Badurday- July 2, 2010- the “I’ll Be Slaying You” Edition

SFCATTY: I’m proud to say that we have a very special guest for this Badurday.  The ladies of the Southern Sizzle blog are proud to have the ultra cool Cynthia Eden as a friend and as a Gulf Coast Chapter RWA co-member. This week marks the release of her book  I’ll Be Slaying You. Since she likes bad boys as  much as I do, I invited her to be a guest this week to mark the  occasion of this release.  So, without further ado, I turn you over to Cynthia.

Ok. I lied- there is further ado: Check these bad boys from Cynthia:

CYNTHIA:    Hi, everyone! Thanks so much to the Sizzlers for inviting me to participate in the Bad Boy Fun. When I was told that Saturday was actually “Bad-urday”—oh, I was excited!

I love bad boys.  Those guys who have a bit of a dark side (or, okay, a VERY big dark side) get to me every time. Those men walk on the edge. They know danger. They know adventure. They are sexy.

One of my favorite bad boys is Riddick from Pitch Black (this movie hooked me on Vin Diesel). Riddick is a convicted killer. He probably shouldn’t have been so attractive. He was. He saved the day with his deadly skills and awesome, um, physique.

Another favorite bad boy is, of course, Spike (from Buffy the Vampire Slayer). I frequently mention my love for Spike. When it comes to vampires, he’s my top pick. Bleached-blond hair, sexy British accent, and, of course, killing skills—what could be better? Spike actually didn’t care about much in the world…except his lady love. 

When they love, bad boys give themselves completely.

Since I enjoy bad boys so much, it’s only natural that I write about them. J And Simon, the hero in my new books, I’LL BE SLAYING YOU, knows all about being bad.  Simon’s an ex-mercenary, a trained killer, and he’s a man who will do just about anything to get what he wants—and, well, what he wants is my heroine, Dee.  Intense, dangerous, strong—that’s my Simon. 

But what do you think about bad boys? Do you have a favorite? Let me know! One commenter will win an autographed copy of I’LL BE SLAYING YOU.

Thank you for checking out my post! (For those in the U.S., enjoy your 4^th of July!)

Cynthia Eden
www.cynthiaeden.com
I’LL BE SLAYING YOU–Available 06/29/10 from Kensington Brava
DEADLY FEAR–Available 07/27/10 from Grand Central Publishing (Forever)

 Thanks for being our guest, Cynthia and thanks for sharing this awesome cover.

Silken Sands Success Stories

Today, the Sizzlers share our Silken Sands Conference Success Stories. Imagine pitching to your agent or editor at a table under an umbrella on the veranda of a resort hotel on the beach with a cool breeze blowing.  Most of our conference attendees had great succeses.  When The Calls come, ladies, please share them with the Sizzlers so we can post them in our blog.

Gothic Dweller

Gothicwriter: This year our Silken Sands Conference meant more to me then any of the others. I felt more of a member and I pitched for the first time to Lindsey Faber, and Elaine Spencer. Both requested material. Being around our group of writers felt like coming home. People who understand the need to write. It’s like a sisterhood. I have made history in my life this year and even if nothing becomes of what has happened. I’m proud of myself for the experience. I’m proud of all who tried, and to the ones who didn’t. Next time will be your time to shine. We understand the need to step back. It just means you weren’t ready. Dreams do come true. If you want something, you have to work for it. In the end, it’ll mean all the more. To Cynthia Eden. you put together a mean conference. Thank you for everything. You’re wonderful. And to all the ladies who received a request to send out “Good Luck!”  We’re getting closer.

Lizbeth:   The conference was great and I really learned a lot, especially at the editing presentation which will help with the final edits before submitting them. Patience Smith requested a full of my romantic suspense and Lindsey Faber requested a full of my paranormal short story. 

Lizbeth

 

 

 

 

 

RitaVF:  Appreciated Cynthia Eden’s and Joan Turner’s hard work. Loved the conference. Learned a lot. Met new folks and visited with old ones. Only pitched to Samhain’s Lindsey Faber. She requested a full of His Obsession (SQUEEE!!). When I apologized for talking so fast (I had so much to say and so little time to say it.), she replied, “I talk fast but I hear fast, too.” A genuinely nice lady.  I’m going to do one more read before emailing it.  Won a basket and a critique by Dianna Love.  HAPPY DAYS!

