Writing Update

"Persian Flames" is a much stronger story for listening to Deb's criticism. Love it when  revisions are so evidently right. Question is, will Carina want it?

Jess Nevins wrote a post on Lost Race stories for Beyond Victoriana and now I really want to write a steampunk story of a forgotten people. You know the mantra I need? Focus.

Winner of "Three Wishes"!

I wish it was a for-real 3 wishes ... but the winner of a digital copy of my paranormal romance novella, Three Wishes, is Seleste!

The Urge to Jump by Trisha Ashley

I've mentioned before about how much I like "The Urge to Jump" by Trisha Ashley. Seems it's not quite as easy as it once was to get hold of, but it remains the one and only book I've read which, written in the present tense, I still love.

Present tense, how you bother me.

Some people enjoy the immediacy of the present tense. Not me. I like the reflective nature of the past tense. It is familiar, comforting.

And then comes synopsis writing -- which demands present tense. Argh! It's unnatural!

But, back to "The Urge to Jump". Why do I like it so? Well, apart from the strong narrator and splendid wry humour, the heroine is a bossy, opinionated writer. Ha!

Food as Muse

I'm visiting Wynter Daniels' lovely blog and talking about the food that inspires my writing. Do you find yourself eating certain foods appropriate to the place you're writing about?

Going East

Palmyra Amphitheatre by Hovic
Some rights reserved
http://www.flickr.com/photos/200000/344808931/
Thanks for sharing your photo. It's gorgeous!

I thought I'd wind up my release week celebrations for Three Wishes with a nod to the Near and Middle Eastern archaeology/ancient history that started my interest in the Middle East, its cultures, landscapes and histories. Archaeology.org has a list of website links you could lose yourself in for hours.

Or, Jackie Burris interviews me at her blog. It's a great interview. Everyone has been so supportive through release week for Three Wishes -- thank you!

Synthetic grass

Why buy a house with a yard if you're just going to roll out the carpet? Honestly, synthetic grass/lawn is bizarre. I can live with it on minigolf courses. Anywhere else? Nope.

That's it. I'm taking a stand. Just say "No" to plastic grass.

But to put me in a better mood ... I'm visiting Taryn Kincaid and talking about favourite places to write. Come and share yours.

Romance Round the Net

For other wish-you-were-there conference attendees, Armchair BEA takes in Book Expo America and Book Bloggers confs. I'm so grateful to people who share their experience of these conferences, the industry news and a general sense of where things are at.

Nathan Bransford talks about reversals in story structure. Up and down, up and down.

Jenny Bent, literary agent, has started a series of posts on authors and agents and finding one another, plus selling that first book.

I'm fascinated by the idea of a news network training citizen journalists.

Small Reviews has a great post explaining how to include a signature in your Blogger posts. May be old news to some people. The tech-challenged, like me, need all the help we can get.

Greed is ... um ... Good?

Okay, so maybe I'm a touch greedy. I'm definitely lucky. I'm posting at two cool blogs today -- Manic Readers on "Dressing a Djinni" -- it's tough -- and Carina Press on celebrating happy ever afters.

But this is Improbability Wednesday at this blog. The day when I rid my brain of weird ideas (by inflicting the musings on you) and so, enable my brain to continue sensible(ish) plotting on the next story.

Greed. I got thinking, what if neuroscience discovers the particular chemicals/brain stimulation/pleasure feedback response/whatever they call it, and greed becomes a behaviour we can manage chemically rather than with willpower.

Would people choose not to be greedy? And what would be the result? Would our sense of possessiveness vanish? How would our motivations alter? Would we be blissed out or depressed if consumption and possession for their own sake ceased to be rewarding?

I can't imagine giving up my greed for new books to read. One of the joys of life.

Writing Update

My primary focus this week is the release of Three Wishes. But revisions for Persian Flames are well underway. The ending is now so tense, I got worried writing it -- and I knew there'd be a happy ending!

