Member News

2009 June July Member News

LSF Writers members Kathy Kulig, Tara Nina and Cris Anson signed books at the Ellora’s Cave booth at this year’s BEA.

Shelley Freydont’s THE MAN FOR ME won second place in the More Than Magic contest.

Caridad Pineiro and the various authors of the Colton Continuity series from Silhouette Romantic Suspense were featured in

Barbara Vey’s Publishers Weekly blog.  For more information, please visit http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/880000288/post/1570045757.html

Kathy Kulig’s article “Twittering on Twitter: Viral Marketing in Small Tweets” will appear in the August issue of RT Bookclub.  Kathy will also presenting a workshop on the same topic at the 2010 RT Convention.

Joanna Timrum, writing as Joanna Aislinn, received word that her debut novel, NO MATTER WHY, will be released by The Wild Rose Press on January 15, 2010.

Tina Gabrielle’s first Regency-set historical romance, LADY OF SCANDAL, is being released on September 1, 2009 by Kensington/Zebra Books. Tina is hard at work on the second book of the series, A PERFECT SCANDAL.

Other

Save the World, Write Green By Kathye Quick

Question for 2009: What can you do as a writer to leave less of an eco-footprint on the world?

Answer – plenty. While every suggestion will not work for every person, one or two small steps can actually help.

Paper and pens are two of the most basic office tools, but while we’ve been recycling paper and using recycled paper for years, pens have mostly gotten left out of the recycling picture. Enter BeGreen pens, which are sold in packaging made from recycled materials. You can find the BeGreen line at major office supply stores and national retailers including Office Depot, Office Max, Staples and Target. Add Pilot’s BeGreen line and the pen is now greener than the sword. (Unless we’re talking about recycled swords, which is a whole different story).

ForestChoice® pencils are manufactured from the finest California Incense-cedar wood, certified by the Forest Stewardship Council to have originated from environmentally well-managed forests. ForestChoice® now offers consumers a high-quality writing instrument that demonstrates a serious commitment to the environment.

And then, there are pencil sharpeners. Do you really need an electric or battery pencil sharpener? No.

We’ve been using rescycled paper for years (at least we should have been) and now by adding the eco-friendly lights bulbs when we can, we’re on our way.

Other things we, as writers, can do to help include”

  • Take “no tech” days. Writers, especially web writers, spend a whole lot of time online which means they’re spending time using up energy. Turn off (and unplug) computers and other electronic devices.
  • Get into green computing. There are many different ways that you can make your computer more environmentally friendly. Get an energy-efficient computer; refill ink cartridges instead of sending them to the landfill; do all the day’s printing at once and keep the printer unplugged the rest of the day. These little things add up to big energy savings.
  • Submit your next manuscript electronically whenever possible. Even my publisher, Avalon, is getting into this submission policy.
  • Reduce the number of mailings you send out by using an electronic query whenever possible.
  • Swap one regular promotional mass mailing in favor of an electronic mailing
  • Skip one cross-country convention and do an online conference instead
  • Switch from press kits and full-sized mailers to postcards
  • Make one book appearance–or tour–a virtual tour online
  • Use solar rechargers for equipment like your PDA, cell phone, MP3 player
  • Reuse/recycle writing equipment/computers by using the Freecycle Network rather than just trashing them than buying new and trashing.

The Freecycle Network is wonderful. You can post anything you don’t want on it and before you know it someone else does! They even come pick it up. A friend of mine got all new kitchen cabinets because a woman didn’t like the cabinets she custom ordered once they got in her kitchen remodel. You can’t charge for anything on the Freecycle network, but that is made up in the fact that the unused item is gone from your house.

The URL is .www.freecycle.org. A screen will come up and ask for your town that then lists all the freecycle networks in your area.

Take one step, take them all. But let’s all try something to help.

Happy Green Writing in 2009

Kathye Quick
Cynthia and Constantine – Beyond Camelot – The Wild Rose Press
digital 2/09, print 3/09
Grandmother’s Rings – 3-book series contemporary from Avalon Books
Amethyst 8/09, Sapphire 12/09, Citrine early 2010

Sources –

I-Planet shopping, 8Waysto Green your Writing, the Green Writing Challenge, Writing Green/Planet Books

Other

Importance of Critique Groups By J. Hali Steele

You know… critters. At least that’s what we call them. No, they’re not a bunch of little creatures running with nuts and looking for cover. Well, not most of them. Though we’ve been known to hide out when involved with a new WIP and the words simply fly from our fingertips.

