Monthly Archives: February 2012

Six Sentence Sunday: Learning Curve

Posted on February 26, 2012 | 3 comments

I haven’t done one of these in a while. Here’s a steamy little snippet from a story I’m currently finalizing for submission:

David moaned against Ben’s neck, and he felt the jolt that went through Ben at the sound. He opened his mouth and ran his lips along Ben’s skin, and Ben shuddered.

The next thing David knew, Ben’s hands were tight on his ass, and the grinding of their hips was no longer an accident. David dug his fingertips into Ben’s back and held on for the ride. He sucked at the pulse point in the curve of Ben’s neck, more than likely leaving behind evidence of their encounter, but he’d moved beyond caring. He’d been good for so long, and this felt so fucking good, and no one would ever—

3 Comments

Posted in six sentence sunday, works in progress

Dirty Little Secret

Posted on February 25, 2012 | 2 comments

A couple of discussions recently have centered around fanfiction writers who’ve moved into the original publishing world. That in itself isn’t frowned upon—unless they bring any stories along with them. Taking a story that was originally written as fanfiction and converting it into a story that stands on its own is… cheating, I guess?

I say “I guess” because I don’t get it. I understand it if the resulting story doesn’t stand alone. When copyrighted source material is reused, that’s not okay. The vast majority of fanfiction, assuming it’s well done at all, is much too closely tied to the source material for the author to have any prayer of prying it loose completely. It’s a bad idea to even try. And if you do, you piss people off, and you make other fanfiction authors look bad. And that’s also not okay.

But if the source material is completely left behind, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with converting a fanfiction story into original fiction. If you take only the original parts of the story, parts that did not come from the source material, and rebuild the rest of it from scratch, then you can end up with something that’s totally original and completely yours. (And if the original source isn’t copyrighted, you’ve got even more latitude. Derivative fiction is a time-honored literary tradition. How many different variations on Romeo and Juliet are floating around out there by now?)

The disclaimer here, of course, is that I’ve converted fanfiction into original fiction. The fanfiction stories in question were “alternate universe,” so they had little in common with the source material to start with. I stripped out the parts that came from the original source and used the remaining shell to rebuild a completely original story. And trust me: that involved a hell of a lot more than just changing names. Imagine those house-flipping shows where they tear a house down to the bare frame and rebuild it from there. That’s what it’s like.

To be perfectly clear: everything I’ve published is my original work, and I stand by it. If admitting that I’ve reused parts of a few of my fanfiction stories loses me readers, well, so be it. You can’t please everyone.

2 Comments

Posted in musings, writing

Brief Encounters Reviews Accidental Love

Posted on February 23, 2012 | Comments Off on Brief Encounters Reviews Accidental Love

Tam at Brief Encounters gave a lovely B review to my college-roommates novella Accidental Love. A snippet:

It’s not overly angsty, nor is it overly plot driven. It’s two guys, who despite sharing a small dorm room, finally take the time to get to know who the other is, and over a couple of weeks have to decide if they want to make some changes in their lives.

Thanks, Tam! 🙂

Comments Off on Brief Encounters Reviews Accidental Love

Posted in accidental love, brief encounters, novella, reviews

Spare Me A Lung?

Posted on February 21, 2012 | Comments Off on Spare Me A Lung?

I’ve been pretty well knocked flat the past week by one of the nastiest colds I can remember having. It came on quickly and settled into my lungs really well before moving north to lay siege to my sinuses, and it hasn’t let go yet. I didn’t leave the house for five days. Not recommended at all.

Feeling that miserable didn’t exactly stoke any creative fires, either. I did some revision work (on the site here and on some writing), but I didn’t get any new words down. (Darn, I should’ve written a character with a nasty cold. LOL)

I’m starting to feel marginally better—at least, I put in a full day at the office today—so I’m hoping it’ll be uphill from now on. And maybe Derrick and Josh and Sam and Ellery and all those other guys I left stranded will get a little more attention again. 🙂

Comments Off on Spare Me A Lung?

