Snowpocalypse…it continues
February 10, 2010 by Melissa · 2 Comments
Well, it is nasty. Not as much snow, but the wind, OY! I could not see the street in front of my house. I sent Les out for supplies yesterday so we are doing well. I am spending the time writing. Hands On Training is officially in and I am three chapters deep into The Spy Who Loved Her. The kids are out for the rest of the week, so I will need this to keep my sanity intact.
I was just chatting with The Wicked Writers readers about Daniel, the hero in The Spy Who Loved Her. I am sure you guessed he is a spy, and is, I have found out, a control freak. I should have guessed, but it really does come out around Anna, the heroine.
I am writing this in a combination of my old way of writing and my plotting. I have a plot, the turning points, but I am not allowing for any editing on my part. I will go back and add scenes, but no major editing until I am done.
So, I am off to get some more writing done:) Please, those of you in the path of this storm, please stay safe and warm. Oh, and for your enjoyment:
Updates and whatnot
November 1, 2009 by Melissa · 1 Comment
Hey, everyone! Well, I am in the middle of updating the site, just making the book pages easier to read and easier especially for digital readers. It will take me a few days just because I need to find all the links. That takes me forever. It isn’t hard, just time consuming to go to each of the sites and copy the links. The Harmless Books, The Hired Hand and Hands on Training are all finished so far:) Let me k now what you think.
And that will have to be done in between two other things. I have joined National Novel Writing Month.For those not familiar with it, writers take a pledge to finish a 50K novel in a month. I have decided to do this while rewriting Hands On Training. Yes, you read that right. I have decided to drive me and my family crazy, lol. But, I have a couple of ideas, and now one I think will be the one I do. It is completely uncontracted and I am aiming this one for digital publishers, so it will be erotic. If you are participating, I am under MelissaSchroeder and would love to buddy up with you.
Writing Wednesday-Increasing Your Writing Speed
August 12, 2009 by Melissa · 5 Comments
I know there will be people who’ll say that speed is not important, quality is. I agree with this, but I think any writer who wants to be regularly published needs to learn how to write at their optimum speed. The first thing you have to understand is that this is something that is very individual. Each person writes at their own speed and no two people will function the same way. Keep that in mind as I progress along in my explanation.
The first thing you need to figure out is what kind of writer are you and where do you function best. For me, I am a vomit writer. What that means is I throw it all down on the page, then go back and fix it. I rarely have good descriptions, and most of the time it is mostly dialogue and little else. Other writers cannot go on without perfecting a page or a chapter. I know some writers who only write three pages a day, but at the end of the day, those pages are perfect.
Now, when I decided to increase my speed, I did it the fitness way. Yeah, you read that right. See, to increase your number of situps, they suggest you add one each time you do it. Then, before you know it, you wil get up to a bigger number. My suggestion is to add a page to your writing average(or you can do it by words) each day you write for a week. Each week do this. If it sounds simple to you, that is because it is. Now, the tricky thing is finding your stopping point. I used to average 10 pages a day. When I got behind because of illnesses for me and members of my family, it was hard to get to the point again. I have finally returned, sometimes getting up to 15 unedited pages a day, but it has taken me two years.
Now, why did I tell you to figure out what kind of writer you are? Because you need to know your limit. I can write between 10-15 pages a day, where a friend of mine writes an average of 6-8. What is interesting is that we both can write a book in the same amount of time. That means that she is slower because she edits as she writes, I do not. My editing time is much more extensive after the book is done in rough draft. So looking at the overall picture is important.
You know how you write…you know how many pages you want to write a day, you have your goal, and you are ready to go. Now…YOU HAVE TO WRITE. Talking about it is fine, but getting your butt in the chair and getting to work is the most important thing. When I embarked on the journey, I joined a group called Survivor Writers. We committed to writing 3 pages a day, five days a week. So, you had to write 15 pages a week. That was huge because I had a 7 yr old and a newborn, so carving out that time was essential. It also did something else. It made me commit to writing each day, or at least a normal five-day work week. It is another reason I like #writegoal on Twitter. Each day you write you have to commit to that work. Keeps you honest.
One more thing to keep in mind. If you start having back problems, neck pain, or headaches, you might need to slow down. At one time I could do upwards of 20 pages a day. Unfortunately, I now have Degenerative Disc Disease, and a screwed up neck. So, I waited too late on that one and am learning to live with 10-12 pages a day. If you are not healthy, you can’t write.
