Zip-a-dee-do-dah! Zip-a-dee-day!

Whew! Just typing up those lines are making me tired. I've been sick with a cold and cough combo that's totally kicking me in the you-know-where. Instead of writing my last A to Z challenge post over the weekend, I took a lot of naps instead. It's hard enough being sick with a bug, but to be sick and not take anything for it (because of the pregnancy)??? It just plain sucks.

But! It is the last post so I gotta give you more than a few zzzz's to put you down snooze town. So get ready for the randomness 'cause here we go:

Z is for Zuma

This dude totally freaks me out. Zuma was a Filipino movie I watched when I was maybe 7 or 8 years old, and I still remember him after all these years. Well, I mostly remember cowering in fear. He's supposed to be some sort of Aztec demigod who got unearthed from a buried Aztec pyramid. He's big, he's green, he's strong, and he wears a freaking two-headed snake around his shoulders! Man, he gave me nightmares for a long time.

Z is for Zombies


Speaking of nightmares, I've had two consecutive dreams about zombies a few weeks ago. Both times I woke up disoriented and drenched in sweat. Now I'm not one who easily gets scared--in fact, I love to read horror books. I don't watch a lot of zombie movies, however, because (1) I don't watch a lot of TV/movies to begin with; and (2) I don't watch something that my kids can't watch (this is why books are great!) Anyway, I was surprised about the zombie dreams. Though come to think of it, prior to the nightmares, I dreamed about vampires. Not the sparkly kind. Just your ole regular blood-sucking pain-in-the-ass monsters.


Z is for Zeugma

This is your vocabulary word of the day! Zeugma (pronounced zoog-muh)is a figure of speech in which two or more parts of a sentence are joined with a single common verb or noun. (Wikipedia)

Example:

“Whether the nymph shall break Diana’s law,
Or some frail china jar receive a flaw;
Or stain her honour, or her new brocade,
Forget her pray’rs, or miss a masquerade;
Or lose her heart, or necklace, at a ball;
Or whether Heav’n has doom’d that Shock must fall.”
--The Rape of the Lock by Alexander Pope

Well, that's it for today, folks! Thanks to all who've come and visited me, and also for the new follows! A big thank you to Arlee Bird and the organizers of the A to Z Blog Challenge. It's been a cool month of posting. I'll try to catch up on your blogs this week for sure. I may be slow but I'll get there. Also, if you followed me and I haven't followed you back, let me know. Chances are, I couldn't find the link for your blog.

<3 ya!

Are you excited the A to Z challenge is almost over? Or are you bummed out the next one is not til next year?

I've had a LOT of fun doing this blogging challenge--even if it meant posting and commenting every day. I wrote most of my posts the month before, except for a few letters (like U and Y, for instance) because I couldn't immediately think of an appropriate topic. But I figured when I get there, I'll get there. And here I am. :)

The best part was visiting other blogs and seeing what they've come up with--and boy, you guys are so darn creative! It was also very NICE meeting new blogger friends. *waves*

Question of the day:

I am most definitely going on a hiatus. See, this is me right now.

Kindly ignore my pink sausage-looking fingers. Thank the heavens you don't have to see my feet or my ankles. They are swollen beyond recognition.

And I'm going to get a LOOOOOT bigger still. Baby boy is due this summer (yikes! Where did the time go? It's coming up sooo fast!),so the A to Z blog challenge was sort of my last big hurrah before I disappear for a while--not forever, mind you. And if there's anything worth mentioning or blogging about during my hiatus, I'm pretty sure I'll be on it STAT! So you'll still get to hear from me sporadically. :D

Have a great weekend, everyone! I'll see you on Monday for the last letter post. Zeeee yah!

From Wikimedia Commons

Movie poster

Image from Amazon.com

Unlike movies, we don't have CGI-created visuals to accompany us when we're reading a book. We have to rely on our good, old noggins to supply us with images. Especially when we're reading Sci-fi/Fantasy, or anything that falls under the Speculative Fiction genre.

The thing with worldbuilding is that it's all too easy to fall into the old info-dumping technique. You're the Creator of your world, and of course you want to acquaint the reader with its grandeur so at the very first instance, you bombard us with several long paragraphs detailing every hill, castle, and hybrid creatures existing in your creation.

