tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post3441784778908391245..comments2024-02-28T15:05:04.031-05:00Comments on Happily Ever After Thoughts: Guest NYT Author: Annette BlairLexi Posthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04124921637508804346noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-54625367224229785312013-02-07T03:34:41.651-05:002013-02-07T03:34:41.651-05:00Really enjoyed the interview..thanks for sharing s...Really enjoyed the interview..thanks for sharing so much with all of us. Love your books..can't pick a favorite yet<br /><br />jrbowen1975@aol.com..Jane Aschtgen Bowenhttp://www.facebook.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-16172692911409294832013-02-03T22:19:17.527-05:002013-02-03T22:19:17.527-05:00Funny that you used the term 'off the beaten p...Funny that you used the term 'off the beaten path' since I'm literally the author of the book "Off the Beaten Path Illinois." It usually takes me eight months to write my non-fiction books, so your schedule boggles me! Lyndee Hendersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01316566356806389525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-53581531325565056732013-02-03T22:10:26.330-05:002013-02-03T22:10:26.330-05:00I wrote Sisters of Spirit with three good friends,...I wrote Sisters of Spirit with three good friends, yes. We found our own hidden cove on a New England beach. One of my friends wondered what would happen if you found something that could change your life on a beach...and our individual stories emerged over time. Mine, as I said, didn't gel until we got together in Florida, later. Sisters of Spirit is a contemporary.<br /><br />The excerpt is of Holy Scoundrel, A Regency Historical, the 4th in my Knave of Hearts Series.<br /><br />Two very different stories, yet I love them both.Annette Blairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13817121786059934544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-86522319929072317682013-02-03T21:02:37.042-05:002013-02-03T21:02:37.042-05:00Cool you wrote the story with friends. Nice excerp...Cool you wrote the story with friends. Nice excerpt.<br /><br />bn100candg(at)hotmail(dot)combn100noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-72771152634052088362013-02-03T19:31:06.378-05:002013-02-03T19:31:06.378-05:00Hi Lyndee, I'm always happy to share what I...Hi Lyndee, I'm always happy to share what I've learned on my writing journey, and those two things I think are rather off the beaten path, so they're good to pass on. Yes, 4 in a year is one every three months--ugh. No time to spend time with the family, and what else do we work for but to have a better family life? I may love what I do, but it is how I make a living. I want to play with the grands once in a while, well, more often than that, actually.Annette Blairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13817121786059934544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-64774342742559713362013-02-03T19:26:26.875-05:002013-02-03T19:26:26.875-05:00Wow, Ruth, you ask difficult questions. Thanks. Th...Wow, Ruth, you ask difficult questions. Thanks. Thinking...thinking... They had tough beginnings, so I'll have to switch to considering the men in their lives and their Happily Ever Afters... I think Sabrina from Undeniable Rogue. I always had a thing for Gideon St. Goddard, Duke of Stanthorpe. Yum! What a hero. Annette Blairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13817121786059934544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-56900970667515362202013-02-03T19:25:43.299-05:002013-02-03T19:25:43.299-05:00Hi again, Annette,
Sorry that my other post came o...Hi again, Annette,<br />Sorry that my other post came out as anonymous! I was signed in, but it didn't register somehow. I'm the person who asked about a tidbit and your writing process. I just read what you posted and I appreciate you taking time to answer my questions. I can understand how aggressive that must be to write four in a year! And the idea of writing a first draft in dialogue is really interesting. And great tip to write POV in color. Thanks so much! Lyndee<br />Lyndee Hendersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01316566356806389525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-39102831286703717282013-02-03T17:45:30.924-05:002013-02-03T17:45:30.924-05:00I am a very open person, which actually means I ta...I am a very open person, which actually means I talk too much, tell everything. I won't let myself plot my mysteries because I'm afraid that I'll give away the killer too soon. So I just write the story with all the possible suspects and decide at the last minute, sometimes days before the book is due, who the killer actually is. :) True story. I plot the romances. Don't plot the mysteries. Annette Blairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13817121786059934544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-88252652356710511002013-02-03T17:18:45.222-05:002013-02-03T17:18:45.222-05:00I