Finding a group that fits you is very important. You’ll only grow as a writer if you learn the mechanics of writing. I remember reading somewhere that great authors weren’t born that way–they learned to write. This doesn’t mean not to attend classes, you should. But read, read, read. From all genres. Become serious about your craft.

You have a story to tell, so now you have to write it in a way that others want to read it. Nothing works as well as having someone (no, your mom, sister or best friends don’t count) look through your WIP with a fine tooth comb. The fun part is–you get to comb theirs.

It can be scary telling someone you don’t think something they wrote works or is passive and, ach! the dreaded back story. But it’s important to be honest in your critique. There’s no need to be brutal or disrespectful of someone’s creation. A few well thought out ideas or suggestions will go much further in teaching and helping. This is a very subjective industry. We all read books looking for something different. It’s not the difference we critique, or the author, it’s the mechanics of writing.

When I joined my first group, it literally scared me to death. I was getting ready to give my story, my baby, over to a total stranger to rake over the coals! What if they didn’t like what I wrote? What if they tell me to forget it, you’re terrible. All these things ran around in my head until I gathered my courage and posted the first chapter. And, boy, my first one was tough. She wrote, “watch the head hopping.” Then every other sentence there appeared a box to the side saying, “whose POV is this?”

I’ve since learned that little box to the side is a comment box. It’s used to give suggestions and comments, and if used effectively, it will help you to hone your craft. All kinds of good stuff can appear in that one little box. One day there was a comment to me from the same person that said, “Wow, this is good.” An encouraging note that told me I learned, I improved.

Without my critters help I’d probably still be sitting at my computer, all alone, struggling through another story and wondering why the hell my email was full of messages saying thanks but no thanks.

There are many groups out there who share their expertise in various genres, Google critique groups. Find one that fits you and always keep an open mind. You’ll only improve at what it is you love doing–writing. Remember: Grow and roar-it’s okay to let the beast out.

Other

Write What You Know? By Lois Winston

(Originally appeared on Fresh Fiction Blog – March 10, 2008)

“Where do you get your story ideas?”

“Are any of your characters based on yourself or people you know?”

The above are the two most frequently asked questions I hear from readers. The third most frequently asked question is, “How do you research your sex scenes?” This question is never asked by someone who has read my books, always asked by a male, and usually is asked each year at my husband’s company Christmas party. The question is always preceded by over-imbibing on the part of the buffoon asking the question (usually to the embarrassment of the long-suffering wife at his side) and is always followed by a wink-wink, nudge-nudge from said buffoon. Depending on my mood, I will either glare, scowl, look down my nose at the fool (not an easy task for this vertically challenged writer,) or offer his wife a sympathetic eye roll.

But I digress (Can you blame me? What are those dimwits thinking???)

Anyway, there’s a writing axiom that states, write what you know. To some extent this is a sound guideline to follow, but it’s also extremely limiting. I have a very good friend who writes stories populated with vampires, werewolves, selkies, and other assorted weird creatures of the paranormal world. My friend is neither a vampire, a werewolf, nor a selkie, and I have it on good authority that she’s never met any such creatures, either. So obviously this very successful author is not writing what she knows from first-hand experience.

In LOVE, LIES AND A DOUBLE SHOT OF DECEPTION I wrote about secrets and revenge and the lengths some people will go in order to bury the former and achieve the latter. The plot is ripe with scandal. Drugs. Violence. Blackmail. Political machinations. Attempted murder. My heroine is a wealthy widow whose abusive, cocaine-snorting, deceased husband was about as low as a low-life can get.

Write what you know?

Hmm…I’ve never done drugs (sinus and headache meds don’t count), never blackmailed anyone, never tried to kill anyone, never been involved in politics except to vote, and my husband is the complete opposite of my heroine’s husband. The guy even still helps me on with my coat and opens doors for me after all these years! Oh, and in case you’re wondering, I’m also far from wealthy. Very far. As a matter of fact, if the economy doesn’t pick up soon, I may be facing retirement living in a cardboard box, but at least I’ll have my darling husband to keep me warm.

