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Blogging with Tara Fox Hall!

Welcome, everyone, and most especially, welcome Tara Fox Hall to Romance and Other Dangers! Today, I’m informally interviewing and chatting with my good friend and fellow author on the men and women who inspire our visions of heroes and heroines, random inquiries concerning personality and creative traits, deeply insightful discussions on the meaning of life, and so on and so forth.

Follow along throughout the day and leave a comment, and you could win a free e-copy of Spellbound, the anthology from Melange Books which includes my own short story, “Telltale Signs”, and “The Origin of Fear”, by Tara Fox Hall.

You can also pick up a copy of Spellbound here: http://www.melange-books.com/authors/anthologies/Spellbound2011.html

Or, here: http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/spellbound-2011-a-halloween-anthology/17820391?showPreview

To begin, I want to compliment you, Tara; your writing pulls me into mystery and suspense immediately; it’s a highly enjoyable read. For those who haven’t yet delved into Tara’s imagination, excerpts from her work are posted below (with the survey — did you do the survey, yet, readers?).

The way “Origin of Fear” plays out reminds me of the master of horror himself, Stephen King. I won’t spoil it for you, but if you like twists and unexpected endings, you have to get your own copy of Spellbound to see how it ends! It’s just a taste of her storytelling gift. “Just Shadows” is bound to be even more chilling.

First Question O’ The Day: Tara, would you please describe your (favourite) writing place? I’d love a visual — where are you when you are splicing ideas and crafting words into novel form?

82 thoughts on “Blogging with Tara Fox Hall!”

  1. Tara Fox Hall says:
    January 7, 2012 at 2:24 pm

    Good Morning, Tori, and thank you for having me here at your blog today 🙂

    My normal writing place is…bed. Yes, really 🙂 Horror like the Origin of Fear, and many of the stories from Just Shadows, like Hangers, Cherie, and others, come right from pure nightmare inspiration. I wake up, gasping for breath, and usually afraid to go back to sleep. If I do, I usually find myself right back in the nightmare where I left off. So I have a pad of paper by my bed, always, and a pen, and jot down the nightmare, everything I can remember. That act ususally lets me go back to sleep without going back into the nightmare. The trouble is, sometimes I find myself in another new nightmare…

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  2. torilridgewood says:
    January 7, 2012 at 2:31 pm

    Wow! I have tried keeping pad and paper by the bed, but my hubby doesn’t sleep well as it is… I have to try that again, using my computer. Vivid dreams come to me as well, sometimes as nightmares, sometimes not. I always regret not writing them down, but I have recurring dreams, so eventually they come back.

    Do you work on whole novels in bed (lavishly decadent — lounging back against cream shag pillows and pink silk bolsters, surrounded by piles of yellow legal pads and sticky notes, one high-heeled slipper dangling from a toe at the end of your crossed legs, a pot of tea on the table next to you), or do you work somewhere else?

    (For the answer — check out the photo gallery above!)

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  3. torilridgewood says:
    January 7, 2012 at 2:59 pm

    Tara, those photos are taking my breath away. It’s beautiful. The perfect writer’s retreat. Soooo jealous! Thanks for the awesome visuals!

    Next Question: Let’s talk about those hunk-a-hunk-of-burning-loves, our leading men. Okay, so they’re not all handsome or smart or well-mannered. Who inspires your heroes? If you could cast any actor as your leading man in ______ story, who would it be, and why?

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    • Tara Fox Hall says:
      January 7, 2012 at 3:14 pm

      Next Question: Let’s talk about those hunk-a-hunk-of-burning-loves, our leading men. Okay, so they’re not all handsome or smart or well-mannered. Who inspires your heroes? If you could cast any actor as your leading man in ______ story, who would it be, and why?

