Tambra's Holiday Tips

Tambra's holiday tips (and a few recipes)

Over the years I've had to develop strategies to keep stress at a minimum. When you have a disability special considerations need to be made. But, that doesn't mean you can't have fun during the holiday season.

Gift bags are a godsend-use them whenever possible. Save the ones you receive if they are in excellent condition and use again next year. You save money and recycle at the same time.

Wrap stocking stuffers and those really special gifts.

If you or your older kids are into beading, this can make excellent gifts to give family and friends. A bracelet, earrings and necklace set would be a fine present for anyone.

Give books! Many of us have gift baskets for contests. A great way to support your favorite authors.
Local talent is often overlooked. Artists in fine art or music is another source of gift giving.

Many churches and shops have bazaars with hand crafted items and home baked goods. You might stop by and find a few presents and a baked good for a reasonable price.

Subscriptions to places such as the World Wildlife Fund are wonderful ways to help out wildlife and teach young ones about the many endangered animals that live on our planet.

If you're a crafter, this is the time to dust off those scrap craft books and whip up some gifts in a few hours time. Homemade gifts made with care and love last. They mean even more when that person is no longer with us.

Cooking can be another area of stress. Get out the Crock Pot! One pot meals cook while you shop, clean or wrap presents.

Make a cookbook with cherished family recipes for members who love to cook or to pass on to the next generation. Add photographs and a memory of the food along with the recipe.
Photocopy recipes and put together with a comb binding machine. Check out your local office or copy store for help on this.

Learn to say no.
You heard me. Choose what you'd really like to do. Cramming party after party in the month will leave you frazzled and grumpy.

Plan your day. Map out routes so you don't waste gas and time. Online and catalogue shopping is another option.

When planning your holiday meal don't forget those who have allergies or are diabetic. They will appreciate your thoughtfulness.

I hope some of these ideas help make this season less stressful for you.

What do you do to reduce stress this time of year?

Hugs,
Tambra

SCENT OF A MAN -- cover love!

SCENT OF A MAN -- cover love! by Maree Anderson (for Writers Gone Wild)

Hi y'all,

Before I forget: HAPPY THANKSGIVING! And I gotta say, after reading all these blog posts and Facebook updates and Tweets about what you're all planning to feast on, I'm wishing we celebrated Thanksgiving here in New Zealand. Maybe I'll cook a pie this weekend, too -- just for the heck of it. I'm sure DH and the kids won't mind helping me eat it. *g*

I'm doing blatant self-promo today on Writers Gone Wild -- as you do when you have a shiny new cover to share *VBG*

So here's the final cover for my February Red Sage Release, SCENT OF A MAN:



What do you think?

I love it! But then, I'm totally biased ;-)

BTW, here's the blurb:

Joseph is a highborn Anglian noble living in a harshly religious society where the Council and their clerics enforce chastity, and women are oppressed and treated like chattels. Overnight, Joseph undergoes a rare transformation and becomes a Scentinel, a man who exudes powerful sexual pheromones that make him irresistible to females. His people believe he is evil and will execute him on sight. He’s on the run, starving and desperate. He has nothing more to lose–or so he believes.

He’s rescued by Liliana, a “morally corrupt” Europan woman with an agenda. She’s a creature even rarer than Joseph, a Null who can neutralize Scentinel pheromones. Her mission is to do whatever it takes to bring Joseph safely to Europan shores. There, he’ll join Empress Vashti’s elite band of Scentinel spies — provided he survives his training with his sanity intact, and learns how to suppress his pheromones at will.

And falling in love with the man she must ultimately betray was never part of Liliana’s plan.

Oh, and one more thing before I go:

If you'd like a chance to win an electronic ARC of my December release, FROM THE ASHES, hop on over to the Red Hot Red Sage Authors blog and leave me a comment -- I'm drawing one random commenter later on today!

Cheers,

Maree

What turns you off?

