Maya Writes...

To Valentine...Or Not

2012-02-14T10:54:00.006Z

So, it's Valentine's Day. The romantic in me is all, yayyyyy! A day to celebrate love! How awesome.

But then as I was walking through M&S this morning trying to find my favourite Brocolli & Stilton Soup to warm my cockles (they'd ran out, arggghhh!), I saw a few harried-looking men clutching at-the-point-of-wilting roses and, to be honest, I got a whole "what's the point?" feeling.

I felt sorry for these men who looked like shopping for roses was the last thing they wanted to be doing.

Don't get me wrong. I like the idea of Valentine's Day. I also like the idea of Pancake Day, Mother's Day, Father's Day and of course, Christmas. What I don't like is the ever-escalating whiff of desperation and commercialism that seems associated with V's Day. The half-dozen long stemmed red roses and card I received this morning from my DH made me happy. But last year I received...nothing, and I was still happy. Why? Because he shows his love every day and I don't want or need a special gesture to know he loves me.

So to all who stress about Valentine's Day (especially the guys) I say, please give yourselves a break. If you can have pancakes every day (I wish I could!), or call your mum or dad to tell them you love them, then you can celebrate Valentine's Day every day, too.

What about you? What are your thoughts on this so-called special day of love?

Maya x

PS - I didn't get my DH a card this year, and he's ok with it. I think...

Pinterest-ing

2012-02-06T12:00:00.000Z

A few weeks ago, I noticed something on my Twitter feed. Every five or so tweets, I came across a link to something called Pinterest.

Then it became every three or four tweets. About a week ago, I realised literally every other tweet had a link to Pinterest. So what did I do? Yep, I clicked.

Sigh. No need to say it, I'm a sucker for something new and shiny. Then I noticed something else. This new, shiny thing could be great for me. Aside from the potentially huge timesuck I could feel myself getting (inevitably) drawn into, it could be the perfect forum for something which a lot of writers do but I haven't found the courage to attempt yet - storyboarding or vision-boarding!

Inspired, you say?

Well, we'll see. For now, I'm busy dragging anything that catches my ey from the internet onto my board via a simple Pin-It link and already I'm seeing the beginnings of my next-next story forming.

You can make your board as elaborate as you like - check out Nicola Marsh's board for Busted in Bollywood - wow! Or as random as you like, like, ummm, mine.

What? Don't scoff, I've only been signed for all of five minutes, so give me time...yeesh!

Seriously, I think this could work out perfectly for future stories and I'm quite excited about using this tool. Until then, I'm going to explore some more, find interesting Pinterests to follow.

If you feel like exploring Pinterest or following me, come join the timewasting...er, I mean, FUN!!

Maya x

"The End"!!

2012-01-20T11:12:00.005Z

I finally, FINALLY typed these two magical words on my current ms on Wednesday. Notice how it's taken me a full day of recovery just to shout about it? First drafts are my one misery when it comes to writing. Invariably I reach a point (normally when I'm 75% through the ms) when I want to chuck the whole thing out the window and sob hysterically into my cornflakes. It can take days, sometimes weeks for me to get over the fear that everything's not crap.

But I pushed through, I persevered, I didn't retreat, didn't surredner, I...okay, I think you get the idea. I'm done, done, done and Sasha and Marco have been given their HEA!!!

Typing "The End" never fails to lift my spirits. And overall I'm happy to report, it doesn't read like a load of crap, after all!

So now I'm madly polishing to send off to the editor (no rest for the wicked!)

Cross your fingers for me that she likes, please?

A Pub-tastic 2012!!

2012-01-01T18:11:00.002Z

I wanted to go with a 'Write-tastic' 2012, but then I thought, writing is the easy part (haha). It's the getting published with our dream publisher that seems to be the holy grail for most of us.

So, my dear fellow writers and sufferers-for-our-art, here's to a Pub-tastic 2012!!

May all our writerly (and non-writerly) dreams come true this fabulous year and may we all receive the elusive CALL!

I predict GREAT things for 2012! Don't let me down now...

Maya xx

A Very Merry Christmas

2011-12-23T16:14:00.000Z

Wow, hasn't 2011 flown by fast??! It seems like only a few days ago I was wishing all my blog friends a happy new year and already 2012 is around the corner.

Anyhow, thank you so much for being here. Without you writing would be such a lonely journey so I appreciate your company :)

And as you get ready to welcome Santa, I wish you a very merry Christmas/Happy Hanukkah! Stay safe, over-indulge to your heart's content and hug your loved ones close.

All the very best of the season...

Maya xxx

I'm Still Alive...

2011-12-08T13:59:00.003Z

...barely!

As I tweeted this morning in desperation, there are only two more sleeps until the DH gets back from LE BUSINESS TRIP. Yayyy!! I'll be an even happier bunny this time Saturday!

But seriously, that's really no excuse to neglect the blog. The why? I have none. Nada. All I know is I was feeling out of sorts, in limbo, which is weird because I'm not waiting on an editor. In fact, *looks shifty-eyed* *whispers*, it's the other way round.

BUT, my out-of-sorts-ness was blown out of the water this morning when I look ed out my day job window and saw....this, in fifteen-feet high backlight!!

HELLLLOOOOO, SIMON CLARK!

My brain's been buzzing since with lovely, umm...let's call them ideas, on what sort of character Mr Clark would make. As I ruminate some more, I invite you to share what comes to mind when you gaze on this fine specimen!!

How Forgiving Are You?

2011-11-09T15:43:00.005Z

The basic building block of any romance novel is – first the conflict, then the happy ever after. In other words, the pain before the gain. We take great pleasure in torturing our characters, making them sweat blood and tears for their happy ending. After all, the higher the stakes, the more emotionally satisfying letting them find their happiness will be.

In pursuit of this goal and in interacting with writers of other genres, I've come across a broad spectrum of “manoeuvrability” within books. There are the very obvious no-nos like infidelity (even though some writers have successfully tackled this subject), physical abuse and even sometimes emotional abuse (not to be confused with blackmail plots). There are also the secret babies which some people feel strongly about i.e. why the heroine almost always decides to keep the baby a secret. I know a particular reviewer who absolutely detests marriages of convenience and another who won't touch a revenge book.

But I’m more interested in the subjects that straddle the line and what you're willing to tolerate in any book. Nobody likes an ass-y hero. But what if your hero is behaving like an ass for a reason? What if your heroine is a complete bitch but is hiding a sensitive heart? In my latest new-to-me author, Nalini Singh's books, the male characters literally rip apart anyone who dares to harm their mates.

So, does a hero’s raised voice make you flinch? Does the sight of a heroine’s tears make you want to close the book? I must admit I read a book once where the heroine did nothing but cry from beginning to end and although the story was engaging enough, I had to "take a break" every time she let the waterworks loose because it was such a downer for me. On the other hand, I've read a historical where the heroine was being particularly hysterical and the hero slaps her back to her senses. Funnily, that didn't make me flinch because she needed that slap!

So, while the phrase "it's all in the execution" plays a part here, I'm curious to know, how much room will you give or forgive the characters in a book, and at what point do you write them off completely? Will you allow a heroine to slap a hero but absolutely detest a hero who shakes a heroine by the shoulders to make her see sense?

Discuss!

The Bits & Pieces Post

2011-10-21T10:46:00.001+01:00

First of all, a huge congratulations to everyone who entered the New Voices Contest. Just like last year, it didn’t matter that I didn’t enter myself, I was just as hooked into the competition, reading fabulous entries including those of my Minx Sisters and doing my best to bolster confidence when the dreaded "Rose Bombers" went to work!

Congratulations to everyone who entered, including the Top 21 who made the final cut. And for all who didn't make the top cut, I recommend you submit your work anyway. As the saying goes, "you gotta be in it to win it!" Right?

Next bit of news is...I didn't make my 20kby20Oct target…*hangs head in shame*. I will put my hand on heart and say I *could’ve* if I'd been willing to drop everything and I mean EVERYTHING to achieve the goal. But (and I don't meant this to sound like an excuse) sometimes you have to know when to hold ‘em and when to fold ‘em. Yep, totally channelling Kenny Rogers right now, lol. But I plan on finishing this ms in the next week or two, and I invite you all to hold me to that, heh.

Then once this book is fully dirty drafted, I have a full to revise and send to the editor before she forgets I exist! So I see crazy busy weeks until Christmas (OMG Christmas!) rolls around.

And speaking of Christmas, I’m gutted to discover that the Amazon Fire tablet (which I'm eyeing because I can't afford an iPad, grrrr) doesn't release here until the New Year. I hope this isn't so because a) Amazon will be missing a huge sales opportunity, and b) having subliminally primed the DH to make sure the tablet is in my Christmas stocking, I’ll have to now start from scratch on the subliminal ground work. *Sigh* Or maybe I’ll win the lottery and none of this will matter, huh? Stop laughing!

Ok, fine, laugh. Then tell me, what nefarious means are you employing to get what you want for Christmas?

Whoop! 30kInSept Done!!!

2011-10-01T12:54:00.000+01:00

I DID IT!!

Wow, I can't believe it. Seriously, when I started this challenge, I mistakenly thought it'd be a breeze. I had it all worked out - 250 words during my lunch break (no mornings...I don't do mornings), another 250 worked in when my boss wasn't looking. And 500 words when I got home.

I even went as far as to be smug about the weekends. Once the kids were in bed, I could write and write to my heart's content, right?

Wrong. It all started well, until Life. Just. Hit. I think I went three or four days without writing a word. Cue freakish panic. I hate losing. I really do. But I'm old enough to know sometimes losing is part of life. At around day 20 I prepared to concede defeat. But that little voice kept saying you can do it. So I took two days off. And wrote 5k words in the first day and 1.5k in the second. My confidence was back and with each day I wrote I felt so much happier watching the characters take shape.

I want to send a special thank you to Rachael Johns for organising and motivating me to take this challenge. I'm soo excited about this story right now. My pantsing style means it'll need major overhauling to sync it all together nicely, but it's story I've been dying to tell since the idea struck a few months ago so I'm glad to have been challenged to write it.

This sign is especially for you, Rachael, for getting the ball rolling and for all the awesome participants who made the challenge such fun!

The aim is to set a personal challenge to write the almost 20k words needed to finish my ms by October 20.

Anyone wanna join me?

Maya x

Man Candy Monday

2011-09-26T09:34:00.004+01:00

Hope everyone had a brilliant weekend. Didn't it fly by at warp speed?

Anyway, because I have nothing much to talk about other than that my September Challenge is kicking my tush at the moment, but I'm determined to wrestle it down, I thought I'd share a few hmmm hmmms to help combat the Monday Blues!

Enjoy

Wouldn't you just love to be the wind in his windswept hair? Ahem...

Nice smile, Mister!

Wait, let me count that six-pack again...

Admit it, you love a guy in pink!

Ok, you've procrastinated enough. Now that I've inspired you, go forth and be inspired...or something ;)
xx

Back up the back up

2011-09-18T17:30:00.000+01:00

This isn't a post about an amazing new discovery. Well, unless you're a new, fresh off the train newbie writer. In which case, welcome to the chaos!

One of the first pieces of advice I heard when I started writing with a view to publishing was this: long waits are inevitable - deal with it.

The other piece of advice I received: write while you wait. Now while this is solid, no-nonsense advice, in the past I've found this soooo life-suckingly depressing and debilitating to the point of complete non-productivity!

Surely the editor will LOVE my subbed manuscript? She’d offer me a contract and (just because I love editing), give me a few lightweight edits before sending off my baby on great white clouds of fluffiness to the print house with instructions to print 1 million copies! Huh? Yes??!

Alas, the reality is very grim. While I've waited to hear back, I've pottered about, clicking refresh at least once an hour, moaning to my CPs, Twittering, blog-hopping, and clicking refresh some more - as if by doing so the editor will somehow feel my pain and put me out of my misery.

But then slowly it began to dawn on me that I wasn’t doing myself any favours. All I was doing was putting my life on hold for the sake of one manuscript. And no matter how much I loved my story, it was imperative that I had a back up if the editor didn’t *gasp* love my characters as much as I did. Yes, folks, it turns out the wise been-there-done-that authors were right. Have a back up.

But then I thought, why not go one step further? What if the editor comes back to you and asks for another story. You present your other bouncing, freshly washed and powered baby and she goes, “Er, no, your baby's not as fresh or powered as you think. It's got major colic, and I think you missed that stinky diaper."

I know this will cue a lot of "duhs" in blogland, but I'd actually never thought that far ahead until I realised this could be a real possibility. Nothing like being asked “what else have you got?” and answering, “umm, actually, nothing at the moment.”

So, I stopped clicking refresh, and clicked on my "wips" folder. Why? Because, the thought of missing an opportunity like that made me break out in a cold sweat.

We all have our goals. For now, mine is to always have a back up because a) when the dreaded R lands, I'll have something new to sub and, b) should The Call ever happen (I'm far from giving up on that dream!), I won't have to stress about scrambling to write Book 2.

So my tiny piece of advice? Back up your back up. You never know when you'll need it!

I’m baaaaaack!

2011-09-01T00:15:00.000+01:00

Hello Blogland, did you miss me? I certainly missed you all during my mini-hiatus but so I’m glad I took the break and so did my kids, lol.

So my summer was filled with lots of highs - meeting up with family I hadn’t seen in years and some (my nephew and niece) I’d never met, lovely days out with good food and great friends, lazy days in the hammock with Pimms. Seriously, I could do that Every. Single. Day. The hammock part, not the drinking part because, well, not sure my liver would thank me… and a few lows - my car crash the second day into my break...arghhh!

No one was seriously hurt but let's just say narrow country roads, pouring rain and blind curves DO NOT MIX! Luckily the other driver admitted liability so dealing with insurance stuff, though extremely tedious, was very straightforward!

But I’m back and rearing to go writing-wise. I've decided to join the 30k in September Challenge organised by Rachel Johns. If you’re on Twitter you can join using the #30kinSept hashtag. I really need a kick up the bum writing-wise. Not because I haven't been writing but because I've written lots...on different mss! In the last couple of weeks I've written about 10k on four (yes 4!) different manuscripts and frankly, I'm slightly fed up with myself. So starting today, I’m concentrating on my F1 story and fingers crossed I hope to be 30k into it by September 30. I mean, seriously, 1k a day...how hard can it be? *coughsplattercough*

Another reason I’m looking forward to September is two of my favourite shows are back:

Sons of Anarchy (which satisfies my bad boy addiction)

And...

Castle!

Last season ended on such a cliffhanger... well, sorta because there can be no way Beckett dies but the last couple of episodes before the end was one of the best I've seen in a while! Also (fingers crossed and shiny romance fairy dust sprinkled) this season we'll FINALLY get to see the romance aspect of Castle and Beckett's characters develop beyond the longing looks and almost kisses!

Anyway, how have you been and what are you up to as summer tapers off and autumn opens up her cool and loving arms?

I'd love to know :)

Summer's Here!!

2011-08-03T15:06:00.002+01:00

I know, I know, it's been here for a while.

But it's finally here for me as I can enjoy it properly (in my hammock with a glass of Pimms nearby), occasionally dragging myself to the kitchen to fetch my ever hungry kids a snack!

I'm also taking a short break from blogging just to enjoy the Great British blink-and-you'll-miss-it weather. So, wishing everyone a lovely, healthy, sunny summer and see you at the end of the month!!

Maya xx

Let Love Shine

2011-07-25T21:35:00.002+01:00

So, you’d have to have been living in a deep, dark hole in the middle of the Amazon not to have heard or seen the heart wrenching news of Norway and Amy Winehouse this weekend.

I’d heard whispers of Norway while at work on Friday but I’m ashamed to say I’m so used to the words “car bomb” now that I let is wash over me. It wasn’t until I was ready to welcome the weekend that the true state of affairs sank in.

