THE NEXT BIG THING – Blog Hop

BLOG HOP-The Next Big Thing

Okay, I was tagged for the BLOG HOP- The Next Big Thing

Thank you to Kimmie Thomas from http://shereallysaidit.wordpress.com.  Now, I’ve blogged and ranted, but I’ve never hopped, so this should really be fun.

The rules for the Blog Hop are as follows:

*****Give credit to the person/blog that tagged you

*****Post the rules for the blog hop

*****Answer these ten questions about the current WIP (Work in Progress) on your blog

*****Tag five other writers/bloggers and add their links so we can hop over and meet them.

Ten Interview Questions for the Nest Big Thing:

What is the working title of your book?

I’ve been real busy.  First there was Falling Leaves in Autumn which is out now.

 

Right now, I’ve submitted one story for a new series I am working on, Midnight and Mayhem.  It is my first foray into paranormal with a sexy vampire.  It is is the editing stage now.

Next on my list is a Christmas Domination tale that will be placed with a very special publishing house (Shara Azod, some of you may know her) I’m working on the plot line now, although I might need to  post some thoughts on my blog to get some feedback.  This one is going to be way way different and outside the box, so stay tuned for that.

Where did the idea come from for the book?

Like any fiction writer, I think a bit of our stories always involve real life scenarios.  Some of us write true to life scenarios and take only a bit of creative license.

What genre does your book fall under?

Romantica? Romance with a little Erotica? Erotic?  I can’t be pigeonholed but you can bet your bottom dollar it will be hot.

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

I would love to see Eric Bana play Clark Pinot in Falling Leaves in Autumn..  He is so Clark  and I think I was watching him in an Adam Sandler movie when I came up with the character of Clark.

What is the one sentence synopsis of your book?

Never judge a book by its cover.

Will your book be self published or represented by an agency?

I use several publishers but my absolutely favorites are Beautiful Trouble Publishing, Mocha Memoirs Press and Shara Azod Presents.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

That depends on what manuscript I am working on.  I can write one in a week or take several months to draw it out.  For example, my free read, Private Dancer took me a year to write.  So I guess I should say that all depends.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

I think my books are more like movies.  Since I practice safe short writing I try to start with a bang and end with a bang.   So if I were to label my writing style it is like Crash or  Mobsters.

Who or What inspired you to write this book?

Falling Leaves in Autumn was inspired by life events.  I tried so hard to keep my husband a ‘late night snack’ he just kept getting into my heart and mind and eventually became my husband.

What else about your book might piqué the reader’s interest?

It is written in first person, but the characters do come alive.  I know that is the biggest issue with some who write in first person is getting to know the other characters.

The writers I’m tagging are:

http://sherrodstory.wordpress.com

http://valloryv.wordpress.com

http://roslynhardyholcomb.com/

http://musetracks.wordpress.com

http://liviaellis.com

Tag!

Well That was fun…  I hope everyone can participate.

 

New Release! “Falling Leaves in Autumn” Available Now

Click Here to Buy Now!

 

 

I love Autumn!  I love the smell, the sounds of leaves crunching under your feet.  Your eyes become sensitive to all the sensitive hues of orange, yellow and gold…  Which is why I had to give Autumn its own book in the Seasons of Love series.   There was “Disturbing the Yuletide” then “Shaking up the New Year” and now you have “Falling Leaves in Autumn.” Check out the excerpt below and enjoy! 

 

Justine Marshall is in a mood. Not that she doesn’t adore the fact that her best friend Topaz is was marrying the great love of her life; she’s ecstatic, but being alone while trying to plan the wedding to end all weddings has her in a funk and admittedly jealous. In an effort to keep her emotions from spilling into Topaz’s happy day, Justine comes up with one surefire solution: find a bed buddy. 

Clark Pinot has been trying to get Justine’s attention for months, which is the only reason he volunteered to go shopping with the guarded woman in the first place. When she comes to him with the ridiculous idea of being her “booty call,” he sees it as the one opportunity to prove he isn’t the Casanova she thinks he is and what he wants is much more than a tumble in the sack. Breaking down Justine’s defenses won’t be easy, but he’s determined to see them fall like the leaves in autumn.

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**EXCERPT**The sun was setting, casting a comforting orange glow over the turning leaves. It was my favorite time of year, the transition into autumn, and I found the hues of oranges, yellows, and reds comforting. Taking in a deep breath, letting the partially chilled air fill my lungs, I knew I had to get a grip. What are you doing? You know dang well Clark Pinot is nothing but a rolling stone with an accent. Who’s to say you can’t have a bit of a fling before he leaves? I sighed. Flings weren’t in my nature. Even as I tried to summon up some of my courage to just flirt with the man, I couldn’t even do that. It’s funny how when you are warring with yourself, you can’t pick a side. 

