Wednesday, July 29, 2015

More Fun Summer Reading

We are continuing fun summer reads today with a new romance from author Angela Hayes, Love's Battle. It's always great to hear from the author, who says she splits her time between bringing characters to life by computer and yarn to life with needle and hook. She answered some questions for us about her writing career.  Did you always want to be a writer?

I toyed with the idea when I was little, I would write poems, short stories, etc. but it wasn’t until I was older, a mother of young kids, that I dreamed up the idea for Love’s Battle and while writing it, really considered becoming a writer. Once I did, the idea of it stuck and I decided that I wanted to make writing my career.

How did you get started in publishing?
Love’s Battle is my first official published book. I did start a blog back years ago when I went through a battle with cancer. It was eye opening, very cathartic, a way to help others in my situation, and a way to remember (like keeping a journal).

Congratulations! We'd love to know where you got the idea for it.

The idea for Love’s Battle came when, like a singles, you wonder, why can’t I just know who I’m supposed to spend the rest of my life with? That got me thinking. If I could really know who I’m supposed to with, would I still want to be with that person? And it evolved from there.

What do you like best about your heroine and hero?
I love that they’re unique, confident, and willing to take chances. I mean, what bigger chance could you take than to bare your soul to someone and hope they don’t throw it back in your face.
What are you working on now?

I’m finishing edits on a short story for The Wild Rose Press’ Candy Heart series. It’s about a cupid who falls in love with a fairy. I’m very excited about it.

We'll look forward to that.  How about a blurb for Love's Battle?

Love Howard has more than a knack for matchmaking. Born from a forbidden passion and a twelve-hundred-year-old promise, she and her sisters can literally see true love. And while Love has no problem bringing other couples together, her own romantic life could use a little help.

Danton DeAngelo has always been well grounded in reality. So it throws him for no small loop when the woman he’s fallen for believes that she’s been reincarnated eleven times and can actually see true love.

Now Danton is faced with the biggest decision of his life. Accept Love for who she really is, or walk away from her forever.
 
If love isn't worth fighting for, what is?
 
That sounds like a perfect book for summer reading. Here are the links to get your copy of Love's Battle: 
 
Thanks, Angela, for being my guest. Here is how to get in touch with her. Any questions or comments for Angela?
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Wednesday, July 15, 2015

Positive and Negative Words for Summer Romance Readers

This week we continue our fun summer reading series with a look at the books of Linda Joyce. Linda joins us today with a special blog on reading.

Take it away, Linda!

What are your words for summer romance?

I’m working on a manuscript, Bayou Brides, book four of the Fleur de Lis series. I’m putting down all kinds of words, going with the flow, and loving the energy of the mood.

Writing, unlike other forms of art, must first be captured on paper/computer screen, a writer’s raw material, before it can be polished into a gem of a book. I’m mentally and emotionally hanging out in the near past in Mississippi immediately following Hurricane Katrina—I’m engrossed. My fingers flyacross the keys far faster than when I played piano.
Then my cell phone dings.
The real world comes into focus.
Dictionary.com posts the word for the day—Incondite.

Darn! My concentration is now broken, so I flip over to the Dictionary site on my laptop for a short, yet educational break. After all, who would know? I’m sitting in my writing cavealone except for the snores from three canines. I can take a few minutes to engage in a worthwhile word game to improve my writing. (That’s my story, and I’m sticking to it.)
Once at the website, the game appears like a pop quiz. The current challenge: Positive and negativewords for summer romance. Intriguing.

(By the time you read this post, the link should still work, but the game may be different. I urge you to give it a go. I dare you.)
Hmmm….This vocab game will be a slam-dunk! Of course, I know ALL the vocabulary words for romance. What better way to take a break than to boost my writing confidence with a 100% correct score?

And so I begin. There are four possible choices for each vocabulary word. The best thing about the quiz is that it provides IMMEDIATE feedback. A bright green star and checkmark appear at the top of the page and highlight the correct answer. But then, RED! I missed one! Cosset. *Sigh* I never recall cosset used in any romance novel I’ve read. So now the challenge is to finda novel containing the usage.
One of the dogs bumps my arm. I remember—I’m supposed to be writing! I’d better get back to that.

