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Apr 30

Winner winner chicken dinner!

Recently I entered a five thousand word story in the inaugural Romance Writers of Australia Spicy Bites competition. The competition required a romantic short story, with a ‘happy ever after’ or a ‘happy for now’ ending, and a sexually explicit storyline. It also required writers to include the specified theme of ‘tattoos.’chamaedrys-424906_1920

I wrote a piece called ‘Forget-Me-Not’ about Abigail, a young woman finding love again after grief and loss. My aim was to be one of the entries chosen to be published in the RWA anthology.

Instead, I WON!

When the call came, I was nursing a friend’s nine week old baby so couldn’t really jump around the room the way I wanted to, but I was pretty excited nonetheless! And Forget-Me-Not will be published as part of the Spicy Bites – Tattoos anthology later this year.  I’ve signed my very first publishing agreement and I’m IMG_1329going to be able to be bought on Amazon!

Now, I should head back into the writing cave – or at least to the writing couch – and get some more words down on my works in progress, but I can’t wait for you to meet Abigail, and her man Levi.  Spicy Bites – Tattoos should be available in mid-August and, as soon as links are available, you’ll be the first to know!

 

Photo of the beautiful forget-me-nots free from pixabay.com

 

 

Mar 12

Romancing the Page – a course with Anne Gracie

Like most writers aspiring to be published, I attend a few courses and conferences throughout the year.  Some are, of course, better than others but, when the opportunity arose to spend a day with Anne Gracie at the New South Wales Writer’s Centre I knew I’d be mad not to take it.  Even if it meant I had to get up rather early after spending the night with Adele. IMG_0904

Seriously, Adele’s Sydney concert was amazing and I’m wishing I’d got tickets for night two.  Instead I’m listening to the Adele Sydney set list as I write this post… and I’m side-tracking myself!

Anne is an award-winning author of some fabulous historical romances and an all-around fabulous woman (the Anne Gracie stand-ups was one of the most memorable moments of my first RWA conference in 2015).  Her course, appropriately called ‘Romancing the Page,’ started from the premise that readers want four things: a compelling story; characters to care about; conflict (tension on the page); and an emotional and entertaining experience.

Seems obvious, right?  But pulling all that together in a single package is hard!  So, after today’s course I thought I’d pull my top three takeaways:

Make ‘em laugh.  Make ‘em cry.  Make ‘em worry.  Make ‘em wait.

This one’s getting printed out and posted on the edge of my monitor as an always there reminder (and strictly speaking, it belongs to Charles Reade not Anne Gracie… Anne says she just added the worry).  If you can do this, you’ve met all the above criteria.

It’s strange to say but it’s hard to make your characters suffer.  Really hard.  They talk to you all the time and you know they’re good people so you don’t want to make their life difficult.  You want to give them sunshine and roses and chocolate and sex (lots of sex!).  And you can… right after you make them work for it!  You can make ‘em laugh along the way (and who doesn’t like a good laugh).  But you must make ‘em cry and worry and wait before you give them (and your reader) the payoff.

For me, Christina Lauren are masters at this, at making you feel every emotion the characters are experiencing (and I’ve even written about my book induced anxiety here).

Concentrate on the five senses

This was more of a reminder for me – but it’s worth adding to my list as it’s important and can often be overlooked when trying to get through writing the plot.  Writing romance is all about emotions and what better way is there to demonstrate feelings than by concentrating on the tickle of cold night air IMG_2938trailing over bare skin, the smooth taste of a decadent chocolate dessert (see picture for one of my favourite chocolate desserts!) or the fresh scent of freshly cut grass beneath you(r main character!).  Or what about the sight of someone you love putting their hands on your skin (is that cheating… could be touch too, I suppose!) or the sound of the love song your man (or woman) sings out of tune in your ear.

I’m certain my writing can benefit from me slowing down some when I’m writing and focusing on what my characters are touching, tasting, hearing, seeing and smelling.

Nora Roberts is my go to here.  She clearly doesn’t write at my preferred heat end of the spectrum.  She’s a bit above the midpoint but she’s certainly no writer of explicit sex.  And yet there’s still heat and passion and feeling every time her characters are together (in bed or out of it).  I’m currently ‘re-reading’ (via Audible) her Bride Quartet series and remembering why it’s one of my favourite series.

