Getting Ready for the RT Convention!

The RT Booklovers Convention (http://www.rtconvention.com/) is my first official conference as an author.  I have been to a couple of other cons as a reader and had a blast.  Meaning, I got tons of free swag and fabulous conversation with some of my favorite authors.

Book cons for me are a complete escape from everyday life.  And as an added bonus I get to go as my alter-ego.  Roxy Mews is my pen name, but I find she is much more me, than I am most of the time.

I get to go out, talk about books, and chat with other authors and readers about what they have on their e-readers that they can't turn off. That's right, I am addicted to ebooks. My kindle goes everywhere with me.  It is overflowing with more books than I will probably ever read in a lifetime, and I still wait like a kid at Christmas for those Tuesday releases.

Although my book isn't out yet, I am taking some business cards and information about my book with me.  My cover was recently finalized and I will be handing out some postcards to give readers a heads up.

Even though I am going in a slightly different capacity this round, I will have a lot of the same prep.  Over the weekend I will be packing, making lists, realizing I forgot my underwear and starting over when I realize I don't have any room left in my suitcase.

For anyone going to RT, I have a few words of advice.

1. Don't worry about a big purse.  There are tons of totebags that you will be given through the days.  Carry one of those.  Authors will be wandering everywhere, and you never know what there will be to haul around.  Also, the totes are fab to get autographs on as a free souvenir.

2.  Bring permanent markers.  Seeing your favorite author's autograph in skinny, skipping pen is such a disappointment.  Keep markers in your totebag and be ready for those completely inappropriate fangirl moments.

3.  BYOB. This might not make me popular with the hotel staff, but if you are driving rather than flying in you can bring in your own alcohol, and save your money.  Those cash bar tabs add up pretty fast. Bringing in your own can allow a little extra cash for books.  BUT don't skip out on the bar totally!  A lot of shenanigans go down where the alcohol flows.  Make sure you don't miss out.

4.  Keep a small clutch or wristlet in your totebag.  This should have a bit of cash, your room key, and any necessities like medicine, glasses, or breathmints.  When you are ready to head for an official party, this makes it easy to drop your larger bag off at the room and hurry to the next event.

5.  Be ready to wait in line.  RT is a HUGE con. And it actually sold out this year.  Get in line for the big parties early, or make sure one of your group camps out to save you chairs.  The big parties have big swag, and you want to get to a table close to the action.

6. Be ready to throw that carefully planned agenda out the window.  Because if the author you go fangirl crazy for offers to take you to lunch, or if the publisher of your dreams wants to chat, GO WITH THEM! All the panels are wonderful, but the connections you make will be where you make the most impact.

Look for me at RT.  I will be one of the authors with a silk flower on her badge.  I can't wait to chat with all of you.

Roxy

Write drunk, Edit sober...

Write drunk, edit sober. 

Maybe that's why I like writing more than edits. ;p

I am trying to get into my first round of edits with the same gusto I had while writing the manuscript in the first place.  Only problem is I seem to be fighting an uphill battle over here.

Sickness has assaulted my home and work environment. Despite the endless amounts of sanitizing products I used, my immune system lost the battle.

So here I sit, going between hacking my lungs up and trying to see through the antihistamine cloud.

My grumpy Tinkerbell mug and I are not amused.  I am off to reheat my coffee again and try to be coherent. And sexy.  Cause nothing gets you in the mood for sexy writing like discarded tissues and coughdrop wrappers. :)

Roxy Mews...Samhain Author? No way!

Reading and writing seem to go hand in hand.  I devoured books as a teen. I lived at the library and idolized the people that brought to life the stories I got lost in. I fell in love with vampires and read the Vampire Diaries by L.J. Smith over and over and over.  And over.  I think my mother worried that I might try and bite her.

Then life happened.  I immersed myself in my school projects and getting ahead, and I was motivated to do everything I was supposed to do in life.  I did great.  I graduated with honors from high school and college.  I got a job.  I was…miserable.  I was doing everything I was supposed to and nothing I wanted. 