So, after some interesting discussions spawned from the insanity of NaNoWriMo, I started to wonder how many of these unique projects are gong to go all the way. As in a NaNo project turning commercially viable. River Rats was a NaNo book for me, took three months to tie it up, another year and a half to get it to ebook. This is the exception, not the rule.

Weird things happen when you try to churn out the foundation for a novel in a month. I don't care how rock solid your plan seems, when those creative juices start flowing, the strongest foundations can be swept away. When a writer is in the midst of creating any idea might seem feasible. I'll be honest my WIP is outright bizarre, like Farscape meets Lexx bizarre. There's body swapping, sex for sale and space pirates. It scares the bejeezus out of me, to think that this thing oozed from my obviously diseased seven pounds of gray matter.

It's been fun, especially all the crap I've ignored or put off to give birth to this monstrosity. Will it ever see the light of day or any eyes other than the peepers of my critique partner? Remains to be seen.

But what do the readers think? What is too much, too awful too damned weird for you to deal with in your fiction? Certain things I won't buy, typically the same sorts of things respectable publishers refuse to produce. (Golden showers? Seriously? Ick.)

Personally, the only thing that will make me stop reading is when the author uses the book to further his or her own political/ spiritual beliefs. The way I see it, you're entitled to your opinion, but don't sneak it in to a book I'm buying for escapism in order to convert me. It's a betrayal of trust between writer and reader. It's insulting and sneaky as hell that you think I'm naive enough to swallow your thinly veiled agenda! I've stopped buying some favorite authors due to causiness. And I'm not talking about empassioned beliefs of characters, believe me, there is a difference and nothing can make me send a book airborne into the DNR pile faster.

So that's my hot button. How about you? I know we've talked turkey as far as cussing and heat levels. What subjects do you just not want to see? What will make you walk away from an otherwise engaging book?

And speaking of turkey, hope you all have a terrific holiday. I'm going to be cooking and cleaning like mad to host nine adults, three kids and three dogs. (Wait, why am I cleaning again?) I've got three bottles of Rosa Regale ready to go and I might even share!

I have the golden ticket!

LIANE GENTRY SKYE (for Writers Gone Wild)

OK, wild things. Brace yourselves.

I have the golden ticket, the elusive entry pass to the writer's life we've all dreamed of.

Most of you know I lost my way as a writer while dealing with a chronic medical situation with my son. The ashes (no pun intended) from our housefire have settled as much as they ever will, and I feel both driven to get some completed works in progress beneath my belt. With that said, I'm also overwhelmed by the idea of restarting a career that looked like a done deal just a year ago.

The overwhelmed part won. In fact, it ballgagged my muse. Clearly, something had to be done. Otherwise, a career in bean counting might be a more realistic endeavor. Given I can barely count to ten, not a good place to find myself.

"I want to get published again, damn it."

This is where the voice of reason (who sounds an awful lot like DH)weighed in. "So fine, Liane. Go write a book."

"Hello, I AM writing."

"But what have you finished lately?"

Voice of reason had a point. I almost regret braining him with my skillet. Almost. Still, something had to give.

What better way to let go and let a story happen than the writerly ribaldry that is Nanowrimo? Fifty K in thirty days? Noooo problem.

Like many of you, I'm neck deep in my story, and for once, my muse is cracking his whip like a dom on meth. If I'm not careful, I might just have a book by month's end. One that needs a lot of cleanup, but a finished manuscript, nonetheless. Which is a far cry better than where I began this effort.

During the process of let go and let muse, I believe I stumbled into that magic something that sifts the wanna bees from the do bees.

Yes, my friends, I have the golden ticket. But I have to tell you that it's not quite as shiny as I'd hoped. It's kind of like fairy magic, it comes with a price. Which is downright sobering.

So brace yourselves.

The key to becoming the author you want to be is....


W R I T I N G


Every day.

No matter what.

No matter how badly.

Truth is, you can't fix what you never wrote in the first place.

So there you have it. You want to be an author? Go write.

