...because every author wants to feel like a goddess!
It’s the Monday after Super Bowl (YAY, GIANTS) and I have a case of the Monday’s! My brain doesn’t want to work, and I have work that I need to get done! I wish my energy level would pick up, but it’s not.
In that case, I’m promising you, my faithful readers and friends, that tomorrow will be a better day here at Chick Lit Goddess!
Until tomorrow, I’m leaving you with this message:
My post on the 1st, was about Valentine’s Day, so here’s (kinda’) a follow-up. I hope you find it as alluring and as sexy as I do! Both of these men have been on the cover as People Magazine’s Sexiest Man!
George Clooney
I remember when I fell in love with George. He was wearing blue scrubs and had a stethoscope draped around his neck. Hello, Doctor! He was the only reason I watched E.R. There was a mystery about him that intrigued me, so much that seeing him made me swoon. His voice had this power that made me hang on his every word. He was my new crush! When he appeared on Friends, playing a doctor (not his same character), I was pleasantly surprised to see him jumping out of a drama to play in a comedic role. (His doctor friend was played by Noah Wyle, who is also a cutie!)
One of my favorite movies George (yes, I’m on a first name basis with him) is in is One Fine Day. I love seeing him play the role of a very sexy daddy. Other movie roles I’ve liked him in are Oceans Twelve and Ocean’s Thirteen, where his role of power and sexy combine.
George Clooney only gets better with age, and I love his greying hair. He’s never in the tabloids, he stays away from bad publicity, and he deserves each nomination and he receives. For such a sexy man, I love how the leading ladies in his life (he’s currently dating the beautiful Stacy Keibler) are just as attractive as he is. What lady wouldn’t like to be next to him on the red carpet?
Brad Pitt
I picked this picture because that’s how I’d like to remember him — when he was attractive, and when he seemed somewhat normal. When I first saw Meet Joe Black, I was a Brad Pitt fan! There was nothing I didn’t love about him. His charm in the movie spoke for the man he was in real life. He was just a good guy who happens to be once engaged to Gwyneth Paltrow, and most famously married to the gorgeous Jennifer Aniston, where they spent reported $1 million dollars on their wedding. He is now a dad to his six children with partner Angelina Jolie. (Can you tell I’m against his precious “Angie” and am pro-Jen!) Don’t y’all remember the picture of Jen and Brad on the beach the day before they announced their split and he was wearing a T-shirt that said TRASH! Well, maybe it speaks for itself during their relationship.
My most favorite movie with Brad is Legends of the Fall where he plays the handsome Tristan. If you’re a fan of Brad, you have to watch this movie, if you haven’t already.
Brad’s changed over the years, especially since he’s been in the relationship with Angelina. I’ve not been impressed by some of his comments, or how he handles himself. I’ve seen him on several Today Show interviews, and each time I grow less and less of fond of his cocky personality, and it’s not attractive.
In closing both George and Brad will be known for their good looks. They will fit in the category of men (Michael Douglas, Paul Newman, Tom Selleck, Anthony Hopkins, Sean Connery and George Hamilton) who have aged gracefully.
I hope this has been a Fun Friday for you…
Hey! Sorry I didn’t post my Fun Friday today…I know a lot of you were waiting for my post about George Clooney and Brad Pitt. I’ll be posting about them tomorrow! Until then, here’s some eye candy for ya’…
Which one do you prefer, and why?
I met Tracie Banister on Twitter and got to know her through our shared love for Chick Lit. Her debut novel, Blame It on the Fame, has just been released! When she said that she wanted to do a Guest Post on Chick Lit Goddess I was beyond excited! I am thrilled to share this awesome post and topic!
