Month: December 2011

My Writing Plan: 2012

December 23rd, 2011

Can you believe 2012 is already upon us? It seems insane. Soundslike a real Jetsons year, like we should have flying cars and the like. TheMayans say the world is going to end about this time next year. I don’t know ifthat is true, but if it is, I’m resolved to making this last year count.

This is officially my final post for 2011. It has been agreat year that has seen the release of a new novel, a new inspirationalpamphlet, a new serial story, and the writing of many new manuscripts. For myblog, it went from having about 50 followers to over 320. Thanks to everyone who joined up!

For your very last chance of the year to win “The Last Archangel”,follow the link to the giveaway below.

http://www.pawingthroughbooks.com/2011/12/12-days-of-christmas-extravaganza_3056.html

Also, here is a great interview on Sylvia Ramsey’s website, in which I talk a lot more about “The Last Archangel”.

http://wwwthouhtfulreflections.blogspot.com/2011/12/young-adult-urban-fantasy-author.html

Inconjunction with the end of the year, I’ve come up with some goals for 2012. I’mshooting for the stars. If you want your own template, please email me at thecanticlekingdom@gmail.com to requestone. Here they are:

Goal: Write 50,000 words/month for every month in 2012 for a total of 600,000 words.

Novels:

To Write:

10

To Revise:

5

To Submit:

5

Goal to Sell:

3 books

ShortStories:

To Write:

10

To Revise:

10

To Submit:

15

Goal to Sell:

5

NonFiction Works:

To Write:

1

To Revise:

2

To Submit:

2

Goal to Sell:

1

Conferencesto Attend:

LDStorymakers

ConDuit

Teen Writer’s Conference

UVU Book Academy
Announcing: Canticle of Night

December 20th, 2011

When many people read “The Canticle Kingdom” they told me that they wanted more backstory. Wait no longer! In conjunction with BigWorldNetwork, I am producing a 12 part serial story that details some of the backstory of Jorgen and Karsten Muller, the brothers who created the music box that would become The Canticle Kingdom. You can read and listen for free here: (I did my own narration as well)

http://www.bigworldnetwork.com/CanticleofNight.html

Please spread the word! I’m excited to see how this new format will be. A new episode comes out on Mondays, and I promise to keep it exciting and interesting. Please let me know what you think.
Raising the Stakes on NaNoWriMo

December 13th, 2011

I always look forward to November each year for more reasonsthan Thanksgiving. Though I am a sucker for turkey and stuffing, I also lovewatching my word counts skyrocket as I take part in National Novel WritingMonth. (NaNoWriMo for short) For theuninitiated, during NaNoWriMo, writers seek to write 50,000 words in 30 days,which is the length of a short novel.

I’ve participated in NaNoWriMo for three years, and I’veimproved every year. My first year, I barely squeaked by on the 30^th,the next year I hit the goal on the 25^th, and this year I took ahuge leap forward in finishing on the 17^th.

This got me to thinking—why couldn’t every month be likeNaNoWriMo? If I can do in November, what makes it impossible in January orJuly? The answer for me is: nothing. I just try harder in November to work hardand minimize distractions because I have a firm target.

With that in mind, I want to set a very high goal this year:I literally want to make every month like NaNoWriMo. I think I’ll call itNational Novel Writing Year (or NaNoWriYe) for short. I want to write 50,000per month for every month in 2012 for a grand total of 600,000 words.

To put that in perspective that’s about two installments ofRobert Jordan’s “Wheel of Time” series. It is much more than I have ever written, butI think that I can do it. I am serious in my commitment to writing, and I thinkthis will be a formative year in my career.

I’m sure that many full-time authors can easily pull of thisfeat. However, I’m working a full-timejob, have a wife and two kids, and a very busy schedule with the MormonTabernacle Choir. I hope that in doingthis, I can inspire others who have busy lives to see that they can still fitwriting into their schedules.

I have also decided that I want to take it a step further.Many runners run to raise money for charity. I thought I would go ahead andwrite for charity instead. To help out, you can pledge an amount, howeversmall, for every month’s worth of words I write (every 50,000 words). Thatmeans, if you pledge $1, and I reach my goal, you would donate $12 to charity. In this case, I have selected the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) in honor of a good friend who suffers from this disease.

