Get to Know: H. C. Brown

Welcome H. C. Brown to the Plotting Princesses. We can't wait to get to know you.; so here goes:

How did you get from your day job to writing romance? I have no idea. Writing snuck up on me.

Who is your favorite author(s) and why? Diana Gabaldon. I totally immerse myself in her historical novels. They are a great form of escapism.

Do you prefer writing in the morning, afternoon or evening? Afternoon. I write every afternoon from noon until six.

Do you write with music, and if so, what do you listen to? No, I write in silence although I do get inspiration from music. Many songs will trip a storyline or an emotion.

Do you write in first pov or third? Third.

Pam Stone on Doppelgangers

Doppelgangers

A little background.  Soon after we married, my hubby agreed to take me and two of my girlfriends to a Neil Diamond concert. Personal quirk, I have to be early to those things.  So we’re sitting in our lower balcony seats and he’s got the binoculars watching people, girls probably.  Suddenly he stops and looks at me, hands me the binoculars and tells me to look on the tenth row back. Wouldn’t tell me what I was looking for, just that I’d know it when I saw it. I scanned and suddenly stopped breathing. There was a girl who looked so much like me, I couldn’t believe it. Auburn hair, same style cut. She was even dressed in emerald green, my favorite color at the time. Obviously, made an impression.

But over the holidays, I’ve been thinking about how certain actors resemble actors from earlier generations.  It started when my mom was watching an old episode of Jag. She’s addicted to the star, David James Elliott. I never watched the show, but Mom was also a huge Rock Hudson fan and she pointed to the screen and said something along the lines of, “There hasn’t been an actor that good looking since Rock Hudson."

So I started thinking. Scary, I know.

The obvious - Brad Pitt. Anyone except me see the close resemblance to Redford?

Get to Know: Joya Fields: Beneath The Surface

Hi, Joya. So glad you could visit the PP today and share insider bits about yourself and Beneath the Surface. Here we go:

How did you get from your day job to writing romance? Great question. I eased into romance novels. I started by writing non-fiction parenting articles. I learned a lot about editors, deadlines, and treating writing as a profession. Soon, I wrote short fiction stories for the confession magazines. All the while, I wrote romance, learning more with each novel

What's your three favorite books of all time? Ahh, so hard to choose. I hope I’m not cheating by answering with series instead of books. As a kid, I loved the Little House on the Prairie series. I pictured myself as Laura Ingalls, thriving in spite of the harsh conditions. As an adult, Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series keeps me turning pages. And lately, I’ve been tearing through The Hunger Games series.

Joya Fields

Morning, afternoon, or evening person?   No hesitation here! I need two cups of coffee to wake up in the morning. I’m a night person big time. Often, when I get caught up in a story, I’ll write until 3 or 4 in the morning. Of course, I regret that when I have to get up the next morning, but that’s when the creative juices flow the best.

Music--with or without? What kind? I just started using a soundtrack for my books. I don’t listen to it when I’m writing, though, I need complete silence. So I listen to music before I write, to get me in the mood, and then I write.

Vicki Batman Muses on...

The Winter Blues

Winter is not my favorite time of the year. I like cold weather for the holidays, and then, pack it up and head on out. Bring on the glories of spring! Warm weather, shorts, flip flops, t-shirt.

But that ain't happenin' for a while.

Everything I Learned About Life... by Michelle Miles

Everything I learned about Life, I learned from Star Wars

by Michelle Miles

This originally posted on Pop Culture Divas a while back, but Kathy’s movie post inspired me! So, here’s one from the vault by moi.

For a while, I’d had a hankering to watch the original 1977 version of Star Wars, Episode IV: A New Hope. Back when this movie came out, it was revolutionary. It changed science fiction forever and it gave us characters that have endured for more than 30 years. Now my son, who is 10, is a Star Wars fan. He has toys and games galore. It still amazes me that this movie that started as a space adventure has turned into this giant franchise.

But I digress.

There are valuable lessons to be learned from these movies. Allow me to illustrate.

When trapped on a frozen tundra, your tauntaun makes a good shelter. And – hey – it’ll keep you warm by slashing open the belly and crawling in. Handy trick.

Phyllis Middleton tells all: How FATE worked in my life

How FATE worked in my life.

