Off to work I go...

The longer I'm in the writing business, the more I see how much hard work it takes to stay on top of things. If you're indie published, you are running your own company and you have a dozen hats to wear. Marketing, Cover Art, Scheduling, Editing, Social Networking, etc. etc. etc.

And then there's fixing the occasional computer glitch (IT Department). Ugh. I won't go into the gory details of the fight I had with Word yesterday.

I have a feeling that even if I could stay at home full time, there still wouldn't be enough hours in the day. But it's a fun life. I'm not complaining. Much.

It's just that what has dawned on me recently is that you can end up using all the business tasks you have to get done to fall into that nasty writer habit of NOT writing. Avoiding your WIP. Procrastination. Writer's block. Whatever name you give it.

And that's not a good thing when writing for a living is your goal(!). In fact it's scarier than The Walking Dead. (Had to throw in a Halloween twist.)

But I've found a solution for that dilemma. At least for its current incarnation. It's Dean Wesley Smith's Killing the Sacred Cows of Publishing.  

Dean Wesley Smith's has a resume as long as my arm. Probably as long as his arm (he looks a lot bigger than me). He's been an editor, a publisher. He's written comic books, the Star Trek books, and over 90 novels. This man knows how to write fast. (Oh, he's also the husband of the fabulous Kristine Kathryn Rusch.)

His recommended method is controversial and contrary to most advise I've heard. In his chapters on Rewriting, he says to write without revising and send out your work or self-publish it, and go on to the next project. Say what??? No revising??? Well, he means his definition of revising. You can revise, but it has to be in "creative voice." You can't critique yourself like a high school English teacher and expect to come up with something new and different, he says. In a weird kind of way, it makes sense.

But what I learned the most about myself from his post is that I'm a cycler. I do go back and "fix things," as he calls it, and add new stuff as I think of it. And that has gotten me working on my new WIP. It's gotten me writing again after being off for more than a month. This week I wrote almost 7,000 words. Just in time for NaNo.

So thank you, Dean Wesley Smith! Right now, I think I owe you my sanity. If you're a writer, check out his posts and see what you think. If you're a reader, he's got a ton of short stories available.

Now excuse me, I've got to go write. :)

Annie Rayburn - Phantoms & Fantasies - Which Crainy would YOU kiss?

Prizes, prizes, prizes!

If you like emotional, sensual romance, and FUN, you're in for a treat today. Annie Rayburn has stopped by my humble abode on her blog tour. Annie is the author of the fabulous Phantoms &Fantasies, one of three books in Annie's Crainesian series.

Turk

If you've read any of Annie's stories, you know Crainesian men are HOT. Which is why we thought we'd round out the week with a Crainy Spin-the-Bottle game. I'll let Annie tell you all about it:

* * * * *

Cooper

Welcome to Day 5 of my Georgia Romance Indie’s Blog Tour!
Because so many romance readers are women, we’re going to play a fun cyber game of SPIN THE BOTTLE. Pretend you’re sitting in a circle with handsome hunks from my Crainesian e-books and you’ve just been given permission to be a girl gone wild. The champagne is being consumed, and someone starts it spinning. Who will it land on? Who would you kiss if it did?

Here are your choices:

From Phantoms & Fantasies: Turk and his best friend, Cooper.

My inspiration for Turk is Ingo Radamacher, and Cooper? Heath Ledger

Jonavon

From Insight, Jonavon, the hunky construction company owner who ran into his life-mate, Sela at a Denver mall. His “dark good looks” were inspired by this picture of David James Elliott.

Also participating in our naughty little game is Paul and Klaus, former sexual surrogates from Bittersweet Obsessions. In my mind, Paul looked like Clive Owen and Klaus was the sexy model, Marcus Schenkenberg.

Yum, yum!

Klaus

So, spin that bottle ladies. If one kiss isn’t enough, there might be time for a second spin, or even a three-minute make-out session in a dark closet. Your choice...

* * * * *

Paul

For participating in our game today (and leaving a comment) you will be entered in a drawing to win a free copy of Phantoms & Fantasies. No worries. I don’t mine e-mails for future mailings. This promotion is strictly to introduce new readers to Turk and Zeenie. Please feel free to spin and play. I’m dying to know who’ll be the most popular and why.

If you missed out on previous days of the blog tour and want to know more, we kicked off the week with Pamela V. Mason’s review of Phantoms & Fantasies on WriterMason.blogspot.com. Tuesday, Tami Brothers interviewed me on her blog  about the hunks in my books and the males inhabiting my home. I also blogged on Petit Fours And Hot Tamales about embracing the unexpected. Wednesday’s installment included a steamy excerpt from Phantoms & Fantasies on Sandra McGregor’s new blog Life, Love, and a Good Book. Thursday I interviewed Turk on the Pink Fuzzy Slipper Writer’s blog.

