The Creative Efforts of a Frustrated Artist

Good morning everyone! I’m Shae, here at Karin’s invitation to talk a little about myself, my writing, and my crafty endeavors. First, a little about me. I’m a Georgia native, born in south Georgia but an Atlanta transplant for the past 20 years. I’m the daughter of a writer and an artist, so the creative genes run deep, but I inherited much more of the writing talent than the artistic ability.

I’ve been through a lot of different kinds of creative outlets over the years, and the only ones that have stuck have been writing and cooking. I’m a bit of a frustrated artist overall. I have a pretty good eye, and I can appreciate good art and design. Creating it myself is another story. So I tend to dabble.

Here’s one example. Many long years ago, my sister was a huge fan of New Kids on the Block. She’d also inherited a wooden toybox that our grandfather built for me when I was a kid. I decided to paint NKOTB designs on the toybox. It turned out pretty well, I think, and she’s kept it all these years! A little dinged up…

I also did cross-stitch back then, but I don’t have anything now to take a picture of. I only finished a few small pieces and some gifts. I sewed some, too. Both were mostly because we didn’t have much money, and it was much cheaper to buy some shiny blue satin and make myself a dress to wear to the honors banquet at school.

I still try the painting thing from time to time. When I moved to my new apartment this year, I decided to use a sort of space-age/mid-century modern look in my bathroom. I bought a shower curtain and some prints to hang, but then I decided to get crafty again, and I painted a canvas. Turned out not too bad, I think, though don’t look too closely at the raggedy edges of the circles.

And I mentioned cooking, so now and then I have a little fun with that. At Christmas, I baked and decorated a chocolate cake. We’ve decided to make that an annual tradition.

Maybe next time I’ll actually draw the lights and not just the cord. 🙂

When it comes to writing, I mostly stick to the words and leave the cover art to the experts. I have done a few covers for self-published re-releases, though. I was pretty happy with how my cover for my short story “Fringes” turned out.

For my original self-pubbed releases, though, I turned to the fabulous AngstyG. She has more graphic art talent in her little finger than I have in my entire body. She does absolutely gorgeous work. I mean, look at this lineup:

AngstyG also created the cover for the bundle of all four novellas, Hands On. Here’s a little more about the set and how you can get a copy for yourself:

Four novellas, four couples, four romances.

Rhythm & Blues
When life tears apart your dream, build a new one.

Former Broadway dancer Pate Hawkins meets model-gorgeous contractor Ace Samson when he answers as request for an estimate on renovating his studio space. The two men develop a fledgling relationship, but then the siren song of the stage calls Pate back…

Tongue & Groove
Sometimes home is what two hearts make of it.

While healing from a vocal cord injury, rock singer Saul Wilder decides to restore home his grandmother left him. When home renovation specialist Perry Abrams arrives to assess the job, Saul’s on board with mixing business with a little pleasure…

Heart & Soul
Love can sneak up on you in the last place you’d expect.

Pianist Kellen Grady meets former pro football player Terrence Harvey when he and his brother buy the bar where Kellen plays at night. A quick friendship develops, but their relationship takes an unexpected turn when Terrence surprises Kellen with a kiss…

Graphite & Glitter
All that glitters might just be gold.

On the night of her best friend’s bachelorette party, architect Adrienne Michaels has a scorching one-night stand with Tessa Smith, bass player for an all-female glam rock tribute band. Then Tessa surprises her by asking her on a real date…

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Happy crafting, all, and happy reading!

Shae Connor lives in Atlanta, where she’s a lackadaisical government worker for a living and writes sweet-hot romance under the cover of night. She’s been making things up for as long as she can remember, but it took her a long time to figure out that maybe she should try writing them down.

Shae is part Jersey, part Irish, and all Southern, which explains why she never shuts up. When she’s not chained to her laptop, she enjoys cooking, traveling, watching baseball, and reading voraciously, and she’s an annual volunteer as director of the Dragon Con on-site publication, the Daily Dragon. You can find her hanging out on Twitter most any time @shaeconnor, but for the more direct route, you can email her at shaeconnorwrites@gmail.com or visit her website at shaeconnorwrites.com.