Taste of Kiwi

My special guest today is fellow Carina Press author, Christine Price. Here’s Christine’s official bio – Christine Price lives in Edmonton, AB, with her husband, two cats and a slightly idiotic Anatolian shepherd. Though she probably wouldn’t consider herself a “girly girl,” Christine is in love with cooking and baking, and she has recently tried her hand at cake decorating. As a public service, she’d like to warn people about the potential threat posed by twenty pounds of rolled fondant and a slightly inebriated best friend. In her free time, Christine enjoys wine, good movies and even better books. Her first work, Soul Bond, was released in April 2010.

Today, Christine is talking about her adventures in writing…

In Darkness Bound is my first novel-length publication. And I learned a lot from writing it. For example, the importance of fully developing a climax and the “Great Ah-hah Moment.” Actually, the first draft of IDB was at least 20,000 words shorter than the finished manuscript and missed a lot in the way of character development. Overall, the novel is waaaaay better for the revisions. But I also learned something that never would have struck me before now. Instead of going into the lengthy summation of the discovery, or doing an interpretive dance (which would be a little difficult without the use of a webcam and YouTube) allow me to provide a brief script:

Me: So?

Beta Reader: Okay, I liked x, y and z. But I don’t get what’s going on with w.

Me: Well, here’s the plot point.

Beta Reader: Huh… you should probably put that in somewhere.

Me: I did. It was on page 120.

Beta Reader: OH! … … But that’s the sex scene.

Me: Yeah.

Beta Reader: You may want to rethink that.

What my Beta Reader didn’t come right out and say was that a major plot point in a sex scene isn’t always a great idea. This was a realization I had to come to myself.

So why is it? Well…when people read romance, they want to lose themselves in the romance. The erotic passages are especially important. They establish the intimacy between the characters and heightening the sensuality in the relationship. Readers—myself included—use their imaginations during these scenes. There are also readers who prefer to read for the plot, and tend to skim the sex scenes entirely.

See where I’m going with this? No matter what the motivation for reading, I think that there’s a chance that if you include important plot points in a sex scene they’re going to be missed. This by no means goes for everyone who’s ever read a romance novel. But I’ll admit I’ve done it. In my favourite romance book of all times, I skimmed through each sex scene because I wanted to get on with the plot. When I went back and read it over (for the second, third, fourth, fifth and twentieth times) then I appreciated the sex scenes. If there’d been any important developments during those flitting pages of eroticism, however, I totally would have missed them.

I guess there’s not really a moral to my story. (Well, not to anyone other than me anyway). My novel helped me with several key points in the development of my writing. One of them just happened to be this one. As I continue writing, it’s one that will stick with me.

Maybe.

Contest: What are your thoughts? Plot in a sex scene – yes or no? Are you a skimmer? A “lose yourself in”-er? Or neither? Post an answer to Christine’s questions in the comments section and go into a draw to win a download of In Darkness Bound

Here’s the blurb for In Darkness Bound:

Data Collection by Dalhousie, Dr. Donna L.

Reclassified to staff status. Useful, malleable.
Confined in a sterile research facility and treated like a lab rat, Chris is alone and terrified. His special powers are his only escape, allowing him to psychically connect with other patients.

Alone in his cell for longer than he can remember, Vance is hungry. When newcomer Chris makes a mental connection, Vance is intrigued and soon wants more than just conversation.

Chris and Vance seek comfort with each other, and with Simon—the only staff member who’s shown them a hint of compassion. Their relationships develop during stolen moments, and they turn their thoughts to escape. But as Dr. Dalhousie’s madness spirals, more than cell walls threaten to keep them apart…

Purchase from Carina Press

You can visit Christine at her website or chat to her on twitter.

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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

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I’ve decided my favorite part of writing is getting the first draft down. That’s when I’m happiest and I plod along, writing 2000 words a day. (Around 10,000 a week since I try not to work on weekends). Lately I’ve been in edit mode for books I’ve contracted. I like working with my editors and making my book sparkle, but I get to a stage where I’m so sick of my book the thought of reading it once more makes me want to scream. I grit my teeth and do it, because that’s part of being a writer. It’s my job.

