Getting Back into the Groove

My schedule has been thrown off for this week. I went to Nebraska over the weekend and didn’t get back until Monday. It’s a long trip to drive there, but that will be the last time I do it for a visit. The next time I go, it will be to move there.

Because my week has been thrown off, I’m not posting as much as I normally do. That will change next week. I’ll get back into my groove. Since I haven’t been posting, that also means I haven’t been writing fiction. I’ve been doing some freelance stuff, but I haven’t been writing for me. That will also change in the coming weeks.

Soon enough, I will have a schedule that will allow me to be productive and creative, and I’m really looking forward to that. I have several projects that are demanding my attention. On the top of that list is getting my middle grade books ready for self-publishing.

I don’t foresee the process taking long, but it still requires time. They need to be edited again, then formatted and fitted with new covers. It’s an exciting process, and I really enjoy doing it, I just have to have the time.

Soon. It’s going to happen soon.

In the meantime, please feel free to keep yourself busy trying to win signed zombie paperbacks. The sign up is in the right hand column. May is Zombie Awareness Month, so I’ve been giving away free books. This is the last one for this month, so don’t miss out. It’s my nonfiction book, so it has some great advice on how to survive zombies.

I Can’t Seem to Stop!

I started a new project. It wasn’t my intention to start a new one. I actually wanted to take a break from writing and work on PR and marketing for my already published books, but this one is time sensitive, so I had to get started. I’m writing my grandfather-in-law’s biography.

It’s going to be interesting. The man is a WWII vet who won three medals while overseas, and he was a rancher in Wyoming for a long time who made some breakthroughs in the cattle industry. I’m still in the early stages of research for the project, but I have a feeling I’m going to learn a lot about the war and about ranching.

I don’t know a lot about either, so anything I discover will be exciting. Several years ago, when I was working on Coming from Nowhere, I researched Nazi SS soldiers because it was pertinent to some of my characters. I found that incredibly fascinating. My spouse and I often watch shows on the History channel about WWII, but I think this time researching the war is going to be a lot different. It’s going to be a lot more personal.

I’m lucky that my grandfather-in-law is still alive, so I have the luxury and honor to speak with him. I also have this amazing recording he did for public record about his time overseas. It’s approximately 7 hours of him speaking about his experience. I just finished the first 4 hours over the weekend.

It’s really emotional listening to this recording. Often times I hear in his voice how upset the memories still make him. But then there are other times he breaks out laughing as he remembers a story. It’s amazing, and I can’t wait to get his words down on paper for others to enjoy.

I also have recordings about him talking about other aspects of his life, which I think are going to be really fun to listen to. He was so passionate about ranching. And the fantastic thing about that aspect of his life is that there are people I can talk to about the impacts he made in the cattle industry. I can’t wait to hear what they have to say!

As I mentioned, I’ve just started my research, but I will let you know how everything goes with the project. I’m excited to dive deeper and see what I can discover.

A Good Week

This week was a good week.  Nothing overly exciting happened, and I was incredibly busy with freelance edits and editing The Ifs Return for the publisher, but it went by fast.

I crossed a bunch of agents off my list this week.  Their window of response had closed.  It was bittersweet as that meant several less agents were interested in my work, but it gets me one step closer to knowing where the book will be published.  That doesn't make me sad.  At least it has a home.  And I'm already brainstorming a whole bunch of promotional ideas that should be really fun.  Of course, I'd do those no matter who put the book out.

I still have one agent interested--I think.  He hasn't given me a concrete rejection, and when I email him updates (which happens incredibly rarely), he says "Thanks for the update."  On one hand, it's a great response because I assume that means I'm still being considered, but on the other, it's irritating because I want a concrete answer either way.  Sigh.  I guess I just relish in the moment that he hasn't rejected me outright.

Speaking of the nonfiction zombie book, I got it back from the editor and sent it off to the people I interviewed for their approval/input.  I gave them until the end of the month to get it back to me, so I'm sooooo close to being done done.  It feels so freaking good!

As I mentioned up top, I'm also working on edits for The Ifs Return.  I just need to finish those up and send them back to the publisher.  I will get that done today.  I feel bad because I've had it for two weeks now, but I wasn't kidding when I said I've been busy.

