the league of reluctant adults

Blue-Blooded Vamp

2012-05-22T04:00:00.000-07:00

So it's Tuesday, and if you spend any amount of time hanging around places where authors congregate, you might know that Tuesday is a very important day for book people. It's important because it's the day when most book stores lay out new stock, a.k.a. release day.

This particular Tuesday happens to be the day that many booksellers will likely be laying out my new book.* But it's not just the release of any Jaye Wells book--it's the fifth and final book in my Sabina Kane series.

BLUE-BLOODED VAMP represents the culmination of five years of work. Maybe that doesn't sound like a lot of time to authors who have series with 13 or 20 book, but since this is the first series I've ever written, it's significant to me. I have learned so much about myself and about being a writer and about the craft of writing writing these books. I'm proud of them.

It's also, I hope, significant to the readers who have followed Sabina and the rest of Team Awesome through a lot of crazy shit. Everything from kung fu battles in convenience stores to surprise orgies to trippy voyages through dream lands and battles with Avenger demons. There's not a lot they haven't been through together.

I like to think my readers and I, we've been through some stuff together, too. Granted, we've never faced down a psychopath who killed our sister together, but book signings can sometimes be kind of stressful and don't get me started in the treacheries involved in blog tours. Plus, these days with everyone so busy, it's a gamble and a commitment to give a new writer a try. It's a commitment to try an untested series. Thank you all for reading the books and talking to your friends about them.

Yeah, BLUE-BLOODED VAMP is a special book to me. It marks the end of one chapter in my writing career and opens the door for a new one. Soon enough, you and me, we'll have a nice long chat about what's coming, but for now, I want to sit down together in a cozy spot so I can tell you the end of this epic tale. Thanks for taking the journey with me. It's been one hell of a godsdamned ride.

BLUE-BLOODED VAMP
By Jaye Wells

The epic conclusion to the amazing Sabina Kane urban fantasy series.

Sabina Kane is on the hunt. Her prey: Cain, the father of the vampire race and the one who murdered her family and her friends. Unfortunately, Cain is hunting Sabina, too.

The one man who holds the key to defeating Cain is, of course, Abel. A mage with secrets to spare and, hopefully, the power to match it. Unfortunately, for Sabina, he's in Rome and may not want to be found.

Sabina sets out for Italy with her friends, Giguhl and Adam Lazarus, to track down the only man who can get her the revenge she hungers for. But will he help her or oppose her? And just who is Abel, really? Worst of all, when Sabina figures out the goddess Lilith has a plan for her-she realizes this trip is getting deadlier by the minute. As they say: when in Rome-SURVIVE.

Read Ch. 1 here.

*If your bookstore doesn't have it out today, they might be waiting for the official release date--June 1, but for the most part the big guys are all releasing it to the wild today.

Whoops

2012-05-14T06:00:00.000-07:00

First off, I'd like to apologize about last month's blog post. I was so deep into revisions for A Trace of Moonlight that I completely forgot. (A few days later, I was like "Wasn't I supposed to...crap.")

The good news is that revisions for ToM are finally done and I'm just waiting for copy edits now. And playing catch-up with everything else. Speaking of ToM - there is a cover for it floating around on Amazon and elsewhere on the web - please note that cover was leaked and is not final. It's a pretty low quality image and as far as I know, my publisher is still working on a few of the changes I requested. When the official cover comes out, it will be up on my website ASAP. :)

Otherwise, things are in a sort of lazy medium. I've started a few new projects, but I've given myself a couple of weeks to give my brain a bit of a rest. Which means that days like yesterday's Mother's Day was spent doing nothing but putting Lego Avenger kits together. (Well over 1000 pieces by the time I was done.) Simply because I could. Well, that and Lego Loki.

Taking time for the small things, I suppose. I've got this head full of epic story but I'm still struggling to wrap my brain around what it is that I want to tell.

In the meantime, I'm happy to say that my collab Fox & Willow online graphic novel project is now officially up and running. We update every Monday and Thursday, so do check it out if you get the chance. I'm having a lot of fun with it!

Celebrating Moms

2012-05-13T06:42:00.000-07:00

Since my day to blog here at the League fell on Mother's Day, I thought I'd do a post around the topic of mothers. I've been lucky enough to have had a good relationship with my mother for my whole life. I haven't always lived close by, but I know I'm loved and that I can depend on her (and in case you were curious, I'm tight with my dad, too, but this is about mothers). It's funny, though, that the majority of the characters I write about either have absentee mothers, bad mothers, or dead mothers. Evangeline* Stone's mother died when Evy was a kid, and before that she was a pretty terrible mother. Wyatt's mother is dead, too. The only genuine mother/child relationship I can think of in the Dreg City books are Aurora/Ava.

(*On the other hand, we haven't had a chance to look at the relationship between Chalice Frost and her mother, which was supposed to be part of book five….)

In MetaWars, all of the main characters are orphans. Although you could argue that Dahlia Perkins had a great relationship with her mother—except her mother died a few years before….well, you'll learn all about that in CHANGELING (June 26, 2012). The Sekrit Project I've been mentioning here and there follows the same pattern of dead mothers (although for variety, there are some fantastic father/son relationships in that series). One of these days I'll write something with a healthy, solid mother/child relationship, I swear.

Since today is supposed to be about celebrating Mom, I want to list some of my favorite mothers in books, movies and television. In no particular order:

JOYCE SUMMERS. "Buffy, the Vampire Slayer." She rocks it as a mom. Smart, funny, protective of her only child. Her death was one of the saddest moments of that entire series (admit it, you cried, too).

CAROLINE INGALLS. "Little House on the Prairie." As a little girl, I used to play Little House with my neighbor. Because I was younger, I got to be Laura a lot. I wanted to be Laura, and I wanted Ma Ingalls to make my dresses and braid my hair.
CHARLIE MADIGAN. The "Charlie Madigan" series, by Kelly Gay. A single mom urban fantasy novel protagonist. You don't see many, and Charlie handles both her professional life and her role as a mother with a deft hand. If you haven't picked up this series, grab it now!

MRS. BRISBY. "The Secret of NIMH." This movie is part of my childhood, and I still adore it to this day. No one can touch Don Bluth's animated movies, and NIMH is my absolute favorite. Mrs. Brisby faces her fears and finds courage she never knew she had in order to save the lives of her children.

FAITH YOKAS. "Third Watch." I adored all six seasons of this show, which few people seem to remember. Yokas was a fascinating character to watch grow. She was a patrol cop, but she was also a wife and mother, and those relationships developed over the course of the series in very complex ways.

KAREN SANDERS. The "Shifers" series by Rachel Vincent. She's the wife of the Alpha. She's Faythe's mother (really, enough said right there). She protects her family with a quiet strength, and when she's angry? Look out.

EVELYN O'CONNELL. "The Mummy Returns." She's a bookworm turned action heroine. She's also a reincarnated Egyptian princess. She trades blows and sarcasm with equal finesse. Plus she's just plain funny.

HEROINE. "Feast." Probably the most clever horror movies in recent decades, Heroine is a mama on a mission. She's not afraid to violently kill a bunch of radioactive monsters if it means getting to her daughter.
MARILLA CUTHBERT. "Anne of Green Gables/Anne of Avonlea." Do I really have to explain why Marilla is, like, the most awesome mom ever? Anyone else who adored the Anne movies as a girl will understand.

So that's my short list, and I'm certain I've forgotten some awesome mothers.

Who are some of your favorite fictional Mom's?

