Wednesday, December 31, 2014

1st January and the rest of the year.

There’s a saying. that whatever you do on the 1st January, you’ll be doing for the rest of the year.

Today, seduced by Target’s advertising material, 1st January saw me joining others looking for great bargains.

Normally, you’ll find me shopping only after I’ve broken the last chipped cup and need a replacement desperately. Consequently, shops are unfamiliar territory to me.

After spending three times as much time as any other shopper would, I eventually located what I wanted.

By this time my husband, sitting on a comfortable seat waiting for me, was exhausted, so we dropped in at the Coffee Club at Kippa-Ring.

I avoid franchised establishments, but as the Coffee Club is an Australian franchise (please don’t tell me it’s not) we had a drink and shared a piece of cake.

Not to temp fate further, I intend to spend the rest of the day doing nothing.

Here is a picture of the two men in my life doing what comes naturally.
Guess which one is my favourite?

Saturday, December 20, 2014

Seeking Publisher

Writing a book? Here’s a suggested guidelines for the word count in the various genre taken from http://www.literaryrejections.com/word-count/
Literary / Commercial / Women’s: 80,000 to 110,000 – These genres vary greatly in how their stories are told, but not in how many words are used to tell them. There are few exceptions of published debut novels not falling between these strict markers. The adherence to this is never more tested than when a writer pushes the limit to the full 110k or beyond. The upper marker is still accepted but will almost certainly be cut by an editor should the writer secure a deal. A literary agent will always look more favourable on these genre submissions being around the 100k mark.
Crime Fiction: 90,000 to 100,000 – The page-turning demands and competitive market enforce a word count which it is advisable to comply to.
Mysteries / Thrillers / Suspense: 70,000 to 90,000 – The variation covers Cozy Mysteries which can clock in at just 70-75k, to noir and historical which are often published at 80-90k.
Romance: 40,000 to 100,000 – Since it has many sub-genres this genre can vary greatly depending on the story. Regency Romance, Inspirational Romance, Romantic Suspense and Paranormal Romance all have a minimum of 40k. But for mainstream romance novels the parameters are between 70K and 100K.
Fantasy: 90,000 to 100,000 – One of the few genres with some leeway in first approach submissions, since many literary agents know publishers who will happily accept 120K. This is not to say one should aim for that higher count. But if a writer queries with 110k it will not be rejected on word count alone.
Paranormal: 75,000 to 95,000 – Although commonly entwined with other genres, standalone fiction in this genre is best when it is concise. Literary agents and publishers will allow flexibility when the story merits it, but for debut manuscripts it is best to refrain from anything above the industry standard.
Horror: 80,000 to 100,000 – A writer must be as ruthless with their words, as their antagonist is with the lives within the story. For if a grip on the reader is lost by overly long descriptions and digressions, the very tension which drives this genre fizzles out. Never go beyond the 100k limit without first checking with a freelance editor for revisions.
Science-Fiction: 90,000 to 125,000 – Encompassing many sub-genres results in a flexibility across the genre that is not often given to the others. Many publishers will accept works in the higher bracket and even beyond. While literary agents are open to submissions far below 90K, they will usually lean more towards those within the requirements because they know the devoted readers of this genre do not mind an epic read.
Historical: 100,000 to 120,000 – A genre rich with historical events means writers are afforded the luxury of an extended word count. However, writers who edit down to a 100k submission increase their chances of being read beyond the partials.
Young Adult Fiction (YA): 50,000 to 80,000 – This particular genre has become one of the hardest for writers to grasp when deciding on their own word count. This is due in large part to the variety of sub-genres within it and the trend for a book series with an ever greater word count. But for mainstream YA it is always best to stick to under 80K.
New Adult Fiction: 60,000 to 85,000 – Coined by the industry for the industry meant the requirements could be defined from the outset. Going above 85K still happens, but those for that do, they are giving a literary agent an easy reason to reject them.
Middle Grade: 25,000 to 40,000 – Such a tight restraint can be beneficial to a writer because it allows them to demonstrate their ability to edit accordingly. For debut books in this field the average word count tends to be 35K and it has therefore become the marker many industry professionals look for in queries from new writers.
Picture Books: 500 to 700 – When this is applied it equates to one or two lines per page, for a 30 page book. The one main advantage this genre has over every other is that literary agents and publishers will accept the full text with the initial query. There is no need for partials.
Novella: 20,000 to 50,000 – A story can be written in any of the other genres, but if its word count falls within these parameters it is usually classified as a novella.
Non-Fiction: 70,000 to 110,000 – Covering a broad range of topics still sees little variation in the size of published books. Although there is not a requirement for the work to be complete before an initial query, this is the word count literary agents want projected and delivered.
Short Stories: 1000 to 8,000 – Many contests will advise on their own maximum word count, sometimes as high as 20K. But those requests are extremely rare, as the majority will set a limit of 8K.