“Well that is one way to end a discussion.” His voice made me gasp. It was a rich baritone that vibrated when he laughed, like it was doing now. I had to cross my legs to keep my wayward womanhood under control. 

“There was nothing to discuss. You have your opinion, and I’ve got mine. You don’t make it in this world without having to drop the rose-colored glasses sometimes. I’m not jaded on love, I just don’t think it is perfect, and I haven’t found the other half to my imperfection yet, just like you, Clark.” 

“I can see that, Justine.” Oh the way he said my name made me want to curl up beside him and purr. Yet, I still couldn’t bring myself to even entertain the idea of making a bed buddy out of Clark. It would be too dangerous. 

“So, you want to take some bags with you back to…” His lips touched mine before I even realized he was standing that close to me. It was a gentle, tentative, and explorative kiss that left me breathless. His hand, which was resting slightly on my shoulder, moved down my biceps, down my forearm, and then, just when I thought I couldn’t take any more of his subtle touches, his large, tanned fingers intertwined with mine. It wasn’t the kisses I’d read about and hoped for in my novels, the ones that bruise your lips, but a light kiss, an appetizer with the promise of so much more.

Coming Soon to Mocha Memoirs Press

Are you looking for a short and hot read, something like a shot of espresso to your senses?  How about something that will get you going and in the mood like your favorite cup of coffee? Look for Java Rain, by yours truly coming soon to Mocha Memoirs Press and an eReader near you.  

Why Are Free BWWM books Hard to Find

All of this work isn't free

Why Are Free BWWM Books Hard To Find (or How the Internet told on You)…

I love technology.  I’ve been given the title Techy by a select few and here is an example why I love technology, the internet and the right to free speech.   I was checking my WordPress analytic for the search terms people have used to stumble across my blog.  (Savvy, I know, right?)   This one came across my radar today: why are free BWWM books hard to find?   Obviously this was typed in a browser search engine and someone wanted to know why.  I’ll be happy to step up to the plate and answer that question with some bias but with stark honesty.

It depends if you are looking for GOOD free BW/WM books.  Of course the emphasis being on GOOD.  Now, you can go on to Smashwords, Literotica and various other places to find BW/WM stories.  They are all over and you have to ask yourself the question: is it good?  If you want just a ‘story’ there are plenty and they aren’t hard to find.   If you want GOOD, well let me break it down for you why it won’t be free.

We know we are a niche group, and for those of us that band together, we know just how small or large this niche can be while writing.   We know that we are a quiet genre that doesn’t get much exposure except for among ourselves, and what we represent, we want to represent it well.    Let’s say you are getting dressed for the prom, are you going to put on your holed up jeans, a mustard stained t-shirt and flip-flops?   No, you are going to present your best side because it is important to you.   I will only speak for myself, but being ‘good’ in the world of authors these days is hard work.  You have to know your own worth, you have to know your story’s worth and you have to be willing to grind out that manuscript, sit down and write as the muse strikes, not to mention work your job that has nothing to do with writing.  You have to hone your skill, learn vocabulary, research your topic, ferret out facts, learn your characters, get their habits straight, and come up with a story that will compel readers to go beyond page 1.   Not only do you have to know what you are talking about, you also have to make time to write.  I’m  a short story author, and if I could have a nickel every time I heard a story was too short, well, I wouldn’t have to work so much overtime some days to cover my bills.   So not only do we have to make time to write, we have to pour out our character’s heart, our heart and our story into something that won’t get slandered as ‘too short’.  Try writing 9,000 words that string together beautifully and you will see it ain’t a pretty picture or process.  Now, do you expect a free work to be error free and without some grammatical mistakes? No, so we use proofers and beta-readers.  They don’t work for free either.

So after our hard work. our toiling, back-spacing and rewriting until we find a better word for ‘said’, why would we throw it up for free?  We all go to work every day, but wouldn’t one get mad if they asked you to work for free?  I love my job, but seriously, free?    Some of us, myself included, have written plenty of free stories.  We felt like we owed something to our fans, we felt like we needed to ‘give back’.  Guess how we were repaid: plagiarism.  Plagiarism and having our free work lampooned for various reasons.  A free work,  shared out of love for the genre and knowing there isn’t much out there to get your hands on, gets plagiarized,   and some other is making money off of what you put out there in love.   That would be one reason that some of us don’t post free reads anymore.  We find our work repackaged and our name replaced with someone who didn’t write not once sentence in it.   Can you believe that?