Um, not good. You'll run the risk of putting your readers in snooze town.


Or you can go the other way: You skimp on the worldbuilding descriptions to allow for a fast pace read.

Erm, not good either. If we find ourselves scratching our heads, then it means you've lost us. How the heck are we supposed to know what a kipa is, and why does your character keep saying "sika!"? (Those are actual words found in my MG Fantasy WIP. :D )

There has to be balance. The aspects of your world should be interwoven within the scenes and around your characters' actions. A sentence here or there explaining certain things will not bore your reader (as opposed to huge blocks of descriptive text).

Here's an excerpt from my MG Fantasy WIP:

Probably not what you think. Heh.

The past few days have been hectic-crazy for me, and today was no exception. So, sorry for this late V post, but after all the running around, and after wrestling with my spotty Wi-Fi (technology...GAH!), plus sick kids in the house, I finally feel...Victorious.

Also, this video totally rocks--especially if you're a Buffy fan (it'll make you feel victorious, too. Ha!). Take that, Edward Cullen!

Enjoy!

(I must add that I first saw this vid on M.J. Fifield's blog and I just had to absolutely share it with you all! Thanks, M.J.!)

U stumped me. I thought by now I would have something--anything--to share with a word that starts with the letter U. But no, nada. I don't have a fancy schmancy U word to feature...until I saw this picture and realized, Hey! I know what to do. I'll share a short story that takes place Underwater.

*nods happily*

So here ya go, and I hope you'll enjoy this.

Image from http://membres.multimania.fr/mandragores/melusine.html

Do you have a theme? Does your manuscript have one? I found this definition of THEME on http://www.learner.org/interactives/literature/read/theme1.html

And this...


In most dystopian books, themes range from political/government oppression (wide scale) to a character's internal struggle for freedom/[insert goal here]. Take The Hunger Games, for instance. Early on, we are introduced to the mockingjay--which would turn out to be a symbol for the rebellion/revolution brewing among the districts. But in book 1, we don't know this, at least, not immediately. There are references to the mockingjay throughout, but as a reader we're more focused on the outcome of the game and the fate of the protagonist. The theme is subtle, though it has the ability to seep into our subconscious so that by the time we finish the whole trilogy, everything's come into full circle. 

Question of the day:

Lo! It's the Query Cat!

The Saturday Slash is a free query critique offered by my fabulous and talented writer friend, Mindy McGinnis a.k.a. Bigblackcat97 (for those following her on Twitter) a.k.a. BBC (as she is more fondly called on Agent Query Connect). I think I may have mentioned this here before.

But! I'm mentioning it again because I volunteered to have my query go under her hatchet.

Yep. Today. No kidding. My query is in the hands of the hatchet-wielding Query Cat. If you'd like to take a peek, or give me your 2 cents, or simply see if I've made a fool of myself, go here.

And while you're there, you should follow Mindy because she's fun and hilarious, and an all-around awesome person. Plus, her debut NOT A DROP TO DRINK is slated to come out Fall 2013 by Katherine Tegen/Harper Collins. Squeeness! Besides, her blog Writer, Writer, Pants on Fire is full of great info, agent interviews, author interviews, and random thoughts that could only come from a YA librarian with the best Angelina Jolie pout I've ever seen. :D

Now if you're on Goodreads, chances are, you probably read book reviews.

So my question for the day is:

Image source

As I have mentioned many moons ago (heh. I was trying to see if I can squeeze "many moons" in one of my blog posts. Seems like today is the day!), I've finally entered the world of queries. If you've never queried before, and if you've seen other writers bemoaning the state of their query, you've probably thought to yourself, Come on, it can't be that hard.

Reality check: It IS hard.

So I'll share with you some tips to keep yourself sane.

1. Have a handy snack nearby.

Okay, I'm pregnant so I ALWAYS have a snack nearby. But you'll need it, too. You will spend HOURS staring at the screen, vacillating between including the word "that" or the adverb "mysteriously", and hey, should I include my protagonist's pet dog who was there fighting off the alien-monster-werewolf-hybrid attacking the city?

