First Loves....

9:30 AM Elizabeth Seckman 16 Comments

Tyler County Public Library I'll be here today from 1:00-4:00 Signing books and remembering when. Ah good times; good memories spawned here.  This is where I first met Judy Blume and Beverly Cleary. Those ladies are still like favorite aunts I'm always eager to visit. Then as I grew up, mature me wanted more, so I began my affair with John Saul, the bad boy with a dark side. But I lost my heart to John Jakes and his epic stories of love, trials, and history. It's here that I dallied with VC Andrews and had that first shock from the creepy side of fiction. It's here, on Broad Street, that I learned to love that indescribably intoxicating smell of books. But where I became BFF's  with Danielle Steele, but then like so many other friends from adolescences, we lost touch. It's where my real-life BFF and I hit our teens and snooped through the medical books. Where, like boys flipping through National Geographic for boobs, we found more than we were looking for. With gasps and giggles, we learned and will NEVER forget this warning from the Men's Health chapter: Never put your penis in a vacuum cleaner....it can cause tissue damage. Ah, good times. Good times. Elizabeth Loves Books 2 friends 2 gether 4 ever How 'bout you? Got a first love?

About Me...

11:46 AM Elizabeth Seckman 22 Comments

I'm so used to small towns and everybody knowing everybody else, I totally didn't consider people had no clue who Elizabeth Seckman was. I got a message in my inbox from a gal who bought my book because she liked the cover. She read it; loved it; and became a facebook friend. 

Welcome Elissa Daye!!

10:12 PM Elizabeth Seckman 8 Comments

The Roads I’ve Traveled... By Elissa Daye

          Reading started me down the path to writing. I was an avid reader from the moment I could read my first words. I read everything I could get my hands on. I loved reading and escaping into other worlds. My favorite books when I was a child were written by C.S. Lewis, Judy Blume, and Jean Craighead George. I very much wanted to live on my own and survive in the forest.

         As a writer, I started early. In second grade I remember getting a notebook as a prize from a teacher and I started writing poetry where every line had to rhyme. Something like “The little kitten lay, fast asleep in the hay.” In Middle School I constantly entered the Young Authors contests with my poetry. I remember when my mom attended a parent teacher conference for 8th grade. My English teacher told her how impressed she was with my writing and told her that I wrote like a 20 year old. It was the best compliment I had ever received at the time and it made me want to do even better. When I entered high school I started writing short stories, mostly for school assignments. By the time I was a junior in high school, my English teacher encouraged me to enter for a chance to attend the Illinois Summer School for the Arts. At that point in time I had already been writing longer short stories, one of them being a ghost story, which I entered as an example of my writing. I won a scholarship to attend the two week summer camp and had the time of my life. That summer allowed a whole new door to open for me, and while my journey through that portal has not been without challenge, it has certainly been worth it.

        The Destined Series started after I had completed my first two books, and while it was not the first completed, it had been in my head for many years. First it was a series of scenes that I thought would work well together. Then I discovered that there really were no limitations for what I wanted to do. A story with magic? Absolutely, no problem. Add some werewolves? Ok, why not? A steamy love story? Of course, what other kind is there? When I let go of all my preconceived notions of what should and could be involved in a romance novel, writing it was easy. It was passionate, it was uplifting, and it was freeing.

        In Flames is the first in the series, and perhaps the easiest to write, for the beginning is just a starting point in the world. Connecting each story and growing the world in each has been more of a challenge. Each book has to be able to build on the other and stand on its own. With book one, I introduce Lysandra, who enters the story with pretty much the worst case scenario thrown at her from the beginning. She channels the power of love through her journey and becomes quite a striking heroine. Aiden is our love interest, a man who really has no interest in love at all. He lives with the curse of his people, a curse that becomes a blessing in disguise. In Flames is just the first leg of the journey.

     My goal is to create a diverse series that shows the empowerment of women, and how the world could work in balance. I hope that my readers will appreciate these stories and get a break from their world, if only for a moment.


You can find Elissa by following these magic links!
Her Blog
On Amazon
At World Castle
On Facebook
and on Twitter @daenira

Waaaayyyy Behind...

