Changes #amwriting #urbanfantasy #paranormal

Recently, I've been mentioning that the Sons of Navarus would be going through some changes. I haven't really discussed them completely anywhere because I just don't do that. I don't announce everything that's going on with me. It's not my style. However, since I've had a number of people ask me, I figured I'd explain.

In some stories of mine, I've struggled with the need for a HEA. Yes, I know that's a requirement in the romance genre (no matter how much I think it's unnecessary). My book Destiny Redeemed has a HEA, despite the fact that it was a chore to finish the book that way. Amon simply isn't a man who would get a happy ending. I adore the character, but he just wouldn't. Fate has a nasty way of making you pay, and after years of being a bad man (no matter how sexy he is), he just wouldn't be given a free pass with a woman like Thea.

But because it's a paranormal romance, that's the way it has to be.

That was the first time as an author I chafed at the restrictions of the romance genre. In many ways, romance writing makes things easy for me. In stories such as Masquerade, I feel justified in giving the characters a happy ending. Nikolai and Annelisa deserve to be happy with one another. The story didn't reveal any true reason why they shouldn't, so an HEA fits well.

Then I began writing the Sons of Navarus series and that issue with the HEA came back again. From the first book, the constraints of the genre were pressing down on me. I adore Vasilije (almost as much as I adore Amon who came before him), but it was a stretch to create an HEA at the end of Blood Avenged. And it isn't because Sasa isn't the kind of woman he'd go for. No. She's exactly the type he'd want. Despite the belief that strength means mouthiness or aggressiveness, Sasa is strong. A male like Vasilije brings that strength out in a female like her. And she brings out the Alpha in him. The reason an HEA is a difficult fit for them is because as a dominant male, he'd likely do things that would put a strain on the relationship.

You see, the Sons refused to just live happily ever after. They keep living and inevitably the traits that make them who they are complicate things.

The story of the Sons has never been just romantic. I knew that when I began writing the series. By the second book, the Prophecy of Idolas and the civil war with the Archons began encroaching on the romantic storyline. Blood Betrayed worked well because the story of Saint and Solenne wasn't just a love story but one about the dynamic between two brothers and the woman who came between them. The reference to betrayal in the title is as much about what Teagan did to Saint as what Solenne did.

But then came Blood Spirit.  I love that book, but for all the reasons that reviewers sometimes struggle with it. It's got a ton of non-romantic storyline in it. The Archons are on the rise, Ramiel and Thane (along with Kali) are figuring out more about the Prophecy of Idolas, and Vasilije is dealing with a trauma that isn't easily soothed with just romance and sex. Running alongside that is the romance between Terek and Ilona. Terek is a complicated male--a warrior for his kind, a monk in his human life, a vampire sire who has worked hard to turn as many vampires as possible to ensure the continuation of his race. But he has some complicated issues that I only got to dance around because the book was technically considered romance.

And that's the crux of the problem. Romance requires me to simplify things I want to explore. This became all too clear as I began to write Blood Prophecy and make decisions on the series arc for the rest of the books. By the middle of Ramiel's book, I was stuck. What I had planned for the story wasn't going to work with the expectations of romance readers.

So I began to flesh out some things for future stories in the series, hoping that this would fix the logjam in my mind, but that only made it more obvious that it was time to leave paranormal romance behind. By the time I'd decided what Sion's background was, I'd already closed the door to paranormal romance for this series.

But I didn't know what to do. I considered discontinuing the series entirely, but you know what? This is a damn good story and I enjoy writing it. That meant I was going to have to restructure the series to work differently.

It's been a labor of love doing just that. Because I'm not constrained by the need for an HEA, I can do things that work more organically. Vasilije and Sasa will still begin the series, and Saint and Solenne's story will still figure prominently (and will again be important because of events that are about to occur with the Archon, Marc Verrater). Will there be romance and sex? Yes, but they won't be the focus. The focus will be the Sons and a new character coming in soon and their fight against the Archons for control of the vampire world.

For fans of the series who wonder about Ramiel's story, I am still writing it but that will appear in a different way than I first intended. Will he still have a love interest? Yes, he will. It's always been an integral part of the series storyline, but it won't be the only focus of his storyline. He's much more than just a sexy male vampire, and now I can let him be himself in the story.

I hope readers will continue to follow the Sons series. While I do write a pretty hot sex scene (and will continue to do so), the romance and sex were never all there was to love about the Sons and their books. In the end, it's always been the story that's the great part--the story of eight warriors descended from the gods who must defend their world from those who seek to enslave all vampires. I don't know how it will be characterized. A few fellow authors tell me it has always been more urban fantasy/paranormal fiction than paranormal romance because there's so much non-romance storyline, so maybe that's what the Sons series will be. I don't know. What I do know is that as an author, I need to be true to myself and true to the story I want to write. So that's what I'm doing, and I've never been happier.

#WIP Wednesday #amwriting #erotic

Happy Wednesday and the beginning of a new month! August is always a little less than thrilling for me since that means I'll be going back to the day job soon. Yeah, I know. No tears for person who gets the summer off. I feel that. :)  But August 1 means the summer is almost over.

July was the best month of sales for me so far in my career, so I'm sorry to see that month go. The Sons of Navarus series had a stellar month, so things are looking good for Terek as he gets set to make his appearance on September 17.

