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Showing posts with label Fan Girl. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fan Girl. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
What Inspires Me?
I wanted to write this post on the 20th, but had to wait. So why did I write Fan Girl? Where did the inspiration come from? To explain that I have to give you a look into my crazy head. :)
At age... we'll say 12 I think, is when Hanson came out. I KNOW I KNOW. Cue the groans of disgust. I loved them. Had the posters all over the walls. Taylor was my man. My best friend loved Zac and we talked about them literally nonstop. One late night jam session to Mmmbop lead to the question, "What would you do if..." and the scenarios of all of the seemingly practical ways we could meet these guys, then logically they would fall in love with us, kept us up all night. It started a four year long running dialogue (we called it day dreaming) of romance stories with JTT, Sam Huntington (Jungle 2 Jungle), young Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Nick Carter, AJ McLean and Heath Ledger, among others.
This lasted through a move across the country, where we wrote letters back and forth of 20 pages or more of a story. When it got boring we would switch to a new idea. Finally 16 came, and after reading all four of the Harry Potter books that were out at the time and making up scenes in Hogwarts where we wore cool old fashion dresses and had makeup charms I got a car and that was that.
Now my mom was the coolest mom ever. I'm 12 and obsessed with Hanson? She takes me out of school to sit in the blazing sun, so that I can get into the standing room only Hard Rock Café in Orlando Fl. My first concert was Garth Brooks at age 8 and I swore I was going to marry him. A few years later I was at the concert where Faith Hill and Tim McGraw came out as a couple for the first time, in Jacksonville FL. I had seventh row seats for a Backstreet Boys concert in New Haven CT. 14 and mom couldn't get enough tickets so she let my friend have hers and paced the front door of the arena in Boston for another Backstreet Boys concert. At 15, O-Town was doing a meet and greet at the Wal-Mart two hours away, so mom surprised me by taking me out of school, and we met the band. Then she sped down the highway after their limo in our periwinkle Ford Aerostar all the way to their concert. My momwas is so cool.
I've been to a lot of concerts. Music is a huge part of my life. My last concert was at 18, right before I got married. I went with my mom to a Rascal Flatt's concert and leaving it, I realized for the first time what she was doing. Concerts give me the biggest high. It's endorphins that build you up, and screaming out lyrics stripping away your frustrations. I come out of concerts blissed out. Consequently, I was completely mellow and not a raging teenager for about a month afterwards.
Fast forward. I'm in Germany, four kids, husband is on his third deployment. I start watching The Voice. It's the third season, my mom LOVES Blake Shelton so I know about the show, just never watched. We have 10 channels on AFN and they choose what's played. The Voice is the only show on TV and I need to hear another adult talk. A few episodes in I'm thinking man that guy Adam is funny. Then I start thinking man that guy is really pretty cute. Then I start thinking where do I know Maroon 5 from? Google search leads me to YouTube and I suddenly remember all of my MTV and VH1 stalking, waiting for MmmBop or Where's the love? to come on. Maroon 5 had their Harder to Breathe and She Will Be Loved videos out.
YouTube brought the concert footage. The concert footage is epic these days. You can go to a concert and if your speakers are loud enough, it's almost like you're there. However, your kids might think you're nuts for jumping around the house. I found out that Maroon 5 was coming to Europe for a tour that summer, right around my wedding anniversary. The closest they were coming to me is Amsterdam. I mention it briefly on Skype one night to my husband, and he tells me I have to get tickets to that show. I tell him there's no way, the tickets are 150 euro a piece for the pit, and there's no way I'm sitting any farther away when I can be that close. He insists. I buy the tickets, book the hotel and find a sitter. I AM PUMPED. I buy a new camera, plan out my outfit, everything.
My husband comes home from the deployment and I have him listening strictly to the set list of Maroon 5's American tour. Why? Because when I was at my first Backstreet Boy concert in the 7th row, I didn't know a word of their songs except what was on the radio. To this day I swear Nick pointed at me and laughed. We are not going to a concert unless we know all the words to every song. Told you I'm crazy. Husband is game, he's bopping around the house and doing the dishes to Lucky Strike and Hands All Over.
Maroon 5 postpones their European concert six months.
I almost cried. My mom kept laughing, saying since it had been almost 10 years since I had been to a concert I was probably going to go into a coma afterwards. I wanted to. LOL. I was ready for that release.
Ever since I started having kids I have reverted back to the 'day dream' somewhat. If I can't go to sleep at night I dream of having enough money to go to Babies R Us and picking out every single thing I want. Weird, I know. But it puts me to sleep every time. But this time I thought of a story instead. I wrote about a girl who loved music, knew the guy before he was famous and how they could meet later in their lives. I went to sleep within five minutes of thinking on the story so it took me a while but I eventually got stuck. Over and over, every night I couldn't get past this one scene, it was keeping me up. So I thought I would write it down, and try to work out my problem. And it kept going until it was a full novel. Over 100,000 words of rock and roll, love, hardships and life choices.
