Back to School

Like the post header says, I've gone back to school!!  I'm taking a pottery class at a local university and I'm having a blast!  I know, I'm not a pottery prodigy, but really I'm learning so much!  We had to make a kiln god...I went for a kiln goddess instead.  You can see she has the basic shape of a beehive kiln.  LOL The flowers in her hair came out a bit funky, but otherwise, I'm pleased with her.  And I've made cups.  One had to be asymmetrical...I went for a heart shape. I love the other two.

Not only am I going back to school, but my books are, too!  My PTA Mom trilogy comes out in time for the holiday season!  What happens when three PTA moms miss the first meeting and get stuck on the worst committee the organization has?  Did I mention they were three SINGLE moms?  Hm, so what happens as Samantha, Michelle and Carly plan the Thanksgiving Pageant, Christmas Fair and Valentine's Dance?  Laughter, Friendship...and of course, love.

This was such a fun series to write because frankly...I've been a PTA Mom.  I planned a Thanksgiving kids' zone for years.  And yes, it's a crazy life, but I wouldn't have done it any other way.  Neither would my three moms!  Hope you'll come join them this holiday season!

Holly

Once Upon a Thanksgiving

Once Upon a Christmas

Once Upon a Valentine's

A Kinder Mother Nature - Kandy Shepherd

Right now, Mother Nature is showing her harshest side, lashing out with hurricanes, floods, fire and earthquakes in various parts of the world. My thoughts are with all those affected by these terrible events. 

In contrast, I’m sharing some pictures of Mother Nature’s kinder side from my very early spring garden in my little farm Down Under in Australia.

Daffodils shout out spring!

I wish I could share with you the fragrance of the daphne and the peach blossom.There’s also the frenetic buzzing of the bees and the different notes of birdsong to bring a lilt to the heart.

This gnarled plum tree is about sixty years old and still bearing superb fruit

 The gentleness of a spring garden seems to bring its own kind of calm in a world that seems to have gone a little crazy.

Nectarine blossom

 Wherever you are in the world, I hope you are safe. My thoughts are also with the teams of people out there helping both the people and the animals affected by disaster.

The gentle charm of hellebores

What simple thing brings you comfort in worrying times? I’d love to see your thoughts in the comments!

Kandy Shepherd’s most recent book Conveniently Wed to the Greek is a May 2017 release from Harlequin Romance in North America; Mills & Boon Cherish in the UK; and Mills & Boon ForeverRomance in Australia and New Zealand.

Kandy Shepherd is a multi-published, award-winning author of contemporary romance and women’s fiction. She lives on a small farm in the Blue Mountains near Sydney, Australia, with her family and a menagerie of four-legged friends.

Visit Kandy at her website

www.kandyshepherd.com

Connect with Kandy on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram

Goodbye summer...

Add caption

It’s not often that I say I’ll be glad to see the back of summer, but this one has been so stressful that I’m looking forward to a change of seasons, a change of pace and hoping the chill will cut down all the bad vibes that seem to have made this year such a stressful one both personally and internationally.

Special thoughts for everyone affected by floods in Texas and Louisiana.

I’ve had to put the book I’m writing on hold while family concerns come first but I have finally managed to launch one of the books for which I reclaimed the rights from Harlequin a while back. It’s been re-edited, freshened up, given a little bit of an update and a fabulous new cover and at the moment it’s available for a re-launch price of just 99c (99p if you’re in the UK, or 99c anywhere if you use the Smashwords link - download to any device).

Trouble in Paradise was originally published by Harlequin Mills and Boon - for marketing reasons that had nothing to do with the story - under the title All She Wants for Christmas.

It has now been given a facelift and it's original title, so grab it now at the special launch price of 99c (US), 99p (UK).  Actually if you use the Smashwords link (they cater for all ebook platforms) you'll only pay 99c wherever you are!

* * *

Hugo Griffin thinks Maddy Osborne is a spoiled little rich girl. She thinks he's a gigolo who is after her vulnerable godmother's fortune.

Stranded alone together on Paradise Island, forced to work together to survive, they have all the time in the world to discover that first impressions can be misleading...

Taste test here.

Here are the links -

Amazon US
Amazon Australia
iBooks
Smashwords
Nook
Kobo

Nicole Locke- Celebrations & Giveaways Continue!

In August, I celebrated my mum's birthday and the release of The Knight's Scarred Maiden. I'd like to say thanks to everyone for sharing your celebrations! It was great fun reading them. I've sent a mail to the winner, and hope to post Rhain and Helissent's story to you soon!

