#Storymakers15

Disclaimer. This post is SO LONG. Seriously.

I should be editing right now. I should really be editing, but I have lots of love to give for one of my favorite writing events and if I don't sit and give that love out now, it may not happen.

LDStorymakers Conference. I have looked forward to this since my first year back in 2013. Remember? When I got that amazing bootcamp instructor, Becca Willhite and I revolutionized PLAYING FOR KEEPS (then titled The Game Plan) and I got a pitch with the lovely Kathy Gordon at Covenant and then just under a year later I got a contract with them? The next year, 2014, my sister got married and I only got to go to the sweet Jane Austen Tea Party. (Worth it.)

Needless to say, I was S-T-O-K-E-D for the awesomeness of this year's conference, especially since I'd spent the last year on the Whitney Awards committee, and I got to immerse myself in fantastic fiction written by fantastic LDS authors and then put together the event that sort of caps off the conference, the Whitney Gala.

My two-year-old (hereafter referred to by his twitter nickname, Squishy) and I flew into SLC on Sunday evening. I knew that the later half of the week was going to be chuck full of writer stuff and I needed some time with my family, who I hadn't seen in...well, okay, since I made a quick trip to the lower forty-eight for some basketball, it had only been a month or so. But who's counting?

Come Wednesday, though, the fun began. I started off at a lunch given by Covenant for their authors. Whoa, talk about a room full of coolness. (You guys know the names like Anita Stansfield, Sarah M. Eden, Annette Lyon, Krista Jensen, Jenny Moore...I could go on and on and on.) I got to meet, in person, one of the coolest people in that room, a.k.a. my editor, Stacey Owen. And another sweetheart, covenant's PR queen, Stephanie Lacey. (If you're a book-blogger, I'm sure you've traded emails with Stephanie before.) We chatted about cool things like book signings and getting actual copies of my books to me soon! Eeeep. Sadly, I had not yet gone on my take-pictures-of-everything roll and I have none from that lunch. On the bright side we ate Cafe Rio and it rocked.

That afternoon was the Jane Austen Tea party, and of that I do have pictures.

It's always so inspirational for me to hear Sarah Eden play because I know what it takes for her to do it and I know what it means to her when she can.

The adorable and hilarious Shelly Brown asked me to accompany her for a song "Begone Dull Care," a pub act as Shelly described it. We were happy to precede the lady singing an Italian aria and then expectations got high and we wouldn't have met them. We had a blast though. (Despite the fact that I left my music in Spanish Fork--the first of many things I would forget over the weekend--and my sister had to go into the library where the event was held and pay to use the computer and reprint it for me. She rocks so much too. My sister, Nikki, did so much for me this week to allow me to attend all this, including letting me crash at her place, feeding me {along with my sweet mom, who came all the way from Wyoming to nanny Squishy all weekend!} and letting me use her car!)

Getting to feel tall next to Sarah!

 Don't you just love Krista Jensen's dress? So. Cute. And the hat? She rocked it. I felt so slob in my Downeast knit dress and *shawl.* In July, when I visit my mom, we're going to make me a true Regency dress and I'll leave it with her to bring to me next year.

My other sister, Keesha, came to pick me up after the tea, and because we're a family full of snots, we took this picture to taunt our little sister, Savanna, who thinks Sarah M. Eden is the coolest thing ever. (I absolutely agree.) This picture made me laugh and laugh and laugh every time I looked at it. "Hey, I got to meet the Keesha Savage!!"

On Thursday I had Pub Primer, which is the second level of boot camp.  I had Elana Johnson for my instructor and it couldn't have been more perfect. She said some hard things, but they were GREAT hard things. That my query was strong and so were my pages but that she worried that a superhero novel with robots would just not sell. So I immediately emailed my CPs Kaylee and Gina and we went to work brainstorming better villains. And we came up with something amazing. I wish I could tell you all about it, but it would ruin big parts of the plot. :D

