It's March. It's day 3 of Speedbo and here's the
upcoming contests to whet your appetite while we wait for
the RITA and Golden Heart results
which will be announced on Monday, March 26th!
The Seekerville contest vault is open
and we're bringing one commenter
a copy of the March release of
Glynna Kaye's High Country Hearts in Kindle or print.
Unpublished Author Contests
Fool For Love. Electronic Deadline March 14. First chapters (up to 50 pages maximum) and optional synopsis (5 pages maximum). A prologue may be included as long as the entry does not exceed 50 pages. INCLUDES A PUBLISHED AUTHOR CATEGORY!
Short Contemporary - Elizabeth Mazer, Harlequin
Long Contemporary - Meredith Giordan, Berkley Publishing Group
Historical - Lucy Gilmour, Harlequin
Paranormal/Futuristic/Fantasy/Time Travel - Amanda Barnett,The Wild Rose Press
Historical - Lucy Gilmour, Harlequin
Paranormal/Futuristic/Fantasy/Time Travel - Amanda Barnett,The Wild Rose Press
Inspirational - Raela Schoenherr, Bethany House
Romantic Suspense - TBD
Published Author - Pat Van Wie, Senior Editor, Bell Bridge Books
Daphne du Maurier Award, Unpublished. Deadline Midnight March 15.
All electronic. Note that categories are capped at 50 entries except
Mainstream and Single Title which are capped at 100. Submit one (1)
Electronic Entry of no more than the FIRST 5,000 words of your
manuscript & one (1) Electronic Synopsis in the same document with
no more than 675 words. (It is strongly recommended your entry end on a
hook.)
CATEGORY (SERIES)
Editor: Dana Hamilton, HQN Intrigue
Agent: Jill Marsal, Marsal Lyon Literary Agency
HISTORICAL
Editor: Megan Records, Kensington Publishing
Agent: Laura Bradford, Bradford Literary Agency
INSPIRATIONAL
Editor: Emily Rodmell, HQN Love Inspired
Agent: Linda Glaz, Hartline Literary
MAINSTREAM
Editor: Alex Logan, Grand Central Publishing
Agent: Josh Getzler, Hannigan Salky Getzler Agency
PARANORMAL
Editor: Michelle Vega, Berkley Books
Agent: Amy Boggs, Donald Maass Literary Agency
SINGLE TITLE
Editor: Kristin Sevick, Tor/Forge Books
Agent: Christina Hogrebe, Jane Rotrosen Agency
Romance Through the Ages. Deadline March 15. Open to Published AND Unpublished authors. Entrants do not need to be members of Hearts Through History or RWA. All entries must be submitted electronically and cannot exceed 30 pages. Entries must include a one- or two-page synopsis, which will not be judged.
Ancient/Medieval/Renaissance: Kevan Lyon, Marsal Lyon Literary Agency
Georgian/Regency/Victorian: Elizabeth Winick Rubinstein, McIntosh & Otis Literary Agency
Colonial/Western/Civil War: Rhonda Helms, Carina Press
Post-Victorian/World War 2: Mary Sue Seymour, The Seymour Agency
Time Travel/Historical Paranormal: Nicole D’Arienzo, The Wild Rose Press
Historical Erotic: Jessica Alvarez, BookEnds LLC
Georgian/Regency/Victorian: Elizabeth Winick Rubinstein, McIntosh & Otis Literary Agency
Colonial/Western/Civil War: Rhonda Helms, Carina Press
Post-Victorian/World War 2: Mary Sue Seymour, The Seymour Agency
Time Travel/Historical Paranormal: Nicole D’Arienzo, The Wild Rose Press
Historical Erotic: Jessica Alvarez, BookEnds LLC
Spring Into Romance. Postmark Deadline March 16. Possibly one of the last snail mail contests. First 25 pages.
Contemporary Series/Category Romance: Sarah McDaniel-Dyer (Harlequin)
Contemporary Single Title Romance: Angela James (Carina Press)
Suspense/Adventure Romance: Leis Pederson ( Berkley Publishing Group)
Novel w/Strong Romantic Elements/Mainstream: Kevan Lyon (Marshal Lyon Literary Agency)
Touch of Magic. Deadline March 20. Electronic. First 25 pages, plus up to three-page synopsis (unjudged)
Historical: Helen Rosburg, Medallion Press
Paranormal: Meredith Giordan, Penguin
NSRE: Esi Sogah, Harper Collins
Series/Short Contemporary: Gail Chasan, Harlequin
Single Title/Long Contemporary: Kate Dresser, Simon and Schuster
Romantic Suspense: Katherine Pelz, Penguin
Southern Heat. Deadline March 31, 2012.All electronic.Entries include the FIRST 15 PAGES plus a 5-page max double-spaced synopsis.
