Elizabeth Seckman on Romance

Today Elizabeth Seckman is joining us as part of her Healing Summer Blog Tour. Check out her blog, she's always a blast! You can also find her on Facebook.

Hey Rachel! I figured since I lost your first email…and um, the second…and then your prompt as well…I figured fate was pushing me into a direction.

I mean I write romance and you write romance…congrats on signing that contract for the story btw...so I figured I would steal from my blog page and answer the question:

Why romance?

Is it just that I’m into writing kissy scenes and mush and stuff?

Not especially. I honestly find them very difficult to write.

That said, then WHY?

Because…honestly… I'm a true believer.

Love does conquer all. Find love and the world rotates a little smoother.

Now, I don't believe in that 'I can't live without you' crap. Honey, that's co-dependence hidden by head spins.

True love is sticking together through thick and thin, better or worse, good times and bad...it's holding on when the earth seems to be sliding out from under you.

True love empowers. It makes you stronger- able to endure, safe to grow, and allows you to live honestly.

I expect my true love to walk through the fires of hell for a glass of ice water just because I’m thirsty. But also know that I love him enough to never ask.

Love conquers all...love is all.

It’s one of the most important parts of finding happily ever after. And that's the sort of stories I write.

 

Elizabeth, I'm glad you lost my prompt, because I love this! A woman doesn't need a man in her life (and vice versa) but the right one sure makes things a hell of a lot better. Thanks for stopping by!

 

Elizabeth's book, Healing Summer, is available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Maybe Love, Not Time, Heals All Wounds

Ditched at the altar…biopsied for cancer…Mollie Hinkle is having a bona fide bitch of a summer. When life sucks so hard it takes your breath away, what's a girl to do? Pack a bag, grab a few friends, and leave the past and the worry in the rear view mirror. What wounds can’t be healed by a drive across the Heartland, where quarter flips at cross roads determine the route and the future? All roads lead to Craig, the second son and bad boy of the haughty Coulter line. Has fate brought her to the minuscule Montana town to find happily ever after or will it just break her heart?

“Healing Summer” is the second book in the Coulter Men Series.

Secondary Characters

I have some exciting news! My YA contemporary romance novella, Secondary Characters will be published by Month9Books' romance imprint, Swoon Romance this year. You can check it out on their website here.

I originally pitched my novella to Swoon Romance on Brenda Drake's blog (which, by the way, is awesome, if you don't already follow her you really should!) but received a 'no.' They were kind enough to critique the pitch and let me know what was missing.

I rewrote the pitch, then debated for a while on whether or not to pitch them again on their Facebook page. I finally decided, 'why not?' I pitched it again and this time they requested the full. That lead to a revise and resubmit, and eventually a deal.

So, the moral here is don't give up! :)

Oh, and I reached 200 followers! Yay. :) I may have to think up a give away. . .

Did everyone have a fun weekend?

Little White Lies

Today we have the wonderful, and always entertaining, Johanna Garth joining us. If you don't follow her blog, you should, she's brilliant and funny and my 'mom' hero, (not to mention one hell of a writer.)


Thanks so much to Rachel for hosting me here at Writing on the Wall. Rachel noticed my newest book in the Persephone Campbell Series, Losing Hope, released during those crazy pre-Christmas days and was kind enough to invite me to her blog as a guest.

 






My publisher is offering free downloads of Losing Beauty today on Amazon so if this blog post sparks your interest you can make a quick detour and download the first book in the series today for free.

 







Over the weekend a conversation with a friend sparked the perfect Losing Hope meets blog post kind of topic.

 

We were talking about her new gym. "The instructor of this class I'm taking makes us lie down on exercise balls. Then we have to spell out our names with the ball while balancing on top of it."

 

"You're lucky your name's only six letters," I said.

 

"That's the thing! When he asked me what my name was I said it was Ann without the E. It was a 50% reduction in stomach ball spelling time. I lied so automatically it was like a protective instinct, but now he calls me Ann."

 

Everyone knows there is a time and place for little white lies. The two-sizes too big sweater with the odd purpley-pink Christmas tree your great-aunt picked out JUST for you. You love it!! Of course you do.

 

The trick with white lies is knowing where to draw the line.