Rita VF and Romancemama

Romancemama:  Wow! It was a fast, furious and fun weekend. This weekend marked the “coming out of the closet” of my pen name, Arabella Stokes. She has written books, but I have never introduced myself as her. Felt very odd. I talked about it with my new buddy Karen Rose (yes, shameless name-dropping here!) who like me has people in her life who can’t handle some of her writing.

And to me, that is just one example of what was so great about Silken Sands. We had all the bright-eyed neophytes like moi sitting down with industry powerhouses, and the biggies not only didn’t act bored with us, they were positively friendly and encouraging. I mean, for Karen Rose to compare any, any aspect of her incredible career with my hesitant little baby steps?!?!?! I sat and swilled cheap white wine with Barbara Vey, people! She put a picture of me on her blog! I chatted up the future of e-publishing with Lindsey Faber!It does not get any better than that.

The Gulf Coast Chapter is a rare and unique group, and our conference reflects that. I’ll go a step further: Cynthia Eden is one of the most professional, delightful people you could meet, and under her leadership, the conference couldn’t be anything else. The 2012 Chair (are you listening, SFCatty? LOL!) has huge shoes to fill!!!

Runere. I’ve piloted offshore marine vessels through Texas locks, and sat box on a dice game with over half a million dollars in play with only one tenth the trepidation with which I approached my two pitch appointments! Yes, it’s that big, and all consuming when it’s something you want so badly and only eight minutes to accomplish it. I felt like one of Sayde Grace’s cowboys in slo-mo: eight seconds vs eight minutes! I’m so fortunate to be part of the support system called RWA Chapter #125 and their spicy spin-off the Southern Sizzlers (Go, my writing sisters!). And I am beyond excited to report I have a request from Laura Bradford for the first thirty pages and a detailed synopsis of the book I pitched to her; and a request for the full MS of the book I pitched Lindsey Faber from Samhain Publishing. Lindsey went out of her way to make my experience a pleasant and promising one! Thank you so much Silken Sands for providing that opportunity!

Runere and Steve

 

 

 

 

 

Sayde Grace: I received a request for a new short story from Lindsey Faber and an ms from Megan Records.  

Sayde Grace

 

 

 

 

 

 

SFCatty:   Silken Sands Conference was a wonderful experience. Met lots of amazing people from all over the country as well as Canada. This was my first experience at a writer’s conference since I came out of the writing closet a bit over a year ago. I’m wondering what took me so long to get involved with such an awesome group of supportive people. It is inspiring to be around so many others that have the same interest in being the best we can be in our writing endeavors. I was impressed with each and every one of the editors and agents I met. All the speakers had knowledge to impart. It was a great experience and one I hope to repeat again and again. Even if none of the requests I got for my work pan out to anything, it was so worth it. Patience Smith asked for a full on Runaway, my romantic suspense and Lindsay Faber asked for a full on Redemption for the Devil , my 1920 Irish historical. I am also sending a partial of Runaway to Elaine Spencer. And, I’m proud to say that I’m not a pitch virgin any longer. Kudos to our conference chair, Cynthia Eden and her co-chair, Joan Turner. They are da bomb!    

SFCatty

Bad-urday Jan 9, 2009

As promised in Cynthia Eden’s interview, I have a Bad boy for you that can’t die.   Anyone here ever watch Doctor Who?  Well, our bad boy this week started on Doctor Who as Captain Jack, a time traveler that can’t die.  He was so good at being bad, he got his own spinoff show called Torchwood which is an anagram of Doctor Who  (how cool).  Awesome show.  And this guy has some amazing blue eyes.  Check out the cleft chin.   He is so good looking, it oughta be a crime.  Anyway, if you get a chance, rent Torchwood.  I guarantee you’ll love it.   Here for your enjoyment is John Barrowman: Gotta love the kilt!

Southern Sizzlers interview Cynthia Eden

We, at the Southern Sizzler Romance blog, have the privilege and honor of interviewing one of our dearly loved chapter members. The Inimitable Cynthia Eden. We are so thrilled to call her friend and mentor.  For those of you who have never met her in person, I have to tell you, you are missing out on one cool chica. 

Cynthia is generous with her time and talent and we are all thrilled to have her as our guest here.  We hope you enjoy her interview. 

