Easy Tips to Creating Creating a Book Bible

Please welcome guest blogger Angelique Armae

Now that the beginning of the year is here, it’s a good time to start that new book project. And being organized right from the get go will make things a lot easier.
Below you’ll find steps to creating a ‘Book Bible’ -- a binder for keeping track of important threads that weave your work into a marvelous book.

1. GATHER SUPPLIES.

• 2” or larger three-ring binder (if you want to include blurb, tagline, synopsis and printed copy of your work at the end then you’ll need a larger binder)

• 1 or 2 Packs of dividers (depending on how detailed you want your bible to be)

• 1 pack of Pocket folders for three-ring binder (great for storing images or page long lists for handy reference stuff that doesn’t fit the general sections, you can include one in each section if needed)

• Photos/images representing your characters and or special items in your book

1. INCLUDED CONTENTS

• I make an index-styled sheet with the following sections labeled:

• CHARACTERS

• Primary

• Secondary

• WORLD

• Setting

• Rules

• Religion

• Special Powers

• Weapons

• Transportation

• CLOTHING/ACCESSORIES

• RESEARCH

• GLOSSARY

• Then, I fill out basic information for each section, usually a line or two or a list of names, items, etc. This makes for easy finding later, especially if an item or character is cross-referenced between sections.

• CHARACTERS :

• I start with a list of characters typed on a single page divided into main characters and secondary characters.

• I give each character his/her own page detailing physical traits, internal/eternal conflicts, secrets, goals, family background – basically anything and everything important to that particular character.

• WORLD:

• Whether you’re writing a contemporary, historical or paranormal novel, you need to create a world. All this info goes in its own section labeled ‘WORLD’.

• Here you should include a page for SETTING – time of year, place, type of house or office, etc.

• A page or section for RULES/CUSTOMS – rules, customs, laws of your world (this is especially important for historical and paranormals). You can also include special stipulations here, like terms of a will, inheritance, etc.

• RELIGION/SPECIAL POWERS/WEAPONS/TRANSPORTATION – each of these categories get their own section in my book bible within the WORLD section. This usually applies to my paranormal works, but if you’re writing historical novels, you can also include a section on Weapons, Carriages/Horses/Transportation, etc. and include any images and research info you might need to check facts later on. You should also list any characters that these specifics pertain to.

• CLOTHING/ACCESSORIES – I include fabrics and styles of times I set my books, fashions of my paranormal worlds, including any special jewelry/items that have magical powers. For contemporary novels a list of trends can be included here or items that are specific to your characters – example: I have one character who can’t go anywhere without a large purse.

• You can also use this section (ACCESSORIES) if you have an item that cross-references with a special power or an historical object necessary to your book such as a stolen necklace, a magical container, etc. If you do it this way, make a note where the item cross references with another section such as SPECIAL POWERS/WEAPONS, etc. and vice versa.

• Quick reference research links and images are added here as well.

• Extra tip for WORLD section – you might also want to include a hierarchy of characters/leaders if your SETTING is in a made up world or deals with non-human or special powers characters. This list can be included in specific sections such as Religion, Special Powers, or its own section if you have an organization/brotherhood/special club, etc. in your book.

• RESEARCH:

• A list of RESEARCH links, books, websites, and special information needed for your book.

• GLOSSARY:

• This section is great for paranormals, fantasy or historical novels where you use made up languages/words, need reference to time period specific words/meanings or if a word or slang is specific to a contemporary culture/region, etc. Also great for: a list of legal words if you’re writing a legal thriller, political terms for political thriller, foreign words with meanings, etc. Basically, any words that aren’t everyday words can go here. The goal to creating a book bible is to make reference easy.

• Final Notes:

• Your book bible can be as detailed as you need it to be. Don’t worry if you have more sections for one book than another—each project requires different information. If you start out with the above you will soon learn what sections are important to each book and what info ends up referenced between books (if you’re writing a series or connected titles).

• Extra tip – include all info on a cd and store it in your binder. There’s no such thing as too many back up copies, plus if you’re someone who works better on the computer for accessing info than looking it up in print, you’ll have a handy reference. Just make sure to save each section in its own folder for easy indexing.

Angelique Armae writes paranormal fiction for ImaJinn Books. She is represented by Holly Root of the Waxman Literary Agency. For more information on Angelique’s books, please visit her website at: http://www.angeliquearmae.com


Shadows of the Soul

A fallen angel...
A human scholar...
A race against time...

