Taste of Kiwi: Blog of Author Shelley Munro

This coming week I’m a guest blogger over at the CataNetwork Come and visit me on 15 May. The wonderful Wylie Kinson has a new release this week, and she’s visiting here on 16 May. BTW – check out her lovely cover. Very nice!

Sensual – part of the Catanetwork has a very nice new look plus a contest for authors. Check out the details below.

Check out Sensual!

I’m helping to spread the word about the newly redesigned website Sensual. If you like your romance novels on the steamy side, you’ll love this site. It’s full of reviews, interviews, excerpts, information on the newest print and ebooks and lots more. You can even win books and other goodies. So check it out. http://sensual.ecataromance.com
Authors, you can spread the word too! If you’d like a chance to win one of 20 Cover Ads and get a shot at a fabulous grand prize (a 3 Pack of their huge billboard ads – a $100 value!) just repost this blurb on your blog or website. Then stop by Sensual and leave a link to your post. All authors are eligible to enter and win so why in the world wouldn’t you? See their site for more information and official rules: sensual.ecataromance.com/?p=688

I’ll see you at Sensual!

Appearing on the cyber circuit this week is author Lyn Cash with her recent release Mistress Mine. Lyn is the multi-published author of over fifty short stories and confessions, a couple of non-fiction books, and over a dozen novellas and novels. Her mainstream fiction is written under Bobbie Cole, her erotic fiction under the pen names of Lyn Cash and Cash Cole.

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Author Barrie Abalard is out on the Passionate Ink Cyber Tour this week with her release Hot to Trot. Here’s a teaser about her book:

Exes Patti North and Dylan Decker adore each other. Her problem? He cheated. His problem? Her temper. Fixing things will take more than spankings and hot sex, though that’s a good start.

HOT TO TROT, set in the often funny-weird worlds of Boston high-tech and equestrian hobbyists, tells the story of two exes who still adore each other—and still annoy each other—more than any other twosome on the planet.

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Today I’m touring a wonderful author from Down Under–from Australia, to be precise. I’ll try not to hold that against her! Denise Rossetti writes wonderful intense romances, usually with a fantasy element. I’ve read most of her books to date, and I’m definitely looking forward to some free time to devote to Strongman.

Brokeback with a Happy Ending

When the credits rolled up for Brokeback Mountain were you in tears? Denise Rossetti was.

Then she got mad – two souls who were destined to be together, so much love, so totally wasted. All because of the society those men lived in. But what if a similar situation occurred in another place, at another time? In a world Rossetti knew well? Her writer’s brain started churning…

Enter Stage Center – Fortitude McLaren, a hard-bitten mercenary who’s had a gutful of mud and blood and death. Brought up in the bigoted society of the Straight Church on the fantasy world of Phoenix.

Enter Stage left – Griff, acrobat and knife-thrower, lithe and athletic, a man with a gift for friendship, for caring.

Put the players together and you get something like this…
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Introducing the Passionate Ink Cyber Circuit: We’re a group of writers who belong to the Passionate Ink chapter of Romance Writers of America and write erotic romance. Once or twice a month our members will tour a recent release in the hope of tempting you to add it to your to-buy list.

It’s my pleasure to introduce our first author out on tour – Nina Pierce.

What would happen if a devastating plague wiped out nearly all the male and two thirds of the female population on earth? That is the premise of Nina Pierce’s futuristic erotic suspense novel The Healer’s Garden available now from Liquid Silver Books.

In the female dominated society of 2172, mating with a male, even to save the human race, is a distasteful task and one Healer Jahara Hriznek, has successfully avoided—until now. Brenimyn is a gifted breeding instructor at the Garden. Forced to copulate with all females who request his services, he is tired of the government enslaving men. He lives to find the one woman who will fulfill his destiny and help him bring about social equality for all people.

The Healer’s Garden chronicles the sexually explicit love story of these two people and their changing attitudes toward the social mores of their time. There are many at the Garden who oppose the burgeoning relationship between Brenimyn and Jahara and will fight to keep them apart, but just as many who think now is the time for the vision of equality for all genders to be realized. Can Jahara believe in her love of a man and follow Brenimyn into a battle to overthrow the sexist government? Will Brenimyn trust his heart and allow a woman to lead the fight to bring about the new world order?

It sounds like a great book, Nina, and I love the cover! Now a few nosy questions:

Where do you get the inspiration for your stories?

My background is teaching… and science at that. I’ve always analyzed and catalogued the world around me. After I retired from teaching I had to train myself to stop thinking like a scientist and think like a writer. It took me a couple of years to start doing this. Now, everything around me is inspiration. A line from a TV show or a song can start a whole “what if” scenario. A snippet of conversation overheard in the grocery store can start a landslide of ideas. From these little nuggets… whole stories emerge.

Plotter or Pantzer?