 

Is it okay to lie to your fitness instructor? What about to those chatty sales assistants who want to write your name on the dressing room door while you try on clothes? When is it a white lie as opposed to a no-holds-barred lie?

 

Moral line-drawing fascinates me. The characters in the Persephone Campbell series spend a lot of time crossing back and forth between the lines we draw to delineate acceptable moral behavior.They lie, manipulate and scheme. Sometimes there are consequences for their actions. And sometimes, like life, they get away with murder. Literally.

 

Persephone, the main character in the series, has spent two books searching, not just for her history and her place in the world, but for a way to negotiate the moral ambiguity regularly presented by the other characters in the book. Her world is a place where evildoers have redeeming characteristics and, even the people she trusts most, are capable of crossing into shady moral territory.

 

By the way, if you're searching for me in the dressing room, you'll find me behind the door marked Desdemona or Sabrina or, from time-to-time, even Agnes.

 

What lines do you cross and how do you know when you've gone too far?

Interview with Becca Ann

The lovely Becca Ann is here today answering questions about her new book, Reasons I Fell for the Funny Fat Friend. (Which sounds absolutely wonderful!)

It's stupid to fall for your brother's ex. It's even worse to enlist another's help to win the ex over. But Brody is desperate and Hayley, his partner in American Sign Language, is more than willing to lend him a few tips. She’s the school’s ‘matchmaker’, and with her bizarre and positive personality, Brody finds her easy to talk too, even about the most awkward situations. Hayley’s tips seem to be working, but as Brody learns more about his matchmaker, he starts finding reasons to spend time with her, and not the girl he thought he was in love with.

But Hayley isn’t ready to fall for anyone. Labeled the “Funny Fat Friend” within her group, her self image makes it impossible for Brody to share his feelings without Hayley shrugging it off as a joke.

Convincing her Brody can, and did, fall for the “Funny Fat Friend” turns out to be a lot harder than simply falling in love.

 Doesn't that sound good?! And here's a chance to win a copy! How awesome is that? a Rafflecopter giveaway 

And now on to the interview:

I love the title for this book! It's so descriptive you almost don't even need the blurb to know you want to read it! Where did this idea spark from?

I’m assuming you mean the idea for the title? That’s a story itself, lol. First it was titled 30 Reasons Why, but then I went YIKES! Because you may have heard of a little book called 13 Reasons Why by Jay Asher, and that’s a much different book than what I wrote. So had to chuck that idea. Then I thought, Okay… what is the story about? Falling for a chubby girl. So it became Falling for the Funny Fat Friend. But then I was told by my critique partners that my chapters wouldn’t make sense because my chapter titles are Reason 1: blah blah blah. So… (You still with me? ;)) even though it’s quite a mouthful of a title, I ended with Reasons I Fell for the Funny Fat Friend. And figured if people asked me what my book was about, all I had to say was my title, lol.

You told me you decided to self-publish this one because you were just so excited to get it out to the world. What is it about this book that has you so excited?

Honestly, it was other people’s excitement that drove my own. I was ready to shelve it, and when I said that I basically got a fiery death wrath from the people who’d read it. (My sister and Mommy being at the head of this mob ;)) I had no idea that they had felt this way about this book. I’d written it for fun, and to try my hand at boy POV. But when I went back to reread it, I realized how right they were, that some people could use a story like this, and I decided to take the plunge into self publishing.

Reasons is told from a boy's POV, what made you want to take on the inner workings of a teenage boy's mind? Was it difficult?

I think I was a wee bit crazy when I decided to write a boy POV. Up until this point, I was very comfortable with female POV’s, but this book HAD to be told by Brody. It was challenging, yes, but now I’ve written 6 more boy POV’s, and it’s just like writing a new character. It’s not about making the voice ‘boy’, it’s about making the voice believable and true to their character, no matter what gender they are.

Tell us one thing you love about your MC. One thing you love about his love interest?

I love Brody’s way of speaking. It was fun to write in his ‘accent’. Though, it took me a while to stop talking and writing in that accent after I’d finished the book, lol.

And Hayley… gosh, I love almost everything about her, if I’m allowed to say that. But I love that despite her insecurities, she’s a very positive person.

Is there anything else you want to share with us about Reasons?