As for WIP, there are two on my plate: the 4th book in the Sons series, Blood Prophecy, and the Hades short I'm writing for a free read for my website. Even though I've had so many people ask me if I plan to make Hades the star of a new series, the answer is no. At this time, he's just a character who will show up in the Sons series soon.  As the father of one of the first vampires, it was inevitable he'd come on the scene, but I have no plans for even a full length book for him. I can say, though, that the story on my website will be much hotter than the one that will appear in the September issue of BTS eMag. ;) (BTW, for a look at the current issue of that great magazine, scroll down to the bottom of this page.)

Blood Prophecy will include some pretty big developments in the series' story arc, so I'm taking it nice and slow with this one. My former Visigoth turned vampire has been very willing, despite his usual surly attitude, so the writing has been good.

I've also been playing around with Blood Spirit's book trailer for a few days. I have the music and here are some of the images I'm considering working in:

And finally, here is the banner the wonderful Talina made for the release of Blood Spirit:

My editor believes she'll have the entire book back to me soon, so the countdown begins. 48 days until Blood Spirit's release!

Have a great Wednesday!

Working Weekend #amwriting #amediting

Monday again, eh? I guess it's best we take the advice of a fortune cookie I once got:  Any day above ground is a good one. (That's better than the one my son got one time: Oops. Wrong cookie.)

I spent my weekend working on Ramiel's story (Blood Prophecy) and a blurb for the series. If any of you are aspiring authors, let me give you this advice: blurbs can be a huge drag. I don't usually have a terrible time with them for individual books, but for an entire series, it took an entire day of adding, deleting, walking away, and repeating all those steps over and over before I got one I liked for the Sons series. In the end, this is the blurb I stuck with:

Fulfillment of an ancient prophecy leads to vampire civil war. As the eight Sons of Navarus battle to save their world, each Son will find the one thing worth dying for: love. Follow the Sons of Navarus series and fall in love with these sexy Alpha heroes, their strong heroines, and an epic story of passion, treachery, and survival.

Thanks to Dawn, Julie, and Gayle from my street team and my editor for giving me some great direction.

As for Ramiel, I posted on FB that I was loving the way this story was going and I am. As a committed plotter, I know what's set to happen, but the tone and word choice aren't planned and far more organic. Ramiel has so much anger, which makes the tone so markedly different from Terek's and even Saint's.  As I write his story, I'm in a very different mindset than I was from Terek's.

My editor has been sending short messages about Terek's book all weekend. One of the things she noticed is how different the tone is from Saint's. You see, Saint fought against everyone (Vasilije, Solenne, the past...) and the tone of his book reflects that. But Terek is a very different kind of hero from Saint and even Vasilije, so his book has an entirely different feel to it. He doesn't fight. Well, that's not exactly true. He doesn't fight often. Terek is far more quietly confident than Saint or Vasilije. It comes from being a vampire longer, but it's also his natural personality. He's strong but quiet, so while he's not the loudest or brashest of the Sons, when he's in a scene, he's a very strong presence. I didn't characterize him with huge actions, but instead the key to understanding his character is through things such as a touch or the way he words his answers.

It's very important to me that each Son has a unique style and tone, so hearing from my editor that I've succeeded with Terek's book put a huge smile on my face. I don't think I've ever worked as hard with a character as I did with him.

And one of her notes couldn't have been truer: Each word seems important, as if the reader would miss something if they skimmed.

I'm very rarely accused of going on too long. LOL  I don't tend to repeat things a lot, and I appreciate the economy of words. I choose them very carefully in each story (that's the tone thing again), so I force each word to work hard. She jokes that when she begins the edit of my books, she undoubtedly finds it difficult to cut but always finds more where she thinks I should add.

Hope your weekend was a good one and here's to a wonderful week!

The Writing Begins In Earnest #amwriting

I was battling some kind of crazy sickness at the end of last week, so I didn't do Paranormal Romance Friday. Now I'm back and ready to go. :) I had planned on beginning Blood Prophecy at least a week ago, but I wasn't there, even before the two lost days from whatever that was. I have it plotted out, but that feeling I have when I'm ready to begin a book just wasn't there.

Well, it's there now. I woke up this morning from a very vivid dream about Ramiel and that's my sign that it's time. Anyone who knows me would tell you that I'm more logic than anything else, but in my writing, I wait for the sign.  It could be called the Muse, I guess. I call it that sometimes, but unlike other authors, it isn't a he or she. It's just a feeling that I should be writing.

Ramiel's book will be a turning point in the series, so that might have been the reason my brain was spending more time than I'd planned mulling it over. Also, each Son is different, so each book is different. Vasilije is pure sensuality and hedonism. Saint is darkness and brooding. Terek is mystical and seductive yet strong. Since I'm still so close to Terek and Blood Spirit, that might have made getting into Ramiel mode a bit of a challenge. For as much as Terek is a warrior, he was made that and his motivation for fighting comes from what he believes in his heart. Ramiel is the violent Son, and much of who he is comes from that violence that made up his world before he was turned vampire. A Visigoth barbarian in the late Roman Empire, Ramiel was a fighting machine. To be honest, the change from Terek to Ramiel is the most extreme I've done yet in the series.

If you've read the first two books, you know that the tone of each book is a reflection of the Son showcased. Vasilije's is pure pleasure, whereas Saint's is pleasure colored by a brooding about the past. The tone of Blood Spirit is all Terek--seductive, thoughtful, mystical. Although I say the books take a long time to write because I hand write everything, the real reason they take a while is that the tone has to be consistent with the hero. That means I have to be very careful, especially with the words I choose and the way I structure the dialogue. Each Son is different, so each book sounds completely different. To move from the tone I used with Terek to the tone I have to use with Ramiel is a 180 degree change.

