Sarah Alderson's Blog: Writing and all the bits in between - Posts Tagged "fated"
Trusting your instincts
FATE
I have a book coming out in January 2012 called Fated. Here’s the blurb.
What happens when you discover you aren't who you thought you were? And that the person you love is the person who will betray you? If your fate is already determined, can you fight it?
When Evie Tremain discovers that she’s the last in a long line of Demon slayers and that she’s being hunted by an elite band of assassins –Shapeshifters, Vampires and Mixen demons amongst them – she knows she can’t run. They’ll find her wherever she goes. Instead she must learn to stand and fight.
But when the half-human, half-Shadow Warrior Lucas Gray - is sent to spy on Evie and then ordered to kill her before she can fulfil a dangerous prophecy, their fates become inextricably linked. The war that has raged for one thousand years between humans and demons is about to reach a devastating and inevitable conclusion. Either one or both of them will die before this war ends.
If your life becomes bound to another’s, what will it take to sever it?
Following the Bologna book fair I had a quick chat with my editor at Simon & Schuster who told me that paranormal is on the way out, dystopia very much on trend at the moment thanks to the fantastic popularity of The Hunger Games and the eagerly anticipated Divergent which I can’t wait to read. Though what’s going to be next year’s trend is anyone’s guess.
The thing is, Fated is very much a paranormal romance and I was asking her whether she thought it therefore worth my while writing the sequels that I had planned. Her advice was probably not. And she’s probably right, given that I have no contract for them and she works in publishing so has a much better idea of what will sell and what won’t. But she did say, and for this I’m hugely grateful, that if they had to be written then they had to be written.
And I felt like these books had to be written.
With Hunting Lila the characters got into my head so much that they’d have whole conversations with each other. It got so I couldn’t ignore them and needed to write the second book in the series or check myself into an asylum and start receiving treatment for the voices in my head. I needed to let their story finish.
With Fated it’s been similar. When I finished writing that book I couldn’t stop imagining what happened to my characters next. So I mulled and I ummed and I arred. Should I work on the other ideas I had? Should I leap into Dystopia before that craze died too? Or should I follow my heart?
I was still unsure of which direction to go when I bumped into a friend of mine here in Bali. He used to work as a head of something very impressive for a big video games company. We discovered a mutual love of Buffy and all things vampire the first time we met and since then most of our conversations revolve around films and ipod apps.
Anyway I explained to him my dilemma about what to write next and he told me a little story.
When he was working in the gaming industry he had an idea for a baseball game but everyone said, ‘you can’t make that game, there have been dozens of baseball games, they never sell well.’
But he went ahead and did it anyway. They made it so well that it became the biggest selling baseball game of all time.
So write that book, he said.
So I did. And then I wrote the third book. And when I’m done I’m going to write the fourth book too.
Part way through writing the second book I realised that the theme was about trusting your instincts. I don’t think there’s any better advice for living or writing.
Hunting Lila
I have a book coming out in January 2012 called Fated. Here’s the blurb.
What happens when you discover you aren't who you thought you were? And that the person you love is the person who will betray you? If your fate is already determined, can you fight it?
When Evie Tremain discovers that she’s the last in a long line of Demon slayers and that she’s being hunted by an elite band of assassins –Shapeshifters, Vampires and Mixen demons amongst them – she knows she can’t run. They’ll find her wherever she goes. Instead she must learn to stand and fight.
But when the half-human, half-Shadow Warrior Lucas Gray - is sent to spy on Evie and then ordered to kill her before she can fulfil a dangerous prophecy, their fates become inextricably linked. The war that has raged for one thousand years between humans and demons is about to reach a devastating and inevitable conclusion. Either one or both of them will die before this war ends.
If your life becomes bound to another’s, what will it take to sever it?
Following the Bologna book fair I had a quick chat with my editor at Simon & Schuster who told me that paranormal is on the way out, dystopia very much on trend at the moment thanks to the fantastic popularity of The Hunger Games and the eagerly anticipated Divergent which I can’t wait to read. Though what’s going to be next year’s trend is anyone’s guess.
The thing is, Fated is very much a paranormal romance and I was asking her whether she thought it therefore worth my while writing the sequels that I had planned. Her advice was probably not. And she’s probably right, given that I have no contract for them and she works in publishing so has a much better idea of what will sell and what won’t. But she did say, and for this I’m hugely grateful, that if they had to be written then they had to be written.
And I felt like these books had to be written.
With Hunting Lila the characters got into my head so much that they’d have whole conversations with each other. It got so I couldn’t ignore them and needed to write the second book in the series or check myself into an asylum and start receiving treatment for the voices in my head. I needed to let their story finish.
With Fated it’s been similar. When I finished writing that book I couldn’t stop imagining what happened to my characters next. So I mulled and I ummed and I arred. Should I work on the other ideas I had? Should I leap into Dystopia before that craze died too? Or should I follow my heart?
I was still unsure of which direction to go when I bumped into a friend of mine here in Bali. He used to work as a head of something very impressive for a big video games company. We discovered a mutual love of Buffy and all things vampire the first time we met and since then most of our conversations revolve around films and ipod apps.
Anyway I explained to him my dilemma about what to write next and he told me a little story.
When he was working in the gaming industry he had an idea for a baseball game but everyone said, ‘you can’t make that game, there have been dozens of baseball games, they never sell well.’
But he went ahead and did it anyway. They made it so well that it became the biggest selling baseball game of all time.
So write that book, he said.
So I did. And then I wrote the third book. And when I’m done I’m going to write the fourth book too.
Part way through writing the second book I realised that the theme was about trusting your instincts. I don’t think there’s any better advice for living or writing.
Hunting Lila
My top ten list of ways to procrastinate when writing a book.
I'm about 1000 words off finishing the third installment of my Fated series, the first of which is out in January next year.