Paranormal
Ethan Ellenberg - Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency
Ann Leslie Tuttle - Senior Editor, Harlequin Paranormal
Historical
Courtney Miller-Callihan – Sanford J. Greenburger Associates
Laura Bradford – Bradford Literary Agency
Contemporary Single Title
Rebecca Strause – McIntosh & Otis, Inc.
Rhonda Penders – The Wild Rose Press
Inspirational
Mary Sue Seymour – The Seymour Agency
Melissa Endlich - Senior Editor, Harlequin Inspirational
Contemporary Series
Nicole Resciniti– The Seymour Agency
Alicia Condon – Kensington Books
Romantic Suspense
Aubrey Poole – Sourcebook
Maria Carvainis – Maria Carvainis Agency, Inc
Young Adult
Elaine Spencer, The Knight Agency
Leticia Gomez, Sawy Literary Services
Query Quandry Contest. Deadline April 1. All electronic. Queries must be constructed in standard query format and must be no longer than one page. For purposes of the contest, please use a generic "Dear Agent" or "Dear Editor" greeting. For a closing, in place of your name, please use "Author." Do NOT use a pseudonym or make up a name for purposes of the contest, as it only serves to confuse final judges. Amazon gift cards for all first-place finishers and the Grand Finalist.
Final Judges:
•Historical: Courtney Miller-Callihan, Sanford Greenburger Associates
•Contemporary Series: Charles Griemsman, Harlequin Enterprises
•Contemporary Single Title: Lauren Ruth, BookEnds, LLC
•Mystery/Suspense: Patience Bloom, Harlequin Enterprises
•YA: Jenny Bent, The Bent Agency
•Paranormal: Esi Sogah, AVON/HarperCollins
•Erotica: Christa Desir, Samhain Publishing
Touched By Love. Deadline April 1. All Electronic. The total attached submission is to be no more than 32 double-spaced pages with up to 30 pages of the beginning of the manuscript and a synopsis of not more than two pages (synopsis is not judged).
Finalists will receive the opportunity to have their entry judged by five published inspirational authors. Scores will be averaged in order to establish a winner. The winner will be announced at the 2012 RWA National Conference. There will be three finalists in the three categories. There will be a winner in each category and an overall winner from the three categories.
The overall winner chosen from the three winners of the categories will receive a critique of their entry by an editor and $100 toward any writing related expense paid within one year of the end of the TBL contest.
Critiquing Editor for 2012 is Raela Schoenherr of Bethany House Publishers
The remaining two First place category winners will receive $75 toward any writing related expense paid within one year of the end of the TBL contestcontest and NEW THIS YEAR, 1st place category entries will be sent to editor to review (not critique). Â Second place winners will receive $50 toward any writing related expense paid within one year of the end of the TBL contest. Third place winners will receive $25 toward any writing related expense paid within one year of the end of the TBL contest. Writing expenses include the Golden Heart or other writing contest entry fee, conference fees, National RWA dues, etc. Receipts are required for reimbursement.
Royal Ascot. Deadline April 6. Electronic contest. All entries must have at least partial Regency (Late Georgian) setting, broadly defined: within the United Kingdom between 1780 and 1840. Entry length limited to 7,000 words (determined by computer word count) from the beginning of the manuscript. An optional 500 word synopsis may be included.
Categories are utilized for the first round only:
Regency Historical (longer Regency or Mainstream Regency-set)
Hot Regency (Very sensual to Erotic Regency, at author's discretion)
Wild Regency (Paranormal, Time Travel, other similar Regency)
Sweet & Mild Regency (Traditional, Inspirational, Young Adult or other without explicit sex)
Final Round Judges
Stephany Evans, Fine Print Literary
Louise Fury, L Perkins Agency
Pam Hopkins, Hopkins Literary Associates
Editors Lauren Plude, Hachette Book Group
Angela Polidoro, Random House
Deb Werksman, Sourcebooks
The Sheila. Deadline April 7. All electronic.Participation is open to all RWA members, published and unpublished, who have not published a full-length novel (40K words or more) in the category entered at the time of the contest deadline and within the past five years.Submission-the beginning of manuscript, and synopsis (up to 5 pages). The manuscript and synopsis may not exceed 35 total pages.
