Binding Vows

I just love this cover, don't you?

Binding Vows by Catherine Bybee just released in print at The Wild Rose Press. That's great! The e-book will be out December 4th. Now that's different-- print before ebook, but exciting and oh so cool! So go on over to The Wild Rose Press and read the excerpt. If you like your Heroes Hot Hunky and Highlander, you won't want to miss this one!

Enough said. Now go take a look...

Openings And A Debut...

I have received five great openings so far from writers and I'm so happy! I'm waiting a bit longer for a few more before I post the ones I have. So if you have one of your own (I'd like that best) or have one from another writer, send it to me.

Okay, now for (drum roll please!) an exciting announcement...

My friend Cari Quinn and her Wilder Rose Scarlet story, Full Disclosure will debut tomorrow-- that's Friday, November 6th at The Wild Rose Press! Be sure to catch her blogging about her book at Christina Phillips tomorrow. Go check out some fantastic and sexy excerpts from Full Disclosure on her blog.

A giant Congratulations goes out to you, Cari!

Great Openers

What do you think when you read this opening line?

Kayla's skin itched with a wicked fever... (Opening line from The Wolf's Reclamation by Rhonda Dove)

We hear a lot about stellar openings and first lines these days. I know I've discussed this before as well. But as I've come to realize, openings, no matter how great still have to fit the story we are writing. I don't know about you, but I'm totally drawn in by Rhonda's opening line above. I can assume from the title this is at least about a wolf. A werewolf? I really do want to know what kind of itch or wicked fever Kayla has, who she is and what she is doing. I'm hooked.

Now it's time for me to stop and pose a question to everyone. What do you think about opening lines or paragraphs? I would like you to tell me. I'm asking you to send me your best and favorite openers from your own stories (or another author if you like) and explain why you think it hooks you. Send your great openers to me in an Email Here and when I accumulate enough, I'll do a blog post and share them with everyone.

Show us all why your work has or is going places! I'm looking forward to hearing from you!

Kaye

Bit Kitty? A Witch's Cat?

Last week was all about me being in a kind of surreal frenzy. The following is the real scare factor I left out but promised to share.

I have two cats. A proud and sleek black one named Kuda who almost never misbehaves and is usually where he belongs. And the other, the larger than life amber-eyed devil, named Bit Kitty.

That big boy disappeared last week. Yep, Bit Kitty, who is mostly right where he should be—beside me as I write, in the kitchen begging for food or on the porch relaxing—was gone. I couldn’t find him anywhere.

Night fell and no Bit Kitty. I half expected him to jump up on the windowsill waiting for me to let him in. I kept watching for him. I kept calling him. I searched the neighborhood with a flashlight. No Bit Kitty.

I’d heard all the scary Halloween tales about cults stealing cats close to October 31 for horrible sacrifices. Oh no! My mind reeled with the possibility. But he’s not a black cat, he’s tawny and white, I thought. Doesn’t matter. I fell into a myriad of frenzies over what could have happened to him. A big dog got to him, maybe he’s injured and can’t get home or worse... you know the kind of thoughts I mean.

I was in the last phase of preparing one of my manuscripts for a requested submission, and this happened. I couldn’t think of anything but my cat. I sat by the window wringing my hands. Yet, I’d done all I could for that night.

I took a deep breath and practiced some of the relaxation techniques I’d learned. I even pictured Bit Kitty surrounded in protective light (too much paranormal writing, I know). I saw him safe. And continued to see a vision of him safe and warm. But why didn’t he come home? My logic crept in. I pushed it under. Calmer now, I kept my sense that he was fine. I finished my submission. I sent it in that very night.

Morning dawned warm and sunny. My friend helped me make lost cat flyers. (So hard to do.) We scoured the neighborhood with the flyers in hand. All the while, I thought about Bit Kitty. Where was he?

I got an instinct to search for him in a certain place. I looked through yards and under porches, calling his name as I went. Suddenly, I thought I heard a faint meow. I’d just looked under a porch. There it was again that faint mew. I stood up and faced directly toward the home next door.

Through the glass of an abandoned empty house, I saw my Bit Kitty sitting inside in a window. He looked scared and seemed to beg for my help. He’d gone exploring as cats sometimes do and got himself trapped inside that house. He couldn’t come to me when I called because he couldn’t find his way out. With little effort, I got inside and rescued my cat.

Another Happy Ending.

So is there a psychic connection between my cat and me? Was he calling out for me to come save him? I don’t know. But one thing is certain. I do feel a strong bond with Bit Kitty. If I ever decide to become a witch, he’d make a damn perfect witch’s cat!

HAVE A HAPPY AND SAFE HALLOWEEN!

Kaye

JOIN ME AT LINDSAY'S ROMANTICS

Today I'm flying off to Lindsay's Romantics and I'll be blogging about how I write Paranormal Romance. Stop by and find out my method of writing in this diverse and complex genre. Hope to see you there!

******************************************************************

And don't forget to fly back over to Lindsay's on Saturday, October 31st for a big Halloween Day with a batch of Paranormal Flash Fiction from a myriad of wonderful writers.

Kaye

Pitches And Chats And Workshops, Oh Yes!

Musing on into 2010... Hats off to Lea Schizas!

My promise to keep you updated on the 2009 Muse Conference (after the J Richard Jacobs post) slipped by too fast. I do have several workshops that stood out for me personally, and I'll get to those later this week.

Now I can breathe if only for a moment! What a busy week past I've had with attending workshops, chats, following forums, doing pitches and preparing several manuscripts for submission requests. Yes, I got requests thanks to the pitch sessions, which I deem the highpoint of the Muse Conference for me.

