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Melia Alexander

~ Sassy. . . Sexy. . . Fun Contemporary Romance

Melia Alexander

Tag Archives: Entangled Publishing

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Beyond Infinity

23 Thursday Feb 2017

Posted by Melia Alexander in Melia's Musings

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blogs, creativity, Donna Alward, Entangled Publishing, fun, heroes and heroines, inspiration, living the dream, Melia Alexander, romance, RWA 2015, Take Me Back Thursday, writing, writing romance

This gallery contains 1 photo.

In my experience, a writer doesn’t exist in a bubble. On the contrary. There are people who help us along …

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Romance Author vs. Stay-at-Home-Mom

10 Monday Oct 2016

Posted by Melia Alexander in Melia's Musings

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blogs, creativity, Entangled Publishing, fun, inspiration, living the dream, Mash-Up Monday, Melia Alexander, Nichole Severn, smiles, story, writing, writing romance

Welcome to Mash-Up Monday!

I’m off on some much-needed R and R, so my talented Entangled Publishing sister, Nichole Severn, is taking over for me this week – yay! Take it away, Nichole!

Over the past three and a half years, there’s been a war raging in my house. Not between family members. Nope. Just two sides of the same person. Me. I’m a stay-at-home-mom to the smallest terrorist alive and a Romance author.

There are thousands of us out there in the world of publishing, many of whom handle the two very different personalities like a Ninja Warrior slash Badass Got Everything Under Control Woman.

I’m not one of them.

I am one of the women who doesn’t shower for days because I don’t see any point when a tiny person is just going to pour juice on my head the next day. I’m one of the women who is so exhausted, she laughs at the idea of getting up early and staying up late to write (and I only have one kid!). And I’m one of the women who feels guilty for wanting to write instead of being the perfect mother who is attentive to her children.

Sound familiar?

Well, I’m here to tell you how I’ve kinda learned to balance the Romance author inside me with the crazed, sleep-deprived stay-at-home-mom.

Repeat After Me: You Can’t Take Care of Anyone Else…

Have you heard that saying? You can’t take care of anyone else until you start taking care of yourself. I’ve been preaching it to my author and mommy friends for years. You need to eat right. You need to get enough sleep. You need to…blah, blah, blah. But more often than not, I wake up with a crude reminder I haven’t been taking care of myself and I don’t have the energy or brain capacity to attend to…anything. That’s when Netflix comes in handy. But I can’t run my day like that for long or else someone might call social services on me.

Recently, I started listening to Elizabeth Gilbert’s #MagicLessons podcast in hopes of getting some inspiration and within the very first episode, I had a revelation (seriously, go listen to this podcast, creative friends). A long time ago I realized writing was my stress relief. It was a chance to kill people who pissed me off by day, dying on the page by night. It’s the “me time” I look forward to every day. And when you think about it, part of taking care of yourself is doing those things that relieve your stress. Hence, taking the time to write is actually good for you!

So when you’re getting ready to tear your hair out because your son or daughter decided to stomp Goldfish crackers into your carpet, get your butt into your office, close the door, and put that ruined self-manicure to the keyboard. Your stress will disappear and the entire family will thank you for it.

Leave Your Guilt at the Office Door…Now

Your children will live without you.

To be honest, this was one of the hardest things I had to come to terms with over the past few months, especially since all I wanted to do was write and all my son wanted to do was play. But really, unless you have a newborn that needs to be fed and changed every hour, there is such a thing as quiet time. Which I LOVE. Two hours to myself. Every day.

But let’s address something I’ve been seeing on social media lately first, specifically Pinterest. I love Pinterest. I spend more time on there I should every day looking for things to create when I’m burnt out from writing, recipes to try, and characters to write stories about someday. These are all good things that inspire the creative in me. What doesn’t inspire the creative in me or even the mother in me is, “10 Ways to be a Better Mother…”, “5 Things You’re Doing as a Mother that are Killing Your Child…”, and more degrading crap like that.

Just stop right there.

You want to write? Leave your guilt at the office door.

