A visit with Jesse's Brother

I revisited my current releases and thought I would share. I hope you enjoy the excerpt of Jesse's Brother!

Excerpt: (www.lyricalpress.com/jesses_brother)

Noah stabbed the pitchfork into the hay, trying to get a head start on tomorrow's chores and Samantha out of his thoughts.

He always returned to his trailer once the sun went down. He'd had the same routine every night for the last year: work until dark, then home for dinner and a shower. Blue and a good book made great company as far as he was concerned.

Martin didn't care when Noah ended work for the day as long as he met the day's goals and took care of the animals. Any night of the week, he could have hung around town meeting new people and scored a date or two. There was even talk about a few of the local women being interested in him. He, for sure, noticed the attention, sometimes even heard the whispers amongst the women as he walked by. Most men liked having their egos stroked, but it actually did the opposite for him. As a result, he stayed away from town as much as possible. It gave him an incentive to follow the same routine he'd stuck to for the past three hundred sixty-five nights.

Not tonight, however. Tonight he had met Samantha Johns, and needed to work off the impact she had made on him.

When he'd just finished feeding the animals earlier, he'd spotted her sitting up against the fence. Her tears had done him in when she raised her pretty blonde head to reveal the sadness in her beautiful blue eyes. She'd tried to push the tears away before he spotted them but it had been too late. Her tear-streaked face had been a spear to his heart. He wasn't sure why, but he had to help rid her of the pain she'd carried around.

After walking out of his family's life, he'd avoided relationships of any kind. He'd loosened up a bit, working on the ranch. Martin had become a role model to him, but Noah didn't want to care about anyone else. Not even Samantha. Now he knew her story and wanted to be in her life. It was terrible to be totally alone and Samantha didn't deserve to be.

"Damn it!" He threw a bale of hay onto the barn floor. "Why did she have to come here?"

Frances, Samantha's mother, had shown up in the barn a few days before to give him a subtle warning to stay away from her daughter. He didn't pay any mind to the idea of Samantha being around the farm and hadn't even asked any questions about her. He'd shrugged and turned back to his work. He was surprised she hadn't been more like queen bee Frances, ready to sting anyone within arm's length. Even though he'd heard stories about her childhood from Martin, he'd never once fathomed the idea that Samantha Johns would indeed be beautiful with those freckled cheeks and dimples. And the added bonus? She was equally sweet.

Samantha's presence could become a complication in his well maintained life. He didn't need any extra hurdles. Lord knew he'd had enough of those along the way. Getting involved with someone was complicated enough, but with the boss's daughter? Probably not a good idea. The fact that Frances hated the very air he breathed made the situation worse.

"I never take the easy road," he grumbled as he wiped the sweat trickling down his cheek. What was Samantha doing now? His eyes switched over to the door. It would be nice if she'd come down to the barn.

www.lyricalpress.com/jesses_brother

The Questions People Ask Me...

Good morning, everyone! When people find out I'm an author I usually get asked a bunch of questions. I thought I would share the most asked questions here! If you have some that I don't answer, feel free to leave a comment.



Oh yeah... the pictures are from a recent trip to the Desert Botanical Gardens here in Phoenix.



1. Do you base your books on moments in your life?



I don't! I have never based a book on my real life. There isn't a single scene from one of the books that came from my personal experiences. It is popular belief, however, that my feelings toward my mother (yep, someone even called my mom to tell her to read Jesse's Brother since Samantha's mom is really mine) is the same as Samantha's toward her mother. This isn't true. Even though my relationship with my family is rocky, my mom and I talk on the phone nearly every day.



2. Where do you get your ideas if you don't base anything of your personal life?



I get my ideas from life. Since I have a wide variety of interests and get bored with things very quickly, it seems like I'm always doing something new. Some snippets of stories will be taken from the news while others come from playing "what if" while I'm out at a festival or at the mall.



I people-watch a lot. If I see someone interesting I make up a story about them and jot it down in my idea notebook. This isn't only done for main characters but for secondary ones as well. It helps make up colorful characters for my book. I do not base a character on someone I know personally.





3. Do you plot your books?



For the most part I'm a pantser. That means that I have a general idea (which could be a really small one) of the plot and characters then start on chapter one. During the beginning stages of the book I will do a character interview for each major character so I can get to know them. It helps make the writing go smoother. If I get stuck along the way, I have several author friends who love to brainstorm with me. We either talk over the phone or meet for coffee.





