Category Archives: Writing

2014 Social Media Marketing (Yeah, for Books!) – What’s Your Plan?

January 9, 2014Denny S. Bryce, Marketing, mermaids, Writing2014 trends in publishing, book marketing, Marketing, marketing plans, news, publishing, publishing news, social media, social media marketing plansDenny S. Bryce

This post has a bit of snark in it so be warned…

And yeah, another title for this post could be: How to Overwhelm and Entertain in 1000 words or less…anyway…:)

I hang out online an average of 90 minutes a day. And no, it’s not 90 minutes that I could have spent writing, or cleaning or doing something else. I am deliberately ‘hanging’ out because the source of information that is most readily attainable is online. It is NOT on TV (well, to me, I hate television news, cable o r network), it is not on the printed page (although, I do miss when back in the day, I’d spend an entire Sunday at a cool brunch spot on the north side of Chicago, reading the Sunday New York Times and Chicago Tribute – it was so relaxing and so Zen of us:) – and its not only on Facebook (Internet, yes, but not the only source of information left on the planet).

So let me get to the point of this post. I’ve gathered a list of articles from the Internet you should read or at least skim if you intend to have a ghost’s chance in hell (watching way too much Supernatural) of effectively, consistently, and painlessly (or less painfully) using social media tools to sell/market your books and/or your brand.

And yes, if you write books to sell them, you must know and participate in the marketing of your books.

And oh, in case you stumble upon this article, and wonder who in the heck is spouting all of this information as if she knows something? Well, for the sake of credibility, in my other life, I have been a marketing professional for 25+ years – if that doesn’t work for you (I spend 90 minutes a day on the Internet, I’ve got to know something about something, right?)

Authors often look at other authors to get their perspective on what’s going on in the social media marketing arena – which is absolutely fine. We all know romance writers who are doing an exceptional job of marketing and using social media in a smart, straightforward, fresh way. And then there are those like me, marketing professionals who are writing popular fiction, romance or whatever and will be publishing or published by someone at some point, if they aren’t already off and running.

But in addition to gaining insights from authors who have great savvy about social media marketing or marketing pros who specialize in the publishing industry, I like to take a look at what the big boys in corporate marketing are doing as well.

Below are a few links. You don’t need to study every word of these articles (as if you would:), but take a moment, see what is being forecast and compare to your current social media marketing plan (and yes, you should have a plan, you don’t have time–hours in a day–to be haphazard). See if there’s something out there that’s new, or can be used differently, or more consistently, to deliver on your bottom line – which is (say it with me) – selling MORE books by finding new readers, and keeping the ones you have HAPPY. (And yes, the best way to do this is to write the best books you can write…but even that doesn’t always guarantee SALES, and/or readers, unfortunately.)

So here goes:

Social Media Marketing (Some links to take a peek at…)

http://www.brafton.com/blog/2013-social-media-marketing-trends

http://socialmediatoday.com/anitaloomba/2035211/top-digital-marketing-trends-2014

http://www.steamfeed.com/google-plus-vs-facebook-g-dominate-2014-marketing-strategy/

http://www.mediabistro.com/alltwitter/2014-digital-marketing-trends_b53891

Okay, to recap…what’s going to be hot IMHO (or at least worth exploring):

Google +
Content continues to be KING (no joking)
Content should include video or at least images (the eye likes a quick fix)

Big News in Publishing (or at least the most recent) and other Kick Ass Stories you May Have Missed!

http://www.kensingtonbooks.com/page.aspx/LYRICALPRESS (Why is it Big News? It marks a trend you will see repeated. It’s all about where the readers – and book buyers are – putting all of your eggs in one print basket isn’t the way publishing works anymore, and you’ll see this trend duplicated, again and again. That’s my predication:)…

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/penny-c-sansevieri/book-marketing-prediction_b_4394295.html?utm_hp_ref=fb&ir=Books&src=sp&comm_ref=false

http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2014/01/5-key-trends-in-self-publishing-for-2014/

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jeremygreenfield/2013/12/26/predictions-for-book-publishing-in-2014-cutting-room-floor-edition/

http://blog.smashwords.com/2013/12/smashwords-signs-distribution-agreement.html

That’s it friends…some food for thought:)!

Happy New Year!

