Category Archives: mermaids

Book Review: “Touch of Frost”

Book Review, mermaids

For all the nay saying and complaining about the state of publishing these days, let’s not forget that small presses are bringing good authors to market. When I find a jewel like Jennifer Estep and her “Touch of Frost” series, I have to believe that we are in a new Golden Age of fiction.

Estep’s Gwen Frost has a full plate of problems. She’s fifteen. Her mother is has been murdered. Her grandmother tells fortunes for a living. She’s been jerked out of her comfort zone and sent to a new residential school for super power teens. And her own power is more of a curse: anything and anyone she touches tells her secrets. And some of then are not anything a person would ever want to know. Really.

Especially when you’re living in a school full of teenaged warriors, who all have violent tendencies and training to Save The World From Dark Forces. And that touching/sensing talent? It kind of makes physical contact with the resident hottie off limits. As in, he doesn’t want her to know his dark side either. In the meantime, the resident mean girl has been murdered, various statues keep aiming for Gwen, and there’s a villain on campus who has marked her as next on their list of victims. The hottie has secrets of his own, and Gwen has to decide not to take advantage of her talent to get to the truth. It’s a full disclosure romance with unlicensed drivers at the wheel.

“Touch of Frost” is a nice twist on the survival story meets paranormal powers meets prada. There’s some comic relief: Daphne, the Amazon who eventually becomes a friend, is addicted to the color pink. When Gwen finally is trusted with a weapon, it is a talking sword. With a Cockney accent and a bloodthirsty attitude. Hey, anyone up for sword fights or Valkyries coming back from the dead?

I’m As Hot As the Sun!

mermaids,

Analogies. As a writer, you might love them or hate them. I love them. To me, analogies can make a description come to life. They convey a nuanced shade of emotion. They showcase the voice of our characters. But best of all, they don’t need to be fancy or complex.

Check out these similes that have popped out of my five-year-old daughter’s mouth.

“I’m as hot as the sun!”
“I’m cold like Antarctica!”
“I’m as fast as a motorcycle.”
“This boo-boo is like a volcano — it has red in the middle.”

How much more interesting it is to read (or hear) these statements than their generic counterparts! What’s fascinating to me is that even though these statements were uttered by a five-year-old, they have all the components of a good analogy.

1) They are accurate, in the sense that the sun is hot, Antarctica is cold, motorcycles are fast, and volcanoes have red lava in the middle.

2) They are easily relatable. Since we all know that the sun is hot, it is easy to imagine how being as hot as a sun might feel — which is to say, blisteringly, swelteringly hot.

3) They are surprising. At least they were to me. The first time my daughter bounded into the room and uttered an analogy, I laughed in a rather shocked way. I just didn’t expect something like that to come out of her mouth. Nothing generic or cliche about these analogies.

4) They give a good sense of character. To me, these comparisons scream out the literal mind of a five-year-old. Antarctica is cold, my daughter’s thinking goes, and I’m cold. So I must be cold as Antarctica. Never mind that the analogy doesn’t make too much sense. It works, in the humble opinion of this proud mama, in the context of the speaker.

Not to be outdone, even my three-year-old son has been known to chime in with his own simile.

“I’m as hungry as a bear!”

This statement, I admit, may be less original than the others. But if you could see the stick-thin legs and big brown eyes of the speaker, you might agree that the cuteness factor makes up for the lack of surprise.

I think all this goes to show that good writing doesn’t have to be complicated. Too often, we bang our heads over story structure, character development, world-building, and the million other things that go into writing a novel. And we should. This struggle results in the knowledge we need to grow as writers.

But we would do well to remember that good writing is rooted in something basic and instinctive. Something even young children can grasp. Something we’ve been studying from our earliest years.

Maybe then we can remember why we entered this crazy profession in the first place. Because we love it. And we always have.

Symbolism is a Sticky Thing

mermaids

I sit at our kitchen table.  My head is tilting upward, in prayer to some celestial being floating high above our nondescript townhouse.  I don’t need Manna from heaven.  Just a tiny bit of help.  A gentle nudge in the right direction.  I look back down at the outline for my next book and there I see it.  Not what’s there, but what isn’t.   Symbolism.  The missing piece d resistance to the twisty new story I contrived.  The characters, resplendent in all their intricate psychological finery, are poised and at the ready to scale the hurdles I contrived for them.  But the one thing that’s flagrantly absent is that little scrap of tangible something that takes the ordinary and makes it extraordinary.

