Announcing: E-Book Launch of FORGIVEN

I'm pleased to announce that my second novel and the companion to FAITHFUL, FORGIVEN, is now available as an e-book on Amazon Kindle for $2.99.

If you haven't read FORGIVEN - and I hope you'll give it a try! - here's the synopsis: 

Kula Baker never expected to find herself on the streets of San Francisco in 1906. The daughter of an outlaw, Kula is soon swept up in a world of art and intrigue – a world she hardly dared dream of back in Montana. She meets handsome David Wong, whose smiling eyes and soft-spoken manner have an uncanny way of breaking through Kula’s carefully crafted reserve. Yet when a mighty earthquake strikes and the wreckage threatens all she holds dear, Kula realizes that only by unlocking her heart can she begin to carve a new future for herself.

This is the second launch for FORGIVEN. Unfortunately, it's been out of print for almost a year, but fortunately my options as an author with an out-of-print book are now greater than ever.

I'll share a bit of my journey in case you're curious or in the same position.

First and foremost, here's my new cover, designed by Elijah Toten:

I couldn't be happier with the design, which pulls together an image of San Francisco after the earthquake and fires of 1906 with the period flavor of the girl's clothing and the sense of searching that dominates the novel.

I found Elijah after scouring the web for cover designers and choosing him for the clarity of his designs. I also had advice on all matters including cover design from Chris Eboch and Dotti Enderle, who have much experience with e-book creation. And I should add that Elijah's price was extremely reasonable.

After returning my electronic rights to me, my publisher graciously supplied me with an epub version of the manuscript. This was great, because it allowed me to retain much of the interior design; but Amazon uses mobi files, not epub, and I'd decided to launch with KDP Select because the terms are better for me.

My web designer Lynn Kinnaman helped me by converting the epub first to Word and then to mobi, and then we set up the book to publish. We had to go through several corrections but Amazon makes that easy by allowing you to preview the text since sometimes glitchy little software errors do creep in. I looked through the text carefully because I find it no fun to read an ebook with quirky issues.

If you have a final, clean manuscript in Microsoft Word, it's much easier to go from there, but all interior design has to be removed. Frankly, I was thrilled to have Lynn's help, as my left-braininess doesn't extend to the tedious job of formatting.

It felt like it took forever, but really the process was very easy, thanks to all the advice and help. If you have questions, please fire away!

Reading Like a Writer: Maggie Stiefvater’s THE SCORPIO RACES and Magical Realism

Magical realism is a phrase I never completely understood until I recently read Maggie Stiefvater’s The Scorpio Races. The term seems contradictory: how could a realistic story contain magical elements? What does a writer do to introduce those elements without throwing the novel into the terrain of fantasy? I suppose some readers will argue that The Scorpio Races is fantasy, but I’m going to take the side of magical realism, and this analysis approaches her fabulous story with that in mind.

Her setting is entirely believable – an island off the coast of, well, something like Ireland. There are references to the mainland, the Atlantic, and America, and the names she uses have that Celtic ring: Finn Connolly, Sean Kendrick, Skarmouth, Thisby. Our heroine’s nickname is Puck, conjuring Shakespeare. People live in proper houses, drink in pubs, drive Morris cars, raise sheep; the rock-strewn grass hillocks are contained by hedgerows and stone walls. Altogether this is a place we know, its familiarity bred of our familiarity with Anglo-Saxon literature and lore, even if there is one extremely odd thing about this place.

The sea that surrounds the island is inhabited by flesh-eating water horses.

By the time I was ten pages in, I completely believed that Thisbe exists, and that I’d better watch out for those frightening yet beautiful uisce. That this magical element of The Scorpio Races also derives from our Celtic heritage is part of what makes it feel real.

The deadly November races on the backs of the uisce forms the heart of the concept, but this is also a love story, a coming-of-age story, a love-of-horse story, and a triumph of the spirit over soulless financial power. Sean and Puck tell their tales in first person present tense, enhancing the immediacy of both characters and plot: “this is happening to me, and it’s happening right now.” Once we buy into these characters, we buy the whole tale, hook, line, and sinker.

Puck is a game girl with a face full of freckles and unruly hair in the middle of an unruly orphaned life:

For a moment, I see the room like anyone else might see it. It looks like everything around Finn has crawled out of the mouth of the kitchen sink drain. It’s a mess, and we’re a mess, and no wonder Gabe wants to leave.

‘Let’s go,’ I say.

Sean’s voice is hard, born of his hard luck, and he knows horses. He knows horses better than anyone. He’s also a boy of few and well-chosen words:

I slide off her and hand him the reins. He takes them with a puzzled expression on his already puzzling face.

I say, ‘This mare is going to kill someone.’

The strong and enticing Puck and Sean, who are (as the reader sees long before they do) a perfect match, are also so much fun to live with that the story’s magical element is almost unnecessary. As a writer then, I've come to think that the best magical realism must possess this quality: that the realistic aspects of the story are even more engaging than the magical aspects. 