Here's hoping all of you who are in this nano-effort with me are having as much fun writing badly as I am!

Race you to the finish line!

Reading Recommendations

READING RECOMMENDATIONS by Maree Anderson (for Writers Gone Wild)

Hi y'all,

I'm anticipating lots of lovely book vouchers in my Christmas stocking this year. Why? Because I've been dropping hints left, right and center, and I figure at least someone will have gotten the not-so-subtle hint. (And if all else fails, I'll just nag poor DH some more, LOL.)

Note to Maree's family: See? I'm not that hard to buy gifts for. Give me a book voucher and I'm one happy little Vegemite! (For those who don't have a clue what I just said, Vegemite is a dark brown yeast-based spread developed in Australia in 1923, after it became difficult to source supplies of Marmite from the UK. Just sayin'....)

Anyway, I'm rubbing my hands in gleeful anticipation of buying up large at the bookstore, and I thought I'd enlist your help. Coz, yanno, there's nothing worse than getting to the store and rushing over to the romance or sci-fi section and then completely forgetting the titles or the authors that you wanted to look for. So this year, dammit! I'm going to be prepared with a list of must-reads that will permanently take up residence in my wallet. (Or, if it's too long a list, in my handbag.)

So, to borrow Nalini's phraseology....

What have you been reading and loving lately?

I'd love you to share your must-reads and recommended books with me! Pretty pleeeeease?

:-)

Maree

Ebooks On the Rise

Just in case any of you out there aren't sure about ebooks or whether they're still gaining popularity, try this on for size.

My eldest son is in grade one, and his teacher recently assigned home reading done online. This site is apparently used by a growing number of schools across North America, and features ebooks in different reading levels for the students. They read a book online, complete a quiz, and earn points that are saved in a database. Once they earn enough points, they progress to the next level. The teacher can go to the site and check each student's stats, as well as hear any voice recordings of them reading the books and adjust the reading level accordingly. As I said, my son is already doing this at age 6. I think it's incredible! He's learning basic computer skills and improving his reading at the same time.

Boggles the mind to think what technology they'll come up with next, but I think it's safe to say if ebooks are already this mainstream, they will only keep increasing in popularity.

One more note of interest with ebooks. Carina Press is currently looking for short and novella length submissions in every genre except YA and poetry. They're especially keen on finding erotica, thriller, steampunk, sci-fi and paranormal, but of course they also accept every genre of romance as well, including m/m, etc. They have recently hired more freelance editors to look at submissions, so right now is an excellent time to submit to them. Maybe some of you crazy NaNoWriMo authors will have something to send in soon?

Writers Gone Wild welcomes NY Times bestselling author Angie Fox

Thanks to Saranna for inviting me over today. My name is Angie Fox and I write urban fantasy. What I’m best known for is the Accidental Demon Slayer series. It’s about a preschool teacher who finds out she’s a demon slayer and has to go on the run with her grandma’s gang of geriatric biker witches. Happens ever day, right? There’s also a sexy-as-sin shapeshifting griffin who has an agenda of his own. Yum.

I was talking to Saranna about the latest in the series, The Last of the Demon Slayers. There is a wild story behind it, so she asked me here today to give you the inside scoop.

First off, I have to tell you how much I love this book. It’s sexy, touching and just plain fun. But right about the time I was gearing up for release, the publisher started having all kinds of issues. Dorchester was having trouble distributing books and paying authors and they weren’t meeting their contractual obligations. Not good.

Now we’ve all heard about how important it is to take charge of your publishing career. I used to think that it meant learning all you can about the business so that you can make an educated decision about agents, publishers and how to make that first sale. Turns out it’s a lot more work than that. Darn.

But I didn’t have a choice. I had to make a tough decision. After thinking long and hard, my agent and I contacted my publisher – the publisher I’d been so thrilled to sign with – and we took back the rights to my upcoming book. I would no longer publish my series with Dorchester.

