How to Choose a Writer’s Conference

PJ here, happy to be on the East coast and back in my own bed…ahhhh. After doing this writing thing for a while, I’ve been to quite a few writer’s conferences, and I wanted to share my experience on how to choose the “right” conference for you. If you belong to RWA or a similar writer’s organization, you probably get inundated with lots of options. Here are a few things to think about.

Location/Accommodations: Check out the hotel venue and make sure the location is some place you’d like to stay for a few days. A bad night’s sleep, disappointing food, or poor quality hospitality can really put a damper on your stay. It’s worth visiting the hotel’s website and checking out their reviews. Make plans for car rental and recreational activities ahead of time so you don’t get there with hopes of visiting a locale on your “down time” only to find that you can’t get a car rental on short notice or the place you want to visit is closed. Although you are going for business, one of the perks of traveling is enjoying the sights along the way. Also, check to see what is around your hotel. Are there local restaurants and shopping within walking distance? Is there a gym? An indoor pool? Are you next to a train yard, airport, or in a bad section of the city? Some of these things may not be important to you, but if they are, make sure you know what you are paying for ahead of time. Scope out your hotel and surrounding area on Google maps.

Price: Is it affordable and worth the money for what you are getting? Are meals included? Are the speakers well known and knowledgeable? Is it worth your time, money, and effort? Remember to consider your loss of income while you’re away from your day job, and factor in any accrued costs such as wardrobe, entertainment, and additional travel fees (taxis, trains, buses etc.). Remember to save all receipts for tax purposes.

Focus of conference: Does the conference offer workshops that will help you further your career goals? If you are a newer writer, make sure there are craft workshops geared to what you’d like to learn. If you are seeking publication, are there opportunities to meet with agents and editors to pitch your story? Agent and editor panels offer a great opportunity to ask questions, find out what they are looking for, and hear the latest about the industry from publishing professionals. If you are a published author, do they offer promotion, marketing, and business oriented workshops? Interested in self-pubbing? Do they offer the most updated information available in this rapidly growing and changing aspect of the industry? If you are participating in a book signing, how successful have previous years been and how many readers can you expect to see? Shipping books is expensive, so ask for clear answers about realistic expectations. My experience is that print books don’t sell all that well at conferences and I rarely recoup the cost of shipping. I can see e-books being the way to go for future signings.

Networking: Conferences are a wonderful place to meet like-minded individuals and make professional contacts that you might never have the chance to meet otherwise. Don’t stalk the agents and editors but research them and know who you’d like to make a connection with. Make the effort to sit next to them at lunch or dinner (or in the bar). Be ready to talk intelligently about your work. Be prepared with a SHORT pitch of your WIP. Create a one or two sentence summary (log line) of what your story is about. The most common question asked at conferences is “What do you write?” The second most common question is “What is your story about?” Have an answer memorized and ready, and confidently smile as you give them your brief spiel. Don’t monopolize their time, but use the time wisely. If you get tongue tied and start rambling or their eyes begin to glaze over, stop talking and ask them a question about something unrelated. Where are you from? Are you a writer, too? Do you love baseball, zumba, pole dancing? Something that will put you at ease and take the heat off of you until you can collect yourself and get comfortable enough not to sound like an idiot. These are just people, but they are professionals and are there to FIND YOU! Respect their time, but don’t let your fear stop you from putting yourself out there.

Quality Speakers: I cannot stress this enough. Do some research on the speakers. What are their publishing/professional credentials? Just because they are there, doesn’t mean they are interesting, entertaining, or an expert in their field. Have they done this workshop before? How many times? Ask around to other writers and check out the websites of your presenters. If they don’t have a professional website that is engaging and informative, it might be an indicator that they aren’t all that well organized.

Organization: If you’ve ever participated in organizing a conference, you know about the gazillion moving parts and the army of people it takes to put on a seamless production. Of course there are always things that go wrong or details that get missed, but overall, organizers want it to be a good experience for everyone and they want attendees to return year after year to support the effort. If they don’t return e-mails, or answer your questions clearly up front, chances are the conference won’t be much better organized than the individuals running it. Conferences are generally a way for organizations to make money to support writers and their endeavors, so organizers (who are all volunteers, so be patient and kind to these people) are invested in making your conference experience successful. If there are suggestions you have for improvements, be sure to share them with conference organizers.

