A Writer's Guide to Successful Blogging, Part 2

Today's Successful Blogging topic is all about time management. You can get so sucked into blogging and social networking that you lose sight of what you're supposed to be doing in the first place: writing! Or, you can be such a good little writer, churning out word after word, that you kinda neglect your blog until it has tumbleweeds and cobwebs. How do you find the time?

One of the best features to take advantage of (on both Blogger and Wordpress, as well, I'm sure, as other blogging platforms) is advance post scheduling. You can get your post(s) all set up and ready to go, then schedule them to post at the desired date and time. So if you have a particularly productive day where you hammer out four posts, you can schedule them and have extra time later on. This also helps with my second point:

Pick a schedule and stick to it. Even if it's just "I'll post on the first Monday of every month", that's fine. It gives your readers something to look forward to. I know, I know. Believe me, I know what you're thinking. But do as I say, and not as I do on this one, mmkay? Maybe one of these days I'll take my own advice here haha.

To finish up this post, I've invited Dean C. Rich, writing friend extraordinaire from AQC, to tell you how he's found the time to blog. He's quite the busy man, and he's only been at this blogging thing for about a month and a half, and he's doing well. Check out his blog for a new time management tip every Thursday.

Take it away, Dean!

J. Lea Lopez has become a great cyberfriend. I met her in the forums and Wednesday night chat sessions at Agent Query Connect. I am honored to be a guest blogger on her blog.

I’ve set up a blog of my own, and I have a very full plate. I have three children at home, one is a dancer, two sons in show choir, and all three play instruments. My wife works full time and I am a general manager working 60+ hours a week. So yes, I have a very full plate.

J. Lea and a few others at AQC suggested, no scratch that, urged, well no not urged, insisted on members setting up a twitter accounts, and a blogs. (Oh Dean, you make it sound like we were cracking the whip! *wink*) You must have a platform. I thought no way can I do a blog, twitter, write, and keep up with my professional life and family life.

However, as a writer you need a platform. You need to be involved in a writing community. AQC is a great place to start.  (I will blog about that on my own blog another time.) The community taught me to twitter. They got me to blog. Slowly I am building a following. I was very hesitant to blog, but my friend J. Lea really helped me get started. She suggested I build the blog but not tell anyone about it until I was more comfortable. So I hinted to my friends at AQC that I was working on it, and I even managed to build some anticipation to the “unveiling” of the blog. Twitter went from 10 AQC friends to over 100 followers. My blog now has 13 followers, seven are friends I’ve made from AQC, but the others have just arrived. So I will say I’ve some success with my blog and twitter. I am making some great friends doing this. (And if I may interject again, Dean, with his 13 lovely followers, consistently has more comments on his posts than I did at that stage. Or even now, with 68 followers. Ahem. Just sayin'. :-P)

I know J. Lea has already talked about auto post, (this works great for me!) I like routines. Routines help me get so much done! The ebb and flow of the week gives me a few windows to write for my blog.  It also helps to post a schedule on the blog. This makes you accountable to your readers.  Accountability is important, it introduces self discipline, and forces you to make a commitment to your blog, and your readers. (Eventually you will gain readers.)

My goal is to post at least one item a week. To achieve my goal I decided to be true to the blog's theme, Time. So for me the only thing that is an absolute with my blog at this point is Thursday’s Time Tip. I must post a time tip every Thursday. Although my blog has room for other things I am committed to posting once a week. Eventually I may post themes on other days of the week, but I've left that open right now. I do have plans to expand the blog in the future.  I currently have slots for tips on writing, excerpts on my work, as well as essays from my life, a get to know you type thing.

The important thing is to make up your mind to do something, then build a way to make it work.

15 minutes for twitter a week. 20 to 40 minutes a week to write at least one post for the blog. Auto post will make it happen at the same time every week. Find a rhythm, a routine, stick with it and some level of success will come your way.

Happy blogging! 

Noirotica: A Subgenre Mashup!

This is an entry for Chuck Wendig's Flash Fiction Challenge. This week's prompt was a sub-genre mash-up where we had to choose two sub-genres from his list and mash 'em up into a thousand words or less of flash fiction fabulosity. Thanks to Michelle Simkins and Suzanne Payne who read the first draft of this story. I made some changes (and got it within the word limit, woo hoo!) Still not sure if it's very noir, but I tried! Without further ado, I am pleased to present you my "noirotica" story, Lady Dick.

Moonlight is diffused by the fog outside the window, casting a silvery glow over the chair where he sits. I see what Shelly must've seen in him. But despite the handsome face, there's a meanness behind his eyes, even as he grins up at me now. They match his name, those eyes.

Dan Ire's ads make him seem more like a hitman than a private investigator. Call Dan – he's your Ire for hire! I want to laugh at how pathetic he is. But Dan thinks he loves me. He “loved” Shelly, too. At least Shelly thought so, until she showed up at my office with a black eye and busted lip.

