Sara Brookes's Blog, page 33

Author Island

From now until April 15th, Author Island is offering winner's choice of one of my backlist books. Entering is easy, just read the info from Author Island below:

To get your name in the hat for an ebook of your choice from Sara's backlist, read the excerpt to her latest release HARD AS STONE to find out where Garrett was watching Brady from and then head over to www.Sara Brookes.net to check out her backlist and let us know which book you'd like to have. Email AuthorIsland at yahoo.com with your answers and please put "Sara Brookes" in the subject line. A winner will be chosen on April 15th – Good Luck!

 

 

Six Sentence Sunday – 3/11

Since I sent off Command for critique and beta this week, I thought I'd share six sentences from the book that falls prior to it — Hardware. Geek-girl Allison finds herself in a very precarious position. Her Dom–Patrick–certainly seems to be enjoying it.

"You are simply mouth-watering strapped before me like this. Do you know that? It's so simple, how it provides me an unencumbered view to all of that luscious skin of yours. You should see yourself, so helpless with one of my harnesses between your legs. I wish you knew, had some idea of what level of pleasure you're going to find tonight." He made himself remove his hand, step away from her because he wasn't sure he could keep himself under strict control if he continued to touch her.

1) pick a project – a current Work in Progress, contracted work or even something readers can buy if you're published

2) pick six sentences

3) post 'em on Sunday

See? Easy. Want to play? See the site for information on how to do just that: http://sixsunday.com

If you have a Twitter account, you can add the hashtag #sixsunday to your tweets when you tweet a link to your Six Sentence Sunday post. If you're a writer (regardless of published/unpublished status) come join us!

State of Sara – 3/5 (w/ New Contract News!)

It's March already and wow, is this year flying or what? Thought it was time for another update on writing stuffs.

~ I'm super excited to announce that I just signed my third contract with Ellora's Cave! It's a m/m/f contemporary erotic romance and Chasing Sin will become my thirteen (!!) book. Let me just pause here to say how much I loved, loved, loved writing this book. The story focuses on three storm chasers whose lives take a dramatic turn after an encounter with a destructive tornado in America's Heartland. The storm chasing research for this book satisfied my inner weather geek for months and months. So not only did I get to write highly erotic and smoking hot sex scenes with this trio, I also got to write some down-right awesome, high-octane chase scenes.

I'll keep you posted as more details become available, but how about the unofficial blurb for a little tease?

Kate has made a career out of risking her life studying violent storms. Tired of watching her put herself in jeopardy, two of her closest friends offer a new thrill. Devoted lovers Snyder and Tripp don't just share a passion for nature's fury; they both long to have the headstrong woman between them. 

Though hesitant at first, she's always held a secret attraction for both men and finds it impossible to decline. The three come together for an explosive night of no-holes-barred sex. But despite having their every desire met, the morning's dawn brings nothing but heartache. 

Doing her best to stay away, Kate finds herself facing down the storm of the century with them at her side. When the dangerous and unpredictable hurricane strikes, stranding them on a small island, the trio seeks shelter in the only place they can find—each other.

~ Since my last post, I finished three books:

* a full length titled Command which is the next book in the Gatlin Falls series. For those who read Hardware, you first met Command's hero, Ryan and know he's one of Patrick's friends–and another renter of Sanctuary. It was time for Ryan to get his own story and I just sent the book off to my critique partner to have a go at it.

* a sooper sekrit project that I can't talk about just yet, but it's an erotic futuristic romance story about…oh wait. It's titled…oh shoot. Can't tell you that either. Soon, I promise!

* a sooper sekrit project that is an erotic science fiction romance story about….craaaap. I have too many of these secret projects. *g*

~ On another note, I can spill the beans on another project that's not so sooper sekrit. My critique partner, Stacey Kennedy, and I are teaming up for an erotic romance duo-ology focusing on BDSM. Two stories, two authors, one theme, one club. We've hammered out some of the details that connect the two stories and now that I have some projects behind me, I can start work on my story. Look for more on this as I dig into writing my story.

~ Also on the contemporary erotic romance w/ BDSM themes front, I'm working on Adam's book again. He's really, really shouting that his story needs to be told and you know how it is when a Dom starts getting all commanding and such. What can I say about a man who's close friends with Dalton (from Ragged Edge)?

