Kate Noble's Blog, page 22

Playing in a New Sandbox: Writing for The Lizzie Bennet Diaries

I know this might surprise you, but I write more than romance novels.  I write tweets, Facebook posts, blog posts… and as of this past week, I am the newest writer to join the staff of the webseries The Lizzie Bennet Diaries!

For those of you who haven’t been introduced, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries is a modern retelling of the Jane Austen classic Pride and Prejudice (as you likely guessed from the title).   I started off as a straight up fan of this series, and was beyond thrilled to be asked to work with them.  And it turns out, I’m not the only fan out there:  the series already has 3 million views, and its reception at VidCon last weekend was INSANE. (Seriously, the line for the panel was out the door an hour beforehand.)   I feel ridiculously lucky to be joining such an acclaimed show, and one that has so many awesomely talented people working on it already – shout out to the writing staff Bernie Su, Margaret Dunlap, Rachel Kiley and Anne Toole, as well as the fantastic cast, Ashley Clements, Mary Kate Wiles, Julie Cho and Laura Spencer.  I hope I live up to your already high standards.

Don’t worry, this will in no way impede on my other writings, AKA, my romance novels.  And my tweets.  And my Facebook posts, and…. Well, you get the idea.

And now for your enjoyment, here’s the first episode of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. (you can catch up on the rest at their youtube channel or tumblr!)

Until next time, sweets – happy viewing!

 

Hooray! Winner!

Well, it’s been another two weeks, and we have another winner in the website contest – and without further ado, that winner is…

DIANE SALLANS!

Congratulations Diane, you have won an autographed copy of Compromised. We’ll email, it’ll be fun.  But if you didn’t win, fear not – the contest is running for the entire summer, so there are plenty of chances to win your choice of my backlist.  And if you haven’t entered… well, then you currently don’t have any chance to win, so I suggest going to the contest page immediately and rectifying that.

I’m a wee bit massively busy right now, but definitely check back next week, because I will be posting some INSANELY AWESOME news.  Until then, sweets –

Happy Reading!

Process Blog: Giving Notes

Another entry in my completely unstructured on-going series on Process.

Recently, I was asked by a friend to read their latest WIP.  I was happy to do it, because this friend is supremely talented and I have relied on their advice several times before for my own work.

This is not uncommon.  Inevitably, if you are writer, you will have writer friends.  And those writer friends will ask you for this kind of favor, as you will ask it of them.  So it is perhaps a good idea to go over some basics on how to give notes.

1. Figure out what kind of notes you have been asked to give.

Has your friend asked you to read because you have amazing grammar skills?  Are they asking you to read because you do stand-up on weekends and they want to see if your sense of humor responds?  How about if they want to know if their hero or heroine resonates with you?  The overall plot?  Make sure that you get proper marching orders before you dig in.

2. Don’t let personal grievances get in the way.

Let’s say you absolutely positively believe the conjunctive “alright” is NOT a word, even though it is recognized in Webster’s.  (If this is the case, you are likely my mother.)  Or let’s say that the hero of the WIP you are reading is named Joe, and you happened to have recently broken up with a guy named Joe, so your grind your teeth every time you see the name in black and white.  GET OVER IT.  You are not being asked to imprint your personal hang-ups into the story.  And if you can’t get over it, chances are any real notes you give will not be taken seriously or into account.

3. Give good notes.

It’s very easy to say “give good notes” and send your reader on their merry way – it’s a lot harder to be the one given those instructions.  And there are not any hard and fast rules regarding giving good notes.  The best thing I can tell you is don’t be kind. Instead, be honest in your reactions, and explain why you feel that way.  Also, if you come across something that is a problem, that does not sit right with you as a reader, suggest a solution or two.  Just saying “this seems wrong and I don’t know why,” helps no one.

As always with any of these process blogs, your mileage may vary.   Just remember, you are being asked to give notes for a reason – this person trusts you and respects your opinion.  Don’t be kind, be honest, and be thorough.  And don’t be offended if not every single one of your notes is taken as the golden drop of perfect wisdom you think it is.  It’s up to the note-receiver to take the notes they like and reject the ones they don’t.

That’s all for now – next week there will be another drawing in my website contest, so if you haven’t entered yet, why are you waiting?  And there is more and more writing to be done, so it’s a long fun week for me.  Until next time sweets – happy reading!

