Romancing the Pomegranate: An Ode to My Favorite Holiday Fruit

Pomegranate photo snagged from the Internet by Denny S. Bryce.

Did I mention I'm hanging out in Maui for the holidays? Okay, maybe I have a few thousand times on Twitter, but not so much here. In addition to the whales, the sun and the beach, what else am I doing here? Well, I'm taking a writer's workshop called The Art of Writing, Selling and Marketing Memoirs with Rebecca Walker (it's fabulous!).

And no, I don't write memoirs, but the course explores the process for creating memorable, marketable memoirs, and the keys to getting the words and the story on the page are for the most part the same as writing fiction and include voice, situation and story, structure and perspective.

I wrote the piece below in 15 minutes for a prompt—describe your favorite fruit, using all of the senses. It was a fun exercise, and I wanted to share. I hope you like!

Happy Holidays!!!
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Ode to the Pomegranate: The Holiday Fruit

I can't remember the first time I had one. Probably didn't know what the hell it was—but a pomegranate is the most red, most delicious, most weird exotic fruit going.

There's the color and what could be more sexy than a round, red, smooth object that fits in the palm of your hand. With its thick skin and furry end or root cap, it just doesn't look like any other fruit.

I like to slice them in half with a knife, and then stare at the juice flowing from the seeds for a moment. The richer the red the sweeter the taste. But is a pomegranate ever really sweet? Or is it the promise of sweet that makes the process of eating the fruit so amazing?

Inside are all of these cocoons of goodness, and I can't get the color out of my mind, and the contrast between the pale little coves where each seed is buried. I bet there's a whole section in the Bible about pomegranates. Back in olden times there had to be some mystery, some mythology, and some message that the fruit had to share. You can't just show up with something like a pomegranate and not want to ask questions about history, the Bible and how old a thing has to be to get its own mythology.

I don't care what you say you can't make a banana sexy (okay, I hate bananas), and apples are so first sin that I bet it was actually a pomegranate in the Garden of Eden.

How dull to pull an apple from a tree when there were certainly pomegranates in the Garden. Besides, if you're going to sin, why not have a thousand seeds to drop in Adam's mouth. Give the man more than a bite or two of the bad fruit—make him work for it.

And imagine the mess. All over his face and hands and shirt. Oh, that's right, everyone was naked in the Garden of Eden. So you bet the pomegranates would have made for a much more fun evil mess than an apple.

I have no idea why I am associating the pomegranate with the Garden of Eden (someone mentioned a commercial?). Perhaps it's because you can only get the fruit in November in the city. And I would only buy it at Whole Foods, or as we call it Whole Paycheck—but again, not the real point here.

We're talking about a piece of fruit. Something that's sweet and good for you. Something that you should have every day. An apple a day keeps the doctor away. Yeah, sure, but what can you do with a pomegranate that's only around for one month out of the year?

And how much do you hate it when you can go into the store and get all of the seeds in a plastic pint-sized container. All of the fun of ripping the thing apart and tearing the flesh away and dropping the juicy seeds down your throat—gone. Wiped out. Just because of convenience and whatever else people at grocery stores do when they think about pomegranates.

You know this is now going to be a quest. Find out everything there is to know about my favorite fruit because it is a mystery. It's origins wrapped in secrecy. Because I bet, the pomegranate has been around for centuries and it's in the Bible (everything juicy and decadent is mentioned at least once in the Bible—and likely in the Old Testament). I just want the apple to move over. Get out of the pomegranate's way so that the real red round fruit can rule.

You feel me?

by Denny S. Bryce for The Art of Writing, Selling and Marketing Memoirs Workshop 2011

Six Sentence Sunday and Denny's Eye Candy: Week 20

Snagged from Tumblr, my OTP from Leverage (TNT). Hardison and Parker--they make me smile.

Six Sentence Sunday!!! This is taken from a scene in a YA paranormal I will write as soon as I polish the current WIP...it's dark, though. My sixteen year-old heroine is a survivor of a family tragedy...

Mom was way prettier than I’d ever be, and she had to be close to thirty-five then. Me, I was fifteen and a sophomore at Our Lady of Stick Up Your Ass. 

Damn. I thought I’d be able to get through this part without getting pissed about school. I mean, you’d think that since it was the day my mom died I’d remember her more than anything else, but nope, I remember everything about that morning. Every second, every word, sound, smell, all of it, except for the most important part—the moment she and my kid brother were killed. 

Well, leaving you on that cherry note:)...go check out some of the other Six Sentence Sunday entries - always good reading.

Six Sentence Sunday and Denny's Eye Candy Week 19

Six Sentence Sunday - here you go! This is from my contemporary multicultural romance called The Fixer. The heroine is having a problem making up her mind.

