Researching an utter farrago of nonsense
Category: Writing and Poetry

Hello again - 4th time this week - Whoo Hoo!

Although I am blogging today - it's not on my blog :)  Jennifer Stevenson and I decided to swap today.  Jennifer is another author/friend who has a whole new trilogy of books coming out back to back - one a month for May, June and July - so all you fast readers out there don't have to wait a year or more between books.

Twenty-five years or more ago, Jennifer Stevenson was born under a cabbage leaf, dreaming even in the center of those stiffly furled-up leaves of becoming a hack writer for the pulps.  She longed to emulate the careers of bygone greats: Rudyard Kipling, PG Wodehouse, Sax Rohmer, Rex Stout. After a flustering detour down the rabbit-hole of literary fiction, she located a trail of breadcrumbs and followed it here, where adventure and mystery and manly men and smart-mouth women--especially smart-mouth women--rule.  It's lovely to be here.

Here's Jennifer:

Maria and I are swapping blogs today.  She's written something fascinating about her research for the "Study" books, and it's posted on my blog at http://smokingpigeon.livejournal.com/ .  My new trilogy is launching this week—The Brass Bed is book one—and I thought I'd talk a bit about my own research adventures.

For The Brass Bed I had three major areas of research:  con artists, because I was making a hero out of a con artist, sex addicts, because my heroine would be one, and the Chicago Department of Consumer Services, where my heroine works. 

First, I watched a lot of con artist movies, and I got a dismaying impression: con artists are mean and unlovable.  The more successful the con artist, it seemed, the meaner he was.  This impression was verified by Loren Pankratz, an important expert in the field of fakes, frauds, and criminal deceit.  If I was going to enjoy writing about Clay Dawes, he would have to be a much nicer guy…and probably an unsuccessful con artist. 

Next, I made contact with Dr. Gina Ogden www.ginaogden.com, author of Women Who Love Sex and The Heart and Soul of Sex.  She confirmed my basic idea of how to construct Jewel as a sex addict, and added lots of interesting stuff that had never occurred to me.  I also conducted an informal survey of my beta readers as I developed Jewel, and discovered an interesting difference of opinion.  The over 40 readers said, "Oh, yeah.  She's a sex addict all right."  The under 30 readers said, "Heck no, she's no sex addict.  She's just keeping her options open."  Word for word.  Holy generation gap, Batgirl!

I totally lucked into my secret contact at the Chicago Dept of Consumer Services.  I can't reveal their identity here!  But I can take this opportunity to deliver a dedication that got cut (against my strenuous pleas) from the final version of The Brass Bed:

"I have taken liberties with the amount of fun that investigators

for the Department of Consumer Services have, both on and off the job.

However, it would be impossible to overpraise the dedication,

knowledgability, energy, and courage of these unsung heroes.

Virtually nobody knows how hard they work, nor how important they

are to keeping the mechanisms of this glorious city in smooth

running order.  Whether you've taken a taxi or bought a hot dog

on Maxwell Street, sought help for immigration or suffered credit

card fraud or identity theft, hired an auto mechanic or a home

repairman, a Consumer Services Investigator has been there before

you, watching out for your interests.  Thanks to these wise and

committed public servants, Chicago is the city that works."

Let's see, research for The Velvet Chair was fun.  I looked for toad calls—here are some URLs of excellent toad calls http://www.leaps.ms/soundpage.htm I located online—for spoiler reasons I cannot divulge here.  I talked to cops and security equipment manufacturers to find out how tracer anklets work.  And I poked around on the internet and unearthed Herr Doktor Professor Gustavus Katterfelto, a really cool mad scientist of the late Georgian and early Regency periods in London.  He invented excellent fraudulent machinery, and he was a major showman.  His biggest competition came from a guy named Graham, who invented Graham's Celestial Bed, and who had a hugely successful and expensive Temple of Health http://www.printsgeorge.com/ArtEccles_TempleofHealth1.htm full of all kinds of jiggerypokery, flimflam, jiggle factor, and straight snake oil.