As I’m grousing at the gods for their refusal to grant me my thousands wish for the day, my five-year-old toddles into the kitchen.  A flurry of chatter swan dives into my ears.  But as I look up, her actions are what freeze me in my place.  She takes a piece of gum from her mouth and puts it into the wastebasket.  Then proceeds to sneak a fresh stick from the pack.  She unwraps it, without paying particular attention to the silver foil, puts it in her mouth and walks out of the kitchen. 

On icy feet, I walk over to the trashcan and open the lid.  The grayish wad is still in there.  Sticking to the side of the trash bag.  Teeth marks still mar its gummy substance.  I reach in and gently pick it up.  And that’s when it happens.  I’m sucked back to a cold faraway place.  A five-year-old is kneeling on the dirty sidewalk.  Her nose is almost one with the lumpy concrete.  Her little hands are furtively picking at a dark brown spot, the size of a nickel, tightly sealed between the ridges of the pavement.  Brows furrowed in determination, she ignores the people passing on the street.  Her only focus is the spot.  Time flies as she digs the spot out of its hiding place, but finally it is done.  She holds up the hardened piece of substance, as if it were a diamond or a ruby.  With a huge smile, she runs home, careful to hold onto her bounty.  At home, she dashes into the bathroom, turns on the lukewarm water and brings her treasure into the light.  Over and over, she washes it until her fingers turn to prunes.  But still, she is careful with it.  Holding it with one hand, but keeping another hand underneath so there is not chance it falls into the drain.  When water finally runs out, she carefully dries it with a towel and places it in her palm.  Her heart is thumping.  She bites her lip, as if unsure if she should do it.  Whether she is deserving of this prize.  But finally, the desire grows too strong.  She closes her eyes and puts it in her mouth.  And begins to chew.  At first, the process is slow and painful. 

Maybe it won’t ever go back to its former state.  But as the crunchiness slowly goes away, in its place is elasticity.  Still tough, but it is there.  Her smile widens and this new found knowledge gives her the strength to keep on chewing. 

Later that night, when it’s time to go to sleep, she takes the substance from her mouth, puts it on a piece of plastic and puts it in a secret box.  True, it’s only a discarded matchbox, but it is hers.  And it is special.  Clutching it in her hand, she takes a deep breath and falls asleep with a smile.  The next day at school, she arrives with her prize.  It takes a while for everyone to notice, but once they do, she is surrounded.  How?  Where?  When?  They all clamor for answers.  They crowd around her and suddenly, she is no longer invisible.  Envy, awe, admiration is clear in the twenty pairs of eyes looking at her.  She clamps her teeth over and over, amazed and in wonder how she was chosen for such a prize.

For two months she follows the same ritual.  Chewing by day, hiding her bounty by night.  Each day, she becomes more used to it.  Assuming it’s going to be around forever.  And then one day, on a cold and blustery Saturday, she’s sitting on her bed, playing with her bear, when her friend says something funny.  And so she laughs.  A big hearty open mouthed laugh.  The kind of laugh meant to be done laying down and rolling around holding ones belly.  And so she does it.  She laughs and laughs and .. suddenly.  It’s gone.  One second it’s on her tongue and the next, she feels it in her throat.  Help me get it, she yells at her friend.  They scramble around the room, eyes wild.  Distraught.  Think, think, she tells herself.  She sees a chair and lunges for it.  She goes around and throws herself upon the rigid back.  Right in the stomach.  Maybe that will do it.   Force her treasure back from the journey it has begun.  Over and over she does it, but there is nothing.   Her most prized possession is gone.  She crumples upon the bed and weeps.   Two months.  At least she had two months. 

I close the lid to the trashcan and smile sadly to myself.  At that moment, my daughter runs back into the kitchen, reaches for the packaging and pulls out another piece.  “What?” she asks in response to my staring at her.  “It always tastes better at the beginning.”  It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell her not to go through so much gum.  But instead, I lean over and kiss her on the forehead.  “You’re right.  It does taste better at the beginning.”  And as I hug her close, I look up toward the ceiling and silently thank whatever gods are up there,  that she will never know what it is like to peel gum off the sidewalk and think you’ve been given the greatest gift on earth.

