P.J. Schnyder's Blog, page 22

Beware giving a PJ Red Bull

A little over a week ago, several friends enticed me to meet them at a bar.  I popped in for the evening, thinking a night out with them would be fun and I could use a little dancing. For those new to me, I LOVE to DANCE.

Before I even arrived, I received a text from my girls: Cherry or Grape

New tip about PJ, my friends, given the choice here I will always choose Cherry. Yum!

Once I arrived, they had a Cherry Bomb waiting for me.  And by the way, I had never had Red Bull, ever before. That Cherry Bomb (half a can of Red Bull and a shot of cherry flavored vodka dropped in -> chug) was the first of quite a few for the evening.

What followed was chatter, laughter, more Cherry Bombs, random shenanigans in which I brushed aside the eager tadpoles sniffing around our group and in depth discussion surrounding our assets.

One of the key conclusions made by my very dear friends was that I do not have much in the back end. -_-;

This is truth, I will confess. The PJ has an Asian rear and 25 years of ballet taught me to tuck what little I've got under. Now as was discussed in Candi n Kelly's recent In Heat w Paul Italia and Pete Michael Stellato show – some guys are looking for big, round, generous booty. Nope, I think I'm disqualified.

What I lack in the rear, I make up for up front, though. Oi. Oh yes, and the Red Bull…

The next morning, they all slept in and nursed upset stomachs and aching heads. I popped up, hit MMA training and even took an extra hour of Combat Submission Wrestling. Then I somehow survived an insane work week with the day job and wrapped up this past weekend with those same girls watching our Brazilian Jiu Jitsu instr. Prof Wilson Reis fight in the Bellator, then the UFC fights.

Suddenly, I was standing in my hallway on Sunday afternoon and felt like I got hit by a bus. The Red Bull, after an entire week, it finally wore off.

Damn.

Happy Monday, people. It'll be a while before I let anyone convince me to drink any more Red Bull.

Destinations and Inspirations: Neptune Memorial Reef

I hit a roadblock in one of my WIPs, the Knights and Weapons concept.  What's a girl to do?

Sometimes you have to jump up and head in a completely new direction.  It started with a song, then two.  Then I had a play list in YouTube. And then I was researching my concept and found a destination.

For an author, immersion in the story and characters can be as simple as a moment of day dreaming. Still, sometimes immersion takes on an entirely literal sense.  I want to go here:

The Neptune Memorial Reef

Based on this, you might guess the nature of my new WIP.

It's man-made, ecologically beneficial and takes death and makes it a sanctuary for life.

My new WIP is about the end of an existence and stealing life to find it again. It's about searching for the hands holding your heart and the vow that would share a soul. It's about living in a world with no air.

The interesting thing for this WIP is whether it will be a Happily Ever After or a Happily For Now.

I'm on a panel later this year discussing Happy For Nows and when romance isn't Happily Ever After. Are they satisfying for us? Can we love a romance that doesn't promise a Happily Ever After? Does a romance have to be a fairy tale?

What if there can't be a happy ending because her heart is eternal? What if she will remain, a loving presence, dancing on the edges of the waves as sea foam? What if she will never see an end of days? Or, if he eats a bit of her flesh, what if he walks the world forever?

There are many legends tied to mermaids. So many possibilities. So many what ifs.

And of them all, the strongest call for me is to swim beneath the waves. I've snorkeled in the Caribbean, the waters off Hawaii and among the Pi Pi Islands of Thailand. This particular reef off Miami draws me, both for what it is and the story it inspires in my mind. Of course, I need to get certified for scuba diving first.

Winner Announcement

Grats to Dan Redding, winner of an ecopy of Heart's Sentinel from my contest and interview over at J.A. Campbell's blog.

Thanks for visiting the interview and commenting!

PJ features Valerie Mann

I'd like to welcome Valerie Mann, author of hot erotica and romance as well as all around great editor.

When we decided to feature her here, I asked a couple of questions about her new novella, Hey You.

Val, I love the fact that Hey You is not only the title of your story but also the title of a song by Run Devil Run – the four-member LA-based rock band who agreed to cross-promote their music with romance fiction. How does the song relate to Cara and Marek's story?

Actually the title and story don't have much to do with each other.  Try as I might, I wasn't able to work a plot around the lyrics or make the words and plot work together. But I did have an idea…

In the story, the hero, Marek, is a demon who isn't able to verbally communicate with the heroine. He's a silent presence in Cara's life, always watching and waiting for her to break one of her society's laws. If she does, he takes her to their version of hell, the Dark. However, the one way Marek can communicate with her is in her dreams, and as they develop feelings for each other, he begins to visit her more and more in the dreams because he can't stay away. He greets her each time by saying, "Hey, you."  It becomes his trademark phrase, LOL.

