My Five Favorite Writer's Helper Sites Around the Web

Hey y'all. Hope some gorgeous spring weather is upon you. We've had some thunderstorms and far too many cold snaps, but this week, we're living the good life.

I thought today I'd let you in on some of my favorite help sites for writing in case you're feeling uninspired. I know a few people who've mentioned they're not motivated or stuck in their WIPs. Here we go (I tend to repeat myself without remembering, so if you've seen some of these links from me before, don't remind me unless it gets excessive. It's all about my self-confidence. *wink, wink*):

1) Chaotic Shiny - A) it has one of my favorite words in it. I love shiny stuff. B) It has generators to help propel your writing. Need names, places, descriptions, events? Chaotic shiny has it. My first novel, The Treasure Hunter's Lady, was the plot product of a random story generator. God bless the people who put those things together.

2) Behindthename.com - It has long, long lists of names from literary to historical. I've picked tons of names from this site, either by searching for the name and its variations or by meaning. I don't think I could live without this site. It's the mother of all baby name web spots.

3) Cracked.com - Okay, it can be vulgar, and they make fun of a lot of things, from history to politics to the animal kingdom. But I also learn all kinds of things from this site. It not only points fingers and blurs the reality you know, it teaches. Who could ask for more?

This photo has nothing to do with this
post. That's the beauty of it.

4) Stock xchng - I know, it's a weird looking title for a website. And what does the stock market have to do with writing? Well, your guess is as good as mine. This isn't about money. Although you can find dollar sign photos here. For free. For your blogs. I love this site because I've pulled all sorts of goodies for blog posts from it. It makes my life easier because I don't have trot around the world searching for an approproate (or inappropriate) photo.

5) Pinterest - You knew that was coming, huh? What I love about it is that I can make super-sneaky private boards. And it fuels my obsession with steampunk fascinators and hats. And I can upload graphics and media I use to market my books. I have a whole board full of quotes from them. Or you can see everything I've pinned from motivational quotes to Victorian photography. Yes, it's a time suck, but it's a deliciously wonderful one.

Feel free to share your favorite time suck, er helpful writer-friendly sites with me!

When I'm not blogging here, I'm at Have Novel, Will Edit, Facebook, Twitter, and Google Plus!

Down and Dirty - Naming a Character X

          If you’re a writer, there can be no greater challenge than the task of naming your characters.  Years ago, I remember hearing the famous Nora Roberts admit that when she began a novel, even though she had the idea of a plot, when she started to write, she often used an X to indicate her hero or her heroine because coming up with a good name was a challenge.  In that moment of time she just wanted to write the story, and she wasn’t about to stop and try to come up with a name.  

She’d worry about that later--which in Nora speak probably meant that she’d take time and energy and do it right.  

Because real writers don’t throw any name down on the page.  

Professional writers use a number of tricks to name their characters.  One is to write the alphabet out from A-Z.  The rule of thumb is that no two characters in the their story can have first names that begin with the same letter of the alphabet.  It makes sense really--similar sounds at the beginning of too many names would only confuse the readers -- like three sister protagonists who have the names Jill, Jane and June.

When I was writing my novel, Wild Point Island, some of my character names were made up and some were names of real historical people from a manifest of a boat that sailed from England to North Carolina in the late 1590’s.  That situation created an additional challenge.

Here is a grid of the main characters from my first novel Wild Point Island.  I put an asterist near the characters who were real.  

A-Ambrose Viccars*

B-

C-Charles Florrie*

D-

E- Ella Pattenson

F- 

H- Hugh Pattenson*

L- Lily Pattenson

P- Prat* 

R-Rose Payne*

S-Simon Viccars*

T-Theodore Pattenson (Uncle Teddy)*

W- Mr. Wyles*

This is the third step in my Down and Dirty, Twelve Steps to Revision.  To create a story that is marketable and sells, make sure you check the names of your characters.  

But let’s explore this concept further.  What are the other rules of thumb when naming characters?

Make the names pronounceable and easy to remember.  And to go further with that concept, unless you’re writing a comedy where irony is the rule, a character’s name should reflect their personality or appearance.  Writers often research the etymology of names and even though some of the subtle nuances may be lost on the readers, it can help you feel more comfortable with your characters.  

It’s also important to stick with as few variations of the name on the page as possible.  Even though in real life, we may be known by different names to different people--our aunt calls us one thing, our brother calls us something else, in the world of fiction, if a character in your story is known as Caroline, Carie, Linney, Mooney, your story will start to feel like a confusing Russian novel. 

It’s no wonder that an author will use an X before she comes up with the precise name she needs. 