She leaned forward, afraid that her demeanor had something to do with his behavior. She didn’t want to mess this up. She didn’t want to jump into bed with him, although that was a lie, she did, but she knew better. There was nothing good that could come from having sex with him, except maybe the best time she’d had in months. She put the snifter on the coffee table. “Maybe I should go.”

An Author's Journal: Why I HATE Marketing - Entry 1

Image snagged from the Internet by Denny S. Bryce

My hatred of marketing has nothing to do with the fact that I've been in the business of marketing for the past 20 plus (cough, cough) years. Nope. Not it. And honestly, you know I don't really hate it, but it does seem to be the popular reaction of many authors I've talked to when it comes to all the work they need to do to sell their books, or create a dynamic web presence these days.

Yes, the marketing of authors and their books has changed dramatically over the past decade (or less) for a number of reasons I will mention in more detail in future  journal entries, but today we are just getting our feet wet.

The first steps in developing a marketing strategy are easier than you may think, and whether you're published or not (I'm not - yet:), you must be willing to put your hatred (fear, excuses, whatever) aside and step into the fray. You want to compete? You want to sell books? You've got to have a plan.

BRANDING - Who am I and why do you want to be my friend? 

Author marketing includes branding, and building awareness of your brand through traditional and non-traditional communication vehicles. Anytime I walk into a meeting and hear this gobblely-goop, I cringe - but it ain't wrong.

It means getting to know the strengths of your brand and promoting those strengths. For authors, I think this part is fun, and here's a way to get started with branding--conduct an interview with the author-you. There are a bunch of these character questionnaires on the web or in craft books, but go here for one I've used.  If you've already got a strong brand identity - this is way to dig deeper and maybe unearth some additional ideas for blogging, twitter posts, new features on your website, etc.

Part of the reason I wanted to start this journal and make it a regular feature on my blog is that I'm working on a new website. Why? Because I want to develop my brand, although as of yet, I'm not published (I know I keep mentioning that), but I don't see being unpublished as a reason not to establish an Internet presence. I don't however recommend starting a website if you haven't finished writing one book (or written at least a few hundred thousand words of several books:). You need a frame of reference, an understanding of who the author-you is before you start developing your initial brand identity.

Next jot down some keywords. Think about what you write (the genre, sub-genres, or whatever) and the themes you like to play with in your stories. Those keywords are important bits of information you will find useful when you start laying out your website (and yes, we will be talking websites very soon). Here are a few of my keywords and phrases:

• Urban Fantasy
• YA Paranormal
• Multicultural Contemporary Romance
• The Science of Romance
• Mine, Yours and Ours
• Edgy, Sexy, Laughter, Revenge
• Light and Dark, Death and Life

You can also find a bit more about websites in my blog post today at Waterworld Mermaids. Check it out!

In the meantime, if you have questions about marketing, or want to discuss anything I've written here, please comment below.

Six Sentence Sunday & Denny's Eye Candy - Week 18

Yes, my OTP is BACK! Leverage on TNT winter season returned with "The Experimental Job" last weekend. Yes, there were many Hardison/Parker moments, but also Eliot (Christian Kane) rocked it. Snagged from Tumblr by Denny S. Bryce.

Six Sentence Sunday - here goes...this is from a story I may re-edit one day:)...it's a space opera, I think, but the characters are loads of fun (at least to me:). This is a scene early in the novella when the hero and heroine are faced with something new.

“Hey, guess what?” Brian was suddenly next to her naked and tugging the rubber band from his ponytail as he ducked his head under a rush of falling water. “I’ve been reassigned.”

The bar of soap slipped from Newton’s hands and slid across the wet tile floor. “Where to?” The hitch in her voice surprised her.

Hope you enjoy, and don't forget to go and read more Six Sentence Sunday contributions. Have a great day!

I'm Freaking DONE!

Click Here!

I did it. I'm done with NaNoWriMo 2011! Two days early! I wish I could be more excited, but I'm pooped. Seriously, my back and my fingers are freaking out with the pain and the cramping. I'm going to have a drink and a good night's sleep. Tomorrow, I begin revisions, but tonight, I'm chilling.

(An hour ago, I decided to see if my count was off - to see how much more I had to write - I figured I needed another 2,000 words, but I discovered I already had 53,326)!

Six Sentence Sunday - Week 17

Hello, it's Six Sentence Sunday, and I'm ready to go! Hope you all  had a great Thanksgiving. As mentioned, I'm using another WIP this week. It's a contemporary romance about a super-woman business executive who inherits a small town and a small town deputy sheriff:). Early in the story, she's stuck in her car, and taking stock...

Shayna moistened her lips as she gave her image a quick once-over in the rearview mirror. A little disheveled, sweat dotted her upper lip and forehead. Her hair, shoulder-length and wavy, had spiraled into a jigsaw of damp curls. She ran her fingers through it, trying to sort out the mess, but gave up with a sigh. She was a sea of brown, sweat-soaked brown hair and brown skin with smudges of black mascara added for drama.  