4. Do you write the book from beginning to end or skip around the book, doing random scenes?


I always start with chapter one but allow myself to write scenes as they come to me. Its like watching scenes from a movie so I want capture that when I have a chance. I wrote Jesse's Brother from beginning to end without skipping around. It took me forever (over a year) for the first draft. Skipping around with the scenes lets me write the rough draft faster and I don't force myself to wait until the particular part of the book to actually write it (I've lost scenes that way). When I think of a scene which happens several chapters away, I put it in a new file. When the time is right in the book, I copy and paste the scene where it goes.







5. Do you ever let your kids read your books?


They are teenagers so they can if they want with the condition that they skip over the sex parts. They both choose not to. My daughter writes as well so she is more interested in my writing career and tells all her friends. My son couldn't care less that I'm an author lol.







That's it for today. If you have any questions for me, feel free to ask! I will be around :)



Talk to you soon,

Wendy Ely

No longer an author!

My first book (Jesse's Brother) came out 1 year and 10 months ago! It has been a magnificant journey as an author but I've known that my writing career has been slowly slipping away. I haven't done much author stuff in the past 10 months. It tears me apart. My miss the life of being an author... you know... fan mail requesting your next book, edits, getting the new cover, and the great reviews. I feel like it is all over for me because I just don't have any time to write, edit, and submit new material. I've known this was coming, but it really hit me last night when I opened up my royalty statement for March. The day had finally come.... I had reached the month where I didn't sell one single book. It took 1 year and 10 months to get there but it hurts, dang it! I need to write. I need to sell books. I need this life back. So if you're up to a new read feel free to stop by here www.lyricalpress.com/wendy_ely and grab one of my books! Talk to you soon, Wendy Ely

Nanowrimo? I must be crazy!

No, really! I must be crazy to sign up for Nanowrimo this year! Let me tell you how busy I am... I'm in paralegal school, plan a big move sometime in late November, and have just started a new job. Now this? I must've gone nuts.

But I've participated every year since 2003 so why should this year be different? If you don't know what Nanowrimo is, let me give you the details.... you sign up at www.nanowrimo.org . The purpose is to write 50,000 words in 30 days during the month of November.

Jesse's Brother (published with Lyrical Press) was a Nanowrimo project. I also won Nanwriomo with New Year's Resolution (coming soon from Captiva Press)! Crazy as it sounds (and no matter how much I'm convinced that I am nuts), Nanowrimo does jumpstart the creative process to get me writing. I need this right now so I'm game even if I don't win this year. Putting in my best effort counts, huh?

Besides, doing Nanowrimo will give me something to blog about during November so check in here starting next Wednesday to see how I am doing with the word count while juggling the balls of life along with it.

Who else is doing Nanowrimo?

Talk to you soon,

Wendy Ely

The Process of Writing

Happy Wednesday!

The hot weather has finally left Arizona for a bit. Yep, you'll probably laugh but it is only 85 degrees today and I'm loving. 85 for us is cool weather.

Anyway, I was recently asked what my writing process is and how can I write so quickly. The question had me thinking about my process so I'm going to share it with you!

First draft:

The first draft (and very rough) draft is the fasted stage of writing for me. I do enough research to make my books sound real while not over doing the knowledge on whatever the topic is. Besides, fiction is for fun and shouldn't sound like a manual! I only research when I reach the part where I need to add the information.

I write the first draft without editing. While I was writing Jesse's brother, I started at the beginning and wrote until I reached the end without skipping to scenes as I thought of them. This way took me forever so now if a scene comes to mind I add it into another document so I can get it out of my head and can add the scene in the manuscript where it goes later on.

This stage of writing reminds of putting a puzzle together. Everything must fit and when one piece is missing, it seems like the whole thing is screwed up! I keep working at it until each piece of the books is put together perfectly.

Revisions:

This part takes me forever since I've left the creative phase and entered into the logic side of writing. I go through my ms several times on the computer, send it to my critique partners, and then go through a print version of the ms. I even read most of the manuscripts outloud for the flow of the story and to spot any errors that have escaped me so far. And this phase of my writing process means that I've alread started the rough draft phase of another manuscript!

I'd love to hear about your writing process so feel free to share with us!

Talk to you soon,
Wendy Ely

Write what you know!

When I first started writing I read every craft book I could get my hands on. I read "write what you know," over and over again. This seemed like realistic advice and a great approach to a newbie writer like myself. As I became more and more experienced, I pushed myself into writing outside of the comfort zone of what I knew. Jesse's Brother takes place on a ranch in a small Oregon town. Guess what? I've never been on a ranch before and I'm a big city kind of girl so I didn't have the experience other than the occasional trip to the local petting zoo. But I learned and was able to pull it off.