If you're in the Chicago area the second week of April, I'll be attending the RT Convention  April 11th through 15th. That includes the signing at the eBook Expo! Swing by and say hi.

On top of the writing, I've finished all my judging commitments. That means I'm ready to dig into some pleasure reading–finally!! Now…to choose where to start.

Six Sentence Sunday – 3/4

Welcome back! I took most of February off from Six Sentence Sunday (participating and admining) because of my First Submission series & work. But there have been lots of exciting things happening for me as far as writing, I'll do a State of Sara post in a few days to catch up. In the meantime, enjoy six from a sci-fi erotic romance I just finished up and sent off to my critique partner. It still needs a title!

Sway stared at her commanding officer for a full minute before conceding defeat and turning away. It took all the willpower she possessed not to punch him out of sheer stubbornness, but the black marks she'd earned already kept her from doing so. She knew full well exactly what she'd done. It was the cold callous reality of war.

Kill one.

Save a million.

For those new to this, the rules are simple:

1) pick a project – a current Work in Progress, contracted work or even something readers can buy if you're published

2) pick six sentences

3) post 'em on Sunday

See? Easy. Want to play? See the site for information on how to do just that: http://sixsunday.com

If you have a Twitter account, you can add the hashtag #sixsunday to your tweets when you tweet a link to your Six Sentence Sunday post. If you're a writer (regardless of published/unpublished status) come join us!

Kacey Hammell has a New Release

I am very excited to say my very good friend and fellow romance author Kacey Hammell has swung by to celebrate her newest release and has a giveaway for her fans!

~*~

ILLUSIONS

By Kacey Hammell

Romantic Suspense/Erotic Romance

Available at Decadent Publishing

Protection. Adventure. Love.

It's all found within The Arms of the Law…  

Detective Isabella Knowles, a tough-as-nails cop, lives by the law, and knows what she wants out of life. And it doesn't include marriage or all that comes with it. Everything Isabella has ever known seems like an illusion when a new relationship makes her feel more alive than ever before.  She isn't happy about it and fights it every step of the way.

Burned by his fiancée years ago, seer and P.I., Brady Jacobs never wants another commitment in his life.  But his bachelorhood and heart are threatened when he has one of his visions and see a killer striking too close to the woman he has recently come to love.

Danger lurks close to home and neither Brady nor Isabella like that they can't control every situation…especially matters of the heart.

Excerpt, Kacey Hammell, © 2012

Knowing she would soon run out of time before his arrival, and getting more aroused by the second, Isabella hurriedly reached for her bath sponge. Soaping it up, she cleansed her body with an eagerness she was growing accustomed to feeling whenever she had plans to see him.

Sponging all suds from her clean body, she pulled the plug in the drain, stepped out of the tub, and grabbed a thick, blue towel from the shelf.

She rubbed vigorously at her body, drying it, and reached for the strawberry body lotion that went with her bubble bath. She poured a generous amount into her palm, rubbing her hands together to coat them in the sweet smell. Then she smoothed it over her arms, her breasts, stomach, and legs. She smiled as the strawberry scent filled the room. She shivered, both from the cold and appreciation for the deep and rich aroma that she loved to apply all over her body.

Humming Destiny's Child's ancient hit Soldier to herself, Isabella wondered how many more minutes she'd have to wait before her soldier made an appearance.

She recapped the body lotion and tucked the towel loosely around her once again. Her heart skipped a beat when she heard the sound of the front door closing. She hazarded a glance in the mirror. With the mussed, damp tendrils of hair around her shoulders, the towel haphazardly wrapped around her, she looked like a woman eager for a man's—her man's—touch.

The sound of a boot hitting the floor with a thud caused her to smile, and she moved to the doorway of the bathroom.

Hearing another boot drop and the sound of heavy breathing, Isabella peered into the hallway. When he finally came into view, she was already breathless, even though she had been expecting him.

Dressed in his usual black denim, form-fitting jeans, and dark hair damp as if he too had taken a few moments to clean up, he was a sight to behold.

Isabella's heart thudded rapidly and her legs threatened to give out. She noticed his leather jacket, undone, over a naked torso. Obviously, his zealousness to be with her had him forgetting a few things.

There they were. The abs, the washboard stomach, had her literally teetering on the edge of orgasm already—and he hadn't even touched her. Finally lifting her gaze to his face, his smoldering silver-gray eyes captured hers. She had to lean against the doorjamb for support.

