Guest - Michelle Miles

Good morning, everyone! I hope you all had a terrific holiday (if you're in the USA) and/or a terrific weekend :-D My hubby and I did bratwursts on the grill and had a very interesting non-mayonnaise potato salad. And, of course, hubby being a natural born pyro-maniac (my fond term for him, lol) we had a mini-fireworks in our backyard. All in all, a nice relaxing day.

But, now, we're back to work and today we have special guest Michelle Miles, who will be talking about one of the most important aspects of writing, no matter the genre, Worldbuilding.

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How I Worldbuild

Hello, all! I want to thank Lynda for inviting me over to Star-Crossed Romance today!

I’ve recently finished my second full-length fantasy story (the first one was, well, awful) and thought I’d share my very strange way of worldbuilding. It actually works very well for me, but my way be a little off the wall for others. ;)

I got the inspiration for Phoenix Rising from a really strange dream I had. I knew I had to write it down and quickly before it got lost in the deep dark chasm that is my brain. As soon as I got up that morning, I headed to the computer and wrote a three page synopsis. The entire story came to me that way and I wrote it down in detail.

Then I sat on it for about six months while I pondered it.

Phoenix Rising is the story of a young woman who is a slave and forced to fight in the Games as a gladiatrix. She never imagines the only person who can free her from her life of killing is an assassin whom she falls in love with. When the tyrannical Emperor discovers their forbidden tryst, he pits them against each other in a fight to the death in the Games.

Originally, I had the story set in Ancient Rome and did a lot of research on gladiators and how their life was. I ordered these really cool DVDs from The History Channel on the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. The DVDs really aided me in giving a feel for the time period and the violence that surrounded the rulers, their insatiable need to dominate the uncivilized world, and those who were trying to make a living and survive the iron-fisted Roman Empire.

So when I set out to write the story, I took all of this as the basis for the setting. But there were things I needed in my world that weren’t part of Ancient Rome (for instance, my heroine was raised in an orphanage). It was then I realized this wasn’t really a historical; this was fantasy. I changed place names to a fictional city in a sprawling Empire ruled by a man more interested in the bloody games in his capital city than expanding his territory. (He’s also a slovenly, lascivious pig…)

As I wrote, I began to realize I needed something more concrete on where things were in the city. So I set out to draw a map. Armed with graph paper and map pencils – and an old rendering of what Ancient Rome once looked like in his heyday – I sat down and drew my fictional city. I based it on Ancient Rome but “built” my own Grand Arena, the Grand Stadium, the Emperor’s palace, the sacred temples, the gladiator barracks. I even “built” an aqueduct. And then I wrote a history of the city, which of course will never make it into the book but it’s stuff I needed to know to give my city purpose and my characters history.

When I got back to the book, I knew where everything was and I set about making the appropriate revisions. The first draft was finished in a month; the second draft in another month and weighed in at 80,000 words.

Of course I didn’t follow the synopsis to the letter but I followed it fairly closely and by the time I finished the second draft, I had a decent synopsis that just needed some tweaking.

For me, worldbuilding involves finding a civilization, a history, or an event I can base my world on and then go from there. For this story, I was inspired by a dream involving a female gladiator and knew where I wanted to go. For others, I find something I’m interested in. For example, I have another fantasy story (as yet unfinished) that is based on Celtic myths and legends.

Once I know where and what my world is, I can then set the mood and get to writing!

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Michelle Miles began writing long ago in junior high when she and her then-best friend wrote and illustrated their own Indiana Jones comic books. Star Trek fan-fiction quickly followed, as did Star Wars. Later, she dabbled in her own science fiction stories and historical fiction - princesses, towers, and handsome princes! Michelle finally found her footing on contemporary ground with her first novella, TALK DIRTY TO ME. A time travel series followed along with three more contemporaries.

For more information about her current releases and to sign up for her monthly newsletter, visit Michelle’s website at http://www.michellemiles.net. You can also friend her on Facebook and MySpace and follow her at Twitter.

Her latest contemporary, TAKE ME I’M YOURS, is available now from Cobblestone Press.

BOOKS BY MICHELLE MILES



Take Me I’m Yours (2009)
Available from Cobblestone Press
http://cobblestone-press.com/catalog/books/takeme.htm

Nice Girls Do (2007)
Available from Samhain Publishing - eBook
http://samhainpublishing.com/romance/nice-girls-do

Talk Dirty To Me (2006)
Available from Samhain Publishing - eBook
http://samhainpublishing.com/romance/talk-dirty-to-me

A Break In Time: Book 2 (2007 / 2008)
Available From Samhain Publishing – eBook and print
http://www.samhainpublishing.com/authors/michelle-miles

A Bend In Time: Book 1 (2006 / 2007)
Available from Samhain Publishing – eBook and print
http://www.samhainpublishing.com/authors/michelle-miles

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-- Lynda here. Thanks for the great article, Michelle. Your book, Phoenix Rising, sounds like something I'd read in a heartbeat. Make sure you let us know when you get a release date for it :-D


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Embrace Your Independence

Every month I get the opportunity to address my fellow CRW members as the editor of our newsletter, the Final Draft. July is always an exciting month for me, and this year is no different. July means fireworks, flags and cookouts...but it also means RWA Nationals!

