Jennifer Bray-Weber's Blog, page 86
March 15, 2013
It’s Agent Shop Pitch Day!
Guess what? It’s that time…
GO!
All pitches need to be sent to Candi_agent_shop (at) yahoo . com
Yes, I’m posting this early so everyone has the chance to join in…
Welcome to another round of Agent Shop! (Pitching will officially start Sat. March 16th at 10:00 am EST when I post the word go. Please wait until I update the page with a big ‘go’ at the top of the post before sending in your pitch. Don’t worry, it’ll be big so you won’t miss it!)
I’m super excited to be hosting the awesome Mollie Glick. Best of luck to everyone pitching.
And welcome to our spotlight author – one of Mollie’s lucky authors - Gennifer Albin, with her new release, CREWEL.
Check out this cover!!!!
Enter a tangled world of secrets and intrigue where a girl controls other’s destinies, but not her own
Sixteen-year-old Adelice Lewys has always been special. When her parents discover her gift—the ability to weave the very fabric of reality—they train her to hide it. For good reason, they don’t want her to become one of the elite, beautiful, and deadly women who determine what people eat, where they live, how many children they have, and even when they die.
But Adelice is forced into this powerful group, and she must learn to navigate the dangerous politics at play. Caught in a web of lies and forbidden romance, she must unravel the sinister truth behind her own unspeakable power. Her world is hanging by a thread, and Adelice, alone, can decide to save it—or destroy it.
Links to Buy: Amazon, B&N, Powell’s
Links to Author: www.genniferalbin.com, http://genniferalbin.blogspot.com/
Make sure you check her out, and feel free to comment!
BONUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Come one, come all. Even if you’re not pitching, feel free to come join in the conversation. I’ll be giving away THREE prizes. All you have to do is join in the fun! Every comment will be entered for a chance to win one of these prizes!
1 – Ebook copy of Primitive Nights
2 – $25.00 Barnes & Noble or Amazon Giftcard (Winners choice)
3 – The Top Pitch Slot!
Easy breezy…
Here’s what we’ll start with as our opening topic…
What is the one thing a hero can do in a story that makes you fall in love with him?
It’s Agent Shop Pitch Day – Almost!
Yes, I’m posting this early so everyone has the chance to join in…
Welcome to another round of Agent Shop! (Pitching will officially start Sat. March 16th at 10:00 am EST when I post the word go. Please wait until I update the page with a big ‘go’ at the top of the post before sending in your pitch. Don’t worry, it’ll be big so you won’t miss it!)
I’m super excited to be hosting the awesome Mollie Glick. Best of luck to everyone pitching.
And welcome to our spotlight author – one of Mollie’s lucky authors - Gennifer Albin, with her new release, CREWEL.
Check out this cover!!!!
Enter a tangled world of secrets and intrigue where a girl controls other’s destinies, but not her own
Sixteen-year-old Adelice Lewys has always been special. When her parents discover her gift—the ability to weave the very fabric of reality—they train her to hide it. For good reason, they don’t want her to become one of the elite, beautiful, and deadly women who determine what people eat, where they live, how many children they have, and even when they die.
But Adelice is forced into this powerful group, and she must learn to navigate the dangerous politics at play. Caught in a web of lies and forbidden romance, she must unravel the sinister truth behind her own unspeakable power. Her world is hanging by a thread, and Adelice, alone, can decide to save it—or destroy it.
Links to Buy: Amazon, B&N, Powell’s
Links to Author: www.genniferalbin.com, http://genniferalbin.blogspot.com/
Make sure you check her out, and feel free to comment!
BONUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Come one, come all. Even if you’re not pitching, feel free to come join in the conversation. I’ll be giving away THREE prizes. All you have to do is join in the fun! Every comment will be entered for a chance to win one of these prizes!
1 – Ebook copy of Primitive Nights
2 – $25.00 Barnes & Noble or Amazon Giftcard (Winners choice)
3 – The Top Pitch Slot!
Easy breezy…
Here’s what we’ll start with as our opening topic…
What is the one thing a hero can do in a story that makes you fall in love with him?
March 13, 2013
All Rise, The Court is in Session
Song of the day: Justice by Rev Theory
This month is a buzz of newsworthy stories. The latest being the outcome of a lawsuit filed by an unpublished romance writer against Harlequin.
In a nutshell, the writer claimed that her story was stolen by an author of Harlequin and published by Harlequin. The plaintiff claimed that the Harlequin author was a judge in a Romance Writers of America approved and/or sponsored contest, had read the entry and synopsis, and copied the work as her own. The plaintiff pointed out that there were over 40 similarities to the published, financially successful book and that it was blatant plagiarism of her creative expression.