So no, the characters in LOVE, LIES AND A DOUBLE SHOT OF DECEPTION are neither based on me nor anyone I know, and the story line is far from autobiographical. However, some of the plot lines in the book are loosely based on actual events, just not ones involving me.

I get my ideas for my characters and my plots from the world around me. I’m a die-hard news junkie who has always believed that truth is stranger than fiction. That belief is reaffirmed every time I pick up a newspaper or turn on the evening news. I’ll hear a news byte or read an article, then give the event a “what if” spin. The voices in my head take over from there, and the next thing I know, I’ve got the plot for another book.

I do have a confession to make, though. In TALK GERTIE TO ME, Connie, my heroine’s mother, develops an outrageous craft project involving plaster of Paris and a certain body part (No, not that body part! My, you all have dirty minds!) Many years ago I knew a woman who came up with the idea and wanted to demonstrate it on The Tonight Show. Unfortunately, Johnny Carson’s people weren’t interested. But in TALK GERTIE TO ME (with proper credit being given to the creator of the concept on the acknowledgements page,) David Letterman’s people are. Connie winds up demonstrating the craft on Late Night, using a certain sexy movie star from Down Under as her guinea pig assistant.

Write what you know? Hmm…to some extent — with a little help from those voices in my head.

* * *

Award-winning author Lois Winston writes humorous, cross-genre, contemporary novels and romantic suspense. She often draws upon her extensive experience as an artist and crafts designer for much of her source material. When not writing or designing, you can find Lois trudging through stacks of manuscripts as she hunts for diamonds in the slush piles for the Ashley Grayson Literary Agency. Visit Lois at www.loiswinston.com.

Other

Adventures in Promotion By Irene Peterson

Being a published author has weird requirements. A blog is one. Another is having a glamour photo, so you look all sexy and interesting and intelligent or hot or something. I didn’t want to have one, but I was almost forced to get one.

Elder daughter and I went to the mall and just wanted to find out how it was done and how much it would cost. The youngsters were all dressed in black, supposedly hip and cool or whatever the word is for hip, cool people who are supposed to take sow’s ears and turn them into silk purses.

They “had a sudden opening” and could take me right away. Here I was looking like rat’s butt with no make-up and a t-shirt and jeans and messed up hair and they wanted to make my portrait. They even had clothes for me to change into.

Yatch. The thought of wearing somebody else’s clothes was so gross. Most of the photos were taken in my own black shirt, but they convinced me to wear this really low-cut vee shirt with decoration around the vee.

Some high school age chick with some metal in her beautiful face made me up by shoveling a ton of grease and paint on me. My face felt as if it would crack if I smiled.

I was posed like some 40s movie star and this kid so fresh he smelled of green kept telling me how great it was and had I ever modeled.

That in itself is hysterically funny, but I tried, I really tried.

Daughter #1 was laughing her butt off watching me.

Full body shots were a real eye-opener. I am a lot to love…let’s just leave it at that.

So, in the end, I had something like 20 shots to look at and choose the one I wanted. See, you have to own the image and that costs a hundred bucks. The other crap costs about three more hundred, but because they were so bloody bored, they only charged me $340, which I had to pay immediately. See, you get to choose that one picture that they will doctor up and let you buy even though it is your own face, but you own the photo so you can use it. They can’t. Why they’d want to use my face, I will never, ever know. But now they can’t and I can because it’s MINE.

Okay. I have the glamour pose and they erased all the dots and marks and lots of lines and a couple of “beauty marks” and the line that was the top of my nose. I ended up looking sort of like Odo on Deep Space Nine without a definite end to my nose on my face.

It has been used for promotion. Everybody says it looks so good and it doesn’t look like me now (which is great, since I really do have a nose and it ends, unlike Odo’s) and my kid is still laughing and daughter #2 refuses to put it up on my website.

She’s right. I don’t look like the glamour shot, but then, who does?

The first time I ever met some of the most famous authors in romance and women’s fiction, I couldn’t believe they were who they said they were. Glamour shots aside, every single one I’ve ever met was more beautiful than her photos, anyway, but her hair was thinner, she didn’t have raccoon eyes, she wore regular clothes like bluejeans or skirts and blouses. None ever carried around a feather boa and absolutely no one was without a wrinkle or two, but they were sort of laugh lines, not ugly hag lines.

