Taste of Kiwi: Blog of Author Shelley Munro

E-books have lots of advantages. They don’t take up much space. They’re light and easily portable.

Feeling tired? No problem. Make that font bigger and easier to read.

Interrupted mid-chapter? The e-reader reopens to exactly where you stopped reading.

Notes? A dictionary? Yes, that’s covered too with the touch of a button.

An autograph from your favorite author? Autographing an e-book for a reader at a book signing? Um…

Earlier this year the answer would have been no, but now Kindlegraph has arrived on the scene.

With Kindlegraph you can request autographs from your favorite authors (provided they have registered their books at Kindlegraph) and an autograph will be sent to you in a PDF document. The developer is constantly working to improve his product, and says Kindlegraph’s motto is to make e-books a little more personal.

If you have a kindle reader do check out the registered authors and try out the service. Authors, it’s simple and painless to register and load up your books. Signing an autograph for a reader is also easy. I love that warm, tingly feeling of doing a signing for a reader.

Check out my Kindlegraph page here. I’m also part of the Not Your Usual Suspects Kindle group (romantic suspense and mystery authors)

You can also follow Kindlegraph at @Kindlegraph

Do you collect autographed books? Have you tried the Kindlegraph service?

Shelley’s Shoutout Corner

I’ve joined a Carina Press group blog comprising of romantic suspense and mystery authors. Not Your Usual Suspects is celebrating Christmas with recipes, jokes and Christmas traditions as well as giveaways for the entire month of December.

Jenny Schwartz has a new release. Wanted: One Scoundrel is available at Carina Press and most other online bookstores.

Win a copy of Reclaiming His Pregnant Widow by Tessa Radley. Details of how to enter are on my contest page.

Win a copy of Sex Idol at Goodreads.

Christmas is Coming is out at Ellora’s Cave on 9 December. Two days to go!

And finally Maria Zannini is hosting a Do It Yourself Christmas at her blog from 7 – 22 Dec. For entertainment, giveaways and more visit Maria today!

With summer almost here in New Zealand hubby decided it was time to get Bella’s swimming pool out for those warmer days when she needs a swim to cool down. She had a ball tonight chasing the bubbles while he was filling it with the hose. I was cooking dinner and turned around to find puppy Bella sitting on the mat outside the kitchen, water dripping off her onto the carpet. Cue one screechy cook! I shouted and waggled my finger. Hubby has also put new sand in Bella’s sandpit so that should keep her busy and out of mischief for a few days.

This year I’ve been in a bit of a writing funk. It’s true that my jaunts overseas didn’t help much, interupting my flow. This week it finally feels as if I’m back in my groove. I’m working on something new and added 2100 words today.

I have a release date for Christmas is Coming. Look for my new contemporary on 9 December from Ellora’s Cave.

Last week on the Marketing for Romance Writers Yahoo list we had a special guest telling us about author signatures and critiquing the signatures of a few brave volunteers. I volunteered my signature. This is the one I’ve been using recently:

Are you up to PAR?
Provocative, Adventurous Romance
http://www.shelleymunro.com

The teacher liked my signature but suggested I change it around a little and reverse the order.

Shelley Munro…Provocative, Adventurous Romance
http://www.shelleymunro.com
Are you up to PAR?

Some writers include details of their recent releases, their blog, Twitter and Facebook links in their signatures. My personal preference is to keep things brief. There’s nothing worse than scrolling through heaps of signature when I’m trying to read my email. I’d be interested to hear how you do your email signatures and what your preferences are – long or short?

One good suggestion was to use WiseStamp to do email signatures. I thought this looked promising, and I intend to explore it more this weekend. It’s on my to-do list!

How is your writing going? What is your preference for email signatures? Do you change your email signatures on a regular basis?

There is a new documentary starting on TV down here. It’s about silence and follows the journey of five people as they go into seclusion and practice silent meditation. The documentary starts off by saying that in our busy society we’re seldom silent, and in fact, some of us fear silence. It goes on to say that many of us would benefit from silence because the act of quietness gives us a chance to look deep into ourselves.

Here’s a link to The Big Silence, and you can actually watch the documentary online.

It made me think how seldom I sit in silence. When I go for a walk I’ll wear my iPod, and with puppy, Bella, things are never quiet anyway. When I’m writing I usually have music playing, even though I don’t hear it once I get into the groove.

