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All About sramsey
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Connect with Sara
Sara's Fun Facts
Hometown:San Francisco, CA Age: 29 GH Year(s) 2009 Completed Manuscript(s) 1 Genre(s): Regency Historical Started Writing: Age 5 – but started seriously pursuing it at 26 Day Job: Writer For Fun: I’m on a quest to find the best sandwich in the Bay Area. I also like to cook, play with friends, and look for excuses to drink Champagne. |
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The Ruby Slippered Sisterhood
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Blog Posts from Sara
Ruby Release: Superlovin’ by Vivi AndrewsPosted by Sara Ramsey May 3 2012, 12:01 am in author interview, new releases, Ruby Release, Vivi Andrews, writing romance
But now it *is* out, and you can find out how amazing it is for yourself! Superlovin’ is all about an evenly matched superhero and supervillain who have to get over their preconceived notions (and their own reputations) to recognize that they just may be perfect for each other. It’s fast-paced, fun, and thought-provoking, and I loved every second of it. Enough gushing from me, though — you’re here to see Vivi. Even though she’s holed up in her secret lair in Cannes (lucky woman), she took the time to respond to a few of my questions (which let me pretend to be an intrepid newspaper reporter – every superhero story needs one of those, right?). And if you leave a comment, you have a chance to win an ebook of Superlovin’! Sara: What drew you to superheroes after spending so much time with your more paranormal-tinged Karmic Consultants series? Vivi: I don’t think of them as so very different – psychic powers and super powers. The super world really is just turning up the volume and taking everything to the extremes, and I do love me some extremes. I’ve always loved superhero stories – good versus evil! With great power comes great responsibility! – and so when my editor put out a call for superhero stories, it seemed like the perfect time to try my hand at writing one. And I got addicted. I absolutely love playing in the super gene pool. Sara: I love how you played with traditional superhero tropes – particularly the idea that people get typecast as ‘good’ or ‘evil’ and then can’t shake their reputations (deserved or not). What was your inspiration for these characters? Vivi: I’m totally fascinated by the Good Guy/Bad Guy polarity and the PR maneuvering that goes into public perception. Yeah, Superlovin’ is a romance about superheroes, but I wanted it to also be about the grey areas. Lucien and Darla are both legacy supers – their parents are famous… or in Lucien’s case, infamous. As I was playing with the idea, I couldn’t stop wondering what life would be like as the kid of a supervillain… or the daughter of the world’s most famous superhero power couple. How much choice would you have about who you grew into? How long would you fight against being typecast before giving in to your inevitable role? How would a super kid rebel? The odd blend of celebrity and righteous crime-fighting duty was just too tempting to ignore. Sara: Lucien and Darla are so evenly matched – it’s really refreshing to see a hero and heroine who can match each other. They fight each other rather aggressively while trying to meet their goals, which I haven’t seen in a lot of romances – the only scenes I could think of that would come close are in “Mr. and Mrs. Smith” (and just to be clear, I adored both that movie and this book!). Did your editor or beta readers have any issues with the hero and heroine’s fight scenes?
Sara: Superlovin’ was tightly plotted and well-crafted, and I didn’t feel like it was missing anything – a feat that not all novellas (or novel-length works!) achieve. I’m in awe at how you get such a tight, cohesive story into a novella-length work. Any tips for those of us who struggle to write short? Vivi: Thank you! I try not to think of it as cramming a whole book into a novella. Writing short to me is an opportunity, not a limitation. An opportunity to write a more tightly focused story – really zeroing in on the hero and heroine. Or an opportunity to skip the parts that I don’t feel like writing. Sara: I’m super jealous of your current escapades – spending a few weeks in Europe sounds way fun. How do you balance your writing with your amazing traveling lifestyle? Vivi: It’s easier than you might think. And it probably helps that I’m a compulsive list-maker. Mostly, I just bring my little mini laptop with me everywhere and when I feel like I’m falling behind on writing tasks I’ll take an apartment for a week or a month to get myself caught up and then I’m off again. Right now I’ve got a cute little apartment in Cannes to use as my home base during release week (and do laundry) then next week I’m off to Italy – with plans to work on edits on the train. I’m a lucky brat. Sara: What’s coming out next? More superheroes, or something else? Is Lucien’s sister Mirabelle going to get her story? Vivi: Yes! There are more superheroes on the way – including Mirabelle’s story, Superbad, which will hit ereaders in July – but in the mean time, just next month actually, I have a sexy reboot of Rumpelstiltskin coming out called Spinning Gold, in which the prince is the villain and a studly gold-spinner steps in to save the fair maiden. Not your everyday once upon a time. Sara: I cannot wait for Spinning Gold! Or for Superbad, but I’ll take whatever I can get as soon as possible Vivi, thanks for answering these questions! And now, here’s an excerpt from Superlovin’: He heard the distant electrical whine of a train coming down the tracks. Three minutes, give or take… Lucien let the icy-hot pain starting to spike in his temples show on his face. “I could come quietly,” he said, making his voice tight