Shiloh Walker's Blog, page 62
January 31, 2014
A snippet…
Kindle
Blackness wrapped around them, a sheltering embrace as his body moved over hers.
His hunger had an edge tonight.
He’d come to her late, appearing in the darkened doorway of her room and she’d barely had a chance to catch her breath before he was there, strong hands slowly pulling away the covers and then the mattress gave way under his weight.
Now, he buried his face against her neck as he muttered her name.
She gasped out his and had to bite back the words she knew he wouldn’t want to hear.
Read more
January 29, 2014
Quick kinda contest…
KindleSo I’m spreading the love. I have this book. I want to share the love. Because I love this author and you should, too.
In the Provincial Union of Victoriana, a steampunk America that lost the Revolutionary War, Charmian “Kit” Kittredge makes her living investigating crimes of magic. While Kit tries to avoid the nobs of high society, she follows mysteries wherever they lead.
Unlike most folks, Kit doesn’t believe in magic, but she can’t refuse to help Lady Diana Walsh, who claims a curse is viciously wounding her while she sleeps. As Kit investigates the Walsh family, she becomes convinced that the attacks are part of a more ominous plot—one that may involve the lady’s obnoxious husband.
Sleuthing in the city of Rumsen is difficult enough, but soon Kit must also skirt the unwanted attentions of a nefarious deathmage and the unwelcome scrutiny of the police chief inspector. Unwilling to surrender to either man’s passion for her, Kit struggles to remain independent as she draws closer to the heart of the mystery. For the truth promises to ruin her life—and turn Rumsen into a supernatural battleground from which no one will escape alive.
* * * * *
Want a copy? I’m giving away a couple… how many depends on how many entries I get between now and Friday (probably Friday night). To enter, just leave the name of an author you want more people to read.
Please… make me like your heroine
Kindle
Not telling anybody the author or title so don’t ask. It doesn’t really matter anyway.
But recently I read a romance and I hated the heroine.
She wasn’t bitchy. Most of the heroines I’ve seen referred to as bitchy I outright love–usually bitchy is just a woman who knows what she wants, isn’t afraid to go after it and she’s also capable of standing up for herself. I see a woman like that when I look in the mirror. That’s the woman my mother raised me to be…so bring on the bitches!
Noooo… this heroine was shallow. (There were other issues with the book, but if I covered everything, I’d blog all day.)
Let’s talk about the heroine. Just the heroine.
She was shallow.
She was vapid.
She was vain.
She had several other female friends in the book and naturally she was the prettiest, but it wasn’t enough that she was the prettiest.
She had these ongoing mental critiques of the flaws these other women had–one was overweight and talked a lot. She was nice. She was kind. But she was overweight and talked a lot and if only she’d lose some weight, because she had such a pretty face.
That right there put my teeth on edge. Maybe it’s because I’m overweight. Now granted, I’m an overweight asthmatic with a bad knee who can run three miles. I’m an overweight asthmatic who lifts weights at the gym. I’m an overweight asthmatic who is actually in pretty decent shape when my lungs aren’t screwing things up for me.
But there’s a hell of a lot more to a person than the number flashes up on the scale. I mean…the woman was nice. She was genuinely kind. But of course, she was overweight and she talked a lot. This was the heroine’s inner monologue, her observations-not intended to be mean or anything.
The other friends? Yup. Physical flaws. Poor. Didn’t dress well. One didn’t ever show her teeth when she smiled and she didn’t like to talk.
And oh, dear. They were poor. Didn’t she know how to dress–
(picturing me snarling & gnashing teeth.)
Again, inner monologue. Not said with intentional malice.
Poor…in what world is being poor a character flaw? One that deserves such heavy deliberation? I didn’t have much growing up. If that’s a flaw in somebody’s eyes, that says more about that person than it says about me…as it says more about this heroine. These women met up because they were smart and they worked hard and achieved something.
That clearly didn’t matter as much as their appearances, though, not to the heroine.
She comes from a nice upper-class white family with plenty of money. She doesn’t understand hardship, from what I could tell. She has a few sad things happen in the book, but it’s almost like it’s done to get her some one on one time with the hero–it never really affects her on any level. Maybe it was done to make the reader feel for her? I don’t know. But it was empty because it was like these events never really touched her–caused no change inside her, in how she acted, felt, viewed the world.
So our heroine has had a charmed existence, and don’t you just know it…she’s slim, trim and gorgeous and she just knows how to dress.
All of this creates one simple picture, in my mind-and it’s the picture the writer drew for me.
