Inkwell Guest: Bev Irwin

March 22, 2012 by

Hi all! Welcome back to the Inkwell for another guest. Today I’m hosting Black Opal author, Bev Irwin. She’s going to talk about goals and persistence (as she notates below *grin*). Hope you’ll say hi to let her know you were here. :)

Take it away, Bev!

Hello everyone. Thanks for coming to visit, and thank you Michelle for inviting me.

I’m so excited to be able to talk about my new releases. Yes, I did add an ‘s’ on that word. My first release, GHOSTLY JUSTICE, a paranormal youth novel will be released on April 14th with Black Opal Books. The second, also with Black Opal Books, MISSING CLAYTON, a women’s suspense, will be out later this year.

I want to talk about goals and persistence.

Do you have goals? Of course you do. We all do. Mine is to be on the best seller list and have financial freedom so I can travel. I love traveling. Just yesterday I went on a fantasy trip to Paris and sat in a cafe and had coffee and crepes. Tomorrow, who knows where I will be. That’s the great thing about being a writer, we can go as far as our imagination will take us. But I do have my suitcase open and ready for the real thing comes along.

Where would you go? Would it be in real time or are you a time traveler going into the past or the future, or another realm. Tell me.

My journey took another step closer to my dreams last September.

What an amazing fall I had. After years of writing, taking course, being in writing groups, entering contests, sending off to agents and editors, IT finally happened. I GOT A CONTRACT!

Soul Mate Publishing offered me a contract (don’t you love that word) for my first novel (not the first one written), WHEN HEARTS COLLIDE. I got that offer in September and the release date was to be in November. My first birthday present that year. But it was delayed to December so became my first Christmas present.

Then, on Oct 30th I received a very apropos offer from Black Opal Books. The day before Halloween and I get an offer to publish GHOSTLY JUSTICE my paranormal youth novel. That was my second contract. I’ll tell you my witches cape and my curly toed black boots were doing a happy, happy dance. I did some wicked flying on my broom that week.

Then, I couldn’t believe it, a few days before Christmas, I got another contract offer from Black Opal Books. This was for my women’s suspense novel, MISSING CLAYTON, that will be coming out later this year. WOW!

So, remember, your dreams can come true! Believe!

Work hard, take courses, join critique groups, enter contests, submit your baby to the horrors of being rejected. Broaden your shoulders, edit again and again, send it out there. One day you will get THE EMAIL or THE CALL bringing you that one step closer to your dreams.

But most of all, don’t quit. Persistence pays off.

So tell me your dreams and goals, or write them down. SEE THEM HAPPENING.

About Bev

Award-winning author, Bev Irwin, lives in London, Ontario, with three assorted cats. One that hid in her car when she moved from the farm and two others dropped off by her daughter on two different occasions. Her three children have flown the coup, but her granddaughter, Jasmine, is a frequent visitor.

As a registered nurse, she likes to add a touch of medical to her romance and mystery novels. She writes YA, children’s, and poetry. She prefers spending time in her garden, writing, and reading to being in the kitchen.

Her debut novel, WHEN HEARTS COLLIDE, a contemporary romance, came out in December of 2011 with Soul Mate Publishing under the pen name of Kendra James. Her YA paranormal, GHOSTLY JUSTICE, will be released by Black Opal Books on April 14th, 2012. MISSING CLAYTON, a suspense novel, will also be published with Black Opal Books later this year.

These are some of my books.

In His Father’s Footsteps

This book will be on Kindle when Bev figures out how to format it properly.

He promised he’d be back by the full moon. But that was days ago and Jason Sharmon’s father hasn’t returned from his prospecting trip. Now the fourteen-year-old must battle the Ontario North and his own fears to find his father. He encounters several obstacles including a wolf encounter, a raging river, and a fall down a cliff. After finding and caring for his injured father, Jason learns to believe in himself and his own abilities. He and his father learn to accept their differences and mend a troubled relationship.

If you witnessed an accident on a lonely stretch of highway, would you stop or continue on your way? For nurse Molly Tanner the choice is clear. Risking her own life, she pulls the seriously injured driver and his young daughter from the car. When Pearce begs her to pose as his wife to keep Gracie from foster care, memories of her unhappy childhood rush back. But can Molly keep up the charade without her own secrets being discovered and her heart from being shattered?