Image courtesy of Petr Kratochvil http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/view-image.php?image=3421&picture=apples-and-pears

And last but not least, Food: You might have to contact the conference organizers for this information, but it’s worth asking about the menu ahead of time. If you have dietary restrictions or just want to make sure that some healthy selections are available, it’s worth the added effort to ensure that your needs are known ahead of time. You also have the option of doing a bit of shopping when you get settled in and stocking your hotel room refrigerator (make sure one is available in your room when you book your reservation) with fruit, yogurt, water, etc. so you can avoid the breakfast buffets that offer all those yummy bagels, pastries, muffins, and such. Will there be adequate chocolate selection at breaks? Just sayin’.

Unlocked Secret: Do your research, guys. There are enough choices for quality conferences around the country and your educational dollars are valuable, so make them count and get the most of your experience.

I hope to see you all at the RWA National convention in Atlanta this summer. It’s shaping up to be a fabulous time!

Any other tips for our readers to help them find a quality conference? What has been your favorite conference experience? Any funny experiences you’d like to share from the “trenches”?

Inspirational Fiction Authors: Enter the IRCA or the TBL!

Hello, Katy Lee here with a contest opportunity for all you Inspy Authors. Perhaps, though you wonder why you should enter your book. Well, because the Inspirational Reader’s Choice Award is a unique contest. The judges for the IRCA are readers of Christian fiction, but are not involved in the publishing industry. They are readers ONLY.

Chip MacGregor of MacGegor Literary Agency interviewed Nancy J. Farrier, the contest coordinator this week. (For the complete interview, check out Mr. MacGregor’s Blog here.) But here are a few reasons Nancy says the IRCA can help you as an author.

“The past thirteen years I have coordinated the IRCA. I read many comments from the judges. Comments that we promised to keep private, but are often so exciting I want to send them to the author as encouragement. I’ll share a few of those comments anonymously below:

Tremendously wonderful read!…I had to have [the author’s] other books, so I ran out and bought them.

…I would definitely recommend this book and will be looking into other books by the author…

New author for me to read, but I will look for more of her books.

As a published author, think of the possibilities for reaching new readers if you entered the Inspirational Reader’s Choice Award. Fans this excited would love telling everyone else about your book.”

Thanks, Nancy! And those are great reasons to enter!

Now, maybe you’re not published yet. Not to worry! The RWA Faith, Hope, and Love Chapter also offers the Touched by Love contest, open to unpublished writers. Check it out here.

And to enter the IRCA click here.

Don’t wait though. Deadline is March 1, 2013!

The Unlocked Secret: Contests can give a writer the boost they need to reach a wider audience, whether it be an editor for an unpubbed writer, or a new reader for an author. It will be worth your time and money to enter. So even if the TBL or IRCA isn’t for you, search out the contests that match your genre. Find the contest that will get your work into the desired hands that will increase your audience. You can’t go wrong! And good luck!

 

2013 Writers Conferences

I’ve only ever been to two writer’s conferences. They both were put on by my local RWA chapter (CTRWA). I usually like to be a worker bee on conference day, so I tend to miss all the great work shops and networking that a lot of other people might enjoy on conference day. This year I plan to change that. (I got a book coming out in August!) Of course I’m going to be working my own chapter’s conference but this year I plan to attend some others.

In the past one of the major reasons I didn’t attend other conferences was the cost. RWA’s National conference was way WAY out of my budget. The registration fee alone is more than my car payment and my electricity bill combined. Even local conferences can be expensive. Besides the registration fees, they require travel and sometimes a stay overnight in a hotel. For a lot of us that is just not feasible.

BUT I think it is important for writers to attend conferences. I know a few writers who have snagged agents and or book deals from the pitch sessions. It’s a chance to meet other writers, to make friendships,to get your name out there, to learn from other writers. And if you don’t have a fear of public speaking, to teach writers some of the things you know by giving a workshop.

This year I have set money aside just so I can go to a couple of conferences. (Goodbye very sexy expensive Isabella Cole lace up booties. I’ll be with you in my dreams.)

