Saturday, October 27, 2012

A Haunted Garden Halloween Hop

*note: This post was scheduled to go up yesterday and for whatever reason, didn't. So...I apologize for the delay if you came on earlier.


Welcome to my little corner of the web. Thanks for stopping by on my leg of this awesome blog hop full of my talented fellow authors of The Wild Rose Press! At the end of my post, I will link to five other blogs. Every blog will offer a prize to one lucky commenter. Here, one lucky commenter will win a
 
$10 gift certificate to The Wild Rose Press
 
*  *  *  *  


My most vivid Halloween memory

Remember when you were a kid and Halloween was the most anticipated and exciting holiday? My siblings and I would count down the days and minutes until it was time to head out into the neighborhood and knock on doors. One year, however, I was sick with the flu. I had a high fever and was too sick to go trick-or-treating. I was heartbroken, of course. But my sister (author Laurie London), graciously offered to take my bag with her and collect candy for me. I figured that was better than nothing, and really--isn't the candy the best part of Halloween anyway? LOL.

So off my siblings went along with my dad and his big flashlight. All went well--the neighbors were very sweet and generous when Laurie would show them my bag and tell them my sad story...Until she went next door to the Anderson house. Old Mrs. Anderson wasn't a very nice woman. My dad had referred to her on more than one occasion as a "Battle Axe". I had no idea what that meant, but figured it wasn't a positive thing. (UrbanDictionary.com defines battle axe as "a fierce, unpleasant older woman with strong opinions.") 

 
My biggest memory of her was that she would lay on her roof on tin foil in her bathing suit in the summer to get a tan. She was a large, unattractive woman. Not a pretty sight.


But I digress.

When Laurie and my other siblings knocked on Mrs. Anderson's door, she told my story. My dad stood in the background, nodding his head in agreement. But old Mrs. Anderson (she probably wasn't even old, but I was a kid. All adults were "old.") wouldn't give her an extra candy bar for me. Said she didn't believe Laurie, and that Laurie was just being greedy and asking for more candy for herself.

Can you believe that?

Anyway, after that, Mrs. Anderson became known amongst the neighbor kids as "Fat Anderson." I remember my brother and I climbing on our jungle gym and seeing her in her backyard next door. We'd jump off the top of the gym and scream at the top of our lungs, "Fat Anderson!"

We never trick or treated at her house again.

Thanks for stopping by!


Five more blogs on the tour! Check them out for a chance to win more great prizes.

http://tarahscott.tarahscott.com/
http://thewildrosepress.blogspot.com/2012/10/a-haunted-garden-halloween-hop.html
http://twrpblackrose.blogspot.com/
http://twrphistoricalroseline.blogspot.com/
http://veldabrotherton.wordpress.com


Friday, September 28, 2012

Fridays Firsts with...CHANTILLY WHITE

The first five sentences of... PEARLS OF PASSION 

Sabrina licked her crimson lips, adjusted the low V of her scarlet satin blouse a bit lower, the black mini a bit higher. She admired the toned cut of her thigh muscles and the creamy swell of her breasts in the glass as she pushed through the double doors of the county library on ice-pick, black-patent stilettos. She could do this. If her heart was beating a bit too fast and her breathing was a bit, well, breathy, that would just help set the stage.

Mr. I’m-Too-Shy-To-Ask-You-Out was going to get a Valentine’s Day surprise like no other.

Genre: Contempory Erotic Romance
Publisher: Indie

Available now!

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FUN FIRST FACTS ABOUT CHANTILLY

Who was your first love? Oooh, that's actually a tough question. My very first love was a sweet, chubby little boy whose name I no longer remember, but my mother has him circled on my Tiny Tot's (basically preschool) class picture. I was three. I experienced a short dry spell in my love life after that, but the role of personal hero was next filled by the charismatic Jimmy Alvarez in kindergarten. He wooed me with rings from the gumball machine at a local pizza parlor and Avon lipstick samples he liberated from his mother's vanity table.

I was, in a word, crazy about him.

My mother would say I was boy crazy, period. She's probably right. I spent a fair amount of time in school ignoring math lessons in favor of selecting my next victim. I mean boyfriend. I always paid attention during story hour, however.

In all that time, and through all those boyfriends, I was pretty lucky. There were only two young men who truly broke my heart. My first serious boyfriend, Mike M., in high school, and a "much older" guy—by four years! It seemed like a lot bigger difference when I was nineteen—who promised to love me forever, named Jeff. He left me—on Christmas Day—for his ex-girlfriend, a woman who had rammed his car with hers when he broke up with her the first time.

