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In Which I Rant a Rant That Has Been Ranted Before

So, it’s come to my attention that we women are too stupid to handle reading fiction. Yeah, I didn’t think that sounded right either. But if you read the recent (oh, heck, recent? What am I saying…the constant, tired, old…) articles going on about romance novels, that’s the impression you’d get.

Because readers of romance must be lacking something, their lives must be sad hollow shells. Reading it will distort their perspective. Poor little dears.

I’m sorry but a great big WHAT THE HECK??

Is anyone worried about men watching action movies? Reading Lord of the Rings because it might make them dissatisifed with the world we live in and long for the shires of and elven woods of Middle Earth? NO. You don’t.

I am tired. Sick to death of defending my genre from those who find it either low-brow or ‘dangerous’ somehow. I am sick to death of defending my career choice and my reading choice.

Because not only are romances seen as low-brow and somehow beneath the true intellectuals, there are those who have called them dangerous. Dangerous to women’s psyches. Dangerous to marriage.

Because somehow they believe that if women read about monogamous, romantic relationships they will grow dissatisfied with being in a monogamous romanctic relationship. Wait…how does that make sense?

What do romances portray? Loving relationships with mutual respect, emotional and sexual satisfaction.

Well, good gravy we can’t have the womenfolk wanting that. Next they’ll want the right to vote!

Women can read fiction without believing they really should be a virgin secretary being seduced by a Greek billionaire. Why? Because…well, we’re smart like that. Just like men seem to be able to watch action movies without being convinced they’re going to engage in a car chase, and then get it on with the super hot chick that’s riding shot gun after the mayhem has died down.

It’s silly to think a man who watches too many Jason Statham movies would suddenly trade his life as a cubicle dweller in for the life of a hired assassin. And yet…it seems to be a school of thought that women who read fiction, romance specifically, will lose their hold on reality and try to trade their man in for Fabio. Or something.

But what’s the real concern here? That a woman might learn to have standards? That she might desire a loving relationship? That she might..oh no! Expect sex to be GOOD with her husband? Or is it really that men don’t want to have to live up to any kind of standard? Do they not want their wives to know that men can treat women well? Is it abusers who don’t want women reading romances and waking up to the fact that there are men who treasure their wives rather than hitting them every day? Or is it that they just don’t want to have to be a hero to their wives because it’s too much work?

My husband, in response to the controversy on twitter yesterday said: Poor inferior men.

Because my husband isn’t threatened by the men in a novel. My husband knows that I don’t want a yacht, or a penthouse or a castle in the highlands. I want his love. He knows that when I read a romance novel I remember what it was like to fall in love with him, that it brings back good feelings. He knows that when I’ve spent the day doing laundry and changing diapers, I’ll probably feel sexy at the end of the day because my mind had a chance to focus on ROMANCE.

Romance doesn’t hurt my marriage. If anything, it’s helped it. I am not so stupid that I suddenly believe an Italian billionaire with a mullet needs to sweep me off my feet so that I can truly be happy.

That isn’t what the books are about. They are about love. And if you thinkg wanting love in your marriage is an unrealistic expectation I feel sorry for you.

Romance novels remind me why love is important. They remind me why I need romance in my life with my own personal hero.

If there are problems in a marriage, then those involved should look at the issues, not cast blame. You can’t point the finger at romance novels for a lack of communication or a lack of love and respect.

And if wanting love and respect is a fantasy, then I’m not joining reality.

I love romance novels. My husband loves that I love them. No dissatisfaction here.

Characters Make the Book

I was thinking about this today. Well, actually I’ve been thinking about it a lot. Because there are only so many stories that can be told, I don’t care what genre you’re talking about. There are just only so many plots.

So what makes a book fresh? The author’s voice, for one. Their phrasing, their executions. But also? Character.

Becuase populating a manuscript with interesting, unique characters is the thing that really makes the book.

In Hajar’s Hidden Legacy (Beast Sheikh, which comes out in the UK in January 2012) I borrowed pretty shamelessly from a classic fairy tale that I’ve mentioned on the blog is a favorite of mine: Beauty and the Beast. I didn’t tell my editor I was using that story as my inspiration, but after she read the MS that was one of the first things she said to me, was that it was quite like Beauty and the Beast.

That story served as my inspiration, but I put new characters in it. And it was those characters that allowed me to write a book based off of a tale as old as time (har har) and have it genuinely surprise my editor.

Because my hero came by his beastliness in a way that has left him scarred physically and emotionally. And he reacts to things in a certain way as a result (this is me, not giving spoilers. Nyah!) And my heroine, who has a spine of solid steel, is able to stand her ground with him.

The framework of the story is one you know, but the people in it make it new.

It’s all about character. That’s one of the most exciting thinsg about being a writer! We’re telling stories about people. And while there are only so many plots, think of how many people there are! All from such different backgrounds, who see the world in their own wholly unique and personal way. Who respond to trauma in different ways, who react differently in touch situations.

My inspiration for characters really does come from everywhere. I watch the show Hoarders sometimes (forces me to clean my house) and I was wondering how it would affect a heroine if she’d been raised in a home with a mother who was a hoarder, who seemed to value things over people. How might that make the heroine see herself and the people around her? How might she respond to a hero who was poor and now that he’s become a billionaire, he is a bit materialistic because he’s gone from nothing, to being able to have everything?

Those two characters could be brought together in any number of ways, and their life experiences would shape and change the plot, make it as different as they are!

Characters make the book. You want your reader rooting for them, identifying with them, feeling their pain and their triumph. Characters make the book because they’re what give the book life.

That’s why character is so important!

Just a little two cents post. 😉

Encouragement

This post has been on my mind recently, but I wasn’t really sure how to write it down, or what to say. So I’m just going to give it my best shot.

I know a number of women in this business who have children with special needs. I can count up, very quickly, five of them. I’m one of them. This needs to be pointed out, because I want everyone dealing with this particular struggle to know that you can have something for you too. That your dreams aren’t over. That you can still write.

Writing got me through a lot of the bumps in the road with both of my boys. My oldest has a pretty severe speech delay that, at five years old, is finally starting to sort itself out. My three year old son is in therapy for Autism, and he’s only just starting to speak.

The day I got The Call, I was enrolling my oldest into a pre-school that would help him with his speech, and I was doing paperwork to get my middle son started on Autism therapy.

That stuff is hard. Coming to the point where you’re admitting there are problems, problems you can’t just fix. Problems that might not go away. In the midst of that, I was so thankful for the support of my husband, my family, and for books that allowed me to go to another place for a while, either as a reader or a writer.

It’s important to know, if you’re facing this particular issue, or something else, that you aren’t alone in it. And that you can still write.

With my middle son, who I call Danger Baby online, I came to this realization during a talk with my mother: No matter what his ‘diagnosis’ is today, he’s the same child he was yesterday. The same child he’s always been. A diagnosis only helps your child get treatment. It doesn’t change who they are.

And the diagnosis doesn’t have to upend your life, it doesn’t get to stop you, or defeat you. (My plug for early intervention, because it does work!)

I know a lot of moms of special needs kids, with all different kind of problems, on all different ends of the spectrum. They are the strongest women out there. Because it can make you strong. It can make you see life differently. See people differently.

I think my new perception on people has only enhanced my writing. It’s only helped me understand love that much more.

Still, I know it’s painful some times. I know that worry, the one where you wonder how your child will grow up, will they have friends? How far will they progress? Those aren’t fun worries.

That’s the other thing I’ve learned from my Danger Baby. One day at a time. Today, I’m fine with where he’s at. I’m proud of the progress he’s made. I love him more than anything. That’s the important stuff.

And that mindset has carried over into other things in my life in a positive way. One day at a time. Not worrying about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry for itself.

At RWA last year, Nora Roberts said when she was going through her divorce, she could have paid for therapy. But she chose to write, and use it as therapy, and get paid for it.

I love that. And I find writing can be therapy. A place for me to let my emotions bleed out. A chance to take a brain break from some of the tough stuff.

The bottom line of this post: You aren’t alone. And you can do it.

Don’t Let the Beginning End You

(That was a pun. Do I lose clever points for telling you all that?)

All right, here is my promised post on beginnings. I’m going to open with full disclosure: Beginnings are hard.

You have a lot of things to accomplish with the beginning of a manuscript. The biggest thing is getting an editor or reader to want to keep reading! Because, like with milk, if the first taste is bad, you’re just going to dump it down the sink. No need to drink the whole thing, right?

Clearly, you need more than a good beginning, but that’s for another post entirely. A strong beginning is essential.

One of the key questions is: When does the story start? (I’m struggling with this right now, it’s maddening when it doesn’t feel clear!)

My general thought on this is, what is the point of change? Is it the heroine getting ready for work in the morning, then driving to work, then getting ready for her day before the hero bursts into her office? Or is it the hero bursting into her office and offering her a job.

Typically, my strategy is to start in the middle of the action.

The first line in my debut, His Virgin Acquisition is, “I think the numbers speak for themselves. Marriage is definitely the most profitable course of action.”

Because that’s what the book is about, essentially. Marco and Elaine, and their marriage of convenience.

When I’m first starting a book, I have a tendency to write myself in. To give too much information up front, to start a little bit too early. it’s good to go back and try to look for that stuff later. I’ve heard it said that seeing if your book can actually start in chapter two is a good practice. I’ve never had to do that, but I have had to cut out a decent amount of repetitive information. The goal is to keep up the pace, give the reader enough to keep them interested, don’t bog them down.

After you figure out where you’re starting, you have to get The Balance right. You have information to give because you’re setting the book up, but you also have to reveal character so the reader makes a connection straight away.

I find the easiest way to do this is through dialogue. The more information you can give that comes straight from the characters’ mouths, the better, because you avoid that infodump thing, and have the double whammy of giving the reader the information they need, and showing the reader who the characters are as well.

I’m doing to give you an example of exposition vs. dialogue.

“I’m here to offer you a contract.”

Lily was shocked, because she’d gone in for a job interview with Forrestation Inc, and she hadn’t been hired. She couldn’t really fathom what might have caused the change, unless it had to do with Jeff Campbell. Her newest client was Gage’s biggest competition, and she wondered if that was what had spawned his new offer.

So that was a lot of exposition. And it got the information across, but it missed some good opportunities to have character interaction, to show things about the Gage and Lily. This is what actually made it into the book:

“I’m here to offer you a contract.”

That effecitvely shocked her into silence. Which was a rare thing. “You rejected my offer to represent your company, Mr. Forrester.”

“And now I’m extending you an offer.”

She pursed her lips. “Does this have anything to do with the fact that Jeff Campbell is your biggest competitor?”

“I don’t consider him a competitor.”

Same information, conveyed through dialogue. I think it’s more interesting to see the characters interact, then to read about the musing. I also think you learn more about who they are. I’ll admit, I’ve been dinged by reviewers for having too much exposition toward the end of my books. So I’ve been thinking a lot more about dialogue than I normally do. My thought is this: If they can say it, have them say it. Nothing is more interesting than what your characters have to say.

I have never had my editor ask me for less dialogue. 😉

Another tip is revealing your characters by showing who they are, rather than telling. Another handy example!

Gage sat down on the edge of desk, effectively throwing half of her office supplies out of alignment. She hated having things out of place.

This tells the reader that Lily likes order. So the information is there. But that’s all it does. It tells you.

Again, here’s what made it into the book:

He sat down on the edge of her desk and effectively threw half of her office supplies out of alignment. Annoyance coursed through her, along with the desire to reach out and straighten her stapler…’

That helps show the reader a bit more about Lily and, ideally, helps them feel what she feels, which will make them identify with her a bit more. And you need your reader to identify with your characters!

I referenced infodump earlier, and now we’ll talk a bit more about that. Infodump is when you…well, when you dump info on your reader in a great big heap.

Marco didn’t do love. Because he’d seen what love could do to people. When he was ten his father threw him, his mother and his brother out of their home. Ultimately, his mother abandoned him and his brother so she could shack up with a rich man. Marco spent the rest of his childhood looking after his brother. As soon as his brother had turned eighteen he’d started sleeping his way through the phonebook in an attempt to cut loose and have the fun he’d been denied during his childhood. Having sex, but never forming a real bond with any of the women because…

You get the idea. At this point the reader’s head is lolling forward and they’re fighting boredrom. Also, their rolling their eyes so hard they might do permanent damage.

This kind of information can be sprinkled throughout the book, and revealed at just the right times to get the maximum emotional payoff.

Another thing to ditch, in my opinion, lots and lots of florid description of the location. We don’t need the rundown of the whole set. It’s not important to the story, and it doesn’t create that immediacy that makes a reader NEED to read on.

Here’s a Big Important One. If you’re writing category particularly, you have got to get the hero and heroine on the page, together, as quickly as possible. This sort of goes with starting at the point of change, in the action, but I feel the need to underline it several times in bold ink. The book is ABOUT the romance between the hero and heroine. In category, you have 50K words to develop this romance. That’s not a lot. Start building that as soon as possible.

Now for your Maisey List:

1. Dialogue is a great way to impart information, and reveal character.

2. Show don’t tell. Help your readers feel what the character is feeling.

3. Don’t waist time on pretty prose. Create immediacy.

4. Use Backstory like salt. A little bit to add flavor.

5. Get that hero and heroine on the page together.

So there are some of my long-winded thoughts on beginnings. If you have any questions, feel free to ask!

Put on Your Seatbelt

I got two different requests for posts today, both were REALLY good. So, tomorrow I’ll blog about writing a beginning, and today, we’re going to talk productivity.

I’ll say now, my idea of productivity is my own. I already know several people think I’m insane, and that what I do isn’t the right way to do things. But this is how I do it, and hopefully elements of this post will apply and be helpful.

If you’re looking for a really detailed schedule of: I get up at this time, I eat breakfast, I go into my office…well, you ain’t getting that. My life is crazy. I have three kids, ages 5, 3, and 17 months. I don’t have daycare, or a nanny, I have a husband who changes diapers, but who also has a life and a job. We work around each other, with each other, when we can.

So this isn’t going to be neat and organized because…my life isn’t neat and organized. As a result, I’ve had to come up with a system that works AROUND my life.

There. That was the disclaimer. Now buckle up. 🙂

I think one of the biggest keys to being good and productive, and meeting those all-important deadlines, is to know your process. While mine varies with each WIP, I know a few things: Beginnings are slow for me. Because beginnings are where I tend to make the most mistakes. That means I spend a lot of time trying to get the setting, pacing, details right. Typically, I submit a partial to my editor. Still. Because if I can iron out those issues in the first three chapter, I can usually move ahead with less revisions on the full. (Key word: Usually)

I also know there will come a point where I’ll look at my writing and think it’s horrible, amateur crap. It’s the worst thing I’ve ever written and if I keep on the way I’m going, and stare at the EBIL WIP directly, it will suck my soul out through my eyeballs.

But I know that this happens to me. I also know that it’s typically NOT TRUE. I’ve let those moments master me before, I’ve let them pry my butt out of my office chair and send me into a days long tailspin of WHAT AM I DOING???

It’s not worth it. The times I’ve done that, I’ve had more revisions than the times I’ve simply acknowledged that this point of panic happens to me and I need to write through it.

Inevitably, toward the end, I start thinking “DARN I’M GOOD!!” (note: I’m sometimes wrong about this too, but what can you do?)

All of this matters because it’s key to ME being in control of my writing. Not my emotions, not a muse. My muse cannot stop time, or move deadlines. That means I’m in the driver’s seat.

Another thing I can’t control is wait times. Even for published authors, there’s waiting, and that waiting can be short, or it can be very long. (By long, I mean 4weeks, which is not as long as it is when you aren’t published, but it’s a long time when you consider the deadlines)

This comes back under the Things I Can Control heading. I can control what I do in those wait times. Whether it’s working on proposals, or a new MS, or catching up on promotional things, I always make sure I’m keeping busy. And I’m always writing. Why? Because this is my job. Because I like to feel On Top of Things and because I love to write. I never feel as good as I do when I’m working on a book. It’s my passion. It also allowed me to get two books halfway finished during wait times, which was extremely helpful later on!

My schedule is also tailored to my comfort level. I am procrastinator by nature and I have worked darn hard to master that. I was the one in school writing papers the night before it was due. I was the one who opened their books an hour before the test to brush up real quick. That was stressful. Much more than it should have been. So as got older I worked at dealing with that. Staying ahead makes me feel confident, it makes me happier.

One thing I do is set myself an alternate deadline. I know this doesn’t work for some people, but because I’m competitive, I’ve found it works wonders for me. It’s a challenge I set for myself, and I want to win at it, because that plays to the part of me that always wished I were athletic, so I could play sports. And win.

As I’m writing this post, I’m recognizing the theme in my process: Keeping control.

In a business that has so many things things outside of our control, I think it gives me a lot of peace to focus on what I can control. It also frees me up to just write, if I’m not worried about those other things. Reminds me of the verse that says, ‘Which one of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature.’ (Or, to apply it directly to writers, which one of us can get a contract/better sales/more words on the page by worrying)

Worry hinders productivity for sure!

Another thing that is specific to me and how I work, I don’t write for big chunks of time. Unless I’m at the end, then I want to put a big block of time in. Otherwise I usually work for an hour or two in the afternoon, then work again in the evening. It’s easier for me to concentrate that way, and the break helps me ponder my WIP while I fold clothes. But, barring a few exceptions, my schedule and my attention span don’t allow for 8 hour time blocks where I write. It just doesn’t happen. But I can still get it done, with the time I do have.

I think that’s another big thing I had to learn. To write when I can, make the most of the little bursts of time available (nap time, school time) rather than waiting until I have a Long Time To Work. Because waiting for that opportunity means…a lot of huffing around and moaning about not having time, when really, I did, I just defeated it with my whiny-ness about having no time.

Now we come to The Maisey List, my quick reference of productivity tips and tricks. Feel free to pick the ones that you think might work for you!

1. If you aren’t feeling it…write anyway. Write through that slump, that feeling of I Suck. Don’t let it defeat you.

2. Set earlier, but reasonable, deadlines. This helps avoid last minuet crunch time.

3. Word challenges! The 1K 1Hour challenge on twitter has helped me break through walls, and really get words out on days when it wasn’t flowing. (See my competitive nature. Racing the clock, or other writers can really get me moving!) It also gives a sense of not being alone, which I think is also helpful.

4. The Shower. I don’t know what it is, but when I’m stuck on a spot, a twenty minute shower always helps me think it through. Don’t question the magic of the shower.

5. Be flexible. Yes, I have preferences for when I would *like* to write. Times of day when it seems to flow better. But that just doesn’t always happen. But I’ve found that I’ve gotten to the point that I can make most any time work these days, because I forced myself to do it back when It wasn’t easy.

6. Even when it flows like molasses in January. Do it. Do it. Even when you don’t wanna do it. Some days I bust out 5K. Some days I struggle to get 1K. But it all adds up. And I take what I can get.

7. Set goals. I hate, hate hate to lose. If I set out to write 5K in a day, I want to meet that goal, darn it. It lights a fire under me, it gets me motivated.

8. Holding hands with number 7…give yourself permission to celebrate your achievements. Every day. Even if it’s 300 words. Give yourself permission to be happy with your process. To be happy with your WIP. To think you’re good. A little but of positive helps a whole lot!

So that’s how I manage it. It’s haphazard, and unscheduled, and I love it. Everyone is different, but hopefully there are some tips in there that will help you out! And hey, share some of your own in the comments!

We Interrupt This Blog…Again

Because The Inherited Bride made #132 on the USA Today Bestseller list this week!! *does a dance* (it’s a cool dance. I wish you all could have seen it)

It’s so…SO exciting to see my name up on the that list. So. Sososo. And I love the little one line descriptions they leave for each book. Here’s the one for The Inherited Bride: A Princess falls for a handsome stranger instead of her betrothed.

Nice and to the point!

I’m also discovering one of the VERY cool perks of having a book selected to be Mills and Boon’s book of the month. It turns out there’s an ad in the back of the July Moderns. Caro, who frequents the Mills & Boon community, and who I follow on twitter (pavilionofwomen) was kind enough to send me this:

Now that is pretty cool! And so nice to have them say such lovely things about me. I’m always kind of floored to find out editors beyond the one I work with have any clue who I am. So the book of the month thing was a total shock and thrill.

I just turned in my 9th Presents, the one I was working on for the continuity. Hot Rod’s story is safely with my editor, but as she has a lovely, major amazing, event coming up in her life, I’m not expecting my MS to be her top priority. (She’s about to have her own HEA. YAY!! Congrats! x)

And…I’ve already started another book. Because this is what I LOVE to do. I love writing. I love having new ideas, and new characters and just more writing ALL the time. I have the best job in the world.

Especially easy to see when you have a week like this!

The Highest Price to Pay…Cover!

I am pleased, like so, so so pleased…to unveil the cover for The Highest Price to Pay! (The Frenchman, if you’re following along here on the blog.)

This book was a pain to write. Both times. And I loved it. Both times.

And it’s even more thrilling because M&B have made it their Book of the Month for August. I am so, so thrilled with how supportive they’ve been of me writing the book, and now in marketing it.

Now…COVER PARTY!!

“While it has been reported that I’m missing my own soul, I have no interest in yours. This is about money.”

When Ella’s failing business comes wrapped up as part of Blaise Chevalier’s recent takeover. he plans to discard it – as is his usual way with surplus goods. Then he meets Ella! Cast from the same fiery mould he is, she makes an intriguing adversary. Perhaps he can have a little fun with his new acquisition…

As proud and strong as she is beautiful, Ella is determined to prove Blaise wrong about her business and her worth. As long as she hides her hint of vulnerability and denies the flicker of attraction between them when she catches her enemy’s eye….

Writing For Presents: Heroines

I sort of feel like I could go through the heroes post and replace my pronouns. Because, and I’ll give my bottom line away from the get go: It is ALL about character. Character motivation and execution.

Just like heroes, I believe there are very few limitations when it comes to heroines. Sandra Marton writes some very sexually aware heroines who aren’t afraid to get it on in a club restroom if the time is right. Jennie Lucas writes a fabulous rags to riches heroine. Lynn Raye Harris is the queen of the stylish, Prada clad heroine, who looks darn good and doesn’t need a makeover.

They are individuals. Funny, quirky, sexy, innocent, or not innocent. And they behave that way because of where they’re from, what life has handed to them, and how they’ve chosen to deal with those things.

Just because a heroine is disadvantaged, does not mean she’s a doormat. In fact, as Presents does have VERY strong heroes, Presents heroines have to be able to stand up and meet them as equals. How they do this is going be as unique and varied as the characters themselves.

I truly believe in the importance of balance in a couple. The stronger my hero, the stronger the heroine has to be for me to be able to execute it properly. Some authors use that balance in almost the opposite way. The fragileness in a heroine might force the hero to change tactics. But either way, it’s not her getting run over.

The heroine is key in so many ways. She has to have the power to come into this big strong alpha man’s life and truly upset it. She has to be able to affect change in a man who is probably pretty set in his ways.

I think heroines in general, not just in Presents, and not just in romance, can descend into cliche easily. Again, it can seem like the thing to do (and in the first version of my first book, I was very guilty of this) is to work off that checklist.

Lips that are too full? Check. Breasts that are too large to be fashionable? Faints at the sight of the hero? Check check.

Well, if that’s your heroine and you know why she behaves that way, I would never put out a blanket ‘that’s wrong’ statement, because I don’t know how you’ve set her up as a person.

My famous example is in the first version of His Virgin Acquisition when Marco kissed Elaine in the limo, she ‘gave a cry’ and my editor asked me why she’d done that. Was it just because I thought she should, because I thought that was what A Heroine would do?

I thought about it. Yes. Yes that was why I did it. In the final version I believe she tells him ‘I’d invite you up, but darn it all, I have a headache.’ That was MUCH more in line with her character, with the person I had SAID that she was.

It’s not enough to simple say your heroine is smart, and feisty, and independent. She has to demonstrate that she’s those things through her actions. (This completely applies to ALL characters)

Ultimately, it’s about making a believable heroine, whose actions, reactions, feelings about sex and her body, and the hero’s body, fit in with the person you’ve created her to be. A heroine who knows she’s kind of a hottie, and who doesn’t have a lot of inhibition, might not bother to cover her breasts while she’s sitting in bed having an argument with the hero. A different heroine might feel the need to pull the sheets over herself, because the change in tone to their relationship makes her feel too exposed.

The important things is that she’s written in a way that she feels three dimensional, and real. A heroine who can stand strong, find love, and stand, at the end, as an equal with her hero.

Sold: The World’s Most Terrifying Manuscript

My editor (who showed amazing, lighting fast reflexes!) has gotten back to me on Beast Sheikh and she loved the revisions! I’m very pleased to say that’s Presents #8 accepted!

I can’t believe that’s eight already…I love my job. I really do. And very pleased to say I get to focus all of my attention on Hot Rod now!

I did a post yesterday on alpha males, and how the definition of an alpha male is much broader than people think. I believe Beast Sheikh is an example of that. When I was writing him, I really didn’t know for sure what my editor would think of him. Because he’s an extremely wounded alpha, who has been stronger at other times in his life.

But he’s also survived hideous trauma, both physically and emotionally, and while he did not emerge from it unscathed, he has the core of a leader. Of a man with strength and integrity. Even though the pain and grief has threatened to consume that, he’s still standing.

Will post on title and release as soon as it comes in! Can’t wait!

Writing For Presents: Heroes

This is a hard post to write (haha…I said hard…get your giggles out now kids.) because when it comes to character, I truly believe there are a lot more options than a lot of people think.

I see SO much STUFF on message boards about those ALPHA MALES. Oh, how people HATE them. Oh, they could never write one of those. They’re all mean, and cruel, and call the heroine names. And that’s what an alpha male is and blah.

*Maisey bangs her head on the desk*

That isn’t what alpha means. Certainly, you do find heroes in romance novels who have that personality, and I’m not saying they aren’t alpha males. In fact, a well motivated man who behaves in that manner, so long as he changes througout, is fine with me. What I am saying, is that alpha is a broad term, much broader than people seem to think.

And on that note, the Presents hero has much more room for variance than people seem to think as well. Truly, every author in this line is so different, and it’s a very voice driven line. Our editors ALWAYS encourage us to let our natural voices come through. That included letting our own voices shine through when it comes to our heroes.

An alpha male is the highest ranking male in a social group. The alpha of a wolf pack, the alpha of a World of Warcraft Guild and the alpha of a multi-billion dollar company will behave differently from each other. 😉

I’ve banged on about alpha heroes a lot in previous posts, because I think they have a bad rap. And because in reading contest entries, I’ve seen a lot of what I’ll call ‘Poser Alphas’ who are only behaving a certain way because it’s clear the writer had out her alpha checklist and was sort of filling in everything she believed that meant.

Playboy? Check. Jackass? Check. Calls the heroine a whore at least three times? Check.

I’ve read books where the heroes were, and did, ALL those things, and as long as it’s well motivated, it works. But when it’s only there because the writer is working off of an archetype for they think they HAVE to do, it shows.

That’s why I think it’s so important to examine who your character is and why he is that way.

I’m going to use one of Jennie Lucas’s heroes (because I LOVE him) as an example of that brooding, intense alpha hero. Maksim from The Christmas Love Child, had such a horrible past. And he lied to the heroine. And I LOVED that. Because you could see this struggle in him. He had a goal, and the heroine was his avenue to fulfilling that goal. And coming from an impovrished background where looking out for himself first was essential, it made his actions to understandable and forgivable. Watching him struggle with his conscience for the first time was so awesome as a reader. And the HEA was SO satisfying.

But he wasn’t just this selfish jerk out for his own ends. He was complex. He was a man who honestly didn’t quite know HOW to care about people, and Jennie showed us that so beautifully. He’s one of my favorite heroes ever. (The book finaled in the RITA last year, read it, you’ll see why)

Maksim is a Presents hero. No doubt.

At the other end of the spectrum, I’ll give you Gage Forrester, my hero from Marriage Made on Paper. He’s a Presents hero too. And he’s an alpha male. But Gage spent ten years raising his little sister and he is very in tune with his protective side as a result. He’s a Southern California guy, and while he’s totally driven in business, and completely able to turn on the ruthless when it comes to protecting his sister, he has a kind of laid back personality when it comes to day-to-day interaction. He’s a bit of playboy, but his family comes first.

In contrast to Maksim, who had only ever had to live for himself, as a matter of total survival, Gage has spent his life living for someone else’s needs.

These men are an example of alpha executed differently, and it all stems from…yes…character background.

There are so many heroes in the line, and they ARE different from each other. So when you approach writing a hero for the line, for any line, you have to to think of him as his own, individual person, not as a paint by number.

It says on the inside cover of the North American Presents that the line delivers “Unforgettable men.” And that’s the true promise and challenge.

This isn’t a post telling you NOT to make your alpha heroes a certain way, or telling you to make them the way I do. Don’t don’t do that. Make them the way YOU do. Make them believable. Make them real. Make them unforgettable, and most of all, make them yours!

As always, if you have any questions please feel free to leave them in comments!

Cover Parade and New Releases

I’m polishing up Beast Sheikh to send him back to my editor tonight, after which I will be hunkering down for some serious quality time with Hot Rod. (I have SO many men in my life! 😉 )

But, before I do, just a reminder, The Inherited Bride will be available in North American stores starting this week. (They trickle in slowly, so while the release is the 3rd…not sure when it will hit everywhere. Also, it’s an EXTRA.) And it is available for download NOW on Nook, Kindle and eharlequin!

AND Marriage Made on Paper is on Kiwi and Aussie shelves!

I also found out recently that in the fall I have two Spanish releases coming out, the translation of His Virgin Acquisition, releasing in September as ‘Una Atrevida Proposicion’ (A Daring Proposal) and An Accidental Birthright will release in November as ‘Casada con un Principe’ (Married to a Prince)

His Virgin Acquisition has also been translated into German and titled Im Rausch der Sinne (Which I am told means, A Sensual Frenzy!) and I just discovered last night, it’s in Italy as well! Under the title L’INDISCRETO SGUARDO DEL MILIONARI. I was not able to get a reliable, no Google translation on that one…so, if anyone speaks Italian!

This is so very exciting to have releases in so many places. It’s a kind of distribution that I can scarcely comprehend. To know that so many people from so many different backgrounds read and enjoy these books is truly humbling. I only hope I can deliver a book that brings me as much joy as I get from writing them.

That’s always my hope, really. That I can pass along the joy that this job gives me.

Happy reading! In whatever language that might me!

Maisey Yates Meets the World’s Most Terrifying Manuscript Again or…Beast Sheikh News

Or…why you have to embrace the fear.

You remember I was talking about how much this MS skerred me. Because I was trying something that felt like a major gamble, at least in my mind.

I was afraid my editor was going to read the MS and say…send us a hero who’s not so freaking messed up!! But I wanted to try it, even though it made me shake in my boots.

So imagine my shock when I got my revisions back on Tuesday and the main focus of the revisions is the hero. Just like I thought. But not on pulling him back, or making him less dark and damaged. She wants me to key in on those things and take them deeper.

Cue pleasant surprise from me. There is nothing better than a revision letter asking you to go farther with your vision! Nothing. I am beyond excited to tackle these with a stamp of approval from my editor. So excited to make Beast Sheikh even more beastly, and to go deeper into why he’s become the man that he is.