Brain Fried . . . Rebooting

mermaids, Motivation, Writing

I was thinking about a scene in one of my favorite 80’s movies, Real Genius starring Val Kilmer (for those who have seen or might remember).  The story is about a bunch of genius kids at a prep-college.  Val plays the lead who’s gone on to buck the system and is teaching the young newbie how to ‘ungeek’.  In this particular scene, in which I am referring to, it’s a montage of everyone cramming for end of the year exams. One student in particular (an extra) stands up from the study hall table and just yells.  He is just freaking out and runs from the room.  Everyone else takes a brief moment to look– at him as he has his ‘meltdown’, and returns to their studies–unfazed.

Lately, I feel like that poor kid.  It’s what I call brain overload.  Sometimes we just get to the point where everything we are focusing on just overwhelms us to the point nothing makes sense–no matter how many angles you try and approach the problem.  The other day I had that moment . . . with my story.

Yes, the one thing I usually find joy in (my escape if you will) became a torment.  I’m not published so there is no deadline (other than my own) so what is the problem? My problem is this story, a paranormal romance, has haunted me for five years.  I’ve tried it in various stages, even finished the first draft three years ago and went on to a sequel and plotted out two more for the series.  I thought I had it made.  But every contest, critique I’ve had on it came up lacking–so I revised it, not once but twice.  I put it to the side while I worked on a ghost story/romance last year but once that was finished my heart went back to the paranormal.

When I presented it to my critique group (whom I trust and value their insight implicitly) it confused them since they knew I could write better.  There were so many things wrong with it.  So I went home and started fresh.  Two months later . . . still nothing.  So I thought maybe using plotting guides a friend of mine sent me would help.  Traditionally, I’m a pants-er . . . not a plotter.

I haven’t sat down to actually plot. I realized going over everything again was just mind boggling–and so the ‘meltdown’ this past week.  I’m taking a few weeks off and stepping away from the books and writing to see if I can ‘reboot’ my brain.  I don’t want my favorite pastime to become a dreaded reality.  Not a good thing for a creative mind. 😛

So instead, I’ve decided (as I’m writing this post) I am going to work on my house (God knows I’ve neglected my duties as a domestic engineer lately), catch up on my ‘to read pile’ and see if the worksheets my friend sent me on plotting/GMC will help guide me from being a total pants-er to a plotter, too.

What do you do to ‘reboot’ when your brain is fried?

 

Rockin’ Romance Giveaway & Video Chat

Interview, mermaids, , ,

Rockin' Romance Video Chat 2 p.m. Sunday March 11

Have you ever wanted to see a Waterworld Mermaid in her natural habitat?

Chat about books in the lagoon?

Ask questions about our latest releases and upcoming novels?

No? Then, be gone with you back to your own dark part of the ocean with its bad florescent fish lighting and weird-looking Anglerfish.

Are they gone? Good, because Waterworld Mermaids Alethea Kontis, Robin Convington and Avery Flynn have some amazing news to share. We are co-hosting an hour-long Rockin’ Romance video chat at 2 p.m. this Sunday (March 11). Stop by  to talk books, music and chocolate with us. In addition, I’m sure they’ll be some man candy, writer gossip and some inappropriate language. Hey, we’re Waterworld Mermaids, we’re known for our outrageous enthusiasm not our decorum.

We’ll be giving away a humongous gift basket to one lucky participant filled with signed copies of Up a Dry Creek by Avery Flynn and Enchanted by Alethea Kontis, a digital copy of Jennifer Probst’s The Marriage Bargain, an iTunes gift card, reading goodies and at least one box of your favorite Girl Scout cookies!

What’s that? You’re evil twin is planning to take over the world this Sunday by destroying all the bookstores on the Eastern shore so you can’t make the chat? Totally understandable. Leave a question or suggest a conversation topic in the comments below and you’ll be in the running for the Rockin’ Romance gift basket.

Participating in the video chat is easy. Join in on the Rockin’ Romance Video Chat at 2 p.m. Sunday and follow the onscreen prompts. All you need is a a web cam, a love of romance novels and a sense of humor. We can’t wait to chat with you in the lagoon!

Let the Games Begin!

Kimberly MacCarron, mermaids,

For all of you Hunger Games fans, there’s only fourteen days left until the movie hits the big screen!

My kids and I have watched the trailer a gazillion times, and we discuss all the ways the movie could be great and all the ways it could fall short of our expectations.

