Liberty States Fiction Writers

Congratulations to our Mayke It Happen Finalists!

We are pleased to announce the seven finalists who completed 60,000 words during the Mayke-it-Happen Challenge:

Deborah Blake
Jamie Banta
Monica Liming-Hu
Deanna Cassidy
Carolyn Coles
Dianne Gerber
Stacey Wilk

The following finalists won critiques of their partial manuscripts from either an agent or editor:

Deborah Blake - Kevan Lyon, Marsal Lyon Literary Agency
Deanna Cassidy - Stephany Evans, FinePrint Literary Management
Carolyn Coles - Patience Smith, Harlequin

Congratulations to all for their incredible accomplishments.

The dictionary says:

Main Entry: social networking
Part of Speech: n
Definition: the use of a website to connect with people who share personal or professional interests, place of origin, education at a particular school, etc.

But what does that mean? Well, basically, social network sites—most of which are free—allow you to have a web presence and connect with other people.

Many authors have websites these days, but social networks are tools to help you make friends, follow other authors, agents, editors, as well as help you to build a fan base if pre-published.

Here are a few of the larger social networking sites:

Livejournal – www.livejournal.com – This is mainly a blogging network. They have both paid and free accounts. You are able to customize your pages with the Livejournal tools, or if you know CSS (a computer language), you can create your own.

On Livejournal you can connect with other people, affectionately called “friending”. You can follow someone else’s blog, they can follow yours, and you even have the option of adding feeds from other blogs to your Livejournal.

Livejournal has a plethora of communities and groups for every single category you can think of be it writing, TV, movies, books, to politics, pets, and photography.

Myspace – www.myspace.com – Myspace is one of the first free large social networking sites to hit the internet. Myspace also allows you to customize your pages. There are many regular websites that also help you make layouts and backgrounds if you’re not a savvy computer user type. You can add applications to Myspace, post music, pictures, and videos. Myspace also has a section for blogging.

Myspace allows you to send private messages, invitations to events, and comment on your friend’s pages. As with Livejournal, Myspace has communities and groups.

Facebook – www.facebook.com – Facebook is the new Myspace, for the older kids, some say. Another large networking site, Facebook is slightly more limited with its customization. Everyone’s Facebook page looks pretty much the same.

On Facebook, you can add applications, poke people with cute avatars, add your interests in little display boxes, and find out who shares your likes and dislikes. You can send messages, invitations, and comment on pages like Myspace, but Facebook has it more streamlined on your one “wall” page.

While Facebook doesn’t have its own blog section, you can feed any blog into your notes section so your blog can be visible to any friends you have here.

Facebook also has groups and communities as well as “Fan” pages.

Twitter – www.twitter.com – Myspace and Facebook each have a status update section on your main page. This allows you to tell friends what you’re doing, ask a quick question, or inform readers of release dates, contests, etc. Twitter is a constant stream of status updates. 140 characters are all you get per post, but the instant interaction and feedback can be lots of fun!

On Twitter, you can follow people, follow trends using hastags, and communicate in a split second with anyone currently online in Twitter. Twitter also allows you to customize your page slightly, and gives you a 140 character private Direct Message to your friends.

Remember, when getting involved in any online endeavor it’s best to read all of the regulations, terms, and conditions associated with the site. Many of these networks also have FAQ sections so you can learn about all of their applications and services.

Me? I’m on all three, plus a couple more. I have 2,866 friends. Honest. I would say a good 5% is people I know personally, old school mates, work friends, etc. Another good chunk are writer friends I made online. Even if I don’t know said people personally, we at least have one or two things in common. That is the beauty of the internet! You can find someone who is passionate about the same subject, regardless of what it is, and always have someone to talk to.

For a list of other social networks check out this link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_social_networking_websites

Feel free to add me as your “friend” I’m always happy to meet new people!

