Anna Alexander's Blog, page 4

Happy Anniversary Long and Short Reviews!

To celebrate their 6th anniversary, Long and Short Reviews is hosting a bash during the week of August 26-30. Learn about some of your favorite authors, including yours truly, by visiting http://www.longandshortreviews.com/category/guest-blogs/ and enter to win one of four $100 Amazon gift cards as well as other author and publisher swag.

 

 

Under Master’s Control by Anna Alexander

Sometimes plot bunnies become plot monsters that don’t leave you alone. This story was inspired by recent events. Enjoy

“Touch me,” he said in a hard tone that made her thighs clench. “Touch me!”

Her hand trembled as she reached out. Oh, he was so smooth under her fingertips. The flat planes and tiny ridges along his bare middle made her knees buckle and her breasts grow heavy, desperate to feel the delicate scrape of new lace against her nipples.

As the possibilities of the night to come filled her with delicious anticipation, so too did the twinge of dread at the thought of the inevitable morning after. Master was an expert at making her feel cherished and desirable, cooing compliments in her ear as she strutted around in a new pair of high heels or while lacing up a handcrafted bustier. He knew her weaknesses well and delighted on taking her from aroused to begging for satisfaction with a few well-chosen words. But then he’d leave her on her own with nothing but the cold, lifeless, once-pretty gifts and a sense of shame at what she allowed to happen.

“No, no, no, my sweet,” he murmured as if he sensed her faltering enthusiasm. “You belong to me now and I want my girl to look pretty. Chin up. Take this and go make me proud.”

She straightened her spine and walked with sure steps across the room with a midnight-blue silk dress balanced reverently her hands. He loved the way the neckline highlighted her creamy cleavage and how the fabric cupped her hips. Her master did have any eye for the finer things.

Then she appeared.

Damn. Why was it always with the threesomes? What was this one named? Bambi? Cammy? Oh, Tawny. That was it. What the hell kind of a name was that?

Cool, collected and dressed to the nines in a fitted jacket and slim skirt, the woman looked bored out of her mind, but the act was all a joke. The blonde was greedy and always turned on the charm when master appeared. With a coy smile and a bat of her fake lashes, Tawny held out her hand.

Blood rushed in her ears and her heart beat an erratic rhythm as she hugged her master tight.

“Come now, darling. You know the rules. You have to share,” Master reminded her with a bite of reprimand coloring his words.

No. She didn’t want to. This bitch didn’t know her master like she did. Didn’t care about the turmoil her presence caused in their relationship. Even now Tawny’s foot tapped with impatience as she waited to get her fill.

This did not make Master happy.

“Do as she says. Now!”  The barked command made her jump like a strike of the lash across her back.

A whimper escaped her lips as she thrust out her hand, wincing as the girl yanked the plastic from her firm grip. The finesse with which she slid the card through the machine spoke of her years of experience as did the little flourish at the end as she presented the receipt.

“Have a nice day,” Tawny said, then her face resumed the impersonal mask from earlier. Now that her need was met, politeness was no longer necessary.

She slid the MasterCard into the side pocket of her purse, the tightness in her lungs easing now that he was back in her possession where he belonged.

“What do you say now, love?” he purred.

With a soft sigh she smiled. “Thank you.”

*And by recent events I meant back to school shopping. Duh.

 

Iron Man 3- Great but Missing Something

With the release of Man of Steele quickly approaching, I realized I never posted my thought on Iron Man 3. I know you were all dying to know my opinion, weren’t cha? Weren’t cha?

Okay, to keep it simple, Iron Man 3 was a good movie. Action packed, interesting story arc for the main character, Robert Downey Junior at his best. So yes, it was a good movie. In my mind it was a good as the first, but I wouldn’t say it was any better, just different. Tony spent way more time out of the suit than in, which forced him to make choices he might have not otherwise. And it was violent. Seriously, explosions and death galore. My eight-year-old did not want to go, and I’m glad I didn’t make her.

But there was one element that, to this day, irks the bageebees out of me.

Where the hell were the Avengers?

