Draft 1: Complete

I just finished the first draft of my novel. Woooo wooooo!

I began writing on Sept. 23 and only took a few weeks off in November to work on my thesis--so I'd guess about 2.5 months to write the draft (which is likely poorly written at this point). I know that I rushed the ending a bit (because I wanted to be done with it, I think), but that will be rectified in the editing process. It's 413 pages or 141,054 words (twenty three chapters and a short epilogue).

I'm struggling with what to call it. I'm creating a list of possibilities now, but maybe I shouldn't worry too much about it since it might change in the future? Who knows. When I first started this project back in high school (ohhhh so long ago--I'm so old) it was called "A Fallen Gift" and while that title still suits the story in some ways, it's changed so greatly since those first eight drafts that I think the title needs to be just as new.

I just wrote down "The Falling" which may be good. But would I call the sequel "The Rising"? Boo, both are boring and not very original. I don't know. I just feel like it needs a working title.

Here's a very brief summary of the story:

"Evelyn has returned to Falls, New Hampshire, in search of Lucas, a friend who she was forced to abandon with no warning when she was just a child. During her search she finds herself drawn to mysterious Cameron and discovers that he is not what he seems to be. When painful secrets about her life and her past come to light she, and her relationships with Lucas and Cameron, will be changed forever."

[Note: I'm slightly worried that "Falls" is too close to "Forks" (Twilight's setting) as a name of a town. Opinions?]

I bet I can get the summary a bit tighter, which I'll need to in order to pitch it in a query letter to agents (the step following editing). I guess I'll go with "The Falling" for now (gag)... I don't know why I feel like I need a title on it before I print out the first draft. Eccentric writer behavior I guess? :)

Hello World!

So, I was playing around with my blog, changing a few settings and whatnot and I found something totally cool: statistics for who looks at my blog.

Hello to the 102 page viewers in the United States!
Hello to the 18 page viewers in the United Kingdom (which I like to think of as my home away from home although I've never been)!
Hello to the 10 page viewers in Latvia!
Hello to the 9 page viewers in Canada!
Hello to the 4 in Germany!
Hello to the 4 in Denmakr!
Hello to the 3 in New Zealand!
Hello to the 2 in Belgium!
Hello to the 2 in France!
Hello to the 2 in South Korea!

Now, I'm well aware that perhaps there is really only one person in each of the above places and maybe they've been doing all the looking, but I'm going to pretend that these are all individual page views. Hello world! We need to diversify a bit more :) Yippie for blog stats.

Facebook

I've been toying around with the idea of creating a facebook page for myself? What are people's thoughts on this? :)

Really Finished!

I finished school Wednesday night! I now have my MFA in Writing degree from the University of New Hampshire. I can't believe it's over and that 2.5 years have passed. It's crazy that it's been that long, but it's over and done now. That means I can finish up the new novel that I started a few months ago and get to editing that (and publishing) and I can focus on writing new things.

I've also made a decision: When I take down "A Starter Boyfriend" from FictionPress (likely when I finish up my new novel and send it out), I will re-post "Hostile Kisses" because I've had a handful of people request it. It will still be a while (maybe summer or early fall) before that happens, but at least it will give a few people something to look forward to. :)

Anything Supernatural

So, I am an addict. I love reading YA/teen supernatural romances. I like the ones that lean more on the supernatural side of things rather than the romance. I like romance to be an added bonus to an amazing story. I'm trying to do that very thing in my latest novel, although it's a bit of a love triangle at the moment. The story isn't centered around these relationships though, but more about the struggle or the change of the main character. [Image from www.desiwalls.com.]

Some good books to read: "Wings" and "Spells" by Aprilynne Pike; "Beautiful Creatures" (it's good, but really dense and long) by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl; and "Paranormalcy" by Kiersten White. I've mentioned the last before and I thought it was really well done. Don't Read: "Crusade" by Nancy Holder and Debbie Viguie. It wasn't good--too many characters and I didn't care about any of them. Harsh but true.

Writing is going well--although I haven't written in a few days now because I'm back to working on my thesis. My goal, however, is to have a draft done by Christmas and revisions done a few months after that, which means I should be submitting to agents/publishers by May. If all goes well and I stick to my schedule. Lately another story has been creeping into my mind.

