The Next Big Thing Blog Hop

I've been tagged by Ronie Kendig. This was a good exercise to build some momentum for writing this story. 

The rules of the blog hop:

• Mention who tagged you, and link to their post.
• Give the rules.
• Answer the ten questions below.
• Link to several more people

1. What is the title of your next book? 

Tentatively, it’s Love Simplified, Too but I’m sure that’s bound to change.

2. Where did the idea come from for the book?

It is the sequel to my first novel, Love Simplified. For a while I was considering writing three standalone books in this series. When I mentioned this to my friend and editor, Linda Sothern, she complained that all the romance books end with the main characters engaged, but they never showed how the marriage worked out. That’s when I decided to write another book with the same cast of characters.   

3. What genre does your book fall under?

Romance.

Hrithik Roshan

4. What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition?

Zoe Saldana

This is a hard one. I actually don’t like casting actors for my characters because everyone has their own image of what characters looks like. But if I had to say, Tempest would be played by Zoe Saladene and Lance would be played by a Bollywood actor named Hrithik Roshan. I’d love to hear from those who’ve read Love Simplified and get their opinion.

5. What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Love is not simple for Tempest Day, and she will soon discover that marriage is even harder.

6. Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

I will be self-pubbing this one…unless some miracle happens and someone buys this one and the first one. I doubt it since I’m not querying it to agents or editors.  

7. How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript?

 Haven’t finished the first draft yet and it’s been in the works for a couple of months now. I hope to finish it by April.

8) What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

Murder, Mayhem and a Fine Man or any book in the Amanda Bell Series.  I so admire Claudia Mair Burney’s voice. And readers can always pick up the first book in this series. 

9) Who or what inspired you to write this book?

I’ll have to start with what inspired me to write the first book in this series, since the story continues in my next book.

Reality TV inspired me. Late one night, I was watching a show that featured a life coach helping people through their problems. As I watched, I thought, she [the life coach] probably has bigger problems than they people she’s trying to help. On another occasion, I was watching a different reality TV show and thought, What kind of crazy would you have to be to expose your private life on TV? What kind of person would do that? Most importantly, what would be a legitimate reason for going on a reality TV show? Those two sets of quests combined in my head and I was off and running.

10. What else about the book might pique the reader’s interest?

 It will be a hilarious After Happily Ever After story. I am aiming for a late spring release (May-June timeframe), so stay tuned to this blog and Facebook page (Author Terri J. Haynes) for updates. 

Now for the tagging: 

Becca Whitham
K. Victoria Chase

Lisa Buffaloe

Elizabeth Madrey

Terri Gillespie (T1)

Andrea Michelle Wood 

NaNoWriMo 2012, I'm in!

Another November, another 50,000 words.

Okay, it's not as mundane as I make it sound. It's actually a big deal for me. I have done several NaNoWriMo's (2007, 2008, 2009, 2011) and I finished all but 2009 (not sure what happened there). I have had so much fun praticipating. It's definitely a great challenge for writers. And of course, I'm not ready.

You would think that this event took me by surprise by how unprepared I am. The one of rules of NaNoWriMo is that I can't have any previous words written in the novel. That means none of my WIPs, and I have many, qualify. Which means I have to come up with a whole new idea to write.

I originally told my husband that I was going to write a dragon story that I've had floating in my head for a month, but realized the time might be better used writing another installation in my reality TV series. Brilliant, right? Unfortunately, I will be starting tomorrow with nothing more than two incomplete character sketches and a very thin idea of the main plot line. Not enough for my comfort.

But I realized something. NaNoWriMo is all about the fun. It's all about ditching the inner editor who loves to have character sketches, outlines and plot all laid out. It's about writing with abandon and discovering the story as you go. That's what I've done in past years and that's what I plan to do this year.

So root me on, friends. Check the counter to the right to see how I'm doing. To those who see me every week: if you see me walking around muttering to myself, I'm probably working out my story in my head.

Let the adventure begin!

Writing Wednesday: How Love Simplified Came To Be

A reader recently asked me how I came up with the idea for Love Simplified. A good question except…I am not a linear person when it comes to my ideas. Sometimes a scene pops into my head and then I plot the novel around that scene. Other times, my ideas form in a more classic way, the writer’s best friend. The “what if…” question. However, Love Simplified didn’t start with a “what if…”, but it was a question in my mind. 

What kind of person goes on a reality TV show?