As readers, do we expect the movies to be as good as the books? Are they ever? And do they need to be? Comparing books is interesting. Comparing movies is fun. But, when we compare books to the adaptation in movies, it can sometimes be rather frustrating. How could they possibly erase your favorite scene or character? How can a movie feel legitimate when the book is written in the first person and we never see what’s going on anywhere else in the story? Or when most of the plotline is internal rather than external conflict?

I have super high hopes for The Hunger Games movie, and that worries me because there have only been a handful of movies that have been as good as the books.

One of the best that I can recall was John Grisham’s A Time to Kill. That one lived up to the book. The Twilight movies? Not so much. Could any actor live up to the Edward in the book? I think not. That character seemed so perfect, so cultured, so special that no matter how cute other people might find Robert Pattinson, he is clearly not Edward. Not my Edward. Not the Edward that lived in my mind. So, instead of being moved by those movies, I find them kind of funny.

When we do compare a book to a movie, I’d be interested to know whether you saw the movie first. And if that makes a difference. I saw the movie The Outsiders before I read the book, and I loved them both equally. But, I didn’t use my imagination in figuring out what the characters looked like. Not when I had that fabulous all-star cast to recall. Would I have thought Ralph Macchio was the perfect Johnny? Or Matt Dillon as Dallas Winston? I’ll never know. And, oh, my love for Pony Boy…

I recently read the first four Harry Potter books. I never saw the movies because I wanted to read the books first, but I had seen enough previews to put an idea in my head of those charactersl. And I loved the movies as well as the books.

The same can be said for The Thornbirds, Gone with the Wind, and The Notebook. I saw these prior to reading the books, and I loved them all.

There are too many movies to list that have fallen short of the book, for me anyway. And all the ones I didn’t like were the books that I read first. I can’t help comparing and critiquing the movie while I’m watching it. It takes away from the movie experience completely. I wish I could flip a switch and just watch the movie without trying to compare it to the book. I wish I could just enjoy it for the sake of enjoying the movie.

Do all writers do this? Do we pick apart the movie because, in our minds, the written word is more powerful for us? Do we feel kind of sorry for the other movie goers who clearly have no inside information about the backstory of the character? The motivation? The internal struggles that have led to that particular scene?

What movies made from books have disappointed you the most, which ones have you loved, and which ones have surprised you in some way?

With regards to enjoying the upcoming movie…may the odds be ever in our favor!  🙂  (I just had to work that in!)

 

Our Winner of Gail Barrett’s, High-Stakes Affair

Interview, mermaids, Writing

I am not one to apologize either at the beginning of a blog but I will today.  I was left at the mercy of circumstances  away from home the past few days so I wasn’t able to be on-line much.

So, sorry for not being able to respond most of the weekend.  I was away where there wasn’t any Wi-Fi connection —eeeekkkkk!  I did have  access to a tablet occasionally with some connection but couldn’t log on to some areas on-line. I was able to respond off and on Friday but not yesterday so I am posting the winner today now that I’m home again.

I was so excited to have Gail Barrett with us and all the great comments from everyone.  I want to thank Gail for the wonderful opportunity for stopping by and talking to us here in Mermaid Lagoon.

After  selecting a name from our magic conch shell, we have a winner!  Desere Steenberg is the winner of Gail’s book, High-Stakes Affair.  Congratulations, Desere! 

Thanks to everyone who stopped by and said hello!  I had a great time! Have a great week!

Hugs!  🙂

2012 Marlene Contest Finalists Announced!

mermaids, ,

The Washington Romance Writers have just announced the finalists for the 2012 Marlene Contest. The Waterworld Mermaids would like to congratulate all the finalists. Well done!
(With special hugs to Mermaid Denny S. Bryce — we’re all proud of you, fishy-girl!)

Series Contemporary
Kelley Brown, DATING MS. WRIGHT
Nancy S. Evertz (Nan Dixon), SOUTHERN COMFORT
Ami Weaver, THE CHRISTMAS BRIDE

Single Title
Kimberly Kincaid, IT‚S NOT YOU (WRW Member)
Heather Nickodem, CAT ON A HOT STEEL FLIGHT DECK
Lisa Slabach, ENTER STAGE LEFT

Romantic Elements
Susan Bickford, SYNCHRONY’S CALL
Lisa Chaplin, BUTTERFLY ON THE TIDE (WRW Member)
Kim Hernandez/Kimberley Troutte, EPICENTER

Historical
Erin Brauer, SWEET SURRENDER
Mayo Lucas, DEALER’S CHOICE
Jennifer McQuiston, WHAT HAPPENS IN SCOTLAND
Betty Trovarelli, THE WICKED EARL OF WESTFIELD
(There were two double ties: two 99s and two 98s.)

