Jennifer Probst's Blog, page 28

Writing and Blogging News!

Hello my peeps!

I am thrilled to be off to Manhattan this week for the annual Romance Writer's of America conference. I will be meeting new writing buddies, editors, workshopping and learning from the masters so I can be a more prolific writer.

In the meantime, please check out my post at http://4badmommies.com

It's a good one – about forcing your children to have fun at any cost…let me know what you think!

I also have fantastic news to share…my new novella will be issued early 2012 with Red Sage entitled: Sex, Lies and Contracts. Stay tuned for blurbs and more giveaways and blog fun!

And please help support me by checking out my new short story available on Kindle for only .99 – A Life Worth Living. Donations go to Pets Alive animal shelter who do great work.

Check out the new Romance Trading Card for my current novella, The Tantric Principle. If anyone would like one please drop me a request at romancewriter121@yahoo.com and I will send one out to you.

Thanks to everyone for their support, their humor, and their following!

THE TRUTH BEHIND THE STORY: A LIFE WORTH LIVING

Let me tell you a story…

I'm a romance author. A children's author. I'm trying to build a name for myself, write like crazy, and build a list. Get an agent. Etc. So, what does a person do when a dog's voice mutters in her head for days?  Begging you to tell his story?

I said no. Absolutely not. I would not be distracted by my flirty muse, who is too social and interested in too many topics. My muse has ADD. I ignored the dog's voice and concentrated on my new work in progress which actually has a home I can sell it to.

The dog's voice got louder. He talked when I tried to go to sleep. During the intimate love scenes I tried to write. Finally, after a full week of torture, I surrendered.

I told him I'd write his story.

I sat down one morning, and emptied the words onto the paper. Took one full day. Exhausted, drained, and happier than I've been in a while, I realized a true hero was born in the shape of a shelter dog. But the question is…what the heck was I going to do with it?

I checked out some markets. Thought about offering it on my blog. But after a few people read it, I was inspired.

My hero needed more readers. He deserved to be heard, and to share his story. So, I decided to publish it on Kindle for .99. Half of all proceeds will be donated to my shelter, Pets Alive, where I received my own abused shelter dog, and watched him grow and strengthen into the loving,  sweet animal he always was.

I'm asking you to spread the word.  Take a moment to write a quick review on Amazon for me to help the exposure.

BUY IT HERE: http://amzn.to/iwNwvb

If you don't have a Kindle, you can still download to your Ipad or your computer.

I'm back to writing my romances but this short story has strengthened me as a writer, and a human being.

Thanks, as always, for all of your support.

CALLING ALL SUPERHEROES…

My little one is obsessed with superheroes.

Personally, I think it's pretty cool. My older son never went through any phases intensely. He enjoyed cars for a bit, puzzles, little stuffed animals and figurines he carted around. Nothing last too long, and his interests were wide. But I've come to realize the superheroes aren't going away any time soon.

What I love about my son's current obsession is his intelligence with his questions. He batters me all day long, with a different character taking precedent on different days. I must admit, I was never into superheroes, and dimly remember making fun of my poor brother with a sneer, calling him "ridiculous." Of course, I was also the only girl on the block who detested dolls and Barbies. Give me a good book even at 5 and that's all I needed. God, I would have been even more socially awkward if the Kindle or Nook was on the scene. But I digress.

Batman was the first. My son was fascinated with the Joker and his evil laugh, and Batman's ability to face evil without a flinch. The Batmobile is super cool too. He demanded to know everything that Batman could and couldn't do, including flying, exact amount of super strength, how he became Batman, and what gadgets were used in which situation. Thank God I knew a lot about Batman so a bit of brushing up was all I needed.

We moved on to Superman. Again, saw all the movies, knew about his past, so mom was well prepared. We hit Spiderman, Ironman, and the Incredible Hulk. The Fantastic Four nearly killed me – I knew nothing about it, and then McDonalds gave out little figures of The Thing and I was doomed. He collected three of them, made them utter the words "Clobber Time!" and asked me about the Thing's past and what he did.

Enter the Internet.

I began researching superheroes. I delved into how they became who they were, and what type of power they possessed. My son was smart and asked these type of questions.

"Can the Hulk beat the Thing in a battle? Because, Mommy, you told me they both had inhuman strength and one yells 'Hulk Smash!' and the other yells 'Clobber Time."

Crap. I had no clue. Finally discovered the Hulk had slightly more power than the Thing from a library book.

Then it was…

"Mommy, Kid Flash can fly so, so, so fast! But you said Superman was faster than a speeding bullet and the ultimate in fastness. So who wins?"

Crap. Couldn't really find the answer but all stats said Superman ruled so I went with Superman.

Then..