I started writing it one month ago to the day. It's been the fastest book I've ever written and my best friend who reads all my books as I write them (chapter by chapter) tells me it's the best book of mine she's read so far. And I think she might be right. I love it. But for some reason I'm dragging my heels on the last chapters.
Last chapters are always hard to write - final dramatic show downs, wrapping up story lines, making sure all the characters get some kind of ending or reference - it's a challenge. But this ending is even harder to write than normal. I think maybe it's because I don't want to leave these characters because secretly I'm in love with them. Well not so secretly. But yes, I am actually in love with figments of my imagination.
But when you meet them hopefully you'll see why.
Anyway, today I have astounded myself with the lengths I will go to to procrastinate. I think I should win a medal or something.
Check this out. My top ten list of ways to procrastinate when writing a book.
1. Watch Battlestar galactica
2. Make coffee even though don’t drink coffee
3.Contemplate doing the laundry (don’t actually do it but do clear up daughter’s discarded pyjamas and put in laundry bin)
4. Try to convince dog to write the chapters for me
5. Take photographs for posterity of the post-its stuck above my desk.
6. Tweet
7. Upload photos
8. Write this blog post
9. Check facebook five million and ninety one times
10. Play around with spotify playlist for book.
Fated
I started writing it one month ago to the day. It's been the fastest book I've ever written and my best friend who reads all my books as I write them (chapter by chapter) tells me it's the best book of mine she's read so far. And I think she might be right. I love it. But for some reason I'm dragging my heels on the last chapters.
Last chapters are always hard to write - final dramatic show downs, wrapping up story lines, making sure all the characters get some kind of ending or reference - it's a challenge. But this ending is even harder to write than normal. I think maybe it's because I don't want to leave these characters because secretly I'm in love with them. Well not so secretly. But yes, I am actually in love with figments of my imagination.
But when you meet them hopefully you'll see why.
Anyway, today I have astounded myself with the lengths I will go to to procrastinate. I think I should win a medal or something.
Check this out. My top ten list of ways to procrastinate when writing a book.
1. Watch Battlestar galactica
2. Make coffee even though don’t drink coffee
3.Contemplate doing the laundry (don’t actually do it but do clear up daughter’s discarded pyjamas and put in laundry bin)
4. Try to convince dog to write the chapters for me
5. Take photographs for posterity of the post-its stuck above my desk.
6. Tweet
7. Upload photos
8. Write this blog post
9. Check facebook five million and ninety one times
10. Play around with spotify playlist for book.
Fated
Writing's like falling in love
So I did it. I finished a book in exactly ONE month. It was an epic journey but somehow this one just flowed. Usually when I write I spend a little bit of time before I start plotting and planning but this time I sat and I just wrote. And every time the voice of panic/sense screamed at me to maybe stop and think a little I ignored it and I sat and I wrote.
And the words just flowed. I did fewer revisions than I usually do and had none of the lying awake in the middle of the night moments where I try to puzzle out what happens next.
Admittedly it was my third book with these characters so I didn’t need to think about their personalities or puzzle out how they would behave in certain situations. I know them all inside and out and I knew the destination they were going to arrive at. I felt like I was observing them and then writing down what I was seeeing and hearing.
When I finished I jumped on the bed and high fived my husband and felt the layers of solitude fall away.
Then I turned to my to do list, which was racketing up into the hundreds of items and thought, ok, now I can come back to earth and actually get some stuff done. Then I double-checked the to do list and wished I’d stayed where I was, fighting demons.
It’s often said that writing is a lonely business but, damn me, is it. When I write I am so sucked into that world I don’t really inhabit the real world at all. For the month or months I’m writing I’m distracted and never fully present.
I hide from friends, am thinking of dialogue whilst cooking my daughter’s dinner, imagining fight scenes whilst I’m swimming, picturing how a main character would kiss whilst I shop for groceries (I spend a lot of time idly wandering the aisles in a daze). I turn down lunch dates, dinner dates, any kind of date because there’s simply nothing on earth I want to be doing other than writing.
It’s a hard place to be. On the one hand so enjoyable and all-consuming. On the other so lonely and mired in guilt at being more focused on the people in my head than the people in my life.
It hits me that writing a book is like falling in love, like being in love - obsessive, exciting, distracting, joyful and panicky all at the same time.
And always, the feeling when I finish and hit the save button for the final time, is above all else, beyond the relief and the elation, broken hearted.
Fated
And the words just flowed. I did fewer revisions than I usually do and had none of the lying awake in the middle of the night moments where I try to puzzle out what happens next.
Admittedly it was my third book with these characters so I didn’t need to think about their personalities or puzzle out how they would behave in certain situations. I know them all inside and out and I knew the destination they were going to arrive at. I felt like I was observing them and then writing down what I was seeeing and hearing.
When I finished I jumped on the bed and high fived my husband and felt the layers of solitude fall away.
Then I turned to my to do list, which was racketing up into the hundreds of items and thought, ok, now I can come back to earth and actually get some stuff done. Then I double-checked the to do list and wished I’d stayed where I was, fighting demons.
It’s often said that writing is a lonely business but, damn me, is it. When I write I am so sucked into that world I don’t really inhabit the real world at all. For the month or months I’m writing I’m distracted and never fully present.
I hide from friends, am thinking of dialogue whilst cooking my daughter’s dinner, imagining fight scenes whilst I’m swimming, picturing how a main character would kiss whilst I shop for groceries (I spend a lot of time idly wandering the aisles in a daze). I turn down lunch dates, dinner dates, any kind of date because there’s simply nothing on earth I want to be doing other than writing.
It’s a hard place to be. On the one hand so enjoyable and all-consuming. On the other so lonely and mired in guilt at being more focused on the people in my head than the people in my life.