Now I must admit, I haven’t watched most of the popular reality TV shows, the Real Housewives or Survivor, or Idol, but I’ve watched a few. My favs are What Not to Wear, My Fair Wedding, The Locater (that show always makes me cry), and Ultimate Bake-Off.  I’ve watched an episode or two of other shows (watched Millionaire Matchmaker, research for Love Simplified), but I found myself wondering who would agree to a reality TV show and why would they do it. It seems so easy to be humiliated for life on these shows.

That wondering soon twisted into thinking about semi-legitimate reasons someone would do a reality TV show. After all, they’re not all bad. At the time I was watching a reality TV show about a life coach (can't remember the name of the show right now, but it was a late night TLC deal). One night as I watched, the idea flipped and I started pondering what would it be like if the so called expert was on the other side of the show. If the expert was the one getting advice and help. And thus, Tempest Day was born.

What would motivate you to do a reality TV show? 

Editing and Cleaning

A friend once asked me which part of the writing process I enjoyed more, writing or revising. I promptly replied, “writing.” At the time, I’d only written one semi-complete manuscript for NaNoWriMo. I was still riding the wave of adrenaline from pumping out 50,000 words in a month. My position was further cemented when I tried to edit that mess of 50,000 words that I’d written in true seat-of-the-pants style.

 

There is something intoxicating about the first draft. The words just seem to flow, and when you manage to turn off your internal editor, the process can be fun. That’s what I enjoyed about writing the first draft. So I wrote another manuscript, and another. I just wrote for the sake of pure enjoyment...my own enjoyment, not my readers. 

When I got serious about writing for publication, I made a startling revelation. I discovered that I liked editing more. I didn’t know I liked editing more because I hadn’t gotten that far in the process. I’d only been writing first drafts, but once I wanted to move my writing career beyond first drafts, I realized the beauty of editing.

Editing reminds me of cleaning, which I find very enjoyable and therapeutic. Editing is like bleaching down everything in the kitchen and moping with lavender-scented Pine-sol. Editing allows you to clean up weak spots, polish plotlines and sanitize some of the more harmful elements of a manuscript.

I guess I should have never answered my friend’s question before I’d experienced all sides of the writing process. Now that I have, I can proudly say, I enjoy the cleaning…I mean, editing more. 

Writing Wednesday: Just Keep Writing

This is Dory the fish.

Not your first pick for a motivational speaker, but her simple message can be encouraging in many situations.

“Just keep swimming.”

A little creative thinking might be necessary in order to see the beauty in her advice, especially since I can’t swim.  I write. So when I see Dory, I hear her happy optimistic voice saying, “Just keep writing. Just keep writing, writing, writing.”

I realized the wonder of this piece of advice as I worked through the revision of a novel I wrote a couple of years ago. As I read this manuscript, I saw how my writing had improved. I also noticed some patterns in my writing process. For instance, I hate writing the first draft and would far rather revise. I need to give my manuscripts a long rest before I start the revision process and when I get into the zone, writing or revising, I need to ride the wave of energy until it (or I'm) exhausted.

All this I learned about myself because I just kept writing. I’ve read many writing books to help to improve my craft. I’ve gone to conferences and workshops, even took online classes. But in the end, all of that is useless unless I put it to practice. Unless I wrote.

I’ve often heard that writing brings about self-discovery. A true statement. Writing is not only about what to write but how to write it. The best way to discover the “how” is to just keep writing. When you continue to write, patterns will form and your understanding of who you are as a writer will grow. Once these patterns are established and recognized, you’ll write more. You’ll a rhythm in your writing like gliding through the waves. You’ll write like you.

There are many books, classes and websites out there to tell you about other people’s methods. But once you’ve establish your patterns, recognize things about you, you will be able to better decide if a piece of writing advice will work for you (it is, after all, advice, not the gospel).

For instance, I’ve read books promoting getting up early and writing. Nice advice, but not for me. Since I am not a morning person, my brain isn’t functioning properly until around 9am and I cannot write while I’m sleepy (and if I do, I’ll end up deleting whatever I wrote anyways).  I am most alert between 10pm and 2am. Also, my family is sound asleep during those hours, so no interruptions. So I can disregard that advice. Why? Because I just kept writing and I understood that mornings don't work for me.

There are some things about your writing process that no book can teach you. Things you will only discover as you continue to write. Remember Dory. Just keep writing.