Gwen Reyes | 2009 Goals, Movies and Blathering...

2009 is going to be my year! I've set my goals, realistically of course, and already brainstormed how this is going to happen. I’m looking forward to it no longer being 2008, one of the most difficult and stressful years of my young life, however I’m more looking forward to 2009 being the year of Gwen. I’m ready to leave my comfortable shelter and venture out into the big, bad world.

But honestly before I start anything crazy or at least different, I still have some beefs to address. Yes, one of my goals this year is to stop getting dramatic over silly things (like celebrity gossip and my imaginary boyfriends), but that does not mean I can stop giving my opinion about bad movies and the ever overhyped “Awards Season.” I say that with very dramatic air quotes.

So far only the Golden Globes and a handful of Critics Associations have doled out their opinions and awards. The only one that matters to me is Independent Spirit Awards. You were thinking I was going to say the Oscars, but after watching half of the movies up for consideration, I vote no for the Oscars in 2009. I enjoyed THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJIMAN BUTTON when I saw it under the name of FORREST GUMP or FRIED GREEN TOMATOES. REVOLUTIONARY ROAD lost my interest after I saw the preview before MILK. BUT, that brings me to my favorite studio movie of the year (not counting DARK KNIGHT), MILK.

MILK is a beautifully detailed, however inaccurate some people will say, biography of San Francisco’s first openly gay elected official Harvey Milk. Sean Penn transforms himself into the title character. He completely loses his usual toughness and embraces a tenderness rarely seen from the actor. I could not stop leaning over to my movie buddy to announce how amazing I found the movie and how much I didn’t want it to end.

Just like in TITANIC, we know what happens at the end. Milk foreshadows his own brutal murder in the opening monologue, but by the end of the film you still can’t believe such an influential and prolific figure left us so young. This film unintentionally mirrors the current Proposition 8 controversy in California as Milk battles to stop Proposition 6—the right for companies, leasing offices, and schools to discriminate based on sexual orientation—from affecting the homosexual citizens of California. As the film spans 15 years of Milk’s life, we experience all his ups and downs, pleasures and pratfalls, and his eventual and untimely death. This is the best movie of the “Awards Season,” and I could not think of a more appropriate “thinking film” for 2009.

Gwen Reyes
DFW Tea Readers Group and FILM club

Kate Douglas | Will I get them all written?

I’ve been working on Wolf Tales IX for the past couple of months which, counting the novellas in anthologies, is the seventeenth title in my erotic tales of the Chanku. It’s due for release in January 2010. I remember wondering when I signed the contracts for the third set of novels and novellas if I’d ever get them all written. Now, all of a sudden, the stories I’m contracted for are almost done and I’m waiting to hear from my publisher about plans for more of the series. Characters who were new to me less than four years ago have now become old friends. I know their secrets, their loves, their needs and their fears. I wonder what the future holds in store for them, and I worry about them as if they’re real flesh-and-blood people who matter to me in the way of those I love in real life.

I’m either desperately in need of a good therapist, or totally involved in my imaginary world...and I’m hoping it’s the latter, because it’s such a great world to hang out in. For one thing, it’s filled with fascinating (to me, anyway!) characters with a strong sense of family and a natural code of honor that appeals to me. And, it’s a matriarchal society. Women, quite literally, rule. It begins with their ability to control reproduction and extends to an innate sense of leadership the males are genetically programmed to recognize. While the men are physically stronger and think they’re in charge, when it comes down to a final decision, the women have the last word. For some reason, I find that terribly attractive!

The latest in the series, Wolf Tales VII, has just released. For readers not familiar with the story line, this book might be a good place to begin, as there’s enough backstory to bring everyone up to date. I write the series like an ongoing soap opera, where it’s possible to jump in at any time, but it’s definitely more gratifying to start at the beginning. The one I’m writing now has been nothing but backstory—all the Chanku shapeshifters have gathered for the birth of a new baby, and during the course of the long night, they’re telling the stories of how they first discovered their shapeshifting birthright.

