Welcome

Warmest welcome to all of my visitors. Feel free to comment on anything that piques your interest. As well as to browse through the archives and of course to visit the links to other great blogs for writers.

Saturday, November 20, 2010

It's official

My grandfather passed away last night. Don't expect any updates for at least two weeks.

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

And it continues...

I just received a call from my sister informing me that my grandmother and father read my grandfather his last rites at the hospital tonight. There won't be any updates on my fics or my novels for a while all, sorry.

I'm a bit upset right now because once again I'm the last to ever be told anything. no one even bothered to tell me he was at the hospital and has been since Sunday.... Despite everyone knowing since Sunday.

I had only been told he even had lung cancer a few months ago, despite him having it for two years now...

I am so sick of being the last to know important things like this. i could care less about the little everyday things, but important stuff like this waiting until the last minute? What's the point of that? Now I have no chance to talk to him one last time, yet I'm sure they all did. Thanks family, thanks a lot!

I'm also sick of dreading the sept-dec time of year because that is when everyone dies lately for the last 6 years...

*deep sigh* At least my sister finally told me tonight, now that it's too late to even talk to him again.

I'm not in a good mood right now and have no clue when I will be back. I apologize for keeping everyone waiting.

Saturday, September 4, 2010

Oh man... When it rains, it pours!

Two days ago was my sister's Birthday. The day before that she was rear ended by a bus driver and now she's having pains in her back and in the front and has started bleeding again.

You may remember that recently she had a c section with her fourth child and also had her tubes cut, burned, and tied. She should not be bleeding and yet she is.

Back in Dec of 2007 right before Christmas, we lost my mother's mom to cancer. She'd been fighting it for two years. It went in and out of remission, before spreading through her entire body and killing her. I was unaware she even had cancer until a week before she died. {I'm the last to ever be told anything}

About 8 hours ago I received a call from my mother telling me that my father's dad was diagnosed with lung cancer. {same stuff that killed my Grama in 07}

Unlike my grandmother who I wasn't really close to {we barely saw each other} my grandfather I am close to. He's the one who took in my first dog Snoopy when my parents wanted rid of her. My Grandfather took her in so that I could still see and play with her whenever I visited. I visited him nearly every summer.

He used to tease me and my sister {especially} my sister} about our 'chalupa ears'.

Back in 2005, we took a trip to Texas to allow both sets of my grandparents to meet their great grandkids face to face. Grandpa went out of his way to make sure the kids had a fun time, despite Grama's rules.

I'm already freaked because all forms of female cancers {breast, ovarian, tubal} run rampant in the females of my family. Especially since everyone minus my generation so far has had it {including my mother}

So this isn't helping to calm my fears. I want to cry and did for about two minutes. The thing is rather than crying about what cannot be changed, I put it in God's hands and pray for his will to be done.

my concern however, is that maybe I have spent too many years growing up crying and have possibly become jaded, or frigid, or flat out too used to pain to be deeply affected?

I will turn 32 in ten days and in the last 6 years between Sept and Dec we have lost {between my family and my husband's} 3 grandparents 1 great grandparent and over 8 cousins. I'm sick of losing people!

It's gotten to the point I dread even picking up the phone between this time of year anymore.

The pain is deep, the shock is gone and yet the tears refuse to fall anymore. I only cried for two minutes... Does this make me a bad person?

---

On the plus side, my sister had her baby and both mother and baby are home now. I just spoke to my grandmother and Grandpa has had 3 chemo treatments reducing the cancer by 30% already. He goes in for the fourth one on Tuesday.

---

Now for the writing stuff:

I have also completely revised A Miko's Love Story and I have finally finished re-posting it.

I have that Ban/Kag one shot Stormy Knight Seduction posting on the 18th and have AMLS's Third Anniversary one shot rough drafted. It WILL post on time this Dec 30th. I also have he next four years' anniversary one shots planned out they just need to be written, so AMLS is going fine.

As for my novels, I haven't touched them recently and with tonight's news I don't expect to be able to focus on them any time soon.

I'll try to write some more chapters for Worst Nightmare when I can focus on writing again and I'm going to start working on revising The Captive, so keep an eye out for it.

Thursday, August 19, 2010

He's here!

Late last night shortly after midnight I received a call from my mother telling me that my nephew Justin Giovanni Castellanos has arrived. Mother and son are both doing fine. He was a healthy 7lbs 6ozs. That is my sister's biggest {and last} child. {It's also smaller than my smallest 7lbs 9.5 ozs} My sister has always wanted four. Two girls and Two boys, which she now has.