Research for The Bearskin Rug topped them all.  Part of the story is set in a haunted porn factory.  I was extremely fortunate in getting hold of Candida Royalle http://www.candidaroyalle.com/, a former porn star who founded a "women-friendly" erotic film production company.  Candida gave generously of her time and advice, and by the way impressed the heck out of me as being a businesswoman and as a serious thinker about feminism and sexuality.  (She makes good movies, too!  My favorite so far is "Stud Hunters.")   (Yes, it was very sad, I was forced to watch porn to research my novel.)  As well, I read a lot of excellent nonfiction about sex workers and the awe-inspiring Christy Hefner, and spoke with David Henry Sterry http://www.candidaroyalle.com/, author of Chicken, who gave me some remarkable insight into the character of Randy, my unfortunate sex demon.

What I learned most when researching The Bearskin Rug was about my own ignorance.  I had had no idea that sex workers as a group are intelligent, well-educated, articulate, physically and emotionally strong, independent  …   well, make a wish list of qualities you want for your heroine.

I'd had no idea how much deep exploration has already been done by smart, strong women exploring ideas that were new to me as I planned my book, ideas I was only dipping a toe into.  What does it do to an alpha male to be brought down from the heights of economic and social power into sex slavery?  What happens to his soul when he gets good at his new job?  For that matter, maybe my heroine really is a sex addict … or yeah, maybe she's just keeping her options open.  I began to respect Jewel in ways I hadn't before.  She's up against a scary world, and she's willing to be sexual in that world.  She knows stuff I don't know.  She's felt things I can't imagine yet.

That's a pretty weird feeling for an author to have.

It's kind of cool.

Link to buy:
http://www.amazon.com/Brass-Bed-Jennifer-Stevenson/dp/0345486684/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1209660214&sr=1-1

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Has anyone seen April?
Category: Writing and Poetry

A second blog today....I must really be procrastinating  

May Madness has begun and I lost April somewhere along the way.  Although one of the highlights of April was going to the Romantic Times Book Lovers Convention in Pittsburgh, PA along with 200+ authors. 

Referred to as RT - it was an interesting con.  There were cover models - those guys they photograph to be on the cover - usually without a shirt and muscles bulging.  Well, these guys were trying to be voted Mr. Romance so they were all over the con - without shirts - hairless and gleaming with oil.

Each night of RT had a different themed party - Ellora's Cave publishers had a glamour night, then an underwater fairy ball, and a vampire feast.  Most people dressed in costumes and everyone had fun.

The panels were about romance and the different romance genres - I was on one that talked about the Seton Hill writing MA program (since Seton Hill is near Pittsburgh).

I'll try and post some pictures.  It was great to meet my readers who I have been emailing for a while.  One from Canada, one from New York and one girl, Jessica flew in from St. Louis MO with her Mom to see me!  She wore a really cool T-shirt - I posted the pictures below - along with the one of us together. And I posted another two in my photo album.

Another highlight was having a champagne celebration with my friends - we celebrated Fire Study making the NY times bestseller list and my friend, Nancy Hunter's recent sale to Cerriwen Press.

My next convention is in two weeks in Lancaster, PA - then onto Balticon in Baltimore, MD at the end of this month, during Memorial Day weekend. So you might get another dry spell from me :)

 Front side

Back side

Maria and Jessica

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Brenda Novak’s online auction
Category: Writing and Poetry

Wow - two posts in two days - I hope I didn't cause anyone to go into shock ;> And I will have a bunch more this week - then nothing next week - LOL - I'm heading to Bermuda on Saturday for a 5 day getaway with my family :)

So many things are going on in May, and one good thing is Brenda Novak's online auction that benefits Diabetes Research.  She has this gigantic online auction during the month of May (ends May 31), and you can bid on signed books from a ton of authors.  And all the money goes to diabetes research.

I donated signed copies of Poison, Magic and Fire Study for the auction - and if you would like to bid on the signed set - go to http://www.brendanovak.com and check them out. 

There are other writing related items of interest (professional editing, trips, mentoring packages with bestselling authors to name a few) on the site, too.

