So...my first novel was published.

So in the six+ months I've been away from this blog, my first novel was published and I've been reviewed/featured on a few book blogs. :)

Blog Tour:
September 4--Babbling About Books and More
September 3--Amethyst Daydreams
August 21--Beauty in Ruins
August 20--World of Diversity Fiction

Reviews:
Beauty in Ruins--Terror Temptation and Tentacles--it's Tuesday Apocalypse
V.C. ~Author of LGBT Erotica, Glitterotica, and Wicked Romance--Book Review Tuesday Apocalypse

You can buy my book on Amazon and also directly from my publisher, Storm Moon Press. 

Discussing your book

Uhhhhhh...want to see an otherwise functional and intelligent adult morph into a babbling toddler? Yeah. I get cold sweats whenever random strangers/acquaintances ask: "Ohhhh you're a writer? So what is your book about?" It is more nerve-wracking than pitching to an agent. I mean...with an agent, I'm kinda already expecting the agent to either ignore me or reject me on the spot. Querying is very impersonal. However one-on-one conversations are nothing like that at all! You're forced to answer that one-on-one question with a one-sentence summary. "My book is about the Salem Witch Trials, Voodoo, slavery, lesbians, and um...werewolves?" 

This, of course, is followed by another question: "So who are your characters? What's the point?" I have two choices. I can continue the snarky route OR I can actually try to explain what my book is about. 9 times out of 10 I say something snarky because there's nothing more ANNOYING than a self-absorbed writer giving a long soliloquy about their fucking book. I refuse to be that writer. I really do. If I ever get famous (ha!) you're not going to find me on NPR droning on and on. I can't stand that! And I'm kinda uncomfortable talking about my book anyway. I care more about it than this random person and I don't want to waste their time discussing racial, feminist, LGBT politics. 

I need to be better at talking about my book to people...face-to-face. Perhaps I should say: "It's Toni Morrison meets Quentin Tarantino!" so they can scratch their heads and slowly back away from me. I've already decided on a "dedication" to put at the front of the book. "Dedicated to all the Pecolas and Preciouses of the world who found the teeth to bite back!" Yeah. I like the sound of that. 

Status Update 6/12

So I have officially started writing the sequel to the next book. The second book is titled Witching Moon, and it is going to center around the Oyster River Massacre of 1694, two years after the first book ends. Kateri aka the Lily of the Mohawks, is going to be an important character in this book! Frontenac will also make an appearance. I'll introduce more new characters than old ones...but Tituba's nemesis, Abigail Williams, returns to rear her ugly head in a big way. Witching Moon will be less about American colonial life and more about French-Indian-English conflicts. The French-Indian War is just a few decades away and tensions between our young nations is just warming up. Naturally Tituba has to be the catalyst that sets off the war, right? Witching Moon will also be more of a traditional "love story" than the first book. I'm not going to give too much away but there will be...um...sex. Lots of it. With men AND women. Tituba does it all! 


Ideas for the third book are still swirling around in my head but I know there's going to be a pirate ship and an introduction to New Spain. I want to cover ALL of the budding American regions: New England, Acadia (New France), and finally New Spain. I'm reading these fascinating books called "Florida's Frontiers" by Paul E. Hoffman and "Historic Native Peoples of Texas" by William C. Foster. Haven't decided WHERE in New Spain the third book will take place but it will either be in Florida or Texas. 


If and when I find an agent, I'll let you guys know. As of right now, I'm still querying for the first book, Witching Tree. Less than two months into the querying process and I've tried 25 agents. One request. Nine form rejections. More than a dozen no responses. Whew. Gonna keep this up until August. Hopefully I can find an agent before 2013--but I'm doubtful.  
VC

Writing historical fiction SUCKS.

This a partial list of all the books I've read (not just skimmed, ladies and gentlemen, read from cover to cover) to research my novel. I will put these books in my bibliography. 


1. Writer's Guide to Everyday Life in Colonial America by Dale Taylor
2. The Name of War: King Phillips War and the Origins of American Identity by Jill Lepore
3. Red, White, and Black (4th edition) by Gary B. Nash
4. Voodoo Hoodoo Spellbook by Denise Alvarado
5. Creole Religions of the Caribbean by Olmos, Paravisini-Gerbert, and Murphy 
6. Freedom Just Around the Corner by Walter A. McDougall
7. The Spells Bible by Ann-Marie Gallagher 
8. Heritage of the World Civilizations (volume 2) by Kagan and Craig


Let's not forget the books I read just for "inspiration" : 
9. The Crucible by Arthur Miller
10. Brown Girl in the Ring by Nalo Hopkinson (I named one of my characters "Nola" in tribute to Nalo Hopkinson!) 
11. 12. and 13. The Fear Street Saga Trilogy by R. L. Stine 


This list does not even cover the dozens of websites I've poured over in preparation. Before, during, and after the novel was completed I've done nothing but study King William's War, New England Native American Tribes, Puritan and Quaker religions, the Salem Witch Trials, and a host of other crap I can't think of at the moment. I eat, breathe, and sleep the 17th century. I want to be as historically/culturally accurate as I possible, which is why I've taken the time to do so much research. 


