*

Writing How-To: Recapturing the Wonder

Monday, September 28, 2009
My dad used to go flea marketing every Sunday morning. One day, he came home with what was, to me, a prized gem: a Smith Corona 2200 electric typewriter, blue, much like the one pictured here.

I probably single-handedly deforested a small Latin American rain forest with the amount of paper I ran through that puppy. I had it until I wore it out.

I was I think in junior high when this happened, and I had that typewriter for I don't know how many years. It took these funky cartridges, not normal ribbon. And I loved it.

When I was in seventh grade, I asked for a year of band. The Hillsborough County school system saw fit, in their finite wisdom, to give me a semester of Spanish and a semester of typing instead.

In retrospect, it was one of the best things that ever happened to me. My dad, seeing that I was about to wear out our antique portable manual typewriter, brought me the Smith Corona and away my fingers ran.

I remember living for Saturday nights when my parents would go out for the night, usually not returning until after midnight, going all the way over to Gibsonton or the fair grounds to watch the short track races. I would move my trusty blue fantasy machine out to the living room with my notes and spend the evening pounding away at it. (I was a very fast touch typist even then.) I would light a large pillar candle I had and pretend I was Stephen King (only a teenager and a girl) and a Famous Author.

I loved it.

Yes, I was a pitiful geek. But overall, on these nights, I was the world's happiest pitiful geek.

There was a certain magic, to me, when I looked over the pages I tapped out, seeing the stack grow. Now, of course, it's all on the computer and I calculate in words, not pages, of production. I don't know why I thought of that typewriter today. It just popped into mind. I think it was somewhere between me moaning to myself that I'm an idiot to try to write three books in my Deep Space Mission Corps series all at once, and that I need to write more, write faster in preparation for my husband's retirement in a few short years.

Then that little blue typewriter popped into my mind.

I still light candles when I write. It's just sort of my thing. For a few minutes, I was that geeky teenager again (who is still geeky, but since she has a mortgage and a cell phone in her name she's earned the right to be as geeky as she damn well pleases) and the sense of wonder nearly overwhelmed me.

Yes, it's a job. A dream job. A fantasy job. And while I literally spent most of my life working toward this goal, it still sometimes feels like a dream. Two parts, "Holy $hit, I did it," and one part, "Am I dreaming? Please pinch me."

Then I quit my bitching and ripped into my manuscript again.

Sometimes as a writer, with day-to-day challenges and pulls on our time (families, evil day jobs, Twitter, etc.) we tend to lose sight of the wonder of what we do. We paint pictures with words. We reveal new worlds and make dreams come true. We are looked at by some and they think, "Damn, I want that gig."

As a writer, how do you stop to take the time to recapture the wonder of what you do? Or do you? Do you need to? Have you hit a metaphorical brick wall and need to take a step back and get in touch with your "writing roots?"

Review Round-up

Saturday, September 26, 2009
I'm behind (what's new?) in posting the great reviews I've received the past couple of weeks. Woot!!

The Reluctant Dom (writing as Tymber Dalton) received 5 canes from Bound to Review (Read full review.)

This is another emotionally charged unconventional book by Ms Dalton. It shows how many people have misconceptions about BDSM lifestyles and with just a little education they can understand. Seth starts out not knowing anything, other than the usual crap, about the BDSM lifestyle. I really enjoy books where you get to watch a character grow and learn. You get to do that with this book. ...Since this book covers a variety of aspects yet keeps it on the mild end of the spectrum, it would be the perfect book for anyone who is curious about BDSM and beginners. I look forward to reading more from this talented author.

Love and Brimstone (writing as Lesli Richardson) received 4 angels from Fallen Angel Reviews (Read full review.)

Lesli Richardson never fails to deliver a well-written book that holds my attention from the beginning. Her writing voice is smooth and captivating, as are her world and character building skills.

I loved the new spin that was given on vampires in Love and Brimstone.Although they are still paranormal beings, Lesli has made them more human and approachable. The complex plot became more involved, with more twists and turns at every corner. I am so thankful that this is the first book in the series, because after over two hundred pages, I find myself still wanting much more from this story and the characters.

