The Holiday Contest is back! Every day in December, you can enter to win a prize from one of our authors. The first contest will start December 1 at 10 p.m. Pacific.
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Spooky do’s
 By Susan Stephens Hello, ladies, how good it is to be back with you! I hope you had a fantastic holiday season with a little ‘down time’ just for you. Going on my own experience of this hectic time of year, I’m guessing that was just a pipe dream for you too But please allow me to take this opportunity to wish each of you a truly wonderful New Year, full of good things- health, happiness and plentiful success, both for you, and for those closest to you.
One of the questions I’m asked most frequently is: Where do you get your ideas? Well, for my latest Harlequin Presents title, Bought: One Island, One Bride, that’s an easy question to answer. I took a fab holiday in the Greek islands and had the opportunity to set sail with a passionate environmentalist who explained so much to me about the fragile underwater world. That gave me the idea for my heroine (most definitely a she!) protecting her island from my hero (very much a he) from his veritable flotilla of water born caravans. My second Harlequin title out in February with Harlequin, The Tycoon’s Virgin, is practically a mirror image of my own city girl introduction to life in the country (except I kept my knickers on) (sorry, I have to be naughty sometimes) Now, this book used to be entitled, Dirty Weekend, so I don’t want any mix ups for those of you who bought it first time around- it was only a few months ago, after all
But here it is in all its glorious US colours- same book, different cover, different title…
Now we have the explanation for what drove me to write these books, but when I flesh out the stories the words just come to me- I don’t know how. So, here’s our competition question for today: have you had any experiences like this to share with us? Ideas that come to you out of the blue, or any other spooky experiences you can think of?? I’ll pick out a winner completely at ramdom from all your posts- and something tells me, this is going to be an interesting chat. And don’t forget to sign up for my Birthday Babies club on www.susanstephens.net to receive a gift, a special Birthday Day Babies button, and a birthday card on your special day- Bring a friend along and you get two chances to win a prize in our Birthday Babies competition- and there are other contests on the site for you too.
Looking forward to seeing you there :razz: Can’t wait to chat- Get at it, girls! All my very best to you, Susanxxx 22 Responses to “Spooky do’s” |
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January 16th, 2008 at 7:59 am
I am a fairly new writer. By that I mean that it has only been in the last year that I let people know that I have been writing. The number one question that I get is how do you know what to write about and how can you think of that much to say. Honestly I don’t know how it works, it just does. The current wip is based on characters that just came to me. I started another story from a childhood memory about my tree house. Of course the things that happened in the fictional treehouse, never happened in mine.
January 16th, 2008 at 8:50 am
Well, I’m not a writer. . . but once upon a time when I did plenty of fanfics (long before there was an internet and I even knew others did that sort of thing!), ideas came from anywhere. And of course, I liked my Star Trek Deep Space Nine stuff more than the real stuff, but that’s just me. LOL I remember one idea of a dead body of one of the original Trek characters ending up in Deep Space Nine I think was from Unsolved Mysteries or something.
Lois
January 16th, 2008 at 10:59 am
Boy, oh, boy, am I excited- and I’m definitely not psychic, because I had no idea that I was about to be awarded Cata Romance Reviewer’s award for my book, ‘Dirty Weekend’ when I wrote this Blog!!!
I can tell you- cos I don’t need second sight to know
that this same book is a February Harlequin Presents Collection release in the US - It has been retitled, and is now called ‘The Tycoon’s Virgin’
Same book- new title.
As you can probably tell, I am absolutely and totally thrilled to bits.
Anyway- on with the chat, while I go off and try to brush up my crystal ball technique!
Back soon and winner announced late Thursday my UK time, so plenty of time to post your experiences of Spooky Do’s!
Sxx
January 16th, 2008 at 12:11 pm
Susan it was fate that you would post today. Congrats on your award. I can’t wait for the release.
January 16th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
I think you’re right, Patty, and thank you so much!
Sxx
January 16th, 2008 at 1:28 pm
My ideas on when to fix up a room in our house are like that. I can ignore a room that needs to be worked on for quite some time but then I’ll get an idea on what I want to do in a room and then I’ll let my husband know because once I tell him what I want to do he’ll keep pushing both of us until it gets done.
January 16th, 2008 at 1:40 pm
Congratulations Susan!
I’m not a writer. But I do volunteer at our church with the preschool kids by doing sets for their programming. So a lot of the ideas I come up with are for the programming ministry or like Maureen said something to do in the house. My problem is not the ideas that I come up with for things to do, but where I am when I come up with them. I think it’s because it’s really and truly the only place I can get some peace and quiet!!! lol
January 16th, 2008 at 2:11 pm
Congratulations on the award Susan! I am not a writer but years ago I used to love writng poetry. I never knew what would inspire me. Sometimes it would be something as simple as a beautiful sunset. I remember one time seeing a little girl with a bruise on her face and I tried imagining how she got it and wrote a poem about it. Inspiration is all around us.
