IWSG - SOCIAL NETWORKING

INSECURE WRITERS SUPPORT GROUP

Created by Alex J. Cavanaugh 
Purpose: To share and encourage. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. It’s a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!

The co-hosts for the August 5 posting of the IWSG are Nancy Gideon, Bob R Milne, Doreen McGettigan, Chrys Fey,Bish Denham, and Pat Garcia! 

Yes, you've seen my greatest insecurity before – social networking. But thanks to Alex J Cavanaugh, and the IWSG, and all your cool suggestions regarding networking and blogging, I'm making headway.

Even though I don't own a cell phone, I'm even getting things done via twitter. Although, I'm far from an expert. I did join a few flash fiction challenges @writingprompts and the 6 word challenges WOW! Yeah it's an addiction.

Have you made any headway with social networking - 
have a new success story to share? 
Please do...

Tweet me @yolandarenee

If you still don't know enough about me I'm doing an interview with Ann Noser at the Black Cat Blog today. Stop by and say hello!

Also, Ricardo Sanchez is guest posting on Murderous Imaginings today and it's all about murder - SHARKS ARE WIMPS.

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Nilanjana Bose is one of the authors in this Love Story anthology.

Nila is an awesome poet, an amazing writer.

CONGRATULATIONS NILA!

 Pre-order now!

IndiBlogger is a free online platform with over 35,000 Indian bloggers and five lakh articles. IndiBlogger was formed to promote the art of blogging. Every day, bloggers submit their writing from poetry and stories to articles that elaborate on their life experiences and give their creativity an outlet. This book is a collection of short stories of some of the best writers registered on the IndiBlogger platform.

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The WEP has posted the link sign up for the first challenge this year Spectacular Settings. Have you signed up? If not, why not, it's the best way to write, get immediate feedback, polish, and then send it off for publication. Ideal! Check it out HERE!

BATSHIT CRAZY

MONDAYS FINISH THE STORY

Hosted by Barbara W. Beacham.

Your challenge is to finish the story using 100-150 words, not including the sentence provided.

Don’t forget to use the opening sentence…

This challenge runs from Monday to Sunday!

Get creative and have fun finishing the story!

BATSHIT CRAZY

 “The team employed the use of Nightshade to get the information they wanted from their captive.”

"She guaranteed the truth serum would work."

"You're batshit crazy. I'm just glad he agreed to dinner and you didn't have to kidnap the man, but he's asleep. How the hell can you ask a sleeping man questions?"

"She warned me and told me what to do just in case." Claire took the bucket of ice holding the champagne bottle and threw it over the sleeping man.

He coughed himself awake. "What the f…? Claire? What the hell's going on?"

"You passed out, are you all right?"

"I'm fine. Were their ice cubes in that water?"

"Sorry, I just reacted," she nodded to her companion who left through the back door.

"Jerry, can I ask a question?"

"Sure, just throw me a towel."

Claire tossed the towel and asked her long awaited question.

"Jerry, as the top agent in New York, honestly, what did you really think of my book?"

150 words

Yolanda Renee © 2015

*****

FYI:

TRUTH SERUM POTION

ORIGIN OF BATSHIT CRAZY

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Sign up for the 

WEP-Write…Edit…Publish 

Spectacular Settings 

Flash Fiction Challenge 

HERE!

GOING THROUGH THE CHANGE

Meet Samantha Bryant today's guest author!

Take it away Samantha!


JUDGING MY OWN BOOK BY ITS COVER

A cover is a really important part of a book. What the cover looks like can have more to do with whether a reader decides to pick up your book than the words on the inside or the blurb on the back, especially when you’re a newb that no one has ever heard of!

That's a terrifying prospect as a writer, because, most usually (of course there are exceptions), we don't make our own covers. In fact, depending on your path to publishing, you, as author, might not get any say at all about what the cover looks like.

A bad cover can make the uphill climb of finding an audience that much harder. It's like birthing a beautiful and intelligent child, only to have someone else reject it as worthless because your child is wearing dirty or ugly clothing. I've seen several indie writers put out a book with a less-than-professional cover (usually a financial decision), then re-release it with a better one and see large changes in the kind of attention their book attracted.

My debut novel came out with Curiosity Quills Press on April 23, 2015. (I am perhaps, maybe, just a smidge excited about that). Curiosity Quills is a small, independent press. My contract with them gave me input on the cover, but no right of refusal and no requirement that they actually use my input.  So, I was on tenterhooks, waiting to see what my cover would look like.

You wanna see it?

I love it! And, boy was that a relief!  

The cover is by Polina Sapershteyn , a graphic designer in NYC that Curiosity Quills contracted for the work. (Here's her website if you want to check out some of her other work).

