May 29, 2007: Too Much, Too Soon, Too Fast
No more news for May, even though lots is going on. I hope to be back on Monday, June 4th after this hectic week is over. A newsletter will be going out soon, so sign up if you want the early scoop.
May 24, 2007: My Favorite Month (so far)
Either nothing or everything happens at once. Today a book signing, a newspaper ad, a new website for my other writing and sale news happened. The book signing is on for July 7th at the Marina del Rey Barnes & Noble, the ad will running starting tomorrow in La Opinion for the Feria del Libro on June 2nd, the new website will be by the same designer who whipped this one up and will be for my literary and short story work (written as Maria A. Del Toro because doesn't that sound like a more serious name?) and I don't want to jinx anything about the other thing so that's all I'll say about it for now. If you want the full scoop, sign up for my newsletter which will be going out next week. In the meantime, my agent asked me to polish up an outline/synopsis for a YA project so I'm putting my rewrite on the back burner, or at least until Tuesday when I promised to have it in to her. And I also have my junior high trip to look forward to on the 31st. Which I so am! I plan to visit my locker (I still have dreams about not being able to open) and I'll be having a school lunch so prepare yourself for lots of pictures.
May 22, 2007: No New News
Still waiting for word on Missed Connections and Project Quince, but it looks to be a busy summer in front of the computer for me. Not that I had plans to take an actual vacation, but I'll be easing up on the talks and such to concentrate on getting manuscripts in shape and out the door. Plus, I have the whole get the word out on Life Over Easy in the next few months. Nothing sexy about it, folks, but it's got to get done.
May 18, 2007: Fresh Eyes
I've guilted my sister into reading the page proofs for Life Over Easy. She's much better at spelling, grammar and punctuation than I am. (She's the person I go to when I have questions so I trust her. She also got me through my very basic Algebra classes and I wouldn't have graduated college without her tutoring.) All I have to do to get her to go through all 314 pages of the manuscript is to ply her with homemade baked goods. A small price to pay. Plus, cooking is relaxing for me. (It's the cleaning up part that's a bitch.) As for my eyes, they'll be busy working on a rewrite of a novel I hope to get done by the end of the month. And to help that process along, I'm going to the optometrist to get my peepers checked today. I'm sure that'll make all the difference in the world.
May 16, 2007: Proof Pages
My friendly FedEx guy just dropped off page proofs for Life Over Easy. (Dude, sorry about the dog nipping at you.) Now it's my job to go through it page by page, line by line to make sure the edits I made and the copy editor slaved over are in the almost final layout. I'm actually looking forward to it since it gives a sense that I have some control over this whole process.
May 12, 2007: Still Waiting
I'm holding off sending my Spring newsletter in hopes that I can include good news on Missed Connections, my third novel. So far things look not bleak but I've been through the submission process to know nothing is definite until the book is on store shelves. If it happens I'll be relieved and happy as this story is a bit more ambitious for me and (dare I say it) almost romantic. Or as romantic as I can get.
May 10, 2007: Another Blurb Request
Wendy Nelson Tokunaga has asked me to blurb her novel Midori by Midnight (St. Martin's Press/October 2007) and I immediately said yes. Wendy was the brains and brawn behind forming the San Francisco Sunday Cafe Writers Club way back in 2004. We still meet, in person and via email, and this fall we'll be blitzing the Bay Area with group book signings, readings and a book party for the members who have been published since that first meeting. (At last count there were six of us, not bad for an original group of 12.) Stay tuned for more news.
May 09, 2007: Waiting and Writing
I've sent off the Missed Connections partial and now all I can do is wait and hope it's tasty enough for Sulay to want to go to bat for it. Getting a book through the various levels at a publishing house is not an easy task but one I can make a whole lot less painful by making sure what I submit is what it should be the first time. Also, I've had fashion and identity on the brain and LatinoLA.com has been kind enough to run my essay on it.
May 07, 2007: Polish and Flats
I'm done with polishing the partial for Missed Connections and, since I have until Wednesday to turn it in, have suddenly deemed it necessary to bring the page count from 88 to 100. Plus, I'm really into the story and it would dumb for me to stop working on it. Megan at Kensington sent me a small stack of cover flats for Life Over Easy and it's official, I LOVE the cover. There is an issue here and there with that and that, but I'm hoping it'll all be worked out in the near future.
May 03, 2007: Email Glow
I got two good ones within the hour. The first was from Wendy at La Opinion, the biggest Spanish daily here in Los Angeles, inviting me to be a guest at their booth for the June 2 Feria Del Libro: Family Book Fair held at City Hall. Of course I said yes. (More details on the Contact page.) Second one was from Sulay Hernandez late of Kensington and now at Touchtone Fireside. She read my proposal for Missed Connections and loves it but...So I'm taking care of that but right after I finish this. (Fingers uncrossed because I need to do some fast typing.)
May 02, 2007: A Very Good Cause
I'll be the mistress of ceremonies for the Lummis Day Cinco de Mayo Benefit this Saturday at Heritage Square Museum. They'll be music, food and readings by local writers and poets and a silent auction to raise funds for Lummis Day: The Festival for Northeast Los Angeles on June 3rd. Show up early, at 5:45, for a tour of the houses before the fun starts.
May 01 , 2007: Lost Holiday
It's May 1st and the rest of the world's Labor Day. Around here I've been plodding along and was happy to hear from Jenoyne, my agent, yesterday with some interesting developments on the fate of Missed Connections. Nothing to report yet, but I've upgraded my hopes from having none to a glimmer. Fingers crossed. (Which kind of makes writing hard.)
