MONDAY MUSINGS: The Ah HA Moments Of Discovery

I love how a story goes from a nebulous idea to something real. It takes on a life of its own, the characters become real with quirks you didn’t even know. Or if you’re writing a trait I love it when there’s that ah-ha moment and you know why the character has that foible.


The story I’m writing now, for instance. My heroine would finger her pendant. That’s how I saw her. I didn’t think anything of it other than I knew it was silver with a moon and a howling wolf it had something green on it but I didn’t pay attention. I’ve seen pendants similar and was probably channeling the Pyramid catalog. More scenes go by and I’m enjoying this story. A lot. Enter the hero, who I might add, is one hawt guy. As he walks up to her she again reaches for her pendant, but not just because it’s a nervous affectation, but also because it became hot to the touch—enough that she felt it was burning her skin. Hmmm. Where did that come from? I haven’t a clue other than I now knew it had something to do with the hero. It’s still not totally clear what the deal with this pendant but I’m enjoying getting clues.


It was the same with the gatepost in her yard. I knew as I was writing it was a gatepost and at the time it was a *prop*. The heroine is also a wildlife photographer and one of the ways she relaxes is by playing the guitar in the evenings. The cabin is some distance from anywhere, which makes sense for the story. She tends to pat this gatepost now and then. She also sees wildlife outside her gate where she sits to play her music. So this animal has been showing up frequently. In one scene, she’s gone into the house but is looking out the window at the animal, which is eyeing the fence and gate. I make another discovery. The gatepost is actually a totem. Who knew? I didn’t until that moment.

The totem was carved by a cousin who is Native American, and the top of the totem is a male wolf showing it’s teeth, the next figure is of a woman, hair blowing in the wind and two hands, palms up and in one is a moon and the other a green butterfly, or lunar moth. Under that is a female wolf with a cub and a baby Lynx playing.

I actually sat down and drew what it was although I didn't have a way to picture it here.

So now I understand the pendant better and I know the meaning of the totem figures. The fact remains, I didn’t plan on these objects when I thought of the story. I usually have an idea, a what if…Then the characters come together and the general story line. I know the ending, the enemy, some of the general issues. It lives in my head for a good while before I start typing.


With this particular story, quite a bit of research was needed. I have tons of notes on the area, on facets of the premise, her line of work—trust me, I’m very much an amateur photographer so getting the correct equipment she uses is important. And of course, I did quite a bit of research on the Native American tribes of the area.


For me, it’s fun to make discoveries along the way when writing a story and it’s happened numerous times with several stories. It's one way I know my characters or world are now real to me.

What about when you’re writing? Do you have those moments of discovery?

Couple of things to announce. Kate Douglas has generously decided to award a book to every person who commented on her blog from Friday to Sunday. For those of you who haven't left an email addy, contact me at siamckye at gmail.com with your address and I will pass it on to Kate. She will then contact you as far as your mailing address and books available.

 WEDNESDAY'S guest Blogger, Marie Force, with her newest Romantic Suspense series: Fatal Affair.

FRIDAY, July 1st, Kathyrne Kennedy and an excerpt of her fabulous new book, Fire Lord's Lover!

My apologies to her fans who stop by today expecting to see Kathryne. Due to a glitch we had the wrong dates. Stop back by Friday-Sunday. We will be giving away copies of Fire Lord's Lover. 
 
Wolf print is by a favorite artist of mine. If you wish to see some of her work click here.

JUST YOUR USUAL CHAOS...

KATE DOUGLAS is my guest today and I can tell you she’s as fun in person as she is here. My first impression of Kate was an attractive, very knowledgeable businesswoman with a ready smile. That she is, but she’s also funny and her humor is dry and the sneaky kind that catches you by surprise and cracks you up (sometimes, I’m laughing because I can’t believe she just said what she did, lol!).

Kate’s a delight to talk with and after listening to what she has accomplished and planned I fully understand why she’s as slender as she is. Yikes, the woman is not only a prolific writer but lives chaos, tames it and directs it, like a maestro. I so need lessons or a bit of the energy pool she dips into accomplish everything she does, lol!


Kate, thank you for visiting with us today.