My heart truly goes out to all those affected by this horrible atrocity and hope they can find, some way, some how, to heal in time.

Amy Winehouse I didn’t believe for a full minute after my DH told me. He was watching the news. I had my headphones on. I asked, “What’s she done now?” He said, “She’s dead.” I thought he was joking. Cue goose bumps once I’d wrenched my headphones off. My heart stopped.

So many lives. Wasted. So much talent. Gone forever. So, so sad.

But what disturbed me through all this was the chatter I heard on various social media. Mainly how we should mourn Norway and not Amy. This saddened me greatly. BOTH situations are horrible. BOTH deserve our prayers.

May they all rest in perfect peace.

XXX

#MarryingCadeWave Stop Two

2011-07-13T10:45:00.002+01:00

It’s launch day for my awesome CP, Sally Clements’ new book, Marrying Cade, and to celebrate, she’s having a Mexican wave of excerpts! You can keep up with the wave’s progress on the twitter hashtag #MarryingCadeWave – and add a tweet with the hashtag to chat with everyone else who’s reading along!

Here’s how to do it…these are the stops, just call in to these blogs to read each excerpt (they start at stop one, and finish at stop ten). Alternatively, start wherever, and click on the next stop link at the bottom of the excerpt. Or just click on the buy link, to get your own copy of Marrying Cade!

Stop One – Talli Roland’s blog http://talliroland.blogspot.com/
Stop Two – Maya Blake’s blog http://mayabauthor.blogspot.com/
Stop Three – Nas Dean’s blog http://nas-dean.blogspot.com/
Stop Four – Joanne Coles’s blog http://joannecleary.blogspot.com/
Stop Five – Romy Summers’ blog http://romysommer.blogspot.com/
Stop Six – Lorraine Wilson’s blog http://lorraine-wilson.blogspot.com/
Stop Seven – Joanne Pibworth’s blog http://joannepibworth.blogspot.com/
Stop Eight – Suzanne Jones’ blog http://suzanne-sj.blogspot.com/
Stop Nine – Lacey Devlin’s blog http://laceydevlin.blogspot.com/
Stop Ten – Sally Clements’ blog http://sallyclements.blogspot.com/

Stop Two’s excerpt…
“C’mon, man, I’m getting married!” Adam gulped a mouthful of Bellucci Red, pushed back the light wicker chair, and strode across the gravel to the Fiori Hotel’s entrance. “I’ll get us some antipasti while we’re waiting.”

Cade tilted his head up toward the blazing sun, feeling its warmth heat his skin. Adam had called the Bellucci villa the moment their helicopter landed, and they’d checked in to Isola dei Fiori’s only hotel.

Traditionally, the bride and groom didn’t catch a glimpse of each other on the wedding morning, so Cade and Adam had been billeted at the hotel to prevent any “accidental sightings.”

Cade longed for some shuteye, but that wasn’t going to happen. Adam was totally focused on being with his bride, and as best man, Cade had to give Adam what he wanted.

Isola dei Fiori was just as he’d remembered.

Buy links: Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, The Wild Rose Press

Before you go on to Stop Three, do click the tweet button below to help get the wave going!

Now, continue on to Stop Three here! http://nas-dean.blogspot.com/

Review at Madeline Ash’s blog… http://madelineash.blogspot.com/

Happy, happy release day, Sally!!

Maya xx

Out of Season Favourites

2011-06-29T00:43:00.014+01:00

I'm always devastated when my favourite shows wrap up for the season in late May/early June. It seems like it'll be forever until they return in the Autumn but the clever people at HBO and SyFy have cottoned onto the trick of keeping viewers entertained through this "fallow" season.

True Blood...YEEESS!!!

Like a long awaited (if blood thirsty) friend, True Blood is back!! I will admit I haven't seen the much-lauded preview because Season 3 left me a little "whaaaa?", "hmmm?" "that's it?", and a small part of me doesn't want to be disappointed. But the word on the street, or Twitter to you and me, is that it's a must-watch. So, yep, I plan on watching! And if Alcide returns to show us more of his awesome bod, well, I won't complain at all. For more of this superb specimen of man, check out Seven Sassy Sister's blog!

Watch Trailer

Haven Heaven!!!

Another favourite I can't wait to see next month is Haven! I love, love, love this show (thank you Minx Sally for the introduction!) Finding out it was based on Stephen King's The Colorado Kid made me love it more. Don't want to be a spoiler-puss to those who haven't seen it, but the male lead finds out something pretty awesome about the female lead that makes the writer in me stand up and cheer. It's something only she can give him and his discovery made for a heart warming moment.
This picture shows the scene moments before he finds out! You have to watch it if you want to know more ;) Trust me the final scene of Season 1 offers one of the best cliffhangers I've seen in a loooong time, so I can't wait to jumpt into Season 2!

Watch Trailer

So that's my summer watching sorted! Autumn brings Season 4 of Sons of Anarchy but that's a whole 'nother post (with pictures!) so watch out for it.

In the meantime, I'd love to know what you're watching/doing/planing for the summer.

Enjoy the sunshine, the strawberries (not so much the flies) and if you're watching Wimbledon, cheer for Andy Murray, please. Our British dry spell has lasted long enough!

Free Novella from Carina Press

2011-06-21T11:38:00.003+01:00

To mark their first anniversary, Carina Press are giving away a book a day all this week. There are some really great titles on the list!

Follow the link below to download a book a day.

http://ebm.cheetahmail.com/c/tag/hBN-0t9B8VifHB8bstrCEr7U8dV/

Enjoy!!

Heads Up

2011-06-06T12:24:00.002+01:00

I just came across this link on the eHarlequin board for anyone who's ever wanted to write for any of their lines.

Hope it helps!

http://community.eharlequin.com/forums/write-stuff/dees-rt-notes-harlequin-spotlight#new

Have a great week, everyone :)

Fast Cars, Hot Men!

2011-05-22T01:55:00.001+01:00

Umm, need I say more? Okay, I will.

The world of Formula One has fascinated me ever since my obssessed brothers introduced me to the sport over ten years ago. Although I must admit back then the hypnotic sound of the engine revs was more effective at helping along my Sunday afternoon nap than anything else. But once I started paying attention to how much preparation went into the Sunday events and how 1/1000th of a second could mean the difference between pole position and second place, I was hooked. Throw in guys with overalls with tight buns and well, I was double-hooked!

Fast-forward a few years later, when writing and conjuring up heroes manly enough to match my heroines became yet another obssession.

Of course I had my pick from hot movie stars and influential men from around the world, but somehow the word "hero" always makes me think of a Formlua One driver.

I mean who would be manly enough to risk his life hurtling around a track at over 200mph? Ok, don’t answer that! But there is a fierce dedication that these men bring to their craft that speaks to the writer in me, coupled with the fact that unlike some Hollywood movie stars, they don't use their fame as an excuse for serial adultery!

The great Schumi has been married to his wife for over 15 years.

And both Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton have been with their girlfriends for years. How awesome is that?
All I need is a female Formla One Driver.

There were rumours that the stunning Danica Patrick would be in the line-up last year, but unfortunately that didn’t pan out. Now that would be my ultimate heroine!

Hmm, maybe I should write one? While I let this idea percolate, I'd love to know who your ultimate hero/heroine is.

So, dish : )

We're Still Celebrating!

2011-05-17T15:26:00.002+01:00

Don't forget that all through May, the Minxes of Romance are celebrating being one year old!

There are lots of awesome prizes to be won and a super dooper grand prix at the end of the month.

For more details, hop on over to the blog and check out the contests and other exciting Minx news.

See you there!!!

Maya xx

Michael Bolton like Whooooooaaaaa!

2011-05-11T14:27:00.000+01:00

Wednesday Funny!

Warning: a sprinkling of naughty language!

Enjoy

Maya xx

Henry, oh Henry!!!

2011-05-08T10:10:00.001+01:00

My heart is broken. Truly, devastatingly, irreparably…broken.

His Eternal Gorgeousness that is Henry Cavill has been taken. Yep, the man of my dreams, the source of many a heroic fantasy has taken another as his betrothed!! But you're a happily married woman, Maya, I hear you say! Bahhh, married schmarried! This is Henry we’re talking about. Trust me, if my other half read the same news about Seven-of-Nine, he’d be in mourning too!

Anyway…where was I? Oh yes, nursing my shattered heart with these photos of Henry...

How gorgeous is he?

Oh Henry!!

Sigh. Double Sigh.

I will find the goodness to wish him the best...maybe...after a suitable period of mourning, and more ogling.

Not sure about this of one him as Superman, but who cares, right? Right??

Spare me a thought when you’re having a great weekend!

Maya xx

Best Intentions and Royal Weddings

2011-04-21T15:31:00.004+01:00

So, it’s coming up to the Easter looooong weekend we’ve all been waiting for. What, not you? Oh, well. I have. I have the Pimms and the hammock at the ready, the BBQ cleaned and ready to fire up, and through all this, keeping my fingers firmly crossed that the stunning weather we’ve been experiencing holds out for another few days.

I also realise quite glaringly it’s coming up to the end of the month and the end of my April Challenge and that to date I’ve only managed 6,000 words. I could cite a myriad excuses, but I won’t. What I will do is promise to do my very best between now and month's end. Wish me luck?

As for the inescapable news of the Royal Wedding next weekend…yes, I admit, I’m just as excited as most people – I love a wedding, and a Royal Wedding, well…that’s just icing on the cake. Plus it’s my son’s birthday party that weekend too.

So I am looking forward to two weekends of festivities in a row. And through all of this, I hope to find time to write too. Heh, who says I do things by halves?

Anyway, whatever you’re doing, have a wonderful, wonderful Easter. Hope my Easter Bunnies bring you lots of yummy chocolate eggs, and enjoy the Royal Wedding, if you’re watching.

Maya x

YES, GO THERE!!!

2011-04-08T02:00:00.001+01:00

Editors are always telling us to push the envelope, or boundaries, or whatever it is they want pushed, to which I say...YEAH!

But, when it comes to the actual pushing of the thing, I’ve always fretted about how much is enough or how much more to push it, you know? Ok, I know same sex couples won’t fly in a Presents or that the heroine can't suddenly develop fangs or horns, or wings…or can she? Hmm...

Anyway, I think one of the reasons I’ve been so reluctant to tackle my latest MS is because I'm, in a word, TERRIFIED! It starts with the heroine doing something so, so terrible that every time I think about it, I cringe for her. She’s in a desperate position and fiercely believes she doesn't have a choice. She has to act to save someone she cares about BUT it’s still wrong. From the very first line of the story, she knows this. But she *has* to go through with it or well, there's no story. And then there’s the fallout from her actions. And the hero who has to dig very, very deep to forgive and love her...

Ack! Talk about pressure. She (and by she I mean, I) have been faffing about muchly, seriously wussy about getting into the story because of this fear of pushing this particular envelope that in the end and I discussed it with my DH. Guess what he said? Well his answer is the title of this post…heh!

So I’m about to plunge my characters into their deepest, darkest nightmare and literally bringing two kingdoms to the brink of war!!! (yes, it deserves three exclamation points ;))

I need luck and a lot of backbone for this one. I *will* write it!

And if I’m not a babbling wreck by the time I finish chapter 3, I’ll let you know how it went…

April = No Slacking Month!!

2011-04-04T14:34:00.002+01:00

Since I’ve been such a slack Minx, I thought I’d mosey on over to the Minx Blog today to see what my fellow Minxes were up to. And lo and behold, I got hit in the face by the fact that I'd signed up to the April Challenge. Read more about it here.

After a few heart-stopping minutes of sheer panic, I admit this is a good thing. I've been near comatose writing-wise since I hit send on my revised full MS seven weeks ago today (Counting? Me? Nope!!). So this challenge-for-all-the-world-to-see is just what I need. So what if the kids are on holiday, and the birds are tweeting for me to join them in garden? It IS time to write *that* scene where the heroine does *that* thing she really doesn't want to do but *must* (can I put any more asterixes in this post, d’you think?) which results in HUGE turmoil for her and her hero!

Wish me luck?

Oh, and whilst procrastinating percolating, I started compiling a playlist for the upcoming challenge. Well, I say compiling, but so far I haven't gone past this song.

It's dancey, but the words, whilst not profound, is making me think lots about my MS.

Enjoy!

Hurray For Broken Computers

2011-03-17T11:15:00.004Z

Yes, I know that sounds a bit well, weird and cruel, especially if it’s happened to someone else. But, here's what resulted from my CP Romy’s broken computer and lack of internet troubles. And no, I’m not being cruel because she mentions it herself.

And then her alter ego went and surprised me all over again buy giving me another review. Now, the sceptical among you (yes, I know y'all are out there) might think, well, she's your CP, so she's bound to be partial. Well, let me tell you, Romy is one tough cookie when it comes to critting and giving her opinion on what she likes and doesn't like, so these reviews are worth their weight in gold to me. So thank you, Romy,

The Importance of First Pages

2011-02-25T12:03:00.005Z

As put succinctly by the awesome Jessica Hart!

You can read it here.

I'm off to enjoy the lovely almost spring-like sunshine with the kidlets!

And if it's not quite spring-like where you are, here are some pictures to cheer you up!

Have a great weekend everyone :)

Maya xx

Sent & Kindled!!!

2011-02-18T11:14:00.006Z

So, it's been five days since I pressed SEND on the revised full to the editor. She acknowledged it and said she'd get back to me asap! I think I'm just beginning to get over the shock of pressing that dreaded button.

But even while I've been numb with shock, my sub-conscious has been working overtime because, get this, I've dreamt about my ms every night for the last THREE NIGHTS!! And every time, I'm having a weird conversation with the editor about it.

Seriously, I'm a little freaked out about this...

Anyway, to help me not totally go out of my mind, I finally contacted Amazon on Tuesday to shout at somebody for my state of non-Kindle-ness. Heck, I've only been waiting since Christmas!

And Lo and Behold, I received it yesterday!

Here it is in all it's awesome glory (loving this picture of John Steinbeck, whoever he is).

I've already uploaded a few books - the one in the second picture is Sarah Morgan's One Night...Nine-Month Scandal - which I'm loving at the moment!

*cue happy sigh* I've wanted a Kindle for aaaaagggggesss, so I'm really chuffed it's finally here!

Plus now I've got something to take my mind off checking my inbox every three seconds...because every ten seconds is perfectly sane, don't you think?

Not Letting Go

2011-01-21T10:33:00.005Z

I thinks the gods heard my plaintive post earlier this week about letting go and have mercifully replied because it seems I won’t have to let Bastien and Ana go after all (scroll down or click here).

Yes my lovely blog pals and readers, I’ve heard from the Editor. IN JUST NINE DAYS! I’m sure people have heard back quicker than this but considering I was bedding down for a long, long wait (I gave myself six months minimum), you can imagine my shock when I opened my email on Wednesday to find an email from the editor. She wants revisions *small sigh*. But these are totally doable and even better, she gave some lovely examples of how the ms can be improved! I love that!!

So I have my lovely Bastien and Ana back for at least a month (I have a deadline, people!) before I have to say goodbye again, but believing they’ll be going back shinier, happier and even more in love than they already are is giving me a great boost!

Wish me luck my friends because I need all the help I can get.

Letting Go

2011-01-17T11:11:00.005Z

I know it's been only a week since I sent Bastien and Ana off to the editor who requested it (and she's confirmed receipt y'all, so big yays that the two lovebirds didn't end up in cyber no man's land!).

BUT, withdrawal from characters you've been living and breathing for months on end is proving harder that I thought. I tried delving into another story but so far, no dice. Giselle and Seb have got their own journey with a lot of angst brewing (I'm sure), but so far they're giving me nothing...NOTHING! Well, ok...a measly half page.

So it got me thinking. Maybe I just need a little more "downtime" or "mourning time" to get over Bastien and Ana before I commit to Giselle and Seb. But even knowing this, I'm beginning to panic a little because what if G&S go into a sulk and won't talk to me when I finally get my act together? How much mourning period is enough? And how do I get over it?

