take a moment and drool with me.

Sometimes, being an author means writing.

Other times it means surfing Pinterest for the perfect picture of a protagonist, watching Youtube documentaries or reading speeches by dead guys. Researching comes in so many random forms, that sometimes I feel like I'm not really working when I click play on the sixth episode of some awesome travel documentary. Or when I'm grilling my father-in-law about alternate history scenarios over Ethiopian food. 

My WIP (which I've fondly been referring to as Motorcycles and Tattoos), predictably, has a lot of motorcycles in it. Pretty, pretty Zundapp KS601s to be exact. 

Okay, so this one isn't technically a KS601. It's not even a Zundapp. But it was much too pretty not to take a picture of.

I just... I want it.

Please?

Yeah, so, complete and total honesty time. I've never driven a motorcycle. I HAVE ridden one (in the pouring rain with three other people on the muddy roads of Phnom Penh while flatbed trucks zoomed around in every direction). And almost been hit by one (on the same muddy road, rain pouring Phnom Penh day incidentally). But I've never jumped on and taken one for a spin. That might have to change. You know, if I'm really dedicated to this WIP. ;)

the SNIS is alive!

The past few weeks have been packed with amazing things, hard things and all the things that lie within that vast spectrum. A quick rundown (though I shan't depress you with said hard things):

-I finished teaching at the preschool and I'm once again OFFICIALLY FULL TIME! Hooray! Only this time, I'm not going back when the summer ends. I'm a full time writer full time. I'm still figuring out what this means, now that I have 5 extra hours in my days to sit in front of the computer and resist the temptation to forever Tumble and Tweet.

-I've started exploring a brand new project, which is actually the SNIS (shiny new idea syndrome) that struck me around this time last year. I'm about 40+ pages in and it still feels pretty shiny. Motorcycles and tattoos. Nesting Dolls and Walther P38 pistols. It's a terrifying project in that I don't know if I can write the subject matter well enough (ie. the doubt monsters like to creep in and tell me to give up before I even begin and to that I say "H*ll no!").

-Hubby and I are joining a gym so that the Andes don't royally kick our butts in 8 weeks when we deign to hike them. They probably will anyway.

-In about 3 weeks I'll be able to show you the cover for ALL THAT GLOWS!!!! (Finally!!!) It's been sitting on my desk for quite an impressive amount of time, waiting for just the right moment to make its online debut. I can't wait to reveal it! (Also, 9 more months before ATG hits the shelves! That's a mere pregnancy away!)

-My awesome friends completely surprised me with a VINTAGE TYPEWRITER yesterday! I've always secretly wanted one (perhaps not to type with, but to at least put on a shelf, so that I'll look like I'm a "serious" writer. With black-ringed coffee stains on my manuscripts and typewriter ink on my fingers and all that.)

I'm thinking about stripping down the grimy gray and painting it. What do you guys say? My house is very bright, so it would go better with the decor that way!

-Hubby and I finally took our wolf-pup Raiden out into the wilds of Georgia. But that deserves a completely different post of its own. :)

the next step

As some of you more attentive people might have noticed, the "repped by" portion of my bio has gone through a slight change.

There's a saying that goes through the writer's blogosphere a lot: that an agent/author relationship is very much like marriage. Basically at the heart of this phrase is the idea that you and your agent have a complex and complicated relationship that should be evaluated for its long term productivity.

Sometimes, when you sit back and evaluate, you realize that you and your agent don't have the same ideas/visions/goals. This will not work in the long run.

And when that happens, you have a very tough decision to make.

There was no bad blood in my decision to leave my first agent. It happened on very friendly terms, due to creative differences. I wish her all the best. She will always be the one who plucked me out of the slush pile and broke me into this wild and crazy world that is publishing.

Going back into the query fray was terrifying and scary. My previous two rounds of querying could be described as the following: Grueling. Blood-bath. Nail-biting. Long suffering. Awful. Desperate.

But apparently I didn't have too much to fear. This time was much, much different. The entire process, from first query to signing, only lasted 3 weeks. And in the end, I had six offers to choose from.

So I'm thrilled and happy and proud to announce that I'm now working with Adams Literary, who reps some really amazing authors like Veronica Rossi and Megan Crewe. I've only been official "theirs" for a few days,  but I have a feeling it's going to be a perfect fit. :)

my newest artistic endeavors

So you know how I've been talking about how I've been dabbling in visual art a bit more?

Well the reason for this dabbling was because one of my friends challenged/asked me to paint a piece of art during church last Sunday. I go to a church that loves the arts and has several incredibly talented people in the congregation like Lulie Wallace (who's had her stuff bought and resold by ANTHROPOLOGIE (only the BEST STORE EVER)) and Teil Duncan (who is mad-crazy skilled at color blocking and oil painting). These lovely ladies will paint during services sometimes and come up with beautiful pieces.

So when they asked me I was a bit reluctant. But I thought, "Well, why not?"

So I painted. And this is what happened.

The piece after the 9am service.

The end result.

And the best part, you guys? I ended up selling it! A woman came up to me afterwards and asked if she could purchase it (which completely took me off guard! I was like, "Um.... yes?"). Talk about affirming.

my dreamcast of Emrys

So, every once in a while I'll come across the question: Who would your dream cast be if your novel became a movie?

That question has always stumped me, because I've never really seen any actresses that really encompass what I envision Emrys (my main character in ALL THAT GLOWS) as being. She's redheaded (but it's a darker, fire red) with green eyes. Then personality-wise she's fiery and full of fight.

I'd never been able to find an actress who I thought embodied all these things. And then I started watching Doctor Who *cue crazy fan music and swooning here*.

You guys, Karen Gillan (who plays Amy Pond) would be the perfect Emrys. Not just in looks, but in personality as well. Emrys is a good deal like Amy in that she's fearless and will risk everything for those she loves. Karen captured that personality so well during her time on Doctor Who. And I think she'd do Emrys a great justice in a movie version of ALL THAT GLOWS. (Which will happen, you know, in my dreams).

Source: 26.media.tumblr.com via Ryan on Pinterest

Pretty much exactly how I see Emrys. Spot on.

As for the other characters in ALL THAT GLOWS, I still haven't found their actor soul-mates yet. But I'm working on it.

I cannot WAIT for you guys to meet Emrys for real this February!!