Glamour. It means a trick, a fake, a spell cast to disguise. Yeah. Right.

I paid $340 for one print, a CD with the one photo on it and a contact sheet of all the ugly, stupid pictures I didn’t want. Two days later I took the one 8×10 to a copy shop and had 4 more copies made, lighter and actually a better skin tone, for seventy five cents apiece.

I kicked myself all the way home.

Other

Word Wednesday – Evanescent By Chris Redding

evanescent \ev-uh-NES-unt\, adjective:
Liable to vanish or pass away like vapor; fleeting.

This word does not mean what I thought it was going to mean.
Sounds like some thing bubbly. Like effervescent. Ginger ale. Champagne

No one knew their pensions were evanescent. Or their jobs for that matter.
It sounds more upbeat than the word really is. It’s a fleeting thought that you can’t get back. Not something you pop open to celebrate.
It’s not a word that springs easily off my tongue. It isn’t a word I use at all so it was new to me when I saw it in my inbox.
And I can see how powerful it could be. But for me it now has negtive connotations.
But things that are fleeting can be negative. In the sense that you’d like them to last longer.
Can you use it in a sentence?

Chris Redding
The Corpse Whisperer August 2007
www.chrisreddingauthor.com
http://chrisredddingauthor.blogspot.com/

Other

Perserverance By Joanna Aislinn

I love tennis. I fell in love with it by total accident,  during a sopping, rain-drenched fourth-of-July weekend  at the shore. The streets flooded so badly, the water was thigh-high on my five-foot frame. We were stuck indoors at a bed-and-breakfast with no cable and only Wimbledon to watch on NBC.

My friend’s soon to be husband had played on the satellite pro circuit, so she knew the game and explained it to me. (Having Stefan Edberg to watch didn’t hurt, nor did David Wheaton lack in the  ‘hot’ department of that semi-final.) Years later, she likes it–I get obsessed during the Grand Slams and have been known to suffer some serious sleep deprivation during the US and recently, the Australian Opens. I’m up to guessing my favorite players’ zodiac signs and nailed Nadal as a Gemini and Federer as a Leo 🙂 I can see the Aquarian in Venus, but Serena–a Libra?

Of course, I was home for ‘Breakfast at Wimbledon’ this past Sunday–drove home from PA right after the BBQ at my cottage community on Saturday to insure I’d be in front of my TV in time for that first serve. Andy Roddick played the no-words-left-to-describe-the-phenom Roger Federer, who, as John McEnroe so aptly put it, “makes the rest of …the undisputed greatest players of the Open era…look average.”

Don’t get me wrong, I love watching Roger’s artistry in motion, but I rooted for Roddick. I had to. I don’t even count Andy among my favorite players, but in the past few tournaments I’ve seen a young guy who has transformed himself out on that court. And I’ve watched him persevere right into his first five-set match against the ‘greatest player of all time’ and hold his own up to that last–and only–devastating break of serve that cost him the match. Yes, losing that second set tiebreaker didn’t help, but in the past, Andy might have given up and ‘gone away’ as tennis commentators tend to say. But he didn’t. He got right back up and held on for three more sets, only to have what could have been the most meaningful win of his life become his most significant tennis  loss, I’m sure.

Yet, if Andy wants to claim another Grand Slam title, he needs to persevere. He needs to take a hard, honest look at his match–go over what worked and be willing to change what didn’t. And he’s got to dig the deepest he ever has if he plans on walking onto tennis’ biggest stage again, let go of the past, and persevere another three, four, most likely five sets.

As writers, teachers, parents, people–don’t we need to do the same?

Other

Word Wednesday – Proponent By Chris Redding

proponent \pruh-POH-nuhnt\, noun:
One who argues in support of something; an advocate; a supporter

I am a proponent of:

Four day work weeks.
Healthcare for the poorest.
Realizing that the uber-rich and the just wealthy are two different animals.
Every child should have some kind of pet.
Someone else cleaning my house. (Not that I get to experience that.)
Sleeping 9 hours each night.
Term limits for congressmen/women.
We should be good to the evironment, but not at the expense of our economy.
Wine with dinner.
Full day kindergarten.
Sleeping in on Saturdays.
Working out at least 30 minutes a day.
Teaching your child about how the world is and how you’d like to change it.
Some people should not have children.
People should realize that celebrities are not normal.
That I’m done now. Have a good week.
What are you a proponent of?

