#IWSG for September 2017: Writing Surprises

Once again, it's the first Wednesday in the month and time for a post for the Insecure Writer's Support Group. I rarely remember to check for the question prompt, but this time I did! So.....

This month the prompt question is....

Have you ever surprised yourself with your writing?

This is an easy one...I always assumed I'd be an outliner. After all, I came from an accounting and computer background. I love organization! I envisioned myself compiling a detailed outline, scene by scene, plus full character profile sheets for all the people in my book. I tried that...I still have the trilogy outlined, waiting to be written.

But I made the mistake of writing a book by pantsing. I loved it and it worked for me. I have now written three Klondike mysteries, two Lei Crime Kindle World novellas, and one romance novel - all written by the seat of my pants.

The upside is I love writing this way. I love discovering characters as they pop into the story, I love finding romance where I hadn't expected any, and I especially love letting the characters evolve and tell their own stories - not mine.

The downside is remembering to record the timeline as I write it - otherwise, you can end up with some strange happenings. Yup, been there, done that, rewrote it to fit. Same for recording details about the characters as I write them. I've ended with two names for the same character (thank you beta readers), not remembering what color hair/eyes, etc. a character has or what vehicle they are driving.

But in the end...it's all worth it!

Past, Present, Future

PAST: Two books published and a successful launch party for Paradise Dead. It got as high as #3 on Amazon's Kindle World HOT New Releases. During the launch party I sold copies my first Lei Crime novella, Paradise Down, plus copies of 7 Days of Seven and both Not a Whisper and Barely a Spark, the first two books in my Klondike Mystery Series.

PRESENT: After taking the weekend off to do a few things around the house, I will be attending a RAD Eclipse Party being sponsored by our favorite local microbrewer, Calf Killer Brewing. Starting Tuesday, I will be editing book three in my Klondike Mystery Series, Almost a Touch. It picks up during the same time frame as book two and then moves forward - but set in the Kalispell, MT area. My hope is to have the ebook version published by the end of September, not sure of the print version.

FUTURE: Once I get Almost a Touch published, I have to quickly move into the last of my Lei Crime KW novellas, completing the trilogy. It will be titled Paradise Drift. It will be much darker than the first two, concentrating on a current issue - human trafficking. I have a November 1st deadline for publication for the next big launch. Phew!
 

I suspect I will take December off, after doing all the marketing needed for Paradise Drift. 2018? Not sure. I still have my Lia Rules, PI Series on the backburner. I hope to keep those books shorter and thus be able to get them to market quickly. This is the cover for the first book - if I ever write it.

But then again, I might take the first three months of 2018 off. After all, I do have a two-week cruise to enjoy.

Well, here's to a busy fall season, hopefully, interspersed with some local sightseeing. Oh, and if you are in the SC/NC/TN/GA area, check out my new EVENTS tab. You might find something of interest scheduled for Oct 7th.

Moving right along and what's next?

What a busy week this has been! I realize I have been very remiss in posting here.

Even worse, I haven't sent out a newsletter in a LOoong time. I hope I can get back on track soon.

So what have I been doing? Well, for one thing, I published my first fantasy middle grade short story book (a collection of seven short stories).

Fanciful characters, amazing lands, and creatures unheard of in our world! Duits, wizards, rock fairies, Numanitoonics, tree sprites are just some of the fantastical creatures that come along looking for aid from the likes of Bernie Bushkin, Nicola Nippernosh, Luca Lucknless, Piper Pendergast and others.

These seven short stories were written with the idea of creating worlds where imagination runs free. Fanciful characters, amazing lands, and creatures unheard of in our world. I hope these stories will fuel a thirst for reading and encourage young folks to be more creative.

Each story has a life lesson involved - losing a best friend, bullying, missing a parent, helping others, dealing with family and more.

I also have been working hard to finish writing the second novella in my Lei Crime Kindle World "Paradise" series, Paradise Dead. I even pulled an all-nighter this past weekend. And I got it done! It's out for final edits and will be ready for the big launch on August 17th.

If you haven't read the first book, this is a great time to do so!

So what's next? That's easy. The first draft of the third book in my Klondike Mystery Series, Almost a Touch has been sitting on the back burner. Next week I will tackle it again with the hope of getting it published before the end of September.

If you haven't read the first book, this is a great time to do so!

When Cherie Marshall catches her fiancé and best friend in a compromising position, she cancels her upcoming wedding and jumps at the chance to escape to quiet Klondike, Pennsylvania to care for her elderly aunt. She thought her biggest issue would be adapting to life in the middle of a National Forest, so very different from her upbringing in the deserts of Arizona.

