Tonight at midnight, there will be thousands of children escorted by their parents to buy their copy of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling, which is the seventh and final book in the series. Most of the children and their parents who started reading the series are a bit older now and while I am sure they are sad to see it end this way (NO! I am NOT going to spoil it!), they are wondering, "What's next?" My answer is simple. "Choices Meant for Gods" by Sandy Lender.
In the article that follows, Sandy is kind and brave enough to reveal that it's not all glamour and glitz, at least not at the start. One of the hardest lessons I have had to learn about writing and publishing is that you are responsible for promoting your work! And work it is! But one thing I know for sure is some of the top notch marketers in the publishing industry can't predict what will become a bestseller or the next trend, so that gives all of us an equal chance, doesn't it? I feel a new era is upon us and Sandy Lender is just the author to lead us there.
So, sit back, relax and read Sandy's article below. Comment here or on her blog, www.todaythedragonwins.blogspot.com and support her in this final day of her blog tour.
And what ever you do, don't start reading it before you go to bed, thinking "I'll just read the first two chapters," because you will blink and it will be 3 a.m. You just can't put it down. It's really that good!
And now, ladies and gentlemen...Ms. Sandy Lender.
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Sandy Lender Doesn't Recommend Quitting Your Day Job
Or...the joy and insanity of being a writer
By Sandy Lender, fantasy author
Northeast Missouri State University, now Truman University, prides itself on offering a liberal arts education to graduates. I got out in four years with a degree in English and a liberal arts education that has garnered me a 15-year career in magazine publishing and public relations/marketing, but my true passion, the "career" I've nurtured since I was about six years old, is writing. And I don't mean journalism. Yes, journalism and editing are what have paid the bills the past 15 years (and will continue to do so), but fiction writing...oh...fiction writing is what has kept me alive.
It's probably going to be the death of me.
Let me explain. If you're visiting this site, you've probably been drawn here by an interest in books or authors or a writer's lifestyle or something along those lines. Let me give it to you straight. All writers have a touch of insanity about us (this is normal). We usually carry a muse around with us, but this is not always by choice. We complain about characters fighting for their rights, refusing to conform to our wishes in a scene. We go on writing binges that keep us up until 3 a.m. before collapsing next to our computers just to get up and start typing again when the sun blazes in to wake us around 7, skipping meals, showers, potty breaks and phone calls until some aspect of reality forces us out of the writing cocoon. We will tear a room to shreds looking for a pen if an idea has just struck us. And woe to the fool who gets between us and a piece of paper when we get hold of that pen...
Because I've experienced the insanity described above, I've been lifted up by hearing stories of people who have enjoyed my first published novel, Choices Meant for Gods. Now I get to read comments on my Amazon.com page of people claiming Nigel Taiman is "by far" their favorite character, or "I want to be just like Chariss when I grow up," and I feel this lump of pride in my darlings rise in my throat.
That's the joy and insanity of being a writer. You pour your heart and soul into the work; and pray that someone out there likes it, too. Now here's the hard part. People have to read it to like it. They have to know it exists to read it. So you have to get it to them.
Enter the marketing and promoting aspect of the new author's job. I attended the ArcheBooks Publishing's Professional Novelist Workshop about two weeks before receiving my contract for Choices Meant for Gods, and had attended the Naples Press Club Writers Workshop the week before that, so I thought I had a pretty good idea of the marketing nightmare new authors faced. I was ready. Lay it on me, I thought.
Now I'm on the last day of a two-month online book tour I organized myself, contemplating repeating a moderately successful instore book signing at the local Barnes & Noble that I organized myself, and managing six blogs (including www.todaythedragonwins.blogspot.com) for the promotion of my fantasy novel that I've organized myself, preparing a spate of press releases I've written myself that I'll spew forth like water from an erupting sprinkler next week, etc. Do you see a trend there?
New authors are on their own. Unless you have the few thousand dollars it takes to hire a publicity firm/PR agency to send out press releases for you, you're on your own. I don't have a few thousand stray dollars and I don't trust people who charge less than professional rates to do a professional job.
I take hope in the fact that even J.K. Rowling was once in the same boat I'm in now. She was down to her last food stamp as the story goes when that fateful call came: Her little story about a boy named Harry Potter had been picked up. I've already had my call. Choices Meant for Gods is published and out there. Now I need my lottery winning event to propel me into J.K. Rowling and Harry Potter status, but, for right now, I'm going to just keep writing deep into the night and reading those fabulous e-mails that praise Nigel and Chariss. Because making a living at this would be nice, but, truly, the writing binges that result in someone singing Chariss's praises are the real joy and insanity of being a writer.
I'd like to thank my host today for posting this guest blog article. And I'd like to thank everyone who made the CMFG Online Book Tour the raging success it's been. You know that paragraph above where I said new authors are one their own? I'd like to correct that. We actually have each other. Without each of you, the name Sandy Lender wouldn't be all over the internet right now, and readers wouldn't be one click away from http://www.amazon.com/Choices-Meant-Gods-Sandy-Lender/dp/1595071652/ref=dp_return_1/104-9089752-5140754?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books&qid=1175821346&sr=8-1 to pick up my epic fantasy novel. And new author Sandy Lender is grateful to every one of you.