It hits me that writing a book is like falling in love, like being in love - obsessive, exciting, distracting, joyful and panicky all at the same time.
And always, the feeling when I finish and hit the save button for the final time, is above all else, beyond the relief and the elation, broken hearted.
Fated
Hunting Lila, Fated and what I'm working on now...
The ARCs for Hunting Lila went out about a month ago and much to my delight it’s getting awesome reviews…there’s a real buzz starting which makes me giggle and freak out in equal measure. I never thought two years ago that these characters, that Lila and Alex, would have an audience outside of my best friends and my head. I find myself walking around all day at the moment grinning like an idiot at how stupendously exciting life is at the moment.
The consensus so far seems to be that everyone loves Lila and is lusting after Alex. Just as I had hoped. Waterstones and WH Smith are doing a big promotion on the book in August, offering it as part of their 3 for 2 deals - so keep an eye out for it on their tables and snag it at a bargain price. I'm also doing an 8 day Blog Tour starting on 28th July where some giveaways are planned.
I’ve had several emails over the last week from people asking whether there is a sequel to Lila, so I thought I’d post a blog about what I’m working on at the moment.
The sequel to Hunting Lila is written! I wrote it even before I had a book deal. I wrote it on the beach in India. I just re-read it the other day (it’s been a year since I wrote it) and it made me laugh out loud a lot. It’s possibly even more action packed than the first book, with some equally big twists. It’s slightly darker in tone, with more conflict and Lila really struggling to control her growing power. Alex also features a lot, as does his body. But that’s all I’ll say on the matter for now. Let your imaginations run riot.
It’s due out next summer though there’s no release date yet.
However…don’t despair. In between times I have another book coming out called Fated. It’s about a girl called Evie, who discovers that she’s a Hunter – a demon slayer. There’s a love interest who’s possibly hotter than Alex. His name is Lucas and he’s half Shadow Warrior and half-human. He belongs to a band of demons sent to kill Evie before she can fulfil a dangerous prophecy. If you visit my Goodreads profile you can read an extract.
I’m so excited about this book – so excited infact that I’ve already written two more books in this series, though these haven’t yet been bought. Apparently paranormal is taking a hit says my publisher, but let’s hope that it isn’t. I personally choose to believe it isn’t! I love paranormal! And hopefully after Fated comes out it’ll change their minds.
At the moment I’m working on edits for Fated and the sequel to Hunting Lila but I plan to start another book in August (top secret at the moment but I’m grinning as I think about it).
Anyway, thanks to everyone blogging, reviewing, tweeting or just adding Hunting Lila to their TBR shelf. I really appreciate it.
Sarahx
Hunting LilaFated
The consensus so far seems to be that everyone loves Lila and is lusting after Alex. Just as I had hoped. Waterstones and WH Smith are doing a big promotion on the book in August, offering it as part of their 3 for 2 deals - so keep an eye out for it on their tables and snag it at a bargain price. I'm also doing an 8 day Blog Tour starting on 28th July where some giveaways are planned.
I’ve had several emails over the last week from people asking whether there is a sequel to Lila, so I thought I’d post a blog about what I’m working on at the moment.
The sequel to Hunting Lila is written! I wrote it even before I had a book deal. I wrote it on the beach in India. I just re-read it the other day (it’s been a year since I wrote it) and it made me laugh out loud a lot. It’s possibly even more action packed than the first book, with some equally big twists. It’s slightly darker in tone, with more conflict and Lila really struggling to control her growing power. Alex also features a lot, as does his body. But that’s all I’ll say on the matter for now. Let your imaginations run riot.
It’s due out next summer though there’s no release date yet.
However…don’t despair. In between times I have another book coming out called Fated. It’s about a girl called Evie, who discovers that she’s a Hunter – a demon slayer. There’s a love interest who’s possibly hotter than Alex. His name is Lucas and he’s half Shadow Warrior and half-human. He belongs to a band of demons sent to kill Evie before she can fulfil a dangerous prophecy. If you visit my Goodreads profile you can read an extract.
I’m so excited about this book – so excited infact that I’ve already written two more books in this series, though these haven’t yet been bought. Apparently paranormal is taking a hit says my publisher, but let’s hope that it isn’t. I personally choose to believe it isn’t! I love paranormal! And hopefully after Fated comes out it’ll change their minds.
At the moment I’m working on edits for Fated and the sequel to Hunting Lila but I plan to start another book in August (top secret at the moment but I’m grinning as I think about it).
Anyway, thanks to everyone blogging, reviewing, tweeting or just adding Hunting Lila to their TBR shelf. I really appreciate it.
Sarahx
Hunting LilaFated
Hunting Lila, Fated and what I'm working on now...
The ARCs for Hunting Lila went out about a month ago and much to my delight it’s getting awesome reviews…there’s a real buzz starting which makes me giggle and freak out in equal measure. I never thought two years ago that these characters, that Lila and Alex, would have an audience outside of my best friends and my head. I find myself walking around all day at the moment grinning like an idiot at how stupendously exciting life is.
The consensus so far seems to be that everyone loves Lila and is lusting after Alex. Just as I had hoped. Waterstones and WH Smith are doing a big promotion on the book in August, offering it as part of their 3 for 2 deals - so keep an eye out for it on their tables and snag it at a bargain price. I'm also doing an 8 day Blog Tour starting on 28th July where some giveaways are planned.
I’ve had several emails over the last week from people asking whether there is a sequel to Lila, so I thought I’d post a blog about what I’m working on at the moment.
The sequel to Hunting Lila is written! I wrote it even before I had a book deal. I wrote it on the beach in India. I just re-read it the other day (it’s been a year since I wrote it) and it made me laugh out loud a lot. It’s possibly even more action packed than the first book, with some equally big twists. It’s slightly darker in tone, with more conflict and Lila really struggling to control her growing power. Alex also features a lot, as does his body. But that’s all I’ll say on the matter for now. Let your imaginations run riot.
