Okay, I've been to a few writer's critique groups, and there's been one prevailing theme: You're not a good writer if you like Twilight.
Now, everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but one of the things that makes my blood boil is the fact that most of the people bashing these books never even READ them! It makes me wonder what they're going to say about the writing I bring to them to critique. Are they going to read the first few lines, realize it's Teen YA and stop reading, reducing it in their minds to "Twilight Trash"? I know I'm not Hemmingway, and I have no inclination to be Hemmingway. I like to write about paranormal things, and teenagers. Does that mean I'm not fit to have my writing critiqued? Does that make me less of a writer, because I like to write about witches rather than Iraq? Or ghosts rather than an epic battle in outer space?
Is one strong personality in the group going to set the tone for all of the critiques I receive? I really, really want someone to look at my work, but I also don't want someone to hate it because it's in a genre they hate, or it reminds them of something they think they hate. On the flip side, I don't want someone to like it just because it's in the genre they love, or because I know them.
I guess trying to find objectivity is a hard thing to do, nowadays.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Monday, October 19, 2009
Whoa!
I won something. That was out of the blue. Well, I didn't WIN, but I placed 11th out of 13,577 submissions in 10 categories. I was in the Genre category. I'm still a little weirded out by it, but I'm super excited! I posted the story on my website if you want to read it! It's under "Writings", along with a link to the list of winners.
Whoa.
Whoa.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
WHAT UP!
My website is up! I suppose that means that I need to get to work, and the website is still MAJORLY under construction, but it's there and now everyone can see it!
http://www.katykellogg.com/
http://www.katykellogg.com/
Saturday, February 7, 2009
The Move to Colorado
So the move was much smoother than I ever expected. We drove straight through, no traffic, no weather, nothing bad whatsoever happened. Until the last half hour. Granted, it was only about a mile and a half we got off course, but with the way my dad reacted you would have thought we ended up in freaking Montana or something. For most people, the GPS is a wonderful invention. For him, well, he probably shouldn't have ever heard of it. He wouldn't look at my mapquest map, because "Of course the GPS is right". It wasn't. My map, however, was perfect, and we wouldn't have had to go on that toll road, either.
But anyways, aside from a few other GPS related incidents, this has been a very sucessful move. In fact, the only anxiety I have is over the roads out here. They're freaking SCARY! Tiny lanes, no streetlights, they don't even light up the streetsigns! How am I supposed to know to turn on to Arapahoe (real street name) when I can't see what street I'm on?
Our neighbors are super cool. Which kind of freaks me out. Last night they invited me and Theresa (my roommate out here) over for some beer. They just 'happened' to be having a party, but I think it was kind of an ambush the new neighbors party. Alex (I think that's his name. He said that people call him Johnny Bravo, though) actually ran across the street into my garage to invite me when he saw me pull in. It's very Desperate Housewives here. People on the street get divorced, remarried, move in with each other... I think most of them have lived in each other's houses at one point or another.
On monday I'll start training, which I actually am getting excited for. I have no idea what I'm getting myself into, but I don't think I'll be the dumb one as I thought. I might even be the 'has the advantage' girl. We'll see, though.
Okay, I've got more book to write, because if this whole design thing doesn't work out, I've got to write a killer novel and make money off that.
But anyways, aside from a few other GPS related incidents, this has been a very sucessful move. In fact, the only anxiety I have is over the roads out here. They're freaking SCARY! Tiny lanes, no streetlights, they don't even light up the streetsigns! How am I supposed to know to turn on to Arapahoe (real street name) when I can't see what street I'm on?
Our neighbors are super cool. Which kind of freaks me out. Last night they invited me and Theresa (my roommate out here) over for some beer. They just 'happened' to be having a party, but I think it was kind of an ambush the new neighbors party. Alex (I think that's his name. He said that people call him Johnny Bravo, though) actually ran across the street into my garage to invite me when he saw me pull in. It's very Desperate Housewives here. People on the street get divorced, remarried, move in with each other... I think most of them have lived in each other's houses at one point or another.
On monday I'll start training, which I actually am getting excited for. I have no idea what I'm getting myself into, but I don't think I'll be the dumb one as I thought. I might even be the 'has the advantage' girl. We'll see, though.
Okay, I've got more book to write, because if this whole design thing doesn't work out, I've got to write a killer novel and make money off that.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Wow, that was a slap in the face...
I was just prettying up the blog with little side facts, and I just realized, I have no readers :(
The Second 'No'
Okay, I sort of get why I got a no on this one. I dug through her website, yet still managed to miss the whole 'First 10 Pages' request, and just sent a synopsis (which I'm sure is crap, as well. Maybe I'll post it for shits and giggles later on) and the query letter.
But I will improve, damn it!