As for the continuing celebrations?

Well, as much as I love writing romances, I think I may love chatting with other romance readers even more. The recent Blog Tour kept me up many a night comparing what's in our closets, what's our favourite snack, and who our favourite heroes and heroines are.


Later this month, there will be even more chatting romance when I, and my fellow Harlequin Historical author, Virginia Heath, attend the Historical Romance Retreat https://www.historicalromanceretreat.com (hope to see you there!).

Now while Virginia is making her own outfits for the festivities,  http://authorsoundrelations.blogspot.com/2017/08/sat-hello-to-veronica.html, I can barely sew on a button.

This has left me in a pickle. Because many of you know, I don't like to shop. I really don't. We've been in this house since December, and as of three days ago, I finally bought...a chair. My living room consists of a rug, and that's what we sit on.

Buying dresses, shoes, hats? I'm hopeless. How am I supposed to know what fits, or what looks good. And the attention to detail needed for period dresses is off the charts. I've been busy making purchases, but I'm returning just as much.

I still can't find a pair of silver shoes to fit my feet or match the dress. None. If anyone has any ideas where I can find a 1930's-ish closed round toe with ankle strap or T-bar, please let me know! I need these for the Grand Ball. Without them, I'll be like Cinderella after midnight, and with no shoes.

So does that leave me in a complete crisis? No. I'm celebrating because I get to chat with more romance readers and no doubt the conversations will be about all my favourite things like food, drink and our favourite heroes and heroines.

And I'd like to keep celebrating here, too. Since this is my fifth book with Harlequin, I want to give five books away. One of each from the Lovers and Legends series: The Knight's Broken Promise, Her Enemy Highlander, The Highland Laird's Bride, In Debt to the Enemy Lord, and The Knight's Scarred Maiden.

Just share your favourite romance novels or heroes and heroines in the comments (with a way to reach you --you can contact me at nicole@nicolelocke.com, too). I'll drop your names in a bowl for my daughter to grab, and notify you (privately) by October 4th!  

-- Nicole

Celebrating Human Spirit: Susan Sands

The hurricane in Texas and parts of Louisiana brought devastation to so many of our fellow humans this past week. I've worried about family and friends in both states this week. My people are safe, but

they are not dry. They've lost homes and possessions. Several are elderly and face rebuilding. Some are currently in shelters.

I grew up in Louisiana, but lived in Texas as a young child. Some of my earliest memories are of Hurricane Celia in Corpus Christi, Texas blowing away my swing-set as we peeked out the window after hiding in a closet under mattresses. When Category five Hurricane Andrew blew into Louisiana's coast, I was pregnant with my first child, and we lived in New Orleans at the time. We evacuated inland to Donaldsonville, La. to avoid a direct hit. Unfortunately, Andrew changed course and hit us spot on. It was the scariest twenty-four hours of our lives. When we emerged the next day, it looked like an atomic bomb had gone off all around. The tall grasses were sideways from the wind. It didn't carry with it the same kind of rainfall that Harvey did, but the winds and destruction went on for miles. Katrina hit after I moved away, but it displaced a large number of family members as well. Hurricane Rita hit my hometown and caused damage on my parent's property several years ago. So, I am somewhat of a weather freak. I watch it on television with the same intensity as the Game of Thrones season finale.

I am utterly amazed and horrified at the sheer devastation and flooding of homes and businesses Harvey has wrought. But I'm also heartened by the human spirit and the way people from every background have pulled together and continue to help one another.

Consider any form of help you have to offer the victims. They will need assistance for some time. Certainly, keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

Susan

Holding Out for a Hero - Cowboys

One of the not-so-guilty pleasures in writing romance is writing about men. The opposite gender intrigues us from an early age, and for many of us, is a life-long curiosity. In addition to real life, a romance reader indulges this interest through reading. You meet all kinds of men in the pages of romance novels and fall in love along with the heroine. I think it’s a bit like dreaming in that you can try on different scenarios in a safe space. Maybe you’d never date a bad boy in real life, but in the pages of a book—go for it.

Writers enjoy this experience too. I don’t even have the option of conducting a romance with a medieval knight in my day to day world, but that didn’t stop me from bringing some of these heroes to life on the page so I could imagine my way through the experience. Knights still fascinate me. So do sports heroes, regular guys, and military men. Cops, sheriffs, and billionaires. And now… at last… cowboys.

