Book Launch Day: Committed, Episode 3 is now available!

It's book launch day--in more ways than one! First, the new episode of Committed, my serial, is now available. Second, my exclusivity with Amazon has lapsed on all my books, and they are now all available in Kindle, Nook, and Kobo formats!

 When Ella Mikowski decided to plan her dream wedding, she had no idea what she was getting herself into. As if juggling her career and the millions of wedding planning details isn’t enough, it seems that anything that can go wrong does go wrong. Will Ella manage to make it down the aisle with her sanity intact?

Episode 3: When storm damage leaves a supplier incapable of delivering the flowers Ella had ordered, she’s left with only five days to figure out what to substitute for the arrangements.

Committed is available in the Kindle, Nook, and Kobo stores. 

 I'm also pleased to announce that Phoning It In is now available in Kindle, Nook, and Kobo formats, and The Eye of the Beholder is also available for Kindle, Nook, and Kobo. 

Going forward, I will no longer be exclusive to Amazon. I have five more episodes of Committed to release, and then I'll be releasing a new book under my Elizabeth Darcy pen name, this time a retelling of the Sleeping Beauty tale--with a twist. Stay tuned for a cover reveal.

And, lastly, I have a new cover for Contributor! I'll be revealing it next week.

Psst: If you haven't signed up for my mailing list yet, you may want to. I'm planning a spring giveaway for mailing list members, and members get exclusives like free books and announcements of new releases. Sign up below!

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Announcement: Expanded distribution and my leg woes

As some of you may have noticed, I haven't been doing much blogging lately. This is due to my having torn a leg muscle in a very stupid way while exercising. Today will be my first session of physical therapy to help me recover from the injury, and I'll need physical therapy twice a week for four weeks.

The good news is that, while the injury will take a while to heal, I should eventually get back to normal, and it's not stopping me from working. The bad news is sitting in my desk chair results in a lot of pain when I have to get up and move around. Because of this, I've been limiting my desk time to concentrating on my writing, so I've been neglecting everything but that.

However, because I've been intensely focused on my books, I've been working hard to start extending my distribution now that my exclusivity clause is expiring, and I'm very happy to announce that Contributor is now available on Kobo and Barnes & Noble, in addition to Amazon. My exclusivity clauses on every book expire at various times throughout the month, so Phoning It In and The Eye of the Beholder will also be available at multiple vendors by the end of this month; I'll keep you posted as the books go live at the other stores.

Along with expanding the distribution for Contributor, I've also got a new cover design in the works. I absolutely love the original cover, but I think it may not make it clear that the book is a young adult book, so I'm going to try different cover art to see if that helps better convey its genre.

One last tip: last week I kicked off something fun that I'm calling Free Book Fridays. It means exactly what it sounds like it means: I give some of my readers free books. Tomorrow will be another Free Book Friday, so keep your eyes peeled. How do I decide who to give books to, you may wonder? Well, rumor has it that being on my mailing list could have something to do with it. Sign up here if you haven't yet joined--I've also got some member-exclusive promotions coming up down the line. I've also been known to drop in on Goodreads and take a look at those who have my books shelved. (And a note about Goodreads: as I expand my books into other markets, I'm also updating Goodreads to reflect this, so that the following editions are listed: Kindle, Nook, and Kobo.)

Monday Musings: Body Dysmorphic Disorder and Phoning It In

There are certain issues about which I'm intensely passionate, and one of them is the subtle ways in which our culture not only harms all people, but women and young girls in particular. We live in a society that tells women they are supposed to be physically perfect, to the extent that even celebrities are airbrushed and Photoshopped until they're no longer human. Want an example of what I'm talking about? These animated GIFs tell the tale in a stark and shocking fashion. Watch as Jennifer Lopez, Anne Hathaway, and other celebrities are morphed from people into dolls, all through the wonder of photo editing software.

Unfortunately, like many women, I have a tendency toward Body Dysmorphic Disorder. If you're not aware of what Body Dysmorphic Disorder is, Mayo Clinic has a good summary here. This is a deeply personal issue for me, one that is painful to talk about, and one that informed the way I wrote the character of Melinda. I've struggled with weight most of my life and have had periods when I was extremely thin. But I've never reached that magic place where I accept the way I look and make my peace with it. It's a daily struggle for me, one in which I look at myself in the mirror and find many, many things to criticize. I wish I could say I'm the only woman who feels this way, but I know I'm not. I also know there are men who feel this way, and I by no means want to minimize their experience. But our culture treats men and women in very different fashions. Want a good example? Just take a look at this Google search, which lists links to articles about Rex Reed's offensive slurs against Melissa McCarthy. What about Seth MacFarlane at the Oscars? I could cite more examples, but frankly I'm tired of it. The whole issue can be summarized like this: more emphasis is put on how women look than on what they do.

When I wrote Phoning It In, part of my goal was to tell the story of a character who suffers from body image issues, but not to make the entire book about that. Melinda's feelings about how she looks are just an aspect of her personality. What was more important to me were her feelings about her life, how she felt like a failure because she hadn't accomplished the things she'd wanted to accomplish. Her looks were incidental, and a lot of her issues with her appearance are of her own creation. At one point, her best friend Lou explicitly tells Melinda that she knows Melinda would never treat another person the way she treats herself. To me, that's one of the most important scenes in the book.

One thing I knew I would not do with the story was have Melinda lose weight, with the result of that magically fixing all of her issues in life. Because, the fact of the matter is, when you have a problem like Body Dysmorphic Disorder, the answer isn't as easy as shedding some pounds. As Melinda herself notes, her weight has fluctuated throughout her life but, no matter how thin she got, she always sees a fat girl looking back at her in the mirror. Even if I'd made Melinda a size two by the end of the book, it wouldn't have changed how she felt about herself because her real issue is with what's in her head, not with the number on her scale.

Another reason why I chose not to have Melinda lose weight is because her weight doesn't define her. It's not who she is. Her success with her career, with her relationship with her sister, with her luck in romance does not hinge on her jeans size, it hinges on the choices she makes. In order to be successful, she has to focus on finding a meaningful career, on trying to find common ground with her sister, on learning to accept that love is complicated. I strongly feel--and always will feel--that Melinda deserved success because of who she is inside, not because of how she looks. This applies to every person on the planet: none of us should be defined and/or judged solely on our physical appearance. We should all be judged on how we act, on the things we do, on the way we treat others.

