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Archive for October, 2007

Do You Believe?

Posted by: Jennifer Apodaca | Comments (3)

Wednesday, October 31st, 2007

Since today is Halloween, it’s the perfect time to ask: Do you believe in legends? Do you believe that something that has existed for centuries might hold some kind of magical powers?

Like say…two jade statues?

In my book, EXTERMELY HOT— released this week!—there are two statues: The Jade Goddesses of Fertility and Virility. They are centuries old, dated back to the Aztec times and rumored to be very powerful. Their powers are the ability to unleash people’s deepest desires.

Some think they are aphrodisiacs. Some think they are priceless artifacts. And some people will kill to own them.

In EXTREMELY HOT ultimate bad boy Luke Sterling is hot on the trail of the stolen statues—and the trail leads straight to good girl Ivy York. Naturally sparks fly until things get…well…extremely hot.

In the end, both Ivy and Luke end up believing in themselves and trusting their love, than they believe in the statues. When you think about it, that’s actually a powerful kind of magic. And as the author, I can tell you that the statues helped them along!

Writing this book made me think a great deal about legends and their power. Do I believe in them? I believe that sometimes the power really is more within us than any statue or artifact. But still, anything that has “lived” for centuries is pretty awesome.

What about you? Do you all believe in legends?

Categories : Jennifer Apodaca

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Remain Silent

Posted by: Jamie Denton | Comments (13)

Monday, October 29th, 2007

Tomorrow’s the day! What day you ask? The day that Remain Silent, my next romantic suspense from Bravathat Publisher’s Weekly called “explosive” hits the bookstore shelves.

To celebrate, I’m offering up a Brava Author’s exclusive excerpt. Okay, so I’m really hoping to whet your appetite with this little teaser of Damon and Laurel’s story:

Jamie Denton's REMAIN SILENT DAMON KNEW THE ethics of the situation could definitely be called into question. Lawyers really shouldn’t go around kissing their clients. But that sure as hell didn’t stop him from slipping his hand along the side of Laurel’s neck and gently guiding her mouth to his.

Her lips were warm and soft beneath his. She tasted as sweet and intoxicating as the wine they’d drank at dinner. She tasted like home.

She slipped her arms around his neck and brought their bodies together. Memories swamped him. Memories of making love to Laurel.

A curse or blessing? He couldn’t decide, but images floating through his mind haunted him. No, he thought. Not haunted. Taunted. Just like her slender curves pressed against him taunted him. Reminding him of what had once been his, of what they could have again if she’d only lighten up.

He angled her head and deepened the kiss.

Sure they could, but for how long, he wondered? Until the trial was over and it was time for him to go back to Bozeman? A temporary affair wasn’t exactly his style, and he knew for a fact it wasn’t Laurel’s. At least the Laurel he remembered, and the woman in his arms was all too familiar to have changed that much. Her touch, her scent. The way her fingers played with the hair at his nape. All classic Laurel.

He skimmed his hand down slowly her back to the curve of her hip. A sexy little moan escaped her lips and she molded her body to his. His libido took off like a rocket.

Desire thrummed through him, effectively diminishing any thoughts he might have about lawyerly ethics. He suspected he was making a monumental mistake in judgment by kissing her, but he’d willing swallow every ounce of regret in favor of the soulful, silken glide of her tongue exploring his mouth. Actions spoke louder than words, and right now her kiss was saying, “don’t leave me.”

He slipped his hand beneath her top, his fingers coming in contact with warm skin. The memories taunting him were as real as it got. He’d been here before – with Laurel. Here, where everything was hot. Demanding. And too damn consuming for him to even consider stopping.

He had no idea where things were headed tonight, but he had a damn good idea where he wanted them to go. Right over to that four-hundred bucks a night bed less than ten feet away.

All too soon, Laurel ended the kiss. She pulled her arms from around his neck and took a step back, followed by another. “We shouldn’t.”

He could probably give her a dozen or more reasons why he agreed with her, but he only needed one why she was wrong. Because they wanted each other. And because they’d never stopped caring for each other.

Okay, so he had two reasons. He could easily come up with more if she wanted to hear them. Somehow he didn’t think she would, though, so he kept those thoughts to himself. For now – because he had a feeling they both knew this wasn’t over, not by a long shot.

“We’re both old enough to know better,” she said. If she was referring to how they could barely keep their hands off each other when they’d been together, she was right.

“Old enough to know better, but young enough to still give it hell.”