2. Start by laying down the answers to these questions:

WHO is your protagonist?
WHAT does he/she want?
WHAT/WHO is getting in their way of obtaining their goal?

The answers may not reveal you your hook line necessarily, but they will give you an idea of where the focus of your query should be. And it should ALWAYS be on your protagonist. Not the pet dog, no matter how adorable he is.

3. The less character names and places, the better.

If you start giving us the cast of characters  right away, we WILL get confused.

Annah and Brock have been best friends for a long time, until Annah's sister Michelle, starts dating Brock. Tensions rise between the siblings. Even Sparky, Annah's trusty pet dog, senses the discord. But when an alien-monster-werewolf-hybrid mysteriously appears one night, Annah may have to push aside her resentment, and aid her sister and her best friend in fending off the unwanted visitor. As the alien-monster-werewolf-hybrid lashes havoc on their city, despite Sparky's valiant efforts to protect the sisters, Annah and Brock are separated from Michelle...

I could go on and on with this fake query, but really, it's so convoluted I'm getting a migraine. Time for a snack...

4. NO rhetorical questions. EVER.

What would you do if the fate of the world rests on your shoulders?

Agent: Erm...yikes. *cringes* Employs form rejection button.

5. Make sure to PROOFREAD for typos and grammatical errors. Then have someone else take a look at it.

And finally, when you are ready to send:

~Don't send out a mass email to the agents you are querying.

~Don't address the letter as such:
      To Whom It May Concern:
       Dear Agent,

~In other words, know who you are querying and address them by their names.

~Research. Most of the time, I see literary agents tweet about passing on a query because they don't rep the genre. Only query those who represent the genre of your novel. Please. If you do, you're saving the agent's time, and helping out all of the other writers who are following submission guidelines properly.

~FOLLOW submission guidelines. This should be a no-brainer. Most agencies have their own website. You can also check AgentQuery.com or QueryTracker.net for more info on a particular agent.

~Be polite. Always. If you get rejected, don't respond by emailing the agent back with rage and
mindless threats. It's not personal. Just take a deep breath, and move forward.

~Be professional. This is a business, after all.

~And be very, very patient. Getting responses can take a loooong time (sometimes, you don't ever get a response.)
Good luck!

I used to have this philosophy--that no matter how tedious or boring the read, I MUST finish the book. Who made up the rule in my life, I don't know, but I've long since abandoned it. I simply don't have the time to spend on a book that doesn't interest me. I'm sure you all do the same thing. Time is a luxury, after all, no matter how cliched that may sound. With two young kids (soon to be three) and a household to run, plus my own writing pursuits, I have to be Picky.

Photo by .reid.

I used to think that being a writer ruined reading for me. I mean, as writers we're already so hyper-aware of the rules we've encountered while learning the craft of writing.


And so on and so forth.

But sometimes there are books that just make me swoon so much that the internal editor never bothers to show up its face. I can read a book in one sitting (especially when I'm sick and I have a valid excuse not to do the dishes piling up in the sink). Or, if one sitting is not possible--after all, someone's got to feed the kiddos around here--then in two, or three. The thing is, if a book stays on my mind and I'm itching to get back to it as soon as I can, then I know it's a winner! For me, anyway. Reading is ALWAYS subjective.

What about you? Are you selective, too?

I think it's safe to assume that most writers write and rewrite their opening chapters a lot more times than they'd ever spent on the middle and end part of the novel. Because really, if you can't get your readers interested in the first chapter, you can't get them to reach the awesome climax and ending you have in store for them. Lots of pressure, right?

So, how do YOU start your novel?

Here's a list of no-no's I've heard from agents and other writers:

1. Don't start with your character waking up. Or being woken up by the sound of the alarm clock going off. Or being woken up from a nightmare--which really goes to #2.

2. Don't start with a dream. Or a nightmare. If your aim is to hook the reader with a heart-stopping scene, and then wake up the character just as he was about to be eaten by a *Sasquatch or whatever...let me just tell you the truth right now: You're going to piss off your reader.

