Wednesday, March 30, 2005

Cyber Champagne and Caviar

I'm looking out the window right now to see the sun shining. It's going to be 60 degrees here today in New York. Unbelievable. TPTB must have heard all the good news flowing over at the Chicklit Writer's loop over at Yahoo.

The RITA nominations were announced last week. For those who haven't heard of them, the RITA's are like the Pulitzer Prize of Romance Writing. Winning one or even being nominated can do wonders for your career. This year, several Chicklit writers were nominated not only for Best First Book but also Best Novel with Romantic Elements. Alesia Holliday, Lani Diane Rich and Eileen Rendhal were double nominated in both categories. Huzzah.

The chicks are really ruling the roost this year. Both Lani and Michelle Cunnah were nominated for coveted RT Book Awards as well. Not to mention our unpublished authors like Marley Gibson who just won the Happy Endings contest sponsored by Capital Region RWA and Lois Winston who is not only nominated for another Golden Heart but also is a finalist for the American Title contest sponsored by Dorchester Books and Romantic Times magazine. Who says that Chick lit is dead?

Something must be in the air because my friend Simon was just signed by an agent in the UK, only a year out of drama school, and two friends are pregnant. All this excitement makes me hopeful that good things will happen to my career as well.

To that end, I have just sent off my first 3 chapters and my synopsis to a freelance editor for a critique. If I'm going to do spring cleaning of my house, I should spring clean my manuscripts as well. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I get really good feedback. Reading the chapters over, I can see I have a lot of work to do. I have an overload of backstory going on that needs to be cut or put somewhere.

Ouch, but that's part of the beauty of Spring cleaning!

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