New Yawk

New Yawk New Yawk!

I had a wonderful day in the city - it was GORGEOUS outside!

Always thinking about moving back here................ who knows!

My Sister's Book

My sister's book is available on Amazon. It is a memoir that I read in one afternoon, and had to put down three times because I was crying so hard. Here is a description on Amazon:

Set against the backdrop of the comfortable life of a seemingly happy and prosperous Jewish family, the story of how a little girl-smart, talented, and eager to please-was repeatedly molested by her maternal grandfather and then by one of his friends strikes at the heart of the tradition of safety and comfort and the sanctity of the family itself. Jenny's recounting of her childhood-with her beautiful bedroom, dance lessons, and childhood friends and activities, interspersed with her for-many-years-suppressed memories of her violation by her grandfather-is shocking and infuriating. How could a trusted family member do such things to a little girl, his precious first grandchild? Her painful childhood is followed by years of confusion, sexual acting out, and addiction, all the fruit of that terrible violation. When she begins the long and difficult process of recovery, we root for her, even as we rail against the terrible reason for all her pain. Finally, as we see her emerge from the dark wood, we cheer for her and begin to understand that victims can become more than what happened to them: they can, as Jenny has, move forward under their own power and find peace and maybe even a little justice. This story of Jenny's struggles, her insights, her determination, and her triumph will be a powerful inspiration to all.

BUY IT. - go to AMAZON.com and search for Jenny Skylark Kuvin - I can't figure out how to put a link here....

Holy Sit!

About to head out again today, from PA to Boston...long assss drive.
Yesterday I got stuck in terrible DC traffic, which really sucked.
Show last night was interesting, didn't know I was playing a Christian coffeehouse.
Tee hee.
So I threw our all the double entendres I could and left it at that.
My back has been killin me, so all you reiki masters out there, send me back reiki!
Boston today is sure to be amazing, playing the MLK Peace Concert at Boston University.
It's a great day to celebrate PEACE!
May your day be peaceful :)

Spring Tour Kickoff

Spring Tour 2008
Day One

Newport News
Starving Artist Studio!

I am sitting here post-show with Marlene, her hubby Mike and their two dogs Zeus and Bacchus. These people are amazing. The show was adorable tonight, quite intimate...I know that I'll be back there and we'll rock out a huge crowd.

The drive was beautiful today, I took a shot of this flower bush on the side of the road, amazed by it. Drank me some S-bux as you can see, next to the great ticket that was made for the show.

I also created a coffee mug at the Studio, which was fun, although I'm pooped. Now I'm watching "Step it up and DANCE" on BRAVO, which I admit I'm addicted to. So bye for now!

Sex Scene

Wrote my first lesbian sex scene last night.

Quite exciting, to say the least.

Every time I've written a sex scene I have to put the computer down and, well....

Pleasure myself.

There, I said it.

Heading out tomorrow, so send love to Hung Gay the Hyundai (that's my new car).

Just Can't Wait!

To get on the road again!

Well, that's not exactly true.

My head is about to spin off as I pack, clean, arrange, send posters, fill in the tour holes, contact friends, email, post bulletins.

See you out there I hope :)

The perfect agent for Clementine is out there just waiting for me
The perfect agent for Clementine is out there just waiting for her
The perfect agent for Clementine is going to contact me very soon
The perfect agent for Clementine thinks she is a brilliant MC
The perfect agent for Clementine is excited about signing me!

Woot.

Snore

Today, I didn't want to get out of bed. I just wanted to stay under the covers, curled up, away from the big bad day.

I leave in two days for tour and I've got a list of things to do that is a bit daunting. I'm not much of a procrastinator, so I thought it was important to make note of this moment. I don't wanna.

Waa!

My apartment is so cozy and bright. And mine. When I am here, I'm surrounded by my art, my books, my dishes, my STUFF. When I get on the road, I surrender all of that. I have my car, my instruments, and one suitcase.

As I age, I mature into my sign more. I am a cancer, sign of the homemaker. My aquarius moon makes me the wandering type. So I think at some point I'm going to just have to invest somehow in a big ol camper.

Haven't mentioned the book much over the past few days because I've been receiving rejections, and haven't been writing. So I'm a tad depressed over all that. But I know creativity comes in waves, so I'll just hang on, do what's on my list, and good news is sure to come soon.

I am Woman! Hear me cramp

Ay yay yay! Another month, another flow. Today is one of those... please can i curl up on the couch and watch movies and eat chocolate and do nothing else? days.

But I didn't have one of those days. I had an active day, where I:

a. went to the courthouse to pay for that nasty speeding ticket I got
b. VOTED!
c. got oil changed for big trip

Doesn't sound like exciting stuff, but it's the stuff that makes up being a responsible adult. Showing up and doing the next right thing.

Oh, and I voted for Hillary.

And every other woman on the North Carolina ticket.

Cuz I'm like that - Sexist I mean.

Maxin Relaxin

Didn't write today!

Sometimes you just need to take a day off.

But...I did....