Psycho.

I have to thank that nameless crazy girl, though, because she cleared the way for me to meet the real love of my life, my husband, Mark, who has been by my side for more than twenty years.

What was the first romance you ever read? The first romance I ever read was The Proud Breed, by Celeste de Blasis, which, if you've never read it, is an epic tale—probably more women's fiction than straight romance, now that I think about it—which follows the heroine, Tessa, throughout her entire life from the day she turns sixteen.

The book is around a thousand pages and quite spicy, romantically. I was twelve and visiting my grandparents at their vacation cabin outside a tiny little town in the Upper Peninsula in Michigan. After the first three or four days, I was bored out of my mind. I'm sure I was driving everyone crazy, the way only a bored twelve-year-old can. I'd already shaved the neighbor's golden retriever—without their permission—to free her of mats she'd gotten from swimming in the lake. Poor Maggie. She looked like she'd lost a fight with a lawn mower wielded by a maniacal chimpanzee.

Out of desperation, my grandma thrust The Proud Breed at me and firmly told me to, "Read!" All she remembered about the book was that it was a history of California. She thought it would be educational. Oh, boy, was she ever right about that! I stuck my nose in that book and didn't surface again for days, though every once in a while my mother or grandmother would want to know why I was blushing and giggling.

I was captivated by the first sentence and all the way to the end, through all the ups and downs of Tessa's life with her husband and lover, Gavin, of the dark hair and deep blue eyes. Is it any wonder that particular masculine combination is still my favorite? Lucky for my husband!

To this day, The Proud Breed remains one of my all-time favorite books, and has been read and reread many, many times.

Tell me about your very first kiss? Since I started kissing boys—quite enthusiastically—at a very, very young age, I'll fast-forward to a slightly more age-appropriate answer. My first French kiss lesson, when I was fourteen. His name was Chad, and while he didn't have dark hair—it was, in fact, a very beautiful and pale rocker-dude flowing blond—he did have dark, soulful blue eyes.

We were hanging out at a mutual friend's house, a whole bunch of us, and as usual I was the only girl. Aside from being boy crazy for boyfriends, I mostly preferred the company of boys all around, even just as friends. But I'd had my eye on Chad for something more than mere friendship for a little while, and he'd been giving me the eye right back.

Somehow the topic of kissing came up. When I admitted I'd never had a French kiss, Chad grabbed me by the hand and hauled me outside into the bright sunshine where, in the shade of an ancient oak tree, he pulled me around to face him. He placed his hands ever so gently on my cheeks, and very, very slowly leaned in. He pressed his lips to mine, soft and sweet, and kissed me exquisitely, for what felt like eons. I put my hands on his waist and held on, because my world was already spinning.

Then he pulled back slightly and whispered, "Open your mouth."

The words alone sent a zing straight down my fourteen-year-old spine, but when he touched his tongue to mine, I quaked all over. Such sensations!

We didn't date for very long, but I'll never forget that first "grownup" kiss. I'll always be grateful I had such a wonderful, tender teacher.

MORE ABOUT CHANTILLY:
Chantilly White was born and raised in southern California, an only child who spent her days acting out favorite scenes from beloved fairytales and reading everything she could get her hands on. Childhood favorites were soon followed by romance novels from Celeste de Blasis, Kathleen E. Woodiwiss, Johanna Lindsey, Jude Deveraux, Nora Roberts and many others.

Always a storyteller, Chantilly holds a degree in Creative Writing/English Literature from the University of California at Riverside. Now living in the Pacific Northwest with her husband, three kids and three crazy cats, she is a member of Romance Writers of America (RWA) and several local and online chapters. She serves as Membership Chair for the Evergreen RWA Chapter in Everett, Washington.

Chantilly writes romance in a variety of subgenres. She is currently trying her hand at shorter works, and spicing them up quite a lot. She's finding the results. . . stimulating, and hopes her readers will happily agree.

Pearls of Passion and Pearls of Wisdom, both short stories, are available now. Her third title, Pearls of Pleasure, a novella, will be available mid-September, 2012, to be followed in short order by Remember Me and Captivated. Look for them on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and anywhere e-books are sold.
 
