Month: March 2010

Where Do My Heroines Come From? (Well, Not All of Them!)

By Bonnie Edwards

I’d like to say from the cabbage patch, or even that a stork delivers them in the dead of night, but the truth is, heroines are born in weird and interesting ways.

A lot of times secondary characters scream out for books of their own. Sometimes readers will ask so often about a background character the seed for a new heroine is fertilized. Voila! A connected story comes about.

Connected stories please the readers, editors (and marketing folk) like them and writers get to play in a familiar world again. Readers aren’t the only ones curious about former lead characters. Writers want to know how they’re doing, too.

On occasion heroines appear not from inside a story, but from outside, so to speak.

Take Morgan Swann, for example. She’s my heroine in POSSESSING MORGAN.

I was working on another story entirely. This one was aimed at a different Harlequin line, when I realised my heroine would have known (and still did) people who walked on the far side of the law. Growing up in her neighborhood, it would have been impossible to avoid knowing some rough characters, or schoolmates headed down different, and more dangerous, paths. At some point, her best friend fell into stealing cars.

Fast cars. Expensive cars. Morgan stole for money, yes.

But more for the thrill.

And that, my friends, was a lightning bolt moment.

Morgan Swann never set foot in the story I was writing, but she existed for me. Fully formed. She was feisty, tough and out for herself. She was scared, but loved the thrill of boosting cars, the hunt, the adrenaline rush of excitement.

I loved this teenager. She had her reasons for falling in with the bad crowd: frail, scaredy-cat human reasons. The universality of her need as a powerless teenager spoke to me. She broke my heart.

No sooner had she walked on stage, than I wondered how to make her a heroine. I loved this character too much not to try to give her a happily ever after. Even bad girls can be brought back from the brink. Right?

So, a reformed bad girl who no longer steals cars, but who’s still feisty, still determined and still chasing the thrill.

What better place to write her story, than in a Blaze?

I’ve had some great fan letters about Morgan. I hope she touches your heart the way she’s touched other people, like me.

But if quirky heroines aren’t your thing…what is? Cool, aloof blondes? Warm, artsy redheads? Maybe the earth mother type? Who are your favourite heroines? And if you can explain why, I’d like to hear it.

Remember one lucky commenter will win a copy of POSSESSING MORGAN, so you can see for yourself how I turned this babe around!

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Leave a comment or question for Bonnie to enter to win POSSESSING MORGAN. If you’re reading this post through a feed on Facebook, Goodreads, or another social network, please visit the comment trail at Muse Interrupted to be eligible for the draw.

To read Bonnie’s bio and the back cover blurb for POSSESSING MORGAN, see yesterday’s post. To learn more about Bonnie and her books, check out her website.

Bonnie Edwards Guest Blogs Tomorrow!

Romance author Bonnie Edwards joins us again tomorrow to celebrate the release of her first Harlequin Blaze, POSSESSING MORGAN (March 2010). Please drop by and leave a comment or question for Bonnie to enter for your chance to win.

About POSSESSING MORGAN:

He’s everything she’s ever wanted…

Repo woman Morgan Swann can hardly believe it. She’s been hopelessly infatuated with headline-stealing heartthrob Kingston “Mac” McRae for most of her life…and now she’s in his driveway, about to repossess his fancy car. If only she could pick up the rest of him so easily…

Mac can’t believe, it either. His car is being stolen…but all he can think about is getting the sexy-as-hell Morgan into the the backseat. And their engines only rev hotter once she shows him how easily her Daisy Duke shorts come off.

It’s a sweaty, fast ride—the ultimate thrill. Until Morgan realizes she wants not only the fantasy, but the key to Mac’s heart as well.

About Bonnie:

Bonnie Edwards has sold everything from luxury bathroom fixtures to sexy lingerie but loves writing sexy romances best. She lives on an island with her husband and a variety of pets within view of the Coastal Mountains and the City of Vancouver. Bonnie enjoys teaching writing in Continuing Education classes at a local university.

In 2006, she helped launch the Kensington Aphrodisia erotic romance line.

She’s thrilled to debut her Harlequin Blaze POSSESSING MORGAN in March 2010. Bonnie loves to hear from readers! For excerpts and news please click on over to www.bonnieedwards.com.

I’m Not Here

Well, I am, but too much is going on to think about writing a blog post. Strange how I find myself doing that regardless, huh?

  1. Buncha university issues for Youngest Son. He’s been accepted to both universities he applied to, but one is in another province and so requires more evidence that he did, in fact, take the correct first year Physics and Chemistry courses required for his major. He has to decide on a university by the end of the month, because he also just got accepted into residence at the out-of-province university and the deadline for accepting is March 31st. Next week, he’s checking out the B.C. university and talking to the academic advisor there. As soon as he gets back, he needs to hie himself to Alberta and then make his decision.
  2. I was happily editing the partial of my WIP after a friend read the revised version for me when I suddenly realized that I had some timeline issues that had never occurred to me before. They’re a result of the book being set in the States and the fact that Canada and the U.S. don’t share the same stat/federal holidays. So, suddenly, I had to put aside my revisions and do a buncha research, including a phone call to Seattle. I’ve just printed out my new file of brainstorming. I think I’ve solved all the issues, and now need to get back to applying them to the revisions. Don’t you hate it when you think you have all the research you need and then discover you still have more to do?

