Welcoming Paranormal Romance Author Zrinka Jelic

This week I have the honor of introducing a fabulous nebut noveliest, Zrinka Jelic.  Zrinka lives in Ontario, Canada, with her husband and two children. A member of the Romance Writers of America and its chapter Fantasy Futuristic &Paranormal romance, as well as Savvy Authors, she writes contemporary fiction—which leans toward the paranormal—and adds a pinch of history. Her characters come from all walks of life, and although she prefers red, romance comes in many colors. Given Jelic’s love for her native Croatia and the Adriatic Sea, her characters usually find themselves dealing with a fair amount of sunshine, but that’s about the only break they get. “Alas,” Jelic says, with a grin. “Some rain must fall in everyone’s life.”

I am delighted to be your guest today, Danica. My debut novel “Bonded by Crimson” has been released on January 28^th, and it is available in all formats at Black Opal Books, Amazon, Smashwords, Barnes & Noble and All Romance eBooksI didn’t realize how much I like to write until I started to write seriously, about four years ago now. Even the high scores on my school assignments couldn’t convince me I was any good. But I’ve decided to give it a go and from there on I found myself. Though I’ve dreamt of becoming a published author one day, I never thought it would happen, let alone this fast. There were speed bumps on my path and high and low days. The days when I wanted to throw in the towel, but the secret to success was simple – perseverance. Strange as it may sound, the characters simply refused to give up and pushed me forward. But thankfully, they allowed me a few days break to gather my thoughts and start anew. Their story needed to be told. All of this may sound strange to those who don’t write, but every writer has same experience.Now that I’m published, my friends and family think I live a high life of rich of famous. Their remarks how they would be able to say “I knew her when …” make me laugh. I know they’re just joking and they mean well, but my life had not changed. At least by not much. Other than playing with imaginary people, aka characters, my day is the same. Juggling kids, household chores, and my part time college studies, there’s little time to plot and work on my next book. And writing being sedentary work, I try to squeeze a workout each day if I can, at least half an hour. But the characters are pressing me forward until I put that scene on the paper (or rather screen).  Well, I can’t say that I didn’t have a tiny taste of glory. The other day one lady hugged me, saying she can die a happy person knowing she hugged someone “famous”. That act made me feel so accomplished and I know many aspiring authors could do it, too. I don’t have a crystal ball (actually, I do but it’s just a dust collecting ornament) and I can’t foresee my future, but if fame and fortune is in my cards … well, I’m not cut for something like that. I would never write a book for money, I’m sure it would show in the quality of writing.Of course I couldn’t leave you without a short excerpt from my novel, Bonded by Crimson:They strolled through the narrow streets of the medieval town and arrived at the old hotel by the sea. Waiters bustled around the tables on the terrace. A few couples twirled on the dance floor as the band played a version of Save the Last Dance for Me. Her feet stopped, and she stared at the dance floor, longing to be in his embrace and move her body in sync with his.As if on cue, he cocked his head toward the patio. “Shall we?”She wrapped her hand around his bicep. Thrilled as she was he wanted to dance with her, she was nervous, sure that she would be clumsy and awkward. Suddenly, scaling the medieval wall had seemed easier.He led her though the maze of tables and chairs on the hotel’s terrace. When they reached the clear area in front of the small stage, he slipped his arm around her waist. “We can do better than these other couples. Come on, let’s us show them how dancing is done. Just relax and follow my steps.”His left hand pressed on her hip, pulling her close as the fingers of his right hand wrapped around her left. When she placed her free hand on his solid shoulder, her fingers fumbled, but his warm, reassuring smile eased her tension. Her feet wouldn’t cooperate for the first few swings. A funny frown appeared on his face when she stepped on his foot for the third time. She glanced at her feet. God, he must think she was terribly uncoordinated.He squeezed her hand. “Look at me.”Their eyes met. Lost in his mesmerizing gaze, she forgot what her feet were doing and her nervousness disappeared, replaced by a sense of peace as she picked up his rhythm, following him with ease. Even when he twirled her under his arm, her feet didn’t falter. Before she knew it, the song had come to an end.“We were good,” she said, joy and wonder filling her voice.He hugged her. “We were.”The band leader strummed the guitar and stepped up to the microphone. “And now, it’s ladies’ choice.”He turned back to the band and they joined in with his song. Many left the dance area with the slow melody. But Matthias wrapped his arm around her waist. “I hope I’m your choice,” he murmured.When the vocalist joined in with the three guys from the group, Kate turned her attention to the lyrics. Every single word of the song “I’ll Leave the Light On” struck a nerve. Memories she had suppressed for years flooded to the surface as the band played on. Her chest tightened, constricting her breath. Tears stung her eyes. Matthias stopped his feet, but kept his body swaying. Kate stared at his shoes. Sobs spasmed her shoulders, betraying her attempts to hide her emotions from him. Four hours earlier, she had boldly stood up to an enraged bull, but the words of this song reduced her to a wimp.His hand inched behind her neck and pulled her head onto his chest. She prayed the tune would end, but the band kept playing.When the beat of the next song sped up, and people poured back onto the dance floor, Matthias kissed her hair and led her away from the loud music. “We should sit this one out.”And feel free to watch the book trailer for Bonded By Crimson.To visit Zrinka Jelic's blog click here or here. Or Find her on Facebook! 

