Golden Heart Suspense

Golden Heart and RITA announcements went out this week. Once upon a time, I was a Golden Heart finalist in the Romantic Suspense category. It was a long time ago. Back when you used to get candle wax on your books. Back when you used to hitch your horse up in front of of the general store. Back when you used to wash your clothes on the rocks by the river. Back when Route 66 was a dirt path. 

Anyway...I embarked on my very first trip to the ROMANCE WRITERS OF AMERICA conference. There was definitely an element of suspense to the whole process. I had no idea what to expect and quite honestly, I was nervous as all heck. But I packed up my bags, along with my conviction, and I boarded that plane. As the cab pulled up in front of the hotel, I walked through the sliding front doors into the lobby and witnessed a throng of nearly 300,000 women (or so it appeared to me at the time). Hyperventilating, I spun around to leave, but the cab had already pulled away.

I had no choice but to 'man up' as they say. I took a deep breath and walked directly into that throng (with my head ducked down). But try as I might to stay invisible, the Golden Heart ribbon affixed to my shirt was like a beacon. People I didn’t know would stop and say, “Ohhh, you’re a finalist. Congratulations! What category?” After my fifth congratulatory comment I decided the RWA Conference was a really cool place to be. :)

The day before the award ceremony they made us practice walking up the steps and onto the stage. They even made us go up to the microphone and speak into an empty arena to get used to the sound of our voice over the speaker system. The rule they recited over and over was to NOT drink any alcohol before the ceremony so that you didn’t embarrass yourself by tripping or saying something silly.

The night of the ceremony came, and no, I didn’t win my category, but it’s an honor just to be nominated, right? :) I had to chuckle that night, though. A very prominent NY Times best-selling author won a RITA. She walked up to the podium and held up her award and very loudly announced, “And guess what…I’ve been drinking!”

Congratulations to all the RITA and Golden Heart finalists.


Maureen A. Miller
Golden Heart Finalist 02

The Rake Hero

Or, as I prefer to call him, The Male Slut.

(Yes, I know this post may be more appropriate for a historical romance blog, but this phenomenon has creeped into contemporaries and even romantic suspense and I feel it needs to be stopped for all our sakes.)

This type of hero abounded in the early romances I read. Old-school historical romances usually opened up with a scene of the hero and one or more women who were definitely not pure enough to be the heroine. Or a duel between the hero and the husband he cuckolded. Some of these heroes also cheated on the heroines mid-way through the book, usually as a way to drive the heroines away because they felt they weren't good enough for them. (Susan Johnson, however, basically stuck with the tenet men cheat when their significant others are not around.)

These heroes were considered virile, manly, et cetera, et cetera because all women wanted them--and had them. They are commitment-phobic because why should they settle for only one woman when they can have them all? Of course, then they would meet the feisty, virginal heroines who would make them change, see the error of their ways, and they would no longer want any other woman but these paragons.

The fantasy of taking a male slut rake and reforming him appears to be shared by many, many women (how else to explain the trope's popularity?)...but I'm not one of them.

Frankly, they skeeved me out. It's not a morality thing for me. Every time I came across one of them, my stomach would shudder as I imagined the possible STDs they would have from sleeping around. And I would always wonder how many bastard children they might've sired and didn't know about. And the whole cheating-for-her-own-good pissed me right off. Made me want to reach into the books and shove the heroes over the nearest cliff, and maybe the heroines with them for forgiving the jackasses.

SNL did a skit back in the 90s about the world's ultimate rake that perfectly portrays my take. If you have a few minutes, Google "SNL James Bond STDs".

TAKING A STAND FOR JUSTICE

Justice will be served when those who are unaffected are as outraged as those who are. —Benjamin Franklin

Has there ever been a case where deep down you’ve cried ‘foul’ when the criminal is either acquitted or receives a light sentence?  Intellectually and morally, you understand and believe in the bedrock principle that a person charged with a crime is entitled to a jury of one’s peers who must find guilt beyond a reasonable doubt but still…  The murderer, child abuser, or white collar swindler has gotten off scot-free.  That’s not right!  Shouldn’t the person pay?  

I explore this morality quagmire n my latest Carina Press book, HER DARK PROTECTOR, which is out today.  Against the backdrop of South Florida, the justice system has been rendered impotent with corruption permeating the highest levels.   The bad guys are winning; it’s time for the good guys to take a stand.

