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Showing posts with label romance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label romance. Show all posts

Saturday, March 7, 2015

Mike Hartner on Heeding James Crofter's Instructions for I, James @MHartnerAuthor #AmWriting #HistFic

Why Writing is a Form of Personal Therapy

Every day has stresses. The kid’s not feeling well, the bills need paid, the doctor’s appointments need taken, yada, yada, yada,… Every life has its stressors.

For me, sitting in my office, or on my bed, and pouring out my innermost thoughts onto a Word document is Therapy.

I get to concentrate on things that are not my normal life. In the case of The Eternity Series, I was able to start by concentrating on Walter Crofter and his life. Walter was the inspiration for I,Walter and would pour out his life a little at a time so that I could write it down.

Toward the end, James Crofter jumped up and started to instruct me on his life adventure.

Both of these books have been written during late evenings, early mornings, and quiet times during the day. As a parent, many people know that quiet times are few and far between. These are the times when the house is quiet, and when the to-do list can be put off for a few more hours. These are the quiet times when sitting in the hot tub, or the recreation room, or the meeting room with the lights off and nobody else around, can lead to new chapters and more research on the life of the next main character.

Writing is resting. It’s the chance to envelop myself in a world where my role is transcription, and I’m listening to the life and death decisions, rather than making them. Writing is the therapy that lowers the blood pressure that stimulates the mind, and brings a smile to the face.

IJames

James Crofter was ripped from his family at age 11. 
Within a year the prince was a pauper in a foreign land. 
Is nature stronger than nurture? And even if it is, can James find the happiness he so richly desires? 

Buy Now @ Amazon
Genre - Historical Fiction, Romance
Rating – PG
More details about the author
Connect with Mike Hartner on Facebook & Twitter

Friday, September 26, 2014

FORTY 2 DAYS (The Billionaire Banker) by @GeorgiaLeCarre #Excerpt #Erotica #Romance

I hear the soft, thick click of the door behind me, and turn around to face him.  He stands there, tall, dark and throbbing with sexual tension.  God!  How I want this man.  A rough sound rumbles in his throat.  I recognize it.  Blind, earth-shattering desire.  It has been a long time since I heard it.  Makes me rock on my feet.  He shoots out a hand and pulls me hard towards him.  My body slams into his.
I have the impression of stone—unmoving.  It will break, but it will never bend.  But I can bend.  I mold my hips into his.   His erection is thick and hot against my stomach.  The rawness of it awakens that great beast inside me.  Greedy, relentless thing.  It wants more, it wants it all, and it wants it right now.  Intoxicated by the smoldering fire in his eyes my hands snake up his chest and twine around his neck, but his strong hands come up and untangle mine.  He catches them in his and takes them behind my back.  His clasp is a firm handcuff.
Very deliberately he holds me away from him and lets his half-lidded eyes rove my parted mouth, my breasts—thrust out towards him and heaving, down my body, to my legs.  His eyes lift again to meet mine.  I am impossibly aroused.
‘I had half a dozen fantasies of what I wanted to do to you when I got you naked.  Tame sex is not one of them,’ he says, as he plucks out the pins in my hair and flings them away.  Released, my hair falls all around my face and shoulders.
‘My beautiful whore.  Once I was good to you and you kicked me when I was down; now you get what you deserve.’
Without warning he grips the two sides of the high collar of my lovely dress and rips it into two.  I clutch the torn ends of my ruined dress together and stare at him in shock.
He looks down at me, breathing hard.  Strangely, he is as cold as ice.  My mind is in unbelievable chaos.  I have misjudged the extent of his fury.  Underneath the façade of calm he is seething with anger at what he perceives to be my duplicity.  I want to cry at the wanton destruction of something so beautiful, but in fact I am too shocked to cry.
‘Dress only in what’s in the box and meet me in the bedroom,’ he commands curtly, and walks away from me.

