Waiting for publishers to get back to you is extremely hard. Last month, I learned an important lesson. After waiting for about twelve weeks to hear from publishers, I sent a query to be updated on the status of my ms. The one publisher that requested an R&R practically sent me a rejection right away to my query. I don't know if I ticked them off or if it was really "lacking". I also have to mention that the editor that asked for the R&R wasn't the one that rejected me.
One publisher couldn't find the submission and asked me to submit it again. So I have waited three weeks now. The other explained that it was with an editor and if I hadn't heard back by the end of the month to contact them again. I can say emphatically that even though today is the last day of the month, it won't be happening! I learned my lesson. I will sit back and continue writing and waiting. I will not, will not, will not make the same mistake again. If I even mention that I am thinking about it, someone should come and kick me in the ass!
Peace Out,
MRD
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Friday, April 29, 2011
Geeked out
Short and sweet today because my eyes are glued to BBC America for the Royal Wedding. I am hoping that I can get a glimpse of the dress before I have to leave in 45 minutes for work. Totally geeky, right? I don't care. With all that is happening in the world, it is nice to see something that is a happy occasion. Maybe later I will something more profound to say...but did you catch some of those hats? No wonder we had a revolution!
Happy Wedding and Friday,
MRD
Happy Wedding and Friday,
MRD
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Guilty pleasures
The other night on Dancing with the Stars, it was guilty pleasures night. They had everyone dancing to songs that were deemed "guilty pleasures". I am assuming that all of the songs were supposed to be embarrassing to admit that you liked. I have to admit, my taste has been called eclectic at best. So of course, I loved all of the songs. Is something a guilty pleasure if you admit to it?
1. I love all of this hype about the royal wedding. Some people can't be bothered but I am going to watch. I watched Princess Diana and Prince Charles get married when I was young. My mother woke me up in the wee hours of the morning (or it seemed like the wee hours) and we watched it together. If I didn't have to go to work tomorrow, I probably would be at my mother's house watching this one with her as well. I like weddings-the dresses, the flowers, the music... Maybe because I enjoyed every aspect of my own wedding.
2. I like hard rock, alternative and 80's music. I am not a top 40 girl. On my I-Pod, you would find Rage Against the Machine, Metallica, Muse, Flyleaf, Halestorm, Blondie, Journey, Duran Duran (Oh John Taylor, I still love you!), and Paramour. I also have a penchant for Broadway musicals.
3. I was a dancer and wanted to pursue it until a college dance instructor told me that my body was geared more towards The Foxy Lady (one of the local strip clubs) than ballet. What can I say, even when I was one hundred pounds, I had big boobs! Rude yes but I used to have a rockin' bod! (Time and Doritos, what have you done to me?)
4. I love sci-fi and fantasy films. Give me The Terminator, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter and keep them coming.
5. I enjoy watching cheesy Lifetime romances. Just squirmed through the one on Kate and William, totally not up to Lifetime standards.
6. I love, love, love YA movies. I want to see The Prom, Beastly, Breaking Dawn...I look forward to these movies.
So what do you consider some of your "guilty" pleasures?
On another note, I want to send out my deepest support to Judy Mays. I don't know her but I e-mailed her my support and received a personal thank you. I joined her support group on Facebook and was very vocal about my support on the loops that I belong to. I think what these ignorant, backwoods heifers have done to this woman's private life is a crime. They should be persecuted for cyber bullying. What anyone does in their free time is no one else's business! I am a teacher. I write erotica under a pen name. I have sex with my husband, even when the sun is out sometimes! None of these things impact how I am as an educator. So I don't feel that she has to make a decision if she wants to write or teach. These old bats should crawl back into whatever cave they came from and let a woman who has been doing a good job for 25 years continue to do so!
Peace Out,
MRD
1. I love all of this hype about the royal wedding. Some people can't be bothered but I am going to watch. I watched Princess Diana and Prince Charles get married when I was young. My mother woke me up in the wee hours of the morning (or it seemed like the wee hours) and we watched it together. If I didn't have to go to work tomorrow, I probably would be at my mother's house watching this one with her as well. I like weddings-the dresses, the flowers, the music... Maybe because I enjoyed every aspect of my own wedding.
