Go the Stags!

What a day to be a Southlander. Congratulations to our mighty rugby team on their winning of the Ranfurly shield. And particularly a huge thank you to Jimmy Cowan for his attendance and encouragement on the side line. He's probably the highest paid water boy around. I'm sure his support helped an already motivated team succeed.

Better Than Sex

Check out my website for an article with the above title and be amazed. I surely was.
www.anneashby.com

New Contract

What great excitement for me this week. I received the offer of another contract from The Wild Rose Press a mere 6 weeks after submitting my ms. Their amazing turn around time makes this publisher well worth checking out. Knowing your work is acceptable, or not, in this type of time frame allows so much more scope. Instead of waiting over a year with the larger publishers while you query, then submit a partial, then a full only to wait months more to get a result. TWRP system works so much better for me - they don't force those long agonizing months on you. That alone makes them look like a pretty good company to me. Check them out and see what you think.

Chicago Manual of Style and editing gurus

This week I have been introduced to something previously unknown to me, and probably millions of other people. A "book of rules" for American English. I have to admit to being less than perfect when it comes to my use of grammar/punctuation etc - way beyond less than perfect, I'm sure my editor would attest to. Even with a very switched on critique partner I doubt I could ever achieve the perfection necessary to abide with these "Chicago" rules. Seeing just how exacting they are, it's time for me to pay homage to the lady who adjusted my writing to fit. I still cringe when I remember how many errors she managed to find in my "perfect" manuscript. The worst thing of all, though, was how obvious all those mistakes actually were. I owe her, owe her big time.
visit me at www.anneashby.com for a little more about CMOS

23 Sep

I'm discovering that waiting for word of a publication date is almost as bad as the waiting for acceptance/rejection notification. Why that should be I couldn't say, especially as its only a couple of weeks since my lovely editor and I completed work on the manuscript. Resisting the temptation to email every person I know, have ever known, to tell them is getting more difficult by the day. I guess the waiting game is inherent with this choice of career.

Book in 50 days

The RWNZ is hosting a great motivational ploy encouraging its members to complete a book within a set time frame. Although I am usually very self disciplined when I write, I figure this can only help me keep on my toes. When ideas flow freely, its wonderful to imagine if we stick to this criteria of writing just 100 odd words per day, we could produce maybe even half a dozen stories a year. Hey, that could almost mean giving up the day job. Oh yeah, there's editing and rewriting and re-editing the rewriting again to do as well. Oh dear, but maybe three or four stories is achievable. Guess I'll find out soon, when I start my first experience of "Book in 50 Days" Happy writing.

Setting for new WIP

After a couple of weeks research, including picking the brains of my niece and her husband for juicy stories about the hotel industry, I've burst into chapter one. I have decided to set my story in Southland, around my home town of Colac Bay. Not sure if they'll retain their correct names, I've already renamed Riverton. I'm going to use the friendliness and spirited approach to life that Southlanders display to up the ante when a JAFA (translated to Just Another F hmm wonder what this signifies Aucklander) arrives to muddy the pot. We're constantly told by publishers they want different and unique. I'm taking a chance on following my all-time-favourite Essie Summers into setting stories away from the boring cosmopolitan setting which could be anywhere in the world. This story (hopefully) will have Southland New Zealand stamped all over it. Check out my website for some thoughts on Southland and why I'd want to set a story there. www.anneashby.com