Next month,  we’ll continue with Down and Dirty and explore the importance of having concrete and visible goals in your story. 

             

Words On Fire

I live in southern California, in the foothills of the Santa Monica Mountains. Which means that, although I was not directly in the fire zone this weekend as chaos broke out with the Springs Fire, my house and car were covered in ash, and the sky was a combination of Halloween orange and black in the mountains above my home. Not native to California, I resisted until this week the notion of considering what I would take with me should the order to evacuate be issued. All of a sudden I realized: if I can't lay hands on it in a hurry, it's potentially going down in flames. What to save?

Ironically I have been attempting to conquer a terrible clutter habit over the past few months. I've had to accept the fact that sloth has kept me surrounded by crap I do not need, do not want, and do not even like. But my writing?

Unfortunately, yes. I am buried in mountains of half-baked plots, poems whose stanzas will never be complete, short stories whose characters even I loathe. Why? Why am I so wedded to sheltering these unwanted inhabitants in my home? And how can I let them go?

I have a friend, a successful journalist turned novelist, who told me years ago that stories that are perpetual struggle will never succeed. For a long time I resisted this notion. Why not keep every word I've ever written - after all, maybe I can recycle it ....

The road to the recycling center is, alas, far too often paved with goods no one would want. Just like my notebooks. I'm grateful the fire spared my home - thank you to the best firefighters in the world - and gave me the chance to kill my little darlings on my own. And that's what I'm doing: hitting the delete button so to speak, pitching the old so I can welcome the new.

What about you? Do you keep every word you've ever written? Would you save every draft should the order to evacuate be issued?

A hot werewolf ménage!

“Werewolves Can’t Fly” is the sequel to “Flight to Joy”, but you don’t have to have read the first book to enjoy this one.

“Flight to Joy” blurb
Mermae can fly. She’s had to keep it a secret, and has never met anyone else like her. One evening she thinks she sees something as she lands after a flight, but decides she’s mistaken, so walks home.
Kade sees a woman flying and is intrigued. He can fly, yet has never met anyone else who can. So he follows her to her apartment to learn her address, then hurries home to his partner, Iain, to tell him the good news.
Buy Link: http://www.torquerebooks.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=79_93&products_id=3570

And now the story continues…

“Werewolves Can’t Fly” blurb:
Mermae joined Kade and Iain four months ago. Halloween is almost here and Iain, a werewolf, is desperate for them to commit to each other.
But how can they keep their secrets in a city? And if they move out of the city how will they earn money and live?
Iain asked werewolves Dwyer and Nelson, who live on a secure farm, if his family can bond there and run on Halloween. Dwyer and Nelson are thrilled Iain has found his third person and welcome them to a little hidden cabin.
The mating is wonderful, but all their other problems remain unresolved. Is there a solution to them?

WARNING! PG 13 EXCERPT
They lay on their sides in bed, sweaty and relaxed, satiated, yet Iain wanted more. With Halloween so close now, he wanted to convince-- no, that's wasn't fair. All decisions had to be made freely. He wanted Mermae and Kade to understand how badly he needed them to mate, to commit to each other, so his wolf side would be fulfilled.
Hoping he could explain himself properly, Iain said, "Halloween is special to a werewolf."
"What, you're going to howl at the moon?" teased Mermae.
He tugged her closer to him. "You never know, I might. But I really will need to run properly that night, and I want you both to be beside me. Traditionally, we fuck, then run, then fuck again on Halloween."
Mermae slid up on an elbow so she could look into his face. "There's more than that, though, isn't there?"
"You're a very perceptive woman. Yes, there is. We usually fuck the first time as humans and the second time as wolves, but that can't happen in our triad. But the ritual, yeah I need to complete the ritual. I..." Iain broke off. He didn't want to pressure her, or Kade, although Kade knew a bit more about how important this all was to him.
"You want us to commit." Mermae spoke slowly yet firmly.
Iain rolled over and lay flat on his back staring at her face, trying to read the expression behind her eyes. He nodded. What if she turns me down? What if she isn't ready yet to take this step?
"Okay. Let's just go through this all again. You can bite me without turning me into a werewolf. You've bitten Kade and nothing's ever happened to him. Right?"
"Yes." Kade spoke at the same time as him. Iain was going to add more, but it was obvious Mermae was still thinking, so he waited for her to finish.
"The commitment is binding. Once we commit it's for life. Except that you're going to live a hell of a lot longer than Kade and me. Does this mean even after we die you can never commit to another two people?"
"Yes, it does. But I've been told in committed triads that include non-wolves, the humans tend to live quite a lot longer than regular humans. As you know, I've never lived in a pack. We were lone wolves. My three parents and twin brother were killed by hunters when I was a teenager and when I looked for a pack, they were all one male/one female packs, and much bigger than me and..." Once again he couldn't finish what he wanted to say. This was not the time to pull the pity card. Mermae had to decide for herself, not because of anything he said, but because she wanted to commit to him and Kade.