It’s due out next summer though there’s no release date yet.
However…don’t despair. In between times I have another book coming out called Fated. It’s about a girl called Evie, who discovers that she’s a Hunter – a demon slayer. There’s a love interest who’s possibly hotter than Alex. His name is Lucas and he’s half Shadow Warrior and half-human. He belongs to a band of demons sent to kill Evie before she can fulfil a dangerous prophecy. If you visit my Goodreads profile you can read an extract.
I’m so excited about this book – so excited infact that I’ve already written two more books in this series, though these haven’t yet been bought. Apparently paranormal is taking a hit says my publisher, but let’s hope that it isn’t. I personally choose to believe it isn’t! I love paranormal! And hopefully after Fated comes out it’ll change their minds.
At the moment I’m working on edits for Fated and the sequel to Hunting Lila but I plan to start another book in August (top secret at the moment but I’m grinning as I think about it).
Anyway, thanks to everyone blogging, reviewing, tweeting or just adding Hunting Lila to their TBR shelf. I really appreciate it.
Sarahx
Hunting LilaFated
The consensus so far seems to be that everyone loves Lila and is lusting after Alex. Just as I had hoped. Waterstones and WH Smith are doing a big promotion on the book in August, offering it as part of their 3 for 2 deals - so keep an eye out for it on their tables and snag it at a bargain price. I'm also doing an 8 day Blog Tour starting on 28th July where some giveaways are planned.
I’ve had several emails over the last week from people asking whether there is a sequel to Lila, so I thought I’d post a blog about what I’m working on at the moment.
The sequel to Hunting Lila is written! I wrote it even before I had a book deal. I wrote it on the beach in India. I just re-read it the other day (it’s been a year since I wrote it) and it made me laugh out loud a lot. It’s possibly even more action packed than the first book, with some equally big twists. It’s slightly darker in tone, with more conflict and Lila really struggling to control her growing power. Alex also features a lot, as does his body. But that’s all I’ll say on the matter for now. Let your imaginations run riot.
It’s due out next summer though there’s no release date yet.
However…don’t despair. In between times I have another book coming out called Fated. It’s about a girl called Evie, who discovers that she’s a Hunter – a demon slayer. There’s a love interest who’s possibly hotter than Alex. His name is Lucas and he’s half Shadow Warrior and half-human. He belongs to a band of demons sent to kill Evie before she can fulfil a dangerous prophecy. If you visit my Goodreads profile you can read an extract.
I’m so excited about this book – so excited infact that I’ve already written two more books in this series, though these haven’t yet been bought. Apparently paranormal is taking a hit says my publisher, but let’s hope that it isn’t. I personally choose to believe it isn’t! I love paranormal! And hopefully after Fated comes out it’ll change their minds.
At the moment I’m working on edits for Fated and the sequel to Hunting Lila but I plan to start another book in August (top secret at the moment but I’m grinning as I think about it).
Anyway, thanks to everyone blogging, reviewing, tweeting or just adding Hunting Lila to their TBR shelf. I really appreciate it.
Sarahx
Hunting LilaFated
Book birthdays, Ecstatic Dance and MORE ALEX...
Lila had its Australian book birthday the other day – I wish I was there for it. Instead I had to make do with drinking frozen margaritas and going to ecstatic dance (moving meditation where you dance like a lunatic in the dark wearing only a bikini until pouring with sweat and ready to collapse – upside is you feel really amazing after). It’s when I dance or swim that I come up with new plot ideas for my books. That’s my excuse anyway.
At the moment I’m writing my sixth book. It’s very different to Lila or Fated, though similar in that it features a teenage girl who’s caught in a situation not of her choosing and who has to figure her way out of it. I’m having fun writing it – loving the flow. And the boys. There are boys. Naturally. In fact there’s only one girl. All the rest are boys. Like where I’m going with that? :)
Am also half way through writing a short story from Suki’s perspective – a side story to Hunting Lila. It’s going to be sold as an e-book on Amazon with all profits going to my friend’s new charity Girltank.
I spent yesterday at the beach dribbling into the sand whilst plotting the story and wrote some pretty awesome dialogue between Demos and Suki and between Jack and Alex. It’s fun to explore these characters outside of Lila’s perspective. I’m still struggling though on how to create a storyline that allows me to have Alex half-naked.
Fail on that score. He’s going to be clothed. BUT we will be finding out more about his love life over the last few years and more about his feelings for Lila – remember Suki can read minds – ACCESS ALL AREAS!
Finally I’m freaking out about Fated. It’s being released in January. With so much Lila love and reviews ending with ‘How is she going to top this?’ I’m having to learn to step away from the refresh button on Goodreads. There should be a cover reveal soon and I had my first reader give it five stars (thanks Jenny!)which helped ease the panic.
And whilst I’m here I need some advice. I’ve been invited to a school to do ‘something.’
Any ideas on what ‘something’ might look like? If I was coming to your school or college what would you want me to do? What would you want me to talk about? Any suggestions gratefully received! Because right now all I can think of doing is an ecstatic dance demonstration.
At the moment I’m writing my sixth book. It’s very different to Lila or Fated, though similar in that it features a teenage girl who’s caught in a situation not of her choosing and who has to figure her way out of it. I’m having fun writing it – loving the flow. And the boys. There are boys. Naturally. In fact there’s only one girl. All the rest are boys. Like where I’m going with that? :)
Am also half way through writing a short story from Suki’s perspective – a side story to Hunting Lila. It’s going to be sold as an e-book on Amazon with all profits going to my friend’s new charity Girltank.
