Dawn Montgomery

Posts Tagged ‘Submission Update’

Whirlwind

In #amwriting, Challenges, Goals on February 8, 2012 at 12:01 am

Bwahahahaha. Despite Journey’s anthem, I’m going to have to stop believing…in a week without some near-catastrophic event that sends my family into a frenzy of panic. Some days I’m the center of the storm, trying to keep everyone calm. Other days I just want to curl up in a ball and wake up four months from now when this work to writing transition is finally complete.

Did I mention that I got a TON of writing done this week (despite the odds, I might add!)?

Sunday was a no-go writing-wise. We had to shop for new school supplies since our stuff had yet to arrive (shopping in a mega-mart on Superbowl Sunday? WHY did I think that was a good idea?). Monday was a ton of paperwork, and delays on getting the kids into school. Monday night I wrote until I couldn’t keep my eyes open. So far, so good, yeah?

Tuesday. Oh Tuesday, you’re becoming my Monday. I’m starting to hate you like I hate sesame seeds when they stick in my teeth. Three appointments for three different kids, only to find out that the school district was confused about how an out-of-state school transferred discharge paperwork (Anchorage ISD faxes discharge paperwork to the next location instead of allowing the parents to hand carry). But I digress. In the middle of this adventure, I get a phone call from the moving company. Our large house shipment is here (a BED! YES!). They want to deliver tomorrow (YAY!) but don’t know if they can do a split delivery (Uh Oh!). Some phone calls need to be made, etc.

Long story short…movers will be here tomorrow delivering ONLY the stuff we need and storing it for 90 days until we can have the large stuff (like the outdoor freezer, lawnmower, etc) put in our own storage (YAY!).

You’d think this would trigger happiness. Contentment. Excitement? Nope. Complete domestic meltdown. Kids want to skip school (NO!) to stay home and (get this…) “help.”  Husband is acting like a loon b/c he has to take the kids to their schools tomorrow while I wait on the delivery peeps. The house has to be clean (come on guys! We are STILL living out of suitcases!).

Kids and husband are squabbling…and for what?

Nothing. No reason what-so-ever. Everyone is ready for this move to be over. No one more than I, I assure you. Throughout this process I’ve done my best to keep quiet. Not complaining about the folding chair and makeshift desk, or lying in sleeping bags on the floor, or the insane drive to and from Dallas for our car.

So tonight…I told them to be quiet. Stop worrying. I had it under control. They weren’t allowed to say another word about their stuff to parents or each other. There was some serious grumbling going on, but it died off after a few hours.

“After all,” I said, “It will all be over sooooon.”

With that cryptic remark, I gave a creepy, hollow laugh and stared at each of the boys, in turn. They then decided the stress had broken me, so I was left alone to write. Ah bliss.

So that leads me to my mid-week update for A Round of Words in 80 Days.

What have I worked on?

  • I sent in my submission for Entangled Publishing’s pitch contest. Didn’t receive a confirmation email so I’m not sure if I should stress or not (Destitute and Undead ended at a little under 15k. Glad I rechecked the edits before hitting send. I was a little heavy handed with the commas).
  • I’m 5200 words into book 1 of my WTF Dragon series (blame Kim Knox for this one. She said go crazy and let loose. It was a dare, and you know how I am about those!).
  • Received my first reader review for Primal Hunger. So awesome! I got 5 stars out of 5 on the Ellora’s Cave site. So cool! Heidi said she was hoping Primal Hunger would become the start of a series. I get to say I got the green light on it, right?? LOL. So yeah, you’ll see more of the *Hunger-verse in the future.
  • Tore apart A Familiar Kiss (yesterday’s post showed how that went down :) ). I should have that puppy to my editor by V-day.
  • I’ve become a coffee time romance author! They’ve asked me to post on the blog, and I can’t wait! I’ll get all their widgets and stuff up on my site this weekend. I also set up my amazon author page. Love you guys for suggesting them for me last week!
  • Final outline of Thief. I needed a different arc to make it more contemporary.

