Patti O'Shea's Blog, page 190

Head Rush

I had one of my favorite writing things happen last week. As background, every story I write has a theme song (something that started by accident). Sometimes I end up picking some kind of song that kind of works just to have something. I don't enjoy this because there isn't a deep tie for me between the story and the music, but I can only spend so much time on the search.

Better is when I hear a song and go, WHOA! This is it! And I had that happen last week for the story I'd like to work on next. I heard Escape by 30 Seconds to Mars and knew it was the song. It's short, but the vibe the music has is perfect. The words even mostly work.

This alone would be exciting enough for me, but not worthy of a blog post. The cool thing happened later.

Last Friday, as I was listening to the song, I started to get information on the story. Mostly about my heroine. I put the song on replay so it looped over and over and over. And details continued to flow in. Not everything and I still have very little about the hero, not even his name, but the pieces I got about the heroine are pretty darn cool and explain why she does some of the things she does.

This flow of story information always leaves me excited. It's like this total adrenaline rush and I love when it happens. I think this is why I love pre-book so much because it's the only time this occurs. Pre-book is that time when I'm learning about the story and the characters, but I'm not ready to write it yet. Later, while I am writing, the details trickle in a little bit at a time, and while I'll take it anyway it comes, I don't get the same head rush and excitement that I receive when it's flooding in. So Friday was a very awesome day.

Now if the hero would just share a little.

Shadow's Caress Cover!

I have the cover for Shadow's Caress! This is my February 1, 2011 release from Harlequin Nocturne Bites.

The quick blurb for the story is: A vampire trapped in a hellish limbo has one hope to reclaim his life as the undead--the hunter who tried to kill him.

Malachi James is the vampire who's stuck in limbo and he hates it. No one can see him or hear him--not humans, not other vampires, and if there are others trapped with him, he's unaware of them. The only person who can sense his existence is Cass.

Cass Lanier walked away from vampire hunting after Malachi opened his eyes and met her gaze while she was staking him. Now some presence is hanging around, arousing her, and she thinks it's him--her last vampire.

Cass has bigger trouble than she knows--yet. The vampire hunters have discovered she didn't follow all the steps necessary to kill a vampire and they plan to take her out.

You can check out an excerpt on my website, but I haven't found the story for sale anywhere yet so there aren't any active buy links. I'll have those up as soon as Shadow's Caress is available.

I wish I could post the pictures of the models I used for Cass and Malachi, but I don't want to violate the photographers' copyrights. The couple on the cover don't look much like them and that always makes me want to share what they really look like. :-)

I can describe them though. Cass has short, dark hair and a pixie face. She's 21, not young for her years, but she's a little flip and has a kind of off-center way of thinking. She's a lot of fun and doesn't do a lot of angsting even in the midst of being chased by men who want her dead.

Malachi was 22 when he became a vampire. He's got light brown hair that's kind of shaggy and usually falling into his eyes. He loses his American accent when his control slips and speaks with an English accent, one he's cultivated over the centuries. He doesn't hold grudges or hate Cass for staking him because he understands that humans fear vampires. Also, he believes that bitterness and the need for revenge hurt the one who seeks these things and he just doesn't go there.

With that, here's the cover for Shadow's Caress.

Back to the Future

The other week, I was reading through the company policy for dress code. You see, I have a bunch of training coming up this month and it says right on the page that we are expected to meet the dress code requirements. I figured I'd better know what they were. (For those of you unaware, my company was bought by another and we've had a bit of adjusting to do.)

Some of it made sense like covering tattoos or not allowing jewelry to be worn in piercings other than the earlobe. The tattoos because you never know what might offend a customer and the piercings... Well, let me tell you about the time I went to Waldenbooks and the boy behind the counter had a piercing under his bottom lip. He wore a thin bar in the hole, and because he couldn't move his bottom lip to talk, he was incomprehensible when he spoke. I kept leaning in and going, "Huh?" It's just common sense to not wear something that makes it impossible to speak clearly.

Some of the dress code stuff made me shake my head and go WTF? No jeans, not even on Fridays. Shirts must be tucked in. Men must wear ties if meeting with someone from outside the company. Socks/hosiery are a must. Um, our headquarters is in Atlanta, GA and they expect women to not go bare-legged with a skirt or dress in the summer? Seriously? I live in Minneapolis and I never wear socks in the summer.

There was a bunch of stuff like this and it left me wondering why this dress code was so old fashioned. NWA was pretty conservative when I first started, but even they loosened up more than this.

I kept reading in a kind of rapt horror. Then I saw the tell-tale sentence: No wearing Walkmans in areas where it would be dangerous to do so.

From this, I'm assuming this dress code was written in what? 1980 and apparently hasn't been updated since. Please send me back to the future.

Language Pet Peeves

Every now and then on writers' loops, discussion arises about language pet peeves. There are things that bother others that don't bother me at all--like when someone answers "No problem" when someone else says, "Thank you." I confess that I'm guilty of No Problem, which is maybe why it doesn't bug me.