Give yourself permission to write as yourself

Yes, we’re all driving towards publication and yes, a publisher is going to ask you where you see yourself in a market but you have to write as you first.  If you don’t everything you write will (probably) be shit (and, I should note that’s me saying that, not Anne).  I know when I’m trying to write something I don’t feel it appears on the page as stilted and dull.

This is also a timely reminder for me.  I’ve been working on a manuscript for a while and taken a lot of advice on it – all of which has been really helpful in some respects.  But I need to commit to telling my version of the story and stop trying to tell everyone else’s version of it.  Because if I keep trying to tell everyone else’s version of it, it’ll never get told at all!  I think I’ve done about three drafts of about two-thirds of the book and I’ve yet to write the magic words (a.k.a. ‘The End’).

 

And, on that note, I’m going to write (well, I will be, after I get a coffee!) but if you get the chance to take this course with Anne – do it!  Well worth the investment of time and money for both knowledge and inspiration.

Thanks Anne.

Nov 27

I think I can… the next Sunday Snippet

I’m here.

You’d be forgiven for thinking I was dead… well, maybe not dead but otherwise indisposed or kidnapped or taken by aliens or locked in the Red Room with Christian Grey (actually, that last one could be a maybe, yes please?!) because I’ve missed weeks #2 and #3 of the Sunday Snippet.  But none of those things happened.  Family and life and excuses happened, sure, but nothing notably exciting (and trust me when I’d say I’d let you all know if Christian Grey materialised… I might not share him because I’m a selfish bitch, but I’d let you know).

So, then I startimg_7203ed thinking about what I wanted to write today… and I started scrolling through the photos from the last twelve months that I have on my phone.  Well, I have a ridiculous number of photos on my phone (9000+!) but I decided to work with the last 12 months.  I found this one from the beginning of the year and it got me wondering about New Year’s resolutions.

I didn’t make any resolutions this year – #2015 was tough with lots of family stuff, work stuff and then quitting and starting a new job.  I didn’t want to make any promises or plans – even to myself – just in case something happened to derail everything again.  But as I scrolled through the photos I started to realise I’d had a pretty big year… and thought I’d note some notables below:

  • I met CHRISTINA LAUREN!
  • There are lots of pics of good times with family and friends
  • I saw The Sound of Music, college football in Sydney, and Ellie Goulding (loved her, she was so much better than I expected she’d be)
  • I got tickets for ADELE in 2017!  This was a recent achievement and I’m rightfully chuffed!
  • There are a few sneaky photos of the hot electrician who came to fix some electrical thing under my desk
  • I finished a six month write your novel course, plus went to Readers and Writers Downunder on the G0ld Coast and the RWA Conference – Ain’t Love Grand! – in Adelaide
  • I hung out with some of the best writing peeps I know in courses and at conferences
  • I got to see my footy team, the Mighty Cronulla Sharks win their maiden premiership #upupcronulla and my youngest nephew win his local footy comp
  • I attended a work conference in Darwin – got to explore a new place and meet lots of new people (and try crocodile… which wasn’t bad!)
  • I saw Orlando Bloom’s bits (and no, I have no idea how a photo of naked Orlando came to be saved in my photos app… none at all… I swear!  I know it’s naughty but it’s just one…!)
  • I had the best trip to Seattle, Vancouver and Honolulu to celebrate my 40th (and I’m already planning a return to Seattle… I LOVED it!  Didn’t get to spend much time there)
  • We drank Veuve Clicquot at work on Melbourne Cup Day (seriously, who gets to drink Veuve at work!)
  • I got some awesome photos of the Supermoon thanks to a photography tour I did on my trip
  • My Mum had her brother visit – and her other siblings came over and all had a chance to catch up – they’re all 70+ now and living all over the place so it was nice to see them all in one place for a change (and this is what held me up on writing for one of those missed weekends… but it was probably worth it)

So now, I’m looking to finish up at work for the year in the next week or so and I’m heading off for some (minor, hopefully!) surgery.  I’m hoping that some down time (I’m not going to be able to walk far) will mean a bit more time to write and I’ll get an opportunity to decompress from the work I love but which also drives me mental.