Isabel Godfroie Heart is a Paradisian Scholar-an immortal human trained in the ways of Heaven and Hell-who's suffering from memory loss. During her last battle, a dark force erased specific portions of her past life memories. Now she remembers little of times past, save for the fact she's a demon slayer mentored by the archangel Gabriel. When ordered to a new post to help translate a volume of ancient text from a forbidden verse, Isabel is forced to work with the dark prince Nicolai Valentine, a soul who may or may not be responsible for her memory loss. If only she didn't find the tempting creature so hard to resist...

Born to a fallen angel and a mortal mother, Nicolai Valentine is a prince of the Grigorcov, the children of the fallen sons of God. Searching for the lost chalice that will save his kin from eternal damnation, Nicky unknowingly unleashes the Hadean Virus, a dark entity targeting members of the Grigorcov. Now the entity has been unleashed on man's world and Nicky's in a race against time to find the antidote that will stop this deadly parasite. But in order to keep the Hadean virus from attacking again, Nicolai must enlist the help of Isabel Godfroie Heart, the Paradisian Scholar he was unable to save from the wrath of Hell centuries ago...

The Benefits of Paranormal Romance Writing

Please welcome guest blogger Sapphire Phelan

I am writing about why I write erotic and non-erotic paranormal romances and what are the benefits to me. When I started writing paranormal romance, my male and female made love, but nothing that I would call racy, or blue. One of these first stories, “To Teach an Ancient God” was accepted for an anthology in 2005, but the publisher folded and gave back rights to all the authors. It now is a free eread at All Romance eBooks, and one of the best sellers on their science fiction/fantasy lists.

Then I wrote my first erotic story about a merman. It was not paranormal romance, actually it's more horror. Now the blue words weren't there and so it was still easy to write. I didn't get red faced doing it. But it was erotic, with sentences like, That night he and I did things beyond all nature, at least I assumed they were. I became this creature of sensations and darkness, and I enjoyed it. When the dawn broke I lay alone on the hardwood floor, in a large puddle of sea water.

You can guess that this was the stepping stone to the next tale, right? I saw the guidelines for this emagazine looking for erotic romances. Paranormal romances were getting popular. I read them and loved them. So I wrote my first truly erotic story, with the hot and heavy sex.

The story was easy--a virgin sacrificed to a dragon to save her village and keep the monster from eating their cattle. A dragon who happened also to be a knight cursed to become a dragon at night. It was fantasy after all--I even wrote my first interspecies sex scene with the dragon and the woman.

Now, I've been married for years and have an adult son. But I found sex the hardest challenge to write. So I researched. I needed to see how others did it. When I wrote sex, it was clinical and not romantic. I read other books. I researched words for different parts of the body and sex--BLUE words. Then I returned to the WIP and wrote the dang thing. I submit and it was accepted!

Over the years it became easier and easier to write the intimate parts. I learned to get out of my comfort zone and challenge myself. The challenge; my heroes and heroines are not human men or women, but inhuman. To many, we would be food to them and not for passionate encounters.

If you have an alien, how does he make love to a human woman? Really, does a shapeshifter metamorphose when he's/she's in the throes of passion? Is the paranormal being stronger than humankind or more delicate and easily damaged? How does that affect the relationship when that creature makes love with a human? Is kissing dangerous for them, or do they even kiss? Do they kiss even in the normal way? My latest published paranormal romance was male/male, which made me research the mechanics of that kind of loving. Being heterosexual, that put me out of the comfort zone, and then since both are wereleopards, well, how does that change the love making?

Another benefit is I am learning something new each time I write a manuscript. I researched myths and legends from all different parts of the world when I look for my next paranormal lover. I find myself trying to get in the heads of my paranormal beings, to understand what makes them tick, and why they fall in love when they do. Though they may be vampires, werewolves, shifters, aliens, fairies, and demons, beneath the exterior they have feelings too. Because of my fantasy characters, I begin to emphasize with real people. It makes me begin to figure out why people do the things they do. That when it comes to it: we're all the same beneath our skin.

Writing this is a stress reliever too. Day to day life can be stressful. I'm a big worrier. I found long ago that writing what I like to write is a great way to get the stress out of me. When I am upset, I think I write my scariest stuff. When life is sad, that's when I do my best romance, for the happily ever after that dots the T of my story always makes me feel better when the story is finished. If my characters are happy, then I am happy!

And the last benefit? It makes me feel alive. It gives me purpose. It lets me free the stories in my head and put them to words. That's the best benefit of all--sharing them.

