Q & A with author Christy Hayes

Thanks for being here today, Christy. Would you please share a short bio about yourself?
Thanks for having me! I live with my husband, two tweens, and two dogs in a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia. I’ve been writing for over ten years and have a journalism degree from the University of Georgia. I love college football, cable news, and exercise.

Do you consider yourself a shy and/or introverted person?

Yes!

In what ways has being shy or introverted hindered your writing career?

I wrote in secret for years, querying agents, editors, attending writing conferences. When I decided to indie publish, I had to let the cat out of the bag in a big way. The response has been wonderful, but it has been a challenge overcoming my knee-jerk reaction to hide what I spend all day doing.

In what ways has being shy or introverted helped your writing career?

I think being shy helps me to focus on the work. I’m not shouting from the rooftops about my accomplishments, but trying to put the next manuscript together and focus on the business end of things.

What’s the hardest part of this business for you?

Promotion, bar none! I’m not comfortable passing out business cards to everyone I meet, so I don’t do it. I prefer for someone to read my work and want to read more. Promotion is a necessary evil, but you just have to decide what you are comfortable doing and focus your efforts there.

Tell me about a time that you had to step outside your comfort zone either in your writing career or in your personal life?

When I was trying to get a traditional publishing deal, the biggest step outside my comfort zone was pitching to agents and editors. My nerves were out of control. Once, my friend and I were stranded at a small airport for many hours with an agent after a writer’s conference. After spending the afternoon getting to know the agent as a person, I felt more comfortable pitching to all agents and editors, but never TOTALLY comfortable.

What’s one tip you could share with shy and introverted people that’s helped you?

Sometimes stepping outside your comfort zone is the best thing you can do for yourself. I like to challenge myself—not get too lazy and do the same things over and over. I always look at stepping outside my comfort zone as a good lesson for my kids. If mommy can do this, certainly you can do that.

Would you please share a short blurb of your book and where my readers can buy it?

My latest release is The Sweetheart Hoax.

When urbane architect, Phil Williams, must bring a woman home to quell rumors he's gay, his only choice is the one woman least likely to impress: his dowdy receptionist. Margot Manning has been secretly in love with Phil for years. She's just quit her job and is ready to begin her life anew as a nurse. Phil's outrageous offer is one she can't refuse. As Margot readies to accompany Phil to his hometown, she steels herself for heartbreak. After Margot's makeover and a weekend spent attached at the hip, Phil admits he misjudged his former employee. He's ready to pursue her in earnest, if only her scandalous past didn't stand in their way.

The romantic comedy is available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Smashwords, as well as iBooks, Diesel and Kobo.

Where can my readers find you on the web?

            Website: http://www.christyhayes.com

            Twitter: https://twitter.com/ - !/SeaHayes

            Blog: http://www.womenunplugged.wordpress.com

Q & A with GENIE GABRIEL

Thanks for being here today, Genie. Would you please share a short bio about yourself?
Thank you, Rebecca, for having me as a guest! I grew up in a small town--though not as small as the fictional town of Halo in my LEGACY series. When I moved to the city in search of better jobs, I took a lot of small town expectations with me. Once in the city, I spent twenty years working for the state social service agency, where I became fascinated with the question of why some people who experience unspeakable trauma crumble and others come through triumphantly stronger. Exploring this question--as well as my passion for writing romance--became the basis for my stories, starring heroes and heroines who overcome great difficulties and find true love.

Do you consider yourself a shy and/or introverted person?

Though I've learned to be sociable for a limited time, I'd definitely choose staying home with my doggies over attending a party. Which is kind of a contradiction, because I truly enjoy talking to people once I'm out in public. Go figure!

In what ways has being shy or introverted hindered your writing career?

I also have perfectionist tendencies. An introverted perfectionist--what a combination! Having these personality traits made me very cautious about sharing my work. What if it wasn't good enough? What if I forgot to cross a "t" or dot an "i"? What if I repeated the same word three times on one page? It was years before I felt confident enough to share my work with a critique partner and even longer to submit my work to a publisher. Fourteen years from first writers' meeting to a sale, but then I sold three full-length novels and two novellas very quickly, as well as being contracted for nine books in my LEGACY series, which started March 1.

In what ways has being shy or introverted helped your writing career?

I'm slower to jump on the latest "hot" story--which would be out-of-favor by the time I finished writing it anyway. So I've focused on stories I love and, being an introvert, I'm quite happy sitting at home alone and writing.