Also, feel free to ask questions, or complain below:)…or let me know if you have a social media marketing plan, and whether you are published or pre-published, are you thinking about your brand, or if you don’t care about marketing, let me know, I’m just curious…:)

Writing Lessons: What a New Shirt Taught Me About the Muse

December 24, 2013generosity, Motivation, Susan Jeffery, Writingdelay tactics, love stories, muse, when harry met sallySusan Jeffery

“I came here tonight because when you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible.”

I had a “fashion” moment last Saturday.

I’d been to the hair salon for a cut and color – an absolute must before a major holiday! I’d driven with bestie Colleen to Danbury for shopping. First, I said, let’s stop for a bite to eat. Then, I promised, we would attack the mall and our Christmas lists.

But, as I crossed the parking lot, I realized:

The shirt I was wearing didn’t feel “good” on my body anymore,
It was too short for the current styles,
And it was faded.

We must detour, I insisted. Just a quick stop at JCPenney, I promised. Yes, I typically take several hours to decide on anything, but this will be different! Zipped in, scanned the offerings, tried on three shirts, selected one. I wore it to the cashier and held out of the tag dangling from my wrist:

“I realized the shirt I was wearing is too old to be decent.” (Colleen holds up the shirt I’d arrived in as proof) “So I found this shirt, and I want to wear it right now – can you ring it up without me taking it off?”

Like this, but prettier.

Do you know, this might be my favorite shirt now? It got me out of a fashion pickle, allowing me to shop for several more hours without that sneaking sense of frumpdom. I even cuddled the other shirt, safely wadded up in the JCPenney bag the sales associate had offered us, gave it a farewell pat… and stuffed it in a Food Court garbage can.

That’s how determined I was not to be lured into wearing it again. Its twin (same print, different color) is still at home, but in the bag for Goodwill. Let someone else deal with it.

You might wonder what this has to do with writing? Well, when opportunity knocks, you answer. You don’t hesitate, you act!

When it’s time to write, you don’t wait. You don’t tell yourself “Oh, I’ll remember that! It’s such a good idea, how could I forget it?” You can! You can forget it! Give your brain five milliseconds of distraction and your inspiration is gone!

You don’t tell the Muse to hang on. When you have the idea, it’s time to buckle down and get your work done.

I hit JCPenney with an idea in mind. I was determined to act on the idea. It happened. Not because I dithered. Because I acted!

So, here’s the lesson. Grab your Muse, shake it loose and tell it to get off its sweet hiney and give you material. Then, don’t wait around for that fickle bitch to show up. Make the material happen. She’ll figure it out.

You can do this! It’s your choice. Are you gonna wear that tacky old shirt and hope the writing shows up?

“I’m saying that the right man for you might be out there right now and if you don’t grab him, someone else will, and you’ll have to spend the rest of your life knowing that someone else is married to your husband.”

You can do better. If you choose to be a writer, find it in yourself to step away from the tacky old shirts, the worn-out excuses, the distractions, and the do-overs.

The fact that you’re not answering leads me to believe you’re either (a) not at home, (b) home but don’t want to talk to me, or (c) home, desperately want to talk to me, but trapped under something heavy. If it’s either (a) or (c), please call me back.

Stupid delay tactics. They neve work! Which is why Harry had to run across New York to find Sally and claim her, at last, on New Year’s Eve.

Good for him.

NaNo for you, but NoNo for me

November 25, 2013mermaids, Motivation, Susan Jeffery, WritingSusan Jeffery

That’s right. I didn’t do NaNo this year. The final days of last November brought on a sly, simmering uneasiness about my health. It was a feeling I couldn’t quite shake, but knew I ignored it at my own peril. Yes, nineteen years with the unpredictable and unforgiving disorder of MS have taught me to respect my intuition – if you’ve got the shakes, Susan, for God’s sake slow down. And, if you know me, I’m an all-in or a who-cares kind of girl, and I felt it unwise to subject myself to another month of NaNo stress. Writing is meant to be fun. Why spoil it with another trip to physical therapy?

Instead, I embarked on an entirely different type of insanity. One where *I* was making the rules (sort of). In fact, I have been on a writing hiatus this month in order to preserve my sanity (what little I have). And do you know what? It sucks.

