Sharon Maria Bidwell

“Nights in Pink Satin” is an extremely sensual book. The title image, a bolt of fuschia-pink satin intended to line a coffin, draws the reader in with its bold color and luxurious feel. … Sensual details ~ sights, tastes, smells, and sounds ~ make the storytelling vivid and immediate.

http://rainbow-reviews.com/?p=1524

Need I say more? *g*

I’m blogging about something close to my heart today over at Britwriters: http://wulfwaru.wordpress.com/

Amazingly, for once, it has nothing to do with writing or books.

Do drop by to read up on camomile lawns. I’ve also posted a couple of garden photos.

Fellow Brit author, Fiona Glass, is running a series of writer’s desks and mine is up now. If you’d like to see where I sit and pen…um…I mean type my stories then drop by her blog at: http://fionaglass.blogspot.com/

I’ve also explained, or rather ‘attempted’ to explain some of the strange things on there. )

Elisa Rolle may have started off as a reader but she’s become quite a respected reviewer among writers, although I don’t know if she’s aware of that. Being that she hails from Italy and English is not her native language, she surprises us by managing to write both eloquent and enlightening reviews. I’m not just saying that because she almost always find something to praise in my books. I’m not the only writer to feel that way. So let me start by saying a collected thank you to Elisa.

I also need to thank her for the wonderful review she has given me for Nights in Pink Satin, available from Changeling Press.

She starts by saying, “The normal level of Changeling Press’ books is good but seldom they are “deep”.” She calls my book “a gothic romance with a touch of urban fantasy.” Then she goes on to say: “Martin has probably had enough bad experiences of rejection when he was a man due to the fact that he is gay, and now as a vampire he is re-living all of that, now he has another reason, even more scaring, to hide from people. It’s so sad to see his life through Vincent’s eyes when he is spying in the apartment, all the objects tell a life of loneliness and lost hopes. Even if I was really wishing that Vincent would have been starstruck by Martin at first sight, his reluctance makes for an even more interesting reading, I loved to see the innocent seduction of Martin, and the sex in the closet was hot and “symbolic”.”

You read the whole review by clicking here: (http://elisa-rolle.livejournal.com/690193.html)

Author and editor, Barbara Custer, has interviewed me on her Night To Dawn blog.

Some of you may know I had a short story of mine “Effigy in Garnet” appear as a re-print in NTD magazine. Barbara has since contacted me with some very interesting questions.

Do drop by to check out my replies. Just click here.

Thanks!

I should be able to spot a bad apple when I see it. I’ve used apples many times in my writing. It’s the ultimate symbol of temptation. As Markis asks Uly in the short promo story I wrote for the Swithin series, “Bite?” In this case, I definitely decline the taste of spoiled fruit.

If you’re wondering what I’m talking about head over to “Dear Author” and read their comments on a bad apple a.k.a. a bad book. I’m not suggesting you read the plethora of comments but I have to agree with those who feel sorry for the writer. This book and this author clearly weren’t ready for publication and the publisher who has put this work out has harmed this person, this writer, their reputation, ebooks, and the writing industry as a whole. They’ve done no one any favours.

Imagine that the writer was probably thrilled to bits. An acceptance is what every writer dreams of; that unequivocal yes, the vindication. Yayyy, a publisher wants my work. At last, I’m an author! Not only must she feel devastated as a ‘writer’ but there’s no way she cannot take some of these comments personally. Even if they didn’t heap praise on this poor unsuspecting person, the writer has to deal with the flack now aimed at her. Maybe it’s justified but it shouldn’t have happened in the first place. She shouldn’t have to go through this.

