So, this afternoon I accepted an offer of representation from Miriam Kriss of the Irene Goodman Literary Agency! Miriam is actually a dream agent for me, and I was absolutely thrilled when she called Friday to tell me she really loved my book and would be “delighted” to represent me. She’s the agent of many successful urban fantasy and paranormal writers like Rachel Vincent, Keri Arthur, Vicki Pettersson and Jackie Kessler to name a few.

I pitched Miriam back when I went to AgentFest. She was the very first agent I pitched, and my nerves were all over the place. But when she was sweet and put me at ease, plus ignored my obvious spazziness, I knew right then and there she’d be a terrific agent for me. Not to mention she’s passionate about what she does and it reflects in what an amazing job she does for her clients. So, I was thrilled when she was enthusiastic about the premise and requested the full. About two and half months later, she called offering representation after I alerted her of the other offer. To say I’m excited would be putting it mildly. I’m ecstatic! And I absolutely cannot wait to start working on her requested revisions. And I’m not usually a big fan of revisions. Plus, the list of editors she named off the top of her head she had in mind for submissions made my jaw drop!

I’d also like to send out a huge thanks to everyone who went back and forth with me in emails and IMs during this whole process. You guys kept my sanity in check during the ups and downs and the frantic uncertainties. Plus, a super huge thanks to Joel who gave me the best birthday present a girl could get. AgentFest landed me my dream agent, and I never would have gone to the conference if you hadn’t gotten it for me.

One of my favorite things about writing fantasy-based stories is the actual lack of parameters. I can pretty much come up with my own magic system, my own take on classic fantastical creatures and beings and my own take on how they interact with the world. The only parameters that exist are the ones I put in place. Internal consistency.

Some of my favorite stories take classic mythos and turn them into something new. Like Scott Westerfeld’s Peeps. His vampires aren’t the undead. They are humans with a terrible virus. Or Mark Henry’s zombies. His go out to clubs and wear makeup and stilletos. Quite a contrast to the typical mindless roaming monsters. I know Diana Peterfreund’s new YA series coming out next year has her own version of unicorns…and they certainly aren’t the friendly creatures I usually have in mind when I hear that word.

I love the freedom in this because the only thing limiting your ideas is your own imagination. If you have a cool take on orcs, nothing really is stopping you from completely overhauling the classic view of them. In fact, it’d be pretty cool to see an alternative definition of these creatures.

Of course, like I said before, it’s important when world building to keep the story consistent. If you make a rule that vampires can’t have children, a few books later, a vampire shouldn’t suddenly be the father of a child…If you create a world where wizards are funny men who wear top hats and can only perform spells by wearing those funny top hats, they shouldn’t all of a sudden use incantations and spirits three books later to perform a spell. Unless, of course, there is a very good explanation for it.

I’d love to hear the thoughts of others on this. Do you believe in sticking to classic fantasy parameters or do you like it when the author stretches those and makes his own rules up about the world he is creating?

Today, I got a call from an agent offering representation for Teen Ghost! I am so happy right now, and I still can’t believe it’s really happening!

I’m not going to give any details yet because I’m going to wait until the contract is signed, sealed and delivered. But I wanted to go ahead and post that I got an offer!!!

Off to celebrate!

Basically, they both can contain supernatural creatures like vampires, angels, demons, witches, ghosts, etc. But just because they both have those creatures doesn’t mean they are in the same genre.

From what I can gather, urban fantasy is a novel in which the main storyline focuses on a character’s involvement in a mystery or conflict involving fantasy elements. A paranormal has a main storyline focusing on a romance. If you can take the romance out of the story and still have a plot, then it’s urban fantasy. If the romantic plot is that crucial to the story, if it is the plot, then it’s paranormal.

That being said, TG is kind of in between while Clash is most definitely urban fantasy. The main plot for TG isn’t about a romance, but there are definitely some important romantic elements that propel the story forward, that drive my character’s actions. Since I like romantic subplots, Clash has one, but not having it wouldn’t affect the main plot much.

For example, Rachel Vincent’s Werecat series just happens to be in the romance section at the bookstore, but it’s definitely not a paranormal. It’s urban fantasy all the way. There’s a great love story going on, but the main plot focuses on the werecat world, the politics, the issues, etc.

Anyway, I’m pretty sure that’s the difference although others may have a different way of defining it. All those UF/paranormal fans out there — I’d love to hear your thoughts on the different genres and how you define them.

In a similar vein, today I was thinking about artistic influences. Those writers, musicians or painters who have influenced my own writing. Lately, two of the most important influences for me have been Joss Whedon and Edgar Allan Poe. Interesting combo, huh?

As far as Poe is concerned, I’ve been reading a lot of his poetry. It can be melancholy, humorous and wistful all at the same time. He strikes exactly the right tone for what I was trying to accomplish in TG. His stuff is a little strange and pretty dark, but it’s the kind of thing I’ve been writing lately so it feels inspirational to me to read something like that.

And as far as Joss Whedon is concerned. Well, I think he’s a genius writer. I’m amazed at the Buffy storyline, and I only recently finished watching the entire series again. He’s an urban fantasy/paranormal master, and I can only hope to grow a smidgen of talent in comparison to his.