Single Title Romance:
Emilia Pisani, Gallery Books
Historical (short or long and Regencies):
Elizabeth Poteet, St. Martin’s Press
Fantasy/Futuristic/Paranormal:
Leah Hultenschmidt, SourceBooks
Women’s Fiction with Romantic Elements/Chick Lit:
Alex Logan, Grand Central
Romantic Suspense:
Katherine Pelz, The Berkley Publishing Group
Young Adult:
Wendy Loggia, Delacorte Press/Random House Children’s Books
The 2012 Annual Colorado Gold Writing Contest. Contest opens April 1 and the deadline is June 1. Submission is the first twenty pages and an 8 page synopsis. Categories include: romance, mystery, speculative fiction, action/thriller and mainstream fiction. Five category winners receive a $100 dollar prize. Final judge is an acquiring agent or editor. Check out the website for a contest instruction video!
Published Author Contests
The Daphne du Maurier Award for Excellence in Mystery/Suspense Published Division 2012 -Deadline March 15.
2012 Family Circle Fiction Contest. Contest begins March 1, 2012, and ends September 7, 2012. Entries must be postmarked on or before September 7, 2012, and received by September 14,2012.Submit an original (written by entrant), fiction short story of no more than 2,500 words. Entries must be unpublished and may not have won any prize or award. Cash prizes.
Bearlodge Writers/Devils Tower National Monument 2012 WRITER'S RESIDENCY CONTEST. Deadline April 1. Prose manuscripts should be no more than 2,500 words, or 10 pages (excess pages will be discarded.) Poetry manuscripts maybe single spaced with one poem per page, up to five poems, total submission not to exceed five pages. Two winners one-week residencies (one for prose and the other for poetry) at the monument in September and October to provide an inspiring, secluded working environment for promising writers.
Today is another day of our March Speedbo. Find out more about Speedbo and our exciting weekly prizes here. Comment today for a chance to win, not only today's prize but our weekly prizes! Winners announced in the Weekend Edition.
I wrote on day two, but not as much as I'd wanted. BUT it has been forward progress! Going to bed now and will tackle the words with a fresh mind in the morning. Thanks again for setting up SpeedBo!
ReplyDeleteAt nearly 1600 words today. Still going for a bit more. But made progress and figured out that my female protag may not be who I thought it was after all. We'll see...
ReplyDeleteNeed to take a closer look at a few of those contests when I'm not so tired... :D
I am working hard at revising! Yeah Speedbo!
ReplyDelete2130 for the day :D
ReplyDeletePrologue done!
I'll take it!
No contests for me this month. Concentrating on finishing my rough draft.
ReplyDeleteCarol...you're doing awesome.
I'm w/Lyndee on wishing I could've got a few more words written.
Connie
My house is full of sickness, Speedbo isn't going so well. I got an hour of work done, then baby awoke, took 2 hours to get his fever down and back to bed, then he just woke up again 5 minutes ago. Think I get to give up until we are all well.
ReplyDeleteOhhhh, Melissa! I'm so sorry! Poor baby! Poor YOU!
ReplyDeleteThere are always more chances to put our noses to the gridnstone, but those babies need us NOW. All is quiet here, but I hear coughing every few minutes from the room next to mine. :O
Praying the sickness passes and writing tme happens for both of us!!
I am up watching the storm reports and waiting for a front to hit our area. Nothing as severe as elsewhere but I am praying for everyone in the storm's path.
ReplyDeleteAm I writing right now? No, but I am pondering the fact that I have thought all this time that I had to write 10K a day? What is with that? I used to write short articles at less than 1K and have to pare them down. I was close to 1500 for the day and happy.
Lesson learned for the day: We exaggerate what others accomplish and minimize our own. STOP THAT!
Oh, no need to put me in for today's book drawing. I have Glynna's book.
Peace, Julie
Melissa, been thinking about you. Remember to take care of yourself when you can. Prayers for you and your family.
ReplyDeleteVirginia, the same!
Like Virginia said, babies need you now. Writing will happen soon enough. Spoken as a grandma.
Peace, Julie
Yay for Speedbo. 1,233 for today. I'm now at 6% of my goal and I loved seeing my little stack of papers on my counter triple in size.
ReplyDeleteThanks again, Carol for helping me fix it!
I think I'm going to give Faith, Hope & Love a try for the first time. It will be the first contest for this MS, which WILL be finished my 3/31 thanks to Speedbo. The monthly contest updates are one of my favorite features of Seekerville. Thanks so much.
Wow I forgot what a big month this was for contesting.
ReplyDeleteWell I'm up editing. Dog had to go out a 3 am so...why not stay up. Who needs sleep?
As a matter of fact Debra, I was just thinking...
ReplyDeleteSelf, you should have put SLEEP into those Speedbo rules.
Cause you know those Seekervillians are a DRIVEN bunch.
Nancy said it first, but I'm right there with her. The monthly contest update is also one of my favorite features of Seekerville.