Fan Girl for the name was a no brainer. My beta readers have loved them, unless they lied and I'm screwed. But I've heard a lot of good things about this book and had a lot of constructive criticism that has helped me immensely. My editor has had to take out all of the 'and then' s from the book, which is hysterical to me. I never realized I was doing it but that's how my bestie and I would continue every story, whether on the phone, in person or in a letter. And then... ?
I pictured a more masculine Adam Levine as Deklan, Ali is this badass chick with tattoos. They developed and shaped into some really cool people and I can't wait for everyone to meet them!
But first, a video. We spent the returned concert money on a Wii U for our son. The rescheduled date was last week. Here's a video from where I would have been standing. :(
At age... we'll say 12 I think, is when Hanson came out. I KNOW I KNOW. Cue the groans of disgust. I loved them. Had the posters all over the walls. Taylor was my man. My best friend loved Zac and we talked about them literally nonstop. One late night jam session to Mmmbop lead to the question, "What would you do if..." and the scenarios of all of the seemingly practical ways we could meet these guys, then logically they would fall in love with us, kept us up all night. It started a four year long running dialogue (we called it day dreaming) of romance stories with JTT, Sam Huntington (Jungle 2 Jungle), young Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise, Nick Carter, AJ McLean and Heath Ledger, among others.
This lasted through a move across the country, where we wrote letters back and forth of 20 pages or more of a story. When it got boring we would switch to a new idea. Finally 16 came, and after reading all four of the Harry Potter books that were out at the time and making up scenes in Hogwarts where we wore cool old fashion dresses and had makeup charms I got a car and that was that.
Now my mom was the coolest mom ever. I'm 12 and obsessed with Hanson? She takes me out of school to sit in the blazing sun, so that I can get into the standing room only Hard Rock Café in Orlando Fl. My first concert was Garth Brooks at age 8 and I swore I was going to marry him. A few years later I was at the concert where Faith Hill and Tim McGraw came out as a couple for the first time, in Jacksonville FL. I had seventh row seats for a Backstreet Boys concert in New Haven CT. 14 and mom couldn't get enough tickets so she let my friend have hers and paced the front door of the arena in Boston for another Backstreet Boys concert. At 15, O-Town was doing a meet and greet at the Wal-Mart two hours away, so mom surprised me by taking me out of school, and we met the band. Then she sped down the highway after their limo in our periwinkle Ford Aerostar all the way to their concert. My mom
I've been to a lot of concerts. Music is a huge part of my life. My last concert was at 18, right before I got married. I went with my mom to a Rascal Flatt's concert and leaving it, I realized for the first time what she was doing. Concerts give me the biggest high. It's endorphins that build you up, and screaming out lyrics stripping away your frustrations. I come out of concerts blissed out. Consequently, I was completely mellow and not a raging teenager for about a month afterwards.
Fast forward. I'm in Germany, four kids, husband is on his third deployment. I start watching The Voice. It's the third season, my mom LOVES Blake Shelton so I know about the show, just never watched. We have 10 channels on AFN and they choose what's played. The Voice is the only show on TV and I need to hear another adult talk. A few episodes in I'm thinking man that guy Adam is funny. Then I start thinking man that guy is really pretty cute. Then I start thinking where do I know Maroon 5 from? Google search leads me to YouTube and I suddenly remember all of my MTV and VH1 stalking, waiting for MmmBop or Where's the love? to come on. Maroon 5 had their Harder to Breathe and She Will Be Loved videos out.
YouTube brought the concert footage. The concert footage is epic these days. You can go to a concert and if your speakers are loud enough, it's almost like you're there. However, your kids might think you're nuts for jumping around the house. I found out that Maroon 5 was coming to Europe for a tour that summer, right around my wedding anniversary. The closest they were coming to me is Amsterdam. I mention it briefly on Skype one night to my husband, and he tells me I have to get tickets to that show. I tell him there's no way, the tickets are 150 euro a piece for the pit, and there's no way I'm sitting any farther away when I can be that close. He insists. I buy the tickets, book the hotel and find a sitter. I AM PUMPED. I buy a new camera, plan out my outfit, everything.
My husband comes home from the deployment and I have him listening strictly to the set list of Maroon 5's American tour. Why? Because when I was at my first Backstreet Boy concert in the 7th row, I didn't know a word of their songs except what was on the radio. To this day I swear Nick pointed at me and laughed. We are not going to a concert unless we know all the words to every song. Told you I'm crazy. Husband is game, he's bopping around the house and doing the dishes to Lucky Strike and Hands All Over.