There are several things I love about this cover. 

First, the bright yellow is really eye catching. When I've seen it displayed onscreen on an Amazon search page, for example, I feel certain that anyone seeing it would at least glance that way because of the bright yellow. The image also instantly suggests humor and superhero, two important hints about the book on the inside of this cover. 

Second, Polina captured a lot of revealing details about threads of the book in this one image. The torso is thick in the waist, in a way that is not typical of superhero comics, but is completely normal for my menopausal characters. The costume is non-professional looking--the cape held on with a tied ribbon and the tunic consisting of a tee-shirt looking material that wrinkles across the breasts. That fits so well with Helen's thread in the story (she's the one who does eventually make herself a costume)! The image used on the center of the chest suggests gender and LGBTQ+ issues. That fits so well with Linda/Leonel's thread.

I was utterly amazed by how well Polina was able to represent my work, especially when you consider that she and I have never met and only made contact online after she'd already done my cover!  There's not much there from the ideas I submitted, except thematically. But, you know, she's a graphic artist. I'm not. Her ideas were better than mine. There's something to be said for trusting the judgment of professionals.

Now that my book is out there in some bookstores, competing for a potential buyer’s attention, with so many other books, I appreciate the eye-catching and story-representing cover all the more. I may be a little biased, but, judging this book by its cover, I’d say the reader is in for quite a ride.

Going Through the Change is going through a change in price for a couple of days in early August. On August 5^th and 6^th you can get the Kindle edition for free on Amazon. Check it out at: http://bitly.com/face-the-change

Samantha Bryant is a middle school Spanish teacher by day and a mom and novelist by night. That makes her a superhero all the time. Her debut novel, Going Through the Change: A Menopausal Superhero Novel is now for sale by Curiosity Quills. You can find her online on her blog,  Twitter, on Facebook, on Amazon, on Goodreads, on the Curiosity Quills page, or on Google+. 

Thanks Samantha!

Have you ever judged a book by its cover and been pleasantly or horribly surprised?

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Check out the NEW WEP CHALLENGE

SPECTACULAR SETTINGS!

THE MIRACLE GIRL

It's my pleasure today to introduce T. B. Markinson.

T. B. just recently released The Miracle Girl and she's here today to talk about character creation. 

Take it away, T. B. Markinson!

Hello! It's a pleasure to be here today and to meet all of you.

I’m often asked how I create the characters in my novels. This question fascinates me, since I don’t know the answer. When I start a new writing project, I don’t know much, including what will happen, who’ll grace the pages, and how long it’ll take. Soon, as I begin to get to know the characters and their stories, I learn as much as possible about them. Even more than the reader. I’m lucky. I get to spend hours with the characters to find out who they are, to uncover their dreams, their fears and what makes them tick. Some characters are difficult to get to know. Others are open books. Each one is a delightful challenge.

In my latest novel, The Miracle Girl, JJ Cavendish at times was a difficult nut to crack. She’s an alcoholic and addict. I’m neither. Also, she has a devastating secret that she’s desperate to keep under wraps. However, we had certain things in common. She used to be a travel writer. And I love to travel. I was able to pull memories from my previous travels to relate to JJ. At one point in the story, JJ shares an experience she had in Zambia.

Back in 2010, I spent several wonderful days in Zambia, which is one of the most stunning places I’ve ever visited. While listening to JJ’s recollection, these were the images running through my mind. Below you'll see the Zambezi River, Victoria Falls, and some of the amazing creatures I saw.

Wonderful photos T. B. how exciting to have visited such an amazing place.
Thanks for sharing with us.

Now onto T. B.'s book
The Miracle Girl

                         To secure a loving future, she must shed an addicting past.

The blurb:

Newspaper publisher and world traveler JJ Cavendish continually feels pressured to live up to her Miracle Girl nickname. Not many people know she’s living a carefully crafted lie. She may not hide ties to the LGBT community, but she does hide past struggles with addiction.

When the Colorado native is handpicked to take the helm at a dying Denver newspaper, she ends up reconnecting with her long lost love in this contemporary lesbian romance. Only there’s a catch. If JJ fires the most belligerent editor at the paper, she risks losing the love of her life.

Mid-afternoon office romps abound in this romantic comedy while also focusing on what it takes for a newspaper to remain relevant in this age of social media.

Must JJ lose everything in order to gain a life more fully her own?

Available on Amazon:

Amazon US / Amazon UK / Amazon Canada

Excerpt:

“This was a mistake. I’m sorry. I should have known.” She fumbled around looking for her jeans.

         “What was a mistake? This?” Once again, I pointed to the bed.

