Now for a commercial message...

We interrupt this craft blog for a few words from our sponsor.
Hi all, with black Friday shopping just around the corner, I would like to remind you that books make wonderful gifts and stockingstuffers. For the reader of romantic suspense, Mr. Charming is available now. Click on the book cover to the right to buy.
Mr. Charming has consistently received 4 star and higher reviews. Night Owl Reviews says, "This is the first book I've read by Nancy J. Parra and wow."

Coming in 2010, Dream Man-
A NO NONSENSE WOMAN--Dr. Eva Stanford wants only to help her patient sleep through the night.
A MAN WITH A DREAM--FBI Agent Nate Cancaid has a re-occuring dream of a woman with dark hair and blue eyes whose murder he is unable to prevent. When the blue-eyed doctor enters his office and asks for his help, the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end.
A MYSTERY THAT TRANSCENDS TIME--Coincidences grow too complicated for Eva's scientific mind when clues to her mystery patient come straight out of Nate's dreams. Can Eva keep from losing her heart to a man of intuition or has fate already dealt her a losing hand?
Dream Man, will be out January 8th,2010. You can purchase a gift certificate from the Wild Rose Press in anticipation. An excerpt and first chapter are available on my website www.nancyjparra.com.
Also available from the WRP, is a free down loadable cookbook with family recipes from me and other great WRP authors. Download a copy for the cooks in your family, today.
As an added bonus, e-mail me at nancy j parra at yahoo dot com and I will send you an autographed bookplate.
Books make great reads. Buy one today!

Mr. Charming Releases!

Hi All!

I am happy to announce that my eighth book and first romantic suspense, Mr. Charming, is out today from The Wild Rose Press.

It is the story of a single mom who believes that hiding out in the suburbs will make her safe, but soon discovers that love and death can walk through your door at any time.

Go to my website www.nancyjparra.com to read an excerpt.

Cheers!

Simple Craft-Starting without an outline

In a recent seminar the speaker intoned the following words, "professional writers always begin with an outline."
Hmmm- so after nine books sold, I am still not a professional writer? Wait, what? Pronouncements like that are ridiculous. As I've said in past blogs, every writer has their own individual process. Even some NYT best selling professionals don't begin with an outline--imagine that.
The problem is that if you don't have an outline, your opening pages can wander and you can end up writing 10, 20, 50 sometimes even 100 pages that go no where, do nothing and must be cut. Which is okay if that's your process. I've learned a few simple tricks over the years that help me to avoid wandering. I'm going to offer them to you right now to put in your tool kit, play with and see if these tricks or some version of them work for you.

Trick one: Write down your character's full name and a brief description-plus one quirk and a secret fear. Ex. Jennifer Sumner is a single mom who works at home. She has blonde hair, blue eyes and an average build. She likes really spicy food--the hotter the better-- and is afraid of toads.
Trick two: Write down your character's most elemental story goal, their motivation and the story conflict. Ex. Jennifer wants a safe place to raise her son. Her divorce splashed across the tabloids made her vow to do whatever it took to keep her son out of pubic scrutiny. A favor for her brother, finds Jennifer tangling with a man whose life (and supposed death) is tabloid fodder.
Trick three: Create a simple W plot. (Nothing has to sparkle here-this is merely a general guideline which is fluid and can change.) A W plot is this~ opening incident. Then things go quickly downhill to plot point 1. Things improve slightly to plot point 2. Things get much worse to plot point 3. Finally conflicts resolve to end. W plots are great because you can connect a bunch of W's for longer plots or subplots.
Now with these three simple things you can start your story and see where it goes from here. The tricks are not too time consuming. They won't bore you and there is no outlining necessary.

The examples above were used for my book, Mr. Charming, which releases this Friday from The Wild Rose Press. Following is a small bit about the book:

After a painful public divorce, advice maven Jennifer Sumner vows to stay out of the glare of the limelight, but then she makes the mistake of saying yes to her brother’s request for assistance.
Kane McCormick loves his playboy lifestyle, using his fame and fortune as a barrier around his heart until the day the world assumes he’s dead. Then Kane learns that he had it all wrong.
As Kane discovers that Jennifer and her young son are the family he’s been looking for, his would-be killer discovers his whereabouts and threatens to kill them both. Can Kane convince Jennifer to step into his public life and escape the clear and present danger? Or will she stubbornly keep to her vow and take his heart to her grave?

