If I Die, Please Delete My Google Search History by Vanessa C. Hawkins

 

 Vanessa Hawkins Author Page

      So summer has sprung and I have been up to my eyeballs in projects. As I said last month, I won second place in a long fiction competition, and was invited to read aloud at a local University. It was fun. Many eyerolls were had when I finished, because thanks to liquid courage, I attempted to read a smexy passage with all the ardour that the piece required. 

hur hur!

But I wasn't fazed! In fact, I have been told on multiple occassions that I am pretty good when it comes to reading aloud? Why? Well, because frankly I don't give a *$5^%. There! I said it--kinda--I just don't care. Now my husband, who sat in the front row to listen to me read? Well, he might have cared a little, but all in all it was fun to stand in front of everyone, get an award and a cheque, then read a bunch of *pron* to a crowd of people I don't know.   

I honestly gotta give it to the judges though. They had good taste! And no, of course I'm not biased.

In other news--and before I get in trouble with the moderators for being too risque--I have finally finished penning another novel! Whoot. Together, my co-author and I have finally finished the first draft of Ballroom Riot 2--title pending. It feels good to finish a work in progress...

I should have used this gif earlier...

Now I am on to editing, and then after that, I shall be working on a new project with several other writers at Books We Love Publishing. I won't say too much about it right now, just because I haven't had a whole ton of time to think on it, but it's a mystery that takes place in PEI.

And also, I am going to PEI this summer! Whoot! How fortuitous. I shall spend all my time at libraries and in the fields sniffing the potatoes, and buried beneath the red, sandy beaches getting a feel for my island neighbours! 

and also paying to leave :/

 It will be exciting. Though my timeline to finish is a few years time, and I have a few other projects I hope to conclude before then, I will make sure I stick to a plan and deliever before HBO comes out with any shows based on my books. 

Get it? Because it will never happen... *cries* T_T

But then again... neither will Winds of Winter, right George?

Lies. All lies...

On Writing a Sequel by Vanessa C. Hawkins

 

 Vanessa Hawkins Author Page

You ever look at your Disney movie library and say to yourself, "The Hunchback of Notre Dame 2? Oh hot dog! I think I'll watch that. It's totally better than the first movie!" If so then you should probably get your head checked because even if you've HEARD of that terrible sequel--let alone own it--you ought to know that it was Complete, Utter Garbage with a capital C, U, G!

Complete. Utter. Garbage! The sequel was C.U.G!

But despite the plethora of terrible sequels floating around the known universe, I am not actually here to talk about them. In fact, I am happy to say that I am WRITING a sequel, and I am really, REALLY hoping it's not going to be bad... Because as infamous as some bad sequels are, I'm no where near famous enough to profit off a terrible remake or continuation. 

We'll get George outta the way early this time... 

 So what makes a good sequel? Well, looking at all the terrible content out there, I'd say it's important to stay true to the characters and themes at least. The original Indiana Jones' movies were pretty cool. They were also mostly stand alone adventures. Rocky I to V was good: a continuation but each with an individual plot point. As well as Terminator 2... which was just awesome. 

Wait, Terminator 2? Rocky? Indiana Jones?
Oh God her age is showing...

But these are all movies! Okay, well... Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter and The Witcher books come to mind... though they're all continuations of one big story outline and the sequel I'm writing already kinda... well, concluded...

And it's a romance! 

So what do I do? I suppose I could just NOT write a sequel. It's not like I'm Michael Bay producing sequels for that socks made of silk money...  

*Bad word warning in link*

But there's lots more to say about these characters! And while writing romances isn't bad, writing a sequel to a romance where the love story had already wrapped itself up in the first installment, can produce its own series of obstacles. I hate when its obvious that the author broke up their original couple only to find ways to get them back together in book two. It always seems contrived, or pieced together to keep with the theme. Misunderstandings or arguments are alright, of course--and realistic!--but there must be a better way to tell a story with a romantic subplot other than breaking them up and seeing how they get together THIS TIME. 