Despite the obviously poor writing there is a hint in the review that the writer had a unique concept. It doesn’t sound like one that would interest me but it happens.  A story can be good but the writing poor. The writing can be good but the story poor. If I look back at what I was producing when I first put pen to paper (and back then those were the only tools I had at my disposal, but that’s another blog right there), I was a poor writer. However, reading anything I produced so long ago I can see I was always a storyteller. With the right nurturing and guidance many poor writers can achieve their potential so I’m not going to aim a personal attack at this unfortunate person. I can’t, however, call her a writer. She hasn’t been given the opportunity. As brutal as a rejection can be, sometimes honesty can be more helpful than politeness. If I were an editor and came across a story that I believed had a hint of talent I would advise that person to go away, learn how to write, do a course if need be, and then try again in the future. One major mistake many amateur writers make is that they don’t study the books they read. They have little concept of punctuation or grammar, or how stories are plotted. Can someone be taught to write? I would say no, BUT one can be taught the mechanics. The storytelling is something more instinctual.

Alas, it’s instances such as this that lead to one bad apple spoiling it for the rest. Some of you may or may not be aware that epublishing has a bad reputation. Some liken it to little more than vanity press (companies who will publish anything at the writer’s expense and reap profits for doing no work) and it’s a valid argument. It’s valid because like any industry there are those who jumped on the bandwagon. They opened their doors with little intention of being much more than a vanity publisher, or they opened with the right intentions but no business practices behind them. Some are run by authors and that’s fine. Small press has been run by authors and editors for years and produced excellent work and launched many famous careers. Stephen King started in small press and even wrote horror stories for porn magazines.

The trouble arises when anyone opens a press with the mistaken belief that it will be ‘easy’, that it won’t be as difficult — even more difficult — than running a normal business. Many were simply opportunistic and it’s the good publishers and writers that will suffer.

I’m not commenting on this particular publisher and cannot even guess as to their reasons for letting this work go to press. It only harms their business. I’m calmly crossing them off my list of possibles. I’m sorry if there is anyone out there that has had a great experience with them. If that’s the case, please speak up now in their defence. Let someone come forward to explain why such a poorly edited work made it into the public domain.

Epublishers aren’t the only ones to blame. Poor books by larger presses make it to print so ‘bad books’ aren’t restricted to ebooks by any means. Sometimes what constitutes a bad book is open to interpretation. It’s a lamentable fact that gives publishing a bad name, it gives certain genres a bad name, and it demoralises the writers. I am pleased to say there ARE good epublishers out there, every bit as dedicated as some who specialise in print. Some print publishers are now bordering that gap and easing into new technology. The sad truth behind epublishing was that to entice a readership to the idea of embracing this new kind of reading material, they had to offer something different and this is the reason for the influx of erotic romance publishers. I’m hopeful that in time there will be greater opportunites for those in epublishing. Even if this proves not to be the case, I didn’t want to be one of those who said CDs would never take off and replace records.

I have always tried to choose my publishers carefully. Does that mean I’ve loved every book ever produced by the companies I write for? No, of course it doesn’t, just as I may not love every book put out by even my favourite authors. You can’t please everyone all of the time, or even try to, but you should try to do the best job you can and check your work thoroughly. I can only speak for myself and that’s to say, I cannot guarantee my work will never go out without a typo (I’m currently reading one of Robert Jordan’s ‘Wheel of Time’ series in print and even there I’ve spotted the odd typo) but I hate it if it does. I always do my utmost not to write substandard. I don’t expect everyone to love everything I write. I write too varied for that to be possible. I just try to tell a great story, and check and check and check my work until it drives me to distraction in the right kind of way. I will always do my best not to hand you a bad apple. Please please please don’t throw away a whole barrel. There are genuine publishers out there and there are some fine authors.

The book is out now! You can head on over to www.changelingpress.com to see how it stands out on the main page. LOL.

Click here to go directly to the to buy or here to read an excerpt. You can also read an excerpt on the publisher’s site. They chose the one I was going to put up! Damn, that always happens! Hahaha.

Enjoy!

Vincent is a vampire of world renown, even if most people believe his story is a fable, but with age comes boredom. Seeking out new silk to line his coffin for his annual ball, he comes across a bolt of pink fabric. Curiosity leads him to seek out who ordered the cloth and in so doing, Vincent makes a mistake that is about to change his existence.

Martin is a newly turned vampire and a lonely gay man. When he returns to find a famous vampire in his humble abode, he’s glad of the company even though he’s also afraid. Moreover, he’s excited for this vampire is extremely good looking.