I’m still an extreme newbie to this whole writing thing and I know I’ve got a lot to learn.  So I’ve been looking at some of the conferences.  The New England Chapter of the RWA is hosting their conference April 26-27 in Massachusetts. The price is $219 if you register before March 1st. They’ve got some pretty big names attending. If you want to check it out here’s the link.  http://necrwa.org/blog1/conference/  Plus my friends TL Costa and Peter Andrews will be there giving workshops.

Then there is the Backspace Writer’s conference  May 23-25, 2013 with agent extraordinaire Donald Mass giving a workshop. This conference seems less romance friendly than some others but still valuable to attend. The early bird price is $595. The regular is $720. Plus it’s in NYC which means expensive hotel rooms.  But if you got the cash to spare…   http://www.backspacewritersconference.com/

Then there is the mother of all Romance conferences. RWA’s annual conference, which I’m planning to attend, will be held July 12-20 in Atlanta. The cost? $450 if you register early. $500 if you don’t. I hear this conference is an absolute blast and besides all the networking opportunities you really learn about the romance industry. So I plan to go and will be convincing my friends to save their pennies so I won’t have to go alone. http://www.rwa.org/p/cm/ld/fid=559

(Goodbye pretty Michael Kors handbag. Maybe I’ll see you in another life.)

So today I need to know from you all, what conferences have you attended? Which are the most beneficial  Which are the most fun? Which are the most cost effective? And which ones are you planning to attend? Maybe I’ll see you there.

Get Over Yourself!

Hey, all. Suze here. Welcome.

Last night I attended a talk by a famous author at our local library. (I was horrified by the poor turnout, despite quite a bit of publicity, but that’s the subject of another post).

Now at the same time this talk was scheduled, a writers’ group was also meeting informally in another part of the library. And when I say “writers’ group,” I mean a group of people who get together once or twice a month and exchange pages and discuss each other’s work. The librarian in charge of the event approached the group to let them know that a New York Times bestselling author was speaking. Great opportunity, right? They could come in and ask questions and learn about the writing process and the publishing industry from someone who had achieved great success.

And not a one of them came.

I’m not kidding. They stayed huddled in their little group, apparently too wrapped up in themselves and their “art,” to meet someone who has achieved what I’ll bet each of them wants: publication.

Now I’m not knocking small writers’ groups. If I had not found the guts to walk into one a few years ago, I wouldn’t have met J Monkeys and Casey Wyatt and PJ Sharon, and I wouldn’t have a completed manuscript and a couple more in progress, and I wouldn’t be blogging to you from the Seven Scribes today. But there came a time when we realized we needed more than we could get from each other if we wanted to be published, and that’s when we rushed our local RWA chapter, even though we’re not all writing romance.

It ain’t all about the art. (Well, for some people maybe it is, but you’ve still got to get it published somehow) And it ain’t all about the genre, either. Good, sellable writing is, well, good sellable writing, and it doesn’t matter if it’s romance, mystery, YA, sci-fi, paranormal, or even (spoken in a hushed tone) literary. We’ve all got plenty to learn from each other. In fact, I’d argue that exposing ourselves to different genres and styles of writing makes whatever we’re working on fresher and stronger. As the teenaged Crown Prince of Hardydom is so fond of telling me, “Don’t judge.”

How about you? Any missed opportunities you want to admit to? Secret biases you want to come clean about (the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem, LOL!)? If you don’t feel like confessing, tell us about a great speaker you’ve heard.

Fireworks, Friends, and Fun

Hello all,

I’m so excited about bringing Market or Die back among the living and among friends as well. I’d like to give a huge thanks to the Scribes for inviting me to join them on a permanent basis. I’ll be here every other Wednesday spouting everything from marketing tips, gabbing with guest authors and occasionally throwing in a picture of the very sexy Alexander Skarsgard, just for fun.

Since my last blog about all things marketing for writers, I’ve had the distinct pleasure of being honored by the Women and Families Center in Meriden, CT for “Leadership for Women in the Arts,” and to speak at the NECRWA, the Fiction Fest conference, and in a few weeks I’m bringing my marketing woo-ha on the road to RWA’s national conference in Anaheim. I hope I get to see some of you there.

