I feel so violated...

Looks like my hotmail account has been hacked... Sorry anyone who's got a mountain of spam off me. Since it's a pretty old account, I'm just going to call it quits and switch over entirely to my newer "IR professional riter" account, something I've been meaning to do for ages anyway. Bear with me while I mess around with all this crazy hi-tech wizardry...

Guest Blogger - David Bridger

I'm very excited to have David Bridger guest blogging for me today following the relase of his debut paranormal romance, BEAUTY AND THE BASTARD. How's that for a title? I was lucky enough to read an early version of this story a while back, and I knew then that David had something special on his hands. I'm of course delighted to be proved right and see BEAUTY AND BASTARD reach well-deserved publication. David created two great, memorable characters in Saul and Rebecca, and I'd encourage everyone to grab a copy and enjoy their story. So, take it away, David:

My Writing Communities

Thanks for inviting me to talk here today, Naomi. I'm thrilled to bits about the release of Beauty and the Bastard, and sharing this exciting day with friends like you really is the sweetest part of it.

I'm fortunate to have good friends in several writing communities on the internet.

My most recent addition to this group of communities is the forum at my publisher, Liquid Silver Books, where I've found a warm welcome and a lovely supportive community of readers, publishers, editors and authors.

Forward Motion wasn't the first writers' forum I tried, but it was the first one where I felt both completely at home and continually encouraged by the creativity and constructive helpfulness I found there. I still feel that way. It's my oldest home on the web.

Next oldest for me is Litopia, a writer's colony with a long-standing internet forum that is growing in exciting ways this year, from the instantly popular Muse ezine to the expansion of our podcast schedule towards a 24/7 streaming radio station for writers and readers. I'm a mod in the forum, one of the acquisitions editors for Radio Litopia (which will take to the air later this year) and an occasional member of the panel on live broadcasts of the Friday show Litopia After Dark.

The home I found most recently before Liquid Silver Books, one year ago this month in fact, is Romance Divas. It's difficult to explain in a few words just how important Romance Divas has been for me. Apart from the lovely friends I've made there, and the superb quality of workshops and support available, the mature and focused professionalism of the place made a significant impact on me just when I was ready for it. Without Romance Divas, I wouldn't be published today.

I'm on Twitter of course, where my followed and followers are pretty much an aggregate of all my friends from everywhere else.

And, finally, I opened a YouTube account recently. Come and say hello if you're on there.

Say hello anywhere you see me! I love keeping up with old friends and making new ones! :)

David's debut publication is the paranormal romance novella Beauty and the Bastard.

Saul the Bastard is a fallen angel who works as a bounty hunter for powerful urban demon families. Rebecca Drake, a modern day demon princess, is being hunted by dangerous desert demons. When Rebecca’s family hires Saul to protect her, they are both unhappy with the arrangement, but before long sparks fly as they try to resist their strong mutual attraction. For the first time in living memory, Saul has someone to love; someone he is scared of losing; someone the desert demons have marked to be their next sacrifice.

A writer is a person for whom writing is more difficult than it is for other people - Thomas Mann

I find that if I'm going to abandon a project, it usually happens around the 5 - 10k mark. I have so many WIPs languishing on my laptop around this length. And I keep promising myself I'll go back to them one day, but it's a filthy lie. I won't. I'll just plunder the best parts and use them elsewhere.

Thus, it is something of a relief to have made 20k on BLOOD HUNT. The groundwork is set, and the juicy stuff is coming up! Now I just have that usual panic of "OMG, I don't have enough plot to make 70k!" I might have to throw in a fire or something. Angry mobs like fires, right?

20117 / 70000 words. 29% done!