What these pitch sessions can do for you as a writer is take you from normal query submission, out of the slush pile, and directly to the publishers/editors/agents desk. They don't promise a contract, but they get you past all the above as you talk (in a chat) directly to the editors/publishers of your chosen target market about your book. The sessions are a quick five minutes and a bit scary at first until you get the hang of it. Of course, you have to start out with a stellar 100 word pitch that tells your story in a nutshell, and then be able to answer questions fired at you at breakneck speed. (Oh boy.)

Once you get that down, with some practice you may get a request. Many who pitched did. And there were so many pitch sessions from so many publishers! If you did get in to a pitch with the publisher of your choice you were lucky indeed. They filled up fast. And of course, all the 100 word pitches had to be approved by Lea Schizas first to get into a session. Believe me, I had all I could handle with the two pitch sessions I attended. I'll keep you posted on the outcome.

Just let me say that overall, the Muse Online Writers Conference is one of the best for aspiring and seasoned writers both because there is just so many workshops to choose and so many connections to make. I suggest that you sign up for next year's Muse Conference early when it opens for registration in November. Lea Schizas will have ongoing workshops, chats and pitch sessions with publishers/agents during the entire year for writers to attend way before the conference begins. I'll post the link in November for those interested. Or you can contact Lea now at (museitupeditor at yahoo dot ca) for information.

Later on, I'll relate an incident that happened to me while trying to get one of my requested stories ready for submission. It showed me that I can be a professional even in the midst of a personal horror. Just so you'll know, all turned out well with the incident and the submission. But let me say it was really a tense time!

Kaye

Ready For A Light Speed Jump

As I continue on with my quest to check out all the workshops I possibly can at this year's Muse Online Writers Conference, no visit would be complete if this Sci-Fi girl didn't spend time with J Richard Jacobs, the Conference's resident authority on world building in Science Fiction and Fantasy. Is that a a long sentence or what? Jacobs is the coolest. (Don't you just love those older men?) There is so much knowledge floating around in his head, us lesser beings are sometimes left going, "huh?" The man is a genius. Really, MENSA and all that. For a romance writer such as me getting the chance to pick Jacobs' brain is pure light speed bliss.

Today's post wouldn't be complete without a sampling from his view on Science Fiction. Jacobs says,

"Science Fiction means what it says. The science employed must be based in real science. You are free to stretch the envelope all you want, even to the point where it rips, but your science had better be defensible. That is, the writers should know what they are talking about and how it works. A sound and working knowledge of science must be in the writers portfolio or he/she should know someone in the sciences being used to keep it as real as the plot will allow. Believe me, there are readers who know their science and any straying from the path of possibility needs to be defensible. This holds for both hard and soft SF. Much of the stuff stocked on the shelves under “Science Fiction” is not science fiction at all.

Science Fantasy, filled with technobabble is there, too. You will also find pure Fantasy there. As soon as anything like magic, and other things associated with fantasy show up, the writer has slipped from SF into the realm of Science Fantasy or just plain Fantasy. So, does one need to be a scientist to write science fiction? The answer to that is, “No.” But I can tell you that it certainly helps..."

Whew! There you have it. See what I mean?

See you soon with more Conference updates

Kaye

Set To Go Musing

As I mentioned in last week's post, the Muse Online Writers
Conference starts today. There is so much to do and so little time! For instance, just hopping around trying to find my bearings, I checked out Jamieson Wolf's lesson on websites. Great information for those who are searching for a brand as a writer and for anyone who wants to learn more about promoting and/or building websites.

Another area offered in this year's conference-- thanks to Lea Schizas our conference leader for lining up so many--is the pitch sessions with agents and publishers. Now here's an opportunity. These sessions are geared to work similar to the usual pitch sessions you encounter at regular writer's conferences. The difference is you pitch--if you are lucky enough to get one-- your story online in a one on one chat. One chance, 100 words and five minutes to pitch (sell) your finished book to a publishing house or agent. As Lea says, "The difference is, they can't see you sweat."

Another forum of interest was an article on e-publishing by publisher Bob Preese, booksforabuck.com, filled with knowledge and insight into the future of e-books. Yes, according to him, the future looks fantastic and lucrative for e-books.

Okay, that's it for now. I'm off to check out more good stuff! I'll share it here as I go along this week.

Kaye

Muse It Up

It's hard to believe October is here already and The Muse Online Writer's Conference held each year by Lea Schizas is coming up this month. There are so many workshops and chats and a wealth of information for writers. I hope you signed up because entry into the conference is now closed. I'll be there, so I'll keep you updated and posted. For those who are attending, I hope to see you in a workshop or a chat!

Have fun!

Kaye

WELCOME LINDA BANCHE!

Please welcome my special guest Linda Banche as her latest story, Pumpkinnapper, releases at The Wild Rose Press today!

Linda writes sweet/sensual Regency romances. She says her stories are historically accurate and include humor most of the time, fantasy sometimes and the paranormal once in a while. Oh yes, she really does likes ducks. Pumpkinnapper has so much charm. A hero named Henry and a goose also named Henry spar over heroine Emily while they try to catch a bunch of pumpkin thieves. So sit back, relax and let Linda tell you all about her engaging and funny story .

Thanks for having me here today, Kaye. I truly had fun writing Pumpkinnapper and I hope everyone has just as much fun reading it!

Here's the Blurb:

Pumpkin thieves, a youthful love rekindled and a jealous goose. Oh my.

Last night someone tried to steal the widowed Mrs. Emily Metcalfe's pumpkins. She's certain the culprit is her old childhood nemesis and the secret love of her youth, Henry, nicknamed Hank, whom she hasn't seen in ten years.

Henry, Baron Grey, who's never forgotten the girl he loved but couldn't pursue so long ago, decides to catch Emily's would-be thief. Even after she reveals his childhood nickname--the one he would rather forget. And even after her jealous pet goose bites him in an embarrassing place.

Oh, the things a man does for love.