So, for this post, I thought I’d leave it open ended and ask you guys to ask me anything you like, so we can get to know each other better. For those who don’t know me, I am the Creative and Brand Manager for the General Electric Company, and the author of the series, MARKET OR DIE, marketing books for writers. Currently, I am a member of the (ANA) Association of National Advertisers and believe brand building is a key to professional success.

In my writing life, I’m a member of RWA’s PRO network and serve as the President of the Connecticut Romance Writers. A writer of Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance, I’m currently represented by literary agent, Eric Ruben. And, last but not least, I contribute bi-monthly to the Romance Writers of America’s RWR Report. Feel free to check out my website at www.marketordie.net and I certainly look forward to getting to know all of you very soon.

Have a happy 4th of July!!

How I Got My Agent….

I finally got an agent! Hip hip hooray, YES!, YAY! and every other happy word I can think of. But let me tell you this process was not an easy one. It took years.

Me jumping for joy!

I started writing in 2007, my senior year of college. From the beginning I wrote romance. I blame Susan Elizabeth Phillips’ THIS HEART of MINE, which was the first contemporary romance I had ever read. (Till this day I still have a soft spot for Kevin and Molly.) And Jennifer Crusie whose BET ME introduced me to Minerva and Cal and was the only book I’ve ever read twice in a row. You know when a book is good when you still remember the characters names years after putting it down.

As a writer I knew I wanted to accomplish that. I had to accomplish that. I’m the kind of person that once she decides she is going to be good at something doesn’t stop till she gets there. So I wrote BY HAND, (gasp) for years. Full novels in notebooks while I read every romance novel I could get my hands on. This was my training period. I had no clue what the RWA was or that local writing groups existed. All I knew was that I wanted to write. And so I did, like a job, I wrote everyday, getting a little better.

In 2008 I completed( typed) my first novel and sent it out to about a dozen agents. In the back of my mind I knew it wasn’t ready. It was too long. The plot was a little all over the place and the genre wasn’t clearly defined. I didn’t know that then though. I didn’t know much except that I wanted to be a writer.

A few more embarrassingly bad hand written manuscripts and one semi decent one later I decided to enter a contest. I really wanted feedback. I knew I could write but I didn’t know much about the art of writing. It was then the writing Gods interfered and introduced me to my Fairy Writing Godmother Kristan Higgins who suggested I join a local writers group. From these people I learned about community and what it really feels like to have people truly want the best for you.

I also learned practical things like… I suck at commas.( Thank you, Jane.) And sometimes I am far too wordy. I make my heroes say stuff that most self-respecting men would never say. (Thank you, Christine.) I tend to over complicate my plots. And I use You’re when I mean Your.

They helped me learn from my mistakes, showed me it was okay to have practice manuscripts.(Thank you PJ Sharon.) So when I sat down to write the book that got me my agent I was determined to write a good one.

I know I didn’t write the next great American novel but I wrote a book I could be proud of.  (I promise I’m getting to the good part now. Damn writers and their back story!)

So I sent it out into the world and ended up getting 6 full requests. 3 partial requests and a hell of a lot of rejections. I queried 51 agents since December 16, 2011. I was getting frustrated by the whole process. The funny thing was I never received a rejection on a full manuscript. I actually wanted one of those, just for the feedback alone. Three of those agents had my book for months and each day of silence was making me more and more discouraged.

But then it all happened so quickly. I got a request for a full. Then the next day I got a call from that agent offering me representation. As soon as I hung up with her one of my dream agents requested a full, when I told her I had just been offered representation she asked me not to sign anything until she got the chance to read it. By that time I was ready to barf. Two agents! And if that wasn’t enough my fairy god writing mother was bragging (as all good fairy writing god mother’s should) that I had just received an offer to yet another agent.  That agent asked that I email her. So I sent off my manuscript and the day after that I got another call.

I really and truly fell in agent love with Emmanuelle Morgen. Love LOVE LURVE! The other agents were nice but Emmanuelle rang every bell, told me exactly what I could expect from her and what she would expect from me. She didn’t make me huge promises and was up front with everything. Explaining the history of the agency, who her clients were, what advances were like, what houses were the best for authors. We talked about the future, and long-term goals and that was before she ever offered me representation. I hung up the phone after our forty minute conversation and felt like this woman will do her best to get the best for me.

