#NaNoWriMo~~ I’ve joined the masses again!

It’s that time again. NOVEMBER!! The madness that is and NaNoWriMo. For some it’s scary for others it’s a thrill. Then there are those of use who fall somewhere in between. I’ve done Nano a few times. I’ve one once and the other times come pretty close.

This is my first year back after taking a break. Honestly, I’ve taken a bit of a break from writing in general. Now it’s time to get back in the swing of things and Nano is the perfect way for me to do this.

For now we’re going to not mention (okay I’m saying it now) that I’m behind already. BUT….I’m excited to sit down and do some mega wordage days. That’s why Nano was the choice for me.

To add to my excitement this year’s Nano novel is a shifter book. After taking a brief hiatus of sorts, I’m ready to refresh and start anew. A lot of changes have happened this year, and I feel like I need to try something different.

If you’re doing Nano this year, tell us why you joined the masses. Do you have any tips to win?

I’ll be around Twitter doing #1k1hr so I can get this done and rock out the month!!

When did you start writing?

A simple question. One that many of us have been asked before. A question I think about all the time because it’s a reminder of what I’ve always wanted to do. Write.

This past week I got to meet some amazing people at Authors After Dark. One reader was sixteen and an aspiring author. She was asking everyone about when they first started writing.

There is one key moment in my life that I remember wanting to be an author. It was in elementary school. Fourth or fifth grade. We had a local author come to school and tell us about her career. How she started. Why she wrote realistic fiction. I was hooked. I wanted to be her. There was a contest we could all enter. All we had to do was write a short story and submit it in the contest. So I took the leap. And I got to go to the mini-conference they had for everyone who entered. For one whole day I got to talk to authors, I got to learn how to write a book.

Now, I don’t remember all the details of the day. But I remember the amazing feeling of knowing I could write. Knowing I wanted to do that for the rest of my life. I wanted to go to a school and inspire kids the way she had inspired me. Of course back then I thought I would write realistic fiction.

Things change. Our perspectives change. I’m not the ten year old with a dream anymore. Now, I write. One day I will make this my career and I won’t have to worry about the day job. Until then, I’m so happy to have the chance to publish what I can. To edit for authors who I fan girl over.

My dreams are coming true each and every day. I hope the young lady I met at Authors After Dark will get the same opportunity. I hope she will follow her dream. I have a question for you…when did you start writing?

Let’s Talk Ink

I don’t mean ink on paper. I mean ink on skin…tattoos. They are hot right now. I think it’s funny how many heroes have tattoos, but I don’t find a lot of heroines with tattoos. At least not as many as I’d like.

Why do I bring this up? Because I love tattoos. I have lots of them, and I’m getting a full “sleeve” this weekend on my calf. So I’ve been thinking, why aren’t there more heroines with tattoos? Is it because tatted up women still aren’t as mainstream as men? Since I write a lot of romance, I wonder if it’s because the ideal heroine is still very clean cut, not the bad girl of romance. We love the bad guys, but not so much the girls.

Even in paranormal, where I think there are more women with tattoos, I don’t think they are as prominent as they could be. Maybe it’s just me. Maybe not.
What are your thoughts on women with tattoos? Do you read about them? Would it bother you if the heroine was inked from head to toe?

Curiosity killed the cat and all that. Just for fun, share your ink in the comments if you want.

Here’s one of mine!

Before I leave…Authors After Dark (August 12-16th) has opened up more spots for authors. If you want to go to a conference with multiple genres to read and authors to meet that’s a whole lot of fun this is a great opportunity. Readers…I highly recommend it! Authors…same goes! Check out more here.

Genre Crossover

I would like to do an informal poll this week. It’s regarding genre crossing. I’ve come across a few authors who can write both paranormal/urban fantasy and contemporary quite well. But recently, I found an author who can not only write both well, she’s managed to fully develop two series, one a contemporary and one an urban fantasy, in the same world. The characters from both series intermingle, are even related to each other in some cases. This, to me, is quite impressive.

At first I chose not to read the new series, the urban fantasy, because I was so unsure of how it would work. Now, I’m glad I did and can’t wait to read more. It takes talent to be able to meld both fantasy and contemporary into the same world and make it believable for the reader. As an author who loves to write both, I think seeing this in reality is a major win.

