💚 💚💚 SEPTEMBER MONTHLY CONTEST 💚 💚 💚

Summer is drawing to a close (and all the moms say HALLELLUJAH! :P ). I gave myself the gift of more reading time and just generally more time off this summer. We need that time, and our brains definitely need that time! I’d love to know what you read or watched this summer. Tell me your favorite romance novel from your TBR pile this summer OR tell me what show you binge watched this summer that you really loved. (Links welcome if you want to make it easy for fellow readers to find your faves!)

* * * I’ll choose a winner on Friday, September 28thto win a $10 Amazon gift card and a signed paperback copy of TEACH ME! * * *

Come on over to my Facebook page for a chance to win!

(Likes and shares with your romance-loving friends appreciated but not required!)

Ireland

I’ve been looking for inspiration as I work through the early chapters of Capture Me. Lyse runs from her past and the man she loves to a remote Irish village. In looking for images to spark my imagination, I began with one of my favorite places during my visit to Ireland in 2017: Howth.

(That’s pronounced “hoat,” like ho-ho-ho but with a T at the end. ;) )

What do you think? Would a place like this make a good blueprint for Lyse’s hideaway?

https://www.nomadasaurus.com/things-to-do-in-howth-ireland/

Irish Inspiration!

📯📯📯 AUGUST MONTHLY GIVEAWAY 📯📯📯

I'm working away on CAPTURE ME this month, the next book in the Southern Nights: Enigma series. And that means...you guessed it! I'm giving away a paperback set of the first two books, along with a special surprise giftie that you'll receive with your books. (I'm not telling, so don't ask. 😛) 

Head on over to my Facebook page for a chance to win! I'll choose a winner on Friday, August 31st. 

***Likes and shares with your book-loving friends are appreciated but not required.***

Blank Spaces

As I’ve followed my journey toward a more POSITIVE LIFE this year, I’ve noticed something: when I don’t have anything to do, it stresses me out. I don’t know what to do with the blank spaces in my life, the times when there’s no work to do, no TV to watch, no book to read. And yet, we are learning more and more about the negative impact of so much input into our lives through TV, social media, the doing and having and seeking more and more and more.

Creativity requires blank space. We look at the first page of a new book, all that fresh white space, and freak out. The blank page is so hard! But without a blank page, a new book doesn’t come into being. Our brains need that blank space too, to stretch and grow and create. To rest.

Have you found that quiet and “blank space” are positives in your life? How do you go about creating those opportunities?

Meghan March Reading Kick!

I’ve been on a Meghan March kick for a while.  🙂 It took me a long time to warm up to first-person romance, and there are still only certain authors I feel do it fantastically. But I really love Meghan’s voice. I’ve read the Beneath series, and recently Take Me Back. I have the entire Mount Trilogy waiting as my reward for finishing my next book, and believe me, I can’t wait!

Have you ever read Meghan’s books? You can check them out at her website http://meghanmarch.com. She even has a couple of free books available if you want to try her out. (I highly recommend it!)

July Giveaway!

JULY—the month for beaches and barbecues and being free. Want some books to take along with your free time? 

🍉 🌞 🕶️

This month I’m giving away a paperback collection of the ENTIRE Hacker series by Meredith Wild! Leave a comment below telling me how you’re celebrating your summer vacation, and I’ll give one lucky commenter a brand new series to read at the end of the month. Head on over to my Facebook page to enter!

*** Our winner will be chosen on FRIDAY, JULY 27th. Don’t miss out! ***

(Likes and shares with your romance-loving friends appreciated but not required!)

Writing Inspiration

What inspires the next book?

Usually, the inspiration is whatever is next on my publishing list. 😊 I try to switch between my different series so no one set gets neglected, although if you’ve been following me for very long, you know a hiatus last year has meant quite a gap in all of my series.

ASSASSIN’S PREY is almost complete. So what’s next? Fionn and Lise! That’s right—SOUTHERN NIGHTS will have a new release this fall! I’ve been champing at the bit to write their story since I visited Ireland this past summer. This book will be set there, and I can’t wait to return, if only in the pages of my book!

Positive Life

Thanks to the totally fantastic Maggie Coughlin Worth and her common sense guidance, I’ve learned that a POSITIVE LIFE needs REWARDS.

I work a lot. My day job, though it’s from home, is full-time. Writing is also a full-time job, though the actual words on the page are a tiny fraction of that. So getting to run away from all the work and actually just write is a reward for me. Twice a year I give myself a retreat—and it is oh so wonderful.

Last fall I found a little cabin in the woods (NOT like the movie!), and this month, in celebration of our birthday, I took my sis Dani Wade there for a writing retreat. You can see from the pics that we had a great time! Writing, reading, plotting (and not just books 😉 ), exploring, wading. So much fun!

What about you? Where do you go to get away? What do you love to reward yourself with?

