Flirty Author Bitches talking about failure and the road to success.  I included some quotes in my blog but here are some other ones I like.

I don’t know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody.  ~Bill Cosby

Try again.  Fail again.  Fail better.  ~Samuel Beckett

Never confuse a single defeat with a final defeat.  ~F. Scott Fitzgerald

It is a mistake to suppose that people succeed through success; they often succeed through failures.  ~Author Unknown

I hope you’ll stop by and leave me a comment.

~Julia

I can’t believe 2011 is over!

Like most everyone I have my list of resolutions and things I want to accomplish in 2012 but instead of giving you that list I’d rather start this new year with the things I’m most grateful for.

My 2012 Gratitude List

1. My health– the last 2 years in a row have ended with people dying unexpectedly and it’s really made me realize how very important health is.  Without it, not much else matters.
2. My husband– After 18 years together he’s still awesome.  I really couldn’t ask for a better husband or a more understanding one. He’s supported every crazy idea I’ve ever had and there’s not many people who would do that.
3. My kids– I have 2 of the best kids out there.  They’re happy, healthy, and teach me new things every day.
4. My mom– She lives next door to me and is my biggest supporter.  She’s been nothing but enthusiastic about my writing, even when I know sometimes she’s um…. surprised… at my subject matter.  She also helps me whenever she can and is the best grandma ever!
5. The rest of my family– No list would be complete without mentioning this crazy bunch.  I love them all and am so thankful to have such a close knit group to call my own.
6. Writing– I spent a lot of years not sure what I wanted to do with my life.  Sure I had a good job, but I wasn’t really fulfilled.  I still don’t really know what made me open that 1st word document 5 years ago and start a story but I’m very grateful I did.
7. My readers– Thank you so much for all the support and kindness you’ve shown my work over the last couple years.  I am truly grateful to you for reading and liking my stories.
8. My BFF’s– I have the best friends a women could ask for.  They are all different from each other, and give me different things, but I couldn’t ask for a more supportive group of women.  It’s nice to be understood.
9. My creativity– I do believe that everyone is creative and I’m so grateful I’ve been able to get in touch with and cultivate mine.
10. My analytical side– I believe that writing is equally creative and analytical. Without this side of my personality I wouldn’t be able to produce polished stories, spot problems areas, develop believable character arcs, fix plot holes, etc.  Being analytical is a much over looked yet equally important component of writing and I’m grateful for my active, logical (albeit sometimes overly) brain.

So there you have it, the things I’m most grateful for… sure there are others, but this is the top ten.  What are you most grateful for going into this upcoming year?

~Julia~  

Thanks to the lightening speed of my editor the fabulous Mary Moran The Burn List will be released on November 25th over at Ellora’s Cave.  Since I’ll be tucked away in the mountains, recovering from too much turkey and a trip to Disney, I’m not sure I’ll have any computer access to do much promotion of the release so I thought I’d give you all a little advance notice.

Lukas Marlow is a gorgeous firefighter.  Abby Simmons is a repressed good girl with a very naughty to-do list.  Together they discover appearances can be deceiving and sometimes love is living right next door.

I loved revisiting this couple. Abby is filled with lots of snark and despite their shy start knows how to give Lukas a run for his money.

I hope they are as fun to read as they are to write.

Check out the excerpt, happy reading!

~Julia~

You’ve done it,  you’ve completed  your manuscript. Written a whole story with an actual beginning, middle, and end. And it feels awesome!  You run around your house bouncing off the walls in happiness, you do some yoga stretches to work the kinks out of your back and neck from sitting hunched over for too long, and rhapsodize about what you’ll do in your free time until the next project grabs you by the neck and won’t let go.   Sound familiar?

Then, reality sets in, writing “The End” is only the first step in getting a completed manuscript of the door, but this is where the real work begins.

And, since I’ve just finished a story, this list is in the forefront of my mind.

So, what needs to be done to get your manuscript out the door and into an editors hands?