Tony’s house is blown up on live television. Are you trying to tell me no one, NO ONE, from SHEILD or the Avengers contacted Tony in any way? I understand that the writers wanted to get Tony out and to be able to function on his own, but come on, I’d bet even Steve Rogers would have learned how to use a cellphone and tried to call him.  The scene would not have had to been long and could have gone like this:

Steve: Tony, I just saw what happened. Are you in need of assistance? I know we don’t always see eye to eye, but how can I be of service?

Tony: Thanks, Cap. Appreciate it. But this is my fight. I have to take care of things on my own. Kiss Fury for me and tell him I have everything under control.

Steve: Are you sure, Tony? You don’t have to be a hero.

Tony: Funny, that’s not what the papers say. Anyway, I got this.

Steve: You’re a crazy son of a gun.

Tony: Love you too.

Really, there didn’t have to be much. But there should have been some contact, any contact, from one of the other Avengers. I do not believe they would have left him hanging. The man launched himself into an interstellar wormhole to save his planet, and no one bothered to send a text to see if he was okay? Yeah, I’m irked.

Otherwise, it was a lovely film.

 

How Do You Shop for Books? The Amazon Store

One of the things I love about being part of Romance Writers of America is having access to opportunites I would never have otherwise., like have my opinion heard by the biggest book seller in the world, Amazon. Last week I had the pleasure of joining other local authors Gina Robinson, Ashlyn Mathews, Deborah Schneider and Heather Greye to meet with representatives from Amazon and Montlake Publishing who wanted to know how they can make the shopping experience better at the Amazon store.
Since writers are readers too, we had lots of ideas to streamline and enrich the book shopping experience. Many of us spoke about how we love to browse the shelves at the bookstore and the power of a good cover. Gina spoke of how an interesting cover or off-hand recommendation may lead her to a new author or series she might not have noticed otherwise. Heather asked for a way to better filter through the millions of titles to be specific to a reader’s taste while allowing for discover-ability of a new author, or a new to the reader-author.

Amazon asked if readers would enjoy an “Editor’s Recommendation” list. I think we all agreed recommendations and reviews are very hit or miss, and are only as reliable as the person who gives them. But hand-selling is just as important of a marketing tool online as it is in the brick and mortar stores. Personalbilty and genuineness is the way to connect to a reader. If Amazon was to post employee recommendations, I would be more interested in reading what the person in accounting was reading and not someone in acquisitions, especially if they’re suggesting books from other publishers.

When Amazon pitched an idea of a subscription option for readers, which sounded a lot like the KDP Select program, my red flag alarm waved at hurricane urgency. Let’s say for $15 you can download as many books as you want in a month. If you download 50 books, how much of that $15 goes to the author? That’s right. Pretty much nothing. That same question was posed to Amazon and none of them had any clue. In fact, it appeared they hadn’t even thought about how the author would be affected. Frightening.

By the end of the night, the general consensus was we as readers want the bookstore experience with the speed and ease of the internet. It will be exciting to see if any of our suggestions are put into action. Time will tell.

No Longer an Emerald City Comic-Con Virgin

Yesterday was my first trip to the Emerald City Comic-Con and I had a blast. ECCC delivered on everything I expected. Crazy costumes, interesting speakers and acres upon acres of exhibits.

I know one of the complaints about the San Diego Con is that’s it’s more about pop culture than comic books, and that was one of my trepidations about attending EC. Star Wars, Star Trek and Dr. Who were soundly represented, but thankfully, comics remained the main focus, at least in the exhibit hall. I could have spent an entire day looking over all of the work on display, and I scored a great piece of art (thank you Greg Horn). I was hassled by a couple of vendors because I was more interested in the unlicensed art, but I’m sorry, the montage of Batman through the ages was awesome, but I don’t have a $1000 to plunk down for wall art.

One of the panels I sat in on featured several editors from publishers that specialize in science fiction/fantasy work. The questions from the audience were exactly the same you hear in a newbie romance writing class. What’s a query letter? Do you need an agent to be published? What are you sick of seeing? And their answers were ones I’ve heard before at other romance writing conferences, which was kind of comforting to know basic publishing knowledge spans across other commercial fiction genres.

