If you love westerns, I've got a definite recommendation for you.

is the latest release from my author, Sabine Starr. It's the story of a gorgeous saloon singer/outlaw and the US Marshall who think he's going to lock her up. Maybe he can lead her to redemption or maybe not, but he's sure to have a wild ride with her along the way.  Sabine Starr comes from a family with long-standing western ties, so she definitely knows of what she writes.  I hope you enjoy.

And if you're not yet convinced, check out the book trailer here on her publisher's website.

New Release: Goddess in the Middle

We're pleased to announce the release of the third book in the Goddess series: Goddess in the Middle.

TOGETHER. THEY CREATE THE MOST POWERFUL MAGIC OF ALL ...

Romulus and Remus are sexy werewolf cousins with an unbreakable bond. When they meet beautiful goddess Amity and save her from an encroaching demon, they discover that the three of them together are way more powerful than any of them could ever have imagined. And they're going to need that power to overcome the forces that are determined to steal Amity's magic and destroy the two men. As different as night and day, and each an amazing man in his own right, Rom and Remy make all of Amity's deepest fantasies come true ...

Also check out: How to Worship a Goddess and What A Goddess Wants

New Release: Just One Taste by Celeste Norfleet

An appetite for seduction... 

Every woman on Key West is swooning over newcomer Chase Buchanan. All except bakery owner Nikita Coles. Bad enough that he's bought the building next door, blocking Nikita's plans to expand her business. Worse, he works for a big oil company. She can't trust the man or his motivations, even if he does look good enough to eat....
Convincing Nikita to sell her property will be a challenge, but Chase is ready for it. The Coles family has a rich history on Key West, but the Buchanans never give up on what they want. Seduction begins as a business strategy, and quickly becomes the most pleasurable experience of Chase's life. Yet winning the battle of wills could mean losing the love he never expected to find....

Pacing

What with the massive power outages depriving the Washington, DC, area of its usual air-conditioned comfort this week, I’ve been thinking a lot about how to describe heat. In the books I’ve been reading about summer, what it all comes down to, from what I can tell, is pacing. A hot summer novel, whether it be romance, mystery, or a classic, has to have slow-moving characters and action because no one wants to run around in that heat. When the characters move and think slowly, and the novel is paced correctly, it’s easy to feel the blanket of hot air on your skin.

Good pacing is important in other settings as well, though. Each individual scene of a novel needs to be paced to build optimal tension. This does not mean that each scene needs to be fast-paced to create tension; in fact, among the novels we’ve been reading lately, a continuous fast pace has broken tension because the reader cannot continue to keep up with unrelenting speed. Instead of constant high-pace or high action scenes, think about what mood you want to set for the scene and the section. If you want the grand discovery at the end of Chapter Eight to be incredibly tense, a slow build can make all the difference. Of course this all needs to be adjusted for each novel, but we’d love to read some stories where the pacing really makes us feel the heat!

New Release: Wild Thing by Tawny Weber!

A new treat for those who’ve loved Tawny’s earlier “bedtime stories”and a delight for those looking for a new sexy short read.  Besides what’s not to like: dogs, a hunky guy and great romance. Let me know what you think.

Quick synopsis: When groomer Andrea Tanner finds herself tied up and with one of her employers prized pooches dog napped, she definitely hopes for a hero. But the hero she expected wasn’t hunky private eye Percy Graham, whose body still fills her fantasies as she fills up his dreams. The two set out to catch a dog napper, if the passion between them doesn't catch them first….

Beginning in the Middle

Lately, we’ve gotten a lot of submissions that could use to begin in the middle. The submissions are interesting, well written, and, ultimately, enjoyable. But before we can get to the interesting parts, they’re weighed down by heavy backstory, long descriptions of setting, or by the story just not starting in the right place. In those first few pages, the reader doesn’t need to know every detail about the character before the story starts: that’s what the book is for! Nor do we need to know about the character’s entire surroundings. Description is good, but it should entice and intrigue, not weigh down your beginning.