Beyond the seductive power of immense wealth lies… Dark Secrets
Devastatingly handsome billionaire, Blake Law Barrington was Lana Blooms first and only love. From the moment they touched his power was overwhelming. Their arrangement quickly developed into a passionate romance that captivated her heart and took her on an incredible sexual journey she never wanted to end.
The future together looked bright until Lana made a terrible mistake. So, she did the only thing she could… she ran.
Away from her incredible life, away from the man of her dreams, but she should have known a man such as Blake Law Barrington was impossible to escape. Now, he’s back in her life and determined that she should taste the bitterness of his pain.
Shocked at how rough the sex has become and humiliated that she is actually participating so willingly in her punishment, she despairs if she will ever feel the warmth of his touch–the solidity of his trust again? And even if she can win his trust, loyalties are yet to be decided, and secrets to be revealed–secrets that will test them both to their limits.
Will Lana be able to tear down the walls that surround Blake’s heart, and break him free of the brutal power of immense wealth?
Can Blake hold on to Lana’s heart when she discovers the enormity of the dark secrets that inhabit the Barrington family?
Lana has always believed that love conquers all. She is about to test that belief…
Buy @ Amazon
Genre – Erotic Romance
Rating – PG-18
More details about the author
Connect with Georgia Le Carre on Facebook & Twitter

Friday, May 23, 2014

April Wood's Inspiration for ENTICING @apejaywood #AmReading #Paranormal #Romance

What inspired me to write Enticing

I have always been interested in vampires. Most of the novels I have read didn’t give me the feeling I was going for. SO I decided to give it a try myself. I made their lives more like mortals. I wanted them to struggle with love, and life. I don’t think giving someone immortality will automatically cure all that is wrong in their life. By creating characters that suffer, I feel like I’ve opened a new page in the genre.

Yvonne has been living life fairly carefree until the sudden resurface of her dead maker, Magnus. She thinks he wants revenge, but all he wants is her. She can’t resist him. He is just as mouthwatering to her now as he was when he created her two hundred and fifty years ago. As their love rekindles forces outside of them grow threatening to destroy all the happiness they have finally found. 

Her sister Annabeth is seeking revenge for the bite she suffered at Magnus’s hands. She will stop at nothing to exact vengeance on him and Yvonne. 

Will their love be strong enough for the battles ahead?
Buy Now @ Amazon
Genre - Paranormal Romance
Rating – R
More details about the author
Connect with April Wood through Facebook & Twitter

Thursday, May 22, 2014

@LisaBelcastro19 on Conflict, Writing & Therapy #Romance #Christian #BookClub

Why Writing is a Form of Personal Therapy

Any good story has conflict, often many conflicts. Can you tell me of a life – real or fictional – that doesn’t have conflict? I’ve found that I can use the joys and triumphs in my life as well as the struggles and pain. When a character is caught in the midst of a challenge, I reflect on my own life, either something from the past or a present problem, and I pour out my emotions into my character’s point of view.

I’ve worked through trials with my children, a fight with my husband, the death of a friend, a girlfriend’s breast cancer, and much more. I can’t write away every source of pain, but I can work through it vicariously in a character. It’s great way to let go!

One of my dearest friends writes murder mysteries. If a landscaper does a job poorly, he might turn up dead in her next novel. A magazine editor, who refused to publish reviews on any of her books, suffered pain and humiliation as a character in one of her mysteries. As authors, we can write out our frustrations and often resolve issues, sometimes with a bit of chuckles and merriment.

The same is true of wonderful memories and experiences. I’ve inserted family vacations, day trips, and memories into my stories too. And I love re-living magical moments with my children, family and friends as my characters experience something similar in their fictional lives.

http://www.orangeberrybooktours.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/ShenandoahNights.jpg 
Could this all be a bad dream? How was she to know? Rebecca had far more questions than answers. Tisbury, Massachusetts, Martha’s Vineyard The last thing sixth-grade teacher Rebecca O’Neill wants to do during the final week of her summer break is chaperone twenty-five kids on a six-night, seven-day trip aboard the schooner Shenandoah. But after a desperate phone call from the school principal, she doesn’t have a choice.

