RS: I Haz Planz 02/04 and March 2015 Round Up

Posted on April 2, 2015 by Raven ShadowHawk

April. Eep. What the bleedin’ . . .

Where is this year going? So fast!

Right. Guess I’d better put this together then.

Actions Last Weekblank calendar from OpenClipArt

~Complete the rest of the Kindle Edits for ‘Second Base’ on the original Scrivener file
Done. At LAST! I added a (much needed) chapter near the end where Dan resolved some of his issues – can’t believe I missed that out! – and got it sent to a beta reader yesterday morning. Phew!

~Secure one more beta reader
Fail. -_- People are so busy. It’s wonderful to know that people have got their own projects going on but I’m going to need to broaden the net on this one.

~Stop leaping on the postman every time he arrives asking about the proof for Meeting Each Other: The Full Story.
Success! And after all that I missed him anyway. The book arrived on Saturday while I was out with the Phoenix Writers. It ended up at the sorting office (UGH!) and had to be collected (DOUBLE UGH!) but now I have it and it’s beeeeeeeeeauuuuitful! Pictures to follow.

March 2015 Round Up

Could be hella lot worse. Look at this:

~Finalise physical paperback version of ‘Meeting Each Other’ and get it on sale
I have the proof. It’s fine. I can hit ‘go.’ There’s just one small detail I need to decide on. If I decide I don’t like it I’ll need to amend the file and get a new proof. If I don’t mind, the book could be available to buy tomorrow. Choices, choices.

~Get ‘Slippers & Chains: Second Base’ out to beta readers by middle of the month (Mar 19)
Yesterday. Sooo . . . April 1. Not terrible. Not great, but not terrible. And it isn’t the end of the world. BP haven’t given me a deadline so this is all self set. I can send the piece to my editor when I feel it’s ready, she won’t rush me.

Change That Shit Up!

So where does that leave me now for the rest of year? Well, kinda like this. Completed tasks struck out, changes in red text, additions in green text.

  1. Have paperback version of ‘Meeting Each Other’ series complete and for sale by end of April
  2. Edit ‘Slippers & Chains: Second Base’ in its entirety and send to Breathless Press by May 11.
  3. Draft ‘Slippers & Chains Three’ (and give it a damn title!) by November 2015
  4. Begin editing ‘Slippers & Chains Three’ (at least as far as a Kindle Read) by December 2015.
  5. Switch to a more manageable newsletter schedule of quarterly postings with bonuses for new releases when the current ‘New Pet’ story is done.

Targets for April 2015

my work diary

BEHOLD . . . ! The holy notes!

I have no idea what I need to do next. I guess the focus this month needs to be on getting my newsletter in good nick and ensuring my ‘Meeting Each Other’ paperback is good to release. *consults the diary* Right.

Well according to the holy notes of ‘THIS IS MY MAAAAAAAAASTER PLAAAAAAN!’ April is supposed to be a bit of a month off for me. ‘Second Base’ is with beta readers and Ileandra has full control of DSB to continue drafting ‘On A Knife Point.’

Schweet!

  1. Get paperback version of ‘Meeting Each Other; The Full Story’ available for sale on Amazon and CreateSpace
  2. Send out this month’s newsletter
  3. Devise a sensible, non-spammy marketing campaign that is fun and sustainable

Yes, I realise I said month off, but I can’t stop working completely. I’d go mad.

Activities For This Week

  1. Make a decision on the potential cosmetic changes in the ‘MEO:TFS’ paperback
  2. Complete a full read through of the ‘MEO:TFS’ proof and annotate.
  3. Upload those changes to document and order fresh proof

Thoughts…

goal shooting goals from open clip artThat last target for the month is important. Obviously I’m not in this writing gig just for the money (because I’d be sorely disappointed!) but I want to sell some books. Which means people need to know I’m here. This blog is all well and good, but I need something to put my in the paths of more readers. Particularly readers of erotica and romance, since that’s what I do here.

Finding a fun way to do that is key. Something sustainable so I don’t do it for a week and then give it up because it breaks my brain, or because I can’t see results. I need something simple that I can do a little of every day to put me on the radar of those who might like what I have to say.