All this editing is good news though, because it means I have lots of releases: June, July, August and September. Check out my coming soon page for further details. And I can get back to doing the part I love most – creating new books.

It was fun working on Lucky Charm again. (working title). My word count stands at 13,200 as of today. Lucky Charm is a historical set in 1940 England. I really enjoy this era since it comes with lots of inbuilt conflict. I’m also working on book eleven in my Middlemarch series plus a werewolf story. Yes, that’s three things at once. Somehow everything is working. One book is close to done, one is about half done and the other I’ve just started.

I love it when my inbox brings good news. Today I sold a sci-fi romance called Resisting Tamaki to Ellora’s Cave. Yay!

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My special guest today is friend and fellow sci-fi fan, Kaye Manro. Forbidden Love is Kaye’s debut book, and it’s doing really well. If you’ve been following Kaye’s Forbidden Love tour, you’ll know she’s discussed some really interesting topics. This is her last tour stop, and she’s talking about world building. Over to Kaye…

Thank you for inviting me to be your guest today, Shelley!

World building is such an interesting subject, and I’d like to talk about just how I created my science fiction environment in my short erotic SFR Forbidden Love.

While world building is important in all genres of fiction, it is doubly true for science fiction. The process involves detailed back-story that may never end up on the written page!
In science fiction, as well as science fiction romance, (SFR) authors tend to spend a lot of time on world building. In the created worlds especially those involving space travel the process usually starts with designing the star and solar system in which the planet resides.
Here’s an example from my own world building experience. When I created the premise for the Forbidden series (book one is Forbidden Love, which recently released at Red Rose Publishing) I wanted an astounding species with touches of reptilian DNA. For that, I needed the proper environment for them to exist. Their planet needed to be atmospherically disruptive and wild, a little like Venus but able to sustain life. While in opposition, I wanted the species to be an ancient and peaceful but advanced culture, capable of traveling across galaxies by way of hyper-jumps through invented event horizons.

I had a vague idea of what I should call this world, and those red-orange colors kept popping into my mind. I created the name for the planet by combining words like orange and ascorbic because it reminded me of vitality and virility. I melded the two words and Asconage was born.

As I pondered, what Asconage might be like, visions of its solar system came to mind. Asconage is a desert-like world, and I needed to create an extremely arid environment. This planet, painted in russet, ginger, and mauve with an indigo-purple and hued red nighttime sky, orbits two suns, one near and one far. The binary system makes intense heat possible without causing a total planetary meltdown. This is the main reason why T’Kon’s species developed along the evolutionary path it did. I hope this gives you an idea of how everything ties together.

I wanted T’Kon’s race, though extremely technologically and physically advanced, to have archaic beliefs and laws governing the people that preserve the purity of their species. In Forbidden Love, that’s exactly why T’Kon has a hard time coping with his attraction to Maya, the heroine. She is from a human species on an Earth-like world known as Terrain. T’Kon is an explorer and scans Maya’s world for possible contact when his spacecraft crashes into the Terrain surface.

Truly, Forbidden Love came alive only after I had spent time developing the foundation for which I based this story and that is world building. Here is how the story actually unfolded–

Forbidden Love is a futuristic sci-fi erotic romance. Yes, there is space travel at FTL (faster than light). But there is also lots of sexy sensual exploring between the hero T’Kon and the heroine Maya, who hail from different galaxies and evolutionary paths. Rules on T’Kon’s planet forbid interspecies mating. But when he crashes his spacecraft on Maya’s world close to her desert home, what else is he to do but let this lovely alien tend his, umm, injuries?

Here is a little taste of Forbidden Love:

Something cool and clammy grazed her arm, causing a shiver. He sat on the edge of her exam table, his face no longer tinged with the pale blueness she observed earlier; rather, a deep russet color washed him.

Maya stared at the alien awake and alive, his lean muscles tensing as he stretched. Slanted sliver blue-flecked eyes peered at her holding a puzzled look, a haunting icy glare.

“I—I’m Dr. Maya Belle,” she cleared her throat. “I found you hurt in the desert near here so I brought you to my lab—my home.” She squinted and sucked in a mouthful of air. “Who are you? It’s a foregone conclusion you’re not from this world. Where do you come from?” She tilted her head. “Do you understand me?”