      Ahh, this question I’m ready for 🙂

      Devlin, of Surrender to Me and the other vampire novels would be played by Rob Lowe. I love, love, love his eyes. And his acting has just the right mix of deviousness and sensuality (Masquerade), innocence (About Last night), and authority (West Wing), and courage and decisiveness (‘Salems Lot – TV series). He could pull off a deaf mute in The Stand (TV Series) and make him compelling as the character Stephen King wrote of in his epic. Not many others could do that 🙂

      For Danial, of The Oath, and the coming Promise Me series, I’m torn. I liken him to Richard Gere in Pretty Woman, for his businesslike sense and reservation. Yet I also really like Sendhil R. from Heros – he is certainly hot enough in my book!
      http://heroeswiki.com/Mohinder_Suresh

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  4. Tara Fox Hall says:
    January 7, 2012 at 3:01 pm

    A computer will work just as well 🙂 It that’s nearby, I’ll use that instead, as it cuts down on having to transcribe.
    Yes, I have worked on whole novels in bed. My vampire series (starting with Promise Me, coming out June 2012 from Melange Books) was almost exclusively written in bed, most of it late at night. Alas, no high heeled slippers, and often not in pjs, either. I’m more of a practical girl, and the New York winters are cold! I’ll write as much as I can until the cats scream from outside the door that the fire is out, or that they can’t wait any longer for breakfast. After I tend to them and get the other morning chores out of the way, I’ll go sit on the bed crosslegged and write my little heart out. Often, a cat or two and at least one dog will come in to support my endeavor.

    I can also be found at the dining room table sometimes (like now). That’s where I am at the picture on my website 🙂

    These are the usual places. But my favorite places? Easy – Letchworth State Park, and my family’s cottage at Oneida Lake.

    I go to Letchworth once a year with my mom in the fall, for a girls’ getaway (where I usually also get her to review my latest works and give me feedback). Kink, of Wicked Christmas Wishes, and Night Music (coming out in the Midnight Thirsts 2 from Melange in May 2012) were both written there this past year.

    The cottage at Oneida Lake has been in my family for the last 50 years. I grew up having my summers there. I wrote Return To Me there this past August. The footsteps I wrote of in that story are real – I hear them whenever I’m up there alone.

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    • torilridgewood says:
      January 7, 2012 at 4:02 pm

      I love writing like that, cross-legged on my bed…it’s just comfy. I always wanted a daybed, for extra coziness, but alas, I’m too long legged to make it practical. I want to buy a cuddle chair, I sat in one on the holiday and it was perfect…round, soft, big pillows, big enough for me to sit like on a bed, type away…Maybe at the end of the month. My dog will often curl up on the bed next to me, as well. Typically, though, I’m on my (currently crappy) couch, because the kids like me in the same room with them.

      Ooo, a girls’ getaway…that’s a wonderful idea. And having a cottage is the ideal where we live, as well…we hope to get one in the future, but first we have to finish this house. Margaret Atwood (The Handmaid’s Tale) has said in interviews that she retreats to a cottage in the woods to immerse herself in her writing. It would be heavenly!

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    • John Steiner says:
      January 7, 2012 at 4:39 pm

      When I write it’s at a table in my bedroom on the word processor, but it feels like Linus on the piano.

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      • torilridgewood says:
        January 7, 2012 at 4:51 pm

        It’s funny you mention that; I have a writing desk in my bedroom, but I rarely use it. It feels strange, and it’s awkward — there’s barely enough room for a chair between the desk and the bed. Maybe if I had an awesome burgundy leather swivel chair with massaging cushions… Seriously, though, I think my posture would improve and I’d be at less risk of carpal tunnel if I used my desk more often. But the lack of a comfy chair is a problem. It’s a hard, ladder-back wooden kitchen chair. Icky. Eventually, I want to have a table in front of a window, with flowering and ferny plants and candles for atmosphere. And my cuddle chair. Heck, I need a writing room, period. A den. Office. Whatever.

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      • Tara Fox Hall says:
        January 7, 2012 at 4:57 pm

        I am in a ladderbacked chair, and feel your pain. I also have a desk – it is piled so high with crap that no writing takes place at it, ever 🙂

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      • torilridgewood says:
        January 7, 2012 at 5:01 pm

        I’m using my desk half the time as a jewellery box, that’s how little I use it for actual writing. 😛

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      • Tara Fox Hall says:
        January 8, 2012 at 3:20 am

        Hi John – In all the flurry of emails, I neglected to pass on congrats for your upcoming Tampered Tales. Love the Cover! 🙂

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      • John Steiner says:
        January 8, 2012 at 4:44 am

        Thank you about the cover. I believe it was Mae Powers or A. Bratt who put it together. The concept was to show a broad range of stories with a single image.