But it's time, so writing will begin in earnest.

Typing is done on Blood Spirit, and my initial edits are complete. Now it's off at the editor's for the red pen treatment.  And the release date has been set:  September 17!

I'm off to get the day moving. It's a bit overcast here, so it seems to be a perfect day to write. Hope you have a great one too!

#WIP Wednesday #amwriting #amediting

Happy Wednesday! How is everyone doing today?  It's hot as hell here in Pennsylvania, but in six months it will be just the opposite, so I'm enjoying this heat wave.

I've also been writing and editing, in the air conditioned splendor, of course. :)  The short for BTS emagazine is complete at just about 1K words and titled Forbidden Fruit. I've also finished the expanded version that will appear on my website after the magazine comes out. Hades has been a delicious character to work with, and I'm looking forward to more of him coming up in the Sons books.

Typing and editing continues with Blood Spirit. So far, I'm through to Chapter 17, editing as I go. The plan is for the book to be at the editor for this weekend, and so far, I'm on course to make my goal. I do have to go to Family Night at Boy Scout camp tonight to see my son, so no typing will happen today. Since I loathe typing, you won't find any tears from me, though. LOL 

I'm at Carrie Ann Ryan's blog for Writer Wednesday today talking about Vampire Dreams Revamped and returning to the past every so often. One commenter will win a set of Sons of Navarus bookmarks, so stop by and say hi. :)

Also, I announced this in my FB street team group yesterday, so now today I'm telling the rest of the world. I've been asked to be the featured author at the 2013 Indie Romance Convention that will take place in TN next October. I'm so flattered! I'll be there with other great authors, so if you're a reader or blogger, check out the site and make your plans to attend. It promises to be a fun time!

And yet another announcement--BTS eMag has asked me to be a featured author in their January 2013 issue on indie writers. Again, I'm so flattered!  Writing the short was such a nice honor, but to be asked to be a featured author is really great. Click on over to check out the current issue of the magazine.

It's been quite a week for this indie writer. How has yours been? Have a great Wednesday!

A Mid-July #WIP Wednesday #amwriting

It's another WIP Wednesday here at my blog, so I thought I'd chat a little about the short I'm writing for the September issue of the BTS Magazine. When Myra asked if I'd like to write a short story no more than 1K words for the issue focusing on erotic romance, I said "Sure!" Minutes later, I was sitting in my usual spot where I write with not a thought in my head. Not a very auspicious beginning, to say the least.

You see, 1K is a very short story. It's more like a scene. I had to adjust my thinking to get my head around that first. Then I had to chose a topic. Myra suggested I make it something associated with my Sons series. Since I eat, drink, sleep, and breathe the Sons, I agreed, but because my series is still unfolding, choosing one Son to highlight soon became an issue. So for the last week, I've been mulling over ideas as I finished Blood Spirit and published Vampire Dreams Revamped.

Nothing came to me that I loved a ton until last night. I blame the alcohol. Well, actually, I thank the alcohol. :)  Through the haze of a few beers, I found my way over to Pinterest and began looking at pictures. I should have been writing, but Pinterest was calling me. I guess I should thank Pinterest too since I found my inspiration over there...with the alcohol, of course. (Don't want to slight any of the muses.)

There, in that sea of hot, shirtless men and desserts (I have friends on there who have the most delicious taste in both!) I saw this picture on my mythology board:

Source: sandara.deviantart.com via Gabrielle on Pinterest

The image is of Hades and Persephone. Hades is often seen as an old, shriveled up god stuck in the bowels of the Earth or thought of as the guy in the Clash of The Titans movie (Ralph Fiennes did a great job with him, BTW).  This picture, however, shows a different side of the god of the Underworld and his stolen wife.

The story of Hades and Persephone has always intrigued me. Hades, one of the three ruling males in the Olympians, seems to play the part of aggrieved brother-turned-unhappy-ruler of the realm of the dead.  His brother Zeus tricked him out of his birthright, so while his youngest sibling gets to rule the world and have sex with anyone he chooses, Hades is stuck underground with the dead and no damn woman, goddess or otherwise, wants to hang out there. So he stalks Persephone, the goddess of Spring and other fine, dainty things and grabs her, forcing her to live with him in the Underworld.

Artists have given their take on the abduction of Persephone by Hades (sometimes called the Rape of Persephone), but the most famous is probably this sculpture:

Like his brothers Zeus and Poseidon, Hades is portrayed as virile and pretty well built, actually. If he's not doing it for you, just put your finger over his head. See?  Now he's looking a little better. That big shaggy beard thing doesn't help anyone. And Persephone? Well, let's just say she's not a willing participant in Hades' plan to end his loneliness.

So, with the romantic and classical images in my mind, I began to have ideas about what my short could be about. What if I wrote about Hades? I'd still be writing something concerning my Sons series since Hades is the father of Macaria, the goddess of the blessed death and the mother of the vampire race, and will make his appearance in the storyline soon.

In a flash, I had an idea and had about 300 words written. The short involves Hades but with a different woman. I'm giving him a sensuality that fits in with my Sons series, and his story has a really sexy feel to it. My goal is to stay on the cleaner side of erotic since those are the guidelines for the magazine, but the short will give readers an interesting look at the god of the Underworld and another goddess (who I'll leave as a mystery, for now).

