Samhain Publishing Ltd. Weblog

What A Morning!!

I’m sure you’ve all had mornings where you shake your head and wonder just what you’ve gotten yourself into. That’s how my mornings have played out for the last few days. Most of you know when I’m not writing I run a motel. Let me tell you, being in the hospitality industry is not all beer and skittles. Sometimes it’s a pain in the butt, dealing with all the differing characters who come through this place.

Spring Fever

I’m woefully behind on my writing goals and I’m even writing this post at the last minute. I find this time of year particularly hard for getting work done. I suppose I have a classic case of spring fever. The weather has been lovely here and there is a constant parade of flowers bursting into bloom. My preschooler exclaims about a new flower every time she walks through the yard.

Pet names...and a contest!

Pet names are something I tend to struggle with. Either an endearment sounds right spilling out of a characters lips or it doesn’t. Sometimes “baby” and “honey” just don’t cut it. Could you imagine calling someone who’s seven feet tall, “baby”?

Me neither. That just sounds goofy to me.

More than once I’ve read a great book that was ruined by a silly pet name that threw me right out of the story every time I read it.

So, here’s the deal for this rainy Friday morning: Leave me a comment with your favorite pet name, or the worst endearment you’ve ever heard, and I’ll enter you to win a free book. Whoever’s pet name I decide to use in my current work in progress will win a free autographed copy of my latest print release, Shameful. The winner of the worst endearment ever will win a digital copy of Shameful.

I’ll even get the ball rolling for you all. My favorite pet name is “darlin”. It’s actually what Shame calls Gail in Shameful. Darlin’ always makes me think of a slow southern drawl and hot summer nights. The worst is “dearling”. It reminds me of little old ladies, for some reason. Nothing like picturing your grandma to throw you right out of a intimate scene. :)

Why the Regency?

With all the time periods throughout history to choose from, why is the Regency apparently the most popular period for romance books? I want your opinions.

How about Victorians? Medieval times? The Rennaisance? Vikings? Westerns? There are followings for each of these, but overall it feels like the Regency wins out and I’m curious about what draws readers to it. Is it because of writers like Jane Austen and, much later, Georgette Heyer who laid out the template for what a Regency story should contain? Is it because many of us grew up reading that formula and so are very comfortable with it? We know the language of “rakes” and “the ton” and eloping to Gretna Green.

Maybe it’s the pretty, flowing clothing that’s the draw. The simple, clean lines of an Empire waist dress are certainly more romantic than a huge hoop skirt.

Writing Challenges

I’m a writing challenge drop-out. NaNoWriMo, 70 Days of Sweat, even challenges at Romance Divas are, well, a challenge.

Whaddup from overseas...

Hi all,

Writing a Love Scene, Not as Much Fun as You Might Think!

I’ve been leading up to this for at least the last fifty pages. I’ve established mutual attraction, sexual tension, increased heart rates, heat, legs that turn to jelly. You get the idea. So the reader expects it, my characters demand it and I now have to write THE LOVE SCENE. You would think this would be the fun part.

BUT IT ISN’T. At least not always. It’s a struggle, should it be fumbling and endearing, total fantasy, very graphic, and from who’s point of view? Should the point of view change as the scene unfolds? And what about the setting? A bed, basic but maybe a little boring. Outside but where and did anybody remember to bring a blanket? In a car like horny teenagers? Or maybe up against a wall, awkward, but demonstrates that the couple is really hot for each other.

The length of the scene is important too. I know that this is somewhat of a stereotype, but love scenes written by male authors tend to be short and to the point. (No pun intended) Women authors, especially those in the romance genre, go on for pages and pages, sometimes dividing the love scene into chapters. (Talk about fantasy). They also spend more time on the afterglow, cuddling part. Male authors usually have the hero jumping up to go into battle, argue a case in front of the Supreme Court, or some other world saving task.

Then there is the question of how graphic to get. There is a fine line between describing lovemaking and porn. Should body parts be called by their proper names? I don’t have a problem using the words breast or butt. But should I call a penis a penis? Or maybe it’s better to use a slang word like dick? (Men love that word have no idea why) Or maybe its better to use a more indirect word that is descriptive, like erection or arousal. Then there is the question of what to call female parts. I won’t use the “c” word. Vagina and vulva sounds like you’re visiting the gynecologist instead of making love. That leaves words like mound, nether region, feminine core, velvet sheath, secret heart, and my favorite “feminine triangle”. Good grief!!!