1. The dreaded synopsis– I stupidly believed once I was published I’d never have to write one of these again.  I was wrong.  I can’t think of a story I haven’t had to write one for.  So, I guess my best advice is get use to them, they’re hard to shake.
2. The blurb– I could technically wait on writing this, but since I’m already forced to write a synopsis, I just get this little bit of irritation out of the way too.  How can 200 little words be so darn hard to write?
3. My electronic proof– I distinguish this from true editing that is  part of the manuscript writing process.  This it the electronic read though I do when I already have that “I’m happy feeling” and consider myself done with the book.  I usually give myself a few days to a week of time  before I do this read through.  That distance is vital and allows me to see things with fresh eyes. Tip: The more you struggled with a story the longer the time lapse should be to allow for the emotional detachment.
4. Depending on how I’m feeling about the manuscript I may send out to one of my critique partners to read through the story or parts of the story.  I don’t do this all the time, but only if there’s parts of the story niggling at me that I’m worried about.
5. My printed proof– I change the font (believe it or not this helps find spots you’re auto-correcting in your head) and print out the whole story. (Side note: I have a 2 sided printer to be kinder to the environment) Then I comb through one more time.  Doing that final paper read is in my opinion and essential step that’s very tempting to want to skip.  Don’t do it.  Your eye will ALWAYS catch things you’ve missed during your other reads.
6. Make those last changes, check all your formatting, make sure your information is on the manuscript, etc.
7. Send the story.  This last and final step is in some ways the hardest.  It’s the moment you’re most vulnerable and where your baby has left your hands and officially out of your control.

This is my list on the road to producing the most polished manuscript I can.  I hope it helps you, but always remember, like all writing advice, it’s only suggestions.  In the end you have to follow what’s best for you.

Full Disclosure– I’m starting step 3 this morning.  Wish me luck.

~Julia~

Every once in a wide I like to throw my husband a little curve ball by cooking up a storm like I’m the next Martha Stewart.  It’s a good way to keep him on his toes and confuse him.  Not to mention provide him with a little fantasy material where he can pretend I’m another women for the day.  Hey, after 11 years of marriage and 17 years together, one does what she can.

So, my six year old daughter and I made this healthy multi-grain cinnamon rolls form the Taste of Home Healthy Cooking Magazine.  There was a variation for twists, which for some reason my son had to have, and this picture is the end result.  Not perfect, not super pretty, but hey we’re new!!

And I have to say, healthy cooking never tasted so good.  My kids, who are my worst critics, gave it rave reviews. Needless to say it was gone within an hour.  (Side Note: I’m fairly certain to really be “healthy” you’re not supposed to eat all 12 servings in 1 sitting, but hey at least we got our fiber for the day.)

Happy Sunday,

~Julia~

I’m very excited to announce The Burn List is coming soon to Ellora’s Cave.

I wrote this story a couple of years ago, publishing it with a different house. When I got the rights back, it was great fun to see how I’ve grown and changed as a writer.

I laughed.

I cringed.

I corrected.

Nostalgic, I pulled out the first thing I ever wrote and read though those random, crazy pages.

I laughed.

I cringed.

I hid my head in embarrassment.

Good fun was had by all.  Maybe some day, if I’m brave enough, I’ll post some of my first writings just for fun.  We shall see..

In the mean time, let me introduce you to Abby and Lukas, two neighbors who find love in their own back yards…

After spending her thirtieth birthday with her parents, straight as an arrow Abby Simmons drowns her sorrows in a bottle of tequila and a splash of margarita mix. All she wants is a little excitement, one chance to go wild before she settles back into her regularly scheduled life. Fueled by liquid courage, Abby sets out to give herself the perfect gift—her bad boy neighbor, firefighter, Lukas Marlow.

Sure, Lukas likes intoxicated girls looking to turn their fantasies into reality as much as the next guy, but this is sweet little Abby. Definitely on the do not touch list.  Determined to save her from embarrassment, he sends her away with an order to sleep it off, and a promise to fulfill her desires in the sober light of day. Confident he’s scared her away for good, nothing could have shocked him more than an email from Abby outlining her sexual to-do list.

Turns out his quiet neighbor isn’t such a good girl after all and Lukas has no other choice but to make her burn.

I’m looking forward to sharing the cover and excerpts shortly.