Fifteen-year-old Daria Brennan doesn’t want to hear people’s thoughts. She doesn’t want to see ghosts or talk to dead people. And she definitely doesn’t want to help Amanda solve her forty-year old murder. But Amanda wants revenge, and Daria is the first human contact she’s had since the day she died. Now the killer is after Daria and her friends. Can they solve this Amanda’s murder in time, or will they become the next victims?

COMING SOON! Release date April 14, 2012

You can read excerpts of these books at my website. Browse, read some poetry if you wish.

Find Bev around the WWW:

www.bevirwin.com
www.blackopalbooks.com/
www.kendrajames.net
www.soulmatepublishing.com

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Tracking Progress

January 16, 2012 by

20120115-163652.jpgWhen I started writing the sequel to ONE KNIGHT ONLY, I decided to track my daily progress. I write during my lunch hour and I always have my iPhone handy. So I use the Notes app to record my progress. You can see it here.  I type in the date and then the word count from X to X.

For example, you see here on 12/12, I went from 2,525 to 4,105. That was a good day. :)

And then you see on 1/9, I went from 26,042 to 26,401. That was NOT a good day.

In the month of December, I started thinking about the end of the book, so I skipped ahead. The lower numbers are the last 10,000 words of the book (that I’ve written so far). I still have some loose ends to wrap up for the ending, but it’s still all in my head. I didn’t want to write the big battle scene yet, so I just made some notes and then put it aside.

In January, I went back to my draft and started writing linearly again. You can see the progress by the bigger numbers that are 22k, plus. I got lazy and just started typing in what my word count was when I ended for that writing session. My thinking was that I can look up to the previous day and see where I ended, so I really don’t need it.

This really helps me see what my progress is daily. Plus, to hold myself accountable, I always send a text to my husband to tell him what I managed to write that day. :) For the week of January 9, I wrote just over 5400 words, so I felt like I made some tremedous progress last week and I wasn’t as discourage as I usually feel about writing at the end of the week. Though, as you can see, I wrote every single day.

Every writer has their own way to track their writing progress. I think you need to find what works for you and stick with it. It’s taken me a long time to figure it out. I feel like I’ve tried everything. I’ve joined groups that post daily word counts, but I felt like it did nothing but discourage me when I saw them posting the big numbers (5K and up) while I was struggling to hit 1,000 words a day. And all I would do is beat myself up over it when it was by no fault of my own. They are full time writers; I am not. I have to remind myself that I have a day job, a son, a husband and household duties that all need my attention. So my lunch hour has been golden for me to find time to write. It’s the perfect solution. I set my daily goal and stick with it. And if I don’t make it, then I know I have words to make up on the other days.

Now, if I can just find the time to write during the weekend… ;) Hey, I’m working on it. These new habits are all part of my new 2012 goals.

How do you track your writing progress?

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It’s A New Day

March 10, 2010 by

But will be much of the same as yesterday. Though, I think a little calmer. I might actually get a lunch hour today. Which means I’m going to be writing. I really want to get back to my story.

Yesterday was hectic, too, but I was actually able to get some work done. We had this photo shoot at work for some professional head shots and some candid photos for our upcoming marketing campaigns. I took some photos and had a lot of fun with it. We’ve worked with the photographer in the past, and he’s super. He knows how to chat people up to make them feel comfortable.

A week or so ago I read a blog where Sourcebook editor, Deb Werksman, talked about branding and career arcs. I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately and trying to figure out my direction, what sort of writer I am and want to be, and where I want to be in 5 years. I’m a true Gemini and as such I tend to be “of two minds” about EVERYTHING. It maddening sometimes, actually. So I’m trying to force myself to focus on the end goal and figure out what the process is to getting there. I want it to be flexible enough that I can roll with it when things to go as planned but rigid enough that it keeps me on my goal course. And I know me, so I know I won’t be able to set monthly goals. I think what works for me is more generic goals. Like, “I want to write three books this year,” as opposed to, “I want to write 4000 words per day.” 

So. That’s where I am on the writing front!

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Goodbye 2009, Hello 2010

January 1, 2010 by

Since is a new decade and a new year, I thought it would be fun to do a sort of 2009 year in review of the things that’s happened this year. At first I thought I’d do it sequentially by month but then decided my brain cells are practically fried and there’s no way I can remember things like that. So it’s just in random order. Anyway, here goes.