Chris Redding
The Corpse Whisperer August 2007
www.chrisreddingauthor.com
http://chrisredddingauthor.blogspot.com/
Events, Other

Editor Interview with Leis Pederson

We’d like to welcome Leis Pederson of Berkley, a division of Penguin USA to Liberty States Fiction Writers’ blog.

Liberty’s members and blog readers would love to get to know a bit about you. Can you tell us a little about your: background, what inspired you to be an editor, how long you’ve been an editor, what types of books your handle, which authors do you edit, and maybe something a little unexpected.

I come from a Clinical Psychology background and made the move into editing for the simple reason that I love books. I’ve been in publishing for over three years now and I have had the pleasure of working with authors such as Michael Walters, Kimberly Frost, Beth Kery, Nancy Haddock and Christine Wells. I currently edit all kinds of romance, erotic romance, women’s fiction, mysteries and thrillers.

An author first has to submit his or her manuscript to you in order for their story to be considered for acquisition. Do you accept unagented manuscripts? If so how do you prefer to be queried?

We generally prefer agented submissions but for those who don’t have an agent we ask that you send a brief synopsis and the first three chapters including a brief description of the plot, previously published works (if applicable), as well as any other pertinent information.

Let’s talk a little about the querying process. What intrigues you to want to see more of a story? What about either the story description or the query letter itself would quickly turn you off of a story? Is there something you haven’t seen that you would love to see in a submission?

I’m always looking for something unique that will make a submission really stand out from the rest, whether that is the voice or the story itself. I really hate getting submissions riddled with errors. Proofread, proofread, proofread.

Based on a query letter or pitch, you ask to see a partial.  You love it, ask for the complete, but eventually reject the manuscript.  What are the top reasons for a manuscript’s rejection in such a scenario?

Each circumstance is unique so it’s really hard to generalize.

Can you tell us a how the acquisition process works at Berkley? If you read a manuscript and love it can you acquire it? Is it a committee that decides what books to purchase based on your recommendations? What is the response time on queries? Partials? Completes?

The process varies. Sometimes it goes to committee and sometimes maybe just one other editor will read it along with me. Our response time for all requested submissions is approximately 6 months.

You’ve acquired a novel and it’s moving along the path to release. In order for the book to do well there is going to need to be some promotion and marketing. How involved are you in coming up with a marketing plan. Do authors who submit manuscripts along with solid marketing plans have a better chance of acceptance than a good manuscript with no marketing plan?

We have wonderful publicity, marketing and promotions departments that work with our authors to ensure that each book gets the attention it deserves.

Clearly editors are very busy individuals. What do you like to do when you want to turn off the editor for a little while?

Believe it or not, I like to read something just for fun. No editing hat required.

If there was one piece of advice you could give to writers what would it be?

Just keep writing!

Other

The Best Research Tool Is A Four Letter Word By Dianne Gerber

My heart beats faster than a teenager who is about to be kissed for the first time. Why you ask? Life. A simple four letter word that holds meaning beyond any other. Life.

Life takes over sometimes. It gets in our way, causes our desires to be on hold and plays havoc with our goals. Life frustrates us, causes us to worry and keeps us up all night. Life can sucky and suck our energy, leaving us drained, unable to think. But life also brings us friends and family, laughter and love.

Deep breath. Even though life spins us in circles, it’s important to remember to stop and breathe. Slow down, lighten up, chill out and enjoy what life is teaching us. The circle of life is ever evolving and it’s your turn to step up and take the wheel. The car can be replaced-a life can’t. A closing door opens another.

Life is why we exist. And it’s what makes a great story.

Breathe and take notes.

A lilac scented breeze lifts my hair and softly caresses my cheek. Two golden finches chirp excitedly in unison over the birdfeeder. My husband’s warm hand covers mine and my heart beats like a teenager about to be kissed. Life.

Dianne Gerber writes as Autumn Jordon

2009 Golden Heart Finalist

www.autumnjordon.com

http://autumnjordonsnotes.blogspot.com

A Multi-Genre Fiction Writers Organization