what you think. It starts at 10.55.
Bianca says, ‘It only takes one yes.’
Self-made Writing Retreat
I couldn’t attend RWA Conference this year. Instead, I invited author Anthea Laurelton to stay on the Sunshine Coast. We discussed books, marketing, publishing and writing. We critiqued and supported each other’s endeavours and went for long walks (always good for the writing brain).
We took in the beauty of Noosa National Park and watched dolphins and turtles in the pristine azure water. Later, we walked along Hastings Street. In a gift shop we met another author, Julie Holland, the author of That Summer in Nautilus Cove. I’m yet to read it but the cover looks fantastic. It’s always good to support other writers.
It was an unplanned few days that have both Anthea and myself eager to get back to our WIPs. Watch this space!
Lastly - a few pics to brighten your day