It is important to look at your writing time, to figure out how long it takes you to write a book. When you get published–and you wil if you aren’t already, just don’t give up–you will need to make sure you know what you can and cannot write. It will make it easier on you and on your publisher.
Even if you can only do the three pages a day, five days a week, think about what you will accomplish if you do commit to that. In 10 weeks, you have a novella. In twenty, you have a category legnth book, and in 25, half a year, you have a single title. Now if you increase that to 30 a week, think of just how much you can accomplish!
Creating Character Depth
August 5, 2009 by Melissa · 3 Comments
Whether you are a pantzer and a plotter, you need to have some kind of idea about your characters before you begin. Even when I was a complete pantzer, I did character worksheets. Granted, I use mine sometimes just to keep track of hair and eye color. Especially in a series. It is hard to remember when you have not spent time with a character in a year or more.You can skip down to the bottom for some links and downloads for them, but what I want to write about today is how creating character depth can help create conflict and a richness to your overall plot.
I have taught a few classes on this and I always push the idea that we all need to know our characters before we start. We might not know everything, and a lot of times in the course of writing the book you find out more. But, you typically have a general idea of their personality. You might have a charcter like Evan Chambers of A Little Harmless Obsession, my work in progress. Readers of the Harmless series know Evan from the last book, A Little Harmless Pleasure. He is cold, controlling and generally has the Madonna/whore complex for women. He sees women in those roles, with no in between. Readers of the series know that Cynthia changed some of those perceptions, and now he is dealing with that while I am writing the book.(yeah, I am mean, readers, not telling you much more) But, even before I had him take a supporting role in ALHP, I knew there was something in his past that caused this. As I dug, I found out that he had some demons to fight, as I am sure the readers expect, and part of his need for control in the bedroom has to do with events from his childhood.
Now, why did I seemingly start rambling about Evan? If you read back over it, you see that something in his childhood effects him emotionally and sexually. It has to be something pretty important to have those ramifications. (nope, still not telling) But, you can see where knowing about his childhood, his parents, any siblings would have ramifications on the character’s journey and the overall plot. His heroine, May Aiona, is a seemingly strong minded woman happy to take control–but because she has to. She had things happen in her childhood also. Not as horrible as the things Evan dealt with, but both of them had to grow up really fast. It affects the way they deal with each, how their relationship progresses and whether they will find love and happiness together.
I recently had to do a character worksheet on a book I had already written. Her Mother’s Killer was first written for NY, turned down everywhere, and I rewrote it for WCP, updating the plot and characters.(and thank God because the love scenes sucked, and not in a good way). I orginally wrote it four years earlier, and just changing the technology was a strain. But, I realized why it never got picked up in the first place years ago. Althea Johnson was so bland, I wanted to kill her and save the serial killer after her the trouble. It was before I did character worksheets and I saw just how much more I learned from doing one. Yes, I knew that her father and mother had been killed, she was going through a divorce, but digging under her skin with the character worksheet, I realized that she was a woman with a backbone. She did not have one when I wrote it the first time. This is a woman who was in the house when her mother was killed, was forced off the road, went through a nasty, bitter divorce, and still, she came back to face a killer. That is a woman with some–excuse the term–balls. But, there was one thing that I didn’t realize messed up the whole plot and ruined her as a character for me: she is extremely smart. In the orginal version, I have her traipsing around trying to find the killer herself. Her brother’s best friend is the local sheriff, but she doesn’t ask for, or want, his help. That’s stupid. So, going back over her character sheet, I realized that her motives and actions were just not right, and I think changing them added depth to her character and made the story better.
What does all this do overall? It adds to the plot, explains their goals, motivations, and conflicts–not to mention their reactions to events in the book. It does matter if the mother for a character was loving or cold, whether she was an honest woman, or if she was devious. Fathers are just as important. A father who abandoned the family would definitely have a different affect on the character as opposed to one who stayed behind. Of course, if that father stayed behind and beat the children, that would produce a different character. You can help the reader understand and care about your characters. Jenny Crusie’s Welcome to Temptation has two of my favorite characters: Phin and Sophie. Sophie has a habit of repeating movie lines when she is nervous, and it is an endearing quality. Granted, she is there under dubious circumstances and she isn’t being completely honest with the hero, but every time I would read a movie quote, I would laugh and then also have some sympathy. (In fact, Ms Crusie has a list of the quotes used in the book and I read over them today laughing and remember the characters and situations.)
Make sure that if you don’t know your characters well to begin with, you solve this problem before the end of the book. Because if you don’t know why your hero doesn’t trust women, or why the heroine wants control over her own life, then you’re reader probably would not also. No, you don’t need to know everything before you start–that’s boring for the author, lol. But make sure you find out and let your reader know. It is an important part of any goals, motivations or conflicts, and helps the reader care about your character.
