Silk & Shadows

Currently working on: Sorting through my TBR mountain
Mood: Earthquaky

With all the traveling I did this summer, I didn’t get as much reading done as I wanted to. Of course, I NEVER get as much reading done as I want to. My once-upon-a-time-reasonable To Be Read stack has become a pile, and then two piles, and then a mountain, and now it’s a mountain on the verge of sliding down on my head. But I did manage to pluck a few new reads from the threatening collapse.

SHADOW TOUCH by Erin Kellison

I’d had Erin Kellison’s SHADOW BOUND in my TBR pile for ages, but never even had the chance to start it. After I roomed with her at Authors After Dark in Philadelphia, I felt soooo guilty. (Note to self: You should never sleep with an author whose books you haven’t read.) So when I got home, I dug through the mountain… and kicked myself for not having read it earlier! There is the dark and tortured hero, who of course I love, and there’s the heroine who is much more than she is willing to admit, and there’s a world one step from the edge of darkness.

After I finished SHADOW BOUND, I immediately went out and snagged SHADOW TOUCH. This ebook novella is a great introduction to the world of the Segue Institute, where desperate people are working round the clock to save the world from the dark forces of the wraiths. (And when last I checked, SHADOW TOUCH is FREE at Amazon!)

SEDUCE ME IN DREAMS by Jacquelyn Frank

Sometimes I find an author whose list of books is long enough that adding them to my TBR mountain could send the whole thing into a deadly slide. But if you haven’t read Jacquelyn Frank’s Nightwalker books and need a jump in where you aren’t so far behind, you can start with the excellent new Three Worlds books. SEDUCE ME IN DREAMS is the first of these hot, futuristic, military heroes.

I fell in love with futuristic romances decades ago with Ann Maxwell’s FIRE DANCER series, but futuristics with a strong love story can be hard to find. This series has love — and sex! — in spades. Happy sigh!

WILD AND STEAMY by Meljean Brook, Jill Myles & Carolyn Crane

These are more novellas and in ebook only format too, but they were so fun I had to include them here. I downloaded the ebook for one of the many plane rides I had to take this year and it made the interminable airport wait actually pleasant. Such is the power of a good book.

Meljean Brook’s has a story from her Iron Duke world, Jill Myles has a sexy shapeshifter menage, and Carolyn Crane checks in with a wonderful, twisty noir story from her Disillusionists series. The stories felt very different from each other, which was interesting in an anthology and perfect for the chaotic vibe of an airport. If you sit down to read it in more comfortable surroundings that don’t include overhead speakers announcing your flight has been delayed — again — then you will find something in this book for several different moods.

What was on your summer reading list? Report in on any Silk And Shadows post this week. I’ll be giving away a copy (not MY copy, of course) of Erin Kellison’s SHADOW BOUND that I stole from her at AAD. (Note to self: Room with more authors whose books you haven’t read so you have an excuse to buy more books.)

If you’ve never seen the series, but think someday you’ll want to, turn back now. There are a few spoilers in this list…

1. Throw them a curve ball: Take an ordinary high school cheerleader and give her an inescapable destiny as a vampire slayer.

2. Pit them against villains capable of killing them: Such as an ancient vampire who not only sucks the slayer dry, he leaves her face down in a puddle. Caveat: If you do this, you also need to give her friends who can conveniently save her life…

3. Make their nightmares come true: Afraid of spiders, clowns, or public speaking? Good. Because all the bad guys can’t be demons. Welcome to the slayer’s world.

4. Stomp on their hearts: Let her fall in love, only to discover that love can cause serious, earth-shattering problems, like awakening the soulless vampire buried in her boyfriend.

5. Kick them when they’re down: Ensure the only way to save the world is to run said boyfriend through with a very sharp sword.

6. And then just for the heck of it, kick ‘em again: When she finally gets up the courage to date again, have that guy dump her after one night of sex.

7. Take away all their support: Mentors? Fire them. Friends? Turn them into hyenas or magic-addicted dark witches. Mother? Make her a zombie, have her do the nasty with the mentor, then kill her.

8. When in doubt, make them sing: Literally, for a whole episode. And while she’s singing, have her blurt things she’d never say otherwise, wound all her friends, and almost go up in flames. Then blame it on a tap-dancing demon.

Fortunately, Buffy’s ego is never completely shattered by all that happens to her–she’s a terrific example of what doesn’t kill you (or does kill you but you come back to life) makes you stronger.

Any other Buffy fans out there?

