Friday, April 23, 2010

Writing Journey: Lyon's Eleven

Lately when people ask if I'm working on anything, I almost laugh. I have a few too many pots in the fire and rarely know where to begin describing my current projects. (I'd appreciate it if the treadmill of my life slowed down just a tiny bit.)

As an update, a list:

1) Today and tomorrow, I'm at the LDStorymakers Writers Conference, in its 7th year. It's bigger and better than ever, and I'm thrilled to have been part of it since its inception. Saturday night at the Whitney Awards gala, I will be presenting the Lifetime Achievement Award to Gerald N. Lund. (No pressure or anything.)

2) Turns out the final photo shoot for Chocolate Never Faileth, well, wasn't. We had two unanticipated holes (long story). In the middle of my conference prep, I had to make two more recipes. I could have really used a clone this week.

3) On the up side, this last Monday, I got to hang out at Covenant and work on one of their computers to make some of the anecdotes in the book fit properly. That was a ball. The layout for the book is awesome, and the photos turned out great. Basically, the book is going to be gorgeous. Margaret and Christina (the design gals) have gone above and beyond on this one. I LOVE those guys!

4) I have been meaning to finish revisions on that murder mystery for, oh, four months or so now. (Things have been a wee bit busy.) For the sake of accountability, I am going to state here that the book WILL be turned in no later than May 10th. (Now I have to do it or look like an idiot.)

5) OOOOH! IDEA!
If I don't make my personal deadline, I'll have Random.org select ONE commenter from this post to win a copy of one of my books, their choice. If I DO make the deadline, then I get to celebrate with chocolate, and one commenter gets to as well. So one commenter (again, from this post) will get a Utah Truffles chocolate bar. I'll buy two and enjoy the second one. (I'm always amazed at how well bribery works on the inner writer.)

6) The response to Band of Sisters has been phenomenal. Thanks to everyone who has dropped a note about it or written a review! I appreciate every single one so much. Here's the latest review, from the Association for Mormon Letters.

7) One question I'm getting a lot is whether there will be a sequel to Band of Sisters.

Short answer: I hope so. It would take place right after the men come home.

Long answer: Depends on sales. If it does well enough to warrant a sequel, I'll get the green light. (I've already written a couple of scenes for Jessie, and I really want to write the whole thing!) Tell your local Seagull or Deseret Book, whether in person or via e-mail, that you want a sequel so they'll pass on the word. You can even e-mail Covenant directly (info at covenant-lds dot com).

8) As promised, e-book versions of Lost Without You and At the Water's Edge will be available very soon. (Like, when I have time to get them done. Hahahahaa! No, seriously. It'll be soon. After I review the old manuscripts, my husband will do his technological magic and get them available for purchase.)

9) By next year's conference, I plan to have a second edition out of There, Their, They're. In the year since it came out, I've had readers shooting me more questions and topics. I've already amassed nearly 40 new things to address in the next edition. If you have a question that's not currently in the book, please let me know so I can add it to the list!

10) I've got several other really exciting potential projects in the works, but none are confirmed, so I can't talk about them yet. Just getting pumped for the possibilities!

11) And finally, today I'm the guest poster over at Mormon Mommy Blogs. Click over and check it out! (That's the main MMB link; I'm pre-posting this because I won't be online during the conference, so you'll have to find the actual post yourself. Sorry 'bout that.)

See you on the flip side!

21 comments:

Meggen said...

Wow, Annette! You are one BUSY lady! I think you deserve an extra piece of chocolate (or 2) just to keep yourself going! ;o) Love ya!

Kristina P. said...

Have fun this weekend! I wish I had been able to meet up with people last night. :(

Shelley said...

I want you to succeed and all, but is it bad that I want the book more than the chocolate? Don't think I won't eat it if I'm picked though! Pick me!

Wonder Woman said...

I can't believe you're presenting an award to Gerald Lund! I'd flip. Or faint.

You are one busy lady!! And congrats on your anniversary!

An Ordinary Mom said...

You do have a lot on your plate - WOW! Good luck with everything, and make sure you enjoy it all :) !! (Though winning a book does sound fantabulous ;) !!)

Amanda D said...

It's amazing to me how much you have going on. I'd love to see a sequel to Band of Sisters! Good luck tonight at the Whitney Awards...being a presenter would be scary!

Anonymous said...

Annette,

I hope you make your goal. Good luck. I, too, would love to see a sequel to B of S.

Melanie Jacobson said...

I saw the mock up for the chocolate book when I was at Covenant on Thursday and it looks AWESOME.

veronica said...

Just wanted to let you know that I loved Band of Sisters. Wow. Just wow.
I laughed, I cried (sobbed actually) and I rejoiced with the characters. I haven't been that emotionally moved by a book in a very long time.

Rebecca Blevins said...

It was so great to meet you! I was excited to not only see you in person, but to actually talk to you!

Oh yes, and we also picked up your grammar book. James read it through while on the flight home. (I occupied myself with Writing Secrets.) I'm looking forward to reading it myself, and I'll keep it handy as I'm working on my novel!

You did an awesome job on your presentation, by the way! I got a lot out of it.

Jessica G. said...

Not that I want you to miss any deadlines or anything...but I cloud use your grammar book! :)

* said...

Man, you have a lot going on girl!! And I'm so curious about the Utah Truffles chocolate bar...
Sounds mmmmm.

Rebecca Irvine said...

Being so busy keeps you out of trouble. Not that you are a trouble maker or anything like that :-)

Tanya Parker Mills said...

Now I feel bad for even asking you to read my manuscript. Take your time and breathe!

Lyon Pride said...

I'm really excited to see the chocolate book!!

Lara Neves said...

You are one busy chica.

I hope you're eating a lot of chocolate while rushing about to meet all of these deadlines! :)

Krista said...

Not sure how I missed this one... oh yeah, I was offline. Enter me, please. And I'm glad you got through some major stuff on that list! Whew!

Elizabeth Morgan said...

Good Luck! I hope you make your deadline. I like the title you have so far.

Sarah M Eden said...

If I win we have to have the chocolate TOGETHER. Just so you know.

You can do it Annette!!

Camille said...

Wow! You're busy! I need to see if your books are available on audio (CD)? I need to take advantage of my commute time!

T.J. said...

I'm always up for free chocolate. But, I think that I owe you chocolate for making my blog famous for a day. So........if I win, you'll get lots of chocolate.

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