I’m learning things about my characters I never even suspected, so it’s really been a fun book to write. That’s the joy of not plotting. When I sit down to write, every story is a surprise to me. Even more fun, in this particular book I’m telling the stories my readers have asked for—the members of my newsletter were invited to request the stories they wanted to hear, and the response was phenomenal. Wolf Tales IX will be a direct result of their wishes. If you’re at all curious about the series—and if you’re eighteen or over—I have the first chapters of all my books posted at www.katedouglas.com/eroticromance.

Thanks to Fresh Fiction for giving me the chance to blog, and thanks to my readers, who are the only reason I have the privilege of writing my series. I want to wish all of you the very best in the coming year, and don’t forget to make time to read a good book! To help you along I am giving away a copy of Wolf Tales VII on my ONE DAY ONLY blog contest.

Kate Douglas
http://www.katedouglas.com/
www.myspace.com/katedouglas_wolftales

Sara Reyes | Starting a New Year ... in books

Well, Happy New Year!!! It's the beginning of a new year, a new slate, new opportunities and best of all, new books to read!

I always like that bit -- new books -- and there are a bunch to read in 2009. Some of the ones I'm waiting for include: KISSES LIKE A DEVIL the 5th "Devil" book by Diane Whiteside in February, RUNNING HOT by Jayne Ann Krentz, MAYHEM IN HIGH HEELS by Gemma Halliday, JUDAS KISS by J.T. Ellison, THE TEMPTATION OF THE NIGHT JASMINE by Lauren Willig, and for the "voyeur" in me, MEN OF THE OTHERWORLD by Kelley Armstrong. Just a short list off the top of my head to get the year started. Can you tell my tastes are ALL over the spectrum?

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But I think I'm very similar to other readers...I just love to read...and I'm always looking for a new book, a new author, something different. Of course, I also have my comfort reads, thus explains my six copies of LORD OF SCOUNDRELS by Loretta Chase, one of which I just finished re-reading for the upteenth time this past week. And yes, I got a new copy with the current re-issue because you can never have too many "classics" in my ever-so-humble opinion! Another set of re-reads are MEMORY and A CIVIL CAMPAIGN by Lois McMaster Bujold. The new year wouldn't be complete without my Miles shot! And there is a new Miles out soon...well late 2009 or 2010 .. she's been reading chapters I've heard. But until then, I can get my Miles fix with the new VORKOSIGAN COMPANION with complete timeline, essays and more! Who knew I'd be reading a book about books I read? What a concept...

So, what are you looking forward to reading in 2009? Something you'll be re-reading? Or breaking out of your box and trying something new? And are you one of "those" who likes to count books read, pages read? Let us know!

And as a special New Year's prize...I'll give away a brand-new copy of something in our treasure trove of new arrivals! Just enter here or better yet, leave a comment!

Make that a BUNDLE of books, why only one!

Happy New Year...
Sara Reyes
DFW Tea Readers Group
Join us at Readers 'n 'ritas in 2009!

Jeaniene Frost | For love or money?

When I was twelve, I was bitten by the reading bug. It wasn't long after that when I decided to write my own book. I'd already written lots of poetry and short stories, so the idea of making the leap from those to writing and selling a novel seemed easy.

Yes, I had a lot to learn.

Fast forward around fifteen years to the day I told myself, "quit procrastinating and do it already." And so I finally did take one of the many ideas churning around in my head and wrote a novel from it. What I found out after I'd typed The End was twofold: one, I'd accomplished something I'd dreamed about by finishing that novel. Two - and equally important, in my opinion - was that I loved writing.

That doesn't mean pursuing a career as an author was as easy as finally writing that first novel. In fact, if I could rewind the clock and talk to former self on the day I'd finished my first book, I'd say, "Great! Now comes the hard part."