 

 

 

 

Another Fortnight, Another Winner

Hello all!  I have surfaced from deadline madness (the book is turned in!  Hooray!) and I feel like celebrating!  And what better way to celebrate than to draw a new winner in my website contest?  And thus, without further ado, that winner is…

ANNE FESCHAREK!

Anne, you have won yourself a copy of Compromised!  We’ll email, it’ll be awesome.  To those who did not win, take heart – you are still entered and there is plenty of time to win – the contest lasts all summer!  (And if you’re not entered yet, why ever not?  It’s super easy.)  As for me – the relaxation doesn’t last long in between projects.  It’s Monday again, and that means I’m back to the grindstone.

Until next week, sweets, happy reading!

 

 

 

Final throes

I am in the final throes of finishing up my latest novel (For those who read If I Fall, this is Bridget’s story!) so I don’t have time for a regular blog, but I could not leave you hanging, especially when there is new winner to choose in my website contest!  So without further ado, the latest winner is…

KANTU!

Congratulations Kantu!  You have won an autographed copy of Compromised! (Check your email.  We’ll chat.)  For those who did not win, fear not: the contest lasts all summer, so there will be plenty more chances to scoop up your fave of my backlist.

I’m going to be typing like a mad person until 11:59 the night before this book is due, so until then, Happy Reading, sweets!

The Summer of Us

First, a piece of business:  I’m drawing the first winner in my summer-long website contest!  And that winner is:

AMANDA BAILEY!!

Congratulations, Amanda!  You’ve won a copy of Follow My Lead.  Check your email for further details.  To those who didn’t win, the contest goes on until the end of summer, so there will be plenty more chances.

[image error]There’s another thing that’s happening at the end of summer, too.  As many of you who pay close attention know, I will occasionally mention The Boyfriend here on the blog.  Not often, as he is somewhat bewildered (yet constantly supportive) of the whole Romance Novelist thing, thus he doesn’t often get featured in my book-related rants and writing.  (Although he did a blog for me, once.) Well, a little while ago, the Boyfriend asked me a question, I said yes, and he has since morphed into the Fiancé.

By the end of summer the Fiancé will have changed once again, this time into The Husband.   It is a short engagement, and thus a whirlwind of planning for me.  But I feel like I’m prepared.  Nothing like a Say Yes to the Dress marathon and the lifelong consumption of romance novels to teach you all about the Wedding Thing.  But do you know the biggest thing that I’ve found helpful in the wedding planning?

Being a writer.

I’m not kidding.  Being a writer has given me all the skills I need to throw a semi-formal function for friends and family.  I have mad research and internet skills.  I have the ability to manage time, else I’d never make my deadline.  I have the ability to create and implement a budget, since being a successful novelist is basically running a small home business with low overhead.  Being someone with an imagination has helped me visualize how all the pieces, from flowers to catering to tables and tents, are all going to go together.  And being a romance writer in particular has given me the optimism to say, no matter what happens, it’s all going to turn out all right in the end.  So, if you ever get discouraged in your writing, just remind yourself of what it was like during your wedding, and take heart, because the reverse also holds true:  If you can plan a wedding, you can be a writer.

I think it’s going to be a fun summer.

Until next time, sweets, Happy Reading!

Settling into Routine

Over the last 2 months, my life has been filled with constant upheaval.  I was made a Lady of the Ballroom, went to Peru, followed shortly by If I Fall and The Dress of the Season coming out at all fine retailers (and e-retailers) near you.  Then, the If I Fall Blog Tour and… well, it’s been hectic, is what I’m saying.  But thankfully things are settling back into a kind of routine, and everything will be normal – or at least what passes for normal – again soon.

Can you tell I watched Crazy, Stupid Love recently?

I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating: routine is essential for writing.  Because for most of us, writing is a necessary chore – like sit-ups.  With sit-ups, we very, very much want the end result (a six pack worthy of Ryan Gosling, of course) but the work to get there is haaaaaaaaard.  And booooooooooooring.   But the work must be done – hell, the work must be enjoyed – to get the end result.  Thus, you need a routine, to get those sit-ups in every day.  Or that word count.

The good thing is, once you’ve been doing those sit-ups a while, you actually begin to like it.  Heck, you being to crave it.  And suddenly one day you realize you have Ryan Gosling abs.  Or, in a writer’s case, a finished project.  None of which is achievable without a day to day routine.