In case you’re in need of a distraction, let Bayou Beckons, my new release be the ding that takes you away. Happy Reading!
Party-girl and bayou babe Camilla Lind treats life like a game. After sleeping with her sister’s fiancé, she’s struggling to change, but karmic payback is a bitch. When the actions of her past crash into the present, they stand to ruin her future...and destroy any chance of love with the only man she’s ever wanted.
Rancher Jared Richardson guards his heart carefully after suffering the pain of infidelity. He never expected to fall for a woman like Camilla Lind, nor did he think he’d follow her across the country to beg for a second chance at love.

As Hurricane Katrina bears down on them, can they weather the storm and put aside past hurts to embrace their future together?

Bayou Beckons, book three of the Fleur de Lis series is now available at Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Linda-Joyce/e/B00BODDROS/

Bayou Bound, book two of the series is a 2015 RONE Award Finalist. (Winners to be announced at InD’tale magazine in September.) It also won 1st Place in Romance from the Southeastern Writers Association.
Bayou Born, book one, is a 2014 RONE Finalist.
PS- The vocabulary in the game is not just for romance readers. These words appear in many genres. After you take the quiz, please let me know what you think.

Thanks, Linda!  You may get me hooked on that game. Here's how to reach Linda. Any questions or comments?

Website: Linda-Joyce

Facebook Author Page: LindaJoyceAuthor

Twitter: @LJWriter 



Wednesday, July 8, 2015

Paranormal Summer Reading

This week in My Writing Corner we are continuing our Summer reading with a romantic story about ghostly happenings. The book is Restless Spirit, just released by The Wild Rose Press, and the author is  M. Kate Quinn. It's the second book she has set in Ronan Harbor, New Jersey, and it sounds like delightful summer reading.
 
Did you always want to be a writer?
 It began when I was in the second grade.  My teacher, Mrs. Sprowl, had written a partial sentence on the blackboard and then asked us to finish it then write a story using that as the first sentence.  I will never forget that feeling of suddenly having a magic wand in my hand, which was actually a pencil.  Later, when Mrs. Sprowl was reading through the stories, she called me up to her desk and told me I was going to be a writer some day. 

How did you get started in publishing?
I took an early retirement from academia and decided then that it was my time to really give a writing career a try.  So, I joined New Jersey Romance Writers (sat in the back at my first meeting with who-am-I-kidding chanting in my head) and took copious notes, talked with people in the know, and went to every conference.  At my first conference I took a leap of faith and grabbed a pitch session that had been cancelled by someone else.  I met an editor from The Wild Rose Press and she liked my story idea and asked for a partial submission.  That was my first sale.  I’ve just released my fifth.


Tell us about your latest book, Restless Spirit, and where you got the idea for it. 
Restless Spirit is a story of a young woman who came back to her home town in Ronan’s Harbor, New Jersey, to nurse her dying mother.  Now at the one-year anniversary of her mom’s passing strange things are happening in the house.  Antiques crash to the floor, sounds in the night, strange smells wafting through the rooms…..She’s got a ghost!  The K-9 officer that she’s been interviewing for her local TV program gets wrapped up in the ghostly mayhem and, although the two are dead set against getting involved in romance, somehow even a firm resolve is no match for a restless spirit.

What do you like best about your heroine and hero? 
What I like best about the two of them is that they each grapple with a fear that has held them hostage from realizing a dream and through trial and tribulation they each overcome their fears.

What are you working on now?
 Currently I am working on the third and final book in the Ronan’s Harbor Series.  It is in a nebulous stage but I can say that it involves a reluctant bridal shop owner and the father of a bridezilla. 

That sounds like another wonderful story. Let's get a look at Restless Spirit along with an excerpt:
 
Strange things are happening at Aubrey Donner's cottage in Ronan's Harbor, NJ. Noises in the night, crashing antiques and an eerie presence all add up to only one thing: her cottage is haunted.

Her new job hosting a pet-related program on local television finds her battling to hide her lifelong fear of dogs from local no-nonsense K-9 officer Asa Kavanaugh and his four-footed, pony-sized partner, Scout. Aubrey can't wait to be done with the duo until she realizes she can use Asa and Scout's help to wrangle her phantom. While chasing shadows, yearnings of two wounded hearts collide, banishing old fears and unveiling the possibility that true love may really exist after all.

