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Saturday, April 13, 2013

WELCOMING MY GRANDSON!



LOGAN’S BLESSING
                    By
       Lisa Hannah Wells

No sweeter blessing could there ever be
Of all God’s precious miracles there are
Than the birth of a perfect, healthy baby
This precious new life is His gift by far.

To love and to cherish and raise in His ways,
To protect and to teach him right from wrong
To always be there for him all of his days
And instill in him the values that will make him strong.

In this imperfect world, life is seldom fair.
We must teach him to never give up, believe in his dreams.
It’s okay to cry, feel emotion, celebrate the good and share.
That it’s good to help others no matter how hard it seems.

To love one another is God’s greatest command
To ensure that he knows this, will form his destiny true
A man, he’ll be, loving, proud, and successful, he’ll stand.
He’ll continue the circle, a wife and child, new now, and then, too.
                                 
   —Nana— 
 
       
                           LOGAN DAVID YOUNG  BORN APRIL 13, 2013

I'm officially a grandma!


 

Thursday, April 11, 2013

A British Rose Visiting Me Today.



Today, I have the pleasure of a visit with Stephanie Cage, one of our Roses in the UK. She’s talking about her latest release, a dance romance; PERFECT PARTNERS.

What did you see, hear or dream that inspired your book?
‘Perfect Partners’ was inspired by my experiences of dancing on a university ballroom team, and then being an avid fan of ‘Strictly Come Dancing.’  I loved the idea of writing about the glamorous side of dancing, the sequins and sparkle, but also keeping the story grounded in the real world.  For example, Lisa struggles to balance her love of dance with a day job in marketing, and agrees to take part in the ‘Couples’ show because the prize money would help to keep her beloved dance studio open. 

I have dearly loved the movies about dancing and romance. I think there is something inherently sensual about dancing. It brings out the sexy in people.

Which one of your main characters came across strongest to you?
Lisa and Redmond both came across very strongly to me, but I probably ‘see’ Redmond more in my mind, and identify more with Lisa.  Red’s a bit larger than life, with his Florida tan and his single-minded determination to win, both at the competition and at the game of love. 

How long did it take you to fall in love with your Hero/Heroine?
As soon as I saw Lisa standing in the doorway of Elaine’s office, dangling her dance sandals by their straps and fretting about the idea of being part of the TV show, my heart went out to her.  It took me longer to warm to Redmond because of the way he treated Lisa when he was young and foolish, but I soon realized that he’d grown up into a strong and generous man. 

I think it’s quite interesting how our characters become real people who live and breathe within us until we get them on the page to do the same for our readers.

Did you borrow certain traits for your characters from someone you know personally?  Which ones?

I think Red is a combination of every male dancer I’ve ever met, with a good dose of Anton du Beke thrown in.  Neither he nor Lisa is based on any one specific person in my life, though – I’ve always found it easier to invent a character than to try to make a real person fit within the scope of the story I want to write. 

Is this book a single category or can we expect to see more of your characters in a series?

I’m working on sequels to two books at the moment.  ‘A Step in the Right Direction’ is the working title of another dance story, featuring two students from Lisa’s dance school.  ‘Desperate Measures’ is the working title for my sequel to ‘Desperate Bid’, my first contemporary romance novella, published by The Wild Rose Press. 

Congratulations on being a rose in the garden! It sounds like you have the elusive time I lack to keep writing on series projects. I keep saying “One day,” and it will happen.

What is your most difficult “no-no” when you write? (Show vs. tell, dialogue, plot problems, passive voice, etc.)

I have a bad habit of spending too much time inside my characters’ heads and not enough showing their external world.  I’m working really hard on including lots of good physical detail in my current works in progress, and I’ve had very good feedback on them so far, so I guess I’m improving. 

That’s the other thing about our love. We always improve. It’s a slow and constant process, but so worth it!

When you take a break from writing, what do you do to allow your brain time to regroup?

I find walking in the beautiful Yorkshire countryside a great way to unwind, and I also love visiting the theatre.  I love anything to do with dance, so watching musicals is one of my biggest indulgences, and I also go to Zumba classes to try to counteract the effect of spending so much time at a keyboard.  

Would you consider yourself a plotter or a pantser?
I’ve always been more of a pantser but I’m trying to change that a bit so that I don’t spend so much time writing myself into corners. 

