Literary Events: Attending or Not So Much?

The year has been flying by and as an author, I get excited when a new release is pending, don't you? Remember, I was a reader long before I penned my first novel. (That was a long time ago, another story for another blog.)

Today's notable is on literary events. Authors: Have you attended any this year? Why or why not? Were they well organized? Overwhelming? Maybe just not as informative as expected? This goes for writer's conferences and gatherings as well.

With E-books at the ready of a one-click, paperbacks are still in demand. I love having personalized novels in my collection, which is why I love attending book fairs, events, even dressing up for the theme it holds. Yes, I've done that and it's a lot of fun.

When attending literary events, are you networking with other authors, publishers, editors that provide specific services that may tailor to your future needs? I know we're all trying to sell our products, but usually in the midst of the madness, a gem or two fall into your lap. Be aware and research the business to see if it's a good fit for you.

Noted book fairs like the BEA and Harlem Book Fair, have become staples in the industry, along with a few others. One event on the rise is The Annual Authors Literary Festival being held in Richmond, Virginia from November 2-3, 2012 at the Sheraton Richmond Park South.

This particular festival will feature over forty authors including: Gwyneth Bolton, Brian W. Smith, Booker T. Mattison, Trice Hickman and many more. A meet and greet will be held on Friday, November 2, 2012 from 8pm to Midnight featuring poets from all over the country.

This is one event that will be talked about for months to come. Don't be left out.
Visit: www.theannualauthlitfestival.com for more information.

I'll be there with the lovely young lady featured below as "Nieva Claiborne" in the RENDEZVOUS Series. See you soon!
Loretta R. Walls, Author of RENDEZVOUS 2: Nieva's Dilemma #nucherte

The Love Scene vs. The Sex Scene

Sometimes, you want your lover to make love to you. You want to be caressed, you want to be kissed softly and sweetly and you want your hair to be stroked gently.

Then. . .sometimes, you just want to have sex! Or that other f-word. You want it against the wall, skirt hiked up, panties pulled to the side.

When I write, sometimes my hero and heroine want to have sex and sometimes they want to make love.
Take Freddie and Cleveland --the couple from More Than He Can Handle --they had sex more than they made love because Freddie Barker wasn't feeling Cleveland, a sexy firefighter who could have and had any woman he wanted.
Freddie didn't want to be like those other women, fawning over him, but she wanted him.
So, the first time they hit the bed: they were ***king. (LOL)

 All she knew was she had to have Cleveland inside her and fast.

            She took the condom from his hands. “Allow me,” she said as she pushed him on his back, then straddled his hard body. Freddie stroked his thick erection back and forth.

            “Miss Barker, you can do whatever you want to do,” he said with a sly smile.

            Freddie rolled the sheath into place then she guided him to where she needed him most. At first, it was a tight fit because it had been so long since she had been with a man and Cleveland was all man, thick and long. For a moment, it felt as if it was going to be too much for her to handle, but Cleveland shifted his hips and it was a perfect fit.

            He groaned as Freddie rode him slowly. Her intensity was building as they ground against each other and then it was as if she was possessed. She bucked like a stallion, grasping his shoulders as he pressed deeper and deeper into her wetness.

            “Oh, Freddie,” he exclaimed. “Damn.”

            She felt as if she was about to climax, but Cleveland wasn’t finished with her. He flipped her over on to her back, taking control of their rendezvous. Freddie arched her back, pressing her hips into his and matching him thrust for thrust until they were both spent from the experience. Collapsing in each other’s arms, they both exhaled. Freddie glanced at Cleveland, his eyes were half closed and he had a satisfied smile on his lips.

Now, of course, my characters make love. They revel in tender touches, feather light kisses and declarations of love and devotion (who doesn't!).

One of my favorite love scenes comes from Too Hot For TV.