So then the conference started on Friday . . . and speaking of more taunting? Nikki and her class of sixth graders love James Dashner, so guess who I stopped in the halls and took another taunting picture with. James Dashner, of course. Nikki said when she got the text she put the picture up on her projector, and in her words, her sixth graders "lost it." (He was WAY cool and though I had my issues with THE MAZE RUNNER and 13TH REALITY, I think he's a fun awesome nice guy! When Nikki was with me at the Whitney Gala on Saturday night, I took her up to Mr. Dashner to introduce them and he remembered me. We were joking about how at least they'd spelled my rather hard first name right--His was spelled "Dasher" in the program . . . side-track, he joked when he presented that even when he thought he'd "made it" something like that happened to bring him back to reality. Too funny. Anyway. He called me Ranee` and I was like, "I'm so impressed! I met your for like five seconds yesterday and you remembered my name." To which my sister humbled me by reminding me that in the course of during the program my name had been announced at least five times . . . Dashner insisted, though, that he remembered me regardless of that.)

I interact with some really fun people on line, and going to the conference is that chance when we all get to stare at each other's chests--to read name tags! Ha!--and go, "OH! Hi, Darci!" or "Summer!" So of course you need a conference selfie with people like Darci Cole (we've *talked* so much online it's like we're BFFs) and Summer Spence!

And then there was the super fun Marion Jensen who claimed to be photo bombing all my pics, but in camo so no one saw him. Then I stalked him and caught him without all his camo as he sat behind me in a class. Not weird, guys. (At the end of class he signed SEARCHING SUPER--another side, it's the sequel to ALMOST SUPER, which one the Whitney Award for Middle Grade! Yay for Marion!--for my nine-year-old, who thought that was AMAZING and it really upped my cool-mom factor.)

This. Lady. I've worked with Annette for months and months as part of the Whitney committee. She is so put together and just thinks of everything. She has a BIG passion for books and for LDS writers and all of it, and I loved getting to know her better.

Friday night, as a so-called conference Mentor, I got to sit at a table with Annette, Krista, and Kaylee Baldwin to chat with conference attendees during the Author Mingle. We were at the contemporary romance table and um, took our jobs very seriously . . .

Okay, so maybe it was just me not taking things seriously. Maybe because the people at our table were smart enough to figure out that there were some masters of romance hanging out with us and they really didn't need to bother asking me anything . . . ;)

I've realized that a lot of things in my life are a lot like dating. Finding new friends when I move every year or so and definitely finding good critique partners/writing BFFs. The fun thing is though, you don't have to settle down and "marry" one CP! I never got a picture with Jeigh Meredith, who was at my table for pub primer, but we have certainly "traded numbers" (really email addresses...) and set ourselves up to date, i.e. critique each other's stuff. Her book, RESONANT, was fab, guys. Loved it.

Kaylee (who's name you've heard SO many times on this blog) and I can't even totally remember our how we met story. We know it was first online through ANWA, and that we then sat next to each other during a class or something at an ANWA conference in probably 2011 if not 2010...and from there it gets fuzzy. Seriously. Can't remember how she got my stuff, though she thinks the first thing she critiqued for me was an LDS time-traveling romance. (Maybe some day I'll get back to that.) Anyway, since she was a busy, busy bee on the conference committee, we didn't get a ton of hang out time. We did get to sit next to each other at the Whitney Gala, yay!

I also found my soul mate, Tiffany Odekirk. We hit it off within seconds of meeting each other and we're so alike it's a bit creepy. (We have children named the same thing. It's like deja vu for what happened when I first discovered Gina Denny.) Someday, Tiffany and I will have a really funny story to tell you about the connection between PLAYING FOR KEEPS and her first novel. In the meantime, we were made for each other. Tiffany and I hung out a lot during the conference and she made it SO fun.

So on Friday afternoon I pitched KISSING A SUPERHERO to Heidi Taylor at Shadow Mountain. I had this pretty simple, three-sentence pitch. When I gave it to her, she just smiled and said, "Wow, that was perfect. Very polished. Very professional. Good job!" She asked me how long the book was and some other minor questions, then I gave her my query. She asked how many people had read it, which confused me at first. I thought she meant agents or publishers. She clarified if I had a writing group or critique partners. To which I burst out laughing. "That's a very long list of people who have read this book over the last six or so years..." It told her what she wanted to know--that I had worked and polished and worked and polished and rewritten and worked and rewritten and yeah and it wasn't just something I wrote last month and came down to pitch. Then, even though we'd only been talking about five minutes, she said I'd told her everything she needed to know, that she wanted to see three chapters and I should submit. Woo!