When trapped by the sun together for an entire day leads to an explosion of unexpected intimacy, Vincent is left wondering what has come over him and has to decide if such choices carry the same type of angst or consequences for one who has lived for so many decades, even centuries. Martin is left wondering if he’ll get what he hoped for — one night of passion — or if Vincent’s interested enough to see where their relationship might lead.

Setting doubts aside, Vincent and Martin have the opportunity to turn their back on their very different but equally lonely existences. As soon as Martin get rid of his ridiculous pink-lined coffin, Vincent and Martin can then look forward to many nights between sheets of pink satin.

When a simple mistake leads to a day of explosive passion, what’s a vampire to do, but look forward to a future of gay nights between sheets of pink satin?

I’ve seen a few references to this recently so it seemed a good topic. When should a writer (or anyone in the media) keep their beliefs private and when should they make them public?

Not all of us share the same beliefs. Personally, I’m glad of this. Not only would it make for a boring world but imagine if we all believed something horrible, such as cruelty to children or animals was okay and the fate of the planet wasn’t our concern. Strong beliefs make us stand up, speak openly, defend and protect those who cannot stand up and speak for themselves. Standing up for one’s beliefs can lead to changes for the better. Differences of opinion lead to breakthroughs.

Alas, the sad, simple fact is that not of us can agree to disagree. That’s why the advice to be ‘careful’ what you state publicly can be perfectly understandable. They say you should never discuss sex, religion and politics…considering what I write there’s at least one of those topics that’s unavoidable but that doesn’t mean I have to let the general public into my private life. Besides, what do you want to know? I’m a normal person just like my readers. I crawl out of bed in the morning, brush my teeth, stumble into the kitchen in search of that first coffee. I also wash clothes, clean the house, cook, shop…have friends and family. In addition, I make mistakes, apologies, laugh, cry, get sick, heal, and hurt, for myself and for others.

There are some things that are unavoidable. I can hardly write same sex romance without declaring that I believe people should be free to love whom their heart tells them to love and that I don’t believe it’s a ‘choice’ but the way someone is born. You only have to read my work to know that. I realise there are people out there who will vehemently disagree with me and may even hate me for it. All I can say is that there is more than one element to my personality. I feel a view that dictates that because our beliefs differ we cannot be friends is short-sighted.

Do I agree with all the things my friends believe in? Do I agree with all their decisions? No, of course I don’t. I have friends who are clearly homophobic and rather than attack them for this, if they wished to discuss the topic I would hope we could do so sensible and intelligently. I would like to know why they feel the way they do, and I would be quite open to explaining my own viewpoint. Ultimately, they are entitled to their beliefs. I don’t expect all my friends to like each other but I do expect all of them to respect they ‘are’ all my friends and be civil should they ever meet, especially if it’s under my roof. I don’t believe to like another person you both have to share the exact same sexual, religious or political belief. I’m quite capable of agreeing to disagree and that’s one thing I wish was more widespread.

Of course, there are limits. I admit that. There are some things in this world I couldn’t tolerate but they are usually in extremes and no one should want someone around who feels certain forms of abuse is fine but I’m not talking about that level of animosity. I’m a different person to you. If we all wanted to love thyself to this extent there’d be no reason to ever say hello to another human being.

Therefore, don’t assume that because I’m friends with someone in my private life, on myspace, or elsewhere, is someone I share beliefs with. Neither should you assume that all the viewpoints in the stories I write are my personal viewpoint. One aspect of a writer’s job is to show all sides of the argument, without getting into a public, personal disagreement. Love or loathe one aspect of my personality, let’s get over it and let’s be friends.

A slight amendment to the site. I’ve put up a page via ‘Everything Else’ explaining how The Swithin Series came into being, although there’s also an explanation on the writing pages via ‘Arachne’s Labours’. Whichever one you choose to read — should you take the mission — I hope you find entertaining.

I now have my cover art for “Nights in Pink Satin” and have returned edits. As far as I know this is due out on the 19th but I’ll put up the cover and confirmation asap.