Now, in terms of the reading I’ve been doing this summer, why does this matter so much? In a partial manuscript, you have fifty pages to make us really want to read on and request more pages. Truthfully, you don’t even have fifty—while I always read all the way to the end, those initial pages determine my opinion of your writing style, your characters, and how tightly paced the novel is. If the beginning is slow, you have to win me back in the next thirty or so pages. You have to wow me enough that I forget the opening and want to keep reading. That’s a lot of pressure on those later pages.

One way to capture the reader more effectively with your manuscript is to begin in medias res—or in the middle. There is little that is more intriguing than watching a character who’s been thrown directly into a situation, trying to handle it while the reader slowly gets the details. This creates action, it introduces us to the character as we’ll see her throughout, and most importantly, it means we aren’t waiting to be interested.

Keeping the action moving while providing the reader with necessary information isn’t easy. It’s the mark of a good writer—which is why that approach, done correctly, will move your partial to the top of the pile.

Good luck!

--Intern Grace

It's time to help others

May is the month for best-selling author Brenda Novak's extraordinary on-line auction that benefits juvenile diabetes.  If you haven't checked it out before, this is the year you should do so. Cumulatively, she's raised more than $1.3 million for juvenile diabetes research and she hopes to break $2 million with this year's activities.

The auction includes such wonderful items, many of particular interest to writers, both published and not yet published. There are things of interest to readers as well.  I've donated a manuscript critique again this year as well as a couple of hours of my legal services to review a publishing contract or help an author out with a copyright or publishing question.  There are hundreds of items from authors, agents, and others, so definitely check it out.  You only have until May 31st.

As I said, all proceeds go to benefit juvenile diabetes research.  Diabetes of all types has become such an epidemic in this country, but to me juvenile diabetes seems the harshest.  My heart goes out to the families with young children struggling to manage this disease.

So 'tis the season to look beyond ourselves and see what we can all do for others.  Let Brenda's auction get you started.  To help you out, the link to her auction page is here. 

Point of View.

        One of the most important choices you have to make early on in developing your manuscript is who is telling the story. Is there a specific character narrating everything with only knowledge of what they can see or a third-person narration aware of everything that’s going on? Who is the voice that will relate the rest of the characters and the plot and the setting to your audience?
       You can draw someone in from the first page with a clear point of view or a unique perspective. You can also lose them just as quickly with a voice that is not very interesting or is difficult to follow. Make sure you are part of the first group and not the latter.
       Be consistent. If you choose to tell the story from the point of view of one of your characters, decide whether they are relating the events as they happen or reflecting back on something that has already passed. Don’t let them tell the reader anything they wouldn’t actually know. There are few things more distracting in a story than inconsistencies in voice.
      Be compelling. Even in a third-person narrative it is important to have a strong, clear sense of who is telling the story. It doesn’t matter if the story being relayed is the most simple, mundane task or the most exciting event to ever happen, the way it is told and who is telling will make or break whether someone reads on.
     Most of all, don’t be afraid to start over! If you realize halfway through that your story really would have been better served with a third-person narrative and you’ve been writing from the point of view of your main character, switch it up! The time it takes to rewrite those pages will be well worth it in the end if you have a more polished manuscript with a more compelling voice when you are finished. Don’t become so invested in your point of view that you let it ruin the rest of the story.

     As always, good luck!

      Intern Emily.

New Release: Download Drama by Celeste O. Norfleet

Instant fame. Instant drama.
Some people stand back when problems crop up. Kenisha Lewis steps up. And there's a lot that needs fixing, from her family's money worries to the run-down dance studio where she works part-time.
When the promo she makes for a dance studio fundraiser goes viral, Kenisha can't believe the response. Who'd have guessed she'd become the latest YouTube sensation--or be asked to star in a video with rapper Taj? And now Taj wants Kenisha to become her protegee, promising money and fame. Problems solved, right? Not quite. Her exciting new career is taking time away from school, family, friends and her boyfriend, Terrence. Kenisha is sure she is this close to having what she's always wanted. But how much is she willing to give up to get it?

Download Drama, Celeste Norfleet's latest in her young adult series is available from Kimani Tru for preorder now!
Be sure to also check out Celeste O. Norfleet's previous Kimani Tru releases: Fast Forward, Pushing Pause, and She Said, She Said.

If you Love books

It is so very easy in this business to get swamped by the day-to-day minutiae.