Currently working on: Revising Book 4
Mood: Loopy

Book signings can be quite the ordeal for a multi-published (you know, two books) author like me. First off, they never send a big enough limo:

Sure, it’s sort of Old World classy, but it should at least be black since I write urban fantasy romance. Maybe with violet running lights. And how am I supposed to fit my entourage in there? Not even room enough for their rippling abs…

So lately, I’ve had to tell them to send a drop plane so I can fit me, all my signing gear and my ego into one crate:

Dropping in under cover of darkness to avoid the screaming hordes of relentless fans can be tricky. And most bookstores don’t open until 10 a.m. anyway. So sometimes I have to resort to disguises. Or at least a big pair of Hollywood sunglasses. Cuz that’s how I roll.

Once I get to the bookstore, I have to make sure the green room is tricked out to the specifications of my rider. You know, the champagne, the massage therapist, the signing pens in every color of the rainbow PLUS sparkly, (the drugs were all done by the Beat poets long before we arrived so we’ll have to make do), and the dessert trays.

Yeah, no dessert tray is undoubtedly a diva moment; who would blame me? And all of that work before the signing even starts!

(Good thing my ghostwriter did all that actual pesky writing stuff or I’d be too exhausted to eat more than one dessert.)

Once my entourage clears the hacks off the stage — Frank Herbert (DUNE), Mao (LITTLE RED BOOK), Stephenie Meyer (can’t remember the name of her book) and their ilk — I can finally take the spotlight due my brilliance.

I say a few words, accept the night’s award (there’s always an award of some sort; I keep a special cardboard box for them in my mansion), and then it’s time for the hardest part:

Spelling everybody’s name right.

Currently working on: Book 4 — Argh, writing faster!
Mood: Speedy

One of the best/worst parts of the Romance Writers of American annual conference is all the books.  Look, you know how it is.  There’s a book.  It needs a home.  I have a bookshelf.  What else was I supposed to do?

So I came home with a lotta books.  Have I read them all?  Not quite yet.  But I’m working on it.  And much like a nutty squirrel, I feel warm and fuzzy knowing I have a winter’s stash of reading material. 

Not that I’ll stop getting new books, of course.  You understand.

All this book reading requires a technique.  It’s not enough to just stuff my cheeks with them, bury them, and then forget where I put them.  There’s good stuff inside, after all.

So here’s  how I conquer my TBR pile:

1. Amass the books in one place.
XY doesn’t understand why I have to have ALL my books out.  Well, it’s because if I don’t see them all, I don’t know how far I have to go.  Plus, looking at them makes me happy.

2. Read the opening pages of a bunch of them.
I usually grab a handful — four to six titles — and read the first chapter or so, usually while I’m sitting on the floor in front of my bookshelf.

3. Choose a winner. Or two.
Inevitably, one or two titles grab my interest at the moment.  At another moment, maybe one of other books would have appealed more.  It’s fine; they’ll wait for me.

4. Settle on the couch until spring.
Oh I wish!  But I do spend a lot of time reading.  It’s a hazard of the writer’s job.  If only I got hazard pay!

How do you choose from your TBR pile?  Is it random?  Does something spark your interest and make you reach out? Or are you one of those weird people who only buys one book at a time?

Leave a comment any time this week and you’ll have a chance to win one of the titles in the pile above.

I suppose that’s another method for whittling down my TBR pile…
5. Give books away to friends.
Hey, not only does that free up space on my shelves for the next book (or two) I can tell myself I’m helping an author spread the words.

Currently working on: Unpacking from RomCon
Mood: Sleepy

This week’s topic is “The vacation untaken” (sort of a spin on Robert Frost’s ”The Road Not Taken,” perhaps, if you’re feeling poetical) but I thought I’d mention the trip I DID just take — the first annual RomCon romance readers convention.

I headed out to Denver Colorado early Friday morning. The sun is not up at 4:15, in case you were curious.  The picture below — taken from the car on the way to the airport — is a good visual representation of my oracular and mental functioning at 4:15 a.m.:

The pale fuzzy squiggle at the top is the moon.  Poor moon.

The convenient part of arriving at the airport so early is that I had time to visit the three Powell’s Books in the various concourses.  And lo and behold…

Liam’s fine (and signed!) butt could become airborne at any moment.  Much thanks to the Powell’s employees who were waaay more awake than me and helped me find my copies.

I took a nap on the plane and that was the last sleep for the weekend. I roomed with the always wickedly delightful Delilah Marvelle, who brought her infamous penis candy to give away by the handsful. (Well, not handsful, really; they were very tiny penises.)

