Kaylene Winter's Blog, page 16
August 12, 2020
SUMMER OF LOVE
Before any author takes the step of putting pen to paper (or in my case, writing on my laptop at night after a full day of work), there has to be inspiration.
Today I want to give some special thanks to people who have been there throughout my journey.
MY BFF INSPIRATIONS
Two of my very best friends are the inspirations for Alex and Ronni. I won’t name names because what would be the fun in that. They know who they are.
Alex inspiration has been my best friend since I was three and she was four, we grew up together and are still as close now as we were then. When we were teenagers we went to concerts together and yes – the scene in ENDLESS where Alex and Zoey get ready to go to the concert could have been taken from my own life. She has read every iteration of the book, provided encouragement and feedback, and basically is the best friend a girl could ever have.
Ronni inspiration (this is FEARLESS, which I hope to release in March) has also been my friend since I was young. We got into a ton of trouble together in high school, which in retrospect was pretty tame. There may have been a joyride in an MG… I can’t express how supportive she and her family have been to me over these months. And there’s more to come on this, so stay tuned.
MY PROFESSIONAL INSPIRATIONS
I thought I’d give a huge shout out to three women who really have been the pillars behind making me a “real” author.
First is the incredible Grace Bradley. She is my editor extraordinaire and gives me critical feedback on my writing. I can’t tell you how important the editing process is, and if you ever decide to write a book – do not skimp on this. I would laugh my ass off at some of her comments – but she was always right and always kind.
Second is the phenomenal Regina Wamba. She is my cover artist and also photographer. Her artistic eye is spectacular, and she’s super cool too. As I mentioned before, we were all set to have big, huge photo shoot with all of LTZ in May. But COVID. She’s adapted with me and I bombard her with Instagram photos of gorgeous long-haired men that will serve as inspiration for future books. And yes, we will be doing a new photo shoot soon – with all the guys.
Finally, the reason you are getting this newsletter is because of my website and newsletter designer, Sherri Kiarsis. I love working with Sherri so much – she gets my vision, is fast and efficient and always is positive. We have some fun and big plans for getting more content out to you – and it will look AMAZING because she rocks that much.
Thank you so much amazing women – the world is a better place with all of you in it. I adore each and every one of you.
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August 6, 2020
HELP ME SPREAD THE WORD
This week has been glorious in Seattle, the weather is hot and the sunsets are extraordinary. Very inspirational. So inspirational that I’m in the thick of it writing Connor & Ronni’s story – and making excellent progress.
If you have read my newsletter (the first one went out this week!) you will know that LIMITLESS – Alex and Jace’s story is coming out in October. I’m getting ready to start all of the fun pre-release madness soon—and I can tell you it is a fun book, with plenty of the drama you love in a Rockstar romance.
SOCIAL MEDIAInstagram: I’m really proud of my Instagram – it is so fun for me to create graphics and pull quotes from the amazing 5-star reviews ENDLESS is getting, make art and graphics and create the entire world of LTZ. If you haven’t followed me on Instagram yet – Please do!! Here’s an easy link:
Facebook: If Instagram isn’t your bag, I have two ways to get a hold of me on Facebook. You can follow Rocker Romance Page for all things LTZ here: https://www.facebook.com/rockerromance/
Or, if you’re already a superfan – and I know that you are, I have a private Facebook Group where I interact and discuss all sorts of cool stuff about LTZ – it is the Rocker Romance Reading Group: Request to join here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/rockromance/
If Pinterest is more your scene, I’m getting my feet wet there too – follow me here: https://www.pinterest.com/kaylenewinterauthor/
WEBSITE
This blog gets posted not only on my website, but on Good Reads and my Amazon Author page too. So if you’re reading this there, please visit https://rockerromance.com/ and sign up for my mailing list – you’ll be the first to hear about all things LTZ.
BOOK NERDS
If you are a book nerd like me, then you are probably on Good Reads and BookBub – please follow me on both platforms because as a new author, I’m just getting started and LOVE to talk with other book lovers and authors there.
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/kaylenewinter
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/kaylene-winter
AMAZON
Finally if you haven’t already – please follow me on Amazon – it really helps build up my presence on this mammoth platform: amazon.com/author/kaylenewinter
SPREADING THE WORD
I’m so grateful if you can spread the word and tell your friends about ENDLESS and the LTZ series – We are at the beginning of our journey together my fellow Rockstar romance fans, and I’m so happy you are with me.