Edit a bit (couldn't help myself), for ANOTHER partial request. Yep, you heard it. ANOTHER partial request.

I've added up the queries I've made, and it totals over thirty - I have gotten five requests, so that's purty darn gud.

Now is where I begin to beat away the negative voices with my broomstick. Out, Out, Negative FEARS! Get out of my brain!

Also started to organize my space a bit for my subletter that will be taking over my place for three months, while I'm on tour. Should be interesting to see if I can keep up with my writing on tour. I know that I will be filling the well out there on the highway, that's for sure.

Hope you had a relaxing Sunday too!

Drive and Plot

Four and a half hour drive to Greenville, NC for a show and I found myself plotting the second book out a bit. The open road tends to open my creative mind. I finished writing a song for Clementine, "Gypsy Girl" which I think you will all love.

Now I'm going to do some laughing yoga with my good friend Rhonda before my show!

sunshine spirit

it's a new day
the sun is shining
the mountains are humming
i bought some printer ink
all is well

sending out more queries and partials today

with beams,
a

arrrrrrrrgh

what a day.
i've already posted once.

got another request for pages!! woot woot woot.

BUT. now i'm obsessing, and i mean obsessing like lying in bed, re-starting the computer, it's five am obsessing.
FORMATTING HELL!

jesus h. lord kristy in heaven above

basically, um, i'm winging it.

my biggest fear is that someone will reject my stuff based on such things. silly.

the truth is...the perfect agent and publisher will arrive right on time and what i neeeed to be doing is continuing to add sparkle, and WORK ON BOOK TWO damnit.

plus i leave for tour in a week. so i'm a little scatterbrained.

pray for me :)

doing reps

What a day.

I'm sure it's bound to get better.

I've noticed that the universe tends to balance itself out. The teeter-totter of experience is always swaying back and forth, back and forth.

As I've mentioned here, the past few days have been adrenaline-filled celebrations. I got three requests for pages! I sent out the stuff, and we'll soon get feedback.

Today.

Got in a fight with my ex.

That kind of fight where afterwards you are crying so hard you are moaning in your car, speeding past people, on your way to get the rest of your shit from the fuckin trailer already.

The kind of fight that leaves you wondering why, why, why me? Why did that cop have to stop me and give me 150$ ticket. Damn pigs.

"You don't even know the headache you've given me," I said to the blonde-haired blue-eyed copper.

That fight that leaves you with a carload of crap that you kept in the closet for a REASON. Crap that is in boxes that you can't bring yourself to throw away. Reviews, pictures, tax junk, journals and more journals. So there you are in your apartment, staring through memories, listening to the blues.

But the day's poopiness didn't end there. I received a personalized rejection through email (not one of the three previously mentioned) where the agent said the first pages didn't "pull her in like she had hoped." So I crushed this agents hopes with my shitty first pages.

Self-esteem!!!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHHHhh! Where are you going!>!!> It's just one rejection. There are many more to come!!!!!!!! Do some push-ups!

I can write
I CAN write
I am a writer
I DO write

three more times now!

I can
I do
I will
I will
I am.

Thank goddess for girlfriends who come over and bring Chinese food. We are going to watch the Clinton/Obama debate and for a second I am going to stop thinking about my book, and my career, and my ex.

PHEW! I feel better now.

Sent out my first hard copy response to an agent. Feels like I'm gambling with aces! Who knows what is coming next.

Today has been an emotional day. My ex came over and I got my feelings hurt. BIG surprise there. Me, feelings, hurt!? Nahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Cancer with a cancer rising and a venus in LEO.

This makes me an oversensitive egomaniacal diva.

Yes. That's me!

So, back to writing. I've been working mostly on spiffing up my synopsis. I tell ya, the synopsis and query writing is quite a bear. They have to be snappy and tight.

Back to polishing!

Tears of Joy

So last night I received my first rejection. My cherry was popped.

This morning I received two

Count them two.

One.

Two.

Requests to see pages!

Can you EVEN believe it???

When the second one arrived, and from a pretty well-known agency, I started to cry. I didn't know what else to do. I was on the phone with my buddy Dawn and I was just overtaken by the urge to bawl. So I did. Because I emote. I emote so well. You should try it!

So I've been really polishing the heck out of the book, drinking coffee, listening to soundscapes on the tv. It's snowing here in Boone, so it's a very cozy day.

I feel blessed and excited and elated and nervous! (I'm not exactly sure what I'm doing because I didn't get a degree in creative writing or anything.)

This whole experience has been so natural and it feels like I'm really on a fabulous new path! Touring with my music has been totally incredible, but I am a Cancer down to the bone, and I'm ready to settle down for a bit. Writing will be the perfect career for me! Of course, I will still tour!

I don't want to be tooo optimistic, but I'm hopeful and manifesting ABUNDANCE!!!

As my good friend says, I'm going to shake my tail to the Abun-DANCE!

Thanks for your encouragment!

And now, ladies and gentlemen...let's play - REEEE Jection!!!

