Onward I Go

Exciting news:  Azhar is Violet Eyes (#Genie) 

will be apart of 'Forever Onward! Review’s' debut issue.

Brand Yourself! Hey, Hey

Hello, I did a guest post for Writers and Authors.  

Here is the link: Brand Yourself.

Happy reading, writing or whatever:!)

Prologue to Violet Eyes (#Genie)

     Well, here it is the prologue to my YA novel 'Violet Eyes.'

   Azhar is Violet Eyes

     I will not die here.  Lisette pulled her knees to her chest, encircling them with her long arms as her gaze moved slowly about the space.  The inside of Azhar’s bottle differed greatly from the lavish, close quarters depicted in popular stories about genies she had read as a child.  Instead of an area drenched with vivid colors and lavish furnishings the bottle’s pit was devoid of bright tones.   And where she imagined plush pillows and heavy drapery there was hardness saturated with gloomy grays.  So Azhar was being truthful when he stated the bottle was his prison and not his home.  She drew her bent legs closer against her curvy body as a conversation she once had with Azhar reentered her mind.  
     “Is it true what they say about genies?”
     He had turned his deep violet eyes on her; they glowed brightly as his gaze slid over her caramel tinged hands.  “Yes, unable to kill our masters we at times have resorted to burning their hands.”
     She pulled her gaze away from his and slid her hands into the front pockets of her skirt.  “That’s an awful thing to do to a person.”
     “The hands,” Azhar said thoughtfully.  “Are rarely burned to the point where they drop off.”    
     Lisette let out a grunt.  “That doesn’t make it any less awful.”
     “I understand why you would think that is true.  But do you see our side of it?  We only do this because it is the touch of human hands that beckon us genies from our cells or as your breed likes to call them bottles.  An act, which signals an opportunity for us to bargain with you.  Our new master.  I grant you three or four wishes and in return you only have to grant my one wish.”
     Azhar had held up his end of the bargain.  For he had granted her wish for a home, another wish for her to have someone to share that home with and her final wish for a child to complete her family.  Yet when it came time for her to grant his single wish, she had refused to utter the words he had urged her to say.   She had no choice but to deny him what he so desperately wanted, for the sake of her kind. 
     If only I knew what he desired before I wished for any of it. 
     Lisette bit down hard onto her bottom lip a move that yanked her back in to the moment.  The dire reality of the situation was like canine teeth sinking deep into her flesh causing her body to quake with fear.  Azhar’s scent -sweet and smoky- was strong, overpowering.  She rubbed her arms hoping to keep his odor from seeping into her pores.  She did not want to carry any part of him with her.  As she rubbed, she noticed her hands.  She brought them up so that the little light that filtered in could act as a spotlight on them.  When she was seven her mother insisted she take up piano.  She detested having to devote so much time to learning the notes.  Yet now the thought of never feeling the smooth, ivory keys beneath her fingertips ever again forced tears to well up in her dark eyes. 
     As his master she knew Azhar could not kill her, just maim her.  But she also knew this rule did not extend to her loved ones.  Whenever her thoughts turned to her husband and child, she would steer them in another direction like seeking a way out of his bottle.  Unfolding her legs, she braced herself against the curve of the bottle as she pulled herself in to a standing position.  Squinting she looked directly at the beam of light filtering down.  Her gaze moved onto the surrounding walls, which contained crude shapes that jutted out.  Lifting her right foot onto one of the lower juts, she wrapped her fingers around two of the higher placed ones.  Just as she moved toward trying to climb out a searing, tugging pain crept across her face. 
     Her hands slipped from the juts as instinctively they moved to touch on the fiery skin of her cheeks.  She let out a moan as her body connected with the hard floor of the bottle.  The tugging sensation intensified.  Her fingers were pressed firmly against her face while the eyes blinked wildly as she tried to comprehend what was happening to her.  The skin under her hands cooled as the fiery feeling died down.  Slowly she let her fingers slip from covering her cheeks as the tugging, pulling sensation also edged away.  Her stare roamed the tight space as she sought out any reflective surface.  Spotting one her hands were quick to grasp it but slowed as they brought the rectangular object nearer to her face.  A lump rose in her throat.  She swallowed pushing it back down as she closed her eyes.  With the mirror directly in front of her she drew in a deep breath before raising the lids of her eyes.   Her full lips parted as the breath was released.  Nothing appeared wrong with her face.  No hideous burn marks as she had envisioned.  As relief washed over her, a piercing sound cut through the silence. 
     Her body jerked and the shattering sound of glass hitting the floor mingled momentarily with that of the offensive, rumbling noise.  She tried lifting her arms but could not.  Her body felt as if it were being crushed under the force of a great wave.  Just when she thought she could no longer bear it, the pressure was released.  She blinked and no longer was she down in the pit of Azhar’s bottle.  Instead, she found herself in a familiar place.  The dining room of her home.
     A near exact replica of herself was seated at the table next to her beloved husband.  Her infant child cradled in its arms.  She attempted a step and found that her body was frozen.  He had made her in to a living statue.  She could see her flesh was ashen in color like those angelic statuettes in the church graveyard.  The eyes of the replica were violet in color and she understood now why her face had felt hot and why it seemed as if it were being pulled off.  Azhar had concealed himself under a mask of her likeness and made her invisible to all eyes except for his piercing, violet ones.  An innocent family meal is what he used to draw all that she loved most to him.  Her gaze left his flaming eyes and went to where the entrance was.  Except for a single door leading to a hallway the formal dining room was closed off to the rest of the house.  She had to close that door.  Once confined to a small space Azhar would be powerless and his body would revert to smoke, which his bottle would beckon back.  Imprisoning him once again.       
     “Now will you speak the words Lisette?”  His voice was inside her head forcing her attention back on him. 
     A pool of tears formed in her eyes as her heart ached.  “No.”  The single word did not slide easily off her tongue.  Though barely a whisper it landed hard on the ears of Azhar angering him.  The mask of her likeness he wore fell away as his body reverted to fire.  Tears ran down from the face of Lisette.  Helplessly she watched as the flesh of her husband bubbled and fell from his bones.  Could do nothing as the pain stricken cries of her only child filled the space as its life was being consumed by Azhar’s angry blaze. 
     Once they were reduced to nothing more than ash swirling about her Azhar lifted his spell off her.  She knew he expected her to fall upon the floor weeping over her great loss.  Instead, she ignored the scent of charred flesh in her nostrils, the taste of her husband and child’s ashes in her mouth and focused on the image of them burning to death against the genie’s body.  Her aching heart knocked hard against her rib cage as she ran for the door. 
     She made it out of the room and had her hands on the door poised to push it shut when Azhar realized what was happening.  Within seconds, her hands began to burn.  The fire started at her fingertips and ran up toward her wrists.  She screamed but kept her flaming hands positioned on the door.  Using her whole body, she shoved the door.  It closed with a loud thud trapping Azhar inside.  The flames threatening to engulf her hands were quelled.  She heard screams but did not know if they were hers or Azhar’s as the bottle reclaimed him.
     When help arrived she insisted no one touch the beautifully, jeweled adorned bottle lying amongst the ashes of her family.  Later with her charred hands wrapped in gauze, she crudely handled a pair of tongs.  Using it to grip the bottle.  After dropping it a few times she managed to get the genie’s bottle inside a rectangular, wooden box.  With her elbow she slammed the lid shut then stepped aside to watch as her sister secured the lock.  That night they walked onto the end of a long pier. 
     As her sister threw the wooden box into the water the aching in Lisette’s heart eased a bit.  “For the sake of human kind I hope the sea never lets go of Azhar.”  

