Ink in the Book

Click here for the Celebrate the Small Things Blog Hop Click here for the WIP it Good Blog Fest Happy Friday y'all!!

I think the days go by faster every week because I cannot believe it's Friday already! Today, I'm thankful we finished my teen daughters room. She decided to paint it and she picked out tan, sea foam green and red. Her bathroom is fire engine red and her room is green and tan with red accents. She's got owls everywhere! It took us four days. Now we are moving into my 4yo daughters room. She want pink and purple and red, Hmmm... What about you beautiful guys and dolls? What are you so happy about this week? Please leave a comment!

Thanks to DL Hammons for organizing this blogfest. When I read about it, I was really super excited because I was working on a WIP and couldn't wait to share some things about it. So, without further delay, lets get to the heart of the matter!! WIP Title: FRENCH KISSED Word Count (projected/actual so far): Hope to reach 70,000 Genre: Adult Historical w/romantic elements How long have you been working on it?: Just in the outlining stages, planning and pulling ideas together with only about one-third written. Elevator Pitch (if you came across an agent in an elevator ride, what couple of lines would you use to summarize your book): Before the Hatfields and McCoys, the French and Eversole feuds bloodied the hollers of Hazard, Kentucky. Brief Synopsis (250 words or less): --> Before the Hatfields and McCoys, the French and Eversole feuds bloodied the hollers of Hazard, Kentucky. Sadie Eversole will do anything to prove she loves Clay French, even if it b...

Our last showing is: SECONDARY CHARACTERS When Mabel's best friend, Amber, drags her along on a double date she finds herself falling for Lance, the obnoxious class clown whom she swore she'd have no interest in. The only problem is, she's not sure if she's really the girl Lance is into, or if, like every other guy she knows, it's really Amber he's after. One thing is clear, if Mabel wants to be the lead in her own love story, she needs to start acting like it. _____________________________________ Hi Rachel and thanks for stopping by! 1. .      If you could cast your main characters, who would you choose to play them? This isn't something I used to think about, but now that I'm on Pinterest I know exactly who I would pick! Colton Hayes would play Lance, love his big smile! And Alice Greczyn would play Mabel. She's so cute and even has the freckles! 2.        What would your movie tagline be? T...

CHARM AND CONSEQUENCE (SNARK AND CIRCUMSTANCE, #2) One superior smirk from Michael Endicott convinces sixteen-year-old Georgia Barrett that the Devil wears Polo. His family may have founded the postcard-perfect New England town they live in, but Georgia’s not impressed. Even if he is smart, good looking, and can return Georgia’s barbs as deftly as he returns serves on his family’s tennis courts. After all, if Michael actually thinks she refuses to participate in lab dissections just to mess with his grade, he’s a little too sure that he’s the center of the universe. Could there be more to Michael Endicott than smirks and sarcasm? If Georgia can cut the snark long enough, she just might find out. ________________________________ Hi Stephanie and thanks for stopping by! 1.  If you could cast your main characters, who would you choose to play them? Wow.  This is tough.  I would definitely  cast  John Mayer's hair to play the top of Michael E...

Hello and welcome to the SUMMER OF LOVE Blog Tour Drive-In Theater! Our first showing today is:             ADVANTAGE HEARTBREAK (A GAME. SET. MATCH. HEARTBREAK #2) Seventeen-year-old Meg Flannigan thought she’d made up her mind about love. But with two guys still vying for her attention, she wonders if she made the right decision. Ash is everything she’s ever wanted in a boyfriend: loyal, loving, and totally hot. But then there’s Noah: fun, sexy, and the more he sticks around, the more Meg wants him there. What’s a girl to do? Make up her mind, before it’s too late. Gorgeous freshman Liz has set her sights on Ash, and Noah is beginning to remind Meg of her last boyfriend—the one who broke her heart. Can she figure things out before she ruins not one, but two relationships? Or is she doomed to serve up heartbreak?   ____________________________________  Hi Kelly and thanks for stopping by! ...