Reading queries, partials, fulls.
Researching the market.
Talking with editors.
Making and following-up on submissions.
Waiting for contracts.
Negotiating details.
And on, and on, and on.

The details are often so all subsuming, that one can lose sight of the purpose, the goal, the reason for being in this business. I didn't realize how lost I may have become until today when I stopped to smell the roses, (well they were actually hyacinths), but you get the idea.

Call it spring fever or taking time to restore one's soul. Not only did I enjoy the blooms of spring, but I also took out a few minutes from the work day to look at the Oscar winning animated short, The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore. It is delightful. It made me happy, but more importantly it restored my faith in the power of books. All those flying words brought such joy to all the people they touched, that it was impossible not to see books as an essential part of life. It felt good to think that authors and agents play a part in that joy and to remember why my love of books got me into this business in the first place.

If you haven't watched the video on U-tube, you really should. I'd love to hear if it brings a smile to your face as well.

New Release: Sex, Lies and Valentines by Tawny Weber

The agency is excited to announce another new release: Tawny Weber is back with her latest for Harlequin Blaze, Sex, Lies and Valentines!

Con artist Gabriel Black just got busted. By a babe. Drool-worthy (and clearly sneaky) FBI agent Danita Cruz is forcing Gabriel to choose between hard time and scamming his own family for an undercover sting. Now he has to present Danita to his family as his girlfriend. And it's the perfect opportunity to get wickedly even with her...
But Danita has some tricks of her own, and Gabriel's control begins slipping away as raw sexual energy takes over. Their sham relationship starts feeling a lot like...well the real deal. The Big Question is, will overwhelming desire be enough to make a liar go legit?

Make sure to pick up a copy today! And while you're at it, be sure to check out Sex, Lies and Mistletoe and Sex, Lies and Midnight--two more in the Harlequin Blaze line by Tawny Weber!

New Books

This month brings several new books from our authors. We'll highlight one today.

Last Chance Beauty Queen by Hope Ramsay continues the adventures of the townsfolk of Last Chance where the Cut n' Curl remains the place for the best gossip in town. This time British royalty has come to town, looking for an investment and perhaps a wife. Caroline's job depends upon making him feel welcome, but when he wants something she has no intention of giving him, sparks really are ignited. But this former Watermelon Queen will learn a lot about what's really important in life and community.


And if you happened to miss the first book in this series, Welcome to Last Chance, you can get it in digital form this week for a discounted price. Here's the link .

Beginnings

A month into a new year seems as good a time as any to discuss something very important to a story: the beginning. It is difficult to get invested in reading something if it cannot capture you from the very start. This may be unfair—I am sure there are plenty of really great novels out there which do not pick up until a few chapters in. However, when your partial manuscript is being judged on those first few chapters that is not a risk you can really take. You need to capture your audience from the first page, and then work to keep them interested for the remaining pages.

Introduce great characters in the first few pages. Even if the plot doesn’t pick up right away, it is easier to give the author the benefit of the doubt and keep reading if there are characters you feel connected to. [See the post a little while back on characters for more on this.] You can also draw a reader in by creating a setting that they won’t want to leave. It is easier to stick with a slower story if you feel like you can imagine being there. Also, just the overall style of writing can instill some confidence that the plot will follow.

That being said, it is still really important to make sure something happens in the first 20-30 pages. That long without plot development—even if it occurs within the middle of the book after the story has picked up—is too long! It is nice to have some kind of idea where the story is going from the initial chapters, even if you also include a synopsis which explains the future development. I want to be really drawn in from the first page, first sentence even. You only get so much time to capture your audience, so use it well!

Good luck!

--Intern Emily

Happy Holidays!

'Tis the marvelous season for gift giving, parties, joy, and wonder.

It's also the season, as we approach the end of the year, for rest and reflection. All of us in the publishing biz have been buffeted by what felt like gale-force winds of change this past year. But, hopefully, the holidays will give each of us a chance to catch our breath, process the changes in a moment of quiet reflection, and plan a course for next year that will steer us to our hearts' goals.

Be kind to yourself during the holidays and find that quiet moment to revisit and renew your hopes and plans for 2012.

Also, don't forget to visit a local independent bookstore, browse, and buy a book (preferably something that your Amazon algorithm would never pick out for you). And whatever you do, make sure you read at least one new book this holiday! (Or maybe one for each day of the holiday!)

