10.6.11

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Crazy day today. It is Thursday, which means it's supposed to be a 10K day. It is also the day after Steve Jobs died, and I will say, I am stll so upset. Even though I knew it was coming, it is sad to see such an amazing mind lost. So maybe I can blame deep thoughts about untimely death on my insufficient writing.

I will say up front I did not write 10K. I wrote 1K. Only 9K short from the goal. Ugh.

In my defense, I tried something new. I got up, showered, dressed, hit a 9am appointment, then went downtown to my husband's office to work. I've done this before in his old office, but he's moved into new digs, so I thought I'd give it a whirl.

I won't bore you with the details, but suffice it to say, when he called and asked if I wanted to go to lunch, I jumped at the chance. After lunch, I finally hit a groove, and the same distraction started up.

What is that, you ask?

Noise.

Oh, my God. How do y'all do it? I know of so, so many people who work in offices. So many authors who write in coffee shops. HOW do you stay focused with all the noise and movement around you?

I either need practice at this, or I need to wrap my head around the fact that I am most productive alone, in silence, a little monk on a couch, and let this whole illusion called "going to work," die. Even with my headphones on, I had to turn the music so loud that it in and of itself was distracting, and I could still hear the guy in the office next door talk. I know I have really sensitive hearing - I'm one of those strange folks who can't stand static on the radio, or the little tap my iPhone charger cord makes when it gets caught in the air from the kitchen vent - tap, tap, tap, TAP TAPTAPTAP! Anything rhythmic and repetitive drives me nuts. I once thought I was losing my mind, hearing voices, and laid in bed debating whether to tell my husband I could hear whispering. I fell asleep instead, and the next morning came downstairs to find my iTunes open and Joyce Bean reading So Close the Hand of Death. Over and over again.

No wonder THE TELL-TALE HEART is my favorite Poe work.

So. I did write 1K, and got a lot of actual thinking done, which is 9/10ths of writing anyway. And tomorrow, I will stay home, in the solitude, and be a little monk on the couch, and write.

In business news: I have partnered with Odyl to run the content on my Facebook Fan Page. I am in love with this app. You can see it in action HERE - I've got a giveaway on the site for a $25 giftcard, so be sure to check it out. And here's some of the stuff that was said about my choice today:

Odyl press release - http://odyl.net/news/award-winning-author-jt-ellison-selects-odyl-for-book-marketing-on-facebook/

My Odyl guest blog - http://odyl.net/if-you-build-it-they-will-come/

Also, this story ran this morning in AllFacebook. Facebook Marketing Tool Odyl Boosts Authors

Cool beans, yeah?

10.4.11

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My eyes are crossing and my mind has turned to mush. Why? A six hour marathon session of copyedits on the May '12 book. Done, and turned in, and hopefully I won't have to see it again anytime soon. (You do stop seeing the forest for the trees after a while, and this one feels like I've edited it to death. Of course, they all do at this point...)

OK. I've been holding out on you. I've talked around this for weeks now, but it's time to share. Brace yourselves.

WHERE ALL THE DEAD LIE is the last Taylor book for a little while.

Don't panic. It is NOT the end of the series. I fully intend to return to Taylor's world very soon. I can't imagine my life without Taylor in it for very long. And we have so many unanswered questions....

As a writer, you always want to try new things. I've never written anything more than a short story that didn't feature Taylor. It was time to spread my wings. My agent and my house kindly agreed, and we decided that it might be fun to spin off the series with Dr. Samantha Owens as the main character.

Let me tell you - writing from a new perspective has been at once liberating and terrifying. Sam is Taylor's conscience in the Taylor books. I didn't know who she was outside of that.

I do now. And boy, how, is she an amazing character.

The May '12 book is called A DEEPER DARKNESS. I PROMISE I will share the back cover copy very soon. With all the transitions - my editor leaving - my new editor catching up, I want to be absolutely sure we are all good with everything before I do. But soon, chickens. Soon.

So. I'm off to read BREAKING DAWN because I need something fun and engaging and different. Tomorrow I'll be back at it with the sandwich book.

Who's buying the iPhone 4S?