And THAT is why writing historical fiction is so sucky. It's tedious. On top of that, you can't just regurgitate all the facts you learn and smear them onto the pages and expect that to work. No, sir, you got to "set the scene" as a proper writer would. You gotta weave that shit in so it looks "organic" and "natural." And THAT is the hardest part for me. Yeah, I can spew tons of useless facts about the Puritans...but so what? How does that pull the reader into the time period? When someone reads my novel, I want them to feel like they are IN the 1690s! But it is so difficult to accomplish this without resorting to info-dumping!  


At times I feel like I am failing to capture the historical-ness of my story. All of my betas expressed SHOCK when I told them my characters were based on the real life historical figures who took part in the Salem Witch Trials. Am I just not getting the historical flavor in there strong enough? *headdesk* This is so hard. It really is. I'm not a history buff but I want people to take my book(s) seriously. Of course I embellish many things about the Salem Witch Trials...no one (to my knowledge) transformed into a werewolf and went on a massive killing spree. But yeah. I don't know.


*Sigh* Spare yourself the trouble and just stay away from writing historical fiction altogether. Over and out, minions. I think my brain is about to explode. 


VC

The Baby Inspector

My horror flash story is published at Sex and Murder magazine! Huzzah! Um...I can't promise you that no babies were harmed in the making of this story. I mean, I think babies are delicious so...yeah. *shrug* 


~Cheers from the Vegetarian Cannibal! 

New Release!!!

My newest publisher has released their first issue with MY poetry! I have three poems published in aaduna's first issue but all of the stories are amazing. I especially like Michelle Tan's, "Belonging To My Body," Cyd Charisse Fulton's, "Good News," Liberation Breed's, "Tuesday's Apocalypse," and Sunil Narayan's, "A Swan Who Wallows In Lotus Laden Ponds." It makes me so proud to be part of a talented and multiculturally diverse bunch of writers. Unlike my fellow colleagues at my other publishers, the writers at aaduna look and write like me. My issues are THEIR issues. I GET them and they get me. 


It's such a good feeling! 


Anyway, it won't cost you a thing, so go check it out when you get the time! 


Go aaduna! Go diversity! 

Winner!

Using random.org I drew my winner...

Congratulations Robin Eduardo! I will need your mailing address so I can ship you a copy of the book. Thanks for wishing the VC a happy birthday, everyone. I really do appreciate it. :) 


Cheers from the Vegetarian Cannibal! 

Her Temptress: Girl Love

"Her Temptress" is now out for sale at Sapphire Blue Publishing. I wrote a quick promo over on the SBP blog. If you're interested in reading that, CLICK HERE. However...for YOU guys on my blog, I'm gonna give you all the gory details. I got stuff I can't say on SBP 'cuz they'll probably fire me, lol! 

By now you've guessed by the title that "Her Temptress" is a girl love story. Well, it is. And lots and lots of it too. This story was so erotic that I, as the author, was TOO EMBARRASSED to get certain sentences out!!! (I am not kidding!) Especially when I wrote the love scenes...I was blushing like a sunset!

I challenged myself to write the naughtiest stuff I could, thinking that if I could write something THIS raunchy, I could write ANYTHING. Now I hardly bat my eye at love scenes, but man, writing the love scene for this story was an experience in and of itself.  I was so paranoid that everyone in the coffee shop was peeking over my shoulder as I wrote, HAHA! I was literally freaking out in my seat! 

Of course, I could've made it easier on myself by NOT writing the love scenes in public...but where would the fun be in that? I gotta say, the danger of being "caught" kinda added to what I was writing in the story...so I hope readers pick up on that. 

I try to have fun when I write a story. Really, I do. My odd sense of humor has served me well thus far, so I hope I can continue doing what I love. I'll do a silly Smexxxy Friday tomorrow about my characters.  When I get my free copies, I'll also do a book giveaway! 

~Cheers from the Vegetarian Cannibal! 

My First Single-Title Release

Oh yeah...I'm dancing in my seat, y'all! I actually missed the email from my publisher telling me that it was published two days ago. Aren't I smart? LOL? But yeah, my book is OUT, baby! W00t! My first single-title release with my own cover art and MY name on the cover! *dancing and snapping fingers* 


It's a lesbian erotic short story and it costs a little over a buck. Pretty please check it out? Here's the LINK. I'll write a "professional promo" on it over at the Sapphire Blue Blog. But for now, I'm just going to bask in my newfound success and squeal in my seat, haha!