Golden Heart scores are in

It appears that “Operation Snag Mike Brad” was solidly in the middle of the pack. All but one of my scores was in the 6 range. The last one was a 5.7.

I’m happy with that. At least no one hated it. I was half afraid that I’d get a 2 or 3.

According to the letter that included my scores, I scored an overall 30.5. Anything below 33 was in the bottom half.

I don’t pretend to understand standard deviation (whatever that is!). But I’d rather look at it like this: If a 9 is the top score, and my scores were 6s, I’m not doing all that badly.

So I didn’t final. There’s always next year. With the judge’s comments I’ll be getting back from the Orange Rose contest, I should be able to improve “Blind Date Bride” before the GH judges see it.

I’ll probably revisit this topic again, once I’ve had time to process what happened. Right now, I’m tired. Think I’ll head to bed.

***

I didn’t head to bed. Instead I went home and typed up today’s handwritten pages, then played online. I found this very helpful article on another blog.

Technical difficulties

It’s always something, isn’t it? First, I didn’t get as much done as I’d hoped over my week of vacation. Now, my computer is on the fritz.

That’s right, my beloved iBook G4 laptop is dying. When I went to plug it in after work last night, the power cord wouldn’t go into the computer. Turns out, the little prong in the center of the cord broke off in my computer.

Paranoid about not draining the battery when I had no way to charge it back up, I turned on the computer for a few minutes to make a panicked tweet and Facebook posting. Then I shut it down and tried to do some longhand writing.

I managed a few pages by hand, but couldn’t get into the groove. I ended up going to bed early and got up this morning with one thought: How can I fix my computer? (I guess it’s a good thing to be obsessed with writing. After so many lazy years, I can stand to put in a little overtime.)

I tucked my laptop into my giant purse and headed to Best Buy. The guy at the Geek Squad counter confirmed that the center prong was, indeed, the problem. He also said it could cost up to $400 to repair.

Spending that much to repair an 8-year-old computer (or older) doesn’t seem smart — not when I can save up a few hundred more and get myself a brand new one.

I spent some time at Best Buy, playing with the MacBook on display there. I also checked out the iPad. There’s a voice-recognition software app that tempted me to get one … I could dictate my novel while on the road. (I get a lot of great ideas during the 45-minute drive to the Boyfriend’s house.)

Again, I figured if I’m going to spend $600 on a mid-memory-level iPad (and end up buying a keyboard/dock for it), I might as well spend a little more and get a real laptop.

I thought I’d averted disaster when my roommate’s husband managed to get the broken piece out of my computer. I thought, “All I need now is a new power cord!” Unfortunately, I tried that. It still wouldn’t charge with a not-broken power cord.

So it looks like I’ll be starting a new computer fund. A writer friend who got a new MacBook a few months ago is loaning me her G4 for a while, and I’m looking into buying a spare battery and wall battery charger so I can continue to use mine while I save up for a shiny, new MacBook.

After all, my laptop is still perfectly good. At least  it would be if I could charge it.

How do you do it?

I thought it was tough to find balance when I was on my own, but this week has given me a glimpse of what writers go through when they have husbands and families.

I was on vacation this week, and I spent it with the Boyfriend. Don’t get me wrong: It’s been great. But my writing productivity has gone way down.

When we were home together, he wanted to play. When I was here alone, I had time to write … but about the time I hit my stride, I had to stop to cook or answer the phone or do a load of laundry or run to the grocery store.

Anyway, I’m tipping my hat to you writers who juggle family responsibilities and still have time to create the stories I love to read. Maybe someday I’ll get better at doing the same.

Vacation!

My time away from the day job, fortunately, has not meant a vacation from writing.

I must say I haven’t gotten as much accomplished as I’d hoped: A couple thousand words written in editing mode and three rejections received from agents.

Still, at least I’ve been getting something done. That’s no small feat when I can’t seem to settle to any single project. Not one of my stories is demanding my full attention.

