Movies for May

Summer is approaching with the speed of a bullet train and many of us may not beware of the summer movie releases that are coming to a theatre near you. I am not putting my personal stamp of approval on any movie, this is just an F.Y.I., and keep in mind that these are just the major movies. There are actually a ton of them coming out. So fetch yourself a big ugly red marker and your calender. And as a tip remember to check the rating of a movie before you drag a two year old to watch a movie. Just because you like hack and slash doesn't mean they do.

First up is being released on May 1st is "X-men Origins:Wolverine". This movie stars the ever-ripped Hugh Jackman as the rough and hardy Wolverine, the rest of the cast is Liev Schreiber as Sabertooth/ Victor Creed, Lynn Collins as Kayla Silverfox, Danny Huston as William Stryker, Ryan rynolds as Dead Pool/ Wade Wilson, Taylor Kitsch as Gambit/ Remy LeBeau and Dominic Monaghan as Bradley. In this latest movie that dips into the comic realm tells Wolverine's viloent and raomatic past as well as gives us the details that we crave about his relationship with Victor Creed and the Weapon X Program.



Number two is "Ghosts of Girlfriends Past" starring Matthew McConaughey, Jennifer Garner, and Micheal Douglas. Directed by Mark Waters. This looks to be a chick flick, but has moments of comedy for our poor pitful dates. A bachelor (McConaughey) realizes he let his soul-mate slip through his fingers only after he is visited by ghosts in A Christman Carol-fashion. It's out on May 1.





Number three is "Star Trek" Directed by J.J. Abrams and starring Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Eric Bana, and Zoe Saldana. . The story is set in the early days of the Starship Enterprise, and is set into motion by a Romaulan warrior (Bana) with a chip on his shoulder who has the know-how and tools to travel through time and create black holes. He uses both to strike out against James T. Kirk (Pine) who is struggling with his own destiny.



Number four is "Angels and Demons", based on the book written by Dan Brown. This movie is starring Tom Hanks as Robert Langdon with a new hair do, Ewan McGregor, Ayelet Zurer, and Stellan Skarsgard and directed by Ron Howard. In the book series this was actually the first book, not The Da Vinci Code, but in the movie realm it is set up to be after The Da Vinci Code. Now that is cleared up lets move on. The story begins with a gruesome murder in one of the most secretive lairs of science, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, also called CERN.
Robert Langdon is pulled in to help solve the murder and to keep a member of the Illuminiati from turning the Vatican into an overly large crator with a highly combustable canister of antimatter. Look for it in theatheres on May 15th.



Number five is a "Terminator Salvation", it comes out on May 21. It is starring Christian Bale and Sam Worthington. This the 4th installment of the Terminator movies. The movie is set in 2018 and an all grown -up John Conner, played by Bale, is the leader of a resistance against the nefarious computer network Skynet.



The sixth on our list is "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian"
directed by Shawn Levy and Starring Ben Stiller, Amy Adams, Hank Azaria and Robin Williams. This one is great for kids in the 7 plus age range, they are old enough to understand the humor, where as a 4 year old would laugh at some of the action scenes but not really be able to grasp the over concept. This movie moved from the Museum of Natural History in New York to the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C., this alone gaureentees that this movie will be bigger and better due to the fact that the Smithsonian is 19 museums in one. The bad guy in the film is an evil pharaoh bent on ruling the world (Hank Azaria). This movie introduces heaps of new characters and of course the brilliant Amelia Earhart as a romantic intrest. Look for it out on May 22nd.



Seventh up is "Drag Me to Hell", starring Justin Long and Alison Lohman, directed by Sam Raimi (Spider-man). Alison Loham plays an ambitious bank exec given a difficult choice to make; Offer a very desperate older lady another extension on her home loan or foreclose and thusly throwing her on the street. Loham does the latter to please her boss, but earns a curse that forces a brutal demon upon her. Not a movie to take the kiddies to. Will be released on May 29th.