Yeah, I’m looking into changing that up, too. I’m hoping it will cut time in the revision process if things are planned out a bit more.

In one sentence, tell us what your book is about.
‘Perfect Partners’ is the story of dancer Lisa and her ex-partner and teenage crush Redmond, reunited to take part in a reality TV show with a twist. 

What is your one “guilty” pleasure?
Just one?  Buying yet more books to add to the TBR pile.  If I could have two, it would be books and chocolate!

Oh, yeah! You know you’re a writer when you’re hooked on books and chocolate. Coffee seems to be the other thing, but I prefer tea.


                                    Title: ‘PERFECT PARTNERS’                                                  


BLURB:
 
“What’s he doing back in London after all this time?”

Eight years ago, Lisa Darby’s dancing partner and first love, Redmond Carrington, left London for a fun summer on the cruise ships – and never came back. Lisa’s grown up a bit since then, and she’d like to think she’s prepared for anything, but when Red comes back from America with a proposal for her, she’s not sure she’s ready for what he’s suggesting.
A TV studio is filming a knockout competition of six of the world’s best couples – each of them partners both on and off the dance floor. Redmond wants Lisa to pose as his girlfriend so that they can compete. It’s an unbelievable opportunity for an aspiring professional dancer, and the spectacular prize money would help save Lisa’s beloved dance studio, which is in need of major renovation. Scooping the prize is going to take the performance of a lifetime from Lisa and Redmond, but with the sizzling tension between them, they might just pull it off.
It turns out that putting on an act for the cameras is the least of Lisa’s worries. As time goes on and she rediscovers her feelings for Redmond, she’s left questioning what’s really behind his offer, and where their partnership is heading this time.

Sensuality Level: Sensual

EXCERPT:

She stood up, dropped her fleece onto the bench, and took his hand, willing herself not to notice the way his strong fingers encircled hers, making her feel safe and protected. Whatever his body told her, it was a lie, she told herself. He’d never been anything but trouble, and he never would be. Their partnership was a convenience, nothing more. But his hand on her back, where her low-cut dress gave way to bare flesh, still felt warm and firm and right. And when he shifted his hold, her body still responded, sending soft shivers down her spine.
He pressed the play button on the CD player as he passed, and after a moment’s pause the music began. Even though they were dancing a rapid jive, skipping and spinning and dipping, she still had time to notice how his eyes were fixed on her with almost frightening intensity. That was something she’d forgotten about him. The way he did everything as if his life, or maybe more than that—the fate of the world—depended on it. It was as if time stretched when they were dancing. In between heartbeats he could move his feet in perfect unison with hers, adjust his routine to avoid other couples on the floor and fit around her occasional slips, and still favor her with a long, lazy smile whenever she followed a particularly tricky move.
Finally, just as Lisa was becoming breathless the track began to slow down. Redmond’s effervescent energy softened to an easy swing, and as the music drifted to a halt, he swung her into a slow, languorous drop. 

Buy links:

Author links:

Thanks so much for visiting with me today, Stephanie! Your book sounds terrific and it was a pleasure getting to know you better.

Monday, April 1, 2013

AUTHOR LEANNE DAVIS TALKS ABOUT POISON


Thank you for having me today! I am so excited to be sharing with you about my debut novel Poison, a contemporary romantic suspense!

Leanne has a large family and besides her busy imagination, she also has a great love for the outdoors.
She writes 'Romance you can relate to.'
 
What did you see, hear or dream that inspired your book?

My characters had a relationship 10 years before the start of Poison. I actually wrote the original relationship when I was barely out of high school. So years later when I was deciding what novel to write next I found the spiral notebooks with John and Cassie’s relationship in it from when they were 18 and 23…and it got me wondering, who would they be now? What would draw them back together? And how would they be as a couple now, despite what happened to them a decade before? And of course I had to add a villain to really mess with them…and Poison was soon born.

I love it when stories come back to haunt us like that.

Which one of your main characters came across strongest to you?

Cassie. She is completely flawed and struggling to put to rest a troubled past. She made many mistakes in her youth, and she has spent years trying to rectify them. I love the idea of forgiveness and redemption. Plus she’s kind of balls out there with who she is…something I only wish I could be!

How long did it take you to fall in love with your Hero/Heroine?

I have all my characters pretty much living in my imagination before I type a word about them. So I have to feel them, see them, hear them and nearly channel them for me to be able to start writing about them. Sometimes it feels like I verge on multiple personalities the way all these characters and stories endlessly talk in my head!