It was suggested that I should write about what I know best. I call it my other life. Crime. Cops. Death. Investigations. Crime Scenes and Crafts! Yes, Crafts.  So my topic is about FATE…how my life was guided by it.

Let’s go back in time…like 40 years ago. I wanted to work for the airlines and spent my senior year going through an airline training program where I completed the program doing my residency in Kansas City, MO. As FATE would have it, I was visited by the FBI while there and within two months I reported to Washington, DC to become the newest member of the FBI card filing team. Within 6 weeks there, I continued my training into their fingerprint program and six months later, I was qualified as a fingerprint examiner. Problem was, I hated Washington DC and longed for my home back in Colorado.  At eighteen – let’s call it what it really was…homesickness. I quit and moved back.

I then applied to every airline and the local law enforcement authorities. I decided that whoever gets me first that is the career I will follow. I answered the call of FATE.  Within six months, The Pueblo County Sheriff’s office hired me as a civilian into the newly created Crime Lab/Scene – primarily the fingerprints field. Over the years, I learned all aspects of our Crime Scene Investigations Department, becoming an expert in courts for fingerprints, and learning all the other aspects. I was noted to be the first woman patrol officer Pueblo County ever had.

AUTHOR INTERVIEW: Kelly Lee on Murdering Eve

The beginning of a new year is a time for fresh starts, resolutions, and optimistic planning about the future. But also a chance to reflect on the year that just ended, wonder where the heck it went, and whether or not you considered 2011 a "good year".

Overall, I would describe 2011 as pretty spectacular. I signed my first book contract and got "published." I became pregnant with my second child. I learned a lot of lessons about my work ethic, my family, and my friends…who supported me, and most eye-opening…who didn't. Some people in my life I found incredibly inspirational. Some (strangely enough) were inspired by me.

Unfortunately, the one resolution I had every intention of keeping for 2011 got shot to crap in May of last year. What was it, you ask?

Drink more champagne.

I figured life is reason enough to celebrate. Plus, my spectacular group of girlfriends is particularly dedicated to trying new champagnes. Peach champagne, one of our favorites, pops up regularly in our refrigerators. As does every imaginable combination of mixed drink made with sparkling wine. Mimosas, bellinis, poinsettias, you name it—we drink it. Yum-O.

Then, I celebrated my eighth wedding anniversary in May. Hubby and I went to Las Vegas. And I got pregnant. Hello, baby. Goodbye, champagne resolution.

WHERE HAVE ALL THE ROMANTIC MOVIES GONE? by Kathy Ivan

I was talking with my sister earlier and the conversation turned to movies. Romantic comedies to be exact. I'm a big lover of romance in all its forms. That's why I write it. I love the subtle nuances of it, the majesty of it. The quiet moments and the shout-it-from-the rooftop moments. There's just something about watching or reading about two people falling in love and getting their happily ever after that just makes me go, "Awww!" But when it came time to list some of my favorite romantic movies, that's when things got a little tricky. I could think of lots and lots of them that I love, but I realized something I thought was significant. Nary a one of them was current. What's happened to Hollywood that they can't seem to make a romance/romantic comedy that really touched me enough that I remember it long after seeing it?

Hollywood in its heyday made some fabulous, witty, and memorable love stories—I can't even use that turn of phrase without thinking about the movie by the same name—Love Story.

Are You a Lazy Writer?

Okay, I know you're now on a diet and exercising to shed those holiday pounds. So what about your mind? Have you exercised your mind lately? Have you stretched yourself as a writer or have you gotten lazy.

Recently, I received a rejection letter that not only said I was using the "same old" plot devices, but that my writing was repetitive. Hmmm...that was a new one. Yes, I admit I used the "same old" plot devices, mistaken identity, etc...but this publishing house is known for wanting the same ole same ole. I tried to write something they would want...I should have put a Cowboy instead of a doctor and they probably would have bought it.

But the repetitive part made me think about my writing. I also read a new author and her sentences jumped off the page at me and I immediately knew mine didn't do that. Hmmm...I contemplated, have I become a lazy writer? Am I just putting the words down on the page trying to reach the end?

I work very hard on plot, characterization, but what about sentence structure? Word choice? How much time is spent on making sure I get just the right nuance on the page?