He always made her speechless. His beauty, his charm oozed from him with no effort at all. How she had gone so long, so many years as friends with him and never really noticed him in such a way before? Some detective she was, not seeing what was directly in front of her.

As he moved toward her, his pace slowed, as if he knew the effect he was having on her and wanted her to crave him more desperately than ever. His face broke into a sinful grin, telling her he knew exactly what he was playing at.

Never one to let anyone, least of all this man, have the upper hand, Isabella let go of the towel she was still holding around her. It slithered downed her body, pooling at her feet. Noting his small stumble mid-stride, she relished the power she had over him.

Naked and confident, she smiled at the man she needed to feel against her. Desperate to have his hands on her, she called to him.

"Brady…."

~*~

Readers can learn more about Kacey's books and contact her via …

Website/Blog

Facebook

Twitter

Amazon

Email

Goodreads 

Giveaway—In celebration of Illusions releasing, and Isabella being "domestically challenged", Kacey is giving away a Swag Package (see photo) to one randomly drawn winner. Simply comment, with your name and email, and be entered to win. Winner will be drawn, using Random.Org, on March 3rd.

First Submission Series – Sara Brookes

Well, I hope you've enjoyed this series and that getting a look at some author's experiences shows you how wide and varied each person's experience is with this business. What worked for one person, doesn't necessarily work for another. I can guarantee you no two experiences are the same. But really, would you want it to be? So now has come the time to share the last author's experience—mine.

First Submission Series:

February 1: Emily Cale

February 7: Gina Gordon w/ Giveaway

February 10: Stacey Kennedy

February 14 = Laurie Witt

February 17 = Liia Ann White

February 21 = Cristal Ryder

February 24 = Misa Buckley

~*~

I hemmed and hawed for months and months before I ever sent in my first submission to a publisher. Mostly because I kept leaning toward the side of "I like writing just because I like writing". The idea I could actually write and get paid was utterly absurd to me. Surely no one was going to buy my books and actually like the stories I had to tell. No way. No how.

I worked up the email and, kid you not, stared at the email for a good hour before I finally found the courage to hit send. When I finally did, I immediately wanted a do-over. As if there was some way to reach through cyberspace and take back my email. It was actually a few days before I worked up the courage to tell my husband and a good friend that I'd sent something out.

Longest. Four. Weeks. Of. My. Life.

The answer came back and it was a form rejection. In a way, I felt triumphant, because duh! I'd told everyone there was no way people were going to read my books. Pfft. This rejection just totally proves it! But really, the worst part for me, however, was that the rejection came the day before my birthday.

Yeah, that stung a bit. Let me just say, that was not the kind of birthday present I wanted. But it wasn't as if the publisher knew it was birthday or anything.

Seriously, tho, I knew rejection happened and that what steps I took after the rejection were the important part (I still believe this too). So yeah, I took a few days and I wallowed about that rejection—hello, it was my birthday and my absolute right to do so. After a week, I opened the file and decided I was going to do something to fix whatever was wrong with the book even though I didn't know what it was.

As it turns out, I discovered it pretty quickly and boy, was I mortified by the end of the first chapter. Anyone who knows me now, knows I use placeholders in my stories when I can't think of the right thing at the right time—I call them the Brackets O' Doom. Yep, there's a reason they earned that nickname…there were still nice, neat little [ ] placeholders in the file I'd sent to the publisher who rejected the story.

BTW, I worked on the book, got rid of the Bracket's O' Doom, self-edited it to within an inch of it's life and yep, sent it back out to a different publisher. It would became my first published novel, Flash of Dark.

First Submission Series – Misa Buckley

For those following along, for the month of February, I've asked a few authors to come share their experience the first time they submitted a manuscript to a publisher and/or agent–regardless of what the outcome was. We've seen some fantastic and very inspiring stories. We're drawing to a close of the month and the last few authors. Now it's the very fantastic speculative romance author, Misa Buckley's turn.

First Submission Series:

February 1: Emily Cale

February 7: Gina Gordon w/ Giveaway

February 10: Stacey Kennedy

February 14 = Laurie Witt

February 17 = Liia Ann White

February 21 = Cristal Ryder

~*~

Envy is a powerful motivator.

I started writing in 2007, failing my first NaNoWriMo but loving every second of craziness. Wanting to get better at writing I joined Absolute Write. Of the friends I made there, I got on well with one in particular. Her name is Lauren Gallagher (or LA Witt, if you're reading her M/M fiction).

