Start with the Devil, End with the Star

As you all might or might not know, I started drawing a daily Tarot card. Originally it was to research a character in a romantic suspense, but then I used it to make certain I documented my writing progress as it forces me to pull up my computer calender and write my card down.

I also use this calender to document my monthly goals. Sometimes their big, other times small. During the summer, my goals are usually small: edit, write query letters, judge contests. In other words, stuff I can walk away from without it blowing my brain pan to smithereens.

So on Monday, I drew the Devil. Probably the worse card in the freakin' deck other than The Tower. The Devil represents negativity and hopelessness. And yes, I was feeling the green monster this week. One, it ticked me off that I felt that way about a friend's excitement and success. Two, I read through my MG novel and couldn't believe I thought such dreck could actually be my first published novel. I always have the same hope for each of my novels and I always have my hopes smashed to smithereens. So needless to say I still have low hopes right now, and all the cheerleading friends in the world won't help me get out of this funk.

I'll have to work it out on my own.

Today I drew The Star, hope and inspiration, and the complete opposite of the Devil. The Star doesn't offer practical help, but it does make you realize that life isn't so dark.

I must have been feeling a little more sure of myself yesterday, because I worked on my query for MOGG, my middle grade novel. Of course in true Margaret fashion, I put the cart before the horse and submitted my query to Query Shark. I don't know if it will make it onto the blog and if it does I fully expect it to be cut to shreds, because it is totally different from the normal query. I have a tough skin. I'm used to it.

If I'm opening up myself for public ridicule, I might as well give my friends first heckle. Here is my query:

My garden gnome went missing. It’s your basic pudgy gnome with a white beard and red pointy cap about twelve inches tall made out of some sort of hard stuff. Walking away was out of the question. Statues don’t walk. I can’t imagine someone stealing it, ‘cause who in their right mind would drive to Nowheresville, Oklahoma to steal a gnome?
So I decided to look for it.
What I didn’t expect to find was a real live gnome named Rory Leafhopper.
Go figure.
My name is Rhiannon Webber, just call me Rhee. It seems that the gnome wanted my help to figure out what happened to all the local mythical creatures. It was summer. School was out. We lived in the country. No cable and stinky TV reception. Add those four sentences together and you get one excruciatingly bored eleven year old girl. Plus the adventure would get me out of Mom’s hair for awhile. I’m game.
It wasn’t until I overheard my mom talking that I discovered I’m adopted and a half-blood, too. Half-blood what I didn’t have a clue. Maybe that was why I could see the gnome. Talk about a shock. I hoped Rory could tell me about being an adopted half-blood when old Mrs. Finch’s cat, Mr. Bickles snatched him.
Now, I have to rescue the gnome. What else could possibly go wrong?
MISSING: One Garden Gnome is a middle grade novel complete at 45,000 words. I would be happy to submit the manuscript and synopsis per your request. Thank you for taking the time to consider my story.
Sincerely,
Wannabe Author

Oh, for all the possible boo-boos in this query, it does one thing and it does it well.

It shows voice.

Write on!

Wheel of Fortune tarot card

Over a year ago I started a daily drawing of a single tarot card. For the most part I started doing this as 'research' for a characters. Yup, hubby thinks I'm weirding out on him, but he's the one who bought me the cards for Christmas! I told him to get over it and only start worrying if I collected crystals and burned incense.
. . . hm, maybe I need to shopping at the local New Age store, or pull out my undetectable poisons book and leave it next to my computer. BWAHAHAHAHA. Dude should know by now not to mess with a writer.
Anyway, when I pulled that card excitement tingled through my body. The tide is turning, change is on the way.
Yeah, Riight.
Reality check to self. I sent out about 9 partials/queries last week. This card meant the form letter rejections will start pouring in.
Of course, the mail was late, like it is every Monday, and it wasn't until after the kiddo's gymnastic class that I had her get the mail.
Lo and behold! One of my SASE had arrived from FinePrint. I took a deep breath and ripped it open.
Dear Author--
Yep, I think the Wheel of Fortune card certainly pegged it yesterday!
As I wrote this blog I was shuffling my cards for today
GREAT--I just drew THE DEVIL. I've Never drawn the Devil before. I looked up the meanings. Hm, one of the meanings is bondage--maybe I need to start writing Erotica's involving bondage instead of UF. What do you all think? No? That's not what they meant?
Oh, well, shit happens.
Write on!

Tarot and writing

I've been playing with Tarot cards since the beginning of the year. At first, I was diligent about learning the cards, but then I slacked off since the reason I wanted to learn Tarot was to enhance a character in a story. Well, that story is currently at a standstill, thus I'm not really working with the Tarot except as a daily drawing.

In the first 19 days of December, I've drawn the DEATH card twice. Now this card doesn't mean death-death, but instead it symbolizes a spiritual death, the closing of a chapter of one's life, moving into the unknown, and changing of direction. And I have to admit that I've been seriously thinking about how my writing has changed direction.

I started writing romance about seven years ago. I love the romance genre and read many, many romances, but in my heart I knew I really couldn't write one. I can't delve into the deep psychological reasons to keep the hero and heroine apart. To me it always seemed so manipulated when I tried to write it. I will probably have some form of romance within my stories, but it won't be the focus of them.

I plan to continue writing my urban fantasies, since I like having weird stuff going on in my stories. And I will try to write a few new picture book stories with more adventures involving Peter the fly. I think this will keep me occupied for awhile. It will be hard to bid my local romance chapter adieu, but I think I must if I'm to grow my wings and fly with Peter and my faeries.

Write on!