Anny Cook's Blog, page 61

Smile!

There are few things I hate more than being the subject of a photographer...especially the amateur family photographers. If there's a way to make me appear more obese, tired, drunk, stupid, insane, or OLD, the family photographer will succeed. They cheerfully lop off the top of my head, focus in on my belly and boobs, give me red devil eyes, catch me yawning, or with my eyes half closed.

Here's what I want to say to all amateur photographers--especially the family ones. Choose your shots. Really look at the composition of your photo. And try to--please try to--make it a photo the subject will enjoy looking at over and over.

Smiles? No, you don't need a smile. Grin? Nope. Too darn scary. Try to remember the individual(s) are people with their own set of insecurities. Choose the most flattering shot you can. And I repeat!!! Smiles are not necessary. Sometimes the more beautiful shot shows an entirely different expression. What are you trying to capture? Love? Wisdom? Joy? Comradery?

I've looked at photos recently from several romance writers conferences. Inevitably, there are groups of people, dressed in odd outfits, some obviously inebriated, smiling at the camera. I can tell you what the intelligent ones are thinking.

"I sure hope this pic doesn't show up on Facebook. Or Twitter. Pinterest. My publisher's website..." If you want to really represent your publisher, your fellow writers, your fans in the best way possible, then pick and choose your shots. And don't post pictures that show them at less than their best.

Have you ever spent some time looking at old photos? I mean the really old ones? Have you ever noticed how the people are striving to look their best? Photography was important. It was a way to capture their image for future posterity. I think we've forgotten that with the ease of capturing images now.

anny

I wonder...

I'm not a political analyst or a conspiracy theorist. I suppose you could best call me an observist. I read a lot. When things capture my attention I track down multiple sources on the same subject until I'm a) satisfied or b) convinced there's no way to access the truth.

I have to wonder about some things, especially as we race up to the election of 2012. For instance, who do you suppose is really controlling the media in this country? I understand all about competition and advertising paying for television coverage. Dollars. Dollars run the system. But what's the point??? Are they competing to see who can provide the dumbest, most apathetic, least concise coverage? Is that it? If so, then I, for one would be happy to flip a coin and declare a winner so we could go back to some grown up news. Of course, the drug companies would need to rack up the production of Xanax to calm down all the people who finally wake up.

A friend and I were discussing JFK. Now there's a real conspiracy moment. Right? But you know? I have to wonder how such a large, rich, influential family could possibly have such bad luck. Really. Assassinations, plane crashes, car crashes, assorted other sad deaths. Makes you wonder at the timing of some of those events...

Or the Chick-Fil-A circus. I found it fascinating that no one looked around to see who benefited from the tempest in the chicken bucket. Really? The CEO didn't make any NEW moves. So why was it suddenly an issue? Who needed to redirect the citizen's attention away from a hot topic? And was the sacrifice of the Chick-Fil-A hole card effective? Was it worth it? Because once you use that card, you can't use it again...

I wonder how many citizens really understand that our Congress runs the country--not the President. There's a lot of yelling and screaming about what the President is doing but, hello! I don't see any impeachment proceedings going on. They do have that power if what he's doing is illegal. So...that must mean it's all just hunky-dory with them. And that provides additional food for thought then. If it's all right with them, all the hollering is just so much smoke and mirrors. Yeah...it's a play generated for the citizen's benefit.

And that leads me to another thing I wonder about. How is it that no matter who wins, their agenda/plan sort of disappears when they get in the White House? I've been watching Presidents come and Presidents go for over fifty years. One thing I've noticed. No significant changes are generated without the stamp of approval of the Congress. None. Everything just rolls along down the same path it was on with the previous fellow. I wonder if the candidates really understand they're mostly figureheads?

In the meantime, we don't hear much about the wiley-coyote Congressmen/women and what their up to. I bet 90% of the citizenry can not name their representatives or senators. And I bet they don't have a clue about their voting record. I further believe that many have no clue about where their congressman stands on any of the issues they (the citizens) hold important.

How many days per year does your congressman work? Find out. You might be surprised. Furthermore, if you look at the voting records you might be shocked at how often the votes have nothing to do with party lines. Ooops! We're not supposed to have access to that info. More smoke and mirrors. Could it be we really don't have a two party system?

anny

Romance

I finished my latest book. Spear of Retribution. In a discussion with a friend (about this book), the subject of romance was raised. It might not be as romantic as my other books.

"It has sex..."

"Romantic conflict was solved kinda early..."

"It has sex..."

But I pondered on the conundrum of sex vs. romance. What defines romance? It depends on our viewpoint, I believe. In our current culture we expect extravagant gestures. Jewelry, flowers, fancy dinners.

