Reading Recap for 2013!

I said I wasn't going to do it, but I went ahead and did it anyway. I set a stupidly lofty goal of reading 100 books this year. Yes, I completed it, (I actually read 103) but only because I rarely leave goals uncompleted. It's in my blood. Also, I should not that about a third of the books were on audio, but they were still full versions.

Last year I said I was going to set a better, more-realistic goal for myself for the year: To find 12 books I really love. Well, I completed that goal too! If you're looking for some fantastic books to read, check my sidebar (13 books actually made it to my 12 awesome books list - I couldn't decide.)

So I won't go over those, but I wanted to add a specialized list here, to give you a few more thoughts into the books I enjoyed and why I enjoyed them this year. Not all of these books were published in 2013, but they are all books I read during the year.

The book that made me LOL the most: Don't Lick the Minivan by Leanne Shirtliffe
- If you have kids or have ever considered having kids, this is a great book for you. My husband was constantly asking me, "What? What are you laughing at?" followed by, "Oh, you're reading that book again."

The book that inspired me the most: It's Not Just Gymnastics; It's Life by Lance Ringnald
- I started this book feeling old and like I was generally losing interest in uncovering the strong and flexible person I used to be, but since March, since reading this book, I've been excited about working out again, trying new things physically, and even writing my own book concerning some of this stuff (more to come on that!) I love reading biographies of interesting people, and this book was definitely that.

The Book that I was the most conflicted about: Just One Year by Gayle Forman
- It's a little hard to go into why I was so conflicted about this book without giving spoilers. Let me just say that I LOVED the setting (Holland! India! Paris!) of this book, I LOVED the self-discovery, I LOVED the writing... but partway through, I started getting frustrated with the plot. I did something I NEVER do: I skipped ahead to the ending. It helped rid me of my frustration, and I was able to go back and enjoy the rest of the book, but I didn't love the ending, and had I not skipped ahead (which I still feel oddly guilty about) I think I would have found it a very frustrating read.

The most romantic book I read this year: Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
- I'm not sure what else to say about this, except I just wanted to hug this book over and over and over again.

The most artsy book I read this year: The Lucy Variations by Sara Zarr
- (Followed closely by This Song Will Save Your Life by Leila Sales). I love books where the main character is very skilled at an art of some kind, and this was such a book. It reminded me a little of Virtuosity by Jessica Martinez. Both books really inspire me to work harder at being me in my art.

If I had to pick a favorite book this year? I'd have to go with the Summer Trilogy by Jenny Han
- Sorry, there's no way I could pick just one of these books. I loved them all, and I especially loved how they fit together. I listened to this series on audio, and actually listened to the whole series twice in a row, because I just didn't want these characters to stop being in my life.

So those are some of my favorites and whys...Now I'd love to hear yours!

If you want to see the full list of books I read this year, check out my GoodReads page.

Happy Holidays!

I didn't make it by here to do a Writing Prompt Wednesday or a Fast Fiction Friday this week, but I did want to stop by to say Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, and many warm wishes to all of you!

I've been enjoying time with family and friends, as well as using my spare moments to work hard on finishing up some writing work that I can't tell you about quite yet. But soon!

I hope to be back next week with a recap of what I've read this year, favorite books, most-impacting books, that sort of thing. In the meantime, I'd love to hear some of your favorite books of the year.

I have a lot of hope that 2014 will be an exceptional year. I'll be spending some time thinking of what I want in life and what direction I see myself moving forward, as well as writing some goals for the year.

Wishing you and your families many, many blessings for next week, next year, and for the years to come!

Writing Prompt Wednesday: The Smells of the Holidays!

Everywhere I go these days I either smell gingerbread or eggnog. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE these smells, and in fact, these smells are probably part of what makes me love this time of year so much.

With that in mind, think of your characters' favorite smells. What are they? How often do they get a chance to smell these favorite smells? Do these smells stir up any special memories for your characters?

How can you introduce one of these favorite smells for one of your characters today? What is his or her reaction? Can you pull up a memory of either the last time he or she smelled this smell or the first time?

Fast Fiction Friday: Respect Your Beta Readers

Good critique partners and beta readers are worth their weight in gold.

My readers are an integral part of my revision process, and when we're talking about getting a book into a polished state in as quick of time as possible, one of the first things to look at is finding the right readers for your books. And then KEEPING those right readers, once you've found them.

Finding appropriate, helpful readers, quite honestly, is a matter of trial and error. Your readers, hopefully, should enjoy the majority of what you write, even if they do see flaws in it. You don't want the process to be like pulling teeth for them, or it will take them six months or more to provide you with feedback.

Part of finding good readers is BEING a good reader. When someone asks you for help with their manuscript, make an effort to clear your schedule and read it in a timely manner. Then, hopefully, they will do the same for you when it comes time for them to read one of your books. Try to provide the most helpful and fully-explained feedback you can. Think of how clearly you would want it worded if you were hearing it about your work.