The first way you’re going to accomplish that hurdle is to stop clicking on those awful articles. Yes, I realize they are also writing mothers, but they’re not getting your head in the place it needs to be to create. Your children are alive, yes? Then you’re an excellent mother. Doesn’t matter that you’re still in pajamas at 4pm (I am!) or that the laundry hasn’t been done that day. Your family will be happy that you’re happy.

Okay, so now that you’ve cut off the guilt monster’s head, schedule your day. Maybe that means spending the morning with the kids, eating lunch, then putting those kids in quiet time for a couple hours (or if you’re lucky, a nap!). Ensure they’re fed, take them to the bathroom, and maybe put a load of laundry in the washer because you can’t live off of pajamas. Trust me, I’ve tried. This way, the mother in you is fulfilled long before you’re sitting down to write and your head is clear.

There. You’re not wallowing that you’re not the most perfect mother, the children are fed and entertained, and the house is somewhat manageable. No reason for you to constantly check on them, no reason for you to not put in your headphones, no reason not to write. They’re alive. I promise.

If You Fail to Plan…

You plan to fail.

All right, the kids are in quiet time and you have your butt in the chair, and your once perfect manicure to the keyboard. Now it’s time to focus on work. Yay! My favorite time of day.

What’s your plan for this precious, distraction-free time? You don’t have a lot of time, remember? Maybe a couple hours depending on when one of your kids has to go to the bathroom again, or they want a drink, or…you get the gist.

So it helps to have a plan in place. A daily to-do list, an author business plan, a notepad or journal filled with ideas for your next scene. Something that helps you get right into the grit of your work so you’re not staring at a blank screen and losing those precious minutes you’ve set aside.

Having a plan for the day is probably one of the most important aspects of my Romance writing career. Wait, let me rephrase that. Having a plan is the most important aspect of any career. By just looking at my daily to-do list, I can self-motivate myself into checking off those boxes of things that need to get done and feel accomplished at the end of those two hours of quiet time.

And if I feel accomplished for that day, I’m not constantly looking for extra minutes to cram in work the rest of the day. I can focus on finishing the laundry (who really wants to do that?), spending time with my son, and winding down for the night.

Looking for some inspiration, my author friend? Start with creating your author business plan and go from there.

You got this, mama friend. Get out there and create something amazing.

ABOUT NICHOLE SEVERN

nichole-severn-photoAward-winning author Nichole Severn writes dark paranormal romance and explosive romantic suspense. She’s the grand prize winner of the 2014 Heart of the West Contest from the Utah Romance Writers of America Chapter and a psychology graduate from Utah Valley University.

Originally from Las Vegas, Nevada where she spent most days at her grandmother’s house watching X-Men, Married with Children, and The Simpsons, Nichole migrated to the Salt Lake City valley to live life as a full-time Romance author.

She resides with her very supportive and patient husband, as well as her terrorist of a toddler, in Utah. When she’s not writing, she’s constantly injuring herself running, rock climbing, practicing yoga, and snowboarding.

WEBSITE | TWITTER | FACEBOOK | PINTEREST

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The Virgin Moments Continue

04 Tuesday Oct 2016

Posted by Melia Alexander in Melia's Musings

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blogs, creativity, Entangled Publishing, fun, inspiration, living the dream, Melia Alexander, romance, romance writers, smiles, Travel Bug Tuesday, writing, writing romance

I’m pretty well convinced that this is the year of virgin moments for me. It’s kinda like waking up after a long, long, LONG nap and finding all these cool things that I’ve yet to experience. Like paddle boarding on the Deschutes River.

IMG_7039I wasn’t sure at first. After all, that water was COLD! And the thought of slipping off the paddle board…well, let’s just say I wasn’t looking forward to getting my hair wet.  🙂 But once I got myself on it, I was hooked!

There’s something so freakin’ cool about gliding along on the water with few peeps around. Makes for a very contemplative time, time I used thinking about the characters in the book I’m working on now. I thought about how to take two broken people, make them whole so they can come together and create something bigger than each of them. Pretty heavy stuff, huh?

