Jean Murray's Blog, page 16
July 11, 2012
Anniversary Blog Hop: I have a contract. NOW WHAT?
Last week on Crescent Moon Press’ Blog, I posted my pitch to my publisher. It was my first and it wasn’t pretty, but I caught the eye of the editor and here I am today. But what happened between then and now. Boy, a whole lot! (Don’t forget to leave a comment on this post and Crescent Moon Press’ Blog and be entered to win signed print copy of Soul Reborn, see details below)
I remember being so stunned by the contract offer. It took about a month and then I received my first edit reviews and was surprised there wasn’t more red letters and highlighted sections. I thought wow, maybe this won’t be so bad. Little did I know the first edits were story structure and plot, which tends to be one of my strengths. Let’s just say the second and third passes were bloody. Don’t even talk to me about passive writing. Ack! I worked so hard to remove it, I will never make that mistake again.
I think the fabulous part of it all was that my editor was as much a mentor as she was my editor. She did an amazing job. I laughed at my own mistakes and learned some hard lessons, all of which have made me be a better writer today. This is a tough industry and to say you must have tough skin is an understatement. The key that made it such a great experience was the fact that I wanted her to be brutal, because it forced me to learn and change my habits as a writer. It was very important not to take her feedback personally. She wanted this book to succeed as much as I did.
Of course I can’t help but share one of my editorial comments. Like I said before, I did a lot of laughing at myself. A. LOT.
Not many authors share their faults, but what the hell– it’s my anniversary!
Editors comments on my CRUTCH PHRASES: “You really, really, REALLY love the phrases “clenched teeth” and “ground teeth.” It seems like someone is clenching or grinding their teeth every page or so, sometimes more than once per page. We can’t have that. Delve deeper into the 98% of communication that is nonverbal and find more ways to show your characters’ frustration/irritation. I started marking the ones I saw about halfway through the manuscript. Globally searching for “teeth” and “jaw” should root out most of them. Have fun!”
Her comments inspired me to share my experience. This is an archived post that I released shortly before my book was released.
********************
What I learned from my editor in the first 60 days: “Oh, how I love to “grind my teeth.” Crutch phrases and everything else in between…
I picked my favorite lesson out of the list because I can’t help but laugh every time I see it. “Oh, how I love to grind my teeth” or as it were “Oh, how my characters loved to grind their teeth.”
Being a new writer has its challenges. It is a learning process every step of the way, and thank god for my editor, Heather Howland at Crescent Moon Press. She has held my hand through editing Soul Reborn and its journey to publication. I can’t thank her enough.
Yes, writing about emotion and the display of it is very difficult for a new writer. Whether it is inexperience or laziness, we use phrases over and over and over again. Apparently, my idea of showing frustration was teeth grinding and jaw clenching. My hero, Asar- Egyptian God of the Underworld, is a very intense character, angry and bitter. Poor guys soulless. He gets very frustrated with the heroine, Lilly. She is a serious distraction from his quest for vengeance. For as many times as he ground his teeth (67 occurrences) and clenched (19) his jaw, he would have nubs for dentition and TMJ by the end of the story. A dentist’s nightmare.
Lesson one: Find other body parts and gestures to display negative emotion.
As humans, non-verbal body language is a very important component of communication. It conveys how an individual may be feeling with or without verbal stimuli. It includes body posture, gestures, facial expression and eye movements. Research suggests anywhere between 60-90 percent of our communication is non-verbal. We process these non-verbal cues on a subconscious level. Astounding!
Whether we are using gestures, body posture or even the distance we place ourselves from another individual all conveys some meaning. Some unintentional gestures can act as a lie detector. Using these concepts in our writing empowers the characters, makes them real to the reader. Okay, easier said than done. Right?
How did I solve my problem? I decided I need to make some observations. What better place to pick up on negative non-verbal communication than the metro station in DC. Not a whole lot of verbal communication goes on between strangers in this environment and who wouldn’t be frustrated packed into a metro car with millions of other people invading their personal space.
Frustration cues-
Arms crossed over chest
Rubbing/scratching the back of the neck/head
Running fingers through the hair
Short breaths exhaling in small puffs through nose
Clenching hands
Pointing one index finger
And yes, clenching jaw and teeth
Mix these gestures with facial expressions, body posture and verbal exchange and your character comes alive.
What is your favorite crutch phrase? What have you learned about yourself in your writing process? Please take a moment to share…
**********************
So, there you have it. From contact to release were some of the hardest days in my writing career. Writing the stories are easy compared to tearing them apart and accepting your flaws, but in the end the reward was worth THIS…
To see my first cover:
Crescent Moon Press
To announcing Soul Reborn’s release:
http://wickedromance.wordpress.com/2011/04/13/soul-reborn-available-on-kindle/
To reading my first reviews:
5-slipper review
To attend my first conference & book signing:
Thank you!!
Look out for more things to come.
Leave a comment on the Anniversary Blog Hop posts and be entered to win a signed print copy of Soul Reborn! (print- US/Canada only; ebook- international)
1st Stop: Crescent Moon Press Blog
2nd Stop: This Post
3rd Stop: My first conference and Book Signing. Is that Lara Adrian?
4th Stop: Last day of Sale/Sunday, July 15th. The Journey Continues: Book II
Filed under: Craft, Key to the Cursed, Lessons in 60 days Tagged: blog hop, craft, ebook, egyptian mythos, fiction, guest blog, interview, Jean Murray, key to the cursed, Lessons in 60 days, paranormal, paranormal romance, promotion, romance, soul reborn
July 10, 2012
Anniversary Blog Hop ~ Talent Tuesday Interview
I’m continuing my Anniversary Blog Hop today over at Author Sasha Summers’ blog for a fun interview. Find out a little more about the Key to the Cursed series.