I hope to have the story finished for this weekend so my editor can give it the "red pen" treatment and then it's just a matter of revising and sending it off.  Here's to hoping your week is going well too!

Dear Gabrielle...

Every so often I have someone ask me what advice I'd give aspiring writers. I know they want quick ideas, but what aspiring writers should know is quite involved. I've seen a number of feel-good posts about just wanting to write being enough.  It's not, so here's my contribution to the topic.

So what advice do I have to aspiring writers?

1.  Reading is good, but it's not enough when you only read in one genre. Writers know a lot about a lot of topics because they read voraciously in many areas. Reading romance if you want to be a romance author is a must, of course, because you have to know the structure and rules of your intended genre. For example, romance requires a happily ever after (HEA). If you don't enjoy the HEA but enjoy the other parts of romance, you need to reconsider your potential genre (unless you're Nicholas Sparks and then don't worry--kill off anyone you choose and make that ending as sad as you like). However, if you only read romance, you won't know enough to write romance. It's a paradox, but it's true.

2.  Develop an extensive vocabulary. The above example is a paradox and isn't ironic.  The adjective ironic has been sorely abused (I'm looking at you, Alanis Morissette). Authors know words. Period. They like the dictionary and use it often. If you don't love words or love knowing the tiny shades of difference that occur when you use one word instead of another, you don't want to be a writer. If words and their meanings don't do it for you, writing is only going to be a chore you'll grow to hate.

3.  If you haven't studied literature, take a course. This is the teacher in me coming out, I know, but you can't write well unless you understand the structural underpinnings of a story. The tools of a writer are those concepts you learn about in literature classes:  characterization, conflict, pacing, point of view, denotation and connotation of words (see #2) and a host of other players on the writing stage. Writing a story isn't merely telling a story.  Another paradox, but it's the truth.

4.  Writing is hard. I know it looks easy, but it's not. It's hard, and it's not for everyone. If you didn't enjoy English in high school or college, then writing isn't for you. That stuff was easy. Now you may say you had a boring teacher or the works they chose were boring. Someone who loves to write doesn't say that. We don't love everything we read, but that doesn't mean those books are boring or poorly written. And no teacher, no matter how dry or dreadful, can make literature and writing boring to someone who loves it. Fight this all you want. It's the truth.

5.  Writing is not something that should be done at warp speed. Now I'm sure there will be those who say this sounds a bit hypocritical from someone like me who seems to have releases constantly. I'll concede that I have released a lot in the past year, but I do little else but write when I'm not home schooling my son or working. All that said, good writing takes time. Words must be chosen carefully to convey the exact idea so the reader can see in one or two sentences what may have taken up a flabby paragraph. Conversely, ideas need to be fleshed out and given room to breathe. These things take time. Now you may say, "But I know what I want to say and all I have to do is get it down on paper."  That's not writing a book.  That's talking on paper. There will be people who like that, but that's not storytelling. It's similar to the difference between eating McDonald's and eating a meal at a fine restaurant.

6.  Write what you truly love. Do not follow trends. I know you're thinking, "But hey, I thought I'd make a living at this and that Fifty Shades stuff looks like it's the way to make some good cash." There's money to be made, no doubt, but trends fade, and in the end, it's quite obvious when an author doesn't care for their subject. ALWAYS write what you love.

7.  You cannot edit your own work.  I taught college writing courses for a decade, and I can't edit my own work.  I can edit yours to perfection, but I can't do mine. It's because everyone lives in a world of denial with their own writing. That's not a bad thing, per se. It's just how it is. Remember, you've just spent months with this piece of writing. You've looked at it so often you think you know it, so you won't see the errors. Find a good editor and let them have at it. You're going to be doing a number of drafts too. Nobody's first draft is great. It may be really good, but it's not the best it can be. Hand that baby over to someone who you trust who's edited before and know when you're done editing, that book is going to be so much better than it was.

8.  Once you publish, the real work begins. Let's face it. If you're truly a writer, you love writing, so it isn't work. But promo is. There's nothing I can add about this to help the aspiring writer.  All I can say is learn to put yourself out there but not too much.  It's a fine line you'll know you've crossed when you cross it.  I wish I could help more with this point.

9.  Writing is quite often not very lucrative. If you're thinking you'll be rolling in the money, think again. Some people make enough to live on, but most don't. I guess I should mention here that there's been at least one study that concluded that the average indie author makes just less than $500 a year, although I have to admit I think romance authors do much better than that as indies. Something tells me they weren't strongly represented in that study. However, the reality is this: If you don't love writing for the mere act of writing, you might want to forget pursuing it. There are very few millionaire authors out there.

10.  Finally, reviews are nice when they love you and can hurt when they don't, but at the end of the day, if you wrote a book and made every effort to be the best writer you can be, then don't bother with what others say. There are many authors who don't read reviews. I only read the ones from people I've come to respect as readers. In this day and age, most reviews are merely opinion anyway (I love this, I hate this, I think this was good...). Take the ones that discuss real issues in writing as useful as you work on being the best writer you can be and leave the opinion for others. Reviews are meant for readers, not writers.

In the end, I don't know if writing is something one must do, like breathing. I'm not one of those people who writes because of voices in my head or a destiny to tell stories about incredibly hot men. LOL I write because I enjoy it and want to share stories with others. It's that simple.  Do I make enough money to live on? Not yet. Will I ever? I don't know. But I didn't get into this thinking I was going to get rich or famous.  I write because I love words and ideas, characters and plot lines, and when they come together in that sweet spot that finally makes a finished book, it's quite magical.