In a true fantasy, our perception of the story itself may be clouded by dwarf behavior, elf antics, or fairy godmother wishes. In magical realism, the author could dispense with the magic – and still have a heck of a great tale. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that Stiefvater writes beautifully, conjures a complete and visible world, and that her secondary characters are every bit as engaging as her protagonists.

But I maintain that in order to write great magical realism it is necessary to write a great, rich and complex story that rises above the magic – that the realistic part of the story makes a magic all its own.

My donation drive for the American Red Cross continues all month, including comments on this blog post. Many thanks!!

SIRENS Cover Reveal, Teaser Release, and Give-Away!

As many of you know by now, my next YA novel, SIRENS, will be out from Speak/Penguin on November 8! It’s available for preorder now. I’m excited to be able to reveal the gorgeous cover:

And here’s the synopsis:

SIRENS is a noire romance set in 1925. Josephine Winter, seventeen, is sent to live with relatives in New York City after her bootlegging father receives a threat, but bookish Jo harbors her own secrets. She finds friendship with lively Louise O’Keefe and romance with sweet jazz musician Charlie.

But haunted by the spirit of her missing brother, Jo uncovers a nest of family lies that threaten everyone she loves, and Lou, in the thrall of the dangerous, seductive gangster Daniel Connor, is both Jo’s best friend and potential enemy. As Jo unlocks dark mysteries and Lou’s eyes are opened, the girls’ treacherous paths intertwine.

Jo and Lou together will have to stand up to Connor in order to find their hearts and hang onto their souls in the “decade of decadence.”

This novel was so much fun to write, as I discovered much I didn’t know about the Roaring Twenties (see my earlier blog post on this – and there’s more to come.)

My son has made a series of video teasers and a trailer for the novel, and here’s the first of those:

Now on the really fun stuff! I’m hosting a giveaway of a long necklace strand of 20’s-style “pearls”, plus a feathery, flappery headband. 

Just leave me a comment (with an email contact, please, so I can let you know you’ve won). You get extra entries for (1) tweeting this post with the hashtag #SIRENS, (2) following my author page on Facebook or letting me know you already follow or posting it on your FB page, and/or (3) adding it to your Goodreads shelf.

Halloween is coming – here are your first flapper costume accessories!

And...take a photo of yourself in costume and I'll feature it here!

PLUS - I'll throw in an arc of SIRENS as soon as I have one in hand!!

Contest ends on midnight, September 30.

Guest Interview: Shayne Leighton and THE VAMPIRE'S DAUGHTER

Wow - take a look at that fabulous cover! I'm ready to take the plunge into this one.

My guest today is Shayne Leighton, author of new gothic series, OF LIGHT AND DARKNESS, talking about the series' first book, THE VAMPIRE'S DAUGHTER. I'm delighted to welcome Shayne to my blog. 

Congratulations, Shayne, on the publication of your novel, THE VAMPIRE'S DAUGHTER. Can you tell us a bit about the story and the series and what inspired it?

Thank you so much! Of Light and Darkness is a new adult Gothic fairytale that takes place in Prague, Czech Republic, about a young girl who was raised by a vampire and is the only mortal to live among the magic and all sorts of impossible creatures. People in my life inspired the characters in my novel. I imagined what kind of creatures the people closest to me in my life would be. The plot followed soon after I developed the characters. 

You describe this series as "gothic fairytale." Can you elaborate on this?

I am mostly referring to the overall mood of the story. I don't want readers to see this as an epic Lord of the Rings kind of fantasy. It's not that. I imagine this story more along the lines of Interview With the Vampire and Pan's Labyrinth or even the new Snow White and the Huntsman. It's different. There are a lot of dark and colorful visuals about this story that make it different from a lot of other fantasies. It is Gothic, but it even encompasses a little steampunk, a little Victorian, and little urban fantasy. The story is very eclectic. 

Eclectic sounds like fun! Please give us a hint about the next books in the series. When will they be out?

Currently, I am working on releasing the second book in the series, THE VAMPIRE'S REFLECTION. That book will be released in the next month or two. It picks up where the first book left off and promises to entail many new oppositions for the characters to overcome. The love triangles are back and I introduce new ones as well. Book two is a little darker and more complicated, and it really sets up the epic third book in the series. 

I understand there may be a movie in the works - how exciting! How did that come about?

My background is primarily in screenwriting and filmmaking. I'm heavily involved in the independent film community in South Florida. Utilizing some of the connections I had from previous projects as well as making new connections, it seemed like the logical next step. 

Do you have any advice for beginning writers? Any details about your path to publication that you'd like to share?

Every idea is a good idea - even if it needs a little tweaking. Don't ever give up on an idea that you love because you receive a 'no' from a publisher or an agent. There is a lot of rejection in publishing. Believe in your work and in your story. Keep tweaking until you are happy. 

Do you have a website where readers can learn more about THE VAMPIRE'S DAUGHTER?  

Readers can visit www.OfLightandDarknessSeries.com for more information. 

Michele Stegman Guest Post: "What makes a book compelling?"