Now read an Excerpt:

"Emily, even with Henry, formidable as he is--" Hank glared at the goose. The goose glared back "--you need protection. I will send over some footmen to guard the place." "No. Turnip Cottage belongs to Charlotte's husband. What will the townspeople think, with Lord Grey's servants about my house?" Her refusal increased his fury. The sight of her hand on that damned goose's head didn't improve his mood, either. He balled his fists as his patience thinned and something else thickened. "I'll find you a guard dog. You must have some protection out here all alone." "But I have Henry." She patted the goose's head and the bird snuggled into her hand. Again.

Heat flooded Hank, part desire for Emily's touch, and part desire to murder that damned goose, who was where he wanted to be. His insides groaned. "Very well, then, you leave me no choice. I will help you catch the culprits."

"But--"

He changed his voice to the voice that either melted a woman or earned him a slap in the face. "Who knows, mayhap we would enjoy ourselves as I lie in wait with you." I would love to lie with you.

Her eyes widened. Had she understood the innuendo?

"I cannot stay alone with you, and you know it," she said, her voice severe.

"You are a widow in your own home and no one will see. I will make sure of it."

"No." She marched back into her cottage and slammed the door. Henry smirked and waddled away.

Hank grinned. He would be back, whether she liked it or not.

************************************
Linda Banche is the author of

Lady of the Stars a Regency time travel available from The Wild Rose Press. It won 4 stars from Romantic Times, and her latest book Pumpkinnapper a Regency Halloween comedy is now available at: The Wild Rose Press

Where you'll find Linda:

Website / Blog / Myspace / Facebook / Twitter

************************************

Pumpkinnapper CONTEST – Find Me a Hero!

Linda decided she needed a picture of the Pumpkinnapper hero, Hank. She's running a contest for a picture of Hank from now until October 31, since Pumpkinnapper is a Halloween story. The prize is a PDF copy of Pumpkinnapper. Go to her website's Contest page.

Here's Hank's description:

27 years old, 6 feet tall, brown hair, brown eyes, lightly muscled, in general an all-around hunk romance hero. Send me the pictures of your contender with (most of) his clothes on, and nothing suggestive. I don't write anywhere near hot.

Linda's Rules:

1. No copyrighted images

2. No royalty-paying images

3. I prefer a link rather than the image, My mailbox might overflow since images are so large.

4. The easiest way to email me is to go to my website and email me from my Contact page. If that doesn't work, send me an email to my yahoo address, lindabanche @ comcast.net (remove spaces).

5. Please include your email address in the body of the email. It should come with your email, but I like to be sure.

6. Enter as many times as you like! Have fun and good luck to all!

Thanks for stopping by today. Congratulations and much good luck with Pumpkinnapper. I'm looking forward to reading it.

I just have to add another tidbit about Linda. 'Lady of the Stars' is up for an Eppie award in the Science Fiction Romance category. Good Luck, Linda!

Kaye

Here And Back Again

I'll be here on Wednesday--finally--

and I'll be with my good friend and fellow

romance author,

Linda Banche. She's talking about her September 30th release, Pumpkinnapper

from The Wild Rose Press.

I'd love to see everyone again! So stop by and say hi to Linda!

****

And now I must add many more congrats to some of my favorite friends!

Christina Phillips just signed with Berkeley Heat! Way to go!

Helen Hardt has eleven stories contracted so far and is still going! Fantastic!

And so much congrats goes out to Cari Quinn for landing a contract with

The Wild Rose Press, Scarlet Rose line!

It's just so great to see all this happening!

If I've missed anyone, you'll let me know please.

Be sure to check out Shelly Munro's blog today for an informative interview with agent, Holly Root!

Kaye

The Ultimate Ride

"I've always loved the emotional conflict of a well crafted story."

Staying true to that statement I decided to go on a search through my files on writing--a trip to review and maybe even find out something that I missed before. We all know that Harlequin is really big on character driven conflict with lots of hook. Since I love roller coasters too, I really love this little tidbit I found on conflict and emotion.

Sharing is what I do, so following is the article from my own writing archives. It never hurts to review!

Feel the Emotion and Experience the Conflict

By Bryony Green and Kimberley Young
Editors at Harlequin Romance

You're about to get on a roller coaster. One of those scary ones that goes really high — then really fast…. This is what we're looking for in Harlequin Romance manuscripts: an emotional roller coaster that pulls you with it, takes you on the romantic ride of your life and leaves your heart thumping in your chest with a rush of excitement!

If you're writing the romance, you're the roller-coaster builder. How will you construct such a fantastic ride? It's not easy — that's for sure.

Characters and a really strong emotional conflict are your first building blocks; in romance they are fundamentally interlinked, because you must find a really strong, character-driven reason why the hero and heroine can't get together. A reason that is believable, compelling and seems utterly irresolvable.

Where to look for such a reason? Start with your characters. Those two people sitting next to each other on the roller coaster. Forced together for the entire ride; dealing with the experience in different ways. Build them into real people that you know and love. How have they become the people they are today? What were their parents and brothers and sisters, and even past lovers, like? What are their personalities, their characteristics, their education, values and beliefs?

Does any of this history inspire strong conflict? The central conflict changes, grows and develops as the story goes on — that's all part of the ride!

Once you've developed these building blocks you need to structure your story. It's essential to focus on the key scenes that move the story forward. Go for dramatic or emotional cliff-hangers that leave your readers compelled to keep reading — to stay on that roller coaster.

Introspection should be interspersed in small bite-sized chunks with incisive dialogue and action to keep the pace fast and even. Introspection is like the actual nuts and bolts of the roller coaster, absolutely vital to the story to make the characters' actions make sense, but the person on the ride (the reader) shouldn't have to give it a second thought.

