TOPIC: To regret, or not to regret - that is the question...

A friend asked me the other day if I could change anything on this journey I've made to becoming a published writer what would it be. It set me to thinking long and hard about the topic.

*I wish I'd discovered RWAustralia sooner than I did. Until I entered the RWA Emma Darcy Award I never even knew they existed.

Joining this writing organisation has enriched my professional and personal life as a writer. I've learned so much about the craft of writing, the publishing industry and how everyone fits within the jigsaw, networking, pitching, developed friendships...the list could go on.

*I regret not having pitched to an editor or agent at a conference earlier than I did. Public speaking, interview situations, anything that resembled either of these petrified me (even though I'm a teacher and can quite happily make a fool of myself and love it in front of a classroom full of children).

I put it off for nearly six years, preferring the anonymity and safety of emails and letters. I'm still reluctant to tackle this sort of situation but I can now do it because I know what to expect. I also realise the value of networking and meeting industry professionals face to face. Putting a name to a face (on both sides of the interview table) is such an important step.

*My latest wish is that I'd developed myself as a plotter and planner in my writing style rather than as a scener and panster. It's something I'm now working on and, unfortunately I'm finding it quite a challenge. I'd been told time and again by other writers (published ones) that it's an important skill to develop but I went on my merry way, happy to write as I wanted, instead of learning and changing. Better late than never, eh?

This might seem like a negative list of regrets, and I guess to some extent they are just that, but timing has a funny way of working out and I've learned sometimes there's nothing you can do but accept this. For some reason they happen when they do.

Reminds me of the reed-in-the-water analogy - you learn to bend with the current rather than break.

If you're a fellow writer, is there anything you wish you could have learned sooner in your writing career? Care to share?

Who's That Girl? interview with Nicola Sheridan

Some more home grown Aussie talent!

Please make Nicola feel welcome.

 Name?  Nicola E. Sheridan.

Where are you? Western Australia.

How many years have you been a member of RWAustralia? One year - and what a year its been! 

What genre/s do you write? I write parnormal/fantasy romance.

Who are your favourite authors? I love J.K. Rowling and Karen Marie Moning. Totally different authors, but completely amazing world builders!

What inspired you to write romance? I have always enjoyed fantasy, but  lamented it's lack of sexiness. Every book deserves a sexy hero and really, what's a book without a little romance? I just love the romantic aspect of writing and couldn't write a book without it. 

What's the best thing about going to conference? I've only been to "Romancing the West" twice, but I love being around other people who do the same thing I do.

Sometimes, as a writer you feel like you're the only person who does what you do... until you go to a conference and talk to all the others! I also love hearing other peoples advice on writing. You always learn something new. 

And lastly, finish these statements...
My greatest strength as a writer is... the fact I want to write, rather than have to write. That, and a ridiculously over-active imagination.
A sexy hero needs... a sexy back!

My latest WIP (work in progress) is about... Genies, DemonSpawn and Kuala Lumpur. I'm having a lot of fun!
When I write I like to... listen to Arabic music very loud. My poor neighbours! Haha!
My best writing milestone to date is... getting published. MAGICAL GAINS was published in March 2011 by Eternal Press and I just got a contract for my second book, MAGICAL CREATIONS, due for release in October 2011.

If you'd like to find out more about Nicola, click on the website link, or follow her blog or Facebook group. You can also find her author page at Eternal Press.

GUEST AUTHOR: Anne Whitfield

My special guest author today is Anne Whitfield.

An avid reader long before she put fingers to keyboard, Anne also considers herself a storyteller who loves to entertain her readers. She writes contemporary romance novels, short stories and historical women's fiction (and is published with Knox's Robinson Publishing).

Her latest release is THE HOUSE OF WOMEN (avaialble June 2011), but I'll let her tell you more about it in the interview.

Please welcome, Anne to my blog hotseat!

Can you tell us a little about yourself?

