Some Things to Remember About Dialogue by Laura Kelly

The most important thing about dialogue is to make sure each character speaks in his own voice.  The last thing you want is to have all your characters sounding the same, or worse yet, sounding like you, the author.  Dialogue is a huge part of characterization.  Each character should have her own voice and the dialogue should be consistent with that character.  Dialogue tells the reader about your character and the emotional state your character is in at that point in time.  Your reader should be able to recognize each of your characters, and, if you’re really good, their mood, when they speak.  An incensed valley girl will not use the same words, or tone, or inflection as a seasoned society matron.  An accountant will not use the same vocabulary or cadences as a cowboy. 

Here’s an example of four ways of saying the same thing.  Try to imagine what kind of character said each and how they feel about what has happened.

“My old man kicked the bucket.”

“My father passed away last night.”

“By the way, the old fart died.”

“Daddy went to heaven, sweetheart.”

The best guidelines to use when writing dialogue are: 

1.      Write the way people really speak, and

2.      Never write the way people really speak.

What do I mean by that? In real conversation, people repeat themselves. In books, this is boring.  In real life, we also talk to ourselves and our pets. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve come across this in manuscripts (and yes, published books).  But both are very hard to pull off successfully, and as an editor, when I read a manuscript that opens with a character talking to herself, I’m almost immediately put off.  Because there are better, and less obviously manipulative, ways to get the information across.

Regarding repetitions, if you must refer to something that happened or was said earlier, summarize it in narrative whenever possible. 

For example, in chapter two you’ve written a scene where the hero and heroine face off against each other in a board meeting.  In chapter three, your heroine meets her brother for lunch and they talk about the meeting.  You don’t need to put into dialogue between the siblings what happened at the meeting.  The reader already knows.  So you move the story along with a simple:

Briefly, Sarah explained what happened at the meeting.

“That stinks,” Joe said.  “What are you going to do about it?”

In this way, by summarizing—or in this case simply referring to--the previous conversation in narrative, you keep your story moving forward.  Because every line of dialogue must have a purpose.  It must either 1) advance the story, 2) inform the reader, or 3) reveal character.  If a line of dialogue doesn’t do one of these things—cut it. Examples of useless dialogue include small talk, and the mundane, such as when introductions are made, when making or eating meals, (such as chit-chatting with the waitress) or when answering the telephone.   

In addition to that, good dialogue must also be three things—logical (does it make sense?), natural (would real people say these words in this way?) and convincing (will the reader believe this, coming from this character?)

Men and women speak differently.  We also think differently.  Be sure to reflect this in your dialogue, and also your internal dialogue, or introspection.  For example, no self-respecting alpha male would use the word, “horrid.”

Nor do men describe things the way women do.  A woman might refer to a color as fuchsia or tangerine.  A man is more likely to refer to it as a “weird shade of pink” or “some kind of orange.”  A woman might be more apt to call that thing under the hood of a car a motor.  A man might be more likely to call it an overhead cam, fuel-injected engine. 

And remember, for the most part, men use far fewer words than women do to convey the same meaning.

So put yourself in your characters’ shoes, and when writing from a point of view not of your own gender, be sure to use terms a man or woman would use, not terms you, the writer, would use.  Don’t have your men speak lyrically or poetically unless they are poets, or at least poets at heart.  Don’t have your women speak like trash-talking grease monkeys, unless, of course, they are.

Read plays or watch television to see how they handle dialogue.  Re-read your favorite books to see how the authors handle dialogue.  Eavesdrop at parties, in restaurants, on buses.  Get a feel for speech patterns and rhythms, and store what you learn in your memory bank until the time comes when you need a character with a voice “just” like the one you overheard at the dry cleaners. 

Last, but not least, always read your dialogue aloud to make sure it sounds right.  If it doesn’t, then revise it until it does sound right.

Happy writing!

What is Showing and What is Telling

by Cindy Davis, Editor

The difference between showing and telling is a difficult concept to understand. It takes practice and perseverance to master the nuances, to know when to tell and when to show. How do you know if you’re telling rather than showing your story? If you describe what’s going on in a scene, you are probably telling. When you tell rather than show, you are essentially telling the reader how to feel, because it’s your version of the story. Showing a scene instead, brings the reader in and lets them experience things right up front in their own way.