Around 8pm last night we received a call informing us my sister was at the hospital having contractions, but the doctor was going to try to let her have him normally. {despite knowing that she's had to have c sections since the second one {which tried to come breach.}

When her contractions registered a 60, he quickly changed his mind and went in prepping for a c section. {Thank God for that, because having it normal could have very well killed both mother and child.} When contractions register 60 everything is good, but 70 is enough to crush the baby's skull...

I just got a call from my sister and she said she is finished having kids. She's had her tubes cut, burned, and tied.

Long story short the baby has arrived {wasn't due until Sept 3rd {sis's bday} and both mother and child are fine. Now maybe my cramps will lighten up. {They have been much harder than normal the last 24 hours} So all's well that ends well XD

In other news....

The weather is finally leveling out to a cool 95 degrees {yay!} so I should be able to write more often.

Oh and we recently got a new kitten his name is Whiskers {he has both white and black whiskers - hence his name} He's very hyper and has tuff of red fur over the black on his head that reminds us of Stripe {the Gremlin leader from the movie Gremlins} He's adorable and is a quick learner. Man is that kitten fast!

Our last cat {Ash Boy} went missing 10 weeks ago, but his mate has delivered one last litter of his kittens and I have been offered first choice XD

Ash was quick, but not like Whiskers. He's a great mouser too since he spent four weeks in a barn with his mama.

Okay that's it for this post XD

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Update!

For those of you following my sister's pregnancy news, the baby has dropped a 4th time in two weeks. She wasn't due until September, but I have a feeling after the doctor's visit tomorrow, we will be told it's coming sooner than she thinks. She hasn't even been able to see her feet since barely into her third month and now all of a sudden she can see her feet peeking out when she sits down.

The baby boy {yes single, not plural like everyone originally thought} was estimated to be approximately around 15lbs in Sept. He's about 12 and 1/2lbs even now.

This is her fourth {and hopefully last} kid. She's sick of being pregnant and seriously stressed over being put on maternity leave after it's born. Without her working, they won't be able to cover their bills.

I'll update again when I find out how the doctor appointment tomorrow went.

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

And The Crazy Weather Continues...

For the past four weeks we have been going from flash flood warning to excessive heat warnings and back again.

I really wish the weather would just get back to normal {non life threatening} temperatures.

These heat index of 130 degree and higher days, are really taking their tolls!

I grew up in Texas so I'm used to hot humid days, but I left Texas to get away from that. Although these days I'm beginning to feel like I'm back in Texas...

Even the kids, who are normally unaffected by high temps, are getting sick of it.

So let's get right to it, eh?

My Writings:

I have progressed further on The Caspians. In fact, I will be posting chapter two up at my crit groups within the next couple weeks {provided the weather cooperates.}

Double Trouble has had some more progress done on it's Story Treatment as well.

My Fanfictions:

I'm revising my most popular Inuyasha fic {A Miko's Love Story} as I now see for myself what a grammatical nightmare it was. Despite being such, it's received a total of 481 reviews to date, since I posted it back in Dec 2007.

There are a total of twenty-five chapters and two one-shots for it. I recently posted the revised chapter ten. For those interested in reading it, please click this link: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/3980089/1/A_Mikos_Love_Story

In other news also fanfic and writing related - I've recently received an email from a writer's guild run by fanfiction authors who have asked me to join, which after careful consideration I have done so.

I can now be found here: http://themusebunny.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=viewprofile&user=tempest78

--

Well, that's about it for this time around. Everyone take care and stay safe, k? XD

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Holy Mackerel

Good gracious. All of these floods in the past two weeks are hammering home the meaning of the old, but true saying - 'Treat everyday as if it may be your last.'

China, Bangladesh, Brazil, Bosnia, Haiti, have all been hit with floods, all in a mere two weeks.

Plus here in the United States Of America, Arkansas had twenty killed out of over 300 people. Leaving families torn and grieving. In Oklahoma City, there was at least one death, and now Kansas City was hit by a flood.

Not to mention the tropical storms, and the 7.5 earthquake out under the Indian Ocean, which caused damage in the form of landslides in the surrounding lands.

It really makes a person think hard.

I'd like to send out prayers to all of the victims' families in their times of need.

Here in Missouri we've been suffering a massive heatwave. Temperatures over 100 degrees, with up to 95% humidity {If I wanted that, I'd have stayed in Texas.} and heat indexes of between 115-130 degrees.

At least today we got back to normal temperatures. The heat advisories have finally gotten dismissed.