Worse, the ship is rumored to be ‘haunted.’ Five years ago, during the Holmes Hole student cruise, teacher Melissa Smith complained about hearing voices and seeing visions, then disappeared without a trace-from the very same cabin where Rebecca will be staying. Everything seems normal on Sunday as Rebecca boards the impressive Shenandoah. But as she sits in Cabin 8, she hears hushed voices that don’t sound like they’re from this century.

Mike, a crewmember, insists he believes the crazy Island story that Melissa time-traveled to Colonial Boston. His eerie interest in constantly tracking Rebecca’s whereabouts rattles her nerves. Her first night onboard, Rebecca drifts off to sleep…and wakes the following morning with memories of a secretive conversation about a battle with Britain.

Monday night Rebecca crawls into her bunk after an adventurous day of sailing, swimming, and overseeing students. She’s startled awake when a man grabs her and yells, ‘Stowaway!’ Dragged in front of Captain Benjamin Reed, she looks up into the most gorgeous brown eyes she’s ever seen….

A Vineyard Romance. Romance, history, adventure. Get swept into the exciting Winds of Change series. Book 1, Winds of Change.

Buy Now @ Amazon
Genre - Romance, Christian
Rating – G
More details about the author
Connect with Lisa Belcastro through Facebook & Twitter

Wednesday, April 9, 2014

@GeorgiaLeCarre Says ... #Writing is a Work in Progress & More (#Erotic #Romance)

How did you develop your writing?
I always think of writing as a work in progress.  Still learning all the time.
Where do you get your inspiration from?
Everywhere.
What is hardest – getting published, writing or marketing?
MARKETING.  Ugh… not my thing at all.  I really suck at it.
What marketing works for you?
The more appropriate question might be what doesn’t work for you?  Everything!  Seriously though, I have a FB page, a twitter account, I pay for Goodreads ads and hire blog tour organisers to set up blog tours for my books.  And that is the extent of my marketing.
Do you find it hard to share your work?
I don’t quite get the question.  If share as in publish, then no, not at all.  I have no trouble clicking Amazon’s publish button and unleash my work on the unsuspecting public.
Who is your favorite author?
Cormac McCarthy
What book genre of books do you adore?
There is no set genre that I particularly gravitate towards.  My reading taste is varied and I like it like that.
What book should everybody read at least once?
There is no book that is perfect for everybody.  We each find the book that is perfect for our own journeys.
Is there any book you really don’t enjoy?
Maybe something about football or cricket.
What do you hope your obituary will day about you?
She had fun.
42Days
Beyond the seductive power of immense wealth lies... Dark Secrets
Devastatingly handsome billionaire, Blake Law Barrington was Lana Blooms first and only love. From the moment they touched his power was overwhelming. Their arrangement quickly developed into a passionate romance that captivated her heart and took her on an incredible sexual journey she never wanted to end.
The future together looked bright until Lana made a terrible mistake. So, she did the only thing she could... she ran.
Away from her incredible life, away from the man of her dreams, but she should have known a man such as Blake Law Barrington was impossible to escape. Now, he's back in her life and determined that she should taste the bitterness of his pain.
Shocked at how rough the sex has become and humiliated that she is actually participating so willingly in her punishment, she despairs if she will ever feel the warmth of his touch--the solidity of his trust again? And even if she can win his trust, loyalties are yet to be decided, and secrets to be revealed--secrets that will test them both to their limits.
Will Lana be able to tear down the walls that surround Blake's heart, and break him free of the brutal power of immense wealth?
Can Blake hold on to Lana's heart when she discovers the enormity of the dark secrets that inhabit the Barrington family?
Lana has always believed that love conquers all. She is about to test that belief...
Buy @ Amazon
Genre – Erotic Romance
Rating – PG-18
More details about the author
Connect with Georgia Le Carre on Facebook & Twitter

Saturday, April 5, 2014

A Day in the Life of #Author Belinda Vasquez Garcia @MagicProse #AmReading #Romance

