Happy Valentines Day!

copyright aaron paul lazar, 2014

Hi, folks! Happy Valentines Day!

I think I deserved this room, back in 2011. Now it’s been a few years, and my room has just been changed over to a “romantic” baby room for daughter number three, who’s coming home soon to raise her almost-born baby as a single mom. But here’s a fun story about how this came to be. Hope you enjoy it!

***

After a year of giving up my newly renovated antique house to my dear daughter, beloved-but-unemployed son-in-law, four grandkids, pregnant mother cat, one hormonally challenged male dog, and a still-chewing everything puppy…  (while being unemployed myself during much of that time..)

After looking the other way when antiques were scratched, lamp cords were chewed off, couch skirts were peed on, satin fabric was clawed apart, our new Oriental rug was destroyed…

After having to search for a single fork in a sink full of dishes almost every day (“We’ll do them in the morning, Dad!”), dealing with a sore back from bending over a thousand times a day to pick up casually tossed cheese stick wrappers and toys, and wondering if I’d ever get into the laundry room to do laundry for my wife and me…

After all that – I think I deserve this new room of mine.

 Okay, those of you who know me realize I’m exaggerating, because I adore my daughter, son-in-law, grandchildren, and animals. Since they moved out to their own lovely little Cape Cod just two miles down the road a month ago, I’ve been filled with conflicting with feelings of terrible despair-filled longings for their company... mixed with blessed relief. I call them constantly, with any little excuse. And I ache to see the kids every second of every day.

But there is a bright side to all this, and it’s the reclaiming of our home. It’s clean. Oh, is it clean. Organized. Tidy. Polished. Shiny. Dust-free.

This is the 200^th anniversary of our 1811 house, and in the spirit of giving ourselves a little reward, I decided to redo the boys’ bedroom. We gave the kids all the furniture, anyway, so it made sense to change things around a bit.

I’ve never had a writing room. I’ve never had a home office. I never even had a corner of a room that could be mine, where I could write in quiet and focus on getting my characters into trouble, and finagle the plot so they could be saved again. I always had to clamp headphones over my ears to drown out the television, or get up at 4 AM to find some quiet time to write.

My usual typical writing spot is my comfy leather chair in our bedroom. It’s too close to the TV, though, and my wife enjoys have it on all the time. But I like to be with her, so I hang out in the bedroom in the evenings. But that means I'm always tuning out whatever sit-com blasts from the darn thing. 

Sometimes, for an hour or so in the freezing cold dark winter mornings, I sit in the living room downstairs while the fire takes hold in the woodstove. But I'm often distracted by the need to let the dogs in and out, clean the cat pan, put a load in the washer or dryer, make my lunch for work, take out something to defrost for dinner, load up the wood rack by the woodstove, etc. You get my drift, all the usual pre-work morning stuff. So unless I got up, again, at 4 or 5 AM, I don’t get much time to focus on writing.

Okay, so all this is leading up to me trying not to feel guilty for spending too much money on what I’m calling my “zen* room”. It’s a romantic writing, reading, thinking, quiet room. I thought of my wife when I designed it, and have also referred to it as her “sitting room”, because I made it kinda girly-pretty and put her Keurig coffee maker in there.

I know, I know. You’d expect a guy to want a MAN cave, right? Something with lots of leather, dark wood, heavy curtains, beer posters, big screen TV, sports trophies, and the like. Well, I have something sort of like that in our living room already, with my nice dark antiques and brown leather couch and club chair. Ahem. Minus the beer posters and sports trophies.

But this time I departed from that model. I guess I figured I wouldn’t feel so guilty for spending the money if I designed it with my wife in mind.

So in spite of the fact that it’s kind of a feminine room, I must state that I consider myself a regular guy in some aspects. I love to do handyman projects around the house, can’t wait to play with the snowblower and lawn tractor, adore chopping down acres of brush and clearing land, and have a list a mile long of outdoor brick-laying type projects I can’t wait to start.