Yes, it’s easy to say: take control of your publishing career. But I’ll be the first to tell you – it’s daunting. It was the strangest feeling knowing that I alone was in charge of my December 2010 release. I mean, some days, I can barely find my car keys.

Now I had this great book on my hands – a book I’d worked so hard to write and that I was so proud of – and I had to decide what to do next. There was a demand. The Last of the Demon Slayers is a great stand-alone book. I wrote the series so that each book is a complete story on its own. People have been asking about it, even when they haven’t read the first books. I was getting a lot of email from both new and established readers asking when they’d see the book. And after the issues with the publisher became public knowledge, many readers worried if they’d see the book.

So I took another plunge. With my agent’s help, I just released The Last of the Demon Slayers on Kindle. Nook and Kobo will follow (hopefully this week). The paperback version will be out in a few weeks. In fact, I’m hoping to have it out before my publisher’s original release date.

I owe it to my readers to give them the book that they’ve been hearing about for the past year. And I’ve come to realize I owe it to myself as a writer. I’m so stinking proud of this book and I need to get it out there, if only to stay sane and happy.

And I’ve learned an important lesson through all of this. Publishing is hard. Things don’t always turn out how we wish or how we’d planned. But the most important thing you can do is commit yourself to keep writing, and innovating and growing.

In fact, I just signed a three-book contract with St. Martin’s Press. I’ll be writing a darkly humorous paranormal saga about an otherworldly M*A*S*H unit, called The Monster MASH. And I’m also writing two fun, quirky novellas for Kensington books. Both of those are due out next year. It just goes to show you that publishing can be rocky, but the ideas don’t stop.

Looking back, I don’t know why I thought things would always go smoothly after I sold that first book. Life just isn’t like that. We can’t always expect it to be safe or comfortable.

In fact, I’m as keyed up about this new release as I would be if The Last of the Demon Slayers was sitting on a shelf at Walmart. This is an unknown, a whole new experience. But it was something I had to do. So I suppose today is the perfect day to take a bit of advice from the biker witches: control what you can, let go of what you can’t and enjoy the ride.

Would you like to learn more? Visit Angie at www.angiefox.com

Article Links:

The Last of the Demon Slayers on Kindle

Kindle for PC

Kindle for Mac

Saranna says: A big thanks to Angie for stopping in and chatting with us about her new release and the long road to get there. Writers Gone Wild wishes her the very best! If you guys haven't read her series, buy it now. The Accidental Demon Slayer had me laughing so hard I almost wet my knickers. She has the Amazon Goddess Seal of Approval. :)

What's in a Name?

If any of you follow me on Facebook, you'll know that my name is really Tambra Nicole Kendall. The other thing you've noticed is I'm a huge, huge Keith Urban fan. Speaking of his new CD comes out Nov. 16. so run to your nearest Target store for the deluxe editing.

This month I legally changed my name--for numerous reasons. But, it also got me thinking about characters and how and why we choose the names for them.
Most of my writing is Celtic or Celt inspired so I pick from a pool of names that fit the ethnicity of my story people. The meanings of these names are also important to me.

Try to fit the name to the personality of the character. Listen to the rhythm of the first and last name you've chosen. What mental image does it give you of this person?

Remember not to give similar sounding/spelled names to the hero, heroine and villain or any other major secondary characters. This can confuse you the writer as well as the reader.

Characterization is a multi-layered process. You're making a three-dimensional person come to life. Maybe this character doesn't like their name because of what it represents so they go by a nickname to chagrin of their family.

Whatever you do, have fun bringing your story people to life!

Hugs to all,
Tambra


A name is as important in our real lives as they are for the characters we create.

NaNoWriMo Insanity

NaNoWriMo!

National Novel Writing Month. November.

I am amazed at how many people have never heard of this. Admittedly, it would only appeal to a small portion of the population, but that’s part of the fun. Finding out just how many people are as crazy as me!