It’s midnight. I wish there was time to be more social, but I’ve just finished up the 2nd draft of the final book of my Land of Enchantment trilogy. There are two blog tours coming up, and a book festival 2400 miles away, all within a two month period. I have a short piece of fiction to edit, which I plan to publish in the next 3 weeks. And there’s a new novel that needs editing, which I hope to publish in 7 weeks.
After seven hours sleep, I walk the dog so my husband can sleep late. I feed my cat, Shakespeare, and then take 10 minutes for breakfast.
I drive to my Zumba class. I’m shaking my hips, moving my feet, loving the music, feeling relaxed and BAM! My brain decides to start writing one of three other books I’m hoping to do this year. My characters speak, or scream, or narration spills out of my head. They’re sentences, paragraphs, plot, or characters that will vanish forever if not put on paper. So, I leave the exercise line and look for paper in my purse. I walk out to the YMCA lobby, grab an exercise schedule and scribble on the back the gold my mind has just mined. I grab a few extra sheets, just in case. I run back to class.
I get home and throw the piece of new writing on top of a pile of others. I shower, and I’m back at it on the computer.
I stop for a 15 minute lunch during which time I watch Netflix streaming or Reign, which I’ve taped, or I watch The Bates Motel, or Once Upon a Time on Demand.
I clean up my dishes and make any pressing phone calls that can’t wait until evening.
I go back to the computer and write again, or damn myself for surfing the web and wasting time.
I go to dinner with my husband. Quick, I grab a napkin and scribble. We drive home and the new piece of writing on the napkin goes in the pile.
I get on the computer and do any personal stuff, like pay bills.
I start writing again.
I’ve promised myself that I’ll watch a movie at 8:00 or 9:00. I tell myself to only do non-writing book stuff, such as marketing, on Tuesdays, but some things can’t wait until Tuesday, such as that audio book and Best Historical Fiction award that came out four months ago which I’ve been meaning to email people about or post on Facebook. I manage an email to another group of mine and check it off my list.
I draft an email about my Books into Movies Award I received ten months ago for the first book of my trilogy, and about the Best Fantasy Finalist award I got for the second book three months ago. I hit the save button. I’m waiting a couple of weeks until the last book of my trilogy comes out to make all announcements together.
For the umpteenth time, I tell myself that I should faithfully post to my blog every week.
It is 10:00 now. I still haven’t gotten off the computer to watch that movie. I’m lost in my new novel, and that’s really the best place to be.
IWillAlwaysLoveYou
The last thing Miranda ever expected was to see her brother's ghost at the fallen Twin Towers.
It's bad enough survivor Christopher Michaels scares her with claims that if one dies violently, his ghost will haunt the place that holds his name. And to top it all, one of those thousands of ghosts follows Miranda to her hotel. The only certainty is the ghost grabbing her under the covers is not Jake.
Their parents' deaths separated Miranda from Jake when they were kids. Michaels insists Jake brought them together and it's no coincidence that of thousands mourning at Ground Zero, it's his best friend she bumps into. Some best friend. Michaels is more like a moocher. The cheapskate never has money, just a blood-stained wallet he broods over. Miranda has no choice but to hang out with the weird Michaels in order to unravel her brother's past.
As Miranda spends time with Michaels, she begins to wonder who he really is. Against her better judgment, Miranda becomes emotionally entangled with Michaels, a bitter alcoholic with a secret linked to her brother and that blood-stained wallet.
I Will Always Love You is part mystery, suspense and romance, a novel that will keep the reader turning the pages!
Buy Now @ Amazon
Genre – Suspense, Mystery, Romance
Rating – PG
More details about the author
Connect with Belinda Vasquez Garcia on Facebook & Twitter

Thursday, March 13, 2014

Lynn Murphy on What Inspired Her To Write Dream A Little Dream #Romance #Christian #TBR