But first… let’s get this paperback done. Oh, and I promised you a picture, right?

Raven with meeting each other proof

And yes . . . I’m aware my horns are missing. -_- I had a little . . . accident. 😦

Raven's Signature In Black

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RS: Guest Post – Carolyn LaRoche

Posted on April 2, 2015 by Raven ShadowHawk

Presenting Carolyn LaRoche!

Next up in wonderful authors from my genre is super talented Carolyn LaRoche. You’re in for a treat with this one too: not only do I have the cover here as a treat, but I also have an excerpt as a special treat! Go, Carolyn!

About ‘Undercover in Six Inch Stilettos’

Undercover in six inch stilettos cover

Oooh, yeah. Nice, right? 😉

Even a cop’s wife has secrets… When young exotic dancers start disappearing, can Cyndi find the missing girls without exposing her own little secret?
Cyndi Mills has a great life. A handsome husband that desires her, a beautiful daughter, and friends she could trust with her life. It’s only logical that she secretly takes a job as an exotic dancer at one of Virginia Beach’s night clubs.
When dancers start disappearing, Cyndi is determined to get to the bottom of it. Unfortunately, solving the case means her overly protective husband has to know that she has been lying to him for months about where she goes every Friday night. Cyndi has no idea just how deep she will get by going undercover as a confidential informant. Will she risk her marriage to find justice?

About Carolyn

Carolyn LaRoche Author pictureCarolyn LaRoche grew up in snow country but fled the cold and ice several years ago. She now lives near the beach with her husband, their two boys, two finicky cats and one old dog. When she is not at the baseball field cheering on big hits and home runs, she is busy teaching science to unwilling teenagers.

Find her on Twitter, Facebook or over at her blog.

‘Undercover in Six In Stilettos’ Excerpt

Jason leaned against the counter, arms folded across his chest. She recognized that look immediately. He was doing the cop thing, analyzing her, and she could tell he knew something didn’t add up. His left eyebrow rose just a tad higher than the right as he studied her. “Why do you have glitter in your hair?”

Cyndi shook her hair and a shower of glitter rained down on her sweatshirt. Damn. Somehow she had missed a boat load of sparkle. Damn, that stuff got everywhere.

“Jody brought her daughter’s costume for a dance recital to work so I could help her fix a tear. It was all covered in sparkles. The damn stuff got on everything. Had to go back over the carpets with the sweeper twice and I’m still not sure we got it all.”

Jason continued to stare down at her from his full six feet of height. His stare was laser sharp, his presence imposing. It was no wonder he was so good at catching the bad guy. Hardened criminals squirmed under the intensity of that stare. Hopefully he couldn’t see through her despite the fact she felt as transparent as the shower curtain hanging in their bathroom.

“You think Harper is going to want to do that stuff?”

“Harper is four. It’s a little early to predict if she will be a dancer or a swimmer or…whatever.”

“Yeah, well, I just don’t want that glittery stuff all over the house. The guys won’t ever let me live it down, I show up to work all sparkly like that.” He shook his head.

Cyndi stepped closer to her husband and wrapped her arms around him. “I’m exhausted, honey. How about we go to bed?”
Jason hugged her close. “You gonna wear a little French maid’s outfit like you do when you clean those offices?”

“Jason!”

“Can’t fault a guy for trying.” Jason’s grin was a sharp contrast to his earlier scrutiny. He pulled out the neckline of her top and peered down into it. “Come on. I know you gotta wear some kinda uniform!”

Thank God she had changed in to her old white bra from the discount store and left her bustier at work. Stepping back, Cyndi held her arms out and spun around slowly. “You’re looking at it, baby. Doesn’t my ratty old sweatshirt turn you on?”

“Not as much as a little maid’s outfit would. It’s nearly Halloween. Maybe I ought to pick one up for you to wear at work. You know, so you don’t mess up your own clothes.”

“Ohhh, Jason… you are such a guy!”

“You would rather I be such a girl?”