Seattle has a supervillain

2012-05-12T18:49:00.000-07:00

When you live in a world of fiction, it's sometimes hard to return to the real world and accept its truths. Like, most romantic banter isn't all that witty or even really bantery. Magical forces can't be summoned in times of need. And there are no superheroes and villains waging epic battles in our midst. Until now. Meet Rex Velvet, Seattle's self-proclaimed "people's villain." I admit, I was surprised to learn that Seattle had a supervillain who was challenging our city's superheroes because I hadn't known we had those either. But, apparently unbeknownst to me, Seattle's been a battleground for costumed superheroes walking our streets. Their leader is named Phoenix Jones, who appears to be the main target for Rex Velvet's villainy. Rex released a video on YouTube earlier this month, calling out Phoenix and stating that Seattle would no longer put up with costumed antics. Rex's declaration caused a ripple of excitement in the internet community and among pop culture geeks in general. Immediately, people began making suggestions of crazy supervillain things that Rex should do in our fair city: steal North Face jackets, put a handlebar mustache on the Space Needle, and hijack the monorail to...well, nowhere. Rex got a Facebook page and a Twitter account, and people waited to see what was next. "Next" was another impressively well-made video, in which Rex again reiterated his position against superheroes. He even offered up anti-superhero poster for people to download and post. There was no mention of other villainy and mayhem, although we did learn that Rex has an astonishing car collection. Personally, I'm a fan of Rex Velvet. He has a handlebar mustache, an eye patch, a scar, and a bowler hat. You can't get much more villainous than that. He also has a mustache ring and a bottle opener that looks like the Space Needle. Plus, his name makes me think of red velvet cupcakes. I'm a sucker for hilarious well-made videos, and I would love to see a battle of videos and other social networking ensue between Rex and Phoenix. Unfortunately, based on Phoenix's recent comments, it doesn't sound like he's going to play ball. This means one of three things has to happen, or else Rex is going to fade into obscurity: 1) Another superhero with a better PR machine needs to come forward on YouTube 2) Rex needs to start a major merchandising campaign of mustache swag 3) Rex needs to unleash a dastardly plan, like stealing all non-prescription glasses from hipsters on Capitol Hill How's the Emerald City going to get out of this one? I guess we'll all have to stay tuned to find out.

Lost (or Found) in Translation

2012-05-11T04:00:00.000-07:00

So... The Avengers was frick'n awesome! (That's not really what this blog is about but seriously... HOLY CRAP that was a great movie)

To loosely tie the movie into the topic at hand, The Avengers is a movie where the comic book characters translated very well to the screen. It's a hard thing to do, to take something which looks good drawn and make it look equally awesome on the screen. Marvel has been doing a fantastic job with the jump from page to screen lately. Some things changed... Banner was trying to discover a super soldier serum rather than creating a Gamma Bomb. But it worked.

Getting back to that picture up there of the French cover for ReVamped by yours truly, though. One cool thing about translations is that they sometimes give you even more than you bargained for. Nick Fury, for example, is made so much cooler via Samuel L. Jackson's portrayal that, in the Ultimates universe at least, Nick Fury now even looks the same as his movie counterpart.

"Jeremy," you may be thinking, "you are talking about The Avengers again. Get to your point!"

Okay. I will. Sorry.

I haven't seen the French translation of ReVamped yet, but it has already given me something I've wanted for four books.

See... I've always had title issues. My first novel was supposed to be called WELCOME TO THE VOID, which is both the words printed on the T-shirt my male protagonist wears and an in-joke... It even welcomed the reader to Void City. That didn't work out for various reasons, but I still kept trying to work punny titles or even double meanings into the one word past tense titles we wound up using.

ReVamped: because the main character has to figure out how to get his body back and become a vampire again and also because his world is changing...

Crossed: because there is double-crossing and people are crossing the wrong people and because the big bad winds up facing down with the wrong character...

Burned: because several character get burned in every sense of the word...

Now, with the publication of Pour le Vampire et le Meilleur, I finally have my punny title. :)

It took one of my French speaking fans to explain the title to me, but when I got it... Man, you should have seen the grin on my face. In English, we have the phrase "For better or worse." The French version of that is "Pour le pire et pour le meilleur" or For the worse or for the better.

So the title of my book is basically: For Better or Vampire.

Finally. My punny title. :)

Maybe book five will wind up with a punny title in English (The One with the Dragon in It, maybe?), but I'm guessing it won't. Either way, book two does so I'm happy.

And speaking of happiness, if ya want check out free fiction that might make you grin, you can find mine at http://authoratlarge.com . I suggest starting with For Want of Chocolate, because it'sabout a newly turned vampire realizing she can no longer eat chocolate. Doing so somewhere other than right outside a Godiva Chocolatier might have been less traumatic, but nowhere near as humorous. :)

New cover! (Ooooh, Shiny!)

2012-05-10T12:28:00.003-07:00

The cover for the anthology I'm doing with Jessica Sims and Katie McAllister in September!

Tools of the Trade

2012-04-20T07:29:00.003-07:00

(Cross posted at On Literary Intent)

When I’m stuck for blog topics, I often poll my friends to see what things they’d like to hear me babble about. Most often, one (or more) of them says “Hey, tell us more about the swords and stuff that you talk about in your books.” And I’ve been hesitant to do that, mostly because I don’t consider my knowledge on the subject that extensive. I know just as much as I need to know to make sure that I don’t look like an idiot in my writing. If I started claiming to be some expert, I'd be a big fat liar.

However, that said… My hubby and I own a LOT of swords. A LOT. And most (99.99%) of them were made by the crew at a place called Badger Blades. I love these guys/gals, not just because they make awesome weaponry, but because they’re awesome people. We’ve known them a long time, long enough that they’ve seen my kiddo grow from infancy (where they spoiled her rotten) to almost-tween (gods help me) and they still spoil her rotten. Long enough that my hubby has a place of honor on their website, because of all the wicked blades he owns.

I’ve learned a lot about swords from Badger and his crew, from how they’re made to how they function. In A Devil in the Details, I mention that Jesse’s katana can almost be bent double and still spring back straight. After that book came out, I had a fan letter questioning whether or not that was actually possible. And I swear to you it is. I’ve seen it. I’ve been hit with shards of flying anvil when one of Badger’s swords has taken out chunks and left not one blemish on the blade. I’ve also seen one punch all the way through a chest freezer without a bit of harm (don’t ask). They’re beautiful, and functional.

Now, when it comes to katanas, we all know that the old Japanese sword masters did amazing things with metal. They folded it an insane amount of times, slowly working impurities in the metal into miniscule amounts in order to keep the blade from having weak points where it might shatter. Those swords are indeed works of art, and the world will probably never see their like again. However, that doesn’t mean that today’s modern weaponry is anything to sneeze at. It basically boils down to the quality of the metal. Old swords were folded because the steel had so much gunk in it. Then new smelting technologies were introduced, and today’s steel is much higher quality than what those ancient masters had access to. So while today’s swords may not require the intricate effort that the old ones did, that doesn’t mean that they’re inferior quality.*

*Note – There ARE inferior swords out there. Cheaply made, easily broken. They’re meant to be hung on a wall and be pretty, not to be used.

**Note the second – Yes, I know that the middle blade in this picture isn’t technically a katana. It’s a nodachi. I just wanted it in with the smaller blades for size comparison.

Frankly, everything I know about modern swords, I learned from Badger and his crew. You can find out more on how they make these gorgeous blades on their FAQ page. Are there folks who do it differently? Sure. But having had my hands on just about every blade they've made in the last...oh...ten years, I know the quality of their craftsmanship, and I trust their work.

If you’d like to see pictures of more swords, you should really swing by the Badger Blades website. Their photos are much better than mine, and they've got some swords there that I don't have examples of at home. (Don't tell my hubby there's a sword he doesn't have yet)

And if you really are a sword lover, check out Badger Blades' show schedule to see if they’re hitting an event near you!

Romantic Times Roundup!

2012-04-15T10:05:00.001-07:00

Hi folks! Nicole here. Another Romantic Times has come and gone, and I've got the spinning brainz to prove it. :-) Here's a picture round up of the bulk of the action. The first day I got in, I spent a lot of time with Heather Osborn, Jaye Wells, Suzanne McLeod, and Liliana Hart. Here's some photographic evidence:

Jaye and I had to be on relatively good behavior, as our Editrix, Devi, was in attendance. Here she is doing her Eye of Sauron impersonation, if Sauron got excited about his new (adorable) bag:

I of course found myself wearing another mustache:

And Suzanne and Jaye ended up in the pokey:

Not least because Jaye nearly threw herself at Anne Rice. Here she is vaklempt at signing next to Anne on someone's tote:

Meanwhile, I'm all professional, and shit:

Not least as I was on Sheriff duties the Samhain Stampede:

For all our hard work, Zombie Joe brought us cupcakes:

And all in all we had a brilliant time. Here's me, Richelle Mead, Jeanne C. Stein, and Heather Osborn. We spent a lot of time in Heather's room, watching Ambient Videos and doing dramatic readings of amazing smut. It's how RT is supposed to be spent, really.

Can't wait to see you guys next year. Thanks for the laughs!!!!

Update and CHANGELING Snippet

2012-04-13T06:26:00.003-07:00

Cross-post from my blog.

So I've been quiet lately, and I know I kind of left folks hanging a little with my last Organized Chaos post. I want to start by saying thank you to everyone for your kind words and support of the Dreg City books. It means a lot to know there are readers out there clambering for more of Evy and her friends.

