As a reader of romance you may not realize what an author has gone through before their book is published. Particularly if it’s their first book—ever. You may also not realize that most every writer’s journey to publishing, whether it’s to self-publish or go with a traditional publisher, is vastly different and can be loaded with rejection.  As much as we would love it to be true, and often dream of, a ready-to-be-published book just doesn’t happen.

Authors go through rejections from agents, editors, beta readers, neighbors, the kind lady at the library who offered to read your book but then refused to look you in the eye the next time you came in to check out the latest Delilah Devlin blockbuster. We fret over the horror stories bandied about such as, “It took me eleven years before I received my first book contract.” Or my personal favorite, “I had a hundred and fifty rejections before I received my first yes.” Oh. My.

Others have experienced rejections from other writers (those meanies) and contest judges. As aspiring writers we often use contests to help us test the waters so to speak. Sometimes we receive encouragement and constructive criticism, but often we find rejection there as well. Because there’s nothing better an author loves more than entering a contest only to receive this little gem in the notes, “Am I supposed to hate your heroine?” Yes, folks that was written about my first paranormal heroine. That puppy is now hidden underneath my bed hanging out with the dust bunnies and forgotten Christmas presents.

How do we deal with the rejections? Chocolate. Cookies. Sometimes a nip of wine, or two or hell, just pass the bottle. Why not just give up you ask? Because we HAVE to write. The voices in our head won’t let us stop and if they catch wind of our self-doubt, they follow us everywhere and nag us until we get back to the computer, notebook, or a napkin, whatever is handy when inspiration strikes. Rest assured that your favorite author at some point in their career has sweated over every single word, each comma placement to get it just right. For you. Our awesome readers.

Every writer you meet will have a war story or two. And for those that keep going, and listen to the voices in their head by not giving up, success does happen. It doesn’t mean New York Times Bestseller success right out of the gate (although that would be AWEsome), it means finishing the book, getting it published and receiving positive feedback from readers…OMG! Someone reeeally likes my book!

As much as we all dream of scoring that big contract our first time out, it rarely happens. But what makes the journey bearable is by surrounding ourselves with other writers. A group of creative souls who relish storytelling and the impact it has on our readers. When we find a writing group, critique partner or even a beta reader who is in our corner, cheering us on and challenging us to write to the height of our writing ability, that’s gold baby.

I’m still in the trenches, receiving rejections, but not giving up. Who knows? This time next year, you could be reading my sexy contemporary SAVING MAVERICK.  Or my romantic suspense about this undercover female FBI agent who can’t stand her new pretend husband or maybe I’ll brush off the dust bunnies from my paranormal. Whichever one it happens to be, one thing is for sure, all it takes is one yes and I’ll have my own happily ever after.

Some writers who inspire me are Jill Shalvis, Rebecca Zanetti, Lara Adrian and Gena Showalter to name but a few of the outstanding authors in our industry today. Who is one of your favorite authors? If you’re also a writer, which author made you say “I want to write stories like that?”

Don’t forget – help an author, leave a review.

Debra

Come visit me and say Hi!
www.Debraelise.com
Facebook: DebraEliseAuthor
Twitter: @Debra_Elise
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Authors are strange people. We look at a harmless, everyday item and wonder how to kill a character with it, like Jason Bourne wasting a bad guy with a washcloth. We eavesdrop on conversations at Starbucks and ponder how we can use them in our novels. (So be careful what you say while in line for your latte!) I suffer from insomnia because my characters think bedtime is an ideal opportunity to get chatty about all the things they want to do in their stories. On one hand, I get some fabulous lines when I can’t sleep, on the other hand, I can’t sleep.

When I started writing Bite Me, it became clear that my heroine had a similar problem. But instead of her muse keeping her up all night, Lizzy hears her inner demon. Every vampire has a bit of demon inside them, and Lizzy’s is a succubus—a lust demon. Lizzy constantly battles her demon’s constant lustful urges and ongoing inappropriate commentary, and that struggle is only made worse when the zombie apocalypse happens.

I had a ton of fun writing Lizzy’s conversations with her demon, giving voice to her snarky inner monologue and generally driving Lizzy crazy. It’s like a little revenge for all the sleepless nights my characters have gifted me with. 😉 I hope readers enjoy reading Bite Me as much as I did writing it.

