Summer Ellis's Blog, page 4

Okay, okay, okay! Dead End will be published…

Gee-Whiz! Give a poor, neurotic girl a break here – you people are out for blood! (I knew I liked you for a reason. haha)

I will give you a hint… DEAD END WILL BE PUBLISHED THIS WEEK! I’m finishing my last batch of edits after receiving feedback from several proofreaders, but you will have a book before the weekend. (And it won’t be six months late this time!!!)

THANK YOU for sticking in there with me, THANK YOU for always leaving amazing reviews and comments, and THANK YOU for making this crazy idea I had – that I might actually be able to write books – a reality.

You guys rock so hard, they shut down the stadium on you.

HUGS!

Summer

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Read this while you wait – TOO FUNNY!

So, my sweetheart and I were… um, doing research, and I came across this blog post. I don’t know if this woman is still writing, but I was literally crying from laughing so hard! Check it out… Lady-like Perverts “BenWa Balls”

 

Update: Shooting for February

I just wanted to tell everyone how much I appreciate the enthusiastic reviews and comments, and give you a little update on Dead End.

I’ve started my first set of revisions. (whoo hoo!) Next, the story will be sent to my proof-ers, and I’ll make changes on their recommendations. Then, I’m going to pray. And finally, I will publish. (Eeek!)

I was shooting for a late (Northern Hemisphere) winter release date, and I’m narrowing that down to late February (and crossing my fingers for luck). I don’t want to rush the story or my friends that so generously help me with edits, but I can honestly say, I’m as excited to publish as you are to finally read it.

Anyway, I hope that answers some questions. Again, THANK YOU all for giving my books a chance. I know there’s a lot of competition out there, and I appreciate you coming back for more.

HUGS!

Summer

Beating the Block (Bonus Content)

So, I don’t know how many of you have ever had writer’s block, but most people don’t realize it’s a literal reaction to anxiety that happens in your brain. I’m sure you’ve experienced something similar when trying to find solutions to difficult issues within your own lives, because when you’re stressed or scared your brain starts shutting down all unnecessary processes and goes into ‘fight or flight’ mode.

For a writer, that means your creative processes start shutting down, and then you panic as you feel yourself shutting down and get more stressed, which causes your brain to focus harder on finding a practical solution (which is contrary to the very nature of imagination) and just creates a vicious cycle of ‘Holy shit, my page is blank… my page is blank!“

Truth: I’m terrified of being late on my deadline as I was with my previous book. I want to finish this one on time and have everyone love it. The self-pressure of that creates the stew of horrible writers block, and I’ve struggled to keep on track.

Enter the practical solution: Write ANYTHING that gets the juices flowing. That’s what they tell you, but when you get focused on a project, you forget that one simple exercise. It helps you get your head-space ready to focus, and it has helped me immensely in the last few months.

Anyway, I thought it might be fun to share one of these writing exercises with all of you. It’s a short story, available only here on my website. Anyone who doesn’t enjoy the erotic themes of my writing probably won’t enjoy this either, but those of you that do… Well, you just tell me what you think of “The Music Made Me Do It“. I know I had fun writing it.

HUGS!

-Summer

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New Excerpt, Short but Sweet

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone here in the U.S. – and for everyone around the world, I hope you’re blessed with good friends and good health.

I know I’ve been blessed by all of you and your support, so in celebration, I’ve added a short excerpt on the bonus page, I hope you enjoy it!

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Rhythm In Blue - Revised, finally

Reblogged from Brandie Buckwine:

In the grand scheme of things, a year and eight months isn’t that long, but if something’s hanging over your head, badgering you each and every day, it can feel like forever. That’s how long it’s been since I released Rhythm In Blue – my first book, the love of my life. When I first wrote it and sent it off to my agent, I felt it was perfect.

Read more… 2,362 more words

This is one of my favorite romances. If you're looking for a GREAT book, check it out...

Casting “Call-Backs”

Last week I issued you a challenge – if you missed it, see the previous blog ‘Casting Call‘ for full details – and I have to say, I’m pretty impressed with the results. There were tons great suggestions, and it was amazing to see how the characters related themselves differently to different readers. Thank you for all the emails and comments – it was really fun! Among the honorable mentions on character casting are:

Christian Kane as Cale (hello, sexy man alert!)…
Jennifer Lawrence as Alex (tough, sexy girl – check!)…
and Naya Rivera as Elaina (very close second to my official choice below)

Now for my ‘call-backs’ - the official list of who I would wish for if my Cartel Series was ever to be made into a movie ( a girl can dream!)