This is why I need to stop trying to predict what my editor will say. Really. It’s a waste of time and it’s a stresser. And I’m never right.

This is also why embracing the fear and taking a chance is a good thing. One of the best compliments she paid me during our phone conversation yesterday was that the first scene that reveals the extent of the heroes issues shocked her. In a good way! (it shocked me too, tbh, but he was a strong hero who did what he wanted!!)

And this is the example of a positive pay-off for taking a chance. I’ve experienced the negative for doing it too. But I think in the end, it’s always rewarding to know that you tried something that challenged you, that stretched you as a writer.

So go one…embrace the fear!

Writing for Presents: Conflict and Escaping Cliche

I touched briefly on conflict, and the way I execute a complete romance with only 50K words in my basics post, and in this post, I want to take a more detailed look at 50K word conflict. And escaping cliches while still fulfilling the promise of the line.

In a longer novel, there’s often a full, secondary story happening in conjunction with the primary story. There are characters other than the h and H who get a lot of screen time and who even have their own sections of POV.

While you do see characters beyond the hero and heroine in a Presents, they’re not really true secondary characters. They’re more peripheral characters. Because if too much time is spent on a quirky best friend, no matter how funny and fabulous she is, she can steal too many words for herself, and cut into the developing romance between the hero and heroine. (Girl, get your own book!)

With so few words to set up a plot, conflict, romance, conflict resolution, and believable HEA, the primary focus MUST be on the hero and heroine and their developing relationship.

But it’s not only loud-mouthed side characters that can cut into that development. Too many threads of external conflict can keep the reader from really getting to know the characters.

I can only speak for myself, but when too many external elements creep in, my characters start…breaking character. Because I’m jerking them around at breakneck speed to try and squeeze all my ideas into a manuscript they simply won’t fit in. When that happens, my editor always asks me to examine what the core of the book is, and work from there.

My May release is a good example of this. I started with: the heroine running from an arranged marriage, but terrorists are after her, so when the hero comes to save her they have to travel around quickly to stay safe and seek asylum in fabulous locations, oh yeah, and they can’t be together because she’s engaged to his brother.

My editor read this and went…too much. All of the *stuff* was crowding out the TRUE conflict of the book, which was NOT running from terrorists. The true heart of the book was duty vs desire. It was a forbidden love story that was getting buried.

If I’d had 80-90K of course all of that would have fit. I would have needed it. But for a 50K book, it was crowding out the real meat of the story.

Losing the terrorist/running element, allowed me to focus in on a princess seeking a few months of true freedom, and a man fighting desperately to hold onto his honor in the face of desire that tests resolve he’s always considered unbreakable. And that created a much more complicated, satisfying read in the end. Complicated because the focus was in more tightly on emotion, and what the true cost of an affair between the h and H would be.

That leads me to the dreaded cliche. There is nothing new under the sun. There are elements that are common in romance novels because they read well and…well, they’re common in real romance.

It’s execution that keeps it out of cliche. It’s funny, I’ve read chapters of Presents attempts before where I thought the writing was perfectly competent, but something about it was lacking. It was like the characters were doing things simply because the writer believed it was about the time in that kind of book to have that happen. And THAT is what creates cliche.

Category has guidelines, but it is not a paint by number. Character actions and reactions need to drive the book, not a well placed scene where the heroine faints from shock simply because other heroines have fainted from shock upon seeing the hero after ten years. Ask if YOUR heroine would faint from shock. Or if she’d punch him the gut. Or pretend she didn’t see him. Or act like nothing had ever passed between them. But make sure the reaction is true to the character you’ve created, not to an archetype. (And if your heroine would faint, great, have her faint, but know WHY.)

If you’re writing a MS where the hero and heroine have to marry for some reason, so you know you’ll be writing a wedding, ask what that wedding means TO THEM, and approach it that way.

Bring your unique voice, and your characters’ unique way of seeing things into play, and you’ll have scenes that are relevant, and important.

I think the summation of my long-windedness, is to remember that your characters are the important part. They bring the MS alive, they, along with your own voice, are what will make you stand out. So let them have their voice, make them, and their relationship, the center of your MS.

Any questions? Feel free to ask in the comment section and I’ll answer!

Writing for Harlequin Presents: The Basics

I hesitated writing the title of this because writing for any genre or line isn’t quite as simple as receiving a set of instructions and then following them. And I’m by no means the definitive authority, and I’m certainly not the first person to write a post like this! But I do want to share with you what I’ve learned writing my seven Presents, to help you on your own writing journey.

I’m going to start with the basics. The promise of the line, and what that means to you as a writer, and what it means to our readers. A little bit of Presents info so you can be a Presents expert. And some tips for writing category length books.

The short and sweet promise of the line can be found inside the cover on the North American Presents: Glamorous international settings, unforgettable men, passionate romances. Another version can be found on the back of the M&B Moderns: International affairs, seduction and passion guaranteed.

This is a promise that is made to the readership, and when writing for the line, it’s important to fulfill that promise. There is actually quite a lot of freedome in category, much more than people think, but the thing that you absolutely have to do is deliver on that promise. Because those are the core things that bring a reader to the line they identify with.

So in Presents our readers want that glamour, exciting international settings, and of course a strong, unforgettable alpha hero. (I could go on at length about what alpha means, and how it’s truly a very diverse trait…and I have, you can see that post here, and I may touch on it again in a more detailed post)

Presents has very intense conflicts, but they need to be grounded in reality. Because while there’s a major fantasy element (staying on a private island with a gorgeous prince!) the core conflicts need to be rooted in something readers can relate to. Like a woman willing to go to great lengths to prove herself to her father, that she’s good enough. Or a woman who finds herself pregnant with what she thinks is the wrong man’s baby. Those are things many of us can relate to, or at least imagine experiencing.

I remember very early on talking to my editor about wanting to tackle a certain theme I had read quite a bit in Presents, and she told me not to worry so much about ‘themes’. That as long as I was fulfilling the line’s promise, I had a great deal of freedom. That was a very valuable piece of advice to me, as I feel it’s really helped me find a place to let my voice show through. And ultimately, that is what an editor’s looking for! Someone who fulfills the line’s promises, but brings themselves into it. Their own unique voice and take on things.

That brings me in to writing category in general. Writing a 50-55K MS requires some different skills than writing 80-100K and no…it’s not really easier. It’s different. This typically means in a category novel you won’t find true secondary characters. We don’t have room for subplots and multiple character points of view.

To write an emotionally satisfying romance in 50K words means the focus has to be on the hero and heroine, and their relationship. I personally keep my POV limited entirely to the H and h, and I know not everyone in Presents does that, but for me, it keeps things simple. I keep my focus tightly on the relationship, on their personal conflicts, so that the reader really feels they got to see the growth and progression of the love between the h and H.

Now I have a little list of Presents facts for you, to help you be a Presents expert:

Harlequin Presents is in over 100 markets and is translated into 26 different languages.

In the UK and India, it’s known as Mills & Boon Modern, in North America, Presents. In Australia the line is called Sexy. In Germany, Julia and the Spanish translations are called Bianca.

The difference between Presents and Presents EXTRA? Four Presents EXTRAs are released every month after the classic Presents. Two of them are from the Modern line in the UK (that’s the same as Presents, remember?) and two of them are taken from RIVA (formerly Modern Heat). The two Moderns will share a common theme, and the two RIVAs will share a common theme. For example, in May I have a book out called The Inherited Bride, and it’s a part of the Kings of the Desert, with Abby Green’s Breaking the Sheikh’s Rules. While the RIVA’s in May are part of the ‘In Bed With the Boss’ collection.

The best way to tell which is which is simply to go by author. Abby Green and I write classic Presents, while Nicola Marsh and Ally Blake write for RIVA. (I don’t know how much that clears up, but now you know as much as I do. 😉 )

So there’s a little basic info for you on the Presents line. If you have any questions about things I didn’t cover, or things I did, please ask below and I will answer to the best of my ability!

It Was Like That Time When I Eated A Lot of Cookies

So, I’m waiting to hear back about Beast Sheikh. Which basically has me crouched in the corner doing my best impression of Gollum while I clutch my coffee mug to my chest.

Okay, it’s not that bad. Really. It’s not. And the past couple weeks of waiting have been really, really busy. Now, they’ve been busy with some of my less favorite things about being a writer.

Like copy edits. Which I had for The Argentine’s Price this week.

And filling out an Art Fact Sheet. That means I get to fill in the themes of the book, descriptions of characters, and scenes I think would make a good cover! It’s is pretty fun, except for when you get to the part where you have to write a suckopsis again.

Especially when it’s for a book you’re expecting revisions on. Because then it’s like…oh…yeah, and then there was that part. Except, I know it wasn’t crazy in the context of the book. Sure, it sounds crazy now, but it’s not. IT’S NOT!! *grabs cookies* *goes back to corner*

And then of course, there’s the email checking crazy that comes with a wait. Every time I see an email from my editor I’m looking to see if there’s an attachment…because an attachment means a long revision letter. It’s a strange thing, both stalking and avoiding your inbox, yet I seem to have it down to an art form. It’s not fine art or anything. More like the art at the local senior center. But hey, art.

Every book feels different. Every book feels like a gamble. For some reason, Beast Sheikh does most especially. I’m half expecting six pages of ‘what were you thinking??’ But then, that could just be the caffeine talkin’.

However, I am working on my Sooper Sekrit Projekt and I’m having a LOT of fun with it! It’s my very first continuity, and while I can’t give details, I’m referring to my hero as Hot Rod in public. 🙂 It’s a very different experience, because I get to really work with other writers to make it all come together. It’s fun to be in on a collaboration like this!

The characters I was given were different to what I would normally do too, but that’s been half the fun. We’re not given a full outline for things like this. There’s info about the unifying situation, or family, and then a small little write up on the hero and heroine and their general situation. But from there, it’s up to us to make it our own.

I’ve found I really enjoy it! Because I’m having to take characters that wouldn’t come to me organically and really try to understand them and give them their motivation and conflict. That’s still up to us. And even with a vague outline, any there are infinite possibilities to what the end product could be!

Because, for most of us, an idea is the easy part. I have a folder filled with ideas. But you could give ten writers the exact same prompt and come up with ten completely different stories. Because it’s voice and execution that really bring a story to life.

So that’s me, trying to focus on something else and not angst. And not eat cookies. And occasionally this week, I have succeeded. 🙂

Maisey’s Guide to Massive Revisions

Well, actually it’s Maisey and Chelsea’s guide, and I hope she doesn’t mind me borrowing from her a bit. We were talking revisions amongst the Sassy Sisters yesterday, and I started talking about how I approach them. Now, I consider myself revision royalty. Not so much because I’m awesome at them, but because I have an astounding ability to get them! Big ones. Half the time they’re rewrites. (I call this my ‘process’, and no, it doesn’t make me feel a whole lot better! LOL)

So what I do when faced with major revisions is: Read over the letter. Sulk. Read it again. Start making notes.

If I’m dealing with a whole rewrite, I just try to absorb all I can, then start from blank page one and go. But if I’m doing true ‘revisions’ I start with one element. Like, character. So I go through and I make notes on what I need to do to alter character. And I start working on that.

Then we come to pacing. So I start examining my pacing, cutting and adding where needed, and a lot of times, I’m still working the character changes in as I do this.

Then say I need to up tension in a few scenes, I would do that next.

Then I do a read through and make sure it’s all coherent and polished. Sounds simple? It’s not really. LOL. But it helps me absorb it all taking it a piece at a time, with my little hand written attack plan.

Now, I shared this with Sassy Sister Chelsea yesterday and she basically backed away from me in terror. She described her process differently, and brilliantly, and I wanted to share the way she does it, so I can offer another perspective.

She described it like painting a room. You paint the whole room, but it might need another coat. And then another, and then some fine detail work. But she doesn’t do it in pieces, she does it in a more whole, complete way. And then she said something I thought was really brilliant, and I’m totally using it too.

She said that if she got to the end, and it was better, but it still wasn’t right, that meant she was actually midway, and not done. I thought that was really brilliant, because I think it’s easy when undertaking revisions to put a lot of pressure on yourself. But you can work on it until it’s done. (now, at some point, you have to just say done, because you can’t tweak forever, but we’re talking bigger issues!)

Revisions, even massive ones, are a good thing. It puts the power to make your book as good as possible, with outside guidance, into your hands.

Our ways are just two ways of…gee…probably 1587 ways to tackle massive revisions. We have The Painter and the The List. What do you do?

Brain is on Holiday

Plus, I did a post today at the Sassy Sisters blog, so mosey on over and check it out! But here, I leave you with just a little something to brighten your day…

*brighten*

**BRIGHTEN**

And…*brighten* I leave you finally with Mark Consuelos, the inspiration for Hot Rod, my current hero!

We interrupt this blog…

To bring you news! Notice anything new about my banner? *big obnoxious grin*

An Accidental Birthright is #54 on the USA Today Bestseller list!! And now I can officially say I am a bestselling author! That sounds so official, and fancy!! And it’s so much more than I ever hoped to achieve. Really.

Thanks so much to my readers. 🙂

Do As I Say…Not As I’ve Done

It’s no secret, I’ve had some revisions in my day. Having just turned in Presents #8, patiently (ha) waiting the revisions that will come with them, I feel at peace. Revisions are part of the job. They aren’t an intrusion, or an extra, they’re the way a book truly reaches it’s full potential.

It’s like, I sent my book out into the world, but I forgot to give it its Wheaties. So my editor reminds me and sends it back so I can give its breakfast of champions, so it can really be all it can be!!

But here are some great things I’ve learned along the way, mistakes I’ve made that I hope to help you avoid!

1. Copycat. Nobody wants to be that!

Bring you into whatever you write. It’s not enough to simply imitate or analyze, you have to bring your own unique voice and take into your writing. It’s what makes you different, the thing that makes you stand out. Now, with category, you have to do that while keeping with the promise of the line, not so easy, but once you sort of find that marriage, it’s a really beautiful thing!

2. Big Secret, Big Reveal, What the What??

There are a few people this actually works for. (Desire Author Tessa Radley is one). And I’m sure there are quite a few instances it *does* work in, but there are times when The Big Secret can be a Big Bad for a few reasons. Number one, it can keep the reader from really knowing a character. I did this, and it resulted in a rewrite. Because while I had conflict to spare, I did not have a chance to explore it as I would have, because I was trying to save something for a big reveal, and while that secret certainly kept my editor reading, it made the whole thing lack depth.

The other reason The Big Secret can work against you is that it can seem like your characters didn’t really get to know each other. It can make it all feel very rushed and forced in the end.

So it’s always good to ask if you actually benefit more from pulling that secret out of the drawer early so you have time to really make it part of the conflict, and explore it with enough depth.

3. Cliche.

This is something I think I’m slowly beating out of myself. It’s a strange realization. I can honestly say I’ve added details to books simply because other writers I admired seem to use them a lot. (en suite bathrooms and strappy sandals) There is NOTHING wrong with these things if they need to be there. But I KNOW I’ve been guilty of adding them to try and make sure I was ‘fitting” the category.

This kind of goes back to number one. You have to be you.

4. Putting the Plot Before the Character

This is my big one. It’s caused me the most extensive revisions. Putting a theme and plot before characters. There are a limited number of plots in the world. That’s just a fact. There are a limited number of themes. But it’s the people that inhabit that plot that take it and make it something truly unique. And when that plot is dominating those characters, it can steal some of that. Now, I usually have a glimmer of plot/theme before character (usually being the key word…I don’t think any book has been quite like the one before it in terms of process for me) but, I try not to map out events before I have character conflict in mind, because I want the internal conflict of the characters to be the engine that’s driving the train.

Some tips from me. 🙂 Because these are mistakes I’ve made, and will make again. But it’s nice to write it all down. Now I need to do what I say too…

Sent That Sheikh and a Guest Post

Oh, well, that about sums it all up in the subject there. 🙂 Yep, the Beast Sheikh is now safely in my editor’s inbox and I am Beast Sheikh free!! (till revisions…then I get to torment him some more…I have a feeling he’s afraid to come back to me!)

This means I’ll be spending some time getting ideas collected for my bright shiny new MS (AKA Sooper Sekrit Projekt…). I’ll be taking of with Hot Rod soon enough and very much looking forward to it! (hey, I had my day of sloth…now I need to be…un-slothy.)

Also, I did a little interview for Get Lost in A Story (I was hosted by brand new Desire author Cat Schield…So cool!). It’s a silly interview wherein I mention Gaston, reviews and coffee. (other things too!) And I’m also giving away a copy of The Inherited Bride!

So come comment! Make me feel all not lonely!

Maisey Yates and the World’s Most Terrifying Manuscript

Sounds like an epic saga worthy of being adapted to a Summer blockbuster. The story of The Girl Who Wrote and her perilous journey to the heart of a manuscript so terrifying it was only referred to as The MS That Must Not Be Named…

Hmmm…may be a good plan. But, if that doesn’t shake out, I just have to get this thing sent and polished. And it is terrifying.

This is Presents #8. Beast Sheikh. And I’m a bit scared of it. Why? Because when you try something outside of your comfort zone it. Is. Scary.

Now, there’s nothing new under the sun. I’m not breaking any new ground here, but it’s new ground for me. And as a result, I’ve felt as thought I was feeling around in the dark at times without any clue of how to figure out where I was going.

A scene would come into my head and I would say…no. No, my imagination, you have gone TOO FAR. And it would be all, no I haven’t. Write the scene.

So, with much trepidation, I would write the scene. I’ve built a full MS off this system now, and this weekend has been the challenge of going back through it and deciding where I’ve gone too far…and where I haven’t gone far enough.

That’s the things with The Fear. It can pull you back. Keep you ‘the safe zone’. But something I’ve realized while working on Scary McBad MS is that there is no room for fear when you’re stepping outside the Comfort Zone. It’s all or nothing.

Now, that gamble may mean you miss by a hundred yards. It may also mean that your shot richochets off a tree, bounces from the metal weather vein and shoots down into the bullseye. One things for sure though, if you play it safe, you won’t have pulled off much of anything but a watered down, scaredy cat story with half-realized conflict.

That’s the place I’m at. Turning all the nobs up to 11 (I am mixing my metaphors like MAD up in here…do you see the crazy??) so that if I miss, I at least miss with flare. (Now, I’m hoping to hit, but y’know, I’ve had to rewrite *coughalotcough* before.)

That requires taking those risks that scared me. Going for bold strokes instead of tracing in little faint outlines of what I’m trying to say.

Now, I must get back to the MS That Shall Not Be Named…Go on, paint with bold strokes. 🙂 Don’t let fear stop you from getting something truly great.

Release(s) Day!!

It’s crazy, crazy releases day! I will try to be concise, and not make your heads explode, and not get all nervous and excited. *breathes into paper bag*

So…this post is split into sections by nation. That way I don’t information overload anyone. :p

United Kingdom: UK readers, Marriage Made on Paper should be on the shelves! It’s also available today for your Kindles!! You can check that out at Amazon UK!

Australia and New Zealand: Marriage Made on Paper is now on Mills and Boon AUS! You can get it in print or ebook!

Marriage Made on Paper is the story of Gage and Lily, and their professional lives getting very, very tangled with their personal lives! Gage is a hot-shot property tycoon with a lot of charm, but his personal exploits and professional decisions tend to be frowned on by the public, which is why he needs public relations whiz Lily Ford to handle his public persona. But when two driven, ambitious people clash, sparks tend to fly. And a fake engagement forces them into very close proximity…

And in North America there’s…

An Accidental Birthright! It’s now available everywhere you can buy Presents! It’s available on Kindle, NookBook and all kinds of other e formats. And still on eharlequin.

Also on eharlequin today…The Inherited Bride. In both print and ebook. (There’s also a coupon code for April first…if you buy from eharlequin using the code with print books it’s buy two get the third free, and for e it’s 5% off your entire order!)

The Inherited Bride is full of forbidden desire and what happens when duty and honor are at odds with love. You can listen to the song my husband wrote for the book in the post below.

There…I hope I haven’t confused you all. And I hope you enjoy the books!

The Inherited Bride Song!

I’m really excited to share this. My husband, who is amazing and talented, decided to write a song for my North American May release, The Inherited Bride!

I was really touched by the lyrics, because they so much capture the book from Adham’s point of view for me as a writer. I only wish I would have had this while I was writing the book, for my all powerful Writing Playlist.

I’m also really touched by the fact that he did this for me, and that he cares about me enough to do special things like this. And I’m impressed, because he wrote the music and lyrics, played all the instruments and did the vocals. Plus, he recorded it on the PC in the living room…most likely with kids hanging off of his arms, because that’s how we both work!

So…*drum roll* the world premier of The Inherited Bride Song!

Inherited Bride by havenyates

A Cover and A Squee!!

So, I’ve been holding back this super Sexy cover of my Australian release, Marriage Made on Paper, but I have decided to have pity on you all and post the hotness that is this cover for your general viewing pleasure. Am I not merciful? (All right, I just got permission to post it, but the other sounded cooler!)

Love it! Captures the scene (and I know what scene it is!) on the island of Koh Samui! It’s also pretty perfectly Gage and Lily. Love that he actually LOOKS old enough to be one of the heroes! Rather than looking like some shiny, 18 year old model named Chad who escaped from Jilly Aston’s mansion. 🙂

And now for the squee!! On twitter, fellow Harlequinite Sandra Hyatt congratulated me on my #1 position on the Borders bestseller list for series romance…surely she was mistaken, I thought. So I abandoned Beast Sheikh and dashed over to Borders…and it was true!! An Accidental Birthright is currently number one!! You can see the list here at the RWA site if you’re so inclined!

Also, to my amazing shock, An Accidental Birthright is number one on the eharlequin ebooks site!

There. I feel like I’ve officially bragged for Oregon. :p Truly, feeling stunned and very grateful to my readers! Because it feels like a big thing to me. 🙂

Now, I must stalk on back to Le Writing cave and spend quality time with Beast Sheikh. He is lonely.

What’s It Gonna Be, Neo?

No, this isn’t really about The Matrix. It’s about the rabbit trail of conflict. And the need to see how far down the rabbit hole goes. (I forgot which pill I was supposed to take to get there…red or blue…so I took both and now I’m dizzy)

Conflict in non-category books has room for several threads, a bit more external, a villain, a secondary story, actual, real secondary characters that are more than just peripherals.

A 50K or so book doesn’t so much. And that means that focused conflict is required.

Now, I’m not a plotter by nature, but when I start, I like to sort of know what I’m dealing with conflict-wise. It may take me the whole partial, or longer, to really nail it down. But the whole time I’m writing I’m always thinking about the internal conflict of the characters.

I try to think of mine as…ta-da…a rabbit hole.

So let’s take a hero. Hi, Hero. We’ll call him Colby, because that’s an underused name in Romance.

So, we have Colby. He wants revenge. (This is the surface, the clear, obvious stuff we get from page one) Why? It’s retribution. A bit deeper now. He’s out to see himself elevated to a higher position, to be better than those who wronged him, and he’ll bring them down in the process. Why? Because there’s something in himself that he’s insecure about, which makes the need for glory and recognition, and the chance to spit upon his enemies, an all-consuming drive.

And that’s where following the ‘he wants revenge’ rabbit trail takes me. It also covers all those lovely things: Goal, Conflict and Motivation. His goal is to get revenge which will lower his enemies and make him better, which is motivated by his need for retribution, which is made even more compelling by his conflict, the insecurity that will be salved by his newfound position of power. *gasps for breath*

So what do we do with Colby? How do we now fix this vengeance needing insecure hero with a need for material glory and elevation? If the material has been the most important thing for him in the book, he needs to realize that the heroine is more important than that, and he needs to demonstrate that change in a real, profound way that shows us the arc he has undergone as a character.

If his goals were to gain status, connections, he could sever those ties. What if being with the heroine, who is of low station, or was the girl who jumped out of cakes at bachelor parties, or something, asks him to compromise that goal?

Even better. Because when he can set all that aside. The vengeance, insecurity and need for retribution via status and possession, he’s had his arc, and his conflict is all dealt with.

And he can have his HEA with Cordelia, the girl who used to jump out of cakes for a living.

So that’s an example of how I follow the conflict rabbit trail back. We have the surface, we go beneath it, get all the way to the bottom of it, and then figure out how to best bring about change in the character, in a way that suits all that lovely conflict.

Hope that makes sense, it’s the analogy I use in my head. 🙂

The Week that Was On Like Donkey Kong

That’s the official name for this week, extending into the next. Okay, maybe not, but that’s only because no one asked me what we should call it!

But this is one crazy awesomesauce week and I’m going to try and cover it all…

First: I got the official title and release for Presents #7 (which you all knew as The Vengeful Rogue, or, the one with the Before and After scene).

THE ARGENTINE’S PRICE will be out in the UK, November, 2011. So, if you want to read about a bad boy made good, who comes back to claim the woman he can’t forget…well, then read that!

Second: AN ACCIDENTAL BIRTHRIGHT (North American) and MARRIAGE MADE ON PAPER (UK) are officialy on the shelves in their respective release countries.

This is my second US release, so only the second time I’ll have been lucky enough to see my book on the shelves! So, so excited. And currently stalking Barnes and Noble, since they hadn’t put it out yet and I’m desperate to see it…*stalks*

And then we have…Blogs! I will be at The Pink Heart Society AND I heart Presents! So please come and comment so am not looonely.

But wait…there’s more!

Tomorrow is also the day they announce the finalists for the RITA and the Golden Heart. Not holding my breath…no…I’m not…*turns blue* *passes out*

I also got the review for The Inherited Bride from Romantic Times Magazine…it was given 4 1/2 stars! (which is the best you can do, beyond getting a little Top Pick! tag by your stars) It gets to join together with the 4 star review I got from them for An Accidental Birthright.

Together, they will fight the forces of ebil, otherwise known as Doubt Crows! (Doubt Crows! Blech!)

This is good, because with all these releases, Beast Sheikh issues and other happenings, I need Doubt Crow insulation like whoa!

So this is the Week That Is On Like Donkey Kong. And I even had edits to do.

(up, down, A, B, B, A, left, right, left, A, B, A,A, up, down, select)

Sorry, someone told me if I pushed that button combination I’d get infinite lives. Liar. Ah well…shall go get more coffee!

How’s your week been?

No Pain, No Gain

That’s what They say anyway. Whoever They is…

But this came up in my writing group, or rather, it has been a constant topic of conversation on and off. Y’see, one of my CPs found out a very inconvenient truth about her heroine. One she didn’t want to write. Or face.

(Side note, I told my mom this story and she laaauuughed. She thinks writers are crazy, cuz if we make the people, how can they surprise us? Or have things in their past we don’t want them to have? Well, I have no time to explain that perfectly logical bit of information to her. No. Time. But it’s logical. And we’re not crazy)

Anyway, my CP decided to embrace this element of her MS, even though it’s taken her a whole direction, and even though it’s like shoving toothpicks under her fingernails to write.

Sometimes I find that when I’ve gone the wrong direction on a MS it’s because I’m denying the essential truth of it. Sounds weird, yes, I know, but hey, bear with me and my crazy writer self for a moment. Just a moment. Take my hand, go on the magical journey. O_O

Really, I do that. Sometimes I miss the whole point of my MS trying to gloss over something that I half-realized at the beginning, but that I didn’t want to deal with.

The Inherited Bride, which I wrote *coughthreetimescough* was like that. I had the basics down from draft one. Forbidden love, yada yada. He wants her, but he can’t have her. However, in the initial drafts…he did just give in. And again, and again and again he gave in. Because it was easier. It was easier than having him fight it. Easier than facing the fact that, with his character, there would be no easy fix. Because for him, having feelings for his brother’s intended bride is a violation of all he believes in.

I had to understand that. To realize I had given my hero a core of unbreakable beliefs that would have to be broken if he was going to pursue the heroine. Yeah, yay me. And I cried writing those scenes. Those scenes where I had to break that strong man. (You all know I like it too, but honestly, at the time it’s always death!)

In the end though, the payoff was much richer. It took pain to get there, but it was better.

I had the same thing happen a few MSs later with a heroine. In my mind, I wanted to make her innocent of this pretty terrible thing she’d been accused of. And I trucked along for 100 pages covering my ears, humming, and pretending she was just the victim. But I was lying to myself. She wasn’t the victim. She wasn’t innocent.

That was another case of having to take on something tougher than I’d anticipated. But those MSs, those ones that shocked me like that, that made me deal with hard issues, or dig deeper into characters, are the ones that have truly grown me as a writer.

I’m dealing with Beast Sheikh right now, and he is…well, he’s a beast. I think there are some hard truths left to learn about him too. That’s why No Pain, No Gain has to be my motto for the next few weeks while I work on uncovering his secrets.

You should do the same! Take on the hard stuff. One of the best pieces of advice from my editor was that she would always have me take on the hard ones and do revisions, rather than just skim by with easy.

Daily Affirmations for the Insecure Writer

I think it was the lovely Barbara Wallace who, on twitter, referenced taking insecurity pills. Or yanno, chocolate eating. Yeah, that’s about right for some of us. And it doesn’t even take a major setback to throw a lot of writers/creatives into a spiral of self-loathing/doubt/mass of quivering, seething nerves.

And then there are times when there are major setbacks. And they’re gut wrenching. They may not even be fair. You see other people around you get farther, faster, and you start to wonder what’s wrong with you. Well, maybe nothing. The other people may have just had that magic timing/editor/MS combination. I truly think that was my trick. My MS needed a lot of work, but I happened to get an ed who was willing to put the work in. A lot of times, that doesn’t happen.

And you know, sometimes it is you, but that doesn’t mean you’re horrible, it just means you need to keep working. It doesn’t mean you need to curl up in the fetal position and wail. (I say this, but my fetal position is always at the ready)

But it’s hard to get anywhere when you’re curled up on the floor, so, for that reason, I have come up with Daily Affirmations for the Insecure Writer (egotists need read no further).

1. My MS did not morph into a soul-destroying demon of suck between my inbox and my editor’s. (it’s the same MS, trust me.)

2. It’s okay to be wrong. (really, it’s okay to need revisions, to get rejections. It SUCKS, but it’s okay. It’s part of learning and growing and what it does not mean is number 3)

3. I am not a failure just because I got a rejection. (You aren’t. It’s part of the process, more for some than others. But if does NOT mean you’ve failed.)

4. I can trust myself and my unique point of view.

5. Most stories have been told before, but they haven’t been told by me. (this relates to number four. And also means you don’t have to panic just because x bestselling author just released something similar to your brilliant idea)

6. Some people will like me, some people won’t. But hey, I don’t like Matthew McConaughey and he’s still a millionaire. (published and unpublished, this is true. Some readers will like you, some won’t. Some editors will like you, some won’t.)

7. There will be more books. (Only you can stop you from trying again. Don’t hang it all on one book…or ten books. Keep going. Keep trying.)

8. I’m good enough, I’m smart enough, and gosh darnit, people like me. (yeah, I went there)

9. Doubt Crows aren’t allowed to win this game. (They can hover all they freaking want, but the game will go to me. I will be the champion. I will not be defeated by a bunch of imaginary spectral BIRDS)

10. Just because it’s hard, doesn’t mean it’s wrong. (whether you’re unpublished or multi-published, it being hard doesn’t mean it’s not right for you. Anything worth having is worth striving for.)