I may have avoided this much beloved hero for a while because of my background. I grew up on a farm, and I envisioned ranches as a kind of farming operation. Dusty, dirty, and a lot of work. I picked tomatoes often enough as a teen and found it decidedly unromantic. The animals are adorable, but they too, are labor intensive. Time changes some of those perceptions though. Did you ever dislike something as a kid and then look back on it later with a degree of fondness? That nostalgia hit for the family farm a few years ago. Not just ours either, but a whole community of farmers that I remembered from my youth. Much of where I grew up—a place full of small farms—is now full of housing developments. A bedroom community for a nearby city.

As I saw the past through different eyes, I began to feel the tug of ranches. Cowboys. The West. I could see the appeal. I read more about it. Travelled those places. Admired the way of life. When I sat down to write Second Chance Cowboy, I thought I’d just see how it went. And the moment I met Matt Briggs on the page, I knew there was no turning back. I was going to have affair after affair with cowboy heroes. I’m hooked.

It might be the proud, independent streak. The commitment to a time-honored way of life no matter how the world changes around them. The connection to the land. Or it could just be the boots and denim. Kidding. I love all of it and I can’t wait to write more of these heroes in their native habitat and out of it. To explore how they see the world. Because, no matter how many books I write, men still intrigue me. And right now, I’m in a serious cowboy phase.

***What about you? Do you read all sorts of heroes or have a favorite type? Share with me on the Last Chance Christmas, the prequel to my current release, Second Chance Cowboy. 

blog and I’ll give one random poster a download of

Eve Gaddy: Procrastinating With Pens

I was “working” (i.e. procrastinating) on my current project the other day when I was suddenly overwhelmed by the need to do something about my pens. I have no idea what normal people (non-writers) feel about pens but I confess, I have an addiction to them.

I love pens, by which I mean the whole gamut of writing utensils. Ballpoint pens, gel pens, glitter pens, fountain pens, markers and highlighters of all kinds and colors. Fine tip, medium tip, any kind of tip you want. And pencils. Plain and colored, mechanical and regular, but I do like pens more. Some of my obsession comes with the colors. When I was a child a brand new box of 64 crayons was one of my most treasured possessions.

I love the different colors. But when I am jotting down notes I tend to use a black ballpoint pen. It must meet certain requirements. I don’t like fat pens, probably because I have small hands with short fingers. I feel very clumsy using a fat pen. I don’t like heavy pens, either. It needs to write smoothly, with no blobs of ink coming out and I don’t want to have to turn myself inside out to force it to work.

If you’ve ever been to a writer’s conference you know that going into the goodie room and being able to get pens of all sorts it pure nirvana to someone like me. Writers use them as SWAG. I found one of my favorites at this years’ conference. Joanne Rock’s pen is exactly what I like. Plus it’s pretty. I’m going to email her and see where she got it.:) Because, you know, I need more pens.

Here are a few I like. The top one is Joanne Rock’s, the middle is Falguni Kothar’s, and the one on the bottom is Misha McKenzie’s.

Back to my procrastination. I cleaned out my pens. I got rid of all the pens that didn’t work. All the ones I never used and never would. All of the dried out markers, etc. I didn’t go through every pen in the house but at least the majority are nicely organized now. But not for long.

How about you? What is your favorite method of procrastination?

Check out my latest release, Return of the Cowgirl, the final book in the Gallaghers of Montana series. Available at your favorite digital outlet.

Visit me at my website: www.evegaddy.net

Facebook: www.Facebook.com/EveGaddyAuthor

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/evegaddy/

Twitter: @evegaddy

Sat hello to Veronica...

It’s been a weird month for me. Aside from my looming deadline for Harlequin Mills & Boon book ten, I’ve been preparing for the Historical Romance Retreat in Spokane in September where I am thrilled to be one of the featured authors.

I’m in some illustrious company- Julia Quinn, Eloisa James, Elizabeth Essex and my good friend and fellow Harlequin Historical author Nicole Locke to name but a few.

Billed as the Comicon for all lovers of historical romance, there is a tradition of dressing up in period costumes at the Retreat. To that end I have been sewing. In total I have made, or am still making, a genuine bonnet and three Regency dresses. The most impressive of which is ‘Veronica’, my red satin gown for the Grand Ball.

Being a larger lady, I’ve had to adapt the dress patterns. The easiest way to do this is to invest in a dress form. Mine is wearing one of my old bras stuffed with eight pairs of socks (yes, you did just read eight!) to ensure that my costumes fit my overt bosoms properly.

Here is a little montage of the stages of Veronica.

Virginia Heath writes raunchy, Regency romantic comedies for Harlequin Mills & Boon. 