Well, whatever it is that feeds La Muse, I’m all for it! Unless it involves jumping out of a perfectly good airplane…I gotta draw the line somewhere!

I know there are more adventures to come, and I’m looking forward to sharing them with you, so thanks bunches for hanging with me!

What activity do you participate in that makes you contemplative?

Happy Travel Bug Tuesday…

~Melia

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Welcome to the World, Aidan and Delaney!

13 Monday Jun 2016

Posted by Melia Alexander in Melia's Musings

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blogs, creativity, Driven to Temptation, Entangled Publishing, fun, heroes and heroines, living the dream, Mash-Up Monday, Melia Alexander, romance, romance writers, writing, writing romance

Happy book birthday to Aidan and Delaney, the hero and heroine of my new romantic comedy, Driven to Temptation!

Here’s the book blurb:

Aidan Ross might be an engineering genius, but people skills? Not this soldier’s forte. Thankfully, a trusted friend is accompanying him to a make-or-break tradeshow…but then a bubbly redhead hops into his truck, claiming to be his newDrivenToTemptation_1600road trip buddy. She’s a gorgeous distraction he can’t afford. Or ignore.

Delaney Harper comes from a family of engineers—male engineers. With several impressive projects under her belt, she’s on a mission to prove she can hang with the big boys, too. But cracking the sexy, closed-off CEO is tougher than she expects…and hotter than she could have imagined.

With the tempting woman disrupting his carefully planned schedule, Aidan can’t focus on the road, much less their upcoming presentation. The future of his company is riding on this trip, and if they’re to land a huge account, he has to keep his head—and his heart—in the game…

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll go back to squeeing from the rooftop…

Happy reading,
Melia

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In the Beginning, There was a Merger…

09 Thursday Jun 2016

Posted by Melia Alexander in Melia's Musings

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blogs, creativity, Delilah Marvelle, Driven to Temptation, Entangled Publishing, fun, living the dream, Melia Alexander, MERGER OF THE HEART, romance, romance writers, smiles, story, Take Me Back Thursday, writing, writing romance

Welcome to Take-Me-Back Thursday!

In light of all that’s going on in my life, I couldn’t help but look back at my debut novel, Merger of the Heart. It’s been an only child since coming into the world in 2014.

MergerOfTheHeart_recover_1600(1)But guess what?! This Monday, June 13th, Driven to Temptation will hit the virtual shelves to keep it company!

DrivenToTemptation_1600So, yeah, I’m pretty happy with life these days! 🙂

What wonderfully fantastic things are going on in your world?

Happy Reading,
Melia

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Finally…

09 Monday Feb 2015

Posted by Melia Alexander in Melia's Musings

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blog, Entangled Publishing, living the dream, Mash-Up Monday, Melia Alexander, MERGER OF THE HEART, puppet sex, Tawna Fenske

Happy Mash-Up Monday!

With developmental edits for my next book hitting my inbox the same week as my debut book, MERGER OF THE HEART, released on December 29th, life got a whole lotta crazy busy for me in a very short time! And I’m woefully behind in sharing stuff with you all. Sorry.

So. To catch you all up, while I was busy navigating my newbie self through authordom, my Entangled Publishing release-day buddy, Tawna Fenske, was busy doing what I shoulda done…but didn’t. What can I say, she’s a promo queen! And thankfully took my hand as I stepped down the rabbit hole.

Okay, so she really shoved me in! But now that I’m on the other side, I’m glad she did. No, really. I am!

See, the two of us teamed up and made some video clips (with the help of her uber-talented hubby, Craig) to celebrate our book releases. They were so much fun to do! Well, not “do” do, just do…Ohmigosh, I’m starting to think like Tawna…YAY!

Anyhoo, I’m sending you all to her blog post on Don’t Pet Me, I’m Writing to take a peek at our creations. Ummm… One more thing: You might want to make sure there are no kids or judgey co-workers around…Got it? Now, go!

And when you’re done, come on back and tell me which one was your favorite?

Have an awesome week,
Melia

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Those Virgin Moments Keep Rolling!