Friday evening was also the keynote by Martine Leavitt. It was beautiful and spiritual and amazing. You may wonder why a keynote at a writer's conference would be spiritual, but that's the AWESOME thing about Storymakers. The gospel is woven so seamlessly into everything about it because we are writers and we are LDS. Martine said it beautifully when she began saying that she was part of one community, the LDS community, where everyone understood her spiritually. And she was part of another community, a writing community, and they understood her writing. But they didn't overlap, except at Storymakers. Here, she had the best of both her worlds--writing and the gospel. I can't even do what she said justice but it's right on. I have amazing friends at church who ask me about my writing all the time, but I'm lucky and it's kind of different. At Storymakers, I get it all. All of the cool spiritual stuff can be summed up in three words from Marion Jensen's acceptance speech, "Be a light." That's why we have this specific talent.

Shelly Brown. She's so great. Selfies on my phone when she's supposed to be taking pictures of me with FREAKIN' BRANDON MULL. Love you, Shelly.

But seriously, this is what you want to see, right? BRANDON MULL, and another guy, Chad Morris. But guys, I got to meet best selling author BRANDON MULL. After going to their class on three point plot structure, I knew my boys would love their books. (In truth, I've been trying to convince my 9yo, the lover of all things Rick Riordan, in fact, if you're name's not Riordan, you're a hack in his book...anyway, I've been trying to convince him to read Fablehaven for a long time, but I figured if I brought him home new books, it would go a long way, especially when they're signed by BRANDON MULL.) Back to the story (I've had to do that a lot, huh...) So I went to the bookstore at the conference and bough Chad's THE INVENTOR'S SECRET (the 9yo is gonna love it!) and THE FIVE KINGDOMS by Brandon. Then, I was sitting just a table or so away at lunch time, so I went over to have them sign the books--so I wouldn't have to wait in line at the book signing later on Saturday. Ha! Anyway, when Shelly came by (she's married to Chad) what I'd dropped by to do turned into like a fifteen minute conversation in which Chad and Brandon were way fun. Brandon is very personable. He asked right off if I liked writing, to which I replied, so respectfully (not), "Um. I'm at a writing conference, aren't I?" He asked me what I wrote, to which I said romance, and I had a book coming out next month (of COURSE I dropped that in there) but that I came to pitch a YA. Brandon asked about that and he thought it was a cool concept, but then we got on the subject of my book coming out, the romance, and we spent the remainder of the conversation on that, which cracks me up. It could be because my book is about football and that surprises most guys when they find out. Brandon also said my cover was "super cute." And that is a direct quote. Anyway, I think they're both super fun and excellent to hang out with. In fact, I love how "normal" all the big authors were at the conference. I never expected in my life to chat for 15 minutes about my romance book with Brandon Mull.

This is my little sister (in age, not height) geeking out over meeting Sarah Eden. She had everyone at the table giggling with all her fan-girling. Then I blew Savanna's mind even more by taking her to meet Brandon Mull. They ended up talking about track. Which, of course.

I actually didn't get to spend a lot of time at the author signing (another good reason to get my books all signed before hand). I had to head over and do final stuff for the Whitney Gala and then get pretty. Me looking pretty great, if I do say so myself, being photo bombed by the awesome Jaime Theler. Love it.

Fun times? Standing at the door and greeting all the lovely Whitney finalists who are also my friends. And standing in four-inch stilettos and for once in my life towering over everyone. It rocked.

Okay, not towering over Krista, but at least I wasn't the big head in this picture, right Krista? (A joke from the many silly pictures I took at our contemp romance table during the Author Mingle the night before.)