The good news is that I will, in all likelihood, self-publish the rest of the series. I can't tell you when, because I have other projects in the pipe right now, but I hope to have something new for readers, even if it's just a short story, by the end of the year. Maybe the first of 2013. I will keep y'all posted as that develops.

The Sekrit Project is also finished and in the hands of both my agent and my crit partner. I'm pretty excited about this trilogy, because it is centered around my favorite supernatural creature: shifters.

I'm also gearing up for the release of CHANGELING (MetaWars #2) on June 26, so to round out the post, I'm going to offer another snippet from the book.

A little set-up: The team has purchased an abandoned mansion in Beverly Hills and are fixing it up as their home base. Dahlia "Ember" Perkins has been saddled with the task of hiring an electrician so their home improvements don't accidentally burn the place down. She finds herself at Scott & Sons, a place now run by someone she went to high school with--and who may or may not have had a crush on her once upon a time.

#

From Chapter Four

Dirty sneakers descended from the darkness, followed by tight, ripped jeans, and a T-shirt clad torso. An unbuttoned flannel shirt, sleeves rolled up, flapped in the wind he created as he charged forward. I looked up, past a narrow jaw, and into the brightest green eyes I had ever seen on a human being (except for Marco, but his eyes weren't quite natural).

If he wasn't Noah Scott, he was definitely related. He was about my age, with spiky auburn hair and a light smattering of freckles on his sharp nose. He stood about my height, thin-waisted, muscles rippling beneath his tight T-shirt. A runner, maybe, or a swimmer. Nothing like the skinny, gangly boy I remembered from high school. That boy had enjoyed loose clothes, kept his hair shaggy and long, and he couldn't possibly have been so handsome. Even his eyes seemed a brighter green than before.

Of course, a distance of six years can change your perception of a person.

Slim eyebrows arched as he studied me back. Wide lips puckered into a silent question, and he tilted his head to one side.

"Can I help you?" he asked. His voice had a rough quality, like sandpaper.

I licked my lips, trying to calm the butterflies in my stomach. "Yes," I said. "I, um, need lights." I could have slapped myself. Obvious and stupid.

His smile broadened, baring bright white, but somewhat crooked teeth. Some small amount of recognition had crept into his eyes—it could have as easily been knowing me as Ember as remembering me from school. "You're in luck, because that's all we sell here," he said.

I laughed, feeling like an idiot, and walked confidently up to his counter and squared my shoulders. His eyes dropped briefly to my chest, and I had the sudden, irrational urge to flee this shop and never look back.

"What kind of lighting to do you need?" he asked.

"All kinds. We're, um, remodeling an older home and a lot of the ceiling fixtures need to be replaced. That's our biggest need right now. And installation. Ethan's not so good at it."

"Your boyfriend?"

"My what?"

"You said Ethan isn't good at installation. Is he your boyfriend?"

Laughter bubbled in my chest, but I tamped it down. Maybe-Noah was much more Ethan's type than I was. "No, he's not my boyfriend. One of my roommates. A bunch of us are fixing up the house together."

He walked around the counter and stopped an arm's length away. I liked that we were the same height; I didn't have to strain my neck to stay under his intense gaze. His eyes roamed all over. Most days, I would have walked off in a huff after being openly appraised like that. With this maybe-not-a-stranger, I rather enjoyed the attention. Even living with five other people, I was often lonely.

"Do you see anything you like?" he asked.

"Oh, yeah." His eyebrows shot up, and I realized what I just said. "I mean, I haven't really looked at your lights." Eyebrows higher. "What you have to offer, I mean." Lordy, there was nothing coming out of my mouth that didn't sound like innuendo. Teresa would kill me if I screwed this up.

"How about some track lighting?" he asked, indicating the wall behind me. "Brightens up a room pretty quick, and you can set it on a dimmer switch. How many rooms?"

"Quite a few." Good, simple answer to a simple question. I was back on track to having an intelligent conversation. "We don't need all of them done at once, but there are half a dozen rooms downstairs, and at least six upstairs."

"The house sounds huge."

"It's in Beverly Hills."

His lips parted in surprise. "Wow, that's an interesting neighborhood to pick. Few people can afford those houses."

Dollar signs danced between us, taunting. It was a social barrier that I'd never dealt with growing up—at least, not from the rich side of the line. I never wanted money from my father, and I ignored my trust fun when I turned eighteen. Mom's insurance paid most of her medical bills. Everything I had, I earned on my own. I was no different than this man in front of me, self-made and struggling to be independent. But the squint in his eyes, the harder line of his mouth, indicated he didn't know that. He just knew I had money. Money he could make.

"It's a group effort," I said. I wanted him to understand and didn't know why. "We needed a big place with good security. A bungalow in Inglewood wasn't going to do it for us."

"So you're looking for at least a dozen fixtures," he said, as though I hadn't spoken. "Plus installation and any necessary rewiring. Some of those old places can have exposed wires that cause shorts. Fires. You should definitely have a thorough inspection."

I bristled. Yeah, he was milking those dollar signs. Ass. "Do you provide those services?"

"As a matter of fact, we do. Why don't—?" Footsteps thumped down the back stairs, cutting off his train of thought. We both turned toward the sound.

A girl appeared behind the counter, maybe eighteen or twenty years old. She had long black hair and equally long legs that disappeared beneath a short, white skirt. "Hey, Noah, how come I always—?" Her almond-shaped eyes landed on me. "Oh, sorry. Didn't realize you had a customer."

Okay, so he was definitely my old schoolmate. Someone I obviously hadn't made an impression on, since he'd yet to indicate he remembered me.

Noah eyed the girl's outfit, from the pencil-heeled white sandals to the low-cut orange tank top barely reigning in her breasts. "Are you going out in that?"

"Sure." She twirled, the flared skirt riding up a little too high for decency. "Why the hell not?"

"You look like a hooker."

She belted out the perfect flirtatious giggle. "You think I'm going to go out and pick up some strange man to bring home? Be serious."

"Just be careful." He sighed, and I wondered if he'd had this conversation before.

She blew a kiss and flounced out the front door.

"Sorry about that," Noah said.

I shrugged. "What were you saying?"

"I was going to suggest I make an appointment to inspect the property. I'll be able to get a better idea of your needs, see the wiring as it is, and know where things are going to fit. Then I can order what I don't have in stock, and we can start getting you guys set up."

"Sure. What's good for you?"

"How about right now?"

First Sentence Snafu

2012-04-10T12:08:00.003-07:00

Being an author can be stressful. Deciding which mansion to buy, eating unpeeled grapes, the constant paparazzi... the list is endless. But you know what takes the cake?

Having the first line of your book accidentally left out of the book.

Sound like a nightmare? Imagine if you were Mary Robinette Kowal and discovered, on the day that Glamour in Glass hit the shelves, that your first sentence just simply didn't make it to the final copy -- despite reviewing copy edits and page proofs.

Now Mary took that lemon and made the best lemonade ever, including digital bookmarks with the first sentence on it...and a promise that she will handwrite the first sentence into the book for every person who shows up to one of her signings. For the full monty on what Mary is doing to get the first sentence out to her audience, check out her awesome blog post.

And hey - show Mary your love by buying a copy or twenty of Glamour in Glass. You can buy it instantly at the Book Depository, your favorite local indie via Indie Bound, Amazon, and Barnes and Noble.

Sad Fashion confession

2012-04-05T06:16:00.001-07:00

Cross-posted from The Thrillionth Page
Yesterday, while typing away at my WIP, I heard the sound of the mailman down at the building entrance and realized I'd forgotten to send my insurance payment, which is egregiously late! I scribbled a check, all the codes, slapped on a stamp, and burst out, running down the sidewalk after him in my slippers and office clothes to give it to him.

Pictured: the sweater I wore to chase/scare
the mailman.

And then walking back to the condo, past people waiting for the bus etc. I realized: OMG WTF am I wearing?

The answer: rags.

I bring you exhibit A: my favorite sweater of 2008. Somewhere in my clothes-challenged mind, I still think of it the day I got it from Kohls, new. So pretty. I would also direct your attention to my generously vented favorite office pants. I do love them. The fabric is just too thin even to patch. I have two other similar pairs. It is kind of crazy, what I wear every day. The degree of decrepitude.

Working at home is such a strange luxury. Because, it IS this luxury, but the people doing it typically wear the most un-luxurious outfits.

These pants: holes front and back, and a sad
mixture of clownish yet obscene. And I am
wearing them as I type.