My favorite line from Soul Reborn? Click HERE to find out
What is yours?
Filed under: Key to the Cursed, Soul Reborn Tagged: egyptian mythos, fiction, interview, Jean Murray, paranormal, paranormal fiction, paranormal romance, romance, Sasha Summers, soul reborn
July 9, 2012
How it all began…
Come join my anniversary blog hop.
I’m over at Crescent Moon Press’ Blog reminiscing about the pitch that sold my manuscript. The once titled Lion’s Flower found a new home and a new name, Soul Reborn. See how it all started.
Don’t forget…
Filed under: Events, PROMO, Soul Reborn Tagged: best seller, egyptian mythos, fiction, guest blog, Jean Murray, key to the cursed, kindle, paranormal, paranormal romance, romance
July 6, 2012
New Release ~ The Problem with Power
Emily VonPeer hopes that she never meets the man of her dreams. For years, she’s been haunted by visions of an unknown lover destined to die in her arms. When her aunt’s death brings her home to her family’s estate in Upstate New York, she meets Nicholas Flynn, an agent of Paladin, an enterprise dedicated to the study and eradication of demons, and the hero of her nighttime fantasies. He arrives on her doorstep seeking answers for a slew of magically-related murders tied to the VonPeer family.
Although his intentions are suspect, Emily follows Nicholas into the investigation, hoping to spare him the fate promised by her premonitions – at least, that’s what she tells herself. When their exchange with a demon goes awry, Emily sustains an injury that threatens to turn her into a monster. Her transformation places her in the crosshairs of sorcerers, senators, and a seductive stranger who promises eternity.
Links:
Amazon (Kindle): http://www.amazon.com/The-Problem-With-Power-ebook/dp/B008BKAUQA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1341517349&sr=8-1&keywords=The+Problem+with+Power
Amazon (Paperback) http://www.amazon.com/Problem-With-Power-Agnes-Jayne/dp/1937254631/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1341517349&sr=8-2&keywords=The+Problem+with+Power
Books-a-Million (Paperback):http://www.booksamillion.com/search?id=5415115920950&query=The+Problem+with+Power+by+Agnes+Jayne&where=All&search.x=0&search.y=0
Filed under: PROMO, Sales Tagged: Agnes Jane, ebook, kindle, new release, paranormal reads, paranormal romance, promotion, romance, The Problem with Power
July 1, 2012
SOUL REBORN Anniversary Celebration
How do you best celebrate an amazing journey that you never envisioned you would be on in the first place?
It has been a little over a year since the release of my debut novel, Soul Reborn. I’ve looked back over the last year and a half and remembered all the hurdles I encountered from start to finish. And, most importantly, those days of growth as a writer.
One thing that was unexpected was the amazing amount of support from fellow authors, writers, bloggers and readers. I am grateful on many levels.
TO CELEBRATE: My publisher, Crescent Moon Press, has agreed to place Soul Reborn on sale for $0.99 (original price $6.99) at All Romance eBooks for a limited time (July 1-15, 2012)
In the next two weeks, look for additional opportunities to win a print copy of Soul Reborn plus extra goodies. My Anniversary Blog Hop will start at Crescent Moon Press’ Blog. More links to follow.
Filed under: Events, Giveaway, Key to the Cursed, PROMO, Sales, Soul Reborn, Uncategorized Tagged: $0.99 Sale, All Romance Ebooks, anniversary celebration, Author Jean Murray, ebook, key to the cursed, paranormal romance, promotion, soul reborn 
June 20, 2012
Midsummer Night’s Blog Hop ~ Asar welcomes Matty to Aaru
What hempen home-spuns have we swagg’ring here, so near the cradle of the fairy queen? Puck, Midsummer Night’s Dream
A Midsummer Night’s Blog Hop has high hopes of honoring the 2012 summer solstice with a character interview spectacle. Characters will be interviewed not by author/reviewer bloggers…but other characters. The twist…the characters will be paired by lots drawn out of a hat.
See participating authors, characters and links below….
Jean Murray + Wendy Russo
Asar, Egyptian God of the Underworld, desires vengeance at all costs against a malevolent goddess that stole his soul. Meanwhile, he serves as judge, jury, and executioner for the souls seeking refuge in Aaru, Paradise Isle of the Underworld. Seventeen-year-old Matty Ducayn, an unruly math-minded genius and occasional smart ass, may offend Asar in three seconds flat. Or maybe not.
Gate to the Afterlife
The fun continues with our character interviews….
Asar paced the short slab of sandstone walk in the garden. His gaze was met by smiling green eyes.
“You are going to wear a hole in the garden path if you keep this up. Why are you so nervous anyways?”
He stopped and sat next to his wife on steps and looked out over the green expanse of garden. Lilly leaned against his shoulder, which prompted him to wrap his arm around her waist and tug her closer to his side. “I have no idea. I have faced down harden criminals without blinking an eye, but this boy, Matty…” Asar shook his head and smiled. “I like him very much. He is curious and is not swayed easily by my presence. Much like you on the day you stood up to me in the tunnel.”
She chuckled. “I like Matty already.”
“You would.” He brushed his thumb over her smooth pale cheek. “He has gotten me thinking though. Have you given it any thought of having our own children?”
