Lessons from Icarus

Spring break brought a terrible cold, but also some small adventures. But today’s email brought a message from my publisher talking ARCs, advanced reviews for promo period, etc. For my alter ego this would not be stress. She knows tons of folks in her genre. She’d have no problem. I’m…having a problem.

I’ve put out a few feelers and will see where they go. That being said, if you’re reading this and think you’d like to post an advance review to Amazon if you enjoy the book email me at alisonr.seay[at]gmail[dot]com. I’ll put you on the list for an electronic ARC.

Happy Sunday!

A

So yay!  The good news about my upcoming book as myself is actually good news after all. The process has started. The contract will be sent. The pain…I mean editing…will commence. It’s a small new publisher who I learned of through my other writing and I like the way they are headed. Primarily the book will be an ebook but print will be made available. I’ve been so around the mulberry bush in writing (under my pen name) these last eight years that the slow, small, easy way is working best for me. This book is a labor of love and I have no interest in rushing it.

That being said, despite this book being what I consider a mainstream crime book…or a literary crime book…or what they have called ‘family fiction’ book…I worry. I operate on a daily basis writing things that would probably upset a great number of folks, but I don’t worry. This little book, I worry.

I think the moral of this story is: I am a worrier.

Which I already knew. So no surprise there 😉

But surprise! I did change my blog title and I am itching to get started on getting my first novel (I did a kids’ ebook at the request of my kids a billion years ago) as myself underway. I’ll just tell all the folks in my life who are excited to read me (I keep my alter ego pretty secret) to not tell me if they don’t like it. I really believe that the biggest hurdle a writer faces is people taking their fiction for reality. It’s not reality. There might be bits and pieces of truth woven into that work, but in the end it is a story. Some might be more realistic. Some might be almost entirely a tall tale. In the end, though, someone always thinks it’s a true story.

Which means worrying about it is pointless, right? And yet, I’ll do it anyway.

I promise to blog more often. Cross my heart and hope to…well, we’ll stop there. I’ll sure as hell try, how’s that?

Ali
photo credit: balt-arts via photopin cc

Hey! Possibly good news on my book (as myself). It is good. I saw it was good. But yeah, until it actually happens I’ll just say *possibly*. I’m superstitious that way. That being said, you’ll probably see a lot more of me around here once that happens. All um…three of you who pop in to read this. 😉

Happy February! Just think, if I’d waited three more months to blog, I could’ve gone a solid year without a post. Ha!

Ali

As my own durn self 🙂 The novel I wrote a billion years ago (like two) is finally utterly polished up for beta readers and the beta readers are readering. Eventually, I’ll be ready to submit my first novel as myself (not counting the one I shopped around when I was 25). I have many novels, at this point, as alter egos, but am excited (on the border of silly with it, in fact) to submit one as me.

I just spent the last week going full speed ahead on a novella that I’ve decided to submit as me, also. What wierdness has my world come to? Putting my own name on my work. Crazy 😉

And who can believe summer is swiftly approaching? Not me!

Ali

I hope over to Chuck Wendig’s site often enough. This time I gave his 5 sentence challenge a go. I didn’t win, but it was fun, and as usual, brevity is a good fiction pot-stirrer. Reminds me of all the flash I used to write for one of my favorite sites ever (now deceased 😦 ) Anyway, here’s my go. I think Chuck has another challenge up right now, but I’m under the weather this week, so I’ll stick with showing off my five shiny sentences. 😉

Ali

“It was an accident, Ilene.”

“I know that, I get it,” I said, tucking my dead boyfriend’s knife into the back of my waistband.

“He didn’t mean for Billy to die, you know, friendly fire happens in drug deals as well as war.”

I knew that too–I said so–but I told the truth when Todd asked, “Where are you going, then?”

“Another accident’s about to happen…Oops.”

My last blog was about how long it took me to write my recent book as me. Well, it’s probably going to take just as long for me to get around to editing it. But a writer can’t complain for having too much work as other selves. Work is work right now.

I have done some fun short stuff recently, I hope it pans out. Only time will tell, I guess.

In other news, kids are good, husband’s good and life is–in general–good. The hope is to one day become a better blogger as my own actual self. 😉

Ali

Eight million months…

Okay. I think maybe eight months. Longest it’s ever ever ever taken me to write a book. Now we come to the part where I cross everything and pray it doesn’t suck. Not used to writing stuff this long as me.

I’m not even going to look at it for a week and then the edits. Eek!

Ali 😉

I’m really super proud to be a part of the upcoming ESP Smile, Hon: Past, Present & Future issue. I even ordered a spare for my grandmother. (It’s rare that I get so send my grandmother my writing, LOL). If you’re up on the current “Hon” debacle here in Baltimore, you’ll want to read this issue. If you’re not up on it…you’ll want to read this issue!

It’s a win-win, hon-hon.

Ali

as myself! I haven’t in a while, I know. So, here I am with a giant run on sentence of a blog about my actual self.

Good news is myself (me as Ali) might be in an upcoming antho that sounds pretty nifty. I was approached for one of my pen names but actually have a published piece that fits the bill as me. I’m so used to my alter ego(s) getting all the work, it’s nice to throw myself a writing bone here and there. It’s not 100% yet, but it is a hopeful possibility. I also am STILL working on that  mainstream book as me, but it is slow going. This book comes in tiny fits and starts and it’s kind of insanity inducing if you must know. It’s also pretty emotional as far as content. A bit grittier and darker than my norm, so I chip away at it in tiny baby bites.

Let’s see, what else? Christmas shopping. Not to jinx myself but I think I’m more than 1/2 done, but that’s easy because kid units want cell phones for Christmas. That takes up the bulk of their alloted ‘joy’ aka money. I’m doing fun little stuff online and actually braved honest to goodness stores today. It was sooooo not pretty. Barely controlled chaos is what I encountered, I have no idea what you’re encountering. It’s like a zombie apocalypse or something, just with ‘deep discounts’.

Beyond that, I’ve got nothing as me. Just normal life stuff. Picture above  is one spoiled dachshund standing on my legs one of the nights we used the fire pit, before it got too frigid and arctic. It’s kind of grainy and whatnot…but I think that’s why I like it. Reminds me of the bad pics we’d take in high school on those little cheap cameras. Back in high school…you know…when dinosaurs roamed the earth… 😉

Ali

p.s. I have to somehow reset my time on here. I did not post this at 3 something in the morning. Trust me.