And those are my Daily Affirmations. You can add your own in the comments if you want! Go on, affirm me. You know you want to. O_O

Alpha Smart

(this is about heroes, not the word processors…see what I did there? huh?)

I was thinking about alpha heroes again. And what I was thinking was what a broad thing that really is. Presents get a rep for being one note, or for having heroes that are all a certain way, but that’s not true. Yes, they are billionaires, powerful men, but that’s part of the promise of the line.

They are also all alpha males, but that can be expressed in so many different ways. Just looking at a couple of my heroes (I always feel weird using me as an example because…dear heaven I’m not The Authority or anything…I’m just musing.) you can see the different ways that alpha is expressed by different men.

My hero Maximo from An Accidental Birthright/Mistake, A Prince and A Pregnancy believes in doing what’s right. What he thinks is right at least. And he works at persuading the heroine that getting married is the right thing for them. And while he’s dogged in his attempts to convince her, he’s not forceful. He appeals to her logic, because in his mind, he’s right and that’s all it will take. (Because can’t any intelligent person see that he’s right??)

Then I have Adham al bin Sudar (pictured…heh). Now, he’s a sheikh and he’s driven 100% by honor. And if he has to pick the heroine, Isabella, up and carry her out of the hotel to bring her to her destination safely, he’ll do it. Because he will fulfill his duty no matter what. Adham has the dangerous edge, he’s the action man. He takes his honor, his destiny, very seriously.

And there’s Gage…Gage Forrester. American, Californian businessman with a protective streak that basically dominates his life. He raised his much younger sister and that gives him a kind of paternal set of priorities. He’ll do anything to protect her. He’s also laid back but driven, funny and giving, but demanding when it comes to business. He plays hard and works hard and, has (according to him) locked his little black book in a safe so no one can find it and use it for evil.

They are three very different men who have that leadership quality, that drive for ultimate success, at their core, and yet they express it differently. Because it’s NOT as simple as plugging the Alpha Male characteristics in your Alpha Smart Hero Creator (Partly because that’s not what an alphasmart is, but it’s what it sounds like it is to me). Because your hero still has to be a man. A real man, with his own background and thoughts and even fears. Reasons for what he will and won’t do, and a reason why he chooses to express himself in the way he does.

He has to be a whole person, not just a two dimensional rendering.

I’m going to recycle a quote I’ve used before, because it’s totally worth it:

The true Alpha male is not a bully or a brute. He is the guy who is first to lead the charge for a worthy cause. He is supremely equipped, physically and mentally, to fight for success in the ultra-competitive world we inhabit.

The true Alpha male embodies the best characteristics of the male of our species, namely rugged outer qualities such as muscularity, strength and power, but also inner qualities such as confidence (without conceit), courage (without recklessness), commitment and a conscience.

The true Alpha male has the combination of physical and mental toughness but also a concern for other humans as a whole.

A true Alpha male meets the ideal of contemporary masculine excellence. In other words, the true Alpha male has all the core qualities of a hero.

So that’s a little more on being Alpha Smart. 😉

Winner! I haz one!!

So, this time I actually put your names in a little virtual online fruit machine…was cool. You would have liked it. Wish you could have been there.

And the winner is…

Alexandra Fiennes!! Yaaaaayyy!!!

Alexandra, just send me your deets via the contact form and let me know what book you would like and where to send it!!

Also, I’ve had two really wonderful review for The Inherited Bride one at this link here and one here!

And another lovely one for An Accidental Birthright here!

They made me all happy inside. Check them out!

As always…I’m sure I’ll have more giveaways…so check back! Or just come visit me. Whatevah.

Giveaway!

I’m celebrating because Marriage Made on Paper is currently #8 in the weekly top ten on Mills and Boon UK…and An Accidental Birthright has been in the daily top 5 on eharlequin’s ebook site since its release and…today it’s #1!

So I’m giving away a copy of one of my books to a lucky commenter…it’s winner’s choice! So if my random winner picker (also known as Mr. Yates) picks you, you can choose which book you’d like!

His Virgin Acquisition (Marriage of convenience with a twist), An Accidental Birthright/A Mistake, A Prince and A Pregnancy (IVF mix-up means the heroine is pregnant with a prince’s baby), The Inherited Bride (Sheikhs and forbidden love) or Marriage Made on Paper! (An office romance with a little His Girl Friday/Two Weeks Notice vibe)

So comment! Tell me why you love romance…or why you love Presents…and then I will have hubby pick a winner!

Balance

In honor of my post on proactive heroine over at the Sassy Sisters’ site, I’m am going to talk about balance today. 🙂

Getting the balance right between a hero and heroine can be tricky. It’s very important to me that one character doesn’t have all the power. Even if one character has minimal power…it’s important to get the sense that they somehow need something from each other.

I talked a little bit about how I had to revise the heroine for Presents #7 a bit, because she just wasn’t standing up against a hero who ended up being much more full on than the heroes I typically write. But this was an angry man with revenge on his mind. And rightfully so. But it made him a force on the page and initially, the heroine was out of balance with him. She was too timid. My editor pointed out that she looked down a lot. (cue much chagrin on my part)

It wasn’t a matter of changing the hero so that he was less intense. No, his motivations were justifiable, but he seemed more like a bully than I had intended because the heroine was giving him too much ground. She wasn’t putting him back in his place.

So she had to change. She had to get stronger. And that made the book stronger. Because they seemed suited to each other. She didn’t seem at such a disadvantage, or like he might run her over for the rest of their lives because he was so much stronger than she was.

This really makes me think that it really is more about balance than about a heroine who’s too strong, or a hero who’s too strong. It’s about building a couple who compliment each other.

That’s when people want to root for them. That’s when people can see why these people NEED to be together. When they enhance each other, make each other better. Sure, they can have conflict, they can work in opposition, but in all of that they have to grow together somehow, and be stronger for being together than they were separately.

Another reason my heroine needed to…excuse the expression…grow a pair. Because a hero like mine needed someone to push him back. To make him think.

And she became that woman. 🙂 Yay her!

Okay, So I Didn’t Get A Pony…

But I DID find out that The Vengeful Rogue is sold! So…whatever, I don’t need a pony. I don’t have to clean up after a sold book, at least not once the revisions have been done! XD Either way, it’s a great birthday present, and a nice way of of celebrating me hitting a QUARTER CENTURY!

This is the book I was talking about a few posts back in regards to subtle changes making the difference and I’m happy to report that I was right! HA! *shoots doubt crows in the face*

Those subtle changes, my heroine’s reactions, really made all the difference! So YAY!! That makes Presents #7 for me, details on title and release date will come to you as soon as they come to me! (I love this part!)

I also found out I will be a little extra busy over the coming months as I got offered a Sooper Sekrit Projekt…which I of course said yes to. This is good though because I LOVE to be busy. I find that I’m more productive in every area of my life when I have a lot going…which is great, because with three kids under five, down time is a foreign concept.

It’s funny, because I was completely tangled up in doubts this week. I was sure I hadn’t done the revisions right, sure it couldn’t have REALLY gone so smoothly…but I was wrong. See? DOUBT CROWS LIE! Just sayin’.

But now that my crows have been temporarily banished back to the nether realm from whence they came, I’m more than ready to get stuck in to my new WIP…which will be me returning to a little sheikh love. Ah yes…me and sheikhs…if you’ve followed my blog for a while you remember how it all went down the first time I tackled a sheikh. I rewrote, I angsted, I rewrote again…I fell in love with Sheikhs by the end of it. So I’m very excited for my return to the desert.

Oh yes! Don’t forget, Marriage Made on Paper is on M&B UK and An Accidental Birthright is on eharlequin! (Browsing options in the side bar there).

Hope my birthday is as good to all of you as it has been for me! *bounces away*

M&B UK and eHarlequin Release Day!

I am in the midst of another brilliant Double Release! An Accidental Birthright is now available at eharlequin and Marriage Made on Paper is available at Mills and Boon UK (I hear it’s also shipping from Book Depository).

An Accidental Birthright…

An IVF clinic mix-up means eternally single Alison Whitman is now carrying the child—no, the royal heir—of Maximo Rossi, Prince of Turan!

Maximo had given up on the hope of fatherhood a long time ago—until this surprise second chance. Now, the dynamic ruler will seize this opportunity with both hands. However, tradition is high on the prince’s agenda and he’ll never stand for an heir born out of wedlock….

Alison is about to find out that royal marriage is a command, not a choice!

And then we have…Marriage Made on Paper, part of the 2st Century Bosses series!

Pretend marriage, real wedding night! When ambitious public relations expert Lily Ford signs a contract with hot-shot property tycoon Gage Forrester, she inadvertently signs her life away!

A tough taskmaster, he wants Lily at his beck and call 24/7. Gage expects employees to go above and beyond. So, when he needs to generate some positive PR, his solution is completely unexpected – he proposes to Lily! All in the name of business, of course.

This may be a deal struck on paper, but Gage is a stickler for tradition: his bride must wear white on their wedding night!

21st Century Bosses Impossible, infuriating and utterly irresistible!

You can browse both books from the widgets in the sidebar there —->

Or just read the excerpt from An Accidental Birthright here!

You can buy Marriage Made on Paper from Mills and Boon UK, and An Accidental Birthright from eharlequin!

And to celebrate my releases today, I did a Limeterview with my twitter friend, Limecello! Come, read, be shocked, hear my thoughts on cheese and The Golden Girls. I’m giving away two copies of An Accidental Birthright…so come win! Plus, tomorrow is my birthday! *dies from excitement*

Here’s the link to the limeterview!

Doubts

I have made for you, a small film, showing you how to handle doubt crows. Enjoy.

Okay, yeah, I promise I won’t quit my day job…

Really, if only doubts were just crows and we could PHYSICALLY beat them off with a frying pan. It would be easier than dealing with the un-physical stuff. Because changing how you feel is a whole lot harder than beating off a few, disgusting birds.

I’ve had a bad few ‘doubt’ days. That kind of thing happens to me when I’m waiting and my subconscious sends me emails from my editor in my dreams that say things like: ‘this is so bad, I’ve sent it around the office for a consult to find out what we can possibly do to make sense of this hash you’ve sent us.’ Yeah. My dreams are mean.

This leads to days like this: I sit down, ready to go. I open my WIP. I hate my WIP. I open another idea up. I hate that too. I open up another file…GAH!! **headdesk**

So I think, I need to fix my WIP…and start skimming it. Then I think, it’s not the WIP. It’s just me.

So what do you do? What do I do?

Sometimes, when it’s really bad, I just walk away for a while. Because my frame of mind is so defeated I’m not going to get anything done. That happened with this WIP. I felt like it was a totally unknowable mystery. I had a fun set-up in mind that my characters were at odds with so the first few chapters were like wading through molasses since I was doing the wrong things.

I didn’t know how to fix it though, because, well, I was so sure I sucked.

So I walked away. I watched Buffy. I ate ice cream. I took a shower. I FIGURED IT OUT! And then, suddenly I didn’t suck so bad anymore because I had solved the unsolvable problem! I didn’t even cheat. Back on up Captain Kirk!!

Other days it’s best to push through. Don’t read back over your writing until you’ve done your words for the say (a lot of people swear by Alpha Smarts for this very reason…and no, it’s not a hero generator, I thought it was too.)

But no matter how bad the doubts get…you just can’t believe them. Because we can so easily be our own worst enemies, either through inflated pride of crippling self-doubt. I so wish I could remember who said this on twitter the other day because I’d love to attribute it to them. They said not to be afraid of being honest about where you’re at.

Not being convinced you’re the best thing that ever happened to the world of writing. It’s good to feel like you can improve. I know I can. And have. But also, not being so hard on yourself that you scrutinize everything you do, that you tell yourself that everything you do is rubbish.

Sadly, it’s an ongoing battle. At least it is for me. But today, I’m determined to write through the fog of doubt crows. Ya with me?

Building a Character

Sadly, it’s nothing like building something from a kit. Paint by numbers. Glue part C to part D and attach to parts A and B. Nope. It only it were that simple.

And the great thing about characters? They’re ALL different. Like people. Which means creating them is rarely the same process twice. Goooody.

Really, it’s fun to make people. It’s like…very powerful feeling. And if you’re like me…you create them them and then you stick ’em in a jar and shake it up real good and watch teh magic happen.

But characterization can be a tricky, tricky beast…and I won’t even pretend I figure it out easily every time. Sometimes, yes, characters are loud. They come roaring in. They know what they want and how they want to get it. They tell me where they came from, why they are the way they are. Yay. I love those characters.

I don’t always get them. Like…I rarely do.

There are a lot of things that go in to making a character a real person, and not just your puppet that you pull around. Your characters have to make decisions that make sense to who they are as people. It goes back to a-way back when I was working on my second book, and I had my hero coerce my heroine onto a plane. “Why would she get on the plane with him?” my editor asked…”Because I needed her to,” I said.

*headdesk*

It didn’t make sense. I was guilty of manipulating my character, making her look stupid, so advance the plot. Bad me. Because that’s going to make for a character that readers can’t connect with, because they can’t figure her out!

That doesn’t mean a character can’t change, or that who she is can’t be at odds with what she’s trying to show the world. Heck, we all go through that. Your heroine may be terrified on the inside while she takes a step into the unknown, and she may be acting brave. That’s not a contradiction. To me that’s what makes a character three dimensional.

Because having a character that is equally confident in all aspects of life may not ring true. My heroine in An Accidental Birthright, Alison, is confident in her ability as a lawyer, but she is decidedly less confident when thrust into the role of princess in a foreign country. So while I would characterize her as a confident character, it doesn’t mean she reacts to every situation with “I’ve got this. I’m confident”.

It’s the same with a hero too, even an alpha hero. The power comes in finding those moments where he isn’t confident…ideally it’s the heroine that gets him! 😉

Your characters pasts will influence them too. Their goals, their decisions, their hang-ups.

It’s also really important not to fall back on stereotypes. He’s an alpha male so that means he’ll do this…well, maybe, but what if he’s an alpha male who’s afraid he’ll fail at love again because he feels he was a bad husband to his first wife? That will change the way he acts. What he avoids.

What about a heroine who’s a twenty-four year old virgin. Great! WHY? She was exposed to her mother’s endless string of failed relationships and is afraid of losing herself to all-consuming, unhealthy passion the way her mother did. There ya go. 🙂

Those things will enrich your characters and make them people we can root for and relate too. Because trust me, when it comes to character elements, when someone asks why your character is something/did something…’because’ doesn’t work as an answer.

I’ve tried.

Happy Character building! (I am aware I have rambled a bit…many apologies…)

The Cycle Continues

It’s the writer circle of life…Write book…submit book…angst about book…get swarmed by LEGIONS of flipping doubt crows. Then the voices start talking to you. You know, the voices of the characters for your next MS.

What? Don’t tell me they don’t talk to you. They do, right? It’s not just me…RIGHT??? (it gives me Cathy caliber sweat drops, I tell you!!)

Ahem.

Truly though, some people call those voices ‘a need for medication’ I call them ‘inspiration’ and inspiration is a good thing.

Inspiration is the thing that keeps you going even when you do doubt yourself. It’s the thing that makes you press on after getting rejections. Inspiration can also be a pain because it is possible to have too much of it. And then you want to start the first page of 956 MSs and not finish any of them. And that gets you precisely nowhere because no publisher I can think of wants to buy 956 page ones. :/

So we want inspiration…yes we do. And where does it come from? Everywhere. TV shows, movies, books, songs, the news, the double rainbow you spotted outside your bedroom window (yes, that joke will die someday but NOT YET).

Part of the inspiration for my April UK release came from His Girl Friday. Not from the plot, but from the dialogue. The way the characters spoke to each other. The fast paced, never-miss-a-beat interactions and killer comebacks and quips.

The other piece of inspiration came when I saw, in my head, this woman who was perfectly coiffed and polished, with berry colored lipstick and a matching manicure and I thought…some guy really needs to come and mess with her perfectly ordered existence.

And that was the start of Gage and Lily. Small little impressions, and yet they bloomed into a full fledged book.

And as for controlling the inspiration surge? It’s a must, it really is. It’s part of that ‘discipline’ thing I talk about all the time. If you don’t like listening me talk about it…imagine Andy Whitfield in his gladiator garb telling you to behave. :}

The best piece of advice I can give is write a synopsis/outline/character sheet and put it in a file for ideas to be used later. (Some of the authors on twitter were talking about how nothing kills their love for a new idea better than having to write a synopsis for it…so it could work in that respect too! LOL)

Something I used to do, but don’t much anymore, is if I was having a total block on my main MS, I would pull up my side project and fiddle with it. That way there was no excuse for not writing during a writing time. (deadlines have made this impractical, so I tend to just slog my way through the MS I’m ‘supposed’ to be working on).

So that’s a little bit on taming inspiration…and the cycle of being a writer. It’s noisy in a writer’s head, isn’t it!?

How do you tame/get inspiration?

It’s the Little Things

That’s what it came down to in the revisions on this MS. I didn’t realize it until I was actually in it. That making my heroine more assertive was a matter of her meeting the hero’s eyes instead of looking down before she spoke to him. That a few subtle changes in her body language, and her tone, made a conversation a whole new thing.

And eventually, made the book different too.

I went through this when I was working on revisions for His Virgin Acquisition too. In my first revision letter for that book my editor pointed out that my hero wasn’t as alpha as he might be. At first I thought I would have to change…everything. But that wasn’t the case. The foundation was there, I just hadn’t executed it quite right. I found it became a matter of making him more decisive. His questions became commands, his manner more authoritative. The changes were subtle, but impacting.

This is an example of the changes I made in my last MS. This is version 1:

Lazaro watched the delicate color drain from Vanessa’s cheeks. “I don’t…I don’t know if I…”

“We have an agreement Vanessa. I intend to honor it.”

And he intended to let Michael Pickett know just how much control he was assuming of his assets. That he didn’t just have his daughter, but that he’d played the part of savior for the venerable Pickett family business.

“It seems like too much,” she said, her eyes on a blank legal pad in front of her.

“A fair exchange, I think.”

“It all seems like too much,” she said.

“Do you want to back out?”

“I don’t…”

And this is version two. A large part of the focus of my revisions was making Vanessa less passive, making her more assertive and confident.

Lazaro watched as Vanessa’s cheeks flushed with angry color. “No.”

“We have an agreement, Vanessa. I intend to honor it.”

And he intended to let Michael Pickett know just how much control he was assuming of his assets. That he didn’t just have his daughter, but that he’d played the part of savior for the venerable Pickett family business.

“I am not getting myself into that much debt. Not with you.”

“Not a loan, an exchange. A fair one, I think.”

“Hardly. I feel like you’re…buying me.” She spat out he last words as though they were something distasteful.

“Do you want to back out?”

She snapped her mouth shut, tightened her jaw. “I don’t…”

Anyway, this is the kind of changing I did throughout the entire MS. Making her less cowed by him, having her stand up to him, show some spin. (because spine looks good on a woman!)

I think it gives a different feel to the scene, and a whole different vision of Vanessa’s character.

It’s not always about the big *delete* *delete* *delete*. (though it can be!) Sometimes those little things can make a massive impact. And that means paying attention to what it says about your heroine if she meets the hero’s eyes or looks away, what it says if she takes a step toward him or a step back.

This has been a very thought provoking and important revision process for me…and I really did enjoy it. Hopefully this helps some of you out too! And hopefully, I’ve done my job and my editor likes it!

First Chapters and A Cover

The fabulous Elissa Graham has done a post on her blog The Ardent Writer about first chapters, and I am SO honored that she took the first chapter of The Inherited Bride and used it as an example for how to write a good one! http://theardentwritereg.blogspot.com/ I loved the post, so insightful and fun! I think she taught me a thing or two. 😀

And also, I had to post the very sexy cover for my May North American release, The Inherited Bride (it’s the one with the good first chapter!! Well…I like the other chapters too)

Double Releases!

(cue the double rainbow song, cuz you KNOW I love it!)

Ahem.

In just two weeks Marriage Made on Paper will release on Mills and Boon UK…and An Accidental Birthright will release on eHarlequin! Both books will be in stores by the beginning of April! And I have a couple of snippets for you, one from each book.

I’ve posted a bit of A Mistake A Prince and A Pregnancy before, but since it’s getting its new incarnation as An Accidental Birthright, it gets to go again!

“I don’t have a lot of time, Ms. Whitman.”

Anger flared through her. He didn’t have a lot of time? As if she had any spare moments just lying around. It was difficult for her to take any time off of work. Every case they handled was vitally important to the people involved. They were advocating for those who couldn’t advocate for themselves, and by taking the afternoon off to drive up here and talk to him she was leaving her clients in the lurch.

“I can assure that you my time is valuable too, Mr. Rossi,” she said stiffly. “But I need to speak with you.”

“Then speak,” he said.

“I’m pregnant,” she said, wishing, even as she said the words, that she could call them back.

A muscle in his jaw ticked. “Am I meant to offer congratulations?”

“You’re the father.”

His dark eyes hardened. “You and I both know that isn’t possible. You may not keep record of your lovers, Ms. Whitman, but I can assure you I’m not so promiscuous that I forget mine.”

Her face heated. “There are other ways to conceive a child than sexual intercourse, as you well know. When Melissa from ZoiLabs called she implied that I worked there but I’m a…I’m a client of theirs.”

He froze, his expression hardening like granite, his jaw tightening. “Let’s go into my office.”

She followed him through the large living area of the house and through a heavy oak door. His home office was massive, with high ceilings that were accented by rich, natural wood beams. One of the walls was made entirely of glass and overlooked the valley below. There was nothing as far as she could see but pristine nature. Beautiful. But the view was cold comfort in the situation.

“There was a mistake at the clinic,” she said, keeping her eyes trained on the mountains in the distance. “They weren’t going to tell me, but one of my friends works there and she felt I…that I had a right to know. I was given your donation by mistake and there was no log of your…of your genetic testing.”

An Accidental Birthright deals with honor, and two people very much trying to do the right thing when faced with an impossible situation that isn’t of their making. I was fascinated by the idea of two people who didn’t even have that basic, sexual attraction in common as a foundation, dealing with a surprise pregnancy. And with all the clinic mix-ups in the news, it was instant inspiration. I enjoyed watching Alison and Max step up the the plate to deal with a hard situation, and finding love in the process.

And this is the beginning of Marriage Made on Paper. I had so much fun writing this one. Lily and Gage wrote their conversations for me. They both had a lot to say…and they both have some very strong opinions. Watching them spark off of each other was a an extremely rewarding writing experience.

Lily Ford wasn’t thrilled to see Gage Forrester standing in her office, leaning over her desk, his large masculine hands clasping the edge, his scent teasing her, making her heart beat at an accelerated pace. She wasn’t thrilled to see Gage, the man who had turned her down, but her body seemed to be on a different wavelength.

“I heard that Jeff Campbell hired your company,” he said, leaning in a little more, his shoulder muscles rolling forward. He certainly didn’t spend all of his time behind a desk in a corporate office. A physique like that didn’t happen on accident. She knew that from personal experience.

It took her four evenings a week in the gym to combat the effects of her mostly sedentary job. But it was important. Image counted for a lot, and it was her job to keep the images of her clients sparkling clean in the public eye. She felt that if her own image wasn’t up to par she would lose her credibility.

“You heard correctly,” she said, leaning back in her chair, trying to put some distance between them. Trying to feel like she had some measure of control. It was her office, darn it. He had no call coming in here and trying to assume authority.

But then, men like Gage operated that way. They came, they saw, they conquered the female.

Not this female.

“So, are you here to offer me congratulations?” she asked sweetly.

“No, I’m here to offer you a contract.”

That successfully shocked her into silence, which was a rare thing. “You rejected my offer to represent your company, Mr. Forrester.”

“And now I’m extending you an offer.”

She pursed her lips. “Does this have anything to do with the fact that Jeff Campbell is your biggest competitor?”

“I don’t consider him a competitor.” Gage smiled, but in his eyes she could see the glint of steel, the hardness that made him a legend in his industry. You didn’t reach greatness by being soft. She knew it, she respected it. But she didn’t necessarily care for Gage, or his business practices. Generally speaking, she thought what he was somewhat morally bankrupt. But an account with Forrestation Inc. would be a huge boon for her company. The biggest account she’d ever had.

“Like it or not, he is your competitor. And he’s quite good at what he does. He doesn’t leave half the mess for me to clean up that you would.”

“Which is why he isn’t really my competition. He’s too politically correct, too concerned with his public image.”

“It wouldn’t hurt you to be more concerned with it. The endless stream of actresses and supermodels on your arm don’t exactly give off an aura of stability. Plus you’ve had a series of very unpopular builds lately.”

“Is this a free consultation?”

“No. I’m charging you by the half hour.”

“If I remember correctly your services aren’t cheap.”

“They aren’t. If you want cheap, you have to suffer incompetence.”

I enjoyed the dynamic of Gage of Lily in Marriage Made on Paper. Because Lily is Gage’s PR specialist, and that means she’s hired to tell him what to do in a sense. She has an area of expertise he does not, and he has to defer to her. So even though he’s her boss, she has quite a lot of power in the relationship. The two of them have a lot of mutual respect for each other, and eventually, even kind of a friendship. Of course…those darn romantic sparks get in the way. And Lily doesn’t like to give up control…and that seems like a challenge to Gage…

So there you have it! An intro to my next releases! 🙂

AN ACCIDENTAL BIRTHRIGHT releases in North America in April (on eharlequin in March) and MARRIAGE MADE ON PAPER will be on the shelves in the UK in April and on Mills and Boon UK in March!

Free To Be Me

The Vengeful Rogue got all Vengeful on me. I got revisions today! What does that have to do with being me? More on that in a moment. I have to ramble first.

These revisions were slightly different to the norm. And by that I meant it didn’t center around my characters being jerked around by the plot. In fact, the elements of the plot are good. Actually, so is the conflict. Actually, everything I have is fine.

So what’s the problem?

Layers. It’s all there, but I haven’t gone deep enough into it.

The heroine for example. She’s not a simple woman. She’s a CEO. She majored in business. She’s a daughter. She’s doing what she’s supposed to do, what her father needs her to do. She’s keeping the family business, the family tradition, alive. She’s failing at her job. She doesn’t want to do it. She’s an artist. She’s confident in some things, insecure in others.

In short, she’s complicated. Anyone surprised I haven’t managed to get her perfect? 🙂

But it’s all about showing things in layers. Not just throwing it all out there and down on the page. But slowly peeling back the exterior layers to get down to the real woman, not just to the things she does, but who she is.

And what about being me?

That’s another big thing. They want me to focus on making it more unique. On making it more ME.

This is cool, because I was talking to very cool twitter buddy Jen Lazaris about this very thing the other day, and now, I need to take my own advice! It’s not about copying or imitating what you see other people doing in a line. Yes, it has to fit the requirements, but if your voice has humor, use humor.

My characters tend to have a bit of quirk, and I really like to use humor. I also like to pair it with dark conflict. And I’m sure there’s a host of things I do that I don’t even realize I do! (Again, on twitter, I saw Angela James mention your voice being like a regional accent…you don’t hear your own the same way other people do.)

With this particular MS, I played it a little bit safe. I didn’t step outside the theme I had chosen for the book. I didn’t really make it my own.

So that’s what I’m going to focus on. Peeling back layers, sprinkling in a little Maisey. Bake at 425. 🙂

I’m very, very excited about these revisions. Hopefully they won’t need to rein me back in. 😛

Help Haven Win!

As some of you know, my dearest hubby Haven is a musician. He’s entered the Blue Microphone song writing competition and the voting starts today! The winner gets a trip to LA and a day in the studio to record their song!

Haven has been doing music since waaay before he met me, and he’s truly put everything on the backburner so that I could accomplish my dream of becoming a writer. He works, he cooks, he cleans, and he’s sacrificed so much for me.

So if you could cast a vote for him and help me give back a fraction of what he’s given to me, I would be so grateful!

You can vote here: http://www.indabamusic.com/submissions/show/44846 !

It asks for your email but if you uncheck the thingy, they won’t send you anything. 🙂 It’s to keep people from voting more than once, a la New Voices and the like. (It does ask you to confirm your vote via your email, I just realized)

Thank you!

The Post of Many Pics

I have had a very big day!!

First off, I got my Mills and Boon Leander Rowing Calendar in the mail…and no, I didn’t buy it just for the half-nekkid men.

I bought it because my book A Mistake, A Prince and A Pregnancy (NA April title An Accidental Birthright) is featured in one of the pics! Oh, and you know I have to show a close up too…

And in addition to that bit of loveliness, The Inherited Bride is releasing in the UK (officially) tomorrow and it’s available NOW on Mills and Boon AUS!!

So now I can post the cover I have been DYING to post. Adham and Isabella, on a Mills and Boon Sexy. 🙂

*sigh* I love that cover. It’s really fun to have different versions of the same book.

And lastly, but certainly not leastly, we were having a little fun on twitter with the stereotype of romance writer looks and so I *had* to take this pic. Yes, I look like this all the time. Okay, no, but it’s a great thought.

In truth my husband reminded me (nicely) that it is nice when people don’t spend the whole day in their PJs. :p

Writer vs Email

In honor of the STYCW waits…waits in general…and the fact that I have a full in with my editor.

Releases and Covers and Frenchman! Oh My!

So February is the official month for my dearly loved sheikh book, The Inherited Bride. It’s actually already on some shelves in the UK, so I hear…it will be on Mills and Boon Aus February 1st as well! (and on February 1st…I will reveal the very Sexy cover…)

I love Adham and Isabella tons and tons, and I hope you all do too. 😉

And speaking of covers, my April UK release Marriage Made on Paper has one! And it’s GORGEOUS! I have been so very, very happy with my covers to date. Seriously they’ve been amazing.

Lily is the heroine, a public relations guru and consultant to Gage Forrester, AKA The Land Stud. Image is everything to Lily and she’s always done up nicely. Perfect makeup, manicure and clothes. Of course, that is, until Gage sweeps her off her stilettos and ruffles her feathers. 🙂

Lastly, not that the Vengeful Rogue is in, and while I wait for revisions…it’s time for me to start The Frenchman, part deux!

Blaise’s brother Luc will be getting his own book and I’m very excited since in The Highest Price to Pay we find out his younger brother did a Very Bad Thing to him and poor Luc has been suffering with a bit of a broken heart…I thought he needed an HEA and my editor agreed!

So for those of you who missed me shaking my fist at The Frenchman…I’ll be doing it again! XD

At least until I get schmacked in the face with revisions the The Vengeful Rogue (this is HIS title, BTW, not the book title. :p)

All right…Roll On Frenchman inspiration!

I Can Haz Cookies?

The End. Typed it last night, and tonight I did a final pass through and tightened up some scenes, added some words, tweaked some sketchy motivation and in just a little bit I will be passing The Vengeful Rogue on to my editor!

I’m nervous, but I’ve come to realize this is par for the course. There was only one MS I wasn’t nail-bitingly scared to send in, and that was because I’d had a personal trauma that day that made anything writing related seem silly to worry about. And since I don’t WANT trauma all the time to help me get my priorities straight, I’ll keep the angst, thankssomuch.

