Blog

  • The Word Count Issue

    In the traditional publishing world, word count for young adult novels is all over the place. The Twilight Saga books are each over 100,000 words. Books like Kate Brian’s Private series are more around the 65,000-75,000 word count. Most websites and agents place a typical YA manuscript between 45,000-80,000 words. Here is what Agent Colleen Lindsay says about YA: YA fiction = For mainstream YA, anywhere from about 45k to 80k; paranormal YA or YA fantasy can occasionally run as high as 120k but editors would prefer to see them stay below 100k. The second or third in a particularly…

  • My Write-a-palooza Rewards!

    I had a fun shopping day today at the Sanrio store in the Crabtree Valley Mall here in Raleigh! I spent almost exactly $84, lol, so there will be no HK collectipaks for me, but that’s okay. I’m super excited about what I bought!! Here’s a pic of my swag: I bought one of the new Hello Kitty canvas tote bags. It’s big enough to put my netbook in and some folders and pens, but it also fits over my shoulder, which is nice. I also got that cute HK t-shirt, three buttons (that I’ll probably put on my shoulder…

  • I did it!!

    It’s just shy of 2:00 AM and I’m calling it. Write-a-palooza is officially over! Originally, I started with a word count yesterday afternoon of 10,593 words. I was feeling down about how far behind I was on my rough draft, but now, I can say that I’m right back on track. Yesterday, I ended with a total word count of 15,644, meaning I wrote just over 5,000 words yesterday. Today, I ended with a grand total of 25,658 words!!! That means I wrote a total of 10,013 words today, with a 2 day total of 15,065 words. Wow! I don’t…

  • Pre-Palooza

    My pre-write-a-palooza is officially over since I’m heading to bed. I wrote exactly 5021 words tonight! That’s actually quite impressive since I also took time to work out. I’m definitely happy with that number! So, according to my husband’s rules for write-a-palooza, that gives me an added 5 packs to the 5,000 word reward tomorrow, bringing it up to 8 packs of the HK trading cards (or $24). The 10K reward now goes up an additional 10 packs for a whopping total of 20 packs (or $60) plus the 5k reward since I win both if I make it to 10,000…

  • WRITE-A-PALOOZA

    I am now officially embarking on a me only write-a-palooza. I’m way behind on my rough draft work for DEMONS FOREVER. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been thinking about it ALL the time, but the thinking has only translated so far into about 11,000 words. My self-imposed deadline now to finish the rough draft is September 5th, which is only 13 days away. I’ve got to get crackin! So over lunch today, my husband suggested a fun challenge for me. Since he is, after all, my muse, he likes to find ways to encourage and motivate me. And since he knows…

  • Guest Interview at Cabinet of Curiosities

    Hi everyone! I’m coming out of deep writing mode to say hello and let you know that I have was interviewed by the fabulous writers at Cabinet of Curiosities today. My guest interview is up, so please stop by, ask questions, say hello and learn more about me! Their questions were really fun and I got to say a lot about myself and my writing, so I hope you’ll join us on their blog today! Interview with Indie Author Extraordinaire Sarra Cannon!