Imani nodded, slowly feeling the tension easing from her shoulder. Raymond pushed the straps of her dress down her shoulders, kissing the skin he exposed. Imani shivered with desire as his tongue eased down the back of her neck. With his free hand, he unzipped her dress and it fell off her body, pooling at her feet. Raymond spun her around and drank in her image. She was clad in a pink lace strapless bra that held her breasts the way he wanted to and a pair of matching lace panties that clung to her hips and behind. Raymond ran his hand down the center of her chest, stopping at the waistband of her panties.

“May I?” he asked.

She nodded nervously. He pulled her panties around her ankles, then slipped his hand between her thighs. Imani was wet, hot and waiting. “I want to taste you,” he said, salivating at the thought of wrapping his lips around her bud. Raymond scooped her up in his arms and carried her into the bedroom. He could feel Imani’s heart beating in overdrive. “Are you all right?” he asked again.

“I can’t lie, I’m a little nervous,” she said as he laid her in the center of his king sized bed.

“We can stop.”

“We haven’t even started,” she said.

“If you’re ready, I know how I want to start,” he said as he slowly spread her thighs apart. With the palm of his hand, he stroked her wetness back and forth. Imani squirmed under his touch. Her body seemed to take on a life of its on, responding to Raymond’s touch in ways she never imagined that she could do. Easing between her thighs, he parted her wet lips with his fingertips, then gently licked the folds of flesh until Imani’s moans turned into screams of passion. “Raymond, Raymond,” she cried as he sucked her throbbing bud of desire. She was so sweet, so delicious. Better than he’d dreamed she would be. He licked and sucked until she trembled and exploded in his mouth. Propping up on his elbows, he looked into Imani’s sated face. “How do you feel?” he asked.

So which do you prefer (in books, that is): lovemaking or sexing? 

The Mind Wants What the Mind Wants

Readers email me all the time asking, “Angie, when are you going to release the next book to the series.” To be honest, I never know quite how to answer because I really don’t have much control over what I write next. I’m serious. My characters speak to me.

I can sit down to the computer all set to write one story and before I know it the book has gone in a totally different direction. It’s like my fingers are possessed or something. Sometimes I even hear those characters in my head, talking to me. I guess that’s okay. Until I start talking back then that’s when we have a problem. LOL

Okay… so check this out.

Remember the little boy who whispered, “I see dead people.” Well, I’m one of the ones who would have never thought he was crazy because “I hear head people.”

Now if I say that too loud someone might try to admit me to the psychiatric ward where they would heavily medicate me and kill all my creative juices and Angie ain’t having that. Instead, I actually consider my “head case” my “thought process.” I wake up every morning meditating and outlining what I plan to write about. Each scene has to have a purpose and then I need to figure out a way to connect the dots.

And that’s where those crazy voices come in.

You would think we were at a Presidential debate the way my characters and I go back in forth with plots until finally a light goes off and we share an aaah-haaa moment.

It may sound crazy but it’s the way this author operates. It’s not so bad. At least I 'll always have a writing partner.

A Day in the Life

Denise Jeffries inspired me to describe my day, but not just any day. I want to talk about my writing day.

Just like Denise and, I'm sure, a whole host of other authors, I have a day job, a regular 9 to 5, or rather 6 to 5. When I get home from work, I'm back on the computer but mainly doing promotions. I answer e-mails. Sometimes I plot out my next book. Rarely to I write on my current WIP (work in progress).

"So when do you write, Bridget?"

How did I know you would ask that? I do a lot of my writing on the weekends. I drag my laptop onto my lap (laptop tray underneath, of course) and I sit in bed and I write. The pros of writing in bed is that I'm comfortable. I have what I need all around me. I get inspired easier in bed. The con, a rather big con, is that when I get sleepy, and let's face it. Who wouldn't writing in bed? I tend to take a lot of naps. Just push my laptop to the side and get snuggly under my blankets.

So after my nap(s) -- don't judge me -- I get down to writing. I have my notes next to me. For novels, I do a chapter-by-chapter basic outline. I write key points I want to see happen in a story.