So I decided to lose myself again and picked up a book.  I remembered the worlds I loved, and found a fabulous author named Mary Hughes who showed me that vampires could be not only intriguing and angsty, but sexy and funny!  I had never read anything like this before.  Then I found Sophie Oak, and Shelly Laurenston, and Dana Marie Bell, and Victoria Dahl, and Lauren Dane, and Eliza Gayle, and well I could go on, but those women stand out in my mind.  They wrote about strong women who had a sense of humor that I could see myself in.  The humorous erotic romance genre…well it was home.  I found where I belonged. 

I was stalking websites and blogs and dying to read more.  In that search I kept returning again and again to a certain publisher.  I loved the books they published, I loved the authors they signed, and I loved their warnings at the bottom of all their blurbs.  Samhain Publishing became the golden ring I longed to reach for.  When I found the guts and shared some of my own writing I was thrilled with the positive feedback. Samhain Publishing was the first place I wanted to send it to.  I had never sent in anything for submission before, and I knew that I would be rejected a few dozen times before I ever saw a yes.  All the other authors told me so.  There was a ton of “don’t give up” and “it can take years” all over the place.  I was ready for that rejection. 

I wasn’t ready for the yes.  

I read those emails over and over.  They couldn’t be right.  But no matter how many times I read them, the words stayed the same.  And now I have started this crazy road to publication with the publisher I have been looking at with stars in my eyes for the past two years.  Some of my idols write here.  I still pinch myself when I wake up in the morning, and until release day, I will probably be waiting for the big bad to go wrong, but as of right now, I am finally saying it.

I am a Samhain Author.

 

Did you feel the chills?  I sure did. :D

Make sure to check out their store here . Read the blurbs and find a new author.  And make sure to look for Roxy Mews on the virtual shelves late this year.

Hurry up and wait...

I have finally ventured into the world of authors.  I have sent in a manuscript for review.

No I am not telling where I sent it in.  I refuse to jinx myself by talking about the specifics.  But let me say that there is NO deodorant that can hold up while you are typing that email.  I recommend maxi pads in your armpits if you are thinking of typing that email.  Even then a well-ventilated room and a fan maiden might prove useful.

Before that day, I made myself a spreadsheet of all the different publishers I thought might be a good fit for me.  (yes I am the queen geek)  I wrote down all the specifics for each publisher.  Where to send that initial query, who is the initial contact, what their formatting specifications are, the royalty schedule, and length requirements were all laid out in a very formulaic pattern.  I knew where I was going to go first, who I needed to send to, and had started writing my blurb, synopsis, and query letters. Do you know how many different lengths publishers want for a synopsis? The industry really needs to come together on this.  

Well, in the middle of all that I get an email.

"I know an editor..."

All my plans go out the window and I scramble to finish a fast final read through.  I don't know the protocol for emailing the editor directly!  It's not in my spreadsheet!!  *flails*

But I am given the opportunity to get my foot in the door.  I have to jump on it. So I send it in.  Now what?

You guessed it.  I wait.

Week 1: My story is great!  The editor is going to love it.  I can't wait to hear back.

Week 2: Well, maybe it's not as good as it could be.  Hopefully, the editor will  realize this is my first book.  Should I have put that I am willing to do revisions?

Week 3: My story is the worst thing I have ever written.  I hope the editor won't spit on the computer screen while reading.  I would hate to get sued for the repair bill. Maybe it's best if I don't hear back.


Then I was checking my emails like I do every morning and there it sits.  THE EMAIL.  The editor loved it!  I think my sanity would have been questioned if the way I danced around my living room would have been video taped. Pretty sure the moves I did, held no rhythm consistent to any song in existence.  Good thing I was at home and not checking my email on my phone in public.  I would have been dancing just as badly regardless of where I was.

There is nothing better than a stranger telling you, that your story is good.  Nothing better.  It falls in line with sex, chocolate, and bacon.  That good.

Now I am in the system.  I got positive news.  What's next? More waiting.  I have a few more weeks to tear my hair out and believe myself the most inept author in the world, but for right now, I am going to take the praise.  I am going to frame the email, and I am going to have a beer and toast a day in my life I will never forget.  Cheers.

Tonight, I celebrate.

Tomorrow, I wait.

New Year, New Goals

Well, I kind of disappeared for a few months, didn't I?  The holidays do that to me.  I lose track of myself and work so hard to get things done for everyone else.