Maroon 5 postpones their European concert six months.
I almost cried. My mom kept laughing, saying since it had been almost 10 years since I had been to a concert I was probably going to go into a coma afterwards. I wanted to. LOL. I was ready for that release.
Ever since I started having kids I have reverted back to the 'day dream' somewhat. If I can't go to sleep at night I dream of having enough money to go to Babies R Us and picking out every single thing I want. Weird, I know. But it puts me to sleep every time. But this time I thought of a story instead. I wrote about a girl who loved music, knew the guy before he was famous and how they could meet later in their lives. I went to sleep within five minutes of thinking on the story so it took me a while but I eventually got stuck. Over and over, every night I couldn't get past this one scene, it was keeping me up. So I thought I would write it down, and try to work out my problem. And it kept going until it was a full novel. Over 100,000 words of rock and roll, love, hardships and life choices.
Fan Girl for the name was a no brainer. My beta readers have loved them, unless they lied and I'm screwed. But I've heard a lot of good things about this book and had a lot of constructive criticism that has helped me immensely. My editor has had to take out all of the 'and then' s from the book, which is hysterical to me. I never realized I was doing it but that's how my bestie and I would continue every story, whether on the phone, in person or in a letter. And then... ?
I pictured a more masculine Adam Levine as Deklan, Ali is this badass chick with tattoos. They developed and shaped into some really cool people and I can't wait for everyone to meet them!
But first, a video. We spent the returned concert money on a Wii U for our son. The rescheduled date was last week. Here's a video from where I would have been standing. :(
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Sunday, January 5, 2014
Fan Girl Blurb
I talked to the cover designer today. She loved my concept, said it was unique and eye catching and wanted to do a mock up. YAY! Then I realized I don't have a blurb for the back cover. AH! So I wrote all day long, showing my husband who kept saying no. I showed it to other people, they say no. Then a friend gets online, reads what I have saying, "No Brandi, can I play with it a little?" Uh, yeah. Ten hours of trying to sum up 108k words without giving anything away and still make you want to read. I had no more ways to say the same thing, again.
Boni has what I had come up with, maybe thirty minutes. I rave to her how amazing it is! She tries to be modest and tells me she just took out all the details from mine. Reading it 50 times I tweak here and there until I'm happy. Thanks Literally Jen, Jenny Sims and Jennifer Sell for proofreading. So here it is!
FAN GIRL
Little more than a girl when Ali meets him, his voice resonates with her in a time when she needs it most. As an adult, Deklan has the potential to devastate her.
Deklan Thomas catches Ali Pierce's attention at a young age. Not that he notices. His band Rolling Bridges provides Ali the escape she desperately needs from her home life. Music. It's during this journey that she is confronted with what she has attempted to suppress all along. Her discontent with herself.
Refusing to settle for mediocrity, Ali sets off on a mission. Moving to the Big Apple, she gains a new outlook on life, a snarky online friend, a college degree, and a unique internship others would kill to have.
Though she grows leaps and bounds, her first love remains the same. Nothing can keep her from the music—music that will lead her down a road of passion and predicament that even the new Ali is unsure she can handle.
Is Deklan ready to give up his rocker lifestyle? And does Ali really want to be put in the spotlight after so many years in the shadows?
Saturday, January 4, 2014
Crossing off my list...
I have decided to get this book out by April 1, 2014. Here are the things I can cross off of my list:
2. Several Betas were unhappy with the way I ended the book. I turned up my Ellie Goulding after putting the minions to bed and wrote three thousand words that ripped my heart out. Sniveling at my computer I was surprised when my husband pulls an ear bud, "Why are you crying babe?" I cover my face with my hands and cry, "It's so good!" He laughed, relieved nothing was wrong and went back to his X-Box game. Poor guy. I was in bed until 2a.m. tossing, turning and slapping him on the shoulder still sniveling, still teary but completely high on what happened. My first Beta, that hasn't read the first ending is going to read it shortly and I can't wait for her reaction.
3. Blog is up. Obviously. Upon setting it up I realized I have very little pictures of myself so I'm working on remedying that.
4. Facebook is up! Every day I yell through the house, "I have 6 likes!" "I have 8 likes!"
5. My search for an editor has been so frustrating. One small company asked for my first chapter, said I had a ton of mistakes and then sent me an edit of the first page, with two added words. She tells me I had two sentences that start with I, and then she started them with As I. So I sent the same first page to the second company while talking to a fellow author that I am beta-ing at the moment. She says, "Send me your first chapter and I'll look." Getting the first page from the editor, and then reading what my fellow author did with it is like night and day. She suggests another editor, someone who did great work with her sample chapter, and enhanced her story.
