What makes me all grabby hands… or not…

Romance…

HEA or HFN 100% required for me. That doesn’t have to mean marriage or even proposal, but there must be (at least) two people who fall in love with each other and are in some form of a committed relationship with a forward-thinking and positive future outlook. And it must happen in this book. No cliffhangers for an HEA in Book 2 for me. Period. No exceptions.

If you’ve got some other genre that has a romance as part of the story, that’s a different critter and that HEA / HFN becomes less of a big deal to me. A lot less.

And note I didn’t say it has to be a guy and a girl. It just has to be two (or more) people, in whatever configuration works for you and your story.

Don’t let the minimal use of classic romance hero looking dudes discourage you… I’m all about the hot and sexy. I just happen to have a wide range that I consider hot and sexy.

Personally… equally drool worthy… 

Tropes…

Seriously, I have broad reaching tastes in romance and I’m frequently surprised at loving something I didn’t think I would. So… try me. Or ask. Angsty or dark or edgy? I’m there! Romantic and sexy? Oh yes! Small town or big city or middle of nowhere—it’s all good!

Women’s Fiction…

I am open to WF…

IF it has a positive and emotionally satisfying ending. I can totally wrap my head around that.

It does not need to be a romance HEA type positive, but I don’t want anyone grieving at a grave at the end.

Note the “grieving” part here.

That last part is important.

Horror…

I’m all for most horror, though violence and gore have to be justified. If they’re there for shock value—no thanks.

Anything from old school pulp monster horror to supernatural / paranormal. I do love psychological horror as well. I’m not the best match for sci-fi horror (though I love the Alien universe).

Thriller / suspense / mystery…

I like a whodunit, and can get into a cozy if it’s got a good voice and compelling story (OK, I love Miss Fisher).

Murder mysteries are awesome.

Gritty crime is cool.

Bring on the serial killers! PLEASE!

Paranormal thrillers? Psychological thrillers? Yep and yep! Political or spy thrillers? Less so.

In all genres…

I’m totally down for a romantic story arc in ANY genre. Or sexy times in ANY genre. Or not. People are people. Give me that slice of life for YOUR character. I will hold to genre standards (see Romance and HEA) but outside of that, I’m wide open to bending rules and blurring lines.

Heat levels…

Bring it on! In any genre. From mild and euphemistic to wild and explicit.

And yes, bring on the kink. Caveat: I know a thing or three on that topic, and while fiction is fantasy, I prefer to keep sex scenes in the world of reality. 

Consent is sexy. As hot as some elements of 365 dni were, they were kinda ruined for me by the overarching lack of consent that started it all (see my thing about kidnapping and love interests). I can get behind pushing boundaries (under the right circumstances). And silent consent can be a thing (enthusiastic participation on the part of everyone involved kinda goes a long way towards that).

Main Characters…

Let’s get this outta the way:

As far as I’m concerned, Good Omens was a romance and those characters are damn near perfect.

These are my attitudes about characters in any genre, and yes, some elements are defined along gender lines, because that reflects most (not all) of what I write, but I am open to breaking the binary.

The things I love apply across the board, so… Pick your traits. It’s all good!

Protagonists…

I like a heart of gold. No matter what’s on the outside.

Gritty and unlikeable? OK—so long as there’s a reason. 

Sweet and charming? Great—so long as they have depth.

Gruff and rough or as smooth as silk and as polished as silver.

Emotionally vulnerable? Bring it on! 

Strong woman and / or sensitive man? Hell yes!

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Afraid to commit or ready to jump in—it’s all good.

Rich or poor. Educated or blue collar. I don’t care.

They can be any size, shape, build, whatever—so long as that isn’t the only thing that defines them. (OK, if we’re talking straight romance, I do have a soft spot for men with nice… assets.)

Sass is a bonus. A big bonus.

Alphas = hot / Alphahole = not.

• 

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Got a cinnamon roll? Gimme!

But… above all… they have to feel real and be true to themselves.

Villains…

• 

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I love them complex.

I love them smart.

I love them when they’re attractive, or sexy, or compelling.

I love them when they give you pause. When you can almost see their side of things.

But also love them when they’re pure unadulterated evil.

They have to be well developed and three dimensional. They have to be believable.

Diversity…

Bring. It. On.

#ownvoices? Yes please!