To the readers who have written reviews expressing delight with Melinda as a character, I want you to know that your words have touched me. To know that I could connect with you on that level, give you a character with whom you feel you can really identify, is incredibly meaningful to me. I look forward to the day when this isn't a rarity, when people are celebrated for who they are and what they have accomplished rather than the size of their thighs.

Feature Fridays: Epic hair disasters and other pre-wedding annoyances

Today has been an excellent writing day for me, which is especially significant because my morning got off to a rough start. Just as I was thinking I should go back to bed and hide, I checked to see how things were going on Amazon and found two amazing reviews of Phoning It In.

I'm sure it goes without saying that reviews are a source of anxiety for most writers--and I salute those who don't get nervous about them. Negative reviews aren't easy to read, but can be a good source for learning how to improve my writing, which is something I never want to stop doing.

Good reviews, though, they can make your day. There's no better feeling than finding out that your book has touched a reader in some way, that the reader gets your book on a deeply personal level. I was so thrilled with these reviews that I teared up. I write for two reasons: for the sheer love and passion I feel for writing and because I want my writing to connect with readers. When those two things come together, well, that's my definition of perfection.

So thank you to those of you who take the time to write reviews for my books, whether you loved them or weren't very fond of them. Most of all, thank you for reading!

The first four episodes of Committed are just about finished, and I'm planning on releasing episode one on Thursday, February 28th. On Monday, February 18th, I'll do a cover reveal. I can hardly wait to share the series! In fact, I'm so anxious to share it, I'm just going to go ahead and leave an excerpt here, picking up from where I left off last week. I hope you enjoy it!

*****

“Can I get some help over here?” Layla shouted, her words jolting the stunned stylists into action.

Three women hurried over to them and, judging from the looks on their faces, Ella knew the news was not good.

Working faster than Ella would have thought possible, Layla and the stylists pulled the remaining foil strips from Ella’s hair. Ella watched with a sense of detached incredulity as tears filled the large, green eyes of her stylist, Crystal. Fat drops fell and spattered Crystal’s smock.

I’m getting married in one week, and I’m going to be bald, Ella thought. A laugh bubbled in her throat, and she kept her mouth clamped closed, afraid she’d cackle like a crazy person if she opened it.

“Oh, God, Ella. Oh my God. Oh, no. I don’t… How could this… Oh, God!” Crystal shouted the last word, and the salon owner ran over, flicking a nervous glance from side to side, surveying the crowd of women who seemed to have forgotten all about their highlights and their mani/pedis. By the time the salon owner reached Ella, she was in full damage-control mode.

“Let me see,” she said in a firm voice, pushing Layla and the stylists aside. Ella’s eyes fell to the floor, where she saw lots and lots of her hair laying on the ground. She stared at it, feeling as if she were staring at someone else’s hair. This could not possibly be happening, not now. Not one week before her wedding.

The other woman’s face grew increasingly grim as she examined Ella’s hair. “Come with me, sweetheart,” she said, taking Ella’s hand and leading her over to the sinks. Ella almost tripped over her own feet, she was still struck so dumb by what was happening.

Her sense of unreality was broken by warm water coursing over her scalp, and she closed her eyes. She thought she liked it better when she was too stunned to process what was happening.

The salon owner took great care as she shampooed and conditioned Ella’s hair. It might all have seemed normal, were it not for Layla and the stylists hovering over her, hands pressed to their mouths. Ella heard a dim hum in the room, and she realized it was the other salon patrons whispering about what they’d seen. As Ella sat up and the salon owner toweled her hair, Ella saw her swallow, hard. A woman sitting under the dryers gasped, then turned beet red and looked everywhere but at Ella’s face.

“Sweetheart, I’m going to make this right, I promise,” the owner said, her voice far too calm to be of any comfort to Ella.

“How bad is it?” Ella croaked, though she didn’t really need to ask. Judging by the amount of foil-wrapped hair scattered on the floor, she knew bad was far too mild a word. Catastrophic might be better. “Let me see it.”

“I’m not sure that’s a good idea. I’ll take you out and trim it, and then—”

“I want to see it!” Ella repeated, and the salon owner closed her mouth with an almost audible snap, biting her lower lip.

“Are you sure?”

Ella’s glare must have assured the woman of her sincerity, because the owner took a deep breath and held a mirror out to Ella. The mirror trembled as Ella took it, then shook violently as she raised it to eye level. For a second, as she saw the ruin of her hair, she thought she might pass out. The room spun a bit and the edges of her vision went dark.

“Breathe,” Layla commanded, as she shoved Ella’s head between her knees. “Breathe, Ella. It’s going to be okay.”

Announcement: General News

I've been really lax about my blog this week, which makes me feel badly but the truth is, though I enjoy the blogging, it always falls by the wayside when I'm really busy with other things. So what am I so busy with? Well, how about the following:

1. Creators is now available from other retailers! You can purchase it at Amazon, Kobo, or Barnes & Noble! For now, my other titles are still exclusive to Amazon, but that exclusivity expires on all three of them in March, so throughout that month I'll be adding the books one at a time to Kobo and B&N.

2. I'm working on a romantic dramedy serial called Committed, which will be released under my Anne Wentworth pen name. It'll be 8 episodes long, and it centers around Ella, who is a week away from her wedding day and busy dealing with a disaster each day leading up to her wedding. I'm working with the awesome Carrie at Cheeky Covers on the cover, so some of my time has been spent looking at designs and stock art for the perfect cover. I have a couple of advanced readers lined up, but I could use more eyes. If you're interested, let me know on my Facebook page.

3. I'm planning on releasing paperback copies of The Eye of the Beholder, and I've been tinkering with Createspace, trying to get a feel for it. I'm extremely happy to say that I'll be able to keep the original cover, but I'll need to give the designer some additional information about the size of the book, number of pages, etc. so that a print version of the cover can be created. Before I can do that, I have to nail down the formatting, so I'm planning on doing some tinkering with that over the next week or so. I'd like to have the paperback out by February.