Sapphire Phelan has written and published erotic and sweet paranormal/fantasy/science fiction romance along with erotic horror stories and urban fantasy. Her erotic urban fantasy, Being Familiar With a Witch is a Prism 2010 Awards winner and a Epic Awards 2010 finalist.

As herself, Pamela K. Kinney, she is a published author of fiction in the realms of horror, science fiction, fantasy, poetry, and nonfiction ghost books published by Schiffer Publishing. Her two nonfiction ghost books, Haunted Richmond, Virginia and Haunted Virginia: Legends, Myths and True Tales have been nominated for Library of Virginia Literary Awards.

She also has done acting on stage and in films. And is a Master Costumer, costuming since 1972. For more on her, check out her websites at http://www.SapphirePhelan.com and http://FantasticDreams.50megs.com

She admits she can always be found at her desk and on her computer, writing. And yes, the house, husband, and even the cats sometimes suffer for it!

DARK LEOPARD MAGIC

Dev Tollen is a man with a dark past and an even darker soul. More than that, he's a gay wereleopard. He has never had the Dreaming and never met his true mate. But one night the Dreaming does come and reveals his lover, an African man named Montsho, also an alpha black wereleopard. Montsho will fight their love and their destiny. Dev will do all he can to win his beloved's heart and keep him by his side always.

Then the ghost of a human begs Dev to solve his wereleopard lover's murder. Both men will find that their new-found love tested and their lives in danger. Their idyllic time in paradise is about to be torn asunder when they discover who the murderer is.

What Makes A Trilogy Different From A Series

Please welcome guest blogger Jane Toombs

I’ve been thinking about this lately and have come up with a few things a trilogy must have that a series doesn’t need. First of all I expect a trilogy to have a demonstrable connection within the three books.

Either the same main characters throughout the three or secondary characters from the first book taking on major roles in the second and third books.

Or a single goal throughout the three books, such as a problem needing to be solved and finally is in the third.

Or a specific setting that is the same for every main character in the three books. By specific I mean something such as a haunted house or the actual area where the story takes place --an area that‘s at the core of the trilogy.

In other words, the three books need a close connection of some kind.

On the other hand, a series needs only to be loosely connected in some way. That to me is the difference. And yes, I write series, too. But the writer still has to have some idea of how many books in the series--unless he or she decided to make it an open-ended series. Which would mean stopping it when one of three things occurs. You run out of ways to keep the series connected, the publisher has had enough, or you, as a writer, decide you’re through.

Obviously a series must contain at least four books, But after that, it’s up to the individual author.

I’m currently writing a trilogy called the Dagon House Ghosts for Champagne Books. I’ve finished the first Book, Taken In, and when Champagne lets me know the approximate date of publication, I’ll start on the second book, Where There’s Smoke.

Sometimes, though, a publisher might want all three books if they want to control the release dates.

My 2009 New Year’s Resolution was to finish the first book in every series I’d started and it also became the 2010 one and will probably go on being such for a few more years. I had no idea when I made it, what would happen when an epub bought the first book in a trilogy how quickly they might want the next, and the last. But now I realize finishing the first book in any series may hold me up starting on any other first book in another.

January 7th is release day for Unwanted, the second book in my Underworld Series from Eternal Press. Unwise came out in October, so you can see that’s not much lead time to finish the next one. So I’ll be starting on Uncanny next and then there are three more projected books in the this series.

This is something to think about when you have more than one series going. As for the Underworld Series, my Underworld has nothing to do with Satan, but is simply an alternate world near Earth and other alternate worlds connected by gates.


Jane Toombs lives with the Viking from her past and their grandcat, Kinko, on the south shore of lake Superior where they enjoy three of the wonderful seasons , but not the one they’re in right now--winter. Jane has over eighty published books to her credit and going on thirty novellas and short stories.


Unwanted

Ella Mack, a staid librarian in the California Sierras happens to have green eyes and red hair, a not uncommon combination in our world. But when she accidentally falls through a gate into the Underworld, she quickly discovers her eyes and hair are a definite liability there. For in the country she’s landed in, green-eyed female redheads are considered to be evil witches and are killed on sight...

In the Moment of Creation

Please welcome guest blogger Savanna Kougar

Creation is both an act of magic, and magical. I’ve experienced that since I began writing stories. No, not as young as some authors, but when I was a young teenager.

There’s that undeniable spark, that in-the-zone period of time where the scene you’re penning simply flows. It’s as if you’ve waved a sorcerer’s wand, and summoned it into beautiful and powerful existence. And, there it is on the page, or on your monitor screen.

