Embrace Simplicity, Be Generous, Give Entertaining Reads!

by

Sheila Curran

Everyone I know has too much stuff.  That’s why books are such a great gift.  And no, not electronic books, but ones you can hold in your hands, page back through, pass along to friends, and place in your bookcase.  I’ve got something for everyone on your list.  All of them, in my humble opinion, are great reads.

The Pure Trilogy


“Baggott’s postapocalyptic world is realized to stunning cinematic effect… the ‘Mad Max’ landscape creating the backdrop for a succession of violent confrontations in which the stakes are satisfyingly high. What lifts Pure from the glut of blood-spattered young adult fiction is not the story Baggott tells but the exquisite precision of her prose.”

—The New York Times Book Review
“… Baggott has done the seemingly impossible and created an original vision of disaster … this novel sizzles with invention …” —The Sunday Times (London)


“Baggott’s highly anticipated postapocalyptic horror novel … is a fascinating mix of stark, oppressive authoritarianism and grotesque anarchy. Baggott mixes brutality, occasional wry humor, and strong dialogue into an exemplar of the subgenre. ”
—Publisher’s Weekly, starred review

The amazingly prolific Julianna Baggott also writes gorgeous fiction under so many genres I'd like to hit her, except for the fact that she's so talented and entertaining and such a generous teacher, I have to just hug her and say thank you for all you do!

Both books will please your fantasy addicts!

Someone Else's Love Story

I'm such a fan of Joshilyn Jackson, our former GCC girlfriend, whom I first met online.  Her fiction is brilliant, and this latest is her best yet. It's a novel of ideas, with big things to say about miracles, fate, and the power of faith.  At the same time, it's a page turner you won't be able to put down.  It's coming out next week.  Go pre-order it right now!

“…a story that is never predictable and is awash in bittersweet love, regret and the promise of what could be. A surprising novel, both graceful and tender.”
                                        – Kirkus, Starred review

WHAT A MOTHER KNOWS 

From another girlfriend, Leslie Lehr, this novel will also keep you turning the pages.

"A missing daughter, a lost memory, and a desperate need to find the truth propel Lehr’s achingly moving suspense drama. Dark and unsettling, but with a ray of hope like a splash of light, and a knockout ending you won’t see coming.” ~ Caroline Leavitt, New York Times bestselling author of Pictures of You

 THE ROUND HOUSE by Louise Edrich

Do I need to say anything more than national book award?  Yes, because awards might make you think "high art" which might also make you think "unreadable."  It's not.  It's such a great story, with characters you'll love.
"In this haunting, powerful novel, Erdrich tells the story of a family and community nearly undone by violence. Using the quiet, reflective voice of a young boy forced into an early adulthood following a brutal assault on his mother, Erdrich has created an intricately layered novel that not only untangles our nation’s history of moral and judicial failure, but also offers a portrait of a community sustained by its traditions, values, faith, and stories."

 CUT TO THE BONE  

This 8th in the bestselling BONE series is a perfect place to begin, if you arent' already addicted to Jefferson Bass' work.  It's a prequel to the rest of the books.  Jefferson Bass' voice is a lovely mix of pastoral Tennessee, detection science explained poetically, and fast-paced suspense. Don't let the skull scare you, it's something you can easily curl up with on a rainy night with a box of Oreos.   

 Brockton sets out to revolutionize forensic science by unlocking the mysteries of postmortem human decay, as a way to help police pinpoint murder victims’ time of death. But his plans are derailed by a female corpse that leaves the scientist reeling from a sense of déjà vu. Followed by another, and then another: bodies that bear eerie resemblances to cases from Brockton’s past.  

“An up-all-night, never-let-you-go novel,” writes one reviewer. “Fast paced, gut wrenching at times, heart pounding, and extremely entertaining.” Cut to the Bone is “simply amazing,” raves another. “Absolutely hair-raising. … It's not unduly graphic - but it is very disturbing, as it should be. The final scenes are incredibly powerful.”