Now anyone that knows of Lori knows that her output is beyond ridiculous. The woman is a novel-writing machine. I watched her release story after story, then looked at my own folder of incomplete novels and gnawed on my liver in jealousy. I wanted to be published. I was determined to get published.

Early 2011 and after several failed attempts to finish a damn story, I was even more fired up to get a book Out There. Envy made me frustrated, and that made me fight. I also came across an interview and six words that slapped me upside the head.

As inspirations go, I suppose an actor uttering the words "Without an audience, we're not actors" is probably a little odd, but then I'm pretty odd, so it's all good. With those words ringing in my ears, I signed up to Write 1 Sub 1 and also caught a call for submissions on Absolute Write for an anthology.

Due the end of the month, I had to be crazy right? Yeah, well, I tried all the same. I outlined a story and sent it to Lori. "Does this even make sense?" I asked. She said "Yes."

I wrote the story. 22,000 words of a romance set against the end of the world, because that's what the anthology wanted. In twenty days I'd done something that I had never done before – I'd finished a story. High on that, I sent it to beta, made the changes and, after much nail-biting, submitted it.

Three weeks later, there was a rejection in my inbox.

Well, now what did I do? I had a completed story, but it had been written for a specific call. I got on Twitter and wailed, begging anyone with an idea to reply. Sara responded with several suggestions, including Decadent Publishing. I read their guidelines, changed the manuscript to fit, and sent it off. Not even twelve hours after the rejection had arrived.

Eight days later, I got an email. Ugh. Rejection. Um, wait… why is there an attachment?

Not a rejection. A contract. I'd done it. I'd actually gone and sold a story. In July, IRONHAVEN was released and I was a published author. Seven months after I'd decided to stop being a derp, get something written and get myself Out There.

Every writer's path is different. Mine included a healthy dose of envy and an unintentional shove from the actor I was crushing on (still am, but that's by-the-by). So yeah, very different

~*~

Ironhaven

Buy link: http://www.amazon.com/Ironhaven-ebook/dp/B005F0KHU8/ 

Earth is dying, and Lucian Hoyt is going to die with it thanks to his parents cancelling his pass aboard the last shuttle off the planet.

There is hope, though; a brilliant inventor has come up with a plan to build a ship to evacuate those who've been left behind.

That inventor turns out to be Genevieve Scott, Lucian's bitter ex-fiancee. If they're going to work together to get off this planet, they need to put their past aside, but even melting the ice between them can't erase all the scars.

~*~

For as long as I can remember, I've loved science fiction and fantasy. I grew up watching Doctor Who and Star Trek. School lunch hours were spent in the library devouring books by Anne McCaffrey, David Eddings and Terry Pratchett. I was fascinated by space and its possibilities. So it's probably not all that surprising that when I discovered the writing bug, it was sci fi that I wrote.

It was sci fi that I fell back on for what became my first published novella, IRONHAVEN. Now my other worlds include those in urban fantasy and the much-loved Steampunk genres as well as. I have aliens, humans, angels, zombie-killing cowboys and even a vampire among my repertoire of characters.

When I'm not writing I indulge in one of my other four loves – either attending the local area Steampunk group (the bio photo was taken at MOSI in Manchester on such an outing), knitting nutty creations, watching my beloved Stargate SG1 (okay, being honest I watch Ba'al, but he's gorgeous and really, who wouldn't?) or fiddling with my 1972 VW Beetle. Yes, I'm a girl and I like cars.

 

First Submission Series – Cristal Ryder

We're closing in on the final three authors for my February series of authors sharing their experience the first time they submitted a manuscript to a publisher and/or agent–regardless of what the outcome was. Continuing on, we have Cristal Ryder today, who just had a new release yesterday!

First Submission Series:

February 1: Emily Cale

February 7: Gina Gordon w/ Giveaway

February 10: Stacey Kennedy

February 14 = Laurie Witt

February 17 = Liia Ann White

~*~

Sara, I think this is a great topic and I'm happy to share.

Wow, my first submission experience…it was with Harlequin Spice Briefs. Way back when they were fairly new. I had a piece that was just over 5k. It was erotic romance that had a f/m/f storyline. I had no critique partner, no one to bounce ideas off. It was just me, all on my lonesome. I was very shy with this story too, since it was my first foray into erotica.