The heroine is a vapid, shallow creature who doesn’t bother to look beyond the surface and all she really cares about is shagging the hero.
How can I care about this woman? How can I be expected root for her?
Throughout the book, she doesn’t ever give a real glimpse into what she is like. Oh, I get that she’s panting for the hero.
She makes benevolent gestures to these women who she has befriended, yet somehow, because of how she acted in the beginning, that friendship seemed…empty. She never really acknowledged the fact that maybe there’s more to a person than what you see on the outside.
I never got to know who she was and the more I read, the less I cared to know.
When we write books, we want the reader to connect to the heroine. Heroines ideally should be realistic, dynamic characters and we should remember our readers don’t fit any one set image.
People don’t fit any one set image. We are rich, poor, struggling to finish school and some never started. Some of us passed every class with honors and flying colors.
We are every race, every religion. Some are brilliant, some are of average intelligence and others struggle.
Many of us have been poor–some live in poverty while others are blessed to have never known it.
Some struggle with their weight–in both ways. Some want to lose it while others battle to gain it and yes, that really is a fact.
Some of us hide physical flaws and others don’t care if people see them. Some of us might not be all that pretty. Some of us are average and some might well belong on the cover of a magazine.
There are so many things that make us different…and so many things that make us the same.
Every single of us experience loneliness, moments of inadequacy, moments of joy, curiosity, hunger, exhaustion, moodiness, envy, boredom, grief, pleasure…and the list goes on. These are human emotions.
I imagine we all also have our moments of shallowness…I had more than a few moments when I was reading that book and I’ll have them when I see women at the gym. It’s not their figures that make me all catty, though. They work hard-harder than I do so good on them. What makes me feel all small and petty is this…how can you spend an hour at the gym and not sweat? I don’t think it’s natural. There you go, one of my personal shallow moments. And that’s not one of my bad ones.
I’ve got some catty irritation threaded through this post and I know it and I’m torn between rewriting it…and letting it go. I think I’m going to let it go because if I smooth it out, it’s going to lessen what I’m saying. This book rubbed me wrong on so many levels.
Shallowness isn’t appealing. A heavy focus on external things is selling the story and the reader short. It’s taking what could have been a relateable heroine and turning her into a caricature. The story itself was just so…blah, but maybe it wouldn’t have been pure torture if I could have liked the heroine.
Whether the heroine is a teacher, a doctor, an alien, some kind of paranormal investigator, a vampire slayer, a lawyer, a stay-at-home mom, an editor, an author, a movie star, a college student…whatever…
There are certain things a writer should be able to do make that character relateable, no matter who she is, what her life experiences have (or haven’t) been.
Plenty of people have loved and watched Buffy and while none of us will ever be able to claim we were vampire slayers, (I don’t think)…
how many of us were able to connect with her when she cried over Angel? Most of us have known heartbreak.
how many of us could relate to the sibling stuff with her and Dawn? Not the shiny green energy key stuff, but Dawn was an annoying little sister…how many of us have dealt with annoying siblings?
how many of us can relate to how insecure or outright lonely she’s felt? Yeah, she felt that way because of her isolation as the slayer, but who hasn’t felt isolated or lonely?
how many of us grieved when her mother died? Who hasn’t known grief?
These emotions are what bring a character to life. That old idiom…write what you know… screw that, but you can write what you’ve felt. If you’ve known pain, bring that to the book, to your character. If you’ve known love, bring that. If you’ve known insecurity, bring it on.
If all you can bring to your character are shallow observations and endless references to how friggin hawt the hero is but oh, you can’t be together because of this [insert manufactured plot device], then don’t be surprised when people can’t relate to your character.
Don’t use internal monologues about shit that doesn’t matter. That’s not storytelling. That’s filling up pages with empty tripe that tells us nothing about your character.
If the words are there, they should reveal something or hold importance…about the person, a mystery, the town, an emotion…something.
So many words in that very long book that inspired this rant were there for no other purpose than to A) remind us how pretty and perfect the heroine was or B) how hot and sexy the hero was and how much she wanted him.
I figured out she wanted him after she told us that several times…lots of telling, rarely showing.
YAWN. Perfect people are boring. They have no growing to do and that growth/change stage thing is what makes a story worth reading, IMO. It causes tension and frustration and when she (or he or both) get to the end of the journey, they are different and the story is much more complete.
She can’t finish that journey if she never really starts it.
Image from Dreamstime Free
January 27, 2014
Email exchange
KindleSometimes, when somebody threatens to shoot you… and you make them cry… it kinda makes your day.