Why is there so much emphasis on showing instead of telling?

            • to put more emphasis on the character's reaction to it than a description of it

            • to immerse the reader in images, senses and dialogue rather than explanations of action

            • to present images in ways readers may not have seen them before

The question is, how to do this? One way is to use metaphors and analogies to compare the way things look, smell, sound or taste to that specific character. Rather than tell that the ocean breeze smelled like salt, show how the smell reminded the character of a romantic date he'd had. Or how it tickled his nostrils. Or how the scene affects this character emotionally. Let the sounds of your setting's everyday life permeate the scenes. The way a character reacts or thinks about sounds or events around him deepens the scene, develops the character. Shows the reader.

Always be thinking how the character views each scene. Rather than saying “Debbie sat on the bed,” show it creaking under her weight or show its legs scratching across the bare wood floor. The creak or scratch should portray how she sat. If she's angry and throws herself there, the bed will be more likely to bang against the wall. Conversely, if she's calm, she'll probably drop on the bed and it won't make any noise, but might puff up the scent of fabric softener from the quilt. Instead of a long paragraph telling how she was born in Boston, show it in how she says she “always loved the way the moonlight glistened off Boston Harbor” or that she “went to all the Bruins games.”

There's an App for that (and for you!)

This blog is from Desiree Holt who was the first author to sign up to receive our Author App.  If you have an iPhone you can download her App for free.  If you are an author - published anywhere not just TWRP - you can contact us to get your own App.  Just email appsgrp@thewildrosepress.com or rpenders@thewildrosepress.com and we'll get you started.  In the meantime, please keep reading to find out why Desiree is so in love with this cutting edge technology. Please visit our website and click the App link to get pricing information.

I’m an App!

When Rhonda Penders contacted me about turning myself into an App I thought, Wow! What a great promo opportunity. And it was so easy. On Seeker Technologies created the platform for me as well as the graphic and loaded it to the Apple platform. Once it went live I could do all kinds of things with it. 

What would that be, you ask?

Well!

It has all my books in iTune and the iStore listed with Buy links. Then it gave me the opportunity to list all my other books and add a Buy link to them. Just tap the link and it takes you to the book. I posted all my covers so people can browse through them. It has an announcements section where I post about my book release and then…very cool..I click on Push and it sends the notice as a text message to everyone who has my App. 

I’m getting ready to post photos from events I’ve attended. Oh, and by the way, I can also list events I'm attending so my readers can find me. Way cool. 

I’ve posted this everywhere and I am getting such a fantastic response from readers. They love it, especially since it’s FREE! That’s right, FREE! I pat a small monthly fee to keep the App available and with it comes free support from The Wild Rose Press and On Seeker (who by the way are the very nicest people.) 

Just think of it. With this App I can reach people all over the world. How often do you sit in an airport or restaurant or coffee shop or anyplace where you see people playing with their phones. They could be downloading and reading YOUR APP. 

This is the cheapest promo you can get with the very most bang for your buck. I’ve already heard from readers in Hong Kong and South America and even Korea that they have my App and love it. 

So what are you waiting for? Get busy. Contact Rhonda today to get your App. You won’t be sorry.

Reviews, Reviews, Reviews

When will my book be reviewed?

My book was never reviewed. Now what?

How will I know when my book is reviewed?

How can I get my book reviewed?

What do I do after my book is reviewed?

An author's joy is to receive validation on their work, and reviews are a great way to do this. But what happens when the reviews don't come in? An author is left to wonder why their book failed to attract reviewers. There are many reasons for this.

I asked Romance Reader of Seriously Reviewed how many requests their site receives each month. Her reply, "Conservatively 500+." Their site may post 20 to 30 reviews a month. The mathematical equation isn't hard to figure out. Competition for reviews is fierce.

So when will your book be reviewed? Anytime. A review may post in the days before your release, or it may take months to garner that first review. There is no magical time frame. The Wild Rose Press has a list of reviewers that receive book information prior to release. If the review site is interested in reviewing a title, they are sent advanced reader copy. If you know of a review site that would be interested in Wild Rose Press titles, you can email me at lisadawn@thewildrosepress.com. Let me know and I'll check into the site.

