Heather Huffman's Blog, page 34

More than a Book Signing

[image error]When I first signed with Booktrope, I was asked who I thought my target readers were. I came up with what I thought was a fairly solid picture for my "target market demographic."   On some level, that picture looked a lot like me.

The reality, however, is that my readers are as diverse as my characters, if not more so. One reviewer described himself as a "grizzled old man," and I've also received emails from teenage girls who love the books. My Facebook fans confirm the same trend – the demographics are all over the board.

It shouldn't surprise me. I often say my characters are varied but their stories intertwine, illustrating that we are all more alike than we realize, despite different backgrounds and circumstance in life. It thrills me that my readers further prove the point. We walk different paths, but there is a common thread to the experience we call humanity.

Since the books were published, meeting my readers has been one of my greatest joys, among many. I love getting to know who you really are, what is unique and special about you. And I love the conversations we have, whether we're talking about the books, how to stop human trafficking, or the crazy antics of our lives.

And those are exactly the kinds of conversations that abounded during the launch party for Ring of Fire. It was more than a book signing; it was a chance to meet my readers, many of whom I consider to be my newest friends.

O'Malley's Irish Pub on Cherokee Street, one of the settings found in Ring of Fire, was kind enough to open up their back room for us. We added words of wisdom to the graffiti canvas, talked about anything and everything, and laughed – a lot. The people in attendance were a diverse bunch, but I wouldn't have it any other way! I couldn't have asked for a better way to launch the Leave Your Mark tour I'll be embarking on.

My only regret is that I haven't been able to get my hands on any of the pictures that were taken. The second I do, I promise to post them!

To all of my readers, thank you for sharing this journey with me. I hope to have many more chances to interact with you, and I'm looking forward to the road ahead.

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Christopher's Plan

During the hustle and bustle of last-minute Christmas shopping, my seven-year-old announced his plan to end child labor in the cocoa fields. This has been a concern of his since he first heard that his favorite candy-maker was lagging behind on promises they made 10 years ago.  (A good synopsis of the issue can be found here.)

Anyway, he was pretty excited about his plans, so I promised him I'd post his idea on my blog. Here it is, in his words:

Alright, so, I thought that we should maybe start driving around to our neighbors to see if they can tell other people that Hershey's chocolate is harvested by slaves so it gets told all over. Then when Hershey's is like "Hey, why is nobody buying our chocolate?" We can tell them "Hey, stop using slaves and we might buy your candy if you make it fair for everybody."

Something about his earnest plan struck me. On some level, it really is that simple. If enough people were to speak out against the retailers who knowingly utilize slave labor, they will eventually have to examine their practices.

True to his word, when someone gives Christopher  Reese's Peanut Butter cups, his favorite candy, he replies, "I can't eat that; it's slave candy."

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Bring on the Christmas!

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I finished wrapping my Christmas presents today, a process that reminds me that even when I think we're broke, my family is ridiculously blessed. My boys aren't materialistic; they rarely ask for much. So it makes me absurdly happy on years like this one when I know they'll get everything they've had their eye on. With present wrapping out of the way, I can focus on what really matters this holiday season. For my family, the true spirit of Christmas boils down to three things: faith, family and giving.

Call me a dork, but I enjoy going to church. Seriously, Sunday is my favorite day of the week, but that sentiment is even further amplified this time of year. I earnestly look forward to the Christmas services still ahead (the first was last night). I love the way the church glows by candlelight. I love to sing, and some of my favorites get pulled out this time of year. I also love to marvel at the wonder of what this season represents.

As for family, mine has their moments. But as batty as they make me sometimes, they bring me so much more joy. I know that as we get together, multiple times, over the next several days that I will, multiple times, laugh so hard my sides hurt. I'll eat some of my favorite foods, probably more of them than I should. And, at least once, the girls will get to trounce the guys at Trivial Pursuit.

With my family so completely immersed in blessing, an important part of our Christmas tradition is to give to others. Otherwise, it's easy to forget that not everyone has it as good as we do. My boys will help their father take gifts to the homeless on Christmas day. And we'll also sit down just like we do every year to pick a gift from the World Vision Gift Catalog. It's a tradition that's a few years old now, and I think it's my favorite.

Plastic toys from the store will break and get lost much sooner than I'd prefer. Teaching my boys to care about the world beyond themselves will last forever.

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Soundtrack Wanted

I'm not sure if it's a good thing or a bad thing that within a day of releasing Ring of Fire, I started to hear from readers that they'd already finished reading it and were ready for book six. I mean, that's mostly wonderful. But, yikes, I can't write that fast!

I can promise that I'm hard at work on book six, though. Devil in Disguise will finally tell Rachel Cooper's story. She's had at least a mention in pretty much every other book; it's time she have her moment in the sun. I'm having a lot of fun with this one, too. There is one thing that would help it flow better, and that's where you come in.