 
A GIRL LIKE YOU by Maria Geraci

Maria Geraci is another girlfriend on the GCC (and close enough to meet for a cup of coffee in our native Tallahassee).  This latest is my favorite so far of her books.  It's light and yet fetching, with well-drawn characters, high romance, and a lot of Cuban ethnic fun thrown in.  It was also a RITA finalist. 

"Maria Geraci writes with a vibrant, rich, contemporary voice that manages to be tender and hilarious at the same time.  A Girl Like You delivers the goods:  unforgettable characters set in a quirky small town with a feel-good ending that lasts long after you close the book.” —Roxanne St. Claire, New York Times Bestselling Author

Sheila Curran is the author of Everyone She Loved, about a woman’s efforts to protect her own family even after her own expiration date has come and gone.  Her first book, Diana Lively is Falling Down, was a romantic comedy Jodi Picoult called warm, funny, inventive and original and Booklist called ‘a gem.’ Visit http://www.sheilacurran.com for more information.

 

GOT HOLIDAYS? by Lauren Baratz-Logsted

For the next cycle here at GBC, we'll be mostly talking about gift-giving suggestions for the holidays and that always means one thing: books! My own household is a two-holiday one, meaning we celebrate both Hanukah and Christmas. This makes for a lot of shopping. This year, as some of you may be aware, Hanukah begins the night before Thanksgiving. (I'm aware there's a word going around to describe this rare holiday convergence but I refuse to use it.) So here are a few suggestions, for those like me who need to shop early, to get you started:

A Few Girlfriends:
SAFE HARBOR by Judith Arnold. Kip and Shelley spend their summers together on Block Island. A tragedy in Shelley's life ends their friendship. A tragedy in Kip's brings them back together. Can the magic of the island teach them how to trust and how to love? A finalist for Romance Writers of America's prestigious Rita ® Award.

BEAUTIFUL DISASTER by Laura Spinella.
As a college student, Mia Wells meets Flynn, an enigmatic stranger who pushes every boundary she knows. Their relationship is intense, passionate and, for Mia, life-changing, making it all the more painful when he vanishes. Twelve years later, Flynn mysteriously resurfaces, gravely injured.  Mia is terrified that he will die, awestruck at the prospect of his survival.  Flynn’s return ignites an achingly powerful tale, a story filled with sweetness and suspense.

RECIPE FOR A HAPPY LIFE by Brenda Janowitz.
It's about three generations of women with a culture all their own.  When Hannah finds herself spending the summer with her glamorous grandmother, a widow six times over, at her sprawling beach-front Hamptons estate, she learns that there’s more than one recipe for happiness. 

THE WRONG GIRL by Hank Phillippi Ryan. A reporter on the trail of an adoption agency that may be reuniting birth parents with the wrong children—and a Boston detective tracing down the killer of a young foster mother. There’s an empty crib in the mother’s back bedroom—where is the infant who should be sleeping there?

FIXER UPPER by Malena Lott. So this is what the last straw looks like. Macy Baxter hightails it to the heartland to heal her broken heart and search for the answers to fixing her life and saving her family’s vineyard, Dust Bowl Winery. With the hot pink tool belt her daddy gave her for her 35th birthday, Macy starts turning her life around, one makeover project at a time. Thanks to the presence other high school boyfriend-turned-carpenter and the computer nerd-turned-millionaire who hires her to turn the abandoned Art Deco hospital into a modern home, Macy finds it’s not too late for romance or a career of her own. But will her absence make her husband’s heart grow fonder? Will she cast a vote for the posh life or the pastures?