4. Lot and lots of promotions. I was a part of Elle Casey's anniversary giveaway, and am in the process of contacting the winners of copies of Contributor and Creators. I have another promo coming up at the end of the month, this time for The Eye of the Beholder (be sure to check my giveaway page--more details will be coming soon). I've also been scheduling some promotions for Phoning It In.

5. Setting up my mailing list. It's ready to go at last! Subscribing to the mailing list will give you access to the following:

• Members-only giveaways
• Extended excerpts
• A quarterly newsletter
• Notification of new releases

There will be no spamming with my mailing list, just pure, awesome goodness. You'll receive less than 10 e-mails a year from it. I'll set up a separate mailing list for my serial so that I can let readers know as the episodes become available.

So, as you can see, my plate is pretty full of lots of good stuff.

One last note: I now have 11 reviews for The Eye of the Beholder on Amazon, and some of them have made me so happy. Last night, I saw this new one, and I am flying high. Disclaimer: I don't expect everyone to love my book, but every review I receive helps me to become a better writer. Plus, I can't say how much it means to me to see readers taking time out of their busy days to not only read one of my books, but write a review of it. You, dear readers, are awesome!

Monday Musings: Issues and their place in literature

When you write, there are inevitably some bits of your own life that seep into your work. While nothing I've written is directly based on either myself or anyone else I know, some of the characters and events I've written have been inspired by real world experiences. For example, I chose to write Phoning It In because I worked in a call center when I was in my 20s. I have a partially completed manuscript about a young woman who is a teacher because I wanted to write about the experience of teaching, to give readers a feel for what it's like to be in a teacher's shoes.

The one thing I don't want to do, though, is write a book that makes a reader think, "Oh, there goes the author, getting on her soapbox." I've read books like that, and I don't particularly enjoy them. As with anything, YMMV; sometimes I read a book and don't think it's particularly preachy, while other readers think the author is beating the reader over the head with the message, and vice versa. Since we all come at literature from our own perspectives, the issues dealt with in a book may have more or less impact because of our own experiences with those particular issues. I'm sure we all have those moments where we talk about a book with someone else and think, "Wow, how could they not see the author was saying X and Y? It was so obvious."

Given all this, I think that writing specifically about a particular topic can be one of the most nerve-wracking things to do. There are certain things that are important to me: education; equality for everyone regardless of gender, race, or sexual preference; social justice; etc. Sometimes I do tackle these issues obliquely in my books. Sometimes, as with Creators and Contributor, I tackle them a little more head-on. The worry in writing about certain issues is that they may be alienating to some readers. While I'm perfectly fine with the idea that my books just won't be for some people--just as some books aren't for me--I want to write books that might help someone step a bit outside their comfort zone and maybe walk away with a new perspective.

After all, I think this is essentially what books are for. True, we can choose to read books that fit only within narrow parameters that are comfortable for us, and that's fine. I'm not someone who thinks there's anything wrong with reading purely for entertainment. But we can also choose to read something that might challenge our own notions a bit. The books that have had the biggest impact on me are the ones that make me think more deeply about an issue, books like The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, The Drowned Cities by Paolo Bacigalupi, and The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. I read a lot of books and enjoy many of them, but the ones I'm most likely to recommend to others are the ones that stick with me.

Epic Disaster Corrected: Phoning It In Has Been Fixed

The panic hasn't entirely subsided yet, but the updated version of Phoning It In has gone live. If you've already purchased a copy, or if you downloaded it during the free run and you have only the first five chapters, you can get the updated file so that you have the entire book by following these steps:

1. Delete the book from your device.
2. Log on to your Amazon account.
3. Up at the top right of the screen, it will say: "Hello, <yourname> Your Account". If you hover your mouse over this, you'll see a drop down menu appear.
4. Click on "Manage Your Kindle".
5. You'll now have a list of all your Kindle books. Find Phoning It In on the list and hover over the box at the far right that says "Actions".
6. From there, you can choose whether to download the file to your PC and transfer via USB, or you can send the file directly to your device.

If you follow these steps, once the updated file is on your device, you should have access to the complete novel. There is no charge for updating books you already own. If there are any problems whatsoever, I'd appreciate readers letting me know either via e-mail at nicolecbooks@gmail.com or on any social media.

I've requested that Amazon send a notification to everyone who has the book letting them know that there's an updated version of the book, but their response to me indicated it could take up to four weeks for this to happen. For obvious reasons, I don't want to wait for that.

I want to apologize once more for this problem. I'm worried sick over it, and I'm determined to do everything I can to ensure that everyone who has already downloaded the book will get an updated copy.

Epic Disaster: Problem with the file for Phoning It In

I'm in full-on panic mode right now, because a customer review on Amazon made me aware that, for some reason, there was a problem with the Phoning It In file, and some customers may have received an incomplete copy of the book. I've already uploaded a new file, but it could take as much as 24 hours before the corrected file is available on Amazon. I've contacted the KDP team and asked them to inform customers of this problem, so that everyone who has downloaded the book can received a corrected copy.

I am so sorry about this. Words can't express how upset I am about it. I would never, ever knowingly offer customers a partial product, so please accept my sincerest apologies for this mishap. It means a lot to me that readers give of their valuable time to give my books a try, and I'm horrified that such a problem happened.

I will post an update once the corrected file has finished being processed by KDP. Before I even published the corrected file, I went through the book in the preview KDP has on its site, so the entire book should be in the updated file. If there are any further problems, I ask that readers let me know via e-mail at nicolecbooks@gmail.com or via any social medium.

Thanks so much for your understanding.

Announcement: Phoning It In is available in the Kindle store!

I'm really excited to announce that Phoning It In is now available for purchase in the Kindle store! Prime members can also borrow it for free from the Kindle Owner's Lending Library! I'm really looking forward to finding out what my readers think of it. I just love being ahead of schedule!

Melinda can summarize her life in a few words: dead-end job, nonexistent love life, and a contentious relationship with her older sister—not exactly the rosy picture she had of life at 25.

When Benoit enters the picture, she falls hard. Gorgeous, funny, and smart, he’s everything she’s ever wanted in a man and more, but she can’t fathom that he could possibly want a plus-sized girl like her.

Tired of going through the motions, Melinda tries to find the courage to pursue her dream career, but working for a publishing company would mean moving away from everyone and everything she knows and loves. Is she content to remain in her comfortable rut, or is it time to strike out on her own and seize her chance at getting what she’s always wanted?