ReplyDeleteThanks for all the info. I shall enter a contest this year--a big goal for me.
Sleep is essential.
ReplyDeleteMelissa....
"So quiet down cobwebs, dust: go to sleep! I'm rocking my babies and babies don't keep."
Babies come first, always.
And they get better and then we snatch time while Elmo raises our children. ;)
Bless you. Do what ya' gotta do and there's no harm in using a PAUSE mode.
Heading to NYC today, so no writing. Taking computer but don't think I'll be able to write in the AM because I'll disturb others. We'll see (Hey, Melissa, see??? Even at 28, we gotta take care of the babies!!!)
So I'll see what happens and then hit the ground running (read: typing) Monday.
Enjoy your writing time, Seekervillagers! Or Seekervillains. Which makes you sound a little felonious!
Yesterday was my husband's birthday so after the celebrating I sat down last night to write and only got about 40 words on paper. With the wind raging all around us and the reports of tornadoes in Indiana, I decided to go to bed and start fresh today! I'm terrified of tornadoes.
ReplyDeleteSmiles & Blessings,
Cindy W.
countrybear52[at]yahoo[dot]com
I agree with others who said it-- the contest updates are so appreciated.
ReplyDeleteFool For Love. Electronic Deadline March 14. First chapters (up to 50 pages maximum) and optional synopsis (5 pages maximum).
Cool! How often do you see a contest that allows 50 pages for the same price (roughly) as ones that allow 20-25 pages? I like it! Would be hard to pull off critiquing that many pages before then… Maybe a similar contest will pop up in a couple months.
Have a great weekend! Write, write, write!
Whitney
Thanks for the contest updates. That Devil's Tower retreat is pretty neat!
ReplyDeleteI'm playing catch up for my Speedbo WIP but I'll be to my goal by the end of the month.
It's great to see all the daily word counts posted!
Wonderful contest update! Thanks Tina!!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on getting all those words on the page, SpeedBo buddies!
Sorry your baby is sick, Melissa. Take time to get you and your family healthy.
Tornados are frightening. Been praying for protection of those in the path of storms and for those who've been impacted.
Janet
Wonderful contest update! Thanks Tina!!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on getting all those words on the page, SpeedBo buddies!
Sorry your baby is sick, Melissa. Take time to get you and your family healthy.
Tornados are frightening. Been praying for protection of those in the path of storms and for those who've been impacted.
Janet
I've gotten some writing in each day. Sat in basement for over 3 hours yesterday with friends and family. Somebody in my town must have been praying hard because we had very little damage here.
ReplyDeleteI hope you all stayed safe.
Jackie
Thanks for the contest updates, Tina. ~ Continued prayers for Melissa and family with all that terrible sickness; Prayers for everyone affected by terrible tornadoes (I kept listening for our local tornado siren to sound all night, so hardly slept*sigh*). ~ SPEEDBO is going great for me I'm happy to say! Am SO thankful for Seekers and Seeker friends! ~ Hugs, Patti Jo :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the contest updates, Tina. ~ Continued prayers for Melissa and family with all that terrible sickness; Prayers for everyone affected by terrible tornadoes (I kept listening for our local tornado siren to sound all night, so hardly slept*sigh*). ~ SPEEDBO is going great for me I'm happy to say! Am SO thankful for Seekers and Seeker friends! ~ Hugs, Patti Jo :)
ReplyDeleteWhew! Managed to squeak in my words yesterday. I was doing everything but write for most of the day, then finally settled down after dinner to get my words done. If it wasn't for Speedbo, I probably wouldn't have bothered. Accountability is a good thing!
ReplyDeleteGreat contest update. Will have to read more carefully later.
Praying for everyone in the storm areas. We have really high winds here, but nothing like a tornado. Should make driving interesting when I have to go out later.
Melissa, take good care of yourself and the baby. Rest when you can. Nothing worse than being sick when little ones are depending on you.
Have a good weekend everyone.
Cheers,
Sue
Oh, and please put my name in for the draw!
sbmason at sympatico dot ca
Thanks for the contest update, Tina!
ReplyDeleteI think this year is going to be my year of contests - but I'll take it one contest at a time.
The Devils Tower retreat is one I'm definitely entering - I love it up there, and only an hour from my house. I'd love to see some of my Seekerville friends there :)
No storms here, but I was praying for all my family and friends in harm's way yesterday!
Melissa and Virginia - take care of those babies! High word counts can come later...like when those babies have driven off in your car and you have time at home alone. I know you don't believe me, but it will happen!
Have a good weekend, everyone!