I am Tanya Yvonne and thanks so much for reading and sharing.

   
   

Newbie Writers: Take Two

‘Mediocre at Best’ is the title of one of aspiring poet Damien Boath’s poems but the work this tweet man and other half of NewbieWriters.com produces on their weekly podcast is anything other than mediocre.  Below is his take on such things as sizzling genres, his fave interviewee and why the site NewbieWriters.com is definitely worth checking out. 

  

Tanya Yvonne:  What’s different about NewbieWriters.com?
Damien Boath: The beauty about Newbie Writers is that it is portable. It has gone from a website that housed static articles on how to write and become published in magazines, to a popular blog and podcast. The podcast has really become the core of Newbie Writers and can be listened to on Itunes, Stitcher Radio, or via a pop out player on the site. That way you can fire up the latest podcast and keep browsing. You can hear us while you drive to work. Our aim is to provide constant content to motivate, to inform and to also keep it casual for people who are interested in writing. After all, talking about writing shouldn’t be boring! You don’t have to be a writer to listen to Newbie Writers. I am the newbie. I am not a published author and so I take on the roll of the audience. I am the ultimate Newbie and so I try to ask questions that I think us fellow newbies would ask. You shouldn’t need to invest the time in Newbie Writers, we are here to compliment the time YOU invest in your current writing project.

TY: I want names.  Favorite interviewee(s)?
DB: That’s a tough one because we have had so many guests it’s even hard to remember them all.  I would say Genese Davis (author of Holder’s Dominion) was a fantastic interview because I am a fellow gamer and the conversation was a really easy one. Dionne Lister (author of Shadows of the Realm) was another great guest and has been on a couple of times to fill in. Set the record for the first F-bomb on our show!

TY: Most recent read? 
DB:  Elfstones of Shannara by Terry Brooks. I am a fan of fantasy and tend to roll through the series of books I have every so often.

TY: Genre category that is trending up/down?  
DB: Well that’s a matter of personal taste. Genres such as romance and erotica are always ‘hot’ or popular. For me personally I am not a fan whatsoever. When it comes to genres that don’t seem to be prevalent of late I feel it’s horror. I seem to be seeing a lot of fantasy (thanks to Game of Thrones and The Hobbit revival) and less horror novels/books in bookstores etc. Vampire Romance (aka Twilight genre) is slowly dying thankfully. At the end of the day though, one should write what they are passionate about, a book will do well regardless of genre if the author not only writes well (that’s a given) but if they throw their weight, passion and every waking moment behind it. Sometimes one book can turn an icy genre into one that’s on fire.

TY: A yay or a nay for self-publishing?  
DB: I would say yay to self-publishing for a first time author. From what I gather, self publishing allows you to experience the world of taking a typed piece of work and converting it into a product. You have the choice to just pump it out in an e-book without a second thought whilst sipping on a cup of coffee, or you can spend the time formatting it into a short print on demand run.
Con: Everyone self publishes, and everyone thinks they will become rich off it. It is unlikely that will happen.  A con for both traditional publishing and self publishing: Your work (novel, novella, book, poetry anthology) becomes a product. One needs to see it from a business point of view. Sure you’ve done the hard yards and typed for countless nights on end to nurture your baby, but we hear time and time again from new authors that the work truly begins once the book is out. If you are not prepared to work hard on promotion and throw your passion behind the book, then it will fade into the 99 cent bin on Amazon and never get read.  

Happy reading, writing or whatever:-)

You Oughta Know

Catharine Bramkamp whose motto is, “From newbie to known” is one-half of NewbieWriters.com.  The site which houses her nationally known podcast, Newbie Writers Podcast.  After the lackluster performance of her debut title, The Boy and the Lion Catharine licked her wounds and found a new creative outlet in Newbie Writers.  Since then she has reached an international audience through her podcast, penned several other books which include: Death Revokes the Offer, Woman on the Verge of Wyoming and Don’t Write Like You Talk.  She also helms the site, Your Book Starts Here.  So whether you’re new to writing or perhaps looking to be enlightened keep reading because you oughta know.       

Tanya Yvonne:  NewbieWriters.com why should writers invest the time?
Catharine Bramkamp:  Writers learn all they can about their business and their world.  So we listen to podcasts and classes in the car, we read in our genre, we read out of our genre, we collect writing books, we belong to book clubs, we take classes, and we join writing organizations.  So for a newbie writer, a good introduction to this world would be to listen to Newbie Writers Podcast and sign up for the Newbie Writers Guide blog feed, both the blog and the podcast focuses on making it easier to be a writer today.

