I finished my first round of developmental edits for my latest novel: Ashfield Estate– a YA mystery that plays with the classic boarding school trope but adds elements of horror, dystopia and satire.
Although I have a ways to go before it reaches the query stage, I have completed my second book!
It is now in the capable hands of my editor. Which in my mind, is the equivalent of handing over a jumble of tangled chains to someone and waiting for them to return necklaces.
I’m hoping this book is the one. It’s leaner, it’s meaner and I think I’ve learned and grown as a writer in the process.
I feel it’s been forever since I last posted here, because it has been. This is the longest damn year ever. And it’s only half done.
I miss being here and feeling like I have something to say. Something to share. I kept waiting for something amazing to happen, something to shout from the rooftops…
I have no such thing. And I’ve decided that’s okay. Being okay right now is okay. It’s the most okayist thing in the world. Are you okay?
I’m okay. I’m here without rooftop shouting news because in the end, it’s all about the journey. Welcome back on my ride.
To update, My querying redux started with a bang of requests and excellent feedback from agents… until Covid 19 swept over our nation. Then suddenly, my voice seemed too dark.
I can’t control this. This is bigger and more vital that any book. A lot of things are right now…
But I won’t give up either. On my 2 year blog-versary, I’ve come too far to give up. And this isn’t a race. I’ve stepped back to work on new stories and evaluate the right avenue for my publishing venture. One way or another, I’ll get there when I get there .
And I’m gonna be better about talking about it. Writing, as we all know, can be very isolating. Community makes us strong. I need to grab hold again and not let go. Words are too important.
Which leads to my last note in this long overdue update.
Words are important. More important? Voices that need to be heard.
I want to state, unequivocally, my support for Black Lives Matter. Although this is not my narrative, I will forever be changed by the magnitude of this moment. Silence is complicity, and I want to be a better ally to the Black Community. Nothing is more vital. We must do better. The future of humanity depends on it. So please-Do the work. Listen, learn, accept, speak up, stand.
To all my dear WPs, ✌️💛 from the bottom to the top.
Hey my WPs! I have exciting news and an even more exciting opportunity to share.
I have joined EVERY WRITERS RESOURCE as a section editor and art director.
http://www.everywritersresource.com is the premier resource for all things writing. From conception to publishing, Everywriter is there to help you on your writing journey.
Everywriter is also the place to read amazing stories, articles, short fiction, poetry, and see top artists from around the world.
Wanna be a part of it?
Check us out to see the revamped site that has been a go-to resource for 15 YEARS!!!
If you are interested in having your artwork featured on Everywriter please email me!!
Amy@everywritersresource.com
Please send me a link to your website/art page or email me 10-15 images directly.
If you are selected for Everywriter, please have your bio, high Rez images ready to email.
Questions? Drop me a line at the same email.
Everything featured on our site belongs to you. Your artwork and stories are yours and will be credited clearly as such. We are here to showcase talent. Previously published works are considered.
For questions about poetry eds@everywritersresource.com
For questions about fiction Jon@everywritersresource.com
Heres to another installment of Amy’s Vent-sesh poetry for the chronically stressed. Come commiserate with me my WPs!
It falls so fine you cannot see.
Down, down.
Softly, slowly.
Bask in the translucent blush, watch the sheen as it shimmers down.
Down, down.
Softly, slowly.
Coat after coat, dust to dust, bury me down.
One effervescent sheet at a time, bury me down.
Caked in layers you cannot see.
Down, down.
Softly slowly, softly slowly, until there is nothing left of me.
Today’s super satisfying vent sesh is brought to you by my immense guilt of not editing my book.
But. I opened the file yesterday made some notes and am prepared to finally start. April’s gonna be my month!
I will no longer bury my passion project and guilt myself about it. I have plenty of other things to stress about. THIS SHALL NO LONGER BE ONE OF THEM.
As a mother and child care provider, this a subject deeply important to me. I don’t often discuss polarizing subjects on the blog, so if this offends you in any way…
“Where words fail, music speaks.” ― Hans Christian Andersen
I’ve hit a number of writer blocks in the years since I began writing Capture the Tide. And an interesting thing I noticed, about myself, is it wasn’t so much that I didn’t have an idea. But I couldn’t find the mood. I remember driving in my car and listening to the radio. And this song came on, I liked it so much I bought it for a buck 29 on iTunes! Anyway, why did I like it….. as I listened, an entire scene unfolded in my head, it was everything I needed. I simply needed to feel the feeling, hear it, away from the sterile blue light of a computer screen. The intense rawness of new love, of being young and totally impetuous. It’s so easy to forget those feelings when your day’s full of toddlers or you’re feverishly typing notes into your phone between ballet classes and lunch time.
I should note that if you find yourself having those wondrous feelings, enjoy them, please don’t stop to write them down for fucks sake!
Paid book reviews and the independent or emerging author.
Is it worth the cost or the effort? Good question. Here’s my take.