I admit that trying to write a novel in 30 days while juggling the family, the pets, the chores and a full time job is actually proof that my sanity departed long ago. Every year, I tell myself that I will not get sucked in. I do not need the pressure. I do not need the stress. Hell, I don’t even need the motivation. My publishers and editors would be more than happy to impose impossible deadlines if I just asked them.

Any yet, I just can’t seem to resist. It’s like an addiction. You know it’s there. You know you shouldn’t… but you also know it’s going to be SO much fun! And it is. It’s a wild and wonderful orgy of writing with no editing and no stopping to wonder if that really fits the plot or if your editor is going to make you rewrite the whole dang thing. It’s different than my normal writing process, and I don’t expect the same results. It’s refreshing and in a way, it restores the joy that I felt when I first started to write.

And now, I’m going to crawl back into my little writing cave and get back to those characters. They’re waiting for me, and last time I checked I was 3,000 words behind my target.

See you in December!

Anne Kane

http://www.annekane.literalseduction.net/

Real Friends Don't Do That

REAL FRIENDS DON'T DO THAT! By Maree Anderson (for Writers Gone Wild)

Hi y'all,

I've heard people comment that YA high-school-set stories with mean girls and gossip and bullying are purely fictional. Hah. Think again. We're living it.

Daughter (DD) is in first year of high-school -- or Year 9 as we call it in New Zealand. She's a bright kid. Her teachers generally like her because she likes learning stuff and she pays attention -- or at least, as much attention as you can expect from a hormonal teenager who's starting to really get interested in boys, LOL.

In the past, DD has made friends with one like-minded girl, and they've stuck with each other through thick and thin -- classic BFF kinda stuff -- at least, until her BFF ends up being sent to a private school. (That's happened twice now, and each time, my heart breaks for her. Hard explaining to your kid that you just can't afford to send her to the same school as her BFF.) Anyway, I hoped that this year, when she fell in with a group of kids, she'd make a bunch of friends and have an easier time of it.

Silly me. I'd forgotten just how toxic a group dynamic can be.

DD is what her teachers call a potential leader. And if a "leader" means not bowing to peer-pressure to date because she doesn't feel ready, then yeah, she's a leader. If a leader means a kid who stands up for others who're being bullied by the self-proclaimed leaders of the group, then she's absolutely a leader. If a leader means not only comforting a friend who's devastated by the crap that's gone down, but speaking up and calling the other girls on their bitchy behavior, then yeah, she's a leader for sure.

Unfortunately for DD, standing up for yourself and others, and not taking any crap from girls who get away with it because they're "popular" and they rule the group, has pinned a target of monumental proportions to her back.

She's been the subject of a really nasty letter that did the rounds of half the school before it finally got given to her. She's been treated like a pariah -- takes a seat in class, and the girl next to her will get up, make some bitchy comment, and find another seat. She's been hauled out of class to attend a counselling session to "sort out her issues". (She was signed up for this session by the same girls who wrote the letter.) Pretty stomach-churning stuff to arrive at the counsellor's office, wondering what the heck it's all about, and see five girls -- including one she stood up for -- all sitting there, ready to take her apart.

Thank god she stood up for herself and refused to attend the session. She told the counsellor that she wasn't going to stand for being ambushed -- her words, not mine -- and if these girls had anything to say to her, they could say it one-on-one, to her face, instead of spreading lies and gossip. The counsellor agreed. (And I was damn proud of her. How gutsy is that for a 14 year old?)

Since she would not let me wade in to help her sort this out (and honestly, there probably wasn't much I could do, other than send her to another school), my advice has been to get the hell out of "the group" and find some new friends to sit with at break times. Why the heck would you want to hang round a bunch of girls who obviously have it in for you? Who needs to be dealing with that sort of crap every day? These are not your friends! You deserve better.

But she stuck it out because there was one kid in the group that she really believed was her friend. They walked home together. They went for walks after school. They hung out at weekends and talked about boys and stuff. DD's provided a shoulder to cry on many times when this girl's been going through crap at home. And DD really truly believed her friend would stick up for her if things got really dire -- like DD had done for her.

