FRIDAY FIRSTS with Sharon Hamilton

The first five sentences of...

HONEYMOON BITE

Anne looked down on the sleeping form of her new husband and, God help her, he looked like the first man she would murder. Nestled into his arms was the naked body of her maid of honor.

This made the second time today the bride had caught them together. First was at the reception. In the bathroom.

Amazon|Barnes & Noble

Available now!

*  *  *  *  *  *

FUN FIRST FACTS ABOUT SHARON

1. What’s the first thing you do when you start writing a new story?

Block out the chapters, the scenes that have to be written. Get a general path of the story first, so I can find the Turning Points, the Black Moments and make sure there is a strong character arc for both the hero and the heroine. Often one of the two of them will want dominance. Not always the same each both, either.

2. Tell me about your very first date (ever).

A bunch of Stanford guys wanted to date several of us in high school. They went through the yearbook, and each of them picked one. I got picked by a nerdy boy from Brooklyn. He probably became the head of some huge investment firm, but we were a bit mismatched...LOL. I was scared to death!

3. What was your first date with your significant other?

We went to a jazz concert at Sonoma State University. I had been the night before with another guy, but didn't tell my husband that. I was thrilled he'd asked me. I'd wanted him to ever since I met him at school.

MORE ABOUT SHARON: Sharon Hamilton lives on 60 acres in beautiful Sonoma County with her chickens and other assorted wild life, including her husband of 40 years. When not pouring over a laptop, or reading, she can be found in the garden, dead-heading flowers and planting vegetables. She works out many of her story lines while covered in dirt.

FIND SHARON ONLINE:
http://sharonhamiltonauthor.blogspot.com/
http://www.sharonhamiltonauthor.com/
http://www.sharonhamiltonauthor.com/books.html

Six Sentence Sunday

Welcome to my Sunday six, from my newest release, Her One-Night Prince. 

She wrapped her arms around herself despite the warm air and strode down the alley. If a sinkhole opened up in front of her, she’d gladly fall into it.

He jogged up beside her as they reached the sidewalk. “I don’t know about the clothing and hair stuff,” he said, “but I could certainly give you advice on men.” He cleared his throat and coughed. “I mean, since I’m a, ah, man.”

*  *  *  *  *

Available now!

Amazon|Barnes & Noble|Bookstrand

Check out more Sunday 6 excerpts here.

The first five sentences of... DEADLY OBSESSION

Don’t forget Nic—you belong to me. If you stray, she’ll pay.

The darkened theater closed around Nic Lamoureux like a cave, filled with unknown, unseen dangers. Clenching the cell phone in his fist, he glanced at his Bad Days co-star, Jane Carver, sitting on his right, then at his agent, Vivian Carmichael, on his left. How had the stalker gotten his private number and which woman was the message targeting?

Publisher: Self-published

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Amazon|Barnes & Noble|Smashwords

Available Now!

*  *  *  *  *

FUN FIRST FACTS ABOUT KRISTINE

1. What was the first Rated R movie you ever saw?

The first Rated R movie I ever saw was Risky Business starring Tom Cruise. It was my birthday, a group of girlfriends were sleeping over, and we pretty much had the run of the house. And for those of you on the younger side, let me tell you, Tom Cruise was hot stuff at that time. Two scenes I'll never forget: when Tom sings "Old Time Rock and Roll" in his pink shirt and tighty-whities, and the train scene. I've loved Phil Collin's "In the Air Tonight" ever since!

2. What’s the first thing you notice on an attractive member of the opposite sex?

To test this out, I first had to go look at some photos of hot guys. I figured out that the first thing I see is how tall and broad they are. Okay, that's more than one thing, but it goes together. I like men who "look" tall, which doesn't mean they have to be 6'5" or something like that. A man can be 5'9" or 5'10" and still look tall. It's a matter of proportion. In addition, I like men who have a broad chest and shoulders. No skinny model boys for me. LOL.

