Moved In

Hi, everybody.

Again, it's a rather slow week at the personal office. I still haven't gotten back into the swing of things concerning my latest manuscript. I'm still job hunting. I haven't heard back from Spencer Hill to see if anyone's free to take BURN IN LIGHT.But at least I'm still writing this blog, right?

And the good news is I've moved out. Moving is all done, and I have officially taken up residence in my grandparents' house until I can find something more permanent. The stress and hard work that comes with moving is over! This equals more time to be spent on writing.

There's also good news on the job front. I got one of the pre interview calls from my local Barnes & Noble some days ago. They asked me a few questions, and if everything checks out with the boss (who's away on vacation), then they'll call me for an actual interview. I hope they do, but I'm still surfing job sites daily and calling in.

But to book stuff, let me talk/write about the characters from BURN IN LIGHT. We have the main character, Enid, who's a tough as nails high school senior and part time exorcist. In this book's world, exorcists are naturally born between the union of a ghost and human, but Enid's parents are both out of the picture, so she lives with her Uncle Vincent, who's a priest and a Viewer, which is the term used for non exorcist people who can see ghosts. Her best friends are two guys. Thad is a Viewer goth who's from a rich family and has been by Enid's side since first grade who's sweet and loyal. Al, her other friend, even longer, since her day one. He's a ghost of a British immigrant who died in a failed mugging over 100 years ago, to this day he still acts like a perfect gentleman. He also serves as Enid's 'guardian', which is basically the same as a guardian angel. All three make a kick ass evil ghost busting team. There's also a handful of minor characters, such as the gangbanger ghosts who Enid uses as info brokers, an occult shop owner who supplies Enid's hunting needs, and a particularly annoying poltergeist. All of them made this manuscript fun to write.

Weekly (Dis)Likes:

Like 1: The end of moving. See above.

Like 2: The Barnes and Noble call. See above again.

Like 3: My somewhat new flat screen TV. I say somewhat new because it was my mom's first, but now it's all mine!

Like 4: I had lunch with an old friend of mine yesterday. I saw her apartment (which was cool), and we had lunch at the farmers' market. We haven't seen each other in ages, but we clicked so easily; I hope to see her again soon (and the tomato curry I had was delicious).

Like 5: As a treat for the move, my mom and I got pedicures. With all the lifting and carrying, my feet hurt, so it was well worth it.

Dislike 1: The heat. You know it's summer when ten minutes outside leaves you swimming in sweat. >_<

And quote!

"Man is free at the moment he wishes to be." -Voltaire

See ya,
Colleen

Free Job, Anyone?

Guten tag!

It's another slow week at my imaginary office. There's only a bit of book news this time, and that is that Leticia is trying to see if someone else from Spencer Hill Press who isn't as busy as Rich-the-editor can take on BURN IN LIGHT. So far, I haven't heard back from her yet about anything, but I'll tell you when I do.

The job hunt hasn't changed much. I'm still looking and applying for jobs while trying to work up the courage to actually call hiring managers to say I'm still interested in what I applied for a week ago. It's all incredibly nerve-wracking (I hate talking on the phone), but I know I need to do it, and I will. I only wish this and job sites were easier. Isn't there a job site out there that works like one of those "For Dummies" books where everything is outlined clearly?

But enough about me whining. Time to make productive conversation, i.e. I tell you more about BURN IN LIGHT. Unlike SWAMP ANGEL, I don't remember the inspiration for this particular book. Maybe it came from me wanting to make my own twist on the classic ghost story, or maybe it started with the main character and involved from there (like the manuscript I'm working on now happened). I don't know. What I do know was that I started it in, ironically, the city the story is set in, Philadelphia. It was the summer before my senior year, and I was doing a month long residential art camp at Moore College. This worked so well, being in the city and working on a new book, really getting a sense of the surroundings and what city culture could do to the story. Not that I got a chance to work on the manuscript all that often, taking college-level art courses. But once it ended, it was back to school, which meant a return to the same typing schedule as SWAMP ANGEL: me typing on the ride to and from school while my sister did the driving. :P

But enough for now. On to the Weekly (Dis)Likes!

