Getting ready for Nationals

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In four days, I’ll be leaving for New York City.

Not only is this my first trip to NYC, it’ll be my first RWA National conference. Needless to say, I’m nervous — and seeing all the chatter online isn’t easing my jitters.

In an attempt to stay sane while I get ready to go, I’ve been spending too much time online, looking for hints and tricks on how to make the most of the conference experience.

Lucky for me, there’s plenty of advice out there to be had.

First off, packing — of which I’ve done none yet. (Procrastinating at its finest.) Yes, I’ve purchased my Golden Heart® awards ceremony dress, and clothes to wear during the conference. But the thought of packing it all in one suitcase — or worse, one small carry-on bag — terrifies me.

One of the Starcatchers (the name the 2011 Golden Heart class picked), Erin Kelly, shared these great packing tips. While I doubt I’ll be able to stuff a full-length, full-skirted gown into a carry-on with enough clothes, shoes and underwear for the rest of the week, I plan to use as many of her hints as I can.

When I get to NYC (hopefully with my luggage), what do I do? Who do I see? How can I survive pitching to an agent and editor? Bestselling author Elizabeth Boyle posted a collection of tried and true conference advice.

At Once Written, Twice Shy, another Starcatcher, Kimberly Kincaid, posted The Sassy Girl’s Guide to Success at RWA Nationals. Helpful even though I don’t consider myself shy. Quiet, yes (although my coworkers might disagree) … shy, no.

Of course, the Rubies have been posting helpful info, too. They’re always full of good advice. Check out Tamara Hogan’s Introverts Guide to RWA Nationals and the indispensable guide for those not lucky enough to be going to conference: My Ruby Sisters Went to New York and All I Got Was aT-Shirt.

Story ADD

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I have a confession to make: I have story ADD.

Raise your hand if, like me, you have trouble concentrating on one story at a time. … If characters start talking to you, demanding you tell their story now — even when you’re in the middle of another one. … If you have a bunch of half- or two-thirds-finished manuscripts moldering under your bed.

They all get finished eventually, but I’ve always had a little trouble focusing on one story from start to finish.

Since March’s call notifying me that I’d finaled in the RWA Golden Heart®, the affliction has intensified. Reasoning that if “Beauty and the Ballplayer” was going to be the successful MS, I ought to have a companion, I decided to start a new story related to it. So I started working on Dave & Melinda’s story while actively writing Beth & Cody’s and trying to edit Kenny & Kristi’s.

That left poor Drew & Lainy waiting waiting in the wings. I’d planned to finish writing their story  after I started querying with Kenny & Kristi.

Nearly three months later and I still haven’t even written the query/synopsis on Kenny & Kristi. I’ve written only a handful of pages on Beth & Cody’s story and am just five chapters into Dave & Melinda’s.

Every time I get any momentum, I end up coming to a dead stop to do something else entirely. “Beauty and the Ballplayer” needs revising … or I need to shop for stuff to wear at Nationals … or I need to do other conference prep (business cards, pitches, schedule planning). The list goes on and on.

I’m not complaining, mind you. As far as problems go, this is one a lot people would love to have — me included. I’m thrilled to be a GH finalist — and going to Nationals in NYC is a fantastic opportunity that I hadn’t counted on getting.

I’m just saying all this planning/panic does nothing to help my story-related ADD.

Please tell me I’m not the only one with this problem.

How do you cope with conference prep while still managing to get any writing done?

Do you believe in astrology?

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I normally don’t pay much attention to my horoscope.

Oh sure, I know my sign — Libra — and the signs of family. I even check my horoscope every Thursday, when I’m putting together the Sunday puzzle page for the newspaper. I’ll also read it if I stumble across it in a magazine.

But believe it? Not a chance. It’s entertainment, like a movie or a particularly hilarious Twitter stream.

Some horoscopes stick with me, though. The one I read in the June issue of Sedona Monthly is one of those:

This should be your current mantra: authentic. No matter what is coming at you, stay true to yourself. Remain centered and remember who you are. It will be hard, since people are coming at you from all sides with unexpected opportunities. As long as you remain faithful to your heart, you will be able to enjoy the attention and support you are getting from people you never imagined would notice poor little old you.”

Given all the attention I’ve been getting since finaling in the Golden Heart®, this prediction really hit home for me.

As I gear up for my first RWA Nationals, opportunities are starting to come my way — and I expect more at the conference. (The power of positive thinking at work, right?)

According to this horoscope,  I just need to stay true to myself. Easy-peasy, right? Nobody knows me better than me!

 

I’m famous?

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Okay, not really famous … but my name is listed in the latest issue of RWA’s Romance Writers Report.

That’s right. I got the issue that lists all the Golden Heart® and Rita® finalists.

Blurry, but it's there — I promise!

There I am, right at the top of the Contemporary Series list. (Note to self: Continue entering MSs with titles at the beginning of the alphabet.)

Seriously, it’s a thrill to see my name printed alongside of all the other finalists’. Even though, as a reporter, I see my byline in print often (no longer every day, because I do more page design than writing), it’s different when my name is attached to my fiction. Don’t ask me why — I just know it is.