Anastazia faces more life-altering changes in a few days than anyone should have to endure. While she did get a bit whiny in the beginning, I think she handled it well overall. I enjoyed watching her figure out who she is and what she needs to do to become a better person...I always enjoy Lesli Richardson's work and look forward to reading the next book in this series. I just have to know what is going to happen to Anastazia and Matthias next.

Three Dog Night (Triple Trouble 3) (writing as Tymber Dalton) received a Recommended Read and 5 angels from Fallen Angel Reviews (Read full review.)

This third book is the best book yet. It is always a pleasure to get to come back to characters with whom you have fallen in love and see them moving on in their lives. There is an element of suspense in this book that suggests that Elain could be in mortal danger. The answers to her unknown background are hinted at throughout the book, keeping me on the edge of my seat and guessing at the truth.

When I tie in those little pieces of information with what was going on with Elain, I am led to believe that all may not be well for her and her mates in the next book. The ending left me groaning in agony, because it confirmed some of my suspicions, and is leaving me hanging until the next book comes out.

I do have to mention that there is a questionable scene in the book, involving Micah and Jim. Micah is a cousin to the triplets, an alpha shifter, and he has found his One. I really don't want to give away too much, but just know that some may perceive the scene as a form of rape. Tymber Dalton did a great job with the scene, making sure that we are given the viewpoint of the shapeshifters and their customs. I had no problem with the scene because it was written so well, as was the explanation that was given to Elain.

"Love Slave for Two: Beginnings (Book 0)" coming Oct. 12!

Woot! My official release date for my next Tymber Dalton book, "Love Slave for Two: Beginnings," the prequel in my bestselling series, is October 12. It's available for pre-order now from Siren-BookStrand.


Blurb:

[Menage Amour: Erotic Alternative Menage a Trois Romance, Contemporary, May-December, BDSM, Public Exhibition, M/M, M/M/M, with M/M/M/F]

Tyler Paulson came to America with a scholarship and a dream of becoming a writer. With an unsupportive mother and a father who abandoned him, he makes close friends and tries to build a new life for himself in his adopted country. Unfortunately, a series of heartbreaking betrayals makes him doubt not only truths he once held about himself, but shatters his trust in others.

Thomas Kinsey wants to carry on his father's legacy and become an architect. His family and upbringing couldn't be more different than Tyler's, but he hides a secret he's afraid to admit for fear of testing his strong family bonds.

Thomas knows Tyler is the man he wants to spend the rest of his life with...if he can convince Tyler to forget the ghosts in his past and have faith in their future together. Read the scorching prequel to "Love Slave for Two!"

The noise you hear is me smacking my head agains the table.

Tuesday, September 22, 2009
It's now not enough I have to patrol pirate file sites for my stuff. Apparently I have to also now patrol sites where writers can post writing.

I found a site where some nimrod was in the process of posting my book, "Love Slave for Two." AND passing it off as their own. Get this -- they'd copied, word for word, the cover blurb that appears on my publisher's site. And on all the third-party sites where it's legally for sale. Including Kindle.

Where it was NUMBER ONE IN EROTICA in the Kindle store, and currently is holding pretty steady in the top ten and has been for the past several weeks.

People had posted comments liking the book, and this a$$hole posted thanks like they were taking credit for writing it!!!!

I mean, it either takes a set of brass f***ing balls or zero brain cells (or both) to post something as your own that's a best seller.

And not only me, but ALL the other postings in this user's account were illegally posted, copyrighted, PUBLISHED books!!! Again, this jerk was taking credit for having written them!!!

And it took me all of five minutes to track down the correct publisher and author and another hour or so to report the f***er to not only the website honchos, but to the publishers as well.

I mean, HELLLOOOOO!!!!

Let's go over this ONE. MORE. TIME. (I apologize to those of you who aren't thieves and/or morons. This isn't directed at you, this is directed at the jerks who are THIEVES and apparently don't understand why STEALING IS WRONG.)