PS - resorting to chocolate is no longer an option. Yes, it's January and the diet is back on, unfortunately *sigh*

Maya

Kicking A$$ And Taking Names!!

2011-01-11T00:01:00.001Z

Okay, so I didn't kick a$$, not literally. And no, I didn't actually take any names either. *looks around sheepishly*

BUT, I did do one thing yesterday though, and that was to SEND OFF THE BOOK!!

Cue biggest SQUEEEEE EVAH!!! I spent the weekend polishing, primping and powdering it to within an inch of its life. Right this minute, Bastien & Ana should be having their post-landing-in-editor's-inbox celebratory brunch (unless I clicked on the wrong button and sent them to cyber no man's land - it's been known to happen!)

You have no idea how relieved I am that this ms has gone. And to celebrate, I've decided to do something different. No it's not shopping for shoes or more books, although... wait...no, the DH would kill me, fer sure!!

No, it involves more writing (alas the disease, it is ravaging!).

I've been thinking, it's time to tackle another single title. Now I have two stories pecking away at me - Naomi's story set in Alaska with Mason the lumberjack (stop smirking!), or Giselle's story set in the spectacular South American country of Belize. Both were started last year and are in various stages of completion, and Giselle's story is more advanced, but I'm torn as I'm equally excited about both. So I need your help deciding.

What do you think? Giselle or Naomi?

Maya

Sizzling Irish Hotties

2011-01-07T23:37:00.003Z

Bet that got your attention! Well, they're not here.

They're over on the Minxes Blog where we're conducting a poll for your favourite Irish heartthrob.

So get over there, NOW!

Oh, and Happy New Year again. May all your wishes and aspirations for 2011 be fulfilled.

Love,

Maya xx

HAPPY 2011

2010-12-31T20:27:00.004Z

As 2010 draws to a close and the New Year dawns, I want to wish you and yours all the very best for the coming year. May your year be filled with all your heart's desires, health and happiness.

And Happy New Year to my Aussie and Kiwi pals. Hope the New Year looks fabulous for you already!

Much love,

Maya xxx

Merry Merry Christmas...

2010-12-25T12:34:00.006Z

To all my wonderful blog friends, readers and to everyone.

Hope your day is filled with love and happiness :)

Love,

Maya xxx

Blog Tour Winners Announced!!!

2010-12-18T10:10:00.001Z

Thank you so very much for everyone who took the time to comment during The Wild Rose Press authors' blog tour. Your support is very much appreciated and I hope you enjoyed our various posts on the Christmas theme.

And now for the best part. The names were put in a hat, shaken and stirred and the winner of the first prize - a pair of silver strand earrings goes to.....

Liz Flaherty!!!

Congratulations and please contact me with your details.

The second prize of a 3-chapter & synopsis goes to....

Joanna St James (or anyone she nominates)!!!

Congratulations and a very Merry Christmas and a Wonderful New Year to everyone!

Maya xxx

The Wild Rose Tour Welcomes Amy Corwin

2010-12-15T02:17:00.006Z

To round off our Wild Rose Blog Tour, I'm honoured today to welcome Amy Corwin who's here to tell us about her favourite Christmas tradition. I'll be over on Lilly Gayle's blog talking about my own Christmas "tradition", so do stop by and say hello :)

Amy:

Strangely enough, this was the hardest blog to write because my family never really had any traditions! That sounds so terrible and yet we always had the best time because the holidays were always low-key and simply a fun.

For Christmas, Mom would really “do up” the house. We only had a few lights outside, but inside…wow! In the early 60’s, we had one of those silver tinsel trees with a rotating color disk to make it green, red, yellow and blue in succession. And we had a smaller white tree with bubble lights in our dining room bay window. Then every surface had decorations from ceramic figurines, to wax candles. We had so many bayberry candles that it simply isn’t Christmas to me without the scent of bayberry burning.

My aunt knitted us stockings to hang on the fireplace and over the years, they stretched and stretched and stretched until they held tons of goodies by the time we were adults. We never stopped hanging our stockings at the fireplace, either. When I got married fifteen years ago, my aunt knitted my husband a stocking to hang on our fireplace. Of course, his doesn’t hold nearly as much as mine, which has been stuffed with goodies every Christmas since 1957. Of course, the goodies it was stuffed with consisted of undies, socks, gloves, one or two “Just for fun” tiny toys, and a few candies.

My mom was so holiday crazy that she even made felt doorknob covers, complete with embroidered and sequined Santas and dangling bells. During the 70’s, we all made ceramic Christmas trees that lit up, as well as ceramic ornaments for our tree. The silver tinsel tree drifted down to the basement and we got a bigger, better green one that could hold the millions of lights, tinsel, and ornaments we either made or bought (on sale!). By 1974, we must have had seven or eight trees dispersed through the house for the holidays, plus two complete ceramic manger sets my mom made.

We weren’t allowed to open any presents Christmas Eve. We usually had a wonderful dinner, lit the logs in the fireplace and sprinkled powder over them to make them sparkle with brilliant colors. I have no idea what it was, but I remember the scents and amazing multicolored flames. Then with the fire crackling, we watched a holiday movie and finally, as the fire died down, laid out the cookies and milk for Santa. Then it was early to bed (as if we could sleep). The next morning-wow! We would all tumble out of bed early, dressed in our Buster Brown pajamas, quilted robes, and slippers and run into the living room. Nothing could happen until everyone was there.

Then we’d take all the bulging stockings down, first, and pass them to their rightful owner. We start a fire in the fireplace and us kids would start handing around the packages. While we saved most of the paper for the next year, if there was any packaging that couldn’t be reused, into the flames it went! And what glorious flames some of those metallic wrappings made!

Once the orgy of gift giving was over, we’d dress and start cooking a really, really, BIG breakfast. There was no standard meal, per se, but it was often pancakes, real maple syrup, bacon, and orange juice. It seemed like we barely finished cleaning up breakfast when we started cooking again. Sometimes it was ham, sometimes a roast, sometimes a turkey—there was really no set meal—but the food was amazing. After dinner, Grandma would pull out all the boxes of cookies we had been making earlier in the month, in addition to mincemeat pie with real whipped cream. I’ll never forget opening the refrigerator to see a bowl and mixer in there, chilling so the whipped cream would be really fluffy.

And the eggnog—how I loved eggnog—real, homemade eggnog with plenty of nutmeg.
We spent the day cooking, playing with—or wearing—our gifts, and talking. Just having fun. This was the day when we also brought out our board games such as Monopoly or Scrabble, sometimes even cards. I loved those games and the chance to just sit around, eat, and talk all day. So while we never had any strict traditions, we sure had magical Christmases.

And now here's a brief bio: Amy Corwin is a charter member of the Romance Writers of America and has been writing for the last ten years and managing a career as an enterprise systems administrator in the computer industry. She writes Regencies/historicals, mysteries, and contemporary paranormals. To be truthful, most of her books include a bit of murder and mayhem since she discovered that killing off at least one character is a highly effective way to make the remaining ones toe the plot line.

Amy’s books include the Regency, SMUGGLED ROSE; three Regency romantic mysteries, I BID ONE AMERICAN, THE BRICKLAYER’S HELPER, and THE NECKLACE, and her first paranormal, VAMPIRE PROTECTOR.

Website: http://www.amycorwin.com/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/amycorwin
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AmyCorwinAuthor
Blog: http://amycorwin.blogspot.com/

Blurbs

The Bricklayer’s Helper
A masquerade turns deadly when a murderer discovers who hides behind a commoner’s disguise.

After her family perishes in a suspicious fire, Sarah hides her identity by working as a bricklayer's helper. But her disguise can't keep her safe when someone discovers she survived the flames.

Alone and terrified, Sarah pins all her hopes on William Trenchard, the only available inquiry agent with Second Sons. William, however, seems far too handsome to have the intelligence necessary to solve the mystery, and Sarah fears that involving him may be her final~and fatal~mistake.

The pair are in for a wild ride as they try to solve a decade-old mystery of murder and deceit in Regency England.

Vampire Protector

A frightened woman must unlock her memories if she's to survive the deadly company of her Vampire Protector…

An anonymous note forces Gwen on a mission to discover an ancient family secret that may be hidden in her long abandoned childhood home. When she asks her attractive neighbor, John, to accompany her, she’s not expecting much, except possibly help if she falls through any rotten floors.

Unfortunately, that's just her first mistake.

John is a vampire, and her house is not exactly empty. Secrets—and the dead—won’t always stay buried, and John’s extraordinary strength and determination may be all that can withstand what awaits them in the shadows...

Thanks so much for sharing your tradition and books with us! Wishing you the happiest of holidays!

And visitors, to make the holiday season just that little bit more magical and fun, remember to please comment for a chance to win any of the fabulous prizes from the Rose Tour. If you've already commented and have stopped by these last four weeks, can I just say a massive thank you for your support.

All the very best for 2011 everyone :)

The Wild Rose Blog Tour Welcomes Rachel Brimble

2010-12-08T09:55:00.001Z

Christmas is a mere 17 days away, can you believe it??? I certainly can't. I seemed like just yesterday when I celebrated my son's six birthday in May! But yes, the holiday season IS upon us and our thoughts turn to that special day and what makes it even more special for some of us. I'll be sharing my favourite Christmas movie over on Amy Corwin's Blog, but today, Rachel Brimble is here to tell us what movies make Christmas extra special for her...

Ahh, Christmas in front of the fire with a movie….

Is there anything better than the time comes when you know there is nothing more you can do to prepare for the big day??

I love that moment when I know I’ve bought all the presents and food, the decorations are up, the tree is looking beautiful, the cards have been sent – and all that is left, is waiting for Christmas Day. What I haven’t bought/send/ remembered now is just too bad!

And when that time comes, it is my family tradition to put on a movie and sit back with a glass of wine, the kids and hubby and enjoy…

My two absolute favorites that come on every year for as long as I remember are:

Miracle of 34th Street with Richard Attenborough

This movie just has everything! (And I cry every year without fail…)

The girl with the lisp and the huge eyes, the most perfect movie Father Christmas EVER and love rules triumphant – what more do you want in a Christmas message?

My daughters are just coming out of the age of believing in Father Christmas so I know this is probably my last year of the magical moment of watching their eyes wide in wonderment - there is nothing better in the whole world!

And then for hubby and me?? Total madness! We love putting the kids to bed the night before Christmas Eve and sitting up to watch….
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation with Chevy Chase.

You either love it or hate it – I LOVE this movie!

You can’t help but laugh at the madness, the mayhem, the characters we all know and love, it’s just a great, great movie!

Make sure you check out my fellow tour authors’ guest blogs (I have Amy Corwin visiting with me this week!) – we are all sharing our favorite movies. It’s gonna be fun, fun, fun!

Make sure to comment as we are all giving away a fantastic prize each at the end of the tour.

Merry Christmas, everyone!
Love,
Rachel xx

You can stay in touch by visiting Rachel at http://www.rachelbrimble.com/ or http://www.rachelbrimble.blogspot.com/

And remember, while this tour runs, you can be in with a chance of winning some amazing prizes like these pair or earrings or a three-chapter & synopsis crit from me. For a list of the other awesome prizes from the authors check out Rose Blog Tour.

Stay In Character

2010-12-03T12:00:00.001Z

So, after several years of writing I'm still surprised and thrilled when I get another one of these ============>>>

You're writing what you think it an awesome scene, everything is going brilliantly, then all of a sudden, your character does or says something stupid. Or quirky. Or dirty. Heck, even blasphemous. Know what I mean?

Now, while there's nothing wrong with any of these scenarios, your fingers suddenly pause because, deep inside, your know something's wrong. You find yourself thinking, hmmm, would he/she really say that at this particular moment? And therein lies my problem. I had a line I really wanted my character to say. It was awesome. It rocked. I repeated it to my husband and he loved it! But somehow, my hero just hated it.

He tried to say it at the beginning of the sentence. Didn't work. In the middle of the sentence, with a stupid grin on his face. Didn't work. At the end, with one raised brow, clenched jaw and fist clenched. Er, heck no, it didn't work.

Guess why not? Because that would've meant him acting out of character.

Let me give an example: Your character is a mime, doing his routine, thrilling the audience. Then halfway through his routine... he speaks. This is the equivalent of throwing the reader completely out of the story. If it goes spectacularly wrong, your book can even end up being a wallbanger (cringe).

My character rebelled because what I was trying to get him to say just wasn't HIM. He knew what he wanted to say and he got pretty frustrated that I wasn't finding the right words for him.

Now, previously, I would've have just got him to express himself better without knowing exactly what he was doing wrong. But now I know exactly what he's doing wrong and I even have a name for it, yipppeeee. Spotting the mistake a mile off is a huge relief and saves me loads of time (and this is where learning craft helps). It may not sink in initially, or even for a while after you learn a new trick or two (like me), but after while, once you keep writing, it will come to you.

And hopefully, you will share it with me *wink*

Maya xx

The Wild Rose Blog Tour Welcomes PL Parker

2010-12-01T08:00:00.002Z

As the holidays draw ever closer, I for one have started planning for the best bit - the Food! Today, I welcome PL Parker who's awesome enough to share with us not one but two family recipes. And they both sound truly yummy!

I'll let her tell you more about it...

Every year on Christmas morning, while the presents are being opened my father brings out several pans of what we’ve termed “Dad’s Breakfast Casserole.” He fixes it several days in advance and on Christmas morning, whoever is hungry dishes out a serving of this wonderful concoction and warms it in the microwave. It is a long-standing tradition and one that makes Christmas all the more special.

Dad’s Breakfast Casserole

Phase 1:
9 x 11 pan – spray with Pam
8 slices of bread cut into bite-sized pieces
1 ½ lbs sausage – browned & drained (I prefer less spicy but to taste)
¾ cup cheese grated (your choice but I prefer medium sharp Cheddar)
Layer bread, sausage, cheese
Phase 2:
Mix together:
4 eggs
2 ½ cups milk
½ tsp. salt
¾ tsp dry mustard
Pour over bread and sausage mixture and refrigerate over night.
Phase 3:
Next morning mix together:
1 can cream of mushroom soup (or creamy chicken soup if you prefer)
½ cup milk
2 cans mushrooms (drained and sliced)
Pour over the casserole and bake uncovered at 325 degrees for 1 hour.
(If you are a mushroom hater like my Mom, leave out the mushrooms
and stick with the creamy chicken soup – still wonderful.)

My grandmother was an absolutely wonderful cook, she worked as a pastry cook when I was little and every year at Christmas, she’d come up with something new and fun. One year she made Rice Crispie treats in the shape of snowmen and decorated their faces with little candies and served them on a stick. She made lemon meringue pies from scratch so absolutely wonderful, I can still taste them. Unfortunately, she didn’t keep recipes. Everything she made was in her head. She was so creative. I really miss her still, more so at Christmas. But:

She passed on her talent to my mother and each year we had to have Mom’s Oatmeal Cookies. These are cake-like cookies and so full of flavor, I’m going to have to make a batch when I get through writing this – YUM!

Mom’s Oatmeal Cookies

1 cup sugar
2 tbls sweet milk
2 cups flour
1 tsp cloves
1 tsp cinnamon
Pinch salt
1 cup lard
3 eggs
1 level tsp soda in ¾ cups hot water
2 cups oatmeal (quick cooking kind)
1 cup raisins or nuts (to your taste or omit if you don’t like)
Cream together sugar and lard
Add in the soda/hot water mixture
Add flour, cinnamon, cloves, salt
Add eggs
Add in the oatmeal and raisins/nuts.
Mixture should be really stiff – if not – add a little more flour or oatmeal.
Drop by spoonfuls onto cookie sheet and bake at 375 degrees for
15 minutes or until brown.

