S.C. Dane's Blog

#Christian #monsters #love

Odd collection of hashtags, wouldn’t you say? It’s a case of one of these things doesn’t belong, which was my knee-jerk reaction. Then I thought about the theme of my novel, Lover in Stone, and realized these four hashtags aren't random.

This idea began after I’d read a blog post on author marketing, where one of the recommendations was to reach out to a new demographic of readers. Not to say, buy my book, but to share what my book is about.

Hey, I can do that. It’s the only aspect of marketing I can wrap my heart around. Considering a published author is really a small business, my approach is almost self-defeating. I’m crippling modest when it comes to my writing because my stories are never as good as I think they can be. How can I ask someone to spend their hard earned money on something that isn’t perfect?

So, getting back to that new reader demographic.

My latest novel series goes like this:

Once, the Kynd existed under God's grace, bearing witness to all things passing. Until the Schism, when God and Lucifer clashed and the archangel was flung from the heavens. Refusing to choose sides, the Kynd were damned, too, forced to bear witness without the touch and comfort of another, their honorable name disintegrating into the dust of history. Now they are remembered merely as gargoyles and chimeras, and in their deaths, they become monsters of stone: grotesques. Their Chosen Ones can save them. But after enduring centuries of solitary madness, who could love something so doomed?

God, of course, had a Plan. Here it is, and it’s an author no-no: a talking head scene, edited out of the final version of Lover in Stone, but I think it does a good job explaining God’s motive. Click on the link to read it: LIS prologue for blog

Now for connecting to that new demographic. I really sat on this idea for a long time because I didn't want to offend anyone. Then one day I was surfing through radio stations and came across a song I could bang my head to. You know, really jam out. I like hard music and this one was something I hadn’t heard before. Then I listened to the lyrics, and thought: no effing way.

But then, why not?

Just because you’re Christian it doesn’t mean you don’t have fire in your belly. You can like things loud, and rough, and and a little violent. You aren’t plastic figurines living without the soup of feelings every human is subject to.

It’s what you do with those feelings, right? You can still have compassion for your fellow man—and yes, forgiveness—for the monstrous people and events in your life. Because ultimately, you’re buoyed by your faith in God, that no matter what’s coming at you, God has His plan and wouldn’t give you more than He knows you can handle.

BINGO! This is the exact message God wanted my characters in the Darkest Kynd series to understand. He hadn’t abandoned them, He’d just set them on the path to being better…beings.

Is there violence and swearing in the book? Yes. There are even some pretty graphic love scenes. But, hey, Christians can handle it. And ding, ding, ding, they might actually want to read that sort of thing.

I had been presuming who my readers were, and had eschewed the Christian demographic because my stories are very graphic, and violent, and there is cursing at God. But sometimes we have to brave the flames to fully grasp the power of God’s love, and therefore, our own.

So, if you’re one of those people who bangs her head as the rush of screaming guitars burns God's message through your veins, then by all means, tune your frequency to Lover in Stone, and give it a spin.

Hi, Readers!

I’m caught in a wormhole and I’ve lost track of time. It’s been over a month since my release of Lover In Stone, and I owe each of you a thank you for your kind reviews of my latest book, especially since it’s so different from my first series The Luna Chronicle. Yeah, they’re both paranormal romance, but the similarities end there. I won’t bore you by listing all the ways the writing has changed because you already know them.

Instead, I’m going to share what Gemma Davis had to say:

“Well, S C Dane has done it again! This story is about Grotesques before they become encased in stone, kind and gentle beings forced to walk though hell, everyday and night. Is there someone to love them and show them the light of Earth again? By the end of the first chapter, SC Dane got you! Each of the new characters become real – you feel the Grotesques sorrow – their questions and their indecisions. By the end of the book you have met, loved and hated the characters. When you reach the last page, you’ll find a small smile on your face and then that smile turns upside down. NO! I have to wait for the next book to learn the fate of the other Grotesques! I would give Love in Stone – 5 Stars”

Pretty cool, huh? Gemma was a fan of my Luna Chronicle series, so to hear her say how much she liked Lover In Stone let’s me know I’m on the right track writing-wise.

Unfortunately, she’ll have to wait until next summer for Dark Lover, the second book in my Kynd series. This one will feature Darken, whom you all met in the first book (he visited Merrick at Hell’s Archway then gathered the other Kynd when he learned Merrick was in trouble.) If you visit my Pinterest page, you’ll find my inspiration for both Darken and his love interest, Daniela.