11:56 AM - 2 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

Life’s a Witch
Category: Writing and Poetry

Hello!  I still want to post a chatty blog about all the stuff that's been keeping me busy - and I will...eventually.  In the meantime, here is another author interview (with 2 more coming this week - cause I'm busy so I let these wonderful ladies do all the work ;>  Tate Hallaway's latest book is being released today!  I love the cover art on this book and the catch phrase, Life's a Witch is perfect :)

Tate Hallaway is the best selling alias of the award-winning science fiction author Lyda Morehouse.  Lyda wrote a four book trilogy about angels, computers and the end of the world all of which are currently out of print, though she still writes and publishes science fiction/fantasy/horror short stories.   Tate's books are all in print with more in the Garnet Lacey series in the works.  You can find both Lyda and Tate all blogging all over the internet including places like LiveJournal, Blogspot, MySpace, Facebook, and even YouTube.  "They" live in Saint Paul, Minnesota with five cats, a five year old son, and many, many fresh water fish.

 Romancing the Dead:

It's been one heck of a week for Garnet Lacey. The Vatican witch hunters finally think she's dead, the FBI has closed their file on her, she's co-founding a new coven—and the gorgeous vampire she loves has just asked her to marry him. How lucky can one girl get?

Then, her fiancé goes missing and Garnet's worried sick. Has he been kidnapped? Or could he have run off with that blonde from the coven? Now Garnet will have to seek the help of her future stepson—the same brat who turned her over to the witch hunters for a brand-new Jaguar. But there's more bad news: the Goddess Lilith, who camps out in her body, has been making embarrassing appearances. And on top of that, some killer's on her tail...
 
 
INTERVIEW
 
What was your inspiration for writing ROMANCING THE DEAD?

ROMANCING THE DEAD is the third book in my paranormal chick-lit Garnet Lacey series.  People often ask me how I, as a writer, stay inspired when writing about the same characters.  I think I could get pretty bored if I didn't allow my characters not only to be human (and thus full of flaws), but also to change and grow. 

A lot of the romance I read when I first started reading romances were "first blush," as in the main point of the story was the excitement of meeting someone new.  At the end of these novels, things faded very quickly into the nebulous (and unrealistic) happily, ever after.  One of the things I'm trying to do in the Garnet Lacey series is promote the romance that can be found in a long-term relationship.  I mean, Garnet is in love with a vampire, for goodness sake.  You don't get more "ever after" than that.   I, myself, have been together with my partner for more than twenty years, and I don't think those kinds of relationships get a lot of glory in romance novels, you know?

Plus, in every novel I like to take on one of the tropes in urban fantasy and do my own thing with it.  In this book, I have Garnet meet someone who may or may not be a werewolf.

Who are your favorite authors and books now and when you were growing up?

Currently my favorite authors are writing graphic novels.  I'm in to Brian Michael Bendis' NEW AVENGERS.  I just finished reading NEW AVENGERS: ILLUMINATI in preparation of the up-coming Secret Invasion.  I'm also a huge fan of Ed Brubaker's CAPTAIN AMERICA, particularly his WINTER SOLDIER stuff.  Comic books haven't been this fresh for me since I first picked up Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's FANTASTIC FOUR when I was a kid.

For more traditional fare, my favorites are Rachel Caine, who writes the Weather Warden series, and Kristin Katheryn Rusch who writes the Disappeared series, which is a kind of futuristic a police procedural set on Mars.  When I was growing up my favorite authors were Katherine Kurtz and Anne McCaffrey. 

What is it about fantasy/science fiction that attracts you?

The explosions.

Seriously, I was talking to a friend about this at a bar the other night, and I confessed that one of my favorite things about writing paranormal romances/urban fantasy is that you get to have all the relationship/girly stuff married to the high-octane adventure/boy stuff.  That's pretty near perfect for me.

Why did you decide to make Garnet a Witch?

Because I am.

And it can be very difficult to find realistic portrayals of Wiccan religion in novels.  One of the things that drives me crazy in movies and TV shows like "Buffy, the Vampire Slayer" is when a complete novice reads a spell they find in a dusty book and they conjure a demon without breaking a sweat. 

Of course, because the Garnet Lacey series is fantasy, I take liberties, too.  Real-life witchcraft can be pretty dull.  The scope of Garnet's power is a lot stronger than anything I've experienced in real life, but I try to show ritual as part of her daily practice as well.  In other words, she doesn't just cast spells, but she also prays to a Goddess and observes the cycle of the seasons, like the real witches I know. 

What (besides writing) do you do for fun?