Hi Sia, and thanks so much for the invite to hang out at your blog today! I’m actually looking forward to it—sort of a tiny island of peace in the chaos that’s been my life the last couple of months. It’s been wild—I was in Columbus, Ohio for the Romantic Times convention, and then three weeks later—after writing day and night to finish StarFire, the third book in my DemonSlayers series—I took a redeye to New York for Book Expo. Arrived Tuesday morning from California after a full day and night of travel (we live in the boonies—just getting to the airport is a nightmare!) and hit the ground running—after I checked into my hotel and took a very fast nap!


Thank goodness my StarFire manuscript arrived in NY before I did...that was a relief, especially since it had been due three weeks earlier. (Baaaaaaaaad kate!) Anyway, I met with some folks at Kensington Publishing and then went to a really cool cocktail party that night. I mean, think about it—redeye to NY, cocktail party in Manhattan with all kinds of authors, agents, editors and publicity people and little ole me, from Cobb, California, a town without a single stop light and only the occasional stop sign, sipping good wine on the top floor of the Library Hotel! In frickin’ MANHATTAN! New YORK! Sheesh...I kept thinking, wow! This is what AUTHORS do! (snort! Actually, what authors do is write. A lot. I don’t hang out in my jammies all day just because it’s cool...I do it because I generally don’t have time to actually get dressed. The poor FedEx man must think I don’t own any real clothes!)


But back to why I’m looking for some peace and quiet—did the cocktail party and then spent all day Wednesday at Book Expo. I wandered around like an alcoholic in a bar giving out free samples. I mean, have you ever BEEN to Book Expo? Publishers from all over the world, famous authors (Fergie was signing, and it was just a couple of days after she got caught trying to sell time with her ex, the prince. The security was amazing...) agents, editors and EVERYONE is giving away free books. I came away with my share, believe me. Getting them home on the plane was another story...Wednesday night I had dinner with my editor’s assistant. I’d planned to take him out because he does so much to make my life easier, but Martin said that Kensington was picking up the tab, which was really a nice surprise. Martin, his friend Nick and I went to a cool little Cuban restaurant not far from my hotel and had a wonderful meal.


There is nothing I love more than going out with not one but TWO smart, funny, good looking young men. I felt like a damned cougar—both guys are younger than my son—but they were so darned entertaining and we had a fantastic time. Then I was up at four and on the plane by seven, headed home again. We’re talking VERY QUICK TRIP...


And, as soon as I got home and got my laundry done, my husband and I were off again, this time in the motorhome headed for the Mount Shasta area to do some research for the next book in the DemonSlayers series, and then on to the Allen Array, an amazing place up in the Hat Creek area where there are all these giant antennae checking space for signals from extraterrestrials as part of the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) project. That was also research for a possible new series—as many of you may have heard, I’m currently writing the final book in my Wolf Tales series--#12 will be the last one. I’d hoped Kensington would pick up my proposal for a second generation series about the children of the Chanku, but they’re not interested at this time. My editor said to hang on to it—I may be able to do it later on, but for now I need something new. I’m thinking!! Honest...


As soon as we got home, I wrote a short story for an anthology I’m in with Lori Foster—the title is Dime Store Cowboy, and it’s a sequel to my romantic comedy, Cowboy in My Pocket, which was written almost ten years ago. I’ve wanted to write a story for a couple of the secondary characters ever since the first book was published. This anthology gave me a chance to let Mark Connor finally lasso his rodeo queen...LOL! Yep, Cowboy in My Pocket was a western comedy romance, sort of a parody of category romances. If you want a good giggle, it’s still available at Amazon.com and BN.com and most other online book sellers. The sequel will be out next June.


As soon as I finished Dime Store Cowboy, I rushed over to Stockton to visit my mom—she’s almost 89 now—but while I was at her place she had some health issues which meant I stayed over longer than planned. When she was feeling better, I raced back home (it’s about a three hour trip) to finish up copy edits for Wolf Tales 11—that one comes out next January, and I’d forgotten how much I loved it! I’ve been so caught up in chatting about Wolf Tales 10, the book that’s out this week, that I forgot I’d even written 11! It’s sort of a political thriller, though since it’s Wolf Tales, it’s a very SEXY political thriller! One thing I had fun with was letting Keisha step in as the double for the First Lady. When President Obama was first running for office and I saw Michelle Obama, I just about flipped. Other than the hair, she WAS Keisha Rialto, my über-alpha, Anton Cheval’s mate. I knew from the moment the president was elected I was going to write a story where Keisha got involved with Michelle Obama, and this one turned out even better than I’d hoped.


