The Making of the eBook Cover for "A Night To Remember" by R.C. Matthews

Hats off to all artists making book covers. I had the privilege of working with Angeline Janeiro, a new and upcoming eBook cover designer, on the cover for A Night To Remember. We emailed back and forth a few times about what I had in mind and then she went off for a week to get creative.

Here is the end product:

What's so amazing about this cover is (1) it is a near perfect replica of the first scene in the book and (2) the individual photos used to make this book cover are completely different than what you see above. Never in my wildest dreams would I have selected the photo's that Angeline found and thought to put them together this way. You're not going to believe your eyes. So here they are!

Notice how Angeline took this simple red dress and added a bustle at the lower back to make it appear like a full length ballgown? Also pay attention to the model's hair. In the photo, the woman has a bun, but it is rather small. Angeline made the updo fuller. Of course she also carved the woman out of the picture above.

 It was also super cool the way she flipped this image of the hero so his leg is crossed in the other direction and his whole body is shifted as well.

Finally, see how she took a rather simple, almost cartoonish looking, ballroom setting and made it the background? And the best part? Two of these photos were free and one of them only cost $1. What an amazing talent it requires to look at each of these photos and have the vision that Angeline did.

I hope you'll check out her site!


http://riobookcoverart.wix.com/riobookcoverart#!facebook-covers/c5uo

Little White Lies: What is the Best Point of View (POV)?

When I started writing my first contemporary romance novel, Little White Lies, I chose to write in first person POV, present tense, and entirely from the perspective of the protagonist, Madalyn Russell. The first half of the book is set on a cruise ship, and using first person POV and present tense often gives the reader the sense of experiencing events simultaneously with the protagonist. It seemed like a no brainer. I mean, who doesn’t want to go on a cruise and have fun?

At about the halfway mark, I decided to ask my sisters to beta read the manuscript, and one of my sisters suggested the story would be much better in third person POV and past tense. UGH! I wanted to scream “Are you kidding me?” Okay, in all honestly, I probably did scream something like that but with several choice words splashed in there. However, in my desire to write the best story possible, I took her advice and rewrote the first chapter in third person POV and past tense. Just to test out her theory. And darn it all – my sister was absolutely right! So I rewrote nearly 150 pages from first person to third person and changed the tense from present to past.

So when I started my second novel, Date Night, I learned from my mistake and wrote the entire book in third person POV, past tense, but this time I used alternating viewpoints between the hero and heroine. Imagine my horror when the feedback my niece shared was that I should try to write the story from first person POV! After screaming more choice words, I sat down and rewrote the first chapter in first person POV and it was so much better! AAARRRGGG – another 150 pages rewritten but this time from third person POV to first person POV!    

Experience taught me a valuable lesson! One of the most important decisions an author faces at the onset of a book is which POV to write from: first person, second person, third person or omniscient. It is rare to find books written in second person and omniscient POV, however, it is trendy these days for authors to write in first person POV. But third person POV is still a popular choice.

So how does an author decide the best POV for their novel? That’s an excellent question which doesn’t have a straight forward answer. But before I start any novel, there are several factors that influence my choice of POV including, but not limited to:

·        Genre / Subgenre – most young adult and new adult novels are in first person POV

·        Intended audience (both reader and publisher) – some publishers have a stated preference for first or third person POV so pay attention if you’re targeting a specific publisher, and many young readers today prefer first person POV

·        Plot – first person POV can give a reader the sense of experiencing the events in the story first hand so action packed story lines can be thrilling in first person POV

·        Personal preference – this is probably the biggest factor for most readers – my own opinion is that you can never go wrong with third person POV, but sometimes first person POV works even better

I don’t think there is a right or wrong answer. Personally, I enjoy first person POV in stories that have a protagonist under the age of twenty five and / or there is a lot of action [Twilight Series is 1^st person, past tense / Fifty Shades of Grey Series is 1^st person, present tense]. 