I’m taking an online course to earn graduate credits and earn the next level of fifteen hours so I can also earn another raise at work. That is, beyond the yearly seniority raise that’s built into our contract with the school. If I can look smarter by earning additional graduate credit hours, I get more cash in my pay envelope:

*Right.* Like I said, mo’ money.

So, I’ve been taking this course on using primary sources at the Library of Congress. I go around hunting up really cool pictures that I might be able to use in my teaching:

How did the Civil War turn out for these two?

And not paying enough attention, so I find this, which I sent to my son. He lives in Binghamton, so it seemed like the right thing to do:

Panorama of Binghamton, NY – 1909

And he liked it a lot, since he recognized the landmarks (the town hasn’t changed much in a hundred years, which is part of its charm.)

Then my local writing group, CTRWA, reminded its members to enter the chapter’s “fun” contest: the Marga-RITAs. Chapter-only, it celebrates the best and the worst in our writing. Categories like “most creative and anatomically impossible sex scene” and “best run-on sentence” help exorcise the misery of our writing “errors”, while we celebrate another year of writing good stuff (“best use of adorable child and/or cute animal” is my fave)(you are so going down this year, Kristan Higgins!)

Do you have any idea what it feels like to find your writing, hidden away while you slave over primary sources in pursuit of filthy lucre in your day job? It really stings! Little gems of prose are discovered, just waiting for the tacky margarita glass that is the prize (I have two).

What say you, Mermaid friends? Did you ever have to go on a writing “diet” to achieve other… er…. achievements? How did it feel? And, knowing how it felt at the other end, how hard was it to get back into the writing swing of things?

Enquiring minds want to know!

Contemporary Romance Author Sugar Jamison Swims with the Mermaids

November 15, 2013Books, Denny S. Bryce, Interview, Marketing, mermaids, Publishing, WritingContemporary Romance, Perfect Fit Novels, Sugar JamisonDenny S. Bryce

I met Sugar this past summer at RWA Nationals in Atlanta. I don’t remember what we started chatting about, I just recall that I laughed and laughed and laughed some more. It was a very good first meeting. After that, I kept running into her (I swear I wasn’t stalking), and then I complimented her on the cover of her then new release and fabulous title: Dangerous Curves Ahead. By the end of RWA Nationals, I’d found a new bud and a new author I truly enjoyed. Today, she’s taking a few minutes to join us here at the pond. She also has a giveaway (all you need to do is comment to be eligible for a chance to win)! So let’s get started with an introduction and then we can dive into the questions, and Sugar’s fabulous responses. Enjoy!

From her official bio: Sugar Jamison is a southern belle trapped in a New Yorker’s body. With a love of big hair and high-heeled shoes, she spends her day at her very normal day job and night dreaming up sweet but sassy romances.

Denny: How long have you been writing and what was your inspiration for the Perfect Fit Novels?

Sugar: I started writing my senior year of college after reading Jennifer Crusie’s BET ME for the second time. I figured it wouldn’t be so hard to write a romance novel. I was wrong. Writing romance is much harder than I thought it would be, but it’s also so rewarding.

Denny: What has been the biggest surprise about the reaction/response to your Perfect Fit series?

Sugar: I don’t know if anything surprised me about the reactions to the Perfect Fit series. Except maybe how many people took exception to my heroine referring to herself as “FAT”. The book is about a plus sized woman. Real women call themselves fat. ALL THE TIME. It’s not a bad word. I’m not degrading myself when I use the word and neither was she. Overweight, plus sized, big. It all means the same thing.

Denny: How much do you love marketing and social media? What have you found works best in promoting your books?

Sugar: I don’t love marketing, but the team at Saint Martin’s Press does a good job spreading the word about my books. I really like Facebook. I update my fan page daily. I feel like most of my readers hang out and connect with me there. I don’t really like Twitter that much, but other people love it. As far as promotion goes, I’m not sure what really has worked in terms of sales. I took out ads in a few places, but honestly I don’t think I got a return on my investment. Goodreads giveaways and the Free Book Friday I found gave me more exposure to readers than anything else. I’m sure there are other things I could be doing but usually I find that word of mouth has worked the best. I get emails from readers who’ve told me that their friends recommended that they read my books. That is the best feeling, much better than getting reviewed by a big magazine.

