Tag: Writing

Chilling challenge.

Sara Mazariegos

My husband and I are going on a week-long anniversary adventure up the East Coast. We’re visiting Eastern State Penitentiary (supposedly haunted and probably sad), Atlantic City (if ghosts were real, definitely haunted because of all them gangsters, see?), and the Lizzie Borden House (we’re staying the night! I’m so excited!! I don’t care if it’s not really haunted, some spooky stuff really happened here!)

Calm down, Sara. This isn’t a Haunted Mansion blog anymore.

When we told family we were staying in the Lizzie Borden house, the reaction was “You’re STAYING there?!” Mwahaha. 😈 I think she definitely killed her parents, but she had her reasons. (That doesn’t mean it’s okay, but life was hard for young, single women back then, so I also can’t say I blame her.)

In case you can’t tell, this trip will help me write an upcoming novel… in the future. I’ve got three books in the pipeline now.

I’ll have lots of fun stuff to report back next time!


Unless a ghost gets me, à la The Haunting of Hill House.

Restless bones etherealize.

Sara Mazariegos

I finished my revision yesterday! 🎉

The plan now is for me to take a nice, long break and not think about writing this story. 👀

Easier said than done, when I know I have a list of things I need to change. But I’m going to be good and take a break. It helps that we’ve got fun anniversary vacation plans coming up. I can devote time to be excited about them, instead of using up so much headspace on my novel.

I printed all 314 pages of it and put the manuscript into a binder, for editing. Funny, it’ll probably coincide with me writing the first draft of my next novel. Funny should really be in quotes here. I don’t want to put off either project, but the thought of working on them at the same time seems daunting, to say the least.

Anyway, enough about all of that. I feel like I only write about writing here. It’s my main theme for this site, but it’s not the only thing I care about!

Spooky season is finally upon us. I’ve had my Halloween costume since February. My husband and I have been watching scary movies. We get a jump on Halloween* because our anniversary trip takes time away from it (for good reason, though!)

It’s my favorite time of year. It’s only fitting I should have a writing break now to fully enjoy it.

* I don’t usually get my costume this early, though. Let’s just say I was extremely inspired.

Still playing for time.

Sara Mazariegos

I’ve finally crossed into under 10K words left of my novel draft! 🎉

This has been an eye-opening experience. I can’t say I hated rewriting my novel, though. I know the nucleus of this story so well that reshaping it wasn’t as difficult as it could’ve been. That said, I’m looking forward to taking a break from working on it. Once I’ve finished the new draft, I’m going to put it aside until at least December.

Of course, I have a new novel to start on November 1st. I’m fully prepared for NaNoWriMo to punch me in the face like it often does, especially because I have a week I must take off in order to attend an international wedding. So we’ll see if I finish that draft in November. Hence the whole “at least December” thing. If I’m working on a new novel, I’m not gonna fuss with editing the older one much during Christmastime.

When I first approached this stuff, I was looking at it as some kind of a rush. I was excited! I had so many ideas! And that was good fuel for getting the writing done, but I have since chilled out.

There’s no rush. I should take my time to put good novels in front of book agents. I should find good, reliable betas who know what they’re talking about. I should EDIT.

Last time, I was too easy on myself. I edited right after finishing and getting some feedback from friends. I didn’t see the big picture. I queried 20 or so agents before the story was ready.

Then I got some betas who gave me important feedback and I’ve regrouped. The story is in a better place because of it.

I can’t wait for people to get the chance to read my story, but waiting is just part of it. Rejection is part of it, though hopefully, the second try will go better.

And working on this next story can be amusement on the days when editing feels more like work. Editing is fun, for me (I’m weird), but it’s also more work than daydreaming up a novel is.

I’m proud of myself, regardless.

We use small words.

Sara Mazariegos

This is definitely one of my top three favorite music videos of all time.

