Writer's Workspace: Lacy Williams and giveaway

This week PHS takes a sneak peak into where Love Inspired Historical author Lacy Williams creates her books and she is giving away a copy of her latest.

My workspace is scattered all over our house. I spend my days chasing around a 2-year-old and 8-month-old, and most of my writing time is during naptime or after their bedtime.

Mostly, I park with my laptop on the couch. Sometimes, I have to kick my canine writing buddies off. Sometimes we snuggle. :) Often if I need to get something done while playing with the kiddos, I will use the wireless keyboard and get right down on the floor with them.

Here’s one of my shelves of research books. Yes, I said “one of”, and yes, it’s bulging and needs to be reinforced. I am an admitted research junkie.

Here’s the messy end table I’ve been using as my catch-all. I keep notebooks, a calendar, my current RWR or JOURNAL there. Often I’ll have Donald Maass’s WRITING THE BREAKOUT NOVEL WORKBOOK open there, too. And lots of pens. I’m a pen junkie, too.

I don’t do storyboards, but I use my whiteboard all the time. A good writer friend and mentor (and RITA finalist!), Linda Goodnight, does a circular graph of the hero’s journey when she’s plotting her stories and I’ve pirated her idea, so I’ll often have circles in the middle of all my brainstorming/plotting notes.

My writing workspace pretty much reflects the rest of our home—messy, but we mostly know where everything is. And living with a two-year-old, how much more can you really expect?

Thanks for letting me visit today!

By day, Lacy Williams is a stay-at-home mom battling dirty diapers and dog-hair dust-bunnies. By night, she is a novelist whose debut book has been nominated for an RT Book Reviews 2011 Reviewers’ Choice Award. Her current projects include a screenplay and potty-training her little girl. www.lacywilliams.net facebook.com/lacyjwilliamsbooks @lacy_williams

News:

Lacy is celebrating both her birthday and the release of her newest book in May, by giving readers free gifts. Get full details at www.megamaybirthdaybash.com.

To enter Lacy's giveaway email Lacy with the answer to: what's your favorite location to read a good novel?" by 19 May.  Viod where prohibited.

 

Fill The Well Friday :: Sunshine

After weeks of keeping her head down, Pink Heart Society editor Jenna Bayley-Burke emerges from the writing cave and sees that the sun will come out tomorrow.

I wasn't even going to Zumba. Oh, I was going to the gym and letting the kids do their thing while I found a chair, plugged in my laptop, set my MP3 to alpha wave and pounding the keys. You know it's bad when you can't even find the time to shake your stress away.

I had great writers cave weather - cold, wind, rain. But as soon as I turned in the book, the weather changed. The sun came out. I live in the Pacific Northwest. This is a very big deal.

There is something primal and healing about sunshine. The warmth that surrounds, the kiss on skin, the light that brightens. We crave it, we need it.

Now I have the kind of skin that is incapable of tanning, so I'll never be a sun worshipper. But I do love the feel of sun on my face, back, shoulders, That gentle reminder that today is the tomorrow I hoped for.

We talk about all the ways to fill the well, to replinish yourself after a stressful period in your life. But the first step begins like spring, with a look out from the darkness to the light. And a smile as you remember that the sun will always shine again.

When Jenna isn't waxing poetic about sunshine, she's writing sexy stories about smart women and then men driving them wild. For more on Jenna's latest adventures, check out her website or blog. In a few weeks she'll be sharing her latest story, Drive Me Crazy. A cross-country roadtrip, creaky bedsprings, a camera and three weeks to figure out forever.

CONFESSIONS OF A KITCHEN TABLE WRITER

By  PHS Editor and Harlequin SuperRomance author Jeannie Watt 

I am a kitchen table writer. There is an area in my home that I could make into an office—a nice quiet room, with a door I could shut and a desk I could write at—but I prefer to write at my kitchen table, thus my monthly PHS column, Confessions of a Kitchen Table Writer.

The May Confession:

The more difficulty I have writing a story, the more I want to sew. In other words, when the story gets tough, the tough get sewing. 

I've always loved to write--I have not always loved to sew. When I first learned to sew at the age ten, I hated it with a passion. My mother made me continue. Every year I was coerced signed up for a 4-H sewing project. By the time I hit high school, I discovered that I could make clothes for a fraction of the cost of buying them and began to appreciate sewing more. By the time my kids were born, I haunted the mill end fabric stores and created wardrobes for them that I never could have afforded to buy. 

I had learned to love my former nemesis. Hmm...does that sound at all familiar?

