Ouch! My Writing Process

My Writing Process

Georgia Lyn Hunter, a fabulous crit partner of mine and author of
Absolute Surrender asked me to join her and two other authors
on my first blog tour.
How exciting!
Except, when I read the question, How does my writing process work?
The only thought that popped in my head...Ouch! 

I'm a writer that can honestly NEVER say,
"I've been writing since I was five-years-old."
Nope. I liked to play with Barbies and play softball.
I don't get or plan out long elaborate stories.
I'm a "What If..." kind of writer. I wonder about something and then ask, "What if..."
The What ifs add up to--at the most--10 words.
Writing a single title contemporary romance takes 70,000 words.
The rest of the 69,990 words I sit down, pull, stretch and search for a minimum of 1000 words per day.

Ouch! 
Warning! Do not try this at home!
There are characters, goals, motivations, conflicts and plotting to tend to and then the MC's have to get to the all important happy ending.
What? A bead of sweat just formed and dripped off my fingertips.
Writing is hard. But here's the kicker--
I keep doing it.

The What Ifs
They lead me to picture a character in my head and a notion of their motivation leads me to a new world. And I have this utter devotion to conflict!
I throw stones in the paths of my characters so they can yell at me.
I have to yell back so I keep writing.

The Blues 
The thick of it. At page 150 I'm half way there. It's the top of the story arc or maybe your main character's conflict. I have to make my reader happy and have a happily ever after. I can't pull a dream sequence out to explain any resolutions. NO!
The MC's have to fix what they've broken and learn from it.
Not easy, but I keep writing so when I arrive at page 300 or 70,000 words, I'm satisfied and so are my readers.

The Struggle
Blank pages are the enemy and I have defeated them with words.
When I get to 70,000 words I sigh because blank pages aren't staring at me.
I sculpted a story and have something to edit.
The absolute best is when I go back, read it and make it better.

Chipping Away at the Story
I give myself bonus points if a line of dialogue makes me laugh. An odd phrase or mistake may give my MC an interest or another layer to her/his personality. I have to keep editing. Juggling 3 or 4 different characters in my head at once, it's hard to keep straight but they must be heard. Chip, chip, chip.

Reward
Incredible amazement and pride. I created a contemporary romance!

Why Contemporary?
I write contemporary romance, because I just don't have the mindset for historical. I think it's fun and challenging to find good romance in a contemporary setting. I'm always on the look out for new What ifs?


Busy Working
Just Desserts is the story of Quinn and Sadie. It's going to be published in August 2014 by Swoon Romance. These two lovers have a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to showing them another good time in book #2.
My single title Arty Smarty--a contemporary romantic caper--is my latest completed work.

http://georgialynhunter.com/
Georgia's thrilled to finally be able to follow her dream as a writer and the extraordinary journey her imagination takes her to. Georgia's favorite characters are strong, stubborn heroes who believe they don’t need anyone, until their heroine comes along and knocks them right off their gorgeous asses.

http://annakatmore.com/home/

Anna's the awesome writer of the very popular YA Grover Beach series. One cannot help but fall in love with her heroes–she’s penned the hottest and sweetest hero ever–Ryan Hunter. Her latest, first fantasy NA book, Neverland is set to be released in April.

http://celiabreslin.com/
Celia's an amazing author who wrote the sexiest geek/paranormal hero. Ravi is to die for. And hopefully Swim for Shore will be available soon for you all to enjoy. She’s already published two books—Haven & Vampire Code—the start to her totally hot, Tranquilli Bloodline vampire series. (her blog will appear on the 27th March. )

The Nut Factory 2014

Every February I look forward to the only event that gets me out of my winter hibernation. It's the Nut Factory Open House. This year's gallery walk was extra special. My buddies and I went out for pizza, caught up and commiserated on one of the longest winters we've experienced. Transfer Pizzeria has the best slices around, not to mention, you can sit at a drug store counter for a local brew. At the Nut Factory -- artists, patrons and browsers convened to appreciate some good art and have a great time.

Don't let us fool you. We look happy but we're actually just hungry!

This is a man carrying a gold fish tank on his back.

This is Swati. She only looks like she has a fish bowl on her back. 

He didn't get his pizza and look what happened...

Heart and Soul

HEART AND SOUL

My kitchen is the heart of our home. It's located in the center of the house. In the middle of it there's an island topped with a mighty stainless-steel counter. It's the hub and everything surrounding it, is mine.
The boys know that I OWN the largest piece of square footage in our household. I don't post a Keep Out sign and I invite them in, occasionally.
I spend Saturday or Sunday in it's entirety flipping through cookbooks, planning meals, and/or making a roast of some kind. I am the go-to gal for food.
"I'm hungry." Is repeated so often it should be my mantra.
With three teenage boys and one husband, feeding a family, honestly, is a pain. Cooking is hard work, tiresome and incredibly under-appreciated. So when I want a bit of appreciation, I bake.
It's my reward and if the family is nice to me I'll share the goodies. I take dessert seriously. Sweets are priority. If I don't have time to make cookies or cupcakes, a bag of Twizzlers or Red Vines does the trick.