Paranormal Romance Author Danica Winters Interviews Rionna Morgan

This has been a great week and I had the chance to end it with another Montana up and coming romantic suspense author and my friend, Rionna Morgan.  Rionna grew up out West, where she followed her love of horses to the rodeo arena and her love of English to the classroom and to writing. Rionna is a founding member of Montana Romance Writers; she reads as much as she can possibly hold, and the thrill of great suspense threaded through into a great romance.  Rionna lives in Montana with her husband, four children, and the mountains outside her window. This year she sold her first novel to Crimson  Publishing and which should be available Summer 2012. 

I'm proud to introduce her to you.

Danica: Do you like to listen to music while you write? If so, who are your favorite artists?

Rionna:I do. When I am settled into the moment, when all the world outside my imagination is quiet, I listen to Celtic music. It is sweet and serene. I find that the music creates a more focused feeling so that I can just get in tune with my characters.

Danica: Tell us a little bit about your newest release. Feel free to include a small excerpt.  Rionna: My newest release is THE WANTING HEART soon to be published by Crimson Romance.  It is about a barrel racer who gets swept off her feet by a serial killer. 

Danica: Where can readers find your newest release? Feel free to include links.

Rionna: On July 9, 2012, it will be available electronically through Amazon, iTunes, Barnes and Noble, Google, Sony and The Crimson Romance Website. It will also be available in print. 

Danica: Where can others connect with you? Twitter, Facebook, blog? 

Rionna:http://www.facebook.com/RionnaMorgan

http://www.linkedin.com/in/rionnamorgan

http://pinterest.com/rionnamorgan/

https://twitter.com/RionnaMorgan

http://rionnamorgan.blogspot.com/

 My website rionnamorgan.com 

Danica: How do you go about choosing names for your characters? 

Rionna: Names, to me, are very important. I choose names in all manner of ways. If I hear a great name just in passing, I write it down in my ever present notebook. On a more structured note, if my story takes place in a certain part of the country...Texas for instance. I get a Texas phone book and look at the names of the people so that I can get a feel of how people are named: nationality, sound of names, how they are linked together. 

I have lived all over the United States, and I know that some names are prominent in some areas where as they are completely foreign to other parts. I want my names to seem authentic and believable while still fitting with the character I have in mind. 

If I happen to find a name in the phone book that catches my attention, I look up the meaning in my baby name book. I have it right next to my dictionary and thesaurus. For my heroes and heroines, I want the names to be strong while having a meaning that helps illuminate their personality. I feel the same for my antagonists. Yet, the antagonists are a bit more tricky. I write romantic suspense, and I don't always want my readers to know who the antagonist is; I definitely don't want to give it away by the use of a stereotypical "evil" or "bad-guy" name. So I am a lot more careful about choosing their names. 