Melissa, I'm sorry to hear you are both sick! Maybe you'll get some great ideas the next few days that you can run with once everyone's feeling better.
ReplyDeleteI love that these contests are seeming more like a possibility than a dream for me these days!
I'd love to be entered in the drawing!
lostie815 at hotmail dot com
Virginia, I hope your little ones get better fast and you don't catch it too!
ReplyDeleteGet them well, then Speedbo. It will all work out.
ReplyDelete107 Speedbo Participants!!!
ReplyDeleteRock on, writers!!!
Thanks for all the links and info. Happy weekend! :)
ReplyDeleteI AM SO JEALOUS YOU GET TO GO TO NYC RUTHY!!!!
ReplyDeleteWOW--107 for SpeedBo! That's fabulous. My update is the synopsis is done, and I'm starting Chapter 1 tomorrow. Working title: A Place for Family. I've got several ideas for the opening, but one will end up feeling better than the others. Just have to let them all simmer and one will go DING!
ReplyDeleteFor anyone who mentioned not getting many words down, think of where you were last week with your project. If you're further along now, you've made true progress. That's the whole idea.
ReplyDeleteAnd remember--life comes first. Always :)
Thanks for the contest update! Seekerville rocks! Hoping I have something to enter a contest with by the end of March!
ReplyDeleteMy progress isn't as stellar as some and I'm not doing it in word count because I'm handwriting most of the time (I have an issue with long stretches at the computer these days.) I'm writing in 45 minutes stints instead.
Weekdays my goal is 45 min a day (I have a huge commute and very long days so that's all I can manage.) Got my first 45 minutes done on Thursday but Friday was a snow storm and made my commute extra gnarly so I just hit my bed when I got home. :-( But that's okay -- I knew there would be days like that.
Saturdays my goal is to fit in 2 45 min. stints because I only work 6 hours a day. Sunday I'm doing 3 45 mins and then when March break comes -- whooohoooo -- I'm hoping for 5 45 segments a day.
So I'm sort of on track...oh and even though I didn't actually write anything yesterday I mind-plotted on that long bus ride home and I really like where this is going. :-)
Mid-Day Report
ReplyDeleteCompleted:
Chapter Five (1285 words)
How to Build Marketing Success into Your Book Before You Even Write the First Word
I pray that everyone has survived the storms. Still have not heard from KC or my sister who lives only a few miles away.
ACFW chapter meeting today at 1:00. I get to associate with some very good authors. In a way, that is inspirational.
Suggestion: On St. Patrick’s Day, writers of Irish decent should be awarded ‘double words’ for their production on that day.
BTW: Does anyone know of any romance writers from Ireland? Are there even any Seeker friends who now live in Ireland? I can’t think of any.
Vince
P.S. I downloaded Glynna’s book last night. It's next after "A Heart Revealed" -- which might be a very long time. : )
P.P.S. I'm getting a craving for another Oklahoma Tina book. Hint.
I've entered the Genesis TWICE this year. And since it's the third and i can't run to them in a panic and request them back, the nerves have STARTED!
ReplyDeleteWhich is why I should be focusing on editing my wips, right?? ;-)
(I'd love to be entered, please)
Mia is spot on! Forward is forward.
ReplyDeleteThat's all that counts. Let go of the "on track" and just put one foot in front of the other.
Vince, I'm waiting patiently for your daily Speedbo, quote, words of wisdom and Bible Verse.
ReplyDeleteThese contests look intriguing. I might have to check out a few of them.
ReplyDeleteI got in 590 words yesterday. We'll see how I do today. Hopefully, I can get a little catch up done though the day will be disrupted with worthy causes. Off to see what I can get done in the next hour...
PS, do I need to say I want included in the drawing? I do, please.
ReplyDeleteMelissa, I feel your pain. I had nine weeks of at least one person sick. I'm still dragging a bit from it all.
ReplyDeleteCasey makes a great point. SpeedBo is a great way to distract us Genesis entrants from our entries. No better distraction than forcing ourselves to sit down and write! :D
ReplyDeleteI'm now up to 18,717 - that's nearly 800 words so far today. Duty calls. I'll have to return for more SpeedBo this evening.
ReplyDeleteI wrote on day two, but not as much as I wanted. I wasn't feeling well and went to bed before 9pm. Weird.
ReplyDeleteThhhhennn, this morning my computer was about to go dead from a low battery and the "Loose" connection with the power cord finally gave up it's "ify" connection. It is going into the shop. Sigh...not good for my Speedbo aspirations.
My husband will let me use his computer some and I will do it the old fashioned way too....gasp...longhand! I know, I know!!!! So instead of an actual word count goal, I am going to say my goal is to write for 2 hours a day. (I work full time)
So there you have it. I'm rather bummed, but trying not to get discouraged. :)
but think of all the fun you'll have inputting those pages when your computer is fixed, Sherrinda.