But, let me ask you this. As a writer, have you ever started reading one of your books, an old manuscript...or maybe you were polishing up your manuscript for submission... and, it’s as if you’re reading what another author wrote?

More than that, you happily lose yourself in your own story.

That’s happened to me. And, from what I understand other authors experience this as well. Frankly, it’s a puzzlement to me in a way.

I mean, I wrote the book, or the manuscript. Each and every word of it. Yes, I wrote all the words that took me an agonizing half an hour to decide on. As well as the paragraphs and passages that magically flowed onto the page.

Okay, this is my take on why this happens. At least, in my case.

As I write and world build, I’m fully engaged. Essentially, I’m living in the sci fi/fantasy/paranormal culture that I’m creating. This occurs, of course, through the experiences, emotions and adventure of my heroines and heroes.

Not only does their story unfold like a movie before my mind’s eye, but I’m smelling and tasting and feeling what it’s like to live in their world. I also experience the mind set of my heroines and heroes. Or, how they relate to their social, political and cultural environment.

So, when I’m working on my current WIP, unless it’s a sequel, the story takes place in an entirely different world.

For example, in BRANDED BY THE TEXANS, the setting was on a parallel Earth. And, while it takes place in the year, 2009, Texas is an independent nation and it’s an Old West cowboy culture. In my current WIP, the heroine is a witch from another planet-world... though, she doesn’t know that at first... and her heroes are hellhounds created by Hades.

Yes, two radically different settings, even though both stories are on Earth and take place in contemporary times.

But, you see where I’m going with this. I’m so immersed in my current world-building, that reading one of my books seems somewhat foreign. And new.

However, there’s another vitally important component here that takes place during the creative process of writing a book. It’s what I call ~ In the Moment of Creation.

It could also be called, your Muse ~ that wonderful companion all of us writers cherish. Or curse, depending on how our WIP is going.

As you’re writing, you become utterly immersed in your created world. You are intimately living with your characters. Because of this, the act of creating this particular story is unique to that moment in time. It’s like magic. It is magic.

Think of it this way. The book that spills forth from you, from your imagination and your crafting, is unique simply because it is being written ‘in the moment’. It is the very magic of the moment, as you’ve created it. Or, to go Zen, it is Be Here Now.

When we write each of our books, we are living *in the moment* of that story. Or, we are being IN THE MOMENT OF CREATION as we pour forth the words, pen the scenes and chapters. The process is magical. And, the results are magical.

So, when we go back and read our books, our WIPs, we are reading the magic of being and writing in the moment. We feel the inspiration.

Why is this important? It brings the story to life.

We’ve all read fiction books that may be technically correct in every way. Style, grammar, punctuation, characterization, hooks, etc. -- on and on... blah, blah, blah.

However, the read is like eating cardboard instead of sumptuously dining on real food. The magic has been left out. For whatever reason, that being ‘in the moment of creation’ never occurred.


Savanna Kougar is the best-selling author of ten ebooks, with five books in print. She pens love stories because that’s her deepest heart. She writes in the futuristic/fantasy/paranormal subgenres because that’s her fiercest passion. And, she writes erotic romance because she ferociously enjoys ripping the damn doors off.

You can find her at her personal blog ~ Kougar Kisses ~ savannakougar.com ~ and at the following blogs as a contributor.

SHAPESHIFTER SEDUCTIONS ~ shapeshifterseductions.blogspot.com ~
HAPPILY EVER AFTER ~ happilyeverafterauthors2.blogspot.com ~
LINDSAY’S ROMANTICS ~ lindsaysromantics.blogspot.com ~
Romance Writer’s Behaving Badly ~ romancewritersbehavingbadly.blogspot.com ~
TITLE MAGIC ~ titlemagic.blogspot.com ~
Siren-BookStrand Authors’ Blog ~ sirenbookstrand.blogspot.com ~


BRANDED BY THE TEXANS

What can three Texans do to a woman’s body and heart?
Kylie is about to find out.
Beyond her wildest dreams.
On a parallel Earth.

It’s 2009... Kylie is on the run from the law for a crime she didn’t commit. A promising doctoral student, she’s lost everyone and almost everything, except for what she stows in her car. Now, Kylie has to salvage the rest of her life. But, where in this age of GPS tracking, TV’s Most Wanted and cameras everywhere?