She eventually smiled, as he hoped she would. The last thing he wanted was an awkwardness between them. “I meant what I said earlier. I can’t have you represent me.”

***

Categories : Jamie Denton

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A little less

Posted by: Kate Duffy | Comments (65)

Thursday, October 25th, 2007

So I have a clear choice here. I can say lovely positive things or I can be me.

I pick… me. I think blogs are pretty interesting little vehicles of self expression. The posts I read from the Brava authors are fun and informative and upbeat. They share anecdotes, recommend books and authors, cheer each other on and the like. None of which you will get from me. I sit on the other side of the desk and most of the time I am in a fairly bad mood. Not a prime candidate for a blogger but you are stuck.

I am going to go to far fewer conferences next year. I can answer the most popular question out there without having to take my shoes off to get through airport security. And that question is, of course, “How long do I have to wait to hear back from you on my manuscript?”

Most of the time, I have a very good experience at conferences. I meet new and old friends, I see some of our authors and some agents I am cordial to, I hear great gossip and get terrific book recommendations (I love word of mouth). But then something not so nice frequently happens. And so I think in the interest of my blood pressure, I had better cut down.

This is not a rant about authors or anyone behaving badly. It’s more like a rationale for not doing my part. Like contests. I used to judge lots. Now, not so much. I saw the same material entered in many contests. I guess that’s the author’s way of saying, “I like it just the way it is.” Fine by me.

The Brava Novella Contest is the absolute exception to this. This contest has paid off so handsomely for Kensington, it is quite amazing. So I thank you most profusely, all you who entered. And to all you who are judging, I owe you. Big time.

I know you all juggle demands on your free time and that something’s got to give. So, for me, a little less travel is probably good for the romance cosmos.

Categories : Kate Duffy

Comments (65)

Fear…and a Prize

Posted by: Cynthia Eden | Comments (50)

Wednesday, October 24th, 2007

Last night, as I sat flipping through horror show after horror show, I realized an important fact (as I paused to watch Michael Myers stalk a teen)…fear is such a powerful motivator.

Yeah, I know–pretty obvious, right? But, until I stared in my wild wonder at Michael, I hadn’t really taken the time to analyze just how powerful “FEAR” can be.

In my stories, I try to inject both internal and external fears for my characters. I give vampires blood phobias. I have killers stalking my heroines (or heroes). Once I wrote a story about Poseidon’s mate (not published, just in case you were wondering), and as I began to plot the story, the very first thought I had was…”His mate has to be deathly afraid of water.” Why? Because fear can create such wonderful, lovely conflict.

In real-life, I have my own share of fears. My main fear? Heights. Grrr. Can’t stand to fly–so I’ll drive for hours and hours to avoid soaring in the clouds. I’m also terrified of snakes, but, strangely, I deal with that fear by seeking out snakes at every opportunity. I stare at them in zoos, fearfully touch them at fairs, and, of course, watch every campy snake film that I can find.

Halloween is days away…the season of fear is at hand! I’m curious…what do you fear? Leave me a comment about your fears, and, on Saturday, I’ll return and pick one commenter–that person will receive a $10 Amazon.com gift certificate. (I’ll post the winner’s name in the comment section.)

So, come on…don’t be shy. What do you fear?

Categories : Cynthia Eden

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Tagged?

Posted by: Jamie Denton | Comments (34)

Friday, October 19th, 2007

I’ve been tagged. By a bunch of crazy vampires in an undead band, no less. Do you know this game? It’s really kinda fun, but I gotta tell you, I had one heck of a time coming up with eight random facts about myself.

Anyway, here’s how it works…

Players offer eight random habits/facts about themselves. If you’re tagged, you need to write your own blog about your eight things and post the rules. At the end of your blog post, you need to choose eight people to tag — and list their names. If you participate, don’t forget to leave your people a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

So, here are eight random facts you might or might not know:

1. Whenever I visit California, I ship food home. No, not prepared foods, like my favorite deli sandwich from Togos or an In-n-Out double burger with grilled onions and fries, but the stuff you’d pick up at the grocery store. Stuff I can’t get here in the east. Like Mother’s Brand cookies, the Taffy ones especially. OMG! They are sheer heaven and a sugar hangover waiting to happen, but I just can’t NOT buy them whenever I’m in Cali. And this special chili sauce that I never knew the name of but recognize the jar the instant I see it. Oh, and Las Palmas enchilada sauce. It’s the best if you’re into making menudo. At least that’s what my mother-in-law used to tell me and she’s right! The other brands just don’t have that same flavor. Can’t forget the chorizo, either. Yum! I can get that here in the east but it’s not the same as the kind you get in Cali. Not even close to the flavor and way more expensive, too.

