THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY:
My favorite scenes
The leading question here was what scene was easiest for me to write and what scene was hardest. Believe it or not, that’s actually a difficult question for me to answer. I don’t find any “scene” difficult. What I find most challenging are what I call “transitional scenes.” You know, those times in between “big scenes.” I have to think long and hard about those because, most often, I have little idea of where the story is going. Being a “pantser” (as my kind of author is affectionately termed in the Indie world) makes it impossible to look very far ahead, which, in turn, makes it challenging to write scenes that take the story from one big event to the next. For me, the story is developing as I go, so I do lots of mulling during these periods. I can get lost in them for hours sometimes, wondering what might come next.
Now if you’d asked what my FAVORITE scene to write was, I’d have to say the love scenes. *grins* I’m a true romantic and, for me, the culmination of all the tension and unspoken emotion is like fireworks—in my head, in my heart and, hopefully, on the page. In fact, I love writing these scenes so much that I have to rein it in a bit to make sure I don’t get carried away. That’s how much I love them. Truthfully, though, I love to write any highly emotional scene, be it about love and victory or heartbreak and death. I know that sounds terrible, but in tragedy, the emotions are so gut-wrenching, they make the happy ending that much more satisfying. And that makes all the angst and agony worthwhile, doesn’t it?
I guess in a nutshell, I’d have to say the easiest scenes for me to write are the good, the bad and the ugly. It’s the calm spaces in between that throw me for a loop. I suppose that’s a good thing, though, because isn’t it the highs that we live for? Isn’t it the lows that we can’t wait to read beyond, to see if there’s triumph to be had? I like to think so. And as a writer, I’m the same way. I wait with bated breath for the next wonderful thing or the next tragedy, all because I know that, in the end, there’s happiness. And THAT is what I live for.
Berkley Books acquires bestselling sensation M. Leighton’s two self-published series: The Bad Boys and The Wild Ones.
DOWN TO YOU has sold more than 200,000 copies since it released on September 22nd, and has spent four weeks on the New York Times and USA Todaybestseller lists.
DOWN TO YOU hit a high of #8 on the New York Times E-book bestseller list, #12 on the combined E-book and print list, and #17 on the USA Today list.
UP TO ME sold more than 50,000 copies in its first week on sale and hit #12 on the USA Today bestseller list.
M. LEIGTON
The Bad Boys & The Wild Ones
Berkley Books has acquired two more exciting self-published series that have been garnering great buzz in the romance community. Berkley is now the publisher of M. Leighton’s two bestselling series, The Bad Boys and The Wild Ones. On February [TBD], Berkley took over the e-book publication of the first two novels in M. Leighton’s Bad Boys series, DOWN TO YOU and UP TO ME. The books will be available in trade paperback format on July 2 and August 6, respectively. The much anticipated third installment, EVERYTHING FOR US, will be released for the first time ever, simultaneously in print and e-book formats on September 3rd.
In DOWN TO YOU (Berkley e-book; [TBD]; $4.99), Olivia Townsend is just a girl working her way through college so she can return home to help her father run his business. To Olivia, it’s clear what she must do. But clear becomes complicated when she meets twin brothers Cash and Nash Davenport. Cash is everything she’s always wanted in a guy. He’s a dangerous, sexy bad boy who wants her in his bed at any cost. Nash is everything she’s ever needed in a guy. He’s successful, responsible and intensely passionate. But he’s taken by none other than Marissa, Liv’s rich and beautiful cousin. Clarity turns to obscurity when Olivia discovers the boys are hiding something, something that should make her run as far and as fast as she can. But it’s too late to run. Olivia’s already involved and in love with both of them. Both brothers make her heart tremble. Both brothers set her body on fire. She wants them both. And they want her. How will she ever choose between them?
In UP TO ME (Berkley e-book; [TBD]; $4.99), Olivia’s trust is shaken when a new threat arises. She realizes that the danger she is facing is not limited to her heart… it has become a danger to her life as well. InEVERYTHING FOR US (Berkley Trade Paperback; September 3, 2013; $14.00), Marissa Townsend has everything a girl could ask for—a great job, a privileged life, and all the friends money can buy. But one case of mistaken identity turns her world upside down. Not only does this abduction gone wrong throw her for a loop, it lands her right in the lap of the sexiest, most dangerous man she’s ever met.
* * *
M. Leighton’s Wild Ones series has enjoyed incredible self-published success. And now, Berkley Books releases the revised first installment, THE WILD ONES (Berkley Trade Paperback; March 5, 2013; $14.00), featuring brand new, sexy content from this talented new author on the romance scene. Berkley Books will release the second and third books in the series simultaneously in print and eBook formats as well.
In THE WILD ONES, the passion’s as hot as midnight in the South and the love’s as wild as the horses they tame.
About the author:
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author M. Leighton is a native of Ohio. She relocated to the warmer climates of the South, where she lets her mind wander to romantic settings with sexy Southern guys, much like the one she married, and the ones you’ll find in her latest books. For more about M. Leighton, visit her website at www.MLeightonBooks.blogspot.
Thanks for the guest post and information on Ms. Leighton’s books