Monday, April 30, 2012
Hello from H. D. Thomson
As for what I write, you could call me a mixed bag. I write contemporary (under Carol Webb), erotica (under Lynne Logan) and paranormal/sci fi romance under H. D. Thomson. More than any genre, I'm in love with paranormal/sci fi romance. I do like adding a bit of gruesome in there as well. My latest Shrouded series is a mix of paranormal and sci-fi. I don't have vampires, werewolves or faeries, but I don't exactly write out of this world science fiction. The Shrouded Series is about a cutting-edge pharmaceutical company that has left their ethics at the door in search of the next scientific discover.
The first in the Shrouded Series is called Shrouded in Darkness. Below is a blurb:
Margot doesn’t particularly care if she ends up dead. She’s lost everything she’s ever cared for. A divorce and the loss of her job as a corporate lawyer has left her with little faith in herself or in anyone else. Most importantly, she’s lost the one person on this earth she’s looked up to and cherished–her brother, Johnny. His death in a car accident has devastated her, and she can’t find the willpower to pull herself from the chasm she’s fallen into. Her only solace is at the bottom of a wineglass. Having moved back to the small town in northern Arizona where she was raised, she’s made a point of isolating herself both mentally and physically from everyone other than a few chosen friends. Little does she know that her life is going to explode into chaos and the person behind Johnny’s death is coming after her.
I hope you try Shrouded in Darkness. I enjoyed writing Margot and Jake's story. I really did give them several unpleasant and life altering obstacles.
Thanks for stopping by, and don't forget to leave a comment for a $25 gift certificate!
Friday, April 27, 2012
As a romance novel fan, I had never watched or read sci-fi until I stumbled onto Buffy The Vampire Slayer after it was already off the air. After renting the first 3 episodes, I bought all 7 seasons on DVD and have watched them at least 3 times each.
Buffy opened my eyes to a whole new world and I've never looked back. I was attracted to the mythology, the action, the symbolism, and just plain fun...while my first love--romance--was never in short supply.
So now I'm a sci-fi romance fan. Naturally, I went on to watch and obsess over Angel, Firefly, and Dollhouse--all Joss Whedon creations. But I also loved the Underworld series, Matrix series, and Donnie Darko to name a few. Some of my favorite sci-fi books are The Doomsday Book and Day of the Triffids (along with all the authors here, natch). These TV shows, books, and movies helped me think in a whole new way, and inspired me to write my novel series Apocalypse Babes.
Sci-fi romance allows the author to explore extreme themes and employ deep symbolism and subtext while putting the characters in the outer bounds of probability. It allows readers to have their imaginations fired with fun escapes from the mundane.
And to think, it all started (for me) with a girl with a stick.
Thanks Mr. Pointy.
Hello Everyone,
My name is Linda Andrews and I'm proud to be part of this new blog. We have some amazing writers on this blog and I'm proud to say that I've read works by pretty much all of them. So who am I besides my name?
Here's my bio:
Linda Andrews lives in Phoenix, Arizona with her husband, three children and a menagerie of domesticated animals. While she started writing a decade ago, she always used her stories to escape the redundancy of her day job as a scientist and never thought to actually combine her love of fiction and science. DOH! After that Homer Simpson moment, she allowed the two halves of her brain to talk to each other. The journeys she’s embarked on since then are dark, twisted and occasionally violent, but never predictable.
As you can see, I walk a little left of normal. But don't let that scare you. To quote A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy "I'm mostly harmless."
Welcome and remember to leave a comment for a chance to win a $25.00 amazon gift card.
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Introduction - Cynthia Woolf
Hi. My name is Cynthia Woolf and I write scifi romance. It makes it sound like I’m in a 12 step program. But no, there are no twelve step programs for science fiction writers. Though there are those in our families who probably think there should be.
My scifi romances started with a dream I had when I was about fifteen. Like all teenagers, I was sure my Mom was from another planet because she just didn’t understand me or what I was going through. Then I had a dream and it wasn’t Mom who was from another planet, but me! I dreamed I was a princess from Alpha Centauri, sent to Earth to save my life. Now it’s not unusual for girls to want to be princesses. I’m sure most every little girl out there at one time or another pretends to be a princess. But from another planet? Not so much.
Well, the dream stuck with me. Fast forward a lot of years, more than I will admit to, and I still remember the dream like it was the one I had last night. I decided to write it down. I’d already finished one book, a historical western called Tame A Wild Heart and was trying to decide what to write next. That’s when I remembered my dream and I thought ‘why not?’.
