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Writing
I love to write.
I make up fictional characters who have obstacles to overcome and sit back and watch the
plots unfold, sometimes for up to twelve hours a day in the same chair, in front of my computer.
Even though I'm pre-pubbed, I still write and write and write, escaping real life by living in someone
else's shoes.
I'm what's called a 'pantzer'...I write by the seat of my pants. I usually don't
know exactly what's going to happen in the book I'm writing, but can see a few scenes in my head
that I want to include. They kind of play out like a movie in my head, then I take it from there.
My favorite books to write are adventures, but alas, they're not selling right now. Even agents
steer away from them because the market's not right. Adventure books that are currently on the shelves
are usually marketed as 'mysteries' or 'general fiction', which is a definite misnomer.
I have two websites for my pen names. The first one,
Paige Ryter
(pronounced page writer--fun, huh?) is for my romances. If you click on the banner for Paige,
you'll be taken to that website, and learn about various heroines in peril, to be helped by hunky
heroes. I don't write any sex scenes in these books and there are no swear words, because my
youngest daughter is my editor. So, they're all considered 'sweet romances'.
The next website I use is for my mystery and adventure books, under
Andie Alexander.
All of these stories are very light, and I want
to think humorous at some times. The reader doesn't have to think very hard while reading them, and they're written
more for entertainment than for hurting brain cells.
My favorite heroine is Kes Madrid, an average journalist from Denver who gets put in a situation
where she has to decide to flee or fight for someone very important. She chooses the right
decision, which yields her many adventures and books after that. Eventually, she becomes a
CIA agent, fighting the good fight worldwide, to make everyone's life better in the long run. I want
to be more like Kes, making a difference in the world.
I also have another series of books that are a mystery series. They're my 'Natalie' books. When I moved
to the Green Bay area, it was very tough to get to know people, because everyone in town was related
to someone else...except for us. So I thought, what if someone from New York City moved here? How
would they cope? So, I created a died-in-the-wool New Yorker named Natalie DeLeon. When she finds a
dead body in the hotel in which she's a clerk, she realizes she has more friends than she thought she
did.
Another series I'm working on is with a heroine named Harley Black. She's an interpreter at the U.N.
in New York, rides a motorcycle, smokes and drinks and is rescued by a Department of Homeland Security
agent named Jim Bond (no relation to James Bond, and he hates it if you mention it). Harley doesn't
think she needs rescuing, and puts Jim in his place on the ground...literally.
If you click on the banner for Andie Alexander, you'll see stories
about Kes, Natalie and Harley. I'm working on other books to add to the list, but you'll just
have to stay tuned to find out more.
Overall, writing is a creative outlet for me. I also belong to a group of writers called
The Insane Dames. Our
goal is to promote the craft of writing by telling others what we've learned. We're all members
of the
Romance Writers of America
and have all read many craft books, sharing between ourselves and
writing useful articles.
I also like participating in NaNoWriMo, which
stands for National Novel Writing Month. Every November, the participants try to write 50,000 words on a new
novel. The 'winners' get a certificate to download. People from all over the world participate, and it's
a lot of fun, because you meet people from all over, and even in your area!
If you have that book idea in the back of your head, now is the time to start writing it. Don't worry that
it will be awful, but get the idea down on paper. You never know...it might be a fantastic project when
you're done and you'll be laughing all the way to the bank!
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