CP/Beta Match Up

The amazing ladies behind Ready. Set. Write! Erin Funke, Alison Miller, Katy Upperman, and Jaime Morrow put together this whole thing, so a big thank you and shout out to them! If you're interested in joining in just click on one of the links above.

Hello possible CPs or Betas, thanks for stopping by! I have a pretty awesome CP, but I would love to have extra eyes for my WIP (and future projects). I'm looking for long term. I've never been a 'casual' kind of girl.

I've never done a love list before here it is anyway:

-Fast cars
-Redemption
-Second chances
-The crispness of winter
-Boys who wear black hoodies
-Tatoos
-graffiti
-Street Racing
-late nights
-soft kisses
-hard kisses
-best friends
-family secrets
-devotion
-hope
-first loves

My Story:
Title: Fading
WC: 78k
Here's my query:

Fresh out of jail eighteen-year-old Corey wants to move on with his life. But his past refuses to let go.

 When Corey’s former gang leader, Vance, comes knocking with a request, saying no means putting his family in danger. Forced to vandalize the car of the officer who put him away, Corey realizes escaping his past is everything he wants, and the last thing he’s likely to get.

Seventeen-year-old Tessa has carried the death of her brother far too long. Street racing was the way she honored her daredevil brother’s memory, but after getting caught she hasn’t been allowed near the Mustang that helped her through the worst of her pain. Now she has to figure out another way to let the demons go.

When Tessa catches Corey destroying her car, she should turn him over to the police. Instead, Tessa sees a guy trying to escape his own demons and convinces her father to hire Corey to fix the damage he caused at their home.

Falling for the cop’s daughter is the stupidest thing Corey could possibly do, especially when he’s still in the palm of Vance’s hand. Tessa isn’t at all what he expected, and she gives him something he never thought he’d ever have again− hope. As their relationship grows Corey learns the danger he poses is closer to home than he thought possible, and saying good-bye to Tessa is the only way to keep her and everyone else safe. Tessa isn’t going to sit by the sidelines and watch the boy she’s falling for sacrifice himself again for the ones he loves. So when Tessa discovers that money is what Vance wants, she comes up with a plan. To free Corey from his past Tessa has to race one more time, but in doing so she risks losing herself to the darkness she’s barely avoided. 

That's everything you need to know about the story. As far I go, here it is:

I'm honest, but kind. I love to encourage people to pursue their dreams, and helping them along the way is just the icing on top of a cake filled with potential. I'm a fast reader and if you give me a deadline I take it seriously. I'm not nitpicky, but I will point out the small stuff along with big picture stuff if you want me to. I'm good with pacing and characterization. 

I hope my story and myself pique your interest! BTW, this is so weird, I feel like I'm putting up a profile on a dating website. Oh! And my first five pages are up on WriteOnCon if you want to check them out, here's the link: http://writeoncon.com/forum/showthread.php?21848-YA-Contemporary-Romance-Fading&highlight=fading

What's Up Wednesday

What's Up Wednesday is a weekly meme geared toward readers and writers, allowing us to touch base with blog friends and let them know what's up, put on by Jamie Morrow and Erin Funk. If you'd like to join click on the links above!

What I'm Reading:
Ruin and Rising. Ugh. SO many feels. Loved it. Want more, but also don't think it's necessary...but I still want more. And then there's We Were Liars. Beautiful, seriously, I want to write like both Leigh Bardugo and E. Lockhard someday. But I have to say Isla and the Happily Ever After was my favorite of the week. I cried when it ended. Such an incredible series of books. Stephanie Perkins is a master with words.

What I'm Writing:
Still working on my newest WIP, which I'm titling Keepsake after the little (made up) beach town where my MCs live. This book is going to be complicated and really hard to pull off. There are more than two POVs and it's in third. I have no idea what I've gotten myself into, but these characters won't leave me alone and I can't just sit back and be afraid to do it because they NEED me to tell their stories.

What Inspires Me Right Now:
Pitchwars! WriteOnCon! So much awesomeness.

What Else I've Been Up To:
The boys are back in and school and it's just me and the girlies at home. Can't believe summer is over. It was a great few months filled with many adventures! Even though I'm looking forward to fall (I have the cutest fall wardrobe) I'm going to miss lazy summer days.

What Have You Been Up To?

Ready. Set. Write! The Last One :(

This has been a great summer. I finished up revisions of Fading and even started a new project! A big shout out to Jamie Marrow, Erin Funke, Katy Upperman, and Alison Miller for setting this whole thing up, you guys rock!

Throughout this summer Ready. Set. Write gave me the motivation I needed to really push myself in my writing and my goals. It was challenging at times what with all the summer activities going on, but accountability definitely helped me to stick to my goals. Even though I didn't meet them every week, I TRIED, which is better than nothing.

How I Did On Last Week's Goals:
 I stuck to taking a break and it was really nice to step back and enjoy the last bit of summer with my kids. I didn't get in that 1k, but I got some reading done and even beta'd for someone!

The Biggest Challenge I Faced This Week:
Other than pure summer laziness? Not much.

A Favorite Line:

The untidy threads of my life were coming loose. They criss-crossed in fashions of disarray, the seams ugly and unhinged. My heart and head went to war with each other. I didn’t hate my mom. I loved her. But there was a part of her I didn’t understand, and that was where love began its tread on shaky ground. 

Something I Love About My WIP: 
I think it would have to be the music that inspired many of my scenes. I don't do playlists but I have Pandora and I listened to Lorde's channel exclusively for inspiration. I adore her and I love everything that comes up on it!

I'm going to miss these weekly updates and reading how everyone else is doing. I can't believe summer is over! But I'm glad I was able to participate and for the things I was able to accomplish.

Ready. Set. WRITE!

How I Did On Last Week's Goals:

Since I didn't update last week I'll say that the goal from the week before was a success! I finished implementing the changes I wanted to my WIP. I also wrote my query letter, then had it critiqued a few times, and rewrote it. All in all a success.

My Goals For This Week:

Hmmm...I want to kind of take a little break since I've been working really hard on Fading, so I'll say I'd like to add a minimum of 1k on my other project and take a break from Fading all together. It needs room to breathe before I send it off to betas.

One Word That Sums Up What I Wrote/Revised:

Done. I'm done with it...for now. It's a relief, and exciting, but kinda crazy to think about. 

The Biggest Challenge I Faced This Week:

It's still summer vacation so...vacation-ish things. We went camping, to the water park, the husband and I celebrated 9 years. Lots of things were happening. 

Something I Love About My WIP:

That it has challenged me to step out of my comfort zone. 

Ready. Set. WRITE!

How I Did On Last Week's Goals:

Work on my query for Fading: Check. It's still rough, but after writing three different versions I found one I like.

Add 1-2k on another project: This didn't happen so much. I got notes back from my CP for Fading and worked on that instead. I also had a HUGE plot breakthrough and am implementing those changes into the story. 

My Goals For This Week:

Finish adding plot changes to Fading. And revise my query letter. 

One Word That Sums Up What I Wrote/Revised:

Hard. The new plot change is one I've thought about for some time but didn't go through with before because I thought it would be too hard, not only to write but research. But not doing something because it's hard is incredibly lazy and makes it seem like you have no faith in yourself as a writer. So here I am, doing something difficult and scary, but I love it!

The Biggest Challenge I Faced This Week:

Doubts. They didn't hit until the weekend, but it really scared me. Thinking that my story isn't original enough, my writing good enough, it just hit me out of nowhere. I'm shaking it off, but they're always there, waiting to slow my progress.

Something I Love About My WIP:

The fact that it's challenging me to really give it my all.