ReplyDeleteLong hand is good for the creative juices.
Way to improvise and keep moving forward!!!!!!
Way to go, Speedbo participants.
ReplyDeleteSeriously excellent!
Tina, how do you find time to keep us up-to-date on contests when we're in the middle of SPEEDBO?
ReplyDeleteYou're amazing and wonderful!
I need to enter the Daphne!
Today!
Mail books on Monday!
Get 'er done, Deb!
Thanks for all the contest news. I'm really trying to psych myself up to enter a few this spring.
ReplyDeleteSpeedbo progress yesterday: revised six chapters of one ms and am up to 962 new words on the w.i.p. Not a big accomplishment but it's a step in the right direction for me.
Go, fellow writers, go!!! :)
Thanks for the contest update, Tina. :) It's amazing to see just how many are out there. :)
ReplyDeleteLove seeing all the words being written for SpeedBo!!! :)
Melissa, been thinking about and praying for you. Sometimes real life collides with writing life, doesn't it? I'll continue to pray.
ReplyDeleteYAY! Unexpected partial Panera day! I'll tell y'all the "You can't make this stuff up" story soon.
ReplyDeleteI have about six and half hours but also have to eat dinner in there. Hoping for a good 6-8K. We'll see.
Sherrinda, did you ever read The Atlantic essay 'Is Google Making us Stoopid?'
ReplyDeleteHere's the link:http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2008/07/is-google-making-us-stupid/6868/
Because there's a story
in there about how Nietzsche's writing changed after he bought a type writer.
Maybe we should all switch to long hand for a day??
Melissa,
ReplyDeleteSo sorry your little one is sick. Hard to care for a baby when you're sick as well. Praying for both of you.
Virginia, that's an intriguing article for a couple of reasons.
ReplyDeleteFirst, almost as proof of his point, I didn't finish reading it. I got halfway through and started to skim. Uh oh.
I happened to notice a book in B&N this morning called Is the Internet Changing the Way we Think? by John Brockman
I know as a teacher I see a profound change in the children's ability to focus and think deeply. Some of us were talking about how playing video games is related to that since they (at least on kid level) rarely require higher level thinking.
So, did you make it through my comment or did your mind start to wander. ;)
J/K but I know I had serious difficulty maintaining focus to read when I spent a lot of time playing video games.
Thanks, Tina for the contest update. Sure is a busy contest month. Who knew?
ReplyDeleteMelissa, I hope your baby is feeling better soon. I always hated when my children were ill. Still do, even though they're grown.
Sending get well kisses to the wee one.
Linnette:
ReplyDelete18,717 words and only halfway through March 3rd! I feel like a lazy piker! A good thing this isn’t a competition. : )
Are you writing one of those large family sagas? : )
Stay on track!
Vince
Afternoon Report
ReplyDeleteCompleted:
Chapter Six (1468 words)
It’s Not About Reviews – It’s About Creating the Most Enjoyable ‘Reading Experience’
Vince
Hi Tina:
ReplyDeleteJust got back from the ACFW WIN chapter meeting! They had the best author, adventurer and speaker I’ve ever heard speak. Charles Sasser! Our local chapter brings in national talent. People who have a local ACFW chapter in their area should really check into joining.
Pantser Report
This morning I started to write chapter 6 and summarily set it aside and wrote a totally unexpected chapter 6. The new chapter 6 material follows chapter 5 much better. I’ve never felt so irresponsible in my life. : )
Writing Quote Inspired by Chapter Six RPP
When asked way readers enjoyed reading his books so much, Elmore Leonard said, “I try to leave out the parts that people skip.”
This may sound easy to do but here’s the rub: critics may love those parts that readers skip over! Elmore obviously is writing to the ‘reading experience’! He's one of the good guys. :)
A Quote About the Bible
“That man knows more about the Bible than any preacher in town.”
“That’s true but the problem is he uses the Bible like a drunk uses a light pole: for support rather than illumination.”
Vince
Vince, your comment is very telling - "I’ve never felt so irresponsible in my life. : )"
ReplyDeleteNow all of us know you just a little bit better!
Can't wait to read your book when it's done, so keep on working.
Way to go,Vince. Going up on the FB page now.
ReplyDelete2953 for the day so far in two 1k1hr rounds :).
ReplyDelete5083 for the MS.
And they're the Connealy-Harders clan.
/shrugs/ It just came to me.
And the heroine isn't who I thought it was.