I’m not the type of person who can have laid back agent. I need someone who is going to be on my tail to help me create the best book I can. And so when Emmanuelle said I needed to get on those edits and cut down my word count by 5- 10k and get it back to her by Friday morning. I busted my ass to do so. By Friday afternoon I had my work with five houses. All of this happened in the span of two weeks.

People who see me wonder why I’m not shaking with excitement.(Well, I barely gotten any sleep these past two weeks) But I am excited and grateful and happy, but I’m also a realist. I know that crap happens, and despite the best of intentions books don’t always make it to publishing. And until I see my book on a shelf I’m going to keep my optimism cautious. And I’ll never stop learning how to be the best writer I can be.

Sooo thank you to all my CTRWA members who have cheered me on. And to my fellow scribes, especially Casey who has seen my book at it’s worst and still encouraged me to finish it. And to Kristan Higgins who has been the best Fairy Writing God Mother a girl could ask for.

Workin’ for the Weekend

I don’t know about you, but I’ve had one heck of a week since the last time we met here at the Scribes blog.

I’ve been super busy getting ready for this weekend, as in day after tomorrow. Our RWA chapter (CTRWA) is hosting a writer’s conference on Saturday. We’ve got 135 attendees, 15 workshops, and 15 editors and agents ready to take pitches. This year I’m involved in the planning and execution phase of the conference, and let me tell you, unless you’ve seen it firsthand, you would not bee-leeve the amount of work that goes into preparation for a conference of this size and scope. Others have worked far, far harder than I (you know who you are), so I’m not looking for sympathy here! The next time you attend a conference — even if it turns out to be not everything you’d hoped for — take the time to thank the organizers, who are probably volunteers. You could also buy them a drink, just sayin’.

Dream it and Achieve it, Baby!

In the midst of the preconference frenzy, I’ve been putting final touches on my manuscript and practicing my pitch for the agents and editors I’ve targeted as likely to want my story. Consequently, I’m going to keep this post short and sweet. Very sweet. Here’s one of my family’s favorite cookie recipes. Hope you enjoy it! And if you decide to make it, could you drop a few off at my house? I just don’t have time to make my own right now!

ORANGE DREAM COOKIES

• 2-1/4 c. flour
• 3/4 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1 c. butter
• 1/2 c. granulated sugar
• 1/2 c. light brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 T. finely grated orange peel (orange part only, not the bitter pith)
• 2 cups (or one package) white chocolate chips
• 1 cup orange flavored dried cranberries (such as Craisins) – optional, but I like the way they “tart up” these quite sweet cookies and intensify the orange flavor

Stir together the flour, baking soda and salt. In a larger, separate bowl, cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add the egg and orange peel and mix well. Stir in the dry ingredients, then the white chocolate chips and cranberries.

Drop by rounded teaspoonsful onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment or silicone baking mat, and bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes, or until just set and very lightly browned. Don’t overbake these cookies, as the chips tend to get grainy and the cranberries get too dry.

Enjoy!  And if you’re pitching this weekend, Good Luck! I’d love to hear how you’ve prepared yourself.

Top Three Reasons to Take and Teach Workshops

How is it Tuesday already? PJ Sharon here, bringing to you my top three reasons to both take writing workshops and give them. Of course my main reason is that I’m a firm believer in lifelong learning. I also think we owe it to ourselves and others to pay it forward when we learn something useful. After all, sharing ideas is the reason we write.

I just finished taking an online workshop called YA Heroes Journey, offered by my YARWA buddies Jennifer McAndrews and Linda Gerber. It was excellent! I loved how they were able to give me immediate feedback on my WIP and help me to improve my grasp of plot, character archetypes, and the deeper motivations of my hero and heroine.

Over the past six years, I have taken dozens of online workshops through RWA’s individual chapters, Savvy Authors, and YARWA (young adult chapter of RWA), and have never been disappointed. In addition to these online workshops, I’ve had the privilege of attending the RWA National convention five times, CT Fiction Fest four times, and a Romantic Times Booklovers Convention for the first time this year. All of these venues offer incredible workshops and endless opportunities for networking—not to mention tons of fun!

