Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Fast Draft- and they do mean fast!!

Hi everyone. Just thought I'd share the latest in the Sierra Wolfe writing arena. I've just signed up for a challenge called Fast Draft. The premise is that we write a 70,000 word novel in 14 days. It just started today and I did really good. I wrote over 6,000 words and have about 9% of it done. It totaled up to about 28 pages, I believe. I tell you what, it really takes some stamina to write that much. I hope I can keep it up throughout the whole 14 days. I've never written anything that large yet. My biggest book so far has been 50,000 words. So this will be a challenge for me in more ways than one.

It's really fun though and gets your juices flowing. You don't have time to think about where you're going, you have to have your ideas ready and waiting to be used. At least I do. I know a lot of people are pantsers. I can't do that. I have to have my whole book plotted and ready to go or I don't get anywhere with it. I've attempted to write by the seat of my pants in the past and made it to about 30 pages and it all went kaput on me.

Once I started plotting, then I was able to finish a book. I've never been happier than the first time I finished one. I was so thrilled. I never thought I'd be able to do it until then. I still have difficulty with plotting, but I manage to get through it and when I do, I can really put out the words. But getting to that point is a lot of work.

I can tell that things are getting easier for me the more I do them. My plotting, writing, and editing have all improved in the last few months. I just keep plugging away and eventually I will be good enough to get published. Hopefully, that will be soon, like in the next few months. I want to submit a story that soon anyway. I need the feedback to find out where I am in my goals.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on the subjects I've discussed today. Be sure to leave me a comment and let me know what you think.

Sierra

Saturday, April 12, 2008

New Weekly Contest

Today I want to tell you about a new contest on my other blog, The Deadly Vixens. Today's contest will be the first one of a weekly contest. Be sure to check out the blog for your chance to win great prizes. Today we are going to be giving away two prizes. The lucky winners will receive a free ebook by Diane Taylor. Good luck!

I told you yesterday about the new project that we are working on and I'm excited to state that I'm off to a great start. I've alredy written the first two chapters and I'm about halfway through with the third. I'm so thrilled that this is going so well.

Friday, April 11, 2008

Starting a New Project!

I've started a new project that I'm really excited about. My friends and I have decided to work together to create an anthology with each of us contributing a novella. I spent most of yesterday creating my story and planning my scenes. I was even able to get my synopsis written. To me the planning is the hardest work so I'm thrilled that I was able to finish it last night. We've decided that our novella length would be 20-30,000 words each and we've created a deadline for ourselves to stay on track.

So now I'm ready to sit down and write my rough draft. I'm hoping to do that quickly. I have my scenes planned and ready to go. We've decided to make our stories paranormal romance (of course) and we've chosen the vampire to be one of the main characters. We're also going to have other paranormal creatures included, so if the vampire isn't your favorite, there will be plenty more to choose from. My story will include a vampire as the hero, a witch as the heroine, and a ghost as the antagonist. The other stories are planned to include a were creature of some kind and I think possibly an elf.

Stay tuned because the good stuff is on it's way.

Friday, April 4, 2008

Plant your Seeds!

I'm so excited about the new yahoo group that I co-created with two great paranormal romance authors: Gracen Miller and Sarah Makela. We've already had a few friends come in to join us and comment. It's great to learn more about our friends and find out a little about their interests. I've already learned some things I didn't know. I love to learn. I think we should learn something new every day. If I don't, I'm disappointed.

I think our combined blog is off to a great start also. The Deadly Vixens has taken flight. It's amazing to watch something grow. Especially if it is something that you helped plant. It's like the vegetable garden that I'm planning to plant this year. I've purchased my favorites and planted the seeds to create my starter plants. Each day, I check my containers to see their progress. When I first spotted the little green plants shooting up from the dark brown soil, my heart gave a little flutter. I've helped to create life. It's so exciting. That's the way I feel about our blog and yahoo group. We've given it life and now we get the pleasure to watch it grow. Hopefully, as we nurture and care for it, it will bloom into something truly amazing.

It's amazing how an analogy can be spread to include many things. As I'm sitting here thinking about the life we've created on the Internet, to be shared with our fellow readers and writers, I'm also thinking about my stories. It is the same with them. I give them life, I take the seeds of ideas and nurture them so that they can grow into stories that I hope will delight all who partake of them. I want them to bring happiness to those who share my interests. With lots (and I do mean lots) of care and nurturing, they will grow to have a life of their own. It's hard work and exhausting at times, but a love that I will never lose. The product that comes out of all that work is something that I can be proud of, proud to share.

May we all grow our hopes and dreams into the beautiful flowers that they deserve to be. There is no greater joy than reaching our dreams, whatever they may be. Plant your seeds and watch them grow, you won't be disappointed.

Lots of love and luck on your garden,
Sierra

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Hello

Hello and welcome to my blog. My name is Sierra Wolfe and I am a paranormal romance writer. My goal is to be published within the next year. I am working hard to make that goal a reality. I've made many great friends online through various groups and message boards. I'm very excited that there is such a love of paranormal out there. The darkness is my home. I live for the night. I know that I'm not alone. For all of you out there who share my passion, check out my other pages online. http://www.myspace.com/read_sierra_wolfe and check me out on facebook. Hope to see you soon!

Sierra