She glanced down at her scoop-necked T-shirt, still stretched smoothly over her Double-D breasts, and tucked it quickly into the waistband of her jeans.  

Thank you God, she thought, at least something about her was in place.

Thanks for dropping by and don't forget to read more Six Sentence Sunday by visiting the website here. 

Six Sentence Sunday & Denny's Eye Candy - Week 16

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Actor Alex O'Loughlin played a vampire on "Moonlight" a few years back, and was one of the inspirations for Gideon. Photo snagged from Internet by Denny S. Bryce

Six Sentence Sunday sure comes around fast. But I'm sticking with my current WIP for one last week...then we must move on:)...It's about a vampire FBI agent struggling to keep his promise to a witch.

Gideon gulped down his drink and walked over to the wall of windows. Stretching from corner to corner, floor to ceiling, they faced east, overlooking Lake Michigan. He loved watching the water strike the shoreline in the moonlight. The black waves surged with gray and white sprays that shot high into the air before vanishing into the night. He could see well in the dark, his eyesight keen in the shadows, too. And since the water at night was mostly shadows and white foam, he could watch the lake until dawn.

There it is! Now go and read more Six Sentence Sunday!

Six Sentence Sunday & Denny's Eye Candy - Week 15

Beth Riesgraf and Aldis Hodge play Parker and Hardison on "Leverage". Yep, went for a silly photo of my OTP because they are 'eye candy' to me:)

Good Sunday morning, and welcome to Six Sentence Sunday. I'm running late, so here goes. Same WIP, a vampire FBI agent struggling to keep a promise to a witch, but this is the heroine, Macy's POV in a scene with her best friend.

Macy opened her mouth to curse Darla out but she was so angry her chest hurt and she didn't think she could breathe. Rising to her feet, she walked to the window. The snow fell thickly from the sky, but she could see lights flickering and a few cars and people struggling through the streets and sidewalks below. She watched them for a long moment before she turned to Darla and said, “I want a meeting with Gideon Russell Smyth and I want you to set it up so he understands he has to answer my questions about the serial murder case." Her voice trembled, but she didn't care. "You owe me big time for this screw up and I want my payoff now."

I'll be back later with eye candy! In the meantime, go visit and comment on more Six Sentence Sunday entries. 

Six Sentence Sunday and Denny's Eye Candy: Week 14

I was in a hurry and grabbed the first file on the desktop:) Ian S. from Vampire Diaries snagged from the Internet by Denny S. Bryce.

This week's Six Sentence Sunday has me still using excerpts from my WIP Gideon - the vampire FBI agent struggling to keep a promise to a witch. This week we get to meet another character - the romance character, if you will, and a glimpse of an early encounter she has with a few folks at a bar.

The little girl sounded like the wicked witch from the Wizard of Oz.  If she uttered one more insane word, Macy was going to lose it. “Who the hell are you people?” Macy flipped her hand in dismissal and turned to Darla. "I thought you brought me here to meet a snitch who has information about the serial murder case. These people think they are witches and wizards, fighting what? Demons?"

Okay, that's it for this week. Go visit Six Sentence Sunday and get in some reading today - you've got an extra hour!

Today's Thursday Treat: Author Avery Flynn

Avery Flynn, author, The Dry Creek Series, Evernight Publishing

I get the best authors to stop by and blog on my Thursday Treat, and the goodness just keeps coming with Avery Flynn on deck. She's a fellow Waterworld Mermaid, and a wonderful supporter of writers and writing. She also is published with Evernight Publishing, so grab a cup of coffee, a soda, tea (and if you're reading late - white wine is good, too:), and spend some time with Ms. Avery Flynn:)!

Let's get to the facts right up front. What's your full author name, website, your latest release, the WIP that is keeping you up at night, your agent, your publisher, how long have you been writing…your successes? Yes, I want the mini bio right here, right now!

Avery said: Flynn, Avery Flynn top secret agent of procrastination and spunky heroines working on behalf of romance junkies everywhere. :) Really, wouldn't that be cool if we formed a group of covert romance agents? Oh, I'm totally getting the idea for a new career path. But until that comes to fruition I'll enjoy being my own silly self. You can track me down all over the place. I'm on the fabulous Waterworld Mermaids blog, my own blog, Facebook  and Twitter. My latest release will be coming out in January. It's called A Dry Creek Bed and it's book two in the Dry Creek series from Evernight Publishing. It's the action packed, steamy tale of Beth Martinez and Hank Layton. It was so much fun to write and I can't wait to have it out in the world. I've been writing since before I could spell (some would say that's still true) and plan to keep doing so until my fingers stop working. 