When you buy an ebook, you do NOT have the same rights to it as you do a dead-tree book!!
  • YOU CANNOT SHARE IT.
  • YOU CANNOT SELL IT/RESELL IT.
  • YOU CANNOT GIVE IT AWAY.
  • YOU CANNOT UPLOAD IT.
  • YOU CANNOT POST IT ON ANY WEBSITE.
  • YOU CANNOT CLAIM IT AS YOUR WORK.
  • YOU CANNOT OFFER IT AS A PRIZE IN A CONTEST.
  • YOU CAN delete it off your computer/reader if you don't want it anymore.
Capice? All right? I work DAMN hard to make a living writing. And while I'm flattered someone likes my work enough to share it or try to plagiarize it, hello, it's STEALING to do that!

Grrrr.

Sorry to rant. But dammit, if you wouldn't steal in "real life" what makes you think it's okay to post something to another site??? Or maybe these people do steal in real life too.

GRRRRRRRR!

The can-do spirit is alive and well.

Monday, September 21, 2009
You know, stories like this give me hope. They give me faith in the human race as a whole, and they leave me encouraged that regardless of how bad things get in the world, there will always be someone like these students who will take the initiative to see a supposedly insurmountable challenge and...well, surmount it. (Is that a word? It is now.)


Literally, on a shoestring budget and without a massively bloated government agency behind them, these students TOOK PICTURES OF SPACE FROM THE UPPER ATMOSPHERE!

Tell me why we shouldn't be putting more money into science and math programs in schools?

The pictures are amazing, and the story even moreso. I hope it's students like these who end up "in charge" as they get older.

When will it be on KINDLE???

Friday, September 18, 2009
I've been getting this question at least once a day on average now. For those of you with Kindles who want to read books without having to wait for the Kindle version to come out, you're in luck! I did some digging. This also means you are no longer tethered exclusively to Kindle content.

I don't have a Kindle, I have a Sony, but I can buy from many sources, not just the Sony store, and send them to my Sony reader (and my BlackBerry too) with a USB cable.

I found the following links dealing with file conversions. It looks like you can read the Mobi format on the older Kindles, and .pdfs on newer ones.

http://ireaderreview.com/2008/01/18/how-to-view-pdf-files-on-the-kindle/

Interview at The Blackraven's Erotic Cafe today.


Hi All,

I'm being interviewed over at The Blackraven's Erotic Cafe today, talking about my book "Cross Country Chaos," what's coming soon from both my pen names, and more. Please stop by and check it out if you have a moment.


Thanks!

Writing How-To: Home, home on the web...

Monday, September 14, 2009
Every writer today should have a web presence. Period. Full stop.

Why?

Because agents and publishers want to SEE you. If they're going to take a chance on you, they want to see you're serious about your craft. The website doesn't have to cost you anything other than the price of registering a domain name. (I recommend GoDaddy.com for this.) You can then set the domain name to forward to a free site, like Blogger, Word Press, or any other number of sites. Register your domain name, and have it forward to your free site. It's very easy, takes minutes to do.

Customizing your site doesn't have to be difficult either, even if you're using Blogger or Word Press. There are literally thousands of free templates out there (and a ton of for sale ones too) that a writer can choose from.

Just a few?

Word Press:
http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2008/01/08/100-excellent-free-high-quality-wordpress-themes/
http://www.siteground.com/wordpress-hosting/wordpress-themes.htm
http://wordpress.org/extend/themes/
http://wordpresstemplates.name/
http://topwpthemes.com/
http://www.eblogtemplates.com/templates/wordpress-themes/

Blogger:
http://mashable.com/2008/05/17/70-plus-new-and-beautiful-blogger-templates/
http://www.eblogtemplates.com/templates/blogger-templates/
http://freeskins.blogspot.com/

You get the idea. All you have to do is use Google and put in "free blog templates" or something similar and go to town.

Most importantly - make SURE you proofread your blog entries! Not just for spelling and grammar either. I see way too many entries where it's obvious the blogger doesn't go look at the live blog (not just the preview feature) because there are no gaps between their paragraphs, making it VERY hard to read! (Paragraph breaks are a MUST in online content. You cannot substitute a paragraph tab indent! For one thing, it usually doesn't render anyway. For another, people want breaks in their text or they won't read it.)