Tags: sandy lender, fantasy author, northeast missouri state university, truman university, liberal arts, journalism, fiction writing, writer's life, muse, choices meant for gods, nigel taiman, marketing and promotion, archebooks publishing, professional novelist workshop, naples press club, online book tour, today the dragon wins, fantasy novel, j.k. rowling, harry potter
"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
From Sandy Lender, Author of Choices Meant for Gods
Available right now http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1595071652
Taking over the Web Saturday, July 21, to complete the CMFG Online Book Tour.
Visit: www.todaythedragonwins.blogspot.com
"Some days, I just want the dragon to win."
Friday, July 20, 2007
Thursday, July 19, 2007
Learning how to ride a bicycle
I'm not sure how old I was, but I know I couldn't have been much older than six or seven years old. The way my mother tells the story, she has never seen a child with more determination in all of her life, who came home dirty, bloody and thrilled with the fact she learned to ride a "big bike" with no training wheels.
It was summer and I didn't have a bicycle of my own, but my neighbor, Angela, who came from a large family, had an old blue bicycle that was just leaning up against the garage. It was the perfect size for me. I didn't have to bring it up to the steps so I could get on it and I knew that once I was on it, I could control it and not kill myself. So, I got this idea in my head that I was going to learn how to ride bicycle that day. Without training wheels.
So, I set about my task by going out into the middle of the street, down far enough that we were not visible by the picture windows of either of our houses. We would have been in BIG TROUBLE for playing out in the street, by both of our mothers. We kept to the side and tried to make sure that we wouldn't get "run over" by any cars.
Angela tried first, after all, it was her bicycle. She couldn't get the pedals going fast enough and fell. She didn't get hurt, but she got up and handed me the bicycle. She held onto the back of the seat to steady it as I got on and I tried to steer and over corrected and fell. I scraped my knee. Not bad, but it stung. This went on and on for hours. Angela finally gave up, she was tired of falling off, so she helped me in my quest for success. Finally, just before supper time, I did it! I pedaled. I steered. I even turned around, pedalling and steering and...I DIDN'T FALL OFF!! Of course, I nearly killed myself jumping off the bicycle to hug Angela and to celebrate my victory! But the fact of the matter is, I did what I set out to do. It hurt, it was painful, but I didn't give up, no matter what.
I thought my Mom was going to have a heart attack when she saw me, but I hurried up and told her I learned to ride a bicycle without training wheels and to come out and see. I demonstrated on the sidewalk out in front of our house.
I know she cried. She cried because I did it myself. She cried because I had to go through all of that pain and hurt to accomplish what I did. She also cried because it was one more small step away from me being her little girl and becoming a grown up. I know that because when my son learned how to ride his bicycle without training wheels, I cried for all of those reasons.
Why do I bring this up? I am 38 years old, and in a way, I am learning to ride a bicycle without training wheels all over again. My definition of myself is changing. I'm not just a woman, a daughter, a mother, a girlfriend, a sister, a human being, but now I am embarking on a new chapter in my life that will add business woman, entrepeneur, writer, copywriter, motivational speaker and I hope, teacher to my list of definitions.
I'm scared, like I was that day, but I am also determined to succeed. And I will be so proud of myself, pedalling down the road or the sidewalk...scabbed knees and all.
It was summer and I didn't have a bicycle of my own, but my neighbor, Angela, who came from a large family, had an old blue bicycle that was just leaning up against the garage. It was the perfect size for me. I didn't have to bring it up to the steps so I could get on it and I knew that once I was on it, I could control it and not kill myself. So, I got this idea in my head that I was going to learn how to ride bicycle that day. Without training wheels.
So, I set about my task by going out into the middle of the street, down far enough that we were not visible by the picture windows of either of our houses. We would have been in BIG TROUBLE for playing out in the street, by both of our mothers. We kept to the side and tried to make sure that we wouldn't get "run over" by any cars.
Angela tried first, after all, it was her bicycle. She couldn't get the pedals going fast enough and fell. She didn't get hurt, but she got up and handed me the bicycle. She held onto the back of the seat to steady it as I got on and I tried to steer and over corrected and fell. I scraped my knee. Not bad, but it stung. This went on and on for hours. Angela finally gave up, she was tired of falling off, so she helped me in my quest for success. Finally, just before supper time, I did it! I pedaled. I steered. I even turned around, pedalling and steering and...I DIDN'T FALL OFF!! Of course, I nearly killed myself jumping off the bicycle to hug Angela and to celebrate my victory! But the fact of the matter is, I did what I set out to do. It hurt, it was painful, but I didn't give up, no matter what.
I thought my Mom was going to have a heart attack when she saw me, but I hurried up and told her I learned to ride a bicycle without training wheels and to come out and see. I demonstrated on the sidewalk out in front of our house.
I know she cried. She cried because I did it myself. She cried because I had to go through all of that pain and hurt to accomplish what I did. She also cried because it was one more small step away from me being her little girl and becoming a grown up. I know that because when my son learned how to ride his bicycle without training wheels, I cried for all of those reasons.
Why do I bring this up? I am 38 years old, and in a way, I am learning to ride a bicycle without training wheels all over again. My definition of myself is changing. I'm not just a woman, a daughter, a mother, a girlfriend, a sister, a human being, but now I am embarking on a new chapter in my life that will add business woman, entrepeneur, writer, copywriter, motivational speaker and I hope, teacher to my list of definitions.
