Lisa Kumar's Blog, page 7

Happy Mother's Day -- Six Sentence Sunday From Kary

Happy Mother's Day!

Here is a little bit of magic from my current WIP -- The Pirate Princess. Marchant, the commander of the armies of Komissa and renowned cadabout, has protected Brislyn, the spirited daughter of the Duke her whole life. During a celebration in honor of Brislyn's 19th birthday, March searches for the missing girl and finds more than he believed he could.


As March descended the path to the beach, the lively celebrations dimmed in favor of the whispering tide. As he suspected, the girl sat alone on a rock admiring the beauty of the sunset.
Finding her safe, he moved to return to the party -- and the earl's daughter -- but stopped short. Bris began to play her lyre and sing; his feet sank in the sand. The lilt of her charming voice reverberated through him as if he had been deaf to music, to beauty, to love until that moment.



Hope you enjoyed. Please leave a comment. You can find more great postings here.

Lisa Kumar: Trip around the World: Mega Author Blog Hop: the Poconos

Welcome to the beautiful Poconos in Pennsylvania after your stop in Hell (Michigan, that is)! To start you off, let me share some landscapes and scenery with you.

Delaware Water Gap--NJ & PA

See the road runing along the right side of the river? That's I-80. A noteworthy fact: you can hike the Appalachian Trail through the Delaware Water Gap.



Waterfall at Childs Park--Dingmans Ferry, PA
Dingmans Ferry has quite a few waterfalls, actually.



Raymondskill Falls--Dingmans Ferry, PA
See, told you Dingmans Ferry had more than one waterfall!



A black bear--it can be a part of the scenery:) When I lived in the Poconos, I saw bears walking across various roads, not to mention in the woods behind my house.

Sometimes I miss living there. Walks in nature can feed the mind--and the creative process. It was easy to imagine other worlds, other beings, when surrounded by such beauty. I know the heroines in my stories would feel the same way. They found those 'other worlds, other beings' all too real when they were transplanted to a foreign dimension.


Through the Rabbit Hole

Social worker Natalie Danvers never thought she would fall head first into her very own dimensional tear — straight into a fey lord's lap. The handsome but infuriatingly vague Lorh insists she's stuck in his land for three weeks and that only she can discover the reasons behind her appearance in TirAnn. Natalie's convinced this is all nonsense until forgotten memories of Lorh and his siblings resurface and collide with reason. Just who and what is she to Lorh and his family?

Captive

Emma finds herself at the mercy of someone who shouldn't even exist -- in a reality far removed from her own 21st century world. Even though her Elvin captor, Cian, is mysterious and handsome, she determines to keep herself aloof and return home. This soon all changes as he wages a seductive war on her defenses that challenges everything she's believed about love and life.
The Tour Rules:



THIS TOUR STARTS: Monday, May 16, at Midnight (Central Time)
THIS TOUR ENDS: Monday, May 23, at Midnight (Central Time)


Participate in every blog contest and be entered for chances to win multiple prizes. Every blog visited is another chance to win.


PARTICIPATION AT EVERY BLOG IS MANDATORY IN ORDER TO WIN PRIZES. EVERY AUTHOR IS WAITING TO MEET AND INTERACT WITH YOU, SO PLEASE BE SURE TO VISIT EVERY AUTHOR.
(All winners will be verified to have visited AND participated at EVERY blog, so please make sure you participated at ALL blogs on the tour!)

My Contest and Giveaway:

First Prize: A .pdf e-copy of my fantasy romance novella, Through the Rabbit Hole and a .pdf e-copy of my fantasy romance short story, Captive


Second Prize: An .pdf e-copy of Through the Rabbit Hole


For a chance to win, be a 'follower' of this blog and leave a comment or question. Don't forget to leave your email address, so if you're a winner, I can get the copy/copies to you.

My Website

My Facebook Fan Page

Your next destination: Lindsay Downs, Godolphin Cross/Helston, UK

If you want to go to the beginning of the blog hop, then Greece is your place.