Here is a list of good resources to come up with your own character chart/worksheet. You can come up with your own, and it will probably work better that way. Personlize it. Different authors will want to know different things, not to mention if you are a freak like me and write in so many different genres. A character worksheet for Mila in Hunting Mila would be vastly different than my character worksheet for Colleen in The Accidental Countess. But, remember, know your characters so you can help your readers love them as much as you do.
Mel’s Character Worksheet- please feel free to download this, change it up for your use. If you share with others, please send the original with my copyright on it.
Pamela Dowd’s Character Creation Chart
Tara K Harper’s Character Worksheet
There are many more worksheets out there, so you might find something you like better or come up with your own.
Writing Wednesday: Promo-the dirty five letter word of publishing
July 29, 2009 by Melissa · Leave a Comment
Just wanted to let you all know that I am presently out of town and prewrote this. I do have a somewhat reliable connection, so I will try and get on and answer any comments or questions. Just know I am not ignoring you:)
I have always been an advocate for self-promotion. When I was offered my first contract, it was with a smaller ebook company who had not been in business that long. My second contract, about three weeks later, was with a company that was just starting. So, I knew I needed to get my name out there. But, time and time again I hear authors bitch about having to promote. I thought I would try and give you reasons why you should, and ideas on how to find the right kind of promo to fit your personality.
Book companies have little money to promote authors. Unless you are making them millions, they are not about to spend the money. And, these days, it is getting worse. It is odd when I hear ebook authors who get mass market or trade contracts with NY and say “Now, I do not need to promote. My publisher will take out ads, they will send out press releases.” It is even worse for a new author, one who has not any experience and does not have a reader base. But you always have to promote.
There are exceptions to the rule. One being category books. Harlequin has an amazing built in audience. Does that mean you shouldn’t do some promotion? Not at all, but you do have a safety net. And, every now and then, a publisher does give a newer author some push. It is a rare occurence.
Last week, it was noted by someone at RWA National, that an author just needed to write good books. Promotion took time you should not waste. I have no idea who it was, or why it was said, but whoever said it is living under a rock. Should you allow promotion to cut into your writing time? Nope. But, even with 13 releases in my first 12 months of publication, I promoted.
Many authors will tell you they are uncomfortable about it. They don’t like it because it feels crass to them. I know this will sound bad, but suck it up. I don’t always like it. I am very antisocial and so spending time doing social type of promotion. But, I got out there and talked it up. It took me some time to get my groove. But I did, and I think there are a lot of readers who know about my yahoo group days. But, that not be in your bag of tricks. Maybe your family life and job keep you too busy, or maybe you are just uncomfortable. If so you can go other routes, but always know this: Your publisher is not going to promote your book like you would. They might get the name out there, get the books in stores, but they will never take you on and promote you as their top author unless you are. So, here are some pointers and ideas:
~Always take out banner or book ads. Many of the review sites take advertising. This is a cheap and easy way to reach out to readers. You can do one for your book, or one for you in general, something that matches your site. I like having one of those around especially if I am in between releases. You want them to buy your book, but you are also trying to build your name.
~Interviews are free and most sites do them. Just know, you must have a review set up months in advance at a lot of places. Make sure to time it right after the release of your book(esp if you are an ebook author and not on preorder).
~Yahoo Group Days. These work. Many publishers do them and you can team up on their yahoo group site. Remember, do NOT promote your work from another publisher. It is tacky and can ensure that you have no other days. Or, go to the review sites. They all have active lists where readers are ready to hear about new authors.
~Bookmarks, pens, etc. These are great if you have print books coming out. They do work in some cases for ebooks, and I like to get one book mark to promote my name and website. Maybe a listing of upcoming releases. There are various lists you can get on, Pat Rouse runs a fantastic list of romance friendly stores and Romantic Times has a program you can use.
~Blog, twitter, etc it up. There are lots of places to promote yourself for free online. Just remember, don’t constantly promote yourself on Twitter to the point that you are annoying. People will begin to unfollow you. Also, many publishers have blogs you can get on to chat it up about your books.
~There are several blogs about books. I would not send them to all of the, but there are several that are romance friendly. Or, better, get to know some of your fellow authors and offer an exchance. A feature on their blog for a feature on yours.
~If you have print books, go sign stock if it is in the stores. Get to know the booksellers in your area. A signed book on the shelf is supposed to sell at a 20% higher rate than an unsigned book on the same shelf.