But that was before she met State Trooper Fire Marshall Jamison "Jazz" Maddox at the scene of a mysterious fire. As they both become acquainted with the close-knit Klondike residents, things get complicated as Cherie and Jazz find themselves in the middle of a local crime wave where arson, kidnapping, embezzlement and a decades old murder are just the tip of the iceberg.

What am I doing? Writing...writing...writing...

I'm writing and writing and writing...trying to make an August 12th deadline for an August 17th launch party for Paradise Dead, my second novella in my Lei Crime Kindle World Trilogy. The first was Paradise Down, available in the Amazon Kindle store. If you haven't read it, now would be a good time. Honest! ;)

#IWSG for August 2017: Perserverance

Once again, it's the first Wednesday in the month and time for a post for the Insecure Writer's Support Group.

This month I'm going to use my own prompt - continuing the saga of QUITTING & EXCITED and now on to....

I must perservere!

I managed to make it through the month of July, a very busy month. Busy with daily household things (like baking my first Blueberry Banana Bread)

and adding a new puppy! He has his own Facebook page and Instagram account. Spoiled puppy...just look at all the toys he has and he wants to play with an empty milk bottle. LOL!



But still I persevere... I have one week left to get my latest novella, "Paradise Dead", to my typo hunters. Keep your fingers crossed that I get it done!

Old News & New News

Just a short update - really no new news. Sorry! Due to my impending eye surgery, I haven't been writing or editing.  Yes, I'm falling way behind but once July hits and both eyes are healed, I will be able to really tackle my backlog.

Here's my current WIP list, in order of projected completion and publication:

• Paradise Dead, novella two in my Lei Crime Kindle World trilogy - writing first draft
• 7 Days of Seven, compilation of middle grade fantasy stories - final edits
• Almost a Touch, book three in my Klondike - starting edits

My goal is to have all the above live on Amazon by early fall. Keep your fingers crossed for me. Once these are done, I will be tackling the third Lei Crime Kindle World novella, Paradise Drift, which I hope to have out by early November.

At that point it will be holiday season as well as the time of year when we move our rolling home from our house in TN to our RV lot in Florida. At that point, I will be deciding if I will continue writing (other than my blogs) for publication. So I guess that's the new news, I may retire from writing after this year. Not definite, but under consideration.

Done! Well, almost...

I'm home from our Southern Caribbean cruise (details and photos on my personal blog) and it was a huge success. I finished the first draft of my third Klondike Mystery novel, Almost a Touch. I hope to be working on edits by May.

Why not immediately? First, for non-writers, it's best to let a story sit and percolate a bit. Get it out of your brain. When you come back to edit, you will see things more clearly. For me there is a second reason.

Here's the cover....

This will be the second mystery novella in my Lei Crime Kindle World series. The first was Paradise Down. I even made some headway on writing this. I have my project set up in Scrivener, I have my characters defined and chapter one is written.

I leave on another cruise, Western Caribbean this time, in ten days. I hope to have most of the book written and will try to finish it on the cruise. I do have a deadline of May first for this to be ready for publication.

I don't know about you, but I'm excited!

#IWSG for November 2016: TIME (Where has the year gone?)

The year is almost gone and I find it's time for another IWSG post. The last time I posted was in July. Eeep! So what is IWSG? Direct from their site:

To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!

The theme for this month's Insecure Writer's Support Group is TIME.

It seems like yesterday - we were moving back to the US from Ecuador. So many plans. SO BUSY! Time has flown. Personal stuff has taken precedence over writing. I feel like so little has been accomplished.

I did get some writing done on our spring cruises. I finished the first draft of my middle grade fantasy short stories and I got a couple of chapters written in my third Klondike Mystery, Almost a Touch. But that is all until the past two weeks when I got the second round of edits done on the 7 Days of Seven short stories. I also got a cover done (updated since my last post since the title slightly changed). I am entering the last of the edits and then it goes to my first editor for reading. I still hope to get it published this year.

Oh, and I did get a short story published in an anthology benefitting those on the coast of Ecuador impacted by the earthquakes. Check it out: Omnibus: Friends in Foreign Places-The Complete Works: An Expat Anthology, Volumes 1-5.

And I almost forgot, my novella for the Lei Crime Kindle Worlds, Paradise Down. It has been well received and next year I hope to write two more, making it a trilogy.

Recent Review: 

"McNicol writes with a voice much like Toby, so both characters and stories feel familiar. Plus, it's fun to meet new characters and reacquaint with old friends. Well done!"

