Guilty Pleasure Monday Mike Rowe & a huge giveaway!

We’re getting dirty today on this Guilty Pleasure Monday with none other than our favorite Dirty Jobs guy – Mike Rowe.

There’s something about those baby blues and handsomely craggy face that I find totally appealing. How about you? Thanks to Jay Villemarette for releasing this photo into the public domain.

Take a moment to visit with the Dangerous Women Writers this morning as our blog-a-thon and giveaways continue. This time we’ve got the wonderful Barbara Vey from Publisher’s Weekly with us and a huge giveaway to one lucky person we will choose from those who comment on the blog by midnight Tuesday.

How big a contest? Well one lucky reader can take home the following:

* Dangerous Highlander by Donna Grant (signed)
* Sins of the Flesh by Caridad Pineiro (signed)
* Stronger than Sin by Caridad Pineiro (signed)
* ARC of The Lost by Caridad Pineiro (signed)
* Blaze Hotzone Trilogy by Lisa Renee Jones (signed)
* Eternal Flame by Cynthia Eden (signed)
* I’ll be Slaying You by Cynthia Eden (signed)
* Immortal Danger by Cynthia Eden (signed)
* A Season of Seduction by Jennifer Haymore (signed)
* Highland Surrender by Dawn Halliday (signed)
* And a “Romantic” Historical Romance Prize Basket, including the following:
-Desire Me by Robyn DeHart (signed)
-ARC of The Devil in Disguise by Stefanie Sloane
-How to Woo a Reluctant Lady by Sabrina Jeffries
-The Sins of Lord Easterbrook by Madeline Hunter (signed)
-A Season of Seduction by Jennifer Haymore (signed)
-Highland Surrender by Dawn Halliday (signed)
-A Jennifer Haymore tote
-& an assortment of body butters from
Victoria’s Secret and Bath & Body Works

How’s that for big?

Guilty Pleasures Monday – Jeff Gordon

I’m back from the RT BookReviews Convention in lovely Columbus, Ohio. I had such a nice time there and it was wonderful to meet those of you who attended or were in the area for the book fair! I’ll have some photos from the event as well as more author interviews over the next few weeks.

But today it’s back to our Guilty Pleasures!

I know lots of you are NASCAR fans and so here is a familar face for you – Jeff Gordon!

This shot is from one of those first Pepsi spots featuring Jeff. Jeff is currently sitting in 10th place in the SPRINT Cup Series, but just 5 points behind the leader Jimmie Johnson (another cutie from what I can tell!).

I can’t wait to see how it turns out, but look for more NASCAR cuties in the future.

Also, take a moment to stop by and visit with my friend Barbara Vey and see some photos from the Street Party that my friends and I hosted at the convention on Saturday morning. It was packed and it was awesome to meet so many people! I’m the one in the white t-shirt all the way to the bottom right in the photo. You can click here or follow this link also:
http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/Beyond_Her_Book/32349-RT_Regency_Bingo_and_Romantic_Cocktails.php

Networking and Getting Out and About

My friend Rayna Vause and I headed to Georgia at the beginning of the month on a new adventure – the Moonlight & Magnolias Conference!

It was a fabulous conference run by the Georgia Romance Writers and many thanks to all the wonderful organizers there for a great event.

You must wonder what that has to do with Tuesday and Tips of any kind and here it is – You’ve heard me say it before and I’ll say it again – Networking!

One of the most important things you can do both before and after getting published is to get out and about and expand your horizons. Meet new people. Make new friends. Gain more knowledge that will help you not only write better, but also learn about the publishing business.

Some people go to the same conference every year. Sometimes that’s good if it’s a solid conference that brings in new blood and new possibilities. But it’s also important to allow room (and funds) for different conferences and adventures.

I’m glad I took my little adventure to Moonlight & Magnolias! It was a great group of people and there were some wonderful workshops and events. Thank you Georgia Romance Writers!

Here are a few photos for you from the conference. If anyone out there has more (I know I posed for bunch of photos), please send them to cpsromance at att dot net.

If you can’t see the slideshow, you can visit this link:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2037485&id=1130005412&l=3e31a03387

The Dreaded Info Dump

dumpI was rewriting a chapter yesterday and when I read it to my critique group, I didn’t need them to tell me what I was doing wrong.

I knew I was doing the Dreaded Info Dump.

What’s that? you might ask.