/sigh/
Mary, I think that's the same author! His essay was so popular he wrote a book about it, and I got it from the library a few months ago. I kept reading bits and pieces to my kids which made them groan an roll their eyes.
ReplyDeleteBut what I thought was very interesting is the study they did on non-googlers. Two groups: one who searched (googled) often and one who did not use the internet. Brains cans showed VERY different pics during an hour of googling.
They both went home and non-googlers were asked to use a search engine an hour a day. ONE WEEK later they did the same scans and the brains were IDENTICAL.
So, he says that on one hand it's a good thing because our brains are very, very pliable. Second, it may be a bad thing because in on week, the scans were identical and the areas lighting up were NOT deep thinking areas in the second scan. Frist week was deep thinking even though they were using the internet, second week shwed no deep processes while using the internet.
And this was just an hour a week!
And yes, I managed tog et through your whole comment, hahaha! How about this one? Anybod still there? :D
*waves hand. Still here.
ReplyDeleteVINCE:
ReplyDeleteOh, no, no, no! I started out with 15,573. So far for SpeedBo, I've accomplished 3,985. Sorry for the confusion. My MS is not up to 19,558. Wish I could pump out that many words in three days. :D
Thanks for the great update, Tina!!
ReplyDeleteI hope everyone is doing well on their Speedbo!
Hi Speedbo folks (what ARE we calling ourselves?)
ReplyDeleteI'm making progress, not as much as I'd like naturally, but definitely moving along.
Sure appreciate it.
Looks like some are really ROCKIN' it! Go Go GOOOOO!!!!
Hope everyone did okay in the storms. The dogs wanted in at 8AM yesterday and the weather radio continually alerted us until about 10PM last night. Wshew.
Super WE Tina. Thanks!!
By the way, we prayed for all parts of the country, as well as ourselves. Our little town made the news on Wednesday, when at least 2 people were killed (about 20 miles north of us)... We sure didn't want a repeat, but we sure didn't wish it on anyone else either.
ReplyDeleteAll we got was hail and wind and a LOT of rain.
Hope the sickness clears up too for everyone.
Keep Speedbo-ing. This is just the first leg of a month-long marathon.
Three day total: 4,808
ReplyDeleteSpeedbo is great for a panster like me. It's amazing to see what will happen next.
I'm with you Jamie! I <3 discovering what's going to happen!
ReplyDeleteMy heroine isn't who I thought it was and her reasoning for tracking down my hero sixteen years later caught me COMPLETELY off-guard!
LOVE IT!
Have written 1369 words in Speedbo so far. Don't know if I will be writing much yet tonight. Long day today. Hoping for tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteI'm not speeding along but am plugging away, none the less. As long as I keep going--that's the important thing, right? . . . I love the Elmore Leonard quote. Thanks, Vince!
ReplyDeleteI broke 20K today on my WIP!
ReplyDeleteAnother 824 words making a total of 2774 words today! Woo-hoo!
Time for my little guy's bath. :D
I take tomorrow off and wish you all a Happy Lord's Day!
Hi KC:
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear you are OK. My sister is also OK but she said there were three deaths in the area.
I sent you an email to see if you were OK before I read your post here. PTL
Vince
I may or may not be an aspiring author, however the only writing I'm trying to do right now is a paper for the class I'm in and it's not going so well. Would love to receive a book from the vault. Blessings.
ReplyDeletekauppatgridcomdotnet
And I led her astray too - she posted on March 1 with me. But we're in!
ReplyDeleteSo I didn't see the "Newer posts" tab, and posted my comments on the March 1 list. Welcome to my friend Barbara W who joined us today.
ReplyDeleteMore anon.
Welcome, Kathy. We need cheerleader readers!!
ReplyDeleteWelcome to Barb W.
ReplyDeleteWay to go all you Speedbo writers!!!
And Vince, my favorite Panster, WTG!
Hi Mary and Virginia:
ReplyDeleteI hope you don’t mind but you were discussing something I found very interesting.
I read the whole article, “Is Google Making Us Stupid”, without any problems and was surprised at how little education the author demonstrated!
This article showed the danger of Google paste together writing.
First of all this problem of short and fragmentary thinking was well outlined in the book “Future Shock” back in 1984. The theory then was that the rate of change was increasing so quickly that it will cause shock and potentially make humans sick.
MTV has long been blamed for it’s dozens of images per minute effecting the human mind and helping cause an increase in ADD. Young people expect to be entertained and with a remote offering 500 channels, they will be entertained or lost.
The cost of TV production increased so much over time that more and more commercials were allowed to be aired each hour. There used to be a commercial at the start of a 30 minute show, then one at the halfway mark and then one at the end. Then came 60 second commercials and now we even have 10 and 15 second commercials. A 10 second commercial may well show 30 different images.