Paranormal
Denny S. Bryce, GIDEON (WRW member)
Traci Douglass, SEAL OF FATE
Angela Quarles, MUST LOVE BREECHES

Young Adult
Carla Cullen, THE FALLEN PRINCESS
Sera Phyn, SING, SWEET NIGHTINGALE
Kimberly Savage, GRACE AND THE GUARDIAN

Harlequin Romantic Suspense Author Gail Barrett Swims with the Mermaids

Interview, mermaids, Writing

I am so excited to have my critique partner, favorite suspense romance writer and good friend, Gail Barrett with us today!

She is the author of nine Harlequin/Silhouette Romantic Suspense novels and a Silhouette Special Edition which won the Golden Heart.  Gail says she always knew she’d be a writer, and after living everywhere from Spain to the Bahamas, earning a graduate degree in linguistics, and teaching high school Spanish for years, she finally fulfilled that lifelong goal.

Now a former RITA® and Daphne finalist, Gail’s books have won the Book Buyer’s Best Award, the Holt Medallion, the Booksellers Best, National Readers’ Choice, and numerous other awards. Her September 2011 Harlequin Romantic Suspense novel, Cowboy Under Siege, is a 2011 Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice nominee. Visit her webpage: www.gailbarrett.com.

Her latest book in her Stealth Knights series, High-Stakes Affair is out and what a book it is!  Gail has a way of capturing our hearts with bad-boy heroes and the women who come to love them.

Gail, we’re honored and delighted that you took the time to join us today here in Mermaid Lagoon.

Tell us a little more about your inspiration for your latest series, Stealth Knights and latest book in the series, High-Stakes Affair.

Thanks so much for inviting me!  It’s truly an honor to be here!  The Stealth Knights came about when I was brainstorming ideas for a new miniseries for Harlequin Romantic Suspense. I didn’t want to take the traditional route and base my series on a fictitious military agency or other conventional group — SWAT teams, cold case detectives, Black Ops or Navy SEALS. Although those kinds of heroes are great, they’ve been done so frequently — and so well — that I wasn’t sure I had anything unique to add.  And honestly, I’ve always been more intrigued by men who don’t obey the rules — those darker, murkier characters who follow their own moral principles, meting out justice as they see fit. So I decided to go against the norm and invent a more offbeat group, a secretive, loosely affiliated association of thieves, spies, and rogues who operate in that gray area between right and wrong — usually outside the law. Of course, since these are romantic heroes, they really are the good guys, albeit in a less obvious way.

Harlequin loved the idea.  They named the group The Stealth Knights and gave them slogan: The Stealth Knights: powerful, passionate heroes with their own code of law.  They also created a cool little “flash” logo which consists of a shield with swords.

 

So far, there are two books in the series — HIGH-RISK REUNION, which came out in November 2011 and HIGH-STAKES AFFAIR, which is out right now.  They both take place in an old world, Pyrenees Mountain kingdom called País Vell.  Centuries ago, País Vell conquered its neighbor, Reino Antiguo, which the people of Reino Antiguo still resent.  They’ve formed a separatist movement to win back their independence any way they can.

The hero of the latest book, HIGH-STAKES AFFAIR, is not only a rebel from Reino Antiguo, he’s the most infamous of them all — “el Fantasma,” a Robin Hood-type thief adored by his people and the sworn enemy of the crown. Of course, the heroine, Princess Paloma Vergara, isn’t aware of that. She needs Dante’s help to break into a casino and confiscate some incriminating blackmail evidence that could damage her family and provoke dangerously violent unrest. What she doesn’t know is that she’s about to hand their worst enemy the power to bring them down.

What inspires you to write about such unique topics for your characters to endure?

I’m something of a news junkie, so I usually get ideas for my stories by reading about current events.  There are so many nefarious activities going on in the world that it’s pretty easy to come up with something diabolical for my villains to do.   It probably helps that I tend to be a rather cynical and suspicious person, so it doesn’t take much for me to imagine the worst.

What’s your schedule like lately and how do you find the time to write such intriguing suspense stories?