Denny: Did you have a pre-launch strategy for finding readers? If so, what was it:)? (yes, inquiring minds – noisy ones like me, what to know!)

Sugar: Nope. Sometimes I think I suck at this whole author thing. My publisher sent out review copies all over the place. I think that really made the difference. But I teased it on Facebook and Twitter. I had really great friends who spread the word for me. I’m very grateful for them.

Denny: What did you think I’d ask that you were hoping to answer?

Sugar: I get asked what advice I would give writers. And it would be… besides writing a great book is to build your backlist. Write as much as you can and put out as much as you can, in whatever format you choose to publish in. But make sure that whatever you publish is polished and professional looking.

Denny: What’s the Next Big Thing for Sugar Jamison?

Sugar: My next Perfect Fit book is out February 25th. Thrown For a Curve. I LOVE my hero in this book. I fall in love with each of my heroes, but I really LOVE LOVE LURVE Colin who is my sexy Irish bad boy. My other big thing is that I have another series of books coming out for Harlequin’s Kimani line. The first book is LIBERTY (Ginger Jamison) is also due out February 25th. Here’s a description. When Ryan Beecher returns home after a long deployment overseas, Lexy barely recognizes her husband. The man who left Texas for Afghanistan was cruel and abusive. The man who comes back to her is a badly injured stranger with amnesia—and no memory of their life together.

Lexy can’t believe how much Ryan has changed. The wounded marine is now gentle, caring and tender. And his touch awakens yearnings she’s never felt before. As he takes them both to the point of no return, can Lexy trust this lover who seems to live only for her pleasure…as he seeks his salvation in her healing embrace?

A poignant and erotic story of longing, secrets and second chances, Liberty explores the limits of desire and the boundaries of love.

Thank you Sugar!

It was great having you in the pond. And readers – COMMENT BELOW to be eligible to receive a copy of “Have Yourself a Curvy Little Christmas” by Sugar Jamison (and if you’re nice – and only a tad naughty – we may be able to give away an e-copy of Dangerous Curves Ahead, too!)

A Temptation So Beautiful

October 21, 2013mermaids, Plotting, Susan Jeffery, WritingSusan Jeffery

There are stories in my treasure chest that refuse to be completed, for one reason or another. One, LAKE EFFECT, has bedeviled me for several years. Gerald, the father, has never decided if he will be dead (enabling his rambling daughter to sell the house and move on) or alive (chaining her to a life of servitude, shuffling between the old house and the nursing home)?

Worse, what of my two lovers? Nicole is a devoted girlfriend, with an overseas boyfriend. She just doesn’t know he has wandering eyes. Sam is being pursued by a girlfriend-wanna-be in relentless pursuit of his favors. I’ve loved writing Desmond’s and Tara’s scenes – as the unfortunate foils for my hero and heroines, they’re both such worthless material as potential mates and so completely clueless.

Occasionally I struggle with midnight “monkey mind” as I wrestle again with the frustration of seeing this story complete and finding readers. There are other stories I’m writing, or trying to write, but LAKE keeps rearing its head. The one that got away. It’s hard to let go, ya know?

So, this morning, I was helping Brain with his preparation for NaNoWriMo. We found, and printed, a ten page document from Susan May Warren (www.mybooktherapy.com) outlining Ten Beats of a Romance. In Beat 3, she discusses with the challenge of Why/WhyNot and WhyNot/Why in a blossoming relationship. In one, the situation where I most often place my characters, they understand why they can’t get together and gradually fall in love in spite of the barriers. But in the WhyNot/Why, the characters feel an instant connection. Only later are they aware of just how wrong this is.

Okay, my mind said. Let’s play “what if?” Nicole and Sam instantly hit it off. They get each other, their little hearts go pitty pat, they’re a thing, they’re in it for the long haul. But what about those inconvenient other lovers? How do I move them aside?

I didn’t have any problems disposing of Desmond, the cheating boyfriend; he breaks up with Nicole before the story gets too far along. But what about Tara? She just wants to get married and make babies. She has the rings picked out, the wedding party, rehearsal and ceremony planned. All she needs is for Sam to pop the question and call the realtor. How do I get rid of her?