Once I hit send I remember sitting paralyzed for a while not sure what to do with myself. Which was a big mistake. I should have forged on with a new project. So three months later when I got the generic rejection email, I had something else in the wings. But I didn't. I remember feeling embarrassed, not good enough and didn't do much of anything for a while. Then I submitted to other epubs, getting rejections from them all.

But I didn't quit once I was on the roll. I submitted my little 5k story to Bold Strokes Books. My rejection from them was a good rejection. I offered to build it to their minimum word count and the publisher was happy with that so I guess I had an R&R in a way. It ended up at 27.5k. I think my experience with BSB was a fabulous one, even though it ended up with a rejection about nine months later. I had the chance to work with a great editor and learn so much from her comments, the process and the business. That experience led to a professional relationship I still have today.

I was ready to shelve the book but took one last kick at the can with a three line pitch. Lo and behold the pitch was accepted, a request for full followed and a contract a few days later. Whirlwind! I was thrilled to finally have a home for my little 5k story. No Fantasy Required was accepted by Lyrical Press and published in November 2010. As of today I now have four books published with two publishers and the fifth is coming soon with the EC for Men line.

Yesterday was release day for my fourth book, Being Bound.

If I can offer any advice, its to keep on going. Take that first rejection and learn from it, take a moment to feel sorry for yourself but get right back out there. Risk and reward. And remember you're not alone.

I hope you visit my website to find out more about my books and would be happy to hear from you here and at my blog. You can find me at Ellora's Cave and Lyrical Press.

www.cristalryder.com

www.cristalryder.blogspot.com

Thanks so much for having me Sara!

~*~

Sometimes reality is so much better than fantasy. 

A man used to getting what he wants, Tom Rourke doesn't take being discarded lightly. Smarting from rejection, Rourke decides the complication of women is distracting him from his goal. He refocuses his energy into ownership of the Black Phantom, where he meets Heather Canyon. Drawn into her erotic web, he can't get her out of his mind. But can he trust her? The only way to know is to experience her first hand.

Dominatrix Heather Canyon is looking for a new beginning, and a safe place where she can let her talents shine. Rourke's proposition is the perfect opportunity. She must test him to ensure they are the right fit for each other and challenges him at every turn. She isn't looking for a partner, but has she found her match with Rourke?

First Submission Series – Liia Ann White

It's another author offering up in their story the first time they submitted a manuscript and up on deck today is the absolutely wonderful, Liia Ann White, who is also celebrating her brand new release, Hot Aussie Weekend!

First Submission Series:

February 1: Emily Cale

February 7: Gina Gordon

February 10: Stacey Kenndey

February 14: Lori Witt

~*~

When Sara put the call out for first submission stories, it got me thinking of mine. My first round of submissions was for the first book I'd ever completed. And I realized, I've never actually talked about it before. So here we go

I spent weeks researching agents, publishers and editors to submit my first book to. I made sure I found someone who represented authors I loved, who also produced quality work. So I figured I'd try a couple of agents first, because you never know what could happen if you don't try. So I made sure my query letter was polished to the max; my manuscript was in good nick (or so I thought) and I felt good. So, before I could wuss out, I hit send and waited. And waited. And waited.

Four weeks after I sent the query out, I got an email back from the agent. I couldn't believe my luck! I got a request for a full. So, I sent the full. What happened after that made me doubt myself so severely I didn't want to write anymore, unless it was purely for fun.

They basically said the book had a good premise and a very unique world, but my writing needed a lot of work. The part I failed to notice was that they actually said I should revise the work, get my writing up to the best it can be and resubmit it!

Of course, being a first time submitter (and an unstable one at that), I overreacted and cracked the shits. I posted on twitter how down I felt and a darling friend picked up on it and sent me an email. She offered to read and critique the book. Now, back then, I knew very few authors apart from this newly published one. I had no critique partners or beta readers. I was basically relying on myself to get the book up to scratch, which, as we know, doesn't work. You will always miss something during revisions or self edits. That's why we have beta readers and critique partners.

Said friend critiqued it, coached me with rewrites etc and five long months later, I had what is now Elora's Match. I tweaked my query a little bit because hey; it must have been pretty okay if it captured the eye of a very successful, highly regarded NY agent, right? During my five months of rewrites, I researched epublishing and thought 'awesome'. I'd just bought myself a Kindle and knew how much easier it was to get ebooks and the quality of them were mostly as good as NY published ones. So I sent off my query for Elora's Match to five epublishers and got back five contract offers. What didn't I do? Resubmit to that agent.