Ideally, I start writing by 7am every weekday. I’m a very early riser, so by 7am I’ve had my coffee and breakfast, showered and answered emails, and am ready to go.  I take a brief exercise break at around 9am to wake myself up, and then a longer exercise break in the early afternoon.  I don’t do much writing after that unless I’m on deadline.  I’m much more of a morning person. I also work on the weekends, but usually I go for a long walk with my husband in the morning, and then write for a bit in the afternoons.

As a writer, do you find yourself more of a ‘pantser’ or a ‘plotter’ when you sit down to write your next novel?  Do you have a general idea and work from there or do you just write and have the ideas come to you?

By nature, I’m a plotter.  I like to know who my main characters are, what their conflicts will be, and especially what will happen in the black period to tear them apart before I begin writing the book.  I pretty much plot toward that.  Also, since I’m writing romantic suspense I have to know what the villains are up to.   I try not to plot each scene too extensively in advance because I want to give the characters a chance to surprise me, but I think romantic suspense demands a lot of plotting up front. I also revise as I go, so by the time I’ve arrived at the last chapter, I’m pretty much done.  I don’t do extensive rewrites.

You’ve written ten novels (at print) so far. Did you always intend for most of your novels to be of the suspense genre?  Do you read suspense for pleasure and who are some of your favorite authors?

When I got serious about writing commercial fiction, the first thing I did was to analyze what I liked to read.  I realized that the elements I liked most in books were the mysteries and romance.  That’s how I settled on writing romantic suspense.  So yes, I think I gravitated toward that from the start.  But my real goal was to write emotionally compelling stories, whether or not they contained suspense.   I wanted to write stories that resonated with the readers, that would linger in their minds, not just create a clever plot.  For recreational reading, I read everything from mysteries and comedies to suspense.  As far as my favorite suspense authors go, Daphne du Maurier is a classic, of course.  Sandra Brown is another writer I really respect.  I also like Douglas Preston.  He’s a master at raising the stakes and making each character’s predicament get progressively worse.

Let’s say you are working on your next novel—what do you have around you besides your computer?

Nothing very exciting, I’m afraid.  My first goal is not to let myself get distracted, so next to me I have water or tea, a nail file, hand lotion, tissues, some sort of healthy snack (vegetable or fruit) and anything else I think I might suddenly crave or need.  I also have my thesaurus and notes for the story (usually mountains of those), and other reference books.   That’s about it.

Let’s pretend: You are sitting in your favorite place in the entire world— describe what it does to your senses. What do you see, hear, and feel?

I’m sitting just outside the medieval wall in Avila, Spain on a hill facing west.  It’s evening, and dusk has begun shadowing the golden fields and silvery olive trees in the valley below.  The dwindling sun still warms the wooden slats of the bench I’m sitting on.  Swallows swoop past and careen overhead as they wheel around the ancient stone wall.  An elderly couple strolls by, arm in arm, their steps measured, practiced, and slow.  The man wears a traditional cardigan sweater and a black beret on his balding head.  The woman’s head is erect, her expression proud.  She has on her best knee-length, woolen skirt, sturdy pumps, and meticulously ironed blouse.   My husband lounges beside me with his eyes closed, and I feel content.  Everything is right in my world.

That is amazing, Gail.  What a beautiful setting. 

Your books have won many awards over the years.  Is there one in particular that excited you—or shocked you when you won?

Honestly, just being nominated for an award is a huge honor, particularly at the published level because the competition is so fierce.  So even making the finals is very exciting.  As far as the contests I’ve won, I was completely blown away when Where He Belongs won the Book Buyers’ Best Award.  It not only won its category, but the overall competition as well.  I totally did not expect that.  In fact, I nearly didn’t attend the award ceremony because it was late in the evening and I didn’t think my book had any chance to win.  Getting the National Readers’ Choice Award for To Protect A Princess was also an enormous honor, one I still treasure greatly since it came from readers.  And of course, the Holt Medallion for His 7-Day Fiancée was thrilling as well.

Having won the prestigious Golden Heart with your first book, Silhouette Special Edition, Where He Belongs, what advice would you give others who are hoping to possibly achieve that award in their near future?