What’s the hardest part of this business for you? Hands down, it's jumping on the social media bandwagon. I have a Facebook page, but it's woefully out of date. Friends have offered to help me with this, but it's an abyss I keep backing away from. Unfortunately, when I would like to support others by "liking" them or retweeting, I don't know how! That's become embarrassing, so figuring out the social media maze is quickly rising to the top of my "to do" list.

Tell me about a time that you had to step outside your comfort zone either in your writing career or in your personal life?

I'm going to cheat and give you more than one: Moving from my small hometown where everyone knows your business to a city of over 100,000 people where I knew no one. Sharing my writing with critique partners. Submitting my stories to a publisher. Pitching a story to an editor in person--that was waaaay out of my comfort zone.

What’s one tip you could share with shy and introverted people that’s helped you?

I'll pass on what I've heard from others, "Fake it until you make it." I don't mean be phony, but take a deep breath and step into who you want to be until it's not so uncomfortable. If you want to speak in front of people without passing out, find a topic you're passionate about, make sure your research is solid, practice in front of a mirror or with a couple of friends, pray like crazy, and do it!

Would you please share a short blurb of your book and where my readers can buy it?

The most serious crime in small town Halo, Oregon, is one of its citizens "borrowing" a gorilla costume from an abandoned store. Until unconventional caseworker Marly O'Shea comes to town looking for the birth mother of a stolen child. Her search stirs up secrets long buried, and tangles Deputy Dawson Browning in personal and professional knots. As he works to stop the revenge of a beast-man who is supposed to be dead, he also faces challenges to a relationship with Marly from her seven overly protective brothers.

Available now!

Rogue Phoenix Press|Amazon|Barnes & Noble

Where can my readers find you on the web?
My main online hangouts right now are my website  or my LEGACYblog.

Once again, many thanks to Rebecca for having me as a guest. And if you stop by my LEGACY blog and leave a comment, you'll be entered to win a $25.00 gift card in a drawing on March 23. Hope to see many of you there!

Q & A with Carina Press author Cathy Perkins

Thanks for being here today, Cathy. Would you please share a short bio about yourself?

Hi Becky, thanks for inviting me to be part of the blog today. I spend most of my time submerged in a financial geek day-job and escape into stories – mine or one of the millions of authors whose stories I love – in the evenings. I was born and raised in South Carolina, but moved to the Pacific Northwest when my kids were in high school. They survived. J

About a year ago, we bought land in the mountains (to the intense amusement of more than one of my friends, I’ve learned to drive a tractor and do battle with the beavers over the height of the pond). It’s a writer’s paradise though - weekends this winter included snow outside, a fire inside and my trusty laptop.

Do you consider yourself a shy and/or introverted person? In what ways has being shy or introverted hindered your writing career? In what ways has being shy or introverted helped your writing career?

I’m not sure if you’d call me an introvert (I do!) or just a quiet person. After mumble, mumble years in consulting (and playing the corporate-wifey role), my husband has a hard time believing that claim. He’s seen my Chatty-Cathy mode.

With the day job, I’m doing two things: I’m listening to what the client needs – introverts listen well – and I’m ‘selling’ a product or solution to a known issue. With the corporate requirements, it really is a role. Again, it’s listening to people who are more nervous than you are about meeting the Boss’s Wife. Trust me, I’m not intimidating!

Once I started writing, I found it easy to network because we were all excited about a common passion. People who don’t roll their eyes when I talk about my story or struggle with a character arc or motivation or… I’ll stop now.

The promo aspects of writing are another story. Whew, I had to talk about my book and myself, instead of something tangible and separate from my personal identity. Social media was like an introvert’s nightmare – a giant cocktail party where you didn’t know a soul! I’m sllllooowwwlllyyyy finding I enjoy Facebook and Twitter – the impromptu conversations can be a lot of fun. 

Tell me about a time that you had to step outside your comfort zone either in your writing career or in your personal life?

I went to Bouchercon (a huge mystery reader/author conference) for the first time last fall and didn’t know a soul. On the plane, I had a major case of ‘what am I doing?’ compounded by crossed wires (and a dying cell phone) over where I supposed to meet my new roommate. I’d only spoken with this woman on-line, but she and her friend graciously allowed me to crash on the sofa in their suite. They both turned out to be wonderful people who let me tag along to all the parties they were invited to. As soon as we entered the room, though, I knew they needed to ‘do their thing.’ I peeled off and acted as if I knew what I was doing. Rather than treating it like that introvert’s nightmare, I simply walked up to a lost looking person and started talking. And guess what – they were so happy someone broke the ice and talked to them! I ended up working the room and met so many fantastic people. While I’m terrible with names, I’d see them later in a session or the bar and it made it easy to meet whoever they were talking to. Sometimes, it’s forgetting about your own worries and just relaxing. Maybe that’s my ‘tip’ – focusing on the other person makes it easier for me to forget I’m nervous. 