I learned recently that "writing what you know" isn't the most important thing after all. One day at a book signing, some authors and I went on a short field trip to an astrology store. I love fairies and the store had a fabulous display of them. Well, later that night I found a submission request in my in-box. I got all excited over the idea that popped into my head. A fantasy romance with a matchmaking fairy! I started writing with excitement for this genre that was new to me. You see, I don't read or watch or write anything that has to do with fantasy. I wrote and wrote but then got stuck! I haven't had writer's block in so long and couldn't understand why it happened then.

After reworking scenes, trying to add stuff, and continued to be stuck I figured out the problem. It wasn't that I didn't like the story or the characters. Both had promise. The problem was that I didn't believe in the store. Even when I tried working on one of my other WIPs I continued to be stuck. I finally discarded the novel since I didn't think I was the correct person to writing that genre.

Now I believe it isn't 'write what you know' but it is 'write what you believe in!"

Talk to you soon,

Wendy Ely

Happy "Read An Ebook" Week!!

What are you doing right now? Not reading an ebook? Shame, shame! It's Read An Ebook week so you should be (smile!). As some of you may know, I write for two publishers now and find it wonderful that Captiva Press officially opened their doors this week with their premier book release. Okay... the book isn't mine but you should hop on over there and check it out anyway. It looks great!

Want to find a new ebook to read? My publishers are http://www.lyricalpress.com/ and http://www.captivapress.com/ and you can find some great reads there! Other favorite ebook publishers of mine are http://www.sapphirebluepublishing/ and http://www.ravenousromance.com/. And yes, these really are favorites of mine and nope, I don't get paid to advertise... I really do like them.

Some of my favorite ebook authors are Buffy Christopher (okay... she's my critique partner), Rebecca Rose, and Piper Denna. And don't forget me and my blog partners!

My ebook releases so far:

Confessions:

Can Chelsea and Jordan find their child, and rediscover each other?
When Chelsea Montgomery vanished eleven years ago, her hometown thought she’d been abducted. In truth, she'd given up the daughter she'd secretly had with Jordan Case.
Now he confronts her to help find the child. With a little girl's fate hanging in the balance, will the uneasy partnership -- stained by the past -- transform into something else?

Buy it here: www.lyricalpress.com/confessions

Jesse's Brother:

One woman, two men: a single summer to choose between them.
Sacrificing a summer to fix her relationship with her mother and find out what’s troubling her father isn’t so bad...right? Wrong. Or so Samantha learns upon her return to Portland.
As if family drama wasn’t bad enough, first comes Noah. Then comes Jesse. Samantha is torn between the way her heart skips a beat each time Noah looks at her, and the way Jesse’s touch make her yearn for more.

Buy it here: www.lyricalpress.com/jesses_brother

Hey, what are you still doing here? Go treat yourself to an ebook and I'll talk to you soon,

Wendy Ely

A little of this and lots of that!

So, as I posted last week, Jesse's Brother had been nominated for Book of the Month by Dark Diva Reviews. I'm super delighted to announce that Jesse's Brother WON! Can you believe it? I'm still a bit in shock over it.

My daughter had her first babysitting job last week and decided to treat me to New Moon over the weekend. For those that know me well would be surprised by this since I'm not a big fan of paranormal and I haven't read the books. The movie was good and Bella didn't irritate me as much as she did in Twilight (we own this on dvd). Later that night my daughter begged me to read the series. Fine (insert groan sound effect) because I don't like it that much. I finished up the two books I had been reading and started on New Moon. I'm glad to say it's not bad and there's a lot of needed info in there.... like the little bit about WHY Bella didn't want to celebrate her birthday which isn't explained in the movie and seems weird.

So~ I'm curious to hear about what you're reading now!

Talk to you soon,

Wendy Ely

Themes and family~ A tie that binds!

My post is not about me getting nominated but I'd like to announce Tierney's novel along with mine (Jesse's Brother) have been chosen to compete for Book of the Month over at Dark Diva Reviews. Have some time? Stop on over and vote!

http://darkdivasreviews.webs.com/bookofthemonthpoll.htm

Thanks for the being patient. Now on to the blog post:

I recently took a workshop given by a wonderful author. She mentioned something (I don't remember her exact words) about every writer having a theme in their books. She asked if we knew what our 'theme' was. My critique partner, Buffy Christopher and I were talking about this the other day because she figured out that her books all focus on the heroine trying to save herself. Every book of mine has had the characters dealing with family issues of some type. In Jesse's Brother, Samantha is home to deal with issues she has with her mother and adores her father. In Confessions, Chelsea has to face her dysfunctional family after her disappearance so many years ago had convinced them that she'd been abducted. My release for 2010 has a heroine who a normal family but doesn't desire to have a connection with them.

