tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-74990198352034806992024-03-18T21:10:31.885-07:00Fantasy, Futuristic, and ParanormalThe FFandP Chapter of the RWA, Romance Writers of America.Lorendahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17874101070837077093noreply@blogger.comBlogger530125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-37862444706960141512014-01-23T16:50:00.005-08:002014-01-23T16:50:51.117-08:00We've Moved!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Come check out our new FF&P Website (and update your links!)<br />
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<a href="http://www.romance-ffp.com/category/blog">http://www.romance-ffp.com/category/blog</a></div>
Lorendahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17874101070837077093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-8897041478996750212014-01-02T00:30:00.000-08:002014-01-02T00:30:01.039-08:00WHAT IF I WAS AN ALIEN? by Victoria Pinder<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaOk4VGSYVvM8SQDKToSRIscjFQCMI6j7yeuXs-oEoRVvqpAuUFtKwXznR9QoqqNXJpWLrgQDKEWBPLPuyB_NTA1Wkpli0R9qzSTX_e00H5wBUYrqzIxoKMV2z3cC-3U5dJ2RABcNU98I/s1600/FFnP-V+Pinder-lunapic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaOk4VGSYVvM8SQDKToSRIscjFQCMI6j7yeuXs-oEoRVvqpAuUFtKwXznR9QoqqNXJpWLrgQDKEWBPLPuyB_NTA1Wkpli0R9qzSTX_e00H5wBUYrqzIxoKMV2z3cC-3U5dJ2RABcNU98I/s320/FFnP-V+Pinder-lunapic.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: magenta;"><strong>Picture: Awkward teenage girl with huge glasses and thin
hair that never did anything.</strong></span> Yep, that was me. And before I was swept away in
a romance, add to the geeky scene pants that went to high, comic books before
they were considered trendy, plaid shirts, and a father who enjoys science
fiction enough to ‘recommend’ books too. This picture was those painful
memories of my teenage years, but somehow now, I look back with approving eyes.
It could have been a lot worse.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;"> <strong><span style="color: magenta;">So I read books</span></strong> where the usually male hero goes off and
has some grand adventure while saving Earth, the known universe, or time as we
know it. All fun reads. But as a female, the fiction world was male geared. My
gender was an anomaly. When writing science fiction as a female, not everyone wants
to write the aliens need women stories. I’ve been considered an alien in my
viewpoint. An alien at her heart can never be human because she’s not one of
us.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;"> <strong><span style="color: magenta;">So instead of writing about hot alien men</span></strong>, to me part of
the fun is writing an alien through female eyes. For human audiences, she has
to have something so basic about her that we relate to her. There is so much
internal drama that can make the heroine stand out. For me, Ariel might steal
other people’s bodies, but it’s more about her journey home. How far would
anyone go to get home? The journey home is also a common science fiction theme.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> <strong><span style="color: magenta;">And what I love about romance novels</span></strong> is that despite the
alls, I the reader invest in a good will triumph, happy ever after story.
Vampires, werewolves, elves, witches, well they are all fun magical creatures.
But to me venturing into the male dominated world where the readers and writers
are often men means the female author has a unique story to tell. We’re not
seeing the issue of ‘the story has been told before’ because the field is vast.
Female aliens who are relatable are a wide open story. Leia in Star Wars is
technically an alien woman to humans. She’s relatable. In fact, my fall back
outfit every Halloween is my Princess Leia wig. If you enjoy aliens and stare
up at the sky with the question, ‘what if’ then aliens aren’t just for boys
anymore. </span><br />
<br />
<h3 style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; page-break-after: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: magenta;">Blurb for <em>The Zoastra Affair:<o:p></o:p></em></span></span></h3>
<span style="background: white; color: #404041;">A hundred years from now, Earth has
trading partners with alien beings, mostly humanoid. However, going into space
brought forth an unknown enemy who attacks Earth at will.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="background: white; color: #404041;">The Zoastra is part of the Earthseekers,
an organization originally designed to go into space. Its new mission is to
find Earth’s enemies.</span><br />
<span style="background: white; color: #404041;"></span><br />
<span style="background: white; color: #404041;">Ariel is stuck on a Victorian planet and
steals Grace’s body and life to get off the planet. Grace must get her body
back before Ariel bonds with Grace’s husband, Peter. Then there is Cross, the
man on a mission to find those who killed his family. Ariel is attracted to
Cross, but she’s stolen someone’s life.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<b><span style="background: white; color: #222222; font-size: 14pt;"><span style="color: magenta;">The Zoastra Affair<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: #222222;">by <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Victoria Pinder<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Published
by Soul Mate Publishing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222;">Science Fiction
</span><span style="color: #222222; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Romance<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; color: #222222;">Heat Level: </span><span style="color: #222222; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Intimate <b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Length:
85000 words</span><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Available at:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Coming December 30<sup>th</sup>
from Soul Mate Publishing.</i></div>
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</w:wrap></v:imagedata></span></v:shape><strong><span style="color: magenta;">About the Author:</span> <span style="background-color: yellow;"> </span></strong></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong><span style="background-color: yellow;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsNJ3JzSLabPR2muvxGXOxxFlbhg3nMd13zEkcDzTPI-gdgCRtAtCitbK0h5Y4XrOy5cAsn3w8gwujqvtHbnuvLh5czDDkS9NmhYQ3eh5Z7RLc1StoRXCmqOo99_kDmIjKdKNCvOj2zpc/s1600/FFnP-V+Pinder-professionalpic2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsNJ3JzSLabPR2muvxGXOxxFlbhg3nMd13zEkcDzTPI-gdgCRtAtCitbK0h5Y4XrOy5cAsn3w8gwujqvtHbnuvLh5czDDkS9NmhYQ3eh5Z7RLc1StoRXCmqOo99_kDmIjKdKNCvOj2zpc/s320/FFnP-V+Pinder-professionalpic2.jpg" width="240" /></a></span></strong></span></div>
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</w:wrap></v:imagedata></v:shape>Victoria Pinder grew up
in Irish Catholic Boston before moving to the Miami sun. She’s worked in
engineering, after passing many tests proving how easy Math came to her. Then hating
her life at the age of twenty four, she decided to go to law school. Four years
later, after passing the bar and practicing very little, she realized that she
hates the practice of law. She refused to one day turn 50 and realize she had
nothing but her career and hours at a desk. After realizing she needed change,
she became a high school teacher. Teaching is rewarding, but writing is a
passion. </div>
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During all this time, she always wrote stories to entertain
herself or calm down. Her parents are practical minded people demanding a job,
and Victoria spent too many years living other people’s dreams, but when she
sat down to see what skill she had that matched what she enjoyed doing, writing
became so obvious. The middle school year book when someone wrote in it that
one day she’d be a writer made sense when she turned thirty.</div>
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When she woke up to what she wanted, the dream of writing
became so obvious. She dreams of writing professionally, where her barista can
make her coffee and a walk on the beach, can motivate her tales. Contemporary
romances are just fun to write. She’s always thinking whose getting hurt and
whose story is next on the list to fall in love. Victoria’s love of writing has
kept her centered and focused through her many phases, and she’s motivated to
write many stories. </div>
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Member of Florida Romance Writers, Contemporary Romance,
Fantasy, Futuristic and Paranormal chapter of RWA, and in Savvy Authors.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-20092237284110643302013-12-30T00:30:00.000-08:002013-12-30T00:30:00.971-08:00Ally BroadfieldAlly Broadfield<br />
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<b><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;">The
Good, The Bad & The Necessary: Critique Groups</span></b><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"> - presented by Ally Broadfield <i>Jan 6 - Feb 2</i></span><br />
<span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><em></em></span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-size: small;">I<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span>hope you will join my class titled</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></span><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="color: red; font-size: small;"><strong>THE GOOD, THE BAD, </strong></span></span></span></span></div>
<span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; font-family: "Helvetica","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.5pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="color: red; font-size: small;"><strong>AND THE NECESSARY:</strong></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="color: red; font-size: small;"><strong>CRITIQUE GROUPS</strong></span></span></div>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif";"><span style="color: #cc0000;"></span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: black;">H</span><span style="color: #333333;">osted by</span> </span></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333;">Fantasy-Futuristic & Paranormal Romance Writers</span> </span></span></div>
<div align="center" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #333333;">This Four Week class starts January 6th</span> </span></span></div>
<div align="center" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: small;">For more information click <span style="font-size: large;"><strong><a href="http://www.rwa.org/e/in/eid=278" target="_blank">HERE</a></strong></span> </span></span></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-9645509020822862832013-12-19T00:30:00.000-08:002013-12-19T07:15:53.921-08:00Futuristic Vehicles by Diane Burton<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8dOHfZf7UwoFjYlNwfiuo7IxxHsxeoyeR7pqpoZM4Uk8vn0FNdIcOALIJTLI35tq8kmLoFYOkdzSvbKbWxY5X_reXy3s4Htea-iWd3QwKGciOPHC07BsWinJa3jQIGAEPkXvt3Yu5SQg/s1600/FFnP-Diane+Burton.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8dOHfZf7UwoFjYlNwfiuo7IxxHsxeoyeR7pqpoZM4Uk8vn0FNdIcOALIJTLI35tq8kmLoFYOkdzSvbKbWxY5X_reXy3s4Htea-iWd3QwKGciOPHC07BsWinJa3jQIGAEPkXvt3Yu5SQg/s320/FFnP-Diane+Burton.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #45818e;">When I grew up</span></strong> in the Detroit-area, every adult I knew
worked in the auto industry. They either made cars or made the parts for the
cars. Maybe that’s why Detroiters love their cars. I sure do. I love the
sleekness of the Corvette, but practicality (and budget) dictates a Chevy. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #45818e;">So when I began</span></strong> writing futuristic novels one of the things
I had to figure out was transportation. What kind of vehicle would my heroine
have? I need to consider her temperament and her job. In my science fiction
romance <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Pilot</i>, my heroine is very
proud and won’t take charity. As a runaway teen, she indentured herself to a
mechanic to survive. After her servitude was finished, she continued to work
for him until she could pay for a broken-down cargo hauler, repairing it on her
own time. Her ship isn’t glamorous, but it’s functional. On the other hand, the
hero came from a wealthy family. His ship is a sleek, top-of-the-line “muscle”
ship.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #45818e;">Describing futuristic vehicles</span></strong> takes a bit of imagination.
Sure, you can use what you’ve seen in movies or what you’ve read in other sci-fi
books. But you don’t want to just copy. You want to make those vehicles your
own.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #45818e;">Start with your setting</span></strong>. Does your story take place entirely
in space or on land? Or a combination? What’s the culture? Is this a
sophisticated society that has a long history of space mobility or one where
space travel is in its infancy? If your story takes place on land, consider the
same questions.</span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #45818e;">Consider function.</span></strong> What’s the purpose of the vehicle,
besides getting from one place to another? Does the vehicle carry passengers or
freight? Is it used for exploration? Or is it a military vehicle? How many
people can the ship carry? Does it carry armament? Does it have Faster Than
Light (FTL) drive? </span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #45818e;">My imagination only goes so far</span></strong>
so I have to look for pictures that will give me a jumping off point. For each
book, I Google stock photo sites or search on Pinterest for spaceships. Thanks
to Linnea Sinclair’s yahoogroup, here are some </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"></span> </div>
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<span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">Sites for starship schematics:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="http://www.star-trek-voyager.net/ship4/voyship_all5.htm%23schematics"><span style="color: #0563c1; font-size: x-large;"><strong>Star
Trek Voyager Schematics</strong></span></a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"></span> </div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><a href="http://www.ex-astris-scientia.org/articles/bop-size.htm"><span style="color: #0563c1; font-size: x-large;"><strong>Klingon
Bird of Prey</strong></span></a></span><span style="font-size: x-large;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><span style="color: #0563c1;"></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;"><a href="http://www.cygnus-x1.net/links/lcars/new-enterprise.php"><span style="color: #0563c1; font-size: x-large;"><strong>Star
Trek Ship blueprints</strong></span></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"></span> </div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="font-size: large;">Once you have the
particulars of your ship in mind, it helps to sketch it out. You need to be as
familiar with the vehicle as the characters who ride in it. As with many things
in your story, you—the author—must know more than the reader. Just as you
wouldn’t “dump” the hero’s backstory in the first chapter, you don’t want to
bore the reader with a detailed description of the vehicle. Use a light hand
and treat the vehicle the way you would a car, motorcycle, or airplane. The
reader will get the picture through the characters’ eyes and actions.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><strong><em><span style="color: red;">Happy travels!<o:p></o:p></span></em></strong></span></span></div>
<br />
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Diane Burton</i> combines her love of mystery, adventure, science
fiction and romance into writing romantic fiction. Besides the science fiction
romance<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> Switched</i> series<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">,</i></b>
she is the author of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Pilot,</i> the
first book in a series about strong women on the frontier of space. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">One Red Shoe</i> is her first romantic
suspense. Diane and her husband live in Michigan. They have two children and
two grandchildren. </div>
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For more info and excerpts from her books</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 6pt 0.5in; text-indent: -0.5in;">
visit Diane’s <span style="font-size: large;"><strong><a href="http://www.dianeburton.com/" target="_blank">WEBSITE</a></strong></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-89074007466670462332013-12-16T00:30:00.000-08:002013-12-17T14:05:28.718-08:00Are You Ready for 2014? by MM Pollard<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-size: large;">editor, Black Velvet Seductions,<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">the MM in Workshops with MM</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGsvUsMjBspgwSSO286I36YPuD5Z8gkienHIVUbuIVKndRlag-rAD4Qc-UDzX77Gnlva1iKy_HVbIkZLUW1QtRBrYnXi5c0Negp9Qb40wRmuLmkbBGSy4NStufuLn7_c-BX5ZgjR6Qrqg/s1600/FFnP-mmpollard.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGsvUsMjBspgwSSO286I36YPuD5Z8gkienHIVUbuIVKndRlag-rAD4Qc-UDzX77Gnlva1iKy_HVbIkZLUW1QtRBrYnXi5c0Negp9Qb40wRmuLmkbBGSy4NStufuLn7_c-BX5ZgjR6Qrqg/s320/FFnP-mmpollard.jpeg" width="240" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #990000;">Do
you make New Year's resolutions? <br />
<br />
Maybe a better question is, Do you keep your New Year's resolutions? </span>
<br />
We all have the best intentions on January 1st with our new list of
resolutions, whether that list has one resolution or many. Here are some tips
to fulfill your resolutions in the new year. <br />
<br />
<span style="color: red;">1.</span> Translate vague resolutions into concrete goals with a specific time
period, not the entire year. <br />
Resolution: I'm going to write a book this year. <br />
Goal: I'll write (insert number) words every day or week. <br />
<b><i>Month</i></b> or <b><i>Year</i></b> is not a choice, even though either
one is the more likely choice of procrastinators. <br />
<b><i>WHY? Turning your resolutions into concrete and specific goals helps
you keep a handle on them. You can easily see if you are going forward or
backward at the end of every day or week, depending on the time period you
have used for your goal. Fall behind one day, you still have more days that
week or another week to make up the words you didn't write that day.</i></b></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>
<br />
<br />
</i><span style="color: red;">2.</span> Make sure that your resolutions are truly yours, not your family's for
you. <br />
<b><i>Why?</i></b></span><i><span style="font-size: large;"> <b>Your life is yours. You have the right to choose
your own goals. Even if you self-disciplined enough to achieve someone's
goals for you, you won't feel self-satifaction at their completion.</b> <br />
</span><span style="font-size: large;"><b>More than likely, you will use every excuse that shows up to delay working
on their resolutions for you. <br />
</b><br />
</span></i><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: red;">3.</span> Make your resolutions visible. People learn many ways: by seeing,
hearing, doing. Paint a picture, write a poem or a journal, compose a song or
music, make a poster -- whatever works for you. Here's the important part:
put your picture, etc., where you will see it every day WHERE you will work
on your goals. When you get so used to seeing your visual aid that it becomes
"invisible," move it to another place in the same room. <br />
<b><i>Why? Creative people need to create -- think of that poster as a
brainstorming activity. You must think about your resolutions/goals to
compose that song. </i></b></span><i><br /><span style="font-size: large;">
<b>You pour a part of yourself in your creation. You make an investment in
time and in yourself just to make your resolutions visible before you have
done one thing toward fulfilling them. </b><br />
<b>Let's say you spent hours writing that poem. If you quit, that poem
becomes worthless. Do you know a poet who wants to write, who enjoys writing,
worthless poems? I think not.</b> <br />
<br />
</span></i><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: red;">4.</span> Reward yourself when you have achieved a small goal, like writing your
word count goal for the week. </span><i><br /><span style="font-size: large;">
<b>Why? Writing a book is a HUGE goal. Expect it to be WORK. A year is a long
time to wait to reward yourself for your daily successes. Reward yourself
along the way as you achieve your small goals, and you'll be more likely to
fulfill your New Year's Resolutions.</b> <o:p></o:p></span></i></span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-size: large;">In my
workshop <i><span style="color: red;">Moving from Resolutions to Results</span></i>, sponsored by FFnP,
students will learn to appreciate where they are in their journey as a
writer; let go of shouldas, wouldas, couldas; break down goals into action
statements with deadlines; manage their time;</span><a href="http://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a><span style="font-size: large;"> and face
and defeat procrastination. <o:p></o:p></span></span><span style="font-size: large;">
</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-size: large;">The two-week
workshop begins January 6, 2014. I hope to see you in class,<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><em><span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><strong>MM Pollard</strong></span></em><span style="font-size: large;"><em>
<br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
</em></span></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: 0.1pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Courier New"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="color: #b45f06;">About
MM Pollard<o:p></o:p></span></span></b><br />
<span style="color: #b45f06;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="color: #b45f06;">As
an English teacher for fifteen years and, currently, as acquisitions editor and
copy editor for Black Velvet Seductions, MM Pollard has helped writers correct
ungrammatical grammar, misused usage, problematic punctuation, and poor
writing. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="color: #b45f06;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="color: #b45f06;">MM
has presented workshops on Savvy Authors and Writer U. Many RWA chapters,
including Colorado RW, Kiss of Death RW, Passionate Ink, Fantasy, Futuristic
& Paranormal RW, Maryland RWA, and Florida RW, have also sponsored her
workshops. Through her fun workshops – English class can be fun! – she is sure
she can help you, too, master the fundamentals of English composition.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<a href="http://queenofenglish.wordpress.com/"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">MM’s
Fundamentals of English</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> – blog – mostly English-related
information and a complete list of MM’s workshops<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
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<a href="http://archive.benchmarkemail.com/Workshops-with-MM"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">MM’s
Fundamentals of Writing</span></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> – monthly newsletter – sign up on her
blog</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Also, I</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span>hope you will join my class titled</span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="color: red; font-size: medium;"><strong>MOVING FROM RESOLUTION</strong></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="color: red; font-size: medium;"><strong>TO RESULTS</strong></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif";"><span style="color: #cc0000;"></span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: black;">H</span><span style="color: #333333;">osted by</span> </span></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #333333;">Fantasy-Futuristic & Paranormal Romance Writers</span> </span></span></div>
<div align="center" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #333333;">This Two Week class starts January 6th</span> </span></span></div>
<div align="center" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: medium;">For more information click <span style="font-size: large;"><strong><a href="http://www.rwa.org/p/cm/ld/fid=1196" target="_blank">HERE</a></strong></span> </span></span></span></div>
</div>
</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Sign-up <strong><a href="http://www.rwa.org/e/in/eid=277" target="_blank">HERE</a></strong></span></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-60510977370138456932013-12-12T00:30:00.000-08:002013-12-12T00:30:01.514-08:00Sci Fi Romance, Write Now! by Cathryn Cade<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRw_g04ZgIjRDyR_a9N4NGJkehkKNEqi0Gf5CdEbMjjo69SldGr4wGRnUvrVwPgWURBswRrVn2hiSYoohgy8MqlgngRSxQpsrsJXkHs3dCvoPjdQK_qtz2v6Z3rKeQPQSYp3nVQ4b3yNQ/s1600/FFnP-C+Cade.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRw_g04ZgIjRDyR_a9N4NGJkehkKNEqi0Gf5CdEbMjjo69SldGr4wGRnUvrVwPgWURBswRrVn2hiSYoohgy8MqlgngRSxQpsrsJXkHs3dCvoPjdQK_qtz2v6Z3rKeQPQSYp3nVQ4b3yNQ/s320/FFnP-C+Cade.jpg" width="217" /></a><span style="font-size: large;"><strong> </strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="color: #20124d; font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;"><strong>The market for sci fi romance is
wide open, and here’s why you should join me in writing it.</strong></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">Let me just start out by saying
that I don’t think of myself as a sci fi fan. I was force-fed Heinlein and
Bradbury in high school and while they are truly outstanding writers, I was
creeped out by the subject matter they chose. Which of course, was the point--using
their craft to take a critical look at human nature and society. But I didn’t
want that hard edge of technology used for the subjugation of human joy and
freedom. If I read sci/fantasy by choice, it was Madeline L’Engle or Watership
Down. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #20124d;"><strong>Then years later</strong></span> I picked up <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Sweet Starfire</b> by Jayne Castle/Jayne
Ann Krentz. I’d read every one of her Amanda Quick historicals, and I was ready
to follow her to new galaxies just to get more of her stellar writing. The book
opened up a whole new universe! Still sweeping romance, with all the action,
adventure and humor that JAK is known for. But being set on another world in
the future, it also contained some fun aliens and creatures, gadgets and even
paranormal features. It was romance, it was space opera as opposed to hard sci
fi, and it was fun. So were the rest of her sci fi romances.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #20124d;"><strong>My writer’s brain began to
percolate</strong></span>. Thus, a few years later when Samhain Publishing put out a call for
shifter novellas, I was ready. If I set my shifter tale on another planet,
where capture romance was not only acceptable but expected, I could shrug off
pesky modern Earth mores and bust out a sexy fantasy.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #20124d;">That first book</span> Tyger, Tyger, Burning Bryght </strong>was followed
by the rest of the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Orion Series</b>.
