Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Rebecca Zanetti's Tips & Giveaway

I am very happy to introduce today's guest blogger, Rebecca Zanetti. Her second sizzling installment in the Dark Protectors series, CLAIMED, will release on October 25th.

First, I’d like to thank Ella for having me here today! She suggested I talk about five tips for writing paranormal books, and I thought that sounded like so much fun! So…here are my five tips:

1) Remember even if your hero is a six foot genius vampire with huge pecs and perfectly rugged features who single-handedly has saved humanity three times…he has to have a flaw somewhere. And no…being too kind, endowed, or brilliant don’t count. My favorites are when the character has to fight his own flaw, usually in the nick of time to beat the bad guy.

2) Remember that your reader probably isn’t a six foot genius vampire…nor is she dating one. So it’s crucial to find a way for your reader to relate to the characters. I have two sisters and a strong family life, and so my vampires deal with family life daily. The Dark Protector Series is about five brothers and how they not only find love but work together to save their race.

3) Remember that whatever exciting, complex, deep world you build in Book 1…you’re stuck with for the rest of the series. Leave yourself some wiggle room. Also, you don’t have to build your entire world in book one. You just need enough of your world for that book to make sense.

4) Remember that there are tons of paranormal books out there—make your world different. Put your unique spin on it. I’m a lawyer and things have to make a sort of logical sense to me. So I had to figure out HOW a male vampire (who in my world is very much alive) could make his mate immortal—turns out genetics and the mutation of chromosomes made sense. It was a different spin, at least enough of one that my editor was intrigued.

5) Finally, don’t hold yourself back. As writers, we often stop and think about how the next editor/reader/reviewer/our first grade teacher/our neighbor…etc. will react to our secret little worlds. Don’t worry about them. Let yourself go and have some fun with creating.

So, thanks again to Ella for having me here today. I would love to give a signed copy of FATED (Book 1 of the Dark Protectors) away to a commenter. The winner will be chosen using random.org and announced in the comment box on September 22nd. Here is the blurb:

Neither her empathic abilities nor her role as the single mother of psychic four-year-old Janie prepares plant physiologist Cara Paulsen for the intruder who claims to be kidnapping Cara and Janie for their own good. Janie assures Cara that Talen Kayrs really is trying to protect them from great danger, but Cara's skeptical, especially after learning that Talen is a vampire certain she's fated to be his mate. He insists they marry at once so Cara and Janie can be under the protection of his family. The mysterious enemy Kurjans covet women with special abilities and particularly want to get their hands on Janie. Cara wants to keep her daughter safe, but can she trust this domineering, sexy vampire? 


What kind of flaw do you like in a paranormal hero? Or, do you worry about your great-grandma reading your book?

Rebecca Zanetti is the author of the sexy Dark Protector Series from Kensington Brava. The second book in the series, CLAIMED, will be available in bookstores and online on November 1, 2011. To find Rebecca on the web, drop by her website: http://rebeccazanetti.com/

18 comments:

Medical Librarian said...

"Control freak" is my favorite flaw. Not to the point of being abusive, though, of course.

Tarot By Arwen said...

WHAT? I'll have you know I AM a 6' genius vampire! Hmmph! Some people's authors.

I like a hero who can admit to his emotions even if he has to really work at it.

Rebecca Zanetti said...

Hi Medical Librarian and Tarot by Arwn! I do like a good control freak as well as a hero who isn't afraid to feel.

Thanks for dropping by today! :)

Ciara said...

I'm so excited about this release. I don't want to be entered in the contest though. I'll buy it. I'm so excited for you, Rebecca!

ReneeRearden said...

Rebecca,

Congratulations on your soon-to-be-released novel Claimed!

I love my heroes to be emotionally conflicted. Doing the right thing is hard. Doing the right thing when nobody's looking is harder. That's the kind of hero that makes my heart go pitty pat!

Renee Rearden

Bonnie R. Paulson said...

I gotta say, I LOVE flaws. I think they make the character so much more lovable to have a vulnerable side.

Great job. Tips and tips. Love your writing tips on your blog too!

Thanks!
Bon

Cathy M said...

Just popped by to say hi, Rebecca. I've already read Fated, so don't count me in today's contest.

A favorite hero flaw is that over protectiveness streak that a heroine has to wear away at. To prove that she can hold her own, and stand beside her man and fight when necessary. That always brings out the feistiness and fun dialogue.

caity_mack at yahoo dot com

Tesa Devlyn said...

Hi Rebecca, great tips for any type of story line! Thank you for sharing them. I look forward to Claimed, sounds fascinating!
My favorite hero is one with deep internal scares he doesn't believe he'll ever heal, until the heroine comes along and makes him whole again:) Tesa Devlyn

Author R. Mac Wheeler said...

My vampire-like revenir is so bored after living so long she'll down a bottle of vodka just to feel something...and she likes to talk a little raunchy with her guards.

:D

Christal Murphy said...

Hi Rebecca,

Great tips. I especially like the one about world building. I love having some mystery surrounding the world after Book 1 so that there's new stuff to learn and discover in subsequent books.

And don't enter me in the drawing. I already bought Fated and love it! Awesome book and can't wait to read Claimed.

Bron said...

Hi Rebecca

I love a hero who is in emotional pain. It can be caused by anything but is something he doesn't want to face but has to in order to win, heal, and get a HEA.

I'd love to win a copy of Claimed but now that I have my Kindle here in NZ I really don't care. It's easy to buy the e-book and no postage.

*yadkny* said...

I love that your vampires deal with family life daily. Makes them a bit more believable and personable:) And 5 brothers? What more could I ask for in a story;)

The kind of flaw I like my paranormal heroes to have is being overprotective. I just figure they're that way because they care:)

yadkny@hotmail.com

Mary Preston said...

I like my paranormal heroes to live on the edge. Down & Dirty!!

marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com

Anonymous said...

A little OCD only cause I kind of am.

deslauree3 at aol dot com

Joelene Coleman said...

I love simple, human flaws. Claustrophobia, spiders, thunderstorms. The more incredulous, the better, humanizing the supernatural and giving the reader something to relate or identify with. Love the family concept. Thanks for your suggestions!

Meredith Allen Conner said...

Great Post! I love the world you've built for your characters.
I like the conflicted hero, the one who has his own - usually bad - agenda before meeting the heroine. He has to either choose between the two or the heroine has to help with the resolution. Can't go wrong with a man who puts the woman he loves above all else.

Chelsea B. said...

My favorite flaw in a hero, sometimes, is when they are uptight. I know that sounds odd, but it's so fun to watch uptight heroes being unwound by their heroine ;-)

justforswag(AT)yahoo(DOT)com

Ella Gray said...

First, I'd like to thank Rebecca for stopping by and sharing her craft expertise.

I enjoyed everyone's comments on character flaws as well. Thank you all for reading our blog and sharing your thoughts.

The winner of FATED is: J. Coleman!

Congratulations, J. Please send me your shipping info to: ella(DOT)gray(AT)rocketmail(DOT)com, and I will forward it to Rebecca.

Hope to see you all again soon!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...