So that’s my week. Other issues happening, too, but none I’m prepared to discuss in a public forum. Let’s just say it was a bit of a shaky week. Really want to see things settled for Y.S., though. Patience, Cindy, patience.

RITA Report

The deadline for getting in RITA® scores is March 9th. I’m happy to report that I’m done. Read all the books in my panel, submitted the scores on-line. Good for me.

RITA judges are instructed to “hold all judging and/or scoring data confidential” (from the Judging Guidelines), so I can’t talk about my panel of books in any way that might identify them. What I will say is that judging the RITA this year was a pleasure compared to last year. Last year was my first time judging, and I don’t know how or why it happened, but I wound up with 9 books to judge, 8 from the same category and one from a second category (judges select a minimum three categories that they’re willing to judge, and it can’t be a category in which you’re currently entered). This year I had 6 books, from three categories. I liked that much better! Judging 9 books within a short time frame last year was tough. Especially because most of the 8 books that were from the same category last year were also published under the same line/imprint, and, oddly enough, several were even set in the same city. It was an odd judging experience, to say the least. As a judge, I want some variety. I didn’t get that last year, and I had to keep reminding myself that the authors of the books in my panel had no idea that I’d wind up with several books all set in the same city and with fairly similar story lines. In other words, I had to work extra hard last year to ensure I was being fair to all the entrants.

I can’t remember which three categories I selected to judge last year, because I only received entries from two. This year, though, I dropped at least one of the categories from last year in favor of a different category. I might have done this with two categories, actually. And it paid off. I had a great time this year with my entries. I was introduced to authors I might not otherwise have bought, and I discovered a couple of authors I want to buy again (that’s what I love about the RITAs). I don’t know if I lucked out, but the vast majority of books in my panel were above par.

I don’t have a 2010 release as Penny, so next year I can ask to judge the category Penny usually enters (Romance Novella). I’m looking forward to that.

It’s odd, when I used to judge the Golden Heart, it didn’t bother me if I received entries from just one category. But you only have to judge three chapters and a synopsis in the Golden Heart. For the RITA, you have to read the entirety of each and every book in your panel. That’s a lot of words.

How is your RITA or Golden Heart reading going? Have you finished? Are you lagging behind? Are you judging another contest this year? I’m not. Maybe next year I’ll take on another contest or two. For now, though, I need to step back.

Juno Books Submission Call

Juno Books editor Paula Guran is looking for submissions. Check out her blog for details. Make sure to read the part that says you can send off a short synopsis and FULL MANUSCRIPT right away. No need to sub a partial first. But also make sure to read their submission guidelines before submitting. No sense sending Paula something she doesn’t need or want. Right? There’s my smart blog readers.

Go Canada!

Excuse me while I gush.

I’m not normally a hockey fan. Not what I would call a sports fan in any way, shape or form. Pretty much a total klutz and perennial bench-warmer when it comes to my own athletic abilities. But I have been glued to Team Canada’s progress throughout the 2010 men’s Olympic hockey games since the 1st American-Canadian game back in the whatever-round-that-was several days ago. The press has been saying all along that hockey is “Canada’s game,” but I’ve never really felt that way (I know, boo-hiss on me). For one thing, lacrosse is Canada’s official sport (I don’t even know why, as hockey is definitely the most-played sport). For another, in the NHL, Canadian hockey players play on American teams and American players play on Canadian teams. It’s like a big family reunion with talented cousins playing alongside equally talented cousins. But there’s something about the need to prove yourself on home soil. Especially when Canada doesn’t usually perform anything like Americans at most Olympics. But we did ourselves proud this Olympics. Winning the gold medal in men’s hockey during overtime was the icing on the cake.

Canada won 14 gold medals this Olympics—the most gold medals won in any Olympics by any country, regardless of whether the games were held on home soil or not. For most Canadians, I would think that’s pretty mind-boggling. We’re happy to win silver and bronze medals. Heck, we’re happy to be in the running. Overall, we placed third in total medal count, with 14 golds, 7 silvers and 5 bronzes. Total medals = 26. Germany beat us out with 30 medals, 10 of which were gold, 13 silver and 7 bronze. And Team U.S.A. won the medal count with 9 gold, 15 silver and 13 bronze (total 37 medals). (If you’re wondering where I retrieved these stats, click here). But, ahem, we won 14—count ’em and weep!—14 gold medals! Us! Little ol’ Canada!

:::Cheering!! Waving the flag!!!:::

Go, Canada, go!

And now back to your regularly scheduled blog programming (excuse me for interrupting).