Hard sci fi readers <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">hated</i> it,
complaining that the stories were ‘just romance and sex’ set on a spaceship.
These reviews did not hurt sales, lol, because romance readers <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">loved</i> the idea of romance and sex on a
spaceship. Like me, many women were ready to head for new frontiers, as long as
there was some great romance between the protagonists along the way.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #20124d;">I went on to write</span></strong> in other
genres, fun I would not have missed for the world. But readers continued to ask
when I was going to write more Orion stories. They were not happy I had
genre-jumped, and many did not follow. Reviews were stellar, sales were not.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #20124d;">This spring I debuted</span></strong> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">The LodeStar Series</b> and a free paraquel
novella, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Heart of Stone</b>. Set on Earth
II and the planet of Frontiera, many of the Orion characters are along for the
space flight. Readers have downloaded over 50K copies of the free read, and
sales of the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">LodeStar</b> books are
brisk. Brisk enough that I’m smiling pretty much all day long, and it ain’t
just because Christmas is a comin’. There is just nothing like the thrill of
writing stories readers want to read.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #20124d;">If you are <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">here</i></span></strong>, it’s because you’re interested in writing fantasy, paranormal,
and possibly sci fi romance. Do it! The sci fi rom market is wide open. Yes, it
is a small niche in the romance market, but readers are loyal and they are
voracious as genetically enhanced piranhas! Hmm, sounds like something from the
Cade-iverse.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #20124d;">And have you noticed</span></strong> all the help
we’re getting from Hollywood? The success of the new Star Trek, Firefly, and
all the Marvel superheroes show that consumers want heroes who are larger than
life, who have gadgets and know how to use them! TV is following, with Almost Human
and other prime time shows.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #20124d;">Many of the digital first pubs</span></strong>
like Samhain, Carina Press and Entangled are actively seeking new sci fi
romance. A great way to get noticed if you’re just starting out or breaking
into the genre.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #20124d;">If you already have a fan base</span></strong>, why
not self-publish? 70% royalties and complete control over every aspect of your
book. A related free read or making the first book of a series free will
capture lots of new-to-you readers.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #20124d;">And your sci fi rom</span></strong> needn’t be
hard-core sci fi. Readers enjoy a wide variety, just as they do all the other
sub-genre of romance. Join me and the other many romance authors heading out to
space and beyond. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="color: red; font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;"><strong>Just remember … it’s hot in
space, red hot!</strong></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;">Best,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;">Cathryn
Cade<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Best-selling
author of sci fi romance,</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">RT 4.5 Stars and Night Owl Reviews TOP PICK<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2796058.Cathryn_Cade"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><strong>Goodreads</strong></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: large;"><strong> </strong></span></span><a href="http://www.cathryncade.com/"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><strong>My Website</strong></span></span></a><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-size: large;"><strong> </strong></span></span><a href="http://www.facebook.com/cathryncade.author"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><strong>Facebook </strong></span></span></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="http://twitter.com/CathrynCade"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><strong>Twitter </strong></span></span></a><a href="http://pinterest.com/cathryncade/"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><strong>Pinterest </strong></span></span></a><strong> </strong><a href="http://store.samhainpublishing.com/cathryn-cade-pa-351.html"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><strong>Samhain Author Page</strong></span></span></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Cathryn’s latest release is Creed of Pleasure;
the Space Miner’s Concubine, The LodeStar Series, Bk 2<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<strong><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;">Her mother's people
are renowned for courage & sensuality, but can her human side go along when
she must seduce a man to survive? </span></i></strong><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></i><br />
<br />
<div style="background: white;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;"> </span></i><em><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;">
Half-Serpentian or not, in the crime-ridden streets of New Seattle, Earth II,</span></em><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;"> </span></span><strong><i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;">Taara Ravel </span></i></strong><em><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;">can't defend her
quirky cousin and herself against an enemy they can't even see. Then a wealthy
man agrees to whisk them away to safety on the new planet of Frontiera—but only
for a high price.</span></em><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<br />
<div style="background: white;">
<em><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;"> One the
lovely blonde will have to pay with her body.</span></em><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;"></span></i><br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Logan Stark wants her to seduce his younger
brother <strong><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Creed
Forth</span></strong>, and bring the lonely space miner fully into life. <em><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">Orphaned in New Seattle, Earth II,
with only his adoptive brothers between him and the human and alien predators
prowling the rough docks,</span></em></span></i><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;"> </span></span><strong><i><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;">Creed</span></i></strong><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;"> </span></span><em><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;">grew into a man with
one burning desire--never to cede control of his body or emotions to any living
being. Joining a sect of fighting monks, he lived a life of physical control
and chastity, until the wild planet of Frontiera called to him to come and mine
her treasures.</span></em><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></i><br />
<br />
<div style="background: white;">
<em><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;"> Now </span></em><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;">Creed is trapped by old vows of celibacy & and
by even older nightmares, in a life of loneliness. <em><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif";">That is, until his eldest brother,
space magnate Logan Stark sends him a living gift. She’s a concubine, skilled
in the art of seduction and giving a man pleasure beyond his wildest dreams ...
or is she?</span></em><o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 8.5pt;">And will throwing the two together
create a heat neither can resist, or will the explosion when Creed learns the
truth destroy them both?<o:p></o:p></span></i><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 11pt; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;"></span></o:p></span><br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-173313816684634752013-12-09T00:30:00.000-08:002013-12-09T00:30:04.453-08:00Location, Location, Location by T. L. Sumner<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4JtKQUBaScyOHvr3S0tKCeJWiqEIFc7i61urT7zvck7c6CIyyvlQBETSE21c8miU2g2NlUDEp6Nb3ghMN2cHR1-L2pqAXBAG7OWIGEWw6D8zFkf4291gWxWLTPZwfJiRjBDBWXFzfBEM/s1600/FFnP-TSumner2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="295" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4JtKQUBaScyOHvr3S0tKCeJWiqEIFc7i61urT7zvck7c6CIyyvlQBETSE21c8miU2g2NlUDEp6Nb3ghMN2cHR1-L2pqAXBAG7OWIGEWw6D8zFkf4291gWxWLTPZwfJiRjBDBWXFzfBEM/s320/FFnP-TSumner2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;"><span style="color: red;">We often focus much</span> </span></strong>of our attention on the setting of our
stories and finding the right words to describe the places in which our
characters exist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But what about our personal
writing space?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The location in which we
write can play a very important role in our stories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><strong>I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">love</i> my office</strong></span>
and it’s just about the perfect writing space for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But lately, when I sit in my office, fingers
on the keyboard ready to work on my WIP, I don’t have one ounce of creative
energy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some nights I pass by the office
with a feeling of dread.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just don’t
want to set foot in there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now this
feeling is different from not wanting to write.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">want </i>to write.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just don’t want to write in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">That Room</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It took me a little while to figure it out why
I just couldn’t get motivated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then it
hit me – I use <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">That Room</i> for my day
job.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Which has been extremely stressful
and quite frankly no fun as of late.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My
creative spirit is blocked in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">That Room</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 8pt 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #70ad47; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">A</span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #111111; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span></i></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #70ad47; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">fresh outlook</span></i></b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #111111; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> is like a fresh coat of paint. It doesn't cost much, but
sometimes it </span></i><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #70ad47; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">makes a huge difference</span></i></b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: #111111; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">.</span></i><span style="color: #111111; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> – Susan Gale <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong><span style="color: red;">When you find your creative energy waning</span></strong> in your usual
writing space, try a change of venue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
could be another room your house.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
could be a nearby coffee shop, a library, a park, or any of a multitude of
other places you can camp out for a few minutes or a few hours.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">But a change of venue</span></strong> does more than just help our psyche
and creative energy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Changing location
gives our subconscious mind a chance to absorb new stimuli. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It can change our mood and help us find a
specific voice for our work; like how writers use setting to change the mood in
a story. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For those visual learners out
there (and everyone else too), take a look at these photos.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong><span style="color: red;"></span></strong></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong><span style="color: red;"></span></strong></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong><span style="color: red;"></span></strong></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong><span style="color: red;"></span></strong></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong><span style="color: red;"></span></strong></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong><span style="color: red;">While these are all photos of libraries</span></strong>, each one evokes a
different mood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can you visualize
yourself in each environment and how what you might see or hear would be
different in each location?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">When we venture out</span></strong> and about, we’ll find real life examples
of body language, ways of speaking (dialogue cues) and can observe people
interacting in real situations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These
details help add authenticity to our characters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">Public places are also full</span></strong> of unexpected human behavior, if
you look or listen closely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember
hearing the unmistakable click of nail clippers during a sermon at church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not just one snip.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It sounded like a self-manicure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ick!!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now
that’s something unexpected (and memorable).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The unexpected can be layered into a story, ultimately providing a
richer experience for the reader.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">So get out and about, your stories, characters and readers
will love you for it.</span></strong> <sub><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Georgia","serif"; line-height: 107%; mso-no-proof: yes;"><!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shapetype
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong>AUTHOR BIO:<o:p></o:p></strong></span></span></div>
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Forever optimistic and easily
amused, TL Sumner writes young adult romance with athletic heroines chasing
their dreams on and off the playing field.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She lives outside of Atlanta with her husband and their two
children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Aside from writing and a day
job working in the information technology sector, she enjoys running and being
the number one fan for her kids’ sporting events.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her first novel, Forbidden Secrets won the
2012 Gateway to the Best.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can find
her on </span></span><a href="https://twitter.com/tlwrites"><span style="color: #0563c1; font-family: Calibri;">Twitter</span></a><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">, </span></span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/TL-Sumner/525631170824573"><span style="color: #0563c1; font-family: Calibri;">Facebook</span></a><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> and at </span></span><a href="http://www.tlsumner.com/"><span style="color: #0563c1; font-family: Calibri;">TLSumner.com</span></a><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-80412112162571356282013-12-05T00:30:00.000-08:002013-12-05T00:30:01.601-08:00He’d Never Say That!!! The Importance of Effective Dialogue<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWwKov_AQqtCSMOic2l2NRwQS1_St4iTcRee_ozcQuODzYtvU1t29O1DNTQwt-mr9avNaqg2zBoA9LQPtxuAhReYEkuhmYknMKfHxUmhDkKIQAenS_NMJndKteUH-kVAXNleVXOz_NDxo/s1600/FFnP-Connie+L+Smith.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWwKov_AQqtCSMOic2l2NRwQS1_St4iTcRee_ozcQuODzYtvU1t29O1DNTQwt-mr9avNaqg2zBoA9LQPtxuAhReYEkuhmYknMKfHxUmhDkKIQAenS_NMJndKteUH-kVAXNleVXOz_NDxo/s320/FFnP-Connie+L+Smith.png" width="199" /></a><span style="font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: x-large;">by Connie L. Smith</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">“<strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">It’s not what you said. It’s how you said it." </span></strong></span><span style="font-size: large;">I’ve been hearing a variation of this my whole life, and as
it turns out – it’s true. A person can say the sweetest words in the world to
you, but give them a sarcastic tone and they’re derogatory. Or maybe he agrees
to do a kind thing, but with a bored expression, letting you know that his
preferences are to do something completely different. In life, we have to
consider the words, the actions, the tone, the expression… There are so many
factors that sway our perception of what we’re hearing.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">When reading, some of those aspects go out the window.</span></strong> We
can pick up on the nonverbal bits of communication through description – a
character places a hand on her hips, or rolls her eyes – but we don’t literally
*hear* what the person is saying. There can be clues that let us infer – maybe
an exclamation point – but that’s kind of the point. We’re inferring, and
interpreting, and it isn’t as concrete as actually watching people go through a
conversation.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">Dialogue is a huge part of writing</span></strong>, and even without the
above thoughts, it should be taken seriously. Readers can learn a good amount
about characters through dialogue, and it can be a useful tool in moving the
plot along. When you add in the differences between a real-life conversation
and a written one, the details become all the more important.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">Each author is free to choose his own</span></strong> method of delivery,
but to me, dialogue is most effective when it mirrors conversations. This seems
a little obvious, but sometimes the mark is missed by a mile. You should know
your characters well enough to understand how they speak, and strive to stay as
honest to that approach as possible.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">There isn’t a specific formula for this</span></strong>. If you’re writing
historical fiction, you might use language that is much more eloquent than
someone who is writing a contemporary piece, and a fantasy author might have
more imagery than a YA work. I’m not criticizing any of the genres. My kindle
account has at least one of each that I adore. But you should get a firm grip
on the era and the style you mean to represent, and hold to that as you go
through your story.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">A good rule of thumb</span></strong>, to me, is to make your characters
sound like people. If you can’t imagine a person actually saying something, you
probably shouldn’t force your character to. These are the pieces of your story
that we identify with, and if they’re constantly throwing us for a loop with
their dialogue, it takes away from the story. It’s like removing you from the
plot, going “THIS ISN’T REAL,” and sending you back. Any part of your story
that’s out of place can do this, and dialogue is not an exception.</span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">As an example,</span></strong> let’s say that you have a couple of
modern-day teenagers, discussing what movie they want to see. Now, you could
make one of them say,<br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
<br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
<strong><span style="color: #e69138;">“Nay, lads, I’d prefer to venture forth to the telling of
the story of that cowboy fellow.”</span></strong></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">But unless he’s joking, it doesn’t work.</span></strong> This would be a
fine line if you had a character from another time or place trying to merge
with society, but not so much with the modern-day teenagers you meant to
represent.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">Okay, that quote was a bit of a stretch</span></strong>. Most authors
wouldn’t put that in their work. Still, even if you are a lengthy distance from
that particular boundary, you could still choose unsuited dialogue.</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="color: #e69138; font-size: large;"><strong>“I worry that the movie will continue past my curfew, and
mom will be angry.”</strong></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">Not one word of this statement</span></strong> is out of context for the
time, but the order and design make it sound foreign to what a teenager would
really be saying. If the teen is worried about curfew, he’d more than likely
say something closer to,</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="color: #e69138; font-size: large;"><strong>“That one lasts too long. Mom’ll kill me if I’m out that
late.”</strong></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">It flows more easily</span></strong>, and it keeps you in the story, because
it reads like a real life scenario. If the dialogue feels forced or abnormal,
it can momentarily bring a reader out of your fictional world, which is the
exact opposite of what you should be looking to do. You should want them
invested in your book, and take precautions to keep them there. Dialogue can be
a deciding issue on that, even if just momentarily. You probably don’t want
your reader to pause to say, “Nobody talks that way!” and then have to submerge
into the novel all over again. Keep them there, and use thought-out vocabulary
to do so. </span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">If you’d like to critique my work</span></strong> – see if I abide by my own
rules – check out <i>Essenced</i>, scheduled to be free on December 5<sup>th</sup>.
