As most of you know, my pregnancy has been knocking the wind out of me—more literally, I’ve been an exhausted clump of hormones for the last few weeks and it hasn’t been pretty. However, I take this giant energy-drain to mean that the Child Within will be an awesome force to be reckoned with…and that still makes me smile. My firstborn isn’t the only thing consuming…
It's here! Moonlight and Oranges is officially for sale on Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com in both paperback and eBook! You can look to the right of this post at the snazzy link that takes you right to Amazon.com to purchase it. Now that the moment has finally arrived, ("This is real, Elise. You're not dreaming. The numbness and disbelief is perfectly normal and proportional to how badly you've…
When I first began writing, everything was about extremes. I focused on making my characters as beautiful they could be, having as much fun and excitement as possible, and the bottom line was that I kept myself entertained. I wrote because I found storytelling exciting, and all of my stories had the requirement that they continuously enthrall my imagination. My first “writing” was actually illustration with a few…
I am now a little more than two weeks away from launching Moonlight and Oranges. But before I go into more of that, please join me in welcoming the glorious, smashing cover design for Moonlight and Oranges, designed for me by Isaiah Qualls. Isn't it gorgeous??? If I could look back and say what were the five most important things I did to bring myself to this…
I can actually say it: My novel will launch next month! The edits are finalized, the marketing details are being solidified, we're scoping out a venue for the book launch party for friends and family, and bit by bit, the Booktrope team and I are preparing the world to receive Moonlight and Oranges. This book was a product of much love, sweat, and tears. The inspiration to write…
My best lessons and indicators for what I should improve or refine in my work are sitting right in front of me, plain as day, in my last creation. In my case, this means that directions for improving my writing can be found in the last piece of writing that I completed. I'm in the process of reading Art and Fear, a book that my author friend…
In the art world, and in most places of life, change can come as fast as a tsunami wave--and my reaction to change may be compared to the terror of standing on the beach, watching the incoming wall of water, and wondering if I really am prepared for what's ahead of me. The analogy is imperfect. A tsunami would likely have killed me. The changes in my…
The world-changing news came on what could have been a very average day. I'm sitting at my computer, getting ready to leave it for a while and revise the printed pages of my current work-in-progress, when a new message on my screen reads: Dear Elise, we would like to move forward with your delightful story... And I realize that someone is telling me that they want to publish…
According to Wikipedia, a red-letter day is any day of significance and my goodness did I have one! Last week I sent out my normal batch of query letters via email. This is part of my marketing plan, which entails sending out queries for my manuscript, Moonlight and Oranges, every two weeks or so. That same day, to my unbelieving eyes, two positive responses came back from two…
How in the world am I supposed to write, rewrite, edit, market myself, blog, find an agent, network and find time for the seemingly hundreds of things that writers are "supposed to do" in order to establish themselves and win the great trophy of the title published? (For those of you who can relate to this, it may be an appropriate time to tear at your hair).…