Man Candy Alert!

Does anyone else need a nap right now? Ok,nevermind...

My writing assignment for this evening: What is he dreaming about?
Thigh love you!

My new e-reader!

A few weeks ago, I asked a few of the yahoo  groups that I belong to which e-reader they liked best. I also posted here asking for recommendations on which e-reader people preferred. The responses were varied. I am happy to let you know that my mom gifted me a brand new Sony Reader Pocket Edition in Rose (a just because present). It is so cute and easy to carry with me just like a paperback book. I have already purchased one novel and two short stories to read. I transferred a couple of stories that I had stored on my computer.

The reader works great outside and in bright light. It is difficult if not impossible to use in dim light. There is a light that you can purchase to go with it. You can make the font size larger or smaller in .pdf format, which is helpful.

I definitely need a case or rubber sleeve to prevent the pretty rose coating from scratching. t comes with a little sleeve to store it in. I really like it and was able to comfortably sit up in bed to read a story last night. My kid tried to operate it by touching the screen. I had to tell him that it was "old fashion" and didn't have a touch screen.

Eventually, I might want to try one of the color readers or a larger size reader that I can read newspapers or magazines on. It also might be fun to have one that can read audio books to me. Right now, this is a great entry into the realm of e-readers.

Thanks.

Just for fun!

I saw this on Nathan Bransford blog and decided to put it on mine.
Evidently, someone made this out of post it notes using stop motion animation. I LOVE it! Fun Times.

Black Diamonds

The Black Diamond chapter of RWA met today. Beth Barany (BethBarany.com) gave a presentation entitled  3 Essential Tips to Building Your Author Platform Now. Her tips included List Building, Crafting a Compelling Message and Finding your Style of Networking.

I learned so much and her advice is applicable to unpublished authors too. The communication and networking skills will be helpful in all aspects of  my professional life not to mention my writing career. Check out her website and upcoming workshop.

On a personal goal note, I have a personal goal to write 500 words a week until the next Black Diamond RWA meeting which will be at the new location. I think that this is doable.

Sweeten up your daydreams with a little chocolate!!

Yum!

Learning to write well...by reading

I have been stumbling along writing the best that I can. I've purchased quite a few books on writing. They line the bookshelf next to my bed right next to the unread novels that arrive in the mail. 

I have taken a course in writing at UCLA extention online, I have attended RWA conferences and workshops, I enrolled in several workshop via savvyauthors.com. I still haven't been able to "get it."

Recently I began participating in an online critique group. I received some wonderful feedback and realized that I have much more work to do. It's not just about the grammar. It's not just about the punctuation. It's not even just about the story. It's really about how you put it all together.

There are so many elements to a story. I want someone to just spell it out. First, do this. Then do this, then introduce this. I became very frustrated with the saavyauthors.com workshop on writing romantic suspense because the first assignment was to take apart a suspenseful story that we enjoyed chapter by chapter. I hate homework and I told the teacher that. I didn't do the homework but I read the lessons.

A few weeks later, I read a fantastic story from The Wild Roses Press and there it was. All the elements of a FANTASTIC romantic suspense. The elements were spelled out right there for me.

I haven't had a chance to go back and deconstruct the story but it is there when I get ready to. I've heard  these messages several times at RWA workshops, read what you like, read what the publishers that you are interested in are buying and selling,  read what the agents you are querying are selling and representing. 

Initially, I thought that it was just a way of trying to sell more books (it probably is) but it is also a perfect lesson on writing if you do the homework and deconstruct the story.

So there you go. I will continue to purchase and read stories from the lines that I am targeting because they will help me become a better writer and eventually become published. I learn the most from reading good well written stories.

Pam

Just a little eye candy for today!

I have a fondness for cowboy hats this week.
Check out the exotic erotic e-cards available on runduecards.com. Yum!

I love e-publishers and stories

I love Harlequin category series novels. I love the Kimani line, the Steeple Hill Love Inspired line, and the SPICE line. I invest in books.  I am one of those people who subscribe to the monthly series and review the websites for works from my favorite authors. When I can find a copy of Romantic Times, I carefully study it and then pick out which books I will order from Amazon. I can spend anywhere from $20-$40+ dollars a month on books.

I recently won a membership to SavvyAuthors.com and began reading the wonderful blogs of the authors there. The stories that they were promoting looked fantastic and so I took the plunge and purchased a few short stories that sounded good. The price was right. $2.00-$3.00 for a short story. I fell in love. The stories are just the right length,  are very well written and entertaining. I like them better than some of the Harlequin stories.

I have found that I am purchasing $10-20  a month on e-published short stories a month. There are some great e publishers out there. I am really disappointed that one publisher didn't let me save the story to a disc and I could only download it twice. Huh! It was a super erotic short story from Breathless Press that wasn't very good anyway but I would have liked to have a copy since I purchased it.

The second reason that I love the epublished short stories is because I don't have a lot of time to read just for entertainment. I work, I have a family and I am trying to write. I have a limited amount of time to get into a story. These e published stories allow me to read a variety of authors. I am also participating in a critique group which requires me to review work of others. An e-reader which allows me to read .rtf or .pdf would be useful when reviewing the work of others in my critique group.

Finally, ebooks save space. I don't mind collecting and or building a library of ebooks because it saves so much space. I have a e bookshelf full of paperback books next to my bed. Recently, I donated a large box of my favorite books to the local library. I hated to part with them. I just wanted to read and re-read them but after watching a few episodes of Horders: Buried Alive, I decided that I would pass them on to the library. I can't wait to start a new collection of ebooks.

As I wrote in my post  yesterday, I am looking into purchasing an e-reader. I want to buy some of the longer length stories but I don't think that I could sit at my laptop to read the story.

I posted a message on several blogs that I participate in asking for recommendations. I only received a few replys. I am wondering if authors or aspiring authors are actually investing in e-readers or are they reading on their laptops only?

Let me know who your favorite e-published authors are? What e-readers do you use? I love comments.