I won’t keep you in suspense anymore, so here you go…
THE MALE PERSPECTIVE IN CHICK LIT
In preparing to write this guest blog, I asked several Chick Lit-loving friends to give me some examples of male characters in the genre who were particularly well-written and developed. They all came back to me with the same answer, “I can’t think of any.” I suppose this is the nature of the beast as Chick Lit is geared towards a female audience and most of it is written in first-person, which means we don’t get to see inside the heads of male characters in these stories and they remain a bit of a mystery. All we know is how these men are perceived by our heroine, how she interprets their words and actions, how she feels about them.
When I started writing my Chick Lit novel, Blame It on the Fame, my intent was to focus almost exclusively on the five heroines (all Oscar nominees in contention for the Best Actress trophy.) The male characters would be adjuncts, there to support the stories of the heroines in varying capacities (husbands, lovers, business associates, caretakers, and children.) However, as I worked my way through the first several chapters, I noticed that there was another character who was on a parallel path with the five actresses, someone who not only had an interesting story to tell, but had the potential to be every bit as multi-dimensional and entertaining as the ladies were. That someone was Best Actor nominee Miles McCrea, whom I began to jokingly refer to as “the sixth heroine in Blame It on the Fame.”
As there’s a third-person narrative in Blame It on the Fame, I had the freedom to dig deep with Miles. Okay, maybe not that deep since Miles is a bit shallow and id-driven. But there were still motivations and emotions and a backstory to explore, and I got to flesh out the character and show readers how his mind worked, which made the relationship between Miles and his co-star/on again-off again girlfriend, Philippa Sutcliffe, richer and more complex because it could be seen from both sides.
Is writing for a male character more difficult or intimidating? In my experience, no. As a matter of fact, it was kind of refreshing to switch gears and think like someone with a Y chromosome for a while. The character of Miles wasn’t based on any particular male of my acquaintance, but I did piece him together, much like Frankenstein’s monster, using personality traits and quirks gleaned from men I’d observed (people-watching – it’s the best research any writer can do, be it at your local restaurant, on You Tube, or in your own living room.) What I ended up with was a fun, distinctive character I hope readers will connect to and find just as memorable as his female counterparts in Blame It on the Fame.
**Visit Tracie Banister on her blog!
Buy her book Blame It on the Fame:
I love being a Chick Lit writer in the making, and I love being a blogger!
I love reading books so when I was asked to be a part of a blog tour from Chick Lit Plus, I was thrilled, (my first one will be coming in March!) I’ve had a very high respect for blog tour hosts, and Samantha was just one of them. Since then, I’ve joined three others and I am so excited!
Reading the author’s books are my favorite part because I love to type up the reader. I’ve also learned that book reviews are very important – thanks to high statuses when I post a review.
While I’m new at touring authors and books, I love being apart of them because I love promoting, encouraging, and giving respect to the authors much deserved attention.
Authors deserve attention, and why shouldn’t they? Whether your self-published or you’ve been picked up by a highly known publishing company, I think that sharing the news of your books. no matter how much you’re in the biz,” to keep on, and share it with bloggers like me. I will help you spread the word on you book.
**Contact me by email if you’re interested at ila@chicklitgoddess.com**
It’s hard to believe that today is the first day of February, isn’t it? When I was a little girl I loved Valentine’s Day! I was that hopeless romantic who received flowers and heart-shaped boxes of chocolate – from my dad. I had no boy in my life, but that didn’t stop me from dreaming of being in love when I grew up.
Now that I’m thirty and have been married just over two years, I look at Valentine’s Day differently. Valentine’s Day is about showing the people you love just how much you love them. It doesn’t have to be only your significant other, it can be anyone – a relative, a friend, or coworker. It’s always nice to show someone how much you care about them. I encourage you to do something for someone for the upcoming holiday.
I wish you a very Happy Valentine’s Day!
While writing your ROMANCE or CHICK LIT novels, haven’t you ever daydreamed that you’re the Heroine and your boyfriend or husband is your Hero in your book? Have you played the part in your own sex fantasy, only to wish you could have him right at that moment, but it’s the middle of the day and he’s at work? (I have this fantasy often when I’m writing, and find it very helpful during a sex scene!)
