Need Manuscript Makeover?

http://www.manuscriptmakeover.com/

My friend, Elizabeth Lyon's new book on doing a manuscript makeover is out. Elizabeth helped me with my first novel, A Three-Turtle Summer. Working with Elizabeth is like taking a four-year course in fiction writing from an ivy-league school. If you're a writer, and Elizabeth doesn't live next door to you, get this book and devour it. I did. Oh, and she has other wonderful books on nonfiction writing, book proposals, and marketing.

Still no word from Tom Hanks. I told David Southwell, an author from the United Kingdom, that I joined Facebook so Tom would discover my stories. I figure I'm a You've Got Mail kind of writer.

Many writers nowadays would be delighted if their books jumped straight from keyboard to film. A lot of us feel that there is more talking about books than the actual reading of them going on. After all, we're storytellers. We began telling stories around a smokey fire in a cave somewhere, so why should we resist the new technology? I'd never want to see books go away entirely, but there's something very appealing about the medium of film.

I have some readers who are just now reading my second novel, As Brown As I Want: The Indianhead Diaries. That's more than partly my fault because the book was mis-labled. The catalog says it is fiction, but it is really a (hilarious) fictional autobiography. This is the kind of mistake that happens when an author moonlights as her own agent.

Custer thank yous:
Tantara Records (http://www.tantararecords.com/, email:info@tantararecords.com ) for permission to use the lyrics to Go My Son. They have a beautiful website with music to suit every taste (well, I haven't seen any headbanger music there, but they have everything else.).
The Comanche Nation (http://www.comanchenation.com/ ) for their help with the Comanche language.

Quote du jour:

"A mob is no less a mob just because it's with you." John Adams, John Adams, HBO special production

Custer and the Fremont Troll

© 2008 Janelle Meraz Hooper, The Fremont Troll under the Aurora Bridge

Out and about- Recently, I took Custer to visit the Fremont Troll that lives under the Aurora Bridge in Fremont, Washington. Fremont is north of Seattle and has a huge pocket of creative people who have moved there to avoid all the suits in Seattle. It's a great place to spend the day!

Today, I'm just hanging around, waiting for the last Democratic Presidential Debate. To keep busy, I'm packing books and getting them ready to mail. I'm too distracted to work on my newest novel. Maybe I could at least figure out a title.

At the same time, I've been thinkin': Why is it our new presidents go in looking like Matthew McConaughey and come out four years later looking like Yoda? The job gets tougher every year. I've mentioned this before and have been told that no president would give up any of his power to a vice-president. It's just too politically dangerous. But maybe its time we made better and more use of the vice-president. Of course, none of this applies to Cheney. The less of him, the better (I don't mean it, I'm just kidding around). Seriously, with the mess the new president is going to be stuck with, maybe they should give double-teaming some thought.

Custer and His Naked Ladies- It's doing well. There are several links to order your copy from the publisher or Internet book sites on my http://www.janellemerazhooper.com/ website. You can also read sample chapters of my novels there. I'm grateful for the support I've had in the research and permissions departments that have made Custer and His Naked Ladies so special to me:

Tantara Records (http://www.tantararecords.com/ ; email: info@TantaraRecords.com ) for permission to use the beautiful song, Go My Son.

The Comanche Nation (http://www.comanchenation.com/ ) for their help with the Comanche Language.

The Terrapin Institute (http://www.terrapininstitute.org/ ), for information on turtles.

Quote du jour:

"An artist is never poor." Babette's Feast