Guest: Jemi Fraser and the Bloo Moose Romances

With the release of Jemi Fraser's Bloo Moose Romances, I invited her to my blog and asked, Why did you choose to release all three at once, and how long did it take you to write them? 

Take it away, Jemi!
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Thanks so much for having me on your blog, Lynda!

Releasing three books at the same time is a little nuts. Or, so people keep telling me! So, why did I do it?

For the past couple of years, I’ve been working on these books like a game of leap frog…
Draft Book 1
Draft Book 2
Decide to learn to outline
Outline Book 1
Revise Book 1
Outline Book 3
Draft Book 3
Outline Book 2
Revise Book 1
Revise Book 2
Revise Book 3
…
Somewhere in there I also outlined and drafted Book 5. Book 4 has about half an outline and is about 1/4 drafted.

At some point, I started thinking of the first three books as a set and then they ended up being ready at more or less the same time.

I could have released the three books a month apart and that probably would have been wiser for marketing purposes, but the idea was daunting. Easier emotionally to just jump in with both feet and get them out there.

Plus, it stops me fiddling with the details and allows me to turn my attention to poor Gage and Rebecca in Book 4. They’ve been waiting a long time!


Welcome to Bloo Moose, Vermont where love is worth the risk! Small-town contemporary romance with an element of suspense. Each book is a stand-alone.

Reaching For Normal
She’s no damsel in distress. He’s no Prince Charming. But if they don’t team up it won’t be only wolves that’ll be dying.
Amazon.com. Amazon.ca. Apple. Kobo. Google Play.
Barnes and Noble. Goodreads. Bookbub

Reaching For Risks
One Reno List for the B&B. One Risk List for herself. One sexy retailer who should be the last one she wants.
Amazon.com. Amazon.ca. Apple. Kobo. Google Play
Barnes and Noble. Goodreads. Bookbub

Reaching For Everything
Love means nothing in tennis. Can he prove to her that love means everything in life?
Amazon.com. Amazon.ca. Apple. Kobo. Google Play
Barnes and Noble. Goodreads. Bookbub


Jemi Fraser writes both fiction and nonfiction. Her nonfiction work focuses on the ways that dementia has impacted her family. Her fiction work varies from contemporary romance to suspense and flash fiction. Years as a teacher have taught Jemi that life is short and that happy endings are a must.

Jemi lives in Northern Ontario, Canada where snow is always a topic of conversation and the autumn leaves make everything better.

Website, Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, BookBub, Goodreads, Just Jemi blog

The Top 10 Query Letter Tips for Cretins

Today Chris Andrews is visiting with a fun post. I met Chris, a fellow Aussie writer, at GenreCon2012 and immediately liked his humour and energy. Take it away, Chris!

1: The curiosity factor
The key to a good query letter is intrigue, so withhold the title, genre, word count, and even the reason why anyone would want to read it. In fact, send it to them from an anonymous email account with absolutely no contact details at all. To really pique their curiosity, include a video of your best friend doing karaoke.

2: Have fun!
Drop subtle hints about your story, like: 'Did you notice the attached computer virus?' or 'When was the last time you checked your car's brakes?' You can further stand out from the email in-box with the imaginative use of fonts – the more the better. If the agent or publisher specialises in mysteries, go with Wingdings or white text on a white background.

3: Guidelines are for losers
Would a successful author follow guidelines? Of course not, so give them what they need instead: your life story, a full breakdown of all your hopes and dreams, copies of everything you've written since kindergarten, and your acceptance speeches for all the literary prizes you'll win. If you've got a photo of a cute pet, send that too (it can't hurt).

4: Your time is valuable
So pitch the idea before you've even written the book. If that fails (unlikely), bombard them with any ideas you can think of, making sure you cover additional concepts for the sequels, spinoffs, webisodes, interactive games, and cruise-ship stage plays. Additionally, compile a list of all your ideas and send them to every agent with an email address (at once - so it's obvious they have competition). Save more time by sending it out without proofreading.

5: Their time is valuable too
Sometimes you need to pander to their needs, so skip all the introductory stuff and get on-side immediately by doing your research. Mention their home address, their partners/parents/children's names, their favourite holiday destination (show up and say 'Hi'), and visit their house while they're out to get to know their pets and friends. If that doesn't grab their attention, nothing says 'I really want to be a published author' like delivering a life-sized painting of their mother-in-law to their office.

6: Demand your price
Don't settle for anything less than a million-dollar advance. In fact, demand it before letting them see your manuscript. You're the best of the best, the top one per cent, and with a decent advance you'll even hand it over. They'll be sorry if they turn you down – tell them that too.