Now, not even in my wildest fantasies do I think this is perfect. Well, okay, in my *wildest* fantasies it’s perfect. And I have a pony and there’s a FULL ON double rainbow. All the way across the sky*.

In my deepest, darkest nightmares it’s the book that ruins my career and I end up living in a cardboard box begging for editorial feedback.

Neither scenario is likely, however, and that’s fifty percent reassuring. (I really would like that double rainbow)

Sad to report, submitting is pretty much always scary. It’s easier on this end of things on the one hand, because I have the assurance of editorial feedback. Which is also sort of a frightening thing, because sometimes that feedback isn’t the best thing for one’s ego, but it is something one needs to hear.

So while I get ready to send, and get ready for another revision letter, I’m gonna share some quick truths I’ve learned about submission and revision.

1. It’s always better in the end. That’s been my honest to goodness experience, that no matter how much I *hearted* the original version of a MS, no matter how much I resisted the changes, it was better for the revision/rewrite, and not only would I never go back to an original version, I’ve never even been tempted to go back and reread one.

2. Worrying doesn’t make your editor read faster. (neither does eating lots of cookies)

3. At some point you have to let go and write. This is a big one. I read my revision letters a few times, I think it over, I let it settle. I make notes. At some point, I stop looking at the revision letter. Because I can’t keep turning it over, I can’t keep referring back to it every other page. I also can’t stack every revision letter on top of the other and worry about everything I’ve done wrong EVER.

Now, I learn from each revision letter, so I’m not saying I discount them. I’m just saying, I can’t second guess everything I do or the book will NEVER get done. Not only that, I think the insecurity translates onto the page.

4. Go big. I approached my rewrite of His Virgin Acquisition with this in mind: More seduction, more emotion, more glamour. And if I go over the top, great, but I’d rather they know I can go too far, than wonder if I can go far enough.

For the record, they’ve never told me I’ve gone too OTT. 😉

So that’s what I’ve learned. And in the meantime, I’ll try to practice what I preach and NOT angst TOO much and begin work on Presents #8.

Got anything you’ve learned ready to share?

*so intense

Oooh…That’s Not Sexy

I know the very funny Flo Nicholl has been doing a series of great posts on M&B UK about writing, and one of the topics she hit on was…love scenes. And now I’m going to talk love scenes.

So, hide yo kids and hide yo husbands.

Love scenes if present, should be a big part of the book. At least that’s my opinion. And by that I don’t mean they should take up a lot of pages, but that they need to mean something. They need to push the relationship forward, push it backward, reveal things about character, about conflict. It should be anything but just there to be there because it’s page one hundred and it’s about time these two crazy kids got it on.

Every scene in a book needs to accomplish something, and a love scene is no different. In an upcoming release I have a heroine with bad physical scars and the way she makes love to the hero, the fact that she does at all, says something about her character, about how she feels about him. And the way he responds to her and her physical imperfections says something about him, and what she means to him.

That’s kind of an obvious, no fair one because there was a physical manifestation of conflict dealt with partly in a physical way.

But really, it is easy to write a love scene that’s similar to what you’ve read in the line/genre you’re aiming for (guilty!) without really thinking of what YOUR characters would really be doing in that bedroom. Or beach. Or dining room. Whatever.

Does your heroine want the lights off? Or on? Why? What position? (and you might laugh, or alternately cringe, but for me that can say a lot about the scene too…if you have a power struggle, or a hero intent on distancing himself then you might find ways to convey that by…switching things up. 😉 )

Now we get to the part that inspired the title. *takes deep breath* Sometimes more description…not better. Sometimes very much worse. And this is my opinion, again, other people have different preferences, but I think there’s a point where something becomes over described (and I don’t write real gauzy love scenes, mine are pretty well…there…) and byoverdescribed mean…the hero’s armpit hair or something…(I’ve seen this). Or several paragraphs devoted to capturing each and every detail of a certain member of his body. My mind can fill in the blanks, thanks. 😉

Because when it gets like that, it all becomes very tab A into slot B, and as I mentioned at the top…it really needs to be about more than that.

(Erotica, I’ll grant, has a different set of rules. I think the over share applies there too though.)

So those are some of my thoughts. Have any of your own?

And…look what I got in the mail today! I don’t have a pic on my computer so I actually took a pic of the book. 🙂 It’s the North American cover for The Inherited Bride coming to the US in May 2011 as Presents Extra! (this cover? Totally sexy. OMgsh)

Whoa-oh We’re Halfway There…

I’ve reached the halfway point with The Vengeful Rogue! (haven’t talked about him much over here, I know)

This has been a different MS for me for a few reasons, one being that the hero and heroine has a past. It’s been really interesting, especially as the hero has completely changed his life in the years since knowing the heroine. She knew him then, and she knows him now, which gives her a lot of insight into the man beneath the protective layers.

As for the heroine, she has, as one of my CPs pointed out, a talent for saying the wrong thing at the wrong time. She’s also unhappy with the path she’s taken in life, but feels like she’s way too far down the path to turn back now.

That’s been sort of tricky to write. Usually, my heroines know who they are and what they want. But she doesn’t. She’s just going along because she started something and feels compelled to finish it. She doesn’t want to let anyone down, and she feels like quitting at this point would be letting herself down.

For both of them, this MS is kind of a journey of discovery, and that’s also been fun. The Vengeful Rogue thinks he knows what he wants, and he thinks he knows how to get it. My heroine doesn’t know what she wants, and she’s always turned away from finding out since it seems pointless to her in some ways.

This is where I come in and force them to change their perception, on life, on what they want, on what success really means. And you KNOW I love that. 🙂

You also know I love, love love a tortured hero and I just finished reading Zoe and the Tormented Tycoon last night by Kate Hewitt. I love Kate’s books. They’re so wonderfully emotional and this one was no exception. Talk about your deep conflict. I really loved her bad girl heroine with a party girl past and her hero, forced to face a life of unknowns because of a genetic condition that’s stealing his sight. It really was a wonderful combination of characters, so great to watch them grow together. *sigh* I highly recommend!

What are you reading right now? I’m taking recs until my RITA books get here and I’m knee deep in judging. 😉

Writer’s Cycle of Confidence

Confidence is a funny thing. Some people have too much, some people have too little…it’s a rare thing for a person to have just the right amount. I know my amount fluctuates wildly and randomly, and not so randomly. So I have created an illustrated* guide to the Writer’s Cycle of Confidence.

It can all begin with feedback. Word back from a CP. A revisions letter. A rejection letter. A bad review. It can take a peaked level of confidence down to zero.

Then the crows start to descend. Ugly ones. Big ugly crows that have the blood of vanquished writers dripping from their evil hooked beaks!! You can’t do it, the crow whispers. Your writing is full of suck and you suck and basically you live in opposite land where everything you thought was awesome is actually sucky!! (my crows are mean…MEAN!!)

But then you sit down at the computer, and you tentatively type a few words, even though the DOUBT CROW is looming behind you looking all spectral and ebil and watching you with his hollow, creativity devouring eyes!!

Somehow though, you power through, and you write something. And you realize, hey…I’m not so bad! You’ve tortured your hero, you’ve had a breakthrough on conflict…you didn’t give up even though you were beset by doubts and CROWS.

And you have to celebrate the victory because, inevitably, trust me, the evil tricksy crows will return. 😉 It’s a cycle, and kind of a vicious one. Some days I feel great about what I’m doing, other days each word is a struggle because I’m afraid that I’m not even a fraction as good as I’ve started believing I am.

But it’s not about never having doubts, it’s about what you do with them. Or to them. I have a baseball bat, evil crows, and I’m not afraid to use it.

*I use the term ‘illustrated’ in its loosest sense

Planning Ahead…

I actually did that. I actually planned ahead. While I’m waiting to hear my editor’s take on the new proposal I’ve sent her, I cobbled together some synopses. Now, I hate to write synopses…at least…I thought I did. But I survived all this, and quite nicely!

In fact, having ideas down, concrete like that, feels really good. Usually, I reach the end of a book with very little clue of what I’m going to do next and I just sort of hope that another idea is going to drop out of the sky. But that’s not what I did this time.

I have four books mapped out for this contract. The ideas might change. I might change my mind, my editor might end up not liking them, etc, but the ideas are there and there’s a little bit of nice security in that! There’s also some nice security in knowing it isn’t all set in stone. That’s the pantser in me, afraid TOO much planning might make it hard for me to allow the story to develop as it needs to while I’m working on it.

But it’s a really great feeling to know ideas are in there and I can pull them out. They need more developing for certain, but so much of it is there, and it gives me a very nice feeling. It’s out of the box for me, but I think it’s good to think in new ways. It helps us grow. 🙂 And I know I can always use some growing, as a writer and a person.

New Year, new things, how is it going for all of you so far?

Some News and the Things I Don’t Know

First off, very happy as I spoke with my editor this morning and we got the particulars of the new contract all ready to go. Four books again, and I’m basically all scheduled out for the next twelve months which is a very secure feeling! (New contract is so sparkalay!!!)

I have a partial in with her now, and I’ll spend the wait time working on some proposals. I’m really excited about the 2nd book we discussed…well, I’m excited about the first one too. And the other two, even though the ideas are vague. Oh, I just find it all exciting. Lots of fabulous, passionate, glamorous ideas are swirling around in my head. I can’t think of anything better than writing about two people overcoming their issues and finding love with each other. *swoons*

To write what you love is such a wonderful thing. And that’s what I get to do. I’m always excited about the next book, the next idea, and of course, the finished product. The thing that comes from all that cookie-eating-angst-ridden-revision work. In short: Love this job. Everything about it.

The WIP I’m starting on is my 7th Presents and I still feel…new. Unsure. I was totally plagued by doubt crows before sending off this partial, maybe because it needs work, maybe just because it was my first submission to my new editor, and it felt like a first date*.

I learn so much with each book I write, and that throws all I don’t know into sharp relief. It’s okay though. It’s a very exciting thing, knowing you have so much learning ahead. At least it is for me.

So much of the advice I give here is advice I’m giving myself. Things I need to take to heart and remember. And a lot of it is simply MY take on things. I’m not the authority by any means, all I can do is talk about what has and hasn’t worked for me. But if it helps anyone at all, I’m always so pleased.

It’s so nice to have some people on board to share my journey with me. 🙂

I’m hoping to have some new cover art this week (yay!) and I’m really excited to say that The Inherited Bride is the #5 bestseller of the week on Mills and Boon UK! (Yay again!)

*sudden subject change* Also, I have a question! (yes, I may be thinking of using this in a book..so don’t answer if it’s your idea and you don’t want me to steal it! LOL) What are some of your favorite locations in books? Or, what are some of your favorite locations that are underused? (I like an unusual setting. My UK April is partly set in Thailand and my UK August is partly set in Malawi)

Thanks!

Maisey

*Only one chance to make a first impression…guess what I did when I subbed to my editor? I sent her the WRONG PARTIAL. EEEEK! It was fixed quickly thought but…egh. *scurries away*

The Hardest Working Man in Show Business

Well…maybe not show business. And I don’t mean James Brown. I’m talking about Mr. Yates.

You might have noticed, I redecorated the website. Well, I is an overstatement. I found a theme I could modify and them set out to do what I envisioned…and asked for help about nine million times. And he gave it, happily, sweetly, and without making me feel like I was lacking because I’m not fluent in HTML.

Without him, I wouldn’t have a website. Sure, WordPress is easy to use, but I wouldn’t have known about wordpress if not for him.

And it’s not just the website, without him I wouldn’t write books. It’s his help, his love, and his support that helps me get things done. He cooks, he cleans, he changes diapers. It’s not a ‘this is my job, this is your job’ thing, we have a partnership, one that means so very, very much to me.

For the first two weeks of December, he was pretty much the housekeeper. I rewrote The Highest Price to Pay in the beginning half of the month, and I was basically crazed. But he handled it all with grace and understanding, and he *mostly* didn’t laugh at me for hanging out in thermals and muk luks for fifteen days, and for talking about The Frenchman like he was a real live person I was gonna beat the snot out of.

It’s always been that way between us. He’s always understood me, and my eccentricities and I’ve always understood his. (he’s a musician, you can check out his stuff here!) We met while working together at a coffee house. He was older, handsome, and in love with someone else. I and every other high school girl in the vicinity harbored ridiculous crushes on him, but he still treated us all like we weren’t giggling idiots. I got to know him, became his very close friend. He got promoted and became my boss. (we’ve got two GREAT romance themes here.)

I was there when he got his heart broken, and I saw the way he dealt with it, and I remember thinking, I want a man like that. A man who treats even the person who hurt him like that with so much kindness and respect.

And then, with that other girl out of the way (bwahaha) our friendship turned into love. 🙂 It was such a natural thing, and when I married him, I truly married my best friend.

Sometimes it’s easy to think that things just *work* and I don’t stop and appreciate everything he does to ensure that things work. To ensure things get done. The man gets up at night with the baby. He’s a true gem.

He’s my other half, he’s my sanity and my support. He’s the love of my life.

So thank you, Mr. Yates. You’re the best. I love you.

What The Beast Taught Me About Alpha Heroes

I realize this is intensely random, but bear with me. I got the Disney version of Beauty and the Beast on Blu Ray for Christmas. With apologies to Sassy Sister Jane, it is my absolute favorite version of the story, and one of my favorite Disney movies evah.

I had a little epiphany while watching it on Christmas though, and I figured I would share it with you.

The Beast is an alpha male. Oh yeah and like whoa. He’s in charge, the ruler of his castle. And he has his moments where, in order to protect himself, his secrets, he lashes out at Belle. He can be downright scary. I think I was seven when the movie hit theaters and I’ll never forget being scared out of my mind when Belle went into the West Wing and he came in shouting “Get out!” and turning over tables and stuff. Yikes. Scared me senseless.

He can be cold. Mean. Ruthless. The meanest bastard this side of Gaston. His sense of justice uncompromising as he takes Belle prisoner in place of her father.

He’s closed off to love, his feelings hidden by his intense aggression.

But…there’s more to him than that. Sure, he can come in all strong and even scary, but under that is where the true man is. One who has been wounded by his own youthful stupidity. One who is afraid to take a chance on love, because he feels unworthy of the woman he’s fallen for.

He’s awkward when asking her to dinner. He gives her a library because he knows she loves books. He saves her from wolves, for heaven’s sake.

Point being, he’s not one-note. When you have an alpha hero who comes across very…well…intense, I guess, it’s important for there to be balance. For there to be cracks in his armor so that the reader can get a sense for his humanity, so that the reader can see him falling for the heroine…and why she would fall for him.

I thought Caitlin Crews did a brilliant job of that with Luc in Pure Princess, Bartered Bride. He was a very intense and hardened type of hero, and yet there’s this moment where he gives the heroine a ring, and he’s nervous to do it…wondering what her reaction will be. It was one of the most romantic moments I’ve ever read, and the power that it possessed was because in all other areas he was a supremely confident, even arrogant man. But the heroine broke through. The heroine reached beneath it, and the reader got to see it.

Alpha does not=bastard. And if you are dealing with a hero who has his moments of…well…you know…then it’s nice to see a balance so that he can be human. He lends more weight to his strength if he has some weakness. It adds more to his character if the supremely confident businessman is undone by his heroine. And not just in the last five pages. It’s the ebb and flow of the story, bringing them closer, undermining it, bringing them a little bit closer, pulling them apart. Making him vulnerable, bringing his walls back up, then demolishing them completely.

But, IMO, showing the readers what’s underneath that facade of absolute strength and power, is the thing that will keep them hooked. It’s the thing that will allow them to fall in love with the hero, and want the heroine to love him too.

More Things I’ve Learned

Every time I write a book, I learn something new. Each MS, each version of each MS, and each revision letter that comes with it, teaches me something huge. Or several somethings huge.

As most of you know, I had to rewrite The Frenchman. Well, I consider it a rewrite because…well, I had to write a whole new 50K words, but my editor said it’s not really a rewrite because the characters were there, the conflict was there…but I hadn’t executed it properly.

I had saved some big secrets until the end, and ultimately the thing that was making my MS interesting was what the secrets were. However, I was cheating the reader out of real character development by doing that. I didn’t see it that way at the time, of course, but having gone through and done it with those revelations up front, part of the characters from page one, I see it now.

What happened was, we weren’t getting to the crux of the conflict until the end of the book. And that was wrong. I do think that in this case, it took me a rewrite to get me to understand what the MS was truly about, what the conflicts really were. I had to get a draft down to I could peel back everything that was unnecessary and get down to the heart of the MS, to take it back down to the characters and their conflicts.

I have a little list of things I’ve learned over the past year. These are things that are helpful for me, and I hope will be helpful for you.

1. Keep it character driven. Don’t let the plot do the driving, put your characters in charge. Say you want your heroine to get on a plane with the hero, but she’s not the kind of girl to go off with a man she doesn’t know…so you have her do it anyway, that’s putting the plot in charge. She’s violating who she is to follow a road map you the author has laid out, that doesn’t necessarily ring true for the person you’ve created.

2. Keep impact in mind. When you do have a revelation for a character to make, or similar, make sure it’s revealed to the reader in a way that has the most impact. Is it more impacting to have the character make the revelation to the reader in her own thoughts, or is it better for us to find out the extent of the heroine’s issues along with the hero?

3. What is it really about? Is it about learning to trust? The power of love? Redemption? This is the issue I run into a lot of times: What story am I really trying to tell? What are the core themes? And with a more complicated book, I’ve had to rewrite them to discover what the core truth of the story really is. If I can figure this out BEFORE writing the whole MS it saves me a lot of grief, because it helps me keep my focus, and that helps the story maintain its focus!

4. Where to your characters begin, and where will they end? What do you need your characters to learn over the course of the MS? They need to have an arc. They need to have an internal conflict that is sorted out over the course of the story. This means learning, growing, changing. If your hero is a reclusive tycoon closed off to love, he needs to go on a journey to open up his heart, and ideally, it will be the heroine who helps him, and even more ideally, the journey she takes him on will also advance HER journey.

So say we have Reclusive Tycoon who is closed off to love, and the heroine is afraid of sharing herself with anyone for fear of being rejected. But she has to give of herself to draw him out, and then both of them find themselves opening up to each other. But then one of them, say the hero, can’t handle it and he pulls back, but the heroine stands firm, revealing her love, her heart, despite her fear of rejection. Because she isn’t afraid anymore.

Anyway, maybe something better than that but that’s my example to sort of illustrate what I’m talking about.

5. I would never go back to the original version of an MS. The revised versions, the rewritten versions, are always stronger than the original. Always. And no matter how perfect I think what I’ve done is, revisions, or even a rewrite, have always made it better. Doesn’t mean a revision letter doesn’t hurt, but I know why I need to do them, and I can even be excited for the chance to make my MS the best I can make it.

So that’s what I’ve learned. Some of it. 🙂 Have you learned anything brilliant this year? Share it with me. I always want to learn!

Oh, and Merry Christmas! 😀

The Highest Price to Pay

Catchy…no? 😉 Sounds like it could be a title…Oh yes, it is!!

I’m very happy today since I’ve heard back from my editor about The Frenchman and the news is good, good good! She loved the revisions and the unique location and said it was a deeply emotional story (yay!). It has been titled The Highest Price to Pay and will be released in the UK in…August. Eep! That gives me TWO August releases in the UK. That’s the like the double rainbow* of book releases.

It’s always such a relief to have that approval. This book became so personal to me, and I’m so, SO, honored that M&B jumped on board with me for this one.

On a related note, this was my last book with my most beloved editor until 2012. I was able to ‘meet’ my new editor on the phone this morning, and she’s absolutely wonderful. I have every confidence that we’ll get along great together and that we’ll have fun working through my next contract together. 🙂 Oh yes, and I’m on contract again! Already! Yay!

This was the source of my cookie binge a while back, because I will miss Jenny tons. But knowing I have another ed that is so sweet and is more than willing to write me those six page revision letters I love so much makes me feel much better. 😉

So it will be a very Merry Christmas for me! All is right in the writing world, and I have a new idea itching to get out already.

But I have to give big thanks to Jenny for making my first six books all that they could be. It has been a wonderful year. I’m confident that this next year will be just as wonderful.

YAY THE FRENCHMAN!

*

**(and this is the double rainbow song)

Christmas Vids!

I love Christmas. 🙂 I do. I love it all!

Wanted to share my very favorite new Christmas song by a band I’ve long loved, Relient K.

I thought this sounded silly, but I finally watched it and I really loved it.

Merry Christmas!

Borrowing Trouble

I was thinking about this today though, not really because of my own deep thoughts, but because it was the topic in church this morning. How we as people tend to cling to the bad things, legitimate bad things, such as health and family issues, which, let’s face it, is only natural. But then there are the bad things that haven’t happened yet, or won’t happen at all.

My pastor and his wife are adopting a little girl from Uganda, and their headed there in January. In order to prepare to go, they had to get roughly a million immunizations to prepare for the trip. He was saying how the worst part of getting a shot is the fifteen minutes before hand, or maybe right when they brush your arm with the cotton. But the actual shot is never as bad as all that anticipation.

Well, it struck home to me since I have been a nervous, cookie-eating wreck this week, as you all may remember. And then, after turning in The Frenchman, what did I do? Worry more. And eat more.

She’ll hate it. It’s horrible. It’s awful. Waaaaah!

Well, she emailed me Friday, and she’s halfway done and she said, “STOP EATING COOKIES!” (she didn’t say that, but she did say she liked what she’d read so far. The word Fabulous may have been used.) Point being, I was literally broken out in hives over…nothing. And even if it were something…what’s the point? No matter the outcome, I’ll have caused myself more grief by worrying, even if the outcome is bad. Same as building up a tiny little shot into a huge, fat deal.

What will be will be. Que sera sera and all that. It’s human nature though, I think, to focus on the bad, or even create it when it isn’t there. I know I do.

It’s funny (here comes another song reference) I was getting ready to send the Frenchman on Wednesday and as I was obsessing, praying, trying to figure out what more I could or couldn’t do to the book, the song Let It Be by the Beatles popped into my head. Why not? 🙂 So I let it be, and I hit send.

Not to say I didn’t obsess again immediately after. But there are so many good things in life, in MY life, and yet sometimes I insist on clinging to bad things, made up or real, rather than seeing and rejoicing in the good. Or just letting it be.

That’s my encouraging word to all of you, and to me. 🙂 Let’s try not to allow extra worry make things more traumatic than they need to be. There is simply too much good in life. It’s a shame to waste time focusing on the bad. Especially the bad that may never happen!

Counting my blessings now, and trying to let go of my worries. 🙂

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all of you!

Excerpt!

You can check out the beginning of The Inherited Bride at Amazon UK !

This makes me all kinds of excited! *eyes cookies* no…I promise not to eat more cookies. *sneaks some into pockets* *whistles*

The Inherited Bride

I have to send out a big thanks to Caro for sending me over the cover blurb for The Inherited Bride! (February UK, May US!) And I’m very excited to get to share it with you!

Princess Isabella was certain of three things…

And, having kissed the stranger once, she was never going to be the same
again…

And a little bit from the inside flap on the cover:

“You don’t think I feel anything, Isabella?” Adham’s voice was soft, as
tightly reined in as the rest of him. He drew his finger over the line
of her jaw, his dark eyes intent on hers, and then she felt the first
crack in his facade. A slight tremor in his hand, unveiled fear in his
eyes.

“I feel. Things I have no business feeling. I want things that are not
mine to covet.”

The Inherited Bride will be available from Mills and Boon UK January 1st and widely released February 1st!

I Eated Lots of Cookies

Yesterday was one of those days. I was stressed, I was a little sad, catching a cold (the same one I’ve been catching for like…three weeks), and trying hard to get to the end of The Frenchman. So what did I do? What any sane person would do. I ate chocolate chip cookies (provided by my mother) and drank coffee until I was sick. Real mature.

Then I wrote an obscene amount of words and fell into bed when my brain was officially mush.

Yesterday was one of those days that had me confronting some of the uncertainty in the industry (more on this later, don’t worry, it’s not a catastrophe or anything). It’s been a week like that. Good stuff, and bad stuff. The good news is, I know I’m getting another contract after The Frenchman, so that’s a big sigh of relief all around, and really, it’s the most important thing at this point. And the bad stuff isn’t truly bad, it’s just change, and I have to admit to being a goober about change.

I really don’t want to sound all emo, because honestly, there have been a lot of great things over the past few days (contracts! impending endings!) and then there’s The Cold That Will Not Go Away. >:( Bleah!

But what I really liked, was that with all the upheaval, good and bad, there was something I could do: Write. (and eat, apparently, but that’s not constructive…) But that’s so cool, because even when things were shifting feeling skeery and my nose was stuffy, I could work on my book. It’s the thing I can control.

Oh, and one more thing, not huge, but I have a much better quality image of my April US release, An Accidental Birthright! (Formerly, A Mistake, A Prince and A Pregnancy) (I think she looks like Kendra from the Girls Next Door…and he’s…*drools*…I love him)

Updates and Stuff I’ve Learned

I have been a baaaad blogger. Very bad. In my defense, I have been basically locked in my internet free office for the past 10 days pounding out 35K words. *halo*

I *think* it’s going well, and I have a feeling I won’t be totally confident in it all until I type The End and can go back and survey it all. But I have learned things from this, I really have.

Now, when I had to rewrite The Inherited Bride, my editor told me, this is the kind of book you write ‘across’ and then on the second time through you write down deep. When I did the rewrite, I understood what she meant by going deep. In the original version, I had the characters…ish…the conflict…ish, but not quite pinpointed…and the plot. And on the second pass through I was able to get down into the characters, characters I already knew, and truly find the real heart of the conflict.

And this MS has been the same. But I had this sudden, odd realization while I was writing a scene the other day: I couldn’t have written this on the first draft. I couldn’t have found this very special, essential scene on the first time through the book. Because the first time through, I hadn’t gotten down into what the book *really* was yet.

That isn’t true for every book. But for The Inherited Bride, and for my Frenchman, it is. Not to say someone else couldn’t have done it in one take, but for me, this is definitely something that was too complex for me to explore thoroughly the first time through.

And now, drawing on things I discovered about the characters in the first version, I’m able to bring more focus to the MS. I know the character journeys, the conflicts, what worked when exploring them, and what didn’t. I also saw things in the first version that were superfluous, and yet they didn’t seem like it until midway through this version. I figured out ways to streamline it, to use the plot, the external, to advance the central, internal conflict, and to have it all tie together to make it all more cohesive.

It’s funny, because, let’s face it, no one really wants to hear they need to rewrite a book, but it seems like when I do, I emerge from it with a greater understanding of writing, and of my own process. And it’s always a book I end up feeling more connected with than one I didn’t spend as much time on, one that didn’t stretch me quite as much as a writer.

So, I’m actually enjoying this process. Feeling close with my characters, which isn’t always the best thing, but it’s happened. Crying for them, smiling for them, dreading their black moment and so looking forward to their happily ever after.

What’s new with all of you?

Tell Me Your Secrets

No…not you guys. *covers ears* My fragile psyche couldn’t handle that. 🙂 My characters, I need them to tell me their secrets.

Sound familiar?

Oh yes, I’ve been here before, I’ll be here again. But this time, it turns out there were still things I didn’t know about The Frenchman and his Fashionable Lady even after having done an entire 50K, polished and done MS. So, after getting some advice from my wonderful editor, I set to work on fixing the problems with the MS.

But it wasn’t going well. I realized something: I had neutered my hero. I was afraid of him being unlikable. So while I had set him up as this man in need of redemption, we didn’t have the full scope of why he might need redemption, of how his mistake had affected his life, of how far he needed to grow as a person. Because I had pulled my punch and like whoa big time.

So, good write friend Lisa Hendrix said, write a scene you would never put in the book. Explore all the things that you think will make your hero too unlikable for print. Let it all go.

And I did. I wrote a scene with the Frenchman at his worst, and I learned so much. From why he lives in the apartment he lives in, to how he reacted to a major, live changing incident.

I was set to go.

Almost.

I thought my Fashionable Lady was all ironed out. I knew her conflict backward and forward. I knew everything there was to know about her.

Um…wrong.

I got to this point in the MS where she was worried about The Frenchman taking so much control over her business and I thought…why? Why does it matter so much to her? And I realized I didn’t know. Beyond the desire to maintain the control, I didn’t know why the business meant so much to her.

So I clicked back over to the document with Blaise’s big unusable scene. And I started writing. I just let Ella talk. Rant, actually, to her parents, about why she’s afraid to lose her business, about how angry she is. And everything just sort of spilled out. And I learned so much about a character I thought I knew.

All her motivations were suddenly there, all of her fears, everything she needs to let go of.

If you’re stuck with your characters, I highly recommend it. It helps you get it all out in a very obvious way so you can work at weaving it into the MS, and I found it more organic than a character sheet. (yes, this is me, the crazy writer talking…we are SO crazycakes.)

Hope some of you find this helpful!

*stalks back to revision cave*

Awesome Author Post!

My dear friend Lisa Hendrix is at the Sassy Sisters blog today talking about her Immortal Brotherhood series…she has nine sexy vikings with her! Come say hi!

(check out an excerpt from her next release, Immortal Champion here!)

Release News…and A Cover!

It’s officially December, and it has completely sneaked up on me. My son will be three on Sunday, and my daughter will be one at the end of the month, with Christmas in the middle, so my thoughts have been on goody shopping!

But, it’s important to note that A Mistake, A Prince and A Pregnancy is out in Australia and New Zealand this month! I love those red Sexy covers. Very cool.

And I have a cover for the North American release of A Mistake, A Prince and A Pregnancy, retitled An Accidental Birthright and releasing in April! (Make sure you take note, this is the same book as Mistake! I don’t want anyone buying the same book twice or anything…I’m all paranoid :/) But here’s the cover, and I have to say, I think he’s the yummiest male model to grace one of my covers yet! He’s just so perfectly Maximo. 🙂

I also just found out that The Inherited Bride will be releasing in North American as a Presents Extra in May. I’m really happy about that since the heroine from The Inherited Bride is Maximo’s sister and it’s nice that their stories can be released so close together!

I’m still buried in my revisions, I’ll let you know when I see light at the end of the tunnel…and I’ll be sharing my revelations along the way, of which I’m sure there will be many. At least…I hope there will be. 😉

One Year Calliversary and an Office

So, I just realized that today is my one year Calliversary! One year ago today, I woke up bright and early to an email from my editor, which led to a phone call…and a two book contract!

I can’t believe it’s been a year. I can’t believe everything that’s happened since! I had a baby, went to Florida, met authors that made me swoon with fangirliness, met my lovely editor, had a book release in the UK, and India, and Australia, had a book release in North America while the second book released in the UK, and then India…and then Australia. I’ve sold five books to M&B and am working on a sixth. I’ve had fabulous reviews, I’ve had scathing reviews. All of that and I still can’t quite believe it’s all real.

This has changed things, in so many ways. Good, good ways. It’s helped up financially, it’s added a lot of excitement (my husband carries around my bookmarks in his clipboard and gives them to clients sometimes). And it’s given me an excuse to keep doing what I love to do: write. I did it nearly every day before selling, and I do it nearly every day now.

