My name is Hope, and I'm a write-a-holic

"We are shaped and fashioned by what we love."

Today's Quotable Quote comes from the supreme genius of modern German literature, Johann von Goethe. Goethe is right about that, no doubt. I'm a self-proclaimed write-a-holic, and I'm not ashamed to admit it.

Writing is my escape, a place where I get to do anything and be anyone. There's something magic about conversing with a group of characters in my head. They show up at the most random, and oftentimes inconvenient, times demanding attention and resolution. They want me to explore their world, to share in their joy and pain. And I enjoy it almost as much as I would with my "alive" friends.

Sharing the trials of your MC and overcoming their obstacles is powerful stuff, and building a world your imaginary friends are proud to call home is a notable goal. Granted, you may only ever be recognized by that group of non-existent beings. If you're a true writer though, that will be all you ever need to drive you on to more.

Every setting in my life, every experience, every song, every person becomes a story in my head. I think about how I could work that into a usable plot and just image the characters coming to life. I would say 90% of my (waking) life is spent in writer mode and even more so when I'm sleeping. I have multiple streams of thought, but one is always focused on a story.

Some say it's a curse that writers can't be happy. There's always more to do, more to accomplish than one has the time. For me though, it's just awesome. I know nothing will ever be exactly what I want. I've learned that much in this process. But it will never stop me from trying or enjoying every second of it.

So for Goethe to say we are shaped by what we love...yeah, I would have to agree with that. I've become who I am now, shaped by my love for writing.

What shapes you?

Music: Because One Addiction is Never Enough

I'm sitting here, trying to drum up enough enthusiasm to blog about something important, or at the very least, interesting. I tried to write a post about book reviews, but it wasn't fulfilling, and I lacked a point. I thought about doing a piece on writing--something along the lines of style, grammar, or another rant about the loss of the Oxford comma. Several minutes later, I walked away frustrated.

Finally, I cranked up Rhapsody (which is my version of heroin, by the way) for inspiration and set my playlist to shuffle...then it dawned on me.

MUSIC! Someone once said, "Music is what feelings sound like."

I couldn't agree more. I am a music junky. Music is playing somewhere in my house almost every waking hour, and even some of the non-waking ones. If it were up to me, the world would work like the movies. Each person would have a theme song, and every scene in life would have a melody tied to it. Because in my head, it already does.

As I've said so many times before, music is like a heartbeat to me. I find more in a song than the rhythm and lyrics. The very essence of it plays through me like an emotion or a memory. Entire scenes work themselves out in my mind, inspiring stories and characters I wouldn't have known otherwise. That might sound crazy, but I'm a writer. It's a given.

More moments in my writing have been a result of a song than me actually coming up with it out of nowhere. In fact, if it weren't for Luke Asher, my book might have played out in a completely different manner. Yeah, soak that up. When it comes to music, I'm passionate to say the least.

So, I thought it would be uberfun and easy to talk about a song I've recently discovered and fallen in love with. This is one of those bizarre tunes that gets into your soul and never leaves. It's also one you'll either love or hate. Just weird, like me :)

Stateless-I'm on Fire



Now, the song is great in and of itself, but at the 3:44 mark, there's about a 5 second pause before the music picks back up with a dramatic flair. Sensational! If I could ever get the scene in my head onto paper here, I'd officially be the female version of Tim Burton. Man.

Big Day

Today is the big day, guys! It has been a long time coming, but I'm so excited to share The Willows: Haven cover.



I want to thank the incredible Neil Noah for beautiful work. I love a cover that's symbolic but subtle, and Neil captured everything I wanted and more!

The Willows: Haven is slated for release late summer 2011 with Soul Fire Press. Sign up for the ARC tour here.

Thanks to all my friends for being so supportive and encouraging through this whole process. You guys keep me sane and never let me settle. You're the best!

I have lots more to share with you guys, but that's for another day. For now, if you're reading this, thanks for being awesome!

Exciting News and Haven Cover Reveal

Hello all! Happy 4th of July to you guys. I hope it has been a great one for you. I have some really exciting news I've been sitting on, but I'm free to share now.

This has been driving me crazy sitting on this, but I'm SO excited to announce that my debut novel, The Willows: Haven is going to be published by Soul Fire Press, an imprint of Christopher Matthews Publishing!!!

To celebrate finally being able to share this with you guys, A Tale of Many Reviews and I are partnering up for a Teaser Tuesday and cover reveal. Please stop by and check out the new cover and read an excerpt from the book. While you're there, sign up to be part of the ARC tour!

Have a safe and happy holiday, everyone!

Oxford-schmoxford

It has recently come to my attention through GalleyCat that the University of Oxford Writing Guide has recommended writers avoid the Oxford comma (or serial comma) "as a general rule."

(See below for an example.)

Wait. What?! You Punctuation Police can't just take something that has been a rule and decide it doesn't work any more. Oh, wait. This is the English language we're talking about? Yes, by all means, randomly change the rules so it's nearly impossible for anyone to keep up. Have to say though, you guys keep us on our toes.

***The Oxford comma is the one that separates three ideas and an "and." For instance: I bought a pen, notepad, and bookmark. The comma after notepad is the Oxford comma. It tells us that notepad and bookmark are two, distinct objects.

In the past, you only clumped things together that went together. Example: For lunch, I had chips, peanut butter and jelly, and a milk. The peanut butter and jelly are part of the same notion, so you wouldn't use a comma. There are countless debates regarding the Oxford comma. You can find a list of pros and cons at the ever nifty Wikipedia .

