Inspiring Quotes about Writing

I've always liked this one:

First get it written, then get it right.
(not sure who wrote it)

And

Writing is like driving at night in the fog.  You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.
-E.L. Doctorow

And since I'm in the type of mood that can use a motivational pick-me-up, I searched around for more...the following are the ones I like.

If you can tell stories, create characters, devise incidents, and have sincerity and passion, it doesn’t matter a damn how you write.
- Somerset Maugham

I need to tattoo this one to the back of my hand right now:

It is perfectly okay to write garbage—as long as you edit brilliantly.
- C. J. Cherryh

Haha, I like this one because it goes along with what I always say about published writers...there are some really crappy books out there still getting really famous.  So I need to just keep my chin up and remain persistent...if this is what I want to do, there's nothing stopping me but me:

It took me fifteen years to discover I had no talent for writing, but I couldn’t give it up because by that time I was too famous.
- Robert Benchley

I think I'll end with this one, since it feels like my life right now:

Half my life is an act of revision.
- John Irving

And my all time favorite quote, which has nothing to do with writing:

If there were a mile-high mountain made of granite and once every 10,000 years a bird flew past and brushed it with a feather, by the time the mountain eroded away, only a fraction of a second would have past in the context of eternity.
-Lois Duncan (which I just now learned by googling the quote)

Query and Baseball

I sent my newly revised query letter yesterday and after rereading it once or twice (okay, it was like 4 or 5 times) I feel REALLY confident about it.  I'm proud of the query, I feel like it's interesting enough, it's in my voice, it's written the way I feel about the overall book, and it conveys the story the way I want it to.  This is exciting because it means that other than continuing to edit the rest of the manuscript, I can rest easy and just keep requerying that email to various agents after I get the rejections.  These agents I've been querying require that I attach the synopsis (which is also just a page and a half of the general conflicts and main events in the book, and I feel okay about that) and the first 2-5 chapters.  And after reading the first two chapters that I sent yesterday, I feel really good and really confident about my chances of getting an agent with this round of querying.  I know, it's still a freakin long shot, but I've read a whole lot of successful queries and I think that sometimes one that might work for one agent at one specific time might then not even work for that same agent at a different time.  As long as there's nothing structurally wrong and the grammar isn't awful, it really just feels like luck.  And other than a misspelling of 'pierogies' in the fifth paragraph of the prologue, I didn't see any obvious errors (hopefully I'm not just missing ones because I'm ignorant of proper grammar, but that's extremely likely).  And in my defense of pierogies....(sorry Chocci Marie and Dad)...the computer and Scrivener all think that it's spelled pirogies, which might be a different word all together, but I went with it and didn't double check myself online.  Damn it.  Anyway...if whoever is reading the query is in the right mood and mind for it, they might love it and pass it on to the agent, who might feel similarly.  I just have to get the manuscript up to par.

Me and the husband are taking J to a baseball game today.  We're getting lunch at a Mexican place in northern Phoenix that he saw got great reviews on Yelp.  We're hoping we can keep her awake until after the afternoon events and have her take a late nap at home, but I'm pretty sure she'll either be super cranky at the game, or will pass out on the car ride home (meaning a 20 minute nap, compared to her 2-3 hour regular nap).  Or both.  We'll see.  It can't hurt to get my hopes up and expect a fun afternoon, right?

:/ I probably just jinxed myself.

My Thoughts on Writing a Query Letter

It's a freakin roller coaster of emotion.  An hour ago, I was thinking about writing a blog post about how doubtful I am now about my book and the whole idea of my book.  All because I was getting more bad feedback on my revised query letter on Agent Query Connect (that site is SO helpful for this).  Then, I rewrote the revision again and I feel so much better.  The newest revision, in my opinion, is way more fitting of my actual vision of the book.

Here's my newest revision:

Dear Agent (or, more likely, agent's unpaid intern),

Seventeen-year-old Melanie Foster has never had a reason not to trust her parents. Not until they’re kidnapped and she finds out that they’ve been hiding something from her all her life.

After being taken to safety, Melanie learns several extremely shocking pieces of information. First, her parents are scientists that discovered a new planet capable of sustaining human life. Second, they’ve been hiding from people who want this information bad enough to kill for it.  Third, after years of searching, these people have found and kidnapped her parents. And finally, humans didn’t originate on this Earth, and neither did her parents.

Struggling to accept the fact that her Earth is really the Third Earth discovered and populated by humans in a process known as the Earths Project, Melanie focuses on the only thing that’s keeping her sane-finding and saving her parents.

But in order to do that, Melanie must travel to the dangerous and unstable Second Earth, a planet that seceded from the Earths Project, wasted their natural resources, and bred an entire population of deceitful liars. With spies close enough to win over Melanie’s heart then break it in half, she learns the hard way that it’s impossible to know who she can trust to help her along the way.

Earths Project:  Book One, First Earth is the first in a series of YA Adventure/Sci-Fi novels and is complete at 82,000 words.  

Thank you for your consideration. 

so  I don't even have any feedback yet, which is exactly why I'm in such a better mood.  I'm ignorantly enjoying the fact that I really like this query.  I can imagine potential agents also liking it.  Loving it, in fact, enough to request my full manuscript.