I feel like I have the meat and bones. Now I need the skin to contain it, hold it's shape and be pretty. Reading all of the self-publishing articles I've seen the point made time and again how important it is to choose the right person to revise your work. I get it. Now, for some tunes:
Contact cover artistRedo end scenesGet blog upGet Facebook up- Find Editor
2. Several Betas were unhappy with the way I ended the book. I turned up my Ellie Goulding after putting the minions to bed and wrote three thousand words that ripped my heart out. Sniveling at my computer I was surprised when my husband pulls an ear bud, "Why are you crying babe?" I cover my face with my hands and cry, "It's so good!" He laughed, relieved nothing was wrong and went back to his X-Box game. Poor guy. I was in bed until 2a.m. tossing, turning and slapping him on the shoulder still sniveling, still teary but completely high on what happened. My first Beta, that hasn't read the first ending is going to read it shortly and I can't wait for her reaction.
3. Blog is up. Obviously. Upon setting it up I realized I have very little pictures of myself so I'm working on remedying that.
4. Facebook is up! Every day I yell through the house, "I have 6 likes!" "I have 8 likes!"
5. My search for an editor has been so frustrating. One small company asked for my first chapter, said I had a ton of mistakes and then sent me an edit of the first page, with two added words. She tells me I had two sentences that start with I, and then she started them with As I. So I sent the same first page to the second company while talking to a fellow author that I am beta-ing at the moment. She says, "Send me your first chapter and I'll look." Getting the first page from the editor, and then reading what my fellow author did with it is like night and day. She suggests another editor, someone who did great work with her sample chapter, and enhanced her story.
I feel like I have the meat and bones. Now I need the skin to contain it, hold it's shape and be pretty. Reading all of the self-publishing articles I've seen the point made time and again how important it is to choose the right person to revise your work. I get it. Now, for some tunes:
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Wednesday, January 1, 2014
2014 Resolutions....
What happens when I've written 50k words in seven days, have my first alcoholic beverage in over month and it's New Years Eve? I went to bed at 8:30p.m. foolishly thinking my husband would wake me up at midnight. Nope, next thing I know it's 5a.m and the first kid is popping out of bed. Why then am I so happy? I'll tell you. It started like this:
As with every morning upon hearing a child's voice I reach simultaneously for my glasses and cell phone to tell me what ungodly hour they've woken up. 5:02 a.m. flashes my phone. This is actually normal, anything earlier and I can hope to give an essential oil and/or sippy cup and go back to sleep. Under the time on my beloved IPhone I see that I received a message. S. L. Jennings wrote me back in regards to my earlier email asking her advice on self-publishing overseas. She suggests I talk to Calia Read, another amazing author who happens to be stationed at the same base in Germany I am. Yay!
After changing a diaper and getting breakfast for the gang I sit down with my coffee and laptop to check my email. One of my Beta's left me this:
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As with every morning upon hearing a child's voice I reach simultaneously for my glasses and cell phone to tell me what ungodly hour they've woken up. 5:02 a.m. flashes my phone. This is actually normal, anything earlier and I can hope to give an essential oil and/or sippy cup and go back to sleep. Under the time on my beloved IPhone I see that I received a message. S. L. Jennings wrote me back in regards to my earlier email asking her advice on self-publishing overseas. She suggests I talk to Calia Read, another amazing author who happens to be stationed at the same base in Germany I am. Yay!
After changing a diaper and getting breakfast for the gang I sit down with my coffee and laptop to check my email. One of my Beta's left me this:
Hi Brandi,More yay!! 2014 is starting out A-MAY-ZING! So what are my resolutions and goals for this year? I thought I would post them a) Because I need to get better at my social media voice #awkward and b) If it's out in the world I'm held accountable and have to do it. Here we are:
It's 3:04 am on New Years Day. I just finished "Fan Girl" and I can happily say I couldn't put it down. I'll send you more of a review after the holiday "#, but I just wanted to let you know I finished it and LOVED it! I want to trade places with Ali - and I want a hunk like Deklan! LOL!Happy Writing,
- Self-Publish Fan Girl, Baby Girl and Farm Girl on CreateSpace and Kindle Direct Publishing.
- Lose at least twenty pounds. Everyone has weight loss resolutions and I'm no different. I have an image in my head of what Brandace Morrow- Author looks like and it's not Brandi- post four kids. Last last year (2012) I lost twenty pounds, and kept it off for a year. I'm going to do the dreaded thing, exercise.
- Take more family vacations. We know this will (better be) our last full year in Germany. I want to take the kids places, do things, before we leave. Having said that...
- Save save save save save, because when we leave here we aim to buy our first house. Fingers crossed for Alaska.
Now, to bring #1 to fruition I must get back to editing with my lovely assistant.
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