Hey All!!!
So, I've got a confession to make. I've developed a serious taste for romance novels. Paranormal Romance to be precise.
And when I say taste, what I really mean is a totally-bad-for-you, call-the-doctor-because-I'm-going-to-need-help-really-soon addiction for the stuff.
I don't know what happened. I was doing my YA and NA reading thing, when I suddenly got a taste for a bit more sexy-time. I picked up one - and I do mean one - novel with vampires and hot, hot, hotness between the pages...and became hooked.
I can't put them down. And I mean that. I've tried. Well, maybe I haven't tried hard enough.
So, I'll be adding some of those books into the reviews I'm working on for this week. The series I'm hooked on, if you're interested, is the Black Dagger Brotherhood Series. Not sure how J.R. Ward does it, but she completely grabs you with this intricate world she's built. The voice, the characters, the stories are all fantastic. And if you like sexy-time, you'll get plenty of that. A vividly hot plethora of sexy-time. The differing points of view don't even bother me. Well, except for the bad guys...I could be completely okay without having them in my head.
In other news, I'm in heavy editing mode as well. After 2.5 weeks of illness, I finally feel well enough to do some actual writing work! Hopefully the editor likes what I'm doing with the novel. I guess all there is to do is wait and see.
Happy reading and writing!
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
THE EVER ELUSIVE BAD BOY IN FICTION
Hey All!!!
Against my original mind, I decided to pick up Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire last week. When I first heard of this book I was pretty turned off by what was described to me as one seriously dysfunctional relationship. For me, when it comes to fiction for young people, I get a bit protective about what we thrust in front of them. With two very young nieces that I adore at home I want to make sure that anything we put in front of them promotes healthy and stable situations and relationships. What scared me about the reviews I saw was the fact that many felt the book glorified an abusive relationship.
So, I read through the first 2/3 of the book and skimmed through the rest...and am still not sure how I feel about it. Is the relationship between the two main characters a mess? Without a doubt! Did I enjoy the parts that I read? Absolutely! Will I let my nieces pick it up when they're of age? Hell no! (If I can stop them. If I can't, we'll at least have a very long talk about how this is NOT the type of relationship they should be having).
In thinking about this book for the past few days, I started focusing on how we glorify the "bad boy" in fiction and entertainment today. I wrote a short blog post on this before, but it still hits home for me.
Why are we so drawn as girls and women to the guys that are no good for us? Is it that thrill of the hunt - of possibly being the one exception to the rule for that bad boy? The hope of being the one person who will tame him. If that's the case, I'll quote the movie He's Just Not That Into You and state that there are no exceptions!
Or is it the thrill and excitement that comes with that situation?
I get it. For real, I do! I spent quite a bit of time with my own versions of the thrilling and exciting bad boy. You know the ones. They never commit. It feels great when it's good, but when it's bad...oh it's bad! It's like being on an emotional roller coaster where you're just hoping things level out eventually, when deep down, you know they never will.
Give me the stable and steady love of the good guy any day!
Now, I don't think we'll ever give up on that elusive bad boy in fiction...he's just too fun to play around with in our heads! But hopefully, one day, we'll see more of an emergence of the good guy actually finishing first in fiction. Besides, who said that the good guy can't be sexy and fun and thrilling? Ummmm, can we say Peeta in the Hunger Games!!!
For a nice list on the good guys of YA check out this post from Emily's Reading Room. It's an oldie, but a goodie. Two of my tops make her list!
Happy reading and writing!
Against my original mind, I decided to pick up Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire last week. When I first heard of this book I was pretty turned off by what was described to me as one seriously dysfunctional relationship. For me, when it comes to fiction for young people, I get a bit protective about what we thrust in front of them. With two very young nieces that I adore at home I want to make sure that anything we put in front of them promotes healthy and stable situations and relationships. What scared me about the reviews I saw was the fact that many felt the book glorified an abusive relationship.
