Category: When the Music Stops
Author are needy people. We seek validation from our critique groups, mentors and our readers. I know, that’s almost pathetic isn’t it? Why do authors seek validation? We work to create interesting stories, but without comments (reviews) we don’t know if we’ve succeeded. That’s where you come in. We hope what we write strikes a favorable chord inside you. That it informs or entertains, startles or amuses you and leaves you feeling satisfied. But, what should a reader mention in a review? (Please read to the end for a suggestion to ease any stress this section stirs up inside you.)...
Misty Copeland, a soloist with New York’s American Ballet Theatre was interviewed last Sunday, May 10th, on 60 Minutes. [See: 60 Minutes Season 47 – Episode 33] As I watched, I wondered how Marta, my 84 Ribbons and When the Music Stops leading character compared to a real ballet dancer. Let’s find out. Both young women stand at five feet. Both were raised mostly by their mother. Both began their training in simple settings rather than ballet academies and worked far beyond their regular class hours to perfect their dancing. Both felt music rather than danced to music. Both sustained...
I used to think after I wrote the words and sent the book to be printed I was finished. Not so! That’s when the real work begins as I strive to locate reviewers as well as readers. Like most authors, this phase pushes me w-a-y outside my comfort zone. It involves lots of additional writing and decision-making as well as additional expenses. Here’s my list of tasks for (WMS) When the Music Stops-Dance On: 1. Send unbound copy of WMS to Library of Congress. ($) 2. Have e-book produced to begin collecting reviews. This also becomes the kindle/Nook book.($) 3. ...
There is a certain thud in my stomach as I finish book two, When the Music Stops: A Second Chance to Dance. It’s a mixture of pride, fear and excitement. I did it! Will anyone read it? Will anyone like the way the characters made their decisions? Will people stick around for book three? But I get ahead of myself. I’m finished, but my wonderful editor has yet to ‘take a crack’ at the story. She asks amazing questions, shares her ideas and we go back and forth until we reach agreement on the best way to make the story...
People ask that question often. My answers are usually the same: I like my characters and they have more to share than will fit in one book. Also I enjoy following characters in books I read beyond more than one experience. For example, Howard Fast wrote a sage about a family across several generations. If you like l-o-n-g series there are others that stretch on and on, but Marta’s characters are not letting that happen. They will give me one more book after When the Music Stops which is Letters to Follow, and then I need to butt out of...
Writing is related to a bushel of juicy, ripe lemons. After you receive them, you must decide what to do with them: draw them, wash your hair with their juices, dry the skins for potpourri, make lemonade or unfortunately, let them rot. It takes bushels of time to get my manuscript, When the Music Stops, ready for formal editing. I open the file, work my way through each chapter then give myself a quick pat on the back as I turn off the computer, but not my brain thinking about the story. I’m hoping I’ve used their succulent juices and...
