GUEST AUTHOR: Helene Young - "Setting Goals - Are You Game?"

Are you someone who has a game plan? Do you set goals – short term and long term?

Helene Young

In 2008 I typed up a large sign that said ‘I will have a publishing contract by the end of 2008’ and stuck it on the office wall. I forgot it was there and Christmas rolled around with its string of visitors.

With the house overflowing, friends used the office to get changed into swimming togs.

‘What’s with the sign?’ one of them asked.

‘The sign? Oh, the sign… Umm…’ I struggled for words, feeling my cheeks heat up. Then it hit me like a smack over the ear. I needed to say it out aloud.

By going public with my goal it became more real, more urgent. Up until then I was pretty much working alone at something I aspired to achieve. Once I’d articulated that dream it became something I couldn’t back away from.  By the middle of 2009 I had a contract with Hachette.

A few months ago I stumbled across a blog that caught my attention – http://thepilotswife-thepilotswife.blogspot.com.au/

The writer was married to a pilot who works for the same airline as I do, although I’ve never met him. Her blog was about motherhood and pregnancy - not topics I usually follow closely - but there was something compelling about her writing, her voice and her use of words that kept me sporadically reading. Then one day, she came clean. She was an aspiring writer with plans to finish her first book. Bravo, I thought, and I left a comment to that effect because she’s taken that first step to treating this writing gig as a goal, something serious she will achieve.

I now have a new goal, and it’s nothing to do with writing. By the end of 2012 GW, Zeus and I will be living aboard a yacht. There, I’ve said it out aloud and now I just have to make it happen!

So, are you with me? Do you have goals you whisper to yourself when no one else is around? Here’s your chance – put it out there in the universe and get going! Tell us what it is you are going to achieve.

You’ll go into the running for a copy of the last goal which I turned it reality – BURNING LIES – and yes, I’ll post anywhere in the world!!

Find Helene at http://www.heleneyoung.com
Follow her on Facebook.
Tweet her on: https://twitter.com/HeleneYoung 

BURNING LIES
“Lies, all lies. It didn't matter how attractive he might be. She didn't really know this man . . . He was living a lie and she didn't know why.
”

Kaitlyn Scott is searching for the truth about her husband's death, even if that means revisiting the most painful day of her life. But what she uncovers is a criminal willing to stop at nothing to keep his secret.


Ryan O'Donnell, an enigmatic undercover cop, is investigating arson attacks when he is drawn into Kaitlyn's world. He tries to fight his attraction for her, hoping the case might put his own demons to rest, but it only threatens to push him over the edge.


With Kaitlyn and Ryan on a collision course, the arsonist seizes the chance to settle some old scores. As the Atherton Tableland burns, the three of them are caught in a fiery dance of danger and desire, and not everyone will come out alive.
Set in Australia's tropical far north, this is an explosive story of peril and passion by the author voted by the Romance Writers of Australia as the most popular novelist of the year, and by the Australian Romance Readers Association as the most popular romantic suspense novelist two years running.

GUEST AUTHOR: Phillipa Fioretti

My next guest was born and raised in Sydney and has studied humanities, visual arts and museum studies.

She's also worked as a printmaker and taught drawing and media studies at tertiary institutions before becoming a full time author in late 2006.

After she finished her third manuscript Phillipa Fioretti saw an ad for the Hachette Australia/Queensland Writers Centre Manuscript Development Program and applied. She received the acceptance call for the five-day program in the supermarket.

The rest, they say, is history. Phillipa was picked up by with Hachette Australia in January 2009 and offered a two-book contract.

Phillipa, welcome!

Let's learn a little bit more about your latest release... 

Title – THE FRAGMENT OF DREAMS.
Setting – Sydney and Naples, Italy.
Hero – William Isyanov. 
Heroine – Lily Trevennen.
Scene you would never cut – the scene where William discovers she’s in Naples and he had no idea.
Something your heroine would never do or say – Lily would never wear massage sandals or chew gum.
What's one quirky thing about your heroine? Lily loves making jam and wearing beaded clothes and day dreaming. 

What do you think the readers will like about this book? 

The characters and the setting, the mystery and the romance. The book can be read as a stand-alone title but is also the sequel to The Book of Love in which we meet Lily and William and find out how they got together. 