TY:  Favorite interviewee?  
CB:  Our favorite interviews are with writers and publishers who are willing to engage in a conversation and are comfortable with going off their script to just talk.
 
TY:  What do you mean by, “going off their script?”
CB:  We want to deliver real people and real information to our listeners and so we are not interested in interviewees who insist on controlling the interview by sticking to a written script and pre-written questions.  We like spontaneity and yes, a little craziness! 

TY:  Which genre is boiling hot and which one is on ice?
CB:  One of the challenges in writing is to resist the latest trend.  Once you’ve reviewed a dozen vampire books, then another dozen business books promising four-hour workweeks, you think, that’s what I should write because it’s hot.  It’s not hot, by the time these books hit the books shelves or the top 100 on Amazon, the subject is over: cold and dead. Our job as creatives is to think of the NEXT hot item, and it’s not fifty shades of anything.  The best thing a writer can do is write what you love, write what you want to bring into the world, write what you want to make sure everyone knows.  And bring that originality to the table.  Certainly follow trends, but don’t try to follow them too closely, you want to be different and new.

TY:  Title of the last book you read? 
CB:  Walt Whitman, A Cultural Biography

TY:  Self-publishing, can I have a pro and a con?
CB:  Pro:  Self-publishing gets your book out quickly for a low cost.  Ebooks should always be self-published, it’s easy and the books will actually earn some money.  Self-publishers earn more money per book.  Amazon and Create Space, along with Smashwords makes the distribution of your books and ebooks fairly trouble free.

Con:  Self-published titles are not easily distributed into bookstores and it is lonely.  A hybrid, boutique or traditional publisher can help find good editors, book coaches and cover artists.  More traditionally minded publishers will feature your book in catalogues and place the book in bookstores.  Self-published books are not promoted by anyone but the writer. Which is the biggest challenge of self-publishing: All the promotion is up to the author -  and if there is one thing authors hate to do, is promotion, followed closely by sales, taxes and death.  Not necessarily in that order.

             Well, now you know.  Happy reading, writing or whatever:!)

Mad About You ‘Mad Men’

     Someone once described a personal essay, a piece based on a childhood memory of one significant Fourth of July, I wrote as being “too safe.”  This criticism both baffled and angered me.  In the essay I had wrote how it was a miracle my father did not lose an eye or a limb as he chugged down a beer he held in one hand and lit firecrackers with the other.  The criticism upset me because I got the sense that the reader wanted to see something more shocking written there.  Like a passage about him chasing us around in a drunken rage threatening to set us on fire (for the record something like this never happened). 
    As time passed and I continued writing this early dig still gnawed at me.  It was not until after I became a mother and the length of my free time shrinking forced me to watch my favorite shows like ‘Mad Men’ in marathon weekend sessions did it finally click with me as to what that reader really wanted from my essay.  She wanted to know how I felt in that moment watching my father nursing a can of something that impaired his judgment while handling beautifully packaged explosives with his wife and children only inches away, cheering him on.  How my young mind went about processing what I saw was the true area of interest.  Take for instance the character Sally Draper portrayed by +Kiernan Shipka on ‘Mad Men.’
    This character fascinates me because I love seeing how a young girl is internalizing this very adult world around her.  For example this one scene during season five when she stumbles upon her step-grandmother performing a lewd act on her father’s business partner.  She deduces that New York is a dirty place.  I’ve learned that it is crucial for me to convey how key events in the lives of my characters are helping to mold them that the reader not only wants to see the world through their eyes for a time but to also slip under their skin, to know things about them they try so hard to keep hidden away.  Don Draper played by +Jon Hamm is a great example.  Once he has a dream in which he strangles a woman he had an affair with during his second marriage.  The scene expresses to the viewer that Don is struggling with being faithful to wife number three and that she is unaware of this inner conflict.  Those aforementioned episodes are why I, Tanya Yvonne, am mad about ‘Mad Men’.

  Happy reading, writing, or whatever:!)

“What? I Thought Every Writer Knew This” Said the Snarky Editor

The running theme of this year’s James River Writers Conference, in my opinion, was the significance of first pages.  Panelists which consisted of agents, editors and authors all stressed the importance of getting right what should be in those first pages of your manuscript as well as what should not be in there.  How what is at stake, where the story is taking place and whom the character is we should care about had all better be laid out concisely right out of the gate.  The annual JRW conference is an affordable wealth of knowledge.  Do not forget I am on Twitter.  Click here: TY 

Happy reading, writing or whatever:!)

VIOLET EYES

Who? Tanya Yvonne:-)

Tweet, Tweet Tanya Yvonne

I am currently gearing up for the annual James River Writers (JRW) conference:!)  Also, I have been Tweeting a lot lately click here: TY to follow me.  And my logo has gotten a makeover.  It will soon be unveiled:-)  Busy, yet fun summer for me.  I will be tweeting throughout the JRW conference, which will take place in October.    

 Happy reading, writing or whatever:!)

                              

A Jolt of Scottimism

Illustration by RH Lazzell
www.pantsandfootfoot.com

Update: Scott & Lazzell's debut book will arrive in 2014 by Dial Books for Young Readers.  Yay:!)
Scott McCormick has a daughter who attends the same preschool as JaeLynn.  After dismissal a group of us sometimes head down to a nearby park.  It was here where I soon found out that Scott too was an aspiring author.  After pelting him with a few soft questions regarding his children's book, The Other Side of the Story I became intrigued enough to want to profile him here on my little blog.  But as the weeks mounted and more conversations ensued it became harder for me to pinpoint an angle.  It was not until I was laying around one Sunday gorging myself on, "Sex and the City" reruns, avoiding my latest manuscript, when something Ms. Bradshaw said struck a chord with me.  It was one of those episodes where cynicism towards love was nipping at Carrie impeding her writing while Charlotte, despite also having been unlucky in love, remained optimistic towards the subject which baffled Carrie.  As the episode ran I saw my dilemma with the Scott post mirrored there.  Scott is like that Charlotte character.  Even when I bombarded him with questions that brought to mind the possibility that he would never receive the phone call (you know that one where a dream agent is on the other end) Scott remained optimistic, always with a casual shrug of the shoulders offering up a plan B type of answer.  So for those of you out there feeling the spindly legs of cynicism crawling upon your shoulders keep reading to get your jolt of  Scottimism:-)
  