So, friends, this is my question: how do you give your hero permission to step out on his girlfriend when she has the noose as firmly tied around his neck (whoops, ring on his finger) as one woman can manage in 200 pages? Mind you, Tara needs to make her not-so-graceful exit at the end of novel, along with Desmond – who makes a late entrance to eat crow (happily, he is unsuccessful).

Is there a rule for a boyfriend whose heart has never been fully involved to be allowed to touch the goods before the others are returned? How do we handle this?

(In another post, which I started before writing this, I’ll talk about characters that refuse to make up their minds – which happens all too often in this writer’s world)

Blog Day: I have NOTHING to write about!

October 8, 2013Denny S. Bryce, mermaids, Motivation, WritingDenny S. Bryce

Oh yeah, you’ve been there. Sitting in front of the blank screen, knowing its your day to post and you’ve got absolutely NOTHING to say or you feel that you have nothing to say, or in my case, everything you can think of you’ve said before. It’s like a fog comes over you and all that you think is – I got nothing.

So since I have nothing and have no choice (I hate skipping a day) I decided to research the meaning of nothing…

So I started with the Wikipedia definition – and Jezus – it’s depressing:

Nothing is a pronoun denoting the absence of anything. Nothing is a pronoun associated with nothingness.[1] In nontechnical uses, nothing denotes things lacking importance, interest, value, relevance, or significance.[1] Nothingness is the state of being nothing,[2] the state of nonexistence of anything, or the property of having nothing. (But being a writer, I am gleaming something in the back of my mind that is definitely giving me pause. What if? Oh shoot, I just thought of something:)…

Next on the Google search page I discover the ultimate insult to my NOTHING blog – its already been done and BIGGER. There is a website for Nothing, and you can find it by clicking here at www.NOTHING.net. Clever actually.

I also found a ton of images about nothing…see below…I grabbed a few to share.

You know what else? Researching nothing (damn it) has given me ideas…

What if anytime you sit in front of a blank computer screen, even when the DEVIL’S WRITING BLOCK comes a calling, you research one word – pull it out of a hat and voila – ideas.

I guess the truth of the matter is that there is NOTHING that can stop a writer who wants to write:).

So here’s your assignment: Grab a word and share a definition. Someone will write a book about it or at least a website…

Getting Into Character: Becoming Hazel

October 3, 2013Carlene Love Flores, WritingCharacter research, Lush HennaCarlene

Hello Fishy Friends,

Right about now, this mermaid should be calling it a night. But I can’t stop tugging on the ends of my hair to see that the once light blonde ends I usually sport are now a cinnamon color. Since I’m sleepless in the land of auburn tresses, I’ve decided to post pictures of why exactly I’m living life as a red head.

It’s all in the name of writing research, getting into character to be more precise. The heroine in my current Work In Progress, Hazel, is a red head (think Victoria the First, of Twilight). I realized quickly that the best way to get into her head, so to speak, would be to experience life as similarly to her as I could. I went as far as to color my hair in a manner that I felt she would use, and being a very bohemian, earthy kind of woman, that meant something natural.

It came in really handy that I’m a Lush addict and they happen to sell Henna which was right up my girl, Hazel’s, alley. I should say that I researched henna thoroughly before using it which means that I’m in it for the long haul. (Or until I write a short-haired heroine and in the name of research…snip, snip, snip goes the hair!)

The result? Well, I love it. It’s rich, shiny, thicker, curlier and I feel a definite spiciness about my new mane. Not to mention a daring side who thinks it would be a great idea to share the pics of my “Getting Into Character: Becoming Hazel” process.

Yes, that says “Caca” but let’s just pretend it doesn’t…or that it sounds exquisite and fancy in a faked French accent 🙂 In all seriousness, this is the Lush brand of henna and it’s a chunk of henna mixed with cocoa butter and coffee and other wonderful smelling things pressed with a tea brick to make lovely little designs.

After we break off our desired amount of henna chunk, we run to the bathroom and paper it for protection against staining. I used my Lush catalogue. Very pretty.

Now we race back to the kitchen and begin cooking our henna in a bain marie which if anyone knows me…yeah, I had to look this up. In the end, it turns out all you need is a pot for boiling water and a big enough glass bowl to set on top of it to keep your henna warm.