The countdown is on: In less than 20 days, I’ll be on a plane on my way to NYC. I can’t wait to get there and meet everyone! Win or lose, we’re all going to have a great time in the Big Apple.

It’s a disease

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My computer was giving me fits Saturday night, so I spent the time I should have been writing today cleaning out my car.

What can I say? Procrastination is a disease. 😉

I’m fighting a bigger disease, though. After decluttering my car, I took a bunch of the books I’d accumulated to the used bookstore. I decided that, as much as I might want to, I’m never going to have time to read certain books — so they might as well not continue to clutter up my living space.

While I waited for the staff to evaluate my offering, I browsed — where else — in the romance section. Big mistake. I found not one, but two books to add to my already massive TBR pile. (And, with time and an unlimited budget,  I probably could have found several more.)

So even though I got rid of about five books, I ended up adding two more to my stacks.

I also spent a couple hours last night browsing on my Nook, adding books to my e-wish list for the next time I have money to go on a buying spree.

I already have enough reading material to last me for years — especially at the rate I’m reading these days, and I’m browsing for more?

It’s a disease, I tell you. A terrible, wonderful disease. I can’t wait to go to RWA Nationals, because I hear there are free books up for grabs.

What’s a few more books added to my TBR pile, right? I’ll have time to read them … someday.

Meeting in the morning

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It’s that time again: Time for our NARWA meeting. I’ll be up early Saturday to head to Prescott to catch up with my fellow writers and recharge my creativity.

Our guest speaker is Jennifer Ashley. She spoke to our group a while back, and was very inspiring. Can’t wait to hear what she has to say this time!

Return of Mr. Happy?

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While I was checking my blog stats Tuesday morning, I saw a tidbit that made me laugh out loud:

Someone found my blog by using the search term “Mr. Happy story ideas.”

Since that’s the pet name one of my heroes uses for a certain part of his anatomy, I can’t help wondering if the searcher found more than he/she bargained for!

P.S. In case you missed it, here’s a link to the original post where Mr. Happy made his first appearance on the blog.

Paid to have a dirty mind?

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I just read — and enjoyed — Christina Dodd’s blog post on her funniest mistakes. My personal favorite from her list:

In INTO THE SHADOW, my heroine stumbles onto the hero sitting in the Japanese garden. He jumps to his feet and says, “Is this your private place? Should I leave?” and she says, “No, it’s okay, my private place is big enough for the both of us.”

I can’t think of any doozies like that in my own writing. Perhaps that’s why I haven’t sold yet — I haven’t caught those big, hilarious mistakes. Maybe there are agents out there, reading something I wrote and laughing their @s$es off.

That’s a little sad, actually, because I get paid — not the big bucks, but a few bucks — to catch errors like that before they make it to print. Yep. You heard correctly: As a copy editor, I get paid to have a dirty mind.

It started in college. When we were putting together our “welcome back” issue of the Crescent, I remember much debate on correct wording for a headline on the new “No Parking” signs on campus.

It was 16 or more years ago, so I don’t recall exactly what we said, but discussion amongst us editors went something like this:

“You can’t say ‘erected.’ That’s dirty.”

“Well, ‘Mounted’ is out, too.”

Eventually, we settled on “posted.” But not before cracking many jokes about erecting and mounting various items. I believe that was the same issue for which our photographer snapped a picture of someone on the groundskeeping crew holding a hose in what appeared to be a compromising position.

Newsrooms actually provide great fodder for the dirty-minded. I’ll never forget a headline that ran in my old paper’s sports section: “Bigger balls don’t slow pros.” (The story had something to do with tennis players. I don’t know if the sports editor thought he was being clever or he just didn’t notice. Back then, I was just a reporter, and not privy to the ins and outs of headline writing.)

A few other funny headlines, intentional or not:

  • I remember thinking ‘Oh my God, it’s huge’ (on a story commemorating the anniversary of a giant tornado)
  • Lady Jacks off to good start (a college newspaper on their women’s basketball team, I believe. That one made Jay Leno’s show, if I remember right.)

If you’re on Facebook, check out “Overheard in the Newsroom.” There are some doozies sure to make you laugh.

Now it’s time to cough it up: Have you ever stumbled on a hilarious headline? Or a funny mistake in your own manuscript?

My mother would be proud

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While celebrating my Golden Heart® finalist status in one of many phone calls over the weekend, my friend Pat said something that made me tear up a little. She said my mother would be proud.

That’s true. My mom, an English teacher before I came along, always encouraged me to write. When she died in 2003, I hadn’t yet accomplished anything in the fiction world (although I do think she watched me receive a first-place award from the Indiana Society of Professional Journalists for a series of stories on students peeved about a high school’s piercing policy).

Since her death, I’ve lost 100 pounds (and, unfortunately, regained most of it). I’ve found myself a significant other. I’ve finished more than one manuscript and — finally — gained the courage to start putting my fiction out there.

I experienced a moment of sadness that Mom didn’t live to see this moment. But I like to think she knows. Somehow, she knows … just like she knows I sit down and watch one of her favorite movies, “A Christmas Story,” at least once every year. (She grew up in Hammond, Ind., on the street Ralphie supposedly lived on.)