Right now I’m getting notes together for Wolf Tales 12. It’s a bittersweet project—I feel as if I know each one of my Chanku like old friends, and it’s going to be difficult not to write anymore of their stories. I had hoped the series would go on a bit longer, but the reality of this business is that when a series has too many books, you start losing readers. It’s time to move on. I’m thinking of moving forward about five years for WT12—Anton’s daughter Lily has been such an amazing character to get to know that I want her to have a bigger part in the final book. She’ll be about seven, just old enough to take off on her own and get into trouble. If you’ve read my series, you’ll recall that there are caves below Anton’s house in Montana, and some interesting hieroglyphics on one of the walls. I really want to find out what they say before I end this series, and I have a feeling Lily is going to be the one to figure them out. We shall see!


So, I’m starting Wolf Tales 12, reminding readers that Wolf Tales 10 is showing up in stores, and cooking like a madwoman because our kids and grandkids will be here for the weekend. We’ve got a family reunion to go to and I’ve got grandkids to hug—our son and his family live in Hawaii and I haven’t seen four year old Ella or twenty month old Owen since early spring, so I’m really looking forward to their visit. Our daughter will be here as well with her two youngest—her husband and oldest son are staying home to keep an eye on the animals. (Sounds like that’s a really good excuse to avoid a family reunion full of people they don’t know!)


I’ll be checking in to see who stops by and says Hi, and I’ll be giving away some books—I LOVE giving away books! I’ve got copies of DemonFire and Wolf Tales 9, and I imagine Sia can probably come up with at least five winners for me. And, if you’re a winner and already have both WT9 and DemonFire, I’ve got an ARC of HellFire or one for Nocturnal, the anthology the comes out in September with stories by me and Jacquelyn Frank, Jess Haines and Clare Willis. Just leave a comment to be entered.

A Life For A Life

The Chanku are gifted with more power—of mind, body, and soul—than the most superior of humans. Yet even these exceptional beings cannot change the laws of nature...or destiny. And when one loses his human life mate to a tragic accident, he is shattered by grief he never imagined possible...

The only thing worse than losing his love is knowing that her death was caused by the incompetence of a goddess supposedly possessed of timeless wisdom. The justice dealt for the goddess’s horrible mistake is a demotion—from immortal to human—and the charge of filling the missing space in the Montana pack. But while some accept her quickly, not all are so willing...
It is time for Anton, Stefan, and Adam to test the newcomer: to see if she can withstand the heights of ecstasy these Chanku men will show her—and to discover whether, when faced with the ultimate sacrifice, she will make the right choice...

Excerpt 

Buy: Amazon Borders B&N 

Kate Douglas loves romance. Married 38 years to a man she fell for at first sight, she’s a true believer in love everlasting. Her Wolf Tales have it all—sex, romance, lots of plot and plenty of action...and did we say sex? Her newest series, The DemonSlayers, while not as sexually explicit as Wolf Tales, is filled with rip-roaring action, hot and handsome heroes, and women who know what they want and don’t hesitate to go for it. With four books a year, along with the occasional novella, Kate’s life often teeters on the brink of chaos, but somehow, things always seems to come together when they should. Life's good—but fantasy and romance are even better! 

Where to find Kate: 

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Erotic Romance

Write What You Know -- Stupid Advice Given to Writers

My guest is award winning Romance author, Susan Gable. I always like it when Susan blogs with me. I learn so much.

Susan is a wonderful storyteller. Her article today explains why I find her books so fascinating and real--aside from captivating writing and wry humor which I love.



Write what you know.



It's one of the most common pieces of advice you hear offered to writers.


And I suppose it works for people like John Grisham, a lawyer writing legal thrillers. Or for Robin Cook, a doctor writing medical thrillers.


But just how, exactly, do we explain Stephen King? Pretty sure he's not writing what he knows—and if he is...well, let's not go there.


How many fabulous books would we have missed out on if the writers held to a strict interpretation of write what you know? Vampires? Don't know any. Do know writers who make a great living writing about them. A school for sorcerers? Never been to one -- doubt J. K. Rowling has, either. It's worked out well for her.


I'm not mechanically inclined—but my first heroine was a mechanic. My artistic talents are limited to drawing stick figures, yet my last hero was a comic book artist. I've never parented a child who's had a heart transplant—my second book featured such a parent and child. I've never parented a child with acute aplastic anemia or had a child through a sperm bank, either. But my new book, The Family Plan, features exactly such a child.


