On Writerly Brain Near Deadline

Last night...

(At 8pm) - Hmm, why am I hungry?
(At 8.15pm) - No, really, why am I hungry?
(At 8.30pm) - Oh. I forgot to eat dinner.

Yes, true story.

Book Club!

It's book club time - all about sharing what books you've read and enjoyed recently! So comment and share the book love :-)

Also, a heads-up: I'm over at the DIK blog and there's a Scavenger Hunt going on!

Guest Author - Yasmine Galenorn

YASMINE'S WINNER: Yasmine has picked a winner, and it's Pam K. Congratulations! Please email Yasmine directly at this link to receive your prize :-)

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Today's guest is the talented Yasmine Galenorn, author of the bestselling Sisters of the Moon urban fantasy series. Her most recent release, Demon Mistress, hit #16 on the NYT! Woohoo! She's here talking about juggling life and work, and giving away an Amazon gift cert :-)

Please welcome Yasmine to the blog everyone!

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Life Juggling

I’m in the middle of projects. As usual. Writers, especially those of us working on several books a year, often have times when we’re juggling two or even three projects. For example, I’m currently revising Night Myst, the first book in my new Indigo Court urban fantasy series. I’m also writing fresh draft of Harvest Hunting—the eighth Otherworld book. And I just finished copyedits on both Bone Magic—book seven in the OW world, and Etched in Silver, a OW novella for the Inked anthology. My mind is running in a dozen directions at once and I have to hold the reins and make sure that all those directions get the due attention they need.

I am blessed with being prolific as a writer—I can write quick, and I can write tight. But even I only have two hands and (supposedly) one brain. So what do I do when I’ve got a dozen projects kicking my ass? I organize and prioritize. I do what needs to be done quickest, first, and get it out of the way. Then I go onto the next, then the next. Or—if I have a short project that will take me half a day but isn’t due until after a long project that will take 2 or 3 months, I due the short project first and get it out of the way and off my list.

I use every tool I can think of to keep myself on track. With three books and a novella to write this next year, and having been writing 2-3 books a year for many years, it only makes sense that I’ve developed my particular pattern that works for me. Can you say Day-Timer? Outlook? White Board? Post-It Notes? ~grins~ Good, I knew ya could. I keep a work journal, I create research bibles for each of my series, I keep color coded file folders, I even have a goal-notebook.

Now, it took me a number of years to develop this system, it didn’t just happen overnight. But now that I’m here, I’m grateful that I started in early so by the time I reached the point of writing three books a year, I had it in place.

I think this can transfer over to life, too. Now some people (like my husband) won’t touch a Day-Timer if I paid him too. But he loves his Outlook calendar. Others can’t live without their PDAs (and I’m not talking about necking in public here). Take away my friend’s Blackberry and she’d claw your eyes out. We all have tools that make our lives easier and more manageable.

I’ll be offering a $15 online Amazon.com gift certificate to one commenter who tells me what their favorite organizational crutches are, and why they love them so much.

Yasmine

New York Times bestselling author Yasmine Galenorn writes urban fantasy for Berkley: both the bestselling Otherworld/Sisters of the Moon Series for Berkley and the upcoming Indigo Court urban fantasy series. In the past, she wrote mysteries for Berkley Prime Crime, and nonfiction metaphysical books. Her books have hit the New York Times and USA Today extended bestseller lists numerous times.

Yasmine has been in the Craft for over 28 years, is a shamanic witch, and describes her life as a blend of teacups and tattoos. She lives in Bellevue WA with her husband Samwise and their cats.

Yasmine can be reached via her website at http://www.galenorn.com, via MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/yasminegalenorn, Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/yasminegalenorn and Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/yasminegalenorn. She is also the co-founder of the Witchy Chicks blog (http://witchychicks.blogspot.com) and the Between Fire and Ice blog (http://fireandiceauthors.blogspot.com).

Kindle Book - Please Read

For those of you who use the Kindle - please be aware that though we appear to share the identical name I am not the author of a book titled The Girl Player.

