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Author Profile: Ella Slayne

Author Name: Ella Slayne Website: http://www.highheelsandslippers.com Author Bio: Ella Slayne is originally from the North of England, where she studied Drama at Manchester University. She went…

High-Heels and Slippers by Ella Slayne

Ella Slayne is on tour with CLP Blog Tours. Protagonist Josie Jenkins is in a bit of a rough spell. A Brit living in Texas, she is starting to feel homesick from her family, and she and her boyfriend just broke up. To make it worse, she has to work with the ex-boyfriend, who also happens to be her boss. Oh, and married. After being the mistress for two years, Josie is alone and trying to not only move on from Bob, but also keep her job as manager. When Callum Doherty, office hottie, shows an interest in Josie, she is shocked. Could he really be interested in her? Suddenly, her once man-devoid world is overpopulated, with Bob trying to get back in her good graces, Callum asking her on dates, and a high school sweetheart making contact with Josie through Facebook. How will Josie choose the right man? And is she only setting herself up for heartbreak?
I thought High-Heels and Slippers by Ella Slayne was a fun and entertaining read. Even though Josie was “the other women” for so long, I couldn’t really get mad at her. It was easy to see that she thought she loved Bob, and that she believed him when he said he was going to leave his wife. The plot points surrounding the high school sweetheart are unbelievably sad, but Slayne wrote the scene with a careful hand and made sure to put hope and inspiration between the lines as well. Something that could have dragged down this light-hearted read just made it better. I did enjoy Callum and the mystery surrounding him––sort of a ‘player, not a player’ question, but I think parts needed to be expanded on a bit. I won’t lie, I honestly thought for awhile there that he was married too, and his frequent “Mom needs me” excuses were so he could run home to his family. But it did keep me interested in him and the story, and that is never a bad thing. Overall, a solid debut from Slayne, and one to get on your list!
[Rating: 4]

Guest Post by Ella Slayne

From One Writer To Another…
(I admit that a lot of this is easier to say rather than do but the tips below are things I try to work towards. I don’t always achieve it but they serve as reminders and hopefully keep me on a relatively sane track – LOL!)

Believe in yourself.
Writing takes guts. So if you’re already doing it on a regular basis, or even on and off, you should give yourself a pat on the back right now! As writers, we expose our creative selves and that can leave us feeling vulnerable. We take part in critique sessions and submit query letters, always hoping for some positive feedback, for some praise, ultimately a publishing contract!
And if we get a rejection or some negative criticism, we try and suck it up and move on from it. But somewhere in between taking the feedback and pushing forward we may find that our self-esteem take a little knock, and over time those knocks create a bit of a chip or dent which can get bigger and bigger until it seems that although we keep writing, we begin to doubt ourselves and the worth of our work.
So I say this: don’t look to others for validation that your work is worth something. Criticism is vital, yes but don’t make the mistake of thinking that a rejection for example, somehow means your work is not valuable or that you have nothing to offer. You do! And the biggest trap you can fall into is self-doubt. So take a moment to give yourself self-worth because after all your own self-belief is the most important. Without that, you have nothing to offer the rest of us!

Don’t be stubborn though.
Believing in your work doesn’t mean that you should be stubborn or a stick in the mud! It’s easy to be attached to the manuscript you’ve written and you should be, I mean if you don’t care about what you’ve written, why should anyone else right? We all have paragraphs, descriptions, character development or a plot twist that we’re proud of and that’s great, but if you are consistently given the critique that something’s not working or that you should cut a significant section of text, don’t just flap it away as irrelevant because you particularly like that bit, or it took you hours to write it. You won’t learn anything by simply disregarding feedback you disagree with.
Instead I try to be flexible (and this is not always easy I admit). I take time to explore why the reader may not have felt the same way. Usually there is a reason and it may just be that I need to rewrite it or move a piece of text to a different place in my book (maybe even save it for a different book altogether).
Ultimately a writer’s goal is to communicate efficiently and to as many people as possible. We don’t always get it right and that’s why the opinion of others is imperative in helping us hone our craft.