SFCatty: Welcome to our little blog, Ms Eden. What an exciting time for you. You have Hotter After Midnight being re-released as a mass market paperback and you just had a new release on December 29, 2009 called Eternal Hunter.

CYNTHIA:  Thanks so much for inviting me over!!! It’s a pleasure to be at Southern Sizzlers (and I do so love that name.)
SFCatty:  First, tell us about the mass market release. What does that mean to you?

CYNTHIA:  It means excitement.  Every time a book is released, I get a giddy burst of excitement. Just can’t help it.  HOTTER AFTER MIDNIGHT was my first NY released book, so it’s very special to me.  And since it is being re-released now, well, that hopefully means more readers will have the chance to learn about my monster doctor and her wolf shifter cop. 

SFCatty:  It IS a great book.  Love the characters.   Any thoughts or inklings of the others in the Midnight Trilogy series being released as mass market?

CYNTHIA:  I haven’t heard any details about the other books yet. If I do, I will definitely let you know.  I *do* know that BELONG TO THE NIGHT, the paranormal romance anthology that included my story, “In the Dark,” will be re-released in mass market form next September. 

SFCatty:  That’s exciting and we’ll be looking forward to that this fall. 

SFCatty:  You also had a new book out on December 29, 2009, Eternal Hunter. This is the first in the Night Watch series. Tell us about that series.

CYNTHIA:  I love this series—and I am having such fun writing about these characters! The idea for the Night Watch series was pretty simple. Actually, the series developed from this one sentence: Sometimes, it can take a monster to catch a killer. And, yep, from that, the entire series was born.  I created a group of paranormal bounty hunters and their job is to hunt down criminals—both human and supernatural killers.

SFCatty: Is this a new direction for you?

CYNTHIA:  I like to think this is just continued exploration into the paranormal world that was created with the Midnight books. Many of the same supernatural beings appear and they follow the same “world” rules that were created in the Midnight books.   However, the beings are seen from a different perspective.  Good guys aren’t always obvious—neither are the bad guys. 

SFCatty:  Sounds intriguing.  Mysterious, even.  How many books will be in this series? I see on your website that there are two for release in 2010. Will we see more in 2011?

CYNTHIA:  I’ve written three books so far, and I plan to start on a fourth within the next few weeks.  The books will be released in 2010 and 2011. I may actually wind up with three released in 2010 (ETERNAL HUNTER is just released, I’LL BE SLAYING YOU will be out in July, and the third book—tentatively titled ETERNAL FLAME—may be out in December of 2010).

SFCatty:  Maybe in time for next year Christmas shopping.   YEAH!

SFCatty:  Tell us three intriguing facts about the hero in Eternal Hunter.

CYNTHIA:  Fact one: I liked his character so much that while I was writing the book, I actually kept pulling the hero into real-life conversations that I was having.  Seriously, I would say things like, “Well, if Jude were here, he’d say that was bullshit.”  Um, my husband had to remind me that Jude was *not* in fact, present. 

Fact two: He’s one of the most powerful supernatural heroes I’ve created—and also one with the potential to be the most vicious.  Hmmm…does that count as facts two and three? Oh, well, let’s throw in another one anyway…

Fact three:  He’s not just a fighter; the man is one serious lover, too!

SFCatty:  Ooh, la la.  We like serious lovers on this blog.   And what about three facts on the heroine?

CYNTHIA:   Have to be careful with her…don’t want to give away any spoilers but…

Fact one: Erin Jerome is intimately acquainted with Death. 

Fact two: When she wants to do so, Erin Jerome can  kick some serious ass.

Fact three:  Her character was semi-inspired by the show Law & Order. Yes, I am a Law & Order addict. 

SFCatty:  With all the Law and Order franchises, there should be something there for all those fans to love, too.   I can’t wait to check it out.

SFCatty:  Are there any new anthologies on the horizon with your work in them?

CYNTHIA:  Thanks for asking! Yes, I will be in a new anthology. This will be my first non-paranormal anthology for Kensington Brava. In October of 2010, my story, “All I Want for Christmas” will be released in the anthology titled, “The Naughty List.”  I wrote this one in November, so it sure helped to put me in the holiday mood!

SFCatty:  Any thoughts you want to share with your fans?