Here I Go Conferencing

I attended by first RWA National conference in Washington, DC. I met a lot of friends I had only known via Yahoo groups and via email. It was nice to put a face with a name. I also met a lot of new people, wore my fabulous red party dress and shoes to FF&P’s “The Gathering” event. I attended workshops and heard speakers. I walked away from the conference feeling inspired and energized and ready to take on my next project. I also had my first pitch appointment (which later got a rejection). I also attended the literacy signing where I spent way too much on books, met the awesome Nancy Haddock, Gena Showalter, and even got a book signed for my mother by Nora Roberts. It was too cool.

Providing Feedback

I think I judged seven contests and read some fantastic entries and some entries that had hidden potential but needed a lot of help. I tried very hard to provide each writer with detailed feedback on their entry. Hopefully I helped make a difference in their writing and they took something that could use.

I got a Nook! And I think that’s adequate.

On the writing front

I finished Fight of the Phoenix, aka the gladiator book. I shopped it. I got about 10 rejection letters for it (go me!). I submitted it to two publishers (shh – don’t tell them I simultaneously submitted!) which I’m waiting to hear back on. I love the story and hope that it’ll find a home on a book shelf soon.

I started working on my very first urban fantasy story. It’s sort of a re-imagined version of a story I started long, long ago in a galaxy far, far away. It’s based heavily on Celtic Mythology. My hope is that I weave a magical fairy tale for grown-ups. This month, I’ll be starting back up on that hot and heavy and hopefully have the first draft completed by April 1. That’s the goal, anyway.

Goals

I’ve set goals for the year.

1. Not volunteer so much. I love my chapters but I’ve come to realize I can’t do it all for everyone. So I’ve stepped down from one board and am going to try really hard to par down my volunteerism. That includes judging contests, or at least not so many.

2. I have to focus on writing and finishing in a timely manner. I can finish the draft of a book in about 6 weeks if I try really hard. I want to do that this year. I want to finish the urban fantasy and start on the second in the series. I’d also like to at least outline a contemporary or two. But the main goal is to finish the fantasy and hunt for an agent for the book I’ve already finished.

3. Write every day and meet or exceed a daily word count (I participate in a group that posts random numbers daily to meet or exceed). It’s going to be tough to find time to write between the job and the kid but I think I can do it.

I’m looking forward to Nationals in Nashville this year. Plus I’d love to try and travel more. In fact, I’ll be flying to Houston for a wedding in a couple of weeks.

So here’s to 2010! It’s going to be a GRAND year.

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Quoth the Raven, Nevermore

February 6, 2009 by

Okay, I confess, I got this off my Starbucks cup but it’s very timely for me because of some life-changing decisions I’ve been thinking about. (If we’ve corresponded in the last few days via email, then you know what I’m talking about.)

And the only reason I read it was because I could see the first six words over my cup sleeve and it intrigued me. You are so dead on, Anne Morriss. I salute you.

The Way I See It #76
“The irony of commitment is that it’s deeply liberating-in work, in play, in love. The act frees you from the tyranny of your internal critic, from the fear that likes to dress itself up and parade around as rational hesitation. To commit is to remove your head as the barrier to your life.”
–Anne Morriss, Starbucks customer

Isn’t that so true? If we believe in ourselves, all things are possible. If we take away the stigma of fear, we can accomplish so much and become that someone we always dreamed of being. As my friend, Devon, says: get out of my own way.

I didn’t really intend to make resolutions this year – mostly because I never keep them. Instead, this year, I decided to try my hardest on everything I want to achieve. I decided to make sure I didn’t drop the ball on anything, which meant I had to be super organized and on top of things even more so than usual.

So far this year, I think I’ve done a bang-up job. I implemented workshops for the chapter; I’ve been working on getting the contest entries out to first round judges (91 electronic entries… the most we’ve EVER had!); put out fires that needed putting out (I serve on two chapter boards – yes I’m a glutton); wrote another 7,000 words on Rome; not to mention all my normal day-to-day commitments that involve my day job and my son. And then there’s spending QT with the Man.

But I can do better, I think.

I’ve reached that point in my life where sitting in Cube Land isn’t cutting it anymore. I used to be happy there, doing the tasks assigned to me.  But somehow, that’s not good enough. My brain is hungry. I want more. (Now don’t get me wrong – I like my job. I work for a great company with excellent benefits and fantastic people.) And so, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking on how to change things. It will take time. A lot of time. It will take patience. It will take commitment. Perseverance. Determination. And a lot of damned hard work. I’ve reached that point in my life where Career is a word I embrace instead of run from. Where Life is starting to take shape and meaning. Perhaps it’s because I’m nearing that scary age that involves a 4 as the first digit. Or perhaps it’s because I’ve finally decided what I want to be when I grow up.

