Tag: A. Catherine Noon

  • Writer Wednesday – Catch a Tiger by the Tale

    Catch a Tiger by the Tale Blog Tour
    Day Three – Website Design
    TT | 07 | 2K13 | 03
    Happy Wednesday!  Since today is my Writer Wednesday post day, I thought I’d share some thoughts on designing a website to whet your appetite for our big reveal later this week.  That’s right, sports fans, we’re redesigning the Noon and Wilder and A. Catherine Noon websites!  We’ll have more content, new images, and lots of fun stuff to dig through.

    But what does that mean for Writer Wednesday?

    Here are some of the questions I tried to answer as I worked on the redesign:

    • What do I want to showcase?
    • What do I want my website to be?  Is it a dashboard of all things “me”, or is it specific to a story or a universe?
    • What do I have to say?  I had to go and look up posts that I had written and bucket together similar topics and stories.  I admit, I had to use Excel to track topics and things, but the philosophy behind it doesn’t require fancy software – just look for common themes and voila – you have your topic list.
    I finally broke down and got a designer.  My current sites are ones I built myself and I am proud of them because they are built from the ground up by me, using knowledge I learned in classes.  On the other hand, they don’t really do our stories or image justice, so I finally gave in to some advice I’d gotten on Romance Divas and got a good designer to help collaborate with us as to what we wanted.  I’m so excited about the results.  Stay tuned; we’ll release the new design later this month.
    Do you have a website?  How did you decide what to put on it?  Do you have a blog?  Same question; how do you decide what to write about and showcase on it?

  • Twas the Day After Vacation, and All Through the House…

    Lots has been written on the benefits of vacation and how to take one, where to go, what to do, etc. etc. ad nauseum infinitum.

    So how come nobody talks about coming back from a vacation and how to get back into the swing of things?  It’s the beginning of June and almost the Summer Solstice and I’d rather hide under my bed and nap.

    So, in honor of napping, let’s discuss summer reading!

    TIGER TIGER is available now for pre-order from Samhain Publishing and will be out officially on July 23rd.  The most exciting part of this book, for me, is them trying to find the killer.  They know it’s a tiger, and they know it’s not one of Neal’s men, but they have trouble finding the actual perpetrator.  It was fun trying to figure out how to hide some of the clues and reveal others, and decide when to do it.  You’ll have to tell us if it “worked” for the story or not.

    In the meantime, I’m going to go hide under a pillow with my kitten.  Enjoy!

    —
    “It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.”
    – E.E. Cummings

    My links: Blog | Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon | LinkedIn | Pandora
    Knoontime Knitting: Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Ravelry
    Noon and Wilder links: Blog | Website | Facebook
    The Writer Zen Garden: The Writers Retreat Blog | Forum | Facebook | Twitter
    Team Blogs: Nightlight | Nightlight FB Page | Beyond the Veil | BtV FB Page | LGBT Fantasy Fans and Writers | LGBTFFW FB Page
    Publishers: Samhain Publishing | Torquere Press

    Check out BURNING BRIGHT, available from Samhain Publishing.
    Check out EMERALD FIRE, available from Torquere Books.
    Check out “Taking a Chance“, available from Torquere Books.
    Check out COOK LIKE A WRITER , available from Barnes and Noble.
    Watch for TIGER TIGER, coming July 23, 2013, from Samhain Publishing.

  • Writer Wednesday – The Importance of Hope

    I am considering changing my career and have gone back to the basics, which for me, is What Color Is Your Parachute by Richard Nelson Bolles (which, if you haven’t read it or it’s been awhile, go pick up the new version, it’s awesome).  In the very first chapter, he writes about Hope and how to find it.

    I think he’s right-on.  You can read his book for his four keys to finding hope because they’re well worth reading – regardless of where you are on your career path.  But for my purposes here, I wanted to highlight his first point:  make sure you have at least two alternatives in every situation.

    We’ve talked about this kind of mindset on Writer’s Retreat before.  Darla’s Keeping the Faith and my own Power to the People are two recent examples.  Writing is, by its nature, a solitary pursuit and it’s critical to keeping the fingers moving on the keyboard that we keep the right mindset.  I don’t know if “right” is exactly the word I want, more likely it’s “effective” as in, “does what I’m doing work to keep me on the page?”  If it does, great, if not, try something else.  And that, Dear Reader, is where having alternatives comes in handy.