Earlier that night, both of us had walked across the stage to receive our degrees. I received one in journalism, and Claire a business degree. She had some job interviews set up for the following week, while I was heading to Europe to backpack for six months. It was my graduation gift from my parents. They had started putting money into a college account before I was born, and when I received a full four-year ride, they decided to give me the money when I graduated. My desire was to see a bit of the world before I started a career.

         Claire let out a long breath. “I’m sorry, JJ. I love you. I really do. But I need more stability in my life. Not a gypsy.”

         “Gypsy!” I couldn’t help laughing at the idea and fell back onto the bed. I wasn’t loaded, but I’d never struggled financially. When I returned from Europe my father had a job lined up for me at the Denver newspaper where he worked. He was a sportswriter and arranged for me to start in the advertising department. Not my ideal job, but it was a job nonetheless during times when not many graduates had one lined up. At least it wasn’t the mailroom.

         “I shouldn’t have started something I knew wouldn’t go anywhere. This was too risky.” Claire sat heavily on the couch on the far side of the room, shaking. My studio apartment didn’t allow much room for escape.

         “This? You mean I’m a risk?” I placed a hand on my chest. “Or do you mean being with a woman?” I slipped her T-shirt over my head and wrapped my arms tightly around my chest, suddenly feeling exposed and vulnerable in the small space.

         “You know I don’t give a crap about being with women or with men. You’re not the first woman I’ve slept with. You know that.”

         “Yes, but you’ve never had a serious relationship with a woman. You’ve only been serious with Andrew.”

         Andrew had been Claire’s boyfriend during most of her undergrad. He was a bit of a prick, but I tolerated him for Claire’s sake. I never let on that I was in love with Claire, and Andrew never suspected.

         “Andrew asked me to marry him. I wasn’t sure at first, but …”

About the Author:

T. B. Markinson is an American writer, living in England. When she isn’t writing, she’s traveling the world, watching sports on the telly, visiting pubs, or taking the dog for a walk. Not necessarily in that order.

Twitter Facebook Blog Goodreads Amazon Author Page

Join my mailing list and get a FREE copy of my first novel, A Woman Lost

Thanks again for having me on your blog!

It was my pleasure T. B. Thank you for sharing such lovely photos of Zambia.

Readers how do you create your characters? 
Do you hunt for them? 
Or do they find you?
Are they close to you and your personality, or something completely foreign? A stranger?
Please share...

Have you read The Miracle Girl?

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Today the WEP-Write...Edit...Publish first flash fiction challenge has posted. Sign up to participate via the InLinkz and amaze with your Spectacular Settings piece.

MOONLIGHT BALLET

This is a Friday Fictioneers Flash Fiction Challenge. Hosted by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields  and all based off a photo. This weeks prompt is provided by and copyright to G. L. MacMillan.

Rochelle requires participants, in 100 words or less write about the picture provided. You can read this week’s stories by clicking on the Blue Links and the blue frog on Rochelle's page.

Friday Fictioneers

© G. L. MacMillan

Moonlight Ballet

The light that filtered through the hundreds of colorful bottles in my uncle's house created unusual ballets on the dull surfaces. Sometimes I could swear I heard whispers.

The purple bottle intrigued me the most. One moonlit night I spied a dancing beam. Against orders, I touched the bottle. An electrical charge shot through me and light filled the room.

Instantaneously my missing parents stood before me.

My uncle thundered into the room, his demonic form revealed.

Safely cocooned in my parent's luminosity, I saw a ray of fire emanating from the remaining bottles hold him spellbound until he disintegrated.

100 words

Yolanda Renee © 2015

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The WEP-Write…Edit…Publish August Challenge – Spectacular Settings is coming up on the 19^th. 

Today Denise Covey is talking all about the skill of writing amazing settings. Check out the

WEP Post Spectacular Setting Mean Spectacular Reads!

HOW I WRITE FLASH FICTION

Google that question and you'll find a plethora of how to's. Wiki-how.com has a numbered response with pictures for that answer. Since the answer is readily available, I thought I'd tell you exactly how I do it. 

I'm no expert but if you've been reading my blogs lately you know I participate in two weekly flash fiction challenges – Mondays Finish the Story – and Friday Fictioneers.

With Mondays Finish the Story – Barbara W. Beachman gives us a picture and a first sentence prompt. For Friday Fictioneers, Rochelle Wisoff-Fields gives only a photo prompt. She expects 100 words while Barbara gives us a challenge of 150 words. I enjoy both and if you're interested, please click the links to find out more.

As soon as the prompt is posted, I save the photograph to my desktop. I make it my desktop background until the story is finished simmering in my head.

However, the first thing I do is put myself into the scene – no matter what or where it is. Then I start to detail my story through the questions I ask. 