THE FRAGMENT OF DREAMS
Exciting and romantic, THE FRAGMENT OF DREAMS is a tale of how far some people will go for those they love.

Lily and William are back in Sydney, in love and planning a life together, when Lily’s sister Poppy comes to stay. Poppy has discovered a mystery surrounding their father’s death, but her determination to dig deeper into their family’s past unwittingly sets off a series of events that plunge Lily and William into a nightmare of suspicions, accusations and jealousy.

Unexpectedly, William must return to Rome to start a new job, and left behind, Lily’s loyalty and belief in him is tested as the Australian police probe his past. But as the sister’s come closer to uncovering the lies deep within their family, Lily realises that the truth about William, and about their father, can only be found by travelling to one of the world’s most beautiful and menacing cities – Naples.

During the sultry Neapolitan summer, Lily discovers that the past lives on in a family riven by lost loves and broken loyalties, a family divided in a way that makes her struggle back to William more dangerous than she could ever imagine.

What's next for you? 

Another book with new characters – which is possibly more fraught than it sounds. 

About you...
Favorite movie of all time – I don’t have one favourite, but a film I can watch again and again is A Streetcar Named Desire with Vivien Leigh and Marlon Brando
Favorite fairytale – The one about the girl with seven brothers whom an evil witch turns into swans and she has to knit clothes for them out of some magical herb in order to turn them back into humans
Favorite story to disappear into – Hopefully whatever I’m reading.
Favorite TV program – ABC 4 24 hr news channel. On an extended trip to the US I became addicted to their twenty four hour weather channel; I fear the same thing is happening now with me and ABC 4. 
First book you remember reading – Edward Lear’s Nonsense Alphabet. I remember my father reading it to me and being desperate to get my hands on it and read it myself.
Dog or cat person (or other) – I’m pretty much an all round animal person. Love dogs, cats, rabbits, bison, tigers, all of them really.
Author (living or dead) you'd most like to meet – Patrick White, although I’d find him a bit scary, no doubt.
A romantic retreat for you would be...Anywhere that I don’t have to cook, wash and micro-manage everybody else’s lives, and preferably somewhere where others cook for me, wash everything and allow me oodles of free time to play.

What do you do to unwind or relax? 

I don’t do either of those things unless I am completely removed from my normal habitat. So going on a holiday is the best way for me to relax. 

What era would you like to time travel and visit? And why?

There’s a few eras, but at this point in time, I’d say I’d like to be living in Crete at the height of the ancient Minoan civilization. I’d want to be an independently wealthy female who could do as she pleased but have lovers on the side. That could prove tricky but I’d be willing to give it a go.

I’d like to time travel there because I’d like to immerse in an alien culture and just see existence from a different point of view.

What does love mean to you? 

Another tough question. Love is a really dangerous energy and when focussed in the wrong direction or on the wrong person it can be incredibly painful. Romantic, passionate love is what I’m referring to here. When you get it right it’s all consuming and exciting and powerfully motivating. But few of us can live at that level. I’m not sure I ever want to go there again – because you never get anything done.

Intimacy and companionable love built on friendship is probably more nourishing and durable. And then there is love for one’s children. I’d kill for my two children. That mother love thing is frighteningly powerful and I love watching films or reading books about fierce mothers. Henry Moore, the British sculptor said the only enduring form of human love is between mother and child. I think he had a point.

Phillipa's other book:

You can find out more about Phillipa on her website, her Facebook page or follow her on Twitter.

SHATTERED SKY & WINGS OF FEAR winners!

There were a lot of fun, unusual places mentioned in the comments section of Helene Young's interview. I felt like Mr.X travelling the globe! "The Horn", Deadman's Bay, Antartica, a cemetery beneath the Vatican...

Thank you again to Helene for generously donating two books - SHATTERED SKY and WINGS OF FEAR.

Names were randomly drawn.

The winner of SHATTERED SKY is...

Tina C.

The winner of WINGS OF FEAR is...

 

Carol Challis

Congratulations!

If both these people could contact Helene - heleneyoung01(at)gmail(dot)com - she can arrange to get your book to you! Happy Reading!

GUEST AUTHOR: Helene Young

SHATTERED SKY is Helene Young's latest release.