Maybe the end of #2016 will see me think of some resolutions for #2017?

What about you?  Are you already planning your #2017 resolutions?  What are they?  Share with me on Twitter @wordsbykc?

Nov 6

Sunday Snippet #1

Well, hello.  Welcome to Sunday Snippet #1.

My initial week’s effort on NaNoWriMo has been… shall we say… pathetic?  I’ve managed a paltry 87 words.  But I now have 87 more words than I had on 31 October so I’m taking that as a (minor) win.

img_4850Today, there’s been a lot of looking at the computer, then getting up to make a(nother) coffee and reviewing what’s happened on Facebook, and Twitter, and Instagram, and Pinterest.  At least that’s what I was doing until I grounded myself from my devices (the iPad and the iPhone are now far away in my bedroom) and sat down to write my Snippet.

This week’s Snippet is about book-induced anxiety.  Maybe book-exacerbated, not book-induced.  Anyway, let me explain.

I drive to work… and while I drive I usually listen to audio-books.  I also usually listen to them as I fall asleep (it’s like the adult version of someone reading you a story!  Awesome).  Sometimes those books are new to me, sometimes they’re books I’ve already read and loved.  At the beginning of this week I was listening to Dark Wild Night by Christina Lauren.

You need to know that I LOVE ♥ this book.

It’s not the first time I’ve read it – with my eyes or with my ears and Christina Lauren are two of my FAVOURITE authors (and even though I’m not the prettieimg_8409st I’ve ever been in the photo to the right, I had to include it because… OMG, Christina Lauren ♥).

If you’ve read it, you’ll know that our main
character, Lola (or Lorelei) gets caught up in trying to balance all the new facets of her life after college – publication of her graphic novel, the translation of that graphic novel into a feature film and the transition of her relationship with our favourite Aussie (even though the male voice artist in the Audible narration does a terrible Aussie accent) from friends to lovers.

I’m happily listening away… Christina Lauren write some great sex in this book – and then we get to the part where it all starts to go wrong.  I’m listening as I’m falling asleep and I have one of the worst night’s sleep EVER.  Followed up by one of the most anxious drives to work I’ve had in the 11 months or so I’ve been at this job.

Now, I don’t think this is completely Christina Lauren’s fault.

I know I’m already a bit on the anxious side at the moment.  I’m trying to manage a team of six people through a project that involves encouraging managers to performance manage staff who have never been performance managed before.  Some of the team like me… some don’t… and I’m not loving the project (lots of people setting expectations without thinking the consequences all the way through… but I digress).  I’m also trying to polish/finish a manuscript for submission to publishers, have two short stories on deadline (one for an anthology and one for a competition), my uncle’s coming to stay for a week, neither of my parents are 100% healthy and I’m having surgery at the beginning of December.  Oh, and I probably drink too much coffee and Donald Trump still thinks he can be President of the USA (please, USA, get your act together here… I love you and you’re making me nervous).

But I’ve never had quite as strong a reaction to a book – and I knew what was coming!

Reading that, though, and having that reaction, makes me want to perfect my craft.  It makes me want to sit down at the computer and write all the words that will make a reader feel something – whether that’s anxiety or that tingly feeling you get when you meet a new guy or that amazing sensation you get when someone loves you or that sadness you get when you think all is lost.  It also makes me scared that I’ll never quite manage it, that my work won’t go deep enough, won’t be honest enough, won’t have the heart that makes the reader feel all the things.

So, maybe that’s why my writing’s been a bit stymied this week.

But now, it’s time for dinner and then I’ll sit down and have one more run at the manuscript tonight.  Here’s hoping for some wordy progress!

See you next Sunday for Snippet #2.

 

 

 

 

Oct 30

NaNoWriMo

Hello.

So, we all know how incredibly good I am at updating my website, right?

<insert sarcasm sign here>

And, because I don’t have enough to do in the month of November, I thought I might set myself a November Website Updating Goal.  A NoWeUpGo if you will.

My NoWeUpGo is a series of Sunday Snippets.