But I’m also a guy who loves some not-so-typical things. I’m a great deal like my character, Gus LeGarde, who is frequently referred to as a Renaissance man. Gus and I love antiques. We love Chopin. We love to cook. We love French Impressionist art. We love nature. We love to hike. And, we love to cross-country ski.

So, that was my lame attempt to prove to you that I really am a semi-regular guy in spite of how pretty this room is. Ha.

What inspired this? My hairdresser.

Yeah, really. The lady who cuts my hair was running late last month. She offered to let me sit in her new little new-age-comfy room with the water fountain and a foot bath. It was so darned comfortable I almost fell asleep several times, and I realized that I wanted one, too!

So, let me show you what I did over the past month.

I asked my wife what color walls she wanted, and she chose a pale, pale orange sherbet color. On an impulse, I checked out a Ruby Gordon’s annual half off sale, and found a cream-colored leather loveseat and comfy chair/ottoman in the clearance section. This sort of set the tone for the rest of the room, which really is quite romantic. (And DANG, is it relaxing and comfortable...)

I ordered this trickling wall mounted water fountain. Still waiting for a pump to be sent that isn't LOUDER than the trickling water sound, but it's enroute, so they say. 

I found turquoise pillows and a throw at Pier One, a vase thingie that holds apple blossoms, or whatever fake things my wife my want to stick in them during the winter, and then I went nuts and ordered a glass lamp to match the turquoise color that had ended up being so prevalent in the room. 

I haunted my favorite antique stores to find a perfect – I mean made for this room – antique lamp with the exact same colors that we’d already chosen.

I ordered a cherry wall cabinet to store some of my Young Living Essential Oils, an Aria oil diffuser to set the scene, a foot bath and all the good smelling stuff that goes with it, and some gorgeous photos from a wonderful photographer friend. 

 Here are a few images that will eventually be hanging over the loveseat and chair, in large format.

See how they miraculously match the room colors? It’s like it was meant to be.

It’s almost all put together. I’m waiting for the ottoman, so I can put up my feet while I write. The essential oil diffuser arrived yesterday, and I set it up this morning. My wife wanted curtains, so I got those last weekend – sheer, romantic type curtains. (I won’t dwell on the fact that my cat, one of the seven kittens my daughter’s cat had last year, keeps climbing up them and messing them up.) I’m waiting for the prints to frame and hang. And then, I’ll be ready to write in style. Wonder if my characters will have any more romance in the next few books? I do feel some love scenes coming on...

Here are a few shots of my writing room - a work in process

The "Aria" my new Young Living oil diffuser that also has soothing natural sounds and beautiful colors within its clear glass globe. Highly recommended! (and you'll know why when you read Essentially Yours, my fifteenth book scheduled for release early in 2012.)

One corner of the room that's pretty much "done."

This is where my wife sits when she joins me and reads on her Kindle.

And here's where I sit, minus the wall art that's coming. Like I said, pretty darned comfy.

And so, as the project comes to a close, it's just in time for the next adventure of either Gus LeGarde, Sam Moore, or Marcella Hollister. Haven’t decided what’s next yet, but I’m itching to start something new.

And by the way - Happy Valentines Day! 

Guys: Do something extra special for your sweetheart today. Maybe buy her a copy of my new love story, The Seacrest. You'll brighten up her day, and you'll feel all mushy inside. Who knows? It might inspire you. Maybe you'll end up with a girl-cave all your own. 

Aaron Paul Lazar

www.legardemysteries.com

www.mooremysteries.com

*Zen – a teaching that contemplation of one's essential nature to the exclusion of all else is the only way of achieving pure enlightenment.

Books, and how they affect us

When you were a kid -- freedom to read was a given. Your parents probably were thrilled when you flopped down on the couch with a book in one hand and an apple in the other. But did you ever consider how that simple act (reading the book, not eating the apple) affected you today?

I think maybe not only the act of reading affected me, but WHAT I read affected me as a writer.

