I ran across this video recently when I was checking out writing advice on Youtube (I swear, you can find *anything* on Youtube) and was really intrigued with Howard Taylor’s class from last year’s LTUE (Like, The Universe, and Everything) symposium at BYU. I think it’s completely fascinating, and couldn’t agree more with him. This is a three-part lecture, but well worth the time to check out. I hope you find it as eye opening as I did. Even though the presentation was given at a writer’s conference, it’s not so much about writing as it is about having the guts and determination to meet your goals. When you finish this video, it’ll give you a link to the next one.

In other news, Rebound sales seem to be making a resurgence (I wish I knew why so I could keep it going!). I’ve sold over 100 copies to Bookscan stores in the past month alone, which is really decent considering it’s been out nearly a year, and the prior month’s sales were maybe twenty copies for both my books combined. The Ball’s in her Court has still managed to sell a couple copies a week as well, so it hasn’t completely disappeared.

Also, I’ve been super busy between work, my writing, and trying to get my Whitney Award reading done. I finished reading the mystery/suspense finalists last week (which were predictably awesome and going to be incredibly difficult to pick a winner), and am already making serious headway on the YA general list. I read Wolves, Boys, and Other Things That might Kill Me by Kirsten Chandler last night/this morning and was really impressed. I can’t wait to see what she comes out with next! I love discovering new writers, and I loved her character’s voice and the funny way she has of describing things.

I also laughed my way through Janette Rallison’s My Double Life, which had great characters, an engaging plot, and an ending that will have many a person flipping back to reread it. This should be no surprise, as Janette has long been one of my favorite writers and never fails to entertain.

My editing has been seriously falling by the wayside the past month, but I’m keeping up enough to provide something for my critique groups still, so I’m not being a total slacker. I’m going to get back to that soon. I plan to finish up this Whitney category and read the last one for the romance category by the end of the week, which will leave me with only eleven books to go, and another two months before the deadline–which should be oodles for me.