So, I read through the first 2/3 of the book and skimmed through the rest...and am still not sure how I feel about it. Is the relationship between the two main characters a mess? Without a doubt! Did I enjoy the parts that I read? Absolutely! Will I let my nieces pick it up when they're of age? Hell no! (If I can stop them. If I can't, we'll at least have a very long talk about how this is NOT the type of relationship they should be having).
In thinking about this book for the past few days, I started focusing on how we glorify the "bad boy" in fiction and entertainment today. I wrote a short blog post on this before, but it still hits home for me.
Why are we so drawn as girls and women to the guys that are no good for us? Is it that thrill of the hunt - of possibly being the one exception to the rule for that bad boy? The hope of being the one person who will tame him. If that's the case, I'll quote the movie He's Just Not That Into You and state that there are no exceptions!
Or is it the thrill and excitement that comes with that situation?
I get it. For real, I do! I spent quite a bit of time with my own versions of the thrilling and exciting bad boy. You know the ones. They never commit. It feels great when it's good, but when it's bad...oh it's bad! It's like being on an emotional roller coaster where you're just hoping things level out eventually, when deep down, you know they never will.
Give me the stable and steady love of the good guy any day!
Now, I don't think we'll ever give up on that elusive bad boy in fiction...he's just too fun to play around with in our heads! But hopefully, one day, we'll see more of an emergence of the good guy actually finishing first in fiction. Besides, who said that the good guy can't be sexy and fun and thrilling? Ummmm, can we say Peeta in the Hunger Games!!!
For a nice list on the good guys of YA check out this post from Emily's Reading Room. It's an oldie, but a goodie. Two of my tops make her list!
Happy reading and writing!
Wednesday, August 14, 2013
GREAT POST ABOUT THE TWO THINGS AN AGENT IS NOT!
Hey All!!!
I was searching the blog-o-spere and found this post by Janet Kobobel Grant, an agent with Books and Such Literary Agency. It's very easy, as a writer, to think that agents have all the answers - that they are the guardians of the gilded doors to the literary industry, so to speak. But they are people too, and can only do so much for you.
I've always said that being a shrewd business person or leader doesn't require a person to be the smartest in the room, as long as he or she is smart enough to surround his or herself WITH the smartest people they can. If traditional publishing is the route you're taking, you have to learn to work with and trust in the agent you have.
Happy reading and writing!
I was searching the blog-o-spere and found this post by Janet Kobobel Grant, an agent with Books and Such Literary Agency. It's very easy, as a writer, to think that agents have all the answers - that they are the guardians of the gilded doors to the literary industry, so to speak. But they are people too, and can only do so much for you.
I've always said that being a shrewd business person or leader doesn't require a person to be the smartest in the room, as long as he or she is smart enough to surround his or herself WITH the smartest people they can. If traditional publishing is the route you're taking, you have to learn to work with and trust in the agent you have.
Happy reading and writing!
Monday, August 12, 2013
MY WRITING BRAND - AN AUTHOR OF COLOR WHO WRITES DIVERSE PARANORMAL FICTION
Hey All!!!
Recently I've been delving into learning the marketing and branding side of the business of writing. Turns out that you have to do more than just write an amazing tale with relatable characters to make it in this business...much more. In addition to writing and editing, you have to have your brand fully developed, a platform established, and a hefty presence on social media and the like. It's serious business to say the least.
Instead of getting properly overwhelmed, which is my normal M.O., I decided to take this whole marketing and branding piece of writing one sliver of work at a time and dissect it like we used to do in A&P in high school. First up, my author branding!
An author's brand is his or her core philosophy when it comes to writing. What is the message that you'd like to share with the world? And why? What drives your passion for putting in the blood, sweat, tears, and pulled out hair that this process takes? There are a lot of resources out there that can help you to develop a brand. The website I looked into can be found here. You just have to apply the plethora of information out there to you.