If I recall my bookshelves of yore, there were many tomes of fantasy. J.R.R. Tolkien, Stephen R. Donaldson, Terry Brooks,and the occasional Stephen King- all kept me company. Then as I aged into more variety, I collected a ton of romance. Harlequin produced romances with historical places and interesting characters that were from the real world, facing real problems.

But it wasn't until I began to delve more into adult fiction that my tastes truly matured. I branched off into mysteries, and suspenses, more horror, and thicker meatier fantasy.

I have never loved reading more than I do today, however. I mean, think about it. You can read a book from a paperback during the day when the sun is shining bright, and by an electronic device in the darkness of night. (I mention that because the other night I actually took my Kindle with me to read from as my hubby drove since it was nighttime and I couldn't see to read a paperback)-- you can even read on a PHONE. Wow. I am sure the sci-fi peeps dreamed of this day way back when! Think about what we are reading today? Wonder when those ideas will happen in the future?

There has never been a better time to read, and really? Nothing has changed about how it affects us-by enlightening us, broadening our horizons, and making us imagine. The difference now is getting people to want to read.

It is important to encourage our young ones to read, too. More youths of today DON'T read for fun than ever before. This was made evident to me when I spoke to a group a few weeks back. Most in fact, never crack open a novel. The only reading they do is what they HAVE to do for school. And, I might add, they are not really interested in that. The ones who DO read are into romances. The ones with kids like them. With issues in life like theirs.

It's a great time to be a writer. I hope you are reading as well!
_________________________________________________________________
Kim Smith is an avid reader, you can find her reading list on her website at: http://www.kimsmithauthor.com - and find out about her latest publications, books, and radio show there as well.

Favorite Romances of All Time

Looking for a Good Recommendation?

By

Dora Machado

As I mentioned in my post last week, my favorite romance of all time is the historical fiction novel Outlander by Diana Gabaldon.  Okay, all right, I might be dating myself a little here, but I'm open to suggestions. If you've got a book or a series out there, in any genre, that matches the breadth and scope of Gabaldon's enduring love between Jamie and Claire, I want to know.

So, on the eve of Valentine's Day, even though I'm off traveling through Japan, I decided to reach out to some of my writer friends to ask for their best recommendations for an all-time favorite romance novel.

The favorite romance of MB4's own Aaron Lazar, mystery and romance author of The Seacrest is Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen.

Eleanor Kuhns, author of A Simple Murder, has two all-time favorite romances, both by Elswyth Thane: Dawn's Early Light and Tryst.

Christine Amsden, author of the award-winning Cassie Scott: Paranormal Detective and its sequel, Secret and Lies, absolutely loved Judith McNaught's Perfect.

Linda Au, novelist and humor author of Fork in the Road, says that her favorite romance "has to be the historical fiction Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. It's a romance that's spanned decades in their lives. Now that's a romance."

I didn't put Linda up to this, folks, but I think she's got good taste in romances. J

Jerry Hatchet, thriller author of Seven Unholy Days, chose the romance between John Corey and Kate Mayfield in Nelson DeMille's series of Corey thrillers.

Stephanie Osborn, Interstellar Woman of Mystery and author of The Displaced Detective series, answered the question like this: "Do I have to pick just one? Seriously?"

LOL.

Thanks to all of my writer friends who contributed to this post. If you think you can add to this list, if you've got a romance to top all romances, share it with us. Come on. I dare you. 'Cause I've read a lot of excellent books since I read Outlander, Dragonfly in Amber, Voyager and Drums of Autumn, but I haven't found a series that dealt with romance as spectacularly as those books did.

  

****

Dora Machado is the award-winning author of the epic fantasy Stonewiser series and her newest novel, The Curse Giver, available from Twilight Times Books. She grew up in the Dominican Republic, where she developed a fascination for writing and a taste for Merengue. After a lifetime of straddling such compelling but different worlds, fantasy is a natural fit to her stories. She lives in Florida with her husband and three very opinionated cats.

Dora also writes features for Murder By Four, an award winning blog for people interested in reading and writing, and Savvy Authors, where writers help writers.