Links are on my website.</span></div>
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<strong><span style="color: #e69138;">Book Blurb:</span></strong></div>
<br />
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</v:path></v:stroke></span></v:shapetype></span><strong><span style="font-size: large;">Essenced </span></strong><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/115675-the-division-chronicles"><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><strong>(The
Division Chronicles #1) </strong></span></a></div>
<br />
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<span class="bysmalltext">by</span> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7257320.Connie_L_Smith"><span style="color: blue;">Connie L.
Smith</span></a> <span class="greytext">(Goodreads Author)</span> </div>
<br />
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Years ago, demons were forced out of the earth’s realm by a
band of supernatural fighters, banished from the place and its people in the
aftermath of a horrific war. It should’ve ended there – would’ve – if not for
the final demon’s claw snagging on the open portal. What felt like victory
became only a reprieve, the winning warriors understanding that the tear would
spread, and the demons eventually would escape exile. It was only a matter of
time, and a need for future defense – a question of genetics and essences,
magic and power.<br />
<br />
Now, centuries later, a new army must bind together – one of teenagers with
inhuman potentials and abilities…</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br />
AJ went to bed Sunday night an average teenage girl, clumsy and athletically
lacking. So when she wakes up Monday morning with super-strength, she does what
any rational person would do: She goes into denial. When a smoking hot guy in a
suit shows up, rambling about the end of the war and demons spilling through
some kind of rift, she refuses to listen, telling herself he’s insane. Except
weird things just won’t quit happening, and the guy keeps popping up in her
life, trying to explain the changes suddenly happening within her. Is she
crazy, or is this guy… not so crazy after all?</div>
<br />
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<o:p><strong><span style="color: #e69138;">Author Bio: </span></strong></o:p></div>
<strong><span style="color: #e69138;"></span></strong><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<strong><span style="color: #e69138;">Connie L. Smith spends far too much time with her mind wandering in fictional places. She reads too much, likes to bake, and will be forever sad that she doesn’t have fairy wings. And that she can’t swing dance. When she isn’t reading or writing, there’s a good chance she’s goofing off with her amazing, wonderful, incredible, fabulous nieces and nephew, or listening to music that is severely outdated. She has her BA from <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Northern</st1:placename> <st1:placename w:st="on">Kentucky</st1:placename><st1:placetype w:st="on">University</st1:placetype></st1:place> in Speech Communication and History (she doesn’t totally get the connection either) and likes to snap photos. Oh, and she likes apples a whole big bunch.Found out more about Connie L. Smith, A GOODREADS Author at:</span></strong></div>
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</div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><a href="http://connielynnsmith.wix.com/clsmithbooks" target="_blank">WEBSITE</a> <a href="http://clsmithbooks.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">BLOG</a></strong></span> </div>
<br />
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<o:p> </o:p>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-72032341408754931872013-11-28T02:00:00.000-08:002013-11-28T02:00:02.388-08:00I'm Thankful for FF&P--My Last Day as Co-Blog Mistress by Rebecca Zanetti<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYmExYlpyfNwc_DqZBpQIzphkWIvcwxXAoP8a55f_qR9S4WNacwcE0b-RXcR29DxNafT87yAAkicQY9KckEYCmZhEN3DQXD0c6-YqtWMeXodEqmuUazl-4JTs7uVt6_UP7SqQAJyJ3gbI/s1600/Rebecca-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYmExYlpyfNwc_DqZBpQIzphkWIvcwxXAoP8a55f_qR9S4WNacwcE0b-RXcR29DxNafT87yAAkicQY9KckEYCmZhEN3DQXD0c6-YqtWMeXodEqmuUazl-4JTs7uVt6_UP7SqQAJyJ3gbI/s320/Rebecca-4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Hi all! <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: blue;">Happy
Thanksgiving</span></b> to those of you in the USA, and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: blue;">Happy end of November</span> </b>to members living elsewhere. I hope
this week finds you happy, healthy, and surrounded by friends and family.
(And I hope those voices in your head keep talking & giving you ideas
for stories!)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">This is my last blog as co-blog mistress for
FF&P, but I hope to guest blog in the future.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just need a little break to take some time
and relax a little bit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With a hubby,
two kids, three animals, multiple family members, three publishers, six book releases
this year and six slated for next year…I need to breathe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="color: blue;">J</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">FF&P was the first chapter I joined and became
really involved with…back in 2009.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I met
some of my first writing friends here, and I learned a lot from both the
Mudpuddle and from taking numerous workshops.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I also believe very strongly that my first book came out with good sales
because of the friends I made at FF&P.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We’ve always helped each other, and we’ve always cheered each other on.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">If you’ve been here a while, you know exactly what I
mean.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you’re new, you’re going to
love it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Make sure you jump in and get
involved as soon as you’re ready…because you won’t regret it.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: blue;">Make
friends and not connections.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Friends are what count…and this business is
tough.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a roller coaster ride of
requests & rejections, good sales & oops sales, great reviews &
holy crap reviews…and it’s no fun being on a roller coaster alone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sometimes you want to hold someone’s hand
when you’re upside down, and other times you want to encourage your buddy to
lift her hands in the air as you swoosh down toward the earth.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">I may have gone a bit too far with the analogy there…but
hey, this is the place to do it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We all
hear voices and secretly think vampires might exist. </span><span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="color: blue;">J</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">Thank you for the opportunity to serve as co-blog mistress
for this amazing chapter, and I’ll see you on the loop!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="color: blue;">~ RAZ<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">USA Today Bestselling Author Rebecca
Zanetti has worked as an art curator, Senate aide, lawyer, college professor,
and a hearing examiner - only to culminate it all in stories about Alpha males
and the women who claim them. She writes the Dark Protector vampire series for
Kensington, the Maverick Montana cowboy series for Entangled, and the Sin
Brothers romantic-suspense series for Grand Central.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sweet Revenge releases on December 3<sup>rd</sup>
from Grand Central.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Visit Rebecca at: </span></span></span></span><a href="http://www.rebeccazanetti.com/"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">http://www.rebeccazanetti.com/</span></span></a><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
Rebecca Zanettihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06252156888953212601noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-3196971886286900842013-11-25T02:00:00.000-08:002013-11-25T02:00:09.810-08:00Care and Feeding of Your Muse during the Holidays by JC Hay<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMarJcRfCB85Oi9-ltDJ_rGsBEERsjsWCZMIUTpaX23hWbYr-w_QqWbXas4RaAW_9pvaHBTyTC6beZyX2U4VVm3FQNmD90OX5O1S_t6EchOLi3GDQMZaerYUJxqd-BAXi8VtQZ64V0QPk/s1600/Sirani_Melpomene.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMarJcRfCB85Oi9-ltDJ_rGsBEERsjsWCZMIUTpaX23hWbYr-w_QqWbXas4RaAW_9pvaHBTyTC6beZyX2U4VVm3FQNmD90OX5O1S_t6EchOLi3GDQMZaerYUJxqd-BAXi8VtQZ64V0QPk/s320/Sirani_Melpomene.jpg" width="267" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 8pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Image: Melpomene, The Muse of Tragedy;
</span></span></i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elisabetta_Sirani"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: 8pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">Elizabeth Sirani</span></span></i></a></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">November is drawing to a close, and writers all over are
scribbling like mad to hit their word-counts for </span><a href="http://nanowrimo.org/"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">NaNoWriMo</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">
before the month ends. Likewise, those with a wintery bent turn their thoughts
to what can be accomplished in what remains of the year. With holidays for
many, and gatherings both sacred and secular, it’s a season of hassles,
travels, and travails, and it’s too easy to lose the muse in the rush of
confusion and crazy. Here then are some ideas I like to use to keep my muse
well cared-for.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">1) Keep a
notebook with you</b> – if you’re like me, you’re going to spend the holidays
around people who are likely to say or do something ridiculous. While I would
never insert my family directly into a story, I do like to jot down
inspirations and events that I can re-interpret once I’m back in front of the
keyboard. Be prepared to grab ideas from all around you, and think about how
your characters might respond in a similar situation. The little notes and jots
can be a source for scenes, quirks and future stories; just the sort of
building blocks with which the muse likes to play.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">2)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Feed your
Muse</b> – The muse consumes other media as part of her diet, and in the hustle
and bustle, it’s easy to forget to feed her. Read every day, or take in a
movie, or engage in some other, non-writing creativity. Graphic novels,
audiobooks, theatre and film let you look at story without thinking about the
words themselves – it can be a good way to help you find new ways into your
story. The point is to let the muse kick back and relax, and feel like she’s
having fun without boring her. She’ll be fired up and ready to help you when
you sit down at the keyboard. Which brings us to the most obvious thing…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">3)</span><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Make time
to write</b> – Creativity is a muscle like any other, and if you don’t use it,
it starts to atrophy. Set aside 30 minutes or more each day, away from the
hubbub and craziness, and just write. If you don’t have a laptop, write
longhand (the change in process might even fire your muse up more). If you’re
not working on a current WiP, then break out a list of writing prompts and
write about one of those. Make the time, and make sure your family and friends
respect your writing time (lockable doors and hotel rooms help with that).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;">That’s the things I try to do to keep the fires of
creativity burning in the winter. What are your favorite ways to keep the muse
engaged through the long dark months?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: blue;"><strong><u>About JC Hay<o:p></o:p></u></strong></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEich5ORPIGk-JMOYz85iQ3HC1K2Et-dsjNLHmeD5DFXir55dHOumsj0MuP8wOWkGvpnUpBE_oknE0otbDl3siJRYtSGIok-x-07ADpHXk5B9Fw3iX4IhIpYS4YAjy9KHetr6CemOc8VstI/s1600/JC+Hay.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEich5ORPIGk-JMOYz85iQ3HC1K2Et-dsjNLHmeD5DFXir55dHOumsj0MuP8wOWkGvpnUpBE_oknE0otbDl3siJRYtSGIok-x-07ADpHXk5B9Fw3iX4IhIpYS4YAjy9KHetr6CemOc8VstI/s1600/JC+Hay.jpg" /></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">JC Hay writes romantic science fiction and space opera,
because the coolest gadgets in the world are useless without someone to share
them. In addition to Romance Writers of America, he is also a proud member of
the SFR Brigade (for Science Fiction Romance), and the Fantasy, Futuristic, and
Paranormal Romance chapter of RWA. His newest space opera, <u>His Lowborn Heart</u>,
is coming in December from Lyrical Press. JC Hay is on </span><a href="https://twitter.com/j_c_hay"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">Twitter</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">, </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/AuthorJCHay"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">Facebook</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">, and sometimes even </span><a href="http://jchay.com/"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">http://jchay.com</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;">.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Rebecca Zanettihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06252156888953212601noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-27914700281469170672013-11-18T02:00:00.000-08:002013-11-18T02:00:14.173-08:00How I Use Pinterest in My Writing by Mina Kahn<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7oYsOiqAnCpgq1BSggy5DlFLgskYPYaZto0RcWWecvHpTezZO0zy6Ff5N-P3oBZxv1lvKDSyIHCD4mSUHRZwGbkgRawqsYhtusEZYynOlufhO7Y5tYA3l5lcc4L7GCTfDcetQkqzCGQ4/s1600/Mina+Kahn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7oYsOiqAnCpgq1BSggy5DlFLgskYPYaZto0RcWWecvHpTezZO0zy6Ff5N-P3oBZxv1lvKDSyIHCD4mSUHRZwGbkgRawqsYhtusEZYynOlufhO7Y5tYA3l5lcc4L7GCTfDcetQkqzCGQ4/s320/Mina+Kahn.jpg" width="250" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;">Hello
from W. TX! I’m proud to be a FF&P member and it’s wonderful to be here
today, sharing a slice of my writing world. I hope you enjoy the read!<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;">For
me, Pinterest was love at first try. I’m a very visual thinker and often
imagine scenes in my head (almost like movies) before even penning the first
word so it was a natural fit. How do I use Pinterest? Ah, let me count the
ways…</span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> <span style="color: blue;">
</span></span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: blue;">For Inspiration</span></span></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: blue;">.</span> I create a
storyboard (or a Pinterest board) for every story I write. Here I collect
pictures that trigger characters, place, story themes and ideas. As the board
grows, so does my understanding of my story world. </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;">For example, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A Tale of Two Djinns</i> is a Romeo & Juliet story pitting earth
djinns (genies) against water djinns. My inspiration: nature. So I collected a
lot of images of earth and water…as well hero and heroine inspirations. :)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: blue;">As an Ideas File</span></span></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;">. Anything that
catches my interest, I add to my Cool Pictures board. Some of it has triggered
stories or scenes, some are just fun to look at…but all of them sparked my
interest and I wanted to save them.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="color: blue;">To Showcase my Stories</span></span></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: blue;">.</span> Once a story is
done and is published (or close), I will take my inspirational board to the
next level by adding covers and more details. With my newest release <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Wildfire, </i>a paranormal mystery set in
West Texas, I had a lot of fun adding pictures of landmarks that appear in the
story. Later on I also added reviews and buy links. </span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;">*Note: The description space under each
image gives you an opportunity to add key information to further interest viewers.