Dan doesn’t know he and I are in the same business. Lady Dick. No better than Ire for Hire, but I don't advertise that way. That’s the nickname some of my cop buddies gave me when I left the force. Sometimes the law doesn't know what's best. 

Dan thinks I'm a lonely widow who needs him to track down money stolen by my dead husband's business partner. Flash a little cleavage, smear on some trashy red lipstick, and Dan Ire will bend over backward to take your case. He's also bent me over a few times since he took the case. Can't say I didn't like it. The man's got stamina.

I sit atop the desk in front of him, sipping the watered-down whiskey from the bottle reserved for clients. I know damn well there's another bottle in the bottom drawer that he keeps for himself. Cheap bastard.

“Like I said,” I uncross my legs and rest one foot on his thigh, “I can't pay the rest of your fee yet. I'm sorry.”

“I don't feel right asking for it, seeing as I didn't find anything.” He talks to my leg, his eyes fixed on the lace top of my stocking. A black garter disappears under the hem of my coat. He licks his lips and looks up. “Let me keep looking. Just a couple weeks.

And then charge me for the extra effort. Scumbag. I put on my best pout.

“I guess by then I'd have the money, if I pick up some extra shifts at work.”

He loves a damsel in distress.

“Baby, I wouldn't dream of taking your money.”

Besides the $5000 I paid up front. I drain the rest of the whiskey in one swallow and set the glass down.

“I know how to pay you back.”

“The money isn't--” He stops when I start unbuttoning my jacket.

These past few weeks I let him think that every time we fell into bed, or I let him shove me up against a building in some seedy back alley and cop a good feel, it was because he was so fucking irresistible and I couldn't help myself, but it was all business. I hadn't expected the sex to be so damn good.

With the last button undone, the coat slips off my shoulders. There's nothing underneath but stockings and a garter belt.

“Christ, Mags.” He shifts in the chair. That bulge in his trousers must be getting uncomfortable. He can't take his eyes off my thighs and their eventual destination. I know he can see how aroused I am.

Despite my hatred, he gets me hotter than blacktop in July.

The hardwood floor will probably bruise me, but I kneel anyway.

“There's a blanket--”

I put a stop to his worry with a kiss. His concern for me was superficial at best until this past week. I was a fucktoy and a source of income, until suddenly I wasn't. I bite his bottom lip.

“Ow! Mags, that--”

I silence that, too, with my hand in his pants. So easily I shut him up. He'll only love me until suddenly he doesn't anymore, and then what? Then it's bruises and broken bones, like Shelly. Or worse.

Freed from his trousers, his cock beckons me, thick, unflagging. I love to make it yield.

He loves the slow movement of my tongue.

“Oh Maggie.” He leans back as I slide him past my lips, over my tongue, to the back of my throat. “Ah, fuck.”

He loves to see my red lipstick smeared up and down his shaft. I hate how much I like seeing it there, too.

Dan thinks he's a man's man – wife-beater, unscrupulous businessman, and all-around sonofabitch. Yet my tongue reduces him to a soft, panting heap. I could overlook all that when the job was over if he'd just keep making my toes curl for hours on end.

But that all changed when I found the videos. The same man who thinks he loves me takes deprave to a whole new level. The thought nearly makes me choke, but I don't.

He loves how I can take him without gagging. He fits just so.

I hate myself for loving how he feels inside me. Do I hate him more?

“Oh Maggie. God yes, Maggie.”

I hate the begging way he says my name. I want to scream at him to be a real man and fuck me, not some girl on a tape who looks like she's barely in high school.

I stand without warning. He's had enough. I've had enough.

“Mags, what in the hell!”

“Ssh. Just wait.”

He settles back into the chair again. I reach into my purse on the desk.

Shelly hired me to find something she could use to drag his name through the mud. I found it. But he doesn't deserve to get up from the dirt, and sometimes the law doesn't know what's best.

I turn and sink a bullet into his forehead before his eyes even focus on the gun.

Then I slip my coat on, pull the belt tight,and steal away into the night mist.

SheWriter Blogger Ball!

The fabulous Meg Waite Clayton is hosting a blog meet-and-greet of sorts for SheWrites.com members, so I thought I'd introduce Jello World to other SheWriters. For a list of participating blogs and instructions on how to get in on the action, click the bookcase above! I've got my dancing shoes on and am ready to twirl around on the arms of various bloggers so that we all might say How do you do? So without further ado, here is my introduction to me!

I am an aspiring novelist, with a few short pieces published in online venues (click the My Writing tab above for titles and links!) I write mostly commercial women's fiction and erotica. I love networking and socializing online with other writers... probably too much. In addition to SheWrites, you can usually find me lurking around Agent Query Connect, where I moderate a critique group, or occasionally posting snippets over at Fictionaut.