The book is aptly titled considering Helene recently survived TC Yasi, a category 5 tropical cyclone that made landfall not far from her home town in Queensland, Australia.

Welcome back, Helene!

Kylie, thanks so much for having me on your blog. I love reading your posts – I’m guaranteed to learn something every time!

What's been happening in your world since the RWAustralia Coogee Beach conference?

Kylie, the RWA Coogee conference seems like a million years ago. I can’t believe New York is only a touch over three months away and Melbourne a mere five months. I keep thinking I must have slipped into a time warp somewhere!

2010 was an incredibly busy year with my day job where I fly aircraft for a regional airline. I changed roles within the company, which meant I was back on the receiving end of training instead of being the trainer. That made my brain rev into gear at full speed…

The release of SHATTERED SKY was moved forward a month to February, leading to some pretty hectic editing and a few very late nights.

Cairns, Queensland

I was also fortunate to be part of the Brisbane Writers Festival and from that I’ve been signed up to run one day workshops for QWC in Cairns and Townsville later this month. I’m looking forward to that as I firmly believe teaching people always brings new insights. Of course, there’s a fair bit of preparation that goes into a full day’s training so I’m madly polishing that as well as pushing on with book three.

Are you a panster or plotter? Is it your characters or your plot that influence you most? What's your writing process from start to finish when writing a book?

I’ve always thought I was a panster, but a friend introduced me to the term scener and I think that fits pretty well. When I start writing a story I have a theme I want to explore and a series of scenes. I can see my characters in situations, but from there I’m happy for them to take me on their journey without a clue where we are headed. While that leads me up blind alleys occasionally, I do think I know the characters better for the winding path. Sure I then have to cut more words than if I’d rigidly written to a plot line, but because I have to be so pedantic in my day job I enjoy not knowing the exact ending. (It would be a bit of a worry if the passengers didn’t know where the flight was landing, lol.)

Can you tell us about your new release?

SHATTERED SKY was a long time in my head. Lauren, a secondary character in WINGS OF FEAR (previous title was Border Watch) was always trying to muscle in on that story. I knew she had to have her own book and I knew just the man she needed to cross swords with.

The theme in SHATTERED SKY is people feeling trapped by forces outside of their control. The story explores organized crime, and particularly the Outlawed Motorcycle Gangs, as I think they reflect the changing cultural make-up of Australia. Their move into global crime is part of that change.

Lauren uncovers a people trafficking operation that’s bringing in women for the sex-slave trade. Her search for answers takes her deep into the wilderness of northern Australia and she’ll need the reluctant help of Naval Patrol Boat Captain, Callam Granger. Will their history force them together or apart or will it risk more lives?

It was so much fun seeing these two find their way forward!

Can you share a few fun facts about the geographic locations where your novels takes place?

Trinity Beach

Hmm, these maybe more interesting than fun!

Trinity Beach was used during World War II as a training camp for the Australian Army. Vasey Esplanade takes its name from Major General George Vasey who died in a plane crash in the waters of Trinity Beach in 1948. He’d been a hero in the New Guinea campaign and was much loved by his troops.


The largest recorded crocodile was shot in 1957 by Mrs Kris Powloski on the banks of the MacArthur River near Normanton in North Queensland.

Golden Shouldered Parrot

It was a whopping 28 feet, 4 inches long.  If you, your partner, and your two children lay head to toe in a straight line this monster would still be longer than you all! You wouldn’t want to meet his big brother on a dark and storm night.

Cape York is home to the Golden Shouldered Parrot, which is one of Australia’s most endangered bird species. It only lives in very small areas and is really sighted.

What’s the most unusual place you have visited?

Antarctica! Without a doubt, the coldest, driest place on earth is amazing!! We did a twenty-six day voyage starting from Bluff in New Zealand, tracking right down into McMurdo Sound before returning to Hobart in Australia.

Scott's Hut, Antarctica

The history of the early explorers, the wildlife and the ice itself were overwhelming! To be standing in the hut where Scott and his men camped out before they began their ill-fated journey to the south pole was inspiring. Their clothes, their food, their skis were all there, frozen in time.


Are there any particular settings or sorts of characters you'd like to use in a future book?