Your book was never reviewed. Now what? While our books are made available to reviewers, not every book is selected for review by every review site. Some titles are never selected for review. But there are options. Review sites are great, but you the author still need to spread the word about that review. You have other options such as Goodreads.com. If you have family, friends, beta readers, ask them to leave a comment on Goodreads. Start a conversation about your book. The Wild Rose Press has a public yahoo loop. This is a great place for authors to share excerpts and for readers to learn about the wonderful romances published by TWRP.

How will you know your book has been reviewed? Sometimes reviews come from places least expected. Someone purchased your book. They loved the story and blogged about it. You'll know because you're periodically doing a Yahoo and Google search on your book title and author name to see what pops. You may be surprised at what you can find.

How can you get your book reviewed? The fact is, unless you're paying for a review, all you can do is ask. The Wild Rose Press has a policy that after 6 months from release, an author may resubmit their books for reviews but please be clear when submitting that your publisher submitted at the time of release.

But there are things you can do. Write a blurb that teases, tempts and draws the reader in. Reviewers love to read. They need to be hooked from those few paragraphs.

What do you do after your book is reviewed? If you're ever reviewed, be sure to thank the reviewer, via a comment on the blog or by email. Make a connection to the reviewer and let them know you'd be happy to drop them an email when your next book is releasing so they can watch for it.

And then tell everyone. If the review site allows comments, ask friends and fellow authors to drop by, read your review and leave a comment. Most review sites are businesses. They need traffic to their sites. Show them that you saw the review and that you're thrilled to share their opinion of your book.

If for some reason you receive a review that isn't a positive note on your book, don't send friends to jump to your defense. Not every story is for every person. So always conduct yourself with professionalism.

If you have any questions on TWRP's review policy, feel free to email me at lisadawn@thewildrosepress.com

Lisa Dawn

Marketing Director

The Wild Rose Press

Read an Ebook Week March 4-10 2012

Celebrate Read an Ebook Week in the Garden!

Romance is in bloom and this week is the perfect opportunity to shop at The Wild Rose Press and the Wilder Roses - our erotic romance catalog.

www.TheWildRosePress.com

www.TheWilderRoses.com (18+ only)

This week discover special offers including FREE Books.

Each day selections from our catalog will be made available for a limited time.

Check out these wonderful series and take 10% off our entire digital catalog.

World Building

By Michelle Church, Faery Rose Editor

I don’t feel like writing. I don’t feel like worrying about my word count or if what I’m saying makes sense to anyone other than me. I don’t want to think. I want to be outside in the sunshine, ideally by the lake enjoying the warm weather. However, I live in Michigan and its February. Enough said. Although, the sun is shining today. But it’s sooo bright. I’m not used to the reflection of the light off the snow. Holy cow, do I sound like a whining three year old or what?

I still don’t want to write. Or revise. Which is what I should be doing instead of complaining. I do have to say my house is pretty clean right now, which makes my husband happy. I did the bathrooms and the laundry. The kitchen is clean and dinner is cooking. I debated on washing some windows, but I’m not feeling that motivated. So I headed into my office to straighten up my desk a little bit. Which I did. I also dusted off my book shelf where I found my world building folder.

I love world building. Creating a world that didn’t exist until I put it on paper. I found myself getting excited. I hadn’t opened this folder in a while. I didn’t need to. My story is written, I just need to revise. I know everything about that current world inside and out. I pulled out a couple maps, one a general survey of the area I was writing about and one more in depth. I found the map of the house my heroine lives in and one of her town. There was a map going from her house to the hero’s and another to his sister’s house. I had to location of the schools highlighted since the hero has a young daughter. I had the coffee house in a prominent location since my heroine loves coffee and spends quite a bit of time there.

I found another map from another story, on an unknown planet with a new race of people. This story never really developed and looking at this map, I can see why. It was too general. I had a basic idea of the planet and where I wanted to go with it, but didn’t. I didn’t explore the area beyond the very small potion where the heroine lived. I didn’t even know what she did for a living or where she did it. I knew who her hero was and the villain, but that was about it. I think I completed three chapters before putting it aside and not looking back until now. Four years later. I wonder how much time I spent on that planet. Must not be much.