People often wonder where authors get their stories. What inspire them to write one storyline versus another. I don’t always know the answer to that question, but with one of my newest releases, I do.
I recently released my tenth novel, Dream A Little Dream. It is a little different than my other novels in that one of the main characters is hearing impaired. When I wrote Moonlight In His Hand fifteen years ago, (I know, I promise it’s going to be formatted for kindle), I made the baby that Kimberly and John Lansing adopted deaf. When I wrote the book, I wasn’t thinking about the possibility that I would write about the children of the main characters. But now they have all grown up and have each been given their own stories. Seamus Lansing is one of the main characters in Dream A Little Dream.
I have always found the concept of how hearing impaired people interact with the hearing world interesting. I have a deaf cousin, and whenever we saw Brenda, I couldn’t help laughing at my grandmother who, God rest her soul, yelled and yelled verrrry slowly, as if Brenda could hear her, or worse yet, was too slow to understand what she was saying. Brenda was the first person who taught me a few words in sign language. In college I took a class in sign language, learning to speak fairly well and how to interpret songs in sign. I used it fairly regularly when I worked at special ed school, but haven’t used sign terribly often since then, and must admit I am no longer fluent, but can still read a little and sometimes still ‘see’ songs play out in sign in my head.
As I was doing research, I found Heather Whitestone’s story very inspiring and helpful. In case you don’t remember she was the first deaf Miss America. She lost her hearing as a toddler due to a high fever, In her autobiography Listening With My Heart, Heather explains what it is like to be deaf and communicate with the hearing world. She also discussed the opposition to speaking by some members of the deaf community which is an issue in Dream A Little Dream.
I enjoyed the opportunity to show a strong character who has  adapted well to his handicap, yet is challenged to think about his disability as an adult and wonder what he might have been missing due to not being able to hear.  Dream A Little Dream also explores a romantic relationship between Seamus and Madison Walker, who is hearing. It was an interesting novel to write and includes characters from previous book , Look To The Rainbow, Only For You and Just Thinking Of You.
Check out Dream A Little Dream and my other books at www,booksbylynnmurphy.com
dreamalittledream
Madison Walker never planned on falling for her boss when she accepted a teaching position at The Newport School For The Deaf. Seamus Lansing is handsome, wealthy, athletic, charming- and hearing impaired himself. As the only hearing person in her own family, Madison isn't sure she wants a long term relationship with someone who can't hear but she can't deny that she is attracted to Seamus. As their romance develops, Seamus will find himself questioning things he never considered about his disability.
Jim O'Brien has achieved worldwide acclaim for his musical ability. When unexpected circumstances threaten to take away his ability to play the piano how will it affect his recent marriage to Lady Berry Harrington?
Buy Now @ Amazon
Genre - Romance, Christian
Rating – G
More details about the author
Connect with Lynn Murphy through Pinterest

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Inside the Mind of the #Author Karolyn James @KarolynWrites #Romance #AmReading

An author’s mind is a very busy place. I can’t speak for every author out there, but I know my mind never stops working. So many times I’ve been sitting, watching a television show with friends and they’ll look at me and just know my mind is working on something. As an author, an idea can spark from a random thought or something we see. Our eyes and ears never stop working, obviously transferring so much information to our minds.
I’ve blogged many times on the origin of Brothers of Rock. I was doing dishes one night. For some reason (I don’t know why) I started thinking about music and musicians and rockstars. I wondered what it would be like to write a series following a band, capturing their life off stage. The next thing I knew I was spending weeks writing outlines, character ideas, and just like that, Brothers of Rock became a reality.
I take daily walks and it’s on those walks where I look around for ideas and inspiration. My mind tries to challenge me… who lives in that house? What’s the history of that tire swing? Other times, I use my walks to plot myself out of a jam. As a funny story, I recently had to a get CT Scan done. The nurse told me to close my eyes and relax. You know what I did? I thought about Brothers of Rock and the next book!
An author’s mind is a working machine that can’t stop working. That’s why I always give advice to other authors to make sure they have some kind of notebook with them for when those ideas strike. There’s nothing worse of a feeling than losing a great idea.
AChanceAtLove
~~ NEW RELEASE AND ON SALE FOR VALENTINE'S DAY! ONLY $0.99 NOW THROUGH FEBRUARY 16TH~~
____