Okay this one is for the kiddies and those of us out there that love animated flicks. "Up" is dropping on May 29th, a Disney-Pixar movie with the voices of Ed Asner, Jordan Nagai, Christopher Plummer and is directed by Pete Docter. The Story begins with a grumpy old man who is widowed and a former ballon salesman (played by Asner) who fixes his home to fly off to South America for a long delayed vacation.



I hope you liked this post, and if you did tell me, leave me a comment. I am really looking foreward to "Up" and "X-Men Origins: Wolverine"(Ryan Renyolds!), which ones are you eager to see?

Newspapers going extinct?

Today the Audit Bureau of Circulations said that daily circulation of newspapers has declined 7.1 percent from October-March, they compared the data from 2007 to 2008. This is based on daily papers that are delivered 365 days a year. One of the only papers to show an increase in readers was the Wall Street Journal. Even Sunday paper circulation has declined. Their income has stayed the same due to price adjustments.

What I am feeling is that the newspaper industry should have seen this decline, it has been steadily happening since the 1990's. I know that I do not receive my news from the local paper or from the number one ranking paper, USA Today. I either watch it on T.V. or read it online. I for one am not big on heaps of newspaper cluttering up my home, and in the process of not buying a paper I am saving trees.

I am not saying that journalism is a dying breed of writing, but the product itself is more or less inconvenient. I do buy a Sunday paper once a month for the coupons, but I don't read it. The whole paper ends up getting recycled. I don't care for the articles they have. It mostly pertains to violence, or tragic sob stories that I cannot emotionally commit to.

Newspapers used to be the cutting edge of writing and spreading of news, not so much today. What happened this morning at 5 am has already been read, processed and we have moved on, do we really need to read it again in the Saturday paper? I don't. It's much easier to flick on the T.V. to CNN or pull it up on-line, if I view my news on-line I get to pick which articles I want to see, not what some editor decided was news worthy. I like to have options and choices.

Now that you know my preferences tell me yours. Do you read a daily newspaper, get the Sunday paper, or get your news from an on-line source. Now part II, if newspapers were to quit being published in paper form would you miss them?

Where as all the good gone?

Here recently I have pondered where the good in humanity went, I did this mostly on Wednesday when an employee at a local gas station in Charlotte chased down my car and demanded that I pay a quarter for a plain old Styrofoam coffee cup that I could have bought at the dollar store in a pack of 50 for a few bucks (keep in mind this was after his co-worker told me that the cup was free). That made me angry, yep angry. I promptly told him where he could take his cup and that if he was so hard up for a quarter for him to hound someone else since I did not have any money. That's how broke I was, I had sent my last fifty cents with my oldest child to school for ice cream money. I did get my cup at the gas station next door and I was assured that it was okay for me to take it without charge and minus the prospect of an Indian guy hanging off my bumper demanding a quarter.

Fear not though, the giving in humanity has not died a tragic and violent death like Meg Ryan did in the movie City of Angels. On the Breast Cancer Site they are having a "click drive". Every click that is entered on their site gets counted and if they collect 200 clicks by the end of April they will donate $10,000 for breast cancer research. It's free and easy. Help fund on-going research and fund a mammogram with a single click! Their web-site is www.thebreastcancersite.com, if your feeling clicky check out their sister sites like literacy site that donates books to children.

Here's a video of the band Old Crow Medicine Show singing "Down Home Girl" to get your weekend started a bit early. That's it for this week, everyone have a great weekend!

Simply Spiffy

This has NOTHING to do with writing but it is so neat. I am a huge fan of James Blunt and my boys know his music, so when this was on Sesame Street this morning I had to post it. Enjoy.

Publishing this week

This is some exciting news for fans of Dan Brown, it has been announced by Random House that his next book involving Robert Langdon is "Lost Symbol" and will be released to the U.S. and Canada on Steptember 15th 2009. This will give Random House a much needed boost, and they are expecting a huge selling, they are releasing 5 million books with the first printing. The story is 12 hours of Robert's life. It must be an amazing 12 hours to fill a book. I am eager to read it.

Other news involving Dan Brown is that the movie "Angels and Demons" will make it's silver screen debut on May 15th. It is directed by Ron Howard and is starring Tom Hanks minus the long hair(thank goodness). For more info about Dan Brown visit his website www.DanBrown.com .

