Saturday, January 13, 2007

Welcome to My World

A lot of people ask me when it was I decided I wanted to write. I always answer politely, "I can't remember a time I wasn't a writer." I have vivid memories from when I was young, perhaps 5-6, of making up songs -- sometimes all day long. They covered very complex subjects such as the sandbox and Barbie... In elementary school I used to write out short stories to share with my older sister and her friends. I had a knack for the angst-ridden teen story (the evil girl trying to steal the good girl's boyfriend). In high school -- well, I'll admit I didn't do much writing, but I was an avid daydreamer and a slacker to boot.

Over the years, I've tried numerous times to write novels. I always got caught up in the "rules" of how it's done. When I couldn't start from the beginning, couldn't write an outline, couldn't write out the plot points, etc., I figured there must be something wrong with me. Perhaps this writing gig wasn't my thing. To illustrate this point, I remember writing this random scene I had knocking around in my head. I showed it to my sister, who flat-out refused to give me an opinion because she had no idea what the story was about -- what came before, what would come after. And because I couldn't answer those questions, she couldn't say whether she liked it. Well, that sent my dreams down the tubes because I thought it was bloody genius.

About two years ago, I ran across one of my favorite author's websites, where she explained how she writes in "chunks" -- out of order, no set plot, no outline -- just these random "kernels" that eventually took shape and, when ordered, created these wonderfully rich books the world had fallen in love with. I took one look at the description of her "method" and realized is was what these past failed attempts of mine had been. I just had to come to grips with the fact that my writing style is different than the norm and that it was OK. So, I did.

I immediately began working on Child of the Mist, which is a Scottish historical time-travel. Yeah, I know -- but honestly, I'd fallen in love with the world Gabaldon created in OUTLANDER and, when I finished the series, I wasn't ready to leave. So, I figured I'd give it a shot. About a year later I had 100K written and enough insight in the biz to know a 300K monstrosity would most likely never see the light of day -- at least not one written by a first-time novelist.

And that was when the Narc series and Madison Krauss were born. As a former undercover drug investigator, my personal experiences lend a lot to the work and it has now become a wonderfully surprising series that I absolutely love. If I could write these books for the rest of my life, you would be looking at one seriously satisfied woman. They are completely goofy, sometimes touching, sometimes terrifying tales that I sincerely hope the world will embrace.

And finally, I just recently began a YA novel, titled By The Pale Moonlight. It's an urban fantasy about werewolves, and honestly, I love it, too. You could say I'm diversifying my portfolio.

As stated in my profile, I'm also in my second year of law school right now. Writing and attending school is proving to be a very difficult balancing act, but for now, I do my best.

I've set up this blog to discuss writing -- share my goals, my dreams, my disappointments, and hopefully one day, my success. Welcome!

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