Monday Musings: Back in the saddle

While spending the last week on the couch did wonders to make me feel better, it really did nothing for my email inbox or any of my other online obligations. So I apologize for the disappearing act and will try hard to catch up.

Despite my sinus infection's attempts to beat me into a pulp, I did manage to remain productive last week, doing some more edits on my Kindle, so my schedule for Phoning It In is still a go. I'll be hitting "publish" by December 22, for sure. The closer it gets, the more excited I am, because I'm really looking forward to seeing what readers think of the novel. Depending on how it does, I'm even thinking about doing a sequel of sorts, though I'd focus on one of the secondary characters.

I've got some big things coming up over the next couple of months. First up, I'll be featuring an interview exchange with T.S. Welti. Early in 2013, I'll be participating in a group speculative fiction promo. During that promo, The Eye of the Beholder will be one of 18 books available for $0.99. I'm also looking at expanding my use of Google+, and setting up a mailing list so that I can keep fans up to date on new releases, as well as offer some extra goodies such as members-only giveaways, character naming contests, exclusive excerpts, etc. Stay tuned for more details on that.

So there's a brief post to bring you up to speed on what's coming up. Once Phoning It In has been published and I take a break from working on novels, the blog will return to regularly scheduled programming and will feature some book reviews, etc. I'm looking forward to getting back into the swing of things!

Monday Musings: Being sick while on a deadline sucks

Well, folks, I'm nearing the home stretch and, just as the stress has hit the maximum, I'm getting sick. Ugh. So, in the interest of not boring you with my pathetic whining about how yucky I feel, I'll try to keep this post to a minimum.

I'm hitting all of my targets for Phoning It In and will make the December 22nd publication date. In fact, I may even publish a bit earlier. If I do, I'll announce it here.

I've been spending some time on Google + lately and I am really liking the new Communities feature. I've joined several communities and it's fun to have the chance to chat with like-minded people. The truth is, I find G+ a much more user-friendly and overall more pleasant place than Facebook, and I'd love to interact with more people on G+. To be honest, FB makes me rage a little.

I've also decided to set up a mailing list. I resisted at first because I HATE spam and did not want to spam my readers as a reward for being awesome and buying my books. However, I've come to see what a great tool they can be for getting the word out about new releases, and I also like the idea of using a mailing list to do special promotions and feature extended excerpts from my books, amongst other goodies. I solemnly swear, though, that anyone who joins the list will only be subject to monthly email newsletters from me, along with the occasional message to announce a new release. Just like I don't want spam or DRM inflicted on me, I will never inflict them on my readers.

Also, I have an exciting bit of news: I recently read T.S. Welti's mind-blowing No Shelter trilogy and she and I will be exchanging interviews on our blogs. I'll post a better review of T.S.'s trilogy soon, but believe me when I say that you'll be chewing over it for days after you finish it--I still am.

As if that wasn't enough indie awesomeness, the incomparable SM Reine gave me a completely fantastic gift: a cover for Asleep! If you've never seen one of her book covers, do yourself a favor and look because they are gorgeous. I mean, just look at this cover for Damnation Marked and this one for New Moon Summer!

That's it from me. I am now going to plant myself on the couch with a book and rest so that I can get back to editing tomorrow. More details on my mailing list will be forthcoming, so stay tuned.

Cover Reveal: Phoning It In

Way back in the late 90s, I took my first step into the work world: I accepted a job at a call center.  It was one of the most awful jobs I've ever had.  Fresh out of college and disillusioned with the necessity of paying my bills by doing a job that made me miserable, I started writing a novel inspired by my own experiences.

Life happened, and the manuscript sat partially finished on hard drive after hard drive until I rediscovered it earlier this year.  At first, I didn't think I could do much with it. The technology in the manuscript was so out of date it made me laugh out loud and the book was painfully overwritten.  But the more I read, the more I realized how much I loved the characters, especially Melinda. I had to save them from languishing on my hard drive, so I finished the novel and then started editing with extreme prejudice.

My novels are always near to my heart, but Phoning It In is special because I can identify so closely with the main character.  Melinda is not me, but she feels a lot of the same things I've felt--a lot of the same things many of us feel when life turns out to be not quite what we expected.  If you've ever been a twentysomething trying to figure out how to navigate your way through life--or if you're in that position now--I hope you'll enjoy Phoning It In.

Phoning It In (a romantic dramedy)

Melinda can summarize her life in a few words: dead-end job, nonexistent love life, and a contentious relationship with her older sister—not exactly the rosy picture she had of life at 25.

When Benoit walks into her life, she falls hard.  Gorgeous, funny, and smart, he’s everything she’s ever wanted in a man and more, but she can’t fathom that he could possibly want a plus-sized girl like her. 

Tired of going through the motions, Melinda tries to find the courage to pursue her dream career, but working for a publishing company would mean moving away from everyone and everything she knows and loves.  Is she content to remain in her comfortable rut, or is it time to strike out on her own and seize her chance at getting what she’s always wanted?

To be published:  December 22, 2012

Monday Musings: NaNo angst and big news!

Well, tomorrow I will hit the 50k mark for NaNoWriMo, and I am overwhelmingly relieved about it.  I've been able to hit my target word count every day, but I'm feeling so insecure about this draft that it's making me a little nuts.  It doesn't help that I really, really want to get Phoning It In done and just haven't had the time to devote as much editing time to it as I'd like.  Once I hit the 50k mark tomorrow, I'm going to take a bit of a break from Asleep so I can get Phoning done, and hopefully I'll be a saner person for it!

I'm really starting to gear up for the Sci-Fi Spotlight promotion I'm participating in, in honor of Cyber Monday.  I'll be offering Contributor for 99 cents from November 26-30 as part of the promo.  If you're a fan of science fiction, you won't want to miss the promo because it's your chance to snap up 15 free books, as well as 15 books priced at 99 cents.  And, if you haven't already, be sure to enter the Sci-Fi Spotlight giveaway for your chance at $175 in Amazon gift cards, along with autographed books and swag!