I do enjoy silence, but not for too long. My husband doesn’t like silence at all. The first thing he does when he arrives home is to switch on some form of noise–either music or TV–and he’s done this for as long as I’ve known him.

Do you like silence? Do you practice silence?

This week I’ve finally managed to catch up on my blog feeds. Since I write historical romance, among other genres, I subcribe to several blogs that feature info from the past. My favorites are the posts that feature social history and little tidbits about everyday normal things. I thought I’d share some of the posts I enjoyed.

At Word Wenches, I came across the following:Keeping it Clean: Georgian and Regency Bathing Habits by Joanna Bourne. Ms. Bourne explores exactly how clean our forebears were. “…And water. They had ‘running water’ of a sort. They sent a footman to run and get it.”

A Tale of Buttons by Anne Gracie. This article brought back fond memories of playing with all the buttons in my mother’s button tin. Anne talks about buttons through the ages and there are some cool pictures of button hooks.

Over at Historical Hussies Leigh Michaels talked about The Regency Season The season was actually when parliament was in session. The men brought their wives with them to London. The women required entertainment while their men were busy, thus the season was born with its balls and other outings.

A post by Donna Hatch about Regency Fragrances caught my attention. It was exactly what I needed to work out my Gothic hero’s scent.

Now traveling to more modern times…

Author Allison Brennan wrote a wonderful post called Money Can’t Buy Love at Murder She Writes. It’s all about Self-Promotion and Word of Mouth.

CJ Redwine addresses this question – How do I raise the stakes and make the conflict matter to the reader? in her post Write a HolyCowAwesome story

And last but not least – I’m doing a giveaway over at Goodreads. Enter the draw to win one of two copies of The Bottom Line.

Do you have any favorite blog feeds that you subscribe to?

Yesterday I blog-hopped over to Rosalie Lario’s blog and read J. R. Barrett’s post about her new release, Incorporeal. Her post was titled Why I Wrote a Ghost Story.

Publishers told her ghost stories didn’t sell. Click over to Rosalie’s blog and read what Julia said. Don’t worry. I’ll hang around until you return.

Frankly, I disagree because I enjoy reading stories featuring the combination of ghosts and romance. I remember being enthralled by the old television series The Ghost and Mrs. Muir. In fact, reruns would be welcomed. I also enjoyed a detective show called Randall and Hopkirk. One of them was a ghost–I can’t quite remember which one it was, but he wore a white suit to denote his ghostly presence.

The thought that love is timeless and goes on past death attracts me, and it’s always interesting to learn how an author deals with a ghost plus a human lover. How will they finally end up together? Will they end up together? A ghost makes for an interesting conflict. Ghosts also make excellent secondary characters and can add depth and humor to a story.

There don’t seem to be many ghost romances around, but a few years ago I wrote a werewolf-ghost story called Curse of Brandon Lupinus. In fact, it’s selling at the reduced price of $1.49 at Amazon and All Romance ebooks. And of course, you can check out JR Barrett’s Incorporeal.

What do you think about ghost romances? Do you like or dislike them and why?

Check out my contest to win a shapeshifter ebook bundle or a Talking Dog ebook bundle. The details are here. Basically all you need to do to enter the contest is comment on my blog. Go forth and comment!

Romance Divas’ free conference is excellent for all aspiring and published writers. Definitely check it out!

Not forking out the dough for the RWA Conference this year, with evening wear, suits, high heels and whatever “business casual” means?

Not to worry! Romance Divas is hosting the

Not Going to Conference Conference…

The Conference You Don’t Have to Get Out of Bed For!

From July 28-31, come hang out with some terrific, savvy authors — and you don’t even have to brush your teeth (although, seriously, good dental hygiene gets you extra points.)

We’ll be hosting panels on:

The Power of Three: A crit group tell-all (Paranormal)

Crystal Jordan

Patti O’Shea

Dayna Hart/Rowan Larke

The Lolitas of STEAMED! Present Writing the Steampunk Romance -more than leather corsets and brass goggles!