My husband and I are traveling to Philadelphia this weekend to see Peter Gabriel! He surprised me by buying the tickets when I thought he was going to say I was crazy. :’) PG is coming closer to where we live, but in the middle of a week, so I thought we’d never be able to see him… But Philly is just around the corner from where we are. I’m just incredibly happy and excited to get the opportunity.

Peter Gabriel became a pandemic-era fave of ours because YouTube kept recommending we watch the Sledgehammer music video, so we finally did and then we were hooked.

In other non-PG news (that sounds like I’m about to get risque) I’m within the big climactic scene in my novel and enjoying it. I’ve noticed that my writing really gets affected by the things I’ve been reading or watching. I had a fresh burst of figurative language when writing yesterday and I’m not sure exactly where it came from or how I can make sure it keeps coming back!

I watched a video about how to effectively edit a novel — I’ve watched possibly too many of those, ha — and I had SO much three-ring binder envy. I’m the Leslie Knope from Parks & Rec or Amy Whateverherlastnameis from Brooklyn 99 kind of person, apparently. I always want to be the April or Rosa, the tough and moody lady, but realistically I’m too optimistic and eager to please.

My sister says I’m Spongebob.

Dangit.

Anyway, between planning for fun trips (more are coming!) and writing as much as I can per day while being reasonable, I’ve been having a nice early September. I’m looking forward to when it gets colder, though. I’m wearing a hoodie today, just on the off chance it decides to stay below 80 degrees.

Mock me with praise.

Sara Mazariegos

I stumbled across a Reddit “Am I The Asshole?” post that boiled my blood. A husband claimed to have self-published his wife’s novel without her permission. She’d told him at least once that she didn’t want to publish that way, but rather the traditional way, but he went ahead and got it published anyway. He also hired an editor and designed the cover himself.

Now, a lot of stuff that’s posted on Reddit is questionable. I have to hope he’s making things up for a reaction. He may even be the creation of a writer who’s having fun with a story idea. No one can be that selfish and ignorant of their spouse’s repeated wishes, right?!

I’ve had my fair share of people asking me why I don’t self-publish my novel. While there are benefits to doing so, there are also several drawbacks. It’s expensive, for one thing, if you want to do it well. Having to handle everything is another challenge. I kind of see it as a last resort; I want people to read my story, but I hope they can read it more traditionally.

Plus, having a literary agent helping me just seems wonderful. Who doesn’t want someone in their corner who has their back?

When I shared the AITA post with my husband, he said, “I guess now’s a bad time to tell you…”

He would never.

Someone commented that printing and binding one copy of the manuscript to have on the shelf is a sweet idea. I would like that. But printing copies and giving them out to family without the new author knowing should be considered a new form of treason.

Going for the “no.”

Sara Mazariegos

Jessica Faust from BookEnds recommends going for the “no” when submitting query letters, because it helps narrow down the list of potential agents and helps gauge if something needs to change — either the query itself or the novel’s concept.

I admit, I sent out my first thirteen queries without considering this. The nos depressed me, especially the first one. But, eventually, I realized getting a no is better than not getting any kind of response and it takes a lot of nos before eventually getting a “yes.”

I’ve since stopped sending query letters so I can rewrite my novel according to beta feedback and my notes. I’m reshaping things to better fit what actually fits into the market, while still holding true to my novel and what I have to say.

Hopefully, I’ll be much closer to a “yes” when I send my next batch of queries with my fresh manuscript draft.

Detritus.

Sara Mazariegos

I’ve been thinking it was already September for the past week.

It’s that awkward time of year when it’s a high in the low 80s but a low in the high 50s, so should I wear a hoodie and be hot some of the time or go without and be cold some of the time?

My parents reference a lot of things from the 1940s and 1950s because of their parents, so I make the same references. It makes me feel simultaneously old and cultured. I grew up recognizing the impressions (at least the majority of them) on Looney Tunes. That’s the true litmus test for culturedness.

There are exactly three weeks between the two trips my husband and I are taking soon. That’s just under the amount of time I’ll have to check out a book on Libby and later return it. When I check out a book for the first trip, it’ll be due the day we leave for our second trip. I’m going to need two books. This upsets me more than it should.

