Do you love your WIP?

(Originally posted on Writers Gone Wild)

This is a blast from the past for my writer pals, one of my WGW greatest hits. I find that three years later it still applies

While real love is messy and complex and there is no surefire way to tell whether your toe is in the muck or hip deep sans waders, it’s staggeringly easy to decide if you are in love with your Work In Progress. Come on down and take the quiz I made up just for this purpose! Fear not, I know we were mostly English majors so there is no math required. (Remember this next time someone calls me an evil sadist, eh? ;-)

1.) When you think of your current hero you__
A.)Smile at what he’s done or is about to do.
B.)Squint and bite your lip; he’s kinda fuzzy right now.
C.)Frown, he’s being a pain in the ass.

2.) Is your heroine someone you’d be willing to spend a weekend hanging out with?
A.) Yep, we’d paint the town ‘till dawn and then laugh while waiting for our more respectable partners to bail our goofy selves outta jail
B.) Maybe, depends on if she’s being reasonable or she’s in one of her moods
C.) Hell no! We are waaaayyy too much alike or too different.

3.) When you think about your work in progress, you fervently believe__
A.) This one’s going on the best seller’s list!
B.) It has potential.
C.) What a steaming pile of crap. Why haven’t I deleted this yet?

4.) While you’re writing, do you realize that you’re typing?
A.) Nope, I’m too lost in what my characters are doing.
B.) Sometimes, when I’m stuck at a particular place.
C.) Always. Writing this damn thing is total drudgery.

5.) As you reread what you’ve written do you feel__
A.) Ecstatic, like you could walk on air.
B.) Meh, I thought this was better than it is on the reread.
C.) Why would I waste my time reading this garbage?

6.) What would you rather be doing than working on this manuscript?
A.) Nothing, save for watching it be turned into a feature film.
B.) Some of my other hobbies, or spending time with friends.
C.) Scrubbing toilets or watching paint dry.

Your results (If you haven’t seen the pattern by now.)

~Mostly A’s: Infatuation, the solid foundation for love. You don’t just enjoy writing--you believe in what you are doing! No file full of rejections is gonna shake your faith in this bad Larry!

~Mostly B’s: Reality check. You care, but is it worth going the distance? You’ve gotten to the point where it might happen either way. Maybe a character needs an overhaul, perhaps the plot isn’t totally in your control and you are scared. What if I foul up this great start? Is the kiss worth the slap? We’ve all been here. Remember the good times and fight to get back there.

~Mostly C’s: Baby, I hate to break it to you but the thrill is gone. You’ve bored your muse and yourself and have given up on this WIP in all but deed. Stop phoning it in; shelve it to be revisited later. Or be liberal with the delete button until you see the good qualities, the reason you started this in the first place. Word of warning—continuing down this road will suffocate your muse and have you doubting your storytelling ability. Or in the words of the master: “Once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny.”

Sorry, inner Sci-Fi geek is now locked back in the closet.

So how’d you score? Were you surprised? Let me know!

~Jennifer L. Hart

Giving Away $25.00 giftcard for Amazon.com

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Publisher's Weekly Review of Daisy Dominatrix

"Daisy is a responsible, no-nonsense accountant by day who transforms into the mysterious and most-sought-after dominatrix, Catwoman, three nights a week. She revels in the power and the control, but doesn't have any idea how to draw that confidence into her daily life. In an odd coincidence, she is hot for Duran Price, a client both at her accounting firm as well as the dungeon where she works. She wrangles his receipts and expenses at work and dominates and seduces him at Madame Minerva's. As her two worlds collide, a lot of secrets spill out, and not all of them are easy to stomach. Daisy and Duran are both very flawed, but that is exactly why they are so appealing. The chemistry is sizzling, the sex steamy, and the BDSM erotic. Both Duran's reluctance to relinquish control and Daisy craving some power make sense in context. The family issues and dramas are over the top, but the scenes with BDSM are respectful and offer an intriguing glimpse into a world unfamiliar to many."

A working cover

 
They say a picture's worth a thousand words. Well, in this case I'm hoping it'll be worth 75 thousand words, the typical length of one of my mysteries.

Why design a working cover? After all, isn't a cover supposed to help sell the completed book to the readers? Well, yes, but first I have to sell myself on the book, to want to see a completed work behind this bad girl.

And also because while cover art lets me use a different set of creative skills from writing, flexing different  muscles. And because sometimes it takes more than my partly hazy imagination, something I can stare at and bring about the mood of the piece I'm working on to the fore. Just like creating a playlist, staring at the working cover transports me into the book, helps me mingle with the characters, get the feel of the book, in the case of Final Notice, that's sassy, sexy and off the wall zany. I love the working cover, I love the book and I can't wait to share it all with you.