“Of course, not! Just don’t be so obvious about being a man all the time.” Cyndi filled a glass of water from the tap, drank it in one gulp, then placed her used cup in the sink before heading toward their bedroom. “Come on, cop man. You play your cards right I might let you frisk me before we go to sleep.”

Cyndi heard light switches flip, door chains sliding and the announcement that the house emergency alarm was being set. Jason rushed through his nightly round of safety checks as he yelled to her from various locations around the house.

“Do you have anything on you that might hurt me?” Snap went the deadbolt on the front door. “Needles, knives, or guns?” Click went the security latch on the sliding door to the back yard. “Do I need gloves or cuffs…?”

“Not sure you’re gonna need gloves but cuffs might be fun,” she called back as she climbed out of her clothes and dropped into the cool sheets.

Very, very, nice indeed. That’s for stopping over to see us, Carolyn and here’s to much luck with the new release. Get the book tomorrow (April 3) through Amazon or Breathless Press!

Raven's Signature In Black

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IY: Mah Plans 30/03 – UPDATED!

Posted on March 30, 2015 by Ileandra Young

Football goal posts from OpenClipArtSo, I exaggerated. Last week wasn’t so bad. I didn’t get much done, but it wasn’t that bad. And, if I’m honest, I can’t blame the boys for not getting stuff done last week. It was all me.

Look at this:

Actions Last Week

Write 10k words of ‘On A Knife Point.’
Nope. I think I may have written 500 words. If I was lucky. And I don’t think I was. Not that I didn’t have space and time. With all my evenings in tact, I had plenty of time to write.
I just couldn’t.
It’s that hole again. I’ve reached a point in the story where I’ve put my original outline to one side because it didn’t work. Not because it was awful, but because I realised pretty quickly that things were far too easy for Lenina. She was coasting. So my new outline introduces a few new hurdles for her and a major life event which should scramble things for her a little bit more.
The issue that I’m having is that I was so read to write the original version of my outline that I just can’t focus on this new one. I really, really am struggling just to put works down. It’s so irritating, because the bit I’ll fly through is sooooo close. But I want to get passed this bit first
Odd, because I don’t usually make a big fuss about writing chronologically – especially in this trilogy – but there we go. It’s crippling me and I need to figure out how to get by.

Activities For The Week

  • Write 1k words of ‘On A Knife Point’ in the remainder of the month (that’s tomorrow, right?)
  • Write 6k words of ‘On A Knife Point’ in the remaining six days of the week

Thoughts…

I know that’s sneaking into April a little bit, but I have to do something. I need to get this moving or else I’ll never get back on track. And it isn’t so much the plan for the year that bothers me. More than I help getting caught in ruts as it makes me feel a bit useless. I mean, no one knows this characters like I do. They’re mine, right? I know them so surely I should be able to spit some words about them.

I figure if I give myself gentle 1k targets per day I’ll slowly work myself out of it. And I’ll also stop writing at 1k, even if I’m burning to do more. This should mean that the following day I have a good springboard to dive from which will keep the momentum once it starts.

Fingers crossed, eh?

Update 31/03

Well… given that I usually write these posts a night in advance, I think I did pretty well yesterday. After the release of the next in my Bad Guys series, I wrote 5k words of ‘On a Knife Point.’ I had an empty house and was able to concentrate for the first time in a week. I guess daylight helped. I know I’m a bit of a night owl, but I’m far more productive in the daytime and having that time to work really did me some favours. A bit like having nursery time (which I continue to miss by the way).

So ‘On a Knife Point’ is now at 45k ish and really quite exciting again. The overall first draft goal is 100k, but I don’t know if I’ll make it that far. I also don’t think I should force it, given that I’ll then need to reduce the piece to around 70k. I guess if I write well, and as close to my final word count as possible, there will be far less editing to deal with. So that’s what I’m going to aim for.

Wish me luck!

new ileandra signature,

 

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IY: ‘Bad Guys’ – Is It The Way They Look?

Posted on March 30, 2015 by Ileandra Young

In a word: yes.

If I were being (slightly) less shallow I guess I would have to say ‘yes, because . . .’ and since I’m not a shallow person (honest!) that’s what I’m going to do. Oh, and sorry this post is late, by the way.  I was tired. Didn’t prepare. End of.