Under one roof there were independent comic creators sitting beside the big guns of DC and Marvel. When surrounded by people who love what they do, you can’t help but be inspired. I left ECCC eager to return to my writing and with the hope that no matter what my level of success, I will always create stories that are born from my love of the craft. While that plan may not always be profitable, I will keep in mind the time old saying, “If you do what you love, then it’s not work.” And who knows, maybe next year I’ll have my own table in the exhibit hall.

Hmmm, I wonder if I should work on a costume.

 

 

Once Upon a Time- You’re Killing Me Smalls!

I used to love ABC’s Once Upon a Time. That’s right. I said it. Used to. But after last night’s unshocking “shocking” reveal, I am seriously disappointed. So much so, I feel the need to announce it here for all to see.

When Once Upon a Time aired, I immediately fell in love with the characters, interweaving story lines and creativity. Yes, the stories were more Disney than Grimm, but hey, the writers know who’s bankrolling the project, so that I can forgive.

However…(SPOILER ALERT)

The identity of Rumpelstiltskin’s son, Baelfire was revealed, and yes, it was no big surprise that it was Emma’s ex and Henry’s father. Interesting twist? Sure. So what’s my issue? Let me reconstruct the timeline.

Baelfire was around thirteen years old when Rumpelstiltskin became The Dark One, and last night it was revealed Bae was fourteen when he fell through the wormhole created by a magic bean and arrived in the land without magic, which is our world.

In the time since, Rumpelstiltskin had to set forth the events that would create the curse to bring him to the place where his son was located. He brokered the deal that gave King George not one, but two sons, one of which was Prince Charming, who had to grow up, find Snow White, marry her and have a child. Then this child, Emma, was sent to the land without magic and grew up never knowing about her fairytale roots until the son she gave up for adoption seeked her out to break the curse.

Now, when the curse struck and everyone was trapped in Storybrooke, it’s completely plausible that all of the townsfolk were “frozen” in time and never aged. They were cursed. Got it. But we know those who were not cursed aged accordingly. Emma, August, Henry and yes, Baelfire.

For all of that to have happened, that means Baelfire needs to be pushing sixty! Even if I give the show leeway and pretend the curse sent everyone back to the exact moment he fell through the wormhole, he’d be at least fourteen years older than Emma. So why oh why are the producers trying to convince me that this man is Rumpelstiltskin’s son? Am I crazy here? Please, someone tell me my math is wrong.

If this show was a book, I would have thrown it against the wall. Do you know how many angry readers there would be if I tried to pull a plot twist like that in a novel? And that’s assuming I managed to get the story published.

I have forgiven this show a lot. I’ve overlooked inconsistencies such as August’s complete disappearance and how the hell he figured out Neil was Baelfire, Emma’s wavering truth-telling ability, how Greg Mendell is allowed to walk around the hospital without surpervision or even a spell to monitor his movements, and the fact no one has looked into what really happened to Graham (oh, how I miss the hunky huntsman).

After this stunt, my tolerance is stretched to the breaking point. Instead of looking forward to each episode, I’m hunching over in fear. It’s like my love/hate relationship with The Black Dagger Brotherhood series. I look forward to the next book, but then the hero turns into a simpering jackass and I get pissed, but the supporting characters are interesting so I keep going back for more all the while fearing what’s going to happen after I crack open the cover.

Please writers, I beg of you. Take a little more care in the details. I don’t want to be the booty call girl who’ll take whatever crumbs of affection you throw at her because she loves the way Captain Hook looks in his pirate coat. Don’t I deserve some respect?

 

Wanted- Workshop Proposals for the 2013 Emerald City Writers Conference

A conference is only as strong as it’s workshop line-up. As the workshop chair of the 2013 Emerald City Writers Conference, I have been charged with the task of compiling a kick-ass group of people to teach, inform and inspire 300 authors. No small job indeed.

February 1st is when we will be accepting workshop proposals for the October conference. My assistant chair, Anna Richland, and I have put together a wish list of workshop proposals we hope to see.

Craft workshops are a must at a any conference aimed at writers, however, we are expecting to see proposals that go beyond what you can learn from in a book. We would love to see topics such as what is the difference between polishing and finishing, how to keep momentum going in a series or how to overcome the obstacles that come when writing a second book. What about characterization? How do you create a heroine a reader wants to be friends with and not find annoying?