    For example, let’s say we’re writing a story about Jake and Luke.  Jake is a biker and Luke is a day trader.  What happens if we make Jake a suburban cyclist instead?  Or what if Luke is a child counselor?  What if Luke is Lydia?  What if they’re brother and sister, instead of a romantic partnership?

    It makes sense from a battle standpoint, as well.  There’s an old saying, “No battle plan survives contact with the enemy.”  How does a strategist prevail, then?  By having a backup plan, contingency plan, whatever you want to call it.  Figure it’s your Zombie Apocalypse Survival Plan.  It doesn’t matter what you call it, it matters that you have it.

    After all, having a plan to survive the apocalypse means you have to hope that you will survive the apocalypse, eh?

    See why hope is so important?

  • Using Prompts To Expand Your Repetoire

    During the month of April, join me at Coffee Time Romance for a free workshop, “Using Prompts to Expand Your Repertoire” and experiment with getting onto the page. Whether you’re a seasoned author or a brand new writer, you’re bound to find something that will spark your creativity.

    I have found over the years that it’s fairly easy to find critics. Writing groups full of people who will tear apart what you’ve written are a dime a dozen – and worth about that much. Anyone can tear something apart and it’s always easier to edit than it is to create from scratch. Bullies in sheep’s clothing abound at groups like that and it never ceases to amaze me how new victims seem to fall into their net without much of a struggle.

    Harder to find, by far, are the groups whose mission is to catapult people onto the page. Most writing problems are solved by practice. It’s like the old saying goes: “How do you get to Carnegie Hall? Practice!” Prompts are one way to do that. We can experiment with story ideas, scene concepts, new ways of describing things, all in short spaces without pressure. Writing prompts are generally short and not meant to be used for anything “real” – though it’s been my experience that one can be surprised by a diamond in the rough if one is open to trying new things.

    If you’ve been wanting to get back onto the page, or don’t have any clue what a prompt is but are intrigued, I hope you’ll join me over at Coffee Time Romance this month. It’s free and all you have to lose is your writing block.

    Write on!

  • Writer Wednesday – Using Prompts to Expand Your Repertoire

    In celebration of Spring, I am teaching a free workshop on “Using Prompts to Expand Your Repertoire” at Coffee Time Romance this month.  All during the month of April we will play with new and tried-and-true tools for getting, and staying, on the page.  I hope you’ll join me!

  • Writer Wednesday – Pluggin’ Along

    Yes, for those more astute among you, today is not Wednesday.  That was yesterday.

    This should maybe give you a clue as to my week, eh?

    So.  Lessee.  Today’s topic is Writer Wednesday, wherein we share our ideas and thoughts about writing.  I wanted to post today to make the point that sometimes, when we drop a ball, just picking it up and throwing it anyway has merit.  There’s a lot to be said for pluggin’ along.

    If you’re not familiar with the phrase, here’s a definition at the Free Dictionary.  Simply put, it means doing satisfactorily; but I also take it to mean plugging away like a slow but steady steamship, chugging up a river.  Just point the nose and let the engine run.

    This has served me well in several large marathon-like projects, such as writing a novel or weight loss. Anything where we are prone to fall off the wagon and throw in the towel.  Rather than give up, just get up and keep going – even if you’re a day late.  Sometimes, winning the race isn’t about who gets there first.  It’s about getting up one more time than you fell down.

  • Up in the Air

    I wanted to share with you some recent photographs I took while flying across the country to visit Rachel.  Many of the pictures don’t seem like pictures of land, more like textures or maybe even baked cookies on a sheet.  What do you see?

    I am thinking of sending this one in to Southwest, actually.  I love the way it came out.  You can see the horizon-line starting the sunrise.  The sun is over the plane on the right, as though it’s over my shoulder.

    I love this.  It looks like waves or something.

    Somewhere between Colorado/Utah.  Looks like the moon.

    Fuzzy horizon (actually think this goes with the first shot, just without the airplane wing).

    I’ve always wondered, do the squares down there form by roads, or just natural contours of the land?

    Clouds or landforms?

    Clouds?  Snow?  Water?  All of the above?

    This looks unlike land, to me; maybe a map?  Frosted cookies?