Before that, I do a full character outline. Even if I don't use it, I write out the characters' full names. I write down where they live. What they look like. If I'm inspired by a celebrity, I write down that celebrity's name. Then I write down the charcters' internal and external conflicts. Those are what propel my stories. If you ever hear an author say that they have writer's block, the problem is that the conflict(s) is/are not strong enough to push the story along. Yeah, it hurt me when someone told that to me. But I realized it was the truth.

Anyway, so I write all day and sometimes all night into the early morning. I write until I get to a good spot or when my wrists hurt. Whichever comes first. I keep that up until I finally writh "The End." After that, I push the story aside for a few days, maybe even a week or so, then I come back to it and reread it again to edit it.

Once I submit the story, it's off on to the next one. I know of other authors who are able to write more than one story at the same time. I'm not one of those people. I can't mix all of those voices in my head. Call me simple. That's just how I roll.

Speaking of rolling, I have to go now. The books won't write themselves.

Stay sexy,
BridgeT http://www.BridgetMidway.com/

Chaos and Disorder (And Not the Prince Album), Plus Kianna Stops by BRAB

Hi, Y'all,
It's pretty hectic at Casa Alexander these days. I'm swamped with freelance work (my "day" job), school has started for my son (he's a first grader), and my appointment book runneth over. I had no idea I'd be echoing Loretta's earlier post about how crazy life can get, but, it is what it is.
So, as I juggle the many appointments of my special needs son, and struggle to get my own self together, I sneak away to write and revise, whenever I can. I have to write. It is imperative. And I'll tell you why: these days, with so much going on, writing is the only time I can be in control.
And I relish that control. My characters are my creations, to torture or give happiness at my very whim. I can make them suffer, or I can give them bliss. When life feels too much like it's "happening" to me, without  my input, writing anchors me by giving me control over something.
I've been working on a historical short for weeks now, and a certain editor from a certain house has her eye on it. I've decided this will be my first attempt at erotic romance- and I'm sure I can glean some great advice from my fellow M.A.M.A.'s in this arena. I really, REALLY want this deal- the house is well established and has a large, devoted following. It's hard for me to get time to put into the revisions these days, but I'm determined to get it done. Y'all pray for a sistah. ;)

 

If you get a minute this weekend, stop by BRAB's Facebook page this Sunday, September 9th, at 3pm EST, where there will be a lively discussion of my historical sweet romance, Kissing the Captain. Knowing the ladies in this group, I'm sure a good time will be had by all.

Until Next Time,
Kianna

WRITING T. ONYX

The romance genre is such a diverse, exciting place. I feel extremely lucky to be an author amongst stories such as these. I mean, think about it, here you can craft tales of mystery, tales that take us back centuries, ones that explore the paranormal, sweet stories of the handsome guy meeting, losing and then winning the girl in the end, ones where a vampire or a guy that can shift into a powerful lion are the good guys- can someone say Chisulo Nkosi? And ones that make your cheeks (both pairs) burn… Yes, the romance genre has something for everyone.

Not only do I feel lucky to be an author in this genre, but I feel lucky to have crafted stories in more than one sub-genre. Reading and eventually writing have proven to be my great escapes but it wasn’t until I delved into the world of erotic romance that I really felt I had ventured into a new world. Deciding to don the cap of T. Onyx was about a lot of things for me. It wasn’t just because I wanted to write those cheek burning stories, although that was a big part of it J. As a traditionally published author you eventually come to a point where you crave more freedom. It doesn’t have to be total freedom, but you will start to crave having more of a say in what you put down on paper and the way you put it down.