Buy Link: http://www.torquerebooks.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=78_91&products_id=3711

Berengaria Brown
http://berengariasblog.blogspot.com/
http://berengariabrown.com/
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Book Lover's Buffet Sale!

Introducing the Book Lovers’ Buffet. Load up, you won’t gain a pound!
The Buffet’s “Bouquet of Books” sale will be open May 1-3. More than 175 ebooks, all reduced in price to just 99 cents. Save in categories such as Young Adult, Contemporary, Paranormal, Suspense, Erotic Romance, and more!
PLUS, visit the website to win gift cards to your choice of online retailers. $400 in gift cards up for grabs!
Titles from popular authors such as:
·         Gemma Halliday
·         Angie Fox
·         Jenna Bennett
·         Amanda Brice
·         Jennette Marie Powell
·         Clover Autrey
·         Carly Carson
·         E. Ayers
·         Genevieve Jourdin
·         CJ Lyons
·         Renee Pace
·         Sophia Knightley
·         Tori Scott
·         Meredith Bond
·         Anthea Lawson
·         Diana Layne
·         Lindsey Brookes
·         Gina Robinson
·         McKenna Chase
      Marie Hall
      H.P. Mallory



http://bookloversbuffetdotcom.wordpress.com/


And many, many more!

Hosted by Indie Romance Ink.

Using Life Tragedies as a Conduit to Stronger Writing

My dad passed away April 6th. Surgery was successful. Recovery was not.

His death was totally unexpected—one of life’s curve balls that comes at you from out-of-nowhere and leaves you wondering what hit you.

The past 24 days seem like a surreal episode in my life. I constantly revisit those last heart-wrenching hours spent at his ICU bedside willing him to live by telling him childhood stories to keep him with us until other family members could get there in time to say goodbye.

There is consolation that he went peacefully and not in pain while holding my hand, but I have a new understanding of what bittersweet really means.

What does this have to do with my writing?

About a week ago, it came to me that I’ve written a scene much like the one I experienced with my dad. My heroine holds her father in her arms as he dies from injuries sustained in a freak accident. My heroine tries to keep her father with her through the stories she tells him, but she is ultimately unsuccessful to stave off the inevitable.

My story is a finished, but unpublished historical family saga that I put aside three or four years ago because it just didn’t quite feel complete even though I’d typed The End on the last page of 120,000 words.

Now I know why.

The characters have been waiting for me to deepen the death scene. It’s a critical scene that changes the heroine’s life. It is her darkest moment. The characters knew I could make that scene rip the readers’ hearts out once I personally experienced the angst, hopelessness, and heartbreak of losing my own father. I had to know those emotions—wallow in them, rail against them—before my characters could own them.

I’m going to revisit that story and rewrite that scene while my own hurt is heavy in my heart. My characters deserve it, and I need it to help come to terms with some of my anger and sadness.

I even know who to dedicate the book to now.

Rest in peace, Dad.

Until next time,

Kaye

Fall in love…faster, harder, deeper with Kaye Spencer romances
www.kayespencer.com

The Goddess Brigid/Brigit

In honor of Beltaine, which arrives on May 1st, I decided to write a post about an important Celtic deity that is associated with spring.

Brigid is the most enduring of the Celtic goddesses. She has survived to this day as St. Brigid. She is part of the Irish gods and goddesses called Tuatha de Danaan who were originally a sea-faring race called Pelasgians that lived near the Aegean Sea. Considered a magical race, the Danaans possessed the knowledge of blacksmithing. According to the Book of Invasions, the Tuatha de Danaans were driven northward from Greece as a result of invasion from Syria, and eventually reached Ireland.

This popular goddess is also worshipped in Scotland (Bride), Britain (Brigantia) and Gaul (Brigandu) where a celebration in her honor takes place on February 1^st on Imbolc when the first signs of spring appear, usually when the ewe’s become pregnant. Brigid is a giver of plenty, and is loved and respected by ordinary people. Brigid also is a deity of learning, culture and skills, which equal the Greek Athena. Brigid is the daughter of the Dagda in some tales. A triple goddes, she is the goddess of poetry, inspiration and divination.