11:51 AM Elizabeth Seckman 14 Comments

Macy's Ad in Glamour- November 2010

Check it out!!

Pegged pants.

Remember those...circa 1980 something?

I was so excited when I saw that ad...woot woot...pegged pants are coming back!!!

Short chicks shout and cheer...no more tattered pant hems!!

Then I checked the date on my Glamour...November 2010.

Hmm...seems the magazines my mailman dutifully delivers day  after day have stacked up.

I figured I was a few months behind in my reading.

But no.

 I'm not MONTHS...I'm YEARS behind!!

Sadly, it seems pegged pants didn't catch on...but there is this new HBO show coming out...Game of Thrones...have you heard of it? Looks good...maybe I'll check that out...

But seriously, now that the kids are back in school, I am scrapping the to-do-list for a to-do notebook full of items and I am committed to getting myself up to speed with 2012.

First thing to catch up on? A big thanks to Mark Koopmans for selecting my entry in the "What If..." blogfest for comedy. Mark is a little twisted. Mine was a serious entry about the ill effects of trusting the big bad wolf. You can read it HERE and decide for yourself if it's comedy or a public service.

And thanks to the other hosts of the blogfest...Leigh Covington, Cassie Mae, and Morgan Shamy. It was a genius idea and even though I am behind on reading all the wonderful entries, I am going to get to them. They are in my to-do notebook and I will get to them ASAP or by 2014, whichever comes first.

Fairy Tale Madness!!!

1:22 PM Elizabeth Seckman 62 Comments

Join the fun! Find the rules HERE!

I have the funnest friends...they are twisted and strange and come up with cool blogfests  like this one!!!

Thanks to Cassie Mae, Morgan Shamy, Mark Koopmans, Leigh Covington...the fabulous judges who will be choosing best entries in the following categories:

Best Plot Twist
Best Love Story
Best Tragedy
Best Comic Releif

Now I like the Team Love Story picture the best, because it's pretty, but I'm willing to be considered for any category. Though, I must say ahead of time. Mine is a serious entry, complete with the obligatory moral and everything.
:)



                                                       50 Shades of Red

Once upon a time, an innocent young girl ventured into the Forbidden Forest. The pounding of her heart and the butterflies in her stomach warned her that she wasn’t alone in the dense wood. Looking over her shoulder, she saw a pair of eyes. 

They were grey and held all the magic and mystery of a stormy sky. Those eyes lured her closer, closer, until she could smell the wild scent of the beast. He was a wolf. A wolf with REALLY big paws. 

 Intrigued, she reached out and stroked his fur, caressing the silken strands, digging her fingers below the hair to the warm flesh beneath. She let out a breathy moan and whispered, “Please, Mr. Grey Wolf, take me to your lair and I’ll make your every fantasy come true.” 

So, the wolf took Little Red back to his den…after stopping by the adult store for a Kama Sutra. 

 After 50 days of splendor, pulled muscles, and rope burns, Red broke away from her love nest because she had an itch. An itch that only the Witch at the Happily Ever After Health Department could cure. 

The Witch drew blood; chanting as she stirred her cauldron, “Bubble, bubble, boil, and bubble…drop your drawers and you’ll have trouble.” 

She turned to Red, “Looks like you have 50 Shades of Red…from rusty to angry, oozing crimson.” 

“Oh no! This can’t be so! What shall I do? Please, dear Witch, stop this infuriating itch.” 

The Witch handed her a leather pouch. “Take this Penicillin Potion three times a day for the next ten days, and remember, don’t trust the Wolf, no matter how magic his eyes. Save your flexibility for Trojan Guy.” 

 The moral of the story? Trust the Wolf and you may get burned…especially when you pee.

All Write!!! It's Friday!!!

3:35 AM Elizabeth Seckman 16 Comments

First I'll brag a little, then I'll whine a little, then you'll help me, and then all will be right in my world.

Got it?

Good.

The Brag~

Got the new book cover for my upcoming novel from World Castle Publishing. I can shamelessly brag because the hard work was done by the talented Karen Fuller.
Yes, it is pretty. After publishing book #1, I am now
motivated to line a shelf with my books, then I'm just going to sit and stare as vegged out as a chunky chick on a chocolate high!

