Monthly Archives: January 2011

Research Files- Don’t Neglect People


As a writer, it’s easy to say, police officers are too busy to answer my questions. Why would a lawyer talk to me without charging a fee? How would I even go about getting information on these and many other occupations?

I’m here to tell you, people are more willing to help than you might think, especially if you tell them you’re writing a book. Use your local yellow pages, do a google search. You can find law offices and police stations, hospitals and fire stations, all willing to answer questions. Don’t worry about bothering them either. Tell them that you are writing a novel, and what you need to ask about (in general), and that your schedule is flexible. They will tell you when to call back or come by if they are too busy. Some people, I’ve heard, will even read over a scene or manuscript, with an eye to accuracy where their profession is concerned. But you have to ask. You won’t get the answers you seek until you do.

If you’re shy or still concerned about talking to people live at their jobs, you can also use internet resources that get you in touch with these people. First, most websites have a contact us section. You can ask the IRS tax questions, the LAPD about procedure, ask a doctor medical questions, and more.

I’ve also found a site with a number of ask the expert links. I’ve looked at a few by subject and most seem to be genuine, working links, so give it a look.

Finding the information you need doesn’t have to be any harder than you make it.

As always, double check the validity of any internet site you use.

Ava
Fiery and sensual novels by Ava Delany.
The Homecoming series – The Soldier’s return, The Librarian’s Love, and The Wedding night.
The Fetish Club series – Captivated, Dominated, and Fallen
Available through Amazon, AllRomanceEbooks, BP, and more.

Be Careful of Program Downloads


Just a quick note for those of you who are thinking of trying the trial of Whitesmoke editing software. I decided to give it a try, and my Norton program detected a trojan horse in the toolbar file. Beware of downloads, even when they look legit.
Thought you might like to know.

Research Files- Maritime


If you are writing a novel on the navy, there are a number of helpful resources. Museums are great for historical novels and there are numerous places to find info on the modern navy.

Books-

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    U.S. Navy (U.S. Military Series)

by M. Hill Goodspeed covers each year from 1775 to present.
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    Six Frigates: The Epic History of the Founding of the U.S. Navy

by Ian W. Toll
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    The Royal Navy Officer’s Pocket-Book: 1944

by Brian Lavery details, advice, and instruction on all aspects of naval life.
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    The Royal Navy: A History from the Earliest Times to 1900

by Williams Laird Clowes, W. Laird Clowes, and H. W. Wilson is a 7 volume series that has a ton of information.
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Websites-

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The National Maritime Museum in England is a great place to explore the history of the British navy online.
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Here’s a list of museums all over the world with online links to explore.
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Navy.mil has a lot of info and other links for you to discover the modern U.S. navy.
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Look here for the modern Royal Navy. They also have some historical info here.
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Ava Delany
Fiery and sensual novels by Ava Delany.
The Homecoming series- The Soldier’s return, The Librarian’s Love, and The Wedding night.
The Fetish Club series- Captivated, Dominated, and Fallen
Available through Amazon, AllRomanceEbooks, BP, and more.

Keep Your Resolution 2011


I won’t eat candy ever again.
I’ll stop smoking.
I will lose fifteen pounds by (insert friend’s name here)’s wedding in February.
I’ll become a famous movie star/singer/actor, etc.

These resolutions and so many more are made and abandoned on a yearly basis. I read somewhere once that only 8% of people keep their resolutions each year. Why is this?
In my opinion, these resolutions need to be more specific. As we talked about in my post on setting goals, most goals need to be broken into smaller portions. Unless you have a propensity toward quitting cold turkey, it’s a good idea to work toward your goal.

For example, if you have tried and failed before, don’t say “I’m never smoking again.” Instead try, “I will cut back one cigarette a week until I quit. If you are a pack-a-day smoker, for the first week, you will have one cigarette left in the pack each day for that week. Two each day for the next week. And so on until you take away your last cigarette.

So, how do you keep a resolution once it’s been broken down into its parts? Well, I’m discovering that resolutions, like budgets, need to be flexible. You wouldn’t keep budgeting $75 a month for your cell bill if your amount due had gone up to $100, would you?

So, with an eye to flexibility, my resolutions were:

    Lose the last of the baby weight-

Decrease candy intake Jan 1st. Start weight watchers Feb 1st. Increase activity from 30 mins per day to one hour per day Mar 1st. I aim to lose 2lbs per month and before the end of the year I should be back to my old self. Whatever I do above the two pounds is just gravy.