You can read the claim here.
The judge handling the case disagreed and dismissed the case. The judge, in part, says:
“The similarities that [the plaintiff] asserts are either stock elements of romance novels or plot elements that naturally flow from the broad themes that the two works share with other works in the same genre. The two works share common tropes that are typical of, and generic to, the romance novel genre. A beautiful woman and a handsome, wealthy man fall in love, become estranged, find themselves alone together in close quarters, have a passionate reunion, rediscover their love and commitment, and begin a new life together. These are familiar plot elements in the romance genre. Many of the similarities accompanying these tropes in the works are scenes à faire. They describe similarly choreographed scenes of love, estrangement, rediscovered passion, and recommitted love. The details of these scenes are similar not because of infringement, but because they flow logically from the plot elements.”
You can read the document here. Or you can read the condensed version here.
The author must have felt truly infringed upon. Unfortunately, her actions wreaked undue havoc on an innocent author’s life and likely put a death knell on her own career. Should she seek publication through a publisher, she will probably to be seen as a pariah.
The purpose of my blog is not to chastise this author or take sides, but to point out this is a lesson for us all. A plot, theme, idea, generic characteristics and details cannot be copyrighted. Not even zombie-loving Highlanders with secret babies.
The other issue at hand is now many published authors are reluctant to offer help to newbies still green and learning their craft. There is a fear that they, too, may be accused of stealing. They no longer want to judge contests. This in a time when finding qualified judges is difficult. Published authors are wary of offering mentorship and advice.
What a shame.
The romance genre, with all that amazing talent, is one place where authors share their knowledge freely. There is camaraderie and a drive to help peers succeed. One good turn deserves another. Paying it forward. However you want to describe it, romance authors learn from each other. Judging not only helps others with their craft, it strengthens your own writing. It’s invaluable to both parties involved. I’d hate to see that disappear.
Instances such as this lawsuit are rare. I would encourage published writers to be informed—know your rights, act accordingly. But don’t be so gun-shy that you deny others help. Remember you were once wet behind the ears, too. Your hard work and talent had some guidance and encouragement along the way from a writer more successful than you.
Do you agree or disagree? What are your thoughts? I’d love to hear from you.
March 12, 2013
Link of the Week – RomanceWiki
In the style of Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia, there is an online encyclopedia for romance fiction—RomanceWiki. I thought it was interesting and maybe you will, too. Authors can create an account, build an author page, and update their information as needed. Individual book pages can be created, too. It could be another cog in the marketing machine.
http://www.romancewiki.com/Main_Page
Check out my page.
http://www.romancewiki.com/Jennifer_Bray-Weber
March 10, 2013
Agent Shop with Lit. agent Mollie Glick is 3/16!
It’s almost time for another round of Agent Shop at Musetracks!
Pitch day is March 16th, at 10:00am EST and our attending agent is Mollie Glick with Foundry Media. YAY!!!!!
Mollie’s info is here.
You can find all the rules for pitching under the tab above titled Agent/Editor Shop.
As always – read the rules carefully!
One of Mollie’s authors, Gennifer Albin, will be here with her new release, CREWEL.
Check out this cover!!!!
Enter a tangled world of secrets and intrigue where a girl controls other’s destinies, but not her own
Sixteen-year-old Adelice Lewys has always been special. When her parents discover her gift—the ability to weave the very fabric of reality—they train her to hide it. For good reason, they don’t want her to become one of the elite, beautiful, and deadly women who determine what people eat, where they live, how many children they have, and even when they die.
But Adelice is forced into this powerful group, and she must learn to navigate the dangerous politics at play. Caught in a web of lies and forbidden romance, she must unravel the sinister truth behind her own unspeakable power. Her world is hanging by a thread, and Adelice, alone, can decide to save it—or destroy it.
Links to Buy: Amazon, B&N, Powell’s
Links to Author: www.genniferalbin.com, http://genniferalbin.blogspot.com/
I’ll see you all Saturday.
~Candi
March 6, 2013
Hump Day Kick Start – Dancers Edition
Song of the Day:
Hump Day Kick Start – for your muse, a writing picture prompt, or just a visual treat.
Today’s picture prompt is special. Why you ask? Because one of MuseTracks regular, loyal readers sent it to me. Many thanks to Mary Anne.
Now, folks, let’s not disappoint her.