  

To learn more about Dora Machado and her novels, visit her website at www.doramachado.com or contact her at Dora@doramachado.com.

For a free excerpt of The Curse Giver, visit  http://twilighttimesbooks.comthingsTheCurseGiver_ch1.html.

E-mail:Dora@doramachado.com

Website: www.doramachado.com

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"Writing and Cross-Promotion: What Works, What Doesn't, and Why" by Barb Caffrey

copyright 2014 Barb Caffrey

Writers often talk about effective cross-promotion, since we're always trying to get the word out about our latest books and stories. Yet what does effective cross-promotion actually consist of? And why do some promotional activities seem to work better than others?

Promotion consists of a number of things.  If you Tweet about a book – whether it's your own or someone else's – that's promotion. If you share something on Facebook, particularly if you write a little something along with your share, that, too, is promotion. Both things are easy to do, providing you have a few spare minutes a day, and could prove useful to yourself or your fellow writers.

I say "could" for a reason. No one's sure why some people's posts get read more than other people's. No one's sure why a book takes off, either, though a number of articles have surfaced recently purporting to tell if a book will be successful or not.

But one thing is certain: if you don't let anyone know about your book, you have no chance to sell any copies. And networking with other writers via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other social media sites can make the difference between your book sinking like a stone or getting enough traction that readers can actually find you.

There are other ways to get your name before the public.

·      Writing a blog helps, even if very few people tend to read it, because you may be asked to submit guest blogs for other writers in the process. (As is the case right now.) 

·      Writing book reviews can help, too, because again, you're getting your name before the readers – perhaps just the readers your own book needs to become successful (or at least well-read). 

·      Going to writers' blogs and leaving comments on something that interested you can sometimes help, providing you're polite. 

·      Finally, you can exchange links with other writers and/or Web sites, which again may help get your name before a few more readers . . . and as you never know which segment of the population you really need to discover your book, these could be the readers you've been looking for.

Going to a convention, if you have something of your own to sell, is also a promotional experience. And even if you don’t, if you’re out there networking, that’s still considered promotion.
There are many other ways to promote yourself, mind you – most of them taking money I do not have. But the methods of promotion I've mentioned probably aren't out of anyone's financial reach. Granted, they take time, planning, and hard work – but I'm guessing that if you're reading this blog, you're not averse to any of these things.

Now, what’s not considered promotion?  Going to unrelated websites and putting up a bunch of links to your work — spamming them, in short — is something you should never, ever do. It's completely unprofessional, not to mention extremely counterproductive, and will get you a bad name faster than just about anything else.

In fact, doing something like this is so damaging, you could think of this as anti-motion rather than promotion.

Another thing that's not a good idea from a promotional standpoint is something I’ve only rarely seen. It's so unprofessional, I hesitate to mention it – but as we were all new writers once, and didn't know all the things then we know now, perhaps it's necessary.

To wit: When someone mentions inside a review that his work is better than the work that’s supposed to be under discussion, that’s really bad form. So don't do it.

Promotion is many things, but it’s not supposed to be either unprofessional or “spammy.”  What you’re trying to do is get the word out, that’s all — which is why if you’re talking about your favorite authors, you're actually promoting them.

So if you have friends whose work you admire — and if they, too, are on Facebook, Twitter, or any number of other social media sites — you can help to promote them, providing you’re not being obnoxious about it.

All I know is this: It's important to get the word out as many times as you possibly can. But you need to be tactical, you need to be smart, and most of all, you need to take the long view. Because as your book wasn't written overnight, you're not likely to be a best-seller overnight, either.

