Guest Author June Kearns
I think that lots of readers would like to know what happens to SCOOT. Any plans for a sequel, June or are you working on something new?
An Englishwoman’s Guide to the Cowboy by June Kearns
Another great post from Rosie Amber. A FABBY REVIEW OF JUNE’S BOOK.
Beverley Eikli’s Other Life: Meet Beverley Oakley …
By Beverley Eikli (also writing as Beverley Oakley)
Hello everyone,
Thank you so much for having me here to talk about my ‘other’ writing life, that as an author for erotic publishers Ellora’s Cave and Totally Bound, with the pseudonym Beverley Oakley.
Taking a pseudonym happened by accident, really, for I’d never considered writing erotic romances. However, the book I’d just completed in 2011, a racy, Regency romp called Rake’s Honour, was just a little too saucy for my publisher at the time, Robert Hale, and although it had won a number of writing awards resulting in requests for the full ms from Berkley and Avon, it didn’t fit neatly into any formal mainstream category.
After finding a publisher for Rake’s Honour at Totally Bound – or Total-E-Bound, as they were then known – I was assigned a fantastic editor who saw great potential for making the saucy scenes…
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I’ve seen the Future – London Author Fair, The Hospital Club, Covent Garden.
At first sight, the programme for the first ever London Author Fair looked interesting, yet so much looks interesting these days, particularly if you’re the type of writer who finds business fascinating.
So after weighing up the pros and cons, money invested, energy expended, and a whole day writing sucked away forever – I used the first ever London Author Fair as a totally, valid excuse to whiz to the capital and procrastinate with all the other authors in attendance. However, if I thought a lazy day, swanning about, taking leisurely notes was on the cards, I was in for a short, sharp, kick in the pants.
The London Author Fair was high energy, full-on, non-stop and totally absorbing. With no less than 21 workshops – running con-currently – nine seminars and over 50 publishing professionals giving talks, hosting, teaching, sharing their expertise and industry knowledge; it was one of those days where I wanted to put everything on a memory stick and download it directly into my brain.
It managed to be a huge event and a one-to-one experience at the same time. I chatted with well- known literary agents, a couple of journalists, made friends with award-winning authors, learned about Discoverability – yes, there was some pretty amazing American input throughout – and generally had a brilliant day. All made even more pleasurable by the arrival of best-selling authoress and chum , Adele Parks, who spoke eloquently and realistically about the industry, making a staunch and much applauded defence of good books and good writing whatever the genre, length or format.
In short, the industry is not changing, it HAS changed; the task now is managing change; but fear not, I’ve seen the future, and it’s definitely author-shaped!
Adrienne
Social Networking – Does it really sell books?
Any teacher will tell you that some children get a new concept first time. But for most children a new concept has to be presented in a number of different ways before they gain full understanding. This is referred to as ‘the spiral of learning’ (i.e presenting the same piece of information in as many visual and kinetic forms as possible. This is just as true when we are attempting to bring our novels to the attention of agents, publishers and readers.
Consciously or unconsciously we are applying a method known as The Reticular Activating System.
Pay attention (!) Here’s the science part – The Reticular Activating System acts as a filter for all of the sensory inputs we receive. It decides what is and is not important and what we need to pay attention to. Otherwise, we would suffer from information overload. The ‘filter’ sits between the subconscious and…
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Beautiful Heroines? Bah! Humbug!
At 13, when I started getting interested in boys, all the heroines in romances seemed to be head-turning, heart-stopping beauties, with bee-stung mouths. Long hair tumbled to their shoulders or was worn in a carefully tousled chignon, like Brigitte Bardot.
One look, one flutter of those eyelashes, and the hero would be smitten.
I’d already suspected that this was how things worked, because my best friend was beautiful, like a young Elizabeth Taylor.
When we started Grammar School, cool fifth-formers with Elvis quiffs would pass her crooning, ‘Wh-a-a-at is luurve, five foot of Heaven and a pony-tail.’ (The song goes on, ‘the cutest pony-tail, that sways with a wiggle when she walks.’ )
I, on the other hand, was more Beryl-the-Peril – small, sturdy, self-conscious, blessed with hair that frizzed in damp weather and a tendency to flush easily.
How could I ever inspire love?
Because this was how the world worked, wasn’t it? So cruel, so unfair! It was a terrible blow.
Then, I read Jane Eyre.
Here was a heroine, as plain and self-conscious as myself (and Charlotte Bronte!), who still sparked passion in the hero. I started to see that passionate relationships could be generated by great conversations, argument and humour.
Ever since, I’ve been drawn to books by Carol Shields,(Republic of Love, Happenstance) Anne Tyler,(all books!) Barbara Trapido,(Temples of Delight, Noah’s Ark) all confirming that belief.
So, I’m afraid my own heroines are condemned never to be beautiful! Too easy for them! Too dull, too predictable!
In An Englishwoman’s Guide to the Cowboy – Annie has a limp. I’d been tempted to give her a stutter, too, but thankfully was talked out of it!
Gerardina, in The 20’s Girl, is no beauty, either.
So, is it just me? Does anyone else prefer plain heroines?
If you do, I’d love to hear about them.
June
Letter T on The A to Z April Challenge 2014
June’s The 20’s Girl is featured on Rosie Amber’s A-Z Blog today, with letter T!
New Romantics Press 