Now maybe I can get back to a normal schedule. :P

Okay writing info:

I've updated all four of my current fanfictions in the last couple weeks.

I just need to polish it up, and then I can post the next chapter of The Caspians.

I've made headway hammering out more of the Story Treatment for Double Trouble.

That's about it. Between the massive heat, housework, and kids, I haven't had much time for writing.

Saturday, June 5, 2010

Hectic

That's what life has been lately.

My sister is pregnant a 4th time {this time with multiples} She's in her 6th month and STILL hasn't seen a doctor yet...

My cousin's husband just yesterday had a scare thinking he had a brain mass {which turned out to be a blood clot due to his stroke} so now they are settling down.

Thank you everyone for the prayers. My cousin and the rest of us deeply appreciate them.

Plus, I'm looking for a part time job.

The weather has been crazy with storms hitting and missing every few days for the past 3 weeks.

The heat of summer {between the rain and tornadoes} keeps things so hot that I can only write in the we morning hours when it won't be too hot to run the PC.

All of this combined means I've barely had time to do any writing lately, let alone any of my normal critting.

However, I am going to do a quick update on all my current works in progress.

At least my insomnia comes in handy for something {finally}

So here we go:

The Caspians: {My Tiger/Shifter Race Erotica/Fantasy Novel}

- Research is almost completed.

- The Story Treatment is completed.

- Chapter one is currently being posted at my crit groups for it's turn of being ripped apart so I can rewrite it even stronger.

--

My Erotica Trilogy:

Double Trouble:

- Is currently under heavy revision for the first 14 completed chapters.

- The Story Treatment is also being revised for the newer and deeper plot.

The Second One:{currently untitled}

- Has the Story Treatment being smoothed out as I finish up the first novel.

The Third one: {currently untitled}

- Has ideas forming as I further write the second's treatment up and finish the first novel.

Over all the trilogy is shaping up nicely. I know the overall plot for the entire trilogy, now I'm just ironing each piece out to spread over the series. Focusing one book at a time for the nitty-gritty ironing out.

--

A Lifetime OF Trials: {My Western Romance Novel}

- Is still being planned out. It's currently under heavy duty research while I iron out the kinks and write up the Story Treatment. I have the overall idea written up, just need to flesh it out and get down to the smaller details.

--

So that's it for updates on my current Works In Progress.

I've also made a mental note to choose one and stick to just it until I have completed the Manuscript.

My main hinderance with this is that Plot Bunnies just won't leave me alone. So lists get added as they pop into my mind for each novel.

But my main focus {when I can write} for now is on just one novel. D.T. since it's the closest to actually being completed.

Caspians will be next. For this term of posting, I'm ironing out the first chapter of Caspians while it's fresh in my mind.

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Back to the drawing board

Well, it seems I am back to the drawing board with my Novel 'Double Trouble' most feedback I'm getting is they don't like her being a teenager/in high school. So, I've come up with a better plot line and am revising what I have so far {12 chapters} to follow my new plot line. *sigh* That's okay though. As the old saying goes: "No pain no gain." am I right?

I am currently revising the Story Treatment to follow my new and improved plot line. Once the Treatment is done I'll post it yup for feedback in my crit groups.

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

The Differences Between Writing Fanfics and Novels

Oh boy, there are a ton of differences between these two. I will add to this list periodically as I discover even more of the major differences between the two styles.

First of all let me point out that nearly everyone I have asked, says that fanfiction is a great starting tool for a writer. You learn the basics of grammar, punctuations, timing, and plot making. So don't get discouraged.

Now I will touch briefly on some of the major differences between writing fanfics, and writing a novel.

The first and IMHO biggest difference is details. In fanfiction writing details are a must. The more detailed the better the scene is.

Not so in novel writing. When writing a novel you want to use the barest details. Just enough to impart the knowledge, without going into overkill. Too much detail slows down the pace and totally annoys the readers.

The second major difference is facts. When writing fanfics, no one ever complains if you use your imagination and use some off the wall totally impossible idea that has no basis in reality.

Not so in novel writing. Man oh man, every tiniest detail gets picked apart and if there isn't enough 'evidence' to prove its validity, no one will accept it. You have to research even the tiniest shred of a scene or an action so you can back up your ideas, before people will accept it, and even then it's chancy.

Third big difference is Adjectives and Adverbs. Now in fanfics you're encouraged to use these. In novel writing it's a big no no. and frowned upon, when used too often.

Fourth big difference is Repetition. In fanfics it's rarely if ever mentioned. But in novel writing, it's another big no no. That includes the 'he' and 'she' tags too. Now seriously you can't completely avoid it, but if it happens too much, it's one of the first things pointed out as being an 'echo'.

