"Where Do You Draw the Line"

While writing women's fiction and LDS Romance, I find a great degree of difference between what some consider acceptable love scenes and others deem as smut. While at the LDStorymakers Writer's Conference this past April, someone asked the board of LDS publishers what they thought was acceptable in a romantic scene. One in particular laughed and then said, "One and a half kisses is our limit." Of course, the comment brought laughter to the entire room, but I didn't think he really answered the real question. Where do you draw the line?

I was told once that you don't go any further in your writing than you would be willing to go yourself, and that helps when you're writing about an LDS couple who hold true to their LDS standards, but what if they aren't. What if the book is about making mistakes and overcoming them? What if you have to show the reader what the character has gone through in order for them to realize how far they've come and what they've learned? Where do you draw the line then?

I've given this a lot of thought over the past few months and have come up with my own hypothetical line draw in the sand, but was curious what the rest of you thought. How far should a love scene go and under what circumstances would you let your character slip past the line you've drawn? And just in case you're wondering, I'm not interested in any graphic details or examples. Keep it clean girls...LOL

When We're All Rich and Famous

Last Sunday I joined my extended family at a reunion. There were the usual things to eat and plenty of little kids running around getting underfoot, but the thing that struck me as the funniest, is when my father announced that his daughter (me) was working on her first novel and was bound to be rich and famous soon. Everyone clapped (extremely embarrassing) and gave their well wishes, but there were others that wanted details. They were asking how much an author makes, what six figure number I was sure to get for it and how long before it would be a movie.

"HA!" was all I could say to all the enquiries. I'm sure I left many unanswered questions and maybe a few thinking it had already gone to my head because I was rudely ignoring them, but JEEESH! How do you answer questions like that? I mean, even if I did land a huge contract and was going to make mega bucks, do you think I would be spreading it around? NOT!!

So, for all of those who think I have a list of things I want to buy and places I want to go when I'm "Rich and Famous," here it is. I've limited it to ten, but please feel free to add yours to my list. I must warn you, however, this took me several minutes of actual thinking to come up with this many. LOL






1) A modest home.











2) Lose a few pounds











3) A tiny cabin tucked into the mountains.









4) A little space for my husband to tinker on his toys.








5) A few toys









6) Something cute to get around town in.









7) A tent to go camping.








8) Fishing equipment







9) Take in a show











10) Own a small piece of property to vacation on.






Also. Please feel free to tell us about your run-ins with people and their misconceptions of what a writer is really all about. I'd love to read them.

Half Way....Almost

Well, I'm officially half way through my book changing it from 1st person to 3rd. What a chore. For the most part, I like the changes, but I have found a few areas where the change has weakened the intensity of the scene, especially when the main character (Kira) is expressing emotions. When I'm finished with the mundane task of substituting "I" for "she" and "my" for "her", I'm hoping to go through it again and fix some of the problems. As it sits right now, it is NOT suitable for publication, so I have a lot of work still to do.

I do, however, have to admit that the scenes I've added in Octavion's point of view totally ROCK! Just hearing his side of the story in bits and pieces has added some richness to his character. I guess if I have to give up a little of Kira's personality and emotion to gain more from Octavion it is a small price to pay. After all, the readers will enjoy getting to know him better. Okay, so I'm kind of enjoying it too.....he's yummy.

I'm Still Here

Holy Cow! You'd think I dropped off the face of the earth or something. There I was, doing a great job of blogging almost everyday, and then WAMMO! I stopped. What's up with that?

Here's the scoop. I'm in the middle of doing some MAJOR edits on "Taming the Heart", which includes changing that silly title. I've heard several suggestions in the past couple weeks on how I can make it better, so I'm diving in with both feet and fixing it. The biggest challenge is changing it from first person to third. What a mess. But I think the finished product will be worth it. I'm able to get into the other character's heads and add so much more depth to the story that the readers will love.

However, this means working on it 24/7 and I'm just about worn out. If anyone has a suggestion for a title, please don't hesitate to jump right in and comment on it. Here's a blurb about the book.In this tale of magic, mystery and forbidden love, Kira Edwards finds herself falling for a man who’s been cursed with the heart of both a lion and a tiger—a hybrid. His overwhelming desire to devour anything with a pulse causes him to put his feelings aside to keep her safe. However, the spicy little red head that’s captured his heart has other plans.

Kira thought she knew everything about her best friend, Lydia, until a brutal attack during a photo shoot leaves Lydia seriously injured and the two of them stranded on a secluded mountain. When Lydia refuses to let Kira go for help, Lydia is forced to reveal the fact that she’s from another world—a world filled with powerful magic and evil forces. Kira soon discovers Lydia’s sister, Shandira, is behind the attack and seeks to take Lydia’s life. To make things worse, Lydia summons her brother, Octavion, who blames Kira for the attack, almost killing her. When she volunteers to accept a healing charm, risking her life to heal Lydia, he finds himself not only fighting his primal hunger, but his unbridled feelings for Kira. The decision to stand by her friend, even though the world around her is falling apart, helps Kira embrace her inner strength, bringing her the confidence she needs to stand up to the forces that seek to destroy them all. Her quick witted sense of humor makes a wonderful contrast to Octavion’s explosive temper, causing both to give in to their only common emotion…love. Will that love be enough to suppress Octavion’s fierce desire to take her life? Or will Kira be able to tame the wild beast that lives within his heart?

Being a Good Critic

I recently finished a debut novel by an author who is receiving rave reviews from her readers. For the most part, I enjoyed the story and felt she did a pretty good job telling it. I even liked the characters and the unique ideas that formed the story. However, there were a few parts in the story where I wanted to smack her upside the head, or at least put the book down and stop reading. What on earth was she thinking? I won't say the title of the book because I certainly don't want to offend the author or her fans, and after all, I am only one person and my opinion really doesn't matter, right?

Anyway, I've been posting book reviews on my blog for quite some time and have enjoyed doing so. Some I've loved, others have been great writing, but just not something I would normally pick to read so didn't connect with and then a few were not well written at all. I think the biggest problem with me as a reader is that I'm a writer. I never used to pick books apart like I do now, but I've been reading for other authors and helping them edit and critique their works and find myself doing it when I read an already published novel. It's down right irritating when I can't highlight a section and make a comment in the sidebar, then send it back to the author with my suggestions and ideas. LOL

Am I becoming too critical of others' work or am I just learning so much about my craft that it's all starting to make sense to me now. I'd like to think all this nitpickiness will make me a better writer, but what if it's just making me brash and insensitive? When it comes to posting a critique, do I be honest and voice my opinion or do I be kind and uplifting, possibly recommending a book I found unsatisfying?

Let me know what you think. I'd love to hear how you handle doing book reviews or even recommending books to friends and such.