What is the best point of view? It's a book by book decision. But now when I write a novel, I write the first chapter in both first person POV and third person POV to determine which reads better! See - you can teach an old dog new tricks. :-)

Letting Go of Inhibitions!

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a woman on vacation, will at one time or another let go of her inhibitions. [Okay, forgive me, but I had to use that famous opening from Jane Austen once in my lifetime.]

I’m a firm believer in that truth and have many of my own experiences to draw from. Come on…admit it…you’ve let go of your inhibitions on vacation, too. I know you have. It’s one of the greatest benefits of going on vacation.

 

This is exactly what the heroine of my debut contemporary novel, Little White Lies, does for an entire week while on her honeymoon cruise – sans fiancé, who she dumped at the altar. When the sexy man in the stateroom next to hers, Royce Spencer, offers to stand in as Madalyn Russell’s husband for the week-long cruise, so that Madalyn can enjoy the dining room experience at the Newlywed table, she accepts his offer…and all the benefits that go along with being married to an irresistible man.

 

Can you imagine one full week of enjoying yourself to the fullest, not once worrying about what others will think of you, and making decisions purely on instinct –without a single thought to consequences? Let me tell you, it’s one hell of a ride and so much fun to tag along.
 

I wanted both Madalyn and Royce to jump in with both feet and have a great time for the entire cruise – no looking back – no looking forward – just living for today.

 

Some people might say the situation is unrealistic or too far-fetched. Guess I’m not one of them, because if I was alone on a cruise and had the opportunity to spend it with a hunk, I would sign on the dotted line in a heartbeat. Why not enjoy myself to the fullest if I spent thousands of dollars to be on vacation? And even if you wouldn’t do it in real life, but you secretly want to do it – then go ahead and suspend your belief and join Madalyn and Royce on a wild roller-coaster ride.

 

What I love most about this story is the fact that these two are tangled in a web of Little White Lies they have to tell in order to keep up their charade, so it becomes almost impossible to tell what is real and what is not. Their attraction is sizzling. Their sex hot. And they genuinely have fun together. But is Royce developing real feelings for Madalyn? Or is he only making good on his promise on the first day to ‘rock her world’?

 

Little White Lies is told 100% from Madalyn’s perspective, so we don’t really know what’s going on in Royce’s head, which is exactly how I wanted it. Madalyn is on a journey of self-discovery. She is learning to let go of her black and white thinking, how to live a little, and just let go. The events which unfold after Madalyn and Royce return to their normal daily lives put her newfound sense of adventure, and willingness to see things through another lens, to the test.

 

If you’re looking to escape from life for a few hours and simply have a great time, then I hope you’ll join Royce and Madalyn in their whirlwind love affair in Little White Lies by R.C. Matthews.

BOOK SPOTLIGHT - Against All Rules - SUMMERITA RHAYNE

AGAINST ALL RULES

By

 SUMMERITA RHAYNE

 

 

BLURB:

The efficient PA out of her depth...

Samara knows getting attracted to Tahir is like asking for trouble. Not only is he her boss but he's got divorced recently and has sworn off any commitment. Short term is not on her list but temptation has never been stronger...

The man who doesn't have faith in rainbows anymore

Tahir doesn't believe in enforcing a code of conduct he cannot follow. But Samara might just make him make an exception! An affair at the office might seem a solution to his troubles but how can he avoid treading uncharted territory...?

 

Against All Rules

...when fire is set, it's hard to avoid the blaze...

Buy the ebook at :

Amazon.com http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MY2QVRS

Amazon.in http://www.amazon.in/gp/product/B00MY2QVRS?*Version*=1&*entries*=0

Amazon.co.uk http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00MY2QVRS?*Version*=1&*entries*=0

Amazon.com.au https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B00MY2QVRS

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

EXCERPT

Coming into her office to ask if everything was ready, Tahir stilled as his gaze found the woman with her neck arched back in abandon in the chair. What the...his jaw went slack focusing on the darting tip of a tongue moistening soft pink flesh and the expression of pure sensual enjoyment on her face.

