tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4783489427569127342024-02-08T02:42:13.635+08:00Leah AshtonLeah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.comBlogger36125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-59980577600584268922011-09-08T18:55:00.000+08:002011-09-08T18:55:34.226+08:00New site - and new blog!I know, I know, I've been terribly absent for a LONG time from blogland. But, now that <a href="http://www.leah-ashton.com/books/">Secrets & Speed Dating</a> is on the shelves in the UK (wow!) and my second book is handed in (am awaiting revisions), I finally have a little bit of spare time. So I've finished off my new web site and blog.<br />
<br />
From now on, you can find me at <a href="http://www.leah-ashton.com/">www.leah-ashton.com</a>.<br />
<br />
As New Voices is kicking off again VERY soon (how exciting!) I've put together a post of all of my New Voices 2010 posts and interviews. I thought it was a good way to officially start my new blog, as, after all, New Voices is why I'm published, and why I finally decided to build a real site :)<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/I%20thought%20some%20of%20you%20may%20be%20interested%20in%20my%20New%20Voices%20experience%20from%20last%20year%20-%20I've%20organised%20my%20blog%20posts%20and%20the%20couple%20of%20interviews%20I%20did%20during%20New%20Voices%202010%20-%20from%20worrying%20about%20entering,%20through%20to%20the%20euphoria%20of%20winning%20-%20and%20then,%20finally%20-%20receiving%20%22the%20call%22.%20It's%20been%20the%20most%20amazing%20ride!%20http://www.leah-ashton.com/2011/09/new-voices-winners-journey/">New Voices 2010 - The Winner's Journey</a><br />
<br />
I hope to see you there!<br />
<br />
Leah xxLeah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-47699336045161437982011-06-18T00:04:00.000+08:002011-06-18T00:04:55.215+08:00Are you a procrastinator?I definitely am! I am so envious of the many writer's blogs I visit where the authors are so diligent and so prolific - I am in awe of them :)<br />
<br />
But I know I will never be like them (sadly), so I have my own techniques for dealing with procrastination. I was asked to write a blog post for Romance Writers of Australia's 50ks in 30 days event, which is taking place at the moment. I am an under performing participant, as I very very optimistically thought I could write 40K despite being on my honeymoon throughout June. Ha! But, I am writing, and will certainly write much more than I would have otherwise. (also, this way I am not heading for early divorce :) ).<br />
<br />
I will be lazy and repost my blog below, or you can view the original here: <a href="http://writeinjune.blogspot.com/2011/06/day-17-guest-post-by-leah-ashton.html">RWA's 50ks in 30 days</a><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>The Procrastinator’s Guide to 50ks in 30 Days</b></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">I am a terrible procrastinator. The worst, quite possibly. But I have written a </span>50K book in 30 days – and that book will be my debut novel for Harlequin Mills & Boon in September. And if I – a writer who will find absolutely anything to do, other than actually write – can do that, than other procrastinators can too. I promise!<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">I’ve attempted 50k30days before, and failed dismally. It even took me four years </span>to finish my first manuscript! So what changed this time? How was I magically cured of this dreadful procrastination curse?<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Well, sadly – I’m still a procrastinator. Procrastination, I’m pretty sure, is here </span>to stay. But now I have tools to deal with it. I cannot promise that what worked for me will work for you, and I can promise that nothing I’m about to say is particularly ground breaking. But it worked for me, so well that the word count I’m capable of achieving when I follow these steps still shocks me.<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">So here it its…</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Leah Ashton’s Anti-Procrastination Toolkit</b></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>1. Erase the guilt</b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">So you’re a procrastinator. Everyone around you is more productive and </span>diligent than you (or so it seems!). Cue hours of self-flagellation. Or – acknowledge that you are what you are, and find techniques that allow<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">you to up your word count regardless. Feeling guilty won’t put words </span>onto paper – so what’s the point?<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>2. Give yourself a real deadline</b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">I would love to be one of those people who can’t bear a day without </span>writing, but…well… I’m not. So, I need a deadline to get my butt in the seat. And it needs to be a real one, not just “I will write 10K by the end of<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">the month”, it needs to be a deadline with consequences if I fail. Prior to </span>publication, my deadlines were planned around writing competitions. So if I didn’t hit my deadline, I couldn’t enter.<br />
So, give yourself a deadline, with a real consequence. Find a writing competition with an entry date in early July. Sign up for a pitch at the conference. Anything – but make sure there is a consequence other than, “oh well.”<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>3. Have a plan (or even a plot)</b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">I used to think I was a seat-of-my-pantser, resulting in the euphoric </span>dashing off of an effortless chapter one, and chapter two and… then……nothing. I know this will be controversial with confirmed pantsers, but I strongly recommend at least a sketch of your plot. Just a vague plan of where you’re going and the main turning points along the journey. Why?<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Well, nothing triggers a serious procrastination session for me than a </span>blank page and absolutely no idea where I’m going. Reduce the risk of finding yourself with terrifying nothingness ahead of you and plan. Your plan is your safety net – and besides, you can always ignore it!<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>4. Remove yourself from temptation</b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">What do you do when you procrastinate? Do you read? Watch TV? Surf </span>the Internet? Whatever it is, get yourself away from it. Be dramatic if you have to – go write at a café, have someone physically remove your TV from your house, give your modem to your husband and tell him he is not under any circumstances to give it back. You get the idea?<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Obviously this is for confirmed procrastinators like me – if will power is </span>enough for you, then that is awesome, but if not, do whatever you have to do. The Internet is my vice, and I’ve been known to lock my Internet dongle in my car, or alternatively I use a really nifty program called <a href="http://www.macfreedom.com/">Freedom</a> (available for Mac and PC), which cost $10 and will block the Internet for up to 8 hours – and the only way to get it back is to re-boot your computer. If it’s just some sites that suck the time out of your day, look into browser add-ons like Google Chrome’s StayFocusd or Firefox’s LeechBlock. Both will either block a site totally, or give you a maximum time limit per day.<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>5. Write with your friends</b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">The discovery of sprints (where you write for 30 minutes or an hour with </span>a friend, and then report back with your word count) was a breakthrough for me. I am a slow writer, so I never had super impressive word counts, but knowing I had to report in with my word count was super motivating.<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Make sure you check into the Sprint Sessions in the RWA Chatroom </span>throughout 50Ks in 30 Days, or follow along on Twitter. And if you can’t write with your friends? Well…<br />