Don't just copy willy-nilly from Word into your blog composition screen -- paste it to Notepad, make sure there are line breaks between paragraphs for ease of reading (like in this blog), and then also use find/replace to replace curly quotes and apostrophes to plain text ones. Replace em dashes and ellipses too. And any other "accent" characters. Why? Because more and more, you know how you see the funky little nonsense characters in postings on the web? That's due to problems with a browser or with the browser's rendering settings not displaying the character correctly. Fix it with plain text, even if it takes away the funky characters you really want to use, and you will have MUCH happier readers.

Now go get your patooky over to GoDaddy and register your name/pen name as an url if you haven't already. Register common misspellings for it, too. Have them all point to your blog site, and you're in business!

A writer's morning.

Sunday, September 13, 2009
  1. Roll over and slap snooze button when first alarm goes off for hubby.
  2. Mumble thanks when hubby brings coffee into bedroom.
  3. Slap snooze button.
  4. Slap snooze button.
  5. Swear when second alarm goes off and slap snooze button.
  6. Drag self out of bed.
  7. Gulp coffee.
  8. Stumble out to living room to sit in front of computer and gulp coffee.
  9. Swear when snooze alarm goes off in bedroom and stumble back there to shut alarm off.
  10. Dodge dogs on way back to living room.
  11. Make husband's lunch to take to work.
  12. Gulp coffee.
  13. Swear when blurry text on computer is due to glasses being in bedroom.
  14. Dodge dogs on way back to living room. (They look clearer due to wearing glasses now.)
  15. Kiss husband goodbye as he leaves for evil day job.
  16. Check email, gulp last of coffee.
  17. Get more coffee.
  18. Check Amazon rankings.
  19. Get more coffee.
  20. Refill coffee pot.
  21. Update Twitter and Facebook statuses to something usually involving whining about not enough coffee.
  22. Tell dogs to go lay down, that I haven't had nearly enough coffee to walk them yet.
  23. Get more coffee.
  24. Walk dogs.
  25. Write, edit, or promo, depending on what's most important that day.
  26. Get more coffee.
  27. Get Twitter-stracted and realize I've wasted a half-hour there.
  28. Get more coffee.
  29. Write, edit, or promo.
  30. Walk dogs.
  31. Whine that dishes need to be done and ignore them, leaving them for hubby to do when he gets home.
  32. Decide to take shower, then decide it's too much trouble and stay in fuzzy pink bathrobe and SpongeBob SquarePants pjs.
...Yeah, pretty glamorous life, huh? *G*

Writing How-To: Getting feedback.

Saturday, September 12, 2009
This post was inspired after I read this article, entitled "I Will Not Read Your F***ing Script." It applies to writers of fiction as well. Now, I haven't really had the problem the author of the article had. Actually, my problem has been the opposite -- who do I ask to read my stuff? Not so much a problem when I was an active member of the Novels-L list on the Internet Writing Workshop. But once I branched into writing romance and erotica, I'll admit my shortlist of critique partners shortened even further.

I am lucky that my best friend is an editor and reviewer of romance and erotica. And being that we are like sisters in many ways, she has no problem telling me if something sucks or not. Fortunately, she almost always has suggestions for de-suckifying it.

My husband has the mechanical editing portion of my life covered quite nicely too, because being a former newspaper reporter and editor, he's good at that. He might question plot issues he doesn't understand, but then I take those points to my friend, who can either say he's right or he's a man, ignore him. *LOL*

But I am one of those writers who, unlike the author of the article talks about, WANT the negative feedback. Not without the positives, if there are any, of course, but I don't want you to say, oh, this is great, don't change a thing, have a nice life. I want you to call me out on errors I make. I want you to politely brutalize my writing so I can... wait for it... get better at it.

I mean, seriously? If we're training airline pilots, if they crash in a simulator, we don't pat them on the head and offer them a "great job!" and a lollipop, do we? We say no, that's NOT how you do it, you killed them all. Here's where you screwed up and doomed them to death. Try it again until you get it right.