This wasn’t his usually staid and prim PA. Muscles clenched low in his body witnessing the sensuous slide of that tongue tip. Like he’d wandered into the live filming of some erotic edgy scene. It only needed her hair unconfined and the prim buttons on her top loosened for the picture of sexy siren to be complete. With her head thrown back like that and her chest thrust forward, full curves straining the buttons, she wasn’t less than a siren now. His gaze moved back to the promise of her lush parted mouth and it required no imagination to picture the feel of it beneath his, to picture capturing that errant tip... He inhaled. Blood rushed through his body at double the speed, surging strategically southward.

 

Samara became conscious of something different in her surroundings and sat up, guilt flooding her skin with warmth as she saw Tahir looking at her from his six foot vantage point, narrowed brown gaze focusing on her face. The dark brows lifted sardonically, his well shaped mouth with that velvet sheen it had, curving oh so slightly.

‘I – I was just...’

She stopped, unable to explain and unable to decipher why she felt the temperature of the room increase till a wave of heat bounced around her body.

He stood feet apart, every inch the inflexible, demanding boss man that he was. He was also jaw dropping handsome, looking like a honed and toned version of a male deo model. Forget the chocó, I could settle for a bite of that anytime. That well shaped mouth, with a fuller sensual lower lip, dark eyes, the colour of ground coffee, thickly lashed. Those spikes, he gelled his hair into as a concession to trend. No wonder women chased him any and every chance they got.

‘I don’t pay you to indulge your time fantasizing in my office.’ He ground out, a curt edge to his deep voice, his eyes still narrowed on her face.

 

About the author

Summerita Rhayne loves to write sensual and emotional romance. There's no knowing when some quirky - or sometimes even not so quirky - happening in daily life might trigger her right brain and then she's off craving a new story. She loves writing characters who learn and grow and find their way out of their troubles and emotional hang-ups. Hot, sensual heroes and sassy but sweet heroines mostly fit the bill in her stories. She also believes that a touch of humor never goes amiss in a book.

She divides her time between family, job and writing - and loves winding down with music, movies and the internet!

Email her at summeritarhayne@gmail.com

Or follow via Twitter @SummeritaRhayne

 

Other buy links:

Amazon.de http://www.amazon.de/gp/product/B00MY2QVRS?*Version*=1&*entries*=0

Amazon.ca http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B00MY2QVRS?*Version*=1&*entries*=0

 

 

Sexy Time: How Much Is Enough in Romance Novels?

Many publishers of romance have come up with creative ways to designate the amount of sexual content within the books they offer. My debut contemporary romance novel, Little White Lies, was published by Crimson Romance on March 24, 2014 and is designated as being “Sensual”. The other potential categories include “Behind Closed Doors” and “Spicy”.

While writing Little White Lies, I struggled with how much sexy time to include in the story and how explicit the sex scenes should be. Part of the reason I struggled is that every reader is different. Some readers prefer euphemisms to describe what all of the essential body parts are doing during the act, while others prefer explicit and hard core terminology. Yet another group of readers would rather leave the sex to their own imagination.

So how much sex is the right amount of sex in a romance novel and how explicit should it be? In the end, I realized that I will never be able to please every single reader. It’s simply impossible. You want proof? Check out reviews for my second romance novel, Date Night. One reader rated the book four stars and withheld one star because there wasn’t enough sex in the book. Whereas another reader rated the book three stars because there was too much explicit sex in the book. Go figure! So instead of worrying over how much sex to include in my books or how explicit that sex should be, I focus on the story line and the romance and let the characters dictate how much sex is the right amount for the story.