Ok, back to our regularly scheduled programming :-)

RWNZ Conference Photos

First up, a couple of notices - I'm spoiling you all - we have another guest author tomorrow. Hmm, clue as to her identity: 3 sisters

Also, because of our lovely guest, we'll do the book club on Saturday, so keep a note of what you're reading this week :)

Now, onto the photos from last weekend's RWNZ Conference! I have bunches - I think I'll have to do another post next week with more pics!

This is a picture from of the Harlequin author dinner. Look at all those shiny glasses (they didn't stay empty long *g*).


Authors Sarah Mayberry & Frances Housden


Authors Trish Morey, Annie West & Daphne Clair

Me & Knight Agency agent Melissa Jeglinski at the cocktail party


Author Christina Phillips & my good friend Giovanna (highly commended in the Clendon Award!) Oh and there's our talented RWNZ Publicity maven Sue in the background.

Attacked by Darth Kylie (Griffin) at the A Touch of Fantasy Awards Dinner


Kylie claims another victim! This time, it's debut author Erica Hayes (look out for Shadowfae this October - all about succubi).


YA Author Amanda Ashby (go zombies!), and Harlequin's Cristina Lee


Authors Sara Hantz & Sandra Hyatt with you-know-who


The Emma Darcy finalists of 1999 - Yvonne Lindsay, Me & Trish Morey (Yvonne won). And Trish has got TWO R*BYs to her name. Go Class of '99!!


Wonderful bookseller Barbara Clendon with her gorgeous devil wings!


Author Annie West with Silhouette Executive Editor Mary-Theresa Hussey

Authors Abby Gaines (new RWNZ Prez!) & Susan Napier


John (Mary-Jo's husband), Mary-Jo Putney & some chick with a really ginormous smile *grin*

And I leave you with Wellington & Lambchop. I met Mary Jo and her husband in the lifts on the Sunday of the conference and ended up having breakfast with them - where I got to hear the sweet, sweet story Wellington and his lady. He came all the way from the U.S. to find his soul mate. When he saw Lambchop working as a shopgirl, it was love at first sight. Aw....

Legion - Angels!

I must see this movie. I must. (Thanks Katiebabs for the heads-up).



Also - all winners for contests run this week have been drawn, so make sure you check the relevant posts.

Guest Author: Gena Showalter - The Darkest Whisper

RANDOM WINNER: The lucky winner of the signed copy of The Darkest Night is Christine!

(I think there was only one Christine in the comments, but just to be safe, it's comment #98). Christine, please email me your mailing address at nalinisinghwrites AT gmail DOT com and I'll pass it on to Gena.

Congratulations!

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Today's guest is the wonderful Gena Showalter!! I've known Gena since the publication of her first book and can safely say she's full of all kinds of awesome :-)

Today, Gena's going to be talking about her latest release, The Darkest Whisper, and giving away a signed copy of The Darkest Night, the first book in her Lords of the Underworld series.

Leave a comment by noon tomorrow (New Zealand time) to be in to win.

And now, please welcome Gena to the blog everyone!!
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How do characters come to be?

With me, they introduce themselves in different ways. In The Darkest Whisper, Gwendolyn the Timid, a half-harpy, half-angel, first appeared to me in a dream. I saw her locked inside a glass cage. Dirty, hungry, scared. I saw that cage open, watched her disappear in a blink and return bloody. Only, it wasn’t her blood.When I woke up, I had so many questions. Mainly: whose blood was it? What had she done? How had she done it? Why was she locked away?

Slowly her story began to unravel in my mind. And I fell so in love with this woman, I had to write her story. But who would I pair her with? In the end, I knew only a Lord of the Underworld would do. She was Harpy. She needed someone strong. So, I began to introduce her to those deliciously savage warriors, testing reactions. First up? Paris. I knew immediately he wasn’t the one for her. He was too busy mourning his Sienna. Aeron – no again. I already had someone in mind for him. Strider – no, no, no. Gwen is a Harpy who hates to lose, and Strider is an immortal who always has to win. Or suffer. Eventually, they would have resented each other and that would have blown the happily-ever-after.

More introductions. More nos. No one fit. Until Sabin, keeper of the demon of Doubt, entered. Instant sparks. And, to be honest, that shocked the hell out of me. Sabin could destroy the strongest self-esteem in a snap. Past lovers had even killed themselves, they were so torn up inside. How was Gwen, who thinks of herself as self-esteem lite, supposed to survive a relationship with him?