As far as my brand, here goes nothing:
I am a writer of color who writes diverse paranormal fiction. What makes my writing different from the slew of books already out there is the fact that mine features a diverse cast of characters. We live in a world where you find a proverbial rainbow of folks in every high school, college, and office - and I'm not just talking race here. We have different cultural backgrounds and sexual orientations, different socioeconomic groups. So why do we not see this same type of diversity in the books on our shelves? Especially the books out there for young folks.
There are so many different kinds of people out there who love paranormal fiction. I want to give all lovers of paranormal fiction a voice, as well as to build worlds in my books that reflect the world around us, in all its glorious diversity!
So that's my brand. Maybe I'll post a chapter or two of my writing here...hopefully you all like it.
Happy reading and writing!!!
Recently I've been delving into learning the marketing and branding side of the business of writing. Turns out that you have to do more than just write an amazing tale with relatable characters to make it in this business...much more. In addition to writing and editing, you have to have your brand fully developed, a platform established, and a hefty presence on social media and the like. It's serious business to say the least.
Instead of getting properly overwhelmed, which is my normal M.O., I decided to take this whole marketing and branding piece of writing one sliver of work at a time and dissect it like we used to do in A&P in high school. First up, my author branding!
An author's brand is his or her core philosophy when it comes to writing. What is the message that you'd like to share with the world? And why? What drives your passion for putting in the blood, sweat, tears, and pulled out hair that this process takes? There are a lot of resources out there that can help you to develop a brand. The website I looked into can be found here. You just have to apply the plethora of information out there to you.
As far as my brand, here goes nothing:
I am a writer of color who writes diverse paranormal fiction. What makes my writing different from the slew of books already out there is the fact that mine features a diverse cast of characters. We live in a world where you find a proverbial rainbow of folks in every high school, college, and office - and I'm not just talking race here. We have different cultural backgrounds and sexual orientations, different socioeconomic groups. So why do we not see this same type of diversity in the books on our shelves? Especially the books out there for young folks.
There are so many different kinds of people out there who love paranormal fiction. I want to give all lovers of paranormal fiction a voice, as well as to build worlds in my books that reflect the world around us, in all its glorious diversity!
So that's my brand. Maybe I'll post a chapter or two of my writing here...hopefully you all like it.
Happy reading and writing!!!
Monday, July 29, 2013
MARKETING AND WRITING
Hey All!!!
So, I've found myself at the crossroads that many authors face to when it comes to perfecting their craft: The art of writing vs. the art of marketing.
Many writers find the art of writing an easy skill to focus on. It's something we want to do, need to do. No one has to tell me the importance of determining my writing style, or of making sure I continue to stay in the habit of writing daily. And no one has to point out how much better my writing becomes when I steer clear of being wordy and focus on the properly plot points.
But when it comes to the art of marketing I tend to immediately feel overwhelmed and squeamish. What is the line between promoting a book and being a good ol' fashioned bug-a-boo? Let's be frank, no one strives to be that guy or gal who is on your Twitter feed every hour, on the hour, asking you to buy his or her wonderful book. Like I tell my new hires in orientation, you don't want to be the person who starts a job, guns blazing, talking about what needs to be done to fix a company (unless you were specifically hired to do that). So, how does one navigate the map of marketing without crossing this crazy line?
That's what I'm researching now, and I hope to find a resolution soon.
Happy reading and writing!
So, I've found myself at the crossroads that many authors face to when it comes to perfecting their craft: The art of writing vs. the art of marketing.
Many writers find the art of writing an easy skill to focus on. It's something we want to do, need to do. No one has to tell me the importance of determining my writing style, or of making sure I continue to stay in the habit of writing daily. And no one has to point out how much better my writing becomes when I steer clear of being wordy and focus on the properly plot points.
But when it comes to the art of marketing I tend to immediately feel overwhelmed and squeamish. What is the line between promoting a book and being a good ol' fashioned bug-a-boo? Let's be frank, no one strives to be that guy or gal who is on your Twitter feed every hour, on the hour, asking you to buy his or her wonderful book. Like I tell my new hires in orientation, you don't want to be the person who starts a job, guns blazing, talking about what needs to be done to fix a company (unless you were specifically hired to do that). So, how does one navigate the map of marketing without crossing this crazy line?