I spent yesterday at the beach dribbling into the sand whilst plotting the story and wrote some pretty awesome dialogue between Demos and Suki and between Jack and Alex. It’s fun to explore these characters outside of Lila’s perspective. I’m still struggling though on how to create a storyline that allows me to have Alex half-naked.
Fail on that score. He’s going to be clothed. BUT we will be finding out more about his love life over the last few years and more about his feelings for Lila – remember Suki can read minds – ACCESS ALL AREAS!
Finally I’m freaking out about Fated. It’s being released in January. With so much Lila love and reviews ending with ‘How is she going to top this?’ I’m having to learn to step away from the refresh button on Goodreads. There should be a cover reveal soon and I had my first reader give it five stars (thanks Jenny!)which helped ease the panic.
And whilst I’m here I need some advice. I’ve been invited to a school to do ‘something.’
Any ideas on what ‘something’ might look like? If I was coming to your school or college what would you want me to do? What would you want me to talk about? Any suggestions gratefully received! Because right now all I can think of doing is an ecstatic dance demonstration.
WIN AN ADVANCED SIGNED ARC OF FATED
I hope the wonderful Maggie Stiefvater doesn’t mind me stealing her competition idea…
WIN AN EARLY SIGNED COPY OF FATED, my next book, personalized with a selection of my post-it notes (which I stick all over my walls and desk and which contain words of wisdom – not my own because I don’t claim wisdom as a trait – as well as ideas and quotes for Losing Lila and for Fated).
On your Facebook page or your blog (must be an actual blog from Blogger or WordPress – and not Shelfari or Goodreads etc) post the cover image of Hunting Lila and some words along the lines of OMG THIS BOOK ROCKED. IT’S SO FULL OF AWESOME. ORDER IT NOW! And then link to the Book Depository (Free Worldwide shipping)
here
Then go HERE and comment and add your link (If your FB profile page is private (as it should be!) then just tell me that it’s private and if you get picked we will verify it another way. Or you can just add me as a friend.
If you have Facebook AND a Blog you can enter twice but make sure you post the links to both.
There will be two winners chosen by grand jury of err, me. The first winner will be a random pick from a hat and the second winner will be the person who posted the Facebook Status update or blog entry that made me laugh the hardest!
This contest ends on midnight the 30th September, GMT. I will post winners on October 1st.
WIN AN EARLY SIGNED COPY OF FATED, my next book, personalized with a selection of my post-it notes (which I stick all over my walls and desk and which contain words of wisdom – not my own because I don’t claim wisdom as a trait – as well as ideas and quotes for Losing Lila and for Fated).
On your Facebook page or your blog (must be an actual blog from Blogger or WordPress – and not Shelfari or Goodreads etc) post the cover image of Hunting Lila and some words along the lines of OMG THIS BOOK ROCKED. IT’S SO FULL OF AWESOME. ORDER IT NOW! And then link to the Book Depository (Free Worldwide shipping)
here
Then go HERE and comment and add your link (If your FB profile page is private (as it should be!) then just tell me that it’s private and if you get picked we will verify it another way. Or you can just add me as a friend.
If you have Facebook AND a Blog you can enter twice but make sure you post the links to both.
There will be two winners chosen by grand jury of err, me. The first winner will be a random pick from a hat and the second winner will be the person who posted the Facebook Status update or blog entry that made me laugh the hardest!
This contest ends on midnight the 30th September, GMT. I will post winners on October 1st.
Editing Sucks Balls
I suck at editing. Thankfully I am lucky enough to have an editor AND a copy editor AND a proof reader. And I'm still having to blink in awe at that sentence.
I’m not a perfectionist so I really need all the help that I can get. I just finished a short story from Alex’s point of view, which is going in the back of Losing Lila and it took my agent to point out that I’d called one character by the wrong name for half the story.
My copy editor in particular picks up not so much the spelling and grammar errors but the continuity errors and repetitions. The places where I’ve said one thing on p.23 and then totally contradicted that on p.230. She also points out where references I’ve made to obscure 80s movies might go over the heads of teenagers today. Sigh.
I heard that Charlaine Harris’s publishers employ a full time fact checker and continuity person for her because with so many Sookie Stackhouse books it’s so hard to keep a grip on who’s who and what’s gone before. One day I can dream of such a thing.
So here are some of the things I do to help me edit.
Read it out loud
I find this the most useful way of editing. When you read out loud you pick up the cadence and rhythm of sentences, you notice where you’ve used the same word in the same paragraph twice. You realize where you’re missing words or where another word might be needed to give better flow and you realize where dialogue sounds stilted and wrong. If you read it in your head it’s not the same.
Kindle-it
Add the document to your Kindle or ereader. I find that reading my manuscripts off a Kindle makes it feel more like a book already and so I read it in a different way, more critically, and can add quick notes and bookmarks as I go.
Revise Revise Revise
Editing is a process. Losing Lila has been through about six revisions. And will probably go through two more (with my editor) before it’s even read by the copy editor where the final revisions will happen. I wrote it almost two years ago so I’ve had time to do this many revisions. I leave a few months in between and then return to it with fresh eyes. It’s true that the more revisions you do the better it gets. I’m now really happy with it. It’s tighter, funnier and better constructed and I’ve had the chance to take on board feedback from Hunting Lila and edit accordingly.
Continuity
If you plot as you go or have a convoluted plot that jumps from location to location and through time it can be easy to mess up the continuity. There’s a mistake in Hunting Lila which a reader spotted (it involves Lila’s birthday) and that was down to a continuity error on my part when I was editing (I wanted her to be a Sagittarius!) Solutions to managing continuity include having someone else read your book when you’re done to check for things like this (sometimes you can’t see the wood for the trees), keeping notes on a separate spreadsheet or doc, creating a timeline of dates or a story arc as well as character notes on things like birthdates, physical description, background, first appearance in book etc
If you are writing a series of books this becomes even more crucial. I still wonder how on earth JK Rowling plotted seven books so intricately.