Like 1: Happy belated 4th of July everyone. I had a good one. My grandparents have a vacation house in the Ozarks, and I spent my 4th there watching fireworks from the dock. Our cove is the best when it comes to fireworks, because other than having firework-loving neighbors, there's a bed and breakfast in our cove that puts on a huge display every year. This time they did not disappoint!

Like 2: Blueberry pie. We had some at the lake, and it was goooooood!

Like 3: Wretched and Divine: The Story of the Wild Ones. I FINALLY got around to listening to this CD which I got back in December, and it was amazing! Black Veiled Brides, where have you been all my life!?

Like 4: Got a reply from my German penpal. Her name's Elisa, and I met her while she was studying abroad at Knox half a year ago. She's very pretty and friendly, and despite being back in her home country and knee deep in exams, she has graced me with a reply. It's always nice to hear from her.

Dislike 1: Talking on the phone with strangers. Enough said.

Dislike 2: Those fireworks that sound like cannonballs being shot. Never fails to make me jump and/or give me the beginnings of a heart attack.

Dislike 3: MOVING. I'm currently moving out of the house, and though I know all the packing's necessary, it's also driving me NUTS. Can't wait until this all settles down and I get my own place (because I'm still living with relatives, just not the parents).

And quote!

"Silence is one of the hardest arguments to refute." -Josh Billings

Auf Wiedersehen,
Colleen

Summer Days (Driftin' Away...)

Aloha, little fishies!

I finally got some book news and direction to where I'm going next in the publishing world. I've been in contact with both Leticia and Rich-the-editor, and the final conclusion is that it's going to be a little while before another manuscript starts the publishing process. On Leticia's end, the demand for YA fantasy books hasn't come completely back yet, so we have to wait before she starts pushing any manuscripts. 'But what about Spencer Hill?', you may ask. On Rich-the-editor's end, he's basically swamped (no pun intended) with other manuscripts; basically, if I do want to publish with SH again, it's not going to be until the end of summer that he can look over my next book idea. A bit of a bummer, but if anything, this gives me more time to work on writing and job searching (which is going semi-well: plenty of places to apply, but no one's calling).

Not much else has happened, so how about I tell you about the next possible book of mine? It's, of course, YA fantasy, and it's called BURN IN LIGHT. It's about Enid, a teenage exorcist whose job is taking care of the evil ghosts that go bump in Philadelphia's night life. She has help in the forms of Thad, her gothic best friend who also sees ghosts, and Al, her ghostly guardian whose been dead for more than a hundred years. There's all the good stuff a book needs, like action and romance and plot as Enid uncovers a ginormous conspiracy involving other dimensions, myths, and her own past. Would say more, but I don't want to spoil the fun. Can't say when it'll come out, but it should be before anyone joins Al in death!

Weekly (Dis)Likes:

Like 1: Little Free Libraries. For those who don't know what this is, it's basically a community library where a little shed like house is built on someone's lawn, filled with books, and neighbors are allowed to borrow (not steal) them. My grandma told me about them and showed my the Kansas City Star article talking about them, and they're so cool. 15,000 'branches' in 62 countries! Unfortunately city ordinance laws can ban them, like so in Leawood, so here's hoping an exception is made. Fight the power, man!

Like 2: National Geographic, July 2014 issue. Let me just say I LOVE this magazine for both the awesome pictures and the interesting articles. Like last year, there was this one piece that talked about how cloning has gotten so sophisticated and how it can involve to the point where we can clone extinct animals back into existence. And in the aforementioned article, they talk about aliens and how studies may prove that the ocean on one of Jupiter's moons may hold all the ingredients needed to make life. WE MIGHT MEET ALIENS IN OUR LIFETIME!!

Dislike 1: How quickly my iPhone can lose power. I've discovered a bunch of awesome game apps, and I've been having to charge my phone more often. Honestly, with how brilliant Apple is, you'd think they'd invent a longer-lasting battery for these things. -_-

And quote!

"Do not take life too seriously. You will never get out of it alive." -Elbert Hubbard

Aloha,
Colleen

The Ease of Summer

Hello, readers and magic bean buyers!