Goals for the rest of the week:

  • Decompress
  • Unpack
  • Set up my office/bedroom
  • Finish No Dragon, No Problem (WTF Dragon #1)
  • Start Thief
  • Try to ignore my stress over Destitute and Undead‘s submission. LOL!

I hope this post made you laugh (I know I was laughing). Reading it out loud to my family brought out some pretty awesome chuckles, so I think it’s a win with them too.

Dawn

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*Note: the Hunger-verse is a tongue-in-cheek series name. I call it the Sheon Wars, but that’s not as lighthearted.

Christmas Story Accepted!

In Publishing News on October 27, 2011 at 8:11 am

Great news! My editor picked up The Other Klaus for Changeling Press’s White Hot Christmas series. I love participating in the December promotional. Every White Hot Christmas purchased puts that person in a drawing for free Changeling releases all year. Every single book that is released. Not a bad deal for short hot reads that set your blood pumping, and won’t bust the wallet.

Unofficial Blurb:

Luke Klaus has a problem. Christmas will be canceled if he can’t get Destiny, Texas back on the Holiday Cheer map. A Christmas wish is all that stands between him and a perfect record. His target is packed with killer curves and a heart of gold that’s been broken one too many times. Lucky for Luke, mixing a little business with pleasure might be just what the holiday doctor ordered.

Noella Davis is tired. Too many years as Destiny’s Cheer coordinator has left her drained and disillusioned. Is it a coincidence that brings her face to face with her old crush, or does the man in black leather have his own agenda? Either way, she’ll have her cake and eat it too even if she has to tie him to the bed. Maybe her Christmas wishes will come true…

This really is a case for The Other Klaus.

What a Month!

In #amwriting on October 23, 2011 at 2:34 am

First the awesome news! A full was requested on Primal Heat, my 67K novel. I turned it in on the 20th. Let the nail-biting and compulsive refresh on my email begin.

Do you know what amazing writing event happens in November? Not American Thanksgiving (though that is DELICIOUS and wonderful!). It’s also not Veteran’s Day (an amazing and wonderful day to thank those who fight for the same freedom of speech that allows erotic romance to be read in the first place!). No…for writers far and wide it’s NaNoWriMo season. That’s right! National Novel Writing Month is upon us! I am a willing slave participant this year! NaNo will not defeat me! Expect updates-a-plenty via my twitter feed and facebook! If you are also participating, give me a shoutout via my NaNoWriMo profile.

I’ve had some interesting changes to my available titles. Anything published with Aspen Mountain Press is no longer available. The grumbles of author and staff discontent dating back as early as 2009 have finally erupted in a volatile situation that resulted in Aspen closing its doors. My heart goes out to everyone involved in this, and I’m deeply saddened. It was Sandra Hicks who gave me my first break. The same woman who encouraged me to chase my dream despite the hurdles in my path. I will always be thankful for that. I wish her well. To my fellow Aspen authors…I wish you all the best in your new endeavors, and will be keeping up on how things go.

Her plight is a cautionary tale to me and all writers out there. It is easy to get overwhelmed and takes only moments to be buried under the weight of too many projects. Make sure you keep yourself grounded, and look at your projects with an objective eye. I encourage you to keep track of your (honest) wordcount in a month. Type it in excel, or keep a notebook by your computer.

Keep track of the zero days as well as the explosive wordcount days. Take a good, hard look. You have days where you are brilliant, and the words pour onto the page, but how many days does that happen? Not every day. Don’t base your capabilities on the best days…base them on your average for the month. Armed with that data you can safely look at your writing schedule and plan accordingly. You can’t keep a stressful break-neck pace without suffering the consequences of burnout and perhaps even health problems.

Aside from a looming move, there’s not much going on in the Montgomery household. Alaska is so stunning. Pictures will never do it justice. You need to experience the full immersion of the senses. I’ll be switching careers very soon, and that’s a scary thought. I’m trading places with my husband so I can follow my dream. Full-time Writer…can you believe it???

Keep writing!

Dawn

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