Just hope that anyone who reads it and likes it, has a laugh, has a cry, and feels better about who they are afterward ;)

Thanks Rachel for having me over!!!!!


Thanks for stopping by, Becca Ann! This book sounds great and I can't wait to get my hands on my copy. (I got an email that it shipped today! Yay!)

You can also find Reasons I Fell for the Funny Fat Friend here for your Kindle, here for your Nook or in paperback.

Happy Release Day Becca Ann!

Reasons I Fell for the Funny Fat Friend is released today! I already bought my copy and I can't wait to read it! Get yours here. Stay tuned for an interview later this week with Becca Ann.

 

It's stupid to fall for your brother's ex. It's even worse to enlist another's help to win the ex over. But Brody is desperate and Hayley, his partner in American Sign Language, is more than willing to lend him a few tips. She’s the school’s ‘matchmaker’, and with her bizarre and positive personality, Brody finds her easy to talk too, even about the most awkward situations. Hayley’s tips seem to be working, but as Brody learns more about his matchmaker, he starts finding reasons to spend time with her, and not the girl he thought he was in love with. But Hayley isn’t ready to fall for anyone. Labeled the “Funny Fat Friend” within her group, her self image makes it impossible for Brody to share his feelings without Hayley shrugging it off as a joke. Convincing her Brody can, and did, fall for the “Funny Fat Friend” turns out to be a lot harder than simply falling in love.

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Shiny New Books

I was lucky enough to get a bunch of books (and gift certificates for books) for Christmas this year. I thought I'd brag about my haul. :)



I've already finished this one (and bought a big cork board!) It was very good and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a book about writing. Yes, it is about screenwriting, but most of it still applies to novel writing. Thanks for suggesting this one Alex!











I'm in the middle of this one and it's great, too. :) Although, you probably already know that because I seem to be the only writer in existence who hasn't already read it! :)









This one is next on my list (I may start reading it before I finish On Writing, and trade off between the two.) I loved Anna Dressed in Blood and had no idea when I was reading it that there was a sequel. When I reached the end and there was wiggle room for another one I immediately got online to check it out!









I don't know a lot about this one, other than that it sounds (and looks) great. I've read some good reviews, so I'm looking forward to it.












Loved the first book in this series, too, and I can't wait to start this one and find out what happens next!

 

Honestly, I can't believe it's taken me this long to get this one. I feel all behind.

 

We also got a bunch of new picture books and chapter books (Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs by Mo Willems is, of course, awesome) but since those are supposed to be for the kids, not me, I'll leave them off this list.

 

How about you? Get any fun books for Christmas? What are you looking forward to reading in 2013?

The First IWSG Meeting of the New Year :)

It's the first Wednesday of the month, which means it's time for the Insecure Writer's Support Group, created by the ever amazing Alex J. Cavanaugh. (Click the link to find the rest of the blogs on the list.) But actually, I'm feeling pretty darn good about life right now.

Yesterday was my birthday. In the aftenoon the kids and I baked a cake, rainbow chip. :) I got to go to the bookstore and get some new books (to add to the awesome pile of books I got for Christmas) and go out to dinner with my husband. All in all, a pretty great day.

And as far as writing goes, I have some good news to share on that front soon.

I've heard many times that if you keep reading, learning, working, writing, eventually thing will start to move forward with your writing career. It may take a LONG time, but it will happen.

We've all heard it, right? Of course, if you're anything like me, there's always that voice in the back of your head saying "Yeah, okay. But aren't there thousands of people who try and try and never ever get anything published? Haven't we all heard of those people, too?"

Yes, but I think I may have gotten a clue into what the difference is.

If you write all your life, but stay in a vacuum, it may never happen for you. Without other people to help support you and critique you, you may never get better.

Of course, if you're reading this, then that's not you. :) You are out here in the blogosphere, connecting with other writers, which is a really wonderful thing.

Since I started this blog a little over a year ago I've met so many wonderful writers. I've gained critique partners, I've had things critiqued on people's blogs, and I've learned a lot just from reading other people's blogs and other people's critiques on blogs.

That's why I've been improving. That's why I'm feeling pretty darn good about life and how things are going.

So, yeah. If you keep reading, keep learning, keep working, keep writing, it really can happen.

Happy Insecure Writer's Support Group day everyone!