It all starts to sound like an Oscar speech, but I have to thank my family for supporting me. My mom for listening to me while I work out problems with my WIP, my dad for his endless interest in the business aspect of publishing. My husband, because without him, there wouldn’t be books. My Sassy Sisters, who listen to me rant, plot, whine, lather, rinse, repeat. Lisa Hendrix, awesome writer, coffee addict and fixer of my problems. My friend Ellie, who doesn’t know a think about writing, but is always interested anyway. And I listen to her talk dressage, and I know nothing about horses. 😉 Of course my editor and all of the authors who have welcomed me and been so good and supportive to me from day one. *orchestra plays* oops…I’ve gone long.

And now I’m going to go longer and say…

I have an office!!

It started out as a shop with plywood on the walls and no insulation and a pressboard floor. There was also one tiny window.

But thanks to the hard work of my dear husband, my dad, who still spoils me rotten, and my Uncle Kim, who is also too good to me and lent me his drywalling skills to make everything look extremely professional, I have an office!

It’s outside the house, it’s freakishly quiet, and I love it passionately. I have no internet out there and no excuses. I feel completely spoiled. It’s the best one year Calliversary and Christmas gift evah! (well, except maybe the ones I got last year…selling to Harlequin and having a new baby is a hard one to beat!)

And now I have to go disappear to my actual, real live revision cave so I can get the Frenchman polished up to a brawny sheen…

Happy Calliversary to me!

Sassy Sisters Are Back From Holiday!

And we have new shoes! 😉

And here’s the boots…for Elissa. (not glamorous, but v warm! Like putting your foot in a pillow!)

Oh and I’m on today! www.sevensassysisters.com

Belated Happy Thanksgiving!

even to my international friends, who had a regular day, I hope it was a happy one!

We had a big dinner, as always. My mom and I managed to get it cooked and on the table by two, even with the kids running around like wild animals. My darling husband, who is usually designated child wrangler on the holidays, was busy hanging sheetrock for my brand new In Construction office! (rest assured…this will be getting its own post…with many pics, in a couple of days!)

There was turkey, and rolls, and dressing, and yams with butter, brown sugar and cinnamon, and green bean casserole (yum!) and mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce and then there was apple pie and ice cream!! *deep breath* It was awesome. And I’m still full. But I want to go eat the leftoves a little bit. 🙂

But, of course, it’s not ALL about the food, even though it seems like it when you spend all day cooking it. Nope, it’s about giving thanks, something I have a lot of reason to do. Something I’ve always had a reason to do, regardless of circumstances. I’m so very blessed to live in a place I love, with the people I love, and to have three gorgeous children, an amazing husband and a tiny house that protects us from the elements. (well, except for extreme heat!!)

I wanted to do a post because today is Black Friday and I was thinking even more about how many things I have to be thankful for. Doesn’t make sense? It will. 😉

Last year, my mother and I went out shopping for the sales. We ended up at a store NO ONE had gone to. Seriously. We meandered around and had our pick of the deals. It was great. I was very pregnanct with The Girl so that was about all the excitement I could handle anyway!

With my due date a little over a month away, I was imagining how different the next Thanksgiving would be. There would be a little eleven month old at the table. And a new baby changes everything!

But at that same time, I also had my rewrite in with my editor. I’d had it in since July. And it was on my mind. While my mom and I were waiting in line to pay for our Super Awesome Sale Items, I pointed out the Presents in the books section. I told her, that’s where my book will be…if M&B decide to buy it.

And they did buy it. Five days after that.

And now it’s Black Friday again. The anniversary of when I was thinking all of that. We did have an eleven month old girl at the table this year, and she was more fun than we could have imagined (she has never skipped a meal in her little life and thinks Thanksgiving is the best idea ever).

And my book has been and gone on those same shelves that I pointed out to my mom last year.

I had so many great blessings last year, and have even more this year. I am so thankful for it all.

What are you thankful for?

Revisions! (The Musical, Part 2)

I had the great fortune to chat with my editor this morning and I have to say, I’m feeling good. Optimistic…dare I say…excited?

Yes, yesterday I was the in the denial stage. The my-MS-is-so-awesome-it-has-its-own-brand-of-taco-sauce stage. But today, the landscape looks a bit different. I see it through someone else’s eyes instead of just my own. And I fully understand what I’ve done here. There were many sins, but my greatest was pulling my punches with the hero.

I’ve written honorable heroes. Most notably my Sheikh from The Inherited Bride. He carries the weight of his duty on his shoulders. It is in everything he does. It makes his actions heavy, thoughtful, decisive. It is a part of him. When he goes against that honor it is physically difficult for him. It was also hard to write.

But by the end of that book I felt comfortable exploring honor and what people will do to fulfill their duty. But what about a character who has lost his honor? That’s a scary thing. And I think I was a little bit scared to fully explore that. Might still be a little bit and as a result, with Blaise, my Frenchman, I didn’t show the weight. Not the weight of his honor, but of his dishonor. Of bad decisions made that hurt people he loves. Of mistakes. Of failure. It has to be in him, a part of him, evident in all that he does.

When a person carries a heavy, physical burden it’s visible, whether they talk about it or not. But it affects their movements, their actions, everything. How much more is that true of someone carrying the burden inside?

I didn’t show that with him. I pulled back. I didn’t wring the most out of him that I could have.

The same goes for my heroine, but the hero was where it was most egregious. I thought I was showing it. I thought I was doing it. Torturing him to heal him. But I hadn’t gone deep enough.

My editor was full of awesome and good advice today, as always.

She said sometimes you have to write a books across (from beginning to end) so that you can find out what it’s really about, so you can see the core of the conflict and characters. Then you go back and really write in deep. It makes brilliant sense to me.

I had to get it all down before I could get to the heart of it all. Now that I have that, I get to take it and bring the focus back to the characters and to the essential conflict.

Do You Want the Good News or the Bad News?

Well, I want the good news. Only the good news. Sadly, my inbox was not asking my opinion this morning and decided to deliver both. *shakes fist at inbox*

So first…

I have some word about The Russian! It’s being released in a 3-in-1 anthology in the UK called The Cinderella Brides and the official title for the book within the antho is THE PETROV PROPOSAL. Aleksei Petrov is thrilled to have his name in the title, but to tell you the truth…I don’t know that his ego needed the boost!

I positively love the title though, and can’t wait for the book to go out. I’m fortunate enough to be sharing the anthology with Harlequin Romance writer Barbara Wallace and brand new Modern Heat author Aimee Carson! (fun fact, Aimee and I sat across from each other on the flight from Denver to Orlando, and while we suspected we were both RWA bound, we were both too awkward to say anything…but she caught up to me at the Orlando airport and asked if I was Maisey…how did she recognize me? My iPad. :D)

The Cinderella Brides will release in the UK in August, 2011.

Now, onto the bad news…okay, I exaggerate. Onto the news that made me make this face —> :S

Revisions. *dum dum DUMMMM*

I haz them. For the Frenchman. But no, I cried. It’s perfect! It’s brilliant!! It’s literary art emblazoned on a canvas of .doc and slathered in win!!

Oh, on second thought…she has a point. Oh, and there too…and there.

Crap. And for good measure…*ANGST*

And for better measure…*delete* *delete* *delete*

I could tell you all that I don’t get revisions, I could just announce sales, but the reason I still blog about this part of the process is that it’s a part of the process we need. It’s one that doesn’t go away just because you sell. It’s important. It’s necessary. It always feels like blerg.

But here’s the thing…there are some books that I’m just not a good enough writer to pull off. The Inherited Bride was like that. I had to get better to write that book, if that makes sense. That meant revisions. It meant stepping out of my comfort zone. It meant seeing things differently, growing, stretching and all the pain that goes with it.

This is going to be one of those books. This step was necessary, I truly believe it.

So it’s not bad news, really. (Well, it’s bad cuz now I want to get buried in my In Construction office and it’s still…In Construction and Thanksgiving is on Thursday…at least there will be pie) But this is good news. This is an opportunity. To learn, to grow, to make it further in my journey as a writer, because I’m still on a journey. I have a feeling I always will be, but that makes it all the more interesting.

I will keep you all posted from my In Construction Revision Bunker…

Maisey

A Little Bit of Me

Update 5/29/2011: Since I first wrote this blog post, I have sold an interracial romance to Presents titled The Highest Price to Pay, you can see the cover and description here. It releases July 15th, 2011 in the UK and is available for preorder on Book Depository and Amazon UK.

A little bit of me goes into every book I write. No, I’ve never proposed a marriage of convenience to an Italian billionaire, I’ve never been pregnant with a prince’s baby thanks to a clinic mix-up, and I’ve never toured Paris with a sheikh. But when I write, of course bits of my world view make it into my books.

That’s not to say everything my characters do, I would do, or that I only write characters that are like me. But of course my perspective will leak onto the page.

One of my favorite instance of this was putting a petty argument on the page between my sheikh and my princess, in The Inherited Bride. It’s the kind of argument my husband and I had all the time when we were first married. She wanted something from him, but didn’t tell him, because she wanted him to figure it out on his own (as she put it, it’s like asking someone to buy you flowers). He didn’t understand how he was supposed to read her mind. It was extra funny to me, because it was very true to real life, my real life. 🙂 And even a princess and a sheikh have similar problems in some ways.

Way a long time back, last November, I think, before I sold His Virgin Acquisition, I wrote a post about interracial romance. I was talking about interracial romance where the racial differences aren’t the central conflict. (A fabulous commenter brought up Harry Potter and Cho Chang 🙂 )

That was a book I always wanted to read, and most especially in my most favorite line, Presents. Presents very muchtrades on the difference between the hero and heroine, whether it’s a difference in social status, in experience or in culture.. It helps create a lot of tension and emotion, so it seemed a perfect place to me, to have a true interracial romance. (I have to give a shout out to Kelly Hunter here, and her book, Red Hot Rogue, which features an Asian heroine and a white hero. I haven’t read it but I definitely intend to!)

This is where the piece of me comes in. My husband is biracial. His father is black, his mother is white. And if you’ve seen my picture, you can be in now doubt that I’m pale pasty white. 😉 So what does that difference in skin color mean to us? A big fat nothing. I love him, he loves me, any conflict we have is centered on arguments like I mentioned above. (Just tell me next time! If I tell you it doesn’t mean anything!)

And that’s why I wanted to write a book that reflected that. An interracial romance that is really just a romance. A Presents. 🙂

My Frenchman is the son of a French blue-blood and a woman from Africa. He’s biracial. My heroine is white. Their conflict has nothing to do with that. Because for me, that’s real life. It isn’t as though we don’t see the difference in skin tone, but it’s something we appreciate in each other. And I think it’s something special. 🙂

There is a lot of me in this book. This book was a dream of mine before I sold.

And even writing this post, I was almost hesitant. Because essentially, this Presents is no different than any other. It’s full of passion, seduction and glamor. It’s about two people who overcome their personal demons, who help each other heal. Two people who find love where they didn’t expect it. They are like every couple, if a bit Presentsified. 😀 Which I think is the point, ultimately.

No matter what the difference between the H and h, whether she’s a pampered princess from Europe and he’s a battle-hardened sheikh, or she’s a fashion designer with a flamboyant streak and he’s a financier that’s conservative down to his loafers (that’s the Frenchman!), it all comes down to love.

I didn’t write this book to be preachy, or to make a point really. It’s just something I wanted to do. (And I really did think it was just about time to have a black Presents hero!) It’s very possible some people won’t like it. IBut you take that risk with every book you write.

I had to say something because I just realized today that this was another dream of mine that I’m seeing come true. I don’t know how extensive the revisions might be on this MS, since I just turned it in, but I’m just very happy right at this moment. 🙂

Submission News and a Cover!

I submitted The Frenchman to my editor last night and I’m thrilled to have it in! Of course, I love it when I was re-reading it, cried while I was polishing, hit send and wondered WHAT I WAS THINKING!!! It’s horrible…it’s awful!!! Okay, I know it’s not, but somehow when I hit send I’m always afraid my nice little MS has morphed itself into soul shredding demon beast on its way from my outbox to my editor’s inbox.

Here’s hoping I’m merely paranoid. *fingers crossed*

And I have REALLY exciting news in the form of…my new cover!! I love it, it’s gorgeous. My hero is shrouded in mystery, my beautiful, elegant heroine clinging to him…*sigh*

It captures the mood of the book so well. *sigh again*

Isabella Rossi is a princess on her way to wed a man she’s never met. But she takes a detour on the way…She wants to experience life in a way she’s never been allowed to. She’s been in training to be a royal wife for most of her life, and has been denied even the most basic things, like shopping in a mall or going to the movies.

Sheikh Adham al bin Sudar, as commander of the Umahran guard, is meant to protect her and deliver her to the High Sheikh.

Adham is her protector, and his loyalty is the High Sheikh, but his feelings for Isabella grow with every moment spent in her company…but acting on them would be a betrayal of the thing Adham prizes the most: his honor.

Oh, and *squee*!!!!

I’m beyond excited for this book to come out, and am so thrilled with the cover! And with the fact that the Frenchman is done….till I get revisions, of course. 🙂

Tricksy Characters

I have reached that point of my WIP. You know *that* point. I’m talking to myself. I’m not sleeping. I’m clutching my iPad to my chest and hissing, “My precccciousssssss” at innocent passersby. In short, I’m almost finished.

I wrote the black moment yesterday and it was HARD. It made me emotional. I had to open and close pages several times and retreat momentarily to the comfort of twitter to stave off the weepies.

Usually, once I get to the black moment it’s all gravy. I already know how to resolve it. I already know who has to grovel, what has to be said and exactly how that last line will go.

*sigh*

Not so. Not with these two. I have very tricksy characters. My heroine is much farther along on her journey than the hero. She’s conquered the worst of her demons, with a little help from the hero and she’s ready to move forward with her life. She’s ready for her HEA.

But he’s not. It’s not just a matter of him being stubborn, he’s truly not there yet. He has to make peace with himself, with something he did in his past that was just plain wrong. He made a big mistake, he hurt the people who loved him the most, and he truly believes that that act was evidence of his true character. eek.

My heroine has thrown down the gauntlet now. She’s told my hero how she feels, and now it’s up to him to realize that he is a good man. The man that she sees.

Again, eek. And also *bites nails*.

I’m absolutely certain I’ll be doing a little bit of surgery on this book once I type The End, because as I’ve gone in deeper and deeper, the characters have sort of evolved and changed and with it, they have changed where I thought I would end up.

They’re going to have to fight for their Happily Ever After. But ultimately, isn’t that the best way? Because when they fight that hard to have something, you know they’re going to hold onto it.

Links and A Video!!

Sadly, I have no cover for you. 🙁 Happily, I have some links! 😀

I’m at Kaily Hart’s blog today talking about being published and what I’ve learned since The Call!

The lovely and adorable Jamie Wesley blogged her thoughts on HIS VIRGIN ACQUISITION!

And I leave you with: Danger Baby, part deux!

Mills and Boon Leander Calendar

This is a video of the photo shoot for the new Mills and Boon calendar. Now, these are Olympic athletes. So have some respect.:P Oh, and while you’re having respect for their well-honed bodies…er…instruments which they use for their craft…check out whose book they’re reading at the 36 second mark!

So You Think You Can Write

Harlequin is running a kind of contest/informational/writing extravaganza called So You Think You Can Write this week. I was lucky enough to be asked to record a podcast on how I became a romance writer. I was interviewed, as was Jeannie Lin and Meg Maguire! It was really fun, and if you want to listen, you can check it out here!

And stay tuned because I *hope* to have a new cover up this week…for my Sheikh book The Inherited Bride. So we’ll see if it posts when I expect it to!

A Mistake, A Prince and A Pregnancy Down Under!

So, A Mistake, A Prince and A Pregnancy releases in Aus officially in December, but it’s up on the Mills and Boon Australia site right now!! It’s in print and ebook format…and Maximo is ten kinds of sexy on this cover!

An IVF clinic mix-up means eternally single Alison Whitman is now carrying the child no, the royal heir of Maximo Rossi, Princeof Turan!

Maximo gave up on the hope of fatherhood a long time ago, but now the ruthless ruler will seize this surprise second chance. However, tradition is high on the Prince’s agenda, and he’ll never stand for an illegitimate heir…

Alison is about to find out that royal marriage is a command, not a choice!

Onion Parfait

Turns out, it exists. And it must be the most layered meal of all time. Because the onion has layers and the parfait has layers and…and…my point? Oh yeah! I have one!

I’m talking about almighty layering today. And not the onion parfait kind of layering, either. The writing kind.

I feel the need to, once again say, I can’t teach anyone how to write, only how I write. And if something in all this makes sense to you, or gives you an a-ha! Then that’s ten kinds of awesome.

In order to give you an idea of how the layering works for me, I’ll have to try and explain how I construct a MS. This is also specific, and this is by no means the ONLY way to do it, or the only way an MS can be constructed. Just examples.

I try to begin my MSs at a point of change. (Elaine proposing to Marco in HIS VIRGIN ACQUISITION, Alison telling Max he’s going to be a father A MISTAKE, A PRINCE AND A PREGNANCY) That’s the external conflict and it’s also the thing that forces proximity between two people who would otherwise not be in proximity.

Then as the MS progresses, that element moves to the background as the relationship builds and the internal conflict gets more tangled up in things. You’ve moved through that first layer in the onion parfait and are now getting in a little bit deeper. You started at the  more superficial part of the story and are now going deeper into the characters as the central romantic relationship (ten dollar phrase!) progresses.

That’s a layer as far as the story goes. It’s the parfait! The big bowl of layers. And then you have characters, the onions. The layered bit in the layers. (follow me? Hungry yet??)

The characters should be layered as well. You’re working with who they appear to be vs. who they are. I’m going to use my hero and heroine from A Mistake A Prince and  A Pregnancy as examples.

Alison is smart. She’s confident, she’s pragmatic and she’s compassionate. She shows those things to the world. But underneath all of that is insecurity, a fear of becoming too dependent on others. She’s independent mostly because she’s afraid if she’s not, she’ll look to the wrong person for support, only to find herself crippled if she ever loses that support. Love, in her mind, is dependence, and she wants to stay far away from that.

Alison started out closed off to the idea of allowing someone into her life, of trusting someone with her emotions. She needed to get to a place where she was open to people, rather than being closed off. A Place where she realized that love didn’t mean dependence.

Maximo is a powerful man. A Prince. A widower. He’s strong and decisive, and yet beneath that is a man who fears he failed his late wife badly. A man who feels he failed as a husband.

And it’s Alison, and her independence, all of the things she’s made it through alone, that bring him out of that dark place and open him up again. And it’s the give and take in their relationship that gives Alison the courage to love.

But of course, before they reach that HEA…one of them is pushed too far too fast, which brings it all to that dark and lovely black moment. The ultimate in It Had To Get Worse Before It Can Get Better.

They both have a journey to go one, as individuals and as a couple. And to get there, it’s peeling back the layers…occasionally rubbing salt on some wounds…and generally making them miserable. Hurt them to heal them and all that.

So this is how I do it. My onion parfait. I hope some of this gives someone an a-ha moment! Even if the a-ha comes from realizing that it doesn’t work this way for you!

Doing it All Part 2

My husband has been out of town for a week. A. Whole. Week. That means it’s been me and the kids (ages 4, 2 and 9mos) hanging out and trying to prevent the house from collapsing around us.

And by the end of the day, I clean the house (again) and light some candles…sit down at the old iPad to write and…decide to go to bed. Or watch TV. Or something that isn’t writing. Or thinking. In other words, very much not doing it all. Not by myself at least!

It reinforces in my mind what a huge, huge thing my support system is for me. My husband* is a key part of my success. Without him, I wouldn’t be getting the output I am with my writing. I don’t know if I would be able to eek out more than a thousand words in a week! (don’t even get me started on anyone also doing a forty hour work week, kids, and writing…my mind boggles!!)

That said, I know women who do it with kids, and without the support of a husband or partner, and with full time jobs, because it’s what they have to do to. I’ve been spoiled with a lot of help, so I’ve come to rely on that help. And I rely on it more than I even realized!

Women are really, really hard on themselves. Because we do want a clean house for our family, and a nice dinner and for the kids to be happy and for the husband to be happy and for the writing to be done and for the book to be published and…and…if all of that doesn’t happen we seem to feel like we’re falling short somehow.

I personally carry a lot of guilt, and it doesn’t come from my husband, or even my upbringing, when I let housework slide. Or when I’m away to write. Even though I’m making money from it, I still struggle with that notion that I should be doing everything for everyone else before I do anything that is for me.

But it’s not about doing EVERYTHING it’s about doing the important things. The things that really matter to our families and the things that really matter to us. Because, as the saying goes, if mama’s not happy, no one’s happy. And taking care of us IS taking care of everyone.

I was really privileged to get to go to Nora Roberts question and answer session at RWA this year, and she said something that really resonated with me. She was talking about how in life, we’re always juggling things. Some things are rubber balls, and some things are glass balls. If you drop a rubber ball, it will bounce. The Pampered Chef party you were invited to will bounce. I’ve decided birthday parties for kids other than close friends have to bounce too.

My boys’ school things,  a night with my husband, deadlines that’s glass to me. The rest? Notsomuch.

I’m still working it all out. I’ll readily admit, I’ve sacrificed having much of a social life, and that’s partly due to the fact that I’ve very, very stingy with time. Because my family needs my time, my writing needs time, and then, I really think my husband and I need time, apart from the kids. 🙂

It’s all about that elusive balance really. Figuring out with things will break and which will bounce. (IMO, vacuuming bounces. A little tip from me. 😉 ) I’ve become a master at the fast dinner. I like to cook, but if I can cook fast, that helps the rest of my day go better.

And you know, there’s nothing wrong with feeling satisfied with your day. Even if there are still dishes in the sink. It’ll bounce.

I know it’s been said, and it’s maybe even a little bit trite, but we’re setting an example for our kids by going for our dreams. More often kids are taught that a dream like publication is too slim of a chance, not even worth pursuing. I think too often we let ourselves get told that! But for those of us who have taken that step to try, to go for it, well…that’s really a huge accomplishment all by itself. And one our kids, and hopefully a lot of people around us, will be encouraged and inspired by.

I can’t say my fabulous vacuuming** has inspired many.

We’re all doing the best we can, finding the balance, the one that works for us, and for those we love, and pursuing our dreams. Of that we can all be really, really proud.

* seriously I need him to come back already
** if vacuuming is a glass ball to you, don’t be offended…*kicks crumbs under couch*

Passion Week

I’m at the eharlequin community today for Passion Week! Ask me questions…about writing, about my books…or about me! http://community.eharlequin.com/forums/simply-series/passion-week-maisey-yates-makes-classic-debut-his-virgin-acquisition

Connecting Threads

I’m a total sucker for books that are connected. Not series, necessarily, but books that have common characters. I love it when a character I connected with in a certain book goes on to have their own story, and their own HEA.

I love it as a reader, and I find myself doing it as a writer.

Maximo, my hero from A Mistake, A Prince and A Pregnancy has a sister. In one scene where she was a key player, it came out that she was promised to a man, the sheikh of a far off country. A man she’s never met. That was when I knew I had to tell her story. If only so I could find out what happened when it came time for her to marry!

Isabella’s story, The Inherited Bride, will release in the UK in February. (I am absolutely thrilled that the book is out in February! I always associate February with romance, so that made me smile.)

Isabella has always known her duty. Her responsibility. To marry the High Sheikh of Umarah and open up trade routes and a much needed alliance between the desert nation and her home country Turan.

But, if you’ve read Mistake, you’ve seen a little glimpse of Isabella’s desire to experience a little bit of freedom before going from one tightly controlled existence to another.

Her bid for independence goes disasterously wrong, and she ends up with a strong, silent escort whose bent on taking her straight back to her intended husband.

Isabella had always intended on fulfilling the marriage contract she was bound by…but on her journey to her fiance she finds herself drawn to the wrong man.

The Inherited Bride is about duty, honor and desire. And what happens when those things are in opposition to each other.

And I just love how that first appearance of Isabella in Mistake to her HEA in The Inherited Bride shows her growth as a person.

But until February, you can meet Isabella in A Mistake, A Prince and A Pregnancy. 😉

Point of Change

No, not spare change. Not changing diapers, although, half the time when I hear that word that’s what I think of. I’m talking about the point of change in my hero and heroine’s lives.

I sent in my partial for the Frenchman and I got some very complimentary feedback: Good writing, snappy dialogue, good pacing. But…(there’s always a but. 😉 ) it lacked urgency. It lacked that conflict, that intensity that makes a reader NEED to keep turning the pages.

My heroine is coming off of the highest moment in her life. A show at Paris Fashion week for her clothing line. She’s at the top of her game, she’s in control, the press are all clamoring for interviews.

And that’s when Blaise walks in and pulls the rug out from under her.

Unfortunately, as it stands, he’s only walked in and tugged the metaphorical rug about a quarter inch to the side and said ‘there, now your metaphorical rug is askew!’

There needs to be more.

The beginning of the book marks a point of change for both Blaise and Ella. For Blaise, it’s the acquisition of Ella’s business loan. For Ella…well, it’s Blaise’s acquisition of her business loan. Their lives have been disrupted by this one thing. It’s that beginning ripple in the water that just keeps expanding and growing.

But in order to get the reader to stick around to see all those ripples grow, I need that initial impact to be powerful enough. They have to believe that this is a huge turning point, for better or for worse, in the lives of my characters so that they’ll keep on reading to find out what happens next.

So, over the next I will be revising and trying to add in that extra punch. 🙂 Then I’ll be writing the rest of the book and trying to maintain that impact until the end.

Generally, I start a book in the middle of a scene, a conversation, action. How to you start your books?

My Appreciation of You

Yep you. People who read this blog. People who comment on it. People who encourage me, here, on twitter, on Facebook and of course in ‘real life’.

When I read the awesome comments you guys leave me it always makes me smile. When I see the comments you leave others, and all the encouragement and kind words, it makes me smile. Because you don’t only support me, but so many others around you.

Writing can be a lonely business, but you all make sure I don’t feel alone. There are times when the crows circle, and you all come support me. Just one reason why it’s so important to me to try and offer support right back! Because we’re in this together. We want the same things, we have similar goals. It can be easy to feel competitive, I think, and to begrudge the success of others, but the truth is…I don’t see very much of that in this community.

I see a lot of good. A lot of support. It blesses me. It makes me proud to be a part of it.

So here’s to YOU. Because on bad days, you all make me smile. On good days, you make me smile wider.

This is where I ask for a virtual group hug. *g*

Oh, and on a different note. Yay for the Chilean miners and their families! I’ve been watching on the news and bawling like a baby (sensitive me). Thank God they’re making it out!

The Finish Line is the Starting Line

It’s easy to see The Call as the finish line in the journey of writing. It’s a finish line, for sure, but once you cross it, it’s time to drink some Gatorade and get running again.

You spend all that time working on your manuscript and waiting…but when The Call comes in…and specifically speaking of Harlequin…they’ll want more than just that one MS. See, M&B buy authors, not just books. This is SO very true.

When I got The Call, they offered me a two book contract, and this is pretty standard. My editor and I talked tweaks for HVA and then she said, ‘and we’ll want to look at the next on in six weeks.’

Fortunately, in my wait times, I have been writing. And writing. And writing. So I had a lot of manuscripts to consider submitting. That’s why I always say (well, maybe not always, but I’ve said it before…) that during wait times you need to KEEP WRITING. (write that down and then just keep going…)

So then I sold that second book and what happened next? I got offered a four book contract. And when I signed that contract, my deadlines were set in stone and I had to get myself to work!! *sweats*

I’m working on the last book in that contract right now.

I grant you, running the race as fast as I am is not expected, but you are expected to keep running. You make it in, but then you have to keep going. You have to keep revising, keep improving. I was doing a particularly prickly set of revisions for the Russian partial, and I expressed disappointment (using this —> :S emoticon in my email…I don’t recommend that behavior, but Jenny seems to ‘get me’ :p) in having ‘failed’ at making the partial as good as I’d hoped.

And my editor told me that it’s her job to make sure that what I’m writing is better than the last thing I wrote. And I SO want that. I do. I want to keep improving. I want to deliver great stories to my readers, stories that are told to the best of my abilities…stories that stretch my abilities so that I improve each and every time.

Getting published doesn’t mean I know it all, or that I even know a fraction. I intend to keep learning, to keep growing. To keep writing.

I think that’s why you hear some writers say it’s not any easier once you’re published. Now, I disagree. Getting published is pretty hefty validation that you don’t have when you aren’t published (I remember! LOL). But I think the point of the statement is that it’s still work. You will still get told something you wrote isn’t good enough, either by your editor, or, by a reader after it’s been seen by your editor, a million other editors, polished and bought.

There will always be revisions. (well, mostly always…) There will always be those times when you bang your head on the keyboard because the scene’s not coming together.

But it’s brilliant, and I love it. And I’m so pleased that reaching publication isn’t the end of anything. It’s the start of something new and wonderful.

I’ll be running in this race as long as they’ll let me. 🙂 Pass me the Gatorade!!

The Cinderella Brides

I got confirmation yesterday that The Russian is approved! I don’t have a title or release date yet, but I do know that in the UK it will be part of an anthology called The Cinderella Brides.

It was really the perfect thing for that book. I didn’t set out to do a Cinderella theme at all. And yet shades of it did end up popping up. My heroine was neglected as a child and raised by her brother. She’s made mistakes in her life. Big ones. Ones that she’s still working on healing from. She ends up working for my hero, Aleksei Petrov, who is a world-renowned jewelry designer (and he’s manly. Trust me, he is). She plans all of the glamorous exhibitions for his collections, one of which ends up being in a fairytale castle. 🙂

It’s not a simple fairytale though. Maddy doesn’t believe in love, and Aleksei never wants to take a chance on love again.

It was so much fun to take two people who didn’t want to fall in love, or even into bed, and put them in a situation where they found themselves so drawn to one another that they simply couldn’t fight it. They had both been so deeply hurt that for them, taking a chance on love was very scary for them. They both had totally different pasts, and yet they both knew about the high price of love.

Aleksei was a hero who had my heart. Every time I wrote tricky scenes with him I found myself crying. And I really don’t often do that while I write!! Madeline was a wonderful heroine too. Quirky, funny and driven, but with a dark past that she carried around with her and used it to hold onto the belief that she was somehow less than she was.

This book really stretched me, and forced me to dig deep. And it was worth it!

I’m so thrilled my editor loved them too, and when the book comes out, I hope you all feel the same way. 🙂

More on Method

I was talking to my good writer buddy Lisa Hendrix today over coffee, and I was talking about the advice I give on my blog. Lisa said something very, very true…when it comes to classes, and online workshops and blogs…we can’t really teach people how to write.

I can teach you guys how I write, but the thing is, there isn’t really a right way. There are several wrong ways (this includes targeting the wrong thing at the wrong publisher and the like)….heh…but not only one right one.

What I do is my process, and bits and pieces of it may translate to what you do, or it may not. Some writers write scenes down on note cards, others go through a word document and type “chapter one” then a summary of that chapter, “chapter two” a summary of that chapter, and so on.

I am not one of those writers. As I write (and here’s where I start to sound like aliens have landed in my ear and made pilgrimage to my brain) the layers of my characters, the deeper theme, and the plot start to truly reveal themselves to me. I’m not a total panster, but neither am I an organized index card plotter.

