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by Judi Fennell, guest blogger
Back in 2004 when I joined Romance Writers of America, I had one manuscript (in sore need of craft workshops!) and the dream.
I had nothing else. Not a clue how to do this, not another story idea, no industry knowledge. Nothing. How could I ever expect to get a book published - especially once I got my first contest entry back and saw that I needed a lot of help.
Enter the characters who won't shut up.
And thank God for them. First it was the gypsy who showed up in a re-write of that first story. Then it was Cinda Bella, obviously a Cinderella character but modernized for today's world. Then it was Bella from Beauty and The Best.
And then there was Reel. And Erica. And Chum. And Puffer and Vincent and Chipper and Angel and Harry and the rest of the cast of In Over Her Head. Once those floodgates opened, there was no damming them back up.
In Over Her Head is my debut novel and the easiest story I've ever written - all because of the characters who won't shut up! Even now, as I do the edits on the third book in this Mer series, the characters are all chatting in my head.
Sounds crazy, right?
Crazy keeps me writing. These characters wake me up in the middle of the night. They have parties at 5 am, each one trying to shout the other down. It's insane. I have learned to keep a notebook next to my bed so I can jot down what they're saying - don't want to lose it because they can get a bit stubborn about sharing it with me again. "Not important enough to write down when I'm saying it? Then I'm not going to repeat it."
There's a reason writers call their stories their babies - sometimes they start to act like grouchy teens!
But I love each of them, even the villains. They've given me a lot to work with in the stories and I've been blessed to hear from readers that they love the characters.
Many people have emailed me that they love Reel, laughed at Chum, identified with Erica, but the email I received today was a first.
The reader loved my bubble gum-chewing pelican, Amelia. Amelia only shows up for a bit, but she plays a big part, and the bubble gum just sort of came along with her.
So if you've read In Over Her Head, who's your favorite character? Besides Erica and Reel, who would you most like to hang with? I'd love to know. If you haven't had the chance to read it, please email me once you do (Go to my website for my contact info!).
The characters who won't shut up are taking bets as we speak.
And while you're on my website, (www.JudiFennell.com ) feel free to register to win one of three romantic beach getaway weekends. The Atlantis Inn Bed & Breakfast in Ocean City, NJ (www.AtlantisInn.com) and the Hibiscus House B&B in West Palm Beach Florida, (www.HibiscusHouse.com) have come on board to offer these weekends to celebrate the release of each of the Mer series books.
And the winners can keep an eye out for sexy mermen, or talking fish or even the occasional gum-chewing pelican... Here's an excerpt from In Over Her Head:
Amelia, Ernie's wife, popped by instead, floundering to a pelican's lumbering landing just as they hit the beach.
"Heya, Reel. You are one lucky S-O-M." Amelia was munching on that chewy substance Humans were so fond of. It stuck to everything and they stuck it to everything: the underside of docks, boat hulls, every piece of their refuse. He could always hear her coming from a mile away.
"What's the scoop, Amelia?"
Erica groaned behind him. "Amelia? As in Earhart? Who's next? Captain Nemo?"
"Sorry, chicky, but Nemo's in the Pacific these days. He and Ern had a falling out." Amelia blew a pink solid bubble with that stuff.
That always freaked him out. Bubbles. Solid. Out of water. Pink. Odd, just odd.
"So, what's happening in my luck department, Ame? Krak still chasing the herring?"
The bubble popped all over her beak and she made the mistake of trying to remove it with her wings. Several gooey, fowl-mouthed comments later, the pelican was spun in a web of her own making.
"Oh, for pete's sake!" Erica approached the squawking bird, plunked her cute backside in the sand and started picking the pink gunk off Amelia.
"Thanks, doll," Amelia said when her beak was untied. "I guess I oughta lay off that. If you could do that big feather on the bottom... yeah, that one. It's bending back and pinching a bit... yeah, that's it." The pelican sighed. "So, where was I?"
"About to tell me if we're heading into a trap? You know, just a tiny portion of info that could determine whether we live or die? Nothing too important, Ame," Reel answered.
"Yeah, yeah, keep your scales on-wait. You don't have scales. My bad."
"We're wasting time, Ame. So, did Krak take the bait? Or did his two brain cells rub together enough to generate a spark of intelligence?"
Amelia stretched a freed wing out to its full three-foot width. "I said you're a lucky S-O-M and I meant it. The big, dumb oaf is probably halfway to the Falklands by now."
"Good." Reel pulled Erica to her feet. "Come on, sweetheart, we've got to get moving."
Now more about winning that copy of In Over Her Head
Originally posted 2009-06-03 03:03:19. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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