Tag: published authors

Marrying Winterborne (The Ravenels #2)

Book Review by K.M. Saint James

Marrying Winterborne (The Ravenels #2) Is it possible to find love in historical times? Romance author, Lisa Kelpas certainly seems to write this truth. Marrying Winterborne, The Ravenels, book 2, ranks at the top of my favorite historical love stories. Lisa Kleypas sets up the perfect opposing protagonists when hard-hearted business tycoon, Rhys Winterborne sets out to seduce and then win the notoriously shy, Helen Ravenel. This romantic historical story is guaranteed to make readers cheer for both sides. More than reforming a rake: this tale is about redeeming a man who has lived a necessary hard life, who makes no apologies for his tough attitude, and who secretly adores the sweetest of women, Helen … Read more

How to Make the MOST of your Writing Weekends: WORDfest 2019

Be a Better Writer for K.M. Saint James teaching tips

WORDFEST.org Saturday, March 23, 2019 — a day spent with writers, bloggers, authors, playwrights, educational specialists — in essence, a day to grow and learn as a writer. Like most conferences, there were seminars designed to encourage growth of basic skills to the next level, those for writers who’ve been around the proverbial publishing block, ones to maximizing online presence and even specialty sessions for groups wanting to grow their membership. Visual demographics leaned heavily toward the female gender, but there was a great blend of young and old. “Writing isn’t for the faint of heart. Writing is for the tenacious . For those who can stand the solitude. For those who are willing to … Read more

Bluebonnet Ballerina by Carol Kilgore — book review

Book Review by K.M. Saint James

Bluebonnet Ballerina is not your average cops and robbers’ type of suspense. Readers can expect characters, both live and the ‘gently deceased’, to appear on the pages of Bluebonnet Ballerina. The cast includes ex-CIA, cops – active to reassigned, a best friend complete with her guiding spirit, a couple of love interests, and even a few decades-old ghosts thrown into the mix. The hard hitting world of human trafficking, guns for hire, and genuine bad guys are counterbalanced by a healthy – and much appreciated – dose of the ‘woo-woo’ factor. Bluebonnet Ballerina is filled with: a plot that MAKES sense – always a pleasant surprise in a suspense novel; characters that are intelligent; and … Read more

Too Much to Swallow – Plotting

However great the storyteller, however well published the author – one truth remains constant. Plotting, beast that it is, can never be side-stepped, shortened or eliminated. Short story to novel, fiction to non-fiction, romance to suspense, each writer must face the daunting task of basic plotting. Breaking the process of plotting down into specific bites can make the entire process more palatable. Who . . . What . . . When . . . Where . . . and Why: basic questions guaranteed to cook up plotting BRILLIANCE Who – be specific, which character is the target of this plotting session. 1) One of the protagonists? 2) The villain? 3) A secondary character who’s crucial … Read more

The Brilliance of Layering

I am a bit of a DIY nut. Not the most talented rehab expert, but darned persistent when I need to learn a task in order to complete a make-over. When necessity demanded, I’ve tackled walls and ceilings: tape & bedding, trim-out work, baseboards, texturing, priming then painting, tiling (yes, you can tile a bathroom wall), to floors that have been stripped, sanded, leveled, prepped, tiled, grouted and finally sealed. At our home, we’ve changed light fixtures, ceiling fans, plumbing fixtures, even a few main internal water lines. I’ve removed old, leaky doors, sealed framing, stuffed installation, and floated in a couple of walls. Then there were old dated external doors out and new insulated … Read more

First page

NTRWA is hosting a conference in a few months. As one of the early entrants, I’ve been given the opportunity to submit my first page — for review — to the great Maggie Lawson. She’ll analyze — probably to pieces — the writing, then offer suggestions for making it better. Okay, I’m a little nervous to have Maggie Lawson read anything I’ve penned to paper. I’m posting it. Tell me what you think. What works . . . what doesn’t. This is actually the prologue tugged and tucked into one type-written page, so I may have deleted so much, it doesn’t make sense. Let me know, please, before I’m read in front of a room … Read more

Another article up at Ezine Articles . . .

How fun! Another article — Creating Extraordinary Writing from Ordinary Phrases has been accepted by Ezine Articles. Hubby is hard at work pushing my articles out and about, so I’m really clueless as to where all my articles have spidered (technical Google term) at this point. It’s possible to see my by-line on any number of Internet sites as a result of his marketing tenacity. The article writing is part of my self-promotion plan — building a readership from all spectrums. For those interested in submitting to Ezine just click on that link. As an article author, you are required to open an account with Ezine. No, it doesn’t cost anything. Word of warning, they … Read more

Sunday Muses . . .

On board with TWITTER. I needed to join in order to keep up with the kiddo at Texas A & M. Not specifically her, but the campus as a whole. After the Virginia Tech incident, A & M launched their Code Maroon alert program. Students, staff, employees and parents, who had emails on file, were notified of any emergency situation through text and email messages. This year A & M changed to TWITTER. Students still gets the emergency text, but parents must follow TWITTER. So as I’m on TWITTER, if you want to follow me, just search my name, and then send a TWITTER alert to me. If you’re already Tweeting, then watch for LoneStarMeander … Read more

Rosemary Clements-Moore

Here’s to Absolutely Thrilling News! Last week, Rosemary Clements-Moore won the most prestigious award, a RITA, given by romance writers from around the world. Romanace Writers of America (RWA to those who belong) selected HELL WEEK as a top finalist for the Young Adult category. This contest is judged by fellow romance writers and authors, a tough group to impress. Rosemary carried home the gold statue in honor of the accolades for her book, HELL WEEK. This is Rosemary’s 2nd book in the series. Truly top honors for a great author. Icing on the cake is that Rosemary’s 3rd book, when released, wasn’t even shelved by the big B & N. Yep, that’s right. They, … Read more

What you know and how to write it in an article . . .

Article writing 101 . . . actually, it’s more like pre-101, however, it’s been tremendous fun sharing a number of the writing lessons I’ve learned. Good writing is important for everyone — a point I’m constantly making to my kids. Whatever the career, whatever the emphasis, everyone needs to know how to communicate, and communicating through written word is crucial. Apparently, EZine magazine thinks it’s important, too, because they’ve accepted several of my articles regarding writing. They sent this link: ezinearticles for my Clear and Concise Writing. For those of you who don’t think you could write an article, consider all the things that you know how to do — there will be a lot! … Read more