10.3.11

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October already? How is this possible???

Well, it has been quite a day! Amanda Knox has been freed from jail in Perugia, Italy, which is very heartening. I admit shutting things off for an hour to watch the verdict - it is so good to see justice done here. I am a firm believer that she was railroaded, and am very happy to see her walk. I smell a massive book deal coming - which will be fascinating. I hope my agent lands her.

All of my signings are behind me, and I have a full, open week of nothing ahead of me. Nothing but writing, that is. With all the hoopla around the launch and such, I haven't been doing a very good job of keeping up with my daily word counts. In my defense, I did have to do one last revision on the May '12 book, which took several days. And then the worst happened. I got the news that my editor is leaving. 

: (

I've been working with Adam Wilson since I started with Mira in 2006, first as an assistant editor to Linda McFall, and then as my actual editor. We've done seven books together, three of which he edited solely, and I'm very sad to see him go. But he's landed a great job with Gallery, and I of all people understand wanting to broaden horizons. And so I must bid him adieu. Thank you, Mr. Wilson, for all your tender loving care with my words, my career, and my ego for the past six years. You will be sorely missed.

Excitement ensued Friday when I got reassigned to the lovely and talented Miranda Indrigo - a legendary Mira editor who I'm convinced is going to take me to heights previously unknown. This process of losing an editor and gaining an editor always has an big effect on your writing. It's hard for it not to. But I've found that the more eyes I have on my pages, the better my work gets, so I look at these moments as opportunities. Will report in what happens next.

So I'm very proud that in the midst of all this craziness, I did finish and turn in the revision, got my inbox cleared, addressed nearly everything I had on my to do list, and today, sat down and CREATED!!!!!!!

It was only 1300 words, but hey, that's better than nothing, right? Realized I am not going to make my self-imposed October 15 deadline, so I may push it back to November 1. I really want to get this book done and stashed away for a rainy day. This is not a goal. This is just something for me. Sometimes you need to write what's in your heart, you know?

Leftover Cottage Pie tonight. I haven't been this excited for leftovers in months.

As always, questions welcome.

Cottage Pie

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One of our favorite dishes from the UK. Perfect for a chilly fall night. 30 minutes prep, 30 minutes cook time.

Ingredients

  • 1 pound lean ground beef
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 3 carrots, diced
  • 1/2 package frozen sweet peas
  • 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
  • 1 1/2 cups beef broth
  • 1 1/2 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 1 1/2 tablespoon ketchup
  • 2 large dashes garlic powder
  • 4 large dashes Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/2 package beef gravy (can use onion gravy too)
  • 1 tablespoon HP Sauce
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 4 potatoes, peeled and diced
  • 1/4 cup butter, softened
  • 1 cup milk
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1/4 pound shredded Cheddar cheese
  • 1 sheet puff pastry

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
  2. Place a large skillet over medium heat, spread with olive oil. Sauté meat, onions and carrots until meat is no longer pink and onion begins to brown, about 5 minutes. Mix in flour, cinnamon, mixed herbs, parsley and peas.
  3. In a small bowl, combine beef broth, tomato paste, gravy mix, ketchup, Worcestershire and HP Sauce. Mix together, then add to beef mixture. Add salt and pepper to taste. Lower heat and simmer mixture for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until almost all of liquid has been absorbed. (You can add more flour if needed)
  4. Taste and make sure it's seasoned enough. Add more garlic or Worchestershire and salt and pepper as needed.
  5. Spoon mixture into a 9x13 pan.
  6. While meat filling simmers, prepare the Mashed Potatoes: Place diced potatoes in a medium saucepan. Cover with water and place over high heat. Allow to come to a boil. Boil for 15 minutes, or until potatoes are tender. Drain.
  7. Mash potatoes until smooth, then add butter or margarine, followed by milk. Whip until fluffy. Add salt and pepper to taste. Spread potatoes over beef filling. Sprinkle with grated Cheddar cheese.(Colby Jack is even better)
  8. Stretch one sheet of puff pastry over the top. Do not attach to the glass, just tuck the edges in. Vent with a fork.
  9. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, until top is browned and cheese is bubbly.