Thanks so much for being here today, PL. Now tell us a little more about yourself.

I am a mother to 3 grown sons, a grandmother to 1 sweet granddaughter--whose birthday just happens to be Christmas Day. I am married to my best friend and soul mate. I currently have published with The Wild Rose Press three novels, Fiona, Riley’s Journey and Aimee’s Locket, one shorter story, Heart of the Sorcerer, and two Free Reads, Prophecy’s Bride and Songbird. I am currently working on edits for two more novels, Absolution, and Into the Savage Dawn (sequel to Riley’s Journey). For more information (reviews, blurbs, cover art, places to buy), visit me at: http://www.plparker.blogspot.com/ or http://www.plparker.com/

Remember we're giving away super awesome prizes for commenting on this blog or any other Rose Tour Blog during December. Today, I'll be hanging out with Victoria Gray. Do stop by and say hi. See you there!

The Wild Rose Blog Tour Welcomes Nana Malone!

2010-11-24T09:50:00.000Z

Kicking off our Wild Rose Blog Tour, I'm very pleased to welcome Nana Malone to my blog.

Today, Nana is spilling the beans on what's on her Christmas To Be Read pile. Caution, some of the titles will make you want to curl up and read too :)

Take is away, Nana, tell us what you want for Christmas!

All I want for Christmas is a Boatload of Books

I’ve always asked for books for Christmas. While other little kids were asking for a new bike or new Atari video game, I asked for books. Well, books and a new corn silk Cabbage Patch Kid.

Come On. I wasn’t made of stone. They were really cute.

I loved all books from mysteries, to adventures to Sweet Valley Twins. I couldn’t wait to spend my whole Christmas vacation on my toasty bean bag chair curled up with my nose in a book. No snowball fights for me. Give me hot chocolate, a warm comfy place to curl into, and a good book. As an adult my needs haven’t changed much. Though, since I live in San Diego, I’ll forgo the hot chocolate for a margarita and the toasty corner for somewhere quiet without hubby, puppy or baby needing something.

This year, I’ve got a huge TBR pile. So first I’m going to indulge my inner teen and tackle the rest of the Kelley Armstrong series, Darkest Powers. I read the first and I’ve been meaning to go back to them, but alas have had zero time. Admittedly, I go peruse the YA section of the bookstore first these days. They just take me back to a simpler time. (Hands rubbing together in glee)

After I satisfy my inner teen, then I’m going to indulge my inner twenty-four year old and read the latest Lauren Weisberger book Last Night at Chateau Marmont. I love her irreverent style and I’m hoping to see more of the same spark I did in The Devil Wears Prada.

And If I have time between stuffing myself stupid, running a few miles out of guilt, and trying to finish my WIP, I’m going to read the latest Misty Evans prequel to Witches Anonymous, The Devil and Venus di Milo. What better way to round out the holiday season than with a little witchy sass.

What are you reading this holiday season?

Here's a blurb of Nana's debut novel, Game, Set, Match...

Off the court, tennis star Jason Cartwright’s playboy image is taking a public beating. On the court, he’s down forty-love. A knee injury is shutting down his game, and the paparazzi are splashing his love life on every magazine. A comeback is in order, but the makeover he needs to save his faltering career is in the hands of the woman he loved and left fifteen years ago.

While single-mom, Izzy Connors, sees people for who they really are through the lens of her camera, even without it, she knows Jason isn’t the star he appears to be. Although his charm and good looks haven’t dimmed since he broke her heart, all she sees is his wasted talent and playboy lifestyle.

Can Izzy put the past behind her and help Jason get his game, and his image, back on track? Or will the click of her camera shatter his world as well as his heart?

Ohh, your book sounds like a fun read! I adore Tennis!

Where can readers get their copies?

Buy Link:
http://www.thewildrosepress.com/game-set-match-p-4214.html

Or:
http://www.amazon.com/Game-Set-Match-ebook/dp/B0042AMIA4/ref=sr_1_cc_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1288585693&sr=1-1-catcorr

Blog:
http://nanamalone.com/blog

Thanks so much for being here today, Nana. Remember there are loads of prizes to be won during this 4-week tour. Click on the link below to find out ways to snap up lovely goodies in time for Christmas! http://rosestour.blogspot.com/2010/11/prizes-galore.html

I'll also be hanging out with Sally Clements for the day, so please do stop by and say hello :)

And The Editor Said...

2010-11-21T13:43:00.000Z

I’ll tell you in a minute. First I’ll start at the beginning.

If you follow this blog, you’ll know that (like most writers) every now and then I get the “meehness” about my writing. Guess what? A few months ago I did. Thanks for all your encouraging words and hugs btw, they helped lots.

However, during one of these “episodes” I did a foolish thing…I pinged off three chapters and a suckopsis to an Editor at Harlequin Mills and Boon. In my defence, I did it because of my DH. The poor man was so tired of my “meehness”, he pleaded with me to send, something, anything so I’d feel better (although I suspect he meant so he’d have to stop listening to me whinge).

So I pressed send on Bastien and Ana’s story.

Fastforward to Friday afternoon just before 4.30 (I know the time because I was due to sing happy birthday to a work colleague at exactly 4.30 and I couldn’t duck out of it because I’d already devoured a large proportion of her birthday cake!), I snuck a peek at my email.

Lo and behold, an email from Harlequin Mills and Boon!!!

And The Editor Said…

Send me the FULL. Wooohooooo!!!!

I’m very happy and excited and suffice it to say DH is feeling pretty smug about the whole thing too. I’m having to pander to said smugness, but hey, I can live with that. Just. For now I just need to finish the story, polish, polish, polish and send it on its way. Wish me luck?

In other news, my Christmas blog tour kicks off this Wednesday. Three of us Minxes are participating for the next four Wednesdays, along with seven other authors from The Wild Rose Press. Please stop by along the tour to show your support for Romy, Sally and me.

There are ten participating blogs and each and every blog will be running a tour contest, which means that you have ten chances to win! The tour is Christmas-themed so you'll also be able to get lots of holiday ideas, as well as pick up some new holiday reads. Please do drop by and give us your support by commenting etc. And just to make it worth your while, we’re giving away some seriously awesome goodies!!

For more information on the participating authors, the prizes they're offering, and who is visiting where and when, click here: http://rosestour.blogspot.com/.

See you on Wednesday and enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Maya xx

Remembering Fiona...

2010-11-02T12:17:00.004Z

This isn’t a post about writing or competitions or deadlines. This is a post about loss. Life throws many, many obstacles at us, but the worst has got to be losing someone close to you, especially when they’re taken suddenly.

Two days ago I lost my dear cousin, Fiona. Although I hadn’t seen her in a while she was dear to me. I remember the exciting sleepovers we used to have as kids and the thrill of spending summers together. What hurts even deeper is that she'd sold her house, bought her ticket and was about to start a whole new life for herself.

To be taken so cruelly is devastating. Hearing her father say he'd lost his best friend broke my heart. So this is a reminder to hold close our loved ones, near or far. Pick up the phone, text, email, fax, whatever, but reach out to someone you love and let them know how much you love them, because you truly, truly, never know when they'll be taken from you.

Fiona, you were a light in my life.

Wherever you are, I believe your light will shine on.

You will be dearly missed.

RIP

Maya

Result!!!

2010-10-21T12:13:00.010+01:00

If you read my last post you’d know how nervous I was about my Carina Press Pitch. Well, it happened last night. And since I was so angsty about the US/UK time difference, I arrived in the chat room, get this…four and half hours early!

But I wasn’t alone. Oh no! My own personal cheerleading squad, the awesome, amazing, brings-tears-to-my-eyes Minxes were there with me every step of the way. And I'll tell you, at certain points the conversation took a turn for the well... interesting!!!

Also along for the ride were the amazing Maisey Yates and Abbi Cantrell with their pom poms at the ready!

And so it was that at the stroke of midnight, I entered the chat room and met Executive Editor Angela James.

And ladies and gents, she was really, really lovely. She put me at ease immediately and because the pitch was only ten minutes, we had to get straight down to business. That was the fastest, most exhilarating ten minutes of my life.

And the result??

Angela said she’d love to read my manuscript and requested the full!

I’m thrilled, thrilled, thrilled. I'd also like to say thank you to everyone else who turned up just for the hell of it and stayed even after I'd dragged off
myself to bed at 2am.

You're all awesome, girls, and I (and indeed all of the other pitchers) couldn't have asked for better handholders!

Thanks also to everyone who answered my last post with advice and well wishing.

You make this writer's journey so enjoyable :)

Maya xxx

Wish Me Luck?!

2010-10-14T12:53:00.002+01:00

So I entered the Carina Editor Pitch after prompting from my wonderful CPs. Have I told you how fab they are? Well, they're fab!

And guess what? I got picked…aaggghhhh, I mean, yaaaayyy! Thing is, I’ve never pitched anything in my life (unless you count the past life where I worked for a company that sold ‘discount rejuvenated perfume’) I'm not proud, and I quit after the first day when I realised there’s no such thing as "discount rejuvenated perfume". I did sell eight on my first day though so...

I digress. Yes, so I have to pitch to Angela James of Carina Press next Wednesday, which is in (gulp) six days! I’m not (quite) terrified yet, and knowing myself, I probably won’t be until about an hour before when you'll find me cowering in a corner mumbling, "why, why, why..."

Seriously though, I’m excited because even if nothing else comes of it, I'll learn the process of pitching for the next time I decide to, er, jump of a cliff, lol.

So, wish me luck and know that any words of advice or encouragement will be gratefully received :)

The List & The Party!!!

2010-10-09T17:28:00.002+01:00

So, the long awaited LIST is out. If you don't know what I'm talking about...well, what can I say...
Anyway, I was very sad (and extremely puzzled) to see none of my favourites made it onto the list. But fear not, ladies, with Joanne Pibworth's new invention of the KOKO cocktail and the smorgasbord of hotties waiting to serve them, your blue funk will not last long.

Throw your glad rags on, slink that feather boa around your necks and head on over to The Minxes Blog for The Party Of The Year!!!

See you there!!

Onwards and Upwards

2010-09-29T21:28:00.006+01:00

So the New Voices Top Ten have been announced. Mega congrats and huge glasses of bubbly to the lucky 10 who made the cut! I'm looking forward to reading your second chapters :)

I also know a LOT of people (813 to be exact) who are disappointed and who are thinking.....

To those brave souls, I raise an even bigger glass of bubbly in your honour because you know what? It took courage to submit your entry, have it read and commented on by the world and his aunt (sometimes not so politely) and remain sane without running screaming for the hills, or (more likely) throwing a giant wobbly! You all have my deepest respect.

BUT (you knew there was one, right?) now, it's time to concentrate on something different. By different I don't mean throw away your NV sub. No. I mean, pick yourself up, put NV behind you and use the momentum you had this time last week to finish that second, third, and last chapter and sub, sub, sub!

If this reads like a pep talk, it's because it is :) Going around blogland in the past couple of days, I know how disheartened people are. But it's time to put the chocolate to one side (ok, maybe not), ditch the wallowing and get back on that writing horse.

I wish you nothing but awesome ideas for your next story and fast fingers to write it with. If you've decided to do something completely different, that's ok too, but I'd love to know so tell me, what are your post-NV plans?

XOXO

Bits & Bobs & Freebies

2010-09-24T10:37:00.005+01:00

Can you believe it’s just three months to Christmas? It hadn’t occurred to me how close the holiday season was until my daughter started a discussion about what she wanted for Christmas! It featured rabbits, hamsters and goldfish - don't ask! Seriously, where has the year gone? I was grateful for the reminder though, because this year, I’m determined to get ahead of the Christmas rush and get all my shopping done by 1st November. Famous last words? We'll see...

I’d like to say a huge, huge well done to everyone who entered the New Voices Contest. It’s been a series of highs and lows (mostly highs) for many of the contestants, including my lovely CPs and I take off my hat to them for hanging in there so admirably. I can’t wait to find out who the winner is, can you?

As the weather closes in and the nights grow colder, there are some things I look forward to – my favourite TV shows returning (Strictly, anyone?) and of course, snuggling under a warm duvet with a cup of cocoa and a book by my favourite author.

So, and this is best part, to make things even sweeter, imagine how thrilled I was to find out Harlequin are giving away FREE BOOKS!!! As a reward for entering, reading, voting and commenting on the New Voices contest, Harlequin are giving a free book from almost every line. How awesome is that? So what are you waiting for? Click on this link and download your free copies NOW! And as an additional helpful hint, Minx Romy posted a fab review of one of the books, Mia's Scandal, in the summer. You can read it HERE.

Enjoy and have a lovely weekend.

The End And A New Beginning

2010-09-14T10:00:00.003+01:00

After weeks of wrestling with my never-ending-short-story-set-on-a-cruise-ship, I finally typed The End at the weekend, yaayyyyyy! This was supposed to be an exercise in writng a 15k word novella. I failed. It ended up being a 44k (and would probably end up longer once I'm done with edits!) Sigh. So if there's one thing I've learnt with this process, it's this - I can't write short *double sigh*

But I'm happy, happy, happy to be done with this ms.

While it's in the "breathing" stage, I thought I'd give my blog a makeover (that's the 'new beginning' in case you're wondering). It's something else I've been toying with for a while and as I've been told, it's good to reward yourself for goals achieved.

Also, what better way to freshen up a blog than with some man eye-candy?

Thanks to Jo C Minx, who's been extolling the virtues of Brother & Sisters, I've fallen in love with Matthew Settle. Isn't he yummy? .

What do you think? You like? Huh? The new look, I mean, not the man candy. Okay, go on, you can tell me if you like him too!

Have a great week, everyone! And besides Minx Lorraine's In Too Deep and Minx Jo P's Sequins & Secrets, be sure to look out for more Minx entries, coming soon to the New Voices Contest.

XOXO

More On New Voices Contest

2010-09-10T11:30:00.003+01:00

Still unsure whether to enter the New Voices Contest?

Well, it's started and to date there are over 100 entries. Yes!!! So if you're still angsting over whether to push your baby out into the world, head on over to the Minxes Blog for some much needed encouragement.

There are some really great entries in there *cough Minx Lorraine's In Too Deep for example cough*, so your baby will be in pretty good company and won't feel so lonely. And if you're terrified of getting your baby bruised, I can tell you that most of the entries have received very fair comments so far.

So, go take a look at the Minxes Blog and send that chapter out!

You can do it!!!

Maya xx

Fairy Dust & Fingers Crossed...

2010-09-04T00:01:00.000+01:00

In just two days, the New Voices Contest to find the new star author for Harlequin Mills & Boon gets underway.

Haven't heard of it yet? Where have you been?

Seriously this is such a wonderful opportunity for any aspiring M&B writer and if anyone's thinking of entering, I urge you to give it a go.

Anyone who visits the eharlequin board knows the editors have just finished an awesome one-month quest to find new Medical authors. This was a huge success and I get the feeling the New Voices Contest will equal that success.

To that I end, this post is to spur everyone on! I know a few
special people who will be entering (go girls!!!) and a
few others who are still...

But remember, you gotta be in it to win it!
You have to strike while the iron's hot (or the competition is running), you have to...well, you get my meaning :)

But just to add a few more sweetners, here's some fair minx magic dust on all entries and crossing my fingers for anyone who's brave enough to enter.

An especially big dose of luck to my special people (you know who you are!) I'm not entering myself, but I couldn't be happier for the potential new voice who will emerge in a few short weeks.

According to M&B editor Lucy Gilmour, the judges include Penny Jordan, Tessa Shapcott (Editorial Director) and Managing Director Mandy Ferguson! You couldn't find a better panel, ladies and gentlemen, if you tried. The mentor team is equally as fabulous!

So good luck everyone and I look
forward to reading all the entries
and seeing who emerges the lucky...

Maya xx

And The Winner Is...