Scott McCormick is the author of, The Other Side of the Story a children’s book with illustrations by RH Lazzell  

Tanya Yvonne:  How did the concept for your book come about?
Scott McCormick:  The book is based on a cat I used to have named Mr Pants.  He was a very precocious animal who used to have all sorts of adventures in my old neighborhood in Philadelphia. He seemed like an obvious inspiration for a children's book; however, when I tried to write one based on his real-life adventures, he suddenly didn't seem very interesting. After all, in kid's books, animals do all sorts of wild and crazy things.  Snoopy gets into dogfights with the Red Baron... Mr Pants once got on a Septa bus. Not very interesting.  So I shelved it.
Years later I was reading a book to my daughter that had dinosaur colors on one side and then you flipped the book over and it had dinosaur numbers on the other side.  It occurred to me that, while this type of book format (which I now know is called Tête-bêche) was interesting, this particular book didn't take the concept all the way.  After all, they just stuck two books together.  So I had a flash of inspiration that you could use this format to tell one story from two different perspectives and I even came up with the title in the same breath.  It took me a few days to realize that this would be the perfect vehicle for Mr Pants, cast as a stand-in for my kids.
His antagonist, Foot Foot, was another cat of mine.

TY:  Have you considered a non-traditional route to publishing?
SM:  I have.  Still am.  My illustrator and I are trying the traditional route first, but if we fail we'll self-publish.  Self-publishing today is very different from what it was even just five years ago.  It's now very easy to get your book sold on Amazon, iTunes, etc.  Getting people to find your book and buy it is another matter, but that doesn't seem like a huge obstacle to me.  At least then you're in control.  Plus self-publishing is faster and the royalties are better.  Wait, why am I trying to get a publishing deal again?

TY:  Are those around you supportive, understand what you are trying to accomplish with your writing?
SM:  My family has been unbelievably supportive.  Especially my kids, who are my main editors.  If they don't laugh, then I know I've missed the mark.

TY:  Are you working on any other book ideas?
SM:  Well, I'm always writing new Mr Pants books.  I have ten or so written and ideas for more.  I'm also working on something totally different but that's not developed enough to discuss.

TY:  Have you attended any writers conferences?  How was this experience for you? 
SM:  I attended SCBWI (a conference specifically for children's book authors and illustrators) in NYC this past January.  I enjoyed the show very much and learned quite a lot.  I'm not the most outgoing person in the world so I probably didn't meet as many people as I could have but I did wind up making some good contacts, both other writers and people in the business.

TY:  What was the take away?
SM:  One take away for me is that I got in touch with an agent thanks to my having attended this show and this has been very productive so far.  I hear this from lots of people, btw.  Agents and editors who say they're not open to submissions will often make an exception for conference attendees.

TY:  Would you advise others to attend such conferences?
SM:  Well, it certainly couldn't hurt.

TY:  What has this whole process taught you about yourself?  And has it changed how you approach writing?
SM:  Not sure how to answer either question.  I've been trying to "make it" for years now.  By "make it" I mean get accepted by the establishment.  This started back when I was in a band and we tried to get signed.  Then I tried writing and selling screenplays.  And now it's children's books. This is the first time where I feel like I really have a hit on my hands.  We'll see, of course.  But in the past people would say "oh that's nice" but I could tell they were just being polite.  But people have gone out of their way to tell me how much they dig Mr Pants.  We've even had people steal copies of the book off the print shop floor, which I see as a great compliment.  After all, I couldn't give away copies of my CD.

TY:  Have you started thinking of your book as a product yet?  Do you get why it is important to do so?
SM:  Yes, and I think, if we ever get a publishing deal, it will be because of that.  In my query letters I've been focusing on what makes my book different, who it appeals to, how easily it can be scaled for other media, merchandising possibilities, etc.  I work in marketing, so this is right up my alley.  Perhaps that's why self-publishing doesn't seem that intimidating to me.

TY:  Do you belong to any writing groups?
SM:  No. Maybe I should?  That doesn't appeal to me but maybe it's because I've never done it.

TY:  Describe your book using only one sentence. 
SM:  THE OTHER SIDE OF THE STORY tells the tale of two cats’ struggle to play with the same toy: Read Mr Pants’ version of events then flip the book over to get his sister Foot Foot’s side of the story.

TY:  How hard was it for you to do that?
SM:  Very hard.  I cheated through use of a colon.

TY:  Knowing what you know now pass along what you feel is a key piece of advice.
SM:  Well seeing as I've sold a total of three copies of my book, I don't know that I can give advice to anyone.  But something I've learned from other people who have been successful is that you should write the book you're dying to read.

TY:  How do you deal with rejection? 
SM:  I don't know how I deal with it. So when I started sending out query letters at first all I got was a lot of nothing.  No response at all.  This was far worse than rejection.  After all, I didn't know if the people even got my query, or what, if anything they didn't like about it.  Nothing.  That was maddening.  So when I got my first rejection letter I was actually pretty psyched.  I've gotten a few since then and been much less psyched about it.  But not disheartened.  Mostly mystified.  Why can't these people see how awesome this thing is?  I'm only half joking when I say that.  I mean, the illustrations and the format alone are worth at least saying "close but no cigar. show me something else."  Finally an agent did say that to me and we're going back and forth a bit with some ideas.  Nothing's settled yet so it's too early to really say anything but we'll see.

TY:  Is there an up side to a rebuff?
SM:  So the upside to rejection is: At least it's a response!  Maybe it builds character, too.  I don't know.

TY:  Give me a fun or interesting tidbit about you.  Mine is that I am obsessed with reruns of,  “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” 
SM:  Love that show even though I normally hate comedy based on uncomfortable situations. Like Ben Stiller movies.  Not that I have a problem with him but "Meet the Parents" physically hurt me.  I couldn't watch it.
Interesting tidbit about me: I love bad horror movies.

