Got An Itch?

You've heard me mention the poetry contest by children's author and poet David L. Harrison at www.davidlharrison.com. Each month he chooses one word and poets must incorporate that word into a poem or haiku.

For July, he chose the word "itch." Below is my non-rhyming, free verse poem. Enjoy.

I SENSE SOMETHING
By Beth Carter

I’m sitting very still,
trying to ignore it.

Telling myself to
pretend it’s not there.

After all…
I can’t see it.
I can’t smell it.
I can’t taste it.
I can’t hear it.

But without a doubt
I can feel it.

That undeniable,
irrepressible,
unforgettable,
ITCH.


I encourage you to read David's blog for some hilarious itchy poems--and enter one of your own.

Celebrating Dad

Father's Day is upon us so let's come up with (you guessed it) some six-word memoirs to celebrate our dads! Here are a few I've written:

Loved to dance on daddy's shoes.
Taught me how to ride bike.
Dad put string on tooth, doorknob.
Dad gave me my first ballglove.
Painted my first bike sparkly green.
Pulled on sled by Dad. "Again!"
Dad beautifully painted my wrecked cars.
Dad didn't like my boyfriend's van.
"You're not wearing that, young lady!"
Honest, hard-working, fun, loyal, wonderful father.
Proud of my sweet, handsome Dad.

Please share some of your own.

Update On Ohio Conference

I just returned from Lori Foster's Annual Reader & Author Get-Together in Ohio. I'd say 350-400 people attended. I met writers from several states--Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Nebraska, Florida, Maine, California, Ohio, Pennsylvania and even Vancouver, Canada!

The conference is unique in that both writers and readers attend, plus agents and editors who are looking for the next new voice. Unique gift baskets were raffled off, book signings were held, agents took pitches, editors held a Q&A, and there was even a pirate-themed party.

At the conference, I asked everyone what they wrote. Here are the most popular genres: Erotica. YA. Erotica. Historical Romance. Erotica. Contemporary Romance. Erotica. Women's Fiction. Erotica. Cozy Mysteries. Erotica. Notice a common thread, here? Wow. If you write or read erotica, you must go to this conference. Even if you're like me and do not write erotica you will meet great writers and welcoming authors. It was also interesting to hear what the readers actually enjoy reading. Lori Foster has a great idea here in pairing the two.

I was lucky enough to pitch to both Jennifer Schober with Spencerhill Associates and Laura Bradford with Bradford Literary since there were a couple of cancellations. And...drum roll, please...both asked to see the first 30 pages!!! Yippee. I hope they fall in love with my manuscript and fight to the bitter end over who gets to represent me. You writers know what I'm talking about.

So...immediately, if not sooner, I must reengineer my query (yet again) and synopsis (yet again) and get them sent off to Jennifer and Laura. Oh, and I'll have to revamp those 30 pages, I'm sure. This time I won't tweak for a year, though. I'm giving myself 48 hours.

Finally, here's a shout out to the Marriott Cincinnati North which had the most accommodating, courteous staff I've ever encountered--and the food was great.

Hope to see you in Ohio next year.

Go Away, White Space

Anyone know how to get rid of the crappy white space on my blog? I tried to find the answer by googling the info and see that many bloggers are having this issue. But I really didn't find a good solution.

If you have any suggestions, please let me know. I have a lot more info on the right side of my blog but you have to scroll waaaaayyyy down to find it. Technical difficulties. Aargh.

Five Minutes

Five minutes goes by slowly if you're waiting for your nails to dry. Five minutes feels like a long time if you're standing in line waiting for popcorn after the movie has begun. Five minutes drags on and on when you're at a distant relative's graduation. Five minues seems like an eternity if you're stuck at a stoplight and late for work. Five minutes feels like a lifetime if you're at the dentist's office getting a filling.

But, let me tell you, five minutes goes by at warp speed when you're giving a verbal pitch to an agent or editor. I mean it FLIES by. And you cetainly don't want to waste time talking about the weather, a plane flight, each other's kids, anyone's cute shoes, haircut or a mutual acquaintance. Listen to me. This is very important. Do NOT waste a precious 30 seconds on any of that stuff. You do not have 30 seconds to spare. Trust me on this.

Now, I'm no expert on verbal pitch sessions since I've only had two, but I can tell you that I blathered on too long during the first one. Here's another tip: When you're told you have a five-minute pitch session, you really don't. That's a lie. It's actually about three minutes. Why? Because the person who is interviewing you needs a couple of minutes to ask questions. So, cull down your 300 page-novel into one or two paragraphs. Easy peasy, right? I know. It's nearly impossible but that's how the game is played.

Have you had a pitch session? Do you have one scheduled? Please share.

Hand-Wringing Time

This is it! Pitch day is fast approaching. I've been furiously editing my women's fiction manuscript and just drafted a query letter and synopsis--all in the hopes the editor will love my pitch (once I figure out what I'm going to say). Wouldn't it be nice if the editor leaned back in her chair, smiled and said, "I love the premise. Email me the full manuscript tonight." A girl can dream, can't she?

Of course, that never/rarely happens to a debut novelist so I'm trying to be realistic. For now, I'm concentrating on final edits (this is at least my fourth pass through 300 pages) and am adding more descriptions and more backstory. My novel is paced fairly quickly (which is what I like to read) and is character and dialogue driven (also what I enjoy reading). I do not like long narration and will put the book down if my eyes glaze over or if I start to yawn. Put me right in the middle of the action, I say. Now, it's my job to hook you, the reader, (and that scary agent/editor).

How about you? Have you written a synopsis, query letter or pitched to an agent or editor? If so, please share your tips and help calm my nerves.

MOMoirs

In honor of Mother's Day next weekend, let's honor moms all over the world with some creative, fun, poignant six-word MOMoirs. Here are ten I've written:

Supermoms do it without a cape.
Eighth Wonder of the World: Moms
Daughter becoming like me. Chuckle, smile.
World's best blackberry cobbler: My mom's.
Mom made my velvet Barbie dress.
Twin babies: Extreme motherhood by fire.
Love watching babies discover, learn, blossom.
My mom: Most unselfish person ever.
Moms need to pamper themselves, too.
Children. Now, I understand unconditional love.

Come up with some of your own here and then enter them in SMITH Magazine's MOMoir contest at http://www.smithmag.net/

Happy Mother's Day to all the Mom's out there! Celebrate yourselves next Sunday.