Vacations Over!

My nine day reprieve went way too fast. Don’t they always? I managed to get a lot done though, so that is good. I’m 130 pgs into my new novel and having a thrilling time with it (I still don’t know who the killer is). I had some much needed repairs done on my house (a great big THANK YOU to my niece’s boyfriend for giving up his Saturday). I enjoyed some long-over-do time with friends and family. And I’m enjoying the new rocking/recliner my niece got me for my birthday. It’s so comfy I could sleep in it. And no doubt I probably will. For those of you who don’t know, I’m at my best while rocking with a laptop and I do have a tendency to nod off occasionally during a late night of writing. Speaking of which, I still haven’t heard anything on the six full manuscripts that are with publishers. I’m staying hopeful though. As with most writers, I suspect, the waiting game is the hardest part. After that first query you wait weeks or months, you’re thrilled when you receive a full manuscript request, then it’s another several weeks or months before you hear the final verdict. But the minute you get that phone call or email telling you they love your story and want to publish it, all that nail biting seems worth it. You can always get fake nails.

I’ve also gotten some more reading done while on vacation. Ashes to Ashes by Tami Hoag is fantastic! I haven’t spent all those late nights writing. Ms Hoag is a wonderful story teller. She’s a lot more graphic in the gruesome details than I like to be, but it is a thrilling read.
Now I better get out of here and get some work done on my own novel.

Stephen King and Phyllis A. Whitney

Well, two days into my vacation and I’m already rejuvenated. I haven’t done as much writing as I had hoped to but I have gotten several things done on my ‘To Do’ list. And I’ve read one book and started another. The book I read was Stephen King’s book On Writing. This is the second time I’ve read it. I love his straight forward approach and honesty about the ups and downs of the craft. I’ve also drawn inspiration from it. I may be in the boat alone here but I think he’s the Alfred Hitchcock of Literary world. And to be honest if I’m going to read a book about writing I want it to be from someone who has actually written and published a book—if you know what I mean. It’s like taking a writing course with a teacher who has never been published. He doesn’t recommend them, but he did suggest two books on writing: Elements of Style by William Struck and Warriner’s English, Grammar and Composition. Now years ago, I took a writing course through Writers Digest and can honestly say it helped me a great deal. But my teacher was a multi-published author, and to my delight, a good friend of the Great Dame of Mystery, Phyllis A. Whitney, who passed on just last year at the age of 104. Whitney is another author who has inspired me. Her career spanned over five decades and in 1988, the MWA gave her a Grand Master Award for lifetime achievement. She was and remains one of the world's most beloved mystery and romantic suspense writers. To read more about Ms. Whitney and her career you can go to her official website. In re-reading King’s book On Writing, I was reminded that I have been neglecting one of the greatest tools for a writer and that is reading. Every good writer will tell you the two main tools of the craft are to Read A Lot and Write Every Day even if the muse isn’t there. So yesterday I purchased two new paperbacks to read while on vacation, The Killing Hour by Lisa Gardner and Ashes to Ashes by Tami Hoag. They’re pretty thick and I’m a slow reader (and I still have my own novel to write) so I’ll probably still be reading past my vacation but at least they’ll get me back on track. Now that you know some of the authors who have inspired me I want to hear from you. That goes for readers too. Who's your favorite author(s) and why?