AND Amy Finegan wanting to meet ME. And take pics with ME! Amy wrote the finalist NOT IN THE SCRIPT which was really one of my top reads during all the reading I did for the Whitneys. (And that's impressive since I made it through everything but Middle Grade, Adult Spec, and the Best Novel categories--but I read some of the novels in those two.) She tweeted during conference that she was going to find me! So cool.

Me and Sarah Eden comparing shoes. Both fabulously red. Both with bows on the toes. Hers sparkled and were fuzzy inside, so they probably beat mine...

After beginning to worry, my beautiful date, my sister Nikki, finally showed up. She's gorgeous. She made that fab dress guys, without a pattern. Be impressed.

I SO did not get enough conversation with this girl, my accountability partner and good friend, Melanie Jacobson. But she was the big boss of the conference, so I guess that's expected. Next year, right Melanie? We'll sit at lunch and chat or something. We have to.

This is the point during dinner in which my sister and I realized that we were sitting RIGHT behind Anne Perry . . . (Who is another author who's a serious BIG SHOT but who is so down to earth and lovely. She spoke during lunch on Saturday...or maybe Friday, can't remember, and it was another perfect example of weaving spiritual inspiration into writing inspiration. As did Annette's opening remarks for the Whitney Gala. I tweeted a lot of quotes she had from Orson F. Whitney, of whom the Whitney's are named for, during her speech. All of them awesome.)

I think the highlight of that night might have been getting to present Sarah with her first Whitney for LONGING FOR HOME: HOPE SPRINGS. She also gave in inspirational acceptance speech. My favorite quote, "We may yet have Miltons and Shakespeares among us [referring to a quote by Orson F. Whitney] but we already have Brontes and Austens." Made me cry. She left the stage both times (LFH: HOPE SPRINGS also won Best Novel) to standing ovations. I adored when James Dashner presented that award. He opened the envelop saying as he did, that if it was Sanderson he was going to punch him in the face. (Brandon Sanderson, who won Best Adult Spec novel, of course, got a lot of ribbing that night. Because he's Brandon Sanderson and he wins a lot of stuff. And he's good. And people really like him.) Then Dashner said, "Get ready to cry," and he announced Sarah as the winner. And people did cry. Great times.

So below, me and Sarah before the Whitneys. She thought my stilettos were overdoing it when it came to standing next to her. Yeah. Whatever.

So. The conference was great and so full of great, great stuff. I can't begin to describe it. This year I had so much more fun because I was ready to jump in and introduce myself to everyone and to ask all the questions I wanted to ask. I loved it. I wanted to be home to see my boys but I already miss the great people there.

I'm often reminded that I'm an anomaly in the world of writers. Where many of you are introverts who suffer from minor panic (or major panic!) at the thought of interacting with so many people, I'm an extrovert who thrives on that kind of stuff. Where many of you were exhausted after that weekend from all the peopleness, I was refueled and roaring to go! You're all awesome, tribe. All of you!

Review: FALLING FOR YOU by Krista Lynne Jensen (Covenant, 2014)

From Amazon: Jetsetter Elizabeth Embry is the toast of the town. A rising star in the fashion industry, she has traveled the world and lived a life of glamour and fortune. But beneath her carefree façade, Elizabeth is running from a past that won’t let her rest. When a former colleague reaches out with a job offer in the sleepy town of Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Elizabeth feels a spark of hope—perhaps this drastic change of scene will finally allow her to slow down. Envisioning an idyllic getaway at the mountainous bed & breakfast that has been arranged for her, Elizabeth is caught off guard by her immediate attraction to the aloof innkeeper. Ryan Brennan is certainly handsome, but what secrets hide behind that withdrawn exterior? Surrounded by people bent on playing matchmaker, the stage is set for a picture-perfect romance. But as past heartache threatens to overwhelm them both, can Elizabeth and Ryan let go of their pain and grab hold of a promising future together?

Audience: Adult (Clean)
Genre: Romance, Inspirational Romance, LDS Romance
Length: 272 pgs

Rating: *****

Review: Right off I loved getting to know Elizabeth. In The Orchard she's snooty and icy, so seeing what's beneath all of that, and especially how her sister's new faith has changed Elizabeth is really great. Krista has a thing about writing masterful characters. They are always deep and involved. I wanted to hug Ryan, and I loved the way Krista just nailed his kids too. The setting was so pretty too. The whole thing draws you in and yanks at your heartstrings. It's just lovely. So lovely.