  • How I’m doing-
  • I’ve reduced my sweets by about fifty percent, have everything set to start weight watchers, and I’ve lost 3lbs so far this month.

    On track. Great!

      Write more-

    Two weeks ago I editing chapter 16 of 25 chapters total.
    I resolved to finish one chapter a day, and submit when complete. The process will be complete by 1-24-2011 and I will move on to another manuscript.
    I also worked to revise and complete a WIP. I was on chapter 4 of probably 20 chapters with 5-8 more to revise..
    I resolved revise 4 chapters per week, then write one chapter or 1000 words per day(whichever comes first) until the remaining chapters are complete.

  • How I’m doing-
  • I just finished editing Chapter 22.

    I just revised chapter 4 for the second time (son, the two year old computer whiz, hit a button in the middle of the keyboard and closed the app without letting me save it) and wrote a new chapter 5 (2373 words) from scratch.

    Not so on track with this one.

    Now there were reasons, of course. On top of caring for my husband, two-year-old, and newborn, I spent two and a half days helping my husband send out applications for professorial positions in English and Education at colleges all across the country. I finished our taxes. Plus, we went to visit family on our anniversary and spent a few days with them. Should these excuses to fail and so quit be acceptable? Not in my opinion. We all have obligations that take our time. That doesn’t mean we have to dump our failed resolutions.
    So, what can I do about it? Certainly not give up… Revise. I need to revise my writing goals to be more realistic, and that’s just what I intend to do.

      The Revision Process-

    First I need to look at what I was able to achieve.
    In two weeks I edited six chapters, revised two chapters, and wrote 2300 words.
    That means that, even with distractions, I can edit three chapters, revise one chapter, and write 1200 words per week. In order to keep with the spirit of my resolution, I want to increase that number a bit so I can push myself…

      The Renewed Resolution-

    My dietary goal remains the same for another month.
    My new writing goal-

  • The one I’m editing.
  • I’m on chapter 22 of 25 chapters total.
    I will complete four chapter a week. I will complete all pre-submission editing by 1-29-2011 I will then spend 2 hours for 2 days researching placement and submitting the manuscript. The process will be complete by 2-01-2011 and I will move on to another manuscript.

  • The one I’m revising and completing.
  • I’m on chapter 5 of probably 20 chapters with 4-6 more to revise.
    I will revise or rewrite 2 chapters per week, completing revisions by 2-10-2011 then write 1 chapter or 1000 words per day(whichever comes first) until the remaining chapters are complete. I will complete the manuscript by 3-17-2011. I will then begin edits of 4 chapters per week until the manuscript is completed (no later than 4-28-2011). I will then allow 2 hours for 2 days researching placement and submitting the manuscript. The process will be complete by 5-1-2011 and I will move on to another manuscript.

    Wish me luck with my revised goals, and I’ll let you know how it goes.
    April Dawn
    —-
    Author of Crushing Desire and Bound by Love available now through Breathless Press, All Romance, and Kindle.

    The Research Files – 18th Century Historical Voice


    I set this to post on Friday, and I’m not really sure why it didn’t go through, but I’ll try again…

    I find the best way to find out how people speak is to listen to them. For historical novels, that means letters.

    Books-

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      The Augustan World: Life and Letters in Eighteenth-Century England

    by A. R. Humphreys
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      Tom Jones

    written in 1749 byHenry Fielding
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    Amazon has the titles of a number of novels written in the 18th century on this page. Robinson Crusoe is the most obvious novel missing.

    Websites-

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    You can find a number of mostly American letters here.
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    The 18th century Reading Room (closed but not gone) has papers and letters.
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    Scotland to England.
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    Thought I would toss this interesting tidbit about the post in too
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    Ava Delany
    Fiery and sensual novels by Ava Delany.
    The Homecoming series- The Soldier’s return, The Librarian’s Love, and The Wedding night.
    The Fetish Club series- Captivated, Dominated, and Fallen
    Available through Amazon, AllRomanceEbooks, BP, and more.

    Berengaria Brown is Keeping Us Company – NSFW Excerpt


    LTR: Welcome to the blog. We all want to know what’s going on right now with your writing career. What’s simmering in the pot, and what have you recently finished.