Two of the Sassy Sisters are complete pansters. They start with nothing more than a scene, a line, an image, and from there, they write the book. And it works for them. It really does. It wouldn’t work for me, but it’s not wrong.

I tend to have a few scenes in my mind that I know need to be written. And I work at getting my characters to that point. If a key scene in my head demands that my heroine trust my hero implicitly for that scene to occur, that means I know that trust needs to start building, and those scenes, where I’m trust building, I tend to pants…(heh)

I also need to write two or three beginnings before I really understand the characters, and what the book will be about.

There are many and varied methods, and as I’ve mentioned, I think mine tends to shift a bit depending the WIP, but the true essence of how I do it seems to remain the same.

There will be people who tell you that you need to do things a certain way, and while there are general rules to craft, the method is flexible, in my opinion. So never think just because you aren’t numbering scenes on index cards…or if you are…that you’re missing something crucial. It may not be crucial to you or your process.

Another part of my process is having songs for my WIPs. In my current WIP I have one very tortured, tall dark and handsome Frenchman and a heroine with a traumatic past.

Here’s my hero’s song:

And my heroine’s song!

Excerpt Time!

An excerpt from A Mistake, A Prince and A Pregnancy:

“Oh, please don’t rebel on me now.” Alison Whitman put her hand over her stomach and tried to quell the rising nausea that was threatening her with immediate action if she didn’t get a hold of some saltine crackers or a bottle of ginger ale. Morning sickness was the pits, and it was even worse when it lasted all day. Worse still when you were about to tell a man he was going to be a father.

Alison put her car in park and took a deep breath, almost relieved to discover a road block in her path. The wrought iron gates that partitioned the massive mansion from the rest of the world looked impenetrable. She didn’t know a lot about this man, the father of her baby, nothing really other than his name. But it was clear that he was way out her league, both financially and otherwise.

Her eyes widened when she saw a man in a dark suit with security issue sunglasses prowling the perimeter of the fence. Was Max Rossi mafia or something? Who had security detail in the middle of nowhere in Washington State?

The guard, because that’s what he had to be, exited through a smaller pedestrian gate and walked toward her car, his expression grim. He gestured for her to roll her window down and she complied, self-conscious of the crank handle that she had to use to perform the action. Her car wasn’t exactly a new, fully loaded model.

“Are you lost, ma’am?” He sounded perfectly pleasant and polite, but she knew that his right hand, which looked as though it was resting on his hip and was partly concealed by his dark suit jacket, was likely gripping a gun.

“No. I’m looking for Mr. Rossi. This is the address I was given.”

The man’s lips turned up slightly. “Sorry. Mr. Rossi isn’t receiving visitors.”

“I’m…” she swallowed. “I’m Alison Whitman. He’s expecting me. At least I think he is.”

The guard held up a hand and pulled a cell phone from his pocket and hit speed dial. He spoke rapidly in a foreign language, Italian, she guessed, before hanging up and turning his attention back to her.

“Go ahead and pull in. Park your car at the front.” He walked to the gate and keyed in a code. The iron monstrosities swung forward and Alison pulled the car through, her stomach seriously protesting now.

She really didn’t know Max Rossi, she had no assurance he wouldn’t harm her in some way. Maybe she hadn’t thought this through.

No, that wasn’t true. She had thought this through. From every angle until she was certain she had no choice but to come here and see the father of her baby, no matter how much she might just want to bury her head in a hole and pretend the whole thing had never happened. She couldn’t play ostrich on this one, no matter how much she might like to.

The house was massive, its bulk partially concealed by towering fir trees. The intensity of the saturated greens surrounding her were almost surreal, compliments of the year round rain fall. Nothing new to a native of the Pacific Northwest, but she rarely ventured outside the Seattle city limits anymore, so being surrounded by this much nature felt like a new experience. And seeing such a pristine, modern mansion set in the middle of the rugged wilderness was akin to an out of body experience.

Of course, the past two weeks had seemed like an out of body experience, first with the positive pregnancy test, and then with all of the revelations that had followed.

She parked her ancient car in front of the house and got out slowly, really hoping she didn’t lose her lunch in the middle of the paved driveway. Not exactly a way to make a good impression on a man.

The security detail appeared out of nowhere, his hand clamping firmly on her arm as he led her to the front door.

“I appreciate the chivalrous gesture, but I can make it through the door on my own,” she said dryly.

Her escort gave her a rueful smile, but loosened his grip and let his hand fall to his side. Although she noticed he was still ready to grab hold of her if he needed to.

He opened the front door for her and she had a feeling it wasn’t good manners that saw him allowing her to go in first, but a desire to have the advantage of being able to see her when she couldn’t see him.

“Ms. Whitman.” The deep, velvet voice held just a hint of an accent and the sound made her already queasy stomach turn, but not with nausea. This feeling was something she didn’t recognize at all. A strange twisting sensation that wasn’t entirely unpleasant. She put a hand to her stomach and tried to quench the feeling.

The sight of the owner of the amazing voice only increased the pitching sensation. She watched as he strode down the sweeping, curved staircase, his movements quick and smooth, masculine yet graceful.

He was the handsomest man she’d ever seen, not that she ever spent much time dwelling on men and their looks. This man though, demanded admiration, even from her. He was just so masculine, so striking. He would turn both male and female heads wherever he went, that was for sure. And not just because of his arresting features and perfect physique. It was his air of authority, the absolute power that emanated from him. It was compelling in a way that captivated her.

His square jaw was set and uncompromising. Hard eyes, dark and fathomless, framed by a fringe of thick eyelashes, stared down at her. If not for the expression in his eyes, she might have called them beautiful, but the intense glare that he fixed on her put paid to that description.

He looked familiar, although she couldn’t imagine where she would have ever seen someone like him. Such an example of masculine perfection hardly haunted the halls of the pro bono law firm where she worked.

She swallowed thickly and took a deep breath, hoping the infusion of fresh air would banish some of the nausea she felt. “Yes.”

“You’re from the clinic?” he asked, coming to stop in front of her. His posture would make a marine envious. She had to crane her neck to look at him, his height easily topping her own five foot four inches by at least a foot.

“Yes…no. Not exactly. I don’t know how much Melissa explained when she called you.” Melissa was one of her dearest friends in the world, and when she’d heard about the mistake made at the clinic she’d not only contacted Alison right away with Max’s information, against the wishes of her boss, she’d offered to be the one to contact Max as well.

“Not a lot, only that it was an urgent matter. Which it had better be.”

Not for the first time she contemplated just turning around and leaving, leaving the whole situation behind her. But that was the coward’s way out. She didn’t believe in leaving loose ends, and, unlike some other people, she didn’t walk away from her responsibilities, not ever.

“Is there somewhere we can go and speak privately?” she asked, looking around the cavernous entryway. No doubt the house had a lot of private rooms where they could sit and talk. Of course, the idea of being in an enclosed space with a man she’d never met didn’t rank as a favorite for her. She was trained in self-defense and she had pepper spray on her keychain, but that didn’t mean she wanted to get in a situation where she would have to use either one. Especially since she had a feeling neither one would prove effective against Max Rossi.

“I don’t have a lot of time, Ms. Whitman.”

Anger flared through her. He didn’t have a lot of time? As if she had any spare moments just lying around. It was difficult for her to take any time off of work. Every case they handled was vitally important to the people involved. They were advocating for those who couldn’t advocate for themselves, and by taking the afternoon off to drive up here and talk to him she was leaving her clients in the lurch.

“I can assure that you my time is valuable too, Mr. Rossi,” she said stiffly. “But I need to speak with you.”

“Then speak,” he said.

“I’m pregnant,” she said, wishing, even as she said the words, that she could call them back.

A muscle in his jaw ticked. “Am I meant to offer congratulations?”

“You’re the father.”

Method to the Madness

At least I tell myself there’s a method to my madness…though that method seems to change with each manuscript. There just isn’t a one-size-fits all approach to all books…at least not for me.

Sometimes I have a very plot driven idea first, and then I have to start peeling away the excess to get down to the essence of the story. Other times, I have all character and no plot. And once, the book literally wrote itself. The best marriage of plot and character ever.

Starting my new WIP this week and I have some *very* different characters. A heroine with an extremely traumatic event in her past and a hero who has lost his way, and, in his and his family’s eyes, his honor. Finding a setting for them, finding a way to execute so much tricky baggage, will not be a simple task.

I played with this a little bit on my last MS, though I didn’t do a full, real scene, but for my hero in this WIP, I wrote a scene that will never make it into the MS. It was his lowest moment. His fall from grace. And that was the moment when I understood him.

I’ve since tweaked the happenings of his past a little bit, but writing that scene, getting to go fully into that event that defined him, made him real for me. And it helped me realize how far he had to go, and what I needed to do to get him there.

So there you have it, a brand new method to my writing madness. It goes with talking to myself while driving or in the shower, compiling playlists that suit the mood of the MS and…googling exotic locations/hotels/houses.

What does your writing madness demand?

New Voices Hangover

The top ten have been announced for the big New Voices comp (Abbi is also talking NV on the Sisters’ blog) (congrats winners!) and of course, law of averages…most of the entrants didn’t make the top ten cut. Including some chapters I really, really enjoyed. (please know, I read a lot of chapters that I LOVED and felt were top ten material that didn’t make it).

All of you who entered can hold your heads up high. This was a very scary way to showcase your work. Not just to readers. Not just to peers. But to competitors. *shakes in pointy-toed metallic flats*

It’s hard to feel encouraged though, when you really felt you had a chance…or even didn’t, but hoped…and you don’t see your name on the all-important list.

And this is where I get to tell a grandma-Maisey story. (meaning you’ve all heard it)

Me and contests….contests and me. We aren’t friends. Oh, I like them just fine…they just don’t seem to like me.

I entered my very first romance chapter that I’d ever written in the Instant Seduction contest over two years ago. I was so excited…so full of hope! And then the winners were announced…not me. And then they said they had such a high level of skill in the entrys they would be giving some people feedback! *sigh* Also, not me.

There were 500 entries in that contest. All I could think of was that if I couldn’t stand out in a crowd of 500, there was no way I could stand out in the big ol’ slush pile.

I submitted anyway, mostly because I was just too far into my WIP (different than my comp chapter) that I didn’t want it to be for nothing.

Well, I waited. And I waited. And I got a request for revisions on my partial! And then I waited again.

And then during the wait I thought I’d enter the Feel the Heat competition because then I could get two things in front of editors.

Guess what? I didn’t win that contest either. 🙁 Feedback? Nope.

But…I think it was maybe a week later I got a full request!!

Followed by more revisions. Followed by more revisions.

And then I got The Call. And The Call had nothing to do with my standing in contests, or lack of standing in them.

That isn’t to diminish how great it is to win. Lynn Raye Harris and Lucy King are great examples of that. But you don’t have to win. Or final. Or even get feedback! Not getting it doesn’t mean you won’t sell, to HM&B or to another publisher.

In my case, I sold to the line and the publisher I had been aiming for in the contests. My problem is, on the first go, my beginnings are rough. My synopses suck. Well, I’m not great comp material when that’s the bulk of what’s required of you!

So chin up everyone! And I really am hoping there are a lot of requests as a result of the contest.

But no matter what…this isn’t the end…cliche alert…it can be the beginning. A contest loss was the beginning for me.

I’m currently working on my sixth book for Harlequin Presents…so being a loser has worked out okay for me. 😉
(ooh! I’m also at iheartpresents today!! come see me!)

Mistakes, Flaws and Redemption

This idea of deeply flawed characters is nothing new, of course. I think almost all characters are flawed to a certain extent, because all people are flawed.

I’ve done characters with dark pasts before, but their actions were spurred by a sense of honor and duty, and therefore were much more easily forgiven sins than those of a character who had been selfish in their past.

When I turned in my first version of The Russian, my editor wasn’t convinced by my heroine’s past. She’d had a big, embarrassing scandal, yet had essentially been blameless of any wrongdoing. So my editor asked me if I could explore how some of what had happened might have been her fault.

And so I thought about it. And I realized that yes, some of it was her fault. She may have acted innocently, but it did not diminish or change the effects of her actions. She made a mistake. She regretted it. It affected her life, and the lives of others. But I think it made her a much, much stronger character in the end.

It’s my opinion, that as long as a character is well-motivated, they can be forgiven for a lot of sins. And ultimately, when they were in such bad need of forgiveness, their ‘redemption’ is that much sweeter.

I’m facing a flawed character again in this WIP. I sent my editor the proposal for Mr. Tall Dark and Hot Frenchman and she said, but why does he feel guilty? If nothing was truly his fault, it seems like he’s just playing the martyr in the midst of a tragedy that, really, has nothing to do with him.

It was interesting she said that, because Blaise had just whispered in my ear the other day that he’d done a bad, bad thing. “No!” I told him, “You didn’t!” and I went back on writing.

Well, today I said, “Okay, maybe you did.” And it turns out, he was right, my editor was right, he had made a bad choice in his past. One worthy of a little self-flagellation.

The road to redeeming him will be steep, but I think, the end will be that much better for it.

And this isn’t even addressing the heroine of the book, who has some very deep scars of her own.

I like this feeling of being free to fully explore, not just my character’s pasts, but their own actions in it. To make a character not only an active force in their present, but their past. Not only responsible for good choices, but bad ones too. Not that every character will have that kind of past. But just like in real life, we all make mistakes. Some of us are lucky, and escape unscathed, others don’t.

So what do you think? Do you like flawed characters? Is someone’s past so dark that they’re ever beyond redemption? (I am excluding harming women, children or puppies from that. Heh)

Also, sorry, must share…I had my own, personal, surprising, first shelf sighting for His Virgin Acquisition last night when I went in to town late to buy formula! (aren’t I SO glamorous?)

New Voices and Voice

First off, I want to extend big, major kudos and best wishes to all who have entered the New Voices competition. You guys rock, and having the guts to put your work out there in that setting is a huge, huge thing!!

Second, I was completely thrilled to get some messages this morning, both in my inbox and on twitter, letting me know that my beautiful and fabulous editor, Jenny Hutton, had done a video for New Voices about standing out in slush…and that she’d mentioned me!

It was cool for me to hear her side of things, to hear what she sees when she looks at my work. 🙂

She says something in the video about not being afraid to write in your own voice. And I really wanted to add a big YES to that. Voice is what separates one writer from another, in so many ways. And a big way to stand out from slush is to have a distinct, unique, voice.

I’m very American. Can’t help it. Just am. More and more, there are more American writers for Presents/Modern, so that’s not quite as different as it once was, but between US/UK/Irish/Australian/NZ writers, there’s a natural difference in pattern and sentence structure. One that I really enjoy. 🙂

Another thing is…have you ever seen Bill Engval? The comedian? He did a show called ’15 Degrees Off Cool’ where he was talking about how he tries to be cool, but he’s always about 15 degrees off. I consider my humor to be about 15 degrees off normal. More and more, I’ve embraced that as a writer and gone with the occasional joke that’s just a little…quirky.

We all have things that make us different as writers, and the point is that you have to embrace the things that make your voice unique, not try to streamline it so that you ‘sound’ just like someone else.

Anyway, now that I’ve rambled, here’s the video of Jenny talking about how to stand out from the slush pile:

Russian News

I am a happy camper, because a couple of days ago, my editor got back to me about the full MS of The Russian. (it took her one week, people…Highlander? I think so.)

Anyway, she really loved it, and there were just a few tweaks, mostly pertaining to timelines and me putting gondolas in Milan. (hey, they have canals!)

So I worked on the tweaks all day Wednesday and turned it back in, and now I’m hoping I’ve tweaked enough to get the final good news on it!

Oh…and guess what made a guest appearance? The Train. YES!! I got the train back in without it being a wicked, tricksy, plot device! Private rail car, ahoy!

This was an interesting one to write in so many ways. My heroine has a past. One she doesn’t like to talk about. Oh, it’s not a secret…if you google her, you’d know her biggest regret. She carries a lot of guilt, and has built up a lot of layers of armor to try and shield herself from ever being hurt, or manipulated, like that again.

Because of my heroine’s past being what it was, because she had spent so many years enduring condemnation and heaping it on herself, I found my hero becoming her biggest champion. It was the one thing she’d never had in her life: someone she could open up to, someone who would support her no matter what.

In that moment, when she was baring all to him, I knew he had to accept her as she was. It was such a joy to write that moment.

Of course, even then they were a long way from happily ever after. Aleksei believes in love, but never wants to face the pain it can bring again. And he feels his heart still belongs to the wife he lost in a tragic accident. Madeline believes that loving someone enables them to manipulate you.

They both face an uphill battle, not only to give love, but to receive it. Ultimately, they’re both afraid.

I always get a little theme in my mind as I write, and this one hit me near the end: Perfect love casts out all fear.

In order to truly love, they both had to let go of the weight of fear that was holding them down.

I have two proposals into my editor now awaiting approval, and I’m hoping she likes what I’ve sent her. *fingers crossed* Until then, I’m fiddling around with Mr. Frenchman, even though he’s not 100% approved yet. I just can’t help myself. He’s too pretty!!

And, just a note, for those of you who don’t know…you can follow me on twitter! My super sekrit handle is maiseyyates. 😉

What a Long, Strange Trip it’s Been

I can still remember sitting down at Starbucks, the one in the middle of the foodcourt, and staring at a blank screen. Then I typed: I think the numbers speak for themselves. Marriage is definitely the most profitable course of action.

That’s the first line of my debut book, His Virgin Acquisition. And that was also the day I decided I needed to actually write and finish a book if I ever wanted to get published.

I had entered a chapter in the Instant Seduction contest that Lynn Raye Harris ultimately won, and I decided, while I was waiting for the results of that competition, I would write a MS and get it ready for submission.

Well, as the story goes, my comp chapter died a savage death. No feedback on it even. And you know what? It didn’t deserve any. It was too short, it was poorly thought out, the plot was…well, it was a cliched mess with badly motivated characters.

And by the time I realized that, I was more than halfway done with the MS I intended to submit to the UK office. And by then, I felt like it was too late to turn back. I felt like…if I can’t even get feedback out of 500 entries, what chance do I have of getting anywhere the traditional way?

But I kept going. I wrote at Starbucks, sometimes with my newborn son sleeping in his carseat while my husband sat at hom with out oldest. Sometimes I just got out by myself.

I had a job, a real job, for about three weeks, the first job I’d had since having children. I quit because I couldn’t justify the time at that job, plus the time spent writing, away from the kids. I worried about being away for those few hours because I felt guilty.

I worked on that MS, printed it out, sat my husband down with a pencil and we attacked the hard copy, marking mistakes and finding things that didn’t read right. I didn’t have a crit group yet. My husband was the only person that read my partial before it went out.

The submission process scared me. What if I made a stupid mistake and got rejected because the rubber bands I used to hold the MS together were purple?

And then, after seriously angsting, I sent it off.

In the twenty months that followed there were revisions, another contest, I found my Sassy Sisters, A Full Request! More revisions, another pregnancy, more revisions, The Call, and a new baby.

Now there are four books sold, and titled, one book on the shelf, and another about to hit.

What a long, strange trip it’s been.

I dreamed, but I didn’t really believe, as I sat in the food court, that I was typing the first sentence of my first book.

I can only feel blessed. Not deserving, as there are so many talented people out there. I’m just blessed.

And, this is where I rah rah you guys…It’s possible!! Everyone has a different road to take, and I don’t know if anyone’s stories of publication are the same.

But it starts with trying, with writing that first sentence. With submitting.

Kudos to all of you that have put your work out there on New Voices. The criticism is tough, and some people are just being mean…but when you’re published you get that too.

And kudos to those of you who have submitted traditionally. To all of you that are just writing a first sentence, or a first sentence for the hundredth time. 😉 It’s not an easy business to get in to, but it’s so worth taking the shot.

As a side note, I want to thank the readers who have written to me to tell me how much they enjoyed His Virgin Acquisition. It means so much to me. And a thanks to those who have left reviews for HVA and Mistake! I truly appreciate that as well!

And a thanks to my loyal blog readers. 😉 I love the community we have here. And please know that I’m cheering for all of you!

Here’s to your own long, strange trips!

To the UK With Love

The Russian, that is. He’s gone! He’s with my editor now (she’ll take good care of him…but if you think *I’m* hard on my characters…you should see what she does to them!) and he will be with her until he comes back all marked up in red for me to revise. (that’s metaphorical red, she doesn’t really do that!)

In the meantime, that means I will be preparing a couple of proposals for her to look at. I have one partial complete, but it’s not the book I need to write next…(she says mysteriously…)

The one I need to write next has a half-finished partial, since while I was waiting for The Russian partial revisions I wrote a partial, realized I was making my same mistakes…and *delete* *delete* *delete* (you guys know the drill)

And I have hero and heroine inspiration to share…but I’m monna sandwich this in here real quick since I feel like a scolding school marm…

I’m following the New Voices comp, and comments, and I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how nice people have been, and how constructive their criticism is. (really) But, there are a couple of people, and they’re doing it to more than one person (so I’ve noticed a pattern) that are being mean. I’m here to tell you right now, it doesn’t make me want to read your work, and it won’t make your work look better. Only your work BEING better will get you a win.

Having said that, I’m pleasantly surprised by how unnasty it’s been in general, so cheers to most everybody! Jeers to a couple.

And now, finally, I bring you the inspiration for Blaise and Ella. 🙂 I know them a bit as characters already and I’m very excited to write their HEA! (tortured? Ha! You ain’t seen nothin yet…)

But isn’t he pretty?

And really, so is she.

New Voices Launch!

New Voices has launched, and we’re having a bit of a party over at the Sassy Sisters. Come get encouraged, share your thoughts, tell us what you entered…or just get a virtual drink from Hoo!

More on the Conflict that Conflicts Us

I’ve been thinking a lot about conflict lately. Well, not a huge surprise since I’m knee deep in my WIP and I have to worry about things like that!

Conflict drives a story forward. And by conflict, I don’t mean yelling and screaming and fighting. And by conflict, I don’t even necessarily mean kidnappings and car accidents and various and sundry other near death experiences. (though, if you’re writing suspense, you might need those)

The conflict I’m talking about specifically is the internal conflict (IC). Internal conflict comes from withing the characters and should be what’s really keeping them apart. (not a half heard conversation or a snide remark from a wicked stepmother)

Something I’ve really been dealing with in my last three MSs has been conflict that needs to be solved in stages. I think to a certain extent, that’s natural, but it’s also tempting to keep everything going until the last six pages. Well, that was something that simply wasn’t possible with my last few books.

In my WIP, my heroine especially has an internal conflict that really needs to be solved in layers.

She first has to fix the way she sees herself, so that she can then begin the process of changing her worldview. Neither of those things is going to happen all at once. She doesn’t believe in love, and more specifically, doesn’t believe she’s loveable.

The way I tackled this, was by, first, realizing there was no way they could solve all of this right at the HEA. The second, was the try and figure out what events need to happen for her to begin to heal.

Her first personal turning point came when she was willing to let go of some of her past hurts. And now she can progress from there.

This is just another example of why it’s important, in the shorter cata romance especially, to keep things character driven so that you’re focusing on the characters and not simply plot points.

Because, and you all know I’ve been guilty of this, hence the title of Revision Queen, when you let the plot steer your characters you’re crippling their development.

I’m a little bit of a panster when it comes to the actual events and scenes in my books. With the past few MSs I’ve approached the synopsis by plotting my character journeys.

The way I do that is I outline their conflicts, I explain what they need to do separately to deal with their issues, and ultimately, figure out how much growth needs to take place before they can have a happily ever after that will ring true.

And somewhere in the there there’s a plot. 🙂

Anyway, just a little insight into my process. (at least my process as it stands at the moment!) What are your thoughts on conflict?

Oh, and I have to share this! Apparently, Hoo went to the shops today (my little octopus friend lives all the way in New Zealand!) and he snaffled the LAST copy of His Virgin Acquisition from the shelf. And then he went to Starbucks. Cheeky little octopus.

Taking Over the World…

One book at time. 😀 Okay, maybe not so much. But His Virgin Acquisition is available on eharlequin today in print and ebook, and A Mistake, A Prince and A Pregnancy is available on Mills and Boon UK, also in print and ebook!

It is one exciting day!

For those of you who missed my Sassy Sisters’ post, here’s a little more info on Mistake:

When my editor and I were talking on the phone, during The Call, she said they were offering me a two book contract. Great! So before the buzz of selling my first book had even faded I had to start thinking about book number two.

I pulled out a MS I had written during my wait and submitted the partial. My ed liked the premise, she didn’t like the execution. And that meant…a rewrite.

I got the revisions on Christmas Eve, I had my daughter on December 30th, and I sold the book six weeks later.

That was a big relief. Because of course, the first thing you think is…what if I can’t do it again? Am I a One Book Wonder? So I’ll always love this book just for it helping me jump that hurdle!

The rewrite of it ended up going very quickly, because I had two characters very eager to share their stories.

Alison and Maximo are two good people, thrown into an impossible situation. Both of them want to do the right thing…although, they disagree about what the right thing is!

Alison Whitman, is a planner. She has everything in her life planned down to the smallest detail…including when and how she’ll have a baby. Alison opts to be artifically inseminated, rather than going the ‘traditional’ route.

Of course, every one of her well-ordered plans is upended by the revelation that she’s received the wrong donor sperm…in fact, the man in question didn’t intend to be a donor!

Prince Maximo Rossi and his wife tried for years to have children, and after her death, he’s given up on the hope of ever having a child. And then Alison, a woman he’s never met, comes to tell him she’s pregnant with his child.

Of course, it’s complicated since this baby is Maximo’s heir…and in order for his heir to inherit, he has to be legitimate.

So much for all of Alison’s carefully laid plans…

Winners!

Okay, so…I’m a softie.

I compiled the entries and put them in the glowing chalice of romance.

And then I had the hunksband draw a name!

And then I felt sad. Because there were so many more names.

So intstead of giving away a copy of HIS VIRGIN ACQUISITION…I’m giving away six! So I made the hunksband draw five more names. 😀

And the winners are…

Becca Heath

Cari Quinn

Sarah Werner

Joanna Terrero

Keira

Julie

So, if you could all send me your info using my handy contact form, I will get these mailed out to you ASAP!

To those who didn’t win…I’m sorry *cries* I always feel bad! But thank you for entering and expressing interest, and for commenting on your favorite themes!

Books! Books!

Today I got…well…half of the rest of my North American author copies of HIS VIRGIN ACQUISITION! You know what that means? I’m giving away a book!

It’s been nine months since I got The Call and it’s been quite a nine months! I’ve sold a total of four books and am working on the fifth now.

Don’t forget, UK friends….A Mistake, A Prince and A Pregnancy will be on Mills and Boon UK Sept 1st! And North American friends…His Virgin Acquisition will be on eharlequin Sept 1st!

In His Virgin Acquisition, Elaine is willing to do what it takes to achieve her goals…even if that means marrying Marco De Luca, notorious womanizer and gorgeous Italan billionaire. Of course, Elaine is all business, and their marriage will only be a convenient one…for a while. 😉

I always LOVE a marriage of convenience story. Something about a married couple falling in love is very appealing to me.

What are some of your favorite romance themes?

Leave a comment to be enter to win a copy of His Virgin Acquisition! (I will have the hunksband draw names later!)

Good Vs. Great

Kobe Bryant is a great basketball player, my personal feelings about the Lakers set aside for a moment. Of course, every basketball player in the NBA is pretty freaking good. They have to be. They’re professionals. As far as the general population is concerned, they’re at the top of the game. (Yes, I’m doing a sports metaphor, go with me here)

But it comes back to Kobe. Yes, it does. Among the elite, Kobe Bryant stands out.

There’s a big difference between guys who play basketball at the public school courts, and guys who play for the Celtics. But the difference between Kobe Bryant and Lamar Odom is not as easy to define.

That’s the difference between good, and great.

I got another set of revisions on the partial of The Russian. And as I read the letter I felt…picked on a little bit. How could I have thought of all of those details? What reader would pick up on something so subtle? Surely, only an editor would notice that!

So, as I was having my customary, post-revision whine, my dad brought up Kobe. And how it’s the obvious things that separate amateur from professional, but it’s the subtle things that take ‘good’ to ‘great’.

Maybe a reader wouldn’t finish a book and think ‘hmmm, that book would have been stronger if the hero’s reaction on page 25 had been slightly less self-aware.’ (now, some readers would…I’ll grant you that! But I’m not one of them!) But a reader might finish a book and think…good. But it wasn’t AMAZING.

And I think that might be true. Maybe amazing is in the subtle. A great plot, awesome characters, that’s hugely important. But execution is the key. There’s the broad execution, and then there’s the details.

As a side note, I did the little tweaks and one of my CPs remarked that it was stronger, even though it was only little itty bitty moments that were altered (as part of the broad scope of giving my hero a bit more alpha confidence, and also having him be a bit less familiar with the heroine) but the changes really altered the partial in a positive way.

All that whining…I should know better by now. 🙂

So I’ll make a personal attempt at greatness, at the very least, I’ll be better than I was before.

A Mistake, A Prince and A Pregnancy…and cover copy!

I was thrilled when I got to see the cover blurb for A Mistake, A Prince and A Pregnancy at RWA…not so thrilled I didn’t write it down! But, I found it…online…and now I get to share it with you!

Mistake will be available www.millsandboon.co.uk on September first, and available in shops in the UK and from Amazon UK and Book Depository (free shipping worldwide) October 6th!

She’s given him a baby….

An IVF clinic mix-up means eternally single Alison Whitman is now carrying the child – no, the royal heir – of Maximo Rossi, Prince of Turan!

Now he’ll take her for his wife!

Maximo gave up on the hope of fatherhood a long time ago, but now the ruthless ruler will seize this surprise second chance.  However, tradition is high on the Prince’s agenda, and he’ll never stand for an illegitimate heir…

Alison is about to find out that royal marriage is a command, not a choice!

A MISTAKE, A PRINCE AND A PREGNANCY will be released in the UK in October 2010 (Harlequin Presents/Modern)

Skipping Starbucks and Changing Lives

No, this isn’t a joke. You just heard me advocate a day without Starbucks. And you know I wouldn’t skip my Starbucks without a very good reason.

Twitter friend and fellow writer C.J Redwine and her husband have been pursuing adoption a little girl from China for five years now. There have been a lot of hurdles to jump, times when the Chinese government has halted adoptions, followed by raising adoption costs etc.

But they’re in the homestretch now and getting very close to the moment when they will finally be united with their daughter, Johanna Faith.

They have funds saved for the adoption, but due to recent increases in fees they need a little boost. That’s why today, I will be skipping Starbucks, and donating to C.J’s paypal on her website to help bring her little girl home!

I love coffee, but this is bigger than that. Adoption is an issue that touches my heart, and I truly believe every child should have a family, and that’s why I’m blogging, and giving, today. If you feel led to skip your Starbucks today and put some cash toward giving a child a family!

There is a badge for your blog so you can let the world know you skipped Starbucks. (or don’t skip your Starbucks and donate anyway…I won’t tell.) You can read more of C.J’s story at her blog, donate, and get entered to win some REALLY COOL prizes!

Confidence….!

Elusive thing confidence. Oh, I have it sometimes when I get positive feedback, when I sell a book…but then…a not so good revision letter…a long time between good feedback…and I lose it.