<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>6. Sit down, and start typing</b></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">It’s hardly surprising, but the reality is if you sit down every day, without </span>any distractions, and simply write a word, followed by another word, and then another – your word count will go up. Sometimes the idea of writing X number of words can be so overwhelming that starting seems impossible. But when you do start, and regardless if the words flow or are squeezed out painfully – as long as you’ll keep writing, you’ll hit your<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">word count. And once you start doing it day after day – well, before you </span>know it – you would have written a book. Or 50Ks in 30 days! <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">There you have it – my procrastinator’s guide to 50Ks in 30 days. Please let me </span>know if you reach into my toolkit – I’d love to know if it helps you, too. And as I’m also looking for new weapons to slay the procrastination beast – what tips have I missed that help you?Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-37044543932211115452011-06-01T00:23:00.001+08:002011-06-01T00:24:42.877+08:00Where did the month go?I'm not sure how a month has passed since my last blog? One day it was April, and then - bam! - June! In my defence, I did manage to get married in May, so at least for the first part of the month I have a reasonable excuse :)<br />
<br />
But rather than actually blogging (I have a 7.30am breakfast seminar to attend tomorrow/this morning and it's after midnight...another whoops), I thought I'd be lazy and link to a proper blog post I did on Monday at the LoveCats blog:<br />
<br />
<a href="http://lovecatsdownunder.blogspot.com/2011/05/what-is-it-about-weddings.html">What is it about weddings?</a><br />
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There's even a pic from my wedding :)Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-62573630758288459582011-04-27T00:11:00.000+08:002011-04-27T00:11:54.173+08:00What I think I've learnt: Part 2 - plus, an exciting announcement!I'll leave the exciting bit until the bottom of this post, and start with the second thing I think I've learnt thanks to Secrets & Speed Dating:<br />
<br />
<ul><li>Use what I've already got</li>
</ul><div>I'll be honest and admit I didn't figure this one out myself. My lovely friend <a href="http://www.nikkilogan.com.au/">Nikki Logan</a> introduced me to this concept when I got really stuck about three quarters into the manuscript (the "right" version, for those who read <a href="http://leahashton.blogspot.com/2011/04/what-i-think-ive-learnt-part-1.html">Part One</a>). My hero and heroine had just made love for the first time, and I'd written this lovely "morning after" scene. But... now what? I knew what my black moment was, but it was far too early for that. I knew I needed to show both my hero and heroine's reactions to this first night together and how nothing could ever be the same again... but the scene I was writing just felt boring.</div><div><br />
</div><div>I'd made the mistake in a previous version of the book of adding in a random plot twist ("ooh, let's have my heroine's mum turn up!"), so I knew that didn't work. But I needed *something* to happen. Something that wasn't contrived but that would keep the tension rolling along nicely.</div><div><br />
</div><div>And so Nikki said, "Didn't Sophie say in the previous chapter <i>something something, </i>why don't you use that?<i>"</i> (I'll let you read the book to find out what it was). This was a massive lightbulb for me. I'd had no idea I'd already set up the absolutely perfect scene (yay for my subconscious!) but I never would have noticed without Nikki's prompting. </div><div><br />
</div><div>But of course, it makes perfect sense. By looking back what you are really doing is revisiting your characters - and their conflicts and motivations. By making sure you use something you've already got, you're ensuring it's the characters that are driving the story forward.</div><div><br />
</div><div>While I was fortunate to have a throw away line of dialogue to set up my next scene, I'd imagine that this probably isn't always the case. But I think the lesson still stands. Next time I get stuck, in a "what happens next?" moment, I'm going to go back and review what's come before. What have my character's already done? What have they talked about? What has happened? What would <i>they</i> do next?</div><div><br />
</div><div>So what do you think? Am I onto something here? (with apologies to Nikki who I have stolen this from - and quite possibly butchered in my expansion and explanation :) ).</div><div><br />
</div><div><b>And... now for the big news!</b></div><div><b><br />
</b></div><div>In about two hours, I become a LoveCat!!! I feel incredibly fortunate to have been invited to join the LoveCats - a group of Australian and New Zealand Harlequin Mills & Boon authors who have the fabulous <a href="http://lovecatsdownunder.blogspot.com/">LoveCats Down Under blog</a>!</div><div><br />
</div><div>My official welcome post will appear very soon, where I get to answer some fun questions, and visitors get the chance to win an awesome book bundle prize!</div><div><br />
</div><div>Please come along and say hello - I'll be popping in as much as I can tomorrow.</div>Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-29638014017700624172011-04-18T23:38:00.002+08:002011-04-19T09:10:10.097+08:00What I think I've learnt: Part 1Way to sound super confident, hey? But the title of this blog post is true, at this stage all I have is a list of things I *think* I've learnt through the process of rewriting, and rewriting, Secrets & Speed Dating. I think I need a few (lot!) more books under my belt before I'm vaguely confident I've learnt anything at all :)<br />
<br />
But, as some of you seem to be interested in this (*waves at Autumn!*) this is the first in a series of blog posts that I'll write over the next few months, covering "the list" (which I emailed to myself a few days after my book was accepted while it was still fresh in my mind). I won't pretend that anything I'm about to share is particularly ground breaking, but for me, it was a combination of all these things (and sheer bloody mindedness) that got me over the line.<br />