And when DD finally reached breaking point and ditched the group -- much to my immense relief! -- she hoped this friend would come with her.

Wrong. Turns out this girl is sticking with the group. She would rather say nothing when she's picked on, pretend everything's okay when it's not, and watch other kids' lives being made a misery, than leave. Worse, she's trying to convince DD to come back and be part of the group again. "Not everyone hates you. You've got me -- I don't hate you. I'm your friend!"

Yeah. Right. DD has a "friend" who'll choose to sit with the group at lunchtime and pretend she hasn't spotted DD sitting on her own. DD has a friend who'll watch and say nothing while these "popular" girls who think they can do what they like, to whomever they like, rip DD's self-esteem apart. DD has a friend who'll repeat what she says in confidence to the other girls, in the guise of "just trying to tell your side of the story". DD has a friend for whom belonging to the group -- even if it means being treated like dirt, yelled at, sneered at, and gossiped about -- is more important than anything else.

And boy, is it hard to explain to a young impressionable teen, who wants so desperately to belong and to believe the best of people, that sometimes you've just got to let friends like that go. Because truthfully, they're not real friends at all. Because "real" friends just don't act like that. At least, not in my world-view!

Daughter is devastated. I'm devastated on her behalf. Sheesh. It sucks to be a mom when you have to watch your kids hurting, and you'd dearly love to confront these heinous little brats and take them down a rung or three. But as much as I wish it could be otherwise, I can't fight this battle for her. She has to either choose her friend and "conform" and play by "the rules" so that she'll be accepted, or choose to turn her back on her friend, walk away, and live by her own rules.

I sure hope it's the latter. Because then, she truly would be leader-material.


Cheers,

Maree

Meet Kim Adams, the Brains behind SOS Aloha

It's my distinct pleasure to welcome Kim Adams to WGW today. She is both a veteran and the driving force behind the SOS Aloha blog, where she spotlights authors, sets up book giveaways, and does plenty more things to help support American military personnel.

Aloha, Kim! What made you decide to go into the Air Force?


I received an Air Force ROTC scholarship in Mathematics. The scholarship require I serve four years active duty, but I spent 12 years as a Communications Officer. I have spent the past 11 years as a military spouse and community volunteer.

Ooh, a smart cookie! I knew I liked you. *props chin in hand and leans forward eagerly* Tell us a bit more about your military career.


The "communications" career field includes traditional "comm" (i.e., telephone), computer networks, and more recently information management.

But I seemed to work the odd ball jobs within this career field. My first duty assignment took me to Hanscom AFB (near Boston) where I worked software requirements for the AWACS (surveillance) aircraft. I then moved to Germany (near Aachen) to work the same type job for NATO AWACS. I returned to Pentagon to assist with the infrastructure renovation (ultimately, the Pentagon Renovation strengthened the building when Flight 77 crashed on it on 9/11 - the renovation prevented further deaths and damage). I met my husband at the Pentagon and we married at Fort Myer (next to Arlington National Cemetery). I followed him to Scott AFB, where I worked as an duty offer in the Tanker Airlift Control Center (super command post for mobility airlift providing global reach).

That's quite a resume! How did your time in the military shape you as a person?

The military taught me that I could do almost anything (women were still restricted from flying fighters but I had no desire to fly). It gave me the confidence to become my own person - my Air Force friends would laugh to think that I was an introvert in high school! The military enabled me to fine tune my emerging personality. And the military showed me the world!

Has your service made it easier for you to be married to a military man (that's so sexy, by the way)? All those moves and upheavals across the globe... Not an easy life, and it takes a special couple to make it work.

Yes, I know my own service makes it "easier" for us to move. I had to do it for myself three times, so I can do it for the whole family! In fact, I've had to do it myself for the moves I've made as a military spouse - hubby was busy at work or had already moved to the next duty station!