While I mourn the loss of the necessary and functional Oxford comma, I won't go too deep into myself in search of answers. I'm sure Oxford, or some other rule maker, will decide the comma is pertinent once again...right about the time we adjust to not using it.

So where do you guys stand on the Oxford comma? Are you as devastated by this loss as I am, or is it just a thing of the past?

As a Matter of Fact, You Can Judge a Cover. Pt III

Part III of III: The Analytical post.

Congratulations, you made it! Today I want to wrap up the cover discussion with actual layout and design. Now, mind you, I'm a bit peculiar in my ways, so me liking or not liking something doesn't always follow the trend. However, there is still a general template to follow no matter your tastes or preferences.

As we discussed before, you need to know your reader and your subject matter. For me, choosing the perfect cover was as paramount as the story itself. The cover is the first thing a reader will see. It needs to send the right message, fit into the YA paranormal-romance field, but yet be unique and striking. Not an easy task, I'll tell you, but my cover designer is brilliant, and his skill made all the difference.

Step One: Your Background Image
Is your story the one with Princess Fluffernutter and the search for her one true love? You're probably going to want a background image that portrays such a scene. Castles, dragons, cyclops fairies...whatever. The point is, your background needs show the setting of the story without drawing the eye fully. It needs to be subtle, but noticeable. This is your first option. Think Harry Potter.

Harry is the first thing you see, but the background is full of other characters and creatures that are vital to the story.

Your second option, you can go the less obvious route and choose a solid or textured background. This is a great idea if you're going for something striking or if you have an A) excellent focal point (see the following section), or B) a busy focal point. Think all of the Twilight covers or Bree Despain.


Plain, black background makes for a more vivid focal point. Consider your storyline, or simply a striking image to figure out which suits you.

Step Two: Your Foreground Image or Focal Point
This is the image you want to capture your audience. It needs to stand out and draw immediate attention to the cover. This is your selling point! Faces are the trend at the moment (though I thoroughly dislike full-on faces for most covers) so here's where you're going to add the beautiful princess looking pouty, irresolute, or whatever her purpose is in the story. Readers need to see her and wonder why her expression is set the way it is. They need to marvel at her vividly red hair and mysterious eyes. You get one chance to capture the reader's attention. Take advantage of it! I really liked this one. I'm intrigued by her role in the story.


She looks like she's up to something, doesn't she? And what's with the flowers? I would pick this up, despite my aversion to faces, just because it's eye-catching. Whatever style you choose, whatever your focal point, stand out, be bold even if it's subtly, and make an impact.

Step Three: Font
This seems like such an easy task, but for me, it was one of the more difficult. I wanted a font that captured the title of my story as well as the story itself. Not so easy! In my mind, I was looking for something like the font on Beautiful Creatures.


This is a great cover all around, in my opinion, but the font really pops. In this case, the font is actually the focal point. It captures the feel of story and in conjunction with the background, you get a good idea of what to expect. Very well done. If you don't have a dark, mysterious story, this font likely wouldn't work for you.

**Take note however, if your cover is busy, unless your story warrants it, keep your font simple. Think about where you want the readers focus and concentrate on that. Keep it clean, simple, and easy to read when you can.

I hope you guys have learned more quickly what it took me a while to understand!

Wordsmith Wednesday: Who Needs Two Spell Rite?

Wordsmith Wednesday is a running series which features some our favorite things: Words! My wonderful friend Chi, AKA Elizabeth Isaacs, started this with the hope that writers and readers would take something useful away. I personally love it because I'm a nerd, but I struggle with certain things just like everyone else. It's nice for me to have a reminder.


Spelling--the order of the day.

Good spelling is imperative, yet more often than not, it's one of the most difficult things to nail down. Poor spelling, however, makes us seem less intelligent than we really are...or in my case, want to be perceived ;) Thankfully, on one hand, we have spell check on our computers and auto-correct on our phones. While I'm as guilty as the next person for a good deal of misspellings, I can't help but wonder if all the backup we get from technology isn't a bad thing. **Remember, just because spell-check didn't highlight something, doesn't make it right!

When I type, and Word auto-corrects my ignorance, I never see that I spelled it the wrong way to begin with. Since Word is so gracious as to allow me to skip over my idiocy, I'm going to address it myself with a few of the words I struggle to spell correctly.

Rhythym: Even now, I didn't spell it the correct way. It's actually r-h-y-t-h-m. I never get this one right, and I try so hard. I know there's a Y in there, but the placement always throws me.

Separate: Two A's, one E. I often see this spelled s-e-p-e-r-a-t-e because that's how we pronounce it. We can thank the funky and inconsistent English language for that one.

Succeed, Committed, Embarrass, Recommend: And ALL those random, two letter words. I know they're frustrating to learn. I hate not having my auto-correct crutch to lean on for the few occasions I have to hand write these. Believe me, I keep a dictionary around at all times for this reason.

Judgment: This one is just off for me. There should be two E's in my opinion, yet there aren't. Who gets to decide this stuff?

Guarantee and Restaurant: After rhythm, these two are the biggest thorns in my side. Something about that random U just knocks me off kilter. In my head, I've learned to say them like they're spelled. My head is a interesting, and oftentimes unintelligible, place to be. I do find that saying the words to yourself the way they sound helps.

Fact Monster has a nice Word Wise section with tips and saying to keep things straight. Tip #8 follows my whole, say-the-word-like-it-sounds idea. In this case though, you can say them out loud ;)

**Side note, certain words and their spellings vary by style guide and country. I just thought I'd throw that in there since spelling is so easy to begin with ;)