Huh? you might think. Isn't writing a book the hardest part of pursuing a career as an author? Well, for me, it was the easiest and the most fun part, actually. In fact, I've heard several authors say (and I've been guilty of this myself at times) that if they didn't love writing so much, they'd pick another career. There's a lot more to writing than finishing a book. That's where it starts, of course, and if you don't have a completed manuscript, you're reducing your odds of publication to about zero. Yet there are some people aiming for a writing career who say they don't love writing. To me, that's like saying you want to be an artist, but you don't like to paint. Or you want to be a pilot- except you hate to fly.

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Writing is fun for me. I get lost in the worlds I create, and I am happy when my fingers are busy on the keyboard. Without that, the challenges of breaking into publishing would have been too much for me. For starters, most aspiring (fiction) authors have to get a literary agent before they can shop their novel. The reason is that many of the large publishing houses don't accept unagented manuscripts. Rejection is a common part of the agent querying process and yes, it can hurt. Expect rewrites, too, or writing a new book and trying to break in with that if the first one doesn't make it. It's not uncommon for a writer to finally get published on their third, fourth, or fifth book, instead of their first one. Once an agent is secured, you go through the submission process with editors. If you achieve the Nirvana of a publishing contract, then you bite your nails and wait to see if your book is a success or a failure – all while not making very much money to start out.

*grin* Sound dismal? Don't despair, if you love to write, the joys outweigh the challenges.

I know writers who've been trying to get published for well over a decade, yet it hasn't happened. Have they quit writing? No, because it's what they love, so their happiness isn't predicated by a contract.Are there quality writers who may never get published? The harsh answer is yes. I don't believe that compared to every book rejected in publishing in 2006 when my novel was sold, mine was better than all those rejected. Instead, I think mine was put in front of the right editor at the right time.And even though I've been lucky enough to have success with my series, I don't think everything from now on will be champagne and roses. But whatever may happen, I'm investing my time and effort into something that makes me happy, which, when the rough patches hit, makes the whole process worthwhile.

So there's a lot of work involved in a writing career that goes well beyond writing that first book. Without the magic of loving what you do, it's just a job, and one that may or may not ever pay you back the time you put into it. But if you love writing, the good news is that you'll be happy no matter how things turn out, and that, to me, is something worth investing in.

Jeaniene Frost
jeanienefrost.com/

Sandi Kahn Shelton | Finding Characters

One of the most fun things about writing a novel (or as my uncle put it, “telling lies for profit”) is coming up with characters. People are always asking writers where the characters come from — it’s the #1 question when you go for readings and signings — and I’m afraid they always seem disappointed by the truth, which is, “I have utterly no idea.”

With my new novel, Kissing Games of the World, the main character, Jamie McClintock, showed up one morning when I was taking a bath. I was lying there concentrating on keeping the tub filled to the top with hot water using only my big toe (a delicate balance of draining and refilling which practically requires a degree in engineering and physics to keep it just right), when I noticed somebody wafting around over by the shower head, explaining to me about how she was an artist and a single mom raising her 5-year-old boy, Arley, who had asthma. They lived in a farmhouse in Connecticut with Harris, an older man famous in town for his rascally womanizing, who was now redeeming himself by raising his 5-year-old grandson, Christopher, whose father had run away.

I really appreciate it when a character arrives with her trouble already spelled out; it’s much harder to work with somebody who insists that life is just fine. And Jamie had a whole bunch of trouble. Right at the beginning, Harris dropped dead unexpectedly, and his estranged, hated son (Christopher’s father, Nate) came back to claim the house and his little boy, and move him back to California. As Jamie explained the situation, Nate was a jet-setty, arrogant kind of guy, a salesman, and his plan was to drag his kid along on his business trips and educate him in hotel rooms. Jamie went hysterical over this. (I didn’t mind; I’ve learned finally that you have to put your most beloved characters in lots of trouble, or there’s no story.) I was having lots of fun writing about Jamie’s view of this guy when one day, while I was driving to work, I heard this voice in my head say to me, “Wait just a minute. Would you just hold on a bloody second? I’d like to tell my side of things, if you don’t mind.” It was Nate.