Tell me about this couple. Are they as they appear, dancers of a ballet troupe? Or are they something more? Long lost lovers who have found one another once more? Dancing rivals forced to perform together? A medieval version of Step It Up? Is she a princess and he a member of her guard who’d just saved her from an evil king, dragon, or bear? Where are they? Why do the trees have no leaves? Is this a post-apocalyptic time? Are zombies hiding in the mists?
Maybe she has a leg cramp and he’s just carrying her back to the car.
Love to hear your take.
March 4, 2013
Talk Back: Do you track your writing progress
On my Kindle: A Dance with Dragons: A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin
Talk Back – Tell us how you write!
Do you track your writing progress? Experts tend to say that to keep a habit it helps to track it. Do you agree? Or is this obsessiveness getting in the way of your creativity?
I can be quite an obsessive person when I tackle projects and yes I tend to track things. Perhaps too much, which tends to make me worry more about the tracking then the actual project. But some tracking has its use.
I’ve done various form of tracking. I have used a wall calendar to write down my word counts each writing day. That was nice to look at the wall and see how much I was doing each month (and that blank spot guilted me into writing every day).
I also used a running list of word counts with one column for the daily words and the other a cumulative sum of words, which was really motivating.
Now my focus is much more on making sure I spend an hour a day – 6 days a week – on my manuscript so I’ve again changed my tracking method.
My trusty writing tracking bible!
I now have a huge log book that is really pretty and will last me for years. I log each writing session with the date, the type of work I’m doing (writing, editing, polishing) and the time spent on that session.
So far so good. It helps!
How about you? If you track your progress, how do you do it? What works and what haven’t worked? And if you don’t, do you find it easier to just focus on the work?
Please let us know. It’s so nice to hear from you all!
Much love,
Marie-Claude xoxox
Location:Seattle
March 2, 2013
Agent Shop welcomes Lit Agent Mollie Glick in March!
I’ve been on editing hell deadline for my August release STAY, the first in the Changing Tides series from Samhain!
I have to say… I LOVE THIS NOVEL!
Check out this cover! EEEEEEP!
If you’ve already seen it, sorry. I’m just so in love with it. BWG
ANYWAY!
Pitch day for Agent Shop this month will be March 16th.
We have the awesome Mollie Glick coming as our guest agent.
You can learn more about Mollie HERE
Hope this finds everyone happy, healthy and writing.
Best~
Candi
March 1, 2013
MuseTracks Guest – Blythe Gifford – The Muse Will Always Be With You. Always
She’s at it again. And we here at MuseTracks couldn’t be happier! Blythe Gifford has returned with another great post, excerpt and GIVEAWAY!
Blythe Gifford – The Muse will be with you. Always.
TAKEN BY THE BORDER REBEL, the third in my Brunson Clan trilogy from the Harlequin® Historical line, is out this month. In writing the final book, I faced a new challenge. (Yes, every book is different. No, once you have written one, or three, or five, the rest will NOT be easier.)
In this book, my heroine’s character was shaped by a mysterious event in her childhood. I left it deliberately mysterious because part of my point was that the stories our families tell us are more important than the truth. My editor, however, saw it a little differently. She thought we needed to reveal what really happened.
The problem was, I hadn’t a clue.
But as I pushed and poked and prodded, I had an epiphany. It was obvious what HAD to have happened. And it was something that wrapped up not only that book, but a thread woven through all three books.
Let me stress I did not plan this consciously. I think it is a perfect example of the way in which the Muse leaves her tracks.
Most of the time, we think of the Muse as the lightning bolt of inspiration. We pray for the Muse’s help and expect an “aha!” moment so we can type furiously without stopping and turn out page after perfect page. My experience is that the Muse is much more subtle.
And devious.
She will hide in snatches of scenes, bury herself in ponderous prose we put down in order to just keep going, and reveal herself only after the writer turns around, looks back on the path, and discovers she has ended up in exactly the right place without knowing how she got there.
I always say that I show up at the keyboard at the same time every day so the Muse knows where to find me.
The Muse demands we meet her more than halfway, but if we do, and if we are faithful, she will be there, always.
Even if we don’t always recognize her.
The Brunson Clan trilogy is set on the Scottish Borders during the early Tudor era and centers on a family of Border Reivers. Here’s a glimpse of TAKEN BY THE BORDER REBEL:
TORMENTED BY HER INNOCENCE
As leader of his clan, Black Rob Brunson has earned every dark syllable of his name. But, having taken hostage his enemy’s daughter in a fierce act of rebellion, he is tormented by feelings of guilt and torn apart with the growing need to protect her—and seduce her!