An Honorary Girlfriend:
DOLLFACE by Renee Rosen. America in the 1920s was alive with the wild fun of jazz, speakeasies and a new kind of woman - the flapper. Library Journal starred review.
Not a Girlfriend At All:

We all have them: that person on our list who, no matter what, won't read something written by a girl. Here's an ebook for that person: TONY PARTLY CLOUDY by Nick Rollins. A "literary equivalent of My Cousin Vinny," Tony Partly Cloudy is a fish-out-of-water comedic novel with a distinct Sopranos vibe to it. The guy's got a degree in meteorology. And he can predict the weather with a level of accuracy that's downright freakish. Still, Tony Bartolicotti - or, as his "connected" friends in Brooklyn call him, Tony Partly Cloudy - can't even get an audition to be a TV weatherman. The problem? He comes across like a Mafia goon: a hulking brute who dresses like a Blues Brother and freely uses "bada bing" as both a noun and an adverb. Not exactly the image most news stations are looking for. But all that changes when a distantly related mob boss steps in on Tony's behalf. Soon Tony's career starts to take off, as America falls in love with the only weather anchor on TV who would predict "a whole lotta freakin' snow." Then the mob decides to call in the favors they've done for Tony. That's when things get stormy...

And...that's all I've got for now! I hope you find some shopping joy here. As for me, I'm off to think about what to do about that rare holiday convergence - the one with the new name I refuse to use - so if you've got any shopping suggestions for me, feel free to leave them in the comments.

 Lauren Baratz-Logsted is the author of 32 books for adults, teens and children. Check out her website at www.laurenbaratzlogsted.com or follow her on Twitter @LaurenBaratzL


    

How to Get a Buff Body and Be a Better Writer (A Two-fer!)

By Karin Gillespie

(Also a book giveaway so it’s actually a three-fer!)

For the longest time, two subjects loomed large in my thoughts: weight loss and writing. About fifteen years ago I quit smoking and ever since then I’ve been lugging around too much poundage, Periodically I’d lose weight but eventually it would creep back on. The older I got, the more difficult it was to shoo away those extra pounds.

I couldn’t understand why I wasn’t thinner. I exercised regularly (running four miles and weight lifting almost daily), and ate modest portions. Every time People’s weight loss issue hit the stands I’d eagerly read “how they did it.” To my distress, I discovered the newly-minted skinny folk ate like Sumo wrestlers compared to me. I can’t remember the last time ice cream crossed my lips, and I’m sad to say I’ve eaten a disheartening amount of grilled chicken salads.

 Everybody Has a Downfall

To be honest, I do have a daily indulgence: red wine; two glasses every night, and maybe a smidge more on the weekends. I figured wine was the one thing standing between me and a size six. Almost every weight loss book I’ve ever read has advised, “No alcohol allowed.” Not that I’ve ever followed their directives. I was willing to forgo anything from French fries to fois gras, but didn’t want to give up my nightly nip.   

 For may years I simply tried to accept the extra weight, continually telling myself I was curvy rather than chunky. But the positive talk never really sunk in. The simple act of getting dressed was so dispiriting. Nothing looked good on me, and I wasn’t motivated to shop for more flattering tents… I mean, clothes. Besides carrying around extra pounds wasn’t the healthiest choice.     

I also knew that re-hauling my diet wouldn’t help much; I was already subsisting on super model rations. I made a few tweaks in my diet, trying to eat cleaner and consume more veggies. I also made sure I had lean protein at every meal so I wouldn’t get hungry as often.

The Secret to My Success

Short of lipo, changing my workout routine was the only option left. I already did about an hour’s worth of exercise daily, and wasn’t willing to add more. More exercise seemed needlessly excessive. It wasn’t as if I was angling to be Victoria Secret model. I simply didn’t want my butt to look like a barge anymore.

I didn’t add more time to my workout, but I radically changed what I was doing. I signed up for Daily Burn on Roku, and dusted off my P90X CDs. (Bought a couple of Christmases ago but rarely used.) I’d always been a cardio gal, but now I incorporated much more strength training into my routine.

For three months I worked out harder than I had in years. (Harder not longer; my new routine was actually shorter than my old one). I hadn’t done a workout video since Denise Austen days, and I quickly discovered that the new fangled routines were far more rigorous. The first time I attempted a burpee it nearly destroyed me. (My friend calls them barf-ees.) I doubt Denise in her cute spandex leotard would have survived them. 
          