2010-08-31T11:34:00.006+01:00

Following the month-long blog tour with my awesome fellow The Wild Rose Press authors, the time has come to announce the winner of the prize basket as picked by Lisa Dawn from The Wild Rose Press Marketing Department...

*drum roll...drum roll...drum roll...*

Judy Croome, step up and collect your prize of 10 ebooks from TWRP authors and a web banner designed by Aileen Harkwood!!! You also get to pick the name for Rae Summers' next hero. Congrats and very well done!

And just because our publishers are such lovely people, we also have prizes for two runners up donated by The Wild Rose Press...

Rebecca Booth, you've won a 10.00 Wild Rose Press Gift Certificate is (good at www.TheWildRosePress.com)

Shelley Munro, you've won a 10.00 Wilder Roses Gift Certificate is (good at www.thewilderroses.com)

Congrats to our winners and thank you so much to everyone who took part in our blog tour.

Have a great week.

Maya

The Last Airbender...We Hope

2010-08-31T10:49:00.002+01:00

So yesterday I took the kids to see this much talked about movie, written, produced and directed by none other than the genius that is M Night Shyamalan.

My one word review? Disappointing!

The storyline was disjointed, the dramatic pauses way over the top, the soundtrack poor and the special effects so below par that I wondered why he'd even bothered. There were so many ways he could have taken but he chose to strike somewhere between Harry Potter and Narnia with a very sad result.

As for the dialogue - I've never heard such weak dialogue in my entire movie going life. The weakest by far was "let your emotions flow [dramatic pause] like water" Whaaaa? Come on, my 8-year old can do so much better!

Even though I tried very hard to persevere, it said it all really when my 5-year old took off the 3D glasses I paid an extra 2 quid for, turned to me and said, 'Mummy, can I sleep?'

I patted his head and said, 'Go right ahead, sweeheart, I'll wake you when it's finished'.

As for the group of six teenagers who decided to hold a farting contest to alleviate their boredom, I say, what goes around comes around!

One thing I know is I won't be paying £24,95 to watch the sequel (which seems very likely if the last very, very telling scene is anything to go by!). I think I'm more disappointed since I normally like M Night's work.

So, anyone else seen this yet? What did you think?

Author Spotlight: Caroline Clemmons

2010-08-25T00:40:00.000+01:00

Goodness, I can't believe The Wild Rose Blog Tour is almost at an end! Time flies when you're having fun and it practically whizzes past when you're in great company! Today I have with me the last of my fabulous Wild Rose authors, Caroline Clemmons, who kindly hosted me on her blog last week. It's a pleasure to return the favour, Caroline. Please pull up a chair and tell us a little about yourself.

Caroline Clemmons: As long as I can remember, I've made up adventures. Okay, I admit the early creative stories featured me riding the range with Roy Rogers and Dale Evans and saving the West. What a disappointment to learn that Roy was exclusively committed to Dale! Eventually, my best friend from across the street and I decided to become better detectives than Nancy Drew. We drove our parents and neighbors crazy sticking our pert little noses where they didn't belong. About that time I started writing down my adventures, but mostly I was a reader. Not until I read Nora Roberts' early novels did I decide to create my own romance manuscripts. My road to publishing was a lot slower than Nora's was. No surprise there! I still read Nora's books—as well as those of countless other authors—but now I write full time. Unless life interferes, that is.

My Hero and I live one a small acreage in the ranching and horse country of North Central Texas. Our two daughters are grown, and supportive of my writing. Living with Hero and me now are Webster, our sweet black Shih Tzu, and our two shorthaired cats: Sebastian, a black and white tuxedo who thinks he's our watchcat; and Bailey Erin, a shy apricot tabby. When I'm not writing, I love spending time with family, reading, traveling with Hero, browsing antique malls, and digging into family history and genealogy. Writing about strong heroes and heroines who overcome amazing obstacles to forge a meaningful life together is my passion.

Maya Blake: Nora is a worldwide inspiration, isn't she? At what age were you bitten by the writing bug?

CC: I loved reading and making up stories earlier, but my eighth grade journalism teacher inspired me to write. Strangely enough, her name was Mary Stewart—not THE Mary Stewart of gothic novel fame but very important to her devoted students. I didn’t decide to write a romance novel until much, much later when my mother-in-law and husband encouraged me. My first novel was pretty bad because reading is a lot different than writing. Fortunately, I learned about RWA and attended local chapter workshops.

MB: What genre are you most comfortable writing in?

CC: Romance, although I also like writing mysteries. I guess that’s why all my romances have skulduggery of some kind in them. In romance, I write contemporary, historical, and paranormal time travel. I enjoy writing and reading all three.

MB: Writing-wise, where do you expect to be in five years’ time?

CC: NYTimes Bestseller List. Wouldn’t we all? LOL Hopefully, I’ll be writing for an advance-paying publisher. I love everything about The Wild Rose Press except that they don’t pay an advance or furnish more than one print author’s copy. Perhaps The Wild Rose Press will be so successful by then that they can pay fat advances. Who knows what the future of publishing holds in store?

MB: What’s your perfect writing habit e.g. do you prefer background noise (like music? birdsong? tinkling waterfall?) or complete silence when writing?

CC: I write with instrumental music or chakra attuning CDs. I listen to other things when checking my email, but I need classical for writing. Otherwise, I find my mind singing along instead of concentrating on writing. I find classical music promotes a good rhythm for keying in my words. I have Don Campbell’s Mozart series as well as numerous other beautiful works to soothe me as I write. And I prefer writing in my office at my desktop rather than with my laptop.

MB: If you had to pick just one, which do you think is the most important in a good story: character, voice, or plot? Why?

CC: I believe individual voice is powerful, but it’s the characters that readers either fall in love with or toss aside. Some writers get away with sloppy research or less than credible plots because they write engrossing characters.

MB: I so agree with you on voice! Writing is a consuming business. Do you ever get down time and how do you spend this time?

CC: Spending time with family is first, but I love reading, travel with my husband and/or daughters, browsing antique malls and estate sales, and family history/genealogy. My husband and I enjoy reading together in the evenings or watching a Netflix. We’re not the most exciting people. LOL My brother and I are compiling/writing a family history of our father’s Johnson/Johnston family, and that consumes part of my free time. We’re almost finished and hope to print later this fall.

MB: How exciting! Good luck with the family project. Now tell us
about your latest book or project.

CC: Currently I’m working on another time travel set in the Central Texas Hill Country. All my books are set in Texas, except for one novella. Also recent is OUT OF THE BLUE, a paranormal time travel in which a woman from 1845 Ireland plops down in a 2010 Texas lake, released in June.

My latest release is THE TEXAN’S IRISH BRIDE, which is a western historical in which Texas rancher Dallas McClintock is trapped into marrying Irish lass Cenora Rose O’Neill and taking her wild family home with him. Both books were fun to write, and both bookcovers were designed by Nicola Martinez.

THE TEXAN’S IRISH BRIDE is the most eye-catching cover I ever had.

MB: They're both absolutely beautiful. I've got cover-envy, lol. So, as an author, what’s the best advice you’ve been given or would like to give new writers?

CC: Hone your craft and persevere. Find trustworthy and informed critique partners who will offer constructive critiques. Don’t write to trends. Be faithful to yourself and your writing. Most important—don’t let anyone steal your dream!

MB: It's been absolute joy having you here today, Caroline. How do readers contact you?

CC: My email is caroline@carolineclemmons.com
Website is www.carolineclemmons.com
Blog is http://carolineclemmons.blogspot.com and I also post on the 7th of each month at http://seducedbyhistory.blogspot.com

I have a fan page on Facebook, although there are several Caroline Clemmons on Facebook.

On Twitter I’m @CarolinClemmons (no E in Caroline)
Seems I’m everywhere—Goodreads, Savvy Authors, RWA chapters, etc.

And now for some more exciting news. Anyone who has commented so far (or about to comment) will be in with a chance of winning a prize basket of 10 (yes, you heard right) e-books! You also get to name the hero in Rae Summers' next book and receive a web banner created by Aileen Harkwood. The draw will be held at the end of the month. Click on the banner for more details and don't forget to check back next week to find out if you're the lucky winner.

I'll leave you in Caroline's capable hand while I pop over to Rae Summers' blog for a visit. Come say hi!

What's Wrong With A Little Bump n' Grind?

2010-08-21T16:14:00.001+01:00

Well, first off, little isn't quite the right word. In my case is big and long and...get your mind out of the gutter...the ditch will suffice!!!

I'm having problems with my characters. They've been in the bedroom for, get this, seven pages. Eeep! Nothing I do or say seems to get through! I'm tearing my hair out trying to get them to at least come up for air, or food, or meaningful conversation, but...nah, it ain't happening!

I get that they haven't seen each other for years but this is ridiculous! One of them is going to drop dead at this stage. I tried using the telephone call strategy to prise them apart, but heck, hero didn't answer the call!

Someone please pass me the foghorn or a bucket of iced water or a lassoo or...anything, please, I need help!

Maybe I'll get my good friend Joe Manganiello (who plays Alcide Herveaux in True Blood) to give me a hand since his surname actually means "billy club". What do you think?

Author Spotlight: Rae Summers

2010-08-18T21:48:00.000+01:00

On this third round of The Wild Rose Press blog tour, I'm so very thrilled to welcome Rae Summers, who isn't just another awesome writer, but also my critique partner *cue fabulous air kisses here*

So pull up a chair and let me give you a brief bio about my dear friend.

Rae Summers lives in South Africa where she works in television advertising, a line of work that is only glamorous on very rare occasions. When she isn't working or being mom to two young daughters, Rae can be found with her nose in a book.

Rae's first grade teacher was so seriously concerned by her day dreaming that she called her parents in for a conference. Fortunately, her parents staunchly defended Rae's right to daydream and these days she's able to prove their faith right by turning those day dreams into stories. She hopes her stories bring as much pleasure to her readers as they bring to her.

Maya Blake: Since we know about the day dreaming, lol, tell us - at what age were you bitten by the writing bug?

Rae Summers: I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t writing. My mother still has school notebooks from when I was just learning to write in which I made up stories. Even then fantasy and reality were woven together!

MB: How weird is that? I think my mom has some notebooks of mine too! What genre are you most comfortable writing in?

RS: I enjoy writing contemporary romances, because it’s something we can all identify with. I also enjoy historicals (especially unusual eras like the 1920s) and I’d love to try my hand some day at paranormal (but again, I’m a trend-bucker, so don’t expect vampires or werewolves!)

MB: Writing-wise, where do you expect to be in five years’ time?

RS: Within five years I’d love to be able to give up the day job for a career I can do in my pyjamas … being a writer. I hope to be published in print by a category romance publisher, and also to have several more books published as eBooks. And I’d like to wake up every morning with a spring in my step, glad to be alive. Right now, I guess that last one is the only thing I have some control over!

MB: Here's to all those dreams coming true, Rae. Next question - What’s your perfect writing habit e.g. do you prefer background noise (like music? birdsong? tinkling waterfall?) or complete silence when writing?

RS: I don’t mind music when I’m writing, but I tend to write in silence simply because most of my writing is done either early in the morning or late at night when the kids are asleep, so I’m careful not to make any noise that might wake them (and end my precious writing time!). In an ideal world, I’d write in a quiet, uncluttered studio with an inspiring view and soulful music.

MB: If you had to pick just one, which do you think is the most important in a good story: character, voice, or plot? Why?

RS: For me, characters are most important. I have to know who my characters are before I start, and the plot will inevitably follow. (The characters inevitably take over the story and dictate the plot any way). Voice is something that I guess we’re born with. We can polish it and develop it, but it’s there regardless.

MB: Writing is a consuming business. Do you ever get down time and how do you spend this time?

RS: Writing is my down time. Every other waking hour of the day is spent at the day job or being a mom to my kids and running a household. I still read, but I could live without books as much as I could live without air to breathe, so that’s a necessity rather than a luxury. My favourite moment of every day is lying in a steaming hot bath full of bubbles, with a glass of red wine, and the chance to think about my current WIP. That’s also when I get some of my best ideas.

MB: Ah, the wonders of a hot bath and a glass of wine! Tell us about your latest book/project

RS: My recent release is Let’s Misbehave, a novella set in London in 1928. It’s the story of Gabrielle, a nightclub singer, the ultimate Flapper and wild child, who meets her match in staid aristocrat Sebastian.

What starts out as a little fun changes both their lives.

I’m also currently working on another 1920s novella, this time set on the Amalfi coast of Italy in the early 20s.

Readers can buy Let’s Misbehave from The Wild Rose Press and from Amazon

MB: Having read Let's Misbehave, I can thoroughly recommend it, ladies and gents! And I'm not just saying this, there are spectacular reviews to prove it! So, as an author, what’s the best advice you’ve been given or would like to give new writers?

RS: It’s been said before, but the advice I’d give is: Persevere. No matter what, don’t give up.

MB: Very sound advice, indeed. So, how do readers contact you?

RS: I have a blog at http://raesummers.wordpress.com and readers can email me at rae@raesummers.com. I’d love to hear feedback or suggestions from readers, so don’t be shy!

Thank you so much for visiting today, Rae. It's a pleasure, as always, to spend time with you. While Rae answers any questions visitors might like to post, I'll be hanging out with Caroline Clemmons today, so please stop by and say hi.
And don't forget, anyone who has commented or leaves a comment on our blogs during the month of August is eligible to receive an awesome prize basket (click banner to see details) at the end of the month, so get commenting!!!

5 Things I'm Saying No To...And Meaning It

2010-08-14T12:36:00.000+01:00

Eeep! Even writing this post heading makes me cringe! I have two children - ages 8 & 5 -who learnt very quickly (probably within seconds of birth) that their mommy can't say no to them when it comes to the little things, like "can I have another sweetie?" or "can I use the computer?". The latter tends to happen just when I've logged on, of course! These I've learnt to accept as my lot in life.

But then there're the other time sucks, like friends and neighbours calling just to chat, or the sales caller who's so sweet you can't help but listen patiently while she tells you why you have to have that sewage insurance just in case, you know, the sewage tank thingy buried in your back yard decides to blow up!

I realised something had to give when I started hiding from my neighbours and getting hubby to answer the phone, then waving madly to indicate I'm not there. Why? Because I had BIG PLANS to finish at least one short story during my two-week vacation and as of six days into said vacation...NADA!

I'm hugely frustrated! Time is slipping away, the books aren't getting written or revised and the bossman is shooting me looks now every time the phone rings and I back away from it.

So I've made a pledge...I WILL say NO to five things...and mean it.

1. No to phone calls between the alloted writing time.

2. No to blog surfing or Twittering (no matter how much I'm tempted!!!)

3. No to Internet "researching" FULL STOP.

4. No to offers of picnic in the park with coffee and cake afterwards *weeps*.

5. And definitely, definitely, NO to hubby and kids popping in with the "we just wondered if you'd like..." (insert temptation of choice here). For me this leads to all sorts of procrastinating, often of the eating and drinking variety.

So to start me off, I've just said a firmly put the phone down on a lovely lady trying to sell me her will-making services (I must just regret that later!) and I'm firmly in writing mode (well, writing this blog, anyway). The Internet will be going off next so I can't sneak peeks at Twitter or find out what the Minxes are up to!

I can only thank God that I'm not really a TV watcher!

I feel empowered...for now, but further tips are very welcome. How do you say no and mean it without getting the you've-just-killed-my-pet look?

Author Spotlight: Sandra Sookoo

2010-08-11T09:58:00.004+01:00

I'm on the second week of my four-week blog tour with my amazing fellow Wild Rose writers and today I'm thrilled to welcome Sandra Sookoo, a multi-genre romance writer.

Before we start, here's a brief bio:

Sandra is a writer of romantic fiction. Her portfolio includes historical, contemporary, sci-fi and paranormal romances. She loves to blend genres and spice them up and often times will add humor as well.