 Here are my top three reasons why you should take writing workshops:

1)      To hone your craft. When I began writing down the crazy stories in my head, I had no idea there were so many rules to writing. From point of view and plot, to balancing dialogue and narrative, I felt as if I could study the craft for the rest of my life and barely scratch the surface of all there is to know. I make it a point to take workshops as often as I possibly can.

2)      Feedback on your WIP. This is probably one of the most valuable parts of taking a workshop. So many times, we struggle through the rough patches of our stories and suffer alone, feeling as if we can’t see our work objectively or find the forest through the trees. It’s great to have critique partners, but it’s also good to have objective individuals give you a fresh perspective on your work.

3)      Affordable and focused education. It takes about $30,000 and more than a couple of years of your time to obtain an MFA. During that time, you spend a considerable amount of energy focusing on literary critique of published works, reading and writing poetry, and working to earn grades rather than working on your own projects. Not that this is entirely a bad thing, but if you are planning to write genre fiction, it might not be the best use of your time and resources. The workshops I’ve taken range from $10-$25, are taught by talented and dedicated writers and published authors, and last anywhere from a couple of weeks to a month. A very wise and doable investment in my opinion. You can take the workshops you need, when you need them, and take them for a fraction of the cost of college courses.

In addition to all of this fabulous learning, I’ve come to appreciate the benefits of teaching. Over the years I’ve taught ice skating and yoga classes, done personal training with individuals and groups, and given workshops on health and fitness related topics. I’ve hesitated to jump into the arena of teaching writing workshops, mainly because I still feel like a newbie in so many ways. It probably doesn’t help that I teach a monthly writing class to a group of teens who constantly make me aware that they are much smarter than I am.

 But after doing a craft corner last year for the CTRWA group about writing fight scenes, I realized that indeed I do have something to offer by way of workshops. I know about martial arts, I know what makes a good fight scene, and I’ve taken a few workshops on the topic. So by popular demand, I’ll be offering my very first workshop, “Fun with Fight Scenes,” at the upcoming CT Fiction Fest conference on May 12^th. Other presenters include Kristan Higgins, Jessica Andersen, Toni Andrews, and Jennifer Fusco, just to name a few. We also have the fabulous Sherry Thomas as our keynote speaker. Incidentally, there will be plenty of opportunities to pitch your story to some of the best agents and editors in the business. You won’t want to miss it! 

Here are my top three reasons to give a workshop:

1)      Share knowledge with other writers. If you’ve been working to hone your craft for a few years and have worked hard to complete a few novels, you know a little something about writing. Even if you don’t feel up to the task of teaching “on writing,” I’d bet  there is some area of expertise you could share with your fellow writers that would give them a leg up on their WIP.

2)      Networking. There is no better way to get exposure to new people than to teach a workshop at a conference or online. Getting our faces and our talents in front of industry professionals is an incredible marketing opportunity. If you are in the “business” of writing, setting yourself apart as an expert or authority on a sought after topic is a great way to get some notice.

3)      Public speaking experience. Again, if you are planning a career as a writer, there will be many occasions where you will be required to present yourself publically. Whether it’s pitching your story to an agent or editor, or doing a radio or TV interview, the more experience you have with public speaking, the better prepared you’ll be for whatever opportunities come your way.

 If you haven’t been to a conference in a while (or ever), there is still time to sign up for CT Fiction Fest. I’d love to see you there!

 What was the last workshop you took? Have you ever taught one? I’d love some tips on how to make mine stand out.

A Tale of Two Turkeys

Happy Thursday again, and Happy First Day of December, you wonderful Scribe fans!  Suze here.  It’s great to see you all again after the long Thanksgiving weekend.

Before we get to the “meat” of this post, some business.  If you’re a writer and you haven’t entered CTRWA’s Write Stuff contest, what are you waiting for?  There are still a few days left.  First prize in each category is a hundred bucks, which you know you want.  Go for it!  Click here for details.