Danica: Do you write under a pen name? If so, who knows about writing? 

Rionna: Yes I do. Only my close friends and family know my true identity. Ha Ha. That's funny. Sounds like I'm a secret agent. 

Danica: Tell us about your upcoming writing projects. 

Rionna: My current project is about an artist who stumbles upon a murder scene that has a fairy-tale twist.

Thank you very much for this opportunity. I really enjoyed sharing my writing and a bit about my writing life. And I hope you enjoy my stories!

All the best!

Rionna Morgan

Writing with Tension, by Guest Blogger Paranormal Romance author Chris Karlsen

Tension is one of the best means to hold a reader’s attention and keep them from putting your book down. It is also a feeling that isn’t always clearly defined.

If you ask for an example of what adds tension to a story, the first response you often hear is actually an action scene. The problem with that answer is: action isn’t necessarily tension. The car chase through Paris in the movie “Ronin,” is fantastic action. However, the movie’s tension isn’t the high speed pursuit and crash at the end, but comes from the conflict within the group of mercenaries gathered together to obtain a valuable suitcase. Some are trustworthy, others are not. The viewer is on the edge of their seat throughout the movie, wondering if Jean Reno, or Robert De Niro, or Stellan Skarsgard is a traitor.

In any genre there are different ways to inject the story with tension. In a scene from my novel Golden Chariot, Charlotte Dashiell, my heroine, believes that the characters from The Iliad, by Homer, may not have been only fictional. She engages in a heated discussion with Atakan Vadim, the hero. For every point she makes, he presents a challenging counterpoint and thus creates tension. I will paraphrase the dialogue from the scene.

Charlotte: “The story of Troy and the war was retold through the centuries. I’m saying it wasn’t a mere war story. It had to be more.”

Atakan: “No. The bones of the story were given to him (Homer)...a tale which happened to include a few accurate details. Like many bards, he filled it with people from his imagination.”

Charlotte: “Something made the story unique. I say it’s the people.”

Atakan: “He took bits of old tales, injects the legends with heroes and villains for entertainment purposes. Why do you dispute the logical?”

This is a small section of dialogue. Atakan’s disbelief, his doubt and the fact he forces her to defend her beliefs drives the tension between them.

Combining tension with action can be especially fun to write as we as paranormal romance authors can vicariously live experience with our characters. In the following, Charlotte, who’s a nautical archaeologist and part of a shipwreck recovery team, is out swimming in the sea near the team’s campsite. Unbeknownst to her, there’s been an undersea earthquake, which has triggered dangerous tides. What was a relaxing swim becomes deadly dangerous for her.

Like all the team, she was a strong swimmer and tried to power through the swells and turn back. Fighting the tide, she wasn’t making any progress. The current was sweeping her the opposite direction and toward the open water. She kicked harder as the waves surged over her head, pushing against her strokes, the salt irritating her eyes. Every time she opened her mouth to take a gulp of air after the first set, the whitecaps smacked her in the face, sending seawater into her lungs than air.

She caught glimpses of the increasingly distant beach. If she screamed for help no one would hear.

Tension doesn’t always have to be big. We can connect with readers by giving our characters moments of tension that we all experience in our daily lives. Your protagonist absolutely must make a particular flight. But as paranormal romance writers, we are compelled to make things difficult. We torment him in all kinds of ways: He can’t find his car keys. The drawbridge he must cross to get to the airport is up and what seems to be the slowest boat in the world is passing through. He misses the shuttle bus at the long term parking by seconds. The TSA officer chooses the protagonist to pull out of line and perform a thorough and lengthy search of. Haven’t we all had days like this?

As you write, I suggest to look for a way to ramp up the tension in every scene, whether in a small or big way--it will keep your readers wanting to turn the page.