Q. What's the best kept secret about your writing process? 

Avery said: That even as fun as it is, it's work. Don't get me wrong. I love writing. However, I believe in making this my career and any career I have has to put groceries in the cupboard so I take the business side seriously. How does this factor into writing process? It means I have a set schedule that I try to keep. It means I organize myself to the nth degree (seriously I plot like I'm going into battle). It means that I'm always pushing myself to write better and learn more about the craft.

Q. What character have you written or are writing that keeps you up at night - just one, please:)?

Avery said: Right now it's the character I haven't written. One of the heroines for my next series is sneaking into my dreams and my downtime. Viv is going to be a ton of fun, but she is not too happy about having to wait in line for her turn. 

Q. What television or pop culture fictional character has had the greatest influence on your writing style and why?

Avery said: Oh man. I don't know that I can pick just one. I gravitate toward the kick ass heroine who always finds a way to make things happen. This could be a Charlie's Angel, Buffy, Stephanie Plum, Anita Blake … you get the idea. I like this type of heroine because I think they inspire and empower us as readers. It's a thrill to get to live vicariously through them and at the same time connect with them. Take Anita Blake, for example. She is a tough, tough woman. I get an adrenaline rush reading about her adventures, but at the same time I really connect with her because she has to balance her work with the needs of her family.

Q. What book/author is the current "hot read" on your bookshelf?

Avery said: There are three authors I always pick up: Janet Evanovich, Lori Foster and Laurell K. Hamilton.

Q. What's your favorite drink on a hot August evening - and who (fictional or not, friend or family, celebrity or historic figure) would be sitting at your side enjoying that drink with you?

Avery said: I'm a beer girl and my current favorite if the Guinness Black Lager. Yum. Who to have it with? I have to go with my husband. Even after almost 12 years and three kids, he's still my favorite person to hang out with.

Q. Who's your favorite romance author and what would you ask them if you had the chance (or when you had the chance)?

Avery said: My favorite is Lori Foster. When I look at authors I'd love to have mentor me, she is at the top of the list. I actually did get to talk with her (via e-mail) recently. That Q and A will go live tomorrow (Nov. 4) at the Waterworld Mermaids blog with a few extras on my blog. So stop by and see how personable she seems even via e-mail.

Q. Last question…what question have you been dying to answer but no one has ever asked?

Avery said: What is it like to be a New York Times bestselling author with 40 books under your belt and your own private island?

Great questions Denny! Thanks so much for having me - and don't hesitate to drop by Evernight Publishing to check out my books by clicking here now!

Thanks so much Avery for agreeing to hang out and share your success, as well as the latest news on your series. Now readers, please take a moment to ask Avery some questions. She'll be with us all day long, so let's get to chatting!

Rebecca Walker - Author, Feminist, All Around Great Gal:)

Rebecca Walker, author, feminist, writing coach. 
Photography of Rebecca Walker by Amanda Marsalis.

Rebecca is inspirational. She is truly among the Who's Who on any important lists about feminism, women's issues, writing, the arts and politics.

She is a wonderful writer, speaker, feminist, and contemporary woman. I had the pleasure of meeting her in 2009, when I attended one of her writing workshops for memoirists. Well, I don't write memoirs (not yet), I write romance fiction, but the experience and what I learned in a jam-packed week of reading, writing, marketing sessions, and idea exchanging, changed my writing life. So, I am honored to have her as a guest blogger, and she's going to hang around for a day or two - just to talk. So enough of my ramblings, here goes...

Let's get to the facts right up front. What's your full name, website, your latest release, the WIP that is keeping you up at night, your agent, your editor, how long have you been writing…your successes? Yes, I want the mini bio right here, right now!

Rebecca said: Rebecca Walker here, and there are a plethora of ways to find me. Check my site at www.rebeccawalker.com, my FB fan page, Twitter feed @rebeccawalker, and of course LinkedIn for all you business-minded folks. There's more, but I will leave it at that.

My new book coming in February 2012 is called Black Cool: One Thousand Streams of Blackness. It's a look at the different elements that make up what we think of when we see Obama step out of the limo with dark glasses, or strut across the White House lawn. What is that ineffable quality of cool? Reserve, audacity, swagger, what? And where did it come from.

This will be my sixth book, my fourth collection. My other two are straight-ahead literary memoirs, one on growing up mixed race in the seventies and eighties called Black White and Jewish and another about my decision after much ambivalence to have a child, called Baby Love, which was very controversial!

I am fortunate that my books have done well, and are taught all over the world. Today I signed  a permission for my introduction from my book on masculinity, What Makes a Man, to be included in 350,000 textbooks! One of my manuscript clients just sold her book to a major publisher, and I'm thrilled to be teaching another master class for writers in December in Maui at one of the most gorgeous resort properties in the world: the Grand Wailea. AND I get to come home and kiss the most beautiful six-year old you ever did see. I count my blessings.

