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Love and Marriage and All That Madness by Kitty Bucholtz

May 9, 2013 by in category Archives tagged as , , , , , ,

It’s funny how many accidents create ah-ha moments. What would we do without penicillin and Post-It notes?

I’ve been trying to figure out for two years how to write interesting, entertaining blog posts that are similar enough to my book-writing style to encourage blog readers to become book readers. Then last month I had an ah-ha moment.

I’d written a funny article for the OCC RWA newsletter encouraging people to sign up to enter or judge the Orange Rose Contest for Unpublished Writers. Then I wrote a funny guest post on Louisa Bacio’s blog about How Hotel Sex Turned Me Into a Romantic Comedy Writer. I mentioned to several people that I love writing this kind of silly fun article, but I didn’t have an outlet for it anymore.

D’oh! Yes, I did! Um, blog, sitting there, waiting for me to be brilliant!

So this week I started a new column on Mondays called Marriage Madness. Since I write stories with fun romances in them, and since Sunday was my (gasp!) 23rd wedding anniversary, it seemed like I’d finally found an interesting and entertaining topic that might lead my blog readers to my books.

Whether my tactic will work remains to be seen. But I’m having such fun writing about all the good, bad, and hilarious things that I’ve seen in marriage! Coming up will be the “tornadoes in trailer parks” story, the “will she walk into that light pole” story, the “65 days of no cooking” story, the “how to never argue” story, and many more.

If you’ve met my husband, John, you’ll understand in about a minute and a half why I write romances – and why all my heroes are tall, dark, and sexy – I mean, handsome! 😉 And if you haven’t met him yet, you’ll feel you know him pretty quickly when you read about his shenanigans.

If you like reading fun, romantic stories, stop by Marriage Madness every Monday. And if you’re a writer trying to figure out how to write blog posts your potential book readers would be interested in…well, I suggest you look for something to trip over. 😉

Kitty Bucholtz decided to combine her undergraduate degree in business, her years of experience in accounting and finance, and her graduate degree in creative writing to become a writer-turned-independent-publisher. Her first novel, Little Miss Lovesick, is now available in print and ebook format. Her next novel, Unexpected Superhero, will be released May/June 2013, followed by Love at the Fluff and Fold this summer. Her short stories can be found in the anthologies Romancing the Pages and Moonlit Encounters, available in both print and ebook formats.

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Juggling Act

May 6, 2013 by in category Pets, Romance & Lots of Suspense by Linda O. Johnston tagged as , , ,

I love to write–but I love to have written even more!
 
Over the past week, I’ve been juggling between a few stories I’m working on.  For one, I have to complete a proposal for a Harlequin Nocturne romance that I’d suggested some time ago.  I had fun getting back into that story and into Alpha Force mode.  Alpha Force is my Nocturne miniseries about shapeshifters.  Love them!   I wrote a rough first draft and I’m now editing it.
 
Plus, I’ve come up with some ideas for a couple of new mystery series.  I’m also working on proposals for them.  And, yes, I’ve done rough first drafts, for one of them, at least.
 
I must have a lot of characters occupying my brain, since I do have to call on them, usually one at a time, and have them speak up even when I’ve been working in a different genre.  They always come through for me and tell me what comes next on the page.  It’s a good thing I’ve been at this for a while.
 
How about you–do you have more than one character or type of story in your mind at a time?  If so, how do you handle them?

Linda O. Johnston
http://www.lindaojohnston.com/
http://www.killerhobbies.blogspot.com/


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Goal Setting — When you don’t make a goal

May 3, 2013 by in category Archives tagged as , , , , ,

What happens when you don’t make your goals? At the April meeting, I had two goals I had set. One was to finish and submit a contemporary novella, and the other was to log an additional 2,500 words on my Book-in-a-Year project. Only one of those happened.
For someone who can regularly sit down and do a #1K1HR – that’s Twitter-speak for 1,000 words in an hour, you would think a mere 2,500 words in 30 days would be a piece of cake. Nope. Failed. The story haunted me, literally, so what happened?
Well, I can officially place blame on two occurrences. 1) I became distracted by a Call for Submissions by editor Salome Wilde for an erotic anthology featuring Shakespeare stories. It’s Shakespearotica. With my master’s degree in English, I’m a bit of a word-geek. I’ve admitted to that in the past. When the original April 1 deadline was extended to May 15, inspiration struck. Within 24 hours, I wrote the complete story, about 5,000 words (see where I’m going with the word count potential?). So when I could have been slaving away on my YA, another story stole my attention altogether.
Good news? That story was finished, edited and submitted, and now I play the waiting game.
The second setback came in the form of life: A child with the stomach flu. Sometimes, as a parent, you really can’t prepare for lack of sleep and worry, and what it’ll do to your psyche. In my case, with my husband out of town, it killed my desire to write. (Coupled with spring break, and there went my productivity.)
Anyway, why the excuses? Well, I know I’m not the only one who may not be making goals each month, and I’m here to say: It’s all right. You don’t need to beat yourself up. As long as you know you’re doing your best. You are pushing forward, and making progress.
Now to get a little more serious. I noticed someone had crossed their name off the Book-in-a-Year sign-up sheet. I’m not outing anyone. It’s “public” knowledge. Anyone who wants to pick up the sheet and look at it, can. I didn’t even look that close to try to see who the individual was. My question, though, is why? We still have more than five months to complete the book. PLENTY of time.
I know to some the task may seem impossible. But, many people do it. I have a book deadline of August 15 for a 50,000-word manuscript, and it really hasn’t been started yet. Oh, I have the idea and a synopsis, maybe even an opening chapter, but all that accounts to less than 2,000 words. That one will definitely have to be finished before October rolls around.
Maybe it’s time to reevaluate the goals you’ve been setting. Are they reasonable? Do you mix maybe one tougher goal, and one that’s a bit easier to accomplish? Right now, we have four months down out of the year. Where do you want to be by the end of the year?
Here’s a look at my goals:
  • Submit requested contemporary
  • Revise and submit paranormal novella
  • Book 7 in The Vampire, The Witch & The Werewolf series
  • YA Book-in-a-Year
  • Third 1Night Stand for Decadent Publishing
  • Preppers Romance for Decadent Publishing
  • Complete second paranormal novella in new series
  • Holiday novella