From Karolyn James, the NY Times / USA Today Bestselling author of the Brothers of Rock series...
WELCOME TO FERRY CREEK!
A small town built on family, hope, and a chance to find true love.
A CHANCE AT LOVE (A FERRY CREEK NOVEL)
Coming to Ferry Creek was supposed to be a short trip to settle a past, not begin a future.
~
The day billionaire businessman Sullivan Chasen receives a phone call that his father is dying is the day his world became turned upside down. The problem is that his father has been dead for ten years. The bigger problem is that the person who called keeps calling, insisting that Sullivan's father is going to die soon.
A shocking DNA test suddenly has Sullivan questioning everything he has ever known and has him packing up and driving to the small town of Ferry Creek, North Carolina.
There, he confronts a past he never knew existed, including a half-brother who is living in a small apartment above the family diner, a local staple in Ferry Creek.
What begins as a short trip to settle any necessary needs soon turns into a new life for Sullivan. The longer he stays in Ferry Creek, the more he falls in love with the small town... and a waitress named Jess who works at the diner.
_____
KarolynJames.wordpress.com
@KarolynWrites
facebook.com/KarolynJamesAuthor
Stay up to date with Karolyn's mailing list!
tinyurl.com/KJSignup
_____
Read the Brothers of Rock series:
Chasing Cross books:
- All Access
- Broken Sound
- Bitter Farewell
- Buried Notes
- Last Song
Falling Tuesday books:
- A Voice to Love
- A Song for Us
- *MORE TO COME!*
_____
Did you know Karolyn James is the pen name for bestselling western romance author, Claire Charlins?
Don't miss the books now available in the Mail Order Romance series:
-West for Love
-Finding Love west
-A Marriage West
-Hope Found West
-True Love West
-A Romance West
AND MORE!!!
Buy Now @ Amazon
Genre - Romance
Rating – PG-13
More details about the author
Connect with Karolyn James through Twitter

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to ... by Selena Cooper @SelenaCooperBks #Romance

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Getting Published 

I attended Destiny Blaine’s writing conference in Kingsport, Tennessee one weekend in early December. There was so much author swag given to us in welcome bags and available for us to pick up on sponsors’ tables. I got pens, lip balms, flashlights, bookmarks, excerpt booklets, calendars, cover flats, and even ebook downloads.
We were getting ready to have lunch, so I picked up what I believed to be a hand-sanitizing wipe. I took it and some of the other items I’d gathered during my little treasure hunt, and went back to my table. I was examining some of the things I’d picked up, when I took a closer look at the “wipe.” It wasn’t a wipe. It was a condom with someone’s book cover on the front.
I looked at my tablemate and said, “Huh. I thought this was a wipe.”
She burst out laughing. Naturally, I did too…even though I was very embarrassed.
Everyone in the crowded conference room turned to see what was so funny. My tablemate held up the condom and announced that I’d thought it was a hand wipe!
My now-editor at eXtasy Books, Inc. was sitting in front of me, and she laughed so hard. Later, I spoke with her about submitting LEI ME DOWN to her. She said she’d love to see the book. When the conference had wrapped for the day, I downloaded the book onto a disk. I gave it to her the next morning with a wipe taped to the CD case. She later accepted the book.
After the conference, she sent out a post to eXtasy Books, Inc. authors extolling the virtues of being “memorable.” She didn’t go into detail, but mentioned that there was one humorous incident that stands out in her mind…one that she’ll never forget.
While you might not want to be memorable for doing something embarrassing at a conference, maybe you could be memorable for your cute shoes, your snazzy scarves, your generosity, your willingness to help others.  Whatever the case may be, make sure that when you leave the conference, other attendees will remember you.
And then make sure you write the best book you possibly can. Because no matter how memorable you are, it’s your books that will keep readers coming back…or not.
LeiMeDown
Brandy and Luke Fontaine are sexy, fun, rich, and maybe just a little oversexed. They’re newlyweds honeymooning in Hawaii when they find a dead body. Turns out their fellow guest has been murdered, and they set out to solve the case.
Buy Now @ Amazon
Genre - Erotic Romance
Rating – X
More details about the author
Connect with Selena Cooper through Facebook & Twitter