As a special thank you – every time you like one of my pages or post and then post a screenshot in the comments to one of my posts, I will keep track and randomly award TWO SIGNED PAPERBACK copies of ENDLESS! Let’s get viral!
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July 30, 2020
NEW AUTHOR IN THE AGE OF COVID
A lot of my friends have asked me how COVID has affected my writing and the series in general. In many ways, it has been a “blessing” in disguise and in other ways it’s this never-ending state of uncertainty that actually did affect some of the things I had planned.
Photoshoot
The first casualty of the series isn’t really what I consider a tragedy, but it definitely has postponed some of the interactive stuff I had planned.
For one, I was supposed to have a photo shoot with the amazing @reginaWamba (https://www.reginawamba.com/) and the gorgeous cover model for Tyson, Brandon Katz.
We planned on having the entire band (yes, Jace, Connor and Zane too!) with the ladies, Zoey, Alex, Ronni and Fiona. Plus, amazing video content. Super fun.
But it all got postponed.
So we are making lemonade out of lemons, and luckily as soon as it is humanly possible we will be getting that scheduled – which means we just get to see how all of these stories play out for a longer period of time.
LTZ Release Schedule
Originally, I planned on launching Limitless sometime around the holidays. You’re hearing it here first – Limitless will be out on October 9, 2020! Which means that Connor and Ronni will be ready sometime in March—. So, the benefit of being sequestered is that the LTZ world is coming at you fast and furious!
Endless Promotions
My first newsletter is out this week, so if you haven’t signed up please make sure to get on my mailing list. I’ll be putting really fun stuff that you can only get in the newsletter, including the recipe for Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake that, well, if you’ve finished Endless – you know the deal.
If you haven’t downloaded the Kindle version or you want to recommend it to a friend, I’ll be running a special week-long promotion in honor of the paperback being released. For one week starting on August 3, you can get your own copy of Endless on Kindle for $1.99.
That’s all for this week folks!
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July 22, 2020
JOURNEY TO ENDLESS
A lot of the comments I’m getting (which are amazing, by the way) express surprise that I’m a first-time author. As I’ve mentioned in my bio here, on Amazon, Good Reads and BookBub, I’ve always been a writer. My first book was when I was 15, and this was the “inspiration” for the Less Than Zero Series that we have begun with Ty & Zoey in Endless.
In my “real” life (yes, I still have my day job) I write hundreds of pages of material a week – just not fiction writing.
One of the reasons I decided to start this journey is because I work with so many creative people in my day-to-day life that my own creativity has been bubbling up and dying to get out.
With my husband’s encouragement and two of my friends who have been with me since the first book – well— that’s how we have Endless.
Writing ProcessAs an avid romance reader myself, I didn’t take any formal classes or workshops before I started writing. I relied upon my observation of story structure and followed the lead of authors I like.
My first draft of Endless took about 8 months and countless rewrites as I went. I had no idea how to keep track of everything that I’d written because most of my writing was done for a couple of hours each night and sometimes longer on the weekend. I wasted a lot of time going back and re-reading what I wrote to make sure I had consistency.
Then, once I was “finished” I would re-read everything again in context, make notes and then tweak. This process repeated many times.
Finishing the Book
I remember writing the end, which is pretty much unchanged from the original version, and feeling this HUGE sense of accomplishment.
Before I can take all of the accolades, I have to give shoutouts to Grace and Jen, my two editors. For those of you not familiar, there are two processes. The first is when you get a very substantive edit – this can include typos and grammar but it also goes into consistency and story-telling. That edit is possibly the single most important reason why I’m getting such great reviews.
You need someone to check you – to push you to be a better writer. Grace did that for me – she took what was a good story and made suggestions that made it better. I ended up revamping about 100 pages – and most of those rewrites involved really taking the reader on a journey.
The proofreading edit is equally as important because by the time you’ve written and then re-read your book about a million times, you really do not see any typos. So you need someone new to point them out to you.
I hope hearing about the process was interesting – feel free to leave me a comment below or shoot me an email at kaylenewinterauthor@gmail.com.
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July 15, 2020
AWESOME REVIEWS & AMAZON BEST SELLER
After a whirlwind two weeks, Endless charted on the Rock Music Book chart over the weekend.