Total Pantzer. From the “what if” question I begin writing. Then I branch out and answer the questions that arise as I write. Eventually the characters flesh themselves out and I figure out who they are and what motivates them. And I keep writing. branch out from there. I have certain scenes I “see” as I’m writing and I can write toward those scenes, answering questions all along the way. The twists and turns just happen organically as the story unfolds.

What does your writing space look like?

I work at a desk in the family room with the television at my back. In the morning I listen to the morning news, but then it’s off for the rest of the day. There are stacks of papers on either side of the monitor. Mostly they contain information about submissions publishers are looking for or particularly good promo info I’ve gotten.

A stack of CDs with my backup books and emails is in the mix. A small notepad with daily word count productivity. At my feet is a yellow notepad and pencil filled with notes to myself about questions I may come up with or questions that require more information. And my coaster, usually with a mug. Coffee in the morning, hot water in the afternoon… glass of wine at night. Printer paper and scrap paper are on the top shelf above my monitor next to the aging printer.

What does your family think about you writing erotic romance?

I’m very fortunate in that my husband can talk about my books now without blushing. My children (all young adults) would like to read my books if I could just… umm… close the bedroom door!

If you could be any animal for just day, which one would you choose and why?

Without question… a cat. I’d lay in the sun all day and meow for attention and food and sleep some more. And be comfortable all curled up in the squished up blanket on the couch… heaven.

Thanks, Nina, and all the best with your book. You can visit Nina at her website or at her MySpace to learn more about her writing and books.

I’m guest blogging over at Fuzzy Pink Slipper blog today. Check out my post here.

Happy New Year!

Mr. Munro and I had a quiet end to 2007 because he’s on call. We had an alfresco dinner, since we’re currently experiencing hot weather, and after walking the dog, watched Blood Diamond. We’ve had a good run on DVDs lately, and Blood Diamond is one I’d highly recommend, if action movies are your style. It stars Leonardo DiCaprio as an ex-mercenary turned diamond smuggler, and is set in Sierra Leone. It’s a gritty movie with a stark portrayal of life in a war-torn country. I was really impressed with DiCaprio’s performance and his accent. The support actors also gave excellent performances. The next movie showing at the Munro home theatre is The Bourne Ultimatum. I’ve heard some great things about this movie as well, and I’m looking forward to seeing it.

This year my blog format will be a little more organized. Each week there will be a guest blogger, a post about something from New Zealand, an update as to where I’m at with writing, a Thursday Thirteen post, and a potpourri post about a topic that interests me. It could be anything from books to movies to whales or travel. I’ll be blogging five days a week (unless I’m on holiday or sick!) and taking the weekends off.

My guest bloggers will be a combination of favorite and new-to-me authors so if you’d like to have a guest spot contact me via my website. I’m also considering doing some reader guest spots where I’ll have an interview format. Once again, if you’re a reader who would like to take part, contact me via my website.

I’m looking forward to the new year. It’s started off hot and sunny, which is a cue for me to get out my bike and do some exercise before I head to the writing cave. I was also lucky enough to receive an ARC of Lauren Dane’s Wolf Unbound, which releases from Samhain Publishing today – 1 Jan 2008. As soon as I’ve done my word target for today I’m starting to read. I can’t wait since I adore Lauren’s books.

It’s my sister’s birthday today and I went over to meet her for morning tea. Happy birthday, sis!

I have a release date for WANDERLUST. It’s coming out on April 18, 2008. Once I get myself organized I’ll put up an excerpt on my website.

And finally here’s a few more trip photos. The first is of the Pride of Aloha, the ship we cruised on. It’s very pretty with its lei of flowers. The ship is moored off Kona on the Big Island. This was the only place where we caught tenders from the ship to get to shore. We moored at a wharf on all the other islands.

This is the view from our cabin porthole when we sailed past the Kaua’i Coast.

And this is me aboard the ship at one of the happy hours at the poolside bar. There were 2000 passengers on board the ship. I don’t know where they all hid because I didn’t see them! The only thing we ever needed to queue for were the lifts. After the first time waiting we gave up and hit the stairs all the time. Hmmm, come to think of it that was Mr. Munro’s idea. The sneak had me in training for that hill climb and I didn’t realize!

Woo-hoo! I’ve sold a romantic suspense called Wanderlust to Cerridwen Press, the mainstream home of Ellora’s Cave. Wanderlust is set in India and has let me re-live my travels all over again. Fun times checking out all my photos and dragging out my Lonely Planet guide book.

I also have a release date for Fancy Free. It’s due for release from Ellora’s Cave on 18 Jan 2008. That week is going to be a busy one since Playing to Win is releasing from Cerridwen Press on 17 Jan 2008.

And finally, I’m giving away a signed copy of The Shadow at The Romance Studio today. Go here to enter the draw.

I’ve spent all day in my writing cave today and will likely spend a lot more time there this week. Here’s a photo to entertain you while I’m busy. It’s taken in Epulu, Zaire, Africa. If you’d like to take a guess at the story post a comment!