Now, I know you’re all dying to find out what happened last Thursday at my mom’s house.  Remember?  The turducken?  Click here for a link to last week’s post so you can get yourselves up to speed if you missed it.

The Famous World War I Flying Ace - Suze's favorite balloon!

Mr. Suze and our son and I spent the morning at our remote woodland cabin, alternately watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and an awe-inspiring trio of bald eagles circling not too far overhead — two golden brown juveniles and an adult with a snowy white head and tail.  Once the parade and the aerobatics show were over, we headed over to Mom’s.

She wasn’t home.   We knew she wouldn’t be there yet, because she was doing volunteer work at her church.  So we brought in the box of turducken, and I set about preparing it for cooking.  Hmmm. A frown creased my forehead.  A distinctive aroma permeated the kitchen, and it wasn’t coming from my still-raw Turducken.  A tiny orangey light caught my eye.  Not a Faulknerian Light in August, but a very suspicious Light in the Oven.

I investigated further.  I strode to the oven.  I threw open the door.  A blast of hot air hit me in the face as I discovered — you guessed it — a 20 pound turkey, skin brown and crispy, hissing poultry steam from the vent holes in the old blue enamelware roaster pan.

Nearly four hundred years of family Thanksgiving tradition simply could not be denied.  Mr. Suze just shook his head.

I pulled out the cooked bird and replaced it with the turducken, prepared according to the package directions (leave it in the cooking bag and place on a baking sheet in a 400 degree oven).  Mom came in the door shortly afterward.

“Oh, good,” she said.  ”My turkey’s done.”  She had the grace to look a little sheepish (pardon my mixing of farm animals here).  ”I had to cook the turkey.  Ooh, is that the turducken?”

She never did say why she “had” to cook the turkey.  Was it because the turkey was about to spoil and “had” to be cooked?  (unappetizing, but entirely possible)  Or was she simply compelled by a force greater than herself to cook that bird on the fourth Thursday of November?  The world may never know.

As for the turducken, reviews were mixed.  Like most prepared foods, this bizarre hybrid concoction was overly salty, or at least the rice stuffing was.  Maybe a “homemade” turducken would be better, but I can tell you that personally I will not be deboning and stuffing three birds anytime soon.  The turkey layer was judged to be fine.  The duck layer was generally not hated, but not really liked.  As for the chicken core, it tasted pretty much like the turkey layer, which is probably why chicken and turkey are never mixed together in recipes.

The other turkey ended up being sliced up for sandwiches the next day, and I made my famous Black Friday Stew with the carcass.  (I’ll give you that recipe soon).

What about you?  Do you have habits that you just can’t break, no matter how hard you try?  Inquiring Scribes want to know!

A Little Bit of Blackmail — Interview with Author RC Bonitz

Happy Thursday, Scribe fans!  Suze here.  Today I’m very happy to be interviewing RC Bonitz, whose debut novel, A Little Bit of Blackmail, was

A LITTLE BIT OF BLACKMAIL

released in digital form on November 4 and is now available in print form as well from Silver Publishing and Amazon.  Click here to buy Bob’s book and to see other offerings from Silver.  Without further ado, here’s Bob:

How do you battle the Doubt Monster?  Doubt Monster: the nagging feeling while writing, that your prose is terrible, your plot is silly, your characters are insipid, and no one in their right mind would read this drivel, let alone buy it.

The DM used to win every time. My first book was revised so many times the original story disappeared. We all have  to learn to trust our own judgment. That becomes easier as you go along and learn; at least it did for me. I’ve been writing a sequel to A LITTLE BIT OF BLACKMAIL  and just decided it was all wrong. There was no doubt in that decision. I knew what it needed, so I’m starting again.

Have you thought about writing something that is completely different for you?  Perhaps writing in a new genre or just taking a story someplace that you haven’t gone before?

I’ve written suspense, a historical love story, a variety of short stories as well as the sweet romance. Played with a mystery too, and a children’s book of wizards and monsters. My grandkids all became qualified wizards in that one. I haven’t tried vampires yet- can’t seem to get into them.

Author Bob Bonitz

What is the most surprising thing that has happened in your writing career?