I can’t tell you how thrilling it to know that readers are enjoying Endless. The reviews are really making my day. After over a year of writing, editing, proofing, beta-reading and finally releasing my “baby” into the world, to know that it is resonating is mind-blowing.
Book Bloggers
I’ve also had the opportunity to meet some new people both in the blogging community and fellow author community – and I couldn’t have had such a great start without help and encouragement. I’d like to provide two shoutouts to women I didn’t know until Endless was released into the world.
Mari Carr
First is New York Times and USA Today Best-Selling Author Mari Carr. I’ve been such a huge fan of Mari for years, devouring each book the minute it’s released. My favorite series of hers is the Wild/Wilder Irish collection of stories set in an Irish pub in New England. I reached out via email to a few of my favorite authors, and Mari responded and basically took me under her wing – even allowing me to post to her fans on her own release day to promote Endless. Wow. Please follow her on Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/Mari-Carr/e/B002BMGUUO?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1&qid=1594744189&sr=8-1 and here is her website where you can find all of her books: https://maricarr.com/
Awesome Review
The second is a wonderful woman I met on GoodReads who is also a huge rockstar romance fan. She really “got” Endless, and so for the rest of this blog I want to just share her review:
July 8, 2020
LONG-HAIRED GENTLEMEN
I’ve always loved dudes with long hair, even from an early age it was my thing. When I started writing Endless, I kept a “look board” for all of the characters in the book, which helped me really immerse myself in the story. Ty is dreamy, right???
I’ll be rolling out “sneak peeks” at all of the other characters to my VIP members – so if you haven’t signed up, make sure you get on my mailing list. Or, better yet – if you want to become an ARC Reader and member of my Street Team – get the All Access pass. If you are a super-fan of Ty & Zoey, you won’t want to miss out on some of the things I have planned—
Back to the long-haired gentlemen discussion. To me, there’s something already inherently romantic about a gorgeous man with flowing hair. There’s the sexy, dangerous factor, but also the underlying sensitivity. A man with long hair is a poet, he’s independent. Perhaps even a scoundrel.
Then he meets the girl that “tames” him – the most exquisite mix of beauty and strength. The one woman he can’t live without, but she makes him work for it. And he does so with honor and respect, even if he has to learn a few things on the road to true love.
Writing Ty was complicated. I feel that any great romance novel has a strong, alpha male. In some romance novels, I find “alpha” males are very one-dimensional, and I wanted to show how Ty always had it in him – but also how he evolved into the man Zoey deserved him to be.
When musicians are on the road and become more and more famous, suddenly there is an entire ecosystem that is required. In the beginning, the entire focus is on how to get their music to the masses. If they are successful, at some point, roadies and maybe a manager are brought onto the team. And gradually, more and more people hop on the bus.
In the fictional world of Endless, with the explosive worldwide success of LTZ, you see how over time more and more people are needed to keep the machine running.
Another thing that happens when a musician becomes famous is they literally can’t do anything for themselves without attracting attention. Have you ever seen someone famous eating with their family? It’s hard to resist taking a selfie or maybe even asking for an autograph. Imagine that times ten.
The thing is, most times musicians are humble and have a hard time adjusting to being recognized everywhere they go. In recent years, with social media, it’s even more daunting. It’s a weird dichotomy of chasing fame and then trying to recapture your life outside of it.
In other words, it can take years to settle into the “new normal” that Ty comes to terms with in the book.
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July 1, 2020
STRONG SEXY HEROINES
When I set out to create the LTZ world, it has been vitally important to me to spend a lot of time developing layers to my female characters.
It’s critical.
As women, we are often put in boxes. We are sexy. Or smart. Or sassy. Or bitchy. Or cold. Or – well insert any adjective you like.
The thing is, we are all of these things at times.
Romance worlds are fantasies – and in the LTZ world, Ty & Zoey’s love story starts out as the ultimate female fantasy. You go to a rock show. The lead singer picks you out of the crowd and it turns out he’s your soulmate. The end.
NOT!
Zoey is beautiful, for sure. She’s smart and once she sets her sights on a goal stops at nothing to achieve it. She’s also unapologetically sexual. She loves Ty with her whole soul. She’s extremely resilient. But she’s also a bit of a martyr and her high emotions – at least in the beginning – lead her to make choices that she stubbornly adheres to until it doesn’t work for her anymore.