I'm scared, like I was that day, but I am also determined to succeed. And I will be so proud of myself, pedalling down the road or the sidewalk...scabbed knees and all.
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
My Declaration of Independence 2007
Happy 4th of July everyone!
Over 231 years ago, our forefathers decided that they’d had enough! The signing of the Declaration of Independence was the equivalent of drawing a line in the sand between what would become the United States of America, and it’s mother country, England. We celebrate this day with parades, marching bands, barbecues and fireworks. All in all, it’s a great day!
Today, I guess you could say I have drawn my own line in the sand. I am hereby declaring my own independence from a lot of the stuff I have been carrying as baggage that I am just sick and tired of carrying around. Enough is enough!
Most of what I have as “baggage” is emotional stuff. I’ve been through a lot, that’s true, but in all honesty, I wouldn’t trade any of the bad stuff because without it I would not appreciate the good that came my way. Also, I would not be in the position in my life to recognize that I need to just let some of that stuff go. You can’t change the past, so what’s the point of dragging it around with you everywhere?
Also, I have been unhappy in my job. I’m there for a paycheck and health insurance and that’s about it, and my attitude and my anger and my frustration show that. I am not doing the work my spirit is intended for, which is to write, but I can’t give the factory job up yet until the writing takes off.
So, for now I will try to make the best of things, but I am also giving myself a deadline. If all goes well, (and there are opportunities that are presenting themselves that I am on the right track), I will be able to say goodbye for good to the factory job and hello to the life I have always dreamed of! I’m not saying that I’m going to just up and quit my job and become a full-time writer, and jeopardize my family’s financial future, oh no! But I have been working on a few things that will be coming to fruition sooner than I planned. I’m dancing I’m so excited about what’s to come.
As for the rest of it, the whining, the complaining, the bitching and moaning: Life sucks and then you die, I’m fat, I’m poor, I’m not pretty enough, I’m a horrible mother, I’m a horrible girlfriend/life partner to my boyfriend, I have no talent, I’ll never be a success at anything, I’m hopeless…well, you get the point. The tapes we play over and over in our minds have the voices of many dream killers we have known over the years. You hear it enough, you believe it.
Today, I guess you could say I have drawn my own line in the sand. I am hereby declaring my own independence from a lot of the stuff I have been carrying as baggage that I am just sick and tired of carrying around. Enough is enough!
Most of what I have as “baggage” is emotional stuff. I’ve been through a lot, that’s true, but in all honesty, I wouldn’t trade any of the bad stuff because without it I would not appreciate the good that came my way. Also, I would not be in the position in my life to recognize that I need to just let some of that stuff go. You can’t change the past, so what’s the point of dragging it around with you everywhere?
Also, I have been unhappy in my job. I’m there for a paycheck and health insurance and that’s about it, and my attitude and my anger and my frustration show that. I am not doing the work my spirit is intended for, which is to write, but I can’t give the factory job up yet until the writing takes off.
So, for now I will try to make the best of things, but I am also giving myself a deadline. If all goes well, (and there are opportunities that are presenting themselves that I am on the right track), I will be able to say goodbye for good to the factory job and hello to the life I have always dreamed of! I’m not saying that I’m going to just up and quit my job and become a full-time writer, and jeopardize my family’s financial future, oh no! But I have been working on a few things that will be coming to fruition sooner than I planned. I’m dancing I’m so excited about what’s to come.
As for the rest of it, the whining, the complaining, the bitching and moaning: Life sucks and then you die, I’m fat, I’m poor, I’m not pretty enough, I’m a horrible mother, I’m a horrible girlfriend/life partner to my boyfriend, I have no talent, I’ll never be a success at anything, I’m hopeless…well, you get the point. The tapes we play over and over in our minds have the voices of many dream killers we have known over the years. You hear it enough, you believe it.
But, I have a question to ask you, dear readers. Why do we believe all that crap? Why do we believe that life is hard, that nothing comes easy, that we are not of the lucky lot in life that gets their needs and wants met and that we don’t deserve to be happy? Why?
This is an abundant universe, and we are unlimited beings and we limit ourselves by saying the opposite of what is true: There is more than enough good to go around for everyone! We just need to figure out what it is we truly want, ask for it, believe we deserve it, be grateful for what we have already and then allow it to come into our lives and be able to receive it.
It's so much easier to complain about what we don't have, to look at someone else and say, "I want their life!" without looking in the mirror to see why ours isn't up to par. It's easier to see the bad things when they happen, and then diminish the good things by saying, "It wasn't that big of a deal." That's not being modest, that's called denial. You aren't going to get a medal for being in denial over what good comes into your life.
If we believe all of that, then we are doing a disservice to those who founded this country on the belief that we are all entitled to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” We are not honoring those who have fought and died serving this country to keep the borders safe, to protect the freedoms that we enjoy everyday: like waking up, speaking English and not hearing bullets and bombs outside of our homes. We are not honoring the Declaration of Independence. If they believed then, that we were all entitled to live abundant lives in the greatest country in the world, why do we discredit that belief by listening to all this shit?
