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A Day in the Life of a Writer via Twitter by Jina Bacarr

September 11, 2016 by Jina Bacarr in category Jina’s Book Chat tagged as Confessions of a Podcast Goddess, diary, editing, journal, Journaling, novel, Social Media, tweet, Twitter, writing

A friend recently asked me if I journal.

Wow, a question that struck a cord in me. I haven’t kept a journal in years. I’ve got stacks of journals and diaries from high school, college, etc., but I spend so much writing stories, I stopped writing down my thoughts.

Then I realized I do journal in a way.

I tweet.

I don’t mean the promo tweets or the pretty graphics I love to put together for my books.

I mean the “here’s where I’m at in writing…” tweets.

So this month, I put together my favorite “journal tweets” for you. (I left out the hashtags.) It’s not easy putting your heart and soul into 140 characters, but hey, it’s convenient, like having a cell phone instead of a landline in our digital world.

It works when the power goes out…

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Jina’s tweets:

1 — best part abt wearing tight jeans when you’re writing..can’t move so you keep your butt where it belongs..in the chair

2 — Reading aloud edited version of your story is like sex: too slow and you’ll never get there; too fast and you won’t remember it.

3 — how much of a part do our memories play in writing our stories? performing in Italy inspired my Royal Magic story

4 — is imagination the most important tool in the writer’s toolbox — or is craft more important? What do you think?

5 — writing a novel is like watching your roots grow out…painful and oh so slow, but always, always fixable!

6 — Writing sexy romance is like taking off a pair of black silk stockings, inch by inch: the slow reveal is way more sexy

7 — the waiting game with yr m/s…you submit…you wait..kinda like dating It can break your heart…but you do it anyway

8 — I have a secret: I keep telling myself “just one more edit” of m/s — which have now turned into 6. Why is it so hard to let go?

9 — this writer and her m/s have finally parted–re: earlier tweet today, I submitted my story tonight to the publisher!

10 — writing is always hard work…grueling actually…you want to quit…then you get a 5 star review on your last book and you cry…

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Website: www.jinabacarr.com
Blog: www.jinabacarr.wordpress.com
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Getting clean ain’t easy…even for a princess

ROYAL DARE on Amazon Kindle

Zoey’s story from Royal Dare coming in October 2016: ROYAL BRIDE

ROYAL MAGIC on Amazon Kindle

The magic is in his kiss…

LOVE ME FOREVER

She wore gray.
He wore blue.
But their love defied the boundaries of war.
And time.

I’d love to hear from you. You can find me on social media:

www.facebook.com/JinaBacarr.author

https://twitter.com/JinaBacarr

www.pinterest.com/jbacarr

https://instagram.com/jinabacarr/

https://vimeo.com/user216350

I love it when art imitates life. When something so unexpected happens to you that you know someday it will become a story. The inspiration for Royal Magic, showed up in an email from the cultural arts committee in Venice, Italy.

Italy! Carnevale, gondolas, and pizza.

And to think I almost deleted it. What fools we authors be. They were asking me to speak and then perform at La Biennale, a celebration of art, music, dance, film, and architecture begun in 1895.

I had written a nonfiction book and a novel about Japanese culture and they wanted me to be on the panel with a performance artist and dancers from Japan.

Before I could say, Mama mia, I was on my way to Venice. The festival committee treated me like a princess, arranging my airfare on Air France and setting up my accommodations in a century-old hotel near Piazza San Marco with all the trappings of a grand palazzo. They even assigned me a bodyguard to make sure I got to my hotel okay.

Iâ€™ll never forget wandering the cobblestone streets of Venice, checking out the gondolas, the exquisite shops, and so many bookstores I lost count! It soothed my romantic soul, while the people of Venice warmed my heart.

And I had the best pizza ever.

My trip to La Biennale inspired me to create my own festival in Monterra. Magic, music, and Monterran cuisine seemed a natural fit for a kingdom located so close to Italy. And so my series within The Royals of Monterra Kindle Worlds, â€œFairy Tales & Magic,â€ was born.

In the first book, Royal Magic, youâ€™ll meet Afton, who performs on the aerial silks, and her sister Emma. Sparks fly when Afton meets a handsome magician who isnâ€™t what he seems. We also meet four other American girls who come to Monterra to perform at the festival . . . each hoping to find her prince and live her own fairy tale!

I hope you enjoy Royal Magic. Ciao!