Am I kicking myself for it now? Not really. Every now and then I wonder 'what if' but what's the point? I love where I am right now. If I'd resubmitted and signed with that agent, I could still be sitting here waiting to become a published author. But I'm not a multi-published author with a much better understanding of the business, because of this experience.

And to be honest, something recently happened with said agent going on a bit of a rant because someone gave a negative review of a book they'd sold and the agent didn't appreciate it. They're still very highly regarded in the industry (and I'll never name names) but still, I'm very glad I'm not signed with them, because I don't approve of their actions.

Basically if there's any advice I have for anyone, published or unpublished, it's get a critique partner. I have the most brilliant CP right now and I don't know how I ever wrote before. Beta readers are just as crucial to an author as critique partners. They always pick up on something you missed, can help you out when you're stuck and, above all, give you an honest opinion.

~*~

Newlyweds Jaycee and Campbell are stressed. Constantly working, trying to set up a secure future for themselves, they rarely spend time alone, enjoying each other's company. So, to celebrate their first anniversary, Campbell whisks away his wife on a romantic getaway where he plans to pamper her and lure her into the ultimate relaxed state. But what is his ulterior motive? What secret has he been keeping from his new wife?

Whatever it is, it's guaranteed to be a weekend full of eroticism, love, romance and some surprises on a Hot Aussie Weekend.

~*~

Liia Ann White is an Australian author, hailing from Perth, WA.

She spent her childhood daydreaming about far off lands, creating her own unique characters. She read books about witches, faeries, demons, ghosts and a host of supernatural creatures and eventually gained the courage to put her imagination to work.

A self-proclaimed geek, Liia collects Disney and Star Wars memorabilia, loves animals and wishes to be the female Cesar Millan.

When not writing, she can be found reading, playing video games or spending time with her two dogs.

She's a member of Romance Writers of America, Romance Writers of Australia, Passionate Ink, Futuristic, Fantasy & Paranormal Chapter of RWA and Young Adult Chapter of Romance Writers of America.

Always interested in meeting new people, Liia can be found on facebook or twitter most of the time.

First Submission Series – Lori Witt

It's time for another author's story! For the month of February, I've asked some authors to come share their experience the first time they submitted a manuscript to a publisher and/or agent–regardless of what the outcome was. Next up is the uber-fantastic, Lori Witt!

First Submission Series:

February 1: Emily Cale

February 7: Gina Gordon w/ Giveaway

February 10: Stacey Kennedy

~*~

First Submission

First, a confession: I'm one of those people who submitted a query the first week of December.  Yeah, one of those queries. You know what I'm talking about.

"I finished my NaNo novel!" I cried along with the other fifty zillion winners of NaNoWriMo back in November 2008. "Now I'm going to get it published!"

I know. I know. Shut up.

It actually turned out to be a positive experience, though. And I'm cheating a little and discussing  two different books because while only one is technically my first submission, the other was very, very close on its heels. These two situations happened almost simultaneously.

The first book was Camera Shy, which was my NaNo novel. It was my first erotic romance, and my second completed novel. (We do not speak of the first one, for it is chained in the attic where it will remain until the end of time.)  The second was Playing With Fire, which I wrote in December. Yes, I wrote another novel the month after NaNo. If I gained anything from doing NaNo that year, it was the discipline and momentum to write novels in short periods of time. Three years later, I still average 1-2 books a month.  So, believe me, I am not ripping on NaNo in the slightest. I could go on for pages about the reasons why I think NaNo is the bomb diggity, but that's not what this post is about, so I digress. Focus, people, focus!

Anyway. So I queried Camera Shy and Playing With Fire within a few weeks of each other.

Camera Shy got a partial manuscript request.

Playing With Fire got a full manuscript request.

Needless to say, I was thrilled!

Within forty-eight hours of the full request, I was offered a contract on Playing With Fire. Heck yeah, I was stoked. More on that in a minute, though.

Sometimes the planets align in strange, unpredictable ways. Things happen so perfectly, you're pretty sure you're about to be punk'd. Such was the case with Camera Shy.