Back to the bathroom with your gooey creation that resembles green poo and brownie mix (but smells wonderful)…Ahhh, now you know why they call it Caca. 🙂

As neat as you try to be while applying the Caca henna to your hair, as it begins to dry, tiny little Caca bits will begin to fall at your feet. This is when I feel you may as well squish them between your toes because it’s fun and standing on the sides of your feet to avoid them starts to hurt after a while. 🙂

So this was Light Blonde Carlene Mermaid…

And now we have Green Poo Carlene Mermaid…

And this was Glamorous Carlene Mermaid before she hit the sack to sleep with the henna on her head all night, ensuring vibrant color when she awoke…

Which is exactly what Carlene Mermaid got! Oh I’m sorry, not Carlene Mermaid…Hazel Mermaid, who will be with us for a while. 🙂

And now for the really fun part of researching my heroine Hazel…I get to pretend “hand kiss” her hero to make sure we’re doing that right too, but that’s an entirely different post for another time. Ahh, the things a romance writer will do in the name of being thorough.

Think I’m ready for bed now 😉

From The Heart

September 30, 2013Conferences, generosity, mermaids, Susan Andrews, WritingKristan Higgans, Nora Roberts, sufferingSusan Jeffery

Several weeks ago I sort of volunteered to give a talk at our school’s annual faculty retreat. The day is filled with breakout sessions, much like the typical romance writing conference. Usually, the experienced teachers are quick to propose their pilgrimages, their prayer retreats, their journey of faith through the study of art… anything that might help fill a day of Teacher Detention. They’re the wise ones of the faculty: they know how to fill time. I’m not a popular teacher: I sit in the peanut gallery.

So why, this time, did I put myself in the hot seat? My work BFF, raised in the evangelical Christian tradition, summed it up: “You have been Called. Do It.” I thought for a second, told myself stop thinking, and shot off a possible topic to the organizer.

My proposal, on Finding God in the Midst of Suffering, was accepted immediately. What? No argument? No questioning? No “gee, we appreciate your thought, but…” Nope. In this game of Tag, I was It.

Librarian that I am, I started with marathon research, viewing the topic from every conceivable angle. The results were depressing. With good reason: how could the human experience of suffering, with all its dimensions of pain, anxiety, despair, and agony not be depressing? We’re not talking about build-your-own sundaes here.

I printed out pages and pages of learned examinations of suffering. Those genius brains had written volumes that avalanched down the high hills of history and buried unassuming teachers alive.

Every single time I tried to read these papers, my eyes glazed over. I couldn’t do it. I had nothing. Do you hear me, world? Nothing!

Worse, I was facing off against a more experienced teacher. His talk was on Gratitude. Great, I complained at home. I get the widows and orphans. He gets the cool people, the ones who are easy to please. Who doesn’t want to be happy? Having been programmed against the Catholic high school equivalent of Kristan Higgins or Nora Roberts, I printed out 15 handouts. Nobody would come, I figured. I stopped trying.

When the hour of doom came, people trickled in, picked up the handouts from the chairs, and, to my surprise, didn’t get up and rush to find a seat at the (better) (happier) (more fun) celebrity talk. More people came in. We ran out of handouts. The room filled. What were they thinking? Didn’t they know they were in the wrong room?

Raymond introduced me. I was petrified, mortified, A Beautiful Mind come to life. “It’s not my job to make you feel better,” I said, to start. “ Or solve your problems. And everything that goes wrong in this talk—“ I pointed at the friend who’d put me here “– is all his fault.”

They laughed. Then, as I assured them we didn’t have time to cover all my stories of suffering, they began to quiet. When I touched on my problems with post-partum depression, the room went dead still. Nothing I said was complex or earthshaking. It was me sharing, my own sad, stupid experiences. My own struggles to find my way back to the light. And three verses of Scripture I hoped would guide them, and me, through the shit-storm.

And somehow, it worked. This presentation, weak and ill-prepared, this testimony, touched my peers. Not just immediately, but every day for a full week, people shared their own experiences privately. And thanked me. Praise can be humbling. Disconcerting. Confusing.

I found myself in a conversation with a fellow teacher, a woman I admired and feared. Her congratulations were difficult to take, and I’m afraid I blurted out how bewildered I was.

“Are you kidding?” she said. “It was so completely different from anything we’ve ever had at retreat before. And you said what you felt, and you were honest. And you said things that were real.”