I'm an aquarist.  I have four fresh water fish tanks in my house and have had over the course of a year:  powder blue dwarf gourami, neon tetra, bettas (a spawning pair), a white cloud minnow, yellow tuxedo guppies, and several goldfish (comet and shubunkin).  I'm so into it I read fish magazines and occasionally write long, boring blogs about my fish triumphs and woes on my livejournal:  [http://lyda222.livejournal.com].  My betta Johnny/Giant-Girl is even a YouTube star:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9Gg0mfEfTw.

What sort of research did you do to write this book?

Well, because I'd decided to play around with the urban fantasy trope of werewolves and the story takes place in Madison, Wisconsin, I did a little research and discovered that Wisconsin has its own werewolf myth: "the Beast of Bray Road."  There's a book about it by Linda S. Godfrey called BEAST OF BRAY ROAD: TAILING WISCONSIN'S WEREWOLF.

Garnet loves astrology. Is that your favorite thing too?

One of them.  Just like Garnet I'm an amateur astrologer. Yeah, we're talking about predictions and horoscopes and stuff.  No, I don't think the stars rule my destiny, but, yeah, I think it's all a very fascinating and entertaining way to look at life and relationships.  

I love astronomy, too.  My friend Rachel takes me and my four-year old out star-gazing on clear nights.  The science fiction fan in me loves seeing the rings of Saturn and such.

What are you writing now?

There's more Garnet Lacey in the works.  I'm currently putting the wraps on book four, DEAD IF I DO, which I like to describe as "The Wedding Planner" meets "Night of the Living Dead."

Did you always want to write? Or did you stumble into it? How did you get where you are now?

It took boredom to turn me into a writer. 

True, I was an English major in college, but other than dabbling a little in fanfic as a teen I didn't really do a lot of creative writing.  After college, I had a series of dead-end secretarial jobs and really didn't require a whole lot of my brain power.  One of these jobs didn't even come with a computer, but when I incessantly bugged my boss for work she taught me the art of the slack.  She said, "Sometimes it's important to LOOK busy."  So, I started typing letters home to friends.  The letters turned into little silly stories, limericks, and finally, the beginning of my first novel, Sidhe Promised, which has never been sold.

Someone either a friend or my partner talked me into taking a science fiction writing class at the Loft http://www.loft.org  I had an awesome teacher who taught us the art of critique and encouraged us to form writers' critique groups outside of class.  The one I formed from that class with my friend and fellow writer H. Courrage LeBlanc, Wyrdsmiths is still going strong today, nearly twelve years later.  If you want to check out the "life" of a writers' group, we have a blog: http://wyrdsmiths.blogspot.com

Eventually, through a friend of a friend I got my second novel, Archangel Protocol, under the nose of an agent.  The rest, as they say, is history.

What does a typical writing day look like for you? How long do you write, that sort of thing?

Well, I'm in crunch time now, so I write close to four hours a night, from about 8:00 pm to midnight.  Normally, however, I tend to clock closer to only a couple of hours, if that.  I have a full-time job as a mom, so my writing time doesn't start until everyone is fed and tucked in their beds.  When not writing under a deadline, I also take weekends off.

Hm, which may explain why I'm in crunch time now, eh?

Where do you write??

Wherever my laptop is.  I tend to write propped up in bed or on the couch in the TV room. 

What is easiest/hardest for you as a writer?

I've always found dialogue the easiest to write.  That's probably because it's the part I practice the most.  Not only do I love to talk, but also when I'm falling asleep at night it's the fictional conversations that I play with in my head. 

As for hard, that would be plot.  If I had my druthers, no one would do anything.  They'd all sit around in a coffee shop and argue.

This isn't your first book; tell us a little bit about what else is out there?

Though all of them are meant to stand more-or-less on their own, there are two previous Garnet Lacey books:  TALL, DARK & DEAD and DEAD SEXY.  Both follow the exploits of Garnet Lacey, a Witch who accidentally drew in the dark and murderous Goddess Lilith to protect her coven from attack by Vatican witch hunters.  When the stories start, she's on the run and trying desperately to give up witchcraft, which Lilith (and, consequentially, she) crave like a drug.  Tall, dark and dead Sebastian Von Traum comes into the bookstore the Garnet manages and, as they say, hilarity ensues. 
And explosions… or at least zombies.

There's an excerpt of the first chapters of all three books available on my website  http://www.tatehallaway.com.