At any rate… I don’t want to be confined to a place where I don’t control my own destiny. So I’m making plans and starting to put some things into motion. Yes, I’m vague on purpose. But there’s a reason for that. I have certain interests to protect. But if you’re smart, you can probably read between the lines to figure out what I’m getting at. ;)

Quoth the Raven, Nevermore

That’s enough deep thinking for now. LOL I’m taking today off. I think I need the mental health day, plus I can finish up the contest and not have to worry with it this weekend. (And I have oodles of vacation time…may as well make use of it.) I want to focus some time on the kiddo and relaxing. And finishing Rome! It’s time to get back to writing.

Happy weekend.

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I Spy…

September 9, 2008 by

First – I’m blogging over at RomErotica today! Stop by and check out my post here.

…a CAT-CAT. Can you see him? He thinks he’s invisible while he hides from the kiddo. It cracks me up. I love the way his front paws are right together and the way he’s still up straight and completely still. hehe

Man came by last night. He’s grown fond of Sampson and he’s been giving me hell about what I feed him. Okay, I admit – I’m on a budget so I choose to buy food that is sort of in the middle of the price range. So… Man gave me money and told me to buy the Cat-Cat “better” food.

I did. And the cat seems happier, too. When I put his food in his dish the first time, he sniffed, took a bite, then mewed this little tiny meow. hehe It’s hairball control, so hopefully I won’t find disgusting presents on the carpet now.

Anyway… so I have a happy cat.

So my goal for finishing the YA Fantasy is November 1. I’ve also committed myself to writing at least 4 pages a day. I would like to shoot for finishing a chapter a week. That might be rather lofty, though, so I figured to start out with 4 pages. :D

Okay that’s it for me – it’s off to work and school!

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Whoa…it’s Thursday?

January 3, 2008 by

I totally missed Wordless Wednesday yesterday! And I had SUCH a great post for it, too.

Oh well.

My blogging the long post was much more important. I’m sure everyone was RIVETED with my theater story. Come on, now. You know you were!

Progress Report:

  • 1758 words on Tuesday, January 1
  • 1955 words on Wednesday, January 2

Go me!

Let’s hope I make that word count for today.

Yesterday was totally uneventful. Wait, that’s not right. Let me start over.

Yesterday was a weird-ass morning. See? I’ve already purged it from my brain. I got up on time, got ready for work. And since I had the kiddo still, I got him up at 7 am so I could get him ready to take to his grandmom. Well, I got him dressed and all that and then went out to the garage to start the car and get it warm.

As I walked back into the house throught he garage…BAM! I smacked the kiddo with the door! It scared the life out of me. He was fine. He looked shocked and surprised and I was freaking out. He said, very quickly, “I’m okay. It didn’t hurt.”

But I could tell he was trying hard not to cry and it was killing me. So I hugged and fussed and kissed and made a big deal out of it. But he was fine. It didn’t even leave a red mark so I didn’t hit him that hard.

Five minutes later, we headed for the car. He usually gets in first while I put my stuff in the front. He has a hard time getting his seatbelt buckled around his thick coat (and it was BLOODY COLD yesterday morning, too), so I usually do it. Well, he shut the car door seconds before I got to him.

So I opened it. And the little stinker was holding onto the handle and nearly fell out of the car!

Sheesh.

“What are you doing?!”

“HEY! I was holding on to that!” he shouts back.

He was using it as leverage to get up into his seat. Why he was on the floorboard of the car is beyond me.

I get him buckled. We get out of the house. The damn garage door won’t shut. I finally get it shut and have to get OUT of the car to stomp on the damn handle of the door to make it go down all the way (yeah, it’s still sick and doesn’t want to work right). Back in the car, get situated AGAIN, get the seatbelt on and we’re off.

Get to Grandmom’s house, drop him off. Hug and kiss and love on him and tell him to stay inside because it’s FREAKING cold outside (hey – 27 is cold for us Texans). He seems fine with it. I walk outside, get back in the car, get onto the road and am 2 seconds away from my cell phone rings.

It’s my child crying his eyes out because I didn’t “wave bye” to him. So I explained to him that I DID when I left him at the door and I gave him a hug and a kiss and it was okay because it was cold outside and he needed to stay inside. I talked him down. He was fine when we hung up a few minutes later.

