Where I'm Going and Back-of-the-Book Blurb # 102

Oh, don't get excited. This summer I'm not going to Turkey (again)/France (I wish)/stalk Viggo Mortensen (any more). I'm not going to quit blogging. (Sorry!) The place I'm going this summer is into my head and on paper.

I recently served up my beautiful baby manuscript to an editor I hired. The pregnancy lasted a couple of years. It was a C-section--that baby was stuck and didn't want to come out. When it was finally delivered, I thought my stack of papers was ab. So. Lute. Ly. perfect.

However, Margo Dill didn't score my baby a perfect 10. (Gasp!) There were problems. Major problems. However, they were fixable problems... and Margo has given me a handbook to ensure I raise this baby up right until it can toddle off on its own.

To be completely honest, I was not thrilled with hiring an editor. I'd heard from writing friends how good Margo was, but really... What was she going to tell me that I didn't already know? It's brilliant? It's engaging? I already knew that. (Ha!)

Margo honed in on the strengths and the weaknesses of my manuscript with the accuracy of a laser. As soon as I read her thorough and detailed critique, I knew she was right.

So, this summer I'm headed off to more research... lots of writing and lots of revising... and I'm so excited. Margo's specific suggestions have energized me and encouraged me to make this story the best one it can be.

If you'd like to read about some of her suggestions and get an idea of how eagle-eyed she is when it comes to editing, check out my post on The Muffin. 



And now onto back-of-the-book blurb stuff...

          Look at the photo below. That is the cover of your book. You choose the genre. Is it a coffee table book on why Speedos and skimpy suits for men are bad fashion choices? Is it a photo collection of deranged old men? You decide.

        Write an enticing blurb--150 words or less. (The title doesn't count in the word count.) Blurbs are those enticing bits that prod you into buying the book. Sometimes they're on the back cover of the book. Sometimes they're on the inside front cover. What they always try to do is lure you into purchasing the book. 

          

          Lisa Ricard Claro was the original creator of this writing challenge. She moved to Florida, and is too busy to host a weekly book blurb. Check out her blog, along with her books. Anything she writes is wonderful, and not only is she a gifted writer, she's also a generous friend. She has several new books in the works, and that, along with walking the beach on a daily basis, fills up her days.

     

          Include your blurb in a blog post. Include a link to this post. Also, link your post to Mr. Linky. Mr. Linky is easy. If you've never done it, you'll be impressed with how simple he is. And then, check out the other blurb(s). It's interesting to see the different directions writers take, given the same photo.

           Here's the book cover, along with my blurb:

Marcia had gotten rid of her man. All he did every evening was watch Swamp People (a show that provided a translating caption for viewers, even though the stars supposedly were speaking English).

“Shootem, Libeth. Shootem!” fill the void between them every night.

Now that Barney was out of her hair, it was time for his left-over junk to go as well, so Marcia Magic marked up a big sign. She dragged the stuff out to her front yard. And she waited for the cars to drive up, stop and unload… because (she hoped) the stuff was too good to pass up.

Stuff like a complete set of dribble glasses… a Lost in Space chess set… a Miami Vice (signed) poster… a miniature Ice Road Truckers truck.

Will Marcia make money from this left-over junk? Or, will she make Goodwill happy when she carts the unbought stuff over to them? (150 words)

And if you want to play next week (because I've finally gotten my rear end back on track), here is the next photo/book cover:

I'm Baaaack

I'm not going to look at when I posted last, because it would be embarrassing. It was more than days ago, but I'm hoping it was weeks and not months.

I've been busy. (Uh oh. Here comes the string of excuses.) My son graduated from med school in May. It was a 3-hour drive to the ceremony, and ended up being a delightful family gathering. He also turned 30 this month, which is hard to believe, I know, since I am only 42. Okay, 52. Well, not 62... at least not yet. 

My son's the one in the middle.

But the big news is I hired an editor to give me some feedback on my manuscript. It was quite an experience. I'll be sharing who the editor was and how they stopped me from writing on Friday--or you can check out my post on The Muffin this Thursday, because I'm going to tell all then as well.

The end of the school year was hectic (more whining) and I'm still not finished. (In fact, I'm writing this post to procrastinate a bit when it comes to my report cards.)

This month I took my granddaughter to see Phantom of the Opera. (It was the best Phantom I've ever seen.)

Sadly, I've missed out on some wonderful posts, because in the time frame when I was absent from the blogosphere, I haven't read any blogs. There's no way I can backtrack and read all the news I've missed. Sooo... Do you have any huge news? Did you get a bunch of stories/manuscripts accepted? Because the empty nest is such a sad place, have you found yourself (Surprise!) pregnant? (I'm talkin' to you, Val.) If you have some juicy tidbits to share that I missed, due to my slothlike blogging habits, please note them in your comment.