  During the summer, I sweated more than I’d ever sweated in my entire life, and yet the needle on my scale scarcely moved. Oddly, I didn’t give up. While I wasn’t losing much weight I liked how strong I was getting and I enjoyed challenging my body. Bit by bit, I did lose pounds, but mostly I was losing inches. I was such a slave to the scale I didn’t realize how much my physique was changing.

Now I am twelve pounds lighter, about five pounds more than my last weight loss attempt. Yet I’m a size smaller and my weight is much better distributed.

Eating Up a Storm

Here’s the unexpected part: As a result of my new program: I can now eat far more than before. Why? Because I’ve added so much muscularity to my frame that my resting metabolism is now higher. I’d always heard that a high metabolism is an added benefit of strength training, but I never believed it. I always assumed cardio was king. 

 If you’re still with me you’re probably thinking, bully for you, but what does your smaller backside have to do with writing?

It turns out that many of the habits I’ve developed to become a writer also helped me to lose weight. And yes, most of these ideas aren’t any more groundbreaking than a new chocolate chip cookie recipe, but that doesn’t mean they don’t work. (Did I say cookies? I meant kale, of course.)

1. Keep Score. 

While losing weight I wrote down everything I ate and diligently kept track of my daily exercise. I also weighed myself every day. (Absolutely essential if you don’t want the weight to sneak up on you again.) Likewise, when I write, I keep track of how many words I’ve produced each day and a maintain  daily log of progress  Did I have a productive work day, writing several brilliant scenes or was I on Facebook chuckling over cute cat videos? (Speaking of which, have you seen this one?)    

2. Plan ahead.

Every night before I go to sleep, I decide what I’ll be eating the next day and what workout routine I’ll be doing. Same with my writing day. I set a word count goal and plan out my scenes instead of willy nilly attacking the page. Supposedly if you make daily plans just before you go to sleep, your subconscious will be busy all night earnestly preparing for your success.  

3. Visualize.

Even though I wasn’t losing weight at first, I kept visualizing my scale registering a much smaller number. I imagined myself easily slipping into my skinny jeans. Similarly when it comes to writing, I always imagining the next goal: typing “the end” on my WIP, selling my work at a heated auction or seeing my name on the New York Times bestselling list.

(Still working on the last two.)        

4. Persevere through failure.

Those stubborn pounds weren’t coming off quickly! But other positive things were happening so I kept up the exercise. And then, almost overnight, I was suddenly much thinner. In my writing life, failure has been my constant companion, but I’ve never been tempted to quit. Instead failure has been my teacher, prodding me to change my game when past habits weren’t getting me where I wanted to be. Recently I got an MFA to become a better writer, and in the last few years I’ve thrown myself into experimenting with the elements of storytelling. I’ve had a few botched books along the way but they’ve taught me plenty.

5. Push a little farther.

For the first few reps weight lifting is a fairly mellow activity; it’s when you get to last two or three reps that it becomes painful. If you quit before you feel the burn, the muscles won’t change because the development of lean muscle mass is dependent on pushing yourself beyond your comfort level. Likewise, when it comes to writing, it’s so tempting to skimp on those last round of revisions. Yet that extra bit of heroic effort is what elevates good writing to fabulous writing.  As Mark Twain said, “Why not go out on a limb? That’s where the fruit is.”  (And when I say fruit, I obviously mean grapefruit, not chocolate covered cherries).

It’s true. Nothing tastes as good as being thin (or fit) feels. (Except maybe a full-bodied Zinfandel) Likewise nothing feels as gratifying as growing and achieving as a writer.  

Cheers!

P.S. I’m giving away a new novel by Janis Thomas called Sweet Nothings Although it’s about a woman who owns a bakery, it’s completely calorie-free, not to mention a super cute and funny read.  Just leave a comment with your email address for a chance to win. I’ll contact a winner by Monday, Nov. 11.

