Jordan Summers

I was asked by the America Reads blogspot to write an entry about turning my book, RED into a movie. I picked a cast, including a producer and director. It was a lot of fun. Anyone who reads my blog knows how much I LOVE movies. Check it out.

They also talk a little about Crimson.

Also found out that SCARLET has been nominated for Best Duo Cover at All Things Urban Fantasy. How cool is that?

This weekend has been spent enjoying the company of friends, celebrating birthdays, and brainstorming a short story. I’m writing it today. Hope everyone has had a wonderful and safe holiday weekend. Time to jump start that exercise program.

So many reasons to give thanks. Truly. We’re off to share Thanksgiving with friends. May your meal be divine and the company even better.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I’ve finally cracked the cover of Twilight. Yes, I know I’m way behind on this sailing ship. Actually, I’m now a little over halfway through the book. It’s entertaining enough. Certainly keeps me reading. I’m sure some day I’ll catch the film. I do think it’s interesting that it’s the dangerous edge that has hooked most of the female readers out there. It’s very reminiscent of the early eighties romance novels with heroes that love the heroine one minute and hate her the next. Don’t know if I’ll finish the series, but I have no doubt I’ll finish the book.

I’m currently working on a short story that’s due Dec. 1st. If it doesn’t make it into the anthology I’m aiming for, I’ll probably put it up on my site as a free read. If it does, I’ll let everyone know because I will be thrilled. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

Bob Mayer has an interesting blog entry up on Genreality. Check it out.

Over the past several days two terms, ‘vanity publishing’ and ’self-publishing’ seem to have become interchangeable. I suppose someone who self-publishes could be doing so out of the vane need to have their name on a book, but that doesn’t make self-publishing and vanity publishing the same animal.

Vanity publishing is set up for one reason and one reason only: To Take Your Money

It’s not a viable publishing option like so many people argue on other blogs. I do understand that people who’ve shelled out thousands want to justify their decision, but that doesn’t make it right or smart.

Self-publishing on the other hand can/should be done for multiple reasons. If you have a family tree book/cookbook you want to hand out at a family reunion, then self-publishing is a good option. If you have a book that truly doesn’t fit in the N.Y. or Independent market (This should never be confused with you not having patience to wait for your work to sell or refusing to see that your work has problems that need to be corrected before it’s in shape to publish.), then self-publishing is an option. If you’re a published author who has an out-of-print backlist that’s not making any money (ie work that has been published, but is now unavailable), then self-publishing is an option.

If you don’t fall into one of those three categories, then my suggestion is to continue to work on your craft, take suggestions from your critique partners, get critique partners if you don’t have them, and keep submitting. Below you’ll find links to some Indie publishers and a great article from the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America about the difference between vanity publishing and self-publishing. Always do your research before you sign with any publisher.

Indie Publishers

SFWA Vanity Publishing vs. Self-Publishing

I have grocery shopping to do, but I thought I’d leave you with a couple of links. The first comes from the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. The second is from John Scalzi. His entry cracks me up.

Check out Lee Goldberg’s great blog with a response from Harlequin in the links.

Let the blurring and tarnishing of the Harlequin name begin.

My agent sent me a copy of the press releases for the new Carina and Harlequin Horizons ventures. One question that has been coming up all over the readers and writers sites is can an author who pays the vanity press, Harlequin Horizons to publish their work call themselves a Harlequin author? Apparently, the answer is a BIG NO! According to the press release, Harlequin doesn’t even plan to link to the books available at Harlequin Horizons. Kind of wondering if those of you who were thinking of ‘investing’ in this venture still think it’s a good idea?

I want to buy a new computer. My current machine is getting a little long in the tooth. I’m well aware that the new Windows 7 OS is supposed to be pretty good. That said, I’m trying to decide whether to buy a 27 inch iMac or a comparable Windows machine. I’d like to hear from those of you who’ve recently made a similar decision and those of you who’ve gone from a PC to a Mac. All opinions are welcome.

I’d planned to write an entry about auditioning, since I spent a lot of years auditioning for bands and for commercials/television shows. I was going to tie the entry in with writing. (A surprise, I know. *g*) But the blog world is in such an uproar over THIS announcement that I thought it might be better to discuss the ramifications instead.

I have to admit that a friend of mine saw this coming months ago. She predicted that publishers would start with e-pubbing most authors with little to no advance, then have them pay to put their books in print. I am disappointed that Harlequin has chosen to go in this direction, especially since it’s such a good company. I have no doubt this, like the no advance epub only company they just started, is a good business decision for the corporation. But it’s definitely not good for the author.

What do you all think?

Dh was out of town last week. I’d planned to spend the time working like a busy bee, but instead I socialized with friends and got my hair done. (Plus a few chapters edited.) I also actually did a tremendous amount of thinking while he was gone. I thought about everything from pen names to websites to computer systems (I’m thinking about changing to a Mac.).

I’m now a step closer to getting Gothic Passions up on Kindle. I’ve had the follow up to that story finished for years. If GP does well, then I’ll add the novella follow up. My second adult UF is now sitting in N.Y., which brings my New York submissions up to two urban fantasies and one contemporary romance. I’m finishing up my edits on my young adult urban fantasy. Hoping it will be ready to submit by Jan. After that I’m going to take some time to figure out what I am going to write next. May be going in a completely new direction or an old one, depending on your perspective.

This weekend we took the time to go the movies. On Saturday we went to see 2012. It’s definitely a boom, boom movie. It was like watching The Day After Tomorrow, The Poseidon Adventure, and Independence all at once. *ggg* Actually, it was entertaining enough if you ignored logic and most of the acting. (wg) Last night we went to see the Invention of Lying. It was definitely an interesting movie. Clever idea. (ie no one on the planet knows how to lie and they say whatever pops into their minds) It dropped the ball at times, but the middle and the ending came through.

Have you seen any movies worth noting? Please share. I’m open to all suggestions.