Hey guys! Sorry I'm posting so late-- it's been quite the busy day! So really quickly I just want to share something I think will help with your WIP, whether you're revising or just getting started. So go grab a piece of paper and a pen, and follow along :) First, I want you to make three columns. Got it? Good. Now in the first column, write your Main Character's full name (or names' if you have a dual POV). In the second column, write the full names of your secondary characters, the ones that interact directly with your MC to further the plot or his/her story. In the last column, write down the names of all the periphery characters, the ones that show up once or twice but really have no significant impact on the story. Good. There are two reasons for this. First, you'll catch any names that are way too similar, and can change them. Second, you can figure out if there are any characters you can merge or get rid of altogether. Make sure the characters that...

Whoop! I almost forgot today's celebration! That's because I am celebrating this weekend! I am thankful for my family and home.  My heart goes out to all those in Oklahoma. I am praying for you all. What are you beautiful guys and dolls thankful for for this week? Thank you Vikki for hosting this lovely blog hop :)

Hi everyone! It's Jess here to talk to you about the big news from yesterday. Yesterday, Amazon.com announced its newest publishing feat. Although the publishing service doesn't officially launch until June,  Kindle Worlds  is already creating a buzz on social media. It all started with this  press release  which briefly discussed this publishing model for fanfiction writers. Basically, Kindle Worlds will allow fanfiction writers to potentially profit from their work in a fully legal (although that's questionable) way. However, there are a number of catches that give me pause. The first involves the number of fandoms which can initially profit from this model. As of now, only fanfiction writers who pen stories for Gossip Girl, Vampire Diaries, and Pretty Little Liars can take part (as they are owned by the only company thus far to sign an a-okay for its copyrighted material). It is assumed that Amazon will acquire more licenses from copyright holders, but it...

Hey guys! I know, I've been gone this week. So sorry guys:( I've been so busy, I can't keep up with how busy I am! I've got a very busy summer and it's all a good busy, so I'm not complaining! For today's post, I'm going to leave you a few tips for your WIP. These tips all come from literary agents that I've collected the past few weeks. 1. Does your book begin with some sort of "false" scene? Such as a dream. Or maybe you have this awesome character the reader falls in love with and by they end of the first chapter, he dies. These types of scenes should be avoided. 2. Too much description of the world building or setting. I've learned this the hard way! Description is nice and it's needed to bring a reader the world of your story, But too much is boring and it's an over kill of unnecessary details that will either make the reader skim, or stop reading. 3. This one is controversial, but I'm sticking it in my list o...

Ancient Egypt Video The Egyptian Museum here at Ink in the Book contains an extensive collection of Egyptian antiquities; no visit to Ink in the Book Blog Tours is complete without a trip through its galleries. Designed in the Egyptian Ink style, the Egyptian Museum boasts 5 artifacts dating from the prehistoric periods, with the majority of the collection focused on the Kiya: Hope of the Pharaoh , written by Katie Hamstead HOURS OF OPERATION: Open daily, 9:00 AM-7:00 PM TICKET COST: General Admission: One comment in this blog post. For every comment, you will be entered into a random drawing for a hieroglyphic graph...

Happy Friday everyone!! It's a small party today! Why? Because I'm celebrating the small things ! 1. My daughter survived her vaccines yesterday. She was so precious. She said, "Mommy, I can do this." and she asked me to pray for her. And she was so brave and sweet! Two shots in each arm and a little trickle down her cheek. I'm thankful it's over... What about you, beautiful guys and dolls???? Thanks, Vik!!

Hey, it's Jess! Today I kind of just wanted to do a quick post on music in writing or revising your WIP. I think a lot of writers use playlists, and I for one find them incredibly inspiring. So I'm going to share my current playlists! Since GYRE is written in two alternating POVs, I seem to have gravitated to two vastly different (and yet sometimes incredibly similar) artists. For Chelsea, my firecracker rocker-girl turned archaeologist, Fall Out Boy's new album Save Rock and Roll appears to hit the mark. There's a little bit of proving one's worth in it weaved with a "I'm back and rockin'" statement that I just can't tear away from. I LOVE it so much! For Trevor, a more laid back but just as intense album came to my attention: Imagine Dragon's Night Visions (which you can listen to in full here ). There are a few more peppy, happy songs on this album, which works well with GYRE's light scenes. And, with songs like Radioactive,  On ...