 Life's sweetest moments happen when you least expect them . . .
When Ruby McMillan's husband announces one morning that he's dumping her for another woman, she's unable to decide which indignity stings the most: the dissolution of their eighteen-year marriage or the deflation of her white-chocolate soufflé with raspberry Grand Marnier sauce. Without a good-bye to their two teenaged children, Walter leaves Ruby to cope with her ruined dessert, an unpaid mortgage, and her failing bakery.
 For as long as she can remember, Ruby has done what's practical, eschewing far-fetched dreams and true love in favor of stability. But suddenly single again at the age of forty-four, she's beginning to discover that life is most delicious when you stop following a recipe and just live.

                

Rock Stars & Readers

GIVEAWAY ALERT!!

By Laura Spinella

Today is November 5, 2013. And just for today, I’m going to be a rock star.

Today only, it’s going to be all good. I’m greeting fans and signing autographs. I’m going to be that person who runs on the power of positive thinking.  That's me, sewing an S to my chest. Alicia Keys is the house, belting out a chorus of “This Girl is on Fire.” For these few hours, a single rotation of sun and moon, I refuse to put worry in the driver’s seat, much less let him get in the car. (Yes, I believe worry is a man.  A small sinister man with gnarly teeth and a twisted spine) The mood today, my pub day, is jubilation, and I’m here to tell you how grand that is!

Let me start by sharing a little about PERFECT TIMING—a book with a stunning cover and a heartfelt acknowledgement page. (I think ack pages should be read as carefully as the first chapter of every book) It’s the author’s opportunity to publically say, "Hey! My book would be nothing without you!" It is true for me, and I hope you’ll read mine. This book is my sophomore effort. It’s also a trunk novel, resurrected and reinvented because I believed in its characters that much. I wrote two books in between PERFECT TIMING and BEAUTIFUL DISASTER, but I always had an inkling that Aidan and Isabel’s story would find its way to publication. Its message is as positive as the attitude I’m wearing today. At a glance, PERFECT TIMING could be taken for a romance, the kind with a damaged yet sexy rock star at its epicenter. And if this is all you come away with, I’m okay with that. I suspect the reader will have enjoyed the moment, and often that’s all we need to ask from a book. Personally, however, I see more. It’s true that Aidan Roycroft’s occupation falls into the realm of musical prodigy with a genetic predisposition for universal good looks. So much the better, if you ask me.  That’s a risk—and not the literary kind that comes with taking on serious social subjects. In his element, I believe Aidan earns his ovation. But that’s not what this story is about. It’s about the rhythm of lasting friendship, and the beat of a love story subject to incredible odds. It’s about family and figuring out what makes you happy, then being brave enough to embrace it. PERFECT TIMING is relationship fiction set to the sometimes extraordinary and always precarious tempo of life.

I’ve been a fan of this novel’s heroine, Isabel Lang, since she turned up in my sunroom, itching for a part in a book. She’s sassy with a serious streak. At the same time, I hope I invented a relatable girl, one who seeks the same things we all do. She’s the perfect, while not always obvious, complement to Aidan and his more unbridled persona. I’m equally excited about this book’s subplot, which does take a turn at social subjects—and I am that much richer for having spent time with Eric and Patrick. I’m proud to have put them on the pages of my book.

They finally arrived!

Last week my birthday came and went. It was lost in the shuffle, knowing that the bigger date was around the corner. I spent that day designing bookmarks and scrambling for a reputable printer. I was knee-deep in paring down a wordy press release and chatting with the local paper. I spent time chasing down my author copies, which hadn’t arrived at the time of this writing.  In between, I’ve taken brave peeks over at Goodreads, where PERFECT TIMING is testing the waters. So far, so good… But I’m not going there today. Nope, no way. This is about accomplishment and celebration. This day is the unlikely result of a simple vision about two friends who grew up to discover that perfection, for them, was all about timing. Of course, it’s my hope you’ll go straight from here to Amazon. But, if not, that’s fine too. You can just hang here and enjoy the celebration! I’m giving away two copies of PERFECT TIMING! Just leave a positive comment and you’ll be in the running! And keep the comments coming! I'll pick winners on Friday! Have a terrific November 5^th!