A Great First Year

One year ago today I published Vampire Dreams. I sold 150 copies of Vampire Dreams that first month.  How far away that seems.  That little book, which in all honesty was a reaction to something I was dealing with professionally at the time, has alone sold over 14,000 copies to date and has consistently been an Amazon bestseller since last July. 

Vampire Dreams started something for me that exploded throughout the year.  In late June, Stolen Destiny was published by Siren Publishing. In July, I released Love's Master, the second novella in the Victorian Erotic Romance Trilogy.  In August, I released Masquerade, the third in the trilogy.  In October, I released Destiny Redeemed, a sequel to Stolen Destiny.  And then in December, I released the first book in the Sons of Navarus series, Blood Avenged. And just last week, I released the second book in the Sons series, Blood Betrayed. And along the way I compiled the three novellas into a one volume book.  Seven books and one compilation.  It's been a busy year.

It's been such a terrific year too.  I began this publishing journey with an epub but soon found that indie was the way for me.  It's not just that I know what I'm selling and where I'm selling.  It's the feeling that I get when I know that from start to finish, from the first word through the cover art, and to the last edit that I was in charge of producing a book that is the best it can be.

A lot has changed in the past year.  I went from having one small novella to eight books for sale.  I have swag--me! I have a street team of great people who want to tell the world about my books.  That's something I'd never imagined at this time last year.  My books have been mentioned in national magazines and local newspapers and in places around the world I only dream of visiting some day (when I get to do this writing thing full time and leave the day job behind!). I've got a FB page, a FB fan page, and the Sons even have a FB page. I can't tell you how many incredible people I've met on those in the past year. I'm on Twitter and Pinterest, where everyday people follow me because they've liked my books or heard good things about them and each time they retweet one of my messages or pin one of my book covers, I'm still in awe that they've done that for little ole' me.

This hasn't been a solo effort, though.  I have to mention the people who helped me have such a fantastic year.  Elaina Lee created those gorgeous beginning covers, and if you knew how particular I am with everything, you'd know I was probably tough to work with.  And Talina Perkins has been the creative juggernaut behind the Sons of Navarus covers and ALL my swag (bookmarks, cover flats, posters) and the banners like the one at the top of the blog for each book.  You ladies have made my covers and graphics stunning.  Thank you! 

And thanks to my editor, Yvonne, who's amazing too.  She catches things I swear I would never find. Spaces?  How the hell does she find extra spaces?  As an editor, she goes above and beyond to make sure my books are clean.  That's important, especially as an indie.

And my beta readers are fantastic!  I can't thank each of you enough for giving me feedback on every book I send you. Your place in the creation of a book is so important, even if you think you're just giving me your opinion.

A huge thanks to the members of my Street Team.  Nicole Garcia is a Street Team leader extraordinaire, and those team members are so fabulous. Thanks so much, ladies, for helping me get the word out about my books. You're the best!

Thanks to the bloggers who have welcomed me to their homes on the web.  I appreciate your time and your help in getting an unknown indie author's work out to the world.  There are too many to name, but you know who you are. Thanks!

Last, but certainly not least, are the readers.  You've made this past year such an overwhelming success for me.  I can't say enough about romance readers.  You rock!  I'm so thankful to have readers like you.  The rest of the Sons are headed your way this year and next (if I keep writing at the pace I have been) and then who knows? 

I'm so thankful to everyone who's joined me along the way.  It's been a great time so far, and it's only just begun.

Author Chris Redding Guest Post

Please welcome author Chris Redding to the blog today!

Make your prose so vivid the story will be visually compelling.

Hm. Think about that for a moment.

I’ll wait while you ponder it.

Done?

Your story should be three-dimensional in the readers mind. It should be a movie that only the reader can see. The reader needs to be inside the story with all the characters.

As you live your life, you are bombarded with details and sensations. In a story the characters are. The reader should experience the story just like the characters. The writer must convey the sights, sounds, smells and emotions of the story to make it vivid for the reader. Anyone who picks up the books must be able to “see” the story.

Jason J. Tomaric in The Power Filmmaking Kit said, “The foundation of a good story is inspiration, research, and the ability to develop an idea into a commercially viable product that audiences will want to see.” This is the case with a book also.

What kind of book are you writing? You should know this from the beginning. Are your writing for yourself or an audience? Do you want to make money doing this?

Write what you know. Write what you’ve seen, experienced, or lived. How can you write about something you’ve never experienced? Ask someone who has. I’ve never actually been in the middle of a fire, but I’ve written about it because my husband has been inside of many burning buildings.

The point is, scenes must resonate with the audience which happen is you know the truth of the situation. The material will be strong because you’ve lived it whether on your own or through someone else.

So before you can write, go live.



This is from a workshop: Lights! Camera! Bestseller!



Chris Redding lives in New Jersey with her husband, two kids, one dog and three rabbits. She graduated from Penn State with a degree in Journalism. When she isn’t writing or giving workshops, she works part time for her local hospital. Her latest thriller is Blonde Demolition, available at Amazon http://tinyurl.com/7olwvhs

You can find Chris on the web:

www.chrisreddingauthor.com

http://chrisredddingauthor.blogspot.com

www.facebook.com/chrisreddingauthor

www.twitter.com/chrisredding

Back cover text for Blonde Demolition

You just can't hide from the past...