In honor of Sci-Fi Spotlight, my blog theme for November 26-30 will be "Why Sci-Fi?"  Each day, I'll feature new indie authors participating in the promo.  They'll explain why they chose to write a sci-fi novel, and I'll include their book covers and blurbs.  Hopefully, this will help you discover some new favorites.

On Wednesday, December 5th, I'll be revealing the cover for Phoning It In here on the blog.  I'm very excited about releasing the novel, and plan on having it out before the end of the month, though I'll announce an actual publication date once the novel is ready.

And, somehow, in the middle of all this, I'll find time to plan birthday parties, spend time with my family, and just generally enjoy the crazy ride that is the holiday season each year.  I can almost taste the turkey now!

Monday Musings: My head is cluttered

This month, I feel like I have this nonstop shot of adrenaline coursing through my veins.  There's just so much going on, and it's tough to keep up with it.

My biggest source of anxiety is the fact that I'm juggling two novels right now.  While I'm very anxious to get Phoning It In out, it was also important to me to participate in NaNoWriMo this year, so Phoning has been shelved for the time being.  I will get it out by the end of the year, though, and I have a cover all ready to go.  I'm itching to do a cover reveal, so it's now just a question of deciding when, exactly to do that.  Feedback and suggestions on that front are very welcome!

As for NaNoWriMo, the manuscript is coming along nicely.  I made it over the 10k mark today, so I'm very pleased with my progress.  I set a goal of 3,500 words per day, five days a week.  Trying to write every day really stressed me out last year, and I've noticed that, lately, I get a bit twitchy when I don't write.  The problem with trying to make a career of being an author is I find it hard to just relax and unplug at times.  I always feel like I should be doing more work, so I'm making a conscious effort to treat this like a regular job, with certain hours being "work" hours while other hours are exclusively for family time, including weekends.  This does ease things for me.

That aside, I'm having a lot of fun with Asleep, though it is hard to drown out my inner editor at times.  I usually have a lot of anxiety when I write my first drafts, and I tend to think a lot of what I've written is bad.  This is why NaNoWriMo has been so invaluable to me.  It's taught me to push past those moments, get the words down, and then go back and polish things up later, and I think my writing is the better for it.  It's not always an easy thing to do, but it has definitely made me a much more productive writer. 

What's been really great about NaNo so far is feeling these characters come alive.  I had a pretty vague idea of what they would be like, and did a bit of planning the last few days of October, but I admit I'm mostly pantsing this one, and I'm really happy with the way things are working out.  I'm also developing a bit of a crush on my male lead, so hopefully I won't be the only one who finds him loveable!

I'm very excited to announce that, this Thursday, I'll have my very first post on YA Indie.  If you haven't taken a look at the blog yet, be sure to stop by.  A great variety of authors participates, and the blog features lots of great posts. 

That's it for me for now.  Stay tuned for details on the Phoning It In cover reveal, as well as details about a late November promo that's in the works.  I'm really excited about it as it'll not only help me reach out to a broader audience, it'll help introduce my readers to some other amazing authors.  Happy Monday!

Woo Hoo Wednesday: True heroes

It's that time of the week, where I take some time to celebrate the small things that make life awesome.  So what made you want to say "Woo Hoo!" this week?

First off, my readers have once again made me shout WOO HOO!  After a slow start to the month, I had a couple of crazy, amazing days where my sales rose high enough for me to be in the top 100 in my subcategories.  As of today, I have now had my best month ever for sales of The Eye of the Beholder.  I want to sincerely, sincerely thank each and every person who has read the book, because you're making my dreams come true--really!  Because of you, I feel I can actually make a job out of my true passion in life, and there really aren't words to express how happy that makes me.

My second woo hoo goes out to NaNoWriMo.  I haven't taken as many days to prepare for it as I would have liked, because I've been so busy with edits to Phoning It In, which I want to have out by the end of this year.  However, I've had a LOT of fun over the last two days making plans for Asleep--and I do mean a LOT of fun.  I can hardly wait until tomorrow, so I can finally start doing some actual writing!  Because The Eye of the Beholder is doing so well, I was inspired to take on another fairy tale reboot for NaNoWriMo, and I can hardly wait to start sharing samples of it with all of you.  My readers ROCK!

However, all of this pales in contrast to the real news of the week, which is Hurricane Sandy and its aftermath.  My heart goes out to all those who have lost loved ones, and all those struggling to rebuild and get their lives back in order.  It's inadequate to say a woo hoo for those courageous first responders who have been rescuing people trapped by the flooding, who have been evacuating hospitals, who have been protecting citizens.  These people put their lives on the line every day for the greater good, and I can't imagine a more heroic thing to do.  If you ask me, our culture has a tendency to make heroes out of the wrong people.  My heroes are those doctors, nurses, police officers, fire fighters, EMTs, and Coast Guard personnel who put themselves at risk to help the rest of us.  Thank you so much for your service.  You have proven to us time and time again that your courage is unshakeable, even in the face of terrifying disasters.

If you're able, please join me in donating to the Red Cross here.  Monetary donations are so important, because they give the Red Cross the funds they need to buy supplies necessary to provide disaster relief.  You can also help by donating blood, and more information on that can be found here.  And another big woo hoo and thanks goes out to the Red Cross relief workers who go into disaster zones to help those affected.

Feature Fridays: Close encounters of the Scarlett kind

I am officially done with the first round of edits to Phoning It In!  Methinks it's time to starting thinking about a cover reveal...

And, to celebrate, how about another taste of the novel?

*****

“This is hell,” Melinda groaned, as she pulled into her office parking lot.  The building loomed before her, the overcast sky lending it all the charm of a super max prison.  She half-expected lightning to fork through the air, completing the post-apocalyptic look.

A stroke of luck enabled her to find a parking space at what appeared to be a mere five miles away from the entrance to the office.  She slung her bag and purse over her shoulder, grabbed her frozen meal and can of Diet Coke, and made her way into the building.  Murmuring a curse, she realized she’d forgotten to extract her badge from her purse before picking up her load, and would now have to attempt to juggle her things while she dug for the badge.

“Well, I do declare!  My word, if it isn’t Melinda Majors,” a bright voice drawled behind her.  “Here.  Let me give you a hand.”

Melinda rolled her eyes before turning around, a sweet smile plastered over her face.  “Thank you so much, Scarlett.  You’re a real life saver.”