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And — well, he proceeded to take over the whole book. (Kind of like when you let a man drive your sports car for a minute. You have to be careful or you won’t get the keys back.)

At first I thought I would just give him a chapter, let him explain a couple of things Jamie couldn’t possibly know about, but then his voice was so strong, and he had such an interesting story, that he and I just kept going together. He had things to tell me about his father, and about his mom and his wife, and why he played baseball as a kid, and who he slept with in high school, and why he thought traveling and sending money was the best thing he could do for his son. He told me about his fiancée and his charismatic boss, and even some of his favorite sales strategies.

And — this is a little embarrassing — but I kind of fell for the guy. In a good way, of course. Whenever I’d be writing his scenes, it was like taking dictation. I honestly could hear his sarcastic, take-no-prisoners tone of voice. He made me laugh.

“Let me just write this book,” he would whisper to me at night when I was falling asleep. “Come on. Let’s do this together!”

I went and looked at the contract from my publisher. It said I had a book due in the category of “women’s fiction.” My editor would freak out if I called and said a guy had hijacked the book, and I’d now be writing about HIM.

So we compromised. I limited him to every other chapter. One for Jamie, one for him.

And an interesting thing happened. While his chapters were exciting and funny as hell and practically came to me faster than I could type them, Jamie realized she was being outdone and had to step up and start making her story deeper and more dramatic, too. I mean, this woman had issues. Not just the kid with asthma either. Trust problems, ex-boyfriend troubles, a wish to use her art to hide from human beings. And when little Arley ended up adoring Nate, while Christopher would have nothing to do with him, Jamie found herself actually hoping that Nate, whom she loathed, would stick around.

He didn’t, of course. Not at first anyway. But I can’t tell you any more than that. Except that it was a real ride, being in these two different heads at all times. It was fun exploring love that comes out of nowhere and slams people right upside the head, as my mother would have put it. I hadn’t ever written a real love story before. I was afraid of being too Hallmark card-ish or sentimental. You know how that can be. And honestly, there were times when I was writing this book that I thought this love story was so unsentimental that it wasn’t going to work out at all, that everybody would go their separate ways and be better for it.

But then — well, a whole bunch of stuff happened. It always does, if you’re lucky. You’re at the mercy of these characters who show up in the bathtub with you, or sitting next to you in the passenger seat of your car, or chatting you up from your pillow in the middle of the night — and suddenly they take on a life of their own, and you’re just along for the fun of it. That’s the thing you can’t ever really explain to people who think the character is really you, or your best friend, or a guy you went to high school with.

They’re nobody you know, but for a little while, they move into your head and explain life to you — and then one day you finish the book, and you look around for them, but they’re gone. And soon, somebody else is lurking by the shower fixture, saying, “Pssst. I have something to tell you…”

Sandi Kahn Shelton
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Comment below or enter Sandi's special contest...win an autographed copy of WHAT COMES AFTER CRAZY and a Starbucks gift certificate for $20. A little something to use for a winter day! A perfect combination...a great book and cup of warm java (or chocolate or tea...)!

Gemma Halliday | Best Wedding Stories...

My latest book, Mayhem in High Heels, follows fashion designer turned amateur sleuth, Maddie Springer, as she investigates the death of a wedding planner. Unfortunately, hers. As the killer closes in and wedding disasters from hideous bridesmaid dresses to incontinent doves pile up, Maddie’s race to the altar quickly becomes a race against time. Sounds fun? Post a comment here today and you’ll be entered to win a signed copy of your own!