***

 Links:

Web site: Barb Caffrey's Blog (AKA Elfyverse) http://elfyverse.wordpress.com

A DARK AND STORMY NIGHT 

ON WESTMOUNT STATION 

BARB CAFFREY is a writer, editor and musician from the Midwest. Her humorous fantasy novel, ELFY, will be published in 2014 by Twilight Times Books, and her story "At the Crossroads" will appear in the 2014 anthology STARS OF DARKOVER. Previous stories and poems have appeared in BEDLAM'S EDGE (with late husband Michael B. Caffrey), HOW BEER SAVED THE WORLD, the BEARING NORTH anthology, the Written Word online magazine, Joyful Online, the Midwest Literary Magazine, and at e-Quill Publishing. Barb has edited for Masterpiece Comics, the Written Word, ComicsBulletin.com, is on the editorial board of Twilight Times Books and completed a copy-editing internship at the sports Web site Bleacher Report. She reviews books for Shiny Book Review and, more occasionally, at Amazon.com for their Vine program. And once upon a time, she was an opinion columnist and arts and entertainment reporter for both the Daily Nebraskan and the University of Wisconsin-Parkside Ranger News; additional op-eds were published by the Racine Labor Paper and by the Racine Journal-Times (under the previous married name).

She is the widow of writer and editor par excellence Michael B. Caffrey (1958-2004), who was also her frequent co-writer.  He completed one novel, MAVERICK, LIEUTENANT, in his lifetime, and had nearly completed a second, MINIATURES; both are currently being edited and revised for publication based on Michael’s notes. One of Michael’s stories in his Adventures of Joey Maverick series, “A Dark and Stormy Night,” was first published by the Written Word in 2005, reprinted at e-Quill Publishing in 2010, and is now available at Amazon. “On Westmount Station,” the second story in the Adventures of Joey Maverick, was published by e-Quill Publishing in 2011 and is also available at Amazon.  Michael’s three fantasy stories about Princess Columba and her remarkable cat-familiar were published in September 2010 by e-Quill Publishing; the fourth, incomplete story will be completed by Barb as soon as circumstances permit.

Due to Barb amicably ending her professional relationship with e-Quill Publishing in mid-2012, Michael’s Columba stories are currently unavailable. Barb plans to bring these stories back out ASAP, as she’s vowed that Michael’s work — his words — will live on as long as there are people to read them.

She follows politics, loves sports, watches far too much reality TV and is mystified by the “Maury” show. What all this says about her is anyone’s guess.

Find her at Elfyverse (AKA "Barb Caffrey's Blog") for discussions of all and sundry, or at Shiny Book Review. Or send her an e-mail at barbcaffrey (all one word) AT yahoo DOT com – she'll get back to you.

 

Doing the mememe thing

Can I squee a little???

My very first anthology sale has just gone live through the cover reveal by the publisher. Here are all the details:

A Chimerical World: Tales from the Unseelie Court, will have my short story, Treehouse, in it. The ebook is coming out probably in a week or so and the print version shortly after. It will be unveiled at ConNooga Con in Chattanooga TN next month (Feb. 21-23) and will then go on the con circuit for a time, including a stop in Memphis (my hometown!) at Mid South Con in March.

I am so excited and proud, y'all. This was a truly fun story, and different from anything I have ever done. I have to say, I may just be addicted to anthology stories from now on.

I will post more later and let you know where and when you can get your copy, cuz you KNOW you wanna read it!

Let's Talk Romance!

What Are the Basic Traits of a Good Romance and What Kills Romance in a Novel?

By

Dora Machado

February has arrived and romance is in the air, which brings us a great opportunity to talk romance. I'm in Japan at the moment, but here at MB4, we aren't missing the chance.

I like epic stories with grand romances. Or is it grand stories with epic romances? Either way, when I sit down with a good book, I don't want the story to neglect anything, especially not in the romance department. But here's the catch. I don't just want any romance in my story. I want a real romance, the kind that involves meaningful relationships, changing characters and fresh angles. And I want this romance to happen within the context of a complex plot and a magnificent story.

Too much to ask?

My all-time favorite romance is the historical fiction novel Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. I really enjoyed the way that Gabaldon developed the romantic relationship, slowly, patiently, circumstantially, but also passionately. It was a far cry from those stories where lightning strikes and the heroine and the hero are smitten with each other on the spot. From the beginning, it was work. I liked the fact that this was an epic romance, that it spanned years and it defied timelines. I loved that both characters were flawed but passionate and loyal to each other.