Consumed by the need to feed…

After an out-of-control spell triggers the zombie apocalypse, Lizzy Addams is left in the ruins of Chicago with only the slightly unhinged commentary—and endless erotic appetites—of her inner demon for company. Her blood supply dwindling, she is forced to find survivors to feed from, or die trying.

Officer Angela Kinney was on duty when hungry corpses overwhelmed the city. The survivors look to her for leadership, but nothing prepared her for a beautiful monster who offers safety in exchange for blood.

Sean MacMillan never expected to see Lizzy again after she rejected his attempts to lure her back to the vampire fold. But with his flock threatened by the horde and his murderous vampire brother, Lizzy is the only one he can trust to keep them safe.

The veil of secrecy shrouding the supernatural world torn apart, humanity’s only hope is to forge an alliance with vampires, werewolves, and things that go bump in the night. Though accepting their aid could be a devil’s bargain that puts humans at the bottom of the food chain.

Warning: Contains vampire orgies, angsty demon sex, a frisky lesbian werewolf, light kink, and enough sex toys to start a store.

Available at Amazon – Barnes and Noble – Kobo – iTunes – Samhain Publishing – All Romance eBooks.

I don’t know about you, but I love biker romances.  One of the things I love about bikers is their hot, sexy tattoos!  I love researching them to get ideas for my characters’ tattoos.  I’ve included a number of the pictures that inspired some of the tattoos for my Ready To Ride bikers.

I think my favourite is the thorn tattoo that looks like it’s piercing the skin.  This inspired the tattoo for Magic, one of my biker heroes, who has a thorny tattoo around his right wrist, where the thorns seemed to pierce his skin and bleed.  Words in script spiral up his arm within a thorny vine, then the vine coils over his shoulder and around his heart.  The thorns seem to pierce his skin and the artwork makes it look like there is a tear across his chest, revealing his heart beneath.

During FB parties, I sometimes ask my readers if they have tattoos and, if so, why they get them.  Often, a tattoo holds great meaning to the person and I love hearing why they do it.  Here are the top 5 reasons I’ve heard from fans and friends about why they’ve gotten a tattoo.

1. As a commemoration.

Often these are to commemorate a loved one who has been lost.  A dear friend of mine recently lost her mother and she and her sisters were thinking of getting a matching tattoo in remembrance of their beloved mother.  Many readers have told me about tattoos for lost children, which is especially heartbreaking.  I can see where having a tattoo, which keeps the memory of a loved one close, could bring some comfort.

2. To show a belief or goal.

Whether to show a spiritual or religious belief, or something inspirational for other reasons, these tattoos serve as reminders of something important to us.  Sometimes it’s a symbol, a few words from a poem, or even just a single word like Hope, Courage, or Imagination.  My son was inspired by a story that has shaped many of his beliefs and has given him a direction in life, encouraging him to explore a higher realm of consciousness.  He has a tattoo on his wrist of a special symbol from the story that represents many facets of this belief.

3. To celebrate a special goal achieved.

When we finally achieve a dream we have been striving for, sometimes we crave a way to bring it close to us and be reminded every day that dreams can come true.  A friend of mine who hit the New York Times bestsellers list at the same time as me, decided she wanted to get a tattoo to commemorate the event.  Believe me, if I was brave enough to get a tattoo, I would do it for that in a flash!

4. Aesthetics

Sometimes we just want something beautiful on our body.  (Haha!  Besides the fun stuff!)  I love a beautiful fairy tattoo, or a delicate curlicue, or a beautiful flower.   And stylized hearts!  And Celtic designs!

5. To show uniqueness or rebellion.

Sometimes we want something that shows our own unique style, and makes us stand out from the crowd in some way.  I like to do this by dying my hair bright pink, or purple, or crimson.  (That’s not uncommon these days, but I was doing it twenty years ago.)