2. I like hard rock, alternative and 80's music. I am not a top 40 girl. On my I-Pod, you would find Rage Against the Machine, Metallica, Muse, Flyleaf, Halestorm, Blondie, Journey, Duran Duran (Oh John Taylor, I still love you!), and Paramour. I also have a penchant for Broadway musicals.
3. I was a dancer and wanted to pursue it until a college dance instructor told me that my body was geared more towards The Foxy Lady (one of the local strip clubs) than ballet. What can I say, even when I was one hundred pounds, I had big boobs! Rude yes but I used to have a rockin' bod! (Time and Doritos, what have you done to me?)
4. I love sci-fi and fantasy films. Give me The Terminator, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter and keep them coming.
5. I enjoy watching cheesy Lifetime romances. Just squirmed through the one on Kate and William, totally not up to Lifetime standards.
6. I love, love, love YA movies. I want to see The Prom, Beastly, Breaking Dawn...I look forward to these movies.
So what do you consider some of your "guilty" pleasures?
On another note, I want to send out my deepest support to Judy Mays. I don't know her but I e-mailed her my support and received a personal thank you. I joined her support group on Facebook and was very vocal about my support on the loops that I belong to. I think what these ignorant, backwoods heifers have done to this woman's private life is a crime. They should be persecuted for cyber bullying. What anyone does in their free time is no one else's business! I am a teacher. I write erotica under a pen name. I have sex with my husband, even when the sun is out sometimes! None of these things impact how I am as an educator. So I don't feel that she has to make a decision if she wants to write or teach. These old bats should crawl back into whatever cave they came from and let a woman who has been doing a good job for 25 years continue to do so!
Peace Out,
MRD
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Strong Heroines
"I can't be right for somebody else if I'm not right for me. I gotta be me."
One of the criteria for most publishers when they outline submission guidelines is a strong heroine. So last night while I was watching Glee, the line above caught my attention and the idea for this blog was sparked. Readers want to read about strong characters and since the majority of readers of romance/erotica are women, they especially want to read about strong women.
Strong women know who they are and are comfortable in their own skin. They accept themselves and even their own flaws. We want to see larger women who don't hide their bodies under layers of dark clothes but buy clothes that highlight and flatter the curves that they should be proud of. These characters are not afraid of colors even though "black is thinning". Sometimes, black is just plain dreary. If you're goth or going to a funeral, it's great but on a sunny, warm, spring day, it looks freakish.
Strong characters have opinions and freely state them. I envy young women who already have this quality, with me it came with age. When I was in my twenties, I would rarely even state an opinion. Never mind go against another person's opinion. Once when I was young, my mother-in-law to be told me that my opinion shouldn't matter that I should just do whatever he (her son) wanted. It was in response to going camping. When I met him, he and his friends would go camping at least twice a month during the spring and summer. For a while, trying to be a "good girlfriend", I sucked it up. My idea of "roughing it" is having to walk to the ice machine in a hotel to get my own ice. After a while it became abundantly clear that I hated camping. When I actually expressed my dislike for it, I was respected more for ti. No one should have to suck it up all of the time. I even tried it again last summer but a bear traipsing through the campsite put the final nail in the camping coffin. If our hero is an alpha, he doesn't want to have a doormat. He wants someone to stand up to him and call him an "asshole", if that's how his is acting.
What do you think about strong heroines?
MRD
One of the criteria for most publishers when they outline submission guidelines is a strong heroine. So last night while I was watching Glee, the line above caught my attention and the idea for this blog was sparked. Readers want to read about strong characters and since the majority of readers of romance/erotica are women, they especially want to read about strong women.
Strong women know who they are and are comfortable in their own skin. They accept themselves and even their own flaws. We want to see larger women who don't hide their bodies under layers of dark clothes but buy clothes that highlight and flatter the curves that they should be proud of. These characters are not afraid of colors even though "black is thinning". Sometimes, black is just plain dreary. If you're goth or going to a funeral, it's great but on a sunny, warm, spring day, it looks freakish.
