Bueno!
I've been quite the busy bee and haven't had much time for writing. I've sent Fire and Ice off to be edited and that is it's usual grueling process, but alas my muse has decided to take a hiatus. I'm not that worried because we have some what of an open relationship. When we are together, it's magical, bursts of creativity and excitement. When we are apart, I miss the company, but find other things to occupy my time.
Currently, I've been thinking about my craft and my dedication to writing short stories. While visiting with a writer friend of mine that also writes short stories (if a bit more high brow than my sexy times) we started to lament the fact that people just don't understand what a short story is. There are often complaints that it's too short, or it was read in a short amount of time, or there needed to be more character development. I'll confess I've always found those complaints confusing because, those things are how I always defined a short story. I'm not in the habit of citing Wikipdedia when constructing a critique but their page on the short story was actually really good at encapsulating what I'd always thought and found confusing when others didn't see it my way when it came to the short story. Not that people have to agree with me all the time, but clearly...
Yet, critique is always a good thing and even when my view and others clashes I like to take the time to look at it from their perspective. So while my muse is off peddling it's wares with some other creator of prose I'm looking at why I've chosen the short story as a medium to showcase my talent, and focus on how I can make it that much better.
Janet
Monday, April 29, 2013
Saturday, April 13, 2013
If you've got something nice to say...
Greetings Readers,
I don't think it's much of a surprise if I confess to being an avid reader. It is a passion I have sustained since I could actually decipher words in my Sesame Street books. Now what you may find odd is I often think of my reading choices as a deeply personal thing. I'm of the mindset that either I like the book or I don't. When I like a book I'll usually tell a friend, follow the author, and on occasion I've been known to become obsessed with said author. When I don't like a book I'll usually tell a friend, chastise the author whilst scowling at my Kindle, and on occasion I've been known to become obsessed with how that person got published.
When I first started my blog I had high hopes of reviewing books, and actually dedicated a few posts to said reviews. My interest in reviewing quickly waned because I'm very much an, "if I don't have something nice to say, I don't say anything at all" kind of gal when it comes to reviewing (have to put that caveat in because I can talk mad shit about folks at times). Therefore, when I started looking at my reviews I noticed they could be construed as favoritism. For me that didn't sit well, particularly as an author. I know that I talk at length at how inappropriate I can be, and if you have ever spent time with me in either cyber space or the real world you know it's true, but I'm also a very ethical person. I believe in transparency and fairness and at some point when I thought about doing reviews on my blog I (this is my personal choice and I am not throwing shade at those that do it) couldn't reconcile being an author that also reviews.
Now when one decides something, that's usually when the Universe comes along and goes, "Ah ha!". In my case it was my decision to join a reading challenge for a group I'm a member of on Goodreads. I'd never been keen on joining reading challenges because 1) in my personal Goodreads account I only ever communicate with my friends and have the account set to private 2) in my author Goodreads account I only ever use it to communicate with fans and don't have any books on my bookshelf. It was the proverbial what shall I do, that required a friend going, "Oi! You will do this!". Okay, she didn't really say that but there was a push to step out of my comfort zone and I did do it and I thoroughly enjoyed.
Yet, there was a catch. I had to do a rating for the two books I was given. Gah! Books that are in the same genre that I write in. Gah Squared! What to do? What to do indeed! Well I've added them to my very lonely bookshelf and will ponder what the ratings shall be and probably obsess a great deal more than necessary.
BUT first I'll at least include them in this blog with the caveat of, "I liked it." Actually I liked them quite a bit. I was able to relate to the heroines and the hero's were deliciously sexy. There were parts that irked me but over all I found the plots to be enjoyable and the sexy time nicely woven in. I finished each book with a smile and a contented sigh. Quite like the same response I get after being well fed. Which means I will tell a friend, follow the authors, and probably become quite obsessed with said authors. Also, it now seems I'll be rating them as well. Gah to the Third Power!
Janet
Bleacke's Geek
Lesli Richardson
When girl meets geek, the fur’s gonna fly.
Dewi Bleacke is a no-nonsense Prime Alpha wolf. As head Enforcer of the Targhee pack, she’s in charge of Florida. Her assignment is to kill a dirtbag who sold his daughter. She doesn’t expect to find her handsome, albeit geeky, soulmate in the process.
Dr. Heathcliff McKenzie Ethelbert lives a quiet, boring life. A professor at USF, he has no girlfriend, no car, and is a devout vegetarian. So when a mysterious woman with mocha eyes literally drags him out of his booth and then proceeds to have her way with him, it’s not his average night out. When she follows their sexy interlude by abducting him after killing a man, he suspects life has just taken a drastically odd turn.
Now Dewi, her partner Beck, and her surrogate father Badger, have to educate her new “grazer” mate on the ways of the Targhee wolves. “Ken” does his best to fit in. But an old killer lurks in the shadows--the wolf who murdered Dewi’s parents. Can she keep Ken safe, or will her mate prove to everyone that he’s a lot more than just Dewi Bleacke’s geek?
Vanilla on Top
C.J. Ellisson
Discover your inner bad girl, and set her free...