Which brings me to the obvious questions: What are the basic traits of a good romance and what kills romance in a novel?

To answer these questions, I reached out to some of my writer friends, all of whom have dealt with the ins and outs of romance in their own novels. Let me tell you: This was a fun discussion! Here's what they had to say:

Christine Amsden, the author of the award-winning Cassie: Paranormal Detective and its sequel, Secret and Lies, believes that a good romance must include "that which brings the characters together, that which brings them apart, and lots of growth and change."

Linda Au, author of Fork in the Road, told me that believability is first. "A romance can't seem forced," she says. "Also humor." She can't see any romantic relationship working without a sense of humor somewhere in it. Did I tell you that Linda is a humor writer? Oh, and she likes to see realistic bumps in the road, "and not necessarily the stereotypical, almost fake bumps that come from misunderstandings that could easily be cleared up (like soap operas do all the time)."

Stephanie Osborn, Interstellar Woman of Mystery, author of The Displaced Detective series, thinks that "every good romance must include a leading lady and man, conflict, growth and good love scenes!"

Jerry Hatchet, author of the thriller Seven Unholy Days, looks for "a believable meeting, a developing relationship that features real-world conflict, and a romance that adds to the overall story in a believable way."

Eleanor Kuhns, author of A Simple Murder, thinks that "the romantic leads must be attracted to one another but separated by some seemingly impossible obstacle. The attraction can be denied but must be strong enough that the characters can't help but continue to meet and learn from each other through character development. In the end, the obstacle must be removed so that both characters can finally be together."

Our very own Aaron Lazar, author of the incredibly romantic The Seacrest, looks for "unrequited love, horrible obstacles that keep the lovers apart, and a sweet and well-earned ending with a reunion of the lovers."

When it came time to talk about what kills romance in a novel, our fellow authors had some very specific ideas.

Aaron Lazar thinks that "like any novel, too much telling will kill a romance."

Eleanor Kuhn notes that "nothing takes the romance out of a story faster than having them immediately jump into bed."

Jerry Hatchett says that "a cheesy formulaic approach" is romance's fastest killer.

Stephanie Osborn brought up an interesting perspective. She doesn’t want "too much humdrum day-to-day detail" in her romances. "I really don't need to know the guy took a potty break—unless it's essential to know he was out of the room when the bad guy made a play for the girl.” (She did that once in a book.) Stephanie also thinks that a bitchy lead, male or female, will also smother the romance in a story.

Linda Au agrees with Jerry Hatchett that cheesiness is romance's worst enemy. In her own words: "Easy attraction that we're supposed to believe is automatically lasting love. Pleh."

And finally, here's what Christine Amsden had to say when I asked her what kills romance in a novel: "OVERWHELMING LUST (yes, in all caps) used in place of a good reason for two people to be together."

Enough said.

Kudos to all of my writer friends who contributed to this post. Would you like to share your views on romance with us? What do you think are the basic traits of a good romance? What kills romance in a novel?

****

Dora Machado is the award-winning author of the epic fantasy Stonewiser series and her newest novel, The Curse Giver, available from Twilight Times Books. She grew up in the Dominican Republic, where she developed a fascination for writing and a taste for Merengue. After a lifetime of straddling such compelling but different worlds, fantasy is a natural fit to her stories. She lives in Florida with her husband and three very opinionated cats.

Dora also writes features for Murder By Four, an award winning blog for people interested in reading and writing, and Savvy Authors, where writers help writers.

To learn more about Dora Machado and her novels, visit her website at www.doramachado.com or contact her at Dora@doramachado.com.

For a free excerpt of The Curse Giver, visit  http://twilighttimesbooks.comthingsTheCurseGiver_ch1.html.

E-mail:Dora@doramachado.com

Website: www.doramachado.com

Blog: http://www.doramachado.com/blog/

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Twitter: https://twitter.com/DoraMachado