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  5. T.D. Jones says:
    January 7, 2012 at 3:23 pm

    Hey just stopping in to say hi. Have fun blogging today. I’m in the middle of deadlines so can’t stay. Just wanted to wish you well and happy blogging.

    T.D. Jones

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  6. Anna James says:
    January 7, 2012 at 3:59 pm

    Hi ladies,
    The excerpts sound great. Good luck and I wish you many sales!

    Anna

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  7. Tara Fox Hall says:
    January 7, 2012 at 4:08 pm

    Thank you for stopping by, Anna. 🙂 I’m also looking forward to your new work, Coming Home, in May – the blurb drew me right in 🙂

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  8. torilridgewood says:
    January 7, 2012 at 4:22 pm

    Question 3: Chocolate bunny — head or tail? Why? What does that say about your personality? *clicks pen several times importantly and poses nib over clipboard, waiting expectantly*

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  9. Tara Fox Hall says:
    January 7, 2012 at 4:36 pm

    Actually, I’ve eaten no chocolate bunnies in a long time. But back when I did in my youth..always the head first. Chocolate never lasts long around me 🙂 I am guilty always of eating Cadbury creme eggs. My grandmother, years ago, went overboard and bought me 15 for Easter. I ate them all in a few days. I did not feel well, and didn’t eat chocolate for…about two weeks 🙂

    As for why the head first…why not? He won’t feel a thing. And if he does (magic bunny?), just like a vampire, its better to get the decapitation done quickly, right off, to stop him struggling.

    Is that too morbid?

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    • torilridgewood says:
      January 7, 2012 at 4:46 pm

      Yes! Head-first, that’s what I do! Cadbury creme eggs are a personal nemesis…I can’t eat more than two at once, they’re too rich. But with a glass of milk…heaven.

      I like head first, it seems only right. A predator takes down the prey head first. Plus, I always felt like those little candy eyes were staring at me reproachfully if I ate from the tail or toes up. Guilt, guilt, guilt. I imagine a tiny rabbity voice: “Please, don’t eat me! Put me in the garden and the fairies will make me real!”

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  10. torilridgewood says:
    January 7, 2012 at 5:01 pm

    The troll crawls out from under its bridge and presents you with Question Four: Do you, Tara Fox Hall, have any bad habits? I, for example, pick at my nails until writing and typing is painful. I also drink too much CocaCola, and I rip off hunks of cheese from the bar of cheddar in the refrigerator (mostly to irritate my husband).

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    • Tara Fox Hall says:
      January 7, 2012 at 5:22 pm

      Bad habits….does excecss chocolate count? 🙂 I don’t smoke. I drink in moderation, though I am guilty sometimes of overindulging at fabulous or terrible news. I do enjoy the Spartacus StarZ series :), late night FX shows like Nip/Tuck, The Shield, Sons of Anarchy, and Rescue Me, which are graphic in content. Maybe a little too much attitude sometimes (I have a bad temper, and can swear just like one of my fellow metal shop workers, when I’m provoked) or a teesy too much pride (It’s the Leo/Tiger in me).

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  11. torilridgewood says:
    January 7, 2012 at 5:11 pm

    Readers — Did you do the poll yet? https://torilridgewood.wordpress.com/category/survey-says/

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  12. M. Allman says:
    January 7, 2012 at 5:15 pm

    Hi, Tara
    Stopping by to say hello. I’ve read the excerpts from your both your short stories in Spellbound. I bought a copy and can’t wait to read it! Have a fun day blogging.

    🙂

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  13. John Mecom says:
    January 7, 2012 at 5:26 pm

    Hi Tara:

    I just wanted to say that I enjoyed reading The Origin of Fear, it rellay held my attention from start to finish. Thanks for writing it. I’m looking forward to reading more of your work.

    John Mecom

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    • torilridgewood says:
      January 7, 2012 at 5:33 pm

      That’s such a wonderful compliment — thanks for commenting, John! Have a terrific day, and pop back later for more fun!

