Nicole Helm's Blog, page 10

Friday Reads Becomes Friday Writes

I haven’t had a good read in a while. Partially because I have spent my book budget for the year, so I’m not buying the books I really want to buy (like Victoria Dahl’s and Shannon Stacey’s newest which came out this month), and partly because my library doesn’t carry a lot of romance.

So, what I’ve decided is on days I don’t have a Friday read, I’ll share a one page-ish snippet from one of my books. So, today’s snippet is the first page of a manuscript that’s in proposal stage (query, synopsis, and three chapters). Once I get assigned my new editor at Entangled and get everything situated with the whole Seven-Night Stand series, hopefully I’ll be submitting it.

Excerpt from Lead me Home: 

The little house on stilts vibrated in time with a loud banging sound. Drake Hudson opened one eye, noticed the world beyond the curtained window was still dark, and rolled onto his stomach.

But burying his head into the musty smelling pillow didn’t stop the banging or the shaking, which is when his brain finally engaged enough to put everything together.

House on stilts. Illinois. Dad’s heart attack. The ferry.

Shit.

Drake scrambled out of bed, knocking the ancient, and apparently non-functioning, alarm clock off the battered nightstand. It clattered to the threadbare carpet floor, finally going off way too late to save his sorry ass.

Drake accidentally kicked the clock, which hurt like hell, but at least it stopped its rusty clanging. He hopped on one foot out of the tiny bedroom toward the reverberating banging on the door.

He was used to tight spaces and less than stellar accommodations, being a freelance travel writer and blogger wasn’t exactly earning him five star accommodations-yet. Still, Dad’s seldom-used, rickety shack sandwiched between the Illinois and Missouri Rivers was at the very low end of places he wanted to be, no matter how briefly.

Steeling himself for the fury of a woman stood up, Drake opened the front door. Before he’d even finished the action, Claire was pushing her way in. She jabbed a finger into his chest. “Dead.”

They both looked down to where her finger dug into bare skin. She snatched her hand back. “Oh, for Christ sakes, put some clothes on.”

Filed under: excerpts, Friday Writes

What I’m Up To: Wordy Wordy

I’m still stuck in the middle of my current WIP, but I’m moving forward. I’ve been doing pretty good at writing at least 1k per day this past week, and on the days I missed I made it up on other days.

One of the things I’m struggling with right now is long versus short. In romance there are “category” and “single title” length books. While they have more than one difference, the big one for me is word count. So far, my published and will-be published books have fallen into the category range. Both All’s Fair & Seven-Night Stand fall in around 60k.  My two on submission books are 50K and 75K respectively.

The longest I’ve ever written is 75k, but the WIP I’m working on right now needs to be 85k. You wouldn’t think that ten thousand words would be that many once you get that high, but it is.  Or at least, when you’re writing and want to get to the end, another three-ish chapters feels like thirty. And I’m only at the 40k mark. Usually I’m starting to feel accomplished when writing category. Only 10-20 to go, but being only halfway done at 40 feels… like I’ve gotten nowhere. Crazy? Yes. But, feelings are sometimes crazy.

Filed under: All's Fair in Love and Politics, publishing, Seven Night Stand, What I'm Up To, writing

Time Flies

It can’t possibly be the second Monday in September. Surely it’s a leisurely July Saturday.

Okay, it’s not. I know it’s not. This summer just flew by, busy, busy, busy.

I’m a much bigger fan of fall–weather and slower social calendar. But, I’m also in the middle of my current WIP. Rarely a good place to be. This is where I question. Question the story, myself, my career, etc…etc…

I’m waiting an two very important things, both which come with questions of their own. Questions that only time will answer.

Time and me? Not on speaking terms right now.

Filed under: life, writing

Friday Reads: Inspiration Elsewhere

I don’t have any book recs today, but for you writers out there, I did write a post at From Fact to Fiction with my monthly collection of inspiring things.

This month’s theme is largely about getting over fear in writing and submitting.

Happy Friday!

Filed under: Friday Reads, From Fact to Fiction

What I’m Up To: Back in the Saddle

I took an impromptu writing break there. Between weekend trips and having Hubby home for almost two weeks straight, not a lot got accomplished around here.