About the only advice I can give is to persevere.  Where He Belongs was the sixth full-length book I’d completed.  I’d been writing toward publication for twelve, long years at that point.  But no matter how many rejections I got, I kept plugging away, trying to get better and incorporate everything I’d learned into my writing.  I think that’s the key, to just keep learning and growing as a writer.  And don’t give up!  I sold Where He Belongs at the same time that it won the Golden Heart.

Thank you so much Gail for joining us today here in our beautiful lagoon. All the best to you!  It’s been a real pleasure to talk with you.

One lucky commenter will  win a copy of Gail’s,  High-Stakes Affair. All comments must be received by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time, Friday, March 2, 2012.

Check out Gail’s latest, High-Stakes Affair in her recent Stealth Knights series. You can find her books through the following links:

Amazon paperback:

http://www.amazon.com/High-Stakes-Affair-Harlequin-Romantic-Suspense/dp/0373277679/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1330439352&sr=8-1

Amazon kindle:

http://www.amazon.com/High-Stakes-Harlequin-Romantic-Suspense-ebook/dp/B006QAF06C/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1330439352&sr=8-2

Both the Barnes and Noble paperback and nook are at this link:

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/high-stakes-affair-gail-barrett/1105681523?ean=9780373277674&itm=1&usri=gail+barrett+high+stakes+affair

No Wankers! Praise for Savvy Authors Editpalooza 2012

mermaids, Writing, ,

Savvy Authors: “Wouldn’t it be great to have an editor available to help you polish your manuscript? Wouldn’t it be great to learn to self-edit like an editor?”

Me: Oh boy…yes, yes, yes!!!

Savvy Authors: “Because at Savvy Authors we feel, and share, your pain and we know exactly what you need…. EditPalooza!”

Me: You do know what I need…I’m feeling this, you totally get me!

Savvy Authors: “We will teach you how to edit like a professional! We’ll be pairing you up in groups of 5 (or more) to work with our team of guest Editors as they walk you through self-editing your novel to a best-seller’s shine.”

Me: You had me at “Wouldn’t”…where do I sign up?

41 days later (the editors extended our class length to ensure we had plenty of time to complete our lessons) and I feel like a new writer.  My editor (it felt oh so good to say that for the month!), Kerri-Leigh Grady, Associate Editor at Entangled Publishing, was phenomenal and my group members, ranging from paranormal to contemporary, YA to adult fiction, couldn’t have been better resources.

“To keep your experience as close to the real deal as possible, we will be utilizing the three pass editing process used by most publishing houses. We’ll spend two weeks on the first pass, where we’ll focus on characterization, plot, and scene structure, as well as major craft issues that might be stifling your voice. We’ll then spend the remaining two weeks on our second pass which will further focus on voice, dialogue, tightening language, and polishing your prose. And finally, you’ll be given the tools to do a third pass on your own, or perhaps stay with your crit buddy after the thirty days to finally fix remaining mechanical issues and those pesky commas.”—Liz Pelletier, Publisher & Senior Editor Entangled Publishing www.EntangledPublishing.com

This was my January/February in a nutshell.  It was like nothing I’ve ever experienced before but something I will use each and every time I finish a draft from here on out.  You may be like me, having taken classes and workshops on craft in the past.  I had the tools prior to participating in this year’s Editpalooza, but now I’ve gained working knowledge of how to evaluate each of my scenes to ensure those elements are present and doing their job to give me (and my reader!) the best story possible.

What do I believe made the difference?  That’s easy.  In Editpalooza, you work with one of your very own manuscripts, applying everything you learn to your story, and you’re not alone.  I can’t tell you how valuable it was to have Kerri-Leigh and my group members read my assignments and tell me exactly what was working and just as helpfully, what wasn’t.  And then how to fix it, the way a professional editor would.  How liberating it felt to have Kerri-Leigh say things to me like, “Good call, Carlene” (in reference to identifying chunks of backstory or “inner-wangsting” (see NO WANKERS pic below) that I admitted needed tossing or the way a plot line could be tweaked to add more conflict) and “Your story sounds meaty and intense.”  That was a priceless feeling, that one there.

To the right is my “NO WANKERS” t-shirt from Old Kings Road pub in Santa Barbara, which I have vowed to wear as moral support whenever revising future manuscripts! 

The best news, it was a ton of hard work, but it was sensible and applicable and so many wonderful things happened to my story and clicked in my head as I completed the exercises.

If you missed this year’s Editpalooza, be on the lookout for next year’s.  And check out Savvy Authors for tons of great opportunities!