If J.K. Rowling didn’t spend much time developing Hogwarts, The Leaky Cauldron, Diagon Alley, or even the Dursleys house would Harry Potter be the phenomenon it is today? Or George Lucas and the Death Star. Frank Baum and the world of Oz. You get the idea. The world you create will have a huge impact on the success of your story. I love fantasy. I love everything about it. But one of my favorite parts of a good fantasy story is the area it takes place. It doesn’t have to be elaborate; a forest will work as long as you develop it. Make me feel the moss under my feet. I want to smell the damp earth mixed with decomposing leaves. To hear the leaves blowing in the breeze and the birds singing in the trees.

Okay, for not feeling like writing I got a fair amount done. I also got out of my funk. That folder got me thinking. I jotted down an idea and got to work on my revisions. I don’t like to start another story when I’m revising; it just screws up my thinking. But it made me want to finish so I can start my new story. I still want warm weather and sunshine. I still want to sit by the lake. But for today I’m going to revise my current story that takes place during the summer and be content with what I have. Maybe.

An Editor's Wish List

by Kathy Cottrell, Senior Editor, Last Rose of Summer

The High Concept

            I spent a very long time trying to figure this one out, attending every editor/agent roundtable available, asking for examples. Nada. Until I heard agent Jessica Faust speak at the New England Romance Writers conference and a light bulb went off inside my brain:  The high concept, in a very few sentences, sums up the crux of the story. Here are some 'ah ha' examples I have found at www.RTBookreviews.com:

            Julia Knight's fantasy romance, Ilfayne's Bane, [Samhain Publishing, Ltd.]: “He destroyed a continent. Dethroned a god. Now she will destroy him.”

            Monica Burns' historical erotic romance, Mirage, [also Samhain].: “An ancient prophecy. A sheikh's passion. One woman ignites the flame that fulfills them both.”

            Irene Hannon's contemporary romantic suspense, Fatal Judgment, [Revell Books]: “Jake Taylor's assignment is straightforward. His relationship with Judge Liz Michaels isn't. They have a past. But if he fails, they may not have a future.”

            As you can see; it doesn't give me any plot details, however it does tell me what I'll be getting myself into. 

 The Hook

            I am not only an editor, I am first a reader. If the first few lines don't grab me; or the last line of a scene or chapter fails to capture my interest and imagination, the story probably won't work for me. For some authors 'hooking' is as natural as breathing; others struggle, however, that's where a good editor comes into the picture. Here are some hooks which made me sit up and take notice:

            Nora Roberts' beginning hook for Montana Sky: “Being dead didn't make Jack Mercy less of a son of a bitch.”

            Rick Riordan's beginning hook for The Lost Hero: “Even before he got electrocuted, Jason was having a rotten day.” 

            Margo Hoornstra's end of scene hook for Glad Tidings: “What kind of woman buries her husband in the afternoon then sleeps with his best friend that night?”

            Debra Webb's ending scene hook for Traceless: Note: hero Clint Austin has just been released from prison after serving time for murder. “There wouldn't be much in the way of financial assets waiting for him back home. But he would have full access to the one thing that he wanted nearly more than his next breath . . . .The people who had stolen his life.”

 Memorable Characters

            I read Leon Uris' Mila 18 when I was fourteen. Every couple years I go back to visit the entire cast of characters. The same goes for Kathleen Woodiweiss' Shanna and A Rose in Winter.  These are the keeper books on my night stand.  The secret to creating great characters is to give them a few warts. Then throw them into the deep end of the pool but make sure you put a few hidden traps beneath the surface of the water.

 Examples: 

            Brenda Leigh Johnson, a Georgia peach transplanted to LAPD in TNT's The Closer. She may be beautiful and built, but her subordinates choke on her thick southern drawl; she dresses out of Volunteers of America; and she's tenacious as Hong Kong flu. 

            Harry Potter, the wizard raised as a muggle with a weird looking scar on his forehead. JK Rowlings tossed him into the deep end of the pool known as Diagon Alley, later Hogwarts and the fun began.