TY:  If you had to start this process over again, how would you do it differently?
SM:  I don't know that I'd change anything.  Yet.  Check back with me in a few years when I'm old and bitter.

TY:  What is next for you?
SM:  World domination.

TY:  Is your work available for purchase anywhere?
SM:  Not yet.  But soon it'll be required reading.  You know, after I take over the world.  Kind of like Mao's little red book.  But it'll be Scott's Little Pants Book.

TY:  Do you have an end game?  How long before you come to the conclusion that this is just not going to happen and you stop querying your current manuscript(s)?
SM:  Well that won't happen because we'll just self-publish.  And then we'll publish the next one and the next one after that until we get tired of it.
Now that’s Scottimism:!)  

Happy reading, writing or whatever:)

NaNoWriMo: National Novel Writing Month

For many of you the arrival of October signals that the holidays are just around the corner.  Though for us writers it also signifies that NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) will soon be kicking off.  Ah it is that time when procrastinators near and far hunker down and pledge to stop putting off beginning or continuing work on that great novel and get serious about filling numerous blank pages with at least 50,000 words in 30 days.  Really serious about this ambitious effort?  Great, just go to the NaNoWriMo site and officially sign up to be a participant.  Do not forget 11/01/11 is the kick off date.  Good Luck:!)

Happy reading, writing or whatever:)

Vanessa's View

In the past I had the pleasure of interviewing author Vanessa Van Petten.  A dialogue in which I posed questions from my view as an unpublished writer.  Well now Ms. Petten is back here at www.TanyaYvonne.blogspot.com with juicy tidbits about her new parenting book, Do I Get My Allowance Before or After I’m Grounded? and this time we get her view:!) 

By Vanessa Van Petten, creator of RadicalParenting.com a parenting website written from the teen perspective to help parents understand them.

When I was 16 I thought it was my Dad’s goal in life to make me miserable. I was convinced that he had a running list of all the ways he could embarrass me in front of my friends, trick me into doing more chores or make my curfew earlier.

Our relationship would have continued to devolve until one day I saw my Dad reading a parenting book. I flipped through it while my Dad was in the bathroom and realized a lot of the things he did that drove me crazy he was getting right out of this book! I looked at the other parenting books on our shelves and realized that they were all written by adults. I wondered—has anyone ever asked teens to write to their parents?

Video: Author Video: Vanessa Van Petten
I decided to build a website where teens could answer questions and write to parents called RadicalParenting.com.  I couldn’t believe how quickly it grew and how happy both teens were to get their voices out and parents were to have a new outlet for connecting with their kids! We now have over 120 teen writers who give advice.

Teenagers, when given a neutral space LOVE talking to parents and often offer some of the best insight because they are going through it themselves. We have also be so excited to help parents who feel like they cannot reach their kids and teens.

I think teens and parents can work together to overcome their differences and learn to work best together. We have just come out with our book: Do I Get My Allowance Before or After I’m Grounded and it is a radical approach to parenting because it is written from the kid’s perspective! We would love for you to check it out—if you are brave enough to see what kids have to say!

What is this book about?
So, you have to forget the old parenting book approach - this book gives parents a totally new way to reach their teenagers because it's the only book that tweens and teens helped write - so we are hearing first-hand advice that actually works! It gets right to the heart of the problems and offers straightforward prescriptive - and effective advice. This is a very different approach to parenting that tackles these modern problems.
 
What makes this book different?
Before now there has only been resources written from one side of the family equation....the adults. This is the first book that gets both sides talking. What's more, the book goes a step further by using techniques that human lie-dectectors use: What does a teenager's face look like when they are lying? What questions do parents need to ask to get the truth?

You are not a parent, what experience helps you write this book?
Actually me not being a parent is what makes teenagers feel comfortable opening up to me about what they really need from their parents. It allows me to be a translator for what parents need, what teens need and then bringing the two together so they can be on the same side.

You are not a doctor, what experience helps you write this book?
There are already amazing resources out there from doctors and psychologists, we take a very different approach to parenting. We believe that for most families there are really simple miscommunications happening that we just need to decode. With this book, I teach parents what kids really mean when they say, "I don't care" or "Can I have a later curfew." This is advice from teens in the trenches of family life.

Here is what Publisher’s Weekly had to say:

“Van Petten, founder of the popular Web site RadicalParenting.com, offers parents a candid view of the contemporary teen’s world in this eye-opening text. Van Petten uses actual stories about teens and their often anxious, angry, or befuddled parents to introduce each chapter. Pointing out that she is neither a parent nor a teen (nor a doctor, therapist, or counselor), the college-grad author has nevertheless earnestly investigated her subject and includes current research on teens as well as hundreds of “real quotes, interviews, e-mails and advice from actual teens.” Van Petten explores a variety of timely subjects, including peer relationships, teen/parent communication, bullying, technology, and “risky business” (smoking, drinking, sex, and more). Her outlook on technology and “Internet savvy” is particularly incisive, emphasizing not only the hazards of “time-suck” activities (i.e., Facebook, chatting on IM, and texting) but also the many social and academic benefits of the digital universe. Like a crafty spy, Van Petten comfortably segues from parent to teen perspective, and while noting that each adolescent is unique, she skillfully opens doors to the collective teen psyche. “
–Publishers Weekly

Vanessa Van Petten is one of the nation's youngest experts, or 'youthologists' on parenting and adolescents. She now runs her popular parenting website, RadicalParenting.com, which she writes with 120 other teenage writers to answer questions from parents and adults. Her approach has been featured by CNN, Fox News, and Wall Street Journal. She was also on the Real Housewives of Orange County helping the housewives with troubled teens. Her next book, "Do I Get My Allowance Before or After I'm Grounded?" is being released in September 2011 with Plume Books of Penguin USA.

What’s All the Buzz About?

Tina Wells Buzz Marketing Group Founder.  She is the It Girl of getting the word out about must have products and the author of the Mackenzie Blue series for tweens. 