So my informal poll…what are your thoughts on crossing genres in the same world? Would you read the books or would you shy away from one or the other?

By the way…if you want to check out the series I’m talking about…the author is Candace Blevins. I will tell you, her contemporary series is very heavy in BDSM and the books are intense. The paranormal series isn’t quite as intense, but still very hot!

New Book Now What?

You’ve finished the book. You’ve got everything ready to go and hit publish. Now what?! You have to market that beast! All your hard work is really just beginning. In fact, I think a lot of authors will tell you writing the book is one of the easier parts of the process.

So you’ve got to pimp yourself. Pimp your book. And hope that all your pimping brings you sells. Lots and lots of them!

Here are a few marketing tips that have worked for me.

1. Blog Tours: You can use a company or put together a tour on your own with friends and fellow authors. A blog tour can be guest posts, promo posts, exclusive teasers, and giveaways. You can also do a cover reveal as part of a pre-release blog tour.

2. Newsletters: This is one of my more successful marketing tools. While my newsletter is small, it does help me get the word out on new releases and any fun updates I want to give my readers. I only send out one newsletter a month, sometimes fewer than that depending on what’s going on. Just be sure you don’t spam your followers!

3. Social Media: While I’m not certain how much this helps anymore, there are a few new social media tools that do work. Take Thunderclap for example. This is a great way to reach a lot of people all at once, if you can get a successful campaign. What I’ve found recently is Facebook is a great resource to find other authors to help out, like with Thunderclap. Twitter for me isn’t as productive any more, but others may find differently.

What works for you when it comes to marketing?

While we’re talking marketing, how about a bit of shameless promoting

Rebecca Waterstone left her high school sweetheart in Graysville ten years ago. At the time she had no plans to return home, ever, thanks to heartbreaker Jonah Caroway. When she receives a call from the hospital that her uncle has had a heart attack and may not make it through the night she has to go home and face her past once more.
Jonah Caroway regrets letting Becca walk out of his life to go to New York ten years ago. She wanted to be a teacher and explore the great city of while he wanted to stay home in small town U.S.A. Now she’s back and this time he won’t let history repeat itself.
When faced with the decision of staying in Graysville or returning to New York she’s not sure what to do. Will Jonah be able to convince her they are meant to be together or will she choose to leave the past in the past?
Available March 6, 2015

Pre-Order at Amazon

Books to Movies

I’m a movie fan. I wouldn’t say buff because I don’t really get into all the actors/actresses names and the other details, but I enjoy going to the movies a couple of times a month.

And of course, I’m a book lover to the nth degree. However, movies from books are not usually my favorite. I’m not a big Nicholas Sparks fan. His stories just aren’t my type of read. I didn’t care for the Twilight movies either, and the books, well that’s a post for another day.

There are times though, that the movie turns out to be really good. I love The Hunger Games movies and, with exception of book 3, love that series as well.

One great thing about books to movies is I find out about books I might want to read. Like The Maze Runner. I watched that movie this past year and I’m seriously considering reading the whole series.

On the same note, there are books turned movies that I’d rather just see the movie and not read the book. As much as I like the movie version of Divergent, I’m not a huge fan of the book.

So what book to movie are you most looking forward to in 2015? Not sure what movies are coming out? Here’s an good article with the list.

A few I’m looking forward to: Mockingjay Part 2, The Duff, and Insurgent. The one movie I will see, but I can’t say I’m looking forward to it…Fifty Shades.

Do you like when books are turned into movies? What are your favorites? Any movies that you refuse to see because they might ruin the book?

Ideas But No Time

As I’m on deadline and procrastinating because that’s what I do…I started thinking about my next project.

Do you ever feel like you have all the ideas but no time to finish them? What do you do about that?

I have a folder of new ideas. One or two sentences to describe a plot or character. Those are the “I’ll get to them eventually” ideas. Then there are the stories I’ve started, but haven’t finished. Those are in their own folders. I go to them when I need a break from my current project.

I read on Facebook the other day and author post that she had tons of ideas but when it’s time to start a new book none of them seem right. Some are too similar to what she’s already written. Others don’t have enough umph. It’s another problem of having all the ideas and not enough time. Because let’s face it, when we are on deadline or limited in time we have to go with the idea that flies from our fingers as we type.

It was good to see I’m not the only one who looks back at my folder of possibilities only to feel like nothing would work.