January 16th, 2008 at 3:03 pm
Congratulations, Susan! I am looking forward to reading The Tycoon’s Virgin.
January 16th, 2008 at 3:06 pm
Congratulations on the award! When I am listening to a wonderful CD by Andrea Bocelli and Patrizio Buanne, then I am transported to another realm. This inspires me with ideas and positive thoughts that give me my motivation to be productive.
January 16th, 2008 at 3:28 pm
I am not a published writer but I write fanfics and sometimes short love stories. I get my ideas from what I am experiencing at the time. My grandfather lives on island and it so beautiful, at night on the beach it always feels romantic so I am always getting ideas from there.
January 16th, 2008 at 3:45 pm
Hi Susan,
Congratulations! I’m not much of a writer (I keep saying I want to be a writer “when I grow up”…) - but I guess I’ve had some “spooky do’s” - I’ll have strange dreams about people, and the next day, some sort of major event (involving them) will a) happen or b) be disclosed. Eek! But - nothing bad yet, so I don’t mind. :-) Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us!
January 16th, 2008 at 3:50 pm
My unique setting which is majestic lends itself to creativity. Each day is filled with beauty which transcends the norm.
January 16th, 2008 at 4:36 pm
Congratulations, Susan!! How exciting to learn you’re a winner (well, of a specific award–you’re always a winner!) I’m not a writer, but I can imagine that you might get ideas for stories from all kinds of places or happenings or people or things! That’s what makes imagination such a fun thing ;)
January 16th, 2008 at 5:46 pm
Congratulations on winning.
I don’t write but I do various forms of needlework. My grandmother taught me to knit and crochet but she never showed me how she made these wonderful placemats that were her specialty. Shortly after Grandmother died, my mother gave me all her yarn and threads and there were some unfinished placemats in there. As I sat on the couch trying to figure out how she did them, I felt her over my shoulder guiding my fingers in the pattern. It was good spooky. Although I’ve never made a placemat from scratch, I have had to repair a few. I’m just glad I know how.
January 16th, 2008 at 6:24 pm
Congrats… I always liek ti when authors share their ideas about this topic!
I know I decided to be a doctor when I was young and went for the first time in a hospital and found the desperation over-whelming… and thought I could maybe bring a bit of joy in someone’s life :) And I ahve not changed idea ever since :) even when I am doing late night shifts!
January 16th, 2008 at 6:26 pm
Loved the knickers part… I was laughing out loud over this one!
Thanks for sharing these bits of inspiration… I am not a awriter either… and Congrats on your win!
January 16th, 2008 at 8:38 pm
For our parents 50th anniversary I hit upon an idea to have each of us kids(5)
decorate a big wooden spoon; we could color, paste, whatever resembled us. Then
my dh made an oak board hanger to display each spoon from oldes to youngest.
e.g. I had paw prints and a bone rub-on transfer on mine to represent my love of dogs and each one of us had a baby shoe with our birthstone on it. It turned out wonderful but I didn’t know what would be the outcome seeing I had never seen one before.
January 16th, 2008 at 9:30 pm
Congrats on yor win!
January 16th, 2008 at 11:41 pm
Congratulations Susan
I’m not a writer too. One thing that always happens to me is.. I will think about someone I haven’t seen or talked to in a long time and within a day or two they will call or come by. It has happened so many times it’s kinda spooky.
January 17th, 2008 at 9:14 am
I’m just amazed when I read all your wonderful posts, and I’m so glad if anything I say is of help to you.
I tried so hard to be published and for years just couldn’t get it right. It was that one last push when I really had given up and Penny Jordan said, ‘What have you got to lose but the postage?’ that landed me my first contract, so do please please please keep trying- and read as much as you can of your chosen line to see what works and what doesn’t- then be ruthless with your own manuscript- don’t spoil your chances by not comforming to the guidelines. Publishers are stringent when it comes to ‘weeding out’ manuscrupts from the ’slush pile’ - so give yourself the very best chance that you can.
Back later with our winner…
Susanxx
January 17th, 2008 at 2:40 pm
Thank you all so much for taking part!!
I just yelled out in my usual high tech way- Hey, guy, can I have a number between 1 and 20? And my super high tech answer came back….
‘Sweet Sixteen’! Nathalie, congratulations!!!!!!
Could you please send your details to my assistant lee at lee@susanstephens.net and Lee will get your prize out to you asap. Thank you- and get some sleep, you hear!
All to all of you who have taken the trouble to take part- thank you- as always I have enjoyed every one of your posts.
Back next month with more…
Hugs around the world
Susan