7: Bragging rights
You're a brilliant writer, so let them know you've seen the future and you'll sell 25 million copies. Further demonstrate your awesomeness by attaching the cover art you did yourself – every version. Include details about why Oprah will love your book, and your plans to write, direct and star in the inevitable movie. Oscars are assumed.

8: Hand deliver it for that personal touch
Everyone loves attention, particularly book people. For maximum impact arrive via helicopter and stroll into the office made up like a zombie (zombies are hot!). Insist on handing your query directly to your preferred agent or editor, but make sure you 'forget' to erase those naked photos of yourself from the USB (everyone deserves a treat).

9: Go retro
In the 'olden days' they wrote letters on dead trees, so grab your chainsaw and make a nice cross section of your neighbour's favourite hardwood. If the postage is too high, try handwriting with fluorescent ink on coloured paper. For added effect sprinkle glitter in the envelope and spray it with perfume. Bonus points will be awarded if you include a chocolate frog (everyone loves chocolate), but be considerate and unwrap it first.

10: The next big thing is…
You! Because you are, right? Be persuasive! Tell them your mother/friends/teachers loved your manuscript, boast about the decades you’ve spent writing it (as this clearly gives it depth), and explain how your story thinly disguises your incredibly interesting life. It won't hurt to add a list of your rejections too (just to prove how proactive you are). Finally, mention how being a published author is your life-long dream – that always softens them up.

Chris Andrews began his writing career when he boldly and ignorantly announced he could write a better novel than the one he’d just read. While he’s no longer ignorant about the challenges of writing novels, the dream remains. Find him on twitter: @ChrisAndrewsAU or at his website: http://fandelyon.com/. 


If you liked the Top Ten Query Letter Tips for Cretins, you might also like The Cretin's Top Ten Ways to Successfully Pitch to an Agent or Editor. 

Have you done--or wanted to do--any of these tips? Can you think of any more query letter tips for cretins?

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Writing Tips with Darlene Jones

Today I have Darlene Jones visiting with some great writing tips many writers should find helpful. 

You can find Darlene here: Website / Blog / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads

Take it away, Darlene.


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One of the best writing tips goes back to my novice days. An author I admire suggested that we read our work aloud when we got to the rewrite stage. I decided to try it.

“What’s that?” my husband asked.

“Nothing.”

“You said something.”

“Just reading to myself.”

“Well keep it down. I’m trying to watch TV.” Luckily for him, I knew he was joking.

Reading aloud showed me where my words weren’t natural or where sentences were too long and convoluted. Sometimes I’d cut out words as I read and realize that I didn’t need them. Other times I’d add a word or two when I read and realized I needed that word on paper to make for smoother, more natural expression.

I do much less reading aloud now that I’m more experienced, but it was a great tip for me as a beginner.

The second thing I think is crucial for writing success is to join a critiquing group. This must be comprised of fellow writers. They know what you are trying to accomplish and what to watch for in your writing.

I’ve used two approaches. With one group, we emailed our work to each other before the meeting. We printed and commented on paper and then discussed the piece at the meeting. We gave the copies with our notations to the writer at the end of the discussion.

The second approach was to come to the meeting, pass out copies to the members and then read the piece aloud. Members jotted notes and explained what they felt was missing or needed.

The critical key in both groups was the one rule that the writer not comment at all during the discussion as the goal wasn’t to defend his or her work, but to take the information and use what worked for them. This worked well as the members of both groups held the mindset of helping their fellow authors so the critiquing was never mean spirited.

There are two added benefits to the critiquing groups. One is that the discussion sparks ideas for all and the critiquing of one piece can help you with your own work as you learn what things to watch out for.

Here’s a simple example.

“I don’t think so,” he said. He shook his head.

One member commented that the natural reaction would be for the action to come before the spoken words.

Bill shook his head. “I don’t think so.”

I realized that was a mistake I made often and I liked the result when I went back and made those changes.

Good luck with your writing.

Amazon / Smashwords

What would be one of your top tips for writing?

10 Tips to Get Blog Tours and Guest Posts Right

Before the Make Believe Tour, I hadn’t experienced the amount of work that goes on behind the scenes of blog tours. There's a lot of juggling behind the fanfare. As a consequence, I learnt many important tips I thought I'd share here:

1. Always, always write down the dates you have scheduled for the tour and/or guest post. If you think you’ll remember them, you’re wrong. If you wait until the date is confirmed, you’ll forget. Just write them down. Use a pencil if you must.