Then, when it comes time to sending your work out to these helpful, timely readers, don't send them unpolished garbage writing. Make it as good as you can on your own before sending it out. Get yourself a text-to-speech program (I use the one on my Kindle) to play back your story with an ear for typos and clunky sentences. You can hear the difference between "She went to her house" and "She went to her hose" even on the most computerized voice. Honestly, I think it comes across as disrespectful to a reader's time if you haven't taken the time to make your writing as easy as possible for them to read.

When it's as good as you can make it, then send your writing out to one or two people (save some readers for the next revision round - always assume there will be a next round).

 There are some parts of the process that are going to take time, they just are. But the idea here is to make them take the least amount of time possible.

GCC Presents KICKING IT, Including a Story by Lucienne Diver!

 Another member of our Girlfriends' Cyber Circuit is celebrating the release of an anthology. I'm excited to share with you: KICKING IT...

Featuring stories by SHANNON K. BUTCHER * RACHEL CAINE * LUCIENNE DIVER * CHRIS MARIE GREEN * CHRISTINA HENRY * FAITH HUNTER * CHLOE NEILL * KALAYNA PRICE * ROB THURMAN

New York Times bestselling author Rachel Caine has modern-day potions witches Holly and Andrew facing off against a firebrand politician who wears literally killer boots in a Texas-sized rodeo of trouble.

Boot-loving Cadogan vampire Lindsey must team up with off-again, on-again vampire partner Luc when a woman from her past is targeted by supernaturals in New York Times bestselling author Chloe Neill’s all-new adventure.

And New York Times bestselling author Rob Thurman features Trixa Iktomi from her Trickster series dealing with magical vengeance and magical footwear.

Taking kick-ass urban fantasy literally, USA Today bestselling authors Kalayna Price and Faith Hunter bring together the best of the genre to once again prove when you’re fighting supernatural forces, it helps to keep your feet on the ground.

Lucienne Diver's story – “The Parlor” (set in the world of the Latter-Day Olympians series)

Tori Karacis, P.I. and part gorgon, goes undercover in a gambling den to get the lowdown on a client’s delinquent husband.  What she finds are disappearances tracing back to The Parlor going back years and a sinister proprietess who makes sure that even when you win, you lose.

Excerpt:

Boss lady.  It was what my assistant Jesus (pronounced Hey-Zeus) called me.  Times like these I missed the hell out of him.  I could only imagine his scathing commentary on the place.  "Tinfoil bikinis, really?  It's like The Wizard of Oz meets the deli counter. If I only had a style..." 

Quotes:

Taking kick-ass urban fantasy literally, USA Today bestselling authors Kalayna Price and Faith Hunter bring together the best of the genre to once again prove when you’re fighting supernatural forces, it helps to keep your feet on the ground.” — All Things Urban Fantasy

“The writing in this anthology is excellent and the stories are a mix of fun, edge of your seat kick ass action, and great characters… Kalayna and Faith did a great job of bringing together some of the best writers of urban fantasy!” —Kings River Life

“If you need a break and want to read some short and sweet, yet plenty kick-ass, urban fantasy gems featuring plenty of girl power, you’re in for a treat! There’s something here for just about every UF fan, and I only covered the tip of the spiked heel!” —My Bookish Ways

Author Bio:

Lucienne Diver writes the Latter-Day Olympians urban fantasy series for Samhain, featuring a heroine who can, quite literally, stop men in their tracks.  Long and Short Reviews gave the first in the series her favorite pull-quote of all times, "Bad Blood is a delightful urban fantasy, a clever mix of Janet Evanovich and Rick Riordan.”  Sequels: Crazy in the Blood and Rise of the Blood.  She also writes the popular Vamped young adult series (think Clueless meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer). Her short stories have been featured in the Strip-Mauled and Fangs for the Mammaries anthologies edited by Esther Friesner and, of course, the Kicking It anthology new from Roc Books.  Her essay on abuse is included in the Dear Bully: 70 Authors Tell Their Stories anthology from HarperTeen. 

Links:

Excerpt (at Bitten by Books): http://bittenbybooks.com/66257/kicking-it-exclusive-excerpt-from-author-lucienne-diver/

Author’s website: http://www.luciennediver.com/

Blog: http://luciennediver.wordpress.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/luciennediver

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Lucienne-Diver/162714330443458

Writing Prompt Wednesday: Make Them Wait!

I'm a little late getting this up today. Life has been busy. I started the day hanging out with a fun and lively group of teens at nearby high school, teaching on writing with emotion. Then I had to wait in line to cross the border, only to wait in more lines in the U.S., and then wait in line to get back to Canada.

So, with this in mind, my writing prompt for this week is to make your character wait. What does your character really want that he or she suddenly has to wait for? What is his/her reaction to the waiting? Do they take it in stride, or start throwing objects at the wall?

The Full Book Jacket For FAST FICTION!

I am thrilled to finally be able to show the full book jacket for FAST FICTION. It has snippets of blurbs from endorsers on the back (the full endorsements will be on a teaser page in the front of the book).

I couldn't be prouder of how this looks and all the wonderfully kind words included here!

(click to see larger)