I’ll name Monday’s winner at the bottom of this post. In the meantime, welcome my an old friend of mine from Texas, Meg Benjamin! Here’s what she has to say about her latest release:
As I’ve said before, probably way too many times by now, I can’t listen to music while I write. Wish I could, but I can’t. That doesn’t mean I don’t like to listen to music while I’m doing other things, however. In fact, one of the things I really miss about Texas is the great music you hear all the time. Texas musicians just rock, and no matter where you live in the state, there’s always a road house around the bend somewhere. You know how there are some songs that just kind of wash over you, like audible warm water, and some songs that make you just want to, well, move? Texas musicians specialize in the latter.
Which brings me to my subject—James McMurtry’s song “Red Dress.” Now McMurtry is one of my all-time favorite Texas musicians, probably best known for his “Choctaw Bingo,” which is a real rave-up. But “Red Dress” is one of those songs that makes you want to do a little hip swinging. Every time I hear it, I end up swaying in my seat. It’s slow, sensuous, with a really heavy beat and oddly ominous lyrics (you get the feeling the singer is going to be ripping that red dress to shreds any minute). And it haunted my thoughts when I was writing Wedding Bell Blues. I wanted a scene where my heroine, a “good girl” named Janie Dupree, could cut loose and give some hints about the bad girl that lies beneath the surface. That gave me the idea for a scene where Janie and her friends danced to McMurtry’s “Red Dress” while the hero, Pete Toleffson, watched. I have to say, every time I worked on this scene, I started by playing “Red Dress” to get myself in the mood. Here’s an excerpt. If you want to judge how well the song fits the action, there’s always iTunes!
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A series of guitar chords, rhythmically hypnotic, came over the sound system. Docia jumped to her feet. “Come on, ladies, let’s do it,” she called, heading for the concrete slab. Allie trooped behind her, as Janie turned to beckon to Bethany.
“Oh, Christ,” Cal murmured. “Here we go.”
“Here goes what?”
Cal shook his head. “You’ll see.”
The song had something to do with a red dress. Pete managed to get his brain to register that much. The singer seemed to be upset because his girlfriend was wearing a red dress he didn’t recognize and he figured she was playing around.
The slow, sensuous rhythm of the guitar and bass filled the air and the four women moved their bodies more or less in unison, like some cowgirl chorus line.
Pete glanced at Wonder and saw him swallow hard as he watched Allie.
Then he looked back at the women again.
Janie Dupree moved in a graceful swaying motion, her eyes closed, as if she were dancing for herself alone. She raised her arms above her head and moved her body back and forth, the most elegant bump and grind he’d ever seen. Read the rest of this entry »
I have a winner to name, but I’m thinking I will do that on Thursday AM, so if you want a second chance to win, go ahead and post a comment today to let me now you stopped by!
The reason I sound a little rushed is that I have two houseguests, Allie Standifer and Shayla Kersten. We stayed up late last night plotting world domination and trying to figure out if we wanted to hit Hot Springs for a spa day. I’ll let you know later whether we made it or just lazed around the pool.
I’ve known Allie for a number of years. That makes her sound old, which she isn’t, because she’s the baby of the Rose’s Colored Glasses Roses. We met when I lived in San Antonio. Now, I have known Shayla since before cell phones so we really are that old.
Sorry for the short post, but I have to make some coffee and pry my eyes open before the other two stumble out of bed. It would never do for them to think I’d rather stay in bed than have an adventure! I’ll try to remember to take pictures today. Until tomorrow, adios! ~DD
It’s 5 AM and I’m bleary-eyed at the moment. I brought the 5-year-old home for an overnight. She decided that sleep was a waste of good Nina-time so we’re curled up on the couch watching Shark Tale. Will Smith at this hour is damned annoying.
Not a stellar week. All right, so I did finish a rough draft of a short novella, but it was a really ugly first draft and that stopped me in my tracks. I put it aside and played with family for a couple of days. I’m hoping tomorrow morning I’ll be able to start afresh and finish the thing.
With my sister, Elle James, I taught a class for my Diamond State Romance Authors group on World Building. While I was talking, I got the itch to write another paranormal. Have to give it a little more thought. I think I want to go back to another medieval vampire book or maybe do a succubus. Blood-sucking or soul-sucking—either way it looks like I want to write about someome doing some sucking.
This next week, I have to wrap up that short novella. It’s half of a duet that Sasha White and I intend to publish on Kindle all by our little selves. Sasha just started her story, so she’ll probably be done days before I finish revising my horribly flawed little lump of coal into a glittering diamond.
Sis reminded me yesterday that we are on the hook to teach another Plotting Bootcamp online May 31 through June 26. I completely forgot about it. Now I have to get into the mindset, review our material, and start to talk about it so that folks know they can jump in and begin planning their summer project.