<br />
So...Part One:<br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">a) Trust my instincts. If it doesn't feel right, it's not. </span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;">b) </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;">This isn't the same as it being hard to write.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;">See, I said it wasn't ground breaking :) But here's the thing, even though I've always known this, I somehow managed to win New Voices even though I didn't think my Chapter Two was "right". It was quite literally the best I was possibly capable of at that moment in time (it went through MANY rewrites!) but deep down, I wasn't happy with it. Yet I got through to the Final 4, and then I won. </span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;">So, my subconscious went...AWESOME! and started to let other writing through that also wasn't quite right.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;">This other writing is otherwise known as "Version One" of Secrets & Speed Dating, that made it to about 19,000 words before having to be scrapped.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;">Version Two was much better, it got rid of some of the "not right" stuff from Version One, but I still knew that something wasn't right. Like I'd make excuses for it while describing the story to my family and friends. It wasn't a bad story, it just wasn't the right story for me to be writing. But I was so obsessed with meeting my deadline, and there was quite literally no time for me to go with anything else. So I soldiered on.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;">When Version Two got dumped, I dumped it properly. ALL of the "not right" stuff went. Any line of dialogue, or piece of back story, or ANYTHING that I didn't like... even if it had been in the winning chapters, went. Even if I knew, logically, that there was NOTHING wrong with what I was deleting... if I knew it wasn't right - for me - I trusted myself.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;">And that's how I wrote all of Version Three. And yes, some parts were really really hard to write, and I stared at a white screen and flashing cursor and whinged, and cursed, and typed, and deleted... but I never let myself get past a page of "not right" without stopping, going back, and starting again.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;">I know there is a lot of advice out there about writing a discovery draft, or "you can't fix a blank page" and so on. And this is all perfectly valid, and I'm sure works for millions of people. But for me, it doesn't.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;">What do you think? Do you agree? Disagree? I'd love to hear your thoughts!</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse;"><br />
</span>Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-73698227716907061802011-03-01T23:09:00.000+08:002011-09-08T00:18:41.445+08:00My Call StoryI just have to mention again how amazing the past few days have been :) The congratulations I have received from members of the romance community - both blogland and through Romance Writers of Australia have just blown me away. Romance writers really are the best!<br />
<br />
So, I guess I'd better tell you what happened after the end of New Voices way back in November?<br />
<br />
Well - it turned out winning the competition was the easy bit.<br />
<div><br />
</div><div>My original deadline for my book was Christmas. So off I went, typing madly away, and sending chunks of my book off to my editor for feedback. All was going well... right?</div><div><br />
</div><div>By the end of November, and 19K into the book, my editor called - there were issues with my story. So I<br />
threw out at least half of what I'd written, and tried again.<br />
<br />
This time I got stopped at 27K words. This was about ten days before Christmas, and the email and subsequent phone call telling me all that wasn't working...well, they were just awful. Of course my editor was right (If I was honest, I knew it wasn't working), but I was very low and felt like a complete failure.<br />
<br />
</div><div>Surely by now Mills & Boon regretted choosing me as their winner?<br />
<br />
With my editor's encouragement, I took a break over Christmas, and didn't start writing again until 2nd January. Amazingly, my editor still seemed to have faith in me!<br />
<br />
This time I threw out everything - leaving less that 3000 words from the original book. If you read my competition entries, both the pivotal moment and 90% of chapter two is gone. My hero has totally changed. The book is SO much better for it.<br />
<br />
I was determined to write my way this time, and while still taking on everything I learnt from my mentors during New Voices (and my editor subsequently), to trust my instincts.</div><div><br />
The feedback on my first few chapters was very positive, as was the feedback on the first half of the book a few weeks later. We decided on a new deadline - 10th Feb.<br />
<br />
I wrote like a mad thing, with my support team (including <a href="http://www.nikkilogan.com/">Nikki</a> and <a href="http://rachaeljohns.blogspot.com/">Rach</a>) getting me through. But I did<br />
it - I subbed the book on time. A whole book in five weeks - this was amazing for slow typing, procrastinator me!<br />
<br />
I got my revisions back quick smart (via phone call), which I managed to turn around in four days, and then had some final tiny sentence level tweaks to make. </div><div><br />
</div><div>Then, on Friday, I got "the email". My book is to be published, and they want my next one too :)<br />
<br />
So while I didn't get "the call", I'll claim my revision stage call as my call :) </div><div><br />
</div><div>My editor called me yesterday with more details about release dates and so on - my book will come out as part of a New Voices anthology in the UK in October this year, and then as a Harlequin Romance in the US and M&B Sweet in Australia in 2012. My next book is due later this year!</div><div><br />
</div><div>It was hard - much harder than I anticipated when I won New Voices - but absolutely worth it.<br />
<br />
And no... it hasn't sunk in yet :)</div>Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-20367678303990161932011-02-25T22:34:00.000+08:002011-02-27T10:50:33.964+08:00It's official!!I found out today that my New Voices book is definitely going to be published. Yes - Leah Ashton, published author. OMG.<div><br />
</div><div>PLUS - Mills & Boon want to publish my next book. To say that I am excited would be a complete understatement :)<div><br />
</div><div>I don't have many details yet, but I will be published (there's that word again!) with Riva in the UK, and Sweet/Romance in Australia/US.</div></div><div><br />
</div><div>I'll share more of my journey since winning New Voices in the next few days, but for now, I will take another sip of my pink champagne, another hug from my super proud fiance, and enjoy this moment :)</div>Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-54740441678260550692011-01-24T21:34:00.001+08:002011-02-27T10:49:34.847+08:00I'm at Romance University today!I sincerely apologise (grovel, grovel) for my extended absence from blogland. Sadly... it will continue for a few more weeks until this book is finished.<br />