Some of you probably read my "My Darling Bunny" short story on Fictionpress. Well, I'm a sucker for the Victorian/Jane Austen era and I've been thinking about new characters from this time period. It would likely be another long short story, like MDB. The main character's imperfection is her clubbed foot. The hero is..... hot :). No, I see him as a prince/royal in hiding? Of course they would fall in love and then badda-bing-badda-boom. Happiness. I don't know when I'll start writing this, but it would definitely be one that I posted on FP. Speaking of posting... I hope everyone's still enjoying "A Starter Boyfriend" I haven't seen or heard of any foul play, so the story will stay up. (Probably until I'm ready to work on it... by May hopefully).

Cheers everyone!

Still Pluggin' Along

Hey everyone. Sorry for the lack of posts, but there's been no news to report. I'm still working on my new novel and have hit page 297. I haven't written for the last few days because I fell into this odd funk, but I'm going to try to get back into it this afternoon. I'm really close to the end I think--maybe four more chapters? Who knows though... I worry that this is becoming too long and then I remember that I'll definitely need to go back and delete/add things to help the story along. I'm happy with it overall. Soon I'll post a summary and maybe even the first chapter to get a little feedback. I do think that this novel will be the one that I try to submit for publication first and after I do that I'm going back to "A Starter Boyfriend" which needs some edits and whatnot. I'll have to take it down from Fictionpress when I do that, but I'll give people plenty of notice.

I'm currently reading "Paranormalcy" by Kiersten White. It's a good read so far!

Anyway, that's all for now.

Full Steam Ahead!

I've reached 230 pages on my new project. I'm well over the halfway point, but there's still about nine chapters or so to go. Well, I've mapped out nine, but I haven't been following the map lately. It's weird not posting each chapter on FictionPress like I've done with all of my other stories. It's also a little rewarding too. For the last two years, while I've been in school, I haven't really written for myself. I feel like I am now--at least with this first draft. I haven't even let my first reader--my little sister--read any of this book. She will in the end as I hope ALL of you will. I still don't have a title for it. Though I've re-written the same story like eight times, using the same title each time, I don't want to recycle it this time. Why? 1) the story is COMPLETELY revamped from all the other versions, and 2) there are way too many titles out there now that refer to fallen angels. It needs to be fresher.

I've decided that after I finish this story (editing, revising), I'm going to work on editing "A Starter Boyfriend." I get so many positive comments on that book and I feel very encouraged by everyone who reads it. Of all of the old stories that I have on FP, it's one that will need less rewriting on a structural level, and more proofreading and maybe a bit of fill in missing sections. Unlike my first "Killing Memories" book in the Es/Moo series, which needs a complete overhaul. Not that it's bad, I just remember it being all over the place with no real trajectory. I love those characters and just thinking about them now makes me excited to re-approach them.

Anyway, just a little update! Take care all. :)

Greetings All

Just an update... I'm actively writing again! I wish I could share my excitement about this with all of you, but that's hard to do online. Anyway, I've just reached page 98 of a new novel and I'm sure that by the time I'm done writing today I'll have over 100 pages. Very exciting. Obviously, I haven't been publishing this story to fictionpress. I've decided to take a different route. I'm going to finish a first draft, work on edits and then contact some agents/publishers. It's time for me to not be scared of this process anymore. I think I was spurred to action by now 17-year-old Alexandra Adornetto, author of Halo. According to the publishers of her book, she was just fourteen years old when she published her first book in Australia. I mean, seriously? I need to step it up. I could work on some of my other stories, but they need more work and I'm too excited about this one to really start on anything else.

I hope everyone is well!

New Project

So, it is my intent to start my new project today. I made a goal for this year (the year started on Sept 19, which was my birthday) to write "at least" one page every day. For some reason, I have yet to do that and it's already been three days. Therefore, today I must write three pages--which hopefully won't be too difficult. What's the project? It's yet another re-write of my very first novel "A Fallen Gift." In the process the title may change because there are currently several "fallen" books out there in teen fiction today. Pity since I first wrote the novel some ten years ago before the fallen angel business was big in teen or adult fiction. I hate feeling like "Just another one of those books" lady, but alas, that's what's been on my mind lately, so I need to write.

Now, it's time to stop procrastinating on my blog.... :)

Goodreads!