Stella Storwick feels Rob’s disdain from the first. Then slowly she starts to see behind his eyes to a man in turmoil. Something he has no words for, something that can only be captured in a heart-wrenching kiss….
**
In the excerpt below, from Chapter One, Black Rob Brunson has been out inspecting his land, looking for signs that the family’s blood enemies, the Storwicks, may be planning a raid, and pauses at midday in the hills overlooking his valley.
Something shifted. The wind. A scent. A sound. He stiffened, alert, and turned his head.
Above him and to his left, sat a woman, silent and stiff, eyes fixed on him warily as if he were a Storwick.
He fashed himself for not looking carefully before leaving his horse. What if he’d been surprised by the enemy?
Neither spoke, looking.
Dark hair tumbled across her shoulders, but he would not call her beautiful. At least, not from this angle. Eyes and lips fought for control of her face. Her nose was too strong. Her chin too sharp. She looked vaguely familiar, but he had seen every far-flung Brunson at one time or another. Still, he could not summon which branch of the family was hers.
“You’re far from home,” he began, still trying to place her. The Tait cousin lived nearest, but he had no daughters.
She drew herself up into a crouch, like a wary animal ready to run. “Nay so far.”
He raised and lowered his shoulders, sorry he had frightened her. He motioned his head uphill, toward the border. “Storwicks are no more than five miles away.”
Not taking her eyes from his, she stood slowly and took a step back, as if nearness to the enemy had just occurred to her. The blush on her cheek paled. “Have I crossed the border then?”
“Nay.” He rose to his feet, uncomfortable that she stood while he stretched on the grass. What was the strangeness in her accent? “It’s just over there.”
Her eyes widened. She turned to look over her shoulder. Then ran.
That was when he recognized her.
Stella Storwick didn’t look back, praying for her feet to run faster.
But the Brunson kept coming, strong as a charging ram, trampling the grass behind her. Then he was in front of her, cutting off her escape as if she were no more than an unruly ewe.
She dodged. Left. Right. Thinking she could confuse him.
He was a broad man. She could be quicker. More steps, her skirt and the grass holding her back. If she crossed the border, she would be safe…
But next she knew, he grabbed her arm, whirled her around, and both of them tumbled to ground. She on her back, pressed to earth, he straddling her legs.
She lifted a clawed hand to scratch his eyes, but he caught her wrists and held her arms tight against the dirt without effort. Even when she shut her eyes against him, he surrounded her, warm and smelling of leather.
“You’re Storwick.” He did not ask a question.
She opened her eyes. His were brown. And murderous.
“And you’re Brunson.” Close now, she knew him, the man she had seen near half a year ago at Truce Day. Fool she was, not to have recognized him immediately.
Not just a Brunson. The Brunson.
A flash of heat crackled through her body. Hatred, no doubt.
He was one of the Black Brunsons. Broad of shoulder and brow, dark of hair and eye. Yes, he had the brown eyes that marked all his cursed clan.
“You’ll not take me.” She braced herself, stiff armed and legged, as if that would stop him. “I won’t let you.”
He froze, then turned to spit in the dirt in contempt. “Brunsons don’t treat women so.” Disgust now, in his eyes. “It’s your kind who do that.”
One villainous kin of hers who had done that.
She knew the truth of the whispers about him, though the man had never dared touch her.
No one dared that.
“That’s not what I’ve heard.” A lie, but one she hoped would keep him off guard. She tugged against his hold. An iron manacle would have given way more easily.
He released her hands with a look that warned her to keep them quiet. “You’ve heard wrong.”
She pushed herself up on her elbows. “Then let me go if you don’t mean to take me.”
He sat back on his heels and crossed his arms, his very silence ominous.
She held her breath to stop her speech. He had not guessed which Storwick she was. Or that she had come to the hills to spy on his precious tower.
“How far behind are the others?” He stood, pulling her to her feet, keeping his hand on her wrist while he gazed toward the English side of the border.
“No others.” Foolish admission. She had told no one her plan when she left this morning. Perhaps that had been unwise.
He turned back, sweeping her with a glance head to toe. One that said she might be daft, but he wasn’t. “You wander the hills alone with no horse?”
She shrugged to hide the shaking. “Sun doesn’t often come like this. I wandered too far.” And had hoped to wander farther. A horse would draw attention. “Let me go. I’m of no use to you.”
“Oh, you’re of use to me. You’re going to serve as a hostage for the good behavior of the rest of your people. If they ride to rescue Hobbes Storwick, you’ll be the one to pay.”