What Am I Reading?

In an earlier post I mentioned that I am an avid reader. Are you asking yourself what does she read? Well, I am here to answer your question. I read everything, and when say everything I mean everything. Currently I am reading "Drood" By Dan Simmons. So far it is pretty good. I like a book that I can sink my teeth into. I do read romance, but I can rip through a romance book in a day so I like a book with substance. But I guess that my type of book is one that will make my mind spin, one that gets me going. I first read "Angel's and Demon's" by Dan Brown way back in 1999 ( it was a gift from a co-worker) I was enthralled, I read it and re-read it. "Cold Mountain" did the same thing for me when I was stuck on bed rest for 6 months with my first pregnancy. I cheered for Ruby, and loved them all. A book should be able to draw you in and make you forget that your worries. Reading "Cold Mountain" while on bed rest made my little "bed vacation" seem like a breeze, something not so terribly bad compared to what the characters were going through. When I was younger I read Anne Rice like her books were handed down from God himself. Her books are fantastic and she does hook you in. In "Interview with a Vampire" you want to know what Louie and Claudia did in Paris, you need to know about their adventures, you crave to see how their love bloomed. I must say though that my favorite book of all time other than "Alice in Wonderland" is "Servant of the Bones" by Anne Rice. It does not have vampires, or witches in it. It's about a boy named Azeriel who is cursed. I have an extremely worn paper back copy that I have read at least 20 times. I recommend it highly.

What are you into currently? What books, movies or songs have caught your attention and inspired you? I want to hear from you, don't be shy!!

Making your character shine

Remember the days of before responsibilities sat upon your shoulders? Before promises that were made had to be kept? That feeling of freedom and independence? I do, I mourn the loss of it. I am a mother of 2 and a wife, not to mention a daughter and a whole slew of other titles. Now that I am older I have to embrace them and carry on and try not to look backwards overly much and wish I could have changed the path I am now set upon. Sometimes I feel as if I have lost little pieces of me along the way. At first I did not notice them, now I can sense that they are missing and cannot be retrieved. It's saddening to me.

I am disappointed in a way of how things turned out for me, I had wanted a much different outcome. Now I am faced with altering that. Sure I could throw all my responsibilities to the wind and savor my new found freedom, but in the end how many lives would that damage? Too many to count. So in small ways I am striving to hang on to the "ME' that is me, not to become a cookie cutter cut out person. That is what makes a person a person and not a clone.

So in our writing we need to remember that a character is not truly real until they have those quirks that makes us all individual and special. Would you love your mom as much if she was like all the mothers on the block? Would your best friend be your best friend if they were the same as everyone else? The world is colored with many hues and shapes, the same goes for people. We all have flaws and strengths, make sure that your characters are the same. No single person is perfect in all ways, even "SUPERMAN" has his flaws. Think about how these traits can help your plot along and how the flaws can too. The key to developing your character is to know them, and I mean know them. Are they a boxers or briefs kind of person, what is their favorite flower, does someone smacking gum drive them crazy? Get inside their head and figure them out and then your story will take off and fly.

Finding Your Voice

I read a lot. Well, some of my closest friends and family will state that is an understatement of how much I read. What I read does not really have any set pattern to it, I'm not at the book aisle every Tuesday when the new releases are shelved screening possible additions to my book case. What makes me pick up a book and actually purchase it is not just the story alone, or the wonderfully witty characters, it's the writer's voice. Yep, their voice.

Now, I'm betting you are wondering what an author's voice is and if your are a writer what yours sounds like. An author's voice is how they phrase their sentences, convey their words onto paper, the type of language used (an example, do they write in American tones or British tones?)The author's voice can tell you a lot about the author from what period (Renascence, Victorian, etc.), what class they were cast in society (this can even expose a person's education level), and in some cases even reveal what area they were raised in from their vocabulary selection and slang use in their writing. A writer's voice is as individual and unique as a finger print. For an example compare Edgar Allen Poe's works to Mark Twain's writings. Yes They are both American and born in the same time frame but their voices are different.