~I cannot express the importance of some free books. Digital copies in particular are really cheap. And, once you have a back list, know that giving a book from it, can help get sales for the new release. I have had people tell me they have bought four or five books in my backlist. That 2 bucks I lost on the free digital ended up getting me 8-10 bucks in return. And I promise you, these people will be ready for your next release.
Remember, the most important thing you can do is write the best book you can write. There is no substitute for a good book.
They say it takes three times of seeing your book for someone new to buy it. Not sure if that is true, but if it is, it is probably even worse in this economy. These are just a few things that you can do to get your name out there–and remember it is about selling your name, building it with readers. It doesn’t include everything you can do, I don’t have the time to list them all. But some of this can help stir up some ideas. I am not saying these work for everyone, but find what works for you. A couple things from this list and you could be on your way to building your name with readers.
Projects, deadlines, and vacation, oh MY
July 23, 2009 by Melissa · 6 Comments
So, thought I should update everyone on some of my work. I just turned in a MFM novella to my agent, keep your fingers crossed on it. I also turned in the synopsis for ALH Obsession. I have plans on getting that to my editor at Samhain by Oct 1 and hopefully, I will get a release date then. I have also started a new series t
hat includes a HUGE vampire world. It is kind of scaring me, because it is a big project to take on, but when the idea came up, Shelley just would not let me let it go. Oh, and it is historical. I should have a proposal ready to go by Sept, so hopefully I will hear something before Thanksgiving. Of course, this is a business that one week can turn into a month of waiting, but you never know.
Secondly, my family and I are going to the city of brotherly love. I have been to Philly, I think, as a child. I think we flew out of there when we moved to Germany. Anyway, we are taking the girls and seeing some of our history.
Plus, we are going to hit the beach. I will be around, insisted on internet, but my days will be filled:) IF I get any news, you all will find out as soon as I am allowed to announce, and there will be at least a Writing Wednesday(hopefully more posts with pics) posted.
Writing Wednesday: Having a job you can love…but it is a job
July 22, 2009 by Melissa · 9 Comments
In my five years as a published author–still feels odd that it has been that long–I have learned a lot of things, but one of them is to take my job seriously. For those of you who don’t know, I started out writing literary short stories. There was a lot of angst, let me tell you. It took me ten years as I bopped from literary to thrillers to mysteries before I found romance thanks to a Linda Howard book. After reading it, I really wanted to be a romance author. As I started doing research, because you know the geek in me would LOVE that, and found that romance was the top selling genre in paperback books. And, as I transformed from aspiring to published author, I learned how to treat it as a job. I had 13 releases in 12 months, from three epublishers. I believe three of them were written at the beginning of the year. It wasn’t easy, especially after falling down the stairs in the middle of the year. So, the one thing I had to do was make sure that I treated my writing as a job.
“Every time I hear writers talk about ‘the muse,’ I just want to bitch-slap them. It’s a job. Do your job.”
–Nora Roberts
Whenever you think of claiming your muse isn’t working, that the atmosphere just isn’t right for you, I want you to read that quote out loud. Until you can understand what Nora means, then you will have problems. Many people call me crass. It is not crass to take your craft and your commitments seriously. Do things get in the way? Yes, all the time. And, admittedly, I sometimes can’t rise above. The year from hell, otherwise known as 2007 for everyone else, I fell way behind. It was my problem and I should have addressed it but then many people don’t recognize depression when it hits.
But onto taking your job seriously. You want to make the NY Times, you want to be on the list of bestsellers of the year from Borders??? You will have to be professional, and that means working at writing. If you don’t care about these things, or if money is of no concern to you, you are in the wrong genre. Romance is popular fiction and sales drive it. To get ahead, you have to be a good seller, and for that, you have to produce. I work three projects at once usually. I have to. My ADD would kill me otherwise and when one gets boring I jump to the other. That is not for everyone. But I suggest you find something that works, something that makes you able to put out pages. Write the best you can, but always keep moving forward. Sometimes that means cutting pages, or scrapping a whole project. But don’t ever tell me something isn’t happening because your muse is not there. Tell the bitch to get in gear and get down to writing.
Now, since I write in a genre that many people hate…although it is the best selling in paperback and ebook(I am assuming), I often get dirty looks, snide remarks, and well…if you read it you know how some people react. There are times that even people who work in bookstores, and thereby make their living off of books, are rude to people who buy or write romance. Silly, yes, but it is there. And, seriously, I used to be embarrassed. Somewhere along the way, I gained confidence in my choice. Nothing made me happier in my writing than writing romance. I LIKE happy endings. I want some fantasy in my life, hope I give it to others.
