November 29, 2006
Will Write For Chocolate updated
Will Write For Chocolate has been updated. Click the image above for a bigger version.
November 28, 2006
Comic: Heroes
November 27, 2006
Comic: Santa's Dilemma
November 25, 2006
Comic: It's Inevitable
Writing for the Webzines
My article, "Writing For The Webzines," appears in the Jan/Feb issue of Writer's Digest magazine.
Posted by Debbie at 09:18 AM | Comments (0)
November 24, 2006
Interview: Maya Bohnhoff
 |
Maya Bohnhoff started her writing career sketching science fiction comic books in the last row of her third grade classroom. Since then her short fiction has been published in Analog, Amazing Stories, Century, Realms of Fantasy, and Interzone; in 1999, her short story The White Dog (Interzone #142) made the short list for the British Science Fiction Award. Her debut novel, THE MERI, was a Locus Magazine 1992 Best First Novel nominee. Since, she has published five more speculative fiction novels, the latest of which, MR. TWILIGHT (Del Rey) was co-written with Michael Reaves. She also worked with Michael on BATMAN: FEAR ITSELF, which will be released in February 2007 from Del Rey and DC Comics. She has also adapted several of Sigusawa Keiichi's KINO NO TABI novels for an American audience. Maya also writes and performs music with her husband Jeff, with whom she produces original and parody music CDs. You can find out more info at her Web site.
What are your daily writing habits?
I start work around 8:30 or 9:00 am every day. I start the morning with getting Amanda up and dressed and breakfasted. Then we spend some cuddle time along with her older sister, Kris, who's 13. We usually pile onto the sofa and watch FoodTV and sip our beverages and chat.
Then Kris goes to school and Amanda gets to watch a couple of kid shows on PBS while I start my work day. That usually lasts until her big brother Alex (21) gets up to get ready for work or school. Then we switch to other activities for Amanda such as devastating her bedroom or seeing how many Barbie shoes she can lose, or Playdoh.
 |
My workday at the computer (a lovely Apple Powerbook) goes something like this: prayers, email diving to see what's up, then I get to work on whichever project is on top of the heap for the day. I juggle three or four freelance gigs and try to keep at least one project of my own going as well. Right now, for example, I have two editing jobs (thriller/detective and western) and a two ghostwrites (sf and non-fiction) that I'm working on while trying to keep a YA novel moving forward.
I work until about 5:30 or 6:00, taking a lunch break that I spend with Amanda. Sometimes we get wild and crazy and watch a TIVOed episode of Poirot or Sherlock Holmes. She comes down to give me frequent hugs and remind me that we need to break for snacks.
My days are pretty productive. I usually can handle pieces of two projects in a single day.
Where did the idea for Mr. Twilight come from? How did you decide to co-write?
 |
How did the co-writing process work for you? Would you do it again? What would you change, if anything?
The process worked wonderfully. Michael handed me over a third of a manuscript, a world full of characters, and the One Thing He Knew about the end of the book. There was no outline or synopsis. I found that daunting at first, but once I'd read the existing chapters and "interviewed" all the characters, the end of the book suggested itself. I bounced some ideas off of Michael and we hammered out a synopsis for the end of the book, then I finished the first draft. Then we'd edit back and forth until we and our editor at Del Rey were happy with the results.
Michael and I have collaborated on a couple of other things since - including a Batman novel for DC Comics - and I love working with him. I especially love brainstorming ideas with him. I'd do it again and again at the drop of a hat.
There's really nothing about the writing process that I'd change. Michael is a wonderful partner.
What advice do you have for anyone thinking about quitting their day job to be a fulltime freelance writer?
Go for it. I had to be drop kicked out of my day job because I was too chicken to quit--something I should have done years ago.
 |
I don't make a ton of money doing this yet, but I've only been at it for two years and it's encouraging what's out there to be done. Also, I used to worry that doing other people's projects would mess me up somehow. It would be a drudge, etc. What I've found is that though some of the projects are less than exhilarating, they call contribute to me being a better writer and plotter. And I get excited at some point and to some degree with every one just because I'm writing and editing and not doing something completely unrelated to writing (such as managing a team of software geeks, which is fun, but it's not my calling).
Also, set yourself a decent rate of pay, learn all the "formulas" that go with it (X $ per hour = X $ per page = X cents per word) so that you can be flexible about how your clients pay you. Always ask for some money up front as a good faith thing and ALWAYS perform your best magic for each client. Be flexible but not a doormat about creative issues.
Oh yeah, be all ready to get work (in fact, apply for some gigs) before you quit the day job. Have three months' worth of salary in the bank and resumes and writing samples all ready to email.