The recent sale of my first book,  A BLANKET FOR HER HEART. It’s been sitting on the shelf a while. An author I met via email she said she had started a publishing house. Did I have anything to send her? Well, I hunted up the file on A BLANKET FOR HER HEART  and sent it off to her.The next day she came back and said she loved it, wanted it. We signed a contract a week later.  [Suze's note:  We'll be sure to let you know when A BLANKET FOR HER HEART is available.  Check back soon!]

What would you do if you couldn’t be a writer any longer?

I’d find a way. I’ve never worked so hard or had as much fun in my life. I dictate now (voice recognition) and use large print, but that’s just scratching the surface of what can be done.

They say that every author has a partially completed, quite-possibly-terrible half a story shoved in a drawer somewhere.  What is yours?  What is it about?  What makes it terrible?  Would you ever consider picking it up and finishing it?

My secret story is  HANNAH, about a young woman who flees her parent’s poverty stricken farm in England, determined to go to America and make her fortune. It’s the best writing I’ve ever done, but it was heading for a tragic ending so I put it aside. I’m thinking of changing the direction of the plot and going back to it one of these days.  [Suze's note:  Bob!  Not every book has to have an HEA.  This sounds like a great story!}

Author Jane Haddam says that anyone who seriously annoys her gets bumped off in her next book.  How do you incorporate your real-life experiences into your stories? 

I'm sure I use my life experiences, but more than anything I write my dreams. They're a bit more interesting than my suburban life. I do incorporate things I've learned over the years, but my characters are pure invention.

You are a guy writing romance, a genre that has traditionally been a woman's provenance.  What made you decide to write romance?  Who are your favorite romance authors?

Interesting question. I was writing pure love stories because I'm a romantic, but I was getting nowhere with sales. (I wrote horrible query letters before Kristan Higgins taught me her secrets.)  At my wife's suggestion I went to hear Suzanne Brockmann speak and came away impressed with her ideas on why one should write romance novels. So, I checked online and found CTRWA and here I am.  [Suze's note:  CTRWA is the Connecticut Chapter of Romance Writers of America, and Kristan Higgins is one of our goddesses]

Your book, A LITTLE BIT OF BLACKMAIL, released on November 4 and is available through Amazon as of November 9.  What has been your experience working with Silver Publishing, a digital press?

Silver Publishing has been wonderful thus far, giving me a lot of input in the editing and cover design processes.  Dancing With Bear Publishing has given me a contract for A BLANKET FOR HER HEART, which will come out after the first of the year. They have already scheduled and gotten me on blog talk radio to do the first promotion for the book. I can’t speak to their edit process since we haven’t started that yet.

Both publishers will produce ebook versions in just about every possible format, as well as paperback versions. And both pay high royalties. I can’t say enough about both houses- I’m  very impressed so far.

What was your biggest misstep in your writing career so far?

I would say two things. First, I wrote an entire novel before I knew how to write well. And second, once I thought I knew what I was doing I kept trying for perfection. I think most of us do that to a point. Going back to read our finished, polished manuscript always gives us fits. How could I have written that, we groan in despair. Oh crap, I’ll never be a writer.  Start again. I finally took a strategy of Jess Andersen’s. send it out and see what happens.  [Suze's note: Another goddess -- Jessica Andersen, author of many Harlequin romantic suspense novels and the Nightkeeper series] 

Do you have a word-related pet peeve?

Descriptions that read like shopping lists. My eyes glaze over and I’m gone.

What is your junk food of choice?

Nothing beats ice cream. Moose Tracks (California variety), rum raisin, vanilla fudge with lots of fudge.

What’s the most dangerous or risky thing that you’ve done?

In my lifetime? Wow, lots. Some might say telling my wife I’d marry her on our first date, but I considered that a sure thing. Maybe sailing a little boat in 55 knot winds and ten foot seas on Long Island Sound not too many years ago? Or, as a kid, riding a bike at 60 plus mph down a long steep curving mountain road. Those come to mind at the moment.

What is your guilty pleasure? {Remember: this is a ‘G’ rated blog! }

Those reside in my dreams and won’t ever make my books!

Thanks for being here today, Bob.  Readers, Bob will drop by periodically throughout the day to answer your questions, so stay tuned.