love that open up to your readers. Plus I have ...I love that open up to your readers. Plus I have to like you because you like Snoopy. :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-59307750170982557592013-02-03T17:00:16.379-05:002013-02-03T17:00:16.379-05:00The frustrating part is when you can't find a ...The frustrating part is when you can't find a name that fits, because I can't really start to tell their story until I know. For me it's part of bringing the necessary depth to my characters.Annette Blairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13817121786059934544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-85702191627068348302013-02-03T16:55:33.487-05:002013-02-03T16:55:33.487-05:00Hah, I just found the reply button. Sorry, the oth...Hah, I just found the reply button. Sorry, the other replies are just at the end.<br /><br />I can't say I do 24 hours often, but 16 to 18 hours is a very normal day for me. And I'll do 24 mostly when I'm getting toward the end of the book, in the final draft, probably so I can celebrate and snoopy dance. :)Annette Blairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13817121786059934544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-51063779380873108032013-02-03T16:53:37.641-05:002013-02-03T16:53:37.641-05:00Thanks for the great explanations, and I'm exc...Thanks for the great explanations, and I'm excited to find out what a name means for you:)Dawn Kundahttp://www.dawnkunda.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-89224500170215337512013-02-03T16:46:41.205-05:002013-02-03T16:46:41.205-05:00Dawn, I'm glad you enjoyed the excerpt. When I...Dawn, I'm glad you enjoyed the excerpt. When I finish a book, I run to tell my husband and do the snoopy dance of joy for him. I post it on the social sites, tell my brainstorming buddies, my writing sisters, and I grin about it for days, weeks, maybe. It never gets old, finishing your baby.<br /><br />Yes, it is sometimes difficult to keep up with the deadlines/contracts, especially when I'm on a roll with one story and an editor wants me to drop that historical or romantic comedy and jump back into the mystery. Grr.<br /><br />Picking the names of my characters is so time consuming. I spent days and days on that, because I already know who the characters are on the inside and outside so the name has to fit and it has to work right, and sometimes it's just Serendipity when a name works. I hear somebody's name and I know which character it belongs to. Tiago from my novella in the HOT TICKET Anthology was one of those. In our SISTERS OF SPIRIT anthology, our characters would find an object on a beach that would change each life. While we were plotting, we ended up in St. Augustine FL & walking on Anastasia Beach, I found a camera chip. I knew then that my character should find exactly that and that her name was Anastasia. Anastasia Jones. You have no idea how perfect that name is for her.Annette Blairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13817121786059934544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-72376126648907359352013-02-03T16:39:29.314-05:002013-02-03T16:39:29.314-05:00That sounds fantastic, Annette! I've written ...That sounds fantastic, Annette! I've written and read for many hours, but I can't say that I've hit a 24 hour stretch.Dawn Kundahttp://www.dawnkunda.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-86364759692441874752013-02-03T16:33:30.770-05:002013-02-03T16:33:30.770-05:00I should add that when I "get into" my s...I should add that when I "get into" my story, I can write for 24 hours at a stretch, because I can't tear myself away. Hubby brings food if I don't come out of my office often enough. :) I would caution anyone who does this to plan bathroom breaks, because sneezes can really put a dent in your momentum. :)Annette Blairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13817121786059934544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-72751393280438444962013-02-03T16:31:46.881-05:002013-02-03T16:31:46.881-05:00Your writing story is fabulous and the excerpt is ...Your writing story is fabulous and the excerpt is so tempting! I added your name to my list for my next book binge.<br />After writing so many novels, do you get any type of "tingle" or happy feeling when you finish the next story even though you've experieinced it dozens of times already? Is it ever difficult to keep up with so many contracts for all the different subgenres? And one more "just curious" question-How do you pick the names for your characters?Dawn Kundahttp://www.dawnkunda.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-28015204087977587462013-02-03T16:29:48.332-05:002013-02-03T16:29:48.332-05:00Hello Anonymous, I can write 4 books a year. I kno...Hello Anonymous, I can write 4 books a year. I know because I've done it, but I also burnt out on it and never wanted to write another. So after a very slow year, one book maybe, I'm happy to write two and a half maybe, depending on how much research I have to do. I have a lot of research to do for this new series I'm working on now.