Hey beautiful guys and dolls! Sorry I missed yesterday's Mixed Ink. I had to take my daughter to the Dr. Today, I'd like to discuss more on finding your writer's voice. When writing, make sure you go deep into your character's voice, and be careful not to let you, as the author, shine through. Use emotion and don't be afraid to let your thoughts shine through. Remember, your voice is unique and original already just because YOU ARE YOU. No one else int he world thinks like you or sees things the same as you. Use this to your advantage! Be brave. If you feel vulnerable and fearful of your voice, then GOOD! You are moving in the right direction. Why? Because this is your strength. You've got something no other writer has. And once you conquer that fear, know your voice is peaking out from behind all that vulnerability. That's it for today. Is your voice hiding behind the real you? What are you doing to put that fear to rest?

Hey beautiful guys and dolls:) Lets celebrate!! So sorry to miss last Friday. I was in the midst of the Write Voice and I'm so glad I did. As most of you know, I got picked by MissAwesomesauce, Brenda Drake:) Woo Hoo!!! I have so much to celebrate this weekend. Let's see: 1. It's finally warm spring weather! 2. School summer break is here:) 3. I made it into the Write Voice!!! What about you, my friends? What are you happy about this week?

Hi everyone :) I hope everyone's having a great week. It's Jess here to quickly talk about your WIP. If you're like me and in a Revision Cave, I think the quote above will do you some good. Don't be afraid to completely rip your first draft apart. It hurts, sure, but think how awesome it will be in the end! So tear it apart-- find the things that work and the ones that don't. If you are looking for things to take out in order to make your first draft as strong as it can be at this stage, here are a few ideas: Take out unnecessary characters.  Trim or add scenes accordingly.  Add world building, or take out anything that's just too much.  Watch out for passive voice, ly-words and other adverbs.  Be sure to take out any helping verbs and back story.  Most important of all, take out places where you tell instead of show. Show  us what your characters are going through, don't tell  us. Don't be afraid to rip your WIP's first ...

It feels wonderful to be back to posting on my regular schedule! I had such a fabulous time during the A to Z Challenge. I met a ton of new blog friends and found some great blogs to stalk:) But... I love my regular posts and I'm glad I'll be getting back into the groove of things! So for today, I'm getting back to tinted ink, those creative ideas and inspirations that add color to your writing! I am planning a short series on VOICE. I'm inspired by the contest, The Writer's Voice You remember my post from a few days ago? The one where I posted my query and first 250 words? Well, guess who picked me to coach me and help me make my entry perfectly lyrical and lovely? Yes!! Brenda Drake! I'm so honored to be on her team!! Wish me luck, beautiful guys and dolls because I feel a breath of fresh air headed my way!! Anyway...back to Voice How do you find your voice? How do you know when it's perfectly in tune? Here's a few tips: Be true to your...

Hi everyone, Jess here :)   I’ll be posting more often now that the A-to-Z Challenge is over. Today, I have the pleasure of posting an interview I did with new Space Opera Science Fiction writer,  K.J. Blaine ! In a series that started with the release of  Gynocracy  (although it’s not the first book, chronologically), Blaine pulled readers through an epic space opera series with heart wrenching moments, terrifying villains and nonstop, adrenaline-pumping action. More of a fantasy fan? Don’t worry! Blaine also has a fantasy trilogy published under the name Caprice Hokstad, which can be found  here. Telepaths & Traitors, available on   Amazon.com. The year is 2042 and mankind has colonized the solar system. The International Space Alliance has emerged in response to the lawlessness teeming in the new frontier. The ISA's most advanced ship, the   Phoenix , has a mission of both peacekeeping and scientific r...