How I Write...Worldbuilding and my Vadim World

One of the differences in writing a paranormal book in comparison to a contemporary one is the degree of world building that is done. Of course, this is completely subjective, but it was a fun departure for me to create a new culture in the Vadim with RISE OF HOPE. I wrote an article about world building and give some insights into the process I used to create my new world. I hope you'll check it out!

World Building. It's not just for those genres.

My Book's on Audible & Why it's Weird!!

My latest release, RISE OF HOPE was just released on Audible. I knew they'd selected it for audio of course, but when that happens, the author really is given no idea when it might come out. Considering some of the specific words in my book, I thought they may reach out to me for pronunciations. I was told they might. I'd be waiting, wondering, thinking there'd been some mistake, that they'd changed their minds. Nope LOL. It's just suddenly out there. And it's totally weird. I listened to a sample yesterday. And I could only listen to about two minutes before I had to shut it off. Why? Well:

• I can't tell you how strange it is listening to another voice read my words back to me. I mean, up to this point, the only time I've heard my book is in my own head!
• The narrator is a woman and for the short part I listened to, did a really good job. BUT she reads it at a different pace than I do. And has a different accent to me. Double weird!
• It made me realize, there are people out there who have read my books. This may be a "duh" and I know this intellectually, but this is real, hard, solid evidence. This women obviously spent a LOT of time with my book and my words.
• It gave me goosebumps, in a "this is so cool and neat but weird and I'm sorta freaked out" way. Hey, I'm a writer. No better way to describe it LOL.

Perhaps it just me, but it's a rather surreal experience. I'm not sure how many people out there really buy and listen to audio books (I hope it's a lot), but it really is something freakin' COOL!

If you'd like to listen to a sample, it's up here at Amazon. I'm out of the country at the moment and for some reason, can't see it directly on Audible, but people have let me know it's there. Or here :). If you do listen or do buy it as an audio book, I'd love to hear what you think!

Embarrassing Moments. Oh…and it’s Release Day!

Ah, embarrassing moments. I’ve had my share of them, let me tell you. There was the time I got stuck in a restroom in India. Yeah, India. I could not for the life of me get the cubicle door open, there was no way to climb under or over it and every other woman who came in couldn’t speak a word of English LOL. There was the time I headed to an interview, running really late, only to realize I still had my slippers on O.o. Then there was the time I was in Toronto preparing for a big presentation, ironing my ONLY clean business blouse when I burned a huge iron pattern onto it. And that’s nothing compared to the time I— Wait, you probably don’t need to know that one J.

Did I disclose all this to make myself look like an idiot? Well, I hope not! Hopefully, it provides some examples of someone being human. Granted, ‘being human’ probably doesn’t happen to others as often as it happens to me, but it’s what makes us unique, individual, gives us our personality, our quirks, like building blocks to who we are today. As a writer, it’s critical to create characters readers can relate to and people relate to others they can really identify with. Someone who is gorgeous and perfect and rich and successful and never makes a fool of themselves isn’t necessarily a sympathetic character, isn’t necessarily one a reader will like. Characters need flaws, weaknesses, traits that set them apart. Sometimes they need to make mistakes, react the wrong way, do something foolish or unpredictable. It not only makes a character more relatable so a reader will want to root for their happily ever after, sometimes it provides a great opportunity for plot interest.

I’ve used embarrassing moments or characters behaving badly in some way in my books before. Not necessarily to create a funny or shocking scene in of itself, but to build a realistic character. In my latest release, RISE OF HOPE, my hero is a real gem. At first J. He’s moody, surly and downright rude. Of course, it’s part of who he is, a product of his upbringing, how he handles truths he might not be ready for, but underneath it all he has a core of integrity that’s unshakeable. In other words, he’s redeemable, but I had fun playing with how much of a jerk he could really be. Below is an excerpt from RISE OF HOPE and Seth being, well… Seth:

  “First… Tell me…who am I to you?” she demanded.

  His gaze flew back to hers, held, heated.

  Who are you? What are you? What am I? What does all this mean?

  Yeah, he might not have given her the answers she was looking for or done it well, but at least he could have tried to field those questions. But did she ask those? No. She was sharp, really sharp. It figured. She asked the one thing he couldn’t answer, didn’t want to think about and wasn’t ready to face himself.

  “You’re a job,” he bit out. “I’m helping you escape. I’ll deliver you somewhere safe and make no mistake, I’ll protect you with my life, but you’re a job.”

  Nothing more. He thought it, but couldn’t get the words out. For sure she’d know he was lying. And who the hell was he trying to convince anyway?

So, come on. I showed you mine, now you show me yours J. Share one of your own embarrassing moments, you know, to make sure I don’t look like an idiot here on my own. To celebrate the release of RISE OF HOPE TODAY one lucky reader who comments on my blog will be randomly selected to win...a $25 gift card to an online ebook store of choice. I'll keep it open through Wednesday 11:59 pm Eastern. Good luck!

Rise of Hope. A taste...

There'd be no dispute from anyone who has read any of my books that I like my heroes alpha. Also, a bit moody on occasion and a teensy bit tortured. The hero of my upcoming book, RISE OF HOPE is no exception. Actually, Seth is probably all of these and more rolled into one. Of course, he has some very good reasons and you all know the heroine (Devon) will eventually kiss it better and make everything bearable for him, right? In that vein, I thought I'd share one of Devon's first impressions of Seth. Yeah, they don't first meet in the best of circumstances.

The imposter glanced at the knife, unconcerned. She knew he carried no weapons, her bodyguards had searched him thoroughly, but he didn’t need one. He was weapon enough. She wouldn’t stand a chance against him.

 

Of course, does she really want to? ;)

 

Rise of Hope releases from Carina Press on August 27. You can find all the details on my website.

1 Week & Counting...

So...this is where it gets exciting. It's one week out from my new release on August 27 and there's equal amounts of excitement and anxiety. It's always exciting to see a new book move out into the public arena. I write for readers after all, so this is the culmination of that work, the achievement of that ultimate goal, but for me, it's a beginning as well. Kind of like a birth. Plus, I get to hear what people really think of the book :).

There are also a few firsts to celebrate. This is the first paranormal romance I've written. I've always loved the genre as a reader and it seemed natural to move into it as a writer. I figured I would get there eventually. Also, it's the first series I've written. RISE OF HOPE is book 1 of my Fabric of Fate series. It was interesting to experience the differences of developing not just a single book story arc, but a series arc as well. RISE OF HOPE is the first of a 5-book series. The story overall revolves around a secret, ancient race of humans on the brink of extinction and their fight to survive and I play with the role that fate plays in all of this. I also had some fun coming up with a series tag line:

TheVadïm...will fate alone determine their future or can they carve out their own destiny?

BLURB

A secret ancient race of humans with fantastical abilities, the Vadïm are on the brink of extinction. Many of their women are imprisoned by an organization known as The Assembly, their history all but lost...
Devon Monroe has been a prisoner her entire life. She's determined to make sense of the strange markings on her body, to learn why no one may touch her, to find where she belongs. That means escaping into the unknown, where she has no choice but to trust her self-appointed protector.
Soldier-for-hire Seth Eastman has a job to do: deliver Devon to safety. When Seth discovers the markings on Devon's body, he's stunned at what they mean. And at how she awakens his long-suppressed needs. As they struggle to escape detection and search for the truth of the Vadïm, can he ever hope to claim her for his own?

Stay tuned this week as I share excerpts from the book throughout the week!