In a blog interview recently, someone asked me why I write fantasy. My answer was that I always wanted the world to be more interesting than it really is. For example, one autumn morning when I was a child, I looked out to see a leaf that looked like a little fairy perched on a wind-tossed tree branch. I imagined it was a tiny gnome hanging on for a wild ride. When I got older and discovered the genre of urban fantasy, where magical elements are part of ordinary life, I was hooked. As a psychologist, I can’t help but ponder the question of why I and others like fantasy, and especially urban fantasy, from a psychological perspective. There’s definitely the aspect of wanting more magic in life, but I believe it goes deeper. A lot of the problems people come to me with end up boiling down to how they handle real or perceived power imbalances, both externally and within themselves. Urban fantasy is a great way to explore power and how it works – and could work – in our world. So, with that in mind, here are some reasons I write and read urban fantasy: We want…
Everyone at Etopia Press is excited and, well, practically crazy over the changes happening this month! We have a brand new website going up on December 6th, with all new imprints—something for every reader. We’re really happy to announce this here, at Fresh Fiction, and invite all the readers in to celebrate with us! Here’s the basics of our new lines: Introducing Deadly Desires! Deadly Desires is Etopia Press’s romantic suspense imprint. Strong, alpha heroes; brave, indomitable heroines, and tense, fast-moving plots filled with danger and suspense. Police, military, and paramilitary men are natural heroes, but we didn’t forget the strong heroines—FBI agents, detectives, or just ordinary Janes who fall into the role of amateur sleuth or “woman in danger” against their will. These stories have lots of conflict and drama—something important is always at stake, and death lurks around every corner. Welcome Feral! Feral is Etopia Press’s paranormal romance imprint. As always, strong, alpha heroes; brave, savvy heroines, and untamed paranormal worlds brimming with danger, excitement, and passion. Shape-shifters and werewolves, vampires and witches, angels and demons, psychics and ghosts… if there’s another reality beyond ours, we’ve got it. Feral heroes are just that—wild, untamed, and most certainly on…
When I was growing up, secretaries didn’t get much air time. There was Janine from Ghostbusters—she was cool—but even she was a side character, around to make smart comments, have a crush on Egon, and maybe have an adventure or two in the cartoons. (Of course I watched the cartoons. Child of the eighties, here.) It wasn’t a job that really lent itself to main-character status. Except it should have. I realized that when I grew up, took a couple secretarial jobs myself, and realized that I was no damn good at it. There were too many moving parts; too many requests coming in from all over at the same time; too many strange people to whom I had to be nice but not too accommodating and honest but not too honest. I’m a cranky introvert (think Henry Higgins with an extra X chromosome) who can’t remember where she put her keys half the time. (Didn’t help that one of my main employers was a guy my friends and I now call Vile Pantsless Ex-Boss, for…reasons.) The other thing I learned from my failed attempts at gainful employment is just how much power and information a good secretary can have….
Hello to all the readers here at Fresh Fiction! It’s wonderful to be back here again! In my brand new fourth book in the Relics of Merlin series, EVERLASTING ENCHANTMENT, readers again enter my magical Victorian London where titles are determined by the level of magical power inherited down through the ages from the old sorcerer of legend, Merlin. At the lowest level of the aristocracy are the baronets—shape-shifters who are immune to all magic and possess the uncanny ability to sniff out any of Merlin’s relics. Since the relics hold magic even stronger than the royals’, they have become the secret spies of many rulers, and are feared and despised by most of the aristocracy. And because of their unique immunity to magic, shape-shifters play a significant part in all the books in the series. In EVERLASTING ENCHANTMENT, my heroine is a were-panther who gets mixed up with one of Merlin’s relics…and the enchanted knight who has been trapped within it for centuries. The last time I was here talking about a Relics of Merlin book, I asked the question: What type of shape-shifter would you like to be? The answers were fascinating! So this time I would like…
A few weeks ago I was in Dallas for one of my favorite events of the year: Readers and ‘Ritas. Tidbits of fun included gifting Pat with a Big Donkey Dick mug (she begged me for it). Yes, I have pictures. Also the PJ party including live erotic reads which, incidentally, was where I won the Big Donkey Dick mug. We had some good clean fun too! Discussions about favorite historical heroes holds a special place in my memories as well as a sneak out for sushi with a couple of my favorite gal pals. And by the way, I was the best shapeshifting Rose from The Titanic in the costume contest! If you want more dish on Readers and ‘Rita’s, there are lots of pictures. Or you could also come next year (yeah!). But what I wanted to talk about was a conversation I had with Sara Reyes during a lull in the festivities. Okay, so there really wasn’t a lull, but I was tired so I plopped down and started asking questions. We started talking about merchandising. About the advent of serious merchandising with Star Wars and then it shifted to the music industry. That music is given away relatively cheaply, but…