I also think there’s a line that shouldn’t be crossed between being influenced and copying. And, I don’t think, at least I hope, I’m not crossing that line. I’m using what I’ve learned from them and trying to create my own way of writing. I remember when I tried writing light-hearted cozy mystery adventures, I sounded a bit too much like Janet Evanovich. I think that tends to happen when you’re trying to figure out who you are as a writer, and that’s okay as long as you realize it and try to learn through practice what your voice is.

I’m also influenced as far as tone is concerned by some musicians, mainly Panic at the Disco. I also often find paintings or pictures that really capture a setting or character I’m writing. Sometimes I’ll save them on my hard drive and keep them open when I’m working on a novel so I can click back to it if I’m feeling stuck.

Anyone else have any strong influences? How do you keep your voice distinct from those writers you really admire?

Last night, I had a breakthrough in my story. See, I had this idea, but it was missing something. What was it missing? I had no idea. An extra element, an extra twist, an extra subplot. Something. I couldn’t figure it out at all. But it was lacking whatever was needed to make the story more unique, a little more special and something I could get excited about. Something to take the story from something okay to something good.

So yesterday, I sat down and wrote through the block. And bam! Something popped into my mind. I did a little research, and there it was. The little element to tie this all in together. So, I got back to writing and ended up writing 3k yesterday. Then, I sat down with my trusty Digital Post-Its and plotted out the entire book. It’s all there pretty much. A few scenes need more definition, but I’ve got it all.

Finally. That’s all I have to say.

Also, my Mogwai was a big help. Here is he is brainstorming with me.

Granted, I’ve been researching, plotting, submitting, querying, fidgeting, email checking, etc, but there’s no real excuse here when a lot of it has been due to the fact I just haven’t been writing every day. And when I do, it’s another draft of Chapter 1 or 400-500 words here and there. I think I’ve rewritten Chapter 1 at least five times. And that’s not what I’m supposed to do in first draft phase.

Or I get stuck and only write 6,000 words in 6 weeks.

After all my preaching about writers writing and how the easiest way to do that is to sit down and do it every day to get in the practice and treating it like a job. *sigh* I should be at least a third of the way through it by now which is assuming I didn’t even write 1k per day.

Anyway, this post is to all the readers and blog buddies. If you notice my status bar over there for Clash still stuck at 6k next week, please bug me and tell me to stop being a lazy bum. Actually, if you see it sitting there stalled at any point, send me a nudge because I’m only going to want to beat myself up again if I don’t really get moving on this project. Once again, my goal is to reach 10k by the end of this week.

If, in 6 more weeks, I have written only 12k, I may just have to move on to another novel.

And since some important scenes in TG take place on the beach, it was easy to let my mind wander in the direction of TG2. We took a stroll down to the water after dark, and I snapped this picture which doesn’t even come close to letting you see what it really looked like. The darkness, the moonlight, the inky blue of the waves. It was very eerie. I loved it.

There are lots of other places and things that inspire creativity in me, but the beach is definitely at the top of the list. What about you? Any particular setting that really gets your mind buzzing with ideas and thoughts?

Second, I was sitting in Starbucks writing yesterday and had one of those epiphany moments that I’ve only ever gotten when I write. Those moments are part of the reason I love writing so much.

There are more reasons I love writing so much.

The sound of clicking on the keyboard when the words are really flowing.

The excitement when an especially good sentence finds itself on the page.

The unexpected twists and turns that surprise you in a very good way.

New characters and getting to know their story.

Old characters and developing their story even more.

Creating what feels like a living and breathing story so close to you that it has a place deep in your heart.

Developing a world with my rules and my philosophies. That’s why I’ve moved into a more fantasy based genre.

Laughing at the funny parts. Crying at the sad parts.

Holding a printed copy of an entire written manuscript in my hands.

I love it. I love all of it. Even the frustrated moments where I feel like every word I write is utter crap. I still know I’m going to keep banging out those words, and eventually, I might be able to reassemble them into something I can be proud of.

And, of course, the hope that one day I can see that printed manuscript in book form.

Let me thank who first told me to revise my query letter after sending out my first batch of queries. I revised it, changed the title, and the response to it has been much, much better than my old query. Susan, you rock!

That being said, this week’s excitement has made it really hard for me to concentrate on doing anything other than checking my inbox compulsively or researching these agents who have requested material even though I’ve already done this and have read everything I can find on them. It’s making it really hard for me to write, or even just plot, Clash.

Now, I’m not complaining! This is exactly what I want to be happening right now. This is more of a post to scold myself really. The best way to distract myself from my email/phone/snail mailbox/ridiculous research/etc is to sit down and write this book that is ready to be written. Work on something else. Chill and settle in for the inevitable wait.

So, I’ve set a goal for myself. Reach 10k in the first draft by the end of this week. Not a crazy milestone, but if I’m going to hit it, I need to start writing tonight.

How do you focus when you can’t seem to concentrate? Do you unplug yourself from the internet? Might be a good idea…