Look for it at www.thewildrosepress.com Cheers!

Revving up the Marketing Machine

Six months out from my next book release date and I have marketing on my mind. Over eight years of publishing, I have learned that each publisher has different expectations and needs for marketing. Each author, also, has different expectations for marketing their work. Some jump in with guns blazing, others stick a toe in and shiver. I hope to be somewhere in between.

Why? Because I have to put enough effort into marketing to get my name out there and let my readers know I've got a new story in a different venue. But I don't want to use up all my writing time on marketing matters- something that is really easy to do.

So, a fine line must be drawn while I build momentum to Mr. Charming's release date- July 31st.

To accomplish this I am setting aside time this month to build a marketing strategy and calendar. In the last few months I have spent time every day building my social networking skills. I have been reading some good blogs and along the way I have increased daily readers at my website by 400%. (I know, I didn't think that would happen. but I just checked my stats this morning and yes, 4 times as many people visit my site on a daily basis.) Also, my google hits have gone up. All this took was a little time on my part-daily- as in 15 minutes a day to say hello-nice to meet you. Will the numbers translate to sales? I'll find out I suppose.

So, what else am I planning? My friend Morgan Mandel's daily blog, www.morganmandel.blogspot.com has been educating her readers on blog tours, blog following and creating buzz in the blogosphere. So, I'm taking the time to follow her advice and visit a new blog a day-to comment and follow- to say hello!

Add to this strategy planning and executing a blog tour, writing articles for RWA chapter newsletters, and perhaps writing an article for the RWR magazine.

I hope to include the addition of a newsletter to my website, a fan page on Facebook and perhaps a speaking engagement or two. All while continuing to write my next book.

Ugh- you say, throwing your hands up. Who has the time? I don't know if I'll have to time, but five minutes a day, ten minutes a day adds up over the space of six months. In the mean time I get to meet new people and hear new voices which makes my office a cheery place and gives me a smile.

What about you? What, if anything, has worked for you? Any tips for me to think about while I create my marketing plan? This blogger would love to know.

Mr. Charming

I am please to announce that my first romantic suspense, Mr. Charming, from the Wild Rose Press has a release date! Mr. Charming will be available in paperback and electronic format July 31st, 2009.

Following is an excerpt. Enjoy!

“Why do you keep touching me?” The words were soft and breathless. Jennifer wanted to take them back the moment they were out.
“I’m a tactile guy,” Kane said simply. “I like to caress what I find beautiful.”
Surprise filled her, scattered across her face. She was thirty five with a kid. Definitely not the type of person he usually dated.
“Yeah,” he said, breaking her stunned silence. “I find you beautiful.” He stepped as close as he could without touching her. He took the mug away from her trembling hand and planted it beside them on the counter. Then he held her face in his hands and smiled down at her. “I’m the kind of man who appreciates beauty in its purest from.”
“I told you, I know what kind of man you are,” she whispered. “Don’t you see? For my own good, I have to reject you.”
“Then I’m afraid we’re at odds, sweetheart, because I have to have you.”
She had promised herself just moments before to do her best to stick to the truth. “I’m not playing games with you,” she said. Her whole body shivered in traitorous anticipation. He drew her to him, surrounding her with male heat and strength.
“Me neither,” he replied.
She put her hand out to keep him away. Her palm hit silky warm skin spattered with just the right amount of hair to make it intriguing. She swallowed a gasp and kept her hand firmly planted on his bare chest. The last thing she wanted was for him to know how electrified she was by the feel of him. “Just keep your distance. I know you’re bored and I’m simply a distraction. It isn’t fair.”
He took her palm and raised it to his lips. His dark gaze captured hers and sent shock waved through her body. “Haven’t you heard? All’s fair in love and war.”