             Eve Dallas, [JD Robb's futuristic In Death series], the street smart homicide detective with the social skills of a rattlesnake confronts the prime murder suspect, a man with a one word name, more money than God, better looking than some lapsed Irish angel. Eventually he woos her with a rare steak and a sack of coffee beans.

            It takes Parker Evans, [Sandra Brown's Envy], a wheelchair-bound hero twenty years to exact revenge on his college room-mate by deliberately seducing the roomie's unwitting wife. “Did I stutter?” still makes me laugh out loud. This story keeps the reader on the edge from start to finish.

             Cash Boudreaux, [Sandra Brown's Slow Heat in Heaven] revels in the image of local bad boy, occasionally inciting violence, has good reason to want revenge against the richest family in town.       

             Just a smidge about secondary characters: they support the hero and heroine, often provide comic relief, occasionally serve as a red herring. Make each one different from each other as well as the hero or heroine. If they all sound the same why should I bother to read the book?

 The Setting

            Must be as vivid as any of the main characters and, in my opinion, becomes a character of its own. Examples:  Innocence, Mississippi [Nora Roberts' Carnal Innocence] if chock full of murder, depravity and humor; Nohmensville aka No Man's Land [Captain Marvelous] actually should have been named no woman's land due to it's apathy, bigotry and ignorance; Lunacy, Alaska [Nora Roberts' Northern Lights] features its own set of 'lunatics'. And let's not forget Hogwarts. Do you see how the names, while unique, describe the flavor and aura of the settings? 

 Goals, Motivation & Conflict

            Every thing I know about GMC was learned at the knee of one of my heroes Debra Dixon who wrote the book [literally] on this topic. In short, the hero and heroine must have a goal [ie what do they want/need to accomplish?]. It needs to be logical and realistic. Likewise, their motivation for accomplishing these goals must be logical, realistic, and understandable to the reader—as in 'yeah, if that happened to me as a kid, I'd shoot for that goal, too. 

            The really good stories put the hero's goals in direct opposition to what the heroine wants and that's called CONFLICT.

            Now . . . conflict comes in two forms, internal and external. External is usually pretty easy: it's an external force [such as the approaching hurricane in Eileen Dreyer's Sinners and Saints which hampers the heroine's search for her missing sister. In Captain Marvelous the hero is trying to identify the killers of immigrant women and bring them to justice. He is thwarted at every step by complacency, bigotry and apathy from the towns people and a less than sterling police department. External conflict is supposed to be a bitch for the hero and heroine. Thwarting bad guys, disease, pestilence, and the apocalypse is no easy feat. But . . . as Sister John Thomas used to say, 'adversity builds character'.

            Internal conflict is what gets authors every time. This is the demon inside the hero and heroine which prevents them from accomplishing their goals AND should be directly tied to their motivation and goals.  In My Name is Nell, the heroine is a woman working the program of Alcoholics Anonymous while managing a home and raising her children without much help from a toxic mother and sister. She meets, then falls in love with a widower. Neither was looking for romance; it just happened. Now take a guess as to the circumstances which caused the deaths of the hero's wife and child. Go on, take a guess. That's conflict with a capital C. 

             In Debra Webb's Traceless, Clint Austin served time in prison for a murder he didn't commit. Emily Wallace, the star witness against Clint has not been able to move past what happened to her best friend, and vows to make him pay for his crimes all over again.        

Words to the wise:     Conflict cannot be resolved with a five minute conversation between all interested parties. It is something so strong, so powerful, the reader must believe these two people will never ever stay together.

 Common problems that come across my desk:

Failure to follow submission guidelines:  after you pick the publishing house you want to submit to, commit their rules to memory AND FOLLOW THEM TO THE LETTER. This includes submitting a mystery to a publisher who only releases romance [or vice versa].

 Errors in spelling, punctuation, formatting:  Use spell check; take a basic technical English writing course and practice on your computer program to learn how to set margins, line spacing, and indents. Fancy fonts do not impress me, nor do quotations at the beginning of each chapter.

 Point of View: some editors only accept two POVs. I personally don't mind more than the usual two, but I don't want to dislocate a cervical vertebrae while reading a manuscript.

