WHAT IF I WAS AN ALIEN? by Victoria Pinder

Picture: Awkward teenage girl with huge glasses and thin hair that never did anything. 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.

   So I read books 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.

   So instead of writing about hot alien men, 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.

   And what I love about romance novels 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.

Blurb for The Zoastra Affair:

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.

The Zoastra is part of the Earthseekers, an organization originally designed to go into space. Its new mission is to find Earth’s enemies.

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.

The Zoastra Affair

by Victoria Pinder

Published by Soul Mate Publishing

Science Fiction Romance

Heat Level: Intimate

Length: 85000 words 

Available at:

Coming December 30^th from Soul Mate Publishing.

About the Author:              

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.

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.

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.

Member of Florida Romance Writers, Contemporary Romance, Fantasy, Futuristic and Paranormal chapter of RWA, and in Savvy Authors.

 

Futuristic Vehicles by Diane Burton

When I grew up 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.

So when I began 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 The Pilot, 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.

Describing futuristic vehicles 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.

Start with your setting. 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.

Consider function. 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?

My imagination only goes so far 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

 

Sites for starship schematics:

Star Trek Voyager Schematics
 

Klingon Bird of Prey

Star Trek Ship blueprints

 

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.

Happy travels!

Diane Burton combines her love of mystery, adventure, science fiction and romance into writing romantic fiction. Besides the science fiction romance Switched series, she is the author of The Pilot, the first book in a series about strong women on the frontier of space. One Red Shoe is her first romantic suspense. Diane and her husband live in Michigan. They have two children and two grandchildren.

For more info and excerpts from her books

visit Diane’s WEBSITE

 

Are You Ready for 2014? by MM Pollard

editor, Black Velvet Seductions,

the MM in Workshops with MM

Do you make New Year's resolutions? Maybe a better question is, Do you keep your New Year's resolutions? 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. 1. Translate vague resolutions into concrete goals with a specific time period, not the entire year. Resolution: I'm going to write a book this year. Goal: I'll write (insert number) words every day or week. Month or Year is not a choice, even though either one is the more likely choice of procrastinators. 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. 2. Make sure that your resolutions are truly yours, not your family's for you. Why? 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. More than likely, you will use every excuse that shows up to delay working on their resolutions for you. 3. 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. 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. 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. 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. 4. Reward yourself when you have achieved a small goal, like writing your word count goal for the week. 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. In my workshop Moving from Resolutions to Results, 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; and face and defeat procrastination. The two-week workshop begins January 6, 2014. I hope to see you in class, MM Pollard

About MM Pollard

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.

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.

 

MM’s Fundamentals of English – blog – mostly English-related information and a complete list of MM’s workshops

MM’s Fundamentals of Writing – monthly newsletter – sign up on her blog

Also, I hope you will join my class titled

MOVING FROM RESOLUTION

TO RESULTS

Hosted by

Fantasy-Futuristic & Paranormal Romance Writers

This Two Week class starts January 6th

For more information click HERE

 

Sign-up HERE

 

Location, Location, Location by T. L. Sumner

We often focus much of our attention on the setting of our stories and finding the right words to describe the places in which our characters exist.  But what about our personal writing space?  The location in which we write can play a very important role in our stories. 

I love my office and it’s just about the perfect writing space for me.  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.  Some nights I pass by the office with a feeling of dread.  I just don’t want to set foot in there.  Now this feeling is different from not wanting to write.  I want to write.  I just don’t want to write in That Room.  It took me a little while to figure it out why I just couldn’t get motivated.  Then it hit me – I use That Room for my day job.  Which has been extremely stressful and quite frankly no fun as of late.  My creative spirit is blocked in That Room. 

A fresh outlook is like a fresh coat of paint. It doesn't cost much, but sometimes it makes a huge difference. – Susan Gale

When you find your creative energy waning in your usual writing space, try a change of venue.  It could be another room your house.  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. 

But a change of venue does more than just help our psyche and creative energy.   Changing location gives our subconscious mind a chance to absorb new stimuli.  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.  For those visual learners out there (and everyone else too), take a look at these photos. 

While these are all photos of libraries, each one evokes a different mood.  Can you visualize yourself in each environment and how what you might see or hear would be different in each location? 

When we venture out and about, we’ll find real life examples of body language, ways of speaking (dialogue cues) and can observe people interacting in real situations.  These details help add authenticity to our characters. 

Public places are also full of unexpected human behavior, if you look or listen closely.  I remember hearing the unmistakable click of nail clippers during a sermon at church.  Not just one snip.  It sounded like a self-manicure.  Ick!!  Now that’s something unexpected (and memorable).  The unexpected can be layered into a story, ultimately providing a richer experience for the reader. 

So get out and about, your stories, characters and readers will love you for it.

AUTHOR BIO:

Forever optimistic and easily amused, TL Sumner writes young adult romance with athletic heroines chasing their dreams on and off the playing field.  She lives outside of Atlanta with her husband and their two children.  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.  Her first novel, Forbidden Secrets won the 2012 Gateway to the Best.  You can find her on Twitter, Facebook and at TLSumner.com.  

He’d Never Say That!!! The Importance of Effective Dialogue

by Connie L. Smith

 

“It’s not what you said. It’s how you said it." 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.

When reading, some of those aspects go out the window. 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.

Dialogue is a huge part of writing, 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.

Each author is free to choose his own 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.

There isn’t a specific formula for this. 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.

A good rule of thumb, 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.