Marie-Claude Bourque

Theresa Meyers

Whips, Chains, Slings, Oh My: It Really Isn’t About the Toys (BDSM Erotica)

James Buchanan

Joey Hill

The Great Big YA Panel

Rhonda Stapleton

Shannon Delany

Kiersten White

Carrie Ryan

Linda Gerber

Saundra Mitchell

Lara Zielin

Brenna Yovanoff

Register for free at Romance Divas, then come join us on the forums for the discussions, as well as some terrific prizes:
Eden Bradley/Eve Berlin:
1) erotic e-books, THE SEEKING KISS and TEMPT ME TWICE.
2) a synopsis critique in any sub-genre of erotica/erotic romance.
Jax Cassidy:
1) erotic e-books, DEVIL’S HEART and BRUSH STROKES.
2) book cover design or banner ad
Kristen Painter:
copy of her e-book, ALL FIRED UP
Rhonda Stapleton:
1) STUPID CUPID YA Book trilogy
2) a proposal critique (1st 3 chapters and synopsis) for any genre of book, romance or not
K.B. Alan:
1) The choice of one of her e-books: PERFECT FORMATION, ALPHA TURNED or BOUND BY SUNLIGHT.
2) A $25 Barnes and Noble gift card.
Robin L. Rotham: Signed copies of BIG TEMPTATION, ALIEN OVERNIGHT, and ENEMY OVERNIGHT
AJ Chase: copies of e-book CAT AND MOUSE
Inez Kelley:
1) e-book package of both MYLA BY MOONLIGHT and SALOME AT SUNRISE
2) The complete Dirty Laundry Series (3 e-novellas) co-written by Ginny Glass aka Wordsugar and Inez Kelley
Kate Pearce:
1) a three chapter ~and~ synopsis critique-any erotic romance, paranormal romance or historical romance.
2) Winners choice, in either print or e-book format (if available), of a set of the Simply series (there are 5) ~or~ a set of the Cowboys (there are 3) ~or~ a copy of KISS OF THE ROSE-readers choice.
R.G. Alexander:
Winners choice of any two e-books from her Samhain or Ellora’s Cave back list
Nadia Lee:
Critique of 1st chapter & synopsis-paranormal or contemporary romance
Shelley Munro: Winners choice of any one her backlist books from Ellora’s Cave or Cerridwen Press
Ciar Cullen: Winner’s choice of any one e-book on her website.
Voirey Linger: A copy of her e-book RISKING ETERNITY
RF Long:
1) a submission package critique (letter, synopsis and 3 chapters)
2) e-books! (details TBA)
Crystal Jordan:
1) 1st chapter and synopsis critique
2) One copy of any e-book off her Samhain backlist (http://samhainpublis…/crystal-jordan)
3) One copy of IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT (print or electronic, winner’s choice)
Jeannie Lin:
1) a first chapter critique, any genre
2) an official BUTTERFLY SWORDS souvenir charm
Elise Logan: Winner’s choice of any e-book from her backlist
Marguerite Labbe:
1) A critique of an m/m story
2) Signed copies of her m/m vampire trilogy MY HEART IS WITHIN YOU, HAUNTED BY YOUR SOUL and OUR SACRED BALANCE
Seeley DeBorn:
One jar of home made body or face scrub, customized to the winner’s preferences and skin type.
For example: Orange Spice Oatmeal, Coffee-Cocoa, Citrus Salt, Lavender Mint, Honey and Flax
Sela Carsen: a copy of her e-book CAROLINA WOLF
Hailey Edwards:
1) a copy of her sweet fantasy romance ebook, EVERLONG.
2) two five dollar MBaM gift cards
Charlotte McClain:
Copy of her two e-books, LOVE TO DECLARE and ROCK STAR’S RETREAT
Cynthia Justlin: (Golden Heart Finalist!) Proposal Critique (3 Chapters and synopsis)-any genre other than erotic
Lainey Bancroft:
1) signed copies of her contemporary romance, THE TROUBLE WITH TESSA and her chick lit romance COZUMEL KARMA
2) Proposal critique (3 chapters and a synopsis) any genre except Steampunk
Tina Burns-Publisher-Liquid Silver Books:
1) a critique of 1st 3 chapters & synopsis
2) 3 be-book prizes for 3 different winners! Winners choice of any one e-book download from LSB library.
Mima:
Winner’s choice of one e-book from her backlist-see her website for booklist.
Taneasha: handmade jewelry by our own Taneasha-details to come!
Barbara Sheridan:
1) Winners choice of one e-book from her backlist-see her website for booklist.
2) Critique of up to 20 pages of either M/M, or M/F romance or erotic romance in various subgenres (contemporary, historical, paranormal or suspense/mystery)
David Bridger:
A copy of his ebook BEAUTY AND THE BASTARD
Victoria Janssen:
3 print books TBA (whatever she finds at the RWA Conference)
Gemma Halliday:
Signed copy of SCANDAL SHEET
Jennifer Leeland/Jennifer McKenzie:
1) copy of her e-book MARKED FOR PLEASURE (Kindle version available upon request)
2) copy of her e-book MARKED FOR DESIRE (Releasing June 29th) (Kindle version available upon request)
3) copy of her e-books The Command Series (Trilogy)
4)copy of her BDSM e-book series (3 from TWRP and 1 from Samhain)
Emily Ryan-Davis:
1) Critique of novella-length (up to 30k) manuscript; any time period, m/f, menage, f/f (m/m not her area of expertise)
2) signed print copies of her anthology: MATING CALL, DRAGON DANCE and DRAGON BOUND
3) e-book copy of CHANGING THUMBELINA
Sabrina Darby:
1) Signed copy of her erotic historical novel, ON THESE SILKEN SHEETS
2) Critique of first thirty pages of any Regency (erotic or non erotic fine, but m/m outside my area of expertise)
Alina Morgan:
1) copy of her e-book The Twilight Deception
2) copy of her e-book The Shadow Unveiled
Debbie Mumford:
1) Critique of a synopsis
2) Winner’s choice of any e-book from her back list.
Kimberly Troutte:
1) copy of her e-book SOUL STEALER
2) copy of her e-book CATCH ME IN CASTILE
Sasha Devlin:
1 pair of hand made writing mitts or gloves-style and color TBD by the winner
Julia Knight
Winner’s choice of one copy of any of her books available in e-book format