Like all of us, Zoey is flawed. But her flaws make her human and lovable. Unforgettable.
Who is your favorite literary heroine and why?
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June 25, 2020
RELEASE DAY!
June 26, 2020 is my very first release day! Which means that I’m officially a published romance novelist.
The experience of writing Ty & Zoey’s story has been an evolution. From “can I really do this” to “I’m doing it” to “I did it” …and that was just the beginning! The respect I have for self-published authors has gone up dramatically after learning how to interact with Amazon, GoodReads, BookBub, establish social media and all of the other things that go into letting people know about your book.
Rather than devolve into those details, why don’t I tell you about Ty & Zoey.
Ty, to me, is my absolute embodiment of the lead singer fantasy. He’s gorgeous, of course (just look at him!) but he’s smart, outrageously talented (without any ego), kind, considerate and has overcome a terrible childhood through sheer grit and determination to succeed. Yet, he’s flawed. It’s not that easy to trust that someone loves you when you’ve never really known love. It’s even worse when the person you open yourself up to smashes your heart to pieces, and you don’t understand why.
Zoey’s physical beauty is secondary to her selflessness, inner strength, confidence and intellect. She’s not insecure, but she’s self-aware enough to know that she isn’t the typical girl that most extroverted musicians would be attracted to. When she and Ty fall in love, her devotion to Ty and her willingness to put his needs above hers cause ripples in their lives for years.
Ty & Zoey fell in love at first sight and knew they were meant for each other. Their love story is about growing up, trust, accountability, forgiveness and ultimately…redemption. I hope you love them as much as I do.
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June 19, 2020
Why are Rock Stars So Damn Appealing?
My first “rock star” crush was Shawn Cassidy. He personified everything I wanted in a guy at that age: long, golden floppy hair, bright toothy smile, tight jeans, a sweet demeanor. I didn’t really know much about boys, but I knew I liked him.
By my teens, I graduated to David Lee Roth – still the long blond hair but this version of rock perfection wore assless chaps, spandex and paraded around the stage like sex personified. I loved him so much, Van Halen posters literally wallpapered my walls (yes, I still have them).
Around that time was when my first germ of an idea for Tyson Rainier took root. In my teenage fantasy, me and my friends met a band and all of the band members fell in love with each of us one by one. Sound familiar? It is now known, in the world of contemporary romance, as “Rock Star Romance” and the trope of my first series beginning with Endless.
As release date approaches, I thought I’d ponder why so many women dream about rock stars. Why are women willing to do anything to meet them? Why does the thought of a gorgeous musician writing a song about us make us swoon? Why is the ultimate fantasy to have a famous rock god fall in love with us?
All I know is that my absolute FAVORITE romance books are always about the rock stars. Even after I’ve travelled with them in vans, herded them like cats to get to a show on time and have watched them go through terrible personal traumas and addictions. None of the “realities” compare to a good old fashioned fantasy.
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June 15, 2020
Truth is Stranger Than Fiction!
One of the side effects of having such a cool job was that any creative output for myself has been sidetracked. I’ve always been artistic and tend to delve into whatever medium makes me happy. I’ve drawn and painted giant murals for my friend’s children’s rooms, made elaborate tapestries, crafted beaded jewelry, sewn handbags, and designed and created stained glass windows.
But nothing has been as fulfilling as creating the world of LTZ. Aside from the novel I wrote at 15, which has been the inspiration behind this new career as a romance author, Endless is my first foray into fiction writing.
I love the story of Ty and Zoey, probably because it is a throwback to my dream of marrying a rockstar when I was a teenager. It is my 15-year old girl teenage fantasy come true. The gorgeous, tortured rocker falls in love at first sight and would do anything to be with the girl he loves. She sacrifices herself so he can realize his dream, and in turn she discovers herself and her strength.
Truth is sometimes stranger than fiction, and while I didn’t marry a rocker in real life, I spent many years working with guys like Ty, Zane, Connor and Jace. For nearly 20 years I’ve been happily married to the sweet, tough Irish guy that fell in love with me at first sight and has been by my side for all of our crazy adventures whole-heartedly. Endless wouldn’t have happened if he hadn’t encouraged me to write it, and patiently watched me slave over my laptop every evening.
I hope you love Ty and Zoey and Endless. Limitless is up next, which is the story of wild adventuress Alexandria (Zoey’s best friend) and hunky drummer and social media guru Jace.