The party started right away with workshop and events and author/reader chats. It was a convivial group. As one reader told me, she had come to the convention by herself but she felt completely comfortable finding an empty seat at dinner, knowing that everyone there was a fellow romance reader. If ever the conversation lagged (and trust me, it did not) one simple question could restart the talk for hours: “What do you read?”

My favorite events included:

Betwixt & Between Paranormal Tea: Paranormal romance authors and readers gathered for cookies and chatting.

Monster Charades: Despite being held at 10 a.m. (that’s almost as early as 4:14 a.m.!) on Saturday, the guessing-game of paranormal authors, titles, series, characters and creatures was huge fun.  Thanks (and I mean that sarcastically) to author Carolyn Crane for coming up with some baffling stumpers that had us laughing through the guessing.

Build-a-Hero Workshop: The dark fae we created — Shikar of the magic hands — somehow lost out to the historical hero Sir Rochester, but we love him still.  I was supposed to bring home the whiteboard where we’d written his description (including his… um, manly measurements) but I lost it at the Denver airport on the way home!  Someone there is going to be very confused.  Luckily, we took good notes:

And a close-up of the final version, written in the preternaturally tidy script of Elizabeth:

Thanks to Sabrina for forwarding me the pictures!  And thanks to author Meagan Hatfield, especially for coming up with our team name: Team Awesome!  We were, weren’t we?

I think the brightest highlight for me was the chance to sit with Nalini Singh, Christine Feehan and C.L. Wilson on a paranormal author panel.  Can you imagine?  Sitting next to those stars?  In comparison, I looked a little like that fuzzy moon I posted earlier!  But I felt very much at ease because they are among the nicest people in the world (or most other worlds you can imagine).  The fact they write the stories that rock MY world is the frosting-and-sprinkles on the cupcake of my glee!

(If you’re on Twitter and want a blow-by-blow account, you can scroll back through #romcon for commentary.)

Last and best, I had the chance to meet readers, a few of whom had even read my stories   What a trip!  I was on Cloud 9.  Actually, I was above Cloud 9 and just a little to the north of Mt. Hood (thanks to Southwest Airlines and their two free bags policy which allowed me to bring 100 lbs. of giveaways and snacks):

The event is in the planning stages for next year in Denver. I’ll post word here as soon as I hear what’s up. I’d love to meet some Silk And Shadows readers at RomCon 2011!

Meanwhile, I brought home a few books.  Honestly, just a few.  But the highlight… I have a signed copy of Nalini Singh’s ANGEL’S BLOOD!   It’s the first book in her Guild Hunter series and you do NOT want to be left behind on this one.  Just leave a comment on any post this week and you’ll be entered for a chance to win.  I’ll warn you now, you’ll want to go get your copy of the second book, ARCHANGEL’S KISS, before you start reading.  Yes, it is that good.

What do you think?  Would you be interested in attending a romance readers’ convention?  Which author would you most want to meet?

Sorry to be posting so late. I’m deep in the final days of finishing off a manuscript and when I’m writing I lose all track of time.

The other day, I went to the bookstore and parted with forty-one dollars to buy a handful of mass market paperbacks. As I handed the cashier my money, I felt a momentary twinge of guilt. This reading habit of mine keeps getting more and more expensive. Forty bucks is a fair chunk of change. But then I thought about the last time I went to see a movie at the theater. Thirteen dollars for the ticket, another ten for the drink and popcorn (I CANNOT go to the movies without buying popcorn, even if I’ve just had dinner). That’s twenty-six dollars for two hours of entertainment.

The books I bought will keep me contented for at least six times that amount of time. And I get the added value of using my brain.

If I go to a hockey game (Go Sens!), it costs me $42 to sit in the nosebleed section up near the roof. And that’s without food. If I go to a concert, I can double that price at a minimum.

Hardcover books aside, aren’t books a great value? What do you think? If you mostly pick up your books at the library, what motivates to actually lay down the cash for a book?

Currently working on: Organizing a writing challenge for my Romance Writers of America chapter
Mood: Inspiring

Writing can be a lonely endeavor.  The stereotypical writer (okay, ME) spends a lot of time at her keyboard, mumbling to herself.  On rare occasions, she is booted — blinking mustily — into the sun to confront other people.  People like… readers.  Oh noes!  What to say?!  (This is especially terrifying to some writers — okay, ME — who will be attending in the next four months three booksignings, two conventions and a conference where there will be LOTS of readers to talk to — yikes!)

So we decided (barricaded safely behind the interwebz) that this week’s topic is “Questions we’d like to ask readers.”

And my question is “Does Liam have a great butt, or what?”