Once you have the nuts and bolts in place, you have to take the hero and heroine on that journey — the twists and turns, the highs and lows of the roller coaster. Remember, once your characters get on the ride they can't get off — the emotional conflict should affect them, even if they express their emotions in very different ways.

Make sure you develop the emotional capacity of every scene, for this will develop your characters and deepen the bond between them. And like the very highest peak of a roller coaster, an emotional climax is vital to the story — where all the threads of the conflict are on the verge of being resolved.

This ensures that both readers and our protagonists are left gripped to the edges of their seats as they begin that oh-so-fast, exciting downhill stretch toward the happy ending — and then to that "ahhh" satisfaction that leaves everyone on a romantic high.

Magical Openings

“What is Magic anyway? I’ve never done this sort of thing before. Is it for real?”

I thought that sounded like an intriguing opening line for a story. Provocative and kind of makes me want to know more.

I've been doing research into magical elements since I have a bit of magic in a story I'm writing. The above would be a great opening line for the chapter leading into the magic and spells part of my story.

It's interesting but not surprising that much of the magical stuff I'm finding has to do with love spells. So just for fun, I've included a spell to make someone love you. Seriously! Following is what it says to do:

A most powerful spell when initiated on a New Moon Friday.

1. Blend honey, Jasmine flower water, orange flower water and rose flower water in a shallow bowl

2. Place a pink votive candle in the center of the bowl

3. With a rose thorn, scratch his name and yours enclosed within a heart on five sugar cubes

4. Arrange the sugar cubes around the candle in the bowl

6. Visualize the fulfillment of your heart's desire as you light the candle

7. Repeat this ritual every night for five consecutive nights and your heart's desire will come to you!

Intriguing and interesting isn't it? So if I really have that much power to make things happen, why not make myself rich and famous (a bestselling author, maybe?) with say, someone like Brad Pitt as a lover? (oops, he's taken!)

Well it's fun to research, so I say go and conjure up what ever your heart desires!

(Maybe I should have stuck with talking about opening lines!)

Kaye

Congratulations to Emma Lai! Her fabulous story

HIS SHIP, HER FANTASY

Releases today at The Wild Rose Press!

Good Luck Emma!

Oddly Possible

Here it is another Monday and almost midway through August. My how time flies!

Speaking of time and flying, I've been thinking about Science Fiction lately and how it differs from other genres, since my latest story has strong elements from both Sci-Fi and Fantasy. To me Sci-Fi has always been about odd possibilities. Others have asked me about this too. It does seem like a vague area in the writing world. So here is a bit of research I turned up that just about lays it out nicely and may help if you are writing in this genre.

Science Fiction differs from Fantasy in that, within the context of the story, its imaginary elements are largely possible within scientifically established or scientifically postulated laws of nature (though some elements in a story might still be pure imaginative speculation). Exploring the consequences of such differences is the traditional purpose of Science Fiction, which is based largely on writing entertaining and rational alternate possibilities in settings that are contrary to known reality.

These may include:

A setting in the future, in an alternate timeline or in a historical past that contradicts known facts of history or the archaeological record.

A setting in outer space, on other worlds, or involving aliens.

Stories that involve technology or scientific principles that contradict known laws of nature.

Stories that involve discovery or application of new scientific principles, such as time travel and new technology, such as faster than light travel or even robots.

New and different political or social systems can be included.

Hmm, well there you have it. Let your creative imagination flow and go write some Science Fiction. And don't forget the romance! Okay, SpecRom (Speculative Romance) is another related subject for a later post...

Kaye

Kilts and More...

I have to say a huge Congratulations to my friend Catherine Bybee today! The Wild Rose Press releases Cahterine's erotic debut story,

KILT WORTHY.

So be sure to catch her blogging with

Shelley Munro and Christina Phillips.

(You'll learn about some rather interesting things, such as what do men really wear under those kilts...hmmm!) And don't forget to stop by Catherine's blog for an informative interview with her Scarlet Rose editor, Lori LeBonde.

Good Luck Catherine!!

The Edge of Creativity

Creativity is a heady place to be for sure. As I unwind near the edge of the surf, feeling the quintessence of summer still upon me, I find it hard to believe that August is here and my wonderful escape is almost at an end. Well, not quite, but close.

I'm still basking in the ambiance of hero worship, my own character, that is-- and I haven't quite figured out where he'll go from here. He has what it takes to pull it all together. He's worked his way through several conflicts and conundrums that keep him keenly away from his goal, and that of winning the heroine and bringing their story to a rousing HEA. I love it when that happens.

As I watch seagulls dip and spin over the ocean, my mind takes its own journey into the essence of imagination spinning around my heroe’s love story, oh yeah…

Have a wonderful sweet relaxing productive creative rest of the summer to all!

And just so you know I have not forgotten…

here’s to Catherine Bybee and her two August releases:

KILT WORTHY (The Wild Rose Press, August 7) and SOUL MATE (Red Rose Publishing, August 20)

Good luck, Catherine!

Kaye

Heroes And Other Hauntings

We've had such a breezy cool-warm sunny (well mostly) summer here in the Northeast. Did I mention I'm spending time in one of my favorite places? Rocky coastal cliffs edged with misty smoke-filled morning fog rising over a distant sea... And all that, yeah. Good setting.

Okay so this is not about the weather or a story setting, not really. As I sit on my rock contemplating the frothy ocean waves below me I find my thoughts circling around ideas about what makes a great hero. I'm reminded of a much loved (by me) hero I created a while back. His story is so different, sci-fi, yes but kind of with a 'new age type' flair and I never got it to the point of revision much less submission. Writing that story was an act of wild ride love for me as it came out fast and furious onto the page in a flash.

Now everyone knows I don't do panster well. My usual technique style is to edit as I go. But this story just jumped onto the page errors and all. We've all had stories like this and some authors even write this way all the time-- lucky writers. I can't do it usually. The editor in me is always there. Maybe too much. Yet I have mostly found a balance and can be creative too.