I have issues with other things.

I could care less. Um, no. It's I couldn't care less. If you say I could care less, it's denoting the opposite of what you're trying to convey. This makes me grind my teeth every time I hear it.

It's a mute point. The word is moot. There's no such thing as a mute point, thank you very much.

Strange apostrophe usage. As in putting apostrophes where no apostrophe belongs, or not putting apostrophes where one does belong. Prime example is its/it's. The car lost its hubcap. No apostrophe because I'm not saying: The car lost it is hubcap.

Irregardless. There is no such word. Regardless is the proper word. Go with it.

a lot is two words. all right is two words. It's not alright.

To be fair, English is a living language and it changes as people use it. In fact, I love how vibrant the language is. It's very possible that some day alot will be one word and alright will be in the dictionary. That's okay. I think the biggest change is going to come in computer tech words.

Copyeditors have continually changed my internet (lower case i) to Internet (capitalized). I don't think capitalizing internet is going to last much longer. They hyphenate my email to make it e-mail. I believe the AP Stylebook has already changed this to no hyphen. I don't hyphenate any of the "e" terms, not ebook, not epublisher, nothing. I can't wait for this change in language to happen. Right now I have auto correct setup to make these into "proper" usage when I write them the way I think they should be. :-)

One of my favorite things is when they report the new words that have made the cut for the dictionary for the year. I know, I'm a geek, but it's cool to watch words be born.

Back-Up Plan

When it comes to items I love, I have a streak of bad luck. As soon as I think something is the best ever, the manufacturer stops making it. It's happened time after time and it's very frustrating, but I've come up with a plan: Back-Up Items.

Those shoes I totally love? I bought a second pair. I can't even find shoes now that are semi-close to the ones I love.

That coffee mug that's the perfect size and weight? I bought a second one for work. I could actually use a new one since carrying around a mug with Northwest Airlines printed on it probably doesn't show that I've embraced the Delta family. BTW, I did try to buy a Delta mug, but not only was it too small, it didn't have a handle! Someone as clumsy as I am definitely needs a handle. Plus, it's easier to carry into meetings when there's something to hold onto.

When I didn't buy backups? I had the cutest little evening bag ever. I loved the tassel on it, but it never dawned on me to buy another one just like it. After all, I only use the bag for dress-up occasions, which basically means the Rita Awards when I go to RWA National. I hardly need a backup, right?

Wrong. While at RWA National in Atlanta, I think, at some point during the evening, I hooked the purse on something and ripped a huge gash into the fabric. It's beyond being fixed. I paid for not having a second on hand.

Then there are the other two purses I really like. One is huge with all kinds of compartments. Perfect for when I need to have bookmarks and autographed by author stickers and what not with me. I was able to purchase a new one whenever this wore out, so I never worried about having a backup. You can guess what happened, right? I went to replace it and ::gasp:: it's no longer available. ::sobs::

The other is a tiny bag that's almost a wallet on a string. It's a really awesome, versatile every day purse. But I bought it a while ago, long before I started using it. It was only after I started carrying it every day that I realized I better back it up. Too late. Between the time I bought it and the time I realized I loved it, the purse disappeared.

It always pays to have a backup ready to go when the first one wears out, but with a few things I've reached the point where some of the backups are in need of being replaced. That puts me in a now what do I do? position.

¿Habla Español?

I've blogged before about how I pick up the way my characters speak, that I end up with words that I rarely (or never) used myself...until they came. I've also blogged about how I end up acquiring some of my characters' interests--for a while anyway. Yes, I'm definitely influenced by them and I'm aware of it. Which kind of leads me to my problem.

I want to learn to speak Spanish.

I did some research and found a computer-based program that comes highly recommended. They have a trial lesson up and I ran through that and I did learn. Not perfectly, but I wasn't going as carefully as I would if I was really doing the class.

My problem? I have a hero and heroine who are both fluent in Spanish. What if I'm only interested in learning the language because of their influence? I've had a bunch of interests crop up in the past that waned rapidly after that particular character left.

On the one hand, learning some Spanish would definitely help with this book. I wouldn't be able to use much of the language because I couldn't assume most of my readers would be familiar with it, but I could drop little bits in. At the very least, it would give me a flavor for how people are speaking even if I never went far enough to get good at it.

On the other hand, this program isn't cheap. If I buy units 1 through 5, it's a little over $500. That is a lot of money. I thought about only getting unit 1 and then buying the others if my interest remains, but to buy the first segment on its own costs nearly $180 and unit 2 is well over $200 bought alone. The next bundle is 3, 4 and 5 together. So I do want to continue, I'll be paying considerably more than if I'd bought the full bundle.

So this is my dilemma--do I try to learn Spanish for real? And if I do, do I assume I'd go beyond the first unit? Or is this another character-induced interest that will wane after I finish the proposal for this hero and heroine?