“Asar, I…”
The familiar weight of energy press in around them. Black smoke rose from the floor. Matty’s physical form solidified out of the air, shadowed by his brother, Kamen. Asar stole one last glance at Lilly before rising to his feet. He would have to wait for his answer.
“Matty,” Asar said extending his hand for the boy to grasp, more out of need to stabilize him than a friendly greeting. “The dizziness will pass quickly, just keep breathing.”
“The air is sparkly,” he said breathlessly. The boy blinked his eyes.
“Here let me help, Matty.” Lilly brushed her hand over his sandy blonde hair. “It’s not easy getting your molecules scrambled. It took me awhile to get used to it.” His wife’s ability to heal would quickly make the boy feel human again.
“That’s a great trick…Lilly, is it?”
She smiled. “It is very nice to meet you. Asar has told me much about your world. I also hear you like astronomy. Well, you’ll get to see the stars tonight. Orion’s belt, Ursa Major and Minor.”
“Northern hemisphere constellations!” the boy said excitedly. “That means Mars and Saturn will be on the western horizon at dusk. Leo and Gemini, too!”
Matty turned slowly in a circle. His eyes widened when the enormous sandstone palace came into view. The sun glinted off the gold shields on the front enterence. “Huh.”
“Is everything to your liking?” Asar inquired.
“I expected beautiful…paradise isle, you said.” Matty cupped his hand under a flower, but didn’t touch it. “Underworld…I wasn’t expecting sun.”
“Aaru is a reflection of the human realm, but the cycles are in opposition. Morning here. Night and evening there.” Asar turned to Kamen and gasped his forearm. “Thank you. I will take things from here, brother.”
”He doesn’t talk much, does he?” the boy asked, glancing in Kamen’s direction.
“Kamen is not known for his idle conversation.” Asar shifted his gaze to Lilly. “Matty, you already guessed that this is Lilly.” His eyes lingered on his wife, but he was drawn back to the boy. “I want to show you something before we go into the archive. Follow me.”
Asar led the group around the edge of the palace to the beach. The serpentine river of the Underworld snaked off into the distance. He knelt next to Matty and pointed. “See the temple there…just to the right of it is a large expansive gate that traverses the width of the river. Do you know what that is on the other side, Matty?”
With his eyes glued to the massive structure, the boy shook his head.
“Those are the gates that separate Duat from Aaru. The temple you see to the left is the Hall of Judges, where the souls come to be weighed. Those worthy will pass and live eternity in the isle you see across the river.”
“Some doors cannot be opened once closed,” the boy said quietly, “or closed once open.”
Asar knew a smart intellectual boy like Matty would understand and appreciate what he was seeing. No living human had ever gazed upon the gates, except maybe Lilly and her sisters, but that was an unusual circumstance in and of itself. Asar gathered the phrase Matty spoke had a more personal significance than a time honored cliché. “Your appraisal holds truth. Where did you come by it?”
“A conversation I had with Hadrian a while back,” Matty explained. “When he gave me his challenge, he also gave me the option of going home…to my grandfather’s ranch in the country, but cautioned that some doors cannot be opened once closed.”
“Ah, carpe diem. Seize the day,” Lilly added. “A very well served lesson. So which did you choose? The challenge or going home? You don’t strike me as the stay at home and twiddle your thumbs kind of guy.”
Matty snorted. “Home’s nice,” Matty said with a nod. “My dad’s more concerned with consequences.”
“I only saw a small sliver of your world. Can you tell me more about it and its King? King Hadrian, right?” Asar pressed.
“Hadrian’s got a lot of layers,” said Matty. The boy met Asar’s gaze for the first time since walking onto the beach. “I can tell you this because we’re here. At home, I’m bound by this thing called The Privacy Act. Discussion of the king’s private affairs is a quick way to earn 18 months in jail.”
“No first amendment rights? I’m not down with that.” Lilly scowled.
“You need not worry, Matty. Your transgression is safe with us,” Asar joked, hiding his own concern over the matter. Even he would not be so harsh and that was saying a lot. Asar headed up the steps from the beach to the Palace hall. Matty followed at his side and appeared to be lost to his own thoughts.
“There are four Hadrians…and which one you get depends more on who you are than him. In Old World kingdoms, being the king was the greatest honor, but in Columbia…Hadrian’s not just the king. He’s the president of the assembly. He’s the prime executive officer of Steer Industries…the company that facilitated my ancestor’s migration. It’s not taught in school, but sources my schoolmasters would consider disreputable say that one man having all that power is not good for society.”
“We have our own problems with certain individuals wanting to dominate. I’ll join the merry band of disreputables in saying tyranny is bad for society. Even the Pantheons are not set up with one ruler. Asar shares rein with the Mother Goddess.”
“Hadrian makes the risk hard to see. Past the glamour and the guardians, he’s rather boring. He works 16 hour days, comes home nightly to an empty house. He cooks his own supper, cleans his kitchen, and goes to bed. On his rare days off, he reads, naps on his couch. Once he took a sledgehammer and demolished his bathroom, but other than that, his house is exactly as his father left it almost 18 years ago. In a word, I’d call him lonely.”
“The King has shown interest in you. What about your natural father? He is a general?” Asar asked.
“Natural…” the boy scoffed with clear sarcasm. “Centuries ago, our first Assemblymen were the officers of the January Black, the ship that brought our ancestors to Aventine and now lays at the bottom of our bay. When the need arose for someone to oversee the staff of the capitol hill, they called that man ‘commandant.’ Today, my father is that man.”
“There must be expectations of you. It has not left you much room for fun, has it?” Asar asked.
