Friday Evening Blogging

This week has been really frustrating all around. I don't know if it's the moon
phase or what, but very little seems to be going my way.

One thing that did go right was the library book I found on writing. It's kind of
old, from 1982, but I feel like it has changed the way I write, and I haven't
even finished it. The book is – Thirty Days to More Powerful Writing by
Jonathan Price.

This quote in particular, near the beginning of the book really got to me – “A
powerful style is as flexible as you are; it should express your feelings and
your thoughts as easily as you can talk at home.”

Some part of me knew that, but I needed this advice. I feel like this idea, this...almost
permission to inject more of my personality quirk (trust me, there's plenty of
quirk), into the stories. I've probably been too concerned with being proper
and trying to do things a certain way that I trip myself up sometimes. I
struggle with making everything flow and work together when all I had to do in
the first place was let go.

Anyway, so where am I? I finished another read-through for AnnaBeth 2. This round of
editing was much, much better. The manuscript is reading like a third to last
edit, maybe a second to last. I'm handing it over to the editor at the very
beginning of April. We all have business between now and then, so that delay is
necessary.

And then, all of a sudden, it's time to write again. I always feel a bit weird when
I switch modes. I have to reacclimate myself to just writing. Reading the book
about writing was part of that process. I like to read books about writing.
They motivate and inspire me. I should read one before I start each rough
draft.

The code name for the next project is Pestilence. They story involves a fallen
angel and a cult. That's all the detail you'll get from me at the moment,
except I will say that the cover will not be black. Almost all of my covers are
black. I already have a cover in mind and the design has color! Woo, color!