Other useful stuff:
Link to cover .jpg of Romancing the Dead:  http://www.mninter.net/~sprounds/Romancing.jpg

Amazon.com links to Tate's books:
Romancing the Dead:  http://www.amazon.com/Romancing-Dead-Garnet-Lacey-Book/dp/0425221334/
Dead Sexy (Garnet Lacey 2): http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Sexy-Garnet-Lacey-Book/dp/0425215083/
Tall, Dark & Dead (Garnet Lacey 1):  http://www.amazon.com/Tall-Dark-Dead-Garnet-Lacey/dp/0425209725/

Places to find Tate on the Web:
Website:  http://www.tatehallaway.com
Blog:  http://tatehallaway.blogspot.com
Wyrdsmiths group blog: http://wyrdsmiths.blogspot.com
Fangs, Fur & Fey (group blog for paranormal romance writers): http://community.livejournal.com/fangs_fur_fey/
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/tatehallaway

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Hungers of the Heart - yummy!
Category: Writing and Poetry

Yes - I know - I know I've been very bad about blogging - lots of stuff going on and I hope to update you soon - very soon - like within the next couple of days soon (I hope!).

In the meantime, here's an interview with Jenna Black - a friend and fellow author.  Her 4th book arrives today and, if the pictures load like they should, you'll see she has the coolest office in the world....in the universe!  I've been enjoying this series and I think you will too!

Jenna Black is your typical writer. Which means she's an "experience junkie." She got her BA in physical anthropology and French from Duke University.

Once upon a time, she dreamed she would be the next Jane Goodall, camping in the bush making fabulous discoveries about primate behavior. Then, during her senior year at Duke, she did some actual research in the field and made this shocking discovery: primates spend something like 80% of their time doing such exciting things as sleeping and eating.

Concluding that this discovery was her life's work in the field of primatology, she then moved on to such varied pastimes as grooming dogs and writing technical documentation. Among her other experiences . . .

• Ballroom dancing.
• Traveling all seven continents. Yes, even Antarctica.
• Becoming a Life Master in Bridge.
• Singing in a barbershop chorus.

1)What was your inspiration for writing HUNGERS OF THE HEART?

Since the first book of the Guardians of the Night series, I've always known I would eventually write Drake's book. Many of my readers have also impatiently been awaiting his book since they first "met" him in WATCHERS IN THE NIGHT. As excited as I was to write his story, though, it turned out to be very hard to do. One of the most attractive things about Drake in WATCHERS was his self-confidence, the sense that he was comfortable in his own skin. Confident, comfortable characters, however, don't make for interesting protagonists, so I had to shake him up. I found myself strangely reluctant to do so. That was the first time I had to struggle to make myself be mean to one of my characters. Usually authorial cruelty comes easily to me, as my readers no doubt know!

2) Which books and authors have most influenced your career?

I'd have to credit THOSE WHO HUNT THE NIGHT, by Barbara Hambly, as being the book that piqued my interest in vampires. The main vampire character in that book, Don Simon Ysidro, is absolutely fascinating to me. There's no question he's a bad guy—all her vampires are killers, and none of them seem to feel any remorse for their actions. However, Don Simon also has redeeming qualities, such as a sense of honor, that make him at least somewhat sympathetic to both the reader and the novel's hero. (And from that description, you can no doubt see how much I was influenced by that particular book!)

For my urban fantasies, I'd have to credit the Anita Blake series, by Laurell K. Hamilton as having had the most influence. That was the first urban fantasy series I read, and I ended up absolutely hooked. After reading her books, I went on to "discover" such authors as Kelley Armstrong, Keri Arthur, Rachel Caine, and Patricia Briggs. It was because I loved all those books so much that I set out to write an urban fantasy myself. 

3)What's the best and the worst advice you've ever received?

The worst advice I ever received was to slavishly follow all publishers' guidelines for submissions. (Note the word "slavishly." I'm not saying to ignore guidelines.) For the 16 + years I was seriously trying—and failing—to get published, I dutifully submitted books one at a time, no simultaneous submissions. I can't tell you how many times I had to wait a year or more to get a response. And during that waiting time, I refused to submit the book to another publisher, because most publishers say they won't accept simultaneous submissions. It made for a painfully slow, agonizing, frustrating process. If I had it all to do over again, I'd probably go ahead and make simultaneous submissions despite the guidelines. I think it would have saved some of my sanity.