The next thing I knew I was writing down my dream and world building my new planet and it’s people. I wrote on it for a long time. Then I just sort of stopped writing it. I’d been turned down by agents and by editors. There just wasn’t any call for my kind of book.
I went into a non writing funk for many years. Then I ended up in the hospital. I thought I’d had a heart attack. Thankfully it was not, but it still changed the way I looked at my life. I realized I only had this one and I needed to make things happen. The night I was in the hospital, I couldn’t sleep, who can in a hospital? I had my husband bring me a notebook and a pen and started writing where I’d left off. I finished the book that night in the hospital.
What now? I guessed I had to get back on the agent/editor merry-go-round and I dreaded it. I mentioned to my friend Michele Callahan that I’d finished my book. She said, “Great. Now you can publish with me.”
“What?” I said. “Are you starting a publishing company?”
“No.” she answered. “I’m going to self publish it.”
Now I thought she’d lost her mind. When I thought of self publishing, I thought of those companies where you paid them a lot of money and they published your book. I wasn’t interested in anything like that. She said, “No, it’s nothing like that.” Then she went on to explain about self publishing to Kindle and all the other outlets there are now.
I jumped on as fast as I could. And haven’t looked back yet. It’s been a wild ride and one I wouldn’t have missed for anything. So my ‘heart attack’ turned out to be a good thing and is allowing me to grab life by the ears when I would have sat it out before.
I hope you’ll try my books, Centauri Dawn, Centauri Twilight and Centauri Midnight.
Hey be sure and leave a comment to get an entry into the drawing for a $25 Amazon certificate. The drawing will be on May 19th. If you comment on each blog until then, you'll have that many entries into the drawing. :-)
Monday, April 23, 2012
THE ROAD TO WRITING SCIENCE FICTION ROMANCE - by Vijaya Schartz
Before I start, let me tell you that SNATCHED, one of my Romantic Science Fiction novels, is FREE today only on Amazon kindle (you can get the free app if you don't have a kindle). So grab it quick for your TBR list. CLICK HERE to get it.
Snatched from a post-apocalyptic battlefield by galactic traders, Zania is sold to a clandestine ring of fighting Amazons, on a planet lush with green jungles and teeming with deadly felines. She resents the gorgeous and overzealous Viking champion, Svend, who saves her life but too easily accepts slavery. Adulated by a woman who claims to know her, hated by the jealous Amazon queen who fancies Svend, Zania seeks escape...
But Svend knows the price of rebellion, and on this seemingly peaceful planet, ruled and defended by machines, nothing is what it seems, not even Zania herself... Among the rumbles of a volcano threatening to explode, an insurrection is brewing, and no one is safe...
My name is difficult to remember, but think about VJ and add an "a" then think of Schwartz without the "w." I'm French, born and raised, but I received my first name in India when I was studying there, and Schartz is a surname from Luxembourg (from where my husband's ancestors came in 1885).
Snatched from a post-apocalyptic battlefield by galactic traders, Zania is sold to a clandestine ring of fighting Amazons, on a planet lush with green jungles and teeming with deadly felines. She resents the gorgeous and overzealous Viking champion, Svend, who saves her life but too easily accepts slavery. Adulated by a woman who claims to know her, hated by the jealous Amazon queen who fancies Svend, Zania seeks escape...
But Svend knows the price of rebellion, and on this seemingly peaceful planet, ruled and defended by machines, nothing is what it seems, not even Zania herself... Among the rumbles of a volcano threatening to explode, an insurrection is brewing, and no one is safe...
My name is difficult to remember, but think about VJ and add an "a" then think of Schwartz without the "w." I'm French, born and raised, but I received my first name in India when I was studying there, and Schartz is a surname from Luxembourg (from where my husband's ancestors came in 1885).
I've been writing romantic science fiction since the turn of this century, way before it was an accepted genre. So you can imagine how many rejections I received from the major publishers. Every editor and agent who read my manuscripts loved the writing, they also loved the action and the plots, but they just didn't know what to do with them. They wanted me to choose to write either romance or science fiction, not both in the same story. But I wanted to write the stories I loved. We were at an impasse.
I'm a Christmas time child (Dec.27), so I'm a Capricorn, tenacious, persistent, workaholic, and extremely patient (sometimes too patient for my own good). I never give up. Eventually, a brand new publisher was starting a line of novels for a small niche market, eBook romances in science fiction setting, with kick-butt heroines. They happened to read my formerly published works in more mainstream genres, and asked me to write for them. I was elated. Finally, my weird genre had found a home.