Eloisa James gave one of the best speeches I have seen at Nationals. It was all about finding joy in your writing, and it reminded me of something Stephen King said in his book On Writing. He said to never be ashamed of what you write. Never. And I am not. I write under my own name, I am proud of the stories I create. If other people aren’t taken with my writing, well, I can’t please everyone, and that’s fine by me.
Do I write for money? You’re damn straight I do and I am proud that I am actually making some headway in that area. But, as Ms. James said on Friday:
Some say writing is its own reward. I write for money, but writing for money is not so bad, especially when that writing brings you joy.
Don’t ever lose sight of the joy your writing can bring you every day. It is a job, one that takes commitment beyond most other careers. But, at the end of the day, we all know that as writers, we have the coolest job on Earth. Even with my degenerative back and neck problems, working through vacations and holidays,the rejections and occasional bad reviews, and the pain in the ass that RWA can be, I wouldn’t do anything else. It is an honor to be able to write these stories. It is a privledge to Who wouldn’t want a job like that?
Well…
May 23, 2009 by Melissa · 1 Comment
Yeah, I am dug in and it is making me cranky.I have a ton of things I want to read, and I have to put it off until I am done. I think I finally have Sexy Devil going in the right direction. Thanks to a lot of help from Kris Cook and Shelley Bradley, not to mention my agent, I finally worked out what I was missing and I think I should be finishing up this weekend. Then, I am spending the week reading. I have In the Flesh, by Livia Dare(AKA Sylvia Day), JR Ward’s and Amanda Quick’s newest books, and I am lucky enough that both Kris and Shelley are letting me read some of their unpubbed stuff. And for all you Shayla people out there, I am going to be reading Delicious, bwahahahaha.
Anyway, I was thinking about my blog and how I neglected it. I need to blog about more than just excerpts and the occasional naked man. I had come up with a schedule before, but the ADD kicked in, as it often does when I try and force myself to do something, and I would constantly forget. I know, not really a surprise.
I have decided I do want to have some scheduled days. One in particular, Wednesday, I am going to devote to writing. If you are an author and want to write something up to promote a recent or upcoming release let me know. Writing Wednesdays will start this week, and I will probably be chatting about plotting. Shelley has taught me her method of plotting(and if you can take one of her online or in person classes, DO IT) and I’ll talk about how that has changed my way of writing.
The rest of the week will be unscheduled, but I promise to blog at least three times a week. And, I will allow for naked men posts also:) If you would like to see as a reader, let me know.
Off to work and do some errands today. Crossing fingers that I can get this off to my agent by Tuesday and just have the synopsis to work. Then I can play with India and her men.
Conquering India
February 24, 2009 by Melissa · 10 Comments
I am so excited to announce that my first full menage book is going to be out this summer! I think Roy Swift and his crew are really going to make a splash when they open business late summer.
CONQUERING INDIA
PUBLISHER: FORBIDDEN PASSION PRESS
RELEASE DATE: Summer 2009
Wade knows exactly what he wants and just how to get it. He’s pulling out the stops because he is sure that India is the woman for him…and his best friend and business partner, Marc Jasper. Marc’s divorce has left him bitter, and he isn’t too sold on the idea. Still, he wants India as much as Wade, and resisting her is becoming a full time job.
Sunday writing
February 8, 2009 by Melissa · 6 Comments
Since I finished up my edits on Turning Paige, I did a little writing today on the new project. It is for a Blaze I am pitching, and I hope it gets picked up. I have been trying different things out, ie The Clan books and my Medieval. So, it is sort of fun to get back to a romantic comedy. It is really probably my best voice, meaning I don’t have to try so hard to write it, lol. It is natural to me because I am snarky and sarcastic too. Really. I mean it, I am not joking here.
I would have rather been outside. Today was absolutely beautiful here in Virginia, but I have a migraine. I could not take all that sunshine and happiness:( And, I did not get much written, but I did clean up what I do have and I am ready to get started on it this week. I should actually have a proposal ready by the end of the week for my agent. Then it is off to India and her two men, a menage I have planned(Older Woman, Younger MEN).
I also got a light for my Sony Reader. It is fantastic. The Annapolis Mall has a killer Sony Style Store. It lights up the whole screen.
Well, I just figured out that I need to pull out a plot board and work on this Blaze, so that I don’t screw it up.
Here is a man in celebration of the beautiful day today:
