The HEA Cafe

It’s the silly season again, which means conventions and conferences are in full bloom. But there is none more silly, nor more worthwhile, than the Romantic Times BOOKlover’s Convention. And no, it’s not the cover models. It’s the readers. The booksellers. The chance to connect in person with authors you’ve only emailed over the years. It’s the readers.

Okay, the cover models help.

I directly credit RT for my career. I directly credit them with putting this then-small/e-press author in touch with NY authors, who in their delightful generosity, inquired as to my career and how they could help.

Okay, it was Robin Owens. Mega-smoochies to an author who is not only a superb storyteller but one class act. Without Robin’s intervention (it was over drinks in the bar–why does that NOT surprise anyone?) I’d not be a happy Bantam author today.

But it’s also Cathy Clamp and Susan Grant. J.C. Wilder (Gawd, I love that woman!) and Janet Miller. Colby Hodge. Isabo Kelly. Susan Kearney. Catherine Asaro. Bonnie Vanak. CT Adams, Rowena Cherry and Stacey Klemstein. Liddy Midnight, Denise Agnew, Lynne Connolly, Cindy Dees and Rae Monet. Christina Skye, Jade Lee… the list is endless. Do you notice the mix of NY and small pressies? Ain’t that great?

RT is an author- and reader-fest. Egos are left outside and butterscotch martinis make dozens of friends. To me, it’s simply the best party on the planet.

This year marks author Lisa Shearin’s first RT. (What? You haven’t read her? Get thee to a bookstore!) Ann Aguirre will also be on my Science Fiction and Fantasy Romance panel. Her Grimspace will knock your readerly socks off.

Wednesday at 3:30pm is the (second) opening of my Intergalactic Bar & Grille. Bigger and better than last year. Ever wanted to be in the cantina scene in Star Wars? Don’t miss this party.

My flight heads out Sunday morning as, along with Stacey Klemstein, I’m teaching several workshops at the pre-con writer track. If you’re there, come say hey. If you’re not, mark your calendar for next year’s RT in Orlando.

It only gets better.

~Linnea

Linnea Sinclair
www.linneasinclair.com 
RITA(c) Award Winning SF Romance from Bantam Spectra
2007-08: GAMES OF COMMAND,  THE DOWN HOME ZOMBIE BLUES, SHADES OF DARK 

Coming 2009: HOPE’S FOLLY

This past weekend, I visited a bookstore and asked the bookseller about their romance section and whether the store would be implementing the face-out program that another bookstore is allegedly planning on rolling out.

The bookseller responded in a cordial, pleasant manner, which is something I find all the time at most bookstores although I’ve heard horror stories from other authors. I’m not sure why my experiences are always positive, but they have been. However, I do admit that some experiences are more positive than others. But I digress. Once the bookseller and I had finished discussing the pros and cons of facing books out, I asked her if she read romance. An expression of “oh boy, here it comes” swept over the seller’s face as she semi-rolled her eyes at me and responded that she used to read romance more than ten years, but that she didn’t any longer.

So I grinned and said, “You know, romance has changed a lot since you read it last. The heroines aren’t wimps who let the hero do all the work. Women are portrayed as strong people and in a lot of cases they’re kick-ass heroines.”

I could tell she still wasn’t convinced because she sort of shrugged and indicated she preferred fantasy and sci-fi. I immediately remembered the line from one of my favorite movies, “Give me a word, and I can show you how the root of that word comes from the Greek language.” (My Big Fat Greek Wedding is one of my fav romantic comedies on DVD). It’s like that with romance writers. We cover EVERY genre, and there has to be someone she’ll enjoy reading. So I said, “oh you must love Linnea Sinclair since you like sci-fi.”

From that point forward, the bookseller was like candy in a child’s hand because she looked at me with a “Who?” expression. So I immediately flooded her with the names of authors I knew who wrote fantasy and sci-fi, and in between breaths I mentioned eBooks. She didn’t want anything to do with that, and I knew to hedge my bets. I just had to convert her to the wonders of sci-fi and fantasy romance and once we had her hooked, we could reel her in with the format type later. Seduction is a gradual process, not a wham bam, thank you ma’am act.

I proceeded to write down the names of sci-fi and fantasy romance writers I knew of and gave them to her. I also took down her email and promised to send her some information on a local sci-fi /fantasy conference coming to Richmond soon. When I left, the bookseller knew my name and even though she might not read my subgenre of romance, I’m betting she’ll remember me because I showed her that readers can find romance in whatever their favorite genre is.