Network by all means, but do it your way!
This is a real problem area for me because I’m naturally quite shy, even in cyberspace, so ideally I would prefer just to publish my books and then shut-up! And I could do that, it’s true, but in reality very few people would know about my book, let alone read it.
We all know it’s out there, the new-age of social networking: Facebook, Twitter, blogging etc. Even if they are not your thing, you can’t avoid them, so it seems to me the best option is to embrace them.
I started a blog, signed up on Twitter and created an author Facebook page in an online networking frenzy! It felt great at first, I was tweeting and updating my status all the time and doing a lot of online socializing!
Then I read articles and blogs about the do’s and don’ts from writers and the publishing world and I became frustrated and confused. Because just like many aspects of writing, it’s all subjective; when one agent says they don’t like to connect via twitter, another will happily do so, when one writer says they welcome all comments on their blog, another will say don’t bother to comment unless you have something meaty to offer. What’s the famous phrase? “You can’t please all of the people all of the time….”
These online forums can be a brilliant resource, but they are not without pitfalls because it can be a nightmare trying to navigate around online networking etiquette. You can drive yourself crazy trying to worrying about whether you should return every Twitter follow or comment on every blog you come across.
I think the key here is to do what feels right for you; create your own networking style and be true to yourself.

Interview with Ella Slayne

Author Q&A for Samantha Robey

What made you want to write High-Heels and Slippers?
I had always liked the idea of writing a full length novel but I completely lacked the courage to do it. When my Uncle Alan passed away suddenly, it was the catalyst I needed to get started. It was a sharp reminder that life can be short and I decided not to waste anymore time.
How long did it take you to write the book?
Nearly four years. Of course I thought I’d finished after a year and half which shows how little I knew! 
What was the hardest part in the writing process for you?
I think one of the hardest parts of the writing process for me was learning how to take negative feedback in a constructive way and not let letting it send me into the depths of depression! At first I found it very hard to move on from a critique but actually I found that my book improved after I worked through feedback. Now, I find that negative criticism is often the most valuable because it helps me improve as a writer.
What were some of your favorite scenes to write?
Well I like a bit of romance, and I was always rooting for Josie and Callum to get together, so it was fun writing scenes between their characters. I also enjoyed writing the scenes with Tom in England, even though they were emotional. It was cathartic in a way and my intention was always to write a chick-lit story with a poignant twist; I wanted Josie’s character to have layers. I hope I managed that!
What made you decide to give Josie her own blog?
Starting Josie’s blog was a huge learning curve for me. I was completely new to the blog world but I wanted to test the market and see if there was an audience for a character like Josie. Besides I felt she had a lot more to say than just what was in the book so the blog was a good outlet for her! I’m so glad I did it, even though I was petrified at first.
Are you currently working on another novel?
Yes I am and I hope to release it in the Spring of 2012! It’s called “Holding Me Up – A Life Without Jasmine” and it’s about Trisha Miller, a bereaved mother, trying to find a way to move on from the grief of losing her daughter. It’s starts off in a dark place but I pull her out to somewhere good in the end!
You also do voiceover work. How did you become involved in this?
Back in England my plan, since I was a child, was to become an actress. I studied Drama at Manchester University and then trained as an actress at the Webber Douglas Academy in London. However everything was put on hold when I started having kids and moved to Belgium! A few years ago I made the decision to move forward with a voice-over career because I thought it would be flexible enough to fit around my family life. I am proud to say that I’ve recently become a volunteer reader to the Dallas Reading Resource center which provides a huge variety of audio material for those people who can’t read. It’s a fantastic facility, they reach out to so many people, and it feels good to be using my training for such a good cause.
If you could be on any reality show, which one would you choose?
That is so easy! I am a HUGE fan of American Idol and The X Factor so I would have to be on one of those. Although I’d prefer to be a judge if possible because it must be absolutely nerve-wracking to be a contestant!
Where would be your dream vacation?
I would be alone in an old stone cottage, half-way up a hill somewhere with a view of the sea, there would be a log fire, a steaming coffee pot, a tray set with jam and scones and a bookshelf crammed with books. The only sounds would be the crackling fire, waves crashing back and forth and rain lashing against the windows. I would be wearing cozy jeans, a pair of fleece slippers and a huge, but stylish, baggy jumper and I wouldn’t wash my hair for days! Ooh when can I go?
What is your advice to aspiring writers?
My advice to anyone wanting to start writing is the same advice I tell myself all the time (and it’s also the title of a FAB book by Susan Jeffers which I always recommend because you can apply it to all aspects of life): “Feel the fear – and do it anyway!” Just get started and don’t delete ANYTHING at first. Let the story come out; there’ll be plenty of time to edit your work later.