That's what I'm researching now, and I hope to find a resolution soon.
Happy reading and writing!
Thursday, July 18, 2013
WHEN CHARACTERS SURPRISE YOU
Hey All!!!
So, I'm working on a new YA novel. When I was first outlining this story, I saw the love interest as an all around nice guy - the athlete who likes to take tons of photos in his spare time. The guy who tells everyone that he takes those photos as a hobby to "beef up his resume", but who deep down loves everything there is about photography.
But when I started writing the first major scene between him and my main character, I was surprised to find he's a bit more snarky and arrogant than I originally thought. It's not that that's who he is deep down, it's just that people have expected certain things from him for so long and he's started to believe the lies.
The realization of the layers to my character shocked the heck out of me...but it also filled me with excitement and amazement!
That's the joy of writing. Not only does it enable me to get all of these voices and stories and what ifs out of my head, but it also enables me to discover so many different lives and personalities. It gives me hope in people and keeps me in awe of our wonderful complexities. And that's something I'll always value.
Happy Reading and Writing!!!
So, I'm working on a new YA novel. When I was first outlining this story, I saw the love interest as an all around nice guy - the athlete who likes to take tons of photos in his spare time. The guy who tells everyone that he takes those photos as a hobby to "beef up his resume", but who deep down loves everything there is about photography.
But when I started writing the first major scene between him and my main character, I was surprised to find he's a bit more snarky and arrogant than I originally thought. It's not that that's who he is deep down, it's just that people have expected certain things from him for so long and he's started to believe the lies.
The realization of the layers to my character shocked the heck out of me...but it also filled me with excitement and amazement!
That's the joy of writing. Not only does it enable me to get all of these voices and stories and what ifs out of my head, but it also enables me to discover so many different lives and personalities. It gives me hope in people and keeps me in awe of our wonderful complexities. And that's something I'll always value.
Happy Reading and Writing!!!
BOOK REVIEW: FOCUS BY ALYSSA ROSE IVY
Hey All!!!
I recently finished Focus, the second book in the Crescent Chronicles, by Alyssa Rose Ivy. Below is a blurb for the book:
I recently finished Focus, the second book in the Crescent Chronicles, by Alyssa Rose Ivy. Below is a blurb for the book:
**********
Freshman year of college is hard even when you're not tied to the future king of
a supernatural society.
Allie dives into college head first with Hailey as her roommate and the city of New Orleans as her backyard. As things within The Society heat up, Allie realizes that whether she’s with Levi or not, she's in far too deep to turn back.
Allie dives into college head first with Hailey as her roommate and the city of New Orleans as her backyard. As things within The Society heat up, Allie realizes that whether she’s with Levi or not, she's in far too deep to turn back.
**********
I give this book 3.5 Stars.
I still love, love, LOVE this series. And this second installment didn't disappoint as far as giving me all of the let-my-brain-check-out hot romance that I enjoy.
In Focus, Allie has started her freshman year in college, with trusted friend Hailey as her roomie. She goes to class - though she does have a constant body guard sitting next to her in the form of Levi's besties and goons - and tries to party and have a good time. She also spends most of the book giving Levi hell for tricking her into a binding marriage of sorts.
But when Allie's life is once again put in danger by the other noble families - and with a internal threat exposed - she and Levi have to come together.
This book has it all - fun frat parties, the drama of starting college classes, fun nights out with the girls, and a hot guy who's being put through the ringer to earn love and trust.
My big issue with the book is that, like the first one, it's painfully short. The author could stand to expand on a lot of the situations and issues that present itself throughout the story. There's so many chapters where I felt the action was cut short, and I was left wanting so much more.
I will say that Allie holding her ground with Levi in this book was very much appreciated, and I still loved all of the main characters!
As said before with the first installment, I'd enjoy reading this book many times over!
Happy Reading and Writing!
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