Okay, so that's dramatic. But I know there is a flip side to this too, that there are people who will gladly rip something apart without pointing out the strengths. That's as worthless as a meaningless "great job." People need to see where they got it right as much as where they screwed it up. I think as an effective critique partner, you must be able to fill BOTH columns -- strengths and weaknesses -- for the writer asking your input. And yes, it's damn hard to find good CPs. I get that. But handing everything over to your mom or your best friend who doesn't want to hurt your feelings isn't helping you. And then if you end up with a good CP, you get your feelings hurt because they pointed out where you need work.

And don't be quick to take every criticism to heart. If only one person mentions an issue, it might not be an issue, just a reader opinion. If several people start hammering you on the same issue, however, that means you probably should take another look at it.

Don't be upset if someone won't read your manuscript for you though. See, I always feel bad asking new people to read something unless they've previously and spontaneously said, "I'd love to be a beta reader for you." And I am VERY squickish about asking fellow writers for comment blurbs or reviews. That's just me. I always worry they'll think I'm an a$$hole or something for asking. Now, when I read something I love, I make no bones about cheerleading it to others. And I always get the warm fuzzies when fellow writers read and positively review my work as well. (Who wouldn't? *LOL*) I've been lucky not to be placed in the position of the article's author, but I have the legitimate reason that I'm totally swamped at this point. (That's the reason I'm not currently of the Novels-L list, I don't have time to do reciprocal critiques required to maintain membership.)

So when you find effective critique partners, treat them like gold, because they're certainly woth their weight in it.

09-09-09

Wednesday, September 9, 2009
What a cool set of numbers, huh? September 9, 2009.

Funny how a year, a month, and a day ago (on 08-08-08) my first book, "Love and Brimstone," was released by Amira Press. Cliched, but it seems like yesterday. A lot's happened since then, and still happening.

I'm looking at the calendar and cringing, however, as I count down the months until my husband is eligible for retirement. I have this inner voice screaming at me, "Write more, write faster!" as I do the math in my head and try to figure how much extra I need to reliably be earning to make up the loss of his income when he can retire.

And I do want him to retire. Dammit, he's earned it.

So while yes, a little of my earnings go into savings (much less than should be, I admit) a goodly chunk of extra that I earn right now is being funneled into long-neglected home repair and improvement. My roof is, literally, held together with some strategically-placed tar patches (by yours truly). It's a thirty year-old house and the original roof. (Barrel tile, very expensive to replace.) I'll have to bite the bullet either this fall or before next summer and have it replaced, but it'll have to be shingle, meaning reinforcing hurricane straps that are probably not up to current code.

The floor saga continues. The living room is done except for some edge trimwork. Still recovering from that so I can do the two bedrooms. I REALLY need to invest in new windows and hurricane shutters. (I have pre-cut plywood and Plylox clips for my shutter system right now. Not bad, but would rather have real shutters.) My A/C system is getting by on a wing and a prayer. Both bathrooms and the kitchen need serious upgrades in plumbing, and my kitchen cabinets are, literally, falling apart.

And on and on.

So I'm trying to find the balance, all while budgeting in my head, knowing that this is my very small window of opportunity.

I did "splurge" on a new laptop this past spring, but considering I need it for working, it wasn't exactly a luxury item.

Then again, if the apocolypse nuts are right, I won't have any worries after 2012 is over. *LOL* (Ooh, maybe I really should get busy with the whole "write more, write faster" thing then!)

Monday on a Tuesday - Reviews

Tuesday, September 8, 2009
I'm woefully behind on review updates. I've been blessed to receive some damn spiffy great reviews over the past couple of weeks! It's safe to say I'm feeling the love. *LOL*

Love Slave for Two (writing as Tymber Dalton) received a 5 out of 5 from the San Diego Examiner.com website:

"Without retelling or giving away major plot points, this story has heart...Bottom line this book gets a 5. From the intense love scenes to the dynamics of their relationship, this is must have book to add to your collection. Don’t let this one pass you by!"


Good Will Ghost Hunting: Demon Seed (Book 1) received a 5 out of 5 from the San Diego Examiner.com website:

"Wow, this story is a unique blend of bible lore with a mix of demonology done very well by the author. It is good and very believable. This reviewer won’t give away the plot, but know that as a paranormal romance, this one is destined to be a great read and one to definitely add to your library!

