Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Romancing the West

We're heading into the Wild West this week for My Writing Corner as we visit the fascinating, romantic world of Meg Benjamin.

She is an award-winning author of contemporary romance. Her Konigsburg series for Samhain Publishing is set in the Texas Hill Country and her Ramos Family Trilogy is set in San Antonio’s King William District.

Her Salt Box trilogy takes place in her new home, the Colorado Rockies. She’s also the author of Going Up In Flames, part of the Sapphire Falls Kindle World series. Meg’s books have won numerous awards, including an EPIC Award, a Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award, the Holt Medallion from Virginia Romance Writers, the Beanpot Award from the New England Romance Writers and the Award of Excellence from Colorado Romance Writers. Let's get a blurb on her newest book, Running on Empty.  I love this cover!


She’s running her heart out to stay in the same place.


Ronnie Ventura has every reason to distrust Fairstein Productions: she’s had run-ins with their shows before. But Fairstein’s newest reality show offers Ronnie a chance to redeem herself from looking like a blonde bimbo. All she has to do is win a modified triathlon. Simple, right? Except this is Fairstein, and nothing is ever simple with them.


Ronnie’s boss at the Blarney Stone bar and cafĂ©, owner Ted Saltzman, is a lot less convinced that another Fairstein show is just what Ronnie needs, particularly when he’s head over heels about Ronnie himself.  But she’s determined, and he’s a man in love.


Ted becomes her running coach, which fans their budding romance to a fever. But can Ronnie’s newfound confidence stand up to the usual Fairstein plots? And can Ted find a way to keep his true love in Salt Box if Hollywood tries to steal her away again?


Sounds like another award winner from Meg!  Here's the buy link at Amazon for Running on Empty and how to get in touch with her.



Meg’s Web site is http://www.MegBenjamin.com.
You can follow her on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/meg.benjamin1), Pinterest (http://pinterest.com/megbenjamin/), and Twitter (http://twitter.com/megbenj1).


Meg loves to hear from readers—contact her at meg@megbenjamin.com.

To purchase Meg’s books, you can visit her author page at  Samhain, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, or All Romance Ebooks. Meg’s books are also available through iBooks and other venues.


Thanks, Meg, for being our guest today.  Any questions or comments for Meg?








Wednesday, September 14, 2016

A Visit with A Vampire

There's a chill in the air letting us know the long nights of winter are on the way. That means staying inside and reading some delicious new romance books. And when I think of a cold winter night, what could be more fitting than a visit to Vampire-land! 

This week's guest author in My Writing Corner is Linda Nightingale. She was born in South Carolina but she has lived in England, Canada, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Atlanta and Houston.  She’s seen a lot of this country from the windshield of a truck pulling a horse trailer, having bred, trained and showed Andalusian horses for many years.

She has won several writing awards, including the Georgia Romance Writers Magnolia Award and is the mother of two sons, who are two of her favorite things, along with her snazzy black convertible, and her parlor grand piano.  She says she loves to dress up and host formal dinner parties.

Her newest book is Morgan D'Arcy, A Vampire Rhapsody. Linda, how about a visit to Morgan's house?

Morgan, the POV character in Morgan D'Arcy: A Vampyre Rhapsody, lives in a Mews House. He lives in  Eaton Place Mews in Belgravia, London. Pricey is a mild word. If you are interested, here is a real steal for only 6.75-mil pounds.   Mews House Belgravia

The term Mews is primarily British. Mews Houses were once carriage houses below and living quarters above, built around a paved yard or court, or along a street, behind large city houses during the 17th and 18th centuries. A 2015 survey of the Mews in London estimated that there were 433 Original/Surviving Mews properties still in existence.  

London's charming mews streets provide a wealth of unique and attractive houses. Typically set back from busy roads and often with their own indoor garage space, they provide a secluded, elegant haven from city life. They are now choice property and quite in demand. Mews owners describe the sense of community they enjoy, making these some of London's friendliest and welcoming streets to live on.  Let's go visit Morgan, shall we?

Here's the blurb:

The greatest enemy of a vampire is boredom. Four centuries of existence have taught Lord Morgan Gabriel D'Arcy to fear nothing and no one. Humans and their weapons have little chance against his preternatural speed and arcane powers. Vampires are viral mutations of human DNA. Still, the Vampyre code requires secrecy, and he has learned to hide his nature from the world.

The lure of mortality, of a life in the sun, puts Morgan again and again at the mercy of calculating human women though they fail to consider his charm and determination into the equation. However, even grooming a future bride from infancy proves to be fraught with heartbreak. And second chances are not always what they seem unless... you are Morgan. Immortality and beauty, aren’t they grand?


Contact info for Linda: 

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/LNightingale - @Lnightingale
Web Site:  http://www.lindanightingale.com – Visit and look around. There’s a free continuing vampire story.
Blog:  https://lindanightingale.wordpress.com/ - Lots of interesting guests & prizes

Thank you, Linda, for bringing us Morgan's story and the story of the Mews houses.  Any comments or questions for Linda?



Getting Into The Story

I've said it before, but it bears repeating--one of the reasons I began doing a blog on writing and writers was because I loved the idea...