Last weekend I baked for pleasure, but it was also in the name of "research". My writer--brain needed a break and I wanted to pay some homage to the main character in my soon to be published book, JUST DESSERTS.   And when I posted the millionth picture of more sweet, beautiful and delicious looking cupcakes, my BFF issued a challenge.  "Put up or shut up. Make your own damn cupcakes!"




In JD, Sadie plans desserts for her family's diner. She doesn't fictionally--really bake any cupcakes. Her thing is, well, you'll have to read the book. But my own baking gave me some insight into her passion. It takes a lot of attention to detail to make a gorgeous cupcake which is why Sadie probably chooses to bake a whole lot other yummy treats.










As you can see by my friend's pics, the cupcakes turned out gorgeous.
We had a fun, fun time!
Her inspiration and guidance were amazing.
I owe her a bunch.
Hello?!
Did I know the difference how maraschino cherries
and fresh cherries would look on butter creme frosting?
No.
The recipe for the best butter creme frosting?
No.
I've thought about it, but thanks to Lisa, found it.
Voila.
The perfect cupcake in the heart of my home.

 


      

Happy New Year!

It's 2014 and this year is off to a great start. I'm so excited I have to share my news. My contemporary romance, JUST DESSERTS will be e-published in the fall of 2014 by Swoon Romance. Squee!

    
Check out future posts on my new website triciaquinnies.com!

There's something about a VW Bus that makes my heart beat faster. Do they symbolize a care free time? A time I never really knew about? No. Really, for me, it's the colors. The vibrant orange buses or the deep forest greens are so delicious. They're like fruity treats on four wheels. At the VW Fest I couldn't help but snaps a whole lot of photos.
Here are a few...

Arty Smarty

Another contest entry, for the heck of it, I'm posting the first 200 words of Arty Smarty.

It's a romantic caper where a stolen masterpiece restores damaged reputations and salvages genuine love.


ARTY SMARTY


“Darn.” She must have missed the Lake Bluff sign while fiddling with knobs in the rust-bucket.

Instead of air, Claire Raffen found an eight-track player and a cigarette lighter. On an eighty-degree Indian summer day, neither helped.

After Larry handed the VW key to her, she had driven out of the museum’s underground parking lot and stifling heat enveloped her. She tried, but couldn't reach to roll down the passenger-side window for a cross breeze. Rolling down a window? 

“This is worth it.” She tugged her turtleneck away from her neck and swung her bobbed hair.  After this exhibit, I won’t have to play Lawrence Chambers’ indentured art servant anymore.

She veered onto the exit. The bungee cords, to secure Coal or Steam, scraped across the van’s cavernous belly. Driving east toward Sinjin Reid’s studio, she flipped down the visor to cut the morning glare. According to the GPS, Claire was only ten miles away from the reclusive artist’s estate on Lake Michigan.

The prospect of meeting Sinjin reduced her to a giddy fan. He’s an artist, not a teen idol. But his sculpture, donated to her Steampunk exhibit, would save her debut opening and she hoped, her father's reputation.   

http://tinyurl.com/84alydd  Lucky Agent Contest with Chuck Sambuchino at Writer's Digest.

      

The Scent of Words

THE SCENT OF HEROES


In March two of my sons celebrate birthdays, so the month is all about the boys,and their parties, junk food and cakes. Last Sunday when my oldest son turned seventeen, in the midst of the Doctor Who marathon, my mom brain went into sensory overload and I got stuck on one thought. "What happened to his wonderful, intoxicating baby smell and when did I say AXE Citrus smelled so great?" It struck me how, especially in a house full of boys, smell is high priority.

It's a priority in my writing, too.I realized in every chapter or scene I write, I'm thinking about how to incorporate a scent or fragrance. It's important and adds so much to a scene. Scents trigger memories and can deepen the emotional bond you're establishing with your reader. I only figure this because, on the flip side, if a smell or odor is referred to in a story I'm reading and it reminds me of some deep stomach curdling memory, it's the strawberry-scented Bonnie Bell kiss of death. Reading romances there is one word that kills the story--musky. For me, the story's over no matter how hot the hero looks.

Coming up with fresh aromas and enticing scents for my heroes challenges me. I've used citrus-y, Old Spice, ginger sage and earthy way too much. So I'm always on a truffle-like hunt for new ways to describe with a scent that doesn't refer to feral or pheromones...or musky...

Fiona's quest to keep my real life ogres smelling sweet wafts into my fictional heroes and keeps my ol' factory working. Ha!