It’s 2009... Dillon, Dono and Dash are three brothers desperate for a wife to brand as their own. The Union made women scarce in the Three Star Republic by releasing a bio weapons’ plague during the border wars. These tough-as-leather Texans will do anything to keep the right woman, even if they have to lasso her like a wild filly and love on her until she loves them back.

Snakebite Scenes: A Key to Romance

Please welcome guest blogger Carrie Lofty

Thanks to the FF&P chapter for letting me stop by today!

I'm here to talk about what I've come to call snakebite scenes. It's not a coincidence that I'll be presenting a workshop entitled “Snakebite Scenes and Hollywood Plots” through FF&P beginning on January 17. You can read more about that here.

But in the meantime, what exactly do I mean by snakebite scenes? I cut my teeth on romances during the late 80s and early 90s, which happily coincided with my fascination with the Old West. Back then, when every author and her sister decided to write Westerns, the snakebite scene became common fare. A man and a woman, thrown together in the wilds of the frontier, denying every last romantic feeling they might ever have for one another, find themselves confronted by the height of awesome, kitschy drama: a snake.

Preferably hungry. And deadly.

What’s a romance couple to do? Let’s find out:

Harlan took two halting steps toward her. That’s when he saw it, not another shadow but a long black ribbon undulating toward him. It was a death he’d learned to recognize as a boy growing up in the bayous. He shouted, adrenaline giving him voice at last, then kicked out. Too late. He saw the flash of its white mouth. Fangs bit through the cotton fabric of his trousers just above his boot.

…

Pascal spit the blood on the ground, careful not to swallow the poison she’s sucked from Harlan’s leg. His eyes were closed; his head jerked left and right, as if he were fighting off the pain. She could see that despite her efforts, the poison was killing him, killing him slowly. No, don’t even think that.

Santana Rose by Olga Bicos (1992)

The drama of the moment, in which the hero or heroine had to suck out the poison, forced intimacy well ahead of when they might otherwise have been ready to admit their attractions. It also served to create a lasting history. After all, what girl can simply walk away from the guy who locked lips on her calf to save her life? That history draws them together, keeping them in one another's thoughts well after the snake has been killed, skinned and eaten.

However, snakebite scenes don't necessarily need to involve reptiles and fangs. In contemporary romances, the equivalent might involve a little something like this:

That clip is from a movie I watched only last week, a romantic comedy called Leap Year. Don't mind the cliched plot and farcical action. Instead I focused on my growing crush on Matthew Goode, and the fact that Amy Adams is one of the most adorable women on the planet. Oh, and it's a really good example of romance devices. They're a little heavy-handed, saved primarily by rather good acting, but they serve as useful teaching points.

When watching Leap Year with my critique partner, I mentioned about thirty minutes in that the couple was still rather snarky and snappish. They had no reason to like one another, no way to look deeper and find likeable qualities, no motivation to stay together long enough to fall in love. They needed help. Quickly!

But no snakes reared their scaly heads. Instead...bar fight!

Suddenly the surly hero shows that he possesses a few gallant traits, and the heroine gets to see them in all their surprising, action-packed glory. She cannot look at him the same way after he rescues her suitcase from a trio of thieves, leaving the men sprawled on the floor.

Leap Year is actually rife with such moments. The above clip, where they spend the night in a bed & breakfast and must share close quarters, is another example where external forces push them toward physical intimacy. In classic road movie style, they have to make due in a bad situation, slowly revealing one another's inner loveability. Here's another, where the innkeeper pressures them to share a kiss. They're posing as a married couple, you see, and have to keep up appearances...

I'm not saying that your romances require snakebites or skinny beds in out-of-the-way hostels. Many of these examples are fabulous because they're so obvious--and frankly, cliched. But we can better see the technique demonstrated, and apply the resulting set of feelings and outcomes to our own fiction.

So, what to take away from all of this? First off, read more Westerns. Do you miss them as much as I do?? Second, go see Leap Year because it's adorable. And finally, sign up for my workshop. We'll go into so much more depth, work with examples, and then dig deep into Hollywood plots--a whole other style of storytelling.

Hope to see you there!

Carrie Lofty’s latest historical romances, SCOUNDREL'S KISS and SONG OF SEDUCTION, are available now. In 2011 watch for Carrie's new Victorian series from Pocket, as well as her "Dark Age Dawning" apocalyptic romance trilogy from Berkley, co-written with Ann Aguirre as Ellen Connor. "Historical romance needs more risk-takers like Lofty." ~ Wendy the Super Librarian

Snakebite Scenes, presented by Carrie Lofty, runs January 17, 2011 - January 30, 2011