jordansummers

I suck at titles too Larissa. I only like the titles of three of my books. I'm much better at opening lines than I am at creating a catchy title. I will pick up a book based on the title, so I know they're important. (The same reason you avoid certain titles.) I learned about titles the hard way. My Atlantean's Quest Series took a while to catch fire, because the titles implied a different type of story than I'd written. Also the names of the characters, which I thought were appropriate for the story background, made people think I'd written something mythological. (I hadn't.) All these things factored into my sales. If I had it all to do over again, I would have stuck with my original title, which was 'Wild Thing'. It wasn't great, but I believe it would have captured more initial sales. Unfortunately, a lot of times the publishing companies don't let you keep your original title. (For me, that's probably a good thing.) LOL! Jordan

I agree with Sidonie. You throw just about any of those words in a title and I'll grab the book and read the backcover blurb. Nicole Jordan has wonderful titles. (The Prince of Pleasure, The Lover, etc.) So does Judith Ivory, Susan Johnson, and Thea Devine. Some of my favorite titles are 'Dead Witch Walking', 'Master of Desire', 'Mine to Take', 'The Forever Kiss', 'Master of Temptation', 'Master of Seduction', 'Dance with the Devil', 'Wicked', anything with 'Pirate in the title or 'Dark' when it's accompanied by Christine Feehan's name. I actually think titles are important to catch a reader's eye. Almost as important as opening lines. I personally tend to read the backcover blurb and any inside blurb to determine whether I'll buy a book. If those two things are good, along with the opening line, I'm hooked. Jordan

Sylvia, I'm glad we're clear. Janelle Denison and Alison Kent tend to write the hotter contemporaries. (Janelle now writes for Berkley I believe.) There are still a few authors I haven't read though. My TBR pile could kill someone it's so big. You may want to check out Thea Devine, Beatrice Small, and Robin Shone for an idea of how hot the Brava historicals can get. They've written some scorching tales. Of course, Susan Johnson used to write historical stories for them too. I'm not sure if she still does. I know she's writing contemporaries for Berkley. That should be enough to get you started. Depending on what they make me edit, my contemporaries are fairly smokin. I've only tamed the language...a little, not the action. ;-) Jordan, who's glad to be out from under that rock...

Sylvia, I knew exactly what you were talking about. I was just teasing you. I'm sorry I thought you knew that. :-/ I have no idea who directed Kate over to the list and to be honest, I don't care. It wasn't a big deal. I didn't think for a moment that it was you. Sasha, I think you absolutely should submit your entry. That goes for you too, Sylvia. Don't wait to see if you make the finals. Just send it in. I can't remember what Kate asks for. (First three chapters and a synopsis, etc.)You may want to check Lori's list to see. Good luck to you both. And again Sylvia, I apologize for any misunderstanding. Jordan, who is running out of rocks to hide under...

Sylvia, So you're the one stirring up trouble for me on Lori's board. LOL! I should have known. I saw Kate's message and couldn't figure out what was happening. <shaking head> Tsk, tsk, tsk. LOL! Jordan www.jordansummers.com

Sasha's right Sylvia. Making characters care is a hugely important skill. It in turn makes the readers care. That's a wonderful compliment. Keep up the good work. :-) Best, Jordan www.jordansummers.com

Sylvia, I liked Lucien's Gamble the best followed closely by Sapphire's Worth. I'm sorry about the books question. I didn't know that you hadn't sold any of them yet. I'm sure they'll sell soon. :-) Best, Jordan www.jordansummers.com

Sylvia, This is what happens when you name one of your characters and are trying to figure out their story. LOL! I'm so sorry. I was asking you, but had Phylis on my mind. LOL! :oops: Jordan, who is going to crawl under a rock now... www.jordansummers.com

Phylis, Who sells your books? I was reading a few of the excerpts, but there doesn't seem to be any links to buy. Thanks, Jordan www.jordansummers.com

Sylvia, Are you talking about a webring or a critique group? Once again, I'm confused. You can email me privately if you'd like. Jordan jordan@jordansummers.com www.jordansummers.com

Peter, I think the answer to the question depends upon what it is you're trying to write. Personally, I think it's more interesting to keep your cultural influences. I love 'hearing' the slang and taking a 'peek' into the lives of people from another country. And if I get lost all I have to do is ask my dh what the author means, since he's from the UK. ;-) Best, Jordan, who agrees with Sylvia... www.jordansummers.com