Strong characters have opinions and freely state them. I envy young women who already have this quality, with me it came with age. When I was in my twenties, I would rarely even state an opinion. Never mind go against another person's opinion. Once when I was young, my mother-in-law to be told me that my opinion shouldn't matter that I should just do whatever he (her son) wanted. It was in response to going camping. When I met him, he and his friends would go camping at least twice a month during the spring and summer. For a while, trying to be a "good girlfriend", I sucked it up. My idea of "roughing it" is having to walk to the ice machine in a hotel to get my own ice. After a while it became abundantly clear that I hated camping. When I actually expressed my dislike for it, I was respected more for ti. No one should have to suck it up all of the time. I even tried it again last summer but a bear traipsing through the campsite put the final nail in the camping coffin. If our hero is an alpha, he doesn't want to have a doormat. He wants someone to stand up to him and call him an "asshole", if that's how his is acting.
What do you think about strong heroines?
MRD
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
And...
I walked in from work tired and exhausted. The long day of work after my vacation never seemed to end. My boss piled project after project on my desk, relishing it with her small sadistic smile.
"I could have given all of this to you before vacation but I decided to allow you to enjoy it. Aren't I a good boss?"
Good boss? All I could think of was, "bitch, bitch, bitch, bitch, bitch".
All I wanted was a glass of wine and a nice hot bath. The sweet, fragrant smell of spaghetti sauce and fresh baked garlic bread swirled around me like a warm blanket. I breathed deeply taking in the comforting smells of my childhood. The aroma lightening my mood, helping me push the events of the day behind me.
The glass of wine next to the stove beckoned me like a sailor heeding a siren's call. The first sip was a small taste of heaven. I stirred the bubbly liquid and brought the spoon to my lips for a taste. Yum....
Strong tan hands encircled my waist and brought me back against his hard body. The wine and sauce were not the only things waiting for me.
"You have no idea how much I missed you today," he whispered in my ear.
His breath sending shivers out all over my body. My exhaustion forgotten. I started craving something other than food. He turned me in his arms and...
And that's how I wish my day had ended yesterday. I like it better. No valiant fight against ants that I seem to be losing. No car having something go wrong with the oil gage sensor. The wine and leftover lamb from Easter was good though. On the list today-mechanic, exterminator, and the very last night class that I will teach this year!!! Relish the small, I know I will.
Peace out,
MRD
"I could have given all of this to you before vacation but I decided to allow you to enjoy it. Aren't I a good boss?"
Good boss? All I could think of was, "bitch, bitch, bitch, bitch, bitch".
All I wanted was a glass of wine and a nice hot bath. The sweet, fragrant smell of spaghetti sauce and fresh baked garlic bread swirled around me like a warm blanket. I breathed deeply taking in the comforting smells of my childhood. The aroma lightening my mood, helping me push the events of the day behind me.
The glass of wine next to the stove beckoned me like a sailor heeding a siren's call. The first sip was a small taste of heaven. I stirred the bubbly liquid and brought the spoon to my lips for a taste. Yum....
Strong tan hands encircled my waist and brought me back against his hard body. The wine and sauce were not the only things waiting for me.
"You have no idea how much I missed you today," he whispered in my ear.
His breath sending shivers out all over my body. My exhaustion forgotten. I started craving something other than food. He turned me in his arms and...
And that's how I wish my day had ended yesterday. I like it better. No valiant fight against ants that I seem to be losing. No car having something go wrong with the oil gage sensor. The wine and leftover lamb from Easter was good though. On the list today-mechanic, exterminator, and the very last night class that I will teach this year!!! Relish the small, I know I will.
Peace out,
MRD
Saturday, April 23, 2011
A funny thing happened to me...