This is my second cover for the second book in The Marked Souls series.  And it was every bit as nail-gnawing exciting as waiting for the first cover.  Here’s the back cover blurb:

The war between good and evil has raged for millennia, with the Marked Souls caught in the middle, but the new girl doesn’t play by old rules…

 

Liam Niall never meant to be a leader.  Barely surviving the horrors of the Irish Potato Famine with body and soul intact, he escaped to Chicago…where he lost half his soul and gained a wayward band of demon-possessed warriors.  Now, as the talyan face a morphing evil, Liam grows weary and plagued by doubt.

 

Then a new weapon falls into his hands.  Her name is Jilly Chan.  To save his talyan and her demon-ridden soul, Liam must win her to his battle and his bed. 

 

Waging a one-woman war against the threats to the street kids she mentors, Jilly stands her ground against danger in all its guises.  She won’t be any man’s woman…or weapon.  But Liam—with his hard eyes, soft brogue and compelling hands—is a danger to her rebellious independence…and her heart.

 

These two halved souls sharing one fierce passion will sear a fresh scar across the city.  Who’s in danger now?

Book 1 had Archer’s chest.  Book 2 has Liam’s butt.  My goodness, what will Book 3 show?

That was a rhetorical question.  My real question to readers was going to be something along the lines of “How important is a great butt cover when you decide whether to pick up a book?”  But I decided that’s a dumb question (and yes, there are dumb questions) because OF COURSE a great cover is important.  Maybe not the deciding factor, but a beautiful, intriguing or shocking cover can inspire the hand to reach for it.

And most writers have zero control over the cover.  Actually, there’s a lot that the writer doesn’t have control over, like — for a completely random, not-desperately-whorish-at-all example, ahem – the importance of preording FORGED OF SHADOWS at major bookstores…

But I do have some alleged, nominal control over me, myself and I.  And I since I will have to inspire readers IN PERSON (did I mention terrifying?) my question to readers is this: 

“What do you want from authors in real life?  What makes a great author/reader interaction?”

Besides chocolate, I mean.

To sweeten the pot in a non-caloric way, I have a signed ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) of FORGED OF SHADOWS to give away.  It comes with a Pepto-pink cover similar to this font color, not Liam’s handsome butt, sorry.  Comment on any post this week for a chance to win.  Heck, comment on EVERY post this week for more chances!

And finally, a parting shot…

Currently working on: Just finished page proofs on FORGED OF SHADOWS, the last step before June 2010 publication
Mood: Good luck, little book!  Now get out

Doesn’t everyone remember the first romance novel they discovered?  Back in the day, I stumbled upon my mother’s copy of A ROSE IN WINTER by Kathleen Woodiwiss.  A charming rouge, a burned-out manor house, an auction-block marriage, a winter ball, and a Beauty and the Beast twist.  Oh my!  After reading that, I was ruined forever.  Kinda like your typical swooning historical ingenue.

I think the right first romance novel is very much like the right first kiss.  You want it to be special, deep and meaningful, a memory to cherish.  So, like a fairy godmother picking out a prince, I take a book recommendations very seriously, especially when I am recommending a first romance novel.

Romance novels already suffer from red-headed stepchild syndrome with some (silly!) people, but I love when I can win over a new reader.  I’m always discovering new great books that I just KNOW will turn on the most hard-hearted cynic, and I also have a few gold standards that I can fall back on.

Romantic comedy
I always like to start off easy on a new romance reader.  I find a contemporary romantic comedy can be a good beginner romance because:

• The contemporary settings are readily absorbed.  There are no Austenian social mannerisms to maneuver around, no “och, wee lass, do ye ken mah claymore yearns fer ye?” historical diction to decipher.
• Rom-com movies often pave the way in reluctant psyches.
• The fun covers sometimes don’t even give away that it IS a romance.

Anything by Jennifer Crusie is a great “starter” because her dazzlingly delightful dialogue will win over non-believers.  And it’s so convenient that she’s writing with Bob Mayer now, because you can even spring these books on unsuspecting male-type readers because — hey! — there’s a guy’s name on the cover!

Historical romance
For the slightly uptight, a good, corseted historical can help loosen them up.  The trick with “reading” a reader who might like a historical is figuring out whether they’ll sway toward a more correct historical interpretation or if a rollicking adventure would more tickle their fancy.

But as far as tickling goes, a spicy, saucy story like Delilah Marvelle‘s are sure to please.  And by pleasure, I think we all understand what I mean

Of course, there are also category romances, romantic suspense, inspirationals, straight contemporary, women’s fiction (with a strong romance)…  And, of course, paranormal romance   But as you know, paranormal romance isn’t for the faint of heart.