I need a soundtrack. My writing process truly hits its stride once the book's soundtrack solidifies on my play list. It's a crucial step to my writing process.

I already have a decent start for my soundtrack for Devil in Disguise. There's the obvious (Devil in Disguise, just in case it wasn't obvious – only the version by Chris Isaak and LeAnn Rimes.) And, of course, plenty of Bruce. Rachel, being a true Jersey girl, is a die-hard Springsteen fan. But it needs something more. I'm still trying to find that one song that captures the heart of the story.

From some of the conversations I've had with my readers, I've learned that you have pretty fantastic taste in music. Often, you've told me about the soundtracks you listen to when reading the books, and I wish I'd had them while writing. So… how about it? What songs inspire you? What songs make you smile?

Email me, Facebook me, Tweet me or post a comment on this blog. I'd love your help building the soundtrack for my next book!

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LiNK Heartland Nomads

This week, I had the pleasure of having lunch with the Heartland Nomads from LiNK (Liberty North Korea), a group committed to "Redefining the North Korea crisis through creative storytelling, while providing emergency relief to North Korean refugees and pursuing an end to the human rights crisis." The nomads are people who've given up approximately three months of their lives to travel their region, raising awareness about what's happening in North Korea.

I first learned of LiNK when one of my readers asked me to check them out. I was impressed by their organization and saddened by the human rights crisis happening in North Korea, largely ignored by most of the world. When I reached out to LiNK, I was further impressed by the kindness, passion, and vision expressed by those I spoke with.

Though not solely a human trafficking issue, human enslavement is very much tied to this crisis. The more I learned, the more I realized I wanted to help in some way, above and beyond donating a portion of my royalties to them.

Through a series of emails, I was put in touch with the Heartland Nomads, which leads us to this week's lunch. I will blog more about LiNK in the upcoming days and months; we discussed more at lunch than I can cover in a single post. For now, I'll simply encourage you to take a few minutes to nose around their website. If you haven't heard of the crisis in North Korea, LiNK's page North Korea 101 is a good place to start.

A couple of things came out of the lunch that I do want to touch on – more information will follow.

First, the nomad tour is centered on screenings of a documentary produced by LiNK. I'm beginning the process of scheduling a screening next spring in the St. Louis area. The plan is to combine the screening with a graffiti party and to donate a portion of the proceeds from book sales to LiNK. As soon as I have more details, I'll post them on the new Graffiti Parties page on my website.

Second, I asked what my readers can do if they wanted to join the cause. Here are a few easy ways to plug in:

Through December 31st, check out their Reliance program, which uses Social Media to raise funds and awareness.
Participate in their 9 Lives program by donating $9 a month.
Schedulea screening in your area at your church, school, or favorite venue.

Simply connecting with LiNK on Facebook (LiNK: Liberty in North Korea) and Twitter (@linkglobal) are great ways to help them raise awareness for the North Korean crisis.

LiNK is an excellent example of what can happen when a small group of people decides to leave their mark on the world by taking action to make a difference in the world. It's not up to the big organizations to change things; we all have a mark to leave. What's yours?

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A Sneak Peek…

It's coming… the release of book five, Ring of Fire, is right around the corner.  Here's what you'll see on the back of the book:

An adventurous blend of love, power, greed, and personal conviction, Ring of Fire reminds us things aren't always as they seem.

When rare, violet-gray diamonds are discovered at Alexandra McAlister's clean-energy research site on a small South Pacific island, the reclusive scientist suddenly finds herself plagued by greedy gem hunters. To make matters worse, the island's government is threatening to revoke her permits so they can capitalize on the find.

Fresh from a confrontation with an annoyingly attractive government official, Alex happens upon a girl in danger. Instinct takes over and she rescues the girl, only to find out she is the island's princess, and the annoying official is her guardian, Daniel!

Alex finds herself thrust into a situation where she has to protect not only her life's work, but also her life itself and that of the precocious teenage princess she grows to love. Daniel appears to be their only chance at survival – if they can learn to get along. Undercover and acting the part of a loving family, they work to find out who is pursuing them and what it is they're after, only to realize their relationship may not be an act after all.

But here are a few things you won't see on the back of the book:

The character Danny first appeared in Throwaway, and he makes another appearance in Ring of Fire. Inspired by real-life St. Louis musician John Bartley, Danny's music is an important element of the story. I have to say I listened to him sing Ring of Fire more than once while writing. (Added bonus – John Bartley will be singing at the launch party on December 16th!)
The main character, Alexandra McAlister, is the younger sister of Devon McAlister, who first appeared in Suddenly a Spy. She's inspired by my middle sister, who is crazily pretty and smart. (There are three sisters in the Huffman clan. I'm the baby.)
In the book, I mention an underground network of caves that runs under St. Louis. In truth, many of those caves were destroyed when the interstate system was put in through St. Louis. Before that, they were used as part of the St. Louis leg of the Underground Railroad. Those same caves are the reason St. Louis became a brewery town. The caverns made for natural coolers, so the breweries were built on top of them. They say the Lemp family turned the cave under their brewery into quite the party place, complete with a swimming pool and theater.
This book took longer to write than any of the others. Partly due to the amount of research that went into the science piece, partly due to the process of re-releasing the first four novels.