I'd planned to go this year, but I got engaged. With a wedding looming, I had to make the hard decision not to trek to DC and explore it with my now fiance. I was so excited that I'd get to show him a city he'd never seen, the capital I'd visited twice and enjoyed exploring. History is in every inch of the city, almost literally...and I couldn't wait for him to see DC's wonders. Someday that will happen...and the most exciting thing about passing through won't be a hammer someone dropped on the interstate (aka a serious road hazard)!



Here's what I decided to share in my Editorially Speaking:
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July 4th a.k.a Independence Day is a day to remember our forefathers and how they fought to create a new nation with its own rights and beliefs. Now I bet you’re wondering, “How does that relate to writing?”

As a writer, you can’t always follow the fold. You must strike out on your own course. Editors are on the hunt for something different, though “old timers” will tell you they won’t stray too far from the norm. Editors want just enough oomph to give their line-up a bit of spice or the proverbial breath of fresh air. However, in these “tea party” times, you need to play the publishing game close to your chest.



Like our ancestors, we need to have courage. We need to believe in ourselves, or at least rub elbows with peers who can bolster our way of thinking. Those people, like the Declaration’s signers, must be of like mind, but also able to think outside the box. A written document can become stale, especially after dozens of edits, so you must have someone to lend fresh eyes. People who forge their own path, or at least deviate from the masses, are problem solvers. They’re people who want to see a change happen, and that can be done in writing…hence the market’s continual shift.

As our governing body did in 1776, we need to be at the heart of evolution, with our fingers on the pulse of change...which means RWA Nationals is the place to be in July! Be heard, be seen, and above all feed your curiosity in DC.
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On Saturday, the 4th, take a few moments not only to thank your stars that you are in the US, but that you also have the ability to embrace your dreams in a place that was founded for freedom. So many Americans take their "fortune" for granted...but on the 4th, use what you've been given to rebel. Write...even if it's a sentence, a paragraph about a new memory you're made, or the beginning of something more that will be your mark on history. Many have toiled through immeasurable hardships, but they never gave up even in the bleakest moment to see their dream become reality. Jot down those words locked inside your mind to give your dream a fighting chance, and if you get the chance to "storm" DC, be brave and make what you imagine a reality!





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Happy Birthday, USA!

FANCYPROFILE.COM

Good morning, everyone!

With July 4th looming at the end of the week, I just felt...patriotic today. I look at the news here in the US and around the world and it's pretty easy to feel in the doldrums. The economy, the wars, the lunatic politicians (here and globally)...it's enough to make you feel like catching the first ship to Alpha Centuri.

But...if you look around, there's a lot of good in the USA, actually more good than bad. The core principals this country was founded on are still in place and the people are still strong. If we stay true to that, we can be proud.

So on July 4, Happy Birthday!

Star Light, Star Bright...Interstellar Interview with Jacquelyn Frank

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Jacquelyn Frank is a native New Yorker, loves cats to the point of insanity, and is branching out from her popular Nightwalkers thanks to her meandering muse. Media is her life's blood and she loves to draw inspiration from the music of Sarah McLachlan, Maire Brennan and Evanescence's Amy Lee, not to mention tracks from Buffy and Angel. As for books, she loves paranormals, historicals and eroticas...including the ones like she pens that make readers flush. In movies she prefers disaster flicks that reveal a raw honesty about the end of the human race as we know it and watching the human race persevere through horrible situations thanks to their best qualities. Then there is that charged moment of romance that springs up in impossible moments of desperation. And sometimes it's a tie between watching people bite the dust of their arrogance or because they're TSTL.

In the past Jacquelyn was an ASL interpreter as well as a substitute teacher and health aide. Though ever since her teenage years she's wanted to be a writer. She thought things really did stop at that first kiss until she got her hands on an introductory copy of Loveswept! Ever since she saw what was between those pages, she's been writing romance and gobbling it up as a reader. When she isn't working on a manuscript, or chipping away at her TRB pile, she champions literacy and animal advocacy.


I had the pleasure of meeting Jacquelyn at a local RWA chapter meeting. She'd just moved into the area, give or take a few miles, and was looking for like minded "folk". The first time she popped up on the loop, she was helping a family in need who'd lost everything in a fire. From that point on I realized one of her "trademarks" is helping others, though she has her own challenges. As a fellow RWA member she jumped into help our growing chapter and was eager to do her part, eventhough she was super busy with her Nightwalker series.