Astraea Press--15% off Mother's Day Sale

Head on over to Astraea Press to find a great read and then enter CELEBRATEMOM during checkout to save 15%! Come on, you know you want to:) There's something for everyone--YA, romance, mystery. A perfect gift for the mother in your life who likes to read.

Givaway Update--and Winners!

Because of the thoughtful comments I received about my sweet post, I decided to give away two copies of Through the Rabbit Hole. I wish I could give everyone who left a comment one! The responses were well-thought out and articulate--a joy to read.


I've e-mailed the two winners, Amy and Mary Anne. Any feedback from them is appreciated, but not expected:)

Six Sentence Sunday

My six this week are from the rece

"Your hand, it's in one piece?" His teasing voice came from above her head. She spun toward him so quickly she nearly got whiplash, but halted when her nose almost hit his chest. Yikes,
when had he gotten so close—and so tall?

He picked up her hand, which by now lay limply by her side, and made a show of inspecting it. "Your hand, my lady, is fine?"

Thanks for stopping by! To view other SS entries, please visit http://sixsunday.blogspot.com/

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

All Romance

Astraea Press

Sweet Romance and a Giveaway!

I've just had a sweet or clean fantasy romance released from Astraea Press (read below to find out how to win a copy). In this age and market, sweet romances often seem a thing of the past. Erotica is everywhere, which is fine. But what if that's not your cup of tea? It's not mine, not so much because of any moral stance, but because I don't like the heavy reliance placed on sex as a plot device.

Sweet romances do exist, though they're kind of the ugly duckling of their older sisters--erotica and mainstream romance. Sweet romance writers can get as much negative heat as explicit writers from the public. I daresay they receive more than their fair share from certain sectors. Not only are they writing romance, but they're not including those all-important sex scenes that titillate readers. How dare they! Most people think if they pick up a romance, it must have the requisite bedroom scene every chapter or so.

Wrong.

Sometimes the most sensual moments come from the two characters standing together, almost touching. The tension is thick, both wanting more but knowing it's not the right time or place--or maybe even the 'right' person. It's this inner push-and-pull I love to see. If the bedroom scenes pile up or come on too strong, these kinds of moments get smothered between the sheets.

I'm not bad-mouthing more explicit works, but sometimes I want to read something focused on the romance, the growing relationship between hero and heroine. Unfortunately, too many sex scenes, especially graphic ones, leave me wondering where that very romance is. Yes, I get that sex is an important part of a committed relationship. But I don't like when that aspect makes up a third or a fourth of the book. One or two scenes I can skim over, but when I have to skip pages and pages to get to the 'good' parts -- those touches and glances -- I feel cheated.

The bedroom door doesn't even need to be fully closed. But I prefer not to have a play-by-play description of what each body part is doing, especially every few chapters.

What do you prefer? Or can you read all heat levels without a problem?

For more posts on sweet romances, check out Kay Springsteen's blog. She has a great series on the subject going on.


Giveaway Details:

Leave a comment about this post and be entered to win a PDF of Through the Rabbit Hole! Important: If you're not a follower of this blog, please either follow this blog or leave your email address so I can reach you if you win. Winner will be chosen at random and announced on Sunday.

Here's the blurb:

Social worker Natalie Danvers never thought she would fall head first into her very own dimensional tear — straight into a fey lord's lap. The handsome but infuriatingly vague Lorh insists she's stuck in his land for three weeks and that only she can discover the reasons behind her appearance in TirAnn. Natalie's convinced this is all nonsense until forgotten memories of Lorh and his siblings resurface and collide with reason. Just who and what is she to Lorh and his family?

My Author Interview at the Astraea Blog

I was interviewed for the release of Through the Rabbit Hole. Below is the link. Stop by and leave a comment if you have a moment!

Astraea Press: Terrific Tuesday: New Release Through the Rabbit H...: "Lisa Kumar debuts here are Astraea Press with a book that is far from Alice and her Wonderland. This hole leads to a Fae realm as original a..."

Thanks!

Through the Rabbit Hole Release!

Through the Rabbit Hole has been released a day early on the publisher's website! Amazon, Barnes and Noble, plus a few other places, should have it in a day or two.

