The edits for SAPPHIRE FLAMES have landed. The good news is that our editor liked the book. The bad news is that it’s 108,000 words and it needs to be closer to 100,000. In the mixed-bag news, there are no obvious places to make a large cut. Typically, the easiest way to make large cuts
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First Draft Done
Yesterday we officially typed The End on the first draft of SAPPHIRE FLAMES and sent it to our long-suffering editor, Erika Tsang. The manuscript is a bit long, almost 110, 000 words. so about 7,000 words longer than WILDFIRE. It was a big book, and it had to start the relationship and the trilogy arc.
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Should You Have a Webpage
Today’s question comes from H., who is just starting out on a path to publication: As an unpublished author, should I start an author webpage?Should I share snippets of my story on my social media? I’m very nervous about putting my work out there, but I also know I’m never going to get anywhere if
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Plagiarism, Ghostwriting, and Award Craziness
Christiane Serruya, a USA Today bestselling self-published author of contemporary romances, plagiarized massive chunks of other writers’ books, specifically Courtney Milan and Tessa Dare. The plagiarism isn’t in question. It’s blatant. Text in Green is copied word for word. Caught red-handed, Christiane came up with a dog ate my homework excuse. She hired some guy
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Consent for Assault
As you are probably aware, Jussie Smollett, one of the actors on the show Empire, has been in the news lately. Initially, Jussie claimed that he had been assaulted but now it appears he might have hired his assailants. I don’t want to go into discussion of Jussie’s actions, because the matter is still under
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On Shortcuts
Getting close to the end of the book is exhausting. You’ve put your characters and yourself through hell and you are just as tired as they are. At the end of the book, I find myself looking for little shortcuts. Everything seems to be too hard; the normal chores are too much. I can’t quit
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Things Writers Say During Their Workday
If you eavesdropped on writer conversations, you would think we were all mad. On covers and models: “Why can’t we have a bearded guy without a beard?” ~ Gordon OMGosh — LOVE! But — question. Is his finger on the trigger? ~ Faith Hunter Yes. It’s a plastic gun, Faith. He isn’t going to shoot
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More Books, Harder Writing
A really good thread on writing from Chuck Wendig. Chuck is right. It gets harder. We are on novel… 10 KD + 1 Andrea + 4 Edge + 4 Innkeeper + 3 Hidden Legacy + 1 Hugh = 23. On novel #24. Yay. And it’s difficult because there is now all this pressure to top
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The Question of Merch
Hey guys, Brandi Bolden here. I have a super exciting question to ask y’all. As you may have guessed from the title, that question is about Ilona Andrews merch. Yes, I know, I’m happy dancing too. But before I can make your dreams of Ilona Andrews merch come true, I’m gonna need some help from
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Phone Calls
Yesterday, Nancy, our awesome agent called to discuss the upcoming cover shoot for SAPPHIRE FLAMES and the following conversation took place. Me: No, we do want a guy! We absolutely want a hot guy. … No, the problem wasn’t that he was a guy, the problem was that he was naked and they processed him
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Writing Process Rambling
I had a spat with my husband yesterday. When we just started out, we would blast through the first draft as fast as we could and then do extensive rewrites. Now we have some experience, and a curious thing happens: we both know when the scene doesn’t work. Instead of realizing it later, in rewrites,
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KU Availability
N. writes, I am wondering if you are going to continue to allow Kindle Unlimited readers to enjoy your Innkeeper series. If not, will the books be in the libraries? I’m shamelessly addicted to your books, and when we actually had a bookstore, I swore I’d never own a Kindle, but small town Zanesville, Ohio
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