I remember when I worked at an advertising agency--it was always SO hard for me to cobble together a nice looking outfit every day, and ad agencies are way more casual than normal businesses, but still. When I was at my most uptight agency in terms of clothes, I remember this hotshot freelance copywriter came in for a meeting wearing shorts and a Hawaiian shirt, and it was this sign of prestige that he didn't have to wear something nice. I was so impressed by that.

Now I'm the freelancer going in for meetings, (though honestly, women freelancers have to dress a little nicer). Anyway, I wear my nice clothes from 2005. Mostly, though, I have meetings virtually, which I wildly prefer. Because I don't have to think about the clothes thing.

Though, the crazy outfit I wore to chase the postman was definitely pushing it! And, I am not even going to start on my jogging clothes.

The other day I was going to go to the grocery store and I put on jeans and a normal shirt, just enough to get myself presentable in normal society, and I was grumbling to myself that one good thing about winter is that I can throw a coat over my ragamuffin outfit to go to the store, but when it's hot, I actually have to change--I cannot cover my pov-looking self with a giant coat. @#$@#!

I need to channel more of Betty. Maybe
not 100% Betty, but would 5% kill me?

Anyway, my husband looks at me surprised and goes, you look really nice! And I realized he always says that when I have any clothes on that aren't rags. It made me feel a little bit bad because, okay, it's not the 1960's, I don't have to look like Betty Draper every day, but surely I can make an effort to not wear rags!

I should probably retire some of my clothes. Maybe I will...maybe I won't. I do love the blue sweater. It is cozy on cool mornings. I don't know.

Don't Hate Us Because We're Sleek and Beautiful

2012-03-31T08:30:00.034-07:00

Leagurer Mark Henry (aka Daniel Marks) popped into town this week. I told him the Denver Diner had changed their recipe for Huevos Rancheros and he had to try them. But the real reason Mark visited was to show off the new Gulfstream executive jet that replaces his older Cessna Citation.

Writers spread this rumor that we're a bunch of poor mouths, and that publishing pays squat.

It's a big, fat lie.

For example, Kat Richardson lives on a boat. She'll tell you it's a nice boat of modest size. I've seen her boat. Modest size if you mean this:

We frequently jet together for Five-Star getaways. Jeanne Stein, Jaye Wells, and Jackie Kessler spent the weekend in Las Vegas renting the top floor of the Bellagio, doing body-shots of Macallan 64 off the hotel's cabana boys.

Dakota Cassidy loves her shiny and bought this Cadillac because it matched her nail polish.
Nicole Peeler and Carolyn Crane leased the Space Shuttle for joyrides.

Richelle Mead had a stroller custom made from Siberian mammoth ivory.

Beer ~~snob~~ connoisseur Kevin Hearne bought the Coors Brewery just so he could demolish it.

In other words, publishing urban fantasy has brought us shitloads of money.

How did this happen? Simple.

Our query letters start and end like this: I'm in the League of Reluctant Adults. Those simple words make the publishers open their vaults and shovel us with cash. But the recession has put the squeeze on the book business. In the meantime, I'm standing my ground and refuse to sign a contract for a puny seven figure advance.

Life is great. We Leaguers are no April Fools.

It's an Urban Fantasy Springtime!

2012-03-22T09:47:00.005-07:00

Happy Spring, Leaguers! Now is the time when werewolves's thoughts turn to mating rituals and vampires enjoy a little sleeping in thanks to Daylight's Savings Time.

I think most UFers would profess a preference for autumn with its associations with Halloween and Samhain, but I think Spring is also an equally ripe time to explore in urban fantasy. From the Leprechauns of St. Patrick's Day to the fertility rituals involving eggs and creepy rabbits breaking into our houses, the season is full of festivals and symbols easily incorporated into any UF. After all, it's also the season when many Christians celebrate the moment when their favorite guy returns from the dead.

What other Urban Fantasy twists can you think of for Spring?

GUEST POST: J.A. Kazimer!

2012-03-15T05:00:00.005-07:00

Hi folks! Nicole here. I had the pleasure of blurbing J.A. Kazimer's new book CURSES! A F***ed Up Fairy Tale, and thoroughly enjoyed it. She's very League, so I thought I'd bring her here to do a guest blog. She was gracious enough to agree. Enjoy her fruity fruitfulness!

Hi Ho, Hi Ho, Off to Murder a Princess I Go! : Telling Stories through the Eyes of a Villain

By j.a. kazimer

In CURSES! A F***ed Up Fairy Tale, I didn’t set out to murder Cinderella (or any other princess for that matter). Things just sort of happened. I swear it. One minute I’m writing a sweet little fairy tale and the next I’m running Cinderella over with a bus. I tried to swerve. I really did. But before I knew what happened, the poor princess was squished under five tons of bus parts. From there, things just got weird as the narrator, a villain called RJ, took control of the tale.

So why write a fairy tale through the eyes of a villain? In many ways I didn’t have a choice. In other, far more fun ways, the chance to view the world as a villain was irresistible. Through his eyes, fairy tales took on a different slant. Questions arose, like, where does a villain live (The Easter Village, of course) and what does a villain wear on his days off ( a ‘Your Lair or Mine’ t-shirt) racked my brain. What did a villain order for dinner? Pease Porridge, lukewarm? Curds and whey? Did he enjoy being a villain? Or was it more of a family tradition, evil deeds handed down from one generation to the next?

Heroes often fill our tales, white knights on horseback with perfect features, guys who always say the right thing like, No, those pants DO NOT make you look fat, and bad boys who aren’t so bad. Heroes are easy. They have flaws sure, but those flaws are part of their hero charm. The biggest hero flaw is often a lock of wayward hair falling devilishly over one eye. Heroes eat Wheaties for breakfast. They live in lofts or mansions in cities like Gotham (For the life of me I can’t figure out why anyone would live there. The crime rate is unbelievable). They are at heart- good. Who wants that in a protagonist?

Viewing the fairy tale world of New Never City through the eyes of RJ offered a series of insights and adventures I’d only imagined in my nightmares. That’s what writing should do, transport the reader and sometimes even the writer to a place we’d only dreamed of, a place filled with pilfered baby candy. A place where villains save the distressed damsel and Prince Charming practices a dance number. A place even the blackest of hearts can live happily ever after.

j.a. kazimer is a writer living in Denver, CO. With a master’s degree in forensic psychology, j.a. has worked as a private investigator, bartender, and at the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics. Books include The Junkie Tales (2010), The Body Dwellers (2011), CURSES! A F***ed-Up Fairy Tale (2012), and Holy Socks & Dirtier Demons (2012). The next book in the F***ed Up Fairy Tale series, FROGGY-STYLE, is forthcoming from Kensington in 2013. Visit j.a. kazimer’s website at http://www.jakazimer.com

CURSES! A F***ed Up Fairy Tale

Definitely not for baby’s bedtime reading, this hilarious and irreverent take on classic fairytales—think Shrek for grownups—combines humor, mystery, and characters only a fairy godmother could love…

When Cinderella is run over by a New Never City bus, her not-so-ugly stepsister, Asia, suspects murder. So she hires RJ, a private eye, to investigate. Little does she know RJ is actually a villain on mental health leave from the Villain’s Union. Cursed with an inability to say no to damsels in distress, RJ travels to the Kingdom of Maldetto, meets the rest of Cinderella’s family—including her fiancé, the flamboyant Prince Charming, Cinderella’s crazy stepmother, and a seriously twisted version of Hansel and Gretel—and dodges bullets, explosions, fires, and his own ex-wife to slip his own version of glass handcuffs on the wrists that fit. All while falling for Asia, who has a curse of her own to deal with…

Tales from the Trenches

2012-03-14T06:00:00.000-07:00

I'm sort of in the middle of promo-release day-blog-tour-o-rama fun, so I'm actually out of things to really talk about.

(Which happens when you're guest posting everywhere. Sooner or later you run out of vaguely professional things to say and before you know it you're blogging about what color underwear your characters have on and if they like to butter their corn or any other crazy little detail. And before people ask...yes, Abby wears Hello Kitty undies. Talivar and Ion? Not so much.)

Anyway, things are humming along as per usual, but I did want to make mention that Sad Sausage Dogs is now officially up and running. My first comic, Fox & Willow should be going live in the next month or so. As an aside, I get a lot of questions on how I hooked up with my artist. (Aimo).

In a vaguely appropriate twist given some of the literary news this week, I can honestly say it was fanfic. Now, I'm not going to get on my soapbox about fanfic in general in this post. It is what it is and people like it or they don't. I'm not always fond of it myself, but in this case it did serve a purpose - namely to find out if she and I could work together.