Use it!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: blue;">For Research</span></span></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;">. I also create
boards based on topics I need to research for different stories. For one story,
I needed to know the different parts of a chair…and so there’s a board showing
different parts of a chair. Another one is on old, interesting homes and gets
quite a few visitors.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">5.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";"> <span style="color: blue;">
</span></span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: blue;">To Relax</span></span></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;">. I love to read
and cook when I’m not writing. So I have boards about food, books, writing as
well as one about places I’d like to travel. When I need a break, I’ll go play
on these boards. It works almost like daydreaming and lets my subconscious work
out story problems.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">6.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="color: blue;">To Connect with
Readers</span>.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;">
Not only can visitors to my Pinterest boards learn more about my readers, but
they also get a glimpse into what defines me as an author and a person. And,
seriously, there’s no better way to connect with another person than over
shared interests.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;">I’ll
end with some caveats:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;">There
are some copyright issues involving pictures and you should be careful about
using images because you could get into trouble. Agent Rachelle Gardner suggests
you only post images that include a link back to the source; consider only
posting images from websites that include a “Pin It” button; carefully consider
whether to use the “Repin” button, and only do it if the pin links back to the
original source.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t be spammy. A board with only pictures of
your book covers is boring. Like on any other social media, hard sell rarely
works.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font: 7pt/normal "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;">Only
do Pinterest if you genuinely enjoy it. Again, there are so many social
networks out there that you don’t want to spread yourself too thin or make
half-hearted attempts.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;">So
do you Pinterest? What are your tips, experience, thoughts regarding Pinterest?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you’d like to check out my Pinterest
boards:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt;"><a href="http://www.pinterest.com/minakhan/boards/"><span style="color: blue;">http://www.pinterest.com/minakhan/boards/</span></a></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Mina Khan is a Texas-based writer and food
enthusiast. She writes about djinns (genies), dragons, hunks and whatever else
sparks her fancy. She also writes a weekly food column for the San Angelo
Standard-Times as Rashda Khan. Originally from Bangladesh, she is now a proud
West Texan.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Her first published work, The Djinn's
Dilemma, won the novella category of the 2012 Romance Through The Ages
(published) contest. A Tale of Two Djinns won the 2013 Readers’ Crown for best
paranormal romance.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">For
more information check out her:</span></div>
<br />
<ul>
<li><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;">Blog: <a href="http://minakhan.blogspot.com/"><span style="color: blue;">Stories by Mina Khan</span></a></span></div>
</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/Mina.Khan.Author"><span style="color: blue;">Facebook Author Page</span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt;"><a href="https://twitter.com/SpiceBites"><span style="color: blue;">Twitter: @SpiceBites</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Rebecca Zanettihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06252156888953212601noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-1805802136010530962013-11-11T05:56:00.000-08:002013-11-11T05:56:55.949-08:00The Benefits of a Local Chapter ~ by Augustina Van Hoven
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSAejUtO7EamEd6EPquBhDCspGZZD7PU2p-TL3lCYNmaNBg9aKBhcNt8fSQWQFlZz7kqkt6oLkuvJI9cCiKPhr66B65rlLdpyDvs80x4Q7kJtP0Gev-LJCxvW2DEntHi02y3wMnBoKc4I/s1600/Augustina+Van+Hoven.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSAejUtO7EamEd6EPquBhDCspGZZD7PU2p-TL3lCYNmaNBg9aKBhcNt8fSQWQFlZz7kqkt6oLkuvJI9cCiKPhr66B65rlLdpyDvs80x4Q7kJtP0Gev-LJCxvW2DEntHi02y3wMnBoKc4I/s1600/Augustina+Van+Hoven.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Having an active local RWA chapter
is an invaluable asset for any writer.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana;"></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I belong to the Inland Empire
Chapter of Romance Writers of America or <span style="color: blue;">IECRWA.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are a small group with members from
Spokane, Washington and northern Idaho.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Our membership runs the gambit from new writers working on their first
novel to multi published veterans and one USA Today best seller.</span><o:p><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span></o:p></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Our group is very supportive of its
members.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Through their helpful writer’s
activities and personal encouragement, many of our members have reached their
personal goals of being published.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">For me the help begins with the
<span style="color: blue;">group’s program committee</span>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The committee
makes sure that each monthly meeting includes mini workshops taught by experts
from the community or one of our own talented members.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A forensic expert of the local state crime
lab instructed us on how the world of forensic science really works as opposed
to what we see on CSI.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>An advertising
specialist explained the mysteries of social media and how to use it to your
best advantage. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our more experienced
members have taught us how to do layering, snappy dialogue, and how to put
sizzle in your special scenes.</span><o:p><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span></o:p></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">We have done a <span style="color: blue;">series of “write
ins</span>” at one of the areas libraries to help increase our word counts and give an
extra boost to those who have deadlines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We schedule a private room at the library for a four-hour time block and
set up camp.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Each member writes for
forty-five minutes then we take a fifteen-minute break.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the end of the session we post the total
word count of the participants on the chapter loop.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>15,000 to 20,000 words per write in are not
unusual.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">My personal favorite group activity
is the '<span style="color: blue;">100 words per day challenge'</span>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Each member writes a minimum of 100 words each day on their current
project.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the end of the day those who
worked on their manuscript post on the chapter loop that they completed 100
words that day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This gives us
accountability to the group and helps build the habit of writing every day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have personally written one hundred words
or more for eighty-three days straight.</span></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Additional goals are handled at the
meetings in the form of a goal pot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Each
member who wants to participate puts one dollar into the pot and a note of what
they plan to achieve by the next meeting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Each meeting we check the goals and see who has achieved them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The names of those who met their goals are
placed in a hat and one name is pulled out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That person wins the pot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">We have done other special events
such as <span style="color: blue;">writer’s retreats</span> at a local ski resort, during the off season, of
course, and we are putting together a writers conference for March 7th of 2015,
hoping to attract new romance writers for our club and work with other writing
groups in our area.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>All of this
has helped me grow as a writer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can
honestly say that without my chapter’s help and support, my first novel would
still be an interesting idea instead of a completed manuscript.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue;">BIO: Augustina has a background in politics and works as an accountant. She<br /> writes paranormal romance in her evening hours. Her first novel 'The Kiss<br /> of a Rose' is currently looking for a home.<br /><br /> Augustina Van Hoven ~ Proving that Love is Strange<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span></o:p></div>
Rebecca Zanettihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06252156888953212601noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-48901676072628119282013-11-07T01:00:00.000-08:002013-11-07T01:00:06.268-08:00Writing For a Cause - 5 things to consider by Jamie Leigh Hansen<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixMy6thUKooja7cDWxdDbbz1BtPCb12I_Nok5HM7UKjykVZ70C0DEu1eF3dXR7DffJGpS-OtyNKzmQgWeuNCHSidGypWqPaMK6ibPm22VdiIqXZqdP1qZweO9_KlbMLU9tvAFqt9UFMV0/s1600/Jamie+Leigh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixMy6thUKooja7cDWxdDbbz1BtPCb12I_Nok5HM7UKjykVZ70C0DEu1eF3dXR7DffJGpS-OtyNKzmQgWeuNCHSidGypWqPaMK6ibPm22VdiIqXZqdP1qZweO9_KlbMLU9tvAFqt9UFMV0/s1600/Jamie+Leigh.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;">Many of you know Childhood Cancer Awareness is near and dear to my heart. September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. </span><span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;">Another cause, genetically mine, is Friedreich’s Ataxia. International Friedreich’s Ataxia Day was September 25th.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;"></span> </div>
<div style="margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;">I spent the first 28 years of my life ignoring my FA and barely aware of the devastation cancer can wreak on patients and their family. But the day after Thanksgiving 2003, our 8 year old daughter was diagnosed with a brain tumor and a whole new, terrifying world came alive around us. But so did a world of caring and support. Both for her cancer and for my progressive disease.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;"></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;">In the past ten years, I have wanted to <span style="color: blue;"><strong>“Pay It Forward”</strong></span> somehow, some way. For Childhood Cancer Awareness, I wrote a story, <strong>Death Is Becoming</strong>, and I am offering it for free. More information about the book itself can be found on my website. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;"></span> </div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;">Here,I’d like to discuss the process of writing a book for charity. I have done this twice, for both diseases. The International Project to Fight Friedreich’s Ataxia is a group of 17 writers from around the world affected by FA. We have spent the last two and a half years crossing cultural and linguistic boundaries to create a novel, The Legend of Marie Schlau. During these books, I have developed a few conclusions.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: blue;"><strong>1. If the book is put together with a group</strong></span>, have a clear guide on what the purpose is. Is it for literary value, personal accomplishment, raising awareness or raising funds? And yes, those last two are very different. This choice effects the writing itself, are you going for literary beauty or mass appeal that has literary beauty?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;"></span> </div>
<div style="margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: blue;"><strong>2. A group of writers</strong></span> can be diplomatic throughout the entire process, but inevitably there will need to be one person “in charge” for a final say. Even while working for a common cause, there are different ideas for how to accomplish the end written product. That’s just how people are. We think differently, believe differently and have different live experiences informing our choices. Picture a group of writers who feel strongly about first or third person POV. Now get the opposing sides to write a book together. It’s painfully comical.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;"></span> </div>
<div style="margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: blue;"><strong>3. Creating a “fundraiser”</strong></span> for certain groups can be done. Such as with Give Kids the World. You create it and can have a page on their site to share, tweet and such. You can also get a widget to put on your blog. Make sure you allow plenty of time to communicate before publishing the book if you want it all posted about the same time. But sometimes it’s better to have the book easily available for download beforehand, so it’s a “depends” process. Either way, allow time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;"></span> </div>
<div style="margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: blue;"><strong>4. On the “Donate” page</strong></span>, contact the fundraising coordinator and explain what you want to do. They will help in any way they can, from setting up links, to adding your book to their newsletter. Be prepared to offer copies for the coordinator to read, so he or she know more about what you are putting out to help their foundation. This person is your friend. You both have a common goal - fundraising and awareness. Working together will increase the success of your project. This seems obvious, until you both become hampered by various unexpected rules and hurdles that must be jumped. These aren’t arbitrary barriers, so try not to become too frustrated.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;"></span> </div>
<div style="margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: blue;"><strong>5. Money.</strong></span> Do you charge for the book? If so, how much? And what accounts are hooked up for the book’s payments? Is it your own account? I have heard from others this can create a nightmare of accounting. Personally, for Death Is Becoming, I chose to bypass this by making the book free and concentrating on awareness. There are links inside the book to Donate pages wherein the foundation can handle the necessary accounting.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;"></span> </div>
<div style="margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">
<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: blue;"><strong>However you choose to put it together, enjoy the process. You are doing a wonderful thing. :)</strong></span></span></div>
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</div>
<span style="font-family: Tahoma; font-size: 12pt;"><div style="margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">
<span style="color: blue;">BIO: <span class="apple-style-span"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: blue;">Jamie Leigh Hansen is a
multi-published, paranormal romance author best known for dramatic, heartfelt
stories with intense emotion and engaging, unforgettable characters</span>. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: blue;">Her newest work, Murder
Tales, is a series of urban fantasy short stories set in Metalline Falls, WA that
features Mary, the only human ever saved and raised by the Murder, vampires and
werewolves who work together to police the rogues of their world. Currently
available are The Murder King's Woman and The Murder King's Summons, with more
planned.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: blue;">Jamie is also currently
involved with BabelFAmily, co-writing The Legacy of Marie Schlau with other
writers around the world. They hope the International Literary Project to Fight
Friedreich's Ataxia will raise funds for FA research.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0px; text-indent: 36px;">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span></div>
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<span class="apple-style-span"><span style="background: white; color: black; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: blue;">She loves to hear from
friends and fans at JLH@JamieLeighHansen.com. Updates on her projects and links
to social media can be found on her website at www.JamieLeighHansen.com.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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Rebecca Zanettihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06252156888953212601noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-89081390262777121332013-10-31T00:00:00.000-07:002013-10-31T00:00:13.831-07:00 Enrich Your World With Re-imagined Holidays by <span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Tameri Etherton </span><br />
<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlQXBJeJaFQtnRDEX7kwskG3LdapEg5U0qLPNOTqniZRGQkqG3NJ3I3kXeNux_U4hBHbPCN4UIACy3PCScPJfpUsAetcBZ2MI09HVrQgQMhnFl8DWXwAngZh0bAoo630yO29cXXXd38ek/s1600/Tameri+E+pumpkins.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="251" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlQXBJeJaFQtnRDEX7kwskG3LdapEg5U0qLPNOTqniZRGQkqG3NJ3I3kXeNux_U4hBHbPCN4UIACy3PCScPJfpUsAetcBZ2MI09HVrQgQMhnFl8DWXwAngZh0bAoo630yO29cXXXd38ek/s320/Tameri+E+pumpkins.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">iStockphoto</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Ah, Halloween. That time of year when little ghosts and goblins
roam the streets looking for candy. Have you ever wondered what prompted kids
to dress up in costumes for treats? I have. And why do we decorate eggs on
Easter? What<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>s up with a Yule log, anyway?</span><br />
<div class="BodyCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 1em 0px; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">There<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>s only one way to find out: Research.
Dig into the customs and cultures of another time and you<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>ll
discover a wealth of opportunity to expand your imagined world.</span><span style="font-family: Helvetica;"> </span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Take Halloween, for
instance. The roots of our modern holiday can be traced back two thousand years
to an October 31st Gaelic festival called Samhain (pronounced Sah-win). The
festival was a celebration of summer<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>s end and the harvest. It was also one
heck of a party. Bonfires were lit to mimic the sun, in hopes it would hold
back the decay and darkness of winter. Or, perhaps something a little more
sinister.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">On Samhain night, the dark
god Herne the Hunter would ride across the Autumn sky with his red-eyed hell
hounds on a supernatural hunt.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I don<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>t
know about you, but that gives me chills. Just think of how you could include
something like that in your novel. Take a bit of history and tweak it to fit
your own story. You<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>ll at once draw readers in because of
the familiar elements, but also enrich your character<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>s
lives and world with unique touches.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">You could even take a
tradition like Scotland<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>s Hogmany, otherwise known as New Year<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>s
Eve and give it a paranormal twist. Whereas Christmas is peaceful and a time
for quiet reflection, Hogmany is a raucous, joyous affair. Once midnight
strikes, the partying quiets until the first visitor arrives. The tradition of
First-Footing says that the person who crosses the home<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>s
threshold first will be the predictor of good fortune in the year ahead.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">What if that first person
was a vampire? Or a serial killer? Or a faerie?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Don<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>t be
afraid to mix and match holiday traditions!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Legend has it that on both
Samhain and Beltane, the door between our world and that of the faerie<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>s
is thinner, making it easier for spirits and faeries to enter our world. What
if dark fae were to pass through unnoticed while humans were frolicking around
their bonfires?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Speaking of Beltane and
frolicking... if your novel needs a bit of spicing up, this is an excellent
holiday to play off of. Sex, fertility, gods and goddess, a battle between
light and dark, it<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>s a world building dream. It<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>s
a night where fevered passions and virgins are sacrificed to the lord of the
hunt. Imagine the conflict that might arise from a mis-matched pairing.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Want something even
spicier? Believe it or not, in the Czech Republic women are whipped or spanked
on Easter Monday. Why? Because they believe the spankings will keep them
healthy and beautiful for the whole next year.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Hey, whatever works! But I
think I<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>ll stick to beauty creams, thankyouverymuch.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Also at Easter, but a
little less erotic, in Finland, Sweden, and Denmark children decorate eggs for
Easter and then dress up as witches, going door to door collecting candy.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Sound familiar? Perhaps
that<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>s where the Halloween tradition came from.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">You don<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>t
have to limit your world building to traditional holidays. Sporting events can
enhance your plot. I<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>m a huge fan of the Olympics,
especially the winter games. In my fantasy novel I knew I wanted to have an
Olympic-like event, but didn<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>t want the games to feel too modern.