My goal this coming week is to work on Dealing with Devils (the sequel to The Appeal of Evil).  I'm close on that one.  Maybe five chapters left before my first draft is finished.  To me, that's the hard part.  I like editing and rewriting--that means I actually have something down on paper!

I feel like this month is flying by super fast.  I feel like I haven't accomplished everything I want to accomplish, but I've done a LOT!  All I can do is keep plugging along, and that's what I plan to do.

Happy Saturday!

This Week in Writing

It has been an incredibly awesome week in my writing world. It is now official that Little Devil Books will be putting out The Ifs Return, the middle grade sequel to The Ifs. I am super excited about working with them again, and my boys can’t wait until the book is in print. They really enjoyed reading it.

I’ve been querying agents for the nonfiction book, Undead Obsessed. So far, I’ve had three requests for proposals. That’s really exciting. As you may remember, this book has caused me a little heartache, so I’m happy it’s getting some attention.

Even if the agent route doesn’t work out for me, I was also informed that Booktrope will more than happily publish Undead Obsessed. I was utterly shocked when I found this out and thrilled/excited/squealing with joy/happy dancing. Booktrope is awesome to work with. The people there are absolutely amazing.

I’m going to be honest with you, I’m a little torn at this point. The agent route has never worked out for me before. I’ve queried at least six projects to date—probably sending thousands of letters—and haven’t had any luck. The indie publishers that I’ve worked with have always been so freaking awesome and supportive, so I know my experience there will be great. But at the same time, I feel like I owe it to myself to try with every project to land an agent. Who knows? The stars might align for me.

The only thing I can do at this point is attempt to be patient and wait to hear from the agents. That is really not an easy task for me. But, I'll do what I have to do. I’ll have to grit my teeth and bear it.

The Nonfiction Zombie Book

It's hard for me to believe that it has been almost a year since I started working on my nonfiction zombie book.  I began work in July 2013.  Since then, there have been ups and downs, some tears, and a major rewrite, but I believe the book is finally where it needs to be.  I'm proud of what I've done.  Whether it's acceptable or not, I actually like my book.  (I say that because we are usually our own worst critics and nothing is ever good enough.)

The book is with an editor right now, but for all intents and purposes, it's done.  I finished the bibliography this weekend.  The proposal and query are complete.  As soon as I get it back and make changes, it's going out into the world.  I'm very excited and nervous about that process.  From experience, I know they'll be rejections, but I also know that it will eventually find a home.  That is going to be very exciting.

The book has been titled Undead Obsessed: Finding Meaning in Zombies.  Here's a little teaser for you to give you an idea of what the book is about.  This comes from my proposal.  I hope you enjoy!

Overall Description:

My obsession with zombies began when I was in junior high, the first time I saw Night of the Living Dead. I remember being scared, but not cover-my-eyes-I’m-going-to-scream-my-lungs-out scared. I didn’t jump, but there was this uneasiness that settled over me. I was afraid to look out my bedroom window at night for fear that the same lifeless eyes that the creatures in the film had would be looking right back at me. I glanced over my shoulder while walking down the street to make sure some slow-moving corpse wasn’t following me. For a while, I avoided cemeteries.

As time went on, and access to zombie media has grown, so has my obsession. Zombies have overrun the population. They are in books, movies, video games, and on TV. There is hardly a facet of life that zombies haven’t overrun. The proliferation of zombie films inspired me to examine society’s fears.

I had a professor in college who told me that every film has a message, but if you really want to know what society is afraid of, watch horror. Zombie films portray a lot of social fears, including religion, gender, classism, and race, but what I wanted to focus on was science. The vast majority of zombie films I have watched in my life had a scientist or science in them in some way—usually in an unflattering role. Using film (Night of the Living Dead [1968], The Serpent and the Rainbow [1988], and 28 Days Later [2002], among others), literature, and interviews with experts, Undead Obsessed examines how zombies portray real human fears, including my own, of scientific phenomenon such as epidemics, mind control, what may or may not exist in space, and the repercussions of playing God.

Feeling Inspired

A couple weeks ago, I got some really heartbreaking news from a publisher.  Basically, they told me that my nonfiction book wasn't good enough.  Some of the language they used made me feel stupid and embarrassed, which upset me, but after getting over the initial shock, I was able to see the critique for what it really was.  My friends also helped quite a bit in that department also.