Two weekends ago we took Toddler to Illinois to see a life-size Thomas. He got his picture taken with Sir Topam Hat and pretty much had the time of his life.

Over Labor Day weekend, we went to Iowa to visit my extended family. I’ve written about it before, but my Grandpa owns an airport mainly for antique aircraft. Every Labor Day weekend is his big “fly-in”. I have one book out on submission that has a setting inspired by Antique Airfield, and my book that will come out next year is also set at a private airfield, though fairly different than AA. This picture reminds me a lot of what I picture the setting in Seven-Night Stand to look like, minus the trees.

On the writing front, August was full of ups and downs. Luckily, the downs weren’t of the rejection kind. More of the upheaval/change/not knowing kind. It’s possible my release date for Seven-Night Stand will be pushed back, and the second book in that series will likely take months to hear back on.

I’m trying to put a positive spin on it by saying this gives me more time to finish my current WIP, which already had a partial request!

Mainly, September means getting back into the swing of things and putting my nose to the writing grindstone. I need to stop worrying about what I have no control over, what other people should do, and focus on what I can do. That’s write!

Filed under: What I'm Up To, writing

Filed under: Uncategorized

Filed under: Uncategorized

What I’m Up To: Pause and Fast Forward

I am stuck in this weird push and pull between the desire to hit the pause button on life and the desire to move in fast forward. I can’t do either, so it’s silly to be stuck wanting both, but here I am.

I want to Pause and get everything done. I want to pause and find focus, objectivity, zen.

I want to fast forward to having more concrete things to do. I want to fast forward to responses, release dates, what comes next. I want more and I want to get there.

Alas, I can only stay in the present. Maybe there’s some zen in there somewhere.

Filed under: What I'm Up To

Those Little Moments

Friday morning I was sitting at the dining room table in my house. Baby was sitting in his high chair after having just had a dose of medicine for a rash he had. While I was feeding Baby his breakfast, Toddler was standing on the couch just behind the high chair telling me about his cars. Ford, Dodge, Chevy, etc.

I looked up from the pile of goo that is baby food and had the oddest feeling of perfection. In the weirdest, strangest way, this little everyday moment was everything I’d ever thought being a mother would be. It was like ten year old me’s vision of the future.

A lot has happened in my life I never expected. Good, bad, in between. But in this weird moment, it was everything I’d ever hoped it would be. A perfect image of what I wanted, and luckily still want.

Life isn’t perfect, except for those moments when it is.

Filed under: life

Sunday Six: Complications

The road to love is never easy, espcially in a romance novel. Here’s another six from All’s Fair in Love and Politics, and if you’re looking for more snippets to read check out all the other sixers.

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“I can’t fall in love with you, Doug,” she said, and he swore he could hear tears in her voice. “This is temporary. We’re on borrowed time and we have to know that or…we’re opening ourselves up for a lot of hurt.”

Uncomfortable with how close her words were to his thoughts, Doug shifted, tipping her face up to his. Unshed tears swam in her eyes and the emotion squeezed at him. He wanted to protect her, to save her from Grant, from the memories of Meredith, even a little from herself, but she was right.

Filed under: All's Fair in Love and Politics, six sentence sunday

Friday Reads: Quickies

I like to read books in one sitting. Or at least in one day. Rarely do I enjoy the feeling of having to wait. If it takes me days to read a book, it’s usually because I don’t really care for the book.

So, I do like shorter books. I still haven’t gotten into novellas for whatever reason, but a 50k word book is quick and easily accomplished in one day.

I don’t reach for Harlequin Presents often. Not because I think they are poorly done, but because I’m not big on jet set locations and royalty. That’s not a condemnation, that’s a personal preference (we all have them). So, a plot point or a character really has to spark my interest to make me want to read.

When Maisey Yates offered a copy of one of her books on Twitter, I jumped at it. Both because my book budget for the year is now shot and also because the book featured a virgin hero. I’d never read a book with a virgin hero before and I was really interested to see how she’d accomplished this.

A Royal World Apart was full of great sexual tension and a believable backstory on a twentyy-nine year old hero who is a virgin (yeah, you read that right). I finished it in an hour or two and really enjoyed it even though it is not my usual cup of tea.

Filed under: Friday Reads