Booksellers Best Award nomination for Allegiance Sworn!

I have some good news!

 
ALLEGIANCE SWORN is a paranormal romance finalist in the Greater Detroit RWA Booksellers Best Award. I'm absolutely thrilled to receive this nomination as this is a back to back nomination - last year VENGEANCE BORN was a finalist.

The finalists and their editors will be honoured at a banquet held at the San Antonio Marriott Rivercenter/Riverwalk Hotel in San Antonio, Texas during the RWA National Conference on Wednesday, July 23rd at 8pm, following the literacy signing.

Unfortunately, I won't be able to attend the RWA conference this year but I've asked a friend to attend in my stead.

ARRA Award for Allegiance Sworn!

The Australian Romance Readers of Australia converged at Cello's Restaurant in Sydney last weekend (March 22nd).

What a setting!

The lovely Cello's Restaurant.

The chandelier

A wonderful bunch of volunteers organised and ran the 6th Annual ARRA awards and celebrated all that's great in Aussie romance!

Bec & I enjoying the ambiance at Cello's!

The night was full of entertainment (the keynote speaker was Helene Young and accompanied by a cast of wannabe author-actors, they enacted a murder mystery complete with a "dead" body capably played by Anna Campbell) and the food was absolutely scrumptious!

M.J.Scott & Bec McMaster

One of the highlights was catching with ARRA friends I'd met at Fremantle, WA last year at the RWA/ARRA Book-Signing and putting names to faces of other ARRA members and bloggers I'd only ever met online.

I finally met Helen S. (ARRA reader).

This year Allegiance Sworn was nominated in two categories - Members Choice Favorite Cover Award and Favorite Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Futuristic Romance.

Dakota Harrison & I enjoying the night.

I'm thrilled to announce that Allegiance Sworn is Australia's ARRA Favourite Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Futuristic Romance 2013! An awesome moment all round as last year Alliance Forged won this award, so it's a back-to-back win in this category.

A proud moment!

At the table were Dakota Harrison & hubby, Amy Andrews, Kelly Hunter, Tina Marie Clark, M.J.Scott, Bec McMaster & myself. Table 6 must have been the one to sit at this year as three of our number took out awards - Amy Andrews, Kelly Hunter & me!

Allegiance Sworn - Fav.Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Futuristic Romance Award 2013

Kylie Griffin, Kelly Hunter & Amy Andrew's ARRA trophies!

You can find the full list of 2013 ARRA winners here.

ALLEGIANCE SWORN is an ARRAwards finalist!

I woke to some awesome news this morning!

Sitting in my inbox was an email from the Australian Romance Readers Association letting me know that ALLEGIANCE SWORN is an ARRAwards finalist in the following categories:

• Favourite Sci-Fi, Fantasy or Futuristic Romance
• Favourite Cover from a romance published in 2013 (hats off to Gene Mollica, the cover artist, & the Berkley art department for such great work!)

I'm so thrilled, especially on seeing the finalists lists on the ARRA blog - wow, am I in some fantastic company! Scrolling through them, I kept ticking off the ones I'd read and enjoyed. So many wonderful stories and authors!

And I'm tickled to pieces that my writing buddies Bec McMaster and Dakota Harrison are also nominated for a selection of ARRAwards! Woohoo!

Now, it's a waiting game - winners will be announced at the ARRAwards Dinner to be held on 22 March 2014 at Cello’s Restaurant in Sydney.

SLCLS Reader’s Choice Award nominee!

Great news, folks!

Salt Lake County Library System notified me in an email this morning that VENGEANCE BORN has been selected as a nominee for their semi-annual Reader’s Choice Award. It's one of twenty six titles chosen by readers across 18 libraries!!! Voting will be open until November 1st, 2013. 

What a fantastic way to begin my morning getting this news!

VENGEANCE BORN wins Cover Cafe contest!

I came home to some awesome news this arvo - Vengeance Born has won the 2012 Alternate Reality section of the Cover Cafe's cover contest. I'm stoked!

Gene Mollica (cover artist) will be thrilled. The cover was 1/100 entries in this section! Thanks to everyone who took the time to vote and/or spread the word!

Reader's comments can be seen over at the Cover Cafe!

And a huge shout out to fellow Aussie romance authors, Fiona Lowe & Nikki Logan who took out their sections with Boomerang Bride (Contemporary) & Wild Encounter (Series) respectively.

Booksellers Best Award finalist!

Some great news to share - an email arrived from the Greater Detroit RWA Booksellers Best Award  organiser to inform me VENGEANCE BORN is a finalist in the Paranormal/Time Travel/Futuristic section AS WELL AS the Best First Book section. Woohoo!!!

Results announced at the BBA Reception on July 17 following the RWAmerica Literacy Signing.

Full list of finalists here.