<br />
If you'd like to know what I've been up to, please visit Romance University where the lovely Carrie Spencer (and New Voices Top Four!) has interviewed me and Heidi Hormel (another member of the Top Four!):<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://romanceuniversity.org/2011/01/24/mills-boon-new-voices-whats-next/">Mills & Boon New Voices - What's Next?</a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Please come and say hello, I'll be popping in to answer any questions in the comments.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Otherwise - I'll see you all in a few weeks :)</div>Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-92112839770472924862010-11-21T20:36:00.000+08:002010-11-21T20:36:49.290+08:00Interesting writing contest news...And not about New Voices :)<br />
<br />
Prior to the announcement of the New Voices Top 10, I entered Secrets & Speed Dating in the Romance Writers of Australia "High 5" competition. In this contest, you enter your first 5 pages of a novel aimed at one of the Mills & Boon category lines.<br />
<br />
This week, I found out that my wonderful friend, <a href="http://rachaeljohns.blogspot.com/">Rachael Johns</a> and the lovely <a href="http://jackieashenden.blogspot.com/">Jackie Ashenden</a> both finalled in the High 5! Awesome! Big congratulations ladies! This is a fantastic achievement as there were more than 70 entries.<br />
<br />
But, as you may have guessed, I didn't final. I wasn't even close! 25th, to be exact :)<br />
<br />
One of my judges adored my story (scored 100%) while the other two hated it. One even suggested it may be better suited to another publisher :)<br />
<br />
So, this has confirmed something for me that I kind of already knew. And that is:<br />
<br />
<ul><li>Everyone who finals in a writing contest thoroughly deserves it. Their writing must be of a very high standard and really draw in readers in order to shine amongst so many entries.</li>
<li>But - not finalling does not mean your entry is not also fantastic. Judging is such a subjective thing. Some judges mark harder than others. Some judges will think your heroine is neurotic and unlikeable :) :)</li>
</ul>It is always a little kick in the guts when you don't do as well as you'd like in a writing contest. But just because you don't final in one contest, doesn't mean you won't do well in another. If you don't believe me, please refer to Secrets & Speed Dating :)<br />
<br />
Anyway - I must get back to writing madly - my deadline is fast approaching!<br />
<br />
<br />
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</div><div><br />
</div>Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-89283255558277643482010-11-03T22:46:00.001+08:002011-02-27T10:50:11.924+08:00Winner - Mills & Boon New Voices 2010<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSNT7U5F38FWu6rId0CMNz8cRVAdxYrSPb8PFeTm7ZK1fnI-bEniX6AOefBTfdeo7ZQ0FGBJk0SnzY3SzhZsTDXqKCKumEJ9wvzUIJUIwTS4gwWJg5GdMywyQtshevQdYE3g5EJ1iYkzHP/s1600/winner.png" /></div><br />
Even writing this blog post title is surreal. How did this happen again?<br />
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I won't write much now... still too tired, too shocked, too euphoric and too terrified (ohmygod what if the rest of the book is rubbish and they decide not to publish it!) to even attempt it.<br />
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But I did want to say a huge big massive THANK YOU to everyone who entered the competition. There were so many talented writers who entered - Heidi, Lindsay and Carrie from the top 4 included, but also all the lovely ladies who read this blog - and without you there would have been no New Voices.<br />
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Thank you also to everyone who took the time to read my entry, to comment and to vote. You have quite literally made my dream come true. Thank you.Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-72178165781023689072010-10-26T23:36:00.002+08:002011-02-27T10:50:11.925+08:00Voting time again!I am a funny combination of excited, relieved and very very scared at the moment - because my New Voices Pivotal Moment is up!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/Entries/734-Secrets-Speed-Dating">Secrets & Speed Dating - Pivotal Moment </a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Please have a read, and if (as always) you liked it, I would love your vote!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">As with Chapter Two, this scene didn't come easily. I had started writing my pivotal moment (about 1500 words), and when I made the top 4, my lovely mentors asked what I planned to write for the PM. So I told them.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">The didn't think this was a good idea. Basically (they didn't say this!) I'd chickened out - I'd chosen a significant moment, but not THE pivotal moment in the book. The scene they suggested I wrote happens much later in the novel, and was much scarier to write.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">So, I threw out what I had (ie filed away carefully for use later) and started afresh. I had less than 48 hours to get this new scene to my mentors for feedback, so it was a slightly frantic time. Once again, having to go to work was Very Annoying :)</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">After some excellent feedback from my mentors, I made more changes over the weekend, and subbed on Monday.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">This scene was by far the most emotional one I've written, and I seriously hope that I've done the moment justice.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">But regardless of what happens next, I am beyond thrilled to have made it this far, and I know I've done the absolutely best I could. Which, I guess, is all I could do!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Thank you all for your support throughout the competition - you are all totally and completely awesome :)<br />
<br />
PS And a special thank you to <a href="http://laceydevlin.blogspot.com/">Lacey Devlin</a> - button maker extraordinaire! --></div>Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-7955638499653099542010-10-19T22:18:00.001+08:002011-02-27T10:50:11.925+08:00Top Four!Wow:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSijC3-NM_i_Fsyp5c9KAUNacCGbXrGEa_UwwLMUUgaQNC0sgzq42AQgWErx0py6aJ52bUPTibuYKbQLOQ1VTwiMvP-X5uAkjI2rrDB2ul-FvBAfZg-I_ij5HsrjVxuZBzhejwyE4RmC65/s1600/fourList.png" /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Uh. Yeah. Am most definitely still in shock :)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Thank you SO much everyone who voted for me, and has supported me so far in this competition. It means the world to me.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And big commiserations to the other six. I thought all the other nine entries were of an incredibly high standard, and had no idea who would make the Top 4. It must have been so so close. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">A special thank you to <a href="http://rachaeljohns.blogspot.com/">Rachael Johns</a>, who called me with the fabulous news. I was at a family dinner so was forced to suspend my obsessive email/New Voices web site checking frenzy. Was a lovely way to find out!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Now, off to get this pivotal moment sorted!</div>Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-79680221435278871072010-10-14T22:56:00.000+08:002011-02-27T10:50:11.926+08:00My RWA Interview (or, I'm famous!)I'm not sure how I managed it, but I forgot to mention that I was lucky enough to be interviewed by Sandie Hudson from <a href="http://www.romanceaustralia.com/">Romance Writers of Australia</a> (an incredible organisation!) earlier this week. About my New Voices experience, of course :)<br />
