WIPs

I've begun a new WIP while my most recent manuscript percolates for edits.

The current story is my first attempt to specifically write for a publisher and one of their imprints. I have heard that doing so, and doing so well, can be a key for a first time author to get a foot in the door.

I'm not going to give away the title to this one though because I think it's far too clever and I'm paranoid enough to think it might be stolen. The plot has me smiling frequently throughout the day. I think I might be onto something with this one.

The manuscript is targeted to Silhouette's Desire line at 50-55 thousand words with a high powered alpha hero and a fiery, successful heroine to match. The Desire line is suited for characters with a larger than life conflict that is overcome in the end to bring them together.

I came up with the idea for reviving this plot (from a story I had worked on and discarded years ago) after Harlequin's Isabel Swift posted a Presents writing contest on her blog. It gave me the impetus to explore more fully the other lines the eHarlequin site had to offer. I tried on Harlequin Blaze and Presents for size, but found that the strong conflict I had in mind was a shoe-in for the Desire imprint.

In other news, I finished the previous WIP during National Novel Writing Month. I wrote my 50 thousand words and then some. Go me! I'm very proud of how quickly everything came together, and I'm excited to have learned how to write more quickly. Getting the ideas out there is the hardest part for me. I was able to turn off my internal editor and get some serious work done. I'm looking to make December's WIP a repeat performance in a quick dash to the first draft finish line.

Wish me luck!