2. Blog tours are often organised months in advance. It’s important to send out reminders of your visit a week before you’re due to be featured.

3. Try to have all interview questions in a week before the tour begins because once the tour has started you’ll be too busy to chase up questions, let alone answer them as well. The less panic you can cause yourself, the better.

4. In all your correspondence with your hosts, include the date you’ve agreed to feature on their blogs. This doesn’t guarantee no mistakes, but it sure will help to avoid them.

5. Always double check your posts and make sure they have no errors, and the content is good.

6. Read your emails regularly and make yourself available in case of any last minute changes.

7. Agree to a time of post. This is especially helpful when you live in a different timezone to your host. It’s a mistake to link to a host who doesn’t have anything there yet. It’s also a mistake not to link at all, which brings me to my next point:

8. Always link back to your host’s blog. Share the link on your blog and on other network sites, such as Twitter and Facebook.

9. Respond to comments on your host’s blog. And keep returning to respond to comments even when you’ve moved on in the tour.

10. Always thank the person who has generously given you their time and their blog space.

Carol Kilgore said it perfectly in an email: The best guest bloggers are those who will bring new people, interact with everyone, and have something interesting to say.

And that brings me to the final stop on the Make Believe Tour. The Secret Writer is hosting an ebook giveaway.

What do you think of Blog Tours? As a writer, do you think they are an effective promotional tool? As a reader, what’s your reaction to them?

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M.L.Swift has started up a Progressive Book Club.

They post on the third Wednesday of every month.

He describes it as, "A unique blog hop that's an online book club!" So please check it out!

8 Benefits of Writing Short Stories

The lovely Theresa Milstein has kindly offered to be a part of my Make Believe Anthology Tour. I didn't even have to twist her arm (which is good because my brother tells me I twist like a girl). I will be talking about 8 Benefits of Writing Short Stories. Yes, there are benefits! I'd love to see you over there. Click HERE!

I am also over with Terri Rochenski at Scribbler's Sojourn being interviewed! Yikes!! I'm in two places at once! I must be a super hero (or just a crazy person on roller skates which seems more likely). I'd love to see you over there!! Click HERE!

If you have time and want a little chuckle, Chris Andrews, an Aussie writer I met at GenreCon 2012, has written up a hilarious post: Successfully Pitching to an Agent or Editor – The Cretin’s Guide

Guest Post: The natural order of writing

Today I have the lovely Jocelyn Adams visiting. She is the author of The Glass Man and Shadowborn, which is a new release. Take it away, Jocelyn:

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Writing a story is complicated. What, you ask? Just slap down a bunch of words onto a page and voila!

If only it were that simple, we’d all be J.K. Rowling and be rolling in the dough, right? :)

There are certain rules that often—not always—should be followed to make a story work. The one I’m going to talk about is how to create a scene—which is an event that takes place within a book. A novel is a collection of scenes that progress the story from beginning to climax.

Scenes need a natural order. In life we do things in a certain sequence, and we usually have a reason for doing them.

First, our character—let’s call her Jane—needs a goal in this scene. It makes for a more compelling story when there are obstacles making it hard for her to reach that goal.

Goal: Jane is trying to get to work on time. Simple, right? Goals don’t need to be complicated, and one goal can span multiple scenes.

Conflict: The phone rings. Without thinking, she answers it.

Disaster: It’s a woman who asks for Jane’s husband, and when Jane asks who’s calling, the woman hangs up.

Here’s where we get into the natural order.

In real life, when faced with a crisis, we tend to follow this sequence:

Emotion: Perhaps Jane cries or whips the phone against the wall because she assumes her husband is having an affair. Her stomach clenches, maybe she rants.

Thought: Maybe she overreacted? Maybe it was the florist confirming a delivery her husband had arranged for Jane’s birthday? Or maybe it’s that floozy two doors down who’s always making eyes at him? Jane could *69 the call to find out who she is. Or call and confront her husband. Either one would make her late for work, and she’d probably end up fired since she was late every day this week.

Decision: Although Jane is furious, she decides work comes first, and she’ll worry about the mystery woman later.

Action: She gets her butt to work. The next scene begins with a new goal, to find out who the woman is.

Even though each of these elements may not appear in every scene, the ones that do should be in order, creating a magical ebb and flow in the story.

