Nicki Elson's Not-So-Deep Thoughts

One of the best---and most nerve-wracking---things about having a story published is knowing that friends and family members are reading it...and wondering which character is them. The truth is, even though it's fiction, as writers we draw from our reality, so it's only natural that certain physical characteristics, personality traits, and even experiences of those we know will find their way into our stories in some form.  But as I've explained over and over again, even though bits and pieces of reality make it into my stories, they're all split up and scrambled and then melded together in new ways so that none of my characters are wholly based on any one real person.  And...well...now it's confession time. There is one character in Three Daves that was written with one and only one real life person in mind. That'd be Aunt Lou, my MC's Godmother. For the part, I needed someone warm and honest and fun and with that certain je ne sais quoi that draws pe...

 I am ecstatic to announce the release of the first book in  The Order of the Elements series: Breaking Point by Jess Bowen  I adore this story and am already anxiously awaiting the sequel.  This is one of those Young Adult novels that both teens and adults will enjoy.  At first I became swept away in the magical world that Jess Bowen created, and then I got completely carried away in the romantic relationships as they developed. But the story never forgets its purpose---the fight against the darkness. And I now realize  that I forgot to ask Jess about her amazing action scenes!  Urg.  Ah well, I'll just have to bring her back, won't I?  Here's the back cover blurb, followed by my delightful interview with Jess Bowen . Phoebe Johnson and Ethan Smith had everything they needed: loving parents, great friends, and admission letters to Ivy League schools they’d be heading to in the fall. If only they knew that they were never going to reac...

Welcome to Meet and Author Monday! To meet new authors and discover great reads, simply visit any of the author links at our hostess, Cali Cheer Mom's, blog post .  Look for our "Meet an Author Monday" icon at any of the blogs listed there to keep on hoppin.   Authors! Have a book out? Are you under contract for publication? Join in the hop for a great way to network your blog and let readers know who you are. While you're hopping, you'll see that the awesome Jennifer Lane , author of With Good Behavior , has posted an interview with moi and a four star review of Three Daves!  Along with listing her favorite 80s moments in the book, she had some very nice things to say, including: I really thought that Nicki Elson showed a realistic portrayal of college. Sure, we grow intellectually at college, but personal development seems to matter the most during these years. The formation of Jen's identity was subtle yet strong, aided by the...

I'm excited to particpate in The Great Blogging Experiment , brainchild of bloggers extraordinaire Elana Johnson , Alex J Cavanaugh and Jennifer Daiker .  The experiment is simply this: a bunch of bloggers blog on the same exact topic on the same exact day---today!  Will it be mass redundancy, or will we find each post insightful in it's own way, colored by each blogger's unique personality?  We shall see.  I'm betting on the latter. For a list of participants in The Great Blogging Experiment , click on the link to this post at Elana's blog and scroll down.  Much thanks to Elana, Alex, and Jen for setting all of this up.  The topic: Writing Compelling Characters.  It's well established that fictional characters should have flaws. It makes them real and therefore relatable. And getting readers to relate to a character is imperative if the character is to be compelling. But even the flaws have to be done just right.  If we don't follow certa...

Hooray, hooray, I can finally cast Jen!  I've had the actresses picked out for quite some time, but I wasn't quite satisfied with my 1980s option. She was just a touch too glamorous for our girl.  And then...last weekend I forced my daughter to watch my favorite 80s movie with me, and blammo---there she was, just waiting for me to find her.  So, sorry Mia Sara; there's a new Jen in town. Jen has brown hair and light eyes of undisclosed color, but the primary thing about Jennifer Whitney, the main character in Three Daves , is that she's sort of the ultimate average girl.  She's pretty, but not too pretty; smart, but not too smart; nice, but...you get the picture. She's the kind of girl that everyone can relate to in one way or another.    She's usually pretty easy going and says things like any 80s girl would: “Cool beans. See you in ten.” She's also got an innocence about her, a naivete, that sometimes turns judgmental.  A bit of a goody-goody, ...

Yes, yes, I know, it's been a while. I could give you a million and one excuses, but the truth is...I've been dragging my feet on this one. I've had trouble coming up with that quintessential 2010 Big D. The problem could be that I simply don't see enough current movies to know who's out there. Or it could be that there's no one today that's good enough to play perfect, marvelous D. Or it could be—and I think this one is most likely—that my 1980s pick is just so D that no one else will do. Let's take a look at our boy from the book, shall we? He's good-looking: She was looking past Big D’s Greek letters. The way she figured it, any guy who could unabashedly strut around in a form-fitting blue and red polyester jumpsuit—and look good doing it—was worth further examination. Sweet: D kissed Jen on the cheek and murmured quietly into her ear, “Thanks for coming today. I’ll call you tomorrow.” And yes, sometimes goofy: Jen snapped her atte...

This is a continuation of my series of blogs to cast the characters in the 80s novel, Three Daves . This blog is spoiler-free. Oh Dave, the beautiful bad boy.  Lots of guys are good-looking, but Dave has that certain je ne sais quoi that girls find irresistible.  Sure, he's got that casual disarray of dirty blond spikes, and brilliant green eyes, and full lips that twist up into a killer smile, but it's not really about how he looks; it's more about how he makes Jen's insides flip upside down with the slightest gesture.  Here are some of my favorite quotes about Dave:   He seemed to understand that a full-on smile would have been too much for any human girl to handle. Jen was totally out of her league with this guy. He made her nervous, and he seemed to be enjoying that fact. She knew she should simply return his confident stare, but she wasn’t nearly advanced enough for that level of flirtation. What was this strange power of his that made her feel and act ...