BUT...this is a short-lived emotion on the roller coaster ride.  In about a day, when I get one or two people responding to my query, giving me advice, pointing out parts of the query that just simply don't make sense or are way too vague and not mentioning once that they think the premise sounds good and that it'll make for an interesting book (which most other query editing posts get..so that might be the most disheartening part of this whole thing), I'll be on the slow uphill anxiety-driven part of the coaster again.

It's rough, I'm not gonna lie, but it makes me feel more legit when I read all about writing query letters and discover that I'm not the only one who thinks this is the most grueling part of the whole process.  It's harder than writing the book...harder even than editing the damn thing (which is a real bitch of a process in itself).  Not because it's difficult to write the pitch, but because I'm so familiar with my story and the characters that I can hardly think straight when I'm rereading my small 250 word query for the 30th time.  And this is it...the front of the line when it comes to showing an agent I have something worth reading.  So if I can't get this SPOT ON...I'm doomed.

It's definitely daunting.

So, I guess I'll go reread it again for the 31st time.

Just a journal entry (Oh, and Happy 4th of July!)

8/10/96
Diary, I vow never to talk again about boys unless there my boyfriends!

I hope I have time to write in you again today but now I gotta go.

                Millie

8/18/86
Diary,  I'm sorry I haven't been writing for a while, I have a very inteligent sister, she just told me one of her quotes!  It was very profesional.  Today she gave me a very great compliment!  She told me that when one of her friends asked her who she would take on a trip across country, her answer was me!  I went to see "Emma" today and it was great!  It was just like Clueless. 

Let me try to make some quotes. 
            I can't think of any!

I would rather be an author!  So far I wrote a story called "The Story Writer,"  would you read it?  It's only 11 pgs.

I really look up to my sister!  She writes quots into her journal so since I don't like them I'll write poems:

"Every day the world matures
And everyday it stops growing
The killing, the agony will go
away and the world will mature"
                  Millie Komski

Do you like it?  Every time I think of one! OR here of one.  When I get to be 18 or 17 I'll try to be 1st in my class.  And now I'll start reading more.  I think our world should grow up!

"If we should be called 
the United States of 
America, then why can't we
be the United Countries of 
the Earth."
                 Millie Komski

Yah no what I'm glad I have a sister!  When I was 12 I would read about girls always wanting a sister to talk to and I never thought of it being important till now!

I feel ashamed of writing about David before.

I wonder what I'm talented at?  My mom says I should be a fashion designer but I'm having my douts.  What do you think I should be?  I would like to be something unusual like an archiolegist or an author but if I have the talent of being a fashion designer I guess I'll do that.  This is what I do:

(UGLY DRESS HERE)                   or                         (UGLIER OUTFIT HERE)

What do you think?  I personally would rather be an archiologist or an artist.


                                                                     (TERRIFYING DRAWING OF A FACE HERE)<--You  
                                                                                                            wouldn't believe how bad that is!

I can draw cartoons a lot better than that with cartoons!
                                 Millie

"To expirience life is a greater wonder then most things!"
                                    Millie Komski (I think)

"Morning, day, night go buy so quickly, so make sure they last because every one is priceless!"
                                    Millie Komski

Ahh...just when you think you're maturing a little, an entry like this comes along.  To give my younger self a little bit of credit, at least I moved on from writing about a ridiculous crush in every other sentence.  But I feel bad for my sister for pulling her into all the rambling crap I talk about in this long entry.  To experience life is a greater wonder then most things!  REALLY???  Than MOST things?  I guess there was one part of this entry that I really loved... when I wrote that I would rather be an author.  I don't remember wanting to be an author at that age!  I remember writing stories, but as an adult, I thought I remembered that always being just for fun, not because I wanted to grow up to be an author someday.  So that makes me, as an adult, feel a little less silly about having spent HOURS and hours and hours pursuing this dream.  I can say now...it's something I've always wanted to do.

Once again, to my dear sister, I truly hope you don't read this blog post.  And if you do...I hope you don't sue me for posting all of this....because of all the people I've written about so far, my family is a group that won't really have the chance to stay anonymous if someone is willing to make an effort on finding their identities.

Agent Query Connect, and No Journal Again Today

I posted my query on Agent Query Connect hoping to get some good advice on what I need to do to sharpen it up and my goodness, it's disheartening.  I've only even had two people critique it so far but I just feel smaller and smaller after each one.  I know, I know...critiques are not to be taken personally, but that's like saying I don't take my writing personally...and why the heck would I be writing it if I didn't feel a personal connection to it?  So no, I'm not crying or shutting up shop...I'm just feeling more and more mindful of how much of an amateur I really am.  And even that is super disheartening.  I've been writing in journals since I was 13 (obviously).  I've been starting novels since I was about 18 (just not finishing them...the Earths Project that exists today is the third version...it's the only full book I've actually completed).  But until January of this year, I've never let anyone read my writing.  I guess that isn't true, I blog...I've let people read parts of my journals...I've written papers in college, etc.  But January was the first time I've ever seriously urged people to critique my fiction.  Jesus, it's rough.  I imagine the three that read this book having conversations with their spouses or friends where they laugh at me behind my back and compare me to those terrible singers on American Idol who don't have a clue how horrible they are.

