Welcome a fellow Samhain Author! Promise I’ll be back tomorrow! ~DD

Note from Kelly Jamieson:

I’m a blogging mad woman this week with the release of my latest Samhain book Lost and Found. I think I’m all blogged out. I’ve blogged about how many times this book was rejected because it didn’t fit into any genre quite right, combining elements of women’s fiction with romance. I’ve blogged about how much I appreciate digital publishers like Samhain Publishing who can publish books that take a risk and don’t fit the usual mold. I’ve blogged about all the rules I broke with this book, romance rules like not having a married heroine, and not tackling issues such as pregnancy, infertility and infidelity. I even have a blog coming this weekend about the importance of the setting in this story – the ocean plays an important role for Krissa and Nate, and there are symbols of their lives on the beach – tumultuous waves, tangled seaweed, an empty sea shell. And oh yeah, about the 4 STAR review from RT Book Reviews, who said it’s “emotionally complex, well-written” and a “complex, affecting romance”.

I’ve asked the questions about black and white, and shades of gray. For example, few people would ever agree that infidelity is okay. It’s a pretty black and white issue, right? Infidelity is wrong. But are there shades of gray? Are there powerful desires and emotions that compel people to make the choices they do? Can good people make bad decisions? Do they still deserve to find happiness?

Kelly Jamieson, author of romance with sweet heat, believes in the power of romance stories to portray strong, loving, romantic, sexual relationships that succeed, and to celebrate strength, courage, honor, and love. She believes love, romance and sex teach us about ourselves, about each other and about relationships, and break down barriers and boundaries.

Visit her website or email her at info@kellyjamieson.com.

Welcome today’s guest blogger, Kari Thomas! ~DD

Note from Kari:

I LOVE SEXY SHAPESHIFTERS! The sexier, the better! There, I said it. Anyone else? There’s just something about a man who has a primal side as well as a tender side; and shapeshifters fit that description to perfection. Take a Cat Shifter. Primal, Protective, Possessive. He lives to protect the ones he loves. My hero in UNDER A SHIFTER’S MOON, Lyon Savage is what I call the prime example of a SEXY Shapeshifter. Lyon is fighting for the position of being Alpha to his Jaguar Pride. If his brother wins the title, a Shifter’s war is on the horizon and the Pride will be in danger of extinction. In order to save them, Lyon has to fulfill a Decree that says he has to marry a special women destined to give him a son who will be the future salvation of the Pride. But, Lyon falls in love with her aunt, Kitlene. Now he’s left with the choice to either choose the love of his life OR the future salvation of his Pride. And there’s one more obstacle: if he chooses Kitlene, her life is forfeit.

Tell me what you think about those sexy shapeshifters! And be sure and visit my site for info on this book and my others. I also have FREE Short Stories available at my website.

My latest Book is UNDER A SHIFTER’S MOON
THE WINNER OF THE BEST 2009 SHIFTERS BOOK AWARD!
You can also view a Trailer

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Author: Kari Thomas
ISBN: 978-1-934912-21-8
Price: $14.95 paperback
Price: $8.00 Ebook (PDF format)
Pages: 204 paperback

He was fated for another, but created to love her …

Decreed by Elders, alpha Jaguar Shifters Lyon Savage and his brother must decide Pride rule in a way not seen for centuries. Under a Shifter’s Moon, a mating can take place with a chosen human to produce a child, and the father of that child will become the one Alpha. Now Lyon must choose the love of his Truemate—or accept the decree to save his Pride and secure his future.

Strong and selfless, Kitlene is a rare woman whose blood, like her niece’s, carries something of the Shifter within its DNA. Willing to sacrifice herself for the sake of family, she offers herself to the Alpha Cat whose very presence pulls at her soul—and whose love brings with it a deadly complication.

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She was facing the direction of the stairs so he could see her face clearly. His breath caught. She was incredibly beautiful; an oval face, softly pink-tinged complexion, cupid-bow mouth, small nose. Her long-lashed eyes were large and round. For some reason, her eyes made him instantly think of a Persian cat’s eyes. He grinned at the contradiction; he had the odd thought that her obvious spunk would keep her from being as sweet natured as the Persian breed. Even from his distance he could see the soft, dove-grey color.

They were the most fascinating eyes he’d ever seen on a woman. A man could easily—willingly drown in their mysterious, sultry depths. He could. He frowned at the disturbing thought. He let his gaze roam over her one more time before coming back to rest on her ethereal face. She wasn’t wearing makeup—or she was an expert at making it appear that way—and the look was as much innocence as it was sensual. The odd combination was fascinating and it intrigued him like nothing else had in a long time. He watched her gaze around the room. Her expression was neutral, but even from this distance he could see her eyes mirror her nervous thoughts. What would those expressive, lovely eyes reveal when her gaze first met his? He was suddenly anxious to find out. Lyon found his feet moving before he even had the actual thought. He bounded down the stairs, sending a glance toward the corner where Mason and Beau were talking to the coyote group. His body was tight, his muscles tense and ready to allow his jaguar self to emerge. But this time it wasn’t because of the anticipation of a fight.

