10/15/11
Does the writer pick the genre, or the genre pick the writer
by R. R. Smythe
When you’ve been at the writing gig awhile, you typically make loads of acquaintances, lots of friends and a few precious critique partners. So I’ve kind of made a game of the title. “Guess the Genre.”
When I meet a writer for the first time, I listen to them talk, assess their interests, their personality, to try to guess which genre has claimed them.
09/23/11
Happy Autumn!
With pools closing, temperatures dipping, and school buses rolling, it may have seemed like fall for the last few weeks, but in fact, today at 9:04am, the autumnal equinox will occur and a new season begin.
Read the rest of this entry »
09/6/11
It’s been quite a week here on the farm. Irene swept through and left us without power for eight days. No power equals No running water. Anyone who has a well knows you need power to run the pump. My two oldest boys deserted me preferring to stay with friends who were lucky enough to have electricity.
08/31/11
Do you believe in “like” at first sight?
Picture: Fall of 1991. Starting my sophomore year of college. Met David. He was cute, appealing, and dating my friend.
That stopped me from pursuing anything, but my inner-romantic knew. I knew one day, we were going to date.
We became friends, hanging out often and eating meals together. He and my friend broke up. We both dated other people. Until one day two years later when he asked me to dinner. Now, we’ve had dinner together before. Often. But there was something different about the way he asked me this time that made me wonder… is this A Date?
Maybe it was his tone. Maybe it was the sexy gleam in his eye. Maybe it was my wishful thinking. Whatever it was, I answered yes. Only later did I gather up the courage to ask what I had wondered before. “Is this a date?”
And he didn’t really answer me. “Let’s just see what happens.”
It’s a good thing the way to a woman’s heart is not through her stomach. He served me the most dried, tasteless tuna salad known to mankind. But he made up for it in his choice of movies. And his ability with his lips. So I guess it was a date after all.
It’s hard taking the plunge from friends to lovers. There’s always the fear of “what if it doesn’t work out?” Let me ask you something else: What if it DOES?
Fourteen years later, and he’s never served me that tuna salad again. Coincidence? Happy Anniversary, sweetheart. I love you.
08/5/11
from Wikipedia Commons
Friday’s are usually guest blogs here at The Muse, and normally that’s where you’d find me. As a guest.
But, I’m delighted to say that the lovely folks here at The Muse have invited me to stay a little longer than a single guest post. I’ll be a regular blogger!
So, let me begin quite simply. What is a muse?
07/22/11
Ann G is the winner of Angels’ Blood. Ann, e-mail me at triciafields at gmail dot com with your snail mail address and I’ll send your book to you. 
Have you ever read a book that was so good you knew you’d have to read it again? And again? I have. I have an entire shelf of books like that, my keeper shelf. Many of these books I’ve read 2, 3, 4, or more times. Let me tell you about one of the latest additions to my keeper shelf. Do you know Nalini Singh? Have you read her Guild Hunter Series? It’s a fabulous series and one lucky commenter will win a copy of the first book in the series, Angels’ Blood.
07/11/11
It’s summertime. Time for backyard barbecues and long lazy days by the
pool. Or maybe it’s beaches and boardwalks, hot fries and salt water taffy. Or if you’re like me, maybe it’s mountain lakes, cool New England breezes, and a stack of books. However you spend your vacation, it’s a perfect time to recharge the batteries and refill the creative well. A time to lay aside the pressures of our normal work schedules. In the case of writers, it’s deadlines and word counts and promo and keeping up with trends and markets and …well, you get the idea.
06/13/11
Technology and gadgets, love ‘em or hate ‘em?
I love all things technical. All manner of gadgets and geehaws, if something new hits the market, I might not have it, but I probably wish I did! When my daughter was born, 16 years ago, I found I couldn’t remember anything anymore. My solution was to get a PDA. I got a Handspring Visor 
. It was great! I came to rely on it for everything. I ran on a Palm platform and you wouldn’t believe the software I could download for it! With this little portable gadget, I never forgot anything again. Read the rest of this entry »
06/7/11
THIS PAGE LEFT INTENTIONALLY BLANK
by Angi Morgan
I can’t say that my mind is a blank slate.
It’s not. It’s rolling along down at least four different paths that I’m conscious of: San Antonio Showdown (new story I’m writing on); Sydney’s Run (old story I’m going to re-work for an Intrigue proposal); my family (too much drama to name); and the remodeled office my husband is working on (pounds of the hammer are against the wall as I type). Oh and payment arrangements for my daughter’s university. And oh yea, this blog.
Sometimes, I wish my mind would be blank. Wiped clean with no worries, then I’d have all the free time in the world to write. BUT, wait…what would I draw upon to write about? How would I include emotion and character development if there were no drama?
There are no erasers for life. We play with what’s dealt. Romance is my genre of choice because of the emotion. Characters are stronger at the end of a story. The hero and heroine are better because they found each other.
One of my favorite scenes in ROMANCING THE STONE is when Joan’s editor finishes her latest book and says something like: Joan you are a hopeless romantic. JOAN SAYS: Hopeful. Hopeful romantic.
I believe in Happily Ever Afters. I’m thankful for all the laughter, tears, frustration, happiness, and even the “drama” from family and people in my life. It’s great fuel for the emotion I need on the page. And a continual reminder that my pages are never blank. Now…I need to purge some of this emotion created by the family today.
~~Angi
I FEEL LIKE CELEBRATING …A FREE BOOK (I have lots to chose from) TO A COMMENTER. Vacationing is always a good place to forget and recharge your batteries–it’s sort of like coming back with a blank slate. So just let me know your favorite vacation spot…AND MINE. You’ll find my answer on the IntrigueAuthors.com newsletter. Shoot, I’ll give away several books today–choosing from those who take a look at the newsletter and leave the answer here along with their favorite.
‘Til next time, ~~Angi
AngiMorgan.com
Hill Country Holdup & .38 Caliber Cover-Up
Harlequin Intrigues, available on-line
05/12/11
Please greet today’s guest blogger, Abigail Sharpe! Abigail is a past GH finalist and my Lalala Sister! Welcome, Abigail!
Dear Muse:
Hello. Hi, there. I would say nice to meet you, but I’m not sure we’ve ever met. My name is Abigail and I write romance novels. I’m not published in book form yet, but I’ve been a finalist in a couple of contests and I have some short stories under contract or published on the Internet.
So, I guess I have some talent, and I’m working to develop it further. The one big problem I’m facing, however, is with you. I don’t know you. I don’t know if you hang around me when I write or if you inspire my dreams. I don’t know if you even know who I am. Maybe when you were supposed to get your Muse Assignment, you ditched it to go to the Bahamas to soak up some rays. I’ve had friends whose muses did that, but they always came back. I’m sure sitting by the pool binging on margaritas is much more fun than trying to help a frumpy thirtysomething get the voices out of her head.
The point of this is, I’d really like to get to know you. When my critique group members talk about how motivated they get, I end up with Muse Envy. I read about how the littlest things flick a light in a writer’s mind and suddenly there’s a best seller, and I wonder, when will that happen to me? I’d like to have you around. I’ll even feed you chocolate if that’s what you want. Just let me know. I’ll be waiting.
Your Wannabe Apprentice,
Abigail
How did you discover your muse? Or are you still waiting, like me?
