Tag Archives: writer

Writing

A Guy’s Perspective on Writing Romance

October 27, 2011 – 10:00 pm

MichealRiversParanormal romance author Micheal Rivers joins me today for a look at a guy’s perspective on writing romance.  His secret is simple, but is speaks to the heart of women readers and rings true for even the most macho of men.

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When Karen asked me to write this I wasn’t sure in the beginning how I was going to approach the subject. Then I remembered write what you know. The subject of romance has been known to make the strongest of men cringe in fear. There are so many people out there both men and women that don’t have any idea what true romance is about.

I am not saying I am an expert nor am I saying my version is correct. I do know my versions work and that is all that counts for me. Romance can be a fleeting thing at the best of times. You can become complacent in your lives and forget what brought you to this point in your life to begin with.

Trust me–it was not the Super Bowl and the Chili dip. It was possibly your gentle smile toward her in the beginning, or the warm soft touch of her skin. For the record, there was a spark between the both of you that was not to be denied.

I am far from being gentile and my look at sports is the adventure that will take your life in a split second, doing it, not sitting as a spectator. The treatment of my lady is another matter entirely. Without going into actual script as for a book this is an example of what my idea of romancing the love of your life should be when I write it. This is the basis.

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Micheal and Rhea

Everything should revolve around her. Without question I treat her as if the entire world revolves around her. There is no other woman walking the face of the Earth in my eyes. An invitation to dinner is first on the list. Before she ever gets close to the time for getting ready for the dinner date someone will deliver a nice bouquet of flowers to her. They must be picture perfect in all respects with a card letting her know how special she is. Be careful with your wording gentlemen or your dinner date will be all the evening will offer. The words have to come from your heart. The ring of these words will tell her if your heart is true.

Dressed appropriately you will pick her up at her door and take her to dinner. Equality is fine but a gentleman escorts her to the car and holds the door for her. A simple taste of the old world is still enchanting for both of you.

The dinner is a special occasion. It is your desire it will never be forgotten. You have pulled some strings and have arranged for private dining at a casino. During the dinner she is treated like royalty from the staff. (Personal service from the restaurant manager). You will talk of pleasant things and let her know how special she is. It helps when you make certain they serve her the things she loves best; such as Filet Mignon and Lobster. Dessert was made in heaven and delivered by Satan. In short it is sinfully good.

In this case she likes to gamble just a little. This is the time when you have arranged for someone to be always close at hand to make certain she has everything she wants. Let her know the evening is still young and there are more things in store for her.

The valet brings your car to the door and you leave the casino. Heaven is just another avenue for you to let her know where you are going. It is close to midnight with a lover’s moon riding high in the sky when you reach your destination and she discovers you are on a mountain top in the middle of a cloud bank with a million stars above her. It is her moment and she does not have to share the spotlight with anyone.

The heavenly silence here is a dream in itself. Leaving the radio playing softly in the background you help her from the car and take her literally dancing in the clouds. A gentle kiss and hold her tenderly. You let her know in every way she is all that will ever matter to you. Your eyes will tell her what she wants to know. When the curtains close at the end of the evening there are only two people on Earth and the promise of love will blossom.

Depending on the writer this scenario can be difficult to convey to your reader in such a manner it moves their heart. My advice is to write from the heart and your words will follow. This is the key to understanding and placing your actions in perspective. The goal is to win the heart of the woman in your words. I hope this simple verse helps you.

When you walk by the shores of a rolling sea;

Will you dream the dreams of loving me?

~Published by Micheal Rivers~

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The Black Witch (Curse of the Witch)

It was the adventure of a life time. In an obscure marina off the shores of Maryland a schooner unlike any other ever built was discovered. Dorian and Diana Coe purchased the schooner and sailed from the shores of tranquility into the bowels of hell itself.
Prurient tales of suicide, murder, and the disappearance of an entire crew were hand written within the ship’s logs.

On her decks sailed a well seasoned Captain and crew that never knew the schooner’s shadowed past. The new owners ignored the words of men with integrity and sailed the Black Witch in the Spring of 1935.

Into the realms of illusion and pure evil the ship and its compliment sailed never knowing the fate awaiting them!

Visit Micheal Rivers at his website: http://www.michealrivers.com, Facebook, or follow him on Twitter.

Join Micheal and 35 other authors as they celebrate the launch of Melissa Foster’s Come Back To Me.

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Writing

Writing For The YA Market

October 21, 2011 – 1:00 am

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Today, YA author Andrea Buginsky shares what it takes to write a good young adult novel that captures the active imaginations of teenagers.  Andrea enjoyed writing since she was a kid. When she got to college, she decided to turn it into a career, and earned a BA in Journalism. Though freelancing for several years, Andrea always wanted to write a book.  She loves fantasy movies like “Lord of the Rings” and “Harry Potter,” so she decided to take similar path with her YA novel, “The Chosen.”

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Many people think that it’s easier to write for kids than for adults. They couldn’t be more wrong. It’s just as hard to write for kids, if not harder, than for adults.

When you’re writing for kids, you have to make sure to use many descriptive phrases in order to get their imaginations going. They have to be able to feel a part of the story, or else they might get bored and start to tune out. Once that happens, they lose all interest in the story, and put the book down. That’s not what you want from your book. You want your book to be a page-turner full of action, adventure, mystery, and suspense.

When writing for young adults, the same rules apply. You need to be able to hook them right away, and keep their interest throughout the story. You can have a couple of slower-paced portions of the story here and there, but for the most part, you want to keep the story moving forward, with plenty of action and adventure to take the wandering minds of young adults all the way through the book.