~Julia~

I’m over at Flirty Author Bitches today (And the 3rd Tuesday of every month) talking about the trials and tribulations of social networking.  As you can see by my sparse blog posts that I’m not very good at the venue and wanted to share why.

Hopefully, someday, I’ll find a happy balance in this over connected world…

Come on over and let me know your thoughts.

http://flirtyauthorbitches.com/

Happy Tuesday!

~Julia~

No! I’m not talking about losing your virginity, but I like where your mind is at.  I’m talking about the first time you finish an actual story.  I’ve been thinking about my 1st time a lot recently because Riding the Rail showed up on Amazon recently and I got all nostalgic.

I came to writing later in life. I wasn’t one of those writers that had known since she was six what she was destine to be.  No, I didn’t eventhink about it until I was 35 (I’m turning 40 in August) when I had a boring job and endless free time and I was actually bored with surfing.  I still don’t even know what made me decide to open up a document and start writing characters.

Of course, they were all jumbled up in my head and I spent a lot of time just writing endless, meaningless scenes.  Then came the dreaded news that I had no idea how to actually write and I spent a good long time figuring out the how. Finally, it all started to come together and Riding the Rail was born.

I got the idea one morning when I was riding the Chicago EL to work.  I was squashed in between a bunch of strangers, none of them remotely inappropriate behavior worthy and I thought… hey, that would be a good opening scene for a book.  I started writing it that day, and about 5 weeks later I submitted it.

It’s not perfect. I look back at it now and see where I can strengthen the story and the writing.  I can see how my voice has changed and emerged since I started this crazy writing business, but that’s not really the point.  We all
need to start somewhere.  We all need a first.  And Riding the Rail is mine. It will always have a soft spot in my heart and why I’ll never pull it, revise it or change its core.  It’s a reminder of where I’ve come from and a marker of how I’ve changed and evolved since those early days where I didn’t know what I was doing or where I was going.  And, for that, I am grateful

If you’re interested  you can read the excerpt or Riding the Rail on Amazon for $2.85.

~Julia~

It’s been a long full weekend, and my intention for the day we declared out independence is to celebrate my freedom from not having to clean anything, cook anything, or go to anywhere.  I’m going to sit by the pool, eat chips and double stuffed oreos and read.

How are you going to celebrate your independence?

~Julia~

Well, I’ve finally got this blog up where someone can actually see a post. Is it sad that I’ve had such a hard time getting it to work in today’s day and age?

But now that I have it, now what? There are tons of great, informative blogs out there and I admit I struggle with how to make this interesting & unique. The one thing I do know is that I’m not going to figure it out all in one day, but I hope you’ll still love me anyway and stick it out while I go through my growing pains.   

However, since I have a tendency to procrastinate in the name of perfection, I’m going to post anyway with all my messiness.  After all, isn’t  part of writing, putting it all out there even though it will never be perfect?  That’s what I tell myself anyway. 

Since I haven’t been good with updates, I thought I’d start there…

1. For now, I am a slow writer. I want to be faster, really I do. My daily writing vow is to do better.

2. I’m on page 300 of my single title contemporary romance. I’ve re-written the damn thing 5 times and believe it or not I’m actually satisfied. I’m hoping to be done in the next couple of weeks. (Maybe if I stopped re-writing I’d be a little faster getting stuff out the door)

3. Because I like challenges, I started to re-work the very first story  I ever wrote. Maybe it’s just me, but there is just something about that first couple, despite their messy incoherent plots that capture my heart.  I want to see their story told, if only because I told it to myself so many times. My writing style has changed a lot since I started (THANK GOD) so other than keeping about best friends not much is staying the same.  I think it would be kind of fun to do a before and after but I’m not sure I’m brave enough to show people how much I sucked.

4. I’ve recently become addicted to #1k1hr challenges on Twitter. http://twitter.com/#!/search/1k1hr If you’re a writer and on twitter, join us it’s a great way to get motivated since no one likes a public shunning.

5. Pride & Surrender was released at the end of December, it was the first time I ever wrote anything in 1st person. It was rewarding, but exhausting, not sure I’ll undertake it again for quite sometime but I couldn’t be happier with how the story turned out.

Thanks for reading,

~Julia~