Not ANOTHER NaNoWriMo Blog...

Yes, it is. Because it's that time of year, when millions of people will sit down at their computers November 1 and commit themselves to writing a novel over the course of the next 30 days. National Novel Writing Month - or NaNoWriMo - is an exercise in lunacy, pain, exultation, and true accomplishment. 

Whether you finish or not, the 30-day, 50,000 word sprint has a more specific purpose: to help you develop the habit of sitting down at the computer every day and mindfully writing.

To meet the NaNoWriMo goals, you must write an average of 1666 words a day. That equals about 7-8 pages. To some, that seems an insurmountable number, which is why the whole goal of NaNo is for you to write without censure, turning off your inner editor, not worrying about plot or structure or voice or character, just writing. Getting words down on the page. Free as the wind.

Just so you know….1666 - That’s pretty standard output for a professional writer. With the exception of the times we’re pouting and moping, of course, we do that every day, and then some, five to seven days a week, 365 days a year. With deadlines looming, books releasing, and the necessary issue of worrying about plot and structure and voice and character, satisfying contractual obligations… etc… etc… those numbers can rise into the 4-7K range. That's a lot of pages in a day.

I love NaNo. I think it’s a great exercise. The first 60K of 14, the second Taylor Jackson book, was a NaNo winner in 2006. I use November every year as a fun challenge to myself to see how much I can write in a month. It’s always the start of the cycle - two books in quick succession. This year, I'm deep in my collaboration novel with Catherine Coulter, JEWEL OF THE LION, and as soon as it's finished, I head into Samantha Owens #3, plus I'm into a short story for my annual novella with Alex Kava and Erica Spindler. I NEED a nice, big, fat, lush November.

Just FYI – a NOVEL is usually 75,000 plus, (mine are usually 90-100K) while a NOVELLA is 20-45,000 words. Just so you don’t think you’ve written a novel at 50K.

As you sit down to your computers November 1, remind yourself of this one thing. Should you succeed, should you finish the 50K, and go on to write another 30-50K on this story, then edit and edit and revise and revise then submit to agents, get an agent, who sells the book, you will be asked to do it again.

Yes, this isn't a one off situation. 

When you work hard to fulfill your dreams, they have a tendency to become reality. And reality for a professional writer isn’t just a month of intensity. It isn’t just 1600 words a day. It is months of intensity. Millons of words. It is deadlines and jubilation and triumph and setbacks and heartbreak and bad breaks and sheer unadulterated bliss coupled with some luck – always luck. But none of that happens with seriously hard work.

So if you want to do this as a career, stick that in the back of your mind as you fly through the month of November. 

One more thing. DO NOT, under any circumstances, submit on December 1. Take a few weeks off. Flesh out the rest of the book. Think about your story. Be sure it's up to regular novel word count, finished, polished, and perfect. Then, and only then, can you submit. Remember, you only get one chance to make a first impression.

With that - best of luck to you all!

(My friend Tracy Lucas put together a listing of all the word counters, and inside her post is stashed a most glorious tool - the yearly word counter. Check it out. I us it religiously.)

And a fun PS: My dear friend, the brilliant author Allison Brennan, will be here next week in my stead. I can't wait to hear what she has to say. Her new novel, STALKED, releases October 30. Go pre-order it. You won't be sorry!

EDGE OF BLACK Gets A Top Pick from Romantic Times!

This is the wonderful news I was celebrating last week - a Top Pick from Romantic Times for EDGE OF BLACK! I'm so thrilled - here's the review, and it's mind-blowing.

Ellison delivers another outstanding crime thriller that plays on many of a reader's emotions: fear, love, hate and shock among them. It's obvious from the first page that this is a master at work. Samantha is such a great character that Ellison can be forgiven for not writing another Taylor Jackson. Fans of Michael Connelly or Patricia Cornwell should consider Ellison essential reading.

SUMMARY: Dr. Samantha Owens is adjusting to life in D.C. and away from the tragedy that killed her family. She enjoys teaching, and one morning in class a young woman has problems breathing and collapses. She rushes her to the hospital with the help of a couple of students and discovers, to her horror, that there are others there with the same symptoms. The only thing the victims have in common is that they were all riding the Metro that morning. But what appears to be a terrorist attack has a mastermind behind it with a more sinister motive. (MIRA, Nov., 368 pp., $14.99) 

EDGE OF BLACK will be available November 13, 2013 from your favorite bookseller. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

Best Links of the Week

Dear Writer Friends: Something to think about - are readers fickle? Will they forget you if you don't social network?  Something very interesting that generated a lot of thought on my end after my awesome readers weighed in: 98% feel writing the book is more important than social networking. 98%! More on this soon, too.... 