Hey all, I've just joined Goodreads (click the link to get to my page). It's like a virtual bookshelf. Hopefully one day I'll be able to promote my own books here. In the mean time, check it out, join, and add me as a friend! I will be adding more books to my page as time goes on. If you have any great book recommendations, please let me know!

Also, thanks for the support and understanding of my choice in regard to The Jade Bracelet. I've gotten a lot of great notes and supportive comments. I appreciate that. I'm glad that people are enjoying A Starter Boyfriend again too. It'll be up for a few months (and I'll post notices when I'm preparing to take it down).

I'm not writing at the moment. Perhaps it's mild depression. Blah.

The Death and The Resurrection

I have made a difficult decision... I will not be continuing "The Jade Bracelet."

It's hard to return to a project that is nearly two years old. I've lost the drive for the characters and want to start something new. Because I've made this decision, I've decided to re-post (for a limited time only) "A Starter Boyfriend" on FictionPress. I've uploaded all of the chapters and they should be readable within the next few hours. Trust me when I say that I'm sad about this.... But, I suppose that goes with the writing territory... some projects just don't get finished. I might return t this in the future, but for now it's not going to happen.

I'll likely leave "A Starter Boyfriend" up to read for at least six months, unless I hear that someone's stealing it (or any part of it) and then Im' removing it RIGHT away--no warnings.

Blahh... this decision makes me sad, but at least I can share another popular story with everyone again. Sigh.

Making slow progress...

...on this next JB chapter. But, progress is progress yes? It doesn't help that I'm going on vacation for 10 days either. I doubt that I'll get anything done while I'm away, but I'm going to bring my flash drive. I need to invest in another laptop, I think.

Book Review: The Chronicles of Nick

Like zombies? Need a book where the main character is a young 16-year-old male (cause lets be honest--there are FEW books out there with young guys as the lead character... kudos to Kenyon for writing one)? Then you might want to check out "Infinity" the first book in Sherrilyn Kenyon's new series for teens. I picked this book up because I'd read Kenyon's adult "Dark Hunter" series and really liked them. This book could make the teen-to-adult leap (think Twilight saga), but the writing is definitely geared toward that younger audience. This isn't a bad thing, however... she does a great job with the young male voice. I could learn a few things from her for sure. Overall, I found myself laughing at a few silly zombie slashing parts, and turning pages quickly out of eagerness to understand the mystery of Nick Gautier. Overall, this was a good read. I give it a B-.

I'm currently reading "Life as We Knew It." I'm 45 pages in and so far, so good. Although I'll admit that I'm longing for another "preternatural" book like the Chronicles of Nick. What is it about non-humans that makes life so entertaining? Good thing Cassandra Clares new book comes out at the end of the month! I should be done with my reading list by then.

Writing Continues

Although it's been over a year since my last post (and nearly two years since I began the project), I've started writing chapter seven of The Jade Bracelet tonight. It actually feels REALLY good to be working on it (sad that I started it right before bed, but at least I started it). I hope to finish this chapter in a couple days and post it--and then hopefully that will spur me on to write the last few chapters (I'm thinking 4-5 more). Can't wait to hear what everyone thinks of it!

Chapter Snippets Now Available

So... while playing with my blog, I discovered a way to post chapters of my stories. Sadly, I'm still not ready to post the stories in their entirety, but here's a little taste for anyone who didn't get to read the originals that were on FictionPress before I took them down. It's been a few years since I've written these stories and my writing style has definitely changed a little bit... so, don't expect greatness, just a fun read. I'm still working on my thesis--I plan to turn a draft of it in to my committee by September 1. After that, at least for a few months anyway, I'll be able to work on other things. Then I'll have to do a final revision on the thesis and then this long journey is OVER. I see myself being completely done with everything by December 15. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

Enjoy the chapter previews! You'll find them located to the --> right.

Other Good Reads

So, I mentioned The Fallen books in my last post, and since I'm majorly bored right now I thought I'd post a few other YA favorites that you should check out if you have the time.