  When I initially asked you to bring a memento to the séance I didn’t realize we would be sitting
amongst so many. It’s fine. Please, have a seat.”
     A triple-wick candle with its zealous flames had been placed in the center of the table. It cast a dancing glow over the purple covering Joanie had found downtown at Franklin’s today.
     “At this time we will place our hands on the table and stretch our fingers out wide.” Ira’s tone was
authoritative. His words’ substantive quality only served to rattle Aubrey more. Her knees shook under the table.
     “Touch your pinky fingers to the person’s beside you,” Ira continued. “We are making an unbroken ring. We do this to protect against negativity.”
     Aubrey placed her hands on the table, watching out the corner of her eye at Asa beside her. His big masculine hands were outstretched. His right pinky sought and found her left. A kind of vibration extended from their connected digits, and she was tempted to pul laway. She knew better than to meet his gaze she felt onher, wooing her to turn her head.
     On her other side, Joanie also placed her hands into position and pressed the tip of her smallest finger against Aubrey’s right one. One by one, they all formed an unbroken ring of their hands.
     “Let us begin,” Ira said, the cadence of his voice clergy-like. “We close our eyes and still our minds.”
      Aubrey squeezed her eyes shut, trying to keep her thoughts still as Ira had asked. But there was a big man, with a teasing dimple, sitting beside her, his electric finger pressing onto hers. She shook her head and tried to dismiss the sensation that quivered through her veins.
 
Okay, I'm hooked! That is going on my list of summer reading books.  Here are the details for reaching M. Kate Quinn and for buying her new book.
 
Facebook:  Fans of M. Kate Quinn
Twitter:  @mkatequinn
 
Now Available at
 
 
Thank you, Mary Kate,  for being my guest and good luck with your new book.  Any questions or comments?


Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Hot Summer Reading

Today we continue our summer reading with a paranormal romance by author J.L. Sheppard, Heavenly Desire, Elemental Sisters III.  It is the third installment of the Elemental Sisters Series and right now it is a bargain for your summer reading. For the next week, it is on sale for 99 Cents.

Here's a look:

Clyde, an angel, battles the one thing he believes will lead to his fall from heaven--his new found emotions, forbidden among his kind. Nonetheless, the Angel Lords promise to promote him to warrior when he completes his last assignment--to find Jade. When he does, emotions he never knew possible arise.. For the first time in two thousand years, he cursed his existence. Knowing she can never be his, will he sacrifice his wings for a woman he loves but can't keep?

Sounds like a great book to read this summer!

J. L. began her publishing career two years ago with the first Elemental Sisters book, Demon King's Desire. She has wanted to be an author since she was a child and that was her greatest aspiration. Born and raised in Miami, FL, where she still lives, she began writing by keeping a journal and wrote countless poems. A graduate of Florida International University,  she later worked in a TV news department for three years.

She has received great reviews for this book, receiving five stars from Night Owl reviews and from the Paranormal Romance Guild.

Ready for an excerpt to tempt you?

He bent toward her, wrapped one arm around her waist, the other around her back, then buried his face in the crook of her neck and inhaled.
 
Relishing the feel of her body melded against his, he forgot the worries consuming him. She soothed his ache with a mere touch, with a mere embrace.
 
Exactly what he’d wanted, exactly what he needed.
 
She then pressed her full lips against his cheek, kissing him lightly.
 
An innocent kiss. There was no passion behind it, but an unconscious consuming need, one he’d never felt, swelled inside him—desire. It was exciting, overwhelming and terrifying, blocking logic and reason.
 
All he wanted now was a single kiss. All he could think about was how her soft lips would feel pressed against his.
 
Marvelous, he concluded.
 
It was absurd to want what he did and feel what he felt, for he was an angel. Carnal desires even as insignificant as kisses were for others, for all others except his breed, and yet he felt it so deeply it seared him.
 
The desire that gripped him didn’t release him even after she unhooked her arms from around his neck, and the warmth of her body melted away.
 
There he stood, immobile, battling the desire she’d sparked. He didn’t want to leave yet knew he had to before he’d acted out his longing.
 
He willed his body to move. Finally, he placed one foot behind the other, stepped back and strode away praying the yearning he had no right to feel for a woman who would never be his would soon subside.
 
                                                                  * * *

Don't you want to keep reading?  As I noted, Heavenly Desire is on sale for the next week if you want to get a copy. Here are the links:

The Wild Rose Press:  http://www.wildrosepublishing.com/maincatalog_v151/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=195&products_id=5800
Amazon:
B&N:
Kobo:

Here's how to contact Jean:
Contact:
 
Thanks, Jean, for being my guest.  Any questions or comments for Jean?





Enjoying the Writing Ride

As a longtime reader of romance and mystery/suspense books, I  have always enjoyed reading books in a series--stories with familiar characte...