Back of the Book, Shadowborn:
Why me?
That’s the question Lila Gray asks every time yet another bad guy tries to destroy the earth, and she learns she’s the only one who can stop it. Once again, something’s on the prowl, leaving hundreds of comatose, soulless victims in its wake.
Couldn’t the deadliest assassins of the Otherworld go after someone else instead of the brand new Queen of the Seelie? One who still hasn’t adapted to her new role.
Lila would ask Liam Kane, King of the Unseelie, for advice, but something’s off with him, too. He’s holding back. In some way. About some thing. In fact, he refuses to tell her what’s going on.
The truth holds Lila back from the greatness of her role—the people she was born to lead—the man who she desperately loves—and the solution to the latest war raging around her.
To find the answers, she’ll need to fight through her own darkness and embark on a journey through her psyche.
If she doesn’t succeed, the Shadowborn will claim not only her world, but her soul.

Connect with Jocelyn Adams:
Facebook
Goodreads
Twitter
Website
Blog

 
Shadowborn: Amazon, Barnes & Noble
The Glass Man: Amazon, Barnes & Noble


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Guest Post: The Darker Side of Writing

Theresa Milstein writes about writing teaching and life at Theresa’s Tales

She’s visiting to get the word out about her short story “My Moment”, which is included in From Stage Door Shadows and looks at the darker side of show business. Today she tackles the darker side of writing.
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Thanks for having me on your blog, Lynda.


 Writing takes mental stamina.

I’m not saying it’s the hardest job. It's certainly not harder than working in the heat, lifting heavy objects, or dealing in customer service.

But we do a lot of upfront work with no feedback. So, some days we’re like, “That’s brilliant! Did that just come out of MY head?” We sit in our seats a little straighter, knowing that this is THE book.

Panster or plotter, when we’re done, there’s all this tidying up to do. Sure, there are some rough spots, but we’ve done it all with no help. We’re AWESOME! And when we tell our writer friends on Twitter and Facebook, they bask us in the glow of congratulations.

Yeah, that’s the best.

But, even with those nice virtual pats on the back, this part of the journey has mostly been walked alone. Now it’s time to pass our precious, perfect papers to persons with more distance to peruse our papers with a pen.

Gulp.

When we receive our feedback, we’re tempted to argue. But we don’t because someone has been nice enough to tear our works of art into tatters take their time to make us better writers. There might be rants, pints spoonfuls of ice cream consumed, and bottles glasses of red wine gulped.

We sit on the critique. While we do, some of those comments, though painful, make sense. Yeah, why did I think it was a good idea to kill off the only romantic interest in chapter one of my romance novel?

Other suggestions might not sit so well with us. No, I don’t think my YA protagonist should be seven years old because it would be cute if she had the IQ of 2500 and had to skip a bunch of grades to have all these teen experiences.

Then we hunker down and fix the worst piece of drivel since… there is no since. I’m a hack. Why am I wasting my time? Why did I waste anyone’s time in the hopes they could suggest a way out to fix this mess. I’m pathetic. the manuscript until it shines like my eyes filled with tears.

And we repeat this process until it sparkles.

Yeah, this could take a while.

Then it’s time to write the query a million few times, research agents, and hit send…

…only to receive rejections in return.

Ingrates.

But there’s always hope that one person reads our query and pages and requests the rest and loves the book and signs you on and shops your manuscript and gets a bunch of offers and there’s a bidding war and they give you cruise-ship-fulls of money and the book winds up on the NYT Bestseller List and sells more copies than that big hot mess novel everyone is raving about…

Whew.

It could happen.

Hope for more, prepare for less, and be happy with anything in between.

Good luck!


Writers, how do you maintain mental stamina?

Want to add From Stage Door Shadows to your list?
Goodreads

Purchase info:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
The Book Depository
eMergent Publishing

On the emergent site, the book is $19.99 and the ebook formats are $4.95.


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Guest Post: Justine Dell and Giveaway

Please welcome the lovely Justine Dell who is here today sharing with us what she learned while writing her latest book, Recaptured Dreams. She is also offering an exciting giveaway. More on that later. Take it away, Justine. 

Probably the most important thing I learned while writing this particular book was: sometimes less is more.

You see, this book is only 63,506 words. The original version was only 42,000. Of course it’s changed and grown since then, but I learned the importance of keeping the focus on the hero and heroine in the story. For me I enjoy romances that are succinct, capturing only what’s needed to be captured instead of adding all those other characters and plot layers.

I love romance stories because of the developing relationship between the two main characters and when I wrote this, I learned just how hard it was to stay focused on them. It was so easy to veer in the wrong direction or add stuff that didn’t really add to the story or developing relationship. So while I like reading stories like that, I found it very difficult to actually do. However, because this story was originally written for a specific line with a specific word count, I had to keep the word count low. Hardest thing I’ve ever done. But one of the greatest lessons, too. I learned, that while hard, I can write a powerful and compelling love story and do it with as few words as possible, keeping the attention and focus on what matters: the building relationship.