I know you're a romance novel fan, and I think it's fantastic that you're highlighting books on your blog. Why do you love them so much, and who are some of your favorite authors?


I detailed my discover of "romance" on my blog for September 11.
As a math major in college and a contracts officer in the Air Force, I did not want to read books "off duty". I read magazines. But then I discovered romance books in the Netherlands and the rest is history! I prefer Regency romances and sporadically read contemporaries. But I appreciate all genres because they reflects why military personnel put themselves in harm's way. They defend our previous freedom to think, speak, read, and write as we choose. The various genres also demonstrate how our society has changed its attitudes towards women - I celebrate the fact that women can read and write what they want! Thus, I will interview authors and spotlight books of all genres. I appreciate the patience of some authors (whose genres I don't read) as I try to ask intelligent questions related to their books!

It's hard to identify who are my favorite authors because I love you all! But I defer to the first three authors I read - Cathy Maxwell, the master of love and laughter; Bertrice Small, a romance icon of engaging epics; and Diane Gaston, who writes from her heart. All three have military connections ... and all three have become my friend!

Tell us a bit about SOS America and how you get involved with them.

After discovering romance in the Netherlands, I subscribed to RT Book Reviews. Once we moved to Baltimore, I signed up for the RT Booklovers' Convention in Daytona/2006. I attended the SOS Military Mixer and connected with Kathyrn Falk, founder of SOS and CEO of RT. I also met Mary Gramlich, the Reading Reviwer. The resulting friendship - and inspirational support - is a story for another blog!

Nine months later, I invited Kathryn to attend the Old Fashioned Tea Party with the Fort Meade Spouses' Club. They joined 20 other authors I invited from the Washington Romance Writers - Mry Jo Putney, Cathy Maxwell, Diane Gaston, Sally MacKenzie, Tracy Anne Warren, Rebecca York, and many others. The tea party inspired me to join the SOS team.

I'm very glad you did! What would you like to see happen in the future with your SOS Aloha blog?

Kathryn created SOS as a means for the romance industry to support deployed personnel. And it has grown in three different directions. Kathryn built a Soldiers' Cabin on her Texas ranch for wounded warriors and military families to come for R&R. Three of the original volunteers - Katherine C., Richard C., and Kelley G., continue to send cards and packages. And I started a monthly newsletter in May 2009. I converted it into a monthly blog in March 2010. Now I blog daily because so many authors want to participate!

Our blog promotes military issues to romance readers. Likewise, I promote romance reading to military spouses. I add Hawaiian culture for good measure.

I'd like to see more authors of all genres join us. All authors are welcome, whether or not they have military connections. I'd also like to see readers as guests to spotlight their special activities. In fact, Jodi S. - a Navy brat - will join us on November 7 to talk about her blog on quilting! To be a guest at SOS Aloha, contact me at sos.america@yahoo.com.

What can people do to get involved with and help the SOS America cause?


We are currently promoting Operation Holiday Card to ensure 1000 deployed personnel receive a holiday card. To date, 225 personnel have been adopted! To join Operation Holiday Card, contact Kelley columbussos@gmail.com

In the new year, we'll spotlight military charities that are making a difference - the USO, Operation Paperback, Special Operations Warrior Fund, and many others.

I heart the Special Operations Warrior Fund, but I'm probably biased :) What about specific things that authors can do?

Authors can be an SOS guest and refer their readers to our blog!

Thanks again Kim for coming by, and for all your hard work behind the scenes over at SOS Aloha.
So all you readers and authors out there, please contact Kim or drop by the blog and do your part to promote the publishing industry and the soldiers that safeguard our freedom.

Happy writing!
Kaylea :)

The Renaissance Writer

So here we are, deep in the throes of National Novel Writing Month. Honestly, when you've written more than one full length novel 50,000 words is not a big deal, especially if you're a planner, a plotter and a plodder. Nose to the grindstone, muse stapled to the sticking place, butt in chair, hands on keyboard.