COVER CONTEST - VENGEANCE BORN is a finalist!!!

VENGEANCE BORN is a best cover finalist in the Cover Cafe’s 2012 Alternate Reality category.

Every year Cover Cafe picks the best romance covers and run a contest where readers can vote for  their favourite cover in a number of categories.

Voting has now started - so mosey on over and cast yours!!!

Hats off to Gene Mollica, my awesome cover artist for VENGEANCE BORN!

RWA RITA© & Golden Heart © Awards 2013

Can you hear the Aussie, Aussie, Aussie shout out reverberating around the country?

Announcements for the finalists in the Romance Writers of America RITA Awards (published authors) and Golden Heart Awards (for unpublished authors) have been happening overnight and the lists are now complete. For those who don't know, these awards are the Oscars of the romance publishing world!

The following friends and RWAustralia members have received that magical phone call:

GOLDEN HEART Finalists

"The Predator" - Christine Taylor (Romantic Suspense category)

  







RITA Finalists

Zoe’s Muster - Barbara Hannay (Contemporary Single Title)

Bride by Mistake - Anne Gracie (Historical)

Dead Heat - Bronwyn Parry (Romantic Suspense)

A Marriage Worth Fighting For - Lilian Darcy (Short Contemporary Series)



Fantastic news, ladies!!!

You can read a full accounting of the results for the RITA's and Golden Heart here.

TOPIC: Contest Feedback

With the new contest season gearing up I thought it rather appropriate to re-post an piece I wrote a while back called "The Tough World of Contest Feedback" (there were some great comments made by others if you want to take a look).

Here's the article:


ADD+DA

No, this is not some strange chemical formula or a new classification for attention deficit disorder. It's the acronym for the emotional fallout we all experience from contest feedback (and the same can be said of rejection letters if truth be known - ask me how I know!).

So, you've entered a writing contest with your work. You've put your baby out there and spent the last few months eagerly awaiting the results and feedback from the judges. You get it. You read it.

Some of it's positive. Some of it's mediocre. Some of it rips the rug out from under your feet - cuts you off at the knees and leaves you bleeding - makes you want to crawl under the bed and chew on your knuckles for the next hundred years.

The myriad of emotions sparked by this sort of feedback is what I want to address in this post. Firstly though, what does the acronym stand for?

A - anger.
(And at this point in time, I'm going to share your pain by baring some of the most gut wrenching comments I've received from judges over the last eight years, so you know you're not alone.) Here are some examples, some ranging from inappropriate to "constructive-but-I-felt-the-need-to-disagree-with-them" comments.

Example 1. (judging 3 chapters) "Heroine seems to be a plaster saint. Hero a lout with unreasonable expectations. They don't talk like people. Their names have a real '70's fantasy ring to them. 
Voice: stop using $10 words you don't know how to use well and talk naturally. Get deeper into your characters' heads and your POV problems will clear up. Five spaces begin a paragraph, not two. Don't worry about the premise. Fix the voice. Premises are cheap. Voice is golden. 
I feel this entry has been critiqued to death. You have the basic skills to tell a story and keep it interesting. That is ALL IT TAKES to get published, so screw your critique group!"

Example 2. (judging 3 chapters & synopsis) "The hook is pretty generic."

Example 3. (judging a synopsis) "To be honest, you can probably cut most of the first three paragraphs. I can see you're trying to hook the reader with the first para, but character introductions and action can do that as well as or better than a tag line. I'd recommend you get your world-building/setting out there, and then get straight to the characters."

OK, now that you've read them, can you imagine feeling angry? With maybe all three in varying degrees? Hmm-mm. I did.

So, there I am brewing with anger. The next stage of this cycle:
D&D - disbelief & denial, and these comes in varying forms as well.

• After reading the first judge's comment I was spitting chips and hurling the score sheets across the room.
• The second made me wonder how the judge got past judge training school - where was the follow up advice? What suggestions could they have offered to improve a "generic" hook?
• The last one drew out a knee-jerk reaction. I was attached to that synopsis beginning, do you know how much time I spent slaving over them, how dare they suggest I cut out the opening paragraphs! etc.etc.etc.

Moving on to:
D - despair.
Admittedly the first two comment examples came at a stage in my contest career when I'd developed a pretty thick-skin, and after the initial shocking read I could relegate these judges comments to the "Disregard" file.
Very little of what they had to say was going to help me develop my skills as a writer other than to infuriate me on behalf of the beginning writer who did take their comments to heart and decided never to write again.

All that aside, there have been times I've read comments and begun to doubt my abilities as a writer. Am I good enough? Why do I bother to put myself through this? Will I ever reach a standard acceptable to be published? I thought I had this entry pretty well nailed, where did I go wrong? You ask yourself all these sorts of questions in this stage. You've got to push through, analyse your feedback objectively - see the gold amidst the debris - and come out more analytical & tougher on the other side.