Would you please share a short blurb of your book and where my readers can buy it?

Set in South Carolina, stopping the serial killer who is terrorizing college campuses drives the plot of THE PROFESSOR. The tension and stakes build as the characters’ wants and needs set them on a collision course: Charismatic State Agent Mick O'Shaughnessy wants more from life than work and a pretty face. Fiercely independent graduate student Meg Connelly always wanted a loving family and professional success, but has to learn to trust in order to get either. The Professor knows the only way to get what he wants is to take it—and taking Meg’s life will destroy Mick with the same stroke of his knife.

Buy links:

Link to amazon   http://amzn.to/tm7uf6

Link to B&N  http://bit.ly/rQKCHp
Carina http://bit.ly/AeUQWx

Where can my readers find you on the web?

www.cperkinswrites.com

http://facebook.com/CathyPerkinsAuthor

http://twitter.com/cperkinswrites

HONEYMOON BITE by Sharon Hamilton

I don't usually post promo on this blog, but today I'm making an exception (right, Sharon?). Please check out this fabulous new release by romance author Sharon Hamilton. It's Book 1 of her Golden Vampire series.

BLURB:
Anne caught her husband cheating with the maid of Honor before their wedding cake was cut. She decided to take her planned and paid for honeymoon in Tuscany, alone. On the evening of what was to be her wedding night, she gets bitten by a female vampire.

Marcus Monteleone has waited three hundred years to find his fated female, only to discover her dying in his arms. He saves Anne's life by turning her, and then works to gain her trust, to cope with being a newly-formed golden vampire.

But when Anne finds out Marcus has not been completely truthful about his past, she vows to live as a human, and shuns the vampire world. Alone and unprotected, she falls prey to the very villainess who took her human soul, and who now takes the only man she’s ever loved.

Which lover will have to make the ultimate sacrifice to save the other before they both are lost?

BUY: Kindle|Nook

Sharon's website: http://www.sharonhamiltonauthor.com/home.html

Q & A with author Marcella Rose

Thanks for being here today, Marcella. Would you please share a short bio about yourself?  Thanks for having me, Becky. As a D.C. native and only child, I was my Daddy's girl, going with him to Redskins and Terps games, playing golf, bowling, and reading. I desperately wanted to be the first woman on the moon, or at least the first female test pilot. But obviously, that didn't happen. I got married and moved to the Deeeep South. Talk about culture shock! I went from rush-hour traffic in the Capitol city to living at the end of a gravel road. I've sung professionally, taught computer, and sold just about everything – pools, burglar bars, long distance, cars, mobile homes, students. After a layoff several years ago, and the first period of time when I wasn't working eighty-hour weeks, I decided to write the stories that had been spinning in my head and see what came of it. Now, I live by the bayou, no noise, no traffic, just herons, deer, alligators and hunters ambling by my writing space. It's an introvert's dream.

Do you consider yourself and introvert?In what ways has it hindered your writing career?  Yep, introvert, though my mother couldn't understand how someone who was in front of others in sales, singing or training could be an introvert. In those jobs, though, communication had a purpose, to sell, to entertain, to instruct. Put me at a table with one person and I'm on it, but ask me to socialize, meaning casual chit chat and, ugh, I'm a disaster. So this solitary life of writing was perfect for me until I realized I had to get on the online version of the big group party - Twitter and Facebook. (Is there a book called Social Media for Introverts? Send me the link, lol.)

In what ways has being introverted helped your writing career? It's made me more of a nurturer and able to see the individual. When we experience difficulty we tend to recognize others in the same predicament and want to help. We hear that this is a solitary profession but the writing community is like a village with a very social core. And that's the most difficult part for me.

Tell me about a time that you had to step outside your comfort zone? Recently, I made the decision to self-publish. I didn't realize what a big learning experience it would be – not just about the work but what I would learn about myself, the boundaries I would have to establish in order to stay strong toward my goal. We introverts tend to let others do the talking and sometimes the pushing. I envy those who have been able to make it traditionally but for me this was the right decision, for now, and it seemed like I had to expose and defend parts of myself for the first time. Getting through it was scary but very satisfying.