Happy Networking!
~Jenn

Jenn Nixon resides in New Jersey where she was born, raised, and dreamed. She has held various jobs in the customer service and payroll industry, which allowed her to interact with people of diverse backgrounds and personalities. She currently works for a nail polish manufacturer as the Office Manager and Purchasing Agent and loves her job! Jenn has completed several novel length manuscripts and most recently turned her focus to a romantic suspense trilogy. When she’s not writing, Jenn spends her free time blogging, reading, absorbing pop culture and current events, and role-playing online.

Contact Jenn at jennafern@aol.com Or on her social networking sites:
http://twitter.com/jennnixon
http://jennafern.blogspot.com/
http://myspace.com/jennafern 
http://www.facebook.com/people/Jenn-Nixon/576234133
http://jennafern.livejournal.com/

People, both readers and writers, often ask me how I write humor. In fact, this issue arises in nearly every writing conversation and interview. I’m puzzled by the question and completely stumped by the answer, whatever it may be.

So how did I end up writing humor? The first bit of fiction I endeavored to pen was a murder mystery set in the future. That was ten years ago and futuristics weren’t exactly the hot item then, but that’s beside the point. I have 32 first chapters. That doesn’t count the first chapters I revised and revised. It was dark and gritty. Oh, I was so happy to be lord over such drama!

Only there was a problem-my critique partners kept laughing at it. By the last half of the book, I made it into a pretty decent romance, except of course most of it took place in the Virtual Wild West Theatre. Then I had two elements I hadn’t ever bargained for: humor and western. (Westerns weren’t selling, either.)

So my next venture into a novel took me to western historical romance. This wasn’t a stretch at all for me because I grew up in a sparsely populated county in southwest Idaho where the Old West still lives, sorta. But I knew westerns weren’t selling and humor sure wasn’t, so at least I could make it dramatic. Only I soon found that plopping a laced-up schoolmarm in a brothel with batch of color-coded prostitutes was . . . well, dang it, funny. And it finaled in the Golden Heart that year.

Neither of these books sold, nor did the next three. So westerns and humor aren’t getting me very far. Until I hit the short story market.

Some writers thrive in a shorter format. Me? I’d never tried to write a short story and didn’t think I was suited for it at all, but was badgered into it. So while I love to write full-length novels (I have three of them started right now), my first success came in short stories. Two of my stories, Faery Good Advice and Single Girls Can’t Jump, were included in an anthology to benefit breast cancer research, No Law Against Love.

The editor asked me to write a faery anthology based on Faery Good Advice, so Faery Special Romances was born. I decided to write ten stories chronicling the life of the lead character, Keely, a matchmaking faery princess with attitude. And the first thing I thought of was a four-year-old faery with not so good wing control and downright lousy faery dust control, not to mention a lack of understanding when it came to consequence. Made me laugh. Thus, the concept of writing ten short stories starting in 1199AD when Keely was a kindergartener and works to match the faery Shaylah with the knight Sir Darian, to the future when Keely gets her own HEA. It’s a fun book.

For me, situational humor tickles my funny bone the most. And in fantasy, you can create nearly any situation you want. What if: Bill Shakespeare was a changeling? A servant girl’s faery godmother stranded her on a pirate ship? A Regency miss needs glasses? A faery woman singing in a speak-easy is committed to the wrong man?

I suppose another person could make all these into dark stories, but I see the humorous side. Once, I was critiquing a synopsis for a friend of mine, Eilis Flynn. I raved about her story idea and laughed at the possibilities. She looked at me, puzzled, and said, “It’s not funny.” And when I protested she said, “I have no sense of humor.” Maybe not, but nearly everything she says cracks me up. I love clever wit.

Clever wit, ah, another topic. Rowena Cherry blogged earlier this week. I loved her latest release, Knight’s Fork. And one of my favorite quotes is from the tyrant emperor’s sidekick, Grievous: “The problem with your bloody Great Djinn gene pool is that there’s no lifeguard on duty.” This book is rife with clever nuances.

