Sparks Fly Sometimes or Strange but Wonderful Things Can Happen...

A strange but wonderful thing happened yesterday. I was asked for a short partial - 10 pages - and a few hours later, a full manuscript for my novel SPARKS FLY SOMETIMES: CONFESSIONS OF A ROCK PRINCESS (SFS). My one line pitch for this novel is: Life as a rock princess in the Denver music scene does nothing to prepare Jenny Sampson for life as a domestic goddess in the suburbs of Philly.

Those of you who have been following me for a while may remember I queried this novel in the spring and when I finished MURDER ON TWILIGHT CIRCLE (MTC) began querying that. Then I went on to begin the follow-up to MTC called MURDER ON SONGBIRD LANE and, since the 20th of September (yup, that's the exact date I started writing!) I've been immersed in my first YA novel called THE SECRET KEEPER.

So, back to the strange thing. First of all, the agent who requested it is someone I met in person at the Backspace Conference in May. I fell instantly and madly in love with her and wondered what devil I could barter my soul with to get her to represent me. I queried her, at her request, and waited. And waited. And waited some more. Then she hired some help, got caught up with her queries, and lo and behold, requested my partial then full manuscript of SFS.

THE GOOD NEWS AND THE BAD NEWS
Said agent has kindly given me as much time as I need to review the ms. It's only been a few months since I finished writing it, but it seems like ages due to all the writing I've done since then. The good news is, I'm thoroughly enjoying reading SFS again! What an unexpected treat. The bad news is, I'm going to be slowing down on THE SECRET KEEPER, which I've been flying through at an average of about 2,000 words a day, while I re-read SFS.

You may be wondering why I need to review SFS since I completed it in May. I'm reviewing it because I know I'm a better writer now, and I'm taking my "new" eyes to peruse and lightly edit the entire ms. Fortunately, it's in pretty good shape. The biggest change I've noticed is due to the fact that since I finished writing SFS, I've become an avid Tweeter. That means, communicating in 140 characters or less, which translates into being a more economical writer. I'm eliminating a lot of unnecessary words in SFS or rewriting sentences to be more succinct. It's inspiring to see how far I've come in such a short time. I love SFS, and it's a gift to be given the opportunity to revisit it and tweak it that much more, all the while knowing it will be before the eyes of an agent I greatly admire.

So, there you have it. Like an unexpected bouquet of flowers, sometimes, when you least expect it, strange but wonderful things can happen. ;-)

Hooray, Oy Vey, I'm Writing YA! (Sucky title/poem for like a MAJORLY important post!)

Those of you who know me may be shocked by the title of this post, and justifiably so. But, it's not a teaser to make you click on my blog to increase my stat hits thereby boosting my ego and making me feel like less of a loser (not that I'm above that by any means).

Nope, it's actually a true story. I'm writing YA!!! Not only is it YA, but it's YA FANTASY!!! That means I get to write about things that don't really exist, precisely like JK Rowling, except without her mind-bending genius, ethereal beauty, and millions of dollars.

I don't know how it happened given (WARNING: True Confession Alert!) I've never read a single YA book in my life. I have, however, seen movies. I know, crazy, right? But it's not my fault. I blame my overactive imagination. I couldn't sleep for the last few nights due to a certain phrase I'd written in my current wip MURDER ON SONGBIRD LANE. These two particular words kept buzzing in my brain like an annoying fly that refused to die. According to my manager (aka "husband"), I'm not yet at liberty to give those two precious words away nor any of the plot line. (And don't hate me all you query-haters out there, but I've already written the query!) I'm up to page four of this new wip, and it's like so ohmygod, totally, awesome!!!! Who knew writing teenage characters could be such a major blast? Hell, last time I checked, I didn't even like teenagers!

TO RECAP:
I've now written two women's fiction novels, one and a half mysteries, and .0000001 YA books. I am like so totally stoked about this, dudes! It's like majorly sic! BTW, no need to worry. My characters SO don't talk in this annoying fashion in my INCREDIBLE new YA novel called.... (Oops, I almost gave it away!)