See, the thing is, I've done the co-writing thing before...and when it works, it's lovely. But sometimes it doesn't work. And I've never written for a comic before and to ask someone to commit to a project when neither of you is completely certain of how the other one works in a co-project is an awful big step. One thing maybe if you're BFFs or crit partners, but for me it was a new medium AND a new creative personality to work with.

And I didn't want to screw it up. Not the project and certainly not the friendship. (I've had that happen before too and it just sucks.)

So one of the things I decided to do was write up a bit of fanfic for her. We're both big Bioware gamers, we both love Dragon Age... and she draws enough fanart of some of her characters that I felt fairly comfortable trying to turn that into prose. Basically, I wanted to know if I could capture *her* concepts into words...and in return, she then converted some of my scenes into images. (And some of them are nicely pervy and smutty, on both counts. Let me tell you how awesome it is to get pervy sketches texted to my phone in the middle of work meetings. ;-) It's a fabulous way to stay awake, anyway. Yes, the fanfic is out there on the web - it's probably not all that great as far as fanfic goes, but it served well enough for our purposes.)

Digression aside, fanfic worked nicely here because it was neutral. We both knew the world creatively, so there wasn't much of a worldbuilding or character creation learning curve. In some ways it was almost a plug-and-play creative scenario - quick and dirty - but it gave her a chance to see how I work - the way I draft, the way I edit and clean-up my prose and just my overall mindset. Can we stay on the same wavelength? Do we have wildly varying ideas, or can we come up with a goal and head toward that? (Because honestly, if you can't manage to work well on something you both really love? It's probably not going to work out well on an original piece if things start to falter. But that's just my two cents.)

The same went for her - I got to see her panel concepts for my scenes and how she turns my words into pictures and expressions and details of a more visual nature.

Thus far? We work together really, really well. It's been an amazing few months (creative honeymoon, I suppose) as we sorted out the type of story we wanted to tell and how we wanted to go about telling it. I figure out the scenes and the dialogue and write down the bones of the scenes and she fleshes them out.

I can't wait to share it. :)

Lesson learned?

2012-03-12T03:07:00.001-07:00

When I was in fourth grade, I got to participate in our local Young Authors Conference. As the name suggests, it was a coming-together of young authors from various schools in southwestern Michigan. Honestly, though, I don't remember much about what happened at the conference. In fact, as I type this, I'm now questioning if it was actually third grade. Well, that's not important. What I do remember is the "book" I wrote and a conversation I had with my teacher.

The book, entitled TWO BY TWO, was around ten pages long, written and illustrated by me, with about five sentences per page. It was made of 8.5 x 11 paper folded in half and wrapped in a catchy cover made of wallpaper. Here's the plot. It was about a cardinal and another bird that I referred to as a mackinaw, when I actually meant macaw. Except, what I actually drew was more like a cockatiel. (It's worth noting I have this book somewhere in storage, and if I was a diligent blogger, I'd find it and scan it...but I'm also a blogger with limited time). Anyway, these were girl birds, and they were pals. Throughout the course of the book, each of them builds a nest and lays eggs. Then, in the shocking ending, the eggs hatch into baby birds.

You're probably wondering where the title comes from. After all, doesn't two by two = four? Well, while I was painstakingly working on my rough draft, my teacher came by and started this conversation:

TEACHER: Your girl birds are having baby birds.
ME: Yes.
TEACHER: What are you missing?
ME: ...
TEACHER: What do girl birds need to make baby birds?
ME: ...
TEACHER: Boy birds.
ME: Oh.

And so, I had my first editorial experience.

My teacher had me write in a boy cardinal and a boy "mackinaw," whose gender I identified by making them wear ties. In the book, the boy birds meet the girl birds, and--this is a direct quote--"they mated." Now, why a 9-year-old would choose that ineloquent wording baffles me, though I think it was encouraged by my teacher. More baffling, if we're dealing with anthropomorphic birds here, why not just say "they got married"? Wouldn't that be more kid friendly?

I've thought a lot about this over the years, and I find I'm less concerned about the mating wording than I am about why it had to be put in. Why was my teacher so fixated on making sure I correctly detailed the rules of nature? I mean, it was a kid's book with tie-wearing birds. And if she was such a stickler for detail, why didn't she fact-check my erroneous bird species, hmm? As the news these days buzzes with social issues and women's right, a new thought has come to me.

Was she worried my book was promoting single motherhood? Or that my birds were lesbians?

It was the 1980s--not entirely backwards but certainly not as progressive as today. Was my early literature being censored with family values? Maybe I'm reading too much into it. All I know is that no hussy birds came out of that classroom that day--but that I now make my living writing about succubi.

LOSS Blog Tour: The Saturday Giveaway

2012-03-10T04:01:00.003-08:00

Who doesn't like a little blatant self-promotion? Especially when there's a giveaway involved?

Yes, that's right - LOSS will hit the shelves on March 20, 2012! (Some places seem to be already shipping.) What's that? You have no idea what I'm talking about? Well, gentle reader, let me enlighten you...with back-cover copy.

FIGHT BACK

Fifteen-year-old Billy Ballard is the kid that everyone picks on. Things change drastically when Billy learns that years ago, he'd been tricked by Pestilence, the White Rider of the Apocalypse. Now it's Billy's turn to wield Pestilence's Bow and spread sickness through the world. He uses his new power to lashes out at his tormentors...and accidentally causes an outbreak of disease. Horrified by his actions, he wants nothing more than to be rid of the Bow. For that to happen, Billy must track down the previous White Rider, who is hiding in a place where even Death cannot go.

By the time Billy finds the man who had tricked him so long ago, the White Rider is completely insane—and is poised to unleash a plague that would make the Black Death look like a summer cold. And only Billy can stop him. Does one bullied teenager have the strength to stand his ground—and the courage to save the world?

This is the third book in the Riders of the Apocalypse series, but it, like the first two (Hunger, Rage), are written as standalone novels.

And here's the thing: I have an extra author's copy that I really don't need. Heck, I wrote the thing; I don't need to read it. :)

So...GIVEAWAY!!! **throws confetti**

All you have to do is comment below and tell me what your favorite book about the Apocalypse is. (Yes, you can say mine. You can also say other authors and titles. I won't hold it against you. Of course, I may be lying.) On March 20 -- the day that LOSS officially hits the shelves -- I'll pick one random commenter to win a signed copy of LOSS and a small LOSS cover poster.

While you're at it, check out the schedule of the official LOSS blog tour! Because hey - the grand prize is pretty spiffy, if I do say so myself. :)

All kinds of goodies

2012-03-06T23:09:00.000-08:00

1. I have just learned that there is a DJ in my market named Dick Havoc. On the same station there is another DJ named Ruby Cheeks. (This is KDKB in Phoenix.) I give this to you without comment.
2. I'm having a little shindig in celebration of the release of TRICKED in April because I've always wanted to have a shindig. It's at a pub rather than a bookstore; in fact, it's at Rula Bula, the Irish pub mentioned in my books—yes, it's for real! If you'd like to go, I'm giving away two tickets on my blog.
3. Atticus O'Sullivan is being featured in Suvudu's Cage Match. So is Evy Stone (Kelly Meding) and Chess Putnam (Stacia Kane)! They could all use your love and mouse clicks in advancing through the tournament. It's fun to geek out on the Cage Match if you haven't ever done it before. Good times!
4. Del Rey released an e-book only omnibus of the first three books in The Iron Druid Chronicles, in case you or your friends/family/ferrets have not read them yet. They're selling it for $20, so you'll save $4, which is almost enough these days to get yourself a small cup of hot milk and flavored syrup at Starbucks! WOOHOO! The omnibus can be found for the Kindle, Nook, Kobo, Sony e-reader, all that jazz. And it includes the first chapter of TRICKED!
5. Dick Havoc. Ruby Cheeks.

Devil’s Luck: 7 reasons

2012-03-05T05:54:00.002-08:00

This has been a release week for me, or a mini one anyway: I wrote and self-pubbed a Disilusionists world spin off, Devil’s Luck. Yippee!

Why, why, why would I do such a thing? The top 7 reasons:

1. I originally created the hero of the book, Simon, to be a villain and an enemy for my heroine, Justine, but he got so interesting to me, I had to give him his own book, just to explore his perspective. I love this badass hero!

2. Simon is into gambling, and I’m kind of fascinated with gambling, and the pull of it. I don't do much of it myself, but I like to think about it, and I’ve always seen it as being about more than just easy money.