 Telling instead of showing: this takes some practice but it can be mastered. Don't tell me the hero's pissed at the heroine, show me.

 Frothy, repetitious prose. As I have occasionally informed the authors involved with the Class of '85 series for TWRP, “Hauling out the hedge clippers makes me cranky.” Tell me what you want to say in simple declarative sentences. Learn the purpose, and proper use of, commas and semi-colons.

 Too much sexual attraction too early: there is a reason why we call it sexual tension. Giving it all up by page 10 is not tension; it's risky and dangerous behavior, not to mention unhealthy. There is a reason why we keep our zippers in a locked, upright position. It makes readers keep turning pages. Note - there are certain types of romances where this rule would be broken such as in erotic romance. But for most of the romance subgenres sexual tension is what keeps the reader reading.

 Editor bio: July 2004, in the middle of a bar at RWA Dallas, nurse/victim advocate/and insurance investigator Kathy Cottrell was handed her first published novel. The experience, similar to holding her first-born child in her arms, remains with her to this day. She uses the years spent maneuvering the twists and turns of Rejection Road, as well as her time as Senior Editor with The Wild Rose Press, to teach new, and not so new, authors as  examples of what to do and not do, who to listen, and not listen to, in order to hold that new baby in their arms.

 Kathy's current editor duties involve wrapping up the Class of '85, a reunion series for the Wild Rose Press. Ever wonder what happened to the prom queen? Or the guy voted most likely to spend time in a maximum security cage? Come to the twenty-fifth reunion of the Class of '85 and find out!

Self-Editing Workshop

Self-Editing Workshop

Feb 20-26

Want to perk up the pace of your prose?

Need help pinpointing your manuscript’s weak spots?

Contest judges getting you down?

Never learned the difference between POV and Show vs Tell?

Join Roses Colored Glasses for the

Self-Editing Workshop

Your Instructors: Layla Chase and Elle James

This workshop will help make your writing shine! Through the use of checklists, topical lectures and writing exercises for each lesson, we give you tangible examples of what to look for and how to fix it. You'll get interactive assistance from freelance editor and award-winning author, Layla Chase, and Harlequin author Elle James.

Passive Vs Active voice, Power words & pumping up your sentences

Eliminating implied or unnecessary words

Gerunds, misplaced modifiers, dangling participles

Point Of View and Show Vs Tell

Grammar & Punctuation

Style and Voice

To enroll, send your $20 payment through Paypal from the workshop page on http://www.rosescoloredglasses.com/WSSelfEdit.htm

Deadline for enrollment is February 20, 2012.

Testimonials

“I just wanted to say a HUGE thank you for teaching the Self-Editing class on Rose's Colored Glasses. I took the class earlier this year and by applying what I learned to my manuscript, I managed to final in a RWA Chapter contest.”

"... even more than the wonderful tips and checklist and exercises, this workshop taught us how to discipline ourselves, which I love. Thank you, thank you, thank you."

“Just want to say thank you so much for all your insight and information, ladies. I enjoyed the class and can definitely take the information and apply it to my writing. In fact, it's been useful already!”

“I wanted to express my appreciation for the time and assistance we have been given. I have learned so much and have so much to learn. Thanks heaps and I'll be doing this again!”

Romance is in the Air!

Tomorrow is the most romantic day of the year~Valentine’s Day.

As a publisher of romance, how could we not take a moment to celebrate with all the romantics at heart?

I’m sure you’ve heard the day called a “Halmark Holiday,” but let’s think about this….what is the #1 flower sent and received today? The daisy? Nope. The tulip? Nope. The carnation? Close but nope. The rose. Yeah, I think you see where I’m going with this LOL.

Enjoy the romance of the day at the Wild Rose Press. Believe me, we got romance! Sweet, heartfelt romance. Sensual, electric romance. Steamy, spicy romance. You name it and I’m sure you can find it within the gates of our gardens. Thousands of roses just waiting for you to pick for yourself or send to that someone special.