Book blurb: Ten years, the Atlantic Ocean, and several rungs in society have kept Xavier Cain from having Sophia Montel. Now twenty-seven, he’s spent his entire adult life building a fashion empire that could finally prove his worth to her family. When fate reunites him with Sophia at London’s premiere fashion show, one problem lodges in Xavier’s path: Sophia doesn’t remember him.

The only obstacle that has kept Sophia from Xavier is a horrific car crash that erased her memory at seventeen. She’s spent the last ten years fighting to reclaim a sliver of her past that her mother refuses to help her remember. When Sophia meets Xavier at the London show, however, all her fantasies come to life in one night of passion. Discovering he is the missing link, she is determined to find all the pieces to their love story and her memory.

Xavier wants forever. Sophia wants her memory. If they take this chance, they’ll have to start over. How far are they willing to go get what they want? And when the past catches up to them, can they handle the truths it has hidden? Contact Justine by email: dell.justine@gmail.com

Recaptured Dreams on Amazon
Recaptured Dreams on Goodreads.
Recaptured Dreams on Facebook.
Friend her on Facebook
Check out her Blog.
Find her on Twitter.
Find Recaptured Dreams on Goodreads Profile

And don't forget to check out Omnific Publishing. Romance ... without the rules.

Giveaway: Justine will give a copy of her ebook at EACH blog stop! All you have to do to enter the giveaway is leave a comment. At the end of every day she'll do the random number generator thing and pick a winner. I'll need the winning blogger's email address and all the prizes will be sent out at the end of the month. On top of that, she'll be hosting a contest on her blog for the entire month. she's going to give away a signed copy of the book, several other new releases, bookmarks, cool, random stuff, and gift cards! 

Guest Post: How to Market Without Being Pushy

Please welcome the lovely and talented Aimee Laine to my blog today:

Every writer knows, or should by now, that just writing ‘the end’ to a book is only the first step in publishing and marketing a book. If we want to sell, we have to actually ‘sell’. In today’s world of ‘classes’ among the publishers of the world (the Big 6 to Indie Publishers to self-publishing) one thing is still the same: the use of social media in the sales cycle.

What does that mean for writers? Get out there and say ‘Buy my book!’ a hundred times a day? You may or may not know that 2 decades ago it took 2-3 impressions to reach a potential buyer. Now the average is 17 (or so I heard somewhere). That’s a lot!

But getting on Twitter and Facebook and constantly exclaiming how good one is does nothing but turn people away!

So how do we get around this conundrum that is selling but not being pushy, getting in someone’s face two dozen times but again, not being pushy?

My belief is that we shouldn’t use social media to outright sell out book. We should use it to engage in conversation, the sharing of information and that over time a writer will develop a following that, if they writer is any good, will develop into fans and fans into sales and fans into word of mouth.

The message has to be clear and consistent though. You can’t just push the book or never mention it. Balance sharing who you are with your excited news, with inspirational moments and with quips on who you are and always, always be sure to do the same for others.

In a world of ‘me me me’ people like to buy from those who help ‘others others others’ just so long as they remember you were the one who helped them, too.

Now that I’ve shared that, let me tell you all about my latest release, Surrender! ;)

Surrender

Face the past or look to the future? Both will hurt. One could kill her.

All her life, Lily Crane has suppressed her childhood memories, masking the signs of abuse with a variety of looks. From brunette to blonde, tall to short — as a Mimic, changing shape is her gift. Her right. Her achilles heel.

It’s Lily’s latest likeness, chosen simply by accident, which threatens to repeat a history she’s desperate to forget. Worse, she must do so without the one man who takes all her pain away: Cael Aldridge.

Cael has no intention of leaving Lily on her own. He never has. Now, with the woman he loves in the hands of a predator who wants Lily for her genetics, Cael will do everything he can to bring her home.

Alive.

He can only pray he isn’t too late.


http://www.aimeelaine.com

Aimee is a romantic at heart and a southern transplant with a bit of the accent (but not a whole bunch). She's married to her high school sweetheart, and with him, she's produced three native North Carolinians, two of whom share the same DNA.

With an MBA and a degree in Applied Mathematics, there's absolutely no reason she should be writing romance novels. Then again, she shouldn't need a calculator to add two numbers, either ... but she does.



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