Since this book is about weddings, one of my favorite things about writing it was collecting wedding stories. Some made me laugh, some made me cry and go “awww”, but my absolute favorite one came from a young woman who posted hers on a wedding forum. I laughed so hard I think I pulled something the first time I heard this story. Here’s what happened at her wedding:

She was just 19 when she got married, and the night before her wedding she let her husband-to-be borrow her car to go to his bachelor party. Only it he didn’t come home that night. The next morning he still hadn’t brought the car back, and the bride was beginning to worry. Finally, an hour before the wedding is supposed to start, the groom shows up at her house. Only he didn’t bring her car back. He’s in a tiny purple car. He tells her he knows purple is her favorite color, so he borrowed that one to make her happy. So, the two get in the purple car, pile the best and maid of honor in the back, and drive into the city to the Justice of the Peace where they’re getting married. But they can’t fid the place. The end up asking a police officer, who gives them a police escort – lights and sirens and all – to the justice of the peace. When they finally arrive, they realize, to their surprise, they’re in Chinatown. The JP’s assistant comes out and rings a giant bong three times before the JP makes his ceremonial appearance. He starts the service, his accent is so thick that when he tells them to repeat the vows after him, they can’t understand what he’s saying. They totally wing it, making up the vows themselves as they go. After the ceremony he brought out little glasses with drinks for a toast. The bride and groom – water. The JP – vodka. When, after containing their laughter from the mangled ceremony, the bride and groom signed the marriage license and paid the JP, he argued that it wasn’t enough money. They got the “deluxe” ceremony. So, they all started digging in purses and pockets, and between the four of them finally came up with enough to satisfy the JP.

As they were leaving the JP’s, his assistant threw rice at them… and accidentally hit a bee’s nest. Angry bees came flying out and chased the wedding party all the way to their car. When we left they were throwing rice at us and some hit a bee's nest the bee's chases us all the way to the car. Oh yeah, the purple car? Once it was time to leave for the honeymoon, the groom confessed that he and his friends had been so drunk the night before, they’d completely lost her car. He’d borrowed the purple one at the last minute, but didn’t want to tell her until it was too late for her to call off the ceremony. So, the bride’s father ended up driving them to their honeymoon destination, in the back of his station wagon. Very romantic.

With a wedding like that, I can only imagine how fun the marriage will be. :) If you have any great wedding stories, feel free to pop over to my website and share them in my Wedding Stories Contest: www.gemmahalliday.com/contests.

Gemma Halliday
GemmaHalliday.com

NOTE: To be entered to win a copy of MAYHEM IN HIGH HEELS either comment below or visit One Day Contest. Or do both for double your chances!

Sandi Shilhanek | 2008 Reading

As the year begins to wind down I thought it would be interesting to reflect back and share with one another how our reading year was.

Let’s start with did you discover a new author this year? As I looked at my list I believe I read about two dozen new to me authors this year. I was pleasantly surprised with Shadow Of Turning by Valerie Hansen as it is a Love Inspired Suspense, and that’s not a line I normally read. I also was totally hooked on Running Scared by Cheryl Norman. Of course there were a couple of books in the new author tryouts that didn’t please me much, but I’ve decided to only focus on my favorites.

What book do you think was the best one you read this year? Can you really limit yourself to only one? I of course cannot name just one. I loved everything I read by Susan Wiggs, and Robyn Carr. Both had books that had moments that made me cry. The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs was a discovery that I wish I had been warned about because it also had me crying. Can’t even think about closing out a favorites list without adding Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah.

Do you have a reading goal? Is it by books read or pages read? Is it to read so many group reads or perhaps so many new authors? I always hope to read 100 books, and this year I didn’t make it. I do have the page count for each book listed, but I haven’t mastered EXCEL enough to be able to figure out how to get it to add that up for me!

What about audio books? Do you count those as part of your yearly total if you listen to them? Was there a favorite there? A new author? This year I discovered Mary Kay Andrews, and Harlan Coben in audio. I enjoyed Charley’s Web by Joy Fielding and can’t recommend it enough.

Next week we’ll discuss reading goals for 2009. Start thinking...

Sandi Shilhanek
DFW Tea Readers
Readers 'n 'ritas