"Mommy, you said only Superman can really, really fly, but Batman, Spiderman, Ironman and the Hulk can fly too. "

"Well, honey, Superman is the only one who can fly without any other costumes. Spiderman uses webs, Batman uses his cape and gadgets, Ironman uses his powerful uniform, and the Hulk jumps so high it really looks like he's flying."

My smug look said it all. I was such a COOL mom. I actually answered and discussed my child's hobbies. Then..

"Ok. Mommy, what does the Silver Surfer do?"

CRAP. I went back to the computer. Silver what?

My son's fascination got me to thinking about some important points about Superheroes.  Most were regular human beings who had something terrible happen to them. They dealt with parental death, and bullying,  isolation, and feeling lonely. Some important event changed who they were and they didn't have a choice in the matter.  They took their circumstances and rose above it. They received special powers but used them for good, not bad. They fight evil, but they are never done, because the bad guys keep coming back…and coming back…and coming back. They get up every morning and do the same thing and probably wonder late at night if they really made much of a difference. But they get up the next morning and do it anyway.

Pretty cool.

These are our stories. Our stories in day to day life. On television reality shows. In our books. When I am writing a new novel, my characters are the most important part of the story – the meat that holds it all together. We all have a superhero inside of us – some are just more flashy than others. Some will use it for good, and others for bad. Take your new character and delve deep. Look at the special powers that make your hero or heroine extra special. Sketch out the evil in the story – which can be internal or an actual villain. Dig below the surface. Have them make mistakes – lots of mistakes. My favorite part about superheroes are the obstacles they face, and that they all occasionally make a blunder. That makes the story so much richer.

My favorite part of reading a book is when I grasp the pages and get so frustrated with the character I want to shake him or her. Because that's real.  If they're both right the entire book, well, I'm going to read another book. Character growth equals investment by the reader.

As for my son, he is teaching me every day. Something new. Something wonderful. Something heroic.

Here's to the heroes.

 

A PERFECT DAY…

As a mom and a writer, many people have asked me, "What is your idea of a perfect day?" And then thoughts of writing for hours uninterrupted, spa dates, cocktails, sunshine and no kids run through my mind.  But I learned something a few weeks ago.

A perfect day is what you make it.

This day started with my son's soccer game. If anyone remembers my very first blog post, soccer was the bane of my existence. My son never played, and completely stressed me out. I vowed there'd be no more after one painful season. One year later, he begged me to sign up for soccer. I said absolutely not, but after many pleas, I realized he was older and wanted to try again. He vowed to play and try hard, so I parted with my money and enrolled him again.

And he played.

I'm quite proud of him. He runs up and down the soccer field, panting, looking professional in his uniform, and having fun. Here is our conversation from that morning with me and my husband.

Me: He looks like he's having fun.  Look at him run!

My husband: Yes, but he's going nowhere. He's afraid to kick the ball. See how he runs behind the group and if the ball gets near him, he ducks behind another player?

I frowned, then watched my son mimic my husband's statement.

Me: Why doesn't he kick the ball?

My husband shrugged. "He sucks, honey. On defense, he watched the ball go right into the goal while he looked at his teammate to get it. It's a disaster."

Me:. "At least he's outside getting exercise."

My husband: "Yes. There is that."

I looked at my younger son, settled on my lap like a sultan, eating M&M's and blinking lazily in the sun. "We still have one shot left at getting a relief pitcher for the NY Mets."

My husband: "Don't hold your breath."

Later on, I drove my two boys to meet with their cousins. My niece brought a friend, so that increased our total to six children. After my mom's house was trashed (it took 15 minutes) I decided to load them in the van and go to the park.

I love the park. It's meditative, and forces me to breathe fresh air and stay in the moment. I try not to use my Iphone to twitter or read my kindle or facebook. I take the opportunity to sit and think and watch my children play, or push them on the swings.  I stayed for two hours and watched the dynamics. The older girls rocked on the swings, giggling and sharing secrets and sneaking glances at the boys on the basketball court. The two younger ones – 4 and 5 – strolled hand in hand and played in the sand, while the two middle ones had a hearty game of tag in and out of the slides. Eventually, I had three kids lined up on the baby swings and got my workout pushing each of them one at a time to fly high in the sky.

Then the ice cream man came.

I hate the ice cream man. Once a magical icon, he is now feared and loathed by all mothers in parks. With dinner looming, I lied and told them I had absolutely no money with me and promised them Rita's Ices after dinner.

We tried to leave the park but got delayed. The middle child had lost her shoes. It took us almost half an hour to find them, hidden in the back of some rocks, and then we found her socks buried in the sand castle.

When we returned, my mom had made tacos for dinner. I took my glass of wine into the tv room and watched the Preakness. The kids sat at the dining room table and forced the adults to eat buffet style. Then my husband came into the room looking very upset.

"They ate them all."

I looked up from the race. "Who?"