If you know me on a more personal level, you probably know I have a lot of family issues and I admire people who have healthy relationships with their family members. It's the holiday season and it has gotten me thinking about families and my book theme. For awhile I believed the theme came up from the issues I have and have tried varying up a little since who wants to read family drama all of the time, right? So I went further back in my life to see if it held in relevance.

My mom had been a single parent and ran a foster home for most of my childhood. I often felt alone and on the sidelines. I started reading V.C Andrews at a young age so I believe my attraction to family issues goes way back then what my family is like today.

What about you? If you are writer, do you notice a theme in your books? For the readers, do you tend to gravitate toward a certain theme? How do these mirror your life?

Can't wait to hear your thoughts on this!

Wendy Ely

Nanowrimo? Huh?

Don't ask me what my word count is for my Nano-book. It amazes me how one simple email can change the whole course of your week ... or month. It happened to me on Sunday so I've been focused on another project which should (keep your fingers crossed for me) lead to good news soon! I've been writing like crazy but not on my nano-book and guess what? I'm fine with this!

I also have been crazy busy with my upcoming release of Confessions! I'm giving a copy away over on my facebook page today so stop on by and maybe it'll be you. A blog tour has been set up which is always fun. I meet so many new and interesting people while doing them. My critique partner (Buffy Christopher) and I are doing another workshop Saturday so we're preparing for that and wow... life is just overwhelming right now but I keep going one word at a time!

Have you gotten your copy of Jesse's Brother yet? It's gotten great reviews so maybe you should. You can find it here... http://www.lyricalpress.com/jesses_brother

Happy reading... and talk to you soon!

Wendy Ely

Wow!

So it's been a week and a half since Jesse's Brother has been released. I've done interviews, guest blogs, and chats so far. These were all fun things to do in the name of promotion. What I was scared of were the reviews! Right before the release date, I sent out Jesse's Brother to be reviewed by Pheobe Jordan. I checked her review blog every day to see if the review had been posted. It was finally with a rating of 4 out of 5 open books. It made my whole day... okay, week.

Pheobe said, "I very much look forward to reading any of Wendy's future novels because like I said she has me hooked."

Anyway, I'm so proud even though I've prepared myself for a not-so-good reviews. Hopefully I won't get any huh? One thing I'm wondering about is how many people buy books based on reviews. Does a review influence your book buying choice?

If you have a few minutes, take a peek last night's project! Talk to you soon... Wendy Ely

12 days left! Oh my!

It's just 12 days until the release of Jesse's Brother. I'm excited! So here I am with a excerpt. I'll even give out a free ebook copy to one person who comments! Feel free to just say or even ask me a question!

Excerpt:

“What do you promise?”

“We’ll have many more mornings like this.” He bent down to kiss her forehead before he turned his back to her.

He slid his boxers down over his hips, then let them drop to the floor. Her eyes were glued to his luscious body as he stood with his naked back to her. How could someone be so sexy? Her first instinct was to reach out to touch his taut muscles, but she clamped her fingers tightly together instead.

He turned enough to show the front half of his thigh and nothing more. One more inch in her direction and she’d have a clear view of everything. He was teasing her, she knew it, and she
loved when she spotted a part of his erection. Smiling at her, he grabbed a clean pair of boxers from the small dresser and slid them up his legs. His whole back was to her again as he slid them over his buttocks then around his hips.

“Not fair.” She didn’t mean to say the words but couldn’t contain them any longer. They escaped when she tried to take a breath.

He laughed softly as he grabbed a pair of faded jeans from the closet. The process was thesame, him teasing and her wanting him so badly she was afraid she’d lose control of the situation and grab him.

“I never said I wouldn’t dress in front of you. I kept my promise to stop when you wanted me to.”

“I know.” She sighed and let her head fall back onto the pillow. The room was filled with his scent and she didn’t want to get up. She didn’t have to do work like he did, but she was sure her mother would be on the warpath once she realized she’d gone out and hadn’t come home. Even though she was an adult, there was going to be hell to pay when she got home. This wasn’t making the situation with her mom any better.

When he left the bedroom, she covered her head with his blanket and wished she could rewind the clock.

Take a peek!

I have been deep in edits lately but bring you two pieces of good news. The first one is Jesse's Brother is up for a Covey Award. Please stop on by the site and vote for #7 http://thenewcoveycoverawards.blogspot.com/

The other part is Valley of the Sun Romance Writers (a chapter of RWA) is having their annual Hot Prospect Contest. This is a great way to get your book in the editor's hands!