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You can read the interview here: <a href="http://romanceaustralia.wordpress.com/2010/10/11/author-spotlight-leah-ashton-mb-new-voices/">Author Spotlight: Leah Ashton</a>.<br />
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By the way - if you haven't read the <a href="http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/Entries/The-Top-Ten">Top 10's second chapters</a> yet, you don't have much time - the Top 4 are announced on Monday! Of course, if you like my chapter: <a href="http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/Entries/734-Secrets-Speed-Dating">Secrets & Speed Dating</a> - I would LOVE you to vote for me :)<br />
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(Hey, how subtle was <i>that!</i>)Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-29982509399501679552010-10-11T21:51:00.002+08:002011-02-27T10:50:11.927+08:00Second chapter voting has begun!!!<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">This is terrifying. My second chapter is right here: <a href="http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/Entries/734-Secrets-Speed-Dating">Secrets & Speed Dating</a>, for anyone to read and comment about. It was scary enough posting chapter one, but this - this is something else.</span></span><br />
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</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">I'd like to tell you how I was quietly determined to do my best this last week, and methodically worked my way through the chapter. Very calm, very controlled.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">Of course, that would be a massive lie. I want this so badly and I got SO frustrated with myself that I couldn't get the chapter right first time.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">On the plus side, I learnt I can write a lot when I set my mind to it. Here was my week:</span></span></div><div><ul><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">Monday - submit Chapter Two draft to Team Jessica</span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">Tuesday - get feedback</span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">Wednesday - totally misinterpreting feedback, come up with an idea to address the areas of weakness.</span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">Wednesday night - Team Jessica politely tells me that my idea sucks</span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">Wednesday-Friday - Write almost totally new chapter, convinced that draft was awful</span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">Friday - CPs tell me (very nicely) that there are some problems with my new chapter, and ask what happened to that good stuff from the draft?</span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">Saturday - Take all the good bits of the draft and the new chapter, and create new chapter. Get some excellent feedback from Team Jessica and my amazing CPs.</span></span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">Sunday - Make final tweaks and polish polish polish! </span></span></li>
</ul><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">Throughout all of this my incredible CPs kept me going with phone calls and emails (and one very timely calming cup of tea :) ), and my lovely partner even brought me cups of coffee without being asked :) I also managed to squeeze my full time job in somewhere, too.</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span></div></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">I would love it if you could <a href="http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/Entries/734-Secrets-Speed-Dating">read my chapter</a>, and if you like it, it would be super awesome if you voted for me :) To vote you need to register and log in, and you can only vote once.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">Ohh - and did you see the very lovely button <a href="http://laceydevlin.blogspot.com/">Lacey Devlin</a> made for me (on the right)? How nice is she?</span></span></div>Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-25192124066605401642010-10-05T22:59:00.000+08:002011-02-27T10:50:11.927+08:00New Voices - 1 week onI thought some of you may be interested in my New Voices journey so far.<br />
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I'm on Team Jessica - so my mentors are <a href="http://www.jessicahart.co.uk/">Jessica Hart</a> and Meg Lewis. I feel so incredibly lucky to have these women helping me. Even if I go no further, making it to the Top 10 has been worth it for the experience of working with Jessica and Meg.<br />
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After the initial euphoria of receiving my Top 10 email, I received my feedback on my chapter about a day later. As all I had written was the first chapter (the perils of entering something brand new), I then asked lots of questions as I wanted to make sure my h/h conflicts were strong enough, and that my plan for the external plot was on the right track. As it turned out (not surprisingly) both my conflicts and plot needed some tweaking, and I've got no doubt that my story is stronger thanks to Team Jessica brainstorming!<br />
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I've finished Chapter Two, but it will need some further revisions following Meg and Jessica's feedback.<br />
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So far I've found this past week pretty overwhelming. This opportunity it SO incredibly huge that it is scary to think what I'm throwing away if I screw this chapter up :(<br />
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But - I wouldn't swap it for anything in the world :) All I can do is my best, I suppose!Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-24547211403529555252010-09-27T17:07:00.000+08:002011-02-27T10:50:11.928+08:00I made the New Voices Top 10!!!!!!!!I went to bed last night - at 2am (thank you jetlag) a little disappointed that I hadn't received an email, and therefore sure I'd not made it into the next round of New Voices.<br />
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And then I wake up this morning to the fabulous subject line: You are through to the New Voices Top Ten!!<br />
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I didn't even read the email, just ran to my fiance (who was having a shower) and told him, while shaking :) Then ran back to get the laptop, and read the email to him (hands still shaking).<br />