For us writers to understand and hear our own voices read aloud your work. Read it to yourself, your friends, your family, if you need toread aloud to your houseplants. Just don't read it thinking, "oh, this again, I've read this 100 times since I wrote it.", that maybe true but read it and you will hear yourself. The easiest way to hear your voice is to get a friend to write a short story and then you write the same short story, the same everything; character names, storyline, beginning and ending. Then swap stories and read them. Your voice will stick out like a sore thumb to your ears.

Once you can recognize your voice you can control it and how it effects your writings. It's your voice it can be anything that you envision it to be. If you try the short story exercise let me know if it helped you, I love feedback.

A Penny For Your Thoughts

In light of all of the books converted to movies I am left pondering which is the best one. It doesn't have to be an "official" book, comic books count too. I thought Hulk movie was okay, not really enought "HULK BASH" for my tastes, but it was a good story line. We can't overlook the old school movies based on books like "Interview with a Vampire", or the cartoon movie "The Last Unicorn". This is a tough question to answer, it's akin to asking me what my favorite color of nail polish is. So you tell me what is your favorite movie that was based on a book of some sort, it can be a fanasty, a comedy, a comic book, anything. I will even accept "Twilight". I just want to hear your picks.

For those out there that are interested in my pick I have to go with "Interview with a Vampire", and in a strong second is "Alice in Wonderland", the made for TV series the live action with Gene Wilder in it.

Queries: The how and what

I started the querying process back in the summer, and to be utterly honest with you the reader and myself I really didn't put my heart into it.The first reason is because it scared the living daylights out of me, and reason number two is because it's very nerve wracking. I wanted to 'test" the waters so to speak before I actually plunged in head first. I have learned a bunch since I sent off that first query, and I am sharing with you!
For those out there that do not know what a query is here is your answer. A query is a inquiry to a literary agent to ask him/her if they would be interested in representing you and your work. Most times the query letter is a single typed page that is most if the time double spaced in font. Once completed the query letter is sent to the agent via the means they prefer.
The first thing you need to do it get this book "Writers Market Guide to Literary Agents", it has all of the literary agents listed, their websites, their preferences, etc. And it is MUCH, MUCH cheaper than the Literary Marketplace which is expensive, the on-line service to subscribe is $19.95 weekly, where the Writer's Market is going to cost around $20 for the entire book (it is available on Amazon.com). There is also this handy dany website that is FREE called QueryTracker.com, there they have Literary agents listed, other writers to connect with, they even have posting boards to let you know what to expect from the person that you queried based on other people's query submissions and their results. That's awesome all together, but what got me hooked on this web page is that there you can actually keep up with who you queried and when, and even rank the agents you most want to query. I'm a bit disorganized so this is a great tool that is free.
In the "Writer's Market" they have a section on how to formulate and write your query. They offer non-fiction proposals and fiction queries, and also examples of poor queries and good ones. The real help is on Nathan Bransford's blog (there's a link to it on the left side of this page). Since he is a literary agent he knows what he likes and dislikes to see in a query, and he has some very helpful information on queries and how to formulate your query. If your in doubt of your query check out his page I'm sure he has some answers for you there, if not e-mail him. Yep, he's awesome like that.
The first thing to do when composing (it's composing because your writing a single page masterpiece!) your query is to write a BRIEF description of your work. Keep it to two paragraphs tops. Just think of it as if your writing a summery for the dust jacket, if your unsure pick up a book and read it's summery. If your summery sounds dry to you re-do it. Think "Does this sound like something I would want to purchase?" when you are reading your summery.

Make sure that you have your grammar and word choice correct, if your not sure what a word means look it up. Don't be google shy. Try to refrain from slang jargon unless your character uses it often in dialogue. Simple and clean always is best, and remember your work will stand for itself, your throwing your work out there not yourself, so when your get to the section about yourself (if you include one in your query, it's optional), keep it short and sweet. Again your promoting your writing not yourself.

