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Maxwell Huxley’s Demon – Makes Me Feel Great!

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 4 Comments

I don’t usually post on Saturday, but I’m excited and wanted to share my happy moment.

Maxwell Huxley’s Demon, written by Michael Conn, came out in paperback a few weeks ago. You many know this is my brother’s debut novel and it’s sensational.

I’ve read the e-book version of the novel, but wanted my own copies to save. So I ordered  them and they arrived.

Here’s the good bit. To my surprise, I read the dedication.

For Kristina, my cheerleader, my editor, my sister.

That’s me! Wow! I am so flattered and honoured to be mentioned in this way.

Here’s the blurb to wet your appetite:

In MAXWELL HUXLEY’S DEMON, when nine-year-old Maxwell Huxley and three others break free from their mountain-top “school” for gifted children – a place where kids mysteriously vanish when they turn ten – a fantastical chase around the world begins. Pursuing answers and freedom, Max unintentionally creates a new world: a world where friends and family meet their demons, where artificial beings come to life, and where nanotechnology is indistinguishable from magic. Maxwell pays a heavy price to discover what he was bred for.

One part Ender, one part Bourne, and a dash of Harry.

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FARLEY GOES TO THE DOG PARK

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 4 Comments

Dog parks are a great place for dogs to play and socialize with other dogs. Farley, our wheaten terrier, travels often. He’s covered the east coast of the US 5 times, driven from Panorama BC to Ottawa, ON,  and driven from Ottawa to Winnipeg 6 times.

You get the idea . . . he travels a lot. This means he is often at a dog park where he’s the unknown dog.

We’ve had some great experiences and some not so great.

One of our favourite dog parks in Delaware, USA.

The one issue we look out for is a dog park that doesn’t have a lot of transient dogs. We’ve found that a park full of dogs that aren’t used to a new comer can be a problem. Farley has been the recipient of aggressive, territorial behaviour.

I’ve learnt when entering a new park for the first time, to talk to the other dog owners and see what works best for introducing our pup to others. We’re the newcomers so we need to adapt to the others. After that, it’s all fun and games.

This week Farley is representing a dog park the he’s never been to, but has friends in the neighbourhood. The Doylestown Dog Park has posted Farley’s photo as their cover photo. Check it out if you get the chance.

Novel Titles – What’s in a name?

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 6 Comments

It’s always exciting receiving feedback from my agent. This time it was about the title of my  2nd novel.

The working title for my second Kalin Thompson Mystery novel was The Final Gate. I loved it. My agent’s editor had a different view.

I thought I’d share the very politely worded comment regarding the title. Here it is . . .

It might, however, need a new title because the present one could be confused with “The Western Gate,” or the aboriginal term for the entrance to the afterlife…

I’d put a lot of thought into the title, ran it by my readers, friends and family, and still there is more to learn.  But . . . I’d rather know now that the title might be the wrong one.

Where am I going with this? You may have noticed I updated my site with a new title for The Final Gate. The new title is:

Descent

I’m excited about the new title and also excited to get feedback to make my novel better before it gets sent to a publisher.

Isn’t the saying something like, SO much to learn . . . SO little time.

Thanks to my agent, Margaret Hart, and her team for helping me through this process.

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Dog Papers for the Bahamas

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 9 Comments

Heading to the Bahamas again this fall means a lot of prep work has to happen. This includes getting our dog ready for cruising.

Farley, our wheaten terrier, needs his papers to enter the Bahamas. This winter will be his fourth time in the Bahamas and he’s getting used to the routine.

To get his papers, I mailed our application, along with $10 to the Bahamas. Once they receive this and are happy, they mail back permission papers. I bring these with me when we visit the customs office upon entry into the country.

Farley had to have his rabies, distemper, etc. shots and he’ll have to see a vet right before we cross the gulf stream. The Bahamians require that he has a health certificate right before entry. This can be tricky because usually we are waiting for a weather window to cross the Gulf Stream, and we’re never sure until the last-minute whether we are going to cross.

So far we’ve been lucky and been able to get an appointment with a vet in Florida on short notice. Once I explain what we are doing, I’ve found the vet’s office are happy to sneak us in for a quick visit.

Why do we do all this? So Farley can to this . . .