Differing philosophies and motivations pit a secret justice society and a vigilante group in the fight against crime. On the surface what the two groups share is a sense of belonging and purpose in a society weary of crime.  However, the Justice Alliance and its membership of Justice Hunters seek to aid the justice system by gathering evidence, tracking down witnesses and protecting those law enforcement individuals at risk.  In contrast the ‘Veritas’ have found a way to exact justice for a price; they are vigilantes for hire.

Add to the mix a heroine who as a state attorney believes justice is society’s glue and a drug lord who follows law of the jungle, and the battlefield is set.

I did think of the unlikely mix of the Death Wish movie series starring Charles Bronson and the comic strip series The Justice League as I wrote this book.  What appeals to you as a reader about stories where a person takes a stand against crime?

Carol Stephenson

READ EXCERPT HERE

My Links:  Website; Facebook; Twitter; Not Your Usual Suspects

Buy Links for HER DARK PROTECTOR:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Carina Press

STIMULUS

According to my American Heritage Dictionary, the meaning of the word stimulus is—“Something causing or regarded as causing a response. Something that incites or rouses to action.” As writers we can’t wait for stimulus. We pick up a pad and pencil or sit down at our computer and begin. At the end of the day, we may tap the delete key and erase every word we wrote but when morning comes we begin again.
But sometimes an ahhah moment occurs and we jump out of bed, throw on a robe, and turn on the computer and a flow of words gushes forth like some magic waterfall. Our brains cells have been stimulated by a book, an article, a painting, music, someone we love or a stranger passed on the street.
I remember the effect stories my mother would tell me on rainy days had on me, the first time I read Edna Ferber’s Show Boat in the school library and decided to become an actress, and the love of words resulting from a class in Shakespearean plays I took at night. Touring with shows led to a love of travel and articles.
In Verona I stopped by Giuetta’s House—an idyllic setting for a lover’s tryst. Romeo’s home is at 2-4 Via Arche Scaligere behind the Della Scala cemetery but in Verona, Juliet gets top billing and the story is called Giuletta and Romeo. The houses are fiction but it doesn’t matter—visitors believe. Young girls lean over the balcony and recite, the lovelorn leave messages and the setting was used as a backdrop for a motion picture.
Verona was a crossroads with merchants coming through for centuries. The Capulets, it’s said, were hat merchants and their competitors were the Montagues. A novel, titled La Giulietta, written by Luigi da Porto, was translated into French in 1525. But it is said that da Porto adapted the story from one in a collection written by Masuccio Salernitano, a poet who lived from 1410-1475, and is the story of Mariotto and Giannozza. Others claim it is da Porto’s tragic personal story—he fell in love with Lucia Sarvognan but his uncle's relationship with her guardian doomed the romance. The Italian Renaissance had a great influence on English poetry and drama and the Italian novella became extremely popular in 16th century England. Shakespeare turned La Giulietta into a long-running play titled Romeo and Juliet, around 1595. A festival of Shakespeare’s work may be enjoyed every July and August at the Roman Theatre at Rigaste Redentore—the perfect setting in the perfect city for a production of Romeo and Juliet. Ballets, musical comedies and operas have also been influenced by the Bard’s work.
In our time, P.D. James has channeled Jane Austin with her (or their) mystery Death Comes To Pemberley. Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre inspired many future authors. The most famous is Wide Sargasso Sea, written in 1966 by Jean Rhys. The most successful novel written by Rhys and a prequel, the book tells the story of an unhappy marriage from the point of view of the first Mrs. Rochester. Many other authors have reworked the story including a 2010 novel that has Jane battling with vampires.
Who was your role model? What, where and when were you stimulated, inspired and hooked on writing?

Bests,

Elise

Have you discovered KINDLEGRAPH yet?

Kindlegraph

lets authors send personalized inscriptions and signatures ("kindlegraphs") directly to the electronic reading devices of their fans.

Readers - contact your favourite authors and collect e-autographs!

Authors - reach your readers in an even more personalised way!

There's a very useful mini-video on how it works on the site, but here is a brief, additional run-down.

I'm an Author, what do I do? 
* Sign up for Twitter, if you haven't already. You DON'T have to use Twitter after that, although you may learn to love it :). Either way, you only need a Twitter ID at the moment for Kindlegraph.
* Go to Kindlegraph and use your Twitter ID to register you as an author. You'll be asked to add a contact email address. Now readers can find you there!
* Add your book(s). All you need is the Amazon ASIN reference, it's listed on the Amazon book page. Copy or type that in, then the book will appear on your Author page with a "Request Kindlegraph" button underneath for a reader to use.