There is also a danger of getting repetitive, how many ways can it be described really? This is especially dangerous when there are multiple love scenes planned. Also remembering where everybody’s hands and other parts are can be very challenging, especially when you’re switching points of view. .

How to finish the scene, does everybody climax? At the same time? Is the woman having multiples? (Remember its fiction) Is there an encore? Do you even call it a climax? Or orgasm? Or a more poetic word or phrase? Like shattering, becoming one, riding the wave, reaching the stars, tumbling into a white-hot abyss? Yowsa!

So after all this I still haven’t written the love scene. I still don’t know where it’s going to be or how graphic I’m going to get. But at the end I want it to be the kind of scene that the reader will go back and read again, maybe to their partner for inspiration. I want it earthy and fun, a natural expression of the character’s feelings for each other.

Tall order, but somebody’s got to do it.

Work In Progress - Possible Spoiler! Be Warned. ;)

My turn to blog. Great! It just so happens, I have a new book coming out next week, but instead of making this a big promotional post, I’ll just say please check out FireDrake when it comes out next Tuesday. (Isn’t that a gorgeous cover?) ;) In the meantime, I thought I’d talk a bit about the book I’m finishing up right now — or at least trying to finish up. The next installment in my Resonance Mates series (that started with Hara’s Legacy and Davin’s Quest) is nearing completion. The book is called Jaci’s Experiment and is due to release in ebook formats from Samhain this August. Which means, I really need to finish writing it, like yesterday! But with one thing and another… the most time-consuming of which had to be the Romantic Times Convention a few weeks ago… well, I’m running a little behind. Which I hate. But not to worry! The book is moving right along with some really interesting characters that showed up and demanded to be included along the way.

Go Beyond the Faerie Myst

Hey all,

I’m so excited to be a part of Samhain and having my release on Friday was like a dream come true. I had a great release party and I thank everyone who made my day such a special one. As most of you may know, The Mylari Chronicles: Eyes of Fire released last Friday. I’ve already had several wonderful reader reviews where it’s being sold at My Bookstore and More and that means the world to me.

Let me give you a brief blurb…

An ancient prophecy comes to life in an erotic tale of forbidden love.

Talia’s visit home turns upside down when dark, frightening creatures appear seemingly from nowhere and transport her to another world. The faerie world. In this mystical paradise, she finds her life and honor threatened for reasons she does not understand.

When Calion Sáralondë, Prince of the Calen’taur Elves, rescues the human female from an orcan stronghold, his attraction to her is immediate and strong. And the feeling is mutual. Though their love is sardai—taboo—Calion can’t bring himself to linksend her back to her world. Her presence sets a fire in his soul only mating with her can tame.

And their passion could be the answer to an ancient prophecy that saves his world.

Cool, huh? Wait till you read it! Reviewer and readers alike use words like, “beautiful writing”, “sensational”, “uniquely creative”, and “breathtaking imagery” to describe it.

I’ve also had a few emails asking me where I get my ideas, so I thought it might be interesting to show you where some of the ideas for beyond the faerie myst came from. From dark forests to painted valleys, our own earth holds a myriad of inspirations. Join me now as I take you to Beyond the Faerie Myst…in our own backyard.

Poison

My new book, a futuristic m/m romance entitled Poison is now on sale at My Bookstore and More!

Here’s the blurb:

In this world, trust is hard to find…and the one thing they need to survive.

Tobias Smator lives down his late father’s execution by avoiding the spotlight—and responsibility. He doesn’t mind what people think of him as long as they leave him alone. Still, in this unremarkable half-life he’s fashioned for himself on deceptively low-tech Rimania, he’s not safe from political intrigue. Someone wants him dead.

Alliance operative Geln Marac’s orders for his first assignment were simple: Stay uninvolved. Those orders go out the window, however, when he delivers an antidote to save Tobias from death by poisoning. His reward? Possible betrayal that lands him in the hands of police interrogators. To protect the Alliance, Geln resorts to a temporary mindwipe.

Tobias is fascinated by the amnesiac man who saved his life. But Geln has attracted the attention of the high-powered Lord Eberly, who would use him as a pawn. Rather than sacrifice Geln to the political wolves, Tobias chooses to embrace his heritage.

Geln’s memory reawakens to a precarious situation with no source of protection—except Tobias. There’s only one way forward for both of them.

Trust—or die.

Warning: this book contains hot nekkid otherplanetary manlove.