An Acknowledgement
My journey to being a writer was set on its way by different people at different times.
I'd like to acknowledge and thank them for their contribution and lead you to the work of real masters of their craft.
My first inspiration was multi award winning author Linnea Sinclair, whose books showed me that heroines can be sassy while heroes could have flaws and still be as sexy as hell. I have done a couple of online courses with Linnea and found her very helpful and very knowledgable about the craft. She writes Science Fiction Romance at its very best.
My next muse, was Mima who showed me that romance could get very hot indeed and basically introduced me to the world of erotica. A recent winner of an Eppie for best Science Fiction erotica, Mima shows how menage should be written. Once again, she has been very helpful with her advice and ecouragement.
Participation in the inaugural Australian Romance Readers convention introduced me to the next author, Denise Rossetti. Winner of the 2008, 2009 RWA (US) Passionate Plume award, she not only showed me Australian authors can become players on the world stage, but she also introduced me to the world of m/m writing. At a lunch date when I interviewed her for another blog, she mentioned how much she enjoyed reading the free online m/m epic "Special Forces".
This then led me - as garden paths do - to Aleksandr Voinov aka Vashtan one of the co-authors of that monumental epic. Alex graciously allowed me on the beta-reading team to edit the first book "Soldiers" into a "Director's Cut" version. It is still available as a free download. In the coming months, we plan to tackle the next book in the series: "Mercenaries". "As-you-write" online publishing has immediacy but it can also create stylistic and logic problems. Trimming and rewriting a 1,000,000 word epic which took two and a half years to write will probably be an ongoing task for some months.
Alex invited me to participate in the anthology "Echoes of the Future" for which I will be forever grateful. Breaking into the scene as a newbie author is not an easy task. The world of epublishing has certainly made it easier, however it still needs that first big "break". So, once again, thanks Alex.
Now that I am a published author, my learning role is really only just starting. Two other people are helping me develop my craft. The first of these is Jill Noble, whose Noble Romance Publishing company not only gave me my first sale but also set an incredibly high standard of editing. Already, my writing and those of books I edit for others, have benefitted from Jill's advice and corrections.
Last, but not least. I am learning to "Man 'em up Dude" by the m/m writing guru, Josh Lanyon. I have survived harsh but deserved criticism and, in doing so, improved my writing skills. I am still learning but, hopefully, one day, I will succeed in writing characters my readers will love as much as I do.
Other writers have helped me on the way. In fact, all the authors I've ever corresponded with have been incredibly supportive. Many, many thanks to all of you.
A good, free source of basic craft hints and wisdom
Morgan Hawke writes erotica. She makes no bones about that. But even if you're writing sweet romance, some of the advice and examples she gives are a great help. When stuck, I often check back to her notes for advice.