How Do You Research? @AuthorKristina Knight

I'm in the middle of revisions...so I'm bringing back a familiar question: When do you research?

My favorite time to research is when I'm stuck. Doesn't sound very smart, does it? What I mean is, I don't necessarily research the place I'm writing about, the profession, the weather, etc. before I start writing. The beginnings of stories, for me, are kind of like epiphanies. Some of my writer friends talk about 'seeing' a fully-drawn scene and writing it down. I'm like that, kind of. I see a character, maybe two, hear a bit of dialogue and I'm off. The more the character 'talks' the more I see - foliage, buildings, beaches. It kind of draws itself in my imagination. All because the character is talking to me.

So I let that character talk and talk and talk. Until they can't talk any more. Sometimes they stop talking because I've written them into a corner or because I need to know something they aren't telling me. In either case, from that point, the research starts. I look up websites with pictures of the place I'm writing about, research the professions of my main characters, what homes in that area are built like/from, what the decor is..you name it, I look it up. Google is my friend, although I try to look at at least three sites before making a decision on anything. I also ask my friends and CPs (Facebook and Twitter are my friends when questions come calling), but I also try to look through professional sites - journalism, investment banking...and, on sites like the one for pro surfers or rock stars, the eye candy isn't bad, either.

From that research I may - or may not - find pictures of my main characters, people who remind me of them or look like them in some way. I make a collage of the 'best' pictures I find that evoke the feeling of that book on Pinterest and I make a collage pic that I print off and put on my writing board. While I'm making the collages, I'll also make my WIP playlist. Sometimes this is fast - less than an afternoon. Sometimes it takes days and I write a little and research a little. It's a clunky process but it works for me.

How about you? What's your research process? 

Kristina Knight’s latest release is <a href=“http://a.co/0fWvqvP”>Breakup in a Small Town</a>, the third book in her <a href=“http://www.kristinaknightauthor.com/slipperyrock.html”>Slippery Rock series</a>!

This isn't the man she married…

Jenny Buchanan never considered what "for better or for worse" meant when she married Adam Buchanan at nineteen. Six years and two little boys later, "for worse" arrives in the form of a tornado that ravages Slippery Rock and injures Adam. Now he's a stranger to his family…and love won't be enough to bring him back.

Only when Jenny asks him to move out does Adam become the husband she needs…but Adam isn't the only one who's changed. As their attraction sparks back to life, Jenny and Adam must learn what it is to grow up—and grow together—before this small-town breakup lasts forever.

Kristina Knight is a contemporary romance author, part-time swim-kid wrangler, and full-time Thin Mints enthusiast. You can find out more the book and Kristina on her website, and feel free to stalk follow her on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. 

It's Time for your Big O! By Jenny Gardiner

Ack!
I forgot I needed to post something and now I'm in a place with really lousy wifi so here's hoping this actually posts!

I just finished writing the last book in my Royal Romeo series and am awaiting edits from my editor. I laughed at myself with this book--The Royal Romeo series is a spin-off from my royal contemporary romance series, It's Reigning Men. Back when I started writing the It's Reigning Men series, I was sort of more a writer of women's fiction and chick lit, and with those genres you didn't need to write much in the way of sex scenes.

But when I started writing rom/com series, I knew I was going do need to step it up a notch (or two or three). But it was a very gradual process. Back when I started the IRM series, I kept thinking "ugh, what it my mother reads this?!" Which I know is stupid but still. My mom passed away a couple of years ago so that is no longer a concern. But then my mother-in-law kept telling me she wanted to read all of my books in my series and I kept assuring her she wouldn't enjoy them. I no longer worried about my mother reading my stuff and then my mother-in-law is going to make me anxious about it?

I know, I know, it's ridiculously juvenile of me to even worry about this but hey, what can I say?! I finally just had to let go of that and not sweat it. Which brings me to my last book in the Royal Romeo series, Big O Romeo. The title alone, well, sort of needed legit sex scenes in it based on the title alone. And I did not disappoint. Not only that, but I realized that finally I was actually comfortable writing sex scenes and frankly don't care who reads them (well, um, I'd be fine if my kids don't read them, but, whatever!).

I've really enjoyed writing these two series and now have to figure out what my next series is going to be. Whatever it is, I'm sure that there are going to be ample sex scenes at this point, now that I've hit my stride haha!

I hope you'll have a chance to check out my Royal Romeos series, which is a spin-off of my wildly popular It's Reigning Men series--please do check them out!

Happy reading!