So how do we manage this? Research! And in today's internet age, research has never been easier. You cannot only access all sorts of articles on the subject you need to learn about, but you can connect with real people who know these things.


For my second book, The Mommy Plan, I was in touch with a mom who had a young son who'd had a heart transplant. She was willing to answer all sorts of questions, even the slightly odd ones, like, would you let him get his ear pierced? She was awesome, too, because she understood that her experience was HER experience, and other people's experiences and reactions would be different.


For A Kid to the Rescue, I had local resources that helped me out with the legal aspects of the book. I had a family lawyer who helped me with the custody case, and the man who is now the District Attorney for Erie actually answered my questions about the criminal case in the book.


For The Family Plan, I connected via email with a nurse who works with kids having bone marrow transplants. She was able to answer all my medical questions. I found an amazing document designed for the parents of bone marrow transplant kids that explained everything in great detail, including what these kids could eat or not eat. My critique partner happened to be my source for information about the heroine's suddenly high-risk pregnancy because the situation had happened to her. So I bugged her constantly while writing the book. (See, don't write what you know—write what other people know and bug the heck out of them! Actually, I've found people are very willing to share their experiences. Ask politely. But don't be afraid to ask questions.)


The part where you DO have to write what you know is when it comes down to the emotions. You may not have experienced the exact situation you've put your characters in, but you can IMAGINE what it would be like. You want to make sure you give them their own emotional response, not YOUR emotional response. But it's okay to tap into your own emotions. That's writing what you know.


Readers respect honesty in writing. Venture into the dark places. Thank God I've never known the absolute fear of losing my child—but I can put myself there. I've lost other loved ones, and I can extrapolate that losing a child would be even worse. I had a foster son who left my home, and I cried for two days, heartbroken. I used these things to get into my heroine's head for The Family Plan.


What I don't know and have written through research and instinct: being an architect, being a chef, being involved in a custody case, being involved in a criminal prosecution of a man who murdered my sister, being an art therapist, being a runaway surrogate mother...


What I've written that I do know: Parents should put their children first. Relationships don't always run smoothly. Anything worth having is worth fighting for. We all hunger for love and acceptance of who we are, the way we are. Change is hard, and often painful.


So when someone tells you to write what you know, don't take them literally. Be emotionally honest—and do your homework. But write what moves you. Because that will move your readers, too.

• What have you written that you "don't know?" What have you written that you do know?

•  Do you have questions on how to do research? Can you think of any other advice that’s often given to writers that you disagree with?

The Family Plan Blurb:

4.5 Stars from RT Magazine!

She's stirring up the gene pool!

Dr. Amelia Young has meticulously organized her family plan. Wonderful daughter? Done. Man? Unnecessary. All Amelia has ever needed is carefully selected DNA. So what if the donor turns out to be a ridiculously hot chef with a distracting butt and wicked smile? That only proves she had good taste in genes.

Anonymously donating his DNA at a clinic when he was a student is one thing. A strange woman at his door requesting a second deposit is quite another. But when Finn Hawlins realizes Amelia needs another child to save her first -- his first -- he relents. And when that first kid turns up on his doorstep a few months later, he's in this family deep!

Excerpt 

Buy:  Amazon BooksaMillion Harlequin

~ *  ~ * ~ * ~ 

Susan Gable has sold seven books to Harlequin's Superromance line. Her books have been Rita and Golden Heart Finalists, she's been a Waldenbooks Bestseller, been three times nominated for Romantic Time's Best Superromance of the Year, and she's won numerous other awards, including the National Readers' Choice Award. Her new book, The Family Plan, got 4.5 Stars from RT. It hits shelves on July 13th. 

Visit Susan's website: http://www.susangable.com/
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PULLING WEEDS—It’s A Dirty Job But…

“Mary, Mary, quite contrary, how does your garden grow…?”

I’m not sure how all Mary’s silver bells, and cockleshells, and pretty maids all in a row are doing but I can’t seem to find mine—garden, that is. I wonder if Mary would mind if I borrowed a few of her maids? Surely they know how to weed?


We’ve had a lot of rain of late. To give you an idea of how much, my county gets an average of 43 inches of rain a year. How much rain has my county gotten just in the month of June? 23 inches. Twenty-three! Holy cow, no wonder I can’t keep up with the weeds in my garden!


I do have a very nice and lush group of weeds though. Very pretty, and some even flower—except they are destroying the theme I’ve designed for each garden.