The best advice was for me to take responsibility for my own career. This meant always acting as though my career was under my control, even when sometimes it feels like I'm a victim in the winds of fate. This advice was crucial to my finally getting published. I had gotten to a point where I'd convinced myself I needed to get that lucky break to get my foot in the door. And that was a dismal prospect, because you can't control luck. Then I went to a workshop where the teachers were adamant in their belief that luck has nothing to do with it, that if you write well enough and long enough, you'll break in. It was a total change of attitude for me, and it changed the way I approached my career. When I began to believe that it was my own abilities, not the whims of luck, that would ultimately get me published, I started working much, much harder at my writing. I started treating it like a career, rather than a hobby. A year later, I had an agent. Two years later, I had my first contract. And now I have five books out with four more under contract. So it was by far the best advice I've ever received.

4) What (besides writing) do you do for fun?

Number one on my list is, naturally, reading. Like most writers, I'm a voracious reader. I've recently become addicted to doing jigsaw puzzles. My enjoyment of jigsaw puzzles has come and gone multiple times over the course of my life. I'll go for years without doing one, then suddenly I'll have an urge and I'll do a whole bunch in a row. I'm finding them particularly fun right now because they're something I can do that doesn't involve sitting in front of a computer.

I also enjoy ballroom dancing, which I've just taken up again after several years' hiatus. I think it's important for me to find things to do outside the house now that I've quit my day job. It would be so easy for me to become a hermit. So that's why I decided to start dancing again. (Though it's also a lot of fun as well as being good exercise.)

5)  What are you writing now?

Right now I'm working on the fourth book in my Morgan Kingsley series. I've just gotten started, so I'm still in those very uncertain "what the heck is going to happen in this book?" stage. It often takes me a few chapters before I start feeling like I've "really" started the book. I've also been playing around with an idea for a YA urban fantasy, but I have to put that aside now to work on the book that's sold and on deadline.

6) Did you always want to write? Or did you stumble into it? How did you get where you are now?

I wrote my first book when I was in fifth grade. It was an autobiography. It's written in pencil, with crayon illustrations and a construction paper cover. So I've pretty much been writing forever. I wrote my first novel my senior year of high school for my English class on creative writing. (Actually, it was really a novella, but I considered it a novel at that time.) I then wrote my first real, full-length novel in college. However, it took about 20 years and 17 more novels before I made my first sale.

In college, I majored in anthropology and French. My intention was to get a PhD in physical anthropology and become the next Jane Goodall. Obviously, my career and my ambitions ended up taking a different path.

7) What does a typical writing day look like for you? How long do you write, that sort of thing?

I start out by trudging up to my computer while guzzling coffee as I try to shake the sleep clouds from my head. (I'm not the best morning person in the world.) I usually read emails and look at some of my favorite Internet sites (like MySpace and Romance Divas) while I wait for my brain to be fully functional. Then I drag myself to a computer that has no Internet access and no games—nothing installed on it other than word processing software. And I write.

I tend to write in multiple short (45 minutes to an hour) spurts throughout the morning and early afternoon. Between spurts, I check email or do chores or work out. (Or goof off, but I try to keep that to a minimum.)

8) Where do you write??

I have a home-office-cum-library where I work. It's a converted bonus room over our garage, and it's decorated to help stimulate my imagination—and give me the illusion that I've actually left the house to write. The effect is like working in a medieval/gothic library, with faux-wood floors and faux-stone walls.

9) What is the best part of being a writer? The most frustrating?

The best part about being a writer for me is hearing from readers. I love knowing that people have read and enjoyed my books. I was especially moved when I got an email from a reader who was seriously ill and told me my books helped make the bad times better for her. Books have always been my escape during the worst times in my life, and one of the thoughts that kept me going while I was struggling to sell that first novel was the desire to provide that same kind of escape for others. Learning that I'd done so for at least one reader brought tears to my eyes.

The most frustrating part of being a writer is how many things about your career are not under your control. You can't control the whims of the market, the editorial shifts in your publishing house, the closing of lines, the cover art, the marketing . . . You name it. (Some of those things you can control when you're a mega star, but I'm not there yet!)