“Oh, darlin’, don’t even think of mentionin’ it.”

Melinda gritted her teeth.  It was much, much too early to deal with Scarlett.  Back when they had been in training together, Scarlett’s accent had been more Midwestern than Southern, but once Scarlett realized that men went wild over her Southern belle act, she had begun to play the role with relish. 

“After you,” Scarlett said, waving her through, just as the wind kicked up.  Melinda was surprised it didn’t blow Scarlett’s tiny frame away.

“Oh my, it is quite the gusty day outside, isn’t it?” Scarlett laughed.  Though the wind flung stinging strands of auburn hair in Melinda’s eyes, Scarlett’s voluminous blond hair didn’t budge, and Melinda couldn’t help but be impressed by the holding power of whatever industrial-strength product Scarlett used.

As they walked up the stairs, Melinda tugged self-consciously at her coat and oversize tunic and tried not to think of how her plus-sized figure looked in contrast to Scarlett’s.  It was hard not to feel like an elephant in contrast to the beautiful, delicate porcelain doll preceding her.

“How was your weekend?” Melinda asked reluctantly.  Scarlett was best taken in small doses, and initiating any sort of conversation with her ensured Melinda would soon find it very tempting to beat her head against the wall. 

“It was wonderful!” Scarlett exclaimed.  A couple of people heading down the stairs started and stared at them.  Melinda cringed.

“I’m glad to hear it.”

“I met the most wonderful man.”  Scarlett sighed and brought her clasped hands up to the side of her face, batting her eyelashes.  Melinda wondered if she ought to applaud the performance.

“Oh really?” she asked disinterestedly.  Scarlett was always meeting the most wonderful man.  Inevitably, he ended up committing an offense that obliged Scarlett to slap him across the face and throw a drink at him before storming away with an elegant toss of her head.

“Yes indeed.”

To Melinda’s relief, they reached the third floor.  Scarlett’s cubicle was on the opposite side of the building, and Melinda hurried toward her own side, calling a hasty farewell over her shoulder.  As she stepped into the corridor leading to her cubicle, she let out a groan of relief.

“Close encounters of the Scarlett kind?” asked an ominous voice just behind her left ear.

Melinda jumped, her hand flying to her chest in an attempt to prevent her hammering heart from leaping straight out of it.  “Jesus Christ,” she breathed.  “You scared the hell out of me, Blaine.”

A very tall, gangly figure materialized in front of her.  “Do not blame me.  Blame the evil forces of Scarlett Amberson,” he intoned.

“Out of my way, moron.”  She was unable to hide her smile.

Feature Fridays: Crippling insecurities

That awkward moment where your best friend makes you realize that the news you thought was so amazing is maybe a little less great than you suspected.

*****

“I promise.  Enough about my migraine. You called me to talk about Ben, so let’s talk about him,” Lou said.

“How do you know that?” Melinda asked, amazed.

“Hello, Melinda.  We’ve been friends for a gazillion years now.  I can read you like a book.  Did you two have a nice little chat last night?”

“Yes, as a matter of fact, we did.

“Well I’m glad to hear it.  I mean, Dem’s a nice guy and all, but I think I gave him the wrong idea by keeping him away from the table for that long.  I think he thinks I was trying to pick him up.”

Melinda gasped.  “You didn’t!  You did not!”

“Was that supposed to be a thank you?  If so, it sucked.  Try again.”

“So you don’t like Dem?”

“Like I said, he’s nice, but he’s not my type.  Quit changing the subject and get to it, would you?  I want to know every last thing you two said.  When will you be getting married, and can I be your maid of honor, and how many children are you going to have, and can I be godmother to one of them?”

“You’re insane,” Melinda said, blushing.  She squirmed uncomfortably.  “Now you’re the one who sounds like your mother.  What, do you think he’s going to dress up in a red coat, grab his rifle and bayonet, and come and carry me off?”

“Whatever.  You’re just being evasive again.  Spill it, now.  You owe me.  When is your first date?”

Melinda had not thought nothing could bring her down from her high, but she’d been wrong.  She had been perfectly content with what had happened between herself and Benoit the previous night, but Lou Lou’s question, however innocent, just reminded Melinda of her own inadequacies.  Had Lou been the one sitting with Benoit for hours, she probably would already have had a second, third, and fourth date scheduled with him.

“It wasn’t like that,” Melinda mumbled.  “We had a really good time, but he’s not interested in me like that.”

There was a silence on the other end.  “Look, Melinda—” Lou finally began, but Melinda cut her off.

“No, just don’t say anything.  He wants to be friends, that much is clear.  We talked about a lot of things, and I really think he genuinely enjoyed himself.  He’s a really nice guy, and I’m glad he wants to be friends.  I’m not looking for a boyfriend anyway.”

Feature Fridays: Jane Austen reference for the win!

Some social situations are so awkward that you just can't help but think of Jane Austen.

*****

As she arrived at her sister’s house on Sunday, Melinda couldn’t help but cringe.  It was not the house she was cringing at.  Her sister had bought a beautiful colonial in Grosse Pointe Woods.  It was a very nice, affluent neighborhood full of charming older colonials that were extremely well-kept by their owners.  Mercedes, BMWs, Lexuses, and Jaguars were parked on the street and in the driveways, making Melinda’s little Ford look like a tin can.  Her sister’s colonial was right in the middle of the street.  It had a beautiful red brick front with white window boxes hung under the windows.  Her front yard was small but artfully landscaped with a graceful weeping willow and a curved flower bed.  A shiny brass doorknocker hung on the door.

The true source of Melinda’s cringe was the fact that her parents had not yet arrived.  Melinda had cut her departure time as closely as possible in the hopes that her parents would beat her to Susan’s.  However, she had begun to grow anxious and had decided that she’d best set off or risk Susan’s extreme displeasure by arriving late.  Now she wished she’d arrived late instead.

You’re being ridiculous, she told herself.  She’s your own sister, for God’s sake.  What on Earth do you think she can possibly do to you?

Ignoring the responses that instantly sprang to mind, Melinda parked her car at Susan’s curb and then hurried through the chill autumn air up to her sister’s porch.  She had just lifted her hand to knock when the door opened, startling Melinda.