And then it’s easy to sit there and question every word you write. Every. Word. And that makes things slow and heck-a painful when you’re trying to write.

That’s where I’m at now. Waiting about two weeks to hear back on a partial that was not well received way back before conference (conference sort of threw a wrench in the time frame of this book and it is now The Book That Never Ends).

I’ve been working on two proposals while I wait (You remember, the sekrit ones) and it’s been very hard to write them when I’m suffering (whimper) from a complete lack of…well, that confidence stuff!

(and do you hear me whining about waiting TWO WEEKS? Being published makes you a wuss.)

So what do we do when this happens, huh? Because it happens to all of us, I think, over big things, like rejections and major revisions, and over little things, like a snippy comment from a relative.

I’ve been thinking…and I’m hoping I’m right…that maybe it’s more about having some faith in ourselves and trusting our instincts, instead of feeling confident.

Today, when I sit down and write, I’m just going to do it. And I’m not going to question EVERY word. I’m just not. I’ll fix it later if I have to, but in my current frame of mind nothing is good enough with means I’m getting nothing done!

Sometimes we have to throw a little caution to the wind and throw the words on the paper. And maybe it will be crap. But maybe it wil be great, or maybe it will be crap that can be made great. Either way, it has to get done.

What do you do when your confidence goes AWOL?

The Land Stud

‘Memba him? Well, I got the title and release date for him today! Book #4…AKA The Land Stud will be released in April of 2011 in the UK with the title MARRIAGE MADE ON PAPER. Yay! *streamers*

And talking of release dates and titles…The Sheikh was titled forever ago, but I’m not sure I announced it! Bk #3 (yeah, I’m doing it backward. nyah) will be released in February of 2011 and it’s called THE INHERITED BRIDE.

So that’s my little bit of news…and…I wanted to share a couple of pics I stole..*ahem* that were **given** to me by Lynn Raye Harris.

There’s Susan Stephens, me, and Sandra Marton waiting to get into the RITAs ceremony.

And afterward at the Blue Zoo lounge…complete with our waitress’s thumb. Can’t be too hard on her though, she looked like she *really* needed a hamburger. *g*

Got any good news to share?

I have some more! Victoria Dahl is on the Sisters’ Blog today! Come get A Little Bit Wild! 🙂

Planes, Trains and Cluttering Up My Manuscript

I’ve done it again. And I don’t mean that in a triumphant sort of way. I mentioned that I was working on revisions for book five (of which the partial is now with my editor…hopefully fixed.) and now I would like to talk you through the mistakes I made, that you, dear readers, will not do the same. 🙂

First mistake? My setting became the star. I had this idea, you see. A private train car. *squee* So glamorous! And they were going to ride it through Switzerland and there would be diamonds!! *pants*

And what ended up happening? Well…my pacing was all kinds of off because I wanted them to get in that train and travel, baby!! Because the train was so important!!

(what would Freud say about a train starring in my manuscript? Just wondering…)

:-/

What don’t I have in this new draft that’s sitting on my editor’s desk?

*cries*

The train.

Turns out I didn’t need it. It was a gimmick. And I was relying on it to bring sparkle to my story. What I needed was for my characters to sparkle and…meh…they didn’t either.

Which brings us to my next mistake: The heroine.

Poor girl. Her brother had shipped her off to Switzerland until a sex scandal with her name attached was forgotten about by the press and public. But while she’s there…the hero finds her…and voila! We have a woman at the mercy of all the powerful men in her life.

*headdesk*

Of course, I didn’t see it that way. Nope. But that doesn’t change the fact that that’s what I had.

And then of course…I had also take my handy-dandy manuscript bedazzler to the poor thing.

Private train? Check. Jewels? Heckyeah! The heroine modeling for the jewels?? Bring it, baby!!

*pick* *pick* *pick*

I had to say bye to my bedazzlement.

I believe it was Coco Chanel who said you should look in the mirror before you leave the house and take off one accessory. And I believe it’s Maisey Yates who should look at her manuscripts before she sends them off to her editor and remove a ‘thing’.

Because when the things are gone…you have characters. A man and a woman. The train wasn’t their conflict. Her being a model wasn’t the conflict. Her being involved in a scandal wasn’t even the conflict.

So where was the conflict?

Buried.

But without all the stuff…that’s when you start seeing what you really have to work with. And then, a little sparkle is okay.

But don’t forget what the story is really about.

*hint* It’s NOT the train.

A Book Release, New Ideas, and A Stubborn Heroine

Yes, yes, it is true, His Virgin Acquisition is officially, officially released in the UK and India! Then in September it will be out in Australia and NZ, followed by the North American release in October! (and then we’ll have the UK release of A Mistake, A Prince, and A Pregnancy in the UK in October…yikes!)

Thanks to everyone who’s bought to book, or is thinking about buying the book, for giving a newbie a chance. 🙂 I appreciate it so very much!

And before this starts sounding like an Oscar’s speech again, onto the new ideas.

I have two of them. One of which appeared to me, fully formed, as I was bringing groceries in from the car. The other idea isn’ a fully formed book…it’s just a hero. But an unbearable suave and sexy hero that I can’t *wait* to start torturing. I mean…writing about. Not torturing. I don’t do that. That would be mean. *ahem*

Sadly, I can’t get to those ideas just yet, which brings me to, A Stubborn Heroine. The heroine in my current WIP is a tough nut to crack. She has secrets and she doesn’t want the hero to know them, but even more, she doesn’t seem to want ME to know them!

This has required me to take drastic action. Knowing vaguely who she was in the past simply isn’t enough, not for this heroine. I’ve really had to go back to her past and sort of write what happened to her then, in an attempt to understand her better now. This isn’t something I’ve done before, and since her past is a little bit tragic, it’s a very sad place to have to go with her! But I’m going. And I think I understand her better, and, more importantly, I understand what happened. More or less. She’s still being cagey about a few details. (Who says writers are crazy? We’re totally normal!)

Ultimately though, I’m going to go with the thing that will provide me with more conflict. Because we loves conflict. We loves it, preciousss. (so not crazy. nope)

Figuring out what’s going to give me more conflict, however, is requiring an exploration of my heroine’s past, present and future. And is forcing me to go about approaching this MS in a different way than I normally do.

So what about you guys? Got any prickly characters who like their secrets? And do you find one method fits all when it comes to MSs, or does your approach change?

Party Time!

Tomorrow is the *official* release date of His Virgin Acquisition…although…it’s been available on the shelves for a while, and on Amazon for two weeks….but still! *dancing*

And speaking of dancing…

I had the great and glorious honor of attending the Harlequin party at RWA this year! It was fabulous!

First of all, the company was fantastic. There were the amazong Presents authors: Sandra Marton, Susan Stephens, Carol Mortimer, Janette Kenny, Jennie Lucas, Lynn Raye Harris, Kate Hewitt, Jane Porter and Caitline Crews. Mod Heat author Kimberly Lang (who has the most fantastic accent, ya’ll, and also won Reader’s Choice for Best First Book!) Then the fab Historical authors Michelles Willingham and Styles, Elizabeth Rolls, Amanda McCabe and more. The UK editors, of course, who looked amazing as always. And, of course (haha…) Nora Roberts was in attendence. Can’t tell you how strange it was to be in a room with these people! And to be invited to be in the room with these people!

There were lists at the front and people checking them, making sure we didn’t have party crashers. (pseudonyms made this tricky…although, I don’t have one so that was one less step for me!)

And then we got to stand to the side and have our photos taken…photos which were then displayed on the massive screens in the Grand Ballroom at the Waldorf-Astoria. I had mixed feelings about that. It was great when it was other people…not great when it was me.

And I have to mention…there was an open bar. I’m not an alcohol girl, so I was left out of the signature drink, which was bright pink with Hybiscus syrup and a flower floating on top…but….I have NEVER *ever* seen a coffee bar to beat the one at that party. And, those of you who know me know that coffee is the way to my heart.

Turbinado sugar lumps, white sugar lumps, rock candy to stir into the hot coffee, white chocolate shavings, dark chocolate shavings and a big bowl of whipped cream. 🙂 Happy Maisey. And this was all by the massive chocolate log that…indeed looked like a log and had candy butterflies on it that were both lovely and tasty. That was what I had for dinner that night…chocolate log and coffee. Don’t judge me.

We all danced…a lot…and eventually all fabulous shoes were kicked off and tossed under tables. And of course, they played It’s Raining Men. And now the song is still stuck in my head. 🙂

I didn’t get back to the hotel room until about one am, and it was more than worth it!

It can’t all be about workshops…. 🙂

I also want to offer up a very humble thanks to all those who have reviewed His Virgin Acquisition. Thank you for taking the time to do that! Means a lot to an unknown author from a tiny town in Oregon.

And finally…I’ve gone Minxy for the day! Come visit me!

Bad Blogger!

Bad blogger! Bad!

Seriously though, this is the very first moment since my plane touched down in Orlando that I’ve had some time to sit…well, sit without yakking. Because there has been a lot of yakking!

I arrived on Tuesday and immediately went to The Dinner, where I got to meet some of the most lovely women I have ever met! All of the Harlequin ladies, and everyone else for that matter, is so lovely!

I spent Wednesday at Disney with lots of lovely writers and some of the M&B editors. We had a blast, we got soaked on Splash Mountain, and I can’t imagine that anyone has more cooler editors than we do. 🙂

Thursday I had lunch with my editor, Jenny Hutton, who is as lovely in person as she is online or over the phone. It’s so valuable to get that face to face conversation time. l learned more in five days than I have in seven months.

I think I tend to look on The Publishing Business as being mysterious and unknown. It was nice to hear that there are no secrets, we just need to ask questions. So that’s my early New Year’s Resolution.

One thing I so love and appreciate about Harlequin is the feeling of family. Everyone was so welcoming and sweet to me. Above and beyond what I had expected.

Oh, and the Harlequin Party was amazing!

In closing, I spent a while last night talking to the wonderful Sandra Marton. To hear her speak of writing now after she’s completed eighty books, with as much enthusiasm as I have after four, is an amazing thing. I hope to always love it so much.

Stay tuned for a more detailed break down of the conference…now, I have to get ready to catch my plane!

Countdown!

And no, this countdown isn’t even for His Virgin Acquisition, which is available in shops in the UK, on Amazon UK and on Amazon.com in Kindle form (but only for those who live in the UK!).

And, I have to mention again, the book has gotten mad awesome reviews on M&B UK. I’m so thrilled that so many readers have connected with Marco and Elaine as I have!

Now I need to make sure I’m finding a good connection with Madeline and Aleksei…prickly beasts, both of them…but, they’ll have to sit around and stew until after…

RWA NATIONALS 2010!! *dances*

That’s the countdown I was talking about! I will be leavig *very* early Tuesday morning and arriving in the afternoon. Soon after my arrival I will be meeting some VERY incredible people for dinner…including (and don’t hate me if I forget you…just smack me when you see me!) Michelle Willingham, Susan Stephens, Sandra Marton, Lynn Raye Harris, Jane Porter, Caitlin Cruise, Kate Hewitt, Janette Kenny, Carole Mortimer and Jennie Lucas! (Will let you know if I go absolutely fangirl all over anyone…the odds are high)

Next day is Disneryworld with a list of people just as prestigious. (I’m concerned about the Enlish girls melting…)

But this is all before conference even starts!

Of course, before all of this can happen I have to get on the plane. I will get on the plane. I will. I promise. I will be clutching my box of Starbucks Via for comfort, but I will be there. It’s times like this I wish a drank a little bit. 😉 Not a fan of the flying, my friends, not a fan. At least, I think I’m not.

Anyway, watch this space, and the Seven Sassy Sisters for conference updates, writing tips, and insider info. 🙂 Dearest Abbi and I will both be there (and meeting in person for the first time!) and we will both be blogging about our experiences.

And…I think this post had a point…Oh yes, pray for me as I get on the plane. And maybe send me a bottle of something strong. O_O

Prayers Please

One of my dear Sassy Sisters is going through a hard time. Her son is having some health problems at the moment, which are made worse by a chronic, genetic disease.

So, I, and she, and we, would so much appreciate your prayers and good wishes that Ben is well soon.

Thanks so much,

Maisey

Going in Blind

No, this isn’t about my pansting tendencies…I’m about to hit my first conference. In fact, I leave a week from tomorrow (Tuesday).

And no, I’m not going in blind-blind. The super wonderful and most excellent Lynn Raye Harris has seen that I’ve been given a full rundown, and I will be rooming with the awsomely fabulous Lisa Hendrix (Check out her Immortal Brotherhood series…wow!) and she’s a conference veteran. But, no matter how many tips I read, no matter how many conference survival lists I peruse…the fact is, I’m about to be the country mouse in the big city, so to speak.

I’ve squeezed a lot of life into my twenty-four years. Five years of marriage, three gorgeous kids and four books sold, but something I haven’t done a lot of is…traveling. (can a Presents writer even admit that?)

Combined with the fact that I’m leaving my hubby and kids for the first time, and the fact that it’s my first conference…well, it’s a lot of new!

So here’s Maisey’s newbie survival guide, by someone who has no idea what’s going to happen, for someone who has no idea what’s going to happen:

1. Clothes: Uh…I might wear these. Oh, and these are cute too. And I like this…I’ll bring them all. (this ends with me putting the entire contents of my closet into a bag)

2. Airports: I looked them up. And there are maps. I studied the maps so I know where my gates are, how to get to the shuttle etc (remember now, I live in a town with a one terminal airport…so Orlando and Denver? Whole new world) And when I get to the airports I’ll know exactly where I…*snicker* no, this is where I’ll realize I was looking at the maps upside down and I’m now all disoriented. Then I beg someone for directions.

3. Getting there and interacting with people: Okay, this I’ve got, people are my thing. And in some ways, I may have exaggerated the country mouse thing, since I went to a church that had 5,000 memebers for…well….19 years. So lots of people in a small space? Great. I’m the rare writer extrovert.

Anyway, be nice. To everyone. This is usually followed up by “Because they could become the next Nora, or the next big acquisitions editor”. But I say, be nice just to be nice. Also, don’t talk about people behind their backs, because, inevitably they’ll be standing behing YOUR back when you say it. This is something I learned in jr. high.

Also, don’t fawn all over the big name authors. They’re just people. But you can fawn over me, and you can bring me a fruity drink. And five dollars. (ha…I’m sure you know…I’m absolutely kidding)

4. Disneyworld: Have mouse ears, will travel. And I’ll be eating lunch in Cinderella’s castle.

5. Enjoy. If the tight schedule stresses you out…loosen it a little bit. This is supposed to be a great networking/learning/social experience, and if you’re too strung out to enjoy it and take it all in, it won’t be worth much of anything but…well, a week of post-conference hangover, so to speak.

Hope to see many of you there!

Inspiration and more *delete* *delete* *delete*

Well, I don’t know if I mentioned here that last week I got some pretty hefty revisions on my proposal (The Russian) from my editor.

And today, I finished the partial. The new partial. Totally rewritten and a whole lot better than what I had the first time. So, proudly, I handed it to my husband to read and said ‘So? Whatdya think? Huh? What? What?’ and he said…’meh.’

*face palm*

So I sent it on to the sisters, who were a bit more enthusiastic, but still full of new suggestions. And their suggestions sparked…inspiration.

Totally new inspiration for the same characters. And now…well…that means *delete* *delete* *delete*. Forty pages of *delete*.

Hey, as long as I’m inspired, I do not fear the delete key. It’s that moment, that moment that’s like jumping out of an airplane and wondering if your chute will open, when someone says ‘yeah, that doesn’t work.’ and your mind is totally blank. No idea how to fix it. That’s what scares me.

But going into the big DELETE with inspiration? As Cuzco would say, “bring it on. Boooyah.”

Also, on another, kind of bummer-ish note, I just wanted to touch briefly on book piracy. Any piracy really. If you’re a reader, and you love the books, please do the right thing and support the authors by buying them legally. Writing is our job, the book is our product, not paying for that product is stealing. And it just kind of…sucks. :-/

Now I want to end on a high note… 😀 It’s just over a week until I leave for Orlando for Nationals! I’m super excited to meet my editor, my fellow Sassy Sister, Abbi, and a lot of the wonderful writers, both published, and un-published, I’ve met here on the interwebz!

If you’ll be at Nationals, let me know in the comments, and also, give me a hollah if you see me!

Chuffed

I have to say, it’s a scary thing sending your book out into the world. Of course I want my readers to enjoy what I write. That’s the whole point, after all!

So, I have to say, I’m very pleased to say I have one four star and three five star reviews on Mills and Boon UK (although one came from Jackie Ashenden…and she might be biased…)

And, I’ve been having SO much fun over the past three days while Emma Peterson read His Virgin Acquisition and tweeted her reactions to certain scenes.

I thoroughly enjoyed it, and I thank her for letting me experience her experiencing the book. LOL.

I was treated to gems such as: :Haha! How do you like that, Marco! The tables have been turned! Ha! #HisVirginAcquisition #SexyArrogantBastard

“U kno that heart tug feeling you get at a certain point in a book when ur heart/chest really hurts?…I’m at that part!”

She also pegged, dead on, that I like to torture my characters. 🙂

So, thanks, Emma! I really enjoyed that! And now I’ll close the day with a great big smile on my face.

And, and now I have to add the fabulous review Emma left on Good Reads!

What would you do to get what was rightfully yours? If you are Elaine you’d go to the man who bought your father’s company, the company that should be rightfully yours, and you’d proposition him.

It should have been a simple arrangement, one that would benefit them both but when gasoline meets a lit match nothing is simple about the explosion to follow.

His Virgin Acquisition is an originally awesome book that tugs at the heartstrings and not only has the reader suspending belief but convinces at the end there will absolutely be no chance for a happy ending.

Maisey Yates is definitely an author to keep an eye on.

My Fave Harlequin Categories (well…some of them)

Ooh…have been a bad little blogger…*blows dust off dashboard*…here we go…

I’m in a list mood tonight. I’m gonna make a list. A list of my fave all time, Harlequin Category romances. Do enjoy. 🙂

My top five list (which…well, it’s not in order):

5. Anything For You by Sarah Mayberry, Harlequin Blaze- Why do I love it? Friends to lovers is a storyline that gets me every time, and Sarah Mayberry did a wonderful job with Sam and Delaney. It’s funny, it’s sexy, and I just feel (every time I read it…and I’ve read it lots of times…) like they HAVE to be together, and with no one else. Ever.

4. The Ruthless Greek’s Virgin Princess by Trish Morey, Harlequin Presents/Modern- Why? The opening of the book had me hooked. And more than that, it had me utterly heartbroken for the heroine. Her botched attempt at sixteen to show the hero how much she loves him and his denial of her…it’s rare to find me welling up in the first pages of a book..but I did with this one.

3. The Sheikh’s Forbidden Virgin by Kate Hewitt, Harlequin Presents- *cries* it was so good. There’s nothing like a scarred hero, and Kate has a great one here. A man who is burdened by tragedy in his past and who needs redemption, but can only find it with the one woman he cannot have…*cries more*

2. The Antonakos Marriae by Kate Walker, Harlequin Presents- I just love the premise. And the execution. The heroine is determined to have one night of freedom and be with a man of her choice before she’s married off to an old man she doesn’t love…but she picks the wrong man…and it causes *lots* of trouble…

1. Expecting His Love-Child by Carol Marinelli, Harlequin Presents- The hero is perfect, so damaged and so lovable even in his damaged state. He doesn’t treat the heroine well at first…but it’s clear he simply doesn’t know how to treat people, and immediately after he does something wrong, it’s clear her wants to do it right. A powerful story. And I will never forget the painting the heroine did of her Autistic brother’s world. Very touching and personal to me.

So, that’s my list…what category books rock your socks?

On New News, Repeating Mistakes and Slumps

I’ve been around the interwebz, lurking on blogs (maybe yours!) and I’ve seen a lot of people who are very frustrating with this whole getting published process, and, even more, with themselves.

Now, this is a hard business. Writing requires you to invest your heart into something that you’ll likely have to tear apart (multiple times…holla!) and then it could still get rejected. So yeah, that right there, in a nutshell…well, that’s what hard is really. There’s no diminishing it, there’s no pretending it isn’t.

Getting revisions still takes the wind outta my sails, even though at this point I’m familiar with the process and I know they’re an inevitable part of the process I can’t, and shouldn’t, avoid.

I got revisions yesterday. And this brings me to the part about repeating mistakes, and people being hard on themselves for doing it. Guess what I did, guys? Guess! I didn’t have enough dialogue in my beginning. My heroine was limp and unbelievable and there was too much focus on the external elements. I’ve sold, and revised, four books before this one, and I still did all of that.

You don’t have to stop making mistakes to get published, you just have to be able to fix them. And you really can’t beat yourself up for it. Writing is a learning process, before the Call and far beyond it. Don’t expect to be perfect, just endeavor to be better than you were before. Take advice onboard, and…(and this brings us to the new news!) trust your voice.

We had a bit of news this week out of Romance HQ. I wasn’t terribly surprised to hear it, because it’s been in every revisions letter I’ve had to date, but this was sort of the official word:

The focus is to be on writers and their unique voice, the stories, focused on the characters on the central romance. (character, character, character, ya’ll…note to Maisey: character and not jewelry and private trains…mmkay?) The core promises of the line (glamour, passion, seduction) remain the same, and of course they want those alpha heroes and some modern, feisty heroines. (note: feisty does not mean, stomps her foot and thrusts her chin in the air at every opportunity)

So what does it mean and what does it come down to? Your voice is going to be what makes you stand out, pre and post publication. That means be you, don’t copy what you’ve seen other people do, don’t us an expression just because someone else uses it, don’t have your heroine give a cry if she wouldn’t. (guilty)

And as for ensuring your MS is character driven? This is what I’ve had to do: see what external elements can be stripped away. In the case of my Sheikh (Now titled The Inherited Bride) that meant: no terrorists, no threat on the princess’s life, no bouncing from one place to another to keep everyone and everything (except for the relationship…) moving. And when I lost all of that, I was left with the word count to just tell the story of my Sheikh and his Inherited Bride. (do you see what I did there?) I was able to take more time to explore their relationship, their conflicts, and how they were going to solve them, and grow together as a couple. And that’s a win, win, win!

Okay, got any new news for me? And what do you do when you’re thinking of giving up? And…well, it’s your comment, you can say what you want. 😉

Winners!

Okay, ya’ll, my very sexy husband has drawn names out of my iPad keyboard box (classy, yes?) and I have selected winners!! Now, I ended up drawing four names because I couldn’t just pick two…So each website has two winners!! Yay!!

The winners for the Sassy Sisters’ blog are: Anne and Kerrin!! 

And the winners for the Maisey Yates site are: Kristi and Lacey!!

And, I also had to give the early adopter award to Jannette because (other than Jackie…you don’t count…sorry Jackie.) she was first commenter on BOTH sites and I think she deserves a copy for her speediness! 🙂

Soooo…if you winners could contact me with the contact form over there on the sidebar so I can get your info and send books…that would awesome!!

If you didn’t win, I’m sorry. 🙁 Meh. I’m sad I couldn’t pick everyone! But we can still party over awesome covers and debut releases! Yay! Cyber champagne (and sparkling cider) all around!!

And also, please do enjoy this again:

You Mean…People Are Going To Read It?

Yeah, obviously. You get a book published people are going to read it. Well, you hope they are. You really want them to. I really want them to. But actually knowing people are, maybe at this moment, reading what you’ve written? Yikes!

This week, some of the UK book club subscribers received His Virgin Acquisition in with their monthly orders, and the reality is now hitting. People are really reading my book.

It’s the most thrilling, frightening, awesome thing ever. Thrilling? Yep. You better believe it. Frightening? How can it not be? Awesome? Dude. So awesome. 🙂

So far, the two people I’ve heard from who have read it were very nice and told me they enjoyed the book, which really, really made my day. I have so much fun writing these books, and the characters mean so much to me. I want to share their stories as best as I can, and I want people to love them too. Or at least like them as a friend. I’ll take what I can get. 😉

But yay! Massive rejoicing! My very first book is in book form! (I haven’t seen it yet…but I’m expecting author copies soonish). People are reading it! *pants* I need to go lie down…

You Have To Be Like Joey

We open with a scene from Friends…

CHANDLER: I kinda, had an incident
JOEY: Don’t worry about that man, that happens.
CHANDLER: It happened to you?
JOEY: Yeah, once
CHANDLER: What did you do?
JOEY: I did it anyway…

End scene. (edited for content. 😉 )

Well, I’m actually talking about writing. But that was what I thought of when I was thinking of this post. Sometimes, we have to be like Joey. Things may not be coming together, so to speak, but when the work has to get done, it has to get done.

That means we can’t always wait around for the mood. Or the muse. That means…*gasp* discipline. I had a hard time coming down from my sheikh story. It was an extremely emotional experience to write that book. My characters were tortured, and I felt like I was right there with them. And moving on was…well, it was really hard. My heart was still with my Sheikh and his Princess and….I wasn’t ready to see other people! But, there are these things called deadlines, and they said, it was time to see other people.

And that meant having some days where I just didn’t feel in it. I love writing, don’t get me wrong. I would rather write than do almost anything else, barring spending time with my husband and kids of course. But, shopping or writing? Writing. Party or writing? Writing. You get the idea.

I’m not saying you can’t take breaks, or days off, but what I am saying is that, inspiration isn’t always going to be there, bright and shiny. And we can’t always afford to wait for it. Sometimes you have to sit and find your own while the muse is off doing her own fickle thing. I’ve said a few times that I took my muse and chained her up under the porch because I can’t let her dictate when I’m productive or not.

That, I think is part of writing being a job. Just like other jobs, some days you don’t want to clock in. But, just like other jobs, you do it anyway.

Now, those days where I sit and force myself to work are not as productive as the days when I’m dying to get my fingers on the keys and let the story just flow forth, but the tough days have been instrumental in my growth as a writer. I’ve learned to write every day (except Sundays, generally), I’ve learned to turn the inspiration on when it’s convenient, because it’s become more of a learned discipline now than something intangible and hard to grasp.

Writing, like anything else, takes practice, and that practice doesn’t come from reading books, or even reading blogs (except mine…mine is magic…always read it. LOL). The practice is in the doing, the real valuable learning is in the doing.

So do! Even if you don’t feel like it. 😉 I managed to muscle through my little slump and find some real love for The Land Stud, who I’m expecting revisions for any day now.

But at the moment, I’m working on an idea with a very sexy Russian hero. And here is some of my inspiration:

–

Getting Closer…

As you can see by my little countdown timer over there —->
we are inching ever closer to the release of HIS VIRGIN ACQUISITION!!! (and you can actually get it a whole month sooner if you order it from the M&B UK site…yep.)

So, in honor of the book, I’m gonna talk a little bit about how it came to be.

It all started with a contest. A contest I didn’t win, with a chapter that only ever stayed one chapter. This chapter had horrible pacing, a ridiculous plot and a petulant heroine. It also had a hero who wasn’t so bad. And this hero, it turned out, had a brother.

And while I waited for the outcome of the contest, I started thinking about that hero’s brother. His name, so he told me, was Marco De Luca.

I sat down in the Starbucks at my local mall one day, and I just started to write. The first sentence, which is still the first sentence of the book (though a lot else has changed) just sort of came out of nowhere.

My heroine proposed to my hero. And that was when I first started learning about Elaine Chapman. She was determined, she was driven, and she was going to achieve her goals however she could (barring illegal activities of course…) and if that meant proposing to this sexy Italian billionaire, she would do it.

Ladies, (and gents, maybe…I dunno) I panted the first draft of this book. I had NO idea what was going to happen, when, or why, but I wrote it. Then I polished it as best as I knew how, and I (after finding out I had epic failed the comp) went ahead and submitted it.

Then came the real work. The revising, the rewriting, all with the fantastic guidance of my editor.

And I’m so glad I put the work in, because now it’s going to be a real, honest to goodness book, and people are going to read it. And now, it’s actually worth reading!

So I hope you love my smart, feisty heroine who isn’t afraid to go for her goals, a sexy alpha male who ends up with a bride that’s a little more than he bargained for, just as much as I love them.

They’re my first couple I saw through to the end, and I’m so glad I did.

And don’t forget to check out the Peek of the Week over at www.sevensassysisters.com

HIS VIRGIN ACQUISITION will be available everywhere on August 6th!

Daring proposal…

When Elaine gives her business presentation to Marco De Luca she thinks she can be cool, calm and collected. She’s wrong! The fierce tycoon can see straight through her shapeless suits and scraped-back hair to get right under her skin…

Ruthless awakening!

She may have proposed marriage as the perfect business arrangement, but suddenly Elaine’s not quite so confident. Marco’s made it clear that he’s no modern man- if he takes a wife, he wants a ravishing beauty by his side, obedient and willing, day…and night!

The Shiny Has Arrived

I ordered my iPad a few weeks ago now, and it finally arrived today! It actually made it into town Saturday and had to sit in a warehouse all alone until today, but I won’t dwell on that, because now, it is in my hot little hands! Bwahahahaha!

But, I know you all want the nitty gritty on how this works. For writing. Of course. Only writing. Cuz, we all want it for practical reasons…right?

Well, I opened the box, a chorus sang (not really, but it sounds good) and then I had to hook it up to the computer and get it linked up to itunes. (you need to latest version…do yourself a favor and upgrade BEFORE your iPad gets here so you don’t have to sit and stare longingly at it for a HALF AN HOUR while your computer updates).

So, once it was set and ready to go, I went to the app store and bought Pages (a must) and Corkulous, an app I was really excited to use for storyboarding. Then, I set up my email, which was so easy *I* could do it. I proceeded to email a Microsoft Word doc from my PC to my iPad. I opened the attachment, and it asked me if I wanted to import to pages. Um, yes, ma’am. And it imported beautifully, all formatting preserved and perfect. From PC to Mac. Next, I predict world peace.

I also ordered a nifty BlueTooth keyboard to go with the iPad. So I linked it up and I was typing away in Pages in no time. It’s as fast as typing on my laptop and infinitely prettier.

And this evening, I’ve been playing with Corkulous. Oh, wow, it is SO fun. I made a little storyboard you can see over there —> for my WIP. Some photos and some notes, and it’s just really, really really fun. And VERY easy to use.

Also, as you can see my one of my piccys down there, I made my book cover the wallpaper for the iPad, which just makes me ridiculously happy.

The battery life is pretty crazy good, 10hrs with WiFi on, but I hear there are people who are getting better than that.

Okay, bottom line: Is the iPad practical for writers? Yes, but please do get an external keyboard. While the one on the iPad is great for writing email and tweeting and Facebooking, it won’t work for big ol’ docs, and for those of us who type over 90WPM.

But Pages works great, even if you have a PC. It does what you need it to do, it lets you write, plus it has some stinking cool features beyond that.

Web browsing? Awesome. I love being able to zoom in with such precisions. The apps? So much fun, and very handy. I got Epicurious, since I like to cook, a dictionary, thesaurus, Dragon Dictation (which works amazingly well) and a Word Press app all for free.

Bottom line, you so want one. You do. You really, really do.

A Great Post on POV

My CP Chelsea is the original keeper of the POV. Whenever I’ve made silly errors (um…is my hero admiring his own bicep in this scene?? Wait…are we in omniscient now???) she’s always there to point it out, and not only that, explain it all to me.