Honor the Declaration of Independence. Honor the soldiers who have fought and died for all of us and continue to fight in the name of the greatest country in the world. Honor yourself by choosing to live the life you always dreamed of, pursuing your own happiness and sharing it with those you love and with the world. Honor all of these things and be grateful.
Let the fireworks begin!
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Welcome Sandy Lender to the Polebarn!!
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As promised, I would like to extend a warm Minnesota welcome (and I mean WARM. The temp will be over 90 degrees today), to my friend and fellow author, Sandy Lender. Her debut novel, "Choices Meant for Gods" hit the bookstores this spring and she has been on a relentless promotional tour. I really appreciate her stopping by here to chat. Sandy, welcome!
Laura: What do you think has been more difficult, writing and publishing your book or the promotion and marketing?
Sandy Lender: Now that I've learned that no one cares who I am, I'm going to say the promotion and marketing is the most difficult part. And I mean that! There are some wonderful people (probably 50) who have purchased the book and read it and called to tell me that it rocks (I've heard other positive adverbs and adjectives, too), but, ummm, I'm not going to build a great audience with 50 sales. (I'm under-exaggerating; it's more than 50, but I'm trying to prove a point.)
Now, don't get me wrong, I never set myself up to believe I was going to make any money off this first novel. My publisher was very clear in the seminars he's given that new authors in small- to medium-sized houses just don't make money - certainly not the kind of money that lets you quit your day job and focus on the career you love. So I didn't go into this with any "delusions" that I know of. But, wow...I had hoped at least one radio station or magazine would care that a local artist had succeeded in the publishing game. Not so much. Having the people who have read the novel tell me that it's amazing and genre-breaking, etc. is a great ego boost, but that's not going to get me anywhere in life, and that's heartbreaking in the end. So I'm going to say writing is the easiest part of the equation. Getting published was next in line in terms of ease (and, by the way, that was NOT easy...took three years). Marketing and promotion is the part that will kill me.
Laura: Now that you have the book published, the first in a trilogy, do you feel the other two books will be easier or more difficult to write and publish?
Sandy Lender: Book II in the Choices Meant for Gods trilogy is complete. I'm editing now. There's a scene I have to include and I've been writing and rewriting it during traffic jams. Book III in the trilogy is almost complete, but I stopped when the Marketing and Promotion Nightmare began in full force in March. My publisher has already requested Book II and has intimated this is a long-term relationship, and I have no reason to doubt him. The arrangement is not akin to the cut-throat, bizarre situations you read about in some of the online chatgroups around the net. I'm quite surprised by some of the animosity I see authors feel toward their publishers and I'm thankful for the peace I have with mine. Very thankful. (very thankful)
Laura: You have been very open about your work schedule, your writing schedule, and the places you are going to promote your book on virtual blog tours, book signings, etc. When do you sleep? LOL!
Sandy Lender: Oh, my. Well...to be honest...I am getting a bit more sleep now than I was for a while there. I get about four hours of sleep a night. It can't be helped. I'm a new author that no one has ever heard of, so I must build a presence for myself. I must "brand." And then there's my personal life that has spiraled completely out of control thanks to the stellar choice I made in life partners 13 years ago. Like the Nazi at the end of the Indiana Jones movie...I chose poorly. So I have more than one job to try to make ends meet. (Did I mention that I won't make any money off the book?)
Laura: Writers by nature are very isolated souls, perfecting their craft out of the public eye. Do you find it more interesting to see readers in person at book signings or to participate in the virtual blog tours and promotion where you are not out in the public? Is there one way you prefer over the other?
Sandy Lender: Readers? What is this illusive creature you speak of?
Laura: What has been the most interesting thing or most interesting person you have met so far during your book tours?
Sandy Lender: Oh, man, I know who I want to meet, but I don't think he's paying attention...
The most interesting person...I'm drawing a blank, but that could be from lack of sleep. The most interesting thing...I had an online chat early on in the tour that about five people attended (if you include the host, who I think was studying for an exam or something, so he didn't really participate) but the people who attended and participated had this fantastic discussion. We covered everything from how childhood experiences affected our writing to great works of literature affecting our writing...I don't remember all of it because I never got the transcript, but I remember it being a really productive and intriguing conversation with folks, only one of whom I knew.
I'm going to have three more online chats before the end of the tour. One is this Thursday evening at http://www.cassidymckay.com/ at 8 eastern. I encourage people to participate because the conversation can get really good.
Laura: Your novel is an epic fantasy. I have read the Harry Potter series, but I felt your book was more adult and spellbinding. I read it in just a couple of days, and I got completely involved in the story and the characters. I know you had to do a lot of editing, but for the life of me, I cannot imagine what you cut that didn’t appear in the book. Is the material you cut out going to end up someplace in the second or third book? Or are you going to just keep it ‘just in case’ it inspires you to write something else?
Sandy Lender: I cut more than 70,000 words out of Choices Meant for Gods. A couple of scenes went into Book II but a majority of the material just got slashed. I'm ruthless with the delete key. If I decide I don't want something in...pow...I just yank it out and it's gone. There were a few scenes, though, that were breaking my heart to remove and those will be posted as deleted scenes on my website (as soon as I learn how to build a website in my sleep). I've already put some scenes - in the archives now - on my blog at http://www.todaythedragonwins.blogspot.com/, one of which almost got me maimed by a reader who wanted more. So, ah, I think I'll be posting more (in my sleep).