So I’ve been weeding. Then comes the problem of certain things that are supposed to be coming up now and it’s hard to tell if they are flowers or weeds. I literally pulled about dozen marigolds before I realized it wasn’t the daisy weed like thing (I think its part of the ragwort family) I thought it was. They look very similar to each other when two inches tall. Fortunately, the soil was wet enough it didn’t hurt the marigolds and I was able to replant them.


I got to thinking, while I was weeding, that it reminds me of editing. I know, I’ll admit I’m strange and my mind even stranger in it’s leaps and bounds.


There are times the writing mood, zone, or whatever you want to call it, hits me like rain on dry ground. There’s thunder and lightning in my head and the ideas and story comes in like a downpour. At those times I can produce several thousand words in one sitting and a few hours.


The words are good. Just like many *weeds* are good. But some of them hinder rather than enhance the theme of the story. When that happens, you have to weed out the unnecessary words. The difference between weeding my garden and my manuscript is most of the weeds I throw away. Not so with my word weeds. Those are stored in a file because you never know when they might need to be *replanted* or used in another area.


I have good tools to help me with weeding the garden. I also have tools to help me with weeding my manuscript. Dictionaries, because the computer doesn’t always recognize certain words, much less if they’re spelled correctly. I also have a manuscript analyzer, which helps with things like repetitive words and phrases. I also have one which I need to locate on my database again that will tell me if my manuscript is too *feminine* in the use of words. In other words it can suggest whether a man or a woman wrote it based on word usage.

I have two signs hanging in my office. One says, “Write What You Feel” speaking of emotion, the other says, “Keep the details to the Now of the story” to remind me about backstory.

• So how does your *garden* grow?
•  
• What tools do you use in weeding your manuscript?

Wild Wicked & Wanton--Christie Craig & Faye Hughes

I had the chance to interview two authors who swear they were separated at birth and are really sisters. Hmmm, I'm wondering if their respective parents know about this? Christie Craig and Faye Hughes, are both southern women and this is evident in their writing. I warn you now, never be taken in by the whole butter wouldn't melt in their mouths and those sweet, sweet drawls. Underneath all that sweetness there are brains that work better than a well oiled steel trap. If you've read their books you will find that hot southern nights do spawn some hot activities and they both write them so well. And a word of warning; never tick off Christie. She bypasses the whole come to Jesus chats and has a special place just for people who do. 

Christie and Faye conduct various workshops at writing conferences, (in fact you'll have a chance to take one of their workshops if you go to RWA National) have an online site called Write With Us and their courses are adaptable for online classes as well as in person. Definitely check it out; it's a very interesting site. 

They have also written two non-fiction books together, The Everything Guide To Writing A Romance Novel, and Wild, Wicked & Wanton:101 Ways to Love Like You're In a Romance Novel.
 
My curiosity was aroused and so I chatted a bit with them regarding their latest, Wild Wicked & Wanton, and working together as co-authors, among other things.
 
Please welcome to Over Coffee, Christie Craig and Faye Hughes.
   

• I know both of you write fiction, I've read some of your books, so tell me a bit about yourselves, if you would.

Christie Craig: An ex-waitress, I grew up in Alabama with a southern family who used humor as a coping method. Laughter was how we dealt with good times, bad time and really sucky times. I was the only girl between two brothers who thought burping and making farting sounds with their armpits was dinner conversation. I married the wrong man way too young, divorced, was a single parent, and then found my real life hero later on. Being Southern, and from a long line of storytellers, I had inherited a bit of the talent. But being dyslexic, writing was something I sucked at. It took me ten years of learning and trying and retrying to sell my first book. And only thirteen years later to sell book two. However, all those years of struggle must have taught me something, because the day I sold book two, I sold three other books. Talk about feeling as if I’d won the lottery. My stories are Southern, funny, and have a bit of sizzle to them. And because I’m a Scorpio and have been known to get ticked off occasionally, I also throw a little murder in my books. My logo is Sexy, Suspenseful And Seriously Funny. And I try to live up to it.
 
Faye Hughes: When Christie and I first met back in 2005 on a writers loop, I told her I thought we might be related because, I swear, we are so alike in so many ways we could be sisters. We’d even lived in Southern California at the same time and a few blocks or so away from each other, too. We shopped in the same stores, frequented the same restaurants and clubs, probably even ran into each other in the ladies’ room a few times, but we never met until years later. I just find that remarkable. Now, I’m not from Alabama. I grew up in Mississippi, which is right next-door. I always wanted to be a writer, and I started my first novel when I was nine. It was about an 18 year old college freshman, a wild mustang and the struggle between environmentalists and ranchers in Montana. Um, I did say I was nine, right? And living in Mississippi? LOL. 
 