    BB:
    The final book in my “Raw Claiming” series, “Raw Want”, has just been released. These three books are set immediately after the Mayan end-of-the world. Since there are far more men left than women, each woman who joins the community must chose several men to be her husbands. “Raw Want” is Ruth’s story.
    Yuri, Jed, and Lucas claim Ruth as their woman after rescuing her. The men demonstrate their love for her by helping her to prepare herself for the dangers and stress of their journey. Can the foursome learn to become a unit, while searching for more survivors? Weeks of searching reveal no survivors and no clean water either. How can people live under such conditions? Mind-blowing orgasms form a contrast to days of fear and tension. Will their travels cement their relationship or drive them farther apart than ever? Is shared danger and awesome sex enough of a foundation on which to build a long-term relationship?

    LTR: Sounds like the end of one series will give you the ability to work on another.

    If you could date one of the heroes in your books, which would it be? What features make you like him the most?

    BB: One? Just one? But I write ménages!

    LTR: OK, you can date two if you really want to. Am I able to have two too? Please?

    Can you give us an excerpt from one of your books?

    “Raw Want” WARNING ADULT EXCERPT.

    “So we go for the trifecta? Anal, vaginal, and oral all at once?” suggested Jed. “We need to do something soon or my dick is gonna break off in agony.”

    Lucas climbed back off the bed and headed into the bathroom, coming back with a jar of lube. Yuri rolled onto his back, holding her tightly, then pulled her up onto his body.

    Teasingly, she sat over his hips for a long moment, staring into his blue eyes, before letting him press his cock up into her pussy. He held it still, and she raised herself up then lowered over it slowly, gradually absorbing it inside her, enjoying the way it stretched her walls, its width filling her deliciously.

    Lucas was behind her now, touching and teasing a slippery finger around the tight muscles of her anus. His hands seemed to be everywhere at once, massaging her butt cheeks, rimming her hole, and sliding just a fraction inside. It took her a moment to realize one of the hands was Jed’s. It was Jed who was massaging her butt, distracting her from what Lucas was doing.

    Then Yuri’s hands were on her breasts, cupping the mounds and teasing her nipples with his thumbs. Jed was holding her ass up, but her breasts were also lifted up, curving her spine as she was touched and tantalized from back and front simultaneously.

    “Mmmm,” she hummed, loving the multiple sensations.

    “I think she likes that,” said Yuri in a hoarse, husky voice.

    “Good to know we’re getting it right,” said Jed, sliding his hands up and down her spine, his fingertips patting and stroking, and sending goose bumps and chills over her everywhere they went.

    “Any more right and I’ll be coming before you’re ready for me.”

    “Well, let’s do that anyway. We aim for you to have a lot of orgasms tonight, so we may as well start out as we plan to go on,” said Yuri, thrusting up inside her hard and deep.

    His cock was so broad it touched all her walls at once and felt so very good. Jed tilted her face and gently kissed her nose, eyebrows, and finally her lips. Soft, sweet little kisses that raised her desire higher yet didn’t fulfill her need for something more. While behind her, Lucas had two fingers in her ass now, stretching the muscles there, rubbing the walls of her channel, opening her up ready for his cock.

    Lucas placed the head of his cock at her opening and pushed in. She was so aroused the moment he penetrated her she climaxed, her pussy walls spasming and clenching at Yuri’s cock. Yuri groaned and held perfectly still, saying, “God, Ruth, you’re killing me here. Your juices are so hot and wet. You’re gripping me so hard.”

    Ruth was hanging on to Jed and Yuri as the climax roared through her, every nerve ending alight with the fire of her explosion.

    Jed kept his hands on her face, lightly stroking her skin, kissing along her jawline, drawing out her climax, until she stopped shaking.

    Lucas pushed deep into her ass, gradually causing her passage to open wide for him, her walls to stretch around him, until Ruth felt totally claimed, full, possessed. While he maneuvered into position, Yuri didn’t move, but Jed’s hands were never still. Busily they patted, petted, and stroked her sides, her ribs, her breasts, her face, her ear lobe, her neck, until every inch of skin was on fire with raw need, raw wanting for more. More of the men, more possession, more claiming. More of everything.

    “More,” she demanded.

    “Bossy little woman,” said Lucas, dropping a kiss on the back of her neck before slowly pulling out of her ass.

    “Wrap your lovely lips around this,” said Jed, placing his cock at Ruth’s mouth.

    Obediently she flicked her tongue over the head, dipping the very tip into his slit and tasting his essence. He was salty, tart, with just a hint of spice. Again she licked him, this time letting her tongue wrap around the head and slide down his shaft a little way. Soon he was holding his cock for her, moving it up and down as she licked and lapped and laved his shaft. Then she reached out and pulled it right into her mouth, sucking him deep and hollowing her cheeks to exert pressure on him. Her hand cupped his balls, rolling them, before returning to his shaft to let him out a little way.