To learn more about Chantilly, please visit her website at www.ChantillyWhite.com

Friday, September 21, 2012

Fridays Firsts with ERIN McCAULEY

The first five lines of... THE CONFESSION

Aimee gripped the steering wheel, her stomach churning as she stared at the mansion in front of her and the reality of where she was sank in. She still couldn’t believe she’d come all the way to California, and she didn’t have any idea what to do now.

The towering front door opened, and a tall man in a T-shirt and tattered blue jeans emerged. His dark hair caught the light from the sun as he stepped off the porch, giving the impression of a glowing halo. She gasped when he smiled and waved at her.


Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Crimson Romance

Available now!
 
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FUN FIRST FACTS ABOUT ERIN

1. What was the first Rated R movie you ever saw?
It was my birthday, I was either turning 12 or 13, and we told my parents the group of us were going to a Disney movie, but instead snuck into Halloween. I’m not sure you can even say I actually “saw” the movie, because I had my hand over my eyes the whole time (I still watch scary movies that way). After it was over and we met my parents out in the lobby, I was still shaking and told my mom I had the caffeine shakes. So when we were all loaded into the car, my mother mentions that they’d decided to go see the “new scary movie,” and how they couldn’t hear a word of it because of the group of teenagers sitting in the front row screaming their heads off. Sigh, yeah, she knew it was us. Luckily, she let the nightmares we all had that night be our punishment.  Don’t go see a scary movie for the first time when you live in the middle of nowhere and your mother doesn’t believe in curtains in the living room to block the view. Michael Myers was everywhere that night!

2. What’s the first thing you do when you sit down each day to write?
I read. I have to go back one to two chapters of my WIP and pull myself back into that world. I also find it helps me tremendously with the editing process. I’ve read each chapter a zillion times before I even start to do the serious edits.  For me, it’s a terrific way to catch some of the little things, and it does help me get a feeling for the flow of the story when you pick it up in the middle.

 
3. If you won the lottery, what’s the first thing you’d buy?
I dream of this moment constantly! I’m beginning to wonder if I would have a better chance of it happening if I actually bought a lottery ticket. The first thing I would buy is a house on the beach, somewhere relatively close, but a place with no television, small and easy to maintain, that I can run away to write. My girlfriend, who is also an author, rented a place on the beach and about once a month I run away with my perma-puppy (he’s only 3 pounds, so it doesn’t matter that he’s 7) to join her and write. I get more done there in two to three days than I do in a month at home. It is amazing, and I would love to have the ability to run away to my own place anytime I felt like it.

More about Erin: I was born and raised in Seattle, Washington, but as a military wife, I was able to experience the beauty of Alaska, the tundra of Iceland, and the warmth of North Carolina and California, and am able to use all of these locations in my writing. In the years that followed, I worked as a Bank Officer, and a Regional Sales Manager for a local winery, before settling down to work towards my dream of being a writer. 

I’m an active soccer mom, who spends hours in my car driving my little jock around. I currently live in the Pacific Northwest with my three children and my dedicated writing partner, Maxx, a three-pound Yorkie who never leaves my side.


You can find Erin online here:


Facebook: Erin McCauley

Twitter: @ekmccauley


Friday, September 14, 2012

FRIDAY FIRSTS with...Kathryn Knight

The first four sentences of... SILVER LAKE

Three hours. She would see Jason in three hours, if he left for the lake house when he said he would. A potent mix of apprehension and excitement hummed through her veins, causing her to grip the steering wheel with enough force to turn her knuckles white. “You’re ridiculous, Rain DiMarco,” she mumbled to herself as she ordered her nervous hands to relax.

Genre: Paranormal, fantasy romance
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
 
Available now!
Amazon | The Wild Rose Press
 
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FUN FIRST FACTS ABOUT KATHRYN
1. Who was your first grade teacher? Any funny/interesting memories?
I actually don’t even remember her name, because first grade was such a strange year for me. Apparently I did so well in kindergarten (doing what, I wonder? Probably reading – I started early and never stopped!) the school decided I needed some kind of advanced placement. But since they didn’t have that type of class, they settled on having me attend second grade each morning, and then go to first grade after lunch.

Well, I had no idea what was going on in the second grade classroom, so mostly I just fooled around and learned very little. Then when I went to first grade in the afternoon, I would finish my work very quickly. So usually then I would ask to go to the bathroom and just go back to the playground by myself. Thankfully that would never fly these days (I hope, anyway, as a mom!). As you can imagine, my mom petitioned and succeeded in getting me switched to the better school in the neighboring district, and things went much better in second grade.