I zipped through the end of the rough draft of a new novella yesterday. I asked for beta readers for this one because I knew something was off, but was too close to it to see how to fix it. Between Heather, Masha, Virginia and Renee, I got some great feedback. My puzzle today is how to implement changes without a complete rewrite. The parts of the story that are there are good, it’s the glue between the scenes that needs to be applied because I rushed my couple and the ultimate four-ple (my word) into bed. It’s days like these I really wish I hadn’t quit smoking.
Last night I rewarded myself with a TIVO’d episode of one of my favorite shows, In Plain Sight. Yeah, I miss the adorable Rafael in Mary’s life, but the older, and more flawed, FBI agent Faber is completely right for Mary. All through the episode, I was silently nudging Mary to give him a chance. I think last night she finally succumbed to his charm. That awkward little peck he gave her at the end made me smile.
However, as much as I loved the show, I miss the drama of her dysfunctional family. Her sister Brandy is off to New Jersey blowing her boyfriend’s $20,000 doing who knows what, and we’re only getting an occasional phone call to remind us she exists? Really? Her mom is working in a dance studio, but has she also moved out of Mary’s home? Nooooooo! I need Jinx to fall off the wagon, to fall in love and fall apart. I need Mary to wallow a little more in family-made disasters because when shit hits the fan that’s when she shines.
Okay, so I’d much rather be thinking about Mary and the letter I want to send to the show’s writers than thinking about how to fix my own messy manuscript. It’s time to shut up, pull up my big girl’s panties and get to work.
You hear a lot of complaints from authors about their publishers and you know? That’s understandable. My husband works for an amazing company, but there are days he wants to sit upper management down for “a talk”. 🙂 The entities with so much control over our livelihoods are bound to inspire both positive and negative feelings at times. Right now? I’m just truly loving Harlequin.
For such a behemoth company, they are incredibly innovative. They’re always trying new things, looking for ways to reach more readers and opening doors for their authors. I’m sure you know they were the first major publisher to put their books out in digital format en masse. And I’m betting you’ve heard of their new electronic-only publishing venture, Carina Press. But I wonder if you know about all the print alternatives they continue to provide beyond their regular lines and imprints. The Manga versions of popular books and most recently their new venture—the Harlequin Showcase. Showcase is a single title venture (shelved with all the romance books, not the Harlequin series) that brings back previously released series books in a 2-in-1 format for readers who missed the books the first time around.
As an author, I’m thrilled by this new venture. Why? Because I get tons of letters weekly asking where readers can find my now out-of-print and often unavailable even in used venues Presents. So, when I was told one such story, “The Sicilian’s Marriage Arrangement” would be in the May launch, I was over the moon! I have a lot of readers who have asked about this story and where to get it and now, it’s available again in a 2-in-1 with Julia James’ “The Greek’s Virgin Bride.” How cool is that?
It’s your turn: If you could sit the publishers down and talk to them, what would you ask for as a reader?
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The Sicilian’s Marriage Arrangement
Harlequin Showcase: Reissue
ISBN-10: 0373688024
ISBN-13: 978-0373688029
Hope Bishop is stunned when darkly sexy Sicilian tycoon Luciana di Valerio proposes marriage. Brought up by her wealthy but distant grandfather, she is used to fading into the background. But Luciano’s sensual lovemaking makes her feel vibrantly alive. Hope falls in love with her husband and is blissfully happy—until she discovers that Luciano married her to fulfill his own ruthless agenda…!
The book also includes the fabulous “The Greek’s Virgin Bride” by Julia James.
Look for Showcases in the single title romance section of your favorite bookstores!
Award winning author Lucy Monroe published her first book in September of 2003. Since then she has sold more than 50 books to four publishers and hit national bestsellers lists in the US and England. Whether it’s a passionate Harlequin Presents, a sexy action adventure, or a steamy paranormal historical, Lucy’s books transport her readers to a special place where the heart rules and love conquers all.
Don’t go to your stack to talk about the best books you’ve read recently! What will you be curling up with today?
Because I’ve been napping so much lately, I chose a short story collection to read. And I must say, I’m enjoying it very much! This is the book:
Yes, Sir: Erotic Stories of Female Submission
by Rachel Kramer Bussel (Editor)
Pub. Date: March 2008
Trade Paperback, 210 pp
Okay, so I didn’t select it for enjoyment but because I’m working on a short novella with D/s flavorings and wanted to immerse myself in the language and lifestyle before charging forward. But collections like these are addictive—like boxed chocolates. Can you really stop at just one bite? The stories are sometimes strange but always stimulating. Since they are written in first person (at least those I’ve read so far), I feel as though I’m taking a glimpse inside someone else’s bedroom. Very, very stimulating…
Your turn.
Tell me what you are reading and what it’s doing for you.
Last night I rewarded myself with a TIVO’d episode of one of my favorite shows, In Plain Sight. Yeah, I miss the adorable Rafael in Mary’s life, but the older, and more flawed, FBI agent Faber is completely right for Mary. All through the episode, I was silently nudging Mary to give him a chance. I think last night she finally succumbed to his charm. That awkward little peck he gave her at the end made me smile.