Content:
Sex: 1/5 (Things in Elizabeth's past are discussed, and a friend tries to take advantage of her.)
Violence: 1/5 (Elizabeth pushes a man away and he is injured; there is an incident with a bear)
Language: 0/5
Overall Rating: PG

Source: Bought a copy via Deseret Book

Read this. Follow up by reading Krista Lynne Jensen's Of Grace and Chocolate.

Review: THE ORCHARD by Krista Lynne Jensen

I was having a really bad day a few weeks back because something that I wanted really bad didn't pan out. Just when I was at my lowest (and, okay, yes, I'm being really dramatic right now. It was clearly not the end of the world), I got an email saying I'd won THE ORCHARD. Which, let's be honest, I feel kind of bad about, because I totally would have bought it--but it made my day fabulous. AND because I have the hook-ups, I got Krista to sign it for me. Though she may be deserting our beloved (*snort*) state of Wyoming, Here's lookin' at you kid. 

From DeseretBook.com: On the idyllic shores of Flathead Lake, Montana, Alisen Embry finds purpose and comfort tending her late mother’s cherry orchard adjacent to the family’s beloved lake house. Though pained by the loss of her mother and her father’s estrangement, it is Derick Whitney—the man she fell in love with four years earlier—who truly influences Alisen’s view of her future . . .

Derick and Alisen wanted nothing more than to spend eternity together; however, intolerance and secrets forced Alisen to make a shattering choice between her family and the man she loved.

But destiny always has a way of setting things right . . .

Now the Embry family has found themselves hopelessly in debt, and they realize renting the lake house is the only hope of saving the cherished or- chard and family home. When Alisen discovers the new tenants have a connection to her past, her life takes an unexpected turn. Will fate find a way to reconnect what was broken so many years before?

Audience: Adult (Clean)
Genre: LDS Romance
Length: 245 pgs

Rating: *****

Review: All. The. Feels. This book was inspired by the Jane Austen book Persuasion, which, along with Northanger Abbey, is my favorite of Austen's. So I pretty much knew I'd love it. But it also made Alisen's so-so-sweet romance with Derick so difficult because I knew what would happen. I despised her dad and aunt for a while there--all-out hated them. Krista just did a fantastic job of involving me with the characters so much that I was absolutely invested in what was happening to them.

Disclaimer: None.

Check it out on Goodreads.
Buy it at Deseret Book.

Storymakers '13

I've been telling myself I needed to write a post about this for a long time and I've just been so scatterbrained that it hasn't gotten done. BUT I did finally scrapbook the handful of pictures I got, so I'm just going to upload those for you guys to peek at and call it good.

(You can click on them to make them bigger and read the text.)

There are SO many people I got to meet but I didn't get pictures of. All in all a very fabulous time. Loved it. Can't wait for next year!!

Results of the Top Ten LDS Fiction

Hey guys, it's been a fun month voting on all those great LDS fiction titles that were nominated. Today is the day I reveal, based on the voting public, the Top Ten.

Drum roll ...

#1
NOT MY TYPE: A SINGLE GIRL'S GUIDE TO DOING IT ALL WRONG by Melanie Jacobson

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Favorite Books You've Read During The Lifespan Of Your Blog

At the advice of agent Pam van Hylckama at WriteOnCon (she seems quite awesome) I decided to get involved in some of the cool blog memes out there, like Top Ten Tuesday hosted by the book blog Broke and Bookish. So, I'm not promising a top ten post every Tuesday, because I'm me and it just might not happen. And I'm not going to guilt myself for that. There's a lot of other really great things to guilt myself about. 

Drumroll ...

My first Top Ten Tuesday post: Top Ten Favorite Books I've Read During the Lifespan of My Blog

(Have I ever mentioned here how terrible my memory is? Good thing I had a review page to look over ...)