To pledge an amount, fill out the form below. All you needis a full name and email address. I willthen send you an invoice through PayPal at the end of the challenge for theproper amount. I will be taking charity suggestions from my readers to figureout where the money should go. I won’tkeep a dime.

Anyone else up to the challenge? I’m excited and already alittle tired just thinking about it. Luckily, I have several full noveloutlines ready to hash out, and I’ll be giving constant updates here on my blogthroughout the year.

In this season of giving, I encourage you all to think ofways to spread the abundance we all have been given. Have a happy and blessed Holiday Season.
Christmas Presents

December 8th, 2011

Many great presents came early this year for me. But first, I would look to announce one of my own:

Congratulations to Janelle, who is the winner of this month’s Blog Hop. She is the winner of a signed copy of “The Canticle Kingdom”.Thanks for entering!

Now here are some writing presents I got this year.

1. A great review in the major Salt Lake City newspaper The Deseret News for “The Last Archangel”. You can read the entire review here: http://www.deseretnews.com/article/705395271/Review:-/’The-Last-ArchAngel/’-full-of-warring-angels-and-demons.html

2. I’ve had a great response about my Christmas anthology. I’ve decided that I’ll take more than 12 stories, as I would like to include any that I feel are high enough quality. I’m still looking for a cover artist to donate his or her services, and for others who have a story to tell. When submitting, please think of copyright guidelines if the song you want is not in the public domain.

3. I’m featured today with a short story on a blog that is based on my actual experiences two Christmas Eves ago. Please pop over there an enjoy: http://www.ingasilbergbooks.com/2011/12/write-holiday-short-story-flight-before.html?showComment=1323385646103#c4503781382542754926.

4. My serial series called “Canticle of Night” has been picked up by Big World Network and will be appearing a serial story on the internet in both digital and audio form starting soon. It is a prequel story for “The Canticle Kingdom” and gives background on the brothers who created the music box in the first place.

Thanks for reading, and I hope you all have a blessed and safe holiday season.
December Blog Hop

December 2nd, 2011

‘Tis the Season, and many of us are celebrating by giving away things that readers love, including books. Use the entry form below to enter my giveaway for a signed copy of “The Canticle Kingdom” and use the list to link to other blogs.

Please also consider submitting to the Christmas anthology I’m putting together. All you have to do is submit a family friendly story in any genre that is based on a Christmas song. Please send all entried to thecanticlekingdom@gmail.com. All proceeds will be donated to the National Down Syndrome Society.

Have a wonderful and blessed holiday season.

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National Novel Revision Month

December 1st, 2011

Congratulations to all those who completed National Novel Writing Month! I finished early this year and that felt pretty good. I’m now on to what I call “National Novel Revision Month”, in which I sand down the rough edges of my hastily-constructed novel. I’m sure many of you are doing the same. I’ve decided to call this sequel to the Last Archangel, “The Last Kingdom”, which has to do with the prophecy in Daniel 2 of the Old Testament. Go read it for a clue as to what I mean: http://lds.org/scriptures/ot/dan/2?lang=eng

As such, I want to announce the winners of my NaNoWriMo contest. Alas, no one who entered the contest beat me to the punch of winning NaNoWriMo, but I did select three lucky winners to receive first chapter evaluations of their NaNoWriMo manuscripts. They are:

Heather Justesen
Diana Ault
Megan Conway

Thanks for entering! I think I’ll make that an annual event, so start gearing up for next year.

Next of all, I’m very excited about how many people are preparing stories for my Christmas Carol anthology. I would still love to see more entries. If you are considering writing one, please let me know so that I can make sure we all write on different songs. I have included a list of those songs already taken in my “Current Projects” page above.

All proceeds of this project will go to the National Down Syndrome Society, which is a great cause, so I hope you’ll help me spread the word! If there is anyone who would like to volunteer their services in helping design a cover, edit/typeset, or anything else, please shoot me an email at thecanticlekingdom@gmail.com.

Finally, look for a new blog hop starting tomorrow, and to all of you, I wish a blessed and peaceful holiday season.

Month: December 2011

My Writing Plan: 2012

Announcing: Canticle of Night

Raising the Stakes on NaNoWriMo

Christmas Presents

December Blog Hop

National Novel Revision Month