I'm not concerned about the missing material inspiring me, though. Everything around me inspires me.
Laura: When you first held your book in your hands, was it surreal for you? Do you think you will have that same feeling once you publish the other books in the trilogy?
Sandy Lender: I don't know how to describe the way I felt (which is mind-boggling, considering I wrote a 250,000-word novel, eh?). I knew the books would be waiting for me on my front porch when I got home from work one evening, so I was watching for them as I backed into the driveway, practically driving off into the yard. But once I got the box open and had MY book in my hands, I just sat down and stared at it, amazed that it was real at last. I mean, Choices Meant for Gods took three years to find a home and another 18 months after contract to get to this final, hardback stage. I cried like an idiot for a few minutes, and then dried my eyes and started reading. I found a huge typo on page 13 and let out one of those gurgling sounds like you're on your death bed. I've been an editor for 15 years...you'd think I could have caught that BEFORE we went to press. But we can fix it before the second printing.
Laura: What is next for Sandy Lender?
Sandy Lender: Ugh. Well, I'm marketing and promoting...
Seriously, I have a conference I'm speaking at this fall called Context 20 out in Ohio. Some of all ya'll may be attending... Then there's DragonCon. And I have several books rattling about my head that I need to write. I have six blogs. I'm finishing this online book tour. I want to set Nigel Taiman up on a tour (not even half as long as this one I'm doing, though). So I have plenty of the writing career to keep me busy!
Laura: I have kept a journal since my Aunt Peg in the 4th Grade gave me a diary for Christmas. It has helped me through a lot of tough times in my life. Do you keep a journal and do you find any kind of writing as therapeutic?
Sandy Lender: I do not keep a journal for fear of it falling into enemy hands.
Laura: Do you have any plans to stop in Minnesota or any states close by, during your book tour? What is your next stop?
Sandy Lender: If Duran Duran has a concert near there, I'm all over it, Baby.
Sandy, Thanks for stopping by the Polebarn!
Sandy Lender: Thanks for hosting me today, Laura. I hope my answers don't feel too negative. I'm overtired from a long weekend of marketing and promotion so that topic has me on edge! Tell all your visitors that the writing is the fun part. Stick with the fun part as long as you caaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan.
Sandy Lender: Now that I've learned that no one cares who I am, I'm going to say the promotion and marketing is the most difficult part. And I mean that! There are some wonderful people (probably 50) who have purchased the book and read it and called to tell me that it rocks (I've heard other positive adverbs and adjectives, too), but, ummm, I'm not going to build a great audience with 50 sales. (I'm under-exaggerating; it's more than 50, but I'm trying to prove a point.)
Now, don't get me wrong, I never set myself up to believe I was going to make any money off this first novel. My publisher was very clear in the seminars he's given that new authors in small- to medium-sized houses just don't make money - certainly not the kind of money that lets you quit your day job and focus on the career you love. So I didn't go into this with any "delusions" that I know of. But, wow...I had hoped at least one radio station or magazine would care that a local artist had succeeded in the publishing game. Not so much. Having the people who have read the novel tell me that it's amazing and genre-breaking, etc. is a great ego boost, but that's not going to get me anywhere in life, and that's heartbreaking in the end. So I'm going to say writing is the easiest part of the equation. Getting published was next in line in terms of ease (and, by the way, that was NOT easy...took three years). Marketing and promotion is the part that will kill me.
Laura: Now that you have the book published, the first in a trilogy, do you feel the other two books will be easier or more difficult to write and publish?
Sandy Lender: Book II in the Choices Meant for Gods trilogy is complete. I'm editing now. There's a scene I have to include and I've been writing and rewriting it during traffic jams. Book III in the trilogy is almost complete, but I stopped when the Marketing and Promotion Nightmare began in full force in March. My publisher has already requested Book II and has intimated this is a long-term relationship, and I have no reason to doubt him. The arrangement is not akin to the cut-throat, bizarre situations you read about in some of the online chatgroups around the net. I'm quite surprised by some of the animosity I see authors feel toward their publishers and I'm thankful for the peace I have with mine. Very thankful. (very thankful)
Laura: You have been very open about your work schedule, your writing schedule, and the places you are going to promote your book on virtual blog tours, book signings, etc. When do you sleep? LOL!
Sandy Lender: Oh, my. Well...to be honest...I am getting a bit more sleep now than I was for a while there. I get about four hours of sleep a night. It can't be helped. I'm a new author that no one has ever heard of, so I must build a presence for myself. I must "brand." And then there's my personal life that has spiraled completely out of control thanks to the stellar choice I made in life partners 13 years ago. Like the Nazi at the end of the Indiana Jones movie...I chose poorly. So I have more than one job to try to make ends meet. (Did I mention that I won't make any money off the book?)
Laura: Writers by nature are very isolated souls, perfecting their craft out of the public eye. Do you find it more interesting to see readers in person at book signings or to participate in the virtual blog tours and promotion where you are not out in the public? Is there one way you prefer over the other?
Sandy Lender: Readers? What is this illusive creature you speak of?
Laura: What has been the most interesting thing or most interesting person you have met so far during your book tours?