Language
Whilst I’ve spent a lot of time in the States and now live in Indonesia surrounded by North American and Australian ex-pats, I’m English and have a sort of south London slash transatlantic accent. Most of my main characters are American and my books are for the most part set in America.
I send all my manuscripts to three American friends to read and check through for authenticity and idioms. In British editions some of the language stays British (mum for mom, vest for tank top, boot for trunk, pissed off instead of pissed) but at least I hope the characters sound how they are meant to sound for the most part.
Adjectives and adverbs
They just fill up space. Of course we need some descriptions and you can’t and shouldn’t strip out every adjective but try to SHOW- DON’T TELL as much as you can.
Instead of saying ‘He was arrogant’ – how can you show this instead of telling the reader it? Does he stand in a certain way? Speak in a certain way? Does he cock an eyebrow? Or curl his lip?
How can you show someone is nervous instead of telling us she is? Does her gaze falter, does she clasp and unclasp her hands, hop from foot to foot. If you read a lot you’ll see how other authors show and don’t tell.
Wordcount
Look into book length. As a debut author especially – an agent or publisher is unlikely to look kindly at a manuscript that is overlong.
An average YA novel is about 65,000-85,000. Hunting Lila and Fated both fall in at around 82,000 words (305pages roughly).
Adult novels at 100,000.
Whilst a 200,000 word tome is not necessarily going to be chucked on the reject pile (think Gone with the Wind, Great Expectations…) unless it’s truly a modern day classic stick with the genre averages. I’d say you have a better chance of your manuscript being read in its entirety.
If you stick to word count now you'll save hours and hours of editing time later!
Be Brutal
I cut 27,000 words from my first draft of Hunting Lila. At first I agonized over every sentence. And then I just got brutal. I chopped whole pages, even whole chapters. The rule of thumb – does it drive the story forward? Does it reveal something about the character? If not, take it out. Even characters – are they all absolutely necessary? If not take them out.
Then finally - at some point just say 'enough' - it might not be perfect but it never will be perfect. You just have to accept that.
My first draft of Lila got accepted by an agent and publisher and it was still pretty rough compared to the final cut. You could edit for forever but there isn't time for forever if you want to get your book out into the world.
I’m not a perfectionist so I really need all the help that I can get. I just finished a short story from Alex’s point of view, which is going in the back of Losing Lila and it took my agent to point out that I’d called one character by the wrong name for half the story.
My copy editor in particular picks up not so much the spelling and grammar errors but the continuity errors and repetitions. The places where I’ve said one thing on p.23 and then totally contradicted that on p.230. She also points out where references I’ve made to obscure 80s movies might go over the heads of teenagers today. Sigh.
I heard that Charlaine Harris’s publishers employ a full time fact checker and continuity person for her because with so many Sookie Stackhouse books it’s so hard to keep a grip on who’s who and what’s gone before. One day I can dream of such a thing.
So here are some of the things I do to help me edit.
Read it out loud
I find this the most useful way of editing. When you read out loud you pick up the cadence and rhythm of sentences, you notice where you’ve used the same word in the same paragraph twice. You realize where you’re missing words or where another word might be needed to give better flow and you realize where dialogue sounds stilted and wrong. If you read it in your head it’s not the same.
Kindle-it
Add the document to your Kindle or ereader. I find that reading my manuscripts off a Kindle makes it feel more like a book already and so I read it in a different way, more critically, and can add quick notes and bookmarks as I go.
Revise Revise Revise
Editing is a process. Losing Lila has been through about six revisions. And will probably go through two more (with my editor) before it’s even read by the copy editor where the final revisions will happen. I wrote it almost two years ago so I’ve had time to do this many revisions. I leave a few months in between and then return to it with fresh eyes. It’s true that the more revisions you do the better it gets. I’m now really happy with it. It’s tighter, funnier and better constructed and I’ve had the chance to take on board feedback from Hunting Lila and edit accordingly.
Continuity
If you plot as you go or have a convoluted plot that jumps from location to location and through time it can be easy to mess up the continuity. There’s a mistake in Hunting Lila which a reader spotted (it involves Lila’s birthday) and that was down to a continuity error on my part when I was editing (I wanted her to be a Sagittarius!) Solutions to managing continuity include having someone else read your book when you’re done to check for things like this (sometimes you can’t see the wood for the trees), keeping notes on a separate spreadsheet or doc, creating a timeline of dates or a story arc as well as character notes on things like birthdates, physical description, background, first appearance in book etc
If you are writing a series of books this becomes even more crucial. I still wonder how on earth JK Rowling plotted seven books so intricately.
Language
Whilst I’ve spent a lot of time in the States and now live in Indonesia surrounded by North American and Australian ex-pats, I’m English and have a sort of south London slash transatlantic accent. Most of my main characters are American and my books are for the most part set in America.
I send all my manuscripts to three American friends to read and check through for authenticity and idioms. In British editions some of the language stays British (mum for mom, vest for tank top, boot for trunk, pissed off instead of pissed) but at least I hope the characters sound how they are meant to sound for the most part.
Adjectives and adverbs
They just fill up space. Of course we need some descriptions and you can’t and shouldn’t strip out every adjective but try to SHOW- DON’T TELL as much as you can.
Instead of saying ‘He was arrogant’ – how can you show this instead of telling the reader it? Does he stand in a certain way? Speak in a certain way? Does he cock an eyebrow? Or curl his lip?
How can you show someone is nervous instead of telling us she is? Does her gaze falter, does she clasp and unclasp her hands, hop from foot to foot. If you read a lot you’ll see how other authors show and don’t tell.