I entered the Readers Choice Awards Contest the last day of the deadline. My book wasn’t finished by my editor yet but I really wanted to find some literary street cred and based on my research, this contest is the real deal. Not only do they judge completed works, they also judge unpublished works. Exactly what I needed. For more info go to http://www.readersfavorite.com
Needless to say. I did not win the contest. If you’ve followed my blog for some time, you’ll know I’ve had my fair share of rewrites since I started my journey and my book is a different book today. However… I did submit an updated manuscript to be reviewed and got a really nice 5 star review for my novel CAPTURE THE TIDE. I will post the review below. I’m pretty pleased with it.
Now, some people might think that a paid review is meaningless. You’ve probably seen them on Amazon or something, but it doesn’t mean that all paid reviews are equal and that they don’t have value. As an emerging writer, I see no reason not to take opportunities that give you legitimacy. Everyone knows that a strong platform pays. Agents love a platform, and even better? A platform with a healthy following. And I’m working on that here. I don’t have staggering numbers like some literary bloggers, but I am pleased with the growth of my website and blog. But up until now I have mostly talked about my writing process and managing mom life with entrepreneuring, I haven’t actually discussed my book itself with much detail. And I think its time to change that. So for the first time on http://www.amy-westphal.com I’d like to use my professional review to share a taste of what CAPTURE THE TIDE is all about.
Readers Favorite Book review for CAPTURE THE TIDE by Amy Westphal
Reviewed By Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Readers’ Favorite
“Life is ugly, gritty, complicated, glorious, and beautiful. But not pretty. Stories are pretty, saccharin tales of black and white and no gray.” It takes Lauren a remarkable journey of discovery to learn those simple truths about life and about humanity as a whole. There will always be the good and the bad, the glorious and the evil, the happy and the sad. Even with a fresh start, a cleansing if you will, humanity will always recover with the same mix and make the same mistakes. When an asteroid hits Lauren’s world, it takes away her home, her family, her life. She has to start again. But she is not alone. And once she discovers that simple fact, she is able to fit together again the pieces of the puzzle that disrupted her life and will create her new life.
Amy Westphal’s novel, Capture the Tide, is more than an Armageddon story of total destruction and the survival of the few in the aftermath of disaster. It’s a powerful story about the human tenacity to recover and to try again, to survive in the best possible way under unknown, uncertain circumstances. The plot develops from Lauren’s entrapment in a bomb shelter, securely locked away for two years with no connection to the outside world. She has no idea what will await her when the clock finally ticks down and the lock on the door disengages. She finds a world totally different from the one she remembered, but also a world not so different. There are the good, the bad and the ugly, as well as the glorious and beautiful everywhere she wanders. Until she finds her family again and a way to create a new life for herself. A powerful plot that outlines the many faces of humanity. The description invites the reader right into the story and the characters are so real that the reader feels they know them intimately.
So honestly my darlings, what do you think? Does this sound like a book you would like to read? Inquiring minds (mine) want to know..
Post up in the comments.
Cheers, Amy
And for more information about paid reviews I recommend checking out http://www.janefriedman.com she is an incredible resource for writers.
I spin my webs and draw them in, a gift they cannot see. They wear the cobwebs like nebulous bonnets of silken fluff and air.
My hands are a pyramid and my fingers tap, like a menacing villain without a face. Everyone knows but no one sees. I have a taste for it now.
Ignore the feeling, it’s just the wind that raises hairs upon your neck. For I am soft-spoken and golden crowned. Harmless, vapid thing.
Drink my water squeezed from stones and rest your weary head. Your brilliant mind is just too full and you are too very kind.
I did nothing at all.
In my previous post: What It Isn’t , I discuss constructive criticism and how important it is in many fields, particularly in creative fields. This poem was inspired by the people best known for giving destructive crits. You know the type… The one always taking credit for others good work, the one issuing blame and never taking responsibility…
I close my eyes to reclaim my peace. But in the darkness I come at you swinging with the force of a thousand wrongs.
Always swinging, never connecting.
I bat at you with kitten paws but you never even flinch. I kick and scream at your impenetrable walls, but you’re a fortress. I am lost.
I break the glass with banshee cries and chew the shards to sand. I taste the blood and spit it out, a bitter pool for your reflection.
I hope you drown.
I grab your hair and lick your face to mark you as my own. You belong to me I say when I Holyfield your ear.
And when I think I’ve won again, again you slip away. The light of day has won this one. It always is the same.
Enemy of my enemy, enemy mine.
In my angsty, community raised, couch surfing, teen years I wrote a lot of poetry. In lieu of a heart dotted i diary, I would sit with my Mazzy Star, The Doors or Alice In Chains and write all the wrongs of my little world. When I was done, I would smile and frolic off on my merry California way, refreshed and ready to do what teenagers do.
I miss that feeling of renewal.
I love poetry, and have mentioned how cathartic I find it. However, I seldom write it just for me anymore let alone share it. Especially since I get to read wonderful poetry everyday here on WP. But lately, in my self possessed, collected adulthood, my old outlet found me in a time of need.
So in honor of candor and stress relief I decided to share.😅😳
Amy-Westphal.com 