2. I’ve made no secret of the fact that I’m a grandmother, but did you know that I now have eight grandchildren? Yup, eight. The two newest additions have just joined our clan, too, another girl in July and another boy just this past Monday, so at least the count is even with four and four. Trust me on this, I’m a very young grandmother.

3. I was a mere fifteen years old when I met my DH, married him at 16 and we celebrated our 31st wedding anniversary this past summer. It’s how I got to be a very young grandmother.

4. I can watch my favorite movies over and over again, but the only time I’ve ever re-read a book was by accident because it was given a new cover and I didn’t realize it was a reprint. This was before I was a writer and didn’t know about things like reprints.

5. I have a fear of bugs. It doesn’t matter what kind of bug, I freak. Bats don’t bother me, which is a good thing because the DH squeals like a girl whenever a bat sneaks into the house.

6. When I was ten years old my best friend and I ran away from home. We “borrowed” our neighbor’s horses and spent the night in the woods. Longest night of my freaking life!

7. I love taking really long drives by myself. I can stop whenever I want to, I can have as many Starbucks Frappucinos as I want (which makes extra stops a necessity). And best of all, I can turn the music up really, really loud and sing along without offending anyone.

8. I love to cook. There’s not much I can’t make from scratch. And I really love to bake but I truly suck big time at making my own pie crusts. The only way I can make a decent pie is by using those handy-dandy pre-made crusts, but I can do my own filling. Ummm…If anyone has any tips on how to stop meringe from sweating on me, I’ll be forever in your debt.

I’m tagging:

Patricia Sergeant
Kay Stockham
Carrie Alexander
Candy Halliday
Holly Jacobs
Cindi Myers
Delores Fossen
Natale Stenzel

What about y’all? You don’t have to share eight random facts, but at least two. And….I’ll draw two random winners from all the posts to win an autographed copy of my upcoming Brava romantic suspense, Remain Silent!

UPDATE: And the winners are….Jennifer Y and Liana Gentry Skye! Congratulations!! Drop me an email at jamie@jamiedenton.net with your mailing address so I can send your prize.

Categories : Jamie Denton

Comments (34)

The Irish Devil’s Theme Music

Posted by: Diane Whiteside | Comments (5)

Thursday, October 18th, 2007

Welcome to my very first time blogging at Brava Authors! In keeping with the spirit of good times that generally fills these halls, I’d like to talk to you about music. Yup, music.

You see, everyone of my heroes and heroines have theme songs. In fact, I have a very hard writing a book until I know exactly what their theme song is. Plus, the theme song isn’t about the relationship; it’s about the individual. It tells me their hungers, what they want in a romance – and not necessarily this romance. Often the song tell me how far they’re willing to go to make a relationship work.

So far <knock wood> my characters have introduced themselves and then told me their theme song, before I wrote their book. I haven’t written a book triggered by a song, although there are a couple of songs lurking in the back of my head, just waiting for the right character.

Since I write historicals, I’m eternally grateful to my characters for selecting their theme songs from artists who they wouldn’t have listened to while alive. It’s much easier finding recordings of the latest rock stars and pop divas than 1860′s music halls headliners. Duh! Although those old lyrics can be very, very interesting sometimes… But I digress.

William Donovan told me long before I put pen to paper that his theme song was Celine Dion’s “I Want You to Need Me.” It’s a song about being desperately in love with somebody, yet knowing they won’t – can’t – pay attention to you. Hearing that from such an incredibly strong man told me about his inner vulnerability. Here‘s a music video of it.

Viola’s theme song is also sung by Celine Dion on the same album, All the Way. It’s “Then You Look At Me,” which told me so much about how Viola’s heart opened up when she realized somebody – especially William – truly loved her. You can watch the music video from Bicentennial Man (which I’ve never seen <le sigh>) here.

What about you? Is there a connection for you between music and books? When you read certain books, does music run through your heads? Does music inspire you to write?

