Bev Pettersen's Blog, page 116

Writing Lessons from Medieval Times: Willing Suspension of Disbelief

I recently took the kiddos on an adventure to the 11th century. We dined with nobles and kings, feasting on “baby dragon” (chicken) and other sumptuous treats, while watching knights demonstrate their swordsmanship and feats of bravery. We cheered on the Red and Yellow Knight, booed his foes, and were sad when he didn’t win. (He was robbed!)

From the Red & Yellow Knight’s profile: Lord del Font is the personal champion to the Count of Perelada. The sword of this invincible soldier has raised h...

Building a Believable World

You know what the best thing about writing paranormal is? The research. Or should I say lack thereof. You get to make it all up! But (sadly) that doesn’t mean you can ignore the details.

The trick to great paranormal romance, in my humble opinion, is creating a framework for your story, a world that we can believe in for three hundred pages. No, you don’t have to research the tea trade of 1812 (kudos to our historical brethren!), but you do need to give your reader a fully fleshed out world th...

Take a Walk on the Wild Side

Hello everyone! Today I want to talk about a promotional idea, one that I and another writer are trying out, even as you read this.

Most readers have a preference of subgenres, and some will not dare to dangle even a toe into the other genre pond. Romantic suspense readers might easily pick up books with contemporary, edgy covers while passing on books with Jane Austen type gowns gracing the cover. Historical readers might go for the stories featuring a hero in a kilt or with a sword. I, mysel...

Plotting with your Characters

I don’t know about you, but I find plotting to be the most difficult thing about writing fiction.

But now that I write for a living, I’m required to submit a synopsis and/or detailed outline to my publisher well before I ever start a book. And since my publisher pays me to do this, I have a huge incentive to pre-plot my books.

This being the case, I’ve developed a strategy for coming up with initial plot ideas. I won’t say this is pain free, it’s not. But it works for me. And maybe it will work...

Ruby Tueday: Shea Berkley

Welcome, ladies and gents, to another edition of Ruby Tuesday, when we sit down and get to know one of our Rubies a little better. Today on the hot seat we have the fabulous and talented Shea Berkley. Take it away, Shea!

[image error]Name: Shea Berkley

2009 GH Category & Title: I was in the Romantic Elements category with the manuscript Dark Secrets

What Happened to That Book: It’s a dark, sort of crazy paranormal that hasn’t found a home, so I’ve decided to self publish it. It should be available this fall....

It’s Easy to Give Advice

So the other day after killing myself in Zumba class, I headed toward the exit of my gym. To the left of me is an area where several older people gather to have coffee and donuts (I know!) after they work out. It’s a busy area and they never fail to make me smile. Well, this particular day as I ditched my empty water bottle, I heard several older men complaining about the way other people let their kids mooch off them. It was the whole virtuous “Teach a man to fish” conversation and they were...

Confessions of a Contest Slut

My name is Louisa Cornell, and I am a Contest Slut. Actually I prefer the term Contest Courtesan, but then I do write Regency set romances. I am not exactly certain how many contests one has to enter in order to reach Slut status. Rather like trying to decide at what point one goes from call girl, to prostitute, to hooker. It’s all a matter of style, effort and pay off. Suffice it to say, with so many contests entered I have lost count and 47 finals with four manuscripts – Houston, we have a...

Conference report: Wizard World ComiCon St. Louis

Earlier this month, I attended the local ComiCon in St. Louis, a gathering of pop icons, artists, authors, cosplayers and general geekery. I received a lot of compliments on my mandarin jacket. I figured I was going with an East meets West Firefly cosplay look.

This was the second ComiCon in St. Louis and just like last year, I was on a panel with some lovely local authors: Angie Fox, Cole Gibson and Shawntelle Madison. This year we were chatting about worldbuilding tips and how we make our se...

Guest Post: Comedienne and NBC writer Kerri-Anne Lavin on “Laughing all the Way to the Bank: Turning Yuks into Bucks”

I’m super-duper excited to host one of my high school friends today. I knew Kerri-Anne Lavin way back when she and I were Sparta Spartans(Spirit Fingers!)and we share many a crazy story from cheer camp.She was also alwaysthe lead in the high school musical, while I would do choreography.

Fast-forward to today, and Kerri-Anne is now an actress and comedy writer in Hollywood, writing for NBC. She has done voiceover for Disney/Pixar, and is currently working on a sitcom pilot. She’s one of the fu...

Thank a Librarian

This week is National Library Week, and in its honor, I think every reader everywhere should thank a librarian. Where did so many readers get their start? In a library. Where did so many of our favorite writers get their start? As a reader in a library.

I grew up in Arlington, Virginia, then a small suburb across the river from sleepy Washington D.C. The tallest building in an area now full of towering buildings was then two stories tall. Our local library was a bungalow cottage outfitted with...