This past week, I have been on school vacation. I've enjoyed my time writing, walking, and just plain relaxing in my sweatpants! I originally had grand ambitions. I was going to get a dumpster and do a thorough spring purging. Painting was going to be done. New light fixtures were going to be bought and put up. Then, if there was time, there was going to be day trips. We did have a trip planned for the Boston Museum of Science. We were going to take the train from Providence and spend the day exploring. There was only one hiccup in the plan. I told the hubby that he couldn't take a pocket knife. I was afraid that they would have metal detectors at the museum and we wouldn't be let in. I wasn't going to travel 90 minutes by train and then get turned away at the door. Let me explain why this is a hiccup. My husband is never without a pocket knife in his pocket. It's not like he's Rambo with a huge Bowie knife sticking out of his pants but a knife nevertheless. He even had a pocket knife in his tux when we got married. When we started dating, I thought that it was a little weird but now it is just how it is. I think that it is like a child carrying around a security blanket or at least that's how I like to explain it. It's not like we live in a high crime area in the east bay section of Rhode Island! Well, we never ended up going. I am hoping that it really was because of insomnia instead of not being able to bring a knife but with the hubby, one never knows.
Now flash forward a few days and I am pulling into my driveway after getting sandwiches from a local shop for lunch. Since I am on vaca the cooking is very limited. Please don't judge, I normally am a great cook. So here I am in my driveway and I go to unbuckle the seat belt and it doesn't unbuckle. I try and try and try. No matter what I do, it won't unbuckle. I tried to slip off the shoulder strap and crawl out of the waist strap which only tightened the seat belt. So I sat there for about ten minutes wondering what I was going to do. Then I sucked it up and called the hubby in the house to come and cut me out of my own seat belt. You may laugh your ass off here! I totally expect it. So out he comes twirling the pocket knife that I told him could not come on our day trip. You can imagine the witty repartee that went on between us about the importance of carrying a knife. Finally, as if the gods had heard my begging for an alternative solution, the seat belt magically disengaged itself. I was relieved because how much was it going to cost me to replace a seat belt?
The whole situation begs to be put into a story. Imagine if it happened and the heroine has to call a sexy sheriff to come and cut her out of her car (Rational people forget about AAA). Or if it were her husband and she had to be his sex slave to thank him for saving her thus introducing her Dom/Sub relationship that he has always fantasized about. Makes you say hmm... (I think that the hubby totally missed the boat here!)
Have a great holiday everyone,
MRD
Now flash forward a few days and I am pulling into my driveway after getting sandwiches from a local shop for lunch. Since I am on vaca the cooking is very limited. Please don't judge, I normally am a great cook. So here I am in my driveway and I go to unbuckle the seat belt and it doesn't unbuckle. I try and try and try. No matter what I do, it won't unbuckle. I tried to slip off the shoulder strap and crawl out of the waist strap which only tightened the seat belt. So I sat there for about ten minutes wondering what I was going to do. Then I sucked it up and called the hubby in the house to come and cut me out of my own seat belt. You may laugh your ass off here! I totally expect it. So out he comes twirling the pocket knife that I told him could not come on our day trip. You can imagine the witty repartee that went on between us about the importance of carrying a knife. Finally, as if the gods had heard my begging for an alternative solution, the seat belt magically disengaged itself. I was relieved because how much was it going to cost me to replace a seat belt?
The whole situation begs to be put into a story. Imagine if it happened and the heroine has to call a sexy sheriff to come and cut her out of her car (Rational people forget about AAA). Or if it were her husband and she had to be his sex slave to thank him for saving her thus introducing her Dom/Sub relationship that he has always fantasized about. Makes you say hmm... (I think that the hubby totally missed the boat here!)
Have a great holiday everyone,
MRD
Friday, April 22, 2011
Anything worth having
Is getting what you want worth taking the risk to achieve your goal? I think that writers take risks all the time. Submitting your work to publishers involves taking huge risks. You are putting something out there for people to critique. Sometimes, you get a rejection right away. "We're sorry but your story failed to hold my interest right from the beginning." Other times, you wait and wait. The waiting doesn't mean that the rejections won't come. Sometimes they still do. Does it upset you? Of course it does. But I don't let it get me down. I'm still waiting but the most important thing is that I'm still writing. Someday, I will find a home for what I write that is how much I believe in what I am doing. So I put myself out there. I blog. I have a very limited website. I belong to writing groups and on-line loops. Surrounding myself with writers helps me realize my dream of getting something published.
Peace Out,
MRD
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