Doing a lot of stuff & getting there.

I'm getting myself (still & again & yet) into the world of publishing. Here are some general details:

1. I've been reading a lot of PWs in the library. In fact, I schedule a "library hour" early in the morning, combining it with my bike exercise--bike to the library, read, bike around, and bike home. Perfect.


2. Writer's Digest is better than PW, although I do enjoy PW's reviews.


3. Been catching up on a lot of reading--various Christian chick-lit authors, Meg Cabot's journals, serious authors, some Ted Dekker, Ken Follett, Nicholas Sparks (The Notebook is soooo much better in movie form), & many others.

4. I bought an Alphasmart 3000--seriously, best thing ever invented, and it's definitely going to be awesome, because all this time I was thinking "I wish I had something to type on on-the-go," and here it was! And I got a chance to get really in-your-face competitive on eBay.

5. Been honing my writer's craft with some books by Noah Lukeman. Amazing man.

6. Been collecting ideas from any and all sources, as well as possible ideas for my future works. I want to write both serious and humorous, but I don't know how to combine both quite yet. And the Christian chick-lit market is wide open for someone (read: me) to come in and steal the spotlight.

7. Plan on attending the Write-to-Publish conference next summer in Wheaton, IL to meet some agents.

8. Bought a "book" I wrote when I was 15. Finally. "Ships in 10 to 12 business days".

Speaking of which, I'd like to publish the "note from the author" I added to the last page of my "book":

I never thought the day would come when I would be able to look at this script again. You know how it goes: after you’ve done so many drafts of something and you can quote the text so well that it’s practically oozing out of your ears there comes a time when you say “Enough!” and run screaming. That’s how this book finally made its way to print. Someone (read: I) said, “I just want to have this thing on my shelf already so I can hold it in my hands and say, ho-hum, this is my first unpublished novel which I wrote at age 15. now let’s move on to better things.”
So finally printing this book (quite an expensive venture, I must add), is like a comforting gesture to me. Like saying “AH-HA!” (to be said in one of those Mickey Mouse-type voices) “been there, done that!”
And, as the Russians would say, the first pancake is always in a ball. Or ball-shaped. A mess, basically.
So this book is a pancake. Mmm…that sounds good right now.

However, there remains to be one person to be thanked, and he is too blindingly amazing for the acknowledgements section. The mastermind behind all my work, from the beginning on April 2nd, 2004, through this book, and till now. The genius who has the best plot ideas. The comedian responsible for all your rolling-on-the-floors and laughing-out-louds. The wiz of characterization, suspense, and, basically, the one who writes every single scene for me. He is my AwesomeO-4000 life partner, my super-ninja writing buddy, my splendiloquent insider and adviser, and overall my best friend. The name’s Christ. Jesus Christ. I tip my hat to you, Sir.


Indeed.
I get a lot of my inspiration for writing here.


--E.A.