I didn’t know the answer, but I decided to sit down and write their story anyway. They were that attracted to each other. They had to guide me every step of the way, but, oh, what a journey. I LOVED writing this book and have never had so much fun with characters. Sabin, who had always placed victory on the battlefield over relationships, was finally brought to his knees. And Gwen, my sweet Gwen, proved herself strong enough to do it -- and make him like it. (Yes, I’m smiling as I type that. And shivering.)

If you haven’t checked out the Lords of the Underworld, I hope you’ll give them a shot. And speaking of shots, my wonderful publisher is hosting a contest with a grand prize of $10,000 in honor of my other August 25th release, Intertwined. Just follow the link to find out how to enter! http://harlequin.promo.eprize.com/intertwinedsweepstakes/

I'm back - with presents!

Random winners & their prizes!

(Please email me your mailing addresses at nalinisinghwrites AT gmail DOT com)

Laurann Dohner - Melanie Milburne's His Inconvenient Wife & The Blackmail Pregnancy (signed)

Pam Frederick - Daphne Clair's Salzano's Captive Bride

Diane (comment #26) - Melanie Milburne's The Marciano Love-Child

Dani - Jennifer Taylor's The GP's Meant-To-Be Bride

Harlequin Vintage Art Bookmarks: Laura, Bonnie Ferguson, Himeko

Congratulations!

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The RWNZ conference was absolutely fantastic! Great speakers, wonderful friends, and a brilliant atmosphere. I have photos that I'll post a bit later on - after I catch up on some work!

But, I have pressies for you all. I have several books that I got at the conference that I won't be able to read for a while, so I thought rather than put them on my tbr pile, I'd give them away. I haven't had a chance to unpack properly, but I definitely have some brand-spanking-new category romances from the Presents line, so drop you name into the hat if you'd like one of those.

Also, I risked my life to get some extra copies of bookmarks with Harlequin's gorgeous vintage cover art on them that I'll give away to a couple of lucky folks.

I'll draw the winners tomorrow.

AND tomorrow, we have a super duper famous author guest who is so famous I'm going to have to be twisty with the clue as to her identity - she writes paranormal, contemporary and young adult. Who can it be?

True Romance & Friday Book Club

The RWNZ conference kicks off today - I'm so looking forward to catching up with all my writing friends from across New Zealand and over from Australia!

I'm hoping to log on over the weekend, but just in case I can't, don't forget to check out the Borders True Romance blog. My post will be featured on the 21st (U.S. time), and there are giveaways - including an advance copy of Blaze of Memory!

Onto the book club - all about your recommended reads this week. What've you been reading and enjoying? If you haven't had a chance to read this week, what're you looking forward to diving into?

NZ/Aus Guest Author: Nicola Marsh

Today, we continue the monthly series on guest authors from my part of the world. Everyone, please welcome Nicola Marsh to the blog!

Nicola's giving away a book to a random winner - leave a comment before 12 noon tomorrow, New Zealand time, to be in to win.

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THE ALLURE OF FOREIGN SHORES

I’m an avid reader. I devour books; have ever since I was a kid.

I read widely, across genres and could happily spend a day/week/month curled up with my nose in a book. For me, part of the appeal of reading is getting engrossed in another world, being so absorbed in the characters’ lives that I’m almost there alongside them, laughing and crying and feeling their pain.

It’s sheer pleasure to be swept up in the fantasy as I turn the pages, eager to reach the end yet reluctant to do so because I love the story so much.

So what helps sweep me along?

The setting.

I’m a sucker for an exotic setting, a place that brings the book alive.

How many of you have read a book set in Paris and can see the Eiffel Tower, the Place de la Concorde, Montmarte? A Roman book, with the Colosseum, the Spanish Steps? Venice with its charming waterways and gondolas?

Mention a city in the world and someone will have an instant mental image of what that place is like.

That’s what I hoped to evoke with my upcoming Harlequin Romance, A TRIP WITH THE TYCOON.

Set in India, I wove the sights, smells, sounds and tastes of this magical country through the book and by the reviews so far, readers are pleased with the results!

