Busy, busy, busy

Have a ton of writing to do in the next few weeks - have to revise a short story for submission to an anthology that I really love and would just about faint to be included in! Also have to prepare my pitch for Professor Fawkesbury's Ingenious Elevator, which I have to deliver to the amazing Kristin Nelson in August at the RWA conference. And here I am writing my blog instead - lol. Ok, back to work.

Kimet Mehmet (Rahmatullah Alaihe)

Lost my dear grandfather last weekend and so have not been on here lately. Has been a very difficult few weeks and I will miss him always. No matter what, he always loved his grandkids and was an inspiration and hero to us all! We could never thank him enough for the things he sacrificed and the hard work he did to give us a better life in this country - god love him and keep him until we can be together again.

2011 NQ RWA Writing Roadshow

Have a fantastic weekend with the NQ Romance Writers and all our Roadshow guests and attendees. Saturday was packed with great sessions delivered by Helene Young, Barbara Hannay, Kelly Armstrong and Anne Gracie followed by a very fun conference dinner (at which Helene's husband Graham was of course the star! haha).

Sunday saw our group unwind and talk writing with Anne at The Lime Tree Restaurant at Trinity Beach. Great food and even better company! Look forward to being apart of many Roadshows in the coming years and helping to bring such wonderful talents to the Far North.  And now I'm exhausted but still typing away!

 Above: NQ Romance Writers - (B) Helene Young, Barbara Hannay, Havva Murat, Alice Honsa, Shannean Moncrieff, Noreen Allan. (F) Becca Quin, Mervet McClintock, Bernadette Rowley and Lilian Begelhole

Whimsy Glass up and running

I've finished the first two mirrors to be churned out of my glass studio and have also worked on a label design which I think has come along nicely. Going to be selling my work through Fairies and Jewels (the antique shop) in Mareeba. Hopefully others will be as taken with my glass work as I am. It's really fantastic to be able to create something you can be proud of and that others will enjoy : )

My favourtie part of Shift

So I've done the rounds with 'Shift,' and while it scored some great remarks in the RWA Emerald comp (One judge scored it 34/35 and one 33/35), I'm not hanging my hopes on it being published any longer. Am busy with my next novel which I hope to pitch at the RWA conf in August, but I thought I would post my favourite part of Shift on here as a farewell to it haha. So here is the Epilogue (Yes, I like endings).

The mist swirls around me as I pass through the shadows of the trees. The early morning light fights to penetrate the swirling clouds, but cannot win.

It’s freezing this far up the mountain; I shiver and reach to pull my shirt closer around my body. I have forgotten my shoes again and my feet have turned to ice. The sting of the dew has numbed my toes - but I keep moving.

I reach out and touch the heavy iron gates and trace my finger along the snaking tendrils of hair.

Circe smiles down at me. I know her secrets now. I am no longer afraid of her.

A low voice from somewhere behind the gates drifts over me.

Marcus.

I try to push the gates open, but they won’t budge.  I look back up at the face of the sorceress with the eagle’s body. Her smile has been replaced by a menacing scowl. The gates burn my hands and I release them with a gasp, and stare down to watch the blisters form on my palms.

The low voice calls something I can’t make out, and I peer through the gates again, careful not to touch them.

And then I see him.

Marcus is sitting on an old garden bench under a huge flowering tree. His back is to me, and he has his arm around a girl with long red hair - my hair.

Is that me? Am I dreaming again?

“Marcus!” I call through the unyielding gates.

He doesn’t hear me, he doesn’t turn around.

But the girl does.

She turns slowly to look at me and smirks, as her hair changes colour. The red drips away, revealing long black tresses, and her eyes glow fiercely at me. She puts her arms possessively around Marcus, and pulls his head down onto her chest, covering his ears with her hands.

“Marcus, what’s going on? Look at me!” I yell, but he still doesn’t hear.

The girl throws her head back and laughs at me, pitilessly. Her black hair tumbles down her back, and writhes like a million serpents.  Her skin is pure bronze and glows in the pale light.

I grab the gates again and shake them furiously. They burn into my hands, but I ignore the pain in my desperation to get to Marcus. I scream his name out, again and again, until Serena emerges from the mist, a scowl on her face.

“Keep him away from the Seer!” She commands the raven haired girl.

The girl complies, and pulls Marcus towards the house, throwing me an arch look over her shoulder as they disappear into the mist.

“You should have listened to me, Seer! You don’t belong here - you don’t belong with him!” Serena calls out cruelly, before fading into the mist like the others.  

My heart tears in half, and I collapse in front of the foreboding gates, wanting to pull them from their hinges and reclaim what’s mine,  powerless to do anything but weep.

Whimsy Glass Studio Progress

Have started my first two mirrors in my new glass studio and after some serious cuts to both hands and feet I am happy to have made lots of progress.