Looking at that list makes me a bit tired. Some big goals there … and I’m on my way to completing them. Not finishing a goal may put me one step back, but have to keep pushing forward.
— Louisa Bacio
http://louisabacio.blogspot.com
http://www.facebook.com/louisabacio
http://www.twitter.com/louisabacio

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OCC RWA May Online Class

April 26, 2013 by in category Archives

OCCRWA Proudly Presents: header

May 13 – June 9, 2013

Writing the Inspirational Romance

with Nancy J. Farrier
Nancy Farrier
About the Class:

What is the definition of Inspirational romance? A sweet story? An element of faith? A character type? What about S-E-X in Inspirational romance? In this class we’ll take a look at the qualities found in Inspirational stories. We’ll delve into what comprises the various genres within the Inspirational market: contemporary, historical, romantic suspense, etc. 

We’ll look at the element of faith to see what that means and if there is a standard amount expected in your story. We’ll look at examples, and you will be able to share some of your work, if you choose, to see if your manuscript fits the market.

About the Instructor:

Nancy J. Farrier has published thirteen books in the Inspirational market since her first novel released in 2001. She has also written numerous articles and short stories that have been published in various magazines and books such as Today’s Christian Woman and Focus on the Family Clubhouse. She has also been the coordinator for the Inspirational Reader’s Choice Award for thirteen years and is the secretary of the Faith, Hope and Love chapter of RWA, an online chapter for Inspirational authors.

Enrollment Information

This is a 4-week online course that uses email and Yahoo Groups.  The class is open to anyone wishing to participate.  The cost is $30.00 per person or, if you are a member of OCCRWA, $20.00 per person.


To join the class, please follow this link.



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So Much of What I’ve Needed to Know, I’ve Learned From Books

April 19, 2013 by in category Archives tagged as , , , ,

And comic books.  Seriously. Long before I ever had a science class Superman explained water came from two parts hydrogen, one part oxygen and a lot of energy. Come to think of it, that’s about all I ever did understand about chemistry.
Albert Payson Terhune taught me about the love between dog and person, and the superhuman qualities of his Collies. Later years took a lot of the polish off his halo for me but brought an overwhelming appreciation for the value of hard work when writing. Good, bad, indifferent, that man put out the words. From Jack London I learned about the quest to do more and be greater, in dog or human. Walter Farley filled my head with misinformation about horse racing and stimulated the imagination of a horse crazy girl (and isn’t that a rare condition!)
Thanks to Bruce Catton and Elswyth Thane I understood more about the Civil War, the battles and the people involved. As well as the continued involvement of a patriotic family (Thane) and how involved some families with each other. From Laurie King I learned the not to be forgotten phrase “Cream of Man Soup” about trench warfare in France.  All of these writers stimulated me to more research as I tried to understand the reasons for war. Yeah, good luck on that.
Andre Norton showed endless future possibilities and also the value of one small person staying the course in spite of all odds. A most valuable contribution to the growth of an insecure girl. Betty Cavanna and other writers of that ilk spoke to that insecurity and helped ease me into growing past.
All of these writers fed my love of words, with Rudyard Kipling bloating me on their power “We’re foot slog slog slog slogging over Africa…” and “The great gray green greasy Limpopo river.”
Then one day I read: “Nothing ever happens to me.” and was transported into the world of Romantic Suspense as penned by Mary Stewart, the master of subtle romance. Sure I read books about pillage and kidnapping and Alpha heroes. But I kept coming back to magnificently worded books with people simply doing their best.  Add in Helen MacInnes and another dose of Andre Norton and I guess I could say a writer was born.
How is it for you?  What writers kicked over your rock and sent the creative ants to work?

Monica Stoner, member at Large. Writing as Mona Karel, and working now on a sequel to My Killer My Love…hoping I can come up with an even better title

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