More Awesome Feedback, and My Thoughts on Writing a New Epic Trilogy!

One of my favorite readers, Gary Powers, has been gracious enough to review the sequel to Madison, which I've so far titled 'Madison: Shattered Wings, and send feedback before it's published,'.  He said that so far it's as good as the first book, and he's really enjoying it!  So far people reviewing it seem to really be loving it, so I'm super excited to finally get it out there!

As for direction, I'm considering writing a new epic trilogy, but I need to figure out exactly what theme I'll go with.  It seems like a lot of really popular genres right now are saturated with good stories.  It seems like the vampire well has run dry for the most part, same with zombies.  Werewolves seem to be the new thing right now, but they probably won't last as long as vampires have, just because they aren't as inherently sexy as creatures.  Like, who wants a lover whose super power is getting really hairy and peeing on fire hydrants?  No thanks!

I loved Hunger Games, and I'd like to write something just as amazing, but I don't want it to merely be a re-hashing of Hunger Games.  I also loved Ender's Game, but it didn't translate perfectly into a movie.  They got some of the relationship stuff between him and Petra wrong, and I didn't think it had the emotional impact of the book because they didn't take it far enough.  Lord of the Rings was awesome, but I also don't want to just make a copy of that, nor do I want to copy Harry Potter, which I also loved.

So my hope is that I can find some inspiration.  I know I have a truly epic trilogy in me, I know how to write it and make it something special, but I need a starting point.  I need an underlying theme to tie all of it together.  Hopefully I can think of something soon, because I'd love to start writing again!

First Feedback!!!

So one of my editors has already gotten back to me with some cursory feedback.  They loved the ending, so that's awesome!!!  It was actually the part I was most worried about, so the sequel should be as good as the first, if not better!  <3 <3 <3

Finished My Edits!!!

So this weekend I finished my edits for the sequel to Madison, which I'm titling "Madison: Shattered Wings".  I've sent it off to a handful of people I trust and respect to give me feedback on it!  Now comes the hard part: waiting.  Waiting is definitely my least fun activity, especially in a public place like at a bus stop, at the DMV, etc.  At least places like Disneyland are nice enough to keep you entertained while you're in line.  Imagine how much nicer the DMV would be if they had stuff to read, or TV, or something like that.

Anyway, I'm very excited to get feedback back, and I'll let you know when I have a solid release date!  Love you all!!! <3 <3 <3

Nearly There!!! 227 pages!!!

So I'm 227 pages into my 251 pages of edits, and I very much hope to be finished tonight!  Soon I'll start work on the cover for the sequel, as I eagerly await feedback from my amazing readers!  Thank you again everyone for doing that, I appreciate it so much!!! <3 <3 <3  In the meantime, I have a few copies of Madison on the way to my place, and I'll hopefully be starting a few contests for signed copies!  Stay tuned to find out how you can win one!!! <3 <3 <3

Super Lucky!!!

So this morning I was very fortunate, because I decided to back up my working copy of the sequel to Madison by emailing it to myself.  It was the first time I'd done that since I began this recent round of edits, and I was on page 195 of 251.  Ten minutes later, as I was working on it, my laptop shut down, and corrupted the file.  I was able to download from my email the most recent copy, and only lost 2 pages of edits instead of 197.  So my personal angel must be smiling down on me today!

As soon as I get to 251, I'm sending it out to a select group of editors to get their take on the story.  I hope people like it as well as they enjoyed the first one! <3

160 and Counting!!!

I'm on page 160 of 251 with my most recent round of edits, and then I will send copies to a select group of people to get their feelings on it.  I'm going way out on a limb with this one, and I hope that it's just as good as the first book, but in a completely different way.  Thanks everyone for the love and support you've shown, and thank you for your patience!  I want to make sure that this story is as good as I can make it, while still staying as close to my vision as possible.  A lot of people outside of writing don't realize how hard it is to stay true to yourself and your ideas while still keeping readers happy.  Not everyone agrees on how a story should progress, especially when people fall in love with characters.  You hate to see them in pain, you hate to see them dealing with real hardships, because you feel those emotions as if you were going through them yourself.  So please, readers, know that when I take chances with characters, it's for a good reason, and it's always thought out.  My decisions are never whims.  I just hope that even when you follow my characters through those challenges, that you realize there will be a light at the end of the tunnel, some hope to be had.  Not all is lost.

Trudge!!!

So the holidays were awesome, and I got a lot of really great things, spent time with friends and family, and ate too much.  The good news is that I'm back on editing the sequel to 'Madison', and I'm already halfway done!  So that's cause for celebration!  I hope two get it finished in the next few weeks then work on the cover.  I actually really enjoy doing my own covers.  One of my two majors in college when I started was art.  It's a passion that I don't spend a lot of time doing anymore, with my day job, and spending time writing.  I have to say, I enjoy writing more, but I love them in different ways.  I think the reason why I enjoy writing, is because it's a constantly creative process.  When I'm drawing or painting, there's definitely a lot of creativity involved at the beginning of the project, but once you actually start executing, it's mostly skill at that point.  Drawing lines, painting brush strokes takes talent, and I haven't honed my skills as much as I would like.  Can I do a very good job at times?  Sure!  But I don't like losing that creative steam.  I suppose with writing some of that happens to a point, when you're editing your work.  It's a bit more arduous, and less fun in general (at least for me.)  There are a lot of people that enjoy editing, and I applaud them, because it's not an easy thing to be good at, and it takes a rare talent and mindset to enjoy it.  So editors, thank you for being you! <3

Anyway, I love you all, and I hope the holidays were amazing for you! <3 <3 <3