In any and all varieties. I welcome stories that represent the amazing array of humanity that I know, love, and see around me every day. And those that I am not fortunate enough to know personally—yet.

For what it’s worth:

I am hard of hearing and have chronic pain, mom to LGBTQA+ kids (all ADD and/or ASD), ADD and PDD-NOS myself, not Christian, and a few other modifiers I prefer to keep between myself and my close friends and family. I’m unapologetically feminist.

I will call out problematic elements if I see them, and will strongly suggest sensitivity reads if you’re writing outside of your own experience. 

Black lives matter. Trans lives matter. Trans women are women. Trans men are men. Don’t even get me started on why it should not be necessary to say these things.

I see you. I hear you. And I’ve got your back.

Beyond that?

Surprise me!

I want to be able to talk about your characters as if I know them.

If I have not specifically said “no” to something and it falls into one of the genres I’ve listed—I may be interested.

If you have any questions @ me on twitter to clarify.

What about you…

I don’t think there is such a thing as an “ideal mentee”. However, I can call out traits I know I work well with, or that I feel are important going into Pitch Wars. 

A sense of humor is damn near a requirement for working with me. Ideally, my future mentee should also have a solid sense of self that enables them to not only accept kind feedback but to also work it into their own style / voice. 

The time, availability, desire, and ability to put in the effort and do the work ahead. And the willingness to discuss any disagreements we may have and find the right path for YOU.

Simply put, I’m never going to say “it’s my way or the highway.” This is a partnership. By the same token, PW is about learning, growth, and improvement… Be ready to look critically at your manuscript and consider what it might need to take it to the next level.

If I have worked with you on your Pitch Wars manuscript and you have not drastically changed it since, please submit to a different mentor.

Me and what to expect from me…

I’ll skip the bio here and jump into the how-I-work stuff…

One of the first things I’ll ask a potential mentee is: how do you want your feedback?

Everyone has their preferences from sugar-coated to blunt as a spoon. I fall in the middle—I WILL tell you what I like and love, but that alone isn’t going to bring about improvement. So I will also tell you where I feel changes can be made.

If you need that fully sugar coated—I’m probably not the right choice. Anything else—we’re good.

While I will comment on grammar, syntax, word usage, punctuation, etc—that is not my focus. Yeah, I will do the whole editor thing, but my real passion is the STORY! 

My strengths are overall character arcs, plot lines, continuity, and general tightening and / or fleshing out. I’ll spot the places where there’s excess baggage and places that could use a bit more oomph. I’ll call out inconsistencies in character or plot and really dig deep into what works for a character—and why (I love the why).

I’ll also happily flag all the points that made me laugh, or cry, or gasp, or that got my heart up in my throat—because those are things that are working and you should know that!

I’m a semi-plotter, so I’m not likely to pull out a beat sheet unless I really see some major pacing issues, missing elements, or the tension is just off.

I don’t have a set “homework” plan because I feel that each person and each book will have different needs.

I work in Word, using comments and track changes. Google docs is an option, with some caveats.

Oh, and I am a fan of the Oxford comma.

Communication with my mentee…

I am hard of hearing and prefer text, IM, and email—it’s just easier and I feel it gives you the ability to pay full attention rather than trying to take notes. Plus gives you the written messages to refer back to. Sure, I’ll do a call or video if someone needs that connection. But it’s not my primary way of communicating.

I plan for weekly “official” check ins, but more frequent is fine and I’m always open for questions or help. Bottom line—if you’ve got a question, hit me up. Don’t wait for the weekly check in.

And I’ll be honest… I’m a big cheerleader, so I’ll likely be sending or posting little encouragements to my mentee more than weekly.

And some final notes…

What? I’ve got more? Only a little. I’ve got a great big Mom streak to go along with the cheerleader side.

You’ve written a book. Pat yourself on the back. That’s a huge accomplishment! And now you’re taking the step of putting your creative baby out there for someone else to see—even if you’ve done that before, it can be scary.

And if you’ve made it this far, and you think your manuscript fits, and you like the way I think… Gimme! I want all the pretty things. And scary things. And sexy things. And…

Hey, I made it through this without any profanity! That may be a record.

Scroll past the pics here to the bottom of the page to find links to the other Adult mentors.

And since a CP suggested I share some of my food pics… Here’s my Insta feed. It’s MOSTLY food… (and bonus points if you read that & conjure up your best Miracle Max voice saying, “your friend here is only mostly dead…”)