Facing the Writing Changes

 

I think this may be the longest I have gone without blogging, and I think I need to get back into it. Every year, I say the same thing. Who knows, maybe this will be the year.

 I thought about blogging again because I wanted to do a food blog. Since living on my own, I find myself cooking more because, well, I am making what I want to eat not what everyone else likes to eat. My daughter calls them spinster dinners, but technically AM I spinster if I have been married a bunch.

 This year I face a lot of challenges as a writer and any oldie (Writing for Kindle for 7+ years) will know what I mean about changes. I just celebrated my 12^th anniversary with Kindle and the changes are strange. Many I never noticed because I never used a lot of the things other authors did.

It took me 10 years to realize I could email amazon and add my book to different categories other than the two I picked during publishing.  I always thought that was limiting, now, you can tell them what categories to add but you will only really show in three. So I’ll just stick with my two and let Amazon determine from the keywords, like I always did.

There’s a lot of changes in my genre of apocalypse as far as readers go. It starts out subtle, you don’t notice the trend until your rank is no longer what it used to be. So many genres are buried and done, like zombie. No one wants to read about a plague. Forget nuclear war. Until a fresh batch of readers gets scared of it, that will tank. EMP is so overused, as now is the CME events. So what is left? Natural disasters, aliens. I try at least once a year to invent a new type of apocalypse.

I find myself, as others probably do, stalled to the will of the masses. When I actually think my diehard readers don’t care. Yeah, some refuse to read zombie or aliens. But trying to fit the mold takes more time then just writing what comes to me. Be it horror, apocalypse, comedy, BEGINNNINGS!

So for the record, I am making my writing New Year’s Resolutions. I’ll check back in a year and see how I did.

• Finish at least two books I started and never finished.
• Finish a dead trilogy (One I stopped writing because I lost interest)
• Write what I feel, what comes from me. If the genre is a gone genre, vow to bring it back with good story telling..
• Get back to Vella. I like to do a vella book once and a while, they really keep me on my writing tows.
• Make my yearly ‘different’ book that I write, really different.

Seven Things all Writers can Learn from Taylor Swift

You’re probably thinking I have lost it. That I am digging deep for blog material if I can suggest that writers or anyone successful and starting out has a lot to learn from Taylor Swift. She’s twenty-three years old … really, what can be learned.

A lot.

I remember when Taylor first burst on the scene, a sweet teen age girl with loads of talent. So cute, we all just wanted to pinch her cheeks. Now a lot of America, over the age of twenty-one just want to slap those cheeks. The same girl who cried the blues because Tina Fey made fun of her, got on stage at the Grammy’s mocked an ex boyfriend and proceeded to sing the worst song ever written. You may argue that point, but the lyrics say it all, “Never, ever, ever getting back together … like ever.”

Really?

To be a legend in entertainment isn’t just selling. Popularity is fleeting, and while she goes up and down, eventually, Swift will have to leave the limelight to redesign herself. Her actions right now will determine if the buying public will welcome her back with open arms.

In her young life and she is young, she is doing things that can teach us all a lesson. I have compiled a small list. I am applying this to writers, but anyone can heed the Swift advice.

Burning Bridges – Miss Swift is doing a lot of that, especially lately. Her string of relationships that make their way into song lyrics, not to mention her outspoken nature about anyone that criticizes her. She teaches us that you never know. That person you step on or snub today can be tomorrow’s bestselling author. Don’t burn bridges.

You Can’t Let It Define You – What makes you successful today, what makes you tick as a writer, can’t be what defines you forever. You enjoy writing dark subjects, or comedy, eventually, it will get old. You need to grow. Miss Swift broke onto the scene crying about a broken heart and she still is doing it. Same songs different guy. This connects to …

Break the Mold – I know, this is coming from someone who has a 20+ series, but it isn’t all I write. I have penned over a 150 books. Most will never see the light of a Kindle because they suck … but I break the mold. Too many writers write the same thing, the same series, the same characters … only. They Taylor Swift themselves. Branch out, write new things, new subjects. People may not really buy them or read them, but at least you can say you are more than a series, a zombie and vampire writer.

Standards – Hold yourself to standards. This is short and sweet. If you become successful and to the point that people will buy your stuff no matter what, hold yourself to the standards of a good solid story. No ‘Never ever getting back together’ crap. Give every book the love it deserves and the passion your readers deserve. If it ends up sucking at least you really tried.