Let me backtrack a little to explain. During NaNo 2008, while I was in the midst of writing my first romance, I moved from the U.S. to Okinawa. This involved staying with my parents for a few weeks, letting my husband go on ahead to Japan, and then I was to follow him with our two cats once he had a place for us. It all worked like a well-oiled machine except for one small problem: someone (me) screwed up on some of the quarantine paperwork for the cats.  Out of nearly a ream of forms, I'd messed up on the one that was a) 100% non-negotiable and b) had to be signed by the Japanese government and faxed back to me…a process that could not happen in the 12-hour window between discovering the error and boarding the plane.

Long story short: I flew to Japan without my cats. The plan was for us to get settled in, and then I'd fly back to the States, pick up the cats, and return. Believe it or not, it was actually cheaper – by a longshot – for me to do this than have them travel by themselves.

Tickets were purchased, and I was scheduled to be hurled across the ocean in a winged metal machine in early February 2009. I don't like flying, if you can't tell, which is awesome when one lives eleventy billion miles from anything…

Anyway. By sheer coincidence, the publisher who'd asked for the partial on Camera Shy had a policy wherein an author could follow up on a manuscript if there'd been no answer within a certain period of time. 45 days or something. I don't remember exactly. What I do remember is that the period expired while I was in the States.  So, I sent an e-mail to the editor.

She responded, saying she was still working on it, but she also made an offhand comment that it was unusual to get an e-mail from me at that time of day, seeing as I was in such an odd time zone. I commented that I was actually in the States right then, and after a few e-mails back and forth, we realized we were not only on the same continent, but she lived about 20 minutes away from my parents' house.

So… we agreed to meet for lunch.

She told me upfront she wouldn't be able to contract the book, at least not as it was currently, but she really liked it and wanted to discuss a few things about it. As someone only just getting my toes wet in the publishing industry, I was fine with that. I was having lunch with an editor, for crying out loud!

The next day, I met her at a café not far from where my folks lived. We spent the better part of two hours poring over the manuscript and discussing ways I could improve my writing, my characters, my plots, the sexual tension… everything. It was an incredibly educational conversation, and I came away feeling mildly bummed out that they weren't contracting my manuscript, but confident that I was a step closer to being able to write something they would contract. That, and one of my other books had already been signed, so I definitely felt like I could do this.

Now, I had also started writing another book while I was on the plane. I was a few chapters into it by the time I had this lunch, and I went home that very day and looked at my outline with fresh eyes.  I tweaked a bit here and there, played around with this and that, and applied everything I'd learned. And I liked where the book was going after that. I felt like I actually knew what I was doing, and continued the story with greater confidence than I'd had when I started it.

I flew back to Japan. I finished that book. I applied the things I knew to the next books. Time went by.

You may recall that I had sold Playing With Fire back in January. Wellllllll… things didn't work out there. I won't go into great detail here, but the short version is that the publisher merged with another publisher, and in June 2009, the new company dropped my contract.

Of course I was bummed, but sometimes these things happen. It's just business, and in the long run, it was a good thing. (The more detailed version of that story is here.)

One thing that really kept me going after my contract was canceled? By that point, I already had another one. The book that I started on my trip, the one that was tackled with the knowledge and confidence the editor had given me, sold about three weeks before Playing With Fire was dropped. Naturally, I was scared to death the same thing would happen this time. I think it was about six hours after the book was released that I finally stopped worrying that someone was going to tell me "Nope, we're not publishing this one after all."

But they did publish it. In September 2009, a little under a year after the NaNoWriMo that got all of this in motion, Carnal Passions released my first book, Between Brothers.  On February 21st 2012, three years and a couple of weeks since that lunch with an editor who happened to live near my parents when I just happened to be home because I screwed up on some paperwork to take my cats to Japan, Loose Id, LLC will release Where There's Smoke, my twenty-ninth book.

So looking back, I was nowhere near ready to submit my book right after NaNo in 2008.

But you'd better believe I'm glad I did.

***

Lori Witt is an abnormal romance author who recently relocated from Okinawa, Japan, to Omaha, Nebraska. She writes as L. A. Witt (M/M romance) and Lauren Gallagher (M/F romance), and spends most of her days either beating the crap out of her keyboard or fighting with her cats for desk space. You would think a person and two cats could share a desk this big, but nooooo…

Website: http://www.loriawitt.com

Blog: http://gallagherwitt.blogspot.com

Twitter: GallagherWitt