<br /><br />I don't necessarily have several stories going at once, but I might have a file open for each book in the series, because working on one character's story will inspire insight into the others. I will then jot down notes on future stores, though I will rarely find a complete conversation fills my head of someone else's story and I write that down too.<br /><br />One tidbit that I think is somewhat unique to my writing process is that I often write my first draft in dialogue--fast, no punctuation, tag lines, etc, I just run my fingers over those keys. I don't know why dialogue comes first with me. In one book, I planned a scene and discovered that my characters had nothing to say to each other in the context of that scene, so I skipped it. Obviously didn't belong in the book.<br /><br />Another tidbit of my process, because Point of View was a hard lesson for me is that I write my hero's POV in blue and my heroine's in red. If there's a third POV, I'll write that in green. This way I never lose track of whose head I'm in. I also print out my pages to edit them, and I print them in color for that very reason. <br /><br />For my part, I want to write a book in which my reader is living my character's fairytale. "Calgon/Annette take me away." My books are not gritty; I try very hard to fill them with hope and maybe keep you thinking about the positive side of life for a while.Annette Blairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13817121786059934544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-8857726537218076822013-02-03T16:18:37.224-05:002013-02-03T16:18:37.224-05:00Marie, hooking a reader is almost as much fun as w...Marie, hooking a reader is almost as much fun as writing a new book. LOL. So pleased you enjoyed the excerpt of HOLY SCOUNDREL. Hugs!<br /><br />Annette Blairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13817121786059934544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-55723091031305565462013-02-03T16:17:35.089-05:002013-02-03T16:17:35.089-05:00Thank you Janice, another grin here, but if you al...Thank you Janice, another grin here, but if you already own the rogues an scoundrels...if you win, we can talk about any of my other books you might like to have as a substitute for Proper Scoundrel. THANKS! Hugs!Annette Blairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13817121786059934544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-29321987103191392442013-02-03T16:15:46.505-05:002013-02-03T16:15:46.505-05:00HoweHouse, You've made my day. Grinning here. ...HoweHouse, You've made my day. Grinning here. <br /><br />Hugs, AnnetteAnnette Blairhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13817121786059934544noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-3824051691053861582013-02-03T15:43:04.830-05:002013-02-03T15:43:04.830-05:00Hi Annette,
Powerful excerpt and I love your voice...Hi Annette,<br />Powerful excerpt and I love your voice! Your path to writing forty books is so interesting. As is the celebration story you share about the diamonds. That really touched me. Obviously, you are a prolific writer. How many books do you produce in a year? Do you write one at a time or have several in the series going at once? I would be grateful to learn any tidbit you might share about your writing process.<br /><br />LyndeeAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-20214385242063577912013-02-03T14:09:05.117-05:002013-02-03T14:09:05.117-05:00Whoohoo! How cool is that? Thank you, Annette!Whoohoo! How cool is that? Thank you, Annette!Lexi Posthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16531097389881464135noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-68516527180947625782013-02-03T14:07:01.183-05:002013-02-03T14:07:01.183-05:00I wish I had the same excuse for oversleeping, but...I wish I had the same excuse for oversleeping, but I admit to reading not writing last night :-}Alexis Walkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11399057543619456981noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-32034834747259303402013-02-03T13:54:50.377-05:002013-02-03T13:54:50.377-05:00What a fabulous excerpt! I am hooked. And it just ...What a fabulous excerpt! I am hooked. And it just made my day to find a new author I'm going to enjoy! <br />MarieMariehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18328966473242925851noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5083633325209012024.post-88627820950396751122013-02-03T13:24:44.426-05:002013-02-03T13:24:44.426-05:00I already own all of the Scoundrel and Rogue books...I already own all of the Scoundrel and Rogue books by you, Annette...'cause I love your writing! I am commenting to let you know that I follow your stories and intend to get more of them when my budget permits. Keep up the great work so I can add to my collection! :-)Jan Houglandhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00253192243976154166noreply@blogger.com