     

Laura Spinella is the author of the newly released PERFECT TIMING and award winning novel BEAUTIFUL DISASTER. Visit her website at lauraspinella.net. 

To critique or not to critique, that is the question.

By Barbara Claypole White

And my answer? It all comes down to trust.

With THE IN-BETWEEN HOUR (January 2014)  I sought minimal feedback before completing the second draft. I’m not a plotter, and I’m a heavy rewriter; one crappy draft is never enough for me. I need to wander all over the place and follow my gut and my research. That can be a long, slow process that leads to many cut pages. While I was working on this novel, my second, I enjoyed some productive brainstorming sessions with my two writing partners—and a few drunken chitchats with my beta reader—but mostly, I kept my ideas to myself. Once the second draft was finished, I handed over my baby to five readers, chosen carefully for very different reasons. I used their feedback to complete two more drafts before submitting to my editor. Her fabulous revisions sparked my imagination and another three drafts. I’m super proud of the result.

Then I met novel three. Nothing about this manuscript is going the way I thought it would, and now the clock is ticking. Already, it’s the wild child, the one that will drive me to rip out chunks of my hair and eat my weight in chocolate.  (And we’re talking the expensive, imported stuff.)

I’ve created three damaged characters I love, I’ve thrown them into a horrible situation, and I want to see how they grow and survive. However, I have no idea where the story’s going. And that’s a huge problem, since I have three weeks to create a polished proposal of three chapters and a synopsis. Crafting a synopsis before I’ve bashed out a first draft is terrifying to me—like jumping out of a plane without a parachute. (I would never jump out of a plane WITH a parachute.)

In many ways, I don’t want feedback until I’ve figured out where I’m heading, but I do need black and white answers about what’s working and what isn’t. To up the ante, this is my second go round with the proposal. Everyone I’ve consulted has adopted a contradictory opinion on how to fix the problems. We’ve agreed on one thing only: The synopsis is rubbish.

At the same time, I’ve thrown myself into a secret Nanowrimo splinter group with some of my buddies over at Book Pregnant. We’re a group of thirty debut authors who’ve been together for nearly two years. These people are my homeboys and homegirls. They’re also rule breakers, so no one cares that I’m editing rather than amassing daily word counts. Within just a few days, their support has giving me the motivation I need to concentrate on jolting life into a dead proposal.

It’s also given me a new plan. I’m going to use my daily updates with this mega-supportive group to write a new synopsis—conning myself into believing I have the freedom of a first draft. Then, when it’s polished, polished, polished, I will turn it over to the two people whose opinions I trust above all overs: my beta reader and my husband.

My beta reader has read everything I’ve ever written—including the novel under the bed. She's not a writer, but she’s a voracious reader who introduced me to such authors as Jodi Picoult—when I was banging on about the value of rereading Victorian classics. My husband, a passionate writer of non-fiction, is a big dude academic who rarely picks up novels these days. My debut had been out for nearly a year before he read it. When he said, “You’ve written a beautiful story, Barbara,” I believed him.

First off, these two will literally stop the clocks on their busy lives for me. With the time crunch, I need that more than anything right now. When I give them pages, I know I will get them back the same day with serious comments.

Second, they’re both scary smart, tough critics, and they can find weakness in the tightest argument. Or plot.  

Third, they rarely say well done, so I know that when they do, I’ve earned it. But the flip side is the knowledge that they are both proud me. Their faith in my success gives me the freedom to fail.

And I think that’s what really matters when you’re searching for critique partners. They need to be brutal, but they also need to make you feel safe. That allows you to take risks. That helps you to be the best writer you can be—and the best critique partner for another writer.