In the Superromance I’m currently writing, Crossing Nevada, my heroine learns to sew. Therefore, when I sew, I’m actually doing research! It’s important for me to recall the aggravation of setting in a sleeve, only to discover it’s wrong side up. Or to realize that I ran out of thread long before I successfully (I thought) finished a particularly tricky seaming maneuver. I need to re-experience those and many other golden moments in my sewing career so that my heroine’s experiences ring true…not to mention the fact that I love making clothes.

This is my  Crossing Nevada
 revision dress--the dress that
 helped me work out several
knotty spots in my story.

Fortunately, I run out of creative steam in the evening, so, unless I’ve hit a major wall and truly need to take a writing break earlier in the day, I sew between 7 and  9 p.m—a time when I simply cannot write well. I try not to think about the story while I sew, but it’s still there, percolating away in my brain as I cut and stitch and press.  Sometimes I’ll be guiding the fabric through the machine, or pressing a seam open, and suddenly have the solution to a thorny writing issue. The end result is that many story problems get solved and I get a new dress out of the deal.

What do you do when you hit a creative wall? Or simply need to unwind? Read? Write? Sew? Knit? I’d truly love to know!

Please join me on the second Thursday of each month for more confessions!


Jeannie Watt writes about cowboys, cops and cooks. Information about Jeannie and her books is available at her website www.jeanniewatt.com 


Jeannie's next SuperRomance, Crossing Nevada, will be released in December 2012.

Tales of an Unpublished Author: Slow Going

You know the moment. 

You’re on a roll. The words are flowing.

This is a killer mss. *pats self on back*

Nothing can go wrong, right? Right?!

Then the monster of the unknown territory roars a maniacal laugh and slams its foot on page 172 of your mss.

And your story grinds to a halt. Good bye, productivity. Hello, slow down. 

I face the monster from time to time but this week, the dreaded synopsis was the monster on page 172. In this submission, the synopsis had to come long before the final mss and I could get the task out of my mind. (Granted, I’m not on page 172 of my mss which made tackling writing a synopsis even harder.)

It had to be done. 

Writing by the seat of my pants isn’t my forte. I have to know what is going to happen before I write it. I’m not a fan of the unknown.

Little by little, I’ve learned to kick the unknown out the door. How did I do this? I just plugged away every day. Brainstormed. Even resorted to Write or Die. My characters talked to each other as fast as they could to avoid the red screen of terror. 

Next stop: If I couldn't figure it out, I’d pass the synopsis through my critique partners for their insight.

I guess what I’m saying is: If you’re stuck, there are options. Even if that means walking away from the problem for a few hours or even days. Yes, DAYS.

So, what slows you down when you write? And how do you tackle it?

Happy Hump Day!

Abbi J

WRITE AT HOME MOM: Escape to RT

USAToday bestselling author and mom to four, Mira Lyn Kelly, talks about her first conference…

It was a surreal experience to be sitting in the front seat of my dad’s car last month as he drove me from his house in the Chicago burbs toward Rosemont.

“You’re going to do fine, Mira. Don’t be nervous. Just be yourself and…”

I’m pretty sure, I had a similar conversation with him some thirty-five years ago. Of course, back then, he’d have been dropping me at my first day of kindergarten instead of my first ever conference. And rather than stuffing a couple bucks in my hand to tip the bell boy at the hotel, he’d given me a shiny coin for milk money. But strangely, the feeling was much the same. Particularly when we pulled up at the front entrance…and I decided it might be a better idea if he just took me home instead!

Okay, but I wasn’t five anymore. And as nervous as I might have been, I was more excited. I’d been aching to get to this conference for years, and after much agonizing over whether it made sense or would be worthwhile for me to attend, I’d finally decided to jump in. And I was there! So I hugged my dad goodbye and then headed inside in search of familiar names within a sea of unfamiliar faces.

Everyone was moving too fast, the names on their badges were too small, and I thought I’d never locate anyone I knew. Only within the first few minutes, it was clear that not knowing anyone right off wasn’t much of a problem at all. Readers and authors alike—talk about a friendly, welcoming, enthusiastic bunch! An hour or so later, miraculously, I stumbled upon the lovely Kimberly Lang—who had become my unofficial RT12 mentor (That's us--<). And soon I was chatting over coffees with Andrea Lawrence, Janette Kenny, Lynn Raye Harris, Caitlin Crews, and Maisey Yates. Catching up with Cat Schield. Breakfasting with Michele Hauf. And laughing like crazy with Megan Mulry, Aimee Carson and Jennifer Probst. Amazing women, all of them. And so incredibly inspiring as well!

