Quick post to blow my own trumpet about a little pre-conference RWNZ contest which I finalled in! Yay! Entries go off to Lucy Gilmour at M&B for a final placing and when she arrives in NZ in August, I get to have a 10 minute face to face pitch session with her. I’m really thrilled about it but nervous – the ms has a heroine who is a bit different and not sure I’ll be able to pull it off. Oh well, can only try eh?
Also Dr Jax is proving hard to pin down to answer my questions. I think he’s avoiding me. Mostly due to the fact that I have spent the past two weeks moaning to him about my chess WIP. He definitely does NOT want to hear anything more about my writing, I’m sure of it. He can pretty much tell that if I start hanging around him when he gets home from work, doing things like half-heartedly sweeping the floor or moving crumbs from one side of the bench to the other, then I want to talk about my WIP. I never come out and say it you see, I want him to ask me how it’s going. And I do that mostly because I’m a one note record and I know how boring I’m being but I just can’t HELP IT! When I have a problem with my WIP, g0ing away and thinking about something else never works. I HAVE solve it first. It’s like an itch that HAS to be scratched and I can’t concentrate on anything else until I’ve scratched it. It’s kind of tiresome. Part of what makes it tiresome is the fact that I have to talk out my WIP problems. Often he doesn’t even need to say anything, I solve it just by telling him what the problem is. But that can make it difficult when he’s not around to talk to (and no, talking to the air does not help).
So – what do you guys do when you have WIP problems? Talk it out? Walk it out? Shower endlessly??
PS And speaking of the Chess wip – I have finished it!!! And now it will go in a drawer where it will NEVER be seen again – at least not until I’ve got up the courage to edit the stupid thing.
Congrats, congrats!! On the final and on finishing. Both are wonderful news.
And good luck with your pitch session. Let me know how it goes.
First – mega congrats on finishing the chessman wip!! What a huge achievement, well done! And ditto for the contest successes you’re having. You’re on a roll, girlfriend!
Wip problems? I usually leave them to fester in my brain overnight. I shower for the ions (LOL), which generally don’t seem to help me, but I’ll do anything! I go back to the core conflict and motivation. And scream a lot. Sometimes I brainstorm with others. Never with my husband (he’s far too logical and says singularly unhelpful things like, ‘why do they always have to have a conflict? can’t they just get together?’
Hope you pluck up the courage to edit soon, and submit! Can’t wait to see it in print.
Julia – thank you!! Yes, I’m quite pleased about both. And sure, will tell all. It’s not till August – plenty of time to make sure my conflict ducks are all in a row (famous last words).
Louise – Hello m’dear! Thank you re the chessman. Man, that story was as painful as giving birth. Wish I’d had drugs for it – lol! And thanks re the contest. Was happy. 🙂 Lol re your husband!! If only it were that easy eh?
Oh and yeah, I don’t know about subbing that one yet. I’m unsure as to what kind of beast it is and have to get the beginning right first (and the middle and the end).
Woohoo! finished and finalling. Good going, Jackie!
I have a sneaky solution to the Dr Jax not paying attention problem… shhhh…
Do one of your ‘ask Dr Jax’ sessions, and ask him all the questions using different names!! Send me a question, and I’ll ask it, and I know everyone else would too, and before you know it..voila! And its just a co-incidence that all your blog pals are writing a very similar book to yours!
Whaddya think?
Sally – thanks. And yay for your idea! That could work you know…*runs off to gather questions*
Fab news Jackie on finalling, crossing my fingers for your pitch session with Lucy. You can do it girl!
Congrats on finalling and on finishing your MS, Jackie!
Scarlet – thanks m’dear!
Lacey – and thank you to you too! 🙂
Go, Jackie!
I’ve taken a bit of a blog break and it’s great to come back to such wonderful news 🙂
With WIP probs I usually walk the dog, leave things to fester overnight as someone else said or sit and write the dreaded question why? over and over until I am bored or the knotty bit is clear!
Jo – thanks! Ack, the why questions. I do that but sometimes I go too far and need to be brought to heel.
Glad to see you back from your break though. 🙂
wahoo on completing the chessman, that’s good going Jackie. And aaaahhhh on the pitch! You’ll be great, I know it.
When I have a problem with my wip, I sometimes resort to pen and paper rather than the laptop. I write down all the possible ways I could go with it, and then how that would effect things. Kind of like a knock out process. Or I ask the minxes, ‘cos they are super clever. :o)