Mid-release week is not the ideal time to be planning future projects -- or maybe it is? Either way, I'm thinking about a fifth Out of the Bottle novella, staying in the Middle East but ... whisper it ... adding in a demon heroine. Question is, can I alter the mythology to allow a demon to love? Not sure. Yelena, on the other hand, has no such doubts and is demanding her story. I have to admit, I want to meet the djinni who'll fight for her.

As for steampunk...I'm fiddling with ideas. Would you believe the Scots ruled the nineteenth century British Empire, but stayed behind the scenes? How about a Scottish villainess? Lots of ideas, but I have to choose one to run with. Maybe I won't go Scots at all. India might be more appropriate, geographic proximity to Australia and all.

Release Day! "Three Wishes" -- Win a copy!

She is the Bringer of Death

Cali, a djinni, has sworn to twist the wishes of humans so they die by their own greed and evil. Her latest master is arms dealer David Saqr, a man Cali believes deserves the fate she has in store for him. But this time she finds herself up against Andrew, David’s guardian angel.

 He is a Protector of Life

Andrew believes David can yet find redemption. He fights Cali for the man’s life, even as he tries to persuade her to give in to the sizzling attraction between them. He shows Cali another side of David, and invites her to trust again, to hope. But centuries of being enslaved have hardened Cali’s heart—it’s going to take all of Andrew’s love to convince her to open it and let him in.

***

For your chance to win a copy of Three Wishes, just leave a comment. "Happy Release Day!" would make me smile :)


And can I say the hugest thank you to Deb Nemeth for being the best editor an author could wish for, and to the whole Carina Press team (authors included!), you rock! I'm honoured to work with you.


Plus, if you're curious about the mythology behind the world I've created in the Out of the Bottle series, check out my post at Love Romance Passion in which I talk about Lilith -- who knew Adam was divorced?

Wherein I dig up almost sensible answers

Christine Bell invited me to be her blog guest and answer some interview questions. Things I wish I'd known about the writing/publishing game. Where my Out of the Bottle series is going. What I would eat on a desert island.

I had a lot of fun, but also reflected on my writing journey -- how far I've come, how the future terrain looks. Not all of it made it into the post, but it's useful to take stock now and then.

The Interview

Unfamiliar and Beautiful

Woman with a Spray of Flowers, Iran, 1575
Freer Gallery of Art, Smithsonian

Islamic Art has meanings and nuances that I (a non-Arabic speaker and non-Muslim) completely miss, but I can appreciate the beauty, the passion and the sheer talent of the artists. If you're looking for an introduction to the field, check out the Museum of Islamic Art.

***I'm visiting Christine Bell today (thanks, Christine, for inviting me!) and answering questions. Lovely questions that made me stop, think and laugh. Join us!

Where do pets come from?

With huge thanks to Lulu for sharing her gorgeous photos on Flickr

Given the release of Three Wishes next week (squee!) I've been thinking of things Syrian -- since Syria's the setting for the story. And of all extraordinary things to discover, the hamster is from Syria.

Now, the rational part of me knows pets have to originate somewhere, but the irrational part of my mind insists that pets have always been pets. Silly, I know. Especially when the cute budgerigar is wild here in Australia.

Romance Round the Net

Today I'm guest posting over at Dark Side Down Under AND giving away a copy of Three Wishes. Just leave a  comment at my DSU post to go in the draw. What am I talking about? Hats and villiany.

I guess you know I scrapbook pretty pictures over at Tumblr. Well, Harlequin recently set up their page over there and in addition to their gorgeous cover images, they're also sharing great tips and insights into the writing/editing/publishing world. I like this paragraph by editor Patience Bloom on how to write romantic suspense. Looks like Tumblr is going to mean more than pretty pictures.

Lynn Jordan talks about finding subjects to blog about. I think this is both easy and hard. Easy for me, since I don't worry about popularity and simply blog about what interests me. Hard because part of me knows I'm not making best use of my online time if I'm not *jargon alert* driving traffic to my blog. But you know, really, I look at my blog as a long term part of my online presence and I'd rather be interesting and interested than chase SEO.