On Tour: High-Heels and Slippers by Ella Slayne

Ella will be on tour November 28-December 19 with her novel High-Heels and Slippers Meet Josie Jenkins, a Brit living in Texas, fan of indulgent…

Future Tour: High-Heels and Slippers by Ella Slayne

Ella will be on tour November 28-December 19 with her novel High-Heels and Slippers Meet Josie Jenkins, a Brit living in Texas, fan of indulgent…

In My Mailbox: Week of September 18

In My Mailbox: Week of September 18

Title: High Heels and Slippers
Author: Ella Slayne
Received: From Ella Slayne via CLP Blog Tours
Synopsis: Meet Josie Jenkins, a Brit living in Texas, fan of indulgent body-scrubs and the odd glass of wine. She’s currently Customer Service Manager at Harpers & Green Co, home of high-end shirts and also, rather unhelpfully, Bob Green: her ex-boyfriend (who also happens to be married). She is thousands of miles away from home and her job appears to be in jeopardy – safe to say, Josie’s going through a wobbly patch. So when the rather handsome Callum Doherty, (just picture blue eyes and Irish good looks) begins flirting with Josie, she is thrilled…until she realizes she’s not the only girl at work with her eye on the office heart-throb. How can she compete against her pert-bottomed rival from the accounts department? Josie’s love-life takes another complicated and unexpected turn when out of the blue Josie receives a mysterious Facebook friend request from her high-school sweetheart, Tom Barker. Tom is keeping something from her, drawing her in and causing her to question if it’s time to reconnect the past with the present. It’s time for some soul searching. Will Josie take the emotional trip back to the UK or try her luck with the handsome Mr. Doherty? Is there heartbreak ahead in Josie’s future?

Title: Three Daves
Author: Nicki Elson
Received: From Nicki Elson
Synopsis: Jennifer Whitney was the last American virgin. At least that s what she felt like in 1986 as she began her sophomore year at Central Illinois University. She was proud of her decision to wait for the right guy, and yet she was getting restless. It seemed like everyone around her was doing it… and having fun doing it, too. She didn t want to become the campus slut or anything, but surely there was a difference between a trashy skank and a nice girl with a little experience. Perhaps it was time to stop relying on fate to guide her and instead take matters into her own hands. And with that realization, Jen decided to find the one and lose her virginity, although not necessarily in that order…
Nicki Elson has created a heroine that everyone will cheer for as she comes of age in the mid-1980s. Whether you lived through the decade and survived the bad hair and acid-wash jeans, or just heard the wild stories, readers of all ages will identify with Jen Whitney as she searches for the one, enjoying her romantic ups and downs, made even more entertaining by Nicki Elson s amusingly wry sense of humor.

Title: The Kingdom of Childhood
Author: Rebecca Coleman
Received: From Meryl L Moss Media Relations
Synopsis: THE KINGDOM OF CHILDHOOD is the story of a boy and a woman: sixteen-year-old Zach Patterson, uprooted and struggling to reconcile his knowledge of his mother’s extramarital affair, and Judy McFarland, a kindergarten teacher watching her family unravel before her eyes. Thrown together to organize a fundraiser for their failing private school and bonded by loneliness, they begin an affair that at first thrills, then corrupts, each of them. Judy sees in Zach the elements of a young man she loved when she was only a child. But what Zach does not realize is that– for Judy– their relationship is only the latest in a lifetime of disturbing secrets.

Blog Tour Sign Up: High Heels and Slippers by Ella …

Ella Slayne will be on tour in November with CLP Blog Tours and her novel High Heels and Slippers. Please use the form below if…