I took the plunge. No. Not that plunge. The other plunge. I enrolled The Long Walk in the Kindle Unlimited program.  I decided to do the longer works and keep some shorts on Smashwords, so I can give proofs to my students if they are not exclusively on Amazon.  La Bruja is staying on Smashwords and Wolf Trek will be on Amazon's Kindle Unlimited program.  I will try to always have some freebies on my Antojitos section.  I posted one that one first place many years ago in a college journal.  Check it out.  

I spent most of this morning working on union work, and then hit "La Bruja del Barrio Loco" hard.  Right now, I am reading for clarity.  Then, I will copy edit it.  It is 98% there, but I am dropping it off to the editor tomorrow for editing feedback.  I really like the changes I made and think the flashbacks flow better.  Well, I have to go to a union meeting, so I have to cut this one short. 

(I am going to have Mona and Christi, both, appear in that story after this one, so it follows a type of sequence.  It happens years after the first book.) 

Stay on your writing path.  #Resist

This week, I met with my editor.  We are changing the feedback process because I need to spend more time editing my work and have a definitive cut-off to my writing.  I know that is something I teach students, but I have not been practicing that, not really.  So, to that end, I gave myself until today, Thursday, to not add anymore to "La Bruja del Barrio Loco".  I am also proofreading my work very differently and focusing on only one issue at a time, like word choice or active verbs.  That was brilliant advice from her. 

To add another feedback layer and suggestion, a student of mine who is a script writer asked if I read to an audience, prior to publication.  I was like, "Hmmm, that is a great idea," but there may have to be booze and food bribes involved with that because my colleagues and friends are so busy, and the story is 100 pages long.  Still, I very much like that concept, and will most likely try it on my family (not my husband and kids because they have the attention span of dogs chasing squirrels), my family in AZ; I am visiting them in a few days.

The other business we talked about was my collection of serious fiction.  I have about 100 pages of short stories, and she was asking why I didn't publish those as a set, although I am a relative unknown.  I think that is a great idea. She did suggest that I finish my novel The Harvest first, which I am still trying to do this summer.

Every day, I do something related to my writing.  What's happening is that the synapses and creative monster is feeding me non-stop ideas, which I park efficiently.  Usually that happens on days I don't write.  We have like an informal contract, "Right now, I have to finish these stories, but I will get to you soon."  Last night for example, all I dreamt about were story ideas.  I wrote them down, of course.  Normally, I don't operate that way, but they were pretty good.  When I am awake, the same thing happens, which is great.  I park those ideas too.  Thus, I plotted out the sequel to "La Bruja del Barrio Loco," which I didn't realize I had done until I was finished writing that plot line down, and I am parking "The Dentist" for a bit because that one will require some research, but I know who I'm going to talk to for that dentist know how.  I just want to make sure my research is solid for that piece.

Well, I hope your writing or art or whatever inspires you is going well.

Write like the end of the world depends on it because it just might.  #Resist

For those of you who follow blog.  Sorry for the almost two week hiatus.

Two weekend ago, I was honored to spend time with my former college roommate Brett, and partake in his amazing wedding.  I stayed for four days starting with the bachelor party on Thursday to the brunch on Sunday.  My incredibly supportive family was there, of course.  (Yes, I had a macabre story line come out of that, but it was a partial rehash of a serial killer at a wedding TV Show; plus, given the joyful event, it was in poor taste.)

We stayed at a wonderful protected forest area in Michigan with "cabins".  I didn't have time to write, but I met so many interesting people and had the honor of writing a blessing.  I spent most of my spare time writing and practicing that blessing which turned out.  Thank heavens. 

This weekend, my family and I drove down to Pittsburgh for an American Federation of Teachers Conference.  On the trip down, I reviewed the printed books of La Bruja in the Orchard and Wolf Trek, and yes, I had to re-upload the kindle and print files.  Hopefully, For. The. Last. Time.  This self-publishing business is a learning process, and I have a few lessons to offer in a bit about my self-publishing journey.  Not right now, though.