Finding a first romance novel for the people around me isn’t just a job.  It’s a passion!

And how lucky I am to be able to indulge my love as a tax write-off

What’s the first romance novel you recommend to newbies?  Have you ever made a romance reader for life (or — in the case of paranormal romance – afterlife)?

As the end of 2009 draws near, it’s a natural time to reflect. The old year is settling back on its heels, and the new year is bright and shiny and just visible around the corner. Sometimes it’s hard to see that brightness, especially when things have been particularly dark, but the light is always there if you look for it.

I’m grateful for many things this year…

1. The roof over my head and the food on my table. So many people, especially now, are going without. I’m lucky, and I know it.

2. My health and the health of my loved ones. Having been hit hard by cancer, my family is particularly conscious of how short life can be. We’ve learned to make every minute last.

3. My family. The product of a military life of the move, my family has always been tightly knit, but amazingly, as the years pass, we seem to grow even closer.

4. My dreams. Two years ago, my dream of becoming a published author was just that, a dream. This year, it’s reality. If I had never dared to dream, if I had never pursued that dream with passion, my reality would be very different.

5. The people who inspire me. The world news delivered to our door each day can be harsh and cruel and dispiriting. But time and time again, I’ve been blessed to see and hear stories of courage and selflessness that make me proud to be human. Sometimes those stories come from people I don’t know, sometimes from my friends and neighbors. Sometimes they’re about little things, sometimes large and wondrous things. Many times the inspiration comes from unexpected sources, including honest and heartfelt comments on blogs like this one.

6. My readers. This one is new, and absolutely amazing. I’ve received wonderful letters from readers who’ve connected with my characters. That they’ve taken time out of their busy lives to write me and tell me so has repeatedly put a huge smile on my face.

I hope all of you have a terrific Thanksgiving holiday. Stay safe, eat well, and be loved.

So, you’ve sold a book. Finally, someone has told you that you did all the right things in the right genre at the right time, and all your stars have fallen into place. The next year or so will be one of the best of your life. Oh, there will be revisions to work on, new proposals to submit, but during those prerelease months, if you’re anything like me, you’ll be driving around in your car, or at the grocery store, or at sitting at work with the biggest, goofiest grin on your face, and sometimes you’ll even laugh out loud from happiness, making those around you ease away slowly.

Then, a few weeks before the big day, reality sets in. Or, rather, you realize the reviews will start coming in, and suddenly that confident smile wilts to be replaced by sweating palms and a budding ulcer. Oh. My. God…what if no one likes it? What if it’s totally panned? You find yourself forgetting all the wonderful reasons your editor bought the manuscript in the first place and second guessing things like…the hotness of your love scenes. Too much? Not enough? What about the hero and heroine’s first meeting. Does she come off as an air head? Is he a macho jerk? Can I please just make a few last minute changes?????

Yes, pretty much overnight I went from fairytale princess communing with the birds and little animals of the forest to one of those horror movies where the girl wanders off alone into the darkened woods as the scary music builds, and we wait, tensed and breathless, for the monster to jump out and eat her.

OK, turns out it wasn’t so bad. For the most part in fact, pretty darn good. There were a couple I’ve erased from my memory banks, but icky words like “mediocre writing” (for Dark Obsession) remain like smoking brands on my writer’s psyche. And then there was that “Meh,” although I forget which book that was for. Unlike joyful praise or scathing criticism, judgments of mediocre and meh imply that I simply failed to elicit an emotional response – and that’s the worst thing you can say to a writer. I’d rather the reader loathed me, ranted and raved about everything that drove her crazy, because then at least I’d know I struck a chord and got some passion out of her!

So my best comments…I can’t deny that the words, “Best Historic Romantic Gothic of 2008″ have gone a helluva long way in boosting my confidence and making me feel like I’ve come of age as a writer. The competition was stiff, I felt sure I’d never win and just being nominated is an honor… Well. Occasionally I still wonder if there’s been a mistake.

But the comments that have made the most impact on me came from a reader who experienced what I can only call a horrific tragedy in her life, which I won’t go into, but she said reading my books helped her see that while events can snowball out of control, self-forgiveness is key to recovering and getting your life back on track. Not only was I humbled and touched that this reader chose to share her story with me, but it drove home the point that as writers we have a responsibility to present human emotions as truthfully and realistically as we can, because there will always be someone out there who has experienced, in some form, the nature of what we’re writing about. Yes, romance is foremost an entertainment genre, but fiction is a powerful medium, and as writers we should always respect the power of the words we set to the page.