2. What was the first meal your significant other ever made for you?
On our first date, my husband made me a nice Italian dinner. The thing I remember the most, though, is that three years later, when we were packing up to move to a new house, I held up these dingy candle holders and asked him if I could toss them (we had received about 10 new pairs for our wedding). He said sure, but then added, “Those are the ones I bought for my apartment before our first date, so we could have a candlelit dinner.” Needless to say, I still have the candle holders, in a place of honor on my bedroom dresser!

3. Tell me about the first novel you ever wrote? Whatever happened to it?Well, the first story I wrote was in second grade (at that better school!), and it was about a little girl who finds a wild (but somehow quite tame!) pony and gets to keep it. That was my dream at the time, and that “book” is still tucked in my baby book. Silver Lake actually is my first novel, although it has been through major alterations and improvements since I initially completed the first draft. My second novel, Gull Harbor, recently received a contract from The Wild Rose Press.

More about Kathryn: As a child, Kathryn Knight kept her parents on a constant quest to find enough reading material to last her through each week. An early fondness for books about horses later gave way to a lasting preference for both love stories and ghost stories; as a writer, the paranormal romance genre is a perfect fit. Silver Lake is Kathryn's first novel; her second novel has also received a contract from The Wild Rose Press and will be released in 2013. She lives in New England with her husband, her sons, and a number of rescued animals.

You can learn more about Kathryn on her website, Facebook and Twitter.  



Thursday, August 23, 2012

Boy, does time fly...


My beautiful daughter Kendra (my oldest child) turns 20 years old today. My mom warned me when she was born that I should appreciate every single moment, because before I knew it, she’d be 20 years old.

She was right. These past 20 years have just flown by. I can remember almost every detail of her birth, just like it was yesterday (don’t worry, I’m not going to share them LOL). But it did make me wonder how life has changed since she was born.

In 1992...



  • A gallon of gas cost $1.05 (I just paid $3.82/gal today).
  • The average cost of a new car, $17,000 (today, it’s about $31,000)
  • Average house price, $67,000 (today, it’s $274,000)
  • Ross Perot announced he was running for President against Clinton and Bush
  • Mafia boss John Gotti was sentenced to life in prison
  • Hurricane Andrew hit South Florida (the day before my daughter was born)
  • Bill Clinton became President (now THAT makes me feel old)
  • The Summer Olympics were held in Barcelona
  • Rioting breaks out in Los Angeles after the acquittal of four police officers who were accused of beating Rodney King
  • Prince Charles and Princess Diana separate
  • Windows 3.1 released by Microsoft (where are they at now? Windows 246? :)
  • AT&T released a video telephone for $1500
  • Popular films were A Few Good Men, Basic Instinct and Sister Act.
  • Popular TV shows were Home Improvement, L.A. Law and Married...with Children
So, listen to my mom—appreciate every single moment today, because 20 years from now we’re going to look back and say, “Gas was under $4 in 2012. Can you believe that?”


Monday, August 13, 2012

Meatless Mondays: Where's the Beef?

Happy Monday to you!


I'm going to try a new feature on my blog. I've been toying with the idea of becoming somewhat of a vegetarian for various reasons. One, cutting up and preparing meat totally grosses me out. If I make it, I often can't eat it...but I have no problem eating meat at someone else's house or a restaurant. Yes, I'm weird. Two, I feel better when I eat less animal protein (I look better, too). Three, going meatless would really help with the grocery budget. Four, I'm reading a couple of books that have scared the #$@% out of me regarding animal protein consumption (The China Study and The Starch Solution).

If my family included just me, I'd go cold turkey and try a vegan diet for 30 days or so to see how I feel and look. I did this about 15 years ago and have never felt so good--people told me I looked 10 years younger. Then I cheated and started eating dairy again and that was that. These days if I went all vegan, I think my family would divorce me. So, I'll settle for Meatless Mondays...for now.

Those of you who know me or follow me on social media know I'm a personal fitness trainer in my other life. :) Eliminating animal protein is mostly contrary to everything I've ever learned about nutrition. I encourage my clients to include a good protein with every meal because you need sufficient protein to build muscle. I've always heard that whey protein and eggs are the best protein source for muscle growth. Animal protein is more concentrated, thus a better option for our muscles than vegetarian protein. These are the beliefs I've "lived" by. But I'm starting to question these long-standing beliefs.