I have a penchant for jello (hence the blog name) and sometimes compare it to both life and writing. My adorable dachshund occasionally makes an appearance on the blog, although she's kinda pissed right now because we moved across the state, and therefore has not been especially adorable or cuddly. Writing (and reading!) erotica is tons of fun for me, but I have pet peeves about what currently passes for good erotica. I tend to develop writerly crushes on folks, and when I do, I'll promote their writing/blog/whatever with reckless abandon. All of these things - and more! - you will find if you stick around Jello World for a while. So, welcome! I look forward to meeting the rest of you!

WPHC9P6BTVA8

A Writer’s Guide to Being Sexy

…in your writing. Sorry, I can’t help you with the real thing.

Whether you’re writing hardcore erotica, sizzling romance, or just a single scene requiring some Tab A into Slot B action, I’m here to help you bring the sexy back with this series on sexy writing.

Today we’ll talk about the language of the scene.

Let’s face it: it’s very easy to write a bad sex scene. You run the risk of clinically sterile language, or the opposite – coarsely pornographic language. There’s also the potential for unintended comedy. I don’t want that to happen to any of you, so I’ve compiled a few guidelines. Note that I didn’t say rules. It’s up to you to decide if/when to use each of these tips. And fergawdsakes, don’t overdo it with any of them!

More descriptors ≠ more sexy

Breasts are not made any more appealing when described as amazingly perky, round, brown sugar-colored globes of desire. Really? Would you say that to your partner, or want it said to you in a moment of passion? ‘Course not. You/they would likely burst into a fit of laughter. Stick to one, maybe two descriptors, or let the image stand on its own. This also ties into my next point:

Euphemisms are your enemy

If everyone calls it a cock, there’s probably a good reason. Don’t go trudging through the thesaurus looking for other names for human anatomy. Abandon the above mentioned globes and just call them breasts. Or maybe your character would say tits. Titties and boobies are giggle-worthy and should be avoided at all times, in my opinion.

When in doubt, revert to the standard slang, or DON’T NAME BODY PARTS at all. Yeah, you heard me. She let go a breathy moan as he pushed into her. No need to say what pushed where – we already know.

Here are some tried-and-true words to use (try not to blush):

• cock
• tits
• ass
• breasts
• dick
• pussy
• clit

C*nt has become much more mainstream of late, but I’d be careful with it. I won’t even type the actual word here, and I won’t say it. I just don’t like it, and that’s a personal preference. But of course, if it fits the character you’re writing, it may be appropriate. Use it sparingly, at your own risk. I think it even sounds awful. Go ahead, say it out loud (preferably when you’re alone – not on the bus or at work). It’s guttural – all hard consonant sounds. Doesn’t scream sexy to me. Which brings me to my last point for today:

Pay attention to sound

No, not those sounds. Yuck. I’ll leave that for another post. I mean, pay attention to how the words you choose sound to the ear. I don’t know about you, but even when reading silently to myself, I still hear the words in my head, and, to a lesser extent, feel them in my mouth (oh boy, you’re gonna have a field day with that phrase, I’m sure.)

Never underestimate the sexiness of well-placed alliteration. His thumb slid over the sliver of skin peeking out above the waistband of her jeans. That s sound is just sensual, both to hear and to say, isn’t it?

To me, open, round vowel sounds as well as softer consonant sounds like f, h, and l (to name a few) can be the sexiest. The heat of his breath sends a slow shiver from the nape of her neck to her toes. Mmm, sounds yummy, right?

To contrast, clipped vowels and hard consonant sounds often are the least sexy. You’d do well to notice that most of your standard curse words have this characteristic – fuck, shit, bitch, etc. I’m not saying there’ll never be a place for an urgently whispered Fuck me! in your manuscript – there is certainly occasion for something like that. But an entire scene, or even just a few sentences, full of those types of words can really kill the mood.

Especially use this guideline any time you’re thinking of some anatomical euphemism. As I mentioned, c*nt sounds harsh to me. Words like rod and pole don’t sound particularly sexy either, and even invoke painful images at times. Unless you’re writing some sort of BDSM scene, these are not the images you want to paint in your reader’s mind.

Keep these tips in mind the next time you write a sex scene, and I promise you’ll have something that gets the heat level rising. Next time I’ll discuss realism when writing sex, so I hope you’ll stay tuned!

Do you have any favorite words that you find super sexy, or words that make you cringe?

Round Robin Blogvel

It's a blog tour! It's a novel! It's a Round Robin Blogvel! The witty and talented Michelle Simkins came up with this idea of a traveling blog novel and has recruited 17 other writer-bloggers in addition to herself to write it.

And, lucky YOU, readers - I'm one of them!

There will be a chapter by a different writer every week, on their own blog. Michelle, since she is the mastermind of it all, is going to write the first and the last chapters. The blogvel is called Skeleton Key, and chapter one is live, RIGHT NOW! You can see it on Michelle's blog. Chapters will post each Monday on the appropriate blog. Click the Blogvel tab at the top of this page to find the schedule and blog links. I hope you'll follow along and leave your feedback!