And, don't worry about MURDER ON SONGBIRD LANE being lost to the world. I'm just shy of 45,000 words, exactly where I'm supposed to be. My first-draft target date is still Thanksgiving, and unless my new YA masterpiece completely overtakes me, I intend to meet that goal.

OMG! I can't believe I just told the whole world I'm writing YA! Crap! That means I really have to do it! (Bites nails and considers getting hair streaked pink and face pierced in order to fully get into the YA groove.)

It's a Girl!!! And, Don't Call Me "Tomato Face"

I HAVE A NEW NIECE!!! My sister, Michelle, gave me the greatest present last night - a brand new beautiful baby niece! (How did she know what I wanted? And, yes, it really is all about me.) She was born at 8:26 PM MST and her name is (drum roll please...) DEVYN RAE BISCHOFF! Isn't that beautiful? Um, no it's not. It's freaking GORGEOUS!

I'm sensing a Devyn appearing in my next book. She'll be beautiful, brilliant, talented and generous. She'll create world peace and find the cure for all types of cancer. And, she'll be elected President of The Universe and win America's Top Model. Ooh, I'm feeling so inspired!

The only problem is, my new niece is in Denver and I'm in Philly. I'll have to wait over three, long, excruciating weeks to see her.

To Michelle and Travis: May you be blessed with a lifetime of joy and happiness with your beautiful new bundle of love. I can't wait to give that little butterbean a face full of kisses and a brand new wardrobe! (How old does she have to be before we can go shoe shopping together? What about fine, supersoft, leather handbags?)

IN OTHER NEWS...

I received many insightful comments on whether or not to leave my current wip in the dust and move on to the next project that's seductively calling my name. Although I love it when anyone or anything seductively calls my name, I've made a decision. My current novel is the second in a mystery series, but both MURDER ON TWILIGHT CIRCLE and MURDER ON SONGBIRD LANE are easily stand-alones. Because of that, I'm going to forge ahead. I'm having too much fun with the quirky, naughty characters in this book. Heck, they'd probably follow me over to "new project" and haunt me (or, knowing them, flash me) until I finished, so why bother?

Plus, I'm at 40k words, so I'm nearing the halfway point. If I quit now, people will make fun of me, call me a loser, shun me, and throw tomatoes in my face. I love tomatoes but not when they're splattered all over my face. For no other reason than I don't want anyone calling me, "Tomato Face" I'm finishing the book.

IN EVEN MORE NEWS...
The lovely Kelly Hartog of Kellifornia Dreaming has deemed it fit to honor me with a Kreativ Blogger award, which I am most humbled to receive. In addition to being a writer extraordinaire, Kelly is an actress, journalist, and has lived in four different countries. You simply MUST check her out. I'm verklempt to be acknowledged by her.

And here comes the technical part:

KREATIV BLOGGER AWARD RULES:

• 1. Thank the person who nominated you for this award.
  
• 2. Copy the logo and place it on your blog.
• 3. Link to the person who nominated you for this award.
• 4. Name 7 things about yourself that people might find interesting.
• 5. Nominate 7 Kreativ Bloggers.
• 6. Post links to the 7 blogs you nominate.
• 7. Leave a comment on each of the blogs letting them know they have been nominated

Number 1 - Check!
Number 2 - Check!
Number 3 - Check!
Number 4 - Uh oh...

Name 7 things about yourself that people might find interesting.
Okay, fine. Here goes:
1) I have performed my original music on stage and had my music played on the radio. We still perform live. You can check out our music here. (Note stage name: Jamie Keys)
2) I'm the oldest of four girls (or "faw gawgiss dawtas" as my mom w/her Queens drawl used to say before Colorado tamed her accent!)
3) I met my husband, Chuck, when I moved to Huntington Beach, California to start a band with his best friend.
4) Chuckie and I got together the day John Lennon was killed: 12.08.1980.
5) I worked as a marketing manager for architects and engineers and had my own marketing business. I've also worked as an interior decorator.
6) Both my kids are amazing musicians. (Drums and guitar.)
7) It took me over 14 years to write my first my first novel, about a year for the second, and six months to write my last two.

