Watch Your Back...Story

What I'm reading: Contest entry #7 of 8

I've been reading books for a contest lately. A fair number of the books I've been given are part of a series, or at least connected books, which is the most common in romance. This means they'll have characters who have appeared in previous books, but aren't the "stars" of this one.

Most of what I write falls into this category. The only exception is Hidden Fire, which is a true sequel to Finding Sarah. Randy and Sarah are the protagonists of both books. On the other hand, the new book (still untitled, but I'm working on it. Ideas still welcome!) is set in the same town, with many of the characters readers met in the first two books, but the hero and heroine are brand new. They've never appeared before. This is unusual in series/connected romance books, too. (Have I ever mentioned that I didn't know the "rules" when I wrote Finding Sarah and Hidden Fire, so I didn't really set things up for a series.)

I did take one secondary character from Finding Sarah and give her a book of her own, but then when I got the rights back and switched publishers, I had to sever her ties to Pine Hills. So, although Colleen from Nowhere to Hide actually started out in Pine Hills, through the magic of fiction, she sprang forth with a new place of origin. (If I decide to request the rights back, I just might change the book and give her back her history with Randy and Sarah.)

Don't Lose your Characters

What I'm reading: Damaged, by Debra Webb

Don’t forget – there’s plenty of time to leave a comment on Phoebe Conn’s Tuesday post to be entered in her drawing. I’ll wait while you scroll down.

Meanwhile, I’m over at The Romance Studio at a release party today. I’ll be in and out all day. If you’re so inclined, pop on over. I’m talking about WHERE DANGER HIDES, and I’m giving away a download of WHEN DANGER CALLS.

When writing series or connected books, there are some extra considerations, such as handling back story and keeping track of characters. And sometimes, it can get you into trouble.

For example, in WHEN DANGER CALLS, I needed Ryan to be able to get into the Blackthorne’s fancy computer system, even though he’d technically quit. It made no sense for a company like Blackthorne to have conveniently forgotten to shut down his access. (that would have been one of those handy “coincidences” I talked about in an earlier post) So, I simply gave Ryan a throwaway line:

“I sort of borrowed a login from a buddy. His fault—I kept telling Grinch to pick a smarter password than his kid's name and birthday."

So, when it became time to write Grinch’s story, I was stuck with the child. And due to other plot considerations, I gave him a dog as well. While it’s one thing to have a throwaway line, once a character is on the page, be it human or animal, it becomes your responsibility.

Handling Back Story

What I'm reading: Swept Away by Marsha Canham; Magnum Force Man, by Amanda Stevens; Irresistible Forces, by Brenda Jackson

Three books? I'd always been a finish one before starting the next, but I've got books on my NOOKcolor, which is my go-to 'read in bed' "book." Then, since I just got the recumbent bike, and it's set up downstairs, I keep a book in its basket to entice me to haul myself down for a workout. I decided not to bring it upstairs, but rather use it as a 'reward' for exercising. And, while running errands yesterday, I found myself waiting in the car while Hubster did the recycling, and mailed a box at the Post Office. I hadn't thought about bringing reading material, but with books on my phone, I can pass the time rather than get in and out of the truck.

I've also added a $50 off referral code for your printing needs. Check the Deals and Steals tab. (I suggest you check it regularly, as I'm trying to keep it current.) Likewise, my Contest tab. Entries are low—your odds of winning are very good.

Judging from page views and comments, yesterday's topic about that three-letter-word, was, hit home for a lot of people. I think readers don't really care. I know I became much more critical of what I read after I started writing. I'm always looking at construction, word choices, and all the other "rules" as I read, wondering how I would say the same thing. It's often been said, that once you start writing, you'll never read the same way again. So while part of my brain says, "I wonder what an agent/editor would say to that?" another part is trying to figure out why it works.


Recently, I read a book that had my "writer as reader" radar humming. I know back story and info dumping has been a topic, not only here, but all over the blogosphere. We've all been given advice about the following:

The Same but Different

Thanks, Jenny! I was also one of those horse lovers. I enjoyed your post, and thank you for being my guest.

Our road trip is technically over by the time you're reading this. We have one more driving day (Tuesday) but will end up at our daughter's house, so this is our last hotel night.

As a reader, if you pick up a book by a favorite author, especially one in a series, you're going to have expectations. You expect to see familiar characters, and figure they're going to behave consistently with whatever has been established. Often, readers balk when an author strays from the familiar and writes a stand alone or begins a new series.

Perhaps the author is tired of the same characters. Maybe the publisher suggests a new approach. How far to go so readers aren't disappointed.

When we planned our trip, I turned over the reservation-making to hubby. I was dealing with enough stress trying to get ready for 2 conferences plus packing. All I suggested was that he look for hotels that we had club memberships in, because they accrue points and often offer perks.

His criteria were location (near whatever road we'd be on), price, and wi-fi. We ended up at various members of the Holiday Inn family. We've stayed at a lot of these hotels, so we arrived with some basic expectations, and many of them were met.

Keep Reading...

But there were considerable differences as well. Some minor, such as the type of hair dryer and coffee maker. Amenities varied. Some had only shampoo and body lotion; others had shampoo, conditioner, lotion, mouthwash, and bath gel. One had a jar of mints by the bed. Another had cotton balls and Q-tips in the bathroom. And one (gasp) had a scale.

Clocks were different. Some red, some green, some orange LED readouts. Some with pre-set music options. One with an iPod docking station. WiFi was free in all, but how you connected varied. Some required passwords and re-upping every 24 hours. Some were a one shot deal.