The Original Pattern that I drew.

Whimsy glass studio (I plan to build a workshop surrounded by stained glass windows when I get the time ; )

  Poppy mirror - main features are cut from stained glass

 

Poppy mirror - mirror tesserae are used to fill in around main cut glass features. 

 Now all I have to do is grout and seal the project.

RWA Emerald Award 2011

I finally got the results back from the Emerald Award (national writing comp run by Romance Writers of Australia) and I was lucky enough to come in 8th place - I never even hoped to get through to the second round so this was a huge bonus. There were some great writers amongst the final twelve and the top three are now judged by an American Editor. Great competition and well worth the effort.

holiday work

So glad school is out for the week! Gives me time to work on finishing the setup of my little glass studio - quite happy with the results as I now have my grinder and glass shelf stocked. I don't think there's anything as gratifying in the world as a well-stocked glass or book shelf!

Have worked on a few designs and starting to cut the glass - only going to do glass mosaicing from home for now - might work on some copper foiling later on. I much prefer copperfoiling/tiffany method to using lead.  Also have to sort out registering business name/ABN - hate that boring, paperwork side of thing! I just want to create.

Almost finished my paranormal/crime noir short story to submit for an anthology. It was a hard slog! Went complete 'Panster' on this one but I think it has worked out ok. I find it really challenging when i'm in that place where i don't know how I want things to end in a story, but I think this one ends ok. Soon as this is done i can get back to my novel.

Happy writing/reading/creating and Easter (if you celebrate it). 

fairytale images

Stumbled across a great blog yesterday 'Love at First Blush,' and found these great fairytale images:

http://loveatfirstblush.blogspot.com/2011/01/mythical-mysterious-and-magical.html

Great to get the story ideas flowing...

Andalucia tours

Looking at some tours of Andalucia for the Christmas holidays - Tempo Holidays look great. And this would work in very nicely for my next novel idea. The Alhambra beckons....

www.tempoholidays.com

Pinterest

Stumbled upon this new site that allows you to create virtual pinboards of all your favourite things - mine are a bit sparse at the moment but I think it's a great idea. Oh and you need to request an invitation to join - very exclusive ; )

http://pinterest.com/about/

Have a look.

Little Gems Short Story Contest 2011

Have now heard the results for the Little Gems contest - I scored 91% which unfortunately wasn't enough to make it into the anothology but I think is a pleasing result for my first attempt. The compeition is fierce! haha. I also got some great feedback which I will take into account when writing future stories.

Congrats to Lillian, my friend and member of the NQ Romance Writers, who tied for third place. She is the queen of short story writing and an inspiration to the rest of us. Great work Lillian xxx.

Prof Fawkesbury update

Have stalled majorly with my novel writing! Nothing done for the past month! Am starting to feel itchy about it all. I re-read the eight chapters I have completed yesterday and was happy with most of it. Am thinking of writing in a seance scene though. A great article on Victorian Mediums is : A Willing Suspension of Disbelief:
Victorian Reactions to the Spiritualist Phenomena by Candace Gregory.


"Spiritualism entered English society in the middle of the nineteenth century, arriving from America via the migration of mediums in the 1850s. <5> The movement began officially in 1848 at the New York home of the Fox sisters, who gained fame as mediums through their apparently innate ability to summon spirits and to incite spirit messages and communiquis through tapping. <6> The phenomena of "table turning and spirit-rapping" found an immediate popularity in England. <7> Through the human agent known as the "medium," the spirits communicated through raps, tappings, materializations of spirit forms, levitations of persons or objects, and anonymous lights that had no apparent source. <8> With some elements of society, spiritualism soon developed into a social pastime, particularly by the upper classes, who were accused by one admitted cynic of "having pretty well exhausted the pleasures of this world" and were seeking "any new amusement they can get out of any other world." <9> The image of a frivolous tea party seance can almost seem justifiable with such an attitude, narrow and biased though it may be. "

http://www.loyno.edu/~history/journal/1989-0/gregory.htm

Now to write my seance scene ; )

Sherry's Wedding

Posting some photos from Sherry & Semir's wedding last weekend. Sherry is my cousin and I starred as one of her five bridesmaids - a larger than life occasion full of hot-blooded southern Europeans, great dancing, great food and fantastic Lebanese drumming. Sherry was a beautiful, elegant bride and now that she has moved to Melbourne we will miss her greatly!

TK Stained Glass Company

The most beautiful thing in the world - shelf upon shelf of stained glass sheets! My leadlight teacher told me about this company last night - T.K. Stained Glass. They have a range of interesting Japanese inspired patterns and some very different glass.