So come into our store this Valentine’s Day and browse our shelf of beautiful roses….

www.thewildrosepress.com

Februray - The Month of Romance

by Nicolette, Editor - Black Rose Line

February, the month of love and romance, I would like to take this chance to thank and applaud all of the writers.  Who better to represent this month than all of you, romance writers.  If you are published, thank you for entrusting your stories to all of us at the TWRP.  If you are secretly toiling away at a story, keep at it.  We are waiting to read your words.

I am your biggest fan! And your biggest cheerleader!

The hardest thing I have to do is write a rejection letter.  It takes a very brave person to submit a story.  And every story deserves to be told but there are times when they need a little work before they are ready to go out into the world.  When you do get that rejection letter think of it as the next step in the process and please keep on writing.  Jump right back in.

Take the time to learn the craft. All the technical aspects of writing can be studied and learned.  Take advantage of all the resources available.  However, the most important thing a writer brings to the table is passion.  Be open and free.  Don’t hold back.  Allow your characters to take you on the adventure.  It’s their story let; them tell it.  If you give them a chance, they will push you to the edge and hopefully right over.

Don’t be afraid of taking the big risk.  Be daring, love is a crazy thing, it makes people go far beyond what they would ever dream.  It pushes to extremes never thought possible.  As a writer of romance, you need to be willing to take that leap and bring us all along with you. Create the world you want to see.  Experience every minute detail and then share it with the rest of us.

More importantly have fun.  This should be pure enjoyment.  Love what you are doing; love each word that is put on the page.

Don’t be afraid of tapping into your emotions.  It may be uncomfortable but it breathes life into characters when the emotions come from a real place.  Embrace them, use them, they are the tools you’re going to need. Allow yourself to experience the highs and lows of the characters.

Listen to the voices in your head. They will guide you through your story.

And remember, no holding back!

I fell in love with romance novels at a young age and never looked back.  I love the stories, the ideas that love can conquer all and that there is a happily ever after.  It gives me hope in a world where so much is focused on the negative.  It’s my escape into a better world where I know that no matter what happens, no matter how dark the dark moments get, it’s all going to work out for the best.  My hero and heroine are going to find their way back to each other because their love is strong enough to carry them through.

The process isn’t always easy but never give up your dream. We are here to help and cheer for you.  Waiting excitedly for your stories release.

Adjectives in Series

If you are a native speaker of English, you understand the order of words in a sentence without too much thought; certain patterns exist that help us make sense of nouns, verbs, adverbs, pronouns, and adjectives in a way that communicates our thoughts clearly. This is called syntax.

River the to going you are? No. Are you going to the river?

Unless you’re Yoda. But he isn’t a native English speaker.

Within those rules of syntax are hidden conventions such as the natural order of adjectives used to describe a noun. Would you say “the yellow smelly old six buckets”? No. A native English speaker would want these words to fall this way: the six smelly old yellow buckets.

Why? And what about commas separating the adjectives?

This is where further analysis reveals tricky little rules and a couple of easy tests to help a writer or editor out.

In English, we generally organize serial adjectives in this order:

1. article (the, a, an)
2. number or quantity
3. observations/ judgments (terrible, stinky, interesting, nice)
4. size
5. shape
6. age (old, new, ancient)
7. color or pattern
8. origin (American, French, Asian)
9. material (cloth, iron, wooden)
10. qualifier, often considered part of the noun (rocking chair, dish soap, soup tureen)

Another example, no commas needed: six dozen long-stemmed red roses

This English for Students website has more information and a great chart to help determine the best order for a series of adjectives—simply plug in the ones you want to use and the order is predetermined. The only missing category is quantity, which we usually express first or just after the article, if one is used.

Once you have your adjectives arranged in the order that sounds best to your English ear, how do you determine if commas are needed between them? In theory, you could write “the twenty creaky little squarish antique green Martian wooden soap boxes” and not need commas. For most purposes, that is far too many adjectives to stick together. However, it illustrates a point. In the correct order, you won’t need commas.

If you use the adjectives “out” of order, perhaps to emphasize one over another, then place commas around the one that is out of order.

The new, cherry, American muscle car (article, age, observation (cherry = cool, neato, keen, awesome, spiffy), origin, qualifier)

If you use two adjectives from the same category (coordinated adjectives), you will need a comma to separate them.