I want to set a novel on Macquarie Island. We visited there on the way back from Antarctica and it’s had more than its fair share of dramas and adventures. The early whalers have always fascinated me. They were so mentally and physically tough. I’m dying to write that story, but it will have to wait its turn…

Do you have any advice/handy tips/craft skills you'd like to share with unpublished authors?

Persevere! Writing is about being stubborn. Keep knocking on doors. It’s one tenth talent and nine-tenths determination.

Join Romance Writers of Australia. Rejections hurt so a more gentle way of toughening up is to use the RWA contest circuit. Writers such as Kylie, Anna Campbell, Tracey O’Hara and Erica Hayes all used those contests to hone their skills and learn their craft. I can’t speak highly enough of the organization and the opportunities it offers. And it’s not just for category romance writers!

Kylie thanks so much for having me here today.
Helene, it's always a pleasure!

As a special extra, Helene has generously donated a copy of her books SHATTERED SKY and WINGS OF FEAR. 

If you'd like to be in the running to win one of them, please leave a comment about the most unusual or favorite geographical location you've visited.

Please leave a comment by midday (Aussie Eastern Daylight Savings Time), Saturday 19th March 2011. The 2 winners will be posted by that evening.

If you'd like to know more about Helene go to her website, follow her blog, Facebook page or on Twitter. 

Helene's books:

Formerly BORDER WATCH

INDUSTRY: Helpful Links

Thought these writing links might come in handy. Most are my genre orientated (f/f/p romance) but there are a smattering of general sites.

Agents/Editors (for researching information)
Agent Query - http://www.agentquery.com/default.aspx
AuthorAdvance - http://www.authoradvance.com/
Literary Agent Verification - http://www.agentresearch.com/agent_ver.html
Preditors and Editors - http://www.anotherealm.com/prededitors/pubagent.htm

Blogs (advice, opinions, industry news)
Alien Romances - http://aliendjinnromances.blogspot.com/
All Things Urban Fantasy - http://allthingsurbanfantasy.blogspot.com/
Bitten By Books:Paranormal Review Site with Bite - http://bittenbybooks.com/
Dirty Sexy Books - http://www.dirtysexybooks.com/Dirty_Sexy_Books/Home/Home.html
Literary Escapism:Fantasy and Paranormal Book Reviews - http://www.literaryescapism.com/
Romance Writers of Australia Blog - http://romanceaustralia.wordpress.com/
Ripping Ozzie Reads:Australian Speculative Fiction Authors site - http://ripping-ozzie-reads.blogspot.com/2010/01/some-useful-industry-links-for-spec-fic.html
SciFiGuy:UF/PR/SF/F book reviews - http://www.scifiguy.ca/
The Galaxy Express - http://www.thegalaxyexpress.net/
Vampire Wire:PR/UF books and tv/movie news -  http://vampirewire.blogspot.com/

Miscellaneous Sites
Time and Date.com - http://www.timeanddate.com/
Australian War Memorial:Military Organisation and Structure - http://www.awm.gov.au/atwar/structure/rank_comparative.asp
IRS:Tax Identification Numbers for the USA information - http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/international/article/0,,id=96696,00.html


Organisations
Australian Romance Readers Association - http://www.australianromancereaders.com.au/
Romance Writers of America - http://www.rwanational.org/
RWA:Fantasy/Futuristic/Paranormal Chapter - http://www.romance-ffp.com/
Romance Writers of Australia - http://www.romanceaustralia.com/
Romance Writers of  New Zealand - http://www.romancewriters.co.nz/
ParaNormal Romance - http://www.paranormalromance.org/
Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America - http://www.sfwa.org/

Submission Guidelines
Avon - http://www.harpercollins.com/imprints/avon/SubmissionGuidelines.aspx
DAW - http://us.penguingroup.com/static/pages/daw/index.html
Dorchester - http://romanticreads.net/2009/05/07/now-accepting-electronic-submissions/
e-Harlequin - http://www.eharlequin.com/articlepage.html?articleId=538&chapter=0
Hachette Australia - http://www.hha.com.au/about_submissions.html
Orbit - http://www.orbitbooks.net/about-orbit/
PYR - http://www.pyrsf.com/index.html
Tor - http://us.macmillan.com/Content.aspx?publisher=torforge&id=255#ctl00_cphContent_ctl30_lblQuestion

