Well, folks. It was fun while it lasted.

As you can see, not much has been happening on this blog lately.

There are several reasons for this, but I will only hit on a couple:

First: It's amazing how much can change in a couple of months--both in our personal lives and on the writing front. A couple of us have signed publishing contracts, and so the need to write, edit, market, promote HAD to take preference over this blog and the services we were providing.

Second: Running this blog, critiquing submissions, providing feedback...well, that's a LOT of dang work. We weren't getting paid for this service. We had a concept and we went with it--for free--not realizing how much time it would involve with very little (nothing) in return for our effort.

Third: Probably the biggest factor that made us come to this decision, was the fact that a good portion of the submissions we received just weren't ready. They needed more revision. We were wanting to give out reviews on AMAZING, fully complete, well edited novels. 90% of what we received didn't come close.

So we've shut it down. We've moved on.

If you liked our comments and our posts, you can check us out on our individual blogs:

Angela Scott: www.whimsywritingandreading.weebly.com or @whimsywriting on twitter or http://www.facebook.com/AngelaScottWriter

D.S. Tracy:

Kacey Mark:

Monday, June 27, 2011

Kacey's Cupcake Weakness

Posted by Ready, Aim, Hook Me at 6:20 AM
I have a weakness. A cupcake weakness.  I have an enabler too.

My sister makes the best cupcakes in my whole little world, and since I’ve had the great privilege to spend more time with her, I get to spend more time feeding my addiction-and my waistline for that matter.

And the woman loves to experiment. From trendy to gourmet to classic,  no matter what she makes they always turn out to be single servings of heaven in liiiiiitle paper cups.

I’m not sure if it’s the sister factor that brings such comfort to my belly. Or if her technique stemmed from our childhood somehow, but her own technique—her own spin on things—always makes my mouth water.

Good stories are no different. I could just gobble them up! When I find that my favorite authors *ahem* Gena Showalter *ahem* has a new book out, I start to salivate. I might even forgo my tastealicious spiced chai just to afford it.

But how do cupcakes and good stories fit together?

Well, apart from the fact that I have finally managed to multitask both without getting crumbs in the binding, the creation process for cupcakes and stories are very similar.

I used to love watching Hell’s kitchen. It reminds me of the gauntlet we all face when seeking publication. Our Agents and editors are looking for a technique, a certain flavor if you will, and they simply will not take anything less than stunning. Looking at it from that angle, would we ever want them to?

 Would you as a reader want to forgo your spiced Chai for a mediocre novel? I wouldn't.

When I first heard someone say “there are no new stories”, I was so disappointed.
But my work HAD to be original. Right?

Then I thought of my sister’s cupcakes. Maybe my story isn’t entirely unique. It needs to be somewhat recognizable if you really want to entice.

Take for instance this lovely photo on the left. These weren't created by my sister. she might love to experiment but even SHE has limits.

What I'm trying to say is, if your creation is completely unrecognizable it becomes a hard sell. If the readers expect one thing but get another and it can turn their stomachs. 

But if you keep things familiar and alter the recipe juuust enough to make things your own, you get something fresh and new that just might translate into someone else’s weakness.

Like mine. These totally awesome strawberry cupcakes with strawberry butter cream frosting.


3 comments:

L.L. Muir on June 27, 2011 at 9:56 AM said...

I'm a Hell's Kitchen/Gordon Ramsay nut myself.

I think I can take the heat of publication too.

I wish everyone would remember the recognizable part as well. Original, but recognizable.

Sandy L. Rowland on June 27, 2011 at 6:47 PM said...

Great post. I've struggled with this myself.
I'm working on recognizable.
Sometimes simple is best.

Ready, Aim, Hook Me on June 28, 2011 at 7:01 AM said...

Thanks Sandy and Lesli for you comments. I'm glad you liked it :-)

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