Category: Archives

Once and Future Writer: Of resolutions and goals

January 19, 2008 by A Slice of Orange in category Archives tagged as Member At Large

At a recent LERA meeting, the speaker handed out file cards. Told us to write down our goals for one month, six months, one year, and five years. Seemed like a great idea, get us to write down goals and really cement in our New Year resolution.

Then she collected them all back to keep. Oops.

Now itâ€™s not just a goal I make to myself, and can fulfill or ignore as the spirit moves me. Iâ€™m 100% sure sheâ€™s going to be standing up at the front of the room next month reading off our goals, asking if weâ€™ve met them, then asking why. In other words, a serious, buckle down and get it done goal.

Talk about motivation! Or would this be conflict? Iâ€™m motivated to avoid the conflict I would have to face by admitting I hadnâ€™t managed to follow through on those goals. Works for me. And I mean really works for me. Instead of an obscure someday I now have a concrete do it by date. Amazing what difference a 3 X 5 card makes. Especially in someone else’s hands.

Which got me thinking about resolutions and goals and all the rest of what we do to make ourselves write, or to keep ourselves from writing. And I realized I was not giving myself the respect I give to other writers.

So, hereâ€™s a goal, in writing, and in front of most of my world. I am a writer. I matter as a writer, and I deserve respect from other writers but most of all from myself. I will give myself that respect, and make the effort to WRITE when I first sit down at the computer. Not check e-mail. Not format artwork. Write.

I deserve it. I AM a writer.

Happy writing.

Monica Henderson Stoner

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The Write Way…(because there is no ‘right’ way)…

January 17, 2008 by A Slice of Orange in category Archives tagged as The Write Way

Making a living at writing isn’t always easy. There are dozens–probably hundreds–of writers who are working toward that goal as we speak.

Well, one of the ways to help yourself in reaching that goal is…write for more than one house. Category and mainstream. Historical and contemporary. Romance and mystery. Paranormal and contemporary. There are lots of ways to do it. Heck, you can write the same KIND of book for more than one house! (As long as you have an agent who’s clever with the option clause).

The point is, don’t put all of your writing eggs in one basket. Spread yourself around a little. Take chances. Push envelopes.

Writing for more than one house gives you the opportunity for more releases per year. More releases means more advance/acceptance/and possible royalty money coming in. Then you’re one step closer to quitting the day job.

So the next time you sign a contract, instead of jumping right into that newly signed deal, do a proposal for something different. For someone else. Get that proposal done and out there before you start writing your contracted book. That way, while you’re working, you’ve got something else out there working FOR you.

Sure it sounds a little scary. A little intimidating. But you’ll never know if you can do it if you don’t try!

Maureen Child is the author of more than 100 books. At the moment, she’s writing up–what else? A proposal.

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A Writer’s Pursuit…

January 12, 2008 by A Slice of Orange in category Archives tagged as A Writer's Pursuit

Of Research and Character Development

by Michele Cwiertny

The Travel Channel. Discovery Channel. The Learning Channel.

I never realized how many times I draw inspiration for character development while watching some of the programs on these channels. No, seriously. This isnâ€™t an excuse for me to sit in front of the TV and wish I had Samantha Brownâ€™s job of traveling around the world…Or for me to think for the hundredth time that the French fry lovinâ€™, clown fearinâ€™ Anthony Bourdain just couldnâ€™t be any cooler.

Well, okay. It is a little bit about Samantha Brown, but mostly itâ€™s about what I learned about my characters after watching her show, â€œPassport to Europe.â€

In one of my favorite episodes, she visits Prague and eats in an absolutely stunning Art Nouveau cafÃ© as she tells the story of a plate full of stale jelly donuts that sit on the counter and wait for someone to buy them for about $60 American. If a customer were willing to pay that much for the entire plateful, then that person has the right to take those donuts and throw them AT the other customers!

Where did this custom of the donut battles start?

Apparently, it was taken from a 1942 novel by a Czech author, Zdenek Jirotka, who wrote Saturnin, which is a humorous story that categorizes people into three different groups: 1) those who would just look at a plate of donuts 2) those who would think about throwing the donuts at people in the cafÃ© and 3) those who wouldnâ€™t think twice and would actually throw them at people in the cafÃ©.

Now, from what I understand, the CafÃ© Imperial ended the tradition of the Battle of the Donuts in 2006, so donâ€™t log on to Expedia and purchase your flight to Prague just yet! But, when I hear stories like this story, I always wonderâ€¦what other fun traditions have been started because of something written in a book or a poem?

