I’ve had a few days off from the day job and it’s been just grand. But today it’s back to the grind. At least the countdown to the weekend isn’t that far off.

BTW, Some of you may be surprised to see Vince Vaughn on this pictorial journey of heroes, but I’ve always thought he has that something too. He’s an atypical hero. Not a muscle-bound warrior, but he’s got the “cool” gene, so I’ve included him.
Yesterday there were questions posted in comments and since I didn’t get back to answer them, I’ll do it here:

1. Have you ever written anything completely outside of your genre (published or not)?

My first book, Web of Smoke, was published as a mystery. I think it was romantic suspense, but at the time, that genre didn’t really exist. They called it Woman in Jeopardy. I actually consider everything I write outside of the genre, which is probably not such a good thing. But it’s what I do and I can’t help myself. I tried to write a straight romance once–because I love to read the ones that are done right–but I kept finding my heroine in dangerous situations that didn’t fit with nature of the book. I finally gave up and turned it into what I wanted.

I do have an idea for a literary novel, though. I even have a title to go with it. In real life I’m married to a Hispanic man. His family is first generation Mexican-American and going to his parents house is like going to Mexico. Although Irish is the bloodline I claim, my family is a mixture of so many nationalities that I can’t list them. We have everything from Irish to German to Cherokee in us. Mutts, basically. Anyway, I know there’s a novel somewhere in the mixture of our two backgrounds and I hope one day it will make itself known.

The title? Well, my married name is Alcaraz. No one can ever spell it. They want to add E’s instead of A’s and they are forever swapping the Z and C. I don’t know why, but they do. I’ve come to the point where I spell it and then tell it: Alcatraz without the T. So this book I hope to someday write would be titled: Alcatraz without the Tea.

2. My question is, how do you come up with the different plots? I have a hard time thinking of a good plot, my stories seem to be character driven mostly.

Character driven stories are the best kind. If your characters are driving the action, then your plot will come naturally. I’ve been told I write complex plots, but I’m always surprised by this because I don’t necessarily intend to do that. I think in big picture and then play connect the dots. It’s all part of the “pantser” phenomena I guess. I don’t outline, so I don’t know where my plot is going until I hit the last dot I’ve made and have to decide what’s next.

At my local chapter meeting of RWA this week, Brenda Joyce spoke about writing and she was so interesting. She has definite opinions on writing and how/what you need to know before you start. It’s making me reassess my methods and think about having a more detailed roadmap. But she says character driven stories are the best way to go. So if you’re doing that already, you are definitely doing it right!

2. How do you know when it’s time to give up on a WIP and move to a different one. Or should those words not even be in an authors vocabulary?

Oh, those words should definitely be there, but I think the decision depends on the individual. For example, I’ve told you all that I had a terrible time selling Echoes. I should have given up on it and moved on. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t purge the story and move on. It haunted me. So I stuck with it and reworked and rewrote and generally drove myself nuts–but I finally sold it and received much critical acclaim for my efforts. Since then I have started other books and submitted proposals for them. If they aren’t sold right away, I move on. It’s the only way to make it in this business, unfortunately.

But moving on from any project is usually a good thing. If nothing else, it gives you the perspective you need to go back and find the flaws and correct them.

4. Question? How long does this revision process last for you?

Not long. Once the first draft is finished, the second usually takes a couple of weeks. The other reads take a few days each with a day or two in between. I like to give myself 6 weeks to do the revisions, but have done it in 4.

Keep ‘em coming! I love questions.