I’m Australian born to English parents who emigrated to Australia in the 1960s from Yorkshire. I’m married with three children and live in a wonderful part of New South Wales, called the Southern Highlands, nearly two hours drive south of Sydney.

I did live in England for three years in the eighties and lived in a very old farmhouse (built in late 1700s) with no modern conveniences like central heating! The pipes used to freeze in winter and we’d have to get water in buckets from town, or melt snow. It was all very strange for an Aussie girl!

However, living in England gave me the love of history.


When did you start to write and how long did it take you to be published? 

I started writing in 1997, but didn’t finished that first novel until 1999. After a few false starts, and a tight escape from a vanity publisher (I had no idea what one was at the time!) I signed with Samhain Publishing in 2005.

Can you tell us about your latest release? 

I loved the idea of a large family all pulling different ways. With a selfish mother, a tyrannical father and seven daughters, the family was complex, but add to that a lost love, a heroic butler and a handsome stranger, well, the real fun began then!

THE HOUSE OF WOMEN was a great book to write.
 

THE HOUSE OF WOMEN
Leeds. 1870. 
Lonely and brokenhearted, Grace Woodruff fights for her sisters’ rights to happiness while sacrificing any chance for her own.
The eldest of seven daughters, Grace is the core of strength around which the unhappy members of the Woodruff family revolve. As her disenchanted mother withdraws to her rooms, Grace must act as a buffer between her violent, ambitious father and the sisters who depend upon her. Rejected by her first love and facing a spinster’s future, she struggles to hold the broken family together through her father’s infidelity, one sister’s alcoholism, and another’s out-of-wedlock pregnancy by an unsuitable match.
Caring for an illegitimate half-brother affords Grace an escape, though short-lived. Forced home by illness and burdened with dwindling finances, Grace faces fresh anguish –and murder– when her first love returns to wreck havoc in her life.  All is not lost, however. In the midst of tragedy, the fires of her heart are rekindled by another. Will the possibility of true love lead Grace to relinquish her responsibilities in the house of women and embrace her own right to happiness?

Which book that you’ve read has made a lasting impression on you? And why?
Most of Audrey Howard’s books leave a lasting impression on me. I love her books. The heroine usually goes through hell before the happy ever after ending. Catherine Cookson’s Tilly Trotter series and also, THE DWELLING PLACE as firm favourites, too.

Do you have a pet that keeps you company when you write?

 Yes, I have our little dog, Angus, who is a Tenterfield Terrier (like a Jack Russell) and he’s my constant companion. He likes to sit under my desk, but around 10:30am he knows it’s morning tea time and if I don’t get up, he starts to ‘talk’ and jump about. So, I get up and put the kettle on for a coffee and he gets a chewy bone.

What’s next for you? What are you working on?

I’ve just started writing my next historical. As of yet it doesn’t have a title, but the main characters, Charlotte and Harry, are there, demanding to be heard. It’s set in Yorkshire England again, about 1874.

Aside of this new story, I have plenty of finished books waiting to be published. Stay tuned!

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

Advice can be tricky, because so much depends on the writer and what they write, but first I would say, never give up! This is a hard and at times very frustrating business, be prepared to wait for results. Learn everything you can about it.

Talk to other writers, join writing groups and especially try and find a good critique group, who will help you polish your manuscript before you send it out.

Research agents. Research publishers. 

Anne, it's been wonderful having you here! Thanks for answering my questions.

Some of Anne's other books:

  
Feel free to visit Anne at her website (for more of her books and free stories) or blog, she'd love to see you there!

Day in the Life of a Cat

Being a little snowed under with writing at the moment, this is an easy topic to cover. So, you're get a something on cats. Self-indulgent (but hey, doesn't that suit a feline?) and more than a bit cutesy (my cats have now hidden my digital camera somewhere as they got sick of me stalking them - sigh).

Ever wondered what the moggies do while you're away?