My hero/heroine are in a survival situation. A long-term survival situation facing a series of unexpected dangers. And the story is circa 1820s in the wilderness. Different expectations.

What constitutes romance in those circumstances?

A fish for dinner. A hot pool for a bath. Guarding each others backs. Caring for each other when there are injuries. Sharing the last of the food. Taking time to explore the many avenues to sensual fulfillment. Arranging a shelter in the woods.

What constitutes romance at my house?

Fixing dinner for me. Arranging some time in a hot tub. Rubbing my back--or his--when it's sore. Sharing the last brownie. Taking time to explore the many avenues to sensual fulfillment. Paying the rent, the electric bill, the phone bill...

Hmmmm. Maybe everyday romance isn't so different from era to era. It could be that only our expections have changed. The thing is..."I love you," is still powerful. "I need you."

"I want you."

"You're my heart and soul."

"I caught a fish for dinner."

Yeah. That could do it.

anny 

Ghost Writer

Sometimes, when authors are in the beginning of their careers, they move away from their initial choices in stories because--let's face it--we want to capture the reader's dollars. After a while, we discover we're dissatisfied with our choices.

Maybe...we even discover we have more compelling stories to tell. I believe this is the case with the Ghost Writer serial tale by Amarinda Jones. If you would like to read something different, something thought-provoking and unusual, then I urge you to check out Ghost Writer~~Prelude.

Megan and Woodrow's story will capture your heart, ensnaring you with the hurdles they face before they can reach their happily ever after. Want to know more? Click on the cover for the link!

anny

Chat, chat, chat...

 What's a chat? I suppose there are lots of different definitions, depending on the host/hostess. In my case, I post excerpts from my current/backlist. I "talk" to readers and authors who show up for the chat.
And I encourage published authors to share an excerpt--or two with the rest of us. I believe in "paying it forward" when promoting other authors. 
Is publishing a cut-throat business? It can be--if we permit that. Or we can humanize the business by supporting our fellow authors. So if you are a published member of the Love Romances Cafe Yahoo loop--or if you sign up by this afternoon--you're more than welcome to come "chat" with us and showcase an excerpt of your work.
I'll be sharing some excerpts from Shadows on Stone. And maybe a sneak peek or two...
anny

Euphemism Quandary

Part of writing historical erotic romance is using the correct euphemisms for the private parts. For some strange reason, publishers frown on the use of penis and vagina, even though those would certainly be correct. When you ask why, they mumble something about those terms not being sexy or romantic.

Mumble, mumble, mumble...

Men seem to stick to the big three--cock, dick, and prick. All are old names that evolved from the Medieval era. They're serviceable terms, easy to remember, and can be employed in a variety of ways to insult their fellow man.

My story is set in 1820 (or thereabouts). The approved euphemism for most erotic romances--pussy--wasn't in use until 1880. Extensive research was required for an alternate. Setting aside the "C" word--a word that was considered offensive and vulgar even in the Medieval era--we're left with a mish-mash of oddities.

Cunny/coney, cunnicle, bessy, mossy, teazy, fluffy, nonsuch, tuzzy-muzzy, quim, chink, and notch. I confess, I'm left with an impossible vision in my head of some dignified woman referring to her genitalia using any of these terms. These were the least offensive I found for the time period.

The time period my story is set in was more frank about sexual expectations than fifty or sixty years later. Procreation was an important part of marriage and a couple who did not produce children were considered failures. There is a tendency for modern readers to impose current cultural values on earlier eras. While a certain modesty was expected during the day--and really, who wants to do house work with the girls hanging out for all to see--evening dress at the time would make some of us blush now.

Country girls knew very well what was expected of them. They had clear notions about the birds and bees. So what words do my hero/heroine use?

I'm still mulling the euphemisms. Pondering the possibilities. What's your vote?

anny

Balance

One of the most frequent interview questions for authors is, "How do you balance writing with work/family?"

Balance is the key, isn't it? If you work outside the home, then the time spent in travel and work is pretty much set. Deduct that from the total number of hours per day--twenty-four. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know we're all working on making the day longer, but it doesn't work that way.

Then deduct eight hours for sleep. What? You say you don't sleep eight hours? Zzzzzzt! You lose the balancing act. Lack of enough sleep shortens your life span and is an underlying cause for high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, stress, and in women also contributes to thyroid issues. I'm a poster child for this one contributing factor for poor health. In my forties I bet I didn't sleep more than four hours a night--for years--and it's caught up with me.

All right. For the hours left over after work and sleep, consider the following factors. Do you have a spouse/significant other? Do you have children at home? Are you caring for an elder? For each of the above, how many minutes do you spend in focused individual interaction (no, supervising homework while you're cooking doesn't count. Neither does talking while you're watching television, playing computer games, or texting your mother.)

