#Row80 Check In 7/31/11

As some of you know, it's been a rough week. Turns out my doxie Sammy didn't have a bug. He took a turn for the worse Thursday afternoon, and after a series of blood work and x-rays, a foreign body was discovered. He had surgery on Friday, where the vet found a lot of his bedding (an old towel, because they chew everything up) wrapped in his intestines like rope. She spent over three hours getting it out. There were also ulcers on his bowels from the mess going on inside him. He made it through surgery fine, but we're not out of the woods yet. There are chances for infections and other setbacks, so we're keeping our fingers crossed.

We went to visit yesterday, and he was happy to see us as well as his bestie, our other mini doxie Maggie. Seeing him after the surgery helped.

Needless to say, the worry didn't play well for my writing. I was feeling down anyway, so Sammy's issues were like icing on the cake. I feel so guilty because I knew he was chewing up the bedding, but I didn't realize how much he was actually eating. I found scraps around, so I just assumed the vast majority was being left out. Should have known better.

I did manage to get a fair amount of editing done on Light and Dark. I'm working on some of the more in depth suggestions from my critique partner as well as really focusing on 'show, don't tell.' And dialogue tags. Those are a biggie of mine.

The Prophet is still stalled. It's an exciting idea I know I can write, but I'm having trouble getting started. I have notes all over the place, and it's like I've forgotten how to organize. Hopefully I get that straightened out soon.

Just wanted to say thank you for all the support on Twitter and Facebook this week. Having you guys to talk to has really helped, and it means a lot:)

Special thanks to the wonderful Tiffany White for pimping my blog on Jenny Hansen's great post. Check out Tiffany's post about the Texas Kiss and Kill Murders - a creepy true story!

And if you're looking for new blogs or a place to promote, stop by the Red Dress Club's Weekend Link-Up.

How did your week turn out?

Twitter friends: An integral part of the writing experience

My husband always rolls his eyes when I talk about my Twitter friends.

“You don’t really know this people,” he says. “They’re just words on a screen.”

Maybe he’s right. We don’t “know” each other in the true sense of the word. I have no clue if you guys like coffee or tea, prefer Coke or Pepsi, or even where most of you work.

And yet, I know many of you. You’re all like me in one sense: you’re writers chasing a dream. You’re learning all you can and reaching out to like minds for guidance, just as I am. You’re trying to stay afloat in a sea of online resources and get your voice heard. Most of all, you’re looking for support encouragement from others who know it’s like to be driven to write.

Most of us can’t find that with our “real life” friends. When they initially find out we’re writing a book, they think it’s awesome and brave. They can’t wait to read it. They want to know about the plot, the genre, the characters. They can’t give you enough support.

Time passes, and as everyone goes about their daily lives, you’re sleep-deprived, scratching out a scene whenever you can find enough quiet time. A few weeks later, your friends excitedly ask how the book’s doing, hoping to read some.

Your response is probably something like this: I’ve got the outline done and the first 5000 words written. It’s going great!”

The friend blinks. “You’ve only got 5000 words? But it’s been so long! When do you think you’ll be ready to publish?”

Yes, I’ve had this conversation with many friends. Every one thinks writing a book is a cool thing and something they’d love to do. And most of them think it simply involves sitting down at the computer with an idea and letting your thoughts rip.

Most have no clue of the planning that goes into a book, and many are oblivious to the difficulties of getting published.

“Go to Barnes and Noble,” one of my friends says. “Look at all the books there – and a lot of them suck. I’m sure yours doesn’t. No way you won’t get published. Someone will snatch your book right up.”

If only.

But my Twitter friends – my writing buddies – they get it. They know the writing is like a marathon, not a sprint. Writers are the wise turtle, not the impatient hare. All of us have our own methods. No two are the same, but we still get what the other’s going through. Who else but a fellow writer could understand the frustration over spending a half an hour over one paragraph, or getting lost in hours of researching and trying to decide what needs to be utilized and what should be left out? Only another writer knows the high of great writing, when the words actually do flow out of your fingers, and only another writer could understand the crushing lows of self-doubt.

Our face-to-face friends may smile and nod, tell us to buck up, it’ll be okay – the usual. But online buddies can empathize and offer real advice. They can tell us to quit whining and get busy writing, that it’s the only way to pull ourselves out of the funk, and we actually listen.

Why? Because they get it. They get that finishing the first draft is just one step of many. They realize it could be a year or more (in some cases, many) before that book is ready to query. And they understand the book may never be published or even submitted. A real life friend would be shocked if I shelved my draft because I didn’t think it was ready and started something new. A writing friend would get that our craft gets better with every book.

So I may not know if you guys are vegetarians or carnivores, but I know you understand what I’m going through. I know that at any moment I could log onto Twitter and ask a question or post a link and get a response. You cheer when I have a good writing day and commiserate when I don’t.

You’re there for me in a way real life friends can’t be, and I’m immensely grateful.

Thank you and best wishes on your writing journey. I’ll be right there beside you!