As an example, 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,

“Nay, lads, I’d prefer to venture forth to the telling of the story of that cowboy fellow.”

But unless he’s joking, it doesn’t work. 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.

Okay, that quote was a bit of a stretch. 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.

“I worry that the movie will continue past my curfew, and mom will be angry.”

Not one word of this statement 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,

“That one lasts too long. Mom’ll kill me if I’m out that late.”

It flows more easily, 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.

If you’d like to critique my work – see if I abide by my own rules – check out Essenced, scheduled to be free on December 5^th. Links are on my website.

Book Blurb:

Essenced (The Division Chronicles #1)

by Connie L. Smith (Goodreads Author)

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.

Now, centuries later, a new army must bind together – one of teenagers with inhuman potentials and abilities…

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?

Author Bio:

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 Northern KentuckyUniversity 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:

 

WEBSITE      BLOG 

  

Get in Shape with TWITTER by Jordan K. Rose

This month I released my first Indie Pubbed book, The Demon Mistress, the first book of The Eva Prim Series. I’m also releasing four short stories to accompany the book, and I have another book, Black Magic Rose releasing in November.

To say I’m out of my gourd (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.

I planned my release several months in advance. So, instead of launching the book as soon as I had it formatted I tucked it aside and prepared.

I decided what social media sites I’d use 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).

Utilizing social media is a requirement 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.

But it is the way of the world 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.

There are many options. Find the ones you like and focus on those. Just pick one or two. 

I’ve been building connections on Twitter and Facebook, 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.  

I use Twitter to drive readers to my Facebook group 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.

In the group I talk a little bit 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.

On Twitter I mention @evaprim 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.

One of the things I’ve noticed 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.

Yes, all writers are readers. 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.

It takes a little work, 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!)

If you’re using Twitter as part of your marketing strategy, 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.

Mine the follow lists of writers in your subgenre. Follow the readers. And when they tweet to you, tweet back. Build those relationships.

Ultimately, no matter what social media you use you should enjoy it. That’s the key to success.

BOOK BLURB

 

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?

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.

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.

 

MORE ABOUT THE AUTHOR

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.

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.

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 www.evaprim.com.

Coming November 2013 Black Magic Rose, Book One of The Alliance Series. Join Jordan’s newsletter for updates. 

Jordan is a member of the national Romance Writers of America organization and several chapters.

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. 

Find Jordan at:

 

WEBSITE    TWITTER     FACEBOOK    

 

PINTEREST     GOODREADS

 

How Garden Design Influenced a Pantser

by Dawn Marie Hamilton

One of my favorite pastimes is gardening. In the past, I most often approached planting as I do 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.

Yikes! I needed to make a garden plan?

Okay. I can do this.

Once I had my research assembled—garden books, magazines, plant catalogues—out came the grid paper, sharp pencil, and circle template.

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.

If I had felt especially creative, 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.

What does this have to do with writing a novel? 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. Sea Panther was a 2013 Golden Heart® finalist.

As with the previous story, I started the process of writing Sea Panther with research, 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.

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.

As with drawing the garden plan, 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.

This method worked for me. What works for you? Are you a plotter or a pantser? What is your process?

Blurb for Dawn Marie’s most recent book, Just Once in a Verra Blue Moon:

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.

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.

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.

With the help of fae allies, they must overcome the treachery set to destroy them to claim a love that

transcends time.

About Dawn Marie:

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.

You can find Dawn Marie hanging out at…

BLOG  FACEBOOK  TWITTER  GOODREADS   

 

Interview with SAMHAIN Editor Holly Atkinson

Editor Holly Atkinson

FF&P Member, Nancy Lee Badger, invited Holly Atkinson, an editor with SAMHAIN Publishing, to give our readers a new perspective from the other side.

Please tell our readers a little bit about you, such as why did you become an editor?

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.

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.

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.

Describe the genre of the most recent release, and is this the only genre you represent?

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.

What is your weekly routine like?

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.

What do you see ahead in your career?

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.

Will you share some encouraging words for authors still struggling for that first contract?

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.

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.

How can our readers find your submission guidelines?

The submission guidelines are available on the Samhain website: http://www.samhainpublishing.com/submissions/




BIO:

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. 

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.

Thank you, Holly, for the great insight.

Readers: Feel free to leave comments or questions.

QUEEN OF THIEVES by Alethea Kontis

Into everyone's life must come a Dirty Rotten Scoundrel...and not the sexy kind.

 

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.

My Dirty Rotten Scoundrel taught me how to steal.

He was a writer, 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.

In reality, he was just stealing all this stuff and making it his own. Because he could. And his publishers never said a word.

One of the biggest challenges I faced 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.

What I should have been doing 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.

Many baby-writers start out 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.  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.

Coming at this line from the opposite direction 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.

In my first published book, I retold the alphabet.

(If you're gonna start somewhere, go big or go home, right?)

In my teen novels, I retell the classic Grimm and Andersen (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?

This is not plagiarism. 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.

And, really, I owe it all to some no-count bastard.

Thanks, slimeball.

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.

Alethea is the co-author of Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Dark-Hunter Companion, 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 The Wonderland Alphabet and Diary of a Mad Scientist Garden Gnome. Her debut YA fairy tale novel, Enchanted, 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. Hero, the sequel to Enchanted, released on October 1st. 

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.

You can find Princess Alethea online at: www.aletheakontis.com.

Links:

How to pronounce "Alethea Kontis: -- http://www.teachingbooks.net/pronounce.cgi?aid=18395

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