Fellow romance author Michele Stegman graciously agreed to come by this week with the following guest post on a topic we all need, "What Makes a Book Compelling." Here's a bit about Michele: 

"Michele Stegman has loved history all her life.  When she was studying history in graduate school, one of her professors quipped that she put too much romance in her research papers.  She decided to put in more romance and write historical romances.

Her Fortune series is following the adventures of the Fortune family through piracy and war in the 1700’s.

Michele was never interested in writing contemporary novels.  But one day she was driving along, thinking of nothing in particular, when the entire plot for MR. RIGHT'S BABY popped into her head.  She couldn’t stop thinking about it and finally decided it was a book that had to be written."    

When Janet asked me to write about what makes a compelling book for her blog, I had to do some thinking about it! 

The answer to this question is long and complex and certainly can’t be covered in one brief blog!  But here are a few quick observations.

1.  It contains some universal truth.

No matter what that truth is, it must be something we can relate to.  And the more universal the truth, the more people it will appeal to. “Even selfish people can sometimes make great sacrifices for someone else,” or “Wealth does not equal happiness,” or “Mothers will do anything to protect their children,” will appeal to more people than, “It’s nice to have a good car,” or “Being pretty helps make you popular.”

2.  It appeals to something deep within your personal psyche. 

Most of us have a favorite fairy tale.  For many of us, it is Cinderella.  We love stories where the heroine is rescued by a rich, handsome hero.  For me, however, Cinderella was not my favorite.  Mine was Beauty and the Beast.  Even as a very young child, first and second grade, I made friends with the kids no one else liked.  It was as if I could feel their pain.  So when I find a story where the hero is dark and wounded, maybe even a little scary, and the heroine brings him out of himself and heals him, I put it on my “keeper shelf.”    

Flowers From the Storm by Laura Kinsale, and A Rose in Winter by Kathleen Woodiwiss, are my favorites. 

A book with a theme that speaks deeply to you will appeal to you.  Which explains why some people like a particular book and others don’t.   

And books can appeal to you at one time, and not later.  I have read books that I thought were wonderful.  Years later, when I tried to reread them, there was just no appeal there for me.  “Been there, done that.”  I think at the time, that book was just what I needed.  It spoke to some current need that has now been healed or changed.  But there are also books I have loved all my life, like the Beauty and the Beast story.

3.  We can relate to the characters.

The long running cartoon series, The Simpsons, has been so popular because we can all relate so well to the characters.  Even Homer.  We are all selfish and like to “pig out” sometimes.  We have those qualities in us so we can relate.  In Homer, they are exaggerated, but they are in us all.  Many of us, as readers, of course, relate most closely to Lisa.  She has few friends and she is always searching for a place where she can belong.  We relate to these characters because of their faults and weaknesses, not because of their strengths.

It’s hard to relate to heroes and heroines who have no faults.  Their faults don’t have to be awful.  They shouldn’t be criminals or cheats or kick puppies.  But a heroine who has self-doubts or is too over-confident is more appealing than a perfect woman.   Again, we relate to the faults in characters, and not as much to their strengths.

4.  Strong GMC.

If you haven’t read Debra Dixon’s GMC (Goal, Motivation, and Conflict) read it NOW. 

I hate conflict and confrontation.  I don’t like it when people fight.  So I like things to run smoothly for my characters, as well.  WRONG.  Also BORING.  The first couple of books I wrote got letters back from editors saying, “Not enough conflict.”  I thought they meant the hero and heroine had to fight, argue, yell.  Well, no.  I didn’t understand conflict at all. 

Jennifer Crusie said your characters can fight over a teacup, but it really isn’t about the teacup.  What do they really want?  What are they willing to do to get it?  What stands in their way?  That’s conflict!  That’s GMC.

5.  Good writing.

Good writing begins with the very first sentence of the book.  I remember reading the first sentence of Outlander and a shiver went down my spine.  I knew this was going to be a great book.  That first sentence set the tone for the whole book.

When I first started seriously submitting to editors, I hated that they wanted the first three chapters.  I wanted to submit chapters 7, 9, and 12 because they were my best.  That’s where the “good stuff” happened.   Well, duh, I soon realized that the “good stuff” better start with the first sentence because most readers are not going to slog through six chapters of drek to get to the good part.

For the first book I wrote that sold I had a really good scene in mind.  It was going to be the last scene in the book.  But I kept tossing out stuff that came before that scene because I thought, “Well, I don’t want to write this stuff, why would anyone want to read it?”  Finally, that good scene became the very first scene in the book.  I wanted to jump right into the action so the first sentence of that book was, “One loop of the coarse rope that bound Raven Winthrop to the mast of the pirate ship was about her neck chafing cruelly.”

Of course there’s a lot more to good writing than hooking the reader with the first sentence, but this blog is long enough!

Thank you, Janet for hosting me today!

My pleasure! Information about Michele and her books can be found on her website where you can read excerpts from each of her books: www.michelestegman.com. 

Here is a little blurb about Mr. Right's Baby and links to buy the book:

"He wanted to marry her.  If she knew why, she just might walk away forever."

http://www.amazon.com/Mr-Rights-Baby-ebook/dp/B00655TAFA/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1330019636&sr=1-1

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/102049