I also started cutting for my 'Winged' Window last night - two cut fingers from the grinder and I've got my mojo back ; ). Jan is going to be away for a few months travelling the world so I will have to put the project on hold till she gets back. More time for writing and glass mosaic.

networked blogs

Just joined network blogs on facebook - in theory this blog post should load straight onto my facebook page. Follow my blog Whimsy Words and Glass Design  - my writing and my glass work showcased in one place.

Tiffany glass work

Found a great little book on the stained glass work of Louis Comfort Tiffany (1848 - 1933) while in Brisbane in the cutest second-hand bookstore around. These are some of my favourite Tiffany lamps. I love the art noveau styling.

Reading, Writing and Viewing

Have come to a stand still with my Steampunk project while tackling 2 short story competition entries, my rewrites for the Emerald Award and a short course on writing Steampunk. I've also been sucked into 'The Sheild," which of all things is a police drama (something I religioulsy avoid). But I've been very suprised by the quick pace and edge-of-your seat developments in this series. Not as good as Deadwood, but not bad.

Victorian Clothing

Researching all things Victorian and in particular clothing tonight. Just checked out the House of Worth Collection on the Met Museum website - intricate and beautiful dresses. Also Recollections and BuySteampunk.com.

NQ Romance Writer's Roadshow

The NQ Romance Writers Roadshow

One-day Seminar

28^th May 2011

Romance Writers of Australia (RWA) is proud to present its first North Queensland Roadshow in association with its member group, the North Queensland Romance Writers. This information-packed one day writing seminar will benefit writers at all levels, from beginner to advanced. The seminar will cover a range of craft topics and will provide networking opportunities for regional writers, who may not be able to attend the national conference in Melbourne this year.  

Workshops will be run by internationally published and acclaimed writers Anne Gracie and Kelly Hunter, as well as local talents Barbara Hannay, internationally published author of over thirty-five Harlequin Mills and Boon titles, and Helene Young, author of Border Watch and Shattered Sky, published by Hachette Australia.

Topics to be covered:

       Not Another Sex Scene ... (or how to write really great sex scenes that deepen character, plot and conflict)

       The vital importance of a good, strong premise

       World-building (no matter which sub-genre) and subtext

       Ways to ensure a strong and layered conflict

       Emotional punch and tension on every page

       Panel discussions ... and much more!

This one day intensive seminar promises something for every writer, starting out or experienced, and will be followed by the Roadshow Dinner, another opportunity to network and share.

 

COSTS: (Including lunch, morning and afternoon teas)

EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION

14^th February – 31^st March 2011

Cost:  One-day Seminar $ 130  RWA Members

Cost:  One-day Seminar $150  RWA Non-Members

REGISTRATION

After 31^st March 2011

Cost:  One-day Seminar  $ 140  RWA Members

Cost:  One-day Seminar  $ 160  RWA Non-Members

ROADSHOW DINNER

(Optional and additional cost for dinner following seminar).

Cost: $44.50

                                                                                                                      

Special Accommodation Rates

 
Discounted accommodation rates have been negotiated with the Cairns Colonial Club  for attendees of the NQ Romance Writers Roadshow:  $99 per double, including 2 buffet breakfasts. If you are interested, please contact hotel reception on (07) 4053 8800 and mention you are attending this event.

Register on Valentine’s Day!

Places are limited so please register as soon as possible to confirm your place. Visit http://www.romanceaustralia.com/ for more information and registrations forms. You may also contact rwaroadshow2011@gmail.com with any queries.

Don’t miss out on this exciting opportunity to learn from some of the best romance writers around in beautiful tropical surroundings!

Steampunk Course

Have begun an online 'Steampunk' writing course and it's great. I love the name - Steampunk - it seems much edgier than straight paranormal, and the historical element on the Victorian era is very appealing.

Have also discovered a Steampunk band that I love - Abney Park! You can purchase on iTunes, and you should! 'Sleep Isabella,' 'Dear Ophelia,' 'Stigmata Matyr,' and 'Herr Drosselmeyer's Doll,' have been endlessly repeating themselves through my car stereo and iPod. LOVE IT.

My Emerald Entry

Well received some great news tonight - I have made it through to the finals for the RWA Emerald Award (Single Title) with my 'Shift' manuscript. I scored a 88.6 out of 100 and was ranked thirteenth with my first 3 chapters. Thrilled and motivated to continue writing now!

A super start to my writing year! Can't wait to see what else unfolds this year.

20,000 words and a Roadshow in Cairns

Back from holidays and back into writing - am up to 20,000 words and very happy with the way things are progressing. My narrative seems a lot easier to write this time around, so I'm hoping that it can only get better.

Also working on flyers and registration forms for The NQ Romance Writers Roadshow my writing group will be running in Cairns on behalf of RWA (Romance Writers of Australia). Looks to be a great day and will post the flyer once done.