Me:
Did you threaten to shoot me? Over a book?
Her:
That’s why I should never send messages via three or four people. I just finished the third of your Blade books — which I adored. And I Need, need another one! So when my office maven told me she was talking with you via someone else — I had just, the night before finished Broken Blade. I told her to tell you I’d shoot you if you didn’t give us another one :P Meant as a funny, seriously.
Me:
;-D
Her:
The second one ended on a –if you leave her in this horrible place I will never forgive you sort of thing. I reread it in prep for the third book — and found myself sniveling at three in the morning. For the second time.
Me:
This could make an excellent blurb…
“I’ll will shoot her if she doesn’t write more.” Patricia Briggs
Then I get this in the mail. To seal the threat… *G* I love it.
My very own silver bullet.
January 23, 2014
Good book. Go read it
KindleI just started it last night and if I didn’t have willpower deadlines, I’d be doing nothing but reading today.
I’ve talked with the author briefly on twitter, met him at Confusion and he’s pretty cool. I’ve been meaning to read his book and after I met him, bumped it on my list. Now I should regret not reading it sooner.
If it’s SF. If that’s not your thing, read it anyway. 
How many times have I pushed the Stardoc books on people?
When out-of-shape IT technician Roen woke up and started hearing voices in his head, he naturally assumed he was losing it.
He wasn’t.
He now has a passenger in his brain – an ancient alien life-form called Tao, whose race crash-landed on Earth before the first fish crawled out of the oceans. Now split into two opposing factions – the peace-loving, but under-represented Prophus, and the savage, powerful Genjix – the aliens have been in a state of civil war for centuries. Both sides are searching for a way off-planet, and the Genjix will sacrifice the entire human race, if that’s what it takes.
Meanwhile, Roen is having to train to be the ultimate secret agent. Like that’s going to end up well…
January 20, 2014
ConFusion
KindleThis is going to be a quickie post…got a lot of work to get done, edits, finish a short story, work on SHATTERED, deal with rotten kids, laundry…ugh, ugh, ugh (anybody wanna do the laundry?)
I just came back from ConFusion, a regional SF con in Detroit. It was my first ‘appearance’ as J.C. I spoke on four or five panels, hung out with some people I know through twitter and Jackie from Literary Escapism, plus met some new authors.
I had a blast.
Authors Myke Cole (I recognized him from like…twenty feet away). The haircut, the military bearing–guys in the military move like other guys just don’t. Meeting him was cool-I’ve known him via twitter for probably two years now? I guess. Then I got to meet Wes Chu, another author I’ve seen on twitter, not as much, but he’s a lot of fun to talk to and I’m definitely going to be reading his books.
There was a weapons demo which was amazing. I slid into several panels, had a piece of crap that I’d written when I was 14 read outloud – this was called juvenilia-and fortunately, I wasn’t the one forced to read it.
All in all, I had a lot of fun.
There’s a different kind of vibe at this con from romance cons…and it’s a hell of a lot cheaper. Readers, no matter what, are always great to hang out with, and everybody was extremely friendly. People are in general pretty friendly at romance cons, so I can’t quite put my finger on what the difference is, but it’s there.
Regardless, I enjoy both, but one thing about this con that stands out? Damn, it’s way more affordable. I spent half as much here as I usually do on a con, I kid you not.
I thought the Lori Foster event was affordable but this one had pre-reg at under $40, I think, and registration at the event for $50. You’re not going to get the swag you get at romance cons, but you get plenty of panels, there’s time to chat others who love the genre and autograph sessions. It’s extremely laid back. They also have a con-suite where you can grab snacks and sodas… for free.
If you’re close enough to Michigan and have ever thought about hitting a con, I say give this one a shot.
It’s a yearly event and the website is http://confusionsf.org/
January 19, 2014
January 16, 2014
ConFusion Schedule… this weekend
KindleI’m attending my first ConFusion this weekend. It’s in Detroit. In January. I’m going to freeze.
But I’ll have fun while I freeze. I’m kinda excited, and kinda nervous. I’ve only attended one other con and that was a very last minute thing. This is also my first *J.C.* appearance. Now I’m really nervous. Oy.
If you’re going, here’s where I’ll be.
Missed Trends in Urban Fantasy
Lucy A. Snyder, Christian Klaver, Mike Underwood, Courtney Moulton, J. C. Daniels
9am Saturday – Erie
Sometimes an idea fails to find an audience, or zeitgeist just zigs when a story zags. For whatever reason, there are a number of unexplored areas of Urban Fantasy that we might want to revisit.