What about you?  What kind of tattoos do you like?  Everyone who comments will be put in a draw to win a copy of Hot Ride! 

~~~~~

Riding Steele (Ready To Ride series)

Opal’s latest book, Riding Steele, was released  yesterday (March 17^th).  It’s on sale right now for $3.99 (down from $9.99).

In the arms of an outlaw, she found the freedom to live out her wildest fantasies.

When Laurie is kidnapped by bikers, she has no idea her life is about to change forever. From the moment she meets Steele–their sinfully sexy leader–she can’t deny their fierce attraction. Even though she’s completely at his mercy, his eyes soften when he looks at her, and the others in his gang know she’s strictly hands off. But the more time she spends with Steele, the more her body insists she wants his powerful hands all over her.

Now she’s about to discover a new life on the open road…and what it means to be part of a gang that shares everything. At first their wanton lifestyle shocks her senses–but once she’s had a taste of life on the edge, will she ever want to leave?

Excerpt:

A sound jarred Laurie from the light, fitful sleep she’d fallen into and she clutched the big fluffy comforter closer around her with her unbound hand. She was covered from head to toe, peering out from inside the cocoon.

Was the biker coming back to take her?

The door opened and the light flicked on. In the doorway stood an even bigger, tougher looking biker. He didn’t even glance her way, just closed the door behind him and stripped off his black leather jacket. He pulled something out of the pocket and tossed the garment on the dresser, then opened the doors of the armoire at the end of the bed to reveal a big TV. He turned it on, then put a disc in the player below it.

Images of naked people appeared on the screen. It was obviously lead-in credits for a porn film. He watched for a few moments, then pulled his T-shirt over his head, revealing bulging muscles and a snake tattoo coiling around his bicep then across his chest. Her heart raced as he unzipped his jeans and dropped them to the floor, then stepped out of them.

She held her breath when she saw him hook his thumbs in the elastic of his boxers, then push them down. Oh, God, he was going to get into bed with her and . . . He was going to force her to—

Her breath caught when he stood up.

God, she’d never seen a cock that big. She’d never even imagined a cock that big. Even though it was just starting to swell with need, it was gigantic. And frightening. Impressive. And intimidating.

He turned toward the bed and she sucked in a breath.

His eyes narrowed as his gaze jerked to her.

“What the hell?” He grabbed the covers and tossed them back, ripping away her only protection.

* * *

Steele stared at the woman lying in his bed. The sight of her long, shapely legs and slim, but curvy body sent blood straight to his groin. She shifted back and a chain clinked. That’s when he realized one of her wrists was handcuffed to the headboard.

Fuck, this was why Shock had suggested he turn in. Not to watch porn, but to enjoy the birthday present awaiting him in his bed!

He smiled. “Well, hello there.”

Should he slide his cock in her sweet, luscious mouth first, or glide into her hot, melting pussy?

What the fuck?  She was here for the night. He could fuck her right now, relieving his ache, then have her revive him with a blow job and start all over again.

He chuckled and climbed into bed beside her, then shifted closer. He reached for her hand to pull it to his cock, wanting to feel her soft feminine fingers wrapped around him, but as soon as he touched her, she jerked away.

“No, please . . .”  Panic flashed in her wide, blue eyes and she was practically panting in fear.

“What the fuck?”

Then he saw the sparkle of diamonds around her neck. It was the choker Craig’s sister had received as a gift from her boyfriend at the bar earlier tonight.

What the hell was going on here? Steele rolled away from her and sat up, placing his feet on the floor. He stared at the frightened woman, who was sucking in air, panic showing in her widened eyes.

He raked his hand through his hair. “How the hell did you get here?”

Someone started pounding on his door.

“Steele, it’s Wild Card.”

Then the door swung open and Wild Card burst inside. “I fell asleep on the couch. I didn’t mean to . . .”

His gaze fell on Steele’s naked form, then darted to the woman in the bed. Then he shook his head, holding up his hands, palms toward Steele, in a defensive gesture. “Steele, you gotta listen to me.”

Anger surged through Steele and he lurched to his feet. “Wild Card, what the fuck did you do?”

“I didn’t mean to—”

Steele strode toward him. “How the hell did you miss the fact that the plan was not to kidnap the woman?”

Riding Steele (Ready To Ride series)
Kindle: http://amzn.to/1sTE844
Kobo: http://bit.ly/1svi8mR
Nook: http://bit.ly/1ygrbr5
iBooks: http://bit.ly/1rsAtyt