Oh please....don't let me be that awful.

Eh....I guess if I am, I still have a chance.  Like I've said before, there are really awful books out there making tons of money and gaining tons of fans.  But when I reread chapters I've edited and polished until they shine in my eyes, I don't feel awful.  I feel hopeful.  I guess that's what's still driving me to do this.

Here's the latest revision of my query...go critique it if you're a member of AgentQuery...

Melanie Foster is a 17-year-old with few friends, a crush on the new boy in school, and trouble deciding what she should do with her life after high school.  For Melanie, life is as ordinary as the next person's, until her parents are kidnapped and she finds out she’s from another planet. Always expecting little green men, Melanie is surprised to discover that extraterrestrials are actually just more humans and that the planet she grew up on is the Third Earth discovered and populated by the human race in a process known as the Earths Project.

Trying desperately to find and save her parents, Melanie is sent on a mission to the dangerous and unstable Second Earth. After its violent secession from the Earths Project, the Second Earth wasted their remaining resources, bred a population of deceitful liars, and is now plotting to steal a newly-discovered Seventh Earth by kidnapping the scientists who discovered it, Melanie’s parents. Posing an even bigger problem, Melanie discovers that her Third Earth is out of their own natural resources and will need the new Earth in order to survive.

If she can successfully complete her mission and help a group of allies known as the Visionists start a revolution on the Second Earth, Melanie will not only save her parents, but also the only world she has ever known.

Earths Project: Book One, First Earth is a YA Adventure/Sci-Fi complete at 82,000 words. Thank you very much for your consideration.

I am in a terrible mood, the word literally, and some curse words

This is one of those days where I'm angry about everything.  A series of events out of my control have made me go from lighthearted and optimistic to moody and depressed.  It's trickling into everything.  I have lost all confidence in my writing.  I have lost all motivation to get anything accomplished.  And I'm only writing a tiny bit in this blog post because it has become habit.

My poor dog is sick and had an enormous and disgusting accident in our office...which is carpeted...so while I was cleaning up his shit, I was thinking "the term 'what a shitty day' must have originated from somebody who was literally cleaning shit all day'.

And I hate the word 'literally' because I'm a serial user of this word and I know that 99% of the time, I'm using it wrong.  And it's becoming one of those words that people are targeting as being commonly misused.  It's only a matter of time before someone calls me out on it.  I don't care though, because that's the kind of mood I'm in.  Guess what people...I'm using it sarcastically.  Even if I'm not technically allowed to, so what.  Deal with it.  I LITERALLY use the word all the time.  And I literally can't stop.  And knowing I'm using it wrong makes me literally use it more.

So go F yourself world.  For judging my use of the word literally and for making my dog shit all over the carpet.  I'm vowing to be unproductive for the rest of the evening.  Good night.

8/9/96 and Jewelry



8/9/96

Diary, This is what happened today.  I didn't get to run cause it rained!  I still haven't gotten a letter from Kathy!!!  **************  I learned a new card trick, but it screwed up until I did it my way.  And I got all this feelings that my family loves my sister more than me!  I still think its true.

 

Diary do you think I'm dumb to have those feelings?

 

       Gotta go, sorry I didn't write a lot.

 

                                      Millie

 

I'm pretty surprised at how censored I made myself back then when I was feeling emotional.  I had absolutely no problem writing about my ridiculous fantasized crushes, but when it came to being upset that my friends were making fun of me or my family made me feel sad, I just glossed over the info.  And I don't remember being the type to bottle up my feelings like that as a kid.  I'm certainly not that type today...if I'm upset about something, I cry.  I cry a lot.  I'm surprised I was so interested in sounding like someone I wasn't.  What a weird form of therapy this is becoming for me.  It's really making me reevaluate why I am who I am today.


As far as jewelry goes, I listed a new item last week that I was really excited about.  I was excited because it was a mostly original idea (I'll explain more later) and the 'sample' one I made was a gift for a friend who recently got married.  It was sent the Monday before her wedding but unfortunately, it didn't make it to her in time for the ceremony.  I was so sad my gift turned out to be so useless...

The reason I say it was mostly original was because I wanted to make the charm itself...had the design already ready with the date and the Swarovski crystal all added in my mind's eye...but I didn't know what to do with the charm.  So I looked around online and saw suggestions of adding it with a bow to the bouquet for the wedding day, so it's not flashy or obvious, but it's still 'with' the bride.  Then, when she transfers it to a chain after the wedding day, she can always have a reminder of such a great moment in her life.

So, I'm sorry, good friend of mine in PA...I should have used a faster shipping method. 
:'(

She has it now, and says she loves it.  She's one of the people who helped inspire a few different popular items I sell in my shop...like the fingerprint heart charm...the one photographed was the one I made from the prints of her and her boyfriend (now husband :)

I'm glad it did end up getting to her.  And she saw a photo of this charm on her wedding day (through a text I sent), so in her mind, she can remember it from that day, I guess?