    More sugar-frosted brownies.  You can see those lines I mentioned above much more clearly in this image.  Map lines?  Aliens?  Roads?  Elephants?

    I have always loved planes.  This is the back-end of the jets on the wing.

    More mountains.  Haze in the air as the sun cuts across it.

    Much less snow here.  Utah, methinks.  The plane wing is more shadowed, I think we changed direction and are headed a little more northwest.

    Forest with the line of snow.

    There’s just almost a rainbow in the right side of the picture.  Weird how the camera interacts with the double-pane glass of the airplane window.

    Almost looks like clouds, but I think that’s actually snow.  Interesting, since the snow indicates elevation but the whole ground looks like it’s mountains of the same height.

    This looks like meringue, no?

    My knitting project with my notes.  (You know I had to get knitting in here SOMEwhere, right?)

    This is me playing around with the “effects” on my phone.  This one is the vignette setting.

    Looks like cloud froth, but is actually snow.

    This looks like ocean waves, but is actually mountains, valleys, and some cloud formation.

    This is the “negative” effect on my phone.  (Who knew negativity could look so cool, eh?)

    More meringue.  Anyone getting hungry for pie?

    What do you see?

    —
    “It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.”
    – E.E. Cummings

    My links: Blog | Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon | LinkedIn | Pandora
    Knoontime Knitting: Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Ravelry
    Noon and Wilder links: Blog | Website | Facebook
    The Writer Zen Garden: The Writers Retreat Blog | Forum | Facebook | Twitter
    Team Blogs: Nightlight | Nightlight FB Page | Beyond the Veil | BtV FB Page | LGBT Fantasy Fans and Writers | LGBTFFW FB Page
    Publishers: Samhain Publishing | Torquere Press

    Check out BURNING BRIGHT, available from Samhain Publishing.
    Check out EMERALD FIRE, available from Torquere Books.
    Check out “Taking a Chance“, part of the Charity Sips 2012 to benefit NOH8, available from Torquere Books.
    Watch for COOK LIKE A WRITER, coming February 2013 from the Guerrilla Chicks.
    Watch for TIGER TIGER, coming July, 2013, from Samhain Publishing.

  • Ways of Seeing

    In college, one of our assigned books was Ways of Seeing by John Berger, based on a series of 30-minute films in the early 1970’s.  While I recommend the book, this isn’t a review of it.  Rather, the title is evokative of a state of mind.  It’s on my shelf in my line-of-site from where I do a lot of my writing, so it’s something that’s in the background of my consciousness and the words have become a phrase in the substrata of my mind.

    The way we see is unique.  Each of us could look at the same scene and come away with different impressions and imagery of what we saw.  This is valuable and necessary.  We don’t have to believe it for it to be true; we just have to see.

    Do you have a camera, even just the simple one in your phone?  (Granted, some of the smart phones out there have cameras that are anything but simple.)  Have you experimented with just shooting a picture series of what you look at every day?  Try this:

    Tomorrow, as you go about your daily round, take pictures.  If you drive, pause and snap what you see out your windshield before you start driving.  If you walk or take transit, snap pictures of stuff you see every time you go on your route.  The more mundane, the better.  Like a detective, we are after data and facts, not art.

    Do you dislike pictures of yourself?  Experiment by taking one picture of yourself every day this week.  Do not judge; just take the picture and record the date.  “This is what I looked like on Tuesday.”  Play with different expressions and poses.  If you find yourself with one particular expression a lot, make that expression (for example, the one you have on your face when the phone rings) and take a picture of yourself.  What do you look like with that expression?

    If you don’t have a camera, there are several good, inexpensive models you can find here, here, and here.  See if you have a friend who would loan you theirs.  If you have an affiliation with a school, they sometimes have them available for loan.

    The point here is to become acquainted with how we see the world.  A fun twist on this exercise is to do it at the same time as your kids and then compare notes.  See what you might learn about each other.  Be prepared – leave your expectations at the door.  When you open your eyes and look, you’ll never know what you might see.

    Have fun!

  • Join Me Over At Chez Delilah’s Today!

    Join me over at Delilah Devlin’s blog today for some ruminations on the magic of craft.

    Happy Holidays!

  • Monday with Aunt Noony – and a Fireside Chat with Kimberley Troutte!