Right now, I’m working on the third book, which is all about the bear chimera, Urick, and his struggles with his love, Violet, who embodies everything he hates about himself. Such turmoil!

Anyway, it’s why I’ve been lost in that wormhole. If I can finish it by the end of September, it can be released just a couple of months after Dark Lover and you guys won’t have to wait so long to find out what happens with my gargoyles and chimeras!

Until then, let me say Thank You once again for your support. In my head, my characters are very much alive, so it’s a true pleasure to learn that my readers are as excited about finding out what happens to them as I am.

Have a wonderful day, All, and happy reading no matter what it is[image error]

My very best,

~S.C. Dane

#reviews #romance #gargoyles

Hey, all! This might not be the place to invite my fans to read and review my new release, but screw it. If any of you have read my bio on my website you already know I’m not much on rules. So, here we are. My new book Lover In Stone, a paranormal romance, was officially released on Amazon and I need reviews for it. I’m offering a free read in exchange for a review. It sounds like I’m bribing folks for five stars, but again, those who know me won’t hesitate to share their honest opinions. Because that’s what I want: Honesty. Short and sweet, too. Click how many stars you think it deserves and call it good. If you want to wax on about why you loved, liked, or hated it, go ahead. It’s up to you. Just bear in mind my writing is graphic. If you’re squeamish, you’ve been warned.

To get started, you can email me. I’m going to need to know who and where this free read is going to. Otherwise, nothing will happen. So, get in touch if you’re interested. I’m at scdane@yahoo.com.

I’m looking forward to hearing from you.

Here’s a blurb to whet your appetites:

To the world they are the Grotesques—hideous chimeras and gargoyles. But before they are locked in their stone prisons, they are Kynd——magnificent beings condemned to prowl the nightmares of every realm.

Their tortures will doom them.

The love of a Chosen One could save them.

Merrick has become a beast. Angelia has been chosen to save him. Will their fragile love survive the Hell the chimera is chained to?

~S.C. Dane

Please #bear with me! It’s been a while since I posted anything, but this is my first day off from the ranch in a while and every other free minute I’ve had has been taken up with writing my latest novel. It’s the third book in my Darkest Kynd series, and it features my #chimera character, Urick, who is part grizzly bear.

Compliments of Kuchera at Dreamstime Photos.

Not only has ranching and writing kept me busy, but I’ve got a new release slated for June 28, 2016. It’s the first book in my Darkest Kynd series, titled Lover In Stone, and I’m wicked excited about sharing it with the public.

There’s a lot of work involved in a new book release, but somehow I’m managing to juggle everything. Besides, hanging out with Uri the Bear Chimera is fun!

~S.C. Dane

#dogs #aging #MFRWauthor

The “Portrait Torture” paid off. I came out of the photo session looking only half bad. For those like me who aren’t photogenic, this was a miracle in itself. It’s one of the reasons I’ve always chosen an avatar as my author image (aside from the ass-shitting fear that grips me every time a camera is pointed in my direction).

For those who aren’t familiar with my S.C. Dane media profile, my dog Sally is my public “face,” and has been for several years. Only I hadn’t realized how much time has passed until I compared the photo I used for my author avatar with the photo the professional photographer took of SalGal.

Yes, Sally went with me to my photo shoot. She has traveled from Maine to Wyoming with me and everywhere in-between, why would I leave her home? (Dog people will understand) The fact that she’s an Irish Wolfhound cross who weighs in at a slim 115 pounds doesn’t keep her out of places. It usually means she gets served: people move around her as if she’s another person.

So, I wasn’t too surprised when the camera lens angled for her.

It wasn’t until I got the pictures back that I realized how she’s aged. The face I’ve used as my own is aging in…dog years, damn it.

SalGal

SalGal is nine, and for a big dog–an Irish Wolfhound cross, at that–she’s doing great. But the photograph reminded me I’m on borrowed Sal time.

I imagine when she slips from my life I’ll be as inconsolable as Will Farrell in the movie “Anchorman” when his dog Baxter got punted over the bridge. Nothing coherent is going to come out of

The “real” face of S.C. Dane

my mouth. Friends know this. Sally isn’t just my dog, I’m her human. We’re a team. She’s not my baby, but my friend. She doesn’t even wear a collar. The only time I attach a leash to her is when there’s the danger she’s going to get run over when we’re walking around traffic. It’s to keep her safe, and I never, ever pull on it. Why? It’s degrading to her, and I don’t do to her what I wouldn’t want done to me. Plain and simple. Sal is a woman who knows who she is and doesn’t apologize for it, and she has taught me much about that.