We were so delighted that she joined our group, and that she had such success with her "men". I regret that I didn't get to spend more time in her common, because she is so witty and tech savvy. But I know she has her hands full with bigger projects--can you say another series? If it's as electric as the first, her schedule is going to be hectic for quite a while thinking up new ways to make us, her fans, blush. Kudos go out to you Jacquelyn! Keep those hot (yet troubled and endearing) guys coming!

What traits do you feel will help your fans embrace the Shadowdwellers as much as they have the Nightwalkers? How did their story allow you to branch out into something new?

While the Shadowdwellers are from the same world as the Nightwalkers, they are a very insular society and don’t interact much with the outside world. Although, when they did in the past it was to cause mischief. But they have come through a sobering civil war recently and are ready to take their place among the more mature Nightwalker clans. You won’t see much in the way of crossing over between these worlds in these early stories, but I have a feeling that will change by the time I get to the fourth story in the Shadowdwellers series. As it is, I have to finish off the Nightwalkers series with one more book!

With heroes manly enough to headline their own novels, how do you create heroines that compliment, and yet are equal to, them?

I honestly don’t know “how” I do any of this. I just do it. I create the characters first then look at them like puzzle pieces and think, okie doke, how do I fit these two together? And you can’t tell me they don’t go together because I will force them to if I have to…which often makes the best parts of a story.

Do you know how many books fans can look forward to in the Shadowdwellers series? Are there any characters that appeared in ECSTASY and/or will appear in RAPTURE that you're itching to bring to life in their own novel?

I think we’ll have four books in the Shadowdweller series, but I am learning never to make that a solid promise. I said five for the Nightwalkers and now look at me! I have to do a sixth or fans are going to kill me for not taking care of some things in the last book! There are three characters that I am itching to get my hands on from this series, but I don’t know if I will get to them all. We’ll have to see. The thing about the Shadowdwellers series is I can’t talk much about the next book in the series or I give away important details about the book before it. Like, if you read Rapture before ECSTASY, it spoils the entire plot of the first book.

Out of all the characters you've created, is there one you wished you could meet in flesh and blood reality?

Magnus, the hero of RAPTURE. He just rocks. He’s also insanely sexy.

When you're using movies as inspiration, what's the latest flick that has you wanting more?

Star Trek. I LOVE it when you turn things on their head in a story, be it written or film. I was dying for more. Of course, I’m a full on Trek geek so…I may be biased!

How did you manage to find the time to host the Authors After Dark Para

normal Weekend with two bestselling series?

Luckily Stella PRice and Bianca D’arc are doing a LOT of the heavy lifting for the event. I am wrecked with deadlines, new series, new characters…so I wouldn’t be able to do it without them. Plus I am honored so many wonderful paranormal authors have said yes to my invitation. I only wish I could have gotten through to more of them to extend the invite.

Since RWA Nationals is around the bend, will you be attending and/or doing a seminar? Is there any ot her news your fans need to know about coming up this year?

I won’t be attending RWA, nor will I attend RT next year. I am going to keep it to the smaller weekend events. My health is simply not cut out for week long events. The only news I have is that I am throwing my own weekend, the Authors After Dark Paranormal Weekend the weekend before Halloween. All the information they need is at www.authorsafterdark.net.

For more about Jacquelyn and her books, check out www.jacquelynfrank.com. Also as promised, one lucky person who posts a question or comment (here or at www.myspace.com/star_crossedromance) will be entered for a chance to win the signed copy of RAPTURE, which won't be in stores until June 30th! So get to typing!





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Happy Belated Father's Day

I know Father's Day was yesterday but I thought I'd talk about it today too. My dh got a grilled Angus beef hamburger cooked to perfection on our outdoor grill. (He loves Black Angus beef and I was lucky to discover my meat market had it.) The kid got him a new fire extinguisher (it's what he wanted). Even though she doesn't live here and she was in the process of building a pergola for her back yard, she made a point of coming to celebrate Father's Day for a while. That made her dad happy. And it made me wonder what kind of memories she would have of her father in the years ahead.

I'm positive she doesn't remember that when she was born, her dad had broken his ankle. That didn't stop him from trying to walk and carry the poor little darling (who had colic very badly). He even tried singing to her...Jingle Bells, the only tune he could remember the words too.

I'm sure she doesn't remember furping up formula on him as he lifted her high over head (and it wasn't even the last time he did that, lol). Or the way he sat through each dance school recital or school concert half asleep because he worked midnights and that was his bed time.