Q.  What's the best-kept secret about your writing process?

Rebecca said: I hate to actually write. I like to write the entire book in my head before sitting down at the computer so the sitting down isn't so brutal and lonely and terrifying. I also find sitting and "trying to find you story" extremely inefficient. Time management people!

Q.  What character/theme have you written or are writing about that keeps you up at night - just one, please:)?

Rebecca said: Lost love. Fidelity. The vast ocean between continents. The need for human evolution.

Q. What recording artist/television or pop culture fictional character has had the greatest influence on your writing style and why?

Rebecca said: Gosh, so many! I feel like a big sponge. I'm constantly inhaling high art and pop art and mashing it all together in that thing called my creative brain. Maybe Miles Davis because I play Kind of Blue on repeat for hours? Maybe Michael Jackson because he's Michael Jackson and my son worships him. Maybe Michael from the Office because his self-deprecation makes me laugh. Don Draper because his character is so beautifully written with so much complexity. Nikki from Big Love because she's at once completely lovable and repugnant.

Q. What book/author is the current "hot read" on your bookshelf?

Rebecca said: I'm reading the Steve Jobs book right now, like everyone else. Also a gorgeous memoir/biography of a woman who started her creative career at 72: The Paper Garden by Molly Peacock. Very inspiring.

Q. What's your favorite drink on a cool October evening - and who (fictional or not, friend or family, celebrity or historic figure) would be sitting at your side enjoying that drink with you?

Rebecca said: Steaming hot chai with almond milk and agave with my husband, for sure. I'd like to have tea with Joni Mitchell. Coffee with Joan Didion.

Q. Who's your favorite author, poet, lyricist and what would you ask them if you had the chance (or when you had the chance)?

Rebecca said: I would definitely ask James Baldwin if it was all worth it. The exile, the torment, the struggle, the coming out, the bearing of the torch. All of it. Was it worth it, in the end?

Q. Last question…what question have you been dying to answer but no one has ever asked?

Rebecca said: People have asked me so many questions, I feel I've covered everything over the years. Let's see. I think the question would be the same: Is it worth it? The struggle to write, to publish, to share, to risk? Is it worth it? What have you lost and what you have gained. The answer to both questions is...everything.

Thank you Rebecca!

Now, it's your turn readers. Take a moment and ask her a few questions, also if you want to spend a week in paradise enjoying the freedom of being a creative artist (because that's what we writers are)...check out her workshop December 19-26. I'll be there!

Six Sentence Sunday & Denny's Eye Candy - Week 13

Ian Somerhalder (Lost, The Vampire Diaries) snagged from the Internet by Denny S. Bryce 


Six Sentence Sunday returns after a brief hiatus and some reminders on the rules. But I'm still sharing the WIP about a vampire FBI agent struggling to keep a promise to a witch...

Gideon didn’t want to listen. The bits of information the deputy shared had little to do with what he was looking for. If the man didn’t scream witch, sorcerer or worse, Gideon could care less. Besides, how many times in the past ten years had he sat in a car heading toward a dead body? Most of the time there was nothing supernatural about the killings. Just some deranged human collapsing from the weight of their own fragile sanity.

Take a moment and visit some of the other sentences out there in the world of SSS--and don't forget to comment!

Today's Thursday Treat: Award Winning Author Gail Barrett

Award Winning Author Gail Barrett's new release High-Risk Reunion is the first book in the Stealth Knights miniseries ("Stealth Knights: Powerful, passionate heroes with their own code of law.")

I am excited! Today's Thursday Treat is award winning author Gail Barrett. She is a multi-published author who I am thrilled to have as a guest blogger. A big thank you to Gail for agreeing to spend a few minutes here sharing a bit about her writing process and providing some insights to her success. Speaking of which, her new release High Risk Reunion is the first book in the Stealth Knights miniseries from Harlequin Romantic Suspense. 

Let’s get to the facts right up front. What's your full author name, website, your latest release, the WIP that is keeping you up at night, your agent, your publisher, how long have you been writing…your successes? Yes, I want the mini bio right here, right now!

Gail said: Okay, here goes.  My name is Gail Barrett, and I’ve been writing forever.  I’m one of those people who knew from childhood on what I wanted to do with my life, but I didn’t get serious about trying to publish a book until my children were in school full time.  My agent is Pam Hopkins, and my ninth book for Harlequin is out right now, High-Risk Reunion.  The tenth will be out in March.  Probably my biggest success is all the awards and contests I’ve won or finaled in over the years. Meltdown was a Rita ® finalist last summer, which was an enormous honor and a personal milestone for me.  My books have also won the Holt Medallion, the National Readers Choice Award, the Book Buyers Best Award, and the Golden Heart, among others.  My website is www.gailbarrett.com.