Hello lovers.

So I got my first rejection.

Feels like I received some sort of twisted love letter.

I've arrived!

I love that the lotus grows in poop.

The Morning After

Wowza.

I'm tired as hellllllllllllllllllllllll today.

Had the strangest dreams involving buses and Darrell Scott. (If you don't know who that is, check him out - fabulous songwriter.)

Feeling quite alone these days in my writing head. It's almost like I'm becoming addicted to it. I just want to write all day, or edit, or query, or research. An absolute joy it has become.

But I don't want to get too isolated with it. I'm about to head out on tour again, so I'm sure that I'll have some time off the junk (slaps arm).

Last night I sent out 14 queries. I am extremely proud of this!

Just found the Absolute Write Water Cooler...and it's an amazing vat of information. All the questions I've been bombarding my writer friends with can now be answered! YIPPEE!

www.absolutewrite.com

Check it out!

Query Madness

It is SO late.

Too late.

The birds are singing late.



And I am sending out my first e-queries. This is a ginormous undertaking and I had no earthly idea how much was involved with this whole trying-to-find-an-agent thing!!! Oy vey times a gerzillion!

I emailed out fourteen queries (the crowd goes wild), and I'm very proud.

It's important to remember when you are putting your ass out there to be rejected, all the demons come out to play in your head. As long as you keep it all safe in your computer, you are fine...a superstar....a rich novelist (een youuur miiiind)!!!

So, here's the query I sent...hope you likey:

April 11, 2008

Dear sexy agent woman (whomever she may be),

My fans are convinced that I am the main character in my first novel, CLEMENTINE AND THE BIG SLEAZY, a 60,000 word, chick-lit paranormal mystery. True, I am an uber-fabulous performer on the verge of rock stardom, but (a) I'm not psychic, and (b) I don't solve mysteries for the dead.

Clementine Wilder is a voluptuous, sassy thirty-something who sings rock soaked blues from the depths of her broken past. While touring with her band, the reluctant clairvoyant Clementine is badgered by needy ghosts who drag her through elaborate and titillating crime-solving missions. Along with clues from the obnoxious dead, each charade unfolds through her lucid dreams, ancient Ouija boards, and of course, palm readings, tarot cards, and tea leaves.

The adventure begins in New Orleans, when Clem is accosted in a motel bathroom by a perverted ghost, who sends her on a wild-goose chase after a missing child. Meanwhile, bassist Paul is in love with Clementine, oversexed lesbian drummer Karly is keeping her fifty girlfriends sorted, and Clem is rekindling with Mooney, the married cop she's been having a tumultuous on-again-off-again affair with for years. So! Between singing the blues, finding the kid, and sexing up the officer (meanwhile blaming it all on astrology), Clementine has her guitar-playin’ hands full.

As an independent, nationally-touring musician, I have sold over 10,000 cds. My success in music led to the groundbreaking idea of attaching an MP3 card to the cover of each book! The card will contain Clementine’s songs from gigs that appear throughout the story.

My fans have already been introduced to some of Clementine’s greatest hits at my shows and are anxiously awaiting her arrival. I look forward to finding the perfect agent to help me bring her to life. The entire six-book series is roughly outlined, and I am one hundred pages into book two, CLEMENTINE AND THE BIG APPLE BOTTOM, which takes place in New York City. The Oh My Darling! series is a necromantic rollercoaster ride, which eventually unfurls Clementine’s own puzzling past. I have the first 50 pages ready to send upon your request. Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,
Amy Steinberg

HERE GOES NOTHIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Virginal Blogger - Secret of Novel Writing

Ooh. My first blog. I feel so innocent.

Been a long time since I felt that!

I'm sitting in my dark apartment on a Friday night, obsessing over my first novel. The entire process has been thrilling beyond my wildest dreams. I used to daydream about being an author, but I never thought I could develop the attention span to sit still long enough to complete a thought, let alone tons strung together.

I have figured out the secret!

You must write about something that you absolutely LOVE. The main character has to be so sassy, so exciting, so absolutely irresistible to YOU, that you simply can't stop writing.

Growing up an A-student and an overachiever, I always figured that if I were going to write a novel, it had better be the GREAT AMERICAN NOVEL, damnit!

But my friend Dawn Wasserman told me recently that I am writing the Great American Novel! It is a paranormal chick-lit mystery - everyone needs a little Clementine Wilder. Sure, you have to have a huge catharsis once in awhile, but you need a yummy dessert once daily, dontcha?! The Great American Novel these days is a novel that SELLS! I believe Clementine will sell.

But beyond that...I ENJOY the fuck out of writing her. She is a clairvoyant rock singer, on the verge of full-out rock stardom. Juggling men, talking to ghosts, reading minds....all the things I either do or wish I could do! I include my favorite topics of Astrology, Tarot Cards, and Crystals. Too much damn fun.

So, I want to encourage all you out there who feel like you want to write a book. YOU CAN. If I can (super attention deficit sitch here guys) - anyone can.

Welcome to my blog!