It's a MUST to check how the agent receives queries, some only accept queries by e-mail, others only by snail mail. If your unsure how to go about it look the agency up and call them, simply ask how they prefer to receive submissions. Tons of agents have info on the Internet, use that to your advantage. The Writer's Market and other books are wonderful tools, but even their information can be incorrect. Always double check before you send anything off.
Most agents are very specific about the queries the receive. Do not let this scare you. If they want a single page send only a single page, if they require a synopsis send one, if they want you to have a certain font and spacing use it. It wont kill you to change your font in a single query. So the best policy for submitting to ANY agent is to check their submission guidelines.

I have heard of writers hiring people to write their query letters for them. I don't do this or condone it. Every writer as a voice that is their own. If you pay someone to write your query for you then it gets declined you will always wonder if you could have gotten a better response if you had just bucked up and wrote it yourself. I think it's borderline fibbing too. You wrote an entire book, you can write a single page query no problem.

The most important thing to remember about the querying process is that yes it is agonizing and painfully tedious but that is the way to go unless you know someone who is a agent or a friend who has a agent. But this process is wonderful, it gives you the writer time to edit your manuscript if you need to, polish it a bit more, and get your feet wet. Go to conferences, workshops and join a chat group online or writers circle. Savor the process and use it to your advantage instead of it using you. You have all the time in the world to get your query right and to get the agent that is right for you. Why rush the process and get an agent you don't mesh well with?
I hope this was helpful, and if you have any tips and tricks for queries leave a comment, they are most welcome.

Starting out

A ton of writers,myself included, have trouble starting a new project. I try to remember that the best stories are the ones with simple clean story lines. They are the easiest to begin, then once your comfortable with the characters you can begin to make them more complex and build upon them. An example of a basic story line is Judy loved Frank, but doesn't anymore; She wants out of the marriage but refuses to divorce Frank. Simple, a story about love that has died. From there we can easily build it up. This story could go different ways, a murder story where Judy tries to off Frank but fails every time or maybe a romance where Frank knows what is happening to Judy and resolves to win back her love. The key to it all is keeping things simple and being able to get into your character's mind, can you understand Judy's point of view? Why is she so dead set against divorce? Is it because of her religion, money maybe, or does she have another reason? To tell your character's story properly from their voice, not yours, you need to be able to understand them from top to bottom. Have a discussion with them, start out by asking them questions about their life (Kind of like a Q&A) and really pay attention to their responses. Their responses will tell you about them, their personality gems will sparkle thorough the dust. It may seem like a silly exercise but it works. Some questions you could ask them, Do they smoke? If yes or no ,why. Do they carry weapons on them at all times? If so why. What is their favorite type of shoe? A shoe can tell you volumes about a person. If they prefer to be barefoot perhaps they are a carefree person who could care less about social expectations, or if they wear combat boots and they only own combat boots they could be a person who is prepared for the worst, who knows when they will need sturdy foot gear to kick in a door. The most basic of questions will enable you to see who your story is really about and their main goals. Getting to know your characters is the easiest way to begin. Who knows you might actually like who they are.

I am

This is a brand new blog. This is the first post as you can clearly see. Let me tell you a bit about myself. I am a mother of 2 boys under the age of 7 years. I actually began writing for them. I got tired of reading them stories that someone else wrote and I began to tell them stories that I made up myself. I wanted to have something to pass on to the future generations.

I have always loved books, I read Anne of Green Gables when I was in the third grade, I have a very worn copy of Alice in Wonderland that I got for my birthday when I was 8. Love for books was bred into me. My mother and father both are readers. I can remember being snuggled up on the couch in between my mom and dad while they read Lonesome Dove aloud to each other, then of course later on they would watch the TV mini-series. (overkill huh?)

Your most likely now asking yourself, well what has she wrote? Nothing that has been published, yet. I have a manuscript in the editing stage, but it is done. I'm actually working on it's sequel in the series. I am a youth fantansy fiction writer. I am all for meeting other writers, even ones of different genres. The purpose of this blog is to hopefully reach out to other writers and shine a bit of sunshine on their day. Hey, writing can be a lonely occupation. I am looking forward to getting started in ernest on my next post. Do you have an issue, a question about writing? Leave me a comment and I'll do my best to help.

Re-Post!! How to Query an Agent!