"Those kids. I went to get my taco and everything is all gone."

"That's impossible. We put out plates and plates of food. We just served them."

"Well, it's all gone now. What the hell am I going to eat?"

I gave my grumpy husband five bucks to get a slice of pizza. You don't mess with hungry children.

After dinner, I piled them back in the minivan for the promised ices. While I herded the group through the line, I desperately tried to prepare by getting as many orders as possible. But by the time we reached the front, the kids all wanted different samples, and changed their minds a dozen times, and I forked over a million dollars and directed them to the big table in the front. Exhausted, I slumped to the side and slurped my ice.

A woman came over to me. "Are they all yours?"

"Hell no!" I answered. "Only two. The rest are my nieces. One family friend."

"Good for you, my dear!" she cheered. I guess she was excited I had the bravery to actually leave the house with so many children, so I took my kudos and enjoyed the moment.

When we got home, they needed to be cleaned up, get sand washed out of their hair, put in pajamas, and then the battle began over who would sleep over whose house. I finally loaded three children back to my house for the night and pulled in the driveway. Cut the engine and turned around.

They were all dead asleep.

Relieved, I paused for a moment. Gazed out at the quiet night, and listened to the crickets chirp from the open window of the van. I went over my day, every last messy, chaotic, crazy inch of it. And smiled.

Yep. It had been a perfect day.

Bright sunshine. Healthy, laughing children. Grabbing precious moments to watch them exactly where they are in life, and wonder who they will grow up to be. A deep weariness in the bones that reminds you you've worked hard and given a lot.

It wasn't a day I learned I wrote a bestseller, or watched my son score the winning goal. But it was my day, one in hopefully a million, made up of mundane, stressful details that are my life.

Tell me about one of your days that surprised you once you looked long enough.

Writing in Different Genres

Happy Tuesday!

I am guest blogging today at the wonderful Shoshanna Ever's blog: The Writer's Challenge. I'm discussing the challenges of writing in different genres, so swing by and leave me a comment!

http://bit.ly/9pNnDX

For all the mommies out there – come by http://4badmommies and get a laugh at my expense. An updated entry of The P Factor is open for comments!

Winner for the Free Necklace!

Thanks to everyone who particpated in the contest. I am very happy to announce the winner is:

Raelynn Barclay!

She posted a comment on my blog at Red Sage for All About Character. My son picked her name out of the hat so congratulations, Raelynn!

Don't forget to check out our new post over at 4badmommies  – would you buy your son a convertible or a motorcycle? http://4badmommies.com

More to come next week! I'm currently in the process of completing 50,000 words for the month of May so all my energies are going into finishing my new novella.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Write Naked

I'm lucky. I knew who I wanted to be when I was young and never strayed from the path. I was born to write and dreamed of publication. This dream kept me on the straight and narrow, even during tough times when I felt like I had lost my way.  But when I was young, I felt like this group was small. Sure, I belonged to Romance Writers of America and met great friends at my local chapter. But in the last decade, the writing world has boomed to a new level, and it completely inspires and humbles me.

I used to meet people who consistently told me they dreamed of writing one day but didn't consider themselves talented enough. Or feared rejection. Just the idea of putting something in the mail they had lovingly crafted, to be told that it sucked, would have driven them to the mental ward. I must admit, I was a bit thrilled I'd have less competition in the publication world. Only the hardy survive to tell about it. But another deeper part of me felt sad. Writing was such a wonderful way of making sense of life and finding your way. People felt like they couldn't write unless there was a certain goal.

And then blogs were born.

Suddenly, a new crop of writers emerged on the horizon. Not just romance writers talking about writing, but mommies talking about parenting, experts sharing knowledge about their craft, and artists explaining their process. The world cracked open and became shiny new. People began to love writing because they were able to take the pressure off and write about what they loved.

There will always be competition and of course, blog envy.  Now there are top rated blogs, and freshly pressed competitions, and the desire to have the most amount of followers, twitterers, facebook buddies, and commenter's. We are back on the verge of exhausting ourselves for the general public. Sometimes, this is good. Sometimes, not.

Blogging emerged because people wanted to share something personal. People have begun to write naked.   They want to share stories, connect with an audience, and make sense of day to day life. They talk triumphs and ask for support over pitfalls. Writing reminds us we are all human and in this together.

It's well known in the romance world there are basic plots done repetitively. Marriage of convenience. Secret babies. Plucky heroines challenging dark, seething alpha males. Too often, critics make fun of the genre and don't realize how one plot can offset a thousand different creative stories. We all do something different, because we each have unique perspectives and personalities. Humor, sarcasm, grief, pain, stoicism.

That's what real writing is about. Getting naked. Putting our perspective out there to the general public because it helps us make sense of who we are and where we are in this journey of life.