Coming soon, the next in the Ready To Ride series:

Hard Ride (Ready To Ride series)

This is a novel in three parts

Part 1 – April 7^th
Part 2 – April 14^th
Part 3 – April 28^th

Amazon: http://amzn.to/1Dzt1Zc
BN: http://bit.ly/1FywpTq
iBooks: http://apple.co/1F17HMC
Kobo: http://bit.ly/1BOkAWE

Ways to keep in touch with Opal:
Newsletter:            http://tinyurl.com/OCNewsletter
Facebook:               http://facebook.com/OpalCarewRomanceAuthor
Twitter:                    http://twitter.com/opalcarew
Pinterest:                http://www.pinterest.com/opalcarew
Blog:                          http://opalcarewromanceauthor.wordpress.com
Website                   www.OpalCarew.com

Wolves seem to be everyone’s favorite form of shifter, so I was excited to be part of the Black Hills Wolves series. Part of it is probably because wolves look and behave so majestic and wild. But they’re also part of packs. Whereas men like to read about the achievements of male superheroes, women love to read about relationships, families, communities, and small towns. They have “pack mentality.”

In my latest release, Alpha in Disguise, the Black Hills Wolves pack is unique because it lives isolated in such a rugged location. Ogden and Lara’s loyalties to their respective packs make it hard for them to accept each other as mates, but where there is love, there is a way!

Alpha in Disguise by Afton Locke

Unleash the alpha!
Release Date: 6 March 2015
Publisher: Decadent Publishing
Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Alpha-Disguise-Black-Hills-Wolves-ebook/dp/B00T2EWPOE/
Stay tuned for reviews and more: http://www.aftonlocke.com/AlphaDisguise.html
Watch the Book Trailer: http://youtu.be/hTD9k5APKhA
Read the entire Black Hills Wolves series:
https://www.facebook.com/BlackHillsWolvesSeries

When her mother is shot by a rancher, Lara Wolfe becomes the last Dominant of Yellowstone’s Lamar Canyon pack. Her mother’s dying wish sends her to South Dakota’s Black Hills to find her mate, but Lara would rather continue her mission—saving her pack.

When Ogden Woods, lumber supplier for the Tao pack, offers the newcomer a place to stay, an explosive attraction reveals they’re mates. Afraid of unleashing his inner Dominant and a secret that could get him exiled, he’ll do anything to avoid mating.

Although he begs Lara to stay in Los Lobos where she’ll be safe, she can’t turn her back on her pack. As her mate, Ogden is bound to protect her, but following her means risking his home and his very life. Are they willing to pay the price?

Excerpt (explicit)

Alpha in Disguise – Copyright © Afton Locke, 2015

“Ogden, I came to say good-bye.”

“Damn.” His tanned face turned pale. “Let’s go inside and discuss it.”

Realizing he was fighting to keep his mate, her heart fluttered in her chest. They stepped into his office and closed the door. The room had his stamp all over it.

Bits of wood, tools, dusty papers, and rags littered the worktable, and the air smelled woody and masculine.

But he didn’t seem to have conversation on his mind. Instead, his strong arms slipped around her.

“Don’t go,” he whispered in her hair.

His woodsy scent, mixed with his lust, made her dizzy. Her fingers dug into the back of his coarse cotton shirt. Against her will, her nails clawed the fabric, pulling it out of his jeans. They eyed each other, two predators circling a kill.

“Convince me,” she whispered.

In reply, his mouth surged against hers, the force knocking her back against his file cabinets. His tongue breached her mouth, claiming her so fast her breath faltered. While she tangled her fingers in his tousled chestnut hair, broad hands squeezed her breasts, bringing her nipples to rock-hard points. With her heart thundering in her ears, she unbuttoned her shirt before he could rip the buttons off this one, too.

Panting hard, he paused to ask, “When can you conceive?”

“D-during the full moon,” she replied, struggling for her own breath. “It’s safe now.”

He jerked down the zipper of her jeans and spun her around. “Then hang on!”

As she bent over and grabbed the two nearest metal handles, her swollen breasts tumbled out of her bra. Hot moisture flooded her core. No matter how many penises she allowed inside her, for whatever reasons, she vowed she would only remember his.

“Just this once,” she gasped as he tugged down her jeans. “I can’t stay.”

“It doesn’t work that way,” he ground out as he grabbed her hips, keeping her immobile. “You’re my mate, and you’re going to stay here where you belong.”

The slippery head of his cock brushed her buttocks, scorching her sensitive skin before he plunged it home. He filled her cunt with the force of a sledgehammer, making her cry out. Any doubts she had about the man being a Dominant evaporated.

“You’re no Omega, Ogden Woods.” Her voice cracked as he pulled out and plunged back in. “You’re a Dominant in an Omega’s clothing. Why?”

Coming Soon
Deeper Than Perfect – Musa Publishing – 1970s time-travel – August 2015 

