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Tuesday Tunes: Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not?

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It’s been a long while since I’ve been inspired enough by a song to post about it in a Tuesday Tunes. Thompson Square’s Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not has been out for a few months now, and I’ve adored it since the first time I heard it. I love that it’s a duet, I love that its sound is very country-contemporary, and I love the sort of epic-love-story quality of the lyrics (It was the best dang kiss that I’d ever had/Except for that long one after that). Here’s the video, with lyrics* below…

We were sittin’ up there on your momma’s roof
Talkin’ about everything under the moon
With the smell of honeysuckle and your perfume
All I could think about was my next move

Oh, but you were so shy, so was I
Maybe that’s why it was so hard to believe
When you smiled and said to me
“Are you gonna kiss me or not?”

Are we gonna do this or what?
I think you know I like you a lot
But you’re about to miss your shot
“Are you gonna kiss me or not?”

It was the best dang kiss I ever had
Except for that long one after that
And I knew if I wanted this thing to last
Sooner or later I’d have to ask for your hand

So I took a chance
Bought a wedding band and got down on one knee
And you smiled and said to me
“Are you gonna kiss me or not?”

Are we gonna do this or what?
I think you know I love you a lot
I think we’ve got a real good shot
“Are you gonna kiss me or not?”

So, we planned it all out for the middle of June
From the wedding cake to the honeymoon
And your momma cried
When you walked down the aisle

When the preacher man said “Say I do”
I did and you did too, then I lifted that veil
And saw your pretty smile and I said
“Are you gonna kiss me or not?

Are we gonna do this or what?
Look at all the love we got
It ain’t never gonna stop
Are you gonna kiss me or not?”

Yeah baby, I love you a lot
I really think we’ve got a shot
Are you gonna kiss me or not?

*Lyrics written by Jim Collins and David Lee Murphy

Check THIS out…

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My writer/blogger/Twitter friend Caroline Richmond has interviewed me for  her fantastic After the Call series. Her blog is adorably stylish (as is she!), and her previous  interviews for this series have been enlightening and informative. Hopefully mine lives up! Check it out HERE.

Also, have you entered to win a brand new copy of Jessi Kirby‘s amazing debut Moonglass? The giveaway is super easy and ends this Friday, June  17th. Trust me: You want to read this book! Enter HERE.

Happy Monday!

Thankful Thursday

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Oasis for YA knows that the surest way to get good things in life is to be thankful for what you have.  So why not encourage a group thankful-fest once a week in which we all send out good energy and hope to get some back in return? Plus, participating in Thankful Thursday is a great way to connect with other writers.

Here are the rules:
1.  Do your own blog post on what you’re thankful for today.  It doesn’t have to be book or publishing related (but it can be!).
2.  Be sure to grab our badge and include it in your post.
3.  Post a link to your blog in the comments here so that others can find you.
4.  Go forth and share your gratitude!  (And when friending new blogs, be sure to let them know you found them because of their participation in the meme.)

This week I’m thankful for nonsensical, mind-numbing reality TV. My husband is gone way too much, and I often need a little bit of empty entertainment to fill my evenings. Plus, let’s be honest: There’s something about reality TV that makes us “normal” folk feel really good about our lives. 

Here’s what I’m watching these days:

Sixteen and Pregnant – Equal parts riveting and depressing. Also, excellent birth control.

Pregnant in Heels – I rolled my eyes at the preview clips, but I have to say, Pregnant in Heels is so much better than I thought it would be. Rosie the ‘maternity concierge’ is quite knowledgable and very likeable.

 America’s Next Top Model – A tried and true favorite, although Tyra Banks grates my nerves more with every season. I watch this one with my neighbor (who walks down the street in PJs, often toting yummy flavored vodka to join me…  a true friend if ever there was one!).

Addicted to Food – Rehab for people with various eating disorders on OWN. Seriously fascinating.


Real Housewives of Orange County – I’m almost embarrassed to admit that I watch this, but I do and I love it. The amount of pointless drama these women conjur up is mesmerizing.

Top Chef Masters – Can you tell I have a thing for Bravo? I love the Top Chef franchise because I love food, competition, and the theatrics and excitement of it all. Recommend!


So, what are you thankful for this week?

First vs. Third

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Exciting news: I’ve written the first scene of what will hopefully be my next manuscript, a little project I’m affectionately referring to as BUS WIP!!! (yep, with three exclamation points–not sure why, but every time I type BUS WIP!!! they’re there).