Mallory Sage lives in a small, idyllic town where nothing ever happens. Just the kind of life she has always wanted. No one, not even her fellow volunteer firefighters, knows about her past life as an agent for Homeland Security.

Former partner and lover, Trey McCrane, comes back into Mallory's life. He believes they made a great team once, and that they can do so again. Besides, they don't have much choice. Paul Stanley, a twisted killer and their old nemesis, is back.

Framed for a bombing and drawn together by necessity, Mallory and Trey go on the run and must learn to trust each other again―if they hope to survive. But Mallory has been hiding another secret, one that could destroy their relationship. And time is running out.

What Counts

I've been feeling a bit at loose ends lately concerning the whole indie pubbing thing.  Wearing all the hats is a lot of work, and since the end of 2011, it's been wearing on me.  What I want to do is write.  What I'm told I must do is promote.  These two things are often at odds.

The truth is that I realized a while back that the only promotion worth anything is reaching out directly to readers.  Reviews are nice, but I haven't seen that for the most part they sell books or deter the sale of books.  What sells books is good writing and getting to know your readers.  It's the reason I do all the giveaway hops.  Sure, they get people to my blog, but what they really do is introduce me to people who are interested in my work. 

I love to find out other authors are feeling the way I do.  Writing is often a solitary act, so it's great to find out others are dealing with the same things you are.  Joe Konrath did just that on Monday in his blog post Writing Matters.  For me, the takeaway from his post were these lines about what makes a book sell:

"I've also seen the opposite thing happen. A book has a good cover and a few 5 star shills, and it does well for a few weeks, and then because it isn't very good the 1 star reviews take over, killing its sales. If you put a fresh coat of paint on a turd, it's still a turd.

The writing counts.

If you're a writer in 2012, it's important to be savvy about social networking, publicity, marketing, platforms, covers, formats, and all the things associated with self-publishing and ebooks.

But the most important thing is the book itself."

So true.  In the end, what matters to me is the story.  It's the reason I do the research, worry about structural issues, and care so much about the editing--all things that readers rarely take notice of unless they're not done well.  With a little luck, I can reach a good number of people and they may enjoy a book and tell others.  No matter how many readers I reach, though, I know that I put the most important thing first.

The writing. 

To read the rest of his post, visit his blog A Newbie's Guide To Publishing.

Have a great day and happy Read An E-Book Week everybody! 

The Antagonist

Recently, I read an article on writing protagonists and antagonists. I guess I believed all writers naturally would know this or they wouldn't be able to construct a well-written story, but it appears that the idea of the antagonist is confusing to some. This writer of this article claimed that George McFly was the antagonist to Marty McFly in the film Back To The Future. 

Antagonist comes from the Greek and means "opponent" or "competitor". The antagonist is whoever or whatever works against the protagonist, the main character. In Back To The Future, George McFly is a secondary character, made so by the antagonist, which is the past or Biff, depending on whether or not you require a physical being to be in the role of antagonist. In reality, it's the past that works against Marty more so than anything else. Biff is the personification of that past.

George McFly, in the person of Marty's father, is ruled by other characters' actions. Biff makes him a nothing in their 1950s world. And it's only because Marty goes back to the past and changes it that George McFly doesn't end up as a greasy-haired, peanut brittle eating for dinner, low man on the corporate totem pole. George is inconsequential and buffeted by the changes others put upon him, for good and for bad, so he couldn't be the antagonist. The mistake in thinking George is the antagonist comes from not seeing the action from the characters' perspectives and instead seeing it from the audience's perspective, which is omnipotent.  While it sounds nice to say that Marty does everything he can to change the past for his father, that's not true.  Marty acts as he does because it's who he naturally is.  That he changes the past and the future is a surprise to him, not a planned action.

This misunderstanding of who acts as the antagonist in Back To The Future is a good example of why I am often dubious of writers who claim they're very much about the "craft." The "craft" is bandied about online by published and unpublished writers all the time. They read books about it, write blog posts about how much they've learned from books, and then proceed to write a confusing or boring story because they took the wrong advice.

I learned about literary devices in undergraduate school as an English major, but I often find writers who haven't had any training at all and are relying on how-to books. While someone may find a nugget or two of information they can use, the real knowledge necessary to construct a well-written story is likely somewhere else. I guess it's natural for would-be authors to reach for a book to learn something. Sometimes, however, the book isn't enough. And sometimes it's written by someone who doesn't understand the idea any more than the apprentice writer does. 

There are some who argue that readers don't pay attention to the deep things like who's the antagonist, so it's not really important to the writer.  While readers may not analyze every story they read, they understand the conflict between the protagonist and antagonist and when it isn't done well, they know there's something missing in the story.  It's incumbent upon the writer to create an antagonist who is meaningful and can stir emotions in readers.  Without a solid antagonist, a story has little real conflict, and without that, the story's nothing. 

Loving Those Vampires

I'm over at the wonderful blog The Enchanted Book with a guest post about how I love writing about vampires.  I keep reading that vampires are on their way out. As much as I hate to disagree, they're what sell for me.  But even more than the fact that they sell books, I enjoy writing about vampires.  To me, they're the sexiest paranormal creature, so I write what I love. 

I broke my promise to myself this weekend and started writing the sequel to Blood Avenged.  I fully intended to write it but not until after Christmas.  However, the muse had other ideas and while I had the whole house to myself since my son was gone camping, I began Declan's story, Blood Betrayed.  Between Friday and Sunday night, I got about 15 pages written, so it's a good start. 