“Oh, I’ve made time for fun,” Matty told them. “My fun is what caught Hadrian’s attention.”
“Tell me of the quest your King has sent you on?” Asar knew better than to think the boy had chosen home over the challenge set before him.
“In Columbia, it is nearly impossible to work for the government without a diploma from the Regents’ School, so when one of my stunts got me expelled, it pretty much ruined any chance I had of living up to the expectation you mentioned. Not that I cared. I was perfectly happy to go to my grandfathers, but my admission was sponsored by Hadrian, so I had embarrassed him as well. Or I would have, if he had cared, which as I learned that night, he really didn’t. He offered me a Regent master’s diploma…which would qualify me to work in any government office I wanted…if I answered a question.”
Asar pulled to a stop and looked down at young boy. Lilly clasped his hand and squeezed. “What question would be worth what he offered you?”
“What was January Black?” The boy replied. “On the surface, it’s a silly question. It’s a ship, as I mentioned before. But the catch to Hadrian’s challenge is that the answer must satisfy him, and that’s not the answer he wants. Every road I’ve followed has led to black holes and locked doors.”
Asar guided his young guest to two large ornate gold doors with crystal handles. “Perhaps you are here for doors you can unlock?”
The boy looked at Lilly anxiously, then back to Asar. His hands fiddled in front of him. “I should mention, um…I uh…I have a…biological response to the smell of old books.”
“I should introduce you to my sister, Kendra. She gets high off old book smell. You two could balance each other out.” Lilly laughed.
Asar guided the doors open. Matty held his breath and walked in with his eyes closed. After a moment, he blew out his breath and opened his eyes. With mouth gapping Matty slowly shuggled down the center aisle of the archive. Large statues rose from the thick black stone and shoulder the massive arched ceiling. Hieroglyphics etched into the ebony marble told a story of a past long since forgotten. Rows of books too many to count lined the outer walls of the expansive room. Only a few wooden tables stand off to the side. The most impressive pieces lay in the middle of the room, relics saved from the ruin in the human realm. Treasures of the pharaohs. Treasures of earth.
“Two-point-seven-one-eight-one…” Matty mumbled off a stream of numbers.
Asar looked at his wife for a clue of what it meant. She shrugged.
“It’s like Hadrian’s library went supernova.”
“Do you see something that interests you?” Asar asked.
“Everything,” the boy said greedily. Asar was surprised at the amount of sorrow hidden beneath the boy’s excitement. But then again, he only had a few hours to explore. Matty’s disappointment evaporated, his attention claimed by an object on display. A sextant, a device used by sailors to find their way at sea. “I’ll settle for holding that in my hands,” he said.
“Absolutely! Take as much time as you want, Matty.” Asar watched the boy’s facial expressions. They were nothing short of reverence and awe. This boy was truly special. The warm press of his wife’s hand on his arm drew his attention away for a moment.
“You look sad,” she said, as he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her back against his chest. He could still see the boy conversing with the sextant.
“Do I?”
“You’re worried about him.”
“Sorry, I did not mean to burden you.” He should have known that Lilly would feel his concern through their bond. It was a blessing, but also made it difficult keeping feelings private.
“Do you think King Hadrian’s challenge is a ploy?” Lilly asked.
The same question had been bouncing around in his own head. Asar held his tongue. He did not want to think the King would abuse his power and put the boy at risk. Gods know, he had witnessed Kings behaving badly over several thousand years of human history. Even the Pantheons of the gods were not immune to it. Not a safe time to raise young ones, he thought sadly.
There were no certainties, but one– Matty finding the answer to his question.
Book of the Dead
Wendy Russo is a Big Horn Basin girl transplanted in South Louisiana. Her writing draws from philosophy, pop culture, classic literature, religion, art, anthropology, math, and science. She enjoy writing inquisitive and introspective characters. I like slow reveals and snowballing climaxes. Her novel, January Black, will be released January 2013 by Crescent Moon Press.
Sixteen-year-old Matty Ducayn is a disappointment to everyone who knows him. As the son of The Hill’s commandant, he is expected conform to a strict, unspoken code of conduct. Small acts of defiance over years—like playing in the dirt and walking on the grass—have earned him a reputation for being unruly, but it’s his sarcastic test answers that finally get him expelled from school. Instead of punishing him, King Hadrian offers Matty a diploma, with a catch. He must answer a question: What was January Black?
With the help of Iris, a gardener on his father’s staff, Matty takes his quest beyond The Hill’s walls and tightly controlled media. But trying to solve the puzzle puts him on a collision course with the Janus Law, a royal decree mandating death to those who trespass in a forbidden garden. Has Hadrian set him up from the beginning to lose?
*****
Jean Murray, the owner of Wicked Romance, was born and raised in a small town on the east coast. In her pursuit of a nursing degree, she aspired to see the world and joined the Navy. One of the benefits of her membership in the Armed Forces, she has had the opportunity to travel and live in different parts of the world and the United States. Her travels abroad have given her the opportunity to experience different cultures. It inspired her to delve into Ancient Egyptian myths and legends for her debut novel, Soul Reborn, book 1 in the Key to the Cursed series from Crescent Moon Press, now available.
THE HUMAN REALM, HIS BATTLEFIELD.
Asar, the Egyptian God of the Underworld, has been tortured and left soulless by a malevolent goddess, relegating him to consume the very thing he was commissioned to protect. Human souls. Now an empty shell of hatred, Asar vows to kill the goddess and anyone involved in her release, but fate crosses his path with a beautiful blonde huntress who has a soul too sweet to ignore.