But because I'm still a bit skeptical about what I've been reading, and because I can't imagine never eating a cheeseburger again, and maybe because I'm a Gemini and just can't make up my mind, I'm going to start by going meatless one day a week. On Mondays. Not necessarily animal-protein free (I still may eat yogurt, eggs and cheese), but meatless. No flesh (is that a disgusting way of looking at meat? As 'flesh'? Blech.) I think this is called Lacto-ovo vegetarianism--no meat, but you can eat eggs and dairy products.

I have three cookbooks I'll cook from: The Eat Clean Diet Vegetarian Cookbook,  How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, and the Moosewood Restaurant Low-Fat Favorites. I'll also try recipes from my various magazine subscriptions. Because of copyright laws, I won't be able to exactly reproduce the recipes I'm trying on this blog. Apparently, you can't copyright the ingredients, but you can copyright the directions. So I'll give you the ingredients, and rewrite the directions. And hope I don't get sued. LOL. 

My family says they're willing to go along with this experiment, but I can hear the comments now during our first Meatless Monday dinner: "Where's the meat?" "Mom, did you forget to thaw something for dinner again?" or my favorite, "This is dinner? Seriously?" 

I'll keep you posted. Wish me luck. Anyone care to join me????


Friday, August 10, 2012

Friday Firsts with Sandra Dailey

The first five sentences of... THE CHIEF'S PROPOSAL

“911, what’s your emergency?”

Ginny Dearing wiped blood from above her left eye. “I’ve had a car accident. I’m on the county road between I-75 and Three Trees, Georgia. My car is stuck in a ditch and my doors are blocked.”

Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press

Available now!

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FUN FIRST FACTS ABOUT SANDRA


1. Who was your first love?
I’ve been in love many times. I truly believe that’s possible. My first, however, was Ricky. He lived next door and we were five years old. I was excited when he proposed marriage. My heart was soon broken when I found out that he’d made the same proposal to my twin sister. Believe it or not, this has happened a few times in our lives.


2. Tell me about your first date (ever).
I was twelve years old the first time I went out with my steady boyfriend John. That may seem young, but we were driven by his dad, went to the skating rink, where his mom worked, and accompanied by his three younger brothers. No kisses but lots of handholding.

3. What was your first date with your significant other?
My husband Lee and my first date was a play-date, literally. We were each single parents of two preschoolers. His daughter was 4 and his son was 2. My daughter was 3 and my son was 2. Lee cooked a fried chicken dinner for all of us. I was impressed by his tidy housekeeping, capable parenting skills, and sweet disposition. That was thirty-two years ago.

More about Sandra:
I live in a small town outside of Gainesville, Florida, with my husband. Our combined four children are all grown and live in Florida as well. They’ve given us seven beautiful granddaughters, no grandsons, which hardly seems fair. I love to read, write, play games and watch football.

Friday, June 22, 2012

FRIDAY FIRSTS with...Rebecca J. Clark

Happy release day to me! My new book, DELIVER THE MOON, is officially out, and I'm so excited. This was a book of my heart (I have another book of my heart I'll be self-pubbing later this year, fingers crossed), so I'm delighted to finally share this one with readers.

The First Five Sentences of... DELIVER THE MOON

Louisa D’Angelo smoothed her long satin skirt for the third time in as many minutes as she waited for her cue to walk down the aisle.

“Don’t be nervous, dear,” the wedding coordinator said in a voice that had probably honeyed the nerves of many a bride. “Just keep your eyes on the altar, and you’ll do fine.” With that, she gave Louisa a gentle nudge forward.

Louisa wasn’t nervous, nor was she the bride.


Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press

Available now!

Friday, June 1, 2012

FRIDAY FIRSTS with Stephanie Queen

The first five sentences of... PLAYING THE GAME
“Damn it,” Roxanne muttered. Her drink had splashed on her dress. Looking right, and then left, at the partygoers around her, she took a surreptitious glance down to inspect the damage.

A very large, dark, wet spot spread over her left breast. Luckily it was only ice water—or maybe not so lucky, on second thought. 