Each Sunday in November, I’m undertaking to upload a snippet of something to my site.  It may not be long and it will hopefully be good, but every Sunday I’ll whack something together (or find something in the archives) and post it on the blog.  I’ll also probably be reporting on my word count – successfully or otherwise and, if you want to play along with me during NaNoWriMo we can buddy up at: wordsbykristinecharles

Today, in preparation for the Sunday Snippet, I’ve been doing a little warm up, going over some of the blog entries I’ve posted previously and I thought I’d link you to two of my favouries: Cheating and M, N, O and P.

Wait!  Before you click on that link… go find yourself a drink of choice (and yes, if you want to indulge in some alcohol – go for it, it’s always after 12 noon somewhere in the world right?!).  Then come back, settle down and enjoy a little Sunday Snippet with your drink.

I’ll see you back here next Sunday.

 

Dec 19

Master Procrastinator

I’m supposed to be working on my WIP.

IMG_4938

I say supposed to be because, instead, I’m on the couch (in the air-conditioning… it’s been SO hot today!) with my laptop on my lap, watching Carols in the Domain.  And reviewing the sarcastic tweets… It’s hilarious (there is not enough wine in my house to make this pleasurable tonight… it’s like an X-Factor reunion with much off key singing).  At least the WIP is open.

But, given that I’m not supposed to be watching the Carols, and I am supposed to be working on my WIP, I started thinking about procrastination.

I am a Master Procrastinator.  I can pretty much procrastinate anything… if there were awards for such things, I’d have won them all.

Ironically, I procrastinate by reading every self-help guide, book and blog post about procrastination including “Why Procrastinators Procrastinate?” and “How to Beat Procrastination”, “Practical Tips for Dealing with Procrastination” and “How to Get Motivated.  But yet I still procrastinate.

I know I’m not the only one.  So I’m looking for assistance.  What do you do to beat procrastination?

Nov 8

Is it Friday yet?

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It’s probably a bit of a sad reflection on my life that, about 7.45 am every Monday when I walk into the office, I ask a colleague: ‘is it Friday yet?’.

Shortly after asking the question, I regularly observe that we spend more than half of our lives, wishing life away.  Monday through Thursday we look to Friday (and to the precious Saturday and Sunday), going through the motions of living a life, working or studying or parenting, but not really focusing on the now… we’re always focusing on the weekend or the next holiday or grand event or, occasionally, counting the days until some undesirable event passes.

And so, over the last few months, I’ve realised just how valuable it is to love your work (or your study or your parenting or whatever) and how soul sucking it is when you let someone steal from you your love for what you do.  That’s been me for the last 12 months.

On top of that, this year I’ve had parents who’ve both been quite ill (my mother is extraordinary, having just beaten her FOURTH bout of cancer), a sister who decided to chuck in her job without a backup plan (always have a backup plan peeps!), a brother who is about to be made redundant, various other family members who are or have been unwell, a non-smoking colleague who died of lung cancer at 34, another direct report who struggled with the passing of her stepfather, a friend who lost a very close family friend and various other little niggling annoyances that have just added to the almost disaster that has been 2015.

I’m sure, if I asked an astrologer or a psychic, that there’d be a reason for the crazy but, to be frank, I’m not sure I want to know.  And there have also been lots of great things happen this year (although this list is a little harder to write).  But every day I’ve gotten out of bed and shown up to work I’ve asked that same colleague (she must be SO bored with me!) ‘is it Friday yet?’

One of those great things this year (aside from my mum beating cancer #4) was a trip to Edinburgh and303 getting to spend some time with my eldest niece.  During that trip I was moaning about my life to my niece over some stellar cocktails at the Shard… and my niece told me to pull my head out of my ass (not quite in those words, but that was the effect).  So I started a workshop writing course and I hoped that would give me a bit of a new lease on life.  Sadly, it didn’t.  Don’t get me wrong, I love the course but it didn’t make up for going to work every day at a large corporate, dealing with the politics and feeling like I was banging my head against the massive concrete pillar that sits just behind my desk.  I feel like I beat my head against that pillar so much that I occasionally check my forehead for bruises… but, I digress.

Finally, on one day in September, I decided I’d had enough.