Patricia Wrede starts an interesting discussion on truth and fiction. In fact, it's sparked so many ideas for me, I might end up with a whole blog post on it. Y'see, once upon a time I studied Sociology and that (along with Literature courses) exposed me to the whole idea that there is no one truth and that we all "read" (interpret and create) the text we're, ahem, reading. It's a totally confusing idea (deconstruction), but also useful. Patricia goes at the issue from a different direction, that of the author knowing they can't discuss every truth in their fiction and how they choose and deal with the fall out of readers not finding or disputing the truths included in a story. Hmm.

Breaking with Routine

Usually Wednesdays are improbabilities. Today, though, it's all about celebration.

Three Wishes releases from Carina Press on Monday!

My third paranormal romance novella with Carina! It's so wondrously exciting and improbable I can't think of anything else :)

Writing Update

So...revisions.

I could weave you a doleful story about how dreadful and dreadfully hard work revisions are -- and all without a guarantee the manuscript will contracted at the end. I could -- but that would be lying.

I love revisions, and Deb Nemeth is responsible. Her crit of Persian Flames caused little light bulbs to ping all over my brain and the story will be so much stronger as a result. Plus, brace yourselves, with one thing leading to another, I now have an idea for a fifth Out of the Bottle novella. Such a good idea, if I can swing the myth-building.

But for now, it's revision time. Richer character development. Agonising tension. What more can a writer ask for? (the chocolate is in the fridge!)

10lb Penalty by Dick Francis

Yes, there are horses in 10lb Penalty. What Dick Francis novel lacks equines? But in many ways, they are irrelevant. This is a story of father and son -- and politics. It's a book I thoroughly enjoyed reading -- and re-reading. But as a writer, what particularly intrigued me was its timeframe.

I don't think it's a spoiler to say the book covers years. Years -- yet it's a thriller. So often, tension is ratcheted up by decreasing the timeframe. Look at the success of the tv show, 24. But in 10lb Penalty, Francis uses the leisurely timeframe to develop the tension. Sure, it's not highwire stuff, but it works. The book is an interesting, comfortable read.

Huntington Desert Garden

By Pamla J. Eisenberg from Anaheim, USA [CC-BY-SA-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

A very prickly stroll, but aridly beautiful, Huntington Botanical Garden.

Damascus Fashion

Les Costumes Populaires De La Turquie, en 1873
A collection of photographs by the famous photographer Pascal Sebah
on the occasion of the universal exposition in Viena in 1873
(via Wikimedia)

Oh my goodness. Can you see the shoes on the lady on the right? Wow, and I thought stilettos were tough to walk in.

Romance Round the Net

Maria Zaninni interviewed Deb Nemeth and the result is advice for writers to live by. Deb is a fab editor.

Lori Lake makes a valid point about the increasingly crowded world of self-published books. Early adopters have an initial advantage, but will they be able to continue to build name recognition and sales in a crowded arena? Let alone the situation for non-early adopters.

How do readers find authors and their books? (Sorry, no answers. Just musing)

Do's and don't's of blogs and website presentation by Paula Roe.

Neuronal Recycling and Sleep

Usually when I post about improbabilities I'm talking about SF story ideas that strain even a reader's willing suspension of disbelief. Today is a bit different. I'm leaping off from an actual scientific hypothesis -- neuronal recycling. "Human 3.0" by Mark Changizi in SEED got me thinking.

True, I probably haven't understood the hypothesis fully or correctly, but the idea that speech, writing, drawing are adaptations of existing human hard-wired capacity to understand and function in the world is intriguing -- that culture has taken our abilities and value-added.

So, what existing functions of the brain could we value add, and thereby, change what it means to be human? Could there be a shift in our future as radical as speech?

The trick would be to look at something we do all the time, and overlook, and change it. Sleep comes to mind.

What do we do in our sleep that we could tap into to achieve something very different, something communicative and connective (because that's what speech, writing, etc are -- they support and define our sociability)?

As a believer in the benefits of a good night's sleep, what if the function of sleep that we overlook is healing? What if there's a way for a healthy mind to heal a disturbed one during sleep?

Writing Update

Submitting a manuscript is scary.

That's all!

The Steampunk Bible

The Steampunk Bible by Jeff VanderMeer and S J Chambers is great fun.