Q. What’s the best-kept secret about your writing process?

Gail said: I don’t know that it’s a secret, but I’m very obsessive about my writing.  I revise everything dozens of times, and even then I’m never quite satisfied with how it comes out.  I can spend hours on a single paragraph.  I have a certain ideal in my head, a kind of internal rhythm to my sentences, and I go crazy until my writing sounds like I think it should.  As a result I tend to write more slowly than I’d like, but that seems to be the way I work.

Q. What character have you written or are writing that keeps you up at night - just one, please:)?

Gail said: Once I finish a book and have completed all the edits, I stop worrying about the characters because they have achieved their happy endings and don’t need my help anymore.  The ones that keep me up at night (literally) are the ones whose stories I can’t quite figure out.  Right now I have a dozen such characters making me toss and turn in the middle of the night.

Q. What television or pop culture fictional character has had the greatest influence on your writing style and why? 

Gail said: Howard Roark from The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand.  I read that book in high school, and his philosophy has influenced all aspects of my life ever since -- from my writing to politics.  He embodies the triumph of the individual against collective society.  He is a man who thinks for himself and isn’t afraid to go against the mainstream.  He resists all pressure to conform and seeks perfection in his work.

Q. What book/author is the current "hot read" on your bookshelf?

Gail said: Right now I’m on a Nora Roberts binge, trying to finish some of her older trilogies that have been collecting dust in my to-be-read pile.  I plan to pick up the first book in her new trilogy at her book signing this weekend and can’t wait to read it.  That trilogy is set in Boonsboro (just a few miles from my house) and I’m really looking forward to seeing what she does with it.

Q. What’s your favorite drink on a hot August evening - and who (fictional or not, friend or family, celebrity or historic figure) would be sitting at your side enjoying that drink with you?

Gail said: My ideal night would be sitting at an outdoor cafe in Spain, drinking red wine and eating tapas with my husband and a few good friends.

Q. Who’s your favorite romance author and what would you ask them if you had the chance (or when you had the chance)?

Gail said: Oh, that’s a hard one because I have several favorite romance authors.  I’d love to find out from Nora how she writes so fast, though!!!

Q. Last question…what question have you been dying to answer but no one has ever asked?

Gail said: Is it true that you used to play the bagpipes?  The answer is YES.  I am a bagpipe and Celtic music fanatic.  My favorite group is Berrogüetto, which hails from Galicia, a Celtic area in northern Spain.  I have some links to their music on the Bio page on my website.

Thank you Gail. 

Now it's time for you to ask questions. Gail will be around and looks forward to chatting. So take a moment to say hi! 

Today's Thursday Treat: Erotic Romance Author Louisa Baico

The first in the series: The Vampire, The Witch and The Werewolf: A New Orleans Threesome by Louisa Bacio.

It's Thursday's Treat at my blog! Glad you could come hang out. Today, I am thrilled to have Louisa Bacio, an up and coming writer of erotic romance who has been doing it (that's in front of the computer) for a few years now. A dedicated writer, mom and critique partner - I am thrilled she took the time to join us here today. So here goes. Louisa Bacio!

Q: Let's get to the facts right up front. What's your full author name, website, your latest release, the WIP that is keeping you up at night, your agent, your publisher, how long have you been writing…your successes? Yes, I want the mini bio right here, right now!

Louisa said: I’m Louisa, and my first book Sex University: Physical Education was published by Ravenous Romance in June 2010. This year, I’ve published two novels and a third – an erotic paranormal ménage – The Vampire, The Witch & The Werewolf: Chains of Silver should be out within the next month. (It’s in my editor’s hands as I write …). It’s been a whirlwind first year, and I’ve learned a lot about the publishing process. I adore my publishing house, and also my ePub agent, Saritza Hernandez, who is with the L. Perkins Agency.

How long have I been writing? Let’s just say that my first poems were about Garfield the Cat, and I’ve evolved a LOT since then.

As for haunting, that would have to be The Vampire, The Witch & The Werewolf. While I just finished the second book in the series, I’ve got a contract for a third, and two more are vying for attention!

Q. What's the best kept secret about your writing process?

Louisa said: It’s not too much of a secret but I do a lot of writing late at night. As a working mother with two small children – homework’s killing me! – I’ve got to squeeze writing-time in somewhere. I, along with a few other busy writing-moms, have pitched a workshop for RWA #12 on that very topic. Hopefully, it’ll be a go!

Q. What character have you written or are writing that keeps you up at night - just one, please:)?

Louisa said: One? Oh, come on! OK, to be honest since I recently started a new short story, it would have to be Alison Baba. She’s a motorcycle-riding hottie, whose father recently passed away. He left her in charge of his gang, and she’s got a thang for two very different members – Dragan and Taj. It’s a modern threesome retelling of a common fairy tale. And – without giving anything else away, we’ll see if you can figure out which one …

Q. What television or pop culture fictional character has had the greatest influence on your writing style and why?

Louisa said: Oooh, pop culture. Have I mentioned that I teach pop culture classes? Yep. Early influences come from the summer lovin’ that happened between Danny and Sandy on Grease. I used to reenact scenes from the film with my Barbie dolls (you’ll notice a trend with Barbie dolls later).