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    • Tara Fox Hall says:
      January 7, 2012 at 5:33 pm

      Hi John 🙂 I also liked your short story, Room 1309.5. I, too, find inspiration from Stephen King’s work, and love his stories, especially Black House, and The Shining all the way to Cycle of the Werewolf.

      I sent a signed paper copy of Spellbound 2011 to Stephen King, back when it came out last fall, thanking him for being an inspiration. I figured he probably gets tons of books as gifts, but wanted to make the gesture all the same. 🙂

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  14. Jenny Twist says:
    January 7, 2012 at 5:29 pm

    Helloo, You lot. Sorry I’m so late. Lunch with friends. Then just as I was about to get on the computer, more friends arrived! It’s like buses. You wait for hours and then three come at once!
    Is that your bedrioom, Tara!
    It’s beautiful.
    I’d like to say, before I get interrupted again, I’ve read everything Tara had publifshed so far and I think she is a totally fab writer.
    Go for it, Tara!
    Love Jenny
    xx

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    • torilridgewood says:
      January 7, 2012 at 5:33 pm

      So glad you could make it, Jenny! No worries — I’ve been blogging from downtown, as well as from my couch, running here and there. The beauty of the smartphone! I agree, Tara is so talented…we’re having a lot of fun. And thanks for the comments, everyone; we’re at the half-way point, more to say this afternoon! Lovely compliments from John Mecom, and M. Allman — cheers!

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    • Tara Fox Hall says:
      January 7, 2012 at 5:39 pm

      Thank you, Jenny 🙂 Careful, you guys are going to swell my head with all this praise.

      That’s my bedroom at the Lake cottage, yes 🙂 It’s a work in progress – you can see that the window needs trimming with wood. We’ve slowly been fixing the place up. Next summer is getting trim on all the windows upstairs. That’s the last big thing on the list to fix!

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  15. Jenny Twist (@JennyTwist1) says:
    January 7, 2012 at 5:52 pm

    The window looks OK to me. Clever camera angle? But I don’t see how you can possibly write in such beautiful surroundings. I’d be constantly distracted!

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    • Tara Fox Hall says:
      January 7, 2012 at 6:08 pm

      There is no internet, and no phone, except for cell. There is a tiny TV, but no cable, just a DVD player. Our neighbors are quiet. It’s an environment condusive (sp?) to writing. But there is no air conditioning, and I sleep in essentially what is an attic, so in the summer it gets hot – too hot to write upstairs, except at night.
      The worst distraction is the Lake. If there is a good wind blowing, I want to be out there in a tube rafting the waves.
      Thank you for the appreciation. I decorated it all myself, including the painting, which left my hair and face-even covered with a bandana-spattered with paint flecks

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      • torilridgewood says:
        January 7, 2012 at 8:13 pm

        That’s exactly how a cottage should be — few or no electronics, just the basics.

        I have dreams about painting this house, but at the same time, why bother painting if eventually we’re going to tear down and rebuild? It’s the same with siding — we were hoping to build by now, but we’re not even close. Should we put on the siding, only to rip it off in two years? And I have a terrible time picking colours. I did my daughter’s room a few years ago, it’s lovely, but the paint effects I tried (striped wainscotting effect) blurred a little. I called it a crayon effect and left it, but it would be nice to do our main living room, and the stairs. (It’s also good procrastination activity when you’re supposed to be writing 🙂 ) You have lovely taste, your cottage is really pretty.

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      • Tara Fox Hall says:
        January 7, 2012 at 8:34 pm

        Then I’ll tell you a secret: I did it all with leftover paint, and OOPs! paint (this is paint they sell at the big hardware stores that is tinted, and then the person doesn’t want it. Its an easy way to get cheap paint, and the colors are easy to decide on, because you get what’s there on the small shelf.) For a few dollars, you can get a can of paint that would usually cost you 20-30$. Go ahead and paint. It’s an inexpensive way to update your house. 🙂
        The borders (wolves, pooh, and moose) you see in the pics were also bought at a local Big Lots, for about a dollar a roll. Those little gold leaves on the wall are cake decorators leaves. I glued tiny bits of leftover magnets (cut up from organizations that sent you free ones in the mail) to the back, and put some magnetic paint on the wall (they sell this in lowes – I had some on hand, from one of my husband’s failed craft projects). So I can move the leaves around on the wall, and write messages with them. Though I admit, I’m worried one morning to wake up to a big “Hi Tara” spelled out in gold leaves from the cottage ghost 🙂

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  16. torilridgewood says:
    January 7, 2012 at 5:58 pm

    Question 5 (back to writing): Which authors inspire you to write? (Stephen King, right?) Have you ever composed a story or novel in response to someone else’s work?