She’s my sidekick, my wing-man. She’s got my back, like I have hers. The Dynamic Duo forever. Then I saw the new picture and compared it to the old, and I realize that one day I’m going to have to let her go.

But not just yet. She’s still the pain in my ass, opinionated, and strong-willed woman I grew to love nine years ago. She’s still traveling with me, meeting new faces, making new friends. Reaching out–in the way she taught me how to do. So thanks, SalGal, you’ve handed me another lesson, and I think my readers are happier for it.

And a giant Thank You to Leah Yetter Photographer. A fellow award-winning artist and earth-roamer who ultimately planted her feet in Wyoming, where SalGal and I have had the honor to meet up with her. My cowgirl hat is tipped, Leah, thank you.

~S.C. Dane

#portrait #phobia #hermit #MFRWauthor #MRWauthor

Hi Folks!

My latest short-blog entry is one I’m anxious to share, kind of like a support group, where you tell your story and others commiserate. I know I’m not alone in this “portrait torture.” Authors are reclusive by nature. We have to be. Stealing large chunks of alone-time is the only way we’re going to draft a novel.

And what happens when all you have to do is shuffle from your bed to the coffee pot to the computer? You do it without a thought to your outward appearance. In fact, when a story hijacks your brain and the “real” world ceases to exist, the only body you have is your fingers, flicking away on the keyboard.

Face? What writer has a face? There’s just a hole where you pour coffee into your bloodstream.

Then my publisher tells me I need to use an actual photograph of myself this time. No more hiding behind an avatar, no more biographies where I leave my readers imagining what I look like. Readers want to KNOW what I look like. I have no clue why. My face isn’t writing my stories, my brain is, and who wants to look at that squishy thing?

Torture tools of the trade.

Well, I sucked it up and hired a photographer. Someone who makes a living forcing people into unnatural stances topped off with a grimace.

Okay, that’s just my opinion about how things went down. My photographer was a real trooper. She was a Picasso trying to paint with crayons, but she managed with a real smile on her face.

An eon, an epoch, and a dead dinosaur later, we were finished. I was alive. So was she, but just barely. I wasn’t an easy subject to work with. Not that I was a diva, but hell, my face does not do public.

At any rate, when my next novel, Love In Stone comes out May/June 2016, my mug will be on the back cover. Go check it out, if only to make that torture session worth it!

~S.C. Dane

#editing #romance #new release

When blogging, I’m supposed to say something witty and/or engaging. Not right now, I can’t. I just finished doing final edits on my May/June release of “Lover In Stone” and my brain is fuh-ried. Not that the book needed a shit-ton of rework, it’s just that I’ve read the manuscript now a total of 1,000,000 and one times. Gotta get it perfect for my readers, you know.

Sneak peek at the cover:

~S. C. Dane

#ranching #writing #monsters and sex

Click for pic:

Life on the ranch… https://t.co/PUzLsLSbZ4

— S.C. Dane (@scdanelove) March 25, 2016

Love to write, but I’m not going to come up with formal essays every week. Ain’t happening. I’d rather put that brain power into my latest WIP (Work in Progress). I’ve only got so many hours in a day and so many brain cells to burn out. Not to mention, working on a ranch, I’ve only got so many inclinations to sit in front of my computer rather than sit astride a four-legged beastie. Better to use that ass-in-a-chair-time wisely.

Such as on my latest novel, or touching base with readers.

So, I’m going short.

Today, calves are coming left, right, and sideways. There’s barely time to deal with them, let alone write some structure-perfect essay. Used my ACT (ass chair time) adding apps and such to my Facebook author page, so now it’s off to the corrals…

S.C. Dane

#endoftheworld #weird

Nothing crazier than a shithouse rat…or is there?

I got this in the mail the other day. At first, the linked words didn’t make sense. I had to read it a couple of times, wondering if maybe Joe Jesus missed the typos.

By the third round, the message finally dawned. As did the realization that there are indeed things in this world loonier than rodents who like to hang out in outdoor bathrooms.

I mean, come on:

But then, I got thinking: What if these folks know something I don’t. Eventually, the sari wearing dude on the sidewalk proclaiming the End is Near! is going to be right. Kind of the way a broken watch is right twice a day.

Therefore, I’ll forego judgment. Granted, I’m gonna laugh my ass off, but I won’t judge. It takes all kinds of people to make our world go round. And if this planet decides to blow, we now know who will be getting the last laugh.

~S.C. Dane

#quills #foal

NOTHING hurts worse than this:

…discovered during my quest for nothing.

Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Someone pick my nose, puh-leeaase!

Ouch!