More recently, it would have to be Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Such brooding love with both Angel and Spike. Last year, I submitted a YA Halloween-themed short story that was rejected. The feedback was that it was too much between funny and scary, but if you look at my influences (Buffy), that’s my preferred niche.

Q: What book/author is the current "hot read" on your bookshelf?

Louisa said: I’ve got so many, to be honest. But, if I want a good, quick and dirty read, I’m turning to Decadent Publishing’s 1 NightStand series.

Q. What's your favorite drink on a hot August evening - and who (fictional or not, friend or family, celebrity or historic figure) would be sitting at your side enjoying that drink with you?

Louisa said: Homemade limoncello. Every year, we make it from lemons in my father’s backyard. When it gets hot, it’s delightful with ice and sparkling water. And the good thing about making your own liquor is that there’s plenty to share. So, when are you coming out to California?

Q. Who's your favorite romance author and what would you ask them if you had the chance (or when you had the chance)?

Louisa said: This type of question always throws me because I have so many “favorite” writers. Let’s pick Charlaine Harris and her Sookie Stackhouse novels. I want to know who Charlaine thinks Sookie should stick with. My choice has always been Eric (even before the hunky portrayal on True Blood).

Q: Last question…what question have you been dying to answer but no one has ever asked? 

Louisa said: What’s with all the kidnappings in your books?

You know, if you want to do the psychology on it, I’d love it. I’ve come to the realization that it’s a theme that somehow fascinates me. Maybe it has to do with forcefully being kept from doing something that a person wants. And, I’m remembering that I used to have my Barbie dolls be “kidnapped.” Totally bizarre to make these connections and I swear, it’s never happened to me in real life …

Author Web or Blog Site: http://louisabacio.blogspot.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/louisabacio

Twitter: www.twitter.com/louisabacio

Six Sentence Sunday and Denny's Eye Candy: Week 12

Photo of Croatian Model Denis Nikolic snagged from Internet by Denny S. Bryce

Good Sunday morning. Here is my Six Sentence Sunday for today. Still the WIP about the vampire who is struggling to keep a promise to a witch.

The crystal stemware hanging from the rack in the mahogany cabinet sparkled in the candlelight. Gideon reached up and touched a long stemmed flute perfect for sipping cold champagne. “Turned into a vampire at twenty-eight,” he muttered. 

On nights like these, the cold, white snow falling against the black sky and the roar of Lake Michigan outside his windows, reminded him of being alive. Bathing in the sunlight, enjoying the taste of meat and buttered bread, savoring the aroma of a good cabernet, he missed those uniquely human things and more than ever, he missed the warmth of a woman’s body in his bed, a woman like Georgia Cole. 

He chuckled ruefully, caught off guard by how quickly she had worked her way into his thoughts.

Post a comment, please, and then go and read more Six Sentence Sunday posts!

Six Sentence Sunday and Denny's Eye Candy: Week 11

Photo snagged by Denny S. Bryce from Leverage on TNT, my latest OTP:) - Hardison and Parker.

This Sunday I'm in Orlando during a multi-day rainstorm. Nothing but rain, rain, rain. And frankly, I'm loving it. I just feel bad for those folks who are here with families for the supposed sunshine and amusement park fair. Anyway, it's time for Six Sentence Sunday -- week 11!

Gideon (tentative title of the WIP) is coming along. Plotting is a bear by the way. But here's my six for this week. He's still a vampire struggling to keep his promise to a witch. This gives a slight hint to their back story.

An hour later, he held Rachel’s hand and recalled the day a hundred years before when a witch’s spell had stopped him from feeding on humans. Before that day, he hadn’t contemplated his destiny. Hadn’t worried about it. Killing was his art. He’d understood that with clarity since 1696—the last thing he’d ever wanted to be was necessary.

Now he had no choice. 

Well, thanks for dropping by - make certain you visit some of the other authors who share their Six Sentence Sunday - there's some really intriguing stuff out there I know will hook you!

A note about my OTP - Leverage is a funny, well-acted show that uses the Robin Hood motif except with a team of thieves instead one merry man, we've got five. The slow burn of Hardison and Parker is only one of the sexier aspects of the show. It also stars Christian Kane, formerly of Angel the series and Tim Hutton (loved him for years and years). Get caught up On Demand...or find 'moments' on YouTube. Yes, I'm a fangirl!

Today's Thursday Treat: Erotic Romance Author Vivien Dean

Vivien Dean's new book is available from Amber Quill on October 16, 2011!