Sandy Lender: Oh, man, I know who I want to meet, but I don't think he's paying attention...
The most interesting person...I'm drawing a blank, but that could be from lack of sleep. The most interesting thing...I had an online chat early on in the tour that about five people attended (if you include the host, who I think was studying for an exam or something, so he didn't really participate) but the people who attended and participated had this fantastic discussion. We covered everything from how childhood experiences affected our writing to great works of literature affecting our writing...I don't remember all of it because I never got the transcript, but I remember it being a really productive and intriguing conversation with folks, only one of whom I knew.
I'm going to have three more online chats before the end of the tour. One is this Thursday evening at http://www.cassidymckay.com/ at 8 eastern. I encourage people to participate because the conversation can get really good.
Laura: Your novel is an epic fantasy. I have read the Harry Potter series, but I felt your book was more adult and spellbinding. I read it in just a couple of days, and I got completely involved in the story and the characters. I know you had to do a lot of editing, but for the life of me, I cannot imagine what you cut that didn’t appear in the book. Is the material you cut out going to end up someplace in the second or third book? Or are you going to just keep it ‘just in case’ it inspires you to write something else?
Sandy Lender: I cut more than 70,000 words out of Choices Meant for Gods. A couple of scenes went into Book II but a majority of the material just got slashed. I'm ruthless with the delete key. If I decide I don't want something in...pow...I just yank it out and it's gone. There were a few scenes, though, that were breaking my heart to remove and those will be posted as deleted scenes on my website (as soon as I learn how to build a website in my sleep). I've already put some scenes - in the archives now - on my blog at http://www.todaythedragonwins.blogspot.com/, one of which almost got me maimed by a reader who wanted more. So, ah, I think I'll be posting more (in my sleep).
I'm not concerned about the missing material inspiring me, though. Everything around me inspires me.
Laura: When you first held your book in your hands, was it surreal for you? Do you think you will have that same feeling once you publish the other books in the trilogy?
Sandy Lender: I don't know how to describe the way I felt (which is mind-boggling, considering I wrote a 250,000-word novel, eh?). I knew the books would be waiting for me on my front porch when I got home from work one evening, so I was watching for them as I backed into the driveway, practically driving off into the yard. But once I got the box open and had MY book in my hands, I just sat down and stared at it, amazed that it was real at last. I mean, Choices Meant for Gods took three years to find a home and another 18 months after contract to get to this final, hardback stage. I cried like an idiot for a few minutes, and then dried my eyes and started reading. I found a huge typo on page 13 and let out one of those gurgling sounds like you're on your death bed. I've been an editor for 15 years...you'd think I could have caught that BEFORE we went to press. But we can fix it before the second printing.
Laura: What is next for Sandy Lender?
Sandy Lender: Ugh. Well, I'm marketing and promoting...
Seriously, I have a conference I'm speaking at this fall called Context 20 out in Ohio. Some of all ya'll may be attending... Then there's DragonCon. And I have several books rattling about my head that I need to write. I have six blogs. I'm finishing this online book tour. I want to set Nigel Taiman up on a tour (not even half as long as this one I'm doing, though). So I have plenty of the writing career to keep me busy!
Laura: I have kept a journal since my Aunt Peg in the 4th Grade gave me a diary for Christmas. It has helped me through a lot of tough times in my life. Do you keep a journal and do you find any kind of writing as therapeutic?
Sandy Lender: I do not keep a journal for fear of it falling into enemy hands.
Laura: Do you have any plans to stop in Minnesota or any states close by, during your book tour? What is your next stop?
Sandy Lender: If Duran Duran has a concert near there, I'm all over it, Baby.
Sandy, Thanks for stopping by the Polebarn!
Sandy Lender: Thanks for hosting me today, Laura. I hope my answers don't feel too negative. I'm overtired from a long weekend of marketing and promotion so that topic has me on edge! Tell all your visitors that the writing is the fun part. Stick with the fun part as long as you caaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan.
Thanks so much Sandy! If you would like to learn more about Sandy Lender, go to http://www.todaythedragonwins.blogspot.com/ or to obtain a copy of "Choices Meant for Gods" go to http://www.amazon.com/ or http://www.archebooks.com/. And feel free to leave a comment! I love hearing from my readers!
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Sandy Lender is coming to the Polebarn!
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Hey, everyone! Now that the graduation festivities are over, it's time to get back to business. The writing business, that is, and what better way to kick it off than to have a published author visit the Polebarn?
Mark your calendars folks, because Sandy Lender is visiting on Tuesday, June 26th. She is the author of the breakthrough epic fantasy novel, "Choices Meant for Gods." The novel is the first in a trilogy, and if you are waiting for the new Harry Potter, this will be a great read until the final series installment arrives. I read it in a couple of days because once I started reading it, I couldn't put it down! Seriously!
So, if you don't have anything pressing to do on Tuesday, stop on over and meet Sandy! And if you want a copy of "Choices Meant for Gods" just click on this link: http://www.amazon.com/Choices-Meant-Gods-Sandy-Lender/dp/1595071652/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/102-9883296-3024969?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1182722132&sr=8-1.
You can read more about Sandy Lender at her blog: www.todaythedragonwins.blogspot.com
See you all Tuesday!
