Posted in Pitch Wars

Pitch Wars Wishlist 2021: Dinosaurs and blood spatter and kissing OH MY

Click here for an accessible text-only version of my wishlist

I’m SO EXCITED to be back as a Pitch Wars mentor 2021, this time in the adult and new adult categories.

Pitch Wars is a mentoring programme where experienced authors (the mentors) help unagented writers (the mentees) prepare for the publishing journey. I’ll have the honour of choosing a manuscript I love and working with the author to make it as shiny as can be before it’s presented to agents in the February 2022 showcase. For more information please visit the official site https://pitchwars.org/

NSFW / Trigger warnings: This post includes occasional swearing and references to plot elements including sex and violence. All images are safe for work (unless you look very closely at the erotica one…)

Punctuation warning: I seem to have kicked my em-dash addiction but swapped it for wayyy too many parentheses and exclamation marks. Also note if we email or DM, I will overuse emojis and exclamation marks to make sure I don’t sound stern!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

Links to each section of my wishlist:

  1. Who am I?
  2. Genres I’m accepting and not accepting (including subgenres)
  3. Do Not Wants
  4. Random wants in any genre
  5. Contact info for questions
  6. Detailed wants and don’t wants for each genre
  7. Why submit to me?
  8. My critique style
  9. Tips for Submitting to Me
  10. My mentoring style
Continue reading “Pitch Wars Wishlist 2021: Dinosaurs and blood spatter and kissing OH MY”
Posted in Book Reviews

August Roundup: What have I been reading?

First let me announce that I’m having computer problems. My A, Q, and 1 keys are working intermittently, so there will be typos in this post. Don’t judge me. Actually, you probably should judge me, because I think the problem is that my keyboard is full of cat hair.

August was a pretty good month in one way – I had a week off work so I read 22 books in the month. But it was a big disappointment in that only one of those books included dinosaurs. I’ll do better next month.

Fortunately for you, patient reader, I have chosen just 14 to review here, and the reviews are short. Let’s face it; nobody reads them anyway.

The Odyssey, Homer – 5/5 lots of blood and sex, sometimes together.

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Posted in Writing advice that may or may not be completely wrong

How to Spot a ‘Good’ or ‘Bad’ Publisher

Writers are warned to beware of “bad” publishers. But how are we supposed to know if a publisher is good or bad?

It’s taken me a long time to learn how to spot the good from bad, so I thought I’d share. Note that my research is focused on publishers of novels rather than poetry, screenplays, etc, which might be very different.

Before we get into that, we need to define what is meant by “good” and “bad.” For purposes of this post:

A good publisher will sell your work to a good number of readers.

What counts as “a good number” will depend on your genre and the form of writing, among much else, so let’s say that means “many orders of magnitude more than you could sell on your own.”

Bad publishers fall into two categories:

Some bad publishers are scammers, who will extract money from you and not sell your book.

Some bad publishers have good intentions but won’t be able to sell your book any better than you could on your own.

Good publishers sell your books in good quantities to readers.

So, how do you tell if a publisher is good or bad?

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Posted in Book Reviews

February Roundup: What have I been reading?

February was a busy month. Not only was NOT OK, CUPID released, but I had to check myself every 3.4 minutes for coronavirus symptoms. The problem is that I’ve had muscle aches, fatigue, and a general feeling of malaise for about 13 years.

Somehow I found time to read 18 books. Once again, not having any social life and only one friend pays off!

I’m bang on my goal of 50/50 fiction and nonfic, with nine each. Let’s start with the nonfic this time.

NF1

Continue reading “February Roundup: What have I been reading?”

Posted in Book Reviews

January Roundup: What have I been reading?

I stole this blog idea from my friend Kimothy. I like to steal things. Especially from children, because if they get angry I can just knee them in the face.

Anyway.

I started off the reading year strong, with 12 books read in January. You’ll note this blog only includes 10 because two haven’t been published yet. When they are I will be NEENER NEENER-ing that I got to read them first.

My reading schedule kind of fell apart over the last week because MY BOOK WAS RELEASED! Did I mention I had a book coming out? Well, I did. I was a bundle of nerves and excitement, but early reviews have been very good and I’m touched by how kind and supportive people have been, especially since I’m kind of a dick.

Nonfiction January Reads

nonfic

Fiction January Reads

Fic

Side note: I’ve noticed over the last year or so that I read a lot of books with blue-green covers. I wonder if I’m unconciously attracted to those covers (I do think that colour scheme is pretty) or if it’s a side-effect of the genres I read. I’m leaning towards the former because I read in a wide range of genres, but I’m not sure. Thoughts?

Do you want to know what I thought of all those books? No? Well this is my website and I’m going to tell you anyway, so there.

Continue reading “January Roundup: What have I been reading?”

Posted in In which Anna vomits her thoughts at you

5 Ways To Help A New Author

By “new author” I mean “me,” but it sounds more magnanimous this way.

Publication seems like the end goal for writers. Actually, it’s just the beginning. Unless we sell gazillions and become household names, there’s no guarantee of being published again. Hell, even being a household name isn’t enough – RandomHouse refused to publish Joan Collins’ manuscript, even though they’d already paid her, because it was so terrible.

Most of us receive contracts for one, two, or three books at a time; rarely more. Once those books are published, we need to convince the publisher (or another publisher) to give us a new contract. Lots of factors come into play but, naturally, sales figures are one of the biggest – publishers are businesses, and they need to make money if they want to keep publishing books.