Tanya Yvonne:  How did the concept for Mackenzie Blue come about?
Tina Wells:  I was doing research on tweens and their moms at the time. I found that moms felt material such as the Gossip Girl series was too controversial. While they loved that their girls were reading, there was a dilemma of how to keep their tweens entertained with content appropriate for their age group. As a marketer and a writer, I thought I could come up with a solution to the “mean girl” culture, hence Mackenzie Blue. During my Christmas holiday, I developed the story and wrote the proposal in two weeks and showed it to a few friends in the business. Fortunately, one of my clients is an editor at a publishing company. She referred me to an agent to sell the concept of Mackenzie Blue.

TY:  You had built this successful business prior to penning the Mackenzie Blue series and brand extension is what you do, so while composing the first book did you make sure to craft it in such a way that it would indeed be marketable?
TW:  I learned that if I focus more on creating something a customer will want, it would, by definition, be marketable. Often times, products are marketed to people that they neither want nor need. However, in the case of the Mackenzie Blue series, there is a definite want and need. I focused more on what girls were going through at the age of 12 and created a brand the customer would want.

TY:  What hurdles did you face during the writing and publishing process if any?  How did you deal with them?
TW:  I am fortunate to have a fantastic agent and publishing company that provided an amazing experience this first time around. The only challenge I had during the entire process was time management. I had to dedicate myself to developing a brand and running an entire company.

TY:  One teen understanding what it takes to successfully market products to other teens is understandable, even as a twentysomething but now as you delve in to your thirties do you ever worry about there being a perception of a disconnect between you and your core base of teens?
TW:  No, and that’s mainly because of the 9,000 buzzspotters around the world. It’s been my role to serve as a liaison between teens and companies that market and target them. At 31, I listen to thousands of teens about what they want so no, I do not see a difference.

TY:  There are many unpublished writers -like myself- whose blogs are growing in popularity are there any services that you offer which could create some buzz for a brand that is still in its infancy?
TW:  Yes, Buzz Marketing Group offers private consulting services for clients who do not have the budget for a larger marketing campaign.

TY:  How important was it for you to develop a charitable side to your business with ventures such as Project Friends and SisterHood, Inc?
TW:  I think cause marketing and social responsibility are very important to this generation as a whole. It’s not just about the projects but also about my role on board committees for The Franklin Institute and the Philadelphia Orchestra.

TY:  Please pass along a piece of advice you wish you had received at the start of your endeavors.
TW:  I don’t have any. I am fortunate to get good advice from my parents. I would say that the best advice from my Dad was, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”

TY:  Writers deal with a lot of rejection how have you handled any professional disappointments? 
TW:  I think it’s about brushing it off and constantly moving forward. The difference in starting a company at 16 is you don’t really register the disappointments. I just kept moving.

TY:  What is your favorite thing about your new book, Chasing Youth Culture and Getting it Right?
TW:  As a whole, I like it because it helps people understand a misunderstood generation.

TY:  What is next for you?
TW:  What’s next is growing the agency and creating more multimedia projects.

Girls of Summer

Looking for a good summer read?  Well check out writers Gigi Amateau and Meg Medina's new blog, Girls Of Summer. 

Happy reading, writing or whatever:!)

Chasing Jane

As contributing editor for Writer’s Digest, a visiting assistant professor at the University of Cincinnati, full-time professor at College-Conservatory of Music in its e-media department and --yes there is more-- chair of the award snagging There Are No Rules blog Jane Friedman is publishing’s cool authority.

Tanya Yvonne:  Prior to the start of a writers’ conference I am nervous (really nervous) yet optimistic, what are your emotions?
Jane Friedman:  I'm usually speaking at writers conferences, so I look forward to meeting or networking with the other speakers, as well as seeing writers who I may know only from their online personas.  It's an excellent time to get out from behind the computer screen, and be present with people.

TY:  How important are Blogging, Facebook and Twitter to the new crop of wannabe writers?
JF: The No. 1 priority for new writers—especially fiction writers—is to read and to write (practice).  After that, you should be getting feedback on your work from trusted peers or mentors.  The social media must be a part of every writer's career, of course, but sometimes I worry that writers get too distracted by the Internet to focus on the real work of writing.

TY:  What was the one moment professionally that made you doubt yourself? What pulled you out from it?
JF:  There were a couple months, after I was promoted to publisher of Writer's Digest, that I worried about my ability to grasp the financials of the business, and to put together credible forecasts and budgets.  I really had no one to train me on these duties, and I don't have a business background. However, if you sit in enough meetings where these issues are discussed, and ask the right questions of people who are willing to help, you learn the game.  It's no different than anything else in life. Persist and don't be afraid to ask for help when you need it.

TY:  I am aware of Beginning Writer’s Answer Book yet have you written any fiction? If not what would the Friedman novel read like?
JF:  I wrote some fiction in college, but it's a genre that doesn't interest me any longer.  If I did write fiction, it would probably be like an Alain de Botton or Milan Kundera novel.  Heavily philosophic and pondering.

TY:  Quick, we are in a crowd about to be separated and there is one bit of key advice you wish for me to pass on to other aspiring authors what is it?
JF:  It's about determination, not talent.

TY:  What form does procrastination take for you?  For me it is munching on Spicy Doritos dipped in fat free cream cheese while watching Sex and the City reruns. You?
JF:  I tend to cycle through TV series. Right now, it's Firefly and Six Feet Under.  In a couple months, it'll probably be Deadwood.

TY:  Should the yet to be published be troubled by the demise of traditional books and Borders' bankruptcy filing?
JF:  I wouldn't be troubled.  I would just realize that the model for successful authorship is changing. These days, you don't necessarily have to be selected by a traditional publisher, or have your books distributed in print form, to sell books.  You can do it on your own if you know how to reach your audience.

TY:  Should self-publishing even be on an authors list of options?
JF:  It's a more viable option than ever. Just read JA Konrath's blog to see why.

TY:  Is it wise to post chunks of an unpublished novel online?  I often wonder why writers do this when my first instinct is to keep my work close to me.
JF:  It depends. First you have to ask: What you want to accomplish by sharing or posting your work online?  Posting your work online isn’t going to lead to a traditional book publishing deal—at least not by itself.