with strain. “For a price.” “I don’t negotiate with supervillains.” “Not even for my surrender? My complete surrender.” Interest lit her up-tilted emerald eyes, but her jaw remained clenched in an unyielding line. “No deals. I won’t bribe you to play nice when you’ve already lost.” “But all I wanted was a kiss.” She went motionless above him, as if she’d forgotten the need to breathe. “One little kiss,” he purred. “And I’ll go meekly to my jail cell. No tricks. No trouble.” He couldn’t read her expression. Something odd and almost hopeful colored the suspicion in her gaze. She hesitated. The train rattled closer. Her fingers eased their death grip on his hair. “Why?” “Are you kidding? I’ve always wanted a shot at the great Darla Powers. Who hasn’t? That Maxim spread changed my life.” Her eyes darkened. “That damn magazine—” “Hey, don’t damn that magazine. I could compose sonnets to that magazine. Especially your issue. I think you single-handedly launched a generation of twelve-year-old boys into puberty with that spread.” The picture had become a cultural icon. Darla Powers, the super answer to Marilyn Monroe. “Tell me you still have the bustier and I’ll die happy.” She blushed. “That is none of your business.” Dear God, she still has it. Unwholesome interest stirred below Lucien’s belt. He’d been joking, but now he couldn’t get the image out of his head. Her incredible figure overflowing the snug black lace with a shimmering red D curled under one breast in a parody of her suit. Maybe she still wore it. Maybe she put it on for the schmuck boyfriend who’d let her walk out on their date. Jealousy gave his gut an ugly twist, but he ignored it. She wasn’t with her schmuck boyfriend now. “One kiss,” he said, the words coming out as more of a demand than he’d intended, his voice so dark and hungry he barely recognized it. “One kiss and I’ll do whatever you want.” The words were supposed to be a lie, but at the moment he almost believed them himself. Darla Powers was a woman who could own a man’s soul if she put her mind to it. If she could let herself be that bad… — Hot, right?! Comment to win an ebook! And thanks again, Vivi! If you can’t wait to buy Superlovin’, it’s available on Kindle, Nook, or at Samhain.com. Go! Go now! — Sara Ramsey writes fun, feisty Regency romances. Her latest book, SCOTSMEN PREFER BLONDES, is out now, and features a secret Gothic romance novelist and the earl she’s forced to marry (because nothing says love like being compromised). To find out more about her books, visit www.sararamsey.com. My Writing Process – Scotsmen Prefer BlondesPosted by Sara Ramsey Mar 29 2012, 12:01 am in craft, ebook, Ruby Release, writer's journey Today was supposed to be my release day for SCOTSMEN PREFER BLONDES. Yay! Except…it’s not. It’s awesome that a self-published author can get a book out quickly, but I’m still learning how to estimate publication dates so that I don’t overpromise and underdeliver (as I did in this case, sigh). I’m currently waiting to get [...] Top Five Lessons Learned From My Debut ReleasePosted by Sara Ramsey Feb 23 2012, 12:01 am in debut, promotion, publishing realities, Sara Ramsey, writer's advice, writing life My first book, Heiress Without A Cause, came out as a Nook exclusive at the end of January, and there was much rejoicing throughout the land. Or at least I rejoiced, and my friends all tolerated my rejoicing. The champagne flowed, the congratulatory calls/emails/tweets came in, and I even sold enough copies to be thrilled [...] Winter Writing Festival: Week Six Check-InPosted by Sara Ramsey Feb 22 2012, 12:01 am in check-in Wednesday, motivation, Pep Talk, perserverance, Winter Writing Festival Where has the winter gone? It’s already time for the Winter Writing Festival Week Six check-in, and we’re entering the home stretch. There’s ONE WEEK LEFT (said in a British “Mind the Gap” voice, so as to incite calm progress rather than screaming panic). Some of you have been plugging away at your goals and [...] San Francisco eBooks for Everyone Else Conference RecapPosted by Sara Ramsey Nov 3 2011, 1:50 am in business of writing, digital press, ebook, publishing industry, self-publishing, taking risks Yesterday’s eBooks for Everyone Else conference was an amazing one-day event about all aspects of digital publishing, from formatting and uploading to pricing and marketing. The event, run by Publishers Launch, brought together approximately 100 publishers, agents, authors, and vendors for a quick and dirty slog through a very ambitious list of topics. I could [...]
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books from Sara
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Sara grew up outside a tiny town in southern Iowa. She spent her childhood reading anything she could get her hands on - birthday cards, grocery lists, signs, the entire ANNE OF GREEN GABLES series, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Nancy Drew, and even her brother's Hardy Boys books. Around the age of 12, she stumbled across her first romance novel and was immediately hooked. She kept reading through high school, during breaks in her studies at Stanford University, and as she fell into an advertising position in Silicon Valley. She made the switch to writing romance in 2007. Sara lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and is taking a break from the tech world to focus on writing. Her first two books, HEIRESS WITHOUT A CAUSE and SCOTSMEN PREFER BLONDES, are coming in January 2012.
You can’t wander with a novella. Each scene has to have a purpose – preferably two or three purposes. It’s a great way to force yourself to stay focused as a writer, knowing you only have so many words to tell the story you want to tell. Big stories need big books, but not all love stories are massive and epic. I think of novellas as pocket-sized romances.