So, if there’s an author whose books you love – or just an author you love – and she isn’t at Rowling levels of stardom, how can you help her get that next contract?

1. Buy the book.

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Posted in Author interviews

Interview with Anita Kushwaha, author of SECRET LIVES OF MOTHERS AND DAUGHTERS

I’m delighted to host an interview with Anita Kushwaha, debuting this year with the fantastic Secret Lives of Mothers and Daughters from HarperCollins. This breathtaking book is already receiving rave reviews, and I’m so happy to have Anita on the blog before she becomes too famous to talk to the likes of me. 😀

Secret Lives of Mothers and Daughters COVER

For readers of Shilpi Somaya Gowda’s “Secret Daughter” and Nancy Richler’s “The Imposter Bride”, a breathtaking novel from Anita Kushwaha about the ties that bind mothers and daughters together and the secrets that tear them apart

Veena, Mala and Nandini are three very different women with something in common. Out of love, each bears a secret that will haunt her life—and that of her daughter—when the risk of telling the truth is too great. But secrets have consequences. Particularly to Asha, the young woman on the cusp of adulthood who links them together.

On the day after her eighteenth birthday, Asha is devastated to learn that she was adopted as a baby. What’s more, her birth mother died of a mysterious illness shortly before then, leaving Asha with only a letter.

Nandini, Asha’s adoptive mother, has always feared the truth would come between them.

Veena, a recent widow, worries about her daughter Mala’s future. The shock of her husband’s sudden death leaves her shaken and convinces her that the only way to keep her daughter safe is to secure her future.

Mala struggles to balance her dreams and ambition with her mother’s expectations. She must bear a secret, the burden of which threatens her very life.

Three mothers, bound by love, deceit and a young woman who connects them all. Secret Lives of Mothers & Daughters is an intergenerational novel about family, duty and the choices we make in the name of love.

Anita, where did the idea for Secret Lives of Mothers and Daughters come from?

Continue reading “Interview with Anita Kushwaha, author of SECRET LIVES OF MOTHERS AND DAUGHTERS”

Posted in In which Anna vomits her thoughts at you, Writing advice that may or may not be completely wrong

It’s Not Easy Being Green – Author Envy

Authors on the whole are a neurotic, anxious bunch. Okay, most aren’t quite as bad as me, but nearly all of us fret. A lot.

Maybe it’s because we’ve trained ourselves to scrutinise our words and the impressions they make, and that extends into over-scrutinising everything. Maybe it’s because publishing is like war – 5% terror and 95% waiting – and in those periods of waiting we inevitably overanalyse and catastrophise everything. Maybe it’s Ebola. I don’t know.

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Whatever the reason, one of the consequence is that most of us suffer from author envy at some point. Maybe at every point. When you’re unagented, you’re jealous of authors with agents. When you’re agented, you’re jealous of authors with publishing deals. When you get a deal, you’re jealous of authors with bigger deals. When you get a big deal, you’re jealous of authors with… better hair, or something. Those coiffured bastards.

Who are they sleeping with, huh??

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Posted in Author interviews

Interview with Kate Sherwood, author of LAST CALL

I’ve had the pleasure of reading a pre-release copy of LAST CALL, the next M/M romance from Kate Sherwood, and she even agreed to answer some of my fangirl questions! …And also one question from the group I founded, ‘The Squirrel from Mark of Cain Appreciation Club,’ which currently consists of just me but I think that’s only because I haven’t publicised it. Or maybe because I set the joining fee at £5,000. I have expensive cats, okay?

Kate is the author of more than 30 novels and novellas, including those under her other pen names, Cate Cameron (M/F romances) and Catherine Dale (YA). Her next release, an M/M romance, is out on 21 January and can be preordered now. It’s very funny. And also hot.

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Ethan is living the good life as a student at Montreal’s McGill University. He’s out every night, partying, dancing with his friends, and meeting guys. When he sets his sights on Alex, the world’s hottest bartender, he expects a good time, and nothing more.

But things aren’t so simple with Alex. He’s been hurt too many times and he’s protective of his heart. He certainly can’t let himself get attached to a party-boy like Ethan. Except… maybe there’s more to Ethan than there seems.

As the guys grow closer, it’s harder and harder for Alex to keep the darker parts of his life away from Ethan’s brightness. But Ethan proves that he’s tougher than he seems on the outside. And maybe that means Alex can save the soft place in his heart for Ethan.

1. Where did the idea for Last Call come from? 

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Posted in In which Anna vomits her thoughts at you

5 Horror Movies to Watch this Halloween

I’m a horror junkie. Yeah, I know: I write fluffy romcoms and I don’t believe in ghosts, demons, or anything supernatural, and any serial killer trying to abduct me would need a winch and a high tolerance for whining.

But I love horror. Gorefest or fade-to-black mindfuck. Serious or satirical. Hollywood or made in someone’s garage with a £10 budget and a bit part for Dave’s mum because she made all the sandwiches for the three-person crew.

The only thing I don’t do is Generic Monsters – zombies, vampires, and werewolves can all fuck off. Notable exception 28 Days Later, which is definitely worth a watch.

So, here are my recommendations of five movies to watch for Halloween…

THE POWER OF ANNA COMPELS YOU (to watch)

1. Severance (2006)

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