My Life With Romance

2009-05-24T23:32:00.000-07:00

Ha!

2009-05-07T14:13:00.000-07:00

I'd practically forgotten I have another blog.lol. I will be posting in the coming weeks!!!We'll see if anyone ever visits this blog anymore! Fun, fun, fun!

Book=Done

2008-11-20T11:07:00.000-08:00

I finished my book in 19 days!! It topped out at 90,155 words according to my computer's word counter. BUT-this is a huge but- NaNo's word counter says I only wrote 89,907 words. Where the heck did 248 words go? Is NaNo just being mean? Is NaNo running a conspiracy against me? Or were the 248 words in question so horribly written that the NaNo system rejected them?lol.

But seriously, I don't care. I finished the book!! I'm pretty surprised. YAY for NaNo! I think I'll do this every year! It got me out of my writing rut. And I can't put too fine a point on just how amazing this experience has been.

Chris Baty totally rocks!!

How is your writing going? I'm really just proud of everyone who took up this challenge regardless of word count!

Let the Games Begin!!

2008-11-01T13:25:00.000-07:00

Happy first day of NaNo!!!

I wish every participant luck! May our word counts be high and our coffee cups filled.:)

PS: Yes, I made this post at least partially as a procrastination tool.*g*

Author Talk

2008-08-17T12:57:00.000-07:00

I don’t know about the rest of you but I am in love with Author Talk. Not only are Jill Monroe and Gena Showalter super talented but they’re crazy hilarious. When I grow up I want to be one of them(either one will do). I encourage you to check out their blogs and their videos if you haven’t had the privilege yet.
Check out their newest video:

Happy Birthday . . .

2008-08-10T00:52:00.000-07:00

. . . to me!

Well, I'm no longer on the very cusp of turning twenty-three. I'm actually there. Man I feel old. Doesn't it just sound so old? Ok, I'm probably really odd for saying that. In fact, I know I'm odd for saying that. But I can't help that I feel the weight of my age for the first time since I was thirteen.

I would be happy to stop aging at twenty-two. Edward Cullen got to stop at eighteen - but that's not cool because he's way old and can't get anything more than a virgin margarita? Weird.

Anyway, the best gift you can all give me for my birthday is a moment of silence. Start now!

Keep going...

And going...

Ok, thanks!

Happy B-Day to EVERYONE who has an August birthday!:)

And, tell me, just for kicks, what age would you have liked to stop at?

Greetings From Florida!

2008-07-31T02:47:00.001-07:00

(x-posted from First Edition)
I liked the title of Steph’s post yesterday so much that I’ve decided to steal it and run with it. I’m not above petty thievery.lol. Although, my post has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that I’m writing to you from Florida. In fact, the more I contemplate this plan of action the more I’m sure this post will be disappointing. I don’t really have a writing topic to discuss today but I will pervert this post so thoroughly that by the end it will sound like one. Promise.

I went to see The Dark Knight last night and I can’t put too much emphasis on how phenomenal it was. I love Christian Bale anyway, but Christian Bale in a Batman costume and kicking butt? *sigh*. Heath Ledger also brought down the house with a, as you’ve most likely heard, powerhouse performance. In fact EVERY supporting character was fleshed out and truly added a full-bodied feel to the piece(imagine an Eloisa James novel here).

Now, I never saw Batman Begins but that didn’t stop me from falling in love with this movie.It had deep undercurrents(what makes a hero?) and strong emotion(Ah, young love!). I still totally think Batman and Rachel are the best couple out of all of the comic book movies thus far(although, I don’t think she was in the comic books).

I wanted to watch this movie again just so I could savor how good it was.

And now for how I’m going to twist this post into a writing topic. Batman was a great film for character study. I was so in love with every character-except for with the joker it was more a ‘love to hate’ vibe. So this week I’m giving out homework: go watch the Dark Knight and call me in the morning *g*. It really can’t help but assist your writing. My brother and I stayed up for hours dissecting this movie after it was done. It will definitely inspire you. (And if not, at least you won’t have wasted money on something like Glitter).

So, I have two questions for you this week: What inspires you? And how do you make your characters into real seeming people?

A Rose By Any Other Name . . .

2008-07-16T15:08:00.000-07:00

(x-posted from First Edition)

When you were a kid did you dream your future husband’s name would be Poindexter? I know for certain I didn’t.(Though, okay, I've never heard of a guy named Poindexter). As a child, I dreamed of Jack, Hunter, Jacob, or Jordan(this last one was because of my love for New Kids on the Block. Looking back I can’t see the appeal. But boy did I ever back then!lol).

Today I want to talk about how we name our heroes, our heroines, and then, sometimes, ourselves.

When naming a hero it seems that every author has trod the same boards. There’s, of course, the ever present Jack, Devlin, Marcus, and Alec. Then with our heroines it’s Charlotte, Kate, Lydia, and Isabelle. (Of course there are other common names but I’m not going to list all of them. I don’t think the Originals page could fit them all. Also, since I write historicals, these are mainly names used in historicals. Hello Devlin?)