    My friend, Kimberley Troutte, is up for several awards and I wanted to chat with her about the awards process and how it fits in with the rest of her writing. She was kind enough to take time out of her busy schedule to chat with me. Grab a cuppa and join me as I get to talk with Kimberley Troutte!

    ACN: Kimberley, you said you received word that your manuscript, Epicenter (also called Her Guardian, His Angel), is a finalist in the RWA contests Launch A Star AND the Melody of Love. You also have a second manuscript, God Whisperer, in the finals of the Hot Prospect contest. First, congratulations! That’s awesome news!

    Can you tell me a little more about Epicenter?

    KT: I would love to. Epicenter, is the dramatic story of an American philanthropist and a Haitian doctor who are fighting to save lives when the greatest earthquake Haiti has ever known rips their world apart.

    ACN: How did they get considered for Launch a Star and Melody of Love? Is that something you had to submit, or were you nominated? How does that work?

    KT: These are writing contests in two different RWA Chapters (Romance Writers of the World). I entered online, paid my fee and kept my fingers crossed. Preliminary judges read all the entries, score them based on predetermined scoresheets, and determine which entries are good enough to move to the final rounds. I was honored and thrilled to hear that I was moving to the finals where agents and editors determine the final standings of the winners.

    And the nail biting begins…

    ACN: Is there a contest fee?

    KT: Yep. Usually around $15-35 USD.

    ACN: How about God Whisperer? What is that about?

    KT: It’s the story of a mother and her eight-year-old son who are hiding for their lives in a Danish community in the hills of California when the boy becomes famous due to an ear surgery that allows him to hear God.

    God Whisperer is near and dear to my heart. I wrote it because my little boy was born without an ear canal or eardrum in his right ear. The outside of the ear looked normal (albeit a little smaller than the left) but he had no hole! Very rare. The amazing surgeons at UCLA recreated his ear, drilling the hole, making an eardrum from his own tissue, and lifting the bones so that they could pick up sounds. It was a miracle when my boy could hear out of both ears for the first time in his life and I wanted to pour that love and miracle into a book.

    ACN: How did it get selected for Hot Prospect? Is that something you did on your own, or were you nominated? How does that work?

    KT: I entered it in the online RWA writing contest. I was so pleased that it was a finalist in the single-title category that I cried.

    ACN: What made you want to be considered for these?

    KT: I’d be lying if I said I didn’t hope to win :-), but mostly I entered these contests looking for answers. I had made huge revisions to the beginnings of both manuscripts and wanted to know if the changes worked.

    First chapters are hard for me. I tend to revise them several times before the book is ready. I always worry that I might be starting in the wrong place, or in the wrong point of view, or including too much backstory, or…

    The questions I hoped that the judges would help me answer were:

    • Would readers be hooked enough to want to invest their precious time to read on?
    • Am I clear—not too much backstory but enough information so that the reader is not confused?
    • Are the character likeable?
    • Is the plot interesting?

    I was thrilled to pieces to see that the preliminary judges liked my first chapters, OMG they really did.

    ACN: How do you find contests fit into your writing process? Is it something you do out of enjoyment, or is it part of your overall marketing strategy?

    KT: Contests give me a chance to see where I am succeeding and falling short so that I can improve my story before other readers and publishing professionals see it. I always keep in mind that judging is subjective but if two judges touch on the same weak point, it probably needs to be changed.

    ACN: What advice would you give to a writer wanting to start out competing? Where would a person start and what strategies could you recommend?

    KT: I would recommend going to the RWA [Romance Writers of America] website. There are all sorts of contests for the unpublished and published alike and you don’t have to be a member of RWA to enter. Make sure you read the rules carefully and email the contest coordinator if you have any questions. I would choose a contest that offers judges feedback so that you can learn and grow from their advice. And remember that it is a subjective process. All judges, just like readers, are not the same. I have had one judge love the chapter while the other disliked it rather intensely. That’s the way it goes sometimes. If you are willing to put yourself out there and enter with an open mind, determined to use the contest as a tool, you should be able to learn something from it.

    ACN: I wish you every success and, regardless of whether you win, you should be proud for having entered. That takes guts and I’m sure proud of you.

    KT: Thank you so much. I am in a place of happy shock. I’m so grateful that judges gave up their time to help me become a better writer. It’s such a gift.

    Write on!

    Kimberley Troutte