My research led me to the court of Queen Elizabeth I. Back in the day the
Thames would freeze over and they played a sort of hockey game and also
nine-pins, which is similar to modern day bowling. All of the games, including
these two, were competitions with winners receiving prizes from the Queen.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">With this information, I
made up several sports that would fit into an epic fantasy, but that modern
readers would understand.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The more we can relate our
worlds to what the reader knows, the better we<span style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>ll draw them into the story, making it
a place they want to venture in forever.</span><br />
<b><i></i></b><br />
<b><i>Have you played off
of holidays in your novels? Is there a particular holiday or tradition that</i></b><b><i><span lang="FR" style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: FR; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>s your favorite? Think you</i></b><b><i><span lang="FR" style="font-family: "Arial Unicode MS","sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: FR; mso-ascii-font-family: Helvetica;">’</span>ll find a way to incorporate a little
corporeal punishment into your next Easter celebration?<o:p></o:p></i></b><br />
<br />
Bio for Tameri Etherton ~ <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjemZBVG70DKyqpYxxCaGlE3Z6hU_xCCgY5zVn9pHF4Z6HTadCydGpiUJDt3bueSlQODVYZPifowap8wdauMZ4xJexj09YQueibqgnzoOemintmFz3rM1SVZ6wvgg3yME2oJktA4QyDlUQ/s1600/Tameri+E.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjemZBVG70DKyqpYxxCaGlE3Z6hU_xCCgY5zVn9pHF4Z6HTadCydGpiUJDt3bueSlQODVYZPifowap8wdauMZ4xJexj09YQueibqgnzoOemintmFz3rM1SVZ6wvgg3yME2oJktA4QyDlUQ/s200/Tameri+E.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"></span><br />
<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Tameri Etherton writes
stories about kick ass heroines and the rogues who steal their hearts. While
not writing, or researching for her latest book, she can be found in tea shops
laughing with friends, reading books, or at home curled up on the couch watching
movies with her family. She lives in a quaint little seaside village, and
enjoys strolling on the beach with her own prince charming.</span><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">You can find her on:</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/tameri" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">FACEBOOK</span></a><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/TameriEtherton" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">TWITTER</span></a><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></span><span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><a href="http://tamerietherton.com/" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">WEBSITE</span></a></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: #323232; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS"; mso-hansi-font-family: "Arial Unicode MS";">Stop on by and chat
sometime!</span></div>
<br />
<div class="Body" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-pagination: none;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Helvetica;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-21408582924541063402013-10-28T00:00:00.001-07:002013-10-28T00:00:19.675-07:00Incorporating Humor into Your Writing
<br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho7awvIyMjKLN2uc1y5PnoQrpxDDpcD3K03l-6UN8nMGmPdUEGMAPu7x0b3eqZqa4oNDt1l9UKCayiyds5F3hWmLNNGSAzvD0RdZqeJi5u-G7hxbQM84XLqY84vj1K7aEzM66NhXUaiEY/s1600/Ally+Broadfield.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho7awvIyMjKLN2uc1y5PnoQrpxDDpcD3K03l-6UN8nMGmPdUEGMAPu7x0b3eqZqa4oNDt1l9UKCayiyds5F3hWmLNNGSAzvD0RdZqeJi5u-G7hxbQM84XLqY84vj1K7aEzM66NhXUaiEY/s200/Ally+Broadfield.jpg" width="200" /></a><span><span style="color: orange; font-family: Calibri; font-size: x-large;"><o:p><strong>by Ally Broadfield</strong></o:p></span></span><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: black;">Sociologists,
anthropologists, and biologists</span> believe that the ability of humans to laugh
serves two essential life functions: to lessen tension and anxiety, and to help
us bond with others. Both of these are compelling reasons to incorporate humor
into your writing. As romance writers, one of our primary goals is to make an
emotional connection with our readers, and the effective use of humor can go a
long way toward accomplishing this. Studies have proved that laughter helps a
reader focus on a story and remember it afterward.</span></span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: black;">Many
writers look to screenwriters</span> and the three-act structure to plot our books,
and we can also learn a lot about incorporating humor into our writing from
screenwriters, sitcom writers, and stand up comedians. </span></span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: orange; font-family: Calibri; font-size: x-large;"><b><span style="background: white; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;">The K Rule</span></b></span></div>
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</div>
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: black;">Ask any comedy writer</span> and he’ll tell you that words
with a hard “k” or hard “c” sound are funny. The K Rule is a useful tool for
making word choices that will subconsciously or subtly amuse your readers. To
confirm this, watch any great comedy movie or sitcom and you’ll discover that
many of the jokes utilize a word with these sounds. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 11.25pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<b><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: orange; font-family: Calibri; font-size: x-large;">The Rule of Three</span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 11.25pt; mso-margin-top-alt: auto;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: black;">Comedic writing usually involves establishing a pattern</span> (with the setup) and
then misdirecting the reader (with the punch line). The easiest way to do this
is to pair two like ideas and then add a third, incongruent, idea. We use a
list of three is because studies have shown that three is the number of things
people can most easily remember. <span style="background: white;">“My dog’s
favorite foods are bones, bacon, and furniture.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="background: white; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: orange;"><strong>Put the
Funniest Word at the End<o:p></o:p></strong></span></span></span></span><br />
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: black;">Humor writers always</span> put the punchline at the end of the joke. A
corollary to that rule is to put the funniest word at the end of the punchline
sentence. Again, our hungry dog from above proves this. “<span style="background: white;">My dog’s favorite foods are furniture, bones, and
bacon” isn’t nearly as funny as it was when “furniture” was at the end of the
sentence (okay, I know this example was never that funny, but you see what I
mean). <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: orange;">Surprise<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="background: white; font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Of course we all know what a surprise is, but in
comedy, it is the foundation of misdirection. To use it, you present a set of
circumstances and then add an opposing twist. For example, consider this joke
from stand-up comedian James Mendrinos: Last time I was around here I went
hunting. I bagged a really huge deer while driving my Honda.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: orange;">What If?<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></b></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">The most
important tool to use when writing humor is your imagination. “What If” is my
favorite tool, because it can be used with any type of humor. It requires you
to think of something in a new way, preferably in a way none of your readers
have considered. The following exercise is in Melvin Helitzer’s book, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Comedy Writing Secrets</i>: Consider two
Coke bottles – what could they possibly be besides bottles? Make a list with as
many possibilities as you can. Here are a few of the things he came up with:
corn holders for the Jolly Green Giant, a newfangled breast implant, portable
urinals, ear plugs for elephants, and spin the bottle for schizophrenics. The
next time you get stuck when adding humor to your writing, try this exercise
with any object around your house – it’s guaranteed to get your creative juices
flowing.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<br />
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: orange; font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;"><strong>The tips in this article come from a lesson in my workshop</strong></span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: orange; font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><strong>Incorporating Humor into Your Writing</strong></i></span></div>
<div class="Default" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong><span style="color: orange; font-size: large;">Visit my website for upcoming dates</span></strong></span></div>
on<br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Ally Broadfield lives in Texas and is
convinced her house is shrinking, possibly because she shares it with three
kids, five dogs, two cats, a rabbit, and several reptiles. Oh, and her
husband. She likes to curse in Russian and spends most of her spare time
letting dogs in and out of the house and shuttling kids around. She writes
historical romance and middle grade/young adult fantasy. Her first book, Just a
Kiss, is coming from Entangled Publishing in December 2013.</span></span></i><br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span></i><br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Learn more about Ally Broadfield at:</span></span></i><br />
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></span></i><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: large;"><strong><a href="http://allybroadfield.com/" target="_blank">WEBSITE</a> <a href="http://www.facebook.com/allybroadfield" target="_blank">FACEBOOK</a> <a href="http://www.twitter.com/abroadfield" target="_blank">TWITTER</a></strong></span></span></div>
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></i><br />
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-5700926757073705562013-10-24T00:00:00.000-07:002013-10-24T04:49:44.434-07:00Get in Shape with TWITTER by Jordan K. Rose<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpJeK6qyh8WHdjeCPTk9Litg38sDDooEBU7Bk3-SeCtml_8TCgI_D_tJ-6Gah_BuG_c0HDEwqEB_zC6REr_6GMvCeQ2NE6DPtawX3qydsXmXGM7GQO8Kr4Cc72qAo9g-kzyHrdszQRJk4/s1600/JordanKRose_WEB-002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpJeK6qyh8WHdjeCPTk9Litg38sDDooEBU7Bk3-SeCtml_8TCgI_D_tJ-6Gah_BuG_c0HDEwqEB_zC6REr_6GMvCeQ2NE6DPtawX3qydsXmXGM7GQO8Kr4Cc72qAo9g-kzyHrdszQRJk4/s400/JordanKRose_WEB-002.jpg" width="266" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><span style="color: red;"><strong>This month I
released my first Indie Pubbed book, <em>The Demon Mistress</em>, the first book of The
Eva Prim Series. </strong></span>I’m also releasing four short stories to accompany the book,
and I have another book, Black Magic Rose releasing in November. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">To say I’m out of
my gourd</span></strong> (and have been for about 12 weeks) is an understatement. It seems that
for every one item crossed off my To-Do List three more are added. It’s
mind-boggling. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">I planned my
release several months in advance</span></strong>. So, instead of launching the book as soon as
I had it formatted I tucked it aside and prepared. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">I decided what
social media sites I’d use</span></strong> and then I worked on getting comfortable and making
some nice connections on those sites. By waiting I was able to build a small,
but active base of interested readers (proudly I admit these are people not
related to me). </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">Utilizing social
media is a requirement</span></strong> for writers who are new in their careers as well as
writers who’ve already experienced success. It amazes me to hear writers talk
about how they aren’t going to do it because they don’t want to, don’t have
time, don’t like it. It does take away from your writing time. It does
sidetrack you. It does add some complications to your work. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">But it is the way
of the world</span></strong> and if you want to be successful, if you want to connect with
readers, you need to do it. There is no reason why it can’t be fun, too. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-family: Cambria;"><span style="font-size: large;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria;"><span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">There are many
options</span></strong>. Find the ones you like and focus on those. Just pick one or two.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-family: Cambria;"><span style="font-size: large;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria;"><span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">I’ve been building
connections on Twitter and Facebook</span></strong>, using one to drive the other. I also love
Pinterest, though I’ve found a need to limit my access because I forget why I’m
there and end up goofing off. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">I use Twitter to
drive readers to my Facebook group</span></strong> and my newsletter with an automated response
to anyone who follows me. I thank them for the follow and invite them into the
Snack of the Week Club. This is done using JustUnfollow. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">In the group I
talk a little bit</span></strong> about Eva and myself, but mainly I try to keep all the
discussions focused on life, snacks, reading, movies and anything else. Of
course, where appropriate I relate back to Eva.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">On Twitter I
mention @evaprim</span></strong> in tweets and discuss updates for the series, but mostly I
talk about other stuff of interest to me—just like everyone else. I don’t push
my books. I hate the hard sale as a consumer and as a businesswoman. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-family: Cambria;"><span style="font-size: large;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria;"><span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">One of the things I’ve noticed</span></strong> about many
writers using Twitter (aside from the “Buy my book” tweets) is that all their
followers and many of the people they follow are other writers. Unless your
goal is only to have connections with other writers this is a problem. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">Yes, all writers
are readers</span></strong>. But, let’s be honest. We can’t all buy every single book written
by every writer we know. We can’t read them all. We can’t afford them all. You
need followers who are readers. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">It takes a little
work,</span></strong> but you don’t need to spend more than 15 minutes a day on twitter. I
spend about 20, though some days more because I enjoy it. I look for new
followers while I’m on the treadmill. There have even been times when I’ve
spent more time on the treadmill than intended because I was so intently
tweeting. Twitter makes the treadmill not seem like hell. (It’s a wonderful
diversion though don’t forget to keep walking!) </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">If you’re using
Twitter as part of your marketing strategy</span></strong>, your follower list should consist
mostly of readers. There are lots of readers on Twitter. Some are quiet,
lurkers. Some are very active, just like Facebook users. You need to find them.
Connect with them. That’s not very hard to do. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">Mine the follow
lists of writers in your subgenre</span></strong>. Follow the readers. And when they tweet to
you, tweet back. Build those relationships. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: red;">Ultimately, no
matter what social media you use you should enjoy it. That’s the key to
success.</span></strong> </span><br />
<o:p><span style="font-family: Cambria;"></span></o:p><br />
<o:p><span style="font-family: Cambria;"><strong>BOOK BLURB</strong></span></o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 150%; margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<o:p>
</o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What’s a girl to do when she discovers
her husband, who happens to be the Master Vampire for the New England Region,
has been lying to her for, oh, say a hundred and eighty years? </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Well, it all depends. If she’s
accidentally released forty demons from some creepy old book, unintentionally
announced the existence of vampires on The Internet, kidnapped a werewolf,
enraged a lovesick vampire by stealing his approved mate, and attracted the
attention of The High Commander for The Vampire Federation, not to mention
gotten stoned and mastered the forbidden art of demon calling, she might be
willing to call it even.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Or, she might plead her case at an
Inquisition and hope like all hell, she isn’t staked before sunrise. Eh, a
slightly busier night than usual, but nothing Eva Prim can’t handle. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: small;"><strong>MORE ABOUT THE AUTHOR</strong></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: small;">Jordan loves vampires. But if you know anything about
Jordan, you already knew that detail. What you didn’t know was it wasn’t long
ago that she began writing about them. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: small;">A few years back Jordan received a copy of Twilight from her
husband as part of her anniversary gift. By the end of that week she’d read the
entire series and moved onto Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles. Eight weeks and
eighteen vampire books later the idea for her first book, Perpetual Light came
to her followed very quickly by Eva Prim. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: small;">In October of 2013 The Demon Mistress, the first Eva Prim
Novel is available along with four short stories. For continual updates on Eva
please join the Snack Of The Week Club at <a href="http://www.evaprim.com/">www.evaprim.com</a>. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">Coming November 2013 Black Magic Rose, Book One of The
Alliance Series. Join Jordan’s newsletter for updates.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: small;">Jordan is a member of the national Romance Writers of
America organization and several chapters. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Cambria;">When she’s not writing about one vampire or another Jordan
enjoys spending time with her husband, Ken and their lovable Labrador, Dino on
the beautiful beaches of New England.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;">
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: small;">Find Jordan at: </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Cambria;"></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><strong><a href="http://www.jordankrose.com/" target="_blank">WEBSITE</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/#!/jordankrose" target="_blank">TWITTER</a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jordan-K-Rose-Author/307285709309992" target="_blank">FACEBOOK</a> </strong></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><strong></strong></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Cambria; font-size: large;"><strong><a href="http://pinterest.com/jordankrose/boards/" target="_blank">PINTEREST</a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5751865.Jordan_K_Rose" target="_blank">GOODREADS</a></strong></span></div>
<br />
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<o:p><span style="font-family: Cambria;"> </span></o:p></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-69885478999310433812013-10-21T00:00:00.000-07:002013-10-21T00:00:11.705-07:00"You Are Better Than You Know" by Rory Miller<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEg469otkSSLYw-0NbkmOEIGNEID7p638K-IElpN85xPb7F7pb4GdLPhG0x_PZ8O8J9P8iqMjILSZnlyallHCLIao-LBsp0EDEBFGSwL-aWMn949g-pFyJT7C1icaqdZCAWxlvrc-ZMb8/s1600/Rory+P6279573.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEg469otkSSLYw-0NbkmOEIGNEID7p638K-IElpN85xPb7F7pb4GdLPhG0x_PZ8O8J9P8iqMjILSZnlyallHCLIao-LBsp0EDEBFGSwL-aWMn949g-pFyJT7C1icaqdZCAWxlvrc-ZMb8/s320/Rory+P6279573.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Author Rory Miller</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong><em></em></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong><em></em></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong><em>You’re a good writer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You are better than you can know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Let’s crunch some numbers.</em></strong></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">You’ve been writing since you were six years old.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even with no college, that is twelve years of
formal training.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is there any other
thing in your life where you have twelve years of formal, expert teaching?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anything?</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">And writing isn’t like martial arts, where twelve years of
training may be combined with an absolute absence of experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You have written for real.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A lot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Maybe not every day… but I will bet that you read every day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe you don’t have time to read as many
books as you like, but I know you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You’re a reader.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cereal boxes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Labels.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Advertisements. You read. Every. Damn. Day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And reading and writing are the yin and yang
of each other.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong><em>Is there any other aspect of your life where you have this
combination of skill and experience?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You
are good.</em></strong></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">But here’s the problem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>You have been writing since you were six years old and almost every
single thing you ever wrote was judged.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>An outside authority figure who didn’t know and care how your friends
belly-laughed would say it wasn’t ‘literary’ or ‘concise’ or
‘choose-your-word’.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And you would get a
‘C’.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or a ‘B’.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or an ‘A’ or an ‘F’ but it really didn’t
matter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What mattered is that we were
taught, as children, that writing was hard, and judged by secret criteria we
could never grasp.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No matter how good we
are, all of us were taught we sucked, and it is simply safer not to risk.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong><em>If you look at your unfinished manuscript right now, you
will hear the voices in your head telling you to give up, that it is not good
enough.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Shoot those voices.</em></strong></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Let me tell you a story:</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">A couple of years ago, a special friend got into some
medical bills.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our circle of friends did
what we could, but I suggested we put together a book so that there would be a
constant trickle of income.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Problem with
making a suggestion like that is that it becomes your baby.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was named editor.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">I call these special friends not because of some weird
sexual relationship or because we all rode the short bus together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This particular circle of friends shared some
common history that most people really can’t grasp—former cops and former
criminal, operators, EMT’s and patients, we hang out together so that we can
tell our stories around the campfire with people who won’t have nightmares (or
vomit.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a tight bond, and an
exclusive club.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And a great source for
stories.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">The first thing I noticed was the insecurity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Messages would come in that were the e-mail
equivalent of, “Mr. Editor, sir,” Head bowed and wringing a hat in his hands,
“I have an idea and you probably won’t like it…”</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Get this—these were people who had survived mental
hospitals, escaped cults and abusive relationships, and hospitalized your worst
nightmare.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bad-asses of the nth
degree.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And they were so insecure about
their writing that they requested permission to give me a gift with all the
subservience of a slave in “Gone With The Wind.”</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">So I’d say, “Hell, yeah, let me see it.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And a couple couldn’t even do that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They sent no manuscript and no more e-mails.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">But others did, and every last one was good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They didn’t use prose like Nelson Algren (who