Where readers can find me
Web site: http://www.aftonlocke.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AftonLockeAuthor
Twitter: http://twitter.com/aftonlocke
Newsletter: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/thelovechronicle/
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/Afton_Locke
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/aftonlocke
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/aftonlocke/

#AlphaInDisguise #BlackHillsWolves #EroticRomance #hotwerewolf #ParanormalRomance #shifters

When I moved to Vienna, Austria almost four years ago, the voices became eerily quiet. For those of you who aren’t writers, the voices we hear are frequently those of our characters or in some cases the narrator of our books. I figured it was time for me to have a break as I’d been hearing them for many, many years. Matter of fact, since I was twelve and I can’t tell you the number of times when they would be chattering in my head and I’d be answering them right back. I’d get the strange looks and blush furiously when I was younger. Then as I got older, I would either explain what was happening or I’d just smile and shrug, leaving people to figure it out themselves.

It’s a wonder that I was never told to shut up or talked to by a therapist or psychiatrist for those voices. Yes, those voices have told me they wanted to kill someone. I even had a villain do it once in my head while I was in public and I can only imagine what the expressions were on my face as I talked and wrote that one down in the local library. And it wasn’t until they stopped talking to me that I really understood the term writer’s block. But in my opinion, it wasn’t that I was blocked, it was they had stopped talking.

For the past three years, I would come into my office and sit down like I’d done every day for the past fifteen years. If I was lucky, I would clunk out five hundred to a thousand words and be happy with that even though I normally had written about five thousand words a day before my move. Those words felt forced and many were written without the characters yapping away at me. Yet, I had stories to write and worlds to build. I could not wait until I was in the mood.

Writing is what I do for a living. It’s the only thing I’ve ever wanted to do. I’d learned more about the publishing business in the last twenty years so there wouldn’t be any surprises. I couldn’t nor wouldn’t give it up because they weren’t talking to me. I couldn’t afford to and this is a fallacy that many writers fall into, but it’s one that we all need to get over.

There are things that can be done where the characters don’t need to talk to you. Things like research, world building and blogs. Planning also falls under these auspices and so, I did those things when there was nothing else. I did things like start a group for sharing the promotions burden that every author has since I really feel each of us needs to care and nurture each other.

I listened to music, created play lists and blogs and series and did more research to the point I was almost getting hopeless. But the fact is writers write. They write when the weather is good, when it’s bad, when they feel good, when they feel bad and real writers come in and do it even when they think they can’t. Yes, it may seem forced and it may seem like you’re just going through the motions but those are the motions of being a writer.

However wrong this may seem, if you are plugging away every day, your confidence will start to build and will continue to do so. Sometimes, all that is needed for you to hear those voices is to regain your confidence. Sometimes it may just be the stress from every day living. Sometimes, it can be the stress from things you can’t control. For me, it was a little bit of everything.

I was living far away from my family. Things could go wrong. They did go wrong. And I had to realize that sometimes I couldn’t shape the world to be exactly how I wanted it to be. Sometimes, I had to accept it as it was. So, until that day, I decided I would do what I always loved to do, whether I had to force it or have an amazing moment where I would write. I needed to go through the motions and know that my time would come again.

Then one day came a drab and I wrote a little more about my characters. Then it was just a little tinkle, then it was flowing. And I knew I had a gusher the night I told my husband to go back to sleep because I was going to the office. The next morning he asked me why and I had to honestly say that they wouldn’t shut up. He gave a chuckle, knowing I was finally back and writing as much as my fingers would type daily. It had been a long time coming.

Now, I’m carrying a notebook in my purse again so I don’t overwhelm my poor little Note3 phone with all the written words for stories. I’m waking up early, falling asleep in my chair and talking with my characters in such a way that I’m sure people are going to ask if need help since I’m talking to myself a lot in public recently. I guess the trouble really comes about when I answer myself. And yes, I do have a story about that one for another time.