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    • Tara Fox Hall says:
      January 7, 2012 at 6:30 pm

      Stephen King, definately. He’s my hero. I also was inspired by Peter Straub, Dean Koontz, Yoshitako Amano (Vampire Hunter D http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vampire_Hunter_D), William W. Johnstone (another hero :)), Lincoln Child/Douglas Preston, Nelson DeMille and Tolkien, of course. But honestly, I am just as inspired by old movies. I began watching a classic movies station, and got hooked. I am a huge James Cagney fan. He never ceases to inspire.

      I have never composed a story in response to someone’s work, but I have put names of people who made my little black book into my stories (and will keep doing so – its cathartic). But I also put the names of people that have inspired me into them, as well as friends, and people I meet that have interesting names, or are extra good to me. And some are accident: I say to whomever is closest as I’m writing fast and furious: “I need a male/female name, please”, and use whatever they tell me. So if you see your name in one of my stories, don’t be offended (unless you know you really were nasty to me at some point….:)

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      • torilridgewood says:
        January 7, 2012 at 8:10 pm

        I’ve read Dean Koontz, and Tolkien, but none of the others…I will have to do so. I like Nora Roberts, Stephen King (goes without saying), Robin McKinley, Margaret Atwood, Stephenie Meyers, Terry Pratchet… The series I am working on (the Talbot Trilogy) is in response to Twilight. I do enjoy that series, as much as I despise it — I have a complicated love-hate relationship with the Twilight Saga. I wrote “Mist and Midnight” (prequel novella in Midnight Thirsts, through Melange Books) partly out of a desire to read about a really nasty vampire, not sparkly and cool, not YA fiction, but with some grit and elegance. It’s an homage or shout-out to classic vampire fiction, like Salem’s Lot, or films like “The Lost Boys.” And then, “Book 1: Wind and Shadow” (novel currently in revision), “Book 2: Blood and Fire” (novel in progress), and Book 3 (still lurking out there, in the universe), continue the thread. I like the idea of writing in response to someone’s work, it’s a compliment and a way of engaging in the story. Also, I tend to get discouraged when I try to think of really original ideas, because just when I think I have one, I discover that someone else has already written something like it. So I write in response, which helps to keep me going.

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      • Tara Fox Hall says:
        January 7, 2012 at 8:26 pm

        I also like Nora Roberts, though its been a while 🙂

        I, like you, favor vampires whose fangs aren’t just for show. But I’ll leave it at that, lest I get staked by hordes of female Twilight fans. I have not read the series myself, or seen the movies.

        I LOVE the Lost Boys. I have several shirts with characters from the movie.

        I also look forward to your book trilogy. I read the couple chapters you sent me and enjoyed them! 🙂 Get writing! We want to see that first book!

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    • John Steiner says:
      January 7, 2012 at 8:23 pm

      Oh, that’s easy. Rod Serling for starters. The Twilight Zone and immitator series like Tales Fro the Dark Side taught me to think around corners. I also take my queues from Mark Twain and a dash of George Carlin for good measure. The way Dean Koonz uses language to control a reader’s sense of time was something I started using, and it works great.

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      • torilridgewood says:
        January 7, 2012 at 8:26 pm

        My husband loves to read James Patterson, but he hardly ever gets around to it. He has six or seven Pattersons, but hasn’t read any of them. He sticks mainly to cookbooks, or books about Freemasons, things like that. I’ve never read Rod Serling, but I enjoy the Twilight Zone. I really like stories of the unusual, creepy and unsettling things… I used to love Tales from The Crypt when I was a kid. Occasionally, I’ll read Mark Twain, but I like L.M. Montgomery better.

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      • Tara Fox Hall says:
        January 7, 2012 at 8:43 pm

        I really liked an “imitator” called the Hitchhiker that used to be on HBO years ago. Just the music in the intro was enough to make me scared. I mean, the guys just walking along the road. But it freaked me out, just the same.

