I'm not dead, just almost

 

Breath in. Breath out. I turn the music up, drowning out my own thoughts. The seconds tick away, scrambling any sense of organization I might have had. The speed of my fingers over the keyboard could start a fire.

 

 



 

 

I tried so hard. But I couldn't make it. I had so little to go...and the clock struck twelve.

 

 



 

 

Ok, happy April Fools. That was a poor joke, really, but I felt I must make something. You can't post today without cracking SOME sort of joke. The truth is...

 

I made it.

 

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I cannot believe I did it! I am so happy I could jump off a skyscraper and die happy!! ;)

 

So, what's next?

 

First off, I am going to officially copyright it with the Library of Congress. Then it is mine. And mine alone... hehe *evil laugh* I am so greedy. ;)

 

Then it will be going to my beta-readers and I will be getting some serious thoughts and opinions on it. That is the fun part. I love getting feedback from others, even if it's not always encouraging or nice. Because then I can make it better!!! :D

 

While I am doing that, I will begin querying. That means writing out a query letter, finding publishers I wouldn't mind letting print my book, and beginning the process of building a relationship with them. I want a long-term publisher, someone who will understand that this is just the first book of three and will be willing to print them all. I have to admit I abhor series that are published all over the board with different publishers and covers... It looks so tacky. And this is not the only book/series {I still call in one book even though it's broken up into a trilogy} I am writing. It would be cool if they would be interested in publishing my future novels too.

 

And that will hopefully end with me having my first book published! Like I said, I'm so excited. I can't believe it happened! I finished over 60 pages of tough editing in 11 or so days {or so because I didn't actually edit every day... in fact, I only edited about five of them. That resulted in three panic days on the 20th, 30th, and 31st. And one 2 in the morning stay awake... :P}

 

The bad thing about hitting one goal is having to make another.... So, who's up for round two? The second book in the trilogy is shorter than the first. I'm wondering if I could make it in one month. I don't know if I want to try.

 

Last but not least, you all get a treat!

 

Two snippets, from the last two chapters of In the Shadow. One from the last Merrie chapter, the other from the last Ionez chapter. Enjoy!!! And let me know what you think of them!!! :D

 

Word count: 117

© Pure Grace

 

Merrie trembled as she met Antistius’s eyes. The look in his face scared her. She struggled to master her voice. “I did not do it,” she whispered.

Antistius gasped, incredulous.

“She is lying, Father,” Messalina snapped. “She wants only to protect herself.”

“I do not doubt it,” Antistius agreed. He gestured to Manus. “Come forward, Nubian.”

Merrie swallowed, her whole body protesting. Heart pounding against her ribs, she closed her eyes. This could not be true. It must be a dream, a giant nightmare. She had to wake up. Could one feel pain in a dream?

Antistius’s eyes glimmered as he turned on Manus. “See if we can remind Merrie of the truth. Begin with three lashes.”

 

 

Word count: 189

© Pure Grace

 

When she could run no more Ionez stopped and found herself in the garden with the frescoes covering the walls. The vivid images, of Romans spilling blood, of the tribes of the world falling beneath their silver swords, of death and anger and gore, stirred her soul. She wondered how long it would take them to find her and kill her. She expected nothing less. Aelia would not even look at her again. She wondered how she would die. Crucified? Beheaded? Flayed? The tortures of Rome slid through her mind like an oozy picture and she shuddered. Perhaps if she were fortunate, they would just resell her.

She spun about abruptly and slammed her fist into the garden wall, feeling the plaster crumble beneath her knuckles. Sticky blood seeped from her cracked skin. She swore, softly at first, then louder and louder, until she was screaming. Worthless! This life was worthless. How long would it go on like this, another scheme to devise, another plot to fail? She had been given everything into her grasp and she had destroyed it in one heedless moment. Would she never defeat herself?



 

Doomed

So I have more or less finished nothing on my book.

eh he... yeah, and I have how many more days until the end of the month? Don't remind me. I don't want to hear it. It will mean I will be cramming a million pages of editing into the last few days. Just be warned, you will probably not be hearing from me.

To be honest, I have simply been procrastinating. I have the time. I just have a million other things I'd rather do. Like play with my new puppy. Go outside with friends. Watch the Hobbit {which we have on DVD now}... I mean, the list goes on. I'd even rather go do the dishes and mop the floor right about now. Only because I know I have to finish now. Do any of you ever get like this? No? Well, I'll be fried. In hot oil. Maybe with a few eggs and bacon.



I thought for a while it would be cool to show you what editing for me looked like. I would pull a random piece from my book, post it here, then go edit it, and show you the result. Until I realized what that would mean...

My writing is changing soooo much right now...you wouldn't even recognize the two pieces. Most of what I have done has been rip out selections and put them back together totally differently. I completed a chapter that was killing me. {Finally!} It is now a compilation of what was two chapters... So yeah, that wouldn't work.

So, now would be a good time to pray for me. Really hard. I mean, REALLY hard. Because I am about to die. Of sleepless nights. And something like drain-bamage... SAVE ME!!!!!

 



the issue of a challenge...

Call me terrible. Say I'm a loser. I can take it. Because it's true...

 

After all, how many weeks has it been since I did a proper post? Too many, to say the least. But I am here now, and I guess that is what counts.

 

Here, and issuing a challenge.

 

I am doing the impossible. At least that's what I am telling myself. Really, had I thought about this a month ago or even a few weeks ago, I would have freaked out and wept into the carpeting. But today I am strong. Today I am going to do it.

 

 

I am going to finish my book, In the Shadow.

 

This month.

 

Yes, you heard me correctly. That is my goal. Impossible, to say the least.

 

 



 

 

I am excited because I only have about one third of the book left and I have been working hacking at it pretty well the last few days. I've switched a few of these later chapters around and now I am reworking their progression and the entire middle part of the book. But the goal is to have the entire thing finished by the 31st and then to do one final editing. At that point, I will seriously be giving it to my beta-readers, get some good feedback, and start trying for a publisher!!!

I am mostly afraid of not finding anyone who likes my book. Since I began it at thirteen, a lot of the storyline and character progression are cliche and simplistic. While that is not entirely bad, it is still less of a masterpiece than I hoped to bring to the world. I know, this first book ~ in fact, no book ~ can be perfect. But I want it as perfect as I can get it... So I am aiming for as perfect...as possible.

 

I was very tempted for a while to just ditch the whole book and start on one of my other ideas. But after 6 years spent dedicated to it's cause, I decided {with advice from my Dad} to keep at it. I'm glad. I am very fond of this book. It has been by my side through the hardest part of my life. It has been through five title changes. It has changed and changed and changed some more, sometimes more a reflection of how I have grown than anything else.

 

 

 

 

But that also put me in mind of all the time I have spent on this book and how much I'd like to go on. I am determined to finish this book {really finish it, to publishable standards} before embarking on a new novel. So many times during these last six years I've been sidtracked with secondary ideas and neglected this mammoth project for weeks...sometimes, even months. And it has dragged out for far too long. It is time to be finished. That is why I decided to challenge myself and get it done THIS month.

 

I know I am crazy. I have about a hundred pages of editing left. But I am sick of just picking at it. The time is here. The time to finish.

 

 

 

 

 



 

 And now for my challenge...

 

Do any of you have unfinished projects that you have been working on forever that just *need* to be done? Come join me in my adventure and try to finish it THIS month!! You won't regret it! In fact, I have a serious feeling you will relish the completion. There is always a sweet feeling of satisfaction when you have finally finished a project.

 

I am looking forward to that feeling.