After catching the writing bug at the young age of ten, she’s gone on to grow her unique writing style. She’s a regular contributor for the Paranormal Romantic’s blog and has a great time keeping things interesting at the Believing is Seeing blog.

When not immersed in creating new worlds and interesting characters, Sandra likes to read, bake and travel. Her favorite place to spend vacation hours is Walt Disney World. It’s where dreams come true and the soul can play. That suits her just fine.

Writing is her ultimate dream job.

You can write to Sandra at sandrasookoo@yahoo.com, visit her website at http:///www.sandrasookoo.com or look her up on Facebook and Twitter.

And now for the juicy details:

Maya Blake: At what age were you bitten by the writing bug?

Sandra Sookoo: When I was ten I “wrote” my first epic fantasy book using all the neighbourhood kids. It was written out longhand on notebook paper that I bound together with yarn through the punch holes LOL. Needless to say, it probably wouldn’t count as writing by today’s standards but that’s when I realized I could escape from my life through writing.

MB: Isn’t it amazing how most writers started writing from a very young age? What genre are you most comfortable writing in?

SS: Only romance and its sub-genres right now. I’m not much into non-fiction or YA stuff. They just don’t interest me at all. I like writing about the relationships between adult men and women and how this relationship works in the host of conflicts I can create in a given genre. I mean, everyone wants a happily ever after, right? I like to make my characters work for it.

MB: Ah, a fellow character torturer, lol. Writing-wise, where do you expect to be in five years’ time?

SS: Hmm, that’s difficult to say since the industry is in a state of flux right now. All I can say is that I intend to keep learning the craft, making each book I write stronger and better so that when the industry irons itself out, I’ll be ready to continue climbing.

MB: What’s your perfect writing habit e.g. do you prefer background noise (like music? Birdsong? tinkling waterfall?) or complete silence when writing?

SS: I usually like to have the TV on in the background for noise. Only sometimes do I listen to music when writing and that’s usually during a hard love scene LOL. I don’t like people to be in the room chattering nor do I like total silence. Since I work on a laptop I can pretty much work anywhere.

MB: If you had to pick just one, which do you think is the most important in a good story: character, voice, or plot? Why?

SS: Actually, I don’t believe a good book can be without any of these things. Sure, voice is important and there are times when I can’t read a book because something about the voice clashes with me. But plot and characters and both very essential to a great book. Neither are more important than the other.

MB: Writing is a consuming business. Do you ever get down time and how do you spend this time?

SS: There are times during the year when I don’t write. I’m learning this is a natural process that the body goes through to restore the mind and imagination where the energy resets itself. During these times, I like to bake or read until the mojo returns.

MB: Tell us about your latest book/project

SS: My latest book release is called
WEDGIE TALES AND PANTY LINES.

It’s a funny, contemporary novel about a woman, Kate Little, who becomes an reluctant underwear tester. Through the course of this program, she uncovers truths about herself and evolves into the confident woman those around her know she can be.

Blurb: When unassuming mail room worker Kate Little agrees to become an underwear tester for a marketing company, things get uncomfortable fast. Not only has she never worn “fancy” underpants before, she has to work closely with handsome marketing manager Bryan Eddleman and that’s enough to keep her in a constant state of confusion.

Trouble is Bryan’s competing with another manager for a promotion that hinges on the results of the test group. Kate can’t determine if his sudden interest is really in her or her surprisingly insightful weekly reports on foundation garments.

Add a jealous co-worker out to sabotage Kate’s budding love life, an overly helpful gay friend with nothing better to do than shove her into Bryan’s arms, and a rambunctious teacup dog to the chaos and you’ll have a typical day in Kate’s less than ordinary life.

The last thing she needs is panty lines.

MB: Ooh, I love the cover and title and the blurb is brilliant. As an author, what’s the best advice you’ve been given or would like to give new writers?

SS: The best advice is never give up. Once you realize that writing is hard work and you need to buckle down and actually put in the time, you’ll be okay. But you’re only shooting yourself in the foot if you don’t believe in yourself.

MB: And now here’s my last question. How do readers contact you?

You can link to me on Twitter, Facebook or my blogs. All of this information is on the front page of my website http://www.sandrasookoo.com/

Excerpt: “I’m sorry, but I can’t test your underwear.”

“That’s exactly why we need you for this project. You’re the everyday woman, Miss—I’m sorry. I didn’t quite catch your name.” A vivid green gaze held mine. “In fact, I don’t think we’ve ever been introduced. You don’t mind that we pulled you into this brainstorming session, do you? It’s just that I heard your comment about whose job it was to test the product and thought you’d be interested.” Full lips parted with his easy grin and revealed perfect teeth that practically screamed they’d seen years of braces.

“My name’s Kate. Kate Little.”

He nodded, and my stomach lurched. I mentally berated myself for the pleasure that gripped me because he approved of my name.

A snort from Pamela. “That’s funny. You’re hardly a little anything.”

My cheeks heated—this time from anger. “That’s it. I’m not going to hang around and take abuse from you underfed, over-tanned, rude people.” I shot out of the cushy leather chair and angled my way around the conference table, aware that everyone watched my departure.

Yeah, so I’m a thirty-year-old, plus-sized woman. I wear a size 16. It’s not a crime, and it’s not fat. It’s average. And, by the way, I’m just Kate. Not Katherine with a “K” or even with a “C,” and if you attempt to call me Katie, I’ll ignore you. If the nickname persists and I become annoyed, I’ll throw a pencil at you.

I paused at the head of the table to glare at the guy in charge. What’s-his-name in the tailored suit.

“Get someone else to be your guinea pig.”

Book video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bJyAd-Id9M
Publisher’s website: http://www.thewildrosepress.com/

Thank you so much for being visiting today, Sandra!

Bruce Willis In Hostage To Love

2010-08-05T16:48:00.008+01:00

Hah, I bet that grabbed your attention!

Well, I certainly got a thrill when I opened an email from the Editor in Chief of Wild Rose Press and saw the subject line! Okay, it didn't *actually* say Bruce Willis In Hostage To Love, but it goes a little something like this...

The Wild Rose Press & The Movie Red

In his next movie Red, Bruce Willis is pretty banged from his usual shenanigans and is bed bound. His assistant, the avid romance reader Mary Louise Parker, sends him some books to read. And guess where they got all the books from? Yep, The Wild Rose Press! And these aren't just any random books plucked from random shelves. These books are all from the Crimson Rose line (which published Hostage To Love). In all, The Wild Rose Press sent 150 books to Hollywood, so yeah the chances of him picking my book are well, slim to none, but hey, a girl can dream, right? And what great exposure for authors as well, huh?

I love Bruce Willis on any given day, but can you guess how much I'm looking foward to seeing Red when the movie opens on October 15?? Can ya, huh?

Before then though, here's the trailer. There is a blink-and-you-miss-it moment when MLP is sitting at her desk with an open book but even that gave me a small thrill!

Enjoy!

Author Spotlight - Hanging Out With Amber Leigh Williams

2010-08-03T22:22:00.005+01:00

Today kicks off a month-long blog tour with a few of my fellow Wild Rose Press Authors. Amber Leigh Williams is my first guest – be gentle with her!

Amber Leigh Williams is a multi-published author, a member of Romance Writers of America, former Secretary of GCCRWA, and a reviewer for The Season. Her western romance, BLACKEST HEART, is a 2009 More Than Magic winner and her historical romance, FOREVER AMORE, was nominated by Long & Short Reviews for Best Book of 2009. She is represented by D4EO Literary Agency. Find out more about her books and writing journey at her website: http://www.amberleighwilliams.com/

At what age were you bitten by the writing bug?

I discovered writing in 3rd grade and started with plays and short stories. I then progressed to YA and finally, in high school, the romance genre.

What genre are you most comfortable writing in?

I never would have thought that I'd love writing paranormal romance as much as I do. It's a complete escape into a world where I build the rules. The characters especially are why I love it most, I think, because writing paranormal heroes and heroines is all about finding the humanity in a being outside the norm, who feels a pull in darker or more animal direction.

Writing-wise, where do you expect to be in five years’ time?

Writing, of course. I'd like to be more widely published, hopefully in mass market with a larger distribution.

What’s your perfect writing habit? Do you prefer background noise (like music? birdsong? tinkling waterfall?) or complete silence when writing?

Music is important to my process because it helps set the tone of my WIP. For example, when working on my paranormals, I listen to a hard rock playlist. It helps my Muse stay planted firmly in that world and true to it.

If you had to pick just one, which do you think is the most important in a good story: character, voice, or plot? Why?

This is a hard question because I don't think a story, much less a good one, can have one without the other. Well-motivated and sympathetic characters are essential to romance. Without plot, there's not much story for these characters to thrive in. And without voice, nothing separates the story from all the others. Voice compels readers to keep reading.

Writing is a consuming business. Do you ever get down time and how do you spend this time?

I write late at night. My days are for household chores and book marketing. My real downtime comes when my husband, who works seven days a week, takes time off. We visit family and generally relax.

Tell us about your latest book or project

I'm gearing up to start work on my fourth paranormal while completing a contemporary revision and a Regency WIP. My western romance, BET IT ON MY HEART, launched this spring, completing the Wayback Ridge trilogy. It was voted Best Book of the Week by readers at LASR and is available now at The Wild Rose Press!

As an author, what’s the best advice you’ve been given or would like to give new writers?

Never, never, never give up! And don't lose sight of the joy of writing. Readers inherently know when a story is crafted with a loving hand.

How do readers contact you?

Readers, feel free to contact me at amber@amberleighwilliams.com.

I'm most always available on Twitter (http://twitter.com/ALeighWilliams) and Facebook (http://www.Facebook.com/amberleighwilliams) as well.

Thank you so much, Maya, for hosting me today!

Another Minxy Release - Sally Clements

2010-07-28T10:40:00.003+01:00

Wow, they're coming thick and fast, but I'm very, very pleased to announce yet another Minxy release today!

Sally Clement's (aka Sally Minx) Catch Me A Catch is out today from The Wild Rose Press. It's a fun, uplifting read and a must for this lovely summer we're all having.

Isn't the cover just awesome??

Mega congrats to you, Sally Minx, and may this be one of many, many books for you!

Diving Back In

2010-07-19T11:57:00.002+01:00

After a week where the mehs far outweighed the yayyys, I'm happy to report I'm ready to dive back into writing waters. I actually tested the waters a little last night and started a completely new story outside of my comfort zone. We'll see how that goes, but in the meantime, here's a checklist of things that MUST be done pretty darn sharpish, if my self-imposed dreadlines are to be met:

1. Polish and send requested partial to editor.
2. Revise and resend full to other editor.
3. Finish short story and sub to yet another editor.
4. Carry on working on brand new out-of-comfort-zone idea.
5. Get published with one of the above ideas??? That would be nice, wouldn't it?

So what about you? Are you waiting, writing, wailing, biting your nails while doing all the above? Dish...

Maya

New Minx Release - Rae Summers

2010-07-14T11:42:00.003+01:00

Just in case you've been hiding under a rock - in which case I ask, why? - fellow Minx Romy aka Rae Summer's debut novel Let's Misbehave was released last week.

And the icing on the cake? She received an awesome 4.5 RT rating from RT Book Reviews. For the full review, click here.

The Minxes are very, very proud of you, Rae. Long may your awesome writing continue.

Maya

Join Me & Another Monday Funny

2010-07-05T10:03:00.007+01:00

Join me on the Minxes Blog to get my take on Wimbledon from a writer's perspective.

And just to keep it sporty, here's a great example on how to celebrate a goal. Enjoy!

Maya

Monday Funny

2010-06-28T11:39:00.009+01:00

Just to cheer myself (and everyone in the UK who had the misfortune of watching the England v Germany match on Sunday) up, I thought I'd post some funnies:

Here's another, because no one can cheer me up quite like Joey...

And just to make this even remotely writerly...

Have a great week.

Maya *who's trying not to pin all her hopes now on Andy Murray, because frankly, the poor man's shoulders just can take the pressure*

Storyboarding - The Short Version

2010-06-21T11:45:00.019+01:00

I'm always so envious when I see other writers going to elaborate lengths to plot, picture, graph and colour their way into their stories. To be honest, it makes me feel slightly sick - in the "good grief, why can't I do that before I start my stories/is this why my stories are so crap?" kind of way. Feelings of gross inadequacy have overwhelmed me when confronted by such scenes resulting in massive consumption of wine and/or chocolate.

But if there's one thing I've learnt in my (mostly) sober writing journey, it's this - Everyone does things differently. For me, it's:

Hero
&
Heroine

Castle

In case the excruciatingly short storyboard didn't give you a clue, this is how it works:

"get an idea=>play the 'what if' game=> find hero=> find heroine=>find location=>start writing".

Right or wrong, that is the way I've been most comfortable writing. I think it's the "unknown" that makes it a thrill to write, although sometimes I wish that unknown wouldn't involve forgetting my hero's eye colour or wondering whether the heroine was a blonde or redhead in chapter four ;). But, alas, after wasted time "exploring" storyboards, it's time to own up - I'm Maya and I have no idea how to storyboard.

I know there are writers out there who will make me feel even sicker with envy than I do right now, but it's okay, you can still share...xx

Maya

Revisions Are A Go!!

2010-06-14T09:32:00.004+01:00

Yayy! I'm very happy to report that I heard from the ed on my revised synopsis last week. Overall she's happy with what I've done (or propose to do). There were one or two changes she wanted me to make but they are totally doable, so I'm very excited! I'd hoped to start the ms ripping this weekend but, alas, sick daughter got in my way (cheeky child!).

It wasn't all her fault though. Got stuck into second book of the Milliennium series - The Girl Who Played With Fire - and wow, I just couldn't put that baby down. I'm literally pages from finishing and it's absolutely brilliant. If you get the chance to read it - do!

But back to the subject at hand and sorry for digressing, I'm pschyed about this ms again and really happy I didn't give up on it. Hopefully, I can make it a better, stronger ms and who knows, I might also learn something or two in the process. Challenging oneself is good, if a little scary. I'm also a little scared that I'll be subbing the revised ms to a new ed once it's done (the ed I mentioned earlier is leaving HMB, *sob*), but I guess I'll worry about that once the time comes, eh?

Now...who's going to RWA Nationals, RNA?? I'm hoping to meet up with a few of the Minxes at the RNA Conference so I'm very, very excited!!! Would love to hear what everyone's been up to before I disappear into the revisions cave, so dish!

Maya

My Kingdom For A Title

2010-05-31T21:34:00.001+01:00

I must confess, I’m a title whore. Catchy book titles make me yearn to crack them open, discover their innerds. Case in point – Girl With A Dragon Tattoo. That immediately grabbed my attention. Another title – The Lovely Bones. Of course any Harlequin title with Sheikh in it gets my undivided attention too! I could go on and on.

So imagine my frustration when I can’t seem to come up with any decent ones for my books! I had a book titled From A Whisper To A Scream, which I particularly loved.

Unfortunately, I was alone in that title love. That book, sold to AN Other publisher, went on to become another title, which I loved btw and almost wished I’d come up with myself.

But I’m beginning to realise that I have no talent when it comes to naming my stories. That said, I know not to sweat the small stuff because there’s someone whose job it is to come up with a title that sells the book. Can’t help wishing that maybe… just once, I could come up with a knockout title that blows an editor’s sock off.

Yeah, I know, I’ll carry on dreaming…

How about you? Do book titles make you want to read or scream?

Romance is the best...

2010-05-26T16:07:00.000+01:00

Eileen Dreyer on why she writes romance. I say here here!

http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/new-titles/adult-announcements/article/43273-why-i-write-eileen-dreyer.html

And don't forget to drop by the Minxes of Romance to meet Harlequin Presents author, Abby Green.

Have a great day.

Maya

Revisions – I have some!!!