I’ve actually written this first scene twice. I’m experimenting, you see, with the POV I want to use for the story. I’m pretty sure I want to “hop heads” and my original instinct was to do dual first person POVs. Now, I’m not so sure. I’m starting to think that close third person might be more effective and, and I don’t know… professional sounding? The problem is this: I’ve always sort of thought I was incapable of writing in third person and honestly, I have a bit of an attitude about third person in general, especially in YA books. Often, it feels too distant.

Recently thought, I read Lisa McMann’s CRYER’S CROSS. In it, she used third-person, present tense and I thought it worked brilliantly. The right amount of distance for a creepy, horror kind of story, and an urgent, quick pace that worked really well for the subject matter.

While BUS WIP!!! is no horror story, I do intend for it to have short, suspenseful, action-packed scenes and a fast pace (whether I will actually pull this off is to be determined :)). So, present tense feels right. And shockingly, so does the close third person POV, but only after I wrote this first scene in first person, then converted it to third.

Confused yet? Here are the first few (tentative) sentences of BUS WIP!!! –

In first person, present tense: 
        When I first notice Jace Bryant peeking at my Chem test, I can’t quite believe it. He’s supposed to be this all-around brilliant guy—Mr. Upstanding. He always seems to know everything, excels at anything he attempts. He wouldn’t possibly copy off me. Would he?       
        But then he does it again, this subtle stretch of his neck that allows him the perfect view of my test packet. He makes a mark on his paper, taps his pencil eraser on the desk a few times, then goes about the whole show again. Jesus! He is copying.

And in third person, present tense:
        When Lia Bonelli first notices Jace Bryant peeking at her Chem test, she can’t quite believe it. He’s supposed to be this all-around brilliant guy—Mr. Upstanding. She’s sure this is some kind of fluke; Jace always seems to know everything. He excels at anything he attempts. He wouldn’t possibly copy off Lia. Would he?      
        But then he does it again, this subtle stretch of his neck that allows him the perfect view of her test packet. He makes a mark on his paper, taps his pencil eraser on the desk a few times, then goes about the whole show again. Jesus! Lia thinks, enraged. He is copying.

So? Opinions? Which POV works better based on these little samples? Which POV do you prefer when you’re writing?

In case you’re interested in reading more about the positives and negatives of different POVs, here are a few links that discuss the subject in greater detail:

Tara K. Harper’s First Person or Third
Novel-Writing-Help.com’s First vs. Third Person Point of View
Janice Hardy’s First Vs. Third: Point of View and Character Development
Ingrid Sundberg’s Five Advantages of Third Person Omniscient POV
James Scott Bell’s Understanding the Effects of Your POV
Write It Sideways Which is Best: First or Third Person Point of View?
Tami Moore’s Close Third Person Point of View (I found this one particularly helpful.)

RTW: Favorite Lines

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Road Trip Wednesday is a “Blog Carnival,” where YA Highway’s contributors post a weekly writing- or reading-related question and answer it on their blogs. You can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.

This week’s topic:  What is your favorite line from your WIP (or from a book you read recently)?

Oh, how to choose? I have lots of favorite lines from the WIP I’m currently querying, Where Poppies Bloom. Wait–is that egotistical? I mean, I have to love the lines in my WIP, otherwise I’d delete them and try again (and again and again), right?

First, here’s a little summary: Drowning in guilt that stems from her younger sister’s tragic death, seventeen-year-old Callie Ryan travels to the Oregon coast to spend the summer with her aunt. Cheerful yard boy, Tucker Morgan, manages to resurrect a glimmer of the girl Callie used to be, but she also finds unlikely companionship in mysterious Nathan Stewart, the dark and ethereal ghost bound to her aunt’s house. When Callie discovers a chilling, decades-old connection between Tucker and Nathan, she must choose between life with the golden boy who dulls her pain, and eternal escape with the ghost who may harbor sinister motivations.

And here are a few of my favorite lines:

            “You’re beautiful,” he says without a hint of embarrassment. “And you seem… sad.”

            Mystified, I choose to ignore both of his assessments. “How come I couldn’t see you those other times?”

            “Because I didn’t want you to. It’s the difference between a whisper and a shout. Just as you won’t hear me if I don’t want you to, you won’t see me unless I let you.”

            “But I can feel you.”

*****

             There is one thing I’m sure of, and it’s dreadfully selfish: I want Tucker to kiss me. The spark of life I normally feel in his presence was multiplied by a thousand with his innocent kiss on the beach earlier. I can’t stop wondering what it would feel like if we really kissed. If I’d spontaneously combust with the emotional high of it all.

*****

            He presses his lips to mine. “This is good, Callie,” he says, serious now. “You and me? We’re good together.”