But back to my heroic hero. I honestly fell in love with the idea of him while visiting this particular rocky coastline and his story unfolded like a dream. But I felt he and his story had too much light, not deep enough to be publishable (in the targets) and maybe I'd just keep him for myself.

Yet when my main crit partner at that time read it over, she commented on how dark his story was. I said, Really? Your kidding -- he's a healer filled with light, he's innocent and sweet. To which she promptly replied, hmmm, well I see a lot of hidden darkness here. She went on to explain her view and then said, I think it's very marketable... I thought about her comments and decided if ever I wanted to sub this, it needed work, more conflict. Not so much, she said back. But maybe you need to cut some of the conflict out and tie up the loose ends better. Really? I repeated.

Just goes to show how much my true subconscious took over as I wrote -- I thought I was writing a light ethereal story and here I was creating my usual mysterious darkly tinged hero! Well, maybe not the hero so much, but his story sure is a bit on the dark side!

That happened a couple of years ago. At the time I decided to shelf the story and my wonderful hero. I went on to work on writing and researching other stories, using methods I'd learned-- fleshing out characters, studying the plot, keeping back story down, and hooks everywhere-- oh and yes, editing, revising and rewriting everything constantly.

As I watch the waves crashing on the cliffs, my wonderful hero from long ago past haunts me. I still love him. And being here (a similar setting as his story) brings him back with a force so strong he won't leave me alone. Should I revive him again? Tell his story? Oh boy, it will be a ton of work. Even the grammar wasn't that good. But he calls out to me from the edge of the sea and maybe he needs to be heard.

...He touched her and her pain shot through him like a shock wave. She'd kept the terrible illness, her suffering hidden from him. In fact, her enticing presence blinded him and he had not seen the truth about her. Her uncanny beauty knocked his sensing ability so far off kilter he wondered how he had any sense at all. He drew closer. So close, he felt her breathlessness against his chest. Opening his hands, he scanned her face and let the spectrum colors flow through his fingers, sending iridescent purples and golden hues around her, pulling her into his healing light...

(A little more editing and it'll get there!)

How about you? Do you have a beloved character that you shelved but who keeps haunting you to tell his/her story?

Kaye

Sultry Summer Characters

So here we are, well into summer here in the states with July moving on fast. I love the summer months and wish I could draw them out, make them stay—long languid days and short steamy nights, sultry heat rising up from the earth and misty humid mornings when the sun burns off the fog a few hours after dawn. Blue skies with red orange sunrises and pink purple sunsets— sweaty wet bodies that chill down in the breezes of an evening shower.

What’s not to love? I set some of my stories in the sultry heat of summer and use it to mirror the sensual heat developing between my hero and heroine. This mirroring technique is fun to do. The weather can play an important role in a story. You can use it as a backdrop for the heated emotions playing out between characters. Here's an example I wrote this morning.

...Yearning spread through her hotter than the sweltering medieval morning. She closed her eyes taking in the rousing heat of him. When she looked up, the blue in his eyes darkened. His damp body brushed so near, his fingers touched her, grazing across her lips. A breath caught on its way to her throat...

I may love summer, but some people don’t like hot steamy days and prefer chilly stormy fall, or the warmth of a waking spring, even the frigid cold of winter.

What is you best time of year? Does it have anything to do with how you create your stories? Do you ever use weather as a setting for character emotion or other plot elements in your stories?

You could share an example from your own work with us.

Kaye

Just Thinkin'

Here is a few interesting ideas from Writing Is A Verb by Bill O'Hanlon.

Science fiction author Ray Bradbury wrote, in Zen in the Art of Writing, “... [if I were] asked to name the most important items in a writer’s make-up, the things that shape his material and rush him along the road to where he wants to go, I could only warn him to look to his zest, to see his gusto.”

How do you find or connect with the gusto and zest—also known as the juice—that will fuel your writing through the book creation and publishing process? By identifying and connecting with one or more writing energies.

Writing Energies

Positive Energies. Writers can be blissed (excited or passionate about their subjects or the writing process itself) or blessed (encouraged by someone who believes in them or their writing abilities, or just in the right place at the right time).

When these positive energies are released, they can fuel a book or a lifetime of writing. Blissed is the excited, passionate love or fascination for some activity or subject. Some writers just love to write.

Others are fascinated with the subject of their writing. Some are obsessed with or taken over by characters or the research they do for the book. Blessed is the energy released when someone encourages you in your writing life or believes in your promise as a writer.

Another way to be blessed is to be in the right place at the right time. Blessed is meeting an editor or an agent unexpectedly. You might see something, read something, or hear something that gives you inspiration for a book project.

Of course, you can do some things to make your own luck (as the saying goes, “I’m a great believer in luck. I find that the harder I work, the luckier I get”). Call it serendipity or being blessed or working hard to get luckier. When it happens, it can sometimes release the writer in you.

Negative Energies. Writing can be like photography: You can use the negative to develop. For many writers, the energies that drive their work come from a negative motivation—they are so upset, angry, or unhappy that they feel compelled to express those emotions through writing. Or they want to prove someone wrong, or right some injustice in the world through their writing.

So what do you think about Bill's ideas?

How do you find your own writing energy?

Kaye

Where'd She Go This Time...?

Is it really June 28th already? Oh goodness... (It seems to me like a day or two since Helen visited and dished out her prolific advice!)

Have I been away that long? Well yes, sorry to say. I do apologize. I’ve been way too busy with unrelated things. I could tell you but I don't think you want to know. I just didn’t make it here to visit all my friend’s blogs or even post on my own blog!

Now that’s just bad.

Those who know me know this disappearing act can happen at unexpected times in my life during the year. But the next time it sneaks up on me I promise I’ll try to let you know when I’ll be gone for more than a few days. With that said I’m back, mostly and I’m really looking forward to catching up with everyone.