    And all the time she was playing with Jed’s cock, Yuri and Lucas were stroking in and out of her cunt and her ass. When one was fully inside, the other had withdrawn, leaving only his cockhead in her. Gradually they moved faster, pressing into her harder, pushing deeper inside her, slamming their balls against her skin as they cranked up the pace of their pumping.

    LTR: Um…yeah….and…so…whew, is it hot in here. What was I doing? Oh, yeah, and interview.

    This is an age old question that every author has to answer about 20,000 times. What got you into writing, and how old were you?

    BB: I was a reader long before I was a writer. Then one day I had nothing to read so I sat down to write a book of my own. But when I finished writing it I still had nothing to read, so I wrote another one, and another one. The rest, as they say, is history.

    LTR: Why haven’t I thought about that? Good reason for writing. (May have to take all of Ms. Brown’s books so she keeps writing.)

    If you couldn’t be a writer, what would you do with your life?

    BB: I’d be the mistress of a ninety-year-old multimillionaire.

    LTR: You have such a wonderful take on life. I’m not sure if I want to be the mistress though. Give me the wife position so I can get the money!

    Do you have a day job that interferes with your ‘real life’ as an author?

    BB: Sadly, yes.

    LTR: Mysterious little vixen aren’t you? You’re not going to tell me what it is? Pshaw…be that way then.

    Tell us something unique about yourself that we don’t know.

    BB: I adore James Bond. All of them.

    Mmmmm….Sean Connery. Still one of the sexiest men alive. I don’t care how old dust is.

    Bacon or ham?

    BB: Ham.

    LTR: I could handle some ham in a grilled cheese right now. 

    Chocolate or Jelly Beans?

    BB: Chocolate of course.

    LTR: I’m sorry, I should have known better than to ask that question. But this is how I can weed the good guys from the bad guys. 

    Now that we’ve gotten to know you, we need to know where to find you so we can stalk, I mean visit you.

    Berengaria Brown
    http://berengariasblog.blogspot.com/

    http://berengariabrown.webs.com/

    Friend me on Facebook, follow me on Twitter.

    Clean House or Write- The Sophie’s Choice of the Writer with an Infant


    I’ve been noticing that my time is at a premium lately. I have two children, a toddler and a newborn (well, three if you count the nearly six foot one I call hubby :-) ). Well, as a writer, I love to write. It’s part of my soul. When I don’t write, I feel grumpy and incomplete. (I’m sure fellow writers will understand this.) Because I need to write, and I was forced–by my high risk ob–to take 6 mos off, I feel the need to write more acutely right now.

    Stephen King in On Writing–a book I highly recommend–said that to be successful, you have to think of writing as a business. You should have your business hours and keep them. So it behooves me to find time to write. At least two or three hours if I want to keep my goals.
    Now, some things I cannot ignore for writing. There’s meals, potty training, diaper changes, and the funner play and snuggle times. Then there is evening hubby time. Each of these I can’t or wouldn’t want to give up. Which leaves the few things I can give up, in moderation of course.

    Where does that leave time to write? Well, there’s sleep time. I’ve carved out two hours at night when I write instead of sleep, but I can’t miss more than that and still function. That leaves another hour I need to find at least. During nap time, I could nap, do housework, or write. Therein lies my own personal Sophie’s Choice. I don’t usually need a nap, so that is easy to give up, but oh housework in the quiet time without someone making a mess as fast as I can clean it? That’s not so easy to give up. Yesterday I chose writing. Today cleaning. I guess my Sophie’s Choice will be a daily struggle. What do you do to find time to write? What do you give up? What is your Sophie’s Choice?

    The Research Files- 19th Century Clothing


    This is a wide subject, so I will try to include a number of varied resources.

    Books-

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      Nineteenth Century Fashion in Detail

    by Lucy Johnston who is a curator in a museum’s department of furniture, fashion, and textiles.

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      English Women’s Clothing in the Nineteenth Century: A Comprehensive Guide with 1,117 Illustrations

    by C. Willett Cunnington who are actually a husband wife team of dress historians with a large collection of period clothing.

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    This one is a general guide to

      The Art of Dress: Clothes and Society 1500-1914

    by Jane Ashelford who had a postgrad degree in the history of dress.

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      Nineteenth-Century Costume and Fashion

    byOswald Curtis and Herbert Norris who was a costume architect, designing historical costumes.