I remember that day well, it was the day after my birthday and the day my boss decided to dump a whole lot of vague negative feedback on me and let me stew on it for two and a half weeks while she went on holidays.  I remember sitting in a meeting room for about 10 minutes after she left, teary, feeling absolutely blindsided and wondering what she was talking about.  And, just a sidenote here peeps, my day job is in HR and, to be frank, HR people should know better.  No surprises people, no surprises!

That very same afternoon I started looking for a new job.  And, yay me, it took me one day over six weeks (suck on that boss lady!) to be offered a new role.  Come December 2015, I’ll be in a new position, with a new employer and I just know I’m going to love it.  I’ll be doing what I’m great at, in a place of learning and curiosity, with some great people.  And, while I might have had to take a pay cut (which is probably fair given I won’t be managing eight people anymore!) I’ll have more time to write.  Yippee!

Now, you might be wondering why I’ve just given you a massive rant on my life.

This year, with so many loved ones being ill and my career taking a brief divergence into WTF land, it’s become really clear to me that life is too short.  We all say it, we all know it but we don’t often live it.

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So, I’m here to ask you to stop wishing your life away.  Enjoy every step on your journey.  Take time on a Monday to smell the roses.  Take a sushi making or ceramics class on a Tuesday.  Spend time with your loved ones on Wednesday (if appropriate, you may want to actually hump a loved one on hump day).  Do something special for yourself on a Thursday.  Stop waiting for Friday or Saturday or Sunday to arrive before you live your life.

And, with these words of limited wisdom, I leave you.  I’m going to get myself a coffee and start working on my WIP.  But I’d love to hear from you.  What incident or issue in your life has made you sit up and take notice that life is passing you by?  What special things or experiences do you value in your life?  What do you do for fun?!

Photos (of the office, the stellar cocktails and the steps…) are all mine.

Apr 27

W for Warm

Today’s A to Z Challenge inspiration is brought to you by the letter ‘W’ and the word ‘warm’.

It’s a little more of Gabriella and Antonio. If you haven’t caught up with them, the beginning of their story started in the post for ‘E’ and continued with ‘I’.

Warm. I felt warm from the top of my head to the tip of my toes. He slanted his lips over mine, gently sliding then sucking my bottom lip into his mouth. My hands came up to clench the material of his shirt, pressing into the hard muscle of his chest. This wasn’t my first kiss, it wasn’t my second or my third. But it was the best kiss I’d ever experienced and I guessed I shouldn’t be surprised. It was his profession after all.

“Should we go inside?” he asked, dipping his head to suck on the skin beneath my ear.

“Yes,” I agreed, turning in his embrace and struggling to put my key in the lock. Eventually, with some effort, I managed to open the door and stepped inside, Antonio close behind. But once inside I stopped, with no idea what to do next.

Antonio reached up, easing my coat from my shoulders and taking my handbag, dropping them both on the hall table. 

“Whatever you want,” he murmured, reaching up to touch my cheek and smiling. “How about that wine?”

I nodded, moving quickly into hostess mode, taking a bottle of nebbiolo from my wine rack and pulling two large wine glasses from the rack. I busied myself with pouring while Antonio leaned in the doorway, legs crossed at the ankle and his hands buried in his pockets. I held out a glass to him and he crossed to me in two long steps.

“Cheers.”

See you tomorrow for X marks the spot…

Apr 26

S, T, U and V

Whoops. Behind again… But I’ve not missed 5 posts in a row yet.  Almost but not quite. And that means I’m still in it. Just!

That said, we’re looking at another composite posting today, covering letters S, T, U and V.

And out of some choices… I’ve gone with spoon, tease, unprotected and voluptuous for the word inspiration. As always, let me know what you think!

His strong arms wrapped around me, pulling me back to rest against him. My ass was cradled in just the right place so that, with a lift and a thrust he would be inside me.

And I could feel him, his cock hard and insistent against my lower back. Every so often it would twitch, reminding me it was there. Then he flicked my earlobe with his tongue, nibbling and sucking it into his mouth. He knew that made crazy.

I arched, my breasts pressing into his hand and my ass rubbing against his cock and thighs. I wanted him.

“Please.”