Now, taking this back to the perpetual Mermaid topic, how does this story speak to writing? We writers put ourselves out there, every day. We kill ourselves to tell stories. Our audiences compare us to award-winners, childhood favorites, geniuses of the craft, and the other writers who inspired us to take up our pens. I can’t compete with the Greats. But I can tell stories and this is what readers look for… the fresh, new, personal voice. We can’t compete with the Noras and Kristans in RomanceLand, but we can entertain. We can share our stories and touch people. All we need to do is speak from the heart.

My Summer Reading Log

September 16, 2013Kimberly MacCarron, mermaids, Writing2013 RITA-nominated, Darynda Jones, John Green books, Khaled Hosseini, Kristan Higgins and Jill Shalvis, Paulo Coehlo, summer reading, TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, Tracy Brogan, young adult booksKimberly MacCarron

Trying to keep my kids reading throughout the summer is like pulling teeth and performing a root canal. Not so for me. My favorite part of summer at the pool is reading. The only time my body comes into contact with the water is to hang on the ladder for ten seconds when I get too hot. Then it’s right back to the book.

My kids had to fill out their reading logs and keep track of the books they read, so I decided to do the same. So many times someone will ask what books I’ve read recently, and I draw a complete blank. It’s not that I didn’t like the book. It’s that I read too many of them to keep track.

Without further ado, here is my reading log:
1. BOUND by Erica O’Rourke
2. THE FARM by Emily McKay
3. GRAVE MERCY by Robin LaFevers
4. PUSHING THE LIMITS by Katie McGarry
5. MY LIFE NEXT DOOR by Huntley Fitzpatrick
6. DEATH, DOOM, AND DETENTION by Darynda Jones
7. CRACKED UP TO BE by Courtney Summers
8. TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD by Harper Lee
9. PAPER TOWNS by John Green
10. AN ABUNDANCE OF KATHERINES by John Green
11. LOOKING FOR ALASKA by John Green
12. THE BEST MAN by Kristan Higgins
13. FOREVER AND A DAY by Jill Shalvis
14. SHADOW IN THE WIND by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
15. THE CELESTINE PROPHECY by James Redfield
16. VERONIKA DECIDES TO DIE by Paulo Coehlo
17. AND THE MOUNTAINS ECHOED by Khaled Hosseini
18. IT HAD TO BE YOU by Jill Shalvis
19. CRAZY LITTLE THING by Tracy Brogan
20. YOUTH IN REVOLT by C.D. Payne
21. THE TORTILLA CURTAIN by T.C. Boyle

I love books. Clearly. But I do have to say that I loved every single book I read this summer. I loved them for all different reasons. Some I read for escape. Some I read to better understand a culture or social position. Some I read just for the romance. When I looked at my reading log, it occurred to me that the books I like to read the most are the books that I tend to write—Young Adult. It’s a genre that’s not really a genre. It’s a group of books caught in between the cracks of so many types of books. Most of the ones I read this summer are straight contemporaries, but some paranormals entered my log. The first five books on the list were all RITA-nominated YAs, but Darynda Jones followed close on their heels. ☺ I always have to read her latest.

Jill Shalvis and Kristan Higgins sit together on my shelf, friends both in my bookcase as well as real life. Their romances make my heart feel lighter. They make me laugh. They make me cry. But, more important is the laughter and those family and friendship connections.

Just when I feel happy, I decide to read Khaled Hosseini, who makes me cry in a way that hurts my heart. His stories don’t tug at my heartstrings. They pull them so hard that I feel drawn and quartered by the end. But I love his books so much. They take me to countries that I’ve never been, but I feel that I have. When I put down his books, I feel like I’ve known every character intimately.

After reading THE FAULT IN OUR STARS in the spring, I decided to buy John Green’s hardback collection, and I wasn’t disappointed. During our vacation, my daughters, husband and I traded John Green around like a bong at a hippie commune. If hippies actually smoked bongs. Not really sure about that as I’m not really acquainted with either hippies or bongs. I would say our John Green Marathon was successful since we all liked the books.