2010-05-21T00:30:00.000+01:00

You know the saying about waiting or a bus for a looong time, then three come along at once? This isn’t like that, ha ha. Well, only the waiting part, but finally, I’m happy to report that I’ve heard back on my manuscript! Hippity Yippity Yaayyyy!

In all the scenarios that have replayed in my mind over the last 22 months, getting The Call featured high on the list, of course, as I’m sure it does in every author’s. But my absolute second best scenario was to be asked for revisions, because let’s face it, the only other option would be a big fat, dreaded REJECTION, right?

So imagine my delight when I opened my email this morning to find a note from the editor at Harlequin Mills & Boon. I must confess I didn’t immediately jump for joy. Until I saw the little paperclip next to the subject line. I thought, would the editor send me a rejection as an attachment?

My fingers shook a little as I clicked on the email and that was when I saw the words “Revision Letter”! Cue mini happy dance. Couldn't go the full hog cos I was at work, where happy dancing is generally discouraged :(

So there is it, folks, I have REVISIONS, which means there is still hope for this ms yet! I’ll go into further detail once I’ve read, re-read and digested the 3 pages of *cough*-stinky-*cough* things that are wrong with my ms and how I’m going to fix it.

And if any veterans out there want to throw some advice my way, it’ll be happily received :)

Have a lovely weekend!

Maya

Baby Steps

2010-05-17T12:00:00.000+01:00

Lately, I’ve been feeling a little meeh about writing. To be honest I haven’t written anything new in almost three weeks! It’s been a combination of losing my mojo, family life (seriously) getting in the way and general lethargy. Even finally hearing back about my ms (it was neither good nor bad, more like slightly annoying, but that's another post) didn't lift me out of my funk.

But through this miasma of general meeh-ness, I always carried my trusty memory stick with me, just in case. I never doubted I’d get my mojo back, or that I’d finally get the sudden urge to pound the keyboard but it scared the hell out of me that it was taking so long to return and that I couldn’t find any interest in my own writing.

I am happy to report though that I managed to bang out three pages of my new story in the middle of the last night. It's not much, but it's a start and I'm beginning to feel story love again. Am I complaining that this has happened in the middle of one of the busiest weeks in my life? Well, a little. But at least I can finally see the light at the end of my gloom and I'm content.

Who knows, today three pages, tomorrow (er, not quite but, you know), a brand spanking new completed story!

I might be bleary-eyed from lack of sleep, but I live in hope 

Maya

It's Launch Day...

2010-05-10T10:36:00.000+01:00

over at the Minxes of Romance blog. Come join The Minxes to celebrate. Lots of cyber champers, appletinis and chocolates to be consumed!

See you there!!!

Maya

Because...Just Because...

2010-05-03T23:50:00.000+01:00

I've been a bad blogger lately. I also haven't written much in the last couple of weeks.

But sometimes a girl just needs to chill. So until I get my writing mojo back, I'm posting a picture to cheer us all up. Caution - it's the broody, intense type of cheer that I bring. Enjoy!

If that didn't work for you and you prefer something a bit more, er, cerebral, see if you can spot the design flaw in this next picture!

Have a great week, everyone!

The 5-5-5 Award

2010-04-20T11:02:00.000+01:00

First, thank you so much for my lovely 5-5-5 award, Sally! Now the kids are back at school (yaayyy), I have a few more minutes to breathe, so here goes:

5 questions and 5 answers –

1. Where were you 5 years ago?

Unfortunately, I was into my third month in hospital at the behest of my cheeky son who decided not to give mommy an easy pregnancy. After all that, he still arrived six weeks early!

2. What was on your to-do list today?

Day’s still young, but I managed to:

Get the kids ready for the first day of school (yaayyy again!)
Get myself to work reluctantly!
Later, I hope to:
Get some shopping done.
Get home, put kids to bed (hopefully without the shouting match it involves)
Write.
Write some more (hope springs eternal)

3. What 5 snacks do you enjoy?

Chocolate, of course!
Cake, hmmmm cake!
Nuts
Cheese
Werthers (both chewy & original)

4. What 5 places have you lived?

Boring answers coming up:
Africa
Kent
Surrey
East London
Er, that’s it!

5. 5 more bloggers

Hmmm, this is always a difficult one. If you haven't already been nominated and you’ve taken the time to read my scribblings, I think you deserve an award (if you have a blog), so consider yourself nominated!

Have a lovely day, everyone!

The Flu…And Waiting

2010-04-12T22:18:00.000+01:00

In case you’ve been wondering where I’ve been (no?, okay) I’ve been laid up in bed, recovering from a nasty bout of flu. I thought I’d escaped the dreaded visit from the flu fairy, but alas, no. I also managed to pick up a lovely side order of neuralgia, but that’s another story.

So while I was prone and at my weakest, the crows of doubt began to circle, naturally. They were great in number, with much more fury than ever before.

They questioned everything – from my ability to ever take another clear breath to their favourite subject, my ms at Richmond. You know, the one the editor’s had for almost 21 months…yes, you heard right. Come July, I’ll be celebrating my ms’s 2nd birthday!

Logically, this prompted immediate concern about how my baby was doing. Was it was being fed, watered, cuddled to sleep at night? Or had it (mostly likely, according to the crows), met a dreadful end?

Unfortunately, this second scenario persisted, prompting a reminder of how some other M&B books had met their end. I dug up this old article and it made for grim reading.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/3330245.stm

If actual published books had met such a sorry end, what hope does my unpublished ms have? Who can save my baby from ending up as a cushy, absorbent “no-slushiness” road paver?!

But on a positive note (never let it be said that I’m all about the cloud), I’ve got new story love! Bastien the Swiss Banker and Ana the Supermodel now have 10 pages worth of story to keep them busy.

Hear that crows??

I'm Just Sayin'

2010-04-06T00:43:00.001+01:00

We all have a lot to whinge about, tear our hair out over or feel anxious about. But sometimes, someone does something awesome for you and you just feel...blessed. No, I haven't won the lottery or gotten The Call (yet) or even discovered the cure for cancer.

I'm just sayin'...every now and then, you have to sit back and count your blessings. This weekend I spent time with family and some friends I hadn't seen for a long time, some for years, and just relaxing over good food and laughing for no reason felt really good.

No doubt all the things that make life less palatable for all of us will creep in soon (starting with the return to the day job tomorrow, eeep!), but for now, I for one am hanging on to the positive. Oh, and basking in the lovely crits I got from my awesome crit partners.

Sometimes, it's all good. You know?

Pushing the Boundaries

2010-03-31T16:12:00.001+01:00

Editors love it when you push the boundaries, or so they say. They love it when you bring something fresh, something different, something totally whacky to the table. Er, maybe not totally whacky. But you get my meaning. Basically, they want you to take a tried and tested idea and put your own spin on it, make it stand out in a completely unique way.

And here’s where I start getting palpitations! I think the last time I read anything totally unique that blew me away was when the book (Presents, of course) started with fairies being given their assignments as to who to pair up back on Earth. I kid you not. I remember thinking, fairies, in Presents? And yep, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Now don't get me wrong, there are new authors and even well-established authors who blow me away on a regular basis. But something soo different that I'm left thinking, wow? Hasn't happened since the fairies sprinkled their dust.

Cue major heart failure now. How on earth can I make my work stand out in a way that makes an editor's heart beat faster without my hero growing fangs or my heroine literally sprouting wings and flying into the sunset with said fanged hero? I think my new ms is unique enough. I've certainly not read anything like it, but am I kidding myself here?

How do you know when you've pushed enough to be different, but not so far out as to be mistaken for a complete nut job?

Answers on a postcard please (or barring that, comments in the er, comment box).

Happy Easter to everyone!!!

To Err is Human…To Forgive Divine?

2010-03-26T16:14:00.000Z

(part 2)

In Part 1, my hero bravely went off to confess his sins and ask for forgiveness. Only, it turns out he didn’t have just one confession to make…he had three.

The first confession my heroine readily forgives. She knows he’s a stubborn alpha who likes to carry his family’s burden on his broad, masculine shoulders.

The second confession rocks her to the core, but my heroine is a very strong, feisty woman who’s survived the love of her life walking away from her. She reiterates this to herself, tells herself she can do this.

Only to be hit with the third and most devastating secret of all. This secret dates back to her childhood and rocks everything she's ever believed of herself.

At this stage, forgive is certainly not divine. It’s very much get-in-my-car-and-drive-far-far-away!

My hero of course, is not expecting this. When he returns to the terrace, he is crushed! I don't need to ask him how it went. I can see for myself.

He looks at me, devastated. "But I love her," he says.

And I say, "hmmm, but you should have trusted her with this long before now.”
He wants to growl at me, but he knows I’m right. He collapses into the seat and asks for help. Now he’s learning, my hero. Asking for help is huge, HUGE! There’s hope for him yet.

But he’s also an intelligent alpha. Before I can make a suggestion, he makes one of his own. I give my seal of approval and wave him off.

Two days later, my heroine returns with her hero in tow. He has admitted he’s erred. And from the smile on their faces, I can tell…

Forgiveness has indeed been divine!

Are you a sucker for a happy ending as I am?

To Err Is Human...

2010-03-20T21:56:00.000Z

(part 1)

Before I carry on with this post I need to give a quick background on how I write my posts.

I always try and write the first line of my next blog post when I finish the last. After my last post I knew there was something my current hero needed to address. So I typed this heading. He read it, slanted me a very dirty look and stalked off.

After he returned from terrorising the countryside in his sleek sports car (he’s a Presents hero, after all), I told him again…To Err Is Human.

He clenched his fists and walked away.

Now, he knows he’s wronged his heroine. Very badly. He’s kept a very big secret from her that he should’ve revealed quite a while back. This secret has kept them apart for two years and for all that time he’s felt justified in “shouldering the burden” on his own. Now he feels in his bones that all hell is about to break loose, but he’s hung on to this secret for so long, he just doesn’t know how to let go of it.

So, I tell him again…To Err Is Human.

This time he sits and he listens. We share a glass of Chateau Lafite Rothschild while watching the glorious sunset from the terrace of his spectacular villa and slowly he understands why he has to confess all to his heroine. For a split second, he looks terrified because he knows confessing might cost him everything he holds dear.

But my hero is not a wimp.

He drains his glass, sets it down and stands. Before he leaves to confront his demons, he asks, “To err is human, but will forgiveness be divine or…bring divine retribution?”

Alas, I don’t have any answers for him.

Not yet anyway.

This will be revealed in Part 2, after I’ve interviewed my heroine!

Voice - Is It Panic Stations Not To Have One?

2010-03-15T16:31:00.000Z

In the past few weeks I've blog-hopped/forum-browsed and generally procrastinated (what else is new?) when I should've been finishing my ms. And in that time, I’ve come across this word A LOT.

Voice.

If an editor loves yours you’re almost there, I've heard. Don't get me wrong, there’s a serious amount of back-breaking work to be done besides having, you know...voice.

So, this got me wondering. I know successful writers who say they had to work hard to "find" their voice. Before they did, however, they sold to various publishing houses. I’ve also heard of one editor hating someone’s writing and another absolutely falling in love with it.

One example of a writer who eventually found her “true voice” is Tess Gerritsen, whose books I love. She writes pure crime thrillers.

BUT before she did, she wrote romantic suspense for Harlequin. It’s very clear from reading her earlier work that she CAN write romance and while I think she excels at writing crime thrillers, she more than held my interest with her earlier books.

I’ve had two manuscripts rejected and two requested from the same publishing house. So was it all about my "voice" that attracted them to request more of my work, or was it the whole Ok-ish package?

I guess what I’m trying to understand is, how important is this magical word in the grand scheme of things? What exactly is it about voice that attracts one editor and repels another?

Is it a “you-either-have-it-or-you-don't” scenario? Is it the difference between a New York Times Bestseller and a doomed-forever-to-be-a-wannabe writer or is there a middle ground to work on? How important is voice to you?

Would love to hear your thoughts.

Another Obsession

2010-03-08T11:56:00.000Z

Yep, I know, I’m as fickle as the finger of fate. But as a writer, I have to learn to love more than one hero. It's my cross to bear, ;). Well, that’s my excuse anyway.

So imagine my excitement when Henry Cavill and I were introduced (via the magic medium that is tv!). He had me at a disadvantage as I was sick in bed and unable to move very far. He forced me to watch him as Charles Brandon in The Tudors, where he proceeded to nail anything that moved in Season 1 and most of Season 2! But even while I shook my head sadly at how utterly scandalous his behaviour was, I was secretly rooting for him to be worthy of his part.

And he came through.

By the end of Series 2 and through all of Season 3, he'd grown a conscience, had shown his wife Catherine that he truly loved and desired her and their son above all else and had proved he could be ruthless when he needed to be to save his country and his friend (Henry VIII).

It was very very natural therefore, seeing as he’s just the sort of man I love writing about (not so much the nailing part, but the redeemed rake part), that I model him on my next hero. Before I do, however, I will enjoy him for a little while longer!

And seeing as I'm feeling magnanimous today, I thought I'd share his pic with y'all.

Enjoy!

PS - Sorry about the, ahem, legs and bossoms.

Happy Cupcake Award!!!

2010-03-03T21:15:00.000Z

Wow, once again I've been nominated for an award!

Thank you very much, Sally Clements. Those cupcakes look so yummy and just what I need to get me over Hump Day Wednesday.

So, now I guess I have to follow the official rules, which are:

1. Copy the award image into a post.

2. List 10 things that make you happy.

3. Tag 10 bloggers who brighten your day.

4. Link to their blogs.

5. Notify the award recipients.

6. Award recipients link back to sender’s blog.

Without further ado, 10 things that make me happy are:

1. Hearing my kids' unfettered laughter. That always brings a smile to my face.

2. The sound of silence. Every parent with young children knows this is pure gold.

3. Saturday mornings, because more often than not, my hero brings me breakfast in bed.

4. Reading. I'm never very far from a book or two, or three.

5. Writing. The rush of seeing your words form on paper/screen has no equal.

6. Time with family.

7. Cake. All types apart from fruit cake.

8. Travel. Discovering the world is my life-long ambition. If only I could quit my day job!

9. Music - like reading, it can lift my mood and spirit and make a dreary day beautiful.

10. The sound of the phone announcing "The Call". Hasn't happened yet, but it will, I believe it.

Now for those bloggers I love to visit:

1. KJ Roberts

6. Lucy Monroe

10. Plotmonkeys

There are a great many more blogs I love to visit, but since we're restricted to 10...

Enjoy your cupcakes and happy reading!

I'm Escaping!!

2010-02-25T11:18:00.000Z

The weatherman said this morning parts of Northern England were experiencing -19C temperatures (while grinning madly).

I shouted at the TV, because frankly, what’s there to grin about? I'm tired, tired, tired of this snow and cold and general yucky weather!

On the train to work, I started thinking about my current wip (what else is there to think about in such dreary weather?) and my heroine who's made her home in Bali, Indonesia.

And I got a little jealous. So, I thought, why should my hero and heroine be the only ones to experience wall to wall sunshine, lush palm trees swaying in a gentle breeze and golden, decadent luxury? Why can't I have a bit of that?

At exactly 8.44 this morning, this is where I eneded up…

At 9.27 I woke up.

But hey, it was fun while it lasted...

Happy fantasies to everyone!

Maya

Language of Love – What’s Yours?

2010-02-17T10:54:00.000Z

I love languages. Have done since…way too long to remember. I loved French at school and often kick myself for not pursuing it (I’m sure my French teacher would love to kick me too!).

I guess that's why I so love reading Presents.

Aside from the delicious characters, the decadent scene setting and powerful emotion, rich language features very highly for me and the more foreign (to me), the better. That's not to say good old fashioned English doesn't do it for me. Because really, nothing beats a powerfully delivered, "I love you."