#I'vebeenmarriedfor18yearsromancenovels

So I've concluded to just develop the characters more. For example, Scarlet Fortune is a 1920's cop vampire, and Shad is a 400 something year old dragon bootlegger... so there are bound to be some funny anecdotes and hijinks even AFTER they've tied the knot. I also believe in a good antagonist. Going back to The Hunchback of Notre Dame 2--because I had to watch it the other day with my two year old and am still crusty about it-- how do you compare a circus ringmaster narcissist with Monseigneur Claude Frollo: a judge--because Disney couldnt really make him an Archdeacon, the movie was already risky enough--who sings about his lust for Esmeralda: a member of an oppressed minority group?

You can't. 

So I'll make a good villain that will extend on the themes of the first book. Because themes are important and so too are villains.

Eh... not really. But the theme of the meme fit the context.

I'm also trying to tie in some things from the first book. Reuse some old characters that may have been floating around the plot of book one. Facts and places barely used before, could be backdrops for more important things later on. The sequel is pretty much stand alone, I don't think you NEED to read book one to enjoy book two, but I mean, it's more fun if you do. 

Of course, I'm only speaking from a matter of my own opinion, and I am writing this sequel with my co-author who contributes HEAVILY to ensuring there are no continuity errors... but...

SEQUELS ARE HARD! 

And I promise all--or any *cries*--fans out there... That I will honor the original work to the best of my ability and not create C.U.G.

I said I promise I won't write C.U.G!

 

Going Away to Write

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March 1, 2019 will mark the first anniversary of the release of my debut novel, Kelegeen.  Much of this year has been spent on a very steep learning curve, one that included educating myself on the publishing industry and, even more so, on marketing. It was obvious I didn’t know what I was doing, so I hired a marketing firm to guide me.  They’ve been extremely helpful, but I still had to do the work of putting my book and myself out there.  It’s been a great experience, one that is ongoing, as I’ve only skimmed the surface.  The problem is it hasn’t left me with much time to write.  My 9:00 – 5:00 day job, teaching online courses for the University of Dayton, and caring for my 92 year old mom who lives with me along  with various other responsibilities and obligations on top of my new marketing tasks has eaten up what little free time I had before this adventure ever began.

When it comes to my writing, the most common question I’m asked these days is, “when will the sequel be out?”  My answer is usually a non-committal “working on it.”  It seems I’ve been in the historical research phase forever.  That’s not just because there’s a large amount of research to be done, but because I’m not finding the time to do it.  I knew something had to give.  An overwhelming desire to get away from every distraction and ensconce myself somewhere that would allow me to laser focus on the sequel drove me to find a solution.

Enter my cousin, Patty.  Patty is retired, her children grown, and her mate fully capable of taking care of their dogs on his own for a week.  Patty is also very fond of my mom and lately has been repeatedly expressing a desire to visit her.  So, in one of my hair-pulling moments of frustration at not having time to research or write, Patty’s genial, smiling face flashed into my mind. 

I texted Patty, laying out my plan before her.  If she could come down for a week (she lives in Vermont) and stay with my mom, I could use some of my vacation time from work and go away to write.  She loved the idea.  Mom loved the idea.  I’m head-over-heels in love with the idea.  It didn’t take long to find a time that worked for all of us, so I quickly booked a weeklong stay at a studio suite in a local hotel. 

Before this month is over, I will have spent a week doing nothing but research and writing.  That entire week will be all sequel, sequel, sequel.  No distractions, no other responsibilities.  No, I won’t be able to write an entire novel in a week, but I do expect to make serious inroads on both the research and the writing.  Once I get that fully underway, I hope to be able to run with it from there on out.

Though I’m all too well versed in Murphy’s Law and the best laid plans of mice and writers, I am hopeful.  As long as all goes according to plan, or at least close to it, my post next month should be all about what an awesome, productive week I had.