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My mentoring team is Jessica Hart and Meg Lewis. I feel so incredibly fortunate!<br />
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Now, I just need to start Chapter Two...<br />
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Well done to everyone who entered - so many of you are super talented and I was surprised not to see your names in the Top 10. Please still submit your partials!Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-83614176074226825642010-09-25T22:50:00.000+08:002011-02-27T10:50:11.928+08:00I just discovered something mildly terrifying (New Voices related)Look!<br />
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<a href="http://heidi-rice.blogspot.com/2010/09/guardian-glory.html">Heidi Rice's blog that says the New Voices top 10 have been chosen</a><br />
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The Top 10 will be announced on Monday. For some reason I had thought the announcement was on Wednesday, not Monday. Argh! It is no longer reassuringly far off.<br />
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In other news, I'm home! My holiday is over :( I'm currently in a strange exhausted-but-can't-sleep limbo, after arriving home this afternoon from London. That's 13 hours London -> Singapore than a stop over, then 5 hours Singapore -> Perth. It's about as pleasant as it sounds. In London it is currently 3pm, so I guess I'm experiencing my first bout of jet lag - lucky me :)<br />
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New Voices entries are, however, brilliant to read when your brain is too mushy to comprehend an actual novel - a chapter is perfect. So, back to reading (and eventually, I hope, sleeping) I go...Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-18372553769888507442010-09-24T00:44:00.000+08:002011-02-27T10:50:11.929+08:00Lacey Devlin rocks!The lovely Lacey has put me on her <a href="http://laceydevlin.blogspot.com/2010/09/wall-of-fame-leah-ashton-aideen-taylora.html">New Voices Wall of Fame!</a> I feel very special :) I've also added her you-beaut New Voices badge to my blog --><br />
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If you haven't already, go read <a href="http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/Entries/842-Misbehaving-with-the-Retail-Magnate/Chapter-One">Lacey's first chapter</a> - it has some fantastic, snappy dialogue and a seriously page turning ending!Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-70367011469589198822010-09-22T16:22:00.000+08:002011-02-27T10:50:11.929+08:00New Voices - entered!Well, I did it! My entry is up: <a href="http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/Entries/734-Secrets-Speed-Dating/Chapter-One">Secrets & Speed Dating</a>.<br />
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I would love to hear what you think!<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4HVkgp1G-P4ajbz21rrCwyU4MNVV0nWlV176cMlpMXJIeCQsnC2RYrgbRuoF3Z-gtxqSekP93-tJJKIIsCy3OT7xwfCtjTqnjHmO-2J-ZBSu90jE19MbD2BuKe3dIQiF74owkr4oDu6Ql/s1600/velaluka.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4HVkgp1G-P4ajbz21rrCwyU4MNVV0nWlV176cMlpMXJIeCQsnC2RYrgbRuoF3Z-gtxqSekP93-tJJKIIsCy3OT7xwfCtjTqnjHmO-2J-ZBSu90jE19MbD2BuKe3dIQiF74owkr4oDu6Ql/s320/velaluka.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Writing at the beach in Croatia</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Thank goodness that's done :) It was written over the past week, while I've been in Vela Luka, Croatia. However, it turned out to be a little frustrating to write. My first version, I liked. After writing the first 2000 words, I happily emailed it to my amazing crit partners, confident that I was on the right track. I kept on typing, and by the time I heard back from them the next day, I had a good 3500 words down. For me - Captain Slow Writer - this was super sonic speed!<br />
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Sadly, what I'd written was crap. This took me a few hours to digest, as I'd been told in the nicest possible way :) But basically I'd lost my voice, it just wasn't "me".<br />
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Where had I gone wrong? I think the problem was I was trying to write what I thought Mills & Boon wanted. I think I figured that with the changes from Sweet/Romance to Cherish and Riva, that I was more a Cherish writer, so I need something a bit gentler than my normal style. Clearly, this was a stupid mistake - I'm not capable of this style, and my chapter featured a neurotic, unlikeable heroine and a plot that was going nowhere.<br />
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So, I started again. I was able to salvage much of the first scene, but the rest - thrown out. Almost 3000 words! And only three days to go before the deadline!<br />
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But, I managed it. I know it isn't perfect, but it's me. It is in my voice. So if it crashes and burns in the competition, and least I've got that.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzhzotHO-8QuMfGvqn_5-aC4PmrxbNRDzypPylI0RaG0X89vXx3v33kR_BFVeznQjuXi1hw0kH6_sF2vkLepjncs-xTt_gXul7aRnkjU7YnDIVu1cDXWwEoQxj0df9p52EmdRw7t4iXKKo/s1600/reganandI.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzhzotHO-8QuMfGvqn_5-aC4PmrxbNRDzypPylI0RaG0X89vXx3v33kR_BFVeznQjuXi1hw0kH6_sF2vkLepjncs-xTt_gXul7aRnkjU7YnDIVu1cDXWwEoQxj0df9p52EmdRw7t4iXKKo/s320/reganandI.JPG" width="252" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the beach with my own hero :)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Due to lack of consistent Internet (I need to buy it in 24 hour blocks) I've been lurking a bit on the New Voices web site, but there are some very impressive entries there. Including the work of some of my favourite bloggers! Here are their excellent entries:<br />
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<ul><li><a href="http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/Entries/83-One-Rogue-One-Damsel/Chapter-One">Rachael Johns</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/Entries/60-Talking-Dirty-with-the-CEO/Chapter-One">Jackie Ashenden</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/Entries/695-Sex-and-Sin-City/Chapter-One">Janette Radevski</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/Entries/291-Sequins-and-Secrets/Chapter-One">Joanne Pibworth</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/Entries/184-In-Too-Deep/Chapter-One">Lorraine Wilson</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/Entries/247-Bedded-by-the-Tycoon/Chapter-One">Joanne Dannon</a> (okay, not a blogger, but a friend :) )</li>
</ul><div>Sorry if I've missed anyone!</div><div><br />
</div><div>Also, I must mention how sad I was to lose all of my (possibly overused) italics when I pasted in my entry. Poor italics :)</div>Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-73466164890548028972010-09-08T07:11:00.000+08:002011-02-27T10:50:11.930+08:00Real life romance (and New Voices)Sorry to have been so absent - I will write a long, detailed, many-pictured blog post soon that covers my fabulous time at the Romance Writers of Australia conference.<br />