So we're back to the weekly schedule and its normal format, but there's not much to talk about. Book-wise, Rich the editor says there aren't currently any jobs at SHP I can take, and regarding books, he says to go through Leticia regarding what I should do. Last time I contacted her, she recommended waiting until the demand was back up for YA fantasy before doing anything else; I'll have to contact her again to see what she says this time.

Job-wise, still on the hunt. Dad's helping out, and I've established some accounts on some job sites. One is full of jobs in places I want to work, so it's only a matter of wading through them all and applying, which I'm doing bit by bit. If any reader have suggestions for where to apply for a publishing job, tell me in the comments please!

Nothing much else, so I guess I'll tell you about the time I got hypnotized, which I mentioned last post. Basically, during my last term at Knox, the board who organizes fun events for the students invited a professional comedian/hypnotist to campus, I went to his show, and I was chosen to be a participant. I sat on the stage with nine other people, and the last thing I remember was the guy telling us to breath deeply. After that everything's a blur: looking back, it's like I was present but also sleeping, because all the talking sounded like it was both coming from my head and from people talking. I can't remember much, but I recall something involving whales, aliens, and Japanese rapping, and somewhere during the whole escapade I lost my glasses, which had been given to an audience member for safe-keeping. The hypnotist must have said something right before he woke us up, because we were shouting his name whenever he said some sort of prompt until we left the tent. It was weird, magical, and definitely something to save for a book idea some day.

And Weekly (Dis)Likes:

Like 1: It's summer!!!!!!

Like 2: Got some new work out cloths, and got a subscription to the local gym. My health's important to me, so this is a good thing. :)

Like 3: Got to go to my first Royals' game yesterday.

Dislike 1: The Royals lost. :(

Dislike 2: The heat. I am not a heat person, especially given my skin. I do not tan; I BURN, so I'm always a little nervous going out into the sun even with sunscreen on.

And quote!

"Love and work are the cornerstones of our humanness." -Sigmund Freud

Buh-bye,

Colleen

I'm Back!

Hello he, she, and theys of the Internet!

This is Colleen, and and I'm finally back. I'll be posting my regular weekly schedule from now on, and boy do I have a lot to tell you all.

First and foremost, I'm a grad! As of a week ago, I have graduated from college cum laude. The ceremony was beautiful, and my whole family was there to celebrate. There is nothing I would change about it; the food, my graduation dress, the time with family, and other details were all wonderful (though I would change the stumble and the small blisters my shoes caused me walking around in them!).

The term leading up to graduation was good as well. It turned out that the final portfolio I was stressing about wasn't as bad as I'd thought it would be. I had my partner, and we looked over each other's works and gave constructive criticism on it. Even the essay wasn't all sorts of awful: we got weekly prompts that gave us the twenty five page minimum we needed, and after meeting with our professor we'd reevaluate them (my essay ended up being 37 pages long). All in all, it went well. And my other classes were fun too; I read a whole bunch of amazing plays in my theater class, and I can honestly say that my gender/woman's studies class was one of the best courses I've taken in college. It was just so informative and pointed a lot of equal right issues not just for women, but for everyone. I highly recommend any college student reading this to take a class. (And all my hard work paid off, because I got all A's on my final transcript. Also, I managed to get myself hypnotized this term, but that's another story). Lastly, the story written for the school newspaper that I interviewed three times for came out this term, and it was a really good article. I'm happy with it, and Lena did a good job writing it. I don't know if there's an online link, but I'll check.

As of now, I'm currently looking for a job and a place to live. I'm keeping an eye on some publishing places that I'm sending resumes to, but also trying to apply to Barnes & Noble as well. Haven't found anything yet, but still searching. As for a place to live, I'm hanging out at home right now and then moving to my grandparent's place; the latter is helping me look for townhouses. We've already found a possibility, but until we have a better idea of where I'm working (here or a different state), we'll put buying in the back seat.