Unexpected roles is another way to create humor. In Deborah Macgillivray’s Invasion of Falgannon Isle, The Cat Dudley (yes, an actual cat) plays poker every Friday night at the pub. And wins. I loved The Cat Dudley-a great character. Made me laugh many times. My current release, Down Home Ever Lovin’ Mule Blues, features a cogitating mule named Socrates who has decided his human needs love and sets out to find him a woman. Socrates is assisted by an Australian Shepherd named Perseus and a skunk named Guinnevere.

The only other thing I can say about writing humor (and believe me, analysis of humor is very un-funny) is to let your hair down and don’t let your brain interfere with what your fingers type. And good luck! About reading humor? Suspend disbelief as much as possible, because the more you do, the more open you are to ludicrous characters, situations, or events.

And enjoy the ride!

Jacquie Rogers is a former software designer, campaign manager, deli clerk, and cow milker. Her first release, Faery Special Romances, won the Fall NOR Award for Best Print Sci-fi/Fantasy Romance and finaled several other contests. She also has stories print-published in two other anthologies–soon to be e-published as well. Her current print release is a short contemporary novel, Down Home Ever Lovin’ Mule Blues, which has garnered outstanding reviews: two Keepers, two Top Picks, a TRS 5-Heart Sweetheart of the Week, and several other 5-star/heart reviews. She lives in the Seattle area with her husband and cat.

Jacquie has donated all royalties from Faery Special Romances to The Children’s Tumor Foundation, ending neurofibromatosis through research.

You can find Jacquie at…

Website: http://www.jacquierogers.com
Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/jacquierogers
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jacquie-Rogers/18676302690
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/jacquierogers

Dianne Gerber, writing as Autumn Jordon, is proud to announce that first novel, a romantic suspense, HIS WITNESS (working title) and recently sold to The Wild Rose Press, is a finalist in the Romance Writers of America Golden Heart contest. Please visit her at www.autumnjordon.com where you can sign up for her quarterly newsletter.

Caridad Pineiro is pleased to announce that FURY CALLS was a Fresh Fiction Fresh Pick! and was featured on every page of the Fresh Fiction website on March 20th. In addition, FURY CALLS has been receiving rave reviews, such as: Vampire Romance Books: “Ms. Pineiro has done an amazing job of blending suspense with the vampire genre. Her tale keeps you reading not only because of the chemistry between Meghan and Blake, but also to find out how they are going to neutralize the threat that surrounds them.” The Book Pedler: “In Fury Calls, Piniero has given us a story of true, bittersweet emotion. She has given us a novel where the characters on the page are so alive, they seem to live and breathe off of the pages.”

Shobhan Bantwal has just received the cover for her September release, The Sari Shop Widow from Kensington Publishing.

Amy Heffernan has joined the world of blogging. Visit her first blog post! http://alheffernan.blogspot.com/
Chris Redding has had her first Authors Day on her blog. The author was Harry Ramble (www.harryramble.com) author of Sex Offender Lives Here. Chris is looking for authors who are interested in being a guest blogger. Please contact Chris privately if you are interested.

Joanne Timrum, writing as Joanna Aislinn, has just received the cover for her Wild Rose Press Release, No Matter Why.

Coffee Cup Romance reviewed Elaine Charton’s Pandora’s Justice, gave it 5 coffee cups and noted “Wow! What a great book. Action, romance, cute kids, all that is missing is the puppy. The characters are well honed and pull you into their story to ride along for one heck of an adventure. The storyline just races along, making you try to turn the pages faster. I totally enjoyed this story and all it had to offer and I am sure many other readers as well. Wonderfully done, Ms. Charton.”

Caridad Pineiro is rounding up items for a Liberty States Fiction Writers donation to the annual Brenda Novak Diabetes Auction. This is a great opportunity to not only donate to a worthy cause, but get your name out there for the thousands of people who bid on items in the auction. The deadline to send in your information is April 15th so please e-mail Caridad with the items you wish to donate. You can reach Caridad at cpsromance@att.net.