As you can imagine, I haven't been writing as much as usual, but the story ideas have been brewing.  Actually, they're more like spilling over.  I have two I am working on now and have outilned, "The Dentist Visit' and an untitled piece about witches.  The second will not be part of La Bruja del Barrio Loco series because it won't take place in the barrio.  Speaking of that story, I started adding more to and revising that piece.  I am  hellbent of having this story have a spine, and so, I am adding 20 more pages to it.  Right now, it is a 80+ pages.  Then, I send it off to be edited and copy edited.  I decided to design the cover, too.  

That kind of bridges to some of the lessons I've learned from self-publishing:

(1)  Writing IS the impetus and life giving aspect of the process. 
(2)  Don't be overly hasty to send your work out into the universe.  Revise the story (or whatever you are crafting) as needed.  Repeat.
(3)  Copy edit, copy edit, copy edit some more.  If you are done copy editing, FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, copy edit the printed version before you launch any version of your book into the universe.
(4)  Send a hard copy of your book to the copy editor before you launch it.  Trust me, it will be worth the added expense.
(5)  If after publication, you still find typos in your work, stop pouring quarters in the swear jar!  Correct the problems, re-upload the file, and move on. 
(6)  Once published, don't beat the shit out of yourself or your work.  That's not good for you or the story.  Please, stop.
(7)  Writing IS the impetus and life giving aspect of the process.  Publishing is great, even self-publishing, but writing is still what gives joy.  The rest is whipped cream.
(8)  Related to number 7, if you still have stories tugging at your sleeve, waking you up at 3a.m., and/or causing you to space out when you are walking down the street (or talking to your spouse), congratulations!  You're doing something right.  Just be very careful when you cross the road.
(9)  Keep writing. 

Where is rule number 10?  Well, that one is more difficult to do, but tied into the writing process.  10. Assemble your dream team.  I haven't quite done it, but what I can say is that an editor, copy editor (hopefully they are the same person), and book cover designer are key.  I have already cried enough about NOT having a beta reader.  Yeah, I don't really have one, but that person should be part of the team.  Really, number ten should be number 2. 

That is all I've got for this morning.  Wait, you probably thought I gave up on my novel The Harvest.  Nope.  I am still working on it, and plan to finish it by this summer.  I think self-publishing that novel would be hell, so I am sending out query letters in October. 

Immerse yourself in the love of writing.  #Resist

I am learning a lot just from the writing process in general.  For example, I am applying everything I know about writing that I teach my students. I am learning how to maximize the limited time I have for writing, and flex my schedule on days like today when it is hotter than a horse's asshole. 

But what self-publishing is teaching me is patience, with myself and the process of creating a beautiful book.  For example, I learned that it is OK to wait to see the printed proof before releasing it.  Shocker.  Now, that takes a great deal of patience, but seeing the hard copy will definitely diminish reposts of files.  At least that is the hope.  For the third book, I had my editor copy-edit it, but I had to go over Wolf Trek for a couple of hours, even after that and still found errors.  I know, I should hire a professional copy-editor, but I won't unless the books sell well enough to hire a professional.  The most ridiculous thing I realized is that my printed books needed a table of contents with page numbers; I didn't think about it until I ordered the hard copies of my books.  Why?  I was uber-focused on crafting Kindle books, and completely forgot about the table of contents in my first two paperback shorts.  Sigh.  Ironically, I am selling more printed books, even though the profits are way better on Kindle editions.  I have since then reposted The Long Walk and will repost La Bruja, once I get my own proof.

Now, the struggle is really getting margins down, so the printed text reaches the edges.  The templates Amazon offers aren't very useful for printed books, and no, I am not hiring someone to format my books.  NO! 

In short, I have to be compassionate and patient with myself when making all of these discoveries because I'm learning. 

That's all I've got.  I am about to put in 30 minutes into my novel draft The Harvest because I have to get my midterm grades done tonight.  You know, for that long novel, I definitely want to go through a traditional press.  I don't want to have to format it or copy edit it because I'll be 60 by the time I am done.  Revising it will give me enough gray hairs as is. 

In real life, after I am done teaching, I have a wonderful wedding to go to, and the pre-wedding festivities begin tomorrow.  I need to revise and practice the blessing and pack.  But, first, some much deserved writing time.

Be patient and compassionate with yourself.  Writing is hard enough as it is.  Anybody who says this life is easy is a horse's asshole.  #Resist