March Scene Break
March 31, 2024
WHAT'S NEW IN POETRY
I composed five new poems in March. None are published yet but 2 are set to appear in the 27 Club Anthology I'm co-editing with Aurynanya. That book will be out this summer.
I received 13 copies of my poetry book, Questions I Didn't Know I'd Asked from my Australian publisher, Lachlan McDougal. I have 1 left unspoken for. I just received my first royalty check via PayPal! Granted it wasn't much but every little bit helps.
I've been invited to do a guest blog about poetry forms. That will appear online April 17, 2024. I'll write a Meandering post when it's up.
Sometime in April, Jen from Meter & Mayhem will interview me for her podcast. I'll talk about Questions I Didn't Know I'd Asked and the book coming out in July, Hand-Me-Downs. My interview will air in May on her YouTube channel.
NOVEL PROGRESS
Beginning this month, I have 2 two novels to talk about. UNDER THE BUBBLE is basically finished. After a round with 5 beta readers, I did another pass of edits then sent the manuscript to my #1 reader. She has promised she will read it again by May 1. I have the synopsis written; it just needs a little cleanup. If all goes well, I should start querying agents in May. Once this book is in the query stages, I'll be reporting here how many queries I send, rejections I get, etc. I'm prepared (I think.)
I wrote the sequel, DREAMS TO VISIONS, a few years ago. As I begin to rewrite the thing in the first stage of editing, I am seeing how much I have learned about writing. This book is in 2 POV, a male and a female. Ha! I remember wanting to make it 12 POV at first! When I realized what a horrible mess that would be I cut it to 8, then 4. Finally, 2 POV felt right. DREAMS TO VISIONS features a cast of characters but revolves around a handful of people. I focus on 2 of those people for this book.
So far, I've written the first chapter 3 times and chapter 2 is about half done. Once I get through these first 2 chapters, I probably won't seek input until the entire first draft is finished. When I was composing UNDER THE BUBBLE originally, I got too many opinions in my ear and in my head early on. That led to too much confusion for me. I won't do that again. If I ask anyone for input it will be only a select few.
WHAT I'M READING
I don't read enough. I have seven books stacked by my bed in various stages of reading. So, what do I do? I'm starting another book. The Paradox Hotel by Rob Hart is one I heard about on a podcast. I need to set aside time each day to read the dang thing. BUT I've had this discussion a lot recently. If I can't get into any book by the end of the first chapter, I won't finish it. I don't owe the book or the author anything. I'm not obligated to read something I'm not into. Which is why it's so important to me to get my first chapter done right.
PUBLICATIONS SINCE LAST SCENE BREAK
https://www.darkwinterlit.com/post/watcher-by-mona-mehas
https://www.loftbooks.co.uk/ Click last issue; go to page 98. My story is "Unweathered."
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CXTJKVJ3/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0 I have 2 poems in this anthology.
Another site I've published on is Subliminal Surgery. Their message is "content has been eaten but we are in the process of attempting to regurgitate." I'll not post the link here but hopefully I can next month.
STAR TREK
Yesterday I participated in a Star Trek trivia game online with a Facebook fan group. It was fun and I had no clue how much trivia I actually knew. However, I am not quick enough to win anything, especially the Jeopardy version. I did better on the multiple choice but scored a fat zero on Trekordy. One category was Episodes. I am absolutely horrible at titles of episodes. Anyway, today is another Trek chat at noon with the same Facebook group, Star Trek Family. Tis the season for a new season of Discovery, it's final, so that's mostly what we will chat about.
WHAT I'VE LEARNED SO FAR & TODAY'S PHOTO
Patience.
An example is what happened at the Subliminal Surgery site listed above. I also have published poetry at the guy's sister site, "Exist Otherwise." Something must have gone wrong with his equipment or technology. I noticed his last issue of "Exist Otherwise" was missing. I wonder if he received emails with people yelling at him for losing their stuff.
This leads me to a whole different conversation about kindness. In some situations, we must realize that no matter what, kindness is the only answer. He didn't lose that writing on purpose. Computers, printers, technology—they fail, hiccup, or otherwise default.
I'm trying to be kinder to myself. The other day, I noticed white roses in the forsythia bush outside my kitchen window. At first, I thought there was a hidden rose bush there and it was blooming, protected by the larger forsythia. I just moved to this apartment last August so I wouldn't have known. I went out and found a discarded bouquet of white roses and baby's breath in the bush. Had the neighbors upstairs argued? Maybe he gave her roses but she was still mad so she tossed them overboard? It's possible; I've heard them fight before.
I brought the flowers in, trimmed them about 6 inches, and put them in a vase with water. They've done quite well, despite having spent the night outside when it was below freezing. This bouquet is now my gift to myself. The roses are beginning to fade but the photo has preserved them.
Thank you for reading my Scene Break.
Be kind to yourself. Buy yourself flowers. Or maybe you will be lucky and rescue a bouquet.