The Whine~

Now that the cover is sitting on my author page with the "coming soon" banner...I need a blurb. And honestly? It has been KICKING my butt! I'm having query level issues coming up with a few sentences that can be spun into an intriguing paragraph.

The Help~

I have rewritten the following couple hundred words a thousand times. I'm at that point where I'm not sure if it's good  or I'm just ready to say, screw it, good enough.

Here it is...let me know what you think~

Game On!

2:02 AM Elizabeth Seckman 29 Comments

I'm a day late!!! But only because I am a dork who doesn't keep real good track of calendars!

A very talented friend of mine, KYRA LENNON...who lives all the way across the pond in Merry Old England (doesn't technology rock?!) is about to launch her first novel!!!

Yay! Kyra!!! You go girl!

And I'm just bragging a little when I say...I read this in the baby draft stage...you know before the final edits  and polish.  And even with a tiny error here and a paid bar in Boston wedding there*...it was a wonderful read!

GAME ON is the story of Leah and Radleigh. Two very strong willed, head butting, spark igniting people who you just know need to be a couple!

Leah, the chick who is as wise as she is beautiful, thinks Radleigh is a total arse (that's an authentic British expression!) And Radleigh, the studly athlete who makes Tom Brady look like an altar boy, sees Leah as...well, a challenge.

But Leah is dead set against a relationship with the creep.

But Radleigh is committed to keeping a perfect record...all the beauties end up in his bed.

Who will win the challenge?

You can go to Kyra's blog and vote...there are prizes!...by clicking HERE!

And since I'm late to the party...and since our own football season (the American kind with helmets and such) is starting...I feel compelled to add a prize to the party!

My boys' football team is selling tee-shirts as a fund raiser, so everyone who comments will be eligible to win a free tee! You get a Blue Eagle football shirt and the team gets a sale!

It's a win-win.

Go Eagles! And Go Kyra!!!

And YOU...go buy the book...by clicking:  BUY THE BOOK!!!

*In the manuscript...Kyra had a paid bar at an American wedding. I commented...every wedding I've ever been to in the good old USA...has open bars with free booze. Guess I'll have to buy the book to see if the drinks are free or costly in Boston!!!

Getting It Right...IWSG Post

2:28 AM Elizabeth Seckman 51 Comments

To read other posts on writing...click here

Is it August already?! Time for the back to school where my baby, my first born son, goes off to college? And just days away from my birthday where I grow another year older?

Eeek! Say it ain't so!

But on the bright side...it's IWSG day and I'll pretend ALL the support around the web is directed at me personally.

Thanks guys, I needed the pick-me-up!

Now...I'll try to return the favor!

My very best writer buddy, a non-blogger writing/editing genius (Hi Celeste!!) is my topic for today. (I can talk smack on her because she rarely browses the web!)

Here's the thing. Celeste will write a passage in a book and send it to me to beta. It will be nearly flawless...grammar, style, voice...it will all be good. I'll send it back with a thumb's up.

A few days later, she will send it back again. Totally rewritten. Again it will be nearly perfect. I'll green light it and send it back.

Then she will send it to me again. Scrubbed till it's polished and shined and more like a reflection of an encyclopedia than a novel.

Then I will send her a note. I liked it better the old way. This is too perfect. Text books are perfect. And no one fills a Kindle with textbooks.

Please toss me an ain't or a sentence fragment...something...PLEASE!!!

But here's the deal in a nutshell...Celeste suffers from insecurity. She is a natural writer and when she just tells the story...it's awesome!! But when she second guesses every line, every paragraph...then like a an OCD with a bucket of bleach...she ends up with stories that seem stilted and and bookish...but bookish in a bad way.

So here's my advice to her and to every writer who suffers from over polish syndrome.

Just tell the story!!

Imagine your story is like your house. If you make it spotless, clear it of the refrigerator art and tacky treasures, you may end up with a house as pretty as a JC Penny picture, but it will lack the warmth, the individuality that invites people in and suggests they kick up their feet and stay awhile.

Relax. Have fun. And remember, leaving finger prints is a good thing.