What's one tip you could share with shy and introverted people that's helped you?  You know, for years I felt there was something wrong with me. My mother and her sisters were extreme extroverts and just didn't 'get' us introverts. I felt like a misfit, until my uncle introduced the women in the family to the MyersBriggs book Please Understand Me. Sharing that book as a game with other members of the family and at work was very eye opening. Mom scored a 20 on the Extrovert scale; I was a two. I suspect writers who hit the middle of the scale are the most successful at balancing the solitary with the social. But whether you're a 20 or an 8, on the introvert/extrovert-o-meter, my hope is that each of us can learn to make the best of our talents, and accept that, "hey, this is how God made me, and I'm okay." ;))

Fire in My Blood is a sensual romantic adventure starring Cass McKay, a sexy Aussie gem hunter, and Elektra Charpentier, a New Orleans Art and Antiquities dealer. When Cass appears unexpectedly at Elektra's design shop, her reasons for sending him away become…complicated; their passion for each other and her dark secret, intricately entwined. One year ago on the eve of Carnival, Elektra broke their engagement after the "Blood" opal was stolen from them. Now, staying out of Cass' bed isn't an option if she's going to keep him safe, but coming clean might make things worse. Elektra is walking a tightrope between desire and deceit, and the truth will endanger not only their love, but their lives.

Fire In My Blood is available on Amazon, Smashwords, and All Romance Ebooks

Follow Marcella on Twitter or Facebook or her blog: http://marcellaroseauthor.blogspot.com

Polish, Prepare & Pitch!

Please welcome Jordan K. Rose to the blog. Her first book, Perpetual Light, releases in March of 2012 from Crescent Moon Press.

As conference season is almost upon us, I think this post will be very interesting to you all.

Here's Jordan: Hi Rebecca. Thanks so much for having me on Shy Writers today.

I thought I’d talk a little bit about the dreaded task of pitching. I think most writers will agree they’d rather hide in their hotel rooms or take every seminar offered at any conference they attend rather than pitch.

I have found a few things to be quite helpful in this process. My first two tips are very basic.

1. Finish, scrub, and polish your manuscript. Have it ready to go at the pitch. Then, when you get the request, march back to your room and send it. Don’t delay. Get it done. You want the agent/editor to remember you.

2. Know your audience. By this I mean research the agent or editor to whom you’re pitching. Don’t pitch your hot paranormal romance to an editor who only accepts sports biographies. What are you, nuts? Don’t waste your time, his time, or your precious opportunity to network with the right editor, the one who wants that romance.

This next one is probably the most difficult tip I have because it’s all about you and your mindset. But it’s really, really important.

3. Take control of the pitch. It’s your pitch, your story, your eight minutes of uninterrupted time with a publishing industry professional who wants to hear with you.

Did you get that last part--“wants to hear from you.” Yes, that’s right. The agents and editors who agree to take pitches at conferences want to hear your pitch. They want to buy books. They want to sell books. And why is that? Because that’s how they make their money.

This is a business. You hold multiple cards in your hands. They hold one.

You’re the creative manager, the artiste, the person who gets to decide who will publish your book. You drive this process. Without you there is no book.

They get to say, “I’d like to buy your book.”

You still have veto power. You decide if this house is the best house for you or this agent is the best agent for you. Just because Pamela Publisher is one of the Big Six doesn’t mean she can help you achieve your goals.

Know your career goals. What is it you’re hoping to achieve by publishing this book? Be realistic. Very few careers have flown into the stratosphere on one book. Don’t set yourself up to be disappointed.

Put it all in perspective. The pitch is an opportunity to meet an industry professional who wants to meet you. Don’t panic, just prepare. Bring notes in case you fumble. And realize that everyone does it.

Everyone has that moment of, “Oh my God, why am I doing this to myself?” But the successful pitch is made by the writer who shoves that question to the far recesses of her mind with the swift answer, “Because I want this.”

If you truly want to be published, polish, prepare, and pitch! You can do it!

Blurb for Perpetual Light:
Fate is cruel. Especially when the one you’ve sworn to love for all eternity, the very soul who changed your destiny is the last person you should trust.

After more than three hundred years of running, Lucia Dicomano must make a choice.

Forced to take her place as a Pharo of Redemption, the divine slayer needs to master her forgotten powers. Lucia turns to Vittorio, the one vampire she’s failed to deliver from eternal damnation. But overcoming smoldering remnants of love, lust and anger aren’t their only obstacles.

Samuel, who may know Lucia better than she knows herself, hunts her with a fervor stoked by a thousand years of vengeful hatred. His plan—capture and enslave the weakened Pharo then take control of her elusive power.