Thursday, June 07, 2007
I surrender!
Ok, I admit it, I am mortal. I don't possess any supernatural powers, I cannot leap tall buildings in a single bound (I can't even hop from a boat to a dock without getting wet, sheesh!), ...and I cannot control the Universe. There, I feel much better now. I give up, and I am not going to keep trying anymore! I'm getting out of my own way. I submit. Tap, tap, tap!What has brought me to this "lightbulb moment", you ask? Well, tomorrow my son, my only child, will be graduating from high school. There has been a large part of me that has been in denial of this since, oh, the first day of school this fall that this was indeed his Senior year. This was it. In true dysfunctional fashion, I have been in total denial that this was coming about, that it would be here so quickly, that time was NOT on my side, and God, the Universe, the Holy Trinity, has given me the spiritual equivalent of a smackdown! Hoo boy, did it hurt!
You see, all of the "bad luck" that has been occurring in my life has been a side effect of my denial. I realized this today, and it didn't cost me a dime or any time on the therapist's couch. I have been so wrapped up in thinking that this was going to take place later, that I realized that nope, tomorrow is it! No more school supplies to buy, no more backpacks to buy or forget in the morning rush, no more books to lug around, no more fingerpaintings of turkeys at Thanksgiving or metal geometric shapes welded together from shop class.
No more field trip fees! No more permission slips or medical emergency cards to fill out! Hey, I'm seeing the good side of this now! He, he!
All joking aside, I guess I have been stressing myself out and working myself into a stroke because I didn't want it to be over...not yet. When I put him on the bus that first day of Kindergarten, I was wiping the tears from my cheeks as the bus rounded the corner and looked across the streets to the other mothers in the neighborhood doing the same thing, then we all turned and went home. At least we knew we weren't alone. Now, my son is a grown man, who is driving, shaving, holding down a job, and I cannot believe that he is who he is, but mostly, I cannot believe he came from me!
I have a biased opinion, I know. But he is the kind of person I am proud and honored to know. Truly, I am. And I will be sitting in that fieldhouse, crying my eyes out and I am sure I will look around and see the other mothers from the neighborhood and we will nod and acknowledge each other and one of us will smile and the others will smile back as if to say, "Here we are again! Wasn't it just yesterday we put them on the bus for Kindergarten? Where did the time go?"
My son is taking the summer for himself, to have some fun with his friends, to work and save up some money. He is planning to enlist in the Navy and leave in the fall for boot camp. He's not doing it "just for the money" for college. I asked him if I hit the lottery if he would just take the money and go to college and he said, "No. I would still enlist in the Navy. I want to see the world." Fair enough. I totally support him on that. I'm still scared for him, our world is at war and there is a part of me that prays he never has to fulfill his duty as a soldier and kill someone or be killed or wounded himself, but if that is where his heart lies, I will be there to support him. So, when he takes that journey this fall, I will have a whole new set of worries, but I know my son will be taking the path that is right for HIM, not the path I think is right for him. And that right there tells me that we raised a fine, young man. And I am grateful to all of those who helped me make that possible. In a way, we are all graduating too. Congratulations!
Thursday, May 31, 2007
I'm going to shut up now.
This morning started out with an argument with my dearly beloved "Q" and before it escalated to something worse, I decided that I would shut up and leave and when we were both calm, we would discuss the overdraft issue. Both of us were reacting badly to what the other was trying to communicate and since were were just misunderstanding each other's message, it was best I shut up and leave. He was mad, and I was mad, and I think both of us were hurt, so...enough.
Then I was listening to the radio on my way to my sister's house this morning. I'm a channel changer, I go up and down the dial, and I listen to KQRS and 107.1 FM's Ian and Marjorie show. It was during one of the commercials for Ian and Marjorie that I heard Kevin Burger detailing her recent diagnosis of breast cancer and that she would be later discussing this topic this morning on her show, The Kevin and Colleen show. I almost drove off the road. When her show came on, I was at home and I pulled out the only radio I have that will pick up the station to listen to what she had to say.
After the Race for the Cure, a Breast Cancer charity fundraiser in which most of the 107.1 FM radio personalities participated, Kevin was scheduled for a mammogram. She also has a monthly breast self-examination that she does Live on her radio program. It was after this mammogram, that she was diagnosed with breast cancer, possibly Stage 2 or 3. She is scheduled for a right breast mastectomy, with reconstruction, and a follow-up of chemotherapy. She was on an hour of her 3 hour show. It was emotional to say the least.
Kevin is a well-known television and radio personality here in the Twin Cities. She is fifty years old, with 3 kids, and a near newlywed to her husband of a year and a half. She makes her living making conversation and she is straight up funny and to the point and I love listening to the topics she discusses on the radio. She's her own person and she is every woman, all at the same time. And like every woman who has to face this diagnosis, she is asking, Why me? Why now? What can I do?
I fell apart listening to her in my kitchen, tears streaming down my face, especially when she said that her children would be forever changed because of this. They have no idea!
It reminded me of when my mother was diagnosed over 7 years ago, and the feelings that ran through me and the fear of the possibility of losing my mother. I remember the surgery, the recovery, the complications, the pain she had to go through, and the relief after one year, two, three, all the way up to now seven years of being cancer free.