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  17. torilridgewood says:
    January 7, 2012 at 7:03 pm

    Question 6: Write what you know, OR write what you imagine — where do you stand on this intellectual/literary divide?

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    • Tara Fox Hall says:
      January 7, 2012 at 7:32 pm

      In the middle, where I stand on a lot of issues. I can see most points of view with empathy, which helps me out tremendously when I write.

      When first starting out, a writer should write what they know. If you’ve never had a child, a book with that experience as a main plot device is not going to come off as realistic when people who have had children read it. If your heroine has waist long hair, then make sure she’s irritated with it at least once or twice, or its getting tangled in stuff as she’s doing things. Real long hair may look pretty, but its a lot of work and aggravation. 🙂
      I began writing nature articles on saving animals, based on real experiences I had. That was straighforward experience, where I described how I’d felt, along with the scene. It helped me focus on the physical part of writing – structure, sentence length, getting good at beginnings and endings, emotional and factual content, word count, etc. My heroine Sarelle McGarran (The Oath, Promise Me) has a lot of my qualities, because that was easiest for me to start out with. Writing as a man (Lash) was something I had to work up to over time.

      But at some point, most writers (and all fiction ones) are going to have to write what they imagine. How else can we write about haunted houses, like Latham’s Landing, or sexy vampires like Devlin? But even a scifi tale set in a distant world needs to feel real, or the reader won’t be drawn in and care about the characters. That is the hardest thing to acheive in fiction – making the reader believe the story could really happen, even if its in a galaxy far, far away :).

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      • torilridgewood says:
        January 7, 2012 at 7:41 pm

        I totally agree… I want to write about things I have never experienced, but for the strength and believability of the story, I have to include what I already know / have experienced, to some extent. It gets a little daunting, at times. When I was much younger, I only ever wrote from my imagination, and I never finished anything. Maybe there’s a connection, on some level.

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    • John Steiner says:
      January 8, 2012 at 4:39 am

      That fluxuates wildly. I’ve based whole stories on dreams, and I have a novel idea inspired by a scene from a dream. Other stories, like Squad V, are my way of doing social commentary as well as playing out some scientific ideas.

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  18. Mysti Parker says:
    January 7, 2012 at 7:55 pm

    Hiya Tara and Tori! Terribly busy today, but just wanted to drop in and say hi! Looks like you’ve got lots of wonderful responses. I’ve got a copy of Spellbound and hope to read it soon. And I hope I can read Return to Me soon too 🙂

    Best of luck in all your projects for the new year!!!

    Mysti

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  19. LINDA B says:
    January 7, 2012 at 8:33 pm

    TRYING AGAIN TARA. ENJOY YOUR JANUARY!!

    I LOVED A RANGER’S TALE!!

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  20. C says:
    January 7, 2012 at 9:03 pm

    I know that place;) … A wonderfully inspiring environment!

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  21. C says:
    January 7, 2012 at 9:11 pm

    I’ve been trying to make a comment for the last 10 minutes on the iPad to no avail…had to find a computer…

    Tara’s lake house is wonderfully inspiring! I’ve been lucky enough to spend a few summer days there with Tara.

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  22. torilridgewood says:
    January 7, 2012 at 9:14 pm

    One last question, Tara: Triple Dog Dare you to run out and jump in the snowbank! Just kidding…What advice can you pass along to young and/or beginning writers? I realize you’ve probably been asked this before — why not make a list? Top Five Tips for New Writers?

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    • Tara Fox Hall says:
      January 7, 2012 at 10:00 pm

      To my joy, I report there is no snow out my window – it has melted from abnormally high temps! 🙂

      Let’s see…

      1) its really hard to get published until you’re known. And its hard to get known with out being published. That’s fact, even for onine zines. So don’t start out with just one story – have 2-5. If you really want to place your novel somewhere, submit that, but while you’re waiting the usual 3-6 months for a reply, work on writing a few short stories. Then submit them several places each. Yes this will take time. But it helps to get your name out there. At this stage, money is less important than links. You want someone to be able to google your name and come up with a ton of hits that are really you.

