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Allison Chase

Allison Chase


Last Updated: 12/16/2009

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Gender: Female
Status: Married
Age: 99
Sign: Aquarius

City: Coral Springs
State: Florida
Country: US
Signup Date: 1/29/2008

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Wednesday, November 25, 2009 

Category: Writing and Poetry
*Cross-posted on the FRWriters blog

There’s no need to rehash what happened in the publishing industry last week – we all know. But it’s the fact that we do all know that I find worthy of comment. News of Harlequin Horizons spread in a matter of hours, and the response was immediate. So immediate, not to mention forceful, that within a day or so the company “chose” to make some “adjustments” to its policies. For instance, due to the uproar over the fact that writers could now pay for the Harlequin name while other writers have worked so hard through traditional means, they’ll no longer be using the name Harlequin Horizons on the books. I heard they’ve also removed the links connecting eHarlequin to their vanity press website.

When you think about it, if this were twenty years ago, before the internet, we would have read about Harlequin’s new venture in our RWRs. We’d then have waited to see the fallout in our chapter newsletters and subsequent RWRs. We’re talking weeks, maybe months before everyone sifted through the ramifications. By the time the writing industry had formed a reply, Harlequin would already have launched their program and been well into production. Would they have made changes then? I really wonder.

When Neil Plakcy spoke at FRW a few months ago, he encouraged us all to expand our internet presence through Facebook, Twitter, etc., siting the power of social networking to spread ideas and mobilize a community to action. We saw a prime example of that last week, and it really did prove that the internet has made us more informed, more connected and more of a united front. If there was ever any question as to whether spending time promoting and networking - and what we’re doing here with our blog – is worth it, I think we have our answer.

I write historicals. I love transporting myself to the charms and challenges of long ago, but I’m really, really glad I live in the age I do. Six hundred years ago, Gutenberg’s printing press revolutionized the spread of ideas and put the power of the written word into the hands of the people, and changed the world. The internet is our Gutenberg, and it’s given us the ability to help shape the business we all love.

So, with Thanksgiving upon us, I’m grateful for that business, and I’m grateful to be part of a dynamic, well-informed community that insists on fair practices and is willing to stand up for what’s right for all it’s members. I’m especially grateful to be part of my particular RWA chapter, the Florida Romance Writers, who are always ready to support each other, help each other reach our goals and cheer each other on.

Wishing everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving!
2:30 PM 
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Monday, October 26, 2009 
If you love Regency romance and read a lot of them, you've got to check this out - I'm still giggling.

Then come back and we'll talk about cliches and why, despite the fact that writers are repeatedly told to avoid using cliches at all costs, they ARE used and they DO continue to sell books in great numbers. So go on, have a read...I'l wait...

Ok. Let's face it, cliches exist for a reason: they strike a chord in readers. Another way of looking at them is as universal identifiers. The evil stepmom, the greedy business partner, the curmudgeonly grandfather, the dashing rogue, the clever vixen. We know these people the moment we see/read about them. The trick, of course, is to give them new and surprising angles that keep them from feeling stale. But why? Why don't we constantly just come up with completely new character types?

Well, for one thing, at this point no matter what you come up with, it's been pretty much been done before, somewhere in the world's body of literature since the beginning of time. Sorry, but it's true. 

But so what? Robert McKee (writing guru and author of STORY) explained it best in speaking about the James Bond franchise. Over and over for decades now, fans of the series have enjoyed watching Bond do pretty much the same exact thing - defeat the bad guys, save the world, do the bad girl, win the good girl, without ever mussing his clothes or spilling his vodka martini. Bond has become his own cliche, yet we love him...we love watching the game unfold each time because he's so impossibly good at what he does. With each movie, his limits are pushed a little further and the plot becomes a little more fanastic and high tech. But it's still basically the same and has been ever since Sean Connery first swaggered into camera range.
  
 Classic features, dangerous eyes - cliche? Who cares!!!
Classic features, dangerous eyes...
Are we getting tired of this? I think not.
Is it cliche? Like I said, who cares!

The same satire also could be applied to romance series based around navy seals, or big Texas families where the men are all alpha cowboy executive millionaires, or semi-reformed soul gathering vampires. Watching angsty, alpha guys fall for sassy women is just good fun, and no, we don't tire of it.

Me, I love a man's man in breeches and boots, whose billowy linen shirt hangs off his tight, tapering body, who isn't afraid to gallop his horse across a foggy moor, who's dashing presence commands attention in any drawing room, and who knows when and exactly how to kiss his lady breathless.

