S.G. Browne

So as we come to the end of another year, which always ends with me turning a year older and wondering what the hell happened to all that time I said I was going to use to get things done.  To spend more time doing the things that matter.

Like writing.  And reading.  And cleaning my bathroom.

Writers excel at procrastinating.  At postponing.  At finding distractions and excuses that keep them from being more productive.

We answer e-mails.  Update websites.  Read reviews.

We surf the Internet.  Play Scrabble on Facebook.  Tweet.

We discover Zombies vs Plants.  Spend an afternoon playing Madden NFL.  Watch an entire season of Entourage.

Or maybe that’s just me.

So as 2010 comes to an end and 2011 is just around the proverbial corner, I offer up the following New Year’s Resolutions.  Think of them as the Ten Commandments for writers, only without Moses and the Burning Bush:

1. You shall have no Facebook before writing
2. You shall not make any false promises of word counts
3. You will not take your editor’s name in vain
4. You shall remember the writing process and keep it holy
5. Honor your protagonist and plot
6. You shall not kill the narrative with unnecessary exposition
7. You shall not commit Twittery
8. You shall not steal another writer’s ideas
9. You shall not bear false witness against your dénouement
10. You shall not covet other writers’ successes

I hope these commandments serve you well in 2011.

Happy New Year!

So my recent book tour for Fated had some minor disappointments, but those were more than offset by the highlights of the trip.  And since the opposite of blue on the color wheel is orange, I thought that would make for a clever title.

Yes, it’s a stretch, but it’s the best I could come up with on short notice.

“That’s very clever.”
“Thank you.”
“How’s that working out for you?”
“What?”
“Being clever?”

(Bonus points if you can name the film that dialogue is from).

All right, where the hell was I? Oh yeah…

My road trip down through southern California included signings in Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, Orange County, and San Diego.  It also included the revelation that many brick and mortar bookstores are an endangered lot, as I ran across no less than a dozen Borders and Barnes & Nobles along the way that were either closing or had already closed.

Not that I had signings scheduled at all of these stores but whenever I’m traveling, I make a point to hit as many local bookstores as possible to sign stock copy and pimp myself out.  Hey, someone’s gotta do it.

While the bookstore closings were a rather distressing reality to witness first hand, I still enjoyed my signings at Barnes & Noble (Santa Barbara), Dark Delicacies (Burbank), Borders (Costa Mesa), and Mysterious Galaxy (San Diego).  Unfortunately the Barnes & Noble in downtown Santa Barbara is closing because their landlord jacked up the rates, so it’s going to be replaced by a clothing store.  Like we need more of those.

And while being on the road can often be a bit of a grind, especially when you’re driving from San Francisco to Los Angele to San Diego and logging 1500 miles over 10 days, the grind is offset by the people you get to spend time with while you’re traveling.

One of the benefits of being a writer that I hadn’t included in my initial list of reasons to embark on this path (long hours spent alone, frequent rejections and criticisms, people telling you how they always wanted to be a writer) was the opportunity to see friends that I otherwise wouldn’t get to see.

Much like my trip through the Pacific Northwest in November, my trip through southern California afforded me the chance to visit with numerous friends I’ve known since college and new friends I’ve made over the past few years at conventions and conferences.  There’s nothing like a home cooked meal with good conversation to make the road a less lonely place.

More than anything, it’s the company of friends that makes traveling and road trips so worthwhile.  So I’m looking forward to the next one.

Here are links to a couple of more interviews I’ve had recently as part of my Fated blog tour.

The first one is up on Reading Frenzy, where I talk about Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, why I took up writing, and my favorite character in Fated.

And you can find another one on The Inner Bean, in which I discuss my writing process, mojitos on the beach, and why I’d most likely be Sloth.

Hope you enjoy the interviews!

I’ll be signing at the following locations during my southern California tour for Fated.  If you’re in the Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, Costa Mesa, or San Diego areas, come on out and say “hey:”

December 3
Barnes & Noble
5:00PM – 7:00PM
829 State Street
Santa Barbara, CA

December 4
Dark Delicacies
2:00PM – 4:00PM
3512 W. Magnolia
Burbank, CA

December 5
Borders Books
1:00PM – 3:00PM
South Coast Plaza
3333 Bear Street
Costa Mesa, CA

December 11
Mysterious Galaxy Books
6:00PM – 8:00PM
7051 Clairemont Mesa Blvd., Suite #302
San Diego, CA

At this time three years ago, I’d just landed an agent for Breathers after nearly eighteen years of writing.  Fast forward to now and I’ve had two novels published, the film rights sold for one, and I’ve been able to live as a full-time writer for most of the past two years.

So yeah, I’m thankful that I’ve been able to do what I’ve always dreamed of doing.  To paraphrase Henry David Thoreau: “To go confidently in the direction of my dreams and live the life I’ve imagined.”

But more than that, I’m thankful for all of the people who’ve been a part of these past three years…

My friends who have always been there for me.
My family whose support has never wavered.
My agents and editors who helped me to get my books published.

And there are so many others, so many new friends I’ve met and made along the way that no matter how much I followed Thoreau’s advice, I couldn’t have possibly imagined how much my life would be enriched by meeting them.

So thank you to everyone who has come into my life and shared your encouragement, support, love, friendship, talent, conversation, company, sense of humor, and guidance. I couldn’t possibly have made it this far without you.

Happy Thanksgiving.