Now, I’m not knocking these names in any way, shape, or form. I love these names and I love sitting down to a book where characters bare these monikers. In fact, even if I wanted to, I couldn’t disparage these names because I use them in my WIP. They’re good, strong names. My hero is Alec, my heroine Chelsea. My hero's sister(a future heroine) is even Lydia*shrugs*. I’m cool with the tried and true.

Then this brings me to pen names. I have often considered writing under a pen name. In fact, I picked out exactly what it would be. I would be the national best-selling author(a girl can dream*g*) Kathryn Hincey. I love the way that name flows off the tongue and I love the sentimental value that name holds for me. But then that brings me to the abundance of Katharines(Like that one, Mary?) in Romance. Then there’s a lot of other different names that MANY romance novelists choose. I wonder if the authors choose these names for anonymity or just because they don’t believe their real name is salable. I don’t know if it would matter to me if instead of reading Nora Roberts on the spine of a book it read Wilencia Higgenbotham-probably not.

But I can't honestly say how I would feel about reading a Romance starring Drucilla and Frankenstein. Which may be shallow but there it is. Of course a good author can make anything work. So, I suppose I'm leaning toward the idea that I wouldn't care if the heroine and hero had different names. I guess I just wouldn't know until I tried it out.

So, my questions today are simple: Do names influence your purchases(either the author’s name or the character’s)? What names do you like in what you read? What names do you like when you write? (Bonus points for anyone that has truly Original names for their characters!!) How do you feel about pen names?

Tagged

2008-06-30T05:38:00.000-07:00

I suppose by the title of my post you can well imagine the purose of this blog. I've been tagged by Alyssa- who just so happens to be super cool and nice. Everyone should run and check out her blog now! Here, I'll wait for you to go and then come back. . .

. . . Ok then, so here are six things you probably don't know about me:
6) I'm super controlling. I mean it. If I'm given a group project in school I always do it myself because I'm positive I can do it better than everyone else. Which probably isn't even true but since I'm a control freak it makes sense in my mind*g*.
5)I have two dogs and one cat. As you can, probably, extrapolate from that I love animals! I once planned to be a Vet but that didn't work out because the actual job of being a Vet wasn't what I'd expected.
4)I have super long toes. My brother calls me a freak. I can pick things up with my feet.lol. Ok, so not really as bad as I'm describing but definitely different.
3)I spend more money on books than, most likely, anything else in a year.
2)My parents have been married since the stone age and are still happy. I'm a rarity amongst my friends for having married parents.
1)I'm totally going to the RWA conference next year! I hope to see you all there!

Ok, that was tons harder than I thought it would be. I left out the deeply personal things because this stuff stays on the interet forever!
I'm not going to tag anyone else because I've noticed lately that everyone has been tagged. So I'll just ask here: What are six interesting things about yourself?

Finished

2008-05-13T17:42:00.000-07:00

So a couple of weeks ago, as you may or may not know, I took the Book In A Week challenge and, in so doing, finished my book. YAY me!

I posted on First Edition about what I learned from the experience, but then realized I should probably post that info on this blog too.

So here's the top five things I learned about me:

1)I'm a medium speed writer.

2)I can pull all-nighters with great clarity.

3) I suck at first drafts, but thirds are alright.

4)I'm a plotster.

5)Writing daily is MUCH easier than I thought it would be. It's really just a habit you have to get yourself into.

And secret revelation number 6) I hate revising! I can't get myself to start.

I need some hard-core motivation! Anyone got any?

Accountability

2008-04-23T11:07:00.000-07:00

This week I'm doing the Book In A Week challenge so I thought it would be a good idea to give myself some accountability. I'll be updating this post throughout the week.
Sunday:12 pages
Monday:8 pages
Tuesday:10 pages
Wednesday: 15 pages
Thursday: 13 pages
Friday: 10 pages; finished book!!!
Saturday: Revisions

2008-04-21T10:44:00.000-07:00

The Originals are back at it again this week. Come by and check it out at First Edition

When Creativity Strikes

2008-04-15T18:11:00.000-07:00

Isn’t it odd how after weeks of a creativity drought an idea can slam you in the back of the head like a bolt of lightning(now my title makes sense. lol)and all the problems in your story are solved? You suddenly know how everything should fit into place like a cute little puzzle. You’re writing nonstop for three days straight on pure adrenaline and coffee and then thy well doth run dry again.It’s sort of creepy how the mind works that way. So, when I heard about Book in a Week I thought, "Impossible." It could never work because my ideas either wouldn’t come period or would wait until half of the week is done to make an appearance. My creativity never comes when I actually want it. But recently Jenna Petersen wrote a blog on myspace in which she explained how one should prepare for Book in a Week. Apparently you’re supposed to plot(stop squirming pansters! It’s only a little plotting. One week’s worth) or at least get a general idea of where you want to go with your story and then you get your life in order. You put the kids in daycare for a week, have ready-made dinners at the house for the fam, and you just make sure everything else is taken care of so all you have to worry about is tapping into that highly active creative cavern in your brain.Now don’t let the words Book in a Week scare you, because it really only promises to give you about 200 pages. That’s Half a Book in a Week. Still, not bad.I don’t know if it will work, but next week I’m giving it a shot. I’ll let you know how it goes.
And tell me: How many of you would like to join me in this self imposed challenge? Or how many of you want to give me some encouragement? This is a little scary. But it should prove to be highly entertaining.
PS: I'm gonna be sure and take a large dose of awesome before I start this;)
PPS: Be sure and check out Steph's blog at the grog First Edition.