Best wishes,

The Elaine P. English Literary Agency

Great Advice on Self-Publishing

Whether an author should self-publish, how to do it, how to succeed if you try -- these are all the questions buzzing around the publishing biz these days. Some authors seem to feel that traditional, "dead-tree" publishers are dinosaurs with absolutely no relevance.

[I have to admit I love the phrase "dead-tree" publishers. The environmental impact of this business has always been something that's troubled me. It's one of the main reasons we switched to all electronic submissions. But I have to admit when folks use the phrase these days, it sounds so negative on so many levels!]

Hardly a day goes by without at least one author asking me about self-publishing. As with most issues and since I am also an attorney (and this is the attorneys' favorite response), the answer I give is always "it depends." I do believe each situation is unique and ALL factors should be considered, not just that everyone else is doing it and some are even making money at it. So today when I saw a blog post on this subject from Jane Friedman, former publisher of Writers' Digest and a professor of media and writing at the University of Cincinnati that I thought made an enormous amount of sense, I wanted to share the link. She suggests that while authors may have great power, they still need to use it responsibly. Take a look at her piece and let me know what you think.

Characters

I am sure this topic has been discussed in previous blog posts, but it is so important it deserves being touched upon again. There may be nothing that can make or break a novel as much as the characters that are in it. Many times I've gotten excited about the premise of a story, and find myself completely disappointed by the people who that story revolves around. And in the opposite effect, I've read some stories where I am not exactly thrilled about where the plot is going but I am driven to continue by a need to know what happens to the people.

There are few other factors in a novel or manuscript that hold as much importance as the characters. Make them believable.If you want your read to get emotionally invested in a fictionalized character in a story, we have to be able to believe that they could be real and that their choices make sense for the kind of person they are painted as. Decide who you want them to be and how you want them to act and make sure they keep up some continuity, or if they act completely out of character make sure they have a reason. The believable factor also goes for dialogue--make sure what they say makes sense for them as well.

Develop them further than you even need to just to make sure you solidify who they are and what you want them to mean to you reader. Start with some basic things, like what is their favorite color and why? Add small things like that which maybe do not give a great deal of insight into the character but make them feel more like they could be a real person.

Give your reader someone to pull for, someone to hate, someone to wish that they could be or just be around. Make your reader wish for your character to be more than fiction, and you will have won them over.

Good luck!

Intern Emily

New Release: Love's Paradise by Celeste O. Norfleet

The agency is excited to announce another new release for November: Celeste O. Norfleet's newest romance, Love's Paradise:

In a dazzling new novel in the Mamma Lou series, matchmaker Louise Gates helps two adversaries turn their simmering anger into fiery passion.

For historian Sheri Summers, Crescent Island is an unspoiled treasure, and she hopes to keep it that way. If that means shutting down a new beachfront project that could destroy the historic site, so be it. Sheri can deal with developer Jordan Hamilton's anger. But what she doesn't count on is their combustible chemistry.…

Jordan has powerful allies, and asks Mamma Lou to help arrange a truce. Sheri is as sexy as she is stubborn, but every kiss and heated caress is just one more complication in their ongoing dispute. With no compromise in sight, it's not just a battle of wills that's at risk, but something far more precious.

Get your copy today!

New Release: Tall, Dark and Cowboy by Joanne Kennedy

November is flush with new books by Elaine English authors! Hot off the shelf, Joanne Kennedy's latest sexy Western is sure to put some sizzle in your chilly Fall evenings:

Stunned by the discovery that her lux lifestyle was funded by crime, runaway trophy wife Lacey Bradford is desperate to escape from her ex's criminal cronies and start a new life, so she heads west to find an old love.

But rugged rancher Chase Caldwell has changed, hardened by bitterness and loss. The last thing he's looking for is romance with the first woman who broke his heart...

Purchase your copy today.

New Release: The Rancher's Courtship by Laurie Kingery

The agency is thrilled to announce that The Rancher's Courtship by Laurie Kingery is available on bookshelves today. Kingery's latest novel is the fourth installment in the popular Love Inspired Historicals series "Brides of Simpson Creek".