But now on to what I really wanted to talk about. The Emmy's. Anyone watch them? Yeah, me neither. I just looked up the winners and losers and, of course, the worst and best dressed lists. Why do I never agree with most of the worst dressed lists? Eva Langoria, yes, her dress was horrible, but why was the fact that her skin was freaking ORANGE never mentioned once? This picture is going to creep me out for a long time. I'm never going to consider using a self-tanner ever again.
http://tv.yahoo.com/the-60th-annual-primetime-emmy-awards/show/43034/photos/emmy_awardsnight/worst-dressed/341
Really, Kathy? I love you Kathy Griffen, but really? The bigass bow around your waist? That was the only issue I had with your dress, I loved your hair and the dress (sans bow). The douche writing the yahoo! article looks at all the wrong things. For example, this wound up on their best dressed list.
http://tv.yahoo.com/the-60th-annual-primetime-emmy-awards/show/43034/photos/emmy_awardsnight/best-dressed/345
To quote Mugatu, "I feel like I'm taking crazy pills, here!" I think my mom had a doll with that dress from the '50s. That is not vintage, it's moldy. That dress looks like it smells like mothballs and mouse crap. But, hey, at least Marcia Cross isn't orange.
How is it that Mary-Louise Parker is "scrawny" (and in a dress that looks nothing like an '80s prom dress, it's pretty simple, in fact) yet Marcia Cross can put someone's eye out with one of her shoulders, and she's "etheral".
By the way, this is '80s prom.
http://tv.yahoo.com/the-60th-annual-primetime-emmy-awards/show/43034/photos/emmy_awardsnight/best-dressed/345
And this is just ugly.
http://tv.yahoo.com/the-60th-annual-primetime-emmy-awards/show/43034/photos/emmy_awardsnight/best-dressed/345
I'm not one to get all into celebrity junk, normally I don't care too much, but the best and worst dressed lists drive me crazy.
But I will improve, damn it!
But now on to what I really wanted to talk about. The Emmy's. Anyone watch them? Yeah, me neither. I just looked up the winners and losers and, of course, the worst and best dressed lists. Why do I never agree with most of the worst dressed lists? Eva Langoria, yes, her dress was horrible, but why was the fact that her skin was freaking ORANGE never mentioned once? This picture is going to creep me out for a long time. I'm never going to consider using a self-tanner ever again.
http://tv.yahoo.com/the-60th-annual-primetime-emmy-awards/show/43034/photos/emmy_awardsnight/worst-dressed/341
Really, Kathy? I love you Kathy Griffen, but really? The bigass bow around your waist? That was the only issue I had with your dress, I loved your hair and the dress (sans bow). The douche writing the yahoo! article looks at all the wrong things. For example, this wound up on their best dressed list.
http://tv.yahoo.com/the-60th-annual-primetime-emmy-awards/show/43034/photos/emmy_awardsnight/best-dressed/345
To quote Mugatu, "I feel like I'm taking crazy pills, here!" I think my mom had a doll with that dress from the '50s. That is not vintage, it's moldy. That dress looks like it smells like mothballs and mouse crap. But, hey, at least Marcia Cross isn't orange.
How is it that Mary-Louise Parker is "scrawny" (and in a dress that looks nothing like an '80s prom dress, it's pretty simple, in fact) yet Marcia Cross can put someone's eye out with one of her shoulders, and she's "etheral".
By the way, this is '80s prom.
http://tv.yahoo.com/the-60th-annual-primetime-emmy-awards/show/43034/photos/emmy_awardsnight/best-dressed/345
And this is just ugly.
http://tv.yahoo.com/the-60th-annual-primetime-emmy-awards/show/43034/photos/emmy_awardsnight/best-dressed/345
I'm not one to get all into celebrity junk, normally I don't care too much, but the best and worst dressed lists drive me crazy.
Friday, September 19, 2008
The elusive YA category
I've always loved young adult literature. To the point, actually, where it's pretty much all I buy now, and I've decided to suck it up and finish my children's lit major. I've got a ways to go, being that I spent most of my college career surrounded by rocks and complicated composition equasions, and, well, I don't think that any school outside of EMU is going to accept a class called "life's a risk, and then you die" as a comparable statistics basic. I did learn how to play a mean game of roulette, however.
Until I can restart my classes, I've been buying children's books. Not 'Fun with Dick and Jane', but books by a variety of authors, though, they have stuck pretty close to the supernatural, or science fiction. My latest aquisition has been 'Uglies' by Scott Westerfield. After reading the back, it looks pretty darn close to the plot of 'The Giver', by Lois Lowery, but with a 'Gossip Girls' twist. So help me, I know I'm eventually going to pick that series up but I am seriously resisting it. I hate the whole entitlement, backstabbing, bitchyness that is permeating everything lately. Damn you, The Hills! Oh, and, by the way, Lauren Conrad just got a three book deal to write YA novels. Because the upcoming generation isn't vapid enough, apparently. That said, I freaking love anything that has to do with Legally Blonde, I'm going to have to figure out how to see that show on Broadway soon.