"Bottom line I give this book a 5. It has enough plot points, great story, enough paranormal shenanigans, and overall it is the kind of story that is ongoing and that is a good thing as this reviewer is not ready for this story to end! Great characters to make one salivate for the next installment. So stay tuned for book two review! Don’t let this one pass you by."


Good Will Ghost Hunting: Hell's Bells (Book 2) also received a 5 out of 5 from the San Diego Examiner.com website:

"This story packs a punch! The storyline is definitely getting better and as a reader I want Ryan to have his soul mate, but he is the suffering hero. Just brilliant!

"Bottom line the book gets a 5! The mythology is laid out and written very well. The sex is hot and the emotions deep. As a paranormal read, you are definitely getting your money’s worth. Don’t let this one pass you by!"


And Domme by Default (writing as Tymber Dalton) received 5 canes from Bound to Review:

"This an emotionally charged read. It's not like most BDSM books I’ve read. Domme By Default deals with more than just the physical aspects of a D/s relationship. It delves into the emotions, love and the desire to make someone else happy. Even resentment at being put in a position outside their comfort range. While this is not a typical relationship by any means, it shows that if you want them to things will work. Also that a relationship is worth fighting for if it’s the right one for you. I would recommend this as a book for couples trying their hand at BDSM. 5 Canes for this inspiring novella."

Why I love ebooks (Or: The Pack Rat's Secret).

Monday, September 7, 2009
It's not that I don't like "dead tree" (paper) books. I do. I was one of those kids who was perfectly happy to be dropped off at a library and forgotten for a day. I would have loved to move into a library. I owned hundreds (and later thousands) of books. I love books.

Hear me? I. Love. Books.

As a writer, duh, I still love paper books. But where before I was always obsessed about being "in print," now the economics of the situation have hit home in more ways than one. We live in hurricane territory. We missed being hit by the brunt of Charley in 2004 by literally less than a couple of miles. As we stood in our house that afternoon and I stared at the ceiling and prayed the roof would hold, I thought holy crap, how the HELL will I clean up this mess if our roof goes? Especially considering at the time that my husband and I between us had well over 10,000 books.

No, that's not a typo.

I am a packrat. Not one of those kind where a whole TV show is devoted to them. But it's always been difficult for me to pare down. Especially books.

I love books. (I mentioned that before.)

I found it easier to let some go to places like Paperbackswap.com where I could exchange my books for...wait for it...more books. Okay, so that saved me money.

But as my fiction career has progressed, it was far easier for me to release that "I must be in print!" mentality. Especially when the payback was much better for ebook sales. I like reading, and it doesn't matter to me if it's on the computer or a handheld device or a "dead tree" book. It's the words, not the medium, that matters to me.

I've started buying ebooks whenever possible now. (Ironically, sometimes they're cheaper that way. Not always, but sometimes.) This means I can take dozens or hundreds of books with me on a car ride or appointment, and if I get bored with a book (or finish it) I can easily switch to another. I don't have to dust them. My shelves are no longer overflowing. (Well, okay, they STILL are overflowing with books I've already purchased, but I'm not adding to the chaos.) No dusting. (I hate dusting.)

This was a huge step for me, even though it might not seem like it. I will still buy "dead tree" fiction books on occasion, but only if they're not available in ebook format. If I can get them second hand through Paperbackswap.com, I'll try that first before resorting to buying new. Unless, of course, it's a book I really, really want by one of my favorite "must buy" authors, like James Lee Burke.

This has changed my buying habits. I'm less likely to impulse buy a "dead tree" book now. (Although it's super-easy to impulse buy an ebook! *LOL*) I am now steadily working my way through my TBR pile(s) and posting the non-keepers (most, unfortunately) on PBS as I go so I can clear them out.

As far as reference books go, those I still buy in paper. But regarding fiction, I am happy to admit I prefer ebooks. I don't ever have to get rid of a book now, and can satisfy my pack rat tendencies to my heart's content without giving up space or having to admit I'm a pack rat. In fact, outwardly, it looks like I'm slowly paring down my possessions (which, of course, I am).

As my house slowly gravitates toward being more orderly, I'm enjoying knowing that this is one of those few times in life where you can eat your cake AND still have it, too. *LOL*