Though Caroline Wallace can't have a family, she can still have a purpose. Becoming Simpson Creek's new schoolmarm helps heal the heartache of losing Pete, her fiancé, to influenza.

Then Pete's brother arrives, trailing a herd of cattle and twin six-year-old girls.Jack Collier expected Pete and his bride to care for his daughters until he was settled in Montana. But bad weather and worse news strand Jack in Texas until spring. It's little wonder Caroline grows fond of Abby and Amelia. But could such a refined, warmhearted woman fall for a gruff rancher…before the time comes for him to leave again?

Make sure to pick up Laurie Kingery's seventeenth published novel!

So You Want To Write A Series

Now that it's November, my fourth book in the "Brides of Simpson Creek" series for Love Inspired Historicals, The Rancher's Courtship, has hit the shelves. It's made me stop and reflect about how I started the series, and what I've learned along the way, series and a few things I wish I'd known.

Series are vastly popular with genre readers, especially in romance. Even if you aren't writing a series, some readers may assume you are, and will ask if certain secondary characters will be featured in the next book. This may lead to writing a series when you hadn't even planned to. My series, the Brides of Simpson Creek, however, came along at a time when I was tired of having to "build a new world" each time I started a new manuscript, complete with a locale, secondary characters, and businesses, such as a particular saloon, or mercantile. (Yup, I write western romance.) I developed what seemed like a unique concept, the mail-order groom instead of bride. (If you wrote this concept first, ten years ago or so, please don't burst my bubble).

I designed a town, Simpson Creek, Texas, set it in the hill country near San Saba, and gave it a reason to need mail-order grooms—the lack of eligible bachelors following the War Between the States (also known as the Civil War if you're a Yankee). I gave the plot a plucky young miss discontent to remain an old maid, had her set up a group of like-minded ladies and place a newspaper ad—the 1860's version of online dating!

I started writing before computers so I still do a lot of planning on paper—no elaborate spreadsheets for me. On a piece of paper I wrote out the physical characteristics of each main character in one column, important facts in another, the names of secondary characters in another. The names of the first group of ladies in "The Spinsters Club" got their own column, and as the series developed, I had to keep track of what spinsters had found their matches—for not each spinster would get her own book. Each contracted book got its own page, and I still refer back to previous books, because I started writing the series in 2009 and it's all too easy to forget details after writing four of the stories. No fact is too small to write down—a throwaway character in the first book might have a pivotal role five books later.

I was well into the first book, which became MAIL ORDER COWBOY, before I got to visit the actual site of my fictional Simpson Creek—and discovered there really had been a community called Simpson Creek on the site. Spooky, huh? While there, I found a historic tree, the Marriage Oak, to use in my third story, THE SHERIFF'S SWEETHEART.

The ladies of my Spinsters' Club have married, had babies, (and in one case, went crazy and lost her life because of loving the wrong man), and the one thing I wish I'd started from the beginning was a comprehensive timeline so I could remember what book happened in what months of what year. It's been useful to visit http://www.timeanddate/com to see when the full moons were, and what date coincided with what day of the week—not because I think most readers care, but because in the heat of writing I may accidentally mention two full moons in one month. I keep a running narrative—also on paper—of several sentences telling what happens in each chapter, including the dates it took place.

Your mileage may vary if you write a series, but these are the hints that work for me. You may work with elaborate spreadsheets, but I'm a seat-of-the-pants writer and just need a little structure to help me keep from completely flying off into the mist and getting lost.

I hope you'll take the time to have a look at my trailer for THE RANCHER'S COURTSHIP on my website at http://www.LaurieKingery.com because it's the coolest thing, I think, that I've ever done for promotion. My videographer, Barbara Hunt of Paperback Flyers, is a genius. She's found images and music that totally fit my story and melded them all into a pleasing minute and thirty seconds that makes you really want to read the book. At least I hope it does! If you're interested in having a trailer made, her prices are very reasonable.

THE RANCHER'S COURTSHIP is available in November wherever books are sold, at online sites such as amazon.com,cbd.com, bn.com, and harlequin.com. Please visit my website at http://www.LaurieKingery.com

Thanks, Elaine, for giving me the opportunity to talk about my books!

By Laurie Kingery