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But I DO have a good excuse. On arriving home from Sydney I immediately launched into last minute panicking (and packing) prior to leaving on a one month holiday to the UK and Croatia. Getting everything sorted at work, and the house half-decent for our house sitter, took up a stupid amount of time.<br />
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And then... on the Saturday afternoon before we left (our flight was 1am Sunday), my boyfriend and I took our dogs down to the park for a walk. We read the paper, ate fish and chips, and the dogs ran around in circles. Then I look up - and my boyfriend is on his knee, with the most incredible ring (box upside down). I cried for about a minute, so he had to ask me again... but of course I said yes.<br />
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It was at the park where we first met 3.5 years ago. He'd intended to ask me in Croatia, but thought that I'd want to be able to share it with my family and friends before we left. Plus he wanted the dogs to be there.<br />
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So I'm feeling incredibly happy, and incredibly lucky.<br />
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The last week has been a bit of a blur, can't quite believe I've been in London more than a week! But my visit to London turned out to be very timely, as I was able to attend one of the New Voices workshops. It was this afternoon in East Sheen, which is absolutely nowhere near where I'm staying with my sisters. So I was super brave and battled the tube strikes to take a combination of buses and the overland train to actually get to the library - and even be on time!<br />
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The editors gave a great overview of how to write for Mills & Boon, and I even got to take home some books - yay! It was great motivation to sit down and get my new chapter together and enter New Voices, which I'll do over the next week or so.<br />
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I've been very absent from blogland the past 10 days, I can't wait to read everyone's entries - it looks like competition will be fierce!!Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-20215088792654488412010-08-13T12:31:00.000+08:002010-08-13T12:31:50.022+08:00And so it turns out...... I'm sensitive to pseudoephedrine. Unfortunately I learnt this at about 3.30am this morning when still totally wide awake - and I never have trouble sleeping - I read the fine text on my over the counter cold and flu tablets. And there it was: sleeplessness may also occur in individuals sensitive to pseudoephedrine. That must be me. <br />
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So, when my conference roomie's alarm went off I was still wide awake. I didn't sleep all night! Excellent start to the conference!!!<br />
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I felt scarily fine, so went to the first half of Deb Dixon's workshop. It was brilliant, but i need to get some sleep so I can still go to the cocktail party tonight. Housekeeping is finishing cleaning our room now, and then I'm going to have a nap. <br />
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I'm writing this on my iPhone so apologies if it makes little sense.<br />
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Right. Sleep time!!Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-8636501935102437572010-08-08T00:14:00.003+08:002011-02-27T12:12:52.873+08:00Good news, conference countdown and costumes!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFTp_WuFye9thGsYTfZthqJKUs3fXRscsm8R8T3T_HR_Nj3ssTdQG4hew_c89lCvqP_Sj1pNFIfhr3gVHnTn2QowBTu_EBZaXY_00PvtSuFOiyi9BeOyGDZuvl9UFgJ_w9TGb10CbWEEMZ/s1600/venetian.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFTp_WuFye9thGsYTfZthqJKUs3fXRscsm8R8T3T_HR_Nj3ssTdQG4hew_c89lCvqP_Sj1pNFIfhr3gVHnTn2QowBTu_EBZaXY_00PvtSuFOiyi9BeOyGDZuvl9UFgJ_w9TGb10CbWEEMZ/s320/venetian.jpg" width="228" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Linley (on right) and I at Sydney 2007</td></tr>
</tbody></table>This time next week I'll be at the Romance Writers of Australia Conference in Sydney. I absolutely adore the RWA conferences, and am very excited. This will be my fourth conference, and one of my favourite parts of each conference is the Harlequin Cocktail Party, which is on the Friday night. Each year I've had great fun coming up with a costume, urged on by my costume queen room mate, <a href="http://www.linleymaroney.com/">Linley Maroney</a>. At my first conference in 2007, the cocktail party theme was Venetian Carnivale. My costume involved a $29 wedding dress (bargain of the century), a brocade doona cover, some ribbon, lace and my fabulous mum's sewing skills. Linley's dress was absolutely spectacular, as you can see!<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrvyN2i9s1ED81QQL17d7FDFVYgTcnCYtfBOpXWgAtffpkevvH1tP4EVf1m_Tpx1Pp-dlaUVnxa0oIOIaoCLH6IIJsPFn-cPSNJYjgu9n7Xrml0ohurhkvIt0pBLFP2jfzW-tZ_6OQ5NYC/s1600/Enchantedcentury.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrvyN2i9s1ED81QQL17d7FDFVYgTcnCYtfBOpXWgAtffpkevvH1tP4EVf1m_Tpx1Pp-dlaUVnxa0oIOIaoCLH6IIJsPFn-cPSNJYjgu9n7Xrml0ohurhkvIt0pBLFP2jfzW-tZ_6OQ5NYC/s320/Enchantedcentury.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Paula Roe and I in 2008</td></tr>
</tbody></table>In 2008 we were in Melbourne, and for the One Enchanted Century theme (for 100 years of Mills & Boon) I made a dress that consisted of laminated Mills & Boon covers, both present day and very old. I loved how it turned out, and I even won a prize :) (books, yay!). The photo is of me and <a href="http://www.paularoe.com/">Paula Roe</a> (with her fabulous mermaid costume).<br />
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Last year the theme was Arabian Nights. I had a costume made while I was in Vietnam a few months earlier, so went in an I Dream of Jeannie costume. The photo (below) is of me and Paula, again - believe it or not! The photo is of Saddam and I recreating the classic "climbing the man tree" romance novel cover pose :) However, as much as I liked that costume, about half of the party-goers had the same idea. This year I'm determined to have a "different" costume, and as I type this, I'm surrounded by the finishing touches of my costume. This year the theme is "Fantasy Island", but I'll keep my costume a surprise for now ;)<br />
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And now... for the<b> good news!</b><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGT9HyN5HUfDi95S4Pi50j-4WPK2JamJpvH9kx4v7oWepq3srVsUEk2-ft9SIRX0Rl_QGAUsKe2qkx1gWzruqF6aFMzmub902TJAm0KDuTmjBVTYMgVE59IA-brWwZ5qd3iwmFGUnPSNi3/s1600/arabiannights.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGT9HyN5HUfDi95S4Pi50j-4WPK2JamJpvH9kx4v7oWepq3srVsUEk2-ft9SIRX0Rl_QGAUsKe2qkx1gWzruqF6aFMzmub902TJAm0KDuTmjBVTYMgVE59IA-brWwZ5qd3iwmFGUnPSNi3/s320/arabiannights.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Climbing the man tree, 2009</td></tr>
</tbody></table>I woke up this morning to an email from <a href="http://www.charteroakromancewriters.org/contests.html">The Golden Acorn Contest</a> coordinator. I won my category!! This was a massive shock after my 5th placing, and no request, for The Great Beginnings contest.<br />