Web Design
Free Images for Websites - http://www.imagehousing.com/
Free Fantasy Design artwork for Websites - http://fantasyartdesign.com/free-wallpapers/best-fantasy-art.php?s=12&np=10&srt=1&best=1
Free Web Counters - http://www.freestatscounter.com/
The Three Bears Method - http://threebearsmethod.com/

Writing Related
Brenda Hiatt's Show Me the Money - http://www.brendahiatt.com/id2.html
Dictionary of Sexual Terms and Expressions - http://www.sex-lexis.com/
Gordian Plot:thesaurus technique for writers - http://gordianplot.com/index.php?title=Main_Page
Great Source iwrite - Grammar - http://www.greatsource.com/iwrite/students/s_grammar_hndbk.html
Kathy Carmichael:Story Pitching Generator - http://www.kathycarmichael.com/generator.html
The Perfect Pitch - http://samhainpublishing.com/blog/2007/04/02/the-perfect-pitch
Publishers Weekly - http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Stephanie Smith's Contest Chart for Writers - http://www.stephiesmith.com/contests.html
When An Agent Offers You Representation - http://www.agentquery.com/writer_or.aspx
Write to Done - http://writetodone.com/

(All links are current as of 22nd Feb.2010)

Guest Author: Helene Young

My special guest today is fellow Aussie author, Helene Young. By day she's pilot with a major regional airline here in Australia, but in her spare time she writes romantic suspense for Hachette Australia.

Hi, Helene, thanks for dropping in to answer to a few questions.
Thanks for inviting me, Kylie, it's great to be here. I love your new look website! It's wonderfully evocative. (Thanks!)

One of the first things I noticed while reading your blog is your love for Australia. You talked about magpies, beaches, the Sydney to Hobart Yatch race, possums (in hobnail boots), and the places you’ve lived or visited. Do you have an absolute, will-always-love, favourite part of Australia? Are you a city or country girl?
I'm a water lover, be that in the city, the country or on the coast. Sailing, swimming, drifting on water, in lakes, oceans or rivers, would be my favourite place but then... I love the outback and the colour of the earth. And then there's the ancient mountains and the endless deserts. Confused? So am I...

I lived in the UK for three years back in the mid 80's. (I brought home my very own souvenir who's still my husband.) Like a lot of Aussies, while I loved England, I developed a new appreciation of the diverse and wonderful Australian landscape. Absence really brings home how fortunate we are to live here. I just need to find the time to go exploring more than just the eastern half!

Your job as a pilot takes you all over Australia but have you ever been abroad? Where would you most like to visit?
I've been to a few place overseas - mainly Europe, but I think my most amazing trip was to Antarctica  on a 26 day cruise into McMurdo Sound. The immense power of the land and its silence was amazing. The historic huts were literally frozen in time and you got such a clear sense of what enormous hardship those early explorers faced.

Africa is on my must see list, but so's Canada, Argentina, USA, Portugal, Iceland, Borneo, more of New Zealand... So if I could just win lotto and take off travelling that would be great! Any hints on the numbers?

How special your Antarctica trip sounds. I hope you took some memorable pictures! Maybe you might be able to make the RWNZ conference this year - you'll be able to tick NZ off on that list :-) .
Have your work colleagues been supportive of your second career as a published author?
For the main part, my colleagues have been supportive (there are always exceptions...). Of course, working predominantly with men means there's the usual comments -'So are there sex scenes in this book of yours?' I can just see them reading it, then looking at me sidewards with that, 'We know what you do in bed' look...

And you can't convince people that the story is purely a work of fiction...

You had a solid contest resume before publishing with Hachette Australia – placing in the Emma Darcy Award & RWNZ Strictly Single, a finalist in the RWAmerica Golden Heart & RWAustralia STALI competitions. What was your purpose for entering contests?
Contests, wonderful contests! The feedback was an addiction. It didn't matter whether it was good, bad or very ugly, (and I got some of that :-D) the reader's reaction was important. It gave me confidence to keep writing. The critiques could be quite confronting, but that toughened me up for rejections and also the editing process. They also taught me an enormous amount about my craft and where my voice actually fitted. The time some judges took to explain clearly what they meant was humbling. I hope when I've judged comps I've managed to do the same. There are some wonderful fledgling voices out there just waiting to fly.