3. Don'st start with a boring scene where nothing happens to your character. If it's a day-to-day scene: A is getting ready for school, A eats breakfast, A drives to school, A goes to her first class, etc. Why would we read about your character's routine? We've already got normal, boring routines going on in our own lives, and we don't need to pay $$ to read about it.

4. Don't start with the weather. Seriously. You're not one of those people who sidles up to an acquaintance during a dinner party and goes, "Hey, what do you think of the snow outside?", are you?

5. Don't start with a high-action-packed scene where the character's world is already being blown apart, and said character is facing likely odds of being mincemeat if he doesn't run away from Sasquatch... I mean, c'mon, give your readers a chance to KNOW your characters and CARE about them, before putting them all in jeopardy. If we don't care, we'd be perfectly content to let Sasquatch get his dinner on page one.

*Sasquatch probably doesn't eat people. Or maybe he does. I don't know. *shrugs*

What other no-no's can you think of? Also, I want to say that some authors have broken above rules and have managed to succeed. They're masters, ok? They can do it. You and I, however, we gotta work our butts off to make a novel worthy to be read by all. And if it means following a few rules, so be it.

Ever heard of the Bulwer-Lytton literary parody contest? It's a yearly contest looking for fake and real worst opening paragraphs to novels. Here are a few "winners" for deliberately terrible sentences (taken from www.innocentenglish.com):

When she sashayed across the room, her breasts swayed like two house trailers passing on a windy bridge.

--Stan Higley
 Fairport, NY

The goose waddled slowly, heavily, across the road, exactly the way my mother-in-law would if she were a goose.

--Mary Montiel
Wichita, KS

Kathy, who had bound her breasts and cropped her hair, and lied about her gender to join a monastery of Jesuits in northern Kentucky, until she was discovered one night in the shower, winced as the dentist pulled her tooth.

--Terry Johnson
Tularosa, NM

UPDATE: The winner of my copy of T.S. Welti's THE FOUNDERS' CODE is...

Email me your mailing address at writercherie[AT]gmail[DOT]com. Thanks to all who participated in the giveaway!

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If you believe in something...

My protagonist in my WIP Hidden is a piano player.

I don't play the piano. I started lessons when I was 8, but having short fingers doesn't really make for a good piano player. Besides, my true love was Art, so my mom switched me to art lessons instead. But my family are, curiously enough, musically inclined. With me as an exception. Both my sisters can play the piano. My youngest brother plays the violin (and is actually really good at it!). My dad knows how to play the saxophone. My other brothers play the guitar.  (Yes, I come from a big family. The more, the merrier, they say...)

So, having said that, I do love music, despite my musical ineptitude. I can listen to classical music all day. And because of this, it was only fitting that my protagonist should be good at something I'm not. :) In my WIP, these are the pieces mentioned. I hope you'll enjoy listening to them.

First off, Chopin's Minute Waltz, which is full of energy. My protagonist holds a dear memory of her playing this piece and her father listening to her rather catastrophic rendition.

Next up is Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata, which is a perfect accompaniment to the first half of my manuscript. It perfectly sets the mood and atmosphere of my protagonist's struggle with her mental health, and the conflicts arising from her current situation (Don't wanna give away too much.) This is also the piece she played for the last time before her father's death.


The latter half of my story is best described through Debussy's Clair de Lune (which is also mentioned in the ms). It has an ethereal feel to it, at least to me it does, and it's the perfect backdrop for the events happening to my protagonist. She doesn't play this piece, but hears it on a CD player.

And lastly, my protagonist plays the piano at the end, something that would resemble the music of her soul. I don't state what it is in the ms, but I really connected with this piece: Debussy's Reverie. The title alone is so fitting for the ending. Plus this video rocks!

So you know how we're always told to NEVER JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER?

In this post, we'll let that adage fly out the window. Because it's all about the cover, baby! Ok, not really, but for the purpose of this post, it is.