Amazon|Barnes & Noble
Available now!
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FUN FIRST FACTS ABOUT STEPHANIE

1. Who was your first love? 
He was a summer love. We were 17, lived on a lake and water skied every day. He got to be real good and wanted to become a professional water skier--he even learned to ski barefoot. We were engaged at age 18 but the following summer he was in a terrible water skiing accident and shattered his elbow. The doctors told him he'd never water ski again. He fell apart. We were dis-engaged by the age of 19. Tragic and True. Of course now every time I tell the story over a margarita I can't stop laughing at the youthful absurdity.

2. What was the first Rated R movie you ever saw?
My tragic water-skiing hero and I, on our first date, went to see Live or Let Die, a James Bond movie, at the drive-in no less. He was hot to see it because there was a speed boat chase scene and he and James Bond happened to have the same speed boat. Geesh. I should have known then...
3. If you could live your life over again, what’s the first thing you’d do differently or change? 
Mostly I've had a wonderful life so far--although it's far from over yet! But maybe I would skip the engagement to the tragic water skiing guy... just saying.


More about Stephanie: Stephanie Queen is a romantic at heart, a writer by nature, and has the soul of a cheerleader. She enjoys creating stories where her rose-colored glasses-view comes to life and the good guys always win. Spending most of her life in New England, she's attended many of the area colleges, including Harvard, and even earned a couple of degrees along the way. Although she lost count of all the jobs she's had before she settled on being a Novelist, her favorite was joining with the Keebler Elves to sell cookies.
Playing the Game is Stephanie’s latest release. Other novels by Stephanie Queen include a romantic comedy, The Throwbacks, first in the Scotland Yard Exchange Program series, and a contemporary romance, Between a Rock and a Mad Woman. Both are available atAmazon, Barnes & Noble and Smashwords. Her next release, The Hot Shots, the second book in her romantic comedy mystery series, will be out this summer.

Visit the author at www.StephanieQueen.com or at her Stephanie Queen author page on Facebook and follow her @StephanieQueen on Twitter.

Friday, May 25, 2012

FRIDAY FIRSTS with Simone Sinna

The first sentences of EXCLUSIVE
(no cover yet, so enjoy the covers of the first two books in the series)


[set up: Crystal is Stephanie's mother]

“You’re not happy.” Crystal was making a statement of fact–as she saw it. Stephanie bristled. They’d almost made it through lunch without an argument.

Crystal waved for the check. The Gotham Grill waiter nodded in acknowledgement.

“Things have never been better,” Stephanie replied a little too quickly.

Coming this summer from
Siren-Bookstrand

* * * *

FUN FIRST FACTS ABOUT SIMONE

1. What was the first romance you ever read?

I read a lot from the age of about seven - but up until about 13 it was all Enid Blyton, Chalet Girls and Gymkhana books. At school I know I did Jane Eyre which is after all a romance, but probably before that was Mary Stewart's The Ivy Tree. I still have it and occasionally re-read it. It's wonderfully written, a nice background mystery and twist, but ahhh (sigh) the romance. Mary Grey and Adam, I am pretty sure, and that's from someone not great on names! When she see his scarred hands and starts to cry... well it's very touching!

2. Tell me about the first novel you ever wrote? What ever happened to it?

I wrote it when I was 13 (by hand) and I still have it. OMG it is bad!!! My attempts at romance (I hadn't had a boyfriend) were well... execrable!

3. Tell me about your very first kiss.

Must I? Not long after the attempt at my first novel, when I had turned 14, I was asked out by a boy from dancing class (I was at a girls' school and this was the only way to meet boys when you didn’t have a brother). He was 18! I felt very grown up – until the first kiss, which was soooo not like it looked like when Rhett Butler kissed Scarlett O’Hara. Yuck! Way too much slobber and tongue thrusting. Put me off boys for a year! And didn’t improve my second ‘novel’ attempt either- romance is just as bad as in the first!

More about Simone: Simone Sinna is the other side of an established nonfiction writer. After an epiphany on the 2038km road to Santiago de Compostela (which inspired her second novel, just out) she changed her name and now writes mostly erotic fiction. Her husband is delighted, her mother and two children less so…

She has three erotic romance suspense novels published with Siren: Embedded, Exposé, Exclusive (due July 2012) and two erotic short stories in Stringybark anthologies, Brushstrokes published in Heat Wave of ’76 (shortlisted for the prize) in 2011 and Night Game in 2012 in Between the Sheets.


You can find out more about Simone on her website, Twitter (@SimoneSinna), and her Bookstrand author page.