Okay, yes, it is summer in this part of the world and many of us are a bit busy either with family vacations or other warm weather commitments and activities, heat waves included. So I know there will also be times when you are unavailable too. And for my friends on the other side-- I hope winter is treating you well.

I honestly don’t like leaving my friends hanging out asking, now where’d she go this time…? I will be here but maybe not quite as much as I usually am, at least for now.

With that said, it’s time to wish everyone a wonderful Summer. Or Winter if that’s the case. I hope you are having a fabulous time of it!

I’ll be back…

Check out Michelle Styles blog post for Sunday, June 28. It's filled with wonderful helpful information for us who write.

Kaye

Seizing The Moment

As promised, join me in welcoming my friend and special guest, Helen Hardt, bestselling author of erotica and other great romances as she shares a few of her sensory secrets with us.

Her latest published work, Outlaw And The Angel (not erotica) is part of the anthology, Lawmen and Outlaws.

Today she's talking about how we can make our love scenes sizzle using the senses. She's included some wonderful examples from her own work, which appear in the above anthology published by The Wild Rose Press Cactus Rose Line.

So Helen please share your method of Using Sensory Detail in Love Scenes with us!


Ever read a love scene that absolutely did not turn your crank?

I’m not talking solely about consummation scenes. A love scene, to me, is any scene where the hero and heroine are showing their love for one another (even if they aren’t aware they’re in love yet.) It can be a simple brush of a finger across a cheek. A first kiss (this is a big one.) Maybe third base. And of course, total consummation.

Back to the love scene that didn’t work for you. Why? Writing is subjective, and it could be that you just didn’t enjoy that particular author’s style, even if it was flawlessly written. That’s happened to me, and I’m sure it’s happened to most of you. But more often than not, when a love scene doesn’t do it for me, it lacks sensory detail.

Sensory detail is extremely important in romance writing. The reader wants to see, hear, smell, taste, and feel (and I’m not just talking sense of touch here, I mean inner feelings, as well) everything the hero and heroine do. These details immerse the reader into the character’s head and heart. When a reader becomes a character, you’ve done your job well.

Not to get too technical on you, but “sensory,” as defined, means “conveying nerve impulses from the sense organs to the nerve centers.” As writers, we need to go beyond labeling feelings and emotion, even beyond describing them. We need to become our POV character, feel what he or she feels, see what he or she sees, etc. Then we translate those feelings – those nerve impulses – into words. When you master sensory detail, your love scenes will be urgent, in the moment, and very powerful.

Easier said than done, right? Actually, it’s not that difficult, and with a little practice, your love scenes will shine with new color and vibrancy. First, get a good Thesaurus. This is your best tool for sensory detail. Make sure you use lots of descriptive action verbs. No passive voice allowed! Keep adverbs to a minimum, but don’t be afraid to use them if they work for the scene. Adjectives are essential, especially for describing scents. While description is a good start, use other tools – action, dialogue, imagery, similes/metaphors, to name a few – to convey feelings through words.

When you create each love scene, ask yourself what each character is feeling. What does she see? Hear? Taste? Smell? What does she feel beneath her fingers? Against her body? What is she thinking? How is her body physically reacting to the hero? How is she emotionally reacting? Answer these questions, then work the answers into the scene in the most vivid way possible. Don’t forget your non-POV character. Work his senses into the scene through dialogue and actions.

Be careful not to overdo it. Sometimes a scene lends itself more to one sense than another. In my example below, you’ll see I only use the sense of smell once. I’ve written many other scenes where I focus more on that sense. Be true to your characters and your story, and the senses will fall into place.

Here’s the first kiss in my current release, The Outlaw’s Angel (and this is not erotic romance):

Looking into Naomi’s glaring eyes, Bobby lost all rational thought. He seized her upper arms, pulled her to him, and crushed his mouth to hers.

Her full red lips were as sweet as he’d imagined. He nibbled across the upper, then the lower, tasting the remnants of the raspberries she’d eaten with her supper. Sweet, tangy, and oh so perfect. He cherished each second of the kiss, knowing she’d break away at any time. Probably slap him across the face. It’d be no less than he deserved.

Instead, her arms wove around his neck, and she whispered against his mouth, her voice a sensual caress.

“Bobby.”

His name. How sweet the sound from her innocent lips. He was a goner now. His cock woke in his britches, and he pulled her against his arousal.

“Open, angel,” he said against her rosebud mouth. “Open your lips, and let me in.”

“I don’t know how...” She broke away, and spoke into his chin. At the same time her fingers entwined in his hair. “Bobby. This isn’t...proper.”

“To hell with proper, darlin’. Kiss me back. Please. I’m aching for you.” He found her mouth again and drank from her raspberry lips. “Open. Please.”

A soft sigh escaped her throat as she parted her lips, just a touch, and he slipped his tongue between them. Every nerve in his body screamed for him to thrust into her mouth, to mimic what he wanted to do with another part of his body. But he held himself in check. Likely, she’d never kissed a man before, and even if she had, she was otherwise untouched. As much as he wanted her, he didn’t want to scare her away.

But when the tip of her sweet tongue touched his, he shattered. He pulled her closer, and reached behind her with one hand and began plucking out those dratted hairpins. His other hand held her back at the waist, pulling her against the throbbing in his groin. Soon his fingers were tunneling through the thick sable waves; they were softer than he’d imagined, like fine oriental silk. A throaty groan rumbled from her chest, and like the waters through a damn breaking, he rushed forward, thrusting into her satiny mouth with urgent, yet tender, kisses. His tongue tangled with hers, and when she moaned again, he deepened the kiss, tasting every crevice of her soft, sweet mouth.

The kiss went on and on, and when she finally broke away, her breath came in rapid puffs against his cheek.