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    Websites-

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    In my opinion, the best place to start researching period clothing is through pictures.

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    Here is a educational site with a number of pictures and a fashion time line.

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    The Victoria and Albert museum has some interesting info and pics.

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    Sjsu is a university site with some interesting tidbits. Click on selected words to get more info and see pics.
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    Hopefully this will help you get started in researching the wide world of 19th century clothing.

    Ava Delany
    Fiery and sensual novels by Ava Delany.
    The Homecoming series- The Soldier’s return, The Librarian’s Love, and The Wedding night.
    The Fetish Club series- Captivated, Dominated, and Fallen
    Available through Amazon, AllRomanceEbooks, BP, and more.

    Goals for the new year – Serious writing


    I suggest to all romance writers that your join the RWA. They are awesomely helpful. After all, I was just reading the RWA newsletter and there were two articles which piqued my interest and made me realize I need a change.

    The articles mentioned the things an author should do to become and remain successful as an author. I do all but two. The author of one article suggested making your writing a priority over the needs of others, but I can’t do that with a 2 year old and a newborn at home. The one I really fail on is goals. I set big goals with no intermediate or small ones and I don’t reward myself for completion of goals. I should set smaller and more achievable goals for the short term to help me along the way and make my bigger goals less daunting. So Intend to do just that. I will set my goals, and do periodic goal checks. Perhaps once a month. Here are my goals at the moment. I have two scripts I’m actively working on. One in editing and one in revision.

  • The one I’m editing.
  • I’m on chapter 16 of 25 chapters total.
    I will complete one chapter a day. I will complete all pre-submission editing by 1-20-2011 I will then spend 2 hours for 2 days researching placement and submitting the manuscript. The process will be complete by 1-24-2011 and I will move on to another manuscript.

  • The one I’m revising and completing.
  • I’m on chapter 4 of probably 20 chapters with 5-8 more to revise.
    I will revise 4 chapters per week, completing revisions by 1-22-2011 then write 1 chapter or 1000 words per day(whichever comes first) until the remaining chapters are complete. I will complete the manuscript by 2-1-2011. I will then begin edits of one chapter per day until the manuscript is completed (no later than 3-1-2011). I will then allow 2 hours for 2 days researching placement and submitting the manuscript. The process will be complete by 3-4-2011 and I will move on to another manuscript.

  • For reaching my goals each week, I will give myself a facial.
  • For reaching the book goals, I will allow myself to enter two contests I have my eye on.
  • For reaching both goals I will allow myself to take my revised MS to a convention and pitch it there.
  • I will keep you posted on how my goals are going. Wish me luck in sticking to/exceeding them.

    —-
    April Dawn -Author of Crushing Desire and
    Bound by Love available now through Breathless Press, All Romance, and Kindle.

    What I learned in 2010


    I thought that I would talk a little about what I learned this year like I did in my post last year.

    What I learned while researching-

    -Your hero/heroine should meet within the first 3 chapters if you have a regular novel, sooner if it is short. (This is one that I think you can play with depending on your story.)

    -You have to make your hero and heroine lovable, but you should also think about the smaller characters. (This is something I always try to do, but I thought it bore mentioning.)

    -You can’t have a character under 18 be sexually active, even if it is a realistic thing for the time you are writing in.

    -Reading about writing can give you ideas, so even if you know everything about a subject, you should still check it out. It can help.

    -There are a number of websites to help you find the things you need. If you need to research how much money a stable boy made in the 18th century, or what an officer would do when responding to a shooting, you can find it on the internet. (Ava Delany is blogging on this very subject on Friday, and as she always reminds us, Just be sure to check the credibility of the information and the website). History teachers, librarians, even cops are all willing to take time to help you if you tell them you are writing a book.

    What I learned personally in 2010-

    -It always hurts to get rejected by that agent you really thought you would gel with or would make your work shine. No matter how prepared you are, or how many others you query, that one always hurts.

    -You have to get out there, no matter how many acceptance/rejection letters you receive. And each one will be just as nerve-wracking as the last.

    -You have to take chances in your writing. You never know what people will want next.

    -Don’t be afraid to write what you feel. It may not be as dark or scary as you think. Besides, dark and scary can make for great tension. ;-)

    Hope these help those of you who are thinking of writing, and perhaps even those of you who have written often.


    April Dawn -Author of Crushing Desire and
    Bound by Love available now through Breathless Press, All Romance, and Kindle.