I got a fabulous present this year in my stocking.  I have my registration for the RT Convention paid for!  I have been to a couple conventions as a reader, but this time I registered as an aspiring author.  I have a few cards and a few goodies to give to people I have met and who have supported me in my efforts to move from "aspiring" to "published".

I also don't want to take advantage of this gift.  So one of my goals for this year is to submit two different manuscripts before attending the conference.  Maybe I can drop the "aspiring" part of my registration. ;p

I didn't post any New Year's Resolutions yet, because I have been doing some real soul-searching about what is feasible, what I want, and what I am willing to give up to get there.

So here goes.  I am putting down my goals for the year.  You are all going to hold me accountable right?  Keep me in line?  Crack the whip?  I need a little help with that.

1. Finish writing and editing my PNR trilogy.
   
 I have stalled on book three.  It is going to be significantly longer than the first two.  I have my ending.   I just need to finish the journey my heroine takes to get there.

2. Start a writing spreadsheet.  Keep accountable and write at least 5k new words per week.
     
I have a heavy work load two days out of the week, but the other five days there is no reason I can't get a thousand words down.  I need to get into this habit.

3. Read one book on the writing craft every month. 

A present from a great friend made me realize I have a quite a few books that I have been meaning to read. I have a lot of valuable information at my fingertips.  Time to pick them up.

4. Come out of the Erotica closet with my immediate family.
     
My family knows I am writing.  They don't know the heat level.  With my stories getting ready to go public, I need to come clean about this aspect. I am not ashamed of what I write.  And if I am honest with myself, I have always been a bit of a black sheep.  I am proud of how sexually free and fun my characters are.  They have no regrets about themselves, so I should have no regrets about writing them.

5. Find a way to pay it forward.
     
The main reason I began this journey was due to my friends and loved ones.  I have some incredibly supportive people who believed in me when I wasn't so sure I believed in myself.  I want to find a way to show them appreciation and create that same amazing feeling in someone new.



I am not a twenty-something who knew what she wanted to be right away.  I am just a woman who is discovering who she is, and who she was meant to become.  I am trying to enjoy the journey, and hope to make steps towards "me".  I use a pen name, not because I am hiding, but because I am reinventing myself.  There is more truth in who we create ourselves to be, than in who others have tried to mold us into.  For the first time in as long as I can remember, I am working towards my goals, and not someone else's expectations.

Do you have any goals you are working towards?  Anything you want to accomplish?  Post them here, or post them where you can see them.  Let's hold each other accountable.  Or at least hold hands when the reality gets a bit scary. :)

Editing...Get out your red pens!

I am going through my first round of edits, when I can sneak a few spare moments away that is.

August is my time-suck month of the year.  I have been two three birthday parties, two weddings, two sides of family visiting, and managed to run away from it all for one night out with friends.

A very dear and patient friend has sent me back my first ever editing suggestions.  She sent encouragements along with the suggestions and I love her all the more for that.

I have strength in my voice and story ideas.  I want everyone who reads my stories to feel like they walk away having met new friends and had a hell of time going along for the ride.

I have EPIC fun when I write.  The thing that I really find magical about putting words on paper, is that I get to share my joy in the journey of a book.  Now I get to polish the stones I have put along this path.  I can't wait for my first steps into the publishing world.

NOW...I need to get off the internet...get off my butt...and get to work making my dream job a reality. :D

Roxy

Panera's Mystical Powers

My local Panera Bread is magic.  I am not talking about their yummo smoothies either.  My local Panera is where my brain keeps my stories locked away.

I may be getting superstitious.  Every time I head out to the restaurant I find a certain parking spot open. I go in and grab my cup of coffee, hijack my favorite mini booth and the words just flow.  Even if I am only there an hour, I am guaranteed at least 1500 words by the time I leave.  Give me a couple hours and it really gets going.

When I am struggling with a plot point, something about a little nutmeg and cinnamon sprinkled in a fresh cup of coffee lets it all finally come together.  I have nearly spilled coffee on myself multiple times, bouncing up and down in the pleather chair yelling "oooh oooh!" and mentally high-fiving myself for the brilliance that comes with a side of bagel and cream cheese.

Am I the only one who works better outside of my house?  Or do I just need to clear the clutter out of my brain?

Who cares why it works?  I am in the mood for a cobblestone muffin and some killer word count.