Do you have a favorite, sinfully secret romance cliche?  Do tell!
2:38 PM 
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Monday, October 12, 2009 

Current mood:  bouncy
Category: Writing and Poetry

“Dear Author, I just finished your book and I wanted to let you know …”
 

When you consider that the readership for books with even modest sales is in the thousands, fan letters can be relatively few and far between (unless of course you’re Nora Roberts or Heather Graham – they probably get fan letters by the thousands on a slow day, lol) Most readers just don’t pick up that pen, or in more modern terminology, pop off an email, even to their favorite authors. Could be a privacy thing, could be shyness, could be a time factor. Or it could be that most readers don’t realize how much their opinion matters.

But oh, from the author’s point of view, there’s nothing like a fan letter, however brief, to motivate a good day’s writing. It can lift a discouraged writer out of a slump and more than make up for a tepid review. Even the quick tag board entry from a reader who enjoyed my books (on my main blog at www.allisonchase.bravejournal.com) gave me a boost this morning as potent as my favorite flavored latte. And that in turn fires the energy I need to be creative when I open up that book file and continue where I left off yesterday.


Reviews are great. Awards are fabulous. Your editor’s approval is invaluable. But nothing compares to hearing from an average reader that your words meant something to them. That you moved them, made them happy, or transported them temporarily from their daily concerns. My favorite comment – every author’s favorite – is hearing that your book kept someone awake long into the wee hours of the night. Or made them cry…or laugh. Nothing on earth warms an author’s heart more.


This isn’t a bid for letters! It’s a thank you to everyone who has ever taken the time to convey their thoughts about an author’s work – either mine or anyone else’s. Because writing isn’t about reviews or awards or really even about the author herself. It’s completely, 100 percent about readers. Readers are the business. Their preferences determine the budgets and the trends – including who makes the bestseller lists – in the publishing world. Readers keep authors inspired.

 

4:12 PM 
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Monday, September 07, 2009 

Category: Writing and Poetry
Why does it seem pretty universal that authors so often have to bribe themselves to do the thing they love best, which is writing?

We start writing because we are obsessively drawn to words and storytelling. Most of us have been doing this in some form since we were very young children, and most can't envision a life where we don't sit down to write pretty much every day. There are always characters talking in our heads, and storylines unfurl in our mind's eye like enticing ribbons of untraveled highway. We can't not set out on the journey. And yet, especially once we realize our dream of being published, traveling the road can come to feel like a chore, all those words becoming burdens weighing us down and dragging at every step. Can you imagine WANTING to do dishes or laundry? Writers do, because it gives them a break from what they're supposed to be doing - producing their word count for the day.

To make ourselves write, we use every kind of self-bribe imaginable. Chocolate is an extemely popular choice: M&Ms, Hershey's kisses, raisinets (that's mine!). Some go for salty things: cashews, potato chips, pretzels, etc. Or we'll promise ourselves a yummy latte at the end of the day. We simultaneously become both the parent and the child: if you write this page, I'll give you a bite of this candy bar. If you're good and write 1000 words, I'll take you out later for a treat. 

One answer you'll hear is that writing is plain hard work. But why is is it hard work? How can sitting in a chair and moving your fingers to convey romantic fantasies possibly be strenuous?

Because it takes not only every bit of your mental concentration, but the whole of your emotional self as well. You have to completely leave the world you live in - with all of its concerns and committments - and enter the one you've created where you have to live the lives of several characters at once. It means shutting you off and so you can become them, and that can be really, really draining! 

I've decided to ask around and see what I can find out. Is this as universal as I think? Are there authors who have never had to resort to such shenanigans to get a book done on time? And are there any effective self-bribes I haven't heard of yet? (might be willing to pay cash for that information).

Non-writers, what kinds of things do you have to bribe yourself to do?

(Did I mention that I've been eating dark chocolate raisinets as I write this post?)
7:00 PM 
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Monday, August 31, 2009 

Category: Writing and Poetry
I would have liked to have more answers to my trailer question, but here's what I've learned so far.

"Caffey" says she finds trailers fun. She enjoys watching them and they have led to her becoming interested in checking out new books.

A reader on Twitter says: "No; in fact if they're silly, which they often are, I may be discouraged from even sampling the book let alone buying."

Historical Mystery author, Diane Stuckart, did one for her last release, PORTRAIT OF A LADY and plans to make another for her upcoming January release, but would also like to know what readers think. I found her trailer compelling with it's urgent music and beautiful Renaissance portraits, while the captions suggested an exciting historical plot with lots of twists and intrigue. I say well done, Diane!

My friend and critique partner, author Cynthia Thomason, says: "No, I haven't bought a book because of the trailer, but I've seen some really terrific ones. And now that I think about that, I find my answer odd. I've certainly gone to see movies because of the trailers."

If anyone else has an opinion they'd like to share, I'd love to hear it!