But I must admit my heart does beat a little faster if that I love you begins with a "Cara mia", "Mi corazon" or a “Glikia mou”. I have yet to read a “ya tebya lyublyu”, but with all the fresh ideas coming from the amazing new breed of Presents authors, I doubt it will be long before I do.

So, what's your language of love?

You know you’re a writer when…

2010-02-12T15:23:00.000Z

Reading Jackie’s "What Would An Alpha Male Do? blog post (a hilarious but unfortunate incident at a restaurant) prompted me to re-muse on random moments we all have as writers. Well, moments I've had in my writing life, if I'm honest, but it was a relief to know I wasn't alone.

Wait, I digress.

I have a long commute to work (hour and half most days. Each way). And as an avid people watcher, (I make no apologies for this, for it is all in the name of research), I have constructed many a scene by letting my imagination run riot.

Some of those moments have involved some unlikely scenarios – girl with spider tattoo on her foot prompted an arachnophobic heroine trapped in a bathroom full of spiders who needs rescuing by a hero who happens to be passing outside her window when she screams. Hmmm, that story is still in stasis.

But I've had other moments when I’ve had a thought, shaken my head and said to myself, “only a writer will think like that!”

Here are a few examples:

A stunning woman with crutches struggling up a long staircase. Cue - what would my hero do? Would he sweep her off her feet and carry her up? Convince to stop in the middle, share his freshly-bought Starbucks coffee while they get to know each other? Or just stomp past her because he's sworn off women since...(insert preferred woman-hating scenario here)

Or

Seeing another equally stunning woman wearing tight jeans (cue insane jealousy on my part) and wondering whether my hero would be repelled or attracted.

Or

Seeing a man and woman walking side by side but not quite touching or looking at each other and wondering if they've had an argument/are secret lovers/are at the end of their relationship and wondering how to resolve that particular conflict.

So…have you had moments like these? I’d love to know!

Or if you've written a book based on such random thoughts, let us know. I love a great read!

Happy reading and writing.

Internal v External

2010-02-08T11:09:00.000Z

Yes, once again we return to the age-old question of internal v external – conflict, that is. Going over my current ms for HP, I realised something. My internal conflict is very much present, but my external is, well, not so much!

This got me thinking (and re-reading said ms furiously), is it possible for the internal conflict to also be the external, or am I just deluding myself completely? See, my hero has made certain decisions which he's doing his utmost to stand by. And of course these beliefs are keeping him and the heroine apart, ergo, internal conflict.

But by failing to adhere to his beliefs in the past, he has created a situation where he has to confront his conflict.

All well and good so far, but can the result of this failure be an external conflict? I sincerely want to believe so, because if I'm wrong, then I'm totally screwed (to put it mildly).

So, any thoughts? Internal and external conflict should work off each other, but can they be one and the same?

Am I making any sense at all?

Should I start panicking?

The Good Wife – Another Good One

2010-01-29T12:31:00.000Z

Every now and then a show comes along that just plain blows you away.

When I first heard about The Good Wife, I thought "great, another mediocre show to replace a long-loved-but-cancelled show (yes, I'm still morning Journeyman and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles!).

After watching the first episode I still had my doubts - too many courtroom/law firm backstabbing shows over the years tends to give the "meeh" feeling.

Heck, even the title put me off (every writer knows the value of an eye-catching title, or ought to anyway).

But what Juliana Margulies has done with The Good Wife is simply awesome! The dignity with which her character, Alicia, deals with her husband's serial adultery and allegations of fraud and abuse of office left me truly gobsmacked. As a friend put it (paraphrasing), "her eyes convey a thousands words without once opening her mouth". The show also produced neat little twists that kept me on the edge of my seat and left me yearning for more.

I wasn't surprised at all to learn Ms Margulies has won both a Golden Globe and a SAG award in the past week. I loved her as George Clooney’s love interest in ER, but she’s truly extraordinary in this role.

Watch the preview segment below for a taster...

... and if you’ve seen it and love it the way I do, pray with me that this isn't another show that the networks cancel after one season!

Have a great day.

Maya

After A Productive Day's Work...

2010-01-25T00:35:00.000Z

I've decided to reward myself. It isn't every day I manage to bang out 20 pages on a new WIP! Most days I only manage three or four. So yes, I'm patting myself on the back. Or better yet, I'll get him to do it...

Or maybe...him

Don't care who does it. Either, both, I don't mind.

If you've done something worthy of reward, or maybe NOT, feel free to borrow one of them, as long as you promise to return them!

Maya

Teresa Medeiros on Why She Writes Romance

2010-01-21T10:38:00.000Z

A poignant (but uplifting) post on why she writes romance by Teresa Medeiros.

Teresa's post brought a tear to my eye and hopefully a deeper purpose to my writing.

Have a great day,

Maya

Kreativ Blogger Award!!

2010-01-17T15:54:00.000Z

Wow! I’m thrilled to have been nominated for the Kreativ Blogger Award.

Thank you, thank you, Maisey Yates!

So I guess, as is the tradition, I have to divulge 7 previously unknown facts about myself, huh?

Okay here goes.

1. My very first romance novel featured an extremely alpha amnesiac who couldn’t decide which of the identical twin heroines (named Sandra and Saundra) he was in love with, so he, er, had them both. Gimme a break, I was only 14! There were hormones involved!

2. I am a die-hard sci-fi nut, especially anything with the name “Star” in it - Stargate (SG-1, Atlantis, Universe and the movies!), Star Wars (all of them), Star Trek (yep, all of them).

3. I was proposed to at the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve 2000 and thereafter was struck dumb for, oooohhh, five minutes!

4. My older sister introduced me Harlequin books when I was 13. Now she expects a full-page dedication if/when I ever get published by them.

5. I went through my early teens in full tomboy mode and at one stage owned 16 pairs of jeans!

6. One of the scariest things to ever happen to me was when Algerian soldiers forced the plane I was flying in to land over the Sahara Desert. We were grounded for 3 hours while the soldiers boarded and seized all the passports! Our plane was a replacement after the holiday company went bust and apparently didn’t have the right identification! Looking out the window to see fighter jets *this close* was veeeerrrrry scary, in a very cool way!

7. I’m a Michael Bublé fan! Well, I guess it’s better than saying I’m a Simon Cowell fan, which I’m not…most of the time!

And now for my 7 nominees for the neat Kreativ Blogger Award:

Autumn Piper
Lynn Rae Harris
Julie Cohen
Sutton Fox
Jackie Ashenden
Nicola Marsh
Plot Monkeys

Have a great day.

Maya

New Year, New Reso....

2010-01-04T11:41:00.000Z

Naaaah! I don't know who I'm fooling by pretending to make resolutions. After almost four decades, okay three decades and a bit, since I didn't know about resolutions before I hit 8 or 9, it's time to own up to the fact that I never keep my resolutions past the end of January.

So, this year, I have NO RESOLUTIONS. I have enough pressures in life as it is without piling on more. For instance, over Christmas I ate way more than my share of, well, everything! The good thing would be to make a resolution not to fall on the nearest tray of yummy chocolate, or the last two mince pies that are giving me the come on. BUT, do you know how stressful it is to say no, especially when your kids are covered in the stuff? Well, if you do, you have more will power than I.

I do have aspirations however, the top being to continue growing in my writing and hopefully, get published by my dream publisher, Harlequin Presents, one day.

To all those who have made firm, glorious resolutions, may they all come true. To those of us who close our eyes, cross our fingers and fly by the seat of our pants, I wish us all happy landing exactly (or within a stone's throw of) where we want to be.

Happy 2010, again!

I'm off to keep the dream alive!

Maya

Happy New Year and The End!

2010-01-01T21:40:00.000Z

First of all, Happy New Year to one and all! 2010 will be a great year, I can feel it in me old bones! I hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday. Mine was quiet and peaceful, just as I wanted it.

Christmas was also very fruitful for me since I FINALLY typed THE END to Vaia's Destiny, my sci-fi romance which I've been writing for over two years. Yayyy for me! It's my longest work yet (coming in at a staggering 119,486 words!). Yeesh! I get the feeling it will hit the 120k mark by the time edits are done, but I'm not sweating that just yet.

For now, I'm just happy to be done with this, ruminating about the novel I need to write for HP, and catching up with what everyone else's been up to.

So, dish!

Maya

Holiday Reading

2009-12-22T12:37:00.000Z

As I type this, I’m fervently looking forward to the holidays! Just under five hours until I’m finished with the evil day job for 12 whole days! I’m already dreaming of my cosy fireplace, can already smell the parsnips roasting alongside the plump turkey, and the mince pies laid on the tray ready to be warmed up once the feast has been consumed.

But one other thing I’m looking forward to over the holidays is catching up on my reading. In my towering TBR pile is -

The Lost Symbol (half read) by Dan Brown
Spanish Magnate, Red-Hot Revenge by Lynn-Raye Harris
Kept For Her Baby by Kate Walker
Whistleblower and The Bone Garden – both by Tess Gerritsen
This is Chick Lit by Lauren Baratz-Logsted (a birthday present from my DH)

Of course, in between all this reading I have to fit in some writing and ideally finish my two-year WIP, Vaia’s Destiny! But I am hopeful I will succeed. Ah, the best laid plans of mice and men, eh?

So, what books will you be reading over the holidays?

Maya

Close But No Cigar...

2009-12-16T21:14:00.001Z

First of all, cigar/cigarette analogies always scare me because I always think of those when I'm pregnant, LOL. But I haven't been able to get this line out of my head since opening my email this afternoon to find "Writing Competition" staring at me three or four lines down.

It was with trepidation that I opened this email. It started much like the letter I received after the Harlequin Presents comp last year from the Snr Editor..."Whilst we are sorry that your entry wasn't successful...your writing showed a lot of potential for Modern Romance...we loved your intense and dramatic writing style...your writing also showed you understand the appeal and flavour of the series..."

By this time my hand was shaking less and my heart wasn't threatening to jump out of my chest. Of course, I knew there was a BUT.

However, it was a good BUT! Although she pointed out one or two places where I'd gone wrong, the editor concluded by asking for 3 chapters and a synop of whatever I'm working on, plus she's asked me send it directly to her!

Whoooop!

As rejections go, this one ain't bad, in fact it's bloody good!

So I'm not going to take this as a rejection. Nooo, far from it. I'm taking it as a request for three chapters and a synopsis which will bypass the slush pile and land straight into an editor's inbox!

Now there's something to stick in my pipe and smoke! Oh, oh, another analogy. Mayhap this requires further investigation.

Ta da for now folks and happy writing!

Maya

HP Contest Winners Announced!

2009-12-11T11:46:00.001Z

And no, I wasn't one of them, or even a runner up! I sort of knew yesterday it wasn't going to happen when my phone remained silent, but it didn't stop the hope from building.

Writing for Harlequin Presents has always been my dream so this particular "rejection" hurts a little bit more.

But I won't lose hope. They've still got my requested full from last year's competition so there's something to look forward to! And who knows I might get another request from this year's competition (unless they never got my comp entry in the first place. Yes, that thought has crossed my mind, more than once, as has the thought that maybe I was disqualified for sending it twice!).

Anyway, commiserations to the 537 other entrants who weren't picked. Here's to hoping we get some sort of feeback, as promised by the editors.

A rather despondent,

Maya

An Amazing Find...on Amazon

2009-12-06T23:32:00.000Z

While procrastinating, er, I mean researching...something that had to be researched immediately, I happened across this review of Hostage To Love. A reader's 4-star review! How awesome is that? Reader's reviews are in my opinion, worth their weight in gold and this being my first makes it more special. If you, like me, are procra---, I mean, reasearching, feel free to take a look (it's halfway down the page).

http://www.amazon.com/Hostage-Love-Maya-Blake/dp/1601544685/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1260142318&sr=1-2

Happy reading.

Maya

Waiting…..Waiting…..Waiting.....

2009-12-01T14:37:00.000Z

It’s my own fault. I really should have checked more than one place for the announcements about the HP competition. NOW I find out, after risking serious RSI by clicking the Iheartpresents site every two minutes, that the winners won't be announced until 11 December. To make things worse, the post was at the same site, only in a different place. Grrr.

On a good note though, I managed (finally) to write a bit more of my sci-fi saga (not really a saga, but I can dream, right?). I’m now two scenes from the end. I know, I know, I’ve been saying this for a very long time, but this time I mean it. If only I can get it down on paper as clearly as it is in my head, then it’d be done by the end of the year and I’d be a very happy woman.

So, is anyone else waiting for something life-changing or otherwise? Fingers crossed for anyone else waiting for good news. For me, until the 11 December rolls around, the only other delivery I'm expecting is from the postman with my kids' fancy dress costumes.

So go on, tell me your news! I could do with some good cheer.

Happy writing and reading.

Maya

10 Days And Counting...

2009-11-20T12:20:00.000Z

I resisted the urge to put exclamation marks after the above header for the sole reason that it would only further fry my already frazzled nerves! What am I talking about? Well, there are only ten days to go before the winner of the Harlequin Presents Writing Competition winner is announced. For one author this is going to be a life-changing experience. For the rest of us :), we can only hope to get some positive feedback and/or a request for a full manuscript that will (hopefully) place our work in front of an editor.

Although…

In those tricky hours between dawn and sunrise, I can’t help wondering what would happen IF… ;)

I know everyone says the only way to beat the nerves is to get busy with writing something else, but, heh, that’s sooo much easier said than done!

Off to chew a few more nails, especially as the exclamation marks are beginning to mount up!

Happy reading and writing everyone!

Maya

The Proposal – Best Rom-Com of the Year!

2009-11-11T14:37:00.000Z

“hand off ass”, a catchy tune by Rob Base and DJ E-Z Rock (sang badly), and a very nutty grandmother are just a few things that make this movie my rom-com of the year. Some parts of it made howl with laughter (cue gay stripper scene).

Sandra Bullock really knows her comedy and as for Ryan Reynolds, well, all I can say is, that Scarlett Johansson is one lucky gal *wink*. Seriously though, as I mentioned on another board, I love, love, love this movie and anything that gives a writer the oomph to write more romance can only be a good thing, right?

Has anyone seen this movie? If not, make sure you see it asap!

Happy writing and reading.

Maya

PS – Oh, and this movie also totally changed my view of Alaska!

I've Lost My Hair Mojo!

2009-11-07T22:15:00.000Z

Hmm,
I used to be really good with describing my characters' hair. It used to be the one feature I enjoyed writing about, its silkiness, texture, length etc, etc.

As writers, we’re told we have to use all six senses, right?

Well, HAIR was my thing - the Hero touching the Heroine's hair, waxing lyrical (internally, of course) about how lovely it was. I loved describing all of it and it really wasn't as corny as it sounds, I promise.

But lately I have to really think about it before I can conjure the words to describe my characters' hair. I recently re-read a few of my mss, and noted all my heroes had jet-black hair! In short, my hair mojo is gone, and I can't get it back! And my heroines are all getting decidedly "honey-blonde with hints of red".

Well, things need to change. I need my mojo back or else my next heroine will bald.

Hang on...bald.

Hmm, interesting, my spidey senses are tingling. While I ruminate on this turn of events, perhaps you'd like to share what character features you like describing.

Happy reading and writing.

Maya

A Writer's Mission Statement - Seven Ways To Achieve Your Writing Goals

2009-11-01T21:12:00.000Z

1. Write.

2. Go without food and water (chocolate allowed on Sundays) in order to achieve number one.

3. Neglect husband and kids and all manner of housework in order to achieve number one.

4. Procrastination, er, research allowed in order to enhance number one.

5. Consume copious amounts of alcoholic beverage of choice when achieving number one becomes impossible.

6. Repeat number 1 immediately after number 5 because a tipsy muse is sooo much more fun (trust me, I know this).

7. Hung Over? Write!

If you have a better suggestion or mission statement of your own, I’d love to hear it. In the meantime, I have a drunken muse whispering in my ear.

Happy reading and writing all.

Maya