She blanched. Thank God. At least her father was alive.
They had not even been sure of that.
A lucky reader who comments on today’s blog will be randomly selected to win a signed copy of (your choice) RETURN OF THE BORDER WARRIOR, Book 1, CAPTIVE OF THE BORDER LORD, Book 2, or TAKEN BY THE BORDER REBEL, Book 3. To start the conversation, do you have an example of the mysterious workings of the Muse to share?
Blythe Gifford has been known for medieval romances featuring characters born on the wrong side of the royal blanket. Now, she’s written a Harlequin Historical trilogy set on the turbulent Scottish Borders of the early Tudor era. The books are RETURN OF THE BORDER WARRIOR, November 2012, CAPTIVE OF THE BORDER LORD, January 2013, and TAKEN BY THE BORDER REBEL in March 2013. The Chicago Tribune has called her work “the perfect balance between history and romance.” Visit her at www.blythegifford.com, www.facebook.com/BlytheGifford, www.pinterest.com/BlytheGifford or on Twitter @BlytheGifford.
Author photo by Jennifer Girard. Excerpt Copyright © 2013 by Wendy B. Gifford. Permission to reproduce text granted by Harlequin Books S.A. Cover Art Copyright © 2013 by Harlequin Enterprises Limited. Permission to reproduce text granted by Harlequin Books S.A. Cover art used by arrangement with Harlequin Enterprises Limited. All rights reserved. ® and ™ are trademarks owned by Harlequin Enterprises Limited or its affiliated companies, used under license.
February 27, 2013
Buying Your Way To The Top
Song of the Day: Empire by Queesnrÿche
What would you do to get on the New York Times bestseller’s list? How far would you go? How far is too far?
Oh, sure. Many of us have tried to manipulate the algorithms and sales numbers in various ways to our favor. We might offer a book for free for a limited time. Loads of people will take advantage of freebies, not thinking twice about downloading a book. It’s free, for crying out loud. We beg shamelessly, if not apologetically, for ‘Likes’ and ‘Tags’ to maneuver us to the top in genre specific search engines. We’ve had our family, friends, writing pals, and street teams do buying blitzes to get our names up on the board. These efforts are in hopes to reaching a prestigious list and inching our way up the Top 100 or Top 10 lists. These lists validate us, offer recognition, and generate interest, thereby increasing our book sales organically—preferably in a snow ball effect which launches our careers into the stratosphere. Look out JK, Nora, Stephen, and James. There’s a new kid in town.
We explore endless marketing options, participate in blog tours and book signings, deliver our souls to social media, lug ourselves to conferences and conventions, invest our hard earned pennies in ads and swag. And even some of us hire PR assistants. All in the name of success. It’s what we do to build our enterprises. Who doesn’t want to be a household name, lounging on a private beach with muscular, oiled, deliciously bronzed gods fanning us with palm fronds, massaging our tired shoulders, feeding us grapes and adult beverages, and whispering in our ear how wonderful the movie-version of our book is doing at the box-office, or at least make a comfortable living as a writer?
But what if you could buy your way onto the New York Times bestseller’s list at the debut of your book upon your release date? Got deep pockets and a guarantee of 11,000 pre-orders of your unreleased book? You can purchase a spot. The practice is termed the bestseller campaign.
In short, you hire marketing firm ResultSource (cha-ching!) which specializes in bestseller campaigning and secure a pre-selling commitment of bulk sales that reach into the thousands.
Read more on how one author did it here.
And here’s another article in Forbes on the subject.
The argument is the same for those of us who have done freebie days or book bombing or any one of the multitude of ways to reach a list—getting your name out there long enough to glean status and interest It’s an investment into your career.
This is surprisingly not a new practice, nor is it exactly a secret. But it seems to be one that isn’t widely discussed. And while I can’t say for certain, I would wager that 
publishers aren’t rocking the boat if their clients decide to hire a firm to catapult them onto the bestseller’s lists. It is business, after all. And business good for the author is good for the publisher.
That said, I do want to point out that the articles I listed above are focused on business non-fiction books. However, the methodology could be applied to anyone who has written a book, has spare change burning a hole in their pockets and 5,000 Facebook friends who aren’t afraid of commitment. For me, I’d rather make a list based on my talent and merit.
So is this practice moral? Is it fleecing book buyers into thinking a title is popular and in demand? To an author, should it matter, so long as they get their ROI and, possibly, a fan base? Is this business savvy or deception? Does this make the bestsellers lists a sham? If you were able to work the system, would you?
Let’s hear your thoughts.