“Angel,” he whispered, “you’re so beautiful. So perfect.” He rained kisses across her cheek, her jaw line, to the tender spot below her earlobe. Her lavender fragrance ensnared him, and he inhaled deeply. Still she panted against him, and he waited for her to stop him, almost wanted her to stop him, because if he didn’t stop soon, he wasn’t sure he’d be able to.

“Bobby.” Desire thickened her voice.

His cock responded. How he longed to set it free from its constraints, to watch her wrap her ruby lips around it and pleasure him. Then he’d bury his face between her creamy thighs and return the favor, before plunging his hardness into her virgin depths.
But he couldn’t do this.

She was too good for the likes of him. To soil her would be to bastardize perfection. Once more, though. Just one more taste of those honeyed lips, and then he’d stop. He nibbled at her neck, breathing in her lavender essence, then trailed to her lips again.

“Naomi,” he said, and bent to touch his mouth to hers.

She gasped, but before he could thrust his tongue into her, she broke away from him, turned, and ran toward the creek.

Who’d he been trying to kid? If he’d tasted her again, he wouldn’t have been able to stop.

~~~~~~~

I did something different with this scene. The first kiss is in the hero’s point of view. That’s not the norm for me, but it allowed me to focus on different details.

Let’s take a look at the sensory detail:

First, the sense of sight. What is Bobby seeing during the kiss? Well, not a lot. Most people close their eyes when they kiss. But first, he sees Naomi’s glaring eyes. Later, he imagines her ruby lips, her creamy thighs. Using the sense of sight for images in the mind is a great way to bring it into a kiss.

Let’s move to smell. Mostly just her lavender fragrance.

How about hearing? Lots to work with there. The sound of his name from her innocent lips. Her soft sigh, her throaty groan. He hears desire thickening her voice. Can you hear it? I can.

Taste? This is a good one for kissing. Bobby tastes the remnants of the raspberries Naomi ate with her supper. It’s a sweet and tangy flavor. He refers to her lips as “honeyed.” Again, sweetness.

Last, but not least, the sense of touch, which includes inner feeling. This is the biggie, folks. Most of your sensory detail will come from this sense. What does your character feel as he’s caressing the other character? What does he feel inside, both physically and emotionally? Let’s look to Bobby:

First, he seizes her and crushes his mouth to hers. This shows more emotion that just saying he pulled her into his embrace and kissed her, doesn’t it? He cherishes the kiss, because he expects her to stop him. When Naomi whispers against his neck, her voice is a sensual caress. He gets an erection and pulls her against it. He tangles his hands in her silky hair, and it feels like soft Oriental silk. He feels her puffs of breath against his cheek. Inside, his body is screaming for him to thrust into her, to mimic the sex act. He knows she’s inexperienced, so he holds himself in check for as long as he can. Can you feel his need? His desire? His conscience gets to him, but just one more kiss, he thinks. When she flees, he knows the truth. He wouldn’t have been able to stop at one more kiss.

Can you feel the urgency? Not just for Bobby, but for Naomi as well? Her actions and words help impart her own emotions into the scene.

Thank you, Kaye, for having me at your blog! It’s always fun to visit you. I have a signed print copy of Lawmen and Outlaws, the anthology which contains The Outlaw’s Angel, to send to one lucky commenter. So comment away! I’ll be back throughout the day to answer questions.

Bio:

Helen Hardt is an attorney and stay-at-home mom turned award-winning romance author and freelance editor. She met her real-life hero in law school, and they live in Colorado with their two teenage sons. Helen writes contemporary, historical, paranormal, and erotic romance, and is currently contracted with The Wild Rose Press and Ellora’s Cave. Her non-writing interests include Harley rides with her husband, attending her sons’ sports and music performances, traveling, and Taekwondo (she’s a blackbelt.)

Visit Helen on her Website: http://www.helenhardt.com/

Or her Blog: http://helensheroes.blogspot.com/.

View From Another Point

"Take it back!" Linda screamed. Bill's anger hit a high level and she knew he didn't care about her. (Linda's POV) "No, I won't!" Bill yelled back. Linda hated him. He knew she wanted to hit him. (Bill's POV)

Oh, bad... How do these characters know what each is thinking? No, it's not about telepathy! Maybe not a great example but I think the 'point' is clear.

The other day author Dayana Knight talked a bit about POV on her blog and got some good responses. That in turn prompted me to seek out articles I may have on POV to share on my own blog.

From my first fiction story, I started collecting information on writing. So I searched my files but didn't find much on POV. I think that's because I didn't have a big problem with POV or the dreaded head-hop. I've never liked seeing blatant head hopping within the stories I read or write. But I did find one interesting idea for correcting POV and other habits that need work:

METHOD WRITING

Have you heard your POV transitions are rough? That your POV head hops or your characters lack depth. If you have, you can correct these problems with a little practice.

Consider the Method Acting process. The actor wills himself to become the character he’s playing. Some actors/actresses meticulously research their role prior to filming or a stage appearance. Renee Zelweger worked two weeks in a London office to train for her role in the movie "Bridget Jones’ Diary." She became a London office worker in order to play one on screen.

What’s the point of this information for a writer? While writing, the author must practice Method Writing and become the character. Whether telling the scene from the POV of the hero, heroine, or even the villain, an author must relate the scene's experiences from that character’s body and mind. Therefore, the author should record only those things the POV character experiences.

In my example Linda cannot know what Bill is thinking, she can only guess from his facial expression and his body language. And the same is true for Bill, of course.

Head Hopping: It's true Nora Roberts head hops, and wouldn't we all like to be another Nora? However, it's a mistake to think that because she does it, everyone else can too. We lesser mortals have to follow the rules, at least until we're famous enough to break them.

That means no more than one or two POV changes per scene, and the fewer changes the better. If you master Method Writing, you'll eliminate head hopping because you'll be immersed in the POV character and record events as if you had become that character. More importantly, because you are deeply in the character’s POV, you'll pull the reader into the story as well. That's the goal--to make the reader lose himself/herself in our stories.

