Bev Pettersen's Blog, page 118

“Heathers” 25th anniversary…or why I write YA

Dear diary, my teen angst bullshit now has a bodycount.

Those immortal wordswere like (what’s the opposite of Kryptonite?) to me. I wasn’t quite 12 when Winona Ryder’s Veronica Sawyer uttered them, although I was probably at least 14 (or maybe even 15) when I first heard them. Still deep into my 90210 obsession, and not quite able to reconcile Shannen Doherty’s Heather Duke character with her earlier portrayal of Jenny on Little House on the Prairie and (then-) current turn as Brenda Walsh. Of...

Consolation Day

I was robbed!

They don’t know what they missed!!

This totally blows!!!!!!!!

Whatever the reason… you didn’t make the cut this year. Sadness and woe, and a piece of chocolate cake on the side. But trust me, you aren’t alone. A good many people did not make the cut this year, and a good many big-time, I’ll-buy-anything-she-ever-puts-out authors never made it either.

And guess what? Not a one of you sucks! No one!

Not even those of us who didn’t get the RITA call this year, either. *sigh* Yeah, I’m r...

Welcome, New Golden Heart and Rita Finalists!!

WELCOME, 2014 GOLDEN HEART and RITA FINALISTS!!!

And welcome, also, to everyone who didn’t final THIS year. And thanks to everyone who joined us yesterday—with the new RWA rules and reshuffling or elimination of categories, that was a crazy, all-bets-are-off day, ending with HUGE numbers in some categories (EIGHTEEN in Contemporary Romance!!) and shockingly tiny numbers in others.

One thing’s for sure, though: if your name ended up in ANY of those categories (see the full list of 2014 finalist...

Live Blogging the GH/RITA Announcements

LET THE ANNOUNCEMENTS BEGIN…

It’s time for our annual live blogging event of the 2014 Golden Heart/Rita announcements ! If you entered RWA®’s Golden Heart or RITA contest, then you’re likely hovering over your phone today as you await THE CALL. So why not hang out with all the other hopefuls (many of the Rubies included) who are also waiting on pins and needles?

From past experience, we know that the internet will be abuzz today with happy news. We’ll be updating our list here as announcements...

Ruby Tuesday: Elizabeth Essex

Welcome, ladies and gents, to another edition of Ruby Tuesday, that day when we take a moment to get to know one of our Rubies a bit better. Today we have a special Release Day edition! (With a giveaway!!!) Join us as we welcome 2012 RITA-nominee and historical romance maven Elizabeth Essex and celebrate her latest release, After the Scandal! Take it away, EE!

Name: Elizabeth Esses

2009 GH Category & Title: Regency Historical: “Defiant”

What Happened to That Book: It became my 2010 debut novel,...

Cover up: Creating a cover for I Wish

I Wish is a special book for me. It finaled in the Golden Heart in 2009 (YA), making it the reason I am a Ruby. It’s the manuscript that caught the eye of my agent. And it sold in 2013. I Wish will be my fourth book and releases in November! Today’s post is about the process we used to create its cover.

My editor at Spencer Hill Press sent me a message in December: “We’d like you to get with Lisa Amowitz and work on the cover for I Wish.” Learning that Lisa would be the cover artist was great...

10 Ways to Kill Time Until the Call… GH, RITA, or THE Call

The following post is a bit tongue-in-cheek. It’s a Ruby Reprise from March 23, 2011 (with some minor updates), but the tips are still valid…especially the chocolate one.

10 Ways to Kill Time Until the Call… GH, RITA, or THE Call

It’s almost here! March 26th. A day that will always be significant in the world of romance writers. But it’s not here yet and the anticipation makes the hours drag by. So how do you spend these final days?

1.) Plan your Celebration

Stock up on the champagne, streamers...

Golden Heart Finalists Tell All – 2014 edition

Six days from today, calls and emails will be going out to a select group of 2014 Golden Heart and RITA entrants that will change their lives.

That sounds like a cliche, doesn’t it? Can one simple call really have that much impact?

I finaled in 2008 (shoutout to the Pixie Chicks!) and again in 2009 (and shoutout to the Rubies!). I clearly remember getting both those calls from RWA Board member Trish Milburn, and probably always will.

In 2009, I entered two manuscripts— Party Like It’s 1899 (whic...

TIME GONE WRONG

There are many reasons awriter’s work is considered weak.A faulty time line is among them.

The statement below was made by a reader on a book discussion

list to which I belong:(Disclaimer: The locations in this passage have been changed to

protect the author.)

“After Paris it all began to fall apart for me. A lot of skipping around—unexplained time

periods went by that didn’t make sense. He was in Puerto Rico, running for his

life. Then he was beaten in New York. In the next scene, the heroine was...

None of Us Are Immortal

I’m basically an organized person, mostly because I despise clutter. Ask me where something is, and I can tell you what drawer to look in. Although, I don’t recommend opening any of my drawers because the interiors are far from neat. I have what I call my JUNK drawer in the kitchen where I keep everything from glue and rubber bands to a tape measure and matches. Unfortunately, you’ll have to sort through a pile of odds and ends to find what you’re looking for.

Why did I choose this topic today...