For a recent Mondays Finish The Story, the picture was of a black cat hiding behind a curtain, his paws clearly visible, and his bright green eyes shining through the thin material. Barbara posted the sentence "He thought he had found the perfect hiding place."

I became the cat. Why would a black cat hide? Whom would he hide from? What was happening that made him hide? From that, I fashioned my story Spells & Potions. See, it's that simple. I also try to find a way to end the story with something fun, unexpected, and surprising. It's not necessary, just fun.

You can read Spells & Potions HERE!

For a recent Friday Fictioneers, the photo prompt was a winter scene with a pavilion. I placed myself at the scene and then asked the question, why was I there? I decided for a first date. Moreover, while I made it a lovely first date, with the possibility of more for this young couple, and could have ended it that way, but I like a twist.

You can read First Date HERE!

I read First Date to my husband and son, and they immediately said, no one proposes on a first date. However, I had personal experience as proof they were wrong. I've had such a proposal, not once, not even twice, but three times – thank God, my dates didn't carry knives. :)

I hope this gives you some insight into how I write flash fiction, and an excuse to try one yourself. Once I see the prompt, I can usually get the story written in a very short time. I always write, edit, edit, edit, and then publish. The first draft is never good enough. Still the entire process takes very little time, I'd say from beginning to end, one hour, and it's fun!

And now you have my secret to flash fiction prompts:

QUESTIONS

It's a technique I learned when my son was young, and we had a long ride in the car. He'd get anxious and cranky. So we created stories. I'd ask a question. He'd give me an answer and then I'd embellish his answer and add another question. On one such trip, we fashioned a story of how he and his trusty best friend, his dog Peanut, saved the moon from a cheese eating alligator. He had fun, and a long ride became much shorter.

I use the same technique of asking questions during all my writing, especially when the story falters. Ask the right question, because there's always an answer!

While it might seem easy to put yourself into a photo prompt to get your story, you can do the same with a title, a list of words, or a sentence. What image do the words conjure? You're a writer, use that imagination and paint our story.

Speaking of painting a scene, today on WEP-Write…Edit…Publish Denise is detailing settings on a blog titled Spectacular Settings Mean Spectacular Reads, please check out her advice; she is the master of amazing scenery and atmosphere.

Detailed scenic writing is almost a lost art in the modern day of quick stories – get to the action – and short attention spans. Denise's scenic writing takes you to a destination without a photograph because she creates the scene fully through her writing. So check out the WEP blog and learn how add atmosphere to your writing.                        CLICK HERE!

HAPPY WRITING!

Do you have any secrets to writing you can share? 

Do prompts do it for you? Is it a title, a few words, or a complete sentence that gets your flash fiction writing juices started?

Come on share – it's just between you and me!

POTIONS & SPELLS

Mondays Finish the Story

This is a unique flash fiction challenge where Barbara W. Beachman provides you with a new photo each week, and the first sentence of a story. Your challenge is to finish the story using 100-150 words, not including the sentence provided. Don’t forget to use the opening sentence… This challenge runs from Monday to Sunday! Get creative and have fun finishing the story!

Please include the photo with your bit of flash and a link back to this post. Do not forget to click on the blue frog and add your link so that others can enjoy your story too! Now let’s have some fun!

POTIONS & SPELLS

“He thought he found the perfect hiding spot.”

Rufus watched from safety as Hazel went on a real tear. Potions went flying; even the flames under the caldron pulled themselves into a tight ball to avoid her wrath. But nothing she did could bring her favorite snack back into being.

Hazel could not be consoled. She even tried to create her own version, but her yellow cakes all tasted like dirt and the cream became so hard it broke the only tooth she had left.

Ranting and raving for days with no respite, Rufus waited for her to retire, and tried his own spell. After adding tail of newt, frog's eyes, and a little three spice to his concoction, Rufus knew he had the perfect potion to make Hazel the Twinkie baker she so desired to be.

Rufus was wrong; his potion turned Hazel into her favorite snack.

Rufus wasn't sad, Twinkies, he'd been told would last forever.

150 words

Yolanda Renee © 2015

Wikipedia

FYI:

"A Twinkie is an American snack cake, marketed as a "Golden Sponge Cake with Creamy Filling." It was formerly made and distributed by Hostess Brands and is again being sold under the Hostess Brands name. The brand is currently owned by private equity firms Apollo Global Management and C. Dean Metropoulos and Company. During bankruptcy proceedings, Twinkie production in the United States ended on November 21, 2012, and resumed after an absence on American store shelves, becoming available again nationwide on July 15, 2013." Wikipedia

Consider joining the WEP - a 1000 word flash fiction challenge held every other month. The first challenge is called Spectacular Settings - scheduled for August 19th. Join us.