Hot Prospect info:

Looking to sign your first book contract, switch from a small press to a large
publisher or simply explore another genre of romantic fiction? Turn up the heat
on your writing career with the Hot Prospects Contest.

Fee: $25 for Valley of the Sun RW chapter members
$30 for non-chapter members

Postmark Deadline: September 1st, 2009
E-Submit Deadline: September 1st, 2009

Eligibility: Any uncontracted work by an RWA member in good standing. This
includes both published and unpublished authors.

Enter: 3-5-page synopsis and up to 25 pages of story (30 pages max). Entry or
synopsis may be shorter, but neither may be longer than specified.

Categories/Judges: Trained judges for preliminary round,
Editors and Agents for final round.

Historical/Regency
Editor-TBA
Agent - Paige Wheeler, agent, Folio Literary Management

Fantasy, Futuristic & Paranormal
Editor – Leah Hultenschmidt, Editor, Dorchester Publishing
Agent - Michelle Grajkowski, agent, 3 Seas Literary Agency

Romantic Suspense
Editor - Deb Werksman, editor, Sourcebooks
Agent - JL Stermer, agent, Donald Maass Literary Agency

Contemporary Long/Single Title
Editor - Katherine N. Pelz, Editorial Assistant, The Berkley Publishing Group
Agent - Sharene Martin-Brown, Author Representative, Wylie-Merrick Literary Agency

Series Contemporary
Editor - Johanna Raisanen, Harlequin Enterprises'
Editor - Leanne Morgena, Senior Editor, the Wild Rose Press

Erotica
Editor - Theresa Stevens, editor, Red Sage Publishing
Editor - Kelli Collins, editor-in-chief, Ellora's Cave

GRAND PRIZE: The winner can choose between a book trailer, static banner and
active banner from Bella Entertainment for the book of their choice (a $300.00
value) or $100.00 USD.

For More Information, entry form, and rules, see website at
www.valleyofthesunr w.com.


Talk to you soon,
Wendy Ely

Real or Fake? What's your take?

When I was a teenager, I loved to read. I hung my clothes (or threw them on the floor in my closest, but shh!) so I could organize my books in my dresser drawers. My books were my treasures. One of my favorite authors was V.C Andrews. I started reading her books when I was just 12 or so. She wrote fascinating scenes set in Louisiana. I wanted to visit the bayous she wrote about. I still haven’t been there but I will some day… all because I read about it so many times in her book.

It got me thinking about the places I write about. I prefer to use fictional towns. I get to use my imagination for the most part with sprinkles of facts here and there. What I want (or my characters!) goes where I say in my town. I get to choose most aspects about my town I make up from the small things like what type of businesses they have to the type of people there.

Here’s a sneak peak of Alban, Oregon from Jesse’s Brother:

“The pedestrians of Alban fanned themselves while darting into the comfort of air conditioning in the stores they visited. Children walked down the sidewalk holding adult hands on one side with dripping ice cream cones in the other. Melted ice cream left stains all over their faces and shirts. This is heaven, thought Samantha as she and Noah drove down Main Street. Alban is the perfect place to live.”

~Jesse’s Brother, Sept. 21st, 2009

But what’s good about setting the novels in real places? A lot. I love traveling and it gives me a good reason to visit new places. All in the name of research, right? By writing about real places I have lived or visited (or want to!), I get to revisit those places each time I read my novel. I lived in Portland, Oregon and missed it greatly while writing Jesse’s Brother. Guess where Samantha got to visit for the first time? You guessed it correctly if you said Portland. I got to revisit my favorite places as I wrote about her trip there.

So I ask you: has a writer ever inspired you to visit a place? Do you prefer real reading about real places or fictional towns?

Being an author.

I've been thinking about something lately and it goes a long with some feedback I've been getting from friends and family. I've been told that I'm selling myself short and should aim higher. I disagree because I like where I am right now in my writing career. Writing is a learning experience and there's more for me to learn.

So it brings up a question. When do you consider yourself an author instead of a writer? Is it when you get your first book finished? Your contract? Or maybe that huge book deal? I received my first book cover on Monday and it was so wonderful to see it. I was just thrilled! But the truth is, I had already decided I was an author long before I got the cover. I decided I was an author when I received my first contract from Lyrical press in January. Everything after that moment just reinforces the feeling.

So tell me your story... when did you decide you're an author instead of just a writer? Have you had not so welcoming feedback from friends or family? How did you handle it?

Talk to you soon,
Wendy