Be Careful What You Wish For

Sorry I'm late on the post, but it's a hazard of writing! How so? you ask.

Well, before I was contracted, I had all sorts of time. Time to blog, time to write, time to clean...you get the idea. Writing was sort of a hobby, one that I loved. Not that I don't still love writing, but it certainly isn't a hobby any longer. 

No, once you become contracted, writing becomes a job. Most of the time when readers think of authors, the picture below is what comes to mind.

Signing books, speaking at different functions, teaching classes on writing, and I've certainly done all of those things. 

But most of my time is spent behind my computer. Six, eight, maybe ten hours a day. Mostly eight, though. 

Since 2013, I've written twelve books and three novellas, plus a ton of blog posts. Those twelve books represent over a million words. Can you believe that writing is all I've done since 2013?

Not that I'm complaining, mind you, but I don't think many writers who yearned to be published realize how much work goes into this writing gig.  

Or how little respect others have for your time. Since I work from home, it's automatically assumed I can drop my writing and do whatever: go out to lunch, attend a meeting in the middle of the day, entertain drop-in company, answer the phone--no one understands when I turn my phone off, but it takes at least thirty minutes to get back into a story when I'm interrupted. 

I do hope you don't think I'm whining, because I'm not, just stating facts as any writer will tell you. I would be writing even if my publisher didn't pay me. Let me rephrase that. I love writing even when the words are like pulling up dandelions. (ever tried that--those suckers don't let go of the ground). I have friends who question my sanity. They can't understand why I would sit for eight hours every day when I don't have to. 

They don't understand that I DO have to. Writing is in my blood, and I'd rather be writing than doing anything else, even lazing on a beach in Hawaii.

So, just in case you're one of those people who yearn to write and get published, go for it! But count the cost. There's always a cost to doing what you love. 

Comments? What do you want to do more than anything in the world? Leave a comment and I'll enter you in a drawing for a copy of one of my books--your choice. 

Hot new inspy suspense!

Traces of Guilt, by Dee Henderson

Gabriel Thane is the sheriff and lifetime resident of Carin County Illinois, committed to upholding the law and keeping the residents safe. Lieutenant Evie Blackwell is a State Police Detective skilled at investigations. She launches a new task force to reexamine unsolved crimes across the state. She begins work with the sheriff’s department on a few of its most troubling missing-persons cases, a deputy, his wife and eleven-year old son’s disappearance, and in an unrelated case involving a six-year-old girl abducted from a hotel. As she examines old evidence, she finds a connection to a third cold case.

A Day In The Life Of A Writer

People are always asking about my writing schedule. After all, I’m retired from medicine, so I must have lots of time to write. Of course, since my latest book, Medical Judgment, releases about now, one would expect a little time to be spent in getting out the word about it, but there should be lots of time for writing. Right? Read on.

Since we just got back from a trip to the Pacific time zone, my body hasn’t adjusted, so I slept a bit longer this morning, not awakening until after 6:30 AM. Kay and I watched the news and drank our coffee. Then each of us had an English muffin and bacon while we watched a sitcom we’d recorded.

Now to write, right? Not yet. I called our financial advisor who’s decided to take his own advice and retire! I needed to know what steps he’d taken to assure continuity with his clients. It took about twenty minutes, but I hung up satisfied (with the assurance we’d have a sit-down conference in a few weeks).

Now surely it’s time to write. Nope. I located the roofer we’d been talking with, and discussed a new roof for our house (even though the current one is only a few years old). Thanks, recent hailstorm. Welcome to Texas. I’ll meet with the roofer tomorrow, but it took another twenty minutes to set this up.

Then came completing a blog interview which will run in a couple of weeks, scanning through my email, looking at the sites I follow—all of which takes us past mid-morning. Still no writing.

Kay’s working at her son’s home (he’s moving a few blocks closer, and since he’s a single parent she’s helping out). I volunteered to get the few grocery items we needed, but before leaving I wrote a few checks so I could mail them at the post office on my way to get the groceries. Then I picked up Kay and we celebrated Monday with half a barbecue sandwich and some chips for each of us. Productive morning, but no writing.

I won’t bore you with what followed. Let’s just say it was more of the same--lots more. Finally, late in the afternoon, I sat down at the computer to write. I noticed I had a new email, so I opened it. It was from Nancy Mehl, reminding me that I needed to compose this blog post and get it posted. So here it is.

But tomorrow, I promise I’ll work on my novel. In the meantime, keep an eye out for Nancy’s interview with me on this site in a bit over a week, where a random commenter can win a copy of Medical Judgment. 

Tweet with a single click: "A day in the life of a writer can be filled with non-writing activities." Click here to tweet.

Writer's Yard Sale

by E.E. Kennedy 

HERE IT IS! TODAY ONLY!

WRITER’S YARD SALE!

Slightly used author’s items available at bargain prices!

Welcome! Did you see my sign? Is it close enough to the road? Good. Well, yes, we do have a lot of stuff here. Let me show you what I’ve got. You can get some great buys. Just take a look around.

 For instance, over here, I have a large, slightly shop-worn ego. No, I don’t have the original box, but it’s still in working order. It took a lot of hits over the past year. I regret that I put it out where it was so vulnerable to the elements. Even in this condition, it’ll give you quite a few more good years. It’s yours, if the price is right.