Did you just estimate that? Zzzzzt! That's approximately as accurate as estimating the number of calories in a hot fudge sundae. Keep a written log. For a couple days.

Finally, how many minutes do you spend on the computer (other than actual writing), phone, television, or any other electronic device? Write it down. Oh, yeah...all those gurus urging you to spend hours on social media to promote your books? They're talking through their hats. The number one way to sell books is to expand your backlist.

Some other things to consider...how many books do you read per week?

How many minutes per day do you spend on some form of exercise/walking/swimming/etc.? Walking to the refrigerator does not count.

Now answer this question honestly. When was the last time you took time to pray/think/meditate with no distractions?

Add up all your minutes. Analyze how you spend your time. Make a conscious decision about how you might want--or need--to change. You can't successfully balance life until you know exactly what you're juggling. What are your true priorities?

Take time to observe, think and plan rather than rush into changes. Balance? It's something different for every individual and family. What's yours?

College...

Good morning! August 1st already with the year zooming by. That doesn't seem right. Coffee's ready. Birds are singing outside on the balcony. Before we know it, winter will be here and we'll be complaining about cold and snow and whining about Christmas shopping.

For now, we have temps in the seventies with a rainy day start. Mostly people with kids at home are starting to worry about back-to-school stuff. There are lots of sales on for cheap dorm outfitting for the college crowd.

I married instead of going to college so I never did the dorm thing. I have to wonder how practical most of this stuff is in reality. When I went to college I stuffed it in between work and family, studying on the fly, in the car or on work breaks.

I wonder what percentage of college students benefit in real terms by going to college--I'm talking about the ones that attend right out of high school--the ones who have no real world experience. Do you suppose as a culture we'd be better off if everyone was required to do two years of work experience between high school and college? Would students change their planned majors?

Y'all have a great day! I'm off to write...

Anny Who?

An interesting thing came out of yesterday's post. A fellow writer asked me if I'd ever considered using a different penname. As she pointed out, Anny Cook is sort of an old-fashioned name and doesn't really conjure up visions of erotic romance.

I don't reject this notion out of hand. It's possible my penname is a handicap. Possible. But I have author friends who have old-fashioned names (whether their own or a penname) and their books sell like hotcakes. 

I also have a couple friends who believe certain of my books should have been published under an entirely different penname as they're not very erotic, with most of the story focusing on the plot. It's also possible they are correct in their assessments.

There are difficulties inherent in multiple pennames. One is recognition. What little bit of recognition I've won under the penname Anny Cook has been hard fought. I quail at the thought of starting over with a new unknown name. At this point it would be difficult-to-impossible to split my published books and establish not one, but two new pennames: one for the erotic romance stories (since Anny Cook is not sexy enough) and another for the unsexy romance stories (since Anny Cook already has a reputation for writing sexy books).

I suppose I could write the sexy stuff as Blazing Anny Cook and the tamer stuff as Nanny Anny Cook. That way I could retain the name recognition while sending a strong message about the content. Eventually, I would no doubt just be referred to as Blazing or Nanny. But I could bear up under the weight. I'm a strong woman. Never mind the strong part.

I. Am. Woman!

I have this vision sometime in the next century of being rediscovered in an obscure dusty digital file. Some academic has done a thesis on the Two Faces of Anny Cook--Blazing vs. Nanny--Who is the real Anny Cook?

What do y'all think? Do sales depend on the author's name? Can a clever penname make a bestseller? And is a penname reboot worth the recognition loss?

Blazing Nanny Anny Cook...

Income and Outgo

 This is the time of the month when "royalty" payments come in--if you have any. I have several different publishers. The payments were $3.99, $6.82, and $2.37. 
Balance that against my dental bill from today. $1182. That's my share after insurance. And I'm blessed to have insurance because the house hunk is retired. 

Originally, I wrote a long whiny blog about money and expenses. And then when it was all out of my system, so to speak, I deleted it.

A lot of people don't have money. Most people don't have money. People the world over have no shelter, no food, no basic necessities. We look at the few haves and wonder why we're the have nots. Contrary to what some choose to believe, it's not because people refuse to work. It's because there aren't any jobs. Guess what?

With no job, there's no income. And with no income, with the best of good will, there's no outgo. And the spiral continues. Or maybe it's a ripple. Whatever it is, it touches people all around us.

So. I live in a country where I have access to dental care. They're willing to take payments. What more can one ask? When I get up in the morning, I'm thankful for all I have--even on the days when I almost forget how blessed I am. It could be worse. It has been worse in the past. For now, I'm good.

anny