So what does it take to write a book that will capture your readers’ attention right away, and keep it throughout the book? An active imagination of your own. If you have a creative mind and a big imagination yourself, it’s easy to write a book that will keep the attention of an active teenager. Write the book as you see the adventure unfolding. When you see that it needs to take a turn in the road to keep the story moving, take it. Let your story take you where it wants to go, instead of trying to make your story follow you. Listen to your characters, and let them tell you where you need to go next. They’ll know before you in most cases.

The best thing you can do for your writing when working on a YA story is to be an active participant in it instead of the controller. You may have had a specific plan for your story, but it’s ok to break the mold and take it somewhere unexpected. Some of the best books were written this way, and your best seller can come out of this adventure, too. Have fun, and let your imagination take off!

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The Chosen

Halli is a shy, young dwarf who has no idea of her true calling. When the evil Prince Gastle sets out to detroy the world of Phantasma, Queen Laurali of the Elves comes to tell Halli she’s a Holy Paladin with the power to heal, and will join The Chosen, a group of brave warriors being sent to defeat the evil beast and save Phantasma. Will Halli be accepted by her group, and be able to keep them alive through their adventures? Will the evil Prince Gastle be defeated, freeing Phantasma from his destruction? Only time will tell.

Visit Andrea Buginsky on her website: http://andisrealm.webs.com/.

Join Andrea and 35 other authors as they celebrate the launch of Melissa Foster’s latest release.

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Arizona Territory Writing

A Modern Zane Grey?

May 30, 2011 – 1:25 pm

I recently had the opportunity to visit the replica of Zane Grey’s cabin in Payson, Arizona.  While learning more about the famous author of the 1920’s, I learned that Zane Grey and I have several things in common.

He was born and raised in Zanesville, Ohio, a town founded by his great-grandfather.  He and his wife also lived in Pennsylvania for a number of years.  Then he spent ten years or so traveling to and writing about Arizona.

So what’s my connection to these facts?  While I was not born in Ohio or Pennsylvania, I was raised in both states.  I lived near St. Clairsville, Ohio for a number of years, which is not too terribly far away from Zanesville.  For the past fourteen years, I’ve made Arizona my home, traveling all over the state.

Many of Zane’s books are written about The West and thirteen or so are set in Arizona.  My Prescott Pioneers series is set in Prescott, Arizona, during the birth of the territory and would definitely fit into a western genre.

One of my favorite similarities, though, has little to do with where Zane or I have lived.  I love this picture of his writing chair from his cabin in Arizona.  It looks very similar to my favorite writing chair, a recliner in my office, where I can often be found burning up the keys on my laptop.

Who knows?  Maybe one day I’ll be as famous?

 

If you have never read any of Zane Grey’s work, I would encourage you to do so.  He’s a master of weaving an interesting tale with magnificent descriptions of the landscape.  He throws in some romance, too, appealing to a wide variety of readers.

 

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Self-Publishing Writing

Are Indie Authors Real Authors?

March 12, 2011 – 9:24 am

Recently, I tried to join a national writers association for one of the genres of my book, A Dream Unfolding.  Having seen some organizations who specifically state they do not accept indie or self-published authors, I carefully reviewed the membership information on their website.  The wording on the site left me believing my work as an indie author would receive the same respect as my traditionally published peers.

Imagine my utter surprise and disappointment when I received the welcome email and read this line:

For [our] purposes, a published author is an author who is contracted and paid by a publisher for the work. The author does not contribute financially to the publication of the work. The publisher is not a POD, subsidy or vanity publisher. And the work is attributed to the author.

This information was nowhere on their website.  I already paid for a membership before I found out the organization’s stance on indie authors.  I was extremely disappointed because without author status the resources provided by this organization would be very limited to me.  I also would not be able to post a profile on their author page nor participate in any of their writing contests.  I was some other class of writer—perhaps not even a real writer.

After requesting my money back in the most diplomatic and non-offensive way as possible, I received back a response that included this statement of the organization’s vision:

To promote excellence in [genre] fiction and advance the professional interests of career-focused [genre] writers…

Was I supposed to assume that as an independent self-published author that I was not “career-focused”?

Following this experience, I began to question why there is such negative stigma out there for indie authors.  My work is quality.  I have received five 5-star reviews (out of a total of seven reviews, the other two being 4-stars) on Amazon in the first two months of publication from individuals who have never met me and can only judge me by the content of my book.

Not only am I career-focused, but also business focused.  That is one reason why I chose self-publishing over traditional publishing—I have a passion for business (and a degree in business).   I am 100% responsible for the success or failure of my book business.  And I would not have it any other way.

Even though I choose to run my writing as a business where I maintain control, it does not mean that I don’t want to be a part of a community of writers—both traditionally published and independent.  The craft of writing is the same regardless of the business model chosen.  Grammar is still grammar.  Writer’s block is still tough.  Improving dialogue, characterization, and style are still important.

I would hope that any organization dedicated to promotion excellence in writing would want to broaden their audience base and include writers of all business models.  We can learn so much from each other.

So, what’s your take?  Can indie authors and traditionally published authors learn from each other?  Should organizations be open to both types of professionals?

Please take a minute to weigh in on the discussion by leaving a comment.  I would love to hear from all authors—indie or not; published, self-published, or still unpublished.

Also, please check back in the coming weeks.  I’ll be talking more about topics such as:  differences between traditional and self-publishing, what is marketing mix, market disruption in the publishing industry, and more.

 

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