3. Duelling possible futures!

4. Fawna's crazy coat. I had to explore why she had all those doo-dads pinned and stapled and sewn to it. Plus, she is a fun and mysterious girl.

5. Simon's crazy coat. Simon is kind of like my badass Ken doll. I love to dress him in outrageous stuff.

6. Self-pub experiment. Even though I have been involved in an awesome self-pubbed anthology, I wanted to see what it would be like to take a project solo, all the way through the process on my own. It was really interesting. Some things were harder than I anticipated, some easier. Writers, if you think you get sick of your book the traditional publishing route, try self-pubbing - you have to read and proof it SO much more.

7. Midcity, I can’t quit you!!!

And now, le blurb:

There’s a thin line between love and doom.

No wager is too outrageous for Simon Fitzgerald, the most reckless of the Disillusionists. His dark secrets drive him to take increasingly extreme risks, but he’s never lived so quite so dangerously as when he hooks up with Midcity’s most powerful prognosticator.

Fawna Brady is tormented by the destinies she sees for those around her. To Fawna, knowledge of the future is a cage she’d do anything to escape. She’s stunned to discover a taste of the freedom for which she yearns at the side of Simon, the one person in the world who despises everything she is, everything she stands for.

Simon’s defiant attitude toward destiny captivates Fawna, but will her love destroy him? And will Simon rush headlong into the delicious doom she offers?

$2.99 Kindle | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords | ARE |

Special Guest: Cathy Clamp

2012-02-27T06:26:00.004-08:00

Happy Monday, Leaguers! Today, Cathy Clamp is here to dish on the latest release she wrote with C. T. Adams under the pen name Cat Adams. THE ISIS COLLAR comes out on March 13. Give her a big League welcome!

****

So what’s with all the Zombies, anyway?

I know most of your regular League members, but the lovely Jaye Wells was the one to suggest I drop by today to talk about our upcoming release, THE ISIS COLLAR. “Our” meaning myself and C.T. Adams. I’m the Cat. She’s the Adams of Cat Adams. We’ve written a lot of books together, in the Tales of the Sazi and Thrall worlds, along with our new series, The Blood Singer but this one was freaking FUN to write because it’s about ZOMBIES!

First, our heroine Celia Graves is half vampire. Oh, sure, you say, like a thousand other heroines. But Celia is different. She doesn’t really want to be a vampire. She doesn’t want to be a siren (the other part of her heritage) and she really doesn’t like getting involved in all this crazy psycho stuff that keeps happening to her.

Like today, for example. A friend calls and wakes her up from a well-deserved sleep. Her friend is a clairvoyant—lots of those in Celia’s world. But this one, Dottie, is particularly good. She tells Celia that there’s a bomb at a grade school and Celia (and ONLY Celia) has to be the one to get the kids out. Well, right there you know there are problems, because that’s what cops do. That’s what principals do. It’s not what bodyguards-to-the-stars do.

Except, well . . . it’s Dottie. She’s over eighty and can be crotchety when she sees the future. So Celia goes. As you might guess, the principal says no, you can’t take the kids out. The cops say no. There’s no hint of any bomb. They escort her out. And then, naturally, is when all the crazy psycho stuff starts to happen. A tripwire spell goes off when she crosses over the threshhold. It slows time inside the building. If there really is a bomb, there’ll be maximum collateral damage because nobody can get away. Celia manages to get the authorities notified (you’ll love how!) and gets the kids out. Well, almost all of them anyway. She gets caught in the bomb blast with the last kid and has to dive out the window. Those reinforced windows are tough on the clothes and skin!

One of the benefits of being part vampire is you heal quick. Until this time, of course, when the crazy psycho stuff keeps happening. Not only does Celia not heal, she keeps getting worse. A bad limp, a nasty headache and growing bruises on her legs that none of the doctors can diagnose.

Do you know how difficult it is for doctors to diagnose things that are really old, or really rare? A hundred years ago, a halfway decent doctor could diagnose measles and mumps and shingles because they happened every day. But they don’t anymore, so the symptoms are tougher to figure out. A decent doctor in Panama could pick out a case of malaria at a hundred paces. An African doctor can spot a case of Ebola without hardly trying. But those sorts of diseases don’t really happen much in southern California. Not in today’s world, or Celia’s world. So nobody figures out that what she has is a rare disease related to leprosy that turns people into zombies, until it’s too late to help some of the people who were caught in the school.

What happens next and how does she figure it out? Well, that’s why you’ll need to pick up the book and read it, silly! But the FBI is involved, as is the Center for Disease Control, plus mages and demonic entities and lots of other cool stuff! Here, let me give you a taste of what you have in store:

**************

I shook my head. “My leg’s been bothering me since the bomb in the school.”

Crap. I shouldn’t have said that. I could tell from his reaction that he didn’t know what I was talking about. How could he? I doubt it had made the papers back east. His eyes went wide, then narrowed suspiciously. “Bomb? School? What the hell, Celia.” He looked at my leg and sucked in a sharp breath. “What attacked you? That looks bad. Have you had a healer look at it?”

I looked down but only saw the denim of my jeans. “I’ve been to doctors and witch doctors. None of them can figure it out. What are you seeing that they haven’t? The latest one thinks there’s a spell on me but I don’t know if they’re connected.”

He knelt down next to my leg, moving one of the chairs out of the way in order to put both hands on my calf. Dr. Sloan walked in the door just then, followed by Rizzoli. His brows rose so high it looked like his bushy eyebrows were a toupee that I felt I had to explain. “It’s not what it looks like.”

Bruno didn’t even look up. “This is bad, Celie. I mean like killing you bad. What is this?”

“That’s a very good question, Mr. DeLuca,” Rizzoli interjected. “What do you think it is? None of our Bureau people have a clue.”

“Joh . . . Creede is working to unravel whatever’s attacking my aura around my head. Is the problem with the leg the same thing?”

Bruno shook his head. “I don’t know anything about auras. Not my specialty. But this is attacking your flesh. That I’m good at. It could well be the same. I’d have to compare notes with . . . John.”

“Hey, a witch with the Bureau, Gail Jones, said top mages like you can identify the caster. Any idea who to talk to about this mess?”

He looked at me, his eyes both surprised and suspicious. “This is a spell? Wow. I pegged it as some sort of magical bacterium. It doesn’t feel like a spell at all.”

“Magical bacteria?”

Dr. Sloan nodded. “Oh, yes. The Center for Disease Control doesn’t talk about it much, especially not in public, but there is a magical branch of the organization for viruses that mutate and bacteria that can be magically transmitted to create plagues, changing from a magical event to something that can affect more than the original target.”

“Wow. That’s seriously scary. But one’s physiology and the other is . . . well, magic.”

Bruno let out an odd chuckle. “Magic is part of my physiology, Celie. If I caught something that backfired from a spell, it’s possible I could pass it on to family members. Even human ones. After that . . . well, it could take off. Like this has.” He motioned to my leg. “I think we need to call in the Center for Magical Disease Control to take a look at you. In fact, I’d like to look at your skin myself.”

I couldn’t help but smirk. “I’ll just bet you would.”

He didn’t smile in return and that made my stomach hurt. “I’ve got an ugly suspicion. But first I need to put you in a quarantine casting circle.” He looked at Dr. Sloan. “Could we use the lab for this? We might need the restraints.”

Suddenly I was less than excited about this idea. “What exactly do you think I’m going to do, Bruno?”

He paused and his face was set in stone to keep from showing me what he was really feeling. When he finally spoke it chilled my blood.

“Scream, Celia. If I’m right, I think you’re going to scream.”

***************

If you’re intrigued (and you know you are) go out and buy THE ISIS COLLAR by Cat Adams right away! And if you’ve never heard of Celia Graves’ earlier adventures in BLOOD SONG, SIREN SONG and DEMON SONG, they’re on sale until the release of ISIS! It’s a really good sale, too: only $2.99 for a Kindle download. Heck, that’s three for the price of one! And if you’re a print fanatic, they’re also on sale at Amazon on a 4-for-3 special. But lots of other retailers have them on sale too, so go to our publisher’s website, scroll all the way to the bottom and choose your favorite store.

Whatcha, Whatcha, Whatcha Want?

2012-02-22T09:24:00.000-08:00

Publishing wonks and mouthy authors often talk about what's the next big thing in fiction. What will be the new vampire?!? Is chick lit dead and what will replace it? Amish space opera will be the next big thing!

It's exhausting. And I've noticed it's not often that we take the time to ask you, the reader, what you want.