As I take readers on a journey through India, I also take them on a South Pacific cruise in TWO WEEKS IN THE MAGNATE’S BED (Harlequin Presents.) Balmy breezes, isolated beaches, Fijian islands, endless ocean…you can picture it, right?

Do you have any favourite settings around the world?

Both these books will be released in September and I’m giving away a signed copy of TWO WEEKS IN THE MAGNATE’S BED to a commenter chosen at random.

Want to know more about where I set my books? Visit my website at www.nicolamarsh.com

Happy armchair travels!

Nicola

(Thanks for having me, Nalini :-))

Of Sleep

I'm very sleepy. Max and his heroine kept me up till all hours of the night.

That is all.

Thai Release & Other Fun Things

For my Thai readers - Caressed By Ice will be out in Thai at the end of this week. Follow the link to read more.

The website has been updated, and there's a contest up to win an advanced reading copy (ARC) of Blaze of Memory.

The Borders True Romance blog has just launched and the lineup of guest authors this week includes Linda Howard, Julia Quinn, and someone whose name begins with N. ;) My post will be up on the 21st, and there will be a chance to win books and an ARC of Blaze of Memory!

And a question for those of you who live in Germany - anyone in Frankfurt? I'll be passing through on a flying visit later this year. Email me if if you'd like to do coffee :)

How is the week treating everyone so far?

Australian Humor

A friend sent me a forward with the note that these questions were posted on an Australian Tourism website, and that the responses are answers by the officials. Here are some of them!

Q: Does it ever get windy in Australia ? I have never seen it rain on TV, how do the plants grow? ( UK )

A: We import all plants fully grown and then just sit around watching them die.
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Q: Will I be able to see kangaroos in the street?

A: Depends how much you've been drinking.
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Q: I want to walk from Perth to Sydney - can I follow the railroad tracks?

A: Sure, it's only three thousand miles, take lots of water.
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Q: I have a question about a famous animal in Australia, but I forget its name. It's a kind of bear and lives in trees.

A: It's called a Drop Bear. They are so called because they drop out of Gum trees and eat the brains of anyone walking underneath them. You can scare them off by spraying yourself with human urine before you go out walking.
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Q: Can you give me some information about hippo racing in Australia?

A: A-fri-ca is the big triangle shaped continent south of Europe .
Aus-tra-lia is that big island in the middle of the Pacific which does not....oh, forget it. Sure, the hippo racing is every Tuesday night in Kings Cross. Come naked.
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Friday Book Club

Books, books, books! What are you reading and what are your recommendations this week?

Confession: I've been neck deep in edits, but I couldn't help myself - I placed a book order for when I go on holiday. It's an addiction (one I can live with *grin*).

Also, a heads-up: Ilona Andrews is giving away three copies of Must Love Hellhounds, Maya Banks is giving away ARCs of Sweet Seduction, and Jessica Andersen is giving away a book here. See, I help feed other people's addictions too ;-)

Now, let's talk books!

Fan Art: Archangel Raphael

Isn't this amazing?!! This is a piece of art created by a reader and inspired by Raphael from Angels' Blood. If you want to see a bigger version of the image, follow the link. The artist's name is NiAnluain. She also has a Myspace page.

I know some of you might like to use this as an avatar, but please, please ask her first as this is her work. I have her email if you can't get a hold of her using the links above and I'm happy to pass on any messages :-)

Now let's all just sit back and admire!

Paranormal Romances

I'm doing a workshop on Paranormal Romances at the RWNZ conference later this month, and I have some questions for everyone. I'll be collating the info and using it spark discussion in the workshop.

1. Who are some of your favorite paranormal authors and why? What makes you love that author/authors so much?
2. What makes a paranormal romance stand out for you?
3. Anything else you want to say? Here's your chance!

Answer any or all!

Guest Author: Erin Quinn - Haunting Beauty

Today, we've got Erin Quinn on the blog! Haunting Beauty just sounds like such a fascinating book that I asked Erin to tell us a bit more about it.

Please welcome Erin to the blog everyone!

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Nalini, thank you so much for inviting me to post on your blog! I’m a big fan and this is such an honor!