Lo and behold, a few years later, that publisher closed their doors, and I found myself again looking for someone who would publish my brand of Science Fiction romance. Fortunately, by that time, this new genre had found enough of an audience that I found not one, but several publishers. And to this day, I keep my options open and maintain several active publishers... just in case.
My latest sci-fi romance novel is NOAH'S ARK, the prequel to my CHRONICLES OF KASSOUK series, out earlier this month, which ends that series with the story of how it all began, and how human settlers happened to be marooned on this far-flung planet out of Earth's reach.
When Trixie's star freighter, Noah's Ark, drops out of jump space in an uncharted part of the universe, she believes the M-class planet on her viewer represents hope and salvation for her motley crew and the ragtag settlers aboard her ship.
Kostas, ex Space Marine, the expert survivalist recruited for this expedition, doesn't believe in coincidences, and knows that when something looks too good to be true, it usually is.
Everyone on this voyage to seed a new planet with life, is running from something, and harbors dangerous secrets... including Trixie, who vowed to never let a man control her life again. As for Kostas, he would get lynched on the spot if anyone suspected who he really is.
But on this seemingly abandoned planet, others are watching, herding them for evil purposes... And when the truth emerges and secrets unravel, Trixie and Kostas will have to fight for survival, for freedom, and for the right to love...
When Trixie's star freighter, Noah's Ark, drops out of jump space in an uncharted part of the universe, she believes the M-class planet on her viewer represents hope and salvation for her motley crew and the ragtag settlers aboard her ship.
Kostas, ex Space Marine, the expert survivalist recruited for this expedition, doesn't believe in coincidences, and knows that when something looks too good to be true, it usually is.
Everyone on this voyage to seed a new planet with life, is running from something, and harbors dangerous secrets... including Trixie, who vowed to never let a man control her life again. As for Kostas, he would get lynched on the spot if anyone suspected who he really is.
But on this seemingly abandoned planet, others are watching, herding them for evil purposes... And when the truth emerges and secrets unravel, Trixie and Kostas will have to fight for survival, for freedom, and for the right to love...
Hope you enjoy this new site.
Have a wonderful day.
Vijaya Schartz
Blasters, Swords, Romance with a Kick
Find my books on Amazon at:
Friday, April 20, 2012
Bella Street Writes Romance With A Touch Of Weird
I'm so excited to be a part of Starbound Lovers! I can't say my characters make it to the stars (yet) but they do tend to travel through time where merry mayhem ensues.
I write romance with a touch of weird--that's my open-ended excuse to write whatever tumbles out of my twisted brain, so a space opera is always a possibility in the future.
My latest project is Apocalypse Babes.
It's been said that a sure sign of the coming apocalypse is an 80s roller skate disco movie coming to DVD (with special features). In the science-fiction novel series Apocalypse Babes, a stylish group of twenty-something friends are torn from the Babylonian arms of 2006 West Hollywood and flung nearly thirty years into the past. It might be because one of them purchased the taboo film in a nostalgic moment, setting off a chain of events more disturbing than a roller skating conga line. They wake up in an apocalyptic but strangely familiar landscape, complete with a hidden mountain compound and retro survivalists, hinting at hidden and retro secrets they must face if they want to survive.
This series has time-travel, a pink sun, a cagey survivalist, zombies, possible alien visitation, disco, voodoo blood, a love triangle (more of scalene triangle), rabies, happy air, Juicy Couture, and the greatest apocalypse of all...with romance.
Like I said, romance with a touch of weird.
Please leave a comment. One winner will receive a free Kindle or Nook set of Apocalypse Babes: The Complete Series.
Thanks for visiting Starbound Lovers. Come back often to find new voices in science-fiction romance!
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Is it Fantasy or Science Fiction?
Hello everyone. Let me fill you in on the latest interstellar news - every comment you leave on our blog posts from Allison's first post on April 16, 2012 until May 19, 2012 will enter you in the chance to win a $25 Amazon gift card. Please make sure you leave an email address for us to contact you.
Back to our regular programing, let me introduce myself. I'm Beth Caudill and I write fantasy and paranormal romance stories. Wait a minute. You mean there are no spaceships, no rockets? Yes, I'm afraid that's correct. I prefer to keep my feet on the ground.
