A new collected anthology of stories, pictures and poetry with a saucy seaside feel, edited by The Northern Birds Lucy Felthouse and Victoria Blisse.
The Smut By The Sea Anthology will feature stories from a variety of genres, but they must have that overall “Seaside†feel, either in location or style. If you’d like some clarification before submitting your story then please Contact Us.
Length: 4,000 to 6,000 words;
Genres: Any:
Heat Levels: Any;
Ending: Any;
Orientation: Any;
Submissions Due: June 1, 2012. Also accepting Poetry submissions of any length.
Royalties will be split 50% of the net profits with contributing authors, exact values will be given once we know how many stories will be in the final anthology.
You can submit your story/poem by emailing it as an attachment to victoria[at]victoriablisse.co.uk. (Please include Pen Name, Author Bio, Genre, Word count)
For more information, visit http://lucyfelthouse.co.uk/blog/call-for-submissions-smut-by-the-sea/?utm_source=rss
Are you capitalizing on the sexy little bit of free Techie gadgetry that’s currently all the rage? I’m talking about QR Codes, those little black squares you’re seeing on your television, in magazines and on the mail coming into your house.
I know, I know…QR just doesn’t sound sexy and, unless you’re more the nerdy type, “code” probably doesn’t either. But QR Codes are getting me hot these days. Seriously.
QR Codes are one of the EASIEST marketing tricks you’re not taking advantage of, especially if you’re a self-published author or a small business person.
Click here for the other 8 no-to-low cost social media tips we talked about last month and sit back to bask in the warmth of a new piece of technology fun that doesn’t cost a thing!
What is a QR Code?
QR stands for Quick Response and was created by the automotive industry to help track vehicles during the manufacturing process. How is this sexy, Jenny? you might be thinking…
Well, I’ll tell you. A QR Code is a barcode that stores a web address of your choosing. As an example, if you scan the one above, you’ll go to a cool place on OCC’s website that you might not visit very often. There are free apps available in both the Android and the iPhone that let you scan a QR code to quickly go to a website.
Note: To scan the code, you’ll need an app like QR Scanner [iTunes link] for the iPhone and iPod touch, or ShopSavvy for Android devices.
Uses for QR Codes…just think about this, folks:
Are you juiced up yet? Cause I am.
Can I get a QR Code of my very own?
But of course! There are tons of free spots to generate a QR code. Bit.ly and Social Oomph are the two I use the most often.
To use Bit.ly:
UPDATE: In the last few weeks since I wrote this post, viruses have targeted QR Codes here and there. That doesn’t mean they aren’t safe but, just like email, watch where you click. More details here on how to avoid viruses.
Does this give you any new marketing ideas for your books, businesses or advertising? Are you already using QR Codes? What has your experience been?
Happy Writing!
Jenny
Jenny Hansen fills her nights with humor: writing memoir, women’s fiction, chick lit, short stories (and chasing after the newly walking Baby Girl). By day, she provides training and social media marketing for an accounting firm. After 15 years as a stand-up corporate software trainer, she’s digging this “sit down and write” thing.
In addition to being a founding member at Writers In The Storm, Jenny can also be found on Twitter and Facebook or over at her solo blog, More Cowbell.
by Jenny Hansen
Today we’re going to talk about Dirty Fighting. What is it, and why do you want to do it?
To start at the beginning, last weekend my honey was cleaning the office and he came across a piece of paper that made us laugh our faces off. This four page document he found – called, “Dirty Fighting Techniques†– helped save our relationship back in 2006.
Note: Dirty Fighting isn’t about some how-to guide on Jujitsu or Street Fighting. Nope, it’s actually a list of twenty-two items given to us by our counselor to teach us the difference between the Dirty Fighting Techniques practiced by most people and the clean-as-a-whistle fighting he wanted us to strive for.
We’ve got to understand the goal before we can turn it upside down on its head, right?
What is clean fighting?
Clean Fighting follows these basic rules:
Here is a clean fight summed up in 4 easy steps:
1. How you feel (use an “I†statement for this)
2. The behavior that prompted that feeling
3. Why it’s important/the background (i.e. what button did they push)
4. What would you want them to do differently next time
Sounds simple, doesn’t it? Go try it. It’s really hard to do when you’re mad. Most people who are angry fight dirty. Clean fighting takes some rigorous training.
Now let me ask you something. Do you really think your characters have had any of this sort of training? It’s pretty unlikely unless you’re writing about a psychologist. It’s much more likely that your character will be flawed like the rest of us.
What Makes Great Fiction?
Understanding the difference between clean and dirty fighting will give you a TON of mileage in your own stories. If you need plausible arguments and dialog, Dirty Fighting Techniques will help you achieve this. These techniques can be applied with a friend, family member or a significant other…it doesn’t really matter.
Every entry I’m sharing is guaranteed to make the other person see red. If you’re writing fiction, that anger and tension is a REALLY good thing. If I give you all twenty-two at once, it will be like taking a drink of water from a fire hydrant so we’re going to start with the five that will work best in fiction.