Hugs -
Diane

Categories : Diane Whiteside

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Reader Author Get Together 2008

Posted by: Dianne Castell | Comments (6)

Wednesday, October 17th, 2007

Howdy, Everyone.
Lori Foster and I are once again planning our 2008 Reader and Author Get Together in June and just thought I’d give everyone a sneak preview of what’s happening so you can add this fun event to your schedule. So far we have 70 authors, two agents, a NY editor, three publishers and we have seven months to go!
The location is Cincinnati, Ohio and the cost for the weekend is $35. That’s it! What a deal. 
We’ll open registration January 1 so check my website (DianneCastell.com) then.
Hope to see you there.
Hugs
Dianne and Lori

2008 READERS AND AUTHORS GET TOGETHER

Planning is underway!

Official registration forms will be available at http://lorifoster.com/community/readergettogthr.htm after the new year.
For now, here are some quick details…

DATE: June 6th-8th
LOCATION: Marriott North in West Chester, Ohio. http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/cvgno-cincinnati-marriott-north/
Rooms are $99 a night.
REGISTRATION FEE: $35
– that covers Friday night pizza party, Saturday morning continental breakfast and Saturday buffet.
Restaurants are nearby for dinner.

Industry professionals attending so far:

Cindy Hwang, Berkley
Crissy Brashear, Samhain
Margaret Riley, Changeling Press
Sue Grimshaw, Borders buyer
Roberta Brown, Brown Literary Agency
Laura Bradford, Bradford Literary Agency
Jennifer Schober, Spencerhill Literary Agency
Meriam Gray, Co-Founder, Topaz Promotions, LLC
Marisa O’Neill, RomanceNovel TV

Authors planning to attend:

1. Liz Andrews
2. Camille Anthony
3. Michele Bardsley
4. Becky Barker
5. Anya Bast
6. Jacki Bentley
7. Laura Baumbach
8. Elizabeth Bevarly
9. Toni Blake
10. Monica Burns
11. Susanna Carr
12. Dianne Castell
13. Sam Cheever
14. Billie Warren Chai
15. Ann Christopher
16. Mary Ann Chulick
17. Edwina Columbia
18. Diane Craver
19. Paige Cuccaro
20. Sharon Cullen
21. Sierra Dafoe
22. Lauren Dane
23. Gia Dawn
24. Jamie Denton
25. Kate Douglas
26. Carol Ann Erhardt
27. Katrina Farabaugh
28. Gail Faulkner
29. Lori Foster
30. Shelley Galloway
31. Heather Grothaus
32. Megan Hart
33. Ann Jacobs
34. Marcia James
35. Marteeka Karland
36. Celia Kyle
37. Rosemary Laurey
38. Marilyn Lee
39. Lora Leigh
40. Toni Leland
41. Mary Lennox
42. Michelle Levigne
43. Kimberly Logan
44. Melissa Lopez
45. Donna MacMeans
46. Lena Matthews
47. Janice Maynard
48. Erin McCarthy
49. Sarah McCarty
50. LuAnn McLane
51. Sandy McWhorter
52. Lucy Monroe
53. Shelby Morgan
54. Tuesday Morrigan
55. Anne Rainey
56. Tracy L. Ranson
57. Patricia Sargeant-Matthews
58. Jan Scarbrough
59. Michele Stegman
60. Kay Stockham
61. Kira Stone
62. DeNita Tuttle
63. Eve Vaughn
64. Shiloh Walker
65. Ann Warner
66. J. C. Wilder
67. Gwen Williams
68. Beth Williamson
69. S.J. Willing

This is the 4th event, and in the past we’ve donated all raffle proceeds to the Battered Women’s Shelter, but this year we’ll be donating to the CONDUCTIVE LEARNING CENTER of Greater Cincinnati, a local school specializing in education for children with spina bifida and cerebral palsy.
We haven’t forgotten the shelter, though. I organized an anthology with contributions from myself and 11 other authors, titled “THE POWER OF LOVE,” that will be published through Berkley in June 08, and proceeds from the sales of that book will go to the Battered Women’s Shelter.
We’ll also continue our fundraiser for the troops, including proceeds from a cookbook that I put together with donated recipes from authors, radio personalities, and a few readers, published through Samhain.
And of course, our event always includes one very special raffle for THE ANIMAL ADOPTION FOUNDATION.

We try to help as many causes as we can, and my volunteers are incredible, not to mention the readers and authors who show up and help!

If you’re an author or industry professional interested in attending, please contact me at lorilfoster@gmail.com
We’d love to include you!
Lori & Dianne

Categories : Dianne Castell

Comments (6)

The other day

Posted by: Jennifer Apodaca | Comments (6)

Monday, October 15th, 2007

The other day I was hanging out with Robert Crais… Okay I am totally lying.

Seriously people, I write fiction for a living, you really shouldn’t trust me, LOL!