Brigid may once have been Brizo of Delos, a moon goddess, whose name is derived by the Greeks from the word, “brizein” meaning ‘to enchant.’ But as Brigid she is seen as a sun goddess, her name “Breosaighit” means ‘fiery arrow.’ It is not known how this change transpired. Maybe as a moon goddess, she was seen as a death aspect, and feared by humans so she was transformed into a sun goddess, a giver of life, to win the love of the humans. She may have been a goddess of metalworking as well. It is thought that she has a face that is beautiful on one side and ugly on the other.

Brigit has appeared in some form in a couple of my novels. In Beltaine’s Song, she is part of an ancient Celtic legend that revolves around the festivals of Beltaine and Samhain. Brigit represents the lighter half of the year, Beltaine. She awakes at Beltaine and sleeps during the darker half of the year, which starts on Samhain.

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

All three books of my Dark Goddess trilogy are available in Print and Ebook. Set in Dark Age Scotland, I mixed history with a Samhain/Beltaine myth that revolves around an Irish clan and the goddesses Brigit and Cailleach.

http://kelleyheckart.com/BookShelf.html

Another Great Way to Get Your Writing Noticed...

Last week, a college student asked (who read my first two books) if she could interview me for her writing class.  Thrilled she enjoyed by novels so much and chose my paranormal series was a great feeling. For me though promoting my work is very important, writing ‘for the love of it’ is what it’s all about.  

After doing the interview I sent her some promotional items to give out at her presentation.  This is just another way to have others learn of your work. Below is the interview questions she asked…  

D.A. Berry Interview

1~What is the most blatant lie you've ever told? Telling the truth no matter what the consequence is the right choice, and is the path I’ve always taken. Lies have a way of coming back to haunt you. And in the end, the truth always comes out…

Now in my novels sometimes my characters will mask the truth ‘to protect someone they love or care for’. However, the aftermath almost always leaves the one they lied to hurt and the untruthful character feeling awful because of their actions.

2~Are the names of your characters in your novels important? Yes, I do a ton of research before finalizing my character's names. The name must echo the character’s heritage, time period (they lived in) and most important their personality. How I begin is picturing a character in my mind, what are his or her good qualities, strengths and physical features. I also think about their weaknesses and how it affects their overall personality. 

3~What are the most important attributes to remain sane as a writer? First you can’t beat yourself up if at times the words just aren’t there when writing a chapter or trying to conclude the story. It happens, even to me. That is when you need to take a break, and give your creative mind a rest. Most times when you sit back down and begin typing the words just flow.

It’s also very important to remember not every critic or reader will like your work. You can’t allow every negative opinion or comment to affect you emotionally. Not all may relate to, or enjoy novels written about the genre you pen.

Last take pleasure in life and make time for those you love. Read one of your favorite author’s newest releases…you’ll be amazed at how rewarding getting lost in another’s work can be.

Thank you, for asking me to do this interview.

Sincerely,

D.A. Berry

D.A. Berry, h Author

My Website: www.daberryauthor.com

Vampire Series Novels~

A Deepened Hunger       Book #1

A Cry From Beyond     Book #2

Dark Secrets Anthology ~

Buried Secrets               Book #3

Ancient Secrets               Book #4

        

        

Meet the new addition to our family, Theia

 

 

 

Why Write in the Paranormal Genre?

I love creating. There are the amazing settings and situations in addition to fantastic characters beyond our imaginings. Nothing is ever so exotic as that which we do not know. Reading paranormal books, for me those are romances, is the opportunity to experience something beyond reality.

Let me feel the cool touch of a vampire's fingers as he caresses my neck. Or how about the shiver that runs down the spine at the warm breath of a demon lover. What powers are available to this amazing creature so different from us? One might only guess before turning the page to find out.

Then there are the shifters among the group. Cat, wolf, dog, and even dragon shifters are as alluring as any creature of the night. Their abilities to become something other than human and yet still maintain that humanity is intoxicating.

Those who have never written in the paranormal genre might wonder if they have the ability or imagination. Indeed, it's something each author struggles with as we strive to make our characters and storyline unique.

Here's the answer: Yes! One hundred percent if you love paranormal stories you should try your hand at writing them. Why? Because stretching the boundaries of imagination is an amazing experience. I never dreamed I'd write a demon who could cause imps to get horny by blowing a breath at them, but that's what happened in Love's Demon Ways.

What's fun about paranormal is that the ordinary doesn't exist. While a character may be mortal, that character's love for a paranormal creature is extraordinary in itself.

Imagination…

It is a wondrous expansion of our minds to places yet seen, characters yet known, and moments yet experienced.

This is my playground, how about you?

Mary

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Mary Corrales is a multi-published erotic romance author in genres including paranormal, futuristic and contemporary suspense.