Who knows what this week will be like, but the story is simmering in my head, just waiting to get out.  It's outlined and ready, so I could get some real work done on it even before January. Isn't it great when you love what you do? 

Enjoy your Monday! 

How To Write, or You Do What?

I read something yesterday that made me think about how writers write.  You see, I write in a very linear fashion.  I begin at the beginning and write until the story's finished.  I do.  How perfectly boring, you say.  Maybe.  And I'm a committed plotter.  I know almost everything that's going to happen in the story before the pen hits the paper for the first word.  Of course, sometimes details take on a life of their own, but then I just replot and move on with the story from there. 

Yesterday's article was about how writers can get started with their stories and mentioned writing scenes instead of chapters.  For me, this sounds like madness. It sounds incredibly chaotic also.  I'm the type of writer who must make the connections as I go along, and writing scenes would make it impossible for me to connect anything.  This method works for some, and that's great for them, but I can't imagine doing that and retaining the central meaning of my story. 

Then there are people who write characters first.  I can understand this.  While I don't plot mine out as completely as the story, I do have a very strong sense of what they look like, what they sound like, and what kind of person or creature they are emotionally and morally. 

Other writers have conversations with their characters and find the story that way.  I guess if that works, that's fine, but be careful no one who's looking to put you away catches you talking to imaginary people. :) 

The idea here is that writers write.  They don't talk about wanting to write or planning to write. They write. It's as simple as that. They may read voraciously also, but above all, they write. And the ones who do it for a living write even more.

I'm over at Fallen Angel Reviews today being interviewed, so click on over to find out my bad habits and what I'd put on my dream hot dog and burger (sexy stuff, right?), among other bookish things. :) 

Edits are complete on Destiny Redeemed, and formatting for the various outlets begins asap. I'm arranging a blog tour with Bewitching Book Tours, so I hope to have some info on that in the coming weeks. And later this week, I'll be unveiling the cover for Blood Avenged, Vasilije's story.  I can't wait!

Another Year

Another year has gone by and I'm celebrating another birthday.  Unlike many people I know, I love my birthday.  This is probably due to the fact that it was always a very big deal when I was a child because I shared it with my father.  He's gone ten years now, but I think of him often, especially on our day.  I'm very much like him, not surprisingly.  My father was a tough son of a bitch, and anyone who's ever gone up against me on an issue I truly believe in can tell you that I'm my father's daughter in that way. (Check out Nadja's post I link to below for a little taste of that toughness when it comes to my hero in Stolen Destiny.) He never got to see me reach the success I've reached today, but I hope wherever he is, he can see all that I've accomplished in my day job and my writing. 

It's been a big year for me.  Since last July, I've written two novels and three novellas.  The Muse was with me. The first two of those five to be published, Vampire Dreams and Stolen Destiny, were released last month, and in just a few days I'll release Love's Master.  Then in August I'll release Masquerade, the third novella, and in October, I'll release Destiny Redeemed, the sequel to Stolen Destiny.  

So what's in store for this new year?  I've begun writing Vasilije's story, a novel that has grown out of Vampire Dreams.  I'm in the thinking/planning stages for a novel that was inspired by a very hot blacksmith I met last month, and the third novel in the Destined Ones Series, Destiny Unbound, awaits completion at about 50% finished status.  But the lure of the novella always calls, so I can never tell what will happen with that.

Writing has become my second full time job, and hopefully, it can be my only full time job someday soon.  As it is, I write when I can, and for every word that ends up on paper I find I'm enjoying it more and more.  Now that's a job I can look forward to! 

I'm over at my friend and fellow author Nadja Notariani's blog today talking about standing my ground with Stolen Destiny, so check that out.  And I want to give a big shout out to friend and fellow Siren author, Bree Younger, whose first book, Burn, is being released today.  Best of luck to you, Bree!  7-7 has always been a very lucky day for me, and I hope it's just as lucky for you. 

And for my birthday, I'd like this, please.  No bow is needed.  ;)  (Is that a tag or a tattoo on his right hip? Mmmmm....)

Wishing Life Away

I've recently been thinking a lot more about how much I wish my workweek away since the death of one of my colleagues.  Only 60, she died of cancer last week.  I hadn't seen her in months and in fact, didn't know she had left work because of illness.  But the news hit me like a ton of bricks.  I'd known her since undergraduate school and then we attended the same grad school together.  She had returned to school at the age of 40, determined to get her degrees. She did and then proceeded to teach at the same school I did for a long time.

I don't know if hers was a life well lived, but I think it was.  I'm 43 now, and I can appreciate her returning to school at 40.  I've recently begun this journey as a writer, and while I'm pretty new to it as a published (or soon to be published) author, it's opened up a lot of areas to me just as her returning to college must have done for her.  There's the writing, which is the most enjoyable part; the submissions, which I can't lie haven't been bad since I only submitted one book to one publisher and they offered me a contract; the planning for marketing for when the book comes out, which I think could literally take over my day if I let it; and many other things, such as this blog and my website, that are involved in the journey. 

So often, I wish my Mondays through Fridays away because they're the days I do my "day job." When I was a child and I used to say I wish summer would come because it's always been my favorite time of year, my mother would caution me not to wish my life away.  I've been thinking of that for the past week since Sandi died, and I think I must make a concerted effort not to wish each day away because I get to enjoy my weekends writing.  Hopefully in doing so, I increase the possibility that my life is a life well lived.