• Aside from writing romance you also have writing workshops. www.writewithus.net What are some benefits of taking your workshops?

FH: Oh, that’s a great question, thanks for asking it. Christie and I love doing workshops and we did our first one together at a writer’s conference, we discovered we had the same approach. (I’m telling ya, we have to be related. And with Mississippi and Alabama being so close . . .) Anyway, we try to make a promise to the people attending our workshops that if they’ll give us their time, we will give them three things in return: we will entertain, motivate and educate. And I think we accomplish those goals. We make our workshops fun and inspiring and, yeah, you might even learn a thing or two. Speaking of workshops, we will be giving one on surviving rejection at RWA National in Orlando with literary agent Kim Lionetti of BookEnds and editor, Rose Hilliard of St. Martin’s Press.
 

• Are the workshops a compilation of subjects you’ve spoken about at conferences or new material?

CC: Both. We’ve both been writing so long and have given workshops, writing articles for writing magazines over the years. I personally taught an on-going writing class for about five years. And since Faye and I wrote the book The Everything Guide To Writing a Romance Novel, we’ve covered a lot of subjects. So sometimes we pull from our book and sometimes when we’re brainstorming workshops for conferences, we will hit on a new subject or just a new approach to an old subject. And if we still can’t come up with something we must make up stuff. LOL. Hey, we’re fiction writers.

• This is the second non-fiction book you two have written. What inspired you to write non-fiction to begin with? And how did you come up with such an idea?

FH: When people ask me this question, I always answer by saying that Christie called me up one day and said, “Do you want to write a book?” (You have to imagine her saying this with her Alabama drawl, too. LOL.) I told her sure, thinking she was joking and the next thing I knew, we had a contract. LOL.

Seriously, though, here’s how it happened: Christie had written a book for Adams Media several years ago called The 250 Questions Every Homebuyer Should Ask. They liked working with her and so when they decided they wanted to do one of their Everything Guides about writing a romance novel, they asked if she was interested. She called me and asked me what I thought about the project—CC and I were critique partners. She’d just sold three books to Dorchester and was going to be tied up writing those. I told her I thought it was a great idea and she should do it. I insisted she do it, in fact. And that’s when she said she’d do it but only if I wrote it with her.
 Christie, don’t you agree?
 
CC: Yup, I’d say they’ve worked out very well. Co-writing a book with someone can be tricky, but we found our work ethics, our dedication to the project really were the same. Also our writing voices complimented each other. It was a win/win.

•  You’re a writing team. How do you handle creating a book together?

CC: We piggyback. And believe me, having Faye on my back isn’t easy! LOL. Seriously, when we decided to try to write another book after The Everything Guide, we just started brainstorming ideas and talking about possible subjects that we felt we had some knowledge in and then one of us would throw something out and the other one says…”Hey, that’s not too shabby of an idea. Maybe if we did tweak it like this it might work.” Since both us do mysteries, we considered the idea on how to kill an ex. But in the end we decided it might be too incriminating.

FH: Yeah, especially since we have all of these agents and editors buried in Christie’s compost heap in her back yard. Oh, and I think there is also a Weight Watchers attendant out there who made the mistake of telling CC she’d gained a couple of pounds one night at weigh-in. Trust me. Huge, HUGE mistake. LOL

• Do you have any difficulties/differing opinions? Say, in how a subject is or has been covered as you’re writing. How do you handle differing opinions on a subject you both are writing?

FH: Okay, I did mention CC’s compost heap, right? LOL. Okay, seriously, I can honestly say that CC and I have never had any major arguments about this although we do have differing opinions. We decided in the beginning that we’d do a 50/50 breakdown of the work. We’d agree on the topics and then we’d choose the ones we want to write. If either of us has a problem with a chapter topic, that chapter would get added to our list. (It may sound crazy but it works for us.) Then we’d critique each other’s work and point out any problems we had but the ultimate decision about the chapter would be made by the author of that chapter. I think it honestly helped that we were critique partners first. I respected her writing and she respected mine. Our voices mesh and we both have the same goal when we write together – to write the best book possible, so we always put the work first.