That table over there? Those are the hats I’ve worn. This publicist’s hat, for instance. I had to wear it a lot this year. It was pretty expensive, let me tell you. I can give you a deal on it. Oh, that eyeshade? That’s my editor’s hat. It’s gotten a lot of use. That pointy hat? No, it’s not Harry Potter’s. It’s my thinking cap. I used that as much as my editor’s shade. It kept slipping over my eyes so I couldn’t see the clock. I missed a lot of deadlines that way. But it works. Boy, does it work!

 Check out this coffee can here. Give me a reasonable price and you can have everything that’s in it: almost a pound of miscellaneous adverbs. They’re perfectly good, just superfluous. I cleaned them out of my most recent story. Too many of those things and the work is done for, you know. They’d work perfectly well for a story that needs them, though.

 That box of grandiose adjectives? Those are free for the taking. They’re really pretty, but  a little too fancy for me. I tend to be a little more plain when it comes to writing. Sure, it’s yours; just put the carton in your trunk.

 Well, I’d like to get something for those used similes. They’re a little worn around the edges, but serviceable. So are those idioms. Colorful, aren’t they? Pretty decorative when you use ‘em right.

 Look at this box of paper over here. I’d say it’s about a ream. Those sheets would be great for scrap paper. No, you don’t need to turn that over…well, yes, it’s a rejection. They all are. Got a fireplace? You could twist them and use them to get the logs burning. The twisting part is very therapeutic, I’ve found. So is the burning part, come to think of it.

 Could you use these empty liquor bottles? They’d make pretty good candle holders. That’s about all they’re good for. I tried looking for plots at the bottom of them, but no luck.

 Oh, that’s the garbage can. It’s where I threw the double negatives, dangling participles and wasted time. I couldn’t even give those to charity in good conscience. You can’t use ‘em.

 That? I’m giving that away, too. No, it’s not a footstool or a door stop. It’s a giant economy size writer’s block. So far, I haven’t had any takers. You want it? Make an offer? No?

 Well, anyway, it was good of you to stop by. I’ll be here ‘til long past midnight.

Tell your friends!

WIN!!!Please make comments below to have a chance to win a Kindle version of Ellen's latest
mystery or your choice of one from the series! (Be sure to add your email address!)

The winner will be announced in a week. 

___________________________________

E.E. Kennedy is the author of the Miss Prentice Cozy Mystery Series.

Her newest release is INCOMPLETE SENTENCE.

You can read sample chapters at her website: www.missprenticecozymystery.com

(Originally published at www.thewordsmithjournalmagazine.co)

Interview and giveaway with New York Times Bestsellling author Lenora Worth!

The Suspense Sisters are honored to interview New York Times Bestselling author Lenora Worth! We are so excited to have her here! Lenora has generously offered to giveaway TWO books this week, Proof of Innocence and Lakeside Hero! (U.S. only, please.) Comment to be entered to win one of these awesome books!

Lenora's Bio: Lenora Worth writes award-winning romance and romantic suspense for Love Inspired and also writes for Tule, Zondervan and Redbud Press. Three of her books finaled in the ACFW Carol Awards and several of her books have been RT Reviewer’s Choice finalists. “Logan’s Child” won the 1998 Best Love Inspired for RT. Her Love Inspired Suspense “Body of Evidence” became a NY Times Bestseller. Her novella in Mistletoe Kisses, along with several other writers, also made her a USA Today Bestselling author. With sixty books published and millions of books in print, she goes on adventures with her retired husband, Don. They have two grown children. Lenora enjoys reading, baking and shopping … especially shoe shopping.

Let's hear a little bit more from Lenora.

Can you give us three interesting facts about yourself?

I grew up on a farm. I know how to drive a tractor, plant corn, tobacco and peanuts and slop hogs. Thankfully, I don't have to do any of those things now.

I love action movies.

My husband and I have known each other since we were about five years old. (We celebrated our fortieth anniversary this year.

What do you do when you’re not writing? 

I read, walk a lot and clean my closet!

How did you choose the genre you write in? 

I knew I wanted to write romance novels but I wasn't so sure about the steamy aspects of that. When I heard a speaker talking about Christian fiction, I knew I'd found my genre. But it took a few years before that dream came true. I love writing sweet, faith-based stories.

What has been the toughest criticism given to you as an author? What has been the best compliment? 

The toughest criticism came from a review. The reviewer wasn't very kind but I can handle that. What I didn't appreciate was that the people commenting hadn't even read the book and based on what she'd implied in her review, they assumed my characters had slept together. They had not. She didn't even clarify that they were mistaken. But I had to let it go. (Shake it off.)

The best compliment--when a woman called me after my first LI (The Wedding Quilt) came out and told me about her brother's death because of a drunk driver. My heroine had lost her mother to a drunk driver. (Based on my sister's death.) We cried together but she told me the book had helped her to forgive and heal.

If you could go back in time and do something differently in your writing career, what would it be? 

 
Hmmm, I always want to go back and rewrite every book but I don't think I'd change anything else.
God has blessed me and when I look back I can see his hand in everything that brought me to this point. 

I can't mess with that!