Several of the books were recommended by my nephew Heidar, who always gives me the best books during the summer. His recommendations were books that I probably wouldn’t have picked up on my own: SHADOW IN THE WIND, THE CELESTINE PROPHECY, VERONIKA DECIDES TO DIE, YOUTH IN REVOLT, and THE TORTILLA CURTAIN. And I loved these books. Every year we go to California, I hit him up for his recommendations because I want to read out of my comfort zone.

Tracy Brogan’s book was funny and light-hearted but touching in the family relationships and the zany characters. I predict big, BIG things for Ms. Brogan. ☺

And of course, I’m probably going to get yelled at when I admit that—before this summer—I had never read TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD. What the hell took me so long? I think it’s because I’ve always been a bit of a rebel. If you WANT me to do something, don’t tell me I have to. As I always lumped Harper Lee’s classic into the “mandatory reading” category, I wouldn’t touch it with a ten-foot pole. I’m so, so happy that I decided to cave to conformity. What a book! Now I understand why people read it again, and again and AGAIN.

Just writing this quick write-up about the books I read this summer makes me excited about reading—and hopefully writing—again. If I could ever touch someone else’s life through my writing like these authors have done for me I would consider myself a success. It’s a rare gift indeed to change someone’s perspective about illegal immigration colliding with middle-class values (like THE TORTILLA CURTAIN) or doing the right thing in the face of prejudice (TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD).

But, for me, it’s about teens. It’s about showing them that they aren’t alone—no matter their situation. Whether they’re struggling with that crazy hierarchy of popularity or identity crisis in any form, they need to know that they aren’t alone.
Isn’t that why we all read? To alleviate loneliness? To make our hearts feel? To know we aren’t alone?

Those are the reasons why I started reading when I was a kid and never stopped. My grandmother once said to me when I was four and bored: “When you learn to read, a whole new world will open for you. And you’ll never be lonely again.”

What books have you read lately that lifted your heart, changed your perspective or you loved for a different reason?

If you haven’t read any books lately (for shame!), what is on the top of your TBR pile?

Why I Love Dracula: A Writer’s Muse

September 10, 2013Denny S. Bryce, mermaids, WritingDenny S. Bryce

I woke up this morning and was thinking – what should I blog about today? The view on the lake outside my window as the sun touches the treetops, or the sound of the birds singing in the early morning, their songs never as sparkly as in the first hours of a new day. Then a thought struck me and I knew exactly what I had to write about, what I was bursting to write about…

Why I love Dracula so darn much!

Note – this is not a question. It is a statement of absolute fact and here are the Top 11 Reasons Dracula is the Best Vampire Ever!

The struggle between control and lack of control is epic.
Passion on a stick (or fangs).
Fangs (creepy, but somehow, sexy).
Sex appeal (bad boy, the ultimate bad boy, maybe the first bad boy).
Sidekicks (the odd man who carried around his coffin).
Burning to ashes in daylight (any vampire story that lets this bit of mythology go? Well, forget about it. Just not a true Dracula-esque vampire – even Whedon kept this bit).
A kiss so deep and loving – it leaves a physical wound (yeah, baby…)
The hypnotic eyes (sigh)
The stake through the heart that kills him (and yes, this is another part of vampire/Dracula mythology I love!)…
The fact that Dracula will never die – his story always makes a comeback (click here for new CBS show this fall:)…
He’s dead, but lives! (and its not a metaphor).

Today, I am being specific about Dracula and not other vampires I fell in love with over the years like Barnabas Collins, Mick St. John, Angel, Spike…none could fill Dracula’s cape in my heart and mind (except for angel and spike:)…

Okay, I’ve got to stay focused. I was talking about Dracula. I blame it on old movies and youthful sexual awakenings that I would never have described as such when I was staring at black and white TV late at night watching Frank Langella, Bela Lugosi, Christopher Lee ( not in that order, fans)…do their vampire thing.

My love of and obsession with Dracula was his power over the minds of others. Yes, that’s what attracted me the most. Not that he was the living dead. That didn’t work for me, even as a child. It was his ability to control others, and then his struggle when his emotions got in the way of that control. A tortured hero (trope alert!) and then some!

So today, I am saluting the vampires (actors) who have embodied Dracula on the screen (and yeah, I know Alex doesn’t belong, but he’s so pretty as Mick St. John). I just hope that Mr. Rhys Meyer’s new show will present another mesmerizing Prince of Darkness for (me:) and a new generation to enjoy.