Book and writing wise, I'm still getting back into the swing of things with my latest manuscript. Like with this blog, I put it on hiatus so I could focus on my last term, but with the moving and events, I haven't reestablished a normal writing schedule. But I'll get to it! No new to report from Leticia or SHP, but I'll be sending a email to Rich asking if he wants to take a look at some of my other manuscripts.

Lastly, my summer so far is going well. I went to my library's used book sale and got some wonderful books, including a copy of JRR Tolkien's THE HOBBIT (which I've been wanting for a while). I also attended my church's garage sale and found myself some excellent clothes, including a pair of white DKNY slack that fit perfectly. Once again, both events live up to expectations.

And that's really everything I have to say. Check back next week for a return of my usual blogging style, but as always I end with a quote:

"My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person; he believed in me." -Jim Valvano

Bye (and Happy Father's Day!),
Colleen

How Things Are

Good day, various life forms!

So first off, I did get a reply from Leticia! She's doing well, and her agency is doing awesomely too. I got some news about the manuscripts I sent to her; apparently the publishers are currently looking for contemporary, slice of life fiction instead of fantasy. She says she can hang on to the scripts until the market turns around, or I can continue working with SHP and get the manuscripts published through them. I haven't decided which one to go through with just yet; I'll need to confer with some people about which would be the best course of action.

Still setting up my Amazon author account. It's mostly done, but I'm having some trouble posting the link to this blog. I might need to take up Rich the editor on his offer with how to do that part.

In other news, not much is happening. The real work for this term is going to start this week, so I don't know if I'll be able to write every week like I always do. It's not like last year when I'm taking a whole bunch of hard classes, but it is my senior portfolio that I need to graduate. Who knows? Either way, if it turns out I don't have time to regularly post, this is a hiatus notice that will last until sometime in June. If I do have time, I'll see you all next week!

Weekly (Dis)Likes:

Like 1: My spring break was good. I had a wonderful second interview, saw a couple of Oscar winners, and just generally relaxed while hanging out with the folks. It was good while it lasted. :)

Like 2: I found my missing game. Somehow it had gotten wedged into my wallet, and I found it when I opened it. No need for a replacement game!

Like 3: My two other classes. One of them is analyzing how scripts become plays, the second being a gender/woman's study class. They've been very interesting so far, and hopefully they'll stay that way.

Dislike 1: That damn portfolio. If I was nervous about an essay before this, I can only imagine how much more nervous this is going to make me. But if I edited and wrote my own book, then I can do this.

And quote!

"When all else is lost, the future still remains." -Christian Nestell Bovee

See you again,
Colleen

Story's Out

Hello, my lovely people.

So, funny thing about that story the Communications office wrote. Day after last week's post, I go online and there it is. Whoops. Well, better late than never. For all those who want to read it, here's the link:

http://www.knox.edu/news-and-events/news-archive/knox-college-senior-publishes-first-novel.html

I've already gotten some emails congratulating me about it. Thank you to those who did so. It's really good, so I highly recommend that you read it!

In other news, I've FINALLY remembered to write to Leticia, asking how things have been and if she's had any lucking pushing my manuscripts for sale. Haven't gotten a reply back yet, and if I don't get one by Friday I'm going to give her a call. My current manuscript is still going smoothly, and I'm on the hunt for an after college job.

Weekly (Dis)Likes:

Like 1: I had a second interview at the publishing company I want to work for. It went incredibly well. Mr. Stewart said I would be a good hire for the company, and asked that I email my resume to help make the process easier. If there's an open job by the time I graduate, there's a good chance I could get called in for another interview.

Like 2: Spring Break! Ah, relaxing.

Like 3: Oscar movies. I've been getting my fill of them, seeing '12 Years A Slave' and 'Dallas Buyers Club'. But are bloody awesome and I recommend that y'all see them.

Dislike 1: I've misplaced/lost one of my games for my 3DS. I've looked everywhere I can think of, and I CAN'T FIND IT. Thankfully, it's cheap enough to replace, but it's still frustrating that I have to in the first place.

And quote!
 

"A hero has the power to move the world. A true hero has the power to destroy the world but chooses not to despite what the world thinks of him." -Joseph Patrick Lyons

Bye,
Colleen