I totally understand where you’re coming from.

Did you borrow certain traits for your characters from someone you know personally?  Which ones?

I don’t look around me for inspiration. My characters form in my imagination and simply are who they are. I can’t change them even when I want too! I have even named characters names I’m not overly fond of because they simply were “that” person and I couldn’t seem to make them respond to any other name. I should be in control of all aspects of them…but it doesn’t always work that way…go figure!
 
Is this book a single category or can we expect to see more of your characters in a series?

Poison is the first of a four part series that is all based in the small ocean side town named Seaclusion.
Book 2, Notorious is contracted and will hopefully be out later this year! Notorious features the brother and sister of John and Cassie as they struggle to find their own paths in life.

Well, I love to read series books, so no doubt will add this to my TBR pile.

What is your most difficult “no-no” when you write? (Show vs. tell, dialogue, plot problems, passive voice, etc.)

As my editor could attest to, I struggle the most with line editing. I get the story and characters down, I then spend many, many rewrites fixing mechanics and small editing mistakes.

Everyone writes so differently and we all struggle with very different area. I would have never guessed.

When you take a break from writing, what do you do to allow your brain time to regroup?

Anything outside! I live on acreage so I spend a lot of time on yard work and in my garden. My family and I are huge into camping and boating…so we are constantly off to places all around Washington State. I love to horseback ride, ride 4-wheelers, swim, fish…the list goes on. It’s a nice break from typing on the computer.

Ah, yes activity! I sometimes forget what that is.

Would you consider yourself a plotter or a pantser?

Pantser. I am ashamed to admit I don’t even know how to outline a novel or do a character board. When other, more organized writers start explaining all their prep work and notes…I get itchy. I would never write a novel if I tried to plot it because I could never make myself start the work on an outline! Yet to me I am plotted, it’s just all in my head. That’s how it goes for me… I sit down and type the movie in my head. So I can’t even contemplate mapping it out beforehand. The fun of writing for me is seeing where my story lines goes, who and what the characters are…and yes, there are times it goes completely different than I ever dreamed. In the rest of my life I am hyper organized with everything; from my house, to my schedule, and my kids…just not my writing!

In one sentence, tell us what your book is about.

Cassie betrayed John ten years ago, and now he is the only person she has to run to when her violent ex-husband starts hunting her and her young son.

What is your one “guilty” pleasure?

Writing! The time I take to write, where I could be doing other more obviously productive things on my to-do list…I feel this kind of naughty pleasure when I take time away to do my most favorite thing…writing!
 

BLURB:

Cassie Reeves betrayed John Tyler a decade ago, but now, John is the only person Cassie can turn to for help protecting her son from her violent ex-husband. John’s quiet life as a small town doctor in Seaclusion, Washington has no place in it for Cassie, her son, or the feelings Cassie’s presence rekindles. John and Cassie’s mutual attraction reignites, despite everything that drove them apart a decade ago, and threatens to destroy them now. No matter how much Cassie has changed, and tried to right her past wrongs, there is no escaping her ex-husband. Cassie knows that only she can end what her ex-husband has started. But will she survive long enough to have a chance at the happiness that has escaped her for so long?



EXCERPT:

Cassie sighed and pushed the flowers onto the counter between them. She tidied her desk, avoiding his gaze. Finally she stood and gathered her things.

He watched her. He didn’t like hearing Tim was scared his mom wouldn’t come home from work. What kind of knowledge was that for a kid to have? Hell, he didn’t like that Cassie was scared that she wasn’t going to come home from work. He didn’t think anyone could fake the fear she had of the innocuous floral arrangement.

Cassie was just about to hustle past him, when he put a hand on her arm to stop her. She paused, looking at his hand, then up into his eyes. Her lips trembled. She quickly dropped her face from his view. She raised a hand to wipe at her cheeks. Tears?

Damn it all to hell. A stab of genuine sympathy filled him. He put a knuckle under her chin and forced her to look up him. Her eyes were glazed in moisture. She was trying not to cry. He swallowed, unsure why her efforts to hold back tears from him put a knot in his throat. Had he become so heartless with his anger that he couldn’t let her fear a man she seemed to think wanted to physically harm her?

“Cassie—”







Thanks, Leanne for being my special guest today! I'm always excited to have fellow authors on my site to share and promote and get to know!