Friday, May 18, 2012

FRIDAY FIRSTS with Dawne Prochillo

The first five sentences of... INSATIABLE KATE
Lydia Parsons stood at the top of the wooden staircase of the Willow Creek Saloon, observing below as the cowhands, ranchers, miners and drifters flooded in for the evening. Dressed in everything from scratchy wool trousers to mud ladened chaps, the men jovially celebrated the end of another hard work week. Tomorrow being Sunday would be a day of rest for most. A day of family and church. A day to enjoy the fruits of their labor.



Available now!

*  *  *  *  *

Fun First Facts about Dawne


 1. What was the first romance you ever read?

Not sure if it would be classified as a romance but VC Andrews' Flowers In The Attic--the taboo book from the 1980's... all the girls were reading it. The first book I ever read with incest in it. Amazing that book would probably be banned if released now.

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

I plot, plot, make notes and plot some more. I need structure and an outline--not saying I don't change the outline a hundred times but I do need to have an synopsis to follow or I ramble and get lost.

3. When standing in front of a buffet line, what’s the first food that catches your eye?
Anything with oozing cheese. Crunchy salty potatoes. I always joke that my parents should have been from Idaho and Wisconsin. I am a true cheesy potato head. 


More about Dawne: Dawne Prochilo currently has many erotic and contemporary romance books. Her writing in the romance genre varies from sweet and sensual all the way up to four flame heat erotic. 

 She's the Promotion Director for a publisher, she's a freelance writer for a newspaper and was a contributing writer to USA TODAY in September 2011, she writes web content and is the Review Coordinator, Workshop Coordinator, and Managing Editor eMag for Books and Trailers Showcase.

She oversees and contributes to thirteen blogs weekly, twelve facebook fan pages and is in the process of writing a promotional eBook for authors.

She writes relationship articles for mademan.com, yahoo.com and associated press. She's also a reviewer for Eden Fantasy products and writes for their sister website, Eden Cafe. She contributes to Good Vibrations Magazine and many other adult content websites.

She is a staff member and group liaison for Marketing For Romance Writers.

You can learn more about Dawne on her blog.

Friday, May 11, 2012

FRIDAY FIRSTS with Darcy Burke

The first five sentences of... HER WICKED WAYS
“Stand and deliver!” Montgomery Foxcroft demanded a second time as he and the other four members of his band stepped out from the trees lining the rutted and muddy road. They’d scouted the two coaches for the last quarter mile. Each had a coachman at the reins and a footman on the back. The footman on the rear coach crouched low as both vehicles rumbled to a halt.

Genre: Regency romance

Available now!

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FUN FIRST FACTS ABOUT DARCY


1. What was the first romance you ever read? I'm not sure, especially since my mother recently told me that we read a lot of Harlequins. I have no recollection of reading Harlequins! I do remember reading Kathleen Woodiwiss' Ashes in the Wind and thinking it was the best book ever written.

2.What’s the first thing you do when you start writing a new story?Buy a composition notebook for research and plotting notes. It becomes my "bible" for that story. I think I'm going to run out of space in the notebook for my WIP. That's never happened before! But it's a contemporary paranormal, which requires a lot of world building and it's so important to keep all of that straight. I actually find it more challenging than writing historicals!

3. When standing in front of a buffet line, what’s the first food that catches your eye? Dessert, but I rarely leave room to eat it! I also think many desserts look better than they taste. And this may shock you, but chocolate is not my first choice. I'll usually go for lemon or a creme brulee or similar.


More about Darcy:  Darcy Burke wrote her first bookat age 11, a happily ever after about a swan addicted to magic and the female swan who loved him, with exceedingly poor illustrations. An RWA Golden Heart® Finalist, Darcy loves all things British (except tomatoes for breakfast, or any other time of day, actually) and happy ever afters.

A native Oregonian, Darcy lives on the edge of wine country with her devoted husband,their two great kids, and three cats. In her “spare” time Darcy is a serial volunteer enrolled in a 12-step program where one learns to say “no,” but she keeps having to start over. She’s also a fair-weather runner, and her happy places are Disneyland and Labor Day weekend at the Gorge.

You can find Darcy online here:
http://www.darcy-burke.com
http://www.facebook.com/darcyburkefans
Twitter - @darcyburke

Give Away! Sign up to receive Darcy's newsletter (go to her website-http://www.darcy-burke.com) before May 25, and be entered into a drawing to win an advanced electronic copy of Darcy's June release, His Wicked Heart!