And we hope to see you up on the stage for the Golden Heart in 2010! (Now that would be an achievement!)

Ahh, nice to see another contest junkie! But seriously, yes, you can't beat that valuable feedback! And speaking of feedback - do you belong to critique group or have a critique partner? How have you developed your skills as a writer?
I had a go at a crit partnership which was disastrous. It left me battered enough that I didn't write for a month. She had very strong opinions...

So I went back to what I've always done.  I write my first draft, give it to my husband who reads it for the big picture, and then to my sister who does a more detailed fault-find. The wonderful Bernadette Foley, my publisher, also looked at the first draft for my second book and has given me some great advice (as well as the thumbs up, which is a huge relief!!).

I always love the RWA conferences and the wonderful sessions they offer.  A veritable forest of light bulbs illuminate in my brain. I haven't read many of the 'How To' books but probably should - especially the grammar and punctuation kind!
 
I notice you don’t have an agent. Is that a deliberate decision on your part or are you actively looking for one?
I have an agent waiting (hopefully) in the wings. I was fortunate enough to get my contract with Hachette without an agent - by pitching at an RWA conference - but I have had discussions with one for future books. The collective wisdom seems to be that they will help you with your career in total, rather than just the books you currently write. 

The cover of BORDER WATCH is visually appealing. Not only is the setting gorgeous but I liked that your title and name are so clear. Did you have any input into the design? Do you know if the sea theme will follow through on the covers of your trilogy?
The cover's beautiful isn't it? Hachette designed it and I love it! I did have some input because we needed to get the right aircraft type (and they have) but I thought it caught the spirit of North Queensland perfectly. The next cover is a similar concept, but the colours are different. They're Lauren's colours and she's all sunlight and gold. 

I can't wait to see that cover, Helene, it sounds great! It'll be a good example of branding when they follow through with that cover style. Besides the BORDER WATCH trilogy you’re writing, have you started developing any ideas for future books? What will they involve?
I do have several other books which I'd love to see on the shelves one day. North Queensland will feature prominently for a couple more, but then I've had an idea bubbling around since we stopped at Macquarie Island on the way home from Antarctica!

Promo time! Tell me about BEYOND THE BORDERS, the next book in your series coming out in 2011.
BEYOND THE BORDERS is Lauren's story. She's a secondary character in BORDER WATCH who has to deal with a great tragedy. Now a captain herself, she uncovers an operation trafficking in women for the sex slave trade.  As she heads deep into the Australian wilderness she’ll need the reluctant help of a Navy Patrol Boat captain, Callam Granger, who’s already demonstrated his contempt for her. Ultimately she'll have to outwit, outrun and outfly the traffickers before she'll earn his respect and free the women.

Helene, thanks again for being my guest! It’s been great having you here.
It's been fabulous, Kylie!


And all the best for your next release BEYOND THE BORDERS!

Take a look and discover more about Helene and her books by checking out her website www.heleneyoung.com

Helene's generously giving away a copy of BORDER WATCH to one lucky person - all you have to do is leave a comment and tell her about your favourite place in Australia and why she should visit it.
Comments close 3pm (Aust.Daylight Savings Time), Sunday 7th Feb. The lucky person will be announced here - Tuesday, 9th Feb.

Write What You Know

How many times have I heard that saying bandied around? Lots. Heaps. Oodles.

Well, this particular saying certainly applies to the guest author visiting my blog on Tuesday, 2nd February. Debut Aussie author, Helene Young, is dropping by to chat about her exciting career as the captain of a Dash-8 for Qantaslink and her first release BORDER WATCH, published by Hachette Australia.

Living in sunny, tropical Cairns with her husband, she writes gripping romantic suspense. Strangely enough (grin*) her heroine and hero are a border security pilot and customs agent involved in keeping our shores safe from international threats.

Helene's also giving away a copy of her debut book. So, in the interest of broadening her horizons tell her about your favourite place in Australia and why she should visit it! Comments close 3pm, Sunday 7th Feb. The lucky person will be announced on my blog by Tuesday, 9th Feb.

Mark the dates everyone and good luck!!! You won't be disappointed!