Posted in real life

Housecleaning and an Audiobook!

Posted on February 19, 2012 | Comments Off on Housecleaning and an Audiobook!

I’m doing a bit of housecleaning on the site, mainly to organize the bibliography a little better. If you find any borked links or can’t find something, let me know in comments and I’ll locate it for you. 🙂

Also, the audiobook of the Never Say Never anthology released! Woot! Now you can listen to all those dirty words from “Stripped” being read into your ear. Oooo. shivers 😉

Comments Off on Housecleaning and an Audiobook!

Posted in anthology, never say never, short story, stripped

Help an Editor Out

Posted on February 17, 2012 | Comments Off on Help an Editor Out

My day job is editing. A totally different type of editing from fiction, but editing nonetheless. So when I read Theresa Stevens’ post at Romance University, it was all I could do to keep from standing up and cheering. (If I didn’t have a lapdesk and laptop in my, well, lap, I might have done it anyway.)

In particular, this passage:

Here’s a sad truth. When I evaluated a submission, the first question in my mind was not, Is this story good enough to publish? My first question was, How many hours of my life will it take to get this manuscript ready? If every other paragraph contains a grammar or usage error, that translates into time that I could be spending on other tasks.

This is why it’s easy for an editor to equate bad grammar with other flaws: arrogance, lack of self-respect, lack of respect for us, disdain for the product you’re creating. If you don’t care enough to distinguish possessives from plurals, then we’re not going to care enough to give you anything more than a form rejection.

In other words, if you don’t worry about your grammar, neither will I.

I have never understood the lack of regard many professional authors appear to have for proper grammar and usage. I’m not talking about off-the-cuff tweets and such (although I still cringe sometimes). I’m not even talking about errors and typos; everyone makes those (me included). I’m talking about failure to take the time to make actual manuscripts as clean and error-free as you can possibly make it, before you submit.

Sure, there are many great storytellers who are terrible spellers or can never remember when to use its vs. it’s. Everyone has foibles. But authors need to recognize their weak spots and do what they can to overcome them, whether it’s studying up on grammar or finding a personal editor who’s a whiz at it to fix things before submission. (Relying on spellcheck and grammar check won’t cut it.) Heck, I’m the one people I know come to for grammar questions, and I almost never submit anything without having at least two other people read it first.

Editors can’t fix everything. Give them a hand, and everyone (including your readers!) will be much happier for it.

Pen image via http://www.sxc.hu

Comments Off on Help an Editor Out

Posted in editing, musings, writing

Release Day! Accidental Love from Amber Allure

Posted on February 5, 2012 | 2 comments

My new novella Accidental Love is now available from Amber Allure. The special new release price is just $3.25, so grab it fast! 🙂

Blurb:

College roommates Greg and Keith are polar opposites when it comes to relationships. Greg equates sex with the alcohol and drugs he gave up, while Keith protects his heart by keeping sex strictly casual. At first, neither Greg nor Keith realizes the other is gay, but once they get to know each other better, they feel drawn together, and their developing attraction makes each of them reevaluate his stance on relationships.

Keith starts out thinking he only wants a roommates-with-benefits arrangement, something more than his usual weekend flings but still casual, yet soon he begins to feel more for Greg. Greg’s afraid of what he’s feeling because he has trouble mentally separating sex from the other bad habits that had nearly ruined his life.

Greg’s fears leave him spooked by an impromptu kiss following a game of one-on-one basketball, but that’s nothing compared with how he feels after a dinner date ends with the two men having sex. To help bring Greg back from the edge, Keith opens up his heart, but will it be enough to allow them to move forward together?

A brief excerpt is also available on the sales page. Enjoy! 🙂

2 Comments

Posted in accidental love, amber allure press, fiction, novella, on sale, release date, romance