What this person did was give me what I needed to change the book into what it really needs to be:  fun.  I tried to make it too serious, too scholarly, but that's not what the book is about.  It has some seriousness in it, but it's also about me and my journey of discovery.  That's what I needed to focus on.

I'll admit it, the edits were a little hard to do at first.  I was still upset and raw from the rejection, but I also had a "screw you" mentality, so I was going to get the edits done.  It didn't take me long to get through them, about a week, and I felt so much better about the manuscript.  I felt even better when I sent it to my editor friend and she told me the book was sooooo much better.

That really inspired me.  It made me feel like I could take on the publishing world again.  I know not everyone is going to like it.  The world is full of rejection.  I just hope one person out there will say yes.

I've been able to get over my anger at the publisher and move on with the book.  In the end, no matter how hurtful the critique was, it inspired and pushed me to be a better writer.  For that, I can only say thank you.

For those who are interested, here's the query for the book that I will be sending out after it gets edited.  Fingers crossed someone finds it interesting enough to ask for more!

My obsession with zombie films started when I was in junior high. They are a great lens to examine concerns society has about modern science. Let’s face it, when it comes to horror movies, science has a bad reputation. Blind ambition, experimental serums, and genetic experiments are often blamed for the giant monster terrorizing the city or the reason aliens are taking human prisoners or the cause of the dead rising from the grave to consume living flesh.

Using film, literature, and interviews with experts, my nonfiction book, Undead Obsessed: Finding Meaning in Zombies (approximately 65,000 words), examines how zombies portray real-world fears such as epidemics, mind control, what may or may not exist in space, the repercussions of playing God, and the science behind the fears.

Science has made it possible for us to live the way we do; it has given us numerous advances in all fields of life from medicine to agriculture to entertainment. Yet, with all of these advantages, there are a multitude of disadvantages that could prove to be detrimental to humans and society. Weapon technology used in wars is one of these major disadvantages, but anything that is beneficial to humanity, including medicine, has the potential to harm us. My goal is to explore how zombies become a metaphor for our fears of science and what could happen if science gets out of hand. The manuscript is completed.

This isn’t my first look at society’s fears. My nonfiction book, Life Lessons from Slasher Films, examines the social significance of slasher movies and was published by Scarecrow Press in 2012. I am a weekly contributor to a blog that features female zombie authors. I have my master’s in English, I was a technical editor for an environmental consulting firm for 6 years, I wrote freelance science articles, and I am now an editor and writer for a university foundation. I’ve also published two YA zombie novels, a novella, and short stories written under the pen name of Pembroke Sinclair, as well as children’s books.

Have Low Expectations

I'm spending the weekend refining and perfecting my presentation for the Wyoming Humanities Forum, which is sponsored by the Wyoming Humanities Council.  I am doing a section from my nonfiction book, Life Lessons from Slasher Films, on Women and Horror.  Basically, I am looking at how women have been portrayed in horror films and how slasher films changed their roles from victims to heroes.

When I first received acceptance of my proposal, I was told not to expect too many requests for my presentation.  It was different from what the Forum generally offers.  She was being honest, which I appreciate--no sense having false expectations--but I wasn't swayed.  Yes, different can be bad, but it can also be good.  Maybe people are looking for different.  Maybe they want something outside of what is normally offered.  There's only one way to find out.  If I don't take the chance, I'll never know.

I don't usually shy away from challenging situations, especially when it comes to my writing.  It's all about risk.  I've done readings before where no one has shown up.  It sucks, yeah, but that just means in the future when the room is packed full of readers, I can look back at those times and laugh.

I have to start somewhere.  I have to make an effort.  I'm on the Forum list for 2 years.  If I only get one presentation in that time, it'll be worth it.  If I don't get any, so be it.  My name is still on the website.  The only thing I can do is put myself out there and hope for the best.  I can keep my expectations low, but I still have expectations.

Self-promotion Thursday

Yesterday, I visited my mentor and friend.  He has ALS, and it's unclear how much longer he has.  At this point, his voice has been affected so he can no longer talk.  I went to see him so we could talk about my book, Life Lessons from Slasher Films, which he had a huge influence on.  He was the committee chair on my thesis committee and encouraged me to write on the Friday the 13th films, which, in turn, was expanded into this book.  In honor of this fantastic man, I would like to encourage you to check out my nonfiction book.  I couldn't have written it without his guidance and encouragement!

And don't forget, the book has met many famous people!