3. If you had a free afternoon, what’s the first thing you’d do?

My favorite thing to do on a free afternoon, weather permitting (which is quite a rare thing here in "sunny" Seattle), is to sit in my rocking bench on my backyard deck, with a cold glass of ice tea and some strawberries. Once I have all that and I'm well-settled, I dive into a steamy romantic suspense or paranormal romance and spend a couple hours reading in the sunshine. Ah, paradise :)

MORE ABOUT KRISTINE:  

Kristine Cayne is fascinated by the mysteries of human psychology—twisted secrets, deep-seated beliefs, out-of-control desires. Add in high-stakes scenarios and real-world villains, and you have a story worth writing, and reading.

The heroes and heroines of her Deadly Vices series, beginning with Deadly Obsession, are pitted against each other by their radically opposing life experiences. By overcoming their differences and finding common ground, they triumph over their enemies and find true happiness in each other’s arms.

Today she lives in the Pacific Northwest, thriving on the mix of cultures, languages, religions and ideologies. When she’s not writing, she’s people-watching, imagining entire life stories, and inventing all sorts of danger for the unsuspecting heroes and heroines who cross her path.

Readers can learn more about Kristine and her writing on her website/blog, Facebook and Twitter.

Six Sentence Sunday

Cinderella had a fairy godmother. Lydia had no such thing. She held up Mr. Rex, stared at him a moment, then tossed him onto the pillows. No one was going to wave a magic wand and transform her into a beautiful princess--fairies didn’t exist.

She straightened suddenly, her mouth curving into a slight smile.

Or did they?

Genre: Romantic comedy
Publisher: Bookstrand

Her One-Night Prince is available now.

Amazon|Barnes & Noble|Bookstrand

For more Sunday Six fun, go here.

FRIDAY FIRSTS with Jami Gray

First five sentences of...SHADOW'S EDGE

With a quick twist of her wrist, Raine slipped the blade between Quinn’s ribs. His heart gave one last desperate beat then fell silent. He slid slowly down her body to his knees, ending up in a strange, lover-like tableau.

Wrenching out her blade with a soft grunt, she held him in a gentle grasp, carefully lowering his lifeless body to the cracked concrete floor of the deserted warehouse. She closed his now dull brown eyes, knowing they would join the handful of others haunting her dreams.

Publisher: Black Opal Books

Amazon|Barnes & Noble|Black Opal Books

Available Now!

*  *  *  *  *

FUN FIRST FACTS ABOUT JAMI

1. What was your first date with your significant other?
A little history first. My hubby and I first met when I played violin at his eighth grade graduation ceremony. Who knew that my future knight-in-muddy-armor and ruthless hunter of multi-legged creepy crawlies would be found during a lovely rendition of Pomp and Circumstances? Certainly not my pre-pubescent self.

For the next five years we were best friends who flirted outrageously, but never really followed through. Graduation came and we began our separate tours of the college adventure route only to reconnect years later by chance. This time, the outrageous flirtation definitely went places!

Our first date was dinner and movie. He picked me up at work, but when we were halfway to the restaurant, we had to go back. Unfortunately my nerves had promptly replaced my normal OCD tendencies and I left my house keys at the office. Finally we were off to dinner, traipsed around town for a bit and then wandering into the riveting flick known as Broken Arrow. I don’t really remember much of the movie, but I do remember my first date!

2. What was the first meal your significant other made you?
Of the two of us, he’s the cook. Even our boys will tell you, mom’s great as long as pushing buttons is involved, but anything more complicated and you best take evasive maneuvers.

Keep in mind my knight-in-slightly-muddy-armor is half German and half Hispanic and the one meal he can create without fail is lasagna. It’s a mouth watering testament to cheese, pasta, spices and meat. Not only was the meal great, but so was the laughter when klutz that I am, I decorated my shirt with red sauce. Plus watching him in my rarely used kitchen was a treat. I think I even got him to put on some girly apron over his jeans and t-shirt.

3. What was the first meal you made your significant other?
Again, remember I don’t cook, but sometimes I can even surprise myself. Before he could figure out that cooking was not my forte and head for the hills, I decided to lure him in with handmade eggrolls. I had actually figured out how to make the dish a couple weeks before, so little did he know, it was about the only thing I had been eating for the last week or so. Plus that lasagna was a bit intimidating, so I had to come back with something equally impressive. Every now and then he’ll fondly reminisce about those eggrolls with some comment along the line of “Do you remember when you cooked?”