Good BW/WM is so hard to come by, true.  It is hard to come by, and it is harder  to please the readers of BW/WM or any other interracial combination you can think because we are picky.  We want a GOOD read.   If you want a GOOD steak, do you really expect someone to be on the street corner giving away 16 oz porterhouse steaks for free?  No you go to a steak house and you pay for what you want.  The same thing with books.    You pay for what you want.

As much as I would love to live a life of leisure and spend the day writing, I can’t.  I’ve got obligations, a mate, a job, a car to pay for… none of which are free.  We’ve been nice, we’ve tried the ‘free’ route and got screwed.

So to the searcher out there looking for free bwwm, there are plenty, but if you want quality, ante up and just buy what you crave.

 

Getting Better, All the Time

Can you believe that it has only been one year since I was actually published?  (Thanks Beautiful Trouble Publishing for taking a chance on me.)  Today I stopped and wondered, how do authors improve?   That being said, let me state that writers/authors/songstresses/singers all get better over time.  I don’t think anyone can look back and say they haven’t grown in some way, shape or form.  I don’t want to be the same I was last year, I want to be better.

How do we get better?  Taking criticism for starters is the only way that you can get better.  Some of us may get down in the dumps after being criticized.  I used to be one of those that would sulk and wonder why don’t they like me (cue sad puppy eyes and violin).   After a while, I got tired of hearing the same sad song and decided to let the violin be a fiddle.   I looked at everything with the critical eye and said to myself, yes, this could be better, longer, easier.

So back to my original point; how do we get better?   Run towards everything with fresh eyes and with courage.  We are going to be scared to try new things and we are going to always be skittish to step out of our comfort zone, but do it with courage.   Courage is one of those things that separates the movers and shakers from the wallflowers.

How else do we get better? We listen.   Sometimes the best things you get out of life is when you just shut up and listen.  Say nothing.  Be Silent for a moment and listen, let it come to you.

How am I improving?  I’m writing longer works for one.   I love the short story format,  a lot of yum in a little space.  I realize that sometimes people need, want and earn for a longer work.  I’m trying to do that but to do so in a way that makes me proud of my work and not something that is just long for the sake of being long.

So that was my quick check in… Back to the races people… some of us are chained to our laptops .

Not Hot Enough For You – New Books Available from Nevea Lane, Marteeka Karland and Shara Azod

Take a trip into the back seat for a spicy lunch or midnight snack to get you all hot under the collar!!
Click the Pic to Purchase!

Zoe was content with her life as the king’s gardener. She had a home and the finest garden in the galaxy. What more could a girl want?

Well, there was the king’s son, Prince Abbas. He was Zoe’s greatest wet dream come true. For five years, she’d fantasized about him from afar, but never dared to approach him. Besides, he was too… royal for her liking.

When the king arranges a marriage for Abbas, Zoe’s life is changed forever. Will she be content to forever lust after the prince, or will she grab what she wants and take it?

Or will he make that decision for her…

Paxton Wainwright never planned on coming home to Essex, Connecticut, especially after fifteen years of being free of the title of the `mayor’s son’. The small town held nothing but dark memories and an unrequited need for one female, Delilah Gibbs.

Imagine his surprise when he returned home to see none other than Delilah in his father’s bedroom, acting as his physical therapist.   Paxton still felt the same flash of need as he did all those years ago.

The question is, can he make Delilah feel it too?

Skylar Moore had been looking for a new, exciting job. Taking a position as a civilian contractor in the middle of a war zone was probably a tad extreme, but it was the best decision she had ever made. 

How could she complain when she had not one, but two of the sexiest body guards/escorts on the face of the earth. Majors Ashe Marshall and Shannon O’Shea were the finest damn Marines in the entire Corps. It was hard to pretend she wasn’t interested in more than an escort to local Afghan villages. The problem was which one did she like the most? There was no way she could choose.

Luckily she didn’t have to…

Pulling, Tugging, Screaming and Finally a Hot Toddy

To borrow a line from one of my favorite lyricists, “Some people ask where the fuck I’ve been; shit I don’t know, but what I do know, is that I’m back now!” (Eminem, “Underground”, Relapse)

Where have I been?

I will only answer that if you promise not to squeal, scream or tell my probation officer (The probation thing is a long story). I’ve been trying something deliciously new.  I’ve been attempting to write with a plot line.  Rarely do I ever actually plot a story.  More often than not, I’ll hear a line in a song, or hear a funny anecdote and I take off running, and my fingers will only leave the keyboard long enough to wipe my brow.