So what’s my routine, you might ask?  Well, it involves a hearty amount of procrastination and a cow’s worth of lattes, but the day is not allowed to be over until I hit my word count.  So usually, sometime in mid-morning, I will have read over the entire internet and settle in to get work done.  That’s all there is to it.  Just getting the work done.

Sounds boring, I know.  I bet you were hoping for some kind of magical, third-eye focusing trick that lets me get work done and still have time to have a life.  Well there’s not.  In fact, I’m not allowed a life until work is done.  It’s all about being in the chair.  And it’s a chair – and a routine – my butt has missed for the past few months.

One other part to my regular routine is a website contest – of which there is a new one!  Prize is your choice of my backlist, and a winner is drawn every two weeks.  AND once you enter, you’re entered for the entire 4 month life of the contest, so plenty of chances to win!

That’s all for now kids, plenty of butt-in-chair time for me this week.  Until later – happy reading!

If I Fall Blog Tour Round Up

 

Whew!  The If I Fall Blog Tour has finally reached the station, and we can all disembark.  I don’t know about you guys, but I’m exhausted.  But if you want to relive some of the fun we had (or if you missed one of the stops) here’s a comprehensive blog tour round up:

March 27th –             Smexybooks

March 29th –             Elizabeth Boyle’s Blog

April 2nd –            Coffee Time Romance

April 2nd –             The Booksmugglers

April 3rd –            RomCon Inc.

April 5th –             Novel Thoughts Blog with Stefanie Sloane, Romance at Random

April 6th –             The Season

April 9th –            Babbling About Books and More

April 11th –            Romance Reader at Heart

April 11th –             USA Today Happily Ever After Interview

April 12th –            Jaunty Quills

April 13th –             The Romance Dish

April 17th –            Tote Bags N’ Blogs

April 19th –             Vauxhall Vixens

April 23rd –             Girlfriend’s Blog

April 25th –             Vanessa Kelly’s Blog

April 26th –            Romantic Crush Junkies

May 1st –               Book Lovers, Inc.

May 10th –            Writer’s Space

May 11th –             Bookworm 2 Bookworm

(Note:  the eagle-eyed among you will notice that the last two dates on this round up haven’t happened yet.  Their links will go up as the event occurs.)

Thank you so much to everyone who stopped by on the tour – you guys are what makes this job so fantastic.  I had a wonderful time, and can’t wait for the next one!

I have a long week of writing in front of me, there are some new and interesting things coming up in the Nobleverse, so stay tuned.  Until next time, sweets – Happy Reading!

May Day, and Super Big Prize Winner!

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Welcome everyone, to the day after May Day!  I love May Day, don’t you?  The complete celebration of spring, the dancing around the Maypole with ribbons crossing…

Oh, who am I kidding?  You don’t want to hear about that.  You want to hear about the winner of the super big prize in my website contest!  So, without further ado, the winner is….

JENNIFER BOYETT!

Huge congratulations to Jen!  You have won my complete autographed backlist — that’s Compromised, Revealed, The Summer of You, and Follow My Lead – as well as a $25 gift card to Amazon, so you can round out your Kate Noble collection with If I Fall, and The Dress of the Season.  (If you want to, that is.  No pressure.  I’m not gonna tell you how to spend your gift card.)

The contest is now closed, but fear not — there will be a new contest up in the next few days, so stay tuned.

But if your sad without a contest, cheer up — there are only a few more stops left on the If I Fall Blog Tour, but at least one of them is going to have a giveaway.  Keep you eyes open for them!

That’s all for me for now — I’ve got a TON of writing to do this week, so I’d better hop to it!

Until later, sweets, Happy Reading!

 

Romantic Crush Junkies

I’m the author of the day today at Romantic Crush Junkies! They interviewed me, and they interviewed Jack and Sarah from If I Fall, which was tough to do, because they were making out int he corner the whole time, like a couple of teenagers.

It’s also my turn over at the Ballroom Blog!  I’m already in trouble with Lady B, though — which is I suppose what happens when your hero decides to sail his ship directly into the ballroom, via the garden wall.

It’s always exciting here in the Nobleverse, so stay tuned for more goodness!

Until later, sweets — Happy Reading!