Wordcount
Look into book length. As a debut author especially – an agent or publisher is unlikely to look kindly at a manuscript that is overlong.
An average YA novel is about 65,000-85,000. Hunting Lila and Fated both fall in at around 82,000 words (305pages roughly).
Adult novels at 100,000.
Whilst a 200,000 word tome is not necessarily going to be chucked on the reject pile (think Gone with the Wind, Great Expectations…) unless it’s truly a modern day classic stick with the genre averages. I’d say you have a better chance of your manuscript being read in its entirety.
If you stick to word count now you'll save hours and hours of editing time later!
Be Brutal
I cut 27,000 words from my first draft of Hunting Lila. At first I agonized over every sentence. And then I just got brutal. I chopped whole pages, even whole chapters. The rule of thumb – does it drive the story forward? Does it reveal something about the character? If not, take it out. Even characters – are they all absolutely necessary? If not take them out.
Then finally - at some point just say 'enough' - it might not be perfect but it never will be perfect. You just have to accept that.
My first draft of Lila got accepted by an agent and publisher and it was still pretty rough compared to the final cut. You could edit for forever but there isn't time for forever if you want to get your book out into the world.
Severed & other book news
Severed - the sequel to Fated - is now out. I'm so excited for it finally to be released and even more excited about the third and final book - Shadowed - which is coming out in a few months.
Here are some common questions I'm getting about the book which I thought I'd answer publicly:
1. Is it true there's a love triangle?
No! Evie and Lucas are completely in love. But there is a new character called Cyrus who likes to collect notches on bedposts and who has Evie in his sights. Evie is NOT interested though. So don't panic!
2. Is Shadowed the final book in the series?
Yes. For the moment. It does finish off the Fated saga as it stands. Which is not to say that there might not be a fourth book in the future.
3.Is the Bradbury Building in LA where the way through happens to be, actually real?
Yes. It's a real building. It's also home to the LAPD Internal Affairs department and was used as a set in the film 'Blade Runner.'
---
In case you hadn't heard I've also signed for two new books with Simon & Schuster. The first of these The Sound is out in August 2013, and the second Control - is out in August 2014.
They're both contemporary thrillers (not a paranormal element in sight) with some rather lovely lead boys to swoon over.
The final piece of news to share is that the Hunting Lila is still in production but moving ever closer to the green light. There's a small matter of millions of dollars to raise first but we do almost have a script ready (and it's really good!). So watch this space. Or sign up to my newsletter via my website for more frequent updates on all things books and movies.
Talking of which, here's the link to my latest newsletter http://eepurl.com/qvGRn
Here are some common questions I'm getting about the book which I thought I'd answer publicly:
1. Is it true there's a love triangle?
No! Evie and Lucas are completely in love. But there is a new character called Cyrus who likes to collect notches on bedposts and who has Evie in his sights. Evie is NOT interested though. So don't panic!
2. Is Shadowed the final book in the series?
Yes. For the moment. It does finish off the Fated saga as it stands. Which is not to say that there might not be a fourth book in the future.
3.Is the Bradbury Building in LA where the way through happens to be, actually real?
Yes. It's a real building. It's also home to the LAPD Internal Affairs department and was used as a set in the film 'Blade Runner.'
---
In case you hadn't heard I've also signed for two new books with Simon & Schuster. The first of these The Sound is out in August 2013, and the second Control - is out in August 2014.
They're both contemporary thrillers (not a paranormal element in sight) with some rather lovely lead boys to swoon over.
The final piece of news to share is that the Hunting Lila is still in production but moving ever closer to the green light. There's a small matter of millions of dollars to raise first but we do almost have a script ready (and it's really good!). So watch this space. Or sign up to my newsletter via my website for more frequent updates on all things books and movies.
Talking of which, here's the link to my latest newsletter http://eepurl.com/qvGRn
Writing sequels (or the curse of the trilogy)
I am busy in sequel land at the moment (the sequel to Fated just came out) and it got me thinking about the issues that arise when you write a story that continues beyond one book.
How do you plot? How do you sustain story arcs? How do you maintain your readers’ attention? How do you grow and develop your characters? How do you know when to stop? How do you avoid middle book syndrome?
While I write and edit my sequels I’ve also been reading a few other YA sequels and almost invariably being disappointed by them. So, how do you try to avoid the pitfalls when writing sequels?
1. Please remind your reader
Don’t make the mistake of thinking that just because you know your characters and can visualize them and their back story and all their adorable quirks that your reader is going to remember them too.
Assume it’s been a year since your reader last entered the world of your book, and in between they’ve not been eating, sleeping, dreaming your plot and characters, they’ve been reading other books. Probably lots of other books. Your characters have warped and faded and maybe even disappeared completely from their minds. So you need to remind them who they are, what they look like and what their key character traits are. Also remind them of what happened in the previous book.
But whatever you do …
2. Don’t go crazy with exposition
That basically means don’t spend the first ten chapters or so laying out in painful detail everything that happened previously. Yawnfest right there. You need to scatter the information, and in a way that doesn’t make it seem like you are scattering the information purely for the sake of the reader. Nothing more cringeworthy and eyeball-rolly than exposition.
3. Consistency
Your characters need to remain consistent. Unless of course fifteen years have passed and they’re now on a different life path. What is it with books where the character seems to have undergone a personality transplant in between books? That’s not to say characters shouldn’t show growth, but generally the reader wants to see the growth happening, not be witness to it after the event.
4. Trilogies
Did someone pass a law that every YA book now has to be part of a trilogy? What is that about? My Hunting Lila series is 2 books. My Fated series is going to be 4. I have several standalone books coming out.
Consider what works for your story but whatever you do don’t automatically assume three books is a must. I think a lot of times people just assume they need to write three and then end up with a middle book that sucks because there’s not enough story.