1. Sarah M. Eden - I know. I'm cheating. She's not a book. She's an author. But if I didn't cheat like this her books would populate most of this list and that's just not fair. I am SUPER happy I discovered her books through a post on her blog that someone reposted. My favorite: FRIENDS AND FOES. Philip is the best Sarah M. Eden hero EVER.

2. PARANORMALCY by Kiersten White - I judge books by their covers. I do. I can't help it. I think I saw the cover of PARANORMALCY on a blog hop of some kind and then went and looked it up on Amazon. The rest is history. I bought it. Devoured it. Ordered the last two in the series immediately. I love, love, LOVE the voice in this novel and the fabulous, almost mocking tone of paranormal books. It works.

3. MY RIDICULOUS ROMANTIC OBSESSIONS by Becca Wilhite - I found this book through Sarah Eden's blog. It has an awesome, unique, witty voice just like the top two, which I adore in books. I CRAVE it in books. I will race through a book that's making me laugh out loud every two seconds. The inner-dialogue of the main character is fan-freakin'-tastic. 

4.OF GRACE AND CHOCOLATE by Krista Lynne Jensen - Yet another author I found through Sarah Eden. And since she lives in Wyoming, like me, she's dear to my heart. I'm also beginning to see a pattern in my favorites: voice. This one has a great, funny voice that captured me. AND it's one of those non-patterned love stories. I'm always a fan of things happening differently in romance.

5. EDENBROOKE by Julianne Donaldson - Regency Romance. From the time someone first handed me a Georgette Heyer novel (Thank you, whoever you are -- probably my mother), I have ADORED this genre. I recently passed on the obsession to my sister. You're welcome. Anyway, so this book is in the vein of Sarah Eden's (sigh-worthy heroes, cute voice) but unique in it's many splendored ways. The hero's name is Philip, so I liked him right away. And then he was awesome, so I loved him. I really enjoyed following the romance in this book.

6. The Gallagher Girls Series by Ally Carter - These books should probably not be so far down my list, considering I LOVED them. I'm not sure why I haven't reviewed them. My little sister -- possibly 12 years old at the time -- had checked out the first book from the library, and when I was visiting my mom I picked it up. By the end of the evening, I was well over half-way through the book. So when I got home I promptly headed over to Amazon.com and ordered as many in the series as I could. Then waited impatiently for the rest. These books have always made me think of a cross between Harry Potter, James Bond, and teenage girls. They rock.

7. BEYONDERS by Brandon Mull - Alas, another book I'm not really sure why I don't have a review for it.  I was actually quite mad at Mr. Mull when I first read this book because the idea of two kids saving an alternate realm had been kicking around in my head for a while. Admittedly, I did not think to have them arrive in such a world through a hippo. That's entirely him. I am also mad at the backlog on my TBR list keeping me from reading the second book.

8. MAID TO MATCH by Deeanne Gist - I love history and anything around 1900ish is right up my alley. (There's a reason I have a WIP that takes place in 1909.) It's such a cool time period. Oddly enough, I started loving this era while reading a series of books I hated, but let's not go there. This book just spoke to me! The historical details were so fun and didn't feel like they came right out of a history book. And even though it's been several months since I read it, I can still remember the tension between the two main characters and how desperately I just wanted them to touch.

9. THE BEST INTENTIONS by Candice Hern - Another regency. Ha! Are you surprised? No, you're not. This book made my top ten list because I ADORED the heroine. She was young and a really "hoydenish" -- so reminiscent of some of G.H.'s best heroines. 

10. VARIANT by Robison Wells - This one should be further up, but I'm still punishing Mr. Wells for that cliffhanger at the end. My reason for complaint is drying up though, as I'm told the paperback has the first three chapters of the sequel FEEDBACK. Still, he deserves to be down here for making me wait this long to find out WHAT THE HECK HAPPENED!?! Take that.

The Pub Panel: Part 6, Wrapping It Up

Read all posts in the Pub Panel series here.

Finally, we talked about what each author felt were the strengths of their chosen publication path . . .

Ranee`: Okay and finally just to wrap things up: What do you feel are the strengths of your chosen path(s) to publication?