Number 4 - Check!
Number 5 - Uh oh...

Here are the seven bloggers I nominate for their extreme creativity in approach to their blogging:

1 - The BRILLIANT and TALENTED Koralee at Bluebird Notes. This is my go-to sight whenever I need an instant lift. The soft, soothing blues and mind-bending photos on this blog are not to be believed. I've got her on retainer to design my novel covers.

2 - My soul sista PenPen from Penny Lane Sugar Spun Dreams fame. She is the coolest. She reminds me of an earlier and much cooler version of myself. We share so many important values like the love of cupcakes and our mutual girl-crush for Katy Perry!!! Stop by her place and give her a kiss for me.

3 - Jody Hedlund at On The Path. Hey, some of my best friends are Christian! I LOVE her sight. She's recently been agented by the lovely and talented Rachelle Gardner and her posts on the writer's journey have proven invaluable to me.

4 - My friend, Suzy, a teacher, is brilliant and beautiful. I can't wait to meet her one of these days and share our stories in person. Her blog Tales of Extraordinary Ordinariness is filled with well-written prose on her journey through life.

5 - If you love shoes, you can't miss out on Susan Mill's blog A Walk in My Shoes. She's a YA writer who has pics of some really great shoes on her blog. Her writing is fresh and genuine. Did I mention she loves shoes?

6 - To show how open-minded I can be, I - a vegetarian - am nominating a very fun sight with a great name: The Vegetable Assassin. She doesn't really like awards, but oh well, too bad. She's a crack-up and you should check her out.

7 - And one of my favorite peeps on the world wide web is Mandy at Mandy's Life After 30. She helped design her beach-splashed website, and it's a great place to hang out. She also writes novels and clever poems about her life. She just all around rocks.

Number 5 - Check!
Number 6 - Check!
Number 7 - Uh oh... (Don't worry, it'll get done.)

Thanks again, Kelly. Virtual hugs right back atcha!

Have a great weekend, y'all. I don't know about you, but I'm an aunt again!!!

Speeding Train, Broken Promises, Near-Death Experiences & Swinging

I promised myself I'd take a one to two week break after editing MURDER ON TWILIGHT CIRCLE before starting the follow-up, MURDER ON SONGBIRD LANE. I'm close to done with my edits on MTC, within a week I believe, so that should mean I'd get next week and possibly the week after that to enjoy life outside my bedroom, right? I mean, it is summer and I do have a pool in my backyard. I've also got a stack of books on my night stand I'd love to read at some point before my 90th birthday. Let me preface this next part by saying I'm SO not a morning person...

So, what did I do this morning at 5AM? I broke my promise. Yup. I got up and started writing MURDER ON SONGBIRD LANE. Just the first page, but still... As all of you writers know, once you've got that first page down, you're screwed. You're on a speeding train, and not AMTRAK, which means it won't be crashing or slowing down anytime soon. So much for my summer...

BTW: I got another request for a partial. YIPPEE!!!!

IN OTHER NEWS...
Did I mention we've got six cats PLUS a rabbit? No? Well, we do, and our little bunny, Butterscotch, had a massive tumor on her side. I won't go into the gory details, and yes, you should thank me for that. Suffice it to say, it was gory. The good news is the tumor was benign. The bad news is she had to have surgery.

Here she is hiding under a beach towel with her Howard Hughes toenails before surgery. She doesn't look too happy, does she? POOR BABY!!!

You'll be glad to know the surgery was a success, her nails are clipped, and she's got a whole new lease on life. In fact, she just signed up for tennis lessons. She's always had a crush on Andre Agassi, well before he shaved his hair, and it's just something she's always wanted to do. But you know how it is... Before you have that near-death experience, the motivation's often not there. I'll try and post some pics of her on the court in her tennis dress and racket. Until then, happy swinging! (Feel free to interpret that any way you wish.) ;-)