No, his jaguar soul had sighted prey. His prey. His. That soul-felt confirmation only proved he was right. This woman was Ariel. Somehow his jaguar self already recognized her.

Whoa. That shocked him. Realization hit him like a hard, breath-stealing punch to the gut and then arrowed straight to his soul. He came to an abrupt standstill yards away from her. He inhaled roughly, taking her sweet, oddly familiar scent deep into him. His entire body immediately went into hard sensual overload. Stark, possessive instincts rose in him for the first time in his life. He’d never felt anything like it. His jaguar self pushed forward. Primal.

I’m still covered up in relatives, but I did get some good news yesterday!

#1) I got confirmation that I’ll be in Cleis Press’s Passion collection that releases in November. You can take a look at the cover and preorder the book here:
Passion: Erotic Romance for Women

#2) That next Lone Star Lovers book, Four Sworn, will be released in September! So not a huge long wait! My editor and I are talking about dates to turn in the sequel so that you’ll get to read it before the end of the year. You’ll want it bad after you read Four Sworn.

I have to get back to the relatives. I think we’re all taking a morning swim. Here’s the question:

What world record would you most want to establish if you could?

I’m blogging today at Access Romance about Warlord’s Destiny, which is being re-released next Monday as its own individual story! I’d love to see some familiar faces there!

In the meantime, the old homeplace is still bursting to the seams with relatives. Yesterday’s family reunion was a huge success, even if it was hot as Hades! I jumped into the pool with all the kids to cool off.

I received a bit of good news last night. My Samhain editor wrote to tell me how much she enjoyed the third Lonestar Lovers book and offered me a contract. I got even better news today—it will be published in September!

P.S. Almost forgot about the contest! The winner (by random number generator) is…Brandy! Brandy, I know you must already have Relentless, but let’s talk about what I can send you instead.
😉

The winner of yesterday’s contest will be announced tomorrow. So be sure to post for a second time to win today!

This week, I finished a short story for a Cleis collection and shipped it to the editor. I won’t hear until August whether my story makes the cut. The payout is a very small one, but not the reason I wrote it. Short stories offer a challenge. Telling a story in just a few words hones a writer’s skills.

I also wrote a proposal, just a short treatment, of a concept I have for my own compilation. If it’s accepted it will be a fun project and something different for me to try.

This week, I also began a new novella for Ellora’s Cave. I have a chapter done, and the rest should go really fast. It’s a shapeshifter story—something furry and very sexy.

I was pleased with my accomplishments this week. Family has descended for the reunion this weekend, so I paused for a couple of days. My sister-in-law took a walk around the farm today and came back saying a stray dog was inside the pasture fence. I’m such a softie. I went to take a look and couldn’t resist. I’ve named him Fenris (after Fenrisulfr, the monstrous wolf from Norse mythology). He’s solid black and looks to be part border collie and part German shepherd. He seems very sweet, and very happy that someone wants him. He’s also emaciated.

My daughter bathed him to kill fleas and ticks, which he had aplenty. He stoicly suffered through it, even though he shivered the whole time. Afterward, we let him into the yard where he ate and curled up under our patio table. Looks like he’ll be happy to stay and join our family. We gave him a puppy shot (we think he’s about 2 years old based on his teeth), and tomorrow he will be handed to my son-in-law who will get him dewormed, neutered and then keep him for a couple of weeks of obedience training. I’ll try to remember to take pictures tomorrow.

Oh, and I picked up my new painting, Blueberry Blast, yesterday! 😎

Although I complain a lot about distractions, I write best when I’m under pressure. Sometimes, the pressure comes from a deadline that’s rushing toward me too fast. Sometimes, it’s everything else in my life getting more complicated. I have a little bit of both going on at the moment.

We are having a family reunion this weekend, which means the house has to be scoured top to bottom. I don’t have to do it all, but I have to pitch in. Thank God, I don’t have to do anything about food prep.

The Rose’s Plotting Bootcamp requires that I post lessons and feedback to the lessons on a daily basis. I got up at 6 AM this morning to take care of that before anything else got in the way.

I have the new novella to plow through. The first chapter is messy, but on paper now instead of still in my head. I’d like to finish chapter two tomorrow.

I have to get ready to read and work through the next chapter of Robert Ray’s The Weekend Novelist with the workgroup I started online.

I have to start working through character sketches, setting notes, choose themes and props and weapons for the new Viking book.

And I have to do some of all of that today—after I finish this blog—which is why it looks like my To Do list, because all those details are swirling in my mind.

Most of you have day jobs and look at the weekends as a break. I write, or do writerly things seven days a week. It’s the cost of doing what I love, and believe me there are tons of benefits that outweigh those costs, but it is still wearing.

So, I’m going to get started on my long list of things to do, and hopefully be back tomorrow with something a heck of lot more interesting for you to read!

The royalty fairy landed, delivering a nice little surprise, and to celebrate I decided to treat myself to one of my passions. I love myth and history books, dragons, jewelry and paintings. Paintings done by my mother or my friends mean the most. A friend did this for me because I was looking for something blue. Don’t you just love the water droplets on the berries? Wonder if she knows I plan to hang it in my bathroom.