Fifth big difference is Randomness. In fanfics this is widely encouraged. Not so in novel writing. In novels, nothing is allowed to just 'happen' it has to have a significant part, or you are told to cut it.

The next one is Dead Words. In fanfics, this is never pointed out or even hinted at being bad. In Novel writing, words like and, but, and a ton more, are considered 'dead weight' and almost always need to be 'trimmed' or 'cut' from the writing.

Next is the ST or Story Timeline In fanfic writing, I have found this little tip invaluable. It saves me time, headaches, and more often than naught it saves me from having the dreadful 'writer's blocks' that all writers eventually experience. Thanks to my fanfic writing coach {Natsumi AKA SangOTkau6 on FFNet.} I leanred to drawn up a time line for the story of the fics.

In writing a novel, thanks to another author {Ceyxa from Critique Circle- one of my crit groups} ST now refers to a Story Treatment. It is like the Timeline, but even more detailed than that was. The main focus of this, is pacing the plot and determining if and where there are any major plot holes, character arcs, and any serious misconceptions.

A Story Treatment gets down to the smallest of details. Both are chapter by chapter outlines of the story. While the Timeline works on pacing of major and minor plots, the Treatment does the whole shebang - including character descriptions.

The final major difference I'm going to touch on is Beta's. In fanfics the people who read and assess you work are called betas. They do, grammar, punctuation, and spelling, plus the story as a whole. {fluidity}

In novel writing, they are called critique partners. or 'critters' They go through every aspect from facts, to story boarding, to pacing, and relevance. They are far more critical than even the toughest beta I've worked with. They are fellow published authors, or fellow aspiring writers. Though they can be very taxing, they are also far more encouraging as well. So it's the good and bad aspect in effect again.

I have found that critters are very helpful in answering a new writer's questions about agents, the publishing process, and the nitty-gritty aspects of writing. Some can be unbelievably harsh, while others are kind as can be.

The main downside to this is with betas you usually have someone who understands the genre you're writing inside and out. With crit partners even people who have little to no knowledge of a particular genre will try to sound like an expert on the genre. So you take crits with a grain of salt, say thank you and just use what you feel applies or can help to improve your stuff and then just pitch the rest. XD

Now these may be just typical writing rules, but no one in over 4 years of me writing fanfics, ever touched on any of the above listed differences. Not even the few college professors I've chatted with about my and their fanfics.

There are of course the minor things too such as each aspect of writing in general is scrutinized. Especially, pacing, plot, adaptability, and reality.

--

In conclusion, if you're brave enough to try to take the leap from writing fanfics, to writing novels - Good luck and try to keep an open mind and cool head. It's grueling and frustrating at times, but still fun for those who want to risk the adventure. Plus here is still a lot of enjoyment to be found in having others comment on all of your hard work.

A word of caution though. Writing novels requires a full blown commitment to the craft of writing and to your novel ideas. If you can't take criticism {even the harshest} without taking things personally, don't try to publish a book.

It also take a commitment of time and patience. You can eek out a first draft of 20 chapters in less than a few hours or days. The real time consuming part comes in when you start the revisions. I've revised my first chapter over 6 times now and still find more revising needs done. So as I said, good luck and happy adventuring.

XD

Starting Out

Ever since I first started writing fanfiction back on 06-03-07 I've been told that Characterization is my strongest point in writing, so that's one hurdle crossed. Next is the overall flow, I'm good there too. I rarely have a choppy place in my writings. So that's a second hurdled crossed. I'm really good at taking even the harshest criticisms with a grain of salt, so there is a third hurdle crossed.

My weakest point is punctuation {mainly commas} I'm fair on the grammar and learning more each day. When I first started writing, action/battle scenes were my absolute weakest part. I've improved on those and even started incorporating some of my Martial Arts hands on experiences and knowledge into those, to keep them realistic.

But I'm far from done or 'safe' yet lol. Man oh man, who knew how grueling the craft of writing actually gets? I figured, 'hey I'm doing well in fanfics, maybe I'll try a novel now' Boy was that naive of me!

They are two completely different styles. But hey, what is life without a few challenges to spice things up, right? Writing is in my blood and I can't spend a day without writing at least something.

The point of this blog is start circulating my name and some examples of my works, but also {and IMHO more importantly} to help educate aspiring authors like myself.

So coming soon I will post another blog, all about the differences between fanfiction writing and novel writing. So tune in for that one. XD

Who Knew?