Click the pictures below to enlarge them ***I’ve taken the liberty of changing some minor things like hair and eye color on a few of them ***

ALEX (Christina Hendricks) a sexy, full-figured woman who can also dress down and be just another girl on the street

MAX (Emma Stone) loyal and sassy with a cute ass and lots of those sexy freckles

CODY (Rosie Huntington-Whiteley) statuesque and unfairly beautiful

ELAINA (Michelle Rodriguez) tiny but tough, she knows how to play with the big boys

CALE (Tom Hardy) smart, dangerous, and sincere – not to mention fucking hot

BANKER (Jason Momoa) sexy and intimidating, a threat to any good-girl’s resolve

FRED (Danial Cudmore) a big man with a loyal heart

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Others not to be forgotten:

Cash (Franky G)

Victor Belarus (Bruce Willis – Like I said, a girl can dream!)

Sekai (Columbus Short)

Joe and Barb DeCarlo (Chazz Palminteri and Ellen Burstyn)

Agent Jackson Campbell (Daniel Craig)

So there you have it. My list of hopes and dreams… Be sure to tell me what you think!

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(Oh yeah, I almost forgot… As promised, check out the ‘Excerpts Page’ for a sneak peek at book three, Dead End.)

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Casting Call…

What to writers do when they can’t write?

They daydream about Hollywood producers tripping over each other to make their book into a movie… Seriously. Any writer who tries to tell you they don’t care about success is full of shit.

So anyway, I was at work today, totally ignoring the files on my desk, pondering the really critical question… who should play Banker?!  (This is super important. I’ll be the first to say I was totally bummed with some of the choices made on the ‘One for the Money’ movie earlier this year. Ranger, oh poor Ranger – they killed him.)

I have a few ideas, but I’m curious  what you think – if I was able to pick my own cast for the Cartel Series movie, who should I cast in the lead roles?

Comment below (for all the characters, not just the ever-favorite Banker) and I’ll post the casting ‘call-backs’ next week, along with a juicy sneak peek from Restricted Access – whoo hoo, it’ll be here before you know it!

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PS. Here’s a list of character descriptions from the books as a reminder. Don’t forget, hair and eye color can be changed – so don’t get too hung up on that stuff…

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Alex – medium height and weight with a cute face, full breasts, and a plump ass (dark hair)

Max - petite, girl-next-door type with freckles and a great ass (brunette-ish)

Cody –  willowy and statuesque, unfairly beautiful with blond hair and lavender eyes that tilted at corners (almost fey or other worldly looking, fairy-like)

Banker – deep voice, big guy with light brown skin, solid muscle, and wide shoulders. Stunning to look at but not conventionally so, with pouty lips and bicolored eyes

Cale – tall and sexy, with a cute butt and wide ‘offensive lineman’ shoulders (dark hair)

Fred – big man at six half feet tall, sexy but not gorgeous, (sandy blond hair)

Elaina – petite with compactly muscled build (dark hair and eyes)

Victor Belarus – lean and just under six feet tall, with salt and pepper hair and a charming but compelling air about him

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Social Smocial and Bah Hum – Huh?

So I’ll be honest… I HATED FACEBOOK when it first arrived on the social media scene. And say what you want about the rest of them (Twitter, Pintrest, Youtube, Google+, etc), but good or bad, it takes a lot to get me excited about online media sites anymore…this is a lot.

Like Eric Church says, “Funny how a melody sounds like a memory…” On the NEW Myspace, not only can you connect socially,  share pics, and create playlists – you can create “Mixes” (like albums) wherein you can share a set of event pictures  and create a playlist for that particular event.

Too cool. CHECK IT OUT (click picture link):

 

If you’re interested, I found this YAHOO! article today which pointed me to the New Myspace. (It explains some of the new changes better than I can.)

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Let the people be heard!

So okay, you’ve probably had time to read Restricted Access. I’ve gotten a variety of reactions from people who’ve taken the time to email me – but, here’s the fingernail in the plum sauce:

I can’t give you what you want if you don’t talk to me.

Of the 260+ books I gave away, I’ve only had handfull of reviews. That tells me either (A) you hated it or (B) the jury is still out, and you’re waiting to see what happens next – and that’s totally okay, but it comes down to the fact that I’m here to entertain you.

 I don’t want to send a juggler to do a fire-breather’s job, so you’ve got to tell me what you want…

I’ll always try and keep you on your toes, and I may not accomodate everything, but I really want to know what you think. Leave the old adage about not having anything nice to say behind, and post a comment below telling me what you loved, hated, what pissed you off, excited you, etc.

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(P.S. – To those of you that took time to leave a review – thank you so much! You’re more wonderful than I can express, and I appreciate every star and every word you put out there.)