What draws you to a book on the library shelf, or the one lying on top of the Barnes and Noble's table? I'm a visual person--I'm attracted to pretty things (Look, it's so shiny!). I often read books based on recommendations from trusty friends, but there's also the not-so-rare instance when I would be seen picking up a book merely because of its cover. A caveat: I don't wholly recommend this process, not if you're thinking of buying on impulse. However, if you're at the library, go ahead and pick up the pretty book and cross your fingers the pages within will be able to deliver to your satisfaction. I've had the unfortunate experience of loving book covers, only to be horribly let down by the contents inside. There's also the curious incident of book covers having nothing to do with the actual story--but today, we'll just whet our artistic appetites for all things lovely!

(By the way, I'm a YA writer so naturally, I'm going to feature YA books.)

Bonus points for the lovely artwork INSIDE this book. <3

I have my own copy at home. At the moment, I have all 3 books in the series. The gold teardrop is really cool in real life.

Love the contrast, and the cover immediately tells you that it's a fun, quirky book about magic. And yes, it's set in a school of magic. :)

Haunting. And beautiful.

Haven't read this (not out yet), but I'm already in love with the gorgeous colors.

I'm sure there are lots more out there with gorgeous covers. And speaking of covers, the prettiest one yet I've ever laid eyes on is Anita Howard's cover for her book Splintered! Absolutely gorgeous! You can see her cover reveal here. And while you're there, make sure you follow the link to win an Alice in Wonderland swag from Anita!

Since K can also stand for Karma, earn good karma points from the universe by voting for Anita Howard and her debut Splintered (slated to come out January 2013!) on TLC's Virtual Book Tour contest. Anita's a wonderfully caring, totally selfless, and all-around lovely friend. Plus she has madz writing skillz (trust me, I know.) So click here and VOTE! It'll only take you a couple of seconds.

Thank you so much! Have a great day, everyone!!

Because we all need a few laughs every now and then...

*****

How many science fiction writers does it take to change a light bulb? Two, but it's actually the same person doing it. He went back in time and met himself in the doorway and then the first one sat on the other one's shoulder so that they were able to reach it. Then a major time paradox occurred and the entire room, light bulb, changer and all was blown out of existence. (link)

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This one has been circulating around Facebook. I don't know the original source, unfortunately.

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Also this:

*****

Lastly, I'm so gonna do this when I go into labor:

Did you hear the one about the pregnant woman who went into labor and began to yell, "Couldn't! Wouldn't! Shouldn't! Didn't! Can't!"? She was having contractions.

:D Have a good day, everyone!



Links:
http://sites.google.com/site/writersjokes/jokesaboutwriters
http://aplaceforwriters.wordpress.com/2012/03/29/apw-smile-chuckle-laugh/

No, this is not your usual brilliantly inspiring, pick-me-upper post. It is simply this:

Oh. My. Holy. Goodness.

Don't tell me you have not seen this. Don't tell me...

I've already seen the movie (and may go see it again!), but watching the trailer still gives me GOOSEBUMPS!

If you haven't gone to see it yet, and you've read the books, and you're a big fan, and...well, I only have this advice to give: Bring KLEENEX TISSUES!

That is all.

Since Ms. Welti, author of The Founders' Code was kind enough to send me a signed copy of her book, I'm giving away my copy (the one I purchased from Amazon) to one lucky winner. Sorry it's not signed, but you can't have my signed copy, which is addressed to my daughter, by the way. She's turning into a voracious reader, and one day hopes to be an author/illustrator herself. Yeah, it's in the genes, man! You can imagine her shock and surprise when she got the signed copy of Ms. Welti's book in the mail--with her name on it! Thanks, T.S.! You have no idea how happy you made her. ;)

This is the copy I'm giving away. Please ignore my alien-looking-sausage-thumb. Pregnancy swelling, ya know.

So! What to do, what to do... (rubs hands together)

I usually hate having to go through hoops and loops for book giveaways. Books are meant to be shared and read. I don't want to have to eat fire, or make you guys eat fire, just to enjoy a book. Which means, the rules are easy:

1. Leave a comment.
2. U.S. and Canada only.
3. Feel free to spread the word, but it's not a requirement. (My twitter handle is @writercherie, just in case you decide to tweet this.)
4. That's it.
5. Contest ends one week from now (that'll be on April 14th, Saturday)
6. Goodluck!