Every single book should be able to STAND ALONE. Someone should be able to pick it up who hasn’t read another book in the series and be able to get into that book without too much difficulty. Each book in a series needs a beginning, a middle and an end. The middle book is not the one where you just fill space until the finale can happen in book three.
5. Endings; to cliffhang or not to cliffhang?
Which brings me to point 5. To cliffhang or not to cliffhang? Generally speaking it’s best not to cliffhang but to wrap things up in a way that ties up most, if not all, the loose ends but leaves the door open for a sequel if you want to write one.
I’ve toyed with this cliffhanging dilemma a lot. In Hunting Lila we end at a peering gently over the cliff point but far from hanging off the actual cliff. In Losing Lila and Fated we’re nowhere near the cliff edge – both books were meant to end there (but leaving the door open just a smidgen in case). In Severed however I changed it up a little. At the end we’re clinging to that cliff with just our fingernails.
People hate cliffhangers as a general rule, but I felt that I could afford to do so because I had enough goodwill in my fans to trust me on it, and also because book 3 is coming hot on book 2’s heels, meaning readers won’t be dangling an entire year to find out what happens.
6. Plotting over books
If you haven’t yet got my point, plot each book to be standalone. But with sequels the major issue is continuity. How on earth did JK do it? I take my hat off to her, because it’s a headache to plot just one book, let alone a whole series.
I wrote all three Fated books before the first one was published because I wanted to make sure the plot was hole-free the whole way through. It took a lot of time and effort to do that (when characters can see the future and there are prophecies involved it sure took some planning).
So my advice? Make sure you do your planning across all the books before you publish the first if you possibly can.
But above all that, before you even begin the daunting task of plotting out a whole saga, ask yourself whether your book really needs a sequel.
(The original of this blog post appeared on the website www.writingteennovels.com which is a brilliant resource for anyone looking to write YA).
How do you plot? How do you sustain story arcs? How do you maintain your readers’ attention? How do you grow and develop your characters? How do you know when to stop? How do you avoid middle book syndrome?
While I write and edit my sequels I’ve also been reading a few other YA sequels and almost invariably being disappointed by them. So, how do you try to avoid the pitfalls when writing sequels?
1. Please remind your reader
Don’t make the mistake of thinking that just because you know your characters and can visualize them and their back story and all their adorable quirks that your reader is going to remember them too.
Assume it’s been a year since your reader last entered the world of your book, and in between they’ve not been eating, sleeping, dreaming your plot and characters, they’ve been reading other books. Probably lots of other books. Your characters have warped and faded and maybe even disappeared completely from their minds. So you need to remind them who they are, what they look like and what their key character traits are. Also remind them of what happened in the previous book.
But whatever you do …
2. Don’t go crazy with exposition
That basically means don’t spend the first ten chapters or so laying out in painful detail everything that happened previously. Yawnfest right there. You need to scatter the information, and in a way that doesn’t make it seem like you are scattering the information purely for the sake of the reader. Nothing more cringeworthy and eyeball-rolly than exposition.
3. Consistency
Your characters need to remain consistent. Unless of course fifteen years have passed and they’re now on a different life path. What is it with books where the character seems to have undergone a personality transplant in between books? That’s not to say characters shouldn’t show growth, but generally the reader wants to see the growth happening, not be witness to it after the event.
4. Trilogies
Did someone pass a law that every YA book now has to be part of a trilogy? What is that about? My Hunting Lila series is 2 books. My Fated series is going to be 4. I have several standalone books coming out.
Consider what works for your story but whatever you do don’t automatically assume three books is a must. I think a lot of times people just assume they need to write three and then end up with a middle book that sucks because there’s not enough story.
Every single book should be able to STAND ALONE. Someone should be able to pick it up who hasn’t read another book in the series and be able to get into that book without too much difficulty. Each book in a series needs a beginning, a middle and an end. The middle book is not the one where you just fill space until the finale can happen in book three.
5. Endings; to cliffhang or not to cliffhang?
Which brings me to point 5. To cliffhang or not to cliffhang? Generally speaking it’s best not to cliffhang but to wrap things up in a way that ties up most, if not all, the loose ends but leaves the door open for a sequel if you want to write one.
I’ve toyed with this cliffhanging dilemma a lot. In Hunting Lila we end at a peering gently over the cliff point but far from hanging off the actual cliff. In Losing Lila and Fated we’re nowhere near the cliff edge – both books were meant to end there (but leaving the door open just a smidgen in case). In Severed however I changed it up a little. At the end we’re clinging to that cliff with just our fingernails.
People hate cliffhangers as a general rule, but I felt that I could afford to do so because I had enough goodwill in my fans to trust me on it, and also because book 3 is coming hot on book 2’s heels, meaning readers won’t be dangling an entire year to find out what happens.
6. Plotting over books
If you haven’t yet got my point, plot each book to be standalone. But with sequels the major issue is continuity. How on earth did JK do it? I take my hat off to her, because it’s a headache to plot just one book, let alone a whole series.
I wrote all three Fated books before the first one was published because I wanted to make sure the plot was hole-free the whole way through. It took a lot of time and effort to do that (when characters can see the future and there are prophecies involved it sure took some planning).
So my advice? Make sure you do your planning across all the books before you publish the first if you possibly can.
But above all that, before you even begin the daunting task of plotting out a whole saga, ask yourself whether your book really needs a sequel.
(The original of this blog post appeared on the website www.writingteennovels.com which is a brilliant resource for anyone looking to write YA).
Writing and all the bits in between
I have a blog at www.canwelivehere.com which documents my life living in Bali, writing, drinking coconuts, dancing ecstatically and meeting crazy people.
I have a website at www.sarahalderson.com where ...more
I have a website at www.sarahalderson.com where ...more
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