Daisy Dominatrix is a quarterfinaist!

Break out the Rosa Regale and let's do a little soft shoe/ booty shake because my chickliterotica title, Daisy Dominatrix is an Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award quarter finalist!

What is ABNA? A big fat juicy contest sponsored by by Amazon.com, Createspace and Publishers Weekly. This is the third round of the selection process and the competition is tough!

What this means for me: For the first time ever I get a PW review on one of my books!

What this means for my readers: You can click the above contest button and download  a FREE 3k excerpt from Daisy Dominatrix. Any and all reviews are greatly appreciated!

Ch-ch-changes

So this whole online presence thing has gone from being a tool to assist my writing to a pain in the butt that keeps me from writing. Don't get me wrong, I love interacting with readers but I've been spread so thin and my word count is suffering from it.

I'm not the kind of person who keeps throwing energy into something that doesn't work. So in that spirit, I've closed down my facebook page, both the public Laundryhag page as well as my private profile. My author stuff is still on goodreads but I'm not. And as for twitter,
well, I handed it over to my latest and greatest heroine, Jackie Parker, certified process server in Miami. In case you missed it, here's her welcome feed.

1. 12 hrs Damaged Goods ‏@DamagedGoodsAce
   Jackie here: Snagged the profile from some writer lady and I'm pleased to announce Damaged Goods Property Management is open for business!

   
   

   1. 12 hrs Damaged Goods ‏@DamagedGoodsAce

      Yes, Logan we really need a twitter account. No, you don't have to do anything so just deal. He's so grumpy. #relatives

      Expand 

      
      

      12 hrs Damaged Goods ‏@DamagedGoodsAce

      Little about me. I'm 33, married to Luke, one of my business partners and a certified Process Server for Miami -Dade County. Logan's here 2

   
   

   12 hrs Damaged Goods ‏@DamagedGoodsAce

   I used to work for a scumbag lawyer who grabbed my ass, but my pal Marcy kept me from clocking him w/ my clipboard. #Toobad

   12 hrs Damaged Goods ‏@DamagedGoodsAce

   So now I work for me, myself and I here at Damaged Goods w/ Luke&Logan. Our team is hired by owners to help expedite the eviction process

    

   12 hrs Damaged Goods ‏@DamagedGoodsAce

   Basically, if there is some miscommunication between renter and rentee, the owner hires us to step in and follow the letter of the law.

   
   

   
   

   1. 12 hrs Damaged Goods ‏@DamagedGoodsAce
      

      Luke wants me to add that we get cursed at a lot. Sometimes people don't appreciate our visits. Even with my winning personality. #gofigure

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      12 hrs Damaged Goods ‏@DamagedGoodsAce

      Logan also wants to add that he's been shot at, but since I was the one who popped on the GSR test, it totally doesn't count. #accidents

        hrs Damaged Goods ‏@DamagedGoodsAce
      

      Luke is former military. Spent six years serving the good old USA and now he's all mine. If only we could get his brother Logan to move out,

      Expand

   
   

   11 hrs Damaged Goods ‏@DamagedGoodsAce

   Our house is a total WIP. Dealing with disgruntled tenants and PO ed landlords doesn't leave much time for domestic bliss.

   
   

   11 hrs Damaged Goods ‏@DamagedGoodsAce

   No, Logan, I'm not telling them everything, I'm just being friendly to my new friends here on twitter. You should give it a whirl sometime.

   
   

   
   

   11 hrs Damaged Goods ‏@DamagedGoodsAce

   Logan: Jackie can't cook worth shit. #justsaying

   
   

   
   

   11 hrs Damaged Goods ‏@DamagedGoodsAce

   Jackie *snatcheslaptop* Give it here. No I can cook, I just shouldn't because of my family's curse. My mother roasted her little purse dog.

   
   

   
   

   Damaged Goods ‏@DamagedGoodsAce

   Oh, gotta jet. It seems the tenant I've been trying to serve has finally surfaced. #Dutycalls

   
   

   
   

    Go ahead and follow Jackie and the guys @DamagedGoodsAce  

   I promise you'll have more fun with them while I work on their first mystery novel Final Notice.
   
   Happy reading
   
   ~  Jennifer L. Hart

Reader appreciation kindle giveaway!

As a big thank you to my readers who have been with me for a while, all newsletter subscribers were eligible for this giveaway. The prize of one 6" wi-fi kindle, power adapter and cover goes to....

Amy Duncan! Please contact me ASAP at laundryhag1 (at) gmail (dot) com for more details! Congratulations!

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season and I'll see you all next year for more mystery, mayhem, laughter and love!