Over the Top Blogger

I am pleased to announce that TK Richardson over at Evening Masquerade has awarded me with the Over the Top Blogger Award. As a recipient, I must answer the following questions about myself. Oh yes, we will plaster the blog-o-sphere seven or so blogs at a time. (But TK said I didn’t have to follow the rules and I’m kind of pressed for time, so I’m going to do the unmentionable (winces and checks for lightning about to strike) and not pass it on. (Sorry)

Here goes…

Where is your cell phone? uh? My bag?
Your hair? getting curlier
Your mother? alive
Your father? alive
Your favourite food? Mom’s spaghetti
Your dream last night? I dreamt?
Your favourite drink? Water. Straight up.
Your dream/goal? get my stories in bookstores
What room are you in? living room
Your hobby? reading, writing, but not arithmatic
Your fear? Loss.
Where do you want to be in 6 years? Happy
Where were you last night? Why do I need an alibi? (Buying a car)
Something that you aren’t? Mean
Muffins? Sure, thanks
Wish list item? Those flower clogs, Disneyland
Where did you grow up? In a schoolhouse
Last thing you did? Breathed
What are you wearing? work outfit
Your TV? off
Your pets? 2 cats
Friends? Yes, I have some. Thanks for asking.
Your life? It’s gooooood
Your mood? It’s good, too
Missing someone? Sure, it I think about it.
Vehicle? ’94 Dodge Shadow Selling it.   (See above)
Something you’re not wearing? men’s underwear
Your favourite store? MEC (Mountain Equipment Co-op)
Your favourite color? Blue
When was the last time you laughed? today
Last time you cried? Uh? December?
Your best friend? My husband
One place that I go to over and over? bathroom
One person who emails me regularly? Lots of people, I’m lucky that way.
Favourite place to eat? At the table

Thanks!

Blog Break…Sorta

Hiya blog followers! I’ve got some good news and some ‘other’ news.

The good news is I got a job! For the next few weeks I will be back in the library world again! Yay! And the best part is, I get to play with pre-schoolers! Double Yay! I’m going to make some more readers! Yay! Readers!

The ‘other’ news is that I am not going to have quite as much time for my blog. So, in case you feared that I had forgotten about my blog and you, my lovely reader, fear not. I haven’t forgotten, I just don’t have enough hours in the day at the moment.

Feel free to talk amongst yourselves. (As well, for a low, low, introductory price, you can pay me to brainwash these little ones into loving the genre you write in.)

Writing That’s Loveable, Yet Flawed

Flaws. A story can have major flaws and still make the best seller list. A story can have stylistic or technical writing elements that bother the reader, yet if the storytelling and world building is amazing, readers will still love the book.

On the other side of the coin…

Flaws can kill your story. The wrong word, the wrong character reaction to an event, unbelievable conflict, too many adverbs, too much telling; the list is long. The readers can end up hating a decent book.

The other night, our book club was discussing Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See. The varied group  enjoyed the story and went as far as to seek out See’s other books. (We don’t always do that.) Yet, there were parts of this story’s structure and style that bothered us as readers. So why did we enjoy it so much? How did it become a best seller?

A little background about the story: The story is set in rural China in the 1800s when foot binding was still performed. The story is relayed to the reader through the now aged main character (Lily) as she looks back over her years.

In the first few chapters, there are quite a few ‘authorial intrusions’ where the writer reminds us that Lily is the one telling us the story by adding sentences similar to this: But the worst was yet to come. Or: This wouldn’t be my only mistake. As we get deeper into the story, the reminders are fewer, but they still exist. In the beginning, it worked as it let us know what type of story we were going to read as well as forewarn us about conflicts to come. Yet, after the first few chapters, I found that these reminders brought me out of the story and in some cases, ruined what could have been a big reveal within the story. By chapter two, I knew how the two friends would break up–the main story question already answered for me.

So, what kept me intrigued? What kept me flipping those pages? The world and culture building was simply amazing. As a reader, I learned a lot about China and Chinese culture from a woman’s perspective. It was incredible to learn that much in such an enjoyable way and the flaws melted away. Just like that.

For aspiring writers, something minute as overdone foreshadowing in an authorial intrusion sort of way could be fatal. It could get that story rejected. But in this best seller, because the world building was so strong, it could be overlooked and forgiven. Even the fact that the major conflict ended up being a slight misunderstanding that could have been resolved with a short conversation–something of which us aspiring writers (romance in particular) have been told to never do, became forgivable.

As a writer, this book intrigued me. I strive so very hard to make my stories as perfect as I can and to see a story with flaws do so well inspired me. Strengths in one area may be able to pull you through your weaker areas. How cool is that?

So now, I have to figure out what my big strength is and what my big weakness is and how can I use my big strength to lessen the impact of my big weakness. Whew!

How about you? Do you know what yours are?

Want the book?

Shop Indie Bookstores

Writer Rock Video: Eye of the Agent

Today, I was going to write something deep, profound, and inspiring for all you writers out there… but then I watched a video made by writer Jenny Martin and realized I could just rest on her heels today. She’s put all that deep, profound, and inspiring stuff in a fun rock video set to the music of Eye of the Tiger.

Eye of the Tiger was my favourite song as a kid. My brother dubbed it over and over and over again on my little red Lady and the Tramp cassette. So much for the We Siamese song or reading along with the book. It’s was all Eye of the Tiger, all the time.

Oh, the things us writers do to procrastinate.

Now, go forth and view this rock video. Now.

Good Links: January Edition/New Blogs Edition

Hi. Well, there goes January, eh? Spring is on the horizon, groundhogs rearing their funny shaped heads, blah, blah, blah. Yeah, whatever. Pull me out of my cave when the sun starts shining again.

As it turns out, I didn’t end up with a ton of good links for January. However, a nice handful of AQers (Agent Query members–writers) started blogs in January (or a month or two previous to that), so instead of sharing writing links this month, I will honour these brand new bloggers.

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Kid’s Book Junky by Charlie Eve. This kids book review and news blog is not yet one month old, but will quickly become a resource for kid lit writers seeking industry news, as well as mothers seeking a good book for their youngsters.

Layinda’s Blog. This is another developing blog that is under a month old. Layinda discusses writing, contests and everything writing.

The Forever Blog by Shawna. Inspiration, motivation, technical aspects of writing and much more.

Random Thoughts to String Together by Lisa Gibson. The name expresses it all as writer Lisa pulls random writerly thoughts together as blog fodder.

Writer/lawyer Pete Morin’s blog. The man shares what is on his mind. Burst pipes, writing and the law, short stories, and more.

RS Mellette’s Dances with Blogs. A handy blog for filmmakers (and that includes screenwriters) who are wondering what recently submitted trends might be as well as more information on the Dances With Films Festival.

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There you have it. Six young blogs worth checking out. As well, you will find more great writing blogs on my blogroll to the right.

Thank you everyone!