OZ MM Meet

Well we arrived in Sydney on Friday and met up with a heap of wonderful authors and readers... I got to fan girl with Serena Yates & Toni Griffin... here I was ready to squee and I did... then I realised that they are just normal people. I have made so many friends here, Shaz, Allison Todd, Barry Lowe, Toni Griffin, Penny Brandon, Pelaam, E.E. Montgomery, Jess Buffet, Bec, Matthew Lang, A. B. Gayle, Isabelle Rowan, Mary, Serena Yates, Nicstar, Meredith Shayne, N.R. Walker, Byron, Sue M, and a few more that I will have to fill in later when I remember who they are... There was so much to take in but so far I'm loving it.

Tomorrow we are all heading to the Zoo... I am freaking out as we have to catch the sky rail - I so do not work well with heights... If you hear someone screaming than it's probably me.

Next year Oz MM Meet is scheduled to be in Melbourne so I' looking forward to that. It will be great to meet up with everyone again.

Words of advice: Why is writing so confusing?

There are so many rules on words that sometimes I think people are just trying to screw with my head. Here are some examples I've learnt in the last few months.

RULES:

1. Toward = American Vs Towards = English.
2. Fiancé = Male Vs Fiancée = Female.
3. Blond = Male Vs Blonde = Female.
4. That = Introduces an essential clause (no comma) Vs Which = Introduces a non-essential clause (comma).
5. Farther = Physical distance Vs Further = To pursue a topic; addition.
6. Lay = To place Vs Lie = To recline; tell a lie.
7. Discrete = Separate Vs Discreet = Secretive.
8. Loath = Reluctant Vs Loathe = Detest.
9. There was also one about Dialogue Tags Vs Action Tags that had to do with Comma Vs Period/full stop.  I just know it's fricken important... I always manage to get it wrong. 

Here is what my amazing editor Jamie D R sent me to help me keep track:

Dialogue tags are when the speaker is saying something and the tag clarifies who. For example… "Johnny, come away from the window," his mother said. Other words used in an action tag might be cried out, replied, screamed, whispered, etc. Dialogue tags are separated from the dialogue with a comma and the tag is not capitalized.

Action tags are those that more delineate the action of the speaker. For instance… "Johnny, come away from the window." Johnny's mother sighed. Other words commonly used and confused with dialogue tags are laughed, snorted, hiccuped, etc. An action tag is separated from the quote by the fact that the quote ends with a period and the action tag is capitalized and its own sentence.

Just in case these don't make it into the book.

The Gaean World is a parallel universe to ours. Yet, as you can see there are differences.

This is where the story in book one: Admetus Gaea takes place.

Major Townships:

1. Alverdine 
2. Carew - Home of Centaurains horse shifters
3. Channing Glenn - Home of the Deepwoods Faerie
4. Gustave - Home of the Elven-kind
5. Eldrid Stronghold - School where magical beings study
6. Anthelstan
7. Port Baruch
8. Kenelm
9. Dunmore - Home of more Centaurian horse shifters
10. Arilpa's Keep
11. Kazimir Falls

Rivers & Lakes

• A: Lowell
• B: Niald
• C: Tam-Gen
• D: Tam-Ni
• E: Aldren
• F: Lake Lewellen
• G: Lake Kazimir
• H: Kaldreth
• I: Lake Dracona
• J: Dercy
• K: Calder
• L: Lower Calder
• M: Lake Gaea

This will be the next book I start edits on with Silver publishing... I will show you the cover art as soon as I get it... I can't wait to see what it looks like.

Galley proof done...

Spent most of yesterday and today doing the galley proof on The Connelly Chronicles: Family Connections. I have just sent them back to the wonderful Kathy K.

Yesterday I also did galley edits on By the Way for the OZ MM Meet Anthology: Blokes in Love. That is off to finish being formatted now. 

So now I am back to drawing the maps for front of The Gaean Prophecies: Admetus Gaea. Still having problems with them but I will get them completed in the next couple of days before I head off to Sydney.

When I have the maps drawn I will post them here so you can all have a look-see at what I'm talking about...A cartographer I am not. They will be very basic, but hopefully they will do the job I have intended for them.

Weirdly, I think my brain is on overload at the moment. I feel like I don't have a second to spare with all the things I have going on in my life... And today the damn phone has been running off the hook and driving me insane... I hate talking on the damn phone.

Nickelback: Who they inspire me to write.

4 Nickelback songs that inspire me to write

I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

This one is for Declan Vivvens from The Connelly Chronicles

This one is for Chester Roth from Lancaster's Way

This one is all Michael Marsden from The Lines of Marsden

This one is all Grayson Gillespie from The Gaean Prophecies

Yesterday & today are busy...busy...busy

So let's start today off with a hugfest of epic proportions... Life is so worthwhile when you have someone to hug. I've been known to walk up and hug total strangers.

I' m up to the galley proof on The Connelly Chronicles: Family Connections... So once I have the final read through done it'll be off to be made perfect for the release date: October 12. I'll be at the Oz MM Meet in Sydney then, so I won't be able to spruik about it until the 16th when I'll be home.

I'm also drawing maps of Admetus for The Gaean Prophecies: Admetus Gaea... & I can tell you it's not as easy as I though it would be... but I'm giving it a go. I can draw and I know I can draw, but I suck at drawing geographical maps... I prefer to draw faces.

Just when I think it's all over for the taxes - I find out there is still more to do. I feel like beating my head against the wall some days - the only thing stopping me is knowing I'd more then likely end up with a headache, and would still have to do the taxes.

Hard to believe that there are only 27 days left until NaNoWriMo starts... Em has threatened me that the book I write - Sons of Evenmore: Blood to Blood had better be about Jhex & Mercer. So I agreed (Do I have that whole misery vibe happening? NO... But just to be on the safe side I've hidden all the sledgehammers, and keys to the shed - LOL). I'm thinking just to throw her a curve ball I'm going to write Jhex but not in the way she thinks I will... I can't wait until November 1st so I can find out myself what I want to do - my plans of thinking about the story before hand fell through - I'm so not a plotter/planner.

Signed a new contract and other updates.

I am doing EIC edits on The Connelly Chronicles: Family Connections... and will try and get them back to the wonderful Kathy K at some stage today or tomorrow. At least these edits are not many... I did all the hard stuff with Jamie DR... who was a tremendous help to me. I like it when they explain things and give me example so that I can understand it... You all know how badly I suck at punctuation. I got them done and returned today which is a good thing just in case I have to go over them again.

I also signed another contract with Silver Publishing on The Gaean Prophecies: Admetus Gaea... to be honest I don't even remember subbing it but I received the contract today and filled in the cover art stuff twice because I lost the the first lot I filled in-- I managed to erase it all-- go me!!!