Who knew that it would be such a pain to classify a novel, or that every tiny aspect would be ripped apart?

Okay, I'm normally very good at accepting criticism, but give me a break! I'm writing a Erotica Fantasy, not a sci-fi, so must people rip apart every little detail about the MC's powers. It's called fantasy for a reason, and sci-fi is so boring to write.

The scientists nit pick even the components and the amounts. I thought the entire point in writing fantasy was to use your imagination. What do elixirs have to do with scientific compounds and molecular structure?

I'm told for Fantasy 'it must contain some element of Magic' Uh hello, elixir, not compound! Geeze, I have fixed the scientist's notes, I have researched proper components for the DNA altering aspect, and the elixir is something that can't be explained by science.

This is not a YA novel. YA doesn't allow erotica and probably doesn't even allow sex. Just because the heroine is a teenage junior agent who went undercover at 15, doesn't IMHO make it YA.

Erotica, means that 'the sexual relations must drive the plot forward.' That is what I'm doing.

Are they going to rip apart my Tiger-People Race for a different novel next? I mean come on already, I love getting feedback on my ideas, but this is ridiculous. Pay attention to the headings, please.

I'm told by others, that sci-fi must have some basis in reality. Okay what about the warp drive on the USS Enterprise. That isn't even possible right now, yet alone 40 years ago. Yet Star Trek is undeniably sci-fi.

Now I'm going to add a tiny rant here, but correct me if I'm wrong. Isn't the whole object behind writing for the author to use and 'exercise' their imagination? Why ruin the 'fun' of creativity by scrutinizing every single aspect, down to the scientific molecules, or the ingredients in a magic potion? It totally frustrates the writer who until then was enjoying their time writing.

I'm told 'It's supposed to be a compliment' While it is a compliment, it's also depressing and a real confidence smasher. Especially for new writers who aren't very confident whether it be in themselves or their craft, It can be rather daunting. And I think that the more experienced writers need to consider that from time to time. So, if you're going to pick everything apart, be sure to compliment a few things that came off well to you as well. That way the author won't feel overwhelmed by all the negative feedback.

This is the key reason I'm such a firm believer in my motto: "An author cannot grow without both constructive criticism and encouragement." In my crits I do point out the bad. Let's face it, we're all out here to learn from our mistakes, right? But, I make it a point to let them know the good parts as well, to help balance the rest.

I'm so confused right now it's not even funny. The only thing classification factor that I 100% know about my novel is it is definitely erotica. So for now, I will just classify it as Erotica. I will figure out the secondary classification for it later.

--

Now for the second big complaint: My escape scenes. Originally I planned to have the MC {a trained assassin from child hood} use shuriken to take out the guards. That got shot down as 'unrealistic' because the guards have guns.

I beg to differ. An experienced Martial Artist could easily throw the shuriken in time and aim for vital places. Ever watched a martial arts movie? Shuriken are fast and accurate. The Martial Artist can read the body language of the guards before the bullets even fire, they can be moved out of the way.

Second idea was 'hey it's erotica, why not have her seduce them?' Now this was shot down for what I feel is a valid point. Time is of the essence here as she is escaping the compound and leading some soldiers out as well, So that one I will let slide.

I'm tired of guns. They are so over done in novels and movies - even laser guns. So this MC has an aversion to guns. She prefers her shuriken most times or a more hands on approach.

So I'm going back to the first option {shuriken} and throwing in a nice little twist. Wait until you see what I've come up with this time. XD

Don't get me wrong. I'm not ungrateful in the least. In fact, I deeply appreciate the tips and tricks and the multitude of advice I'm getting. I have learned so much from just the few pieces I've posted so far. It's just the nit picking to the tinniest of details is starting to grow old and my frustration is mounting, thus my need to start a blog where I can express myself.

Oh well I'm committed to getting this novel {Double Trouble} polished and published, so I shall grit my teeth and accept the crits with grace and maturity, and trudge on. You can't keep this country gal down for long!

Monday, March 22, 2010

Introduction

Hello everyone. My name is Catrina, although pretty much everyone calls me Kitty. I'm an aspiring writer who hopes to one day be published. I'm currently polishing up the manuscript for my first novel Double Trouble. I may even add some tidbits about the story in the future.

The purpose of this blog is to tell of the adventures and misadventures I experience while polishing up my first novel, as well as to express my thoughts and experiences on writing in general. I'm planning to eventually post a list of links to other sites and blogs I find extremely helpful as well. I'm going to update this pretty regularly, so feel free to check back on a regular basis.