I can’t believe she’s considering it, but evidently J.K. Rowling, wildly successful, and I think, superbly creative author of the Harry Potter books, just might be considering killing Harry off in the seventh and final book of the series. How can she do this to Harry? He’s a loveable underdog and hero of so many kids (and adults) around the world. These kids, who have diligently purchased and read and reread and discussed all six hefty tomes thus far, are going to be thus disappointed come book seven? Even if He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named perishes alongside Harry and the evil followers shrivel into nothingness, that will not be an acceptable trade. Rowling says she understands how someone might kill off the main character in a popular series to prevent unauthorized sequels and storylines, but doesn’t she think we’ll all know the difference? I say let the hangers-on do their best (or worst) to try to keep up with Harry’s life.

After all, Jane Austen and her characters have inspired countless new storylines, sequels, and off-shoots. And all that’s happened is that Jane herself is more popular than ever.

I say, let the poor boy live!

Read the article, see an interview clip here…

Hello?
Is anybody actually reading this blog? I have grand imaginings that I have oodles of readers poring over my spotty but thought-provoking entries, too in awe or overwhelmed to comment. But then my pragmatic self takes over and I wonder if I have more than a single, occasional reader (check the comment logs for past blogs).

Maybe nobody is reading this, and maybe blogging is a time drain, but I like it anyway. Sure days go by and I forget to post, but then I think of three or four topics I’d like to expound upon. I can rant, rave, whatever, and pretend that my voice is being heard. True, I should probably be writing, but hey, this is writing.

I’m slowly working my way through Self Editing for Fiction Writers, and I have to admit it’s good, but mostly I’m just going, ‘Yeah, I knew that’. That said, it’s nice to have it repeated, because I just can’t seem to get these tips ingrained into my subconscious. I’m a revision freak. I should write my first draft, all the way to the end, without stopping for revisions, but I don’t. I shouldn’t give in to that little voice in my head that says, ‘What if the heroine had this little quirky habit?’, but I do. I shouldn’t rethink, rework, and rewrite my first chapter a kazillion times, but I can’t help myself. That first line, first paragraph, first page is sooooo important, I want it to be great, funny, intriguing, inspiring. No wonder my work in progress is not making all that much noticeable progress.

Another summer project…I’m scoping out websites to get ideas and see what I like to redesign my own site. So any suggestions would be great. I’m looking for a clean, fresh, updated look that could work for contemporary romantic comedy or light-hearted historicals.

Come on….speak up! I can’t hear you…

No, I’m not talking about raising children, although if anyone has a spare village, send the villagers over, and I’ll put ’em to work. Or rather, the boys will. I’m talking about writing a book and then getting it published. Certainly I could self-publish anything I want. I can write what I want, slap on a cover, and then attempt to market and sell it (not to say that my first attempt was in any way slipshod). But I’d have trouble. There are so many books out there right now that bookstores can’t stock all of them and you may not be able to find the ones you’re looking for. There are so many people who want to write, who want to become published authors, that the competition is fierce. And these people are smart and savvy–they’re doing their homework.

There have always been classes, conferences, and critique groups, but now there are blogs. Blogs about absolutely everything. Published authors (or soon-to-be-published authors) are writing about their books, but they’re also blogging about writing techniques, and navigation strategies in the tricky world of publishing. Agents are blogging, giving insider tips on how to fine-tune your manuscript and really understand the nature of the business. Even booksellers are blogging with their unique perspective. Everyone has an idea of where the industry is going and what it needs. Everyone has their own idea of what craft techniques work best. Everyone wants to tell you which rules simply can’t be broken, and then everyone ooh’s and aah’s over someone who broke them.

I’m learning so much from all the generous, kind-hearted souls that take the time to blog and answer questions, but I almost feel as if I should take a hiatus from my recently diagnosed blog addiction. Maybe I should just write and see what works for me. I’m supposed to be writing: my debut was published in Dec. ’04, so we’re right at a year and a half, and the second one is not done yet. Not surprisingly, some recent advice has spurred me to tighten the first several chapters, so I’m back to editing. I also have Self-Editing for Fiction Writers on my nightstand, so I’ll need to see where that takes me. Add to that the four fiction books I have out from the library that I’m dying to dig into–for research purposes…. There is simply not enough time in the day.

If only I had a village to raise my kids…