Name change and some characters?

I'm thinking about changing the name of my blog...

Still not sure what to, though. See, the issue I'm having now is that hopefully, I won't always be seeking publication. And also, my blog isn't just about my journey towards publication. I talk about my writing, the books I've read, other people's writing, and also random things in my life. I want a title that represents this. The only slight possible one I have is: She who Reads, Loves, Laughs, Writes. But it's kinda long. This is where you guys come in :D Title suggestions would be amazing.

And that brings me to the next part of this blog post. I think I may have found characters to kinda represent my two leads in MHBD. And then we have the side characters too. Without further ado I present you with...



The main character herself - Amerie Carter.




















The love interest Dane Marshall.




















Amerie's best friend, Mercy.

















Amerie's other best friend, Chuck.




















Newcomer to the group - Sam.

My Beta Observations

Disclaimer: I am not an editor. I do not beta read people's work professionally, nor do I have any kind of concrete say in the matter.

I beta read a lot of stories for people. I used to be in an amazing critique group too, so I've spent a lot of time checking through people's work for mistakes and ways to fix them. A lot of the time, I see the same things again and again. So as a way of possibly helping, I thought I'd compile a list of the most common issues or things I'd like to see more of.

• Too self aware characters
  Not many of us know our deep flaws or assess ourselves that much to know what kinds of facial expressions we pull at the exact right times. I personally don't know all of my flaws, because a lot of the time, we're oblivious to them. And we also don't walk around with mirrors attached in front of our faces all day either.
  
• Empty writing
  What I mean by this is writing that has no substance. For instance: I went to the shop. Then I took my money out of my bag and paid for a chocolate bar. Then when I walked outside, I saw a bird. BORING. Empty writing doesn't make you feel like you're in the story. There's a difference between packing something full of unnecessary words and having barely anything at all.
• Only using 1 sense to describe
  Another thing I often see is when people only describe what the eye can see. What about what your characters can hear? Smell? What does something feel like? A book I just read would describe the touch of the love interest, down to the tips of his fingers. Very effective.
• Repetition
  I'll admit, I'm one to do this too. And when I go back through and edit, I cut a lot of sentences out that are just fancier ways of wording something I've already said. You don't need to drum it into your reader's head that the love interests smile is cute. Trust in your writing enough to assume they understand.
• Spelling things out
  The last point brings me onto this one. Your writing should be strong enough to get your original point across without you having to spell it out. If you think your readers aren't going to understand something, then you've done something wrong. I should be able to tell your MCs characteristics without you saying "I'm a stubborn person when I want to be." Shouldn't her actions already show this?
• Trying to explain everything too quickly
  Sometimes I see people trying to explain their characters past and setting up the plot too quickly. Often within the first three chapters. Let us go along with the story and find these things out when it's important to know them. I don't need to know how your MC lost her dog and then her dad left her mum along with the ages and names of all seven siblings. Too much information, and I'm lost, or I'll forget stuff. Weave it in at a reasonable pace, and you have me hooked.
• Chemistry between characters
  One of my favourite things to read about is the chemistry between your characters. I love seeing how they interact with each other, and it tends to keep me zoned right in. I especially love when friends are just being friends! There doesn't need to be a drama all of the time.
  

I hope some of that was at least useful. What about you? What are the most common things you see in people's writing when you beta read?

RTW - Spotting the next YA trend

The girl's over at YA Highway, do this interactive blogging special every wednesday where anyone can join in. They pick the topic and you can all discuss it on your blogs. I think I've participated in it a few times, and I am today, but not because I'm trying to avoid editing *cough cough*

This week's topic is about trying to determine the next trend in YA. It's a bit of a toughie for someone not really in the business of publishing. I don't know what publishers keep getting, or what they're hoping for. So this is only my opinion and is probably going to be very, very wrong.

Firstly, I think witches will make a comeback. Witch tales, bad witches, good witches, witch schools, basically anything witchy that doesn't mimic Harry Potter, because nothing is ever going to compete if they take it to that exact level.

Werewolves and Vampires have had their time in the spotlight, so it's time for them to move over and allow another paranormal character to be wimped out and made into every adolescent girl's dream boyfriend. As for examples? Maybe demons? Shape shifters?

My next predicition is that retellings of classic myths and stories will become more popular. The modern day Cinderella. The modern day Hamlet or Rumplestiltskin. I definitely think we'll start seeing more of those coming around.

And this isn't so much as a prediction but more of a hope. I really hope college/uni aged MCs get their time in the light too. I wish publishers and agents would give them the time of day rather than being too scared there isn't a market for it. Let's make a market, shall we?

And that is all. Feel free to comment and participate!

Query Contest

No, not here. But awesome agent Kathleen over at Lowenstein Associates agency is holding one over at her blog. It's very simple to join in, and you could win a full query critique from her! If you do go over and join, you get extra entries for being referred. So make sure you quote that I sent you there so I can get the entries too.
Click here for the link. Good luck!