 

Correct Word Choice

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 6 Comments

 

So I’m a woman and you’d think I’d know the difference between woman and women.

I took a month off this summer from writing. I spent the time at the cottage with family and dogs having a wonderful time. Before I left for the cottage, I’d written about 40,000 words of my fourth novel, Look the Other Way.

After my return and before getting back to writing, I decided I’d better read what I’d written.

If you haven’t taken time away from a novel you’re writing, it’s an amazing experience. I was surprised and pleased by what I’d written. Well, with most of it anyway.

This brings me back to woman/women. I know how to use this word correctly, and yet, I found 2 places where I’d used it incorrectly.

Stepping away from the novel for a while and then reading it again, made these errors jump out at me. I’d be embarrassed if I, as a woman, sent this to anyone to read, and hadn’t caught the error.

Do you have a word your hands seem to want to type the wrong way?

 

Ending a Scene

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 9 Comments

So here I am again, adding a new column to my spreadsheet. Honestly, I don’t know how anyone can write a novel without an ever-evolving spreadsheet.

Previously, I blogged about Starting a Novel Scene and Before the Story Begins, and I don’t know why I didn’t notice at the time, but perhaps I should be checking how I end each scene.

I believe variety will help make a novel more interesting to read, so I added a new spreadsheet column called The Ending.

It contains one of four entries

  • Action
  • Dialogue
  • Thought
  • Narrative

The first draft is written without thinking about this. I want to write what comes naturally, and I want the story to flow.

But once the first draft is complete, it’s time to use various techniques to ensure the novel is as good as possible. This is when I check whether the scenes end in different ways. If all the scenes end with narrative for example, the novel might be tedious to read.  This is a less artistic part of the process, but no less important to the end product.

Anyone else have spreadsheet tips they want to share?

Puppy Love

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 12 Comments

 

I couldn’t resist posting this photo.  Kids, dogs and toys are a great mix. Bringing home two new puppies on the same day almost four years ago was a happy moment day. What more could anyone want?

 

Can you find . . .

Farley (Wheaten Terrier – 9 weeks old)

Piper (Border Terrier – 8 weeks old)

Murphy (Rottweiler – 4 years old)

 

One Family – Two Publishing Strategies

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 6 Comments

The big question is: to self publish or go with a traditional publisher. #writetip #writing

My brother has just published his first novel: Maxwell Huxley’s Demon. He chose the self-publishing route. His book is available both in paperback and as an e-book.

Some say this is the easy route. After watching the amount of work Mike put into this, I don’t believe that’s true. He went through the same vigorous process of editing and proofing, of finding beta readers, of taking feedback. He found YA readers to comment before he published, making sure he had feedback from his target audience.

I decided on the traditional route and have an agent. Margaret Hart at the HSW Literary Agency is representing my work. This route involves the same amount of work my brother’s chosen route.

Mike and I are watching each other and learning from both processes. What we did learn is that we both love writing, so no matter what option you chose, if you love to write, the end result is you have created a novel. While we watch, scheme, plan and wait, hoping that Mike’s book takes off and mine gets published, we continue to write. That’s what this is all about.

Renewed Enthusiasm

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 4 Comments

Do you ever take a break from writing?

Sometimes a little break can refresh the imagination. Usually I write everyday, but this month I made a change to my routine. I’ve spent four weeks traveling with family, including 3 kids and 3 dogs. This consumed my time. I decided at the beginning of the trip that I was going to take them time off just to enjoy the moments.

Now that I’m close to getting home, I can’t wait to get writing again. I can feel my fingers typing and the story building. I think a break once in a while is good for the creative process.

Summer Exercise for Dogs

~ Kristina Stanley ~ 9 Comments

If you can get your dogs near water, it’s a great way to exercise them without over heating them.

Farley (Wheaten Terrier – 4 years old) loves to dive.

Piper (Border Terrier – 4 years old) is learning to swim. She tries not to go too far out. At the beginning, she wouldn’t even put her paws in the water, so we’re making progress.

Murphy’s (Rottweiler – 8 years old) big breakthrough was stepping on the back of the boat. Farley had to show him it was okay.

Each dog has their own fears and limitation and it’s up to us to figure out what they are and give them the opportunity to overcome them and enjoy the water.