Well, if you’re too shy to write you and your SO (significant other) into your book, I have just the right thing for you. For Christmas I got my husband our own romance/erotic novel, “Safari Nights,” thanks to a website called UStarNovels! If you go to this website, you can create your own books from the following categories: Romance, Classics, or Vampire. All you have to do is fill out questions that the website will ask you each about, and then you’re done! (If you got this as a gift, all you have to do is register it and it’ll be free). It’s that easy! My husband and I haven’t filled out the answers yet, but I’m hoping to sit him down and answer them this weekend.
This can be a wonderful gift, whether it’s given for Valentine’s Day, Christmas, Anniversaries, Bachelorette parties, or just because, it’s a fun way to bring something new and spicy to your relationship!
I hope you and your SO have a sizzlin’ weekend! Happy Friday!
In one of my husband’s Bathroom Reader books (THIS one in particular) it talked about the background of fonts.
I admit that when I was younger, I played with fonts like crazy and made banners with my printer (the ones where you had to have the paper with the holes), and I felt cool. I was doing something fun–especially when a birthday would come around! I was your “banner” girl! Fonts added attention to what was written, and when you added color to them, they added more to the text.
As writers we all know that when we submit our work into publishers they are stern about their certain requirements. Am I right? So, say that we get our book published and our name is thrown across the books. That font is different from the text in your book (excluding chapter introductions and other text by the author, mostly said in character form), but why is this? This leads me to fonts on book covers.
To many (okay, a lot), book covers are the sole reason they buy the book. The coined phrase, “Don’t judge a book by its cover” doesn’t exist anymore, and font has a lot to do with that. In one of my blog posts last year, HERE is another example of how it catches someone’s eye. Isn’t my brother’s POV right? If it’s in the Chick Lit Genre, then it’s most likely that the font colors are big and bright, but not only that, so is the background.
Now, onto another font topic. I think it’s funny when people write emails in certain types of fonts. Don’t you? I know some who write their entire email in hard to read text, I know some who use color and script (for example) as their signature, and then I know some who are like my husband who uses a simple and easy to read font throughout his email (including in his signature).
Yes, I do know that there is a difference between fonts on covers and in books, and in emails, but fonts and text is a funny thing…
We see all different fonts, slogans, and texts all day long, so don’t you agree with me that there is something special about fonts? I certainly do!
Anyway, I’d like to share some information about fonts HERE!
Very early this morning I finished my second book of the year After I finished it, I eagerly opened my next book to read for a blog tour I’m taking part in (CLP Blog Tours: Binding Arbitration by Elizabeth Marx). I considered reading the first chapter, but at two in the morning, I was exhausted, and I wanted time to reflect on finishing “150 Pounds” by Kate Rockland. I closed my eyes and tried to think of a topic (or topics) for today’s blog post, and that’s when I began to think about the books that are still on my “shelf” to read for reviews and interviews.
Don’t we all wish we were somewhere peaceful reading? Perhaps at the beach?
Now, like many of you, you’re either an avid reader and reviewer like myself, so how do you finish books so fast? Is it because of technology? You can be standing in line at the grocery store and pull out your Kindle (for example), and begin reading. Are you a fast reader where you skim what you read? I’d like to think that I’m a fast reader, but by slowing down, it helps me enjoy the book more. The more and more I get requests for reviews, the more excited I get that I’m being asked to read this book (YAY!), but at the same time, I get a little stressed because finding the time to read and finish the book. If I do accept a book to be reviewed, I want the person who asks me to read the book to understand that if I say yes, their book will not be forgot about, no matter how much time passes by.
So, I’ve decided to start schedule reading time. “Schedule reading time?” you might ask. “Yes!” I will try to read at least a total amount of two hours a day. Whether it’s 30 minutes here, and 30 minutes there, it still counts, right?
As a reader and/or a reviewer, how do you find time to read books? Your comments, ideas, and thoughts are very much appreciated!