10) This isn't your first book; tell us a little bit about what else is out there?

There are three other books out in the Guardians of the Night series: WATCHERS IN THE NIGHT, SECRETS IN THE SHADOWS, and SHADOWS ON THE SOUL. There's also THE DEVIL INSIDE, the first book in my Morgan Kingsley, Exorcist series. The second book in that series, THE DEVIL YOU KNOW, will come out on July 29.

11)  Where can we learn more about you and your books?

My website is www.JennaBlack.com. You can also find me on MySpace at www.MySpace.com/jennablackbooks.

Visit her on the web at www.JennaBlack.com

8:41 PM - 10 Comments - 4 Kudos - Add Comment

Thanks!
Category: Friends

I wanted to THANK everyone for the Birthday wishes - so sweet! 

Thanks again - it's nice to see all those comments.  I've been so busy and have been sending b-day wishes sporadoically to my friends - so thanks for taking the time today!

10:21 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Insanely busy!
Category: Writing and Poetry

I know I have a ton of friend requests and messages to respond to - but I'm heading out of town tomorrow and just couldn't get to everything today.  So bear with me....please!  I'm trying to do a million things at once.  Writing, promoting, emailing, the mom thing and dealing with renovations on top of everything.

Although I do have another link for you - an interview at:  http://thebooksmugglers.blogspot.com/2008/04/chat-with-author-maria-v-snyder.html

10:15 PM - 1 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Internet domination!
Category: Writing and Poetry

I’m all over the place - my Google results should cover at least a page by now ;>  All part of my evil....er.....master plan! *cue manical laughter*

I’m cheating on my blog again and have a couple more links for you.  There is an interesting Q&A up at this site:

http://www.scififanletter.blogspot.com/   There were some unique questions that Jessica tossed my way.

And - another reader who visited me when I was in Reading, PA last Saturday is giving away one of her signed copies she bought.  So check it out here: http://kinsmenoftheshelf.wordpress.com/2008/04/05/want-a-signed-copy-of-magic-study/

Thanks!

7:06 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Do Fiction Writers Research?
Category: Writing and Poetry

Hello - welcome to Monday :)   I am doing another guest blog today - it answers the question if fiction writer’s research.  

If you stop by and post a comment, you can WIN a signed copy of the UK version of Poison Study (I’ll put a picture of the cover art up here so you know what I’m talking about).

Here’s the link:  http://www.simplyromancereviews.blogspot.com/  

And, here’s the cover of the book you can win! 

PS: I love this cover!!

6:56 AM - 5 Comments - 4 Kudos - Add Comment

Much to do!
Category: Writing and Poetry

I just wrote up this long blog with all kinds of information about my trip to NC and all, and then I was checking my email and clicked on a site to get a link for this blog and it was all gone - an hours worth of work just disappeared.  I’m an idiot for not saving what I had done.

I’ll recap as best as I can.  I haven’t been blogging because of all my book events for Fire Study.  Went to NC and visited two book stores and two friends.  Got to see the real Kiki again - she’s doing well in her new home.

Everyone in NC was super sweet - like their iced tea :)  I had two excellent signings and was even a prize for the one at Fireside Books & Gifts.  Rob, a Scotsman, living in Ashville now won dinner with me and we had a blast.  I resisted asking him to quote Scotty’s dialogue from Star Trek.

The signing at Park Road Books was fun - lots of people stopped by, even a mom with two kids who drove 2 hours one way to see me.

FYI - My March newsletter will be combined with April’s and you’ll get the FINAL chapter of Power Study - should go out next week.  Newsletter? you ask?  I send monthly email newsletter and you can sign up here: http://www.mariavsnyder.com/news.php

So what else have I been doing?  Well I’ve been blogging and doing lots of Q&As and I’ll give you the links I have now below - but I should have more later.

An Idea for An Idea blog at: http://www.sfnovelists.com

Q&A at  http://www.fantasy-news.com/2008/03/28/maria-v-snyder-interview-english/

There’s a LJ community called Butterfly’s Dust that is really cool - they have art and character profiles and lots of good stuff.  http://community.livejournal.com/butterflys_dust/

Have a good weekend everyone!

7:49 PM - 2 Comments - 3 Kudos - Add Comment