I tell wonder-filled stories about hope and healing
It’s back to school time and that has me thinking about books. Hard to believe my Emerson Page book met the world two years ago and that I’ve nearly finished book #2 in the series. What an adventure.
I’m looking forward to talking to more students and teachers this year! If you’d like me to chat with your classroom, please let me know. I love visiting students and teachers, in-person and virtually via Skype and Google Hangout.
I hit a big milestone today with my latest novel and I hope it inspires all of you who are writers.
My first novel, Emerson Page and Where the Light Enters, was published two years ago after an eight year journey. For the past two years, I’ve been working bit bit on my manuscript for my second novel while working full-time and doing extra freelance work. At the end of July after a very difficult set of circumstances, I decided to strike out on my own and open up my own company with one of the main goals being to work on my some creative projects that I haven’t had the time to complete. Finishing the manuscript for my second book was my top priority, and I set what felt like an impossible goal – to finish it in the month of August.
Today I was able to hit “compile” on my manuscript writing software. (I use Scrivener if anyone is looking for a recommendation of software.) That means I feel confident enough about all the scenes and the order of them that I can now edit the entire manuscript as a single, cohesive document. I still have a lot of work to do over the next few days, but finishing it this month actually feels possible.
So here’s to setting wildly ambitious goals and then working to make them a reality! Are you writing a book? If so, I’d love to hear about it!
Two years ago today my Emerson Page book went on pre-sale on Amazon. What a wild two years it’s been since as I finish the manuscript of the second book in the series this week. The journey to publication was long (8 years), but worth it. Keep writing.
Here’s to two solid weeks of heads down writing to finish my second novel by 8/31. This weekend I completely revamped the plot line. Tough work and worth it. Don’t be afraid to do this. If what you’ve written isn’t working, toss it onto the slush pile and try again. Don’t let the good keep you from the great.
“I’m restless. Things are calling me away. My hair is being pulled by the stars again.” ~ Anaïs Nin
August is by all accounts a slow month. People go on vacation, business slows down, and we all take a collective breath before Fall. I believe in the power of radical focus so I’ll be in a very hefty period of heads down writing for the rest of the month. I know this time is an invaluable gift and I feel so fortunate. I have to put this time to the best possible use. My goal is to finish my second novel by August 31st. A story calls and I must write it.
She gave me 2 priceless lessons: we all have time to write and never give up. As a single mom with 2 kids, Morrison wrote her first novel, The Bluest Eye, in 15-minute increments each day because that’s all the free time she had. It took her 5 years to write it.
She kept writing despite her novel’s low sales. 3 years later, her next novel, Sula, was nominated for the National Book Award. Her following novels received mixed reviews, but she remained determined.
In 1987, 17 years after publishing her 1st novel, she won the Pulitzer. If you have a dream project, work on it bit by bit. Don’t let critics sap the joy you get from your work. Toni Morrison lived her life with passion and unending grace. She taught me to keep writing.
You were the GOAT, Ms. Morrison. How lucky we are to forever inhabit your multitude of worlds through your gorgeous books. Rest in Power, because that is what you gave all of us—the power of our own language, our own stories. What a life. What a gift.
Excited to share that this Fall I’ll be recording the audiobook for Emerson Page and Where the Light Enters, and launching it on Audible later this year. Actress Alexandra Taylor will be narrating and I’ll be producing, directing, and editing it. The audiobook will have cut scenes that were not included in the book, and it will have some other Easter eggs as well for listeners to hear. I’m really excited to make the beginning of Emerson’s journey accessible in this format. It’s been on my list for quite a while and Alex’s interest in voicing it gave me the push I needed to make it happen. Thanks, Alex!
I don’t know what lovely person made my day on Saturday, but they sure did. I found out that my book, Emerson Page and Where the Light Enters, was nominated for a TopShelf Magazine 2020 Book Award. I received an email with the happy news last night and I’d really like to thank the person who nominated me. If it was you, please let me know! For now, I’m just tossing copious amounts of gratitude and joy into the universe.
Yesterday I clicked submit on my TV pilot script for my novel, Emerson Page and Where the Light Enters. Thanks to the encouragement of my friend and mentor, John Bucher, I sent it off to see if Emerson might have a TV life. I loved the structure and editing process of writing for TV, and am excited about all the possibilities for stories told in this medium, especially for streamers like Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu. Here’s to dreams, written and made.
Inspired by the masterful adaptation of Good Omens on Amazon Prime (have your watched yet?!), the Masterclass with Shonda Rhimes, and encouraging tweets from my friend and mentor, John Bucher, I’m adapting my Emerson Page novel into a TV script. Given its visual nature and dialogue, I’m already halfway there! Thanks to so many of you who have loved Emerson’s story and supported my writing. It means a lot to me and this adaptation is for you! I’m about 30 pages into the 50 page pilot. I’ll finish all the editing this week and then submit it to a the screenwriting competition in L.A. that John Bucher told me about. SMH that this ideas was here all along. I never thought about it for TV until seeing Neil Gaiman’s Good Omens work. He made me realize books for TV can work!
Christa Avampato 