As to Almost a Touch, the third in the Klondike Mystery series, I'd love to promise it will be written by the end of the year, but realistically, that's not going to happen. Why? Well, it's that personal life stuff. The next three days are moving days - driving the RV (our home) from MD to FL for the winter. Then in two weeks we fly to California and will be either visiting friends or cruising for a month. We no sooner get back home to FL, then we move the RV to Disney World's Fort Wilderness campground for Christmas. Then, it will basically be the end of the year.

So, my current goal (and hopefully a realistic one) will be to get the first draft done and in editing by March. Note I didn't say WHEN in March...LOL!

Time is NOT on my side....how about you? Did you hit your goals for this month, quarter or year?

Busy, busy, oh yeah, and BUSY!

Why does personal life have to get in the way? It's all good (eventually) but it sure takes a toll on writing time. I can't even remember the last book I read...I think it was last winter on one of our cruises. Sigh....

But I did manage to get first/second draft edits done on my middle school fantasy book. Seven short stories, full of fun, fantasy and fiction. I hope to have it published next month.

Here is the tentative cover image - what do you think?

Update and Ramblings

It's been a hectic couple of weeks. As I posted a month or so ago, I finished my series of seven middle grade short stories. They are now printed and hubby is doing a first draft read. Normally I would do a first edit before that but....

....I needed to get writing on my first novella, "Whispers in Paradise", for author Toby Neal's Lei Crime Kindle World. That first draft is done, printed and hubby will be doing a first draft read of that as well. Normally I would do a first edit before that but....

....I needed to get started writing "Almost a Touch", the third book in my Klondike Mystery series, for Camp NaNoWriMo. After finishing the novella, I was starting over a week late. Then life happened....

....Fatigue, back pain and too many every day chores and errands assaulted me. One biggie was moving from our rented site in the campground to our personal site (effective Feb 1st but we had renters committed till mid-April). So last Sunday we made the move! It went quite well considering we had been in one spot since mid-October! The rest of the week disappeared in a blur of getting outdoor things set up, getting pavers added to our lot to extend the usable space and buying both a propane fire pit and a small seating set.


Ah, life is good! Oh, the book? I'm in chapter three now and have done a surprising amount of research. I doubt I will get my 50k words by the end of the month but I'm willing to try!

Done and Over With!

[cue cheering audience]

It's true, I finally finished the first draft of my 8-12 year old fantasy short stories in my "7 of Seven" series. A few quick edits and they should be uploaded to Amazon in the next couple of weeks.

And that means [cue dramatic drum roll] that I will be working on book three in my Klondike Mystery series, "Almost a Touch". I know my readers have been waiting way too long for this and I am looking forward to telling the story of how the police chief dies.

Book three takes place in Kalispell, MT but I will keep you updated on what is happening back in Klondike as well. Expect a few surprises, some new characters, more "whodunit" and hopefully a dash of humor.

Be sure to sign up for my free newsletter to stay informed of updates, new releases, sales and so forth. I promise to never spam you and will never share your email address with third parties.

Klondike Mysteries - Update!

I am in the midst of my final edits on "Barely a Spark" with inputs from my three editors/proofreaders. Still hoping to get it published on Amazon before we leave for our Route 66 trip (looks like we'll leave on Saturday). The early reviews have been very positive!

If you haven't read book one, "Not a Whisper", maybe it's time! You can find it at both Amazon (ebook/print) and Smashwords (ebook). Remember - you do NOT need to own a Kindle to read Amazon's ebooks. You can download a free reader app for your PC, laptop, tablet or smart phone HERE.

Latest review on "Not a Whisper":

New 5 star review on Amazon: 

"This is the first book in quite a while that was hard for me to put down. I stayed up entirely too late and just about drained the battery on my phone reading Donna B. McNicol's tale of murder, arson, kidnapping and, oh yes, a bit of romance. The ending was quite a surprise! Buy it. Read it. Wait impatiently for the next in the Klondike series."

~ Texas Yellow Rose

#IWSG for September

Time for another post for the Insecure Writer's Support Group, Alex Cavanaugh's creation for writers. The first Wednesday of every month, the participants write about what makes them insecure about their career/passion/vocation.

If you've been following me for very long, you know I've been working on the second in my Klondike Mystery series. I loved writing my first book. I had fun writing my first book.

I almost wrote way too many spoilers in my first draft of book two, something I hadn't considered. It's a fine line, how much to say about the first book - both the events and the characters. I left a few things hanging at the end of book one so spoilers aren't a good thing.

So for whatever reason I'm not as happy with this book as the first. I'm hoping that doesn't come through in the book but my beta readers seem to be enjoying it. Oh well, time will tell...hoping for publication before the end of September.

If you write in a series, do you always leave it hanging in some way? I'm thinking I won't do that again.