Rhonda Zatezalo

Author. Dreamer. Designer.

fiction

Win a FREE copy of Missing Pieces 8

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Win a copy of Missing Pieces Vol. 8~PLEASE NOTE THE NEW CLOSE DATE~
(I apologize to any who entered before the original close date. You are still entered to win. There was a technical issue that didn’t record things properly and I was out of town and unable to access the data. If you received a second confirmation email, please click to confirm. I apologize for the confusion. Thank you for your understanding and good luck!)

This first contest will be open to U.S. residents only. Sorry international folks! I hope to remedy that in future contests.

How it works
Sign up to receive my newsletter before Oct. 1st to be entered to win one of my personal copies of Missing Pieces, Vol. VIII. The winner will receive a free copy of Missing Pieces, Vol. VIII with the title page of Wild Portal Child signed by me. Free shipping is included. Winner will be chosen via random drawing.

No matter when you signed up, as long as it’s before October first, you’ll be entered to win.

By entering you’re agreeing to receive occasional email updates about stories and upcoming books, events and other contests. If you don’t like the content you’re receiving, you can unsubscribe after the contest, but I hope you enjoy the updates and choose to stay.

Enter here:

 

No purchase necessary. Any purchase will not enhance chance of winning. Void where prohibited. This sweepstakes is hosted by Crearies Marketing Design, LLC. Enter to win by signing up to receive an email newsletter from rhondazatezalo.com. Sweepstakes is open to all subscribers through 11:59 CST, September 30, 2017. Must be at least 13 years of age to enter. Winner(s) will be chosen and notified by email no later than October 12, 2017. Winner will be chosen by a random number generator. Winner(s) first name and last initial may be used for marketing purposes. All entrants are agreeing to receive email communications from the Sponsor and/or rhondazatezalo.com. Odds of wining are based on the number of entries, possibly as low as 1:20. Winner must provide a physical address (not a PO Box) for prize delivery. This contest is not sponsored by the publisher or editor of Missing Pieces. Value of prize is approximately $20 USD.

Five Takeaways from the 2017 Flash Fiction Challenge

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The NYC Midnight Flash Fiction Challenge is an annual challenge for writers to create a story of 1,000 words or less in 48 hours. At the beginning of the clock you are assigned a genre, a location, and a random object that has to appear in the story. There are four challenge phases. Each entrant submits stories for phases 1 & 2 where points are given. Then the top point earners move on to phase three, and the top there move to phase four. Every story is judged and writers receive feedback for each story submitted (one per challenge phase).

I learned about this challenge the day before registration closed, which was two days before the competition started. I had a hard time deciding whether or not to enter. The entry fee was $50 at that point, and though there is potential to win cash and prizes, I wasn’t sure how much I would benefit from the experience. (I don’t anticipate winning) I let my loved ones talk me into getting involved because no matter what, it sounded fun. Now the crazy weekend is over and here is what I learned from participating in just round one.

dual arch gravestoneFormat: Flash Fiction, Genre: Ghost Story, Location: Basement, Object: Tattoo machine

1. Making time and clearing commitments was essential.
Though flash fiction is short, it takes time to be concise. I’m grateful my husband doesn’t mind last-minute changes. We had other plans for the weekend but nothing that couldn’t be moved around or cancelled. It wasn’t so much that I was writing every hour that I was awake, but that, when I wasn’t writing, I could wander both mentally or physically as needed. This freedom gave me the space to develop four different stories for the challenge. I narrowed it down to two by the end, and that’s where the second takeaway comes in.

2. Understanding genre is important. I’ve never written a ghost story. I’ve written scary scenes and worked on thriller projects, but I’ve never done a true ghost story. NYC Midnight explains their definition of each genres on their website and they include examples from both literature and film. With just 48 hours to create and polish a story, I didn’t think I should spend too many hours researching. When it came down to choosing between the two stories I was happy with, I looked to see which story best fit the assignment given. After close examination, my favorite of the two seemed to fit the horror genre better. So I chose to submit the favorite of my beta readers.

3. Having alpha/beta readers was a big help. There’s no time to put this project “in the drawer” to get some space from it, which is a typical writers trick for perspective. Thus I relied heavily on my family and a few trusted friends for honest feedback. I’ve experimented a lot with flash fiction this year and my readers have been instrumental in my growth as a writer. (Thank you everyone!)

