Yes, I'm a Christian, and Yes, I write Romantic-Suspense

I love reading all genres of books. I know, I’ve said that before, but I really do. I’ve read everything from Beauty and The Beast (the original) to The Godfather. I’ve said that before, too, but bear with me, as I will try not to repeat myself too much. The reason I mention those two books is because they are so opposite of each other, and I believe reveal to my readers that what I mentioned above is true. I love to read!

Well, I guess I don’t read everything…I’m not into sci-fi—though I would probably read if something caught my attention—and, I stay away from anything extremely graphic as in rape, hurting children, or anything that glorifies any type of violent act.

That said, on to my point of this blog about me being a Christian and writing romantic-suspense.

I read tons of Christian books as well as secular books; I don’t limit myself to any specific genres or markets. If it catches my attention, I read it. If it’s bad, I put it down, but I usually find something good in everything.

What I have found in Christian books, however, is that publishers of ‘Christian’ books tend to allow violence—to the point of breaking every bone in a child’s body—but absolutely refuse to allow any romance that even alludes to sex, even between a married couple. One of my favorite authors, Ted Dekker, ran into this with his novel Immanuel’s Veins. I found absolutely nothing offensive about this book and truly wonder if these publishers have even read the bible.

“Song of Solomon is completely sensual as it is about the King and his love. Research seems to confirm that the Song belongs to Biblical wisdom literature and that it is wisdom’s description of an amorous relationship. The bible speaks of both wisdom and love as gifts of God, to be received with gratitude and celebration.

“…it views the Song as a linked chain of lyrics depicting love in all its spontaneity, beauty, power and exclusiveness—experienced in its varied moments of separation and intimacy, anguish and ecstasy, tension and contentment. The Song shares with the love poetry of many cultures its extensive use of highly sensuous and suggestive imagery drawn from nature.”

Isn’t that beautiful? And so contradictory to what we see on TV and in the movie theatre. We instantly censor anything to do with making love, but are okay with graphic scenes.

Well, as you have probably expected, I write romantic scenes in my novels. Are they graphic? No. Sensual? Yes. I leave a lot to the imagination, as I believe every writer should do to some extent in all scenes. As an avid reader, I love when a writer describes a scene, but I also love how my imagination goes wild…even playing out scenes in my head while I sleep as to what will happen next.

So, if you enjoy a PG13 movie filled with mystery, suspense, and of course, romance, I believe you will love my novels.

As always, happy reading, friends.

Carmen

Thank you for stopping by my place and reading my musings. Remember, these are just my opinions and shouldn’t be taken too seriously. If you have questions, please feel free to leave them in the comment section, and I promise you I will answer. If you’re curious about what I write, please visit one of my author pages, where you can read all about my novels and short stories. And hey, I’ll even give you a free book just for stopping by.

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To prologue or not to prologue, that is the question. Readers, please weigh in!

Personally, I love prologues. They get you right into the action whether it was in the past or something exciting that is to come. But that’s exactly why most agents’ blogs I’ve read say not to use them. Paraphrasing…“If you need a prologue, then your story must not be strong enough…” Hmm … well, I like them, and I use them. But I’m curious what readers think, and I’d love you to weigh in. AND, if you have some great examples, please leave the title in the comment section. Now … here’s what I’ve noticed. Plenty of bestselling books have used them, even though they aren’t always called prologues . Same diff in my opinion. My biggest example is ‘Twilight’. If that little blurb wasn’t in the beginning, I don’t think I would have made it through the first chapter. How about movies? I don’t watch a lot. But I’ve started to notice how many have “prologues”. I also don’t have cable, but I have NetFlix, and hubby has just started watching ‘Breaking Bad’. Okay … I...

Creatus Animus is available!

Amazon Kindle Amazon Worldwide Barnes & Noble Nook iTunes / iBooks Kobo Smashwords Scribd Oh, and as I promised, if you've already purchased the boxed set, it is updated with the new release. If you don't know how to update your set, simply leave a comment below, and I'll help you out. If you haven't read the Creatus series yet, or would like to share it with a friend, here's your chance. The Prequel and Book One are available in a Special Edition Set for FREE! Until next time, Happy Reading! Carmen If you haven't read the first three books, don't click this sneak peek. There WILL BE spoilers! Sneak Peek at Creatus Animus

"I’ll show you things that will take your breath away" Excerpt from LAND OF THE NOONDAY SUN

When two strangers have nothing left but their dreams, they must forge a relationship in Nantahala, North Carolina, a small town known as Land of the Noonday Sun . Excerpt: As soon as he set her on the ground, she heard the waterfall. She gazed at the pounding waters as they fell over the rock and hit the stream below. “Wow, this is … so beautiful and so close, right off the road, near our house … amazing. He smiled. “This is nothing, Cassie, hardly anyone even comes here. I’ll show you some waterfalls and trails over the next few weeks that will take your breath away.” Cassandra couldn’t contain her smile or the feelings rushing through her veins. He wanted to show her his state. It was beautiful she realized, and the thought of discovering it with him made it even more exciting. She was certain he was correct about taking her breath away, but she was also sure it wouldn’t ju st be the wa terfalls. Land of the Noonday Sun is Book Three of t...

NoraAMonday, January 30, 2012
I'll read almost anything. When I'm bored I even read the cereal box. LOL I've read and reviewed books in almost a dozen genres... That said, my only problem is with an author who writes books but gets overly preachy in them. I own almost all of books written by Father Andrew Greeley. He writes Catholic books but you don't feel like he is pushing anything at you.

Publishers today seem to be following the money instead of the reading public's wants. I think that's a damned shame.
Carmen DeSousaMonday, January 30, 2012
That's me in both accounts, as I mentioned...

Who needs to be bored...I think the cereal box is where I learned to read. LOL!

As to my writing, I share my beliefs, because they are a part of who I am, but I never preach.

;)
Minnie LahongraisMonday, January 30, 2012
This is all very interesting. I agree with Carmen regarding the violence seen on TV and movies vs. more intimate scenarios depicting love between two people. This is the reason we went with this post ... so that there is a dialogue.

Carmen DeSousa

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