Suddenly his thoughts tumbled into hers.

“I am on a peaceful mission. My cloaked spacecraft malfunctioned and crashed into your planet’s surface. You do know where it is.” She sensed his uneasy pause and then, “You will take me there.” It sounded too much like a commanded to her.

Yeah right, she thought and immediately tried to recant the notion. But it was too late. His icy gaze narrowed on her. Clawed fingers grasped a firm hold around her wrist. He emphasized one word. “Now.”

Bio for Kaye

As a romance author, I lean toward the adventuresome in my writing. I love science fiction and all the enticing quantum theories surrounding it. Where characters rush through outer space at Faster than Light speed, or teleport into another time, and even slipstream into an alternate reality. I like creating love scenes too with strong heroes, and captivating heroines. It just seemed natural to combine all these elements together in my stories and write (SFR) Science Fiction Romance.

Links:
Forbidden Love Buy Page ~ Kaye’s Website ~ Kaye’s Blog ~

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Here’s a very thought-provoking article from marketing specialist, Rob Eager about social networking. It might seem free, but is it really? – The Hidden Costs of Social Networking

The article appears on Chip MacGregor’s blog.

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Why is it on days that you’re really busy everyone decides they simply have to talk to you? I had one of those days today. My edits arrived from Carina Press. No problem. They were expected. I had breakfast and sat down to work.

Bang! Bang! Someone was at the door. Sighing, I answered it and came face to face with a woman who wanted to convert me to religion. I politely said I wasn’t interested, but she was a tenacious one. I finally informed her I was busy and shut the door. I sat down and half an hour later, the phone went. It was my sister. I know if I’d had said I was busy, she wouldn’t have minded, but she’s been going through chemo, and I wanted details. (She had an MRI yesterday and will know in a week if the treatment has helped or if she requires more radical treatment) Fingers crossed! Anyway, I finished talking to her, and decided I’d quickly check my email. That was a mistake because there was another set of edits waiting for me, this one from Ellora’s Cave.

Somehow, I think it’s going to be a busy weekend. I leave you with a relaxing holiday shot, meanwhile I’m off to attack more edits.

The person surrounded by fish is me. Mr. Munro and I did a helmet dive while we were in Bora Bora, Tahiti. It was so much fun and definitely makes my list of most memorable experiences. Note the stingray on the left of the photo.

I’m doing a guest post at Coffee Time Romance today on Friends with Benefits and The Bottom Line.

And, if you haven’t already, check out my guest post at Manic Readers about The Other Side of the Fence.

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After my holiday I was having trouble settling down to write again. It’s so easy to waste time on the Internet, and that’s exactly what I was doing. I decided to take radical action, and for the last week, I’ve been turning off my laptop and writing on my alpha smart. It’s working! I’ve written 10,000 words since Wednesday (with the weekend off).

I’m expecting edits from my editors on two separate manuscripts this week, so my progress will slow, but I’m definitely going to continue using this strategy. I check my email in the morning and don’t turn my laptop on again until the evening. With three different manuscripts underway, if I run into a wall on one, I swap to another to make my word count. I figure one way or the other, I’ll end up with three complete manuscripts ready to sub.

Samhain Publishing have a brand new newsletter. The monthly newsletter will feature upcoming and new releases – both in eBook and Print – as well as free downloads and contests. Follow this link to subcribe to Samhain’s newsletter and keep up with all the news.

Do you limit the amount of time you spend on the Internet? How do you do it? How long do you spend on the Internet each day?

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It’s hard to get back to writing after five weeks when I didn’t do a thing. This week has been a bit like pushing through sand. I thought Lorie O’Clare’s writer tip about keeping a journal of words written each day, promo undertaken and that sort of thing was a great idea. Seeing my progress written down in black and white seems to make me more efficient. On the days where I goof around and don’t get much done, it’s all there for me to see. I don’t like seeing the lack of progress, and it works like a swift kick in the ass.

Normally I try to write 2000 words per day. That’s a good pace for me, but I haven’t done anywhere near that this week. Next week will be better.

What methods do you use to cope with procrastination and wasted time? How do you keep on track with the things you have to do?

Contest – How Many Books?