I’ve been doing some reading, too. As I’ve mentioned before, it seems that when I’m reading more, I’m writing less. I read Jennifer Crusie’s “Faking It” and now I’m zipping through Vicki Lewis Thompson’s “Chick with a Charm.” (It’s the sister story for the one I read last month, “Blonde with a Wand.”) The hero and heroine are great. Can’t wait to see their happy ending.

In fact, I’m about to take myself to breakfast, where I intend to finish the book. Then I’ll camp out at Starbucks for a few hours and hopefully get some more writing done.

I’m trying to go back in and add a more substantial conflict to the second Willow’s Grove story. My hero and heroine, Cassie and Dustin, meet at Brad and Erin’s wedding and dislike each other immediately. Then they find out they’re working together (he’s an FBI agent assigned to a kidnapping case and she’s the police reporter covering the story).  I have the witty banter down cold, but they don’t have any deep-seated reason for their squabbles — yet.

I hope to rectify that situation soon. Her roller coaster moods remind him of his bipolar mother and she doesn’t want to get involved with someone who’s only in town for a short time. It should help me expand the story to the required length. Right now it’s at about 49,000 words, which means adding at least 6,000.

Busy day ahead

Friday will be a busy day for me. It’s more than just the last day of work before I get a week off: It’s payday, and that means I’ll have the entry fee for the contest I want to enter.

While I’m at the Post Office, I plan to ship off my taxes and my application for RWA PRO status. Might as well make the trip worthwhile.

But first, I must get busy making copies of my entry. Wish me luck!

Agent hunting

Now that I’ve submitted a new batch of queries on “Operation Snag Mike Brad,” the goals I set to reach before my next NARWA meeting are complete.

That’s right: I finished the rough draft on Meg & Matt, wrote a synopsis for Kari & Damien and sent not two but FIVE queries on Brad & Erin. (You might remember the goal I set forth was two.)

Talk about being an overachiever — we don’t meet until mid-May! But when I’m on a roll, I want to keep up the momentum.

What’s next on my agenda? I’m preparing an entry for a contest with an April 10 deadline. Like the Golden Heart, it judges the first 50 or so pages plus synopsis (55 total) — and you get feedback from the judges. I’m going to enter my next GH entry to get tips that I can use to improve it so I have a better chance of finaling next year.

Aside from that, I’m a little torn. Do I go back to editing and expanding Cassie & Dustin’s story (next in line after Brad & Erin in my “Women of Willow’s Grove” series)? Work on finishing a first draft of Drew & Lainy’s story? Try rewrites on Meg & Matt? Do something to Kari & Damien?

I need to figure it out soon, because I have a week of vacation coming up. I want to use my time off work wisely.

Seeking balance

It’s time to ask my writer friends for some advice: I need to find a way to strike a balance between writing and life.

I’ve written about this on my other blog, but not here. It seems that when I’m focusing on my writing, everything else falls by the wayside — especially diet and exercise.

I wake up and want to get right down to business. I’d rather write than cook. Forget moving — I’d rather plant my butt in a chair all day, reading, writing, researching (and, yes) playing online.

So my question to you all: How do you balance your writing with everything else you want to/have to do?

Working weekend

In an effort to get over the disappointment of not finaling in the Golden Heart, I’ve been a busy, busy writer. 😀

No giving up for me, no sir.

I spent the weekend working on a synopsis for “Blind Date Bride” and reworking the ending on my losing GH entry. (I’m getting rid of their silly argument for a meatier one. There’s probably still not enough conflict, but I think it’s getting closer.)

I also discovered I may be eligible for PRO status with RWA. I’m going to look into that.

Back at it

Nothing like a little disappointment — or a lot — to make you realize you need to work harder.

Today, I spent some time before work trying to come up with a synopsis for next year’s GH entry, which I want to enter in a contest with an April 10 deadline.

More later.

Just wondering …

How long am I allowed to wallow in disappointment before it morphs into full-blown depression? Right now, I can’t seem to concentrate on anything more taxing than a box of Chicken McNuggets chased with a carton of Ben & Jerry’s.

I’ll give myself the rest of the night to sob into some comfort food, but tomorrow, it’s back to eating right and, more importantly, writing. I have a synopsis to come up with for “Blind Date Bride.”