Getting it Right: Dying (part 1 of 3)

Author Carolyn Steele

by Carolyn Steele

So, your character has to die. You want to get it right but, short of hanging around mortuaries and hoping the smell doesn’t put you off your lunch, death isn’t that easy to research. Watching old episode of House will just lead you into the traps that have medical types throwing their stethoscopes at the TV screen, so here is a short series of tips and pointers for getting fatality right. Continue reading “Getting it Right: Dying (part 1 of 3)”

How to write a good love (sex) scene…

As a writer, I’d like to say I’m more known for my fantasy and thriller novels than for my romances and erotic romances (as V. J. Devereaux) but given how often I’m asked about the erotica, I’d have to say it’s about even. *grin* However, anyone who has read any of my books knows there are very few of them that don’t contain a certain level of romance. I’ve always wondered why we’re far more comfortable showing acts of mayhem and murder but we can’t show two people expressing affection and intimacy, one of the most joyful expressions of life? Far more important to your writing, though, is the reason you’re including that scene, whether you stop at the door, take a few steps inside, or go all the way. Continue reading “How to write a good love (sex) scene…”

Bad review? Good for you!

Getting a bad review can be hard, even debilitating – so, I’ve heard. I make it a practice to avoid them. I have been lucky in this regard. My outstanding abilities as a writer, nay – human being preclude nay-sayers from having their nay-say. In all seriousness, I don’t get bad reviews. But I try to attempt to maintain some form of humility (excuse me – the bikini girls are acting up again…so hard to find good help, non?) So, let’s assume I get bad reviews and have to deal with them as opposed to having my man servant deal with them – which is what I would do if I did…get bad reviews that is.

Continue reading “Bad review? Good for you!”

Tuesday Tutorial – Facebook URLs Revisited

Facebook Author PageSince this is still running rampant amongst author pages, I felt it was a good time to re-run this post. One of the most common…flubs, for lack of a better word…that I see is a Facebook author page with a discombobulated URL. I must see at least one or two a day. “Come check out my page!” they’ll say to me, presenting me with a link that looks like http://www.facebook.com/pages/Judy-the-author/260458930631195. Hey, Judy, guess what? No one’s going to remember how to get to your author page with a link like that. Continue reading “Tuesday Tutorial – Facebook URLs Revisited”