I reviewed it over at Goodreads, so I don't feel this has to be a sensible review. But nor am I going to descend into simply squee'ing over the great photos -- though I easily could.

I thought I'd have a little ramble about one of the points brought up in the book, the idea that Steampunk celebrates an elimination of obsolescene and a return to creativity and craftsmanship.

I detest the built-in obsolescence of mass produced junk. Not only is it wasteful, it fails to respect how I interact with inanimate objects -- I build relationships.

If we interact with something on a daily basis -- like the toaster (evil stainless steel genius), the computer, the car -- we wrap it into our animate life. I really think that's how the human brain works. That's why, at distracted moments, I thank a vending machine for a chocolate bar.

Built-in obsolescence destroys those relationships, makes them insecure, forces us to re-learn our habits (oh, how I detest upgrades).

Steampunk, on the other hand, celebrates the inclusion of the inanimate into our lives. I think de Chardin was the first person I read who said something like "we are everything we affect in our lives".

Dogs, dogs and more dogs

Dog breeds at Wikimedia.

Purina offers a Dog Breed Library.

The American Kennel Club has its own list.

and after all that, you'll probably conclude (like me) that the best dog in the world is the one you love the most!

Happy Weekend!

Looking for royalty cheques

Staying in a Five Star Cave

The Wadi Rum Resort in Jordan has to be seen to be believed. What an eco lodge!

Romance Round the Net

Kylie Griffin is a very generous author who shares great links on the Romance Writers of Australia discussion groups. Just recently she shared the Ruby Slippered Sisterhood's Liz Bemis's advice on authors' websites.

Media Bistro explains a Twitter conundrum, why the people you've followed haven't followed you back.

Keira at Love Romance Passion has a great list (actually it's a poll) on hero titles -- laird or sheikh? tycoon, perhaps? all alphas

And Evil Wylie balances that list with the job titles no romance hero admits to.

David Niall Wilson at Storytellers Unplugged makes an important point about saving our words. Yes, I know (hope) you have back ups of what you're working on. But can you get hold of your earliest work? Do you have those files stashed somewhere accessible?

Patricia Wrede on fiction as a model of the real world -- and what have you left out?

No, It's Not Reincarnation

Ever walked through a building or garden or looked a magpie in the eye and felt as if you've encountered a human presence?

Well, probably not with magpies -- vicious, swooping monsters.

I was thinking of heaven ... as you do when the brain is too tired to fall asleep (ah insomnia, source of so much weirdness) ... and I thought "What if heaven includes experience passes?" So, like a travel pass, you can choose to experience earthly phenomena from the perspective of a rock or a tulip or even a blue whale. You don't become any of them, but you pass through them.

Yup, I probably should try counting sheep instead *grin*

Writing Update

Fortified with chocolate, I tackled promo for the May 23 release of Three Wishes. I love visiting people and chatting about interesting topics. It never fails to amaze me, the weird stuff people know. However, it is work preparing those posts. Writing them is the fun part. Getting the links to work and the photos to post and every other fiddly detail in place -- that's where my non-techie mind explodes. Still, as I said, I had chocolate and that soothed me when Blogger did something weird (let's not even mention Wordpress *shudder*).

I'm crawling to a definition of the writer/author divide that says "writers write, but authors write and do promo". And I'm tempted to think that's true even of unpublished authors. But (you object) what sort of promo is required if you don't have a book/story/poem in print? Well, being part of the writing/publishing community, membership of author groups, Twitter and Facebook participation, a blog, even a website. Promo is about telling anyone who is interested (and even those who aren't) that you're serious about your writing. If you take it seriously, so do other people.

My Family & Other Animals by Gerald Durrell

My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell has long been one of my favourite books. Durrell recalls the sun-drenched, leisurely life of Corfu before the Second World War where his expat British family has time and space each to pursue their own obsessions. He enjoyed the sort of childhood dreams are made of.

It is a comfort read book, a celebration of eccentricity and a reminder that the small pleasures of life are the ones that remain with us in memory and, perhaps, shape our lives.