I know she does remember that it was always Dad she went to whenever she found a dead baby bird or other unfortunate critter who needed to be buried. Or that it was him who helped her learn to ride her bike without training wheels. And it was Dad who always glowered whenever she came home late from a date. We're all fairly sure it was only because the Law wouldn't have liked it if he'd killed anyone of her boyfriends that any of them actually made it out of the house. But then again...

Dads do a lot for their kids, a lot more than just bringing home a paycheck. And good Dads are precious to all of us. So, even though I'm a day late, I just want to take the opportunity to send all you Dads a heart felt hug. Hope you all had a great Father's Day.

Cancelled...for This Week

I know you showed up today for the Star Light, Star Bright...Interstellar Interview, but unforeseen circumstances have prompted the need to reschedule for next week. So same URL, same day, but next week :0)


Nevertheless I do think the topic of cancellation is a valid one. I went to a book signing this week to support a friend, Mary Margret Daughtridge, who writes Navy SEAL contemporaries. When I showed up at five minutes until the start there were only four attendees, and two of those were running the camera equipment. I was like "Oh, no! I hope they don't cancel the signing/reading." I know generally you can have two people and the show still goes on...but it does make you wonder how many times the bookstore will keep putting it's time and efforts out there if no one is going to show. Plus it never helps when the weather is nasty outside and there's road construction in the vicinity. Though I'm glad to say that merely pushing the start back 15 minutes meant five times as many people were hanging on every word as Mary Margret read from SEALED WITH A PROMISE. (I loved it because she read a scene about a wedding...and I don't even think she knew I was engaged. Not to mention that it had humor, which always makes a read fun. Let's face it, sometimes too much angst is well...too much.)

The term "cancelled" also brings to mind the wishy washy way tv is going these days. It seems like we're about to be inundated with reality shows. Don't get me wrong I love to watch good reality tv, including seeing just what people will do--like catching the most huge insects with their hands in 30 seconds to win $20,000. (I for one would not win that event!) But it seems that all the good dramas are being gobbled up by what the stations think is popular. Can you think of any paranormal shows that are on a major station, that isn't cable? I bring cable into the mix because a hot topic this past week was the return of TRUE BLOOD on HBO. I got hooked on the first season, and hope the writers can keep up the momentum for this second installment. I'd hate to see it fall apart like HEROES. And I just remembered the trailer I saw for VAMPIRE DIARIES, which I think we can all attest was inspired by TWILIGHT (though info says it's structured according to a series penned by Kevin Williamson) . Even with hit shows like FRINGE and SUPERNATURAL, you have to wonder how long they'll last when their time slots are switched continually and they're pitted against other "headliners". I can say I'm happy to see cable networks will pick up the discards, like Sci Fi's announcement to show MOONLIGHT.

I've also heard the sad news that some authors' series are stalled in limbo. Because of the economic downturn publishers seem to be hesitant to publish or even acquire what hasn't been consistently selling. Which means some of the characters we love might not have their time in the sun...or moonlight. If there's a book you're dying to see written by a favorite author, then please write the publisher or even the author's editor and ask (beg) them to consider pushing the project on! When they're so busy watching the bottom line, they can't always pay attention to what readers want (especially when we're a section of the romance horde). But having more than one person advocate a project could make that light bulb go off and give them a great idea to make money!


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What I'm Reading: How it relates to writing

One of my pals loaned me a boxed set of Nora Roberts books, The Sign of Seven trilogy. I finished book 1, Cal's story, in two days. Now I'm on Fox's story, and about a quarter of the way through. What can I say? Ms Roberts' rarely disappoints. Therefore, I'm looking forward to finishing this series.

I can remember, way back when, I first read one of the esteemed Nora's books. Ahem, wasn't too impressed but that was early in her career and it was a Harlequin in I'm not mistaken (nothing wrong with Harlequin, mind you, but they're shorter and they're not woo-woo books that makes a difference to me).

What I want to really point out though is that first book had a major bad-boy, alpha type hero (always popular) but, to me, he wasn't too likable. But the heroes in the last year or two of Nora books are, while still definitely masculine (in a whoo hoo sort of way), they're over all NICE guys. Decent, honorable, maybe a bit messy (guys will be guys after all) but there are men you wouldn't mind knowing.

That sounds like it would be easy to accomplish but I don't think it is. I think it's a real balancing act to get that sort of masculinity and 'niceness' to work well together. Even her 'bad boy' heroes have a deep core of essential goodness or niceness about them. I enjoy reading them and I'm jealous of their heroines, lol.

However, I will say, there are passages where the guys really 'talk' and seem a bit too in touch with their feelings. Maybe this is because they're 'modern' men? I don't know. Also sometimes, I lose track of who's speaking - the hero or the heroine. I think that's because their voices aren't too well distinguished.

But...I'm still enjoying the stories and the characters. And that's the real measure of reading any book, isn't it?

-- Lynda

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