And don't be afraid to stretch yourself. I made most of my income last year on a series of horror and sf movie scripts for an indie director. I'd only dabbled in scripts before--they were almost a mystery to me. I'd converted a couple of my short stories to teleplays but never done anything this big. I asked my screenwriter buddy Marc how you figured out how long a script should be (roughly 1 minute per page) and I started writing screenplays.
Posted by Debbie at 08:03 AM | Comments (0)
November 23, 2006
Good book news!
Hey, I received some good book news yesterday! Not surprisingly, the project has shot to the top of my priority list, which means that my Inkygirl posts may be more sporadic than usual for a while.
Wish me luck. :-)
Posted by Debbie at 08:01 AM | Comments (0)
November 22, 2006
Will Write For Chocolate updated
Will Write For Chocolate has been updated.
And here's a nice e-mail I received recently about my daily comics on NaNoWriMo:
"Just got to say that I love your cartoons for
nanowrimo... and reading your homepage I see
that you were Inkspot! I loved Inkspot and in
the way of many things web I had no idea where
it went when one day it wasn't. Now I know.
So thank you. :-) Must get back to the insane nanoing."
Toasted Cheese Writing Contest (no entry fee)
Stories submitted to the 6th Annual Dead of Winter contest (December 2006) should follow the theme: The Haunted Lighthouse*
The word limit is 4400 words.
The contest opens on November 1, 2006 and the deadline for submission is December 21, 2006. E-mail entries to dow2006[at]toasted- cheese.com. Your subject line must read: "Dead of Winter Contest Entry."
Post any questions you have about the contest in our DOW thread. Please do not post any part of your entry in the thread. You may post your work for feedback at one of our boards but please title your post "DOW entry for feedback" or similar so that the judges don't read it.
* this is not a requisite title (in fact, we'd prefer your story didn't use the theme as a title). The haunted lighthouse may be used as a setting, a symbol, however you would like to use it but you must use the theme in some way.
Be sure to (1) set your story in autumn or winter (2) write using supernatural elements or motifs and (3) use the theme of "the haunted lighthouse. Otherwise, do what you like.
Winners receive Amazon gift certificates: $20 for first, $15 for second, $10 for third. Honorable mentions may also be awarded.
More info: http://www.toasted-cheese.com/contest.htm#dow
November 17, 2006
Cartoon: Addicted Blogger
Lee Wardlaw: tips for a successful school visit
Lee Wardlaw's post about a successful school visit has useful tips for authors as well as those hiring authors for school visits.
Posted by Debbie at 11:17 AM | Comments (0)
November 15, 2006
Writersmarket.com updated
The new Writersmarket.com is online! It looks like unless you're a subscriber, however, you are no longer able to access any of it, including my Market Watch column.
There are also a few quirks that need to be worked out, so please pardon weird formatting in Market Watch for now, thanks.
November 14, 2006
Alphabet soup
November 08, 2006
Will Write For Chocolate updated
Will Write For Chocolate has been updated. Click image above for bigger version.
Posted by Debbie at 09:44 AM | Comments (0)
November 07, 2006
Erika Dreifus: Practicing Writing
Thanks so Sal Towse for pointing me to Practicing Writing by Erika Dreifus. In addition to being a writer and writing instructor, Erika is also the editor and publisher of The Practicing Writer, a free newsletter for writers. Her blog includes writing and publishing opportunities.
November 06, 2006
Comic: Writer's Block
J.K. Konrath: How To Handle Success (Everyone Else's)
Jealous of another writer? You'd better check out J.K. Konrath's How To Handle Success (Everyone Else's).
Posted by Debbie at 09:13 AM | Comments (0)
Writing contest: write about a contest experience
Only two days left in the Competizione hosted by Musing.typepad.com. "Write about a contest experience. Whether thrilling or frustrating, funny or embarrassing - tell us about it and enter to win!" Prizes: $50 Amazon.com gift certificate, books. No entry fee, as far as I can tell.
November 02, 2006
NaNoWriMo Daily Q&A
Hey, I just noticed that I'm the featured NaNoWriMo Daily Q&A today. My daily writing comics are starting to appear on the NaNoWriMo site; there will be a new comic every weekday in November, plus a bonus comic on U.S. Thanksgiving weekend. :-)
Posted by Debbie at 08:07 AM | Comments (0)
November 01, 2006
Will Write For Chocolate updated
Will Write For Chocolate has been updated.
Apologies for the lack of Inkygirl updates lately; I've been away at a conference and am catching up on work and e-mail now.
Posted by Debbie at 10:21 AM | Comments (0)
Copyright © 2006 Debbie Ridpath Ohi.
Many thanks to Samurai Consulting.
Base URL: http://www.inkygirl.com
Reproduction and/or distribution of the whole
or any part in any form is forbidden unless
prior permission has been granted.