Jennifer Griffith: Okay. Well, I like finding a small publisher because, like I said, I like to have those personal relationships that come with being part of a small publishing house. I like to know the executive editor by name and become friends and have that tie. It’s very nice. For me, most likely, writing is never going to be a career per se. It will always have to be a hobby. I’m a stay at home mom and that takes up the vast majority of my time. Therefore, my goal is to find a way to make my hobby be the most pleasant and happy experience it can be. I don’t want my hobby to turn into a stressor. It’s got to be fun and positive or else I’ll have to take up embroidery again. And nobody wants that. I also love that the timeline has been so quick. Nine months might not seem fast to someone outside publishing, but I’ve talked to people who are on the docket for 2015 already. This is fast! I love that sorta immediate gratification. The people have been so fun and cool and I’m really feeling happy I’ve found them. I hope my book makes them some money and doesn’t end up breaking their bank!

Pub Panel: Part 5, Marketing

Read the first four parts here.

The panel discusses what's clearly a favorite topic . . . Marketing!

Ranee`: Okay, Marketing!

Jolene Perry: Ugh. Marketing.

Krista: Do we have to?

Jolene Perry: It's like looking for a job over and over and over and over

Ranee`: Hahahaha. When I talk about different pub methods with people, this is the topic that comes up most often.

What tactics were used to put word out before your publication, both by you and then by your publisher?

The Pub Panel: Part 4, All About Editing

Read Parts 1-3 here.

Ranee`: Now I want to talk about editing processes. We've already delved into it, but I'd like get into details. First off, describe sort of the step by step process of editing with the editor at the publishing house.

Jennifer Griffith: If we're on edits now, JFP gave me three passes of full editorial treatment. They didn't ask for an overhaul, but they did for another of their authors (change the plot, etc.). Mine was "fix this little plot hole" and word choice stuff. They gave it good eyes.

Sherry Gammon: Editing is LONG! But I enjoy it. Anything is better than staring at a blank page. I had to cut a lot of scenes out. My original story was 150,000. I edited it down to 115,000ish. I also joined a group of writers and we share our work for critiquing. I also found this to be invaluable. And I hired you [Ranee`]. . . ;]

The Pub Panel: Part 3, Publishing Timelines

If you missed Part 1 and Part 2, see them here. 


I asked each of the participates about the timeline of publishing their books . . . 

Ranee`: What was the timeline between when you submitted and your acceptance?

Sherry Gammon: 48 hours! Not really a question for me . . . just trying to be funny!

Jolene Perry: Most big pub houses will take at least 8 weeks. At LEAST. I have a book that's been on sub for almost a year . . .

Jennifer Griffith: That's a long time, Jolene. I guess the pins and needles would subside a bit after that long.

Jolene Perry: They totally do. And you stop getting excited when you hear from an editor who LOVES your work. It opens doors for later, but still a bummer when you think - I'M THERE!! Time for my national contract was about 8 weeks, but they already knew me, so that helped. It'll be over a year before it’s on shelves at B and N and I'm lucky it's not two

The Pub Panel: Part 2, Agents and Publishing

If you missed Part 1, read it here.

Next, I asked Jolene about finding representation with her agent Lauren Hammond of ADA Management. Then the others discussed how they chose their different routes to publishing . . . 

Ranee`: So the next questions will be mostly for Jo, unless someone else wants to chime in, about finding her agent, Lauren Hammond. You said you queried from Feb to June when you signed with her?

Jolene Perry: I found my agent on Twitter, lol.

The Pub Panel: Part 1, Introduction

Last Friday I had the awesome opportunity to chat with four amazing ladies who all have experience in some of the many facets of publishing. Let me introduce you one more time:

Jennifer Griffith: Author of the upcoming novel, BIG IN JAPAN, published the independent small publishing company, Jolly Fish Press.

Jolene Perry: Author of THE NEXT DOOR BOYS, published in October 2011 by small, niche press Ceder Fort; NIGHT SKY and KNEE DEEP, published by YA ebook publisher Tribute Books; co-author of MY HEART FOR YOURS, self-published with Stephanie Campbell. Jolene is repped by agent Lauren Hammond.