Covers and blurbs for the self published
Sandra Tayler, Janet Harriett, J. C. Daniels, Laura Resnick, Rich Morris, Gretchen Ash
10am Saturday – Erie
One of the benefits of working with a publisher is all that they do to promote the book. Blurbs, reviews, and cover art do a lot to sell a book. When seeking to self publish, these aspects are just as important. This panel will discuss some of the best strategies for getting the most out of your options with marketing your work.
Legendary Romance
Jacqueline Carey, Sarah Zettel, J. C. Daniels, Sam Sykes, Merrie Haskell
4pm Saturday – Southfield
The Trojan War was fought for the love of one woman. Arthurian legend would be incomplete without the love stories. Quests are often undertaken due to an underlying romance, but our popular understanding of genre and various authors’ place within and among them seems to lose sight of this fact. Why is one writer’s love story paranormal romance, while another’s is a tale of fantasy?
How is Twitter changing writing?
Sam Sykes, J. C. Daniels, Carrie Harris, Kameron Hurley, John Klima
6pm Saturday – Rotunda
More than many other social media, Twitter allows anyone to interact with their favorite pop culture icons. A fan might tweet about a dream where she was rescued by Nathan Fillion only to have him respond with a “you’re welcome”. In this landscape, communication between and among fans and authors is in flux, breaking new ground and knocking down walls without apparent effort. How has this impact helped and hurt the speculative fiction landscape, and how will it continue to do so into the near future? You are encouraged to live tweet this panel.
J. C. Daniels – Ask Me Anything
1pm Sunday – Rotunda
Author J. C. Daniels is ready to talk about her writing, her reading habits, her upcoming publishing schedule, and her experience self-publishing Urban Fantasy.
January 15, 2014
Blog tour stuff!
KindleI’m getting ready to go on lock-down mode… need to get stuff down before I fly out on Friday. But I wanna make sure I get the blog tour stuff posted…
Broken Blade… (this wraps up Friday, I think)… you can win Damon! Sorta…
Fab Fantasy Fiction
1/6/2014
Interview
Queen of All She Reads
1/7/2014
Spotlight
LITERAL ADDICTION
1/8/2014
Spotlight
Wicked Readings by Tawania
1/9/2014
Spotlight
Blogging by Liza
1/10/2014
Spotlight
Lia Davis
1/13/2014
Interview
Smile Somebody Loves You
1/14/2014
Interview
Enchantress of Books
1/14/2014
Interivew
Book Loving Pixie
1/15/2014
Spotlight
The Reading Addict
1/15/2014
Q&A
Harlie’s Books
1/16/2014
Spotlight
Salacious Reads
1/17/2014
Spotlight
Beautiful Scars! Dirty sex and heartbreak… Plus friends to lovers.
Wicked Readings by Tawania
https://wickedreadingsbytawania.blogspot.com
1/7/2014
Fab Fantasy Fiction
http://www.fabfantasyfiction.com
1/8/2014
The Reading Addict
http://thereadingaddict-elf.blogspot.com/
1/9/2014
1/10/2014
Reviews by Crystal
reviewbycacb.blogspot.com
1/13/2014
That’s What I’m Talking About
http://twimom227.com
1/14/2014
Ripe For Reader
http://ripeforreader.blogspot.com
1/15/2014
Viviana, Enchantress of Books
http://www.vivianaenchantressofbooks.com
1/16/2014
Queen of the Night Reviews
http://queenofthenightreviews.blogspot.com/
1/16/2014
Book Loving Pixie
http://tracymeighan13.wordpress.com/
1/17/2014
FINALLY…Broken Blade…hitting print soon
KindleSadly, the print aspect of self-publishing is a nightmare for me. I use createspace because it’s the simplest method, but things kept going wrong this time around so it took longer than planned, and for that, I am sorry.
But I finally got the file all nice and pretty – the files for print and ebook are so not the same, just in case people wonder why they can’t just take a file from an old out of print book and slap it into e format. I can now tell you that from experience (and bleeding eyeballs).
It’s available to order now on Createspace here and will be at Amazon in about a week. Now, I dunno why, but it takes it about 4-6 weeks longer to get to other avenues. I have no control over that. If there was another option out there that was as easy to use as Createspace that would get the book to just as many avenues, I’d go with them, but so far, Createspace has just proven to be the easiest and I need the most idiot-proof method I can find.
If you want to keep an eye out for it, the ISBN
0989460517 / 9780989460514
Retail price is $10.99