DEADLY SECRETS BETTER LEFT UNEARTHED.
Lilly, fearless commander of the Nehebkau huntresses, is the only thing standing in the way of the goddess’ undead army unleashing hell on earth. But Lilly has a secret-one she is willing to sell her soul to keep. If the Underworld god discovers her role in the dig that released the goddess, she will lose everything, including his heart.
CLICK HERE FOR MATTY’S INTERVIEW OF ASAR!!
MORE AUTHORS. MORE CHARACTERS. MORE INTERVIEWS!
Gregor Caine + Circe
(Christine Ashworth & Claire Gillian)
Sydney + Poseidon
(Cindy Young-Turner & Sasha Summers)
Caleb + Arland and Kate
(Kinley Baker & Krystal Wade)
Leigh Baxton + Micah Fuller
(Lindsay Loucks & Diane M. Haynes)
Shayla Dormyr + Kara Magari
(Raven Bower & S.M. Boyce)
Kellyn O’Brien + Julianna
(Louann Carroll & Siobhan Muir)
Ivory + Sara Wiley
(Rebecca Hamilton & Sandra Bunino)
Xylia and Landon + Avant
(Avery Olive & Kary Rader)
Asar + Matty Ducayn
(Jean Murray & Wendy Russo)
Filed under: Events, Guest Author, Key to the Cursed, Soul Reborn, Uncategorized Tagged: blog hop, ebook, egyptian mythos, fantasy romance, fiction, guest blog, interview, January Black, Jean Murray, key to the cursed, kindle, paranormal, paranormal fiction, paranormal romance, promotion, romance, soul reborn, Wendy Russo
June 15, 2012
Book Release ~ Wild Point Island
Wild Point Island (blurb)Banished from Wild Point Island as a child, Ella Pattenson, a half human-half revenant, has managed to hide her true identity as a descendent of the Lost Colony of Roanoke. Thought to have perished, the settlers survived but were transformed into revenants–immortal beings who live forever as long as they remain on the island.
Now, Ella must return to the place of her birth to rescue her father from imprisonment and a soon to be unspeakable death. Her only hope is to trust a seductive revenant who seems to have ties to the corrupt High Council. Simon Viccars is sexy and like no man she’s ever met. But he’s been trapped on the island for 400 years and is willing to do almost anything for his freedom.
With the forces of the island conspiring against her, Ella must risk her father, her heart, and her life on love.
Kate Lutter (biography)
Kate Lutter believes she was born to write. She wrote her first novel when she was in eighth grade, but then almost burned her house down when she tried to incinerate her story in the garbage can because she couldn’t get the plot to turn out right. Now, many years later, she lives in NJ with her husband and five cats (no matches in sight) and spends her days writing contemporary paranormal romances, traveling the world, and hanging out with her four wild sisters. She is happy to report that her debut novel, Wild Point Island, the first in a series, has just been published by Crescent Moon Press. She is busy writing the sequel and her weekly travel blog entitled Hot Blogging with Chuck, which features her very snarky and rascally almost famous cat.
Website: www.katelutter.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/katelutternovelist
Blog: www.katelutter.blogspot.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/katelutter
Email: katelutter.author@gmail.com
EXCERPT
Despite what he believed, I never had a relationship where I felt so bound to someone and yet so constrained in behavior. Sitting so close to him on the beach, hidden from view, wanting to hold him, I hesitated. So I’m not sure how what happened, happened next. What kept us apart—the suspicions, the fact that time had elapsed and we felt a bit like strangers meeting again—all of it abruptly dissipated like so much fog when the sun shines through.
His strong yet gentle grasp pulled me toward him, and he held me close, wrapping his arms around my shoulders. I felt in the urgency of his grip how much he’d missed me, and remembered again the dream he’d arranged for me, how cautious he’d been only days before. But dreams could not satisfy me now, no matter how real they seemed.
We pulled apart, but our eyes met. I leaned in and pressed my lips against his, chaste at first, to taste him, to spur his reaction. But that tentative reaching out soon exploded into the confirmation I’d been waiting for. Our desires cascaded in upon each other. I wanted more of him, and soon lost awareness of the cold surf, which melted against our heat. The roughness of the sea also faded into the distance. The spray of salt water was forgotten.
I couldn’t catch my breath. I didn’t want to think of the future or eternity. Only feel sweet sensations as he kissed me harder and harder.
Helpless to resist this love-making, I was the sand being thrown about by the waves around me. Soaked with a longing for him.
His kisses grew stronger, and I wanted all of them.
“Ella,” he groaned, sweeping the stray strands of hair out of my eyes.
I reached up to touch his face, to trace the outline of his strong jaw. Desire flickered in his eyes, a wildness mirroring my own needs, and I wanted to lose myself in that need, in that desire. I wanted him as I had wanted no other, knew for the first time in my life I had the potential for loving someone who knew me for who I really was.
It was intoxicating.
“Can you take me now?” I asked. “Here. Show me what I have to do.”
Indecision flickered across his face. I saw it. A look of a man who walked a tight rope and risked falling to the depths below.
“Ella.” His voice floundered in his own deep emotion.
But I reached over to pull him closer, and he tumbled on top of me. The weight of his body anchored me to the ground. Within seconds, my back was pressed against the sandy floor. His eyes grew hooded as his lips played against my mouth. Teasing. Caressing.
Suddenly, the kisses changed. Slow and carefully placed, I felt a heaviness to them that made me ache where I had felt warm and riled up before.
Aching to be with him in that way that I knew was forbidden to us.
But what did I care.