Krista Lynne Jensen: Author of OF GRACE AND CHOCOLATE, and the upcoming release THE ORCHARD, published by niche press, Covenant.

Sherry Gammon: Self-published author of UNLOVABLE; Author of PETE & TINK, a short-story featured in the anthology IT'S A LOVE THING, published by indpended press Prose by Design. (Hmmm...that sounds familiar. :]) 

Anyway, I asked them all a bunch of questions, and first off, for them to introduce their (latest, in some cases) book, and how that book came into the world. So, without further adieu . . .

Coming Soon: The Pub Panel

There are a million things out there I don't know about publishing, both the traditional sort and the self sort. I'm sure there are a million writers out there that feel the same way. And as I've had conversations with various individuals over the last few weeks, it came to me that a good way to help myself and other writers figure out in this mysterious world would be to ask a few people who know. So that's what I (and you!) are going to do. I've asked some talented writers I know who have experience in some of the different platforms there are out there for publishing to take part in a panel. I'll be hosting the chat next Friday and then posting it (probably in parts) here on the blog.

Let me introduce the players:

Jennifer Griffith, author of the upcoming novel BIG IN JAPAN

Jolene Perry, author of THE NEXT DOOR BOYS, NIGHT SKY, the recently released KNEE DEEP, the soon-to-be released AFTER ALL, and co-author of MY HEART FOR YOURS.

Krista Lynne Jensen, author of OF GRACE AND CHOCOLATE and the upcoming novel THE ORCHARD.

Sherry Gammon, author of UNLOVABLE.

So, the question is, what do YOU want to know about publishing. It can be anything about getting agent representation, to how things work with small presses, to the ins and outs of self-publishing. Leave a comment on this post, use the Contact Me page above, message me on Facebook, or send a message via Twitter (@RaneeSClark) to ask your question. Ask your questions by Tuesday, May 15 in order to participate.

*If you would like your question to be anonymous, please indicate so in any message sent to me.

Then, stay tuned to hear the answer. This should be a blast!

Author Interview: Krista Lynne Jensen, "Of Grace and Chocolate"

Me: This question is becoming a habit for me, but since you know so many of my favorite people in the world (My best friend, Brook Grant; my aunt, Arlene Brimhall; my cousin, Donna Banks . . . to name a few!) I feel like it' especially pertinent to you. Would you like to be my best friend? :)

Krista: I love friends. I'm flattered you asked! Brook, Arlene, and Donna are some of the best people I know. If you lived closer we could go to lunch. At Rib & Chop! Yum. {And I would also join your writing group, whether you wanted me or not. :D}

Me: Really I'm just jealous that although you live in a fairly isolated part of Wyoming, like me, you still have an in-person writing group, which I don't. How did you get involved in your group and what is it like being a member? Are your writing tastes vastly different or eerily similar?

Review: "Of Grace and Chocolate" by Krista Lynne Jensen

I have to start with the great way that my **signed** copy of "Of Grace and Chocolate" came into my hands. After reading a fun interview with Krista on Sara M. Eden's blog, I thought, I need to read Krista's book. She sounds so amazing! And just a few weeks later I received an invitation on Facebook to come to Krista's signing in Cody, Wy (which happens to be mere miles from where I grew up!) and wanted so badly to go. I even texted my best friend, Brook, who lives in Cody and told her to say "hi" to Krista for me. Lo and behold a few days later a package arrived on my doorstep. My husband held it tauntingly at me and said, "What did you order this time?" Which is a totally valid question when you're married to someone with a book addiction. Except this time I hadn't ordered anything. I took the package with a quizzical glance until I saw the return address. As I ripped it open, I said, "OH! I hope it's signed!" My husband, now confused, said, "You hope what is signed?"

Yes, readers, it was a copy of "Of Grace and Chocolage," which my amazing best friend had gotten and mailed to me since I couldn't go to the signing myself. I sat right down to read and emerged an hour or so later, already a good chunk into the book, when my family demanded to be fed.