Real Hits From Russia?

This is my first (and probably only) blog about my blog. I'm curious who, outside of the U.S., is reading it.

Every couple of weeks, I get about fourteen hits from Russia. This article says they could be spam hits, but if they're real people, I'm very interested in knowing who they--YOU--are!

http://www.themilelongbookshelf.com/2014/03/discussion-how-accurate-are-your.html#.VdOUQvlVhBc

This is what the writer of a blog gets to see,
along with some other data.

So, please "join" the blog or send me an email or comment below so I can learn more about you! If you're real people, I would love to know more about your interest in North Pine Dove!

Bring It On Home

Here I sit at what I sincerely hope is the end of a long dry spell of self-induced separation from NPD. My justification is that if I don't take time out for life, I won't have anything to write about. So, for a multi-generational novel you need to spend time with your multi-generational family, so that just what I did. (The event was our 40th wedding anniversary.)

Back at it, I went to an event this week that got me super-charged to do more of all the creative things I do, including not just writing, but working toward turning NPD into a screenplay (Cindi's initial goal) and even working more with video production. Years ago I directed plays, so actually making a movie is not a completely foreign concept.

The event was "Boise Cutters" a local film group at which Will von Tagen, writer, director, actor in "Almosting It" spoke about his production. (This film is just starting to make the rounds...trailer here-- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SaaP57CnTfY) I also had a conversation with Mike Tetro, who worked on the film and is a promoter for "Almosting It". Like so many creative types, Will and Mike are supportive and inspirational to the point that they reach out personally and via social media to include people like myself. They made me feel as though I really could give up everything else and just do my creative work.

The exciting news that is relevant to North Pine Dove today is that tomorrow I leave for Minnesota where Cindi and I will hit numerous libraries to absorb a last bit of vibe from, specifically, young women of the early 1900's. This is something that, in retrospect, would have been smart to do from day one. (Next time, I'll be smarter.) It seems that the UND Chester Fritz Library in Grand Forks has a floor and willing employees who have access to diaries and other writings of young women of that era. We will also be headed to the University of Minnesota, where there is a digitized copy of the early East Grand Forks papers. There are some resources that you just can't access online. While on our last round of scooping up material, we also hope to meet with those in EGF who have indicated an interest in helping us to promote NPD in the region. We particularly look forward to doing a little "work" at Whitey's Bar and Grill...scene of the crime, er, historical events.

Then, we're looking at some final edits and BOOM. It's a book---either with an agent or indie published! This summer was our goal all along and here we are. Go time!

Literary Circles

Here it is the middle of May already and life has been  happening, while Cindi and I try to keep each other fired up to understand and tackle the query process. At the same time, our beta readers--whom we thank profusely--are giving us helpful comments and corrections. Still, it seems things have sloowed dooowwnn.

Then, along came the Idaho Writers Rendezvous  http://idahowritersrendezvous.blogspot.com/ and I'm way fired up now.

The boring part of the story, which I'll get out of the way now, is that I was not granted professional leave (from school) to go to the conference, so I had to dash downtown, park and go to sessions, dash to school, teach three periods and then dash back downtown for more. And I only got one parking ticket! Oh, the things a writer has to endure ;).

Neither Cindi nor I has ever published anything, so what we know about the lingo and the process is mostly thanks to Google. I did go hear Anthony Doerr speak last spring with the express purpose of asking how to go about getting published. I know--presumptuous of me. But he's a Boisean, so whatever. Fortunately others had the same questions in mind, so from that I gathered that you get an agent and go from there--boom! Or not.

I won't detail all of the sessions I attended at the Idaho Writers Rendezvous, but every one taught me specific tips that will be useful--and already are useful to me. Best of all, though, were the two one-on-one sessions I had the courage to jump into at the last minute.

John Helfers, author & editor

First, I met with John Helfers, an author and editor currently living in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Check this out-- http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/h/john-helfers/ is one of many links to John.

