The morning wasn’t so bad. Just under my goal of 1000. However, coming back after lunch was a different story. For some reason, the words aren’t happening. It’s weird. Usually when this occurs, I hate my morning session and spend my time obsessing. Not this time. I’m actually quite happy with the scene I started. It’s the bridge getting to the heart of the book that’s the problem. I feel like something big needs to happen to shake things up more than they already are. But what? That’s what is stumping me. And why are they where they are? Where is my “so what”?

Maybe I need some lying down time. Visualize what needs to happen next. I do love a good brainstorm session. Even if it doesn’t always translate to words on paper. Or maybe I go and take another look at that outline. See if there are some things I can clarify there.

This may end up being more of a planning and brainstorming day. Those do happen. It’s hard, though, when they do. I always have trouble giving myself grace when the words are being difficult. In my mind, I know that it’s often better to take a knee and re-orient than to dash off in the wrong direction and potentially have to gut a section later.

I still don’t like it. I want to write. Words. Good words. The best words I’ve ever written. Every. Single. Day.

I never said I was rational or set healthy goals.

If you’re listening my creative muses, it’s me. Tobey. Hoping you send me a couple of flashes of inspiration.

Oh look. That might be one now.

The post Treading Water appeared first on T.A. White.

I’m not the greatest at multi-tasking. Especially when there is a hard deadline in the mix and consequences if I don’t hit it. I pretty much have not left the computer chair since Sunday when the proof for Trials came back. Except to sleep and eat. Hours, sitting motionless as I read through the final copy and made last minute adjustments. (I did, however, spend my downtime reading all of the Murderbot Diaries. In retrospect, not my best idea. Hours at work reading, followed by hours at night reading something else is a little much.)

This isn’t the closest I’ve cut it to getting the manuscript uploaded in time to Amazon, but it’s in the top five. Usually, I like to have everything done a week or more in advance. I got this done Wednesday at 7 p.m. and then spent most of today taking care of the other distributers and the print version of the book. (Which, to my surprise, will be available relatively close to the release date. I thought I’d screwed everything up by forgetting to account for the definitions section in my final page count to the designer, but it somehow worked out.)

Because I know people will ask, the audio book is also coming. I just sent them a copy of the manuscript so they can get started. No ETA on when that will be available.

It’s funny. Almost as soon as I put Trials to bed, Aileen and company got extremely loud in my head. I think I’ll be shifting to bring their adventure to life next. Just as soon as I finish all my Christmas preparations.

The post Finish line appeared first on T.A. White.

But just because I’m in a “reset” doesn’t mean the work stops. There’s a book to name (check), a cover to commission (also check), a blurb to write, snippets to pull out and put to artwork, deciding on a publishing date, then uploading the book to the different distributers, etc. I also need to catch up with all the email that has come in over the past few weeks that got pushed to the side in favor of me being full on focused on the book. I think there are also website updates to make.

In this period I usually try to start also outlining the next book. Or at least do some deep thinking. That’s a problem when you don’t know what you want to write. The original plan was to start a new series after Firebird 5 was done. Of course, when I made that plan, Firebird 5 was the last book in the series… That didn’t work out how I intended. Thanks, Kira and Jin. (This means there are more books after 5. Because I know that’s the next question people will ask.)

To further confound things, I’m not sure which of my many story ideas to pursue. The choice is an important one considering the time commitment involved. Firebird has been running at least five years. Aileen, even longer. So whichever world I choose, I’ll be working in it for awhile. That means I’d better like it.

Do I do the sci fi that’s a little heavier on the romance than Firebird? It’s one of my favorite genres but one that is difficult to find books I like in due to most not striking that perfect balance between action, sci fi, and romance. There’s also the Sci Fi military-esque series that is chock full of family drama and the heroine doing insane things. It’s a little closer in vibe to Kira’s world except the heroine is no hero and when the book starts she’s already signed up for a ten year commitment to the military. Much to her dismay. It’s a little different than my normal fare. Quite odd actually.

Or do I return to my roots and explore that Fantasy Romance that has been teasing my brain over the last few months? It’d be in the same vein as pathfinder. With a strong, highly capable heroine who has been given in tithe to a very powerful people. It’s the newest world of those I’ve been dreaming, but it’s startlingly well fleshed out.

Let’s not forget the portal fantasy that I’ve been wanting to do forever. Or the three contemporary romances that keep popping into my head.

You see my problem.

Maybe I’ll just putter around. Put some ideas on paper and see if anything sucks me in once I get going. If I truly can’t choose, I guess Aileen and friends will get a new adventure sooner than planned. I already have an idea of where that is going.

The post What’s Next? appeared first on T.A. White.

It wasn’t until the husband told me Odin was shaking his head a lot before asking if we still had the medicated ear drops from the last time he got an ear infection that we discovered it wasn’t dirt. While applying the ear drops, we noticed black specks in his fur. At that point, suspicion dawned. A quick search on the internet led me to our culprit. Fleas. And that black “dirt” was flea dust. AKA flea poop.