Until then, I’d love to hear from you about what you’d say if you saw one of your favorite authors talking to themselves. Would you ask what they were talking about? Or would you sit quietly and observe them to see if you could glean something about a new story? I can’t wait to hear from you! And to show you all some love, I’m doing a give-away today and picking one person randomly to give them a book from my back list or my upcoming April release, Night of the Blue Moon. Hope to talk to you all soon!

Night of the Blue Moon
April 1^st Pre-order at Amazon, Smashwords and more.
April 15^th Release at all eBook vendors.
This is book 4 in the Blue Moon Magic series.

Blue Moon Magic

One father.

Two mothers.

Four siblings.

One incredible story about that special night which changes them all. Forever.

All his life he felt he hadn’t belonged but it wasn’t until Clarity Langford appeared did he know the truth of it. Once that truth was revealed there was no going back for Connor Angus, only forward. He discovers he is the long thought dead son of pack Elite leader, Charles Langford. And with that knowledge comes a family full of sisters, mystery and longing for things he’s not sure he has any right to obtain and one of those things is Cordelia Sinclair.

NOTE: This is a NOVELLA with adult situations and language. It is not intended for those under 18 years of age.

Excerpt:

Who are you?

The voice was loud and clear. There was no mistaking that he had a telepathic link to this woman. More confused than ever, he shook his head. My name is Connor Logan Angus.

But you can’t be one of them.

I am a member of the Beta clan. I am the third son.

That can’t be.

And why not?

Can you link with them like you are with me?

I don’t know. I’ve never tried.

Whether you know it or not, I do.

How?

Only those of the same clan or family members can link. I’m an Elite. So what does that make you?

Connor sank back into the shadows even more. That sick feeling he had been having recently floated to the top again. That’s impossible. There’s no way I can be part of your clan. I don’t understand any of this.

That makes two of us.

Bio: Award winning author Lynn Crain has done it all in her life. From nursing to geology, her life experiences have added to her detail rich stories. She loves writing full time as she weaves contemporary, fantasy, futuristic and paranormal tales, tame to erotic, for various publishers. Her home is in the desert southwest though her latest adventure has taken her to Vienna, Austria with her husband of many years as he works his dream job. You can find her on the web at www.lynncrain.blogspot.com. She loves hearing from her readers at lynncrain@cox.net.

Our blanket of snow has gone away and the ground is thawing.  It’s time for me to break out the rototiller and prepare the garden for this year’s planting.  It’s also time for me to start writing a new book.  I have found the steps need in growing a garden and writing a book are amazingly similar.

For me both processes start with planning.  For the garden, I have a template of my raised beds created in Microsoft Publisher.  My garden consists of thirty-three, four foot by eight foot beds and twelve, two foot by eight foot beds.  The twelve narrow beds do not require replanting since they are filled with perennial plants, five contain blackberry and raspberry plants, one has blueberries, four have table grapes, and two are filled with cooking herbs.  Nine of the large beds are also filled.  I have eight beds of strawberries and one bed of rhubarb and asparagus.  I have been reading Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series and in honor of her books, I plan to plant two of the open large beds with medicinal herbs.

For a new book, I prepare a color coded spreadsheet where I can list my plot points and character arcs.  I find it much easier to write a story that I have laid out in this manner.  It allows me to see any goals, motivation and conflict issues, as well as, plot holes, before I begin.  After this, I break the components down into chapters and I have a short one or two line summary of what each chapter needs to contain.  With this frame work in place I can set up a schedule and begin writing.

I have already completed the planning stages for the garden and the new book, so tomorrow morning I will begin the digging and the writing.

Augustina Van Hoven

Proving Love is Strange

THE KISS OF A ROSE – Now available

www.augustinavanhoven.com
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Augustina-Van-Hoven-Author/336028986575129
Twitter:  @augustinavhoven

A DISTANT PAST