Rock Stars

Rock stars. BDSM.

You love them in my IF ONLY series. Know where else you can find them? In a series I’ve loved since it began. Dani Wade’s Backstage Pass. I’ve loved the men of BP, one after the other (especially Sean!). If you haven’t read this series, I highly recommend it. Especially Sean! (LOL, can you tell I have a thing for Sean? Who wouldn’t love an Irish Dom with great rhythm? J)

And did you know Dani’s heroes appear in one of my books? That’s right! The same place my IF ONLY heroes first appeared, in NAUGHTY LITTLE CHRISTMAS. Don’t miss it, a little touch of Christmas to cool your hot summer down (or heat it up more, if you’ve never met Damien!). 

🍾 🍾 🍾 It’s that time! 🍾 🍾 🍾

ONLY FOR THE MOMENT will be here on JUNE 11th!!! This month I’m giving away ***two*** signed paperback sets of the entire IF ONLY trilogy. Comment on my Facebook page with your favorite rock-star book boyfriend (and show your authors some love by including a link to their book if possible!).

I’ll choose TWO winners on FRIDAY, JUNE 29th. Don’t miss out!

(Likes and shares with your romance-loving friends appreciated but not required!)

📖📖📖

ONLY FOR THE MOMENT

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2J00QrX

iBooks: https://apple.co/2H3Vfiy

B&N: https://bit.ly/2H0L66e

Kobo: http://bit.ly/kobo_oftm

Google Play: http://bit.ly/gp_oftm

Goodreads: http://bit.ly/Gdreads_oftm

He can tie up all her objections, but what about her heart?

Kennedy O’Connell’s life is perfect—a great job, plenty of friends, a brother who loves her. The chaos that ruled her childhood is gone, and she couldn’t be happier. Unfortunately, her mischievous streak tends to get her in trouble, and when she walks into her favorite spa to find a sexy Australian rock star taking her place, she can’t resist a little fun.

Isaac Anschau has spent five years chasing his dream. His rock royalty status can’t be denied, but his demons are catching up with him—he’s burned out, his creativity decimated. Until a redheaded vixen decides she wants to play, and he discovers a way to leave his nightmares behind. There’s just one problem: Kennedy is dead-set against submitting, despite the way she melts when his Dom side comes out.

They’ve got nothing to lose by walking away, and everything to gain if they give in to the raging hunger between them. Baring their bodies would only take a moment. Baring their souls could take a lifetime.

I had a truly unique inspiration for ASSASSIN’S PREY: a question. That’s right, a question.

How does a man who’s held himself apart all his life, even from family, who kills for a living, who has nothing resembling a normal life, actually make a relationship work?

That was the whole story in a nutshell. Most romances end once the couple is together, right? I wanted to go past the “I love yous” and find out how Levi, of all people, would react to falling in love. *Spoiler ALERT* We already saw a little bit of this in MARK—he stayed away for a year, but couldn’t stay away any longer. Now that he’s given in, what next?

I hope you’ll check out ASSASSIN’S PREY next TUESDAY and find out. I can’t wait for this tough, tormented alpha to finally, truly understand what love is all about. You can find the book on Radish Fiction starting May 29th!

First Person Yumminess!

I don’t read a lot of first-person point-of-view stories. This is a hazard of being a professional editor in “real life”—it’s very hard not to notice flaws in first-person pov. It’s hard to do well, in my opinion. But oh, when it’s right…WOW!

There is one author I believe is pretty much the master at first-person pov, Skye Warren. Her books are lyrical, engrossing, sexy…everything you could want in any story. But it goes deeper, into the heads of her characters, in a way I’ve never read anywhere else.

I also like that she has edgy heroes, men who aren’t necessarily on the good side of the law (and of course I’d love that—look at Levi in ASSASSIN’S MARK!). Her latest book, The Escort, is phenomenal. I don’t know if you’ve seen it, but check it out. It’s written from the pov of the hero, first-person, and oh my God, I could not get enough of Hugo! I think you’ll love it too. 😃

*And YES, for those of you that are worried, Hugo is indeed a male escort. NO, there is no cheating, and he is not with another woman, on or off the page, after he meets the heroine for the first time. Rest easy! (Now go read it! 😝 )

http://www.skyewarren.co

New Release and Monthly Contest!

It’s release month! In four weeks (minus a day—that’s MAY 29th!), the next book in the ASSASSINS series will release: ASSASSIN’S PREY. This first-person story gets us into the head of Levi Agosti, assassin, and gives us a glimpse of how a man like him deals with love now that he’s met his match.

ASSASSIN’S PREY

I killed my first man at the age of twelve. I've been killing ever since. I thought it was all I lived for…until Abby. Until the woman I'd kidnapped became the woman I couldn't walk away from.