FIVE?? That’s all the Dirty Fighting I get off that list, you might ask… Yep. Five is all you get…until the next time we discuss the topic. I’m gonna make this a multi-part post so you have time to really roll around in the Dirty Fighting Swamp. Go ahead, get dirty. Be the bog.
As I said earlier, great books are filled with conflict. And great characters who learn important lessons. Plus, dialog is the number one way to do several fun things like move your story quickly and legally bring in backstory.
Note: For a rundown of the perils of Back Story, read Kristen Lamb’s Monday post.
However, one of the problems I have with reading about dialog is that every character is unique and, even though the examples are usually awesome, my characters would never say those things. How do you think of creative things to say that would apply ONLY to our character?
One answer is to make him or her fight.
Since gratuitous fighting in a story is like gratuitous sex (kinda boring if there’s no real connection or reason for it), the author needs to find a great reason for the fight. How you use the fight is up to you but I think the easiest way to pave the road to this rad fight is to discover what your characters really want. Then dig down for what they really, really want. (You’ll remember this trick from Leanne Banks.)
DON’T give it to them. Or at least, don’t give it too soon.
Then flake away more layers to uncover what your character really fears. Then what they really, really fear. DO give that to them! This is where things get interesting. You not only have characters who are upset, you’ve also found a myriad of ways to slide everybody deeper into your story. To do this, ask your character questions.
Perhaps you’ll use the 9 questions I discussed a few weeks back in my post on Character Engagement or new ones that are all your own. Below are some of mine to help you get started.
1. What matters most to this character? (What is he or she most afraid to lose?)
2. Who matters most? (This is usually the person they are most afraid to lose.)
3. How did the character’s parents fight?
4. How did the character’s parents interact with him or her?
5. What does this character wish he or she had gotten in childhood?
6. What does my character want to be when they grow up
All of these questions can provide you with cues about where your character is “broken†and give you ideas about fixing the broken part (i.e. Fix = Lesson).
Now it’s time to unleash that fight! BRING. IT. ON!!
#1 – Triangulating: Don’t leave the issue between you and your conflict partner (could be a family member, friend or love interest), pull everybody in. Quote well-known authorities who agree with you and list every family member whom you know has taken your side (and lie about the ones you haven’t spoken to yet).
Uses: Triangulating is incredibly useful in fiction because you can expand the discussion to more characters and stir up some real drama. Let’s not keep this issue between just us, one character says to the other. Oh no, lets involve everybody.
If you have extreme Dirty Fighting Talent, you can stir the pot and then step back and play a new game called, “Let’s watch the other two people fight.†That’s good times.
#2 – Escalating: Quickly move from the main issue of the argument to questioning your partner’s basic personality, and then move on to wondering whether the relationship is even worth it. Blame your partner for having a flawed personality so that a happy relationship will be impossible.
Uses: Excellent tool for keeping two love interests apart. BUT, the fight better be about something that really, really matters or you risk falling into the Bog of Coincidence and most stories don’t have enough muscle to climb out of that place.
Escalating also allows for plausible use of Back Story. When you’re moving from the main
issue to the REAL issue (often happens at the black moment / end of Act 2), escalating the argument will make someone lose control enough that they blurt out something juicy. Way to go, Author!
#3 – Leaving: No problem is so big or important that it can’t be ignored or abandoned all together. Walk out of the room, leave the house, or just refuse to talk. Sometimes just threatening to leave can accomplish the same thing without all the inconvenience of following through.
Uses: My favorite use of this is employing it when the two characters really need each other. It completely ups the betrayal factor: I can’t depend on you, I don’t trust you, You’ve let me down.
You noticed how dirty that last statement was, right? Not a clean fight to be found anywhere with “leaving,” which is fantastic for your story! The farther your character falls, the harder the journey is on the way back up, right?
#4 – Timing: Look for a time when your partner is least able to respond or least expects an argument.
Uses: Think about this from a story point of view. A really great time to pick a fight is just before the main character embarks on a journey, has a new murder to solve, is called on to save the world. Anything with high stakes works great. Be sure the character ambushing them is a likeable one so the reader REALLY gets drawn into the conflict.
#5 – Rejecting Compromise: Never back down. Stick with the philosophy that only one of you can win.
Uses: This is a kickass Dirty Fighting trick to use on the main character. If there is only one winner, there is automatic conflict involved for the person who “loses.” The solutions are endless.
What do you think? What are some other ways you could use a good fight to help your
character grow or advance your story? Do you use any of the five techniques in your own life…come on, you can tell us! Let’s hear your fabulous Dirty (Fighting) Thoughts!
Jenny
A Slice of Orange is an affiliate with some of the booksellers listed on this website, including Barnes & Nobel, Books A Million, iBooks, Kobo, and Smashwords. This means A Slice of Orange may earn a small advertising fee from sales made through the links used on this website. There are reminders of these affiliate links on the pages for individual books.
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More info →A Slice of Orange is an affiliate with some of the booksellers listed on this website, including Barnes & Nobel, Books A Million, iBooks, Kobo, and Smashwords. This means A Slice of Orange may earn a small advertising fee from sales made through the links used on this website. There are reminders of these affiliate links on the pages for individual books.
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