Well, today's your lucky day. Let us know what kind of stories you want to see. Since most of us are paranormal romance or UF authors, we'd love to hear what you'd love to see more of int hose genres, but don't feel limited by genre. What kind of stories are you looking for and not finding right now?

We just ask that you please be respectful because The League is not about bashing the work of our colleagues.

Annnnd go!

Shriekback - Nemesis

2012-02-20T19:13:00.000-08:00

Contractual Differences

2012-02-16T15:57:00.000-08:00

Warning: Very Long Post!

In the past few weeks and over the last couple of years I’ve been hearing a lot of complaints from writers that basically boil down to “I’m being screwed by a contract clause.” And this isn’t just from new authors who had no prior experience with publishing contracts, but also from experienced authors making the jump to independent e-book publication, boutique/small press and other scale/medium shifts. Many of you may be aware of problems with Dorchester publishing about two years ago in which they dropped print publication and went to electronic only, or instances of Kindle price drops that took authors by surprise, and the recent news that L. J. Smith has been ousted from her long-running bestseller series The Vampire Diaries by the enforcement of her work-for-hire contract. All of these cases and a lot more are the result of one party or the other misunderstanding, not reading, or mis-interpreting/abusing a clause in their publication contract. Lest you become the next poor bastard in line, here are some points for all writers to consider when signing contracts.

There are two types of publication contract in the storytelling-for-profit world: license of rights; and work-for-hire. They are not the same, though the contracts may have clauses in common and the differences can therefor be confusing. If you are a self-published author—and this includes all writers publishing directly and exclusively to e-book via Amazon, Smashwords, B&N or whatever—you are not under a publication contract, because you are the publisher; rather your contracts are for distribution, display, sale, and promotion (and if you are selling physical books, you also contracted and paid for the print and bindery work and probably the editorial and proof reading yourself), which are part of the contract publishing process, but are not, in fact, “publishing.” This is not a slam, but a clarification of the difference between contract (“traditional” or “legacy”) publishing and self-publishing. However, a lot of the pitfalls of contracts still apply to self-publishing authors.

I’ll start with a clarification of terms.

License of rights is the contract type that the majority of “traditional” authors operate under: the writer/creator owns every aspect of the intellectual property that they made (the story, the characters, the situation, the film rights, the print rights, the e-book rights, the audio-book rights, etc.) and they merely give other people limited, legal permission (“grant a license of rights”) to do specific things with that IP in exchange for money or other valuable considerations. The writer controls and retains all the other rights that weren’t specifically or inclusively licensed in that contract. When the contract comes to an end, the licensed rights revert to the author and they continue doing whatever they like with them. (The self-published author also retains all their rights, but they do not license them to anyone—they do the job themselves or contract someone to do it for them without giving anyone a license to exercise their rights for them—a fine, but important distinction.)

Work-for-hire is usually solicited by the publisher/distributor/packager/studio/whatever and the writer does not own anything, but works to a specific requirement in exchange for an agreed upon amount of money. The intellectual property is created for the company, under contract, and all the rights are theirs; the writer is merely a contractor who walks away with money in their pocket once the terms are fulfilled and they retain no rights to the work. (This is the polar opposite of self-publication.)

Now onto the contracts themselves....

First off, contracts bind both parties. Pay attention to the balance of the contract and what you get in exchange for what you give. The publisher/agency/distributor/press/Amazon always has protection clauses if you fail to fulfill, or otherwise break, the contract, but there should be clauses that give you recourse if they fail or break, as well. The terms of failure or breakage for both parties need to be clearly spelled out. For instance, if the press goes out of business while the contract is still in effect, what happens to your story? Do you get your rights back? There are a lot of other balance of power issues to consider too: How long is the term of the license? If this is a work-for-hire, can you mention it on your resume or is it “ghost work” which can’t be mentioned? There should also be a clear description of who’s responsible for what, like promotion or editorial services. If it seems the publisher/distributor/agent is getting the better deal, they probably are—and at the moment most publishing contracts favor the publisher/distributor/agent over the writer because they are the party in lowest supply but high demand, which gives them more power than you—but they shouldn’t be abusive about it. You have more options now than ever before and you don’t have to take a bad deal just to get your book out. (There is always self-publishing, but read on, first.)

Regardless of which type of publication you’re pursuing, you don’t have to have an agent, but you do have to have someone knowledgeable to vet—and in some cases negotiate—your contract before you sign it. Publishing contracts are notorious for clauses that seem straightforward, but aren’t, and for language that seems like plain English, but is actually specialized business terms, as well as the sort of linguistic pay-no-attention-to-the-man-behind-the-curtain handwaving and smoke that misdirects from clauses to which you should be paying a lot more attention. If you don’t have an agent, a publication or media contract lawyer will be your best bet, a general contract lawyer the next best. They aren’t the cheapest folks in the world, but most can power-read through a contract in less than one $200/hour hour and tell you what it really means and where you should ask for a modification, clarification or outright removal of a term/clause. They can also interpret industry specific terms like “work for hire,” “display rights,” “electronic deposit,” “elevator,” “discount rate,” or “on acceptance,” which aren’t quite what they sound like. If you just can’t afford a lawyer—I know a lot of us can’t because... well.. we’re writers—at least reach out to other, more experienced writers in your genre*. Every professional writer in the business has been—or will be—bitten in the backside by the unexpectedly sharp fang of a contract clause sometime in their career, so you’re not alone and there’s no shame in asking for or hiring help. Don’t be a pain in the ass about it, ask politely, get more than one opinion from diverse sources, and you’ll do well—or at least better than a lot of people.

Don’t sign anything until you are utterly sure what you’re getting into! No one means to be a shark, but sometimes they just can’t help themselves--these are corporations after all (it’s in their nature, as the scorpion said the the frog) not people--and you don’t want to be the chum. Especially now when the publishing industry is in a howling hullabaloo, it’s easy to feel pressured or desperate or confused and to find yourself on the short and pointy end of the contractual stick as a result. Take a breath, be calm, pay attention, and look ahead—contracts can be in force for years, so don’t sign in haste to repent at leisure.

Read every single word—no skipping over “the boring bits” or the repetitions—in the proposed contract. Sounds obvious but a lot of people blip past the clauses that seem the same as a previous one after a while and this can bite you in the ass very hard. Just because it looks the same on first glance, doesn’t mean it is the same—one word or number changed, one plural rather than the singular, one proper noun rather than a general noun can make a huge difference in what’s going to happen once the contract is in action. Also, don’t assume you understand a term and then skip over the explanation of how it will be applied or under what circumstances—or, worse, don’t read the definition of terms on the last page. Apparently-obvious words like “discount,” “reserve,” “net,” and “remainder,” have specific meanings and impact and can cause you considerable distress. Ditto terms like “damage to sales” or “at publisher’s/distributor’s/licensee’s discretion,” which look a little scary can be very scary in action. Discretion sounds like such a nice word, doesn’t it? Sounds like we’re going to be discreet and careful, right? Nope. What it means is “we get to do what we want when we want to and you can’t stop us—or force us to do it if we’re not in the mood.” That is one tricky little word—so keep a sharp eye on any word or term that might not mean what you think it means and don’t let them slip past because the contract was long and boring to read.

Don’t rely on friendship to save your ass. The contract may be offered by your absolute bestest buddy in the business and you trust them, but you can’t rely on your buddy still being in charge when ugly contract clauses come into play. They have no more choice about enforcing those clauses than you do since contracts bind both parties. So if the contract or a clause in it gives you the heebie-jeebies, ignore your friend’s assurance that “that never happens;” the clause wouldn’t exist if the situation was impossible and “never happens.” No matter how unlikely, if it happens to you, you’ll still be screwed. Negotiate a change you can live with if (gods forbid) the situation at issue does come to pass, or don’t sign. I’m serious. No matter how badly you want it, some things aren’t worth selling your dignity, your baby, or your soul for.