The publishing industry changes as often as Taylor Swift changes boyfriends. Think ahead to October. What will be the hot topics we as authors will need to be thinking about? How does Goodreads work and how can I use that platform to gain readership? How about the inner workings of an acquisitions meeting?

Research workshops are always a favorite. MA Taylor always presents fantastic workshops about law enforcement, and last year Christa McHugh talked about trauma medicine. I love these topics because I don’t have ready access to this information. Not only do I learn something that can inspire a scene, but I meet great people who then become fantastic contacts for future questions.

Last year we had over 120 proposals submitted to fill 48 slots, so I know you all must be wondering  how does one stand out from the crowd to get their workshop selected.  Creativity is key, as well as the broad appeal of the topic. Our attendees cover all genres, skill sets and publishing types, and we want to offer something for everyone. We also want to know your experience in the topic you’re presenting. Experience is everything.

One aspect that can change a “yes” decision to a “no” is audio visual requirements. I know, who would have guessed, but it’s true. Conference facilities charge bukoo bucks  for AV carts, which leaves us with limited space to accommodate workshops that require audio visual. Those speakers that can be flexible with their AV needs should state that on their proposals and increase their chances for selection.

Who’s excited now? Who’s inspired? Who knows a workshop speaker you want to hear at the next conference? Let them know we want to hear from them February 1st.  My hope is my email will be overflowing with awesome proposals and I need all of you to make that happen.

 

*For more information on the Emerald City Writers Conference go to http://gsrwa.org/conference.php or email me at ECWCworkshop@gmail.com

 

The Romance Reviews Sight is Celebrating Early

Like contests? Like books?

Come join the party!

The Romance Reviews is holding a Year End Splash party right now. Yes, now! And there are lots of prizes and games to be had between now and December 15th.

If you found your way here by participating in one of the games, welcome. Stay for a while and meet the heroes of Saturn.

For more on the event, visit The Romance Reviews, and good luck!

 

The Drink Diva’s Emerald City Writers Conference 2012 Experience

For the last two years I have been privilaged to host the Drink Diva’s event at the Emerald City Writers Conference. If there is one thing we writers excel at, it’s drinking and socializing. Even the most reserved author lets loose if given the right incentive and this year we danced the night away at the Lucky Strike.

Playing hostess was one of my many duties at this year’s conference, including being the assistant workshop chair, participating in three workshops and acting as a conference docent to those needing information on anything pertaining to the week’s events. I met so many wonderful people, and worked up the nerve to talk to best selling authors, agents and editors without stuttering or saying a bad word. All in all, I was very proud of how I not only expanded my comfort zone, but I completely remodled it like I had a high-priced budget.

What was my favorite parts of the weekend? Ohhhh…let me name a few.

Whatching Jacquie Rogers get carded and stamped by the bouncer at Lucky Strike.
Spending lots of quality time with Ellora’s Cave editor Carrie Jackson. (I know all of their secrets now. Well, not really, but I know more than before.)
Getting two requests for fulls of my Squadron Series
Receiving my first sale certificate
Announcing this year’s PRO recipents
Sitting between Cherry Adair AND Victoria Alexander during the bookfair. (A bit of advice- Do not shout at a NYT best selling author to not read your book in front of you. Cherry, you can read my work anytime.)
Having attendee after attendee come up to me during the weekend to say how great my workshop was.
Cocktail hours with the ladies of the Evergreen chapter.
Cheering loudly when Celeste Deveney, Christine Solberg and Jenn De Cuir won their catagories in the ECO contest. Proved that you can be on a committee and still write.
Meeting so many new writers and sharing the energy of a fantastic weekend!!

Work on the 2013 conference begins this weekend. I know!!! Can’t wait to see what we do next.

Hope to see you all there.

 

Release Day! Hero Unleashed is Now Available!

Yes! It is a day for exclaimation points!!

Hero Unleashed is not out from Ellora’s Cave.

This is the second book in the Heroes of Saturn series, and you know there will be more to come. I’m working on the next installment now with plans to set a few shorter stories in Amaryllis’ night club The Cavern.

For more on Lucian’s book, go to the Books section of this website.

 

Enojy!