Reading and Writing

The question with the 18 & Over Tag Along last Friday involved how many books each participant read each month.  I answered that it could be as many as 12, but when I'm writing, the number shrinks to as little as 3.  But I think it's important to continue to read as much as possible in one's genre, even while writing.  I can become too wrapped up in the world I'm creating, and when that happens, I turn to one of my favorite writers to refresh me. 

This weekend I turned to Charlotte Featherstone.  I just love her books.  Her writing is like silk that just drapes over the reader.  I didn't read too much, but just reading a few chapters of any of her books often refocuses me.  It takes me out of my world for even a few minutes, and when I return, I feel rejuvenated. 

I also read my book last night--the one I'm currently writing, Destiny Renewed.  At some point in everything I write, I have to sit back and read it from the beginning.  I imagine some writers do it far earlier than with just four chapters to go, but that's how I like to do it.  So last night, I sat down and read it from beginning to end. 

While there were some parts I re-edited as I read, overall, I was happy to read those earlier chapters again.  And at a few parts, I turned to my son, who had come upstairs to see how I was doing, and said, "I really like this part."  As he usually does, he smiled and said, "That's good, mom.  But shouldn't you like the whole book?"

I love the whole book, but there are parts where the interplay between the characters is just exactly how I wanted it to be.  The tenor of their words is how I intended and the description shows perfectly what I wanted the reader to see. 

So with a week off from work, I plan to stay home and finish Destiny Renewed.  Then when it's complete, I'll begin typing it and re-editing as I go along then too.  The goal is to have it submitted by late spring/early summer, so I feel very good about my progress. 

Gabrielle

My New Website

Encouraged by my friends, who think I'm far too old fashioned for my own good, I created a website tonight.  Gabrielle Bisset Romance is its name, and it can be found at http://gabriellebisset.weebly.com/

It's all pretty new and I haven't taken many of the wrappings off yet, but I have information on my background, my writing projects, and a contact form for people to leave me comments or ask me questions.  So click on over to Gabrielle Bisset Romance and take a look. You can click on the name or the graphic on the right sidebar.  And leave a comment or ask a question there on the Contact page, if you like. 

I'll be spiffing the place up when I get more to put there and will change the domain name in a little bit, but for now, it's my new official website.  Of course, I plan to keep my blog here on blogger, but I hope you stop by the website and say hi. 

Gabrielle

The Kernal Of An Idea

I'm teaching a course on medieval Europe this semester and while I was scouring the library for a film to show about the First World War (another class, obviously), I came upon a book about chivalry and its connection to religion in the Middle Ages.  I'm a sucker for books like this, so I picked it up along with my video and beat feet out of there to make it to my first class. 

When I got home, I began to read the book and I don't think I made it four pages in before I was jotting down ideas for a medieval romance story.  I don't have anything really fleshed out, but I'm feeling the novella vibe for this one--around 25,000 words.  Since this is one of my favorite periods in history, I'm not surprised my brain is popping with ideas. 

I don't know what's going to shake out with this, but I like the idea of knights, those wonderful Alpha males in chainmail, maybe misbehaving.  Maybe nothing too serious but far more erotic for this story.  Hmmm....we'll have to see. 

Another Great Weekend

As I sit here late Saturday night, I'm finished with my writing for the weekend.  My goal was 24 pages, and I wrote about 30, so I feel very good.  Someone asked me the other day how I can write so much in a sitting.  I explained that I really don't have the opportunity to write each day because of work and life and everything else that requires my time, so I save up ideas (jotting them down in the margins of my notebooks) all week and then write on the weekend.  So while it seems like 30+ is a lot, for a week, I'm not writing as much as I'd like.  That's less than 5 pages a day for a 7 day week, but it's what I can do for now.  I'd prefer to write every day, but this semester is just a dog this year. 

I'm beginning Chapter 21 on Destiny Renewed and still am hovering on Chapter 14 of Broken Destiny.  Things are moving along nicely with Stolen Destiny going toward publication in June.  This week I got to complete information about what I see for the cover, which I have to admit, was so thrilling I was silly with happiness for a few days.  (I'm such a newbie!)  Just the thought that soon I'll be published is still sinking in. 

I've set a goal of the end of March to be finished with Destiny Renewed, which would put me at the end of April to get it typed (remember, I hand write everything first, so I have the second leg of the journey once I finish writing the book), edited, and out to my beta readers.  I hope to submit that book right around the time the first one is published.  (Fingers crossed!)

As for Broken Destiny, I'm aiming for a May 1 date to complete that, but that might be a bit ambitious. Still, that's my goal.  That would put me at the beginning of June with it typed, edited, and out to my beta readers.  A late summer submit would be success for this one. 

And for the last book, which is actually the first one I wrote in this series but put aside when Stolen Destiny invaded my mind one day in the shower, I'm looking forward to resurrecting it and moving ahead with that one after the previous two are edited to within an inch of their lives and submitted.  I don't have a name for this one yet, but it will be the last one in the Destined Ones Series, barring some major change that isn't on the horizon quite yet. 

Whew!  I think I need a beer and some R & R before the week begins again.  Here's to a wonderful week for us all!

I'm The Feature Thursday Star At WordsInSync

Many thanks to Shah at WordsInSync for interviewing me for her Feature Thursday post. Shah is a wonderful blogger who dedicates her time to many areas, including creativity.  Her interview was thoughtful and definitely made me think! 

Please take a look at her blog and the interview at Feature Thursday at WordInSync.