I’m currently in the middle portion of my novel. The part I’ve seen writing advice YouTubers describe as “sagging.” It feels like a metaphor for life. It’s where all of the important stuff happens! But it’s also slow to write and hard to stay motivated.

Every time I hit the next big palindrome word goal, I feel like I could fly.

But just saying it could even make it happen.

Sara Mazariegos

I took a week’s vacation, and it ended up being a vacation from writing my novel, too. Unplanned, but possibly good for my brain, in the long run?

Rewriting my novel has been a challenge, mainly because I’m trying to focus on what readers look for. In the process, I’ve discovered a new comp title — swapping out the one from 2019 that I’d been clinging to — and new avenues to explore and tighten in my narrative.

My goal is to finish the rewritten manuscript by September 30th and then begin the editing process. Then more betas and editing! I’m currently at around 38,000 words with the goal word count of 80,000. Hopefully, by the end of the year/beginning of next year, I’ll be ready to start sending fresh query letters to agents.

Of course, I also have a new idea I plan to start writing once I can focus on something new.

I’m ambitious sometimes.

Some Perspective.

Sara Mazariegos

When I first started writing my current novel, it was in third person, limited, following the female lead as she flailed through the story (her words, not mine.) After receiving beta feedback, I switched it to first person, still in the female lead’s perspective so there was no illusion that I might go into any other character’s head. The story is Celeste’s.

It’s interesting to me how varied the opinions are on POVs in romance novels. I’ve read both that readers hate third person and that they love and expect it. I’ve also read that readers prefer first person because it allows them to feel immersed in the plot, but some say they dislike it because it limits things. First person has even been called “easy.”

In my experience, it isn’t easy to write in first person. I like being able to play with all of the toys in the box, so focusing on just the feelings and thoughts of one character is challenging. It’s more fun to write, though.

Third person seems like the more traditional POV. The classics generally use it. The story being told is presented clearly and all of the important angles can be reached. This can make a story a little more boring and distant.

First person, present tense is the devil, in my opinion. I don’t want to feel like I’m reading a choose-your-own-adventure story. I know a lot of people these days like it, but it feels almost too informal to me. I want my novels to tell me a story, not make me feel like I’m telling it. I don’t want strange men touching me.

I can imagine it if I want to, but when I read I feel him/his… in novels, it mostly makes me feel grossed out.

Anyway, that’s just my perspective.

It’s COMPlicated.

Sara Mazariegos

Okay, so now that I’m replotting my novel (BIG thanks to my husband for essentially becoming my writing partner these last several months. ❤️) I’ve been thinking about comparative novels again. Comps are important when you’re trying to find representation for your book, and they need to be fresh if not immediately current. I’ve been trying to get my rewrite done in a timely manner since one of my comps is from 2023 (perfect!) and one of them is from 2019 (ehh… I might need to get a new one.)

I’m learning as I go, and though I hit a low point recently, I’m still excited by the process and the potential of my novel. Though I’m rewriting and restructuring, I’m keeping as much of my original writing as I can, as much as still works. I’m confident the muscle of my story is still strong, it just needs a sturdier skeleton.

Queries go on the back burner for now. Queries are currently not my friend.

In other non-book news, who’s excited for Barbenheimer? My husband and I are planning to see both this weekend (one on Saturday, one on Sunday.) Friends will see Barbie with us. That seems like a great movie to see with friends. Oppenheimer might be as well if you and your friends are more macabre. I’m fully expecting to cry during that one.

A lot of great things are planned for after this weekend, actually. I’ve been staggering toward August when the fun starts. Birthday parties and fancy hotel stays and concerts and Atlantic City and Lizzie Borden’s house…

Have I mentioned we’re going to Lizzie Borden’s house? Oh, don’t worry. I will write about the experience.

Oppenheimer makes me sad yet the Lizzie Borden case makes me giddy. Make no mistake, I am macabre. Perhaps just a more compassionate macabre.