 As I write this, Ring of Fire is going through the process of propogating out to the retailers. Any day now, I'll be excitedly sharing links to the Kindle and Nook versions. I'm really eager to share this novel with my readers. I hope you enjoy Ring of Fire as much as I enjoyed writing it!

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Thinking Romance

It's hard to think romance when your youngest son just licked the

dog. Right after you put on the anti-itch spray. So now his tongue is numb.

Sigh.

My world is a delightful cacophony of conversations, silliness,

bickering, boys wrestling, dogs wrestling, kittens wrestling… and since we pulled

the boys to home school, the days are a flurry of activity that blend one into

the next.

It's also hard to think romance when you're actively fighting

something as evil as human trafficking. The more I get involved, the more I

learn, the harder it is to strike a balance.

Sometimes the rush of love feels like an ancient memory… sort of

vague and buried beneath the callouses that have formed on my soul through the

years.

As a romance writer, all of the above can make progress on the next

book come screeching to a halt. But the story is bumping around inside,

clamoring to be freed. So how do I put myself back in a romantic suspense frame

of mind?

I immerse myself in love.

Books, movies, TV shows streamed over Netflix… classics, new,

indie, edgy or cheesy. I watch people fall in love; I read about people falling

in love. I soak up that moment, when he looks at her like he could devour her

whole. She looks at him like she might dare hope he'll be different. The moment

when his hands cup her face for that first kiss, or when they walk away from

each other, and inside I'm shouting, "Go back – don't walk away!"

At the moment, I've stumbled across season one of Nikita, and it

has me staying up way too late each evening. Lost in Austen is another Netflix

find, and it's become my new favorite movie. Soon, I'll have finished my

research on things like setting and logistics, and I'll have firmly ensconced myself

in a romance state of mind. Then I'll devote my every free moment (and a lot

of ones I should be sleeping) to Devil in Disguise, and book six will go from

a crawl to a sprint.

I can't wait.

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Writer Spotlight

Many thanks to blogger Julianna Morlet for featuring me in her writer spotlight today! If you get a chance, check out A Girl with Passion in Her Pen. She's offering a free autographed copy of Throwaway to one lucky winner!

 

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My Oasis

A friend of mine at Booktrope recently suggested I blog about my workspace. Until last summer, I didn't really have one. I tend to keep a dictaphone or notebook with me at all times, just in case a scene popped into my head while I was out and about. I write anywhere and everywhere.

But last summer, I got it in my head that I wanted a writing room. And, since I am surrounded by boys, I wanted it to be pretty and feminine. And clean.

So I got in and started painting. My sister and I even made a bed for the nights I stay up too late writing. My husband hand painted the headboard.[image error]

My sister made me the coolest lamp on the planet.

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My room was complete, and it was perfect.

Somehow, over time, my boys started migrating to my writing room. My oasis became the hang-out spot.

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 And then the cat we took in had kittens in my oasis, and it became a nursery.

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Sigh.

They aren't very conducive to productivity, but at least they're cute…

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Want an Autographed Copy?

The weather at the Project Liberty book signing and walkathon was laughable – sunny and 55 until the event started, then the temperature plummeted and the rain began. Until we finally packed it in an hour early. Then the sun came back.

Despite the pesky weather, the walkathon went on. My son and his friend were among a handful of walkers who pressed on in the freezing rain. I sold books to people huddled under the pavilion in a vain attempt to stay dry and warm, and I met some awesome people in the process.

The Project Liberty team is amazing – they have a heart for God and a passion to make a difference. They inspired me more than words can say.

I sold more books than I thought I would, given the conditions. Still, I'd like to raise just a bit more money for Project Liberty. On average, it costs between $100 – $500 to save one child from trafficking.

So I'm willing to donate 10 more books for the cause to see if we can save one more child.

Here's how to get your autographed copy of Throwaway or Suddenly a Spy:

1)  Email me via the "Contact Me" link on this blog or on Facebook – tell me you'd like an autographed copy and which of the two books you'd like.

2)  Donate at least $15 to Project Liberty within the next three days. (There's a PayPal link towards the bottom of their website.)

3)   Forward me a copy of your receipt, along with the name you'd like me to make the autograph to and the address you want the book mailed to. If you don't want to forward your receipt, I can verify the gift through Project Liberty. I'll still need your name and address, though.

I'll take the first 10 readers to respond. One book per reader. I pay shipping. If you email me after I have my 10, I'll put you on a backup list in case someone doesn't come through with their donation.

As always, many thanks to my wonderful readers. You guys bring me more joy than you probably realize!

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