 ______________________________________________________

 

Barbara Claypole White writes loves stories about damaged people. Her debut, THE UNFINISHED GARDEN--a love story about grief, OCD, and dirt--won the 2013 Golden Quill for Best First Book. 

Her lovely publisher, Harlequin MIRA, is currently giving away 50 advance copies of her second novel, THE IN-BETWEEN HOUR. Click here to enter: Goodreads giveaway

It Depends by Megan Crane

I've had A LOT of critique over the course of my ten years in publishing--to say nothing of the lifetime of critique before that, in creative writing classes, from friends, and as an academic.

I've given it, received it.  I've loved the notes an editor has made in the margins of my precious manuscript, I've wondered what on earth a copyeditor has been smoking.  I've filtered the "helpful" comments of friends--some which really are helpful, some which aren't at all--and managed to retain both the helpful bits and the well-meaning friends.

The thing is: it's all about context.  I feel as if I can't possibly take a critique of my work too seriously unless I know where it's coming from.  Is this the writer I know who would never allow his eyes to be sullied by a romance novel?  Well, then, I'm going to ignore his comments about the central relationship in my book and pay more attention to his thoughts on the things I know he does well, like plotting and building scenes.  Is this the vague friend who I think of as "every reader?"  I'll probably ignore her directions on how to rewrite the book and pay more attention to her gut reactions to things--like, does she like the main character?  If she doesn't, even if she doesn't know why, I'll pay that a lot more attention than her thoughts on what I ought to do instead.

I've been through a lot of phases with critiques of my writing.  When I wasn't published and would write and write and write in my black and white notebooks (I loved Harriet the Spy, what can I tell you?) and later on a series of typewriters, clunky old computers, and very very slow laptops, I was desperate for any/all feedback.  I didn't really care if people didn't like what I'd written; I just wanted to be read.

When I first got published, I had a small circle of people who read my books before I handed them in to my editor, and that was very helpful.  I also had an agent who edited, so there was a lot of feedback from all sides, and I loved it because they often caught things I missed.  But also because it allowed me to really figure out how to listen to what resonated for me and put aside the rest, which I believe is invaluable for writers.  I've been known to call it the Inner F*&^ You.  It's that thing inside of you that just doesn't care if twenty people tell you they hate something in your book--it's YOUR book and you JUST KNOW that you need to do it in a certain way.

I've never known the Inner F*&^ You to be wrong, by the way.  You might have to change your execution, but if you know down deep how something needs to be, you're always, always right.

I've had strange periods where I had people reading every chapter I wrote as I wrote them, which rapidly became unsustainable for me.  There can be such a thing as too many fingerprints on your work, especially in its early stages, when the last thing in the world you want to have to do is defend or even explain choices you don't know why you made...

I've spent the past couple of years not letting anyone but my editor read my books, and she only gets them when they're done.  Fingerprintless books!  I dive into the book and swim in it until I'm done, with nothing to go on but the story in my head, my gut feelings, and the craft I've (hopefully) collected over the course of writing more than thirty books.  I made the switch when I was in a perilous place with my writing--too many deadlines and too much stress.  Close to burnout, maybe, though I shudder at that word.  And drawing back into the magical part of my head where all my stories come from--and really learning to trust that and cherish it--changed the whole game for me.  Writing became delicious and exciting again.  Hooray!

But if I lost that feeling and thought I needed some more hands on my work again, I'd rustle up some writer and reader friends in a heartbeat.  Because while I respect and protect my writing process, what matters the most to me is the book.  Whatever I have to do to deliver the best book I can write at any given time, that's what I'll do.

Megan Crane is sometimes known as Caitlin Crews.  She would rather be outside.  She's currently working on her thirty-third novel, and may have to convene a panel to read her thirty-second, which needs a whole bunch of revisions she's not looking forward to doing.  You can find out more about her at www.megancrane.com or www.caitlincrews.com.