Transitions: When you change points of view, make a smooth way for the reader with a signal. At the first of the paragraph in the new POV, use a pronoun or noun to indicate the new POV. Don't cause the reader to back up and reread a paragraph to see who is speaking or internalizing. That takes the reader out of the story. Many editors and publishers don't like head hopping, especially line-to-line hopping from one character's head (POV) to another.

That's not to say you can't write in multiple POV. Especially including the hero's as well as the heroine's POV. But do it either chapter by chapter or at least with a good transition leading from one character to the other and in a different scene.

Life Experience: This determines a character’s thoughts, dialogue, and actions. The same is true for an internal dialogue—the character’s impressions reflect these experiences. For instance, if your heroine bakes pastry and bread to sell and she meets a brown-eyed man, she may think his eyes are the color of cinnamon. On the other hand, a painter might think brown eyes are the color burnt umber.

Don’t forget to surround the character with the senses. What does the character see, feel, taste, hear, smell, sense, and perceive as reactions from the others in the scene? Immerse the reader in the character’s impressions, but don't dump them all in one paragraph. Slip them in subtly as the scene progresses.

And that leads to another point! Don't miss my guest blogger, Helen Hardt as she talks about sensory detail... Coming this week!

As always, your comments and ideas are welcome. What do you think about the subject of head hopping and POV?

Kaye

Persistance Pays...

Are writers groups truly useful in getting you published? Now that’s a good question. I do think groups can be extremely helpful especially if you are a newbie. While the bloom is still on, an aspiring pre-published writer needs to connect with others for support and encouragement. Learning together can be a big asset. To critique each other’s work not only helps the giver learn skills but also the receiver too. Then there are links to publishers, online writing workshop/classes and contact with others who write. Members can share a bunch of knowledge with each other. Some do form lasting friendships.

It all sounds wonderful. But as several more experienced writers have discussed recently, there is usually a downside as well. One of the biggest problems I’ve encountered with new writers groups is many aspirers don’t persist. After a while, they lose interest in writing. Their every day life gets in the way of publishing dreams. Or they just don’t want to put out the effort, endure all the rejections and continue the persistence it takes to get there. It could take several years depending on the market you target. Instant publication is not the norm.

Any one who has remotely touched on the business side of this industry knows well that marketing plays a key role in the life of a writer. Some don’t enjoy this side and may be discouraged by it.

Face it-- there are hundreds, even thousands of distractions out there to discourage us from reaching our goals. Not to mention ye ole writers block! The adage ‘persistence pays’ should become the song of all writers.

When bestselling and oft-quoted Joe Konrath said, “There is a word for a writer who never gives up— published.” He wasn’t kidding. The man knows. He claims to have amassed some 400 rejections before he got his first yes. Now that’s top notch persistence!

Many of my friends who visit here are already successfully published authors. But there is always a new crop waiting for sage advice. With that said, here are some questions to ponder:

What advice would you more experienced writers give a newbie? For the aspiring among us, what would you like to ask those who have been where you are now?

Kaye

Reviews And Old Clues

Remember the very first story we finally finished writing? Remember how elated we were? It was such a great feeling to see all those words forming a real story. But soon after, the eye opener came--we had to take a good hard look at those sacred words. And sometimes it just wasn't as pretty as we first thought. But we started to study and learn and figure it out. And our writing got better and better with practice.

As I looked back at what I've learned along the way about writing fiction, I came across this old article buried deep inside my “How to” file. It’s still a gem and a good review of a few basics, so I figured I'd share it here.

EDITOR FAY THOMPSON’S SELF-EDITING TIPS
– Questions you need to ask before submitting your story

1. Does your story have dramatic unity? Is something happening on each page?

2. Is it obvious what is at stake? Your characters must want something desperately. Have you made it clear what this something is?

3. Have you given enough information so readers can see what you see? Remember readers know only what you tell them.

4. Is your story all there? Does it take too long to get started and is your first line a hook?

5. In Point of View, do you bounce between viewpoints (head hop) until your reader is dizzy and confused? Stay in one POV as much a possible. If you must change character heads, separate POV by space breaks or chapter breaks. Do keep POV changes to a minimum within a chapter.

6. Have you varied the length of your sentences? Some long? Some short? Some medium length? Long paragraphs will have your reader yawning. Too many short sentences will jar his senses. This goes for paragraphs, too.

7. Do you say no to your characters, or do they get what they want without a struggle? The reader wants the characters to almost get their heart's desire, only to have it snatched away from them at the last minute.

8. Have characters' names tripped you up? Don't use similar sounding names. Avoid giving characters names beginning with the same letter. Names should "fit" the characters. Example: Mitzi doesn't sound like a high-society matron.

9. In dialogue, do your characters talk like real people? Don't let them make speeches to each other. Use character names in dialogue just enough to keep readers from being confused as to who is speaking.

10. Have you been guilty of "reader feeder” This is where one character feeds information to another? Or do you ramble on about how this or that came to be? It’s much better to give back story or necessary information in small doses throughout the story.

11. Check punctuation, grammar, format and spelling. Okay, this includes fixing passive voice and ridding out those annoying 'ly' adverbs (softly, quickly) and pesky helping verbs like 'was' and 'had' as much as possible. (ate instead of was eating, etc.)

12. Now the tough one: Is it boring? If someone else wrote this, would you want to keep reading? Have your critique partner go over it. Insist on a tough critique and don't take it personally when they do just that.

Okay, so we’ve heard, read and studied this before. This is tried and true stuff and a basic review can’t hurt us, right?

Write well all.

Kaye