“Susan,” she said, staring at her sister in confusion.  It was almost as though her sister had been standing right next to the door, peering out the sidelight and looking for her family’s arrival.  Melinda quickly dismissed the thought as ludicrous and brushed it aside.

“Hello, Melinda,” Susan said, her mouth slightly down turned in the expression of mild distaste she always seemed to wear around her sister.

“Um, hi,” Melinda said, feeling awkward and peeved.  Why the hell should she always feel so on edge around Susan?

“Come in.  You’re letting all the heat out,” Susan said petulantly.  She opened the door wider and Melinda stepped inside.

“Sorry,” she murmured as she shrugged out of her coat.

Susan let out a martyred sigh.  “Don’t worry about it.  Here, give me your coat.  Why don’t you go ahead and have a seat while I put this away?”

“Okay.”  Melinda moved into her sister’s living room and perched uncomfortably on the edge of the couch while Susan hung her coat.  Susan’s furniture was unnaturally clean and perfect, as if no human rear end had ever besmirched its surface.  She had a couch and two armchairs, all done in a tasteful top-grain, taupe Italian leather, along with a coffee table and end tables made of mahogany that had been polished until it gleamed.  The room fairly reeked of money.


“Would you like something to drink?” Susan asked.  If she hadn’t spoken the words as stiffly as a board, Melinda might have thought she was actually being hospitable.

“Yes, please.”

“What would you like?  Water?  Brandy?  Wine?”

“Wine.  Wine would be great, thanks.”

“White or red?”

“Whatever you think would be nice,” Melinda said hastily, before her sister could start naming vintages.

A look of exasperation came into Susan’s eyes before she turned away and disappeared into the kitchen.  Melinda strained to hear everything that was going on outside in the hopes of catching the sound of the engine of her parents’ car.

Susan came back into the room and handed Melinda a chilled cut crystal glass of white wine.  Melinda forced herself to take small, delicate sips, fighting hard to resist the temptation to knock back the whole glass back at once.  She usually felt as if she needed a drink to calm her nerves when she was around her sister, but she refused to give Susan the satisfaction of having one more thing about which to criticize her.

“So…how’s work?” Melinda asked, when she could stand the silence no longer.

“Fine,” Susan said, her mouth barely moving.

Holy shit, Susan, don’t be so talkative.  She had to duck her head to hide her smile from her sister.

“Glad to hear it,” Melinda told her.

There was another awkward silence and then Susan asked, “How are you doing at work?”

“Fine.”  Melinda wanted to laugh at the farce going on, but she was afraid she would dissolve into a hysterical fit if she did.  Susan was hardly the person Melinda would have chosen were she looking for someone in whom to confide.

“I’m glad you were able to make it.”  Susan didn’t sound the least bit sincere.

“So am I,” said Melinda, in a sugary voice.

Fortunately, at that moment, they heard the sound of their parents pulling into Susan’s driveway.  As her sister got up to answer the door, Melinda felt her spine slump in relief.  The meeting between them had had all the ease and casualness of a meeting between Emma Woodhouse and Augusta Elton.

Woo hoo Wednesday: I'm in the home stretch!

Welcome to another weekly installment of Woo Hoo Wednesday.  Honestly, I love doing this.  I have a tendency to be something of a stress bunny, so it's a fantastic idea for me to stop and take a minute to think about all the good things in my life.

The biggest woo hoo is that the end is in sight for Phoning It In!  And by end, I mean the end of writing the manuscript.  I'll still have edits ahead of me (and some parts of the manuscript are going to need a lot of overhauling), but it feels really, really good to be on the verge of getting another manuscript under my belt.  I'm also very excited to send this one out into the world and see how it does.

Another woo hoo goes out to NaNoWriMo 2012.  I'm really looking forward to working on the next book in the Fairytale Collection, and I'm just looking forward to NaNo in general.  While I've been extremely fortunate to have found some great sources for networking with other authors, there's just something extra special about NaNoWriMo.  I love feeling like I'm a part of something so big, and I love the kinship I feel with other participants.  Writing can sometimes be a very solitary pursuit, so it rocks to have a whole month where I'm cheering on other authors, who are also cheering me on.  I've got a few writing buddies already lined up, and I'm always on the lookout for more, so if you're participating and want someone to cheer you on, feel free to look me up.  My username on the NaNoWriMo site is NCiacchella.

And now, a food related woo hoo.  I did some shopping at Trader Joe's today and bought a box of their Pumpkin Pancake and Waffle mix.  If you've never tried it, you should.  It makes some crazy good pancakes.  I was tempted to grab the box and hug it, but I thought that might make the other shoppers think I was kind of weird.  I love the pumpkin time of year.  Pumpkin ravioli, pumpkin pie, pumpkin spice lattes...  I tell you, I cannot get enough of these things.

I also want to give a woo hoo to a couple of game-related Kickstarter projects.

The first is SHAKER: an RPG by Brenda Brathwaite & Tom Hall.  Here's a synopsis of the project, from their Kickstarter page:

Shaker: An Old School RPG is a first-person perspective, fantasy/sci-fi game set in a Bridge world between the future and the very distant medieval past. Taking the role of operative James Connelly (you may also customize your lead character), an employee of Shaker Corporation, you are called upon to set right a deadly chain of events that began millennia ago. You and your crew of 3 operatives will be deployed to Antera, a medieval, fantasy world in the distant past. There, under a feudal guise, you must unearth the very beginning of a horrible chain of events and avert it, or the universe we know today will cease to exist in a mere 100 years.

I know, right?  How cool does that sound?  And one of the things I really like about it is that the company working on the project, Loot Drop, is dedicated to remaining an indie company.  Needless to say, I love indies.  The project is about 21% funded as of this posting, and I hope more people will back it.

The other is Project Eternity by Obsidian Entertainment.  Here's a description of that project, from the Kickstarter site:

Project Eternity will take the central hero, memorable companions and the epic exploration of Baldur’s Gate, add in the fun, intense combat and dungeon diving of Icewind Dale, and tie it all together with the emotional writing and mature thematic exploration of Planescape: Torment.