Admittedly, when I first started out, I just didn’t think much about POV or transitioning between viewpoints. Knowing her has been a massive help, and today, on the Sisters’ Blog, she’s posting about POV. Come, grasshopper, learn. Grow. You know you want to.

Goodies!

Today at the Sisters’ Blog we’re giving away a copy of The Devil’s Heart by Lynn Raye Harris. The book doesn’t release in the UK until July and we have an early copy all ready for one lucky commenter!

Also, it’s our Peek of the Week! So, come for the chance to win a book, and to pick your team: Team Kirk or Team McCoy.

And, since we’re getting closer and closer to the release of His Virgin Acquisition, I have a question in honor of Miss Elaine Chapman (oh she of the gorgeous blonde locks!)

How far would you go to gain your life’s ambition? Would you propose to a sexy Italian billionaire? She would. 😉

Molding the Manuscript

I wanted to talk a little bit about the construction and shaping of a manuscript. Why? Because I can honestly tell you that when I started writing, I had no clue what I was doing. I knew I had to get from point A to point B in a certain amount of words. But that isn’t all there is to it. There’s so much more.

Ultimately, it’s about character, and the character journey. (yep, character again) But really, with romance, that’s what it comes down to. If I’m going to enjoy a book and get really involved, really care about what’s going to happen, I have to care about the characters.

Which means that when I’m writing, I have to try and remember that!

I’ve talked about this before. About not letting the plot steer the characters, and all that jazz. But, I’m going to throw in some things I learned while writing The Sheikh. (that isn’t the title, BTW, I just don’t have one yet, but it releases in the UK in Feb!)

I was really letting my characters down in a few ways in the initial draft of that MS. In the first three chapters especially, I was sacrificing character development for action. (Again) I was moving them through the plot at breakneck  speed so that I could let this wild, crazy storyline with all its external elements unfold. But I wasn’t letting the reader get to know the characters. I had too many scenes that went by too quickly, the old, telling not showing thing. ;p

An example of that would be a scene I had in an elevator. My hero had just kissed the heroine and she was upset. They were going from the alley by his penthouse back into the apartment and I had put ‘they didn’t speak the whole time they were in the lift.’

When my editor and I spoke on the phone, she was talking about how I was moving through scenes too quickly and how I needed to make sure I was putting the reader there with the characters, staying in scenes longer so we can really feel what they’re feeling. So that one line became:

When they were back in the building he propelled her into the lift, the doors shutting behind them. She couldn’t believe he had done that. Kissed her as though he had every right to touch her, as though he…he had some claim on her. And only to shut her up. Her first kiss had been a diversion.

Worse than all of that, she couldn’t believe the restless ache that was building in her body. The curiosity. The need to know what it would be like to kiss him again. Only gentle, and slow this time longer so she had time to process it, to learn the texture of his lips, the rhythm of his movements.

She shut that traitorous part of her brain down. He’d had no right to do that. She wore another man’s ring. Even in her wildest fantasies of escape she had never imagined betraying her fiancé in that way. She didn’t know the man. She certainly didn’t love him. But they had a signed agreement, and she had no intention of violating it.

He’d done it to shut her up. That stung her pride. Much more than it should.

“I can’t believe you did that,” she said icily.

It’s not a lot of added words, but it gives you something of the character. Something seriously big has just happened to the heroine and she’s angry and confused and a little bit intrigued. And the reader should know that.

Another thing I got dinged on: Sexual tension. It was there. It was there from page one, in full force and in all its glory. And that was wrong. It’s not wrong for every book, but it was wrong for this one. But I was so focused on showing ‘hey! Teh lovemakings, they wants it!’ that I wasn’t paying attention to the characters and how they would really react in a situation. I was just doing everything I could to show attraction, and not an attraction that was truly unique and authentic to these characters. And as a result, as my editor said, the tension was the same in chapter one as it was in chapter six. And that is not good. It needs to build. Everything needs to build.

Way back (haha) when I was working on the revisions for HIS VIRGIN ACQUISITION, my editor said that a successful MS has that give and take, ebb and flow, pursuit and retreat. That’s not to say they kiss, she pulls away, they kiss she pulls away. It’s more than that. It’s physical and emotional.

When I first started writing I was more concerned with what scene I would write, what my characters would DO next. But what really matters is how each scene helps them in their journey, how it pushes their internal conflict to the crisis point, then, ultimately, to a resolution.

Finally, (and my dear buddy Lisa Hendrix was just helping me with this the other day) there are some really good questions to ask yourself when you’re writing a scene, especially if it’s not going like you want it to! What are you trying to accomplish? Which character is risking the most? Whose POV should it be in? (sometimes a POV switch is the best fix for a scene that wasn’t quite right) and most importantly, How would your characters react to what’s happened? Are they responding in their character, or are they just doing what people in a romance do. (like I did, having my characters be wildly attracted just cause.)

Approaching the MS from that standpoint (at least for me) makes it much easier to keep the characters…in character, which is going to make a much stronger MS that a reader can really connect with.

Let’s Hear it For Dee!!

Dee Tenorio is a super cool lady I’ve had the opportunity of chatting with a bunch on twitter and on the Harlequin subcare board. (which she hosts, which I think is super fantastic and techie of her in ways I cannot begin to understand)

And she also makes book trailers!!! (something else which makes my head ‘splodey.) This is the most excellent trailer for her brand new book with Carina Press, Tempting the Enemy. I think it’s really cool, and I can’t believe she made it. (Dee, teach me your voodoo computer magic!)

So, check her book out, and check the cook trailer out! It’s definitely appealing to me. Every so often I get the itch to grab a paranormal…(Twilight was my gateway drug! :X ) and I think I definitely need to grab this one…

Werewolves!

Surrender To The Shiny

I did it. I was seduced by the shiny. I just ordered an iPad, a handy case and a blue tooth keyboard. I want it for the battery life, the portability and…and…it’s SO SHINY.

I’ve tested it a bit, both in store and by taking advantage of my friend and fellow writer Lisa Hendrix, and I’m really satisfied that it will do what I want it too. Which is basically be an alternative to a netbook or a laptop.

I have big plans for it, and I’ll blog more about it when Teh Shiny arrives in the mail. (BTW, no one will leave the house until it arrives. I has to be signed for. We’re all stuck here, signing hands at the ready for the foreseeable future).

Biggest thing, I needed it to be practical for writing. I love the blue tooth keyboard. It’s extremely comfortable to use and it can be pretty far away from the iPad, you know, if you want it to be for some reason. 😛

I also like some of the productivity apps, like evernote, which lets you compile screen shots of websites, photos you took, notes you took, yada yada yada, all in one place. And Corkulous looks like lots of fun. A virtual corkboard for me to pin photos of my heroes and their gorgeous houses.

Anyway, as I said, I will blog about how it holds up as a writing device and how very, very shiny it really is, when it comes in the mail. Except squeeing. Lots of it.

Confidence

A funny thing, confidence. You have to have a measure of it to submit. Heck, you have to have a measure of it to sit down and write a book in the first place. But the thing about confidence (for me at least) is that it’s a fleeting thing, and easily upset.

I’ve been told several times (by my parents, husband, editor) that I need more confidence. A funny thing, again, since I’ve always considered myself a confident person. I’m outgoing, I can talk for seven or eight people. But, there are plenty of areas I lack confidence. Oh, and I lack it spectacularly sometimes.

I can easily doubt every word that goes down on the page while I’m writing, and then do it again as I revise. And it’s to the detriment of my writing. Because when I can just forget about what others might be expecting and just write. Trust what I feel, and my inclinations, then it’s usually better. Of course I have to think about what I’ve learned, since I have this strong inclination to move my poor reader through several conversations and, sometimes, several countries in the first few chapters to the detriment of my character development.

I guess it’s that happy medium that Jackie A was talking about. Yes, you have to keep in mind what you’ve learned. Yes, you can’t be so confident you can’t see the mistakes you’ve made and correct them. But you also have to trust your instincts and be you, and be confident in what you bring to your writing, the thing that makes you unique, so that you can stand out. (in a good way, not in a kid throwing a tantrum in the supermarket way)

So, I’m off to search for my confidence and try to take my own advice as I write about The Land Stud. *g* I have to follow someone’s instincts…might as well be mine.

Of course, there’s also overconfidence…which you have to watch out for.

Also, come and see Ms. Jilly Aston over on the Seven Sassy Sisters blog as she discusses winning the MH portion of the M&B comp, chimpanzees and George Clooney.

You Have To Be Published To Get Published…(And Other Things I Hear That Make My Head Explode)

I wanted to write this post because in my travels around Teh Interwebz I have seen a lot of disenchantment with the publishing industry. It’s all very rage against the machine. Fight that man. I see a lot of ‘it’s not fair…I don’t live in New York and I don’t have an Uncle in publishing’ *snivel* or ‘you have to be published to get an agent and you have to have an agent to get published and you have to be published to get published’ *snivel snivel*

Okay, a little sniveling is both normal and acceptable. This is a tough, extremely competitive business. It’s about more than talent, there’s the right book at the right time factor, the right editor, the right agent if you have one, divine intervention. There’s just a lot of factors.

But it’s not impossible. And every time I see one of those posts I long to respond with my personal story, but that’s not the time or place. But this is. 😀

I submitted through slush with zip, zero and no inside contacts. I had no agent. (This, admittedly, worked because I was submitting to a publisher who takes unagented submissions…but I knew that. It was perfect for me.) I do not live in New York. I do not smoke cigars in a Manhattan men’s club and share saucy anecdotes over brandy and moustaches whilst my manuscript gets reviewed by my fellow fat cats.

Why am I repeating this? Because I think it’s important to know. It is possible to go from slush to sold. It is possible to be an unknown from a rural part of the US that your editor is…well…unfamiliar with.

I find a lot of people who complain on those boards so loudly and…snivelously…are the kind who tout how amazing they are. So clearly, it’s not them, it’s the industry. *Maisey’s head explodes*

I’m willing to concede that it’s possible that really amazing, marketable books that would have been bestsellers get passed over. Maybe. It’s possible. But the vast majority of the time, that’s just not true. And it’s not even to say what these people are writing isn’t good, but when a rejection comes you have to be willing to learn from it, not just get mad at it. Writing is a learning process. I’ve made sales now, but I’m in no way “there”. I’m still learning and I’m still getting better. (This is something I have to remember…just in case I experience rapid ego growth…LOL)

The thing is though, a lot of these people who are so angry because they can’t make it, don’t realize that what they have just isn’t there yet. It might even be close, but they get so upset and so offended that people don’t see what they do, that the genius has been missed, they can’t concede that they need to improve.

So here’s the deal: It’s possible, but you have to submit. You have to be willing to revise. Sometimes you have to accept that an MS isn’t ready for primetime and move onto the next project. Don’t write editors and agents nasty letters. Don’t post rude things on blogs. Keep writing, keep getting better. Submit. Write and submit some more. Because you can do it. It’s not a closed club. It’s not only for the good ol’ boys and their buddies.

Really, I wanted to write this post to encourage you. Because you can’t change the fact that you don’t have a great aunt at accounts payable at Random House, or whatever connection you’re supposed to need, but you can work on your craft. You can keep going. You can have the dream.

The moral of the story? You don’t have to be published to get published.

Keep on keepin’ on, my friends. 😉

Back to the Drawing Board…

Well, not completely, but back a chapter. I thought I new just what I was going to do with the Land Stud, but sadly, I was making him seem a bit morally questionable. And he’s better than that! He does not deserve me besmirching his character.

Let me walk you through how I analyzed this, and why I (or really, my characters) ultimately decided to go in another direction:

Option 1: Accomplished my goal of forcing them together, but did cause question as to my hero’s morals. Also, my heroine got to stay in her ‘business is my life’ mode, which is great, and it’s very her, but I think this is the point where we see more from her. She’s more than just her ambition. Who is she when she’s at home and she’s by herself and there is no business matter at hand? That’s important, and the reader needs to see some of that, otherwise I think she’ll come off as being a bit cold!

So then I thought of option 2: also accomplishes the goal of proximity but, makes my hero look morally shiny, gives him a chance to have some justified, alphafied raginess at the media. Also, forces my heroine to think beyond strictly business and gives us a window into who she is.

Ultimately, this small thing doesn’t change the whole trajectory. But SO much more can be revealed about the characters in this if I go option 2. And I think we should always go with the option that does the most for character!

*sigh* *delete delete delete delete delete delete delete*

Onward and upward, and here’s to a stronger MS!

Orlando, Baby!!

I have booked my flight and it is now official, and I am going to RWA!! I’m so excited! I really hadn’t imagined getting to do this so soon. I am a heathen (in a very loose sense of the word) and I just joined RWA earlier this month and I’ve never been to a conference before.

My editor will be there, which is awesome. And I am absolutely giddy over the people who have invited me to lunches and dinners. This, to me, is bigger than if the cast of Twilight asked me to hang out. I’m a reading nerd, more specifically, a romance nerd, and this is where my fangirl comes out. I promise, I will behave when I meet everyone in person. 🙂

Sooo…who all gets to go to RWA this year? 😀

And, for your entertainment, Jackie Ashenden will be introducing herself (and possibly Hoo, the blue octopus…if you’re lucky) on the Seven Sassy Sisters blog!

Also…this is my new wall art. How cool am I??

The Sisters Are Coming…

Some of you have heard our story…we met on the I Heart Presents blog after the Feel the Heat comp. We started commenting back and forth to each other and we just…clicked.

Since then we’re had an online critique group that has provided not only amazing advice on writing, but great support as well.

And now the Seven Sassy Sisters are starting a blog! (step two in our Evil Plan To Take Over The World…erm…I mean…it’s for philanthropic purposes…we promise.)

We’re published, unpublished, submitting again, submitting for the first time, contest winner, contest runner up. Modern Heat, Presents, single title, Superromance, Sweet Romance and Blaze (and those last two are the same person…) and we’re going to be talking about our experiences in writing, life and, very possibly, anything and everything that falls in between. With a dose of sass and humor.

The blog launches tomorrow! 5/14/2010

Hope to see you there!

Life After The Call

This blog post was requested by the very lovely Joanne Pibworth, and it was a really good idea. She asked me what life in general was like after The Call. And there’s a lot to write about on the subject, lemme tell ya! So I’ll try to cover it all, and if you have any more questions, I will gladly answer them in the comments section.

As far as writing goes…well, remember those wait times? Yeah…what wait times?? Okay, so we still have to wait for things sometimes, but, and okay, my ed is possibly some kind of Highlander and this may not be normal, but she read and critiqued my last full MS in FOUR DAYS. Yeah.

There are deadlines. Yes, my friends, deadlines. And if you’re working off a multi-book contract, deadlines for the whole year, all mapped out for you. Proposal deadlines, full MS deadlines, revisions deadlines. Deadlines. I like a deadline personally, lights a fire under me, so this is all fine with me.

Another thing that changes is the relationship with your ed. You get to hear from them a lot more (sometimes more than once a day) and talk to them on the phone and bounce ideas off of them. I like that a lot.

For the first few days after getting The Call, every time I came home I had a hundred emails (granted my website, facebook and crit group all link to my email, but still) That was when I got a BlackBerry. (welcome to the modern era, Maisey!) I was suddenly getting messages from authors that made me want to scream like a fangirl. (Kate Walker! Sharon Kendrick! Helen Bianchin!)

And this is all wonderful…wonderful stuff.

But then, my dear friends, there’s…the people in real life. One of the most common responses I get when I say I have a book coming out is: Oh! Who printed it for you. Followed closely by: How much did that cost you? And my all time favorite: when you get your copies you should give me one! I’ll totally read it! ( :-/ <—- me.)

But, even if I wants to get shnappy about it, I don’t. It’s really not their fault they’re the fortieth person to say that to me this week. But I do get ranty about it in the privacy of my home…and now my website.

I did, and this was the coolest thing, end up having a really cool moment. I was buying some specialty pasta from our local mercantile and the woman working there asked me what it was for. I told her it was for a writer’s luncheon and that I was doing an Italian theme to go with my book. She asked about the book and I explained that I write romance for Harlequin. And she screamed. And said “OMG!! I’m meeting someone famous!!” I think I turned ten shades of bright red on that one. But THAT was pretty cool.

There’s also publicity, which I hadn’t ever really thought about. But I had an interview with The Guardian, then there’s the guest blogging, (seeing my post on ihearts was a very big moment for me. Made me feel very much like it was real) and recently, I got to do a written interview for the magazine that Harlequin sends out to UK book club members.

One great thing is being able to say “I’m a writer” and not have people look at me like…”yeah…you and everyone.” Well, okay, they still do that, but usually when I explain they start to believe me.

There’s pressure, how can there not be? You want things done and done right and on time, and that crunch can get to you sometimes. The One Book Wonder doubt was the hardest thing for me. I sold one book…but could I sell two? I feel better now that that hurdle’s out of the way. Although, the doubt crows and I still do coffee together every so often. More often than I would like.

One thing that always gets me is the fact that I get paid to do something I love. That people are going to pay to read my stories, stories that become so personal to you, which all you writers know. That’s really kind of humbling. It’s the thing that makes me want to write each book better than the last one.

For me, personally, this whole experience is like Christmas morning that never ends. And I mean that in a good way. I look forward to Mondays. I love hearing from my editor, even getting revisions. I love getting titles and release dates, and seeing my beautiful, first cover, was one of the most amazing feelings ever.

Yes, the work keeps on after you get published. It intensifies. But if you love it, it’s wonderful. And I love it.

His Virgin Acquisition…Covers!

Yay! I got my very first covers today!! And I have cover copy…

Daring proposal…

When Elaine gives her business presentation to Marco De Luca she thinks she can be cool, calm and collected. She’s wrong! The fierce tycoon can see straight through her shapeless suits and scraped-back hair to get right under her skin…

Ruthless awakening!

She may have proposed marriage as the perfect business arrangement, but suddenly Elaine’s not quite so confident. Marco’s made it clear that he’s no modern man- if he takes a wife, he wants a ravishing beauty by his side, obedient and willing, day…and night!

And here’s the NA Larger Print version of the cover…(the NA version will be the same, without larger print written on it)

Hero Love

I was having a little bit of trouble finding all the love for my hero. I’m coming off of a very strong, stoic, manly scarred up hero (my fave) and moving to a man who’s just…well he’s great, but he doesn’t have that same level of intensity, but good grief, The Sheikh had the corner market on intensity. And I hadn’t quite found that love for my new hero as a result. (He who shall henceforth be known as The Land Stud *compliments of Pamela Cayne*)

But I have it now. And it came upon me suddenly. Why? I suddenly got a firm image of him. Allow me to share:

You love him too now, don’t you? Yeah, that’s what I thought.

Oh, also, this image has nothing to do with my hero per se, but it is another shot of Mr.Whitfield….Shameless? Maybe. I don’t care. 

I Do Believe In Romance…I Do! I Do!

Tough to do sometimes in this day and age. Tiger. Jesse. And now, David Boreanaz, who, I admit, I had a bit of a soft spot for. (I don’t now!) All this infidelity in the news gets me down sometimes. What happened to marriage vows? What’s the point of even being married if you aren’t going to honor them? Is romance, commitment, real love, dead?

(It ticks me off, when the people in these situations claim to love their wives. Um…not more than you love yourself. Anyway…moving on.)

It’s not dead. I believe in romance. I believe in real, lasting love. I don’t believe it’s always easy, but I believe it exists.

It’s there. I saw it just a few days ago when I watched an elderly couple make their own dance floor at a restaurant we were in last week, because their song was on. No one else was dancing, but they did, and you could see in how they held each other, how they looked at each other, how much love was between them.

It’s when my husband tells me I’m beautiful every day, (and he does) even when I’m barefoot, nine months pregnant and in the kitchen, or when I’m still carrying around 20lbs of baby weight after having the baby, or if I’m wearing his sweats. It’s when he offers to change one of the kids’s diapers for me so I don’t have to do it.

It’s in the small things. In a couple’s commitment to each other. Even with all of the crud in the news, I still believe in it. And that’s why I write about it. Yes, in my books, love and romance come with some grand gestures. There are designer gowns and private islands, but I also like to add those small moments. Like when a couple really tries to understand each other, even though they come from different places, different perspectives. Or when they have one of those universal man/woman arguments we all have, but they’re really trying to communicate, even if it’s hard.

Romance novels have, many a times, been accused of giving women an unrealistic notion of romance (first of all, thanks for giving us women folks’ intelligence so much credit…and as a counter argument, I say action movies give men an unrealistic expectation of experiencing a car chase) but I don’t believe that’s true. Sure, most of us won’t get swept off of our feet by a Mediterranean billionaire (but it COULD happen…) but we can at least agree on this:

Romance novels show two people who overcome their differences, and usually have to change their expectations, to find love. They show commitment, they show passion, they show love. I don’t think that’s unrealistic at all.

In fact, I think it’s darn reasonable.

So here’s to love. Fidelity. Romance. Passion. I believe it’s possible to have those things. The Tigers of the world won’t change my mind about that. The real issue is, he’s just not hero material. And there are plenty of men out there (and women!) who are. They just won’t make headline news for staying faithful and loving for the last 35 years. But they exist. And so does romance.

Clap your hands if you believe!

Sheikh! (The Musical)

Okay, not really, but I thought since revisions got their own musical, the sheikh should too, since he was the star of that musical. Yes, I’m sleep deprived, why do you ask? Ahem.

So, my editor, who is apparently a genius and also some sort of Highlander, got back to me about my dear tortured sheikh today…and she was really pleased with what I’ve done! One tweak to do and he’s pretty much gold and THAT makes everything worth it. Why? Because it’s SO MUCH better now.

This story was always there, but it took digging to get there. I had the structure of it, I had the characters, but it took some serious work to really get there and really go as deep as I could with it. It was complicated, it was tricky, but it was doable. And while I didn’t see everything that I hadn’t done, and everything I could do, she did. Getting it there was still up to me, but it took that extra, very well-trained, pair of eyes to help me see it all.

Here’s what I really have to work on, what I still need to be mindful of: Don’t let the plot make the characters do things they wouldn’t. (it makes it much more interesting if they’re kicking and screaming to whole way anyway) Pacing. I tend to think of keeping the pace up as moving the characters from one place to the next. Like, really fast. This, however, hampers the character development, and the reader is left with lots of physical action, but nothing real of the characters to latch onto.

Above all, I have to remind myself it’s character, character, character. What the reader needs is to be able to really feel connected to those characters. As quickly as possible. I think a fabulous example of that is in Kathleen O’Reilly’s Sex, Straight Up. (don’t let the title fool you, this is a seriously well-written, deeply emotional book) The first two pages gives you so much of the hero, where he’s been, where he’s at now, where he’s going, and the struggle in him to stop the direction his life is taking. Two pages in, I’m shedding tears for this man I’ve just met, and THAT is an amazing skill. One that I’m still trying to really grasp onto.

So, yet again, I say, no matter how painful (and a 5 page, yeah, 5 page) revision letter is somewhat painful, no matter how hard, it’s worth it. I guess the moral of the story is, if you don’t suffer, how will you ever make your characters suffer enough? It’s the key to the HEA. Theirs and yours.

The Sheikh, Polishing, New Ideas and Shoes

And maybe we’ll even talk about more than that. I don’t know, I’m winging it today. *g*

I have sent the sheikh, and in the grand tradition of Ms. Jackie Ashenden, I am trying to NTAI. And I hear, if you’re going to NTAI, you need shoes. So I bought shoes. Online. And I hope they fit. As I mentioned a couple of posts back, I’m only 5’7, but my feet think I’m 5’11 and have grown to an appropriate size. So I’m banking on the fact that I can cram my feet into these tens. But anyway…

I’ve got a germ of a new idea with a heroine who is…well she is something very different from the heroines I usually do. She’s beautiful, she knows it, she works it. She has great confidence in that beauty and it’s her shield between herself and the world. She knows that it makes her intimidating, a force to be reckoned with, and she embraces it. Once I hit that idea I knew she needed to be ruffled. She’s a perfectionist with the best manicure and her roots never show, and she needs a hero who can really shake up her life and make her face the things she’s hiding beneath that glossy outer layer.

Fortunately, I’ve had a taker. He thinks he knows just how to handle her, and I’m more than willing to let him have at it. So we’ll see what unfolds…

And then, there’s a MS I wrote right before I got The Call that I’m thinking I might polish up. It’s very close to my heart and I’m not entirely sure why, but it is. So I’m nervous about. It’s one thing to send a project that you’ve gained a little distance from, quite another to show one you feel wrapped up in still. Makes you feel like you might be exposing yourself and that can be tough.

But, with the encouragement of my CPs I am moving forward with polishing it.

I have a question for all of you: Do you prefer a darker back story? Or does it bum you out?

No Pain, No Gain

Ah, The Sheikh. I love him. I love the MS. But I have bled for it. This is the hardest I have ever worked on a MS and I hope that it shows. I think it does. It was a very tricky premise, typical in some ways, but totally, totally non-typical in others.

So what have I learned through all of this? It’s been huge. I’ve learned character development, I’ve learned more about conflict, character growth…it’s just been incredibly valuable…painful, but valuable.

And what advice can I pass on?

Don’t be afraid to get in there and get dirty. Tear the MS apart if you have to. Drag your characters through purgatory, do what you have to do to make the best MS that you are capable of, and then stretch yourself farther. We can always go farther, we can always improve, and each thing you write should be better than the last.

And really, I may not have hit the mark dead on. I hope I have. I feel I have, but we’ll see. But I can’t regret what I went through to get this MS finished.

Writing is work. Fun work, the best work ever, but work. Like an athlete (she says with a touch of irony since she can’t walk across flat surfaces without falling on her face…) if you don’t train, if you don’t push harder, farther, if you don’t make yourself stronger, you won’t win.

That’s why we have to be willing to take criticism and apply it, that’s why we have to be willing to push. So we can be better.

I like to say, in writing there’s no room for false modesty or a big ego.

So, onward! Upward! Train hard. Push yourself. See what you’re capable of. You might surprise yourself. I think I did. I think I’ve emerged from this a much better writer. And that, in the words of the venerable Martha Stewart, is a good thing.

Oh, and also, I have to share this. My heroine from the Sheikh is a European princess and she is supposed to marry the emir of an North African, largely Arabic, nation. I wanted her wedding gown to be something a Westernized girl would love, and could wear, to her culturally diverse wedding…and I found this dress…and I love it. And I wantsss it. Precioussss.

Although, my heroine is not blonde. She is Mediterranean. Dark hair, olive skin. Just though it was important so you didn’t get the wrong visual. 😀

Rose City Romance Writers

Over the weekend I got the very fun opportunity to go up to Portland and attend the Rose City Romance Writers luncheon. It was the very first conference I have ever attended and it was awesome! I had never met any other Harlequin authors in person, and I definitely met my share at the luncheon.

I was fortunate enough to share a table with Lucy Monroe, who is absolutely one of the sweetest ladies you’ll ever meet. It was great to talk with her about some of the workings of the UK office and her take on multi book contracts and all kinds of blah blah blah! Plus, it was especially thrilling for me since her book The Rancher’s Rules was one of the books that really made me feel like *I* could write Presents. It’s a wonderful book and it’s set in Oregon, which really bolstered my confidence, feeling like a girl from this lovely state who hasn’t done very much (er…any) traveling could just might be able to write one of those glamorous, passionate books. (so thanks for that, Lucy!)

Jane Porter was the key note speaker and she’s beyond inspiring. She was walking about the importance of sharing our success with others, because that’s the only way it really means anything. I so agree with her, and it’s great to meet someone who’s been so successful and is still so accessible and humble and just easy to talk to. I can’t say enough good things about her.

Really though, everyone I met there was so sweet and willing to offer advice and I so greatly appreciated everyone really treating me like a friend.

Other wonderful authors who attended (and I’ve forgotten two people’s names who were there and were so nice and write for Super and Nocturne and I feel terrible about it…ugh. Bad with names…and sleep deprived. But please know I didn’t forget YOU and that I so appreciated my conversations with both of you!) were Lisa Hendrix, who is a friend of mine already and it was great to see her there, even if she was drooling all over my husband…and Delilah Marvelle who writes seriously sexy, racy Historicals, Courtney Milan who was a book and novella out with HQN and has been getting RAVE reviews around the net, Meljean Brook, who looks sweet but writes books with the word demon in the title *g*, and Jenna Bayley-Burke, who has been there for me via email, offering lots of advice and just good chatting since I got The Call.

Anyway, I had an absolute blast and thanks again to Lucy, Jane and everyone else who welcomed me so sweetly! I am so truly blessed to be a part of this industry.

Oh, and before anyone asks. I’m 5’7. I’m not THAT tall…other people are petite…and I am not. *vbg*

His Virgin Acquisition Update

Good news for my North Americans in the house…

His Virgin Acquisition will be available in October! And that will be September if you order from www.eharlequin.com!

Also, His Virgin Acquisition is now available for pre-order on Amazon!

And…for your entertainment…

Shopping Spree!!

No, I didn’t have one. I window shopped at a verrrry lovely mall this weekend though, when I (and my family!) drove up to Portland this weekend for the Rose City Romance Writers luncheon. I got to meet all sorts of lovely people including Jane Porter, Lucy Monroe, Courtney Milan and Delilah Marvelle. And I will have more on that when I get all my pics together…hehehe…so you have to wait until then!

But I wrote this really fun shopping scene in my WIP that takes place at an upscale department store in Paris, and I couldn’t resist taking some fun pics of the mall I was at and imagining myself in my heroine’s fabulous designer shoes.

The necklaces are Swarovski Crystals and the one that looks a little like a flower has a black pearl hidden in the center, which I thought would be a perfect piece of unique jewelry for a Presents heroine. And of course, boots with zipper detail, which I know my heroine would choose, but my sheikh hero would fine a bit silly. (she would buy them anyway, woman of independent means that she is. Well…independent of the hero anyway)

Feeling The Feelings

As you regular folks know, I am knee deep in revisions (aka, sheikh torture) for The Sheikh’s Forbidden Princess (TBC). And after a bit of a slow start, the ball is now rolling…downhill…at a pretty good clip. Which makes me very happy because, obviously, I’m happier and more confident when the writing is flowing, rather than when I’m essentially squeezing water out of a rock.

But even better than it going quickly and smoothly, I’m starting to really connect to the reworking of this MS in an emotional sense. In fact, in two recent scenes, I teared up a little bit in the middle of things because I just *felt* it. In the first, my heroine believes she’s never going to see the hero again, and in the second, well, it’s when they make love for the first time. The stakes are high, the emotions are high, and I just…well, I got misty.

Does that ever happen to you? Are there moments in your writing when your heart pounds faster because the hero’s just walked in? Or because he’s just made you so ANGRY!! (as those alpha men can do!) And who do you connect with more? Your hero, or your heroine. Oddly, I find I really relate to my heroes. The fact that I seem to connect more with ruthless, billionaire alpha tycoon playboys than with the heroines is a mildly disturbing commentary on my psyche but…hey. No judgement here.

And, also, I would like to leave this video, which was the soundtrack to my love scene. Because…well…it was a desert rainstorm. 😀

Ladies and Gentlemen…Danger Baby

This is Danger Baby. I don’t really have to explain the name, do I?