CYNTHIA:  I’d just like to say thank you. Thank you to the readers who’d picked up my books, to the wonderful folks who have emailed me about my stories.  Thank you!

SFCatty:  What’s next for Cynthia?

CYNTHIA:  2010 looks like it will be a busy release year for me (which is good—I like busy!).  I’m excited about the launch of my romantic suspense series in August of 2010 with the release of DEADLY FEAR (from Grand Central Publishing). The Deadly books will be dark, sexy, and I sure hope readers enjoy them. 

SFCatty:  So, we will get our “Cynthia” fix in 2010 for sure. No matter our preference-  Paranormal, suspense, or Christmas fare.  How awesome for you and for us, your readers.  Congratulations on what sounds like a great year ahead.

CYNTHIA:  Thanks so much for taking the time to interview me. I had a great time answering the questions!

SFCatty:  Thanks for agreeing to the interview.  I know you are under a deadline and you are too kind to take the time to chat with me and your readers.

We hope you all enjoyed the interview with Cynthia.  Check out her books.  They are wonderful reads.   I’ll be back on Saturday with a new bad boy for the weekend.  I think you’ll like him.  He has some paranormal qualities.  He can’t die.   Intrigued??  Tune in on Saturday.

EDITED TO ADD:  If you want to meet Cynthia and a plethora of other writers join us at the beach  for the Silken Sands Writer’s conference in March.   http://www.gccrwa.com/silkensands/        I have it on good authority that autographed books will  be available!  

Also Romancemama will post your WETSDAY fix later in the week so this interview can stay up.

COMING SOON

To whet your appetite:  soon we will  have an interview with the one and only Cynthia Eden, paranormal writer extraordinaire!   Can’t wait to  hear about her new release and her mass market re-release.   In the mean time, check out her website: www.Cynthiaeden.com -   she always has something interesting going on.  See ya soon with the interview.

Sayde’s New Orleans Trip

Hellow everyone! As SfCatty said,  I was in N A’wlins yesterday! A group of ladies from our local RWA chapter got together and spent the day walking around the French Quarter. First let me say it was a lot of fun and Paula you rock! Between you knowing so much about New Orleans and your husband on your phone filling in the blanks we found out so much wonderful information.

 

So Sayde is taking a break from writing steamy or sexy for a while. I’m focusing all my attention on editing and writing a Young Adult book. The YA takes place in N A’wlins.

Here are some of the sites we saw. I’d love to go and ride the trolley to the garden district and spend the day there. But that’s next time.

 That’s right, a horses’ ass is what I saw! Thanks to Cynthia Eden who wanted to ride the carriage so bad I got to sit up front to be the first to get poohed on!

 Marie LaVeau’s daughters’ tomb. HOWEVER, rumor has it that Marie is actually in there and her daughter somewhere else.

Marie Laveau’s tomb. Later in the day we were told that her family moved her body to another location after having the tomb vandalized. Only the family, Marie, and a select few of others know for sure. It is said the tomb and her daughter’s tomb are fake and that Marie lives on, roaming Bourbon street today.

 

Marie Laveau Voodoo shop. I **think** this was either her home at some point or the home she used to practice Voodoo in. Don’t hold me to that, I was ready to eat by this time!

 

The trip was wonderful. I learned so much and got so many wonderful tidbits to use. Now I just have to talk the hubby into going and spending the night there so I can take a haunted tour! I’d love to do that. Hmm, maybe that can be my Christmas present!

 

 

Painting to Write

Okay, I usually never post when another person has posted, but I can’t help it. I am so excited today. Last night my wonderful husband braved it alone with our two wild and wooly children while I went to a painting class. I can honestly say, I had a blast! Fellow author Cynthia Eden attended the painting class and we brain stormed, discussed having families while writing, and general industry news. For those of you who haven’t read any of Cynthia’s books I highly recommend them.

On my way home I started thinking of all the ideas we had shared and now the wheels are turning. I’m super excited about NaNoWriMo and about future books.  This was a wonderful way to get those creative juices flowing AND get to know a fellow author. I recommend that anyone writing try to get together with other writers outside of your monthly RWA meetings to just talk. It’s  wonderful to know you are not alone, and others hear voices too!

 

What do you do to get your brain creative?

 

Here’s a picture of my painting(it was already sketched I just painted it):