It's My First Blog Post!

Okay, all the rule books would probably not consider that a "catching title," but it'll do for now.

My name is Kristie Snow, and I'm an aspiring author. Welcome to my blog! I hope to keep in touch with my readers via this blog and keep everyone updated on the status of my projects.

My current project is actually my first full-length novel, and this will be the first time in my life that I've sought publication for something I've written. Putting my work out there for others to read and critique is the most terrifying thing I've ever done, but I have high hopes that the payoff will be well worth the emotional rollercoaster of bringing my vision to life.

I had a lot of goals for this novel, which will be the first in a longer series. One of the most important goals, for me, was that this novel reflect an inclusive feminist society and all of the diversity that goes along with that. I soon realized how difficult it is to include everyone and stay true to telling a story. I sat down and did some more research and finally came to the conclusion that it's a really bad idea to include certain groups of people just for the sake of including them. Everyone can see right through that. Fortunately, I'm writing an entire series! I have plenty of time and space to create a truly diverse cast of strong characters.

When I set out to write this book, I told my husband, Max, that my goal was to end up on a List of Banned Books. After he informed me that they don't really do that anymore, I re-evaluated and decided my goal was to end up on one of those boards decreeing things that will send you to Hell. Right underneath Harry Potter, if I may.

Anyway, it took me six months exactly to finish my rough draft. January 1, 2017 to June 1, 2017. I printed that sucker out and gave it to my husband (who has a degree in creative writing and edits my work for free) and he went through that bad dude with a red pen and messed it all up. A couple weeks later I went over it with a blue pen and decided 80% of it needs to be rewritten. So that's where I am currently - my first rewrite.

I have a lot of confidence in this book though. The story is solid, my ideas are good, my plot is riveting. The writing itself is the hard part. How do I maintain consistent characters? How do I paint a mental picture without boring my readers with excess description? How do I make sure my dialogue is realistic?

Well, that's the "work" part of writing. It doesn't come naturally. To anyone. No matter what they say. That's why writers appreciate being paid for their work. For most writers, it isn't just sitting at a computer and typing for a few weeks, sending an email to an agent and raking in the big bucks. Like I said, it took me six months to get the unedited skeleton version of my story written out, and it needed a LOT of work. (I was also working full-time at the time.)

I'll discuss my book more in-depth later on. I'm trying to avoid spoilers for now. I hope to have a release date soon, complete with Launch Week activities and an option to pre-order the book. In the meantime, feel free to ask me about myself!