Well, if you’re a reader it’s something you hopefully will not see in a book. It goes something like this:

Mary realized that it was Dr. Smith. He had treated her for bunions three years ago. Then again two years later for a heel spur. Now she was there to see him for an ingrown nail, but suspected it was much more than that. For two weeks her toe had been hurting. It had first been a slightly pink color. Then a few days later a little brighter red. Then after a week it had started getting really nasty. Finally a day ago she realized it was time to go see her favorite foot doctor.

Yes, I know we wouldn’t be interested in a story about her feet, but imagine that the story was a romantic suspense and all that information was about what had happened to the heroine in the last three months – an info dump.

Much like the person in the photo I posted, info dumps inundate a reader with too much info at one shot and in general, are boring. It’s like reading an encyclopedia entry for your hero or heroine.

If you need to provide the reader some backstory, it should be layered throughout the chapter and provide subtle hints and information about what’s put the protagonists in their current situation. In fact, the less you say and make the reader intuit, the more they will be drawn into the story you are writing because the reader is participating in the story.

Of course, don’t make it so confusing or obtuse that the reader will say, “I just don’t get it,” and disengage from the story.

The hints should be clear and lead the reader toward an understanding of what’s happening. They should be like the breadcrumbs that Hansel and Gretel leave behind, enough so they can be followed to a particular point where you, the writer, are leading them.

How do you know you are doing the dreaded info dump as a writer? Look for long paragraphs filled with too much information. Dense paragraphs like that are a clear sign that something is up that you should revisit.

I hope you found this Tuesday Tip helpful.

Also, don’t forget this week’s b’day bash. Just visit any of the blogs listed below this week and leave a comment and you’ll be eligible to win a prize from me! At Barbara Vey’s blog, there are tons of other prizes as well!

I’ll be visiting all of these blogs and if you’ve left a comment at any of them, you’ll also be eligible to win a $25 Godiva gift card! The more times I see your name at the different blogs, the more your chances improve to win the gift card. So take a moment and stop by one or all to improve your chances of winning a prize.

The contest ends on Friday, March 13th at midnight EST, so be sure to get your comments in there on time!

Barbara Vey’s Beyond Her Book Blog for lots of fun and giveaways!
http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/880000288/post/1240041524.html

Fresh Fiction: http://freshfiction.com/page.php?id=1602

Harlequin Paranormal Romance blog: http://paranormalromanceblog.wordpress.com/

Liberty States Fiction Writers (leave a comment on any of the blog posts): http://www.libertystatesfictionwriters.com/blog-read-around-the-world/

Long and Short Reviews: http://longandshortarchives.blogspot.com/search/label/Caridad%20Pineiro

Guilty Pleasures Monday and a Birthday Bash!

Dennis Quaid - Photo in the Public DomainEvery time I see Dennis Quaid I think, man he’s still got it! Now, his latest movie VANTAGE POINT was so not good, but he looked great in it.

One of my favorite Quaid movies is FREQUENCY which also starred Jim Cavaziel (another cutie!). THE ROOKIE is another good one with a very inspiring message to always follow your dreams!

bday1.gifAs you all may know, I’ve been very lucky to be able to follow my dreams as well. It’s wonderful to be able to write for you and share my books and to celebrate that and my b’day, we are having a birthday bash week!

Just visit any of the blogs listed below this week and leave a comment and you’ll be eligible to win a prize from me! At Barbara Vey’s blog, there are tons of other prizes as well!

I’ll be visiting all of these blogs and if you’ve left a comment at any of them, you’ll also be eligible to win a $25 Godiva gift card! The more times I see your name at the different blogs, the more your chances improve to win the gift card. So take a moment and stop by one or all to improve your chances of winning a prize.

The contest ends on Friday, March 13th at midnight EST, so be sure to get your comments in there on time!

Barbara Vey’s Beyond Her Book Blog for lots of fun and giveaways!
http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog/880000288/post/1240041524.html

Fresh Fiction: http://freshfiction.com/page.php?id=1602

Harlequin Paranormal Romance blog: http://paranormalromanceblog.wordpress.com/

Liberty States Fiction Writers (leave a comment on any of the blog posts): http://www.libertystatesfictionwriters.com/blog-read-around-the-world/

Long and Short Reviews: http://longandshortarchives.blogspot.com/search/label/Caridad%20Pineiro