But: You're not killing your chances of traditional publication when posting your work online, no matter what the reasoning behind it.  But you might be wasting your time.  There’s not much point in posting it unless you have a strategy or goal in mind, and a way to measure your success.  If you have no interest in marketing your work and connecting with readers after posting your stuff online, don’t do it.

TY:  Freelance work, I know you cover this in your book, is it a good way for newbies to build publishing credentials?
JF:  For fiction writers, freelance work isn't unlikely to make a difference in getting a novel publishing, aside from giving you writing practice.

TY:  How could one use available technologies to find good opportunities for such work?
JF:  Several sites are helpful in identifying freelance opportunities: LinkedIn.com, MediaBistro.com, and JournalismJobs.com are a few good places to start.

TY:  Moreover, does it necessarily have to be a paying gig? For instance through your blog I discovered, Words with Jam which welcomes work from new writers but offers no pay.
JF:  Every writer has to make that decision for themselves.  Sometimes reaching a new audience is valuable enough that you'll want to put the time and energy into it.  As you gain experience and credentials, then it's wiser to save your time and energy for paying opportunities.

TY:  Every frustrated writer should read your post, You Hate Your Writing? That’s a Good Sign!soooooo true.  I stopped working on my latest manuscript because I could see how I was forcing the story just to stay within a time frame.  But reading through it I could literally spot the sentence where the forcing began. Therefore, I walked away from it not sure if I would go back to the story.  Fast forward a few weeks and the words, the right words, came to me and I have resumed work.  The next day there was your blog post on spotting crap.  During those few weeks I had panicked unsure of what was happening.  I knew it was not writer’s block because I was still able to write but that it was something else.  Do you think my reaction is a common one?  Now that I know what it is and how it feels I must admit that I dread another such episode.  I want the story to just flow from me like the others.  The ones that were not published, oh, okay now I get it.  

Your ability to spot crap in other’s work is that how you got one of your nicknames, Dream Crusher?
JF:  Your reaction is very common.  Try not to dread its arrival, just don't be surprised when it happens, and know that it will pass.  This is really why success is about determination, and not talent.

The nickname, Dream Crusher, arose out of a conversation I had with my landlord.  When he learned that I worked in publishing, he asked if I rejected a lot of people.  I said that I did, that I was regularly crushing people's dreams.  Next time I saw him, he introduced me to his friends as the "Dream Crusher."

TY:  Blogging for me is a form of writing exercise that tightens my craft.  Do you agree with this sentiment?
JF:  Anything that pushes you to write more often will help you improve your craft.  So yes.

TY:  While attending a writers’ conference I witnessed one person storming off and at least two others nearly brought to tears during their novel pitch critiques. In the beginning, we authors seem to have such an emotional attachment to our works.  Isn't it true that for most of us publication will not happen until we learn to let go and think of it as a product we are trying to market?
JF:  You are exactly right. I could not have said it better myself!

TY:  I always like to end with looking ahead so what is next for you?
JF:  I am working on a new book for writers, to be released by Writer's Digest in 2012.

Vanessa Van Petten:!)

Sex, drugs and pop topics that most adults try to avoid having teen and tweens write about, but Vanessa Van Petten is building an empire by having them do just that.  One of 100 top bloggers to watch well according to Women’s Magazine anyway at 25 years-old she is a self-proclaimed youthologist.  A person who is in the know regarding all things teen and tween.  She blogs at RadicalParenting.com where she enlists the raw talent of numerous teen writers.  If you think you can’t learn anything from her, think again.  At 25 she has already self-published two books, is on the cusp of releasing her first traditionally published book and travels the world speaking to groups interested in her unique brand of knowledge.  
                                   Tanya Yvonne: What propelled you to write, Your Grounded!       
Vanessa Van Petten: I was angry at my parents and other parenting books that I thought were very out of touch with what real teens wanted. I wrote You're Grounded for a new perspective.  

TY: Did it go through several revisions?
VP: YES! At first it was just teens then as I started adding to it I wanted to hear from parents. Then three years later I went back and interviewed teens once they had grown up a bit and asked if anything had changed. This gave it a real rounded out feeling.

TY: Was self-publishing your first choice or did you first try the traditional route?
VP: I didn't even try to get a traditional publisher. I heard in self-publishing you can make more money and have control. I am glad I did it for my first book, but will most likely stick with traditional publishers in the future (I have a book coming out with Penguin/Plume in the Fall!)

TY: Why self-publish the second book, Radical Family Workbook and Activity Journal for Parents, Kids and Teens also?
VP: I wanted more control and bigger margins. Although my book has done extremely well for a self-published book, I quickly learned that really you just get more work and less sales when you self-publish.   

TY: What was your major in college?
VP: I was a political science and Chinese double major. I thought I might do investment banking until I realized I could never give up writing or helping teens and parents.

TY: How did RadicalParenting.com come to be?
VP: When I turned 21 I realized that I was no longer a teen and the whole premise of my platform was to provide advice from the teen perspective. I started RadicalParenting to continue to give teens a voice for parents.

TY: Did you always hold the vision that your site would be in the form as it is today?  Meaning shaped by a bunch of talented youths versus just yourself?
VP: It has really stayed on the path that I wanted for it except on a much larger scale, which I feel very lucky for.


TY: How important has blogging been to the writing aspect of your career?
VP: Blogging has been a great practice platform for my writing. I write fiction, non-fiction and self-help and blogging is a great practice stage. It is also an awesome way to reach people in a bite-sized format.

TY: Dish, what was your biggest professional disappointment?  Ever a moment when you doubted yourself and how did you rebound? 
VP: I actually keep a failure file of my failures and what I learned from them. A big one for me would be the failure of a project I started called Rrules.com. I wanted it to be a website where both teens and parents vote on their favorite house rules and it was a wiki so both parents and teens write advice together. It just never took off...time, money, it just didnt work. I decided to cut my losses and go with what worked. Thank goodness Radical Parenting was going strong. 