IMHO, the key to breaking down barriers is to apply romance to something the other person likes or believes in. Will it always work? Nope, but it’s worth a shot because a) you might actually convert someone to the romance cause and b) at the very least you’ve made a positive impression on the bookseller and hopefully that will roll over to your benefit when your next book hits the shelves.

Monica

Monica Burns - http://www.monicaburns.com
Dangerous — Behind the mask lies love, a dangerous, deadly emotion
Come Enjoy a Paranormal with that Ahh…Sensation

It’s the 31^st and my time to blog again. I like the fact that this isn’t a monthly job for me since there aren’t always 31 days in every month. Most of the 31^st days I blog aren’t all that notable with the exception of they’re having the honor of being the last day of a month. However, today’s 31^st is different. (How’s that for an opening that makes totally no sense and yet does seem to ring true. It’s a new strategy)

Today is about sweeping out the old and ushering in the new. It’s about cleaning the slate and starting fresh. So why is that? I mean what’s up with resolutions? So many people do them and then fail to follow through on them. Talk about setting one’s self up for failure! But the odd thing is, as much as I know it’s a setup, I have this need, this compulsion to do resolutions. For me, resolutions are goal settings. And goal settings have deadlines. So if I set reasonable resolutions/goals, I’m more likely to achieve them. (Yep, that makes TONS of sense. But the older you get, the distance between reasonable and achievable GROWS)

I’m learning that reasonable means accepting. In other words, accepting my limitations and basing my goals and resolutions on those limitations. I’ve an addictive personality. I can get so wrapped up in something that I fall victim (of my own making) to losing focus. I lost focus of my writing last year. I focused more on marketing than I did on writing, and I think it cost me.

So I’ve come up with only ONE new resolution this year. A change in strategy. Yep, that’s right. My sole resolution is to change my strategy.

• I’m going to write more by removing programs off my TIVO list.
• I’m going to write more by not answering email at night (I can do it when I’m at work on my breaks).
• I’m going to complete two books (I’ll shoot for three, but no need to set myself up for failure).
• What else, oh, right, I’m limiting my conference dollars and putting them into my book advertising. I’m finding having fun and socializing doesn’t equate to books sold.

But WAIT you cry. This sounds like a whole bunch of resolutions.

Well, I suppose you could think of it that way, but it’s not. I really only have one resolution this year. It a change in strategy to write more. I’m just pointing out the things I’ve got to do to accomplish that strategy. So there, Obama, Hilary, Mitt, etc.– how’s that for doublespeak. I should have been a politician. *sigh*

Happy New Year and Happy Writing

Monica

Monica Burns - http://www.monicaburns.com
Mirage, TOP PICK - Romantic Times BOOKreviews
Come Enjoy the Ahh…Sensation

I’m posting as my new alter-ego today. I’m Claire Delacroix and also write as Claire Cross, but I have a new series launching in 2008 under the name Deborah Cooke. (And yes, this means that I answer to pretty much anything!)

Why another name? Because this new series is something completely different from my previous work. As Claire Delacroix, I’ve written historical romances, often with fantasy elements. As Claire Cross, I initially wrote some time travels, but then focussed on contemporary romances.

KISS OF FIRE is the first book in the new Dragonfire trilogy, which features heroes who are dragon shape shifters. These are contemporary fantasy romances with a bit of a dark twist. Click HERE for the back cover copy and all that good stuff.

Now, I have written shape shifter heroes before. I wrote two medieval romances for Harlequin featuring shape shifter heroes: in THE MAGICIAN’S QUEST, the hero became a panther; in ENCHANTED, the hero was cursed to become a wolf each day and return to being a man each night. The panther book was darker in tone, while the wolf book had more of a fairy tale sensibility. (These books were published in 1995 and 1997 respectively and are both out of print - you can see their covers in The Library at Château Delacroix.)

It’s the dragons that are new, and the contemporary setting. The Dragonfire trilogy is a bit darker than my previous contemporaries - my editor thought it merited a new name, so that readers didn’t come to it with any preconceptions.

Except the ones that the cover created:

What’s not to love about that?

What’s not to love about winning a free copy and getting to read it early?

NAL has prepared Advance Reading Copies of KISS OF FIRE and I have them in my hot little hands right now.

KISS OF FIRE will available for sale on February 5, 2008, but you can win an ARC right now. All you have to do is comment on this post and tell me why you should win. Make sure you type your email addy correctly! (Of course, Kiss of Fire is also already available for pre-order from Amazon.com.)

I’ll pick a winner at midnight tonight. Good luck!