Oh. One more thing. We also have this agreement that when people tell us, “Oh, I loved XYZ chapter or scene,” that we tell them, “Thank you, that’s the one I wrote.” But if they say they weren’t that happy about PQR chapter or scene, “Oh, that’s the one SHE wrote.” LOL

• What made you decide to write a non-fiction book for women about loving like you’re a heroine in a romance novel?

CC: I’ve written over 3000 non-fiction articles for magazines and while I loved that career because it allowed me to stay at home while I continued to write novels. However, since I was selling novels I only wanted to write non-fiction that somehow helped support my fiction career. Faye and I were brainstorming once and we both agreed that if real women spent anywhere near as much time plotting their relationships as a romance author plots her novel, there would be more happily ever afters in real life. That sort of got us piggy backing and thinking of how we could use this concept in a non-fiction book. And bam! We realized that our romance heroines actually could teach real woman a lot about love.

• What do you hope readers will take away from reading this book?

CC: Like Faye said, when we give workshops we tell everyone our goal is to entertain, motivate and educate. I personally think that it’s the same with our books. WW&W is written to entertain you, to inspire you by giving you hope that you too can be happy in love, and to hopefully educate you or offer insights to some of the pitfalls of finding a true love and making the relationships work.

One reviewer also pointed out that this book would be perfect for a bunch of girlfriends to read before going on a girlfriend weekend. It will bring to mind all the funny situations with men and relationships and help you laugh about some of the hiccups with romance with which most women face at one time or another.

FH: Ditto. And especially the entertain part. This was such a fun book for us to write. We really hope readers enjoy it as much as we did.

Wild, Wicked & Wanton: 101 Ways to Love Like You're In a Romance Novel

Sure, romance novels offer are fun, pure fantasy, but can they actually teach a woman anything about love?

Absolutely!

Think about it, if a woman spent as much time plotting her romantic relationships as authors did in plotting their romance novels, there would be far less heartache. If real women took their cues from romance heroines, there may be more real-life Happily Ever Afters. Romance authors Christie Craig and Faye Hughes have turned their philosophy into a humorous self-help relationship book that lists 101 ways a woman can love like she's a romance heroine.


Romance heroines aren't perfect, they make mistakes. But by the end of the book, they've earned their walk into the sunset. How do they do it? Courage, wisdom, and some good ol' kick-ass gumption. Heroines don't wish they'd said something, they say it. They don't fret about their problems; they fix them. And couldn't we all use a little bit of their wisdom to deal with real life and with real men?

Meet Jayne. Like most romance heroines - and most real life women - she's had her share of heartaches. In Wild, Wicked and Wanton, Jayne's search for true love teaches her:

· How to recognize a Keeper . . . and a Creeper


· How to tame a Bad Boy

· How to trust her instincts

· How to find her own Mr. Right

· And Much, Much More!

Search inside this book

Buy: Amazon.com

You can find out more about both Christie Craig and Faye Huges on their joint website, Write With Us 

Blog Awards and Appreciation

This past Monday I was awarded a lovely blog award by blogger extraordinaire, Helen Ginger--Straight From Hel. It means a lot to me because she has taught me many things since I started my blog sixteen months ago. What I really appreciate is her availability when I had questions. From her I learned about Twitter and sharing buttons and whatnot. She also has some very informative posts on all manner of subjects.  If you haven't checked out her blog you should.

Another blogger who has taught me much and when she doesn't know the answer she's knows who to put me in touch with, is Houston A.W. Knight, aka Hawk. Thanks to her and the wonderful Lea, my blog expanded to a 3 column template and Lea helped me coordinate colors and HTML--I knew nothing about them when I started.  Hawk, like Helen, is approachable, both are writers, both knowledgeable about writing, the publishing market, and both have been very supportive. They're very cool ladies with some solid blogs.

I read many blogs and have a nice circle of cyber blog friends as a result. Those I enjoy I list on my own blog with links. It's a way of giving praise to their blogs regardless of how often they post. When I see a good article posted on one of the many blogs I follow, I try to tweet them, or put them on my facebook wall. This way others will see them too. It's a way of showing appreciation and paying back or paying forward, depending upon how you look at it, to some wonderful bloggers.

To have someone like Helen, who watched me start and build my blog, give me this award is an honor. It may seem silly to some, but having experienced bloggers give commendation is special. For one, we know the effort needed to consistently publish a blog. This one is called the Meat and Potatoes Award. It tells you that the blog content is more than fluff but offers some solid information. Helen passed this award to five bloggers and I in turn am to do the same.