My mother was lucky. She was diagnosed early, through a mammogram and later a biopsy, and surgical intervention was enough for her. She didn't have to go through chemo or radiation like her sisters did that year. Yes, you read that correctly, two of her sisters were diagnosed and underwent mastectomies in less than a year's time. Her younger sister was diagnosed first and had her surgery the week of Thanksgiving in 1999. Then my mother was diagnosed on her birthday, January 10, 2000. Then around April or May of 2000, her second oldest sister was diagnosed and had surgery.
Am I afraid this will happen to me? Yes. Am I doing anything to prevent this from happening? Yes, but I don't think it's enough, and I need to do more, but if you're going to get it, you're going to get it! I pray I don't, but I am also prepared for the reality that it just might show up someday. I won't sit back and let it run my life, but I know I will have to fight and I am prepared to do that.
In the end, I realized that as bad as the last few weeks have been, they haven't been as bad as that. No more whining. No more fighting. In the grand scheme of things, it's only money and I am grateful that "Q" is still in my life and I would take him over all the money in the world any day, and yes, including this morning when we were both not communicating properly to one another. After I thought about a while, I realized that in the end, he was just being concerned and trying to help, and that I shouldn't have reacted so defensively towards him. At least we are both in reasonably good health and that we aren't facing an illness or impending death. Sorry, I will try to do better, honey. Love you.
As for Kevin Burger and her family, I wish you love and luck and blessings as you help each other through this journey. Be kind to one another, hug a lot, laugh even more, and believe in your heart you are healing. Cry if you need to, it's painful, I don't care who you talk to, you are losing a part of your body. But that part that leaves doesn't define you as person, or a mother, or a wife, or a woman. My prayers are with you all and for anyone else going through this in your life right now.
OK, no more whining, and I'm going to shut up now.
Then I was listening to the radio on my way to my sister's house this morning. I'm a channel changer, I go up and down the dial, and I listen to KQRS and 107.1 FM's Ian and Marjorie show. It was during one of the commercials for Ian and Marjorie that I heard Kevin Burger detailing her recent diagnosis of breast cancer and that she would be later discussing this topic this morning on her show, The Kevin and Colleen show. I almost drove off the road. When her show came on, I was at home and I pulled out the only radio I have that will pick up the station to listen to what she had to say.
After the Race for the Cure, a Breast Cancer charity fundraiser in which most of the 107.1 FM radio personalities participated, Kevin was scheduled for a mammogram. She also has a monthly breast self-examination that she does Live on her radio program. It was after this mammogram, that she was diagnosed with breast cancer, possibly Stage 2 or 3. She is scheduled for a right breast mastectomy, with reconstruction, and a follow-up of chemotherapy. She was on an hour of her 3 hour show. It was emotional to say the least.
Kevin is a well-known television and radio personality here in the Twin Cities. She is fifty years old, with 3 kids, and a near newlywed to her husband of a year and a half. She makes her living making conversation and she is straight up funny and to the point and I love listening to the topics she discusses on the radio. She's her own person and she is every woman, all at the same time. And like every woman who has to face this diagnosis, she is asking, Why me? Why now? What can I do?
I fell apart listening to her in my kitchen, tears streaming down my face, especially when she said that her children would be forever changed because of this. They have no idea!
It reminded me of when my mother was diagnosed over 7 years ago, and the feelings that ran through me and the fear of the possibility of losing my mother. I remember the surgery, the recovery, the complications, the pain she had to go through, and the relief after one year, two, three, all the way up to now seven years of being cancer free.
My mother was lucky. She was diagnosed early, through a mammogram and later a biopsy, and surgical intervention was enough for her. She didn't have to go through chemo or radiation like her sisters did that year. Yes, you read that correctly, two of her sisters were diagnosed and underwent mastectomies in less than a year's time. Her younger sister was diagnosed first and had her surgery the week of Thanksgiving in 1999. Then my mother was diagnosed on her birthday, January 10, 2000. Then around April or May of 2000, her second oldest sister was diagnosed and had surgery.
Am I afraid this will happen to me? Yes. Am I doing anything to prevent this from happening? Yes, but I don't think it's enough, and I need to do more, but if you're going to get it, you're going to get it! I pray I don't, but I am also prepared for the reality that it just might show up someday. I won't sit back and let it run my life, but I know I will have to fight and I am prepared to do that.
In the end, I realized that as bad as the last few weeks have been, they haven't been as bad as that. No more whining. No more fighting. In the grand scheme of things, it's only money and I am grateful that "Q" is still in my life and I would take him over all the money in the world any day, and yes, including this morning when we were both not communicating properly to one another. After I thought about a while, I realized that in the end, he was just being concerned and trying to help, and that I shouldn't have reacted so defensively towards him. At least we are both in reasonably good health and that we aren't facing an illness or impending death. Sorry, I will try to do better, honey. Love you.
As for Kevin Burger and her family, I wish you love and luck and blessings as you help each other through this journey. Be kind to one another, hug a lot, laugh even more, and believe in your heart you are healing. Cry if you need to, it's painful, I don't care who you talk to, you are losing a part of your body. But that part that leaves doesn't define you as person, or a mother, or a wife, or a woman. My prayers are with you all and for anyone else going through this in your life right now.
OK, no more whining, and I'm going to shut up now.
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