In Celebration of FINISHING!

As the title suggests, I have completed the first draft of MHBD! This is a very special day for me because it's taken a while to get to this point, and a whole lot of confusion and mixed emotions. But it's done, and I'm about 95% happy with it. Which, for me, is pretty good. I don't think it needs editing a whole lot, just to make it smoother, and make sure it's all consistent. Volunteers for more betas would be amazing! *hint hint*

Anyway, in celebration of completing, I'm doing a post with pictures of locations in the story. I still haven't found actors/models who I think look like my characters, so that'll come next. But for now, enjoy some pictures of places :D This was inspired by Vero, who has an amazing story she's currently revising. Check out her blog here.





In the story, the main character starts off living in a gated community until things go very wrong for her family and they become bankrupt.











The family then move to a block of flats in London's backstreets. Amerie, used to living the life of luxary, is embarrassed of this.














Further along in the story, Amerie's father meets someone and they move in with her in her lovely red, bricked house. I've always loved these kinds of houses.

















This is Thorpe Park. A place where Amerie and her friends come to chill one day. Of course, it doesn't all go swimmingly. As nothing in Amerie's life does.










Amerie's elite school. Luckily, her tutition fees were all paid before her father drank all their money away.













Cane Hill Asylum. Where the end scenes take place. A very creepy place in all senses.














The room Amerie is held captive in.

Teaser Tuesday

Guess I'm teasing again! I think I'm safe to do that. Anyway, this is from My Heart Be Damned. Hope you enjoy it.

He reached out and pulled me to stand in front of him. His palm was cool against my hot skin. “I want you to completely relax,” he said quietly, his breath tickling my ear.

Relax. Right. Like I could do that with his chest pressed against my back. I nodded anyway, intrigued to see where this would lead. His hands grabbed both of my wrists and lifted my arms so that they were stretched above my head.

“Breath,” he whispered. “In and out. Deep breaths.”

“Right. So you can stare at my chest going up and down. I’m onto you.”

He chuckled lightly. “I could do that anyway. But seriously, Amerie, I want to see your breathing technique. Close your eyes and just breathe.”

I shut my eyes, relaxing my mind as much as possible and began to breathe deeply. His fingers trailed down from my wrists and ran down my arms, sending shivers down my spine. Then one hand dropped and the other moved towards my chest, his palm pressing against my heart.

“There is nothing more relaxing than listening to the beat of a human heart,” he said, and my eyes flew open. “Dum. Dum. Dum. Dum.”

I gulped, letting my arms drop down behind his neck.

“Dum-dum. Dum-dum. Dum-dum. Why’s your heart rate increasing?”

I spun around, our faces inches apart. This time, he stayed still and my hand moved up to sweep across his black eye, his red cheek, the cut on his mouth. My finger ran across his top lip hesitantly. With reflexes as fast as mine, his hand flew up and snapped around my wrist, yanking my fingers back. But he didn’t say anything. Didn’t move. Didn’t step away. Feeling braver than I usually would have in a situation like this, I edged forward, hoping to place my lips where my finger had just been. His head dipped and I kept my eyes open, not wanting to miss a single moment of this. Just as his lips brushed over mine, he whipped his head to the side, staring down at the floor.

“Amerie,” he whispered. “We can’t.”

An update and observation

So, yes, I've been back to being a bad blogger again. Which, in my defence, isn't really my fault. I'm not coming out with the 'busy' excuse, but I sometimes don't know what to write! I don't want to fill this blog with random posts about...well, nothing. I want it to mean something. And considering I'm not really posting specific things about future ideas, current stories etc, it leaves me with less things to write about.

Instead, I'll give a brief and general update on my writing. My Heart Be Damned is coming along nicely. I recently hit 60k, which is a very good word count I'm thinking. I'm hoping it won't come to more than 90k, but who knows. I'm also using this WIP as a tester on something. I want to know if I do better without a plan. I did get a critique once on a previous story that said everything was too neat, plot wise. Basically meaning that it wasn't natural. As I plan out everything chapter by chapter, it doesn't lead into each other naturally. I make it lead into the next scene. But without a plan, I'm letting the story take over and not the plan. So, we'll see how that works.

My observation of the day/week is probably a very obvious one, but I'll say it anyway. Having a bad mood can REALLY help me write. I'm in a pretty bad mood now. I don't want to talk to anyone. See anyone. Do anything. Which equals lots of time for writing. And also the perfect moodset to write angsty scenes. When I'm happy and bouncy, I want to be out and with my friends. I want to be hanging out and doing things to burn off my energy. Which is when I don't write. Maybe I should be in a bad mood more often haha.

So how about you? What kinds of moods work best for you?