 "This prestigious award goes to a particular group of wise and experienced bloggers who have proven themselves over the course of time, trials, and tribulations.

If you're looking to follow someone’s guidance for writing, publishing, promotion, and thought provoking articles, then I suggest you look at this group:

• Nancy Parra This writer's life 
• SIS Beth, Brenda, Barb, Brandy, BJ, and BRO Krys Sisters In Sync

• Mason Thoughts in Progress
• Hawk  Houston A.W. Knight
• Roxane Peace Garden Mama

If you get the chance, stop by and say Congratulations. I'm sure they'd appreciate it.

Coming up on OVER COFFEE in June: Christie Craig and Faye Huges, Kate Douglas, Kathryne Kennedy, Marie Force and several others.

Regarding interviews, what authors would you like to see interviewed and why?

  

Recharging: The Saving Grace of Laughter

Laughter isn't just the best medicine -- it's life's saving grace.

Everyone needs time away to refresh not only his or her creative spirit, but time to let go of stress. Ever notice when you spend time with friends or family laughing and having a good time, you tend to come back to every day chores with a renewed spirit? The manuscript you flung across the room in frustration suddenly has redeeming value again. You no longer want to send your kids and/or husband to homestead on the moon. What do you mean there is no oxygen or gravity? You’re so brilliant make some. (I figure I might as well put them to work while they know everything.)

The past week, I had a lot on my plate. I had deadlines, interviews to conduct, people I had to see, and places I had to be. I was still dealing with two weeks of sleep deprivation from when my son was recuperated from surgery—brings back memories of dealing with infant feedings every two hours. I had some late nights. I can tell you now, it ain’t pretty when those toothpicks propping open your eyelids fall out, nor is keyboard marks embedded in your face. I reopened a chapter I was writing while I was in the zone. I just didn’t realize what *zone I inhabited when I wrote a part of it. Sigh…yep, I found I had channeled three paragraphs of a foreign language from somewhere in the universe. Not sure exactly where and the UN has no known translators of this language.

Delete.

*Metaphorically throwing the manuscript across the room while muttering, ‘I so suck’.

Saturday, I had had it. My nap was interrupted, I had a stream of ranch business visitors, and I was grumpy. I grabbed the kid and said, "change clothes; we’re heading to Grandma’s house and bring your bathing suit." Just mentally shut the door on everything. Put on Seether, Breaking Benjamin, and Five Finger Death Punch, turned it up loud and Jake and I sang all the way to my mom’s

I had a wonderful time. I dropped Jake off at my brother’s house to visit with his cousin, and I went to my mom’s. No husbands and just girl time. We giggled and laughed. We swam in her pool, ran in the house just ahead of lightning and thunder. Mom has a healthy respect for both now but then proceeded to tell me tales of her misspent youth; a rowboat with an outboard in the middle of the lake on my grandparent's resort in Wisconsin. My mother gunning the engine to jump waves in the middle of a horrendous thunder storm, not once, but many times. *eye roll.

You’ve heard of ghost tales around the campfire? We shared, it’s a wonder we’re still alive tales. We sipped coffee and ate chocolate, we laughed at all the do you remember when stories and watched the Lightning bugs rise. We stayed up until 11:30 p.m. and had a blast. Sunday morning we got up to watch the birds sing up the sun and slipped into conversation on current events, music, books, and movies. Mom’s a great conversationalist and a well informed person and it’s amazing how smart she’s grown since I was a teen. *Wink

My younger brother came up to the house (he actually lives next door, sorta, on the family compound) at 7:30 for morning coffee and talk about his upcoming wedding. He’s twenty-six and marrying for the first time. Gads, I never realized what a romantic he is. We rounded off the morning with a visit from my other brother and his partner and my sister. Then it was time to go to my brother Mike’s house to pick up the kid. I was bubbly and relaxed--even when I had a blow out on the gravel road to my brother’s house. He played Knight in a shiny pick-up, had my tire changed in less than ten minutes (good thing as it was 90 degrees), picked up the kid and off for home.

I was energized, was able to finish the chapter I working on—in English this time, take care of blog stuff and still had time to do some work with my Arabian.


I need those fun times.

• What do you do to recharge or relax? You know, those weeks when life has you by the throat and you feel like any creative spark you’ve ever had must have died an ignominious death?