does?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s why he’s Nelson Algren and
not John Keats or Kristine Kathryn Rusch.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Some were linear and some were scatter shot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One was simply a list, a list of things you
must do to escape an abuser and that list is possibly the most chilling thing
in the book.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">So I would send back an email that said something like,
“That’s fantastic, thank you!”</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">And every single one sent back a message saying, “Oh,
no.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That wasn’t the real
manuscript.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s just a rough
draft.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here’s the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">real</i> manuscript.”</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimxM3_MYNGYLX1iEE4ucaEKtE12L7wcH666-y9AGeXLdUoIJzxBkLW9V_n1t3mBymB9ygixO4KJj-IRAdKJNUV673-1TkngTDNME5Ij_On3NwQUqoyiQdKwy-gAFQJgqc6OLgYOHzXoG0/s1600/Rory+Basics.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimxM3_MYNGYLX1iEE4ucaEKtE12L7wcH666-y9AGeXLdUoIJzxBkLW9V_n1t3mBymB9ygixO4KJj-IRAdKJNUV673-1TkngTDNME5Ij_On3NwQUqoyiQdKwy-gAFQJgqc6OLgYOHzXoG0/s320/Rory+Basics.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">These bad-asses, people who had been a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">gaijin</i> in a Japanese prison or practiced martial arts in Antarctica
or trained counter-terrorism had sent me a draft so that if I rejected it, I
wasn’t rejecting <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">them</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“It was just a draft, just a rough outline,
really…”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Insecurity.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Here’s the part you need to hear: In every single case
(including the case where the author had his retired news-editor wife help with
the re-write) the second draft they sent me was weaker.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first draft they were passionate people
communicating about something they loved or feared.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It had passion and clarity.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">In the second draft, they were trying to be writers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whatever that means.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I suspect that each and every one was trying
to make a dimly remembered third grade teacher happy.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Go get four glasses of wine and bring them back to the
computer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Go ahead, you’re writers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of the job perks is to be able to sit in
your underwear while drinking wine and still generate income.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Got the wine?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not hard, right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I mean, four glasses is tough, but it’s just
about moving wine.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Now get four glasses of wine and do it like a circus
performer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Go on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Come on back and finish this article when
something breaks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’ll only be a few
seconds.</span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Delivering wine is easy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Delivering wine like a performance artist is hard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Writing is easy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is just communication, just telling a story—and
you are good at it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Writing like it is
some kind of performance art, trying to be a writer instead of just telling a
story—that’s not only hard, it has a tendency to ruin the story.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong><em>Write.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just
write.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you really, really care your
passion will come through and it will be good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If you don’t care at all, you will be lazy and efficient and your
writing will be clear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And that’s good
too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But if you try to ‘be a writer’ and
either put clarity into your passions or passion into your clarity, or if you
try to please your long-dead third grade teacher (and what the hell did she
ever write, anyway?) you will ruin it.</em></strong></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><strong>You’re good at this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Put your butt in your chair and fill some pages.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Have fun.</strong></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span><br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">MORE ABOUT THE AUTHOR</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="color: #010000;">Rory Miller is a veteran Corrections Officer who has
worked as a mental </span></span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="color: #010000;">health specialist; Tactical team member and leader; sergeant and
instructor </span></span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="color: #010000;">as well as spending over a year as a contractor in Iraq. He is the
author of </span></span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="color: #010000;">the award-winning "Force Decisions" as well as
"Meditations on Violence" </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span><span style="color: #010000;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">"Facing Violence" and "Violence: A Writer's
Guide." </span></span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Though he is
reluctantly on FaceBook (For now) he does not tweet. Or
text. </span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">There is a blog,
though, and a website, since he travels all over teaching people about bad
guys.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><strong></strong></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: large;"><strong><a href="http://chirontraining.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">BLOG</a> FACEBOOK <a href="http://chirontraining.com/" target="_blank">WEBSITE</a></strong></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<strong><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: large;"></span></strong> </div>
<strong><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: large;"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Rory-Miller/e/B002M54CNW/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1381087257&sr=1-2-ent" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: small;">Amazon Author Page<o:p></o:p></span></a></strong></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"></span><br /></div>
</span></strong></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span>hope you will join my class titled</span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><strong>INTRODUCTION TO VIOLENCE</strong></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif";"><span style="color: #cc0000;"></span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: black;">H</span><span style="color: #333333;">osted by</span> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #333333;">Fantasy-Futuristic & Paranormal Romance Writers</span> </span></span></div>
<div align="center" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #333333;">This Four Week class starts November 4th</span> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: large;">For more information click <a href="http://www.rwa.org/p/cm/ld/fid=913" target="_blank">HERE</a></span></span></span></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-5080568287495427532013-10-17T00:00:00.000-07:002013-10-17T00:00:13.569-07:00How Garden Design Influenced a Pantser<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFQrWLeVo47sQWgPyLq8Hl2YPvtLj4BGYTInS8JRRV_jB1yhzxmQWAic2y7k3uaPkCzcbShCtnHD1PCer0YdA9hcruRn3E9PtrElbrMx4fsMjix9rrGG87sB15QInrs2TkS_qYFZR5drY/s1600/Dawn+Marie+Hamilton.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFQrWLeVo47sQWgPyLq8Hl2YPvtLj4BGYTInS8JRRV_jB1yhzxmQWAic2y7k3uaPkCzcbShCtnHD1PCer0YdA9hcruRn3E9PtrElbrMx4fsMjix9rrGG87sB15QInrs2TkS_qYFZR5drY/s1600/Dawn+Marie+Hamilton.jpg" /></a><span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><strong>by Dawn Marie
Hamilton</strong></span></div>
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</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">One of my favorite pastimes is gardening</span></strong>. In the past, I
most often approached planting as I do </span><span style="font-size: large;">writing—as a pantser. Stick a plant
here. Tuck another one there. No specific plan. That was until I decided to plant
a shade garden from scratch. This required forethought—planning.</span><br />
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</span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><strong>Yikes! I needed to make a garden plan?</strong></span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Okay. I can do this.</span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">Once I had my research assembled</span></strong>—garden books, magazines,
plant catalogues—out came the grid paper, sharp pencil, and circle template.</span></div>
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</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-_Tl3ol6caSZgejSfmQjxN6hC4rxjurvHKNPcfUMNuLK1j7pNPo3z_E61hOEKsMvWgKfF5ZfrTM-o1I0UWZtbnQLf_r3Jfk4GLKhKKVM7L_8HW03HwP8mv_KpuiXBxjVBUgZzK5n7A2o/s1600/Dawn+M+H-FFP+Garden+Design.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-_Tl3ol6caSZgejSfmQjxN6hC4rxjurvHKNPcfUMNuLK1j7pNPo3z_E61hOEKsMvWgKfF5ZfrTM-o1I0UWZtbnQLf_r3Jfk4GLKhKKVM7L_8HW03HwP8mv_KpuiXBxjVBUgZzK5n7A2o/s400/Dawn+M+H-FFP+Garden+Design.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The completed design would be installed along the back fence
of my property. Each circle on the plan represented a specific plant identified
by a unique number. A list of the required plants and their bloom times was
presented below the garden drawing.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">If I had felt especially creative</span></strong>, I could have used colored
pencils to represent plant colors and shaded the circles. I probably should
have, but as with writing, I’m always in a hurry to proceed.</span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">What does this have to do with writing a novel?</span></strong> After
completing my first book without preplanning, then having to perform multiple
rewrites, I decided to do at least a minimum amount of planning with the second
book. I think it paid off. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Sea Panther</i>
was a 2013 Golden Heart® finalist.</span></div>
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</span><br />
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<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMc6V1dBjbZKmifh7Mk9bXD_uxyW2G6Z13uxt_A8KcH8Z3PfxU7sOaPATDTVp1WT0S64Pch1M3wE1za56KWJG0b5sG2K5gNLp3k-LjOysg6UXntdx43AKxHc9VJSoroC9BOQDye_gbxBY/s1600/Dawn+M+H-FFP+research.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="326" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMc6V1dBjbZKmifh7Mk9bXD_uxyW2G6Z13uxt_A8KcH8Z3PfxU7sOaPATDTVp1WT0S64Pch1M3wE1za56KWJG0b5sG2K5gNLp3k-LjOysg6UXntdx43AKxHc9VJSoroC9BOQDye_gbxBY/s400/Dawn+M+H-FFP+research.jpg" width="400" /></a><span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">As with the previous story, I started the process of writing
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Sea Panther</i> with research,</span></strong> but this
time, I assembled the miscellaneous bits and pieces in a three-ring binder.
Then I started writing to get a feel for the characters. After the first
several chapters were complete as a rough draft, I created an overall outline
for the story and a conflict chart for the main characters.</span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Circles—just like with the garden plan. I learned about the
conflict chart during a workshop presented by Laurie Sanders. It includes the
hero and heroine’s strengths and weaknesses, what attracts them, and what
causes conflict.</span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">As with drawing the garden plan</span></strong>, I used a grid to create a
storyboard from the outline. Using a thick, 30 by 20 poster board divided into
twenty-four squares with each square representing a chapter, I recorded the premise
for each chapter on a yellow sticky and stuck them to the board. As the story
unfolded in my mind, stickies were added—a different color for each POV and/or
plot thread. With stickies, I could easily move scenes around on the board as
the story progressed. I also could locate when too much of one POV was used and
find plot holes.</span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><strong>This method worked for me. What works for you? Are you a
plotter or a pantser? What is your process?</strong></span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Blurb for Dawn
Marie’s most recent book, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Just Once in a
Verra Blue Moon</i>:<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<br />
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What happens when a twenty-first century business executive
is expected to fulfill a prophecy given at the birth of a sixteenth-century
seer? Of course, he must raise his sword in her defense.</div>
<br />
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Believing women only want him for his wealth, Finn MacIntyre
doesn't trust any woman to love him. When, during Scottish Highland games,
faerie magic sends him back in time to avenge the brutal abduction of his
time-traveling cousin, he learns he's the subject of a fae prophecy.</div>
<br />
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Elspeth MacLachlan, the beloved clan seer, is betrothed to a
man she dislikes and dreams of the man prophesized at her birth, only to find
him in the most unexpected place—face down in the mud.</div>
<br />
With the help of fae allies, they must overcome the
treachery set to destroy them to claim a love that <br />
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transcends time.</div>
<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #38761d;">About Dawn Marie:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<span style="color: #38761d;">
</span><br />
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<span style="color: #38761d;">Dawn Marie Hamilton dares you to dream. She is a 2013 RWA®
Golden Heart® Finalist who pens Scottish-inspired fantasy and paranormal
romance. Some of her tales are rife with mischief-making faeries, brownies, and
other fae creatures. More tormented souls—shape shifters, vampires, and maybe a
zombie or two—stalk across the pages of other stories. She is a member of The
Golden Network, Fantasy, Futuristic & Paranormal, Celtic Hearts, and From
the Heart chapters of RWA. When not writing, she’s cooking, gardening, or
paddling the local creeks of Southern Maryland with her husband.</span></div>
<span style="color: #38761d;">
</span><br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: #38761d;">You can find Dawn
Marie hanging out at…<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
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<strong><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://dawnmariehamilton.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">BLOG</a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/dawnmariehamilton.author" target="_blank">FACEBOOK</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/DawnM_Hamilton" target="_blank">TWITTER</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/DawnMarieHamilton" target="_blank">GOODREADS</a> </span></strong></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-7943346141968328222013-10-14T00:00:00.000-07:002013-10-14T02:21:21.358-07:00Interview with SAMHAIN Editor Holly Atkinson<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFcoEXSV-KV1y8x_iDW8uCGfrvGwyg-1l8ljA__cC9E7332j7Rxl7-EDbk4z0WfbXsX6nZWW20zij8VfJFn8g1J4PtMnpdhnutPqfzUMcex1TE1d_Dbtc4whc57f8b1ZbmNjXS-Q-rio0/s1600/holly.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFcoEXSV-KV1y8x_iDW8uCGfrvGwyg-1l8ljA__cC9E7332j7Rxl7-EDbk4z0WfbXsX6nZWW20zij8VfJFn8g1J4PtMnpdhnutPqfzUMcex1TE1d_Dbtc4whc57f8b1ZbmNjXS-Q-rio0/s320/holly.jpg" width="210" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Editor Holly Atkinson</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><strong>FF&P Member, Nancy Lee Badger, invited Holly Atkinson, an editor with SAMHAIN Publishing, to give our readers a new perspective from <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">the other side</i>. </strong></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">Please tell our readers a little
bit about you, such as why did you become an editor?<o:p></o:p></span></strong></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">I became an editor almost by
accident, actually, which is strange considering how much I wanted to be one.
When I was in college, all of my critiques for creative writing classes were
extensive and somewhat brutal. I was exposed to Track Changes on MS Word in my
fandom days, when I exchanged fanfic notes with fellow Buffy-writers.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">As I said, my dream job was
always editing. People would ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up, and I’d
waffle with what I thought were more realistic answers, but when I allowed
myself to fantasize, my answer was always the same. Some people shoot for movie
stardom, some for athletics—I just wanted to edit books and spend my days
reading.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">I debuted in the publishing world
in 2009 or 2010, and after a while, decided to look for editing positions. My
first editing gig came from Lyrical Press, where I served as a line editor. I
next worked at Mundania Press as a content editor. After a couple years, I applied
for a position with Samhain, and the rest is history.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">Describe the genre of the most
recent release, and is this the only genre you represent?<o:p></o:p></span></strong></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">I believe the most recent release
was in the urban fantasy genre, and I know I have another coming up. I do love
urban fantasy, but it’s not my only genre. My authors write contemporary,
fairytales, paranormal, BDSM, post-apocalyptic, science fiction, historical and
fantasy. The only requirement, as far as I’m concerned, is to tell a good
story. I have preferred genres, but I do like taking a break from those and
sampling what else is out there.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">What is your weekly routine
like?</span></strong> <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">I am a copywriter by day and an
editor by night, so my weekly routine can be a little hectic. From 8-5, I work
at a local advertising agency and write content for blogs, websites, print
media, television, radio spots, and so on. Before work, during breaks, and over
lunch, I check my editor email, chat with authors, squeeze in edits, read
submissions, and do the administrative paper-pushing. When I get home, I answer
author emails, do my best to meet self-set edit goals, and then read until
bedtime. Over the weekend I focus almost entirely on edits and submission
reading.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"></span><br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">What do you see ahead in your career?<o:p></o:p></span></strong></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I would like to transition to editing full-time. This is my
five-year goal. Working with authors and helping bring their vision to life is
incredibly fulfilling. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">Will you share some encouraging
words for authors still struggling for that first contract?<o:p></o:p></span></strong></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Keep reading. Keep writing. Keep
submitting. If you receive a rejection, try to distance yourself from the
manuscript. Have a friend—one who’s not afraid of hurting your feelings—read it
and listen to what they have to say. Demand brutal honesty, and don’t shy when you
get it. You’re not going to agree with every piece of advice you receive, but
you have to allow yourself to take some lumps to make your manuscript better.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">Critique groups cannot be overvalued.
Online communities are fantastic, but check for local groups where you can meet
and discuss ongoing writing projects with regional authors.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">How can our readers find your
submission guidelines?</span></strong> <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;">The submission guidelines are
available on the Samhain website: </span><a href="http://www.samhainpublishing.com/submissions/"><span style="color: blue;">http://www.samhainpublishing.com/submissions/</span></a><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"></span><br />
<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"></span><br />
<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"></span><br />
<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">BIO:<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #cc0000;">
</span><br />
<span style="background: white; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">Since she
can remember, Holly Atkinson's professional ambition has revolved around
fiction editing. She was fortunate to receive her first taste in editing when
she was thirteen and wrote copy for a local realtor show. In 2008, Holly
graduated from Missouri State University with a Bachelor’s in English,
specializing in Creative Writing. Her first real job in the literary world came
in the role of line editor for Lyrical Press. In 2011, she joined Mundania
Press as a content editor and finally landed her dream job at Samhain
Publishing in 2012.<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><br /><span style="color: #cc0000;">
<br />
<span style="background: white;">Holly describes herself as the quintessential
book nerd. In her spare time, she writes erotic romance under a penname, though
she hopes to produce more mainstream works in the future so the more
conservative members of her family can read her work. She lives in Missouri
with her husband, loves to travel, and goes a little crazy around the holidays.
Her largest writing influences include Pamela Smith Hill, Aaron Sorkin, JK
Rowling, Stephen King, and Joss Whedon.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
<br />
Thank you, Holly, for the great insight. <br />
<br />
Readers: Feel free to leave comments or questions.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-62513493965630549842013-10-10T00:00:00.000-07:002013-10-10T00:00:03.229-07:0010 RED FLAG WORDS by Catherine E. McLean<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP-GptMUy9YMU_8OoHs-ofMIoT1wNl8WCnIV8sIrTlQx8_qEOlFSsA814xzRn0eNyHk2RLdFvKYgHAORPLuz9X0DDo74S_t6demnH-SHdD9vb_xo7WGdbspiJcouVYe5FxjzONUpCgdVw/s1600/Catharine+E+Mclean+Writer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP-GptMUy9YMU_8OoHs-ofMIoT1wNl8WCnIV8sIrTlQx8_qEOlFSsA814xzRn0eNyHk2RLdFvKYgHAORPLuz9X0DDo74S_t6demnH-SHdD9vb_xo7WGdbspiJcouVYe5FxjzONUpCgdVw/s320/Catharine+E+Mclean+Writer.jpg" width="244" /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Likely you've heard</strong> that a writer's goal is to place
the correct words onto the page so the reader sees a story unfold like a movie
in their mind. In that quest, one trick-of-the-trade is to do a global search
for "red flag" words like WAS, WERE, AS, AND, BUT, IT, HAD, JUST,
ONLY, and SO. Let's look at why those little words merit the red-flag label.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>At the top </strong>of every writer's revision cheat
sheet should be the dynamite-dangerous WAS and WERE. These two seem to be
everywhere in a manuscript. They can pepper a page by themselves, be found in
clusters (called "crops of"), and when they are used together, one
following the other, they become powder kegs that diminish clarity.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Yes, overuse is a big problem</strong> for both, but
what constitutes overuse?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From research
and from feedback by participants in my workshops, I have gathered WAS
statistics. The all-time record holder for the overuse of WAS is one every
fifteen words (which equals one every sentence—and, to be honest, that writer's
longer sentences had two or three WASes in them). <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Now, do the math</strong>: 1 in 15 means 6,667 WASes
in a 100,000 word manuscript. On a subconscious level, a reader hears all those
WASes. At what point do those WASes accumulate and buzz like a hive of angry
bees? Which means, subliminal irritation develops and that potential of a
five-star story ends up with a one-star. That is, if the reader makes it to the
end of the story.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>So how many</strong> WASes should be used? Some,
including me, would adamantly shout the fewer the better. But I'll add that
much depends on the narrative. If a character is the sole narrator, then that's
dialogue both internal and spoken, so the "rules" of grammar and
punctuation don't necessarily apply. After all, a character must be true to
their voice and syntax.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>But there's more</strong>. WAS and WERE are passive
verbs. If WAS or WERE are coupled with an "ing" or "ly"
ending word, or both, that's a red flag for a passive sentence. Passivity is
the chronic weakness of omniscient narratives and "telling" because
passivity robs a reader of emotional highs, lows, and instantaneous vividness.