By the way, tomorrow I'll be chosing another random gift card winner from among all the commenters in July and August. http://www.allisonchase.bravejournal.com
9:30 PM 
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Friday, August 28, 2009 

Category: Web, HTML, Tech
As any writer can tell you, it isn't enough to simply write a good book nowadays. In fact, sad but true, the quality of the work can sometimes have little or no correlation to an author's sales. In a business that comes down to numbers, i.e., dollars and cents, succeeding in publishing becomes a matter of successful promotion - of making readers aware that you exist, and that you've got books on the shelves.

A couple of years ago someone got the idea that if trailers are so effective in generating excitment about upcoming movies, why not try it for books. With an immediate bandwagon effect, most authors scrambled to to have trailers made of their latest releases and post them everywhere they could - Youtube, blogs, their websites, etc. My publisher encouraged me to have one made for Dark Obsession, which you can view by clicking the link above.

It became quite a craze and to tell the truth, they are a lot of fun because you see your characters and scenery brought to life. They also weren't particularly expensive - at first. Some particularly clever authors even made their own with programs like Windows Movie Maker (I wasn't one of them, lol) But once the initial hoopla died down, a few standards began to develop. One author was told by her agent that if her trailer didn't have live people moving and talking (as opposed to still pictures and captions), it wasn't effective. Now you're adding expenses - big ones - and what used to cost a couple hundred or less could soar into the thousands.

By the time Dark Temptation came out, people, including my own publisher, were no longer so certain that this was the best way to spend promotional dollars. So I didn't have one made. A lot of authors still do, but I'm not sure if that's mainly because, as I said, having a book trailer is fun, and they do help make your website more interactive for readers. So I'm up in the air when it comes to my new series, although having the city of Bath as a background could make for especially pretty visuals.

Here is my question: have you ever purchased a book specifically because of a book trailer?

Leave your answer at my blog: http://allisonchase.bravejournal.com/ and be entered in my drawing for a gift card. A winner will be chosen next week!
10:18 PM 
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Monday, August 10, 2009 

Category: Writing and Poetry
This Wednesday, August 12th,  at My News & Views Blog:

Delilah Marvelle will be talking about the naughty side of history and giving away a copy of her newest release, LORD OF PLEASURE to a random commenter! Hope to see you there!
7:25 PM 
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Thursday, July 30, 2009 

Category: Writing and Poetry
Yesterday and today the conversation on one of my loops turned to Steampunk, a topic that's suddenly sweeping through the romance community and sparking lots of excitement among editors. There are already Steampunk books in the pipeline, but for many writers this remains a gray area. When you say Steampunk, most people, writers and readers alike, say "Huh?"

In fact, when my editor mentioned it to me a couple of months ago, I was slightly embarrassed to come back with the above response. I figured this was something I should already have heard about and shame on me for not knowing the next hot trend after vampires and werewolves. Well, it seems a lot of people who attended RWA National this month heard the term repeated at every turn, and still came home not really knowing what it meant.

My editor gave me the best visual when she said, "You might be too young to remember that old show from the 60's, The Wild Wild West." Bless her heart, I certainly DO remember the series, although I WAS quite young at the time, lol. For those of you who really are too young to have ever seen it on TV, Will Smith did a remake with Kenneth Branaugh playing the twisted evil bad guy. The main characters were old west spies who foiled villains using futuristic, James Bond type weapons and gadgets, but which were powered by the technology of the time, i.e.steam power. Kind of a Victorian era sci fi. Jules Verne might be considered one of the original Steampunk authors. Hey, before him there was Mary Shelley.

High tech, Victorian style

Originally, I saw this as a phenomenon that would only be applied to historical romance - since we are talking "steam" technology here - but apparently there are ways to translate this into a contemporary setting.

It's a fun, intriguing concept, and the possibilities are endless when you consider that with this kind of technology, the author's imagination can really run wild. I imagine such stories will be way more adventurous and "plotty" than a lot of the more traditional romance, with the main focus still on the relationship but allowing for a lot more external twists and turns. Personally, I like plot. I like for my characters to engage in more than lovemaking and romance-related angst. I like watching them learn to trust each other and work together when faced with external dilemmas, even though their internal conflicts are still keeping them apart. I like for them to experience fun and excitement and danger while they work their way through baffling mysteries.

I do see Steampunk as possibly the next craze in adventurous romance (hey erotica writers, can you imagine the sex toys??!! ), but I can't help but wonder if die-hard historical lovers will embrace the concept. I brought it up with a friend who is a rabid fan of English set historicals, a history buff and a true Anglophile. Her response was an emphatic no. She felt that too much focus on technology and gadgetry would distract from the things she loves most about historicals, one of which is being transported back to a simpler, more charming time in history. She doesn't want to be thrust into Frankenstein's lab.