Jina

Royal Magic is available on Amazon Kindle

PS — here’s a video I made about my trip to La Biennale in Venice, Italy!

Royal Magic inspired by La Biennale, Venice, Italy from Jina Bacarr on Vimeo.

Website: www.jinabacarr.com
Blog: www.jinabacarr.wordpress.com
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https://twitter.com/JinaBacarr
www.pinterest.com/jbacarr
https://instagram.com/jinabacarr/
https://vimeo.com/user216350

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How Kindle Scout set me off on the Road to Oz…I mean, Monterra by Jina Bacarr

June 11, 2016 by Jina Bacarr in category Jina’s Book Chat tagged as addiction, Amazon, Authors, books, Civil War, Confessions of a Podcast Goddess, historical, Kindle, Kindle Press, kindle scout, Kindle Unlimited, magic, recovery, romance, royal, time travel, Writer, writing

Have you ever slipped on a pair of shoes that fit perfectly?

Soft, dreamy leather. Straps not too tight.

Heels not too high. You don’t want to feel like you’re about to go over a cliff.

I have.

And get this, it’s a glass slipper.

When I entered my Civil War time travel romance, LOVE ME FOREVER, in the Kindle Scout program*** I didn’t realize there was a technicolor ending in my future.

I went to Oz.

I mean, Monterra.

When Sariah Wilson asked romance KS winners if we’d like to write in her Royals of Monterra Kindle World, I jumped at the chance. I love princess stories (check out my Princess video!) I wrote ROYAL DARE about Princess Violetta, who appears in Sariah’s ROYAL DATE. Violetta has a drug problem so I sent her to rehab. But getting clean ain’t easy…even for a princess

Can she make it through rehab?

One of the most rewarding aspects of writing Royal Dare is the fact that several addiction recovery

sites have discovered the novel and follow me on Twitter. I hope Violetta’s story encourages those who need help to seek it out.

I loved writing in Sariah’s KW so much, I decided to write another story, but on a much lighter subject.

Magic.

ROYAL MAGIC will launch with Sariah’s next Royals of Monterra book, ROYAL GAMES.

Royal Magic is the story of a girl from South Philly with a dream to become an aerial silks performer, but there’s a dark secret in her past that keeps her from her goal.

Until she’s invited to perform at the arts festival in the kingdom of Monterra for the royal family in Fairy Tales & Magic: Magic, Music & Monterran Cuisine. There she meets a handsome, mysterious magician who’s not what he seems…

Royal Magic will launch along with Sariah’s Royal Games and new Royals of Monterra stories from other talented writers on July 8th!’

I’m almost finished with the cover, so I’ll update this page as we get closer to the launch.

I’m enjoying my road trip to Monterra and plan to do more Royals of Monterra books after Royal Magic. And to think it all started with Kindle Scout…

~Jina

***You can read my previous posts about my experience with the Kindle Scout program by clicking on Part 1 , Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, and Part 5

The Princess and the Stilettos for Valentine’s Day from Jina Bacarr on Vimeo.

The Princess and the Magic Shamrock for St. Patrick’s Day from Jina Bacarr on Vimeo.

Website: www.jinabacarr.com
Blog: www.jinabacarr.wordpress.com
================

https://twitter.com/JinaBacarr
www.pinterest.com/jbacarr
https://instagram.com/jinabacarr/
https://vimeo.com/user216350

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Twilight Zone Day, Time Travel, and Me by Jina Bacarr

May 11, 2016 by Jina Bacarr in category Jina’s Book Chat tagged as Civil War, Confederate, Confessions of a Podcast Goddess, history, medical drama, medicine, rebel, Rod Serling, romance, time travel, Twilight Zone, Union

Twilight Zone.

Did you hear the eerie music when you read the title?

Two of my favorite TZ episodes dealt with time travel.

Civil War.

And medicine.

Cliff Robertson in “A Hundred Years Over the Rim” (a father time travels to the future to save his ill son with modern medicine) and Kevin McCarthy in “Long Live Walter Jameson.” (check out an interesting filming note on this one). A professor knows history better than he should because “he was there.”

When I set out to write my Civil War romance, LOVE ME FOREVER, these two TZ episodes crept into my story line in a fun and interesting way: my time traveling heroine is a part time EMT and history teacher; she helps the Union Army physician hero in his fight against “germs” and how to combat disease back in 1862.

And yes, she knows exactly when the battles take place and does her best to save lives. But can she change history? If she does, will she lose the man she loves?

How do TV shows affect your writing?