More Fun!

2008-04-14T17:01:00.000-07:00

Today over at First Edition I'm blogging about why I write Historical Romance Novels. Come on by and tell me why you write what you do!

Hey, Hey,Hey!!!

2008-04-14T04:13:00.000-07:00

Come join us today for the first day of our first week as The Originals at :http://aplacefororiginals.blogspot.com/
This week is going to be super exciting! So if you want to talk about writing and learn a little bit about Stephanie, Mary, and myself along the way be sure and stop on by. We'd hate to miss you! Also, we're giving away free books and lots of other great prizes!
See ya there!!!

Mark your calendars!!

2008-04-08T23:42:00.000-07:00

April 14th Mary Danielson, Stephanie Janulis, and I are debuting our brand new group blog. Here is the link: http://aplacefororiginals.blogspot.com/ It is, as yet, unfinished, so don't click it yet (No...no, really... I mean it you'll be really disappointed if you click it now.lol.).It's called First Edition: A Place For Originals. We're oh so excited! And because we're so excited we're going to be offering great giveaways all next week to lucky posters. We promise blogs, fun, and a ton of class. So please come and join us. We'll be talking twinkies, men, writing, and many other topics as the blog week wears on.
Come out and be an Original. It's really the only way to be.

Top Ten Things That Make Your Wip Rock!

2008-03-31T20:07:00.000-07:00

I wasn't experienceing writers block exactly. I was just having a lack of enthusiasm for what I was writing. So I decided to think up ten reasons why I love my book and see if it got me back to writing. And you know what? It worked! So here's the top ten reasons I'm writing my WIP again:
1)Brooding hero
2)Heroine's nine older brothers
3) Crazy uncle
4)Friends
5)The black moment
6)First kiss in the moonlight
7)Prunella and John
8)The heroine's nine older brothers
9)The Lady of the Lake
10)Bath(place or thing? You decide)
11)The heroine's nine older brothers!!!(This one just sort of crept up on me.lol)

So, this week ,tell me ,what are the top ten things that make your WIP rock?
What you write just might surprise you.

Historical Historicals

2008-03-21T10:01:00.000-07:00

I have noticed over the years that there are a bevy of readers out there that absolutely despise any little aspect of a historical romance that isn't, well, historical.
When I wrote the first draft of my WIP I felt I already knew enough about the Regency to get by on my own(insert laugh track here). Later a contest judge informed me that I had been a little, er, a lot wrong.
So, on my second and now third revisions I actually started researching*g*. And I came to see what others had seen before me, that many writers out there were getting historically incorrect books published. Many of these published authors I loved and had on my keeper shelf.
I soon found, though, that the fact that they were historically inaccurate didn't taint the book for me. I love these authors and always will.
So, this leads into my question: Do you forgive historical inaccuracies if the story is good? Do you mind modern character's living in, say, Elizabethan England? And while we're at it, what are some touches that make you feel sucked into the historical period you're reading about?

You Can't put That in a Romance Novel!

2008-03-17T18:57:00.001-07:00

Recently I began revising my first WIP. It was going along nicely when I realized there was a whole new element to the plot I hadn't seen before. I personally think this element makes it unpublishable. So, tell me what, to you, is something you can't put in a romance novel? For me it's cheating heroes. Infidelity is a big no-no for me and strips the leading man of the word hero.

Romantic Moments

2008-03-05T13:59:00.000-08:00

He was being drenched by the rain, searching everywhere in the dirty alley for my lost Cat. I came up behind him soggy from running down the street and called out "Cat!" Suddenly there was a low meow from behind a stack of boxes. It was my cat!! I tucked Cat in my trench coat and turned to Him slowly. We'd been through so much together. First we were only friends but somewhere along the way it had developed into something more. Tears welled in my eyes. I walked to Him slowly, He pulled me close, keeping Cat lightly cupped between us, and He kissed me. And the whole audience burst into tears...

Ok, extra points for those who realized this was the ending to Breakfast at Tiffany's and not my life. I am far from Audrey Hepburn,but this is not the point. The point is that moment was soooo romantic. My question today is: What was the most romantic moment of your life? And if, like me, you don't really have one share a movie you absolutely loved and go ahead and make yourself the star if you want.

Quick Question

2008-03-01T19:02:00.000-08:00

Short post today. Half because I can't think of anything to write and half because I love hearing everyone's responses. I was just wondering who has crit groups and how they met them. I'm in desperate need of one.
SO, did you meet at an RWA meeting or on-line? Have you had a bad experience with a crit group? Or is it the best thing since sliced bread? Thanks!