I get giddy when I think of this author whom I've known for nearly a decade (yes, ma'am, think about that!). Her talents were legendary to thousands of online readers of fan fiction, and she was touted from the get-go as the first break-out star of the writers who held us spellbound back in the day. We weren't wrong. For the past seven years, she has written professionally and could easily claim the mantel of the Nora Roberts of erotic e-romance--she's knocked out nearly 100 published stories from novellas to full length novels. A 2009 Eppie winner (for "Walk Among Us" with Samhain Publishing) and 2010 Eppie winner for best erotic romance/novella and paranormal romance respectively, and a 2012 Epic finalist for paranormal romance - let me stop drooling, and just let you take a moment to learn more about the luscious Vivien Dean.

So here's my Magic Eight questions:

Q.  Let's get to the facts right up front. What's your full author name, website, your latest release, the WIP that is keeping you up at night, your agent, your publisher, how long have you been writing…your successes? Yes, I want the mini bio right here, right now!

Vivien said:  My name is Vivien Dean, and I've been writing erotic romance professionally since 2005. In 2006, I teamed up with Pepper Espinoza to collaborate as Jamie Craig. To date, I have 67 collaborative stories and 29 solo titles, spread over seven different e-publishers, running the gamut of genre and sexual orientation. My next title, a gay werewolf erotic romance called "Moon-Touched," comes out on October 16 at Amber Allure, but I'm currently working on a het fantasy about the eldest daughter of a powerful, influential family in love with the head of her father's guards. You can find me at http://viviendean.com/ and on Twitter as @VivienDean.

Q. What's the best kept secret about your writing process?

Vivien said:  Don't stop. As fun as it is, writing is still a job. I write every single day, seven days a week, fifty-two weeks a year. I find the time in between everything else in my life. At my height, I'd regularly write 4-5k a day (both JC and VD), but as my kids have got older, I've cut that back to 2k a day to keep my sanity.

Q.  What character have you written or are writing that keeps you up at night - just one, please:)?

Vivien said:  It's always someone I'm currently writing that occupies my thoughts. So right now, I'm obsessing on Klea, my heroine in my fantasy. She's the character that shows the most growth within the story (or is meant to, anyway, lol), and I find myself constantly thinking about why she is in the place she's in, why she makes her choices, what she wants.

Q.  What television or pop culture fictional character has had the greatest influence on your writing style and why?

On my style? Hm. That's tough. I think my style is mostly influenced by my education in film and theater, to be honest. But if I have to pick one that helped mold how I approach most stories, I'd probably say Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It's the combination of deep emotion, humor, and the fragile mask he wears that hides the real pain that often leaks into my work most.

Q:  What book/author is the current "hot read" on your bookshelf?

Vivien said:  This past summer, I discovered Cara McKenna/Meg Maguire, and I've been devouring her backlist ever since. She had a release at Ellora's Cave last week called "Curio" that I'm chomping to read, but I'm saving it as a treat for myself because I'm trying to meet a deadline. :)

Q.  What's your favorite drink on a hot August evening - and who (fictional or not, friend or family, celebrity or historic figure) would be sitting at your side enjoying that drink with you?

Vivien said:  If it's evening, it's after dinner, and then my tipple of choice is a good aged port, regardless of the season. And it's always my husband at my side. He's my rock. And my watchful eye when the alcohol begins to have its way with me, lol.

Q.  Who's your favorite romance author and what would you ask them if you had the chance (or when you had the chance)?

Vivien said:  Oh, just picking one is hard! I'm torn between Joey Hill and Diana Gabaldon. How's that for disparity? I love Hill for her luscious, sensual prose, and for daring to have male submissives and still make them sexy as hell. Gabaldon, on the other hand, wrote one of my favorite heroes ever, Jamie Fraser. I guess since I've had the opportunity to meet Hill before at a convention (and got all my books signed, woo hoo! I'm such a fangirl, lol), I'll go with Gabaldon. I'd ask her how she feels about creative license in making historical fact work with the story. Then, on a purely superficial note, I'd ask her who she'd cast as Jamie in a movie adaptation, if budget wasn't an issue.

Q.  Last question…what question have you been dying to answer but no one has ever asked?

Vivien said:  "Can't you just pick a genre and be done with it?" To which the answer is, no. I'd get bored. If I could only write one genre for the rest of my life, I'd probably write one story and then quit. Maybe I just have the attention span of a gnat, because I'm the same way about the kind of music I listen to, or the TV/movies I watch, but a diet of all the same, over and over again, would dull it all. I write about the people who interest me in that moment. Sometimes, it's a bisexual vampire with control issues. Others, it's a straight girl from the streets doing everything in her power to stay alive. They're the ones who tell me what to write. I often don't have much say in the matter at all:)

Thank you Vivien!

Now, fans and writers - here's a chance to ask questions of a lady who has put her mark on erotic romance...ask away!