The beautiful, fragrant rose (both observations)

Kim Kautzer at In Our Write Minds shows two ways to test whether you need commas or not by using “and” between them or by reversing the order of the adjectives.

One way to test whether a comma is needed between adjectives is if you can use the word “and” (or other conjunction) without changing the meaning of the phrase.

The beautiful and fragrant rose = yes, so a comma is needed.

“A wealthy business broker” changed to “a wealthy and business broker” = no, so no comma is needed.

A second way to test whether you need a comma is to switch the order of the adjectives. (This method is only practical if you have two or three, rather than all nine types).

The fragrant, beautiful rose = The beautiful, fragrant rose. Yes, a comma is needed.

A business wealthy broker = no; the order cannot be changed and still make sense, so no comma.

May the mysterious, overwhelming gray fog of grammar and comma rules lift for you on this issue.

A Good Showing by The Wild Rose Press

For the fourth time in a row, The Wild Rose Press has secured the title of "Best Publisher of the Year" based on voting results from the Preditors and Editors annual poll.  http://www.critters.org/predpoll/final_tally.ht

Not only did we take the top spot for Best Publisher but our very own editor, Laura Kelly also came in first place as Best Editor of the Year.

In addition, Lori Graham held her position as one of the top 10 editors in the field for the third year in a row coming in at number 6 this year.

Under Best Artist - our own Tamra Westberry came in #2 and she also came in #7 for Best Artwork for her cover on "Immortal Justice"

Also in the top spot - our very own romance author Sharon Donovan took first place for her short story in the romance category -  "Charade of Hearts"

KM Daughters - one of our writing teams - took two top ten spots - #4 for Best Romance Novel with "In The St. Nick of Time" and #6 for Best Author.

If I missed anyone - my apologies!  I'm trying to catch all of them but we couldn't be more proud of all the successes!

In the upcoming weeks we should be able to get the little icon that gives us bragging rights and I can't wait to see it on the website for the fourth year running.

Now its back to work and living up to all the accolades.  Happy 2012 indeed!

Boys of Summer - Special Call For Submissions

The Wilder Roses

Call For Submissions

Boys of Summer (Stories to Release May 2012 – Sept 2012)

The boys of summer are ready to turn up the heat. The Wild Rose Press is looking for your hottest m/m erotic stories from 5K to 20K for the Scarlet Rose line. Is your hero sweating on the ball field, ripping up the waves as he hang tens, or is he striker on the soccer field scoring more than goals? We want summer themed stories with hot men in hot situations. Bring the heat and bring the boys of summer.

If you are interested in writing for this series, please email a brief (two paragraph) synopsis of your story idea to diana@thewildrosepress.com. We're looking for stories with strong summer elements and and those that relate to summer activities. In other words, lots of fun in the sun and hot sweaty/wet bodies.We want a variation on summer themes so this will be part of the consideration for stories selected for the series.

Deadline for submission is March 1, 2012.

If you have any questions, contact Diana at diana@thewildrosepress.com.

A New Year in the Garden

A new year and a new outlook.

It’s 2012 and time for change. Whether you want to set new goals or renew those good intentions that just didn’t happen in 2011, the first of the year is a perfect time to make a fresh start.

For me, this year I’m determined to manage my time better. I always use a planner but this year I’m actually going to try to stick to the schedule.

The Wild Rose Press is also making plans and setting new goals. We are looking for tummy-tugging love stories across all the lines. And we have several series that are still actively seeking submissions such as the Millionaire’s Club and other series that are about ready to roll out. So if your goal is to find more time to write, we’ll have some wonderful ideas to inspire you. Check this blog regularly to see our calls for submissions.

The Wild Rose Press is also going to be a several conferences and conventions this year. We hope to see you at EPICon in San Antonio, RT Book Reviews Convention in Chicago and our own writer’s retreat at the Silverspur Ranch in Bandera, Texas.

The holiday season the authors once again contributed their favorite recipes to the Garden Gourmet. This recipe book is our free gift to you. You can download it directly from our website.

We also had a exclusive giveaways through our newsletter. Be sure to sign up for our weekly releases and to receive special offers only for our newsletter subscribers. Click to Join

We want to thank you all for a wonderful 2011 and wish you only the best in 2012!