For example: <i>The Doberman was quickly chewing through the rope.</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Some might say</strong> to change "was quickly
chewing" to the active-voiced "chewed." But a better choice
might be gnawed or chomped. In other words, is there a better verb, a one-word
verb, that instantly creates the correct image in the reader's mind for how the
dog "was quickly chewing?"<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>So, it's best to</strong> do a search-and-find and
check every WAS and WERE, making certain each is the only word that will do at
that particular spot.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Next on the list</strong>, and second in importance
and overuse is the word AS.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>AS is trouble with a capital T</strong>. My
dictionary lists nine definitions. That's nine chances to make an error. Of
those nine, the following are giant red flags.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Number one is</strong> that AS means "at the
same time" (simultaneously). Trouble is, <i>nothing happens simultaneously
in a story</i>. That's because a person is reading, and in order to keep the
images developing vividly and clearly—which means the action flows like a movie
in the reader's mind—every word has to be the correct one in the correct
sequence. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>The second culprit</strong> is an AS-clause that
either leads a sentence or is found near the end of a sentence. Here's an
example of a lead-in: <i>As John walked into the bar, he spotted Sam.</i> This
shouts simultaneousness but since nothing is simultaneous for the reader who is
reading, that AS should be changed to show the actions in their sequence: <i>After
John walked into the bar, he looked around, and spotted Sam.</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Now comes the most</strong> AS-clause abuse: an
AS-clause near the end of a sentence. Nine times out of ten, finding one means
the cause-effect has been reversed. For example: <i>The feeling of foreboding
grew stronger as he drove through the countryside.</i> Better is: <i>As he
drove through the countryside, the feeling of foreboding grew stronger.</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>The next two red-flag words</strong> are AND and
BUT. I think the hardest habit for a writer to break is to stop using AND and
BUT at the beginning of a sentence. Another serious overuse problem is using
AND and BUT to join sentences, series, and clauses. The result is awkward,
long-winded, and run-on sentences.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Next on the red-flag</strong> hit-list is IT.
Especially when IT is used as a pronoun. Remember that <i>a</i> <i>pronoun
refers to the last used noun</i>. So, for clarity's sake, repeat the noun
rather than have it become amusing text. Here's an example: <i>The wind numbed
his face and ruffled his hair as it blew off the chilly ocean. </i>Did his hair
blow off the ocean? Did you spot the AS-clause? Did you realize this is also a
revered cause-effect sequence? Amazing, isn't it, how two little red-flag words
can muck up the visual for the reader and jar them out of the story.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Another red-flag</strong> use of IT is as a
contraction or possessive. IT'S means only one thing—"it is." Keep in
mind that IT'S is never a possessive. If writing the possessive form, use
"its." So, it's a wise writer who does a self-edit for it, its, and
it's.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Next on the list</strong> is HAD. Think of this
ditty every time you type the word: "<i>HAD is a handicap</i>." HAD
handicaps by its overuse. Yes, it's a very good choice for getting from the
story present into the story past and then out of the flashback scene and into
the story now. Trouble is, between entering and exiting the flashback, that
scene should be written as if it were actually<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>happening.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>The next three</strong>, JUST, ONLY, and SO are
overused "weasel words" (words taking up space without adding
anything to the passage). Such words could easily be deleted. However, there
are exceptions. First, if JUST, ONLY, and SO are part of the narrative
character's usual dialogue, diction, and syntax, they can remain—provided they
don't pepper a page. The second exception is if the words serves as a
transition. It might help if you recite a litany of "w<i>easel words
weaken prose</i>." <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>Now
that you are aware</strong> of the dangers of these ten red-flag words, it's time you
did a safety-inspection of your own writing. Take ten pages or a chapter or a
scene and make a note of the word count. Now, chose one of the red-flag words—WAS,
WERE, AS, AND, BUT, IT, HAD, JUST, ONLY, and SO—and do a search for that word.
How many did you find? What is the ratio of the chosen red-flag word to the
total word count? (And, yes, I'd love to hear what your statistics are!)<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>I know self-editing is hard</strong>, but
eliminating such red-flag words helps net a manuscript that a reader can visual
like a movie in their mind—and you'll become a better wordsmith and writer.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Courier New"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New"; font-size: 12pt;"><strong>More About the Author</strong></span><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Courier New"; font-size: 12pt;">Catherine
E. McLean welcomes questions on the devices and techniques of fiction. She's an author,
workshop speaker, and writing instructor. Her next online workshop is
"Revision Boot Camp," January 13-31, 2014 (details are at
<a href="http://www.writerscheatsheets.com/">www.WritersCheatSheets.com</a> ). Catherine's been published in both short story and
novel length. She's coined the term "Women's Starscape Fiction" for
her writing because she likes a story where characters are real people facing
real dilemmas, and where their journey (their adventure-quest, with or without
a romance) is among the stars and solar systems, and where there's always a
satisfying ending. Her home website is </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.catherineemclean.com./"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Courier New";">www.CatherineEmclean.com.</span></a></span><span style="font-family: "Courier New"; font-size: 12pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span></o:p></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-40624896726035852432013-10-07T00:00:00.001-07:002013-10-07T00:00:01.553-07:00QUEEN OF THIEVES by Alethea Kontis<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCiCGEeUiWtRjYwL6LKyOYH_rhJZXwgT_TWWwcUwxsB_22fSdvIB69_6vcPU3GiP98PJOykp5HQ_eBhDpQe0xzPXwPCrAsRzkqYLrLHbwW7IKfofcbkuz_93II6-_dtRQ6XVZ32orPtz0/s1600/Alethea+Kontis.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCiCGEeUiWtRjYwL6LKyOYH_rhJZXwgT_TWWwcUwxsB_22fSdvIB69_6vcPU3GiP98PJOykp5HQ_eBhDpQe0xzPXwPCrAsRzkqYLrLHbwW7IKfofcbkuz_93II6-_dtRQ6XVZ32orPtz0/s320/Alethea+Kontis.jpeg" width="213" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;"><strong>Into everyone's life must come a Dirty Rotten
Scoundrel...and not the sexy kind.</strong></span> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;"></span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Male or female, this innately selfish,
borderline (or fully) psychopathic person is placed into our sphere by the
universe because we need to learn a lesson the hard way. With luck, you've
moved on and this person is no longer in your life, but what you learned will
stay with you forever. </span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">My Dirty Rotten Scoundrel taught me how to steal</span></strong>. </span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">He was a writer,</span></strong> this jerkface, and a year of my
own productivity was sacrificed to editing page after page of his drivel-filled
documents. So blinded was I by the grand delusion of true love that I thought
every phrase the pillock uttered was pure genius...despite the fact that he
ultimately seemed to be telling the same tale again and again. I cherished the
way he snuck in lines from his favorite songs or references to his favorite
authors, some long since dead and gone and some not. My blissfully ignorant
heart was sure he left them all in for me, these secret coded messages of our
love scattered like breadcrumbs between the lines. </span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">In reality, he was just stealing all this stuff
and making it his own. Because he could. And his publishers never said a word.</span></strong> </span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">One of the biggest challenges I faced</span></strong> when
starting out as a baby-writer (literally--I was eight) was coming up with ideas
that were NEW, stories that had never been told before. I never had any formal
creative writing education, so I was not aware that there was no such thing as
a "new" story, just my unique interpretation of events. I spent the
first twenty-something years of my life forcing myself to think so far outside
the box that I was in a different galaxy. </span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">What I should have been doing</span></strong> was learning how to
steal. Because the line between "plagiarism" and "homage"
is a fine one...and one you need to become familiar with if you want to make
writing your profession. </span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">Many baby-writers start out</span></strong> writing fan fiction. I
think this is a really great exercise that gives the writer a chance to find
his/her voice without having to spend excess amounts of energy also creating a
new universe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Eventually, the writer
learns enough to know what elements to change to separate it from the original
intellectual property...or it organically changes so much on its own that it no
longer resembles the Game of Twilight Wars universe on which it was originally
based. </span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">Coming at this line from the opposite direction</span></strong> is
a lot more difficult because it feels SO MUCH LIKE STEALING. It leaves you
feeling immoral and unjust and with the desperate need to take a hot shower and
report yourself to the authorities. But you must force yourself to become
comfortable enough inside your hand-me-downs to make them your own. </span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><strong>In my first published book, <u>I retold the alphabet.</u> </strong></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;">(If you're gonna start somewhere, go big or go
home, right?)</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">In my teen novels, I retell the classic Grimm and
Andersen</span></strong> (and a few others') fairy tales. I don't regurgitate the exact same
sequence of events--though as they're public domain, I suppose I could. I
prefer, instead, to fill in the blanks I feel the original authors left. Who
was Henry, the beloved manservant of The Frog Prince? Where did Snow White
obtain those iron shoes? Was Cinderella truly despised by her stepfamily, or
was she just a lazy slob who refused to clean her room?</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d;">This is not plagiarism</span></strong>. These are my stories...new
stories told to a new audience in a new millennium...but they are not original.
They are the stolen bits I have collected to create my found art objects. I
love them for what they are made of, and I love them for what they have become.
</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><strong>And, really, I owe it all to some no-count
bastard. </strong></span></div>
<span style="color: #38761d; font-size: large;"><strong>
</strong></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #38761d; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><em>Thanks, slimeball.</em></span></strong> </span></div>
<br />
<o:p>Bio: New York Times bestselling author
Alethea Kontis is a princess, a goddess, a force of nature, and a mess. She’s
known for screwing up the alphabet, scolding vampire hunters, turning garden
gnomes into mad scientists, and making sense out of fairy tales.<br />
</o:p><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
</div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1378848398913_2037">
Alethea is the co-author of Sherrilyn
Kenyon’s <em>Dark-Hunter Companion</em>, and penned the AlphaOops series of
picture books. Her short fiction, essays, and poetry have appeared in a myriad
of anthologies and magazines. She has done multiple collaborations with Eisner
winning artist J.K. Lee, including <em>The Wonderland Alphabet</em> and <em id="yui_3_7_2_1_1378848398913_2036">Diary of a Mad Scientist Garden Gnome</em>.
Her debut YA fairy tale novel, <em>Enchanted</em>, won the Gelett Burgess
Children’s Book Award in 2012 and was nominated for both the Andre Norton Award
and the Audie Award in 2013. <i>Hero</i>, the sequel to <i>Enchanted</i>,
released on October 1st. </div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
</div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1378848398913_2035">
Born in Burlington, Vermont, Alethea now
lives in Northern Virginia with her Fairy Godfamily. She makes the best baklava
you’ve ever tasted and sleeps with a teddy bear named Charlie.</div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
</div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1378848398913_2034">
You can find Princess Alethea online at: <a href="http://www.aletheakontis.com/" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1378848398913_2033" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.aletheakontis.com</a>.</div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
</div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1378848398913_2030">
<u>Links</u>:</div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
</div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1378848398913_2032">
How to pronounce "Alethea Kontis: -- <a href="http://www.teachingbooks.net/pronounce.cgi?aid=18395" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1378848398913_2031" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://www.teachingbooks.net/pronounce.cgi?aid=18395</a></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><a href="http://www.aletheakontis.com/" target="_blank">WEBSITE</a> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/princessaletheakontis" target="_blank">FACEBOOK</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/aletheakontis" target="_blank">TWITTER</a></strong></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong></strong></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/Thieftess" target="_blank">YOUTUBE</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Alethea-Kontis/e/B001H6KG3M/ref=wwwaletheakon-20" target="_blank">Amazon Author Page</a></strong></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><span style="font-size: large;"></span></strong> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://princessalethea.tumblr.com/" target="_blank">TUMBLR</a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/173493.Alethea_Kontis" target="_blank">Goodreads Author Page</a> </span></strong></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
<o:p> </o:p></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-63530644084908234702013-10-03T00:00:00.000-07:002013-10-03T00:00:03.726-07:00"God as my witness, I want to be like that again."<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwntxwa1qh-7HWSKkJMQ8XIah65SwghzPWZSdLGx-hW0wEVeCqUDOOl_rrKFTaicKvd5A-anEsF5FQXk9iOipYyV3Mqr41xcFMowO1VEX433a11tADws0cIUSuo6mA9aTaesTUDFpZt1c/s1600/J+Henley.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><br /></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwntxwa1qh-7HWSKkJMQ8XIah65SwghzPWZSdLGx-hW0wEVeCqUDOOl_rrKFTaicKvd5A-anEsF5FQXk9iOipYyV3Mqr41xcFMowO1VEX433a11tADws0cIUSuo6mA9aTaesTUDFpZt1c/s1600/J+Henley.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwntxwa1qh-7HWSKkJMQ8XIah65SwghzPWZSdLGx-hW0wEVeCqUDOOl_rrKFTaicKvd5A-anEsF5FQXk9iOipYyV3Mqr41xcFMowO1VEX433a11tADws0cIUSuo6mA9aTaesTUDFpZt1c/s320/J+Henley.jpg" width="320" /></a><strong><span style="font-size: large;">by Jodi Henley</span></strong><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong>Motivation</strong></span> doesn’t
always need to be explained. The <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">existence</i>
of motivation works to hold your story on the straight and narrow. When you
choose an event as your character’s motivation you set into motion a thousand <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">later</i> choices. The best way to picture it
would be to think of a family tree. Each family tree starts with one set of
people, and those people have children, who later have children. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong>There are a
lot of branches</strong></span> that all start from the same point. Who you choose to follow to
the present time (the end of your story) determines your path. You can’t skip
from Janey on the left side of the chart to Paul on the far right without
backtracking to a point where you “can” cross over. However, you “can” make a
huge number of choices within your <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">predetermined</i>
line of descent. If Janey has eight kids, any one of those kids can be followed
to the next generation, and any one of her children’s kids can be followed to
the generation after that. The story is level because you “can’t” make a choice
that isn’t contained by Janey’s bloodline without creating believability issues
or going back to the original pair to make another choice (picking different motivation).</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-indent: 0in;">
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: large;"><strong>The choice is important,
and so is your character’s “emotional reaction” to that choice.</strong></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-indent: 0in;">
<span style="font-size: large;">In <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Gone with the Wind, </i>Scarlett’s motivation (for the second half)
happens when she vows she’ll never be hungry again. Mitchell could have simply
chosen to have a lady drive past in her fine carriage. Scarlett, trudging along
in the dirt, looks up and says, “I want to be like that again!”</span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">Even with the
exclamation point</span></strong>, the “umphf” simply isn’t there. It’s a workable choice.