First is the Mortal Instruments series (otherwise known as City of Bones, City of Ashes, and City of Glass) by Cassandra Clare. These are better than Twilight in my opinion (gasp!). She has a new book coming out in August called Clockwork Angel, which I am very excited about. There's something about her writing that's pretty engaging--keeps you turning the pages. She also does a great job with constant action--there's not a lot of dull moments/backstory filling up the pages before you get to one big climax scene. I try to do the same thing with my writing--hopefully I am successful. Anyway, remember that name: Cassandra Clare. Good stuff. Good stuff.

The second is a new author that I came across. I will now give the shameless plug: she is a friend of mine's cousin. Her name is Angie Fraizer and her debut novel is called Everlasting. It's a historical fiction with a splash of fantasy mixed in there. I will be the first to admit that I absolutely LOVE historical romances... Jane Austen is my hero. This book had a great mix of sea adventure, love, and weird fantasy elements. It's the first in a series (or at least there should be a sequel coming). So stay tuned and keep an eye out for her books. I've also read the Vampire Academy books, most recently book number five: Spirit Bound. The first three books in the series were great, but I'm worried about how the series is going. It almost seems like she needs to end the series in a good place instead of dragging it out. Trust me, she's dragging it out. If the series goes beyond six books, I don't think I can continue on with it. Don't get me wrong, they're entertaining, but the plots are going all whacko.

Moving on to adult reading. If you like short stories and great writing, check out Amy Hempel. She's got an amazing collected works of short stories out there. I also enjoyed Wells Tower's collection: Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned. Why the short stories you ask? Because all we studied in my MFA program were short stories. Too bad we didn't study YA or more contemporary writers out there. Anyway, that's my short list. Enjoy... OH! and share your own favorites? Has anyone read "Huge" by Sasha Paley? I know they just made it into a TV series on ABC Family and I have to admit I'm very curious but also a bit apprehensive.

Blog Updates

As you can see, I decided to change things up a little bit. What do you think? I'm into it for now, but I might try to revamp it again.

Writing is going well and guess who've been creeping into my mind lately? The characters from A Jade Bracelet. That's the good news--the great news will be when I finally finish that story. To be honest, I've contemplated not finishing it and starting something new (also on my brain lately). What do people think of fallen angel novels? There are some excellent ones out there right now. I highly recommend the Fallen books (each book has two novels in it--there are a total of two books) by Thomas Sniegoski. They're well written and a good story. The made-for-TV movies back in 2004 (I think) don't really follow the books, but are equally good entertainment. The book I want to write is actually the very first novel I ever wrote. I actually posted it on FictionPress too, but removed it pretty quickly because I thought I wanted to get it published. So goes my process, I guess. I wonder when I'll ever get serious. Anyway, I've rewritten it eight times, but never for a teen/YA audience. I'm kind of excited about writing it. Seems like vampire and fallen angel books are all the rage right now. I feel comforted that I had the idea for it before all the hype. Still... the urge to write again is very exciting.

Anyway, yay for new posts right?

School's OVER!!! (almost)

Hey everyone,

So, I'm completely finished with my classes for my MFA degree. Next stop: thesis. I'm putting together a short story collection compiling most of the work I did while in school, so it's mostly about revision (with maybe one or two new stories added). I'll defend my thesis to a panel of faculty in December and will be done before Christmas. My biggest hope for after this time is that I'll be able to devote more time to my past stories and fall in love all over again with my characters. I feel like this program has changed me, which is scary. I do think that the old Tatiana Moore is still there though--hopefully the writing will just be better.

I have been toying around with starting a completely new project after I'm all finished. A teen/YA novel about angels/demons (time to move off the vampire thing, though don't get me wrong, I LOVE that stuff). But who really knows what I'll be inspired to work on. Moo and Es are poking at me though--ahh, there's just so much work to be done for that first story.

Anyway, thanks so much for following my blog! Stay tuned for more

Still Alive!!

I know... it's been way too long. But guess what... I'm almost done with my master's program, which means that I'll be getting back to writing that ya'll have been following on Fictionpress. I have to finish my thesis and defend it, and then I'll be DONE! So, while I know it's a lot of time to wait, I'll be done with school in December and back to writing (probably to finish the Jade Bracelet) starting at the first of the year.

Sorry that I haven't been posting here often. I'm going to try to get better at it, promise!

Still Alive!

Hi everyone,

I'm still alive... just trying to finish up school (last semester), and then hopefully my life will snap back to normal and I'll get to writing for the fun of it.

:)T