For all those who entered my contest, I read 30 books while I was on holiday. The two closest people guessed 29. I put the two names in a hat, and Mr. Munro picked one name for me.

And the winner is: Carol L

Congratulations. I’ve emailed you about your book voucher prize.

I read the following books:
1. Cougar by Beverley Rae – paranormal
2. Heart & Soul by Evangeline Anderson – m/m
3. Shifter’s Captive by Bonnie Dee – paranormal
4. Songbird by Maya Banks – contemporary
5. Duty & Devotion by Tere Michaels – m/m
6. An Improper Holiday by KA Mitchell – m/m
7. Scandal by Carolyn Jewel – historical
8. The Elegant Corpse by AM Riley – m/m
9. Driven To The Limit by Alice Gaines – paranormal
10. Out of the Blue by Josh Lanyon – m/m
11. Biker Babe in Black by Debra Kayn – contemporary
12. No Souvenirs by KA Mitchell – m/m
13. Redemption by Remmy Duchene – m/m
14. Hunter by SL Partington – sci-fi
15. Immortality is the Suck by AM Riley – m/m
16. Cat’s Cradle by Bianca D’Arc – paranormal
17. In Hot Pursuit by Kate McMurray – m/m
18. Rogue’s Diamond by Sahara Kelly – historical
19. Wither by Yolanda Sfetsos – sci-fi
20. High Country by Michael Barnette – m/m
21. Nate by Beth Williamson – historical
22. Dead, Undead or Somewhere In Between by JA Saare – paranormal
23. Mountain’s Captive by Michelle Pillow – contemporary
24. Law of Averages by Wylie Kinson – contemporary
25. Lifting the Veil by RG Alexander – paranormal
26. Threat of Darkness by Lauren Dane – paranormal
27. Written in the Ruby by Raven Wilde – paranormal
28. Just the Sexiest Man Alive by Julie James – contemporary
29. Hard & Fast by Erin McCarthy – contemporary
30. Trial By Fire by Jo Davis – contemporary

When I was in Honolulu, I visited Barnes & Noble and spent the $50 of book vouchers I’ve had for a while. I also spent $50 of my own. I think hubby was pleased when I consented to leave the store. My daypack weighed a ton on the journey home. I held my breath when we checked in, but luckily none of the airline staff picked on me and wanted to weigh my cabin baggage. I have some great reading in my future. Once I get back into the writing groove, I’ll use my new purchases as rewards for a good day’s work.

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“GET HOOKED!

What does that mean? Simply, we must write stories that grab readers at page one and never let them go. It’s not as easy as it seems. To start with, a stellar beginning/opening is vital these days, especially for aspiring authors if we want that coveted publishing contract.

According to statistics, editors/agents reject manuscripts before they’ve finished reading the first few pages. I wanted to know why. So I studied many books on the craft of writing and took several creative writing classes that addressed that very issue. I also read and researched multi-published authors’ books, trying to get the feel of what set them apart. Then I practiced, rewrote and practiced again hoping to get the words right.

Here’s a stellar ‘Get Hooked’ opening from Carved In Stone by Vickie Taylor (Berkley Sensation): Nothing reminded Nathan Cross he wasn’t human so much as an attractive woman watching his every move from across a crowded room.

Now doesn’t that make you want to read more? It does me. The book continues to be stellar throughout and never lets the reader down all the way to the end.

Our first goal as an author is to evoke an emotional response that hooks the reader. Les Edgerton, leading authority on writing stellar hooks says, “If you are able to capture the right beginning, you’ve written a small version of the whole story right there.”

How can we go wrong with that? The best advice I can give about hooking editors, agents and ultimately readers, is to write a stellar opening and then make sure the rest of your story lives up to that fabulous beginning.”

Kaye Manro
www.kayemanro.com

Kaye Manro’s science fiction romance FORBIDDEN LOVE releases at Red Rose Publishing on May 20, 2010.

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What is your best craft tip for aspiring authors wanting to submit to an agent?

90% of writing is rewriting. I don’t know that it ever gets easier, but I know that the more you learn to self-edit and polish, the stronger you’ll be at those skills.

Follow this link to read my full interview with agent, Holly Root

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