Scarlett was a fine lady; she had a nice carriage, she hates being poor. It’s
okay. But, both the magnitude of the event that drives her motivation and
Scarlett’s<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> reaction </i>to the event
create a different set of probable story choices.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: large;"><strong>There’s a huge, huge
difference between, “God as my witness, I will NEVER be hungry again!” and “I
want to be like that again!”</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Watch Scarlett's Reaction <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBAmLm_jYyY" target="_blank">HERE</a></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">One is the carpenter’s
level</span></strong> for the story of a woman rushing headlong to destruction, and the other
is the nice story of a woman who’ll try her darnedest to rise to a comfortable
position, and will probably discover the value of friendship and working with
others.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">Did the directors</span></strong> need
to show Scarlett’s motivation for part two?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">It’s a highlight of the
movie</span></strong>, and a great piece of drama, but it doesn’t <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">need</i> to be shown if there’s a break in the continuity so the reader
understands “something happened” that changed Scarlett or it happens before the
story starts. Characters don’t exist in a vacuum. Something happened to make
your character the way he or she is. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Showing
</i>motivation is a voice issue which comes out of the choices you make in how
you write your story.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong><span style="color: #cc0000;">Even without Scarlett’s
defining scene</span></strong>, knowing what it is, how it impacted her, and how it
predetermines her later choices keeps the story on track. Your character’s motivation
might be invisible, but the story that flows out of your choice works to keep it
moving in the direction you want.</span><br />
<span class="appoutput"></span><br />
<span class="appoutput"><span style="color: #cc0000;">More
About the Author<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span class="appoutput" style="color: #cc0000;"></span><br />
<span class="appoutput" style="color: #cc0000;">Jodi
Henley is a developmental editor based in the Seattle area. Highly sought after
for her ability to handle difficult or unusual character-driven stories, Jodi
is a craft of writing geek. Her obsessive Myer-Briggs INTJ personality drives
her to explain her findings, and she considers herself lucky to have a
receptive audience. A long-time blogger and workshop presenter, her book, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Practical Emotional Structure</i> is a
fixture on the top hundred Amazon writing skills bestseller list.</span><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<o:p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: red;"><strong>Find out more about the author:</strong></span></span></o:p><span style="font-size: medium;"> <strong><a href="http://jodihenley.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">BLOG</a></strong> <strong><a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jodi-Henley/133686136672453" target="_blank">FACEBOOK</a></strong></span></div>
<span style="font-size: medium;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="line-height: normal; margin: 1em 0px 0pt; mso-add-space: auto; text-indent: 0in;">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I</span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span>hope you will join my class titled</span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="color: red; font-size: large;"><strong>STORY DOCTORING</strong></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-align: center;">
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", "serif";"><span style="color: #cc0000;"></span></span><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: black;">H</span><span style="color: #333333;">osted by</span> </span></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #333333;">Fantasy-Futuristic & Paranormal Romance Writers</span> </span></span></div>
<div align="center" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #333333;">This Two Week class starts November 11th</span> </span></span></div>
<div align="center" style="mso-pagination: none; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: large;">For more information click </span><a href="http://www.rwa.org/p/cm/ld/fid=1010" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">HERE</span></a></span></span></div>
</div>
<o:p></o:p> </div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-53077171068991860652013-09-30T13:50:00.000-07:002013-09-30T13:50:07.953-07:00The Backstory Breakdown by Shelley Martin<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj69OiwFtaPhCG3y4Rq_8nbfg3M7XjXgZtmDvkguMMxFcT0ZnGPXC2XtWLFLiqMj5D2XxXUe6tQiITitUPq0jdLxMmEcZJmO5vOyThasTwuSFg0cwO_PPDOJLxGy6EhY0Lm91lzVB8nML0/s1600/Shelley+2012.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj69OiwFtaPhCG3y4Rq_8nbfg3M7XjXgZtmDvkguMMxFcT0ZnGPXC2XtWLFLiqMj5D2XxXUe6tQiITitUPq0jdLxMmEcZJmO5vOyThasTwuSFg0cwO_PPDOJLxGy6EhY0Lm91lzVB8nML0/s320/Shelley+2012.jpg" width="191" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Every character has a backstory. The problem is: how do we
reveal their past without info dumping or other blunders? This is something all
writers struggle with, including me. Here’s a breakdown of different forms
backstory can take, and tips to make it work. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: purple;">The Prologue</span></b>.
Prologues in the past were a common occurrence. But now they’ve fallen into the
backstory category. Most often than not, the prologue is backstory. It’s not
necessarily a bad thing, but when it can be woven into the story instead of
floating on its own, then do it. Yes, it’s extra work, but it’s always better
to start with immediate action right out the gate.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: purple;">The Info Dump.</span></b>
This is where something happens to a character, and the author breaks into the
story to tell why what’s happening is important. For example- “George the
Gladiator lifted his new helmet in salute before sliding it on. Little did he
know, the helmet had been the downfall of every gladiator who’d worn it before.
Malley the Masculine died from a blade to the eye, while the helmet simply slid
off the head of Homer the Hairless…” I could go on, but hopefully you see that
we went from the story of George, to a list of a bunch of other guys we’ve
never heard of, or care about. George is about to go into battle and the reader
wants to know if he’s going to survive, not how Homer the Hairless died. George
could find out the info of the helmet by reading it in a scroll after the
battle, or hearing about it from a friend. There are many ways to get this info
to George and the reader. Be creative!<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: purple;">The Dream.</span></b> Here’s
where the character slips into a dream, and relives a traumatizing past (or
silly, or revealing, you get the picture). Unfortunately, this technique has
been overused in the extreme. While it can still be used as a valuable way to
explore the past, I urge you to use this method sparingly.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: purple;">Old Friends
Reminiscing.</span></b> This is one of my favorite techniques. Introduce the crazy
friend from the past, or snarky ex, and open those past wounds. Two buds can
share a glass of wine and say “Remember when you cast that spell that made your
mom sneeze fire?” In that one line we learned the character is good with fire
magic, and has a mischievous side. However, I urge you to avoid starting with
“As you know, Maude, the new T-75 laser model fires at a bandwidth of…” If
Maude already knew what bandwidth the laser fired at, then there’s no reason to
share that information. The “As you know…” starter has also been used in excess
in the past and should be avoided.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="color: purple;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Paragraph Two</b>.</span>
This is a pet peeve of mine. You’ve opened up with a great line, which turns
into a fantastic opening paragraph. You’ve got me hooked. Then paragraph two
starts with “Earlier that morning, as I ate my cereal and read the box, I would
have never thought my day would have turned out like this. I brushed my teeth
and chose my clothes, searching for my favorite shirt…” Anyone asleep, yet? It
seems this most often occurs when authors start out with “I brushed my teeth
and chose my clothes…” Then, someone tells them to liven it up. So they write
this great paragraph of what’s going to happen at the end of the day, and stick
it at the front to draw you in. That’s a no-no. Put in the elbow grease and
rewrite the whole opener, please. I always walk away from stories like this,
and they happen quite often, believe me.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="color: purple;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Storytelling</b>.</span>
What’s this? Using storytelling to tell a backstory? Yeppers! This works
especially well in fantasy and paranormal tales. This is where one person
relays a quick story of the whereabouts of a mythical sword, or the tragic life
of a paranormal creature, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It can be
a bedtime story, a lesson, or a warning on a wall. The important thing is to
remember to keep it short. One page is best (double spaced). If the story
happens to be longer, then split it up. Have the storyteller get interrupted,
then have the receiver of the story ask for more in the following chapter.
These can also make great shorts if you want to release them in an extended
version, separate from your story. Or it can be an added bonus at the end of a
series.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
Backstory is often seen as a villain, but it can be your
friend, too. I hope these tips can help you beat that backstory into
submission. And if it helps, write the backstory out on a completely separate
page. Then break it up and weave it into your manuscript. Sometimes after you
get it all out, you can trim the excess to make it quick, snappy, and to the
point. And that’s usually what your reader wants: just enough to help them
along, but not so much that it will yank them from the current story they are
falling in love with.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">BIO: </span><br />
<span style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Shelley Martin taught kindergarten and ran cattle; once upon a time. She’s now an award winning author, mother and wife, and loves living in North Idaho. Her imagination has always plagued her, the characters jumping into her head at some random song or thought. She started writing when she was ten, finishing her first short story when she was eleven. The paranormal has always fascinated her, and nothing draws her to the page more than the whisperings of fantastical creatures. </span><span style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Shelley loves to hear from her readers! You can reach her at </span><a href="mailto:Shelleymartinfiction@gmail.com"><span style="color: purple; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Shelleymartinfiction@gmail.com</span></a>Rebecca Zanettihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06252156888953212601noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-79273953327699963302013-09-19T03:00:00.000-07:002013-09-19T03:00:02.410-07:00My Life, the Directors Cut by Asa Maria Bradley<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirMPpxvIyu06ewaMekhKXkzgg5jICimJSSJ_Pq9ARxmnkHr8Ch1QIK9z3RuGDjiIb4B9msLzoCnTEUgTxJjKDsdXo_HDHx3XhzThBvVo-Kx_t35O8LE2GcsZtLtuiPD-ZAq-NGKWxyoio/s1600/AMBradley.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirMPpxvIyu06ewaMekhKXkzgg5jICimJSSJ_Pq9ARxmnkHr8Ch1QIK9z3RuGDjiIb4B9msLzoCnTEUgTxJjKDsdXo_HDHx3XhzThBvVo-Kx_t35O8LE2GcsZtLtuiPD-ZAq-NGKWxyoio/s1600/AMBradley.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">At a recent reading in my town, author Craig
Johnson talked about how much he liked Robert Taylor’s audition for the role of
Sheriff Walt Longmire in the A&E TV series based on Johnson’s Longmire
novels (Viking). That is, he liked it until a breathy “Oh, my” escaped from his
wife’s lips while she watched Taylor saunter across the screen. She quickly
defended her reaction by describing Taylor as a taller and slightly better
looking, “TV version” of her husband. (Nice save, Mrs. Johnson.)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">This made me wonder what the TV/film version of me
would be like. I pictured a polished version of me with better skin, thicker
more lustrous hair, wearing expensive designer clothes and shoes. She would know
how to walk in high heels, have an infectious tinkling laugh, and use a clever
repertoire of insightful comments during conversations. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><strong>And she would look good in hats.</strong> <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Later that night, I uploaded some pictures from
the author event to social media and realized the edited version of my life
already exists: Facebook. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Here are some of the director choices I’ve made
while presenting the Facebook version of my life:<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"></b></span><br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: blue;"><u><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Major Milestones:<o:p></o:p></span></u></span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">My husband
and friend arrange an amazing 40<sup>th</sup> birthday party</i>—show pictures
of guests, especially cute children of friends playing with dog. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">After 40 I
now spend an alarming amount of time I spend in front of the make-up mirror
with tweezers</i>—CUT!<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"></b></span><br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><u><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Traveling:<o:p></o:p></span></span></u></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"></i></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGoWtx_T6UXkFk7yX-MY_vyk_sU-skPCozMoVo-4rqvYVFIvjKQJDw6Ne1F93vHRlkrg7nlmS3aEBr1KGdRLzDbKJsb4uZyaUkPNmkyZG-H7pTrnZCncXmVSUTC5xNtGZU7KSIKA6YrTk/s1600/MyLife.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGoWtx_T6UXkFk7yX-MY_vyk_sU-skPCozMoVo-4rqvYVFIvjKQJDw6Ne1F93vHRlkrg7nlmS3aEBr1KGdRLzDbKJsb4uZyaUkPNmkyZG-H7pTrnZCncXmVSUTC5xNtGZU7KSIKA6YrTk/s1600/MyLife.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ziplining in
Costa Rica</i>—post photos of posting with hubby in matching helmets, include
video of me whizzing down a very high line at fast speeds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Spending hours
on toilet purging from both ends due to Costa Rican amoeba entering
gastrointestinal system</i>—Are you crazy?! CUT!<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"></b></span><br />
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><u>College
Instructor Day Job:</u></span></b><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Interacting
with smart/clever/funny students</i>—share quotes of tongue-in-cheek test
answers, mention star students’ Ivy League acceptance, scholarships, and prestigious
internships.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Grading for
hours, sitting in office at 10.30 pm, shoving Dove chocolate in my mouth while mainlining
Mountain Dew</i>—Nope. CUT!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
The truth is, my life appears much more
interesting and fun on Facebook than what I experience every day. I’m not
fabricating anything, but I choose on which scenes to focus the lens to tell my
story. </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 1em 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">In writing, we do the same thing. We select only
the parts of a character’s back story that informs our reader about their goals
and motivation. We show only the scenes and dialogues that propels our plot
forward. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
If I was a character and my life was a novel, I
may include the scene of grading tons of assignments late at night to create
sympathy for my character. Although, I probably would have made the chocolate
stash smaller than it is in real life. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The toilet scene may be included too—a heavily
edited version with a way smaller grossness factor. But the moments in front of
the make-up mirror with tweezers would probably bore even the most valiant of
readers. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">What are some of the scenes you’ve cut from the Facebook
version of your life that would work in a novel? <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">
</span><br />
<span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Asa Maria Bradley is working on a paranormal
series featuring Vikings and Valkyries and their struggle to prevent
Ragnarök—the god’s final battle and the end of the world. She grew up in Sweden,
surrounded by Norse mythology and history apparent in archeological sites and
buildings. Her essays and articles have appeared in a variety of magazines and the
anthology FEMALE NOMAD AND FRIENDS: TALES OF BREAKING FREE AND BREAKING BREAD
AROUND THE WORLD (Three River Press, Randomhouse). She lives in Washington
State with her British husband and a used dog of indeterminate breed. Visit her
at </span><a href="http://www.asamariabradley.com/"><span style="color: #351c75; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">www.AsaMariaBradley.com</span></a><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #351c75;">.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
Rebecca Zanettihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06252156888953212601noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7499019835203480699.post-29078198381867453562013-09-16T14:26:00.002-07:002013-09-16T14:26:21.487-07:00The Klutz Protecting the Laptop by Rebecca Zanetti<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8uY7djAx7vP4n7pAUezCBEmxs_SbteonozlWKTHDoItNTYSOaAdYhZ43yEobU541h-EIcYbhCOq6ZcSPhXFYxPtyRg6ozxusHJ8C1_WM7Gmv6A_SVLfZI1HTuYKOs8415xqGV0L2IJ8w/s1600/Rebecca-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8uY7djAx7vP4n7pAUezCBEmxs_SbteonozlWKTHDoItNTYSOaAdYhZ43yEobU541h-EIcYbhCOq6ZcSPhXFYxPtyRg6ozxusHJ8C1_WM7Gmv6A_SVLfZI1HTuYKOs8415xqGV0L2IJ8w/s320/Rebecca-4.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="color: blue;">Hi all! Our guest blogger today ran into a snag, so you're stuck with me. I wrote a fun blog about being a klutz a while ago, and I thought I'd post it here today. This one is for those of you who are a bit, um, clumsy.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">A while back I sprained my ankle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For the first time ever, and I have to say,
it really hurt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had no clue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once my husband picked me up and tucked me
into a chair with a pillow under my foot, he said something that really gave me
pause.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After learning it was my first
sprain, he scratched his head, and said, “That’s really surprising.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I mean, since you’re such a klutz.”<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">He said it thoughtfully, and I couldn’t take
offense.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You know why?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is really surprising because I am a
klutz.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nearly every pair of sweats,
jeans, and nylons I own have an identical rip right above my left knee because
I always get caught on this edge of a table nobody else gets caught on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve fallen down (and up) our stairs more
times than I can count.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I trip over
everything…and nothing. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Honest.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">My mom, who really loves me, says that I could stand
in the center of a round room and hit a corner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">When our kid hits the floor during a basketball
game, my husband always gives me the look that says, “That’s from you.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEOasoKme3PCmggGcjh8qmAQV3G3nmslQXnkHqpxSzA_jZaWtbI6JBcE-0MuSXIC6mNuLZ7cvzi-9YsdZImcXwe8kG7eAqbMncJ_UU7lntMRBM-sjO0U7QxoU6kVR_qNcAf34eJYZl-KM/s1600/laptop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEOasoKme3PCmggGcjh8qmAQV3G3nmslQXnkHqpxSzA_jZaWtbI6JBcE-0MuSXIC6mNuLZ7cvzi-9YsdZImcXwe8kG7eAqbMncJ_UU7lntMRBM-sjO0U7QxoU6kVR_qNcAf34eJYZl-KM/s200/laptop.jpg" width="160" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">When it starts to snow, he always gets out my
strongest, best traction boots right away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And I always end up slipping on the ice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Every day.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">You know that person that knocks over the pyramid of
cans of corn at the grocery store?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yeah,
that’s me.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">My mother in law gets a panicked look on her face
when I touch her dishes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I can’t
blame her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve taken out an entire
saucer and cup display before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, I
did it three times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">But the other day when I missed the bottom step, I
sprained my ankle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had a diet coke
(open) in one hand and my laptop in the other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And I protected the laptop.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There’s something about being an author that instinctively had me
clutching the laptop, even as my foot folded over into something unnatural. And
when I hit the ground, yelping, I clutched that computer to me with both hands.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">On the laptop was the next book in the Dark
Protector series.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hadn’t sent it to my
editor yet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, I was on my way to
do just that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After a lifetime of
falling, slipping, and tripping, I finally became injured.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From writing.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">So when they tell you that writing is blood, sweat,
and tears, there’s some truth to it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As
well as a whole bunch of spraying, spilled diet coke.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But you know what?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I took that fall again, I’d protect that
laptop.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: Wingdings; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-hansi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"><span style="mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;">J</span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">BIO:
<br />
</span></span><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><em>USA Today Bestselling Author Rebecca
Zanetti's current series include<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the Maverick Montana cowboy
series, the Dark Protector vampire series, and the
Sin Brothers romantic-suspense series.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> FATED, Book 1 in the Dark Protectors, is on sale for .99c for a short time. </span>Please visit Rebecca at: </em></span><a href="http://www.rebeccazanetti.com/"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="color: blue;"><em>http://www.rebeccazanetti.com/</em></span></span></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p> </span><br />Rebecca Zanettihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06252156888953212601noreply@blogger.com3