RE-post! I am stilllll on vaction until the 6th, but I thought this would help jump start everyones querying process for the year. Heaven knows I need to send some out.

I started the querying process back in the summer, and to be utterly honest with you the reader and myself I really didn't put my heart into it.The first reason is because it scared the living daylights out of me, and reason number two is because it's very nerve wracking. I wanted to 'test" the waters so to speak before I actually plunged in head first. I have learned a bunch since I sent off that first query, and I am sharing with you!
For those out there that do not know what a query is here is your answer. A query is a inquiry to a literary agent to ask him/her if they would be interested in representing you and your work. Most times the query letter is a single typed page that is most if the time double spaced in font. Once completed the query letter is sent to the agent via the means they prefer.
The first thing you need to do it get this book "Writers Market Guide to Literary Agents", it has all of the literary agents listed, their websites, their preferences, etc. And it is MUCH, MUCH cheaper than the Literary Marketplace which is expensive, the on-line service to subscribe is $19.95 weekly, where the Writer's Market is going to cost around $20 for the entire book (it is available on Amazon.com). There is also this handy dany website that is FREE called QueryTracker.com, there they have Literary agents listed, other writers to connect with, they even have posting boards to let you know what to expect from the person that you queried based on other people's query submissions and their results. That's awesome all together, but what got me hooked on this web page is that there you can actually keep up with who you queried and when, and even rank the agents you most want to query. I'm a bit disorganized so this is a great tool that is free.
In the "Writer's Market" they have a section on how to formulate and write your query. They offer non-fiction proposals and fiction queries, and also examples of poor queries and good ones. The real help is on Nathan Bransford's blog (there's a link to it on the left side of this page). Since he is a literary agent he knows what he likes and dislikes to see in a query, and he has some very helpful information on queries and how to formulate your query. If your in doubt of your query check out his page I'm sure he has some answers for you there, if not e-mail him. Yep, he's awesome like that.
The first thing to do when composing (it's composing because your writing a single page masterpiece!) your query is to write a BRIEF description of your work. Keep it to two paragraphs tops. Just think of it as if your writing a summery for the dust jacket, if your unsure pick up a book and read it's summery. If your summery sounds dry to you re-do it. Think "Does this sound like something I would want to purchase?" when you are reading your summery.

Make sure that you have your grammar and word choice correct, if your not sure what a word means look it up. Don't be google shy. Try to refrain from slang jargon unless your character uses it often in dialogue. Simple and clean always is best, and remember your work will stand for itself, your throwing your work out there not yourself, so when your get to the section about yourself (if you include one in your query, it's optional), keep it short and sweet. Again your promoting your writing not yourself.

It's a MUST to check how the agent receives queries, some only accept queries by e-mail, others only by snail mail. If your unsure how to go about it look the agency up and call them, simply ask how they prefer to receive submissions. Tons of agents have info on the Internet, use that to your advantage. The Writer's Market and other books are wonderful tools, but even their information can be incorrect. Always double check before you send anything off.
Most agents are very specific about the queries the receive. Do not let this scare you. If they want a single page send only a single page, if they require a synopsis send one, if they want you to have a certain font and spacing use it. It wont kill you to change your font in a single query. So the best policy for submitting to ANY agent is to check their submission guidelines.

I have heard of writers hiring people to write their query letters for them. I don't do this or condone it. Every writer as a voice that is their own. If you pay someone to write your query for you then it gets declined you will always wonder if you could have gotten a better response if you had just bucked up and wrote it yourself. I think it's borderline fibbing too. You wrote an entire book, you can write a single page query no problem.

The most important thing to remember about the querying process is that yes it is agonizing and painfully tedious but that is the way to go unless you know someone who is a agent or a friend who has a agent. But this process is wonderful, it gives you the writer time to edit your manuscript if you need to, polish it a bit more, and get your feet wet. Go to conferences, workshops and join a chat group online or writers circle. Savor the process and use it to your advantage instead of it using you. You have all the time in the world to get your query right and to get the agent that is right for you. Why rush the process and get an agent you don't mesh well with?
I hope this was helpful, and if you have any tips and tricks for queries leave a comment, they are most welcome.