Updates

Great Romantic Couples – Nick and Nora Charles

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When you think of romantic couples, you probably think of Elizabeth and Darcy or Cleopatra and Anthony. I agree that they are romantic couples, but along with the romantic words — “You pierce my soul,” Capt. Wentworth in Jane Austen’s Persuasion — is the everyday banter that comes between couples once they start their ‘happily ever after’. That’s what I love about Nick and Nora Charles. They come from opposite worlds and yet click so well together. I wonder what their courtship was like. Did they struggle like a typical romance couple…she the rich heiress and he the blue-collar gumshoe who come from different backgrounds? Or was it chemistry when they met and neither cared about the differences? I like to think it was the latter. I can’t imagine Nick worrying too much about what Nora’s family would think of him.

I love how Nora can keep up with Nick on the quips and while they tease each other, you can tell they love and respect each other. And then there is the humor. I like angst as much as the next reader, but I love quirky characters, funny situations, and engaging banter.

If you’re not familiar with Nick and Nora, you can read The Thin Manby Dashiell Hammett, but theThe Thin Man movies are my favorite starring William Powell and Myrna Loy.

Rockstar Writers

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I recently discovered the TV show Castle. It has all the elements I love; attraction between characters, mystery and in this case, it involves a writer. I haven’t caught up on all episodes, but TNT was showing a few last night. In one of the episodes, Castle’s new series of books featuring Nikki Heat (based on Beckett the detective he follows around), is being made into a movie. The actress hired to play Nikki joins the group to follow Beckett around as part of her researching of the role. The actress is thrilled to meet Beckett, but barely acknowledges Castle. He introduces himself again, telling her wrote Heat Wave, she’s still not impressed. “I’m your creator,” he mutters in the endearing way Castle pouts.

What’s interesting about this show is that in many ways Castle is the rockstar of mystery writers. He’s rich, famous and handsome. But if you think about it, in real life there aren’t many celebrity writers…at least writers that have the same problems that television and movie celebrities have. In many cases, people may not even recognize their favorite authors if they passed them on the street. And very few authors are invited on television unless they are super-rockstars. I recently saw E.L. James on Katie. J.k. Rowling was on the Daily Show. I’ve seen Stephanie Meyer on two talk shows. But I’ve never seen Grisham, Nora Roberts or even Susanne Collins on TV, except for clips from local news stations posted on YouTube.

I guess because writers aren’t seen very much, the best they can hope for is getting on the bestsellers list. If they’re lucky, their books will become a phenomena and garner a movie deal and then maybe they’ll be a celebrity. Of course, authors never go into writing to become a celebrity. But it’s got to be a happy bonus when the public and media create buzz that propels a book’s success.

Old Flames Never Die, A Sneak Peek

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UPDATE – The sneak peek to Old Flames Never Die was removed to meet TOS of Amazon’s KDP Select program. Old Flames Never Die is now available for purchase for $2.99 at Amazon.

Last week I sent the complete manuscript of Old Flames Never Die to my editor, which means it will be ready for publishing very soon. For those of you who’d like a little sneak peek of what’s to come in book 2 of the Valentine Mysteries, I’ve got a treat for you! You can read the first few chapters here: Old Flames Never Die Sneak Peek

I’m still working on the blurb, but so far I have:

Tess Madison is jobless, homeless and hopelessly in love with the sexy, blue-green eyed Jack Valentine. But their new love is put to the test when the husband of an old flame of Jack’s is murdered. Jack thinks she innocent and vows to help her. Tess isn’t so sure and with the help of her friend and Jack’s nemesis Det. Daniel Showalter, she joins the investigation. Now Tess is pitted against Jack and as they each seek answers, not only do they put their love at risk, but their lives as well.

I’ve got a mock up of the cover as well. It still needs work and I haven’t bought the art yet, but here’s a peek at what’s created so far.

By the way, Deadly Valentine, book one in the Valentine Mysteries is now available for Nook, other ereader formats, and in print.

If you have any feedback, please let me know. You can comment below or contact me here.

Taking a Risk and Stepping Into the Unknown

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About two weeks ago, I came a across a Tweet that said Harlequin was having a pitch challenge for its Blaze line. If you don’t know Harlequin, it’s a company that publishes category romance books every month. One of its lines is Blaze, which according to Harlequin is its sexiest line. I have a draft of a romance that I thought I might pitch to Harlequin (at the time I was thinking of its Desire line…one hot notch down from Blaze), but Harlequin submission rules still require snail mail and I hadn’t gotten myself organized to put together a complete package with SASE. But the Blaze Pitch Challenge said to email a one-page synopsis and first five pages, so I thought, why not. Actually, my thinking process was something like:

“I should do that”
“But my manuscript is only a rough draft. Maybe it’s not ready to pitch”
“What the heck, you can’t win if you don’t try”
“Ugh, I have to write a synopsis, which are 100 times harder than writing a novel”
“It’s just one page. Give it a go.”

Whew. So on the last day for submissions, I sent a one-page synopsis and first five pages of “Southern Comfort”, a straight forward romance about a sassy, feisty southern gal and brooding, but hot New York guy.

I’ve never done anything like this before, and while I’ve read many Harlequin books, I don’t know much about its editors or writers. And yet, I felt pretty good about what I submitted. Perhaps it was the universe rewarding me for taking a risk, because on Friday afternoon I got an email saying my submission was one of five selected to participate in the pitch. Whoop!

But then I thought, “I don’t know how to pitch through conversation.” The Harlequin Pitch Challenge uses online chat to converse with editors. I’m nervous mostly because I don’t know what to expect? What questions will be asked? How much of the book actually needs to be done? (Only about 1/3 of it I’d feel comfortable letting someone else read. The rest is just too rough and some scenes aren’t written yet). What will the editor want to know about the characters and plot. Will I be able to convey plot succinctly? How are pen names managed (I submitted using my real name, but let the reviewers know that I used a pen name). The email I received on Friday indicated that I’d get further details this week and I hope that means I’ll be able to prepare.

So now I’m editing two books, “Old Flames Never Die”, book two in the Valentine series, and “Southern Comfort” so I have something to send should the editor ask for it on Wednesday. And because it’s the Blaze line, I have to up the hot factor, which is harder than you might think. But I’m up for the challenge.

I feel a little stressed out with so much going on, but then I think, “Hey, this must be what it’s like to be a real writer!”