And the last stage is:
A - acceptance.
The good thing about the last comment example is that the judge offered constructive advice. And once I'd cooled off and gone back to look I could see the value in what they'd suggested.

I reworked the synopsis, wrote a couple of alternate beginnings, used the advice and came up with something that incorporated some of what the judge said and something I could live with.

Some of those knee-jerk reactions you have to the judges comments are probably the ones that strike a resonating chord within you and subconsciously you know they're right. Also if more than one judge point out the same thing then you need to look seriously at that feedback with a view to editing your work.

Most judges volunteer to help you improve your skills and craft. They're not in it to belittle your ability or scoff at your plot or characters. If you take anything away from this post, and listen to some hard learned wisdom from a contest diva, remember this...you WILL go through every stage of the process I've outlined. Many, many, many, many times and at difference points in your career as a writer.

A last word on the issue - get used to it or (as one of my more shoot-straight-from-the-hip writing buddies says) get out of the game. Harsh advice. Yep. This business is tough.

But if you manage to stick it, develop that tough-skin and improve your craft, then the rewards will outweigh the hard times. Guaranteed. :-)

TOPIC: Why enter writing contests?

Again and because contest season is just around the corner, another re-post, this time one about why enter writing contests - previously entitled, "Do you have the contest bug?"


This is a timeless topic often discussed among writers - the value of entering contests.

RWA Valerie Parv Award

Some are for entering them and are vocal advocates of the benefits of doing so, others advise against entering as many seem to "encourage writers to write to the contest" or they see the writer receiving little value out of them.

I fall into the former category of advocates. The name "contest diva", "contest queen", or the more affectionately yet derogatory "contest sl**" was often mentioned in the same sentence as my name (*grin*). In the course of my unpublished career as a writer, I entered almost 100 contests over the nine years since tackling my first.

When considering whether or not you should enter a contest ask yourself this - why are you entering?

RWNZ Clendon Award

Is to get feedback on your work? Is the contest aimed at judging 3 chapters, a short story or a full manuscript? Is it to final? Is it because your want to get in front of a particular agent or editor? Is it to get a contest resume under your belt?

Let's consider each question.

• Feedback - entering can be a cheap way to get feedback on your work, particularly if you find a full manuscript contest that gives comments (eg. RWA Emerald Award or the RWNZ Clendon Award).

WHRWA Emily Award

If you belong to a writing organisation, ask yourself this - can I get feedback any other way besides through contests?

Some writing organisations have mentoring schemes, critique groups or critique partner schemes running, so this might be another avenue for you to pursue in your quest to get feedback.

• Contest criteria - entering a specific type of contest can help your craft. I avoided entering any sort of synopses contest, purely because I hated writing them. But because it was a weakness I'd identified in my craft skills, I forced myself to enter several of these to get feedback before I sent my work out on submission.
• To final - this is a feather in any writer's cap. I used this as a benchmark to see whether I was improving in my craft but then, in the context of where I was as a writer (geography and isolation, not the level of skill) and the services I had access to this (era of time) proved to be the only option available to me to measure this. (So context is important.)



RWA Emerald Award

• Getting your work in front of an editor/agent - if you have the budget, you can enter as many contests as you like, and some have done this. Most writers don't have unlimited funds, so choosing which particular contest - based on reputation or final judges or specific feedback - and this may determine your decision on whether you enter or not.

Toward the end of my unpublished contest career my goal for entering was driven by who the final judge was. I wanted to get my work in front of an editor or agent who acquired my genre.

RWA Golden Heart

• Contest resumes - racking up finalist kudos, placings or wins is certainly a way to impress potential editors and agents but it doesn't always help. Some take no notice of your achievements. I admit, one of my main goals for entering contests, in the latter part of my unpublished career, was to build a resume for each manuscript but it wasn't the only avenue I relied upon to get my work in front of editors/agents.

I think the secret of entering any contest is to identify why you're entering it, what you're hoping to get out of it as a result and to understand that it's one of many strategies, not the only one, to help you in your journey to publication.

So, with the RWAustralia and RWNZ contest season about to start fresh, I know there will be some of you keen to try the contest circuit (and good on you, go for it!). There are a wide range of ones for you to enter here and overseas.

Keeping that in mind, here are a few links you might like to explore to find the sort of contests you'd like to enter:

Romance Writers of Australia contest page
Romance Writers of New Zealand contest page
Romance Writers of America contest page
Stephanie Smith's contest page for author

RWNZ Clendon Readers' Choice Award

But, just remember, I've seen many friends who've taken the contest circuit route in the attempt to get published and I know of others who haven't entered any contests yet been picked up through submitting their work.