He was kissing me, and I began kissing him back, as if I had been doing this all my life, as if I were some kind of expert, allowing the pooling warmth in my stomach to find release. His hands burrowed under my sweater, nudging, rubbing against my breasts, which swelled to his touch.
The feel of his skin against my skin pushed me to a boldness I had not known until now, and I reached my hand below the belt of his pants, dared now to touch where I knew he wanted me to touch.
“Simon.” I whispered his name into the air, so sure that he was the one. Knowing as we wrestled together on the sand, in this sweetest of lovemaking, that I had a fire in me that he had set. He was the man I had been waiting for. This was the moment–
I felt resistance. Simon seemed to be struggling for control.
Over me. Over himself.
“Enough.” His voice, raw and edgy, strained against the sea that roared in the background.
Still breathing heavily, he released his hold on me, and pushed himself to a seated position.
My heart pounded.
“Have I done something wrong? Tell me,” I demanded.
“No.”
“Then why are you stopping?”
“We cannot be together, not now. I was wrong to even start.”
“Wrong? But I thought… ” I struggled to sit up, to face him, to put my own thoughts in order. When two people wanted to be together, how could there be something wrong? “Don’t you want to be with me?”
His gaze traveled down my body. I felt his stare, the desire in it. “Yes. I want to be with you.”
“Then–” I touched his arm. I needed to understand what could possibly be strong enough to hold him back.
“What I want has already been decided. You must decide what it is you want…” His voice softened. “… to do with your life.”
A chill coursed down my spine. And even though my flesh was still warm from his touch, I pulled my sweater down to cover myself, not because I was ashamed, but without his closeness, the early evening breeze now felt cold and damp. I guessed what he was saying, but I didn’t want to think about the future. Not here, not now.
“I want you to make love to me, Simon.”
“The Council forbids it,” he said.
“I don’t care about the Council. They have no say in what’s between us.”
He faced me then, and his finger touched my lips. “I could take you, Ella. Now. But it would not be the honorable thing to do.”
My fists clenched. I didn’t understand.
“I made a choice when I saved you from your uncle’s dangerous game. It was not difficult because I wanted you, Ella. But it was my choice. The moment our spirits fused, everything changed. Until you are sure I am what you want, I cannot take you. Until you are sure this island can be your home, I cannot give into my passions. My world is not like your world. There is no formal ceremony of commitment. There is the fusion and then there is consummation. When that occurs, you will be bound to me forever. There can be no turning back.”
Wild Point Island Event Release:
Wild Point Island will be available for sale in both mass market paperback and ebook formats on June 15, 2012. It can be purchased online at www.Amazon.com and www.BarnesandNoble.com.
Filed under: Cover Reveal, Events, Uncategorized Tagged: cover reveal, Kate Lutter, new release, paranormal reads, paranormal romance, revenant, wild point island
May 19, 2012
Buy a book ~ donations save kittens’ lives
A league of fabulous authors have written a collection of twenty-one cat-themed stories of dark mischief compiled by Patty G. Henderson (Author of the Brenda Strange mysteries). All proceeds raised from the sales from Dark Things II: Cat Crimes will go to no-kill cat shelters. Buy a copy today! Not only do you receive a great collection of stories, but you can change the lives of unwanted and lost felines.
For more information on The Cat House on the Kings…
Check out the authors of Dark Things II…
Book Description on Amazon: A collection of tales featuring feline mayhem, murder and dastardly deeds. Vampire cats. Scoundrel cats. Daring cats. Killer cats. Cats you don’t want in your worst nightmares and cats you might want on your side against evil. Authors include Mary V. Welk, Patty G. Henderson, Patricia Harrington, Jim Silvestri, Ken Goldman, Shanna Germain, Anna Sykora and dozens more. Intro by Robert W. Walker. All proceeds from sales go to several cat sanctuaries across the USA. Enjoy over twenty-one cat tails and support a cat charity!
More author information….
Patty G. Henderson, http://www.pattyghenderson.com/
J. D. Revezzo http://harshadpassion.wordpress.com/
Mary V. Welks, http://www.marywelk.com/
Jim Silvestri, http://www.facebook.com/Jamesrsilvestri?v=wall
Filed under: Events, PROMO Tagged: Cat charity, cat shelters, Dark Things II: Cat Crimes, donation, JD Revezzo, no kill cat shelters, promotion, The Cats on the Kings
Buy a book ~ donations save kitten lives
A league of fabulous authors have written a collection of twenty-one cat-themed stories of dark mischief compiled by Patty G. Henderson (Author of the Brenda Strange mysteries). All proceeds raised from the sales from Dark Things II: Cat Crimes will go to no-kill cat shelters. Buy a copy today! Not only do you receive a great collection of stories, but you can change the lives of unwanted and lost felines.
For more information on The Cat House on the Kings…
Check out the authors of Dark Things II…
Book Description on Amazon: A collection of tales featuring feline mayhem, murder and dastardly deeds. Vampire cats. Scoundrel cats. Daring cats. Killer cats. Cats you don’t want in your worst nightmares and cats you might want on your side against evil. Authors include Mary V. Welk, Patty G. Henderson, Patricia Harrington, Jim Silvestri, Ken Goldman, Shanna Germain, Anna Sykora and dozens more. Intro by Robert W. Walker. All proceeds from sales go to several cat sanctuaries across the USA. Enjoy over twenty-one cat tails and support a cat charity!
More author information….