However, the ground my stories rest upon isn't necessarily Earth. I enjoy crafting stories with a variety of environments. Why settle for the Milky Way when there are so many unexplored galaxies waiting to have their stories told.
I love Anne McCaffrey's Pern, Crystal Singer, and Powers that Be series. Each series takes place on a planet with unusual characteristics. This is what I hope to emulate as a writer, even if I have to throw in a bit of magic.
My novella Healer's Fate started with the premise: no humans allowed. I created the planet Arilase with the intent for every inhabitant to possess some type of supernatural power. Werewolves, witches, elves, sprites and anything else I want to create. I intend to visit this world again, just as soon as my characters cooperate and fix their plot problems. Imaginary characters are almost as unruly as children.
You can watch the Healer's Fate trailer or buy from Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Whispers Publishing.
I leave you with a bit of inspiration: the Astronomy Picture of the Day. What planet lurks within these stars?
Monday, April 16, 2012
A Big Steampunk Howdy
*Tapping microphone* This thing is on, yes? *Squeal of feedback* Heh. Must be. Well, hi there, sci-fi romance lovers. You're just entered the brand spanking new Starbound Lovers blog. Isn't this the prettiest background and header job you've seen for a blog? You know it.
Let me get down to it by introducing myself. I'm Allison Merritt and I'll be taking over some of the Mondays around here. The first thing you should probably know about me is that I don't write strictly what you'd call sci-fi romance. I like to call myself a steampunk romance writer. Steampunk is sci-fi-y, because it incorporates technology that wasn't in use in the 19th century. I've got airships, laser pistols, wireless devices, and some paranormal magic that I use to muddle history as we know it.
Before I got into steampunk, my first love in writing was historical romance. I read Louis L'Amour novels by the dozens. It wasn't until a few years ago that I was watching The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen with my husband that I thought I'd love to write a novel like that. And then one day while I was standing in the shower--a place that I consider sacred because so many ideas come to me there--that the characters for The Treasure Hunter's Lady were born in a flash of inspiration. My love for all things Western came out in the hero and my heroine was a British explorer's daughter. I absolutely knew from the start that I wanted airships in it and I wanted something more unusual than the weaponry of the day (it's set in 1884).
I didn't really intend to do more than write a silly little novella when I started, but somewhere along the way, the historical romance I was working on got to be too much effort and The Treasure Hunter's Lady blossomed into something more. I found that it was difficult to want to go back to historicals.
I self-published it in February and I'm currently editing the second book in a trilogy I called Legends and Lovers. It's called The Sky Pirate's Wife and it stars one of the characters from The Treasure Hunter's Lady. I'm leaning toward publishing it sometime this summer. I've already got a pretty decent start on the third novel in the series.
I'm looking forward to sharing time on the blog with the other sci-fi rom writers. I think we're all going to have a great time here.
You can find me in other places on the web too. I have a Facebook fan page, I hang out on Twitter, pop in occasionally at G+ and you can buy The Treasure Hunter's Lady from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Smashwords or watch the book trailer on YouTube.
Before I got into steampunk, my first love in writing was historical romance. I read Louis L'Amour novels by the dozens. It wasn't until a few years ago that I was watching The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen with my husband that I thought I'd love to write a novel like that. And then one day while I was standing in the shower--a place that I consider sacred because so many ideas come to me there--that the characters for The Treasure Hunter's Lady were born in a flash of inspiration. My love for all things Western came out in the hero and my heroine was a British explorer's daughter. I absolutely knew from the start that I wanted airships in it and I wanted something more unusual than the weaponry of the day (it's set in 1884).
I didn't really intend to do more than write a silly little novella when I started, but somewhere along the way, the historical romance I was working on got to be too much effort and The Treasure Hunter's Lady blossomed into something more. I found that it was difficult to want to go back to historicals.
I self-published it in February and I'm currently editing the second book in a trilogy I called Legends and Lovers. It's called The Sky Pirate's Wife and it stars one of the characters from The Treasure Hunter's Lady. I'm leaning toward publishing it sometime this summer. I've already got a pretty decent start on the third novel in the series.I'm looking forward to sharing time on the blog with the other sci-fi rom writers. I think we're all going to have a great time here.
You can find me in other places on the web too. I have a Facebook fan page, I hang out on Twitter, pop in occasionally at G+ and you can buy The Treasure Hunter's Lady from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Smashwords or watch the book trailer on YouTube.
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