Interesting. Of course, she's only one person. I'm fascinated to know how other readers feel. In doing the revisions on MOST EAGERLY YOURS, I realized that, wow! there are a couple of places that totally lend themselves to a bit of Steampunk, so I'll be adding a touch of that to the story. There is already alchemy, so what the heck?

So here's my question: do you think Steampunk is going to be a hot, lasting trend, or a flash in the pan? Maybe first I should ask if you're clear yet on what it means, or are you still scratching your head?  
Can you picture your hero wearing this?
3:50 PM 
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Saturday, July 04, 2009 

Category: Writing and Poetry

And now some
(The following came to me from the owner of the incredible Bookworm Bookstore in Lake Worth, Florida):

Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men
who signed the Declaration of Independence?

Five signers were captured by the British as traitors,
and tortured before they died.

Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.
Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army;
another had two sons captured.

Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or
hardships of the Revolutionary War.

They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes,
and their sacred honor.

What kind of men were they?

Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists.
Eleven were merchants,
nine were farmers and large plantation owners;
men of means, well educated,
but they signed the Declaration of Independence
knowing full well that the penalty would be death if
they were captured.
Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and
trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the
British Navy. He sold his home and properties to
pay his debts, and died in rags.

Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British
that he was forced to move his family almost constantly.
He served in the Congress without pay, and his family
was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him,
and poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer,
Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.

At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr., noted that
the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson
home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General
George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed,
and Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed.
The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.

John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying.
Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill
were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests
and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his
children vanished.
So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and
silently thank these patriots. It's not much to ask for the price they
paid.

Remember: freedom is never free!
5:18 PM 
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Tuesday, June 23, 2009 
These little trade "secrets" are not necessarily good or bad (or even necessarily secrets) but are simply the reality of how things are, and every new author should be familiar with them:

(For those of you who are not authors, I invite you to tell us why you might or might not try a new author. What might make you pick up and buy someone you've never heard of or never read before - is it the cover? The blurb? The fact that it was prominently placed on one of the front tables at the bookstore?)  

1. With the release of any new book, the first week's sales are the most important in determining the success of that book. Pubishers will be scrutinizing these numbers because they know this is where the sales "spike" will occur (the most books sold), as opposed to what's called the "tail," which is when the book continues to sell but in much lower quanities, kind of a dribble effect. If your spike is not tall, there is no reason to hope there will be a later surge in sales unless some sort of weird miracle occurs, like Oprah finds the book and recommends it on her show.  

2. While Amazon rankings are representative of a book's overall popularity, those numbers are actually based on the sales of a relatively low number of copies. The sale of a single book can significantly lower your ranking number (the lower your number, the higher your ranking), as much as 100,000 points or more. Books sell in far greater quantities at retail outlets like Walmart. In fact, those outlets seem to sell far more books than the bookstores do. However, that may be swiftly changing as the outlets significantly cut back the types and amounts of books they carry.

3. Knowing your print run (how many copies of your book your publisher actually prints) is important in determining how much money you should devote to promoting. After all, you can't sell what doesn't exist. Print runs are based on the number of books ordered by the distributor, who have little to go on other than the cover (which is why authors spend a lot of time praying the art department gets it right), a brief description of the plot (maybe), the rep's presentation (and sometimes the rep just doesn't focus on your particular book) and your prior sales, if you have a track record.

4. A brand new author's book often has a better chance of generating a high number of orders than an author who has had low print runs in the past. The distributors don't necessarily care about the reasons for a low print run; they simply aren't likely to order in large quanities (say, 50-60,000 or more), if the author's past sales reflect significantly lower numbers (20,000 or less), even if that new book has all the potential of becoming a breakout surprise bestseller. In that case, a publisher will often suggest that the author take a new pseudonym.  

5. A decent "sell-through" (how many books actually makes it into the hands of readers as opposed to being returned by the bookstores) used to be around 40% of your first print run. This was considered successful for a new author. Not so anymore. Pubishers want to see sell throughs of 60% or higher.

6. Getting all this information about print runs and sell throughs can sometimes be like pulling teeth. For some reason, some publishers seem to feel this information is on a "need to know" basis, and the authors don't really need to know (really, you do). This philosophy is further reinforced by the intricate maze of information that is your royalty statement, which typically arrives twice a year and reflects sales not from the previous six months, but the six before that. When you sit down with your first statement, I recommend having handy a calculator, magnifying glass, compass, bread crumbs and a GPS system, because within minutes you will be hopelessly lost. 

Well, those are the secrets I can think of today, and if I linger here any longer trying to think of more I won't make my quota of revisions for the day. If anyone else has insights they'd like to share, by all means do!
3:23 PM 
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