More about Jami:
Growing up on the Arizona-Mexico border, Jami Gray was adopted at the age of 14 and suddenly became the fifth eldest of 37 children. She graduated from Arizona State University with a Bachelor’s in Journalism and three minors-History, English, and Theater. Shortly after marrying her techie-geek hubby (who moonlighted as her best friend in high school) she completed a Masters in Organizational Management from University of Phoenix Oregon.

Now, years later, she’s back in the Southwest where she’s outnumbered in her own home by two Star Wars obsessed boys, one Star Wars obsessed husband, and an overly-friendly, 105-pound male lab. Writing is what saves her sanity.

Find Jami on the web:

Website: http://www.jamigray.com/

Blogs: http://www.7evildwarves.wordpress.com/ or http://www.jamigray.wordpress.com/

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/jamigray.author

Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/JamiGrayAuthor

Six Sentence Sunday

Last week, you met my hero, Mitch. This week, meet Lydia.

What the heck was she doing? She should have just gone home.


Her expectations hadn’t been overly high today, due to the other responses she’d gotten to her ad. She hadn’t expected Mitch to be a prince, but charming would be nice. He was charming. He just wasn’t available to be her prince.

*  *  *  *

Her One-Night Prince is available now.

Amazon|Barnes & Noble|Bookstrand

For other Six Sentence Sunday blogs, click here.

FRIDAY FIRSTS with Terry Odell

The First Five Sentences of... HIDDEN FIRE 

Under the table, Sarah’s toes found the cuff of Randy’s pants and inched their way up his calf, the coarse hair tickling her foot. His eyes widened, his eyebrows arched and the standard restaurant candle-in-a-jar caught the hazel flecks in his otherwise brown eyes. He brushed a lock of hair from his forehead, but it flopped back the way it always did.

She smiled at the hovering waiter, placed her hand over her empty coffee cup, and shook her head. “No more, Tony. Thanks.”

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Available now

Amazon|Barnes & Noble|Smashwords

*  *  *  *

FUN FIRST FACTS ABOUT TERRY

1. What was the first romance you ever read?

Son of the Morning, by Linda Howard. My mother had been visiting and she left it behind. Since I'd been writing Highlander Fan Fiction at the time, the time-travel and Scottish setting intrigued me. Of course, I was also shocked that my mother read books with the word "penis." Then again, when I finished it, I gave it to my daughter. So I guess it wasn't that big a deal.

2. What’s the first thing you do when you sit down each day to write?

I look at the dreck I wrote the day before. When I finish a scene, I print it out and read it in bed. Then, the next morning I look at the notes I've made on that scene and fix it, which gives me a running start back into the manuscript.

3. What was your first date with your significant other?

I was taking a Biology class at UCLA, and the lab TA wanted to do a "dry run" of a field trip to the tide pools before the actual event. He invited me and one other girl from the lab section to go along. He dropped her off first, and because I didn't scoot over to the window after she got out of his pickup truck, he figured there might be some interest. We had dinner afterward, but we didn't officially 'date' until after the quarter was over, since it wouldn't have been appropriate. So, our first real 'date' was dinner on New Year's Eve at the Pirate's Cove Restaurant in Marina Del Rey. Have no clue if it's still there.

More about Terry: Terry Odell was born in Los Angeles, moved to Florida, and now makes her home in Colorado. An avid reader (her parents tell everyone they had to move from their first home because she finished the local library), she always wanted to "fix" stories so the characters did what she wanted. Once she began writing, she found this wasn't always possible, as evidenced when the mystery she intended to write rapidly became a romance. When she thought about it, she realized that her favorite mysteries were series where she could follow the developing relationships of the protagonist—to the point where she'd read the book twice; once for the relationship and again to follow the crime and its solution. So, she started reading romance, and found there was a genre that included mystery themes as well as a relationship.

Although her genre is labeled "romantic suspense", Terry prefers to think of her romantic suspense books as "Mysteries With Relationships."  HIDDEN FIRE is the second book in her Pine Hills Police series, a sequel to FINDING SARAH.

You can find more about her at her website, http://www.terryodell.com.

Blog url: http://terryodell.blogspot.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/terry.odell

Twitter: @authorterryo