I've also picked up 'What the Dickens' by Gregory McGuire. The guy that wrote Wicked. It's about the true story of the toothfairy. It's my expectation (IE- HOPE) that by reading current novels by established authors will help me with my own novel, which seems to be floundering helplessly in the slush piles. (interesting note- we're now on day *9* without any mail in my mailbox.)
On top of my increasing pile of books to read, I've cast them aside (temporaily) for the 'Idiot's Guide to Writing for Young Adults', and to go to every writing workshop I can get into in Las Vegas. I have one tomorrow, actually, about POV. I don't think that having three characters telling the story in first person is the best way to go about it anymore. I think it might be confusing for people, so I hope this meeting will help me sort all of this out.
I've also been on the look-out for good blogs, either by authors or by agents. The best one I've found by far is Miss Snark. I'm so sad that I missed out on reading her while her blog was still active, but she's got tons and tons of useful information on it, most of which I (hope) have taken to heart and applied it to my own manuscript. She's definitely improved my query letters, at the very least. I believe there comes a time (though I haven't reached it) when you finally just have to stop editing, and hope the rejection letters you get give you some useful advise as to why they didn't want it, instead of the deadly 'not for us' line. I'll let you all know when I get another rejection letter, if ever. A lot of the websites I've seen for agents simply says 'if you don't hear from us in two weeks, consider our answer to be no.' I find that a little disheartening, I mean, I give them SASEs, which I've understood to be for rejection letters. Why waste the stamp if you aren't going to at least send me a form letter? I hate wasting money like that. I suppose it's a necessary evil that I just have to grit my teeth and smile through, though.
Well, my computer wants to restart itself, so I guess this is a good place to stop for tonight. I just need to remember 'All it takes is one "Yes" in a thousand "Nos"'. Right. I'd kill for a "No" at this point.
Until I can restart my classes, I've been buying children's books. Not 'Fun with Dick and Jane', but books by a variety of authors, though, they have stuck pretty close to the supernatural, or science fiction. My latest aquisition has been 'Uglies' by Scott Westerfield. After reading the back, it looks pretty darn close to the plot of 'The Giver', by Lois Lowery, but with a 'Gossip Girls' twist. So help me, I know I'm eventually going to pick that series up but I am seriously resisting it. I hate the whole entitlement, backstabbing, bitchyness that is permeating everything lately. Damn you, The Hills! Oh, and, by the way, Lauren Conrad just got a three book deal to write YA novels. Because the upcoming generation isn't vapid enough, apparently. That said, I freaking love anything that has to do with Legally Blonde, I'm going to have to figure out how to see that show on Broadway soon.
I've also picked up 'What the Dickens' by Gregory McGuire. The guy that wrote Wicked. It's about the true story of the toothfairy. It's my expectation (IE- HOPE) that by reading current novels by established authors will help me with my own novel, which seems to be floundering helplessly in the slush piles. (interesting note- we're now on day *9* without any mail in my mailbox.)
On top of my increasing pile of books to read, I've cast them aside (temporaily) for the 'Idiot's Guide to Writing for Young Adults', and to go to every writing workshop I can get into in Las Vegas. I have one tomorrow, actually, about POV. I don't think that having three characters telling the story in first person is the best way to go about it anymore. I think it might be confusing for people, so I hope this meeting will help me sort all of this out.
I've also been on the look-out for good blogs, either by authors or by agents. The best one I've found by far is Miss Snark. I'm so sad that I missed out on reading her while her blog was still active, but she's got tons and tons of useful information on it, most of which I (hope) have taken to heart and applied it to my own manuscript. She's definitely improved my query letters, at the very least. I believe there comes a time (though I haven't reached it) when you finally just have to stop editing, and hope the rejection letters you get give you some useful advise as to why they didn't want it, instead of the deadly 'not for us' line. I'll let you all know when I get another rejection letter, if ever. A lot of the websites I've seen for agents simply says 'if you don't hear from us in two weeks, consider our answer to be no.' I find that a little disheartening, I mean, I give them SASEs, which I've understood to be for rejection letters. Why waste the stamp if you aren't going to at least send me a form letter? I hate wasting money like that. I suppose it's a necessary evil that I just have to grit my teeth and smile through, though.
Well, my computer wants to restart itself, so I guess this is a good place to stop for tonight. I just need to remember 'All it takes is one "Yes" in a thousand "Nos"'. Right. I'd kill for a "No" at this point.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