            There’s no denying that. I nod, reveling in the sensation of his finger tracing the lines of my face. The slope of my nose, the bow of my upper lip, the curve of my cheek. I watch his eyes as they follow the path of his finger, his expression adoring.

            “Tell me you feel it too,” he whispers.

*****

            It’s something like sinking, being sucked into a black hole of misery and guilt, only I’m not alone. I have a companion in Nathan. When his dark, sad eyes meet mine, it’s as if we’re inexplicably linked. Nobody can break that bond. Nobody but Tucker, who is Nathan’s direct opposite. If Nathan is a black hole, Tucker is the brightest of stars, twinkling incessantly, leading me home. 

What about you? Any favorite lines from your WIP? Your favorite books?

What’s New?

I recently realized that I haven’t done an update post in a while, and thought this might be a good time. But, before we begin, if you haven’t had a chance to take a look at the improvements I’ve made to this little corner of the internet, please do. Above, I’ve added ABOUT ME, LOVING MAX HOLDEN, and WHERE POPPIES BLOOM tabs. Check ’em out!

First, I’m stilling querying and waiting on replies for my YA romance, Loving Max Holden. I’ve had some good responses and have gotten several requests for pages. I’m currently waiting to hear back about two full submissions (both requested from partials) and two partial submissions. My absolute dream agent is currently reading my full. I can’t fully express how much this both terrifies and thrills me. I also have four recent queries still out and am hoping for more requests. Fingers crossed!

Second, I’m beginning a mentorship program through Savvy Authors with romance writer Lori Wilde. During the six month program, my classmates and I will: Learn the nuts and bolts of creating a novel from start to finish, emerge from the class with a completed, revised novel, learn the ins and outs of marketing our fiction, and have fun while developing new writing skills.  I’ll be working on my new paranormal YA romance, Where Poppies Bloom, and I’m so excited to begin. I’m absolutely thrilled about getting feedback from an author with so much experience and success. If you’re interested in learning more, click HERE.  

Finally, I just got home from a mini-vacation with my husband and daughter. We drove about four hours southwest to the Oregon coast where we enjoyed fun in the sun, sandcastle building, kite flying, yummy food, and great shopping. This trip was two-fold. First, we packed in some lovely family time, and second, I saw first hand the small, touristy coastal towns I’ve based the setting of my next book on. Astoria, Seaside, and Cannon Beach were all on my radar when I started building fictional Bell Cove for Where Poppies Bloom. Now that I’ve spent time in each of these cities and absorbed their ambience, I’m certain I’m on the right track. We detoured to Portland on the way home, specifically to visit Powell’s Bookstore, an enormous independent new and used bookstore. One word: AMAZING. Now that I’ve been, I’ll be tempted to drive south for all of my book buying. Anyway, here are some inspirational photos from our trip:

 



And because I can't resist... Me, my fabulous husband and my cutie pie daughter.

So, that’s what’s new with me. Still on the agent hunt, ready to begin a new project, fresh from a wonderful family trip. What have you been up to?

The Forest of Enchantment

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Last week I tweeted about heading over to my parents’ house to clean my junk out of their attic. Turns out, that chore wasn’t quite as painful as I thought it would be. I found a few gems, some old pictures and yearbooks, an obscene amount of 1980s Barbie and Cabbage Patch Kid clothes my daughter was lucky enough to inherit, and this priceless treasure:

My very first literary endevor, of which I am the apparent author and illustrator. Sadly, a publication date could not be found on The Forest of Enchantment, but I’m estimating that it was born sometime in the very early 1990s. Here’s the interesting thing about The Forest of Enchantment: even though I wasn’ t even out of elementary school when I wrote it, I managed to nail some trends that are still popular today. Here they are, listed in no particular order…

1) A main character (royalty, no less) on a quest to save her Kingdom and please her parents.  

2) A main character named…. (wait for it!)… Isabella. And look how fashionably thin she is!

3) A mermaid. Whose name, of all things, is Joslin.  I think Ariel might have inspired her hair color.  

4) Magic, of course!

The point is, I’ve been second-guessing my little foray into the paranormal genre since I started researching WIP a few weeks ago, but now, after revisiting this charming piece of my childhood, I’m starting to wonder if I’m not so crazy afterall. Clearly, The Forest of Enchantment is a little rough, but perhaps I’m not straying so far in exploring paranormal. I did, after all, have the imagination for it nearly two decade ago. Though WIP includes no literal journeys, mermaids or magic of the traditional sense, perhaps it’s exactly what I need to be writing right now.