Girl Power!

Really, there's not much to say. 256 points in 60 seconds?

That just warms my heart.

Writing Update

I just realized that I don't really ever talk about writing here, which is something most writers do on their blogs.

Well, I'm doing it now :)

I have two books on my radar right now, and I wrote segments in each of them today. They are:

• Cannon Curse (we should start voting on new titles. What do you think of "Perfectly Flawed"? That's the only suggestion I've had so far. Any other suggestions?)
• New Solomon

Cannon Curse is a romantic comedy that is totally close to done... which means that I abruptly have zero desire to finish it, all the characters are having identity crises, and I've suddenly decided the climax is lame and want to go back to the drawing board.

You know. The usual.

Then there's "New Solomon" (I actually like that title, so until a publisher overturns it, that one is sticking), which is an urban fantasy book that I'm kind of in love with--and by "in love" I mean: the research alone to do a decent job of it could take me years but impulsive little me wants it done in 6 months. So there's kind of an internal battle there.

But just a little one. ;-P

And that's basically where I'm at. Today was one of those days where I literally abandoned my keyboard, laid down on the floor and stared at the ceiling thinking, "Really? Is writing really what I should be doing with my time? There's gotta be a thousand better things to do on a Tuesday night..."

Yep. One of those days. *sigh*

And that's my update. Once I figure out the new climax, Cannon Curse will have a completed first draft.

I'm SO looking forward to that day... Those are the fun days to be a writer.

Grammys

I'd like to take a moment to thank the Grammy committee for actually putting on a good show last night. Compared to last year, this year's ceremony was a supernova of success. Last year, the only performances that looked remotely professional were Pink's and Beyonce's. Everyone else looked like they wandered over from a community talent show.

Not this. E-V-E-R-Y performance proved that each performing artist was worth a paid admission ticket and the energy of the night was unstoppable--even by musicians who were virtually unknown by the public before their nomination.

For those of you who missed it, I recommend looking up performances--although the biggest downer about the Grammy's is that they're on CBS, which is the ultimate killjoy station for watching programming online. For some reason they vigilantly block all posting of performances until the videos become irrelevant and no one's really looking for them anymore.

Then they let people watch them.

Note to CBS: you're weird.

But here's a few I was able to track down:

Eminem, Rihanna, Dr. Dre, and Skylar Grey (who was not only PERFECT in the medley and held her own with Eminem, but is wearing my boots!):

Sign me up as a Skylar Grey "shipper." One piece of trivia: she wrote the chorus that Rhianna sings in Eminem's "Love the Way You Lie." Here's her own acoustic version of the song that she released as a part 2, and a quick article.

And here's the man who "out-gaga-ed" Gaga. Cee Lo with some muppets and Gwenyth Paltrow. This song also wins "Most Censored."

Those are two performances, although I can recommend watching ANY you happen to find on line (before they're taken down). CNN has a 2-minute montage here.

The woman who beat out Just Bieber as "Best New Artist" is also worth noting. Here's a non-Grammy performance from Esperanza Spalding:

And, as a shout out to the two artists who decided to give actual professional performances at last year's Grammys, here's Pink, Glitter in the Air, and Beyonce's medley (odd in spots... I mean, I love Alanis too, but really? But she definitely commits to the performance and puts on a show so I gotta give her props for that).

Last of all, this girl didn't perform last night, but you can't help but wonder if she might in upcoming years. Fast forward to :45 to hear what this 9 year old has in her arsenal. Yes, she's a bit overstyled, but what 9 year old isn't?

You ask me? This girl has a future! I'd be her publicist :)

Will Readers Turn the Page?

So my brother texts me from an airplane, telling me to check out a website.

Technology is scary cool sometimes.

The site he wanted to tell me about is The Page 99 Test and I thought it might be a fun site to share for all my writer friends. Essentially, how it works is that published or unpublished writers post page 99 of their books. People then drop by, read page 99, and say whether or not they want to read page 100.