I’m curious…what do you do with all of your ideas?

November…the busiest month of the year!

No really, it is. At least for me this year. Why? Let me count the ways! It’s NaNo time. Are you writing away? Setting and meeting goals. I should be…but I find myself lagging this year. Each year it gets harder and harder for me to win at NaNo. Mostly, its procrastination on my part, but there’s a little bit of not having enough time to pull my head up from water too.

November also signals the start of the holiday season for many, myself included. This means Thanksgiving, early Christmas celebrations (yeah, we get a headstart lol). Shopping. Crowds. And of course, by multiple requests, our very own Elf on the Shelf. Because the kid can’t wait to see her friend Rosey come back for another year. Which means I have to break out my creativity hat and come up with a bunch of off-the-wall things for this little elf to do for fun.

 

And so it begins…the trek into the end of the year. Busy. Stressful. And full of memories. While November may be MY busiest month of the year it’s also one I tend to remember for longer than any other. The memories are my favorite.

Celebration!! And giveaway

So somehow I managed to miss the fact that I’ve been a part of the Scribes for ONE YEAR!! It’s actually a year and a couple of months, but I think that still warrants a celebration. And we’re in my favorite month…with one of my favorite holidays. So, what do you say we give away a book (or two)?

I will give away a book of your choice from my list. I have a new release too…Plaisir. While it’s not paranormal, it’s a favorite of mine.

This giveaway is easy to enter…tell me one of your favorites. Favorite holiday. Favorite book. Favorite Spellbound post. What’s your favorite? Don’t forget to leave your email!!

This was originally published in The Dreams and Nightmares Anthology.

Griffyn Sandibar brought his best friend, Tate Walker, to Vegas to show him he wants more than just a friendship. Griffyn doesn’t only want Tate in his bed, though. Vegas is home to Club Plaisir, and Griffyn happens to hold a very hard to come by membership to the exclusive club. Griffyn’s not only ready to tell Tate about his deepening feelings, but he’s ready to see what happens when the walls are down and they add a third to the mix.

Kelsey Jackson’s high dollar membership to Club Plaisir is her only escape. A career in the spotlight is one thing, but her looks have her portraying a much younger, perfect ‘tween on TV. Kelsey is only able to walk into the Vegas hotel once or twice a year. The secret club at the top is exactly what she’s needed for months; however the very last thing she expected was to meet the men of her dreams–literally.

Will one night be enough to fulfill their fantasies? Enter the exclusive BDSM Club Plaisir and find out.

Just Say No!

As an author this is one of the hardest things I’ve had to learn. I’m a teacher at heart and I love to help people. So when someone says, “Hey, can you take a look at this for me.” I have a tendency to say, “Sure.” Especially if they are a friend.

Time management is so important in this business if you want to actually write books. Considering everything else an author has to do beyond writing…there’s so little time. I’ve had to learn how to prioritize. I’ve learned the hard way that it’s easier to tell someone that right now I just don’t have the time, than it is to offer to help and not be able to follow through.

I think most every author’s wish is that they could sit down and write all the time. And for a while, that’s exactly what we get to do. Then you start promotion. And editing. New books. Reader email (Which we love! Always feel free to send!) If you don’t prioritize from the beginning it is so easy to get caught up in the flurry of helping others get their start. My advice…when you learn your limits stick to them. Turn requests down in a professional manner. Don’t alienate people. A polite refusal will take you a lot further than a harsh, “I don’t have the time for you.”

 

A bit of shameless promotion:

My first shifter story…Not Just a Kiss is now available for free on Goodreads! You can find in the Goodreads M/M Romance group here or download it here.

The last thing Raju Bhandari expects on the night of his first leopard shift is to find his mate. He is ready to start training for the endurance test that will determine his place in the leap. But the son of the alpha has a different plan in mind.

Sujan Malakar, son to the alpha of his snow leopard leap, has found his mate. On the night of Raju’s first shift, he goes to Raju’s home to tell him how he feels. But Raju doesn’t acknowledge their mating bond. For the first time, Sujan is rejected. Not one to back down from a challenge, he continues to pursue Raju to show him they are meant to be together.

Raju’s pride keeps him from seeing the truth in Sujan. Everyone says they can see their attraction to each other, so why is he the only one who doesn’t?