In Little White Lies, the first sex scene is long and hot and explicit – which is essential to the story because the heroine is having her first fling ever and she learns that sex can be mind-blowing with anyone as long as you’re physically attracted. The second sex scene is also long but the descriptions are softer and the pace is slower which gives the heroine the impression of making love. This was intentional as it is a reflection of the development of her relationship with the hero beyond just physical attraction. The rest of the sex scenes in the book are shorter and euphemistic because the sex wasn’t necessary in moving the story along.

Contrast this with my third romance novel, Fair Game, which doesn’t go beyond kissing. The hero and heroine start off in an adversarial relationship. So it didn’t make sense that they would be jumping in the sack together. The heroine is trying to resist the hero for most of the story so sexy time didn’t make sense in the middle either. The story ends with the pair falling in love and ready to do the dirty deed, but I leave it to the imagination of the reader because the sex wasn’t essential to the story line and the hero and heroine had already reached their happily ever after.

And when it came to my most recent romance novel, Begin Again, the sex scenes were downright funny albeit explicit. The hero was a waiter at a male strip club and met the heroine while she was at the establishment for a bachelorette party. She received a bag full of silly party favors – like a glow in the dark body paint and condoms. How could I not let them use them? 

So how much sexy time is enough in a romance novel? I can’t answer that question. Instead, I let the characters in my novels make that decision and then the readers can go along for the ride – or shut their eyes, if they prefer.

Blurring the Lines in Genre

When I first decided to write Date Night, I knew it would be in the “Romance” genre. And although I’ve been an avid reader all my life, I didn’t really appreciate the extent of “sub-genres” or “niches” within each genre. Sure I knew the difference between contemporary, erotica, historical and suspense romance novels. But what the heck was “steampunk” and “new adult” or “space opera”? The more I researched, the more I realized I had no clue what publishers were looking for in each genre. And I found it rather frustrating that the story I wanted to tell in Date Night didn’t fit neatly into any one genre or niche.

Aren’t we supposed to be creative and color outside the lines as artists? Why in the heck do we box ourselves into these narrowly defined categories?

So I simply said: screw it! I had a story to tell and I decided to tell it the way I wanted to tell it. Date Night is a blend of chick literature, contemporary romance and new adult. The story doesn’t fit neatly into any one of the three categories.

-        Chick literature: The relationship between the heroine, Jordan, and her grandmother lends the story a distinct “chick lit” feel to it. Grannie is a central character in Date Night and I hate to relegate her to the category of “secondary character”. There is even a section of the book told from Grannie’s third person point of view. I once read that true “romance novels” should not allow the hero and heroine to be separated for long periods of time and while secondary characters are welcome, they should not steal the show. In the case of Date Night, I guarantee you will walk away loving Grannie every bit as much as you love Jordan and JT. Does she steal the show sometimes? I’ll let you decide.

-        Contemporary romance: But at the heart of Date Night is also a beautiful and satisfying love story between Jordan (22 years old) and the hero, JT (24 years old). I admit I used the age old “little sister and big brother’s best friend” troupe, but I hope you’ll agree my angle was fresh because there was no long-standing crush. Jordan and JT fall in love over the course of the book through shared experiences that make them look at each other in a new light. Despite the fact that love and romance are central to the story line, neither the hero nor heroine has entered their full-time careers yet and Jordan still lives with her mother. So the couple is a little young for the typical contemporary romance novel. Many contemporary romance novels today tackle marriage, babies and juggling full-time careers.

-        New adult: And although their ages fall neatly into the new adult genre (18-25 years old) and the story is told from the first person – alternating point of view so commonly found in new adult books, the main story line doesn’t center on the craziness and drama associated with college life, exploring sex and drugs, or starting a new career.

Ugh! Where did that leave me when I wanted to market Date Night to a publisher? Between a rock and a hard place. In my experience and through my research, I couldn’t find many publishers that actually encouraged authors to blur the lines between genres. Luckily for me, I had a day job that helped pay the bills so I had the luxury of not caring whether or not I blurred the lines between genres and I could take the chance on self-publishing my book. 

So where did that leave me, I ask again? With a beautifully unique story worth telling!