Combat uses a tactical real-time with pause system - positioning your party and coordinating attacks and abilities is one of the keys to success. The world map is dotted with unique locations and wilderness ripe for exploration and questing. You’ll create your own character and collect companions along the way – taking him or her not just through this story, but, with your continued support, through future adventures. You will engage in dialogues that are deep, and offer many choices to determine the fate of you and your party. …and you'll experience a story that explores mature themes and presents you with complex, difficult choices to shape how your story plays out.

We are excited at this chance to create something new, yet reminiscent of those great games and we want you to be a part of it as well.

My husband, Jürgen, and I have been receiving e-mail updates about this game and they have some really ambitious ideas that I'm really excited to see implemented.

So why did he and I choose to back these?  Well, what excites me about them is that they promise to be quite different from anything currently on the market.  I'm an avid, lifelong gamer, and I've been really dismayed by how disappointing a lot of the recent RPGs have been.  I wholeheartedly support indies who want to take risks and try making games that will elevate gaming.  A really well-done RPG can make you feel like you've stepped right into the pages of the book, and it's tough for me to think of something I enjoy more than that.

Last, but certainly not least, an absolutely ginormous WOO HOO for this review of The Eye of the Beholder that Leonor posted on her blog.  It is really exciting for me to get feedback from my readers, and nothing feels better than when a reader really connects with something I've written.  I was seriously thrilled to see this, and I walked around on a cloud for the rest of the day.

That's it from me this week.  Hopefully you're all having a fabulous week!

Feature Fridays: This building will suck out your soul

If you can relate to this excerpt, I'm sorry.  I feel your pain, I truly do.

*****

Every Wednesday afternoon, the supervisors at New World had a meeting at two o’clock.  It was, without a doubt, the most awful part of Melinda’s week.  The supervisors almost always used every last minute, and there was nothing more deadly boring to Melinda than having to sit in a conference room for two whole hours while her boss and co-workers droned on and on and bickered amongst themselves.

On this particular Wednesday, the meeting promised to be even more fun than usual.  The CSRs had been receiving monthly bonuses for meeting call metrics and now the company had decided to do away with the bonuses.  The CSRs did not know about it yet, but the supervisors had been informed via an e-mail message from Jerry.

“Oh, great,” Blaine said, after he read the message.  He pushed away from his desk and looked at her, rolling his eyes.  “That ought to go over real big.”

“Yeah,” Melinda sighed.  She scrubbed a face over her hand.  “Score one for morale.”

“What does upper management care?  They’re not the ones who have to listen to the CSRs bitch endlessly about it.”

“Oh the joys of being a member of middle management,” Melinda sighed.

“Hi, Melinda.  Hi, Blaine,” a voice said.

Melinda stifled a groan as she turned toward the sound of the voice.  “Hi, Vic.”

“Did you see the message Jerry sent?”

“Yes.  Fantastic, isn’t it?” Blaine asked.

Vic gave him a look like a father about to scold a particularly disobedient and stupid child.  “Now, Blaine, you know that we all have to support this.  We need to support anything that’s good for the company.  The CSRs may not like it, but they’ll just have to understand that it has to be done for the good of the business.”

“Yeah, slow economy and all that,” Blaine said, with a poorly concealed expression of contempt for Vic.

Melinda felt the same way Blaine did.  She couldn’t stand Vic.  He was such an ass kisser and, besides that, he always smelled of mildew.  “It’s just going to be a big adjustment, that’s all,” she said mildly.

Vic peered at her through his too-small glasses before reaching up and fiddling with them.  “Well, we all have to adapt to change.”  He graced them with one of his phony, high-pitched laughs.  Blaine’s expression resembled that of a rabid dog.  “Anyway, Melinda, I wanted to talk to you about something.  Did you notice that Amy spent nearly five minutes chatting with Lillian rather than taking calls?” he asked in a stage whisper.

Why the hell are you watching my team?  Why don’t you pay attention to your own instead, you little prick? Melinda thought.  What she said was: “No, I didn’t.  I’m glad you told me, though.  I’ll definitely keep an eye on her.”
“I just thought I’d let you know.”  Melinda knew his tone was meant to convey a sense of camaraderie.  She wasn’t buying it, though; she knew Vic would gleefully stab her in the back given half a chance.

“I really appreciate it,” she said, making her voice as saccharine as possible.  She and Blaine both sat in silence, staring at Vic until he began to fidget uncomfortably.

“Oh, look, there’s Susan.  I needed to talk to her.  Susan!  Susan!”  He rushed out of their cube and over to accost the CSR.

“He.  Is.  Such.  An.  Asshole,” Blaine hissed through clenched teeth.

“Shhh.”  Melinda peeked around the corner and saw that Vic wasn’t all that far off.  “He is, but you don’t want to give him any fuel for his fire.”

“I just can’t stand people like him.  He’s so fake.  Why the hell don’t Jerry and the other managers see through that?”

“Because Vic is good at telling them what they like to hear, you know that.  What do you think this is, the type of place where people get where they are as a result of their honest, hard work?”

“Oh, right.  I forgot.  The most valued skill you can possess here is that of masterfully kissing arse,” Blaine said, his voice oozing sarcasm.

Melinda smiled at him.  “Tsk, tsk.  Bitterness doesn’t suit you.  In fact, it makes you even uglier than usual.”

“That’s the sweetest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”  A grin spread over his face, obliterating the sour expression he’d worn just seconds earlier.

“I should write for Hallmark, don’t you think?” Melinda asked, grinning in reply.

“Oh definitely.  Your talents are certainly being wasted here.”

“Aren’t all of our talents?”  Melinda sighed.

“Hitchcock should have done a movie about this place.  I’m sure people would’ve paid to watch a movie about an evil building that sucks out your very soul, until you become a mindless automaton shuffling slowly from one cubicle to the other while muttering, ‘Yes, boss.  Anything you say, boss.’  Don’t you think so?”

“I’m not sure.  It would probably be far too terrifying.  It’s certainly a lot more diabolical than anything Hitchcock ever thought up.”

“And speaking of terrifying things, it’s time for us to go to our weekly meeting.”

*****

Don't forget: this weekend, you can download a FREE copy of Creators, the prequel novella to my YA post-apocalyptic series, Contributor.  Happy reading!

P.S. Please check out the poll on the right side of the page.  I want to give my readers what they want, so your feedback on your preferred Kindle book format is much appreciated!