Reader’s Reaction to THE ARRANGEMENT 11

Posted on November 1, 2013 by admin

We did a contest the other day. I totally think we should do another now that ARRANGEMENT 11 is up on all sites!

So, let’s do it! Post your reaction to the end of THE ARRANGEMENT 11 on facebook!

GRAB THE ARRANGEMENT 11 NOW AT THESE RETAILERS:

Are you a paper person and wondering when the paperback will be released? Tah dah! Preorder for paper is already up. Go click it and the book will show up on your doorstep on release day. It’s awesome. Click here to preorder the paperback of ARRANGEMENT 11.

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A Fan For Life – Plus a Turkey in a Pink Bra

Posted on October 24, 2013 by admin

Below is a letter from a fan. I am always so grateful every time one of you takes a second to write me. I read all of them and it’s beyond awesome because:

One life touches another, offering hope, laughter, and joy.

My books have done that for you guys and your letters do the same thing for me. Life is hard, and it’s awesome to find so many friends out there.

I know I sound like a dork, but it’s been a truly amazing experience and to share your lives is just wow. Anyway, I thought I’d share this fan note with you guys. And yes, the she’s the proud owner of the Turkey Vulture in the Pink Bra.

Thank you so much.

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“Dear Ms. Ward,

I am used to reading paranormal and fantasy novels, but I had recently given into social pressure (and curiosity) and was introduced to the romance/erotica genre via the 50 Shades and Crossfire series. I had my doubts but I realized that I actually liked some of what I was reading (although the quality of the writing in 50 Shades leaves a lot to be desired, but that is another topic of discussion!).

This past June, I was looking to load up my Kobo with a bunch of new books for my summer reading. We were going a little road trip with the kids and I wanted a little something to keep me busy while the hubby was driving and the boys were arguing in the backseat. Having seen Damaged on Kobo’s top 50 best seller list for a while and with Damaged 2 in the top 10 not long after it’s release, I figured to give them a try. Besides, they were inexpensive and the description caught my attention.

I started reading Damaged without any particular expectations besides light entertainment (I mean, how serious can you take a book with a half naked gorgeous dude plastered on the cover right?). Let me just say that my husband got REALLY annoyed with me, because I basically ignored him throughout the entire road trip! What a surprise!!! I would stop breathing whenever things would get intense between Sydney and Peter, I would break out in a huge grin during their comical banter, I even laughed out loud during the squirrel and turkey scenes!

There are certain things I particularly enjoyed while reading Damaged 1 & 2:

- Contrary to some romance / erotica books out there at the moment, it was not overloaded with sex. I realized that the power of anticipation is so much stronger!!! This series was so much hotter than some more descriptive stuff I’ve read.

- You put a lot of emphasis on storyline and description than in sex and dialog. Sex and dialog are good in a book, but you need context to make it great and you that so well!!!

- THE DANCING!!! I danced for 15 years and miss it tremendously. When the dancing started in the first book, I was hooked! What a fun and interesting spin on the story! I LOVED IT! I LOVED IT! I LOVED IT! In fact, you inspired me so much, that I’ve signed up for swing classes this fall… I have been talking about starting up dancing again for the past 5 years but never actually did it. This book convinced me to go back!

- Sydney is a strong, SMART and funny female character! I hate being inside the head of a stupid, weak and wishy-washy character (Anna in 50 Shades, Abby in Beautiful Disaster).

- The devil is in the details: even the secondary characters are great! I laughed during the “abs of steel” scene in the dorm room. Everything seemed so real. You make the reader feel like they are there in the room with them. Every little detail makes an enormous difference in the reading experience.

After having read Damaged 1 & 2 twice, I bought all The Arrangement books that were out at the time (1-8). I had emotions flying all over the place. I had so much trouble getting through number 4 because I was crying so much. Reading through tears in not easy. You make Avery’s emotions so accessible to the reader, we feel her pain and sorrow along with her. Again, this can only happen when the author takes the time to describe the character’s emotional journey in great detail.

Since I enjoyed Damaged and Arrangement, I bought Secrets, Scandalous and Trystan Scott. I enjoy your writing style and it is interesting to see the evolution of your writing. Once I had read them all, I got curious and checked the order in which you wrote them and, not surprisingly, my order of appreciation of your works go along with the order of release dates. You get better and better with every book!!!

Your newest books are my favorite (especially the Ferro books) but there is not a single one of your books mentioned above that I didn’t like.I love your female characters. They are all women that I can admire: strong willed, smart, funny, true to their beliefs.

I am officially a fan for life!

Thank you so much for your time and creativity. I look forward to reading more of your work in the future!

From,
Melanie-Anne B.
Quebec, Canada

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A Ferro Brothers Movie? Help Us Get One!

Posted on September 21, 2013 by admin

A FERRO BROTHERS MOVIE? Oh yeah!

There have been several active fans who are trying to get the Ferro brother’s a movie! Head over here and help them out:

#1. Go sign the petition and make it happen! One of the peeps set this up. Help her get it going.http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/ferro/signatures

#2. Go like this facebook page: Go help them out! Show us pics of your dream cast! https://www.facebook.com/Ferrobrothers

You guys are awesome!!!! Thanks for setting these up! Cheering for you!

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Pst! ARRANGEMENT fans! Property Of Miss Black Shirts, PJs, and More!