I know, I know.  Some true writers will probably want to blow up my condo with a nuclear missile for that approach.  However, it works for me.  Except on this last particular story.  I haven’t been in the habit of posting excerpts of work in progress lately because of the fact that there are some characters that I’m keeping close to my heart, but my work, before it is edited, is probably atrocious.   If you’ve read most of the free works that I’ve posted here, you realize that I don’t contract all that much.  So one new approach that I’m trying is to actually contract while writing instead of going back and using the beloved ‘find and replace’ feature.

Still not answering the question of where you’ve been Nevea….

I digress then.   Where I’ve been is writing.  I hate going back and re-reading what I’ve written.  (If you ask how do I edit and re-write, it is this simple, I usually start over).  So I’ve gotten to read some of the things that I’ve written, and I found myself wishing things like, this should have been longer, or his eyes should have been blue. So how does one deal with those I Wishes? I just do it.  I’ve got enough chips on my shoulder and so on where I don’t need another one, so I would rather re-write it than wish I had.     When do we get to the point where we just stop wishing?  So I did it.  I’ve begun the process of re-writing some of the works you’ve seen here.  Stay tuned on what happens with these free reads.

Now, I’m working on some delicious stories with my beloved publisher; and I wish I could tell you just how delicious these stories are, but I’m still tweaking and working various plot twists.  But I can tell you this much, they are longer.

Speaking of longer, and you would have had to been there to understand, I just celebrated my birthday for about a week.  A week-long celebration for a heck of a milestone… one over the big 3-0.   Why would I celebrate that occasion for a week?  We don’t do things for ourselves often enough with purely selfish intentions.  We, as people, do things because it seems like the right thing to do, or it would look good in someone else’s eyes.   This is commendable, respectable even, but that is why I chose to do a 180║ on my moral compass.

I hung out late, stayed up for two days straight, had great times with friends and lived each day as a celebration.   At the end of the week, I caught a cold but it was so worth every single minute of living each moment to its fullest, and it gave me an excuse to have a hot toddy and nurse my cold.

So there is an update on where I’ve been.   Just wait till you see where I’m going…

Sex, Erotica and the Stuff in Between

I was having a discussion the other day about what makes my writing any different than a screenplay for a porn movie.    I jokingly replied that my stories have a plot.  

Seriously, it got me thinking; if you don’t typically read well put together erotica, is it just sex in words?   I insert the caveat of ‘well put together’ because let’s face it, there are some books out there that is just plain trash and makes you want to grab the oil barrel and get an old fashioned book burning going on… but I digress.

Erotica (from the Greek Eros—”desire”) or “curiosa”, are works of art, including literature, photography, film, sculpture and painting, that deal substantively with erotically stimulating or sexually arousing descriptions. (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erotica). So how is that different than porn? Pornography: creative activity (writing or pictures or films etc.) of no literary or artistic value other than to stimulate sexual desire. (wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn)

I know, this is a topic that has been flushed and probably beat into the ground, but it still applies and is still relevant because I still get termed ‘smut writer’ by those who prefer literary greatness.  To those people, I give the one-finger salute because I don’t write to please those that are looking to find the second coming of Rene Descartes in my writing.   

I don’t write just to give any reader sexual gratification, but if they get that from reading one of my scenes, I’m going to pat myself on my back and do a happy dance.   If, however, you read my work and can spy the romance that is involved, then I can say my mission is accomplished. 

In the real world, many of us can have stellar relationships without sex.  Yet, how many of us can admit that the sex in a good relationship is important as well?  I am not talking about what equipment you have either.   I’m talking about do we stimulate each other’s senses in the way that a well written erotica does?  Sex is the cherry on top of a good relationship.  Just as sex is the cherry on top of a good romance book.

There are some readers out there that prefer a good old fashioned romance where the sex is ‘behind closed doors’ and implied.  I started off that way.  My first erotica book, which came at the ripe age of 17, was supposed to be in my mind, a basic collection of short stories.  I didn’t know at that time or age what Black Lace Omnibus was.   Before that moment, I mainly read historicals, Regency romance, contemporary Harlequin novels and so on.  My eyes were definitely opened and so were my tastes.  I blushed and hid the book under my mattress for years, only to be dragged out after a break-up or a really bad day. 

Yet, every romance that I read after that collection of erotica seemed to be lacking.  I wanted more, needed more from the characters.  I wanted to know if the characters were explosive in bed as they were out of it.   However, that is just me.   If you like your romances squeaky clean with no cussing (swearing for the rest of you), I am probably not the author for you.   I can admit that, but as the saying goes, you can only please some of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time.   