06 Tuesday Jan 2015

Posted by Melia Alexander in Melia's Musings

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blogs, Entangled Publishing, fun, living the dream, Mash-Up Monday, Melia Alexander, smiles, writing, writing romance

Wow.

It’s been a week since my debut book, MERGER OF THE HEART, released from Entangled Publishing. It’s been a phenomenally fun time interacting with readers, begging for reviews (yes, friendlies, these are SOOO important to an author!), and hitting the “refresh” button to see where the book ranks. Yep, I admit I’m one of those authors!

But the biggest thrill came when the UPS guy dropped off this:

20150105_181056So. Yeah. I’m gonna take some time to savor this moment.

Have an awesome week,
Melia

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Celebrating a First Born

01 Thursday Jan 2015

Posted by Melia Alexander in Melia's Musings

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blogs, celebration, creativity, Entangled Publishing, Food and Wine Wednesday, fun, living the dream, Melia Alexander, MERGER OF THE HEART, romance, romance writers, smiles, story, writing, writing romance

It isn’t every day that an author gets to see her first book published. Which was DSC_0429partly why I decided that a book launch party would be such a fun idea. ‘Course, I made this decision two days before MERGER OF THE HEART’s debut. AND, I decided to hold it the evening it released. Two words: Not. Smart.

I’ll attribute it to ignorance. After all, how was I supposed DSC_0428to know all the fine details of launching a story out into the world? Of the countless hours on social media, and of hitting the “refresh” key to get updates of sales stats on Amazon? Right? Right?

Midway through the afternoon I realized that: 1) People were due at my house in three hours. 2) There was no food and I had to make a grocery store run. 3) There was the whole set-up thing that involved tracking down platters and serving spoons (how did they get to be so danged dusty?), and 4) I had yet to bathe….

I have to admit I was impressed that it all got done – especially the bathing part! And as exhausted as I was, it was so much fun.DSC_0437 ‘Course, the first four guests were drafted into kitchen prep, but that serves them right for being on time! The cucumber got sliced, the salami was rolled, and the store-bought mini-cupcakes and cookies were artfully arranged.

The best part? People actually showed up!

Have you thrown a party together at the last minute? How’d it go?

Happy eating,
Melia

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Yet Another Virgin Moment

29 Monday Dec 2014

Posted by Melia Alexander in Melia's Musings

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blogs, creativity, Entangled Publishing, inspiration, living the dream, Mash-Up Monday, Melia Alexander, MERGER OF THE HEART, romance, romance writers, smiles, story, virgin moments, writing, writing romance

So. I’m pretty much dazed today. I mean, it isn’t every day that a writerMotH_500(2) gets to see her first book published. Excuse me a moment while I pinch myself…

OUCH!

Well. I’m not dreaming…And yet, the entire experience feels strangely surreal. Kinda like when you ask Santa for a Betty Crocker Baking Oven, swearing up and down you’re gonna be good, making deals that you’re gonna quit picking on your little brother as soon as you get the present you’ve wanted in FOREVER. And when it shows up, you’re actually stunned silly because it did. Yeah. That.

While I marvel at all that it took to get here – the 4 a.m. writing times, the weekend writing times, writer friends who encouraged, cajoled, and threatened (that’s a whole ‘nother story) – I have to admit I’m beyond thrilled MERGER OF THE HEART has arrived!

Okay. Gonna go try and calm down now…But if you’d like to read an excerpt, please click here.

Happy Mash-Up Monday,
Melia

 

 

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Edit Mode

03 Monday Nov 2014

Posted by Melia Alexander in Uncategorized

≈ 2 Comments

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blogs, creativity, Entangled Publishing, inspiration, living the dream, Mash-Up Monday, Melia Alexander, smiles, story, writing, writing romance

Happy Mash-Up Monday!

So. Yeah. I’m in the middle of revisions where my editor pointed out that, among other things, I have a horrible aversion to commas! Happily, this is what my life is about these days:

P1170596Heading back to the manuscript so I can add those commas!

Have a great week,
Melia

 

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