In 1882, Rose Van Buren loved the wrong man and paid for it with her life. Now, more than a century later, the angel Gabriel has granted her another shot at living. In exchange, she must convince a smart, handsome, up-and-coming lawyer to set aside his lofty ambitions.

A FUTURE PRESENT

Stephen Winship is headed straight for the governor’s chair. He has a brilliant career, solid allies, and a seemingly perfect girlfriend. But night after night he finds himself dreaming of a heavenly beauty, a luminous but long-dead girl. Like some altered Ghost of Christmas Past, she shows him her own tragic tale in order to “save him.” And he’s beginning to see Rose is risking her heart as much as baring her soul. Yet falling for her will cost him everything—and open him up to a happiness he never imagined.

The second book in the series, THE THORN OF A ROSE, will release in the fall.

When I started writing, oh, about 100 years ago, I never wanted to be a household name.  Nora Roberts, Beatrice Small, Kathleen Woodiwiss, these were the authors who had notoriety and success attached to them. All I really wanted was to be personally successful. To me, that meant being able to support myself financially with my writing. If people enjoyed what I wrote and I got paid for it, well that was good enough for me.

As I said, that’s what I thought when I started writing. Now, decades later, 6 years away from 60, I find I want the same thing, but times have changed. With the advent of my first romance novel’s publication this month, I am over the moon and blown away with delight. But just having the book published seems to have been the easy part. Now that it is out in the universe for all and sundry to delight in, I find that I need to learn an entirely new profession that I didn’t go to college for, and have no knowledge of: marketing.

I’m not a salesperson. I’m not that girl who can sell ice to Eskimos and sand to Bedouins.  I don’t like the high pressure sale’s pitch and I loathe when I enter a store and the clerks follow me around, solicitously asking if I need assistance. This is probably why I do so much of my shopping on-line. So, when faced with the prospect and arduous task of now hawking my book to the masses, I panicked.

Really. Full-fledged anxiety blow-out. I had no knowledge of where to even begin to get my name and book promoted. I couldn’t afford to hire a publicist – didn’t even know where to find one. I looked in my local phone directly. Nope, not listed there. The few on-line promotion sites I Googled  sounded shady at best.

What to do? The book was coming out soon. Really soon. And I had no plan.

Then I took a breath and realized I had excellent resources to cull from. Since I am a member of RWA and I love my local chapter, I turned to my published chaptermates and was given a plethora of advice – and all of it was golden. They told me the reputable sites to use for on-line promotion and romance friendly blog tours. They gave me invaluable tips for in person promotion such as book club signings, library discussions, and even garden club lectures. My chaptermates had been through the fire of self promotion and had come out unscathed, educated, and successful with sales, so I took all of their knowledge and ran with it.

So far my endeavors have paid off. My book launched last week and the word has gone out to the Twitter-verse, Facebook-land, Pinterst- pinners and many more.

I still feel a deep sense of personal success at having achieved my life long goal of being a published romance author. But now, with the way publishing and the reading world has changed, I feel I have become a much more successful promoter as well.

How do you define personal success? What are some of the ways you’ve been able to get the word out on your books? I’m always game for learning new things. More so now, since I need to market myself.

Drop me a line and let me now how you’ve managed to develop a plan for marketing success.

And much thanks to Delilah for hosting me today. It’s been an exciting ride so far.

 Skater’s Waltz

Figure skater Tiffany Lennox is busy with rehearsals for an upcoming ice show when the only man she’s ever loved comes home after a two-year overseas stint. She needs him to see her for the woman she’s become and not the child he knew to ensure he stays home, this time, for good. With her.

For all his wanderlust and hunger for professional success, Cole Greer comes home wanting nothing more than to rest, relax and recover. He is delighted in being Tiffany’s hero and has a special place in his heart reserved for her. But faced with the oh-so-desirable woman she’s become, he starts questioning his determination to keep their relationship platonic.

When forced by the television network to go back on assignment, Cole – for the first time in his life – is torn between his career and his heart.

Skater’s Waltz Excerpt:

One delicate auburn eyebrow rose almost to her hairline. “Cocky self assurance has always been one of your greatest assets,” she commented dryly. Read the rest of this entry »