Heather Pierce is done being a wallflower, both personally and professionally. Desperate to live a different life for one night, she attends a speed dating event. Maybe here, anonymous unless she chooses otherwise, she can become someone new. When a man way out of her league sits across from her, Heather gathers her courage and takes charge of what she wants, secretly fearing he won't desire the real person she's desperate to hide.
Top acquisitions officer and international playboy Tony Carmine is about to close the biggest deal of his career. But then he meets Heather at a speed dating event...and discovers losing control may be exactly what he needs. Her blossoming sensuality occupies his every thought, consuming him with the need to possess the most intriguing lover he's ever encountered--until he walks into the boardroom and sees Heather on the other side of the negotiating table.
I don't think it's much of a surprise if I confess to being an avid reader. It is a passion I have sustained since I could actually decipher words in my Sesame Street books. Now what you may find odd is I often think of my reading choices as a deeply personal thing. I'm of the mindset that either I like the book or I don't. When I like a book I'll usually tell a friend, follow the author, and on occasion I've been known to become obsessed with said author. When I don't like a book I'll usually tell a friend, chastise the author whilst scowling at my Kindle, and on occasion I've been known to become obsessed with how that person got published.
When I first started my blog I had high hopes of reviewing books, and actually dedicated a few posts to said reviews. My interest in reviewing quickly waned because I'm very much an, "if I don't have something nice to say, I don't say anything at all" kind of gal when it comes to reviewing (have to put that caveat in because I can talk mad shit about folks at times). Therefore, when I started looking at my reviews I noticed they could be construed as favoritism. For me that didn't sit well, particularly as an author. I know that I talk at length at how inappropriate I can be, and if you have ever spent time with me in either cyber space or the real world you know it's true, but I'm also a very ethical person. I believe in transparency and fairness and at some point when I thought about doing reviews on my blog I (this is my personal choice and I am not throwing shade at those that do it) couldn't reconcile being an author that also reviews.
Now when one decides something, that's usually when the Universe comes along and goes, "Ah ha!". In my case it was my decision to join a reading challenge for a group I'm a member of on Goodreads. I'd never been keen on joining reading challenges because 1) in my personal Goodreads account I only ever communicate with my friends and have the account set to private 2) in my author Goodreads account I only ever use it to communicate with fans and don't have any books on my bookshelf. It was the proverbial what shall I do, that required a friend going, "Oi! You will do this!". Okay, she didn't really say that but there was a push to step out of my comfort zone and I did do it and I thoroughly enjoyed.
Yet, there was a catch. I had to do a rating for the two books I was given. Gah! Books that are in the same genre that I write in. Gah Squared! What to do? What to do indeed! Well I've added them to my very lonely bookshelf and will ponder what the ratings shall be and probably obsess a great deal more than necessary.
BUT first I'll at least include them in this blog with the caveat of, "I liked it." Actually I liked them quite a bit. I was able to relate to the heroines and the hero's were deliciously sexy. There were parts that irked me but over all I found the plots to be enjoyable and the sexy time nicely woven in. I finished each book with a smile and a contented sigh. Quite like the same response I get after being well fed. Which means I will tell a friend, follow the authors, and probably become quite obsessed with said authors. Also, it now seems I'll be rating them as well. Gah to the Third Power!
Janet
Bleacke's Geek
Lesli Richardson
When girl meets geek, the fur’s gonna fly.Dewi Bleacke is a no-nonsense Prime Alpha wolf. As head Enforcer of the Targhee pack, she’s in charge of Florida. Her assignment is to kill a dirtbag who sold his daughter. She doesn’t expect to find her handsome, albeit geeky, soulmate in the process.
Dr. Heathcliff McKenzie Ethelbert lives a quiet, boring life. A professor at USF, he has no girlfriend, no car, and is a devout vegetarian. So when a mysterious woman with mocha eyes literally drags him out of his booth and then proceeds to have her way with him, it’s not his average night out. When she follows their sexy interlude by abducting him after killing a man, he suspects life has just taken a drastically odd turn.
Now Dewi, her partner Beck, and her surrogate father Badger, have to educate her new “grazer” mate on the ways of the Targhee wolves. “Ken” does his best to fit in. But an old killer lurks in the shadows--the wolf who murdered Dewi’s parents. Can she keep Ken safe, or will her mate prove to everyone that he’s a lot more than just Dewi Bleacke’s geek?
Vanilla on Top
C.J. Ellisson
Discover your inner bad girl, and set her free...Heather Pierce is done being a wallflower, both personally and professionally. Desperate to live a different life for one night, she attends a speed dating event. Maybe here, anonymous unless she chooses otherwise, she can become someone new. When a man way out of her league sits across from her, Heather gathers her courage and takes charge of what she wants, secretly fearing he won't desire the real person she's desperate to hide.
Top acquisitions officer and international playboy Tony Carmine is about to close the biggest deal of his career. But then he meets Heather at a speed dating event...and discovers losing control may be exactly what he needs. Her blossoming sensuality occupies his every thought, consuming him with the need to possess the most intriguing lover he's ever encountered--until he walks into the boardroom and sees Heather on the other side of the negotiating table.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)