We commenced de-fleaing procedures immediately. I ran to a store to buy flea shampoo and other things including a flea comb which confirmed our fears. The husband helped me bathe the cats and put on what we realized later was flea medication that expired two years ago. While this won’t hurt the cats, it does affect the efficacy of the ingredients. But neither the vet nor the maker can tell me by how much. So now we don’t even know if the medication is working.

As a result of the flea incident, I got nothing of what I’d hoped to accomplish done this weekend. Instead, I did all of the laundry. Sooo many loads. And vacuumed. The entire house. Twice.

I bought a flea trap and caught a couple fleas. That led to us to vacuuming and re-spraying the flea killing stuff on our furniture and carpet yet again.

We also started combing the cats for fleas. Of course, Loki turned into a hell cat because of the bath. The sounds she made were the type of thing that would make me quail in terror if heard out in the wild. This despite the fact that she normally loves being brushed. Odin just sat there and took it, making distressed sounds every so often.

Poor Odin had it worse because he also had to go to the vet because it had been over a year since his last visit and the vet couldn’t prescribe new flea medication until she saw him. It was quite traumatizing for him. He peed in his crate at one point which got on his fur. To top things off, I got a call yesterday saying his blood test was mislabeled and I needed to bring him in again on Friday.

Things are finally getting better though. Loki is enjoying her brush time. I’m no longer pulling off live fleas. Both cats have stopped scratching. However, this is a protracted battle that will last two to three months as the fleas move through their lifecycle.

Please wish me luck. This is quite honestly my worst nightmare. Only I thought it would be bedbugs that would get us. Not fleas on my indoor only cats.

The post the Horror appeared first on T.A. White.

Then I came inside. This is where things took a drastic turn. Throw up. The foamy, clear kind. It was everywhere. Next to my kitchen table, in the entryway, throughout the kitchen, in front of the stairs. Everywhere. My husband and I tracked it to the basement stairs where we found Odin guarding the steps, leading us to assume he was the culprit. Only, it turns out he wasn’t. No, that was Loki who we found seconds later in the basement next to a huge pile of real throw up and flecks of foam and other stuff on her face.

While I cleaned Loki up, my husband dealt with the throw up. Thinking the excitement was over, I returned to my office to concentrate on the scene I was working on. I’d only just sat down when I looked up to find Loki had followed me and had large ribbons of foamy drool hanging out of her mouth like a rabid animal. Queue my panic. I’ve had this cat for over eight years. The only time she drooled like that was when she licked the spot where I’d put the flea medicine I used on her the first year I had her. I didn’t use it after that.

At this point, I called my vet and asked if I should be concerned. They said yes and to bring her in. Thirty minutes later, after fighting through rush hour adjacent traffic, I reached the vet with the non sedated Loki. This is important because a long time ago, it was decided that Loki couldn’t go to the vet unless she was sedated because of how aggressive she was. She is small but she is mighty. And very vocal. As a result, the vet couldn’t draw her blood. So I had to make an appointment for first thing the next day when she was on her chill pill. A sleepless night and an expensive vet bill later, we established that Loki wasn’t in organ failure, which is the biggest fear for a cat that likes to eat plants. No matter if they are toxic or not.

In the end, it appears she was just being a cat.

The post Cats and Fridays appeared first on T.A. White.

The weird thing about being a writer is that your schedule doesn’t always play out the way you think or wish it would. It’s why sometimes I’ll write on the weekend or at odd times if the words are particularly loud. I’ve learned to grab hold when the story moves me because it’s difficult to recapture that mindset. Last Sunday (or rather Friday night and Saturday) I had an “ah ha” moment. One of those situations where the scenes my brain has been chewing on for a little while finally realign into something that makes sense. All those issues that bugged me sort themselves out and it’s like watching a movie in my head. A beautiful, thrilling movie that occasionally makes me cry with both bittersweet joy and abject sorrow.

My little scene adjustment turned into a full rewrite of the first four chapters with several new scenes flowing into the old ones. It sounds like a step backwards when in reality it’ll set me up well later. I always struggle if the beginning of a book isn’t right. I need a stable foundation with which to build a story. Spending a little more time in the beginning can pay dividends in the future. Or at least that’s what I tell myself when I do something like this.

At least it’s not a rewrite that comes at 86,000 words in. I’m looking at you Threshold of Annihilation and The Storm’s Whisper.

Next week the edits for Nightfall’s Prophet are due so I’ll be shifting gears back to Aileen. That brings me to my question for you–Do you prefer entire chapters as a teaser for a book? Or a visual element mixed with a quote like the one I post on Facebook every once in a while? Or both? I’m interested to see what people look forward to so I can plan my marketing.

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