Haunting Beauty is the first in the Haunting Series and just released on August 4th. I’ve been thrilled with the response so far and started getting reader letters almost immediately. Since I love talking to readers, it’s all been very exciting.

Haunting Beauty is a book I simply had to write. I can remember when I started and the vivid image in my mind that later became the first chapter. I could see Sean Ballagh, Haunting Beauty’s hero, standing on the cliffs, looking out over the cold Irish sea and I knew, I knew, I had to tell his story. Even so, I was surprised at where Sean took me. Turns out, he shared my personal fascination with time and the idea that the past is not set in stone. Mistakes can be un-made, heartache can be transformed into triumph . . . but at what cost? If the past is an elaborate puzzle with interchangeable pieces, when one is altered, how do the others still fit? And how could you be sure that what changed didn’t make everything worse?

When Sean is sent by his grandmother to find Danni Smith and bring her home to the family she’s thought lost forever, he begins his search, but it’s not until he meets Danni that he comes to understand why he’s there.

He and Danni have a past and future that has become a tangled knot—a tether that binds them together while keeping them apart. They need one another whether they like it or not and Sean . . . he’s there for Danni, only for Danni.

Life has been hard on Danni, but she’s not the kind of woman who rolls over and takes it. She’s forged ahead and, with her little dog, Bean, has found contentment, if not happiness. She’s resigned herself to never knowing who she is, why she was abandoned as a child, or if she has family out there, somewhere. But when Sean appears at her door offering everything she ever wished for—the answers to the questions of her past and the ticket to find her family—Danni must follow him to Ireland, a land steeped with mystery and lore.

Sean delivers the goods—he reunites her with her people—but how could Danni have guessed that she would be meeting herself as a child? Reliving those fateful hours before her whole world was shattered? Learning the secrets that determined her fate? Who is this Sean Ballagh with his beautiful eyes and heartbreaking smile? And what does he want from Danni? He is more than a messenger, but even Sean doesn’t know the truth about himself.

What I loved about writing this story was the idea that Joe Nobody or Jane Unknown, people that look and act like everyone else, might actually have some hidden ability, some power that makes them extraordinary. I continue with this idea in book two of the Haunting series, Haunting Warrior, which releases in May 2010.

I’d love to know what you think . . . what is your favorite type of paranormal? Do you like reading about ordinary people doing extraordinary things or do you like your paranormal world more alien, filled with creatures or space travelers? What do you hope to find when you open the cover of that book?

Jayne Ann Krentz News & Guest Tomorrow

How cool is this? Jayne Ann Krentz is writing/publishing an Arcane Society story featuring Fallon Jones, via Twitter!

Even if you don't have a Twitter account, you can read it. Just go here: www.twitter.com/ArcaneSociety, then scroll down and push the "More" button. That'll open up the page and you can read everything she's posted to this point.

Also, we've got a guest blogger tomorrow, so make sure you come on over and say hi. Here's the clue as to her identity: _ r _ n / Q_ _ _ n

Hope you all had a fabulous weekend!

Friday Book Club

It's book club time - all about sharing recent reads you've enjoyed. So comment and spread the book love :-)

This & That

I wrote a scene yesterday for Max's book featuring Lucas and Sascha. I really love that I get to continue to see characters grow over the course of this series. (In case anyone is wondering, Lucas is shirtless in the scene).

I've lined up some great guest bloggers for you over the next month - there'll be approximately one a week :-)

Gena is giving away copies of Intertwined and The Darkest Whisper here.

There's an interesting conversation taking place on Twitter with the #askromancewriter hashtag.

And it's a gorgeous sunny day outside!

Save the Contemporary

Dear Author and SBTB are running another Save the Contemporary campaign, and the giveaway books this time around are Kathleen O'Reilly's Hot Under Pressure, and my good friend Bronwyn Jameson's Magnate's Make Believe Mistress.

Follow the link for more info on how to win :)

Max's Book

Today, I'm going to print out Max's book so I can write all over the hard-copy manuscript. I just seem to see everything more clearly once it's all printed out - and this is the stage where I delete and add scenes, shift things around, make sure everything flows, all that good stuff. I really like this part of the process :-)

What're you all up to today?