Photo from RT Book Reviews - click to be connected to full article

I attended reader events as a fan (JR Ward and Charlaine Harris where fabulous) and participated in the Passion and Power of Series Romance event. I’m not going to lie, my knees shook like crazy when I had to stand up and introduce myself, but it was so worth it when I got to sit down and connect with all the fantastic readers who’d attended. I passed out free books, collected an awesome stack of my own, and learned more in a few days than I have in the last few years! I worked out next authors whose books are prominently displayed on my fan girl shelves, chatted with agents about chocolatinis, caught up with publishers over salad, made friends I hope never to lose, and got to hug my critique partner and friend of almost eight years for the first time. Worth it?? Definitely!

DINNER DONE QUICK: Maisey Yates – “I use the crock pot a lot. A couple pounds of chicken, a jar of salsa, a little chicken broth and some taco seasoning. Served in tortillas or over rice and it's really good. And easy!”

:-)
Mira

PS - Have any helpful tips to share? Drop them into the comments… Here are a couple more I picked up this month...

Please join me the second Tuesday of each month to share tips, advice, and experiences as we take a Write-At-Home-Mom’s journey toward a better balance.

www.miralynkelly.com
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000747420386
www.twitter.com/MiraLynKelly

Male On Monday:Robert Downey Jr

Present Extra Author Natalie Anderson extols the virtues of Robert Downey Jr as a Go To Guy

When I’m writing my stories, I don’t tend to collage much—unlike the amazing creations I’ve seen some of my colleagues come up with. And I’ve yet to sign up to Pinterest (I have enough time sucks already!) but I will hunt out a couple of pics if I’m struggling to ‘see’ my hero in my head. And I must admit I have a couple of ‘go-to’ guys in particular… Robert Downey Junior is one of them.

I know he’s been here before (http://pinkheartsociety.blogspot.co.nz/2010/10/male-on-monday-robert-downey-jr.html), but seriously? The man is worthy of more than one day in the limelight here at the PHS Male on Monday. Plus, the Avengers is just out and it’s a good time to get a fix.

I just think he’s getting better with age, what do you think? Compare age vs maturity shots—don’t you agree? (Then again, perhaps it’s just that I’m getting old myself!!!). But he does have such interesting character in his face I think. And speaking of character—that’s what draws me to him to be honest, the characters he’s played in recent years in particular.

I just adore his Iron Man character—love him as Sherlock but ADORE him as Tony Stark in Iron Man—it’s that sheer arrogance he exudes, the wit, the ferocious intelligence, the wickedness—and underneath all that, the heart of a hero...

And in terms of visual inspiration, with RDJ, it’s all about the EYES. Beautiful, bottomless, deep, deep, deep brown eyes.

And then, when he lets it go… starting small and then cutting loose he has one hell of a great, wicked, grin – gorgeous!

He captures that ‘fallen’ look as well—the guy who’s made a few mistakes and now is trying to make up for them… but who still has that edge about him...

That’s totally my hero Gabe in First Time Lucky? (out NOW in the US). The poor guy is doing is very best to ‘do the right thing’… but there’s that part of him that cannot resist the temptation that is Roxie… But it is that battle, that character and of course those dreamy eyes.

So what do you think? Would RDJ be a go-to guy for you?!

First Time Lucky?

She needed...…sexperience!

Forced to grow up too quickly, Roxie skipped too many all-important "firsts." Now, armed with a six-point checklist, she's ready to get going—starting with the big one—losing her "V" plates! A hunky doctor, Gabe Hollingworth, has moved in next door. He's a one-night-only pro—and smoking-hot! Perhaps he could help her out…?

Only, Gabe wants to be more than just another tick on her "to-try" list! He sets Roxie a challenge he's sure she can't accept: walking away from their insane chemistry…

First Time Lucky? Is available online now from

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/First-Lucky-Harlequin-Presents-Extra/dp/0373528671/ref=lp_B002RW44TM_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1335945890&sr=1-5

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/first-time-lucky-natalie-anderson/1107469838?ean=9780373528677

And will be on the shelves in US bookstores in a week or so.

USA TODAY bestseller Natalie Anderson writes fun, frisky, feels-good contemporary romance for Harlequin Mills & Boon and Entangled. With twenty books published, she’s also been a Romantic Times Award nominee & a finalist for the R*BY (Romantic Book of the Year). She lives in Christchurch, New Zealand with her husband, four children and what feels like a million ducks.

Find out more at her website http://www.natalie-anderson.com

On Twitter @authornataliea

On Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/authornataliea