TY: Are there any services that you offer for writers like myself who want to get to that next level?
VP: Yes, I do help authors get their book out there and I help authors build their platform if they want to sell a book. Publishers want authors with audiences and sometimes you need to build a blog before selling. You can check out my services for authors and bloggers here: Parenting Author Partnerships

TY: Your prior books were self-published, yet with your third you have a traditional publisher.  How different is your publishing experience turning out to be this time around? 
VP: It is sooooo much easier. Everyone told me it would be terrible working with a publisher, but I have found the opposite. Now, I have not started selling the book yet so I still have more to learn as I know even with publishers authors do a lot of the work anyway. But, already it was worth it. Getting an advance was great. Having a editing and marketing team behind you for cover and design and layout. It's really great (right now at least). 

TY: Do you feel constricted at all in regards to how you have to present the content?
VP: A little. For example I wanted to have subheadings in my chapters but my editor was not a big fan. Not a big deal, but I definitely had to give that desire up. They have also been really accommodating to me in other areas about my content.

TY: Do you feel that you are an example of where publishing is headed?  Because in the beginning you kind of broke the rules by putting out the first two books yourself, then used the internet to gain the spotlight before finally obtaining a traditional book deal.
VP: YES! Publishers either want famous people or authors with a following online. I think building your platform is essential to selling a book or getting a good deal from them. 

TY: Do you feel that in addition to writing something publishable an author today also has to consider branding? Like with you, when I see your name I instantly think of teen parenting expert.
VP: Branding is big. But branding is big for everyone, not only authors. I think it is important to stay true to your voice and your passions. If you are all over the place you confuse publishers AND readers. 

TY: Please give me details about the new book.
VP: It is: Do I Get My Allowance Before or After I'm Grounded? The title is a mouthful but we wanted something funny and this title was actually submitted by one of my teens. It is a very untraditional guide in to the world of teens and how to reach them as a parent. It will be out in September!

TY: What is next for you?
VP: Working on getting the book out there and always doing blogging. I also work with a lot of brands on their branding for teens and parents. I hope to be writing a lot more book--both fiction and non-fiction hopefully!

Publish Like a Rock Star:!)

You have heard of partying like a rock star, well how about publishing like one?  One evening I was hunched over my laptop click clacking away at my latest manuscript when the phrase, “JWoww’s book” yanked my attention away.  I scrambled for the remote control and fumbled yet managed to click the volume up in time to hear most of the segment on MTV reality star turned author, Jennie “JWoww” Farley.  My mouth fell open from utter disbelief and, yes I must admit, envy.  While I, Tanya Yvonne have spent the last few years conceptualizing, writing, reading and revising Ms. JWoww and other reality stars like her have been putting themselves out there, breaking rules and scoring book deals because of it.  Moreover, by adopting a publish like a rock star type of attitude we aspiring authors can too.

First, create an alter ego.  Mine is TANYAYVONNE.  Accompanied by jazz hands the name flashes in my head just like that.  When she comes out, I am no longer just some wannabe writer but the writer that everyone wants to know.  Suddenly I have the moxy to send out e-mails requesting interviews from notables in publishing for this little blog.  Normally prior to making contact, I would have researched how others went about obtaining interviews.  However, with a newly adopted publish like a rock star attitude I assumed that I would grab their attention, simply went for it and in most instances succeeded.  Next is to brand thyself.

The Situation became a reality rock star by boozing and fist pumping the night away.  Instead of trying to class up his act to move toward sharing a stage with more traditional stars he embraced the public’s perception of him and is now using it to market himself.  I am well aware of the fact that people do not view me as the intellectual type, despite my college degree and having read through James Joyce’s, Ulysses: )  Ordinarily I would have wasted valuable time trying to convince everyone of otherwise.  Yet with my publish like a rock star attitude instead I happily accept the view others have of me and even try to find ways to exploit it.  Like with this piece entitled, Does This Genre Make My Writing Look Phat?   Last but not least, make sure to be wherever the “party” is taking place.

For reality rock stars the “party” is a red carpet where there is a chance for a photo opt, for aspiring authors like us it is a writers conference where you have the opportunity to have your printed name grazed by the eyes of an agent or editor.  So the next time logic threatens to stop you from making a bold move towards being published, pause, summon forth your alter ego and set about publishing like a rock star.
                

Yeah, but I Know why I'm not Published

A couple of weeks ago I was chatting with someone who I shall refer to as Mrs. Blind.  During the course of this conversation, she told me that her husband had just finished his first book and it had only taken him a few months to write.  I remarked something like now the fun part, revisions.  Mrs. Blind gave me a curious look before informing me that Mr. Blind had already begun trying to get it published.  Suddenly I knew what it felt like to be an emergency room nurse as question after question tumbled from my mouth as I tried to come up with a diagnosis.  Some reason as to why Mr. Blind had sent out a first draft.  However, it only took one question from Mrs. Blind to force me to stop, “I thought you just had a blog you do for free?”  After I fixed my face with a polite smile, I gathered my child and excused myself.  It was then that I realized that she, like her husband, was blind to the true inner workings of the publishing world.

There is not a week that goes by where I am not asked about the status of my book.  The book in question could be any of the three I have already completed or the fourth one that I am currently working on.  Book number one was self published.  I managed to find a PR firm to represent it, muscled my way in to several local Barnes & Noble Booksellers, scored an invite to the first local Books in the Park event and snagged some good reviews.  My second book was better than my first.  Since I viewed my self publishing venture as more of a learning experience rather than a lucrative one, I decided never to do it again.  So with book number two I did research, the writing conference thang and queried it until I grew to despise the whole process.  With my third book I started this blog discovered some great writing communities and only sent out two query letters before moving on to my current manuscript.

You see I get that the writing, revising, researching the industry, more writing, revising, querying, rejection and starting it all over is all apart of my education.  One that, as long as I do not give up out of FRUSTRATION, will lead me to finally obtaining my goal.  The difference between writers like Mr. Blind and writers like me is that I know why my previous works were not publishable (this is a good thing:-).  And it has little to do with the quality of writing.  Knowing why your manuscript(s) gets rejected or ignored is just as important as continuing to write.  Otherwise you run the risk of never getting published.      

Happy reading, writing or whatever: )