This meeting was called a manuscript evaluation and John had a dozen pages of NPD in advance, which he marked up with comments and corrections. Then we met for over a half hour. (He was generous with his time, as I was the last appointment.) My biggest take-away from the meeting was the reminder that writers need to "show me--not tell me" or write out the action instead of describing it. In general, his comments both during the session and again the next morning when I ran into him were that I should trust in the story and in my writing. It was very affirming. Oh, and what a coincidence...his wife, who is also a writer, is researching soiled doves in the West. I am hopeful that she and I can communicate and share some of our resources.

Much of the conference focused on indie publishing (self-publishing) as that seems to be the preferred direction for most authors. Traditional publishing is thought to be too slow and that the author gives up some control with an agent a publisher. With indie publishing, the writer depends heavily on editors before putting their work on the market. With an agent, it seems you hand your work off, maybe make some revisions and then it's in their hands, though I'm not totally clear on that.

Elizabeth Wales
Agent, Wales Literary Agency

Regardless, by the last day, I realized how really great it was that there were agents at the clinic--I know--I'm kind of slow some times. So, on the fly, I made an appointment to do a 10 minute pitch with one of them. I chose Elizabeth Wales, the principle agent and co-founder of the Wales Literary Agency, Inc., based in Seattle, Washington. http://www.waleslit.com/about/  Instead of a real lunch, I wrote my "logline", sort of (which I learned that morning is a couple of lines of essential dramatic narrative about your book). Otherwise, I had nothing prepared, so, on my phone, I pulled up a couple of query letters I had written and after a quick bite of lunch, in I went.

Ms. Wales was receptive, yet challenging and I thoroughly enjoyed the chance to pitch North Pine Dove. Some of the questions she asked were ones I had prepared for by writing queries. Others caught me off guard and made me sputter. All in all, the process made me want more! And in the end, she asked me to send her the manuscript when we're finished with the editing process. That felt good.

As I reflect on the whole experience I realize that of course it was fun. People actually wanted me to talk about NPD. Seriously, though, the more people challenge me to clarify the story, the motives, the message--the better it becomes. John Helfers told me I might want to "take it to New York" and after hearing that twice, I smiled sheepishly and said, "I have no idea what that means." (It means you actually go to New York and try and meet with agents and pitch your book!) I'm up for that. Cindi? :) Tax deductible! But hey, maybe we only have to go as far as Seattle.

Here is the logline I'm working on, though it's still twice as long as it should be:

Women's lives matter, yet our words, our everyday lives--even our names--are lost, whether we lived a thousand years ago, or a generation ago. And worse yet, if we are the disenfranchised, we have vanished completely.

Norah Martin never thought of herself as a trailblazer. It was a mystery even to her why she became consumed with finding out what happened to a young farm family. Then suddenly, she could travel back in time to solve their mysteries and discover why the missing wife, Eleanor, ended up in a tenderloin district. She would be the voice Eleanor never had, and in the process, heal herself and others.

If you read this far, you really should click on "join" in the upper right hand corner, if you haven't already.

Waiting for Godot?

Hopefully there aren't too many similarities between us and the storyline (or outcome) of Waiting for Godot other than the waiting part. And, in reality, we're doing much more than just waiting to find out what will become of North Pine Dove.

Both Cindi and I have been actively crafting queries to selected agencies. As a new author, I'm learning that every one wants something different, from 250 words to a page and the first fifty pages of the manuscript! Some want a chapter by chapter summary which is much more work than it sounds like. I thought, hey, no problem, since I had just named all the chapters. But, as I told Cindi, I have been feeling like someone is squeezing my brain while I work on the now-projected 10-page document...single spaced. Makes you wonder--is that really what they want? I sure hope so, after all this work!