The changes talked about in the article happened long before Google. But here is the real danger: instant hypetext research without having knowledge or education.
The author talks about how Taylor created measured efficiency to manufacturing and how this changed the world. However, there was no mention that Taylor has long been discredited and that efficiency is not measured or arrived at by stop watches. Today efficiency is seen more in quality circles, continuous improvement, and total quality management. Taylor was theory X and the new theory is Z.
Authors who write articles like this one can gets lots of relevant quotes from a Google search and thus seem very knowledgeable but in fact they are stringing partial facts into a new whole cloth that may be completely misleading.
This article has a series of seemingly related factoids woven together to produce something that sounds authoritative and yet has so many failings as to be almost useless.
It is not enough to know a great quote. It is also necessary to know the history of that thought from before it was made up to the present. It’s like taking one fact each from 50 different vacuums pasting them together and thinking you have something more than 50 discrete facts.
I see the real problem here is that the internet search ability can give people, without an education in a given area, the appearance that they have such an eduction. When this is the rule, then who can you trust?
Vince
P.S. I don't expect anyone to read all this but I just had to answer. This is how I normally write. :)
Hit a good stopping point. 1669 for the hour, 8284 for the day, 10414 for the MS [since yesterday :D]. 1/7 of the way there!
ReplyDeleteVince, I read it all. And please don't apologize for chiming in on the topic. Your thoughts are interesting.
ReplyDeleteI'd forgotten all about Future Shock. Read it way too many years ago.
I personally love Google for the possibility of finding quick answers to minor questions. I hope I'll never rely on it for in depth info but I love that it can point me in the right direction.
It's interesting that you mentioned MTV. I remember similar concerns being raised about Sesame Street.
As a teacher, I do have a huge concern with how all these devices affect the brain,the way it functions, our ability to concentrate, etc. When I play a video game and then hours later close my eyes and see the same patterns shifting behind my eyelids, I have to believe something funky is going on. ;)
Great progress going on in Speedbo land. Isn't it awesome?
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry so many Seekervillagers are in the tracks of the storms. My prayers are out over all of you. Stay safe and run for cover when you need to...don't wait!
Tina, great contest update. Great list of opportunities and the judges are fantastic!
ReplyDeleteHow do you keep up with all this stuff. You do sleep, don't you?
Melissa sorry baby is feeling badly too. Seems like once someone in the house gets sick during the winter the germs just multiply outta control.
ReplyDeleteGet some sleep and keep those fevers down. Speedbo will be here when you're better and can join us 100 percent!
Praying that's soon!!
Carol, I hesitate to ask...the Connealy-Harders clan? That could be very dangerous, LOL!
ReplyDeleteHehe, Audra!
ReplyDeleteAbigail [Abi] Connealy and Travis Harders.
Not sure how that happened.
They needed last names. That's what they ended up with.
I'm just goin' with it...
Speaking of contests, the Genesis contest closed for entries yesterday.
ReplyDeleteHope everyone got your entries in on time. It's going to be an awesome contest!
And...PS...I just found out that my book Stealing Jake (Kindle) is $6.39 on Amazon. That's 26% off the $8.60 price!!! Yay!!! So, if you don't have a copy, now's the time to grab it for your Kindle.
Carol, I love this! lol
ReplyDeleteAbigail [Abi] Connealy and Travis Harders.
Abi Connealy... I can just picture here already! Can't wait to read this someday and see if she fits the image I have in my head.
LOL! It was Hillman-Harders for a brief moment but that was too many Hs. Promise I'll work that in somewhere else ;). Or Pam. Or something :D.
ReplyDeleteAnd very interested to see what you think she's like ;).
I love the name Travis!
ReplyDeleteAlmost makes me want to have another baby...
I said almost.
I'd rather read the adventures in print by up and coming author Carol Moncado!!
Hi again Seekerville. Everyone is doing so well on SpeedBo. I'm averaging 1,600 words a day, which is 600 more than I usually write, so I'm very pleased. And my heroine made me cry tonight. She's been though a lot, lol.
ReplyDeletePrayers sent for those in the storms, weather and health-wise.
Thanks Tina for your faithfulness in keeping the contests updated. My Genesis was in on deadline. Thanks for the encouragement.
James Rubart has a minor character with the last name Hillman in Book of Days. I'm sure it was just a fluke. But I thought it was pretty cool! lol
ReplyDeleteHow fun, Pam!
ReplyDeleteAnd from your lips [er, fingertips...] to God's ears, Audra dear!
Keep at it everyone.
ReplyDelete