There are valid reasons to try both paths, one isn't better than the other.

It's whatever works for you.

2012 RWA RITA & Golden Heart winners!

Congratulations to the romance world's Best of the Best for 2012.

A special shout out to fellow Aussie, Fiona Lowe, who took out a RITA for her contemporary single title BOOMERANG BRIDE (which was featured here a little while ago).

And a big woohoo for fellow paranormal author, Darynda Jones, for winning a RITA for FIRST GRAVE ON THE RIGHT as Best First Book.

AND a special woot for 2012 Golden Heart winners:

Elizabeth Bemis - Romantic Suspense novel Edge of Deception
Elisa Beatty - Historical Romance novel The Devil May Care

Both are fellow 2010 Unsinkable GH finalists - so good to see them succeed this year!!!

Full results of the night can be viewed here.

TOPIC: Being a Published Author - Vistaprint is my new friend!

As promised this post will be entirely devoted to the mantra - Vistaprint is my new friend!

For any author, this website is a gold mine of promotional items - you name it, they probably have it. And best of all, they run "freebie" product sales, where you only pay for postage.

Used wisely, and sticking to a budget (see previous post titled Promotion & Marketing), you can stock up on useful items to compliment your giveaways or make up surprise swag packs to send out while on blog tours etc.

One warning though, Vistaprint can be addictive! :-)

And to balance that out, one piece of advice - make sure the items you purchase are useful or practical. Don't waste money by purchasing something a reader will throw away at the first opportunity. Magnets are winner all round - practical, useful, visible, pretty and timeless.

Here are some of the items I designed and had made up, all were chosen from the "freebie" stock deals Vistaprint sends out regularly - designs are limited, so sometimes I had to choose from what was available and match it to my website brand as best I could. I also spread out my purchases over several months. Special deals for various products occurred at different times too.

Book banners (small)

Book banners (small) require a high resolution jpeg image - at least 1MB to be clear and crisp when printed. I included the book series name, imprint line and my website address.

I've used these at library visits, book signings and other promotional events.

Book plates

Address labels (aka book plates) - because I planned to send out some giveaways of VENGEANCE BORN direct from The Book Depository to contest winners, I couldn't sign them personally.

So I went with book plates, which were just Visaprint address labels. I removed all text from the address boxes and got them sent to me blank. I sign them and post them off separately.

Door magnets (small)

Door magnets (small) - again high resolution jpeg images of my book covers. I also included my website address on them.

Magnets

Magnets (large & small) - practical and visual. Promoting my covers, release dates, website.

I've given them away at any visit, signing, to friends and acquaintances or as surprise swag to readers (particularly those who followed my blog tour as a "thank you for your loyalty" gesture).

Door magnets

Door magnets (again) - these I send out as swag or special giveaways to my newsletter subscribers.

Postcards (standard)

Postcards (standard size) - again high res.jpegs for a crisp, clear image. Covers on front. Blurb, cover quotes, release dates, website address on the back.

I sent them out to bookstores, libraries and blogs.

Back of postcards

A dual set also went out with every giveaway copy of VENGEANCE BORN, or as swag.

I handed them out at author talks, library visits, even put some at the local general stores for people to take.

Rack Cards (front)

Rack cards - Just a different version of the above but used for the same purposes.

The longer format on the back gave me the chance to add more detailed book review quotes. It also allowed me to fit both books on the front.

Rack Cards (back)

I take them along with me to things like book signings, talks, book club visits etc. I often ask that people take as many as they like and hand them out to friends who may be interested.




Sticky notes, business cards, notepads, keyrings -  all used as giveaway swag.

I just deleted the address and replaced it with the phrase, my website address and my name & brand line.

The key ring and notepads are for special giveaways or contests run on my blog.

Lawn sign (small)

Lawn sign (small) - again high res jpegs of my book covers for this. I kept the text simple and easy to read. I ordered two.

These I lend to libraries and bookstores to advertise upcoming events. They can be placed in windows or displayed on notice boards.

Business cards - I turned one of Vistaprints standard business cards into a "With compliments & thank you" card. I hand it out with everything I giveaway.

Brochures

Brochures - like the rack cards. Just a different presentation.

I included the imprint line, a book reviewer quote and website address on the front.

On the back the title, series name, blurb, release date, ISBN numbers, and website address again.

Brochure *back)

Stickers

Stickers - just a bit of fun.

I add them to any envelopes or packages I send out ie. giveaways.

Flyers - special one off's. Kept simple in text to advertise a coming event.

I posted them up on noticeboards in the local communities.






The most frequently used/sent out items so far are magnets (all sorts), book postcards, my modified "With compliments & thanks you" business cards, and the address labels I converted to book plates.

So, now repeat after me - Vistaprint is my new, best friend!

Any questions?