The real trick is to do so consistently, churn out word count every day. This is what all of us professional writers should be doing anyway, carving time out of our day to focus on production. Because if there is no product, there will be no sale, no sale no book.

There are a million blogs, tweets, posts and tips as to how to succeed at Nanowrimo. Honestly, there is no trick, just write, even if you recognize it's crappola while writing it, let it be because as Nora Roberts says "I can fix a bad page but I can't fix a blank one".

Nano isn't about quality-- it's about production. Getting yourself in the habit of creating because if you are not, all the other stuff will bog you down until you're huddled in a ball in the corner either muttering incoherently or chewing your hair.

What other stuff, Jenn? Oh, you thought writing the novel was the hard part? *snicker* Creating the novel is the fun part, the best part and if you don't feel that way you are probably barking up the wrong tree.

Here's the honest truth, when compared to spiffing, selling, marketing and all the other behind the scenes stuff, the writing looks like a cakewalk. So let's say you finish a novel, about 50 K, rough draft, what comes next?

Editing: Everyone has a different approach for doing this, but on average, it ought to take twice as long to edit the first draft as it did to write it. So, if you churned out a novel in a month, plan on two for your own editing. Again this varies person to person, but my editing goes from me to my critique partner, back to me, to my beta readers, back to me. And guess what, once you sell, you will start editing all over again!

Frosting: This includes writing the blurb and synopsis, figuring out where you want to submit, what agents/ editors you are writing for, researching the market demographic your novel, i.e. what s your genre, sub-genre, how is that selling at this point in time, pulling together query packets for aforementioned editors and agents until they are all nice and shiny, putting your best foot forward and making the best possible impression. And guess what now? Print publishers want more than 50 K, so if that's the route you want to take, you better plan on adding another 30 thousand words to that manuscript.

Sales: when you sell a novel, you are not just selling the work, you are selling yourself as an author. Literary agents and editors often Google search writers to find out more about them. Do you have a blog? A website? Facebook page? Be careful what you post online, it could come back to haunt you. Conversely, not posting anything might indicate that you are not serious about your craft. When you do sign a contract, that doesn't mean the end to sales. Now you have to worry about selling to the public, blog tours, book signings, promotion ect. The selling aspect never ends, and it takes a toll on even the most prolific writer.

Rejection: Even if you land a contract for your book right away, you are still going to have to deal with rejection. Book reviewers, readers, hell even other authors will insult your work. You can't please all the people, but you need to rise above it, believe in what you do. Otherwise there is no point.

Yeah, yeah I know, you're different, better, have a better concept, a new style, you're the next best seller with talent oozing out every orifice. Go ahead and write a novel in a month. But when that is done, take some time to consider what to do with it, whether or not this was a whim, a fun goal that you met or if it's worth pursuing on a professional level. Because no amount of raw talent will replace the hard work necessary to succeed.

From The Ashes giveaway

FROM THE ASHES giveaway by Maree Anderson (for Writers Gone Wild)

Hi y'all,

Gearing up for a new release means booking guest blog spots. And then writing them all. Not to mention trying to go over the same basic material in a new way. Here's my shiny new story! This is what it's all about! Hope you like it! Wanna chance to read it before it's released?

This week I've made a such a concerted effort to get most of these done in advance that I'm all blogged out. Brain is mush. Chances of coming up with anything even slightly interesting for this week's topic? Less than zero.

So forgive me if I cheat and paste this practically straight from my website:

There’s only a month to go before my first novel-length story is released. And you know what that means, right???

Yep, a giveaway!

If you’d like the chance to win an electronic ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) of FROM THE ASHES, all you have to do is:

Click here to go to my website then answer the simple question.

Hint: it's all in the blurb, baby ;-)

Leave a comment on my website with your answer. And don’t forget to leave a contact email so I can contact you if you win. *VBG*

Giveaway closes on 22nd November. All details -- you guessed it -- on my website.

And for the insatiably curious among you....

Click here to read an excerpt of From The Ashes.

Cheers!

Maree