4. Find things that put you in the head space of the work. This goes back to genre a bit, but I found this invaluable. I changed the background in Scrivener (my writing program of choice) to an eerie graveyard scene and listened to creepy music while writing. When I was done writing on Saturday I started watching Stranger Things on Netflix. So even though I was done with my writing for the day, I kept my head in the genre through the evening. This helped a lot. The next morning I woke up with a whole new story idea which ended up being the horror story I wrote. Even though I didn’t use the story for the contest, I like it and will publish it elsewhere. I’m finding that keeping your head in the work, even when you aren’t writing, helps me write better, whether it’s flash fiction, a novel, or even non-fiction.

5. Reminder, sure writing is hard work but it can be lots of fun. Writing for a living means my favorite thing to do is also the thing I dread Monday morning. Ok, not really but you get my point. Writing is my job, but it’s also what I love to do, it’s how I process things, and as such I sometimes forget how much fun it can be. This contest really brought that home for me. Flash fiction is a great medium to challenge yourself as a writer to do something new. It can take you away from the everyday grind and perhaps be an introduction to a new concept or story idea you hadn’t thought of before. I’m looking forward to the Next Flash Fiction Challenge happening in September.

Bonus: In the past I’ve been known to say something along the lines of: “I hate Twitter, it’s stupid.” You know what’s really stupid? Hating something you haven’t taken the time to understand. Over the past six months I’ve gotten involved in the writing community on Twitter and have really come to love it. What an awesome group of people! Checking in with other writers via the #flashfictionchallenge hashtag over the weekend was a great way to connect and cheer others on. It also helped remind me that, though I often feel like it, I am not alone in this writing journey.

Wishing everyone a week full of your favorite kind of success.

Much love and thanks for reading,

Rhonda

Updates from a real writer?

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I heard back from the first contest in which had two short stories entered. And guess what???  I received my first rejection slips! Yep, both stories were passed over, but getting my first rejections kind of makes me feel like a real writer. I know it probably sounds a bit strange, but that’s how I feel. Both of these stories are still entered into other contests, the last of which announces in October. As always, I’ll keep you updated.

More story updates: I had my new editor look over “Wild Portal Child” and got some great feedback. Based on her notes, I made some changes that really make the story better overall. But now it’s almost 16k words! (oops!) Still the publisher is planning on putting it in the anthology that comes out in August. I can’t wait to share the first Vargen story with you. I don’t know if there will be online sales, (it’s a niche market) but I’ll let you know where to find the anthology if you want to pick it up.

I’m also planning a giveaway for one or two copies. More on that later.Bush Baby on the railing

As for other stuff, I’ve been traveling in Texas this week. I miss the cats and pups though, so I brought along my little bush baby friend. We’re documenting his travels. Here he is on the 8th floor, with the fountain below.

 

Hotel life is mostly conducive to writing.  I finished a new short story today and I like the way it’s shaping up. I’ll let it sit a bit than do a rewrite. It’s a story of survival, and the bonds that form in the midst of crisis. If I don’t submit it to a contest, I’ll be sharing it soon.

In other news, I’ll soon be able to share even more stories with you. If all goes well, I’ll be announcing that information mid to late July.

As always, thanks for reading and sharing this journey with me.

-RZ

 

Yep, the characters are running the show…

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fountain pen writingFirst, I’d like to thank my awesome beta readers for their valuable input. The first Vargen short story err… novelette is in the hands of the editor. I’m not set on the name yet, but the working title is Too far? We’ll see what the editor has to say. 🙂 Though I enjoyed writing the shorter story, I’m thrilled to be working on book one of the trilogy again. I’ve made a lot of changes to the structure to move the plot along faster, and hopefully keep my readers turning pages.

Based on feedback from the novelette, Cheyaron and Werner are well liked characters. I had a lot of fun writing them and now they’ve managed to steal a whole plot line for themselves in the first book. Well, the plot follows Chey, but Werner makes a few appearances. You’ll see Vargen from Cheyaron’s point of view, and Earth 2037 through Nisha’s eyes.

I’m really excited to bring my dual-world universe to readers.  I can’t say when book one will be published. The plan is to begin queries for an agent in August, right around the time Too far? is released. The short story is slated for an anthology printing in August. I should know soon if it’s been accepted and of course I’ll let you know. 🤞 Until then I have gadgets to invent, characters to chase, and timelines to tangle. Best wishes and happy reading.