Sidonie, The only problem with not putting constraints on things is if you're critiquing every day it's going to be hard to get writing done. I've heard of groups that spend so much time critiquing no one finishes a book. That's why having rules is so important. Also you may want to give your writing a little bit of time to 'stew' before sending it out for feedback. Unless I have a deadline or I'm stuck, I let my stories sit for at least a week after completion, and then I go back and edit again. Once I'm done doing that, then I send it to my critique partner. I don't want her to have to read my stuff over and over again or she'll begin to miss things too. In fact, with the exception of two projects, my critique partner only critiques my stuff one time. After that it's up to me to work my booty off to clean up the manuscript. :-) Jordan, who thinks she owes her critique partner some serious chocolate... www.jordansummers.com

I have a wonderful critique partner, but I think you're right Sasha about needing fresh eyes on work sometimes. Especially once they get used to your style of writing. There's never any need to be abrasive in a critique. There are ways of telling the truth without riping someone's work apart. So even the most sensitive writer 'place my picture here' can handle the corrective criticism. I also agree with you Sylvia. The help I've received from having critique partners far outweighs the negative. Jordan www.jordansummers.com

Just a bit of unsolicited advice. You may want to lay out rules for a critique group before forming one. (i.e. like how many pages you're going to critique at one time, how many people you're going to allow in the group, are you going to allow all genres, how many pages does someone have to write a month to stay in the group, etc.) I critiqued with someone who started out being a good critique partner and then it went sour. Our friendship has never recovered from the falling out. If you have the ground rules spelled out from the beginning it'll save you trouble later. Jordan www.jordansummers.com

I'm sure this is a stupid question, but what is a romance author webblog ring? Jordan, whose teacher told her the only stupid question is the one you didn't ask... www.jordansummers.com

Sasha, I think in order to figure out what you're actually good at writing you have to try to write a lot of different stuff. I did this in the beginning. Heck, I'm still doing this. I haven't found the perfect glass slipper fit and to be honest, I'm not sure there is one. You're always going to enjoy writing one or two genres more than you enjoy the others. My mistake was writing in one genre and not trying enough of the others. I'm attempting to make up for that now. Hopefully I won't stumble in the process. I envy you your ability to write erotica. I couldn't write it to save my life. Unless there's a romance in there or a hint that there will be one, the story is a no go for me. Jordan www.jordansummers.com

Sylvia, I think you hit the nail on the head when you said you think it's how the sex is handled in the stories that makes the difference between published and not published. (For the contest anyway.) I'm sure there are other factors such as voice, story, and whether or not Kate's purchased something similar already. I had to laugh when you mentioned my winning excerpt as much more like romantica. I thought I'd tamed down my writing for that contest. LOL! I haven't stopped with my new submissions to them either. There are still some authors who write in 'purple prose' whether they're writing historical or contemporary. Sometimes it's difficult not to. Keep in mind the use of graphic language has only been allowed for a couple of years in romance writing. It's rather freeing for those of us who have a tendency to lean toward potty mouth language. When I first started writing for Ellora's Cave I had a difficult time with some of the language expected in the stories. There is still a word or two that I've used in those stories that I'm not fond of and don't say aloud. It's all what you're comfortable with. I know my historical (Gothic Passions) for EC is NOT filled with purple prose. Of course, it does have a vampire in it. ;-) As for love scenes, I personally feel cheated if they stop at the bedroom door. Especially if they've built the hero up to be this god-like man with a body of an Adonis. I've read love scenes from non-graphic writers that have flamed my eyebrows off. I've also read stories without love scenes that I thought were extremely well written, but I felt slightly cheated. So I guess it's personal preference. My favorite authors don't write graphic (as in language) love scenes, but they do write hot ones. I guess what I'm trying to say, now that I've rambled, is that it's truly what the writer is comfortable with. There's nothing worse than trying to squeeze yourself into a box that doesn't fit. It's like wearing the wrong size shoe. It hurts. Jordan www.jordansummers.com

I could wax on about these things for hours. I have such mixed feelings about writing contests. I've entered 6 or so and finaled in half. The weird thing is I never found out why they liked my entries. One contest did give me time to make some corrections after I finaled in the second one. They were helpful suggestions, but didn't address the overall manuscript. To be honest, I'm not sure what I was looking for. I say feedback, but what does that really mean? I bet if you asked a dozen authors you'd get at least a dozen different answers. Contests can be expensive. I started becoming extremely choosy about which contests I entered. If they weren't prestigious, didn't have the right final judges or at least three judges, I didn't bother. You always need three judges for any writing contest. When you have two, one will score you high, while the other will score you low. Don't know why, it just happens. The whole thing is subjective. You really have to decide what's best for you. Jordan www.jordansummers.com