So what is the “in-between”?  It is that murky gray area that makes you wonder if your book is a) Erotica b) Romance with a little sex thrown in, or c) none of the above.    Books written by me, by choice, have one sex scene namely, but sexual tension is apparent through the whole story.  I wouldn’t classify my actual published work as erotica, but some would due to the graphic nature of the scene.   I would say that my short stories that are peppered around here are erotica, period.  So I am happy to be the in-between.  I don’t write porn, but I just don’t write erotica either.

I am always interested in knowing what the readers want from what they have paid their good money for.  Leave a note, drop an email…every author wants/needs/craves feedback.

Sometimes I Wonder…

You know, sometimes I wonder at what started me with writing.  I realize that it could be sheer boredom that makes me position my fingers over the keys to type out a manuscript.  It could be because I have all these funny characters running through my head that are like, homeless. *smile* These characters come barreling into my life and demand that I give them attention.

So I wonder, if I didn’t write, would I be considered crazy because I have characters talking to me in my head.  If I didn’t write, I wouldn’t have a place to put all the sassiness that I have into one person.   I believe that my characters have the ability to say the things that I ‘should’ have said in response to some remark or another.  

I also wonder what people think about my characters.  I know that sometimes being an author of romance, especially erotic interracial romance, it can be a thankless job.  I know that sometimes we can always forget that hey, there are people out there reading your words and your thoughts and they have an opinion too.   Which is why I am glad that the internet has progressed the way that it has.  I am glad that there are now Author Groups where you can sit and gab about your favorite authors and even maybe chat it up with the author if you choose.  I am glad there is a Twitter to follow your favorite authors even if they only tweet a *sigh* every six months.  (They are human beings and they do have a life, and do not merely exist to satisfy our word-cravings, even though we wish they did). 

I also sometimes try to figure out if I weren’t writing, what would I be doing with all my free time?  I would be watching t.v. shows and thinking that I could write a better plot line.  So even if I wasn’t writing, I would be thinking about writing. 

There are other times when I sit down to write, and the plot doesn’t hit me.   I have about sixteen WIP’s on my flash drive where I didn’t get further than a conversation.  The conversation is good, and I refuse to let it die, but what do I do with one good dialog?   So there they sit.

Sometimes the hardest thing to do as a writer is to let the book evolve on its own.  I’m so thankful to eBooks because it allows me the freedom to write something that is either 3,ooo words or 9,000 words and not feel as though I didn’t tell all of the character’s story.  I love the flexibility that being e-pubed allows. 

I’m thankful that we live in a day in age where books, news, gossip and music are so easily accessible.  If it weren’t for eBooks, I would have never discovered the world of multi-cultural/interracial story weavers.  

So those are my musings…which normally come after I have submitted a manuscript.  I bet you are wondering what the next book is…stay tuned and find out…

My Interview at Fallen Angels Reviews and what’s coming from me.

My Interview…

I have my first interview posted ever.  Yeah me!   It is great to have your name out there and the wonderful women at Fallen Angel Reviews did a great job.  Check me out here: 

www.fallenangelreviews.com/Interviews/2010/July-Tammy-NeveaLane.htm 

What’s Next…

So what is next for me you may be wondering?   Well up next I have another work coming out with BTP (Beautiful Trouble Publishing).    It is finding out what is going on with the oh-so-yummy Chase Daniels from Marked in Montana.   You don’t believe me that he is yummy?  Check out what the wonderful cover artist has created for Chased Through Montana….  

 

 

  

 

 

Isn’t this just delicious?

  

That should be coming soon, so stay tuned for that. 

 

 

  

 

 

And after that….

So what can you expect after that?   Right now I am working on The Romanian.  I know for certain that it will be longer that what I have previously published.   The character write-ups are in my pages if you haven’t peeped those yet.    

August’s Rush was contracted by Red Rose Publishing and added to their catalog recently.   Hopefully you will see something soon there as well.   

But for right now….

Well right now what you have got from me is a few free reads and a lot of W-I-P’s.  I hope you have enjoyed Private Dancer.  I had to get that out of my W-I-P pile.  

Right now though, I think I need a drink, a martini perhaps or a cosmo with some smooth jazz.  My creative muses have danced their asses right out the door and will only return after I have had a chance to unwind.  I have not had a chance to dissecting my favorite CD’s or re-watching some of my favorite DVD’s.    

After a much needed break, I will return at full blast with new free reads and newer publications.  Feel free to email me or comment if you have liked anything that you have seen by me.