T. Onyx translated into another level of freedom for me. I had already tasted a bit of writing freedom, when I took the reins of my Ramsey (and Tesano) series but there were additional cravings I wanted to explore. I enjoyed crafting my first Young Adult series (next year, I’ll begin work on the final draft of my new YA). Still, I desired a trip further out of my comfort zone. I read an article that stressed the importance of reading erotica before writing it- as the nuances of the writing style are so very different from traditional romance. Boy am I glad I followed that advice- the erotica genre is definitely a world of its own- a steamy, no holds barred world where there are almost no limits aside from the ones that exist in your own imagination. Here, I found the freedom I sought. Stories that may not fit in a traditional romance are right at home here. Only as T. Onyx could I craft a story about two adult entertainment actors who realize they share more than what they do on screen, only as T. Onyx could I craft a story about three childhood friends who discover they want to take their friendship to the level of lust and only as T. Onyx could I craft a contemporary fantasy about a two families of feline shifters.

The ideas are abundant, extraordinary and oftentimes scandalous. The stories are as hot as the characters that grace the pages. I think I’ll enjoy being T. Onyx for a while longer.

A day in the life?

Okay, let’s break this down a bit. Sixty seconds in a minute. Sixty minutes in an hour. 24 hours in a day. 7 days in a week and a whopping 365 days in a year. So what does a writer do on a daily basis? Well, when I am not writing, thinking about writing or dreaming about writing I am a registered nurse and I work as case manager in a hospital. I’ve been a registered nurse for 27 years. Wow, what a long time to do that, however, I asked a fellow peer today how long she’d been in nursing and she told me 42 years. Yikes! Now that’s a lot of nursing. The funny thing though, writing is soooo much more exciting. Sure in my nursing career I’ve saved a life or two, seen some really crazy and bizaar stuff, but that's just not as fun as killing off people and I do that with flair and pizzazz. I’m known as the person who said on a local television show, that I was a nurse at a local hospital and a few minutes later stated I killed people for fun. Hehehe. What a blast that must have been when people heard it. I’m just glad I didn’t mention what hospital. But I digress. I try to write something each and every day. It doesn’t always work like that because as we all know, sometimes, life gets in the way. I wake up at 5am during the week. Get ready for work which only takes me roughly 45 minutes depending on what I’m doing with the hair. Laugh if you must but it’s true. I know the women out there understand. This gives me over an hour to eat a little something and get a bit of writing in. And writing is where my day begins and where it ends. Even as I’m driving to work I’m thinking about the book in progress. I find myself sitting in the hospital parking lot jotting down notes on something that came to me while driving. It could be a word, a character’s name, a paragraph or a scene. I’ve been late on more than one occasion because my muse was alive and awake and wouldn’t let me get out of the car. And yes on a day or two I have had to pull over to the side of the road to write something down. What’s a writer to do? These past few days I’ve been finalizing the edits to Yesterday’s Promises and its going great. I believe everyone is going to love this book. It’s the sequel to Sleeping Beauty. We are finding out that yesterday’s promises may have been lies. How’s that for a teaser? Thinking about another day in the life, I remember when the conception of these books came to light. I was sitting in the Atlanta airport waiting for a connecting flight and the prologue to Sleeping Beauty popped into my head. All I was doing was sitting there minding my own business watching the people. I do that a lot too. It’s another one of my favorite past times. Sleeping Beauty was born and was supposed to be a one book deal. However, as I approached the end of that book, the characters said they weren’t finished. So what’s a writer to do? I couldn’t possibly go against the characters now could I? Well anyway, as I was saying, I start my day writing. I find myself jotting notes on sticky pads and tucking them in my pocket at work. And yes, when I get home it’s my goal to write some more, about 3 hours or so. The very last thing I do each and every night before I close my eyes… I read someone else's book and most likely it's a romance. Go figure. I bet you weren’t expecting that. Sometimes it’s only a page or two, sometimes it’s a chapter and if the book is really great, I’m gonna be late for work the next day. So if you break it down, I write or do some type of associated writing process at least 4 hours a day. That’s 28 hours a week and 1460 hours per year. Oh my goodness, I need to kick it up a notch. So hold on to your seats, because coming your way very soon: Yesterday's Promises (a romantic suspense with paranormal elements). Lies. Redemption. Love. Until history is brought to the light, the days will remain in the dark.