In a previous interview, you mentioned that the band members would be reading the stories in the anthology. Did they have any interesting commentary about the story you might like to share?

I know they liked the first story that was released. But I have no idea if they've read the other stories in the series yet. I'm thinking probably, if for no other reason than they have a narcissistic urge to read the stories that bear their faces on the covers. I mean…wouldn't you? Jackie Joyride, the cutie on the cover of Hey You, did make a video for me during the cover photo shoot. He told me he'd heard that his character was dark and brooding and he was channeling that into his photo shoot. I think he succeeded if the cover is anything to go by!

Hooray! My novella,  HEY YOU,  in the Run Devil Run series with Decadent Publishing has finally been released! It's been a long road to get here, but well worth the trip!

What's so special about it? Seriously, who wouldn't want to take a literary road trip with four hot men and a rock band? Well…okay…I didn't exactly travel with them. In my overactive imagination I did, though. And…well…the books in the series aren't about the boys exactly…but they modeled for us and provided us with plenty of inspiration and some amazing covers!
HOW'S THIS FOR INSPIRATION?

Run Devil Run is a popular rock band based in Los Angeles. The guys were happy to lend their faces and talent to Decadent Publishing. Trust me, it wasn't a hardship on our part to make this happen!  (oh, and my cover features the uber-sexy Jackie Joyride ~ I think I did okay, don't you?)

The books in the series are all paranormal, with Hey You probably the darkest of the bunch. As Heather Bennett, co-owner of Decadent Publishing said, "Paranormal romance lends itself easily to the Rock vibe." After reading the other books released in the series, I couldn't agree more.

What's Hey You about?
Playing by the rules…Cara spent her entire life doing just that—dutiful daughter, stellar student, responsible adult…in a word…nerd. Not that she had much choice. The Society, a secret moral social order she'd been born into, had one motivating tool in its arsenal to ensure members didn't succumb to temptation and break any of its laws…
The Watcher… A demon whose sole mission consisted of waiting for his watch to break the rules—and bring them to…
The Dark. Marek sucked at his job. Not only did he hate being a Watcher, but he'd fallen in love with his watch, Cara, placing his eternal soul in peril. Only able to protect her in her dreams, when she reaches a crossroad in her life that puts her mortality in jeopardy, they have to decide who will give the greater gift.
Will Cara sacrifice her mortality for Marek's love…or will he sacrifice his soul to save her life? Read an excerpt

I'm going to do TWO things to put some Run Devil Run awesomeness in your hands because I think you're going to love this these stories and this band as much as I do!


1.  Leave a comment on this blog. I'll pick one random commenter here to win a free download of Hey You. Winner will be announced here and by email (if you leave one) on March 26th.
2.  Want to win the GRAND PRIZE?  Buy a copy of Hey You from Decadent Publishing by March 25th. When you purchase your book, you will also receive a free download of the song "Hey You" by Run Devil Run. You'll be sending a print screen file as proof of purchase to Decadent Publishing in order to receive the download. So ~ send a print screen file to me as well, confirming your purchase of my book. Send it to valeriemann09@yahoo.com I will announce the winner on my blog, Facebook and Twitter on March 26th.
What will the LUCKY WINNER win? A basket full of goodies, including Run Devil Run autographed swag like their latest CD. I'll also throw in a copy of the Run Devil Run anthology print book, goodies from all of the RDR anthology authors, and decadent edibles (chocolate comes to mind). So….follow #2 to the LETTER and I'll enter you in the big drawing. Good luck!!

Valerie Mann

valeriemann09@yahoo.com Facebook ~ valerie.mann   Twitter ~ mannvalerie

Book Signing at the Alternate Living Expo

I survived my first book signing. W00t!

We kicked off the weekend with the arrival of Stephanie "Flash" Burke and D Renee Bagby at my house to hang out pajama party style with my BFF, Hel. Steph and Renee love my predator-filled household and start thinking up all sorts of plot bunnies every time Kaiser does something uncanny or particularly uber canine.

We were up bright and early Saturday morning, somehow making it out of the house and on the road on time. Not Asian Standard Time. This was a feat unto itself. Seriously.

The greatness of our group only got better once we met up with Stella Price at the Expo center. I hauled my large table into the building and we were shown our square claim of con space. Add several more authors and two more tables. Shenanigans ensued with all good fun.