Sometimes the best ideas come from a carelessly thrown out word or phrase. Something as innocent as a group of writing friends sitting around a table and one of the members saying she had this great idea for a story but… And then we played the writer’s favorite game, “What if…” and Liberty States Fiction Writers was born.

What we envisioned in our first “what if” session was to become our founding meeting, the creation of a place where writers of all genres of fiction could network, learn, and share ideas without boundaries. As a group, we believe that it’s not the type of fiction that you write that matters, but the quality of that writing. It’s not limited to romance, women’s fiction, mystery, horror, thriller, science fiction or any other genre. A romance can have mystery and suspense elements; a science fiction story can contain elements of horror. The world is changing and, with that change, the lines between genre fiction categories have blurred to become simply “commercial fiction.” To us, good writing is good writing. Period.

Our goal at Liberty States Fiction Writers is to create and foster an environment where all writers will have the freedom to express their own individual writing in a format that is unique and special to them. We intend to grow with the changing times, to embrace new ideas and be on the leading edge of the changing market trends, using the latest technology to accomplish that goal.

Four of our founding members have served as President in other writing organizations and many of the other founding members have held positions on the Board of Directors in those groups. We bring with us a wealth of knowledge of what works and how to get things done. And we also bring with us the realization that the greatest strength of any group is the people. For it is our members who will help us learn what they want and need to help us all grow as writers. It is our belief that all of us, no matter what we write, have ideas that will help the others in the group. And maybe, just maybe, those ideas that work for romance, for example, might spark the creative flow for that thriller that is “almost” on paper.

I write historical romance novels. Well, maybe. I have elements of paranormal in my story, so I might write historical science fiction romance. I also have a work in progress that is a romantic comedy but it has elements of chick lit in it and a mystery that has to be solved, so maybe I write chickie comedy romantic mystery. But wait! It has a bonding feature between two of the women characters, so I should add women’s fiction in there somewhere. But I also know that from a publishing marketing standpoint, I have to label this as one thing. That’s how it’s sold. It would be shelved in a particular section of a book store and, last time I looked, there was no Chickie Romantic Comedy Mystery with Women’s Fiction elements section.

As you can see, the line is no longer clear.

At Liberty States Fiction Writers we want to help you learn what it is you write from a marketing standpoint. We want to help you hone your craft so you can create the best story you are able to create and we want to give you the support and encouragement you need, whether it’s because you are suffering from writer’s block or you’ve received a rejection letter or a horrendous score in a writing contest. And we want to celebrate and cheer you on when you finish your manuscript, final in that contest, or sell that book!

So take a few moments and browse through our website. Read some of our articles on writing. Listen to a few of our podcasts. Over the coming months we will be trying new and exciting ideas. We believe in trying. You should, too.

Gail Freeman
President, Liberty States Fiction Writers
Click here to contact Gail
Gail Freeman has been writing for twelve years and is a yet to be published author. Ms. Freeman served as President of the New Jersey Romance Writers for two years and has also served as Vice President, Treasurer, Special Events Chair, and Hospitality and Critique Chair in that organization. On a national level, Gail was one of the founding staff members of the Romance Writers of America’s electronic newsletter, eNotes and served as editor of that publication for a number of years. In 2005, she was awarded the RWA’s prestigious Service Award for her commitment and volunteer efforts. She also chaired the RWA’s 2007 Chapter Newsletter Contest and the 2008 ad hoc committee for reform recommendations and changes to that contest. For the past eight years she has been a member of the RWA Communication Committee. After being out of high school for twenty years, Gail went back to college and obtained her associate degree in accounting. A lifelong resident of the Jersey Shore, Ms. Freeman believes in happy endings and working towards your goals, no matter how long it takes.