As hotel club members, there were different perks. In one, it was a room upgrade (to a room with a jacuzzi, which is beckoning as I type). In one, it was a goodie bag full of snacks. In another, it was a bottle of water. Some had cookies, some didn't.

Some rooms had mini-fridges and microwaves. Some of the hotels had restaurants and bars on the premises. Even though the menus were Holiday Inn "standard" there were different options and different pricing.

The same menu variations held true for Waffle House – which is another story. Hubby loves their chili, and he made sure we stopped for lunch at a WH every day but one—and that day we did stop, but they were jam-packed and we didn't want to wait, so we went next door to a McDonald's (where I found a surprisingly acceptable chipotle bbq chicken snack wrap).

Back to the hotels -- the ones without restaurants have the free breakfast. The ones with restaurants don't. We stayed at 3 of those (one being the conference hotel). All 3 offered complimentary coffee in the lobby. Two didn't charge for coffee with breakfast in the restaurant, which makes sense, because otherwise, why not just pour a cup in the lobby and carry it in? Coffee prices ranged from $1.75 - $2.50.

One of our nights was at an extended stay suite member of the parent chain. Our room was more of an efficiency than a true suite. Brand new, very nice. BUT (you knew there'd be a 'but', right?)

When you enter the room, there's a kitchenette on one side, closet and bathroom on the other. There's a nice bright overhead light that turns on from a switch right inside the door. Beyond the kitchen is the desk space, and an easy chair. TV is in the corner, and the bed is on the other side. So far, so good. Until we decided to turn off that bright overhead light in the entry and read in bed. Nope. When you turn off that light, ALL the room lights go off. So, the reading lamps, which are mounted on the wall above the bed can only be used if the main entry light is on. Likewise the lamp above the chair.

WTF? You can read in bed, but you can't turn off the main room light unless you get out of bed and plod over to the door. And if for some reason you want to turn the light ON in the middle of the night … no can do. And that hotel also had the heat/ac unit behind the room curtains. Whoever designed the room should have had to sleep in it for a week. I know we wouldn't have stayed more than our one night.

With the exception of the last-mentioned option, if these were books, I'd have followed the author through the series, the new series, and the standalone. The poor planning of the last one I mentioned would have been the book I would have started, then said, "let me know when you go back to my "friends" and I'll be back.

Tomorrow, I'll chat a bit more about the actual drive, and how the highways are also "same but different."

Titles - and a secret

What I'm reading: Master of Craving, by Karin Tabke

Names. By now, everyone (me included) is saturated with discussions of the new iPad (there were clearly no women on the team that came up with THAT name). This was an old spoof on the iPod, but it's just as appropriate now.


Naming things can be a headache. I hate coming up with titles for my books. When I started learning the business, everyone said not to worry about it because the publishers would change it. That was fine with me. Only my publishers never have, so what you see represent my struggles to find those perfect words.

Titles are the last things I come up with. WHAT'S IN A NAME? got its title the day I wanted to enter the manuscript in a contest and I had to write something on that "Title" line. Since the book dealt with people pretending to be someone else (or is it someone elses?), the title seemed appropriate. Even though that wasn't really what I had in mind when I wrote it, as long as it worked, I was happy.

Counting Down to Hidden Fire Day 2

Behind The Scenes

In the mystery genre, which is a favorite of mine, books tend to run in series featuring a protagonist and a group of secondary characters that grow throughout the series. People may come and go, relationships may change, but the books build on each other. Faye and Jonathan Kellerman, Sue Grafton, P.J. Parrish, Barbara Parker, Janet Evanovich, J.A. Jance --- the list goes on, and I have all of them on my shelves (and as I discover more series characters, more and more are going onto my eBookwise as well, because there's only so much room in the house, and only so many trees I'm willing to feel guilty about killing).

In romance, though, 'series' tend to be spin-offs rather than series. There might be hints and references to what happened before, but the major players in book 2 were probably secondary characters in book 1. Allison Brennan, Karen Rose, Catherine Coulter's FBI series, Roxanne St. Claire's "Bullet Catchers" – they're all stand alone books that have roots elsewhere. Suzanne Brockmann's "Troubleshooters" books seem to straddle both categories.

When I wrote Finding Sarah, I hadn't envisioned it as a series of any sort. However, when I finished, one of the secondary characters, Colleen McDonald, wanted her own story, which ended up being Starting Over. I picked her up and moved her across the country, with only the vaguest references to what had happened before she left Pine Hills—and her trigger for moving was not part of Finding Sarah at all. Also, I wasn't sure I'd be able to sell Finding Sarah, and I didn't need a book 2 if there was no book 1.

Randy and Sarah insisted they weren't done yet. Another dilemma. Hidden Fire was going to be another romantic suspense, but my hero and heroine already knew each other and were already in the typical HEA required by the genre. How to begin? I put the two of them together and let them go. To maintain the conflict and tension of the relationship, I fast-forwarded a few months, and pulled Randy out of the scenario letting Sarah re-evaluate the relationship. After all, she'd spent most of Finding Sarah wanting to be independent. Second thoughts, anyone?

Remember: Leave a comment on any Countdown post this week and I'll enter you in a drawing for a free download. Hidden Fire or Finding Sarah -- your choice, since you might want to start at the beginning. And check my website for Behind the Scenes looks at all my novels and short stories.

Guest Blogging Today

I'm a guest at Jenyfer Matthew's blog today. I'm talking about writing series. What's the difference between a sequel and a spinoff. How do you feel about reading books out of order? What do you think about spoilers? As an author, writing connected books presents another set of challenges.

I hope you'll stop by and leave a comment -- either here or there.