      2) Submit early and often. This is the refrain of the author submission services out there, and its truth; you will get more acceptances if you submit your work regularly. If you are rich, hire a submission service, as they will do the tedious work for you. But if you aren’t, set aside time each week to research publishers or agents. You can do it yourself. It is onerous, yes, but necessary. Pick publishers that are looking for the types of stories you want to sell. There are mags on the internet that want stories as short as 100 words(Necon E books) all the way to publishers that want novels 150000 words+. There are many agents listed at Agent Query, or other onlne sites, that list agent contact info and preferences.

      3) Be prepared for rejection. You will likely get rejected. I personally have gotten over 175 rejections from agents and publishers in the last 5 years. (One agent, who shall remain namelss, called me up at 11 pm one night to scream at me because I dared to call him to follow up on an email I’d sent a month previous. Said agent had all but promised me a book deal when he had called me 2 months previous in response to my query – I was devastated and reduced to tears at the end of his phone call). Most agents and publishers will be polite in their rejections, but some will be nasty and harsh. Prepare yourself for this. No matter what happens, don’t give up. When you get a rejection, look over the comments, if the rejector gave you any, and think hard that they might have some merit. I have been guilty of thinking my stuff was too good to need any editing, until the folks at Wolf Pirate ( http://wolf-pirate.com )gave me a sharp reality check (Thank you, Eve). Then make changes, and try to send off to a new agent or publisher as soon as you can. Don’t wallow in misery – it will not get you published. Have a good cry, then get back in the saddle.

      4) If you don’t have a fellow author to critique your work, there are editors you can hire to give you a professional opinion. I have used some before; in fact, after I wrote Promise Me for my mother, I hired a professional editor to let me know if the story was interesting enough for people who didn’t know me personally to pursue publishing it. I’m glad she said yes, looking back 🙂 This is also expensive, but can be worthwhile. Publishers of all types expect a minimum of typos and good grammer, as well as proper formatting. A warning that most places/people will want specifics of their own (no headers, no indents, courtier over TNR, etc. ) – see submissions pages and follow them to the letter, even when it seems ridiculous 🙂 Again, Wolf-Pirate, if they accept you in their program, will prepare you for the real world in terms of what a publisher expects from you, and what the publishing process is really like. I cannot recommend them enough. http://wolf-pirate.com -grey page will load – just give it a minute 🙂

      5) Find your own voice. Try writing different types of books/stories, and see what you like best. I like horror and romance, but also dabble in erotica and non-fiction, I also plan to try my hand at YA this summer, and maybe mystery, too. If you are enjoying yourself and love to write, that love will come through in your writing. 🙂

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  23. torilridgewood says:
    January 7, 2012 at 9:53 pm

    The times listed on this blog are completely wrong — it’s 4:51 pm. Tara, we’ve had a great day, it’s been a lot of fun blogging with you! For everyone who commented, thank you so much for contributing! It’s always worthwhile, knowing you’re out there and you appreciate what we do.

    I will post the winner of the free e-copy of Spellbound 2011 shortly.

    Thanks again for joining me, Tara — tonight, I’m reading Return to Me!

    Best wishes, and visit me again soon on Romance and Other Dangers.

    Yours,
    Tori

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  24. Ashley A says:
    January 7, 2012 at 10:06 pm

    Beautiful pictures! I am loving following along 🙂
    Ashley A
    ash_app@hotmail.com

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  25. Chris Gardner says:
    January 7, 2012 at 10:40 pm

    Well,I finally read all of the blog. It was really interesting.I’ll have to look up the books that were mentioned. I’ve read Jenny Twist and really like her writing. Tara ,of course is my daughter, so I’ve read all her great stories!Good luck to all of you.

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  26. Jenny Twist (@JennyTwist1) says:
    January 8, 2012 at 8:10 am

    This ended up being a really good blog, didn’t it? Well done, Tori & Tara. Sorry I couldn’t contribute more. After a day of going out to lunch and having visitors, we then had dinner with friends. I’ve just read all the comments. What a nice bunch you all are. So nice to meet Chris. I only knew you as Tara’s Mom up to now.
    Happy New Year to all of you. Lots of love
    Jenny (Mrs T to you, Tara)
    xxx

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