Friday, December 5, 2014

Wedding at Home

I have celebrated many weddings, but this morning I celebrated the very first wedding at my Redcliffe home.

It reminded me of the very first wedding I conducted as an appointed celebrant. It also took place in my home at Kingaroy, and I have to say I was more nervous than the bride and groom. And there were exactly five of us there. Bride and groom and two witnesses - one of whom I knew personally as she worked in my husband’s public accounting office.

Whether at my own home, or at the home of the bride and groom or their friends’, I find such weddings very satisfying. There is less hoopla about them, and more ease of manner and genuineness of feelings.

At one such weddings one of the guests shot a video of the wedding ceremony. Afterwards we all watched a reply of it on the television screen. Lots of fun and laughter at the expressions of some of the guests unaware of the roving video-taker.

Sunday, November 16, 2014

Wedding by the Sea

As I live on a peninsula, many of the weddings I celebrate take place by the sea.

My most recent beach wedding involved a bride with a Scottish background and the wedding itself had a Scottish theme which included a Scottish Piper.

The celebratory spot chosen was decorated with an arch, chairs for guests, table and chairs for the signing of the legal documents, and a red carpet for the bride and groom.

Once the groomsmen and the bridesmaids were in place, the Scottish Piper, walking in front of them, piped in the bride and her father. He then remained standing beside the groomsmen throughout the wedding ceremony itself.

He piped during the signing of the documents which usually takes about five minutes.

As in the processional, so in the recessional, the Piper walked down the red carpet, followed by the bride and groom, their attendants, and lastly by the guests.

If you’re planning a wedding on the beach, and don’t want your guests dying of heat exhaustion, check out my book ‘1,000+ Answers to Your Wedding Questions’ which gives you details on setting the scene in a variety of different settings, as well as the enactment of various cultural rituals. You will find the book on Smashwords and Amazon.

Check out the different ways you can Celebrate your Wedding and how to begin planning your Wedding Day.

Saturday, November 1, 2014

Book Launch

On the 1st November, at Bribie Island Art Gallery, it was my pleasure to attend book launch of Thea Fietje’s first book, ‘Someone’s Father, Someone’s Son: A Woman’s Journey’.

Celebrating the event were Thea’s many friends from the Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast, and everywhere in between.

I was lucky to receive a lift to beautiful Bribie Island and back from John Mills, a retired, but a very busy minister from North Lakes.

Amidst a lot of laughter and reminisces of Thea’s adventures life, as well as fabulous food and drinks, we were given a reading by the author herself.


You can find out more about Thea and her book

Friday, October 17, 2014

Most Popular Honeymoon

Honeymoon destinations sometimes spell the end of a fairy love story, instead of the beginning.

In ‘Niagara’, a 1953 movie, Marilyn Monroe decides to end her marriage to Joseph Cotton -  permanently.

In those days Niagara Falls was the Honeymoon destination. Not as popular these days, it still draws its share of honeymooning couples.

One of the great moments of the movie is Marilyn Monroe’s famous walk. Spoken of as the longest walk in cinematographic history, it has Marilyn walking away from the audience in that swaying motion which earned her a lot of whistles.

If you’ve ever wondered how she perfected that sexy sway - no, it wasn’t in a modelling class - check out my book ‘Honeymoon! A Sizzle or a Fizzle? Prepare Mentally, Physically and Emotionally for the Best Time of Your Life’.

Thursday, August 28, 2014

Men Who Loved Women

Men have loved women for all sorts of things.

The true women lovers like Casanova and Don Giovanni loved women simply because they were women. Both believed in quantity rather than quality; did not differentiate between the blonde and the brunette, the small and the tall, the slim or the statuesque. As long as she was a woman, they fell in love with her at the drop of a pin.

If one is to believe Don Giovanni, over his life-span he had met and loved 640 women and girls in Italy, 231 in Germany, 100 in France, 91 in Turkey, and 1,003 in Spain.

The more picky lovers are different.

Did you know, for example that the famous American author of ‘The Great Gatsby’ loved women’s feet? He literally wanted to throw himself at the feet of a woman who had beautiful feet - no matter who she was and where she came from.

Byron, apparently, was a collector of women’s hair, so presumably that cut out women who lacked hair, or didn’t have any to spare.

But, here’s a shock. That mathematician and philosopher Rene Descartes, at one stage, appears to have had a thing for cross-eyed women, This has resulted in that joke, ‘Gentlemen prefer blondes, philosophers prefer cross-eyed women’.

However, this peculiarity, in the long run, led Descartes to formulate his monumental theory of free will. How did he get from crossed-eyes to free will? I guess you need to be a philosopher to work that one out.