Posted on September 16, 2013 by admin

So many people have been asking for ARRANGEMENT T-shirts, hats, and whathaveyous. It’s taken a while to get them up, but OMG! Isn’t it cute? This is the Property of Miss Black collection. You can grab the things you see here, as well as, wine stoppers, footie PJs, sweatshirts, bags, and more. International delivery is available and each item is custom made when you order it!

To see the entire collection, click here.

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Novel Peeps and Serial Peeps, Check This Out!

Posted on August 3, 2013 by admin

Hey Guys! Since THE ARRANGEMENT series has a truckload of new fans, I wanted to post a reminder that I write books for people who novels, and for people who serials. Both groups have gravitated toward the ARRANGEMENT series, which is incredible.

Novel peeps, your books are coming but they obviously take longer. STRIPPED, DAMAGED, DAMAGED 2, SCANDALOUS, and SCANDALOUS 2 were all written for the novel lovers.

TRYSTAN SCOTT, SECRETS, and ARRANGEMENT were written for the serial peeps. Just pointing out that there are two groups of fans that want different things.

And since the novel lovers have been asking for more Ferro family novels, there will be more. In the mean time, try not to eat the serial people for loving short books.

I posted this in facebook yesterday and here are some of the replies:

“Love.. love… love …. totally loved them..they are my favs .. And pls keep them
coming” -Sharifa Jan-Silva

“I’m a fan of both! Everything you write rocks!” -Kelly Gunter Atlas

“Love them all absolute fav characters are Sean & Trystan.” -Samantha P.

“As I have read all your ferro brother books that are out I have to say don’t listen to the people saying to end the arrangement. I love it and I’m more of a novel reader but I like the serials simply because they come out faster and they are awesome. You’re an amazing writer. Till your next novel/serial comes out ill be waiting patiently and can’t wait.” -Kristalynn Jarvi

“I’m a novel lover, I hate when the serials stop suddenly, with that said, I love all your books. Once I stop, I can’t put them down.” -Sarah Mcmillan Dozor

Sean and Trystan, you say? Hmmmm. Should I mention that both men are in STRIPPED?

No, you don’t have to read the serials to know what’s going on. Each series is stand alone, which means they can be read independently of one another. So novel peeps can stick to their novels, or not. Totally up to you. And serial peeps, don’t freak out. I’ll keep writing your serials with kickass cliffhangers.

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Dude Is This Serial Thing 1 Book Broken Into Pieces or What? (aka whats the difference b/t novels and serials post)

Posted on March 4, 2013 by admin

A lot of people have been asking me about my serials. They want to know why they’re so addicting. Is there a reason for it? Totally! It’s the way the story is written. Serials pack a punch.

Don’t know what a serial is? Or how it’s different from a novel? Then, you’re in the right place. A serial is a story that is being told in successive parts. They are chronological installments of an overarching story line with smaller stories happening in each part.

There’s an assumption that my serials are chopped up novels, which is not true. Some writers do divide single novels into pieces and release them separately until the whole book is out, but that’s not what I’m doing with my serials at all.

I’m gonna tell you what I do. Get ready! There are pictures!

My serials actually have a very different structure than my novels. You can feel it when you’re reading. Some people haven’t been able to put their finger on exactly what it is, but they have figured out that the serials aren’t the same as novels and that the differences go beyond the length of the books. My serials are unique because they are a different format all together.

Here is a pic of the plot line for my novels (above). A visual helps. When you think back to the novels I’ve written, you’ll be able to see it. The structure of the story line is a bell curve. The story starts off and builds. You get to meet the characters and discover the primary conflict. As the story continues, you learn about the characters and their relationships over hundreds of pages until you reach the climax of the book. The climax is when the main conflict hits the fan and everything explodes. As that conflict resolves, there is an unfolding of events that wraps the whole story and ties it with a bow. There’s closure. The story is complete. You read about 300-500 pages about Ivy, Abby, or Kahli and immersed yourself in their world for hours and hours.

My serials are different than my novels. They are NOT one book chopped into multiple parts. They are actually written differently. The way the serials are constructed gives the reader a different experience than if the book was a novel. Look at the pic below. This is the structure of my serials.

All of my serials are written this way. They start off with a quick introduction of the primary characters and the main conflict. Then, they build tension quickly with the story unraveling swiftly towards the ending. The primary conflict comes to a head, the situation explodes, and then the story stops. Cliffhanger. The next serial begins and does the same thing, slowly building tension until the primary conflict in that episode is confronted.

Serials have a dual personality. They each have their own story line, but they are progressing in an overarching story line, as well. Each volume has an independent conflict, but it also addresses the primary conflict in the series.

THE ARRANGEMENT is so addicting because it follows the serial structure. If I took SCANDALOUS and broke it up into five parts, your book would read weird. Novels have different pacing and a different structure. Novels are like watching a long movie (Titanic). Serials are like TV shows where each volume is the season finale. They have a different feel because they are different. Serials tease and have an addicting quality about them. Novels have that snuggle up with a blanket, bust out the popcorn, and settle in thing going on.

There are several reasons why I might chose to write a novel as a novel, or a serial as a serial. For starters I love that serials are fast paced stories that are packed full of emotion. I love getting inside a character’s head fast. I love that they aren’t time consuming. And, I LOVE cliffhangers. I love to write them; I love to read them. There’s just something about them that makes me so excited.

So, if you read the serials and then flip to my novels or vice versa, that’s what gives. They read different because they are different.

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