How to Stay Merry while Meeting Your Word Count! My schedule has been crazy the last few months. I’ve turned in SILENCED, book #4 in my Alaskan Courage series, then completed the revisions and line edits, started the first draft of the final book in the series, planned my oldest daughter’s wedding, and continued homeschooling my youngest, all while marketing book #3, and squeezing in Thanksgiving. I imagine your schedule doesn’t look much different—scores of to-do’s on your list, and only so many hours each day to get them done—especially now, during the holidays. I wish everything stopped in December, but as writers, many of us still have deadlines to meet during these busy weeks. So, in celebration of you, my fellow word warriors, I’ve put together my top five ways to use your senses to survive the season, keep your sanity, and meet your word count: 1. Sound: Need a quick reprieve from the hustle and bustle? Find a place of calm while you write with the soothing sound of waves or birdsong on SoundDrown. Hot writer tip: Another good way to get in the writing zone is to play your story soundtrack (if you’ve compiled one), or use…
Do you remember the old Gothic novels by Phyllis Whitney and Victoria Holt? If you do, you probably can list those special ingredients these authors’ books contained. These novels, some of them written a good fifty years ago and more, usually featured a young woman alone in meager circumstances. She may or may not be an orphan, but is usually penniless, or a reluctant heiress. She finds herself in a creaky old house, a drafty manor, or in some similar location. Said young woman might encounter helpers along the way as well as adversaries. But the biggest element of these Gothic romances was the “big secret,” besides the feeling that the heroine would always be looking over her shoulder. There’s a darkly brooding hero, who usually has a tortured past and even darker secrets. The attraction between said hero and heroine practically sizzles. I remember reading books like this when I was much younger, and even then, the books were considered old. I loved shivering during the parts when the heroine and hero were together and I could feel the attraction between them—usually forbidden love. I remember turning page after page as the heroine alternately fled and faced an unseen…
Happy Holidays Everyone! Join us in celebrating Entangled Teen’s 12 Days of Kick-ass Christmas Event! This event is going to be a blast! Our authors are joining together to share some exclusive content with you all! There will be 2 teams: The Smart-Ass Team will post a good or swoon-worthy deleted scene or an excerpt and The Bad-Ass Team will post a villainous deleted scene or excerpt. And the coolest part about this celebration of all things “Kick-Ass” is that the authors will be posting on each other’s blogs! The party starts on December 2nd and goes all the way to December 13th! We will wrap up the event with our monthly Twitter party on December 13th at 9 PM EST/6 PM PST. Each day of the Kick-Ass event will feature 2 posts from our amazing Entangled Teen Authors, along with an EPIC giveaway! So, “How do I join in?” you ask? It’s easy! Just follow along with the tour and find the hidden word (it will be highlighted) in each post, and then fill out the Rafflecopter form. “What can I win?” you ask. So many things. You can win one of 2 Kindles (each valued at $69, US…
Wonderful reviews are coming in for my new culinary mystery Billionaire Blend. Kirkus honored it with a Starred Review, RT Book Reviews named it a Top Pick among December’s Mysteries and Thrillers, and Publishers Weekly called it “a highly satisfying mystery.” But what matters now is what you think. (Read the First Chapter by clicking here.) As the book opens, single-mom Clare Cosi is working hard to keep her landmark coffeehouse running smoothly. She’s still struggling in a difficult economy to make ends meet, hold on to her employees, and keep her historic Greenwich Village shop from falling apart. Then boom! Her shop really falls apart. Some nut sets off a car bomb on the street outside, badly damaging the century-old coffeehouse. Forced to close and lay off her beloved employees, Clare is devastated and makes a wish for her problems to be magically solved. But she soon finds out… Some wishes come with a price. When that car bomb ripped through her shop, Clare saved the life of an anonymous customer, one who turned out to be billionaire tech-whiz Eric Thorner, the most successful developer of smartphone and game Apps in the world. After Eric recovers from his wounds,…
My new series, Shadow Warriors, has been five years in the making. Because I held a Secret clearance in the US Navy, I’m more familiar with black ops than most simply because of the area I worked in. I took three years and read every book on SEALs written by SEALs to grasp their mindset. Because there is one and I did not want to stereotype them. Later, I branched out into Rangers, Delta Force and Special Forces. I’m well known for my thorough research and I like my books vetted by someone in the area I’m writing. I have long been a proponent of women volunteering to go into combat. Secretary of Defense, Leon Panetta, changed all of it in March, 2013. He opened all the doors to combat slots if military women wanted to take that career path. No longer were their any doors closed to women, as they were in my day. I know women who could easily fit into that slot. The downside is that women have weaker upper body strength than a man. As a volunteer firefighter for three years 1980 to 1983, with the West Point Volunteer Fire Department, West Point, Ohio, I was…