Writers – have you ever had trouble writing a love scene and keeping track of limbs? Carina Press author, Kathleen Dienne has written an excellent post about writing love scenes and making sure your characters don’t do the impossible.

Here’s the link to Keeping Track of Elbows: Writing Sex Scenes

PS. Don’t forget to check out Kathleen’s book Her Heart’s Divide

I do my very best thinking in the shower. I think about my day. I think about my current work-in-progress and plotting problems. I think about my goals. The only problem with doing my thinking in the shower is that I can’t take notes. By the time I get out of the shower, some of my brilliance is forgotten. So, imagine my excitement when I saw Stepcase Lifehack’s post on Productivity PrOn: 5 Unusually Useful Nightpads and found a mention of some special notebooks.

Here they are — Aqua Notes – the waterproof notepad.

I wonder if they ship to New Zealand because I want some!!

Where do you do your best thinking?

Author Adrienne Kress has an interesting post called It’s Not About the Odds. She talks about the luck required in getting a publishing contract and how you can slant those odds in your favor by doing a great query letter.

Rebecca at Dirty Sexy Books has a tongue in cheek post about urban fantasy stories. If you’re not really sure what an urban fantasy is read the Ten Commandments of Urban Fantasy.

Margie Lawson has a guest post at Routines for Writers. It’s all about writing body language and verbal cues–an important thing in good characterization.

And finally, You Are What You Eat, Foods That Improve Your Sex Drive is an article by Elizabeth Black that makes for very interesting reading. Stay about from fried foods and rich cream sauces – that’s all I’m saying!

I’m reading a book called The Wolf Almanac by Robert H Busch. It’s research for a new idea I have, and you might have guessed from the title that my story will feature wolves.

What are you reading at the moment?

I often come across good articles and posts relating to writing and the writing business when I’m surfing on the net. What? You thought I wrote all the time?

I don’t know about you, but I enjoy both keeping up with the writing market and learning new things. I thought I’d share the bounty and repost some of the links I’ve found.

Bootstrap Book Marketing Co-op has a post on one thing that can really derail a writing career, and that is professional jealousy. We all have times when we feel down or think someone else is getting a better deal than us and the green-eyed monster creeps in. Bootstrap has a post called The Writer’s Other Classic Curse and Four Ways to Deal With It.

Erastes writes some very thought provoking posts at Reviews by Jessewave. A recent post related to horses in historical novels. Neigh…I blame Hollywood talks about horses and mistakes writers making with them. Note Reviews by Jessewave reviews gay romances, but the post on horses relates to all historicals.

Note: There are two posts today. Scroll down…