Can Lucia trust Vittorio long enough to reclaim her powers? Or will she have no choice but to kill him and battle Samuel alone?

About Jordan: After trying her hand at many, many things- from crafting and art classes to cooking and sewing classes to running her own handbag business, Jordan finally figured out how to channel her creativity. With an active imagination and a little encouragement from her husband she sat down and began to write, each night clicking away at the keys with her black Labrador, Dino curled up under the desk.

A few short years later she’s entered the publishing arena with no plans to ever turn back.

Jordan’s a member of Rhode Island Romance Writers, as well as RWA National, and the New England (NEC), Connecticut, and Fantasy, Futuristic and Paranormal (FFnP) Chapters.

Find Jordan on her website at http://www.jordankrose.com/.


Follow her tweets on https://twitter.com/#!/jordankrose


Friend her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/jordankrose

Q & A with CALISA RHOSE

Thanks for being here today, Calisa.
I’m really thrilled to be here, Rebecca! Thanks for inviting me.


Would you please share a short bio about yourself?Small-town country girl Calisa
Rhose lives in a semi-remote area of Oklahoma with her husband, five dogs, one cat and one horse. All of her three daughters and their families live within throwing distance. She’s a member of RWA and the local chapter OKRWA. She intends to nurture and continue to grow as an author with the help of her family and supporters.


Q Do you consider yourself a shy and/or introverted person?
A You know, I did think of myself as shy. I don’t like to be in the spotlight, people staring at me, judging me. But then I stood in front of 20 women and read a sex scene at a recent local RWA meeting and let Sharon Sala judge my writing. Not judge--what she did was tell me how to improve and I felt so wonderful about me afterward! For standing up and reading MY work, a sex scene... I’ve said many times that I do not write those scenes and will definitely not let anyone read it if I did. And I did it. Wow.

Recently I took a quiz. Am I an introvert or extrovert? I knew which I am so the results surprised me. I am an introvert, but I’m also a bit of an extrovert. I was amped after reading that scene, I love attention, the spotlight- just don’t look at me! LOL


Q In what ways has being shy or introverted hindered your writing career?
A I’ve been writing since I was a teen but the only person to have ever read anything I’ve written is my sister until in 2005 I took the plunge and wrote and submitted my first ‘real’ manuscript to Harlequin. I think if I’d had more confidence and less shyness I’d have done that a lot sooner. Being shy also affected the heat levels of my writing. Until my last submission last year there was no sex in my writing. Closed doors, you know.


Q In what ways has being shy or introverted helped your writing career?
A It forced me to concentrate on the craft to learn. I didn’t just jump out there and act like I knew all there was because I didn’t want to be judged or laughed at for not knowing what the heck I was talking about. I needed to know.


Q What’s the hardest part of this business for you? A Writing sex scenes. Writing hard scenes, emotional ones. I invest so much of me into them that I have to really let go and I don’t like to let go. LOL


Q Tell me about a time that you had to step outside your comfort zone either in your writing career or in your personal life?
A Besides the afore-mentioned reading a sex scene out loud and to Sharon Sala for a critique--who, if you aren’t aware, is a NYT Best Selling author!?


Q What’s one tip you could share with shy and introverted people that’s helped you?
A Just clench your eyes and do it, jump in. Whatever ‘it’ may be, you can do it if it means enough to you. That goes for your writing as well as personal life. You will never experience the great things in life sitting on the sidelines. I know I couldn’t have.


Q Would you please share a short blurb of your book and where my readers can buy it?
A Here it is:

What could a gypsy and a Vietnam veteran have in common?

Silvertown’s outcast, Poppy Tippen, has loved football hero Sam “The Force” Callahan forever. But he never seemed to know she was alive. Now he’s home from the war and she suddenly finds herself comforting him from the demons of “that damn war.” Is his attention merely an escape from the haunting nightmares? Or does she hold the interest of the only man she’s ever truly loved?


Sam Callahan’s only solace from the war nightmares wrecking his life comes in the unlikely form of a gypsy girl with stigmas of her own. He’s known Poppy his entire life, but there’s something different about her now. Something special he desperately wants to hold on to. Can he convince her she’s the only thing he needs to put the past behind him?


Get your copy of HOME at The Wild Rose Press and Amazon and B&N.


Q Where can my readers find you on the web?
A Find Calisa at her website/blog .

On Twitter @Calisa_Rhose and Facebook @Calisa Rhose


She loves to hear from readers so drop her a line at calisa.rhose@gmail.com.