I celebrate the blogging community and the rapid growth. I feel as if I have experienced many gifts by getting to know so many writers who do not term themselves authors.

Writing should be enjoyed and celebrated. If we find ourselves at the computer, joyless, overworked, and unhappy, it's time to step back and re-evaluate. Maybe we need to write something else. Maybe we need to refill the well. Maybe we need to write what we want at that moment, and it shouldn't be for the public eye.

When I had my first baby, I began writing a book for him. This book was not structured or meant for anyone else until my son came of age.  I wanted him to hold my thoughts and know how much he was loved, the struggles I went through, the doubts I had, and the person I was and became through motherhood. It's a mess, but it's my mess, and he will have a part of me I hope will help him when I'm old and gray.

During a difficult time in my life when I felt lost, I began doing morning pages. I scribbled three full pages of anything that came to mind when I got up in the morning. Put the pen to the pad and don't' stop, even if you write the same sentence over and over. This is in the fabulous book by Julia Cameron, The Artist's Way. I didn't know how it would help, but I stuck with the process.

Months later, things began to change. Through my writing, I discovered parts of myself I had hidden. Things I wanted to do and believed, but became afraid of. I actually glimpsed a part of me I wanted to re-discover. I made some changes, took some chances, and went on faith. I have never looked back and it is still a tool for me when I feel like I need clarity or guidance.

Writing whispers in our ear: I was here. This is what I felt and thought. I am important.

Whether you are writing a blog, or a book, or a short story, take a pause today. Write for pure joy or do some morning pages to cleanse.

Write naked. You won't regret it.

*** The free jewelry giveaway contest ends on Friday. Remember to leave a comment either here or at http://4badmommies.com for entries. I will announce the lucky winner next week!

FREE JEWELRY GIVEAWAY CONTEST!

Happy Wednesday!

As promised, I am giving away another gorgeous handmade necklace to celebrate the release of my new e-book, The Tantric Principle! 

This piece is one of a kind and is specifically inspired from my book. But beware: this necklace will inspire many complements and attract gorgeous men, so be careful!

How do you win it?

So glad you asked.

Like My Facebook Fan Page. Click the link, hit the like button, and your name goes in the hat to win.  http://on.fb.me/jUGCy5

 2.     Check out my other site, http://4badmommies.com and leave a comment. We're talking about the many things that make us feel like a bad mommy. Humor and support is what motherhood is all about!

 3.       Hop over to the Red Sage Author blog and leave me a comment. Writers will love this article on All About Character. http://www.eredsage.com/blog

 4. Leave a comment on my blog here. Stop in and say hello or share your thoughts on any of my books. Anything goes – I love to hear from my readers.

 5. Write a review on Amazon for Buffy and the Carrot – my latest children's release.  Since reviews are so important to authors – anyone who takes the time to write up a quick review and post it will receive an extra chance to win! Click here http://amzn.to/iLD5eN

 If you do all the above, you get SIX chances to win! The contest runs through next week.

Interested in obtaining a piece created on an individual basis? Create one of a kind and limited addition jewelry. To inquire about commissioning a piece or to be updated about newly created designs please contact bleuflower70@aol.com

***Check out the first official rave review of The Tantric Principle!

5 Alpha Howls!

I absolutely loved this book!!! I should not have picked this book up right before bed thinking I could read a few pages, sleep, and read the rest tomorrow. No! I could not go to bed until I finished it. I absolutely had to know what was going to happen next. This was a simple story of boy & girl meet & fall in love but have some issues they have to work through before they can spend their lives together. However, it was done perfectly. The writing was so smooth and the words just flowed across the pages making me lose myself in the story.

This is a keeper to be read again! I just wish Ms. Probst had a library of books that I could start devouring now!  –Kris, Bitten by Paranormal Romance

A BIT OF RANDOMNESS…

Happy Friday!

First off, I want to congratulate the winner of my contest – Lisa from Fishy Face Designs! She left a comment on my guest blog at Elizabeth Staab's site, and won a copy of my latest release, The Tantric Principle! Congratulations, Lisa!

Second, I will be doing a book reading and signing for my children's book, Buffy and the Carrot, at the Wallkill Public Library tomorrow, April 30th, at 12:30pm. Stop on by with the kids for a story, crafts, giveaways and refreshments! My niece will be attending and reading the book.

Lastly, I posted over at my other site, http://4badmommies.com 

Come join me and check out the website. Lots of comic humor and support from fellow mommies help in this journey called motherhood.

Have a great weekend!

THE BENEFITS OF CHEATING…

Ah, got you on the title, huh?

The fabulous Elizabeth Staab is hosting me over at her site today. Stop over, leave me a comment and one lucky winner will pick up a copy of my new release, The Tantric Principle!

http://elisabethstaab.com/wordpress/

Comments will close out tomorrow at 5:00pm!

Good luck my peeps!