Truthfully (no really, you can trust me) Robert Crais was the guest speaker at the Orange County Chapter of Romance Writers of America. I did meet him, and much to my surprise, he remembered me from a previous meeting. He has that “Aw shucks, I’m just a regular guy,” charm, and he’s cute.

He’s also a very successful author.

So as I listened to him talk about his career, I was also watching how the women in the audience responded to him. They loved him, but it wasn’t just his looks. While they didn’t hurt, it was something else.

Robert Crais made himself real to all of us. He showed us his vulnerablity by telling us a little bit about his background and how his family really wasn’t supportive of his career choice. He described his mother crying on the phone, and his father refusing to come to the phone and talk to him. He told us about some of his mistakes along the way. And occassionally, he made fun of himself and laughed along with us.

By the time he finished, everyone in the room felt like they KNEW Robert Crais and they all rushed to the bookseller to buy his books.

That’s what I like to see in my heroes. I want them to be successful at some point in the book, but what really connects the heroes to the reader is giving the reader a glimpse of their struggles and vulnerablities.

So now when I think of someone who looks like hero material to me, I think of Robert Crais.

What about you all? Who do you think of as hero material?

Categories : Jennifer Apodaca

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I Never Knew

Posted by: Lucy Monroe | Comments (40)

Tuesday, October 9th, 2007

After years thinly veiled hints and not so thinly veiled flat out pleas from the teenagers, we bought a hot tub. We did it for them, we really did. Just like we installed a pool in our very tiny backyard this summer (the deck was for me – but that’s another story). Only, I soon discovered a new love. A new passion…gasp, a new hobby almost. It’s called sitting in the hot tub until I’m a puddle of goo. Some of my best ideas used to happen in the shower…now it’s the hot tub. And it’s lots of fun when dh joins me, but the truth is, I love it just as much when the teens come out and we sit around talking, all nice and relaxed.

I wish I’d done it years before, but then maybe I wouldn’t appreciate it so much now. The truth is, it’s helped me carve bits of relaxation out of my schedule. With my writing on one hand, six teens/young adults in the house, my mom (who hasn’t been well physically for years) moved in just down the block, sisters with health issues and well, just life on the other, I can go days without coming up for air. But now, even if I only have ten minutes to call my own, I can use them to truly, totally relax. It’s a little slice of Heaven right here on Earth. LOL

So, darlin’s…what do you all do to relax???

Hugs,
Lucy

P.S. I’m the Queen of Giveaways, or at least Crown Princess – so I’ll be selecting a randomly drawn name from the comments on this blog to receive a signed copy of WILLING and of course a bit of chocolate. What’s a prize without chocolate?

Categories : Lucy Monroe

Comments (40)

The Writing Life

Posted by: Karen Kelley | Comments (10)

Monday, October 8th, 2007

I’m just finishing up my current book. Actually, I won’t be finished with it until the end of the month, but I’m getting really close. I finished going through it again yesterday and it sounds pretty good. I even laughed in places. I guess I can still escape with my characters.

Karl heard me laughing once when I was writing and asked what I was laughing about. I told him I was telling myself jokes I’d never heard before.

I’m always interested in how other writers work. I usually write 50 pages, then stop and go through it. I ended up cutting the first chapter. Chapter two was a lot stronger.

So anyway, I write about 40 more pages, then go back through it all again. The good thing about writing like this is that by the time I get to the end of the book it’s pretty much ready to mail off. I’ve tried to write it without going back through it but I start feeling bogged down and it gets so bad that I have to force myself to write. Writing should never be forced. A very wise woman once told me to just have fun with writing. As long as I remember her words, then I do okay.

I have so many ideas running around in my head it’s starting to make me antsy. As soon as I finish this book, I’m going to spend at least a week working on proposals and I’m going to do it looking at the ocean. Karl and I are going to throw a tent in the back of his pickup and take off for about a week. There’s a great campground we like to go to except we haven’t been in years. It’s right off the beach. Someday I want a house on the beach *sigh*

Okay, I’m going to see if I can time this post for in the morning that way y’all will think I got up early to write it *snort*.
Hugs,
Karen Kelley
Available Now!!! Double Dating With The Dead/Brava
Romantic Times 4 1/2 Stars!!!
Available Now!!!The Morgue The Merrier anth/Zebra
Available Now!!! I’m Your Santa anth/Brava
www.myspace.com/authorkarenkelley
www.authorkarenkelley.com

Categories : Karen Kelley

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