I have to say, the vendors at the event were far more interesting for me than the attendees. Honestly, I think the location was perfect in terms of space for the event but in terms of attendees attracted it missed the mark a bit. Those who did come in had either made the trek from Philly, were Dorian's Parlor regulars or otherwise familiar with the vendors. The rest sort of wandered in wide eyed and cautious, shy and not really game to do more than dip their toe into the waters of steampunk fun. A surprising number looked at the books and said they didn't read…ever. O.o

We took turns manning the tables and wandering the con. I scampered about and hijacked someone's very adorable dog. What? The dog looked bored and seemed to very much enjoy walkies around the event. We were asked for several pictures. Apparently, Wizard went well with my outfit. I just thought he was adorable. I did return him to his owner…eventually.

Leatherwork, corsets, skirts and jewelry…if you needed to put together a steampunk or alternative outfit, this was the place to be. My eye caught on several skirts and I couldn't resist getting tied into one (or three) of Mayfaire Moon's corsets. I did make a new item purchase, with Steph's help in choosing. I also got an intro education in a lifestyle I've only barely ever known anything about.

After hanging out with Stella and company, I can only get more and more excited about the upcoming Authors After Dark. It's going to be fantastic. Hell, AAD 2012 is going to be epic.

And in terms of books – we didn't sell many. But I did sell two. Yay! And I learned I really should practice my signature a bit. Very not used to it and I'd like it to come out more polished. I did learn a few key things: get a cash box, have a receipt book and have lots of change. Less obvious, folding stools make much better seats behind the booth/table than camp chairs. Camp chairs are insanely hard to struggle out of to talk to visitors at the booth and are also not so accommodating for costume wear.

All in all, good times. Free samples of absinthe, gin and vodka didn't hurt either.

Whacky Cardio

Remember how I said last week I was gonna add some whacky cardio to my workout routine?

Two types of cardio will be added this month: Zumba and Dance Dance Revolution (DDR)

Why these?

Having run cross country back in high school, I've learned that running on a treadmill or even in laps around a track (or the block) is insanely boring. Boring is bad for a multi-tasker like me. If the weather outside forces me to the treadmill, I'll put on anime and watch while I trot away the calories. If I'm outside, I take one of the boys with me. Few things are more interesting than having a 90 lb dog keep pace with you and then suddenly decide to cross your path. But the running and the bouncing…very uncomfortable for the curvy.

Skip to other kinds of cardio. P90X workouts are still my favs for when I'm away on business. But what about when I'm at home? What can I do to have a lil fun?

I love to dance. Having studied dance from age 3 to 28, it's something I miss badly. I still pick up the occasional class at Koresh when I can nab the time. But when TSMAA added Zumba classes to the roster, I had to grab the chance to try it out. I've heard good things about Zumba.

And the DDR… Dude. I'm a gamer. Do you really need to ask? Behold, how whacky is this? And yes, this is what happens at a gaming weekend at my place. One of many games played, but one I can play at home on my own and still count it as cardio.

Promo Materials: Bookmarks

I designed bookmarks to promote my upcoming book, Hunting Kat. This was a new effort for me.

Truth be told, bookmarks are a 50-50 sort of promo item for me at this time. Why?

Yay! -> Bookmarks are some of the cheapest promo I can put together
Boo. -> At cons you see trash cans filled with discarded bookmarks
Yay! -> Bookmarks are an easy way to give my book info and incl. contact info for readers to follow me online via FB, Twitter, Tumblr or whatever
Boo. -> Everyone has bookmarks

I wrote a post on Con going and Promo last fall while prepping for PhilCon. Bookmarks were one of the promo items I'd considered briefly but never got around to. You see, I think they can be very effective if thoughtfully handed out. I also think they can be sadly wasted money if thought isn't given to how they are distributed.

First of all, I think a bookmark should stay simple and cheap – because that's the reason I chose it as a promo item in the first place. Therefore, I will not spend extra money in fancy edging, foil or finishes. You may get what you pay for, but the wisely spent penny can return better value than the splurged dollar.

Second, I give thought to what is actually on the bookmark. It should have a catch, either in image (cover art) or in log line or quote.  In my case, it's not likely that I'll have cover art by the RT convention but I still feel it's important to have promo material for Hunting Kat coming out in July. I designed bookmarks for Hunting Kat with a quote from the book in the absence of cover art. I feel it should also have info a person would theoretically want to keep for later – such as how to stalk me online and where to buy my book. LOL.

And finally, how do I hand it out? I don't plan to leave bookmarks on a random table in the hotel bar for a server to clear off the pile into a trash can. Random locations in the hopes someone will pick it up don't seem efficient or effective in my eyes.  Instead, I plan to have the bookmarks with me at both the eBook expo and the Book Faire while I'm signing. I can chat up passersby and get them interested in my work and hand them the bookmark so they can follow up and purchase once it's released. Hell, I'll have them and my business cards with me in my purse, just in case I chat someone up Anywhere. The key is I've made a personal connection, however brief, and know the person is interested. Likely, they'll hold onto that bookmark. (Even better, they may take several and pimp me out to their friends)

There's a quick tutorial here on how to design for cheap bookmarks. This allows you to take advantage of the periodic promotions from VistaPrint offering oversized postcard or regular postcards for free. Then you just pay for design upload and shipping. Heck, once the design is uploaded, you can wait for the next free promotional and just pay shipping.  Most of my promotional materials are ordered during these free promotions and I only ever pay shipping.