It makes me crazy! I wouldn't mind (too much) spending the money if I really did have an interest in learning Spanish. I believe that education is an awesome thing and that all of us should continue learning long after school is over. However, if this is because of my h/h and I lose interest, I know myself well enough to understand that I'll quit doing the lessons, especially when each one takes over 2 hours and time is so tight for me as it stands.

Now I just need to figure out who is interested in Spanish. Is it me or is it my characters? Sigh.

Are You An Eeyore?

This week, I replayed Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams again. This might be the fourth time I've watched it now, but the message is one that requires constant reinforcement--at least for me.

For those of you who are unaware of this video, Dr. Randy Pausch, a professor at Carnegie Mellon University, gave a "Last Lecture." It became a YouTube sensation, and before he died, Dr. Pausch was interviewed and did a book. (He was diagnosed with terminal cancer and gave this lecture not that long after getting the news. He doesn't talk much about his cancer, so it's not a downer.)

There are a couple of pieces of his lecture that completely resonate for me. The first is that it's up to each one of us whether we're going to be a Tigger or an Eeyore. That we can't change the hand we're dealt in life, we can only change how we play it.

I admit it, I tend to be more on the Eeyore side of things. It's not that I want to be, but I head that direction before I realize it. Every time I play this video, it reminds me to try harder.

The other message I really love is the idea that we shouldn't give up just because things get tough. "The brick walls are there for a reason. They're there to stop the people who don't want it badly enough. They're there to stop the other people." I might not have the quote exactly right, but this is close.

Too many writers give up too easily or are unwilling to do the work it takes to become strong writers and storytellers (It takes both skills). I think this reminder of the brick walls being there for a reason. If someone doesn't want it badly enough to stick with it in the face of adversity, then they honestly don't want it badly enough. Hanging in when it's easier to give up? That's worth a lot.

This whole lecture is worth watching. Some parts will undoubtedly resonate more with some people that with others, but I can't imagine someone getting nothing out of the talk. I hope you agree.

Surprise, Surprise

One of the best pieces I ever received from another author came shortly after I sold my first book. She told me that the writing process will change and that I should go with the flow rather than fight it. I've since learning just how correct she was. My writing process has changed, and over the course of the first four or five books, the shifts were drastic.

Mostly change is an evolution, not a revolution, and that's what it's like now, but that wasn't the case in the beginning. And yet I still sometimes get things coming at me sideways.

Yesterday was one of those days. It started when I was revising the first scene in my hero's point of view (POV). I thought he didn't swear, at least not the harder language, but when I was writing the first draft, a few F words creeped in. I'll catch those as I revise, I told myself, because that isn't him. I haven't heard him swear in any of the scenes I saw/heard with him and there were a lot of those. Only as I revised the first scene, I ended up with more of the F word, not less.

This brought on the epiphany--he's much harder-edged than I believed.

It was disconcerting. I always know my characters so well, and this hero and heroine have been particularly enthusiastic about sharing with me. Where did this come from?

This gave me further epiphany--he's a marshmallow around the heroine and rarely uses the harder swear words in front of her. Okay then. I had another hero (Wyatt from Eternal Nights) who didn't use the F word in front of his heroine, but he was from the south and was raised not to swear in front of women. This hero doesn't give me any sense of being southern at all, so where did this come from?

That wasn't the end of my surprises. Later that evening, I clicked a link on Twitter, saw a picture of a woman, and immediately I knew she was one of my heroines. Just not a heroine I already know.

I've met my characters in a lot of ways over the years. I've had characters appear and tell me their names. I've had characters come in and give me information about their society or world by way of introduction. I've never before had a character pop in because I saw a picture. But hey, I talk with and eavesdrop on imaginary people--this didn't faze me. But I did keep looking at her image off and on all evening and asking, "Who are you?"

I think I have the answer now. If she isn't lying to me.

Did You Get One?

Did you get an ereader for Christmas? Did you check out my ebooks? Yes, this post is a plug for my stories. :-)

Available as an E-book only:

Demon Kissed from Silhouette Nocturne Bites

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Books a Million
Borders
eHarlequin




Available as an E-book and in the Mammoth Collections (short stories):

Blood Feud

Amazon
Barnes & Noble

The Troll Bridge (Jarved Nine)

Amazon
Barnes & Noble

Available as an E-book and in Print (full-length novels)

In the Darkest Night (Light Warriors 4)

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Borders

Edge of Dawn (Light Warriors 3)

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Borders

In Twilight's Shadow (Light Warriors 2)

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Borders

In the Midnight Hour (Light Warriors 1)

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Borders

And watch for Shadow's Caress coming February 2011 from Harlequin Nocturne Bites and available everywhere ebooks are sold!

Merry Christmas!

This video was done by the Cottage Grove Fire Department and it's awesome! Merry Christmas from me and the firefighters!

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