Are You Comfortable with Yourself?  I really love this. Happiness comes from within....

1984, the Thriller This is an incredibly interesting view of this seminal dystopian novel

Christine Rose Elle tackles The Task at Hand: Motivation in 30 Seconds or Less Something we all could use a little help on sometimes

I can't wait to read THE CASUAL VACANCY, and I love this piece on JK Rowling - she's really in control of her destiny, and I have great respect for her. J. K. Rowling - By the Book - NYTimes.com 

New Sylvia Day eBook Sells 286k Copies In First Week | Publishers Lunch It is totally awesome to watch an author break out like this. 

And on the Tao this week: The Art of The Steal - What happens when you're perfect idea is done by another?

The Art of The Steal

There is absolutely nothing worse than striking upon the most brilliant idea, working it, honing it, shaping it, then opening Publisher's Marketplace or Variety and seeing your perfect idea, one that you've never even discussed with anyone, SOLD for a ton of money. 

It happens so often that you have to wonder if all artists' brains are wired together. I've had it happen many times. It happens to my friends. It happens to all of us. It's frustrating, and annoying, and demoralizing, especially when your concept is either done really, really well and makes millions, or it's butchered into pieces. Either way, your brilliant idea is done.

Or is it?

This is why I repeat the adage - THERE ARE ONLY SEVEN ORIGINAL PLOT CONCEPTS.

Seven.

It's all in the treatment, that's what sets the seven stories apart. We're all so wildly different: different life experiences, different living arrangements, different parts of the country with different local news stories that capture our attention. While ideas may germinate and look similar on the surface, it's rare that they're actually stolen. It happens, though. Check out this story from my friend Doug Richardson, screenwriter extraordinaire. It's our nightmare.

There's another side to this problem. When you've pitched an idea, it doesn't sell, and then, a year later, someone comes out of the blue with an idea eerily similar to yours and it's snapped up.

Timing? Or stealing?

Hey, plagiarism happens, we see it in the news all the time. The stealing of concepts, though, that's a much more amorphous area. Do we own our ideas? Hollywood screenwriters register their concepts; we fiction writers don't have that mechanism in our world. We should. We really should. 

This is why new writers often refuse to submit, because they're afraid their idea will be stolen. I tell them again and again - that would never happen. Publishing is a place of integrity, they aren't in the business of stealing people's ideas and giving them to others.

And yet, and yet, and yet... a conversation overhead plants a seed, more conversations are had, and the next thing you know, a deal's been struck. It's just the way the world works.

Happily, since we are all so very different, an original concept will rarely, if ever, mimic your story. 

Think about it this way. Every house is built using the same tools - wood, nails, hammers - yet look at the variety of styles and colors and shapes. Story is similar. The basic premise might be there, but the finished product will vary wildly from page to page.

The best thing you can do when you have a brilliant idea is write it, and submit it. Keep it to yourself until you're ready to share. And if the unthinkable happens, and another writer scores a deal on a book that is so close to your own you're gnashing your teeth? Well, I'll leave that up to you, but there are always ways to get your sweet revenge. 

Best Links of the Week

If you read anything this week - this is the link you want to, no, MUST read. The 'Busy' Trap  We are all so damn busy, and what are we really accomplishing? Creative energy demands playtime.

Since I have great respect for the well done femme fatale.... An Interview with Kim Krizan on Writing, Creativity and Channeling Your Inner Femme Fatale | Script Magazine

Deanna Raybourn has a great piece about book buying -  In which we're buying books - answering a question about where we authors prefer for readers to buy our books. In summation, pretty much anywhere that isn't a used store, so we can afford to eat too.

Laura Benedict has a Spooky Start to October: A Buggy Short Story, Book Prizes, and a Sparkly New Ad 

Tess Gerritsen breaks it down for you in Writing the slam-bam thriller climax  This is superb for new writers trying to figure out how to end their books with a bang.

Writer Unboxed » Learning from Old Favourites  Sometimes you just have to reread a favorite book to get your groove on, especially when you're on deadline. There's nothing more rejuvenating than diving into a comfort read.

And last, but not least - Enhanced 'Shakesperience' to help make sense of Bard  I love what they're planning - though the cost is a bit much. I took a Shakepeare course that used all of Patrick Stewart's Shakespearean roles to deconstruct the plays, and it changed the way I looked at the Bard forever. 

Have a lovely Sunday!