But I got to work and felt like a total schmuck. I guess you have those days as a parent when you think – WHY THE HELL IS THIS SO HARD?

I think I have more gray hair.

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Out With the Old…

January 2, 2008 by

So. It’s now 2008. What does that mean for me?

Well, for starters…it means new writing goals I’m determined to stick to. That’s the biggest resolution I’ve made. Well, that and getting out of debt. But that’s always on the list. ;)

I tried to start the new year with a clean house. A clean desk. A clean office. Clutter-free. So far, so good! I got my newsletter out to my subscribers this morning as well. It’s all about goals!

But as for writing…I got this daily planner from a friend for Christmas. I’ve dubbed it my “writing planner” because I’m making daily notations in it on my daily word count. My goal every day is 1000 words. Today I wrote for an hour and I managed to get in… 1758 words. WOO! It felt good. I actually sat down and got into the story and wrote while my son played on the Wii and shouted to me from the living room. It proved that yes I can write with distraction.

I don’t know how well yet, though, since I haven’t proofed that chapter. hehe

As for 2008… I have a list of manuscripts I’d like to (a) finish and (b) write. I’m going to check them off as I get them done. I’d like to be finished with Take Me I’m Yours by the end of the week, but that may be pressing things a bit. We’ll see how it goes. If I can keep the momentum going, maybe I can get close. And since my kiddo will be with his dad this weekend, maybe I can knock it out.

My next order of business will be The Magic Within. Yes, that tired old thing. I’m determined. Even after six years of the on-again/off-again affair I’ve had with the story. I think I’ve finally figured it out. Of course, I could be fooling myself and it’ll all change again by the time I get to it.

In other news… took the kiddo to see National Treasure: Book of Secrets today. It was an annoying theater experience. I stood in the Slowest Concession Stand Line Known To Man. Seriously. I don’t think that kid could have gotten any slower. It was life-sucking. It made me want to mash in line. It made me want to fall on a sword. I’m sure you get the idea.

We FINALLY get through that line with our drink, candy and popcorn (and hey-I had a coupon for a free popcorn!) and then we had to stand in yet another line to wait for the theater to get cleaned so we could find our seats. We always sit at the very top row (because I hate when people kick my seat). People were still flooding into the theater wel after the house lights lowered. There wasn’t an empty seat in the place. (Except for the first two rows and who the hell wants to sit there?)

And by the time the previews started, I realized I had to visit the loo. I was shocked. This had never ever happened to me before. I always plan ahead because I (a) never want to leave the movie once it starts and (b) it’s hard to leave the theater when you have your six-year-old becuase you can’t leave him there and it’s a pain in the arse to take him with you. And since he’s so young, I can’t leave him alone nor can I not take him in the bathroom with me.

It’s a dilemma for sure. 

So I was miserable for just over two hours. I mean I was in serious bladder pain! And the movie just seemed to drag on and on and on. It wasn’t nearly as entertaining as the first one though I have to admit it was still somewhat entertaining. Helen Mirren was good and the guy who plays Riley is always humorous.  There was one really cool car chase in London but it lacked the action and adventure of the first one.

And I had to pee. Bad.

By the time the movie was over I ran to the nearest bathroom. And here’s what kills me. There was a line (of course!) and these two broads were standing there waiting while there were two empty stalls. Okay, so yeah. I’m gonna say something. And she looked at me as if the lightbulb in her head just went off. “Oh, yeah! Thanks!”

Daffy broad.

I’m sure this is way more information than anyone wanted…

Anyway, while waiting in line, my son says to me, “Mom, I can wait outside.”

Um. NO WAY.

As we were getting in the car, I explained to him why he has to go with me–becuase I can’t leave him alone since he’s too little.

“But, Mom,” he says, “I will just tell people not to take me.”

Yeah, I’m so sure that would work. So we had the Stranger-Danger talk again. And I think I got more gray hair.

Oh, and did I mention the incredibly creepy guy that was hanging around outside the theater? I noticed him as we walked up. He actually leered at me as I went by and said something. I squeezed my kid’s hand tighter and just kept walking, ignoring him. I was glad he was gone when we went back to the car.

Aside from all that – yeah! The movie was great!

So far 2008 has started off quite interesting…

P.S. I’ve totally given up on Zokutou word meter. It never seems to want to work anymore. So I’ve switched to using Writertopia’s. It works!

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