She owns a piece of me I wouldn't take back, but the rest? The only way to protect her is to hold back the parts inside me that are too ugly to ever reveal. I'll keep her safe, even from me.

And it works. We have the nights, and I hunt my way through the days. Alone.

Until an attack reveals a threat we didn't see coming. One that could take away the dream I didn't realize I had.

Everything. With her.

I'm on the hunt of my life. My prey might run, but in this fight—for her, for us—they don't stand a chance.

*

This month, I’m celebrating my upcoming release with a cool giveaway: a copy of the totally delicious first-person romance Wicked Sexy Liar by Christina Lauren, a sexy purple travel LED booklight, and a $15 iTunes gift card so you can read ASSASSIN’S PREY when it goes live on the 29th! To enter, comment below and tell me if you’ve read ASSASSIN’S MARK, book one in this series, and if you have, what you thought of Levi. (Here’s a hint: YUM!)

*** On MAY 29th, one commenter will be chosen, so hurry to enter! (Likes and shares with your romance-loving friends appreciated but not required!) ***

Haven’t read ASSASSINS yet? Start with book one, ASSASSIN’S MARK, on Radish Fiction: 

https://radishfiction.com/stories/S1OkqkMfG

Inspiration

Authors are asked all the time, “Where do you get your inspiration?” The truth is, I don’t always know. Or maybe it’s that I get it from everywhere. Narrowing down inspiration to one source is impossible for me. I simply try to be open and receptive whenever it passes my way.

Sometimes it’s a song that comes on the radio and inspires a character—this happened for me with Abby in ASSASSIN’S MARK. (The song was “Me and My Broken Heart” by Rixton.) Or a TV show. I’ve been watching Dark on Netflix, and it’s made me realize that villains might be terrible, but they can also be compelling. Places can be inspiration—I find many of my ideas while my mind rests out in nature, for walks especially. Oddly enough, the treadmill never gives me inspiration; now why is that? 😟

Where do you find inspiration? What sets your imagination soaring?

Sexy BDSM

I can’t remember what my first BDSM romance read was. I can tell you who my first favorite was, though: Cherise Sinclair. Her Shadowlands series, with sexy Doms and women who match them in strength and love, are perennial favorites for me.

The series is up to twelve books, but oddly enough, my favorite has always been #2, Dark Citadel. The schoolteacher, raised naive and totally unsure if she really fits in the world she’s so desperately interested in, was always uniquely relatable for me. And her cop Dom, widowed and scarred, has the perfect touch of asshole in him. (Yes, I do enjoy a touch of asshole attitude in my heroes, but only if he’s redeemed of his asshole ways by the end, LOL!)

Have you read this series? Which book is your favorite? Does a dominating cop and a sweetly shy schoolteacher sound like a story that would hold your attention?

April Contest!

April isn’t just about pranks and eggs—it’s about spring, school being out, baby animals, family. New beginnings. With ONLY FOR THE MOMENT almost complete and ready for edits, that means a new book beginning, probably early next month! So this month, our April contest is all about IF ONLY.

You can win signed print copies of ONLY FOR THE WEEKEND and ONLY FOR THE NIGHT with their fantabulous new covers! I love great romances of all kinds, so I want to know—what are your favorite romance subgenres, tropes, and themes. Do you love alpha assholes? Shifter romances? Billionaires and secret babies? How about second chances, triumphing over adversity, or making love last after the “I do’s” have been said? Tell me; I want to know!

Head on over to my Facebook page to enter!

*** On APRIL 27th, one commenter will be chosen for a beautiful set of IF ONLY books of their very own! (Likes and shares with your romance-loving friends appreciated but not required!) ***

Celebrate the Positive Stuff

One of the things I’m trying to learn this year as I work toward a POSITIVE LIFE is learning to let go of the need to control everything.

Yeah, I had to laugh at that a little bit.

I am the queen of control. Nothing causes me more stress than a situation I can’t control. Actually, I think that’s true for most people. I’m slowly learning to sift what I can control and what I can’t, and breathing away the frustration of what I can’t. One example: I can’t control how many words flow from my fingers into my manuscript every day. What I can control are the hours I put in at the computer. It’s frustrating sometimes—I want to make faster progress, get farther, finish sooner. But I can’t.

On the other hand, sometimes I get a surprise: more words than I wanted. And that’s a day to celebrate! 😊

Romance and Giveaways!

* * * February Monthly Contest * * *

It’s February, the month of LUV! Let’s celebrate with this month’s contest. What is the most romantic line you’ve ever read in a romance novel? A poem? Heard in a film? Share it with us! Comment below and you could win a $10 Amazon gift card (or other retailer, if desired) and a signed paperback copy of DECEIVE  ME.

Head on over to my Facebook page for your chance to win!

*** Likes and shares with your booklover friends are appreciated but not required! Contest ends FEBRUARY 23rd! ***