Patty G. Henderson, http://www.pattyghenderson.com/
J. D. Revezzo http://harshadpassion.wordpress.com/
Mary V. Welks, http://www.marywelk.com/
Jim Silvestri, http://www.facebook.com/Jamesrsilvestri?v=wall
Filed under: Events, PROMO Tagged: Cat charity, cat shelters, Dark Things II: Cat Crimes, donation, JD Revezzo, no kill cat shelters, promotion, The Cats on the Kings
May 7, 2012
Author Open MIC ~ Welcomes Aaron Ritchey
I’m so excited to introduce my next guest, Aaron Ritchey. He is a newly discovered talent that I think is going to be a big hit with YA readers. Not to mention he has a great sense of humor and always makes his posts entertaining. So let me tell you a little about Aaron…
Aaron Michael Ritchey was born with Colorado thunderstorms in his soul. He’s sought shelter as a world traveler, an endurance athlete, a story addict, and even gave serious thought to becoming a Roman Catholic priest. After too brief a time in Paris, he moved back to the American West and lives semi-comfortably with three forces of nature: a little, blonde hurricane, an artistic tornado, and a beautiful, beautiful blizzard.
He is happiest dancing among the extremes, reading Twilight, Atlas Shrugged , and A Case for God at the same time. Like a playlist on shuffle: Fatboy Slim to Rammstein to George Strait to Katy Perry. He loves the ambiguous and the incongruous. The beauty of reality, as well as the tragedy. From the basest evils to the most transcendent good.
So writing Young Adult novels is perfect for him because that is a time of extremes and firsts, and who doesn’t love firsts? First time on our own, first kisses, first heartbreaks, first everything. It’s an exciting, dramatic time, and that’s exactly what a good story needs, excitement and drama.
www.facebook.com/theneverprayer
So let’s get to it… Aaron, you have the MIC!
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Thanks so much to Jean Murray for letting me take over the Open MIC night. I’m here to rock the party, rock the party, right. Since I think the first chapter of my book rocks, I figured I’d go over the anatomy of my first page. Caution, my first page is anatomically correct. Or at least I hope it is.
First, a little summary. My debut novel, The Never Prayer, is a Young Adult Paranormal Romance about a teenage girl named Lena. Shattered by the death of her parents, she will risk everything to keep her disintegrating family together. In love with both a demon and an angel, Lena must unravel the mysteries of heaven’s fury and hell’s desire before she loses everything. Who is the demon? Who is the angel? Lena can’t tell the difference, and every minute pushes her closer to the edge.
Here are the first 16 lines:
“I’m not going to do it again,” Lena Marquez whispered to the red purse across the hall from her nestle of blankets. “Never again.”
All of her other purses, scarves, and belts were just shadows hanging from hooks on both sides of the bathroom door, but in the glow of the cracked Thomas the Train nightlight, the red purse glittered. Each sequin like a teardrop of blood.
The heater chugged on sending lukewarm air into the basement apartment, as cold as an icebox. In October, at ten thousand feet, Avalon, Colorado had no pity for the weak or poor. It killed both.
Through anorexic walls, Lena could hear her aunt’s barking cough in the next room. But it wasn’t the coughing that had Lena awake at 4:46 on a Monday morning. It was her three-year-old brother, Joziah, who would wake up any minute.
He was like an alarm clock, same time, every morning. So regular Lena was awake before he asked the questions she couldn’t answer.
Already the work of the day felt like bricks on her chest. Her junior year homework continued to pile up among the dirty laundry around their mattress on the floor.
But first, Jozey, always Jozey, no matter what.
Now, in the opening, I have to do a number of things. First, gotta hook the reader. Hopefully, the first paragraph will get you. I want the reader to wonder, what on earth is she not going to do again, and what does that have to do with her red purse?
In the first lines, I’m also trying to set the mood and setting. I tried to use strong language here to give the reader a feeling of desperation and tragedy: the cracked nightlight, teardrop of blood, anorexic walls et cetera.
As for setting, I’m hoping the elevation of the town, her sleeping on a mattress on the floor, the thin walls, will tell you she’s poor and struggling.
Finally, I have to give you a sense of who Lena is and why you want to root for her. I didn’t want to just say she was sixteen, so I described her Junior Year homework. And the laundry shows she has a lot on her plate, and she is stressed out.
Now, I did a little telling, not showing, in that last line about Jozey but I would hope I did it in such a way as to emphasize it in the mind of the reader. If you wanna read the rest of the opening, you can visit: http://crescentmoonpress.com/books/TheNeverPrayer.html because the next paragraphs show Lena nurturing Jozey. You gotta have a hero people can like, and Lena starts out troubled, alone, kind of bitchy, so I needed a strong sense of her as the hero, taking care of her little brother.
So that’s what I was trying to do with my opening. One of my favorite moments in the life of this book was at a writers workshop, where my first chapter was being read aloud. A woman at the workshop started to read it, but she had to stop because she started to cry. I cried too. Our eyes met, and we understood each other at that moment, that life can be hard, but there is hope. Which is really the theme at the heart of my little book.
For more about me and The Never Prayer, you can visit us both at www.aaronmritchey.com. And of course, I’m on Facebook, as is the book at http://www.facebook.com/TheNeverPrayer. And I tweet – @aaronmritchey. If you are at all curious about the novel, our friends at Amazon.com would love for you to visit them!
Thanks again, Jean Murray!
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Okay, Aaron. You’re not out of the hot seat yet
snicker, snicker.Host: First, I want to say what beautiful writing you have. It draws you deep into the story’s character and her plight. I love to garner emotion from the readers, I write with that very goal. What is your goal when you right? What do you want readers to take away from your book? (I know very deep, but you put me in the mood with your excerpt).