He pushed his cock against me. “You want this?”

I tilted my hips backwards, encouraging him to slip inside. “Yes. Please.”

“Hmmmm.” He cupped my heavy breast in his hand, idly testing it’s weight. “But I’m hungry. Maybe we should eat?”

“You want breakfast?” I wiggled my hips, trying to maneuver his cock into just the right position.

“Mmm, maybe bacon and eggs,” he said, pulling his hips back. “What do you think?”

“I think we can eat later. I think you should fuck me now.”

He laughed, and moved forward, pushing inside me. “Really, is that what you think?”

“Oh, yes.” My breath caught as he slid inside. “Really.”

See you back again tomorrow of the last four days of the A to Z Challenge.

Apr 21

R is for Romance!

Today is brought to you by the letter ‘R’ and the word ‘romance’.

And today I thought I’d try something different. I want to quickly cover off the top five romance authors who inspire me to write.

Click on the names to explore their homepages.

Nora Roberts
Thanks Mum, for introducing me to Nora Roberts. I started reading her Chesapeake Bay series on a trip to the States in around 2004 and I think I’ve worked my way through almost all of them now! The Bride Quartet is one of my all time favourites (I couldn’t tell you how many times I’ve read these… I want to be Laurel!) and the last one I read, the Inn at Boonsboro trilogy, is just lovely. I love the town, I love the ladies and I love the trio of construction working, professional alpha men!

Tara Sue Me
I love Fifty Shades of Grey. But The Submissive Series is better. I’ve read this series a lot… a whole lot (to the point I occasionally think I could quote it to you… One of the best lines from an amazing scene: ”’Do you know that three out of four people fantasize about having sex in public?’ … ‘I’m going to fuck you during the Super Bowl, Abigail.’ He bit down on my earlobe and I sucked in a breath. ‘As long as you’re quiet, no one will know.’”). Tara is continuing the series. I’ve just finished The Enticement and it contains some of the hottest exhibitionism I’ve read. And I love that it all happens within a long term relationship that isn’t perfect. If you haven’t already, do yourself a favour and check Tara out.

Christina Lauren
The Beautiful series. Hot. Hot with a side of fun and chicks who can definitely stick up for themselves. And I want to be Chloe Ryan (nee Mills). She kicks ass. But Bennett Ryan has some stiff competition in the Beautiful series. I’ve just finished Beautiful Secret and, let’s just say, I’m going hunting for Niall Stella when I’m next in London. Seriously. They’ve also got some great characters in the Wild Seasons series too. And some hot sex. All round sensational reads, they’re as fun as their authors seem to be.

Kristen Proby
If you knew me, you’d know I’m really into family, and the importance of family. And With Me in Seattle is the most fabulous family series I’ve found. I also read fast… and Kristen manages to sustain this family story over eight and a bit books, so you get introduced to all the characters and get to share with them over more than one story. In this case, I can’t decide which is my favourite man; the sweet-talking Italian vineyard owner Dominic, businessman Nate with his rough edges or Will, the athlete with a generous heart? But then there’s… well, a girl really shouldn’t be greedy!

Samantha Young
Oh my god, can someone please point me in the direction of a Braden Carmichael?! I love the On Dublin Street series so much, I’m planning a pilgrimage to Edinburgh later this year. I love sharing the ups and downs with this group, I love it when people (okay, characters) find their place. And in these books, Edinburgh is a character of its own. If you haven’t started this series, do yourself a favour and start it right now.

There are also a couple of honorable mentions… In no particular order (click the names for links to their homepages), I love reading:
Alice Clayton
Annabel Joseph
Helena Hunting
Sylvain Reynard
Georgina Guthrie
Olivia Cunning
Christina Lee
Daisy Prescott

And there are more, too many to mention here.

But I do want to take this opportunity to say thank you to all of the writers who write wonderful, strong, beautiful* women, and amazing, generous, gorgeous* men and then share them with the world. I hope that, one day, I can meet you all and say thanks in person (and to compare notes as a fellow writer!).

Now, I’m off to bed… with a good book (Christina Lee’s new one, in fact!)

BTW, just had to qualify the words beautiful and gorgeous as applying both inside and out!

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