One unexpected pleasure is actually found in discovering what each of the potential agents wants. So many want historical fiction, soft sci-fi (para-normal/time travel romance), literary memoir, upmarket women's fiction (anyone want to explain that?) and other descriptors that sound like NPD. That gives us plenty of queries to write in ways that are unique to each. http://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/guide-to-literary-agents/definitions/what-is-upmarket-fiction-defining-the-classification

Some of the most promising agencies are based in Minnesota and for obvious reasons, we are giving special attention to those. Still, the themes of multi-generational intrigue seem to be popular to a large market, so we're hopeful NPD will find that market!

Then, there's the eternal task of editing. I don't think there's a page that doesn't need a comma added or removed, a word that isn't perfect or a transition that is a little glitchy. Of course, at some point we'll have to be done, but we're not there yet. Most of the time, I love the story more after working over a scene.

I have a note to the few readers we have spoken to, if you're out there: We look forward to lots of comments from you!

Our dad read the rough draft and blew us away with the mostly positive feedback. He's not known for turning a flowery phrase, so we figured either Mom told him he had to say nice things (which she denies) or he was pleasantly surprised/proud.

Mom is reading the book now and everything predicted in "What Will My Mother Think?" and more has become a reality. She's not even to any sex yet--seems you can't say hell, damn, shit or oh, God and be a good person in Mom's eyes. We're sad to say this has embarrassed her and even hurt her health. We go back and forth between placating her and calling foul, having caught her in a rare, yet true, expletive in her day--or was that one of her sisters?! Bottom line: Trust us, Mom!

So to our potential agents out there...give us a shot! To our first readers...give us some feedback! Don't be our Godot ;).

The Last Chapter and Preparing to Let Go

The final chapter of North Pine Dove is taking awhile to write. I find myself thinking of all the books I've read--or decided against reading--because someone said "I liked the book but I hated the ending". Who wants to read that book? At that point, you don't care why they hated it--you just know it's not worth your time.

The other hesitation is that I don't want to let go of the book, so I'm savoring the last opportunities to include everything that matters.

When Cindi and I set out to write a book almost three years ago, we began with a pretty well-developed plot, so, the ending is more one of necessity than it is random. There are many mysteries or questions that have to be answered by the end of the book (and just a few parts left up to the reader's imagination). Had it not been for our weeks in the summer and quick trips home in the winter when we collaborated--there would be no book. But a plot outline and frequent collaboration does not automatically create a book. People have to actually write it. And in the writing of it, I have learned that getting from a. to b. is much trickier than it appears. If you've done any fiction writing, you don't need me to explain that and if you haven't, there aren't words...."

So, in gently folding the petals of the story back into place at the end, I've resorted to making lists of minutiae that have to be consiously resolved or dropped. Let me give you an example of a movie in which that didn't happen.

When I was in high school, I went to see "The Sandpiper" with Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton and Eva Marie Saint. I was too young for the movie, which was a bit sophisticated for my taste. I'm including the link below without opening it--that'll have to be another day. Something in the movie (and I can't even remember what at this point) was neglected at the end. Some puzzle or riddle. It's bugged me ever since. I've always planned to watch it again and see if it was just my teenaged brain that couldn't grasp symbolism or something more--an actual mistake, as in, the resolution of the issue was accidently left on the cutting room floor.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059674/

I don't want to annoy our readers by leaving story lines hanging or poorly resolved. Sometimes it occurs to me that if I get in a hurry to finish it, I'll make that mistake. I'll wake up in the middle of the night after the book has gone to press and think Oh, my God...I forgot to say what happens to whomever. So, even though the book is nearing 88K words, I'm going to take all the time it takes to satisfy myself, Cindi and hopefully the reader. Speaking of which, I have two people--maybe three who have agreed to proofread it! That's good, but scary. I have to remind myself that we always love our own babies, no matter what. Even if it's an ugly baby--an annoying baby--it's our baby and I'll love it.

So, to finish the book, I pulled out a DVD I have of interviews with our mother and I'm sqeezing in just a little more of her memories life on the farm. Here's a snippet of one of the sweetest memories she shared.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysTvBN-_FjY

Next post will surely be about how the rough draft is complete.