* When a reader requests a Kindlegraph, you'll get an email letting you know. You sign into Kindlegraph, find "Requests" at the top right of your screen, follow that link to the request and write something to them. Kindlegraph offers an automated signature for your message, but you can add your own. Press "Send Kindlegraph" and off it goes!

I'm a reader, what do I do?

You don't need to own or buy the book in order to receive a Kindlegraph, nor do you need to own a Kindle. The Kindlegraph is not inserted into the e-book. It arrives as a separate document. This allows a reader to create a "collection" on their reading device and keep all of their Kindlegraphs together.

* Sign on to Twitter as above.
* Go to Kindlegraph, search for your favourite author(s), click on any of their books and send a request. You can add a personal message to them if you want.
* When they've completed a Kindlegraph back to you, you'll get an email notification. You can then access it on your Kindle, on your iBooks, or directly from the Kindlegraph site. Log in, look for "My Collection" at the top right of the screen, and your Kindlegraphs are accessible as PDFs, attached to a copy of the cover art.

Authors, want to check how it works?
Request a Kindlegraph for yourself, from your own book! Or buddy up with another author and request from each other. Then you can follow through the process and see what it looks like.

To request a personalized signature go to http://kindlegraph.com/books or click on the authors link:

Participating Carina Press Suspense and Not Your Usual Suspects authors:

Toni Anderson             http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/toniannanderson

Anne Marie Becker      http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/annemariebecker

Wynter Daniels             http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/WynterDaniels

Marcelle Dubé              http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/MarcelleDube

Rita Henuber                http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/ritahenuber

Kathy Ivan                   http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/KathyIvan

Clare London               http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/clare_london

Maureen Miller             http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/MaureenAMiller

Julie Moffett                 http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/JMoffettAuthor

Wendy Soliman            http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/wendyswriter

Carol Stephenson         http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/CStephensonFL

Shirley Wells                http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/Shirley_Wells
Julie Wachowski          http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/JulieWachowski
Josh Lanyon                 http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/JoshLanyon
Sharon Cullen               http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/SharonCullen
Shelley Munro              http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/ShelleyMunro
Angela Henry               http://www.kindlegraph.com/authors/MystNoir

Come and support these great authors. It's a chance to say "HI", and enjoy a personalised souvenir for books you've enjoyed - or are looking forward to!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pinterest: Inspiration for Authors

“No! Not another form of social media to soak up my writing time.”

To be honest that’s what I thought when I first heard about Pinterest. I’m chronically short of time these days, so I turned my back and tiptoed away. But Pinterest was determined to nab me. I started to see posts about Pinterest in my blog feeds. Curious about this new “thingie” that seemed to be stalking me, I read the posts about this shiny new toy. I was intrigued. Hooked,
darn it!

“Okay,” I told myself. "Maybe Pinterest would be helpful with the new series you're percolating. You could use it as a visual storyboard."

My experience with Pinterest:

1. I requested an invitation from Pinterest, which turned up in my inbox in a few hours.

2. Once I received my invitation, the actual joining was easy. (You need to be either a Facebook or Twitter user to join.) During the sign up stage, tick the subjects that interest you. Pinterest automatically sets you up with people (friends) who have common interests to get you started. You can unfriend people later if you change your mind.

3. Since my main purpose in joining Pinterest is as a source of inspiration and a visual storyboard, I haven’t bothered searching out people to friend.

4. Each of the heroines in my new series now has a board, and the pinning process has helped me consider different facets of their characters. It’s a work-in-progress.

5. I started a board for my blog, and it occurred to me I could do a board for my latest release, Cat Burglar in Training. A brainwave struck, and I added a link for this board to my website as an added extra for readers to check out. Cat Burglar in Training Pinterest board.

Images of elements from Cat burglar in Training, ranging from ball gowns, cars and jewels to peanut butter, plus the cover populate this board. The purpose of these boards is to direct traffic to my website and my book.

6. The Cat Burglar in Training board pleased me so much I started one for my paranormal MiddlemarchMates series too.

Conclusion: Pinterest is fun. It's perfect for those who are visual during the creative process. There’s no pressure to visit if you're short of time. When I do visit, I find the process relaxing and inspirational. Win-win!

For those of you who are unconvinced here is a link to a useful article:
Pinterest: 13 Things Authors Should Know by Rachelle Gardner, agent

Do you Pinterest?

Apologies readers, but Josh Lanyon is ill (Get Well Soon, Josh!) and his next I-Spy post is postponed until the 15th of next month.