Once the over-sized postcards arrive, I hit them with a paper cutter and viola! -> Bookmarks.

Here's how my designs look in VistaPrint:

What's next? Cage Fighting? O.o

Funny story: I walked into the GNC by my place to pick up some protein powder. As the guy was ringing me up he gave me a long look then bloomed with a huge grin.

"You're the girl who lost like 40 lbs in the past year. Aren't you a cage fighter?"

Huh? O.o

Yes, I lost 40 lbs last year. But um, do I look like a cage fighter? Where in the heck did he get that idea? LOL

Truth to tell, I started classes in mixed martial arts last year, so that's probably where he got the idea. Needless to say, I did clarify for him though. He asked what my goals were for this year.

Weight loss isn't my main focus anymore. In fact, I haven't really lost any weight since the turn of the year. I have, however, gotten leaner. I weigh the same, but my measurements have become more trim and I've slimmed noticeably. I'm liking that, a lot.

I've slowed down in the last couple of weeks though. The body is amazingly adaptive and will become more and more efficient with calories (burning fewer) unless you continue to confuse the hell out of it. I'd fallen into a sort of regular eating routine and wasn't getting results for a bit.

This article caught my eye:

Health Benefits of Cheat Meals

It had a couple of good points. More importantly, it got me thinking about confusing my body again. I'm going to play with the idea of a cheat meal once a week. Beyond that, I also need to throw in some whacky workouts too. I'm lucky enough to have a few bodybuilders/fitness guys training at my mma school and also several friended on Facebook. Many of them share their workouts and even their daily food logs or recipes. While I don't want to nag them by asking them to spend time working with me, I can get some good ideas from them and adjust to fit my needs.

I'd like to be fit – that doesn't mean skinny, it means lean and toned and feeling good. Having come a long way in the last year, I'm almost there and there's no reason I can't make it happen.

The RT Booklover's Convention is in a month and I'd like to feel fantastic when I hit LA. Wish me luck!

Then: a year ago (I'm almost the size of the horse) VS Now: 2 days ago

Beyond Triton

Edits for Hunting Kat are just about finished. All that remains is the copy edit round to check for the typos and little things that slip past after you and your editor have gone through the manuscript a dozen times and simply can't SEE the rare oops occurrence anymore. I added the dedication and acknowledgements in this round and my dedication might read a touch cryptic.

You see, Hunting Kat was born out of an earlier novel. It was my first completed manuscript, one so bad it will likely never see the light of day. Begun back in high school, the original is actually the back story Kaitlyn remembers so well.

The adventures and personality clashes in the founding class of the NJ 932nd provided the inspiration for the ghosts haunting Kaitlyn's past. But Kaitlyn, and her story, continued to grow and mature beyond the events of Triton Moon Base.  Her story evolved from a sci fi adventure into a sci fi romance hot enough to make me wonder if I really want my mother to read it. O.o

Kaitlyn is a kick ass heroine with very real vulnerability and I absolutely love her. Of course I created a hero capable of stepping right up to the line with her. And for those who do read it, it will become obvious that Kaitlyn and her hero's story could go light years further.

Hunting Kat will not stand alone and officially has a series title: The Triton Experiment

*happy dance*

Hunting Kat, Book 1 of The Triton Experiment series, releases from Carina Press in July 2011. Stay tuned for updates on the next in the series.

What'd you do this weekend?

My weekend unexpectedly provided a touch of inspiration for someone else's plot bunny. I LOVE that.

World Champion Savate Instructor Nicolas Saignac

I participated in a 1 day workshop hosted at Tri State Martial Arts Academy with one of the best Savate Instructors in the US. By the way, several of us had trouble moving our legs the following day – it was so intense a workshop.

What's savate? It's a form of French kickboxing which features elements of Western boxing with graceful and devastating kicking techniques. No elbows or shins here.  It's about speed and movement, striking with hands or feet in blinding combos.  The shoe worn in savate is something to watch for, and toes pointed just so during a kick can drop an opponent.

One of my fellow writers contacted me shortly after I posted on Facebook about the workshop. She has a main character, half French with mixed martial art training. She thought it only seemed correct to put Savate in the mix. Then, one of the representatives from the PA Jedi expressed interest in whether there was any instructor in the area who does canne de combat.

Love how sharing activities and interests spark ideas elsewhere!