Tomorrow, I’ll wrap up this blog tour by choosing a grand prize winner from all the comments throughout the week on my blog. Because my books all revolve around matters of the heart, the grand prize will be a beautiful collection of semi-precious heart pendants and necklaces encased in their own wooden jewelry box! I received one of these collections from a Secret Santa one year and just love it! (Sorry, USA shipping only.)

You can keep in contact with me on my Annie Rayburn, Author Facebook page or follow me on Twitter: Annie_Rayburn.

Okay, commercial over. Ladies, let’s play!

Annie Rayburn's Blog Tour

Hey, everyone! If you haven't heard, the fabulous Annie Rayburn (Carol Burnside) is having a Blog Tour this week, featuring Phantoms & Fantasies, one of her Crainesian love story, complete with pheromones and life-mate calls.

Here's what some special folks are saying about Phantoms & Fantasies.

"An intriguing, erotic story full of romance and an emotionally satisfying ending." -Morag McKendrick Pippin, author of Blood Moon Over Bengal

"Phantoms and Fantasies is a magical story of love, passion, and healing that will have readers hanging on to every word." - Tammy, Fallen Angels Reviews. 5 Angels, Recommended Read

"Annie Rayburn has penned a wonderful book and interesting characters, which will have readers looking for more of her books." -Angel Brewer, Romance Junkies. 4
Ribbons

They'll be lots of fun and prizes all week. If you haven't commented yet on the other stops on Annie's blog tour, there's still time to win!

Monday kicked off with a bang at Pamela V Mason - writermason.

Tuesday Annie visited Tami Brothers' blog for a personal interview and a sneak peek at her new book!
Live, Love, Write!

Wednesday, Annie joins Sandra McGregor at
Life, Love and a Good Book,, for an excerpt from Phantoms & Fantasies, and more prizes!

Thursday, Annie interviews Turk Fontaine, the Stud of Dallas, on Mary Mavella's Pink Fuzzy Slippers Writers

And last but not least, Friday, Annie will be right here on my blog for a Spin-the-Bottle game called "Which Crainy Would you Kiss?" Have I got your attention now?

Saturday (October 22) is the big FINALE on Annie's own blog, where Annie will give away the grand prize, a beautiful collection of semi-precious heart pendants and necklaces encased in their own wooden jewelry box. (USA shipping only)


You can't miss it. Have you commented yet? What are you waiting for?

Someone Elses Daughter - Excerpt from Chapter Three

From Someone Else's Daughter, available on Amazon, Smashwords, and Barnes & Noble.

Thirteen years ago, Miranda Steele's abusive husband stole her baby and gave it up for adoption, then kicked Miranda out of his house. Now, the smart-talking, hot pepper-eating loner has a letter from a thirteen-year-old girl in a mansion in Georgia, who claims she's adopted. Could this be her long lost child? Along the way, she meets a sexy, southern gentleman detective who turns her life around. Here's a peek at the irresistible Wade Russell Parker the Third.

Chapter Three

The music was classical, tasteful, sedate. The wine was white Bordeaux. Dry, rare. The caviar was Black Russian. Crisp, tasting of the ocean. And the women…ah, the women. Glamorously dressed in their latest designer gowns, the ladies were as alluring as they were lovely.

Wade Parker leaned against a tall Ionic column near the grand staircase of the Georgia Governor’s mansion and sipped from his champagne flute. Beneath the Italian chandelier, an elegantly coiffed redhead smiled at him. Near the portrait of George Washington, a blond winked. Under the archway to the hall, a brunette cast him a flirtatious glance.

Parker chuckled to himself. Were they all after the man that audacious reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution had dubbed the town’s most eligible forty-four-year-old bachelor?

His gaggle of admirers amused and wearied him at the same time. As beautiful and enticing as they were, not one of them could replace Sylvia, the love of his life. It had been three years now since cancer had stolen her from him. His heart ached at the thought as if it were yesterday.

But then, he wasn’t here tonight to flirt. Or the mid-April fundraiser.

His gaze drifted across the room to a thin and pale man standing alone near the great fireplace, nervously fingering a drink. His name was Thomas Jameson. The Governor’s steering committee would have thrown him out, if Parker had not persuaded them to honor the invitation he’d wheeled out of a member.

Not a hair out of place, Jameson was impeccably dressed in a fine Gucci suit, but it was all a veneer. The scoundrel was lower and more revolting than the bird droppings the servants had to scoop out of the fountain in the front yard.

Tonight, Parker would prove that by catching him in the act.

Someone Else's Daughter is available at:

Buy on Amazon

Buy on Barnes & Noble

Buy on iTunes US

Buy on iTunes Australia

Buy on Kobo

Buy in Trade Paperback