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And... the best bit (by far), is that this Harlequin editor's feedback was just lovely, and she has requested my partial. Hurrah!!!!!!<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"> Favourite bit of feedback: "</span><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">We felt there was real promise in this voice".</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span"></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span"></span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">Yippee!</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">So I guess what I've learnt from this is that even if one editor doesn't like my manuscript enough to request it (like with the Great Beginnings), it isn't necessarily the death of the manuscript.</span></span><br />
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Which is a relief :)<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-44125793837061436872010-07-26T13:42:00.000+08:002011-02-27T12:11:46.597+08:00Back to earth with a THUDIn the past week I've had a rather severe writing reality check. My multi-page rejection and then the win in the First Kiss (which I'd thrown together a few days prior to the closing date) had me in a rather arrogant state of mind. Surely finalling in contests and subsequent requests was now merely a formality?<br />
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Well, as it turns out - no it's isn't :) Is started off well - I've finalled in all the contests I've entered this year until the Clendon. And then I didn't final in the Clendon.<br />
<br />
Or get Highly Commended.<br />
Or even Commended.<br />
(BTW approx 25 people either finalled, were highly commended or commended) <br />
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I haven't come any less than 8th in a competition since 2007, so to not even be in the top 50% was a serious blow to my ego. It hurt. I also seriously regretted my Clendon posts - I mean, now blogland knows I failed! I suck, and my book sucks.<br />
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Fortunately, I got over that sookiness pretty quickly (thank you to my writing friends who dealt with my sookfest).<br />
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Then I found out my placing in a contest (that hasn't been formally announced yet). I didn't place - but that wasn't the problem. I didn't get a request :( So, this new book that has finalled in everything it's entered (okay, 3 contests, but "everything" sounds more impressive!) isn't worthy of even a request for a partial. Ouch.<br />
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But - I have a new plan:<br />
<ol><li>FINALLY finish partial and submit (I do have a request for it from the FK comp -I'll need to do a considerable re-write)</li>
<li>Start something new and enter <a href="http://www.romanceisnotdead.com/">Romance Is Not Dead</a></li>
</ol>Romance Is Not Dead terrifies me. I am a softie at the best of times, and potential public humiliation does not appeal. But - it will push me to write something new, and gives me a reward for finishing that damn partial.<br />
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With my new Humble Leah hat on, I don't expect to even final - I have no doubt that the competition will be huge and of a very high quality.<br />
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But still - worth a shot, right?Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-47581236504721286702010-07-17T22:39:00.000+08:002011-02-27T12:12:04.902+08:00No final :(I found out tonight that the finalists of the Clendon have been contacted, and as I haven't been contacted, I mustn't be a finalist :(<br />
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Oh well. I will need to re-write Book 1, one day, so it <b>will</b> get its chance to shine.Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-478348942756912734.post-22888344366960623772010-07-14T22:20:00.000+08:002011-02-27T12:12:04.903+08:00Waiting...checking...waitingNo, I'm not waiting on a sub, but the announcements of finalists for the <a href="http://romanceaustralia.wordpress.com/2009/12/17/raw-new-zealand-clendon-award/">RWNZ Clendon Award.</a> I wasn't going to even mention I'd entered, let alone that I've been desperately checking my email for the past week, just in case I jinxed things. But really, that's just dumb :) And the next best thing to knowing the finalists of the Clendon, is to talk about the Clendon :)<br />
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This year is the first time I entered, and in typical me style, entering it became a comedy of errors. I got the dates wrong, and so I <i>had</i> to post the manuscript on a Friday to ensure it arrived in time in New Zealand. So I woke up bright and early on Friday morning, and headed off to an Officeworks near my work that would be able to print two copies of my MS. I'd still get to work on time, easily.<br />
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I'm driving along, and notice a strange burning smell. But it comes and go, so I ignore it. I also notice that I seem to be gripping the steering wheel rather hard, as the car veers to the left, otherwise.<br />
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I ignore this, too.<br />
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Finally, when turning a tight corner, understanding dawns. I pull over to a very convenient church car park, and confirm the news - I have a (very) flat tyre. I am mechanically useless, so call my boyfriend (out on a bike ride and away from his phone), and then my dad. Dad is on his way to work and not far away, so comes and promptly saves me. Temporary spare in place, I go to Officeworks (complete with grease smear on my face that I notice after I get back into my car with printed manuscripts), and eventually get to work very late.<br />
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I need to get my tyre replaced as the temporary spare is not suitable for my drive home, so my lunch break is spent very impatiently waiting for a $350 tyre to be fitted (that was a horrifying discovery - who knew "sports" tyres cost so much?) and then zipping off to the post office to post my entry. Except the post office isn't where it used to be.<br />
<br />
So I drive to <i>another</i> post office (fortunately this one is still in existence) and my entry is finally - finally! - on its way.<br />
<br />
And here we are four months later. Desperately checking my email.<br />
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The reason I so hope that I final in this competition, is because it's my rejected book. I entered prior to my R, and I would love for it to have a last hurrah. Because it was rejected, I know it's probably silly to hope it finals - obviously the reasons it was rejected are very real.<br />
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But still, it's nice to hope that my first book - which will always be special to me - may get its chance to shine.Leah Ashtonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07541640223609201519noreply@blogger.com0