Aaron: You know, I find life very difficult. Other people seem to skate through the existence as if they have the “how-to-be-a-human” manual in their back pocket. But then, that’s me comparing my insides to other people’s outsides. I think we all have our drama. So in my books, I want to present life as it is, hard, brutal at times, gritty. But then I bring in the paranormal to show that there is hope, there is joy, there is the impossible around us, to save us when we most need saving. Life is full of miracles. If you look for them.
Host: What is it that draws you to write Young Adult? How do you get into the head of your teenage heroine?
Aaron: Funny, but I had a guy who wondered how I could channel at sixteen-year-old girl so well. It’s like Dickens, being a teenager is the best of times and the worst of times. It is a time of unimaginable growth, where children become adults. For me, I found the whole thing traumatizing. I wanted life to be like a sitcom, and it wasn’t, and poor me. So I remember the angst. I remember how hard just going to school felt. I still feel like a teenager sometimes, awkward, afraid, yet courageous. Immortal. Yes, teens today face a different world than I faced, but it’s still the human experience. Still, the same old drama. As for the girl part, I’m part girl—I loved soap operas growing up, I cry at commercials, I find clothes interesting. And though I think gender is important, being human is more important.
Host: So what are readers saying about your book? Yes, it is okay to brag
Aaron: I have had some wonderful reviews on Amazon, some from very talented writers. It humbles me. Really. I love it when someone picks up my book, thinking they are getting the same old, same old—the good versus evil, fallen angel versus evil demon, type of story, and then, it grabs them. Even those that don’t like the paranormal. I love it when I hook the skeptics because that means I’ve done my job. My story isn’t about angels and demons, it’s about life! The Universe! Everything! I’ve been compared to Ray flippin’ Bradbury by one reviewer. Humbled. And when I hear the words, “I couldn’t put it down”. Hurray!
Host: Now that you have teased us, tell us a little about the male hero of this story? In your description of the book you mention two love interests—do tell.
Aaron: I can’t say much because part of the fun is that you don’t know who the villain is until about halfway through the book. Both of Lena’s love interests are broken, one shows it, the other doesn’t. One is an angel who wants the world to be perfect, and the other is a demon who revels in the despair, desire, and death he sees in people, though you wouldn’t know it at first. Because of course, a good demon will seduce us before we know he’s a demon. But I can’t give away too much. Both are broken, but smoldering hot, ‘cause I love a good romance, and a good romance has to have the hunks.
Host: As a debut novelist, out of all the milestone in your beginning career what one thing stands out? Unfair question, I know.
Aaron: Two things. I made my publicist cry. Bree Ervin is one tough bird, but she cried when she read my book, and she cried when I signed her copy because without her, I wouldn’t have as many readers as I do now. You can find her at ThinkBannedThoughts.Com. The other thing was a night I spent with my friend and official Girl Friday assistant, Chris Devlin. That Tuesday night, when I was overwhelmed with fear and desperation, Chris and our friend Angie Hodapp sat me down in a Village Inn restaurant and we talked about how everyone is afraid, how everyone is broken in some way. That night, my life changed. Writing is hard. Getting published is hard. But without Chris Devlin, dang, I don’t know here I’d be. Prolly either at a methadone clinic or a soup kitchen. If you are looking for help with the administrative tasks of writing, or you need a cracker-jack copy editor, you can find Chris Devlin at http://chrisdevlinwrites.com.
Host: Do you have any advice for new writers? Words of wisdom to share?
Aaron: I will now tell you the secret to life. Get your pencils and paper ready. Okay, the secret to life is this: enjoy what you are doing and where you are, right now. I wish I had relished my pre-publication days. I wish I had breathed those moments in deep. Because before you know it, your writing time will be cannibalized by marketing your book, doing signings, et cetera. And learn to love writing, so you’d rather write than eat ice cream, you’d rather write than watch T.V. Hemingway has a great quote about when writing becoming your greatest joy, you will do it until you die. Enjoy the creative process. Laugh at the funny parts. Cry at the sad parts. Relish the stories you write.
Host: What comes next? I know you are busy promoting your book. Where can readers find you? Conferences, book signings, blogs….
Aaron: If you really wanna follow my madness, My News and Events page on my website has all of my doings. I just got interviewed on Bookmark Radio, which was a great experience, and I have a book signing in San Jose, California at Hicklebee’s on May 12, 2012 followed by a California launch party on June 14, 2012. The world is invited. I’ll be speaking at the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers in September, 2012, and of course, Mile-Hi Con in Denver, October, 2012. Before the world ends in December.
As for projects, too many to count. I am just finishing up another YA Paranormal about a broken girl who has to overcome her own limitations to help her dying grandmother travel to France to see the grandmother’s love from World War II.
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Aaron, thank you for sharing your story. I wish you the greatest success with The Never Prayer.
It has found its place on my TBR and I can’t wait to read it.
To find out more about Aaron Ritchey….
For more about Author Aaron Ritchey and The Never Prayer, you can visit them both at www.aaronmritchey.com. And of course, he is on Facebook, as is the book at http://www.facebook.com/TheNeverPrayer. And his tweet handle- @aaronmritchey. If you are at all curious about the novel, our friends at Amazon.com would love for you to visit them!
Filed under: Author Open Mic, Events Tagged: Aaron Ritchey, author open mic, book release, Editing; editor; novel, guest blog, interview, kindle, paranormal, paranormal fiction, paranormal romance, The never prayer, YA, young adult 