So, bad guys. Well, these guys have a type. A certain look or feel. It usually involves ripped muscles, leather (usually tight) and/or denim (definitely tight) and sleeveless shirts (ooo, biceps!). But if I’m honest, too much muscle and bulging thighs make me nervous. No Mr Universe for me, thank you very much. But, in general, these are guys that look after themselves in the Hollywood-acceptable version of the word. So they aren’t fat, they generally shave (or just have bare chests). Nice hair (short or long, doesn’t matter, even if I have a preference for long). Good clothes.

How many ‘desireable’ bad guys out there are walking around bin liners or shabby, stinking rags? And even if they are, is this the ‘real world’ version of those things or the ‘Hollywood’ version?

picture of spike from Buffy the vampire slayer

Obtained from www.http://buffy.wikia.com/ under CC-BY-SA license.

Take Spike (and yes, there will be a lot of Buffy parallels . . . I can’t help it, that’s just what I’m watching right now!). Ice-white peroxide hair, all slick and smooth. Black clothes, not form fitting, but certainly not baggy. Big, black leather coat (which has a back story all of it’s own, I recently discovered!). Black nail varnish. *shivers* More guys should wear make up. Or at least nail varnish. Dudes certainly should not be afraid of highlighting certain features with a little bit of slap. We’re expected to, why not them? Anyway . . . he’s a bad guy. Even when he’s trying to be good he’s a bad guy. When he’s forced to be good he doesn’t do a very good job of that either. But you love him anyway. More on that later.

Now… what about a character like Wolverine? He’s not a bad-bad guy. He’s a good-bad guy, but we like him too. Is it the shirts (like I said, mmm, biceps!), or the crazy owl hair flick? The mutton chops? Those bad-ass claws? The amount of nude scenes they somehow get him to do? *drool* I mean, we’re supposed to root for this guy because he’s the hero/star of whatever piece he happens to be in, but would he be as attractive to us if he wasn’t . . . well . . . attractive? More on that later. 😉

Looks is just one of the reasons we’re trained to like bad guys. Next week I’ll be talking about another reason. How they talk. ^_^

new ileandra signature,

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DSB: Real Life Bits 28/03

Posted on March 28, 2015 by Da Shared Brain

Hi everyone! It’s recently (and by recently I mean, for ages) been in my mind that you fine people actually care about me. Not just the highly entertaining (I hope) highjinks of Ileandra and Raven, but me, Leah. That’s wonderfully humbling and I realise that there hasn’t been much of me for quite some time. So I present:

Real Life Bits

I don’t know how often I’ll be doing this, but I figure since you guys are curious and caring and interested, it would be nice to give you a semi-regular update on what’s happening with me. This serves the dual purpose of also allowing both Ileandra and Raven to talk about themselves with no interruptions from yours truly.

Today is an update on my boys . . . because why not? 🙂

I think it was Ileandra who mentioned that our nursery closed down. That means that the boys have been with me this whole week but for a few interludes where Dave was able to take them on around his work schedule. It hasn’t been like that for a good many months and it’s been a bit of a shock to remember just how draining it can be to entertain a pair of (almost) three year olds for five straight days.

Well . . . I did it. We’ve come out the other side (relatively) unscathed and we’re all still very much adoring of each other. We even had fun in all the Richard III activities scattered throughout the city, which led to this extremely entertaining photo:

Strike a post photo - my boys

This is what happens when you shout ‘Strike a pose!’ …the crowns are just a bonus.

There are some new nurseries on the horizon and we’re looking to start them there following the Easter break. Not that it will be long before they start Foundation One (reception) classes. That’s this September.

I remember so well my posts while pregnant, worrying that they wouldn’t like me, or that I’d be a terrible mother, or that I’d just fall to bits and never manage to repair myself.

Well . . . I won’t deny that it’s been a hard few years, but look at them. Just look at my beautiful, super-intelligent, kind, polite and talented children. I’d say I’ve done okay for myself, right?

DSB Sig

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