Anonymous feedback from strangers who have nothing to gain from lying?

How sweet is THAT?

This site is one of many if you're a writer looking for feedback. Some of them charge. Some of them don't. Some of them are by writers, for writers. Some seek writers to cater to readers. Others are built for genre/series fans, allowing anyone to post stories to an already captive audience. I personally can give that way of writing a little plug, since it's the only kind I've done and nothing motivates you to write like a virtual audience stalking you and drooling for your next installment.

It's very validating.

I did my stint on the discussion boards at fox.com. I don't even know if they have those pages anymore... *goes to check*

THEY DO!

Under the community section of every show, there is the ability to write fan fiction. If you have a show you like and wish you could write an episode for, this is the place for you. And trust me, there are people waiting to read an alternate storyline. Promise. I did mine at least 5 years ago, including several daily installments (maybe an embarrassing number since I ended up posting over 55K in alternate storyline). But I couldn't help myself! Writers can be inspired to do crazy, crazy things when comments start surpassing the 10,000 mark on a thread. It's like writer crack to have that much interest, and you are compelled to feed the beast.

Point being, sites like these can be great for writers looking for honest feedback, new friends, and maybe some cheerleaders (who might even nickname themselves to declare their fan-dom for you... Mine called themselves "sheep" and "baaaaa"-ed when they liked something because they got sick of finding new ways to praise. It was actually quite hilarious... and I kind of miss it... If any of you found me here--which would take a miracle, since I never shared my name--I MISS YOU!).

As you move forward on your writing path, one of these options might be just what you're looking for. Or not. Either way, just thought I would throw it out there.

Happy writing!

A Break in the Moratorium

I know self-selected news reporters have decreed a Sarah Palin moratorium during the month of February (the shortest month of the year... just sayin'). I don't know if any of those reporters are going to live up to their pledge not to say her name this month, but I'm going to mention her for the first time today.

Why?

Because I LOVE it when people follow through on random conversations. The particular conversation being highlighted today was one had last summer while playing tourist at a Twi-Hard convention of some sort. I don't remember. I just remember who I was with and that somehow we tripped into the idea of starting the comic book:

Sarah Palin: Werewolf Hunter (or as I like to say it, Sawah Pawin: Wew-woof Huntew)

My friend whipped out a pen and started storyboarding the concept while I laughed and mentally moved on to something else in about 90 seconds, as I'm prone to do.

Then today, months and months later, I get this in my inbox:

Needless to say, I laughed my head off. This friend used Amazon's "Create Space" to self-publish the book, and grabbed some play dough to make the spell-binding trailer below. (Man, I WISH I had claymation skills!)

Enjoy... and remember, the only one stopping you from achieving your dreams is you. Anything is possible. Clearly :)

Fun Vids... For Fun's Sake

It's Friday. The weekend's here and there's going to be a smoking signing tomorrow. Hope to see you there, but for those of you who can't make it, let's just chill with some videos that are oldies but goodies. If you've already seen them, feel free to watch them again for the first time. For those that you really haven't seen any of these yet, hope you enjoy :)

Happy mini-movie Friday... maybe we should make a tradition out of it...

Okay, SLIGHT change of plan...

So slight bummer: the stickers aren't going to make it here in time for Saturday's Authorpalooza.

Boo!

But on the "yay" side, the universe compensated by getting me something else ahead of schedule: Rhea's business cards. This business card is like the one Rhea gives Kay in book 2 that has Kay rolling her eyes.

So it's not as cool as the sticker, but I really pulled out all the stops I could. Local places don't make stickers the way I want them, and out-of-state places only ship so fast. I guess good things will just have to come to those who wait (which includes me... and I hate waiting).

Still can't wait to see you all on Saturday! And those of you who stop by will be the first to snag one of Rhea's business cards. They might just make you smile...

See you from 1-4 pm at the South Towne Barnes & Noble :)