So, tell me…In what category would your hero or heroine fall when looking at the plate of donuts? And what about you?

One, two, or three?

Canâ€™t wait to read your answersâ€¦ 🙂

Michele

Michele Cwiertny writes dark paranormal and historical romance. To find out more about her please visit, www.michelecwiertny.com

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Jina does Dallas RWA

January 11, 2008 by A Slice of Orange in category Archives tagged as Confessions of a Podcast Goddess

Part 1: Going to Dallas

by Jina Bacarr

Are you going to the RWA Conference in San Francisco this summer? Not sure? It’s a fabulous way to get together with your fellow romance writers, meet editors and agents, and those partiesâ€¦

Well, what happened in Dallas at the last year’s convention doesn’t stay in Dallas because I’ve got it all on video.

So for the next few months I’m going to put up my video blog with podcasts from last year’s RWA convention at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Dallas, Texas, including several with your favorite authors and OCC members!!

First up is Going to Dallas with the OCC gang. I shot this video blog on the Super Shuttle going to the airport than later at the terminal while we were waiting for our flight to Dallas.

What is video blogging, you ask? Video blogging is an interesting, spontaneous, and fun way to capture those memories when you’re “in the moment.” You don’t have to shoot a long, continuous stream of video. You can edit several scenes and/or photos together to create your video blog. Short videos work best. Going to Dallas is just over a minute and a half long including credits.

How do I get started? you want to know. It easy. You can put all your video and your photos into a free program like Windows Movie Maker (included with Windows), split the clips where you want to cut them, delete, then add fun transitions and/or fade in/fade outs. Adding music can be trickier and we’ll discuss that next month.

If you want a program that chooses the shots for you and adds the special effects you specify from their “styles” packages, then I recommend Muvee. This is an expensive program ($129.95), but you can download it for 21 days and try it for free to see if it works for you.

So sit back and enjoy Going to Dallas RWA.

Best,
Jina

Jina Bacarr is the author of The Blonde Geisha , Naughty Paris, Tokyo Rendezvous, a Spice Brief, and Spies, Lies and Naked Thighs, an erotic spy thriller, March 2008.

Jina writes erotic adventure for Spice Books.

“Get Caught in the Act!”

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THINGS THAT MAKE ME GO MMMRUH!

January 10, 2008 by A Slice of Orange in category Archives tagged as Things That Make Me Go Mmmruh

Everyone Says So – But So What?

by Geralyn Ruane

Just because everyone says so doesnâ€™t mean you have to believe it.

Thatâ€™s right. You donâ€™t have to believe it. Do your own research, make your own decisions and stick to your guns, even if it seems that everyone else in the room, the state, the world disagrees with you.

These days everyone is a spin doctor. And those who arenâ€™t hire them. Information gets so manipulated that distillation of the truth becomes a Byzantine challenge. Listening to the hype is so much easier. But donâ€™t let yourself be swayed or suckered.

I believe that The New England Patriots are cheaters undeserving of accolades, regardless of what sportswriters have decided. No matter how many people love rodeo, I still think paying and making money to watch terrified animals defend themselves is sick and should be illegalized. To hell with the FDA, Iâ€™m convinced that cold medicines are a bad idea, and so are any medicines that prevent the body from getting rid of the stuff it needs to get rid of. Iâ€™ve examined the facts and made my decisions.

Donâ€™t agree with me? Thatâ€™s okay. I donâ€™t need mass approval in order to feel comfortable with the decisions I make. You shouldnâ€™t either. Nobody should.

As America surges into Primary Season, my greatest hope is that voters make their own decisions. Donâ€™t pay attention to labels and tag lines; instead, find out what the candidates are actually saying and doing. Donâ€™t get swayed by the polls and predictions of political pundits; in the end, only the votes matter. Yesterday, the day after the surprising New Hampshire results, even NPR national political correspondent Mara Liasson advised, â€œThrow out the polls and just pay attention to the candidates.â€

Who will run for president in 2008 is still up in the air, and we get to decide. I do, you do. Weâ€™ve got the power and that makes me go Mmmruh! So donâ€™t let your decision get swept away by all the hype and hullabaloo. Instead, keep your decision safe, make it count and make sure itâ€™s yours.

Geralyn Ruane co-hosts the radio show Better Times After 50 on AdviceRadio.com. She also drinks chocolate milk straight from the spoon and writes humorous women’s fiction. Last year her short story â€œJane Austen Meets the New York Giantsâ€ was published in the New York Times Bestselling anthology The Right Words at the Right Time Volume 2.