Take Criticism  - Don’t whine! For heaven’s sake, Taylor Swift is all over the news when someone makes a derogatory comment. I’m not talking about the occasional blip of complaint about a bad review. There are authors who slam reviewers for giving an opinion.  More than a blip, they take it to forums and so forth. Immediately these reviewers are trolls, implants and know nothing. When in actuality, most of them are honest, negative opinions. Deal with it.

Look Back and Be Proud – My daughter said it all when she said, “Swift is gonna be forty and look back at how she acted and be embarrassed’.  That goes with thrashing reviewers, snubbing people. I know I am guilty of not checking my Facebook messages or putting an email in the ‘to be replied’ file and not getting to it in a while. I’m trying, we should all try. So we can look back at how we acted in the beginning in be proud, not embarrassed.

Give back – I totally trashed Swift this entire blog, but I am going to praise her in this final Swift Lesson. For as immature as she acts, as young as she is, Taylor Swift is by far the most generous celebrity. Not only with her money, but her time as well. She volunteers all the time. She gives back. We can all take a lesson from that. If things are going well for us, help someone who is less fortunate. If we are having success in writing, and another writer asks for help, do you best to guide them.

And that’s it. I thank Taylor Swift for all that she has taught us.

Where's Sleepers 3? Blame ... CM Punk.

Against the advice of my son, I am going to explain what is going on with Sleepers 3. The question I get asked all the time. My son, though, tells me that while my friends, family and closest readers understand my insanity, others may not.

But to the devoted Sleepers readers, I give you my explanation of its delay.

Warning, it’s twisted. I also promise to mark ‘spoilers’ when needed.

Many of you may know this, some may not, but I cast my books. I find actors, sports figures, wrestlers, musicians, and I craft my characters by what I think they portray or are like. Many times, my characters are nothing like those they are modeled after.

When I first embarked on Sleepers, the character of Alex Sans blasted on the pages and immediately took over, as if I had no say so at all in the writing. The character of Alex Sans was inspired by pro wrestler, CM Punk. Man, every Monday, every chance, I listened to CM talk, walk, act. Soon, within weeks, my kids were yelling at me because I was calling CM “Alex”. That’s ok, it helps my dementia.

Then came Sleepers 2. I flew through that one. Again, Alex ruled. CM Punk was WWE champion and man, I was able to really utilize the inspiration.

Hence Sleepers 3. Something happened. CM Punk turned into well … a punk. A bad guy and he wasn’t even a good bad guy, he was a tool. A cardboard bad guy that irritated me to watch. Honestly, someone needs to send CM Punk to wrestling persona school.

All the sudden, with the switch of CM Punk, I couldn't breed Alex the way I wanted. Middle of Sleepers 3, I had to stop. I tried, I really tried, I even wrote around him. It has been suggested, to watch ‘old’ videos of Punk. But the problem is, the good guy to bad guy stint (For me) was stealth and I didn't see it coming until he flipped such a bad switch, I was like, ‘oh God, no!” He cut his hair, just ….UH! He’s not my Alex!

I have used wrestling bad guys before as good guy characters in my books, but CM Punk’s bad guy is so badly done, it makes my stomach twist.

Now ...I wanna kill off Alex. But it’s not because of Alex, it’s because I don’t like CM Punk’s persona anymore. I can’t make him gay, I did that to Henry in Beginnings, because of the actor that inspired him. SLEEPERS 2 SPOILER ALERT: In Sleepers 2, it was a literal flip of coin to see who died, seriously I flipped coin, Alex or Beck. Beck lost. He died. Now I wish it were Alex. Because the inspiration behind Alex is gone.

Maybe … I’ll make him into a bad guy in Sleepers 3. But how, I love Alex. And what if I manage to successfully make him bad and CM Punk returns to being a good guy, then I’d have the task of redeeming Alex and that’s not easy. Then again, how many times did I redeem Frank?

I know this, Sleepers 3: Rise of Keller is nearly complete, but is on pause. I promise to have it out no later than May 1st. April 1^st if I’m lucky. I’ll post a peek in a couple weeks. Until then, this is where it’s at. Suggestions?