Don’t get greedy. Just because someone is offering you 70% royalties on your e-book, or a six-figure advance for your YA Epic Fantasy trilogy that doesn’t mean it’s automatically a great deal. Look hard at the terms—no matter whether the contract is licensed, work-for-hire or self-publishing. What are you really giving up to get that nice chunk of money? What hoops do you have to jump? Is it worth it? How long will it take before you get all (or promised installments) of the money? Do you have to put up any money yourself? Or bear costs like cover design, paying for the proofreader, promotion, advertising, or required travel on your own? Will you be unable to sell other stories to other publishers—or to self-publish—while this contract is in effect? How much control do you retain over the rights or the packaging or the sale price? Take for instance Amazon’s Kindle contracts: you have an option of taking a 35% royalty or a 70% royalty. Sounds like a no-brainer—who’s going to opt for less money, right? But look at the clause that allows Amazon to reset your price at their discretion. What did I just say about discretion? Yup, that means that Amazon can change your price whenever they want, to whatever they want, and keep it there for as long as they want. So without any warning or permission, you’re suddenly not making 70% of $2.99, but 70% of $0.99—oh wait... when the price is set below $2.99 you don’t get 70% anymore: you get 35%. And there’s nothing you can do about it. Because you signed the contract that exchanged price control for profit percentage—control versus money. Which do you want? Sign the contract that offers you the clauses you’re most comfortable with in the longest term.

Always consider the worst-case scenario. Remember what I said about the “it never happens” clauses? Every time you see one, stop and think about what the impact on you will be if that terrible thing comes to happen. And if you aren’t really sure what that funky clause is all about, ask! For instance, discount** and remainder*** clauses are often ignored until the writer gets pinched by them, because they think the situation can’t happen—no publisher who’s paying for your work would just throw your book away or sell it at a loss like it was an unwanted roll of toilet paper... would they? But publishers, retailers, and distributors do both these things regularly to protect their longer-term business investments and cut losses and while you often can’t do anything about it in the contract, you can at least understand what these clauses do, what circumstances bring them into play, and how you can prepare to counter them or ride out the storm.

Don't short-sell your future. Most traditional publication contracts include a "first refusal" or "next project" clause and various clauses about when and how your rights revert to you. First refusal gives the publisher the exclusive right to look at and offer for your next project of a certain type, length, or relationship to the current contract and you can't legally show it to anyone else unless and until the first publisher rejects it. Basically this locks you into that publisher in some way until they decide they aren't interested in you anymore. On the one hand, you have the security of knowing the publisher will at least take a look at and probably make some kind of offer for the next manuscript, but if the clause is overly broad it can tie you to that publisher for a long time. If your relationship with them is going sour, you won't want that and neither will they, but... well... you're both bound to it. The rights reversion and/or "out of print" clauses are usually pretty straightforward with respect to print books, but with the excitement over e-books they can sometimes be abusive and draconian. For instance, Simon and Schuster attempted to include language in contract several years ago that defined a book as "in print" and therefore S&S's contractual property, so long as a single electronic copy for POD used existed anywhere in S&S's database or network. Although they claimed this wasn't meant to keep the rights with them in perpetuity, that was the effect the clause would have had. So many people objected to the clause in public that S&S removed it, but variations on it still rear their ugly heads. Don't let the publisher sit on your rights by a technicality. Limit these clauses by making them as specific as possible.

And one last thing for now: if you can’t find a downside to the contract, you’re not looking hard enough.

*Asking within your genre often reveals information that’s specific to the publisher or group you’re contemplating working with and, in some cases, language will be different but the meaning will be the same, so if you’re writing Romance, for instance, you may find other Romance writers the most helpful. Not that writers from other genres won’t have seen the same or similar clauses, but you’re more likely to land help from a writer, agent, editor, or experienced assistant who knows exactly what that clause means coming from that publisher.

**Discounts are abnormally low wholesale prices that cut the publisher’s profit too deeply, so the writer’s royalty is then cut to compensate. Deep discounts became a common demand during the ascendency of the big bookstore chains and “big box” stores like Costco and Amazon. A set percentage discount clause rather than a floating percentage against wholesale price can mean that when a powerful buyer demands a wholesale discount at or below that percentage, the author ends up being paid for their first-run books as if they were last year’s garbage. Pay attention to discount clauses and make sure you ask what the common wholesale discount currently is before you sign.

***Remainders are books that come to the end of their expected shelf life—usually fancy hardcovers and that sort of thing—that are slated for deep discount (and sometimes destruction in the case of mass-market paperbacks which are “pulped”). Remaindered books are usually marked or “stripped” and then sold to jobbers for pennies on the cover price. The author will then receive the “discount” rate payment for those books and the books will be removed from regular sale and the publisher’s inventory. That format or title will then officially go out of print, never to be seen again, in all likelihood. The author may be offered the chance to buy remainders of their own books at a slightly less favorable discount than the jobbers before the books are stripped, marked, and dumped. If you can afford them and have the storage space, remaindered hardcopies or special editions can occasionally become profitable for authors to sell themselves after the edition is out of print and therefor collectible, but you’ll have to invest in a large number of them and store them properly.

Not a Valentine's Day Post

2012-02-14T06:00:00.000-08:00

Not that I have anything against Valentine's Day. It is what it is and if you enjoy it, great! And if you don't, great!

(See, easy to please here.)

Besides, by the time you read this I'll probably be in recovery from getting a portion of the nerves on the left side of my spine burned out. (Don't worry - it's out patient. And hopefully painless. After all, if the nerves aren't firing, what's to hurt, right? Maybe. It's been a long time coming and a last ditch effort to try to get me some relief from years of chronic pain. And hey, if I'm lucky and it works..I'll be able to go back a few weeks later and get the rest of them fried. )

Still - doesn't exactly put me in the mood for romantic blogs posts, so I'm just going to skip all that and plug my upcoming release, A Sliver of Shadow!

Which comes out February 28th! And continues the story of Abby, Brystion and a certain perverted unicorn by name of Phineas. (And a slew of new characters as well. Not to worry though, lots of the original characters are back too.)

And if you haven't read A Brush of Darkness, no worries - it's up for free over at Pocket After Dark for the entire month of February. (As well as a sneak peek at the first couple of chapters of A Sliver of Shadow- 1st chapter is available now, 2nd will be up starting Feb 15.)

...and here's a little sample of SoS to get you started:

“Who’s my little man?” The unicorn crooned at Benjamin and then winced when a hank of beard became the baby’s newest form of entertainment.

“Keep that up and you’ll be a baldy chin,” I retorted. “And I don’t recall asking your opinion. Not that that’s ever stopped you before. Talivar around?”

“Nope, burned the coffee again. Ran out to get more.” A snort escaped him. “He’s even worse at it then you are.”

“Probably something about being a prince and not having to actually cook for himself. At least he’s trying. More than I can say for you.” I stooped to search for my Crocs, pushing through dust bunnies and clumps of what suspiciously looked like unicorn droppings. “Christ, Phin, use the toilet or go outside or something.” I snatched my hand away.

“That’s not me. I think you’ve got mice.” His tone became wheedling.

“I’ll bet. Just clean it up.”

“With what? Gonna turn my tail into a broom?” The furred tuft in question flicked as if to make the point.

“I’m sure you’ll come up with something. Besides, aren’t unicorn horns proof against poison? Purifying water, that sort of thing? Surely something that can bring a dead man back to life can disinfect like Lysol?”

Reread in 2012

2012-02-13T09:29:00.000-08:00

Cross-posted from Organized Chaos.

I've been having a bit of a reading crisis this year. In 2011 I read a crap-ton of books--over one hundred. This year, I've read one and a half. Yeah, forty-three days into the new year and I've read one and a half books. Half might not even be accurate; I think I put it down at about a third.

I can put part of the blame on the weather. Winter depresses me, and I don't want to do anything except plop on the couch and be a potato. Cracking open a book feels like too much work; television viewing requires a lot less brain power than reading. Another part of the blame can go to the overwhelming tower that is my To Be Read pile. And it doesn't help that more great books are coming out ALL THE TIME. I can't make any real progress, and I can't seem to choose between them, so I let that intimidate me into just not reading anything.

Yes, bad Kelly.

The other day, I skimmed a review of a book I'd read and loved, and it made me want to read that book again. So I picked up my Nook with the intention of just glancing through a few good scenes, and two hours later I'd reread a good quarter of the book. Oops.

It made me think about the books I've loved and would like to read again. There's something wonderfully comforting about rereading a book--revisiting those characters, reliving their adventures and love and losses. Because of my To Be Read pile, rereads always seemed out of the question. I had too many new books to read, so I couldn't waste time reading something again.

Why, though? Why not? Books gave me a love of reading from a very early age. Certain books made me want to be a writer, so why not go back to those wonderful memories and read a few books again?

So I have decided something: I'm going to allow myself to reread some favorites this year. First I'll finish the two books I have in progress (one new read, one reread). Then I'll reread a few books I love and haven't read in a while, starting with this one:

What books have you read more than once? Are there any books you reread on a regular basis? Anything you want to reread, but don't have the time?