Here's the blurb: Social worker Natalie Danvers never thought she would fall head first into her very own dimensional tear — straight into a fey lord's lap. The handsome but infuriatingly vague Lorh insists she's stuck in his land for three weeks and that only she can discover the reasons behind her appearance in TirAnn. Natalie's convinced this is all nonsense until forgotten memories of Lorh and his siblings resurface and collide with reason. Just who and what is she to Lorh and his family?

For those interested in a link to the book on the publisher's website, click on the cover art at the top left of this post.

Six Sentence Sunday

My six this week are from Through the Rabbit Hole, my upcoming release from Astraea Press. The heroine, Natalie, has just arrived in another dimension, where she is told some rather upsetting news by the fey hero, Lorh.



"Three weeks?"

Grasping her hand, he pulled her up, not answering. She trailed behind him, and when she had all but given up on him responding, he spoke. "Three weeks to decide where your dreams rest. If they don't lie here with me, you will go back to your world with no remembrance of this one or the people in it."

She stumbled at his words, her mind hazing over like a
foggy mirror.



Thanks for stopping by! To read other Six Sentence Sunday entries or participate next week, go to http://sixsunday.blogspot.com/

Colorful Writing

Have you been feeling Blue? Yellow-bellied? Red-faced? Green with envy?

While these examples are cliche, using color to describe characters and the world around them is almost mandatory for a writer. But finding new and innovative ways to use color in writing is a challenge.

One of the most interesting things about color I've learned was through my studies in the theater. There are three primary colors of light -- red, green, blue -- that create every other color in the light spectrum.

Similarly pigment also has three primary colors -- red, yellow, blue -- which create every color in the spectrum.

The major difference between pigment and light is this: In light, all the colors combined create white but in pigment all the colors combine to create black. In light, black is the absence of any color where in pigment white is the absence of any color.


Throughout history, world cultures have linked colors to various emotions and life events. This symbolism can help us paint our pages with imagery. For example, when we're considering what characters might wear, the colors they prefer might be symbolic of their station in life or the condition of their psyche.

Check out the chart on color symbolism below. Many things in the list won't come as a surprise, but maybe a few will.

Color Symbolism Chart
Red
Excitement, energy, passion, desire, speed, strength, power, heat, love, agg ression, danger, fire, blood, war, violence, aggression, all things intense and passionate.
Yellow
Joy, happiness, optimism, idealism, imagination, hope, sunshine, summer, gold, philosophy, dishonesty, cowardice, betrayal, jealousy, covetousness, deceit, illness, hazard.
Blue
Peace, tranquility, calm, stability, harmony, unity, trust, truth, confidence, conservatism, security, cleanliness, order, loyalty, sky, water, cold, technology, depression, appetite suppressant.
Orange
Energy, balance, warmth, enthusiasm, vibrant, expansive, flamboyant, demanding of attention.
Green
Nature, environment, healthy, good luck, renewal, youth, vigor, spring, generosity, fertility, jealousy, inexperience, envy, misfortune.
Purple
Royalty, spirituality, nobility, spirituality, ceremony, mysterious, transformation, wisdom, enlightenment, cruelty, arrogance, mourning.
Gray
Security, reliability, intelligence, staid, modesty, dignity, maturity, solid, conservative, practical, old age, sadness, boring
Brown
Earth, hearth, home, outdoors, reliability, comfort, endurance, stability, simplicity, and comfort.
White
Reverence, purity, simplicity, cleanliness, peace, humility, precision, innocence, youth, birth, winter, snow, good, sterility, marriage (Western cultures), death (Eastern cultures), cold, clinical, sterile.
Black
Power, sexuality, sophistication, formality, elegance, wealth, mystery, fear, evil, anonymity, unhappiness, depth, style, evil, sadness, remorse, anger, underground, good technical color, mourning, death (Western cultures).

Which ones surprised you?

Here's a great website with interesting and helpful information. Everything you ever wanted to know about color and more is here .

Tell me -- How do you use color in your writing?