Well, I had bird-cam, corner of the house-cam, plant-cam, door-cam and room-cam snap some of the things my 3 cats did during the course of a day.

Watching the world go by...

What? You mean this isn't a cat hammock?

Is that a bird I see perched at the top of that tree?

Why do things standing up when you can lie down?

What do you mean this is a road for cars? It's my rolling around and get dusty spot!

I TOLD you there was something on top of the roof!

Hanging out together...

Lick one, spit algae, lick two, spit algae...

Yes, I AM Kylie Griffin-look at my awards!

Mary Hawkins "Baragula" Giveaway Winner announced!

Anyone who comments went into the draw for this fabulous give-away!

The winner will get to choose which one of the Baragula series books they would like to receive.

The name plucked out in the draw is...

Cath

Congratulations! Please contact Mary - mary (at) mary-hawkins (dot) com - an she can arrange for your prize to be sent to you!

(Mary is on holiday at the moment but will be back in about a week, so she'll contact you then.)

Happy reading!

THE END...for now

Exhaustion...got it covered...

This is how I feel at the moment but I'm also giddy-happy.

It's a euphoric feeling being able to type the last words in your manuscript and realise you've reached THE END. It hit the 100K mark - phew!

So, Book 2 in the Light Blade series is finished, at least until the revisions come back from my editor (btw, if you're wondering, VENGEANCE BORN: Book 1 in the series is being released in February 2012 with Berkley - *yeah, I know, shameless plug* :-D ).

I'm now taking a short break before getting on with Book 3 in the series. Can't wait to get cracking on that one!

Who's That Girl? interview with Helen Lacey

Some home grown talent today, folks! Read on! 

Name? Helen Lacey.

Where are you? I live in Queensland, in a small seaside town at the southern most point of the Great Barrier Reef.

It's an amazing place and I feel so lucky to live just a couple of hundred metres from the Pacific Ocean. My husband and I get to ride our horses along the beach which is such a great experience.

How many years have you been a member of Romance Writers of Australia and Romance Writers of New Zealand? RWOz Since 1993, RWA since 2005.

What genre do you write? Harlequin Special Edition (Home & Family type books that allow me to include my passion for cowboys and horses).

Who are your favourite authors? Susan Mallory, Christine Rimmer, Jane Austen, Maeve Binchy. 

Zeb - Helen's thoroughbred

What inspired you to write romance? I always loved to read, particularly BLACK BEAUTY, the Silver Brumby series and all of Laura Ingall's Wilder books.

I wrote my first book when I was seven, a  story about a girl and her beloved horse. I read Austen at a young age too. But it was when I was around 12 that I read my first couple of Mills & Boon that I fell in love with romance and knew I wanted to write them.

Two books stood out for me - Rosalind Brett's WINDS OF ENCHANTMENT, and Robyn Donald's BRIDE OF WHANGATAPU. I thank both these talented authors for showing me the road to romance.

Who's your dream agent and/or dream publisher? I have my dream agent - Scott Eagan at Greyhaus Literary Agency, and my dream editor Susan Litman at Harlequin Special Edition. They are both incredibly supportive of my career and am so looking forward to seeing my first book hit the shelves in 2012.

What's the best thing about going to conference? Catching up with friends and colleagues. Knowing I will always have a 'light bulb moment'. Bunking with my friend Louise Cusack and raiding the mini bar :)

Sunset from Helen's window

And lastly, finish these statements...
My greatest strength as a writer is... my determination (An ability to survive on six hours sleep a night so I can stay up till the wee small hours and write)
A sexy hero needs... a flaw that can be redeemed with the love of the right woman
My latest WIP (work in progress) is about... a sexy widowed saddle maker and a girl who won't take no for an answer.
When I write I like to... look out my office window and see the ocean and my horses grazing
My best writing milestone to date is... selling my first book to Harlequin Special Edition in November 2010.

Check out Helen's website if you'd like to know more about her.