BEA on the Brain

I'm totally bummed that I can't be at BEA (Book Expo America) this week.

One the bright side:

I now have two agents with full manuscripts in their possession. They are both supposed to get back to me in about two months. *Cue Jeopardy theme* Plus, I sent out a bunch of additional queries, so hopefully someone will actually respond this round.

I purchased new Vibram five finger toe shoes. (KSOs en noir if you must know) They are interesting feeling and apt to doom your calves to a week of slow agonizing pain if you're stupid enough to try soling a mile run on the first trial run. Despite that setback, I'm willing to let the blisters and muscle pain fade and try making soling a part of my existence.

I discovered the wonders of Whole Foods supermarket, peach scones, and the beverage, Honeydrop.

I'm attempting to slog through my writer's block. I've officially tied together three chapters to The Changeling Hunt (sequel to Scar-Crossed) and plotted a possible ending. I'm just wondering how I'm going to fit everything into one book and not make my readers hate me for what I plan to do to one of the main characters. *Cue maniacal laugh*

I'm reading Soulless by Gail Carriger. It's terribly wonderful and I want to be best friends with Gail. I feel like she'd be a friend like Sarah (with who you aren't acquainted, but she's a lady of a particularly interesting shade of wonky brilliance). I friended Gail on Twitter and she actually friended me back. I'm taking it as a sign cause she happens to be repped by one of the agents that has my manuscript.

Speaking of Twitter, I got ten new followers this weekend! (That's exciting because I'm trying to get as many followers as I can before the book comes out. It makes PR so much easier when people actually read and follow your work. Not like a certain blog...that no one reads. *Cue fake smile*

I'm listening to The Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks. I'm not willing to comment on it at the moment. Let's just say that I'm getting winded by the repetitiveness of the epic fantasies I've been selecting for myself of late. *Cue loud, obnoxious snore*

Finally, the hubs and I changed the radiator in Kitty this weekend. There was literally a massive hole in the radiator and bits of it were strewn all about the engine well. Can't be good. So I'm proud of the hubs for being all mechanical and I'm proud of me cause...well, no reason in particular, but there's no reason not to have a bit of self esteem, now is there?

The Secret

Okay, so you might be wondering why I've titled this long-over-due blog post "The Secret." Well, I've got two reasons.

Reason number one: I've been keeping a secret. Well, I haven't been keeping it, really. If you follow any one of my other sites, then you'd know that I've been pretty verbal about this particular secret. However, I have to feel guilty that I haven't been giving my blog nearly enough love and spaghetti lately. So, I'm telling it the big secret.

Pssst. There is an agent with a full manuscript of Scar-Crossed.

This is the part where, if my blog were human, it would get all pissy and whine that I didn't even tell it that I was sending out queries, let alone sent out a partial, let alone sent out a full, let alone waited two weeks to talk about it.

All I can do it shrug and insist that I didn't want to jinx myself. But, as it has become quite apparent over the years, I have no patience. I need to stew about my good fortune somewhere.

So, lets talk about the significance of this achievement. An agent having a full manuscript is just what the doctor ordered for this budding novelist. Why? Well, not only is this novelist admittedly impatient, but she's also unfairly harsh on herself. That's why I take critiques so well. Score one for me, no one else can tell me I suck in quite as nasty a manner as I can.

So, while everyone was glomping and sqeeing over Scar-Crossed, I was insistent that they were just saying they liked it because they were my friends and family or just very nice people who didn't want to hurt my feelings.

What mattered to me was what people in the industry thought about my book. Having an agent read part of my manuscript and like it enough to ask to read the whole thing makes me feel a little better about my writing. I mean, I could still be a sucktastic novelist, but at least I've got enough there for someone important to admit to liking what they've seen so far. I keep telling myself that as I wallow in the fact that no other agents have taken the bait (yet). So, maybe this was a match meant to be?

Okay, so back to the second reason for calling this "The Secret." In celebration of an "edge of your seat, bite your finger-nails to the quick" moment, I'm invoking some good juju/karma with some positivity. This important step comes compliments of the well-known book The Secret, written by Rhonda Byrne! Admittedly I haven't read the whole thing, but I do own it and it has been imbued with positive energy and an encouraging note. It might have even been anointed and baptized, you never know with the person who gave it to me...

Any-who, I get the thrust of The Secret. Think happy thoughts! Only happy thoughts! Think of what you want. Envision what you want. If you build it, they will come! - just don't feed them hot dogs.

Needless to say, I've had a ton of trippy imaginary book signings, awards speeches, and New York Times Bestseller status happy dances in the past few months.

Since this particular agent asked for the full manuscript I've been honing my positive energy toward her accepting me under contract. I know it sounds sort of creepy, but I've revisited the agent's website and committed her picture to memory. Every few minutes I envision her sitting up way past her bedtime, completely entranced by my book. Then I imagine her grinning over the phone when she calls to tell me she's all about representing Scar-Crossed. I've even gone so far as to imagine the office dog barking on the other end or maybe mentioning how utterly in love with my manuscript she is on her blog. (Hey, a girl can dream big-headed thoughts)

I know that sounds super awkward, but I need every little bit I can get and hey, if it's true that our brains only use a small portion of what they're capable of using then, who knows, maybe I will change the molecular state of things. Ew, totally had a sci-fi moment there.

Anyway, wish me luck, shoot positive ions in my general direction, and send your psychic influence to the agent in question. HORRAY for Scar-Crossed!